February 1922 issue ~ cover art by William Grotz

February 1922 issue

cover art by William Grotz

better image than previously posted

~ John Baer, “The Pearl-Handled Revolver”, 1st story in issue

~ John Baer, “Written in Blood”, 2nd story, 13th and 14th of 24 stories in BM

~ Christopher B. Booth, “The Phelam Lodge Mystery”, 3rd of 5 BM stories

~ Walter Deffenbaugh, “24 Karat – But”, 10th of 14 stories in BM

~ Arthur S. Garbett, “The Wet Hand”, 3rd of 4 stories in BM

~ J.B. Hawley, “The Hallowell Murder”, 10th of 12 stories in BM

~ J. Burton Loftus, “At the Expense of James Cathew”, short-short, only appearance in BM

~ Lloyd Lonergan, “The Disappearing Judge”, 2nd of 8 stories in BM

~ J.J. Stagg, “The Man in Box D”, 5th of 11 stories in BM

~ Ward Sterling, “The Passing of Bloody Dan”, 1 of 2 stories in this issue (see Ward), 11th of 16 stories under this name in BM

~ Frederic J. Thorne, “The Multiple Mystery Story”, part 2 of 3, 9th of 10 stories in BM

~ Harold Ward, “The Attorney for the Defense”, ‘short-short’, 2nd of 2 stories in this issue (with Sterling), 21st of 29 stories under this name in BM [32nd and 33rd of 46 stories in BM under three different names – Ward Sterling and H.W. Starr]

~ Charles S. Wolfe, “Unlucky Friday”, last of 3 stories in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

January 1, 1924 issue ~ cover art by Jules Erbit

January 1, 1924 issue

cover art by Jules Erbit

~ Eustace Hale Ball, “The Footprints of Doom”, 7th with ‘the Scarlet Fox, last of the series’, 11th of 13 stories in BM

~ Carroll John Daly, “Action! Action!” 2nd of 2 with Three-Gun Terry Mack, 1st-person narrator, 8th of 71 appearances in BM. The Price of a Dime: The Complete Black Mask Cases of Ben Shaley (Steeger Books, 2021).

~ Henry W. Fisher, “Executioners I Have Met”, ‘5tht of 6 ‘true’ articles with various subtitles’

~ Charles M. Green [pseud. of Erle Stanley Gardner], “The Serpent’s Coils”, ‘A Daytime Story’, 2nd of 3 stories under this name

~ Dashiell Hammett, “The Tenth Clew”, the Op [5th of 25], ‘see p. 127 for letter from DH on character in story, Creda Dexter‘, [Hammett’s first time appearing on the cover], reprinted in The Return of the Continental Op (Dell mapback, 1947), reprinted in City Sleuths and Tough Guys (Houghton Miflin, 1989), reprinted in City Sleuths and Tough Guys (Houghton Miflin, 1989), reprinted in The Big Book of the Continental Op (Vintage, 2017), reprinted in Zigzags of Treachery: The Complete Black Mask Cases of the Continental Op, Vol. 1 (Steeger, 2023), 9th of 51 stories in BM

~ Francis James, “The Sand Devil”, Prentice, Harvard-trained criminologist turned policeman with Police Chief Shannon, 3rd of 4 parts, 12th of 20 appearances in BM

~ Harold Freeman Miners, “Topango Catches a Track”, 2nd of 4 with ‘Topanga John, ancient desert rat’, 2nd of 5 stories in BM

~ Herman Petersen, “When a Wizard Woos”, ‘short-short; Wamaba, wizard in New Hebrides‘, 15th of 20 stories in BM

~ Charles Somerville, “The Mole”, 22nd of 47 articles in the ‘Manhunter’ series, 23rd of 49 total articles in BM

~ Pearce Thorne, “A Jury of His Peers”, ‘brief-brief’, author’s sole appearance in BM

~ Edward Parrish Ware, “’Gangway!’”, ‘1st-person narrator; set in Arkansas, complete with dialect; mule skinner’, 2nd of 9 stories in BM

©Seattle Mystery Bookshop

clearer image but more worn

[updated 6/2/26]