The Washburn leader. [volume] (Washburn, McLean County, N.D.) 1890-1986, 1901-11-23
CHAPTER 1.
A FoOtstep on the Stairs.

women DuIL2Leu at SliecI CoiA1SiS o
eung against each other and hurled
boisterously into unexpected doorWays
A wild night, with Leavy clouds drivlns
nercely across the moon, and a bltter'
stinging rain whipping and cutting into
the faces Of passers-by. A whlrllng,
s%brieking, mad night. to make peaceful
folk shiver in their beds. and bless Goo
thai they had a roof over them.
On this night, with their backs set
steadily to the driving wind, W men
were. blown along, side by s1de, IN the
direction of a certain house, pufleu
away in the heart of st. johns Wooo.
One of them, at least, must nave known
the way to it; for the pair kept stralgnt
on, without turning to the right or le1t'
and without making inquiry OF n one
Of the few people they met. only once
or twice, the taller man or the Two
would stop at a street corner, as though
In doubt, and look about Tim perpleH-
edly; then, while his companion STOOD
still, he would take q step or TWO IN one
direction-shake his head n come
back again; try another, and, with d
nod of satisfaction, lead the way
afresh. And thus, feeling their way, as
1t We're, and beating it out IN STEADY
persistent fashion, X men tracking
their path through some wild place 10
which they were unaccuytomed, they
came to the house.
a gloomy and weird sort of place II
tas-re,ic of some earlier period before
the era of villas and semi-detached res
dences; a great mouse for that part OF
London, set in a neglected wilderness OF
q garden, with a high wall all arouno
It. A curious house, m two parts-one or
which had lights in it, while the other
was dark and cold, like the face of a
man with one bird eye and the other
sparkling with life. So much, at least
they could see of it, as they stood back
on the ether side of the road n
caught a glimpse of its upper windows,
over the top of the wall.
"Oh! poor old house; poor, old, for
form place 1 once called home!" ex-
claimed the taller man, as he stared at
Cts dark roofs outlined against the
stormy sky. "How many years since l
turned my back Upon you, how many
years, during which I have seen you, as
clearly as I see you now, in strange cit
les and in wild places Of the earth,
where no real house eve stood! And
now-to come back to you like this!"
The other man was silent; he merely
glanced curiously at h house, while he
held his hat on and strove to stand
steadily against the wind.
Now you understand what you have
60 do, Holden?" went on the tell man,
after a pause. "You have the card; you
have the money. This is merely a whim
Of mine; I want to prepare the way, as
1t were-to play the mysterious a
who does good thing and hides him
sci while it is being done. Nv earned
the right to have that satisfaction, at
least, put of the business. Their visitor
Is expected at midnight; it must be
close on that now, and YOU.
"But I don't quite see, sir" broke in
che other man. "how I'm to manage the
business. You have written to say that
Gilbert ,Rickerby will be ~here"-point-
1ng to the house-'at midnight"
"At misunderstanding"
"sBut Gilbert Rickerby-excuse me for
taking such g liberty with the name,
.sir-won't be there at all, because +"
because you'll go in his place. You
can explain that Gilbert Rickerby is a
queer SORT Of fellow-the queerer the
better for this business, Holden!-and
will come later. Don't you see that,
apart from the satisfaction of standing
-mysteriously outside the business, I
want to know what sort of reception
my emissary meets with? Hark!there
goes the hour at Observation-Disclosures a
wild night for a wild business-at least,
ecme would think 1t so. Now, then, of
with you'll" =
Holden crossed the road and stopped
before a wooden gate in the high wall
and rang the bell; the next moment the
sound Of the bell itself clanked out,
even above the noise of the wind. The
tall man on the opposite side of h
road drew himself back into the shelter
OF a doorway, and prepared to make
himself as comfortable as possible UNI
I'll the others return.
After what seemed quite a long time
q black space opened up in the gray
'aergth of the wall; swallowed the other
man up, and became gray like the rest.
Meanwhile, In the house itself, the
visitor was expected-expected with
some trepidation, too, to Judge from ap-
pearances. and vet with the hurry of
fevered preparation. It vas a ghostly
old house, altogether, al the best Of
times: yet, surely, never more ghostly
thar. tonight. For there were mysteri-
Gus creakings and creepings on the
Stsirs: a whispering of voices behind
closed doors; once q lantern, fiingtng
out long shafts Of light from three
sides, was swung aloft in the hand of
some person moving about the dreary
old garden: passed to the gate and
caused there, as though the person who
held It stood listening; went jerkily
back into the house again.
At last, whatever preparations We're
afoot. seemed to be completed: and
three men drifted together silently into
one room, on the first floor of that light
ed part Of the house. They came with
out speaking; and as though for ON
strnnge purpose, they ann together
for company, to; wait out the time, un-
I'll something had to be done 81 Spirits;
were on table In this room: but only
one man drank-andsthat man hurried
~ and furtiyely. al though he were
.ss1erying himself. Of set purpose, and not
though he greatly enjoyed the
drinking.
This manSswho drankswas compare
lively ycung, Sc a strong and active
sngure, and with q r~eiMarkably swarthy
ncmplexion. Whatever his general de-
eaeanor maysS haysb beer. onEthis night hs
SaHss Mss