The Argosy, October 1906 — page 191: what you’re looking at

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

BY WAY OF THE BLIND ALLEY. Sc rebbed—after another three, Macintosh’s heme was fairly rifled. On Saturday of last. week the Episcopal parsonage was entered during the early evening, and _Mrs. Bradshaw’s- diamonds removed ; en Menday of the present week the upper part of Wilson’s home was entered a lit- tle after seven, and a new assortment of jewelry stolen. That is all, up to date, and we feel that the time has come to put a stop to it!” ““Well, I should think so,” Bridger observed ‘dryly. “ All this daring work has. been done without an effort on the part of your police to offer an obstacle?” Se ot quite that, perhaps, but our force here is neither Ess nor ae larly brilliant.” 2 The- private detective grunted softly and thou shtfully. “Tet’s see, now. The robberies were all committed early in the evening?” “Practically all between seven and eight—just about this: time of night.” - “ And the man is supposed to have en- tered and left by the second story win- dows ?”” ‘At the rear of the houses. part is undoubted.” — _ “ Undoubted ? Why? 2 : - Because m—yes, in every case his footprints have been found on the grass at the back of the house.’’ ‘And traced——" = Only to the ‘sidewalk on the side street, or to the rear fence of the grounds as the | ease happened.” : -“ So that is as far as your police force saw fit to investigate?” smiled Bridger. “To all intents and purpeses. Dan- vers, the head, asked innumerable ques- tions and made a great time searching for clues. Up to the present, he has ac- complished absolutely nothing.” ‘Well —that frequently happens,” mused Bridger. Then he looked up abruptly. “ But surely, Mr. Marsland, some one somewhere has seen some trace of the robber, beyond those footmarks? ” “ That. is precisely hat we do not know. . burglary, a coachman caught sight of a man with a bundle, on Bell Street, the one behind this. He looked at the fel- low rather curiously, ‘with the result that he hastened away- The coachman fol- lowed, and the man took to his heels. 12a Yes, that. On the evenimg ‘of the second 561 “ "In a minute or two, I understand, it was a pell-mell race down Bell ‘Street. =: After a block or two, the man with the bundle dived into the blind alley beside Seely’s old house, and slammed the gate after him. When the coachman was able to open it, the alley was empty.” = Blind == What sort of blind alley?” “Why, it is SS & passage beside the empty Seely house. ‘The dwelhng has never been completed, owing to See- ly’s death, but when they were building it, the intention was to have an alley run- ning threwdgh to the yard, for tradesmen and so on. Since Seely’s death the back part of the lot has been sold, and the other end of the alley simply boarded U Sat “To the top of the alley?” asked Bridger incredulously. “ How high is it, and how is the man supposed to have vanished? ” house runs out over it on the second floor. As for the bearding at the rear, _ there’s merely a high fence, perhaps six or seven feet.” “So that the man, ef course, climbed over and pursued his way?” # ‘“ Probably.” ~ And nothing more has been seen of suspicious-looking people? ”’ “Only Danvers’ own Marsland tartly. “What was that?” Marsland stghed with even more im- clue,” said patience. “Well, on—lIet me see. Yes, the night Macintosh’s place was _ robbéd, Danvers set out to scour the town. An hour after the robbery, he succeeded in locating a man, also with a small bundle, — who was hurrying along Chandler Street. He followed him for a time, missed him and picked him up again, three or four blocks from here. He was about to ac- cost the man, when he walked imto- the side gate of Professor Gorman’s grounds and disappeared. Danvers went im as quickly as péssible, but there was no sign of hm.” “ Wheréupon the clue was dropped?” ~ You don’t know Danvers,” snapped Marsland. “ He made his way to the house and demanded that he be allowed to search the premises. He had some Ecomicbooks:..co