The Library

Initially I was somewhat sceptical as there seemed a lot of names and places which seemed to be a bit mind boggling. However I did enjoy it as I knew that I was likely to be going to some of these places later in the year - Japan, Hong Kong, China and Hong Kong. Once I had started I made one of the ...

Thanks for the info. Steve. I'll add it to my DW list. Not too many left to go now.

Best wishes

Stevie P

Bill for the use of a body


Mr Inosuke Hayashi remained impassive as he looked down into the square wooden box that contained the severed head of his only son. The police chief stood alongside Hiyashi. There was no clue to the sender. Hayashi’s son was thirty years old. He had gone to Hong Kong on business. His father believed that his son had somehow become involved in a rival drug smuggling operation, although his father had no proof. Hayashi swore to get his own back on the person or persons responsible.
Julian Day was sitting near the flagstaff on the peak of Hong Kong and gazing at the harbour below which looked like toys. From the peninsula’s eastern side the great causeway of Kai Tak airport projected like a pointing finger out into the sea, and every few minutes an aircraft owned by one of a dozen nations was either landing or taking off from it. Life was good for a young subaltern in September 1941. Unfortunately, it wasn’t to last. At 16.45 on the seventh December an announcement came over the radio informing everybody that Japan had declared war with Great Britain and the United States of America. At 21.15 on the 25th December. On the 25th December 1941, Hong Kong surrendered.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_Hong_Kong
The Japanese spared none of their enemies and Julian escaped death by diving head first over a one hundred foot cliff which was covered with coarse grass. The grass protected him from severe injury and Julian feigned death by staying still and waiting for the Japanese to move away. When dawn came he headed toward the local hospital in order to get his wounds seen to. The hospital was in chaos, the Japanese were killing the doctors and the nurses were being raped. Julian tried desperately to rescue one of the nurses who had been hiding in a small room. He placed a table under a roof aperture and climbed into the roof and tried to pull the nurse into the roof with him. She was terrified, as she had seen how the other nurses had fared. She made it clear that she would rather die than stay with the soldiers. Despite his efforts he was unable to lift her due to the injuries he had previously sustained. The last he heard was of her falling with a crash among the crockery and yelling “shoot meâ€￾. There was nothing he could do but wait. Soon after dark, Julian cautiously made his way down a fire escape at the end of the building. Julian decided that he had to get to the mainland in order to avoid being captured by the Japanese. He decided to swim across. It was a long hard effort but he did it. He then headed to Junk Harbour. He then paid a junk owner to take him away from Hong Kong. Julian recalled all that had happened twenty two years ago. Hearing the sound of voices behind him he turned his head. A man and a girl were approaching. That instant, he decided that she was one of the loveliest girl he had ever seen. She turned out to be a professional guide working for the Hong Kong tourist association. Her name , Merri Song. The gentleman friend with her was a Mr Bill Urata. The three of them chatted together and Bill informed Julian that he had some business to conduct in Manilla. He suggested that Merri could take Julian site seeing the following day. Julian had already made up his mind that he would marry Merri!!
Hayashi was heading home from Tokyo to Kyoto on the excellent train system. He had requested Udo Nagi (his right hand man) to ensure that the Mercedes would be at the station to meet him. Six hours later he arrived.
During the past three months Udo Nagi’s agents had investigated the families and pasts of the four men whose heads in boxes had preceded that of Hayashi’s son. The result was a dossier of over a hundred pages on each of them. To summarise their contents:
1) The radio salesman, Otoya Matsuko, had gone to Hong Kong in 1952 to solicit stocking up orders for the winter season. A pleasant mannered man, but after a lapse of eleven years no-one could give any information about him.
2) Dr Yasunari Kido, a lung specialist had gone to Honk Kong to attend a conference in April 1956. He was a man of means and had not appeared to have a trouble in the world. He also disappeared and was only recognised due to a livid scar on his right cheek from an old war wound. One of the porters remembered him as he had given him a very generous tip.
3) The engineer, Kayno Nakayama was a bachelor, but kept a regular mistress in Tokyo. He had gone to Hong Kong in August 1957 and stayed at the Victoria Hotel in Queens Road with his assistant; a young man named Araki . Araki had at the time been engaged to a girl of a good family whom he had shortly afterwards married. Udo Nagi’s agents had unearthed the fact that one night during their stay the two men had not occupied their beds at the Victoria. They blackmailed Araki into giving false information regarding his recent activities. Araki was never seen again.
4) The dealer in cultured pearls, Zosho Iwanami had gone to Hong Kong in January 1960. He had stayed at the Golden Gate Hotel in Austin road. The manager there remembered him on account of the Police enquiries pertaining to his disappearance. He had only stayed there overnight on three occasions out of the nine days that he booked. No one else could add any information relating to his whereabouts whilst in Hong Kong.
5) The younger Hayashi had gone to Hong Kong in the previous November. Being a rich man, he had stayed at the fabulous Marco Polo hotel in Kowloon. Several of the staff remembered him perfectly well. He asked the hotel to keep his room available again for two days later as he was only going on a forty eight hour trip to Macao.
Overall it seemed that all five men had been lured to Macao and their deaths.
Nagi went to Hong Kong personally to investigate. One of his agents told him that a high class brothel owner named Mrs Lo used to own the place. She had since sold it and bought a little villa on the sea-shore. She was able to give Nagi the address. Further enquiries brought forth two elderly couples who occupied the place as caretaker servants. They both said that Mrs Lo came there very rarely and their money was sent to them regularly each month through a bank in Hong Kong. One of the couples said that a Japanese gentleman was with them. A few weeks later they had been given three months pay and told that they no longer required their services. Nagi then decided to take his thugs into the villa one night, tied the caretaker up and searched it. In a locked inner cellar he found the remains of five headless bodies. The captives described Mrs Lo as a tall middle-aged Chinese named Ti Cheng who had aggressive features and a slight squint. To Nagi’s intense satisfaction the description fitted Mok Kwai of the Moon Garden.
Hayashi tells Nagi to bring the woman who killed his son to him.
Julian & Merri decide to take a tour of the island. They then lunch at Gaddi’s restaurant at the peninsular - one of the best on the island. Julian tells Merri a little of his background. His surname is Fernhurst not Day. Julian also told her of a man named O’Kieff who was at Oxford with him. O’Keefe was an occultist who joined the diplomatic service. His first post was in Brussels and it happened that O’kieff came to live there for a while. He was very wealthy and was head of a syndicate of international crooks who controlled an underworld empire for white slaving, dope running, smuggling and selling military secrets. Julian planned to trap them. Julian confided in his first secretary, a man named Caruthers. Diplomats were not supposed to get involved themselves with that sort of thing but Julian persuaded him to play. After a conference in Brussels he got O’Kieff to invite Caruthers (as well as Julian) to dinner with a view to catching a much bigger fish. After dinner Julian was picked up drugged and unconscious from a back street gutter. After this incident the ‘Unholy Crew’ had taken Caruthers back to the Embassy and hypnotised him into unlocking the Chancellery safe. When told of it he committed suicide. Julian had no evidence against him but the suggestion was that he had deliberately sold the countries secrets.
The next day Merri takes Julian to visit her mother Tilly Sang but she was not very responsive. They enjoyed the day and in the evening had dinner at the Princess Garden night club so that they could enjoy the dance floor. At the end of the evening Julian asked what they could do the following day. Merri reminded him that he had only booked her until the following day. She was therefore spending the next day with Bill Urata when he returns from Manilla. Julian was really depressed. It became apparent that both Julian and Bill both wanted to marry the young lady. It was also a surprise when Merri’s mother told Julian that they had met before ..... in a hospital. She was the nurse (Matilda Cray) who he had tried to protect while the Japanese soldiers were wrecking it. She ended up being sold to brothel. Julian arranged to meet with Merri to explain what had happened. He would wait in the car until she arrived. Julian was sitting in the car at the entrance to the lido. They then headed to one of the floating restaurants at Aberdeen bay which was two miles from the lido.
After an excellent dinner they were viciously attacked by a gang of thugs who jumped off an unlit launch. Julian fought hard but it was one against many. Merri was dragged onto the launch. One of the other men hit Julian with a bludgeon. Julian blacked out and fell into the water. Julian woke up in hospital and was discharged a few days later. Julian’s first visit was to Tilly’s house. He told her of Merri’s abduction and she thanked him for trying to protect her. Later that evening Tilly asked Julian to come to see her. She told Julian that a man came to her door and that she needs to go to Japan if she wants her daughter back. The man was Japanese and he told her that she must be in the lounge of the Miyoko hotel in Tokyo at 10.pm a week from today or her daughter will be cut up into pieces. Julian believed that the head of the Japanese group must have a lot of power and money behind them and he believes he may well prefer valuable assets such as estates or antiques. Most of Merri’s valuables weren’t that interesting but one item was very valuable, it was a magnificent life-sized gilded bronze figure of the goddess Kuan-Yin. Julian believed that he may just be tempted into a deal - the Bronze figure for the return of Merri. Tilly had a photograph of Kuan-Yin. She send’s it to the hotel in Tokyo and an interested reply returns very quickly. Julian agrees to act as an intermediary and take the bronze to Japan himself.

