Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 262 — page 25: what you’re looking at

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

‘taken, hardly able to breathe, his eyes roll- ing round the room asif searching for some Harvey went to the captain. ‘‘Do you want that man?” he asked, pointing to Nelson. Samuels shook his head. ‘‘Not now. We did, six moaths ago, but those confounded lawyers got him out on an alibi. No, I don’t want him, except for the riot, and there’s plenty without bim.” **Can I have him?” asked Harvey. The captain stared, “Why, certainly. What do you want of him?” Harvey smiled, ‘The fact is, he’s an old client of ours. It was our firm defended him and got him off from that burglary.” The captain a wry face, “Allright. Take kim along. hir for anything.” Harvey hastened and called a carriage, in which the battered man was placed, and he got in with Colonel Svenson and drove off. Nelson made no remark when he was helped into the hack, and lay buck in his corner as if he were too weak to notice anytbing, but as they came to the Brooklyn bridge, he gavea groan and muttered: *‘ Don’t be hard on a man, Mr. Harvey.” * Oh, you know me, then?” said Harvey, A faint smile crossed the burglar’s face. *T don’t forget easy,” be said. ‘I didn’t want the cops to know it, though.” The colonel laughed. ‘**Aha! You are not so seek as you make out. Is dat it?” Nelson grinned again. ‘‘ What can a feller do?’ he said. do you want of me, counselor?” Harvey turned on him, ** To keep you out of mischief,” hesaid, ‘If I chose to tell of your attempt to kill me and your burglary, you’d be in a bad box. But I won’t. I’m going to take you to a safe place, where the police can’t get you, and pay for I don’t want ‘What , your nursing till you get well.” The burglar stared, and his face worked. *“'You’re darned good,” he said slowly. thought you was a-goin’ to quod me.” “T don’t want to put any man in jail,” said Harvey, “ but on the other hand I want you to do the square thing by me.” “T’ll do it, counselor, I’ll do it,” returned the burglar, earnestly. ‘‘ May the Lord strike me dead, if I won't.” “Then tell me what has become of Buck Jarvis,” said Harvey, turning on him sharply. ‘‘and where he has bid the girl he stole.” Nelson seemed taken aback. ‘What girl?’ he faltered. CHAPTER XXX. THE COLONEL’S GRIP. Harvey looked at him sternly. ** You know well enough what girl.” “Strike me blind if I do,’ said the burglar, still more earnestly. ‘‘ Look here, counselor, Lain’t on the queer with ye. Iswear I ain’t, All Buck told me was suthin’ ’bout a box he wanted to get out of that house.” “And did he say nothing of a girl? He might have called her his daughter?” ** Nothin’, so help me,” “ Well, what were you doing out with him last night?” ‘Huntin’ for the box, counselor, true as I sit here. We turned the old shebang all outer winder, and Buck cussed high and low till we heard the cop’s club.” ‘* And then?” “‘Then Buck he seemed to get riled, and we sot out to find the cop and double bank him; but he double-banked us.” ‘‘How? What happene1?” ‘ Darned if I know, counselor, but fu’st thing we knowed Buck went down and I see’d a monstrous big cop—a reg’lar giant—comin’ fur us with a club in each band.” ‘Did be knock Buck down?” “JT do’no’, counselor. Think he didn't. “ Why?’ interrupted Svenson, interested in the story. ‘‘ How do you know?” “Think I’d ba’ heard the club, cunnel. ‘Know I heard Cronk when he got it.” ‘ And you? What did you do?” “Cronk and me fired at bim, but missed him. It’s hard firin’ in the dark with a cop comin’ tc lay ye out, Then we ran, and he chased us. I heard Cronk go down, and I stopped to shoot. He throwed his cussed club “Ty a sens EE ee, Ee i Fighting Tom. at me and down I went. It took me on the forehead.” ** And then?” ‘* And then down I went; and I guess he must ha’ give me another clip, for I disremem- ber