Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 488 — page 13: what you’re looking at

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

— SSS eeeer oor - i “een = | Larry, the comrade of the thief, caught Moll fiercely by the neck and drew her back witha jerk. But she held on with such a grip that a ndful of the villain’s beard came with her, Howling with rage and pain the burly ruffian lifted his powerful fist and sprung furiously to- ward his late assailant. ‘* Don’t strike that woman! don’t touch her!” ‘**'You g0 to—” The speech was not concluded. Ere it could be finished, or the uplifted fist could fall on the helpless woman, a blow like that of a sledge- hammer descended on the left temple of the poor wretch. Down he went like a log, with a crash that shook the whole house. It was the fistof Dick Racket which had mad this sudden change in the situation. : The young athlete now turned furiously to where his worthy cousin was struggling in the heart of a wild mob. In an instant Dick sprung into the midst of the struggling mob toward his cousin, who was howling with fear and pain, and feebly repelling his assailants. Right and left they fell before Dick’s swinging arms, In a minute he had made his way to the heart of the crowd, and stood before his sadly scared cousin, ‘Follow me close!” cried Dick, sharply. ‘Hit right and left, wherever you see a head. Hit hard! ‘his is no play!” He sprung forward again, closely followed by Phil. It was an easy path. The crowd drew back in affright before those iron fists, Within a minute Dick reached the door of the saloon, Phil still close behind him. ‘* Now run, asif the devil had kicked you!” he On your life, cried. Phil, without stopping to think or even to look at his rescuer, complied with this wise ad- vice, and shot off at his utmost speed. But at this moment Moll sprung from the door of the saloon, with disheveled hair, her eyes flashing with a tigerish glare. ‘*Run, you fool!” she yelled. ‘‘ They'll tear you to ribbons if they catch you! Run, or you’re a dead man!” Dick hesitated no longer. He was off like a flash, in an opposite direction to that taken by Phil A storm of yells came behind. The crac ——oOoOeeee of a pistol was heard and a bullet whizzed by | | his ear. On he flew, not pausing to breathe ti he was safely beyond the limits of that danger- ous district. CHAPTER XIII. A TRIFLE OF’ A SURPRISE, “Arsharp eight to-morrownight, Jerry, Beon the watch. He will try to get rid of you all. and make aclear coast for his game. But keep ayy on hand and have an eye open for the woman, atch where he takes her, and be ready to put me and my party in ambush. Don’t fail, old man, for life and death depend onit. There isa villain’s trick to be exposed, I am sorry to hear of the death of my uncle. It makes things more ticklish forme. But don’t fear: I will discount Phil Morton yet. 5 ick to your wild boy, Dick,” Such was the latter portion of a letter received at Beechcroft by old Jerry. He scratched his head in rise at its conclusion. ‘“What does Master Dick mean about the death of his uncle? Who told him that Mr. Wilmot was dead? He is alive yet, thank the stars! and the doctor says he is mending. But what wild game is this that’s concocting? I hoe it isn’tsome Of his idle tricks, But Dll do as he says, no matter what comes of it,” At about the same hour that old Jerry was reading this letter, at ten o'clock on Thursday morning, a scene closely related to it was taking place at a locality in the center of the city. This was at tne headquarters of the detective force in the Central Police Station. several some with their coats Off, while the smoke of pipes and cigars made the air hazy, * What's on hand this morning?” asked one of them, yen a vasvn, as he carelessly stretched his imbs, “ Nothing come in yet. All serene, and the sky indigo blue.” ‘By the way, Tim,” queried the first speaker ‘how goes that little racket you’ve had in hand for the past month? That Dick Racket hunt? | Holed your fox yet?” ‘ Yes, by thunder! Holed him deep enough, But can’t smoke the hole. Hang his 1mpudence he’s harder to nail than old Terry, the Roander! Ive got some of his cronies spying for him, but he’s too keen for the whole caboodle.” | Here ; cheeks