Crusader Series Part Seven Raymond Sheppard and George Bell

 

Sahara Adventure - Cover by Raymond Sheppard.

Part One Algerian Adventure + Index
Part Two Avocet Island + Dangerous Journey
Part Three Men O' the Mists + The Riddle of Monk's Island
Part Four The Deserted City + Rustlers at Bar-Two Ranch + Highveld Mystery
Part Five Fen Laughs Last + Ivory Poachers
Part Six Mystery of Middle Tree Island

I'm enjoying reading these 50 page schoolbooks as the stories are great fun - mostly boys' adventures, and today I want to look at two by author George Bell. With a common name like his, I've tried guessing what else he wrote but have completely drawn a blank. If anyone out there knows who he was, what he wrote and when he lived, I'd be grateful to know. I can only be sure of two books he wrote and both are from the Crusader series by Blackie and Son! A very short career if it was just two books. Is George a pseudonym? Could George be Georgina? 

SAHARA ADVENTURE by George Bell, and illustrated by Raymond Sheppard. [London: Blackie & Son, 1955 [Crusader series No. 20]] is the story of the Deakin family who head to South Africa over land via Algiers. From there to Cairo they encounter the Foreign Legion who are searching for gun-runners. After being allowed to continue they go on, only to breakdown having lost their water supplies en route. They flag a car down and are shocked to see the man has a rifle!

Sahara Adventure
"He saw that the man was holding a rifle"

They ask the man to tell someone from the next village to return with water and whilst waiting the two children head off and start throwing rocks at a target they set up. Mr Deakin feels someone is watching them and just about to call the children realises they have disappeared! Searching for them he hears a slight echo and Dick and Alice have discovered a cave with water in it. They take cans of water back to their lorry, all the time noticing the discreetly hidden man. 

Sahara Adventure p. 14
"Dick leaned over the edge and rippled the calm water"

They head off in the dark to the nearest village where they are surrounded as they change a tyre that looks to be going flat and the strange man appears again. He lives in a house above the village and gets his servant to fix the tyre for them and invites them to a meal where Signore Torre asks them all sorts of questions about their plans and stops. Alice and Dick want to know about the well they found in a cave and Torre tells them it must be Roman and he knew nothing about its existence.

After a night's sleep in their van, they set off. Dick became suspicious when he saw Torre's car not speeding past but following them at a distance. Mr Deakin remembers he must fill up with petrol at Phillipeville and cannot find his wallet or passports. They decide to confront Torre and see his car has turned up a hill road. They follow and see a hole below some rocks and head down on foot.

Sahara Adventure p. 31
“I'm going down there,” said her father at once

They soon discover boxes piled up and there was Signor Torre who claimed to be investigating a Roman well he'd been told about. The Deakins knew he was lying and Dick took the opportunity to knock Torre into the water while his Father knocked out Ahmed the servant. He comes round and grabs the gun which Torre wielded.  

Sahara Adventure p. 49
He moved suddenly taking a running dive at Torre

Then Alice thwarts Ahmed by kicking the gun into the water but Ahmed helps himself to another gun from the boxes. As the family are tied up, suddenly there is the the sound of boots coming down the steps. Dick cries out "The Foreign Legion!". Torre has hidden his gun and Ahmed dropped something as Mrs Deakin saw him and stabbed him with her knitting needles! It was their wallet. Torres pointed his gun at them all - including the Arab - telling him if he hadn't been too greedy they could have got away with their game and that he planned to entomb them all. One of the Legion shot the gun from his hand. It was all over. The man the family saw watching them was a legion spy who alerted the captain to the family's plight.

The Stowaway

THE STOWAWAY by George Bell and illustrated by Raymond Sheppard. [London: Blackie & Son, 1955  [Crusader series No. 17]]

The SS Dalesman is on the way up the coast of South America when hit by an enormous storm. the wheelhouse is smashed and they lose one engine. They battle the storm and young Peter takes on the duties of a donkeyman - a naval rating who does various jobs - in this case, working the sea anchor. A wall of water crashed over the ship and Peter held tight but was knocked breathless. He and another member of the crew decided they needed to get the engine working so they left the sea anchor to do its work. Peter was caught by another giant wave which smashed upon the lifeboat throwing it in two parts overboard. 

Peter realised there was someone in the shattered lifeboat and he went to help. The tangled ropes and wreckage were slipping overboard and Peter grabbed the thin brown arm.

