"If I am Neville St. Clair, then it is obvious that no crime has been committed, and that, therefore, I am illegally detained."
"No crime, but a very great error has been committed," said Holmes. "You would have done better to have trusted your wife."
"It was not my wife, it was the children," groaned the prisoner. "God help me, I would not have them ashamed of their father. My God! What an exposure! What can I do?" (Twisted Lip.197-9).
Neville St. Clair would rather go to jail for murder than expose his kids to the humiliation of knowing their dad has been begging for a living. But if it's that bad, why did St. Clair beg in the first place? What do you think of the character development of Holmes's clients and culprits in these stories? Do you find their motivations believable? Why or why not?