Wednesday, 13 October

Wednesday, 13 October is both the deadline Anthony Cade publicly sets for delivering Count Stylptitch’s memoirs to the publishers and the date of his meeting with Baron Lolopretjzyl at Harridge’s Hotel. Its significance lies in the tension between a firm promise and the Baron’s pointed reminder that Anthony no longer has the manuscript.

The deadline

Anthony tells the Baron that, despite the turns in their dealings, he still intends to deliver the manuscript on Wednesday, 13 October. By stating the date explicitly, he turns his intention into a fixed commitment and gives the dispute a clear point of reckoning. The Baron hesitates before asking whether Anthony has read the memoirs himself; Anthony treats the question as an answer, then gives his warning about the publishers’ deadline.

The meeting at Harridge’s Hotel

At ten o’clock on the morning of Wednesday, 13 October, Anthony arrives at Harridge’s Hotel to see the Baron, who is staying in a suite there. The meeting is formal: after a deliberate delay, Anthony is shown in, where the Baron stands on the hearthrug and Captain Andrassy is also present, correct in manner but somewhat hostile. Bows, heel-clicks, and other ceremonial greetings mark the encounter; Anthony has by then become thoroughly accustomed to the etiquette.

The date’s dramatic function

The Baron’s immediate response to Anthony’s announcement is that Anthony no longer possesses the manuscript. That question makes the date more than a calendar marker: it puts the promised delivery and the manuscript’s uncertain whereabouts in direct opposition. The narrative names the date in a chapter heading and then specifies the hour and place of Anthony’s visit, concentrating the deadline into a particular morning and a face-to-face test of his assurance.