Activate Javascript or update your browser for the full Digital Library experience.
Previous Page
–
Next Page
OCR
HAPPY
" probably still there. I don't like to see you
dressed as you are.
~ “You won't when you come back,” said
Blanche, & blushing, and the boys started for
} the hold, where they soon made a discovery
: which raised their hopes to the highest
. pitch.
‘ There was about eight feet of water in
: the hold, which all seemed to have entered
through one small break in the side of the
corvette, where one of the iron plates had
been started by the i
That's the Russians all over!” cried
Raoul ca disgust. “No Englishman or
Yankee would ever have deserted this craft.
Demidorff must have lost his head.”
: “It looks so,” replied Fred.““We can easily
. caulk up that break. Then all we’ve got to
4 . surprised if we couldn’ t back her off in ten
minntes time.’
, but who will play the engineer?”
“ on’t know any more
“Tm 800d | for that job.”
“You are?”
“Every t -
Good! ‘Go ! Why was I not born a
Yankee? I used to be proud of being a
Russian, but now I’m ashamed or it Come,
Fred, I must get back to my w!
As they came up out of the hold the two
boys had no more than closed the hatch-
i _ way than both were startled by a loud cry
. ~ aft.
i “Heavens! That’s Blanche’s voice!” ex-
claimed Raoul.
¢ The .words had seareely escaped him
i) when the cry rang out ai
: “Help, Raoul! Help! Save me! Be
‘ quick!”
t Raoul turned as pale as death and ran
toward the door which communicated with
7 the cabin, closely followed by Fred.
- {To BE CONTINUED.]
a -—____
2b :
¢ "Next week: ‘The Captain of No. 9;
“ or, The Boy Loggers of Loon Lake,”” byy
é James D. [ontague.
———
fi -
— [This story commenced in No. 273.]
Nai, the Boy Wonder
DOWNING THE WHITE
*ROBED BAND.
By CAPT. HOWARD,
Author ot ones Masked Hand,” “Billy, the
's Boy,” “In New York's
Onrangenes Places,” etc,
CHAPTER XXII.
THE PURSUIT.
: At about nine | o'clock of the evening of
4 which I hay n writing a sharp ring
" came at Nat. Parker’ 's door bell.
4 Nat was in his den, but came out into
t P which he used for the reception
1 of visitors, and the newcomer was ushered
He was a portly, handsome, well-dressed
5 man of about fifty year:
d He recognized him at once, having seen
him on two or three cue occasions,
It was Banker Spauldi:
And he was evidently” "laboring under
a area excitement
‘ace was flu ished, his eyes were un-
naturally bright and his form trembled.
“Good evening, Mr. Spaulding,” said Nat.
“Be seated,” and he indicated a chair.
“You know me, then?” the banker
‘ queried, as he sank into the chair. “So
tt much the better,” as Nat inclined his head
in assent. “It will save talk and explana-
tions, You are Mr. Nat Parker, are you
ot?”
oa it bowed.
“T am,” he assented.
“And my daughter engaged your services
in behalf of oouns, Haviland a few days
since, aia not?”
“She
Wane Shen, as you know her, I will
state the business that has brought me
here, Mr. Parker, my daughter has been
abducted!”
Nat started.
“What!” he cried.
gay? When—and by w
“At about half-past scieht—within the
hour. And by a fellow who has been cut-
ting quite a dash here for a short time—
although I never took any stock in him nor
did my daughter—one Prince Montjoyce,
as he called himself.”
Nat was expecting | te hear this, so ex-
pressed no astonishm
“The scoundrel!” he aia, half to himself.
“le is bolder than I thought.”
one himself,” Mr.
1 merece Are
.
~
Abducted, did you
Spauiding said.
“Tell me about it ” ordered Nat.
