It was a long time now since Lady Carbury’s great historical work on the Criminal Queens of the World had been completed and given to the world.  Any reader careful as to dates will remember that it was as far back as in February that she had solicited the assistance of certain of her literary friends who were connected with the daily and weekly press.  These gentlemen had responded to her call with more or less zealous aid, so that the ‘Criminal Queens’ had been regarded in the trade as one of the successful books of the season.  Messrs. Leadham and Loiter had published a second, and then, very quickly, a fourth and fifth edition; and had been able in their advertisements to give testimony from various criticisms showing that Lady Carbury’s book was about the greatest historical work...