1895: an enigmatic American has come to live in the English cathedral city of Durham. What is the nature of his hold over the widows and spinsters of the city? What is his interest in ‘Tiger’ Terris, the young Durham Light Infantry veteran? Is there a connection between the American and the strange ape-like creature seen down by the river? And more to the point, who killed the mysterious foreigner? A tale of plumbing, elephants, photography, vegetarianism, and murder.