Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, October 1954

About this issue

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine, October 1954 (Vol. 24, No. 4). This issue presents a diverse selection of mystery and detective fiction. The lead story, "Debt of Honor" by Cornell Woolrich, concerns Detective Clinton Sturgess, whose young daughter drowns when his parked car rolls into a lake. A mysterious stranger rescues her, but flees before Sturgess can properly thank him or learn his identity. Months later, as Sturgess investigates the Torrington murder case using forensic science, he discovers his benefactor is the prime suspect. The story explores the detective's internal conflict between professional duty and personal obligation. Additional stories include "The Crooked Figures" by Phyllis Bentley, "There Are No Snakes in Hawaii" by Juanita Sheridan, "The Mark of the Flail," and works by Voltaire, Dion Henderson, and others. The issue also advertises Ellery Queen's novel The Glass Village and a $1,000 contest for retitling Hampton Stone's mystery The Corpse Who Had Too Many Friends.