Sexton Blake Bibliography: 1922

Publishing: By this year, no fewer than 400,000 words per month were being written about Sexton Blake.

From February, small illustrations start to adorn UNION JACK chapter headings.

Author Cecil Hayter dies from a perforated ulcer, aged just 50.

G. H. Teed returns to the fold after completing his war service.

Eric Parker makes his first contributions to the Sexton Blake saga as illustrator in UNION JACK issue 995.

H. H. Clifford Gibbons, best known to Blake readers as Gilbert Chester, makes his debut. Born in 1888, he began his writing career 'ghosting' for another Blake author, Andrew Murray. The son of a dentist, it should come as no surprise that his first Sexton Blake story was entitled THE CASE OF THE BOND STREET DENTIST. Gibbons experienced extreme difficulties during the mid-1920s when, living in a noisy neighbourhood, he was forced to write at night and drug himself to sleep during the day. His stories remained surprisingly good, considering the circumstances under which they were written. He died in 1958.

Blake: Yet again Sexton Blake pushes himself to the limit and is advised by his physician to take a break. In THE THOUSANDTH CHANCE (UNION JACK 1,000) his refusal to do so results in a fainting fit. In the same story we learn that Blake is very rich indeed and keeps a house full of treasures at No.3 Garwood Place, off the Edgware Road.

In THREATENED BY THREE, Prince Wu Ling makes a welcome, though low key, return to the saga after a seven-year absence.

PAID TO LOSE
by A. S. Hardy

CHAMPION WEEKLY · Issue 1 · 28/1/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Frank R. Grey

Other content: The Bell of Santadino by Eric Townsend; Sons of Steel by Allan Blair; The Outcast of St. Basil’s by Henry St. John; The Flying Detective by Geoffrey Rayle; Fair Play by Ernest Scott

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE GOLDEN WOLF
by Hartley Tremayne (R. C. Armour)

CHAMPION WEEKLY · Issue 7 · 11/3/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Louis Gunnis

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE CULTURED PEARLS
by Anon. (John W. Bobin)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 208 · Jan. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features George Marsden Plummer and Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated  


THE DERELICTS
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 209 · Jan. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Story features Laban Creed and Fenlock Fawn.

Unrated  


THE MOTOR-COACH MYSTERY
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 210 · Jan. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Story features Count Ivor Carlac and Professor Kew.

Unrated  


THE RED DWARF
by Anon. (F. A. Symonds)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 211 · Jan. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Silas Gardner enters the home of Judge Ramsey and demands five thousand pounds in return for keeping silent about the past; for he and Ramsey were once, long ago and under different names, partners in crime. In the judge's case, the fraud he had committed was done in desperation and he has more than atoned for it since, whereas Gardner was — and still is — a criminal by nature. However, things don't go Gardner's way; Ramsey slips him a slow-acting poison and the next day his body is found dead on a train. Sexton Blake and Tinker are aboard, and they find a huge African spider that had bitten Gardner and apparently killed him ... though a post-mortem reveals that poison taken 24-hours earlier was the real cause of death. Young Geoffrey Waring and his fiancé, Muriel Hope, who were also on the train, fall under police suspicion. Blake suspects another pair of passengers: a man named Strang and an Egyptian named Rhamdass Baroudi. As the evidence piles up against Waring, Blake follows a trail that leads to Judge Ramsey. He advises the judge to confess. Meanwhile, a farmer named George Transom is killed by a spider's bite. While investigating this latest death, Blake hears that Geoffrey Waring has disappeared. Tinker picks up the young man's trail and follows him to an abandoned house only to discover that Waring has been attacked by Rhamdass Baroudi. Inspector Mordaunt arrives on the scene and arrests Waring. He then starts exploring the house. Nearby, Blake discovers a hidden passage in Transom's farmhouse. It leads to a secret room where the detective eavesdrops on a meeting between Baroudi, Strang and a misshapen villain known as Yadax the Dwarf. He learns that these three belong to 'The Society of the Ranya' and had arranged the deaths of two deserters from the society, Gardner and Transom. These two had possession of documents that have not yet been recovered; documents that detail the location of stolen goods. The meeting is broken up by Blake and, entering from an opening in the abandoned house, Mordaunt and Tinker. The villains make their getaway and leave the country, fleeing to Egypt with Blake and Tinker hot on their trail. A chase across the desert follows. Strang attacks Blake's group and is mortally wounded but the bandits he leads kidnap Tinker. Blake disguises himself as Strang and sets off in pursuit to the mountain hideaway of Yadax. He rescues his assistant and the dwarf leaps to his death. These events, together with a confession written by Judge Ramsey after he commits suicide, leave Geoffrey Waring in the clear.

Trivia: Blake and Tinker live on Baker Street West. In a short foreword, the author claims that the tale has been prepared from 'copious notes supplied by Mr. Blake, who has himself considerably assisted by providing data concerning the various extraordinary adventures which he and his scarcely less noted assistant, Tinker, experienced in the course of their investigations.'

Rating: ★★★★★ A gripping yarn that moves from good solid detective work and a fantastic premise (the same man is murdered twice!) to a thrilling action adventure complete with secret passages, wicked villains and an exotic locale. Stories like this are why Sexton Blake is great!


THE POWER OF THE UNKNOWN; OR, THE TWO SHADOWERS
by Anon. (Alfred Edgar)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 212 · Jan. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Foulis Landau.

Unrated  


THE STUDIO MYSTERY
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 213 · Feb. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


BEYOND THE LAW
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 214 · Feb. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: This story takes Blake to the Hills of Kentucky and features Humble Begge.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE TWISTED TRAIL; OR, THE HIDDEN MOTIVE
by Anon. (F. A. Symonds)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 215 · Feb. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Story features Elspeth Drell, the "Vanishing Crook."

Unrated  


SEXTON BLAKE IN SILESIA
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 216 · Feb. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE RAJAH'S SON
by Anon. (H. Gregory Hill)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 217 · Feb. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: The Rajah of Gjanapore sends his Oxford-educated son to fetch the royal jewels, which have been re-set in London. Prince Habib Bundra is delighted that he'll be able to visit his boyhood school-friend, Ronald Westways. However, Bundra is accompanied by the Rajah's servant, who happens to be Gunga Dass. Dass drugs and incapacitates the prince before taking his place. At Westways House, he learns that Ronald is engaged to Dora Bathurst, whom the prince met in India fairly recently. Concerned that she might see through his masquerade, Dass frames her for a petty theft. Dora is taken into custody. To Dass's dismay, Ronald — who has not seen the prince for many years and has no doubts concerning his identity — decides to seek assistance from Sexton Blake. The detective arrives and immediately finds a footprint that suggests the presence of a low-caste Hindoo. He has no suspicion of the prince even after the Indian fondles Pedro and the bloodhound is immediately stricken by a virus that immobilises him. Blake then receives through the post a box filled with venomous snakes. He and Tinker survive the experience then learn that the Rajah's jewels, stored by the prince in the Westway's safe, have been stolen. Blake examines the broken strongbox and identifies the handiwork as that of a safecracker named Jake Symonds. He instructs Tinker to disguise himself, locate the man, and follow him. Unfortunately, this is overheard by Dass. Tinker joins Symonds's gang and discovers that the prince is really Dass and that he insured the jewels for fifty thousand before then arranging for their theft. Before he can take this revelation to Blake, he's captured and imprisoned in a café named the Lotus Flower. Meanwhile, Blake has caused the charges against Dora to be dropped. When she sees the prince, she confirms Blake's suspicion that the man is an impostor. Immediately afterwards, she is kidnapped and taken to the Lotus Flower. Tinker tries to escape with her but ends up being bound, thrown into a sewer, and washed into the Thames. In heavy disguise, Blake sneaks into the prince's bedroom at Westways and exposes him as Dass. The villain informs him that Tinker is dead. They fight and Blake is knocked unconscious. Dass tells Ronald that the intruder is a burglar. Blake wakes up in Brixton prison's infirmary and by the time explanations are made, Dass has fled. Tinker, having been rescued by the river police, returns to Baker Street where Blake and Ronald are organising a raid on the Lotus Flower. The detective will enter the café disguised as Prince Bundra, and will attempt to get information out of Dass's gang. The scheme is ruined when Dass arrives, has Blake tied up, and leaves him in a room that's slowly flooding with gas. Tinker comes to the rescue and Dora and the real Prince Bundra are then found and liberated. Dass and his gang attempt to flee to Amsterdam in a yacht but it runs aground. The jewels are recovered and the gang is rounded up. Dass, however, manages to slip away.

Trivia: Only a few months have passed since Blake's first encounter with Gunga Dass.

No connection is suggested between Miss Dora Bathurst and the Bathurst who assists Blake in many of the PENNY PICTORIAL stories.

Mrs Bardell's ever-changing first name is here given as "Elizabeth."

There's a variant of the thieves' kitchen in this story. It's known as "Solly's," but in reality it's probably Smith's, the den that features frequently in the Zenith tales. The resemblance is marked.

The Grey Panther is used throughout this case.

This issue of the Sexton Blake Library has considerably more typographical errors than is usual.

This was reprinted as THE MYSTERY OF THE RAJAH'S SON in THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 2nd series issue 479 (1935).

Rating: ★★★★★


THE CASE OF THE BENDIGO HEIRLOOM
by Anon. (Jack Lewis)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 218 · Mar. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Leon Kestrel.

Unrated  


THE IVORY SCREEN
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 219 · Mar. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Story features Dr. Huxton Rymer.

Unrated  


THE MYSTERY OF THE MISSING JOURNALIST
by Anon. (William J. Bayfield)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 220 · Mar. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: A newspaper editor expresses to Sexton Blake his concern for Geoffrey Denham, an author and journalist, who’s gone missing while hiking across the moors to visit his niece. While searching for the man, Blake is attacked by four masked assailants. They make off, and shortly afterwards a corpse is discovered. It is dressed in Denham's clothes, but is not the missing man. Tinker later discovers that a crook named Roger Glynde escaped from Bleakmoor Prison some weeks ago, having been incarcerated after his crimes were exposed by Denham. The local police officer refuses to believe that the dead man isn’t Denham and arrests the niece's fiance, Eric Waine. Waine appears to be almost insane with severe shock. Blake learns that Glynde's partner in crime, a Prussian named Karl Freytag, was the brains behind the fraud for which Glynde was imprisoned. Freytag, a former U-boat commander, is a war criminal, wanted all across Europe. Glynde, now on the run, is rescued by Freytag, who now operates his own submarine. Blake and Tinker trace it to the coast of Belgium. In that country, amid the aftermath of the Great War, they catch up with Glynde and Freytag only to have the crooks slip through their grasp—escaping in the submarine with Denham as their prisoner. Blake deduces that they are heading to Morocco to recover a hidden treasure of which Denham knows the location. While Freytag remains in the submarine, the gang takes Denham into the Moroccan mountains where they demand that he reveals the location of the treasure. He warns them that it is in a temple guarded by fanatical muslims. They ignore his warning, leave him, and attempt to penetrate the temple. The Arab guardians kill them all. Blake arrives in time to rescue Denham and learns the background story concerning the innocent Eric Waine. Freytag remains at liberty.

