Beadle's Half Dime Library, No. 841 — page 7: what you’re looking at

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

CHAPTER VII. A LEAP FOR LIBERTY, ‘ Max saw plainly, when the revolver in the ) hands of Kilian Graff was pointed at him, that there was nothing for him to do but obey the command and pass into the adjoining room, and therefore without hesitation he did so. He was followed immediately by Mr. Mor- daunt’s wayward nephew, who closed and locked the door behind him, putting the key in his pocket. In the room was the person who had been with Graff all the morning. ‘‘ Now, young fellow,” said Graff, when the door was locked, ‘‘ I’ve got you where I want you, andif you don't answer a few questions | shall ask you, truthfully, you will be sorry.” Max made no reply, and after waiting a mo- ment for one, the young gambler continued: ‘‘ What have you been following me all the morning for, eh!” ** Who said I’ was following you?’ replied Max ‘*T said so; I have segn you. Why have you done it?” . = ‘‘T haven’t admitted that I did follow you, yet,” returned Max, ‘* Took here, sonny,” said Kilian Graff, *‘ just you keep in mind the fact that I don’t want any freshness from you at all, andif you don’t an- swer my questions when I ask them, you'll have to stay here till you do, that’s all. Now answer.” : t ‘* Well, if I did follow you—what then?” ‘* Why did you do it?” ‘‘ Magnetic attraction, probably.” | Graff scowled darkly. + ‘¢ Why did you do it?’ he repeated, ey ‘‘ When people are followed,” replied Max, " coolly, ‘it is usually to find out where they : a ‘Oh, you are beginning to talk, are you? Now who told you to follow me?’ sé obod RL **That won’t do, youngster.” ‘It will have to, because it is the truth.” ‘*T don’t believe it.” For reply Max shrugged his shoulders dis- dainfully, ‘* Your name is Merry, isn’t it?” was the next uestion. Marea instantly the mistake into which Kilian Graff bad fallen, and so, instead of say- ing at once that he had no father, he merely ’ — sald: és No,” ‘¢ Your brother, then?” ‘6 No,” a + Have you a relative who is? or do you know sigs one by the name of Merry, who is?” O. ‘¢ Are you one yoursel.. ‘‘ Hardly,” was Max’s reply, and he answered as he did because he reasoned that although he might be said to be bud , he was quite sure that he had not yet blossomed into oné. ‘“Do you know 4 man named Mordaunt?” was the next question. 0. * ‘* Did you ever know such a man?” Yon,” Wi ‘‘ Ah! when?” 4 safer ee _ s ag0r ere is he now | ‘‘ You know well enough,” replied Max indig- we , for he was app ed at the other’s jack re) or respect. bie tas ; ** Yes,’ wankeon Graff, “‘he is in his grave, Are you a beneficiary under his will?” ee Ww t ” \ “ Did he leave you anything in his will?” ‘6 No,” i ‘¢ You lie, youngster.” ““T do not; I tell the truth.” rz ‘Ts your first name Maxwell? _* None of your business.” “Oh, it isn’t, eh? Who told you to follow ‘* Nobody.” ; ‘ You did it of your own free will, ea?” es. “¢ What for?” ‘* For instance.” **Will you or will _ for?” “ you not tell me what ir | _ “YT will tell you nothing except this: If you keep me here ae longer against my will, Pl ma pat suffer for it when I do get out, but if you will open the door and allow me to go Messenger Max. know, isthis: Who set you to follow me, and | what it was done for, hen you get ready to tell me, you can Bop on this door and the mes- , sage will be brought to me. Until then, you will remain in this room, no matter whether it is & day, or a week or a year,” and motioning to his friend to follow, he unlocked the door and Max was presently alone. He had no doubt that he wasina gambling- house, for this one had looked, as he passed through the outer room, very much as he had heard them described, and even the room he was in, though small, bore every Se of being used for that purpose, There was the ' round table covered with green cloth, and | many piles of differently-colored ivory pieces, Throwing himself upon a sofa, which was | evidently little used, he gave himself up to re- flection. ‘‘1’m in a pretty mess,” he thought, ‘*‘ and no | mistake, At the very start in my uncbosen | profession, I’m captured like a squirreland shut | up until I tell something which can’t be told without lying. I told him the truth and he | won’t believe me, and I have either got to make | up a story to please this Kilian Graff, or stay on here indefinitely. One thing is clear, I’ve got to get out somehow, ‘*There is a window,” he murmured, as his vision flew from one part of the little apartment to another, ‘‘but it looks as though it hadn’t | been opened since the house was built, and that | must be a century. Probably the blinds are | nailed fast, besides, for this room is only one story high, and they don’t want people looking | in here after the gas is lighted. Anyhow, Dil just see if I can get a look out,” Suiting the action to the word, Max arose from the sofa and went toward the window, but try as he might, his strength could make no movement in the massive casing, which clung as tightly to the molding as though glued there, Suddenly, as he was straining every nerve, he felt something give a little, and pausing to see what it was, discovered that one of the large panes of glass of which the window was com- posed had a little extra frame upon it, and was swung on hinges, so that it could be opened to admit the air without raising the casing. ‘* That hole is plenty big enough for me to get through,” he thought, ‘‘if I could only get the blind open, but that is probably impossible,” He examined the fastenings, and saw that | they were merely the ordinary catches of an out- | side blind, but that over each of them had been | driven an iron staple which held the whole blind | tightly, immovably in its place. One of the articles in Max’s pocket was a ack-knife, given him the Christmas before b is mother, and it was one of the kind whic contains all sorts of implements; two blades, scissors, a cork-screw, a gimlet, a small saw, a jab—used for breaking wire or cleaning a | Lorse’s hoof—a brad-aw], etc., etc., and as quick | as ah ah he brought it out. | Opening the gimlet, he selected the staple cov- ering the catch to the blind which closed out- | side of the other one, and began boring into the ni pa close to the iron as he could force the little 00 + t was rather tedious work, for the wood had become thoroughly seasoned and hard, and the — —* —_— —_— eee _ iron kept wearing off the edges of his gimlet, but though blisters formed upon his hands he kept diligently to work, knowing that if he could once get the blind open it would be an easy matter to attract the attention of some one passing in the street, and by sending for the police, thus effect his escape. One hole was finished, and then he began on the other, working steadily and hard. ‘*Now,” he said to himself when the other was completed, ‘*I’ll just crowd the jab under that staple, and maybe I can moveit.” | Closing up the gimlet, he opened the jab and with considerable effort managed to get it under the staple, Then applying all upon the knife-hand] For an instant there was no perceptible ef- fect, but then something began to give. Slowly, at first, then faster and faster, and in a moment more the staple (which had been put there to keep the blind shut and not to: prevent prison- oe tg escaping) came out of the wood witha und, , Stepping back hastily, after raising the catch, Max put his footagainst the shutters and pushed with all bis might. The blind, though weather-beaten into its his strength, he bore down e, i= ___--P - —_——_— - danagin sa a at | | place, could not resist the pressure, and it flew ‘ ‘That bs do, sonny,” broke in Graff sarcas- Peck: 4g. _.*_ tically?‘ I have witnesses and yon eye not,so| Witha glad cry Max put his knife back into io Bhs WO won’t discuss that point. What I want to ° his pocket, and looked out. | yer a, F ae ih age ey > : : ik: ." > : er q Oy” be wh ye ais “ee mon e + ae : of Wie! " me aa +4 Fa cobb a ay ~ z ~~ aa yy oe aaa riage Leer Le ee ee ee eee Oe ate tte ee ee ee + : > on - . os ‘ , i ws gi? ‘ Ry Y 4 S «@ / —> 4 _ oe | " bd | on Fo ae « > oT aah) Ya'et A © iy ' «| +") a » e tis, | . * J 7] | y 7 ‘‘T’m in luck!” ke exclaimed, for there, just under the window, was the balcony of an old fire-escape. It was the work of but a moment to crowd himself through the aperture made by the open window-pane, and he was soon standing upon the balcony referred to, Reaching back into the room behind him, he closed the little “3 through which he ‘had come, and then the blind, being additionally . gratified to hear the catch snap back into place as he did so. | ‘* Tt will take them a little while to find how I got out,” he thought. ‘‘ The next thing is to get down from here.” Underneath him was an awning, and beneath that, the sidewalk. The distance was not too great for him to drop with safety, but there was the danger connected with it that one of the employees of the place. he had just left might be near, and thus he bie run the danger of being speedily recap- tured, Just then, an ash-cart, ‘nearly full of ashes from the barrels along the street, stopped exact- ly beneath him. ‘¢There’s my chance,” thought Max. ‘‘ Make or break!” Without a moment’s hesitation he climbed upon the railing of the balcony, and measuring his distance carefully, leaped out into the air, True to his calculations, he landed upon the load of ashes, much to the astonishment of the man who was busily emptying tbe barrels which his two assistants had just handed up to him. None of them knew from whence he hadcome, and a cloud of ashes so filled the eyes of passers- by that they did not notice him, Without pausing to make useless explanations he sprung to the ground and dashed around the nearest corner like a flash; running almost in- to the arms of a policeman, ‘““Tm a messenger-boy,” he explained to the surprised officer, beginning to dust the ashes from his clothes, ‘‘ and those fellows chucked me into the cart.” . The officer laughed and told him to go and clean his clothes sormaewhere before he reported for duty again, and walked on. Near by was a boot-black, and Max got him to use his brushes, so that in a few moments the most of the ashes were removed, ; When the job was done, he started away with a light heart, soon emerging into Park Row, up which he burried toward the bridge, but he had scarcely taken a hundred steps when he came eee unexpectedly face to face with Kilian raff, : CHAPTER VIII. THE FIRST DEAL, Fe Max saw instantly that Graff had recognized him, and, heing. very quick in getting at con- clusions, he resolved to put a bold face on the ping pt i he looked.up and nodded pleasantly, as be said: ) ‘‘ Good-day, Mr. Graff,” and passed rapidly on, Kilian Graff was nonplused by the occur- rence. Here was a boy whom two hours be- fore he had left securely locked in one of the rivate rooms of a still more ig thew ambling- house) and now he was on the street walking along as unconcernedly as though the thin were an every-day event, and not worthy o comment, How had he escaped? Had the place been raided? Had the boy managed to attract at- tention through the shutters and thus called down a posse of police upon them in their hitherto secure and undisturbed retreat? Such thoughts whirled through the brain of Kilian Graff with the speed of lightning, so that ere Max had got ten feet past him he — turned, and with a bound or two had seized the boy by his arm, | “What's the matter now, sir?” asked Max, with an innocent look of surprise on his face, ‘*How did you get out?” exclaimed Graff, anxiously, holding the young messenger tightly — as he spoke, ‘*Out of what? the menagerie? Do you take me for a chimpanzee, Mr. Graff?” 4 “ae of your sass! Tell me how you got — out. \ i ‘*Out of where or what?” vom ‘*Out of my—that is—tho room where T placed you.” ‘Was that your room?” ** Yes—no, of course not—confound you!” and he gave Max an 5 a ‘* Quit that!”said Merry, shortly, ‘You had me a little while ago where you could do that — sort of thing, but you had best be morecivilim ‘