Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1892-05-06
CALLAGHAN'S FAILURE.

interest him exceedingly. He examined
each article carefully, often stopping long
enough to test the particular object with
his teeth, or even to bend it. At the same
time his actions were quiet and, one might
say. reserved. He did not appear to care
to he noticed.
He was rather tall young fellow, care
lessly dressed" as they say i'm novels, and
had pale face, like students. One
might. indeed. have thought him a poor
student were it not for his eyes, which, in
stead of looking tired and dreamy like
students. were exceedingly active and rest
less. On the whole, his face and his gen
eral appearance were not prepOssessing.
Indeed, the policeman on the beat most
frequentcd by Mr. Callaghan in social life
reported him at the precinct house as "a
general tough-suspicious.'
Mr.. Callaghan, though very young, had
already learned the value of exceeding eau
ton. Hence he was almost noiseless, and
he inspected the silverware in the very
mild light of a half-opened lantern. a
happy smile played around the corners of
his face the while, for the silverware he
was examining proved to be OF the finest
and newest, and bore the monogram OF a
famous New York family For that mat
ter, the entire surroundings of Mr.. Gala
CHAN at the time were of the richest. The
very sidcboard at which he labored was
worth a small fortune, and the cut glass
upon it looked very beautiful in the
mellow light There were rich red tints in
some of the glassware, occaSioned by their
contents, but Mr.. Callaghan did not stop
to examine them. He did not believe in
drinking during business hours. The time
was something after midnight
Mr. Callaghan was aroused from his pre-
occupation by a faint click 1t sounded
very much like the click of a trigger as a
revolver is cooked 1t was tritie start
ling, but he did not lose his presence of
mind. He faced around like flash, and
turned of the rays of his dark lantern.
He knew it was almost useless to take the
latter precaution, however, for he was well
informed, and he knew that in the houses
of the rich of today it required but the
pressing of button to turn on full
stream of electric lights throughout an en-
tire floor. The sudden burst of light came,
Just rs he expected it would, and as it did
so he heard Il voice say, "Don't dare to
move
He was more startled by the voice than
he was by the sudden glare of the electric
llEILS, lOl IL was lllt NblNN va "a NOhlS SAll'
Mr.. Callaghan blinkcd IA few times, took a
good look, and then his thin face broadened
a trifc into smile. At the other end of the
room stood a very pale but resolute girl in
a pink wrapper. She held a little gold
mounted revolver of calibre so small that
Mr.. Callaghan, but for his natural po-
likeness, would have laughed at it outright,
and she was biting her lip, for she was APP
parentlv very nervous. The revolver was
pointed in Mr. Callaghan's direction but,
alas, the hand that held it was shaking
very perceptibly. Callaghan grinned. "Isn't
it rather late for you to be out?'' he asked
her.
Don't dare to move" she replied. 81
know precisely what to do. Papa told me
before he went away. / am going to send
the burglar alarm and have you arrested.
Then you will be sent to state prison"
"Wen," almost laughed Mr.. Callaghan,
"why don't you do it? I'm waiting"
Because she answered, hesitatingly-
''because you're standing in front of it,"
sob, am -" answered Callaghan
''Then I'll move away. | always like tC
be polite to ladies'" He moved away q
few steps.
She frowned a little bit Then she said
Excuse me. viii you please move lit
tie further away?'
Certainly" he answered; anything tC
oblige real lady
She stepped toward the alarm, which
Callaghan had not until then perceived
and stretched forth her hand. She wa:
about to turn the little handle, when Cal
laghan said, hastily:
"Hold on a minute. Do you think thai
would be a nice thing to do?n
"Of course it would she answered.
"Just think about it a moment" Gala
CHAN continued. "If you do that, I'll bC
arrested, and sent up for fifteen or twenty
years. Fifteen or twenty years in little
cell all by myself, with no one to talk t.
and nothing to do-eXcept break stone fO
my health. Now | don't care anything
about it myself OF course haven't done
Won any wrong. ! haven't got away will
the silver, and therefore there isn't an!
wrong done YOU there? tried to, bu
You have got the best of me, and you n
an awfully brave little girl to do it, too
But Just think of yourself during the mex
fifteen or twenty years, if you have M
sent up. Every day you'll be thinking
about the poor fellow who's doing time be
cause you made him, and every night you'll
be lying awake crying because you mad
him suffer so much for such a little thing
and every time the minister in your churcl
says anything about forgiving your enc
mics you'll be thinking he means you
and"
She broke in-"I think I'll let you go.
She said it very earnestly.
Callaghan laughed aloud. THAT
right" he said. 81 knew you would, TO
i knew you were lady the minute ! say
you. l didn't mean what l said. Proba
bly, in month you'd forget all about me
No one remembers a fellow who's doin
time but the police and the detectives.
was just trying an experiment, Do yo
think ! was afraid of your little revolver
Nonsense. I've been shot twice by rea
revolyers. If you had tried to send tn
burglar-alarm do you know what I'd hay
done? I'd have made a quick jump TO
you, and I'd have had my hands abou
your throat before you could have winked
If you had fired the revolver you woul
have missed me. Girls can't shoot" II
said this last almost cOntemptuously; bu
he was sorry moment afterwards, for h
noticed that she was growing very whit
and very frightened too. Nevertheless, h
continued: "And after I'D got my hand
about your neck, and you couldn't scream