Question

the hound of the baskervilles, excerpt from
chapter 6
sir author conan doyle
baskerville hall
sir henry baskerville and dr. mortimer were ready upon the appointed
day, and we started as arranged for devonshire. mr. sherlock holmes
drove with me to the station and gave me his last parting injunctions and
advice.
\i will not bias your mind by suggesting theories or suspicions, watson,\
said he. \i wish you simply to report facts in the fullest possible manner
to me, and you can leave me to do the theorizing.\
\what sort of facts?\ i asked.
\anything which may seem to have a bearing however indirect upon the
case, and especially the relations between young baskerville and his
neighbours or any fresh particulars concerning the death of sir charles.
i have made some inquiries myself in the last few days, but the results
have, i fear, been negative. one thing only appears to be certain, and
that is that mr. james desmond, who is the next heir, is an elderly

in the first sentence of the last paragraph of the passage, sherlock
holmes uses figurative language to explain his answer.
what does sherlock holmes literally mean by telling dr. watson, \if they
are guilty we should be giving up all chance of bringing it home to them\?
a
he doesnt want to surprise or shock someone with
bad information.

b
he wont arrest a criminal at their home because
they will most likely escape.

c
he doesnt want to give the suspect the chance to
flee before justice can be served.

d
he doesnt want to accidentally deliver information
that causes grief for a family member.

Explanation:

To determine the meaning of Holmes' statement "If they are guilty we should be giving up all chance of bringing it home to them", we analyze each option:

• Option A: The statement isn't about surprising or shocking with bad info. Eliminate A.
• Option B: The phrase "bringing it home to them" means proving guilt. If they're guilty, not acting (by suggesting theories/suspicions) would let them escape justice, as Holmes wants facts first to build a case. This matches the idea of not giving them a chance to flee before justice is served.
• Option C: The focus is on proving guilt, not directly about the suspect fleeing. The statement is about preserving the chance to prove guilt, not preventing flight. Eliminate C.
• Option D: The statement has nothing to do with accidentally causing grief. Eliminate D.

Answer:

B. He won't arrest a criminal at their home because they will most likely escape.