First published in 1924, Charles E. Pearce's account of some of the most gruesome and intriguing unsolved murders of the nineteenth century continues to captivate amateur sleuths to this day. Pearce guides us through a fascinating world of wicked assassinations, missed clues, ingenious stratagems and cunning deceits in one last attempt to track down historical villains who evaded justice. It is impossible to establish the truth beyond reasonable doubt in any of the cases at this distance, but the light which Pearce sheds on the investigations and contemporary testimony, encourages us to evaluate the evidence anew and using our own Holmesian powers, to come up with new theories.