TODAY'S story has a happy ending for just about everybody involved, which sounds great; however, you might find it disturbing that just about everyone who's in this thing doesn't really deserve it. In fact, they might deserve something else—like jail time . . .
"A Nose for the King."
By Jack London (John Griffith Chaney, 1876-1916; Wikipedia HERE; the ISFDb HERE; the SFE HERE; and the IMDb HERE, 188 credits).
First appearance: The Black Cat, March 1906.
Reprinted in When God Laughs and Other Stories, 1911 (online at Project Gutenberg HERE and Standard Ebooks HERE) . . .
and Alfred Hitchcock's Mystery Magazine, April 2001 (today's text).
Illustrated by Hank Blaustein (born 1937; ISFDb HERE).
Short short short story (5-6 pages).
"There are robbers abroad in the land."
. . . but this particular criminal isn't abroad in the land. Instead, he's making a killing by selling the Korean equivalent of the Brooklyn Bridge . . .
Principal characters:
~ Yi Chin Ho, the jailer, the governor, the prime minister (maybe), Pak Chung Chang, and the king.
References:
- "the morning calm of Korea" (HERE; Wikipedia).
- "its ancient name Cho-sen" (HERE; Wikipedia).
- "From the Sacred City to the ends of all the Eight Coasts." Did London make these up?
- "to the shore of the Eastern Sea" (HERE; Wikipedia).
- "I too know filial piety and regard" (HERE; Wikipedia).
- "selling the Korean equivalent of the Brooklyn Bridge" (HERE; Wikipedia).
Resources:
- James Powell recognized the importance of noses (HERE).
- The resolution of a 1973 motion picture's plot hinged on a nose (WARNING! SPOILERS! Wikipedia HERE).
The bottom line:
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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