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In this gripping episode of Mystery Theater, host E.G. Marshall delves into the haunting tale of "Night Visitor," adapted from a ghost story dating back to the fourth century B.C. Set in Macedonia, the story follows the unexpected visit of McCadys, a friend of the king, to the grieving household of Demostratus and Charyto, who are mourning the loss of their daughter, Philemon. As McCadys settles in for the night, he is visited by a mysterious woman who bears a striking resemblance to the deceased Philemon, leading to a series of eerie and unsettling events that challenge the boundaries between life and death.
As the story unfolds, the household is thrown into turmoil, grappling with the possibility that Philemon has returned from the grave. The narrative explores themes of love, loss, and the supernatural, as McCadys and the grieving parents confront the chilling reality of their night visitor. With the help of the wise diviner Hillis, they seek to uncover the truth behind the spectral appearances and find a way to lay Philemon to rest once more. This episode invites listeners to ponder the mysteries of the afterlife and the enduring power of love beyond the grave.
(00:47) Introduction to the Mystery
(02:02) The Night Visitor's Arrival
(05:04) A Mysterious Guest
(10:00) The Unbelievable Sight
(14:33) A Ghostly Encounter
(22:24) The Truth Unfolds
(31:18) Seeking Answers
(38:56) The Final Resolution
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Unknown:
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Come in. Welcome. I'm E. G. Marshall. Man, wrote Voltaire more than two hundred years ago, is the only animal who knows he will die. But man does not and never has accepted this dire bit of knowledge, not completely. He struggles still to discover or invent some reason to believe that he is immortal. That however altered, he will nevertheless live on forever. And that is why, centuries
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Eumenides. What of my daughter?
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Reconsecrate the temple. All pollution
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must be removed. My daughter. My daughter. What of her?
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Your daughter cannot be laid to rest within the boundaries of this city. She must be taken taken outside these walls and buried there.
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Our mystery drama NIGHT VISITOR was written especially for the mystery theater by Elspeth Eric and stars Terry Keene. It's possible that the cavemen sat around the fire after dark and told stories of strange shapes they had seen and awful sounds they had built, and wondered aloud if their ancestors were trying to get in touch with them. We can't know for sure because they could not record their experience. But a ghost story from the fourth century before Christ has come down to us. Its setting is Macedonia, and we have given our adaptation the title of night visitor.
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He couldn't have picked a worse time to pay a visit. It had been a scant few weeks since the light had gone out of our lives. I suppose it's possible he had not heard of my daughter's death. After all, he lived in After all, he lived in Therma, and I don't believe he traveled to Amphipolis more than two or three times on business for King Philip the second. And he'd never before been a guest in our home. Still, demonstratus, my husband and I, did our poor best to prepare for his arrival.
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McCadis is very close to the king, you know.
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I know.
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And to the young prince Alexander too, I believe.
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Proteus was a general a
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general in Alexander's army. He's dead,
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Cherithome. Six months married, and he died.
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Then
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she died. There's no need to remind
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me. Forgive me, my dear.
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Such a brilliant marriage. Such a happy marriage. Been a widow so soon. Then Dear wife She lingered only a few months after his death. Our only child. Our lovely young daughter. Our beautiful Phyllinean. Dear wife. Now this this fool
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intrudes himself on our grief. You said yourself he may not even know. Yes.
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It must be that he doesn't know, or he couldn't be so tactless, so unfeeling.
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His room is ready for him, I suppose. He'll be tired after his trip from Therma. It's prepared.
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I gave Melissa instructions.
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Properly prepared, I hope. Our best linen sheets. Food and drinks. Spice cakes, apples, plums. A carafe of wine. Oh, yes.
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And our best crystal goblets with the gold ring. Mistress?
[00:04:57] Unknown:
Yes, Melissa? The gentleman from Thelma has arrived. McCaties is here.
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It had been several years since McCaties had last been in our city, so I had no clear picture of what sort of man to expect. I must admit that I was most pleasantly, most favorably impressed. The man who entered our house was, I should think, about 40 years old, strikingly handsome, well built, intelligent, and beautifully mannered. I must confess the thought crossed my mind. How our daughter, Philean, would have admired this man, perhaps perhaps even loved him. I told him briefly of her marriage, of her widowhood, and lastly of her death.
He was most sympathetic, very kind, very understanding. Really a remarkable young man. We said goodnight to him and Melissa showed him to his room.
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A proper young man. I'm happy to have him for a guest.
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So am I.
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Are you sorry you were so fretful about his coming here?
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I couldn't know he'd be so charming. I think I've planned everything well. Melissa will devote all her time to him. Can't we give him a servant who's not quite so
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old? Perhaps we should. I can't imagine that at court he's tended by an aged crone.
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I suppose not. In the morning, I'll see what I can do. I think you should.
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We want to make a good impression.
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I know.
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Well, are you ready to retire? What's that? You sounded like Melissa. What? What kind of Listen.
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Master. Melissa. What is it? What's Come in, woman. Come in.
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What's frightened you? Demostracist.
[00:06:59] Unknown:
Some wine? Up there. Up there. Where? Where? Up where? His room. Get her drink this. Whose room do you mean? The gentleman. The one from Therma. McCaties. What do you know about McCaties? I looked in in upon him a minute ago to see if he was cold or if he needed anything. Oh oh, mister. Yes. Yes. Go on. He was asleep. In bed and asleep. Of course. I I peered at the bed. He was sleeping peacefully. But beneath the coverlet, I could distinguish a form, not his.
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Oh, another's.
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What do you mean old woman?
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Two people were in that bed
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side by side. Oh, come now you're joking. Of course you are. Well, your eyes are failing. Yes. That's it. No. No. No. I saw them. Melissa. That's not all my mistress. I creeped closer to the bed. I thought, as you think now, that I must be wrong. But there they were, the two of them lying next to each other. Oh, mistress, how can I tell you?
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One of the most Philemonian. Philemonian. Your daughter. Can you conceive of what I felt? Incredulity,
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of course.
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It was not yet six months since we had placed the body of our beloved child on the bier within the tomb. The old servant's words were a desecration. A thundering fear trembled within us both. Both. What if what if something between disbelief and anxiety and the desire to quiet the old servant. Something made us decide that one of us should accompany Melissa to the bedroom where McCadys lay with with whom? With what? It was decided that I should be the one. I think you were losing your senses, Melissa. You stay. I'll go in. Yes, mistress.
It's true. There are two of them. You see.
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You see. Acadies and a woman. I've got closer. Close to the bed.
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Yes.
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A woman. Flenion. No.
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Not Felinien. Yes. It is she. But it's impossible to tell. It is she. When was so dark? Her hair. Her skin. Her nightdress. I can't believe. Felinien.
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It's not my daughter. It's not the linenian.
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It's some stranger. It is your daughter, mistress. I'll swear to it. Please, you marveled woman. I saw what I saw.
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I tell you. I saw.
