Murder at the Pageant

by Victor L. Whitechurch

This story presents an interesting study of detective methods in solving the problem of a double crime, committed under peculiar circumstances; the crime in question being a tragic sequel to an historical Pageant performed in the grounds of Frimley Manor. The story opens with a scene in the Pageant in which an old Sedan chair plays a prominent part, and the subsequent crime has a curious connection with this chair. The working out of the solution is graphically told, and the logical inferences from the gradually collected evidence are not in any way far-fetched. And astute country police superintendent and a retired secret service agent are prominent characters in bringin about a denouement with a distinct "thrill".

Genres: Mystery, Crime

188 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1930

About the author

Victor Lorenzo Whitechurch was born in 1868, was educated at Chichester Grammar School and Chichester Theological College and eventually became a canon of the Anglican Church, living and working for many years in the country rather than in towns and cities.

He held various positions as curate before he became vicar of St. Michael's, Blewbury in 1904. In 1913 he became Chaplain to the Bishop of Oxford, and an honorary canon of Christ Church and in 1918 he became Rural Dean of Aylesbury.

He began his writing career with religious works, as befitted his profession, and edited 'The Chronicle of St George' in 1891 before producing his own work 'The Course of Justice' in 1903. He wrote his first quasi-detective novel, also considered as a clerical romance, in 1904 when 'The Canon in Residence' was published and was later adapted for stage and radio.

He also contributed detective stories to the Strand Magazine, the Railway Magazine and Pearson's and Harmsworth's Magazines. Some of his railway stories were published as 'Thrilling Stories of the Railway' in 1912, 15 stories in all, nine of which feature his specialst in railway detection, Thorpe Hazell, a strict vegetarian.

After producing a variety of romantic novels, he returned to thrillers with 'The Templeton Case', 1924, and another collection of short stories on a railway and spy theme, 'The Adventures of Captain Ivan Koravitch' in 1925.

Two quite different books appeared from his pen in 1927, 'The Truth in Christ Jesus' and 'The Crime at Diana's Pool' before he devoted his final years almost solely to detective fiction, writing four further such novels between 1927 and 1932, the last of them 'Murder at the College' written after he had suffered a long and debilitating illness.

Although his thriller output was relatively low, 12 of his 27 books being of the genre, Jacques Barzun and Wendell Hertig Taylor in their splendid 'Catalogue of Crime' wrote of him, "He was the greatest improviser in the genre - all but one of his stories has distinct merit." Ellery Queen and Dorothy L Sayers meanwhile admired his books for their "immaculate plotting and factual accuracy" believing him to be "one of the first writers to submit his manuscripts to Scotland Yard for vetting as to police procedure."

He died in 1933.

Gerry Wolstenholme
May 2010

Reviews

[Gerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

A thriller from the golden age of British crime fiction and one to savour.

A pageant at a country house suddenly goes wrong when a murder is committed. As in the best crime novels, everyone present is a possible suspect! One of the guests is a former secret service agent so he is more than helpful in assisting the police to eventually uncover the perpetrator of the crime.

The good thing about the book is that the reader is kept guessing right down to the final few pages and it is a sad time when the final one of those is turned and the book ends. Highly recommended.

[Arthur Pierce · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book has a good reputation, praised in A CATALOGUE OF CRIME and chosen by Dover as a part of their mystery detective reprint series. Yet I found it to be only marginally interesting, with an unimaginative murder and virtually no character development whatsoever. I expected it to have been amateurishly written, but found, instead, that the author has a good command of the English language. This wasn't enough to make the story engaging for me, however.

[Bev · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sir Henry Lynwood, the Lord of Frimley Manor, has the idea to hold a grand pageant featuring as its centerpiece a recreation of the visit of Queen Anne in 1705. The lavish affair will bring in funds to support the hospital in Chiltonbury, a neighboring market town. Sir Henry, his two sons Harry and Charles, and their guests all dress up in period costumes to provide the entertainments. The reenactment includes the ritual carrying of the queen in a sedan chair from the estate's entrance gate to the front steps of Frimley Manor.

The pageant is directed by Captain Roger Bristow, ex-Secret Service member, and the role of Queen Anne is played by Mrs. Cresswell. Other attendants include Anstice Lockwood, daughter of the house; Sonia Fullinger, Sonia's friend; Mr. Ashley-Smith, vicar of the parish; and Mr. Jasper Hurst, a tenant on the Frimley estate. Mrs. Cresswell decides to embellish her royal costume with her spectacular pearl necklace, setting the stage for an unplanned criminal...and deadly...final act to the pageant.

In the middle of the night, long after the crowds have left the estate grounds, Bristow happens to look out of his bedroom window and sees two men carrying the sedan chair back up the long drive. He thinks they're trying to steal the ancient relic and hurries out to give chase. The men drop the chair and run to a waiting car. He catches a glimpse of the number plate and is on his way back to the manor to report the incident when he realizes the chair is not empty. Hurst is inside, injured, and manages to gasp out what sounds like "The...line" before dying. So an attempted robbery becomes a murder investigation. A murder investigation that is complicated by an actual robbery--Mrs. Cresswell's pearls have disappeared!

