[Gaspey, Thomas, attributed]

Richmond; or, Scenes in the Life of a Bow Street Officer. New York: Printed by J. & J. Harper for Collins and Hannay, Collins and Co., et al, 1827

2 volumes, 12mo (197 x 119 mm). Untrimmed; leaves toned. Orig😼inal linen-backed b๊oards, paper labels to spines; light soiling and damp staining to covers, labels chipped, bumped at edges with some loss. Clamshell box.

First American edition.

The Bow Street Runners were the first British police force, brought in by Henry Fielding to combat the unofficial crime solving and law enforcement that was carried out by private citizens. Richmond can be called "one of the earliest books of true real-life reminiscences" (Queen, The Detective Short Story, p.46). Queen, Halkett, and Laing attribute the work to Thomas Gaspey. This work was an forerunner of the so-called Newgate novel, which glamorized or♑ exaggerated true stori♏es of notorious criminals for dramatic effect.

A scarce work that sowed the seeds for the modern detective story.