A Christmas Mystery The Story of Three Wise Men

by William John Locke

This book was converted from its physical edition to the digital format by a community of volunteers. You may find it for free on the web. Purchase of the Kindle edition includes wireless delivery.

Genres: Christmas, Classics, Short Stories, Fiction, Holiday, Retellings

26 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1910

About the author

William John Locke was a British novelist, dramatist and playwright, best known for his short stories. His works have been made into 24 motion pictures, the most recent of which was Ladies in Lavender, filmed in 2004 and starring Dame Judi Dench and Maggie Smith. Probably the most famous of Locke's books adapted to the screen was the 1918 Pickford Film Corporation production of Stella Maris starring Mary Pickford. In addition, four of his books were made into Broadway plays, two of which Locke wrote and were produced by Charles Frohman.

Reviews

[Lorraine Montgomery · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a Christmas short story taking place in the early 1900s in England with three totally different wise men. Written by Wm. J. Locke (1863 - 1930), this is a delightful tale so totally appropriate for this season and full of surprises.

The story begins outside a bookstall at Paddington Station, as three rather grumpy curmudgeons meet up to discover they have all been invited to the same place for Christmas, a place called Foulis Castle owned by the Deverills, a couple each of the three knows only slightly, if at all, in what Sir Angus McCurdie describes as a "God-forsaken place in Cornwall".

The three are eminent in their respective fields, a physicist already mentioned, a professor named Biggleswade, an authority on Assyriology, and the Rt. Hon. Viscount Doyne, an Empire Builder and Administrator. The three are doing their best to avoid their homes and relatives on Christmas Day. In short, they are each the incarnation of Scrooge. But fate intervenes in their plans and changes their lives.

This is a very quick read. I have never read anything by Locke before but will certainly be looking for more in due time. This is not a murder mystery, for a change, but a work that shows how God works in mysterious ways His purposes to fulfill. A thoroughly engaging story.

[Kim · Rating 3 out of 5]

A few days ago I read the extremely short story, A Christmas Mystery, The Story of Three Wise Men by William John Locke. If you don't know who William John Locke is that's OK, I don't either. At least I didn't until A Christmas Mystery was kind enough to enter my life. Then I found out a few things about the author, things like;

He was a British novelist, dramatist and playwright, best known for his short stories. I also learned that at the age of three, Locke was sent to England for further education. Oh, he was in British Guiana before being shipped off to England. So there he is at the age of three for further education. Education of what? I can't quite remember my children's days of being three, but could he even talk by that time? Well enough for most people to understand him that is. What in the world was he supposed to be learning that, at that age he couldn't learn at home. He seems a little young for the how to tie your shoes lesson. Anyway, he was there for nine years before returning to attend prep school at Queen's Royal College, Cambridge. While there he won an exhibition to enter St. John's College. I would think he would, he's been studying long enough, he should know everything by now. He knew mathematics anyway, he graduated with honors in it. Yuk. Oh wait, he graduated with honors in it despite his dislike of that - get ready - utterly futile and inhuman subject. His words not mine. Yes! Finally someone who sees math the way I do! Of course he at least understands it, I missed out on that. He became a schoolmaster, but disliked teaching, I like this guy better all the time. He was good at it though, he was a master at all kinds of places such as the Oxford Military College, Clifton College, and Trinity College. Probably more, but I can't remember. And finally in 1894 he began to write. Five of his books have made the best sellers list in the United States and his works have been made into 24 motion pictures, I don't know which ones, I only read this one very short story which probably isn't much longer than all this stuff I just made you read. So back to the story, I thought it was short - and I was right- and I thought it was dumb - you'll have to read it and decide for yourself, don't worry, you'll be done reading in an hour or less.

I think when I read it I concentrated too much on the "Christmas Mystery" part of the title than the "Three Wise Men" part. I probably should have given that part a little more thought. I wanted a mystery and I don't feel like I got one, it had promise for awhile though. We begin with this:

Three men who had gained great fame and honour throughout the world met unexpectedly in front of the bookstall at Paddington Station. Like most of the great ones of the earth they were personally acquainted, and they exchanged surprised greetings.

Sir Angus McCurdie, the eminent physicist, scowled at the two others beneath his heavy black eyebrows.

"I'm going to a God-forsaken place in Cornwall called Trehenna," said he.

"That's odd; so am I," croaked Professor Biggleswade. He was a little, untidy man with round spectacles, a fringe of greyish beard and a weak, rasping voice, and he knew more of Assyriology than any man, living or dead. A flippant pupil once remarked that the Professor's face was furnished with a Babylonic cuneiform in lieu of features.

"People called Deverill, at Foulis Castle?" asked Sir Angus.

"Yes," replied Professor Biggleswade.

"How curious! I am going to the Deverills, too," said the third man.

