Here is an interesting word that I found In “The Case of the Airman’s Medal” from The Complete Casebook of Herlock Sholmes. I should have known what it meant by the context, but I was completely puzzled ’til I looked it up.
Masticate – chew (food)
Usage: “You imagine I have bitten off more than I can conveniently masticate.”
An interesting side note: This is the only story listed for 1919 in The Complete Casebook. I wonder if Mr Hamilton took a break from writing about Sholmes just like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle did with Holmes.