Trivia This is the first apperance of Karl Freytag.

Bayfield's version of Blake always carries a bible when he is far from home.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE PHANTOM OF THE PACIFIC; OR, THE EARL'S SECRET
by Anon. (W. W. Sayer)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 221 · Mar. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Story features Granite Grant and Mlle. Julie. This was reprinted under the same title in THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 2nd series issue 440 (1934).

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE UNNAMED FILM
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 222 · Mar. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Hon. John Lawless.

Unrated  


THE BABOON'S PAW
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 223 · Apr. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


IN THE SHADOW OF NIGHT; OR, THE DETECTIVE'S DILEMMA
by Anon. (E. W. Alais)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 224 · Apr. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE GREAT EXPLOSION; OR, THE SCIENTIST'S SECRET
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 225 · Apr. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Hon. John Lawless.

Unrated  


THE MYSTERY OF THE SWAMP
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 226 · Apr. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: This case takes Blake to Africa.

Unrated  


IN THE GRIP OF THE TONG
by Anon. (John W. Bobin)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 227 · Apr. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features George Marsden Plummer.

Unrated  


THE HOODED RIDERS
by Anon. (John W. Bobin)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 228 · May 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features George Marsden Plummer.

Unrated  


THE SPIRIT SMUGGLERS
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 229 · May 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Dr. Huxton Rymer.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE UNCUT GEMS; OR, A BUSH VELDT MYSTERY
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 230 · May 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Story features Count Ivor Carlac, Professor Kew and Hon. John Lawless.

Unrated  


THE MYSTERY OF THE SUNKEN ROAD; OR, THE CASE OF THE HINDU BLACKMAILERS
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 231 · May 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: Colonel Sanders takes on as servants a couple of shifty Bengalis — Chudderjee and Hurree — and writes a will leaving his fortune to them. When he is found murdered on a sunken road near his house, and the will is found to be missing, suspicion falls upon his nephew, Jim, who has just returned from a three-year Army posting to India. Jim is engaged to his cousin, Connie, and both had previously been set to inherit the Sanders estate. Sexton Blake investigates and becomes convinced that the Bengalis were blackmailing the colonel. After Tinker survives a cave-in and Blake is drugged and nearly shipped to India, the criminologist exposes Chudderjee and Hurree as drug traffickers. They'd been using a tunnel beneath the Sanders house as a base in which to manufacture morphine. The Bengalis, together with a small force of men, lay siege to the house in an attempt to regain possession of a stock of opium that remains in the tunnel. Blake is astonished to find that the attackers are led by Doctor Ferraro. The enemy is eventually routed and Ferraro departs defeated but believing he has killed the detective. Blake learns that, many years ago, Colonel Sanders had married a Hindu girl who'd then died during childbirth. He bequeathed to his daughter half of all his property, which is still due her if she can be located. While Blake further explores this mystery, Tinker and Detective-Inspector Harker follow up a clue that leads them to Ferraro's hideaway. There, a pitched battle erupts, which includes a machine gun being fired at Tinker from a circling monoplane. Ferraro manages to get away. Meanwhile, Blake apprehends Chudderjee and learns from him the true story of the colonel's past, of the death of his daughter, and of how the two Bengali's had blackmailed him. Chudderjee then leads the detective to Hurree, who in an attempt to evade capture releases the colonel's pet snake, a huge and aggressive bushmaster (one of the longest venomous snakes in the world). The serpent kills Chudderjee and almost gets Blake but is shot by Tinker and Harker, who arrive in the nick of time. Hurree races away, runs into a hollow beside the sunken road, and promptly drops dead. His demise solves the mystery of the colonel's murder, which wasn't a murder at all, but a death caused by toxic natural gasses.

Trivia: Doctor Ferraro's appearance is so fleeting that one can only assume that he was included just so his name could be put on the cover to encourage sales!

Mrs Bardell had an Uncle Jim who died of "ammonia." Blake corrects her, "Pneumonia?" to which she responds, "I dunno whether it was new or old." She also had an Uncle Henry, who burned to death while wearing fancy dress.

There's a surprising scene in this tale wherein Blake, overcome by a drug, experiences psychedelic visions.

Rating: ★★★★☆ Lots of frenetic action!


LAWLESS JUSTICE
by Anon. (Alfred Edgar)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 232 · May 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE DIAMOND DRAGON
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 233 · Jun. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Dr. Huxton Rymer.

Unrated  


THE SECRET OF THE OBLONG CHEST
by Anon. (W. W. Sayer)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 234 · Jun. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE TAMING OF NEVILLE IBBETSON
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 235 · Jun. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: This case takes Blake to the Malay States.

Unrated  


THE PRISON OF THE KREMLIN
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 236 · Jun. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Hon. John Lawless.

Unrated  


THE MILL-POOL MYSTERY
by Anon. (Cecil Hayter)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 237 · Jun. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: None

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE FALLEN STAR
by Anon. (Jack Lewis)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 238 · Jul. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Leon Kestrel.

Unrated  


THE DIAMOND FLOOD
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 239 · Jul. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Dr. Ferraro.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE CRIMSON LIZARD
by Anon. (E. J. Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 240 · Jul. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE TRADER'S DAUGHTER
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 241 · Jul. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE PARALYSED MAN
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 242 · Jul. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Hon. John Lawless.

Unrated  


THE CRIMSON DOMINO
by Anon. (W. W. Sayer)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 243 · Aug. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Granite Grant and Mlle. Julie. This was reprinted as THE RED DOMINO in THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 2nd series issue 448 (1934).

Unrated  


THE HOUSE OF GHOSTS
by Anon. (Leonard H. Brooks)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 244 · Aug. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE LAMA'S SECRET
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 245 · Aug. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE WEREWOLF OF ELPHINSTONE
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 246 · Aug. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Examples and Explanations of Queer Superstitions (article)

Notes: Blake is visited by the elderly father of Jack Tolworth along with the latter's cousin and fiancée, Alfrida Carney. Three days ago, Jack returned from Burma with a valuable ruby necklace, got a room at a hotel, and promptly vanished. Mr Tolworth believes his son is still alive, as according to family legend, a local werewolf howls on the eve of any death in the family, and that hasn't happened. Blake learns that the young man left the hotel after receiving a note from a woman, possibly Edna Twyman, the sister of a friend. Tinker, made up to resemble Jack, loiters in places formerly frequented by him and is soon befriended by two men, Bronson and Howland, who quickly make off when his cover is blown. The next day, Blake and Tinker drive to Tolworth's home, Elphinstone Hall, on the Norfolk coast. While Blake stays there as a guest, Tinker rents a houseboat and, that night, has a run-in with a gang of smugglers. He also happens upon an isolated house belonging to a doctor named Brown. Blake investigates Jack's luggage, which had been sent ahead to Elphinstone, and finds the necklace in a secret compartment. When Miss Carney reads a crystal ball and has a vision of Jack imprisoned by Edna Twyman, Blake surmises that there is tension between the two women. After a narrow escape from the smugglers, he also suspects that he and his assistant have been recognised by an old enemy. He visits Doctor Brown who, unfortunately, has no information to offer. When Brown drives the detective back toward the hall, he crashes his car into a marsh and Blake barely escapes. Tinker is captured by Bronson and Howland, who leave him tightly bound in a hut while they go to burgle the Hall. However, they return terrified, claiming to have seen the legendary werewolf. The creature has also been spotted by the staff at the Hall, and they've all quit in fear. Blake, predicting that the place is about to be raided, fetches Detective-Inspector Harker and a team of policemen. Tinker breaks out of his bonds and heads to Doctor Brown's house but, at its wharf, sees an unconscious Jack Tolworth being loaded into the smugglers' motor-boat. He steals the craft, battles the gang, and rescues Jack. Bronson and Howland finally break into Elphinstone and try to torture the necklace out of Mr Tolworth and Miss Carney. The werewolf crashes into the house and shoots Bronson. Blake enters and exposes the creature as Doctor Ferraro in a costume. Ferraro and Doctor Brown are one and the same; the leader of the smuggling gang. Miss Carney comes to the master-crook's assistance and they both flee empty-handed. The next day, Blake reveals to Mr Tolworth that Alfrida Carney is married to Ferraro. Tolworth confesses that he had arranged Jack and Alfrida's engagement. Jack, in truth, is in love with Edna Twyman. Weeks later, he marries her.

Trivia: My copy is missing its cover.

Rating: ★★★★☆


THE CASE OF THE VANISHED HUSBAND
by Anon. (William J. Bayfield)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 247 · Aug. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE GOLDEN GODDESS
by Anon. (H. Gregory Hill)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 248 · Sep. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: The Idols of India (article)

Notes: Story features Gunga Dass.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE BOGUS LAIRD; OR, THE MYSTERY OF DUNSTREATHY CASTLE
by Anon. (John W. Bobin)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 249 · Sep. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features George Marsden Plummer.

Unrated  


FINGERPRINTS OF FATE
by Anon. (Leonard H. Brooks)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 250 · Sep. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Where Fingerprints Have Convicted (article).

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE BRIGAND'S SECRET
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 251 · Sep. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story takes place in London and Italy.

