Beadle's Dime Library No. 366 — page 5: what you’re looking at

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

The Telegraph Detective. see if any signal passed between him and his prisoner. Dayton, however, bad apparently not seen the man. He bestowed no further care on the stranger, but kept close to Dayton’s side. Had he turned, however, he would have noticed the two men shadowing them in the distance. Dayton kept on at a rapid pace until they reached a point on the wharves near a river street. By the side of a storehouse he paused. ‘* | have a boat near yonder pile of timbers,” be said. ‘‘ You will have to help me launch it.” Marvin drew back suspiciously, but a minute later followed Dayton boldly. ‘*This treasure,” he began, as they lifted a small boat into the water. ‘Ts some distance from here,” was Dayton’s oy a n the darkness and gloom of the night the two started on their singular mission—a mission holding more of loss than gain—less of gold and jewels than of death and disaster. CHAPTER IV. THE TREASURE CASKET. ONLY the occasional whistle of some steamer, or the signal-bell of passing ferry-boats, broke the silence of the scers as the small yawl-boat sped down the river, propelled by two oars in the hands of Dayton. Neither Marvin nor his companion spoke a word until they had passed a point opposite the Battery and emerged into the more open water. It was Marvin who first broke the oppressive silence. ‘* Am I to understand that the treasure is se- creted on some island?’ he asked. ‘*No! See here,” continued Dayton, as if in- spired with sudden confidence: ‘ I've started in to cut loose from the old band, and I believe ‘ove treat me fair and square, The treasure is hidden near the Narrows, in deep water.” ‘*In the water?” repeated Willis, incredulous- y. ‘Yes; I'll tell you the whole story. Adrian Revere was the leader of a lot of adventurers in Europe—gamblers and worse—men who have been concerned in many a Nihilistic scheme of crime and gain. Badly broken up by a raid on a gambling-den in Paris, the greater portion of us returned to America. It was at this time that Revere sprung his scheme of entrapping his rich relative, Gerald Thorndyke, with a specious game of fraud. He ineuced Thorn- dyke to return to America, On the way he was drugged and kept in Revere’s cabin. But he bad no suspicion that Torrance, myself and other emissaries were on the vessel only to carry out a desperate plan. We reached New York at night. I remember we were nearin the city. About midnight, when I was sea on the deck, I saw a white-robed form steal up the cabin-stairway and drop an iron object over the side of the vessel,” ‘* The treasure-casket?” ‘*T could swear to it. The man I believe to bave been Gerald Thorndyke. Suspicious of Revere, half-dazed by drugs, he had removed the treasure-chest from his trunk and trusted it to the waters of the river sooner than to the hands of the man he began to suspect. I saw it dropped. J remember the place by the range of lights on the shore, close at hand, and, two weeks since, while Revere and his friends were on a false trail, I visited the spot,” ** And found it?” ‘** No; but I touched it with the sounding-line. ‘Ob, I couldn’t be mistaken, It’s there, in thirty feet of water—a cool million in gold and jewels, and half for me—hbalf for me!” He accelerated the speed of the beat under the excitement of avarice and expectation. ‘*‘T fail to understand how my father knew of this treasure,” declared Marvin. “I don’t know that he did. I only know that Revere supposed the casket to be in ‘Thorndyke’s trunk up to the day of his death. When the vessel arrived at its wharf, a carriage conveyed Thorndyke to his home. By this time ship-fever, and the tender care of Revere, had almost destroyed what little mind he had left. Revere thought it unnecessary to watch him after he had induced him to will all bis real estate to him. Whenever he spoke of the casket, however, the old man’s lips were mute, and Revere, believing it to be in his trunk, did not press the matter,"knowing that his death, which must soon occur, would place the treasure-chest at his disposal, One day, when be was gone, your father managed to see Thorndyke. When Revere returned, he heard of the interview and was terribly alarmed, and that night, when Gerald Thorndyke died, and a search of the trunk revealed the casket gone, he believed that your father and his victim had outwitted him. The result was that your fa- ther was kidnapped. Revere believed he knew where the casket was, but Robert Marvin re- fused to speak a single word concerning his client’s secrets, even under threats of death. I | kept