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At some date, Sherlock became addicted to morphine a common problem in the 19th century and also occasionally took cocaine. Holmes was also an expert on forensic science and a master of disguise. He was also a polymath and was very knowledgeable of several scientific subjects and was an accomplished violinist. The investigator had many battles of wits with criminal masterminds and his greatest enemy was the evil genius Professor James Moriarty. In a fight with Moriarty, also known as the ‘Napoleon of Crime’, the two men plunged into the Reichenbach Falls, in Switzerland, and it appeared that Holmes had died. Years later he returned to the amazement of many and announced that he had faked his own death. He once again helped British police with some of their most perplexing cases, such as the mystery involving the Hounds of the Baskervilles. The great criminal investigator never married but he apparently had a romantic interest in one of his many criminal foes, Irene Adler <ref>Jack, p 141</ref>. In about 1904 Holmes retired and he took up beekeeping but it appears that the police still sought out his help. During the First World War, his advice was sought out with regard to the activities of German spies in London.
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====Literary antecedents of Sherlock Holmes====
Many critics at the time of the stories’ publication came to believe that Holmes was inspired not by a real-life detective but by fictional ones. There are some critics who believe that Conan-Doyle was inspired by the works of the English mystery writer Wilkie Collins. However, undoubtedly one of the main influences on the creation of the world’s most famous fictional detective was Edgar Alan Poe’s, (1809-1849). He created the world’s first fictional detective, Auguste Dupin. He is a very logical and rational thinker who uses reason to solve apparently impossible mysteries. For example, in ‘The Murders in the Rue Morgue’ (1841), he solved a murder that took part in a locked and inaccessible room. The creator of the world’s best-known fictional crime fighter was a great admirer of the Baltimore born poet and short-story writer. The stories of Dupin certainly influenced the writer and doctor. Another potential model for Holmes was the fictional French detective M. Lecoq, who was created by Emile Gaboriau (1832–1873). This Parisian criminal, like Holmes, is an opium addict and there are several other similarities to the most famous creation of Conan-Doyle.<ref> Murch, Alma Elizabeth, and Peter Owen. The development of the detective novel (London, Peter Owen, 1968), p 116</ref>
====Was Joseph Caminada the real Holmes====
Another potential model for the hero who solves so many mysteries was Joseph Caminada (1854-1914). There are many undeniable similarities between this real-life detective and the one who operated out of Baker Street. Caminada was born in Manchester and was the son of an Italian immigrant. He joined the police force at an early age and studied criminals so that he could catch them, this is something that Holmes also did, during his many visits to London’s Underworld. Caminada was like Conan Doyle's literary figure, a master of disguise and also used a scientific method to catch criminals, which resulted in him apprehending over 1000 offenders.