Cameron County press. [volume] (Emporium, Cameron County, Pa.) 1866-1922, 1907-04-04
Copyright, 1905. by Bobbs-Merrill Col
CHAPTER VII.

Look here, sir" cried the chief,
standing up and balling his fist, 81
want you to explain yourself, and
mighty quick. You can't come into
my presence in this manner"
Bah! You have just permitted the
cleverest rascal in the state to slip
through your butter-fingers. / am Hag-
gerty"
The chief of police sat down sud
denly.
The consummate daring of it! Why
the rascal ought to have been in com
mand of an army. On the Board of
Strategy he would have been incom-
parable!
There followed a tableau that
shall not soon forget. We all stared
at the real Haggerty much after the
fashion of Medusa's victims. Present
ly the tension relaxed, and we all
sighed. | sighed because the thought
of Jail for the night in a dress-suit
dwindled in perspective; the girl
sighed for the same reason and one or
two other things; the chief of the vii
lage police and his officers sighed be-
cause darkness had suddenly swooped
down on them; and Hamilton sighed
because there were no gems. Hag-
gerty was the one among us who
didn't sigh. He scowled blackly.
This big athlete looked like a de-
tective. and the abrupt authority of
his tones convinced me that he was.
Haggerty was celebrated in the annals
of police affairs; he had handled all
sorts of criminals, from titled i'm
posters down to petty thieves. He
was not man to trifle with, mentally
or physically, and for this reason we
were all shaking in our boots. He
owned to a keen but brutal wit; to
him there was no such thing as sex
among criminals and he had the te-
nacity of purpose that has given the
bulldog considerable note in the pit.
But it was quite plain that for once
he had met his match
II don't see how you can blame me-"
mumbled the chief None of us was
familiar with your looks, and he
showed us his star of authority, and
went to work in a business-like way
BY George! and he has run away with
my horse and e!'-starting
from his chair.
Never mind the horse You'll find
it safe at the railway station" snarled
Iiaggerty. Now, then. tell me every
thing that has happened from be-
ginning to end"
And the chief recounted the adven-
ture briefly. Haggerty looked coldly
It me and shrugged his broad shoul-
ders AS for the girl, he never gave
her so much as a single glance. He
knew a gentlewoman without looking
at her twice
"Humph! Isn't he a clever one,
thought" cried Haggerty, in a burst
of admiration. Clever is no name
for it. I'd give year of my life to
come face to face with him. 1t would be
an interesting encounter. Hunted him
for weeks, and today laid eyes on him
for the first time. Had my clumsy
paws on him this very afternoon. He
seemed so willing to be locked up
that / grew careless. Biff! and he and
his accomplice, an erstwhile valet, had
me trussed like chicken and bundled
into the clothes-press. Took my star,
credentials, playing-card and invita-
ton. 1t was near eleven o'clock when
J reused the housekeeper. | tele-
graphed two hours ago"
"Telegraphed!" exclaimed the chief.
rousiag himself out of melancholy
dream. (There would be no mention
OF him in the morrows papers.)
Yes, telegraphed. The despatch
lay unopened oil your office-desk.
You're good watchdog-for hen
coop!" growled Haggerty. Ten thou
sand in gems tonight, and by this
time he is safe in New York. You are
all pack of blockheads.
Used the telephone, did he? Told
you to hold these innocent persons till
he went somewhere to land the ac-
complice, eh? The whistle of the
train meant nothing to YOU Well,
that whistle ought to have told you
that there might be mistake A
good officer never quits his prisoners
If there is an accomplce in tolls else
where, he makes them bring him in,
he does not go out for him. And
now I've got to start all over again,
and he in New York, bigger cata-
comb than Rome ever boasted Of He's
not a common thief; nobody knows
who he is or what his haunts are
But I have seen his face; I'll never
forget him.
The chief tore his hair, while bis
subordinates shufIled their feet un-
easily. Then they all started in to
explain their theories. But the de-
tective silenced them wifi wave of
his huge hand
y don't want to hear any explana.