On his way back to his room he is accosted by Bill Urata, who starts to argue and throw punches whilst insisting that Merri belongs to him. Julian retaliates but logically argues that they should calm down and decide what she wants. Urata was worried as he had been told to return to Japan.
Tilly, meanwhile has arranged for Kuan – Yin to be packed in a large wicker basket. The Bronze has also been given his own cabin on the German ship ‘Lubeck’. Julian & Urata fly to Osaka. Julian has a room made ready for his arrival. Julian then moves. He then moves on to Kyoto and stays at the Miyako hotel. Urata gives Julian a massive site seeing tour which he enjoys immensely. It included the Heian Shrine; Kinkakuji; the Golden Pavilion; the Tatsumara Silk Factory; the most famous of all Zen Buddist temples, Ryoanji; Noh Hall (to see a Noh play; Nijo Castle; Katsura Palace; the Moss garden at the temple of Saiho-ji;. They had lunch at Hyoties. They were unable to visit the Imperial Palace as a permit would be required. After lunch Urata proposed that they should visit the Daigoji Temple, it’s some way out but one of the highlights of these parts. They decided to defer this trip until the following day.
The following morning Urata phoned Julian from reception advising him that there was no evidence to suggest that that Hyashi had anything to do with Merris’ kidnap. They had, however traced the ship that Merri was brought in on. It was a tramp steamer called the Matabura. On the day that Merri had been kidnapped, the Matabura had been due to sail from Hong Kong to Yokahama calling into Osaka on the way. That morning, a shipping agent asked if they could take on some passengers; a Chinese gentleman named Ling Yee with his wife and daughter travelling to Osaka. The daughter was recovering from a serious illness and so would be carried onto the boat by stretcher. She would be kept to her cabin and her mother would take her meals. Despite the frantic comings and goings Bill Urata and Julian never managed to see the person being removed from the ship. Julian however, was certain that it must have been Milli. Julian and Bill were desperate to find out which cabin she had stayed in. Their enquiries enabled them to find out which one it was. Julian scoured the cabin whilst Bill checked to see when the ship was leaving. Julian found nothing. He went to open the cabin but found it locked. Had Bill locked him in? By the time he managed to get out the ship was well away from land. The weather was very rough and so he had to wait until an opportunity came along to get off the ship which was now on a sixteen day , non-stop trip to Honolulu. Overnight the vessel had moored no more than a mile away and Julian decided to swim for it. His clothes impeded his progress but a junk crew threw him a rope and took him into the harbour (for which they were rewarded with some sodden notes). The crew pointed him into the direction of a small hotel. He found out that the town was called Toba and after some refreshment in the hotel pointed him to the local railway station which would take him to Kyoto. A few hours later mr Utaka Urata apologises for the unfortunate situation that occurred on the Matabura. He knew nothing of his being Shanghaied. Bill was very wrong to have left you on board. Utaka agree’s to organise a formal dinner to discuss the sale of the Kuan-Yin. The restaurant is a geisha house called, ‘The Nest of the Phoenix’.
A Private detective was also invited but it was unfortunate for Julian that his detective was in the employ of mr Hayashi’s right hand man – Udo Nagi. Julian also decided to take a private detective (Mr Hidari Rinz) to ensure the safe transfer of the Kuan-Yin for Merri.
It wasn’t too much longer before the precious statue arrived accompanied by Pao Tin Yum & his wife The two of them asked for their room to be located in an adjacent bedroom to theirs for security reasons.
Rinzai had very quickly managed to talk to one of the maids in Hyashi’s house. She told him that Merri was located in the corner room on the upper floor, south end of the house. Julian decided that it may be safer to go straight to Hayashi’s house rather than the planned evening meal at the Phoenix. He organised two taxi’s to be available in time for the trip to the Phoenix. Porters carried the big wicker basket containing the statue. Pao Ping went to fetch the small van. Julian watched the basket being loaded into the van. He then gave instructions for the driver of one of the taxi‘s to lead the van to the Phoenix. After ten minutes Julian told the other taxi driver to take him to the corner of the street in which lay Hyashi’s house. It was getting dark and Julian managed to scramble over the garden wall and dropped into the garden. Meanwhile Hayashi has been plotting his own method of getting the Kuan Yin into his keep as well as Merri. Madame Sang was on the ship (Lubeck) sailing from Hong Kong to Osaka. She was preparing to be inside the Kuan Yin and shoot Hayashi, pleading justifiable homicide. Hayashi said that a second wicker casket had been made which resembles the other. It must be ready for this evening in order to switch caskets. The other casket will be brought to Hyashi’s house. So both parties distrusted each other and coincidentally ended up in the same house. Julian climbs into the house and goes into one of the upper rooms. Three men are there waiting and a fight starts. Others appear and a group of men throw Julian out of the window. Luckily for him he survives as he lands on another man but badly injures his arm & leg. He manages to get to the van and fight off the attackers. Julian then drives away saving not only himself but the Kuan Yin but failed to rescue Merri. It had been an obvious ambush that only Rinzai could have organised. Julian returned to the Phoenix. As he got out of the van he noticed another van of the same make and colour to the one he was driving. Then, the penny dropped – Hyashi must have had a duplicate made, but what was in it? He forced the lock. Satisfied that he really had got the Kuan-Yin , he entered the geisha house. He instantly saw Pao Tim Yum and his wife with another wicker casket. Julian asked them to open the casket. They refused. They told Julian that it could only be opened in the presence of Hyashi. Julian walked into the dining area where Hayashi and Urata had just finished dining. Two geisha girls were also there. As the dinner had finished Julian suggested that the porters bring up the big creaking casket. He expected it to contain the Kuan-Yin. It was however, a woman with a gun. Hayashi whipped out a small automatic and shot Tilly Sang. Hyashi wants to hide the scene up. Julian however wanted him dead. Julian tells Hyashi that his real name Fernhurst. It was you O ’Kieff and your gang that that ruined my career in Brussels and caused my friend Carruthers to commit suicide. Julian sprang, his arm almost useless but he manages to grab Hayishi’s hand and forces it upwards. A shot is fired, followed by two more. Hayashi advances towards the door, the wicker basket behind him. With her last reserve of strength, Tilly Song had risen up in it again and put two shots through his back. He falls dead. Despite everything, it was not to be a happy ending for Julian. Merri had decided that she had always loved Bill’ She wished Julian the very best of luck for the rest of his life.




Snippets


Page 14 - The peak in Hong Kong is only the highest of nine mountains in the eleven mile-long island, and the island itself only the second largest of an archipelago which, together with Kowloon on the mainland and the New Territories, goes to make up three hundred and sixty square miles of the colony.
Page 39 & 72 – Merri had grey eyes.

Two additional Snippets need to be added.
1) Charles beck informs me that Julian Day was supposed to have appeared in a total of seven Julian Day books relative to this theme. It never happened. It does make you wonder what the outcome would have been for Merri and Julian if they had been given the opportunity to fill those extra books that were originally planned for print. We’ll probably never know.

2) Julian started to read a suspense story called Star Raker by Donald Gordon. He said it was one of the most exciting books he had ever read. High praise indeed.
The criticism as in some other books is that it is more like a Michelin travel guide. DW obviously wanted a record of all the places he had been to. It is so precise. I wonder where the original photograph’s are, one ask’s?

When he was six years old, Robbie Grenn had been involved in an air crash. His parents had been killed. Sir Finsterhorn Grenn, his uncle, was now his guardian as well as the British ambassador in Athens .
Robbie survived the crash but his injuries’ were so serious that he had to learn to talk and walk again. By the time he was twenty one he could speak several languages. He was also fascinated by the famous Greek mythological stories. He was now twenty three years old and sitting in a restaurant by the harbour at Piraeus, Athens. After a few minutes he realised that the two men sitting at the table in front of him were talking in Czech. In fact one of them was the first secretary at the Czechoslovak legation. He could understand what was being said and although there was no specific talk of oil exploration in Greece, there were suggestions that this maybe the case. He was sure that there was something worth investigating even though family and friends were politely unimpressed.
Robbie decided that he would ignore them and returned to a manuscript he had been planning;
Nota **It was a simplified version of the Greek myths . ‘Zeus and his family’ being the first of various interludes where Robbie relates stories to his secretary/chauffer (Stephanie) whilst they were driving or staying through the relevant areas of Greece. Whilst many readers of these myth’s maybe fascinated by this abbreviated version I feel there may be many readers who may prefer to read these at another time. As a result I have removed these from the main body of the book.**
He decides to contact Luke Beecham, a friend of Robbie’s, as well as the chief representative in Greece for a large UK petroleum company. He promises to investigate.
In the meantime he decides to take a job at the Czech Legation. Sir Finsterhorn is not happy with his decision as it appears to have made a fool of his uncle having his nephew in this position. As a result Robbie takes a room at the ‘Hotel Grande Bretagne’. Robbie’s new job places him away from the main legation to ensure that he doesn’t ‘accidently’ come across any Czech secrets. They place him in the travel agency. The first week was getting rather boring but on the following evening a tall well dressed man arrived at the counter. He asked to see comrade Krajcir. He was one of the men that Robbie had overheard at the restaurant ten days ago. It turned out that his name was Vaclav Barak. Robbie pretended that he had to collect some letter’s from the room where the two men were talking. He overheard them discussing details of a ship called the ’Bratislava’. The ship was Czechoslovakian and was due to dock at a Greek port on Monday 31st. Robbie believed it would be full of oil and so he decided to keep a lead on the two men. He leaves a window latch open overnight so that he can see what plot(s) were being organised by the two men. It all goes well initially as he finds a file with information relating to hotel listings along with dates and various Greek locations.
All was going well for Robbie as he copied as much relevant information as possible but it just so happened that Krajcir and another man called Nejedly had also returned to the office. Robbie swept the paper’s back into the file but it was all too late. Robbie decided to fight it out with the two men. He wasn’t going to overpower them but he did manage to escape from their clutches by climbing out of an iron fire escape. The chase continued through the streets and eventually spotted his uncle’s Rolls Royce parked outside his hotel. Robbie tells Tompkins drive off quickly, which he does and in no time they had driven in to the rear of the British embassy. Finsterhorn wants Robbie to return to England. Robbie however is still keen to prove that something sinister is being organised and wants some time to prove it. Robbie needed a car but doesn’t drive and so places an advert for a chauffeur who could also carry out some secretarial duties. Robbie had virtually decided on his new assistant until a last minute call from a young lady who was insistent on taking the job that he had little option but to take her on. They discussed the details at “Floca’sâ€￾ restaurant (the smartest in Athens). Stephanie turned out to be a pretty, chestnut haired, twenty four year old as well as being related to the Greek foreign secretary.
Robbie had chosen a Ford Zephyr for their trip and it arrived looking fine on the semi-circular drive. Stephanie was sat behind the wheel and Robbie’s smile was seraphic. However if he could have foretold the future that the gods had foretold for him he may have been a little less enthusiastic. They headed off on the coast road which for two thousand years had been known as, ‘The Sacred way. http://www.odysseyadventures.ca/article ... hi02a.html
They continued through Daphni and onto Corinth. Robbie explained that he was in the oil business and had to make a few visits to various companies.
Stephanie drove through Piraeus and Salonica and eventually on to the Cecil hotel in Patras where they booked two rooms, http://michaelhaag.blogspot.co.uk/2014/ ... cecil.html. After their siesta’s Stephanie decided to do some shopping whilst Robbie went exploring. On his return he saw a tall thin man coming out of the hotel. It was Vaclav Barak, the Czech ‘stooge’ from the travel agents. Luckily he didn’t seem to see Robbie. Robbie then took a walk to the port to ask when the ‘Bratislava’ was due to dock. He was told that it was due in on Monday afternoon. That evening, Stephanie tried to teach Robbie to dance, with little success. She did however, promise to teach Robbie to drive instead. The next morning they set off via Rion and Pleuron where she gave him his first driving lesson on a very open road. Over lunch he told her that he had no need of the car for a while and headed for the docked ‘Bratislava’. It was there and so was Barak with three other men walking towards the customs shed. He also saw a man who he had seen in the Czech travel agency. There were also a group of technicians and labourers who all followed in various vehicles to their hotel. Robbie took a taxi and followed them at some distance beyond the hotel and paid the taxi driver. The men decamped at the hotel, whilst the taxi drove well past the hotel so that the men would not suspect that they had been followed.
Robbie walked back to the hotel ‘Ionia’. He went into the bar and started to chat with the men who had just arrived. After he had bought them all a drink they were more prepared to talk to him!! The discussion had just switched to oil wells when three men walked in the door, Barak, Stoll and Cepicka (the driver). Barak accused him of a being a spy and told him that the men in the bar are his men and if he doesn’t get out of Patras he will ensure by tomorrow he will break every bone in his body.
When Robbie returned to the hotel he explained all that had happened. The next morning they were on the road and clear of Petras by 09.00. Their next stop was Corinth where Robbie was keen to find out where the more suitable boring sites might be situated. The estate agent tells him that there is already a Czech drilling site there. Robbie feigned disappointment but asked where it was. He pointed to the map and said,it is known as the ‘Villa Dione’. Robbie checks the place out but is chased off by some half a dozen men and a fight ensues. Robbie decides to run off and is near to his hotel when within a hundred yards of his hotel he slowed to a walk. He could see a parked Ford Zephyr with the headlights on. Stephanie was at the wheel. Sat next to her was Vaclav Barak. Robbie was astonished and couldn’t understand why Stephanie and Barak were in the same car. Robbie flew toward the car and a fight took place. Robbie was the victor. Despite Robbie’s injuries he wanted to get on the road again and they were soon heading off. Their first stop was at an hotel Navplion in Amphiryon . http://amphitryon.gr/index.htm.
Moving on, they headed to Mycenae with its massive peaks. They also found one of the few deluxe hotels in Greece outside Athens which could be seen about a mile away from their rooms. The next day they drove into town. Stephanie wanted to go to the hair dressers whilst Robbie set about locating the ‘Czech group’ in the same way as they did in Corinth. The group had apparantly located three miles to the south of the port. He studied the place for some time and then returned to ‘Olympia’.
Robbie noticed that Stephanie had received a letter from her closest girlfriend informing her that she was going onto Olympia. Robbie however, believed that it was from Barak Vaclav. Was Stephanie betraying him? He had to find out. He ripped open the envelope and the letter seemed to confirm it. She was working for the Czech’s!! Robbie was out for revenge and he took it whilst she was changing by some bushes near the swimming pool. He raped her. It was a swinish thing to do but what was done, was done. Some minutes later she re-appeared. “Why?â€￾. “He Rolled over and gave her the letter from his jacket.
“I see. Yes. Now I understandâ€￾ Stephanie left the hotel and left the car.
Robbie decides that all he could do was to risk driving the car (very slowly) into Pirgos. He then heads to the ruined Czech ‘factory’. Unfortunately some of the men see him and grab him. Barak takes great delight in beating him senseless. Barak’s intention is to tie him to chair and later drown him at sea. After a period of eight hours the door to the barn opened. It was Stephanie. She passed a piece of paper to Robbie which stated that if he signs this piece of paper (which she offer’s him) you will swear that, you will forthwith agree to cease the investigation into the Czech affairs, leave Greece within forty eight hours and not return within six months. Alternatively you can stay in the barn until Barack comes in later in the day. He naturally agrees and signs the On the way back towards Athens, Stephanie tells Robbie that her real name is Madam Vaclav Barak. She is no longer close to him. They stop at the little town of Tropaia for a break. http://www.greece.com/photos/destinatio ... ia/8308601
Continuing on their way they take a blind corner in the mountain pass and Mercedes pulls out in front of them. Barak and Cepika were blocking their way. Stephanie instantly tells Robbie to get out of the car and take cover as she knows that Barak will not kill her. Robbie could hear Barak,Cepika and Stephanie arguing. Robbie started to climb the overhead cliff and shots were fired in his direction. Cepika also starts climbing the cliff and the two of them have a fist fight on the rocky slopes. Cepika loses his balance and ends up falling from quite a height on to the road below. He was obviously dead.
Barak and Stephanie were still arguing when the earth on the edge of the precipice started to crumble . Stephanie then gave a piercing scream and fell clutching empty air as she shot down into the abyss. Barak got back into the Mercedes and pushed the Ford over the edge into the gorge below. After a ten minute wait Barak drove off. Robbie climbs down to the ledge where Stephanie fell. The light was starting to fall and so were any lingering hopes of finding her. He had nearly given up hope when he caught something white in amongst the damaged earth. It was a hand. It was a herculean effort to get Stephanie back onto the ledge but with her help they made it. The two of them managed to get a lift to Mycenae where they bought some clothes https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mycenae and then onto Argos https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argos where they said their goodbyes to their driver. They decided to sleep at cheap hotel (to avoid attention). In the morning they take a train to Athens and book rooms at the Hotel Theodore, followed by the Hotel des Roses and then headed to the airport. They then fly to Rhodes where Roger finds out that the Bratislava had docked on April 7th.
Stephanie and Robbie were walking in the vicinity of some Czech workmen when Stephanie overhears two men discussing the heavy work being done at the site based at the Bay of Monollithos (she was able speak Czech). They then head for the site and Stephanie casually talks to one of the workers who inform him that even he is sure of what the end product was to be. They were then hailed by a couple of Americans who happened to be staying in the same hotel (Hotel des Roses) as Robbie and Stephanie. The four of them seemed to get on very well together. The American visitors names were a Mr & Mrs Henry Mahogany Brown. They all seemed to get on very well together but Robbie and Stephanie didn’t stay too long as they were concerned that the police may be looking for them. They fled to Heraklion in Crete and took yet another hotel at the Astir and ate at the ‘Glass house’ restaurant.
Stephanie comes up with the (fictitious) idea of getting Vaclav to come over to Crete so that he can assist her husband in getting him back into the communist group of which she seeks. In order to prove her faith she sends him a letter with details of where Grenn is now living. When you arrive there you can then surprise him and do as you wish. Their next thought was to locate a hideout for Robbie. They located a dilapidated old house with no electric, gas, water or sanitation. However, it would be dry and it would be unlikely to be found. They decided to hire a car and some essentials in Knossos. On their return they walked around the ruins of an old amphitheatre. Two men were smoking, one of them was talking in Czech, “dropping the cylinder in the whole went quicker than we plannedâ€￾ they said, “we should be home soon â€￾. The men then left. Stephanie and Robbie followed in the car. They stopped after twelve kilometres. Robbie got out of their car so that he could continue on foot so as not to be seen. Stephanie then drove past the path that the men had driven up. Soon after, a different man came up behind him with a gun in his hand. It was Mahogany Brown. Mahogany admits that he is a CIA agent and had been checking out on Robbie who he thought might be an English agent. Mahogany had also received confirmation that his uncle was also the British ambassador. Mahogany wasn’t too sure that Stephanie wasn’t siding with the Czech’s either. A note was waiting at the post office when they had got back to town to say that Vaclav would be arriving and a willing to meet with him. That evening the arranged meeting had been set. Robbie was waiting towards the rear of the house. It was getting dark but after a time he heard footprints. Three people walked in. Robbie waited for sometime but he couldn’t hear any voices. He crept into the dark house and he opened the door. A gun flashed and hit Robbie’s ’upper right arm, his knees buckled, he slumped to the floor and passed out. When he came to he could see Stephanie tied to a chair which was also tied to the post that supported the apex of the old ceiling. Barak was about to take revenge on Stephanie with his knife when a knock on the door stopped the proceedings. It was the police with a warrant for Robert Grenn in connection with the murder of Carl Cepicka. This was their chance to escape. Stephanie and Robbie didn’t want to be left alone in the house with Barak. Robbie gave a huge heave at the roof post, and another and then fell forward. Lumps of plaster fell to the floor. Darkness descended and he passed into oblivion. Robbie woke up in hospital. He was told that he would be unlikely to regain his arms former strength due to badly torn ligaments. Mahogany was one of the first people to visit Robbie. He was told that that the Greek security staff had managed to catch each of the groups. The plan had been to place nuclear bombs deep into rock shafts and set up a chain of earthquakes (for oil?). He was also told that Barak had been killed when the house beam fell on him
A week later, Robbie was awarded a decoration for gallantry.
The authorities were convinced that Stephanie was involved in the plot and she was about to be sent to the uranium mines where she would die a lingering death. Robbie then offers her a way out of this. He offers to marry her. This would enable her to become a British citizen. No one would then be able to return her to Czechoslovakia. It all turned out for the best in both ways as they both wanted to marry each other anyway.















