Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 598 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

leading her to the very front of the house, as sbe supposed, though she could not see, Owney kept close behind them, until with an oath, Roundel turned and grasping him by the arm, swung him around and sent bim stagger- ing against the wall. At the same momenta door opened and shut quickly, and Owney was alone. ‘‘A very affable gentieman that, but I think he will find bimself badly fooled if be thinks he can*getaway with ‘Git Thar’ Owney.” As he thus reflected, Owney opened another door and found himself in a cellar, with a boarded wall on one side, through the chinks of which streamed the light of alamp or candle. He put his eye to one of these hinks and took a survey of the apartment, | Its only occupant was an individual with a flabby face and weak eyes—Ezra Piper. The little tenor was crouching over a feeble fire ina rusty grate, and was the picture of discontent, ‘¢ So, you’re there all right, are you? Well, I suppose you are getting the worst of it, as usual. Tiger Jim has a knack of making things comfortable for himself, while his partners do the hard work and get none of the booty.” Ezra moved uneasily and looked around, as he grumbled, in audible tenes: ‘*Where’s that cursea old woman, I wonder? Why don’t she come and get some coffee ready? [ don’t see why they’ve put an old image like that in the ranch, anyhow!” Owney chuckled. ‘‘There are many things you don’t under- stand Mr, Piper,” he muttered, *‘ but you'll find out all about them by-and-by. Ithink I have both you and Roundel just where I want you,” Keeping his eye still at the chink, he was startled by a. knock at the door of the room in which Ezra sat. The latter jumped as he heard it, and then, with a nod, as if he understood what it meant, went to the door and unlocked it without hesitation. 48 pare 4 to the — there, Ezra,” commanded oundel’s voice,as that wortby enter : fully fastened the door, i ‘‘ Ts he there? Ah!” Mn ir tg eb i . ae sigh and pressed his hand is side over the spot where the h ularly Supposed ea be. eart is pop- oundel bestowed an unceremoniousra the side of the tenor’s head that Seceken all tha sentiment out of him for the time being. ‘* Don’t be a fool,” he gruffly ejaculated, ** but attend to business.” : Piper’s long thin fingers stole toward his sleeve, but Roundel seized him by the collar and, with a shake such asa Blooditicaaa would give a rat, hissed: ‘You little worm, if you ever pulled that dirk of yours on me it would be the last act of your life!” An evil scowl of impotent rage was Piper’s only response. : ‘“Now, get up there,” continued Roundel, **and do as I tell you.” A wooden bench ran along the wall opposite that behind which stood ‘‘Git Thar” Owney, Mounting this bench, Piper moved a framed picture—a cheap colored print representing a vividly ‘ impossible landscape—and revealed three small holes, evidentiy made for spyihg purposes. Tooneof these holes, Ezra put his eye, while Roundel looked through another. ‘“Um! Now, what shall I do?’ muttered Owney. ‘‘Ah! What’s that?” He found himself struggling in the embrace of some one who bad stepped up behind him, and throwing a powerfal pair of arms around bis neck, was garroting him in truly professional style. As we know, “Git Thar” Owney was an aih- lete, but his present unkvown foe seemed to be endowed with the strength of three men, More- over, he had secured the advantage at the outset, by catching our hero bebind, and entirely un- awares, ‘* Let me go,” hissed Owney, softly, for he did not wish to disturb the two men in the adjoining room, ‘* Who the deuce are you?” His antagonist did not answer, nor did he make any sound suve a vigorous breathing through his nose, but he retained a hold on Owney that the latter could not shake off, try as he might. _. The detective knew that he must try strategy if he was to overcome his mysterious enemy, S80 he suddenly ceased struggling, and allowed the other to do with him as he would. The result was that Owney was pulled back- ward, and tripping over a rope that was stretched across the room, and which he had failed to notice before, fell in a heap on bis assailant, Flute, the Singer Detective. As he came