and, in the struggle, Baldwin was shot in the face. With Barker's help, Douglas dressed the man in his own clothes to confuse his enemies. He then hid himself in the old priest hole at Birlstone. The main narrative pauses in order to explain Douglas' past in America. Douglas' real name was Birdy Edwards and he had been a Pinkerton detective in Chicago. Working for the Pinkertons, Edwards had traveled to Vermissa Valley to infiltrate a corrupt coal miner's trade union, secretly a cover for a murderous gang. After Edwards brought the gang to justice, the criminals attempted to kill him. Hounded, Douglas ran to England, where he met and married his second wife. Holmes urges Douglas to leave England. Douglas takes this advice, but, shortly after, Holmes learns from Barker that Douglas was lost overboard on the ship to Africa. Holmes believes Moriarty was responsible for ending Douglas' life and he swears to bring Moriarty down. Background Birlstone Manor in the novel is closely based on Groombridge Place near Tunbridge Wells, Kent. The backstory of The Valley of Fear was loosely based on the Molly Maguires. Publication history The Valley of Fear was first serialised in The Strand Magazine from September 1914 to May 1915. In the Strand, it was published with thirty-one illustrations by Frank Wiles. It was first published in book form by George H. Doran Company in New York on 27 February 1915, before the serialisation had finished in the Strand. The first British book edition was published by Smith, Elder & Co. on 3 June 1915. Like the first Holmes novel A Study in Scarlet, The Valley of Fear has two parts. The first part is titled "The Tragedy of Birlstone", and the second is titled "The Scowrers". Structure and themes Doyle crafted The Valley of Fear as "two parts and a coda". The novel has a number of major themes, including "problems of ethical ambiguity", and attempts to comment seriously on terrorist activity as profiled by American union struggles. Critics have shown how the American union struggles deal with similar issues in the contemporary political situation in Ireland. Adaptations Film Several films have adapted the book, among them: The Valley of Fear (1916), a silent film starring H.A. Saintsbury and Booth Conway. The Triumph of Sherlock Holmes (1935), a British film starring Arthur Wontner as Holmes and Ian Fleming as Watson. Sherlock Holmes and