WHAT do Huck Finn, Holden Caulfield, Andy Griffith, and Charles Sandeson have in common? That should become clear when Charles encounters . . .
"The Mysterious Kit-Bag."
By Arthur Franks (?-?; FictionMags HERE).
Illustration by John E. Sutcliffe (1876-1922; FictionMags HERE).
First appearance: Cassell's Magazine, November 1907.
Short short story (8 pages).
Online at Hathi Trust (HERE).
"I can no longer keep silence."
A fourth-century theologian whose works are still taught in universities issued this warning: "Woman is the gate of the devil, the road to iniquity, the sting of the scorpion, in a word, a dangerous species." We're pretty sure that Charles slept through that lecture . . .
Principal characters:
~ Charles Sandeson:
". . . stranded in a foreign city, with no pyjamas, and a mysterious bag, probably full of a lady's apparel."
~ Irma d'Armentiéres:
"Even in the semi-darkness it was easy to see how nice-looking she was."
~ Monsieur Truffaut:
". . . said that it was obvious from her name that the lady was noble . . ."
~ Mr. Jefferson:
". . . said it was wonderful what attraction some men had over women . . ."
~ Brown:
". . . jumped up and began to call me most objectionable names . . ."
~ The Countess of Exshire:
". . . since that time her nickname for me is Sherlock Holmes."
References and resource:
- "waiting for the boat-train":
Boat-trains seem to figure heavily in Golden Age detective fiction. (Wikipedia HERE.)
- "the worry of preparing for the second time for my Pass Mods."
Wikipedia has the gruesome details (HERE).
- Charles belongs to a sub-species of that old standby of fiction, the Unreliable Narrator. (Wikipedia HERE; see especially "The Naif.")
Bottom line:
"It is worse still to be ignorant of your ignorance."
Unless otherwise noted, all bibliographical data are derived from The FictionMags Index created by William G. Contento & edited by Phil Stephensen-Payne.
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