“It’s the most outreageous piece of busi-
ness imaginable,” said the banker. “This
Prince Montjoyce, as he calls himself, called
at my residence at about eight o’clock—so
the footman teils me; as away—and
wished to see Henrietta. She came down
and about half an hour later this scoundrel
called the footman and sent him for a glass
of water, as he said he was thirsty.”
“A ruse!” interjected Nat. “He wanted
a chance to sneak your daughter out of
e house. -
“Exactly,” said the banker. “That was it
without a doubt, for when the footman re-
turned with the water his princeship was
one—and Henrietia as well. Mr, Parker,
what shall we do? Can we not trace him up
and rescue my daughter from his clutches?
What do you, suppose is his object, any-
way—mone;
Gadoubtedly,” assented Nat. “I.do not
think he intends holding her for ransom,
however. It is my belief that he wishes to
marry your daughter.”
“The infamous scoundrel!” exploded the
anker.
“Without a doubt he went to your house
this evening for the express purpose of
suing for your daughter's hand in mar-
riage. Being refused, he resorted to force,
and has abducted your daughter with the
intention of holding her a prisoner until
she consents to become his wife.
“Such audacity is almost beyond belief,”
the banker crie
“Nevertheless such i I will wager, the
exact situation,” averred Nat. “But I thin
we can beat him at his little game.”
“We beat ” the banker said, as
the room. !- The villain!
To think of my daughter being a prisoner
in the bands of such a scoundrel. Mr. Par-
ker, rescue her, and you may name any
amount within reason for your reward.”
it won’t cost you very heavily,” Nat
““f think I am safe in saying that
your daughter will be back home again,
safe and sound, before sunrise to-morrow
ng.”
“I wish that it might be so,” the banker
said, “but I fear you cannot do it. In the
first place, you ¢ do not know where to look
"sailed Nat.
al that I know where your
daughter is at “this very moment. I know
all about this Prince Montjoyce—about as
much as. he knows himself—and IL, know
where he has a hiding place. It is just the
kind of a place he would take your daugh-
ter 2, and he is on his way there this ve!
moment, or I miss my guess. I shall go on
the t theory that such is the fact, anyway,
and as soon as I can secure the services ef
a posse of officers to go with me I will b
ready to start.”
“Why do you need a posse of men? Let
me go with you and the two of us will be
more than a match for the feoundt
“But he alone,” said “He is
the chief of a counterfeiting gang and there
shall have to
“I would wager
and even then we will have hard work cap-
turing them.
“But I can go with ‘you, can I not?”
“Oh, yes,” replied Nat. “I have no ob-
jections. It is only natural, of course, that
you should wish to go. You stay here until
return, I am going to get the men and
wil be back here with them in less than an
orVery well,” Mr. Spaulding said, and Nat
took his depart
e was back within forty minutes and
told the banker to come alon;
ie banker accompanied Nat from the
house and looked about in surprise.
are the men?” he asked.
Nat smiled.
“They're not far away,” he said. “They're
within hearing but not in sight. Such a
gang of men walking together would at-
tract too much attention. They will be at
the destination we are bound for as soon as
we are, however.
Twenty minutes later, when the Mil-
waukee fiyer pulled out for the north, Nat
and Mr. Spaulding and thirty detectives
were on board.
. But no one would have suspected that
any three of the thirty-two men were
bound for the same place.
CHAPTER XXIII.
WAITING,
When the conductor came around to take
up tickets Nat called him to one side.
“Conductor,” he said, “I am Nat Parker,
a detective from Chicago. I have thirty
men on this train and we are going up
into the woods to capture a counterfeiters’
gang. We wish to get off at Big Woods
station. I know
there, but you
will you not?” and Nat pressed a five-dollar
bill into the conductor's hand.
“Tam
sure the company would approve of my
reaking a rule on such an occasion and
for such a purpose. Have your men out
“T'll see to that,” assured Nat, and he re-
m | Suspecting danger,
turned to his sea‘
When the train was within a mile of the
station Nat gave the signal and the men
quietly made their way out upon the plat-
forms and stood Heed to leap off when the
train came to a sto
few minutes later the train began to
slow up, coming to a stop presently at the
little telegraph station.
