The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-03-11
| was man to command confidence. Who
would have suspected him9 And an old

would have suspected him9 And an old
proverb which he had repeated one
evening flashed thru my mind:
POLE Foil est la brebis qui au loup Sc
'tSilly is the sheep who to the wolf
herself confesses,'' had translated it,
with that painful literalness character
istic of the beginner. Well, had been
the sheep, and silly enough, heaven
knows - ~,
Ithad reached Broadway, and at the
corner paused to look at a display of
mems furnishings in a window. Far
down the street, on the other side,
almost lost in the hurrying crowd,
Martigny was buying paper Of a news
ly up and down its columns, like a
man who is searching for some special
item of news. Perhaps he was spec
ulator; perhaps, after all, l was de-
ceiving myself in imagining that he was
following me. l had no proof Of it; it
was the most natural thing in the world
that he should be in this part of the
town. I must test the theory before
accepting it. It was time [ grew wary
of theories
I entered the store and spent ten
minutes looking at some neckties. When
came out again, Martigny was just
getting down from bootblack's chair
across the street. His back was toward
me, and watched him get out his little
purse and drop a dime into the boot
black s hand. I went on up Broadway,
lettering sometimes, sometimes walking
straight ahead; always, away behind
me, lost in the crowd, was my pursuer.
1t could no longer be doubted. He was
really following me, tho he did it so
adroitly, with such consummate cum
ming, that I should never have seen
him, never have suspected him, but for
that fortunate intuition at the start.
A hundred plans flashed thru my
} brain. I had this advantage, he could
not know that I suspected him. If I
could only overmaster him in cunning,
) wrest his secret from him-and then,
as I remembered the strong face, the
piercing eyes, the perfect self-control,
I realized how little possible it was
that I could accomplish this. He was
my superior in diplomacy and deceit;
, he would not pause, now, at any means
; to assure the success of his plot.
Yes, l could doubt no longer that
there was plot, whose depths I had
, not before even suspected; and I drew
back from the thought with little
shiver. What was the plot7 What IN.
tricate, dreadful crime was this which
, he was planning7 The murder of the
= father, then, had been only the first
q step. The abduction of Frances Hol
z laday was the second. What would the
a third be9 How could we prevent his
!, taking it9 Suppose we should be unsuc
] ceessful9 And, candioly, what chance
OF success could we have, fighting in the
> dark against this accomplished scoun
e drel9 He had the threads all in his fin
+ gers, he controlled the situation; W.
! were struggling blindly, snarled in {
! ! net Of mystery from which there seemed
T no escaping. My imagination clothed
him with superhuman attributes. Fol
:. = a moment a wild desire possessed me
= to turn upon him, to confront him, tt
! accuse him, to confound him with thu
:, very certainty Of my knowledge, II
II surprise his secret, to trample hin
~ down!
But the frenzy passed. No, he mus
4 not discover that [ suspected him;
y must not yield up that advantage.
+ might yet surprise him, mislead him
- set trap for him, get him to say NOR
r. than he wished to say. That battle O
a wits would come later on-this yer,
~ night, perhaps-but for the moment,
:. my first plan Yet he must sH not Ssf susp ec
" the direction of my search-I. mus
1t throw him off the track. Why, thi
was, for all the world, just like tn
- penny dreadfuls Of my boyhood-and
,, smiled at the thought that I had becom
an actor in a drama fitted for q red -ani
,, yellow cover!
la MY plan was soon made. I crosse
Broadway and turned into Cortland
sauntered along it until the elevate
a loomed just ahead; I heard the roar Q
an approaching train, and stopped t
al purchase some fruit at the corner stant
"a MY pursuer was some distance behint
closely inspecting the brio -a-brac in
~ peddler's cart. The train rumbled int
h the station, and starting as tho ha
~ a just perceived it, bounded up the stat
m slammed my ticket into the choppe
and dived across the platform. I'll
le. guard at the rear of the train held til
oa gate open for me an instant, and the
aS changed it shut. We were off with
no jerk; as looked back I saw Martign
T rush out upon the platform. He stoc
~. staring after me for an instant; the
Il with sudden grasping at his breas
Mt staggered and seemed to fall. A crow
NV closed about him, the train whiske
us around Garner, and I could see I
Of Of But, at any rate, I was we'll free
eb walked on to the Square and began n n
,rt search. NY plan was very simple B
- ~ ginning on the east side Of West Broa
W. way IT was my Intention to stop
~ every mouse and inquire whether lodge
ne were kept. My experience at the fir
place was a pretty fair sample of all t
7e- rest. .s..
he A frowsy-headed woman answered n
ers knock
or "You have rooms to letqn I aske
IN ION, yes, MONSIEUR she answere
!as with an expansive grin. ''Step 2
I'm way"
y, We mounted a dirty stair, and s
Mt, threw open door with a fiouri
get meant to be impressive.
at "Zese are re rooms, monsieur; z
aid are ver' fne.'
ny, I looked around them with simulat
as interest, smothering my disgust as W
NIB as could. .
tlly Chow long have they been vacant
cid asked.
If "Since only two days, monsieur:
-. you see, zey are ver' fine rooms.''
i'll, That settled it. If they had be
on vacant only two days, had no furtl
ter interest in them, and with some excl
10 made my way out, glad to escape FRI
Tx that fetid atmosphere of garlic a
OF onions So 1 went from house
ler- house, stumbling over dirty CT
:. dren; climbing grimy stairs. catchi
ock glimpses Of crowded sWeatshops be
bed ing into all sorts of holes called roo 90
by courtesy; inhaling a hundl
and an insight that sickened me into ITO !
tia squalid life Of the quarter. sometin
EFF I began to hope that at last I was
nd, the right track; but further inqu
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