Tatters of the King - User contributions [en-gb]

Alexander Roby

2006-05-16T08:50:10Z

203.211.85.219:

[[Image:Alexander_Roby.jpg|right]]
Born in 1892 to a wealthy middle class London family, Roby dropped out of Peterhouse prior to knocking around the Foreign Office for a couple of years. He left the FO and spent his time studying fringe interests (astronomy, art, the occult) and mixing with people of whom his family did not approve.

On October 14th 1926 Roby's father Herbert and sister Georgina were brutally murdered at the family home in Curzon Street. Alexander was the only other person at home, and initially claimed responsibility. He was arrested, but instead of being charged was committed to St Agnes Asylum. The papers committing him were signed by Dr [[Highsmith]], Roby's older brother [[Grahame Roby]] and the Roby family physician, [[Dr Lionel Trollope]].

[[Highsmith]] believes Roby suffers from 'sympathetic mania', which manifests as severe night terrors, or scotophobia, that start each year at the anniversary of the muders and continue until the Spring. These attacks are being well-managed with laudanum, and Highsmith believes him fit for release to the care of his family or a convalescent home. Highsmith also believes Alexander innocent of the the [[Roby murders]].

His release hearing is scheduled for November 30th 1928.

Roby spends his time studying poetry and has made unusual marginal notes in his poetry books referring to various elements common to both the [[play]] 'Carcosa' and Robert W Chambers's '[[King in Yellow]]' stories.

He made an unusual [http://greywolfnz.homeip.net/wiki/attachments/Typed_Transcript_of_Alexander_Robys_Verbal_Responses.pdf statement] to [[Dr Bartlett]].

Price and Evans

2006-05-16T08:49:01Z

203.211.85.219:

Nurses Price and Evans work at St Agnes Asylum.

Price told [[Dr Bartlett]] all about the murder of [[Cuthbert Yates]], and also took the Doctor for a drink at the Wheatsheaf pub. He was present at Bartlett's first meeting with [[Alexander Roby]].

In the late evening of November 5th, Price phoned Dr Bartlett, in an agitated state, to tell him about the murder of [[Frederick Long]] at St Agnes Asylum.

Evans befriended Alexander Roby and gave him pencils, against asylum rules. Evans shares an interest in poetry with Roby. He was present at Bartlett's second meeting with Alexander Roby.

Alexander Roby

2006-05-16T08:48:16Z

203.211.85.219:

[[Image:Alexander_Roby.jpg|right]]
Born in 1892 to a wealthy middle class London family, Roby dropped out of Peterhouse prior to knocking around the Foreign Office for a couple of years. He left the FO and spent his time studying fringe interests (astronomy, art, the occult) and mixing with people of whom his family did not approve.

On October 14th 1926 Roby's father Herbert and sister Georgina were brutally murdered at the family home in Curzon Street. Alexander was the only other person at home, and initially claimed responsibility. He was arrested, but instead of being charged was committed to St Agnes Asylum. The papers committing him were signed by Dr [[Highsmith]], Roby's older brother [[Grahame Roby]] and the Roby family physician, [[Dr Lionel Trollope]].

[[Highsmith]] believes Roby suffers from 'sympathetic mania', which manifests as severe night terrors, or scotophobia, that start each year at the anniversary of the muders and continue until the Spring. These attacks are being well-managed with laudanum, and Highsmith believes him fit for release to the care of his family or a convalescent home. Highsmith also believes Alexander innocent of the [[the Roby murders]].

His release hearing is scheduled for November 30th 1928.

Roby spends his time studying poetry and has made unusual marginal notes in his poetry books referring to various elements common to both the [[play]] 'Carcosa' and Robert W Chambers's '[[King in Yellow]]' stories.

He made an unusual [http://greywolfnz.homeip.net/wiki/attachments/Typed_Transcript_of_Alexander_Robys_Verbal_Responses.pdf statement] to [[Dr Bartlett]].

Session 1.5

2006-05-16T08:46:35Z

203.211.85.219: /* October 30th 1928 */

This was a special one on one session with Dr [[Bartlett]] as the only player character.

==Session Report - Played Thursday 11th May, 2006==

===October 20th 1928===

[[Doctor Bartlett]] receives [http://www.artistmonkey.com/Downloads/04_The_Letter_from_Dr_Highsmith.pdf a letter] from [[Dr. Charles Highsmith]], superintendent of St. Agnes Asylum in [http://www.beenthere-donethat.org.uk/images.big/weobley01big.jpg Weobley], Herefordshire, requesting a meeting on the 28th at the Great Western Hotel in London.

===October 28th 1928===

At the meeting, Highsmith explains that the patient he wishes to consult [[Bartlett]] about is [[Alexander Roby]], who has been committed to St Agnes for the last 2 years following the [http://www.artistmonkey.com/Downloads/05_Two_Newspaper_Stories_on_the_Roby_Murders.pdf brutal murders] of his father and sister, killings he initially claimed responsibility for, but was never in fact charged with.

