The Sign of the Four is a novel starring the characters Sherlock Holmes and John Watson. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote it in 1889 after Joseph M. Stoddart, the managing editor of Lippincott’s Monthly, commissioned the story. Lippincott’s was an American magazine and Stoddart wished to make an English version utilizing British writers and editors. Stoddart asked Doyle to contribute a story. At this point, Doyle had only written about Holmes in the story A Study in Scarlet; thus, Holmes wasn’t yet that popular of a character. He didn’t become truly well known until short stories featuring him began running in 1891.
Doyle was born in Scotland in 1859 and went to school to become a doctor....
