#1
The Case of the Velvet Claws (6.22)
Reading the first book of the Perry Mason series was a big relief from reading the classics, especially with their well-known fondness for long run-on sentences.
The jump from books with more description than dialogue, to ones that were overflowing with dialogue, was like a breath of fresh air to me. No more would I have to read a sentence twice, trying to figure out what the hell the author was trying to say.
In most (if not all) of the books in the series, Perry eventually ends up in the courtroom, but
The Case of the Velvet Claws is one novel where that doesn't happen.
In this specific case, Della is disappointed with Perry for turning against his client and throwing her to the wolves, but when he's able to prove she's innocent afterwards, she promises to never doubt him again.
She keeps that promise throughout the series, even to the point of betting a month's salary (with Paul Drake) that Perry will once again prove his client's innocence, despite how dark the case looked in the next book in the series,
The Case of the Sulky Girl.
Speaking of Della, one of the events that divides the series for me is when she begins to stay in the room with Perry to take notes of his interview with clients. Not too shortly after that, she even accompanies him when he does a couple B&Es, looking for evidence.
Some folks may see that as a negative, but the way Perry explained it almost makes it legal, and that also brings up the first thing I learned from reading these books. According to Perry Mason, almost every criminal law statute in the US has attached to it the idea that you also have to prove intent. In other words, Perry argued that there would have to be a criminal or felonious intent behind it before anything could be considered a crime.
Another important thing I learned is that if he helps a fugitive from justice, he can't be charged with aiding (giving the suspect support and help) if they are innocent.
When I come upon one of Perry's many explanations as to why those are true, I'll include it in my review.
A good example of the first point is if you were walking by someone's house and saw smoke pouring from it, would there be a criminal or felonious intent to commit a crime if you broke in to save their lives?
I'm sure some folks will want to argue these points, but I'm going to let Gardner kind of answer that by quoting a kind of modern day forward that he wrote to the third book of the series:
A NOTE FROM ERLE STANLEY GARDNER
Perry Mason shares the prerogative of all good fictional characters. They never grow old. Yet the lawyer’s cases began years ago in what now seems almost a different world.
The Case of the Lucky Legs deals with Perry Mason at a time in his career when there were three powerful 'slick paper' magazines, The Saturday Evening Post, Collier’s and Liberty. Only The Saturday Evening Post has survived. It occurred in a period when much of the best food was in speakeasies, when sliding-panel doors were standard equipment.
Moreover, in these earlier cases Perry Mason had the great advantage of complete freedom of action. Those of you who read Perry Mason’s adventure of The Case of the Lucky Legs will, I think, agree that fame has disadvantages; that a young, relatively unknown fighting criminal lawyer can get into a series of most attractive escapades with skeleton keys and an impulsive disregard for the finer points of legal ethics.
Nowadays when the celebrated Perry Mason dashes past a cornerstone of legal ethics without bothering to touch base, bar associations shiver with apprehension. In these earlier days when only a few people knew of the daring, resourceful Perry Mason, a bunch of skeleton keys in his pocket was standard equipment. After all, who dared to keep a locked door between a Perry Mason reader and the mystery on the other side? Certainly not the author!
So to those who wish to encounter Perry Mason in one of his earlier adventures, who have a nostalgic longing for the days of the speakeasy and individual initiative, I trust this reprinting of The Case of the Lucky Legs will give you your money’s worth of excitement and entertainment."
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