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The Latest Census, according to the official reports, will be found full and complete. Population of every State and Territory in the Union. The New Copyright Law, passed March 4, 1891. It also contains Short Rules, Formulas, Processes and Facts for every¬ body; Divorce Laws of all the States and Territories; Valuable Points of Law; Valuable Recipes; Poisons and Their Antidotes. New and reliable information on Electricity, the Phonograph and Telephone. MORE THAN 1,800,000 COPIES ALREADY SOLD The NEW EDITION is the best, most complete, and handsomest that has ever been issued. It is the triumph of condensed publica¬ tions, and the greatest value for the least cost. Prices: LIMP CLOTH, Red Edges, 25 cents; STIFF SILK CLOTH.50 cents For sale by all booksellers, or sent, postpaid, by Laird & Lee, Publishers, 263=265 Wabash Ave., Chicago r ■ The Escape ONE COPY REC’D MAY 26 1898 A RACE FOR LIFE (DYKE DARREL) / BY A. F. PINKERTON M Copyright, 1886, by Laird & Lee Copyright, 1898, by Wm. H. Lee CHICAGO LAIRD & LEE, PUBLISHERS CHAPTER I. A STARTLING CRIME. l( £p"HE most audacious crime of my remembrance. ” 1 Dyke Darrel flung down the morning paper, damp from the press, and began pacing the floor. “ What is it, Dyke? ” questioned the detective’s sister Nell, who at that moment thrust her head into the room. Nell was a pretty girl of twenty, with midnight hair and eyes, al¬ most in direct contrast with her brother, the famous detective, whose deeds of cunning and daring were the theme of press and people the wide West over. “ An express robbery,” returned Dyke, pausing in front of Nell and holding up the paper. “I am sorry,” uttered the girl, with a pout. “I shan’t have you with me for the week that I promised myself. I am always afraid something will happen every time you go out on the trail of a crim¬ inal, Dyke.” “And something usually does happen,” returned the detective, grimly. “ My last detective work did not pan out as I expected, but I do not consider that entirely off yet. It may be that the one who murdered Captain Osborne had a hand in this latest crime.” “ An express robbery, you say? ” “ And murder. ” “ And murder ! ” The young girl’s cheek blanched. “ Yes. The express messenger on the Central road was murdered last night, and booty to the amount of thirty thousand dollars secured. ” “ Terrible ! ” “ Yes, it is a bold piece of work, and will set the detectives on the trail.” 6 DYKE DARREL. “ Did you know the murdered messenger, Dyke? ” “ It was Arnold Nicholson. ° “ No? ” The girl reeled, and clutched the table at her side for support. The name uttered by her brother was that of a friend of the Darrels, a man of family, and one who had been in the employ of the express company for many years. No wonder Nell Darrel was shocked at learning the name"of the victim. “ You see how it is, Nell ? ” “ Yes,” returned the girl, recovering her self-possession. “ I meant to ask you to forego this man-hunt, but I see that it would be of no use.” “ Not the least, Nell,” returned Dyke, with a compression of the lips. “ I would hunt these scoundrels down without one cent reward. Nicholson was my friend, and a good one. He helped me once,.when to do so was of great inconvenience to himself. It is my duty to see that his cowardly assassins are brought to justice.” Even as Dyke Darrel uttered the last words a man ran up to the steps and opened the front door. “ I hope I don’t intrude,” he said, as he put his face into the room. “No; you are always welcome, Elliston,” cried Dyke, extending his hand. The new-comer accepted the proffered hand, then turned and smiled on Nell. He was a tall man, with smoothly-cut beard and a tinge of gray in his curling black hair. Harper Elliston was past thirty, and on the best of terms with Dyke Darrel and his sister, who considered him a very good friend. “ You have read the news? ” Elliston said, as his keen, black eyes rested on the paper that lay on the table. “ Yes,” returned the detective. “ It’s a most villainous affair.” “ One of the worst. ” “ I was never so shocked,” said Nell. “ Do you imagine the rob¬ bers will be captured, Mr. Elliston? ” “ Certainly, if your brother takes the trail, although I hope he will not.” “ Why do you hope so? ” questioned Dyke. “ My dear boy, it’s dangerous-” A low laugh cut short the further speech of Mr. Elliston. “ I supposed you knew me too well, Harper, to imagine that dan¬ ger ever deterred Dyke Darrel from doing his duty. ” “Of course; but this is a different case. ’Tis said that four men were engaged in the foal work, and that they belong to a league of A STARTLING CRIME. 7 desperate ruffians, as hard to deal with as ever the James and Younger brothers. Better leave it to the Chicago and St. Louis force, Dyke. I should hate to see you made the victim of these scoundrels.” Mr. Elliston laid his hand on the detective’s arm in a friendly way, and seemed deeply anxious. “Harper, are you aware that the murdered messenger was my friend? ” “ Was he?” “ Certainly. I would be less than human did I refuse to take the trail of his vile assassins. You make me blush when you insinuate that danger should deter me from doing my duty. ” “ I am not aware that I said such a thing, ” answered Elliston. “ I did not mean it if I did. It would please me to have you remain off this trail, however, Dyke. I will see to it that the best Chicago de¬ tectives are set to work ; that ought to satisfy you. ” “ And I sit with my hands folded meantime? ” A look of questioning surprise filled the eyes of Dyke Darrel, as he regarded Mr. Elliston. “ No. But you promised Nell to take her East this spring, to New York-” “ He did, but I forego that pleasure,” cried the girl, quickly. “I realize that Dyke has a duty to perform in Illinois. ” “And so you, too, side with your brother,” cried Mr. Elliston, forcing a laugh. “ In that case, I surrender at discretion. ” Dyke picked up and examined the paper once more. “ Died for DUTY. Bold and bloody crime at night on the Central Railroad. ” That was the heading to the article announcing the assassination of the express messenger. The train on which the deed had been com¬ mitted, had left Chicago at ten in the evening, and at one o’clock, when the train was halted at a station, the deed was discovered. Arnold Nicholson was found with his skull crushed and his body ter¬ ribly beaten, while, in the bloody hands of the dead, was clutched a tuft of red hair. This went to show that one of the messenger’s as¬ sailants was a man with florid locks. Leaving Nell and Mr. Elliston together, Dyke Darrel hastened to the station. He was aware that a train would pass in ten minutes, and he wished to enter Chicago and make an examination for himself. The detective’s home was on one of the many roads crossing Illinois, and entering the Garden City—[about an hour’s ride from the Goth¬ am of the West. In less than two hours after reading the notice of the crime on the midnight express, Dyke Darrel was in Chicago. He visited the body of the murdered messenger, and made a brief examination. It 8 DYKE DARREL. at once evident to Darrel, that Nicholson had made a desperate fight for life, but that he had been overpowered by a superior force. A reward of ten thousand dollars was already offered for the detec¬ tion and punishment of the outlaws. “ Poor Arnold 1 ” murmured Dyke Darrel, as he gazed at the bruised and battered corpse. “ I will not rest until the wicked demons who compassed this foul work meet with punishment! ” There were still several shreds of hair between the fingers of the dead, when Dyke Darrel made his examination, since the body had just arrived from the scene of the murder. The detective secured several of the hairs, believing they might help him in his future movements. Darrel made one discovery that he did not care to communicate to others; it was a secret that he hoped might lead to results in the future. What the discovery was, will be disclosed in the progress of our story. Soon after the body of the murdered messenger was removed to his home, from which the funeral was to take place. As Dyke Darrel was passing from the rooms of the undertaker, a hand fell on his shoulder. “ You are a detective ? ” Dyke Darrel looked into a smooth, boyish face, from which a pair of brown eyes glowed. “ What is it you wish ? ” Darrel demanded, bluntly. “ I wish to make a confidant of somebody. ” “ Well, go on. ” “ First tell me if you are a detective.” “ You may call me one. ” “ It’s about that poor fellow you’ve just been interviewing,” said the young stranger. “ I am Watson Wilks, and I was on the train, in the next car, when poor Nicholson was murdered. I was acting as brake- man at the time. Do you wish to hear what I can tell ? ” CHAPTER II. DYKE DARREL’S TRICK. <( ERTAINLY I do,” cried the detective. “ Come with me, and we will find a place where we can talk without danger of interruption. ” The two men moved swiftly down the street. At length Dyke Darrel entered a well-known restaurant on Randolph street, secured a private stall, and then bade Mr. Wilks proceed. Both men were seated at a small table. DYKE DARREL’S TRICK. 9 “Shan’t I order the wine?” “ No,” answered Dyke, with a frown. “We need clear brains for the work in hand. If you know aught of this monstrous crime, tell it at once.” “ I do know a considerable,” said Mr. Wilks. “ I was the first man who discovered Arnold Nicholson after he’d been shot. The safe was in the very car that I occupied. I saw the men get the swag. There were three of them. ” “ Go on. ” “ They all wore masks, so of course I could not tell who they]jwere; but I’ve an idea that they were from Chicago. ” “ Why have you such an idea ? ” “ Because I saw three suspicious chaps get on at Twenty-second •treet. I think they are the chaps who killed poor Arnold, and got away with the money in the safe. ” “ Did you recognize them? ” “ No — that is, I’m not positive; but I think one of’m was a chap 'hat is called Skinny Joe, a hard pet, who used to work in a saloon on Clark street.” “ Indeed.” “ Yes. It might be well to keep your eye out in that quarter.” “ It might,” admitted Dyke Darrel. “ This is all you know regard' big the midnight tragedy? ” “ Oh, no; I can give you more particulars.” “ Let’s have them, then. ” “ But see here, how am I to know that you are a detective? I might get sold, you know,” replied Mr. Wilks, in a suspicious tone. Dyke Darrel lifted the lapel of his coat, exposing a silver star. “ All right,” returned Mr. Wilks, with a nod. “ I’m of the opinion that Shinny Joe’s about the customer you need to look after, captain. I’ll go down with you to the fellow’s old haunts, and we’ll see what we can find.” Mr. Wilks seemed tremendously interested. Dyke Darrel was naturally suspicious, and he was not ready to swallow everything his companion said as law and gospel. Of course the large reward was a stimulant for men to be on the lookout for the midnight train robbers; and Mr. Wilks’ interest must be attributable to this. “ You see, I was Arnold Nicholson’s friend, and I’d go a long ways to see the scoundrels get their deserts who killed him, even if there was no reward in the case,” explained the brakeman suddenly- ** Certainly,” answered Dyke Darrel, “ I can understand how one employed on the same train could take the deepest interest in such a sad affair. ” to DYKE DARREL. “ Will you go down on Clark street with me? * “ Not just now. ” “ When? ” “ I will meet you here this evening, and consult on that point. * “ Very well. Better take something. ” “ No; not now.” Dyke Darrel rose to his feet and turned to leave the stall. “ Don’t fail me now, sir. ” “ I will not. ” The detective walked out. The moment he was gone a change came over the countenance of the young brakeman. The pleasant look vanished, and one dark and wicked took its place. “ Go, Dyke Darrel; I am sharp enough to understand you. You distrust me; but you’re fooled all the same. It’s strange you’ve for¬ gotten the boy you sent to prison from St. Louis five years ago for passing counterfeit coin. I haven’t forgotten it; and, what is more, I mean to get even. ” Then, with a grating of even white teeth, Watson Wilks passed out. At the bar he paused long