The Long ATM. By Samuel M. Gardenhire. (Harper and Brothers.
6s.)—The Long- Arm which is depicted on the cover of this book in a truly startling fashion belongs to the law, and is
nob the arm of coincidence. It will, therefore, be correctly sur- mised that the volume is a collection of detective-stories, and the detective, like• many other detectives of fiction, is an amateur. Mr. Le Droit Conners, however, "goes one better" than some of his predecessors, and does not build up his theories by super- imposing a structure of close reasoning on a foundation of the observation of some very small indication of the truth. On the contrary, he arrives at his conclusions by intuition, and the author obligingly fits the facts to carry out the theory of his hero. The sketches are very fairly good. Indeed, "The Case of the Ambassador" may be said to contain that extraordinary thing, an original crime ; but this is the only story which is not of ■ a rather conventional type. The book belongs to that large category which is suitable for reading in railway trains or in other places of detention ; but Le Droit Conners cannot be called a very noteworthy creation.
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