By Jeremy Bentham.
In this typically exhaustive treatise, Jeremy Bentham outlines an innovative theory of what morals should be the subject of legislation. How to do it will require an entirely new psychology of law and human behavior, accompanied by a thoroughly new sociology of law and legislation. Bentham was way ahead of his time, indeed, way ahead of the psychology that underlies moral legislation even in the 21st century.
NY. Harrow and Heston Classic Reprint. 1823. 248p.
By Anthony Comstock.
Or, how the people are deceived and robbed, and youth corrupted. My object is to expose the multitudinous schemes and devices of the sharper to deceive and rob the unwary and credulous through the mails; to warn honest and simple-minded persons ; to shield our youth from debauching and corrupting influences ; to arouse a public sentiment against the vampires who are casting deadly poison into the fountain of moral purity in the children ; and at the same time expose to public indignation the infidels and liberals who defend these moral cancer-planters.
New York: J.H. Brown, 1880. 576p.
By Montagu Saunders.
It needs a considerable amount of assurance to add yet another book to the comparatively long list of those which have been written upon the subject of Dickens's unfinished story, and it is no sufficient justification to assert that the writer is sincerely convinced that his contribution to the discussion will afford some assistance in the solution of the problem, seeing that practically everyone who has ventilated his ideas upon the subject has expressed a similar conviction. Proctor, for instance, who was the first to examine Edwin Drood in a quasi-scientific way, was absolutely satisfied that in identifying Datchery with Edwin, he had discovered the " mystery " which Dickens had taken such pains to hide, and so strongly did he feel that his solution was correct, that he exhibited considerable impatience with those who failed to swallow it whole. Mr J. Cuming Walters, again, the originator of the highly ingenious Helena-Datchery theory, is equally convinced that he has unearthed Dickens's secret, and, like Proctor, he has supported his views by means of numerous arguments drawn from the text, which, if they do not carry conviction to every mind, are nevertheless sufficiently weighty to call for very careful examination, more particularly as they have succeeded in securing as adherents of the theory two such acute critics and eminent scholars as Dr Henry Jackson and Sir W. R. Nicoll. In these circumstances the present writer considers that it would be presumption on his part to express any definite opinion as to the accuracy of his own conclusions, and he feels that some apology is needed for the dogmatism which, upon a re-reading of this little essay, seems to him at times to be only too apparent.
Cambridge, UK: University Press, 1914. 184p.
By William Atherton DuPuy.
“May I ask you to close your eyes for a moment and conjure up the picture that is filed away in your mind under the heading, "detective"?
There! You have him. He is a large man of middle age. His tendency is toward stoutness. The first detail of him that stands out in your conception is his shoes. In stories you have read, plays you have seen, the detective has had square-toed shoes. You noticed his shoes that time when the house was robbed and a plain clothes man came out and snooped about.
These shoes are a survival of the days when the detective walked his beat; for the sleuth, of course, is a graduate policeman. He must have been a large man to have been a policeman, and he must have attained some age to have passed through the grades. Such men as he always put on flesh with age.
New York: Frederick A. Stokes Co., 1916. 247p.
By Albert Holland Rhodes.
A Strange Tale Taken from the Notes and Memoirs of Hadlock Jones by his friend, Dr. Lawrence L. Langdon. “In 1883 a party of three English adventurers penetrated into the heart of Maori land. They tell of a splendid race of dark men ruled by a young white chief.”
Holland Publishing (1912) 72 pages.
By William H. Van Orden.
Also known as The Twenty-Third Street Mystery By Police Captain James (actually William H. Van Orden). This is a rare detective story, possibly a precursor of The Shadow first featured by Orson Welles on his radio program in the 1940-1941.
NY. Harrow and Heston Classic Reprint. (1888) 239 pages.
By Alexandra Ganser.
The book traces the construction and function of the pirate in transatlantic American literature from the late 17th century to the Civil War, exploring in what ways the cultural imaginary teased out the pirate’s ambivalent potential as a figure of both identification and Othering, and how it has been used to negotiate ideas of legitimacy. The study recasts piracy as a discursive category moving in a continuum between the propagation of (post-)colonial adventure and accumulation on the one hand and critical commentary on exploitation and oppression on the other. Reading piracy narratives as symptomatic of various crisis scenarios in the US context, the book examines how the pirate was imbued with (de)legitimatory meaning during such periods in both elite and popular texts.
Cham: Springer Nature, 2020. 302p.
By J. W. Buel.
An authentic and thrilling history of the most noted bandits of ancient or modern times, An authentic and thrilling history of the most noted bandits of ancient or modern times, The Younger Brothers, Jesse And Frank James, and their Comrades in Crime. Compiled from reliable sources only and containing the latest facts in regard to these celebrated outlaws.
Historical Publishing Company. (1881) 416 pages.
By D. Quentin Miller.
James Baldwin, one of the major African American writers of the twentieth century, has been the subject of a substantial body of literary criticism. As a prolific and experimental author with a marginal perspective—a black man during segregation and the Civil Rights era, a homosexual at a time when tolerance toward gays was not common—Baldwin has fascinated readers for over half a century. Yet Baldwin’s critics have tended to separate his weighty, complex body of work and to examine it piecemeal. A Criminal Power: James Baldwin and the Law is the first thematic study to analyze the complete scope of his work. It accomplishes this through an expansive definition and thorough analysis of the social force that oppressed Baldwin throughout his life: namely, the law. Baldwin, who died in 1987, attempted suicide in 1949 at the age of 25 after spending eight days in a French prison following an absurd arrest for “receiving stolen goods”—a sheet that his acquaintance had taken from a hotel. This seemingly trite incident made Baldwin painfully aware of what he would later call the law’s “criminal power.”
