The Argosy for May — page 110: what you’re looking at

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

WANTED BY UNCLE SAM. up here like a couple of trussed turkeys. For Heaven’s sake, man, get a knife and cut us loose without any more delay.” ‘“Ha! Who’s responsible for this?” demanded the deep-voiced. man, who seemed to be in command of the squad. ‘“A man named Mitchell and a one- eyed Chinaman,” replied Leffingwell. ‘Hurry up and release us from these confounded ropes, and we'll explain everything to you.” The policemen produced jack-knives and began to saw on the ropes. In a few minutes Leffingwell and Simple Simon were free, and began to thank their de- liverers profusely. But the deep-voiced policeman cut short their expressions of gratitude. “Never mind thanking us,” he said gruffly. ‘‘ We'll dispense with all that. Tell us instead who you are, and how and why this happened. You fellows ‘don’t live in this place, do you?” “No. -We came over here in a row- boat to catch Mitchell, who is a deserter ‘from the United States army, and was living here with the Chinaman.” “And Mitchell and the Chinaman caught you instead, eh?” said the police- man, with a grin. Leffingwell nodded grimly. “Ves. I wish to goodness you fel- lows had arrived here sooner. If you'd come an hour ago we might have caught the cad after all.” “Well, youre mighty lucky that we’re here at all,’’ retorted the policeman. “ In all probability you’d have been tied up here for several days to come, if it hadn’t been for the watchman of that boat-club across the river.” ‘Ts that watchman responsible for our being rescued?” cried Leffingwell in sur- prise. “Ves. You see, we belong to the river-squad, and as our launch passed the boat-house a while ago he hailed us and told us ‘of two suspicious men, who had borrowed one of his boats. I guess: you were the fellows, eh? Leffingwell nodded. ‘Well, our suspicions were aroused, and we decided to investigate. When we came across your moored rowboat we suspected “something was wrong, and landed to look for you and find out what you were after.” 297 “I’m mighty glad you did so,” de- clared Leffingwell. “I suppose there’s no chance of overtaking that deserter now, eh?” he added wistfully. “I’m afraid not. Not unless you know in what direction he went. He may have crossed the river in a rowboat or launch, or he may have gone inland. In either event he’s had a pretty good start of us, and I reckon he’s miles away by this time.” ‘Confound him!” growled Leffing- well. “Id give my right hand to see that cad behind bars.” CHAPTER XV. AN IMPORTANT CLUE. BEFORE leaving the hut the river-po- licemen made a thorough search of the premises, but the only objects of interest they discovered were the carriage-lamp which Mitchell had used for signaling, and a complete opium layout which they found in the closet. The latter, they guessed, was the property of the Chinaman; but there were two pipes in the set, and Leffing- well half suspected that Mitchell had been, using one of them. He mentioned his suspicion to the leader of the police-squad, whose name, by the way, was Sergeant Nolan. The latter took the queer-looking, long bamboo tubes in his hand and examined them carefully. ‘I shouldn’t be surprised if you're right,’ he commented. ‘“ This pipe here has been used by a fellow new at the game. I can tell that by the amateurish way he’s handled his, dope. I was de- tailed down in Chinatown for four years before I was sent to the river-squad, and there ain’t much about dope smoking | don’t know. “Of one thing [’m certain, though,” he added; ‘“‘and that is, that that de- serter chap has vot been hitting the pipe to-day. If he had been smoking the stuff —within the past twenty-four hours he wouldn’t have possessed sufficient energy to be able to turn the tables on you when you broke in on him. ‘Opium smoking makes a _ fellow drowsy and listless for hours afterward, especially a beginner. If that fellow had 0)(0)(6) ANG S (C@