enough to toss off a glass of brandy, and then he went out upon the street. It was a raw April day, and the air cut like a knife. After glancing up and down the street Mr. Wilks moved away. On reaching Clark street he hurried along that thoroughfare toward the south. Arriving in a disreputable neighborhood, he entered the side door of a dingy brick building, and stood in the presence of a woman, who sat mend- ing a pair of old slippers by the light afforded by a narrow window. “ Madge Scarlet, I’ve found you alone, it seems.” “ I’m generally alone,” said the female, not offering to move. She was past the prime of life, and there were many crow’s feet on a face that had once been beautiful. Her dress was plain, and not the neatest. The room was small, and there were few articles of furniture on the uncarpeted floor. “ Madge, where are Nick and Sam ? ” “ I can't tell you.” “ Haven’t they been here to-day ? ” 41 No, not in three days.” “ That seems strange. ” “ It doesn’t to me. They are out working the tramp dodge, in the country, or into some worse iniquity, Watson. I do wish you would quit such company, and try and behave yourself.” At this the young man gave vent to a sarcastic laugh. * Now, Aunt Madge, what an idea 1 Do you suppose your dear DYKE DARREL'S TRICK. II nephew could do anything wrong ? Aren’t I a pattern of per¬ fection ? ” Watson Wilks drew himself up and looked as solemn as an owl. This did not serve to bring a pleased expression to the woman’s face, however. As she said nothing, the young man proceeded: “ I’m working on the railroad now, Madge, and haven’t turned a dishonest penny in a long time. Of course you heard of the robbery of the midnight express down in the central part of the State last night? Some of the morning papers have an account of it.” “ I hadn’t heard.” “ Well, then, I will tell you about itand Mr. Wilks gave a brief account of the terrible tragedy that had shocked the land. “ It’s a regular Jesse James affair, and there’s a big reward offered for the outlaws. ” The woman seemed interested then, and looked hard at her nephew. “ Watson, I hope you know nothing of this work? ” ** Of course I know something of it,” he answered quickly. “I returned in charge of the dead body of the messenger. I was in the next car when he was killed, and one of the robbers put his pistol to my head and threatened to blow my brains out if I said or did any¬ thing. You can just bet I kept mighty still.” “ I should think so. This ’ll make a tremendous stir,” returned the woman. “ The country ’ll be full of man-trackers and it’ll go hard with the outlaws if they’re captured.” “ You bet; but they won’t be captured.” “ You are confident? ” “ I’ve a right to be. I-” Then the young man ceased to speak suddenly, and his face be¬ came deeply suffused. The woman sprang up then and went to the young man’s side, lay¬ ing her hand on his shoulder. “ Watson, tell me truly that you don’t know who committed this crime. ” “ Bother! ” and he flung her hand from his shoulder with an impa¬ tient movement. “ I hope you ain’t going to turn good all to once, Madge Scarlet. I tell you, thirty thousand dollars ain’t to be sneezed at, and I do need money—but of course / don’t know a thing about who did it, of course not; but I can tell you one hing, old lady, Dyke Darrel is on the trail, and he is even now m t Chicago. ” “Dyke Darrel!” * That’s who, Madam, DYKE DARREL. f 2 For some moments a silence fell over the two that was absolutely painful. At length the woman found her voice. “Dyke Darrel! Ah! fiend of Missouri, I have good cause to remember you and your work. Do you know, Watson, the fate of your poor uncle? ” “ Well, I should smile if I didn’t,” answered the young man. “ He died in a Missouri dungeon, sent there by this same Dyke Darrel, the railroad man-tracker. Hate him? Of course you do, but not as I do. I have sworn to have revenge for the five years I laid in a dun¬ geon for shoving the queer. ” “ And Dyke Darrel is now in Chicago? ” “ Yes. I oarted from him not an hour since. ” “ What is hv. -_ere for? ” “ The crime on the midnight express brings him here. * “ And you saw and talked with him? ” “I did.” “ He recognized you of course? ” “ No, he did not; that is the best of it. I am to meet him again to-night. It won’t be long before the man who sent Uncle Dan to a Missouri dungeon is in your presence, and you shall do with him as you like, Madge Scarlet.” “As I like? ” “ I have said it. ” “ Then Dyke Darrel shall die! ” “That’s the talk,” Madge. That sounds like your old self; I am glad you have come to your senses. If Nick and Sam come in. tell them to be in readiness to receive a visitor.” Then the young man turned on his heel and abruptly left the room. Just as the shades of night were falling Watson Wilks peered into the saloon and restaurant where he had parted from Dyke Darrel earlier in the day. He saw nothing of the detective. “ It is time he was here,” muttered the young man. “ Dyke Darrel is generally prompt in filling engagements. ” “ Always prompt, Martin Skidway / ” The young villain staggered back against the iron railing near, as though stricken a blow in the face. Unconsciously he had uttered his thoughts aloud, and the voice that uttered the reply , was hissed almost in his ear Dyke Darrel stood before him. The detective’s face wore a stern look, which was suddenly dis- •nrded for a smile. “ I am prompt in filling engagements,” said Darrel, after a momerj PROFESSOR DARLINGTON RUGGLES. 13 “You see I have at last recognized you, and the walls of the prison from which you escaped shall again envelop you.” And then a sharp click was heard. The fraudulent brakeman held up his arms helplessly — they were safely secured with handcuffs I CHAPTER III. PROFESSOR DARLINGTON RUGGLES. I T would be hard to find a more completely astounded person than the one calling himself Watson Wilks at that moment. The noted detective had outwitted him completely. It was humiliating, to say the least. “ This is an outrage ! ” at length the young villain found voice to utter. “ I will call on the police for assistance if vou do not at once remove these bracelets. ” “ Do so if you like,” answered Dyke Darrel, coolly ; so icily in fact as to deter the young man from carrying out his threat. It might be that the detective would delight in turning him over to the Chicago police, a consummation [that the fellow dreaded more than aught else. “ Come with me, and make no trouble. You will do so, if you know when you are well off,” said Dyke Darrel significantly. And Wilks walked along peacefully, allowing the sleeves of his coat to hide the handcuffs. After going a few blocks, the detective hailed a hack, and pushing his prisoner before him, [entered and ordered the driver to make all speed for the Union depot. “ What does this mean? ” demanded the prisoner, with assumed indignation. “It means that you will take a trip South for your health, my friend. ” “To St. Louis? ” “ You have guessed it, Skidway.” A troubled look touched the face of the escaped prisoner. “ Why do you call me by that name, Dyke Darrel? ” “ Because that is your name. You have five years unexpired term yet to serve in the Missouri penitentiary, and I conceive it my duty to see that you keep the contract. ” “ A contract necessarily requires two parties. I never agreed to serve the State. ” “ Well, we won’t argue the point.” “ But I am in the employ of the railroad company, and will lose my place-” DYKE DARREL. *4 "You gain another one, so"it doesn’t matter,” retorted the de¬ tective. "No use making a fuss, Mr. Skidway; you cannot evade the punishment which awaits you. Any confession you choose to make I am willing to hear. The late tragedy, for instance?,” " You’ll get nothing out of me.” “I am sorry,” " Of course you are. Did you recognize me when we first met?” " No. It was an afterthought. ” "I thought so. You shall suffer for this. You’ve got the wrong man, Mr. Darrel.” " You seem to know me.” " Everybody does. ” “ You flatter me.” " My name isn’t Skid way, but Wilks, and I can prove it.” "Do so.” " Release me and I will. ” » " I’m not that green. ” The prisoner muttered angrily. He realized that he was fairly caught, and that it was too late now to think of deceiving the famous detective. Dyke Darrel had recognized in the young man calling himself Wat¬ son Wilks an old offender, who had made his escap .rom the Mis¬ souri State prison three months before, and he at once surmised that the young counterfeiter, who was a hard case, might have had a hand in the murder and robbery of the express messenger. Reasoning thus, the detective decided upon promptly arresting the fellow before proceeding to search further. It would be safer to have Skidway in prison than at large in any event. More than one pair of eyes had watched the departure of Dyke Darrel and his prisoner from Chicago, and a little later a bearded man, with deep-set, twinkling eyes, and the general look of a hard pet, thrust his head into Madge Scarlet’s little room, and said : " It are all up with the kid, Mrs. Scarlet.” " What’s that you say? ” The woman came to her feet and confronted the new-comer with an interested look. " It’s all up with the kid. ” “ Come in, Nick Brower, and let me have a look at your face. I want no lies now,” cried the woman sharply; and the man drew him¬ self into a little room, and stood regarding the female with a grin. “Now let me hear what you’ve got to tell,” demanded Mrs. Scarlet. " It’s ther kid —— PROFESSOR DARLINGTON RUGGLES. <5 “ Watson?” “ Yesum. ” “ Well, what has happened to him, man? Can’t you speak? ” “ He’s took.” “ Took ? ” “ Nabbed. Got the darbies on and gone South a wisitin’.” “ Do you mean to say that Watson has been arrested ? ” “I do, mam,” grunted Brower. “He’s well out of town, goirf South, and I reckin he’ll be in Jeffe’son City before we hear from him agin. I seed him a-goin’ with my own eyes. ” “ How did it happen? ” The man explained how young Skidway had been seized and taken on board the train by Dyke Darrel. “ You are sure his captor was Dyke Darrel ? ” “ I ain’t blind, I reckon,” growled the man. “ I heard sufficient to tell me that the detective was takin’ the kid back to Missoury, and that was enough for me.” “ Why did you permit it? ” A laugh answered the woman. “You might have saved the boy,” pursued Mrs. Scarlet, angrily. “ Now he will spend another five years in the dungeon where my poor man died of a broken heart. Watson told me that the infamous Dyke Darrel was in Chicago; but I had no thought of his recognizing the boy. Can you lend me some money, Nick ? ” “ A purty question, Madge. Don’t you know I’m always dead- broke? ” growled Brower. “What in the nation do you want with money any how?” “ I’m going to St. Louis.” « No?” “ I am. If Dyke Darrel puts my boy behind prison bars again, I will have no mercy. It’s life for life. I am tired of living, and am willing to die to revenge myself on that miserable detective.” Mrs. Scarlet began pacing the room. She was deeply moved, and tears of anger and sorrow glittered in her eyes. She was about to ut¬ ter a fierce tirade against the detective, when a step sounded without, followed immediately by three raps on the door “ Whist! ” exclaimed Brower. “ It is the Professor.” Madge Scarlet crossed the floor and admitted a visitor, a tall man with fire-red hair and beard, who was well clad and wore blue glasses. A plug hat, rather the worse for wear, was lifted and caressed tenderly with one arm as the gentleman bowed before Mrs, Scarlet. “I am pleased to find yod at home, Mrs. Scarlet,” Dyke Darrel 2. DYKE DARREL. <6 ** I seldom go out, Mr. Ruggles, or Professor Darlington Ruggles, I suppose.” “ Never mind the handle, madam. I see you have company.” The Professor turned a keen glance on Nick Brower as he spoke. CHAPTER IV. SCALPED. (( HE gentleman is a friend,” said Mrs. Scarlet. “ You need not 1 fear to speak before him. ” “ I hain’t no wish to hear any private talk,” said Nick Brower, and with that he cast a keen, knowing look into the visitor’s face, and passed from the room. “ We’re alone, Professor.” “ So it seems. ” “ What news do you bring ? ” M Have you heard of the midnight express robbery? ” “I have.” “ And that Dyke Darrel is on the