Prentiss Ingraham

“ Down, dropped Night Hawk, a dead man, for Will's bullet had pierced his brain, while at the same moment Kent Lomax had hurled himself upon the other robber and held him at his mercy.
"I was sorry to have to kill him, but he shot me through the hat, for I felt it turn on my head, and his second bullet clipped my arm, but I guess did no harm," said Will.
"My boy, you are worth your weight in gold; let me see if you are hurt," and Kent Lomax turned his man over to Hercules, while he drew off the boy's jacket and rolled up his shirt sleeve. ”

“ Raymond, the other for Pearl, Mr. Rossmore also gave the youth for his mother and sister, and, with the feeling that he had done his duty well, and would win the praise of his chief, Will set out on his return to New York.
It was just supper-time, after an absence of one month, that he knocked at the door of his home, and heard a voice say: "Come in!"
In he walked, and, with a cry of joy, the arms of Mrs. Raymond were about her son, while Pearl clung to his hand in warm welcome.
"Oh, brother! how like a man you have grown; but you did not lose your gold badge, did you?" cried Pearl. ”

“ Ruby Raymond became Mrs. Richard Ivey.
It was a quiet wedding in the cosey home, and then into the grand mansion of Colonel Ivey the mother and her children moved, and sunshine seemed to brighten all their pathway through life; but alas! who can see into the future, who can tell how far beyond the sunshine [Pg 25] lie the shadows that must fall upon our lives, shutting out all brightness, encircling them with gloom as black as the grave, and far more cruel. ”

“ Upon my honour, yes!"
"You deny that you ran off with Ruby Raymond from her father's house, at twelve o'clock on the night of Christmas Eve?"
"I do."
"You lie in your false throat, man!" shouted the farmer, and at his words Schuyler Cluett sprang toward him; but quick as a flash, a pistol met him, the muzzle in his face, while the young farmer said sternly:
"Back! I did not come here unprepared, and I would kill you, oh! how gladly!"
"I tell you I am falsely accused; and being unarmed, and knowing your great strength, I am forced to hear you accuse me and submit to your insults, Kent Lomax." ”

“ The boy appeared like an apparition to the officers, but he gave them no time for thought, as he said: "Is not that Sergeant Daly?" and he pointed to the officer in the other room.
"Yes, it is Captain Daly, for he's been promoted," answered an officer.
"Ho, Murphy, any one to see me?" called out the captain.
"Yes, sir, a boy that looks as if he'd just swum across East river," was the reply.
"Ah! I know that face, you are Will Raymond, who captured the convict for me over a year ago," said Captain Daly coming out. ”

“ The sportsman saw that his bold rescuer, evidently a farmer, was one who had pride, and merited the treatment of a gentleman.
"I beg pardon for offering you money, but it could never repay the service, so we'll be friends.
"My name is Schuyler Cluett, and that I appreciate your saving my life you must know."
The young farmer, for such he was, grasped the outstretched hand, and said:
"My name is Kent Lomax, and I'm glad you begged my pardon, for it proves you to be the man I thought you when I saw your pluck in the water. You were as cool as an icicle. ”

“ NTIL the time for him to seek some means of reaching the spot, selected for the meeting, that he intended should be fatal to one of them, Kent Lomax walked the streets of the city, brooding deeply over his sorrows, and his determination to avenge Ruby, whom he looked upon with pity rather than anger, and her mother, whose death had been brought on by the act of Schuyler Cluett.
At daylight he sought a livery stable, and asked for a horse to ride out to the rendezvous.
"You can get a horse, sir, but you are unknown to us, and we must ask a deposit of his value," said the man. ”

“ The farmer smiled at the words of the youth, and said: "You are a plucky fellow, and we had better send for a constable from the village, for Hercules will go."
"I am an officer, sir, and I have formed a plan to capture them," and Will opened his coat and showed his badge, not only to the farmer's surprise, but to Hercules's great awe and admiration.
"Well, my young friend, what is your plan?"
"To tie my handkerchief about my face, and muffle up, laying back in the buggy as though I was sick, while I drive by the point of ambush, which is at the bend in the road above here. ”

