Webley Bullpup

No telling what any of those people had in mind!

Yes, despite the Colt Single Action Army getting all the attention, there were probably a lot more Bulldogs actually carried in the Old West than is true for the SAA's. Smaller, less expensive, easier to conceal. I've never really looked into the term "Bullpup" as being so applied, but it makes sense to me: pups being smaller than dogs, short-barreled and/or smaller-caliber versions being handier than the larger pistols. I assumed that it was a known "guy's slang" term of that era. Had the two been conducting the conversation in the 1960's, Watson might have said that he kept a "Colt" or a "snubbie" or a ".38". Today he might have said that he kept a "Glock" or an "automatic" or a "9mm", with a reasonable expectation that Holmes would have understand his reference.

Watson, of course, mentioned to Holmes at their first meeting - while they're fessing up about personal quirks that might affect them as roommates - that he "keeps a bull pup". Many readers have wondered what happened to the dog, as it never appears in later stories. This is because there was no dog: what would a recently discharged army doctor, just back from Afghanistan, and living in a rooming house, be doing with a dog? Watson was really saying that he kept a revolver. I like old revolvers, and the Webley company manufactured many of them in that era: hence, I put the two words together, and Webley Bullpup I became. :-)

Hello, Everyone! I used to be on Holmesian.net but hadn't signed on for several months and it seems to have gotten lost in the swirling waters of Reichenbach Falls in the meantime. :-( I joined the Sherlock Holmes Social Network, where HN seems to survive - in a manner of speaking - as a sub Group. Unfortunately, the whole SHSN seems moribund. Anyway, , , great to be back in the world of SH! I noticed Shangas' name as I was signing in here. Any of my other old friends from the HN here? Mrs. Pencil? Teddy the Mongoose? Jim