Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1905-12-06
DAILY SHORT STORY
IN A LONDON FOG.

|
| terested him.
He was a Russian and also an in
ventor. He called himself an inventor
of mechanical toys. and as the two he
came better acquainted he gave the
! colonel his address and asked him Ia
| call and see some of his work. Three
days later the colonel called. He found
| his man on the third floor of mean
house In a squalid street. The man had
rugged up i workbench and supplied
| himself with tools. and what he was
really trying to do was 10 produce Il
! clock that should spring an Internal
machine at the Ihour and minute in
| tended.
| The colonel was a big, unSuSpiciouS
westerner. having no thought of plots
or conspiracies and perfectly willing to
! give a fellow inventor any help posi-
BILE. He called three different times in
as many days. working for couple of
hours each time and then the invCn-
ton was complete. The Russian. who
| could speak English fairly well. had
completely tambooZled him as TO the
object of the clockwork.
One night. three weeks after the Rus
sian had dropped out of sight. the colo
mel decided TO attend the theater. He
sat through the performance and came
out. as others did, to find fog SO
thick that one could hardly see his
hand when stretched out the length
of the arm. He had not far TO 60
however-three blocks down the street
and then turn to the left and go one
block TO the corner house. He could
have done that with his eyes shut
There were pedestrians ahead and i'll
rear of him as he made his way down
TO the corner. but standing there mo-
ment he realized that no one had turned
into the side street.
Suddenly. and without the slightest
warning. he was seized by two men.
As one put Il knee in the small of his
back and bent him over the other clap
ped pad over his mouth TO prevent
him from uttering any sounds. In Il
moment more they had him in some
kind of carriage and moving slowly
away, Il man sitting on either side of
him. The driver OF the vehicle must
have been well acquainted with Lon
don. He guided the horse through the
black darkness for three-quarters of an
hour before he stopped.
Meanwhile not IL word had been
spoken by those in the carriage 1t
seemed TO be the plan of the abductors
not 10 speak, and. as for the colonel. the
pad prevented. He could get his breath
through his nose, but his mouth was
tightly covered. His hands had not
been bound. but strong fingers held
them in a grip of iron all the way.
When the vehicle stopped it was 10y a
quayside. The colonel knew that, be-
cause he could hear and smell the wa
ter He also realized that his captors
walked him up gang plank and aboard
q steamer. Once aboard there We're
men with lanterns and there were cleo
1ric lights. but so dense was the fog
and so quiet everything around that
nothing seemed real until he was final
~ landed in a sumptuous cabin. There
the men let go of him and stood back
and the colonel looked around him To-
tind two men seated ut a table. He
knew them at once for Russians, and
ne saw that he had been made prisoner
Ivan Moskow. advance" said one
of the men at the table after the silence
had lasted for minute.
y !
mel as he walked forward.
His speech betrayed his nationality
in a second. and both men uttered a
curse
What are you doing herer was
asked
Il was brought here by force. and / |
should like to know the meaning of |
it,"
The man tapped a bell, and a young |
man who might have been his secre
tary entered. The talk was in Russian,
and an explanation seemed to be de- |
1t was made. but it did not |
satisfy. There was loud and violent
talk for ten minutes. and then the
young man retired and the colonel was
asked:
do you know a Russian anarchist
named Petroff Misky?"
Il have met him." was the reply.
did you aid him to make an internal
machineT"
Never! 1 aided him to complete
toy"
And you are who and whatT'
The colonel gave his name. address
and business. He had certain papers
I ,
fully read. and after awhile the Rus
sian said:
1T may be that there is a mistake.
We shall know in a day or two"
r And am to be held prisoner while
you take your time TO find out that
have told the truth
You may call il lucky for you that
sou are. II there wasn't doubt about
the matter this steamer would he at
seasRt sunrise"
The colonel began to protest, but he .
was. hustled into cabin. told TO make .
himself comfortable, and for forty :
Eight hours she was a close prisoner.
rhen,l at midnight. he was blinded
With: a pad, two men got into vehicle =.
with thim, and after half an hours .
iriye he.was landed at the door OF his .