Evening star., 1933-01-17
NEW BOOKS
AT RANDOM
NJ. G..
THE EGYPTIAN CROSS MYSTERY;
A Problem in Deduction. By Ellery
Queen New York: Frederick A.

1EE Ell 1PI1AN TRUSS M 4 SIER ,
A Problem in Deduction. By Ellery
Queen. New York: Frederick A
Stokes Co.
For fantastic conception and design
in the business of weaving the fabric
for tales Of mysterious murder the
laurels go to Mr. Ellery Queen. When
THE Greek Coffin Mystery came along
his readers felt that this time he had
reached the high point of creating
hair-raising episodes and weird situa-
items, but apparently there Is no such
thing as n limit to the imaginative
events and the brilliant detection OF
their instigators or perpetrators. The
Egyptian Cross Mystery" Is distinctive
enough in its very title to arouse the
curiosity, and when the name of Ellery
Queen is observed as its author-then
that settles the question Of What shall
do tonight. or read?"
Down in West Virginia, where the
mountains crowd upon each other IN
massive dignity, and where settlements
of human habitation are few and far
between, Mike Orkins and OF Pete
riding in from the hills in the gray
and eerie dawn of Christmas day to-
ward the little village of Arroyo, come
upon gruesome find. From the
weatherbeaten signpost at the crcs--
roads, half mile or so from the town
hangs the decapitated body of a man
both arms outstretched with the hands
nailed to the tips of the crossbar of
the sign and the ankles n lied to the
centerpost. Investigation brings identi-
fication of the body as that of the
somewhat eccentric schoolmaster OF
the region. and also the knowledge that
his slow-witted man-servant Is missing
Ellery Queen is attracted to the ccsc
because Of one startling feature which
appears consistently in all phases Ct
the affair. The conjunction of the road
formed a huge letter "r'; the signpost
to which the body was nailed presented
to the eye large "T''; the body of
the crucified man, minus its head, re-
cembled "T," and on the door cJ the
schoolmaster's house, not far from the
crossroads, the letter "T'' had been
scrawled by the murderer in the blood
of his victim.
Here is the groundwork for an Ellery
Queen murder case which for baf1ing
plot. fantastic design and elusive de-
lection breaks the record. However
closely the reader may apply that cold
logic recommended by the author as
the "analytico-deductive method" OF
detection, the solution of the West Vir-
ginia case and the two IT. murders
which follow 1t remains as much of a
mystery as the author himself-and, by
the way, there is an interesting photo
graph Of him on the inside fiap-until
his own brilliant application of his
particular brand Of logic brings the
climax. A couple of hours of breath
tol- rl,
who love them.
THE UPHOLD FARM MYSTERY. BY
A. Fielding. New York: H. c. Kin
sey Co., Inc.
A more suitable place and circum-
stance for the evolving of death plot
could hardly be selected than big
rambling farm house, peopled with g
group Of artists-paying guests who
find the quietude and beauty OF tn.
country beneficial to inspiration ane
achievement. Those resident at Upfolt
Farm on a fateful day in April were
the farmer and his daughters, one OF
them blind; three painters, pianist
and writer of detective fiction, two
young men from the rectory who have
bent for practical jokes, and maid
Two members of the household are
found murdered, one of them In q
bramble- grown ditch in a stretch o.
woods, and the other a few days latel
in the dining room of the house. One
has been slugged, and the other has
been stabbed Evil happenings WERE
foretold by the farmer when he dis
covered elder branches burning in the
fireplace, thrown there by one OF the
artists who had broken them off to
sketch. Hes called up the devil" says
devil will do to him" Rank supersti-
ton, Of course, but. superstition or not
1t Is that particular artist who Is foune
in the ditch.
Ancther touch of mystery which
plays an important part in both mur.
ders Is the extraordinary appearance
and disappearance Of an ornamental
brass box supporting a damaged st
Marks lion. The box does not stand fol
anything; 1t contains no papers, money
or valuables that any one knows of; II
has no intrinsic value N itself. and there
Is no reason to suppose that its appear
ance and disappearance is an omen or
warning. Yet 1t Is directly responsible
for the second murder.
/ There is still another death which Is
closely associated with the two others
But for the third victim no superstition
or brass box, or other mysterious cir
cumstance is introduced to bedevil the
already harassed and disheartened SUI
perintendent Gibbs, devotee OF detective
literature, who has been unable to get
results through the adoption OF methods
used by his favorite fictional sleuth In
untanglsnG the mysterious deaths at
Uphold Fam. In the end it requires the
skill and rea.oning Of Inspector Pointer
to run the assassin to earth.
This third mystery story by the
author of THE Wedding Chest Mystery'
and the Death Of john TAFT Is as
substantial in plot as its predece: sors
and in the telling is an improvement
over both OF them.
i r
IN TINE FOR MURDER; Another
Investigation by the Curious Mr..
Tolefree. BY r. A. j. Walling. New
York: william Morrow & Co.
Trailing a motor car from early after
noon until after midnight, through
winding country roads and lanes little
used by travellers either riding or walk
ing. expecting scme extraordinary hap
uening at any turn, the commendable
Mr. Tolefree, who has figured so salts
factorily in previous books by Mr..
Walling. finally comes to a dead end as
the blue roadster which has been the
object of his curiosity for so many hours
yanishes with as much mystery as at
tended its meandering course through
out the afternoon and evening. Fifteen
minutes or 20 later it is found in a
narrow driveway. almost obscured by
the heavy growth of trees, with its
driver missing. Not to be outwitted
after all those hours of playing hide
and-seek with his quarry, Mr.. Tolefree
and his faithful friend Farrar follow
that blackth drive afoot, to learn that
it leads to Pitway House. hcme of Mai.
Cramb, and that they are just in tine
for murder
Pitway House and its occupants are
total strangers to Mr.. Tolefree. From
those who live there and from those
who are guests, evil seems to seep and
spread as does the blood Of the victim,
whose dead body lies under q large
a.-+or tabIa The author has drauu