disappeared at a movement of his hand, persons were gathered, taking it easy, His low-combed hair was thrust back. Before i i i ' ! | | Wild Dick Racket. —_——————— ee ———————$ ee a ee “It’s glorious the way he salted Job Clark. | Tim has been hiring the man to play the spy on Played a counterfeit on him once, and knocked | himself! If that ain’t the rickest joke of the him out of time the next heat! Job’s wild, and | season!” swears he'll pinch him sore yet. But you've got A burst of laughter followed, that made Tim to catch your fox before you can take the | turn blue in the gills with spite. brush.” ‘“Hang your impudent picture!” he cried, ‘* He’s as cunning as ten Comanches,” respond- | angrily. ‘So you’ve been playing the cockney ed Tim, ‘‘There’s not a crack or cranny that | on me, have you? You'd better have kept it up, hasn’t been searched, but not a trace of Dick | my cove. ‘You've put your mammy’s boy in @ Racket, But we'll have him yet. Some of his | scrape. By fire and brimstone, I'll pmch you old comrades have gone back on him, and are | for this!” helping us in the hunt. Set a thief tocatcha ‘** Don’t take a little thief, you know, Treachery is the surest detec- | Dick. ‘* You’re not the only member of the tive.” force I’ve fooled. Why, I’ve had as many faces ‘Allright, my lad. these two weeks back as there are hairs ina him when I see it. I don’t believe the man is | cat’s whiskers.” guilty, anyhow. J helped in the hunt at Beech- ‘* And what brings you here now?” asked the croft, you know, and I’ve got an eye on another | officer who had been conversing with him, | oke that way,” laughed man, There’s a sly chap there, and I’ve been ‘* Short of money. Thought I'd come claim | | Pll believe you've got quietly looking up his record,” the reward which my dear cousin, Phil Morton, ‘“‘T don’t care a fig for that. Dick Racket’s | has so kindly offered. And I’ve a bet of a hun- my game, from the shoulder.” dred with one of your force which I guess [lh he conversation was interrupted at this | rake in.” point by the opening of the door and the en- Dick had seated himself, and answered this trance of another person, on whom the officers | question with an air of provoking ease. The present lazily turned their eyes. officers looked at him with surprise and inter- This personage wore a very loud suit of | est. Here was something without precedent in plaid clothes, while his broad face was adorned | their experience.” with bushy side-whiskers, cut in the English ‘“‘There is something bid behind this,” re- style. It was, indeed, no other than Dick Racket | marked the detective. ‘‘ You ane not quite a himself, in a disguise in which we have already | fool, Youdid not hide withoutan object. You seen him. The fox had come into the kennel of | have not given yourself up without an object. the hounds. What are those objects!” Tim gazed at him with an air of satisfaction. ‘You are right,” rejoined Dick. ‘ Every- He turned triumphantly to the officer with | thing I have done has been with an object. And whom he had been conversing, Iam not here now with the object of going to ‘The man that waits wins,” he said senten- | prison and standing a trial for murder. Not tiously. ‘‘Glad to see you, Mr. Barney. Sit | much! Sit down, gentlemen, and we will talk down. Something’s alive, 1 suppose, to bring | over those objects.’ you here?” ‘*HI rather reckon so,” answered the coun- terfeit Englishman, in his broadest cockney dialect, ‘' HIl’ve been hon duty, and hI’m ’ere to report.” This was spoken with an air of such conceited satisfaction that the officers listened with their tongues in their cheeks, The fellow was evident- ly a popinjay. ‘* What’s the report?” asked Tim seizing a pen and preparing to write. ‘* You’ve hit the mark in the bull’s-eye, eh?” ‘* Well, hI conceit hI ’ave,” and he pulled up his collar with a satisfied jerk. ‘‘HI’m ready to’and’im hover. Bu*—” ‘*Oh! IT know. The reward’sall right, We are One hundred if you put us in Two-fifty if you put him They obeyed, even Tim suppressing his spite im his growing interest in the promised revela- tion. ‘*To begin with,” said Dick, but pausing, he drew a cigar from his pocket and coolly lit it. “To begin with, then, I didn’t try to murder my