Beadle's New York Dime Library No. 289 — page 11: what you’re looking at

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

™ ma As he explained it to Fred Henning, there was a cabin on the other side of the bayou which had been erected by a Frenchman, or possibly a New Orleans Creole, named Carsanne, This Carsanue had occupied the cabin but a few months, and had then left the country, and was supposed to have gone to New Orleans. | In the course of his search for the missing Kate Helmsley the Yankee had come across the Carsanne place, and, perceiving about it eyi- dences of recent occupation, his curiosity had been excited. After a little hesitation he forced an entrance and found nothing in the cabin but some scanty furniture, which bad probably been left there by the Frenchman, ‘*But I guess it wa’n’t long since somebody had been livin’ there,” said Tibbles, ‘‘ Cookin’ an’ sleepin’ had been goin’ on there, as nigh as I kin calkilate, not more’n tew weeksago. Among the rubbish I found this bit of paper, which kinder tells a leetle story.” The bit of paper was a receipt of a small amount of money in full for three months’ rent of the tenement in which it was found, It was in favor of Jonas Hexamer, and was signed by Alphonse Carsanne. This find: only served to locate the abode of Jonas Hexamer while he was in the neighbor- hood and was not stopping at Martigny. It did not seem to assist the search for Kate Helmsley; but Fred Henning was of the opinion that it might eventually prove useful. His investigations had settled him in the opinion that the missing young lady, alive or dead, was still somewhere in the neighborhood of Gravelly Bayou and Martigny. If she was alive, she was concealed some- where, and the man who was responsible for her disappearance must be not far away. Fred’s reasoning proceeded always upon the 5 a Sn that she was alive, ot because he had any ground for such a. supposition, but simply because he was unwill- ing to admit any other. f Hexamer was in the vicinity, he might. be expected to visit the cabin across the bayou at some. time, This was a bare possibility; but, in order that no chance should lost, Fred deeided that the cabin must be watched. As Zeke Tibbles bad made a find, so Denny Malone, shortly after his return from the south- ward expedition, developed an idea. Denny was noted for an abundance of ideas, and sometimes they were valuable, and always they were worth attention. This one he explained to Fred Henning and Arthur Helmsley after a fashion of his own, ‘‘Thrue it is, Friddy me b’ye, that there’s somethin’ in the shtory av the ackshins av the birrd.” ‘Don’t start. any conundrums, now. What bird are you speaking of?” ** An’ pare birrd should it be but the wound- ed birrd that wag tig heard about, ayven thim that hasn’t seen it? Sure an’ yez know well how it wurruks its racket.” ‘*T must be very dumb, Denny, as I don’t catch your meaning,” ‘“Dumb’s no name for yez. It’s the birrd that has a nest in the grass or the bushes, an’ phwen yez go near the nest it makes belave it’s wounded, an’ it hops away, dhroppin’ its wing e. Thin yew thry to ketch the birrd. Ivery~ body does it—it’s jist like kickin’ an’ ould hat that’s full o’ bricks, Not a man will miss givin’ ret though every wan ay thim knows the ‘“Come away from the hat, Denny, and get back to the bird,” ts rare iz ‘It looks loike it’s aisy enough to ketch the birrd; but the shmart little cuss jist kapes ahead av yez, hoppin’ an’ limpin’ along, an’ aiak- in’ the divil’s own fuss, till it gits yez a good way off. from its nest, an’ thin up it jumps an’ flies away, and all av a suddint yez dbrap onto the racket.” ‘Yes, Denny, we all know that bird; but what has it to do with the present company or the business we have in hand?” ‘It’s bad for yez to be dumb an’ blind both, me bye. Supposin’, now, that we put young Ble Crusty in the place av the birrd.” ‘Who is young Black and Crusty?” inquired Arthur Helmsley, ‘‘Paul Delarosse, ay coorse. I’ve been sus- pictin’ bim all along, but couldn’t for the life av me guess phwat it was I was suspictin’ him v. ‘‘ What are you suspecting now?” ‘‘ Tverythin’ in gineral, an ypothin’ in partick- ilar; but it’s moighty quare, Fred Henning got out of patience with what at the moment seemed to him to be nothing but nonsense, and be insisted upon bringing the Irishman’s idea to a focus, . ‘‘What do you mean, Denny?” he demanded. a: Quit, beating about the bush, and come to the int. pe As the thistle said to the bumblebee. Now, Frid, an’ haven’t yez noticed the quare ways av oung Black an’ Crusty while this s’arch has been goin’ en? I’yeseen the performance twice, an Flush Fred’s ~~ ee a eee | “What performance? What has happened?” “The young nabob has been up an’ up wid us in the s’arch. There’s no denyin’ that, an’ I give the divil his due all the time. But he has his own way av helpin’, and in wan pint it amounts to hindherin’. Both av yez know the road beyant the bayou.” ‘We ought to, by this time,” answered Fred. ‘““Phwere that road meks a turn on the high level to go toward the north, a sort av a blind road Jades off weS8tward loike. We've niver folleyed that thrack yit, an’phwy? Jist beca’se the young nabob, whiniver we've shtarted to folley it, has said it wasn’t any use, or that it only led to the swamp, or has tuck us off on anither trail. This mornin’, whin we was goin’ in there, he hurt bis fut, an’ med us fetch him home.” Fred had a lively recollection of that eyent, and so had Arthur; but each of them was dis- posed to regard it merely as an accident, ““They’s been too many accidents loike that,” continued the Irishman, ‘“‘ His ackshins is jist the same as those av the birrd, and if he could be supposed to have a nest hid anywhere, I'd know how to mek it out. But phwat rayson could young Black an’ Crusty have for doin’ away wid the young leddy?’ “As much reason as anybody,” quickly an- swered Fred. “‘ More reason than anybody I know of. That is to say, if I know of anybody who could have a reason for doing away with her, it is Paul Delarosse,” Dennis Malone’s eyes snapped as this dis- closure came ont, and Arthur Helmsley was eager to hear more, “There is just this about it,” replied Fred, ‘Mr. Delarosse, when he was a young man, seems to have been deeply in love with a young lady who afterward married your father, Arthur Helmsley—in fact with your mother. It was on account of her ‘rejection of his suit that he never married. I bave reason to believe that he has always loved her fondly, and it is natural to suppose that he would have a tender feeling for ber daughter. ‘“He has brought home young Black and Crusty, as Dennis calls him, with the intention of making the young chap his heir; but there is no real affection existing between them, and I believe that the old gentleman has been daily growing more disgusted with his nephew. ‘‘T have heard nothing from him on the subject besides the story of his former love for Miss Helmsley’s mother; but it is quite possible that on some occasion when Mr, Delarosse was an with his nephew, he may have said more than that to Paul, and may even have threatened to discard him and leave the estate elsewhere,” ‘Tt is not at all likely,” demanded Arthur Helmsley, ‘‘ that he would discard his own flesh and blood— bis only living relation—for a mere sentimental notion,” ‘Stranger things than that bave happened, Arthur. But what I have said on that point was merely guesswork, I only wanted to show ou that when it became known that Miss elmsley was coming into this neighborhood, jealousy may have given Paul Delarosse a rea- son for objecting to her presence here, That is, he had a reason for wishing her away, if anybody had.” ‘There is something in that, but nothing worth considering seriously,” remarked Helms- ley. ‘**The only person we really know of in connection with my sister’s disappearance is that Jonas Hexamer.” ‘* Just so, and we have no right to connect Paul Delarosse with him in any way. I don’t believe the young man has the grit to plan or take part in an abduction, and I know that he has not been out of the neighborhood since I left bere. I have jooked into that matter, and every day of his time is accounted for.” It was agreed that no suspicion atteched to the sag man, and that it would be improper Bnd, unfair even to mention the subject to his uncle, ‘* But he acted jist like the birrd,” insisted Dennis Malone. ‘' Mebbe he’s got a nest av bis own hid away. Annyhow, me b’yes, the nixt toime we go out we must take the thrail I shpoke ay. S 2 CHAPTER XV. A WATCHER WATCHED. THE néxt day the main party of searchers started out on what Dennis Malone had styled ‘‘the road beyant the bayou.” In the party were Fred Henning, Arthur Helmsley, Dennis Malone, Zeke Tibbles, and a stout negro man. Paul Delarosse appeared to be anxious to ac- company them, and doubtless was, In fact, there was nothing that could be alle against the young man in his entire con- nection witb the affair, His exertions had been so intelligent, so inde- fatigable, and at the same time so unpretend- ing, that his uncle bad been positively charmed by his conduct. At the same time he had won the good-will of ve heard that it happened more’n wance | Arthur