A Scandal In Bohemia Online Quiz | Thematic Fun

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1. It had been three whole days since Lord Florentine was murdered. Three days of persistent rain. Sunnyside Downs's finest had failed to find the culprit. The call I'd been waiting for finally came. I was to go to the Florentine's mansion, Bohemia as it was commonly known, and investigate. I arrived at Bohemia in my Egg & Egli Excelsior, and was acknowledged by the gatekeeper. In one smooth movement of his left hand, he produced a key from his pocket, inserted it into the lock on the gate, turned it clockwise and returned it to his pocket. He swung the gate open and I drove in. No introduction was necessary, I was expected. I asked the gatekeeper about the stonewall that ran the entire perimeter of the property and the possibility of somebody scaling it. "Impossible Detective Benedict," he said, "as you can see it is ten feet high and the razor wire that runs along the top is electrified. Anybody coming into contact with it would be sliced up and fried like bacon. Also Detective, notice the dry moats at both the front and rear of the wall, five feet deep and five feet wide. The only way in or out is through that very gate you just entered and I guard it with my life. This wall is so impenetrable that I like to refer to it by the name of the wall built by the fourteenth Roman Emperor in the second century. You do know the wall I'm talking about, don't you?"

Answer: Hadrian's Wall

"That is the one, Detective, although you will not find it in Rome. Emperor Hadrian gave the order to build this wall in around 122 A.D. and it stretches almost 120 kilometres across northern Britain from the estuaries of the Tyne in the east to the Solway in the west. Its main purpose was to mark the boundary of the Roman Empire at that point in time and to prevent invasions from the Barbarians inhabiting the lands north of the wall in what is modern day Scotland."

"It was built by the Roman legions who were stationed in Britain and reached an average height of fifteen feet and a width between eight and ten feet. It was completed in an impressive five years between 122-126 A.D. Less than twenty years later, Emperor Antoninus Pius built another wall a little further north than that of Hadrian. Dubbed the Antonine Wall, it was only about half the size of Hadrian's Wall and was abandoned soon after for a return to the larger of the two."

2. The butler was waiting for me when I drove to the front of the mansion. His right arm was plastered and supported by a sling. I knew I shouldn't have, but I couldn't resist some fun at his expense. "Welcome to Bohemia Detective Benedict," he greeted me with. "Splendid Jeeves, been in the wars I see, old chap?" I returned. "A minor mishap on the morning of the murder, nothing that won't heal." "That's the spirit Jeeves, stiff upper lip hey what?" "If you say so sir," evidently annoyed. "Now, Detective Benedict, you are at liberty to investigate any room of the mansion you care to, travel freely and unhindered upon the grounds and ask any question of any person. First off though, Lady Florentine awaits you in the library." "Lead on then Jeeves, tally-ho." "Just one last thing; my name is not Jeeves. I was born on the very same day that a certain Mr. Bannister became the first person to run the mile in under four minutes. My parents named me after this man, so if you don't mind please refer to me as ___ ."

Answer: Roger

"Thank-you, Detective, Roger will do just fine. The 6th of May 1954 is my birth date, the very same day that Englishman Roger Bannister took to the Iffley Road track at Oxford University and became the first person to run a sub four minute mile. The official time recorded was 3 minutes and 59.4 seconds and obviously became a new world record. That record was broken a mere forty-six days later when the Australian athlete, John Landy, recorded a time of 3 minutes and 57.9 seconds for the mile at an international athletics meet in Finland."

3. "Detective Eggbert Benedict, m'am". I'd never been introduced before when entering a room. The butler turned and left us. "Come closer Detective," requested Lady Florentine, "I make this five consecutive days of ceaseless rain." As I got nearer I noticed the old dame was in a wheelchair. She noticed I noticed. "To sate your curiosity Detective, I was thrown from a horse twenty years ago and left paralysed from the waist down. No more horses for me now, these books are my only pleasure. I've always loved my books, and my husband too of course, but his love for me eventually wilted away after my accident. As for his murder, Detective I have nothing to offer that may be of any use to you, my days are spent here in the library where nobody else ventures. Be certain you speak to the housemaid Maria, though. If my husband had any inclination that his life was in danger he would have confided in her. They had been lovers this past ten years, all with my knowledge and blessing. Our situation was just like that novel 'Lady Chatterley's Lover' except the roles were reversed. Please be a dear and take it down from the shelf for me, you do know the name of the author who wrote it, don't you?"

