New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1902-11-19

means Of 1t found the stairs leading
to the ground floor. The servants
quarters were above me, and to avoid
.arousing any one I removed my shoes.
The house was spacious and roomy.
and had to take note of my surround
ings as proceeded, SO that / might
find my way back again without blum
dering. It is a poor general have al
ways thought, who burns his bridges
behind him. More than once this care
full habit of mine has saved me from
unpleasant compli cations
. When / passed from the kitchen into
the dining room, was greatly sur
prised not to find any solid pieces Of
silver. Even many Of the expensive
pieces Of bric-a-brac that are usual to
such houses were gone. 1t looked as If
the hostess had anticipated robbery
and had stripped the tables and man
telpieces of every small article Of spe-
cial value. ey ~.
Although disappointed, Il made my
way upstairs, hoping to find some loose
jewelry at least on the bureaus. There
were signs of the feast and entertain
ment all about the hall and rooms, but
I was unable to find anything that ap-
pealed to my tastes. passed from
one bedroom to another, with about
the same result. could hear the reg
ular breathing Of the occupants Of the
house, and distant noise In the rear
told me that one man was good snor-
er. So long as that rhythmic sound
continued T. felt that was safe from
all alarms. ..4 Fl
After making a detour Of the rooms
finally entered q small chamber that
was used for storing linen and trunks.
It occurred to me that possibly the
missing things We're packed away IN
this room. I closed the door gently
behind me and turned on the slide
from my lantern. As = t...:..sss
As I did SO was suddenly startled
by the bright ray of some light shoot
ing out Of the darkness. Instantly /
grasped my revolver and directed my
light toward the spot. The result Of
this movement was to produce queer
combination.
T saw that was looking into the
mouth of a revolver held in the hands
Of man who was inspecting me by
the aid of dark lantern similar to
my own. My own revolver was Gov
ering the place where his heart should
be. &c., -. srtt 5; ..4- = s@.*
The discovery must have been ST.
multaneous, for we both flashed the
light of our lanterns into each others
face and gazed long and silently. Mel
ther wore a mask, and in the uncov-
cred eyes there was cool, deadly re-
solve written, It would have been
foo1hardy for either to shoot, for the
life Of the other would have been in
stantly sacrificed. WAITED full min.
ute or two for the man to speak.
''Well," I said finally, unwilling to
bear the strain Of silence longer, ''you
seem to be ahead Of me tonight, and ]
must congratulate you upon the neat
ness Of your work. / haven't found q
thing behind you" ~.
The man was not inclined to answer
at first, but continued in a reassuring
| voice: q .ss~....1., -. ..;s.- !. ...~z T.
1--WE may as we'll call a truce. II
would be folly for either Of us to shoot
I don't want to- get you in trouble any
more than myself IT
7 had been struck by the fine, hand
some features of the man, but when he
spoke in a well modulated, musica
voice was further puzzled. He die
i 4y1n% 1cn1y 1ilyo nv,n ne COZ IL. mi
/ t'What kind Of a truce do you want? 2
he asked. s'You see II have you covered
/ with my revolver and could kill you IL
an instant"
But you fail to notice mine, an
swered. "a very slight pressure Of tn,
trigger would send a bullet through
your heart" .%
I thought he turned a Hife paler, bu
his voice was steady and unquavering
II admit that and accept the situa
ton. But tell me what terms you pro
4 pose for your truce" g...:
Simply these: We should go int,
partnership at least for tonight. I hav,
had as much trouble in getting into th
house as you, and I have run just a,
much risk, but you got ahead Of M.
and made a complete job. I admir-,
!. the way you have done the work
Even couldn't do it better, and I dom
think you belong to the class r.
Never mind that" he interrupted
impatiently. Stick to your terms ant
be quick" Ks
well, to come straight to the point,
added, little nettled at his abrup
ways, 81 propose that we divide th'
i plumber you have collected. For You
extra trouble you take tWo-thirds ant
i one-third lis that fair r
He remained silent a moment AM
i then said:
IF agree to such a bargain, moth
ing further will ever be said Of to
nights work = as#
Not a word. s
And you will never recognize %
II you should happen to meet me q
the street or anywhere else =
4 a did not Ike this part Of the bargain
4 FOR believe that every one should b
III, ,,7 -. ., -, =, x =, 1.r1es