The Shadow 096 The North Woods Mystery
Maxwell Grant
THE NORTH WOODS MYSTERY was originally published in the February 15, 1936 issue of The Shadow Magazine. Through the towering pines of the Northland moved The Shadow; from lake to lake softly glided his canoe on the trail of the North Woods Mystery.
This story is an absolute joy to read. Although the title is a bit uninspiring, the story itself is one of the best Walter Gibson ever wrote. This would not be a good story to read as an introduction to The Shadow, because it's quite a bit different from the norm. But if you've read a few Shadow stories, and you know a bit about the character, then you're ready for a real treat with this great pulp tale.
One of the last things I expected, based just upon the title alone, was a visit to Chinatown. But, yup, that's how we start out. It seems that Chinatown is being flooded with counterfeit money by the evil Kai Luan. Phony mazuma, brought in by Mongols who are being smuggled into the country from China via Canada.
Kow Loon, the curio dealer, has been murdered. His body has been discovered by The Shadow's good friend, Dr. Roy Tam. Little realizing that the killer, a giant Mongol, is still hidden in the curio shop, Dr. Tam is attacked by the murderer. The sudden attack can only be stopped by one person: The Shadow! And sure enough, The Shadow arrives in the nick of time to save a friend. For of those in Chinatown who owe allegiance to The Shadow, none is more loyal than Dr. Roy Tam.
As the dying murderer lies on the floor of the curio shop, The Shadow speaks to him in his own tongue - Mongolian Chinese. Yes, add another language to the long list of languages that The Shadow has mastered. The dying man speaks the name of his master: Kai Luan. This strange Kai Luan is a mystery person of whom Dr. Roy Tam has heard only rumors. He is a friend of the evil. He sends money to those who would harbor his Mongol fanatics who would do murder.
In the dead man's pockets, The Shadow finds a roll of crisp counterfeit bills. With this clue, The Shadow will follow the trail far from Manhattan, off to a pristine wilderness in rough, unsettled country. He will track far into the North Woods of Canada and seek out the source of the smuggling and counterfeiting ring.
Assisting The Shadow in this outdoor adventure are Harry Vincent and G-Man Vic Marquette. Also appearing, while the story is centered in Manhattan, is Moe Shrevnitz, cab driver deluxe. Brief appearances by Rutledge Mann and Burbank round out the cast. There is no mention of The Shadow's other agents, or of the law's Weston or Cardona. This is basically a Harry Vincent story, with Harry being our proxy-hero. The Shadow just shows up as is needed, while Harry carries most of the action.
It's nice to see The Shadow in different surroundings. And it's assuring to see him as the master of the outdoors as well as master of the night. He's an accomplished woodsman who can paddle a canoe silently and stalk through the underbrush without sound. And again, we see The Shadow's mastery over animals, as he has strange control over the forest creatures. Before, we've seen his mastery of dogs. In this story, he has a strange familiarity with animals of the forest. It seems he really does speak their language, although to go into more detail and explain more would be to spoil the ending. But when you read the story for yourself, you'll know what I mean.
Walter Gibson submitted this story to his editors at Street and Smith with the rather uninspired title "The Shadow in Canada." I'm glad they chose to change it to "The North Woods Mystery." A story this terrific deserves a better title.
This story, being a product of its times, carries the usual racial slurs about the Chinese appearing in the tale. It's done casually, and was apparently just taken for granted back in 1936. While jarring today, it's part of the historical context of the story.
There are a lot of people running around in disguise in this story. But in the end, all is sorted out. It surprised me how many things had to be explained at the end. The entire last chapter is devoted to explaining who did what, under what disguise, while other things happened elsewhere. I would have been happy stopping reading the pulp mystery at the end of chapter nineteen. I had forgotten about a lot of the loose ends in all the excitement of reading the story. And in some pulp stories, the reader's poor memory would have been assumed, and the final wrap-up would have been disregarded.
But I'm glad author Walter Gibson included chapter twenty, and explained how everything fit together. It helped me realize how many things really did need explaining, and how perfectly they all fit together. Gibson did a superb job writing this convoluted story and of keeping everything straight.
If I have one flaw to pick at, it would be part of the characterization of the person who turns out to be The Shadow in disguise. I won't reveal what disguise The Shadow uses, here, because I don't want to spoil the surprise ending. But long before the reader is aware that this character is actually The Shadow, that character is described in ways that don't make sense, once we realize who he really is. It's a case of being in two places at once. Although we know The Shadow has just arrived in Canada, his disguised character is described as doing certain things that he could not possibly have done. He was in New York, garbed in black and fighting Mongols at the time. But I guess if that's the worst flaw I can find with this story, then we're on solid footing, here. It certainly doesn't distract from the story.
And one last thing. That strange clock in The Shadow's sanctum is once again briefly mentioned in passing. This is the fourth time it was mentioned, albeit fleetingly. For a better description of the clock and it's strange concentric moving wheels, you are referred to the 1933 story "The Red Blot." It's the first time the clock was mentioned, and it gave a pretty complete description of how it worked without hands. Here in this story, however, we are only reminded that is sits in the sanctum on the table. Just a tantalizing glimpse.
I'd rank this story probably in the top ten Shadow pulp mysteries, if not that, then certainly in the top twenty-five. There's plenty of action, a mystery that has a very satisfying resolution and a chance to see The Shadow at his most powerful. The Chinese refer to him as "Ying Ko." The French-Canadians refer to him as "L'Ombre." But whether spoken in Chinese, French or English, The Shadow is the name of mystery and adventure.
