Caught in his own Trap.

Bruce Herald, Volume XXII, Issue 2263, 8 May 1891, Page 6

Caught in his own Trap.

Poor^ Tom:!— flfe-w«s-tr fellow among ?n a^thpnsands;-/bray;6[aß a lionjamerry^as a , . 7l ,iftrk v: and (60 handsome iandrdkshing't^ 9 1. oi o/Shbnlder toishouiafo 1 we °hkd^SflarßH^d nr manyoa .ilong "mile^JtiTJdeif 1 i tfi'e'"ba'k|4sr- J -;cAfrioarisun'^ and' when 1 Tok to fever and died, there Vas tibt a'ary'eye' ?^^^y f man,'^^ Baj4 iri ,to ;n mJBj , f'lr^tfi^AT^'ppe^diji.i^otir .' JtenJJj-waJB la^t,Bu^set hiß ; mprtal eyes w«re oii^.irtPffiii^^ i'x,qi-,s'a t a dfcisaatiyoti'ita give; these trin^^ip^tp ajyisister.Mary; can't Ij? 1 She will prize them. She .always _, had ;a^ S n tetfder t ßpot jii c h^r Keart.'for Ker!; gpp^-for-i Jffftl&inf j u Ajqlß^^ fate efoFa^retfygirrbf, twenty* i Welii ; h§ver. , The sentence was never fiDish^d,' rjind< the voice which, with its merry ring, had od giyenfoourage andshope to many 'at ainting 7?c£eart>'Df late,' <BanK into silence.

»noiaßev&eiftlyj^!Jtoqfc ! 'i6haf2e : of the 'pcjbrJlrboy's^legaoy to hife'Bißter, hia medals and H wossßßl WDn r atJthe^exil of Hie/life. - Soon! iiogfter^raVd^'^ite ! led^me" fi'apk 1 to ; Europe." V" ToM%£ister'Ws r; 'in Jrfraa I " andVthither. ta l .#& ;e^ r %^etal£e: myself .with; all' <°p6fsiib'le s^e'ii3,3^Pjr4Bign,my. charge, i and,' If possible, on the strehgth'of my intimaoy i:; jngith&romjitp win k ''place .in his IHregardirrint ;-v ,v.- : -i • ; ; •/' -V- .••"-•■-'' «-!Jr'lfu;af'fellow''ca'n faU ! in ibve' With ; a a photograph and a" gldw'ing aesoripti'6n',' ! l, v.-thttfikß^ to •' ;|Tp»r ' ;ToM;s .fcffebtipnate •^^lotttience^'^as'^in , lio^e ; V^ with , ; MaryJ i; ■MaJsde'L > ) rbeHeVjßdJthat, |ly /wmfade's' '■'■ liaif-uttere"d f 'wisrii ,^ wh'en jwias , thatle^gh^to projteot Mary.,. ; " ''"' I ./found ,a. letter y "frdiitt u my i i aunt^_M&ra. Gashmore,; begging me to visit her for a few days at Menfone, .-iss she; had/an. important matter to cU'souss — withmsi '.i.-ii « 7i:! : p- "• f ;;, 1 ' " r . .i- o • This" '^in^itatipni' f interfering ' as , ( it i( r did, j '%itH nlydeStte & t seJßk'<pt''Mary at once, ~jwaa ,niost 3 tmWeJpomeT^partioulariy, ,as- Ii 'f strongly 'suspected ih'e,reason of my aunt's ' aroent i wish.to see ; me._ . t She had 'doubt ( ,Beejn, placing^a, \little ,;to_o, recklessly ' /^|i^Mpnte, o Oarlp^tl2e,dlove ..of ;gambliog t ,'bein^ ,$' lpngtestabjished infirmity < with .-^er^andjwaiitedme to help her out of a „,tigiLt ( 7 . ;) pla.Qe.( i iWeili ■ one good ; turn deservessanother. v 'In'-!my f bread-and-jain da^s many \ a l^alf- sovereign r had found *'its%"ay '-^frbm 1 .pp'rse to Ol my l ja6kfib'p r ,obke^ I ; S^hy slipuid I, not put n tf,,oheerful : ffiice^' upon' „:the matter „and • befnend 1 hpi) though ,1 , devoutly "wisli'ed the.a.ummpiis Jhad come at some ' .\.,rV -.'i' ■ ■■ '■ ■>',•>"■•.'■ J h( )'Acpußtomed as I had : been of late to attire ; of African ladies on o their, native soil, ;my aunt's toilet" and T,apperance sfrucki me forcibly. ' ,i"tSh'e >wa¥ a -handsome woman, perfectly - aware ofi the faot, and the rattling, tinkling, 'ffttd- - faint ' odbur' ! of p^tcHbuU ! which '-'ftccompaii^e'ff^r Mdyements.pittraoted an attenKdn whi6n'was ' not 1 , 1 on the Wlioie, jrillYpaidi for ..the, < tr / ouble. r it: iopk!. toy look. ( .her silky, : whiteihairhigh above iherj^till fair forehead ; a soft-tinted shawl !.hung,nsuailyj abonfc her >■■ silken- shoulders ijln ailoosejipioturesquei: fashion ; a glitter-

