Detective Comics #14 is an issue of the series Detective Comics (Volume 1) with a cover date of April, 1938.
Synopsis for Speed Saunders: "The Mystery of Hondoku Isle"
Doris Dane, and her nephew Dick, have hired Speed Saunders to join them on a jungle expedition in Africa. The purpose; to find her missing brother Malcom, whose plane crashed down into the jungle two months ago. The porters stop at the edge of a river, refusing to go any further. Bujama, the translator, tells Speed that they call the area beyond the river the "Land of Devil", and the locals were too afraid to cross. Doris was desperate to find her brother, and they were losing daylight. So although it went against his very moral fiber, Speed went over and dragged the leader of the porters into and across the river with him, finally letting go when he they reached the opposite bank. Speed threatens the man at gunpoint, ordering him to tell the others to cross. And so, with Dina and Dick taking the lead, the expedition continues into the Devil's Land.
That night, the porters are huddled together, afraid of every noise, every shadow. Bujama says that fear has taken hold of them, and there'd be no sleeping tonight. Speed offers to stay up on watch, if only to make the natives feel safe. But the night is long, and soon Speed can no longer keep his eyes open. Once the entire camp is asleep, two shadowy figures enter Doris's tent and carry her away...
Dick realizes his aunt was missing the next morning and wakes Speed. The tracks around the tent were still fresh, leading away from the camp towards the river. They run along the riverbank searching, when they see a native guarding a canoe. Speed lunges and dispatches the guard while Dick pushes the canoe into the water. They ride in the canoe down the river, as Speed does his best to steer it clear of the rocks. But the river soon turns deadly, its speed quickly increasing, and a large rock jutting out of the water that can't be avoided in time. They crash, getting dumped out of the boat and swept up in the rapids towards a waterfall! Just when Speed and Dick are about to go over, they get swept up in a net and lifted out. All they can do is wait, as the net follows a high wire, like a trolley, set up over the jungle. They knew the natives couldn't have built something like this.
A camp awaits the intrepid explorers, where they see Doris held in a similar net over a large kettle of boiling water. The one in charge, whom the natives call "master", is a white man, bearded, and crazed. He was the lost aviator and Doris' brother, Malcolm Dane... Speed manages to cut through the net, dropping to the ground. Malcolm attacks, but Speed overcomes him with a punch to the jaw. He catches Doris before she's dropped in the pot, while the natives flee in terror, leaving their master behind.
Appearing in Speed Saunders: "The Mystery of Hondoku Isle"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Malcolm Dane (First appearance)
Other Characters:
- Doris Dane (First appearance)
- Dick Dane (First appearance)
- Bujama (Single appearance)
Locations:
Synopsis for Buck Marshall: "Framing the Framers"
The sheriff of Sage City calls on Buck for help. He just got a warrant for the arrest of Hank Burt, owner of the Box B ranch, for the charge of rustling from the Double O. The sheriff believes Hank's innocent, but he has to serve the warrant. He asks Buck to go with him, maybe keep an out out for anything that can clear Hank's name.
Buck discovers that Hank's foreman had been working with the Double O ranch in rustling the Box B steers. Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
- Sheriff
Antagonists:
- Jim Foley (Single appearance)
- Red (Single appearance)
- Tex (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- Hank Burt (Single appearance)
Locations:
- American Old West
- Sage City
- Sage City
Appearing in Buck Marshall: "Framing the Framers"
- Appearances not yet listed
Synopsis for Larry Steele: "The Jenks Kidnapping Case (Part 3 of 3)"
Larry and the police find the abandoned car of the men who kidnapped Nancy Jenks. After searching the vehicle, Larry finds a wallet with a Harlem address on it. Larry rides with the police to the address, which ends up being the same building the kidnappers took Nancy. While two officers stand guard outside, the third officer takes Larry in with him to investigate
Meanwhile in the basement, the kidnappers start making plans to ransom Nancy back to her father. Two of the men head upstairs to grab a bite to eat, which is when they notice the police outside the door. They duck back in, but the officer noticed them and shoots the lock off! Bullets start flying at them, alerting the two police on guard outside. The boss of the operation takes Nancy down towards the garage. He holds her as a human shield against the cops who were pursuing him, warning them to stay back. They have no choice, not wanting the girl to be hurt. With his hostage, the boss starts backing away into the garage. One of the officers comes up from behind and fires his gun, but misses. The crook swings around and shoots, wounding the officer. Nancy is pushed into a car that her captor starts up. Larry hears the engine from upstairs, senses what's happened, and leaps out the window onto a roof below. He drops to the ground, directly in the path of the oncoming car! Larry fires a shot right through the windshield, hitting the driver between the eye! The car swerves and crashes. Thankfully, Nancy is unharmed.
