The Washington herald. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1906-1939, 1914-02-15

QUICK. lou 30 one noe ana Il tno otnef.
Look out whispered to the GIRL:
they know where We are. We viii give
them chase before they get us.' ! stood
up straight and by way Of little diver
sion brought the poker down on the top
Of the counter. You pair Of murderous
Villains" cried; do you think you have
US At your mercy? Well teach you bet
teri"
In my excitement. giving the poker
flourish. swept half dozen bottles OF
the buffet. and they fell crashing to the
floor.
'Is that your blacl-faced beautyr' I'm
CURED Gaspare. aloud. 1T looks Is II she
means to ruin you; she starts TO destroy
your stock In trade"
BE careful how you come" This was
the girl. who was standing by me. even
more excited than was. She was -four
ishing knife in either hand. For each
of you I have knife. viii pay you
with them for Emilio"
Acting on Alessandro's advice, they
came at US from either side As Ales-
sandro passed. leaning over the counter.
1 knocked the torch out OF his hand. and
in the same instant. turning toward Gas
pare. struck him with the poker blow
which was more than own brother to the
first He staggered back with curses
which were deep. but not loud I was
past him in a Hash. I hesitated whether
to make toward the door which I knew
led to the staircase; but he made . grab
at me and almost caught my skirt.
rushed across the restaurant among the
marble tables
.Gaspare, Gaspare" 1t was SiRnor
Alessandro's voice. considerably raised.
! Apparently he was having a little argu-
ment with Lucrezia, of which. in the
darkness, he wa: not getting the best.
| There was a crash-what had happened
1 did not know; IL sounded as IL more bot
ties had fallen to the floor. Then knew
that Lucrezia- following my example, had
got past Alessandro and was seeking ref
uge among the marble tables. Then Their.
, was silence. broken by Alessandro's voice:
''Gaspare. I believe that cat has knitted
me in half a dozen places; my fingers are
wet with my own blood
Then came Gaspare's voice:
Give US some light, We can do nothing
in this darkness. Where are your
switchesy'
II
couIa NOT catch: b,,, 7 couId hear him
moving. and presently the whole Mac.
ma. ooo.5.d Nth e,.c,r,c ,,rb,
.Can they see these lights out.ide,"
.sked casnare
Mot q. riimmer. The door and window,
are m constructed thar fron the stree,
nothing can be seem
.Then To busines.r, And Ga,nars
started to carry out what I presume was
hisIj idea of business.
There ensu.5 a scene AZ remarkab,e- T
take Il. an any which WAS ever enacted in
a I<opdon restaurant. They chased Us.
| those two men In the hand Of each wa.
a knife. knew quite veIl what would
\ happen ~ he rot that knife within reach
of me also knew that at any moment
the police might be knocking at the door.
Then Gaspare came toward me.
I suppose in that restaurant there were
dozen marble-topped tables-oblons,
round. and SQUARE. Most of the chair,
had been piled upon III. tables: WAS en-
trenched behind a row OF them When
Gasnare came toward me at one end 7
pushed them toward him; he swept the
| lot of them upon the floor. and came
| round my side of the table toward me.
| retreated as he came. but 1 could not get
away from Gaspare. Among the tables
we twisted and twirIed: sometimes I
yaulted them. sometimes I ran around.
| 1 had pushed a chair in his way, and
he fell over IL. and in falling he caught
me by the skirt with so sure a hold that
he ALI but dragged me over with him. 1
lifted the poker and struck him again and
again: but, though he was still in diff
entities with the chair. could not make
him loose his hold. He held me with hi.
left hand.
Suddenly I felt something prick me: he
had struck me with the knife which was
in his right. Franticaily I dashed out
again at him with the poker. I fancied I
had struck the wrist which held the knife
but was not sure. Twas straining every
nerve to tear myself loose. when all at
once the skirt did give way-but not with
the result I had hoped for. As it yielded.
the strain being Unexpectedly relaxed.
slipped, and he, probably without inten-
ton, gave an unlooked-for jerk. Down
he went on his face, and down I went on
him.
At that same moment there came a
hammering at the front door-a loud, in
sistent hammering-and I knew that In
spector Ellis ten minute. had expired.
With the sound Of the knocking there
came q scream from Eucrezia and some
thing very like roar from Alessandro. 1