Helmsley, had disarmed the suspicions whin we was away.” of Fred Henning, and had conciliated every- Full Hand. —— ne 11 body but the Irishman, whose dislike grew with acquaintance. ut on this occasion, in spite of Dennis’s doubts, there could be no doubt that he was really lame, and he was obliged to stay at home, while the others went searching. They reached the place where the road be- yond the bayou made its turn to the northward and halted there. ‘This is the pint pbwere the young gintleman did Le shtoppin’ us,” observed Dennis. ‘He as there was nothin’ but shwamp beyant ere, ‘““ He was right abaout that,” said the over- seer. ‘*‘ Come on an’ see fur yewrself.” Dennis went on with the rest, but had not gone far when he wished that he had not taken a step in thet directicn. It was quite trne that there was nothing but swamp beyond there, and an impassable swamp at that, A swamp sucker, to the manner born and bred, coild pick his way through a pertion of it, andthe negro man whom Tibbles had brought was a fairly zood guide. But the task of traversing it was anything but an inviting one. Even in the daytime darkness prevailed, rath- er than daylight, and the funereal looking trees with their somber drapery of moss were almost as terrifying as the still lagoons, whose placid surface was stirred only by the passage of numbers of snakes. As for walking, that was only jumping from one ktummock or log or clump of cypress shoots to another, at the risk of slipping into the sity water or falling upon some unnoticed reptile. ‘*Och, millia murther!” sbrieked the Irish- man, as be quickly drew himself back from con- tact with a fat and sluggish moccasin snake, bis ruddy countenance expressive of the intensest horror. “If the blissid St. Patrick had iver kem across this place, he’d ’a’ flung away his crook an’ skipped the country. I almost set me fut this minnit on the king av all the shnakes.” “Lucky yew didn’t,” remarked the Yankee, “That was a cotton-maouth,” ‘Be jabers bis mouth would hould a bale av cotton, an’ bad cessto it! Let’s git away from this widout sayin’ how-d’y-do or good-by to anny more av tbhim.” The others were quite willing to refrain from prosecuting the search any further in that direc- tion, and they backed out as rapidly as circum- stances would allow. Dennis Malone was crestfallen and disgusted. we thought I was goin’ to find a birrd’s nest,” said he: ‘“‘ but it turned out to be a mare’s nest.” Flush Fred was also discouraged and dis- beartened; but no amount of failures could cause him to cease or intermit his efforts. In pursuance of bis purpose of watching the cabin across the bayou, he went over there the pigdt, after the swamp trail bad been aban- onea, On this expedition he preferred to go alone, to diminish the danger of discovery by any pore who might happen to approach the ocality.” He bad already discovered the skiff that was corcealed on the barter side of the bayou and he used it to ferry himself across, as he ha done on several previous occasions, - The night was not dark, as there was a pi of a moon hung in the sky, but it shone fitfully and at intervals, through broken masses of cloud, rendering distances deceptive and shad- ows uncertain. , ; All was quiet about the cabin—nothing to be heard but the occasional croak of a frog, or the harsh cry of a marsh bird. The stillness and loneliness of the night were strongly suggestive of the obscurity that cover- ed the disappearance of Kate Helmsley, and it was natural that they sbould bear upon Flush Fred with an oppressive weight, reminding bim of the present fruitlessness and future bopeless- ness of bis search—of the cones im possi bili of finding any sort of a needle in that baysta of forest and swamp. He took his station behind the broad trunk o a live-oak, from which position be could have the best view attainable of the cabin and the cleared ground near it. as At the same time he was invisible, except ‘from one direction. He waited there fully an hour, and « very long hour, before anything occurred to attraet his attention. ; This was the third night he hed watched the cabin, and his vigils bad been very tedious. If they had not been so hopeless, they might bave heen more pleasant, At last he beard an unusual and unmistakable sound in the forest. | It was the breaking of a twig, as if it had been stepped on. There were no animals, wild or tame, that were likely to de in that vicinity at that hour— at least, none that were large enough to pro- duce such a noise as that. | Consequently be attributed it to the near presence of some human being. . Gomicbooks Cor a -*