[New project] The Law and the Lady by Wilkie Collins

[David Grigg]

While I'm waiting for Last and First Men to drop into the public domain, I thought I would add this to our collection of Wilkie Collins' works, as it's one of his novels that I haven't read.

Wikipedia says of it:  "The Law and the Lady is a detective story, and sensation novel published in 1875 by Wilkie Collins. It is not quite as sensational in style as The Moonstone and The Woman in White."

[David Grigg]

Repository here: https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-collins_the-law-and-the-lady

[Alex Cabal]

OK, Weijia will manage with Emma reviewing.

On 12/10/25 10:37 PM, David Grigg wrote:
> Repository here: https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-collins_the-law-and-
> the-lady

>
> On Thursday, 11 December 2025 at 15:30:24 UTC+11 David Grigg wrote:
>

> While I'm waiting for /Last and First Men/ to drop into the public

> domain, I thought I would add this to our collection of Wilkie
> Collins' works, as it's one of his novels that I haven't read.
>
> Wikipedia says of it:  "The Law and the Lady is a detective story,
> and sensation novel published in 1875 by Wilkie Collins. It is not
> quite as sensational in style as The Moonstone and The Woman in White."
>
>

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[Weijia Cheng]

Ok, noted. I go on vacation in a week until January 11 so someone else may have to fill in while I am out.

[Alex Cabal]

I'll continue assigning projects as usual because the system randomly
picks, but if anyone's on vacation when things come up I'll just handle
it myself.

On 12/11/25 11:57 AM, 'Weijia Cheng' via Standard Ebooks wrote:
> Ok, noted. I go on vacation in a week until January 11 so someone else
> may have to fill in while I am out.
>
> On Thursday, December 11, 2025 at 12:27:04 PM UTC-5 Alex Cabal wrote:
>
> OK, Weijia will manage with Emma reviewing.
>
> On 12/10/25 10:37 PM, David Grigg wrote:
> > Repository here: https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-collins_the-

> law-and- <https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-collins_the-law-and->

> > the-lady
> >
> > On Thursday, 11 December 2025 at 15:30:24 UTC+11 David Grigg wrote:
> >
> > While I'm waiting for /Last and First Men/ to drop into the public
> > domain, I thought I would add this to our collection of Wilkie
> > Collins' works, as it's one of his novels that I haven't read.
> >
> > Wikipedia says of it:  "The Law and the Lady is a detective story,
> > and sensation novel published in 1875 by Wilkie Collins. It is not
> > quite as sensational in style as The Moonstone and The Woman in
> White."
> >
> >
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[David Grigg]

Is it OK if I at least pencil this in as the cover? https://standardebooks.org/artworks/edvard-munch/lady-in-black ? Something about the way the woman is standing gives me the right feel of a determined woman standing up, confronting the law. 

I haven't finished reading the book (I'm about a third of the way through) so it's possible I may change my mind, but I'd like first dibs on this.

[Weijia Cheng]

Ok, I assigned the painting.

[David Grigg]

Thanks, Weijia. I've finished reading the book and I'm still happy with the Munch as the cover.

A more general question: I've been replacing the excessive capitalization typical of the writing of the period, but there's one issue I'm in doubt about. Very frequently the word "Me" (and sometimes "You") is capitalised. In most cases I have the feeling that this is intended as a kind of emphasis, e.g.: "how dare you lay hands on Me?" There's definitely an implied emphasis in the text here.

Would I be justified in altering (in an Editorial) the instances of "Me" to "<em>me</em>" ?

[Weijia Cheng]

Is there also lowercase "me"? Also, is uppercase "Me" always used for emphasis?

You could just as well argue that there is an implied emphasis if "me" appeared lowercase in that sentence too! I would err towards not making it an emphasis.

[David Grigg]

Yes. Lowercase "me" appears some 1,180 times. Whereas "Me" with a cap outside of titles only occurs 18 times, and in each case I would argue it has implied emphasis. Here's a good example of a paragraph where both versions appear. I've bolded them.

"I could now at last understand Eustace’s desertion of me. To a man of his refinement it would have been a martyrdom to meet his wife after she had read the things published of him to all the world in the Report. I felt that as he would have felt it. At the same time I thought he might have trusted Me to make amends to him for the martyrdom, and might have come back."  (chapter-2-7, line 16)

If I'm not going to make these <em>me</em> then I think I should just leave them as they stand as "Me". Ditto for "You".