Unrated  


THE MYSTERY OF THE CLOCK
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 252 · Sep. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Professor Kew and Count Ivor Carlac.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE COURTLANDT JEWELS
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 253 · Oct. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Dr. Huxton Rymer, having had the warrant for his arrest quashed by Scotland Yard, purchases a small estate named Abbey Towers in Sussex and lives there quietly under the name of Professor Andrew Butterfield, passing his time with scientific research and the crafting of surgical instruments. One day, however, he is visited by a crook named Jordan, who asks his advice. Jordan’s partner, Ferguson, is on a liner returning from New York. A woman named Courtlandt is on board, and is carrying her famous jewels. Upon arrival, she will be staying at the Venetia Hotel for two days. For a fee, Rymer gives Jordan a plan for stealing the gems. Blake and Tinker are holidaying in Kent when Tinker finds an empty case, which seems to have fallen from the sky. It has Courtlandt’s name on it. When Blake is asked to look into the theft of the jewels, he realises that the case had held them. He and Tinker join Detective-Inspector Thomas at the Venetia, there to begin the investigation. Their attention is soon drawn to Jordan and Ferguson, and, when the crooks are followed, Blake witnesses Rymer's involvement. Rymer, meanwhile, is confronted by his maid Mary Trent, who turns out to be far more than she appears. Admiring her courage and cunning, he agrees to go into partnership with her. They set out to dispose of the most valuable of the Courtlandt jewels. Blake, meanwhile, having identified the “fence” being used by the lesser crooks, burgles that individual and secures the remaining items. Acting on information from the Baker Street detective, Detective-Inspector Thomas arrests the fence and Jordan and Ferguson. Blake makes an experiment with a balloon, which reveals how the jewels were stolen and how the empty bag came to drop from the sky. He and Tinker set off for Abbey Towers in the Grey Panther. They there learn that Rymer has left the country. Blake deduces that his quarry will be trying to sell the jewels in Paris. He and Tinker fly there, set up a trap, regain the loot, but are puzzled that it is Mary Trent—whom they do not know—rather than Rymer trying to offload the loot. She eludes capture but departs empty-handed.

Trivia: This marks the debut of Abbey Towers and Mary Trent.

Rating: ★★★★☆



Plus:
THE AFFAIR OF THE WANDERING MUSICIAN
by Anon.

Notes: One of Blake’s acquaintances, Luton, tells the detective how he frequently observed an Italian itinerant named Pietro wandering up and down a street playing a particular tune on a penny whistle before then calling at number 11 to pick up a few generously donated items of food. One day, Luton became even more curious about the fellow when he diverged from the usual tune and played something different. Having been commissioned to write about London life, Luton decided to impersonate the man for an hour or so in order to get a feel for the story. He trod the same street and whistled the tune—the alternate rather than the usual one—but was then pounced on by a furious Pietro, who insisted that by playing that tune Luton had signed his—Pietro’s—death warrant … as well as his own! The next day, Luton learns that the Italian has been found murdered. Blake warns him that his life is in danger. He leaves Luton at Baker Street and heads off to investigate, discovering that Pietro had been the lookout for an Italian gang, and that his whistles had been a warning system. The detective breaks the gang and rescues his friend from certain assassination.

Trivia: Blake is living at 3 Messenger Square, which identifies this as a republished and retitled tale from ANSWERS (I have yet to identify which one) or, at least, a story from the same unidentified author. Mrs. Bardell and Detective-Inspector Coutts were probably added later, for this reprint.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE SIGN IN THE SKY; OR, THE SECRET OF THE TONG
by Anon. (Alfred Edgar)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 254 · Oct. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: This was reprinted as THE SECRET OF THE TONG in THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 2nd series issue 520 (1936).

Unrated  


THE ALBINO'S DOUBLE
by Anon. (George N. Philips)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 255 · Oct. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Doubles in Crime (article)

Notes: Detective-Inspector Coutts reports to Sexton Blake that Zenith the Albino has been discovered dead, shot through the head. Blake examines the crime scene and discovers a secret room in which an elderly blind man has been incarcerated. His name is Grey, and he informs them that Zenith was killed by his own men, Dumont — whom Grey despises having once been betrayed by him — and Oaklahoma Sam, who are both now on their way to High Tide Island near the mouth of the Thames. The next day, the detectives visit the island, upon which lives a recluse named Derwent who bears an uncanny resemblance to Zenith. When one of his servants, Cagliostro, is shot in the chest, Derwent uses hypnotism to question him and learns that two men in a skiff attacked the man after mistaking him for Sexton Blake. The following morning, Tinker goes for a swim and is attacked by one of Zenith's Japanese servants. Blake finds a sophisticated air-rifle bearing the monogram of the Criminals' Confederation and uses it to shoot the youngster's assailant. Derwent tells Blake that Zenith was his brother and, with the master crook's demise having been announced in the newspapers, he now feels free to come out of seclusion and live in London without fear of being mistaken for the villain. Blake and Tinker follow up a clue that leads them to a run-down inn. There, Tinker is drugged and Blake attacked by Dumont and Oaklahoma Sam. After a terrific fight, Zenith comes to the rescue and drives Blake and Tinker back to Baker Street before then revealing that he is not Zenith but Derwent got up to resemble his brother. Blake is by now having severe doubts and, as the albino begins to put a plan into action, the two men move into a state of open opposition. Tinker shadows Derwent to a pub and sees him meeting with Frau Krantz and others of the Zenith gang. They capture the young 'un and take him to a nursing home where two doctors condemn him to death by chloroform. Blake comes to the rescue but, after that, the case goes cold. A few weeks later, rioting breaks out in the East End and, while the police are distracted, a serious fire erupts on the opposite side of the city. Blake and Tinker rush to the scene, an antiques shop that has a bank on one side of it and a jeweller's on the other. When salvage men arrive, Blake realises that they are led by Derwent and are raiding the adjoining properties. Derwent knocks him out and orders him to be bound and left in the conflagration. However, when the villain and his gang flee to their base of operations, it emerges that the the man given that order was overpowered by the detective and replaced by him. Blake hijacks the crooks' lorry and drives the loot to Scotland Yard. The now recovered Cagliostro visits Baker Street to expose Derwent as an imposter. He shows a letter his faux master wrote and signed as Zenith. In it, a rendezvous is set in Southampton through which money will be received from one of Leon Kestrel's agents. Blake and Tinker go to the port city to pick up the trail. There, Tinker encounters Grey, the blind man, who leads him to an underground meeting place for crooks. Dumont is present, and when Grey challenges him, Zenith steps forth to referee a duel between them. They fight and both plunge through a trapdoor into a fast-flowing river and presumably to their deaths. Zenith confronts Tinker and confesses to having taken Derwent's identity. Sexton Blake reveals himself, having followed his assistant while disguised. The lights go out and Zenith escapes, breaking his arm in the process, all his schemes in ruins.

Trivia: Zenith experiences what might be his worst defeat, ending the tale with a broken arm.

Rating: ★★★★★


BY THE SKIN OF HIS TEETH; OR, THE CASE OF THE RIVAL FINANCIERS
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 256 · Oct. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


LOST IN CAMBODIA; OR, THE CASE OF THE PHOTOGRAPH COLLECTOR
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 257 · Oct. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: The Press Photographer (article).

Notes: story features Basil Wicketshaw.



Plus:
THE CLUE OF THE THUMB-PRINT
by Anon.

Notes: None at present.

Unrated


THE RIDERS OF THE SANDS
by Anon. (W. W. Sayer)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 258 · Nov. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Granite Grant and Mlle. Julie. This was reprinted under the same title in THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 2nd series issue 426 (1934).

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE WOMAN IN BLACK
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 259 · Nov. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE LIGHTHOUSE MYSTERY; OR, THE PIRATES OF HANGO
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 260 · Nov. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Dr. Ferraro.

Unrated  


THE EARL'S RETURN
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 261 · Nov. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE RAJAH OF GHANAPORE
by Anon. (H. Gregory Hill)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 262 · Nov. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: The "Fakir" of India (article)

Notes: Upon the death of the Rajah of Ghanapore, his son, Prince Habib Bundra (see The Case of the Rajah's Son, THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 1st series issue 217) takes the throne. However, he is immediately kidnapped and held captive while a disguised Gunga Dass replaces him and begins to foment discontent at British rule. Sexton Blake is sent to India to investigate the new rajah's bizarre behaviour and quickly sees through Dass's masquerade. Intense is his astonishment, then, when the faux prince allows him to depart without molestation. However, as he leaves the palace, Blake is gassed into unconsciousness and wakes in captivity. Dass informs him that he will keep the vow he made to kill him but, in return for Blake once having given Dass a "sporting chance," the detective will receive one, too. Meanwhile, in London, Jim Chesholm (from The Golden Goddess THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 1st series issue 248) visits Tinker and discusses with him Prince Habib's extreme change of character. Putting two and two together, Tinker begins to suspect that Dass is up to his old tricks. He takes the first available ship to India. After three weeks of imprisonment in a tower at the Ghanapore palace, Blake escapes only to encounter a new arrival, Peri-Ru — the childhood bride of the prince. Together, they try to flee but are hunted by leopards, cornered, and captured. Tinker arrives in Ghanapore and, disguised as one of Dass's agents, enters the palace. There, while a storm thunders around them, Blake and the girl are again attempting to escape by diving from the walls into a raging torrent. The waters sweep them away and, though the detective finally manages to get them ashore, they both pass out. When Blake recovers, he is again imprisoned in the tower. Dass informs him that he has had his sporting chance and will now be killed. That night, Tinker locates his guv'nor. He gives Peri-Ru his disguise and she leaves the palace to fetch help. In the morning, when Dass has Blake and Peri-Ru brought to him for execution, he's astonished to find Tinker beneath the girl's veils. Succour arrives in the nick of time. Dass is arrested and shipped to Britain to finally face trial for the murder.

Trivia: There's excellent continuity between this and the previous two issues.

Rating: ★★★★★


THE CASE OF THE TRADE SECRET
by Anon. (John W. Bobin)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 263 · Dec. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE WHITE REFUGEES; OR, THE CASE OF THE CROOKS' COLONY
by Anon. (R. C. Armour)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 264 · Dec. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: Story features Dr. Ferraro.

Unrated  


ON THE BED OF THE OCEAN
by Anon. (Edwy Searles Brooks)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 265 · Dec. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


LADY SHARLAW'S SECRET
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 266 · Dec. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE AMBER CROWN
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY · 1st series · Issue 267 · Dec. 1922 · Amalgamated Press · 4d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Unknown

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


AMONGST THE UNEMPLOYED
by Anon. (Alfred Edgar)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 952 · 7/1/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: The Worst House at St. Walstan's by Anon.

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


MISSING AT LLOYD'S
by Anon. (Cecil Hayter)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 953 · 14/1/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Harry Lane

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); The Worst House at St. Walstan's by Anon.

Notes: Story features Sir Richard Losely.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE FIVE L'S
by Anon. (George N. Philips)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 954 · 21/1/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); The Worst House at St. Walstan's by Anon.

