Beadle's Dime Library No. 391 — page 7: what you’re looking at

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

ae ~~ 4 oe wl a ~ , - ‘ine 2) Sort e * = € : =, , ae Be nr . «A ae . te ie ‘ ; # Fe ; ne ‘ . *' ” - >2- ; ow * FY + ; . -* o's ay © - £ so - a ne ——- +, ————— . os é = = Ly J rs - “Rh ¥. Kate captain put on his thinking-cap, and at last hit on a plan. ‘‘ You know, it wasn’t in the programme for this old duffer to be put out of the way at all. His death was an accident. ‘* He was lured away and then drugged so we could get at the five thousand dollars that he very foolishly carried around with him, instead of putting it in a safe place as soon as possible afer he received it. _ ‘‘ Through some mistake the dose was made too strong, and it killed the man. ‘‘The captain reckoned that be must have been troubled with heart-disease or something of that kind or else it wouldn’t have laid him out, for we hadn’t any idea of doing it, as there wasn’t the least bit of use to kill the old fellow, seeing that we could easily get at his boodle with- out taking much risk. ‘‘ But Lreckon his time had come and so he made a die of it. His folks took the alarm when he was discovered to be missing, and, as 1 said, offered five hundred for any information of him if living, or the same amount for the recovery of his body if he was dead.” ‘‘ And the captain thinks he would like to get his grip on the money,” Stingy Bill remarked. “Now you are shouting, Bill,” his companion replied, ‘‘and why shouldn’t he go in for the stamps? The old man’s body is of no use to us, and of course we have to go to the trouble of getting rid of it. Now the captain’s idea is, in- stead of committing the stiff to the water in the usual way, to take it in a box to some lonely spot and then have one of the gang to accident- ally run across it so as to claim the reward offer- ed for the discovery of the body.” ‘¢ Ain’t it risky?” asked the other, in a doubt- ful sort of way, ‘‘S’pose the police take it into their heads that the man who discovers the body had something to do with the old cove’s death?” ** Don’t you worry bout that. I can just tell you that what the captain don’t know ain’t worth knowing. He’s as full of tricks as a monkey. ‘¢ Jackey Candorson, Jackey, the Milkman, you know, is the party who is to discover the body. His record is just as square as can be; the police never had reason to put their flippers on him et. “That’s the captain’s little game, you see. Jackey is a mighty useful man in spying out cribs worth cracking, and the Cap has always | eee ser. not to have him mixed up in any obs. : ‘“‘T see now, and I’ve often wondered wh Jackey never took a hand when there was wor to be done.” ‘“That was so the police should not be able to get onto him. If he once fell under suspicion of being crooked, his peculiar usefulness would be destroyed. Now this little trick is just assimple as can be. Jackey lives on the outskirts of the city, near his cow-stable, and it is quite a lonely spot, par- ticularly after nightfall, for it is beyond the gas- light region, and there’s no travel at all, tospeak of, after nine o’clock.” ‘That’s just the spot for such a job as this.” * ‘*Exactly. Well, five or six hundred yards beyond Jackey’s place there’s an old barn that he has been dickering to buy for five or six months. ‘Tt hasn’t been used for a year or so, and has been tightly locked all the time. ** Jac oy came to terms with the owner, and bought the property this afternoon, and of course, as is only natural under the circum- stances, he, with a couple of his boys, will go to examine the property to-morrow, and in the barn they will find the body, do you see” ‘“‘Tt’s jest fixed splendid, ain’t it?’ cried the other, in a burst of admiration. ** Oh, I tell you, the se a head on his shoulders. course, every will wonder how the old man got into the , but in his pocket a key will be found which will fit the lock of the sid oor, and as there isn’t the least sign of violence on his , the thing will be the biggest mystery that anybody has known for a long time.” ‘*But how "bout getting the stiff to the barn?” “That will be the only difficult and risky — of the job, but the captain has pei se te t so nicely that it’s a hundred to one against failure.” There’s a covered express wagon in the stable a common-looking concern with the roan mare hitched to it. That box yonder will just about hold the body. ‘* We'll put it in the box, carry it by the under- ground pa e to the stable and place it in the wagon, then drive to the barn. e can cover . the distance in an hour easily enough.” **T see, and if there isn’t anybody ’round, we h‘ist the into the barn.” ‘* Just so and bring the box back, so as to cov- er - the trail.” “| don’t see why it won’t work.” ‘Tt