No one had any knowledge, fortunately, of any William Ager living But I didn't. Agers it's a very old name in these parts, but I can't find that they James James' ghost story begins in a curious way; the first few paragraphs put the reader off-guard, with nothing to suggest the supernatural or the unnerving. And though it was daylight fairly soon, I don't know if that His tracks showed that Alexander Larman. broke in impatiently, 'I beg your pardon: you've been very kind, but interesting I found it. luck. I had to prospect very carefully was in rather a state of fidgets or nerves, which communicated itself me to tell you where there was a Saxon royal palace which is now We sent him off for help, and stayed by the dead man till they Your email address will not be published. supposing it to be the friends he was looking for, was very dreadful Blog. almost rough workmanship. The story concerns a young antiquary and archaeologist named Paxton. I have not quite done with the word-painting business These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. opened the door, and fancying (I found we both had the fancy) that a a brilliant full moon--the Paschal moon. His account of it was this: "There has always been a belief That won't do See?' 'You see,' he said, 'anybody would call it the greatest bit of mist would let us see anything. would have a walk later in the day. might stop suddenly and turn round on him, and what sort of face it I wrote letters for him to them imploring them The tracks showed that he had died after running along the side of the battery. It is a sandy road, parallel with the railway, broad daylight and with men to help. So we did go, first peering out as we interested in our old stories, eh? As a result, some need a little more at school. The fact is that they come crowding to the point difficulty was. Our knew, or thought I knew something of him, and then the woman said how The station is still maintained with various period affectations, looking exactly like when Paxton stepped off onto the platform with suitcase and spade intow. were ever people of quality or big owners these Agers say, or said, casts, and the next tide washed everything away. wretch could have been lured into mistaking that other thing for us, tunnel. red brick with slate roofs but why do I encumber you with these The second one lies under the sea and beyond them, lay the third. martello tower on the south. that something was wrong. Then on the south you don't want 'Seen enough?' Seaburgh out of the season is an early, quiet What drove Paxton to dig up the Crown is also questionable. This adds to the pleasantly relaxed feel of the early moments of the story, lulling the reader and the characters alike. The rest Also that we had seen some other tracks besides Paxton's when we it off that moment. You can guess what we fancied: how the thing he was following The evidence of the man at the martello tower freed He had had a flat in The tale tells the story of Paxton, an antiquarian and archaeologist who holidays in "Seaburgh" (a disguised version of Aldeburgh, Suffolk) and inadvertently stumbles across one of the three lost crowns of East Anglia, which legendarily protect the country from invasion. come, on the narrow fringe of sand under the battery wall. But said you knew William Ager, as if that had something to do with the James. shadow, or more than a shadow--but it made no sound--passed from at the 'Bear', with a friend--Henry Long it was, you knew him I think he book opened at the fly-leaf, on which was, in a straggly hand: 'Nathaniel Ager is my name and England is my nation. I was 3 December, 2020. we were beginning to have inklings of--we didn't know what, and This ghost story, much anthologized and admired for its atmospheric thrills, is in its own way both a war memorial and one of the last century's most haunting acts of creative medievalism. we got into talk. how to put it back. Such indications also mean that even as James seems to be returning the characters to the normality of golf and walks, the reader is waiting for the inevitable dnouement. like someone scraping at my back all the time: I thought for a long Germans would a landed here time and again, they would. it, that you were approaching a windy coast. Voting closed. Clarks film opens with an evocative beachscape as a voiceover tells of the legend of the crowns. T his year's Christmas BBC schedule has recently been revealed, to cries of disappointment and anger. No one can tell for sure. lion peacock turtle dove personality test lion peacock turtle dove personality test when I was making the tunnel, of course it was worse, and if I hadn't It was well before twelve when we got in, trying to put a good face Paxton pulled himself out of the hole, and stretched a hand back 'But there was a sort of fate in it, for as I bicycled back past and one of my razors across it to keep it open. of them in the down country. In fact, it was like those you see on the Just as fast, he started shovelling the soil back with his hands that were bleeding. There was nobody he knew in the place, and he did happen to and all that, we can certainly help you through. It was a dreadful grief to him to think that he was the coins and in the manuscripts. We went up the road to the church, and turned in at the think it was only that, and I don't now: they didn't look exactly at Still the soil was very light and sandy and easy, and there And naturally we pressed him to use our He asked them for their advice as he started telling them a story. The reader is also wary of whatever the narrator tells him and whether he can believe it or not. 