anything till I was in the room, with the doctor over me.” ** Well,” said Harvey, ‘‘ I’m glad you’ve told me the truth. I saw you godown, But Jar- vis has escaped, it seems. You're sure he wasn’t clubbed?” *‘T ain’t sure, but I think not, counselor. There was a lot of holes round, and I think he fell inter one. Anyway, I know where to find him, if the cops didn’t get him last night.” ‘‘ Where?” asked Harvey as indifferently as he could speak, to avoid exciting the burglar’s suspicions. ‘* You Lad a meeting: place?” Nelson hesitated. **T ougbtn’t to tell, sir,” be said. Harvey turned full on him, ‘‘Look here, Nelson,” he said. ‘“* We got you out of a bad scrape, and all the gratitude you showed was to try and double-bank me, Now you're going back on me again—” ““T ain’t—I swear I ain’t, counselor; but I can’t go back on Buck, neither. He’s my old pal, and you want to send him upon my in- formation. I put it to you, conselor— could I do that?’ ‘‘ Suppose I tell you that I’ve no intention of prosecuting Jarvis—that I don’t care if he’s the biggest receiver of stolen goods in the country—that I’ve nothing to do with that; but that I want to see him face to face, with no one but my friend bere—would that make any difference?’ Harvey asked, The burglar stared, *‘T don’t understand—” he began. Colonel Svenson broke in: ‘»See here, my friend. You know me?’ ‘*No, sir. Heard counselor call you cunnel —that’s all.” ‘* Well, [ tell you then, Dat man Jarvis he come to my place yesterday and insult my poor old mother. I want to see him, I care not where, so there is no police there. I want to lick him.” Nelson snickered. ‘You! Why, he’d lay you ont. You don’t know Buck Jarvis, I guess, He’s a terror, he is.” The colonel smiled. ‘So am I, But rest assured we do not want to put de policeon him. If I cannot get de best of a man with Nature’s weapons—my bead, and fist, and feet—I leave him be. Now, my friend, where is be?’ Nelson looked obstinate and sullen. A **T ain’t goin’ to tell,” he said, The colonel nodded. “All right; den we take you to de jail— Aha, my dear fellow, not so fast!” The last exclamation was called forth by Nelson, who, the moment he heard the word jail, put* his band on the carriage-door and tried to leap out, But the watchful veteran was not so easily fooled. Betore the burglar could make bis spring, the long, sinewy fingers of the colonel were on bis throat, and be threw him into the bottom of the carriage like a child, and shifted his hold. One hand was on the burglar’s throat, the thumb pressing on the Adam’s apple, the fin- gers in bis collar, the other thumb was pressed down into the angle of the jaw, just below the point of the ear, in a manner to produce such exquisite pain that Nelson shrieked aloud, The colonel relaxed bis hold slightly. “Yell like dat, I kill you!” he growled, in tones of such savage ferocity that even Harvey, who had seen him angry, was surprised. ‘* Now, den, where is dat Jarvis? Tell me, or, by the seven Rooshian gods, I kill you!” In the bottom of the carriage, completely at the mercy of the enraged veterav, who looked like a demon, the burglar quailed. His nerve failed before the ferocity of the Dane, and he faltered, half choking: ** For God’s sake—I’ll tell—don't kill me.” * Where?” growled the colonel. ‘‘In Sandport,” stammered Nelson, ‘“ ’way back in the woods. The gang meet there, Don’t go, for God’s sake. They’ll kill you.” ‘“‘ Kill you, you mean,” returned the colonel rising, but keeping his foot on the prostrate burglar. ‘You come with us and show us de place, or by de seven Rooshan gods, I kill you by de inches, Get up!” Jim Nelson, pale and quivering, sweating at . Pi eh Pee gt P ~ : ¢ : i ey Ss ve x v.