The cops killed the last of the gang in the shootout. Larry tells the grateful Nancy Jenks that she and her father can now live in peace again.
Appearing in Larry Steele: "The Jenks Kidnapping Case (Part 3 of 3)"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Kidnappers (Final appearance; all die)
Other Characters:
- Nancy Jenks
- Several police officers
Locations:
Synopsis for Bruce Nelson: "Too Many Crooks (Part 1 of 3)"
A deal over an expensive diamond is settled between Henri Gourmier, famous French Diamond merchant, and Mr. Lloyd Parsons. Parsons performs a sleight of hand while Henri's back is turned, replacing the real diamond in his coat pocket with a fake.
The next day aboard the Monarch, a liner bound for New York, Bruce Nelson stood leaning on the rail, watching the throngs of people down below. He recognizes a few familiar faces in the crowd of passengers; the first is Lloyd Parsons, a diamond buyer for Charteris & Co. Bruce also makes out two of the slickest jewel thieves he's come across, Caulkins and Strafacchi. It's very possible to be a coincidence that they'd be boarding the same ship as Parsons. But when Bruce notices the newspaper headlines were openly reporting on the purchase of the Omar diamond, he figured he should check in on the Purser's Office just to make sure there's no funny business. There were many people around, Bruce notes, including Caulkins and Strafacchi. Parsons presents a check to Mr. Gourmier, who proceeds to hand him the diamond, which is actually the fake, sealed in an envelope. The Purser offers a safe deposit box for keeping the diamond in, to the disdain of the thieving pair of onlookers. Nothing seemed to be wrong, so Bruce left.
The ship finally sets sail for America. Bruce decides to enjoy a dip in the swimming pool. It's when he goes for a dive off the board that Bruce, quite literally, bumps into the beautiful young Patricia Barden, "Pat" to her friends. They end up stretching out in the sun together, Pat bringing up the article about the Omar diamond and Lloyd Parsons. His cabin was right across from hers, and she tells Bruce how she'd love to meet Mr. Parsons, since she had an uncle in the same line of work. Bruce suggests he can try introducing them tonight at the dining salon. Pat mentions she's dining with her aunt, but invites Bruce to join them.
The salon is full that night, Bruce, Pat and Pat's aunt Jessup enjoy the dinner. When they finish, Bruce goes over to Lloyd Parsons table. Name-dropping Pat's uncle worked, as it turns out Parsons was well-acquainted with the man, promising to visit their table soon. He and Miss Jessup get along well, spending the evening talking and laughing. Bruce takes the opportunity to ask Pat out onto the dance floor, which then turns into a night watching the moon on the deck. She excuses herself for a moment, claiming she needed to grab a wrap from her cabin. But when she gets to her state room door, she notices a fire alarm covered by glass. It was perfect! Pat breaks the glass and activates the alarm, rushing back into her cabin before the onslaught of people. She cracks the door and peers through, waiting, until she sees Parsons dart into his cabin across the way and locking the door behind him. Satisfied, Pat closes the door. Meanwhile in all the turmoil, Bruce is worried about Pat, unable to find her among the panicking crowd. The captain speaks to the passengers over a loudspeaker that it was a false alarm, there was no fire. Things settle down after that.
