Chronicles of Martin Hewitt

by Arthur Morrison

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from THE HOLFORD WILL CASE. At one time, in common, perhaps, with most people, I took a sort of languid, amateur interest in questions of psychology, and was impelled thereby to plunge into the pages of the many curious and rather abstruse books which attempt to deal with phenomena of mind, soul and sense. Three things of the real nature of which, I am convinced, no man will ever learn more than we know at present? which is nothing. From these I strayed into the many volumes of Transactions of the Psychical Research Society, with an occasional by-excursion into mental telepathy and theosophy; the last, a thing whereof my Philistine intelligence obstinately refused to make head or tail. It was while these things were occupying part of my attention that I chanced to ask Hewitt whether, in the course of his divers odd and out- of-the-way experiences, he had met with any such weird adventures as were detailed in such profusionin the books of " authenticated" spooks, doppel- gangers, poltergeists, clairvoyance, and so forth. " Well," Hewitt answered, with reflection, " I haven't been such a wallower in the uncanny as some of the worthy people who talk at large in those books of yours, and, as a matter of fact, my little adventures, curious as some of them may seem, have been on the whole of the most solid and matter-of-fact description. One or two things have happened that perhaps your ' psychical' people might be interested in, but they've mostly been found to be capable of a disappointingly simple explanation. One case of some genuine psychological interest, however, I have had; although there's nothing even in that which isn't a matter of well-known scientific possibility." And he proceeded to tell me the story that I have set down here, as well as I can, from recollection. ...

Genres: Mystery, Classics, Short Stories

267 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1895

About the author

Arthur George Morrison (1863-1945) was an English author and journalist, known for his realistic novels about London's East End and for his detective stories. In 1890, he left his job as a clerk at the People's Palace and joined the editorial staff of the Evening Globe newspaper. The following year, he published a story titled "A Street", which was subsequently published in book form in Tales of Mean Streets (1894). Around this time, Morrison was also producing detective short stories which emulated those of Conan Doyle about Sherlock Holmes. Three volumes of Martin Hewitt stories were published before the publication of the novel for which Morrison is most famous: A Child of the Jago (1896). Other less well-received novels and stories followed, until Morrison effectively retired from writing fiction around 1913. Between then and his death, he seems to have concentrated on building his collection of Japanese prints and paintings.

Amongst his other works are Martin Hewitt: Investigator (1894), Zig-Zags at the Zoo (1894), Chronicles of Martin Hewett (1895), Adventures of Martin Hewett (1896), and The Hole in the Wall (1902).

Reviews

[Kavita · Rating 3 out of 5]

I've never read this author before but this appeared to be a good old-fashioned Victorian mystery, so I picked it up. The anthology is composed of six short stories, mysteries investigated by the investigator Martin Hewitt, and narrated by his friend, Colonel Brett.

The Ivy Cottage Mystery: In this one, a cottage room with beautiful artwork on its walls is destroyed and the tenant is found murdered soon after. I think this was the best story in the book. - 5 stars

The Nicobar Bullion Case: This one was rather boring. When gold bullion disappears from a sinking ship, Hewitt gets to work. - 2 stars

The Holford Will Case: An adopted daughter is at danger of losing all her inheritance unless Hewitt finds the right will - and the culprit attempting to defraud her. I was hugely surprised to know that adoptive children did not automatically inherit in those days! Decent one - 3 stars

The Case of the Missing Hand: An abusive man is found dead with his hand cut off. His stepsons are suspected, but are they the real culprits? We go on the gypsy trail here a bit, but still interesting. - 3 stars

The Case of Laker, Absconded: When a reliable bank clerk disappears with the week's collections, everyone thinks he has absconded with stolen money. But the truth proves to be far more devious. The real criminals are not represented in the story, so it's rather vague and boring. - 2 stars

The Case of the Lost Foreigner: A French man is arrested, behaving in a disturbed manner. What is there behind his obvious loss of memory and mental suffering? I found this story highly far-fetched and ridiculous, not to mention xenophobic and class-ridden. - 1 star

Overall, only the first story really made the mark, and the rest were either average or downright boring. The book is however, worth a read for those who genuinely enjoy a look at a different world that no longer exists.

[Riju Ganguly · Rating 2 out of 5]

A colourless Detective who keeps things to himself rather than sharing it with his amanuensis or readers, plots that are curiously pedestrian, and writing that's completely devoid of wit and charm— and there you have the so-called chronicles of Martin Hewitt.
The first story in this collection had the potential of becoming something truly remarkable. Alas, with the Detective explaining things through a huge monologue instead of making his readers take part in the investigation, it lost all elements of fair play.
Interesting historical piece, though.