Snippet’s
The Sacred Way, in ancient Greece, was the road from Athens to Eleusis. It was so called because it was the route taken by a procession celebrating the Eleusinian Mysteries. The procession to Eleusis began at Kerameikos.

Very good link with Greek mythology but does tend to become yet another tourist guide with all the Hotel names and towns.

Alan,

Many thanks for your kind words. It was quite an involved review to put together hence the review being rather long.

I'm off to Mayhem in Greece next.

Thank's again.

It was 31st May 1906.

It was also a day of celebration as King Alfonso 13th had just married Princess Ena of Battenberg, the granddaughter of Queen Victoria.
The procession back to the palace included Armand, Count de Quesnoy (The 31 year old, ninth Duc de Richleau). His eyes were grey, flecked with tiny spots of yellow. On his arm was his wife Countess Angela.
Outside, the church dignitaries who were not able to secure places in the church due to lower rank were placed in a specially erected stands in front of the beautifully clad church.
The parades of the cavalry, Infantry and artillery were stunning.
Dozens of spectacular horse drawn carriages were arriving.
Inside one of them were Jose de Cordoba y Coralles (A very good friend of Armand and a member of the great banking family whose head was his elder brother) together with his lovely wife, Condesa Guilia.
At that moment a large bouquet was thrown towards one of the coaches, there was a blinding flash, an explosion like a crack of thunder and a blast that sent nearby troops and people reeling in all directions.

Many were killed but by some miracle the royal couple escaped.
Angela however,did not. The Duke put her in a carriage and took her to the Palacio de Cordoba. The young Duc de Vendome (the Kings cousin) was devoted to Armand and stayed close to him during the weeks that followed.
Guilia had always been jealous of Angela and so was secretly pleased as she had always held feelings for the Count, even if it meant that Jose would throw her out into the street.

DeQuesnoy was in severe shock and it was several days after Angela’s funeral that his manner became anything approaching normal.
The assassin turned out to be Mateu Morral who was on the police files as an agitator but had done nothing before throwing the bomb. He then tried to get away from the city and a rural guard tried to arrest him but Morral shot him dead and then used the pistol to take his own life.
Francisco Ferrer was a revolutionary in hiding.


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mateu_Morral


After several weeks de Vendome and de Quesnoy decide to see some more of Spain.
They travelled in a six cylinder Hispano Suiza and visit Aranjuez, New Castile, Manzanares and Cordoba.
After a short stay they continue on to Seville, Jerez and Algeciras and finally back to Madrid.

A note was waiting for de Quesnoy on his return. A mission had been requested from the twenty year old king. It involved him having to work independently and without the assistance of the police.

The King tells de Quesnoy that Morral had developed very revolutionary views. Barcelona had for a long time been the centre of an increasingly strong demand for home rule in Catalonia.
On Morral’s return to his native province he had fervently embraced this movement . Many anarchists including Morrell became one of them. His treasonable activities had been discovered and he was a major threat throughout Spain, both politically & religiously.
Morral (was a teacher) and had naturally become an intimate of Ferrer . He encouraged the teaching staff to actively proclaim allegiance to anarchist principles with the objective of bringing about a dictatorship of the proletariat.
The King wants evidence that the most prominent mob orator’s and writers of inflammatory articles are secretly connected with the bomb plots. He would then imprison them and make some headway in stamping out the breeding-ground of anarchy.
He gives de Quesnoy a dossier to assist with mission which he reads and returns.
De Cordoba and Gulia spend some time together with de Quesnoy before he leaves to go to Barcelona. It becomes very apparent that she will very much miss de Quesnoy.

De Quesnoy arrives in Barcelona and manages to secure an apartment in one of the new blocks of flats near the Plaza de Las Glorias. On arrival he meets another man who is also staying there in one of the apartments. He turns out to be Lieutenant Aguilera of the Spanish Navy. He and his wife arrange get together over a hearty dinner. De Quesnoy mentions that he is looking to find a post as a school-master. The Senora suggests that Francisco Ferrer may be able to help? De Quesnoy’s face remained impassive but inside his heart gave a jump.
A date is set and De Quesnoy meets with two men at the Cafe Ronda by three men, Doctor Luque, Nicolai Chirikov and Ferrer.
The evening goes well and the panel agree to take De Quesnoy on board as a teacher of History & Russian.
They meet again, this time at the Escuela Moderna which was very close to the University and yet far enough away so that students with Leftish leaning’s could elect to take additional training if required.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Escuela_Moderna

Ferrer ‘s two son’s Benigno and Sanchez were given a good look around the school.. He showed them where dynamite was being constructed into some form of ‘infernal machine’. His thoughts went to Angela.
This was a bomb making activity.
De Quesnoy told them that his cousin was a ‘Nihilist’ and that he also used to make bomb’s. The two brothers were delighted and impressed to have made the acquaintance of such like minded people.
De Quesnoy also manages to meet up with Delores Mendoza, one of the women teachers. They go to lunch and she splits the bill with him.
Afterwards she asks whose place should we go back to? He had no doubts about what she meant and silently cursed himself for not having taken into account that anarchists believed in free love.
He declined on this occasion as he was already engaged to spend Saturday with another friend of mine. He had now gained an eleven day respite; time enough to “pump her if that were possibleâ€￾.!!!
DW’s words – not mine.

