Darke Darrell, the Boy Detective — page 159: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

150 DARKE DARRELL. CHAPTER XXXII. JEFF POTTER. There were two domestics in the house, and Darke was © not long in-examining them. He realized that there was no time to lose. Mr. and Mrs. Kendrick were surprised at the shrewdness and directness of his questions. Had he been a party to the abduction he could scarcely have put his inquiries more intelligently. There was an alley at the rear of the lot, a gate open- ing into it; it was a near route to the grocery on the street which crossed the alley at right angles. Leotine frequently went on errands to the grocery, going by way of the alley. She had gone on an errand at twilight that evening, and had not returned. She went, or started to go, to the grocery, going out of the rear gate. ‘The ser- vants had seen a man looking in at the gate, about dusk. He was challenged; he murmured a reply, then continued on his way. The description of him accorded very much with the appearance of Tim Jordan. The house was about a block distant from the wharves. The slips were lonely and dingy, mainly used for discharging coal, grain, plas- ter, etc. Darke concluded that Leotine had been seized by Tim Jordan and his accomplices, and hurried to the docks. By the aid of a row-boat they could then have effected their escape. ‘« She has been carried off by main force,” he announced. ‘<The man seen prowling about the gate was Tim Jordan, © a notorious villain, and not in the least kindly disposed toward her. I shall set out to rescue her.” comicbooks.co : - >