“ The locality he was in was a hard one, one of the worst localities in the city of New York, and rude, rough characters—men, women and children—were in the streets.
But the lad went on his way without noticing any one, and, as though acquainted with his surroundings, turned into a wretched street that was little more than an alleyway.
He stopped at a certain number and seized the bell knob, which appeared to belong to a bygone age, and in fact the house was a quaint old structure that had long been the abode of poverty. ”

“ At the same moment he fell like a log upon the floor, struck down by an iron poker held in the hand of a boy of twelve, who unseen by the robber or his victim, had glided into the room from the back chamber, closely followed by a little girl of ten.
With a bound the woman sprang away from the man as he fell, while she cried in a voice of anguish:
"Oh, Will, my son, you have killed him!" ”

“ On each side of the sharp roof were slats, a foot from the top, evidently placed there to serve as foot guards in a walk toward the chimney.
The clouds, black as night, were now flying low, and skurrying along before an approaching storm. The lightning came in vivid flashes, and it was enough to appall the heart of a seaman, there on that high perch, where the slightest misstep would hurl him to death, the tremour of a nerve would dash him to his doom. ”

“ After the supper was dispatched, sentinels were placed out upon the prairie, at some distance, the horses were staked out within the circle formed by the four guards, and the rest of the party sought the shelter of the tent flies to sleep. No, not all, for Mr. Rossmore was too deeply moved by the belief that he was near the grave of his long-lost child, and he paced to and fro, beneath the solitary tree, his thoughts busy with his grief. ”

“ During the evening Ruby sang, in a sweet soprano voice, played the piano with a skill that surprised the city-bred gentleman, and he found her to be lovely in face and form, with large, dark-blue eyes, golden hair, and a smile of the most fascinating sweetness, while her refinement of manner was as much a surprise to him as were her accomplishments.
Mr. Schuyler Cluett also learned a secret from the miller, and that was the fact of Ruby's engagement to Kent Lomax.
"Kent is a fine fellow, Mr. Cluett," volunteered the miller, "and we have known him from boyhood. ”

“ The time of Will's capture was some months after the flight of the mother with her children from the elegant country mansion of Colonel Richard Ivey.
So well had Mrs. Raymond, as I must now again call her, concealed herself, that the police and detectives, put upon her track by Colonel Ivey, had been unable to find her where abouts, and it was believed that she had left New York for another place.
In an humble home, in a cheaper quarter of the city, the poor woman had found an abiding-place, for it could not be called a home. ”

“ As all crowded about the doctor, gazing at the skull, Will Raymond sprang down into the grave and picked up something that had caught his eye in the loose dirt.
"See here!" he called out, and he held up a gold watch and upon the inside case was engraved the name:
"Ed Ellis."
"Mr. Rossmore, that is the name of the man who was with Night Hawk Jerry, whom I shot, and he was one of the kidnappers, and here with your son, for this watch proves it, and it fell out of his pocket when he was burying him," said Will. ”

“ With country air, pretty scenery, pleasant quarters, fresh milk and vegetables, and no worry about their daily bread, Mrs. Raymond rapidly improved in health, and life became worth the living for her, as she strove hard to shut out the past.
Pearl started to school and made friends, and some kind-hearted neighbours called upon the new-comers, so that the mother and daughter were not wholly alone, while Wizard Will, when at home, gave them many a pleasant drive about the country, and row or sail upon the Sound. ”

“ The nurse came and in the morning Mrs. Raymond appeared much [Pg 59] better; but she was very pale and weak, and her face had become haggard from suffering; but she whispered:
"I must live for you, my children, bitter as life is to me, and I will do so, for you are my all in this world."
With a heart too full to speak Will kissed his mother and went out to report to Captain Daly, the poor woman saying aloud as he left the room: "My punishment is greater than I can bear, for my act, I now know placed my poor mother in her grave, and nearly cost Kent Lomax his life. ”

“ The name of Land Sharks caused the police present to gather near at once and appear deeply interested, while Captain Daly said: "If you know the hiding-place of that gang, my lad, you know more than any policeman or detective in New York has been able to find out."
"I do know it, sir, and two ways of getting there; but what you do, you must do now, as they will escape, so I'll tell you all I can while you get your men ready, and there are over a dozen in the band."
"Murphy, call up twenty men and a sergeant at once." ”