trail ? ” “ I have heard all that, and more,” said the woman. “ My nephew has been arrested and taken to Missouri by this same infamous Dyke Darrel. It was an awful blow to me; it leaves me entirely alone in the world. I am ready to do anything to compass the ruin of the detective who brought me to this. ” “ I am glad to hear you say it, madam. I came here for advice and help. I assure you that it is highly necessary for all of us that Dyke Darrel be removed. ” « Well? ” “ He might be enticed here, and quietly disposed of.” “ Will you entice him? ” “ I might; but-” “ Well ? ” as the man hesitated. * “ You see, I’ve got a place to fill in the world, and don’t want to mix with anything that’s unlawful,” and the Professor stroked his red beard in a solemn manner. “ Yet you would be glad to see Dyke Darrel dead ?” “ Hush, woman ! Walls have ears. You are imprudent. I have nothing against Mr. Darrel in particular, only he has injured my friends, and may be up to more of his tricks. Now, as regards Watson Wilks, you say Dyke Darrel has gone to Missouri with the boy in charge?” “ Yes, The last friend I had in th? world has been torn from me. SCALPED. I>7 to languish in prison. I will have the detective’s heart’s blood for this,” cried the woman, with passionate vehemence. “ Of course,” agreed the Professor. “ But of what crime was the young man accused? Not the one on the midnight express, I hope?” The tall visitor bent eagerly forward then, and penetrated the woman with a keen gaze. “ No, no,” was the quick reply. “ I know that Martin had no hand in that.” “ Martin ? ” “ Watson, I mean,” corrected Mrs. Scarlet. “ I sometimes call the boy Martin, which is his middle name, so he has a right to it.” “Exactly. You know that the boy had nothing to do with the robbery last night. I don’t wish to argue or dispute with a lady, but I shall be compelled to question how you know so much. Will you answer? ” “ Because — because Martin is incapable of such work. I have read all about it in the papers, and am confident that it was the work of an organized band.” The Professor laughed until his white teeth gleamed in the lamp¬ light. “So sure!”he said. “You consider that nephew of yours a pat¬ tern of propriety. Is this the only reason you have for believing that Watson Wilks had no hand in the murder of Arnold Nicholson, and the rifling of the express company’s safe? ” “ I have another! ” “ WeH? ” “ He was in Chicago at the time the deed was done.” “ Can you prove this? ” Professor Ruggles seemed extremely eager, as he bent forward and touched the arm of Madge Scarlet with a white forefinger. “ I can prove it. ” “ Very good. It may never be necessary, but if the worst comes, you may be called on. I suppose you’re not in the best of circum¬ stances, Mrs. Scarlet? ” The Professor drew forth his wallet. “ I shall suffer, now that my boy is gone. ” “ Don’t fear that, madam,” returned Darlington Ruggles, as he laid a bank note for a large amount in her hand. Providence and your friends will take care of you. You have rendered me more than one good service, and I may call on you for more, soon, much sooner than you imagine. ” “ Anything I can do, Professor, will be gladly performed; ” was the DYKE DARREL. 18 woman’s answer, as she clutched the bank note eagerly, and thrust it from sight. Then Professor Ruggles turned to the door. Here he paused and faced the woman once more. “ Madge, what charge was your nephew arrested under? ” “ An old one. ” “ That is not an answer,” and the man frowned. “ The charge is for uttering counterfeit coin. I believe the boy was innocent, but there was money on the other side, and Martin was sent up for ten years; my husband for fifteen. My man died of a broken heart, being innocent, and Martin served five years and then escaped.” “ I understand. I don’t think the boy will ever serve out his time.” “ I hope he may not, but-” “ Keep a stout heart, Mrs. Scarlet. Influences are at work to free the boy. It will not do to permit him to languish in prison. 1 tell you Providence is on your side. ” Then Mr. Darlington Ruggles passed from the room. “ Strange man,” muttered the woman, after he had gone. u He is a mystery. Sometimes I imagine he is not what he seems, but a de¬ tective. I hope I have given nothing away, for I find it won’t do to trust anybody these days. ” In the meantime Professor Darlington Ruggles made his way to another part of the city, not far from the river, and met a man in a dingy basement room at the rear of a low doggery. Strange place for a learned professor, was it not? “ You’ve kept r.ie waiting awhile, boss.” The speaker was the man we have seen at Madge Scarlet’s— Nick Brower by name. “ I couldn’t get away sooner,” returned the professor. “ How does the land lay, Nat? ” “ In an ugly quarter. ” “ I feared so myself. The young chap that Dyke Darrel took to Missouri knows enough to hang you-” “And you, too, pard; don’t forget that,” retorted the grizzled villain grimly. “ I forget nothing,” said Mr. Ruggles, giving his plug hat a rub across his left arm. “It isn’t pleasant, to say the least, having matters turn out in this way. I wish to see you in regard to this Dyke Darrel. ” “I’m all ears, pard.” # “He must never see Chicago again.” “ Wal? ” “ I want you to see to it, Nick.” SCALPED. *9 “ I don’t know about that,” muttered the grosser villain. I’ve shed ’bout enough blood, I reckin. ” “ It is for your own safety that I speak, Nick. No trace of that last work can ever reach me.” “ Don’t be too sure, Dari Ruggles. With Dyke Darrel on the trail, there’s no knowing where it’ll end. He’s unearthed some o’ the darkest work ever did in Chicago an’ St. Louis. I would breathe a dum sight more comfortable like if Dyke Darrel was under the sod.” “ So would others. ” “ Yourself, fur instance. ” " I won’t deny it, Nick. I don’t feel very comfortable with the young detective free. Between you and me, Nick, I believe we can make this the last trail Dyke Darrel ever follows. A thousand dollars to the man who takes the detective’s scalp. That is worth winning, Nick.” . “ Put ’er thar, pard.” Nick Brower held out his huge hand and clasped the small white «5ne of the Professor “I’llwin that thousan’ or go beggin’ the rest o’ my days, Dari Ruggles.” “ I hope you may. You’d best take the next train for the South¬ west. I won’t be far behind. ” And then the two separated. A little later Professor Darlington Ruggles stood on the dock over¬ looking the river and the shipping. Although yet early in the season the big lake was open, and several vessels laden with lumber had entered the river from various ports on the Eastern shore during the day. A tug lay on the further side, and a schooner with bare spars loomed up in the moonlight. “ This open sewer has witnessed more than one crime, ” mused the Professor. “ I would like it if that infernal Dyke Darrel was at the bottom of the river. He has taken into his head to hunt down the men who killed Arnold Nicholson, and if there’s a man east of the Mis¬ sissippi who can ferret out this crime, Dyke Darrel is the one. But I don’t mean to permit him to do anything of the kind if I know myself. It’s a fight between the detective and as sharp a man as any detective that ever lived. I imagine — hello! who is this? ” The last exclamation was caused by the sudden appearance of a dark form coming up over the dock as if from the water. A moment later a man paused within six feet of Professor Ruggles, and penetrated him with a pair of glittering eyes. “ What do you want? ” ao DYKE DARREL. It was the Professor who uttered the word, at the same time reced- ing a step or two, for the stranger’s glance startled him considerably. “ Who are you? ” demanded the stranger, shortly. “It does not concern you. ” “ Don’t it? We’ll see about that.” An arm shot forward. The Professor’s plug fell to the ground, and the next instant a red wxg was swung aloft in the moonlight. “ Ha! I thought so. You are the man I seek—” The speaker’s word’- were cut off suddenly. CHAPTER V. ELLISTON’S REBUFF. MAD cry fell from the lips of the Professor when he felt him. JTv unceremoniously scalped. The next instant his right hand drew forth a gleaming knife. “Oh! Ah! Murder /” A dark form went backward over the dock; a splash followed, and the Professor stood alone. He peered into the muddy water to note the fact that it flowed on calmly as before. Then Rugg ! the verge of eternity,” said Ruggles, showing his teeth. The situation was interesting. “ Will you permit us to depart from here? ” questioned the detective, suddenly. This speech brought a laugh to the lips of Darlington Ruggles. “ You da not seem to know me! ” he said. “ I kivr* that you pretend to be a professor of some sort, but l A BOUT IN THE CELLAR. 85 believe that you are in disguise. I think, if you would cast aside that red hirsute covering, we should see-” “Zounds! Go for him, boys,” cried Professor Ruggles in a loud voice, completely drowning the faint accents of Dyke Darrel. The two men who kept the Professor company, made a quick move to seize the twain in front of them. On the instant came a flash and sharp report. One of the villains staggered and sank with JaftgroanJ^gainsf/the stairs. “ I— Pm shot 1 ” he gasped. “ The she jade! ” It was Nick Brower who uttered the hissing cry of rage, and the next instant the villain’s revolver flashed. “ My God! You have killed Nell! ” It was a cry expressive of the deepest agony, as the i weak and reel¬ ing detective caught the form of his sister in his arms, as she fell back¬ ward, with the blood streaming down her face. Poor Nell! She hung a dea d weight in the arms of Dyke Darrel—murdered by the hand of a brutal assassin. No wonder the bruised and almost helpless man-hunter groaned with inward anguish at the sight. He fell no easy prey into the hands of his enemies, however. Staggering backward, and easing his bleeding relative to the ground, he turned with a mad cry and dashed at the throat of Professor Dar¬ lington Ruggles. Both men staggered across the floor against the stairs. “ I will strangle you for this,” hissed the enraged detective. “ Help!” gasped Ruggles. Brower came to his assistance with a vengeance, and rained terrific blows upon the head of Dyke Darrel with the butt of his revolver. Soon the mad grip relaxed from the throat of Ruggles, and Dyke Darrel sank a bleeding and insensible mass to the floor. Panting and gasping, Professor Ruggles leaned against the stairs and gazed about him in the gloom. The lamp had been overturned in the struggle, and at the last, darkness reigned supreme. “ I’ve fixed him, Professor,” growled Nick Brower, in a savage undertone. « I hope so, the devil. He went for me with the venom of a tiger. Have you a match? ” “Yes.” DYKE DARREL. «* Let’s have a light. I’m afraid you have done a miserable job, Nick.” Inside of five minutes the overturned lamp was recovered and burning once more. Its rays revealed a ghastly scene. Two forms lay on the floor, Dyke Darrel and Nell, both apparently dead. Nick’s companion, who had screamed so lustily at the fire from Nell Darrel’s derringer, still leaned against the stairs seeming little the worse for wear. “ Mike, where are you hit? ” “ Don’t know. I felt the bullet goin’ through my brains.” A brief examination showed that the man had only been grazed by the shot from the girl’s pistol. When this discovery was made Professor Ruggles became very angry. « You made more fuss than a man shot through the neck ought to. The girl has been killed in consequence. Hades! this has been a bad evening’s work. I would rather have lost a thousand dollars than had Nell Darrel slain. ” “ She wan’t wuth no sich money,” growled Brower. “How do you know what she was worth, you miserable brute?” snarled the Professor, in an angry voice. “ I take it, that I know more about it than you do. ” “ See here, boss, aren’t you goin’ on a bin run for nothin’? Whar’d you be now if I hadn’t gin Dyke Darrel his quietus? Mebbe you’d better thank instead of curse your friend.” There was a deal of homely sense in the words of burly Nick Brower, and the prince of villains realized it. “I wanted the girl unharmed, Nick. If she’s dead I don’t suppose it can be helped, however ; she brought her fate upon