What kept Randolph Carter up so late pondering over antique maps? One of the hotel staff reports hearing mysterious bells ringing in Carter's room at around midnight.
The museum curator had some trouble finding the box, but after a sufficient "memory aid" was able to produce it. He is sure that the contents would not be missed were an "accident" to occur. The business in Shanghai concluded, Carter returns to New England where there has been some unusual digging in several of Providence's grave yards. A few discrete inquiries were made regarding one "Joseph Curren" or "Curwen".
Carter's journey continues in this morning's pictures What was in the box that old Aunt Mary always kept locked away at the back of her private writing desk? Friendly advice from an Orientalist at Kingsport suggests a sudden change of plans? What secrets did Carter learn amid forgotten tomes that finally drove him all the way to Shanghi?
Armed with the Eldar Sign, Randolph Carter is ready to set out into the Dreamlands whatever machinations of Nyarlathotep may await him there. Of Interest: The Items on Carter's Desk A Thousand Miles Up the Nile by Amelia B. Edwards (2nd Ed. 1890) Through the Dark Continent by Henry M. Stanley (1st American Printing) A Dagger from the Kameroons Several Fossils (Including a Trilobite) Qing Dynasty Coins Late Roman Coins A Nice Fountain Pen A Replica of King Tut's Burial Mask A Replica of A Terracotta Warrior A Salt Crystal A Native American Arrowhead A Piece of Fool's Gold A Bottle of Shells From Venice A Bottle of Earth From Cork. Ireland A Bottle of Assorted Gemstones An Irish Wood-Carving The Base of a Tiffany Lamp
Randolph Carter uses the Silver Key. The Randolph Carter cycle is one of my favorite Lovecraft creations. It shows us another side of the master of Cosmic Horror: his deep love of beauty, creativity, and culture. They're the stories that make me wish I'd had the chance to know the guy.