30 April 1870
Late Evening
I am so terribly tired yet alarmingly awake at the same time.
I feel I must recount the events of our day before I am able to sleep.
The day started slowly. I spent the morning, with Sir Cosmo and many interruptions, indexing the late Baron's personal research journals. It was quite a distasteful task. He had been actively experimenting on many animals, primarily monkeys, guinea pigs, and dogs, and had made detailed drawings of the vivisections he performed. Fortunately Mrs Cuthbert found other tasks to occupy her attention, as some of the details of the Baron's work would have disturbed her sensitive and caring nature. I am only glad the biological sciences never captured my interest.
The interruptions included a carnivorous plant that lured Lieutenant Wooster into range but did not eat him. Later in the day it was concluded that he was probably too large for the plant (an exotic type of bladderwort brought back to England from the Amazon by Paolo according to the field notes we found). Miss Sinclair was able to pull the Lieutenant out of the greenhouse and after some fresh air and more than a bit of Mr Cuthbert's ever-ready brandy he returned to his normal self. Though I feel compelled to note that he has been rather quiet since the young lady he had been courting broke it off with him. It does not help that she is a granddaughter of the late Baron and is here at the estate with the rest of the family. To be immersed in the affairs of a family of which he had so recently hoped to be a part must be very painful.
Miss Sinclair mentioned that it was Miss Glossop that Wooster was crying for when he was under the influence of the plant. We did not determine today wether the plant's attractant is visual or chemical as we were frequently distracted in our investigations. However, we did determine that the plant's action can be resisted by use of veils, work clothes, and camphor soaked rags across one's nose and mouth. I have had one bath tonight and still I fear that the smell will never leave me.
<later>
I went for a cup of tea and now that I look over my entry thus far I find it most unsatisfactory as a coherent account of the days events. Suffice to say that we discovered the following things in the lab today: the plant is a native of the Amazon and it has eaten at least one guinea pig and the missing monkeyB Lambda. Kappa was quite upset when we told it of our discovery. We also made some progress on indexing the Baron's journals but we could see that it would be the work of several days to construct a coherent account of the experiments he conducted. We sent a coded cable with our findings to Our Employer, along with a request for experts to assist in the care of the animals and the destruction of the plant. Miss Sinclair theorized that several of the monkeys that were pregnant were carriers for the next generation of the Baron's experiments and thus should be watched closely.
In the midst of all of our research we discovered two unsavoury things about the household. One was that a Miss Clara Bertwhistle had been >sent away' from her position in the Deeming household to London and was to return to a promotion from scullery maid to upstairs maid. Edward also overheard a conversation about a secret marriage. That, combined with the information Miss Sinclair over-heard early this morning caused us to speculate that perhaps Miss Clara had secretly married Paolo. We also remembered that Owen had mentioned Paolo talking to >his woman' when he was first interviewed. That was the way in which Owen discovered that Paolo had escaped to London. A final clue was propinquityB the estate of Dr Deeming and the estate of the late Baron share a boundary line and there would have been opportunity for the two to meet and fall in loveB or at least arrange a match to suit themselves.
A second line of inquiry opened itself to us as the day progressed. Wilson was alerted to the fact that his unstable assistant (the one whose actions resulted in the quite unnecessary explosion at Mrs McKinnon's boardinghouse) was secretly trying to devise explosives in the garden shed. Mr Cuthbert discovered him there when he went to look for tools to destroy the carnivorous plant in the greenhouse. In addition to Mortimer Hammersley, Mr Cuthbert found some very serviceable tools that we were able to put to good use as the day progressed. Dr Wilson went to the greenhouse, confiscated the chemicals Hammersley had been using and returned to us with some news clippings Hammersley had in his possession. Dr Wilson noted that Hammersley is not permitted to read newspapers or journals of any sort as he suffers from delusions that all people of Polish extraction are spies out to persecute him. The clippings referenced a Mr Bertowski, the registrar for Lancashire County and the man who would be in charge of all the public records, including marriage certificates, for the county.
In addition to all of this information, Sir Cosmo had an odd conversation with the butler of the house. The man indicated that a Mr Marcus Perthwaite had, just last night, spoken in quite a loud voice outside the library where Hammersley was working, about Mr. Bertowski and the man's Polish connections. The butler thought it odd at the time, as the entire household knows of Hammersley's delusion and try to avoid mentioning names and other subjects that upset him.
At this point I determined to go to the registrars office to confirm or refute our speculationsB which were taking quite an alarming turn as more information accumulated. Some of the others decided to search the estate for Hammersley. I asked Sir Cosmo if Salmalin could accompany me to the Registrar's office as I did not know what I would do if Hammersley somehow escaped our League.
