Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 717 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

~~ )- gee © wee a Mosquito Jack, the Hustler Gamin. ra * + neha weer 7 % at ‘ 1 , j — ‘© Do you know that would be burglary?” at once a voice spoke her name. We looked | thoughts, which all turned to Dalton, arfd her cs 4 ‘“¢ We needu’t take nothin’ away.” around. A.cab had driven up to the curbstone | air-castles were built high and in dazzling style. ‘Tn any case, it would be breaking and enter- | and was following along by us, and in the cab” Fenton went to his room, and, as usua!, Mos- oe ing.” —the landlady paused, smiled sarcastically, and | quito Jack accompanied him, On this evening : ‘Don’t see why, ez long ez we don’t merlest | added what evidently wasnotin her mind: ‘*In | the young man would have prefered to be free nothin’. We only want his secrets. I’ve heerd | the cab was Bertram Dalton!” from all company, for the shadow of coming ) it said he has some high- toned speculator on the “Go on!” Fenton urged. | | events was over him darkly; but it was not s oy hip that he’s saltin’ bad. Why can’t we git a ‘*He asked me to walk on fifty feet or so, to | easy to getrid of the Hustler Gamin. : shake at the dice-box?” give him a chance to speak privately with Lena;| Jack remained until, as the time approached It was a strong temptation. It might be ab- | and I went. She must tell the rest, berseif.” | when Fenton was to meet Flippy Jim, he rose surd to suppose that Cheslington was the man ‘* You said,” eagerly began Lena looking at | and began to exchange his usual suit of clothes who had been systematically swindling Colonel | Fenton, and then, checking herself, added: | for the cheap garments recently purchased un- Fenton, but it remained a fact that some one | ‘*‘ Bertram said that the time was near at hand | der the boy’s guidance, . had been doing it, Why was it not as likely to | when he would keep bis promise and acknow- ‘** Goin’ out?” Jack asked, be Cheslington as any one else? Randolph won- | ledge me as his wife. He frankly said he bad | ‘‘ Yes,” dered if it actually would be a misdemeanor to | not done rigit—** lve been a scoundre!!” were ** Where?’ lay enter the crook’s office under such circumstances, | the words he used, but he need not have spwke ‘*T don’t know where I shall bring up.” caps Did not the end justify the means? so severely. Anyway, he declared that he had ‘** Let me go, too.” . + ‘‘ Wish you'd chip in,’ added Flippy Jim, let ignoble pride stand in his own light long ‘*T can’t. If I were going on one of our prow!l- a The words suggested another theory, Ches- | enongh, and was going to turn over a new | ing expeditions I should be glad to bave you\ wa) lington had been put on bis guard by Mosquito | leaf.” along, but this is different,” ra Jack’s visit. Perhaps he intended to'strike back. | ‘I devoutly hope he will!” exclaimed Ran- “Why do you puton yer Giant Grim suit?” Was Jim a safe man totrust? What if he was acting as a decoy for Cheslington? Carefully be studied the bummer, who gave no evidence of secret purpose, though his ap- arance was certainly disreputable enough. be fascination of the venture was too strong to ie be resisted, and he yielded to his fate. “What if I agrée?” he made answer. ‘Why, you kin read the dockymunts, an’ I'll do de rest. One turn o’ this key opens the ae door.” ** But how can we evade the members of the clu?” ** Wait until they’ve gone away.” ** Suppose we are detected?” + “We sha’n’t be. Ive studied the sittervation until I’m dead sure on’t, yer see. We'll wait until erbout one o’clock, an’ then slide in nice an’ i. light-footed, an’ no solitary pilgrim will chanta ! note of alarm, The old buildin’ is quiet asa dolph, ‘*So do I,” comeided Mrs, Brown, nodding wisely, and looking at her new lodger, ‘* Bertram declared that he was going to make our marriage public inside ofa week, ‘ A change has come over me of late,’ he said; ‘a very serious change. Events have occurred that ought to touch a heart of granite. Mine is not barder than that, if I have acted the villain in the past, and I will undo my evil work if I can. There are some preliminaries to arrange before I can present you to the world, but by to-morrow evening I can name the date. I want you to meet me at Central Park, at eight o’clock.’” ‘A distant trysting-place,” Randolph