This man was the Right Honourable Viscount Doyne, the renowned Empire Builder and Administrator, around whose solitary and remote life popular imagination had woven many legends. He looked at the world through tired grey eyes, and the heavy, drooping, blonde moustache seemed tired, too, and had dragged down the tired face into deep furrows. He was smoking a long black cigar.

A physicist, and professor, and a empire builder and administrator, whatever that is. Our three Wise men. All of them are going to the same remote place that not one of them want to go to. So why are they going? First we have Sir Angus McCurdie complain:

"Why the whole land should be turned into a bear garden on account of this exploded superstition of Christmas is one of the anomalies of modern civilization. Look at this insensate welter of fools travelling in wild herds to disgusting places merely because it's Christmas!"

And when Lord Doyne points out that Sir Angus is one of those travelling he responds with:

"Yes--and why the devil I'm doing it, I've not the faintest notion," replied Sir Angus.

When he goes on to say he barely even knows the people he is going to visit the Professor says this:

"I myself," said the Professor, "am not acquainted with them at all."

It was Sir Angus McCurdie's turn to look surprised.

"Then why are you spending Christmas with them?"

"I reviewed a ridiculous blank-verse tragedy written by Deverill on the Death of Sennacherib. Historically it was puerile. I said so in no measured terms. He wrote a letter claiming to be a poet and not an archæologist. I replied that the day had passed when poets could with impunity commit the abominable crime of distorting history. He retorted with some futile argument, and we went on exchanging letters, until his invitation and my acceptance concluded the correspondence."

McCurdie, still bending his black brows on him, asked him why he had not declined. The Professor screwed up his face till it looked more like a cuneiform than ever. He, too, found the question difficult to answer.

And we can't forget Lord Doyne and the reason he is going:

"I knew Mrs. Deverill's mother, Lady Carstairs, very well years ago, and of course Mrs. Deverill when she was a child. Deverill I came across once in Egypt--he had been sent on a diplomatic mission to Teheran. As for our being invited on such slight acquaintance, little Mrs. Deverill has the reputation of being the only really successful celebrity hunter in England. She inherited the faculty from her mother, who entertained the whole world. We're sure to find archbishops, and eminent actors, and illustrious divorcées asked to meet us. That's one thing. But why I, who loathe country house parties and children and Christmas as much as Biggleswade, am going down there to-day, I can no more explain than you can. It's a devilish odd coincidence."

So, why are they going? And when the train gets stuck in the snow, why do they keep going?, and once it gets going again and goes so slowly, they still keep going, and by the time they get to the next stop their connection had gone and they had to continue on in a little, cold local train. So, why did they keep going? And after weary waiting for another dismal local train, why didn't they turn around? None of them want to continue on, all of them do. Part of their conversation goes like this:

"And when we get there we have still a twenty miles' motor drive to Foullis Castle. It's a fool name and we're fools to be going there."

"I shall die of bronchitis," wailed Professor Biggleswade.

"A man dies when it is appointed for him to die," said Lord Doyne, in his tired way; and he went on smoking long black cigars.

"It's not the dying that worries me," said McCurdie. "That's a mere mechanical process which every organic being from a king to a cauliflower has to pass through. It's the being forced against my will and my reason to come on this accursed journey, which something tells me will become more and more accursed as we go on, that is driving me to distraction."

"What will be, will be," said Doyne.

"I can't see where the comfort of that reflection comes in," said Biggleswade.

But now they get to their station, a lonely little station, a place where no man lived, at least that's how it seemed to them. But there was a car waiting, and they got in, and the chauffeur drove off and they began to get warm again, and their spirits started to rise, and there was a jolt and a lurch and a leap and a rebound, and the car was still, and the men were thrown and tossed and were now on top of each other on the bottom of the car. And they all managed to get out of the broken down car, and they all managed to see that something had gone wrong with the axle, and they all knew the car was going nowhere the rest of the night. They are ten miles from their destination, so it is decided that the chauffeur will walk alone to an inn about five miles ahead and come back for them with a horse and trap, and meanwhile the three wise men will take shelter in a little house they had just passed, about half a mile up the road. And that's what they did. And what they find there, what makes them three "Wise men", and what makes it a Christmas story, you can find out when you read it. We're about two pages from the end right here. Merry Christmas and Happy reading.

[Missy · Rating 3 out of 5]

Brief but enjoyable. Between two and a half and three stars.

[Judy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I just read Silas Marner, and now this one. Coincidental. Here we meet 3 learned, older bachelors, rather curmudgeonly, who find themselves on a train heading out into the snowy outback of England. That sets the scene for all kinds of possibilities.

(I've only read one other book by Locke, The Wonderful Year, and I liked it much better than this one.)

[Susan Molloy · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book from 1910 has a good Christmas-themed story of three men who deliver a baby at Christmastime. It has the feel, in a way, of “The Three Godfathers.”

🟢 Media form: Project Gutenberg .

