Catch the Saint

Foreword

The time seems to have come when Simon Templar cannot plausibly go on being contemporary, or else too many literary detectives smarter than Chief Inspector Teal are going to be deducing his present age from the internal evidence of several stories in the Saga that were highly topical at the time they first appeared, and in which the Saint was irrevocably linked with certain historic dates and events. And awkward questions are bound to be asked about how, in 1975 or later still, he retains the same exuberance and agility that he displayed forty and more years ago.

The only alternative to taking him into the realms of science fiction for a miraculous rejuvenation, if the demand for more stories about him continues, is to delve into his past for hitherto untold adventures of his earlier years — which, indeed, some loyal followers maintain were his best.

This, then, is the first experiment of that kind. Although the stories in this book are brand new, they are not set in 1975, the year of first publication, but must be regarded as having taken place before the world war of 1939. Any “dated” details in them that may be spotted by today-conscious readers are therefore strictly intentional.

LC