Lester Leith (4)

Debonair, quick-witted, and wealthy, he enjoyed the perks of his fortune, checking the newspapers in the comfort of his penthouse apartment for new burglaries and robberies to solve, and from which he could reclaim the stolen treasures.

He has a valet, Beaver, nicknamed “Scuttle” by Leith, who is a secret plant of Sergeant Arthur Ackley. Leith, of course, is aware that his manservant is an undercover operative, using that knowledge to plant misinformation to frustrate the policeman again and again.

Erle Stanley Gardner’s most popular pulp creation was undoubtedly Lester Leith, whose adventures are recorded in more than 60 novelets. Lester Leith was a Robin Hood of detectives who solved baffling mysteries in order to crack down on cracksmen. Instead of robbing the rich to help the poor, Lester Leith robbed crooks “of their ill-gotten spoils” and gave the proceeds to deserving charities — less “20 percent for costs of collection.” Lester Leith is pure nostalgia — and great fun. In this collection, Ellery Queen presents five of Lester Leith’s sparkling, audacious adventures.

Comely hula dancers go “around the island,” lanky cowboys go around the town, and the police go round and round, when Lester Leith interests himself in the mystifying case of the drugged guard.