More than skin deep: Classic Book Guide and Free Edition
More than skin deep: author and translator credits, catalogue synopsis, subjects and links to the Gutenberg reading formats.
More than skin deep is catalogued by Project Gutenberg with author credits for Gardner, Erle Stanley (1889–1970).
Catalogue synopsis
Project Gutenberg supplies this automated synopsis of the opening text:
More than skin deep by Erle Stanley Gardner is a crime fiction short story written in the early 20th century. Set in a small mountain town, it centers on a supposed safe-blowing robbery and murder, contrasting flashy “modern” forensic showmanship with steady, common-sense policing. The likely topic is a staged crime exposed by a local constable who trusts character and clear observation over superficial clues. In Mesa Flat, merchant Silas K. Mears raises the alarm: his safe has been blown, $10,000 in gold stolen, and clerk Ben Drake lies dead. A celebrated city detective, Big Bill Poindexter, storms in, dazzles the townsfolk with fingerprint talk, and pins the crime on bank cashier Dick Lamb, even “finding” stained overalls and a sack with stray gold coins. Calm constable Dad Anderson keeps his head: he notes the suspect prints on the safe are upside down from someone casually sitting atop it the day before, and the blast marks show dynamite was ignited inside an already opened safe, not blown from without. Reasoning that Mears staged the robbery to evade debts and killed Drake when the clerk surprised him, Dad stops Mears from fleeing, clears Lamb, and escorts the shaken family home—underscoring that what matters in detection runs deeper than skin.
Book and edition facts
- Title: More than skin deep
- Author credits: Gardner, Erle Stanley (1889–1970)
- Catalogue language: English
Catalogue subjects
- Constables -- Fiction
- Detective and mystery stories
- Short stories
- Western stories
Read this edition
View the complete Gutenberg catalogue record. Project Gutenberg identifies this edition as public domain in the United States; that designation does not establish its copyright status in every country.
Source notes
Catalogue metadata is public domain and is supplied through Gutendex, which imports Gutenberg's machine-readable catalogue. The automated synopsis is source-supplied, not an independently verified review. Author dates above describe the credited people; no ebook release date is presented as the book's original publication date.
Sources
More in Books & Authors
Keep reading