herself. ” “ That she did, Proff. ” Professor Ruggles then proceeded to make an examination of the wound in Nell Darrel’s head. He was gratified to discover that the bullet had merely glanced across the girl’s skull without making a necessarily dangerous wound. “ I will take the girl out of this while you dispose of the detective,” said Ruggles. “ Be sure and fix him so that he will give no trouble ip the future.” “ Trust me fur thet,” answered the villain Brower. Then Professor Ruggles passed up the stairs with] Nell Darrel in hr arms, just as four men halted at the side door in the alley. THE EMPTY SEAT. *7 CHAPTER XXII. THE EMPTY SEAT. HAND shook the door as Professor Ruggles entered the room. J^\i He at once suspected something wrong, but cared only for his own safety, and so did not attempt to warn the inmates of Mrs. Scar¬ let’s den of their danger. He hurried to the rear of the block, down an upper hall, and as he was passing into an alley down the back stairs, the four men had burst in the side door and rushed into Madge Scarlet’s dingy sitting-room. “The beaks are out in force, it seems,” muttered Ruggles, as he halted for a moment on the ground to rest from his exertion. “ I hope Nick and that fool pard of his will finish Dyke Darrel before the cops get onto them. As for me, I shall turn my back on this accursed town the moment I am assured that Nell is out of danger. I will be quite secure in New York, I imagine.” And the red-haired villain made his escape from that building and, leaving his charge in an out-of-the-way alley, went forth to find a conveyance to take the wounded girl to a more safe retreat. He suc¬ ceeded in finding a hack that suited his purpose, and with his insensi¬ ble companion he was driven to another part of the city, on the West Side. Ruggles had more than one resort in the great Western metrop¬ olis, and after he had placed Nell in a cozy room, with an old negress to watch over her, he breathed easy once more. Nell Darrel was badly injured, and for several days she raved in delirium. When she came to her senses she was weak and almost helpless. During all this time the black tool of Darlington Ruggles cared for her in a most kindly manner. The negress had been instructed to do all in her power for the girl, who, the Professor assured her, was a near relative who was not wholly sound in mind, and this fact, combined with an accident, had brought on the trouble from which she was now suffering. « Poor little lily,” murmured the negress, in a sympathetic tone, when the girl was able to sit up and look about her. “ Where am I? ” demanded Nell. « Youse in good hands, chile,” answered the black woman. “ Your cousin says he’ll take you outen dis soon’s you can trabbel.” ** My cousin? ” Nell stared at the black, seemingly honest face in wonder. Of a sudden the memory of the adventure in the basement on Clark street came to the girl as a light from a clouded sky. bhe had inaeed been under a cloud for a long time, and had no means of judging of the passage of time. 88 DYKE DARREL. What had happened during all this while? What fate had been her brother’s. A feeling of deepest anxiety filled the girl’s breast. Ere she could find voice for more words, however, the door opened and a man entered the room. A low, alarmed cry fell from the lips of Nell Darrel. Before her stood Harper Elliston, smiling and plucking at his beard, which was but a mere stubble now, he having shaved sincejshe had met him last. “Ah, Nell, you are looking bright; I trust that you feel better. You have been very sick. How does your head feel? ” For the first time the girl realized that there was a sore spot under her hair at the side of her head. She touched it with her hand, and seemed surprised. ” “You have forgotten, doubtless,” he said. “You were rescued from a band of villains nearly a fortnight since. It seems that one of them must have fired at you, since there was a slight wound where you just put your hand, that was doubtless made by a bullet. ” Nell Darrel was beginning to remember the scene in the cellar. “ I was rescued, you say? Who were the rescuers? ” “ Myself among others. I think you may safely acknowledge that you owe your life to me,” said the New Yorker coolly. “ And Dyke? ” questioned Nell with intense eagerness. “ Was saved also, but he is badly hurt, and will be laid up for a month or more. He is in one of the city hospitals. ” “ Oh, sir, I am thankful it is no worse. What have they done with the villains, that sleek one with the red hair and beard? ” “ They are all in prison., and will be brought to trial as soon'as the witnesses are in a condition to appear against them.” “ The witnesses? ” “ Dyke Darrel and yourself.” “ Can I go to Dyke? ” “ Hardly,” he answered with a smile. “ You could not walk, 'that is certain, and I am sure to attempt to ride would prove a dangerous experiment. I am too deeply interested in your welfare to permit the attempt.” “ But I am quite strong, I assure you,” returned Nell, rising to her feet onlj to sink back again with a cry of piteous weakness. “You see, it would not do to attempt leaving your room at present,” said the villain, still smiling. Besides, there is no need of it. Your brother is doing as well as could be expected, and he has the assurance that you are out of danger, which has proved a great com¬ fort to him, I assure you. “ Well, I suppose I ought to be thankful,” sighed Nell, with tears THE EMPTY SEAT. «9 ( in her dark eyes. “ I cannot understand it all just now. It seems strange that I should be subject to such treatment. Do you know the man Sims? ’* “ Sims? ” “ The one with the red beard and hair. He met me at the d6pol.* “ Exactly. I cannot say that I know the fellow, but I suspect he is a scoundrel of the first water. Don’t bother your head about these things now, Nell. Try and get rested and strong, so that you can get from here and back to your own home as soon as possible. I hope you do not fear to trust me? ” He eyed her keenly at the last. She was too weak to fully realize the enormity of this man’s offense She knew nothing of his connection with the ruffians who made o Mrs. Scarlet’s building a rendezvous; she only knew that he had been indiscreet and insulting once, when in liquor, but of this he might have repented long since. At any rate, he seemed to be doing her a good turn now, and she could do no other way than trust him. “ I am still puzzled about one thing,” she said, seeming to forget the question he had propounded “ What is that?” asked Elliston. “ Why was I brought here? ” 11 Simply because you were not able to ^e taken home.” “ But the hospital-- ” “ Was no place for a lady. I realized that you needed the best of care, and knowing Aunt Venus was a kind, motherly soul, an excellent nurse, even though she had a black skin, I brought you here.” “ And here I’ve been — how long? ” “ About fourteen days.” “ So long? ” “Youare surprised? l * “ It doesn’t seem a day.” “ I suppose not. You haven’t been in your right mind any of the time. Have you any word to send to Dyke? ” “ Are you going to him soon? ” “ Immediately. I call at the hospital every day to inquire after the dear boy, and I haven’t been there this morning.” His voice was gentle, and there was a moist light in his dark eyes It was barely possible that she had wronged the New Yorker, and the thought caused a pang. In the time to come she would confess her obligations, but now she was not in a mood for it. “ If I could write a line it would do him more good than aughr else,” said Nell. “ Can you control your hand? ” 90 DYKE DARREL. “ Oh, yes, easily, ” “ Then you shall write the dear boy. As you say, it will be of immense benefit to him.” Mr. Elliston drew forth from an inner pocket a book. Opening it he tore out a leaf and placed it, with pencil, in the lap of the invalid girl. It was not without difficulty that she controlled her hand suffi¬ ciently to write. Taking the folded note Elliston bade her good morning and passed from the room. The moment he gained the street he tore the bit of paper to fragments, a smile glinting over his face meantime. “So much for that,” he muttered. “Nell is about in the right trim for removal, and I must not delay another day. Simple little thing ! She believed every word that I told her regarding the out¬ come of that racket on Clark street. What an opinion she would have of me if she knew the exact truth. I must get me to Gotham immediately. My funds are running low, and she must replenish them. I haven’t seen Aunt Scarlet since the racket. I hope she got her quietus. I believe I have had quite enough of her disinterested assistance ; quite enough of it. ” And yet the scheming gentleman was to receive more of the Clark street hag’s assistance in the future, and in a way that was not just exactly pleasant, than he imagined. * * * * * * * Night hung its sable mantle over the earth. A silver moon rode in a clear sky, and the lightning express rattled down through the night with a hiss and screech that rent the silence with an uncanny sound. The train was speeding through the Empire State, and when morning dawned, with no accident happening, it would come thun¬ dering into the great city by the sea. Two persons occupying a seat in the car next the sleeper merit our attention. One is a» heavily-veiled lady, apparently sleeping, since her head reclines against the back of the seat, and a low breathing is heard, or might be but for the noise made by the train rattling over the steel rails. Who is the woman ? No need to ask when we note the fact that the man sitting there possesses red hair and beard —the irrepressible Professor Darlington Ruggles, of Chicago. He has been eminently successful thus far in his plot for the safe abduction of Nell Darrel. Under the influence of a powerful drug he conveyed her to the station, and set out .on the previous day for the East. His companion was an invalid sister, who was in a comatose state a portion of the time as the result of her ill health. This was the story THE EMPTY SEAT. 91 told by the Professor to inquisitive people, and the truth did not come to the surface. Travelers, who become accustomed to seeing all sorts of people, are not often suspicious. The villain was more successful than he could have hoped. Within a few hours he would be in New York, and then he felt that he could bid defiance to pursuit. It was now past midnight. The man from Chicago felt a deep drowsiness stealing over him. He wished to shake it off, and so, rising and seeing only people in an unconscious state about him, he concluded to go into the smoking-car and enjoy a cigar. He began to feel nerv¬ ous, and such a stimulant seemed absolutely necessary. The train drew into a station, paused less than a minute, and then went swiftly on its way. Calmly the scheming villain sat and puffed at his cigar until it was more than half consumed, then he tossed the stump through the open window, and once more he passed into the other car. When he gained the sea he had lately occupied, he could not sup¬ press a cry of startled wonder. The seat was empty! He had left Nell Darrel there not more than twenty minutes since, drugged into complete insensibility. She could not have gone from the sea t of her own volition. An indefinable thrill of fear stole over the stalwart frame of Pro¬ fessor Darlington Ruggles. He glanced up and down the car; the girl was not in sight. But one person was awake, an old man, who said: “ Lookin’ fur the young lady? ” The Professor nodde ’ “ She got off’t last station.” “ Got off? How-” « She had help, of course,” explained the old passenger, quickly. « Who helped her?