The Adventure of the Speckled Band that of Dr Roylott. Holmes and Watson arrange to spend the night in Helen's room. In darkness they wait; suddenly, a slight metallic noise and a dim light through the ventilator prompt Holmes to action. Quickly lighting a candle, he discovers on the bell cord the "speckled band"—a venomous snake. He strikes the snake with a stick, driving it back through the ventilator. Agitated, it attacks Roylott, who had been waiting for it to return after killing Helen. Holmes identifies the snake as a "swamp adder" and reveals to Watson the motive: the late wife's will had provided an annual
The Fat of the Land (short story) the land", which means the best of what is available, "fat" meaning the best or richest part of something. While Wodehouse's stories are generally set in a timeless world, this story makes a rare reference to explicit years; it is stated in this story that one of Oofy Prosser's uncles, Hildebrand, died of an apopletic stroke in 1947, and his other uncle, Stanley, died of cirrhosis of the liver in 1949. The Drones Club Fat Uncles sweepstakes introduced in this story is also central to the 1965 short story "Stylish Stouts". "The Fat of the Land" was first published in