Miss Helen Stoner

Lore & Background

Helen and her twin sister Julia were two years old when their mother married Roylott in British India. The sisters did not live happily at Stoke Moran, where Roylott's violent temper made him a terror in the local village. Two years before the story Julia became engaged; shortly before her wedding day she told Helen that she had heard a low whistle in the night, and she died warning of "the speckled band". Now Helen is engaged herself, and when Roylott started repairs outside the house she had to move into Julia's old room. Each daughter can claim an income of £250 on marriage, which would leave Roylott little to live on.

Reader's Guide

At Stoke Moran, Holmes finds that the bed in Helen's room is anchored to the floor, that an unconnected bell cord has been installed and that a ventilator hole joins the room to Roylott's. He tells Helen to show a light at the window once Roylott has retired and then go back to her own room. That night the "speckled band" proves to be a venomous swamp adder; angered by Holmes's blows, the snake attacks Roylott and kills him. Holmes chooses not to tell the police Roylott's full motive, to spare Helen any further grief.

Did You Know?

• Her sister Julia died under mysterious circumstances involving a venomous snake before Helen sought help.
• The threat against her life involved an animal trained to climb through a ventilator in her bedroom.