Adventure, January 20, 1922 — page 116: what you’re looking at

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

114 of hiding silverware and jewelry where it takes time to find it; but worst of all, in many rich homes there is often a lot of paste lying around and the poor unsuspi- cious burglar grabs it and ducks for a quick getaway. He talks to himself for days afterward. Verily a burglar’s nights are full of un- certainty. His disappointments are many. And after he has once done time the strain is too hard for his nerves to stand up without getting jangled. If he doesn’t hit booze, snow, needle, or hop, he goes crazy. If he does he goes crazy anyway. So there you are. XIII NEW YORK isa sleepless sort of place. And though people don’t do much walking along respectable streets in the ungodly hours, machines whisk out of shadows and go by with a flash of chiffon and something dark but white- breasted beside it. The heavy cord tires sing a strident sibilant to the pavement while the bright white eyes of a monster gone mad glare ahead; but in the distance an evil red coal winks and blinks back at you like a one-eyed devil perched on the bumper. A big limousine, gray, aristocratic, im- posing—“‘like a millun dollars on wheels” — swirled majestically around the block and drew up before the curb at a house which by some sort of coincidence happened to be about a block above the residence of Frank Holder. It was near midnight, and a black mid- night too. The number-plates on the magnificent car had been stolen and substituted. It was possible that some one within the house before which the car stood might look out at it and wonder; but the logical thing was to believe that the occupants had made a mistake in the street number and gone into the house next door. If it had been a dinky little flivver some- body would have called a harness bull to pinch it. But it wasn’t a flivver. It was palatial. Jerry Peete, in leather cap and puttees, sat stiffly at the wheel and waited on and on, as well trained drivers are supposed to do. A tall figure, with the composed air of dawdling indifference, had stepped out, Adventure looked toward the houses, walked hesi- -tatingly a few steps as if not quite sure where he was, then gone on with more as~- surance. He disappeared. The night was black. Burglars read almanacs. Also they grow cat-eyes. Give them a vague, half-grown moon sifting through shreds of cloud and they call it daylight. They are nocturnal animals, and show their contempt of the sun by snoring in its face. As Middleton approached the Holder home he listened warily. There were no footfalls before or behind him; and his own were softened; but if he had not heard a faint clucking sound from the shadows he would have passed on. Silkeen was watching there. Silkeen Harry was always the outside man on a big job. A very important per- son, the outside man; something of a sen- try and a rear-guard. He must be level- headed, cold-nerved, yet alert, suspicious, able to sense danger from afar. If he makes false alarms it is pretty sure to ruin the job, for that night anyway ; a and if he doesn’t spot danger i in time to tip the office to his pals there ‘is the dread chance of a pinch. Billy the Dude said: ‘“‘Al’us youse can bet on it, dey’ll never make no pinch off ol’ Silkeen. Them slant eyes o’ his see ever’t’ing, but he’ll stan’ de collar an’ hit de chair ’fore he’ll let a pal get tooked. I know dat Chink. _He’s square. An’ de only way dey’ll ever get him to Headquarters is in a hearse. [’m tellin’ youse!”’ With the lipless, noiseless whisper that convicts use under the noses of guards just aching to catch them talking, Silkeen, who had already been on watch for two hours or more, said: : “Dey’s somepin doin’. I don’t make it. Billy’s up to a win’ow now gettin’ an ear- ful. About half-hour ago some bird slips up on de doorstep an’ right off de door opens and he goes in on his toes. Looks like some gun was on dis job t’night. ’F he likes good healt’ he’d better git off it. Somebody hands him de combination to de front door. Hé mus’ have a skirt planted in dere. Youse say de word, an’ I'll put him in de air jus’ as soon as he shows. Be easy pickin’s.” “We'll see. We'll see Harry. It would be very careless of us to let him carry off— Is Billy inside now?” Go NOOK =) a (E@