, 1886-05-15

ceiling was now descending upon his head.
Adrian Marx was so frightened at his
danger that he could hardly think of any
means OF escape. He wildly shook the
iron bars, but they resisted every effort to
move them. lie gr5ped for the door
through which the Smokers passed from
their hunks into the central room, but ii
opened inwards, and tie ceiling had now
descended so far as to prevent 1t from
opening at all. Slowly that ponderous
mass of rafters and beams came down.
With a cry OF agony Adrian Marx flung
himself upon the noor. The woodwork Of
the ceiling trembled as it struck his body;
then, pitilcssly, remorsely, it ground him
Into the dust.
In the meantime the drivers of the ex-
press wagons grew tired Of waiting, and
making their way TO the tobacconist's es-
Enlistment informed Isidor Marx thar
his brother had disappeared in a street OF
unsavory reputation. The tobacconist, not
without misgiyings, returned to Marion
street, and when he reached the little
house was much surprised to see that the
ceiling had not been restored to its natural
place. His surprise turned to horror, how
ever, when he found his brothers body
crushed between the ceiling and the loor.
He rapidly made up his mind to remove it.
HllNl pttkl1R IL lulD u mdllItSS lnhl lay
ready for the burglars next load of booty.
he placed it in the express wagon and drove
home.
The place behind his counter was occu-
pied by Salome, n bright-eyed, ~dark-haired
damscl, who, in the tobacconist's establish
ment, combined the functions of sales
woman and mail-of-all-work. When her
employer arrived with his mortuary bur
den she was pledging her word of honor
to a customer that the Rose Perfecta
cigars, of which she had just sold two for
; cents, were in no way Inferior to the Rosa
Perfeota cigars which more pretentious
dealers sold for 30 cents apiece. Interrupt
ing her in this imaginative occupation,
Isidor Marx o her aside and said: "You
will be surprised, Salome, TO hear that the
mattress which | have just brought into
the store contains the mangled body of my
brother, Adrian Marx"
II am less surprised rejoined Salome.
"at the contents OF the mattress han Mt
the ease with which you have transported
1t, in the full light of day, through the
crowded streets OF New York"
Leaving his brothers body In Salome's
charge Isilor Marx called on his sister-in-
law and recited the facts OF the case ex-
actly as they had happened. Mrs. Adrian
fh' 81 III " ~ t'AiNaA fitN anu I
ont displaying emotion or giving vent to
outcries so common with women, she said,
"Well, he ooh out his fifth insurance on
Friday week, so | suppose that 1t is all
for the best" She then sent the following
advertisAment to the newspapers:
"Died-At his clothing establishment,
No. 1872 Center street. which makes a spec
ialty OF insists and the loan Of dress suits,
Adrian Marx, aged SO, from n general de-
arrangement of the system. Please omit
flowers
There was great dismay among tho
burglars when they discovered their loss
Although the glass which the captain
wore In his left eye made him seem to re-
gard everything humorously. he was
really excited to an unusual degree, and
had not been so indignant since the occa-
sion when he found his photograph
adjoining the rogues' gallery ut police
headquarters.
ave have been basely robbed he cried,
M 1t Is imperative that we should. md
the cowardly scoundrel who has hlched a
portion of our hard-earned savings"
BY questioning the policeman at the cor
ner of the street he had no great trouble in
Identifying Mr.. Marx as the intruder in his
lair. He then babe his fellows dispense
tiiAlbtiS lit M anu ia
chase thirty-nine large Saratoga trunks.
Having made the purchase each of them
tool his place in n trunk, having previ-
ously bored an opening through which he
might breathe.
Then the captain, MS soon as night fell,
departed for Center street with his thirty
nine Saratoga trunks loaded in express
wagons, and, calling on Mr.. Marx, repre-
scented himself as the partner in a great
firm of cigarette manufacturer in Cincin-
natl. He proposed that Mr.. Marx should
constitute himself as the sole agent of this
firm in New York. The magnitude of the
offer astonished the humble tobacconist,
who, despite the ample means with which
his visit to Marion street had endowed him,
still maintained his simple and penurious
habits. He lost no time in accepting, how
ever, and for fear of losing sight of his Wis
itor urgently asked at what hotel he was
staying.
none said the captain, "The truth
is, | am on my way to Europe and have
rather an unusual amount of baggage"
"Of how many pieces does it consist"
asked Isidor.
"Thirty-nine Saratoga trunks" replied
the chief OF the burglars.
Mr.. Marx, though somewhat surprised
at the number of trunks, said he happened
to have a back yard in which they could
all be stored, and II the visitor did not
care to lose sight of them, he could be ac-
commodated with n bed in Mr.. Marks
parlor. Thu offer was accepted; the thirty
nine trunks were stored In the yard; the
stranger stayed to dinner with the house
hold and made himself wonderfully agree
able, displaying n rich stone OF anecdotes
md showing that he was OF familiar terms
with all the principal p%ersonages in Euro
rope,
While the dinner was pursuing its fest
I've course, and the captain Of the burglars
was telling how, in the past, he
had suggested ideas to Victor Huro,
points Of strategy to Moltke,
and political projects to Mr.. Gladstone,
Salome went into the yard to take In the
clothes which were there hanging. In re
moving one OF the trunks. which was in
the way of the clothes line. size distinctly
heard a rough voice mutter. We'll. are you
ready" Anybody but Saluine would have
been thrown into dismay. But Salome,
with her ready wit, instantly OWNED the
conspiracy, and answered In quiet tones,
'Woit n little longer"
She then hastened into Center street and
sought out nm obscure basement, over
which was scrawled in rude letters:
"Tom Glover, exterminator OF animals,
inventor OF the celebrated Rough on Rab
bits Vermin neatly %asphxiated. Reason
able charges"
Mr.. Glover was seated in his Office, sur
rounded by Gagged animals, which were
awaiting the application OF his peculiar
process. lie received Salome with bluff
courtesy, going so far as to remove his pipe
from his mouth, and, when she eN-
pressed a desire to purchase one OF his as
phyxiating instruments, he explained that
1t consisted OF a bellows charged with
carbolic acid gas,