On the following Sunday, he writes a letter to Cordoba advising of his progress so far.
The following day he decides to spend some time with his new found masters in the common room prior to starting his imminent teaching.
Unfortunately, one of them turns out to be Senor Chirikov.
He is no Russian! He is a Frenchman! I know this man. He can have only come among you as a spy. Two years ago in Paris he penetrated the secrets of the Freemasons and brought about the fall of the Combes government. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/%C3%89mile_Combes
He is that notorious monarchist, Colonel the Count de Quesnoy.
Despite his protestations and an effort at escape the anarchists initially decide to throw him into the foundry furnace but decide against it as there would be too much to be seen from the resultant residue. The criminal associates then spend a complete chapter (17 page’s) trying to decide his fate. They ultimately agree to dispose of him by taking him to a nearby flour mill. They throw him head first into a suffocating bed of flour. Had he fallen from that height onto a harder surface he would most likely have broken his neck. Luckily the flour had not been packed. Head first he plunged into it and was instantly immersed up to the hips. Instinctively, he gasped for air. He knew that he was on the very brink of death. He writhed and struggled in the darkness. Eventually he managed to free his head and shoulders and pulled himself out.
A good twenty minutes passed before he made any attempt to explore his surroundings.
The chamber was about twenty feet square and approximately forty feet high. He remembered glimpsing a couple of small windows that were set high upon opposite walls. This made him think that he may be able to make a solid mound of flour underneath one of the windows.
It was exhausting work having to go down on his knees to sweep armfuls of flour forward, then having to trample them flat and then repeating the process. It was a Herculean effort which lasted for over two hours. He could do no more and slumped onto the soft flour and slept.
He was awoken by a man shouting at him. It was Pedro; somewhat surprised that anybody could survive the incident. Soon after came the sound of turning wheels and clanking machinery. The grinders had been set in motion.
He knew that every breath he was forced to take would be laden with those death-dealing particles. Another quarter of an hour and his lungs would cease to function. At last complete despair seized him, but not for long. A thought occurred to him. If he could throw himself into a trance he might survive. If he could throw himself into a deep trance he might survive. Once he no needed to breathe his lungs would remain static and uncloyed by the flour. He laid down with his coat wrapped around his head. He then relaxed completely and remained absolutely still. His breathing grew fainter and at length it ceased. His spirit was now upon the Astral Plane and attached only by a form of spiritual telephone wire known to occultists as the Silver Cord.
For several hours he remained scarcely conscious of his body. He then began to feel a growing urge to go back into it. He realised that he must have been buried by the falling flour. He kicked out with his hands and feet until he was sitting up with his head and shoulders well above the new flour level. He was aware that the mill machinery was no longer working. He was also confident that he could reach the window ledge.

This, he manages to do by wrapping his fist in his handkerchief and punching the bottom windows out. He clambers onto the sill and pulls hard at the central bar which comes away with him. Clambering back again he could he could see that he was approximately twenty feet above the cobble stones below. He was about to shout for assistance when two workmen happened to walk by. They run to get assistance and return with a ladder.
Pedro, meanwhile has appeared on the scene and tries to drag De Quesnoy back into the mill. The two men battle at the top of the window ledge and both of them crash onto the floor below. De Quesnoy briefly wakes up in hospital and is aware that he is hovering between life and death. He finds himself looking down at his own body. His head was swathed in bandages, his shoulder was strapped up and a mound over his left leg showed that it was in splints.
He could then see a Priest and two nuns administering extreme unction at his bedside. They obviously expected him to die.
He knew that he was seriously weak and if he was unable to get back to his body soon he may never do so.
The doctor was asking the lay sister to prepare his body for burial. Armand had begun to concentrate; his silver chord was nowhere near its normal strength yet very slowly he began to see an outline of the bed; he felt his chord thicken and a pull upon him as though borne by a wind of hurricane strength.
The lay sister was nearby. When she placed her hands on his stomach she knew he was still with them.
After a good night’s sleep he was feeling much stronger.
He wondered what had happened to Pedro Conesa. Did he die in the fall? Was he in the same hospital?
Armand asked for the doctor to send a telegram to the ‘Duke de Vendome. He arrives very quickly and returns Armand back to the Conde’s villa in Madrid. That night he dreamt that a beautiful titian haired beauty was standing beside his bed. The figure moved a little and then slowly placed her lips on his for a full minute. A dream perhaps??
It took Armand another 36 hours to make up ground lost through his ordeals. Sixteen day’s had now elapsed since his fall and all of his injuries were well on the way to recovery.
He & Gulia would occasionally bathe on the nearby secluded beach and they both began to get very fond of each other, to the point where she told Armand that her husband had a mistress. She apparently found out by accident. She had found a letter from which he had left lying about with some other papers that he gave me to look through. When she charged him he did not deny it.
She went on to say that the girl involved was an Andalusian dancing girl, who was quite a star turn on the castanets!!
That night Gulia pay’s a visit to Armand’s bedroom and this certainly wasn’t a dream! In the morning they discuss the situation; but, what of Jose. Gulia says that he has lost any rights when she found him out. Armand was still doubtful about betraying her husband. There was suddenly a blinding flash. – it was the magnesium of a box camera. Armand tells Gulia to go back to her room; whilst he rushes after the man with the camera who turns out to be Sanchez Ferrer.
He catches up with him and they fight in the garden. Armand trips over an exposed root and temporarily knocks him out.
Ferrer escapes but he still has the camera and negative with him. Scrambling to his feet.
Armand notices a small object lying on the path. It was a small piece of cardboard 4 inches long by 3 inches wide. It was a portrait of a gypsy dancer taken by a photographer in Granada.
Armand is very keen to get the negative back and so leaves a note to Gulia telling her that he is heading to the new Alhambra Palace in Granada. Armand believes that he intends to use the photograph as bait – to lure him back. He also expects that a letter will arrive with a copy of the photograph with a demand for money in exchange for the negative.
The name Elio is also shown on the photograph which may assist with finding Ferrers lair.
On arrival in Madrid he heads straight for Elio’s Photography and they informed him that she was a professional Flamenco dancer known as La Torcera. (Which means ‘The Wriggler).

The hotel organises a taxi for Armand to go and see her.
He is led to a table by a pretty girl called ’La Conchita’. Armand asks if he can meet with ‘La Torcera’. ’La Conchita’ tells him that this is not possible as she is booked for the whole of the evening.
He then said that if it was possible to speak to her for a short while he would give her a huge tip.
He does get to talk to her but when he mentions Sanchez Ferrer she spit’s in his face.
Armand slapped her and threatened her dancing future if she didn’t tell her where Sanchez is.
Surprisingly, she didn’t know and didn’t care as he had left her for another woman and stolen her savings. The other woman was Inez Giudice, the daughter of a Cadiz shipwright so the odd’s were definitely on her and Sanchez being in Cadiz.
Armand persuades her to accompany her to Cadiz so that they can get revenge on Sanchez and ‘La Torcera’s ex lover.’ He give’s her gold coins now and more when they get to Cadiz.
When they do arrive in Cadiz, Armand wants La Torcera
to dress up as a blind beggar woman and use the name of Inez Giudice .
After extensive searching , La Tocera comes back with good news. “I’ve found her, she works at the, Silver Galleonâ€￾.
Armand was delighted,and instantly paid her a very large payment for helping him to find to this location. He intended to put her safely on a train back to Granada. The one thing he did not expect was that he would never see her again.
The next day Armand headed for the ‘Silver Galleon’.He finds the two girl’s, Inez and Beatriz. It became obvious that Armand wanted to talk to Inez and so Beatriz left them to it. Inez invited him to a house where she entertained her men friends. It was a very small cubby hole of a room and obvious that Sanchez wasn’t
sharing it with her. There was another room next door and Armand was sure that this ‘was’ Sanchez’s room. Inez was in the process of undressing .
He though was concerned with finding Sanchez and so Armand had to knock her out. Armand started to search the flat and very quickly managed to locate the photograph he had been look for.
Suddenly the door swung open an Sanchez was framed in the doorway. A violent fight ensues and Armand breaks Sanchez’s neck.
Inez has meanwhile come and is screaming for help. Armand is trying to think of the best way out when several men came charging down the corridor. The leading, man who looks like a Scandinavian Bosun (Whatever one of those should look like!!) tells the bosun to stop or he will fire. He does, but he also throws a knife which cuts Armands face. With blood pouring down his face he grabs hold of the dressing table mirror and smashes it onto the man’s head. It splinters into a hundred fragments and he man drops to the floor unconscious.
Armand runs to window sill and drops to the floor below, badly twisting his ankle. As a result it didn’t take too long for the chasing men to catch him.
The landlord takes charge and Inez passes on the details of the fight. The landlord doesn’t really want to involve the police with this incident and so the captain of the ship agrees to take Armand onto his ship to work his way to South America under a brutal Captain as a seaman before the mast.
It was two and a half years before Armand returned to Europe. His father had died in early March 1909. As a consequence when he did return, it was as the tenth Duc de Richleau.
When he arrived in Rio, he sent a note to the Conde to let him know where he was.. The Conde responded by saying how pleased he was that he was alive. He also said that staff of the Escuela Moderna school had helped in breaking up the nest of vipers that had flourished in Barcelona.
Armand’s next move was to join the Brazilian army as a commandant at the military academy.
He then transferred to the army of one of the Central American republics. He then crossed the Caribbean to New Orleans and then onto Europe.
At this point, he learnt to his considerable satisfaction that the nihilist who had thrown the bomb that had killed his father had already been caught and executed.
His next port of call was Yalta (in the Ukraine). This was one of the most fashionable resorts on the Black sea. With his new title he was able to gain an invite to the ‘Nobles Club’.
Upon leaving the club he was assaulted by a man with a knife, Armand , however was quick enough to lunge his Malacca cane straight at the assailant’s face with.
It so happened that a policeman heard the fracas and took both Armand and the man who assaulted him to the police station. The man initially refused to give his name but with a little assistance from the police interrogation they established that the man that attacked Armand was a ‘Benigno Ferrer’. (The brother of Sanchez Ferrer)
Armand was astonished that Benigno had tracked him for so long.
In fact he was genuinely sympathetic. However, a court hearing had no such qualms and Benigno was despatched to a penal settlement in Siberia along with his father.
Armand then heads straight for the Royal Palace in Madrid.
Gulia was especially pleased to see him. They get a lot of time to get to know each other and eventually fall in love. Armand feels bad as Jose is an old friend and hates to go behind his back.
Then the news breaks that Jose has been mauled by a Puma on the banks of the Amazon.
Armand & Gulia decide to keep the information quiet for the time being in order to protect Jose’s banking assets as he was still a major influence with them.
The King then tells Armand that the time has come to run Ferrer to ground.
Armand heads to Barcelona with a letter from the king. His alias during this period is to be Carlos Gomez.
His early enquires lead him to believe that Beningo and his family are living in San Cugat.
He also remembered one of the teachers (Dolores Mendosa) from the’Escuela Moderna’ mentioning visiting a small place on the Costa Brava. He also recalled Dolores saying that he used to spend some time with a Teresa Conesa
This name enabled Armand and his men to locate the home of Teresa.
She tells them that she has had a child from Ferrer.
At that moment the explosion rocked the house.
The bomb must have exploded at her feet. She was dying.
Armand asks her, how he can find Ferrer so that he can take the boy to him.
He lives at San Cugat, He calls himself Olozaga.
When they arrive at the Olozaga residence, Dolores Mendosa opens the door and Ferrer is taken to the Police station.
The Police chief Urgoiti states that the man they have brought in is not Ferrer. A huge argument takes place .
Artmand asks to speak to one of the senior Generals and this is also refused.
It seems as though a conspiracy is underway.
A young artillery lieutenant comes into Armand’s prison. He informs Armand that he is to be Court Marshalled and tried straight away.

Despite Armand’s plea’s and argument’s he was getting nowhere.
A prison van soon arrives and Armand is taken to the court room.
Ferrer is called into the court to confirm his story.
The senior members of the court had to state whether they thought Armand was guilty or not guilty. The majority state guilty.
Armand, however recognised one of the senior members of the court. He then said to the Captain that your lady love is preparing a pair of bedroom slippers to be given as a new year present for you. The Captain said, “How could you possibly knowâ€￾.
“She is one of the daughters of General Quiroga. This can easily be verified.â€￾
A gun shot was fired by Commandante Urgoite. He had blown his brains out.
General berated them all as a set of fools.

