using an AduC841 microcontroller. memory read shows pointer not object pointed to
The special function register (SFR) at"0AFh",called "CFG841" configures the controller. bit 0 ,if set to '1' tells it to use INTERNAL XRAM. If set to '0' it uses external XRAM. the default value of the register is "00h" so it must be set. 
This solves the practical problem, but the question remains: Why does the controller output the value of the pointer when there is no memory access?