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Hush. We must not be found here. My husband is waiting for us below stairs. Come. Indeed, Demostracus was waiting for us waiting for us in a fever of impatience. I had decided that I would not tell him anything of a definite nature. I was not sure myself. There had been a moment there in the bedroom when I thought I recognized the hair, the skin, the nightdress. They were familiar to me, but that signified nothing, really. Felienne could not have been the only girl with chestnut hair and peach pink skin. Not the only one to wear a white sleeping gown threaded with with yellow ribbons. Oh, no. No. Well, what did you find? Nothing. Am I right? Nothing at all? Nothing. He says we found
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nothing. Tell him. Go on. Tell him. Gerrito, tell
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me. It is true. Mercedes was not alone in his bed. Not alone. There was a woman. Fenenian? What? No. No. Someone who
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who looked somewhat like who could conceivably be mistaken for her. The hair, the the coloring, the clothing. It was millennia. Be quiet, you crazy old woman. I knew her from the day she was born. I watched her go to womanhood. I tended her in the cradle. I guarded her at school. I cared for her till she married and left me. I know her head to foot, body and soul. Her life has been so interwoven with mine that I could not fail to recognize her if I met her in hell. Stop your ravings, Melissa.
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Our Floridian lies on her beer in the tomb where we placed her. She has left it. She has escaped and found her way into this house, into his bed. I forbid you to speak another word. Do you want to be dismissed from our service? Do you want to beg bread on the streets? I saw what I saw. Go to bed, Melissa. You're tired. All the same. I saw We will talk in the morning, Melissa. Crazy old woman. What,
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did you see, Cherryton?
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I saw a woman. That's true enough. But it was no one we know. And most assuredly, it was not Follinien. The very idea Oh, Mercedes
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must know many women in amphiboles. He must have stirred more than one feminine heart in the past. It could have been some woman from our streets. What are you going to do about it?
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Why nothing?
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But you must do something.
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What would you have me do? Do I
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ask him?
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Ask him who invaded his bed in the middle of the night? The invaded his bed in the middle of the night. The monstratus.
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It could have been anyone. Mercedes is an attractive man, so virile, so handsome, so distinguished. It would be a simple thing for him to plan an assignation.
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Nevertheless, it was in my house that he carried it out, and I mean to confront him with it in the morning. No. Are you afraid, Gerrito? Afraid of what I might learn?
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Yes. It was true. I was afraid. A nameless gnawing fear twisted my bowels, a haunting anxiety about what might lie ahead for all of us and a terrifying suspicion that Melissa was not fabricating, nor was she deranged. That what she said she had seen, she had in all truth, actually seen.
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Arthur Arthur Schopenhauer, who died in 1860, was a renowned German philosopher, well known for his pessimistic views of the nature of man. It was his contention that we are born with a belief hero. Each of us, it's safe to say, has at some time lost a loved one. Our memories combine with our sense of loss and deprivation in a huge effort to bring them back to us. There are moments when it even seems that our love and longing must be strong enough to accomplish this. But what if it were true? What if we truly possessed such supernatural power? It's enough to scare us to death.
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It was the king himself who had suggested that I spend my three days in Ampephalus with Demostris and Chorizo. True, I remembered them from times past, an agreeable couple with a well run household and most excellent food and drink. They had seemed
[00:15:57] Unknown:
a happy little family,
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And I was sorry to learn of the demise of their only child. I frankly felt that they thought well of me and that they honestly liked me. So I was startled when early the next morning, I heard an angry imperious knocking at the door of my chamber. Matejes, over the door. I must speak with you. Now, MacKeris, now. The last witness, what is the meaning of the Syrian? And and and, Charita, what what what is the reason for this early intrusion? I did not want to come, but my husband Are you going to let us come in? Yes. Of course. Of course. I am your guest. This is your house. Come in. By all means. By all means, come in. Thank you. Dem demonstratist. What's happened?
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Why are you There's no one here. You see, Chariteaux, there's no one here at all. Oh, did you expect to find someone? A woman.
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Oh. Oh, yes. Yes. A woman.
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Melissa looked in upon upon you last night, some hours after you retired to see if you needed anything. She saw
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she saw a woman by your side. And as was her duty, she informed us. Oh, yes. Of course. It was her duty, I hear. I hope you you were not unduly perturbed. It's true then. Oh, yes. Yes. Yes. It is quite true. A few seconds after I reached this room, a most lovely lady appeared. I was quite taken by surprise, I can tell you. But she was so fair, so lovely, I could not, on the instant, send her away. You understand? Go on. And besides, she told me with such passionate sincerity that I could not disbelieve her completely, that she had loved me for years.
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It was someone you knew?
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To my knowledge, I had never seen her before. I I did not press her for her name. She was clearly a lady of breeding and distinction. And and she begged for my love, and I I gave it to her. Forgive me if I violated your hospitality, but I was sorely tempted,
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and I succumb. All of that is understandable, McCaetys,
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perhaps forgivable too. I thank you for your tolerance. Where is the woman now? When I awoke this morning, when you and your wife came knocking at my door, she was gone. Sometime during the night, she went away or was spirited away.
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What? Why do you say that? Why do you say she could have been spirited away?
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Why why because both her arrival and her departure was so mysterious. So completely out of the ordinary, so
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unconventional.
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She was a spirit? A ghost. Is that what you think? Oh, no. No. No. No. No. No. I I meant nothing of the sort. This was a this was a real woman. A woman of this earth, of flesh and blood. Why do you think she of what are you accusing me?
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Mercadius, my friend, you had best sit down while I tell you what is suspected. Only suspected, mind you. Suspected
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by an old and unstable servant in the house. Melissa? Melissa says she swears that the woman in your bed was our daughter. Your your daughter. Our Folineum. But your
[00:19:28] Unknown:
but your daughter is dead. You told me last night Mercedes, after Melissa told
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did bear I must confess it in the name of truth. She did bear a certain resemblance to Philemon.
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No. No. No. No. No. No. The the woman who invaded my room should she was no specter. She was she wasn't a ghost. Look. Look. Look there. We sat at that table, and we ate and we drank. We ate cakes and food and drank wine from your beautiful gold rimmed goblets. And he look. Look. Here's something else. Two things she gave me as tokens of her love. I put them in this coffer. You see? See here? A gold ring. She took it from her finger. And the gold belt from around her waist.
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Oh, no. Oh. No.
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There you see.
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These are gifts of intangible. A palpable woman. That was not a ghost that visited me. Well, you do see, don't you? The McCallies. That ring, that belt. They were worn by our daughter, Lillian, during her lifetime.
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I no. I I can't believe that. No. And they were buried with her
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in her tomb. The ring upon her finger was a belt around her waist. But, at
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but then somebody robbed the tomb. Yes. Yes. Of course that's it. Somebody broke into the tomb and stole the gold trinkets from her her poor dead body. And and somehow they came into the hands of my night visitor. Of course that's how it happened. Now don't you see? I suppose it's possible. Well, of course it is. Can it be proven? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes, sir. I think it can. Can you prove it? Well, no. Not by my efforts, perhaps. But, look. Ah, it comes back to me. Now, during the night, this woman whispered to me that she would return. Yes. Yes. She promised that she would return each of the three nights that I slept here in your house.
That she would come to me at the same time. Now, now, if you and your wife will hide yourselves outside the door, you will see her when she appears. We could do that. Yes. But do not stop her from entering. Let her come in. If you fill the table with fruit and cake and wine as you did before, you will see that she is human, that she is alive, and she is a true woman. She is no ghost. And she is not your daughter. At long last, they were persuaded. They believed in my sincerity. And I was sincere. Oh, believe me. I had no wish to injure these good people in any way whatsoever. I wanted to satisfy them beyond their slightest doubt, but my night visitor had been a living, breathing girl. No spirit. No phantom.