The Stowaway Frontispiece
He was hanging onto a small brown boy

Pedro, the small boy is heading back to Salvador and rather than tell the Captain, Peter hides Pedro in a bunk bed. Mac, the engineer shares a cabin with Peter and spots the boy but decides after 3 days of no sleep he was seeing things. They put into Salvador for repairs and parts, where Pedro impersonates some of the begging 'bumboat' sailors hoping to sell fruit and he leaves. 

The Stowaway p.13
A policeman came out of the shadow near the bridge

Mac and Peter need to look for spares and think of evading the police but are stopped and confined to their cabin by the revolutionary police. However Pedro pops through the porthole and Peter sends him on a errand to the company's warehouse for some piston rings. 

The Stowaway p.32
He slid down a mooring rope to a small boat below

Pedro is successful and he returned to his boat promising to return the following night. The rings fitted perfectly, and Peter had another idea. He shared his thoughts with the Captain and mac who agreed it was worth a shot. The next day, the crew acting casual, the Police Chief arrived and claimed to have evidence of smuggling. Just then there was shooting coming from the port, the Police Chief ordered his men to suppress this rebellion. Suddenly the Chief was grabbed and bound and gagged by the crew. 

The Stowaway p.49
“I'll take this,” said the second mate

On shore Pedro was throwing fireworks in the open doorways of the company warehouse. The Police began shooting at each other not realising there were no shooters in the warehouse. The ship pulled away, a signal being sent to all ships about the revolution. Soon a Brazilian destroyer put down the revolution and celebrations were had.
  

Crusader Series Part Six - Raymond Sheppard and Isobel M. Knight

Part One Algerian Adventure + Index
Part Two Avocet Island + Dangerous Journey
Part Three Men O' the Mists + The Riddle of Monk's Island
Part Four The Deserted City + Rustlers at Bar-Two Ranch + Highveld Mystery
Part Five Fen Laughs Last + Ivory Poachers

I'm enjoying reading these 50 page schoolbooks as the stories are great fun - mostly boys' adventures, which is interesting. Did Blackie also do a girls' series? I think not, as one of the titles I don't own is "Pamela in Paris" (and to continue that sexist thinking, maybe "Ponies for Sale" - which I can't corroborate as I don't have that one either!)

Cover to "The Mystery of Middle Tree Island"

MYSTERY OF MIDDLE TREE ISLAND by Isobel M Knight

This could be number 10 or 7 depending when you bought it and tracking down when this was first published is a bit easier - it was 1952. Raymond Sheppard had previously illustrated a story by Isobel Knight ("Royal Monkey") in For All Girls.

Raymond Sheppard's first picture shows a dying man - a Chinese clerk, whom 'Uncle Bill' got to help in the past,  being helped by an English officer - Uncle Bill, who coincidentally meets him again in a civil war in Hong Kong. The man tells him to go and see his wife about a tin hidden in their garden. And so the adventure begins. 

Mystery of the Middle Tree Island, Frontispiece
"He struggled to sit up, gasping out his story"

The next image throws us into the adventure with Ming Lo - the dying man's son, accompanying Uncle Bill and his nephew, Jimmy, to England with the treasure map. But someone has attacked Ming Lo in the night! He recovers and they set sail after provisioning.

Mystery of the Middle Tree Island, p.12
"Stretched out on the floor was Ming Lo"

I don't think Raymond Sheppard drew this trasure map but I've included it for fun. My wife guessed the solution from the clue on the "Middle Tree Island" map. 

"Not south, not north, not east, not west, not in earth, or sea or air. Remember thy youth",

Mystery of the Middle Tree Island, p.15
The treasure map

The party of three are exploring the island when they spot another boat on the opposite side of the island!

SPOILER ALERT AHEAD! You've been warned!

 

Mystery of the Middle Tree Island, p.29
"“Look!”, cried Jimmy excitedly. “A boat!”"

And the last image gives the game away as to where the treasure is hidden. After a tuussle and kidnapping by the occupants of said other boat, we get the happy ending for Ming Lo's family, we'd expect.