Everyone retires to their cabins for the night. Pat and her aunt plot their next move. The fact that Parsons went to his cabin instead of the Purser's Office meant that the diamond in the safety deposit was fake, while the real one is being kept in his room. Unfortunately, she isn't the only one who came to that conclusion; Caulkins and Strafacchi, the jewel thieves, had gone to the Pursers during the chaos hoping to rob Parsons when he came to get the diamond, but he never showed up. Bruce, too, thinks something fishy's going on with someone setting off the fire alarm like that. Whoever it was, he thought, would likely make their move tonight during the masquerade ball, and he was going to be there to catch it.
Bruce joins the masquerade down in the ballroom dressed as Tarzan. While searching for Pat, he meets a Mr. Freeland, a clothing manufacturer from the big city. Bruce introduces himself as an oil tycoon from Texas, then asks for Freeland's pardon when he sees Pat walk in. He dances with the lovely girl, while keeping an eye out for trouble. Pat's aunt has caught Mr. Parsons in another joyful conversation, which makes Bruce think there was some romance happening between them. Pat excuses herself after a few minutes. Bruce decides to take this time to change out of his embarrassing costume. Pat returns to her cabin and changes into a maid uniform, all while vowing to let this be her last job, as she wanted to go straight and have an honest life with a man like Bruce. Heading across the hall, she opens Parsons door with a skeleton key. While her aunt keeps him distracted upstairs, she rummages through Parsons cabinets and drawers searching desperately for the diamond. Finally, she comes across a military brush that made a rattling sound when she moved it. Opening up the back, she finds the diamond hidden inside! But her success hit a snag when the the sound of a key entering a lock comes from behind her. Parsons was back! It's too late to hide anywhere so Pat can't do anything when he enters. He recognizes her right away and grabs her arm. They struggle for the diamond, making enough noise to alert anyone out in the hall. As it happens, Bruce is the one to hear them and bursts in when he hears Pat yell. Parsons clutches the diamond tight as Bruce pulls his automatic out, quickly assessing the situation. Bruce demands that Parsons hand him the diamond. To Pat's shock, Bruce shoots him when he refuses!
Appearing in Bruce Nelson: "Too Many Crooks (Part 1 of 3)"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Patricia Barden (First appearance)
- Laura Jessup (First appearance)
Other Characters:
- Lloyd Parsons (First appearance)
- Henri Gourmier (First appearance)
- Freeland (First appearance)
- Caulkins (First appearance)
- Strafacchi (First appearance)
Locations:
Synopsis for "The Black Case"
The police call upon "Hot-Trail" Hogan to solve a murder case.
Appearing in "The Black Case"
Featured Characters:
- Hot-Trail Hogan
Antagonists:
- Tom Black (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- Caleb Black (Single appearance; dies)
- Marie (Single appearance)
- Benson (Single appearance)
- Frank Meade (Single appearance)
Synopsis for Bart Regan, Spy: "The Golden Ray"
Basil Montague steals a ray gun from a scientist he killed and flees to his castle, to sell it to the highest bidder. Bart Regan tracks him down with Sally, having their car get destroyed by the ray in the process. They sneak in during the bidding, Bart fires a shot at the ray gun, destroying it. This starts a riot as Montague thinks it was one of the guests trying to pull one over on him. After he kills the last bidder, Bart shows himself. Enraged, Basil charges him, but Bart sidesteps just in time, leaving the murderous madman falling out the window to his death.
Appearing in Bart Regan, Spy: "The Golden Ray"
Featured Characters:
Antagonists:
- Basil Montague (Single appearance; dies)
Other Characters:
- Spy Chief
Locations:
- Washington, D.C.