will, unless some unlucky accident occurs. But come, we must get to work. Give mea hand to put the body in the box, and then we’ll cover it over with the cloth.” Kate heard the men shuffling about the cellar Scott, the Decoy Detective. * Now, Bill, give me the hammer and nails for it will be as well to tack the cover down, for fear of accidents.” ‘“‘Blame me if I didn’t forget the hammer!” the other exclaimed. ‘‘ Here are the nails, ham- mer ’em in with the butt of my revolver.” ‘*Oh, no; do you want to spoil the tool? Tl get the hammer and you take a look in the street so as to see if the coast is clear.” ** All right.” Kate listened until the footsteps of the tworas- cals died away in the distance, and then she de- scended from her perch in the secret passage and emerged from the fire-place into the cellar. A means of escape from her present dangerous position had flashed upon her mind, CHAPTER IX, THE ESCAPE. THE girl had been thinking deeply while lis- tening to the conversation of the strangers. That she was in the secret haunt of a desperate and determined band of outlaws was quite evi- dent, and she suspected that the man whom the two referred to in conversation as the ‘‘ captain” and who was clearly the master-spirit of the criminal league,. was no other than the man who had lured her sister away and who called himself Henry Tappan. And as this became evident to her the darkest thoughts filled her mind. She had believed that the account he had giv- en her in reg*rd to her sister’s fate was true, but now she had learned what a consummate scoun- drel he was she wavered. The story might be all a lie; her sister might be still alive and—horrible thought!—in the pow- er of this vile ruffian. At all hazards she must make her escape and seek the counsel of the veteran detective. Possessed of the clews which she would now be able to give him, perhaps he would be able to guess at the identity of the captain of this mur- derous band. It was a bold idea that had entered the mind of the girl. She realized that it would be an almost impos- sible task to escape from the cellar without en- countering some member of the outlaw band who would most certainly give an alarm that would lead to her recapture. The scheme she had conceived was to take the place of the murdered man in the box and per — the ruffians to transport her to the old arn. Then her idea was to rise up before them the moment the box was opened, enveloped in the cloth, trusting to inspire them with a sudden fright and so make them take to their heels in the belief that the ghost of the dead man had come. Circumstances favored the bold girl. The ruffians had left a lantern behind them, so Kate had ample light to see what she was about, and, what was still more lucky, the man who had proposed to hammer the nails with the butt of his revolver had left the weapon on the rude table where he had placed it for the accommoda- tion of his partner. It seemed like inviting discovery to possess herself of the weapon but the girl could not resist the temptation. It was aseven-shooter, a small, but serviceable weapon. The pistol secured, she removed the dark cloth which the ruffians had flung over the remains of the murdered man, exposing to view the corpse of an elderly gentleman; the body was neatly dressed, and from the appearance was evidently that of a respectable, well-to-do citizen. The giri was naturally strong and so she man- aged to remove the body from the box and con- cealed it in a dark recess under the cellar stairs. Then she took its place, covering herself up with the cloth, endeavoring to assume as near] as one the exact position in which the body had been placed. Hardly had she comfortably bestowed herself, when the footsteps of the returning ruffians fell upon her ears, Both of them were returning, one coming down the cellar stairs, the other from the extreme end of the cellar, where a secret underground pas- sage led to the stable. They came up to the < The cover was placed upon it and a couple of nails, lightly driven in, held it in its place. “We mustn’t nail it on too strongly, you know,” Four Kings observed, ‘“‘ for when we get to the barn the cover must be taken off so we can get the stiff ont. The box comes back with us, for if we were to leave it there, it would be sure to excite suspicion. ‘* Now then, pick up your end and come on,” continued the er, ‘“‘All right; but I say, what did you do with my revolver?” asked Stingy Bill, who had looked on the table for his weapon and found it not. ‘“*T don’t know anything about your revolver,” nded the other. * Didn’t you take it off the table?” ** Yes, I know you offered me the weapon, but I didn’t take it.” ‘* The blazes you didn’t!” growled Stingy Bill, in amazement. ‘* Nary time.” “F Well, if you didn’t