Mystery of the Middle Tree Island, p.47
"“There's a big hole here – in the fork,” he called"

ISOBEL M. KNIGHT

I thought I'd have a look at Knight's biography but in researching Isobel M. Knight, I hit a brick wall! That is until I found in her book The Treasure Seekers,1969, the copyright statement states "Isobel Lockie" and a dictionary of pseudonymns confirms this, but still that brick wall! That led me to searching a bit wider for more names. The other clue was the dedication in one of her books, similarly named as the one above, "Mystery of the Island". It states "To Fiona, Cameron and Andy". Often mothers might use their own mother's name for their children but in this case I think these are her nephews and niece and Isobel's own mother was named Fiona too - but I'd love someone better than me to confirm or disprove this.  Perhaps she was Fiona Isobel MacLeod Lockie (11 Nov 1932 -18 Dec  2002 died in Edinburgh)?  That stray middle name beginning with an 'M.' sort of corroborates this but I'm still guessing and hoping our Isobel is the same one who appeared on the radio telling of a personal experience in Scotland, please note!

One other interesting piece appeared in The Listener and I thought it worth sharing here:

SOMETHING TO DO WITH TIME?
‘My most frightening supernatural experience was not meeting a ghost—it had something to do with time’, said ISOBEL KNIGHT in ‘Woman’s Hour from Scotland’ (Light Programme). ‘I still do not know whether I re-lived something that had already happened, or was projected into something that has yet to take place.

‘My husband and I were returning from Glasgow to Dumfries. There were so few passengers on the train that we had no difficulty in finding a compartment to ourselves. After a short time we went through to the dining car; then, when we had finished our meal, we started to make our way back to our seats. During the interval in which we had been having tea the train had not stopped at any stations. Now, to our amazement, we could not find our compartment, which should have been easily recognizable because of the luggage we had stacked on the rack. Even more amazing, the previously almost empty train was now filled with passengers.

‘In a kind of daze we ran up and down the corridor, going into each packed compartment. Every seat was taken up; but, strangely, not one person moved a muscle or looked up when we flung open doors and anxiously examined the racks. After travelling the length of the train three times I began to panic. My husband was pale. “Look”’, he said, “where have all these people come from, and where is our luggage? Is there something wrong with us, or has something happened to the train? We'll walk down once again and if we still can’t find our own compartment I’m going for the guard ”.

Shaking like a leaf, I followed him; and yes, the train was almost empty, just as it had been when we got in. Only a few passengers sat dozing over their newspapers. There, with the luggage safely on the rack, was our own compartment, just as it had been when we left to go to the dining-car.

“What happened? ” I asked. My husband shook his head: “ Don’t ask me”. I saw his hands were trembling. “It’s been fantastic—and horrible”. Afterwards I tried to check with the railway to see if there had been any accidents on that line but I could not find out anything. I have no explanation to offer. Perhaps the reason may be that I have Highland blood in my veins, People have told me I have “a gift ”. Maybe I have, but I would rather be without it’

~Listener 23 February 1961

 

ISOBEL M. KNIGHT BIBLIOGRAPHY

 BOOKS

• Stories of Jesus.[Silver Torch Series. no. 53.] Glasgow: Collins Clear-Type Press, 1946
• Stories from the Old Testament.  [Silver Torch Series. no. 57.] London; Glasgow: Collins Clear-Type Press, 1947
• The Mystery of the Island [Illustrated by Lindsay W. Cable] London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, [1948.]
• Pilgrim's Progress (retold by Isobel Knight) London; Glasgow: Collins, 1948
  