•ingi;tprofiißion of i) costly rings detracted I feom-theibeautyof herthands^arid pendant .#omvher 'waistiQiiangted^'a ü bewildering oarray of< oi riaTßgntsV ihoß®y"6i ''oppii<&er.asXp rvalue^-a^velyiSt 1 bag 1 , with massive ! '!silv,e}r ft elaßps^ embbßßed with! f^wel^studded scent and a : bhaitela f ine o so loacied , down ' with^tri^ets. that c^,!.was ( [as" iif 'she , had hp,o£, across a l^wefier^s^^icottnter, all. the '„. ,, !.,;• ,■ . <■ : ih|s -display iy.nlgatf. in the f e^rejae, ;l , J ( but .contented , myself with .expressing, a .fear that she< -might be fc ro,^bedL .so.me fine-day om one of walks .abroad, as r she- persisted to 1 wearing all t fehifliWAr.-paint, indoors and out. ;[ni^D6nft»be'af.fasßy bid granny before your time, Harry, 1 was all the thanks I^ot^fofe^y- solicitude. 'I haven't live~d~terfyears on the Biviera for nothing' — she-haxiftnot, as her losses at Monte CarloO could*/ 'testify — * and I'm quite able to take care of myself and my jprpperty.. .We r hav,e, fortunately, outlived ,the> days,ef highway robberies upon public jthprpijghfarej/ - ■ , ■ r - . .vMjr(aunlt»had ■< inowh Tom > Marsden's famijyijii} pasti years, and was deeply -intereatedfinimy mission to 1 Paris. Very arelnotaritlyv'totsatißfy J h'er almost childish pleading, I showed her Tom's" 1 souvenirs 1 , placed in my hands, in, trust for his sister. Itf sej^Sd to produce^ them in Bti^h' J ffn;ktMb|^h'eye.." ( My annoyance was '^^^^^6Xx]Annt Cashmore begged to bjj fowled .<jf these valuables tmtUfevening, as, she : particularly desired jtqj3ljow c #i,em,to & friends • I refused at first.^ibuidherjavoluble (pleading at last made me weakly give. in. s oiiA.ieW'hours'Jater, as I 1 wa's'.pa^culaky dißtiSguHhing fl myself" byer Ha - game r of BilUaras;, 1 a' ( fellbw. : brpughi'me a note Bumnfoiimg me|d r th,eSoiei des T|almiers, <^rPmyJ&unf'fay;es | with , all possible Here I foimd a.gret^state,of commotioin. ; Mrs. Cashmore, my aunt, had. been fttteokedrin: the.-avenue ieifia 3r rob ; bed, 'iib.e thief ascapiig with' his^plifndler. As 1 sooiii as. l as'cextaiiied "that my 'respected relative had come 1 off Tntnbut fcoaily Lujrt/ I cbi^d nbt o reprefes 7 an^uU^Qr^' 'feeJmg, 6t iriward "irlumpn"a^ f my Astute prediction but'S* tff r 'coursey maintaiije.4 a \discreei silence upon this point" while listening to tiieivietimtecaccduni HJf^h'er'misfdrtnne:. 1 ; ;