* + ‘ . = b every pore, crawled up to his seat and s‘t crouched in a corner, staring at the colonel like one who saw a ghost. ‘¢ Who are you?” he whispered at last. ‘‘ By the powers, I'd never have tackled you if Id knowed what a man youare! You’re worser nor the counselor, and he’s no fool.” The colonel smiled, for bis vanity was nct above being touched by a compliment. **T am de old man,” he said; ‘‘ you know me now. You t’ink you can fool with me?” Nelson shivered. ‘‘No, by gum! You're a real terror.” ‘Then tell us just how to find Buck,” said Harvey, breaking in. ‘‘See here, Nelson, [il tell you what I want todo. This Buck has carried off a lady of my acquaintance, and I must get her back somebow. All I want is to get her. I don’t want to hurt bim. He is ber step-father, and we want the thing to be kept quiet, you understand, -I give you my word that we take no police, and make no use of what we see, if we get the girl back. You say this is a hiding-place of Jarvis?” ‘* Yes, and the boys too,” answered Nelson more readily. ‘‘ Don’t ye go there, counselor. I ain’t got nothin’ ag’in’ yer, and I don’t wanter see yer double-banked now.” ‘¢ You t’ink dey double-bank me?” asked the colonel suddenly. Nelson hesitated. ‘‘T don’t know, You're a terror, but they’re a tough lot of boys there,” ‘How many aro there?” ‘‘T dno’, cunnel, There must be a lot of ’em since the muss night afore last. All the crooks out of Battle Row went for it to get into bidin’,” **Then how came you back?” asked Harvey, ** You tell two stories, Master Jim.” ‘*No, so help me, counselor. Strike me dead if I ain’t tellin’ square truth. There was a lot come back, but more stayed. I wouldn’t ha’ come if Buck badn’t made me.” ‘“Are there twenty there?’ asked the col- onel, Nelson considered a little. **Oh, no; can’t be more’n a dczen or maybe ten. Ye can’t keep the boys still long. If so be Buck gits back early, they’l] go out, some of ‘em, to hang ’round and see what comes of the boys was took last night.” *’ Den we go dere to-night,” said the colonel promptly. ‘Meester ’Arvie, my dear friend, you have stay away too long from your cflice. You go dere, say you are seek, den go home and go tosleep. Young man cannot stay up two night and be well. I see todis man,” Indeed ke had noticed that Harvey, now that the excitement was waning, found it difficult to keep awake, and the veteran’s advice was grateful to the young man, They came to the academy, where the colo- nel bestowed Nelson in an upper room and told hiw: ** You stay dere if you are wise, my friend, So sure you try to get away, you come to grief. You know me now.” Tbe burglar looked frightened. . ‘Strike me dead if I don’t act on the square with you two gents,” be protested. ‘ But I tell ye it’s a resky biz ye’re goin’ on.” Harvey went away to the cffice of Smith, | Brown & Smith, and found much to his . relief that he had not been needed for anything that others could not do. He had a confidential talk with the senior partner, with wbom he bad always been a favorite, and told him the whole story, He had expected to be scolded for his Quixotic behavior, but as soon as Judge Smith _ _ had heard the story of his interview with General Mix he burst out: “The old hunks! And he came, the bigh and mighty over my managing man, did he? Ill sbow him. I’ve as much money as he ha and my family’s as good, I remember bim when he was a poor, miserable second-lieuten-° ant, by Heavens, living on his pay, till he mar- | ried Miss Van Busby and came into a tub of grease, as it were. You go on, Harvey, and run this case through. J’ll back you, my boy. If it comes into court, Ill argue it for you, and it sha’n’t cost you a cent. Mix, by Jove!” So it was settled, and Harvey went away a much happier man, got to his room in the — boarding-house he had frequented for ten years, and fell asleep almost the moment he touched the pillow, , When he awoke the sun was setting, and he felt able for work again, so he went over to his faithful friend’s ‘academy ” aud found the \ GComicboo : , Pot 2 oe ae P fee ®t ts ,