Armand and Gulia were delighted to be together again in San Sebastian. That night they were woken by what they believed was somebody climbing a ladder to their room. It was, Gulias husband, Jose de Cordoba.
What are you doing in my wife’s bedroom? By God, I demand justice. I expect you to meet me in the hall.
Armand is forced into a pistol duel that he desperately didn’t want to get into but he seemed to have no choice.
They took up their positions back to back. Five seconds later the two men turned. Armand aimed deliberately high. The bullet passed a good foot above de Cordoba’s head. The Conde then took his turn but his shot went harmlessly past his adversary.
The two men walked to each other and Armand said, “I trust you are now satisfiedâ€￾.
“Certainly notâ€￾ said the Conde, “and not until one of us is seriously wounded. Let us continueâ€￾
With a resigned shrug Armand followed the same procedure as before. Again Armand fired high and de Cordoba managed to clip a piece of Armand’s clothing.
Again they loaded but this time Armand turned the point of his pistol straight up and fired into the air.
The Conde criticises Armand for not trying. “You treat me with contemptâ€￾ he says.
Armand sadly shook his head. “Believe me, Conde, nothing was further from my thoughts. But after all the kindness you showed me in the past, should I happen to kill you I would never forgive myself.â€￾
The Conde was still not content with Armand’s words and wished to proceed.
They were just about to place themselves back to back again when a shout of Stop, Stop reached them.
A female was running towards them. It turned out to be Maria Alfonsine with important news.
She had been talking to Gulia and she admitted that although she had wished to take Armand as a lover he had proved adamant in rejecting her advances.
Having failed to seduce him from his loyalty to the Conde, she hatched a most subtle plan. She told him that news had returned from South America that the Conde had been attacked by a puma and killed. Following the ‘so called’ death, the information was supposed to be hushed up for the next two months so that the bank should be strong enough to withstand a run upon it when your death was publicly announced. Only then , believing her to have become a widow with the right to dispose of herself as she wished, did the Duke agree to become her lover.
The Duke nodded, “Yes, that is what happened. But it was not for me to tell you soâ€￾
The Conde acknowledges the terrible injustice forced upon the Duke, The Duke is delighted that their friendship has been salvaged.
The Conde then tells the Duke that Gulia is pregnant!!

What happens now asks Armand.
They decide that it is probably better that the child stays with the Conde. The Conde also tells Armand that he is no longer capable of begetting a child but to have one would give me great joy. With mixed emotions Armand rode gently thinking intently of what had just happened. Two other horsemen happened to walk towards him. It was the King.
The Kings parting gesture was to give Armand command of his own Cavalry division for all he has done for Spain.
A new and bright horizon had opened for him.






Snippet’s



Page 94 - Does anybody know the difference between anarchism and nihilism? Neither did I. Apparently the former wishes to destroy the existing order, but has plans for building a new one consisting of free labour groups and free communes; whereas with true Russian pessimism, the latter’s aim was simply to annihilate every form of authority, then sit back and let matters take whatever course they would.

Page 187

Elio and the studio is certainly no longer in Madrid but the street certainly is. http://allaboutmadrid.com/what-to-see/c ... n-jeronimo

Page 228
Inez Giudice had grey eye’s.

Page 330
San Cugat is a town, twenty kilometres from the centre of Barcelona
In 1961 when this book was first published the population was approximately 10,000. It is now an affluent suburb of Barcelona with a population of 88, 000.

Page 366
Ferrer was shot on September 12th 1909.Vigrourus protests at his execution appeared in Liberal newspapers all over the world.. So great were the demonstrations in Madrid against the government that senor Maura, the conservative Prime Minister, was forcesd to resign. The Liberal leader Senor Moret stepped into his shoes on October 22nd. Nevertheless there can be no doubt that whatever that Francisco Ferrer was morally responsible for the deaths and wounding of many hundreds of people. DW

Sir Christopher Lee is with us no more but he will always be remembered (Particularly amongst this fraternity). He has played many great film roles such as Dracula, Lord of the Rings, The Hobbit, Star Wars and The Wicker Man amongst others but in my mind he will always be 'The Duke de Richleau' . Th...

The Sultans Daughter It was a dismal February afternoon in the year 1798. Admiral Sir Christopher Brook, his son Roger and Georgina, Countess of St.Ermins had just finished dinner. Georgina and Roger had been discussing their on/off relationship over the previous seventeen years. It seemed impossibl...

The Satanist

To have dedicated this book to Alexandre Dumas Pere was no major surprise. DW was one of his favourite author’s. As a result he modelled many of his own heroes on Dumas heroes.
The Satanist was based on one of Dumas’ short stories (The Corsican Brothers) which gave him the idea of using identical twins as two of the principal character’s in the book.



Colonel Verney & Inspector Thompson of the special branch were discussing the details of a photograph that had come into their possession. The photograph was of a dead man. His name was Teddy Morden.
His throat had been slit from ear to ear.

“The Devil’s behind thisâ€￾ said Colonel Verney. “I’m convinced of itâ€￾! “Several devil’s, if you ask me sirâ€￾ replied Inspector Thompson of the Special Branch.
Teddy Morden had been one of Colonel Verney’s young special branch men.
“I didn’t say, “a devilâ€￾ but “the Devilâ€￾ – Lucifer, Satan, or whatever term you wish to use.

Thompson had just handed Colonel Verney the report on the case. No obvious clues to the murder had been found so far, but the thought’s were that Morden had been watching a group of Communist saboteurs and that they had rumbled him and “knocked him offâ€￾. (As used to be said in those days).
How that fitted in with the Devil he really wasn’t sure (and now he probably never would).

At that point Colonel Verney’s new man (Barney Sullivan) had arrived to replace the deceased Morden.

Barney, who was 28 years old and carried the title of Lord Larne would now directly report to Colonel Verney, who was affectionately known as Conky Bill or CB due to a rather large nose.

CB also had a slight stoop.

CB had gained experience of secret societies that practiced Black Magic, which is what he believed he had here. (See – To the Devil, a daughter). In fact in his own mind he was sure that Morden had been the victim of a ritual murder. He had been crucified upside down.

Barney was also tasked with finding out as much as he could regarding the hold that communism still had on the Labour government. This would include finding out the methods used by the communists to become officials in the union’s, about rigged elections and where the money comes from to finance unofficial strikes.
Tom Ruddy was the senior unionist man soon to be up for the role of the Secretary General role. He was one of the quality men in the organisation and anti communist.

Mary Morden, (Teddy’s widow), pays a visit to CB’s Chelsea flat. She is 23, very pretty and wants to join forces with CB to find out what had really happened to her husband.
She is aware that he was gaining an interest in Spiritulism and believed that he had got involved with a Black Magic Circle.
She is prepared to find Teddy’s killers and tells CB that she will adopt a new name and address in the process.
CB wonders if he should tell Barney of what she is proposing to do. He decides not to and as time goes on he seriously regrets his decision.


Squadron Leader Dick Forsby and CB were old friends .
Dick was telling CB that one of his scientists had gone a little ‘off the rails’
His name is Otto Khune (He is of German extraction but was born in Chicago). His specialty is fuels.
His colleagues have been worried about his mental state. They say that for short periods he talks and behaves as though he were a totally different person.
Forsby asks CB if he has read the book, “The three faces of Eveâ€￾. It’s a story of ‘Split personality’
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three_Faces_of_Eve
Forsby shows CB a document written by’ Khune’
It states, that he (Otto) and Lothar were identical twins (both physically and mentally). There was also a highly developed psychic link between them. During the war, Otto sided with the USA and Lothar had become very pro-German.

CB tells Forsby to keep an eye on them.

Barney’s subsequent investigations led him to a local parson that Mary Morden knew. The parson told Barney that Teddy Morden had become something of a Theosophist. The parson also gave the name of the woman that ran the group . It was a Mrs Wardeel who resides at 204, Barkston Gardens, London, S.W.5.

Mary, from this point decided to use the pseudonym of Margot Mauriac whilst she was investigating Teddy’s death.
Barney similarly decided to use his other legitimate but rarely used title of Lord Larne.

Margot made the first trip to Mrs Wardeels and managed to make a useful contact by the name of Ratnadatta, an Indian man. He suggested that she had the abilities to progress to another circle of much higher powered occultists.


Margot and Barney also meet each other at the house and they agree to meet for dinner at the Hungaria restaurant. The meal goes reasonably well but Barney believes that Ratnadatta is trying to seduce her using the Occult as a cover.
Ratnadatta asks her officially to join his Black Magic Circle. She knows what this may entail but she is so prepared to find out the truth of Teddy’s death that she is prepared to do virtually anything!!

At her first visit to Ratnadatta’s lodge, she is driven there whilst blindfolded. Once inside she is shown through the lavish fittings which were lit by a sparkling crystal chandelier that hung from the centre of its ceiling, the cornices were gilded, the furniture was the finest Chippendale.
Down in the hall some twenty people were already assembled and were being joined by others.
They were coming in by a door that Mary could not see, as it was below the balcony in which they were sitting. Everyone present was wearing a small black satin mask, a narrow black velvet garter below the left knee and silver sandals, but little else. They had on only long cloaks of transparent veiling, sparsely decorated with silver suns, moons or signs of the zodiac.

The congregation below was spread about upon the divans in front of the altar with an air of expectancy. The curtains opened and before them was a unusual looking man. He was tall and Slim. His body was encased in black tights from shoulder to wrists and ankles. Around his waist, he wore a loose, narrow belt which was encrusted with precious stones. He wore a necklace of large pearls and rubies; on his left knee was a garter of shimmering priceless emeralds. He wore a mask with slit eyes and the great curling horns of a Ram.
The ‘Great Ram’ as he was known amongst his followers was available to grant their wishes. “Tell me your desiresâ€￾ he said.
They all launched themselves at him at the same time.
“Stop, remain stillâ€￾. He pointed a finger at an elderly woman. “What do you want?â€￾ My sight, master, it is almost gone and the specialists can do nothing for me. The Great Ram restores her sight!! Many others have their wishes granted which include various ailments including lung and heart complaints, and so, it went on, cures and favours being given to all. (if only the NHS could utilise him!!)

Lothar, who was now in London had started to send messages to Otto. They meet up with each other and Lothar does all in his power to get Otto to join him in Russia. Otto refuses as he dislikes the communist way of life. Lothar is furious and impersonates his brother and ends up sleeping with his brother’s wife purely out of spite. There was such a furore at what has happened that Otto’s wife divorces him. Otto is convinced that if he met Lothar again, he would kill him.

Mary (alias Margot) proceeds to go through with her ordeal. She is now a Neophyte and on the first rungs of Satanism.

Barney (Lord Larne) tells CB that he has in the meantime managed to locate the venue at which Ratnadatta took Mary. He followed her by car and taxi and then waited in Cremorne Gardens to see who arrives.
CB tells Barney that he has received a report from Squadron leader Forsby from the Long Range Rocket experimental Station in Wales.
It said that Otto appeared to be on the verge of a nervous breakdown . He had been having terrible nightmares and so they installed a tape recorder in the Scientists bedroom. It emerged that Lothar was proposing a clandestine exchange of secret information about the latest rocket fuels at a house with relevant directions.
Barney realised immediately that this house was the Georgian mansion in Cremorne Gardens.

Barney tries to convince Mary not to go to any more meetings. However, Mary needs to go to find out what happened to Teddy.
When Ratnadatta comes to call for her for the next meeting she realises that Ratnadatta was wearing a pair of unique hand-made shoes with a scratch on the toe. They had belonged to Teddy.

When they get to the next meeting, Mary prepares herself to become initiated to the Satanists....In the temple she will be known as Circe.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circe

She is helped into her garments by other female members of the Temple.
One of the uninvited brethren enters her bedroom – his Temple name is Abaddon. He tells Mary that this night is Walpurgis night, the greatest Satanic feast in the whole year. He becomes infatuated by her looks and instead of waiting for the official ceremony tries to ‘initiate’ her himself and tries to “initiateâ€￾ her himself before the ceremony has even started!!
After a fight she manages to fend him off.
Another (female) member of the Temple who takes the name of ‘Pope Honorius’ then tries to explain what will occur during the forthcoming ceremony. (The name Pope Honorius in real life was the author of the ‘The Clavicule of Solomon’ and Le Grimoire, the most profound works of the secret art ever producedâ€￾. ) http://www.amazon.co.uk/The-Complete-Gr ... 1905297661

Then, if things weren’t bad enough, in comes Ratnadatta who also tries it on with her prior to the ceremony. She, however is fortunate that one of the other members had heard the noise of the fight from outside the door.
It was an American Air Force man (another member of the Temple) who also instantly takes a liking to Mary. He flattens Ratnadatta and takes Mary away from the temple and to his Air force base near Cambridge.