Answer: D H Lawrence

"I shall spend the afternoon reading this Detective. It tells the story of Connie, the Lady Chatterley of the title, whose husband Clifford Chatterley returns home from war paralysed and impotent. He goes on to become a successful writer and befriends a group of intellectuals who he entertains at his mansion. Connie however distances herself from this group, finding them not to her liking, and eventually meets the gamekeeper employed by her husband whilst walking the grounds of the Chatterley Estate.

The gamekeeper, Oliver Mellors, also recently returned from military duties, and Lady Chatterley soon enter into a sexual relationship which, in time, turns into one of mutual affection. D.H. Lawrence caused quite a furor when he first published this novel in 1928.

It was banned from publication in many countries owing to the, shall we say, colourful language and graphically detailed acts of passion."

4. I took Lady Florentine's advice. I spoke to Maria the housemaid first. I found her in the dining room with a glass vase in her right hand. She was lovingly dusting it with a cloth she held in her left hand. "I am aware of the arrangement between you and Mister Florentine," I thought it best to be upfront from the beginning. "That we are lovers?" she gasped. "Please, you must not tell a soul." I left it at that. No more needed to be said. "Did he ever mention to you that his life was in danger?" I asked. "Oh, Lord Florentine, no, not that I can recall." "Never mentioned any enemies, people he'd wronged?" "Never to me, Detective; he was a good man." "Where were you when he was shot?" "I was in the laundry preparing a load of washing." "Your accent, where is that from?" "I am from a small island located in the Venetian Lagoon that is renowned for the glassware that is produced there. Both the glassware and the island share the same name. This vase I was just dusting actually comes from that very place Detective, it is called ___?"

Answer: Murano

"You are very knowledgeable Detective. Murano is a tiny island located roughly one mile north of Venice. In the late thirteenth century, for fear of the timber architecture being destroyed by fire, Venetian glassmakers were ordered to move their operations to Murano.

It was there that the craftsmen refined their skills and became the leading glassmakers in the world; at one time they were the only people who knew how to make glass mirrors. Their skill was so highly regarded they were considered the island's leading citizens and were granted certain rights not enjoyed by other citizens such as being allowed to carry a sword and immunity from prosecution.

But there was a downside to this too. If a glassmaker decided to leave Murano and ply his trade elsewhere he ran the risk of being killed or having his hands cut off."

5. From the moment I arrived at Bohemia, and everywhere I went within the mansion, I could hear a violin being played. I followed the sound and came to a bedroom with a man in a pink shirt, black pants and sneakers. When he saw me he relieved his right hand of the bow and offered it to me. "Frederick Florentine, son of the deceased" he said as I shook his hand. "My band uniform, not my usual attire." He must have read my thoughts. "Oliver Inglebottom's Handpicked Orchestra," he said whilst turning to show me the exact same embroidered on the back "available for weddings, parties, anything". "I'll keep that in mind," I said, "but for now, any idea who killed your father?" "None Detective, the only person here with a firearm is Gavin the gamekeeper. Perhaps you should be questioning him." "And your whereabouts at the time of the murder?" "Right here practicing. We are currently performing Giuseppe Verdi's opera based on the Shakespearean play whose name should not be mentioned inside a theatre. Well, we are hardly in a theatre now, so can you tell me its name Detective?"