• Robinson Crusoe the Second, London: Pickering & Inglis, 1949
• Friendly Animals [Illustrated by A. E. Kennedy]. London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1951
• Come to the Farm! [Illustrated by A. E. Kennedy]. London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1952
• On our Farm [Illustrated by A. E. Kennedy].London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1952
• Swiss Family Robinson (Retold by Isobel Knight) London: Pickering & Inglis, 1952
• The Mystery of Middle Tree Island [Illustrated by Raymond Sheppard]. [Crusader Series. no. 10.] London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1952
•  Surefooted. [Starling Series.] London: Pickering & Inglis, 1953 
• A Present for Mother Pixie's Birthday [Illustrated by Doritie Kettlewell].[Nelson's Speedwell Readers. no. A 15.] London: Thomas Nelson & Sons, 1954
• Awheel to Happiness.[Starling Series.] London: Pickering & Inglis, 1954
• Come to the Farm, London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1954
• The Piper's Cave [Illustrated by Gilbert Dunlop], [Kingfisher Books. ser. 4. no. 6.] London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1954
• The Bunny Whiskers find an Island [Illustrated by John S. Goodall], [Kingfisher Books. ser. 1. no. 7.] London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1954
• The Circus comes to Town, [Illustrated by R. MacGillivray]. [Heritage Story Books.] London: Longmans, 1955
• The Farmyard Mystery [Illustrated by H. Radcliffe Wilson]. [Heritage Story Books.] London: Longmans, 1955
• The Magic Foxgloves, [Illustrated by Joyce Wellman].[Heritage Story Books.]London: Longmans, 1955
• Holiday at Honeysuckle Farm.[Nature Stories.] Edinburgh: W. & A. K. Johnston & G. W. Bacon, 1955 
• The Runaways [Illustrated by Mary Shillabeer].[Heritage Story Books.] London: Longmans, 1955 
• Rascal to the Rescue [Illustrated by Joyce Johnson]. [New Times Readers. no. A12.] Huddersfield: Schofield & Sims, 1958
• Detectives on Horseback [Illustrations by Joyce Johnson][New Times Readers. no. C10.] Huddersfield: Schofield & Sims, 1959
• Island Adventure [Illustrated by Joan Milroy].[Dolphin Books. no. E4.] London: University of London Press, 1960
• The Young Farmers, [illustrated by J. C. Jarvies], [Far and near readers] London; Edinburgh: W. & R. Chambers, 1960
• Rescue in the snow, [Illustrated by Faith Jaques], [Dolphin books no. C.7] London: University of London Press, 1963
• Three Bangles for Mummy. [Illustrated by Romain Simon].[Robin Books.] Edinburgh: McDougall, 1964
• The Battle with the Dark Invaders. Glasgow: Robert Gibson & Sons, 1965
• The McEwen Brownie, Glasgow: Robert Gibson & Sons, 1965
• Mary Jane's pink straw hat [Illustrated by Jo Crickmay] Glasgow: Robert Gibson & Sons, 1965
• Mermaid in a gym-suit. Glasgow: Robert Gibson & Sons, 1966
• The Adventures of Mr Alf Mouse. Glasgow: Robert Gibson & Sons, 1968
• The Treasure Seekers, [Illustrated by David Grice], London: Epworth, 1969
• Exploring in the Scottish Lowlands [Mystery trail books] Nutfield: Denholm House Press, 1971
• Families [Exploring Your World series]  Edinburgh: Holmes McDougall. 1972
• Yesterday and Today [Exploring Your World series]  Edinburgh: Holmes McDougall. 1972
  

STORIES and BROADCASTS

• "The charm of craftsmanship", "Round the World at Playtime", "Chrismas at home and abroad" and "Queer customs"  The Children's New Illustrated Encyclopedia Collins, 1950
  
• "The Wee MacGowans" on Children's Hour - first broadcast Tuesday 12 August 1952, 17:25 on BBC Home Service Scottish, 1952
• "Royal Monkey" in For All Girls, London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 195?
• "Annals of the Loch Ness Monster- review ", Scotland's Magazine, July 1957
• "?" in A Packet of adventures: an omnibus of thrilling stories for girls and boys. Stirling: Stirling Tract Enterprise, [195-?]
• "Ghosts I have Met: by Isobel Knight" Woman's Hour, Friday 30 December 1960, 14:00 on Light Programme [See article above from The Listener]
• "Russians In Russia and Russians in Scotland": Gloria Stewart lived in Moscow and Isobel Knight accompanied twenty-seven Russians on a tour of Scotland, Woman's Hour Monday 14 December 1964, 14:00 on Light Programme
• "It Would Happen to Me: says Isobel Knight", Woman's Hour Monday 3 April 1967, 14:00 on Light Programme from Scotland
   
  

 

Raymond Sheppard and the Crusader series- Part Five

Part One Algerian Adventure + Index
Part Two Avocet Island + Dangerous Journey
Part Three Men O' the Mists + The Riddle of Monk's Island
Part Four The Deserted City + Rustlers at Bar-Two Ranch + Highveld Mystery
 

The Crusader series published by Blackie & Son were for schoolchildren aged between 9-11. I've covered some of the series before - see links above.

Fen Laughs Last - cover with Christmas sticker!

This story Fen laughs last (1952) by John Hornby (who I have mentioned before on this blog) tells the story of two friends whose dog is accused of sheep-killing. Naturally this turns out to be erroneous as two suspicious men are on the Cumbrian Fells and they have a wolf!