Otto informs Forsby, CB & Barney that Lothar is the’Big Ram’.
Lothar has in the meantime made off with the drums of fuel he needs to fulfil his plan of setting off a massive nuclear bomb.

Tom Ruddy has also been found to be with the Black Magic group and as such is forced to stand down from the elections. A photograph also appears of Tom in bed with Mary Morden!! Faked!!?
CB then lets Barney know that she was a prostitute in an earlier life so he should not be quite so adamant of her purity. CB backs up the story line of her need to earn money on the streets but her situation has now changed. Barney still thinks far too much of her to let her go.....but could an ex prostitute really become the next Countess of Larne??

Barney intercepts Ratnadatta at Cremorne and he tells him that an American Colonel has taken her to his air force base at Fulgoham, Cambridgeshire. His name is Henrik George Washington (or Wash for short). Barney heads to the Air force base and after looking through one of the windows manages to get himself knocked out by one of Wash’s men.

Wash and Mary are now living in a reasonably comfortable accommodation. Mary has agreed to go along with being his woman as she can’t do much else. She tried to escape on one occasion and was severely punished by ‘Wash! .
Wash also tells her how easy it is to pick up fresh human blood to be used at any Sabbat He tells her that he can pick someone up from a poor black family for . Mary is astonished at the ease at which it can be done, but she has to go along with him to maintain her position in the temple.
Wash goes onto say that the last sacrifice was of a guy who turned out to be a police spy. He was found out to be taking photo’s of the Temple. The date tallied perfectly with the description. He was talking of Teddy.
Wash continues to tell her more of what the initiation would entail unaware that Mary had set the tape on record.

At that point one of Wash’s men rushes in to tell him that they had found a ‘snooper’ in the grounds. Barney explains that he is a friend of Marys and as she had disappeared suddenly tried to find her.
Mary steps in to tell Wash that Barney had adopted the Satanic name of ‘Dr Dee’.
The Great Ram appears at the scene and he agrees to initiate both Mary and Barney.

They all head off to the Esbat. (What’s the difference between an Esbat and a Sabbat??? I hear you all ask!!!) - ‘See Snippets below’

Wash tells Mary that the Great Ram has discovered that ‘Doctor Dee’
(Barney) is a police spy. The plan now is to use Barney as the sacrifice for the ceremony. It will also provide the blood sacrifice to baptise Mary.
The ceremony begins in the abbey and Mary, in a last ditch effort to save Barney pulls out a crucifix from her bag and throws it with all her might at the Great Ram. It strikes him in the arm. There is a blinding flash and he falls back against the altar. The abbey collapses and it is plunged into darkness.
During the furore Mary throws a packet to Barney and tells him to get it back to the Police as soon as possible. It is vitally important.

When the lights went out, The Great Ram, Wash and Mary head back to the Air force Base and immediately head off in their plane complete with the rocket fuel. Wash tells Mary that they are not coming back.
Barney meanwhile had been staggering around blindly following the cross throwing incident. He had been knocking on doors asking to use a phone and eventually knocks on the door of the local vicar to contact the police. The Police arrive and drive him to the Abbey and then to CB’s office in London the next morning.

It was soon discovered that Wash & the great Ram had fled the country with a nuclear war head as well as the fuel.
Otto is certain that they are heading to a cave in Switzerland.

Barney does as Mary requests and delivers the tape spool.

All the necessary personnel are flown over to Geneva and then onto Police headquarters in Berne including CB, Verney, Colonel Richter from the USAF as well as high ranking police chiefs.
Otto was sure it was a mountain but which one. He then came up with the idea of drawing the picture from his thoughts and circulating it to as many police stations as possible. The plan worked as somebody recognised it. They believed it was the ‘The Finsteraarhorn. http://www.swissrockguides.com/finsteraarhorn.htm

The relevant forces were ready to start getting men to the high ledge of the mountain. Firstly they headed for the cable car but as soon as the cable car door shuts it detonates the explosive device. All occupants are killed.

This was a terrible blow all round, as apart from the deaths of the troops and the cable car being out of action there was only a relatively short amount of time until the warhead was due to be launched at midday. It was beginning to look impossible.

The Grand Ram begins to realise that Mary was trying to manipulate Wash into changing his ideas of setting off the bomb.
To prevent any further treachery he imprisons them both in their cabins with an Occult barrier so that they can’t escape. Mary, however, wonders whether or not the barrier extends beyond the doorway of the cabin or the wooden roof. Using a bread knife they managed to cut a small hole in one of the planks. They were then able to break the plank and get through the gap. (Apparently the Great Ram wasn’t able to hear the noise made by this procedure.!!!)

Wash creeps up on the Ram but the Ram was able to drop to his knee’s just before the shot was fired. The Great Ram’s body then becomes obscured by black smoke. Within seconds the smoke solidifies into a Black Imp. In two bound’s the creature was upon him. It seemed to dissolve and streak into Wash’s mouth. He was on fire inside, he emitted one long drawn scream and then crashed face downward on the floor.

The Ram then commands Mary to step to the edge of the cave.....below her was a one thousand foot drop. She flexes her knees, throws up her arms and with a wild cry falls forward into space.
By this time Verney’s team had been climbing upwards at a rapid rate and were getting close to the mountains ledge. The men looked up to the ledge and they saw Mary throw herself forward.
Mary fell but at a sideways lurch and fell at the base of a steel pylon. The piled up snow by the pylon prevented her death. As it was, she escaped with a broken arm and broken ribs.

Barney then takes a huge risk by swinging across a gaping chasm in order to get to Mary. Despite the real danger he manages to get to her and secure her whilst the remaining team carry on to stop the rocket launch.

Otto Khune died a hero’s death.
In order to stop his brother Lothar detonating the bomb Otto shot himself in the heart and by his death he caused Lothar to have a heart attack.



Lord and Lady Larne lived happily ever after. (I made that bit up!!!!)








Snippets

The Sleeve notes of the book state,

“For originality and ingenuity of plot, scene after scene of tense excitement, and it’s brilliant climax, The Satanist
Would prove hard to equal. In our view (Hutchinson) it surpasses even The Devil Rides Out and, like it, will become a classic of occult fiction.


Page 10 Arrow Paperback - The ‘Stoop’ as mentioned earlier has appeared in five books of DW’s so far. (Bearing in mind that I have only reviewed up to 1960 so far!!)

The most famous ‘stooper’ would have to be Simon Aaron named many times including,

The Devil Rides Out.

To the Devil a Daughter

Curtain of Fear

Codeword – Golden Fleece

Mediterranean Nights.

The Satanist

And probably more.

The person who was based on this character was attributed to Sir Reginald Hoare KCMG .
In fact DW dedicated his book, ‘Codeword – Golden Fleece to Sir Reginald; the dedcation read;

With my most grateful memories of those days when, as our dear “Ambassadorâ€￾ in a nameless State, he lightened many difficult hours for myself and my colleagues by his imperturbable good humour and most enchanting wit.


And finally, did you know that another gothic book with the same title, The Satanist, was published by a Mrs Hugh Fraser (1864-1925).
It not only had the same book title but was also published by Hutchinson in 1912. Some 48 years before the Wheatley book.
“Mrs Fraser, along with several other stories of the same period set the standards for today's occult fiction and can be seen mirrored in the tales of August Derleth, & Dennis Wheatley.â€￾
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_Crawford_Fraser


Page 10 - CB had grey eyes.


Page 180 - The only Cremorne shown in the London A-Z is Cremorne Road or Cremorne Estate in SW10. This is the location of the Georgian mansion in which Mary was initiated.

Barkston Gardens is the location of Mrs Wardeels house.

The distance between the two houses is just over one mile in a straight line. What was special to DW in this area?

Page 363 – 368 - Wash and Mary discuss the likelihood of a Third World War. (Some things never change!!)


Page – 387 They all head off to the Esbat.

Esbat’s are the celebration of the 13 full moons that occur every year. The Esbats are lunar and represent the Goddess at her height of power. Therefore full moon is considered the most potent/powerful time of the month.

There are 8 Sabbat’s that make up the Wheel of the Year. The Sabbats are solar, seasonal and represent the cycle of birth, life, death and rebirth of the God. The Sabbats are Samhain(Oct 31st), Yule (Dec 21), Imbolc (Feb 2nd), Ostara (March 21st or around that time), Beltain (May 1st), Litha (June 21st), Lughnasadh (August 1st), and Mabon ( Sep 21st)
So if you have a full moon on a Sabbat I assume it is an Esbat AND a Sabbat.

THE RAPE OF VENICE

Chapter one is called ‘The Shape of Things to Come’.
This title is also the name of a famous book written by H.G. Wells in 1933. This book was also printed by Hutchinson. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Shape_ ... gs_to_Come
DW met HGW at his first meeting of the PEN club. (Poets, Essayists and Novelists).

On a sunny morning in June 1796, William Pitt, the younger was telling Roger Brook that, “What the nation needs now is peaceâ€￾. The Prime Minister is 37 years old and the monarch on the throne is King George the third. RB is 28 years old and was Mr Pitt’s most successful secret agent during the French Revolution. Mr Pitt, now wishes to create an alliance with Venice and RB is the man for the job. Mr Pitt knows of a secret envoy in London and wishes for RB to meet with Signor Rinaldo Malderini at “Stillwatersâ€￾ near Ripley in Surrey. Georgina Thursby is now 29 years old and prefers to stay in Ripley rather than White Knights Park, the seat in Northamptonshire of the Earl of St. Ermins, whose tragic death had made her a widow eighteen months before. The meeting is quickly arranged.
RB takes an instant dislike to Malderini particularly as RB was sure that he had cheated at cards that evening. Malderini’s wife, an Indian Princess called Sirishi was with him but said little. Malderini also brags of his psychic abilities and demonstrates them by putting his wife into a trance and goes on to answer questions in numerous languages. He goes on to talk about people’s aura’s, hypnotism and levitation.
Meanwhile, RB goes to see the family children and is surprised to hear that his dead wife, Amanda had arranged for Clarissa (a cousin of Amanda) to look after his daughter and Godson. Amanda had died giving birth to his second child. (See, ‘The Dark Secret of Josephine’). Clarissa had always loved RB and still does. He is still not ready for another relationship.
Malverini organises a levitation demonstration whilst all watching visitors in the house bet against him actually doing so. It turns out to be fraudulent. A fight takes place and a duel follows (with Pikes??) During the fight Malderini nearly overcomes RB as he is able to hypnotise him from a distance. Luckily somebody had shot an arrow from a larger distance and shot Malderini in the backside. The general opinion was that it was Clarissa.
Malderini threatens to get the law onto him and to save anyone else being involved and to avoid an international incident RB leaves the country. (Mr Pitt was not happy). RB decides to head for India. A place he has always wanted to see.
Clarissa meantime manages to get on board the same boat as RB. The initial story is that the she is RB’s niece so that there is no scandal attached but as time goes on they both become very good friends. It then comes as something of a surprise when one of the other passengers asks Clarissa to marry him.....and she accepts!! Her new man is a Mr Sydney Winters. RB tries to buy him off for a substantial sum. Winters chooses to decline.
Then, a storm takes hold and several crew including the Captain, several of the crew are drowned. The Ship sinks but RB, Clarissa and one of the crew named Bodkin manage to clamber ashore with the aid of some wooden chairs which they manage to tie together. They manage to stay awake long enough to get ashore on a beach which turned out to be the East coast of Africa. They are then found by a group of natives who take them to their camp. They appear quite threatening and look ready to cause problems so RB shoots the Witch Doctor with a pistol he had managed to keep dry. This certainly calms the situation down as they had never seen such ‘magic’ before.
In exchange for a pistol RB, Clarissa and Bodkin are guided to the nearest town. It takes them 5 days. They are met by a fat Eunuch with a falsetto voice. The Eunuch’s name is Khunsa Bajazet. He tells them that they are in Zanzibar.
After a brief stay they continue their journey and take a ship to Madras. On their arrival at the hotel they just happen to meet up with Mr Winters (Clarissa’s fiance ) son from his first marriage. There is an argument about financial settlement but there is no way of proving that Clarissa had been co-habiting with Winters and RB.
If meeting up with Winters family was a coincidence then meeting up with RB’s schoolboy enemy, George Gunston was astonishing. Things were going reasonably well when Clarissa is suddenly nowhere to be found. RB thinks that she may have gone off with Gunston, (But this makes no real sense).