“ One night, about one, a.m., Schuyler Cluett was preparing to retire, and a friend who had accompanied him home had been shown to the spare room, which also opened into the parlour, so that the two talked as they undressed.
"That deuced valet of mine is always away when I need him most," growled the young bachelor.
"Now, here he is off at a ball, and why servants must have balls I cannot understand, and both you and I, Rayford, are half drunk, and need him to look after our comfort."
"It's too bad!" sang out Rayford from his room. ”

“ Hercules and the constable rode in advance, and as they rode up and dismounted, Kent Lomax introduced Will to the officer of the law, and his story was again told, the coroner standing near with a jury which he had selected from the crowd.
All gazed upon Will as a hero; but the boy shrank from observation, and remarked to Kent Lomax. "I hate notoriety that comes from taking the life of a human being, villain though he was." ”

“ Your money or your life!"
"Come!" and with the word Will and Hercules bounded from the ravine.
They saw farmer Lomax at a halt in the road, one man grasping the rein of his horse, and the other holding a pistol up in his face.
The farmer sat perfectly quiet, and the men each had an handkerchief over his face, with holes cut to see through.
"Come, out with your money, and lose no time, if you value your life!" sternly ordered Jerry, the Night Hawk. ”

“ Half a dozen policemen threw themselves against the door; but it withstood their weight, and the locks within only yielded after repeated trials. Then the door flew open, and all entered the hallway, closing it behind them.
The next door then confronted them, but Will pointed out the panel, and a club smashed that in, when Captain Daly put in his hand and drew back the bolt.
"This is a secure nest, that is certain; but I fear we'll find it deserted," said Captain Daly, and with their lantern-shades raised, they hastily followed Will up the stairs. ”

“ Here are no brown-stone fronts, no elegant homes, but the imprint of poverty is upon all.
Long years before the place was a fashionable locality; but the rapid growth of the city forced the wealthy residents up town, and into their homes, not then as now, superb structures, palatial in their fittings, the poorer classes moved, to again give place to those of a still lower strata of the society that goes to make up the world to be found in metropolitan life.
In a tenement-flat, on the fourth floor of a dingy-looking building, a woman sat alone, a piece of embroidery in her hands. ”

“ Pearl remarked in her quaint way, for she would wager her life [Pg 63] upon her brother being able to do anything that a man could accomplish.
"Well, Will, you are the bread-winner of our home now, and the head, young as you are, and I will not be the one to put a straw in your way against success, for you seem to have a real talent for detective work."
"Thank you, mother, and they have dubbed me, on the force, Wizard Will, as they say I have done wonders as a Boy Detective." ”

“ One of the first duties that the brave young officer set for himself to accomplish with his juvenile band of Secret Service scouts was the running to earth of the "Land Sharks," and how he accomplished the giant task is written in the Police History of New York City, wherein no name stands out in bolder relief than that of Wizard Will, the Boy Ferret of New York. ”

“ A cupboard was in one end of the room, filled with dishes, and next to it was a dumb-waiter that came up from the lower depths somewhere.
On the opposite side a door was opened to what appeared to be another cupboard, but in which Will saw at a glance a ladder, leading to an open skylight above.
In the centre of the room was a large table with chairs about it, and seated in various attitudes about it were a dozen men, who scowled viciously upon the boy as he was dragged into their presence by Jerry, the Night Hawk. ”

“ So Will ate his supper with apparent relish, and rising, thanked them politely and resumed his former seat.
"You've been well raised, boy," said Jerry. "What is your name?"
"Will Raymond, sir," said the boy, returning to his old name, for while with the colonel he had taken that of Ivey, at his request.
"What do you do?"
"Anything I can earn money at to support my sick mother and little sister."
"Well, how would you like to become a rich man's son?" ”

“ Will seldom ate at home, saying that he got plenty at the lunch-counters during the day, and he left the scanty food for his mother and sister; but this his mother soon began to disbelieve, as the boy looked really ill and was growing thin.
"To-day is Thanksgiving Day, Will, so we must have a good dinner," said Mrs. Raymond, with a forced smile, one morning, after a most meagre breakfast. ”