Answer: Macbeth

"Well, I never thought a person of your ilk could be so cultured, Detective. Giuseppe Verdi was born in Italy in 1813 and is highly regarded as one of the greatest operatic composers of all time. 'Macbeth' was the first opera he wrote that was based on a Shakespearean play and it consists of four acts. Its premiere performance was in Florence in 1847 but he later revised it in 1865 for a production in Paris. It is this later version which is more well known and commonly performed today."

"The origins of the superstition surrounding the play 'Macbeth' are uncertain, but many theories have been put forward. These include that it was cursed by witches, it was cursed by an actor in the original production who died, and also that the curse was written into the script by Shakespeare himself. Whatever the real reason might be, actors do take the superstition seriously and are forbidden from mentioning its name inside a theatre, calling it 'The Scottish Play' instead".

6. The rain had finally abated. I went out for some fresh air. I followed the path that led to the gamekeeper's lodging. He was cleaning his rifle when I came upon him. "I'm told you're the only one here with firearms." "Only this rifle Detective, but it's never been used against another man." He loaded his rifle and stood up, raised it, closed his right eye and looked down the barrel with his left. BANG! A rabbit ceased hopping one hundred yards in the distance. "Well, that's tonight's dinner taken care of," he said. "Can you account for your movements at the time of the murder?" I asked. "Aye, I remember it was almost midday. I'd just killed and plucked some chickens for Pierre, he's the cook here, and the chauffeur too, nobody else knows how to drive a motor vehicle. I entered the mansion through the laundry where the maid was putting what looked to me like new red bedsheets into the washing machine. I called out for Pierre when I found he wasn't in the kitchen but he didn't answer. Just as I was putting the chickens on his bench, that's when I heard the gunshot. I can't add much more but I can forewarn you about a little secret Pierre has. His real name is Peter and he comes from some place called Cincinnati. He likes to keep up the pretence of being French though for the sake of the Florentine's. They like to boast to their friends about having a French chef. Boy, can he cook though; guess what French dish he made with those chickens".

Answer: Coq au vin

"I guess that means cock in wine to me and you Detective. I only have one rooster here, though, and he's for breeding purposes only. Pierre says it is a traditional dish from the Bourgogne region of France and two chickens are a good substitute for one cock.

He cuts the birds into pieces and soaks them in a pot with onions, carrots, herbs and a Burgundy red wine, preferably leaving them overnight. The next day he takes the chicken pieces out and browns them in a pan before returning them to the pot and cooking its contents on a low heat for an hour or two. Just before it is finished he fries some bacon, garlic and button mushrooms in a pan which are added to the pot.

It is much more appealing than his escargot; they are snails would you believe? His bouillabaisse, a seafood stew, and filet mignon, beef tenderloin steak, are much more to my liking."

7. I walked back to the mansion and found Pierre in the kitchen. I placed the freshly skinned rabbit on his bench. "Compliments of the gamekeeper." I said. "Merci Monsieur, you must be zee great Detective, oui?" "Oui Pierre, or should I say yes Peter?" he gave a startled look. "Your secret is safe with me, you're not harming anybody. One simple question is all I ask of you. Where were you when Lord Florentine was murdered?" "I was at Sunnyside Downs Hospital" he said while cutting the rabbit into pieces with his left hand. "The butler had slipped on a wet patch in the paving during his morning rounds. Being the only person here who is able to drive an automobile, I took him to see a doctor. It turned out he had broken one of the two bones in his forearm. I can't remember what the doctor called it, perhaps you can Detective, oui?"

Answer: Ulna

"I suppose you know that from your colleagues in forensics Detective. Yes, the ulna is the longer and thinner of the two bones in the forearm, the shorter, thicker bone being the radius. When looking at your arm with it positioned so that the palm of your hand faces forwards, the ulna is the bone on the inside of the arm, that is it is closest to the body.

The lower end of the ulna forms a joint with the bones of the wrist, while the upper end joins with the radius and the bone in the upper arm, known as the humerus, to form the elbow joint. Both the tibia and the fibula are bones located in the lower leg."

