The Bachelor of the Midway, by St. George Rathborne. Author of "Doctor Jack," "Man from Wall Street," "Mynheer Joe," Etc. New York: The Mascot Publishing Co., 1894. 314p.

In 1874, Samson Cereal, the grain king of Chicago, becomes enamored of a slave girl bound for a Turkish pasha's harem, and secures her for his own. Twenty years later, Dorothy Cereal, Samson's lovely daughter, becomes the object of a bizarre plot instigated by the vengeful Turk. Alek Craig, a clever, brave, and passionate young Canadian, with his sidekick Claude Wycherley, volunteers for the role of knight errant to the lady. Although busy fending off Turkish kidnappers, ferreting out the skeleton in the Cereal family closet, and paying court to Dorothy, the two young men manage to find ample opportunity to partake of the joys of the Chicago World's Fair where most of the action in this undistinguished novel takes place.

A House of Mystery; or, Jack Sharp in Chicago, by Mark Merrick [pseud.] New York: Munro's Publishing House; 24 & 26 Vandewater Street, June 20, 1884. 46p. (Old Cap. Collier Library, No. 99)

Working on a case for the United States Treasury Department, detective Jack Sharp is led to Chicago. While there, a casual conversation with a friend draws attention to a house where strange activities seem to be transpiring with some regularity, and a $50 wager is made between the two men concerning Jack's ability to solve the mystery surrounding the house. After the conversation, Jack returns to tracking the counterfeiters, and is led a merry chase through gambling den, tavern, and music hall, eventually ending at The House. The House of Mystery is a time passer filled with extraneous material which prolongs the reading time without adding measurably to the plot. The only real value lies in substantiating Chicago's high crime rate during the last portion of the nineteenth century.

The Mystery of a French Flat; or Obed Grimes' Strange Case, by Warne Miller, M. D. [pseud.] New York: Munro's Publishing House; 24 & 26 Vandewater Street, October 10, 1896. 30p. (Old Cap. Collier Library, No. 670)

Madame Marie Clotilde, a French dressmaker attracted to Chicago by the World's Columbian Exposition, asks the assistance of detective Obed Grimes when she discovers that her life's savings have been stolen. After meticulously gathering every shred of evidence, interviewing all possible suspects, then analyzing his findings, Grimes determines the culprit, then devises a means of making him expose his identity. The conclusion of the story is obvious to the reader long before the novel is completed, but a wry humor and an amusing twist to an otherwise pedestrian ending, place The Mystery of a French Flat a notch above most fiction of this variety.

Old Forge the Blacksmith Detective, by Warner Miller, M. D. [pseud.] New York: Munro's Publishing House; 24 & 26 Vandewater Street, June 23, 1894. 30p. (Old Cap. Collier Library, No. 549)

Old Forge, a Chicago blacksmith and detective extraordinary, is pressed into service by railroad owners to help squelch a brewing railroad strike. Accepting the challenge, Old Forge engineers a trainload of Pinkerton detectives into the midst of the striking railroad employees, triggering riots which culminate in the Haymarket Affair. Employing a terse journalistic style typical of the serialized fiction of the 1890s, the author combines much that is fact with many imaginative embellishments in this version of the Haymarket tragedy and the preceding riots, told from the point of view of the railroad owner and the law enforcement officer.

The Honorable John Hale; A Comedy of American Politics, by Clifford Raymond. Indianapolis [and] New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Publishers, [l946.] 370p.

The political career of a wealthy young man from Chicago's fashionable north side is the focal point for this satire of state and national politics. John Hale, upon completing his law studies, attempts to gain a seat in the Illinois House in order to learn firsthand how laws are made. The legislative processes and accompanying buffoonery are re-created with subtle wit as the ins and outs of power and government--particularly in Illinois in the early part of the century--are exposed by an author well acquainted with the topic. The latter part of the book tells of a later period in Hale's life, describing his bout with Chicago strikers, his near nomination for the United States presidency, and his handling of various family crises. This often tedious tale is no adventure story; just a sly and friendly poke at politics with an unexpected and sardonic smile at the end.

