The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1906-06-09
Captains s Double
BY L1LL1As CAMPBELL DAVIDSON

l~~>~>&3>>~>~~~ ~~&~~~~>~>1@~z
fateful issue to the two of them,
should have such matter of impor-
tance to them both still before it's
hours should end.
The rain fell dreari1y, and the sod
den pavements were deep in mud and
wet. In the damp wind that futtered
round the unsheltered corners the
street lamps fared nournfully. There
was no electric light. with it's broad,
white band, here in these back Port
sea streets. The miserable quality of
the gas only made the darkness more
visible and lent an additional gloom
to the scene.
Does anyone know the back streets
Of Portsea? If not, he has not yet
fathomed the meaning of the words
depression and "ugliness." Behind
the great church of st. Mary's, King
ston, the demon builder, who is mostly
his own architect, seems to have WED
with his fellow in monumental hideous-
ness. Street after street stretches so
like it's neighbor that only the names
at the corners serve to guide the be-
wildered wayfarer. And in every
street row after row of nat-faced.
sqnalid, indistinguishable dwellings:
are only rendered different from one
another by the variety of the recepta-
Gle for refuse that sits before the door,
on the pavement's edge. There is an
infinite ingenuity in these receptacles,
these tanks Of the ash and the cabbage
leaf. Sometimes it, is an orange or a
candle box; sometimes tin battered
out IF all semblance to any utensil:
sometimes a basket, breaking apart
rith it's ugly weight. -.,-
One wonders how the inhabitants
would find their lhlalkaI 81
abode if those ash -binsaWeIeAWh hjskeds
away by whirlwind some day They
would be found wandering up and
down, seeking in vain to read an iden-
tjfication in the paint-dennded doors,
or the coarse lace curtains discreetly
draped across the window panes
Along one of these avenues of mo-
| notony there crept furtive shadow
now and again 90 this night of rain
and damp. There was an odd similar
tty in the manner of the shadows, had
one noticed it; they urked and they
vanished into dusky doorways, and
6attened themselves against the wall
when footstep sounded through the
fog and the dampness. 1t was not un-
til the footstep passed that they ven
tured out again. When the street was
vacant they hurried on with stealthy,
secretive hurryings. The very jerki-
ness of their progress was noticeable
! had there been any one to attract.
And there was one more point of
similarity in all of them They halted
before house that had no light in its
windows or In the narrow slit of glass
above the door. They made no mis-
take where a mistake of destination
would have been SO excusable: they
crouched low before the door and
struck the panel softly three times
! At the third stroke the door was open-
! ed Il crack as if on a chain inside A
challenge was given; the man outside
made low and whispered answer: then
the door opened q trif1e wider and
they glided round its edge and Slip
| ped inside. There was stealth as
we'll as mystery about the whole pro-
| .ceedlng that made one fancy oneself
; in medieval Italy or country over
!! rider by the Inqnisition.
There was no light in the front win
dows or in the narrow, stuffy passage,
| but in room at the back, looking into
a tiny court "A lamp shone. The win:
dow was shuttered and. heavy cur
tain hung before the shutters, as if to
hide every ray of light from every eye
| without. In this small ROOM: con.
! fined and neager and narrow band
! of men was gathered, augmented con
stantly by the new and stealthy ar
rivals from the street outside They
entered silently and cautiously, ush.
! cred in by the unseen man who open
ed the: door to them. Each, as he came
into the circle Of light from the ill:
! smelling lamp on the table, saluted in
! silence one who sat at the top Of the
| room in an arm chair; and had the air
of being the president. = !: 81 *= PSI
! He was large man with a curious
1y big head, over. which he: wore hat
! slouched down in. a. nlannersWhich was
affected by. them al. No one dofed
this covering :sas he sa1uted and sat
! down, and the effect of an >assemblage
of men wearing, their hats in "a small
room was oddly: sinister and .grotesque:
He was hardlysto be ecognized If any
Of them saw him again; there was So
little Of his face seen no. only a
pair .=of dark piercing ewes sof usual
power. which sl1one from t shadow
I cast by his large and had.a
9command 3 g ding auth hort was strange
that ever that int glimpse ofz 3 him