Old Sleuth

“ Tom Atwood! is that you, and is this the way you come down to the club for rest?”
Tom Atwood’s hair almost stood on end. He recoiled and glared, and Murray called out:
“Hello! That’s the voice of a ghost from New York. You lose the bets, Tom. You’re working a fraud on us. You didn’t mean to sleep alone in that house, you rascal.”
The other men called out:
“Well, this is a nice scheme, old man. You didn’t tell us Mrs. Atwood was coming down.”
Tom made no answer, but just stood, not like one gazing upon an apparition, but like a man confronted by a more frightful reality, and we will explain. ”

“ You bear my last name Andro. It is a good name and will serve you for the present. The name you have is Nimble Ike, for you are the most nimble lad in the world. I have been very careful in your instruction; the lad does not live who in every way is as accomplished as yourself. ”

“ Ike was a curious little fellow. We mean, he possessed the bump of curiosity to a great degree and he was constantly poking around into all manner of odd places. It had become a mania with him, and one evening he was walking along the street when he beheld a gentlemanly looking man walking in company with two of the worst-looking characters to be seen anywhere. Our hero had knocked around the world long enough to know that strange and even tragic incidents were of constant occurrence. ”

“ He forced Ike into a chair and sitting opposite him as the others gathered around he asked:
“Who are you, lad?”
Ike made no answer, but stared as though he were hard of hearing—a poor trick, indeed, for the man said:
“Oh, that won’t do; don’t come the deaf and dumb dodge on us. Mutes don’t stand in their stocking feet in a dark hall with their ear to a keyhole.”
Ike laughed; he saw that his dodge didn’t work and he came a more cunning one. He said:
“I am on to you men. You are not actors, you are robbers.” ”

“ The detective meditated a moment. He was a busy man usually, and he had no time to listen to long romances.
“If you have anything to say speak out, lad. I am very busy.”
“Come with me and I will let you on to the job of your life.”
Murray looked the youth over, and being necessarily a keen reader of faces he concluded our hero was a very bright youngster, as he put it.
Ike had spoken in a low tone, and after an interval the detective said:
“Come into the office with me.”
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“No, not there.”
“Why not?”
“Don’t waste time, sir; time is money.” ”

“ Ike was dragged from the room while protesting in the most earnest manner, and so he struggled all the way up the stairs.
After he had been led from the room, one of the men said:
“You are wrong, cap.”
“Am I?”
“Yes.”
“How?”
“That lad did follow a cat in here, and he was so frank.”
“Was he?”
“Yes; you heard all he said.”
“I did, and I’ve something to tell you. That is one of the smartest lads in New York. He holds the liberty of every man of us in his hands.” ”

“ The magician was losing his head and Ike said:
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“Ladies and gentlemen, if I have fair play I can prove that man is a ‘fake,’ and that he is trying to sneak out of a trick he promised to perform. He said he would make a silver mine of me, and now he is trying to prove I am only a quicksilver mine, and got away quickly with his money. I ask fair play.” ”

“ At that instant there sounded a strange flapping like the sound of a bird in its flight.
The men all looked around. There was no bird in sight. They looked in each other’s faces, for indeed it was a most wonderful incident. All had heard it, and even while they looked there came the cry of “quack, quack,” of a wild duck, and the “quack, quack, quack,” sounded right over their heads. They strained their eyes—there was no duck in sight ”

“ We are not responsible for the acts of the scoundrel who not only swindled you but my innocent and confiding client, Mr. Fellman.”
“No, I am not satisfied,” said Mr. Smith, “and I wish a gentleman in whom I have much confidence to exchange a few words with you.”
A moment later Murray entered the office and addressing the lawyer who was acting for Fellman said:
“How far, sir, are you implicated in this fraud?”
“How dare you?” fumed the lawyer.
Murray showed his badge.
“Oh, I see!” ejaculated the lawyer with a sneer. “You wish to scare us, eh? You mean to bulldoze us—blackmail us.” ”

“ The dog came quite near and then suddenly, with a growl and a snappish bark, leaped forward, and the next instant Ike had him by the neck and turned him over on his back. The great beast lay silent and helpless.
“Got a cord?” asked Ike.
The detective was amazed, but produced a strong cord and Ike deliberately tied the great hound as a butcher ties a calf for market. He had also bitted him so he could not make any noise, and then rising and facing the detective inquired:
“Well, how’s that?”
“Are you a human being?” demanded the officer.
“I am pretty human,” answered Ike. ”