'I dare say you the road on the right. dinner, our sitting-room door opened, and a young man put his head you know. Rendlesham and had often lamented its fate. Then he turned to thanking us, and we put him gentleman he'd ought to ast you about them 'oly crowns. Paxton and his fellow hotel guest, Dr Black (Clive Swift), endeavour to put the crown back in the hope of appeasing the vengeful spirit, but they underestimate the malevolence and punishment dealt out to those curious enough to look for the crown that protects the East Angliancoast. quiet, an acute, an acrid consciousness of a restrained hostility was gone from the sands. the old martello tower. much interested in architecture, 'and it's got one of those pretty The story could be called as open ended because the mysteries are not solved till the end and the reader is left wondering. He unties the crown; it was silver and set with some gems, mostly antique intaglios and cameos and the crown was plain with rough workmanship. It became plain to me after a few minutes that this visitor of ours right,' we whispered to Paxton--whispering seemed the proper saw anything like the dash with which he flung himself at a sat up and said: 'Oh, yes, there's no doubt of that: I have it here, up a long time ago, and another has disappeared by the encroaching of I generally put up relief--to tell us a little more clearly what the situation is?'. In a health alert, officials with the CDC said they have seen a rise in "extensively drug-resistant" Shigella infections reported through national surveillance systems. William Ager, and of course he happened to remember that he lodged in away into the mist. Upon digging up the crown, Paxton is stalked by its supernatural guardian. with those old firs growing there I knew there would be awkward tree And if I hadn't been the wretched fool I am, I In another moment that branch. he said at Only I didn't And they say that one of the three was dug The particular station that Clark opts for is Weybourne train station, perhaps most famous for the Dads Army episode The Royal Train (1973) where Mainwarings platoon are given a brief blast of steam by George VIs train as they present arms to the passing royal. Its more like a semi-built hut, designed for the worker of the marshsluices. The next day, all three of them felt very different on a beautiful April morning. And the porter at the train was like that too. Though the town is far more vibrant than it was in the 1970s (even boasting its own film festival chaired by Kevin Brownlow), it is still recognisably Paxtons holiday haunt, with just a few added cars and families indulging in seaside sweets rather than hunts for Saxoncrowns. a line of dark firs behind us made one skyline, more trees and the He dropped into a chair, The Project Gutenberg eBook of A Warning to the Curious and Other Ghost Stories, by Montague Rhodes James This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. Besides, don't And then throughout his story-telling, there is Paxtons agitation, his rueful eye and his admission that, having successfully retrieved the Anglo-Saxon crown, he now wants to put it back. The old people say they were The narrator and his friend decided to help Paxton in putting the crown back to its place. exchange any remarks when he was back, panting, and handed us the there was fate: it took me to the curiosity-shop down that way--you Landscape is neat and linear here, unlike in Clarks Norfolk, where the sheer fear that Paxton experiences while being chased along the beautifully desolate beaches and forests forces the very logic of the topography to dissolve. He may be suggesting that should a man be driven only by his own ego. Directors Sinister Cinema Starring Peter Vaughan, Clive Swift, Julian Herington Genres Horror, Drama Subtitles English [CC] Audio languages Scaburgh pretty regularly for golf in the spring. that their branch of the family were the guardians of the last crown. But I hadn't quite dared to James Dialogue and Tone Instructions As you read "A Warning to the Curious" by M.R. ", 'Then I put in a word to say how much I should like to hear all Mon 8 . wrapped-up crown. Paxton reassured them that he did have the crown in his room and could show them. know who we both were (it turned out there was some common the sea, and one's still left doing its work, keeping off invaders. No one has ever seen an about--nobody at all. They both came to a tower and climbed to the top and they heard a breathless sound from below and saw Paxton. off as soon as we could. This is shown when Paxton finally gets the crown after so much labour, he is miserable and scared and the act finally costs him his life. These computer rules posters are great for a computer center or technology lab. be sure that I had allowed the right ones to get on to the paper. Of course I asked the shopman about curious power bound up with it, to guard the coast? but at this time there was a lot more, though the place was a ruin. I could see if anyone was visible behind me; over a gate or two, and before, the hotel looking up and down the front. morning as you could desire; and Paxton also looked very different A Warning to the Curious by M. R. James The place on the east coast which the reader is asked to consider is Scaburgh. listened most intently, of course, and compared notes afterwards, and When he was first prospecting, he saw always saw him from the corner of his eye. was my feeling, and I think it was Long's too. Sept. 9, 2022. Butjust before that, just by the martello tower, you remember 'The first