“ cried Ruggles, in a husky voice. « An old woman, who got on and off at the last station quick’s wink. 92 DYKE DARREL. CHAPTER XXIII.. DYKE DARREL ON THE TRAIL. T HE men who burst into Aunt Scarlet’s room on the night that Professor Ruggles departed from the block with Nell Darrel in his arms, were men of determination and friends of the detective, who had gone into the building in the disguise of an old man, for the pur¬ pose of investigating. How the investigation came out the reader has been already informed. The report of pistols had warned Harry Bernard, the boy Paul Ender, and two officers in their company, that something of an inter¬ esting nature was going on in the basement of the Scarlet block. “ Dyke is in difficulty, that is sure,” cried Harry, in an excited voice. “ We must get inside at once. ” They tried the side door, to find it locked. It was through this door that they had seen the bold detective disappear, and it was in the same direction that the four men proposed to go in search of their daring friend. The room was in darkness, but Paul soon had the rays of a dark lantern flashing about the place. “ Let us move with caution,” said Harry, taking the lead, and en¬ tering the hall through the doorway which Ruggles, in his hasty flight, had left open. Soon voices greeted them from the basement, and a light glimmered through a half-open door at the head of the stairs. “ If we could only put him under down here,” said a voice, which the reader will recognize as that of Nick Brower, the villainous ac¬ complice of Professor Ruggles from the opening of our story. “ Wal, I reckin we kin,” said the villainous companion of Brower. As he spoke, he went to the side of the fallen man-hunter, and placed the point of a knife against his throat. “ What now, pard? “ Dead men tell no tales, Nick,” “ True. Senddt home-” Spang ! The sharp report of a revolver wake the echoes once more. The knife dropped from the nerveless grasp of the would-be assassin, and with a howl of pain he began dancing an Irish jig on the stone floor of the cellar. Nick Brower whirled instantly, snatched a revolver from his hip,’ to find that four glittering bulldogs confronted him from the stairs. “ Drop that weapon, or we will drop you I ” thundered Harry Ber¬ nard in a stern voice. DYKE DARREL ON THE TRAIL. 93 ** Trapped! ” cried Brower, in a despairing voice. Then the four men moved down into the cellar and secured Brower and his companion. “We have made a good haul, said one of the police officers who accompanied Bernard and Paul, who recognized in Brower an old offender. Harry Bernard bent quickly and anxiously over the prostrate detective. “ My soul!” uttered the young man, “ the villains hwe killed poor Darrel, I do believe. ” But the young man’s belief was unfounded, since some time later Dyke Darrel came to his senses. He was in a bad condition, how¬ ever, and those who saw him predicted that the detective had followed his last trail. A search of the building brought to light Madge Scarlet, who was fuming angrily over her imprisonment. “ How did this happen? ” demanded Bernard, sternly, when he came to question the hag. She was sullen, however, and refused to answer. “ I imagine there is a way to bring your tongue into working order,” said Bernard, in a stern voice. “ I keep a respectable house, sir; you can’t harm me.” “ We’ll see about that.” “ Did you find any one? ” questioned the jezabel in an apparently careless tone. “ We have two of your friends in limbo,” returned Harry. “ You will find it no holiday affair to keep a house for the purpose of mur¬ der and robbery. Never mind, you need say nothing, for it will not better matters in the least. Come; ” and Harry Bernard led the old woman from the cellar. A patrol wagon bore the prisoners to the lock-up, and Bernard had Dyke Darrel taken to a private hospital, where he could have the best of care. It was some days, however, before the badly battered detective came to his senses sufficiently to converse on the subject of the racket in the building on Clark street. « My soul! Harry, has nothing been discovered of poor Nell? — was she killed?” questioned the wounded man in a voice wrung with anguish. «I don’t think Nell was mortally hurt,” returned Bernard in a re¬ assuring tone, although he hardly felt hopeful himself. If she was, why should the villains have taken her away, or the villain rather, since, from your account, I judge that but one of them escaped, and he the man with the red hair.” 74 DYKE DARREL. u Yes, he seemed the chief scoundrel among them. I heard him called Professor Ruggles.” He is about as much a professor as I am,” answered Bernard. “ He is the man we want for that midnight crime on the express train. I have evidence enough now, Dyke, to prove that this man is the guilty principal, and I also believe that one of his accomplices is now in prison.” “ Indeed!” And then the detective groaned in anguish of spirit and of body. It was hard to lay here, helpless as a child, while the fate of Nell was uncertain, and there was so much need for a keen detective to be afloat. Harry realized how his friend suffered, and soothed him as best he could. “ Leave no stone unturned to find her, Harry,” urged the detect¬ ive. “ If you do find and save her, great shall be your reward. If she is dead, then I will see about avenging the deed.” “ And in that you will not be alone,” assured Harry Bernard, a moist light glittering in his eye. Even Dyke Darrel did not suspect how deeply his young friend was interested in the fate of Nell. The days dragged into weeks ere Dyke Darrel was able to be on his feet again. He was not very strong when he once more took it upon himself to hunt down the scoundrels who had wrecked his happy home. Even the railroad crime was forgotten for the time, so intense was his interest centered in the fate of his sister. If not dead, Dyke Darrel believed she had met with a far worse fate, and it was this thought that nerved him to think of doing desperate work should the cruel abductor ever come before him. Madge Scarlet was dismissed after an examination, but Nick Brower and his companion were held to await the action of a higher court. One morning the pallid man in brown suit who had haunted the various depots of the city for several days made a discovery. On one of the early morning trains a man and veiled female had taken passage East. Dyke Darrel trembled with intense excitement when the d<$p6t policeman told him of this. “ Only this morning, you say? ” “ It was on one of the earliest trains, I believe, this morning. “ A New York train? ” “ I am not sure. I see so many people, you know. You might in¬ quire at the ticket office. ” Dyke Darrel did so. No ticket for New York had been sold that morning. Then the policeman said that it was possible he might have been mist a ke n as to DYKE DARREL ON THE TRAIL. 95 the time. It might have been on the previous day he saw the man and his invalid sister. “Do you know that they took the New York train? ” questioned Dyke. “No; I’m not positive about that, either. You might telegraph ahead and find if such a couple is on the train.” This was a wise suggestion. Dyke acted upon it, but failed to derive any satisfaction. And there was good reason for this, since when leaving Chicago a dark man, with smooth face and gray-tinged hair, accompanied Nell Darrel; whereas, before reaching the borders of New York State, the place of this man had been taken by a man with red beard and hair, blue glasses, and a well-worn silk plug. This change disturbed identities completely. The change had been made at|a -way station, without causing remark among the passengers, the most of whom were not through for the great city. Once New York whelmed them, the scheming villain and poor Nell would be lost forever to the man-tracker of the West. There was a suspicion in the brain of Dyke Darrel that he scarcely dared whisper to his own consciousness. It was that Harper Elliston had a hand in the late villainy. The detective’s eyes were open at last, and he realized that his New York friend was not what he seemed. It was this fact that induced Dyke Darrel to believe that the abductor of Nell had turned his face toward the American metrop¬ olis. At once he made search for Harry Bernard and Paul Ender. Neither of them was he able to find, and he had not seen them for two days previous. It did not matter, however. Leaving word at the hotel that he had gone to New York, Dyke Darrel once more hastened to the depot, arriving just in time to leap aboard the express headed for the Atlantic seaboard. The train that had left four hours earlier was almost as fast as the one taken by the detective, so that if no accident happened to the earlier train, there could be little hope of running down his prey be¬ fore New York was reached. Nevertheless, Dyke Darrel preserved a hopeful heart, in spite of the terrible anxiety that opposed him. The woman who had but few days before been released from prison was destined to complicate matters and bring about startling and unexpected meetings, as &e future will reveal When night fell'Dyke Darrel found himself yet hundreds of miles from the goal of his hopes an< fears. Dyke Darrel 7. DYKE DARREL. 96 CHAPTER XXIV. A RACE FOR LIFE. (W s may be supposed, Professor Ruggles was deeply stunned at the /=\, coup de main that had deprived him of his fair charge. Who had robbed him? This was the question that at once sug¬ gested itself to his mind, and he found it not difficult to frame an answer, although, until this moment, he had supposed that Madge Scarlet was still in prison. “ It must be her,” he muttered, as he gazed madly at the vacant seat. “ I’m sure it was her , ” said the old man who had first spoken. “ A queer, wrinkled old woman, too, she was.” “Did she say anything? ” “ Not a word.” Mr. Ruggles passed into the next car, hoping to find Nell and the strange old woman there. He went the whole-length of the swift-moving train, only to 1* am that his fair captive had been spirited away completely. At first rage consumed the man’s senses, and he scarcely realized^the dangers of his position. “ I will not give up to such a sneak game,” he muttered at length. u Madge Scarlet has shadowed me for this very purpose, it seems. Can it be possible that the friends of Nell Darrel have employed this hag to rob me of my prize? I will not believe it, for it isn’t in the nature of Madge Scarlet to do a good action, not even'Tor pay. No; it is to gratify her own petty scheme of vengeance that she has st >len a march on me; but she will not succeed. I will get on her track * Ad wrest the girl from her hands. ” A minute later Professor Ruggles stood before the conductor. “ When does the next train pass going west? ” “ It passes Galien in an hour. ” “ Galien? Do you stop there? ” “Yes. ” “ Soon?” “ Within five minutes. ” When the train slowed in at the station, Professor Ruggles lefi the car and entered the a6pot. Here he would have to wait nearlv an hour before the New York train west would pass. It was a ted oua wait; but he could do no better. With his hand satchel clutched 'jghtly he paced up and down like a ghost of the night. He was glad indeed when the train came at length thundering up to A RAGE FOR LIFE. 97 the station. He had purchased a ticket for the station from which the abductress had boarded the cars and stolen Nell. With feverish blood the scheming villain sat by the window and watched the fleeting landscape by the light of the moon. The score of miles that intervened between the station seemed like a hundred to the anxious man who sat and glared at the trees and hills without. He was in extreme doubt as to his ability to cope with the cunning hag who had ventured so many miles to thwart him, and indulge her own morbid desire for revenge. At length the whistle sounded announcing the station. As the train bolted beside another train, bound in the opposite direction, Ruggles glanced into the car not ten feet distant, to make a startling discovery. He looked squarely into the face of Dyke Darrel, the railroad detective! Turning his head, the Professor sat quiet. The other train was moving, and Ruggles felt paralyzed at his discovery. Perhaps the detective had not noticed him. He could not understand how the detective had escaped death from the beating he had received in the basement of that building of sin on Clark street. His own train was moving now, and if he would get off he must be quick about it. Springing from his seat, he hastened down the aisle. At the open door he met Dyke Darrel face to face! The recog' nition was mutual. The train was moving rapidly out of the station. Soon it would be going, at full speed. Professor Ruggles had two incentives for leaving the train now — one to escape the detective, the other to find Nell and Madgi Scarlet. At first he