[Susan · Rating 3 out of 5]

The investigations of Martin Hewitt. As told by his friend Colonel Brett
1. The Ivy Cottage Mystery
Who killed Gavin Kingscote and why.
2. The Nicobar Bullion Case
As the 'Nicobar' approaches Plymouth with its cargo of gold bullion a collision occurs and it sinks. The salvage team find 2 missing cases and Martin Hewitt is asked to investigate.
3. The Holford Will Case
Hewitt is asked to find the missing Holford will, which has strangely disappeared.
4. The Case of the Missing Hand
Can Hewitt prove that the Foster brothers are not guilty of murder
5. The Case of Laker, Abscounded
When an insurance corporation is robbed clerk Charles Laker is the obvious suspect, but is he.
6. The Case of the Lost Foreigner
When a French man suffering from aphasia is picked up by the police Hewitt tries to unravel his ramblings
Overall an enjoyable set of Victorian mysteries

[Robyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Free | Only okay, not realistically solved | These are not Fair Play mysteries, the detective researches and finds clues that aren't shared, and relies on specialized knowledge unavailable to the reader. It's also not legitimate logic, instead the solutions are filled with leaps to conclusions and the crime made to fit them. That said, Hewitt is a more congenial detective than some of his style, and it's a quick read, and an interesting slice of the time.

[Tim Blackburn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Originally published in 1895, this book is a collection of mysteries starring the detective, Martin Hewitt. Capitalizing on the enormous success of the Sherlock Holmes stories, Arthur Morrison created a very similar scientific detective, Martin Hewitt. The mysteries are original and entertaining to read but I couldn't help but think this was a knock-off of Sherlock Holmes which detracted from my enjoyment. Still a good book of mystery short stories.

[Lucy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cracking good stuff, no racism in this collection so 5 stars. Just the sort of thing I like - reminded me a lot of the Thorndyke stories.

[Janet · Rating 4 out of 5]

A collection of detective stories, set at the end of the 19th century. Martin Hewitt is a rather bloodless creation, but the plots are varied and interesting.

[Whistler's Mom · Rating 4 out of 5]

A modest Sherlock Holmes with a twinkle in his eye.

A critic once described P.I. Martin Hewitt as the "poor man's Sherlock Holmes." I hope he didn't mean that Arthur Morrison was an inferior writer or his detective less effective than Holmes. If he did, I disagree.

There are two "forgotten" men here - Martin Hewitt and Arthur Morrison. Morrison was a journalist and writer and a man of wide interests. His Martin Hewitt is a shrewd, hard-working detective who pulls off some fine work. But, whereas Sherlock Holmes was as flamboyant as his creator Arthur Conan Doyle, Martin Hewitt is conspicuous by not BEING conspicuous. He's described as a very ordinary gentleman - a man who blends into his surroundings. Holmes is always the center of attention. Hewitt goes out of his way not to attract any.

A former law clerk who had success investigating cases for his employer, he has set up a modest business and achieved a modest amount of fame. He's like Holmes in two respects. Both work alone and use casual employees when necessary, but accept no more cases than they can handle personally. And both have a friend who obligingly writes up their cases for the public. In Hewitt's case, it's the journalist Brett, who takes part in the detecting or writes of cases Hewitt has told him about.

The stories were published in magazines and gathered into four books that appeared between 1894 and 1903. This one was published in 1895 and contains six of Hewitt's cases. My favorite is THE CASE OF LAKER, ABSCONDED because it shows Hewitt at his best - shrewd, creative, dogged, and kindly. In that case, Hewitt is working (as he frequently does) for an insurance company trying to recover stolen money.

Another (THE HOLFORD WILL CASE) occurs because of a quirk of English law. Traditionally, an adopted child did not inherit if the parent died intestate. And THE NICOBAR BULLION case shows Hewitt-the-hustling-businessman, learning about cases of bullion missing after a ship wreck and offering his services to the shipping company to recover them. Would Sherlock Holmes have donned a diving costume and walked on the seafloor to investigate a case?

All the stories are charming peeks into Edwardian life and Hewitt himself is a wonderfully likable man. While Sherlock Holmes dazzles his clients with brilliance, Hewitt quietly reassures them with his comfortable personality. His kindness, sympathy, and generosity have the reader rooting for his success in every story.

Conan Doyle created a memorable character and was a tireless self-promoter. He deserved his success and fame. It's a shame that Arthur Morrison was as modest and unambitious as his detective Martin Hewitt, because it meant that his work faded into oblivion until it was restored to us by the miracle of e-publishing. If you love old mysteries or if you're interested in the Edwardian daily life, you shouldn't miss these.

All four books are available in collections for a few dollars or individually for free. This one should let you know if you want to read more of Morrison's books, without risking a penny.

[Jeff Hobbs]

Read so far:

*The Ivy Cottage mystery --
*The Nicobar bullion case --
*The Holford will case --
*The case of the missing hand --
*The case of Laker, absconded --
*The case of the lost foreigner --

[John · Rating 2 out of 5]

Alright for a quick, lightweight read but these short stories are very much all along the same lines. A strange scenario emerges, the narrator appears rather dim and never has any sort of clue, Hewitt goes off to see somebody then comes back and solves the case. Very predictable.