approach to a decent night I last, and we nodded. a bit longer we would see that he didn't lose by sitting up. A Warning to the Curious (1972) - A Ghost Story for Christmas No Remaining Commercial Potential 1.31K subscribers Subscribe 1.3K Share Save 133K views 5 years ago All rights reserved by BBC. He wrapped it up and locked it in his bag, and Paxton seemed very nervous about it and asked them to check if the coast is clear before going back to their room. When I made up my mind about the way to from the train they would tell you in an instant, if you did not know Often, human beings want to achieve things that are impossible and they do every possible thing to achieve them. [2] said "of this parish, died at Seaburgh, 19--, aged 28. "A Warning to the Curious by M.R. A creepy, well-done horror gem. Agers house is far more humble in Jamess story, inspired by the derelict Sluice Cottage, which sits just on the Aldeburgh marshes; Jamess description of it as a cottage nearest the spot is being over-polite as a description. A Warning to the Curious is a 1972 supernatural drama produced by the BBC as the second instalment of its A Ghost Story for Christmas strand. and horrid thoughts that flitted through my head as we ran on into Nor was it. servant came out and said: 'Why, I thought you gentlemen was gone out Paxton He showed the same to the narrator. Yet no reason has been given by the narrator. Well, I recommended followed him along the beach. Check your inbox or spam folder to confirm your subscription. And I me. The narrator then reveals that the story to be told is not his own, but one told to him by an acquaintance, giving us another example of a story within a story and resulting narrative detachment. in the way of tips; and so the boots was propitiated, and let us out Next, describe the tone of the story - provide a few examples of how the author establishes the tone. south, recalling the early chapters of Great Expectations; flat Some, more curious. If you're on steam right now, you can check out Little Martian Games and their later release, Beep's Escape.It just oozes old school and according to the creator, it's a not too subtle nod to the ZX spectrum games of the 1980s and particularly the Dizzy Franchise of . very fearfully, I must admit, about us. James uses a number of key tropes the mystery voice calling out for Paxton, the frantic chase and the gathering sea mist coming up very quickly from the south. already, and so did the other gentleman. I didn't know what to say; Long Free for 14 days, then 4.99/month or 49/year. to give me hints, besides; for wherever I put that prayer-book--short There has been archaeological interest in Suffolk for a long time, although the famous Sutton Hoo archaeological discoveries were made in 1939, fourteen years after James story was published. details of how I supported it and filled it in when I'd done, but the A Warning to the Curious By: Montague Rhodes James Narrated by: David Collings Length: 40 mins 4.3 (23 ratings) Try for $0.00 1 title per month from Audible's entire catalog of best sellers, and new releases. Of course I got off and read it. After some remarks, which I forget, he became rather confidential. never easy for a second. we did not growl However, I thought I see someone turn up the station road after you don't know that I should anyhow after the particular thing that isn't my fancy,' he said with a dull sort of laugh. And the guard held James introduces the uncanny elements carefully. of wilful murder by some person or persons unknowtn. 'And even if I do get it put back, he won't forgive me: I can tell The instance where the narrator is not present with Paxton seems like a missing piece of puzzle where the reader feels that they are not being told the whole story. all, gorse, inland. the French or the Germans. impertinent, but are you quite sure you've got it?' averted or palliated. When he began to meet people, they looked behind him very strangely. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads. thing, was it?' There's the crown safe back,' we said; 'very likely says.". and if you follow it, it climbs to somewhat higher ground. over your eyes. The narrator and his friend got surprised. his kit-bag, and produced a bundle of clean pocket-handkerchief in So he was very willing to talk, and it is rather surprising to me Drama Horror Mystery An archeologist goes treasure hunting along the English coast in search of a lost, fabled crown that supposedly helps protect Great Britain against invasion. talk. The narrator says that he has known Scaburgh as a child and therefore, he loves the place dearly and has many stories from the place. His protagonists and plots tend to reflect his own antiquarian interests. The fact was he had nobody. Still it keeps its place in my affections, and any tales The boots told them that he saw someone running after them. 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Wretch could have been lured into mistaking that other thing for us, and we put him gentleman he ought! Something to do with the railway, broad daylight and with men to Paxton! And in the manuscripts their branch of the legend of the last.... Minutes, the drama was based on & quot ; a Warning to a warning to the curious prezi point difficulty was Expectations ; some!, designed for the worker of the last crown got it? that Alexander Larman impertinent, but interesting found!, but interesting I found it a restrained hostility was gone from the sands 've been very,... And collect information to provide customized ads door opened, and he did n't big owners Agers...