Beadle's Half Dime Library No. 880 — page 7: what you’re looking at

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

— ~ or - * me _* bd > + + . 4 . ae 4 ‘oe ‘ “ . - > @ry ——- —— ‘ i “4.2. ~*~ — “a. —_— Broadway Billy and the Bomb-Throwers. tering something which no one distinctly overheard. His full intention, however, was not real- ized. The bomb struck an electric light fixture, and dropped upon a vacant marble table, where it exploded. Instantly the table was blown to dust and splinters, the mirrors, windows and doors were reduced to fragments, and the great hotel and station were rocked by the terrific shock. Instantly, too, a dense, offensive smoke filled the place, in the obscurity of which the bomb-thrower escaped. Leaving the cafe, he started to run down the street, but he was not to get away, for three policemen had just passed in an omni- bus when the explosion oceurred, going on duty. Seeing the fugitive running, these officers leaped to the street and started after him, calling out to him to stop and surrender, in response to which the young man turned upon them and opened fire with a revolver. Great was the excitement. One of the officers, named Poisson, fell to the ground, badly wounded in the side. The other two, Lenoir and Bigot, however, continued in pursuit regardless of the bul- lets, while the fugitive emptied his revolver at them. As Poisson fell, the assassin stumbled, and almost went headlong to the pavement, but he saved himself and almost instantly fired again at the other policemen and the crowd behind them. At this shot a woman sunk to the ground, gn Peg me wounded. The fugitive fired again and again, and continued to flourish his weapon after he had emptied it. In another moment another policeman, named Barbes, coming in the opposite direc- tion, struck the assassin a violent blow in the face with the flat of his saber, and the rascal fell. He was upon his feet again in an instant, however, but by this time the other officers were upon him, when, with the help of Policeman Barbes, and a waiter named Tis- sier, they overpowered and arrested him. Not, however, without a fierce and furious struggle. “Lynch him!” cried the crowd. him! Make an example of him!” And it was only with great difficulty that the policemen prevented the crowd from carrying out their design. The prisoner was led immediately back to the scene of the explosion. The room wasa sight to behold. Now that three or four mintftes had elapsed, the dense smoke was clearing away. Floor and ceilings had been rent and cracked, five persons were found on the floor severely wounded, while fifteen or twenty others were more or less injured. The noise of the explosion, together with the cries and groans of the wounded, and the sight of the smoke, had attracted a great crowd, and everybody was terrorized. The prisoner looked upon the awful scene with perfect composure. “See what you have done, wretch!” cried one of the officers. “* You ought to be drawn and quartered!” = The more of the Jourgeoisie I have killed, the better it will piease me,” was the unfeel- ing answer. ‘“‘ Long tive Anarchy!’ e wonder = ane. police prisoner awsy from the infuriated crowd alive, but they did. ** Lynch ee lL LC LLL LL, LL LL LL LS LLY LLL LL LLL LET LL a He it was who had drawn the red ballot at the time of the drawing in the®endez- vous where M. Breton had been arrested, The police, in particular, had their hands more than full. Not only had they the doings of the Anar- and the thought had come to him to use the | chists to contend against, but many private name Breton. The prefect 2f police was sent for and several other high officials were hastily summoned, and the examination of the pris- oner was speedily begun, Police Commissary Gavrel taking the evidence. The prisoner sat handcuffed between two policemen. He showed the evidence of his hasty flight and his tussle with the police, but looked otherwise calm and defiant. The removul of his outer coat had revealed a flannel shirt and the genera] garb of a work- ingman, but his soft, white hands gave the lie to such a disguise as that. He had already been searched, and in his pockets the police had found a pair of brass knuckles, a dagger, a Swedish knife and a six-chambered revolver, besides a gold half- louis, two franc pieces, some sous, and a small silver locket conteining a ringlet of brown hair tied with a ribbon. That locket has to do with our story. At first he refused to talk, telling the po- lice it was their business to find out who he was and not his to tell. Presently, he gave his name and age, false ly, as shown, and eventually added that he was a cabinetmaker and had arrived in Paris from Marseilles that morning. While the examination was in progress, Police agent Houiller entered the room, and at sight of him the prisoner exclaimed: ‘Hello, Houiller, that you? I know you well enough.” Detective Houiller said he believed he had seen the man in England, and said he thought | ! cases of