Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 839: Broadway Billy's Big Boom — page 3: what you’re looking at

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

and—” ‘* You seem to want to be, that’s the fact,” Harry interrupted. ‘‘ We didn’t come to see the man that sweeps out, though, but the boss himself. We want to see Mr. Big- well or Mr. Granson, and no more monkey- ing about it!” ‘* Here, what’s this, what’s this?” demand- eda gray-haired man who came up just at that moment. ‘‘ What’s the trouble, Pretty- man?” ‘* Yes, a pretty man, sure enough,” cried Harry, disdainfully. ‘‘ We came here and asked ‘to see the head of the house, and he insisted upon Knowing our business; and. be- cause we wouldn’t tell him he was going to fire us out,” ‘“ They were abusive, sir,” the fellow lied. ““They inquired for the head of the house, that’s true, but I thought perhaps I could attend to them just as well without troubling you or Mr. Granson, sir; and that’s what I was detaining them for, to learn the nature of their errand,” _-* Well, I will hear what they have to say.” The old merchant then turned to Harry and Seth, and the self-important fellow stood by to take in what might be said. ‘*T’ll baffle you on that, see if I don’t,” thought Harry; and addressing himself to the old merchant, he said: ‘‘ We must see you strictly in private, sir, if you please. Our errand is no ordinary one.” ~ The old man looked at them well, for a moment, and seeing a pair of as keen and fearless faces as it had ever been his pleasure to look upon, granted their request. ‘‘ Well, step right this way, young gentle- men,” he invited. ‘‘ We will go into my private office.” | He conducted them in, and the door was closed. , ‘* Now,” he invited, ‘‘ what is it?” ** You are Mr. Bigwell?” “é Yes. ) P ‘Did you send a messenger to Detective ‘Weston late yesterday afternoon, requesting him to come here?” ‘“T did not. Why do you ask?” ‘“* Because, sir, a messenger came to the office with a note from you, and Mr. Weston set out to come here with him; but, be has not been seen since, and we are suspicious that something has happened.” ‘““Was this detective called Broadway Billy?” ‘Yes, sir.” **And you are the two youths who are associated with him in his work of running down rogues?” ‘* Yes, sir; we are his drawbacks.” ‘‘ Anything but drawbacks, I should say, judging by the accounts I have noticed in the papers from time to time. But, that is not to the point you are after. No, I posi- tively did xo¢ send for him yesterday, young gentlemen,” ‘*May I ask, then,” here put in Silent Seth, ‘‘if we can ascertain whether Mr. Granson sent for him? Or, any other per- son in authority here?” ne ‘‘T will help you out in that. Come with me and we'll see about it in short order.” The result was what the -reader is in position to anticipate; no one in the establish- ment had sent for the detective. and there was no known reason why one should have been sent for. When Harry and Seth took leave they were troubled sore. ** What in all creation does it mean, Silent Shadower?” demanded Harry, as they walk- ed slowly away. “That is what I am trying to guess, Harry,” was the response. ‘‘It looks to me as though he has been led into a trap of some sort, by somebody; though I hope it isn’t so.” ? understand, sir, that Iam in authority here, ° 3 mee ee $e - CC ee +. SSS Broadway Billy’s Big Boom. ‘* And if he has?’ ‘“We’re helpless, clue to work on.” ‘Well, we'll go to the office, and if there’s no word there from him we’d better go and tell the police; don’t you think so?” ‘‘Maybe we had. It’s hard to tell what to do. It is pretty certain something is wrong, for we both know that messenger said he was from the store of Bigwell & Granson.” ‘¢ And nobody there sent him.” Harry rattled away till they reached the office. There was no word from their missing chief, and the two sat down to think it over. ‘‘ Hello!” suddenly cried Harry, picking up something from the desk. ‘‘I wonder if tis has got anything to do with it, Silent Seth?” ‘“What is it?” Seth asked. ‘““The card of that woman who was here yesterday; went away just before the mes- senger came, you know.” ‘‘It isn’t likely; the time was too short, you see, She was no sooner gone than the messenger was here. It doesn’t look reason- able, Harry. What was her name again?” ‘ Vivia Laurence.” ‘“ And her address is there?” ‘¥ea,”? ‘That’s good; we may have to call on her. The boss may have stumbled onto something about that case, and is working it u a ‘““That may be it.” ‘‘Tt was a funny case, Harry. Do you re- member all the points of it? Suppose we run them over and get a grip on it while we wait for the boss to be heard from.” ‘* Yes, I can give em to you, straight,” Harry declared, settling back in the office chair at the desk, something after Billy's manner. “All right, go ahead. wasn’t in till she was ’most ready to go, and so didn’t hear all she had to