down with considerable force on the latter’s chest, a grunt resounded through the place, sounding strangely weird in the darkness, and a voice ejaculated in husky accents, as if the man had very little breath: ‘* Howly saints, ag out o’ me mouth, thin Oi’m a fish!” “Git Thar” Owney rolled over lke a flash, and clapping his hand over the other’s mouth, exclaimed in a low voice: ‘‘Hush! Notanotber word, Don’t you know me? I’m a detective, employed by Mr. Argent —‘Git Thar” Owney. You are Dennis Carrigan.” ‘‘ Faith—” commenced Dennis, but .Owney’s hand tightened over his mouth, and he could not get out re more. ‘Don’t I tell you not to speak loud? Whisper, and whisper very softly,” admonished the detec- tive, sternly. ‘‘ An’ is it whisper, ye say? Faith, an’ Oi will thot!” Dennis said this below his breath, and was re- warded by Owney telling him that a whisper like that would do no barm. ‘* Now, tell me,” added the detective, *‘ what are you doing here?” ‘“Sorra a wan o’ me knows. They tuk me down in this hole, an’ they tied me futs wid ropes so they did, an’ they put a gag in the jaw o’ me, an’ they put handcuffs on me wrists, be the token yec’u’d see the marks av there was loight enough. But I slipped ’em over me hands, an’ | was a-troyin’ ter git the gag out o’ me mouth, whin you kim in.” ‘‘ And what did you do then?” ‘ Raith, I did nothing until I ¢c’u’d see what yez was going ter do yeself, Ye was the last ter kim in, an’ I tought, mebbe ye’d be the fu’st to goout. Sure I didn’t know ye in that ould noight-cap, or I’d ha’ introjuced meself afore.” “Lie there a second and keep still,” was Owney’s whispered response, to this long tirade, delivered in a painfully throaty voice, with such ostentatious expression that it seemed as if Den- nis would burst before he finished. ‘‘1 want to look into the next room,” A momentary glance sufficed to satisfy the detective that Roundel and Piper had not heard or heeded the slight noise made by himself and Dennis, so he came away from the wall and producing the small but powerful bull’s-eye Jan- tern that he always carried, and that was so arranged that it would fold up into a small com- pass for easy concealment, turned the light upon the prostrate Irishman. ‘* Why, your feet are tied.” ‘*TIndade an’ they are. Me r ankles are al] benumbed, so they are, an’ I’m helpless.” One slash of Owney’s knife, and the rope fell ey _ One end of it was secured to a large staple in the floor in a corner of the room, and it was this rope, held taut by the Irishman pull- ing it that had caused Owney to trip. ‘* Are you armed?” he whispered, to the Irish- man. ‘‘ Faith an’ I um that. I have a ‘ pop’ here that’ll kill at a milean’a half, an’ it never misses fire,” answered Dennis, eagerly. He smelt a shindy coming, and he was anxious, like all bis countrymen for any fun with plenty of danger. _ “ Untie these stringsforme. I have got them in a knot, and they are out of my reach in the middle of my back,” said Owney. Dennis could not untie them, so he cut them, and the detective, letting the wrapper fall down, and throwing off the white night-cap, stood revealed as the working man with white- wash on his clothes who bad dived into the East River to save Ezra Piper from drowning, He put his hand into one of his pockets and drew forth the brown mustache with the spot of whitewash upon it, and into another and got the slouch hat. A hasty, but dexterous move- ment was sufficient to make the mustache stick to his upper lip, and then, fitting the slouch bat upon his head, no one would have suspected for a moment that be could ever bave been the old deaf woman who, in the character of the new housekeeper, bad thoroughly deceived Roundel and his tool, Ezra Piper. Keeping his lantern in his hand, the young detective turned the light all around the cellar to make sure that it was untenanted by stran- gers, and then stole softly into the long dark -- There might be other people in the house be- sides those the reader Bisa of, for all Owney could tell, and he felt that this was not a time to take chances, All was quiet, He directed the light down the hall, and, with one finger on bis lip to enjoin caution upon his companion, made his way cautiously toward If ye haven’t knocked the | | 1i = the door of the