b&il wasjiretnrniiigf to 1 Rindlie ! on J lei&ni : ely eiioxxih^ Bhfq&^ah^when 1 ; 'on 13 ' turning intostfittt cfufeibit fifim^^M.^t was s\mieWW&.miis jumping b r y9fib)B iudge. ■sWiWPffil a^WA fc , , t olappM ta i dirty nanu I— and with the other tore pff Bay] bagj'ißa^Hatelafeae'i ®h& aU J the'iß6t of itiiil Oe %ot<so&e" r *o^ftiy ai ßf &®ms idpl thotighf^ a&itt? t kfflk ktiow 7 hl>w |a many:' The** tie^borf an'd %xw < Tm ni^m them* ana tbiifgs of poor young Marsden wok*, in the^ag, . The^^were^wtunatel^^otj ; of very infuoli v^fSbl&id^j^ abnH ,^^o^o-^'^ iJMkimji&fc&m%ai Jpt,rfWhatiiiire; w^sey pi|ißiO^, ; |hpgß| OQnjpjayfedl w,ith tany bl^,^arlB J;f an(i^reaL /Indian,. filigree,; anfcj^rjrj .{.i; J; ' v.ibliiint. H&- fisuVin . : iiitu: -.burn ; I Juiteriiiptedowith)jßbnae=;exolamati6ii:

•mp^e f^iWe;^an|pplit^l fewr, for J ; was, vaguely oonsoious of my aunt b gaaing. at, ji sr^hat ftjfopjjCjhadibeen .to, allow T,P^4 8 ' iirust tpjeavie my- hands for , ; a moment 1 1 i.waa n,o more fitted to ibe -given such la' mission* than- any j rasoally ■blaokleg.i iGduldiLever hold upmyihead again at» *hq bare thought of 'Mary 'Marsden, wlbjs' flhadiso'wronged-by my dastardly pare'^ lessness. 1 ■ Aridks fof looking in l her 'fe|oe5 r hb I * o could I dare do 'that, tinle'ss ' tHfesI 11 stolen goods could be recoverd ? " ~ 1 ! rn^st i betre6bvere'd^ if it tooik. my last'oebny 1 would wiii back poor Tonfs 'legaoyi.pr ne(v^r know; a light conscience fgain. \ ' .■',.'■' .' ' 'i ■ - 'What was the fellow like, aunt, who made 'the attack?' I asked with fluttering eagerness.

v, • A shortish^ stumpy man, with a broad nose, and small, dark eyes. One of hisihands had a deep soar on the back.' - This waß}a f useful and important clue, which the ii police officers noted with avidity ; and I shortly had the assurance; that the best measures possible for tracing' •the criminal woulcl be taken at onoeJ : My state' of mind bordered on desperation, and I 6ould see ho clear way pat of my difficulty, I shrank from presenting mjßelif 'before Miss Marsden mmus W brother's gifts, and yet she might wondet'at my non-appearance, having I been told of my mission by Thompson. On the other hand, I loathed, the idea; of tarrying at M"entone, where the mishap had 'occurred.

In the midst of my perplexities I heard the; day. after the robbery that suspicious characters had been traoed to Marseilles, one of whbtn might turn out to be the rri'aii !#e" desired to entrap. Marseilles being a step towards Mary, I decided to betake 'myself thither to find out if there was any truth in this statement.

My only companion in the railway carriage was a sharp-featured lady of uncertain age, with multitudinous parcels and bags. Not wishing to annoy her with attempts at conversation which might be unwelcome, I retired behind my newspaper, and forgot the lady's existence. ' Though I stared fixedly at the printed page, my mind was miles away with Mary, whom I was fated, perhaps, never to see.

My bitter-sweet reverie was disturbed unexpectedly by my travelling companion twitching nervously at the corner of my paper. I looked at her in astonishment, and saw that she was much agitated ; she drew the paper from my hand, pressing her finger to her lips to enjoin silence. ' I'm in for some sort of a romantio set-to with a crazy woman,' I thought to myself, as I involuntarily glanced at the alarm signal on the wall opposite.

■ The lady wrote hastily some words on the margin of my paper, Jwhich she then returned.

I read : — ' There is a man hidden under the se;it, Are we in danger of an attack ? '

•1 Much puzzled to know whether my companion was off her head, or really frightened with cause I wrote in reply :-t-

' Are you sure ? Did you see him get in? r

• No, I felt him ; he clutched at my Jopk' was scribbled hastily beneath my Lquery.

! 'Burely no would-be highway robber could be so injudicious as to assail the ankles pf his victims before beginning a mbre violent attack, so, with a patriarchal, reassuring smile, I inscribed, ' Probably it was only a dog,' \ 'No ; I felt his fingers. Shall we not stop the train ? Something must be jdpne,' she wrote, vigorously underlining the last words.