What I did not tell them, what I could not bring myself to tell them, was that my visitor had whispered her name to me at one moment of that delirious night. And that name was Paulinian. Now I was determined that they should convince themselves of what to me was incontrovertible, that the woman was wholly human. And it was with eager anticipation that I awaited the appointed hour the next night knowing that the monstrous Centurito lurked in the shadows outside my door. Achilles,
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my love.
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Is it you?
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Who else should it be, my dearest heart? No one. Did I not promise you that I would visit you here in this room each night you slept here? Yes. Then lighter light, let me see you. And you, look at me. We will gaze upon each other across this little table. Look here. Cold meats and bread and grapes and the finest brandy we could wish. Sit there, my sweet love. There's
[00:24:11] Unknown:
your glass and mine.
[00:24:13] Unknown:
Now let me fill our plate.
[00:24:17] Unknown:
Tell me something.
[00:24:18] Unknown:
Anything. Whatever
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you want to hear. Well, there are things I want to hear, and there are things that I do not want to hear. No plague, my darling. Thank you.
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Ask me whatever
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interests you. Last night, you told me something.
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Many things.
[00:24:39] Unknown:
I told you many things. But, one thing in particular. And, what was that? You told me you said that you have loved me
[00:24:50] Unknown:
for a long time. Oh, yes. A very long time.
[00:24:56] Unknown:
How long?
[00:24:57] Unknown:
Since I was quite a young girl. Where did we meet? Oh, here.
[00:25:02] Unknown:
Here?
[00:25:03] Unknown:
Here in Antipas. You came on business for killing Philip.
[00:25:07] Unknown:
Yes.
[00:25:08] Unknown:
More than once? Yes. Yes. Several times. But I knew from the first that I loved you. Would always love you. Love you till my death and beyond. The second time I saw you, my love grew. And the third time, you were so fixed in my young girl's heart that I knew nothing could alter or stifle the love I bore you, not even marriage to another man.
[00:25:37] Unknown:
You're married?
[00:25:38] Unknown:
Oh, yes. I was nearly 20.
[00:25:41] Unknown:
My parents arranged it. Who who who was the man you married?
[00:25:46] Unknown:
No. He was very distinguished. A good man. A kind man. He was a general, very high up in the army of King Phillipus.
[00:25:56] Unknown:
Perhaps you knew him. What was his name?
[00:26:00] Unknown:
His name was Criterus. And what happened to him?
[00:26:05] Unknown:
Well, he died. We were married a a scant six months before he died. That must have made you very unhappy. I grieved for him. Yes. And then and then? Then I died too.
[00:26:22] Unknown:
But but you are here.
[00:26:26] Unknown:
My love for you had never died. It burned as fiercely as ever. My violent, my passionate, my unsatisfied love. And whom I knew that you would spend three nights in my parents' house No. Forgive me. Where are you going? Come back.
[00:26:44] Unknown:
Demostratus. Come in. Leketi.
[00:26:47] Unknown:
No. Cato. We don't want some. Come in. Both of you. She is here. No. No. We don't need them. Bellumi and my daughter.
[00:26:56] Unknown:
Is it you? Just come back to us demonstrative. Our daughter has returned from the grave. Oh, dear child. To have you back. Oh, the gods are kind. Let us embrace you dearest girl. Stay away. Stay apart from me.
[00:27:11] Unknown:
From you, do not approach me. Do not come near me. But we love you.
[00:27:16] Unknown:
What do you mean love? You doubt that we love you? You are cruel.
[00:27:22] Unknown:
Cruel and unfeeling. My child, what are you saying? I came here by the grace of the gods. They allowed me three nights to spend with the man of my young heart. But you could not permit that, could you? You could not grant me my three happy nights. Oh, millennium. I meant no harm to anyone. I did no harm to a single soul in this house. But you, mother, and you, father, with your meddling Meddling. Yes. Your meddling. Your audacious interference. Your bundling. You have destroyed the most sacred wish of my heart. And now and now yes, my daughter. What now?
Now must I return to the shadowy place appointed for me? Now
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while at last it is over. Over at last.
[00:28:21] Unknown:
What
[00:28:26] Unknown:
is she?
[00:28:27] Unknown:
She is dead, Chorita. Dead?
[00:28:33] Unknown:
Is that true?
[00:28:35] Unknown:
Yes, my dear wife. Our daughter is dead.
[00:28:42] Unknown:
Once again, she is dead.
[00:28:48] Unknown:
The body of the beautiful young woman lay stretched to its full length across the bed.
[00:28:54] Unknown:
Her parents threw themselves upon it. The house was filled with sorrow and confusion.
[00:29:01] Unknown:
Philemonian was dead, and I shared the grief of Chirito and the monstrous as best I could.
[00:29:08] Unknown:
The question crowded my head and infected my thoughts. When had she been alive?
[00:29:21] Unknown:
If you believe in ghosts, you have plenty of company. As this story, which dates back twenty three hundred years well attests, if you do not believe in ghosts well, many others share your conviction. The question of their existence or nonexistence has never been decided, nor is it likely to be. But consider this. Believe or disbelieve as you will. Someday you may be a ghost yourself. I shall be back with our concluding act shortly. Let's be honest. This is a very unsatisfactory world to live in. Long on confusion and contradiction, short on justice and human kindness.
Is it any wonder we long so ardently to turn away from it out of disgust, despair, or simple boredom. But where, towards what, do we turn in our extremity? Why, to the mysterious, of course, to the land of the unknown, the unknowable, and the strange creatures who inhabit
[00:30:40] Unknown:
it. They are good people, I guess, and kind enough in their way, but they are stupid. On the other hand, a slave, unburdened by possessions or position, happily deprived of aspiration and ambition, limited to menial work that any foe can accomplish. A slave like myself is free at all times to observe and reflect on the riddles and enigmas of life, both here and beyond. This is a freedom which I, in my bondage, cherish above all else. While the household was wracked with grief over the second death of the beautiful Philemon, I took it upon myself to seek out Hillis, the greatest diviner among us. What brings you here, Melissa? Have you heard, Hillis, of the awfulness that has come to pass in the House of Cherry Tow and Demonstrators?
There have been mamarines in the street. Yes. The word goes round that Kilian has come back from beyond the grave. That much is true. I saw her. I was the first. Stay a moment, Melissa. You say you saw the specter of Philean? Not a specter, Helas. Philean she was before she died. Who would know her better than I? And you say you were the first to see her returned from the grave? Further, I misspoke myself. I was not the first, but I was the first to recognize her. And who was the first to see her? Mercatus from Therma, friend to the king, who came here for three days on state business and chose, oh, unhappy choice, choice to spend those three days in the house of demonstratures.
But Falunyan has been dead for some time now. McCaenys was informed of that on arrival. But that night, he was tempted and seduced by a beautiful young woman. And when in the early morning hours, I entered his bedchamber to see what he might need, there they were together. And you can imagine my horror when I looked down and saw the face of my cherished villain. I rushed to tell my masters, and in the morning, they confronted Mercedes who swore that it was a living woman who had visited him. He showed them a gold ring and a gold belt, which he said the woman had given him. But, oh, she cuts.
They recognized the jewelry as having belonged to their daughter. Indeed. She had worn the ring and the belt to her grave. The horror of the globe. Arcadys insisted that the woman had been a living, breathing being, no ghosts from the other side, and invited the father and mother to hide themselves themselves outside his room. For he said the woman had promised to visit him at the same hour each of the three nights he slept beneath that roof. And did the father and mother accept the invitation of Mercedes to to eat his outside his room the next night? Indeed. She did.
