The Canterville Ghost

Publisher Marketing: THE CANTERVILLE GHOST "AN AMUSING CHRONICLE OF THE TRIBULATIONS OF THE GHOST OF CANTERVILLE CHASE WHEN HIS ANCESTRAL HALLS BECAME THE HOME OF THE AMERICAN MINISTER TO THE COURT OF ST. JAMES When Mr. Hiram B. Otis, the American Minister, bought Canterville Chase, every one told him he was doing a very foolish thing, as there was no doubt at all that the place was haunted. Indeed, Lord Canterville himself, who was a man of the most punctilious honour, had felt it his duty to mention the fact to Mr. Otis when they came to discuss terms. "We have not cared to live in the place ourselves," said Lord Canterville, "since my grandaunt, the Dowager Duchess of Bolton, was frightened into a fit, from which she never really recovered, by two skeleton hands being placed on her shoulders as she was dressing for dinner, and I feel bound to tell you, Mr. Otis, that the ghost has been seen by several living members of my family, as well as by the rector of the parish, the Rev. Augustus Dampier, who is a Fellow of King's College, Cambridge. After the unfortunate accident to the Duchess, none of our younger servants would stay with us, and Lady Canterville often got very little sleep at night, in consequence of the mysterious noises that came from the corridor and the library." "My Lord," answered the Minister, "I will take the furniture and the ghost at a valuation. I have come from a modern country, where we have everything that money can buy; and with all our spry young fellows painting the Old World red, and carrying off your best actors and prima-donnas, I reckon that if there were such a thing as a ghost in Europe, we'd have it at home in a very short time in one of our public museums, or on the road as a show." "I fear that the ghost exists," said Lord Canterville, smiling, "though it may have resisted the overtures of your enterprising impresarios. It has been well known for three centuries, since 1584 in fact, and always makes its appearance before the death of any member of our family." "Well, so does the family doctor for that matter, Lord Canterville. But there is no such thing, sir, as a ghost, and I guess the laws of Nature are not going to be suspended for the British aristocracy." "You are certainly very natural in America," answered Lord Canterville, who did not quite understand Mr. Otis's last observation, "and if you don't mind a ghost in the house, it is all right. Only you must remember I warned you." Review Citations: Booklist 12/15/1996 pg. 722 (EAN 9781558586246, Hardcover) Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/1996 pg. 76 (EAN 9781558586246, Hardcover) Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/1997 (EAN 9781558586246, Hardcover) Booklist 12/15/1996 pg. 722 (EAN 9781558586116, Paperback) Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/1996 pg. 76 (EAN 9781558586116, Paperback) Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/1997 (EAN 9781558586116, Paperback) School Library Journal 01/01/1987 (EAN 9780887080272, Hardcover) Booklist 12/15/2001 pg. 736 (EAN 9788483063446, Hardcover) Hornbook Guide to Children 07/01/1997 pg. 60 (EAN 9780763601324, Hardcover) Hornbook Guide to Children 01/01/1996 (EAN 9780763601324, Hardcover) Contributor Bio:  Wilde, Oscar Oscar Wilde was a Victorian-era British author and playwright. In his youth, Wilde became attached to the Aesthetic Movement, which emphasized the appreciation of the aesthetic value of cultural creations above social or political purposes, and this philosophy influenced his work throughout his career. The themes of art and beauty are particularly present in his only novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray, , and in his two most popular dramatic works, An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Earnest. A quarrel with the Marquess of Queensberry, the father of Wilde's lover, Lord Alfred, resulted in Wilde's arrest and imprisonment for gross indecency. Wilde died in 1900, penniless and in exile, as a result of cerebral meningitis contracted while in prison. Contributor Bio:  Goldsmith, Wallace Wilde, Oscar O'Flaherty (1856-1900). -- Poet and dramatist, s. of Sir William W., the eminent surgeon, was b. at Dublin, and ed. there at Trinity Coll. and at Oxf. He was one of the founders of the modern cult of the aesthetic. Among his writings are Poems (1881), The Picture of Dorian Gray, a novel, and several plays, including Lady Windermere's Fan, A Woman of no Importance, and The Importance of being Earnest. He was convicted of a serious offence, and after his release from prison went abroad and d. at Paris. Coll. ed. of his works, 12 vols., 1909.