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Henry Thomas (Harry) Blyth (1852–1898) was a British writer who also wrote under the pen-name Hal Meredith. Blyth was born in Greenwich, London. He wrote for many of Alfred Harmsworth's papers of the 1890s, and is mostly remembered for creating detective Sexton Blake.[1]

Harry Blyth
Born1852
Greenwich, London, England
Died9 February 1898
Pen nameHal Meredith
OccupationWriter, editor, journalist
Period1890 – 1898
GenreDetective fiction, adventure fiction

Life and work


Cover of the Black Pirate, 1893
Cover of the Black Pirate, 1893

As a freelance writer and journalist Blyth started out writing about food. His Eat, Drink and be Merry; or Dainty Bits from many Tables was published by J. A. Brook and Co in 1876.[2] Of it, the Bookseller wrote: "This is not a Cookery book, but a gossip about all sorts of Cookery, from real turtle to snails; all sorts of drinks, from Champagne to small beer eau-de-voie to nettle tea; with anecdotes culled from all sources, and presented with the sauce of a true literary caterer."[3] It was followed by a series of food articles entitled Snacks for the Hungry, in the Tattler, then in 1879 by Magic Morsels: Scraps from an Epicure's Table, Gathered, Garnished and Dished by Harry Blyth, published by T.H. Roberts and Co of London.[4]

In 1879, Mr Blyth's life story was told in an early number of the Biograph, a monthly magazine devoted to contemporary biography.[5]

In 1880 he started an illustrated weekly in Edinburgh called the Archer. It folded after the first issue. Of the experience he wrote: "I printed it on green paper partly because of the title, but mainly to give the eyes of my readers a rest. They rested so well that they never saw the type, and were too sleepy to want the second number. This, I believe, was the first attempt made in Great Britain to give newspaper readers absolute repose."[6]

In 1883 he co-founded The Chiel with Robert Arthur (who built the Kennington Theatre), a Scottish Punch-style paper based in Glasgow. It ran for 363 issues, from 17 February 1883, to 25 January 1890.[7]

In 1884 he was editor of Cream o' the North, a paper published by the Savoy Publishing company.[8] In 1887 he published The Secret of Sinclair's Farm of which the critics spoke quite well.[9] It was subsequently serialized in various newspapers. The following year his novel The Queen of the Air was published by the North British Publishing Company, a company Blyth owned, to very positive reviews. A reviewer in Fun wrote "This is one of the thrilling romances by a deservedly popular author, now in course of publication, and is worthy of wide circulation."[10]

In 1889 he became editor of Waverly, a literary, dramatic and fictional paper where he also wrote a column entitled "The New Mysteries of London, or The Old Bailey" where he 'cleared up many mysteries.' [11] In 1890 he edited a new weekly paper called Romance [12] He also had an interest in the theatre and wrote a very successful pantomime for the Theatre Royal, Glasgow.[13]

In 1893, after writing a series of thirteen articles entitled Third Class Crimes for The Sunday People, he came to the attention of publisher Alfred Harmsworth who was looking for writers to contribute to his newly launched boys' periodicals. The story goes that when publisher and author met for the first time, Harmsworth greeted Blyth by saying: "So you are the crime merchant?", to which Blyth replied: "Just as you are the newspaper merchant." Harmsworth who was always impressed by people who stood up to him, commissioned him to write adventure and detective stories for The Halfpenny Marvel.[14]

Blyth made his debut in The Halfpenny Marvel #2 with The Gold Fiend under the pen-name Hal Meredeth. It was followed by a tale under his own name, The Black Pirate, in issue #4, a swashbuckler that may have been the inspiration for the movie starring Douglas Fairbanks of the same name a few decades later.[15]

He created Sexton Blake in The Missing Millionaire which ran in issue #6. The sequel A Christmas Crime ran in issue #7, both to popular success. Blyth published these tales under the name Hal Meredth, the surname being his mother's maiden name. He wrote prolifically for the Amalgamated Press papers over the next four years, under his pen-name and his own name, in Pluck, Popular, Chums and the Union Jack.

He died of typhoid fever in February, 1898, aged only 46. His passing was widely reported. His obituary in the North Devon Journal (Barnstaple, England) on 10 February read:

The death is announced of Mr. Harry Blyth, editor of The Chiel, Glasgow. Deceased was the younger brother of Dr. Wynter Blyth, the famous analyst, who some years ago resided at Barnstaple, and was then the Medical officer of Health for a group of North Devon Unions. Deceased had a great liking for amateur theatricals, and during his residence in Barnstaple often appeared on the boards at the Barnstaple Theatre. He organised a local histrionic club, which lasted until he himself left the town. After he left Barnstaple he took to journalism in many of its varied forms, being especially clever and witty in his humorous productions. He was also considered an authority on food, and among the books written by him are "Magic Morsels, Scraps for the Hungry, and Eat, Drink, and be Merry.


