OLD ELECTRICITY, THE LIGHTNING DETECTIVE; OR, THROUGH BY NIGHT

Cleveland: Ohio: The Arthur Westbrook Company, 1920. First printing,thus. 1920's(?) Undated reprint, part of Westbrook's American Detective Series. this being No. 58. Copyrighted in 1881, "Old Electricity" was originally published in 1885’s Old Sleuth Library. In 1892 it was considerably expanded into a novel. Creases at front cover, paper very brittle, else a near fine, tight copy of this Dime Novel. 287 pages. The worst of all plunderers, malicious mail and express train robbers, have frustrated Indiana law enforcement for too long. The best thief-catcher in Washington's secret service force, detective Wayne Winthrop, falls among them, unawares, while in disguise. A mission to derail their murderous cartel is formulated right there, in the Ohio and Mississippi Railroad Station, Vincennes, Indiana. His reputation among criminals is well earned. The superstitious describe him as being in league with spirits of the air, or with the devil himself. Some say he disappears as mysteriously as he appears, sometimes to the roar and flash of thunder and lightning. They call him "Old Electricity". He's a master of disguise, a skilled forger and a dabbler in phrenology. Can Wayne Winthrop break the death grip of their lethal crime sprees? Or will he go before "Judge Lynch", and be strung up by the neck in a hangman's noose? All Vintage Paperbacks come sealed in 2.5 mil plastic bag and taped closed with removable tape which will not tear the covers if it sticks to them when the book is removed. . First Edition. Pictorial Wrappers. Very Good-Near Fine/No Jacket. Vintage Paperback.