something has been lost in the misquotation. Holmes was specifically referring to needless panic-mongering, which is why he wrote of ‘falsely shouting “Fire!”’. At some point in its transition to a modern-day proverb, the word ‘falsely’ was dropped. This is a peculiar alteration, given that we all accept that if an actual fire were to be spotted in a crowded theatre, it would not only be our right to shout ‘Fire!’ but a moral obligation.
Falsely
