The Council of Justice

The Red Hundred, an anarchist organization led by a woman of unmatched oratorical skill known as the Woman of Gratz, has set its sight on the destruction of several British institutions. The Four Just Men, a band of wealthy gentlemen notorious for punishing those unreachable by conventional justice, appear to be the only group capable of opposing them. After thwarting The Red Hundred’s plans by successfully assassinating their prominent ringleaders, Manfred, a member of the Four Just Men, is betrayed, captured, and sentenced to death. As the date of Manfred’s execution draws near, his mood remains curiously upbeat. Does he know something the authorities don’t? This book was published in 1908, a low point in Edgar Wallace’s career. Finding his popularity waning, he sold this book for only seventy or eighty pounds to try to keep the creditors at bay. Luckily for him, shortly after The Council of Justice was published Wallace went on to write his very successful Sanders of the River series, making him one of the most widely-read British authors of his time.