[Elizabeth · Rating 4 out of 5]

Serial Reader split this into two parts and after the first part I kind of thought "Oh my god, this author is writing And Then There Were None, but ten years early and with a Christmas wreath on the door." But the ending was sweet and thought provoking and no one died on-screen. Nice quick little Christmas read if you're tired of The Gift of the Magi.

[William Cherico · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a very short but sweet story that works perfectly as a little introduction to the Christmas season. The idea of the miserly old man learning the value of family around the holidays may be one I've seen before, but William John Locke's sense of humor elevates the story as he pokes fun at the three main characters throughout.

[Chinook · Rating 2 out of 5]

Where was the mystery? Three dudes who are kind of jerks, as far as I can tell, deliver a baby on Christmas. Meh.

I read the two chunks on Serial super far apart because of the plague that has hit us all this Christmas.

[Blair · Rating 3 out of 5]

An engaging little two-parter. Can't say it will stick with me, but it was worth the time and it is the season!

[Hope · Rating 2 out of 5]

Vintage short story attempting to tell the Christmas story in a fresh way.

[Janis · Rating 4 out of 5]

So you know where this story is going within the first couple of pages, but you don’t know how it’s going to get there. I enjoyed it.

[Jean Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

A different, short Christmas story.

[Caryl]

Found this via Serial Reader app and gave it a try.

[Vanellope · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was absolutely hilarious for some reason

[David · Rating 1 out of 5]

Dumb.

[Catherine Mustread · Rating 3 out of 5]

Listened to this on CraftLit's Twelve Days of Christmas.

[Jane · Rating 3 out of 5]

A modern reimagining of the nativity story. A nice little story to read around Christmas time.

[Heather · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really liked this one.

[Julian]

quite wholesome apart from that classic touch of islamaphobia

[Jennifer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Short.

[JerrieGayle · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars. A Heartwarming Christmas Tale with a Touch of Mystery

Three wealthy yet lonely and somewhat embittered men receive a mysterious invitation to spend Christmas at a remote Cornish estate. With a long, isolated journey ahead, they decide to travel together. But when their car breaks down during a fierce winter storm, they’re forced to seek shelter in a rundown cottage they passed along the way.

What unfolds inside that humble cottage becomes a transformative experience—one that reminds them of the true meaning of Christmas and changes each man in unexpected and lasting ways. This is a touching, atmospheric holiday short story.

[Lora · Rating 4 out of 5]

A fine story for Christmas, a short read of maybe twenty minutes. It's soft, it's sentimental, it's about hope and humility, it evokes those beautiful soft quiet Christmas evenings with snow outside and plenty of colored lights inside, the scent of cookies and the sound of family. I recommend it for anyone looking for a Christmas story they haven't read yet-- although as they read it, they'll recognize it fast enough, which is part of the story. In a way, you the reader become part of the story as the realization comes upon you. Now to go hug my family.

[Frank · Rating 4 out of 5]

One has to read at least one Christmas story during Advent. This was an interesting one of three wise men who met by accident and found out they were all going to visit the same person for Christmas. They took a journey to a distant place in England and this adventure resulted in the birth of a male child on Christmas day that change all three of their lives. It is a short read and worth the time.

[France-Andrée · Rating 2 out of 5]

Three men travel to a country house for Christmas, but because of their car breaking down, they have to wait in a little hovel for rescuing. I don't want to say anymore or I'll give too much of the story away... I think the title is a big hint on what happens. It wasn't very complex and I didn't find the writing or the story outstanding, it is standard Christmas fare... not even heartwarming in my opinion. I think this can be skip without anything missing in your litterature's knowledge.

[Karla Renee Goforth Abreu · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short novel set in the early 1900's. Three learned men, wise in their ways, yet lost on their way, happen upon one another on Christmas Eve. What proceeds is profound and life-changing.
This book is very well written and just beautiful in its telling.
If you are a Christmas person or like books from a bygone era (the author lived 1863-1930) then likely this book will appeal to you.

[Steve · Rating 2 out of 5]

I ran across the 1910 illustrated edition while rummaging through the Univ. of WI library and am surprised to see it still in print. I would rate this as a "nice little Christmas miracle story", but nothing special. Except the irony of the title, because it tells how they became wise.

[Chris · Rating 1 out of 5]

Kindle free book - three highly educated men are thrown together, a newborn is involved ... it's Christmas time ... it's not very good.

[Lisa · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a short story but well written. I liked it enough to look for other books / stories by this author.

[Sabine789 · Rating 3 out of 5]

i am sure i read it last year but obviously i forgot the whole subject ;) so i let it free to your desire to read it or not.

[Karen Zelano-Guilbault · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved the classical nature of this short story. The language and plot kept me entertained and curious. Even as the parable ended as expected, it left me with the true Spirit of Christmas.