Clendenen's Detective Manual

Clendenen's Detective Manual is a hard-edged guide to the detective profession, written from more than twenty years of field experience and built on the idea that real investigation is a science, not a pose. It rejects flashy "badge flashers," sensational fiction, and correspondence-school shortcuts in favor of sobriety, honesty, discipline, and an ordinary appearance that lets a detective move unnoticed through every stratum of society. The book insists that a successful investigator must be broadly educated in law, medicine, psychology, chemistry, electricity, firearms, and criminal methods, while also mastering patience, tact, observation, and quick but lawful action. From evidence gathering and witness handling to the study of major crimes, the manual treats detective work as a relentless contest with organized, adaptable criminals. It explores professional theft, auto banditry, auto theft rings, and modern bootlegging, showing how crime evolves with technology and commerce. Scientific tools such as photography, microscopic document examination, and especially fingerprint identification are presented as essential, with real cases demonstrating how careful comparison, timing, and deduction expose lies and secure convictions. This edition has been fully restored with modern typesetting, custom cover design.