THE LITTLE GLASS BOTTLE
THE LITTLE GLASS BOTTLE
H. P. Lovecraft
Written
in 1897, published
in 1959 in The
Shuttered Room and Other Pieces, Arkharn House.
***
"Heave
to, there's something floating To the leeward" the speaker was a short
stockily built man whose name was William Jones, he was the captain of a small
cat boat in which he & a party of men were sailing at the time the story
opens.
"Aye aye sir" answered John Towers & the boat was brought to a
stand still Captain Jones reached out his hand for the object which he now discerned
to be a glass bottle "Nothing but a rum flask that the men on a passing
boat threw over" he said but from an impulse of curiosity he reached out
for it. It was a rum flask & he was about to throw it away when he noticed
a piece of paper in it. He pulled it out & on it read the following
Jan
1 1864
I am John Jones who writes this letter, my ship is fast sinking with a treasure
on board I am where it is marked * on the enclosed chart.
Captain Jones turned the sheet over & the other side was a chart
on
the edge were written these words
(dotted lines represent course we took)
"Towers"
Said Capt. Jones exitedly "read this". Towers did as he was directed
"I think it would pay to go" said Capt. Jones "do you"?
"Just as you say" replied Towers. "We'll charter a schooner this
very day" said the exited captain. "All right" said Towers so
they hired a boat and started off govnd by the dotted lines of they chart in
4 weeks the reached the place where directed & the divers went down and
came up with an iron bottle they found in it the following lines scribbled on
a piece of brown paper
Dec 3 1880
Dear
Searcher excuse me for the practical joke I have played on you but it serves
you right to find nothing for your foolish act—
"Well it does" said Capt Jones "go on"
However I will defray your expenses to & from the place you found your bottle I think it will be $25.000 so that amount you will find in an Iron box I know where you found the bottle because I put this bottie here & the iron box & then found a good place to put the second bottle hoping the enclosed money will defray your expenses but a mysterious bottle — Anonymus"
"I'd
like to kick his head off" said Capt Jones "Here diver go & get
the $25.000 in a minute the diver came up bearing an iron box inside it was
found $25.000. It defrayed their expenses but I hardly think
that they will ever go to a mysterious place as directed by a mysterious bottle.