My copy came - as you can see - with a Christmas sticker, but that doesn't matter as the covers seem to be all the same knight drawn by Raymond Sheppard! Here are the usual four images from inside the book.

Fen Laughs Last p.00
"Hal dragged the dog back with less than an inch to spare"

An open-backed truck nearly runs over two boys and their dog - and this is after apologising for nearly running into their car!

Fen Laughs Last p.13
"“I'd like to know what they're up to” said Cliff

Cliff and his friend Hal together with Fen - Cliff's dog, watch the two suspicious men on the moors as they are out for a run with Fen.

Fen Laughs Last p.32
"On the ground beside fen lay the body of a dead sheep"

Just at the wrong moment, two local farmers out looking for the sheep-killer hear the ruckus of Fen barking loudly to alert the boys to a dead sheep. He nudges the carcass and naturally gets blood on his snout. The farmers take this as hard evidence and lock up the Alsatian.

Fen Laughs Last p.49
“Fen! You've won!”

The boys decide they don't want the Alsatian shot so run away with him to the High Fell and aim to hide in a cave that Hal knows, but before they can get there, Fen has run on growling and barking. This noise attracts the two suspicious men and also the two farmers who are searching for the boys,. But they are aware Fen has slipped into the cave to attack something or someone - the wolf - and as you can see by the caption Fen wins.

A lovely tale of drama and resolution with four great illustrations by Sheppard - particularly the Alsatian. We don't get to see the wolf (too bloodied for children!) but Sheppard, if you remember did illustrate an article for Lilliput on "The Last Wolf" 

The Ivory Poachers - Hardback!

Now before any collectors rush out to look for hardback versions of the Crusader series by Blackie and Son, this is a one-off - produced by the Henry Compton School, in Fulham, London to stretch the budget by protecting the book. It's nice to think Sheppard's designs - and the story of course - were so well-read they wore out quickly, but I suspect it was because the school had a better budget.

Anyway to the story written by Geoffrey Feild, - note, not 'Field'! The author is a mystery, as, in common with the British Library, I misspelled his surname - now corrected and I've informed the British Library. I suspect given the stories he has written for this series - two, one illustrated by Will Nickless - he might have been Dutch or South African - especially as "Lion's Gold" seems to have been published in Dutch (later in 1958) - and the story in Boy's Fun Annual 1955 sounds similar "Prize Catch by Geoffrey Feild" - well spotted John Wigmans! As a side-note the commentary in a Dutch magazine for schools* mentions "De moeilijke woorden zijn in het Nederlands en Frans gegeven in de omslag" which John confirms means something like "difficult words appear in Dutch and French on the [inside?] cover"! ***SEE BELOW FOR AN UPDATE***

The story is of a boy and his Father who track ivory poachers and rescue a baby orphan elephant who charges their native cook. The boy being suspicious of the latter investigates and follows some poachers who capture him. Rescue arrives at the last minute!

The Ivory Poachers p.00
"It backed a way squealing and lifted its forelegs into the air"

This frontispiece shows the first time the group encounter the baby elephant, Bill watson - Tom's Dad - holding the baby elephant with a rope whilst whispering to it, to calm it down.

The Ivory Poachers p.14
"Mgao covered the ten yards at terrific speed"

Sheppard's drawing of the elephant in action chasing Mgao round the compound is wonderful and the fear in the cook and housekeeper is drawn well too.

The Ivory Poachers p.31
"Kali was leading a file of natives to the east"

Tom is shown on a slight hill spying on the activities of some of the local villagers who are led by the Story-Teller, Kali, the ringleader of the poachers. He follows them keeping his distance.

The Ivory Poachers p.49
"A dark figure stood in his path"

After being captured and held in the hut by the dry river bed, Tom manages to cut his bonds on some sharp edged ivory but escapes just as the men return, including their leader Kali who holds a knife. But luckily for Tom, his Father and the native police have arrived too

I own six more of this series which I will share in due course. The history of the series is interesting as each batch were published over a decade:

• Sheppard illustrated the first twelve, in 1951 and 1952
• Will Nickless started the next four in 1955
• Sheppard continued for four more in 1955
• Then in 1959 and 1962, Nickless and others drew the rest as Sheppard had sadly passed away by then

 --------------------------------------------------

* Het schoolblad. Geraadpleegd op Delpher op 11-02-2025

UPDATE MARCH 2025

"Lion's Gold" photographic cover

As John Wigmans provided some more help and said "Lion's Gold kept haunting me. So I sent an inquiry to the Dutch Royal Library with some questions." Thanks to his efforts we now know that "Lion's Gold" by Geoffrey Feild was published in English with Dutch and French vocabulary lists. He also found out there are no illustrations in this translation, and the text below shows italicised words which can be consulted on the foldover part of the front and back covers.
 