RB decides to follow where Gunstons troop had headed. RB is captured by soldiers and taken to the Palace of The Raja of Bahna. Gunston is also there. Then, when things couldn’t get any worse Malderini walks into the room. He tells Roger what he intends to do to him and that he intends to sacrifice Clarissa to the Indian form of Baphomet.
RB’s friends manage to get him away from Malderini. He then returns to Gunston to try and get some fortifications to get Clarissa out. He returns with a brigade of Hussars who lay siege to the enemy encampment. RB is able to locate Clarissa who is deathly pale. It transpires that when Clarissa had been under the influence of Malderini, “...she had been taken to a crypt in a small temple. At the far end of the crypt was a cross-legged, hideous, many limbed idol. Roger guessed it was one of the evil God Siva (The Destroyer). Clarissa was ordered to strip, on the hideously cold floor. He then made her stretch herself flat on her back and then he proceeded with his evil rites. It had penetrated her bemused mind that Malderini had laid upon her a very young baby. He held the infants head between her breasts, then cut its throat. Streams of blood had run down to her armpits and across the lower part of her neck. Next, she had felt Malderini’s mouth against her flesh as he guzzled up the blood’. He then said, “I have no more use for you , I shall now become Doge of Veniceâ€￾

Clarissa tells RB that she is going to die but that she was happy that she had spent five months of heaven with him. She was right, she choked, fell back, twisted then died.
RB was desperate to head back to Venice to kill Malderini. Before he leaves he asks for Clarissa’s hair. Normally this would only be a lock of hair. In this case RB requests all of her hair tied into a rope. After the funeral he travels via Nagpur, Surat, The Red Sea, Suez and Cairo. When he arrives in Venice he waits until Maderini’s wife appears from the palace. He tells her of what has happened in India and asks, “does she still want to be rid of himâ€￾? She does but fears his powers. Malderini catches the two of them and after a fracas in the main square and RB ends up being incarcerated in the ‘Leads’ Municipal Jail. He is sentenced to be shot but on the ways to the place of execution they have to wait while a crowd of people who were following ‘Bonaparts’ lady Josephine. Josephine knows RB and requests his freedom. Although, he is now free he now knows that Maderini is playing a’Double Agent’ role and as such RB can’t touch him ....yet! However RB creates a plan that enables Napolean to enjoy Malderini’s wife’s company if she is willing. Which she is; in order to get rid of her husband. RB is also organising a secondary story that will create another political storm by forcing Malderini to capture Bonaparte having abducted his wife.
Malderini is drawn to the rendezvous and RB strangles him............... with Clarissa’s rope of hair









Snippet’s (from the Hutchinson Hardback)

Page 13 - Mr Pitt states,â€￾I’ll wager all Lombard to a china orange .....â€￾. DW has used this term before, in Strange Conflict
Lombard street to a China orange' is a phrase which means very badly stacked odds. (Lombard Street signifying wealth of the Italian Lombard merchants in London and China orange poverty and want)

Page 100 - Clarissa had to be careful that she was not ostracised by being seen in illicit relationships. She would have to beware of having to pay the price of having ’’thrown her shift over the moon’’
There was a very similar term used in The Prisoner in the Mask (see below)
Page 378 Angela uses a strange term which I’ve never heard of before. Whilst pondering how she (A married woman) and Armand can become a couple without damaging their reputations, she tells him that she is quite willing to “throw her shoes over the moonâ€￾ . After all, why should I not put your happiness and mine before that of my parents. They have had their lives, whereas we still have the best part of ours before usâ€￾.

Page 118 – 126 - Info dump on the History of India.

Page 173 - For those of you who may not have read ‘The Eunuch of Stamboul’, the description of this man Khunsa Bajazet is a virtual replica of the Eunuch in this book.

Page 233 - Malderini tells Roger what he intends to do to him and that he intends to sacrifice Clarissa to the Indian form of Baphomet.
http://www.churchofsatan.com/history-si ... phomet.php

Page 296 – ..â€￾Clarissa is suffering from Congestion of the lungsâ€￾.

Page 305 - (Apparently cutting the hair from the dead was not unusual during these times!) http://traditionscustoms.com/folk-beliefs/hair-folklore

I thought this was a good book. Not great but good. When I think of old Venice I think of something special with intrigue and disappearing chases through the darkened alleyways. Masked balls and sensuous females in glamourous gowns. Gondolier chases. He didn’t use Venice to anywhere near what it could have been. In fact Venice doesn’t come into this book until page 320 which is throwing away a wonderful opportunity.
However, the twists and turns within the story line were well written. I was upset that Clarissa died. I didn’t expect this. Gunston, was almost human in this story line – will it stay that way?
The shipwreck was also very well done.
The Black Magic scene was very well done and thought provoking but not as effective as The Devil Rides Out. How could it be?

Traitors Gate

It was late on the night of 25th July 1942. News of ‘Operation Torch’ had just been announced. Roosevelt and Churchill had confirmed that major forces were being based in Algeria.
It was imperative that the Germans knew nothing of it. Four month’s prior to the announcement Gregory Sallust had received a letter containing his ‘Call up papers’. His mirth was understandable considering that he had been in conflict with the Nazi’s for the last two and a half years. As a secret agent he had been parachuted into Germany in1939. Since then he had pitted his wits against Herr Gruppenfuhrer Grauber, the dreaded chief of the Gestapo’s Foreign Department in Finland, Norway, Holland, Belgium, France and Russia.
The Countess von Osterberg or Erika von Epp as she was known before her marriage was having breakfast at Sir Pellinore Gwaine Custs’ great rambling mansion at ‘Gwaine Meads’ which was situated on the welsh border. It had been in his family’s possession since the ‘Wars of the Roses’. Gregory was now over forty years of age and the idea of being given a mundane role in the forces as a gravedigger or an orderly in the sanitary corps did not appeal to him. He decided to go to London in order to seek Sir Pellinore’s advice.
Sir Pellinore and Gregory discuss the possibility of a foray into Budapest in an effort to push Hungary into a more active role in the war, thus taking the weight away from Russia and as a result German troops away from other European fronts. Gregory’s brief is to spy out the land and find out if the anti-German feeling in Hungary is strong enough to make use of.
Gregory is given the identity of a Free French officer who was an interpreter within the Commando’s. He died in a raid. His name was Commandant Etienne Tavernier. Gregory is also given the name of a useful contact for when he arrives in Hungary (Leon Levianski).
Gregory is flown to Budapest on August 13th and promptly meets up with his contact who agrees to help as much as he can. GS then presents himself to the Police to ‘regularise’ his stay in this country and then heads straight for one of Sir Pellinores old friends Count Mihaly Zapolya who lives approx. 30 miles away in Nagykata. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nagyk%C3%A1ta. GS persuades Zapolya to enter into a secret peace with the allies as soon as it is ratified by the major authorities of Churchill, Roosevelt and Stalin.
GS returns to his hotel where he is met by several men already waiting for him in his hotel room. (They were from the Hungarian Security Forces). They suspect him of being an imposter. However, with the aid of a note signed by Reinhard Heydrich, that he had stolen from a German officer, before throwing him into Lake Geneva on a dark night on the previous December, he manages to persuade them that he is not to be interfered with. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reinhard_Heydrich
That night Gregory dined at the Piccadilly club with one of the members of the Hungarian Nobles committee (Count Laszlo) that had been deliberating on the Hungarian political position. All was going well until Hitler’s Foreign minister Von Ribbentrop walks in accompanied with one of Gregory’s previous lovers….Sabine. GS & Sabine plan to meet the next day at the St. Gellert Baths at the southern end of Buda http://www.gellertbath.com/
They decide to go to the ‘Arizona’ a high quality restaurant and Cabaret. Unfortunately on a visit to the Gents toilet he is met by Gruppenfuehrer Grauber and friends. A fight ensues and Grauber and Gregory are taken to the Police station. After much arguing and explanation as to why the fight started, Gregory is placed in Jail until morning. Sabine manages to get him out. The next thirteen pages are discussions on what should happen next. (Somewhat boring)
Sabine takes Gregory back to The Tuzolto Palace. (The residence of Sabine and Ribbentrop). GS manages to get a phone call through to the Hungarian magnates – they agree to break with Germany subject to certain conditions. Sabine and Gregory had just got into bed…… when Ribbentrop returns. Grauber is also with him!! Gregory hides himself under the cover of a statue . He can see & hear Sabine, Ribbentrop & Grauber talking in the hallway. Sabine tell’s them that he had escaped, Grauber is sure she is lying and Ribbentrop is taking the middle line and trying to protect Sabine. When Grauber reluctantly leaves the house, Sabine tells Ribbentrop what had really happened. Ribbentrop tells her to get out of the country. Gregory still needs to get out as well!!! Ribbentrop leaves the house and in the morning Sabine & Gregory are forced back by Arrow-Cross men. http://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/jso ... cross.html.
The palace is firebombed and things are looking desperate as the residence is totally surrounded. One of the staff remembers that there was a vast maze of very old tunnels underneath the building. This forces Gregory & Sabine to locate the door and wander out into the cold and dark caves. (This is without doubt the best part of the book. The atmospheric feel of their plight is extremely well done. It took them four hours to make their way to a large solid door that they had to blow up with the aid of three strategically placed bullet’s. They manage to drag themselves into the back of a horse drawn wagon and walk the rest of the way to the accommodation of Leon Leovanski. After some food, drink, sleep and medical attention they start to feel almost human again. A few days later they pay to get a lift on a barge which takes them through Belgrade and onto Constanta, Rumania and finally Istanbul, Turkey. The final leg of the trip is a flight back to Hurn in Hampshire thanks to assistance from the Air Ministry. They head straight to London and to Sir Pellinore’s house. They tell him of all their activities and times spent together just as Erika von Epp walks in the door. She turns around and walks straight out again. Sir Pellinore had invited her there as a surprise for Gregory. (He certainly got one!).
Sabine finds herself a job in the ‘Moldavian Embassy’. DW adds a footnote at this point – ‘I would not normally invent fictitious ‘States’ in my books but the reason for doing so would become clear as the story unfolds.
GS goes to Gwaine Meads in order to placate Erika. It almost worked, but when Gregory is called back to London to help Sabine who has been arrested as a spy, Erika is as upset as before. Gregory hears that Sabine has been interred in the Tower of London (rather than Brixton Prison - It is probable that the government had some idea of making an example of her for propaganda purposes). Gregory is given clearance to see her at regular intervals with a view to extracting information from her before she is sentenced for her spying. Gregory persuades her to give some real secrets over a period of time as this will give her and Gregory time to organise an escape. He in turn works out how he can get her out of the Tower as she could end up being hung. Gregory tells Sir Pellinore of his plan; he is very much against the plan (even though Sabine helped GS get out of Hungary.
GS arranges to meet up with Colonel Kazda – the Moldovian military attaché. GS arranges to give him many favours including details of the great operation that is now being mounted in the Northern ports. (Operation Torch) Kazda agrees to get Sabine out of the country by boat. http://www.historylearningsite.co.uk/op ... _torch.htm
Firstly GS has the task of getting Sabine and himself out of the Tower to rendezvous with Colonel Kasdar’s boat. ‘Traitors Gate’ is the meeting point.
Even though GS is badly injured whilst escaping from the Tower he is eventually happy in the knowledge that Sabine has now left the country as well as given the wrong date to the Moldovian attaché.

