The Substance of a Dream

Francis William Bain was a British fantasy writer who claimed his novels were translated from Sanskrit. He was born on April 29, 1863, the son of Joseph Bain. He attended Westminster School before moving on to Christ Church in Oxford, where he excelled as a Classics student. In 1889, he was made a fellow of All Souls College. In his youth, he was an avid amateur footballer, representing the University against Cambridge from 1883 to 1886; he was also a member of the premier amateur teams of the period, Wanderers and Corinthians. The earliest of these was A Digit of the Moon (1898), which Bain claimed to have translated from the eighth part of sixteen of a Sanskrit manuscript provided to him by a brahmin. According to the myth, King Suryakanta falls in love with the smart and beautiful princess Anangaraga, who will only marry the suitor who asks her a question she cannot answer. The king and his cunning friend Rasakosha set out to earn the princess' hand.