During the train journey from Sherlock's office to the manor at Stoke Moran, Watson is struck by the jarring contrast between the beautiful weather on the one hand, and the sinister murder that he is investigating on the other. Here, situational irony heightens the ominous mood of the story. Watson describes the weather as follows:
It was a perfect day, with a bright sun and a few fleecy clouds in the heavens. The trees and wayside hedges were just throwing out their first green shoots, and the air was full of the pleasant smell of the moist earth. To me at least there was a strange contrast between the sweet promise of the spring and this sinister quest upon which we were engaged.
The beauty of the landscape seems perverse given the disturbing nature of Julia Roylott's murder; the rich natural imagery here would be a fitting backdrop for a picnic—not a murder investigation. Moreover, it is notable that the natural imagery here focuses on new life, especially in its description of the "first green shoots" and "sweet promise" of the spring. By contrast, Sherlock and Watson's investigation is concerned with death. By establishing this troubling contrast, the story generates situational irony, which only heightens the reader's sense of foreboding.
