Chapter 5

           ThefollowingwinterbroughtaneventnolessstrangethanWilbur’sfirsttripoutsidetheDunwichregion. CorrespondencewiththeWidenerLibraryatHarvard,theBibliothèqueNationaleinParis,theBritishMuseum,theUniversityofBuenosAyres,andtheLibraryofMiskatonicUniversityatArkhamhadfailedtogethimtheloanofabookhedesperatelywanted; soatlengthhesetoutinperson,shabby,dirty,bearded,anduncouthofdialect,toconsultthecopyatMiskatonic,whichwasthenearesttohimgeographically. Almosteightfeettall,andcarryingacheapnewvalisefromOsborne’sgeneralstore,thisdarkandgoatishgargoyleappearedonedayinArkham inquestofthedreadedvolumekeptunderlockandkeyatthecollegelibrary—thehideousNecronomiconofthemadArabAbdulAlhazredinOlausWormius’Latinversion,asprintedinSpainintheseventeenthcentury. Hehadneverseenacitybefore,buthadnothoughtsavetofindhiswaytotheuniversitygrounds; whereindeed,hepassedheedlesslybythegreatwhite-fangedwatchdogthatbarkedwithunnaturalfuryandenmity,andtuggedfranticallyatitsstoutchain. 

           WilburhadwithhimthepricelessbutimperfectcopyofDrDee’sEnglishversionwhichhisgrandfatherhadbequeathedhim, anduponreceivingaccesstotheLatincopyheatoncebegantocollatethetwotextswiththeaimofdiscoveringacertainpassagewhichwouldhavecomeonthe751stpageofhisowndefectivevolume. Thismuchhecouldnotcivillyrefrainfromtellingthelibrarian—thesameeruditeHenryArmitage (A.M.Miskatonic,Ph.D.Princeton,Litt.D.JohnsHopkins) whohadoncecalledatthefarm,andwhonowpolitelypliedhimwithquestions.