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I submit for your inspection one John H. Watson.

The Perils of Sherlock Holmes

What is the meaning of this sentence?

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    Please edit your post to include the source and context for the sentence (it doesn't make sense and context may help).
    – mkennedy
    Dec 14, 2015 at 4:19

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The full quote is from The Perils of Sherlock Holmes, and is actually:

I submit for your inspection one John H. Watson.

It's a very formal and primarily British way of saying:

I would like to introduce you to a person named John H. Watson, so that you can understand and learn of him.

It is a way of preparing someone mentally to study and evaluate. The author is submitting it to the reader for inspection, in this case a character named John H. Watson.

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  • primarily British Hardly.
    – Ricky
    Dec 16, 2015 at 21:01
  • Not just British. The classic American television series "The Twilight Zone" regularly began with the host using very similar phrasing, "Submitted for your approval ..." followed by some introduction of the main character or events of the story.
    – Jay
    Dec 16, 2015 at 21:29

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