Inspector Lestrade - "a little sallow rat-faced, dark-eyed fellow!"

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Among the many interesting characters in the Sherlock Holmes series is that of inspector Lestrade. Inspector Lestrade has been described as a prominent officer at the Scotland Yard who from time to time drops by at 221 B Baker Street to get some "useful hints" from detective Sherlock Holmes. Apart from Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's writing, this fictional character has also made appearances in several other novels and stories.

Despite the fact that little family background and personal profile is available about the Scotland Yard's finest, his character, abilities and physical traits have been touched upon in many of the stories he appears in. His first initial, that is, "G" has been revealed in 'The Adventure of the Cardboard Box'. Some believe that Doyle created G. Lestrade as an tribute to his first wife, as this is an anagram for 'Dearest L'. Lestrade apparently has an experience of 20 years with the force before Holmes' one of the most exciting stories takes place, 'A Study in Scarlet'

'In a Study in Scarlet' Lestrade has been described as "a little sallow rat-faced, dark-eyed fellow", where as in 'The Boscombe Valley Mystery his personality and appearance was put to words as "a lean, ferret-like man, furtive and sly-looking,". Inspector Lestrade is a man of limited intelligence, educational background as he uses simple language, is impatient, highly energetic and is a very particular dresser. Despite being painted as a villain most of the times by good old Dr. Watson, Lestrade also shows a sense of humor from time to time as once he remarked to Watson saying he doubted the sanity of Holmes.

Contrary to the customs of those days, according to Conan Doyle Lestrade keeps a hand gun with him all the time, which came to use in 'The hound of the Baskervilles'. Despite the fact that Holmes' confederate Dr. Watson has described him as a short man, it can be asserted confidently that his height must have been at least 5' 7'' as this was the minimum requirement to join the police force. During 'The Boscombe Valley Mystery' while Holmes was describing his hunt for footprints mentioned a rather eccentric feature about Lestrade, in his own words, "That left foot of yours with its inward twist is all over the place."

Inspector Lestrade is different altogether when it comes to his methods to get hold of criminal evidence. In Holmes' opinion Lestrade has no real gift for solving criminal cases yet his tenacity and determination put him way ahead of the rest of the officers. Holmes tells Dr. Watson once about the secret rivalry between Inspector Lestrade and Inspector Tobias Gregson and describes the two as "the best of a bad lot ... both quick and energetic, but conventional — shockingly so."

Often Inspector Lestrade feels frustrated at the hands of Holmes because of his unconventional methods. Lestrade says that he is a "practical man" dismissing Holmes' imaginative thinking and his detection methods. However, with the passage of time Lestrade starts appreciating Sherlock Holmes as a detective as Watson makes an observation while recording 'The Hound of the Baskervilles' that "from the reverential way in which Lestrade gazed at my companion that he had learned a good deal since the days when they had first worked together."

Lestrade once complimented Holmes in these words after he solves an unlikely case, "We're not jealous of you down at Scotland Yard. No, sir, we are proud of you, and if you come down to-morrow there's not a man, from the oldest inspector to the youngest constable, who wouldn't be glad to shake you by the hand." These words did not fail to penetrate the skin of the cold blooded London detective. Despite all his criticism about Inspector Lestrade and his abilities, even Holmes acknowledged him during 'The hound of the Baskervilles' as he commented to Dr. Watson that Lestrade, "is the best of the professionals, I think,"

Inspector Lestrade has featured in several adaptations and novels written by many prominent writers. Many unexplored regions of his private life and personality have been touched upon by other writers. He has been depicted by Colin Jeavons in the famous Granada TV adaptation of Sherlock Holmes stories.