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Emerson

“…During his active career he had featured prominently in sensational newspaper stories. As one reporter had explained to me, “He makes such splendid copy, Mrs. Emerson–always shouting and striking people.”

– p.6, The Curse of the Pharoahs

“Emerson was clearly in one of his masterful moods. I always allow him to enjoy them unless I feel it is necessary to set him straight…”

– p.221, The Hippopotamus Pool

Emerson is constantly surprising me. (That is an excellent quality in a husband, if I may be permitted a slight digression. A man who is absolutely predictable is predictably boring.)”

– p. 245, Seeing a Large Cat

“Father despises people quite impartially and without predjudice.”

– Ramses, from Manuscript H, p. 280, The Ape Who Guards the Balance

Her Nickname (Sitt Hakim)

“I felt I deserved the title; scarcely a day went by when I was not patching up some scrape or cut, although, to my great regret, I was not called upon to amputate anything.”

– p. 78, Crocodile on the Sandbank

Marriage

“I must say that I consider my marriage a sterling example of what that condition can and should be. My feelings for Emerson, and his for me, are too deep to be concealed. I am the most fortunate of women. And he considers himself the most fortunate of men. I am sure he would say so, if he ever discussed such matters.”

– p.111, The Curse of the Pharoahs

“Marriage, in my view, should be a balanced stalemate between equal adversaries.”

– p. 3, The Mummy Case

Fashion

“Skirts so tight one must toddle like an infant, bodices boned so firmly it is impossible to draw a deep breath…And bustles! Of all the idiotic contrivances foisted upon a helpless womankind, the bustle is certainly the worst.”

– p.5, Crocodile on the Sandbank

Walter Emerson

“He was a true Briton, ordering the girl he loved out of danger and remaining loyal to his billy goat of a brother.”

– p. 129, Crocodile on the Sandbank

Ramses

[Ramses helped distract Evelyn from her troubles] “because it required the concentrated attention of every adult in the household to restrain Ramses from self-immolation and a widespread destruction of property.”

– p. 6, The Mummy Case

“catastrophically precocious.”

– p. 4, The Mummy Case

“At the age of three Ramses had informed us that he did not need a nanny and would not have one…. I did not agree with him. He needed something–a stout healthy woman who had trained as a prison wardress, perhaps–but it had become more and more difficult to find nannies for Ramses. Presumably word had spread.”

– p. 12, The Mummy Case

“…Ramses is quite sane–cold-bloodedly, terrifyingly sane.”

– p. 126, Lion in the Valley

“I caught myself listening for sounds of riot and furious pursuit, such as often accompanied Ramses’ departure from home.”

– p. 189, Lion in the Valley

Archaeologists

“They all pretend to be very high-minded. They claim that their sole aim in excavation is to uncover the mysteries of the past and to add to the store of human knowledge. They lie. What they really want is a spectacular discovery, so they can get their names in the newspapers and inspire envy and hatred in the hearts of their rivals.”

– p. 4, Deeds of the Disturber

Men

“It is so like a man to suppose that kisses and caresses will distract a woman from more serious matters.”

– p. 83, The Ape Who Guards the Balance

Abdullah

“Abdullah’s only weakness (aside from his extensive collection of wives) was an irradicable and deep-seated superstitiousness.”

– p. 55, Lion in the Valley

Household Help

“A sulky butler is a cursed inconvenience, but in my opinion it was a small price to pay for loyalty and affection.”

– p. 15, The Ape Who Guards the Balance

What Others Have to Say About Her

“No”….”It is not strange. She finds them often. Fresh dead people.”

– Abdullah, p. 125, Seeing a Large Cat

“….I’m absolutely terrified of her.”

– Ramses, p. 52, Seeing a Large Cat

“The figure that stood in the doorway was not that of an enemy. It was worse. It was his mother.”

– Ramses, from Manuscript H, p. 169, The Ape Who Guards the Balance