Tutt and Mr. Tutt

In Short

Tutt and Mr. Tutt is an episodic legal fiction collection following the colorful Manhattan firm of Tutt & Tutt. While the junior partner, Tutt, manages office affairs and gets entangled in misadventures, senior partner Ephraim Tutt takes on seemingly hopeless cases—from accused murderers and helpless immigrants to swindled widows and targeted vagrants. Using procedural maneuvers, sharp wits, and deep moral conviction, the duo repeatedly outsmart corrupt prosecutors, predatory financiers, and pomposity. The book endures because of its charmingly cynical depiction of the legal machine alongside its warm, Robin Hood-like defense of the vulnerable.

The Story

The narrative unfolds through a series of dramatic legal battles centered around the lower Manhattan law office of Tutt & Tutt. The story opens in the grim confines of the Tombs prison, where junior partner Tutt despairs over their new client, Serafino, an Italian man who openly admits to murder and welcomes the gallows. Facing an unscrupulous prosecutor, O'Brien, and a hostile judge, Babson, who have stacked the jury with "the army of the gibbet," senior partner Ephraim Tutt steps in. With calm, theatrical brilliance, Mr. Tutt uses emotional closing arguments and clever tactics to shield his client from what would otherwise be a swift judicial execution.

As the partners navigate the city's legal waters, they tackle cases across every stratum of New York society. In Chinatown, when a blood feud between tongs results in the murder of Quong Lee despite his protective suit of mail, Mr. Tutt defends the accused Mock Hen. Facing corrupt interpreters and racial prejudice, Mr. Tutt turns the trial on its head by calling a respected settlement-house worker, Miss Fanny Duryea, whose glowing character testimony utterly wins over the jury.

In their own office, internal dynamics create humor and chaos. The firm is kept stable and ethical largely by Miss Minerva Wiggin, their capable, bar-admitted managing clerk. When Tutt falls under the spell of the charming Mrs. Allison and attempts to blackmail a tough-minded preacher, Miss Wiggin's sober presence helps keep the firm from sliding into outright shysterism.

Meanwhile, Mr. Tutt takes on cases that pit regular citizens against absurd legal persecution. In one instance, a neighborhood feud between Appleboy and Tunnygate over a beach property line escalates into a full criminal trial after a bull dog tears Tunnygate's trousers. In another, an impoverished old ex-convict named "Doc" Barrows, who delusionally believes his worthless railway bonds are still valuable, becomes the victim of a ruthless financial swindler, Badger. To protect Barrows and a widow's frail daughter, Mr. Tutt concocts a trap for Badger, outmaneuvering the fraudster outside the courtroom.

Later, a wealthy, snobbish socialite named Hepplewhite finds a harmless, unkempt intruder sleeping in his bed. The police and prosecutors press serious burglary charges, but Mr. Tutt exposes the absurdity of the prosecution during trial, winning an improbable acquittal for the tramp. Finally, Mr. Tutt targets corporate greed by single-handedly blocking a predatory mining stock reorganization scheme orchestrated by powerful Wall Street firms. By the end, Mr. Tutt continues his tireless walk through the city streets, having proven once again that crafty legal knowledge can be used to temper power with mercy.

How It Unfolds

Defending the doomed When a client facing murder charges cheerfully confesses, Tutt despairs, but Mr. Tutt steps into a rigged courtroom to battle a hostile judge and bloodthirsty prosecutor.

Navigating the tong war After a targeted hit in Chinatown breaks through a suit of chain mail, Mr. Tutt defends Mock Hen against biased state interpreters by introducing a beloved mission worker as a character witness.

Managing office indiscretions Tutt becomes infatuated with a client and tries to engineer a dubious legal scheme against a clergyman, leaving Miss Wiggin to keep the firm grounded in ethics.

The battle of the backyard A petty dispute over a property line leads to a absurd criminal prosecution over a trouser-ripping bulldog, forcing Tutt to cross-examine an overly dramatic neighbor in court.

