Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1895-08-29
CHAPTER x-CoNr1NrEp.

have coursed many creatures in
many countries during my check
cred career, but never did sport
give me such wild thrill as this
mad, flying man hunt down the
Thames. Steadily we drew in upon
them, yard by yard. In the silence
of the night we could hear the
painting and clanking of their ma
chinery. The man in the stern still
crouched upon the deck, and his arms
were moving as though he were busy,
while every now and then he would
look up and measure with glance the
distance which still separated us
Nearer we came and nearer. Jones
yelled to them to stop. We were not
more than four boats lengths behind
them, both boats flying at tremen-
dous pace 1t was clear reach of
the river, with Barking level upon
one side and the melancholy Plum
stead marshes upon the other. At
our hail the man in the stern sprang
up from the deck and shook his two
cllnched fists at us, cursing the while
in high, cracked voice. He
was a good-sized, powerful man.
and as he stood posing himself
with legs astride 1 could see that from
the thigh downwards there was but a
wooden stump upon the right side. At
the sound of his strident, angry cries
there was movement in the huddled
bundle upon the deck. It Strengthened
itself into little black mantle
smallest have ever seen-witha great,
misshapen head and a shock of tangled,
disheveled hair. Holmes had already
drawn his revolver, and / whipped out
mine at the sight of this savage, dis
torted creature. He was wrapped in
some sort of dark ulster or blanket,
which left only his face exposed; but
that face was enough to give a man a
sleepless night. Never have / seen
features so deeply marked with all bes-
TALLY and cruelty. His small eyes
glowed and burned with somber light,
and his thick lips were writhed back
from his teeth, which grinned and chat
tered at us with half animal fury.
Fire if he raises his hand,'' said
Holmes, quietly. We were within a
boats length by this time, and almost
within touch of our quarry. can see
the two of them now as they stood. the
white man with his legs far apart,
shrieking out curses, and the unhal-
his strong yellow teeth crashing at US
in the light of our lantern.
It was we'll that we had SO clear a
view of him. Even as we looked he
plucked out from under his covering a
short, round piece of wood, like n
school ruler, and clapped it to his
lips. Our pistols rang out together.
He whirled round, threw up his
arms, and with a kind of chok-
ing cough fell sideways into the
stream. caught one glimpse of his
venomous. menacing eyes amid the
white swirl of the waters. At the
same moment the wooden-legged man
threw himself upon the rudder and put
it hard down, SO that his boat made
straight in for the southern bank,
while we shot past her stern, only
clearing her by a few feet. We were
round after her in an instant, but she
was already nearly at the bank. 1t
was wild and desolate place, where
the moon glimmered upon wide ex-
panse of marsh land, with pools of
stagnant water and beds of decaying
vegetation. The launch, with dull
thud, ran up on the mud bank, with
her bow in the air and her stern flush
with the water. The fugitive sprang
out, but his stump instantly sank its
whole length into the sodden soil. In
vain he struggled and writhed. Not
one step could he possibly take
either forwards or backwards He
yelled in impotent rage, and kicked
frantically into the mud with his other
foot, but his struggles only bored his