Notes: A few years prior to this story, a criminal organisation named The Quincunx (or Five Spot) Club suffered the death of its leader. Before he went to his grave, this man gave each member an L-shaped plate of silver. When fitted together, the code engraved upon them would reveal where the club's fortune was hidden. The club broke up when one of the villains — George Hooper — betrayed his colleagues to the police. Now, Zenith the Albino is seeking to resurrect The Quincunx and gain the treasure. He begins gathering the silver plates but, before he has them all, Sexton Blake learns what he is doing and starts dogging his heels. The detective is given the advantage by Hooper, who hands him one of the plates shortly before being murdered. Blake stands lookout in a bungalow in Yorkshire where another plate is thought to be hidden. He believes that the albino will come to search — and he's right. The two men engage in a terrific hand-to-hand struggle during which the hidden plate comes to light. Blake claims it. His struggle with Zenith leads from the house, out across the moor, and to the edge of a quarry. Here, the albino clutches at Blake and sends them both toppling over the edge into deep water where they are separated. Meanwhile, Detective-Inspector Coutts sends a newly promoted police officer named Hammond up to Yorkshire to assist Blake. On the way, this man is replaced by an impostor named Gilbert. He finds that Blake and Tinker have gained a companion, a young man named Bellacourt who is seeking his family treasures, which were stolen years ago by The Quincunx. Gilbert tries to lead the men into a trap but Blake sees through his act and has him tied up. Bellacourt then impersonates the impersonator. They purposely walk into an ambush and engage in a battle with Zenith's gang. However, victory is denied them when Zenith turns up and holds them at gunpoint. He removes the two plates from the detective's jacket — and now has all five. Blake trails him to a house and watches as he photographs the 'L's — what's inscribed on them is made visible on film. The detective then steals the photographic plate and later reveals to Tinker that the two 'L's Zenith had taken from him weren't the genuine article. When Blake uncovers the treasure, a last ditch attempt by the albino to wrest it from him fails and Zenith escapes empty-handed.

Rating: ★★★★★


THE MYSTERY OF THE DERELAND CASTLE
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 955 · 28/1/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis
Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.)

Notes: Story features Professor Kew and Hon. John Lawless.

Unrated  



Plus:
THE CASE OF THE CARMINED CIGARETTE
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: None at present.

Unrated


THREATENED BY THREE; OR, SEXTON BLAKE VERSUS LEON KESTREL, WU LING, ZENITH
by Anon. (George N. Philips)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 956 · 4/2/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: W.S.B. and Arthur Jones.

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Transcripts of high level government meetings are being sold to enemy powers and the Prime Minister brings in Sexton Blake to discover who is responsible. The detective quickly asserts that Leon Kestrel's War Profits Liquidation Syndicate is at work. When he tries to travel to Hellesden near Norwich for a Cabinet meeting at the home of Sir Berkley Craven, his journey is disrupted by the Syndicate. Fortunately, Mademoiselle Yvonne, while remaining out of sight, comes to his aid and Blake, Tinker and Pedro arrive at Sir Berkley's, having first traversed the neighbouring estate, which belongs to Bintock, a bed-ridden millionaire who owns a large dirigible. It is in one of Bintock's out-buildings, a short time later, that they find themselves face to face with Kestrel, Wu Ling (making a welcome return to the saga after a seven-year absence) and Zenith the Albino. The criminal trio attempt to administer a drug that will rob Blake and Tinker of their intellect but their scheme is foiled by the arrival of Detective-Inspector Coutts and Detective-Inspector Harker. The villains escape and it soon becomes apparent that they have captured Yvonne. Blake races to the rescue but takes such a beating that, once she is delivered to safety, he sleeps through until the late hours, missing the start of the next Cabinet meeting. By the time he's back in action, the spies are attempting to get away with a transcript of the proceedings. Zenith flees in a hot air ballon which the detective races after on foot. When it eventually falls to Earth, the two opponents declare a temporary truce while they recover from their exertions. Blake then returns Zenith to Sir Berkley's and hands him over to Detective-Inspector Coutts. However, the Scotland Yard man turns out to be Kestrel and the master-criminals are soon making their getaway in the dirigible. As it rises, Tinker clutches at a trailing rope, climbs aboard, and is captured. Out over the sea, Kestrel, Zenith and Wu Ling parachute onto a foreign steam ship and escape. Later, Tinker, who has been recovered from the dirigible, reveals that he picked Kestrel's pocket and has got the transcripts.

Trivia: In Foreign Office records, Sexton Blake is Special Agent No. 11, Tinker is No. 12 and Mlle. Yvonne is No. 6. Leon Kestrel, it is stated, is the criminal opponent who Blake fears most. Wu Ling is described as wearing round spectacles.

Rating: ★★★★☆


THE BLACK DISC
by Anon. (W. W. Sayer)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 957 · 11/2/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis

Other content: None

Notes: Gaspar Zapador, in possession of a secret, has arranged to meet Ignatius Pisander but his enemies are after him and, in desperation, he dodges into a public call box and phones Sexton Blake. While talking, he is shot dead, but his killers don't know how much he's told the detective, so they call Baker Street and learn from Tinker that Blake is on his way. One of the gang meets Blake before he reaches the call box and, after realising that the secret has not been divulged, delays the detective while his colleagues transport the corpse to a flat in Kensington. He then takes Blake there, slams the door in his face, races upstairs to where Zapador has been placed at a desk, fires a shot, leaves his disguise and pistol, and escapes through the window. Upon hearing the report, Blake breaks in. By all appearances, the man who brought him here has committed suicide. Madame Teresa — to whom the apartment belongs — arrives and mis-identifies Zapador as Pepillo D'Estraza. Blake goes to the call box and finds evidence that someone was shot in it. He also discovers a newspaper article with the words "the black disc" written on it. The report concerns an unclaimed safe currently being held in a Parisian sorting office. Meanwhile, Tinker searches for Blake and is captured by a gang led by the masquerader — the actual Pepillo D'Estraza. In a room that has ostentatious decor including a full suit of armour, he witnesses them torturing one of their associates, Ignatius Pisander, who has hidden a black disc. When Tinker is left alone with a guard, the man is knocked unconscious but the youngster cannot fathom by whom. Puzzled, he makes his escape. The gang forces Pisander to sign a letter giving access to the bank box which, he says, contains the disc. The suit of armour suddenly strides forward, takes possession of the letter, beats the gang into submission, and reveals himself to be Granite Grant before departing. Pisander snatches up a dropped gun and shoots D'Estraza dead. He confesses to the others that the disc is not, in fact, in the bank and persuades them to join forces with him. Blake and Tinker fly to Paris and meet with Bertram Charon of the Surete. He leads them to the lost property office and, in the safe, they discover the corpse of a man holding a black disc. The lights go out, Pisander's gang leaps out of hiding, and the disc is yanked out of Blake's hands. He, Tinker and Charon chase the men up to the roof where the crooks are pounced on by Granite Grant. Pisander falls to his death and the other two flee. The disc is recovered. Grant explains to Blake that Zapador and D'Estraza were South American revolutionaries, with whom Pisander was mixed up, and that the dead man in the safe was an agent who worked against them. The disc is a recording of a meeting that reveals the identity of the rebels' millionaire backers.

Rating: ★★★★☆


THE CONVICT MILLIONAIRE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 958 · 18/2/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Leon Kestrel.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE POLISH REFUGEE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 959 · 25/2/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated  


THE GHOSTS OF LOSELY HALL
by Anon. (Cecil Hayter)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 960 · 4/3/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Sir Richard Losely.

Unrated  


THE WHITE SENTINEL
by Anon. (Jack Lewis)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 961 · 11/3/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Leon Kestrel.

Unrated  


RUPERT WALDO — STUNTIST
by Anon. (Edwy Searles Brooks)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 962 · 18/3/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Rupert Waldo

Notes: Jeweller Samuel Silver receives a note from Rupert Waldo in which the Wonder-Man declares that tomorrow Silver will be relieved of a fortune. Detective-Inspector Lennard is called in, and brings with him Sexton Blake. The next day, the detectives and a large number of plain-clothes policemen surround Silver's shop. Nevertheless, in the guise of a wealthy client, Waldo fulfils his threat. After he has departed and the robbery has been made apparent, Blake reveals that he saw through the crook's disguise as he was departing and has set Tinker to shadow Waldo. The young 'un trails the Wonder-Man to a house on the outskirts of London, beside the Brighton train line. After calling to inform Blake of his whereabouts, Tinker settles to await his guv'nor's arrival. Blake brings with him Lennard and half a dozen Scotland Yard men. They invade the house via an open window. Waldo races to the top of the house, employs an elastic rope to jump to the ground, sprints to the rail track just as the Brighton Express is passing, and bounds onto the roof of one of its carriages, thus making his escape. Blake and Tinker rush to a nearby airfield, charter an aeroplane, and fly to Brighton, arriving there before the train. Waldo spots them at the station, evades them, and escapes first by stealing a bus — which he drives to the seafront — and then by commandeering a motor-boat. As he speeds out to sea, Blake and Tinker give chase in a second boat, and through the night they maintain their pursuit. However, when they eventually catch up with the other boat, they find it empty. Waldo has eluded them! The master crook had jumped overboard and was picked up by a cross-channel vessel. Giving an assumed name, he receives passage back towards Dover but, en route, he encounters two other passengers — Samuel Silver's wife and daughter — who are travelling home from Paris having received news of the theft. Waldo hears from them that the jewels were uninsured and that the family will be utterly ruined by the loss. When he gets ashore, he makes his way to Silver's home and returns everything he's stolen. After informing Sexton Blake by letter of this, he also pledges to make up his own losses by committing another heist against a better target. He fulfils this promise.

Rating: ★★★★★


MADEMOISELLE YVONNE — CONSULTANT: THE AFFAIR OF THE PATAGONIAN DEVIL
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 963 · 25/3/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated  


MADEMOISELLE YVONNE — CONSULTANT: A CHINESE PUZZLE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 964 · 1/4/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated  


MADEMOISELLE YVONNE — CONSULTANT: THE BLACK VENDETTA
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 965 · 8/4/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated  


THE AFFAIR OF THE SACRED FIRE
by Anon. (George N. Philips)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 966 · 15/4/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Many years ago, explorer Marcus Bellmore accidentally entered a forbidden temple in the Far East. He was told by the 7ft-tall High Priest that, for punishment, he would die at the hour of his greatest success. Now, that time has come, and glowing messages are appearing around him counting down the days to his death. After consulting Sexton Blake, Bellmore travels back to his home near Newcastle with his new fiancé — an actress named Destine Armand — and the detective, Tinker and Pedro. Here they meet Paul Dalland, Bellmore's half brother, who Blake realises has met Miss Destine before, though he tries to hide it. In fact, Dalland had once been the girl's lover but she'd left him upon discovering that he was a member of The League of the Cobblers' Last, the criminal gang led by Zenith the Albino. The day after their arrival, Blake and Tinker are joined by Bellmore in the grounds of the estate when they witness the ghostly form of the High Priest in the morning mist. After the figure vanishes, the detective establishes that it was fake. That night, another glowing message appears, sending Bellmore to the brink of insanity. Dalland, who Blake suspects, has been using radioactive material for these messages and is now suffering from radiation sickness. He has a meeting with Zenith and it emerges that he owes money to the League and is attempting to kill his half-brother for an inheritance. Zenith tells him that he can wipe clean his debt by getting rid of Sexton Blake. Dalland pretends to mistake Blake for a burglar; shoots but misses him. The next morning, he makes an outright attempt to murder Bellmore. Detective-Inspector Coutts is called and Dalland is arrested. Jarvis, the crooked chauffeur, leads Blake to Zenith's mansion where the detective meets with his arch-opponent. The albino escapes leaving Blake to fight off his two pet leopards. He survives, albeit scratched, but is captured and walled into a niche in a Roman crypt while Zenith flees the district. Pedro comes to the rescue, leading Tinker to where the detective is entombed. Dalland dies of radiation sickness.