[[Highsmith]] has to make a recommendation for the release, or otherwise, of [[Roby]] and was leaning towards release when he came under pressure from the Roby family, through the conduit of family physician [[Dr Lionel Trollope]] to keep [[Alexander]] confined. The head of [[Alexander]]'s family is his brother, the prominent banker [[Grahame Roby]].

[[Highsmith]] wishes to understand the motives behind the family's position, but they hasn't been able to get them to reveal any details. He also wants Bartlett's professional opinion of the state of mind of [[Alexander Roby]], and asks [[Bartlett]] to accompany him when he returns to Herefordshire on the 30th. Intrigued, though unsure of his suitability for what amounts to a private investigation, he agrees.

===October 30th 1928===

[[Bartlett]] joins [[Highsmith]] on the 10.20am train, to change at Bristol for Hereford. A car meets them and takes them the 20 miles to the village of Weobley. The asylum squats on a hill overlooking the village - a grim Victorian building.

[[Highsmith]] describes [[Roby]]'s symptoms - extreme night terrors, or scotophobia, which manifest around the anniversary of the Roby murders in October each year and continue until April. The attacks are controlled with high doses of laudanum. apart from these attacks, Roby is uncommunicative and seems to live in a world of his own. [[Highsmith]] suggests that [[Bartlett]] examine [[Roby]] on his own initially, and instructs two of his male staff, Nurse [[Price]] and Reeves, his secretary, to accompany Bartlett.

En route to Roby's cell [[Price]] asks if Bartlett is here about 'the murder', which turns out not to be the Roby killings, but a murder that happened within the asylum a year before. Bartlett asks if he can talk to [[Price]] about that after seeing Roby.

In [[Roby]]'s cell, the madman is reading a book and does not react to his visitors. Bartlett examines Roby's books, which are all poetry by modern poets such as [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Graves Graves] and [http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ezra_Pound Pound], and discovers marginal notes in pencil throughout them. He is astonished to find a note referring to [[Carcosa]] and soon finds other referring to [[Cassilda]], [[Hastur]] and other elements of the [[play]].

Eventually [[Bartlett]] gets a reponse from [[Roby]], who soon goes into a strange monologue, which Reeves records in shorthand and types up later. Amongst other things, Roby refers to unknown associates called [[Malcolm Quarrie]] and [[Edwards]]. When Roby asks Bartlett if he's seen the [[Yellow Sign]], Bartlett says 'yes'.

[http://www.artistmonkey.com/Downloads/06_Typed_Transcript_of_Alexander_Robys_Verbal_Responses.pdf Roby's statement]

After that, [[Roby]] returns to reading his poetry, so [[Bartlett]] sends Reeves to type up the statement and goes with [[Price]] to the staff break room to hear about the asylum murder of November 27th, 1927.

The murder was brutal and mysterious. A nurse called [[Cuthbert Yates]] was slashed to death with at least 2 knives in the cell of Roby's neighbour, the brain-damaged [[Lucius Harriwell]]. The police suspected [[Harriwell]], but since he was clearly insane and already indefinitely incarcerated they saw no point in prosecution. The asylum staff, however, don't believe Harriwell capable of such a thing - he was found cowering in his cell, insisting 'the Devil' was responsible, and no weapon was found. Roby was heavily sedated, and despite the interesting parallels with the [[Roby]] murders, could not have been involved.

The stange thing, however, was that the amount of blood found in the cell far exceeded that which could have been lost by the victim alone. No second victim was found, and nobody was reported missing. [[Price]] says that Hereford CID handled the case.

[[Bartlett]] agrees with [[Highsmith]] that [[Roby]] seems harmless, and says he'll see what he can find out in London. In further discussion with Highsmith, Bartlett finds out that Roby befriended the nurse, [[Mark Evans]], and Evans gave him pencils on 2 occasions, against instructions. Evans himself says that Roby talked to him about poetry and asked him for pencils so he could 'complete his work'. He knows he shouldn't have done it, and won't again.

That evening, Bartlett visits the Wheatsheaf pub with [[Price]] and other staff, and they talk about the murder, Roby and Highsmith, but Bartlett learns little more.

===October 31st 1928===

After breakfast, [[Bartlett]] visits [[Roby]] again, this time in the company of [[Evans]], but Roby is uncommunicative, except to say "Don't forget to tell Quarrie." just as Bartlett leaves.

[[Bartlett]] is driven back to Hereford, has lunch at the station hotel and returns to London. He has an [[appointment]] to play bridge with [[Withers]], [[Browne]] and [[Saunders]] at his Wimbledon home that evening.