com- mented, ‘Tt is to be at the entrance at the corner of Fifth avenue and Fifty-ninth street,” A sudden idea occurred to Fenton, **Do you think it safe?” f grave after half-arter twelve, Oh! there never Safe?” _ wuz a safer snap!” ‘‘Yes, The Park is dark in many places at “Pll go in with you!” that hour, and these places are deserted at times, ty _,\ ‘Good boy, Peter!” The principal frequenters of the Park at that ole ‘* ‘Where do we meet?” hour are young couples, who are usually too ‘5 ‘* Why not right here?” much absorbed in each other to be company for - It made no difference to Randolph, and he | any one else. Policemen are nut common, I said so; then, after a few preliminaries had been | remember, a few steps beyond the entrance you attended to, they separated, Randolph went on | name, a singularly dark walk which leads off to toward the boarding-house, but not in a light- | the left through descending ground, I don’t Hy hearted way. Although actuated by the best of | know Bertram Dalton, but my opinion is that a motives the coming work dampened his spirits, | once-ileserted wife would not do wisely to take and he felt like a man who was about to take | that dark path with him at that hour!’ the first step in crime, impelled by fate. / At times, too, his doubts were renewed in re- CHAPTER XIII, gard to Flippy Jim. The man was en utterly A HAZARDOUS VENTURE, 28 worthless specimen of humanity, ani Randolph LENA looked at Randolph wonderingly, was oes. to believe him a criminal by will and ** What do you mean?’ she asked, in pratice; certainly, he could not see how any ‘* Bertram Dalton,” Randolph answered, ‘ has i. one could sink so low and retain any sense | shown a strong desire to get rid of you in the >. of honor, A fit subject for a decoy was Flippy | past. May he not be a man desperate enough to | ~~ Jim. Was hea decoy, in reality? \ accomplish his purpose at all hazards? In plain BY Reaching Mrs, Brown’s house he was met at | words, would your life be safe in such a lonely a the door by Mosquito Jack. place, wita bim?” ak ‘Say, Peter, you're jest in time,” the boy ex- Mrs. Brown looked startled, but Lena impul- Jo plained, in a low voice, ‘‘They’re hevin’ a con- | sively cried: - = hee fab in there, an’ you are bein’ mentioned, fre- ‘* You wrong Bertram by the suspicion, He | a | uent.” may not be perfect; itis true that be deserted 104 ‘‘ Who is there?” me, his own wife, because I was below him in : “Aunt Sariah an’ Lena Dalton. Sence they | social life; but, sir, he is incapable of crime, I NG come in they are havin’ a great pow-wow over | would trust bim any where.” | wot you said to Lena at the corner o' Broadway “Woman-like!” -. an’ Houston street, awhile ago.” ‘‘ Women is queer critters!” added Mosquito ee ‘I? I bave not been near that corner, nor | Jack, sagely. have I seen Mrs, Dalton outside the house.” *T think Mr. Woods is right,” declared Mrs. | aN _ “They said they seen you.” Brown. ‘ You must not meet the man there,” C45" ** Has my double shown up again? I must see ** T know it will be safe,” mie these women at once!” “You must vot risk it.” , He unceremoniously entered the parlor. Lena ‘*[ have promised Bertram,” answered Lena, ey f and Mrs. Brown were there, but be thought the | with unexpected force, *‘ and I am going to keep ne ahh ‘glances they bent upon him did not have much | my word, I shall meet him just as I have y good will in them, said |” , a “What is this I hear?” he demanded, ‘‘Has| Mrs. Brown remonstrated; Randolph did not, sip | Ssh my double been seen again?” It bad occurred to him, suddenly, that no better 7 bn, ‘We saw you /” asserted Mrs, Brown, chance ever would be offered to see his double, eat ** Will you never learn to discriminate between | By all means, let Lena meet him, and he—Ran- » bee me and my double? I learn that you thought | dolpb—would be near to protect her, and to see +, ms you saw me at the corner of Broadway and | what Bertram was like. So he planned, but | -—~——s Houston street but I have not been near there in | what lay between bimself and that hour? An- wa... .