And indeed, Fellinian appeared at the very hour he had said she would. They ran to embrace their daughter. So glad they were to see her, as they thought, returned to them. But she repulsed them utterly, hit scorn and loathing on them for having prevented the second and third nights of her rendezvous with the man she had loved so long. And then oh, and then and then Melissa then she she fell upon the bed and died. That is that is why I'm here, Helis. Tell me what they should do, and I will carry your instructions back to them.
I do not know how this dreadful event can be finally resolved. But I do know what must be done first before anything else. First, the tomb where they placed Phylinium's body must be opened. I took the instructions of Helios back to Cherry Hill in Demonstratus. They had the grace to thank me for my trouble and be ready to visit the tomb that very day. As for Mercatus, he nodded dumbly when I told him all that I had done and what remained to be done. But he said that he would not go to the tomb, but would wait for us to come back to the house. So we went without him.
[00:35:45] Unknown:
Here is the beer where the body of my father lies.
[00:35:49] Unknown:
You know, here lies my brother. Here my aunt.
[00:35:57] Unknown:
The bearer of Fenelian lies straight ahead. I know very well where she lies.
[00:36:04] Unknown:
Bring the torches
[00:36:09] Unknown:
closer. Look there. There is nobody. But where?
[00:36:13] Unknown:
Where could At home?
[00:36:16] Unknown:
With Marchetti? On the bed where we left her? Let Let us hurry back. Come, Melissa. Wait. Wait. Come, Melissa. Look here. What is it?
[00:36:24] Unknown:
See what I found lying on the beer? What?
[00:36:29] Unknown:
It's an
[00:36:30] Unknown:
iron ring. A man's ring. There's something else. Look.
[00:36:37] Unknown:
A goblet. A goblet with a gold ring. What a monstrous is. It's one of ours.
[00:36:45] Unknown:
It is one of those I left the bedroom of Mercatus that first night.
[00:36:51] Unknown:
Come. Come, both of you. We must go back to the house.
[00:36:57] Unknown:
We'll hurry back. Half walking, half running along the dusty road, saying nothing to one another. Her face is drawn and haggard with anxiety. We were within a few yards of the house when we saw McCadis standing in the middle of the road.
[00:37:12] Unknown:
Mercatus, we entered the tomb. The Birra Fellenion is empty.
[00:37:19] Unknown:
I know.
[00:37:21] Unknown:
You know? How? What do you know?
[00:37:26] Unknown:
After you left, I decided that I had been cowardly to refuse to go with you to the tomb. A few minutes passed, I made up my mind to join you. Just outside the house, lying on the grass, I found the body of Pholinium. What?
[00:37:43] Unknown:
Why should she be there?
[00:37:45] Unknown:
I think I think that she was trying to return to her bier in the tomb, her rightful home.
[00:37:54] Unknown:
Come to Mastratus. Come let us find her. No, sir.
[00:38:00] Unknown:
This has been a most dreadful experience. As much for you as for the rest of us. It has, Melissa. I wish I could help you. Perhaps you can. I, an old woman like me.
[00:38:14] Unknown:
A slave woman like me. There might be more wisdom in your ancient head than anyone dreams of.
[00:38:20] Unknown:
There well might be. But what has happened here? These are things that have to do with the Netherworld. The dark, the shadowy side of the soul. The mysteries of heaven and hell
[00:38:37] Unknown:
and human failure. I don't know what to do. I meant no purposeful evil. I know, sir. When she appeared in my room, all beautiful and enticing, she was real. I swear I had no notion. She spoke of her love for me. She she gave me her ring. Oh, sir. And her belt of gold from around her waist. They were real.
[00:38:59] Unknown:
I showed them to you. You saw them. There is something else, sir, which I must show you.
[00:39:05] Unknown:
What is that?
[00:39:06] Unknown:
This ring of iron.
[00:39:09] Unknown:
Right. And that ring is mine. At least it was mine till I till I gave it to her. You gave this ring to Valenian? Yes. That first night. A a pledge of my love.
[00:39:21] Unknown:
When the tomb was opened, sir, and we went inside, we found the ring lying upon her empty bier. And not just
[00:39:29] Unknown:
the ring. We found this goblet too. A goblet with a rim of gold. Why why she she took this with her when she left my room. A moment of our time together. You know what this means, sir. Tell me. Tell tell me. My my mind is whirling with confused thoughts. I I reject them all, but but they come back. It means, Mercedes,
[00:39:54] Unknown:
that when she left you that night, she returned to the tomb. Oh, no. And there she remained
[00:40:03] Unknown:
till she reappeared in your room the second night. Melissa, what shall I do? What can I do? Who will tell me what I must do? Sir, go to Hillis.
[00:40:14] Unknown:
Hillis? Who who is Hillis? The wisest man in Amphipolis.
[00:40:19] Unknown:
It was Hillis who told us to open the tomb. You say I should I I should seek out this wise man, this Hillis. I can think of nothing else.
[00:40:29] Unknown:
Now, sir, if you will excuse me, I must join my mistress. She needs me more than you. I suggested I suggested to Charyto that she and I should go to the place of assembly. There was bound to be a crowd there. For by now, everyone must know of our journey to the tomb and what we had found and not found there. At first, she hesitated. But when I said that Hillis would most certainly be one of the crowd, she consented. For she knew she was in drastic need of counsel.
[00:41:09] Unknown:
Hillis.
[00:41:24] Unknown:
Been thrown. Be quiet. Quiet, everyone. Be quiet.
[00:41:31] Unknown:
Hillis, you know of the tragedy
[00:41:34] Unknown:
that has befallen our family. There is talk of it, Cherry Tow. And Melissa Melissa has told me the true details. Which she herself witnessed. And you wish me to tell you what should be done?
[00:41:50] Unknown:
To wipe away the stain. To cleanse our house. Charito,
[00:41:55] Unknown:
make sacrifice to the god Hermes Yes. And to the Eumenides
[00:42:02] Unknown:
Oh, yes. And to Zeus. What of my daughter? Her body lies outside our house.
[00:42:09] Unknown:
You would place her back in the tomb. Is that in Charizard?
[00:42:15] Unknown:
On the beer that is hers.
[00:42:16] Unknown:
No. No, Charizard. No.
[00:42:21] Unknown:
No.
[00:42:23] Unknown:
And right then where?
[00:42:26] Unknown:
Elenaean cannot be laid to rest within the boundaries of this city. She must be taken outside these walls and buried there. No. It is the law. It was harsh advice to to give, but such were the facts and such was the law. And the sorrowing friends and family did everything that I suggested with the utmost care. The man, McCadys, never consulted me. That same day, he killed himself. Himself. Perhaps had he sought me out and asked my help, perhaps I would have told him that there was no other proper thing for him to do. But what he did?
[00:43:42] Unknown:
The story of Night Visitor, which we have brought to you in modern adaptation, was written down in the second century after Christ during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian, though it is told as happening six centuries previous. Its author was a freed Greek slave by the name of Legon and was circulated in the book titled De Rebus Mirabilis or Of Miraculous Things. I'll be back shortly. The opening of the story of Bylinian is missing from Flagon's account. But from other sources, it has been ascertained that it was taken from a letter written by a man called Hipparchus to a friend named Eridaus, who was half brother to son of Philip the second, Alexander the Great.