- Montague's castle
Items:
Synopsis for "Hot Trail Hogan"
Mrs. Van Slittert will be wearing her famous Bombay Ruby to a party, so naturally there will be a police presence, including two officers charged with admittance of the guests. Even with all the precautions, the ruby is still stolen. After asking around, Hot-Trail Hogan solves who did it after learning the two cops on door duty were phonies. They admitted a pickpocket who seized the jewel, slipping it to them on the way out.
Appearing in "Hot Trail Hogan"
Featured Characters:
- Hot Trail Hogan
Antagonists:
- Unnamed thieves
Other Characters:
- Shuggins (Single appearance)
- Mrs. Van Sittert (Single appearance)
Synopsis for Cosmo, the Phantom of Disguise: "The Poultry Racketeers"
When Cosmo finds his pleasant stroll interrupted by a body being thrown out of a car, he ends up involving himself in the case. The corpse is identified as Lou Capri, or better known as "Little Butch", a crook with a history, who had most recently gotten involved in the poultry business. Captain Flynn lets Cosmo visit the poultry market disguised as an interested buyer of chicken.
After only a few minutes of asking around looking for the best price, Cosmo is met by two men who pull him into their office. They attempt to strongarm him into buying their poultry at a high price, and since he's playing the part of a meek old man, Cosmo feigns fright and agrees to the thugs terms. Back at police headquarters, Cosmo relays what just happened to the captain. The racket was muscling in on the market, making it difficult for honest merchants to get any goods sold. Flynn has the police go with Cosmo as he returns to the racketeers office, this time made up to look like the murdered man, Little Butch.
It showed on the racketeers faces when the man they murdered returns. The boss of the operation, Dirty Joe, starts pulling his gun out. This time he'll make sure Butch stays dead... or so he thought. A right hook to the jaw and a sudden raid by the police puts a cork in his plans. Captain Flynn is happy to have caught this gang, what with their long rap sheet. It'll be the chair for them, to be sure.
Appearing in Cosmo, the Phantom of Disguise: "The Poultry Racketeers"
Featured Characters:
- Cosmo, the Phantom of Disguise
Antagonists:
- Dirty Joe (Single appearance)
- Nick the Plugger (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- Jim Casey (First appearance)
- Captain Flynn
- Lou Capri (Appears only as a corpse)
- Al (Single appearance)
Locations:
Synopsis for Slam Bradley: "Up North"
Slam Bradly and his pal Shorty were flying a plane over the arctic tundra, through the cold chill of sleet and blizzards, in search of a man. Never ones to resist a good-lookin' gal, the two detectives agreed to seek out Ms. Lucy Trent's brother, Jack, who disappeared shortly after writing that he found a valuable coal mine. So now they find themselves flying over the Arctic Circle, that is, until the plane's motor can't take the cold anymore. It sputters and coughs, then goes still. The plane starts going down, so its pilot and passenger have to bail out with their parachutes. After safely landing on the ground, Shorty takes time to contemplate his life, wishing he'd listened to his fortune teller who told him to quit being a detective. Because now, their plane was a burning wreck and they're miles from civilization. Slam snaps his glum partner out of his funk by showing him a sign of life on the horizon. It was the town of Stormhaven, their original destination! They made it after all!