“ She and Ike sat down for a long talk. Ike had told his history and he proposed that as he had lost his father, as he called old Andro, Mrs. Pell would have to be a mother to him, and he added:
“I must hie me around and get into making money.”
“Why don’t you start out as a magician and ventriloquist?”
“For the best reason in the world,” answered Ike. “There are so many ‘fakes’ in the business it has ceased to be a drawing card, and there are hundreds of amateurs in the business. I’ve got a scheme, however, and I will carry it out. I have an idea I can make money and possibly a fortune in time. ”

“ It was evening when the train arrived and Murray said to Ike:
“Boy, I know Long Island pretty well.”
“That’s lucky.”
“Are you tough?”
“Well, I am not tender.”
“Then we can follow that buckboard afoot.”
“Good enough.”
The man Fellman was driven off at a pretty lively gait, but Ike and the detective kept along pretty well until they got beyond the hard roads of the village, when the detective said:
“Now we can take it easy. We can follow more leisurely—no trouble to follow the trail.” ”

“ They will all think they are ‘called for.’ What’s your friend’s name?”
“His name is Atwood.”
“Is he a married man?”
“Yes.”
“What is his first name?”
“Tom.”
“You are sure of your man?”
“Oh, yes.”
“All right; go over and join them and prepare yourself for the treat of your life. And your friend will get the greatest scare of his life.”
“Don’t press it too hard, Ike.”
“No, but I’ll learn him a trick, you bet.”
Murray started across the opening and had proceeded about fifty yards when the men on the porch espied him and one of them cried:
“Hello, there’s a game thief, as sure as you are born.” ”

“ He knew he could trace the affair down and might possibly succeed in freeing young Burlein from confinement, but he knew the full advantage of evidence. He calculated that Fellman had laid his plans well and was well fortified for the carrying out of his scheme. Ike had often heard of a well-known detective and he had evidence that the officer was a square man. The boy knew that a fair reward would be paid. Indeed Fellman had offered a reward of five thousand dollars for his partner alive, or conclusive evidence of his death. ”

“ Meantime Ike had made his way downstairs, and when he gained the street he laughed heartily and said:
“There’s tricks in all trades but ours; by joky poky, won’t that always be a mystery to that old fellow in that room? He doesn’t know that I carry a whole menagerie in my throat.”
Ike was a wonderful ventriloquist, equal to any one who ever attempted vocal deceptions, and far better than a [29] majority of public performers, and when it came to imitating animals and locating their growls, barks and hisses at a distance, he could in that direction beat any one in the world. ”

“ I know their habits, and I tell you he’s just bothered a little, but you trust a hound like him to untangle. He’ll get there, you can bet.”
A little time and it appeared as though Ike had measured the dog just right, for the animal went round and round, his nose almost rubbing against the stone wall lining the cellar, and every time he came to a certain spot he would stop and scent more particularly and then go around again, and then Ike said:
“Mr. Murray, the dog has accomplished all that instinct can do. Human intelligence must go to his aid now.” ”

“ I am certain Burlein is concealed somewhere within a hundred yards of that old ramshackle building. You and I can find out the secret with the aid of your dog there.”
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“Suppose we fail?”
“We can’t fail, or in other words we won’t fail; but one thing is certain. We must find Burlein alive before midnight or it will be a search for a dead man, for I tell you that scoundrel has decided to murder him—yes, murder him to-night.” ”

“ There came a smile to Ike’s face—a smile of delight. He was a cute reasoner, and he made up his mind at once that young Burlein was not dead. Had the young man been dead Fellman he knew would have answered: “No, he is not dead. He is only pretending to have committed suicide.” And when he answered that he had no doubt of Burlein’s death, our hero concluded that the original scheme had been carried out, and at once there came the question:
“Do you own a house out on Long Island?” ”

“ Ike had become quite a detective in one respect—in knocking around the world. He had become very observant; he was quick to notice anything unconventional or odd, and as stated, when he saw a gentleman walking along in company with men who looked like veritable rogues, he made up his mind that “something was up” and that he possibly had got on to a startling drama in real life. One who has observation and time can easily do so. The lad started to follow the men and saw them enter a hotel on a side street ”