Columbus, OH: Ohio State University Press, 2012. 187p,
By Thomas Holmes.
Edward Donald. “In the various chapters that make up this volume I have made no attempt to deal with the whole of the humanity that finds its way into London Police Courts I have but selected a few individuals who strikingly illustrate human or social problems. Each of those individuals was well known to me, and many of them have cost me anxious thought and prolonged care.”
Harrow and Heston Classic Reprint. (1902) 233 pages.
Unknown Author.
A Thrilling Story of the Adventures and Exploits of Frank and Jesse James, Missouri's Twin Wraiths of Robbery and Murder. "Containing a complete sketch of the romance of guerrilla warfare; together with a graphic and detailed account of the robberies and murders of twenty years; and the last daring feats of the James' confederacy in the robbery and murder on the Rock Island train, July 14th, 1881, and at Glendale, Mo., Sept. 17th, 1881; to which is added an account of the tragic end of Jesse James, shot by a confederate April 3rd, 1882." (From Worldcat)
Chicago: Laird and Lee, 1893. 367p.
By Capt. Kennedy.
A true and authentic life history of the most noted bandit that ever lived. A man who has overthrown the government of Mexico and defied the United States.
Baltimore, MD: I. and M. Ottenheimer, 1916. 145p.
By Henry Berry Lowrie.
The great North Carolina bandit, with biographical sketch of his associates by Mary C. Norment. Being a Complete History of the Modern Robber Band in the County of Robeson and State of North Carolina. “It will be remembered that the facts recorded in this book were written by one who knew the cause and result of this unfortunate period of Robeson's history, having lived "through the thick or the fight", and gained the information recorded by actual experience.”
Lumberton, N.C. : Lumbee Pub. Co.,1909. 192p.
Edited by Thomas Seccombe.
Original Studies of Eminent Scoundrels by Various Hands. CONTENTS. 1. Alice Perrers Favourite of King Henry III. 2. Alice Arden Murderess. 3. Moll Cutpurse Thief and Receiver. 4. Frances Howard Countess of Somerset. 5. Barbara Villiers Duchess of Cleveland6. Jenny Diver Pickpocket 7. Teresia Constantia Phillips. 8. Elizabeth Brownrigg Cruelty personified. 9. Elizabeth Canning Imposter. 10. Elizabeth Chudleigh Duchess of Kingston 11. Mary Bateman “ The Yorkshire Witch" 12. Mary Anne Clarke.
London: T.F. Urwin, 1911. 373p.
By George Bidwell.
Bidwell’s Travels: Forging his own chains. “Freed a human wreck, a wonderful survival and a more wonderful rise in the world. To-day he has a national reputation as a writer, speaker and is considered an authority on all social problems. He was tried at the Old Bailey and sentenced for life. charged with the £1,000,000 forgery on the bank of England. This story shows that the events of his life surpass the imaginations of our famous novelists, its thrilling scenes, hair-breadth escapes and marvelous adventures are not a record of crime, but are proofs of that in the world of wrongdoing success is failure.
Bidwell publishing Hartford (1897) 295 pages.
By H. B. Irving.
This is an exhaustive account of the infamous Judge , “1st Baron… (15 May 1645 – 18 April 1689), also known as "the Hanging Judge", was a Welsh judge. He became notable during the reign of King James II, rising to the position of Lord Chancellor (and serving as Lord High Steward in certain instances). His conduct as a judge was to enforce royal policy, resulting in an historical reputation for severity and bias.”
London William Heinemann (ca. 1898) 383 pages.
By Fred D. Pasley.
The Biography of a Self-Made Man. “Im getting sick of fellows like Hughes using me to attract glory to themselves,” said Al.
Harrow and Heston Classic Reprint. (1930) 208 pages.
By Thomas Furlong.
Late Chief of the Secret Service of the Missouri Pacific Railway, known as the Gould System; the Allegheny Valley Railway of Pennsylvania, and first Chief of Police of Oil City, Pa. 35 real detective stories, hitherto unpublished facts connected with some of Mr. Furlong's greatest cases—Other interesting incidents of his long and strenuous career which really began on September 14, 1862, when he was detailed from his company, (Co. G., 1st Pennsylvania Rifles, better known as the Pennsylvania Bucktails) for special service.
Harrow and Heston Classic Reprint. (ca. 1870) 284 pages.
By Anthony Trollope
A spirited defense by bright and friendly story-teller Anthony Trollope, of Cicero up to the peak of his career and during the dying days of the Roman Republic. Whose side was he on? Trollope was certainly on Cicero’s. But Cicero?
Harrow and Heston Classic Reprint. NY. Harper. 1881. 330p.
By Chas. A. Siringo.
The true life of the most daring young outlaw of the age. He was the leading spirit in the bloody Lincoln County, New Mexico, war. When a bullet from Sheriff Pat Garett's pistol pierced his breast he was only twenty-one years of age, and had killed twenty-one men, not counting Indians. His six years of daring young outlawry has never been equalled in the annals of criminal history.
Read-Me.Org Classic Reprint. (1920) 145p.
