Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 868 — page 15: what you’re looking at

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

Broadway Billy S sts ** Do you mean to tell me itis not your writ- ing?” Billy demanded. ‘‘Have I not seen enough of your hand to recognize it? What is the use of denying it?” “I do deny it, most emphatically. I did not write this, It is a good imitation of my band, I have to admit, but it is that only, Where did you getit? Whatis its import?” ‘** If you are not the author of it, you can un- derstand as much about it as I. Emppoee that it was addressed to Alma Keeler, what we can make out of these few words would indicate that she had been lured from home in your name, and that she went in a cab,” ‘* Thatis so; it proves itself.” ** Well, who could imitate your hand so well?” *“I do not know, nor can I guess with what object, sir.” ** Well, 1 am inclined to believe you, but Iam obliged to arrest you.” sé hat?” ‘* You are my prisoner. Remain perfectly quiet, or it will be the worse for you. With this proof against you, I cannot let you go until this matter is cleared up, Don’t think of trying to al Billy had drawn a revolver from his hip and held it in his hand. Hurst was pale to the lips, and madly protest- ed, but Billy was inexorable, and he now re-di- rected the driver to Scotland Yard. Arriving there, Billy entered with his prison- er, and sought an interview with the inspector, which was granted. And the result was, that Horace Hurst was detained on suspicion, As soon as the interview with the inspector was over, Billy returned to the cab and was driven to the bome of Mrs, Neilson. There he found Et Shears on duty and his first prisoner perfectly safe, and Billy held a consultation with Shears. The result of it was, that Billy, Shears and Peters left the house together, and Billy then dis- missed his cabby, He had taken the fellow’s name and address, and by consulting a directory at the Yard had found that they had been given straight. He could depend upon Sam Quart if he needed him again. “They now engaged a four-wheeler, and Billy gave directions to the house where he knew Flora Floyd to be domiciled. ‘““T’m now going to put you to the test,” he said to Kaoch Peters, ‘* You will be brought face to face with the murderer of Edma Neil- son, and you must recognize the person in spite of disguise,” . “I believe I can do it,” Peters assured. ‘I won’t make any mistake, anyhow. If I’m not sure I'll say so,” ‘“* That is enough,” Arriving at their destination, Billy got out andrung the belj, » “1 want to see Flora Floyd,” he announced, ** Or rather, a person here in the cab, who cac- not get out, desires to see her. Kindly tell her to ran down quickly,” The house-porter understood, and went to de- liver the word. There were a few moments of , waiting, and then the door opened and a young woman came out, Billy bad returned to thedcor of the cab which he held partly open, and he nodded to the young woman and motioned her to ap- oach, . Biily’s likeness had been pers, but he was nowin a slight disguise, and the young woman did not recognize him, Ste ppped lightly down to the curb, her face slight- ale, , . t was as if she half feared something, and had good reason to be afraid, She looked into the cab, and the instant her eyes caught the face of Enoch Peters she turned deathly white, and had to grab one of the wheels for support, *)o you know that man, Flora Floyd?” Broadway Billy asked. ‘No, no!” she cried, frenzied. ‘1 am il]—I~ I— Let us get back into the house,” ‘* By heavens!” exclaimed Peters, who had been staring at the young woman, ‘‘if she wasn’t in tticoats 1’d swear it was the same person, Mr,’ ‘eston |” ‘*Ttis the same person,” Billy assured him, “*Get out, Shears, with your man, and we will take the young woman back into the house and published in the pa- to her room or rooms, There we will make a -_ The young woman was trembling so that her yl almost refused to bear her up, and had to Billy bad told the driver to wait, and they all went in and to the girl’s room, She had been handcuffed, so she could not do herself harm, A thorough search was made of the room, and the truth was brought to light. Billy found more than ample proof to make his case complete, He found some letters the young woman bad received, and he recognized the paper and the writing. They were the sameas the writing and paper of the note which had been received by him calling his attention to her, There wasasmall stovein the room, with a pipe that entered a hole near the ceiling, Lower down was another hole, not in use, and as Billy was searching every nook and corner, this could not escape his notice. He drew out the tin cap which closed the hole, and thrust in his hand. As he uid so, the young woman prisoner fell back in her chair with a moan, and fainted, and as Billy drew his hand out again he beld in his grasp a keen, slender-bladed, double-edged dagger. Nothing of the clothing worn by Edma Neilson could be found, but the stove would account for the disposition of that, and in the ashes Billy found numerous buttons, ete, CHAPTER XIX, THE GRAND DENOUEMENT. BROADWAY BILLy had made no wiistake; the murderer of Edma Neilson was in his hands, She was brought to, out of her faint, and tear- fully confessed her guilt. Confession, how- ever, was not needed; the proof was more than enough, She told her story in full, holding nothing back, now that it was useless to doso, and what she revealed rounded out the whole, except an one point—the mystery of her terrible mis- ake, She had intended to kill Alma Keeler, and thought she bad until the newspapers apprised her of her mistake, That point, however, has beer made clear to the reader, >. Billy dismissed Jeffrey Shears, telling him to return with Peters to Mrs. Neilson’s, and he sent for Sergeant Cliff to join him here. In about an bour the sergeant was on hand, ** Been looking all over for you,” he declared. ‘How have you managed to keep out of the way all day?” ‘‘I have been on the go,” Billy truthfully answered, ‘‘ The case is ended, and now it re- mains only to make the denouement and surprise the natives,” : What? The mystery solved?” es ’ ‘** Who is the murderer?” ** This young woman,” ‘** Impossible,” 6 The fact, nevertheless,” \ Billy told the whole matter to the astonished ge sent and when he had done, Cliff ex- claimed ; ‘‘ By