Rating: ★★★★☆


THE CASE OF THE GOLD-MAKER'S SECRET
by Anon. (Alfred Edgar)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 967 · 22/4/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


SEXTON BLAKE — LUMBERJACK
by Anon. (S. G. Shaw)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 968 · 29/4/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Fred Bennett

Other content: The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: In Canada, Janssen the Moonslayer escapes from the train that's taking him to prison to be hanged. Alec Clanross sends a wire to Sexton Blake, asking him to come at once. The famous detective, however, has been given an exciting case by Detective-Inspector Coutts and refuses further involvement with the Moonslayer. A week later, with the aforementioned case complete, a second wire from Clanross arrives in which he states that his girl, Maggie, won't marry him while the Moonslayer is still at large. Blake gives in. He, Tinker and Pedro make the voyage to Canada. In Winnipeg, they pick up clues indicating that their quarry is somewhere near the Kamsack lumber camp north of Saskatchewan. The detectives, together with Alec Clanross and Corporal Nevin of the Canadian Mounted Police, don disguises and head to the camp. En route, they are joined by Maggie, who has followed them and is disguised as a boy. At the camp, the lumberjacks have been purchasing hooch from Janssen and are shirking their duties, the superintendent has been disabled by the giant crook, and his elderly timekeeper is struggling to keep the men under control. Blake & Co. arrive and are employed but, during an argument with the cook, Maggie's identity is exposed. The Moonslayer arrives at the camp and is surprised by Blake who snaps handcuffs onto him. The lumberjacks, however, aggravated by the potential loss of their hooch, overpower the detective and his friends and set Janssen free. The crook reveals to Blake that he has been commissioned by a rival lumber company to ensure that, this season, the Kamsack camp fails to deliver its quota. Leaving the others imprisoned, Janssen takes Blake upriver and shows him a spot where, with dynamite, the river can be rerouted, thus preventing delivery of the large stock of logs that have already been cut. They return to camp. In the cellar of the shack in which the detective and his friends are incarcerated, they find a supply of dynamite. The next morning, the Moonslayer takes them out to be lynched, apart from Maggie, whom he intends to marry whether she likes it or not. However, when the lumberjacks have gathered to watch the hangings, Blake starts tossing the dynamite, causing havoc. The Moonslayer flees over the ice-locked river but, when the detective throws a stick of explosive onto it, the ice breaks and the giant crook disappears into the frigid water. The camp returns to normal. One question remains — is the Moonslayer dead?

Rating: ★★★★★


IN LEAGUE AGAINST HIM; OR, THE ZONE OF DESTRUCTION
by Anon. (George N. Philips)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 969 · 6/5/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; A Word from the Skipper (ed.); The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Zenith the Albino and Prince Wu Ling have teamed up with Leon Kestrel to kill Sexton Blake. Kestrel's henchman, the scientist Lascelles, has invented a device that transmits radiation. The invisible rays of 'Lascelite', which pass cleanly through all matter, are emitted from two projectors mounted on tripods. Where the rays cross one another, a 'zone of death' is formed; nothing can survive within it, as is proven when the scientist tests it on a group of policemen, all of whom are killed. The criminals have set up the tripods in a house in London and have focused the beams so that they cross in Baker Street, in Sexton Blake's house, where his consulting chair is positioned. The detective, who is investigating the death of the policemen, suspects he has been targetted when a professor he's questioning is badly injured in the Baker Street house with no apparent cause. Realising that someone must be watching the house in order to guide the beam, Blake gets on his trail, befriends him while in disguise, and is led to Smith's — The Thieves' Kitchen — where Zenith, Kestrel and Wu Ling are making their plans. After overhearing them reveal the address of the house where the Lascelite device is located, he is almost caught but is helped to escape by Mademoiselle Yvonne. With Tinker, he then makes his way to the house and does battle with Zenith's henchmen, Oaklahoma Sam and Dumont, who are guarding the weapon. The tussle is interrupted by the arrival of Zenith, who makes a pact with the detective: he and his assistant can depart with their lives providing they leave the devices behind. Blake is not done yet, though, and manages to trace the criminals to their next hideout, which he sneaks into only to be captured. Once again, Yvonne saves the day. The police raid the house, the Lascelite projectors are destroyed, but the 'Big Three' escape in a hot air balloon.

Trivia: This issue carries the first instalment of the Detective Magazine Supplement. Sexton Blake begins his consultations at 11am each day. His Secret Service number is 9 — previously, it was 11, and a few weeks from now, in THE CASE OF THE ATTWELL AIRCRAFT COMPANY (UNION JACK issue 996, by the same author) it will become 11 again.

Rating: ★★★★☆


THE SEALED BRIDE
by Anon. (S. G. Shaw)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 970 · 13/5/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Arthur Jones

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: In the Wild West, Bat Hawkins, an outlaw, is wounded while attempting to rescue his girl, Bess Arnold, from kidnappers. He is taken to England for surgery and during his recovery encounters one of the abductors, a Mormon, who is killed in the ensuing struggle. On a homeward-bound liner, he meets and tells his story to Sexton Blake. The detective agrees to help and, upon arrival in the States, learns of a secret Mormon stronghold called Hodgeville. Accompanied by a female journalist named Moira O'Mara, the group heads there. In a hotel en route, attempts are made on the detective's life and Moira vanishes, abducted by a man named Blucher. Hawkins, Blake and Tinker give chase until eventually reaching the secret entrance to a hidden valley in which lies Hodgeville. When Hawkins is captured, he is used as a means of persuading Bess to allow herself to be 'sealed' into wedlock with Blucher — she has been resisting for more than a year. Moira is also facing this same fate. However, Blake and Tinker have entered the town through the secret entrance and interrupt the ceremony with guns a-blazin'. The women are freed and the Mormon men are held prisoner until the authorities come to arrest them.

Trivia: For a modern reader it's interesting to read how the Mormons were regarded in 1922. This story doesn't pull any punches; the sect is portrayed as being little better than devil-worshippers!

Rating: ★★☆☆☆


COUNT FLAMBERT'S CRIME
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 971 · 20/5/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated  


THE CONFEDERATION'S RECRUIT
by Anon. (Robert Murray Graydon)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 972 · 27/5/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Dirk Dolland's friend, the explorer and adventurer John Fade is feeling bored and restless. Dolland jokes that Fade should advertise in the newspapers. Fade takes the suggestion seriously and places a notice in the personals: Wanted, genuine adventure, thrills, and excitement. Money no object; any risk taken. The next evening he receives a response in the form of a visit from Ysabel de Ferrer aka the Black Duchess, the president of the Criminals' Confederation. On the following day, Detective-Inspector Coutts reports to Sexton Blake that a murdered Chinaman has been found at Fade's house and Fade himself is missing. On examining the corpse, Blake identifies it as one of Hoang Ho's men ... and the murder weapon as a knife from the island of Jorsica, which the duchess rules. When Fade's clothes are found in the Thames mud, he is feared murdered and the river is dragged. A roll of material is recovered from the water and inside it the investigators find two more dead bodies, one of another Chinaman ... and the other of a Bengal tiger! Blake learns from a dealer in exotic animals that twelve tigers have just been purchased by a Greek shipowner named Darlassis who'll be shipping them to an Arab sheik in Morocco. His vessel, the Hippolytus is docked nearby. Blake, Tinker, Coutts and Dolland visit Darlassis at his warehouse but are led by him into a trap. They find themselves face to face with Hoang Ho and his men, all of whom are to be smuggled out of the country in secret compartments in the tiger cages. The plan has not gone smoothly: one of the tigers had killed a man before being shot dead and deposited in the river with its victim. However, all is now ready, and the rebel Confederation group departs leaving Blake & co locked in a basement room with a hungry tiger. Thanks to the detective's bravery, they manage to break free and, in a police launch, pursue the Hippolytus as it steams out to sea. As they close in on it, they spot a man swimming from the other ship and pick him up. It is John Fade. He has escaped from the other vessel in the nick of time: it explodes and sinks, its boilers strained beyond endurance. Fade explains that the Black Duchess visited him but a police constable saw her arrive and knocked at the front door. Fade convinced him that his visitor was someone else and had then returned to the room to find a dead Chinaman on his floor and the woman gone. Then he'd been knocked unconscious by a second Celestial and had recovered to find himself a prisoner aboard the Hippolytus. Evidently, Hoang Ho had deposited his clothes in the river to give the impression that he was dead. Blake accepts the tale but feels that something is not quite right. In this he is correct: in truth, John Fade has joined the Criminals' Confederation and was responsible for blowing up Hoang Ho and his cohorts.

