The pioneer express. [volume] (Pembina, Dakota [N.D.]) 1883-1928, 1911-12-08

friendship. At the party Coast meets two
8 quarrel. and Biackstock t0y shoots s' Van N
Tuyl dead. Coast struggles to wrest the
weapon from him.. thus the police dis
CHAPTER III.-(contlnued.)
We'll, 50 much for Blackstock-
until the police get wind of him, at all
events. They're trying to locate him
by cable now; haven't heard of any
success that way, however. Naturally
But few days ago Dundas
came to the surface"
Coast started violently. "Dundas!"
"Um-mm; full confession, exculpat-
ing you, discriminating Blackstock.
Corroborative details: letters from
Blackstock-all that sort of thing.
Furthermore. Dundas told US why
Blackstock feared Van Tuyl: Van
knew something-some dirty business
Blackstock had cooked up in the west.
fmmaterial now; tell you later. Also
Dundas took US to the shop where
Blackstock bought that gun-sales-
man recalled the transaction. You re.
member how we failed to prove the
gun his?"
"Of course. Go on about Dundas."
We'll it was Truax's do
Ing; nailed Dundas on the street one
day, somewhere east of Third avenue.
The man had been in hiding ever
since Blackstock cleared out; he was
In pretty bad way, broke and seedy;
claimed Blackstock hadn't sent him a
dollar since he disappeared. So Dun
das, thrown back upon his pen for a
means of livelihood, went all to
pieces; couldn't work-had forgotten
the trick-or wouldn't; drank up all
he could raise by pawning things.
Truax staked him to a meal
and drinks, plenty of drinks: and all
that on an empty stomach made him
maudlin. Confessed he was keeping a
observation-disclosures gnawing at his
vitals-whatever those are-every-
thing like that. Then Truax bundled
him into a taxi and brought him to
my rooms. 1t was near midnight
got me out Of bed; caught a cold.
However own it without
conjunction, we worked the poor
devil through the third degree; sim
ply browbeat and bullyragged him un-
til was ashamed of myself. But the
truth oozed out finally, along with
tears-whisky tears. We hadn't
stinted the hottie
CAS- say, in the end Dundas owned
up to the whole filthy affair, just as
you told it-whimpered about selling
his soul to Blackstock, price not de-
posed. We made him sign a brief con-
fession, but knew that wouldn't be
sufficient, and it was then too late and
Dundas too far gone to do more with
him. So called in a central office
man happened to know, and turned
Dundas over to him to be taken to
Turkish bath and licked into shape;
and it did the trick, with a hearty
breakfast and plenty of black coffee
for a chaser He was pretty shaky
next morning, but coaxed him into
q taxi and had him at the district at.
torney's Office before he knew what
was up. There he wanted to hedge,
but his signature to the overnight con-
tession took all the starch out Of him,
and he went all over it again, with a
stenographer taking it down-type-
written deposition-all that sort of
thing.
Meanwhile my friend the detective
had ransacked Dundas' lodging-some
cheap room just OF the Bowery-and
sound bundle Of letters from Black.
stock-mostly written during the trial,
when they didn't dare be seen together
hints and orders az to the evidence
Dundas was to give. That settled it.
Dundas was rushed before q magist
trate and Jailed and the grand jury
was asked to indict him for perjury.
The poor fool was scared silly, az soon
rs he realized what he had done-de-
clared Blackstock would get him
sooner or later. So he saved him the
trouble killed himself In his cell half
IN hour after being committed-had
. phiAi Of morphia secreted in his
elothing J"
After . pause Coast said slowly:
$50 Blackstock did get him after all!
That makes two ct least-two We
know 81"
eye. /. yVafSurton assentsd uneasily,
worried 81 ths hard oppression thaa
800 Gootss snnOufh looked ak that
B VHall - eA1laA vs,,,,