Books with author Robert Barclay

When I look back upon a certain hour of my life it fills me with wonder that I should have been so peacefully happy. Strange as it may seem, utter despair is not without its alloy of joy. The man who daintily picks his way along a muddy street is anxious lest he soil his polished boots, or turns up his coat collar to save himself from the shower that is beginning, eager then to find a shelter; but let him inadvertently step into a pool, plunging head over ears into foul water, and after that he has no more anxiety. Nothing that weather can inflict will add to his misery, and consequently a ray of happiness illumines his gloomy horizon. He has reached the limit; Fate can do no more; and there is a satisfaction in attaining the ultimate of things. So it was with me that beautiful day; I had attained my last phase.I was living in the cheapest of all paper houses, living as the Japanese themselves do, on a handful of rice, and learning by experience how very little it requires to keep body and soul together. But now, when I had my next meal of rice, it would be at the expense of my Japanese host, who was already beginning to suspect,—so it seemed to me,—that I might be unable to liquidate whatever debt I incurred. He was very polite about it, but in his twinkling little eyes there lurked suspicion. I have travelled the whole world over, especially the East, and I find it the same everywhere. When a man comes down to his final penny, some subtle change in his deportment seems to make the whole world aware of it. But then, again, this supposed knowledge on the part of the world may have existed only in my own imagination, as the Christian Scientists tell us every ill resides in the mind. Perhaps, after all, my little bowing landlord was not troubling himself about the payment of the bill, and I only fancied him uneasy.If an untravelled person, a lover of beauty, were sitting in my place on that little elevated veranda, it is possible the superb view spread out before him might account for serenity in circumstances which to the ordinary individual would be most depressing. But the view was an old companion of mine; goodness knows I had looked at it often enough when I climbed that weary hill and gazed upon the town below me, and the magnificent harbor of Nagasaki spreading beyond. The water was intensely blue, dotted with shipping of all nations, from the stately men-of-war to the ocean tramps and the little coasting schooners. It was an ever-changing, animated scene; but really I had had enough of it during all those ineffective months of struggle in the attempt to earn even the rice and the poor lodging which I enjoyed.

This carefully crafted ebook: "DEATH COMETH SOON OR LATE: 35+ Tales of Mystery & Revenge in One Volume (Thriller Classics Series)" is formatted for your eReader with a functional and detailed table of contents:Face and the MaskDeath Cometh Soon or Late The Woman of Stone The Chemistry of AnarchyThe Fear of It The Metamorphoses of Johnson The Reclamation of Joe Hollends The Type-Written Letter The Doom of London The Predicament of De Plonville A New Explosive The Great Pegram Mystery High Stakes "Where Ignorance Is Bliss" The Departure of Cub Mclean Old Number Eighty-Six Playing With Marked Cards The Bruiser's Courtship The Raid On Mellish Striking Back Crandall's Choice The Failure of Bradley Ringamy's Convert A Slippery Customer The Sixth BenchRevenge!An Alpine Divorce Which Was The Murderer? A Dynamite Explosion An Electrical Slip The Vengeance of the Dead Over The Stelvio Pass The Hour and the Man "And the Rigour of the Game" The Bromley Gibberts Story Not According to the Code A Modern Samson A Deal on 'Change Transformation The Shadow of the Greenback The Understudy "Out Of Thun" A Dramatic Point Two Florentine Balconies The Exposure of Lord Stansford PurificationRobert Barr (1849–1912) was a Scottish-Canadian short story writer and novelist, born in Glasgow, Scotland. His famous detective character Eugéne Valmont, fashioned after Sherlock Holmes, is said to be the inspiration behind Agatha Christie's Hercule Poirot.

Mr. Willowby's Christmas treeCame by special delivery.Full and fresh and glistening green--The biggest tree he had ever seen.That was the trouble. Mr. Willowby's Christmas tree was so tall, it couldn't stand up straight in his parlor. Mr. Willowby asked his butler to chop off the top of the tree. What happens to the treetop? Where will it be for Christmas?