[Alex Cabal]

I think it makes sense to make the emphasis

On 12/19/25 9:10 AM, David Grigg wrote:
> Yes. Lowercase "me" appears some 1,180 times. Whereas "Me" with a cap
> outside of titles only occurs 18 times, and in each case I would argue
> it has implied emphasis. Here's a good example of a paragraph where both
> versions appear. I've bolded them.
>

> "I could now at last understand Eustace’s desertion of *me*. To a man of

> his refinement it would have been a martyrdom to meet his wife after she
> had read the things published of him to all the world in the Report. I
> felt that as he would have felt it. At the same time I thought he might

> have trusted *Me* to make amends to him for the martyrdom, and might

> in-black <https://standardebooks.org/artworks/edvard-
> munch/lady-in-black> ? Something about the way the woman

> is standing gives me the right feel of a determined
> woman standing up, confronting the law.
>
> I haven't finished reading the book (I'm about a third
> of the way through) so it's possible I may change my
> mind, but I'd like first dibs on this.
>
> On Friday, 12 December 2025 at 06:59:06 UTC+11 Alex
> Cabal wrote:
>
> I'll continue assigning projects as usual because
> the system randomly
> picks, but if anyone's on vacation when things come
> up I'll just handle
> it myself.
>
> On 12/11/25 11:57 AM, 'Weijia Cheng' via Standard
> Ebooks wrote:
> > Ok, noted. I go on vacation in a week until
> January 11 so someone else
> > may have to fill in while I am out.
> >
> > On Thursday, December 11, 2025 at 12:27:04 PM
> UTC-5 Alex Cabal wrote:
> >
> > OK, Weijia will manage with Emma reviewing.
> >
> > On 12/10/25 10:37 PM, David Grigg wrote:
> > > Repository here: https://github.com/drgrigg/

> wilkie-collins_the- <https://github.com/drgrigg/
> wilkie-collins_the->
> > law-and- <https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-
> collins_the-law-and- <https://github.com/drgrigg/

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[David from SE]

OK, will do,  but in a single [Editorial] commit, of course.

David Grigg from SE

? 
> utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>.

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[David Grigg]

All right, this is now ready for review. 

https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-collins_the-law-and-the-lady

? 
> utm_medium=email&utm_source=footer>.

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[Emma Sweeney]

Great work! I filed some issues in the repository.

Emma

[David Grigg]

Thanks, Emma. I think I've now addressed all of those issues.

[Emma Sweeney]

Alex, this is ready for you.

Emma

[Alex Cabal]

OK, looks good David! I've released it, thanks!

On 12/21/25 10:36 PM, Emma Sweeney wrote:
> Alex, this is ready for you.
>
> Emma
> On Sunday, December 21, 2025 at 3:42:38 AM UTC-5 david...@gmail.com wrote:
>
> Thanks, Emma. I think I've now addressed all of those issues.
>
> On Sunday, 21 December 2025 at 05:24:10 UTC+11 Emma Sweeney wrote:
>
> Great work! I filed some issues in the repository.
>
> Emma
> On Friday, December 19, 2025 at 11:48:00 PM UTC-5
> david...@gmail.com wrote:
>
> All right, this is now ready for review.
>
> https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-collins_the-law-and-the-

> lady <https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie-collins_the-law-and-
> the-lady>

>
>
> On Saturday, 20 December 2025 at 10:08:58 UTC+11 David from
> SE wrote:
>
>
> OK, will do,  but in a single [Editorial] commit, of course.
>

> __
> David Grigg from SE
> __

> > https://standardebooks.org/artworks/edvard-munch/lady- <https://standardebooks.org/artworks/edvard-munch/lady->
> > in-black <https://standardebooks.org/artworks/edvard- <https://standardebooks.org/artworks/edvard->

> > munch/lady-in-black> ? Something about the way the woman
> > is standing gives me the right feel of a determined
> > woman standing up, confronting the law.
> >
> > I haven't finished reading the book (I'm about a third
> > of the way through) so it's possible I may change my
> > mind, but I'd like first dibs on this.
> >
> > On Friday, 12 December 2025 at 06:59:06 UTC+11 Alex
> > Cabal wrote:
> >
> > I'll continue assigning projects as usual because
> > the system randomly
> > picks, but if anyone's on vacation when things come
> > up I'll just handle
> > it myself.
> >
> > On 12/11/25 11:57 AM, 'Weijia Cheng' via Standard
> > Ebooks wrote:
> > > Ok, noted. I go on vacation in a week until
> > January 11 so someone else
> > > may have to fill in while I am out.
> > >
> > > On Thursday, December 11, 2025 at 12:27:04 PM
> > UTC-5 Alex Cabal wrote:
> > >
> > > OK, Weijia will manage with Emma reviewing.
> > >
> > > On 12/10/25 10:37 PM, David Grigg wrote:

> > > > Repository here: https://github.com/drgrigg/ <https://github.com/drgrigg/>
> > wilkie-collins_the- <https://github.com/drgrigg/ <https://github.com/drgrigg/>
> > wilkie-collins_the->
> > > law-and- <https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie- <https://github.com/drgrigg/wilkie->
> > collins_the-law-and- <https://github.com/drgrigg/ <https://github.com/drgrigg/>

> > groups.google.com/d/msgid/ <http://groups.google.com/d/msgid/> <https://
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> > > msgid/>
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