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Introduction to our Reading
Introduction to our Reading
Click here to download or print a pdf version of this lesson.
As many of you know, I like to begin a semester by tracing the mystery story back to its early roots—sometimes even before the publication of Sherlock Holmes in 1887. This helps us understand what the genre looked like way back when, and how (and why) it has changed.
I came across “The Nameless Man” while researching anthology possibilities for this mystery class. I found a series called The Rivals of Sherlock Holmes on the Thrilling Detective website. Rodrigues Ottolengui’s personal story (forensic dentistry!) caught my attention, and so did this story. You can read more of The Final Proof or The Value of Evidence in Project Gutenberg.
“The Nameless Man” is the first story in The Final Proof, and it makes a fun contrast with last week’s Columbo episode. This is detective story about detecting. Notice Mr. Barnes’s mode of inquiry. There is no fooling Mr. Barnes!
Read on to learn more about our Renaissance Man dentist and our story of the week.
About Rodrigues OttolEngui
About Rodrigues OttolEngui
Benjamin Adolph Rodrigues Ottolengui (known as "Rod' to family and friends) was born in Charleston, South Carolina, in 1861, of a Sephardic Jewish family. Before the arrival of Ashkenazi in the 1830's, Charleston had the largest Jewish population in the United States, and in 1861 it was still a center of Jewish life and culture. Rodrigues' grandfather, Benjamin, was one of the first dentists in the area, and his father, Daniel, was a newspaperman.
He was a cousin of the late Count Aguilar, dentist to former King Alfonso of Spain, and of Octavus Roy Cohen, American author.
Sherman's invasion almost leveled Charles, but Rodrigues was able to attend The College of Charleston. In 1877, at the age of 16, he traveled to New York City to become apprenticed to a dentist, and in 1885 he received the degree of Master of Dental Surgery.
He was a man of many interests and accomplishments. He was one of the first to use x-rays in dentistry, and he pioneered methods of filling teeth, especially root canals.
He also developed methods to restore cleft pallets. His book, Methods of Filling Teeth (1892) was a standard textbooks for several decades, and for thirty-five years he edited and wrote for a dental journal, Dental Items of Interest. He may have been one of the first in fiction to use the patterns of dental fillings as a way to identify a corpse.
Ottolengui's hobbies included taxidermy (which plays a role in some of his fiction), entomology, and photography. He was especially interested in the Plusiide moths, writing a number of articles about them beginning in 1893. He was Vice President of the New York Entomological Society. As a photographer, he contributed articles with such titles as "New York With a Camera," "Feats of a Camera," and "Afield with a Camera."
Early in his career he began to read detective stories; because, as he said, "these stories help to increase the analytical quality of the mind." In 1893, Ottolengui added to his manifold activities the writing of a detective novel, An Artist in Crime, featuring two sometimes cooperating, sometimes competing sleuths -- Jack Barnes (a professional private detective) and Robert Leroy Mitchel (a wealthy amateur). Why Ottolengui turned toward fiction is not known; three years earlier he had written a novel, Conya: A Romance of the Buddhas, which was serialized in a Charleston newspaper. Perhaps, like Dr. Conan Doyle, he needed to occupy his time while waiting for patients.
"The American Conan Doyle"
His first novel was followed by A Conflict of Evidence (1893), A Modern Wizard (1894), and The Crime of the Century (1896). These four books included various forms of 1890's sensationalism, and they have enough fantasy and science fiction to be discussed in E. F. Bleiler's Science Fiction: The Early Years. Ottolengui combined Holmesian-style deductions with drugs, hypnosis, glandular experiments and a lost Aztec temple under New York City. It is little wonder that (according to the preface to The Crime of the Century) a friend complained to him about his "stupid soaring into the realm of the impossible . . . your stories are not within human probability." Ottolengui replied that fiction should be "something a little different from the realm of daily experience," and challenged his friend to find anything in his books that was not borrowed from life.
In 1895, Ottolengui began writing a series of short stories about Barnes and Mitchel. At least four of them were published in Jerome K. Jerome's London magazine, The Idler, and another appeared in the US magazine The Black Cat. They were collected in the 1898 volume Final Proof – and that book seemed to conclude the cases of Mitchel and Barnes, as Ottolengui returned to dentistry – "He gave up the sleuth," Anthony Boucher wrote, "for the tooth." Ottolengui received several honorary doctorates in his later years, before dying in New York City in 1937, at the age 76.
A recent discovery, however, has shown that Ottolengui did not desert the detection field in 1898. In 1901, Ainslee's Magazine published six additional stories under the general title "Before the Fact," based on Mitchel's claim that he could detect crimes before they took place. (Ottolengui did not consistently use this conceit throughout the six stories.) Like the novels and earlier stories, the 1901 series varies in quality, but it contains some of Ottolengui's best writing.
