The Devil's Gentleman: Privilege, Poison, and the Trial That Ushered in the Twentieth Century

Over the past two decades, Harold Schechter has resurrected the stories of many prominent moral monsters from America's past, corrected the numerous myths that have grown up around them, replaced those myths with more fascinating facts, and then related them in compelling narratives that are also scholarly, sensitive, and keenly written. In resurrecting the crazy story of crazy Roland Molineux and his bizarre journey into murder and in and out of justice, Schechter has written his masterpiece. No question, hands down. A classic of true crime, and of biography and history. It will be around for many decades to come.

I have never heard of author Harold Schechter much less read one of his books. I picked up this book because I like to read about New York and saw an impressive photo of the Flatiron building on the cover. I guess I was judging a book by its cover. Once I started reading I had difficulty putting it down. It's a cliche to say so, but this is a real page turner. The murder case involving the defendant Roland Molineux, son of a very respected Civil War General involving poison sent through the mail closed out the 19th century and ushered in the 20th century. The case involved very prominent people and the yellow journalists had a field day trying to outdo one another in providing their readers with juicy tidbits of those involved. Author Schechter provides vivid detail of the main characters such as the defendants parents, his wife, and a surviving individual who was a victim of the poisoning. Two people died and Roland Molineux was convicted and sent to death row at Sing Sing. I don't want to elaborate beyond this and ruin the ending for you, but the author provides us with his opinion on the ultimate verdict in the notes at the back of the book. I got a real feel of what New York City was like just prior to the turn of the 20th century. We are also told of what the future held for each of those involved. I throughly enjoyed this book, and have ordered two additional copies for friends along with a different volume for myself by this author. This book definitely deserves a place in your library especially if you enjoy crime books.

The Devil's Gentleman by Harold Schechter is the story of Roland Molineux, who in 1900 was accused of murdering a woman and attempting to murder another man through poison because of jealousy. Molineux, the son of a Civil War hero, was a profligate who brought nothing but shame to his father's proud name. He lived the high life in New York City at the turn of the 20th century with a mistress, drugs, and lots of money. He worked as a chemist at a paint company, so he had access to the rare poison used in the case. Kathryn Adams died as a result of taking poisoned bromo-seltzer that had been sent to Harry Cornish, the director of the Knickerbocker Athletic Club. Molineux and Cornish had clashed repeatedly at the club, and Molineux eventually resigned in disgust. Another man, Henry Barnet, also died after taking poisoned bromo-seltzer that had been mysteriously sent to him through the mail. Barnet had been a rival for the affections of Molineux's wife Blanche Chesebrough. Molineux was tried in the "trial of the century" and spent time of death row, but the ending is a surprise. I love "trial of the century" books from the late Victorian-early Edwardian period. Trials that shook society and brought the press out as yellow as they could get. This book is one of the best I've read. Schechter manages not to commit the sin that so many authors of these books commits: he doesn't tell you the outcome in the introduction, opening chapter or flap of the book. Suspense is allowed to build. Schechter lays the evidence without bias out for the reader and allows them to come to their own conclusion. The case ended ambiguously, and Schechter offers his opinion, but not until the very end, thank goodness. He includes great detail about other poisoning cases of the day, yellow journalism, and how the old boys club mentality of New York effected the outcome. My only question: why wasn't Molineux tried for Barnet's death and what was found at the autopsy? In spite of that, this is a great read, enthralling, well-written, and thoroughly researched.

This is my new favorite Harold Schechter book. It is a bit of a departure from his earlier true crime stories: the story is as complex, but not as gory, as some of his other books. He has chosen his subject well. The book features a murder story that was a genuine puzzle and it also reflects access to a rich assortment of unique resources - diaries, letters, vast newspaper coverage, transcripts and family records. This is an intelligent, literary, well researched account of a baffling mystery and a standout in the true crime genre.