“ It was just a little after midnight when our hero and the detective started to find the gun clubhouse, and they were proceeding along talking in low tones and were in a dense growth of brush and wood on the verge of a lake, when suddenly both were brought to a stand, and paralyzed for a moment by hearing a succession of unearthly yells.
“Great Scott!” cried the detective, “some one is getting murdered.” And he ran forward in the direction whence the piercing screams had come. A little way on he came to an opening where he halted and Ike joined him.
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“Look there, lad.” ”

“ We answer upon these occasions, that more incidents, strange and wonderful, are occurring every day than the most imaginative author could conceive [11] in a month—incidents far stranger than go upon record; and we are not compelled to “make up” incidents, simply because “fact is stranger than fiction,” and we have more incidents and actual occurrences in our note-book than we can ever relate.
Ike finished his meal and then lay down on old Andro’s mattress to think over the past and study the future. ”

“ He has several children, besides his wife. They are all trained in villainy. We will never discover anything by watching him, simply because the man would evade us, do away with his victim and then defy us. We could get the proof against him and hang him, but hanging that fellow would not bring Burlein back to life.”
“Ike,” said Murray, “you are a born detective.” ”

“ We take all the chances.”
“There need be no mis-go; we can arrange our plans so well.”
At that moment a startling incident occurred. Ike heard a noise behind him. He rose suddenly and unthinkingly, and the next instant he was caught in a strong pair of arms and dragged into the room through which he had crawled out upon the projection. He was in the hands of a powerful man, who exclaimed:
“Ah! you little thief, I’ve caught you at last, and the mystery is explained.” ”

“ You will flourish all right, but remember one thing: remain honest; cheat no man; lie to no man; and remember that while you are at present only a showman that some day you may be a gentleman, and then your record will tell for or against you. ”

“ That evening Detective Murray arrived. He met Ike [119] near the clubhouse and the lad discovered that his friend had brought a magnificent hound with him.
“I got your telegram, Ike,” said the officer.
“I see.”
“I have brought one of the best hounds ever raised in this country—an animal trained to trailing human beings.”
“We will have use for him. This man, Herman Fellman, is a daring and cunning man, and I have made a most startling discovery. He intends to murder his prisoner in cold blood. I’ve been close on his track. ”

“ Our hero fell to the trail of Fellman. The man went to Roosevelt street ferry and took the Hunter’s Point boat for Long Island City. As Ike followed on the boat, the country gawk ran against him and Ike passed the signal, and a little later all hands were on the train for Smithtown.
[97]
Probably few people outside of Long Islanders are aware that on Long Island there are spots as wild as in any other part of the country, as far as isolation is concerned. Indeed wild deer still roam in some of these recesses despite the fact that some parts of the island are so densely inhabited. ”

“ He was still gazing when he saw a fine-looking young man, evidently not more than five or six-and-twenty, enter the building, and a moment later he saw him enter the office into which the man he had been trailing had proceeded. Our hero could see into the office from the street. He saw the young man greet the elder one and he remarked:
“Well, that young fellow has a fine face. He is not a rogue, but I cannot say as much about the older man. If I didn’t know he was up to an underhand scheme, I should set him down as a mean sneak. He carries a map of mean town on his face. ”

“ Ike was a hopeful little fellow and he muttered:
“This means something—it means that it is not ‘all up’ with me after all. I am going to get out of this scrape, and then, by ginger, some one will wish they had been wiped out in a cyclone.”
Our hero ate and drank, and crawling away from his stake as far as he could he hid the bottle with the remark:
“I do not know just when I may have a visitor. I’ll be on my guard and not get my friend into trouble.” ”

“ Ike had seen these advertisements and he looked forward to heaps of fun; in case he called for a volunteer from the audience our hero intended to volunteer and permit the juggler to make him appear ridiculous and foolish—“oh, yes, mebbe so!”—was the lad’s mental ejaculation.
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The show proceeded and there were many very pleasant and charming acts and finally the necromancer appeared on the stage. He was a “dude from dudedom” and as Ike perceived at a glance a regular “fake,” a man who was merely an imitator and practically a fraud. ”