The Washington herald., 1914-01-11

been solved. With the utter darkness
had come the opportunity. the oppor-
ltunity that obviously had been watched
for. With one movement of the hand the
necklace had been quietly and cunningly
removed.
My next quick thought was. that the
thief sat there in my immediate neigh
borhood. There could be no other. There
was no room for doubt.
1 sat there. compelling myself to
calmness which was not easy to achieve.
struggled to make my scrutiny of this
strange companion of mine as quiet as
possible.
Yet he seemed to feel that he was still
under my eye. He did not turn and look
at me directly. but it was plain that he
| was only too conscious of my presence.
I And even before l quite realized what he
was about. he reached quietly over. and.
| taking up his hat and coat. rose to his
feet and slipped out of the box.
| The sheer precipitancy of his flight was
proof enough of his offense. His obvi-
Gus effort to escape made me more than
ever determined to keep on his trail
! And keep on his trail 1 did, from the
moment ne sidled guiltily out of that
lighted theater foyer into the still driz-
zling rain of Broadway.
He was a good 200 feet ahead of me
when saw him suddenly veer about and
dodge into a doorway. promptly threw
| decorum away and ran, ran like rab-
bit, until came to that doorway. I saw.
as I passed through it, that il was moth
ing more than the Broadway entrance to
the Hotel Knickerbocker. As I stepped
| into its pillared rotunda / caught sight of
my quarry hurrying out through one of
the doors that open on Forty-second
street.
gained the open just in time to see
1 him lodging down into the kiosk of a
subway entrance. He was through the
gate before could catch up with him. /
had no time to turn back and buy a
ticket, for conductors were already slam
ming shut the doors of south-bound
| local
Buy me ticket" called to the as
| tonished chopper as I tossed a dollar
! bill over the arm which he thrust out to
stop me. 1 did not wait to argue It out,
| for the car door in front OF me was al
ready beginning TO close. l had just
time to catapult my body in between that
sliding door and its steel frame. knew.
as caught my breath again. that was
: on the platform Of the car behind the
jewel thief.
And stood there carefully scrutinizing
the line of car doors as we pulled into
the Grand Central station. 1 did the
same as we passed Thirty-third street,
and the same again at Twenty-eighth
street. The man had given no sign that
he actually knew I was on his track. But
was certain of the fact that he was
doing his utmost to evade pursuit.
This came doubly home to me as the
train stopped at Twenty-third street and
saw him step quickly out OF the far end
of the car. look about him and dart across
the station platform and up the stairway
two steps at time.
was afer him. even more hurriedly.
By the time I reached the street he was
swinging up on the step of a crosstown
surface car. To catch that car was out
of the question, but I waited a moment
and swung aboard the one that followed
it, 30 yards in the rear. Peering ahead.
1 could plainly see him as he dropped
from this car on the northeast corner of
Sixth avenue could see him as he
hurried up the steps of the elevated sta
ton. cross the platform. and without SO
much as buying ticket hurry down the
southeast flight of steps
1 had closed in on him by this time, so
that we were within biscuit toss of each
other. Yet never once did he look about
He was now doubling on his tracks,
walking rapidly eastward along Twenty
third street. 1 was close behind him as
he crossed broadway. turning south, and
then suddenly tacking about. he entered
the Bartholdi Hotel There he exactly
repeated his maneuver of the Knicker-
booker, circling around to the hotels side
entrance on Twenty-third street
Even as he emerged into the open again
waiting there at the curD. What his di-
rections to the driver were I had no
means of knowing. But as that dripping
and waterproofed individual brought his
whiplash down on his steaming horse a
door slammed shut in my-face:. Once
more 1 SO far forgot my dignity as to
dodge and run like rabbit, this time to
the other side of the cab as il swung
briskly northward. One twist and pull |
threw the cab door open and tumbled
in-tumbled in to see my white-faced and
frightened jewel thief determinedly and |
frenziedly holding down the handle on |
the opposite door.
His face went ashen as l came sprawl |
ing and lurching against him. He would |
have leaped bodily from the carriage, |
which was now swinging up an all but |
deserted Fifth avenue only caught and |
held him there with grimaess born of |
repeated evaporation.
He showed no intention of meekly SUBJ
mitting. Seeing that he was finally cor
nered, he turned on me and fought like |
a rat. His strength. for one of his |
weight. was surprising. Much more sur
prising. however. was his ferocity. And
it was a strange struggle. there in the
half light of that musty and many |