thought of dashing upon Dyke Darrel and risking all in a swift rush. Second thought, induced by the gleam of a six. shooter in the hand of his enemy, concluded the Professor to seek another course. Turning, he dashed down the length of the car, with Darrel in hot pursuit. “ Halt, or I fire!” ' But the detective’s cry had no effect. The half-sleeping passengers were roused by the wonderful movg- ments of the two men. “ Madmen! ” “ What is the trouble? ” Such were the exclamations, as doors slammed, and the two sten swept into the next car. From coach to coach sped the pujrwied 9 8 DYKE DARREL. and the pursuer. It was a flight for life, on the part of Professor Ruggles. His plug hat flew off in the chase, and a brakeman who confronted him in the aisle was knocked flat with terrific force. “Murder!” And then both men disappeared from the rear platform. Dyke Darrel believed he had his man in a corner, when he saw him dash through the door at the rear of the long train. Not so, however. The desperate Ruggles was ready to do anything rather than come in contact with his relentless foe. He bounded clear of the train, land¬ ing in a soft bit of sand, sinking almost to his knees, without harming him in the least. The detective did not hesitate to follow, but he made a miscalcula¬ tion, owing to his bodily weakness, and instead of landing on his feet, he came down with stunning force across one of the rails. Dyke Darrel lay insensible, like one dead. Had his enemy came upon him then he might have finished the career of the daring man-hunter, without the least danger to himself. For once, Professor Ruggles missed it wofully. As the detective was ten yards behind the Professor, and the car was going at good speed, there was quite twenty rods difference between the two men when they landed. Dyke Darrel was completely hidden from the sight of Ruggles by a clump of trees. Ruggles gazed up the track, but saw nothing of his pursuer. He surmised that Dyke Darrel did not leap from the train, but it was likely he would ring the bell and stop the cars at once, so that it would not do to for him to remain in the vicinity unless he wished to collide with the detective. Another supposition also came to the brain of the villain, prevent¬ ing his search along the track. If Dyke Darrel had leaped after him, what more natural than his hiding in the clump of timber for the pur¬ pose of pouncing upon him when he came up the road. “ I’ll not risk it,” muttered Ruggles. “ I’ve other fish to fry just now than looking after detectives. I must find that hag, Madge Scarlet, and get my hands once more on Nell Darrel.” Then Mr. Ruggles turned his steps in the direction of the station. Already daylight was dawning, and Professor Ruggles was almost beside himself with anxiety. He cursed the woman who had made it necessary for him to leave the train so many miles outside of Gotham. Such a change in the programme might result fatally to himself. Dyke Darrel was hot on the trail now, and it would require the best effort? of a desperate man to throw him off the scent. A RACE FOR LIFE. 99 The man with the sunset hair was desperate enough. With hurried steps he made his way to the depot. The agent was just shutting up. “No train, save a way-freight, will be along till night,” he said, in answer to a question from the gentleman with the' red locks. Ruggles had taken the precaution to provide himself with a cap from his satchel before presenting himself to the man on duty at the d£pot. «One question,” said Ruggles, as the man was about to ’walk away. “ Well ? ” « Did any passengers get off here some hours since from the New York train east? ” « No.” “ Are you sure? ” “ None came into the d£p6t, at any rate,” said the man. “ Any passengers get on? ” “ Several. ” “ Among them an old woman? ” “ I saw no woman.” “ You are sure? ” “Of course I am.” Ruggles was disappointed. Could it be possible that he had been led on a fool’s errand after all, and that Madge Scarlet, with her prize, had been concealed on the train, and continued on to New York? The thought was intolerable. In the meantime, how fared it with Dyke Darrel, who lay stunned and bleeding across the railroad track. It was almost sun-up before he opened his eyes and groaned. His bed was a hard one, and it seemed as though every bone in his body was broken. The fact was, he was yet sore from his serious fall through the trap into the basement on Clark street, consequently it is little wonder he was badly demoralized, both in mind and body, at his last mishap. Presently a strange rumbling jar filled his ears. A bend in the road to the west hid the track, but the dazed brain of Dyke Darrel took in the situation nevertheless — a train was thundering down upon him. A minute more and he would be doomed! He tried to move—to roll from the track. He could not. His limbs seemed paralyzed. Another second and the train would be upon him! too DYKE DARREL, CHAPTER XXV. SAVED! P ROFESSOR RUGGLES had not been amiss in his judgment. It was Madge Scarlet who stole his victim from his arms almost in the hour of his devilish triumph. She did not get on the train from the little way station, however. She was on the train when it drew out of the great city by the lake, but the scheming Ruggles knew it not. She, too, wore a veil, and was otherwise disguised, and managed not to show herself to the man she had once called friend. Imme¬ diately on her release from jail she began to watch Ruggles, who kept himself out of the way, or walked the streets only in disguise. She haunted the dep6ts of the city, and was lucky enough to see him when he took passage. Quietly boarding the same train, she bided her time, intent on gaining possession of the detective’s sister for purposes of her own. The fires of insanity were already burning in the brain of the con¬ vict’s wife. Revenge for past wrongs seemed the sole object of her life now, and this was the incentive that placed her on the track of a fleeing villain and his intended victim. Madge saw Ruggles when he left the car. She watched her oppor¬ tunity, and lifting the partially insensible girl, bore her swiftly to the outside, as the train halted for a minute. She gave vent to a chuckle as the train went thundering on its course. She had passed from the cars on the opposite side from the d£p6t, and consequently was able to elude the gaze of the d£pot agent. Along the track she went, pausing at times to rest, until she was fully a mile from the station. In the shadow of a clump of trees the hag came to a halt and deposited her burden on the ground. A moan from the drugged and helpless Nell reached her ears. And then Mrs. Scarlet chuckled the louder. “ Good; she’s coming out of her bad spell. I want her to realize her fate, else there wouldn’t be the least bit of pleasure in my revenge.” Removing veil and light cloak, Mrs. Scarlet gazed down into the pallid face of poor Nell, with only hatred gleaming from her sunken, beady eyes. “ Ho! I’ve outwitted the master devil himself, and now I will have you all to myself, to deal with in a way that will cut to the quick when Dyke Darrel hears of it.” Nell had on only a light summer robe under the shawl She looked SAVED! I6i v*ry innocent and beautiful as she lay there under the gaze of that human hyena. “ Pretty’s a picture,” hissed the wicked Madge. “I’ll all the more delight in seeing you suffer. Ah! she is coming out of her stupor. How do you feel, dear? ” Nell had opened her eyes and gazed at the wicked face above her, in a dazed semi-consciousness. No answer was vouchsafed. Then, in looking about, the gleam of steel lines under the moon’s rays seemed to attract the notice of Mrs. Scarlet for the first time — the straight lines that marked the course of the Erie road. Their glitter seemed to offer a diabolical suggestion to Madge Scarlet. “Ha! I have it.” Springing to her feet, she laid her arms about the slender form of the helpless girl, and, lifting her, walked swiftly to the railway track. In the centre, between the rails, she deposited her burden. “ Revenge! sweet revenge! ” cackled the hag in a blood-curdling voice. Again the girl moved and moaned; yet she seemed unable to change her position. “ Rest yourself comfortably, my girl; you won’t be in trouble long,” muttered the demon woman, with a grin that was absolutely sicken¬ ing. Poor Nell! She lay quite still after that, between the fatal rails, only giving sign of life by a faint moan occasionally. Mrs. Scarlet retired to her leafy covert to wait the outcome. She could see far beyond the track a farm-house, and near her a heap of ties, and a rude fence —the moonlight revealed everything plainly. Chuckling with hideous satisfaction, the she demon waited the coming of the express that could not be far distant. Morning was already brightening the East. Far away was the sound of a moving train. The sullen, distant roar sent a thrill to the heart of the demon woman, who crouched in the bushes to await the completion of her unhallowed revenge. The sullen jar seemed to act like a shock of electricity on the nerves of Nell Darrel. She felt a strange and awful numbness. With a mighty effort the girl roused herself to a consciousness of her awful position. Louder and louder roared the train. It was but a mile distant now, and the road was straight. Nell raised her head, and resting on her hands gazed down the track where, in the distance, gleamed the light of the locomotive. The SAVED! I03 “ God help me!” moaned the poor girl. Then she tried to throw herself from the track, but she could not. Her limbs were numb, and refused to obey her will. A wild laugh rang out on the moonlit air. Madge Scarlet sprang up and glared through the bushes at her victim with maniacal delight. “ Ha! ha! You cannot escape! Them pretty limbs ’ll be crusheo and tom asunder! the white flesh cut and gashed, and that delicate body made a horrid mass of blood and mangled fragments! Theti I will present them to you, Dyke Darrel. Ho! ho!” Her voice was raised to a high pitch now, and even reached the ears of the startled Nell. No help, no hope! On thundered the iron monster. On and on till the eye of the engineer catches sight of something on the track — something! Quickly the engine is reversed and the air brakes come into play. Too late! A moan of agonized terror falls from the lips of the half-dead girl, and then she sank helplessly to the ground. At the same instant help came from an unexpected source. A man dashed swiftly through the moonlight and flung a heavy oak tie in front of the slackened engine. A rumble and a jar, and then the train came to a dead stop, within three feet of the prostrate girl! It was a narrow escape. The man who had come so unexpectedly out of the shadows dragged Nell from her dangerous position. The engineer and fireman came down and congratulated the young man on his presence. “ The brakes couldn’t quite do it,” said the engineer/ “ That tie saved the girl, with no damage to the train. ” “It seems to be a lucky accident all round,” said the young man, who had laid Nell on a safe spot, and now turned his attention to assisting in removing the obstruction from the rails. “Yes. Who is she?” “ I can’t say.” “ Well, I must be on the way,” uttered the engineer; “ we are behind time now.” By this time the conductor was on the ground, but the train was running again, and he received a full explanation from the engineer afterward. When the young man made a closer inspection of the girl he had rescued, a cry of surprise fell from his lips. 104 DYKE DARREL. ** As I live, it is Nell Darrel! ” But she could not speak to thank him for his act, since she had fainted. Lifting ner tenderly the young man turned his steps in the direction of the farm-house, where he had been stopping during the past two days. “ Curse you! curse you!” were the venomous words flung after the man by Madge Scarlet. But she dared not interfere to prevent the rescue. When Nell Darrel again opened her eyes, it was to find herself calmly resting on a couch in a little room, whose cozy appearance was like home indeed. And the face that bent over her was not that of a stranger. Could it be that she was dreaming ? “ Thank Heaven!” murmured a manly voice, and then a mustached lip bent