 | #042 "Mox"
Vol. 7, No. 6 Published: 11/15/33 Submitted: 03/03/33 as "Mystery Scent" Author: Walter Gibson Review date: Mar 01, 2002 |
MOX was originally published in the November 15, 1933 issue of The Shadow Magazine. Mox is the villain in this story. His full name is Jarvis Moxton, but he perfers to be called Mox. He lives in a huge old ramshackle house on the outskirts of Darport, and there he plots murder. Inventor after inventor has been lured to his house under the pretext of selling their inventions. But each has died a grisley death, and their inventions stolen to further the sinister plans of the man known as Mox.
If only The Shadow will step in and save the day. But The Shadow has never heard of Mox. It's only when Schuyler Harlew decides to confess that things begin to come out into the open. Harlew sits in his Bronx flat writing his confession. A confession addressed to... The Shadow!
His admits his part in the swindling and murder of the inventors.
Harlew is about to write down the name of the master villain when the clock strikes midnight. He suddenly straightens; the pen falls from his hand. He collapses dead. Killed by a mysterious knife thrust to the back. He hasn't written the name of the master murderer, but with his last gasp crosses his arms and forces his fingers to form the three letters M - O - X!
Police Commissioner Ralph Weston doesn't believe in The Shadow. To the commissioner, he's just a myth. So when he hears that a murder victim has been found with a note addressed to The Shadow, he instructs Detective Joe Cardona to ignore it. Luckily, The Shadow learns of the note and discovers the death-message formed by Harlew's hands.
He's off to Darport, on a mission of justice and retribibution! There, he find the house of Mox, and in a fantastic battle confronts the master criminal himself. But Mox disappears, and The Shadow is left empty handed. Now he must find the hiding place of Mox. Is Mox a local figure? Can The Shadow unmask him and reveal him to be the monsterous murderer? And what about the short, spidery dwarf that serves Mox? Can he be stopped from his assigned assassinations? Well, ya just gotta read the story to find out!
Appearing in this story are Commissioner Weston and Detective Cardona. Clyde Burke, reporter and agent for The Shadow has a large role. Appearing in smaller roles are Burbank, Cliff Marsland, Harry Vincent, and Lamont Cranston. And The Shadow; he stays in the background for most of the story, but comes out occasionally in most dramatic style.
Originally this story was going to be titled "Mystery Scent" because of a dog's ability to scent his master. Mox has a Dalmation, you see. And it's Cardona's belief that he can identify Mox when the normally unfriendly Dalmation scents his master. Indeed the dog's identity of Mox is an important part of the resolution of the story. But the editor's believed the title was a bit too vague, and it was changed.
In this story, The Shadow has the ability to climb the outside wall of a two story house, using nothing but his hands and feet. The soft rubber disks used for such purpose in later stories are not mentioned here. Instead, he just grips the slight projecting portions of the stone wall, and ascends to the upper-story window.
Another point of interest in this story is reference to the written exploits of The Shadow. Often in the early pulp novels, reference is made to The Shadow's radio exploits. Millions knew the voice of The Shadow, for he had a weekly broadcast. But according to this novel, the exploits of The Shadow were also legend because his raconteur (Gibson) had told the world of amazing episodes in the career of this master battler against crime. It seems the pulp novel is actually referring to itself, here! Almost like the exploits of Sherlock Holmes acknowledged that they were being written. Most unusual.