Tales of the Wonder Club

Book excerpt: The Wonder Club is a small clique of brotherhood which assembles some of the most eminent men who meet in a rather esteemed pub known as the "Headless Lady." The chief delight of this club was to tell or to listen to stories which were all more or less of the marvelous class, and which each took it by turn to relate to the rest. These are their stories: Volume I: The Phantom Flea—The Lawyer's Story The Spirit Lovers—The Doctor's Story Containing Mr. Parnassus's Poem, The Glacier King The Mermaid Palace; or, Captain Toughyarn's Dream The Headless Lady—The Artist's First Story The Demon Guide; or, the Gnome of the Mountain—The Geologist's Story The Pigmy Queen; A Fairy Tale—The Landlord's Daughter's Story The Haunted Stage Box—The Tragedian's Story The Spirit Leg—The Analytical Chemist's Story An Interlude Lost in the Catacombs—The Antiquary's Story Volume II: Buried Alive—The Landlord's Story Der Scharfrichter—The Artist's Second Story The Three Pauls—The Artist's Third Story The Waxen Image—The Hostess's Story In which occurs Mr. Parnassus' Ballad—The Chieftain's Destiny A Tale of the French Revolution—The Barber's Story Volume III: The Gipsy Queen—Mr. Blackdeed's New Play