The Mystery of 31 New Inn

New Inn, the background of this story, and one of the last surviving inns of Chancery, has recently passed away after upwards of four centuries of newness. Even now, however, a few of the old, dismantled houses (including perhaps, the mysterious 31) may be seen from the Strand peeping over the iron roof of the skating rink which has displaced the picturesque hall, the pension-room and the garden.

Dr. Richard Austin Freeman (born 11 April 1862-died September 28, 1943). He was a British author of detective stories, for the medico-legal forensic investigator Dr. Thorndyke. He created the confusing detective story, a crime fiction wherein the commission of the crime is portrayed toward the start, normally including the personality of the culprit, with the story, then, later describing the detective's attempt to settle the mystery. This innovation has been portrayed as Freeman's most notable contribution to investigator fiction. 30 Freeman involved some of his initial experiences as a colonial surgeon in his books. Various of Dr. Thorndyke's stories include genuine, though sometimes arcane, points of scientific knowledge from regions like tropical medicine, metallurgy, and toxicology.