(urth) The Sorcerer's House Questions (*Major Spoilers*)

[Thomas Bitterman]

On Mon, Mar 29, 2010 at 9:55 PM, Dave Tallman <davetallman at msn.com> wrote:

> Thomas Bitterman wrote:
>
>> It is a strange letter.  At the time it was written (which is a bit hazy),
>> George is
>> apparently lost in the house.  Why would he write a letter from inside the
>> house?
>> How would it get delivered?  Why not just talk to Bax directly, especially
>> when
>> George is planning a duel (certainly illegal, and likely to void any
>> will)?
>> Why duel
>> instead of just killing Bax and, as the sole surviving relative, inherit
>> the
>> place
>> outright?
>>
>> So either George is wandering lost in the house and writing letters that
>> go
>> against
>> his own interests, or is wandering around town frantically looking for Bax
>> when he
>> knows exactly where Bax lives.  Or Bax wrote it to make George look bad.
>>
>>
> It's not really a letter at all. It's a challenge note.


potaytoe, potahto.


> All George had to do was leave it someplace in the house where he thought
> Bax would find it. Why not talk to Bax directly? He can't find him. Why not
> just kill Bax? He can't find him. George may think he'll never find Bax
> unless Bax lets himself be found. Hence the challenge.
>

If George can lave a piece of paper somewhere Bax can find it, he could just
leave himself there.  Either Nicholas is helping George (as seems likely)
and could lead George to the kitchen where they could just wait, or George
is hopelessly lost in the house (it seems to happen to everybody) and is in
no position to be leaving notes to be found.


> Still there almost has to be at least the threat of a duel, or Bax wouldn't
> have written to Shell for advice about it. I tend to think the note is
> genuine, or else a revised one with fantastic elements added by Bax,
>

I took it that Bax was really more interested in how to fire a gun, rather
than the duel per se.


> There are no letters to Doris in the whole book. There are two letters from
> her, that Bax/George kept (probably like he kept all letters mailed to him,
> somewhere in the house).
>

Darn.  Of course, you are right.
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