Book Review Digest,1946, p. 678.

The Sun Maid; A Story of Fort Dearborn, by Evelyn Raymond. Author of "The Little Lady of the Horse," Etc. New York: E. P. Dutton & Company; 31 West Twenty-third St[reet, 1900.] 326p.

See Nos. 65 and 206.

The Bicycle Detective; or, Tracking a Crime on the Wheel. A Story of Thrilling Adventures Across the Continent, by P. T. Raymond. Author of "The Treasure Trunk; or, Shadowing a New York Diamond Salesman," etc., etc., etc. New York: Frank Tousey Publisher; 34 & 36 North Moore Street, July 5, 1890. 30p. (The New York Detective Library, No. 397)

When Mathew Lee is murdered and robbed of his fortune in New York, Darrel Seaworth agrees to investigate, but finding nothing in the way of clues, eventually abandons the case. Later, on a bicycle tour of the midwest, Seaworth is reminded of the case while in Chicago, and with the abundance of information gathered in that city, is able to track down the culprit, recover the money, and return Mathew Lee to his family alive despite the fact that he has been declared dead. The Bicycle Detective is typical dime novel drivel, following the plot outline used for hundreds of similar stories developing characters and settings only minimally and relying heavily on tricks and coincidence to carry the story along.

Against Fate; A True Story, by Mrs. M. L. Rayne. Chicago: W. B. Keen, Cooke & Co., 1876. 251p.

When Jennie Armstrong and two other young women leave their rural homes near Newton, Illinois, to seek employment in Chicago, they possess all the confidence of youth traveling in numbers. But when they reach Chicago and go their separate ways--one to teach school, one into a dry goods store, and one into domestic service--they become quick and easy prey to the evils awaiting country girls in the city.

Seth & Belle & Mr. Quarles and Me; The Bloody Affray at Lakeside Drive, by William Rayner. New York: Simon and Schuster, [1972.] 157p.

Missouri Fynn a gullible but well-intentioned youth becomes involved with several unsavory characters in an affair which ends in his imprisonment for a murder which he did not commit. Written in a style which mimics the satire of Mark Twain, the novel traces the misguided development of a reluctant gunfighter in an entertaining parody set in Chicago and the far west during the late 1800s.

Booklist, 9/1/1973, p. 31. Kirkus, 4/1/1973, p. 411. Library Journal, 9/1/1973, p. 2464. Publishers' Weekly, 4/23/1973, p. 65.

The Colossus, by Opie Read. Author of "A Kentucky Colonel," "Emmett Bonlore," "Len Gansett," "Toothpick Tales," Etc. Chicago: F. J. Schulte & Company, Publishers; The Ariel Press, [l893.] 254p.

Henry DeGolyer, a struggling newspaper writer who seems never to get the breaks he deserves, is sent by his editor on a special assignment to Costa Rica. Early in the trip, an encounter with Henry Witherspoon grows into a fast friendship which ends only at Witherspoon's death. On his deathbed Witherspoon tells a bizarre tale of having been stolen in infancy by an uncle, and requests DeGolyer to assume his identity and seek out his aging parents who live in Chicago. The Colossus is the story of DeGolyer's adjustment to his new life and his change of fortune. At major points throughout the novel the plot lacks credibility, but contains some views of Chicago that the reader may find enjoyable.

Critic, 6/17/1893, p. 400, 404. Independent, 8/24/1893, p. 1154.

The New Mr. Howerson, by Opie Read. Chicago: The Reilly & Britton Co., [l9l4.] 460p.

Misfortune, disappointment, failure, and hate combine to drive George Howerson into the fold of the Agents of Justice, an anarchist group seeking power and recognition in Chicago around 1910. The focal point of the group's hatred is Calvin Whateley, multimillionaire industrialist who has been one of the leaders in the oppression of the poor and working classes in their struggles for better pay and working conditions. When the Agents of Justice decide that Whateley must be murdered, Howerson, the only native born member of the group seems the logical one for the assignment, since his American background will remove the foreign stigma from the cause, and his total lack of concern for his own life makes him fearless. How the plan ultimately fails because of a child strains the novel's credibility, but Read has grasped the mood of the anarchist and portrayed it well. Change the scene from Illinois to California and the story could equally well apply to the 1970s.