Rating: ★★★★★


THE DIAMOND CLUE
by Anon. (Robert Murray Graydon)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 973 · 3/6/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: A down-on-his-luck carpenter, struggling to support his family, calls at a large house intending to beg for food. No one answers his knock and, when he tries the door, he finds it open, quietly enters, and is astonished to see a pile of gemstones on a table. He snatches one and flees. However, when he tries to sell the diamond, it is recognised and the police are called. Later, Detective-Inspector Coutts visits Sexton Blake with the stone, which the criminologist recognises as one of the haul of jewels that went to the bottom of the sea with the Criminals' Confederation rebel, Hoang Ho (see THE CONFEDERATION'S RECRUIT (Union Jack issue 972, 1922). Blake, Coutts and Dirk Dolland interview the carpenter. He gives the address of the house and Dolland instantly recognises it as the residence of John Fade. However, when they go there, they are told by Fade's servant that the millionaire explorer is on his yacht, the Searcher, in Southampton and about to set sail. Blake and his friends drive at top speed to the port, board the vessel, and confront Fade. He confesses that he is a member of the Confederation and introduces his passenger, Ysabel de Ferrer, the Black Duchess, who is bedecked in the stolen gemstones. The detective and his friends are taken prisoner and the yacht steams westward. Once at sea, the captives are given the freedom of the deck with a warning that the crew are all Confederation recruits and that any move to take possession of the vessel will be met in uncompromising terms. While enjoying this opportunity to enjoy the sea air, they encounter a wanted murderer named Joe Cook, who picks a fight with the Scotland Yard man. Blake steps in and a terrific boxing match ensues. Cook, beaten, pulls a revolver on his opponent. John Fade intervenes and puts a bullet through the villain's forearm. The Black Duchess comes on deck and reprimands Cook but he counters that the captives were sentenced to death two years ago and their execution is long overdue. He insists that it is now enforced. De Ferrer agrees to put the matter to the vote. Blake, Tinker, Coutts and Dolland are locked in a cabin while the Confederation members gather to decide their fate. Some hours later, Fade enters and announces that the crew voted against their president and ruled that the prisoners will be shot at midnight. However, the Duchess, supported by Fade and three others, is willing to do whatever's necessary to prevent the execution. While the crew are getting drunk, Fade leads the captives to the chart-house, which is sturdy enough to withstand a siege, as well as being stocked with supplies, weapons and ammunition. As a fog rolls over the yacht, the crew discovers that the condemned men have been liberated and a pitched gun battle erupts. Joe Cook falls to a bullet then panic breaks out as rocks are glimpsed rearing out of the fog. The Searcher collides with them and immediately begins to sink. Fade picks up de Ferrer and makes for a two-man lifeboat. Blake and his friends don life jackets but, as they prepare to abandon ship, the fog clears and they see that they are the only ones left on the yacht. In the distance, a two-man lifeboat is floating upside down. Fade and the Duchess are presumed drowned ... however, concealed by a promontory of rock, they are recovering on a beach, certain that they are the sole survivors from the Searcher.

Rating: ★★★★★


A LEGACY OF DEATH; OR, THE NAVAJO'S QUEST
by Anon. (Cecil Hayter)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 974 · 10/6/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Harry Lane

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: None at present.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE MYSTERY PLANTATION
by Anon. (H. H. Clifford Gibbons 'ghosting' for Andrew Murray)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 975 · 17/6/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Professor Kew.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE RED PARASOL
by Anon. (W. W. Sayer)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 976 · 24/6/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: E. E. Briscoe

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Story features Granite Grant.

Unrated  


THE WIRELESS TELEPHONE CLUE; OR, THE CASE OF THE THREE MUSKETEERS
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 977 · 1/7/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement; The Vengeance of the Tong by Anon.

Notes: Algy Somerton, Archie "Fairy" Pherison, and Reggie "Cupid" Fetherston are three of the most harmless and vacuous socialites on the London club circuit. Known as The Three Musketeers, they are seen at practically every dance and race meeting and are generally well-liked. However, beneath their rather idiotic exteriors they are three ruthless and brutal criminals. They are also extremely efficient, as they demonstrate when they burgle Sir George Crossett's house of its treasures. Sexton Blake is commissioned to investigate but first he has to make a private trip to Paris. While there, he spots a candlestick stolen from Sir George in the window of an antique shop. Not long after, someone shoots at him while he's sitting in a car. Meanwhile, back at Baker Street, Tinker indulges in his hobby of listening in on wireless signals. He picks up a strange coded message which, upon his return, Blake decodes. It is a warning about him being in France and the detective is able to trace it to The Three Musketeers. After establishing that the suspects are out for the evening, Blake and Tinker break into their home. They attempt to capture the three crooks but are tricked by a cunningly designed booby trap. Most of the stolen goods are recovered but the Musketeers get away.

Trivia: This was reprinted in the SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 6th series issue 1 (2014).

Rating: ★★★★☆ An interesting tale let down by a hurried ending that leaves the story hanging.


THE CASE OF THE BRANDED MAN
by Anon. (Alfred Edgar)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 978 · 8/7/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: None at present.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 1)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: This serial takes place in the days before Tinker met Sexton Blake. He lives alone in an attic room for fourpence a week and earns a living as best he can. When local children are hired to play 'bit parts' in a local pantomime, Tinker is among them, though it requires giving up his job as a 'knocker-up' (a person who bangs on clients' doors each morning to get them out of bed and up for work). After days of rehearsal, though, Tinker is heartily sick of the bullying director, De Courcy, and upon witnessing the man maltreating a little girl, the lad pushes him into the music pit. Next day, he hears that De Courcy has promised a five-pound reward for anyone who can track him down. Sneaking into the theatre, he steals a monkey suit and puts it on. Then, during the pantomime's opening night, he invades the stage, steals De Courcy's wig, and claims the five pounds.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE CASE OF THE BOND STREET DENTIST
by Anon. (H. H. Clifford Gibbons 'ghosting' for Andrew Murray)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 979 · 15/7/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: The story features Professor Kew.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 2)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: With his short-lived acting career over and no longer being able to afford his attic room, Tinker wanders the streets. His attention is caught by an individual who he's seen on a number of occasions; a fat man that, despite his weight, walks lightly. This suspicious-looking character intrigues the youngster and Tinker starts to shadow him. He sees him enter a warehouse and follows. Inside is a curious secret room, furnished as an office. The strange man takes a white rat out of a bag he has been carrying and thrusts it into a grating low down in the wall. Tinker, hidden behind a door, watches in fascination.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE WINFIELD HANDICAP CASE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 980 · 22/7/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Dr. Huxton Rymer.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 3)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: The rat reappears and appears to have acted as a signal to a number of men who enter the room individually for an interview with the fat man. Each man is blindfolded, so they can't see the route into the room. The fat man — known as The Baron — is a master criminal and these men are his henchmen. Tinker, feeling scared, retreats but out in the street he meets a man who offers him two pounds if he can prove that he knows the secret entrance to the office. To do this he must sneak in and take a lead seal from The Baron's desk. He does this but finds the dead body of one of the crooks on the floor of the office. The white rat appears and Tinker throws his knife at it. He then retreats after hearing the master crook approaching. The Baron finds the knife then exits through a secret door. Tinker follows.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


SEXTON BLAKE'S BLUNDER
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 981 · 29/7/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Dr. Huxton Rymer and Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 4)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker succeeds in his mission but can't find the man who set him the task. A stranger approaches and asks him to deliver a parcel. Tinker agrees but it's a trap and the youngster is captured by The Baron who interrogates him about the identity of the man who told him to take the seal. Tinker refuses to speak, so the villain orders him to be killed. The youngster fights back but is knocked senseless and is carried away by one of The Baron's henchmen; a brute named Murphy.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE AFFAIR OF THE RICKSHAW COOLIE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 982 · 5/8/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Dr. Huxton Rymer.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 5)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker recovers consciousness and escapes. In the street, he is approached by a hunchbacked toy-seller who proves to be the man who had asked him to take the seal — 'Mr Nemo'. Slipping a piece of paper into the lad's hand, the toy-seller advises him to get away fast.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


DOUBLE-CROSSED
by Anon. (Jack Lewis)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 983 · 12/8/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: C. H. Blake

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Leon Kestrel.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 6)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker reads the note warning him to stay away from the area, which has become extremely dangerous for him. However, when he catches sight of Murphy he follows him and overhears a plot to set a warehouse on fire. He spies on the premises and sees 'Mr Nemo' strapped to the floor. As flames envelope the building, he climbs in and rescues the man. Nemo takes him to a secret hideaway — a room that is connected with his own in the house to the rear via a secret passage behind a revolving window.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE VOODOO CURSE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 984 · 19/8/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: In the West Indies, Dr Huxton Rymer allies himself with Marie Galante. Together they plot to establish a black empire in the Caribbean with themselves at its head. Some weeks later, Sexton Blake is in Jamaica on business when he is approached by a man named John Campbell who, along with other plantation owners, has been poisoned and driven from his investments in Haiti. Blake promises to investigate Campbell's claim that Galante is responsible for this. In the guise of 'Thomas Baker' — and with Tinker disguised as his half-caste assistant — Blake arrives in Haiti where he finds that Campbell's assets have almost entirely disappeared ... including a large shipment of coffee. When a cargo vessel arrives in port, Blake discovers that his old friend Captain Phillips is at the helm and commissions him to pick up the coffee in ten days time to ship to America where Blake's agent, Bryant Kennedy, will sell it. Blake and Tinker then disguise themselves as blacks and head into the island's interior in search of the missing goods. They reach Campbell's plantation and there discover the stolen coffee. Blake realises that he can only move it to Phillips' ship with help from Galante, so he attends a voodoo ritual; the one place she is sure to be. There, he sees the masked voodoo queen presiding over the ceremony and finds Rymer waiting in a hut from whence, when called, he will don a mask and join her. Blake overpowers the crooked doctor and, while Tinker keeps the criminal covered with a pistol, the detective puts on the mask and joins Marie Galante. He tells her that unless she has all of Campbell's goods delivered to Phillips' ship, she will be exposed as the driving force behind all the crooked dealings in the West Indies. She reluctantly agrees and the next day, all of Campbell's coffee and other resources are delivered to the port. Galante and Rymer go free but their scheme has been foiled and Blake predicts that a huge power struggle will soon erupt between them.

