The Bishop Murder Case

Nursery Rhyme Crime Spree
Review of the Felony & Mayhem Press Kindle eBook edition (April 25, 2019) of the Scribners Press hardcover original (1929).

“We’re going to search the house, Pyne. You lead the way.”
Markham came forward. “But, Vance, we can’t do that!”
Vance wheeled round. “I’m not interested in what you can do or can’t do. I’m going to search this house… Sergeant, are you with me?” There was a strange look on his face.
“You bet your sweet life!” (I never liked Heath as much as at that moment.)

I might be reading too many of the Philo Vance novels. Initially it was a joy to discover these previously unknown gems from the Golden Age of Crime writing. The Bishop Murder Case however started to tip into show more unrealistic and unsatisfactory territory in various ways. Earlier books in the series had more believable scenarios even if they used the often unlikely 'locked room' trope. This case has the villain reenacting Mother Goose nursery rhymes in a series of murders. There is the further absurd enhancement of them sending taunting letters to the authorities and to the press. The ending even flirted with an Unsatisfactory Ending Alert™.

See front cover at https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/ad/BishopMurderCase.jpg
Front cover of the original Scribners Press first edition (1929). Image sourced from Wikipedia.

Vance is a delightful character though and his verbal jousting with District Attorney Markham and the often stolid Police Sergeant Heath as documented by his personal 'Watson', the fictional S.S. Van Dine is a pleasure to read.

Trivia and Links
See movie poster at https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c6/The_Bishop_Murder_Case.jpeg
The Bishop Murder Case was adapted as the same-titled film The Bishop Murder Case (1930) directed by David Burton & Nick Grinde and starring Basil Rathbone as Philo Vance. You can see the opening credits and the conclusion of the film on YouTube here.

Willard Huntington Wright aka S.S. Van Dine is also the author of the Twenty Rules for Writing Detective Stories. show less

Brilliant detective Philo Vance has been called in to help the Manhattan Police solve a baffling murder. A man has been found shot dead with an arrow and a taunting note is sent to the police and the press. Links are made with an old nursery rhyme. Then more people associated with the first are killed, again with a nursery rhyme theme. The perpetrator is calling themselves 'The Bishop' and Vance has to find the truth before someone else is killed.
This is a genuine early 'Golden Age' mystery and is set in New York with associated 1929 mores and language. This makes it hard to get into at first as it is very much of its time. However the plot is wonderfully complex with lots of twists and turns, and Vance is an interesting character. show more There's lots about Maths and Physics, about Chess and Theatre and the whole is rewarding in the end. show less

The more I read Philo Vance the more the mystery lies not in the plots of the books but in the fact of their success. In this particular book, once again New York is gripped by fear as a series of blood tingling deaths sweep the public imagination. It is at this point that my ability to suspend disbelief becomes rather frayed. I doubt much that the general population of New York would be gripped by fear at the deaths of a number of well off mathematicians. Not the sort of thing that makes the average person lock their doors in fear at night.

Much of the books is, as is common in murder mysteries, smoke and mirrors used in order to distract the reader from the identity of the culprit. As is increasingly true in Vance stories the need for show more much smoke and many mirrors is exacerbated by the fact that little detection is carried out by the police. We hear little of the fundamental aspects of the solutions of crimes and so much of the book consists of effete characters bridling, bristling or breaking down when asked straight-forward questions and the investigators acceding to the requests/demands of potential murderers/witnesses to be allowed to delay answering questions. As is emerging as a pattern in these Vance stories the field of possible murderers is slimmed not by the efforts of Vance or the police but rather by their being successively murdered themselves.
Many of the details of the crimes/police responses are ludicrous such as the ME not feeling that the existence of a large blow on the back of man's head might have some relevance to the question as to whether he committed suicide -- indeed it is a fact only mentioned in passing. The motivation for the crime is frankly unbelievable and Vance's filibustering (as that is what it seems to be) sounds more and more like a man trying desperately to have others think him highly educated rather than a man who is actually comfortable in the worlds of mathematics, art, chess and anything else Vance runs into. show less

It is interesting for me to return to Philo Vance after reading several of the early Ellery Queen novels. Even if we did not have the evidence of the Queen writers own statements it is textually clear that the early characterization of Ellery Queen was influenced by that of Philo Vance. Indeed it seems at times that characters within the Queen universe are indirectly responding to characters and situations in the Vance universe. Given that both seem to be functioning in New York City at roughly the same time I look forward for evidence that Van Dine is directly or indirectly responding to the direct or indirect challenges that arise from having two such similar characters functioning in what should be the same universe.