take it, what did become of it? ‘* How on earth should I know?” ‘*Tll sw’ar I laid it on the table!” exclaimed the perplexed ruffian. n if you did it would be there, unless the stiff collared it while we were absent,” replied the other, with a grim attempt at a joke. a ‘* Blame me if this here don’t bother me!” My **Oh, you took it up in the stable with you, and you'll find it there.” ‘* Mebbe so,” the other responded, although in , bis own mind he felt certain that he had left the r weapon on the table, but it was possible that he was mistaken. ~¥ The two lifted the box and carried it through — the secret passageway into the cellar of the sta- 44 ble and then ascened to where the horse and the covered express-wagon stood. ee. They placed the burden in the wagonandthen ~— while Four Kings mounted to the seat_and took up the reins, the other opened the stable doors, Kate within her hiding-place was abletoover= hear all that passed. me. ‘* All serene, not a soul about,” answered Stin= gy Bill. PAR: ‘*The captain has looked out for that,” Four | Kings replied, as he drove out of the building. | Stingy Bill closed the stable doors after the — wagon passed through and hastened on ahead to open the gate. SS When the wagon got into the roadithalted — until Bill closed the gate and mounted to the seat beside Four Kings. ‘Go ahead!” said Bill, after he was fairly in sition, and Four Kings immediately gave the ines a slap on the horse’s back and away they = went. a Luckily for the girl, cramped within the nar- row confines of the box, the ruffians had placed _ i. the box in the wagon right side up, and so she: « — was far more comfortable than she would have been if they had reversed it. a Hardly a word passed between the pairduring the trip, which occupied about half an hour. Sati The time seemed terribly long though to the imprisoned girl and she thought the journey would never end. ee. At last, however, the wagon stopped, the des- tination being reached, “eae ‘* We've had a regular streak of luckto-night,” > Four Kings remarked as he jum out of the vehicle. ‘We haven't metasoul. Now if we can get the stiff into the barn and get off with- tye noticed by any one we shall be all O, tes ae ,* ~~ ny. _— ‘* Let’s hurry then for I reckon this is the pull | + jest now!” Stingy Bill declared. coe The barn was a hundred feetorsofromthe road, and in quite a lonely situation, the nearest —_ house being fully three hundred Mong: away; 4 " and as there wasn’t any lights visible it seemed — probable that the inmates had retired torest. The night was dark, no moonshining, although = the heavens were liberally spangled with count- less stars, and as the confederateshaddriventhe —__ wagon around to the rear of the barn there did not seem to be much danger of their being dis- — covered. : Pe * a Four Kings unlocked the barn door and the the box into the building. Then, — io = 2 . uy i two carrie being provided with a dark lantern, and a hat- chet, Kour Kings proceeded to pry,open the lid of the box. 2 But just as he loosened one end of the lidjan unforeseen event took place. ee Neither one of the two had taken the precau- it : tion to fasten the horse, thinking she wouldstand - without any trouble, but the beast was an old and sagacious animal and did not at all relish this night work, and so, anxious to get home to her stable, when she discovered thatthehumans — who had “+ in charge had yy teri she turned quietly about and set off for home, ea ‘‘ Blazes! there goes the horse!” cried Four Kings, dropping his tool Cn ‘We ought to have fastened the cursed beast —tain’t the furst time the roan mare hastriedit on; but we can catch her easily enough, for she allers goes along on a little jog-trot,” the other replied, and then the two, in hot haste, ran out => of the barn and gave chase to the horse. eT: It really seemed as if. Heaven itself was taking ‘ pe ey, of the captive girl. (rs te, who had overheard every word of the conversation, was quick to improve the oppor- | > x The box cover being loosened at one end was no obstacle to her escape, and soonshe was ab Seger: to the door, she could easily distin- guish, th to the stillness of the night, the sound of the retreating horse and the rumble of — an the wagon-wheels, as well as the rapid footsteps of the men in pursuit. - ae She only paused a momenton the threshold, and then turned and fled in the opposite direc- tion as fast as she could run, yet at thesame as though they were a heavy burden,| ‘“ ery take, time taking care that her footsteps should notbe and after a minute or so the man who bore the} ‘‘I Jaid it there, you know, for you to use in | heard. odd name of Four Kings said: hammering the confi in the box,” a . va ~ 9 * / ; NDe pres % Down the road a few another mcomichooks:com ‘