Trivia: It is mentioned that Blake visited Jamaica a few days after the disastrous earthquake some years earlier. This visit was recorded in SEXTON BLAKE IN JAMAICA by William Murray Graydon (1907).
Rating: ★★★★☆



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 7)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker and Mr Nemo decide to join forces. Nemo reveals that his real name is Richard Allandale and that he is on a mission to revenge his elder brother, who had been driven to suicide by The Baron. Out on the street, Tinker once again falls into the hands of the master crook who takes him to the secret office.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE HUNCHBACK OF ST. MADROS
by Anon. (Robert Murray Graydon)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 985 · 26/8/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Chief Commissioner Sir Henry Fairfax wants Detective Inspector Coutts to investigate the epidemic of cocaine that is currently sweeping the country ... but Coutts is missing, as are Sexton Blake, Tinker and Dirk Dolland. The four of them have been shipwrecked on the island of St. Madros (see The Diamond Clue, UNION JACK issue 973). There, they discover a trading post from which bananas are shipped, and, as they approach it, are met by a gang led by a seemingly insane hunchback. He has them bound hand and foot and imprisoned before then ordering the island to be searched for more possible castaways. Meanwhile, John Fade and the Black Duchess, Ysabel de Ferre, having also survived the wrecking of Fade's yacht, hide the Criminal Confederation's stolen diamonds and set off to explore. Moments later, they are captured by Joe Cook and the rest of the yacht's mutinous crew. Cook wants to know where the diamonds are and starts to torture de Ferre to make her speak. Fade breaks free of his bonds and kills the man. Before the rest can act against him, the hunchback's men arrive and Cook's cohorts flee. De Ferre and Fade are escorted to the trading post. The hunchback introduces himself as Doctor Deeming Stain, also known as Doctor Dreams. To their surprise, he recognises the Black Duchess and declares that he has been trying to get in touch with the Confederation for some time. While this meeting is under way, Blake & co. escape. The detective orders Tinker, Coutts and Dolland to make their way back to Fade's stricken vessel. He then stealthily approaches Stain's bungalow where he overhears de Ferre strike a deal with the hunchback. St Madros will be the Confederation's new headquarters and its fleet of cargo boats will be placed at the organisation's disposal. Fade will depart for England at once to confirm the arrangements with Stain's agent. Blake departs and catches up with his fellows. They spot a ship in the distance and Blake uses his torch to signal to it in morse code. In short order, he and his friends are taken aboard the British vessel and are soon steaming back to England. There, they intercept John Fade's meeting with Stain's agent at a banana packaging warehouse. Fade is astounded when the police descend in force and he is arrested. St. Madros's banana exports are exposed as the means by which cocaine has been smuggled. Within twenty-four hours, the British side of the drug trafficking ring is smashed. One question remains: how to deal with Doctor Stains and the Black Duchess?

Trivia: Mention is made of Detective-Inspector Coutts's wife. She's described as an "unreasonably jealous woman."

Mrs Bardell claims that in all the years she's been with Blake he's never been away overnight without contacting her by telephone or telegram. One need read only a few of his cases to realise how impossible this is!

The number plate of the Grey Panther is given as LC 001100.

Tinker is rather self-conscious about his inability to grow a moustache.

Rating: ★★★★★



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 8)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: The Baron offers Tinker a choice: work for the criminal or die! Tinker refuses to join the gang.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE WHITE RAJAH
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 986 · 2/9/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story set in India.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 9)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker is sentenced to death and is taken away by a gang member known as the Doctor, who has been selected to kill him. The Doctor, though, turns out to be Allandale, who, in disguise, has infiltrated the gang. They go to a barn where Allandale fakes Tinker's death.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE CASE OF THE GREAT ST. LEGER FRAUD
by Anon. (H. H. Clifford Gibbons but attributed to Andrew Murray)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 987 · 9/9/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: C. H. Blake

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Count Ivor Carlac, Professor Kew and Hon. John Lawless.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 10)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Believing that his orders have been carried out, The Baron visits the barn and sees Tinker's apparently dead body. He leaves evidence that will incriminate the Doctor. When he leaves, though, the Doctor, who is actually Richard Allandale, emerges from hiding and destroys the evidence. He then departs, taking Tinker with him.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


SEXTON BLAKE IN SOUTH AMERICA
by Anon. (Arkus Sapt)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 988 · 16/9/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Fred Bennet

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: This story takes place in Patagonia and features Sir Richard Losely and Lobangu.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 11)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Richard Allandale arranges for a false report of Tinker's death to be published in the newspapers.

Trivia: Tinker's age is given as 'about fourteen years'.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


A ROGUE ON 'CHANGE
by Anon. (J. W. Bobin)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 989 · 23/9/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: E. E. Briscoe

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features George Marsden Plummer.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 12)
by Anon. (Cecil Hayter)

Notes: Richard Allandale sends Tinker to the south coast town of Marlington to keep him out of sight. Tinker is supposed to be working on a newspaper there but he spends most of his days playing pranks on the editor. Then, one day, he spots a disguised member of The Baron's gang — a man known as The Toff. He overhears the crook's plans to rob a bank. Returning to London, he tells Allandale about the plot.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE BROKEN CIRCLE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 990 · 30/9/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val reading

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 13)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Allandale reveals that The Baron is waiting for him in his room. Passing through the secret passage, he and Tinker spy on the master crook. Allandale then makes Tinker up to look like a ghost and scares The Baron so badly that the villain collapses in fright.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE BANDITS OF BRUYERES
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 991 · 7/10/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: When a number of rich American tourists are abducted in Paris and held for ransom, Sexton Blake is called in. The Americans will be blinded if the ransom money is not paid but, after the money has been handed over, nothing further is heard. On each occasion, the kidnappers have left instructions for the cash to be left in the same spot in a tunnel at Bruyeres railway station. When Blake keeps watch on the location, he sees Algy Somerton and realises that The Three Musketeers are responsible for the crimes (this is their second appearance in the Blake saga). Unfortunately, they are aware that he has been hired. The relatives of the hostages receive a letter demanding further payments and the immediate dismissal of the detective. Blake willingly removes himself from the case in order to protect the victims but secretly he and Tinker continue their investigations and trace a car used by Somerton to the Orleans region of France. Tinker follows a suspected associate of the Musketeers to a secluded house in the countryside then reports back to his guv'nor. The next morning, the trio of criminals plan to release one of their captives to collect the payments but, before they can do so, the house is raided by Blake and a squadron of gendarmes. A terrific gun battle breaks out during which the detective receives a bullet wound in the arm. The Three Musketeers retreat to the roof and escape in a biplane. Blake recovers half the ransom money and releases the prisoners but knows he will have to face the villains another day.

Rating: ★★☆☆☆ The writing style seems strangely dry and subdued for G. H. Teed.



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 14)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Richard Allandale tells Tinker that while the lad was in Marlington he (Allandale) — in the guise of the Doctor — gained The Baron's trust and carried out a jewel robbery. However, he then faked another theft, this time of the jewels from The Baron. Allandale returned the loot to the original owner. He reveals that he has been studying criminals for ten years and his current campaign against the master crook is hitting The Baron hard.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


SEXTON BLAKE — GUN-RUNNER!
by Anon. (Cecil Hayter)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 992 · 14/10/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Sir Richard Losely and Lobangu.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 15)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker and Allandale travel to Marlington and locate the bank which The Baron's gang is in the process of robbing.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE CLUE OF THE WHITE FEATHER
by Anon. (W. W. Sayer)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 993 · 21/10/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Sir Richard Losely.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 16)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker and Allandale capture one of the gang, who is on lookout duty while the others break into the bank vault. They then set out to foil the remaining crooks, one of whom is known as The Toff.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE SOAP SALVORS
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 994 · 28/10/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Kenneth Brookes

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Story features Dr. Huxton Rymer and Mlle. Yvonne Cartier.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 17)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Entering the bank vault through a tunnel that the gang has dug from the shop next door, Allandale and Tinker prepare for a gunfight with the crooks.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


EYES IN THE DARK
by Anon. (Andrew Murray)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 995 · 4/11/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Eric Parker

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: The Duke of Langfoy, carrying only a valise, arrives at the Metz Hotel, one of the most exclusive in London, to which his shabby and wizened form appears ill suited. He shows Lamonte, the manager, five priceless necklaces, which he takes from the valise's false bottom, before having them secured in the establishment's strong-room. The manager demonstrates the various electrical traps and alarms that protect the vault. Langfoy informs Lamonte that his luggage will arrive later then travels to a building near the East India Docks where he meets with Count Bonallithe Owl — and is revealed to be none other than a disguised Professor Kew. He passes on all that he has learned about the hotel's security systems. The following day, a power station is raided and the power cut off for a few minutes in the district of the Metz. This also affects the residence of Hon. John Lawless with whom Sexton Blake and Tinker are dining. These three gather at the Metz and are introduced to Langfoy, who insists that the man that Lamonte dealt with yesterday was an impostor who'd stolen the valise from his luggage. The necklaces, it is found, have vanished from the strong-room. The question is, why did the thief put them there in the first place? Bonalli, watching the hotel, observes that Blake has become involved and warns Kew. The Owl and the professor abduct Langfoy from his hotel room, leaving the strong-room key behind, and imprison him in a dockside mill, meaning his absence to give the impression that he has, for some reason, absconded with his own property. Clues lead Blake and Lawless to the building but, when they separate, Lawless is captured and incarcerated with the duke. Meanwhile, Blake witnesses the arrival of a notorious fence named Spatzel and spies on him as he meets with Kew and the Owl. Spatzel and the professor set off to take the necklaces to Holland. The detective shadows them and discovers the prisoners. He sets them free and tasks Lawless with following the crooks. He then returns to tackle Bonalli. They fight ferociously, fall from the the dock into the water, and the criminal manages to escape. Lawless returns having also lost track of Kew, though he has, at least, managed to catch Spatzel and retrieve the necklaces.

Trivia: It has been two years since the Owl last appeared in the UNION JACK (see The Man in Smoked Glasses, UNION JACK issue 880, 1920) and his absence is noted in this story, though "it was some years since Count Bonalli had disappeared from his old haunts" makes it sound as if a longer period has passed.

This issue marks the debut of the ultimate Sexton Blake artist: Eric Parker.

Rating: ★★★☆☆



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 18)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Allandale and Tinker capture one of the men but the other — The Toff — speeds away in a car, though he has a bullet wound to his arm. The amateur detectives give chase, joined by a police constable who had, initially, suspected them of being part of the gang.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE CASE OF THE ATTWELL AIRCRAFT COMPANY
by Anon. (George N. Philips)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 996 · 11/11/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: Sexton Blake meets Colonel Bantly of the Secret Service at an opera and is asked to investigate the Attwell Air Company. Bantly believes that the well-funded organisation is up to something but the agent he sent there previously — his own nephew, Wellwyn — has vanished without a trace. When the detective leaves the theatre, he is captured by a singer named Madam Carlotta Devours and the evil Frau Krantz, driven into the countryside, and attacked. He escapes this assault with the aid of Mademoiselle Yvonne and, while his former captors are unconscious, he attaches a leaking oil can beneath their vehicle. This allows him to follow its trail the next day. While doing so, he encounters a fox hunt in which Devours and Zenith the Albino are participating. He and Zenith fight a fierce battle. It ends in a stalemate, with Devours defending the albino and Pedro keeping Blake from harm. Saving themselves for a rematch, the enemies disengage and the detective continues on to the airfield. There he once again encounters the singer and is lured aboard an airplane, which the pilot purposely tries to crash. Blake wrestles the controls from the man and succeeds in landing the plane. Later that night, he infiltrates a secret meeting in a church near the aerodrome and witnesses a group of men, including Zenith, pledging allegiance to the Kaiser. Despite almost being caught, he manages to escape, freeing Wellwyn, who the group has been keeping a prisoner. Blake learns that a light at the top of a tall pylon in the aerodrome will be used to guide in hundreds of enemy aircraft ... which will land, refuel, then set off to drop acid onto British cities. He helps Tinker to steal an aeroplane onto which a light has been fixed. The youth then flies to intercept the enemy and leads them out to sea. Meanwhile, Blake climbs the pylon to destroy the signal and finds Zenith at the top. They fight and the albino falls, surviving by the merest chance. The enemy planes overshoot the airfield and fly out to sea where they run out of fuel and plummet to their doom.

