A Bid for Fortune · Chapters
Chapters explained
Chapter companions for A Bid for Fortune by Guy Boothby.
Chapter 1
Prologue
The manager of the Imperial Restaurant, Mr. McPherson, is perplexed by a mysterious letter from Dr. Nikola, written three months earlier from Cuyaba, Brazil, ordering a dinner for four on a specific date. Despite his doubts, the preparations are made. At ten minutes to eight, three men arrive separately, each presenting a card with a red dot: a clergyman, a well-dressed American named Eastover, and a tall, pockmarked man. They are shown to room No. 22. Later, Dr. Nikola meets with his agents—Eastover, Prendergast, and Baxter—assigning them tasks to execute his scheme against a man named Wetherell, whom he vows to ruin.
Chapter 2
I: I Determine to Take a Holiday—Sydney, and What Befell Me There
Richard Hatteras introduces himself as a pearler and trader from Thursday Island, now wealthy after years of hard work. He decides to take a holiday to England to visit his father's birthplace. In Sydney, he encounters a suspicious stranger who offers to show him around, but a lawyer warns him against the man. He boards the Orizaba and meets Miss Wetherell and her father, who remember his kindness in the Domain. Hatteras finds himself falling in love with Miss Wetherell, though he feels his humble station makes him unworthy. During the voyage, she confronts him about avoiding her, and they share a meaningful conversation.
Chapter 3
II: London
Richard Hatteras recounts his first impressions of London and his anxious wait for a letter from his sweetheart Phyllis. They meet at the British Museum, where he gives her a ring as a token of his love. After she leaves, Hatteras wanders into an unfamiliar part of London and has lunch at a French restaurant. There he encounters a mysterious man who demonstrates uncanny knowledge of Hatteras's personal cards and performs a conjuring trick that reveals a vision of Phyllis crying and calling for him, leaving Hatteras deeply unsettled.
Chapter 4
III: I Visit My Relations
The narrator travels to the English countryside to visit his father's family. He meets his miserly uncle, Sir William Hatteras, who lives in a decaying ancestral hall. Sir William initially mistakes him for a fortune-seeker but learns of his wealth. The uncle shows him the house, including the room where his father was born, and reveals his poverty and paranoia. Over a meager lunch, Sir William mentions his daughter Gwendoline and reluctantly agrees to introduce her.
Chapter 5
IV: I Save an Important Life
The narrator, Richard Hatteras, travels to Bournemouth to hire a yacht called the Enchantress. After inspecting and chartering the vessel, he sets sail around the Isle of Wight. During the voyage, he rescues a young bather from drowning—later revealed to be Lord Beckenham. After reviving him and lending him dry clothes, Hatteras learns the young man's identity and meets his tutor, Mr. Baxter (Prendergast), whom Hatteras distrusts. The chapter ends with Hatteras reflecting on his suspicions.
Chapter 6
V: Mystery
Hatteras receives a visit from the Duke of Glenbarth, who thanks him for saving his son's life. Hatteras inquires about the tutor Baxter, whose face seems familiar, but the Duke knows little of his past. Later, Hatteras meets the Marquis on the water and describes the wonders of Australia and gold rush life. Before departing, Hatteras says goodbye to the Duke and his son, then encounters Baxter, who nervously seeks reassurance that Hatteras will not prejudice the Duke against him. Baxter's questions about Australia and his earlier mysterious telegram leave Hatteras puzzled and suspicious.
Chapter 7
I Meet Dr. Nikola Again
Hatteras, having booked passage to Australia, unexpectedly meets his old friend Jim Percival in London. They visit Percival's ship, the Yarraman, and Hatteras reunites with former shipmates. After a convivial evening, Hatteras returns ashore and later receives letters from Lord Beckenham and the Duke of Glenbarth confirming Beckenham's travel plans. Hatteras decides to sail on the same ship to protect the young marquis, suspecting a conspiracy involving Baxter and Dr. Nikola.
Chapter 8
VII: Port Said, and What Befell Us There
Hatteras boards the steamer Saratoga in Naples, reunites with Lord Beckenham and Mr. Baxter, and the voyage begins. After a severe bout of seasickness, Beckenham recovers as they reach Port Said. They go ashore, where Beckenham's naive generosity to a beggar foreshadows trouble. They visit a mosque in Arab Town, but the promised spectacle proves unsettling.
Chapter 9
Our Imprisonment and Attempt at Escape
The narrator regains consciousness to find himself and the Marquis of Beckenham imprisoned in a small, dark room, each chained to the wall by an iron collar. After days of failed escape attempts, they devise a plan to catch a mouse and send a message for help via a small pipe to a crippled beggar they had previously helped. Despite multiple attempts, they receive no response, but their resolve to escape intensifies.
Chapter 10
Dr. Nikola Permits Us a Free Passage
Hatteras and Beckenham, having escaped their imprisonment, attempt to locate the house where they were held. Hatteras visits the Saratoga's agent and learns that Beckenham supposedly sailed on to Australia, deepening the mystery. They confront Dr. Nikola, who reveals he has intercepted their escape attempts and outwitted them, but then unexpectedly offers them their freedom.
Chapter 11
I: We Reach Australia, and the Result
The narrator and Lord Beckenham arrive in Australia after a long voyage. Beckenham is haunted by memories of Dr. Nikola. They settle in Sydney and begin investigating the mystery. The narrator visits Phyllis, who reveals her father is pressuring her to marry another man. Later, the narrator confronts Mr. Wetherell, exposing the false Marquis of Beckenham as an impostor working for Nikola. Wetherell, horrified, accompanies the narrator to Government House, where Lord Amberley confirms the impostor and his tutor have fled. Phyllis is missing, and the search for the real Beckenham begins.
Chapter 12
II: On the Trail
Hatteras and Wetherell return home from Government House, hoping to find Phyllis safe, but she is not there. They question the coachman Thompson, who reveals he was drugged by a man matching Dr. Nikola's description. Hatteras and a police inspector go to the Canary Bird Hotel to investigate.
Chapter 13
Lord Beckenham's Story
Lord Beckenham recounts his abduction by Dr. Nikola and Mr. Draper after a chance encounter in the botanical gardens. He describes being mesmerized by Nikola and held captive, while Hatteras and the Inspector investigate Draper's house.
Chapter 14
Following Up a Clue
Richard Hatteras receives a mysterious visitor who offers information about Phyllis's whereabouts for a fee, then visits the solicitors Dawson & Gladman, who inform him that he has inherited a baronetcy and substantial estate after the deaths of his cousin Gwendoline and uncle Sir William. Meanwhile, he and Wetherell prepare a yacht to pursue the kidnappers.
Chapter 15
V: The Islands and What We Found There
During the voyage through the South Pacific, Wetherell recounts to the narrator the story of how he first encountered Dr. Nikola. He describes his earlier career as a barrister, his defense of a man named China Pete, and the subsequent visit from a woman who led him to Pete's deathbed. There, Pete gave him a small black stick covered in Chinese characters, warning him against a man named Dr. Nikola. Later, Dr. Nikola himself visited Wetherell, offering increasing sums for the stick, but Wetherell refused to sell it.
Chapter 16
Conclusion
The final chapter resolves the narrative with Richard Hatteras and Phyllis Wetherell's marriage, the revelation of Hatteras's inherited baronetcy, and the return to England. Phyllis recounts her abduction from the ball, while Mr. Wetherell describes his capture by Dr. Nikola and the loss of the Chinese stick. The story closes with Hatteras's reflections on Nikola's mysterious plans and his gratitude for escaping further involvement.