When I say I am called Valmont, the name will convey no impression to the reader, one way or another. My occupation is that of private detective in London, but if you ask any policeman in Paris who Valmont was he will likely be able to tell you, unless he is a recent recruit. If you ask him where Valmont is now, he may not know, yet I have a good deal to do with the Parisian police. For a period of seven years I was chief detective to the Government of France, and if I am unable to prove myself a great crime hunter, it is because the record of my career is in the secret archives of Paris. I may admit at the outset that I have no grievances to air. The French Government considered itself justified in dismissing me, and it did so. In this action it was quite within its right, and I should be the last to dispute that right; but, on the other hand, I consider myself justified in publishing the following account of what actually occurred, especially as so many false rumours have been put abroad concerning the case.

Robert Barr, a teacher, journalist, editor and novelist, born in Glasgow, Scotland and educated in Canada. In 1876 he became a member of the staff of the Detroit Free Press, in which his contributions appeared under the signature "Luke Sharp." In 1881 he removed to London, to establish the weekly English edition of the Free Press, and in 1892 he joined Jerome K Jerome in founding the Idler magazine, from whose co-editorship he retired in 1895. He was a prolific author, producing many popular novels of the day.* *...summary from Fantastic Fiction

Mr. Willowby's Christmas tree Came by special delivery. Full and fresh and glistening green--The biggest tree he'd ever seen.That was the trouble. The tree was so tall, it couldn't stand up straight in his parlor. Mr. Willowby asked his butler to chop off the top of the tree. What happens to the treetop? Where will it be for Christmas? Snuggle up with this story and follow along through a forest full of friendly creatures who get to share in a bit of Christmas joy.

Robert Barr (16 September 1849 - 21 October 1912) was a Scottish-Canadian short story writer and novelist.Robert Barr was born in Barony, Lanark, Scotland to Robert Barr and Jane Watson. In 1854, he emigrated with his parents to Upper Canada at the age of four years old. His family settled on a farm near the village of Muirkirk. Barr assisted his father with his job as a carpenter, and developed a sound work ethic. Robert Barr then worked as a steel smelter for a number of years before he was educated at Toronto Normal School in 1873 to train as a teacher.

High Wind to Idaho is a middle-grade historical airship adventure set during the America's first UFO scare of 1896, and fortells the later Japanese balloon bombs of W.W.II. Yoshi, a young Japanese boy steals a ride on a secret balloon and ends up in the USA, as the nation worries about reported Martian landings and mysterious airship sightings. He lands on an Idaho farm where another boy, Billy, and his mother hide the Yoshi from a zealous sheriff and vengeful neighbors. Yoshi must get back to Japan before the secret of this new balloon gets out and his uncle's reputation is destroyed. Yoshi and Billy learn to adapt to each others culture as Yoshi is driven to return and appologize to his uncle, or face the humiliation of betraying his ancient samuri family honor. They hatch a plan to hoodwink the sheriff and leave town on a rail journey that exposes Yoshi to oriental hate and bigotry as Billy helps protect him. Once in San Francisco they are accosted by a Japanese Army Officer bent on returning Yoshi to Japan and chased by a female Pinkerton detective determined to capture Yoshi and hand him over to the new US Army Inelligence Service. The novel was inspired by the Great Texas Airship Mystery of 1897 that occured in nearby Aurora, Texas.

Robert Barr (16 September 1849 – 21 October 1912 was a Scottish-Canadian short story writer and novelist, born in Glasgow, Scotland.Barr emigrated with his parents to Upper Canada at age four and was educated in Toronto at Toronto Normal School. Barr became a teacher and eventual headmaster of the Central School of Windsor, Ontario. While he had that job he began to contribute short stories—often based on personal experiences—to the Detroit Free Press. In 1876 Barr quit his teaching position to become a staff member of that publication, in which his contributions were published with the pseudonym "Luke Sharp." This nom de plume was derived from the time he attended school in Toronto. At that time he would pass on his daily commute a shop sign marked, "Luke Sharpe, Undertaker", a combination of words Barr considered amusing in their incongruity. Barr was promoted by the Detroit Free Press, eventually becoming its news editor.

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