The Libel Case of 1888


Blyth was known for his humour and it got him into trouble once. As reported in the Glasgow Herald, 20 April 1888.

Action for Alleged Libel

In the Court of Queen's Bench, London, yesterday, Mr Justice Hawkins and a special jury were engaged in hearing the case Marks v. Blyth. The plaintiff claimed damages for a libel published by the defendant, who pleaded that he had made an apology and paid £10 into Court to satisfy Mr. Marks's demand. Mr Kisch was the counsel representing the plaintiff, whilst Mr. Kergp, Q.C., Mr. Horace Browne, and Mr Lynn appeared for the defendant.

The plaintiff, it appears, is a journalist, and has done work for the Times, the Morning Post, and other journals both in this country and abroad. In October of last year a publication was about to appear called the Society Herald, which was to be devoted to financial, theatrical, literary, and other matters. Of that journal Mr. Marks was the editor-elect. The defendant, Mr. Harry Blyth, is the editor and proprietor of a weekly serio-comic paper called the Chiel, which circulates in and about Glasgow, and in this publication he published on 22 October the paragraph complained of. It ran thus:—"London is threatened with a new society journal, which is to be called the Society Herald. The editor is said to be used to cakumpicking, and the staff, I am told, consists of criminal lawyers and pugilists." The attention of the defendant was called to the statements contained in the libel, all of which Mr. Marks denied, and on 10 December—six weeks after the publication—an apology was inserted. The question was whether the £10 paid into Court, coupled with the apology, was sufficient compensation. Mr Blyth, the plaintiff, was called in support of his case. No other evidence was called.

Mr. Kemp addressed the jury for the defence, Mr. Blyth was, he said, absolutely unacquainted with the identity of the plaintiíf and his staff. The paragraph in question was a stupid joke, for which a humble apology had been offered. Taking the circumstances into consideration, he submitted that the £10 paid in was enough.

Mr. Kisch, replying, contended that the statements made constituted about as serious and scandalous and unjustifiable a libel as could be published. He asked for substantial damages.

Mr. Justice Hawkins having summed up, the jury retired to consider their verdict. They returned into Court after a short absence, when the foreman said that they found for the plaintiff for £10 paid into Court.

Mr. HORACE BROWNE—Upon that finding I ask your lordship to enter judgment for the defendant, and to certify for a special jury. The claim was for £1000.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—I will reserve my judgement. In the meantime, I will ask the jury some further questions. (To the jury)—Are you of opinion that the libel was inserted without malice or gross negligence?

The FOREMAN—Yes.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—Did the defendant insert the apology at the earliest opportunity?—No.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—Do you consider the apology a full one?—Yes.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—You find that the sum paid into Court is enough to satisfy the claim?—Yes.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—Don't let the ten pounds dwell in your minds at all. Just ask yourselves this question—Having regard to all the circumstances, if no money had been paid in, what would you say would be the right amount of damages to award the plaintiff ?—None at all. (Laughter.)

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—That puts a different complexion upon the matter.

Mr. KISCH—Is that the unanimous verdict of the jury?

A JUROR—No.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—What is your unanimous verdict?

A JUROR—How small a sum can we give?

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—Well, gentlemen, I can amend the record and make the claim for a million instead of a thousand, and then you can give any sum between a farthing and a million inclusive. (Laughter.)

Eventually the jury assessed the damages at one farthing.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—You find that the plaintiff, if he cannot get the £10, is to have a farthing?

The FOREMAN—Yes.

Mr. KISCH—I apply for judgement.

Mr. Justice HAWKINS—I enter judgment for you for the damages which the jury have found namely, a farthing.

Mr. BROWNE asked his Lordship—Supposing the verdict for a farthing was an ultimate one to deprive the plaintiff of his costs?

Mr Kisch protested.

Mr Justice HAWKINS—You consider it a Scotch joke. (Laughter.) Whether the plaintiff is entitled to any or what costs will be decided at the proper time.

Judgement entered for the plaintiff—damages a farthing.