 

English text with italicised words

The explanation that this text can be used in Benelux countries
as Dutch and French vocabulary have been supplied

Others in the series - which don't appear to have ever been published in Britain!

Then we have two examples of vocabulary lists:

It's amazing the rabbit holes we go down as fanatics!. Many thanks to John and to Brina of Klantenservice Koninklijke Bibliotheek - Customer Service of the Royal [National] Library in The Hague.

 

 

 

 

Raymond Sheppard and the Crusader series - Part Four

Part One Algerian Adventure + Index
Part Two Avocet Island + Dangerous Journey
Part Three Men O' the Mists + The Riddle of Monk's Island

I have shown 5 of the Crusader series published by Blackie & Son in previous articles - along with a full listing of all the series (illustrated by Sheppard and others). Today I want to carry on with three more titles by an author called Fay King.

THE DESERTED CITY by Fay King (Blackie, 1951)

Cover

Several huge black birds swept across their path
Frontispiece for p.36

They built a fire before the Witch-Doctor's squatting figure
Page 13 for p.18

A light suddenly shattered the darkness of the cave
Page 32 for p.26

“The rescue party! They're through!”
Page 49 for p.47

THE DESERTED CITY tells the story of Tom, whose parents have been killed in a car accident, and consequently he travels to South Africa to meet his uncle and his cousin Bill, who live on the edge of Kalahari Desert. Tom soon encounters the local life and learns of mysterious disappearances of people within a tribe and then also the chief himself. The local witch doctor starts a fire to be able to read the smoke and discern what has happened and he warns there is great danger in a cave with 3 flat stones. Tom and Bill are out riding around looking at the cattle when a storm forces them to abandon their horses - so they head towards a little hill and despite realising it's the one 'seen' by the witch doctor they go inside the cave, only to be confronted by a mad man with a leopard. On reaching for their guns they find they have disappeared and the mad man lights a torch and aims a revolver at them. He claims to be the ruler of the desert and has discovered the legendary deserted city. He then leads the boys on a long trip underground and soon they reach the deserted city and find they are not the only prisoners! Bill is shot after bravely lunging at the mad man, while Tom is put behind bars along with many other prisoners. They naturally escape and a search party eventually finds them.

Sheppard's art for this tale appears to me to be rough around the edges, yet is still pleasing.

RUSTLERS AT THE BAR-TWO RANCH by Fay King (Blackie, 1952)

 

Cover

The little plane zoomed down over the heads of the terrified animals
Frontispiece for p.36

“Hi! Take a good look,” he said. “There' someone there.”
Page 11 for p.7

With all his strength he flung himself at Scarface
Page 30 for p.26

Quick as a flash the doctor had the revolver in his hand
Page 47 for p.26

RUSTLERS AT THE BAR-TWO RANCH is a story which says it all in the title. A family ranch sees cattle disappearing, despite no-one hearing or seeing anything and also the dog not barking! The two boys ride out one morning and discover some suspicious men living in an old hut on their land. Deciding to return that night, the boys and the action starts. The boys are captured. Needless to say their sister who can mend and fly the family plane saves the day by scaring the rustled cattle so they stampede. One man helps his dying colleague back to the hut and insists a doctor is fetched. This leads to the fight illustrated above. The children find out the traitor is their workman and that explains why the dog did not bark!

 

FAY KING (not to be confused with the American cartoonist) is the maiden name of Fay Goldie (she was married to Andrew Goldie). She also wrote under the pseudonym Richard Burns. The Cambridge guide to children's books in English, (2001) gives the following information: "Goldie [King], Fay; 1905-1993; prolific South African writer of non-fiction and some fiction."The Oxford Encyclopedia of Children's Literature (2006) tells us:

(1905–1993), South African writer whose children's books may be considered representative of the few in English produced in the 1950s and 1960s. Ostrich Country (1968) is a lively exposition of every aspect of ostriches. Fay King Goldie's fiction, such as her historical novel about the late-19th-century gold rush, River of Gold (1969), features flat, stereotypical characterization. In spite of gestures toward the modern themes of nature conservation (Friends of the Bushveld, 1954) and the lives of contemporary black children (Zulu Boy, 1968), her work was old-fashioned, especially in her simplistic, patronizing portrayal of black people.

