Can Such Things Be? · Chapter
Chapter IV explained
Detective Jaralson and Mr.
What happens
Detective Jaralson and Mr. Holker discover the body of a man in a forest graveyard, identified as Halpin Frayser, who appears to have been strangled in a violent struggle. They find a pocketbook containing a fragmentary poem attributed to Myron Bayne, and a headboard bearing the name 'Catharine Larue,' which Holker connects to the real name of the murderer Branscom (alias Pardee). The chapter ends with an eerie, disembodied laugh echoing through the fog.
Free preview opens on this chapter — companions, themes, and character notes appear beside the text.
Narrative arc
Story tension across the book — this chapter sits in Exposition.
- Setup
- Breaking point
- Aftermath
- Closing
This passage marks the dramatic climax because it presents the emotional and psychological peak of the narrato…
Full beat labels and climax notes unlock in the reader.
Follow the arc while readingThemes in this chapter
- Death and the Supernatural
The discovery of Halpin Frayser's corpse and the eerie, soulless laugh suggest a supernatural presence.
- Violence and Mortality
Graphic description of the strangled body and the violent struggle underscores human mortality.
- The Uncanny and the Grotesque
The unnatural laugh, the grotesque injuries, and the decaying graveyard evoke the uncanny.
Characters to notice
- Jaralson
Detective leading the investigation; discovers the body and the headboard.
- Holker
Companion to Jaralson; reads the poem from Frayser's pocketbook and identifies the name Larue.
- Halpin Frayser
The deceased; found strangled in the forest, his pocketbook containing a poem.
- Myron Bayne
Historical poet; the discovered poem is attributed to him by Jaralson.
Key passages
“There came to them out of the fog—seemingly from a great distance—the sound of a laugh, a low, deliberate, soulless laugh, which had no more of joy than that of a hyena night-prowling in the desert”
From the fog, a distant, joyless laugh echoed, as cold and predatory as a hyena's.
The laugh is described as inhuman and terrifying, heightening the supernatural atmosphere.
“The body lay upon its back, the legs wide apart. One arm was thrust upward, the other outward; but the latter was bent acutely, and the hand was near the throat. Both hands were tightly clenched. The whole attitude was that of desperate but ineffectual resistance to—what?”
The corpse was sprawled on its back with legs apart, one arm raised and the other bent with a hand near the throat, both fists clenched, suggesting a futile struggle against an unknown force.
The description emphasizes the violent and mysterious nature of the death.
“It was a fallen headboard, and painted on it were the hardly decipherable words, 'Catharine Larue.'”
A fallen headboard bore the faint inscription 'Catharine Larue.'
This clue connects the grave to the murderer's alias and the victim's mother.