room in which he knew Blanche was with her father. As he passed the door of the other room he shook his fist at 1t, and Dennis, pointing his pis- tol at it, looked inquiringly at his companion, as if asking whether he should blaze away through the door, on the chance of shooting down Roun- del and Piper at one lucky shot. ‘‘Git Thar ” Owney restrained his ardor by a warning look, and Dennis subsided, though he still held his six-shooter ready for instant use. He tried the door of the room tenanted by Mr. Argent and his daughter. It was locked. ‘Um! Roundel has the key in his pocket, of course,” muttered Owney. ‘“ The murtherin’ villain!” commented Dennis. The detective produced a piece of wire, and, turning the light of his lantern upon the key- hole, with’ one twist of the wire turned the bolt, and the door was open. Cautiously Owney pushed it wider, and then tried to get the banker’s attention. Mr. Argent was walking up and down the room in an agitated manner, while Blanche fol- lowed him with her eyes, and tried to get him to listen to ber. They had evidently been talking, and were both in a state of nervous excitement. Owney knew that the watchers in the next room were watching every movement in the room, and that he could not go forward without being seen. Strangely enough, neither father or daughter happened to look in the direction of the door for at least five minutes. ‘‘ Hist!” whispered Owney, banker, turning quickly, caught sight and started. Blanche saw bim at the same moment. ‘Oh, father,” she began, ‘* This is—” “Silence, for your life,” warned the detec- tive. ‘“Yis, howld yer whist,” added Dennis, in a voice that made the walls buzz. Blanche, quick of comprehension, said no more, and the detective, anoyed that enough had been done already to awaken the suspicions: of Roundel and Piper, beckoned to Blanche and the banker to come quickly to the door. They obeyed, and Owney was just about to take the giri’s hand and lead her into the hall, when he found himself seized from behind, and, ere he could recover himself, dragged along the ball and thrust into the cellar in which he had found Dennis Carrigan confined. There was a great noise of shouting and scuf- fling in the ball, and Dennis’s voice was raised in anger with a stronger brogue than usual. Then there were two reports from pistols, and all was still. . ‘Git Thar” Owney ground his teeth as he fouud bimself once more in the power of his ene- mies through no fault of bis own, He was utterly unable to tell what had be- come of Blanche and Mr. Argent, but bad no doubt that they were still fastened in the,room from which he bad tried to release them, It was evidently of no use his staying where he was, if he could possitly escape. Now that Roundel had recognized him as the laboring man who had been on the boat in the morning, he would no doubt suspect bim of be- ing other than what he seemed, and he could not hope to maintain bis disguise under a clese ex- amination. If be were ever revealed to these fellows as “Git Thar” Owney, the terrible detective, he knew tbat bis existence would be a short one, He could be murdered in this thieves’ strong- hold, with but little chance of the crime being discovered. He must get out. Fortunately, he still bad all the appliances. and weapons that he was accustomed to carry with him, packed in as smalla rere as possible, so as to be easily hidden in his clothing. He drew forth his lantern and turned the light all about the cellar. He had never been in it until he came in half an hour before and found Dennis there, a prisoner. Ah. a window! Shutters with a thick board, but evidently a window, The boards had been nailed up securely enough originally, no doubt, but the nails had long since partly rusted out, and it required but little of “Git Thar” Owney’s strength to pull them down. ‘“So much for the shutter,” he muttered, as he paused for breath. ‘‘A back yard. Just what I expected. And there is the carriage and the stables. Lots of, style these flows put on!” But though he had removed the boards, and could look into the yard, it must not be sup- pues that the detective was free. Four iron rs, rusty, but still strong, were fastened at last, as the of him a . ' Se - . "Se 4» a? | “a , | - . . - pf UF - s i . - |