This story is an absolute joy to read. Although the title is a bit uninspiring, the story itself is one of the best Walter Gibson ever wrote. This would not be a good story to read as an introduction to The Shadow, because it's quite a bit different from the norm. But if you've read a few Shadow stories, and you know a bit about the character, then you're ready for a real treat with this great pulp tale.
One of the last things I expected, based just upon the title alone, was a visit to Chinatown. But, yup, that's how we start out. It seems that Chinatown is being flooded with counterfeit money by the evil Kai Luan. Phony mazuma, brought in by Mongols who are being smuggled into the country from China via Canada.
Kow Loon, the curio dealer, has been murdered. His body has been discovered by The Shadow's good friend, Dr. Roy Tam. Little realizing that the killer, a giant Mongol, is still hidden in the curio shop, Dr. Tam is attacked by the murderer. The sudden attack can only be stopped by one person: The Shadow! And sure enough, The Shadow arrives in the nick of time to save a friend. For of those in Chinatown who owe allegiance to The Shadow, none is more loyal than Dr. Roy Tam.
As the dying murderer lies on the floor of the curio shop, The Shadow speaks to him in his own tongue - Mongolian Chinese. Yes, add another language to the long list of languages that The Shadow has mastered. The dying man speaks the name of his master: Kai Luan. This strange Kai Luan is a mystery person of whom Dr. Roy Tam has heard only rumors. He is a friend of the evil. He sends money to those who would harbor his Mongol fanatics who would do murder.
In the dead man's pockets, The Shadow finds a roll of crisp counterfeit bills. With this clue, The Shadow will follow the trail far from Manhattan, off to a pristine wilderness in rough, unsettled country. He will track far into the North Woods of Canada and seek out the source of the smuggling and counterfeiting ring.
Assisting The Shadow in this outdoor adventure are Harry Vincent and G-Man Vic Marquette. Also appearing, while the story is centered in Manhattan, is Moe Shrevnitz, cab driver deluxe. Brief appearances by Rutledge Mann and Burbank round out the cast. There is no mention of The Shadow's other agents, or of the law's Weston or Cardona. This is basically a Harry Vincent story, with Harry being our proxy-hero. The Shadow just shows up as is needed, while Harry carries most of the action.
It's nice to see The Shadow in different surroundings. And it's assuring to see him as the master of the outdoors as well as master of the night. He's an accomplished woodsman who can paddle a canoe silently and stalk through the underbrush without sound. And again, we see The Shadow's mastery over animals, as he has strange control over the forest creatures. Before, we've seen his mastery of dogs. In this story, he has a strange familiarity with animals of the forest. It seems he really does speak their language, although to go into more detail and explain more would be to spoil the ending. But when you read the story for yourself, you'll know what I mean.
Walter Gibson submitted this story to his editors at Street and Smith with the rather uninspired title "The Shadow in Canada." I'm glad they chose to change it to "The North Woods Mystery." A story this terrific deserves a better title.
This story, being a product of its times, carries the usual racial slurs about the Chinese appearing in the tale. It's done casually, and was apparently just taken for granted back in 1936. While jarring today, it's part of the historical context of the story.
There are a lot of people running around in disguise in this story. But in the end, all is sorted out. It surprised me how many things had to be explained at the end. The entire last chapter is devoted to explaining who did what, under what disguise, while other things happened elsewhere. I would have been happy stopping reading the pulp mystery at the end of chapter nineteen. I had forgotten about a lot of the loose ends in all the excitement of reading the story. And in some pulp stories, the reader's poor memory would have been assumed, and the final wrap-up would have been disregarded.
But I'm glad author Walter Gibson included chapter twenty, and explained how everything fit together. It helped me realize how many things really did need explaining, and how perfectly they all fit together. Gibson did a superb job writing this convoluted story and of keeping everything straight.
If I have one flaw to pick at, it would be part of the characterization of the person who turns out to be The Shadow in disguise. I won't reveal what disguise The Shadow uses, here, because I don't want to spoil the surprise ending. But long before the reader is aware that this character is actually The Shadow, that character is described in ways that don't make sense, once we realize who he really is. It's a case of being in two places at once. Although we know The Shadow has just arrived in Canada, his disguised character is described as doing certain things that he could not possibly have done. He was in New York, garbed in black and fighting Mongols at the time. But I guess if that's the worst flaw I can find with this story, then we're on solid footing, here. It certainly doesn't distract from the story.
And one last thing. That strange clock in The Shadow's sanctum is once again briefly mentioned in passing. This is the fourth time it was mentioned, albeit fleetingly. For a better description of the clock and it's strange concentric moving wheels, you are referred to the 1933 story "The Red Blot." It's the first time the clock was mentioned, and it gave a pretty complete description of how it worked without hands. Here in this story, however, we are only reminded that is sits in the sanctum on the table. Just a tantalizing glimpse.
I'd rank this story probably in the top ten Shadow pulp mysteries, if not that, then certainly in the top twenty-five. There's plenty of action, a mystery that has a very satisfying resolution and a chance to see The Shadow at his most powerful. The Chinese refer to him as "Ying Ko." The French-Canadians refer to him as "L'Ombre." But whether spoken in Chinese, French or English, The Shadow is the name of mystery and adventure.
年:
1936
出版商:
Street & Smith
語言:
english
文件:
EPUB, 193 KB
IPFS:
,
english, 1936
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