Nat, Mr. Spaulding and the rest leaped to
the ground, and, with a ery of “all right”
the ,conductor swung himself. aboard *the
rain aud it pulled rapidly out and away.
I
ke
that worthy simply came to the door and
looked at the posse of men curiously, but
without any display of amazement.
moving,”
and he set out through the timber, which
here Brew almost up to the railroai
In‘single file the men fonvowed and for
an hour and a half this was kept
Then they came to the little Mhearing in
which was the hut occupied by Black Ben-
zone and his mother.
was silent; no light was to be seen,
and, judging that the inmates of the cabin
m of the cabin
through which the rendezvous of the coun-
tenfeiters was to be
it the inmates of the cabin were not
cep.
“Benzone had been sitting on the front
doorstep smoking, when his quick ear had
caught the trampling of feet and snapping
of twigs. ‘
he sprang within
doors, put out the light, barred the door,
going to the one window in front,
watched and listened.
His eyes were so accustomed to the dark-
ness of the forest that he was enabled to
make out the shadowy forms of the men as
they filed past, and as he counted thirty-
two his hair almost came upon end.
“Thunder!” he exclaimed. “Wat kin
thet mean? Thirty-two uv ‘em an’ goin’—
where?’
Suddenly he started and a curse escaped
m.
“It’s thet cussed Nat Parker, I'll bet a
thousand,” he cried. ‘An’ he’s bound fur
headquarters, er I’m a liar! He discovered
the rendezvous last night when he wuz up
heer, an’ is goin’ now ter rake ther boys
in. Curses on him! But I'll outwit ’im yit.
I'll go an’ warn the boys. Mebby I kin git
there ahead uv ’em an’ git the boys out_an’
away before the bloodhound an’ his gang
gits there, Ty leg’s sore as thunder, but
Tr how,”
g a direction angling
away from that taken by Nat and his mene
was Benzone’s purpose
sort of half circle and come into the path
ahead of Nat, and this he succeeded in do-
ing, though his leg pained him so that he
had to stop a few moments every once in a
while to ease i
fat and the men pressed steadily onward
for perhaps half an hour and then the edge
the clearing in which was located the
cabin they were headed for was reached.
Nat halted the men long enough to give
them instructions to keep perfectly quiet,
then the party moved forward and
proached the old cabin.
At the door all came to a stop, while
Nat corey pushed the door open and
looked wit
All was dark, so he opened the slide of
his qantern and flashed the light about the
Ghose ie ide Nat was going to et
‘at started, ands with a Whispered “Sh,”
listened inten’
remembered that the door leading to
the underground rendezvous creaked when
opening, and he suspected that it was being
jushed open now by some one coming out.
Listening intently, he quickly, became
convinced that this was the ca:
Then he heard footfalls upon “the floor of
the cabin and low, excited whispering.
There was evidently more than one,
Nat started.
A sudden thought struck him.
rhaps, in some mysterious manner, the
founterfelters had gotten wind of the com-
ng of himself and men and were making
thels escape.
“We'll see about it, my fine fellows,” he
said to himself, with a setting of his teeth.
Then he quickly whispered instructions
o the man next him,¢who communicated
with the one next him, and so on, until all
knew what to expect and what they were to
‘n, with nerves tense and hearts eager
fort the fray, Nat and the officers waited.
CHAPTER XXIV.
CONCLUSION,
Suddenly a man stepped out of the cabin,
and as he did so a pair of strong hands
seized him about the throat and com-
pressed it to such an extent that he could
not cry out, while another pair of arms was
thrown around his waist, pinfoning his
tbrown around his legs, and the man was
lifted bodily and borne to one side and
bound hand and foot with rope that had
been brought along and gagged in an ef-
fectual manner.
