News and citizen. [volume] (Morrisville, Vt. ;) 1881-current, 1916-10-18

wilted collar ran the elevator up to
his tenth-foor landing and, leaving him
fumbling at the lock of his door,
dropped clankingly out of sight. Whit
aker entered and shut himself in with
the pitch-blackness of his private hall.
He CROPPED along the wall for the
electric switch. and found only the
shank of it, the hard rubber button
! having Disappeared. And then, while
still he was trying to think how this
could have happened. he sustained a
murderous assault.
A miscalculation on the part of the
marauder alone saved him. The black
jack Cor whatever the weapon was)
missing his head by the narrowest
shave, descended upon his left Shout
der with numbing force. Notwith-
standing his pain and surprise, Whit
aker rallied and grappled, thus escap-
ing a second and probably more deadly
| blow.
But his shoulder was almost useless,
| and the pain of it began to sicken him,
while the man in bis grip fought like
devil unclaimed.
For some minutes the night was rem
| dered wild and violent with the crashes
| of Overthrown furniture and the thud
and thump of struggling bodies. Then
Whitaker broke free and plunged in
what he imagined to be the direction
of dresser in which he kept revolv-
err. His foot slipped on the hardwood
floor, the ankle twisted, and he fell
table leg with such force that he lay
half stunned. An instant later his as
sailant emptied five chambers of re-
volver into the darkness about him,
and then, alarmed by a racket of
poundlng on the nail door, lied success
fully by way of the fire escape to adj
joining roofs and neighboring back
yards.
By the time Whitaker was able to
pull himself together and hobble to the
door, brace of intelligent policemen,
who had been summoned by the hall
boy, were threatening to break it down.
Admitted, they took his safety into
volver which he incautiously admitted
possessing. Later they departed, OBJ
viously disgruntled by the unprofes-
sional conduct of the "crook" who had
left no "clues," with a warning to the
householder that he might expect to be
summoned to court, as soon as he was
able to move, to answer for the crime
of keeping a weapon of defense.
Whitaker took to his bed in company
with black temper and the aroma of
arnica.
He entertained, the next day, several
persons: reporters; physician; fu-
tile, superfluous, monumental crea-
ture misleadingly designated a plain
clothes man finally his friend (by now
their acquaintance had warmed to real
friendship Ember.
The retired investigator found Whit
aker getting into his clothes-a cere-
mony distinguished by some profanity
and numerous grunts.
Afternoon" he said, taking a chair
and surveying the sufferer with slight
ly masked amusement. "Having a
good timer"
"You go to thunder!' said Whitaker
In disgust.
"Glad TO see you're noe hurt much
pursued the other. unabashed.
Whitaker withered him with a glare. |
"You're lucky to be alive" observed |
Ember, exasperatingly philosophic.
"a lot you know about It'll 1 sup |
pose you could lay this thug by the
heels in a brace of shakes?"
"Just about" Ember admitted plac-
idly.
Whitaker stared aggressively. "You
mean Drummond?"
The answer was a nod.
81 don't believe it."
"Youll at all events do me the credit
to recall that warned you two months
ago."
"All the same, don't believe it was
"You haven't missed any property,
I believer"