We had no sooner reached the carriage house when we discovered that we were too late. Hammersley had talked one of the stable boys into giving him a horse and cart. Salmalin and I sent a runner back to our colleagues and immediately set out to stop Hammersley from killing Mr Bertowski with one of his homemade, yet highly effective, explosive devices.
Salmalin and I made the best time possible in our two-seater. I found myself leaning forward as if that would speed us along more quickly. Salmalin deftly avoided the mail carriage though the poor man driving was covered in dustB it seemed we were on the right trackB though Hammersley was still not within sight.
We sped into town and quickly located the Records Office. It was a two storey brick building parked in front of it was Hammersley's carriage. Salmalin leapt gracefully from out carriage while I scrambled down as best I could. I really must start wearing my Turkish Costume any time we are out on assignment. In almost every situation there has been no time to change from normal daywear to my preferred mode of dress. The freedom of movement it would provide would be well work the stares.
Once in the building, I started shouting for everyone to evacuate the while Salmalin and I both searched for Hammersly. We ran into a Mr Cratchet, I knew him previously as Sir Cosmo's accountant but it appears he was down in Liverpool on the same business as the League. He was auditing all records concerned with the Baron's estate and so happened to be at the Records Office. I was able to quickly explain the situation.
Mr Cratchet volunteered to take the top floor and evacuate those employees. He also informed us that Mr Bertowski was out of the office. Salmalin found the stairs to the basement quickly went down to search them.
At that moment I heard the clatter of carriage wheels outside the main door and dashed outside. As I hoped it was the rest of League. They made very good time. Mrs Cuthbert agreed to take one of the carriages and search for Mr Bertowski and Hammersley in the Public Market. Mr Cuthbert went with her.
The rest of the League, along with Hammersley's Father, entered the building. Miss Sinclair was able to confirm that explosives were in the building. From that point things became quite muddled. Somehow Mr Ramsey had joined us. It turned out that he had received our letters and decided to join us in our investigations. He had just arrived in town and was getting into a cab when Salmalin and I tore past him. He induced his cabby to follow and joined us in the search for Hammersly.
Mr Cratchet herded all of the employees out of the building while we headed to the basement to assist Salmalin.
We arrived just as Salmalin succeeded in detaching, without violence, Hammersley from his explosives. I did not see all that happened, as I needed to return upstairs and send Edward off to inform the Cuthberts that Hammersley had been found, however, I was pleased to note that Hammersley seemed to respond to reason. Once the situation was explained to him he was quite distressed to have been used in such a manner by his cousin. We did not let him help removed the explosives from the building. That was left in the capable hands of Wilson and Salmalin.
We retired to Mr Bertowski's office and with the aid of Hammersley's father, Professor Hammersley, we devised a plan that we hoped would frighten Mr Perthwaite into confessing his role in the attempted murder of the staff at the County Offices, and in particular, attempting to murder Mr Bertowski and destroy the evidence of his cousin Paolo's marriage to Miss Clara Bertwhistle. For Mr Cratchet had, in his possession, the records proving that Paolo was the legitimate son of Andrew Scarisbrick, the only son of Baron Scarisbrick, and as such sole heir of the Scarisbrick estates and titles. Unfortunately, since Paolo murdered his Grandfather he is no longer able to inherit but, Clara's child, son or daughter, stands to inherit the estate in its entirety.
The original plan was to return home claiming that Hammersley had blown himself up en route to Mr Bertowski's office. Professor Hammersley was certain that both his wife and mother-in-law would certainly ask Mrs Cuthbert to preform a seance to find out why this terrible tragedy had occurred. The Professor's plan was that Hammersley would attempt to 'rise from the dead' and frighten Mr Perthwaite in to confessing. My own suggestion, was that we use Mrs Cuthbert's real powers to summon Andrew, since he is certainly a wronged party in all of this. His son is in prison and the legitimacy and safety of his only grandchild has also been threatened. Also, while Mrs Cuthbert knows many of the techniques used to create a ersatz seance, she has never put them to practice. It would use real power and have real risks but it would be much more convincing. Besides we could always call Hammersley if our first plan failed.
We put our plan into action. Mr Hammersley was made up to be suitably corpse-like. I consulted on the placement and design of some of the wounds, drawing on some of my recent experiences with the League and our not-quite-inevitable explosions.