In March 1936, at the age of 31, she travelled to Southampton from Capetown on the 'Llandaff Castle' and gave her address as 35, Greenhill Road, Harrow and her occupation as 'journalist'. Why she was travelling, we don't know.  The Cape Standard of 21 September 1936 has a short announcement: 

Woman's Soviet Lecture: Mrs.Fay King Goldie, well-known as a contributor to South African periodicals, will lecture on Russia (from which country she has just returned to South Africa), in the Cathedral Hall, Cape Town, to-day.

The same paper (of 15 August 1939) has her as a speaker at a farewell dinner - where she is given as "Mrs. Fay King Goldie, President of the Liberal Study Group". In 1960 the South African Writers’ Circle was founded by Fay King Goldie and 13 other writers, initially meeting at London House in Smith Street (now Anton Lembede Street) and were then called the Durban Writers’ Circle. The name change occurred in 1985 and continues to today.The South African Writers' Circle sponsor a "Fay Goldie Award for General Success in the World of Publishing" The writing circle publish a newsletter and an obituary is listed in 1993, by Honor Rorvik.

Fay (King) Goldie (1903-1993) BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Red Reflections. (A South African's candid impressions of Soviet Russia.). Durban: Knox Printing & Publishing Co, [1938?]
• The Lost City. Bognor Regis : John Crewther, [1942]
• Behind the Enemy's Lines (A Russian Adventure for Boys) Bournemouth:John Crowther, 1944
• Foot-Loose in the Soviet Union,  [London] : Valiant Publications, 1947.
• The Zoo Mystery. (Illustrated by William Stobbs). London: Frederick Muller, 1948.
• Diamonds in Springbok Valley. (Illustrated by Tony Weare) London: Ginn & Co, 1950.
• Bushveld Adventure. (Illustrated by Tony Weare). London: Ginn & Co, 1950.
• Fanyana the Brave. London: Epworth Press, 1950.
• A Practical Guide to Film Careers. London: Findon Publications, [1950]
• The Deserted City. London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1951.
• Diamonds In Springbok Valley London: Ginn and Company, 1952 
  
• Rustlers at the Bar-Two Ranch London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1952.
• Friends of the Bushveld. (Illustrated from drawings by Grace Huxtable). London: Jonathan Cape, 1954.
• An Ear of Wheat, and other tales of the Outeniquas. [Johannesburg]: Central News Agency, [1955]
• Island of Happy Exiles London: Dobson Books Ltd, 1961
• Lost City of Kalahari. The Farini story and reports on other expeditions. Cape Town; Amsterdam: A. A. Balkema, 1963.
• The Golden Bird. Durban: Garnet Publications, [1964]
• Ostrich country. Cape Town: Books of Africa, 1968.
• Zulu boy. (illustrated by Tessa Beaver). London: Macmillan, 1968.
• River of gold (illustrated by William Papas). London: Oxford University Press, 1969.

Her writing appears in 

• Successful freelance journalism: a practical guide for writers. Cape Town ; Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1984.
• How to write stories and novels that sell [Malvern]: [Malvern Publishing], [c1986]
• The dark side of the moon (Short stories in English South African writers 1961-) Premier Publications, c1987.

 Other known articles - many more still to be found:

• "Europeans Walk Through Fire; a firewalking ceremony at the Umbilo Hindu Temple in Durban". Wide World Magazine, [Month unknown] 1928.
• "Mine Boy" [Details unknown] Short Story [c. 1938]
  
• "'Macbeth' infused with Zulu flavoring", The Christian Science Monitor, 30 November 1971

In a reference to a letter (dated 4 April 1964) addressed to Mary Sutherland, (of "Woman's Journal", London), we learn Goldie submitted two short stories "Bird in the hand" and "Reward from the sea":I couldn't find any reference to them online so don't know if they were accepted for publication in the UK.