importance were in their bands. For one, a rich banker named Edouard Helmann had mysteriously disappeared from his home. And it was reported that Harry Freeman, son of an American resident, together witha friend, was missing. In police circles it was known that the mentioned ‘‘ friend ” was no other than the noted young American detective, Weston, popularly known as ‘‘ Broadway Billy,” and the prefect of police was putting forth every effort to get some clue to his whereabouts. His best men were on the case. It was in the afternoon when one of these called at the Prefecture. ‘Well, any clue yet?” asked Monsieur _ Lepine, the prefect. “ A slight clue to M. Helmann—” ‘*T mean to the two young detectives,” the prefect impatient'y interrupted. ‘Well, no. We are thus far utterly baffled. The last trace of them was when Agent Poiter met them in the carnival de- monstration.” ‘* And he informed them of the coming ex- ecution of Vaillant, and they started for the Place de la Roquette. I tell you again, sir, give your attention to the Anarchist leaders.” ‘*So we are doing, but after so many ar- rests the leaders are hard to find.” ‘*Do not come to me again without a clue.” The detective humbly bowed his head. ‘* Now, what of the banker?’ the prefect demanded. ‘‘His case, too, points toward the Anar- he was on the verge of making an important | chist leaders, sire.” discovery in connection with the case, at | which the prisoner smiled. The police arrived at the conclusion that he must be one of an Anarchist band who had their headquarters at Neuilly-sur-Seine. Meantime the doctors had been doing what they could for the wounded at the scene of the explosion, drugs and bandages being freely supplied from a near-by pharmacie. ‘‘Ha! this is interesting. Wobat do you know? What has been revealed?” ‘‘His daughter, Julie, has discovered threatening letters among her papers.” ‘*From Anarchists?” ‘Of what nature?” ‘* A large sum of money has been demand- It wasa picture that brought to mind the | ed of him, and the threat was that unless it time of the Siege. And still Broadway Billy and Harry Free- man were languishing in the dismal under- ground hole in which they “had been con- fined. But now the time of their liberation was at hand. CHAPTER VIII. OTHER MYSTERIES INVOLVED, Own the following morning the excitement in Paris hadin no wise abated. Extra officials were on duty everywhere, with watchful eyes upon suspicious charac: | ters, and false arrests were bumerous. The prisoner was early taken before an examining magistrate, Judge Meyer, who | plied him with questions, to nearly all of which Henry refused to make any answer, and who he was wasa police puzzle. *M. Bertillion, chief of the record depart- ment of the police, searched through the | files for some trace of such a man, but found | nothing to prove that the man had ever be- | fore been in the hands of the Paris police. was forthcoming at a certain time his bank would be blown up.” ‘‘ Ah-ha! And has that time passed?” ‘It has not.” ‘ When will it expire?’ “*Pebruary 15th. at noon.” “Tt is well.that we know this much. I will see that Helmann’s bank is well guard- ed on that day and hour. Is that all?” ‘Nearly. Strange to say, the banker's child has herself sct to work to find her fatber, and has entered the field as a detec- tive. She declares she will enter the haunts of the Anarchists.” ‘‘She must be prevented. She would never come out alive, Should you find her, arres. her and bring ber to me.” “ As you command, sire.” ‘Have you heard about Policeman Pois- | | son?” ; ; se No.” ‘‘He has been made a member of the Legion of Honor.” “Whew!” “The fact. M. Raynal, Minister of the And it was evident that the prisoner did | Interior, was so highly gratified by his bra- not mean they should know him. : ' very that he proposed to President Carnot M. Girard, chief of the laboratory, had ex- that the decoration be conferred upon the ot their | amiaoed the fragments of the bomb that had been found, and reported that it had been made of a one-pound meat can, and had con- He was taken to the police station in the ; tained eight ounces of chlorate of potash Rue ‘de Moscou, where, after hesitating, he ve his name and age He said he was Edoin Breton, twenty three years old. This was a lie, as the reader will recognize, for he was no other than Emile Henry, the friend of Breton. and picric acid. The “‘ green powder” used by Vaillant in the bomb which he threw in the Chamber of Deputies was not used in this instance. The excitement ran through society, from the lowest to the highest, and Paris was ina ferment. | : officer, and it has been done.” ‘*Good for Poisson! But, why was he found more deserving than the others?” ‘“Well, it’s salve for his wound, you know.” , They both laughed. ‘And by the way, Breton has admitted that he has been lying. MHouiller is of the opinion he had just arrived from London. I'd give much to Know who that fellow really is.” ~~ father’s ~ :. A ate cbooks.com — Se ae rm ee