Book Review Digest, 1914, p. 446.

Odd Folks, by Opie Read. Author of "The Captain's Romance." London, Chicago [and] New York: F. Tennyson Neely, Publisher, [1897.] 207p.

Personality quirks and unusual events in the lives of ordinary people supply themes for the eighteen stories and character sketches which comprise this collection. Settings for the stories vary from deep south to Chicago. "The Greek God Barber," "The Moon in the Picture," "His Sixteen-Eighty-Nine," "Old Billy," "A Memorable Meal," and "His Special" take place in Illinois.

CONTENTS: The Superintendent's Example.--The Brick Office.--The Greek God Barber.--Ugly Rachel.--The Moon in the Picture.--His Sixteen-Eighty-Nine.--Big Hep and Little Lady.--An Ivory Smile.--Old Jobley.--Old Billy.--Swinging in the Dusk.--A Memorable Meal.--A Dead March.--An Imperious Court.--His Special.--At the Spring.--Not for Three Hundred Thousand.--Her Sweet Dream.

A Yankee from the West, A Novel by Opie Read. Author of "Judge Elbridge," "The Waters of Caney Fork," "An Arkansas Planter." Chicago and New York: Rand, McNally & Company, Publishers [1898.] 277p.

William Milford comes to Mrs. Stuvic's boardinghouse with nothing to recommend him but a businesslike demeanor, a curt tongue, and a blunt truthfulness; but they are enough to convince the lady that he is no run-of-the-mill drifter, and she eagerly rents him a farm and helps establish him in the community. Of course the appearance of a stranger in their midst arouses the curiosity of the neighbors, who use every ploy to delve into his past; but they find out nothing. Meanwhile, Milford is becoming a successful farmer and valued neighbor. When his past is revealed--he has been a road agent and is wanted for a holdup--he admits it fully, has already returned the money, and says he is ready to serve time in the penitentiary if need be; but proves just as ready to resort to chicanery to avoid it. Milford is a delightful character, sharp of tongue and keen of wit, boldly truthful and equally evasive, who will entrance and hold the reader spellbound. Unfortunately, the author has not been as meticulous in creating a setting for the novel, for though A Yankee from the West is set near Chicago in the 1880s or 1890s, the scene might as easily be any locale of North America.

Literary World, 1/21/1899, p. 22. N. Y. Times Book Review, 4/15/1899, p. 246.

Green Valley, by Katharine Reynolds. With Frontispiece Illustration by Nana French Bickford. Boston: Little Brown and Company, 1919. 287p.

Green Valley was written, according to the author's note, as an outlet for a serious case of homesickness, and a more sentimental or nostalgic story of a little town would be hard to find. This friendly, perfect village is located just west of Chicago, and is believed to represent the community of Lombard probably in the second decade of the twentieth century. In it, a slowly blossoming romance develops between the town's fairest daughter, Nanny Ainslee, and John Churchill Knight, the young heir to the Churchill estate, who though born and reared in India, returns to the empty family home to become a favorite minister in the community. Woven into this ultra-sweet story is a prohibition message which provides a bit of insight into the tenor of those times when local option allowed many communities to vote out the open saloon.

Book Review Digest, 1919, p. 421.

The Trial of Mary Todd Lincoln, by James A. Rhodes and Dean Jauchius. Indianapolis [and] New York: The Bobbs-Merrill Company, Inc., Publishers, [1959.] 187p.

Ten years after Lincoln's death, his widow is legally declared insane, committed to an institution, and removed of $56,000. Little information is available concerning Mary Lincoln's sanity trial, but Rhodes and Jauchius have a theory which explains that singular and unaccountable event. The Trial of Mary Todd Lincoln is an account of the trial as it might have occurred had the lawyer for the defense been aggressive and forceful. The authors, in attempting to demonstrate the injustice of the verdict, present a saccharine portrayal of a weak and friendless widow, betrayed by her only living son, and used as a political pawn by former friends of her deceased husband.

