Ernest Bramah

Born E.B. Smith in 1867. Died 1942.

(At the moment, I give the titles, contents, years of first hardback and paperback publication, publisher, and the ISBN where I have it (mostly I don't -- my editions are too old). Occasionally I add a comment or two.

Short Stories

* The Wallet of Kai Lung - with an introduction by Grant Richards (The Richards Press, 1900. Published by Penguin Books, 1936)
Contents:
I. The Transmutation of Ling
II. The Story of Yung Chang
III. The Probation of Sen Heng
IV. The Experiment of the Mandarin Chan Hung
V. The Confession of Kai Lung
VI. The Vengeance of Tung Fel
VII. The Career of the Charitable Quen-Ki-Tong --
First Period: The Public Official
Second Period: The Temple Builder
VIII. The Vision of Yin, the Son of Yat Huang
IX. The Ill-Regulated Destiny of Kin Yen, the Picture-Maker
* Max Carrados (Methuen, 1914)
Contents:
  • The Coin of Dionysius
  • The Knight's Cross Signal Problem
  • The Tragedy at Brookbend Cottage
  • The Clever Mrs. Straithwaite
  • The Last Exploit of Harry the Actor
  • The Tilling Shaw Mystery
  • The Comedy at Fountain Cottage
  • The Game Played in the Dark
* Kai Lung's Golden Hours - with a preface by Hillaire Belloc (The Richards Press, 1922. Published by Penguin Books, 1938)
Contents:
I. The Encountering of Six Within a Wood
II. The Inexorable Justice of the Mandarin Shan Tien
The Story of Wong Ts'in and the Willow Plate Embellishment
III. The Degraded Persistence of the Effete Ming-Shu
The Story of Ning, the Captive God, and the Dreams that Mark His Race
IV. The Inopportune Behaviour of the Covetous Li-Loe
The Story of Wong Pao and the Minstrel
V. The Timely Intervention of the Mandarin Shan Tien's Lucky Day
The Story of Lao Ting and the Luminous Insect
VI. The High-Minded Strategy of the Amiable Hwa-Mei
The Story of Weng Cho; Or, The One Devoid of Name
VII. Not Concerned With Any Particular Attribute of Those Who Are Involved
The Story of Wang Ho and the Burial Robe
VIII. The Timely Disputation Among Those of an Inner Chamber of Yu-Ping
The Story of Chang Tao, Melodious Vision, and the Dragon
IX. The Propitious Dissension Between Two Whose General Attributes Have Already Been Sufficiently Described
The Story of Yuen Yan, of the Barber Chou-hu, and of His Wife, Tsae-Che
X. The Incredible Obtuseness of Those Who Had Opposed the Virtuous Kai Lung
The Story of Hien and the Chief Examiner
XI. Of Which It Is Written: "In Shallow Water Dragons Become the Laughing-Stock of Shrimps"
XII. The Out-Passing Into a State of Assured Felicity of the Much- Enduring Two with Whom These Printed Leaves Have Chiefly Been Concerned
The Story of the Loyalty of Ten-teh, the Fisherman
* The Eyes of Max Carrados (Grant Richards, 1923)
Contents:
  • The Virginiola Fraud
  • The Disappearance of Marie Severe
  • The Secret of Dunstan's Tower
  • The Mystery of the Poisoned Dish of Mushrooms
  • The Ghost of Massingham Mansions
  • The Missing Actress Sensation
  • The Ingenious Mr. Spinola
  • The Kingsmouth Spy Case
  • The Eastern Mystery
* The Specimen Case (Hodder & Stoughton, 1924)
Contents:
  • Ming Tseuen and the Emergency
  • The Delicate Case of Mlle. Celestine Bon
  • The Dead March
  • A Very Black Business
  • The Bunch of Violets
  • Revolution
  • Smothered in Corpses
  • Fate and a Family Council
  • Lucretia and the Horse-Doctor
  • The War Hawks
  • The Great Hockington Find
  • Hautepierre's Star
  • The Goose and the Golden Egg
  • The Making of Marianna
  • Bobbie and Poetic Justice
  • The Heart of the Pagan
  • Once in a Blue Moon
  • The Marquise Ring
  • The `Dragon' of Swafton
  • The Dream of William Elgood
  • From a London Balcony
* Max Carrados Mysteries (Hodder & Stoughton, 1927)
Contents:
  • The Secret of Headlam Height
  • The Mystery of the Vanished Petition Crown
  • The Holloway Flat Tragedy
  • The Curious Circumstances of the Two Left Shoes
  • The Ingenious Mind of Mr. Rigby Lacksome
  • The Crime at the House in Culver Street
  • The Strange Case of Cyril Bycourt
  • The Missing Witness Sensation
* Kai Lung Unrolls His Mat (The Richards Press, 1928. Published by Penguin Books, 1937)
Contents:
Part I. The Protecting Ancestors
I. The Malignity of the Depraved Ming-shu Rears Its Offensive Head
II. The Difficult Progression of the Virtuous Kai Lung Assumes a Concrete Form
The Story of Wan and the Remarkable Shrub
III. The Further Continuance of Kai Lung's Quest and His Opportune Encounter With an Outlaw Band, All Ignorant of the Classical Examples of the Past
The Story of Wong Tsoi and the Merchant Teen King's Thumb
IV. At the Extremity of His Resource the Continent Kai Lung Encounters One Who Leads the Unaffected Life
The Story of Tong So, the Averter of Calamities
V. The Meeting by the Way with the Warrier of Chi-U, and What Emerged Therefrom
The Story of Lin Ho and the Treasure of Fang-tso
VI. The Ambigous Face upon the One Found in a Wood and the Effete Ming-shu's Dilemma
VII. The Concave-Witted Li-Loe's Insatiable Craving Serves a Meritorious End and Two (Who Shall Be Nameless) Are Led Towards a Snare
VIII. In Which the Position of the Estimable Kai Lung Is Such That He Must Either Go Up or Down
IX. Wherein the Footsteps of the Two Who Have Induced These Printed Leaves Assume a Homeward Bend
The Story of Kin Weng and the Miraculous Tusk
Part II. The Great Sky Lantern
X. How Kai Lung Sought to Discourage One Who Did Not Gain His Approbation
The Story of the Philosopher Kuo Tsun and of his Daughter, Peerless Chou
Part III. The Bringer of Good News
XI. Whereby the Angle at Which Events Present Themselves May Be Varied
The Story of Ching-kwei and the Destinies
* Short Stories of To-day and Yesterday - with an introduction by F. H. P. (Harrap, 1929)
Reprints four stories from Kai Lung's Golden Hours, three from Max Carrados Mysteries, and four from The Specimen Case

