Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1906-12-15

bound. I own that was almost
tempted to turn on my light and have
done with it, but remembered of how
little use should be to you lying inS
| this we'll of a stairway with a bullet
| In me, and SO managed to compose
myself and go on as had begun, Next
instant my fingers slipped round the
edge of an opening, and I knew that
| the moment of decision had come.
Realizing that no one can move SO
softly that he will not give away his /
presence In some way, / paused for
the sound which knew must come,
and when click rose from the depths
OF the hall before me plunged into
that hall and thus into the house
proper.
Here it was not so dark; yet I;
could make out none Of the objects I
now and then ran against. passed a
mirror Il hardly know how knew It
to to be such, and in that mirror I
seemed to see the ghost Of a ghost fit
by and vanish. 1t was too much. +.
muttered suppressed oath and
plunged forward, when l struck
against a closing door. 1t flew open
again and rushed In, turning ON my
light in my extreme desperation,
when, instead of hearing the sharp re.
Port Of pistol, as expected, saw q
second door fall to before me. this,
time with sound like the snap Of oil
spring lock. Finding that this was So.
and THAT all advance was barred that
way, | wheeled hurriedly back toward
the door by which had entered the
place, to find that that had fallen to
simultaneously with the other, al
single spring acting for both I wasS
| trapped prisoner in the strangest,
sort OF passageway or closet; and, az.
a speedy look about presently assured
me, a prisoner with very little hope OF
immediate escape, for the doors wereY
not only immoyable, without even
locks to pick or panels to break in,
but the place was bare of windows;
and the only communication which n
could be said to have with the out.
! side world at all was shaft rising
from the ceiling almost to the top of
the house Whether this served as e.
yentilator, or a means of lighting uni
| the hole when both doors were shut,
1t was much too inaccessible to Offer
amy apparent way Of escape.
Never was man more thorougjhlyI
| boxed In. AS / realized how little
chance there was of any outside inter.
ference, how my captor, even IL he
was seen leaving the house by the
officer on duty, would be taken for
myself and allowed to escape, own
that felt my position a hopeless one.
But anger is a powerful stimulant, and
| | was mortally angry, not only with
Sears, but with myself. So when I
was done swearing took another
| look around, and, finding that there
was no getting Through the walls.
turned my attention wholly to the
shaft, which would certainly lead ma
out of the place if could only And
| means to mount it.
And how do you think managed
to do this at last? A look at my be>
draggled, ime4coyered clothes may
give you some idea. cut passage
for myself up those perpendicular
wallis as the boy did UP the face Of
the qatural bridge in Virginia. Do
you remember that old story In the
Reader? 1t came to me like an inspir.
alton as / stood looking up from be.
| low, and though | knew that should
dave to work most Of the way In per.
feet darkness, decided that a MANS
| life was worth some risk, and that I
had rather fall and break my neck
| while doing something than to spend
hours in maddening inactivity, only
TO face death at last frow slow starya1
ton.
Il had knife, am exceedingly good
knife, in my pocket-and for the first
few steps should have the lig1ht Of
my electric torch. The difficulty CHAT
is, the first difficulty was to reach the
shaft from the floor where / stood.
There was but one article of furniture
in the room, and that was sometime.
between a table and a desk. No
chairs, and the desk was not high
enough to enable me to reach the
mouth OF the shaft, If l could turn IL
on end there might be some hope.
But this did not look feasible. How.
ever, threw off my coat and went at
the thing with vengeance, and
whether was given super4human
power OR whether the clumsy thing
was not as heavy as it looked, I did
finally succeed in turning 1t on Its end
close under the opening from which
the shaft rose. The next thing was to
get on its top. That seemed about ais.
impossible as climbing the bare wall
itself, but presently bethought me OF
the drawers. and, though they were
locked, did succeed by the aid of my
keys to get enough of them open to
make for myself very good pair Of
| stairs.
Il could now see my way to the
mouth Of the shaft, but after that!l
Taking out my knife, felt the edge.
It was good one, SO was the point,
but was it good enough to work holes
in plaster? It depended somewhat up.
on the plaster. Had the masons, In
finishing that shaft, any thought Of
the poor wretch who one day would
have to pit his life against the hard
ness of the final covering? My first
dig ait 1t would tell. 1 own trem.
bled violently at the prospect Of what
that first test would mean to me, and