Trivia: Sexton Blake's Secret Service number is 11. Tinker's is 12.

Rating: ★★★★★



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 19)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker, Allandale and the police constable pursue The Toff to the local train station where he eludes them and boards a London express.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE MYSTERY OF THE BIG WOODS
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 997 · 18/11/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: E. Simmonds

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: This story takes place in Canada.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 20)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Tinker, Allandale and the police constable phone ahead to the next station and order the train to be halted and the station exits sealed. They then drive there and commence searching for the fugitive villain.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE CASE OF THE DOPED FAVOURITES
by Anon. (J. W. Bobin)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 998 · 25/11/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Val Reading

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: In the guise of an elderly man, Aubrey Dexter has set up business as a bookmaker but he's not making much of a success of it. When he falls in with George Marsden Plummer, who is also down on his luck, the two crooks cook up a scheme that promises to rake in millions. Meanwhile, through no fault of his own, Liverpool racehorse owner Godfrey King is on the brink of bankruptcy and confesses to his trainer, Will Doyle, that he intends to gamble all the money he can scrape together on one of his own horses, Golden Arrow. Doyle asks permission to marry King's daughter, Isobel, but the request is furiously rejected. At Aintree, Blake and Tinker — still in Liverpool after finishing a case there — are introduced to King. Unknown to the detective, Plummer, in disguise, is also at the race and uses a cigar-holder as a blowpipe to deliver a drug-smeared dart to Golden Arrow's flank. During the race, the horse falters and King loses his money and his last hope. He accuses Doyle of doping the horse in revenge. That evening, Doyle visits Blake and asks him to prove him innocent. The detective agrees. Two days later, there is another doping incident. Doyle tells him that, at the forthcoming race at Manchester, he will bet his savings on another horse, Ultus, with the intention of proving his worth by using the winnings to help Godfrey King out of his financial troubles. First, though, there's an event at Aintree, which Blake attends in disguise. When a dart aimed at a passing horse hits a stable-boy in the hand, the detective notices the incident and orders Tinker, who like his guv'nor is well-disguised, to follow a foreign-looking individual who makes a rapid getaway from the scene. The youngster later telephones to report that his quarry is enjoying an evening meal with an elderly man at a hotel in the Strand. Blake drives there, enters the hotel's dining room, and overhears the suspect requesting a Larranaga cigar from the waiter. This, together with the indulgent meal the man enjoys, gives Blake the clue that he is once again dealing with Plummer. He and Tinker follow the suspects as they make their way by train to a bungalow in Staines. Spying through a window, the detectives watch as Plummer and Dexter divest themselves of their wigs and make-up and discuss their intention to dope Ultus. At the Manchester race, Blake, Tinker, Detective-Inspector Martin and a force of policeman ambush Plummer. When Dexter witnesses this and starts to run, the crowd gets agitated, and in the tumult Plummer breaks free. The two master crooks hijack an aeroplane and make their escape. Ultus wins the race and Doyle, proven innocent, loans his winnings to King, who now allows the trainer to propose to Isobel.

Trivia: Aubrey Dexter was released from Bleakmoor Prison "some twelve to eighteen months" prior to this story. It is stated that he was incarcerated after THE CASE OF THE £20,000 WITNESS (UNION JACK issue 716, 1917). This fails to take into account the sequel to that case: THE BROKEN BAIL (UNION JACK issue 734, 1917); THE CASE OF THE INTERNATIONAL ADVENTURER (SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 1st series 43, (1917); and THE ISLAND MYSTERY (SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 1st series 69, 1919).

Rating: ★★★★★



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 21)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: The train and the station are searched but there is no sign of The Toff. Tinker goes to check a nearby signal box and is there confronted by the villain.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE BURLINGTON COLLAR MYSTERY
by Anon. (Leonard H. Brooks)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 999 · 2/12/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Unknown

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: None at present.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 22)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: The Toff takes Tinker prisoner and, keeping him at gunpoint, escapes from the station and drives away in his car. He forces the youngster to drink a knockout potion and then takes him to London. Richard Allandale also returns to the capital, feeling sure that The Toff will pay him a visit. Sure enough, the crook shows up and orders Allandale to stop his campaign against the gang or Tinker will pay the price. Allandale refuses and the crook departs. When Allandale crosses to his other house via the secret passage and goes out onto the street, he sees The Toff and two others hanging around the exit of the first house, obviously waiting to assassinate him.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE THOUSANDTH CHANCE
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 1,000 · 9/12/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Eric Parker, H. M. Lewis, Val Reading and Arthur Jones

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: At Abbey Towers, the home of Doctor Huxton Rymer, an extraordinary meeting of criminals takes place. In addition to the Doctor, The Three Musketeers, Prince Wu Ling, Mary Trent, The Black Duchess, Leon Kestrel, Zenith the Albino, George Marsden Plummer and Professor Kew are gathered. Wu Ling makes a proposal: he has discovered that Sexton Blake keeps a considerable treasure of artwork, antiquities and jewels in a house off Edgware Road. Among the artifacts is an ancient Ling-tse vase of great symbolic importance. Wu Ling wants it. He therefore proposes that the criminals rob the house — the vase will be his, while the rest of the treasures will be divided up between the other villains. When the curator of the house goes away for Christmas, a disguised Kew replaces him while other members of the gang impersonate the staff. A decoy sends Blake to Ireland and, while he's there, the house is ransacked. He returns to find his treasures gone. However, Wu Ling's main aim — to gain the vase — is foiled, for Blake has kept that hidden in the house of Mlle. Yvonne Cartier and the Chinaman has made away with a mere copy. Wu Ling guesses that Mlle. Yvonne may have the artifact and breaks into her flat but is chased away by her chauffeur, Eric, who shoots the intruder's little finger off. When Wu Ling telephones Baker Street and offers the detective information about his stolen property in return for the vase, Sir Gordon Saddler advises Blake to accept. The detective does so and the exchange is made — but Saddler performs a stunt that deprives Wu Ling of the vase: he wraps around it a lock of hair from the head of Confucius. This tabu cannot be broken and Wu Ling is thus defeated. With an armistice declared, Sexton Blake visits the gathered crooks at Abbey Towers and regains his valuables.

Trivia: To celebrate the thousandth issue, this edition includes a colour plate of Sexton Blake by artist Arthur Jones. The image was taken from the cover of The Barrier Reef Mystery (THE SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY 1st series, issue 45, 1917).

Sexton Blake owns a house — No.3 Garwood Place — off the Edgware Road, where he stores all his accumulated treasures. This story makes it clear that he's a very wealthy man indeed. It also offers yet another example of Blake on the verge of a breakdown. His physician, we are informed, has been urging him to take a rest. That this is good advice is proven when the detective collapses upon discovering that his treasures have been stolen. In addition, the issue features pictures of the covers of UNION JACK issues 1 and 2 plus the claim that Sexton Blake first appeared to the world in the latter. This, of course, is quite untrue.

Rating: ★★★★☆



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 23)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Richard Allandale pays a visit to a newspaper editor and asks him to supply his bravest journalists for a raid on The Baron's hideout.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE DIAMOND SPECIAL
by Anon. (G. H. Teed)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 1,001 · 16/12/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: H. M. Lewis

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: When the Carlita Hotel in Paris pays host to the Nawab of Biknuggur, his private secretary and chauffeur, the manager takes it for granted that the party is all that it seems: a royal personage and his staff on a visit from India. However, the truth is that the men in question are actually The Three Musketeers and they are using the hotel to pull off a massive heist. After inviting a couple of diamond dealers to the hotel to show him their best stock, the Nawab — actually Archie Pherison — and his cohorts drug the men and make off with a huge haul of priceless gems. The next day, Sexton Blake, who is in Paris with Tinker on private business, is asked to help with the investigation. Unfortunately, due to his own engagements, he cannot do so but he agrees with Tinker that it sounds like the work of the Musketeers and informs the police accordingly. Three months later, Blake is in Cairo on a mission to destroy a secret society lead by a man named Prince Hamad. While there, Tinker spots a black man whom he recognises as the servant of the Musketeers. He follows him and watches him enter an opulent premises from which, later, another man emerges. When the lad then sees this man again at a party and points him out to Blake, the detective tells his assistant that the individual is the leader of the secret society. Later, out by the pyramids, members of the society launch an attack on the detective. Blake escapes back to his hotel where he finds himself face to face with the Three Musketeers who are meeting with Hamad. An attack follows but Blake and Tinker manage to outwit their assailants and flee from the hotel, out of Cairo and back to Britain where they begin plotting their next move ... ...

Trivia: This story is continued in THE PALACE OF MYSTERY (issue 1,004, 6/1/1923)

Rating: ★★★☆☆



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 24)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Richard Allandale outlines his plan of attack to the gathered journalists. They then split into two groups, each covering one of the exits to The Baron's hideout. Allandale enters through the grating that Tinker had discovered and crawls towards the secret office. Ahead of him, a light snaps on.

Rating: ★★★☆☆


THE CASE OF THE PRODIGAL FATHER: A STORY OF FIVE CHRISTMASES
by Anon. (E. J. Murray)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 1,002 · 23/12/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Eric Parker

Other content: Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: This issue skips the expected instalment of TINKER'S BOYHOOD.

Unrated  


THE CASE OF THE BLIND BEGGAR
by Anon. (William Murray Graydon)

UNION JACK · New series · Issue 1,003 · 30/12/1922 · Amalgamated Press · 2d

Illustrator: Eric Parker

Other content: A Word from the Skipper (ed.); Detective Magazine Supplement

Notes: None at present.

Unrated



Plus:
TINKER'S BOYHOOD (part 26)
by Anon. (Unknown)

Notes: Allandale overhears The Toff reporting to The Baron that he (Allandale) has eluded the assassins. The crook then fetches Tinker and they begin to interrogate the youngster about the man they had known as the 'Doctor'. Tinker refuses to speak. The Toff threatens to put a drop of acid on the youngster's bare skin every thirty seconds until he starts talking.

Rating: ★★★☆☆