The Milan exchange. (Milan, Gibson County, Tenn.) 1874-1978, 1875-09-23

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beside which the detective waited for me
"No 90, you see," he muttere,
GROSSLY, ''and yet it seemed to me 81
likely they'd take this train"
al don't see how it should seem like
w." | answered, for hadn't gone witt
him in the idea. ''It doesn't seem T.
me very likely that three such skillfu
thieves as you are lodging, who die
their work in this neighborhood Sc
cleverly two nights ago, should leav,
the station any night by the very trair
which the police watch with double
suspicion"
doesn't it?' he echoed; with 9
most satirical knOwingness. "Perhaps
you haven't yet got it quite clear in
your mind how they will leave the
town; for its sure enough that they
haven't left it up to now. That they'll
| be in hurry to leave it is sure enough
too, for this isn't the sort of place
they'll care to hide in longer than neces-
sary. Well, what's the hardest place
for us to track them in?-London.
And what's the easiest place for them
TO get to sea from?-LondOn. Then
naturally enough to London they'll
want TO 90. Isn't this fast train, and
shouldn't you choose a fast train if you
were running away from the police?"
didn't tell him what sort of train
/ should choose, because / hadn't quite
made up mind, and he was looking
cross enough for any thing in that last
glimpse | caught of him.
Having nothing better to do, | won
dered good deal how these thieves
could arrange their getting away while
the walls were covered with the de-
scription of them, and every official in
the line was up to it. There was no
doubt about their being three very dex-
ferrous knaves, but then our detective
force was very deXterous too, though
they were not knaves (and do believe,
the greater deXterity is generally on the
knavish side), and so it was odd that the
description still was ineffective and the
offered reward unclaimed. ! read over
again the bill in my pocket which de-
scribed the robbers. edward CapOn,
alias Capt. Winter, alias John Pearson,
alias Dr. Crow; Il thick-set, active man
of middle height, and about fifty years
of age, with thick iron-gray hair and an
aquiline nose. Mary Capon, his wife,
tall woman of forty, with handsome,
fair face, a quantity of very red hair,
and cut across her under lip. Ed
ward Capon, their son, a slightly built
youth of not more than fifteen or six
teenn (thOugh, for the matter of that,
| thought he might have had cunning
enough for twice his age), with close
ly cut, black hair, gray eyes and deli
cate features" >"
We all knew this description well
enough, and for two days had kept our
eyes open, hoping to identify them
among the passengers. But our scru-
tiny had all been in vain; and as the
train rushed on felt how disappointed
the police at Euston would be when we
arrived again without even tidings of
them.
was soon tired of this subject, and
went back to worrying myself about the
sadlooking, yellow-haired girl, who had
so evidently wished to travel alone, and
been so successfully foiled in the at
tempt by that intrusive fOp with the
handsome beard. Foolishly | kept on
thinking of her, until, as we were dash
ing almost like lightning through the
wind and darkness, only fifteen or
twenty minutes from Chalk Farm, the
bell of my van rang out with n sharp
and sudden summons. | never won
dered for a moment who had pulled the
cord. Instructive | knew, and-it was
the carriage furthest from my van! l
left my place almost breathlessly as the
engine slackened speed, and, Fastening
along the footboard, hesitated at no
window until l reached the one from
which felt quite sure that a frightened
young face would be looking out. My
heart literally beat in. dread as l stop
ped, and looked into the carriage. What
did | see? Only the two passengers
buried in their separate corners. The
young lady raised her head from the
book she held, and looked up at me as
tonished-childishly and wonderingly
astonished.
"Has any thing happened to the
train?n she asked timidly.
The gentleman reused himself leis
urely from a seemingly snug nap.
"What ola earth has stopped us in this
hole!'' he said, rising; and pushed his
handsome face and his long beard past
me at the window.
1t was only too evident that the alarm
had not been given from this carriage;
vet the feeling had been such n certain
ty to me that it was long before | felt
quite convinced to the contrary; and |
went along the footboard to other car
riages very much more slowly than |
had gone first to that one. Utter dark
ness surrounded us outside, but from
the lamplit compartments, eager heads
were thrust, searching for the reason of
this unexpected stoppage. No one
owned having summoned me until
reached that second-clasS carriage near
my own van, (Which | had hastened
past before), where the fidgety, deaf
old lady who had amused me at Rugby
sat alone. Her head was quite out of
the window; and though she had her
back to the light and l couldn't see her
face, her voice was cool enoughto show
that She was not overpowered by fear.
"Nhat a time you have been COM
ing" she said, where is it?"
Where is what?"
But though yelled the question with
all my might and main, [ believe l
might just as hopefully have questioned
the telegraph post which l could dimly
see beside us, and have expected an
answer along the wires. ........|
"WhCre' the eSmallluncheonb baSket?''
she inquired, pulling out her long purse
with great fussiness. "A small lunch
con basket, my good man, and make
hastein
Shall / never forget the sharp ex-
pectancy of the old lady's eyes as they
looked into mine, first over, then under,
then through her glittering gold-rimmed
spectacles? What surprised me most
particularly was the factof her decided
ly not being, as any one might suppose,
a raving lunatic. A
"Be quick with the small luncheon
basket, please" she said, resignedly
sitting down, and pouring the contents
of her purse in her lap. -n
"'I'm hungry as l can be-"
suppose that when she looked up at
me from the silver she was counting,
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