Our cast included Terry Keen, Earl Hammond, E. V. Juster, and Ray Owens. The entire production is under the direction of Hyman Brown. This is EG Marshall inviting you to return to our mystery theater for another adventure in the macabre. Until next time. Pleasant?
With the American Express Platinum Card, you can unlock over $1,500 in value annually with statement credits on select purchases and other benefits. That means getting access to even more of your favorite things. More jet setting, more trend setting, and more resetting. And downward dog. The stage is set for you to do even more with the American Express Platinum part. Learn more at americanexpress.com/us/explore-platinum. Terms apply.
[00:00:47] Unknown:
Come in. Welcome. I'm E. G. Marshall. Man, wrote Voltaire more than two hundred years ago, is the only animal who knows he will die. But man does not and never has accepted this dire bit of knowledge, not completely. He struggles still to discover or invent some reason to believe that he is immortal. That however altered, he will nevertheless live on forever. And that is why, centuries
[00:01:30] Unknown:
Eumenides. What of my daughter?
[00:01:33] Unknown:
Reconsecrate the temple. All pollution
[00:01:37] Unknown:
must be removed. My daughter. My daughter. What of her?
[00:01:42] Unknown:
Your daughter cannot be laid to rest within the boundaries of this city. She must be taken taken outside these walls and buried there.
[00:02:02] Unknown:
Our mystery drama NIGHT VISITOR was written especially for the mystery theater by Elspeth Eric and stars Terry Keene. It's possible that the cavemen sat around the fire after dark and told stories of strange shapes they had seen and awful sounds they had built, and wondered aloud if their ancestors were trying to get in touch with them. We can't know for sure because they could not record their experience. But a ghost story from the fourth century before Christ has come down to us. Its setting is Macedonia, and we have given our adaptation the title of night visitor.
[00:02:59] Unknown:
He couldn't have picked a worse time to pay a visit. It had been a scant few weeks since the light had gone out of our lives. I suppose it's possible he had not heard of my daughter's death. After all, he lived in After all, he lived in Therma, and I don't believe he traveled to Amphipolis more than two or three times on business for King Philip the second. And he'd never before been a guest in our home. Still, demonstratus, my husband and I, did our poor best to prepare for his arrival.
[00:03:33] Unknown:
McCadis is very close to the king, you know.
[00:03:36] Unknown:
I know.
[00:03:38] Unknown:
And to the young prince Alexander too, I believe.
[00:03:41] Unknown:
Proteus was a general a
[00:03:44] Unknown:
general in Alexander's army. He's dead,
[00:03:46] Unknown:
Cherithome. Six months married, and he died.
[00:03:50] Unknown:
Then
[00:03:51] Unknown:
she died. There's no need to remind
[00:03:55] Unknown:
me. Forgive me, my dear.
[00:03:57] Unknown:
Such a brilliant marriage. Such a happy marriage. Been a widow so soon. Then Dear wife She lingered only a few months after his death. Our only child. Our lovely young daughter. Our beautiful Phyllinean. Dear wife. Now this this fool
[00:04:20] Unknown:
intrudes himself on our grief. You said yourself he may not even know. Yes.
[00:04:27] Unknown:
It must be that he doesn't know, or he couldn't be so tactless, so unfeeling.
[00:04:32] Unknown:
His room is ready for him, I suppose. He'll be tired after his trip from Therma. It's prepared.
[00:04:39] Unknown:
I gave Melissa instructions.
[00:04:41] Unknown:
Properly prepared, I hope. Our best linen sheets. Food and drinks. Spice cakes, apples, plums. A carafe of wine. Oh, yes.
[00:04:51] Unknown:
And our best crystal goblets with the gold ring. Mistress?
[00:04:57] Unknown:
Yes, Melissa? The gentleman from Thelma has arrived. McCaties is here.
[00:05:05] Unknown:
It had been several years since McCaties had last been in our city, so I had no clear picture of what sort of man to expect. I must admit that I was most pleasantly, most favorably impressed. The man who entered our house was, I should think, about 40 years old, strikingly handsome, well built, intelligent, and beautifully mannered. I must confess the thought crossed my mind. How our daughter, Philean, would have admired this man, perhaps perhaps even loved him. I told him briefly of her marriage, of her widowhood, and lastly of her death.
He was most sympathetic, very kind, very understanding. Really a remarkable young man. We said goodnight to him and Melissa showed him to his room.
[00:06:07] Unknown:
A proper young man. I'm happy to have him for a guest.
[00:06:11] Unknown:
So am I.
[00:06:13] Unknown:
Are you sorry you were so fretful about his coming here?
[00:06:17] Unknown:
I couldn't know he'd be so charming. I think I've planned everything well. Melissa will devote all her time to him. Can't we give him a servant who's not quite so
[00:06:29] Unknown:
old? Perhaps we should. I can't imagine that at court he's tended by an aged crone.
[00:06:35] Unknown:
I suppose not. In the morning, I'll see what I can do. I think you should.
[00:06:41] Unknown:
We want to make a good impression.
[00:06:44] Unknown:
I know.
[00:06:45] Unknown:
Well, are you ready to retire? What's that? You sounded like Melissa. What? What kind of Listen.
[00:06:53] Unknown:
Master. Melissa. What is it? What's Come in, woman. Come in.
[00:06:57] Unknown:
What's frightened you? Demostracist.
[00:06:59] Unknown:
Some wine? Up there. Up there. Where? Where? Up where? His room. Get her drink this. Whose room do you mean? The gentleman. The one from Therma. McCaties. What do you know about McCaties? I looked in in upon him a minute ago to see if he was cold or if he needed anything. Oh oh, mister. Yes. Yes. Go on. He was asleep. In bed and asleep. Of course. I I peered at the bed. He was sleeping peacefully. But beneath the coverlet, I could distinguish a form, not his.
[00:07:33] Unknown:
Oh, another's.
[00:07:35] Unknown:
What do you mean old woman?
[00:07:36] Unknown:
Two people were in that bed
[00:07:39] Unknown:
side by side. Oh, come now you're joking. Of course you are. Well, your eyes are failing. Yes. That's it. No. No. No. I saw them. Melissa. That's not all my mistress. I creeped closer to the bed. I thought, as you think now, that I must be wrong. But there they were, the two of them lying next to each other. Oh, mistress, how can I tell you?
[00:08:04] Unknown:
One of the most Philemonian. Philemonian. Your daughter. Can you conceive of what I felt? Incredulity,
[00:08:17] Unknown:
of course.
[00:08:19] Unknown:
It was not yet six months since we had placed the body of our beloved child on the bier within the tomb. The old servant's words were a desecration. A thundering fear trembled within us both. Both. What if what if something between disbelief and anxiety and the desire to quiet the old servant. Something made us decide that one of us should accompany Melissa to the bedroom where McCadys lay with with whom? With what? It was decided that I should be the one. I think you were losing your senses, Melissa. You stay. I'll go in. Yes, mistress.
It's true. There are two of them. You see.
[00:09:25] Unknown:
You see. Acadies and a woman. I've got closer. Close to the bed.
[00:09:35] Unknown:
Yes.
[00:09:37] Unknown:
A woman. Flenion. No.
[00:09:42] Unknown:
Not Felinien. Yes. It is she. But it's impossible to tell. It is she. When was so dark? Her hair. Her skin. Her nightdress. I can't believe. Felinien.