Sexton Blake


Cover of the first Sexton Blake tale
Cover of the first Sexton Blake tale

Harry Blyth was paid £9.9 for the full rights to the first Sexton Blake story, the name, and the character.[16] He wrote seven Blake stories in total.[17]

Blyth had originally given Blake a partner, French detective Jules Gervaise, his senior and mentor. Gervaise disappeared after the first few stories and starred in his own solo tale The Accusing Shadow in 1894. Perhaps noting the success of Sexton Blake, Blyth created his own detective, Gideon Barr, to whom he retained the rights. Barr's career, however, was short-lived, comprising just five tales. He made his last appearance in Christmas Clues, the first Sexton Blake/Nelson Lee crossover, a story he co-wrote with Maxwell Scott.

Blyth's Blake stories, though they included traditional crimes like theft and murder, also had the detective engage with master criminals, gangs and conspiracies. Blake faced "The Red Lights of London" in The Missing Miliionaire "The Slaughterer" in Sexton Blake's Triumph, "The Terrible Three" in Sexton Blake's Peril and "the Zeefri" in The Golden Ghost.[18]


Influence


Blyth's work, though now mostly forgotten, had a largely hidden influence on later writers. The conspiracy scenes of The Accusing Shadow (1894) anticipate similar, later scenes in G.K. Chesterton's The Man Who Was Thursday, Agatha Christie's The Secret of Chimneys, and Dorothy L. Sayers' The Cave of Ali Baba.[19] Run to Earth features Mrs. Pink, one of the earliest fictional female criminal masterminds. The ending of the story foreshadows Arthur Conan Doyle's ending in The Adventure of the Illustrious Client, written almost 30 years later.


Selected Bibliography



Third Class Crimes (1893)


  1. A Bermondsey Burglary
  2. The Price of a Putney "Pub"
  3. A Marriage Marred at Margate
  4. High Play at Highbury
  5. The Forged Bill and the Brighton Belle
  6. A Cruel Trick at Teddington
  7. The Biter Bit at Bayswater
  8. Left Behind at Barnes
  9. Love at Loughboroug Park
  10. The Pale Woman at Peckham
  11. A Man's Husband's Wife of Wimbledon
  12. Called to Account at King's Cross
  13. Trying it on at Tooting

The Old Bailey: Celebrated Trials Retold (1894)



The Halfpenny Marvel



The Union Jack



Pluck



The Big Budget


Big Budget #1 From Toil to Triumph, 1897


In the Eye of the Law: Short Stories (1897)



Chums


Chums #278-294 Hunji the Hindoo, 1898


Funny Wonder



Stage Play


Our Great Surprise, 1891 (A pantomime piece in one act)


New Collections



Further reading



References


  1. Davies, David Stuart Davies, ed. (206). Vintage Mystery and Detective Stories. Wordsworth. p. 14.
  2. Classified Advertisement (28 October 1876). "Bell's Life in London and Sporting Chronicle". UKP.
  3. Bookseller. 1877. p. 17.
  4. Classified Advertisement (29 November 1879). "The Sporting Times Issue 845". UKP.
  5. Local Intelligence (30 August 1879). "Lancaster Gazetter Issue 845".
  6. Blyth, Harry (2 February 1893). "South Wales Daily News".
  7. Lofts, WOG. (October 1955). "Harry Blyth". Collectors Digest Vol09 #106. p. 284.
  8. Classified Advertisement (12 July 1884). "The Sporting Times Issue 845".
  9. Classified Advertisement (11 June 1887). "The Sporting Times Issue 1238". p. 12.
  10. New Leaves (25 April 1888). "Fun".
  11. New Leaves (1889). "Fun".
  12. Classified Advertisement (5 July 1890). "The Sporting Times Issue 1398".
  13. Lofts, WOG. (October 1955). "Harry Blyth". Collectors Digest Vol09 #106. p. 284.
  14. Lofts, WOG. (June 1967). "Sexton Blake 6". Collectors Digest Vol21 #246. p. 11.
  15. Waschin, Ken (2009). Silent Mystery and Detective Movies: A Comprehensive Filmography. McFarland. p. 250.
  16. Davies, David Stuart Davies, ed. (206). Vintage Mystery and Detective Stories. Wordsworth. p. 14.
  17. "Blakiana". mark-hodder.com/blakiana/blakebibliography_1893.html#hm_6.
  18. LeRoy, Lad Panek (206). After Sherlock Holmes: The Evolution of British and American Detective. McFarland. pp. 53–54.
  19. "A Guide to Classic Mystery and Detection". mikegrost.com/doyleera.htm.




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