Mike Barnett, Man Against Crime #4

A young woman’s mysterious encounter with an old hobo leads detective Mike Barnett into a web of deception involving a seemingly harmless man and a dangerous criminal mastermind. As the case unfolds, hidden motives and unexpected twists reveal a crime far more elaborate than it first appeared.

Dopey Danny Dee is furious after being called a fool, insisting he’s just as smart as anyone. When challenged with a riddle about automobile marks, he confidently answers "autographs" — only to be met with stunned silence.

Tightwad Tad, a man obsessed with saving money, is surprised to learn his friend Briggs is reading *Moby Dick*—a book he considers a waste of time and money. When Briggs proudly declares his favorite book is his bank book, Tad is both baffled and horrified by the idea of a financial ledger being more valuable than literature.

Colonel Corn, convinced he's dying after a series of bizarre symptoms, seeks advice from Mike Barnett, Man Against Crime, who urges him to indulge in luxury despite his condition. As Colonel Corn insists on getting custom shirts made, the tailor’s measurements reveal a shocking twist that seems to tie his ailments directly to his collar size.

Mike Barnett is hired to deliver a pair of valuable vases from New York to Toronto, but when he arrives, he’s ambushed and mistaken for a thief—only to realize he’s been set up by the woman who hired him and her cousin, Gregory Keats, who switched the valise containing priceless smuggled jewels. With the real culprit still at large and the jewels missing, Mike must track down Keats before the gang can vanish with the loot.