[00:09:55] Unknown:
It's not my daughter. It's not the linenian.
[00:09:59] Unknown:
It's some stranger. It is your daughter, mistress. I'll swear to it. Please, you marveled woman. I saw what I saw.
[00:10:06] Unknown:
I tell you. I saw.
[00:10:09] Unknown:
Hush. We must not be found here. My husband is waiting for us below stairs. Come. Indeed, Demostracus was waiting for us waiting for us in a fever of impatience. I had decided that I would not tell him anything of a definite nature. I was not sure myself. There had been a moment there in the bedroom when I thought I recognized the hair, the skin, the nightdress. They were familiar to me, but that signified nothing, really. Felienne could not have been the only girl with chestnut hair and peach pink skin. Not the only one to wear a white sleeping gown threaded with with yellow ribbons. Oh, no. No. Well, what did you find? Nothing. Am I right? Nothing at all? Nothing. He says we found
[00:11:20] Unknown:
nothing. Tell him. Go on. Tell him. Gerrito, tell
[00:11:24] Unknown:
me. It is true. Mercedes was not alone in his bed. Not alone. There was a woman. Fenenian? What? No. No. Someone who
[00:11:39] Unknown:
who looked somewhat like who could conceivably be mistaken for her. The hair, the the coloring, the clothing. It was millennia. Be quiet, you crazy old woman. I knew her from the day she was born. I watched her go to womanhood. I tended her in the cradle. I guarded her at school. I cared for her till she married and left me. I know her head to foot, body and soul. Her life has been so interwoven with mine that I could not fail to recognize her if I met her in hell. Stop your ravings, Melissa.
[00:12:18] Unknown:
Our Floridian lies on her beer in the tomb where we placed her. She has left it. She has escaped and found her way into this house, into his bed. I forbid you to speak another word. Do you want to be dismissed from our service? Do you want to beg bread on the streets? I saw what I saw. Go to bed, Melissa. You're tired. All the same. I saw We will talk in the morning, Melissa. Crazy old woman. What,
[00:12:48] Unknown:
did you see, Cherryton?
[00:12:51] Unknown:
I saw a woman. That's true enough. But it was no one we know. And most assuredly, it was not Follinien. The very idea Oh, Mercedes
[00:13:03] Unknown:
must know many women in amphiboles. He must have stirred more than one feminine heart in the past. It could have been some woman from our streets. What are you going to do about it?
[00:13:16] Unknown:
Why nothing?
[00:13:18] Unknown:
But you must do something.
[00:13:20] Unknown:
What would you have me do? Do I
[00:13:23] Unknown:
ask him?
[00:13:25] Unknown:
Ask him who invaded his bed in the middle of the night? The invaded his bed in the middle of the night. The monstratus.
[00:13:29] Unknown:
It could have been anyone. Mercedes is an attractive man, so virile, so handsome, so distinguished. It would be a simple thing for him to plan an assignation.
[00:13:42] Unknown:
Nevertheless, it was in my house that he carried it out, and I mean to confront him with it in the morning. No. Are you afraid, Gerrito? Afraid of what I might learn?
[00:13:58] Unknown:
Yes. It was true. I was afraid. A nameless gnawing fear twisted my bowels, a haunting anxiety about what might lie ahead for all of us and a terrifying suspicion that Melissa was not fabricating, nor was she deranged. That what she said she had seen, she had in all truth, actually seen.
[00:14:34] Unknown:
Arthur Arthur Schopenhauer, who died in 1860, was a renowned German philosopher, well known for his pessimistic views of the nature of man. It was his contention that we are born with a belief hero. Each of us, it's safe to say, has at some time lost a loved one. Our memories combine with our sense of loss and deprivation in a huge effort to bring them back to us. There are moments when it even seems that our love and longing must be strong enough to accomplish this. But what if it were true? What if we truly possessed such supernatural power? It's enough to scare us to death.
[00:15:40] Unknown:
It was the king himself who had suggested that I spend my three days in Ampephalus with Demostris and Chorizo. True, I remembered them from times past, an agreeable couple with a well run household and most excellent food and drink. They had seemed
[00:15:57] Unknown:
a happy little family,
[00:15:59] Unknown:
And I was sorry to learn of the demise of their only child. I frankly felt that they thought well of me and that they honestly liked me. So I was startled when early the next morning, I heard an angry imperious knocking at the door of my chamber. Matejes, over the door. I must speak with you. Now, MacKeris, now. The last witness, what is the meaning of the Syrian? And and and, Charita, what what what is the reason for this early intrusion? I did not want to come, but my husband Are you going to let us come in? Yes. Of course. Of course. I am your guest. This is your house. Come in. By all means. By all means, come in. Thank you. Dem demonstratist. What's happened?
[00:16:45] Unknown:
Why are you There's no one here. You see, Chariteaux, there's no one here at all. Oh, did you expect to find someone? A woman.
[00:16:54] Unknown:
Oh. Oh, yes. Yes. A woman.
[00:16:57] Unknown:
Melissa looked in upon upon you last night, some hours after you retired to see if you needed anything. She saw
[00:17:05] Unknown:
she saw a woman by your side. And as was her duty, she informed us. Oh, yes. Of course. It was her duty, I hear. I hope you you were not unduly perturbed. It's true then. Oh, yes. Yes. Yes. It is quite true. A few seconds after I reached this room, a most lovely lady appeared. I was quite taken by surprise, I can tell you. But she was so fair, so lovely, I could not, on the instant, send her away. You understand? Go on. And besides, she told me with such passionate sincerity that I could not disbelieve her completely, that she had loved me for years.
[00:17:43] Unknown:
It was someone you knew?
[00:17:45] Unknown:
To my knowledge, I had never seen her before. I I did not press her for her name. She was clearly a lady of breeding and distinction. And and she begged for my love, and I I gave it to her. Forgive me if I violated your hospitality, but I was sorely tempted,
[00:18:02] Unknown:
and I succumb. All of that is understandable, McCaetys,
[00:18:06] Unknown:
perhaps forgivable too. I thank you for your tolerance. Where is the woman now? When I awoke this morning, when you and your wife came knocking at my door, she was gone. Sometime during the night, she went away or was spirited away.
[00:18:24] Unknown:
What? Why do you say that? Why do you say she could have been spirited away?
[00:18:32] Unknown:
Why why because both her arrival and her departure was so mysterious. So completely out of the ordinary, so
[00:18:42] Unknown:
unconventional.
[00:18:43] Unknown:
She was a spirit? A ghost. Is that what you think? Oh, no. No. No. No. No. No. I I meant nothing of the sort. This was a this was a real woman. A woman of this earth, of flesh and blood. Why do you think she of what are you accusing me?
[00:19:00] Unknown:
Mercadius, my friend, you had best sit down while I tell you what is suspected. Only suspected, mind you. Suspected
[00:19:10] Unknown:
by an old and unstable servant in the house. Melissa? Melissa says she swears that the woman in your bed was our daughter. Your your daughter. Our Folineum. But your
[00:19:28] Unknown:
but your daughter is dead. You told me last night Mercedes, after Melissa told
[00:19:46] Unknown:
did bear I must confess it in the name of truth. She did bear a certain resemblance to Philemon.
