Show I Refreshing Refreshing Tales of Trapper Sleuth Retain Interest Grizzly by Reginald eginald Barker Marked by Originality By LYLE DOWNING Reginald C. C Barker Bu the author of Gentleman Grizzly has dared to hurdle the barriers of precedent He has written a detective story without without with with- out reverting to the antiquated d bag of tricks for claptrap plot and hackneyed characters which has been the source of supply for a sCOre of ot mystery detective story writers From out of the wilds of the Salmon river country in Idaho Barker Barker Bar Bar- ker has brought an altogether rew fictional sleuth This detective wears no false The me hirsute hirsute hir- hir sute appendages which hide his weather beaten visage are real honest goodness ers This epochal sleuth works without ut magnifying magnifying mag- mag glasses In other words he heIs heIs Is no Sherlock who sits in Ia an armchair armchair arm arm- chair and solves murder mysteries and makes deductions which lead to the capture of the master master mas- mas ter criminal Barker could have perhaps titled his story The Purloined Hatpin or The Empty Moonshine Jug but buthe buthe he didn't even care cae to fall in line Une with other detective story writers even In so far as labeling his story Gentleman Grizzly the amateur detective of the Salmon river Country country Coun try is a refreshing old fellow who uses what he terms horse sense in bagging desperadoes In the he Idaho wilds He runs down murderers and burglars using methods so 50 simple they are actually unique In Gentleman Grizzly the reader does not meet the insidious Japanese Japanese Japa- Japa nese servant the enigmatic one one- eyed gardener or the recluse mil mu- Neither does he f follow the tedious process of some pseudo sleuth trying to find who stole the family jewels In other words Gentleman Grizzly follows new paths and proves there Is just such sucha a mystery in Idaho as there Is in inlew New lew York or London To be more specific Gentleman Grizzly deals with the adventures of an old trapper recounted in a series ot of short stories They are arevell well vell written and well worth reading L. L C C. C Page Co Boston Mass |