Bristow uses the skills acquired in his Secret Service work to help his friends while Superintendent Kinch, the official police investigator, follows his own lines. The two find themselves crossing paths often as their separate lines all seem to point in the same direction. Or do they? Appearances and circumstantial evidence can be misleading and soon the two men are working together to catch the thief and the murderer.

This was great fun. I enjoyed watching Bristow and Kinch work at the problem separately. They're not quite rivals. Bristow is always willing to share what he's found--provided Kinch asks the proper questions. And in the end Bristow shares everything in order to see justice done. I've seen a review which implies that the solution is a bit unfair--that we didn't meet all of the suspects. But Whitechurch firmly plants the clues that lead to the unknown. There are no red herrings here, every clue when viewed from the proper angle points to the solution. Just because readers don't see the other angle, doesn't mean it wasn't there. A very nice county house mystery with a little twist in the standard country house mystery proceedings.

First posted on my blog My Reader's Block. Please request permission before reposting portions of review. Thanks.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Mrs. Cresswell is only asking for trouble, the other guests agree, wearing her very valuable pearls while playing Queen Anne in Frimley Manor's charity pageant. When the pearls are stolen that night, and one of the guests is found dying, many of the clues seem to point to the younger son of the house and to his inamorata. There are some clever local policemen ("no need to call in the Yard"), and a gifted amateur, formerly of the Secret Service, as well. I do find Whitechurch's style a bit wooden, but this is still an amusing tale, with many surprises.

[Ann · Rating 3 out of 5]

A historical pageant at Frimley Manor turns into the scene of a double crime : one of the guests, Jasper Hurst, is found murdered in an antique sedan chair, and Mrs Cresswell's pearls are stolen. And the vicar's car seems to be have been used by the criminals for their get-away. And were there 1 or 2 thieves? The local police has to investigate every trace, most of which, unfortunately, points to the girl the youngest son of the house is in love with. A former Secret Service expert happens to be among the guests at Frimley Manor, and he conducts his own investigation. So this book combines some elements of the police procedural and the amateur detective. I can't say that this was an incredibly complex puzzler, but it was an enjoyable example of the Golden Age of Mystery novel.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this was not quite as interesting as "The Templeton Case".

It is partly a country house mystery with a dying man in found in a sedan chair in the grounds of Frimley Manor after the pageant It is also a tale of theft as a valuable pearl necklace has gone missing .

The police investigation is led by the meticulous Superintendent Kinch, in parallel with a private investigation by Captain Bristow, formerly of the Secret Service, who was one of the guests at the Manor.

When the true identity of the dead man is disclosed, along with some information about his wife, the broad outline of the solution can be guessed, as can the "twist" at the end.

Not terribly thrilling or puzzling.

[Georgia · Rating 1 out of 5]

The pageant and the body found in a sedan chair sounded enticing, but in fact this was just dull. It's quite short, and we don't get enough about the characters to care about them - particularly Sonia Fullinger. I think I was most intrigued by the brief appearance of Sonia's former maid, who was bribed to give up her post, and accepted the bribe because she was in debt. Some aspects were interesting from a social history point of view. I found it surprising that everyone knows that Major Bristow was in Intelligence in the previous war. It was suggestive that one woman character says it was easier to move around dressed in Tudor costume as Edward VI than in contemporary women's clothes.

The Kindle edition I read did not include the text of two letters; perhaps they are illustrations in the original.

[Diane · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story but the illustrations are just silly

I really enjoyed this story of detection. Let's say 4 and a half stars. Some of the twists and turns may come clear early but it doesn't take away from the plot. Bristow is a cool character and great fun. Enjoy!

[pamela mary dutton · Rating 5 out of 5]

an interesting murder

Very traditional,non bloody,no horrible details,but an enjoyable read. Likely to interest readers who like crime novels from the thirties or earlier

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

1929 Frimley Manor Pageant. At the end of the day a body is discovered and a string of pearls stolen. The police led by Superintendent Kinch and aided by Captain Roger Bristow, once a member of the Secret Service, investigate.
An entertaining historical mystery
Originally published in 1930.

[Keith Walker · Rating 1 out of 5]

Unfortunately, for me, it is an extremely stilted and plodding story which I had some difficulty to concentrate on, It is badly written and I certainly have no interest in reading anything else of this author.

[Diane · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wanted to love this because it was read by my favourite narrator (I listened on audiobook), but I only just about liked it. The real problem was the confusion caused by two very good detectives both investigating the same case independently, and the story attempting to give equal attention to both. It didn't work and only muddied the water. The story didn't begin to settle down for me until the two detectives actually began to work together but by this time it was too late. I will try another Victor L. Whitechurch, but this one missed the mark by miles because of an unfortunately chosen plot-device.

[Ai · Rating 3 out of 5]

got this book from the state library, pretty awesome i think.
full with murder plots in the year of horses and wagons in 1929.
interesting crime fiction..

[Neer · Rating 2 out of 5]

An enjoyable but fairly predictable mystery.

More here:

http://inkquilletc.blogspot.in/2014/0...

[John Frankham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good, solid classic crime whodunnit from between the wars. Country house setting, police and amateur to solve. Clever solution.