Forest City press. (Forest City, Potter County, D.T. [S.D.]) 1883-19??, 1918-11-28
'!fantion to him.
He l.nfron+aI

And suddenly, after a glance ut
his enemy. he spun round, drew
himself up on his slack legs with
ali effort. and started running to-
ward the well.
He was twenty PAGES from it.
He covered one half three quart
ers OF the distance. Already the
mouth opened before him. He
put out his arms, with the move
ment of Il man about to drive. and
shot forward.
His rush was stopped. He
rolled over on the ground, drag
ged back violently, with his arms
fixed SO coirmly to his body that
he was unable to stir.
1t was Don Luis, who had never
wholly lost sight of him, who had
made a slip knot to his rope and
who had lassoed the cripple at
the moment when he was going to
fling himself down the abyss.
The cripple struggled for a few
moments. But the slip knot bit
into his flesh. He ceased moving.
Everything was v e
Then Don Luis Perenna, hold
ing the other end of the lasso,
came up to him and bound him
hand and foot with what re-
manned Of the rope. The opera
ton was carefully performed.
Don Luis repeated. it time after
time, using the coils of rope which
the cripple had brought to the
we'll and gagging him with a
handkerchief. And, while apply
ing himself to his work, he ex-
planned, with affected politeness {:
"You see, sir, people always
come to grief through excessive
selfconfidence. They never imag-
inc that their adversaries can
have resources which they them
selves do not possess. For instance
when you got me to fall into your
trap, how could you have sup
posed, my dear sir, that a man
like myself, a man like Arsene
Lupin, hanging on the brim of a
we'll, with his arms resting on the
brim and his feet against the in
ner wall, would allow himself to
drop down it like the first silly
fool that comes along?
"Look here: you were fifteen
or twenty yards away; and do
you think that l had not the
strength to leap out nor the cour-
age to face the bullets of your
revolver, when it was a question
OF saving Florence Levasaeur's
life and my owni Why, my poor
sir, the finest effort would have
been enough, believe me!
my reason for not making
the effort was that I had some
thing better to do, something in
finitely better. l will tell you
why, that is, if you care to know.
Do you7
We'll, then, at the very first
moment, my knees and feet, prop
ped against the inner wall, had
smashed in a thick layer of
plaster which closed up an old ex-
cavation in the we'll; and this 1
at once perceived. It was a
stroke of luck, wasn't it, And
it changed the whole situation.
Ny plan was settled at once.
While | went on acting my little
part of the gentleman about to
tumble down an abyss, putting on
the most scared face, the most
staring eyes, the most hideous
grin, l enlarged that excavation,
taking care to throw the chunks
Of plaster in front of me in such
q way that their fall made no
noise. When the moment came,
at the very second when my
swooning features vanished be-
fore your eyes, l simply jumped
into my retreat, thanks to q rath-
er plucky little wriggle of the
.loins..
II was saved, because the re-
treat was dug out on the side
where you were moving and be-
cause, being dark itself, it cast no
light. All that / now had to do
was to wait.
II listened quietly to your
threatening speeches. 1 let the
things You flung down the well