We returned to the Scarisbrick Estate and managed to pass Hammersley off as a corpse without any of us giving the game away. Professor Hammersley set the stage by claiming that his son had cried out Andrew's name before dying in the Professor's arms. Professor Hammersley carried this off exceedingly well and even those of us who knew Hammersley was trying not twitch under his shroud were moved to tears. As predicted, Baroness Scarisbrick, Lady Ditteridge, and Mrs Hammersley all turned to our own Mrs Cuthbert for assistance in determining the meaning of Hammersley's >last words' and discovering the reason behind Hammersley's rash actions.
Mrs Cuthbert obliged. Mr Ramsey and I offered our assistance and I had already arranged to have my Aunt's tools brought over from Lord Haslington's estate so we had everything we needed. Mrs Cuthbert directed us in preparing the room. I found this part most instructive as I have only called upon the spirit of Great-Aunt Hethalyn once with intent. There were certain similarities between that ritual and the one Mrs Cuthbert instructed us to prepare and I was encouraged by the naturalness with which she moved through the ritual. To think, a few weeks ago I thought her odd and possibly mentally unstable and now she is one of several people who have agreed to share their skills with me. I hope, after diligent study, to be as calm and focussed as Mrs Cuthbert was this night.
Once all was prepared we called in the Family. Miss Sinclair had volunteered to stay with Hammersley, both to keep him out of trouble, and to avoid disrupting the casting. Dr Wilson jollied Mr Perthwaite into the room. For a moment it looked as if arm twisting would be necessary but Perthwaite took his seat with bad grace and we proceeded with the summoning. Mr Ramsey and I had supporting roles in the spell while Mrs Cuthbert used her skill to draw upon the power we provided.
In very little time, the spirit of Andrew appeared in the centre of the circle. It was immediately apparent that, at this point, very few people could see him. For our plan to succeed it was necessary that Andrew be visible to all present. Mr Ramsey and I continued our chants. I could feel my hair pulling loose from its combs and trying to stand out from my head.
A collective gasp went around the table when we succeeded. Mrs Cuthbert sharply instructed everyone to hold their places and keep the circle intact. Mr Ramsey and I switched to sustaining, rather than adding to the spell. Once the table quieted, Mrs Cuthbert asked Andrew the questions we had rehearsed while setting up the room. They were designed to draw Andrew out without giving away our own suspicions. After some confusion on Andrew's partB he has been dead these past ten years after allB he focussed. He accused Mr Perthwaite of planning to kill members of the family to secure a larger portion of the estate for himself (through his wife).
The blood drained from Perthwaite's face and he scrambled from his chair, breaking the circleB instead of vanishing, Andrew advanced upon his nephew-in-law intent on his own vengeance. Wilson and Miss Chigwidgeon tried to block Perthwaite's retreat. Perthwaite tangled in Namaste's skirts and chair and fell with a horrible snap. It was all I could do to remain focussed on my role in holding the spell. Andrew continued to advance and ignored our attempts to return him to the spirit plain. I tried throwing my Great-Aunt's silver chimes at the ghost but my aim was poor. I didn't hit him. Fortunately I didn't hit anyone else. I must have Mrs Cuthbert teach me the counter-spell for getting rid persistent spirits once they have been summoned.
Miss Chigwidgeon stood over Perthwaite, blocking Andrew and telling him to leave justice to the living. Andrew ignored her. She suddenly stared pleading with Andrew in a language none of us knew and her hair stood out from her head in a mass of long black strands. The air crackled with magic and she rose in the air.
With thunderclap both spirits vanished and the room was returned to normal. Miss Chigwidgeon was passed out on the floor, though she quickly came around.
Our best guess is that Miss Chigwidgeon was possessed by the spirit of Andrew's wife, an Amazon Native, and she convinced him to return with her and leave Perthwaite to us. Perthwaite had broken his leg when he tangled with Miss Chigwidgeon. First aid was applied while Mrs Cuthbert, Mr Ramsey and I cleared the table we used for the spell and put everything away. My Great-Aunt's chimes were miraculously undamaged.
Just as everything was settling down, Mortimer chose to make his appearance. Mr Perthwaite fainted, as did Hammersley's mother. She spent the rest of the evening alternating between berating Messiers Hammersley and showering them with relief and affection.
Once the household had settled down again and Perthwaite was taken away to spend the night in the local jail we returned home. Before we departed, I took Hammersly aside and warned him against taking precipitate actions based on unreliable information. I hope he has learned from this adventure that his delusion makes him vulnerable to manipulation.
I have been writing so long the entire house is quiet. I myself am finally settling and feel I could rest now. Tomorrow we plan to spend compiling our research and dealing with the Carnivorous Plant, the Monkeys, the Guinea Pigs and the Dogs. There is still much to do wrap up the late Baron's affairs.
Proceed to 6. All Manner of Strangeness
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