[00:19:56] Unknown:
No. No. No. No. No. No. The the woman who invaded my room should she was no specter. She was she wasn't a ghost. Look. Look. Look there. We sat at that table, and we ate and we drank. We ate cakes and food and drank wine from your beautiful gold rimmed goblets. And he look. Look. Here's something else. Two things she gave me as tokens of her love. I put them in this coffer. You see? See here? A gold ring. She took it from her finger. And the gold belt from around her waist.
[00:20:28] Unknown:
Oh, no. Oh. No.
[00:20:30] Unknown:
There you see.
[00:20:32] Unknown:
These are gifts of intangible. A palpable woman. That was not a ghost that visited me. Well, you do see, don't you? The McCallies. That ring, that belt. They were worn by our daughter, Lillian, during her lifetime.
[00:20:55] Unknown:
I no. I I can't believe that. No. And they were buried with her
[00:21:01] Unknown:
in her tomb. The ring upon her finger was a belt around her waist. But, at
[00:21:11] Unknown:
but then somebody robbed the tomb. Yes. Yes. Of course that's it. Somebody broke into the tomb and stole the gold trinkets from her her poor dead body. And and somehow they came into the hands of my night visitor. Of course that's how it happened. Now don't you see? I suppose it's possible. Well, of course it is. Can it be proven? Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes, sir. I think it can. Can you prove it? Well, no. Not by my efforts, perhaps. But, look. Ah, it comes back to me. Now, during the night, this woman whispered to me that she would return. Yes. Yes. She promised that she would return each of the three nights that I slept here in your house.
That she would come to me at the same time. Now, now, if you and your wife will hide yourselves outside the door, you will see her when she appears. We could do that. Yes. But do not stop her from entering. Let her come in. If you fill the table with fruit and cake and wine as you did before, you will see that she is human, that she is alive, and she is a true woman. She is no ghost. And she is not your daughter. At long last, they were persuaded. They believed in my sincerity. And I was sincere. Oh, believe me. I had no wish to injure these good people in any way whatsoever. I wanted to satisfy them beyond their slightest doubt, but my night visitor had been a living, breathing girl. No spirit. No phantom.
What I did not tell them, what I could not bring myself to tell them, was that my visitor had whispered her name to me at one moment of that delirious night. And that name was Paulinian. Now I was determined that they should convince themselves of what to me was incontrovertible, that the woman was wholly human. And it was with eager anticipation that I awaited the appointed hour the next night knowing that the monstrous Centurito lurked in the shadows outside my door. Achilles,
[00:23:25] Unknown:
my love.
[00:23:27] Unknown:
Is it you?
[00:23:28] Unknown:
Who else should it be, my dearest heart? No one. Did I not promise you that I would visit you here in this room each night you slept here? Yes. Then lighter light, let me see you. And you, look at me. We will gaze upon each other across this little table. Look here. Cold meats and bread and grapes and the finest brandy we could wish. Sit there, my sweet love. There's
[00:24:11] Unknown:
your glass and mine.
[00:24:13] Unknown:
Now let me fill our plate.
[00:24:17] Unknown:
Tell me something.
[00:24:18] Unknown:
Anything. Whatever
[00:24:20] Unknown:
you want to hear. Well, there are things I want to hear, and there are things that I do not want to hear. No plague, my darling. Thank you.
[00:24:30] Unknown:
Ask me whatever
[00:24:32] Unknown:
interests you. Last night, you told me something.
[00:24:38] Unknown:
Many things.
[00:24:39] Unknown:
I told you many things. But, one thing in particular. And, what was that? You told me you said that you have loved me
[00:24:50] Unknown:
for a long time. Oh, yes. A very long time.
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How long?
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Since I was quite a young girl. Where did we meet? Oh, here.
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Here?
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Here in Antipas. You came on business for killing Philip.
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Yes.
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More than once? Yes. Yes. Several times. But I knew from the first that I loved you. Would always love you. Love you till my death and beyond. The second time I saw you, my love grew. And the third time, you were so fixed in my young girl's heart that I knew nothing could alter or stifle the love I bore you, not even marriage to another man.
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You're married?
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Oh, yes. I was nearly 20.
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My parents arranged it. Who who who was the man you married?
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No. He was very distinguished. A good man. A kind man. He was a general, very high up in the army of King Phillipus.
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Perhaps you knew him. What was his name?
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His name was Criterus. And what happened to him?
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Well, he died. We were married a a scant six months before he died. That must have made you very unhappy. I grieved for him. Yes. And then and then? Then I died too.
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But but you are here.
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My love for you had never died. It burned as fiercely as ever. My violent, my passionate, my unsatisfied love. And whom I knew that you would spend three nights in my parents' house No. Forgive me. Where are you going? Come back.
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Demostratus. Come in. Leketi.
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No. Cato. We don't want some. Come in. Both of you. She is here. No. No. We don't need them. Bellumi and my daughter.
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Is it you? Just come back to us demonstrative. Our daughter has returned from the grave. Oh, dear child. To have you back. Oh, the gods are kind. Let us embrace you dearest girl. Stay away. Stay apart from me.
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From you, do not approach me. Do not come near me. But we love you.
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What do you mean love? You doubt that we love you? You are cruel.
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Cruel and unfeeling. My child, what are you saying? I came here by the grace of the gods. They allowed me three nights to spend with the man of my young heart. But you could not permit that, could you? You could not grant me my three happy nights. Oh, millennium. I meant no harm to anyone. I did no harm to a single soul in this house. But you, mother, and you, father, with your meddling Meddling. Yes. Your meddling. Your audacious interference. Your bundling. You have destroyed the most sacred wish of my heart. And now and now yes, my daughter. What now?
Now must I return to the shadowy place appointed for me? Now
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while at last it is over. Over at last.
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What
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is she?
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She is dead, Chorita. Dead?
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Is that true?
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Yes, my dear wife. Our daughter is dead.
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Once again, she is dead.
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The body of the beautiful young woman lay stretched to its full length across the bed.
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Her parents threw themselves upon it. The house was filled with sorrow and confusion.
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Philemonian was dead, and I shared the grief of Chirito and the monstrous as best I could.
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The question crowded my head and infected my thoughts. When had she been alive?
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If you believe in ghosts, you have plenty of company. As this story, which dates back twenty three hundred years well attests, if you do not believe in ghosts well, many others share your conviction. The question of their existence or nonexistence has never been decided, nor is it likely to be. But consider this. Believe or disbelieve as you will. Someday you may be a ghost yourself. I shall be back with our concluding act shortly. Let's be honest. This is a very unsatisfactory world to live in. Long on confusion and contradiction, short on justice and human kindness.
Is it any wonder we long so ardently to turn away from it out of disgust, despair, or simple boredom. But where, towards what, do we turn in our extremity? Why, to the mysterious, of course, to the land of the unknown, the unknowable, and the strange creatures who inhabit
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it. They are good people, I guess, and kind enough in their way, but they are stupid. On the other hand, a slave, unburdened by possessions or position, happily deprived of aspiration and ambition, limited to menial work that any foe can accomplish. A slave like myself is free at all times to observe and reflect on the riddles and enigmas of life, both here and beyond. This is a freedom which I, in my bondage, cherish above all else. While the household was wracked with grief over the second death of the beautiful Philemon, I took it upon myself to seek out Hillis, the greatest diviner among us. What brings you here, Melissa? Have you heard, Hillis, of the awfulness that has come to pass in the House of Cherry Tow and Demonstrators?
