When a Cop has to Multi-Task

 

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Mr. J.G. Reeder was created by Edgar Wallace in a series of short stories beginning in 1924. Reeder is a fun character--a former cop now working directly for the "Director of Public Prosecution," Reeder is middle-aged, wears out-of-date clothes and gives the impression of being ordinary and unimpressive. But he actually has a keen mind and an ability to anticipate how a criminal thinks.

The first eight Reeder stories were collected in The Mind of J.G. Reeder in 1925, published in England. In the U.S., the book was retitled The Murder Book of J.G. Reeder, with the individual stories sometimes retitled and arranged in a different order. Title changes, of course, are done by editors who think a new title is catchier for their specific audience. I have no idea why the stories were re-ordered, though the tales are self-contained enough not to matter.

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A good example of how much fun these stories are is "Treasure Hunt," first published in the November 22, 1924 issue of Flynn's Weekly. 

Reeder is looking into the death of Lady Tithermite, who apparently fell off the ferry during a channel crossing. At the same time, an ex-con out on parole, Lew Kohl, is planning on killing Reeder--the man who sent him to prison. Kohl also hopes to find Reeder's secret stash of money, since he's a proponent of the theory that all cops on the take and stash ill-gotten gains away for their retirement.

Reeder decides that Lady Tithermite was murdered by her husband and was never on the ferry, but he doesn't have enough evidence to get a search warrent and find her body. But... well, perhaps a certain hint dropped to Lew Kohl will convince the ex-con that Reeder does have a secret treasure and use Kohl to solve the Tithermite case. 

It really is a fun story, as all of Wallace's yarns usually are. You can read it yourself online HERE.