The L'Anse sentinel. (L'Anse, L.S., Mich.) 18??-current, 1891-10-24
SACRIFICED HIS SUCCESS


land now who knows exactly how it
happened, and az was thinking over
it tonight-something in the papers
about clever detective in New York
brought it all fresh back to my mind
it seemed to me such n queer story
altogether that / thiukit will interest
Others to know it.
i must Just alter one or two OF the
names, that's all, because it is not so
very long since it happened, and it
came out III one or two papers at the
time, but all more or less wide Of the
mark. None OF them had just the
rights of it.
You see, no one could make out how
Allan got away SO easily-no one
knows except my friend and j, and
one man over the seas, and not even
the cutest Yankee could ever guess
the truth.
1t is stranger than fiction, rs you
will find. But this is the story.
put it short enough, for writing is
not in my line. ] can think things out
in my head and turn them over and
over till there is not much left OF them
that has not been put through the
sieve, so to speak, but when it comes
to pen and ink Pm poor hand. 1t
means sitting down indoors for hours,
and that / am not used to. No, thank
heaven, can earn my bread by some
thing else, or very little bread would
come to me, and no chance of butter
or cheese.
This is not my story at all; mean,
not about my own life. 1t is about q
friend of mine, George Markson.
II told you his real name, you
would probably remember it at once,
he was one of the best known detec-
tives of the time. Talk about five
senses, George had ten at least. He
could see round case and through a
man, and into your mind almost, and
tell you what you were thinking of,
better than you knew yourself.
And all SO quiet-you would not
think he saw much, but he had seen
everything at glance and forgotten
nothing. have known him to look
into q room that he had never seen
before, and in the evening when we
were sitting together, he would de-
scribe that room down to hemaker's
name on the clock, as minutely as if
he were holding a picture of it in his
hand at the time.
He worked on his own account, and
he had constant and well paid en-
ployment, since the day he tracked
the man who robbed the bank of
Westminster; you may remember the
case-a daring daylight robbery.
Ta trooaI hin, fta lnnu CO., rob
to Paris, and spotted him there as q
garcon in q cafe-a good disguise, too.
George was in Spain after that for q
long time. and then went to Cairo, SO
did not see him for more than q
year. He came back with reputa-
ton more brilliant than ever, and
settled down into the same rooms he
had shared with me before he left.
He was a middle aged man when l
knew him, and the severe mental
strain OF his employment, together
with home troubles, made him seem
older than he wasl
His wife, to whom he had been
much attached, had died many years
ago. His only son, too, had turned
out badly, got into debt 1.-THE old story
of weak will influenced by bad COM
panions), and then had emigrated to
the gold diggings and was believed to
have died there after few more
wasted years OF riot and dissipa-
tion.
His father had built many hopes
on his only son, and had carried
about an unhealed wound caused by
the bitter disappointment of all his
expectations.
At the time / am writing about, /
saw there was something more than
usual on Georges mind.
He never talked about what he
was engaged in, and l took care never
to plague him with questions, but it
happened that chum Of mine, named
Miles, told me that George had missed
q good clue, and that another man,
named Smollett was beginning to
make a name, and was now bent on
outdoing George.
Once run to the earth some one
whom George had failed to trace, and
his reputation was secure.
TO outshine one of the best men
then Mt work was high game to try
for, but Smollett was trying no
less.
Not long after met Miles again in
Oxford street. He told me that Smo-
llett had scored again, and that George
had missed find he had made pretty
sure of.
pooh poohed the whole thing.
"Chance, all chance. Fine thing for
Smollett, more luck than good man.
agement, no doubt" / said, feeling
rather nettled, own.
wait bit, you will see which is
the best man of the two"
"'I'll back SIM said Miles, but
remembered that George was my
friend, and said no more.
/ came across Miles in very nearly
the same place next day. Heard the
latest2" he shouted, and then pro-
ceeded to explain that forger, who
had been wanted for some time, was
supposed to be in London, and that
large reward was offered for him.