James Stephens

The Crock of Gold Illustrated James Stephens

The Crock of Gold is a comic novel written by Irish author James Stephens, first published in 1912. The Philosopher is arrested for murder after the neighboring Leprechauns of Gort Clocha Mora lay information with the police that the two friends who shared the Philosopher's house have died, with the implication that they have been killed. "It is in circumstances such as these that dangerous alliances are made," wrote Stephens, "and, for the first time in history, the elemental beings invoked bourgeois assistance."The Philosopher is then whisked away by his wife the Thin Woman of Innis Margate (who herself belongs to the most powerful She of Ireland). The Philosopher and the Thin Woman of Innis Margate encounter notable characters on their separate journeys, in his case Angus and in hers the Three Infinites.. . All rotate around the astonishing story of what happens when Pan shows up in Ireland, what Angus Go does about it, and what becomes of the Daughter of Urach who gets caught in between them. A mad-cap quest ensues as fairies, leprechauns and a philosopher being hunted by the police all get involved in the antics of the two gods.