Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 671 — page 9: what you’re looking at

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

shadow! Jersey Je el eel d, the Boy Hustler. 9g ~_ . > Ths thougbt thrilled Captain Catchem. He forgot the boy artist on the settee. “*DLethim go. I caught him the other night without his consent!” chuckled Simon, The detective did not hear these words. The man he was looking at bad turned into another ath, and a moment later the ferret of Gotham ad darted away, and was Webb Weldon’s CHAPTER X, OVERHEARD, “Tats is luck! mentally exclaimed Captain , Catchem, eying the young man while he fol- iowed him. ‘' This is sighting Holdfast & Co, where I did not expect to get a glimpse of the firm. Now if the young chap leads me to the right place I may be able to play the best cards in the deck.” A pone unconscious of the espionage, Wel- don led the detective across the square and into the street beyond. There he encountered a man taller and older than himself and the two went away together, Captain Catchem was now confident that he had sighted the entire firm and his inward satis- faction thereat knew no bounds, Weldon {and Nottingham walked leisurely for some distance and the detective could see that Wer were ee tee low tones, e wondered if Weldon had told his com- panion about his visit to Mark Murchison, and as the younger man was doing most of “the talk- ing he thought he was then spinning the narra- tive of that event, The detective followed the two men until they came back to the street in which he thought he had seen Weldon on several former occasions. To reach it they were compelled to cross the Park, but Scissors Simon had left his bench and Captain Catchém who was still following Hold- fast & ©o., saw nothing of the boy, In course of time the trail ended beyond the door of the house which witnessed Jed’s adventure when he fell into the hands of the enemy, ‘At home at last!” exclaimed the detective. “This is more than luck. It js fortune, To have tracked Holdfast & Co. home is something worth achieving. This is the best iink yet welded to the change,’ ws rae ee house on before oe eS, ee 16. had resolved not. try to get beyond i doors just then. Holdfast & Co, are not ikely to run off, but would remain so as to play an- } »other card against Mark Murchison. 2s have just described, . victory for his employer. ne Jed Jeffreys, the boy detective, had ps some of tine ane we witne He had caught sight first of the two worthies On the street and then of Captain Catchem on their trail, | ** The wily old fox has found them,” thought the boy, ‘* He will now make the most of the If he can he will get hold of the documents and throw them into Mark Murehison’s lap, I know bim. I was fortunate in giving him the slip from Simon’s house, and I don’t want him to catch me at work now.” Captain Catchem had managed during his bit of shadow work to get a good view of Nick Nottingham’s face. He was hoping that he ) ©woald be able to moog ize in the senior member a of Holdfast & Co. an old offender with a bad record, In this be was not wholly disappointed, for he soon recalled him as one who had spent five years behind the bars for a crime com- mitted before the plundering of the Jersey man- sion, Mr, Nottingham had greatly improved his appearance since quitting the prison; but to keen-eyed Burt Butler he was still his old self, no better, but a little sleéker than before, Jed left both the detective and Holdfast & Co,, and went home, : The hour was nine and the street was well thronged with ple. As Jed mounted the Steps he heard a shriek and then a Babel of ex- cited voices, and running back discovered that a strange y bad been knocked down bya In a few moments the street in the vicinity was fairly blocked b le, and some minutes passed before Jed apatt Wank up the stairs. — As he neared the door of his humble quarters he da voice that thrilled and startled him, | “What brin gs t house?” Jed asked him gs that man to our house “* Pd as soon expect to hear the a Shere as him. And he drew anc Jistene® with his heart beating * ‘4° Face **] don’t see why you won’t listen to compro- mise,” said the voicethe boy had caught, ‘* You can’t expect everything. e’re willing to give youashare. Youand your boy mustn’t hang out against reason. We hold the whole game in our hands, The cards—all of them—are ours, ‘Yes, Sarah Jeffreys, if we say so, you will sud- denly lose all your chances of getting a dollar from his coffers—” ‘*f don’t want a dime of his money,” Jed heard his mother break in, ‘‘ We’re not con- tending for riches.” The man laughed hoarsely and in derision, ‘ld think you'd take a little!” he exclaimed. ** You’re not very well fixed here,” “Not very rich, that’s right. We haven’t =F yet, and I don’t think we’ll ever come to that, ‘Don’t tempt misfortune. You and your boy can move into a mansion within a month.” ‘* If we follow your directions?” ‘* If you listen to reason,” ** And help you and your companion,” ‘** You'll be helping yourself,” A short silence followed the last words. “* Is she going to yield to him?” muttered Jed, and he stepped forward with a flash in his eyes, «Mother must not form a partnership with that man, I thought hehad a game in view pen he got me out of the clutches of Hdéldfast Co,” At this moment Jed heard the unseen man re- sume: * You won’t have to do much, woman; only let him know that you are ready to receive the papers from us and open fly his treasure doors,” ‘But the documents wouldn’t reach me, You would be expected to keep your word with Mark Murchison. There was no reply to this. ‘* Jed and I will be a party to no such scheme,” continued Mrs, Jeffreys with firmness, * You are willing to lose all, tuen?” ** Yes, if it must be retained in such a way,” ‘You are foolish, You can’t get anything out of Mark Murchison without our help. You say he has wronged you and your boy. You want to get even. You want possession of the papers he lost some six yearsago, They will place in your hands a weapon with which you will be able to right your wrongs. Madam, you can’t win a single move without us, It is im- possible. Wehold the ‘hand’ that wins, and, anxious to lift you and your boy from penury, T have made the