All Story Magazine, December 1913 — page 111: what you’re looking at

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

A THIEVES’ Rollins did not get up—did not move. The yellow and red plaid fluttered a little; that was all. CHAPTER XXXIV. HIDE AND SEEK, CAMPBELL literally jumped upon the drunken murderer, sending him against the front wheel of the taxi, and wrenched the revolver from him as if it were no more dangerous than the Gobbler’s teething-ring. Then, almost brutally pushing Della aside, he stooped over Rollins. Parks arrived a second later. Ere Borrowman recovered his bal- ance or had gathered any sort of un- derstanding about what had hit him, one of the other detectives had seized and handcuffed him. ‘The third caught Della from behind; but, seemingly un- decided about how to regard her, satis- fied himself with simply gripping her arms, an attention which, peculiarly enough, she made no effort to resist, but stood dumbly watching Campbell and Parks bend over Rollins. A third man joined them; I learned later that he was a doctor from across the street. There were people racing in upon the scene from all directions. ‘Two police- men forced their way to the center of activity, and one of them instantly turned about to call an ambulance. Alice, dressed to depart, was some- where on the steps behind me. Crabbe and Paler and Rosie and Beans were crowded in the vestibule, and Billy had come to the basement door. But the vestibule was emptied in a few seconds. Rosie came farther down the steps; the men went the other way; and as I heard them making themselves scarce down the basement stairs, I felt a small hand creep into mine and, turning my head sharply, found Margaret, coated and hatted at my elbow. In that second, right or wrong, I decided that she must not know that ‘screeched. COMEDY. 821 the kilted figure on the sidewalk was that of her father, and subconsciously I put my arm about her and tried to lead her back into the house. “ Let’s go inside.” “ Wait,” she whispered, and crept nearer tome. “Is he dead?” As if in reply, the doctor bending over Rollins looked up, and Campbell and Parks straightened slowly and simultaneously, They came face to face. Parks nodded toward the thing at his feet. “In Boston, eh?” His voice was quite cold. CampbellSaignored the completely. = ‘“Mebbe ye’d better tak’—this,” he suggested broadly, and held out .the murderer’s revolver, “ You're a plain- clathes polisman, aren't ye?” Parks snatched the weapon angrily out of Campbell’s hand, and a choked- off scream came from behind them. Della was struggling in her captor’s grasp like a mad thing. “You'd: trow us down!” she “You'd t’row us to the insinuation bulls!” Parks smiled and waited. Campbell studied the frantic Della for a few seconds, then turned and came leisurely toward the steps. Parks made no move to halt him. He was regarding the prisoners with an eye to their usefulness, just as he had done Mrs. Varelli that morning. Della quieted instantly. The rage went out of her face as if Campbell’s look had been a magic wand. But her father was a different mat- ter. He was partly intoxicated, ‘for one thing; and Della’s angry screech had evidently awakened his befuddled mind to a full understanding of his position. “T’row us to the bulls?” he ques- tioned thickly, as if he were repeating it to know what it meant by the sound of it. “Shut yer face!” Della snapped. Parks waited a-little longer, though comiicloooks.com