my own counsel. While Revere believed the casket to have been hidden by your father, {I realized what I knew—I remembered what I had seen—the casket sunk in the river. Thorn- dyke had outwitted his enemies, but he had not outwitted me!” Confident in his belief, the face of the speaker was eager, triumphant. In the mists which hung over the water objects were dimly seen as they passed various points familiar to Marvin. At last, however, he saw distinctly the shingly beach of Staten Island. Dayton tiucd stayed the boat’s course and al- lowed it to drift shoreward. ** Is this the place?” inquired Marvin. “Yes. The exact spot. I must locate by cer- tain familiar bearings and land leads.” Marvin became intensely interested in the search, forgetting his suspicions, and following with all the zest of an awakened curiosity the movements of bis companion. He saw him walk up and down the beach, marking off imaginary lines and angles with his eye, and then proceeded to his side, as in the im- perfect light of the night, he thought he dis- cerned Dayton make a motion to him. ‘Did you signal me?” ce Yes.” ‘* Are you ready?” ‘All ready. Drag the boat to this rock I have my foot on, It’s about two hundred feet to the east.” He sprung into the boat as Marvin brought it to the spot. Seizing the oars he directed the yaw! in a straight line from *he shore. Both were deeply engrossed in the excitin task, and neither noticed a second boat moore further up the beach. It contained two men— the men whom Marvin had noticed near the wharf in New York city. They had shadowed the fortune—hunters to the wharf—they had fol- lowed them by boat—had landed, and now stood gazing outat the yaw! slowly leaving the shore. The man who resembled the person who had proffered the drugged cigar at Brocton turned to his companion, a look of the blankest amaze- ment in b?s face: ‘* What does it mean?” he demanded. The other shook his head perplexedly. ‘Dash me if [know. First I thought that Dayton was playing us false into this fellow’s hands; then I supposed he was leading him into a trap; but their mysterious movements puzzle me ‘There can be no doubt about his treachery. Did I not overhear him deliberately refer to our secrets. Ha! I see it all! Fool, fool! He has rushed to his own doom!” ‘What do you mean?” demanded the other, curiously. ‘Dayton has grown too cunning for his years, but he will overreach himself this time, as sure as fate. You remember we brought a memento of our European career back with us. There’s a plant in the channel, yonder, but I fancy its contents will rather surprise Dayton. Hist! Let me watch them!’ Dayton bad kept the boat straight out from the shore, Marvin held a long line over the stern, divided into ten-foot lengths by nails. ‘*One hundred—one fifty—one ninety—two ro !” he called out, under Dayton’s direc- ion, The oars brought the boat to a full stop. ‘* That’s the length.” cried Dayton, excitedly, ** Now, then, take my place, and hold the boat steady where she is,” They exchanged places, Marvin at the oars, Dayton at the stern, with a packuge taken from the bottom of the boat, Unrolled rapidly it revealed a rope with grap- puing- books. He cast it over the side of the at, bis eyes sparkling like two diamonds in the darkness, The unsteady wavering motion of the little craft caused him to be some time ere an ex- clamation of triumph announced his success. * You have got it?” inquired Marvin, aloud, as much excited as his companion, ‘*Yes, Pull slowly to the shore,” ‘*Can you not lift it?” ‘*'No; we must drag it.” “Tt cannot be the casket,” decided Marvin. ** Tt would nos be so heavy.” ‘To the shore!” was Dayton’s only response, his voice trembling with excitement. He never lifted his eyes from the water— never relaxed his grasp upon the grapnel-rope as he stepped from the boat when the beach was seis arvin breathlessly watched him as e began to draw in the line, and at last a dark, oblong object was revealed to his view, and dragging it upon the sharply shelving beach Dayton fairly danced with delight as he mov his bands over the mud-begrimed, rust-flaked surface. ‘Tt is ours!” he cried, half-frantic in his glee, ‘All ours! See the iron bands—the top cap!” ‘* You will not open it here?’ Marvin asked, The other glanced up, suspiciously. ‘*You retract your bargain?” he cried. ‘*No; only we may be watched.” Dayton had s to the boat and returned with a hatchet. ‘“We will open it here,” he declared. ‘ No fear of interruption at this early hour of the morping. ** Bring me a large stone to rest the casket on,” he said, a minute later. ‘*T will force it We. . fs ' e t * ee TS with the hatchet. The treasure—the treasure half mine—half mine!” he muttered, Hoeney- A sardonic laugh swept echoless along the beach. Neither noticed it. Marvin started to find a stone as directed by Dayton. Even as he proceeded, he could hear his impatient com- yanion endeavoring to break open the obdurate iron casket. He had stooped over to pick up a rock of the required size, when, looking up, he started as from behind a clump of bushes, the glittering barrel of a revolver stared him in the face. It raised as he arose; its possessor, Torrance, faced him! **One word and [ fire. Stand where you are! You have escaped Dayton; you will not escape us.” Resistance or flight was useless. He recog- nized his opponent, and as his companion arose Marvin stood silent. ‘**Do you hear bim?’ cried Torrance to his companion, as the click-click of the hatchet sounded on the air. ‘‘ Treasures! Ha-ha! He will soon know—he will soon know!” Unaccountably mystified, Marvin looked at Torrance. ‘You know what the casket contains?’ he was impelled to ask, ‘*Know?” replied Torrance, with a scornful laugh; ‘‘I should say so! It contains that which, if accidentally scraped by the keel of some passing steamer, would have caused death to every one on board!” P A wild light sprung into Marvin’s eyes. ‘Then it is not the treasure casket?” “No! It is—” The word was drowned in the deafening roar of a terrible noise, as a louder knock of Day- ton’s hatchet was succeeded by a horrible, re- verberating explosion. A million fragments seemed to fill the air, <A blinding flesh of light revealed flying bits of iron and mangled remains of a dismembered human body, and Marvin shuddered with a sickening realization of the disaster Dayton’s mistake had caused. A piece of flying iron struck Torrance’s com- anion, and he fell as if shot, Horrified, con- used, Marvin gave one glance at Torrance. He saw in his face the calmness of recklessness, the sardonic smile of a man gloating over treach- ery’s reward—himself at his mercy, when the excitement of the disaster had subsided, The boat Dayton had employed had been blown far into the water by the concussion. One glance at the spot where Dayton had met his awful fate, a second at the deep waters of the Narrows, and then with a spr ng Marvin dashed from Torrance’s side, his pale lips mur- muring in horrified accents the single word: ‘** Dynamite!” A shot whizzed by his head as he struck out from land, but he heeded it not. The explosion —the catastrophe to Dayton—the realization that, in his death, had disappeared all hopes of a ready solution of the Thorndyke bah Lil BF nerved Marvin to superbuman efforts; he battled the eurrent and the waves, bent only on escap- ing from the scene of the frightful tragedy and from the power and influence of these fiends of the Dynamite League. : CHAPTER V. TRACKED DOWN. Two hours after the wh a og of the dyna- mite tube opposite Long island, Marvin, wet, wearied, exhausted, and the picture of disap- ointment and despair, tottered up the stairs eading to his room in the building on Eighth aveuue, and flinging himself into a chair, gave himself over to the abandon of fatigue, The early morning light dimly filuminating the apartment revealed the shell thrown b Dayton, the warning of the League, on the table before him. A glance from the window re- called the startling episodes of the previous night. In whichever direction thought turned, it met one overpowering element influencing his motives, impulses and acts—the operations of the Dynamite League. Amid the apathy of apparent defeat in his oo Marvin bitterly wondered if it wculd not a ave been better had he never entered upon the perilous task he had undertaken. Too well al- ready he knew the formidable confederation he had to combat, too fully he realized that in the death of Dayton was buried the secret of his father’s persecution—were sealed the lips which might have closed the case rapidly and in his favor, as well asin that of the woman he had learned to love, But despair with his restless nature was a transient emotion. Even though hopeless, his active mind compelled him to resume the trail. A score of men faced him, plot for plot, move. for move, and they, unknown to him, perhaps ~ even at that moment were watching him, dog- ging his «very a His father’s fate warned him that his temerity might cost him dear; the terrible mistake of Dayton showed that the means employed by the League in its warfare sues its enemies were sudden, deadly, oblit- erative. rn * | at 4 : s But filial duty—a newly-aroused love—all tha motives of his life centered around the myster he had sought to elucidate. To remain idio ' Fi Ebooks >» *% com