Small octavo [173x122mm] half red calf marbled boards four raised bands (spine partly split/gilt rubbed/tips worn & scuffed) vi +280pp. Coat of arm bookplate of J.Butler Bowdon of Pleasington Hall. The frontis and a few other plates slightly cropped at the lower edge, titlepage with light brown stain and adhesion marks in gutter. Some foxing/fingering, one text leaf loose and chipped to edge (no loss). Plates are unusual some being ovals in shaded surrounds but some of these have offset to the opposite text page although this does not affect readability. *This Scottish author was one of the first to make use of sensationalism in a crime novel, the book includes criminal conspiracies, mind bending drugs, victimization, and secrets from the past. This is also one of the first crime novels about race horse nobbling so that the criminal gambler may win. This is quite a scare first edition by a short lived author and journalist.