There have been mamarines in the street. Yes. The word goes round that Kilian has come back from beyond the grave. That much is true. I saw her. I was the first. Stay a moment, Melissa. You say you saw the specter of Philean? Not a specter, Helas. Philean she was before she died. Who would know her better than I? And you say you were the first to see her returned from the grave? Further, I misspoke myself. I was not the first, but I was the first to recognize her. And who was the first to see her? Mercatus from Therma, friend to the king, who came here for three days on state business and chose, oh, unhappy choice, choice to spend those three days in the house of demonstratures.
But Falunyan has been dead for some time now. McCaenys was informed of that on arrival. But that night, he was tempted and seduced by a beautiful young woman. And when in the early morning hours, I entered his bedchamber to see what he might need, there they were together. And you can imagine my horror when I looked down and saw the face of my cherished villain. I rushed to tell my masters, and in the morning, they confronted Mercedes who swore that it was a living woman who had visited him. He showed them a gold ring and a gold belt, which he said the woman had given him. But, oh, she cuts.
They recognized the jewelry as having belonged to their daughter. Indeed. She had worn the ring and the belt to her grave. The horror of the globe. Arcadys insisted that the woman had been a living, breathing being, no ghosts from the other side, and invited the father and mother to hide themselves themselves outside his room. For he said the woman had promised to visit him at the same hour each of the three nights he slept beneath that roof. And did the father and mother accept the invitation of Mercedes to to eat his outside his room the next night? Indeed. She did.
And indeed, Fellinian appeared at the very hour he had said she would. They ran to embrace their daughter. So glad they were to see her, as they thought, returned to them. But she repulsed them utterly, hit scorn and loathing on them for having prevented the second and third nights of her rendezvous with the man she had loved so long. And then oh, and then and then Melissa then she she fell upon the bed and died. That is that is why I'm here, Helis. Tell me what they should do, and I will carry your instructions back to them.
I do not know how this dreadful event can be finally resolved. But I do know what must be done first before anything else. First, the tomb where they placed Phylinium's body must be opened. I took the instructions of Helios back to Cherry Hill in Demonstratus. They had the grace to thank me for my trouble and be ready to visit the tomb that very day. As for Mercatus, he nodded dumbly when I told him all that I had done and what remained to be done. But he said that he would not go to the tomb, but would wait for us to come back to the house. So we went without him.
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Here is the beer where the body of my father lies.
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You know, here lies my brother. Here my aunt.
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The bearer of Fenelian lies straight ahead. I know very well where she lies.
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Bring the torches
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closer. Look there. There is nobody. But where?
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Where could At home?
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With Marchetti? On the bed where we left her? Let Let us hurry back. Come, Melissa. Wait. Wait. Come, Melissa. Look here. What is it?
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See what I found lying on the beer? What?
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It's an
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iron ring. A man's ring. There's something else. Look.
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A goblet. A goblet with a gold ring. What a monstrous is. It's one of ours.
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It is one of those I left the bedroom of Mercatus that first night.
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Come. Come, both of you. We must go back to the house.
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We'll hurry back. Half walking, half running along the dusty road, saying nothing to one another. Her face is drawn and haggard with anxiety. We were within a few yards of the house when we saw McCadis standing in the middle of the road.
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Mercatus, we entered the tomb. The Birra Fellenion is empty.
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I know.
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You know? How? What do you know?
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After you left, I decided that I had been cowardly to refuse to go with you to the tomb. A few minutes passed, I made up my mind to join you. Just outside the house, lying on the grass, I found the body of Pholinium. What?
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Why should she be there?
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I think I think that she was trying to return to her bier in the tomb, her rightful home.
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Come to Mastratus. Come let us find her. No, sir.
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This has been a most dreadful experience. As much for you as for the rest of us. It has, Melissa. I wish I could help you. Perhaps you can. I, an old woman like me.
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A slave woman like me. There might be more wisdom in your ancient head than anyone dreams of.
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There well might be. But what has happened here? These are things that have to do with the Netherworld. The dark, the shadowy side of the soul. The mysteries of heaven and hell
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and human failure. I don't know what to do. I meant no purposeful evil. I know, sir. When she appeared in my room, all beautiful and enticing, she was real. I swear I had no notion. She spoke of her love for me. She she gave me her ring. Oh, sir. And her belt of gold from around her waist. They were real.
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I showed them to you. You saw them. There is something else, sir, which I must show you.
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What is that?
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This ring of iron.
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Right. And that ring is mine. At least it was mine till I till I gave it to her. You gave this ring to Valenian? Yes. That first night. A a pledge of my love.
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When the tomb was opened, sir, and we went inside, we found the ring lying upon her empty bier. And not just
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the ring. We found this goblet too. A goblet with a rim of gold. Why why she she took this with her when she left my room. A moment of our time together. You know what this means, sir. Tell me. Tell tell me. My my mind is whirling with confused thoughts. I I reject them all, but but they come back. It means, Mercedes,
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that when she left you that night, she returned to the tomb. Oh, no. And there she remained
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till she reappeared in your room the second night. Melissa, what shall I do? What can I do? Who will tell me what I must do? Sir, go to Hillis.
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Hillis? Who who is Hillis? The wisest man in Amphipolis.
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It was Hillis who told us to open the tomb. You say I should I I should seek out this wise man, this Hillis. I can think of nothing else.
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Now, sir, if you will excuse me, I must join my mistress. She needs me more than you. I suggested I suggested to Charyto that she and I should go to the place of assembly. There was bound to be a crowd there. For by now, everyone must know of our journey to the tomb and what we had found and not found there. At first, she hesitated. But when I said that Hillis would most certainly be one of the crowd, she consented. For she knew she was in drastic need of counsel.
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Hillis.
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Been thrown. Be quiet. Quiet, everyone. Be quiet.
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Hillis, you know of the tragedy
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that has befallen our family. There is talk of it, Cherry Tow. And Melissa Melissa has told me the true details. Which she herself witnessed. And you wish me to tell you what should be done?
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To wipe away the stain. To cleanse our house. Charito,
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make sacrifice to the god Hermes Yes. And to the Eumenides
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Oh, yes. And to Zeus. What of my daughter? Her body lies outside our house.
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You would place her back in the tomb. Is that in Charizard?
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On the beer that is hers.
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No. No, Charizard. No.
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No.
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And right then where?
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Elenaean cannot be laid to rest within the boundaries of this city. She must be taken outside these walls and buried there. No. It is the law. It was harsh advice to to give, but such were the facts and such was the law. And the sorrowing friends and family did everything that I suggested with the utmost care. The man, McCadys, never consulted me. That same day, he killed himself. Himself. Perhaps had he sought me out and asked my help, perhaps I would have told him that there was no other proper thing for him to do. But what he did?
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The story of Night Visitor, which we have brought to you in modern adaptation, was written down in the second century after Christ during the reign of the Emperor Hadrian, though it is told as happening six centuries previous. Its author was a freed Greek slave by the name of Legon and was circulated in the book titled De Rebus Mirabilis or Of Miraculous Things. I'll be back shortly. The opening of the story of Bylinian is missing from Flagon's account. But from other sources, it has been ascertained that it was taken from a letter written by a man called Hipparchus to a friend named Eridaus, who was half brother to son of Philip the second, Alexander the Great.
Our cast included Terry Keen, Earl Hammond, E. V. Juster, and Ray Owens. The entire production is under the direction of Hyman Brown. This is EG Marshall inviting you to return to our mystery theater for another adventure in the macabre. Until next time. Pleasant?