And by this time there came another trio
of detectives bearing another victim, who
was treated in the same manner, and one
after another the counterfeiters stepped out
e cabin to meet with the same fate,
The detectives were skillful and made no
mistakes,
The last man to be secured was Montjoy, \
and it took five men to handle him, he was
such a power ful man and struggled so des-
perately.
He was secured finally, however, and then
Nat opened the slide of his lantern, and,
stepping into the cabin, flashed the light
bout
expected, there in one corner,
frightened and trembling, stood Henrietta.
hands were bound together behind
her back and she was evidently at a loss to
know what was happening.
Nat’s face was in the shadow and the
girl could not see it, so, to reassure her,
Nat said
“It is” I, Nat Parker, Miss Spaulding.
Have no fear. You are safe now and your
captor is himself a prisoner.”
With the words Nat stepped to the girl's
side and cut the
gave a little scream of delight and sprang
into his arms.
“Oh, papa!: You here?” she cried.
glad I am!” and she wept for joy.
“How
“Thank God you are safe!” cried her
father. “What an arch-scoundrel that fel.
low is! The audacity of the villain in al
ducting you! “But he will not get an op-
portunity to do such a thing again soon.
He isa prisoner and will go to the peni-
tentiary.
Nat called a couple of his men and went
through the secret door, down the stairs,
along the passageway and to the room
where the counterfeiting had been done.
s he expected, he found all the mate
rials, tools, etc., of the counterfeiter’s trade,
inclnding the plate and a quantity of paper.
paper Nat examined critically and
he nodded | his head when he had finished.
“That is genuine government paper,” he
said. “There is no-doubt whatever about
it. But now oo d they get it? That will
come out lat
Taking the ‘plate and the paper, and such
other small articles, including a quantity
of the finished product, with them, Nat and
the two detectives returned to the cabin.
The ne ae thing was to get the prisoners —
to .
unis has not a very difficult problem for .’.+
He had already decided how this was to
be di
His plan was fully matured and was *
very simpl
He was going to carry the counterfeiters
back to Chicago in their own vessel,
schooner, which: was, he was confident,
moored in the little bay a half mile dis-
ant.
u
So the ropes binding the legs of the coun-
terfeiters were cut, so as to give the pris-
oners the use of their lower limbs, it being
Nat’s purpose to force them to walk to the
vessel.
Among the prisoners was Bernard Per-
rine, and when Mr. Spaulding and Hen-
rietta saw him they were thunderstruck.
" td—you here!” cried Mr. Spauld-
ing. “What does this mean?”
The young man hung his head, but made
no reply.
“I can tell you what it means,” said Nat, ©
quietly. “He was a member of the coun.
terfeiters’ gang, and in his capacity of pay-
ing teller of your bank he has put thou-
sands of dollars of counterfeit money into
circulation. Your bank has been, through
his agency, the chief channel throagh
which this counterfeit money got into the
hands of the public. .1t was this fellow who
gave young Haviland the counterfeit money
that got him rouble.
A cry of joy eeeeanod Henrietta.
“Thank God!” she breathed.
Warren will be freed at once.
Parker, how can we ever repay you for
what you have done for us?”
“I have done only my duty,” smiled Nat.
“Don’t let the other worry you,” and then,
aving gotten the prisoners to their feet,
ener and the other officers bringing up the
rear, while Nat, accompanied by Mr.
Spaulding and Henrietta, led the way.
d not experience much difficulty in
finding the little bay, and the schooner was
there, just as he had anticipated.
Soon all the prisoners were aboard and
were placed down in the hold, while Mr.
Spaulding and Henrietta were given the
‘Then a boat, which was attached to the
bow of the schooner by a tow-line, was low-
cred, three of the officers got in it and
rowed out. into the lake, towing the schoon-
er after t
Then t they were taken on board, the boat
was hoisted to its place on the deck, and,
the wind being in the right direetion, the
arms to his side; a third pair of arms was
schooner’s sails filled and she sailed away
to the southward, .