8. I knew the Florentines had a daughter named Felicity. She was a regular in the social pages of the local newspaper. A real beauty. I sought her out and found her in her bedroom. She was sitting at a dresser brushing her hair into the mirror. She spotted my reflection an turned around. "Finally you've come to see me, I have much to tell you Detective Benedict. Please come in and sit beside me here," she said and turned back to face the mirror. What man couldn't obey? She began to tell me what she knew without being prompted. "There was an eerie silence throughout the mansion that day. I was sitting in this very position when the murder happened. I saw it all reflected in this mirror." She pointed her finger at the reflection of a garden chair. "My father was seated right there. I think the murderer may be a foreigner Detective, he was wearing a white shirt with Ohio printed on it, that is in America I think. I never saw his face though, I only saw him from behind as his back was turned the entire time. It all happened so quickly but I remember quite vividly that the hand which held the gun was here on the left side of the mirror as we look at it. This has to mean that he was left handed, doesn't it? I hope this helps you Detective, it is all I can offer. You must think me vain to spend so much time in front of the mirror, just like that youth in Greek mythology who was always gazing at his own reflection. What was his name again?"

Answer: Narcissus

"What a silly boy Narcissus was Detective. Such a beautiful youth that he was too self obsessed to requite the affections shown towards him by the Nymph Echo. She herself had been punished by Hera because her incessant chattering had prevented Hera from discovering Zeus's infidelities with other Nymphs. Echo was condemned to speak only when spoken to, and even then only repeating the last few words she heard.

After her advances were continually repulsed by Narcissus, Echo pined away until all that was left of her was her voice. Narcissus too was punished for his behaviour by Nemesis, although some myths say Aphrodite, by being forced to fall in love with his own reflection in a pool of water.

He was so in love with what he saw he couldn't tear himself away from the reflection and so he too pined away and transformed into the flower that now bears his name."

9. I'd put it off long enough. It was time to investigate the scene of the murder. I reached the garden chair that Felicity had pointed to in the mirror. I circled it in hope of finding some traces of evidence. Nothing. "Hello there," I heard a voice call from behind me. "I'm Gerald the gardener." I offered my right hand to him so as to shake his. He lifted his right arm to reveal a stump where his hand should have been. "A bit of a run in with a lawnmower I'm afraid. Lord Florentine used to come and sit here for an hour everyday just before lunch. Rain or shine, it didn't matter, down he would come. I found something here this morning that you might be interested in. It was hidden in the grass." He handed me a small, unmarked tin container. I took the lid off to see its contents. It looked like a solid piece of wax. "Perhaps something for polishing furniture," I remarked. "It could be" said Gerald "I did think it might have been that waxy stuff those young dandies use for styling their hair, but that doesn't come in a solid block. I can't think what it's called though, can you?"

Answer: Pomade

"Now that does take me back to my younger days Detective. All of us youths wanted to achieve the fashionable wet-look with our ducktail and quiff hairstyles by applying that thick, greasy styling agent in our hair. Modern pomade is typically made from a mix of petroleum jelly, wax and mineral oils and are usually scented.

But this wasn't always the case. Pomade in the sixteenth century actually contained mashed apples which has lead to one theory as to how pomade was named; pomme being the French word for apple."

10. I had everyone assemble in the drawing room. My investigation was complete. It was time to name the culprit. "An unspeakable crime was committed here at Bohemia. The murder of a defenceless man. While speaking to you all I have learnt many things, some relevant to the case, others not so. Suffice it to say, there is a scandal in Bohemia that makes the Sherlock Holmes story of the same name look like a Sunday school picnic. It is the particular information supplied by one of you present here that has proved invaluable to me. It's an easy thing for us mere humans to speak untruths, but one thing that's certain is that a mirror never lies. The murderer of Lord Florentine is ___?"

Answer: Frederick Florentine (the son)

I've not met a person yet to be pleased with being accused of murder. Frederick Florentine was no exception.

"Murder my own father? I think your head has been scrambled Detective."

