Los Angeles herald., 1908-07-19

away. You can see MIN dDOdTQ guess A. , INC
morgue for his" said Finerty, motoning to the
huddled heap the sidewalk.
There was something in his voice that caused
the two patrolmen to glance at him curiously.
Finerty's eyes had starved look. He seemed to
be fighting with some terrible emotion passion
choking it back
"All right I'll go with yeh," said Brady, one
of the men, the ambulance ratified up and the
white-coated doctor hoped off.
The two made their way down the dark, sent
HILL Finerty, in his transformations way, had
learned every square inch of his beat. He knew
where williams lived. A scattered trail of blood
struggled here and there the sidewalk.
Finerty his jaws set, assembled the steps of an
evi-ooking hat-house. The door was shut, and
no answer was given to his repeated ringing. Fin-
erty used his nightstick The Hill had been
naturally quiet, but vague hum from
Amsterdam Avenue. The hum increased windows
flung up and doorways emitted figures of both
sexes and every age A shot sounded somewhere
in the night. The whites were out for revenge.
AS Finerty continued to rap on the door some
thing suddenly flashed between him and Brady and
crashed the steps. It was brick from the
roof. A window went up the way and a re-
volver commenced to spit spitefully, its bullets
humming about the heads of the bluecoats. The
street suddenly seemed to be alive. A storm OF
white toughs came sweeping down from the ave-
welcome. Down on West End Avenue and the side
Streets separate and private engagements were the
rule. hurry call had been sent in for the re-
serves, but might as well try to stem the
flood tide as to bring peace and order to that tur-
bulent sea of fighting humanity. Captain Hogan
summed up the situation instantly and telephoned
to neighboring precincts for all their available men,
Meanwhile. Ffnerty, with one heave of his
huge shoulder, had sent the hall door crashing
from its hinges
Don yeh mix in there, it's deathtrap,"
said Brady. hurredly laying a hand on Finertys
arm They'll be waiting FIR yeh at the stop of tn
stairs. Don't go in. Wait FIR tn reserves
Yeh can wait I'm goin' in" said Finerty saw
agely, wiping away the blood where a bullet had
grazed his cheek. Ppm gon' in" he said again.
Even in the excitement Brady noticed the curious
ly of the voice and the steely glitter
the eyes.
into the dark narrow hall. Another moment and
Brady was swinging his nght-stick, holding the
stoop against the oncoming enemy. Then from
the hall came crash crash and oath oath.
Once he heard laugh---a laugh that set his teeth
on edge 1t Finerty's.
The was not pretty There was much dirt
and very much blood. Much broken furniture and
dishes and humanity. fat negress huddled in
corner was sobbing Historically. half-starved
geranium stood up stifhy in a cracked jam pot on
the window sill. wheezy gas jet was faring.
On the floor lay three men--all big men. One lay
still. but the other two twisted this way and that
groaning unpleasantly. On a lounge sat Finerty,
hands knees staring ixedly at the three figures
the floor. The reserves found him thus. A
scientifically welded is an excellent flesh
cutting instrument and Finerty had suffered.
"One dead and two most unconscious and not
one shot" said the battered Brady in hushed
voice. st can't believe it. / never seen such
stren'th an-an'--"
AN blood lustl Say it. say it, cried F1nerty
fercey his voice breaking, stretching out his raz-
or-hacked hands. Say it, an ye'll have the
truth" He rocked back and forth and the blue
coats watched him with white strained faces. It's
been m curse" painted Finerty thickly, cenching
his hands above his head. "Gawd's curse on M
stren'th. Gawd's curse on the devil that's in me-
An ye called me coward" He 1aughed--the
laugh Brady had heard. Yeh didn't know me-
Yeh didn't know me. l could ha' killed tn crowd
of yeh with m naked hands, Yes, afraid.
Afraid of M strenth and tn devil. tried to fight
it back. Yehn never know how tried. But to-
night when tasted tn blood on m cheek and the
sting of pain, tn devil in my throat and choked
me-choked An so--an So" His eyes
returned as If fascinated, to the figures the
floor. His face whitened beneath the blood
smears 81 thought I'd had a lesson, he whispered
his eyes wide and staring. He talking to him
self. "once an enemy of mine called liar
and struck in the face An, with M naked
hand broke his spine and twisted him into tam
gle of knots But I'm murderer for he lived
an I've tried to square it," Finerty suddenly
put his battered face in his big hands and COM
menced 10 sob as only a strong can Sob
"He means the twisted he's supportin,''
whispered Craig
The men looked at each other, then Brown slow
ly arose and, going over, laid hand Finerty's
heaving shoulder.
.Yeh only done yer duty tonight, Jawn,'' he
said sit was your life theirs. An yeh mixed
in where every cop in this precinct would have
been AFRAID to go. It's all right. Jawn!'
Plimmer, one eye completely closed, was sitting
on the remains of chair His unframed eye was
fastened in fascination what had BEEN the
negro murderer, Williams.
"And / called i'm cowyard," he was saying
dreamily to himself.--.And going to bngle
is head Ho, yuss, / going to blngle is
bloomin' 'ead-mel''
THE END.