The Scarab Murder show more Case begins with the ever vexing problem of how to insert civilians into murder mysteries without the risk of the reader coming to suspect that your detective is, in truth, a serial murderer. Although Van Dine does not want the reader to believe that Vance is a murderer he clearly wants that same reader to believe that Vance’s New York is a world in which the police are clearly incompetent at the most basic aspects of their jobs. The reader has come to understand that if Vance does not arrive quickly at the scene the police will be likely to miss the most important of clews [sic] and to make too much of the least of them. Within the first few pages of the book Vance is brought onto the scene of a murder by a third person and he (and the reader) get a chance to see just how badly the New York police are equipped to handle this case.

Van Dine, in this book, falls into a “tell don’t show” pattern in which the reader is continuously told that the case is fiendishly difficult to understand and that no one but Vance could possibly understand the nature of problem. Vance’s known of Egyptology is waved before the reader to distract them from the rather straight-forward nature of the case. It is rare that I nail the murderer (and the reason why some clews should be discounted) almost as soon as the murder scene is described and even less often that I can predict the final denouement of the case--yet both are true for The Scarab Murder Case. Unless the next book in the series indicates otherwise I am tempted to write that it is with this book that Van Dine begins to fall the victim of his own PR to the detriment of the plotting of his mysteries.

A note to the unsuspecting reader who stumbles across this book more than 80 years after it was published--it gives a rather clear, and often quite unpleasant, insight into the attitudes and prejudices that led to the widespread despoiling of Egyptian tombs by westerners.

Further than this there is little I can write that would not function as a spoiler. The murder takes place in a private museum and the principals in the case are, with two exceptions, male members of the upper middle class who seem to practice their archaeology without even the level of scientific rigour common among the many Americans and Englishmen who descended on the tombs of Egypt in the first several decades of the last century. The fact that Vance is their equal in the ability to read hieroglyphics and judge the provenance of statuary does more to diminish the qualifications of the archaeologists than it does to demonstrate Vance’s erudition. The murder (and subsequent attempted murders) are actually quite straight forward and it is only Vance’s insistence that they are not that makes the case go on long enough to write a book about it. show less

Philo Vance had assisted New York City Police in solving several murders. So, it was not surprising that District Attorney Markham asked him to consult on the murder of Joseph Cochrane Robin (nicknamed Cock Robin) who was found dead with an arrow in his heart. A prime suspect is Raymond Sperling (sperling is German for “sparrow”). Robin and Sperling were rivals both in archery and for the affections of Belle Dillard, in whose archery range the body was found. When Vance suggested that the murder followed the nursery rhyme “Who Killed Cock Robin” Markham surmised Vance had an addled brain. When Sperling, in an act of chivalry, confessed, fearing Belle was the murderer, Vance believed the solution was too easy. It took another show more nursery rhyme murder to convince Markham that Vance was on the right track and the killer had an intimate knowledge of its victims.

Originally published in 1929, it is the fourth Vance book and a classic of the Golden Age of Mystery with its highly descriptive language and multiple suspects with supposedly airtight alibis. Because of its origin in the 190s, some of the language might seem dated, but this is to be expected of books of that time and genre. It is perfect for fans of Ellery Queen, as well as fans of more cerebral mysteries. It is believed to be the first nursery rhyme mystery and authors such as Agatha Christie have followed Van Dine in this area. A good read all around. show less

Very good mystery in the Sherlock Holmes style - Philo Vance is a wealthy, erudite American version of Holmes complete with Van Dine as his Watson. I was sure I knew the culprit until being confounded at the very end. I like the fact that there was no "cheating" - no clues hidden from the reader.

The fourth in the series with the Benson Murder Case, the Canary Murder Case & the Green Murder Case all preceding. There are - including this one - twelve books in the series, all set in the 1920s and 1930s. I read all of these quite, quite some time ago and enjoyed them all.

Vance is portrayed by his creator as "a stylish — even foppish —dandy, a New York bon vivant possessing a highly intellectual bent." A homage to Sherlock Holmes, Vance even has his own Watson in the form of one Van Dine (friend, legal advisor, narrator, chronicler). Author Van Dine often has Vance monocled, impeccably attired (gloves, hat, top coat), and his speech frequently tended to be effete, affected, quaint and whimsical. He is invariably accompanied by show more and works with: DA Markham, Sgt Heath, Dr Doremus, Van Dine (his Watson), and Currie (his valet).

In this outing, the nursery rhymes of Mother Goose provide a backdrop for murder, which Vance, using his vast and unique knowledge of subjects obscure, will solve for the police.

Each tome is accompanied by a cast of characters and murder scene to assist the reader follow the narrative.

This is a golden age detective novel - it is a novel of its own time, not ours. Enjoy it for what is represents - the foundations of the modern day private detective tomes - and a little bit of escapism. For unbeknownst to the world at large, the Great Depression was was about to descend - and escapism from the harsh realities of life would provide a little relief for many.

You can find both the films and radio plays still - enjoy! show less