The more outre and grotesque an incident is the more carefully it deserves to be examined.
The interplay of ideas and the oblique uses of knowledge are often of extraordinary interest.
The difficulty is to detach the framework of fact — of absolute undeniable fact — from the embellishments of theorists and reporters.
The chief proof of man’s real greatness lies in his perception of his own smallness.
The authorities are excellent at amassing facts, though they do not always use them to advantage.
The absence of the latter means nothing, though its presence may mean everything.
That which is clearly known hath less terror than that which is but hinted at and guessed.
Singularity is almost invariably a clue. The more featureless and commonplace a crime is, the more difficult it is to bring it home.
Problems may be solved in the study which have baffled all those who have sought a solution by the aid of their senses.
Out of my last fifty-three cases my name has only appeared in four, and the police have had all the credit in forty-nine.
One should always look for a possible alternative, and provide against it. It is the first rule of criminal investigation.
Now, Watson, the fair sex is your department.