"Think what you like Frederick, it is not going to alter the facts. It was the information provided to me by your sister Felicity that has proved pivotal to me in identifying you as the murderer. Your sister witnessed the murder as it happened as a reflection in her dressing table mirror. Although what she thinks she saw is not exactly what she did see. Firstly, she believed the murderer, who had his back turned the entire time, was left handed because the hand which held the gun was reflected in the left hand side of the mirror. But watch me as I stand with my back to this mirror here on the wall. As you can see I am raising my right hand and it is being reflected on the left hand side of the mirror. This left me in no doubt that the murderer was in fact right handed. From the observations I have made while talking to you all, I have noticed an unusually high proportion of left-handed people. The gatekeeper deftly unlocked the gate on my arrival with his left hand, Maria the housemaid was dusting a vase left-handed, Gavin the gamekeeper fired his rifle with his left hand and Pierre the cook used his left hand when cutting up a rabbit. These four were immediately excluded from suspicion, as were Roger the butler with his broken right arm, a perfectly legitimate alibi which was confirmed by Pierre who took him to hospital, Gerald the gardener who has lost his right hand in an accident, the wheelchair bound Lady Florentine for obvious reasons and of course my star witness Felicity. That leaves just one suspect, you Frederick, who I know by the way you held your violin bow in your right hand when I first met you that you are right handed. Your violin playing could be heard all throughout the mansion while I have been here, but at the time your sister witnessed the murder she said that there was an 'eerie silence' throughout the house. This contradicts your alibi that you were practicing your instrument at the same time."

"I do have more evidence though and I am glad that you are still wearing your band uniform. Felicity believed that the murderer may have been foreign, perhaps American, because she saw the name Ohio printed on the back of his shirt. Once again, this was a trick of the mirror. Frederick, come stand here with your back to this mirror. Now everybody look into the mirror and tell me what you see. That is correct, the name OHIO printed in capital letters, but the mirror has reversed what is actually on the shirt. If we turn Frederick around we will see that OHIO becomes OIHO, or should we say, Oliver Inglebottom's Handpicked Orchestra. Because of the distance between the murder site and the mirror at Felicity's dresser, it was impossible for her to see the smaller, lower case lettering on the shirt. She could only see the large capitals of OIHO."

"I know Felicity that you are thinking the murderer was wearing a white shirt and the one that your brother is now wearing is pink. Your brother had an accomplice after the fact. Now Maria, when I first told you that I was aware of your arrangement with Mister Florentine, you quipped that you ARE lovers. This is an odd way of referring to a person who is deceased, normally one would say WERE lovers. But you weren't referring to Lord Florentine at all. You were referring to Frederick as you are a lover to him as well. By disposing of Lord Florentine you could both devote yourselves to each other. At the time of the murder, you, by your own admission, were in the laundry doing a load of laundry. This was confirmed to me by Gavin the gamekeeper who saw you putting some new red sheets into the washing machine. As we all know the weather has been terrible these past five days with incessant rain, so who does laundry in such weather that it has no chance of drying? No, you weren't washing those sheets because they needed washing, you were waiting for Frederick to bring the white shirt he was wearing to be washed with those new sheets so that the red dye would run out of the sheets and turn his white shirt pink."

"Now, one last thing before I turn you over to my friends at Sunnyside Downs Homicide Division. This tin container was found by Gerald the gardener at the murder scene. We were both unsure as to what the waxy substance was inside. I now believe that it belongs to you Frederick. This is the peg dough that you apply to your violin bow is it not?" At that I tossed the tin to him, farewelled Lady Florentine and thanked Felicity. My task was complete and I was glad to be leaving. I couldn't wait to be back on the streets of Sunnyside Downs where the real criminals lurk".

Source: Author Aussiedrongo

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A Scandal In Bohemia Trivia Quiz

Introducing Eggbert Benedict, the hard-boiled detective. Whenever the local constabulary of Sunnyside Downs ends up with egg on their faces, they inevitably turn to Detective Benedict to crack the case.

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