say. I forgot to ask you to tell me about it after we went home,” ‘That’s what you miss by having such a still tongue, Seth. You'll never know anything if you don’t ask questions. Don’t ask any now, though, for I’m going to reel it off to you like a regular phonograph. Ready? Phen here goes, ‘This young woman’s name is Vivia Laurence, as I said. She had a little niece twelve years old, named Zita Burret. This little girl was an orphan, and the young lady aunt was one of her guardians. The child was heir to an immense fortune. The other guardian was a man named Job Heron. . ‘Now this girl Zita turned up missing not long ago, and for some days nothing was heard of her. She was advertised, and search was made every where, and at last her body was found and she was identified b the clothing she had on. It looked as if it had been foul play, for her face was dis- figured, and her uncle, one Burk Burret, was arrested on suspicion. ‘« Hecleared himself, though, easy enough, for he hadn’t been in the city for a couple of weeks previous, fur which he had lots of proof, and he was let go. As he came in for the fortune if the child died, you see there was good reason for arresting him on suspicion. Miss Laurence had some doubts about the body being that of her niece, but all the rest concerned identified it positively, so there was nothing for her to do but agree. ‘‘ Now, though, she has come to the boss with a different story, and says she feels double sure the body was not that of Zita, and she wants the boss to sift out the mys- tery and find the missing heiress if she is ‘alive. She believes there is a scheme at work to put the fortune into the hands of -You know I 7. We haven’t a single this Burk Burret, and if the mystery isn’t worked out in ten days he will come into possession of the whole boodle. ‘* There you have it, Silent Shadower, all in alump. If the boss’s disappearance badn’t come so quick, a fellow might think this case had somethin’ todo with it; but as it is I don’t see how it can. What do you think?” CHAPTER III. SETH STRIKES THE TRAIL. BEFORE the Silent Shadower had time to express what he thought about it, the door opened. “hey were disappointed, for both looked u hopefully expecting to see their chief > kin, but the personage who entered was a stranger to them. | He was a young man, about twenty-six years of age perbaps, and had the appear- ance of being one of the ‘‘ fly’ young gentle. men of the town. The stamp of the Bowery was upon him. ‘‘ Mornin’!” he greeted familiarly. The boys responded, then giving the man a chance to state his business. ‘This is the office of Mr. Weston, I take it?” he said. ‘‘ You are his young helpers, I suppose.” ‘You strike it about right, sir,” acknowl- edged Harry. ‘‘Did you want to see the boss? He hasn't got around yet, but you can leave word and we'll tell him.” ‘‘ Fact of the matter is, I have come here on an errand from him. Wanted to be sure before I spoke out, you see. He wants you fellows to shut up shop and come at once to No.— street.” Silent Seth rose and stepped into an ad- joining apartment, moving leisurely, Harry taking no notice of his action but continuing the talk with the stranger without a break. ‘‘'The boss has sent for us?” he questioned. ‘“That’s, rather strange. Do you know what’s up, or what is wanted?” ‘There has been a crime committed, and he has taken hold of the matter. He wants ou to come and take a hand in it with him, suppose. I’m a reporter, and he asked me to drop in and tell you.” ‘* What’s the crime?” | ‘Ttisa murder. But, I have no time to stop and talk with you; I bave done what I was asked to do, and you can go or not, just as you please; that isnothing tome. If you don’t go, though, don’t lie to your boss and say I didn’t step in and tell you.” ‘Oh! we'll go fast enough, never fear about that!’ Harry promised, ‘‘ We are not in the habit of lying, either. But, say, can’t you stop long enough to give us some points of the case?” ‘*No, no; I'm in a hurry to get to the office. You'll find out all about it when you get there. He wants both of you, un- derstand; said lock the office and come.” ‘Yes, we'll go, right off. It was the boss himself that asked you to stop, was it?” “Certainly; who else do you suppose would do it?” ‘Don’t know; only wanted to be sure of that point. I suppose you brought the pass- word with you?” “Phe what?” “The password,” “What are you talking about? know what you mean.” ‘‘Don’t, eh? Then that proves on the face of it that you have come here with a lie in your Ee 2 The fellow had his hand on the door, ready to go, and at this his face paled and he look- ed uneasy. It seemed plain enough that Harry had hit him hard in a tender place. ‘“'You—you have the impudence to call me a liar!” he exploded, after a moment of silence. ‘I’ve a notion to step there and pull your nose for you. I would do it, too, but I know of a better plan than that; I'll I don’t com —=