Comments
I had never read this book before and as I’d loved all the previous World War II spy books I was particularly looking forward to reviewing this book. I have to say I was a little disappointed. There was a great deal of talking but not very much action. As I stated earlier the trek through the underground cave network was extremely good but generally this was not one of DW’s best. Even the name of the book, ‘Traitor’s Gate’, sounded impressive, but failed to live up to the title. It almost seemed to me that in an effort to build the book up it was given a powerful title to boost the storyline which wasn’t very good on its own.
It wasn’t bad – it was just not up to the previously high standard.







Snippets - Arrow Paperback

Page 18 - A mention from Sir Pellinore Gwaine Cust for the book ‘Lost Horizon’ by James Hilton.

Page 49 - Whilst Gregory was in London he took a trip into Oxford Street. The place seemed to be full of pretty girls. Most of them were in the uniform of the F.A.N.Y….. Just in case you wondered what that meant - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Aid_Nursing_Yeomanry

Page 59 - At a café by the Danube, GS orders himself a “Baratsch’, a golden liqueur distilled from apricots – the Hungarian national drink. He also tried some Hungarian Red wine known as ‘Bulls Blood’ of Bodascony. (Are you taking note ‘Ken & Mary Gallagher).

Page 133 - Most of this page is taken up on discussions and reminiscences relating to ‘spanking’ one of DW’s many pleasures. It’s been a while since DW has referred to this form of recreation.

Page 220 - A mention for the book ‘Three Englishmen’ by Gilbert Frankau.

Page 298 – Sir Pellinore is still having trouble remembering foreign names. He refers to the Baroness Tuzolto (Sabine) as that Toboso girl and Trombolo girl!!

Page 335 – GS was having dinner with Sir Pellinore at Carlton Terrace. GS was forwarding Sabine’s abject apologies for her shocking abuse of Sir P’s hospitality as her patriotic motives had got the better of her. Gregory responded with the comment, “Soft answer that turneth away wrathâ€￾. A saying from, Proverbs 15 - “A soft answer turneth away wrath: but grievous words stir up anger.â€￾ Ii’s unusual for DW to use biblical text!

This story is based on the youth of the Duke de Richleau who then bore his father’s second title, the Count de Quesnoy (Or Armand to his close friends).
It starts in the early 1890’s when Armand is eighteen years old.
His Father, the Duke was in his forty sixth year and the family were living in the little town of Jvanets, Russia; now Ukraine. http://www.jewishgen.org/ukraine/GEO_town.asp?id=333
His mother died in 1888.
Armand had grey eyes flecked with spots of yellow and above them were a pair of’ ‘Devil’s Eyebrow’s’ tapered up towards his temples.
Angela Syveton was nineteen years old, English and had been married to a Frenchman for six months; she already detested him. He was Gabriel Syveton. Armand was keen to seduce her.
The French Monarchist council were looking to restore the monarchy and De Richleau (senior) seemed to be the peoples favourite, however he did not wish for this high office.
In the meantime Armand was planning to join the French Army. His ambition was to make Francois the Duc de Vendome, King.
The big news in 1894 (and this is a true story) was that a man by the name of Alfred Dreyfus - A French artillery officer was accused of betraying France by passing on War Office secrets. Against all the evidence he was found guilty and deported to the Devil’s Island - French Guiana. Major Picquart was Alfred’s was his immediate chief and he himself believed Alfred to be innocent. It was generally believed that that senior military men were covering up the truth. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alfred_Dreyfus
Picquart lost his job as head of the statistical section and was due to be sent to Tunisia in the hope that he would be shot there during the fighting. DeQuesnoy was furious.
Angela expresses an ‘interest’ in Armand.
Armand was posted to Madagascar as part of his ‘Officer training’. During his stay he came in contact with Witch Doctors & advanced Occultists. (Black & White Magicians). The learning of this subject matter helped him to get through the rigours of his posting.
When Armand returns home to France, senior officials inform him that his next posting is to St Cyr, the Military Academy Cavalry.
http://www.google.co.uk/url?sa=t&rct=j& ... 7100,d.d2k
Armand is appointed as Chief Instructor on the cavalry side and it’s no coincidence that the Duc de Vendome just happens to be a member of the class. The powers that be want Armand to keep an eye on the ‘Future king’ and guide him through his training.
There were strong feelings in France to overthrow the Republic and restore the Monarchy. A meeting of Royalist sympathisers were being held privately. The Duc de Vendome was there and all seemed to be going well until a group of Republicans and police raided the venue.. A huge battle ensued and a subsequent newspaper headline reported that the Duc had been killed and a reward of 500 Louis would be paid for information leading to the apprehension of Armand.
Armand escapes to the Syveton’s residence. Gabriel Syveton announce’s that the Prince is still alive. He has also heard news of what the authorities have planned for him; “ You will have heard of , The Man in the Iron Mask. Dumas wrote a novel based on his sad history. He was the twin brother of Louis X1V and fearing that when he was old enough disaffected nobles might start a civil war by persuading him to claim the crown, Cardinal Richelieu (Note the different spelling) had him brought up in great secrecy and as he grew up the very image of the King, Louis from fear of a plot to use the resemblance, had his head locked into an iron helmet and kept him a prisoner for the rest of his life in the castle on the Ile St Marguerite. They now intend to do a similar thing but in this case it is to be a hinged leather contraption with a lock under the ear on one sideâ€￾. A plan is immediately set to rescue him. Approval is given for Angela & Armand to see the Prince in prison so that they can say their farewells before he is shipped out. The officer in charge at the prison is a Colonel Roux. He allows them 15 minutes to talk to the Prince with his mask off. (Big mistake) This gives Armand enough time to hypnotise Roux whilst using cards to tell his fortune.
This is where Armand and the Prince change places. Armand is now in prison with the mask on and the Prince leaves with Angela. She realises that that it is extremely likely that she will never see Armand again.
Armand is soon shifted from the prison and ‘The man in the mask’ has now also become the man in the Crate as he is locked into a sort of portable wooden crate 6 feet by seven feet square which contains a bed, washstand, slop pail and cupboard that could be used as a table. The whole thing could be picked up and transported by road and sea.
Armand(obviously) has to keep his mask on so that they can’t notice the switch. So he tells Roux (in a Prince like voice) that he is declining to remove his mask as a form of protest. Roux decides that it’s up to him. Roux also tells the Prince that he is being shipped to French Guiana (Which is sandwiched between Suriname and Brazil). The actual landing place turns out to be,’Devil’s Island’ (which is roughly 30 miles from Cayenne – The capital of French Guiana). Devil’s Island also turns out to be the place where Alfred Dreyfus had been interred for four & a half years.
When the ship docks on the island and the crew are moving towards the next prison, Armand decides that once he is interred in this prison he will never get out and so decides to make a big jump into the sea. He manages to avoid the shark infested waters and swim to a yacht that was moored nearby. The master of the yacht was a Mr Channock Van Ryn.
The French authorities pull up alongside the yacht and demand their prisoner back. Ryn, however declines as the scenario together with the awful appearance of Armand replete with a grotesque mask look so inhuman. Ryn is the son of a very rich American Banker; so rather than cause a diplomatic incident the French go away but promise to return soon with more senior personnel.
In the meantime Armand tells Van Ryn his story. Ryn sympathises and agrees to tell the French that the prisoner threw himself overboard and the sharks ate him (rather than spend the rest of his life locked up). Naturally the French search the yacht but can’t recognise the ‘new crewman’ less mask and greased up as a stoker with all his hair shaved off.
Roux has to admit that Armand was not there and they reluctantly go away.
Van Ryn & Armand become very close and Start to cruise the South America’s. By chance, Van Ryn receives a telegram that his uncle has died. This gives Armand the opportunity to take over the vacant position…..in Paris. Van Ryn will also be able to work from Paris.
Armand is keen to join the Freemasons in order to find out who is controlling the fanatics that would like to see Church and State overthrown. Armand believes generally believe that the English Freemasons are mainly non-political and generally concerned with charitable works but some of the others are totally corrupt.
By joining the French Freemasons he believes that he might be able to pick up enough information to damn,’General Andre’. One of the main ring leaders.
Angela Syveton and Armand are working out a way to get their marriage annulled but are frustrated at the hopeless situation.
Several months later Armand happens to meet up with one of his Masonic colleagues (Jean Bidegain) who is very much down on his luck; drinking too much Absinth despite the fact that he has little money. Bidegain is the Principal Assistant to the Secretary General and has access to the ‘Fiches’ for which he is responsible. (The Fiches are slips of paper which give details of denunciations that he receives about the Catholics).
The Secretary General is very mean and pays Bidegain a pittance.
Armand suggests that he has power though by putting a fiche on the top of the file or even destroying twenty at a time. On a bigger scale he could pass on information to the ‘Ligue de la Patrie Francaise’. Bidegain eagerly agree’s and an amount of money was agreed for the passing over of the Fiches.
A large amount of Fiches were forthcoming and a corresponding amount of money went to swell the coffers of Monsier Bidegain.
Gabriel Syveton is found dead. He appears to have held the steel paper knife to his chest and fallen on it. (In reality he was found dead at his home in Neuilly sur Seine, asphyxiated by gas from its chimney)

Snippets:
(Taken from the Arrow Paperback)

Page 134 - Armand states, “that if the students (including the Duc) were anything like I was when I was at St Cyr, they will all have their ‘Grisettes’ (A French working-class girl or young woman). The original meaning was French, a cheap grey dress fabric, grisette, from gris, gray;

Page 143 - Armand uses a recent invention from his pocket – A flat flask-like case with a small bulb in its top, which on pressing a button connected with a battery and gave out a beam of electric light. (If only the i-phone had been invented!!!)

Page 157 – DW mentions, Charles Maurass who was a pagan. Yet another reference to DW’s Pagan sympathies

Page 356 Petit Blue - Old-fashioned word for telegram. They used to be printed on a blue paper

Page 378 Angela uses a strange term which I’ve never heard of before. Whilst pondering how she (A married woman) and Armand can become a couple without damaging their reputations, she tells him that she is quite willing to “throw her shoes over the moonâ€￾ . After all, why should I not put your happiness and mine before that of my parents. They have had their lives, whereas we still have the best part of ours before usâ€￾.

Page 382 Syveton was a real person.
http://translate.google.co.uk/translate ... 6bih%3D695

Review

Dennis Wheatley makes no effort to hide the fact that this book was based heavily on one of his favourite authors Alexandre Dumas. (The Man in the Iron Mask)
Before starting this book I thought that it was going to be slightly slow & boring. i.e. It didn’t include the main characters as we know from the ‘The Devil Rides Out’ with the exception of the Duke de Richleau who was still a teenager then. It was going back into the dim dark past with people we didn’t really know. I had however forgotten that this book was written in 1957 and not the 19th century and so the story telling talent of DW was more than capable of making us turn the pages at a rapid rate. The storyline moved along really well and the way that Wheatley integrates the fiction of the book with the actual events of the time is masterly.
The part I remember really well is where Armand hypnotises the prison guard whilst he was supposredly reading the cards and their influences to him. I didn't see it coming!
One minor criticism – I found the ending slightly predictable and convenient - I did see it coming!
All in all though an extremely well put together story line which keep’s the reader hanging on to every word. Well worth reading again.

Thank you Steve for starting the ball rolling again ... with three months to go, I think this is exactly the right time for us to firm up on the agenda ... especially if there is any hope that one of our number (I wonder who I'm talking about ???) might be tempted to produce yet another stunning so...

Further to a recent conversation regarding a No. 21 bus in London with Charles; the subject of the 2013 Convention raised its head. There were a few commemts last year that it was a little intense so I thought i might start the ball rolling by throwing in a few thought starters; Re. the convention I...

Hi Ericmocata,

I wouldn't dream of mocking any errors. Although it did occur to me that the best thing for me to do would be to correct the last line and then everyone else would wonder what you were on!!

Would I do that??