R. Austin Freeman 
From A Surgeon’s Diary 

Set in the rambling rural countryside of nineteenth century England, this selection of stories takes the reader through a myriad cast of suspicious characters and scenarios. Meet the widow anxious to bury her husband before the autopsy. Meet the artist who’s brushes have never been used. Meet the bedridden drunk who contracts lead poisoning from a pub miles away. These strange stories are designed to baffle the mind and entertain the crime buff and newcomer alike.