and pressed a clinging kiss to the cheek of poor Nell “ Harry, dear Harry! ” Thus had the lovers met after many long months of separation. A smile rested on the face of the fair girl as she held Harry’s hand while he talked of the past. She explained as best she could the strangeness of her situation; but everything was so much like a dream, it was a hard matter to reconcile some of the events of the past few weeks. “ The end draws nigh,” assured young Bernard, after a time. “ If the notorious man calling himself Ruggles was on the train, he will, on discovering his loss, turn back, and then I will capture him. CHAPTER XXVI. THE MYSTERIOUS WART. I i^E left Dyke Darrel, the detective, in a critical position on the V l/ railroad track, with the roar of a freight engine in his ears. The rays of the rising sun touched the glittering rails as the long train swept around the bend upon doomed Dyke Darrel. One more tremendous effort on the part of the detective, and he succeeded in throwing his body squarely across one of the rails. In this position he hung a helpless weight, with the hoarse roar the engine making anything but sweet music to his fainting soul. Ha! Look! A hand is outstretched to save at the last moment, and Dyke Darrel is jerked from under the smoking wheels, even as their breath fans his fevered cheek. THE MYSTERIOUS WART. 105 The train swept on. A cheer greeted the man who had come opportunely to the rescue as the engine swept on its course. And a little later a man, young, yet whose boyish face bore marks of dissipation, stood beside the detective and gazed into his face now for the first time. “ Great Caesar! ” The young man started as though cut by a knife, and bent low over the fallen detective, who was now struggling to a sitting posture. When he looked into the face of his rescuer he uttered a great cry. “ My soul! how came you here, Martin Skidway ? ” “ I am a fugitive,” answered the young convict. “ It wasn’t through your good will that I got out of prison, I can tell you that. Had I known who it was on the track, I might not have put out my hand to save. ” The detective regarded the speaker in no little amazement. . This was the second time he had escaped from the Missouri prison, which argued well for the man’s keenness and capability, or else ill for the official management of the prison. “ It was from the St. Louis prison that I escaped,” explained Mar¬ tin Skidway a little later. “ I never got inside the State institution a second time. I’ve had a sweet time of it thus far.” “ Tell me how you made your escape,” said Dyke Darrel, who sat with his back against a tree, and regarded the young counterfeiter in wonder. “ There isn’t much to tell,” returned Skidway. “ I had no assist¬ ance, but it seems that a pair of burglars had broken out by filing off the grating to one of the corridor windows, and the opening had not been repaired when I was taken to the jail. I was left in the corridor a minute while the jailor was attending some other prisoners, and that minute gave me the opportunity. I mounted a chair, climbed through the window, and made my escape by the light of the moon. Of course there was a big search, but I remained hidden in an old cellar under a deserted house in a grove within the city limits, for several days, and finally made good my escape from the State.” “ And now? ” “ I am going to put the ocean between me and the beaks of Ameri¬ can law.” Dyke Darrel regarded the speaker with mingled emotions. He saw in this daring young fellow much talent, that had it been rightly directed, might have made an honorable place in the world for Mar¬ tin Skidway. “ I am helpless to arrest your steps just at present,” groaned the ® ' ' '• 'SvT V ® ^ ?!?£■’ - ■'■ '■ V t ^i. S "i l THE MYSTERIOUS WART. 107 detective. “ Would you do it after what has happened, if you were in a condition to do so? ” demanded the convict, bending over the man on the ground, regarding him with a menacing look. “ Duty often calls one to do that which is disagreeable,” answered Dyke Darrel. A deep frown mantled the brows of the convict. “ I see that my mercy was misdirected,” he said. “ It seems that I have saved your life only to give you a chance to dog me to doom. Think you I am fool enough to permit this? ” There was a menace in the man’s voice that Dyke Darrel did not like. “ I am at present helpless,” he said. “I don’t imagine you will harm a man who is in no condition to injure you if he wonld. ” “ But you can talk. The first man who. comes along will hear from you that an escaped convict is in the rural districts of New York, and a telegram will set ten thousand officers on the lookout forme. With¬ out such information I would not be recognized in this community. I am a desperate man, Dyke Darrel, and do not propose to sacrifice myself for your benefit.” “ What will you do? ” “ One of two things.” “ Well?.” “You must solemnly swear that you will never reveal to anothet that I am in this region, and swear also to make no effort to capture me under a month, or else I shall have a painful duty to perform.” “Goon!” “ Will you take the required oath? ’ “ Certainly not.” “ Then the other alternative is alone left me, Dyke Darrel.” “ And that? ” “ Death to you!” Straightening to his full height after uttering the three terrible words, Martin Skidway snatched a heavy iron bolt from the ground, that had lain long beside the track, and raised it above the head of helpless Dyke Darrel. “ Martin Skidway, hold!” The words of the detective came forth in a thrilling cry. An instant the would-be assassin stayed his hand. “ You agree to my terms? ” “No; but-” “ Then you must die It will be considered an accident, and no one will suspect my hand in the affair. ” DYKE DARREL. to8 Again the young convict poised his weapon for deadly work. On the instant the rumble of wheels met the ears of Martin Skidway. A wagon containing two men was in sight, moving down a road that ran parallel with the railway at this point. It was evident that the occupants of the vehicle had seen Skidway, and to strike now would but add to the vengeance of pursuit and punishment. With a curse, he dropped the iron bolt and turned to flee. “ Dyke Darrel, if you inform on me, I will kill you at another time l ” hissed the convict. Then he rushed from the spot and disappeared. As the wagon came opposite it halted, and the cries of Dyke Darrel brought both men to his side. “ Hello! is this you? ” cried a cheery voice, and the next instant Dyke Darrel was lifted to his feet by the strong hand of Harry Ber¬ nard. It was a happy and unexpected meeting. Harry had good news to tell, and when Dyke Darrel, assisted by his friend, reached the farm¬ house where Nell had found safety and shelter, the detective was strong enough to stand, and assist himself in no small degree. Mutual explanations were entered into, and, as may be supposed, the meeting between brother and sister was a happy one indeed. Harry was the hero of the hour. When Dyke Darrel spoke of Martin Skidway, and the part he had acted in saving his life, a word of admiration fell from the lips of NelL But when Dyke proceeded to the conclusion, the girl’s face blanched, and she had no word of commendation left for the miserable convict, tvho, after all, possessed but little honor. “ So Aunt Scarlet is in the neighborhood; and also your abductor,” mused the detective. “ The trail is becoming hot, indeed. ” “ It is, for a fact,” admitted Harry. “ I believe, if the truth was known, this man Ruggles will prove to be the man we want. Have you that handkerchief with you, Dyke, that we found in the coat of the rascal who attempted your murder in St. Louis? ” This was several hours after the events of the morning, and Nell was now resting in a large wooden rocker, very weak, yet feeling remarkably well, considering the siege she had passed through during the past two weeks and more. Dyke Darrel and Harry were the only occupants of the room, the farmer being at his work in the field, and his good wife attending preparations for supper in the kitchen. “ I have kept the tell-tale handkerchief through it all,” answered the detective, at the same time producing the article from a receptacle, beneath his shirt. THE MYSTERIOUS WART. IOp u It’s a wonder this was not discovered when you were in the hands of the thugs of Chicago.” “ I wasn’t closely searched, I suppose. You and the boys were too close after them. ” “You give me too much credit, Dyke,” returned Harry Bernard, modestly. “ I’ve a question to ask.” “ Ask as many as you like. ” “ Was it the fact of my hand fitting this bloody imprint that so startled you in the St. Louis hotel?” “ Did I not so claim at the time?” “ Perhaps c , but wasn’t there another coincidence that gave you reason to suspect me? “ There might have been. ” “ I thought so. It was the imprint of a large wart, such as this on the handkerchief, that made you look with suspicion upon me. Is it not so? ” Harry held up his hand, so that a wart on the little finger was plainly revealed, and which, when he placed his hand against the tell¬ tale handkerchief, fitted the marks perfectly.” “ Forgive me, Harry,” cried the detective, quickly. “ I know now that it was only a remarkable duplicate; the wart belonged to another hand than yours. The print of the wart was also on the bosom of Arnold Nicholson’s white shirt bosom, where a bloody hand had fallen. I made this discovery when I examined the body of my dead friend. Circumstantial evidence pointed to you, and yet I doubted—” “ I understand,” interrupted Harry. “ My hand is indeed a dupli¬ cate of the assassin’s. It is a wonder that I have not been arrested ere this by some of the detectives who are engaged in working up this case. ” “ Why so? ” « Because you are not the only one who made the discovery of the wart that adorned the hand of the assassin. A reporter got hold of the story and published it. Don’t you remember? ” «I haven’t read the papers closely since the murder.” “ But I have, and so has the man who killed Nicholson. ” “Indeed ? ” “ He soon learned that officers of the law were all looking for a man with a large wart on the second joint of the little finger of the right hand. This fact made him nervous, and one night he severed the wart* and flung it from him, since which time he has breathed easier.” A low exclamation from the lips of Nell startled both men. 1X0 DYKE DARREL. 1 CHAPTER XXVII. THE STORY OF A WART. T"%ELL, what is it?” questioned the surprised detective, i G Harry regarded the girl with a queer smile. Perhaps he knew what had brought the exclamation to the lips of Miss Darrei. “ I know a man who has lost a wart,” she said, slowly, a deepening pallor coming to her cheeks. “ His name? ” questioned Dyke Darrel, eagerly. But the girl did not immediately answer. It seemed that something moved her deeply. “ Was it Professor Ruggles?” questioned Harry, in order to heip the young girl out. “ No,” she said. “ Who then? ” “ Harper Elliston l ” A grave look chased the smile from the face of Harry Bernard. The girl’s announcement seemed to prove a revelation to him, even as it did to Dyke Darrel. “ I did not know the man who severed the wart from his hand,” said Harry Bernard, after a brief silence, “ but suspected that it was Dar¬ lington Ruggles. It seems now that I was correct.” “ How is that?” “ Have you not guessed the truth,” queried Harry Bernard. “ I made the discovery some time since that the red-haired man and Harper Elliston were one and the same. ” This came as a revelation to both the detective and his sister. “I have had suspicions,” said Dyke Darrel, “but never anything definite regarding the villainy of this man Elliston. He has played his cards well, but I became undeceived not long after this great rail¬ road crime. That he was not my friend I discovered, and then I resolved to watch him. I have reason to believe that it was to him I owe my arrest in Burlington, Iowa. I now see the truth, that under the assumed name of Hubert Vander, Elliston ruined a young girl of Burlington, and, it may be, murdered her father, wealthy Captain Osborne. It would be strange indeed, should the trail that ends with the capture of the express robber also bring to punishment the assassin