The Baron's Quarry

by Egerton Castle

"He would no doubt have been much surprised could he have known that he was already mapped out, craniologically and physiognomically, catalogued with care and neatly laid by in his proper ethnological box, in my private type museum; that, as I sat and examined him from my different coigns of vantage in library, in dining and smoking room that evening, not a look of his, not a gesture went forth but had significance for me.

Genres: Short Stories

48 pages, Paperback

First published April 10, 2001

About the author

Egerton Smith Castle F.S.A. (12 March 1858 – 16 September 1920) was an author, antiquarian, and swordsman, and an early practitioner of reconstructed historical fencing, frequently in collaboration with his colleague Captain Alfred Hutton. Castle was the captain of the British épée and sabre teams at the 1908 Summer Olympics.

He was born in London into a wealthy family; his maternal grandfather was the publishing magnate and philanthropist Egerton Smith. He was a lieutenant of the Second West India Regiment and afterwards a captain of the Royal Engineers Militia. He was also an expert on bookplates and a keen collector.

Egerton Castle co-authored several novels with his wife, Agnes Castle.

Reviews

[Erin · Rating 3 out of 5]

We found a collection of old adventure books in an antique store and this was in it. An interesting, short, read!

[Steve Chaput · Rating 3 out of 5]

Little more than a short-story. I was unfamiliar with Castle prior to this and would be interested to read some of his other works.

A very, British tale dated with the sort of prejudicial elements you would expect of upper-class Brits at the time. It's hard to know if that is how Castle felt, or he was simply making the narrator more of a stuff-shirt than he already is.

This story is told from the narrator's point of view as told to fellow members of his club. Seeming to be an attempt to impress a well-known adventurer, the story tells what happened to the narrator when he paid a visit to an acquantance, the Baron of the title. It was easy to see where the plot was going once another character was introduced, but it was still interesting.

[Sallie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another of the 100 mystery stories in one volume I downloaded to my Nook. Interesting and satisfactory ending IMHO.

[Keith · Rating 3 out of 5]

A classic short story of vengeance with a gruesome ending.
Story is also found at: eastoftheweb.com