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The Black Eagle
AKA 'JOHN HASFORD' AKA 'A. LONG' AKA 'DAVID STONE' Introduction to this Popular Old Character for the Benefit of New Readers
In his youth, as an art student, John Hasford ran with a wild crowd in the Latin Quarter of Paris. His companions were Bramwell Chester, Joe Thurlston, Ricardo Gospert, Geoffrey Howland, Freddie Buckford (who later became Lord Baymore) and two models, Camille Desmoulins and Helene Merchardier. The latter was his lover but Camille was wildly jealous of their affair and, during a drunken evening of ferocious arguments, she murdered her rival. With help from Thurlston and Gospert, she then framed Hasford and he was convicted of the crime. For twenty years, he was incarcerated in the notorious prison on Devil's Island. Here he learned carpentry and built up the strength in his arms, wrists and hands to an astonishing degree. He became known by the other prisoners as 'the Black Eagle'. After two decades in prison, Hasford was given day release and took the opportunity to escape. He mades his way to South America where he joined diamond prospectors and mades a small fortune. After shooting dead Ricardo Gospert in Cuba, he travelled to London where he established dual identities. As 'A. Long', he owned a furniture shop on Seven Sisters Road. He created high quality furniture in the workshop at the back of the premises and led a quiet and unobtrusive life. At weekends, he lived as artist David Stone, inhabiting a bizarrely designed house just off the Edgware Road with his brother, an ex-sailor whose body is scarred and misshapen. Hasford continued his campaign against the group who betrayed him. However, after breaking Geoffrey Howland's neck, he came to the attention of Sexton Blake. The detective investigated Hasford's background and eventually confronted him, revealing the fact that Camille Desmoulins committed the crime for which he had been convicted and that she was now a drug-addled wreck living in abject destitution in Paris. Blake allowed Hasford to go free, believing that the truth would be enough to keep the Black Eagle from a life of crime. This, it turned out, was a miscalculation. Chronology: 1. The Black Eagle (UNION JACK issue 1,048, 1923) Having escaped from Devil's Island at the end of his life sentence for murder, John Hasford — aka the Black Eagle — sets out to revenge himself against those who framed him. However, his activities attract the attention of Sexton Blake who investigates his background and discovers the real killer. After confronting him with the truth, Blake allows Hasford to go free, hoping that he will lead a law-abiding life despite the great wrong that he has suffered. 2. The Secret of the Bottle (UNION JACK issue 1,092, 1924) When the Black Eagle learns that a petty criminal has been framed for the theft of jewels from a jeweller named Dubois and sentenced to imprisonment on Devil's Island, he determines to get to the bottom of the affair. Sexton Blake is also pursuing the truth and, when both men discover that Dubuis faked the crime to claim the insurance, both seek to deliver their own brand of justice. Blake wins, Dubuis confesses, the innocent man is set free, and the Black Eagle, who has not committed a crime, remains at large. 3. The Case of the Pink Macaw (SEXTON BLAKE LIBRARY series 1 issue 371, 1925) More to come... |
