The farmer and mechanic., 1912-10-08


which enabled him ID describe tn.
horse and the dog. and 10 force tns
payment Of the unwitacssei debt, Ii
only one side ~ his character. II IL
owing 10 the subsequent popularity
Of detective fiction that thiS particular
talent has been emphasized and hcuce
somewhat exaggerated.
Ill. Poe and Hi, Followers
Clever ~ Zadiss deductions are.
Noltaire's main interest d.t not lie N
his hero ) c.everne@. The co:np!et>
title OF the hook IS Zadix. or Destiny
The by-tite IS suggestive of what ia
author had IN mind n writing II IN
deed so far as mere type or genre Il
concerned. The Lost Camel. though
in nugget form. is purer exampls
OF detective story than ZadiS THIS
! Tact needs 10 De mentioned for thu
impression Is gaining ground that
Nol1aire and not Poe IS the creator
OF the detective story As straw
showing which way the wind blows
there may be cited the humorous
| toniidenusl Guide to Prominent
| People" In Life. August /. 1872. page
| 1910: Doyle. Conan: Tutor or Detec-
! tive Burns. VINO began his career by
/ rewriting one of Foltaire's stories and
! calling il Sherlock Holmes Has re-
4 ceived highest price for work known
| almost as high as some al cruise
| ment writer's
! Conan Doyle has indeed received
| handsome prices for his Sherlock
| Holmes stories. Golfers Weekly, for
| example. paid $500 each for tho
. series known as The Return Of Sher-
lock Holmes" Not Noltaire. however
but Poe, was Doyle's model. Doyle
himself makes acknowledgement Of
this. In paragraph quoted by Pro
feSsor Brander Matthews IN his Poe
Il and the Detective story" Scrihner'~
generously a!irms: Edgar Allan Foe.
who in his carelessiy prodigal fashion.
threw out the seeds from which so
many Of our present forms Of lit"ra-
ture have sprung. Was the father nf
the detective tale and covered its
limits SO completely that fail - SEQ
: how his followers can find any fresh
ground which they can confidently
call their own. For the secret Of the
5 thinncSS and also Of the intensity OF
;, the detective story is that the writer
is left with only one quality. that Of
] intellectual acuteness. with which u
: endow his hero Everything else is
t outside the picture and weakenS the
y effect. The problem and its solution
G must form the theme, and the char
Q acter- drawing is limited and subordi-
nate. ON this narrow path the writer
[ must walk, and he sees the foot
n marks Of Poe always in front Of him.
/ He is happy if he ever finds the means
Of breaking away and striking out
q on some little side-path of his own.
Doyle has here singled out uner-
> rlngly the essence Of the detective
/ story: The writer is left with only
II one quality. that OF intellectual acute
,e ness, with which 10 endou his hero
t. Everything else is outside the picture
W and Weakens the effect. The problem
and its solution must form the theme. "
c, Poe was the first to this clearly
At least he was the first to do il. and
d his first attempt was happily an
t artistic success. As detective story
The Murdcr, in the Rue Morgue is a
= finalty, and a finality marks the end
ot of the path.
After the way bad been pointed
out, the detective story became cpl
III demic. Among the multitude Of Poe's
ld followers, Conan Doyle is Of course
es easily master. His stories outrank al
N except Poes, and they rival Poe's OF
even terms If Doyle never surpassed
'u The Murders in the Rue Morguc, ho
&c equalled it half dozen times M
d other writer is within striking distance
n Of these two.
In the last few years. however
t many writer's have been doing high
II. class work in detective fiction. There
Id are detectives OF many kinds and con
k, dllions in what Mr. Samuel G. Blythe
Of calls "the n7uch-detected present
ranging from the old police captair
re and secret service type to Open
helms John Z I.axworthy and
ad Jacques Futrcile's The Thinking
sc Machine" who detect mlrvelously ir
es full view Of the audience. using chem
IS, istry electricity telephony. ma
e chinery, psychology, chiropody. de-
e ductology, microscopy, phiebotomy
&, and facial massa e in their wonder
in fuI operations"
y. IN many cases interests other THAR