HIGHVELD MYSTERY by Richard Burns (Blackie, 1952)

 

Cover

“And it's this mystery we've got to try and solve”
Frontispiece for p.5

 

He found a group of natives gathered at the foot of the steps
Page 11 for p.12

 

Suddenly there came the loud, angry barking of the sentry baboon
Page 30 for p.31

Huddled in the farthest corner of the cave was a small brown body
Page 49 for p.31

The story concerns three children on a South African farm and a mystery. Their Dad's friend has been accused of murder after finding out he has been embezzled by a Mr. Long and making threats against him. The body has not been found but the children set out to find the truth. Following a similar theme to "Deserted City" above, a child's disappearance is the starting point and the native fear of a hill as bewitched - similar to the other story. The hill is also where a tribe of baboons live who destroy crops and therefore a hunt is on despite the native fears. One of the boys finds a hidden spot and a cave and the skeleton of a white man and a snake - which must have been the cause of the man's death whilst hiding. Then the whimpers of a child catch Dick's ears and it turns out to be Ncobo's son with an injured leg.

Richard Burns, 1904-1993.

Interestingly despite reassurances by the British Library (and a single reference by a relative saying that Fay wrote under a man's name), I can't find much more on the pseudonym Richard Burns - not to be confused with a science-fiction author.

• The Broadvlei Mystery. An adventure story for boys. Bognor Regis : John Crowther, [1943]
• Highveld Mystery London; Glasgow: Blackie & Son, 1952.

I'm very curious why Blackie would take on Fay Goldie twice in the same series with different names! This is the only story in the series by "Richard Burns" too!
 

Raymond Sheppard and the Crusader series - Part Three

"And that's the Giant's Finger, the peak that's never covered"
Frontispiece for p.9

I have finally acquired two of the Crusader series for schools that are illustrated by Raymond Sheppard. I must thank the Cotswolds Dogs and Cats Homes for selling them to me via eBay They had some others at the time of writing - check their shop and search for "Crusader"

The Men o' the Mists was written by John Hornby in 1951 (and published by Blackie and Son). It is number 5 in the Crusader Series. I've previously covered others in Part One and Part Two

"That will stop anyone getting in" said Neil
p.14 for p.15

In a minute the boys had pulled out into the darkness
p.31 for p.37

"There's a boat on the horizon!" called Neil
p.49 for p.45

The story is a lovely spooky tale of three men who visit the island looking for a missing man. They encounter difficulties but finally triumph.

John Hornby - bibliography

The church came into view
Frontispiece for p.7

The next one I obtained is called The Riddle of Monk's Island by T[homas] F[rancis] Maher. He appears to have been active around 1935-1965 but he's a bit of a mystery.

The story is about  Jim and Dick and their Uncle Victor who takes them out to explore the small islands off "Perros". There is a Perros-Guirec on the Cotes-d'Armor which is described as having pink granite rock along the coast, and looks to be a great hiking area. But the coastline only slightly matches the map in the book and does not have lots of islands as drawn in the book. But i suspect this is where the book is based. The three find an underwater way through one of the islands and this helps them later during World War Two, but I can't find any proof this incident actually occurred. It looks like inspiration might have come from Keroman Submarine Base which was a German U-boat base located in Lorient during World War II - Lorient being on the same peninsula. Anyway enjoy Sheppard's artwork from this book

The beams form the torch made rings of light on the water ahead
p.12 for p.20

"Lieutentant Kurth" he announced
p.29 for p.36

   

There was a blinding flash
p.47 for p.45

Thomas Francis Maher select bibliography

Novels (for children)

Echoes from Long Ago. Cardiff; Wrexham: Educational Publishing Co, [1940]
Brave Days of Old. Cardiff: Educational Publishing Co, [1948]
The Riddle of Monk's Island, illus. Raymond Sheppard. London & Glasgow: Blackie, (Crusader Series. no. 4.), 1952.
The Smugglers of Loch Shee. illus. R. G. Campbell. London & Glasgow: Blackie (Kingfisher Books), 1952
The Valley of Lost Footprints, illus. L. M. Woy. Leeds: E. J. Arnold & Son, (Adventure Stories. no. 24.), 1952
Whispering Island, illus. A. R. Clark. Leeds: E. J. Arnold & Son, (Adventure Stories. no. 20.), 1952
The Swoop of the Falcon, illus.Ellis Silas. London: J. M. Dent & Sons, 1953.
The Secret of the Screes, illus. Gilbert Dunlop. London & Glasgow: Blackie & Son, (Kingfisher Books) 1954


There are lots of educational textbooks for children written under this name and in the same time period from 1940s to the 1970s but whether this is the same man, I have no idea