Vanishing Point by Patricia Wentworth

Vanishing Point by Patricia Wentworth

lists say published 1953, the copyright says 1955

 

If you saw this sentence from the book, unadorned:

Hazel Green communicated with Melbury

--you might well think Hazel Green was the heroine, and Melbury perhaps the Assistant Chief Constable. But these are both place names.

There is something surprising about this book: it wasn’t at all clear what the outcome would be, or what the underlying plot was. Most unusual in Wentworth. It was also funny and seemed in general rather out of place in the list, and I enjoyed it very much.

Policeman Frank Abbott made me laugh out loud with his list of reasons for being in trouble with his Detective Inspector:

Thinking oneself Better than one’s Superiors, Entertaining a quite False Impression that one’s Opinion had been Sought or was Desired, through a long list to, last and not by any means least, the Using of Foreign Words where Plain English ought to be Enough for Anyone.

Also:

[The constable] had found it quite impossible to induce [deaf] Mrs Maple to hear his questions.

Constable Denning had taken an unfair advantage by submitting a set of questions in writing and Mrs Maple’s defensive action in mislaying her glasses and declaring that she couldn’t read a word without them was warmly approved.

After this duel, we are told that Mrs Maple  ‘wasn’t going to make herself cheap by talking to constables and such.’

Here's a question: there is this –

She gave herself up to what a rather startling poet has described as ‘the rapture of the tongue’s prolonged employ’.

--but I can’t identify this quotation at all, I was looking forward to finding out who the startling poet is. No luck. Please tell me if you know.

I cannot see at all why the book is called Vanishing Point.

Let’s move on to the Patent Miss Silver Checklist:

Ridiculous reason for an engagement/marriage ending, or a couple being forced apart

‘There was an engagement. Following on the unsubstantiated suspicion that he had been concerned in the disappearance of a valuable diamond ring, Henry Cunningham left the country.’ (these characters are always so extreme…)

In another couple, a sister who is a persistent and perhaps fake invalid may do some husband-blocking

Coughing

Only seven – exceptionally low cough-rate. Includes a slight corrective cough and a slight arresting cough

Unusual names

None. Unprecedented.

Ladylike & other noteworthy occupations

Poor Rosamond is an unpaid companion to a miserable old aunt, who treats her like a servant and expects her to be on call at all times – no self-respecting 'girl from the village' would put up with this.

There is a mysterious secret research facility nearby, in an old house, The Dalling Grange experimental station, but it is not clear what goes on in there. But we know they need a draughtsman, because that is what Nicholas does.

Unusual words

A phrase I didn’t know: He became aware of how continually she was on the stretch, waiting for an imperious bell to summon her.

And another:

She was a thin person with a poke,

And

It’s high time all this spoiling and cockering came to an end!

Knitting

Miss Silver is working on a hood and then leggings for her great-niece Josephine, in a nice cherry-red shade. I think Josephine was too old for leggings at this time (almost 6), but here’s a picture of a younger child and some leggings.

At one point, ‘Miss Silver laid down her knitting for a moment, an occurrence so unusual as to direct particular attention to what she was about to say.’

Someone else has been knitting: ‘I made [this jumper] myself, and Nicholas is very rude about it, but I like the colour – it reminds me of moss.’ It is ‘bright green wool.’ (picture from Free Vintage Knitting Patterns)

 

Sociological detail

She wore dark grey tweeds with a skirt nearly down to her ankles and a shabby black fur coat. No one could have taken her for anything except what she was – autocrat and aristocrat to the tips of her rubbed kid gloves.

---we were discussing in the comments recently the differences between US and UK class awareness. This I think sums up the major difference – in the US shabby clothes just wouldn’t cut it.

Etiquette

The important question of how far you can go without wearing a hat – tracking a woman’s movements:

‘Any hat?’      

‘Oh, no – not to come that little way.’      

‘But if she had been going any distance, to Melbury or anywhere like that, would she have worn one then?’

‘Why, yes, Mr Abbott. She didn’t hold with all this going about with nothing on your head.’

.

Jewellery

Miss Silver branches out quite dramatically – none of your usual rubbish bog oak:  'a large mosaic brooch representing an Italian scene – cupolas against a very bright blue sky. The material, being dark, threw up the vivid colouring of the brooch in a decidedly pleasing manner.'

--I hoped to find a picture, but landscape brooches have dull colours, and the bright ones are flowers. So imagine a cross between the two:

 

clothes

All the women dressed badly and inadequately, and the heroine Rosamund was so downtrodden – her clothes shabby and not protective, her shoes leaky– well I got tired of it, so that I have rebelled and given her some nice clothes from Vivat Vintage, top, and grey skirt also  Vivat Vintage.  

Altogether, a particularly good entry in the series.

Posts on Miss Silver do bring fans to the blog: There has been interesting recent discussion on this very book btl on The Brading Collection from eight years ago. I said there that I had this post ready, and was waiting for Christmas to be over - but that also I was putting off the moment because I am very close to having posted on all the Miss Silver books...