proposition you have just lis- tened to,’ “T reject it. We don’t want his money though much of it rightfully belongs to us. admit that without the stolen documents_we cannot succeed, They are in your hands.” ‘* Your boy thinks so, does he?” ‘Yes, andsodol, You are one of the men he'saw six years ago in the ravine. Don’t smile and deny it. He saved you then by holding his tongue, He kept from the heels of yourself and artner in that crime the dogs of the law, for if 5 ad had parted with his secret Mark Murchison’s detectives would have nabbed you.” If Jed could kave seen beyond the door at this moment, he would have DOticed a grin on the man’s face, *“T see that we can’t trade, Sarah Jeffreys,” said the male voice, and then came to Jed’s ears the shuffling of feet. ‘We'll never make avother offer like this. If Mark Murcbison succumbs he will get the papers. If he holds out in his stubbornness they will be destroyed.” "We can’t take the documents through the channel you offer them. We won't touch a dol- lar of the mone7 that mau controls without get- ting it legally. If you destroy those papers—” rs, Jeffreys seemed to break her own sen- tence, and Jed’s heart was in his throat while he listened, , ‘““ What will you do if laughed the man. ** We'll make this country too hot to hold you and your companion!” “Ho! is that all we have to fear?’ was the answering sentence. ‘‘ Madam, when you pit ourself and your boy, shrewd little rat though eis, against the old and experienced firm of Holdfast & Co., you get far beyond your depth, Why, we'd neck 3 at your efforts, hat! you frigiten us by a tbreat? It is the height of folly! We hold the trumps; we play the hand that wins, and when you reject the proposition that has been made, you lose forever all hopes of recovering what you have lost. As for your boy, let him keep Seay from us. We _ have tolerated him long enough. He owes his life to we destroy them?” me; but if he plays shadow any longer, I won’t FE ee oe f : a B52 % , ao . 2 fi ie - vi ‘ i 4 ~ - ; De, a, oe + . Se! ; «.-¥ = coe * y . J re 4 v - duplicate the mercy I have shown him. Good- night, madam,” Tbe door near Jed opened with a suddenness ~ that sent him backward, and if he had not fallen in the darkest part of the short hallway he would bave been seen by the tall man who emerged from the room, As it was, Jed held his breath while he watched the man, knowing that he was the renowned Nottingham of Holdfast & Co. Jed’s blood fairly boiled while he eyed the man, which was not long, for Nottingham sbut the door and went down the stairs, “Tf you think I will take your advice you count without your host!” exclaimed the boy, as his eye followed Nick. ‘You can’t drive me from this trail, of all opposition, or I will perish in the clutches of the fo,” The following moment the Boy Shadow was in the room, and his mother had received bim with an exclamation of amazed delight. ‘* Well, mother,” exclaimed Jersey Jed, “‘ the slick rascal got no satisfaction.” ‘*Not from me, my boy. He came with a cool proposition which I could not for a moment entertain. He wanted to take us intothe house of Holdtast & Co, as sort of silent partners,” ‘*T thought he had a scheme in view when he helped me out of the trap I got into by hunting for the documents, We know him now, W hat afd he call himself?” ** Robert Randall.” ‘“ Alias Nicholas Nottingham!” laughed Jed, * Holdfast & Co. will now play a desperate hand. It will take a}l the shrewdness Captain Catchem and I possess to balk the firm.” ‘What, have you leagued yourself to the de- tective?” asked Mrs, Jeffreys with a start. ‘*By no means, mother, I’m still Jed Joef- freys, the independent shadow,” CHAPTER XI. JED'S NEW MOVE, JERSEY JED of course knew poenins ing Webb Weldon’s visit to Mark and its results, That a visit of some sort was contemplated, he knew from what he bad seen and heard from the roof outside tbe conspirators’ window; but Nottingham’s visit to his mother seemed to in- dicate that the call had been made only to re« sult in failure, The boy detective felt that the pair would now resort. to something desperate, inasmuch as Weldon ha make a showing soon, in order to win the young lady in the up-town mansion, Jed wondered if the young lady knew any- thing about Weldon’s real character, and to dis- cover this he resolved to pay her the earliest visit he could, - concern- urchi on, The sun was midway between dawn and noon | the following day, when the Jersey boy pre- sented himself at the door of a well-to-do house in the upper part of the city. He had dressed himself with more than usual care, for he was about to encounter one whom he had never met before, and be did not want his looks to repulse him at the outset. When he told the person who opened the door that he had called on business with ‘ Miss Lola,” he was very speedily admitted and es- corted into the parlor, _ “She shail be called,” said the servant, leay- ing bim, and Jed sat down to watch the door and wonder what sort of a young lady had cap- tivated Webb Weldon. He was not left to himself a great while when a rustle of garments attracted him, the door opened, and Lola Lewis stood before him, The poe was a little too dark to let him see her as lie wanted to; but when the young lady parted the beavy curtains and admitted a flood — of light, be started at sight of ker. Lola Lewis was a.beautiful girl of twenty. She possessed a willowy, sylph-like figure, the movements of which were grace itself; her eyes were large and lustrous, ber haira rich chest- nut, and very abundant, Jed did not wonder tbat she had captivated Webb Weldon, but he could not bel that the young scamp loved her f than herself, * ‘* ‘You do not ‘know me?” said Jed, seeing the girl’s eyes regarding him with an inquisitive stare, ‘*We have never met before. I am Jed Jeffreys, once of Jersey, now of New York.” ae bei smiled, showing for an instant her pearly “Tm glad to ses you, Mr, Jeffreys,” she thinking tune more 1 dere 7 I will come out ahead in spite’ mother, plied, ina pleasant voice “‘ Marietold methat you have called on business, but I cannot imagine its nature,” eo ee eae ; Sr Vee ie Pe At ; Shia * - pees = : if: (rab ade}. a S ee . + bd Ket RAs g- ~~ ae * ~~ rep : 7 fbr a = npg ea d as — i