Contents:
  • Hien and the Chief Examiner
  • Wong Pao and the Minstrel
  • Chang Tao, Melodious Vision and the Dragon
  • Wong T'sin and the Willow Plate Embellishment
  • The Secret of Headlam Height
  • The Curious Circumstances of the Two Left Shoes
  • The Missing Actress Sensation
  • The Delicate Case of Mlle. Celestine Bon
  • A Very Black Business
  • Smothered in Corpses
  • The Goose and the Golden Egg
* The Moon of Much Gladness, Related by Kai Lung (Cassell and Company, Ltd., 1932) - a.k.a. The Return of Kai Lung
I know nothing more about this.
* The Kai Lung Omnibus (London: Philip Allen (Quality Press, Ltd), September 1936)
Contains three complete Kai Lung books:
  • The Wallet of Kai Lung
  • Kai Lung Unrolls His Mat
  • Kai Lung's Golden Hours
* Kai Lung Beneath the Mulberry Tree (The Richards Press, 1940)
Contents:
  • The Story of Prince Ying, Virtuous Mei, and the Pursuit of Worthiness
  • The Three Recorded Judgments of Prince Ying, from the Inscribed Scroll of Mou Tao, The Beggar
  • The Ignoble Alliance of Lin T'sing with the Outlaw Fang Wang, and How It Affected the Destinies
  • The Story of Yin Ho, Hoa-mi, and the Magician
  • The Story of Ton Hi, Precious Gem and the Incospicuous Elephant
  • The Story of Sam-tso, the Family Called Wong, and the Willing Buffalo
  • The Story of Saho Chi, the No-longer Merchant Ng Hon, and the Docile Linnets
  • The Story of the Poet Lao Ping, Chun Shin's Daughter Fa, and the Fighting Crickets
* The Celestial Omnibus - with an introduction by John Connell (John Baker (Publishers) Ltd. for The Richards Press, 1963)
Contents:
  • The Transmutation of Ling
  • The Vengeance of Tung Fel
  • The Encountering of Six Within a Wood
  • The Inexorable Justice of the Mandarin Shan Tien
  • The Out-Passing into a State of Assured Felicity
  • The High-Minded Strategy of the Amiable Hwa-Mei
  • The Malignity of the Depraved Ming Shu
  • Whereby the Angle at Which Events Present Themselves May Be Varied
  • The Story of Prince Ying
  • The Story of the Poet Lao Ping
* Best Max Carrados Detective Stories - selected and with an introduction by E. F. Bleiler (New York: Dover Publications, 1972; ISBN 0-486-20064-7)
Reprints four stories from Max Carrados, four stories from The Eyes of Max Carrados, and two from Max Carrados Mysteries.

Contents:
  • The Coin of Dionysius
  • The Knight's Cross Signal Problem
  • The Tragedy at Brookbend Cottage
  • The Last Exploit of Harry the Actor
  • The Disappearance of Marie Severe
  • The Mystery of the Poisoned Dish of Mushrooms
  • The Ghost of Massingham Mansions
  • The Ingenious Mr. Spinola
  • The Mystery of the Vanished Petition Crown
  • The Holloway Flat Tragedy
Kai Lung: Six - with an introduction by William White (Tacoma: The Non-Profit Press, 1974)
Contents:
  • The Story of Lam-Hoo and the Reward of Merit
  • The Story of Chung Pun and the Miraculous Peacocks
  • The Story of Yeun Yang and the Empty Soo-Shong Chest
  • The Story of Sing Tsung and the Exponent of Dark Magic
  • The Story Kwey Chao and the Grateful Song Bird
  • The Story Li Pao, Lucky Star and the Intruding Stranger

Miscellaneous

* English Farming and Why I Turned It Up (The Leadenhall Press, 1894)
Autobiographical first book.
* A Handbook for Writers and Artists: A Practical Guide to the Press and to Literary and Artistic Publications (Charles Wilson Deacon, 1898)
"By a London Editor". This entry appeared in The British Library General Catalogue of Printed Books to 1975, Vol 305 (London, Muenchen, Paris, 1985) on page 285, identifying the London Editor as E. B. Smith.
* The Mirror of Kong Ho (Chapman & Hall, 1905)
A young Chinese boy's supposed letters from London to his father back home, which Bramah said was "found amusing by those who admit they cannot stand Kai Lung."
* What Might Have Been: The Story of a Social War (Nelson, 1907) - a.k.a. The Secret Of The League
A novel - "an earnest, reactionary, and fiercely illiberal political treatise about the future"(John Connell)
* A Guide to the Varieties and Rarity of English Regal Copper Coins, Charles II-Victoria, 1671-1860 (Methuen, 1929)
* A Little Flutter (Cassell, 1930)
Nonsense about the last surviving Patagonian Groo-Groo.
* The Bravo of London (Cassell, 1934)

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