DAVID B. BECKWITH was born in Cumbria,U.K. His family emigrated to Perth, WesternAustralia in 1969. He studied Mathematicsand Philosophy at the University of W.A. He isnow a retired I.T. Professional, also a polyglot,a polymath, cook, painter, and an avid traveller(having circumnavigated the globe, visitedAntarctica, and spent more than six months inCentral & South America). He lives in a ruralregion bordering to the metropolitan area of Perth where he andhis wife grow vegetables and raise chickens for eggs. David makescheeses and fruit wines, when he is not writing Sherlock Holmes