Many people look surprised to see newcomers all the way out here. Things get strange when every time they ask one of the townsfolk about Jack Trent, the questioner runs off. Slam decides to get tough with the next guy they ask, grabbing the man by the collar and threatening to knock his teeth out if he doesn't answer. The scared man tells them that mentioning Jack Trent's name in Stormhaven can lead to trouble. He tears himself free from Slam's grip and scurries off like the others. They needed to get to the bottom of this, so they head to the one place in town where they'd get some answers; the Claim Office. Slam asks the clerk about the claim filed by Jack Trent. The man goes to the back room to check the records, or so he says. What he actually does is make a phone call to the boss, reporting Slam and Shorty as snoopers going on about Trent. The boss tells the clerk to keep them there for as long as possible, he'll send his best man over to take care of them. The clerk gives the detectives an answer they half expected, there were no records of any Jack Trent or his claim. They knew he was lying but there's nothing to do right now but leave and find another way. Outside, leaning against a wall waiting, was "Muscles", a tall, burly, flannel wearing thug. When the clerk waves to him after Slam and Shorty leave, he takes his cue. He calls out to the pair, who pretend not to hear him and move on. Muscles walks up on Shorty and grabs him, not taking kindly to being ignored. Slam's response is a hard push that puts Muscles flat on his stomach. He pulls out a gun, but Slam kicks it away! The raving thug charges Slam, leading to a quick fight that ends with the roughed-up Muscles being dragged by Slam and hung out by the back of his jacket on a wooden post. Later, the boss sees his best man return with bruises and wild eyes, making up a story that his targets had big sticks they beat him with. The bald-headed boss changes his plan, deciding to give the snooping detectives the same treatment he gave Trent. He has Muscles spread the word about town, Slam and Shorty are too be shunned, to even speak their names is now taboo.
Slam and Shorty notice how the mood in town has changed. It seems like everyone was now completely avoiding them. All except for one man, Kilo, offering to take them to Jack Trent for a fee. What luck! They hop on Kilo's dog sled and let their guide take them through the snowy landscape. The terrain grows tough, too much for the dogs, so they continue on foot. Slam and Shorty find mother nature to be against them though, as a blizzard hits. They can barely see through the white-out, and even worse, they've been separated from their guide! Eventually, Slam and Shorty grow weary, the cold sapping their strength until finally they collapse. It's an Eskimo who comes across their limp forms and carries them back to his igloo.
Heavy blankets and a warm fire assist in arousing the two nearly-frozen friends. Zanook, their rescuer, knows where Jack Trent was being held. There is an encampment nearby full of white men who hold Trent captive. He shows them the way once the blizzard clears. Slam and Shorty quickly spot Jack tied to a post, being watched by Muscles, and a bald man they assume is the boss. Perhaps what most surprises the duo is that their guide, Kilo, was also there. He was working against them from the start, leaving Slam and Shorty to die in the cold. Slam rushes down towards them, with Shorty following. Muscles and Kilo are quickly knocked down, Slam had no time for them. The boss grabs Shorty and runs away. But he either doesn't notice or care that he had run onto thin ice, until it cracks beneath him and he falls in with Shorty still in his grasp! Slam dives in after them, finding himself engaged in one last underwater fight with the boss before he manages to save Shorty and emerge the victor.
Jack was captured because they wanted to force him to five up his claim to the coal mine. But now thanks to Slam and Shorty, work can continue, making him a rich man. In thanks, he gives them ownership of some large shares from his profits.
Appearing in Slam Bradley: "Up North"
Featured Characters:
Supporting Characters:
Antagonists:
- Boss (Single appearance; dies)
- "Muscles" Hogan (Single appearance)
- Kilo (Single appearance)
Other Characters:
- Lucy Trent (Mentioned only)
- Jack Trent (Single appearance)
- Zanook (Single appearance)
Locations:
Notes
- Published by Detective Comics, Inc..
- Starting this same month, More Fun Comics and New Adventure Comics were also published by Detective Comics, Inc.
- First issue for Vincent Sullivan as Editor-in-Chief.
- Buck Marshall appears in color for the first time this issue.
- Also in this issue:
- Dr. S. G. Boyce", a one-page non-fiction piece about the ballistics expert by Gill Fox.
- "The Law At Work: Eddie Doll", a one-page non-fiction story of the capture of Eddie Doll, by Will Ely.
- "Oil From China", a text story by Gardner Fox (as Paul Dean).
- "Quentin Roosevelt, Heroic Fighter" , a non-fiction biographic strip by Bill Ely.
Trivia
- This comic book appears in the Gotham episode "A Dark Knight: The Sinking Ship The Grand Applause".
See Also