uncle. Dick Racket, the Scapegrace, has been a wild coon, but it’s notin him to fling a man intoa quarry. But, in the second place, gentlemen, there was some ccnfoundedly ugly evidence against me. Enough to hang me it ek stood a trial. I had been tricked, I smelt that, But how? was the question. I bad my suspi- cions, but for certain private reasons J could not divulge them. And I took the conceited fancy that | could beat the police hollow in tracking my stclen ring.” ** Your stolen ring?? queried Tim, ‘‘ Just so. It was stolen from me and used by a Villain to put my life in danger.” ‘** And you know who that villain is?” ‘*It is my scheming cousin, Phil Morton.” ‘‘By Heaven, I half believe ycu!” answered the other detective, energetically. ‘‘ I doubted that man at sight. I have been quietiy investi- ating his record since, His coat is not spot- ree,” ‘* He expects to inherit Mr. Wilmot’s estate,” answered Dick. ‘‘ I don’t, for I know the wil] is against ne. It was to my interest that m square men here. a way to nail him. clean in our hands,” ‘**°Onor bright?” ‘You can have it in black and white, if you prefer.” ‘“‘Hall right. Scratch bit down, hand pass hit hover. I allers like to ’andle the doky- ments hafore hl budge,” and he broke intoa laugh of silly conceit. im, with a smile of amusement, wrote for a minute, and then tore off the written slip and handed it to his visitor, who sat bolt upright in dignified expectation, un- ‘There you are, An order for two hundred | cle should live, for he might change his will. It and fifty dollars on the Secret-Service police | was Phil’s interest to hinder bim changing his. fund, due at the moment you put the body of Richard Racket, the fugitive criminal, into our hands. Is that to the point?” ‘*T fancy it is.” The voice was so changed that the quick senses of the detectives were in- ‘* Pll rake down that little will, What's more, this estate ismine by right. It was my father’s. I lost it by a knavish trick. It was to Phil Morton’s interest that that trick should not be exposed by the only person who could do so,” ** This is all very well,” Tim broke in, harsh- ly, ‘‘ but this is not a court. You did not come here expecting to plead your case, did you? Yow’re a little off your eg os, My man. ou have earned the money, but you have alse earned a home in a cell, and that’s where you're going to, without waste of time.” ‘Oh, hold your jaw, Tim!” cried one of the others, ‘Let Mr. Racket finish his story. He can’t fly out of this eagle’s nest.” ‘All this is not exactly to the point,” con- tinued Dick, as easily as if Tim bad net spoken, ‘I have another little story which may be more stantly on the alert. ile.” ‘“ Will you?” asked Tim, satirically. where’s your man?” ‘Here! In an instant a strange transformation came over the appearance of the speaker. The red handkerchief that enveloped his neck was torn away, and with it the side-whiskers, His broad The florid color on his ** Then face grew narrower, them stood a remarkably transmogrified in- dividual. interesting. I will tell you now it was not Tim sprung to his feet with an oath of aston- | money brought me here, but justice. I bave ishment. | traced the thief that stole my Ting and the vil- ‘Dick Racket himself, by all that’s blue!” he | lain that put it into my uncle’s hand. There is shouted. a little interview on the tapis that I want other ‘Why, if the court knows itself, I fancy | ears than mine to hear. Andit struck me that that’s the cognomen I was christened with,” | you gentlemen would make prime witnesses, came the easy answer, ‘I’m short of funds, | Shall I tell you this story” and thought P’'d step round and rake down that | ‘ Yes, yes. Go ahead!” reward.” Rate | Thus desired, Dick proceeded to relate the in- Tim was not alone in his startled surprise. | cidents of his search for the ring, and the various Every man in the room had sprung to his feet. | results of his enterprise. He told all, indeed, This was a circumstance such as they had never | except that relating to the peper that criminat- met before in all their varied experience, | ed his unele. That he preferred to keep secret ‘Dick Racket!” came the general cry. ‘‘ And | for the present. He continued by describing, co nmicbooks