A Romance of Wastdale, published in 1895, is a novel by the British writer A.E.W Mason. In 1921 it was turned into a film of the same name directed by Maurice Elvey and made by Stoll Pictures, Britain’s biggest studio of the silent era. The novel is set in the scenic area of Wastdale, Cumbria, situated in the Lake District National Park and surrounded by some of England’s highest mountains. For centuries, Wastdale Head has been a starting point for walks and climbing trips into the mountains, and it is in this context that this story of mountains and mountaineers and romance and treachery unfolds.

At the fashionable French resort of Aix-les-Bains, a murder is discovered: wealthy but naive Mme Dauvray is found strangled in the salon of her villa, apparently for her famously expensive jewels. Her young English companion, Celia Harland, is missing, and her maid is bound and chloroformed upstairs. A young English inventor who has been courting Miss Harland adamantly protests her innocence, and begs the famous Surete detective Inspector Hanaud to investigate …

While Sûreté inspector Gabriel Hanaud visits the London home of his friend Mr. Ricardo, they receive a visit from Carradine, a young socialite with a disturbing story. A beautiful young woman he met at a costume party has appealed to him for help. Obsessed with a rich American woman’s pearls, this young woman went to steal them from the American’s hotel room … only to find a gang of thieves, who overpowered her. She woke up hours later, alone in the room except for a dead body. Can Hanaud prove her innocence, and bring the real murderers to justice?

Just before his regiment sails off to war in the Sudan, British officer Harry Feversham resigns his commission, wanting desperately to be free of his family’s proud military heritage and terrified of risking his life. He is immediately given four white feathers as symbols of cowardice, one by each of his three best friends and one by his fiancee. To disprove this grave dishonor, Harry dons an Arabian disguise and leaves for the Sudan, where he anonymously comes to the aid of his three friends, saving each of their lives. Having proven his bravery, Harry returns to England, hoping to regain the love and respect of his fiancee. This suspenseful tale movingly depicts a distinctive code of honor that was deeply valued and strongly promoted by the British during the height of their imperial power. Harry’s heroic attempts at redemption offer listeners a glimpse into a vivid array of human emotions.