The Cook County herald. [volume] (Grand Marais, Minn.) 1893-1909, 1906-06-09
------- THE 49,
Captains Double


Hateful issue TO the two OF them,
should have such matter of impor
lance to them both still before its
hours should end
The rain fell drearilv, and the sod
den paVements were deep in mud and
wet. In the damp wind that tiuttered
round The unsheltered corners the
street lamps fiared mournfully. There
was no electric light. with its 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 addil ional 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 its neighbour that only the names
at the corners serve to guide the be-
wildered wayfarer. And in every
street row after row Of fat faced,
sqnalid indistinguishable dwellings,
are only rendered different from one
;ln'hher by the variety Of the recepta-
Gle For rtfnse that SITS before the door,
on the pavement's edge. There is an
infinite ingenuity in these RECEIPT acles,
these tanks Of the ash and the cabbage
leaf. Sometimes it, Is AN orange or Z.
candle box; sometimes tin battered
ont If all scmblance to any ',tensil:
sometimes basket, breaking apart
tith its ugly weight,
One wonders how the inhabitants
wonld find their way: TO etr59s: own
abode If those ash-bins were whjsked
AWAY by a whirlwind some day. They
would be found wandering up and
down, seeking in vain to read al itien-
LITIGATION i'll The pajnt-denuded doors
or the coarse lace curtains discreet1y
draped across the window panes.
Along one Of these avenues of mo-
notony there crept a furtive shadow
now and again 90 this night of rain
and damp. There was an odd similar
,ty in the manDer of the shadows, had
! one noticed it they Iurked and they
vanished into dusky doorways. and
hattened themselves against the wall
when q footstep sounded through the
fog and the dampness. 1t was not ,,ll-
I'll the foot step passed that they ven
tured out again. When the street was
vacant they hurried on with stealthy,
secrerive hurryings. The very jerk
ness of their progress was noticeable
had there been any one to attract
And there was one more point of
similarity III al OF them. They hailed
before house that had no light in it's
windows OF in the narrow slit of glass
above the door. They made no mis-
take where mistake of destination
would Lave been SO excusablc: they
crOuched low before the door and
struck the panel softly three times.
At the third stroke the door was open
ed q crack as il on a chain inside A
challenge was given; the man outside
the door opened q trife wider and
they Slide1 round its edge and slip
ped inside. There was a stealth as
We'll as mystery about the whole pro
ceed1ng that made one fancy oneself
III medieval Italy or country over
!! ridden by the Inqnisition.
There was no light in the front win.
dows or in the narrow, stuffy passage,
but in a room at the back, looking into
a tiny court "A lamp shone. The win.
dow was shattered and a 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 meager and narrow, band
!! of men was gathered, augmented con.
stantly by the new and stealthy an
! 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.
He was large man with a curious
ly big head, over which he wore hat
! slouched down in manner which was
| affected by them all. No one dotted
This covering as he saluted and sat
down, and the effect of an assemb1age
OF men wearing their hats in a small
| room was oddly sinister and grotesque
He was hardly to be recognized if any
of them saw him again, there was so
little of his face seen now-only a
| pair OF dark, piercing eyes of unusual
power which shone from the shadow
| cast by his large hat brim and had a
| comma ndfng arthnrit, Il x.1c st..axoxo