Jove! we well named you when we called you the London Lecoq, Not aman in the Yard could have handled the case like that, But, there is a missing link to be supplied.” ‘** And you are the man to supply it, I want you to go to Mrs, Neilson’s, not as coming from me, but as if acting on your own account, and scare her into a confession, There was some scheme afoot to displace Alma Keeler and put Edma Neilson in ber place,” : ‘T will get it out of them, or scare them into ” ‘‘ And, by the way, stay right there for a time, but join me at four o’clock at the Keeler resi- dence, bringing Mrs, Neilson, Jeffrey Shears, and the prisoner with you.” . * Then the denouement will take place there at that time?” ‘‘-Yes, I will take it upon myself to invite the inspector to be presen at my reception,” Both detectives laughed, and Cliff soon took his leave, Billy had asked him to send a mes- senger buy as he went along, and in due time the jad came. } Billy wrote notes to the various persons inter- ested, asking them to be present at Mr, Keeler’s residence at four o’clock, sharp, and sent one to Mr. Keeler himself to apprise bim, He slighted the newspaper reporters, but ones of them got wind of it without thanks to m, At four o’clock they were on hand. When the time drew on, Broadway Billy per- mitted his prisoner to prepare for the street, and when she had done so he handcuffed her again, and they set out. eS | riving at the Keeler residence Billy found Mr. Keeler moving about in a very nervous hadows London Slums. be, under the circumstances, and Billy and his prisoner were ushered into the drawing-room, A few others were there, and in a little while all had arrived who were invited. The doors were then shut, and a man in plain clothes and dull, silent boots stood at each door, as if there on sufferance, but really they were Scotland Yard men on guard, All were silent, waiting for s-me one to act, and all eyes soon turned to Broadway Billy, It was then that Billy rose in bis place and calmly took hold of the business in band, He first made request of Mr. Keeler to have a quantity of writing-paper brought for use, This the master of the house called for, and it was speedily forthcoming. A table in the middle of the room had been cleared, and the p»per was laid upon that, It was not all of one kind, but of two sorts, Broadway Billy stepped forward to the table, and picking up the paper, or a sheet of each kind, examined it carefully. Then he Jaid it down, and took some letters from his pocket. ‘* Mr. Inspector,” he said, to the great London police chieftain, ‘* will you do me the favor to examine this paper, and compare it with the paper on which this note and these letters were written?” Mr. Keeler was heard to make a gasping sound, and those who looked at him saw him tightly clutching the arms of his chair, his face like death, The inspector made the examination as re- quested, and announced the result, ‘*The same paper, sir,” he said. ‘' Additional proof, here is the identical half-sheet from which this of the note was torn,” | ‘That being the case,” said Billy, calmly, * cbarge Edwin Keeler with being the chief in- stigator of the murder that has been done, You will do well to place him under arrest,” Greatest excitement instantly prevailed, and all eyes were turned upon the accused man, He was white and his face was terribly drawn, while perspiration stood on bis forehead. He tried to rise, but fell back, He tried to speak, but covld not. He could only stare,” ‘** We have found,” said Broadway Billy, ad- dressing the company, ‘‘ that this man is a gam- bler, His heart and soul are in it. It bas swallowed his own little fortune, all the money he could borrow, and he had nothing on which to live until bis niece should come into her father’s estate. Hehas already spent every- thing else this young lady bad, ‘*The end was near for him, unless some- thing could be done speedily. The end would come even before his niece would come into her property, What was he todo? He resolved to do the very worst. Should his niece die, he would step into the estate immediately, and he ay oy a plan for putting her out of the way, He bad forbidden her marrying one Clark Sum- merfield, because he was an bonest man and one whom the rascal could not corrupt. “It was arranged that she should marry Horace Hurst, but the old rascal was to appear to oppose thai, too, in order to make the girl obstinate and so let her fall into the trap in her way. This would never have been accom- plished, however, if it had not been made to appear that Summerfield was dead. Proof of this was furnished by Hurst, and the youn lady believed it, Keeler, meantime, knew o the secret relations between Hurst and one Flora Floyd, and he wrote anonymous letters to this young woman, informing her of Hurst’s intention to marry, and whom, ‘‘ Keeler knew ‘the desperate and almost in- sane jealousy of this young woman, and by hint and suggestion he as good as laid out the plan of action for ber to follow, in these let- ters, which, as we havo proof, were written by him. There is no room for denial, In the mean time another scheme was on foot, The woman Neilson, mother of the murdered girl, . desired to remove Alma Keeler and put her own daughter in her place, and plans were laid to that end. Sheallowed the daughter to manage the matter in her own way. This Edma un- dertook to do, and would perbaps have accom- plished her end, but for the interference of Flora Floyd. | ‘* Edma Neilson somehow got hold of a page of Hurst’s handwriting, ard imitating it, wrote a note to Alma Keeler, asking her to come at once to a certain house, the address of which was On ap accompanying card, She sent a cab for ber, and ended the note by telling her not to fail if she loved him—Hurst, Alma fell into the trap. She wastaken to a lonesome old house, where Edma and an old hag made her prisoner, aud where Edma forced an exchange of clothing o a ip ok ay 1, Oe pol > eee ons P= =, eT , om — 2, A aero, ; 4 = * * - = - « . °s * ins *. Weel a \ ~ ‘™ 4 i 7 rd na : hs ~~ 4s apes. _ be supporte manner, rather excited, as be naturally would : bal Y with her—and not anexchange, either, for Alma rr — bP > r d = 295, 5.5 ‘ yo + . > | ts Sahl, a te i sia ea Ps ' d ~49 ‘ 4 » + : i? iy P< a ae C3 (rt " ey ee 0 . ae! : : § . “¢ re. . . i : .% ° .* *, ~_ a i . 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