After checking his Army revolver with the Purser, Scott Theobald boarded the SS Haverford as a 3rd class passenger. He found his accommodations rather spartan - four bunks per cabin, buried deep within the ship near the bow. He quickly secured an upper bunk and locked up his possessions. His fellow passengers spoke limited English - most of them seemed to be immigrants returning to some Balkan country. He consulted the list of shipboard activities and found that, in the spirit of American egalitarianism, the entire ship and all activities were open to 2nd and 3rd class passengers - in fact there were no real classes, only different sizes of cabins. He decided to spend the mornings and afternoons translating his new acquisition and the evenings at the lectures.
At noon the SS Haverford sailed from Philadelphia. An announcement was made that the Volstead Act (Prohibition) would be observed aboard the ship throughout the entire voyage.
That afternoon, Scott experienced the wonders of travel by sea and became quite seasick. He spent the rest of the day in his bunk, as the ship pitched up and down, and up and down.....
Scott felt well enough to attend divine services, but then returned to his bunk.
That afternoon he endured the mandatory lifeboat drill and found that getting out on deck helped counteract the seasickness. However, he still was feeling rather ill and decided to skip the evening lecture, "Prohibition: A New Hope for Mankind". Instead he rested in a deck chair near the center of the Promenade, which seemed to experience much less motion of the ship.
Scott awoke feeling much better. He spent the morning in the library, translating his new book from medieval Latin to English. The title, Clavis Solomanus, translated as The Key of Solomon. The author appeared to be a 17th century magician or occult scholar, describing the wonders of the invisible world.
That afternoon, Scott took the ship's tour.
That evening Scott attended the lecture, "The Life and Times of James
Garfield".
Scott spent the morning in the library, wrestling with the medieval Latin text. He determined that much of the book consisted of a set of incantations for summoning creatures from beyond.
That afternoon, Scott strolled about the deck.
That evening Scott attended the lecture, "Belleau Wood: One Man's Story".
Scott spent the morning in the library, studying the Clavis Solomanus. He determined that one of the incantations described how to summan a creature called an "Aerial Servant". Learning how to cast such a spell would require at least an additional week of study.
That afternoon, Scott strolled about the deck.
That evening Scott attended the lecture, "The Power of Positive Thinking".
Scott spent the morning in the library, studying the Clavis Solomanus. He discovered another incantation that allowed the caster to bind an "Aerial Servant" to perform a task. He speculated as to what would happen if one of these creatures was summoned without being bound.
That afternoon, Scott strolled about the deck. There was a bit of excitement when the White Star steamship Olympic was sighted, on her way to New York.
That evening Scott attended the lecture, "The Panama Canal".
Scott spent the morning in the library, studying the Clavis Solomanus. The author described a vast library of mystic and occult lore, constructed by daemons and hidden somewhere in Europe, but Scott couldn't determine the exact location.
That afternoon, Scott visited the lounge, where he had a glass of lemonade
and listened to a jazz ensemble perform. He declined several invitations
to dance, though.
That evening Scott attended the lecture, "A Perfect Week in London",
and gained some knowledge of the basic layout of the city.
That morning, Scott packed up his belongings and filled out the immigration and customs forms. He was pleased to find that after a week of conversing with his three shipmates he could now understand a few phrases of Serbo-Croatian. He retrieved his revolver from the Purser and turned it in at Customs, requesting that they hold it for him until he departed the U.K. Otherwise, he had nothing to declare and passed through the checkpoint without incident.
Once in Liverpool, Scott exchanged his U.S. dollars for British pounds sterling - a total of £3. He purchased a 3rd class ticket to London on the Midland Railway and left shortly after 1 P.M. The trip was uneventful, with a lengthy stopover in Derby, before continuing through Bedford to London.
Scott arrived at London's St. Pancras station at 5 P.M and immediately telephoned the offices of The Scoop but no one answered. He then decided to get a room at the Midland Grand Hotel , which was built over the railway station. He was pleased to find that his ticket on the Midland Railway entitled him to a discounted room rate. He was also pleased to find that the hotel was within walking distance of the British Museum and Library.
The hotel was built in an extravagant late-Victorian style but seemed quite comfortable, if lacking in American-style amenities. Most of the other guests seemed to be business travellers.
After unpacking, Scott itemized his expenses
and noted his rapidly dwindling funds. He again tried to call The
Scoop. This time, he reached Mickey Mahoney, who told him that
Lya Brighter was staying at the Hotel Russell. He then called Lya.