Originally posted by Adam Went
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Yes, thanks, just dug out my copy. I too noticed the curious quote, "Holmes had emptied five barrels of his revolver into the creature's flank". I think that we can safely assume that Conan Doyle meant to say "chambers of his revolver" rather that "barrels"!!! There had, of course, been multi-barreled pistols, with basic revolving mechanisms, earlier in the century. The infamous "Pepper-box/Pepper-pot" revolvers, popular from the 1830's to the 1850's, but these were notoriously unreliable cap and ball weapons and had long since been supplanted by the the revolver proper, in both single and double action.
A new kind of multi-barrel Pepper-box type weapon, now using a metal "Pin-Fire" cartridge, did become popular, among certain elements of the criminal classes, in the late 19the century. This was a very small, short, easily concealed and usually 4 barreled little gun, the grips of which also served as a knuckle-duster and often came with a built in knife blade too! They were said to be very popular among the street gangs of Paris!
Lestrade does mention having a pistol himself, referring to his hip pocket. All I can surmise from this is that it would have been one of the many popular makes of "pocket revolver" that flourished at the time. Similar models, marketed for a ladies defence, were known as "Purse Pistols". These guns were the forerunners of the 20th century snub-nosed revolver, such as the Colt Detective Special.
Best wishes,
Zodiac.
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