Confronting the swindler An elderly, delusional former convict named Doc Barrows brings worthless bonds to the office, prompting Mr. Tutt to turn the tables on a heartless financial predator targeting a sick girl's family.

The intruder in the manor When an elite upper-class household panics over a tramp found asleep in a spare bed, Mr. Tutt takes the case and exposes the ridiculous overreach of the police and district attorney.

Blocking the corporate wreckers Learning of a crooked mining company reorganization, Mr. Tutt uses procedural lawsuits to stall a syndicate of Wall Street lawyers and protect his client's obscure stock.

The People

• Ephraim Tutt: The tall, graying senior partner who smokes cheap stogies, quotes classic literature, and possesses a razor-sharp legal mind. He wants to protect the helpless and defeat corrupt power, driven by a deep hatred of judicial tyranny, and ultimately remains a triumphant, eccentric defender of the weak.
• Tutt: The short, plump, and excitable junior partner who handles routine office matters. He wants to be seen as a dashing, sophisticated lawyer, but his childish gullibility and romantic misadventures repeatedly put him in foolish situations that require guidance.
• Miss Minerva Wiggin: The brilliant, bar-admitted chief clerk who manages the firm's finances, mail, and pleadings. She wants the firm to maintain strict moral integrity and efficiency, standing in the way of Tutt's dubious schemes and acting as Mr. Tutt's ethical conscience.
• O'Brien: A pug-nosed, ambitious prosecutor who hates Mr. Tutt. He wants quick convictions to advance his career, using disingenuous court tricks, but ends up repeatedly humiliated by Mr. Tutt's strategic superiority.
• Doc Barrows: A gentle, broken old man who served time in Sing Sing over defaulted bonds. He wants simple peace and holds a delusional belief in his financial paper, ultimately relying on Mr. Tutt for protection against financial sharks.

In Its Own Voice

"It isn't law; it's suicide!"

Tutt despairs to his senior partner after visiting a client in the Tombs who cheerfully admits to murder and expresses no regret.

"I guess this lady can say anything she wants!"

The jury foreman interrupts a prosecutor's technical objection to defend Miss Fanny Duryea as she gives character testimony for the accused.

"All my life I've been fighting against tyranny--the tyranny of the law, the tyranny of power, the tyranny of money."

Mr. Tutt passionately explains his motivation to Miss Wiggin before launching a legal attack against a corporate reorganization scheme.

What It's Really About

Underneath its dramatic courtroom battles and lighthearted humor, the book explores the fundamental tension between technical legal justice and moral fairness. It argues that the formal legal system is frequently weaponized by the ambitious, the wealthy, and the ruthless to oppress those who lack resources. Through Mr. Tutt's victories, the narrative asks whether a lawyer is justified in using trickery, loopholes, and courtroom theater to achieve a genuinely moral result. It champions individual empathy over mechanical bureaucracy, suggesting that true justice requires looking past the cold letter of the law to see the human lives hanging in the balance.

Why Read It Today

Tutt and Mr. Tutt appeals to fans of classic legal dramas, witty character studies, and vintage New York fiction. Reading it feels like sitting in a sunlit, smoke-filled office listening to an master storyteller detail the clever tricks of an bygone legal era. The narrative carries a warm, rhythmic pace, balancing suspenseful trials with dry, observant comedy.

Readers should be prepared for period elements that reflect its time, including dated ethnic depictions during the Chinatown trial sections and brief uses of dialect among minor working-class characters. Furthermore, modern readers may occasionally find the lengthy technical descriptions of archaic legal procedures and financial reorganizations somewhat dense. However, these period specifics are well worth navigating. The joy of watching a tall, stogy-smoking old lawyer outsmart bullies, arrogant prosecutors, and greedy financiers remains thoroughly entertaining, leaving you with an enduring affection for one of American popular fiction's great legal crusaders.