of the Burlington Captain. ” “ It seems likely to end in that way,” returned Harry. “ Let us hear what Nell has to say with regard to the wart,” said the detective, turning to his sister. *’ It will require but a few words to do that,” said Nell Darrel. u I THE STORY OF THE WART. Ill always noticed a peculiarly shaped wart on the finger of Mr. Elliston’s shapely right hand, and once he remarked upon it to me, saying that it was a disfigurement, and that he meant to have it removed some¬ time. I think it was the first time I met Mr. Elliston after the terri¬ ble news of the midnight express tragedy that I noticed the absence of the wart, and a bit of surgeon’s plaster covering the spot. I laughed over his having undergone such a severe surgical operation, and he seemed to take it in good part, assuring me that he was the surgeon who amputated the excresence with a razor. Of course I thought nothing strange of it at the time.” “ You said the wart had a peculiar shape? How is that?” ques¬ tioned Harry Bernard. “ It was large, and was composed of two crowns. I think, per¬ haps two warts had grown together at the roots. ” “ Exactly. Would you know the wart if you should see it again?” “ I think I should.” “ So would I,” cried the detective. Then Harry Bernard drew a small vial from his pocket and held it up to view. A small object, submerged in alcohol, was visible. When placed in the hand of Nell, the girl at once exclaimed: “ That is certainly the wart that once disfigured the hand of Harper Elliston!” “ Where did you get it ? ” questioned Dyke Darrel, now deeply interested at the links that were being rapidly forged in the chain of evidence. “ Dyke, you know that when I left Woodburg some months ago, I went from among you under a cloud? ” “ I will not dispute you —” “No explanation is necessary on your part, Dyke. I imagine I was as much to blame as anybody. Nell and I quarreled, and I imagined that the handsome, elderly New Yorker had stepped into my shoes, so far as she was concerned. I did not like the man, and so I resolved to investigate for myself, and if I found that he was not worthy of Nell, whom I loved and should always love while life lasted, I determined to expose him, and save your sister. During the past few months I have been making this investigation, to find that the supposed immaculate Harper Elliston is known in Gotham in certain circles as a gambler and villain of the deepest dye. He has committed some crimes that are worse than 'murder. Now, as to the wart: It was soon after I had heard of the murder on the express train, that while riding in the smoking car of an emigrant train in Iowa, I saw an old man deliberately slice a huge wart from his little finger with a keen-edged knife. The wart fell under the seat and Dyke Darrel 8. 112 DYKE DARREL. foiled at my feet. The old man made no effort to recover it, but wrapped his bleeding hand in a handkerchief and muttered: ‘ that witness will never come up to trouble me. * There was something in the man’s voice that sounded familiar, and the strange whiteness of his hands aroused my suspicions, for in dress and appearance the man was a laborer of the lower class. Curiosity, if nothing stronger, prompted me to take possession of the severed wart that had rolled at my feet. Soon after that I read the notice in a newspaper, to the effect that the assassin of the express train had left the imprint of a wart on the bosom of the dead man’'s shirt. Since that time I have regarded hands with no little interest, and have looked for the old man of the emigrant car in vain. ” * An interesting recital,” said the detective, when Harry Bernard came to a pause. “ Knowing all this, you kept it from me at St. Louis.” “ My reason for that was, that I did not care to arouse any foolish theories. Of course, the reporter’s story might have been false. The wart on my own hand, somewhat similar to this, led me to keep my own council as a matter of personal safety. Although I suspected Elliston, I had no proof, since I had forgotten the fact of his ever having a wart on the little finger of his right hand. My principal hope has been in finding the old man of the emigrant train. ” u You have not found him? ” “Not unless Elliston is the man.” “ Did you suspect this before now ? ” “ I did; now I am convinced. Just then Harry Bernard chanced to raise his eyes and gaze out of the open window. He came suddenly to his feet with a startled exclamation. Dyke Darrel glanced out of the window to notice a bent old man, with white hair and beard, moving away from the vicinity of the house. Evidently he had been looking into the room, if not listening to the conversation of the trio. u faints of Rome! there is the old man of the emigrant train now! ” Dyke Darrel staggered to the window, while Harry Bernard rushed swiftly from the farm-house. 1SS REVELATIONS OF A SATCHEL. 11 $ CHAPTER XXVIII. THE REVELATIONS OF A SATCHEL. • P^ELLO, old man!* o “Eh?” The man stopped, stared at Harry Bernard as if puzzled, and then .began to grin. “ I want to speak with you, sir. ” “Sortin, sortin you can.” “ Who are you? ” “ Sam Wiggs o’ Yonkers. W’at can I do for ye," mister? ” The old fellow seemed honest enough, and as Harry glanced at the dirty hands, he saw nothing to excite his suspicions. “ Are you a relative of Mr.-? ” naming the farmer who owned the place on which they stood. “ Wal, not as I knows on,” drawled the old fellow, laughing until his old head seemed ready to topple from his shoulders. “No blood relation, any how, sir. You see, my wife’s cousin’s aunt’s husband’s brother Jerry was a cousin to Nicodemus Dunce, who, if I don’t disremember, was related in some way to Isacker Pete’s wife’s sister, and she was this ere man’s niece, or somethin’ o’ that sort, but we ain’t blood related nohow.” “ I should think not, ” answered Harry, ana then he returned to the house, while the old man Wiggs proceeded unmolested on his way. « At a first glance, he did resemble the man of the emigrant train strongly,” muttered Bernard, “ but I see now that I was mistaken.” “ Well, how did you make out, Harry? ” “ This was from Dyke Darrel, who had been watching proceedings from the window. “ A case of mistaken identity,” answered the young man, with a laugh. “ I was sure I had found the right man when I saw that old chap crossing the yard, but it seems that I was mistaken.” “ Are you sure of it? ” “ I suppose I am. ” Dyke Darrel watched the retreating form of the old man with no little curiosity, however, until his bent form was lost to view down the winding road. Naturally suspicious, the detective more than half believed that the seemingly aged man had not come to the farm-house for any good purpose. “ I can’t help thinking that Wiggs, as he called himself, is destined to give us trouble, Harry,” the detective said, at length. “An inoffensive old man,” asserted Bernard. At the same time» however, he was not fully content to let the matter rest as it wa& 8 _ . «4 DYKE DARREL. ** It might be well enough to watch the ola idlow, at any rate,” said Dyke Darrel, rising and walking twice across the room, peering nerv¬ ously out of the window in the direction in which old Wiggs had gone. “ Keep quiet, Dyke,” said Bernard “ I will shadow the old fellow, and see if he is other than he seems.” Bernard was on the point of leaving the room, when a youth ap¬ peared, walking swiftly toward the farm-house from the direction of the station. One glance sufficed to show both men the genial face of the boy Paul Ender. “ So you have Paul with you, Harry? ” said the detective with a pleased smile. “ He is my shadow, and I have found him true and brave,” answered Harry, at the same time glancing toward Nell, who had told him of the lad’s defense of her against the villain Elliston. “ I can testify to his bravery,” said the girl. “ Paul and I are great friends. ” A minute later, young Ender entered the presence of the trio, and deposited a black satchel in the middle of the floor. “ I have committed a theft,” said the boy, with a queer look on his face, “ and am here to throw myself on the mercy of the court. ” “You speak in riddles,” said Bernard. “ I’ve been on a bully lay, as the peelers say, and I believe have made a discovery, although it may amount to nothing after all. ” “Go on.” “ I’ve seen the man with the red hair and beard.” « When? ” “Where?” “ Over by the d£p6t. I saw him go into an old out-house with this satchel in his hand.” “ Indeed!” “ Go on. ” “ I was on the watch, and when he came out I saw, not Brother Ruggles, but a lean old man, with white locks and beard, who seemed to walk with great difficulty.” “ Ah!” “Indeed!” “ He hobbled away, and failed to take the satchel with him. At first X could not believe that the sorrel gent and the old chap were the same. I learned this by investigation. When, after waiting a spell, and no sunset-haired gent came forth, I proceeded to investigate, and found this satchel, which, under the law of military necessity, I pro¬ ceeded to confiscate, that the ends of justice might be furthered. If I THE REVELATIONS OF A SAiJHEL. 11 $ have done wrong, I am ready to throw myself on the mercy of the court, and be forgiven.” “You have done right,” cried Dyke Darrel “ Have you opened the satchel ? ” “ No. It is locked, and I haven’t a key that will fit.” Harry Bernard produced several keys, none of which fitted the lock to the satchel. “ What are we to do? ” cried Bernard. " The satchel is securely locked, and its owner has the key. ” “This is no time for ceremony or undue squeamishness!” uttered Dyke Darrel. “ We are on the eve of an important discovery, and I propose to make no delays. ” Then, drawing a knife from his pocket, the detective bent over the satchel and slit the sides at one stroke.” “ That will open it if a key won’t,” he remarked, with grim sat¬ isfaction. The contents of the satchel were a revelation. Red wigs and a complete suit of clothes, besides paints and powders. Harry uttered an exclamation. “ Just as I suspected,” uttered Dyke Darrel. “ You made no mis¬ take when you suspected thac old man who just now left this vicinity. Doubtless he forgot his satchel, or else thought it safe until his return. Paul, my boy, you h*ve done a good thing, and shaP be promoted We must now make it a point to intercept old Wiggs. “ Doubtless he has gone to the depot.” “ How far is that from here? ” “ Two miles.” « When does the train pass? ” questioned Dyke DarreL “ I cannot say. ” « Nor I.” “ Ask the farmer’s wife.” Paul sped from the room. « The New York express goes in ten minutes,” said the boy, on his return. “In ten minutes? Then we have no time to lose,”^cried Dyke, turning to the door. « Dyke, what would you do? ” demanded Nell at this moment. “ Capture your enemy and mine ——” « But you are not strong enough to take the traiL Stay with me. " He interrupted her with: “ Nell, I never felt stronger in my life. I mean to put the bracelets cm the villain’s wrists with my own hands.” DYKE DARREL. i II* * Dyke, leave it to me,” urged Harry Bernard. But the detective’* blood was up, and he would listen to no one. He was determined to be in at the death, and for the time hi* old strength seemed coursing in his veins. He hastened from the house, and ascertaining that a horse was in the barn, he at once sprang to the animal’s back. “You are unarmed? ” said Bernard. * Yes, but —■—” “ Take this; I will quickly follow,” and the young man thrust a re¬ volver into the hand of Dyke Darrel. “ Do nothing rash until help arrives, Dyke. Our game is desperate, and will fight hard if cor¬ nered. ” “lam aware of that, but I do not fear him. Ha I what is that? ” “ The roar of the train.” “ Then time is short. ” The horse and rider shot away down the country road like an ar¬ row, or a bird. On and on, with the speed of the wind, and yet the lightning express made even greater speed than did the detective’s horse. With a roar and a rush the train swept past. Too late! Dyke Darrel drew rein at the d£p6t just as the "train swept madly away on its course to the great city, and on the rear platform stood the old man who had peered into the farm-house window but a short time before. It was an aggravating situation. “ You can use the telegraph,” suggested thed