@ month,” other night must intervene, and in that night he __ Mrs. Brown held up her hands in horror, but | was to accompany Flippy Jim on a hagardous even she realized the folly of again arguing this | expedition. _. disputed point. It was clear, however, that she Would he be able to get to Central Park on __- was prepared to insist that she had seen him | the following evening? ; there, The insinuation against Dalton had done more ite _“‘T grow more and more interested in this | to shake Lena’s faith in her belief that Ran- MT ae rtram Dalton,” declared Randolph, “and Iph was be than anything else, and she now - Shali be glad to have you tell me just what has | began to wonder that sbe ever bad made such a on Gs gene hire mistake, Alike as the two were, sbe began to “This bas occurred, Right after I got my | see points of difference in voice, form, hair, eyes bes _ work done I went out with Lena, and we were |; and manner—or imagived she did, oe walking near Broadway and Houston when all' Randolph no longer had much place in her as i . ) wr vd ays ; 1. Ad , rap Heat fe y y | ¥ | : : r. yous if be ee, ho fi 4 RE pie ¥ we : ; . ss : a. . **T must wear something.” a ‘You said that was fit only fer a burglar | trip.” ‘* We sometimes change our winds,” ‘* Wish you’d change yourn an’ let me go,” **T would, if I could,” ** Where’d you say you’s goin’?” ‘* Tl] tell you to-morrow.” Mosquito Jack was pertinacious when he set out to be, and,in this case, he felt that he had reason tobe interested. Randolph’s manner, as well as the change of clothes, indicated that something unusual and important was about to occur. Few persons were quicker to read signs than Jack, and he was now all on fire, in a figu- rative sense, Love for adventure and curiosity alike beset him—hence | is persistence, He took the last retuff quietly, and said no more about it. Reand:jph finished bis toilet, watched the time, and finally prepared to leave the house, Jack yawned as if he were the sleep- iest boy in New York, and walked toward bis own room, drowsily answering his fri: nuc’s ** Good-night!” The moment Fenton’s eyes were off of bim «lf the sleepy signs vanished as if by magic, und his bright eyes gleamed brighter than usual, > Ebenezer Augustus!” he muttered, “ wot sort of a go is up now? Peter has got some risky job on hand, an’ it wouldn’t s’prise me an artom ef he means ter begin where IL left off, an’ try ahack at Everard. Resky chap, Peter is: an’ I feel it my duty to look out fer him!” As soon as pursuit was safe he was out of the house, and following close after Ranaolph. There was no reason why pursuit sbould fail to be successful; Fenton did not once look around. He walked on rapidly until the place of meeting was reached. Flippy Jim was there already, and ready for business. Jack saw them converse for a few moments, and then start off together. ‘* Funny!” muttered the observer. ‘* Ef Peter keeps sech company as that a great while he will hev a nose on him like the head-light of a loco- % motive. But that ain’t w’ot Peter is lookin’ fer; x he’s got some desp’rit game on hand, an’ it trou- bles me. I wouldn’t trust Flippy Jim ez fur ez I could sling an ellerphunt by the tail, an’ ef be’s a +g Peter, Peter is liable ter come ter rie . Beset with these fears Mosquito Jack followed on, nor was he surprised when *‘ Peter” and Jim aused at the door leading to the club-room, owing that, according to the rules of the or- | ganization, the place should be. deserted at that : hour, the spy was curious to see what would be : done next, FS Flippy Jim fitted a key and opened the door. Jack was startled., **Say! there’s mischief afoot!” he commented, quickly. ‘‘Jim never got that key by honist means, an’ as I don’t see_bow he could steal it, how did he get it? By Ebenezer! it looks ter me as ef he had been hired ter lure Peter in!” The two men had entered and closed the door. Jack was wise enough to realize that his own ; proper mode of procedure was to go at once to ' Officer O’Dowley, but he first mechanically na the door. Greatly to his surprise, it opened reely. The key remained in the lock, and he surmised that the old rounder bad turned it with the in- tention of se] thé door, but, unknown to himself, bad failed, . Temptation was thus put in the Hustler Gam- in’s way: the temptation to see for himself what Hoan was being done. He entered fully, locked the i . door and crept up the stairs. Raadolph and the old rounder bad preceded | him. The club-rooms were vacant, butthesick- : ff ening odor of beer and tobacco-smoke remained,, © _ ' = > we ‘ * e's = . - *s Dive \ . Res - he ‘ i : yy t eee .t g * : a eB | 6 OX @ 6