Book Review Digest, 1959, p. 834.

Link Rover in Chicago; or, Making Things Fairly Hum, by Gale Richards. New York: Street & Smith; 238 William St[reet,] March 11, 1905. 28p. (Young Rover Library, No. 25)

Link Rover, lovable, exasperating black sheep of the family and bane of his teacher's existence while at boarding school, is on an outing to Chicago when he encounters Mr. Darcy, who offers him a job as an entertainer. At first, Link believes Darcy a swindler, but is convinced, at length, of his sincerity, and joins the show where he is a great success and becomes involved in numerous adventures, including one concerning the police and a watch. Based on a similar series concerning Jack Harkaway, a British schoolboy with a talent for finding adventure, the Link Rover series has a definite British flavor.

A Self-Made Man's Wife, Her Letters to Her Son, Being the Woman's View of Certain Famous Correspondence, by Charles Eustace Merriman, [pseud.] Author of "Letters from a Son to His Self-Made Father." Illustrated by F. T. Richards. New York and London: G. P. Putnam's Sons; The Knickerbocker Press, 1905. 249p.

Sixteen letters attributed to the wife of the Self-Made Merchant (see Lorimer, Letters from a Self-Made Merchant to His Son and Old Gorgon Graham) in essence form a sequel to, but in many instances parody, the earlier works. Written to her son Pierrepont, during his honeymoon and the first year of his marriage, the letters offer sage advice, if somewhat tempered by sentiment and mother love, on the proper care and treatment of a wife, the pains and joys of quarreling, the retention of ideals, the prudence of household economics, and numerous other topics concerning love, marriage and family life. The lady proves herself an enthusiastic correspondent, illustrating her points with pleasant reminiscences from her past, short anecdotes about friends and family, occasional pointed jibes at her meat-packer husband, and many memorable adages. Seldom does a sequel or parody equal the original in quality, but in this instance the lady gives her husband some stiff competition, taking second place in time and sequence only.

Book Review Digest, 1905, p. 242-3.

Rose Lind, by M. A. [pseud.] Chicago: Giles E. Miller; 78-81 Fifth Avenue, 1897. 266p.

Rose Lind, the pride of Coon Creek, Illinois, and her doting father's special joy, is made very aware of her poor social standing by friends whose families have grown wealthy, while the Linds have remained in relative poverty. In an attempt to remedy the situation, Jesse Lind entrusts his entire life's savings to Daniel Ford, who has recently become wealthy through stock manipulation. Misunderstandings lead the Linds to believe that they are penniless through much of the novel, which focuses mainly on opinions and interpretations of the stock market and the Ford transaction. However, the author, a bicycle enthusiast includes a vivid description of a local Independence Day celebration and a rousing cycle race (won, of course, by Rose Lind). Several pages at the end of the novel are devoted to the author's interest in cycling and his records in cycling events.

In the Dark, by Donald Richberg. Author of "The Shadow Men." Chicago: Forbes & Company, 1912. 308p.

A mildly suspenseful mystery-romance from the early 1900s, In the Dark concerns Gilbert Winston a staid Chicago bondsman who involves himself with the affairs of a young woman in distress, and encounters love, adventure, intrigue, and a very unsympathetic sister (his own) before the problem is solved. In the Dark is an odd mixture of nineteenth century characters, affairs, and social concerns in a twentieth century setting complete with automobiles, extension phones, and electric lights. The plot is rather old-fashioned and a bit exaggerated. but the hero has a delightful, wry sense of humor which keeps the story moving despite its faults.

A Man of Purpose, A Novel by Donald Richberg. New York: Thomas Y. Crowell Company, Publishers, [1922.] 329p.