More About His Work
More About His Work
Library of Congress description:
"Twelve mysteries, dozens of clues, and two detectives matching wits Detective Jack Barnes is good at his job-no nonsense and thorough, his dogged nature makes him the best at what he does. Mr. Robert Leroy Mitchel is entirely different: a gentleman and an amateur sleuth, Mitchel is confident in his ability to find answers where the professionals cannot. But by choice or circumstance the two are thrown together in pursuit of the truth. Sometimes partners, often competitors, these dueling detectives tackle a slew of unsolvable cases in Gilded Age New York: a body washed up in the river after its cremation, the disappearance of a priceless emerald that leaves a trail of death in its wake, and an IOU demanding a man's life, to name a few.
A long-neglected master of detective stories, Rodrigues Ottolengui was a gifted dentist and lover of mysteries whose work established forensic dentistry as a science and emphasized the value of evidence. Through crisp prose, captivating plot twists, and charming characters, Ottolengui's collection of stories delves into the bizarre-sometimes dangerous, sometimes ridiculous-side of human nature."
I especially like this introduction. Here’s what Book Mate says:
In “Final Proof; Or, The Value of Evidence,” Rodrigues Ottolengui presents a compelling exploration of the intersection between legal intricacies and the moral obligations of truth-telling. Set against a backdrop of late 19th-century America, this novel employs a meticulous literary style rich in detail and psychological depth, reflecting the period's evolving attitudes toward justice and forensic science.
Through engaging dialogue and vivid descriptions, Ottolengui adeptly weaves a narrative that challenges readers to contemplate the nature of evidence and its implications in both legal and personal realms. Rodrigues Ottolengui, a distinguished dentist and pioneer in forensic science, drew upon his extensive knowledge of the legal system and human behavior when crafting this work. His experiences as a key witness in landmark cases may have informed his nuanced perspective on truth, morality, and the power dynamics within the courtroom.
This unique background not only enhances the authenticity of the narrative but also illustrates the societal shifts occurring during his time. Readers are encouraged to delve into this thought-provoking novel, which not only entertains but also stimulates critical thinking about the complexities of evidence and truth in the face of human fallibility. “Final Proof” serves as an illuminating examination of the essential question: how trustworthy is our perception of reality?
Reading "The Nameless Man"
Reading "The Nameless Man"
As with all works, we consider the various aspects of literature and how they work together to address the audience.
Setting
In this case, Ottolengui doesn’t elaborate much on the New York City setting. But in many cases set in the Big Apple, the city itself is a character of sorts. We get a sense of the urban environment, what large houses look like (inhabited by wealthy people), and Mr. Barnes’ office. Imagine how high-tech the bicycle of the day must have seemed.
Point of View
Ottolengui tells the story through the third person omniscient narrator. Notice the details of his writing: lots of dialogue, and not much description of various scenes, but enough so you get of sense of the action.
Here's a decent 26-minute audio recording....
Characters
Mr. Barnes is of course the central character. What impression do you get of him? Compared to many detectives (Columbo, Sherlock Holmes, Hercule Poirot) he doesn’t have much of an ego. What are his strengths as a detective?
We also meet Mr. Leroy Mitchel and Mr. Remington. How does Ottolengui “paint” these characters?
Plot
As we learn, the plot is a bit flimsy, but it’s part of a bigger detection test. Once Mr. Barnes proves his worth, he and Mr. Mitchel are off on a much bigger adventure:
“Together, they delve into a tantalizing murder mystery involving an unusual case of mistaken identity and the disappearance of a body that was presumed cremated. The opening of the novel introduces the characters and sets the stage for their investigation.
Mr. Mitchel is engaged in an intriguing discussion with Mr. Barnes over a newspaper article about a deceased man whose body is found in the East River, only to seemingly match that of a man who had recently been cremated. As they drink coffee and assess the evidence, they identify critical inconsistencies surrounding the identification of the corpse, hinting at deeper deception and potential foul play. This gripping beginning invites readers into a world filled with enigmas, expecting clever deductions and thrilling discoveries as the duo seeks the truth behind the conflicting details of death and identity.”
Themes
Disguised identity, lying, establishing credibility….what do you think?
Final Thoughts
Final Thoughts
The story has all the makings of a good mystery (a hook, a problem, a trail of clues, a few red herrings, etc.). It is also a bit unsophisticated and primitive compared to our modern standards.
Why do you think this was appealing to readers in 1898 (or thereabouts)? Why might a reader choose this story rather than a Sherlock Holmes tale?
We’ll discuss in greater depth on Tuesday!
Works Cited
Works Cited
Dr. Ottolengui. (1937). NYT Obituary retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/1937/07/13/archives/dr-ottolengui-76-dentist-50-years-specialist-in-orthodontia-and.html
Norris, J.F. (2014). Ottolengui, Rodrigues. Retrieved from http://gadetection.pbworks.com/w/page/7931296/Ottolengui,%20Rodrigues
Ottonlengui-Rodrigues. 2025. Retrieved from https://www.scencyclopedia.org/sce/entries/ottolengui-rodrigues/
Rodrigues Ottolengui. (2025). Retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rodrigues_Ottolengui
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