A Man of Purpose is a very personal narrative of an Illinois lawyer and political leader in the late 1800s and early 1900s. The author draws freely on his own experience as he describes the man of purpose, Rodney Merrill, as a child prodigy, a university student, and a young Chicago lawyer becoming involved in political affairs. Later, Merrill becomes a gubernatorial candidate in Illinois and eventually a government official in Washington, D. C. during the first World War. Basically, however, the story tells of the influence of the women in his life--particularly his wife and another woman whom he loves but with whom he avoids intimacy for reasons of propriety. Revealing, introspective, and absorbing, the tale seems compelled by a diarist's insistent need for self-revelation. Lack of artifice and close adherence to the realities of a lawyer's personal and professional life, including bitter failures as well as successes, provide this novel with an aura of authenticity further accentuated by the abrupt ending.

Book Review Digest, 1922, p. 453-4.

The Shadow Men, by Donald Richberg. Chicago: Forbes & Company, 1911. 312p.

John Quincey Byford possesses neither the strength of character to shun wrongdoing nor the tragic flaw necessary to impel him into a life of crime; therefore, he becomes a willing scapegoat for his friends and associates. During his college days, an ill-timed attempt at lessening the impact of a dangerous prank results in Byford's expulsion. His later experiences in the world of business follow the same pattern, as he is used time and time again as a convenient pawn for his employers and an unquestioning shadow man for his supervisors. Basically concerned with business ethics, the novel has a thread of romance running through it which lightens the heavy-handed, moralistic treatment of the theme, but helps little in making the tale more credible. The setting is Chicago and New York in the early 1900s.

Book Review Digest, 1912, p. 380.

Bunker Hill to Chicago, A Story by Eloise O. Randall Richberg. Chicago: The Dibble Publishing Company; 334 Dearborn Street, 1893. 156p.

John Sawyer, a New England blacksmith with a gift for invention, devises a machine for pulling stumps which has the potential for making him a wealthy man. Moving from Bunker Hill to Chicago, where the machine can be more easily manufactured and distributed, Sawyer begins to accumulate a fortune, while his five daughters work hard at spending it and putting on airs. John Sawyer is an unpretentious, practical man who recognizes his daughters' faults, and after considerable soul-searching. devises a plan to prepare the girls to assume their rightful positions in Chicago society. John Sawyer's plan is unique and effective, and Mrs. Richberg's interpretations of his efforts on behalf of the five headstrong ladies is a delight. The setting is Chicago in the 1880s; the theme is the adjustment of the nouveau riche to established society.

Chester, A Novel by Herbert B. Robinson. Chicago [and] New York: W. B. Conkey Company, [1898.] 145p.

George Chester, pampered son of a Chicago banker, is dissipated, bored, and discontent until he meets Jane Hadding at a masquerade. Jane's common background causes George's father to consider her just another of George's flings until the two are married. Marriage to a fine woman dissuades George from his crash course to ruin, and the death of his father rescues him from poverty and want, making him a man at last. Chester is set in Chicago and southern Illinois during the 1890s.

Dr. Caldwell; or, The Trail of the Serpent, by Edward R. Roe. Chicago: Laird & Lee, Publishers, Copyright 1889. 251p. (The Pastime series, Vol. 33, October, 1889)

A temperance tract in support of the theory that alcoholism is inherited, this novel concerns Dr. Charles Caldwell, author of an outstanding piece of research on alcoholism entitled Alcohol as a Psychologica1 Poison, who demonstrates the validity of his thesis through his own sad life. Knowing full well that there are alcoholic tendencies in his family, Dr. Caldwell resorts to brandy when his lover's suit is rejected by Maria Torrence, and his drunkenness eventually proves to be the death of him. Through his association with the Torrence family, he further proves his theory by describing the fate of each of Nat Torrence's descendants. Nat, himself an alcoholic, has five children--Edgar who dies an alcoholic in a mental institution; Elizabeth, who becomes addicted to morphine; James, who becomes a compulsive social drinker; Thomas, who abstains but suffers deep depression and symptoms of mania; and Maria, the only one of the five to live a happy, normal life. The novel is depressing and obviously biased against alcohol; however, it expresses a prevalent nineteenth century attitude toward alcoholism, as well as some interesting theories concerning cause, prevention, and treatment. The scene is Chicago.

Lake Front, [by] Ruth Russell. Wood Cuts by Ruth Kellogg. Chicago: Thomas S. Rockwell Company, 1931. 291p.

See No. 210.