It was clearly my duty to investigate the cause of my fair neighbour's growing alarm ; so with astute caution I asked, with marked distinctness, if the lady objected to tobacco smoke, contorting my face the while with signs that she was not to answer in the negative.

She confessed , to a decided preference for tfce odour of a good cigar.

'Thank you for the permission, madam; deprived of my smoke, I really suffer.'

It was such a jcelief to speak after our solemn interchange of written sentiments upon the ragged edge of the • Times,' that I was prepared to gjye utterance to any amount of garrulous platitudes. I lighted. a match, talking volubly the while, and when it was blazing, purposely dropped it upon the floor, exclaiming at my own awkwardness : —

'It was my last match, too. I really must try to save a spark of it to light my cigar.'

I Btooped to pick up the burned fragment, and took one sharp comprehensive glance beneath the seat. My companion was right — a man lay crouohed and huddled there among the shadows. His face was turned away, but I saw his hand clearly, upon the back of which the th!e soar was visible through the dirt and grime.

! , At the sight of this villainous-looking hand, my heart began a merry dance. Not from fear — my self-respect obliges me to protest against this possible imputation —but because we seemed to have in our clutob.es the rogue who had stolen poor Tom-s medals.

• I might dare to present myself before Mary, after all, instead of hanging back like a whipped hound.

'Am I not right ? ' the lady said, with her eyes this time instead of with her pencil. •■ . '■■'■■■..

I -•Ysb/ I- wrote; 'we must give the feildw'" in charge' as soon as possible. Don't'let '-'-Mm. kn6w we suspeot bis pre^ende.' '■•■'■' > , IfVeflAojida' that our precaution of writingj every tb^agj referring to the culprit JEv.as p'grß jip's "needless, as a oommon thief from tbe Riviera wpuld scarcely be ,likely ;o ; jUrt^er s t^nd English ; still in snob oases, iihee^treEa,§.qf prudence was better than the;laok : Qf J ifc.alto''ether. . . ; ..,,,; i itThe half-hour elapsing between, the,, discovery of this man and our arrival at t the, j next, station was fraught with illcqnpeajeji te/rror^ fox, the sbarp r faced, lady, and much repressed excitement for, me. WppW the man dash out, and either t attack) me: or make good his escape before the train j stopped ? Far better < for me - to. be worsted in a tussle with him than to -ljDge li%, and hjis j booty for ever., I oquid not, form; a guess as to hfs . strength,, riojk hayingjseen _more of him ithan. the ; .tiracided (hand. For therlady<s; sake I laQVOriiely hoped that we tnigb^be spared Is| Souffle; i- " ■-'■••" .'''jo-:- i-t (,■ v.-.j .<,,-, iTj <P*esjsntly,' to my intense » relief, the 1 |rain began to slacken its 'speed,-' 'an'd 'the' 'hoarse voice of the guard shouting the

.statipn/sounded, Hke celestial music, in my ii . ; !t 4 seized iupoh.the firsts ;offioiaVt l oouldfinds a.B iwe stopped, and he, 1 collecting < the desired foroe, made : short Jwork of arresting the: man; who was istealing -'his ride. (He ' Was:! dragged % forth "with very little tresista'ncerhe! Baw i( how ! tfseless : a fight w'o'uld^bef an 6 was botfn ! in '^afe .ou'stpdyL' a jdy^pooi? Tom's' ! in&a&\k wWfduna upbh .the 1 thief 's 'peiibb;--pt^geffierfsptfi; 4 tb(e greater, p^rt of 'my &ipt'Bp'rop'ert^ ! , ( F ' t \ " ... m. . ■- i-' ; l The; !%nj a scamp, was disposed for joking 1 and sarcasm upon the subjeot of his own detection. , •; - ■ •Were ypu mad, or asleep when you betrayed ypureelf by touching that lady's foot '?*' I asked. , . ; i i ■ ■

*,;Why,!ypu!seß, sir,' he replied, with a leer, ' those English women have such sticks of legs' covered with black stockings. I took this old girl's for the leg of the bench and took hold-of it to give myself a bit of a rest, l^ever was a fellow inbre upset than°l was when that leg moved. It was an unlucky mistake.' days later 1 1 was in Prris, and the happy recipient of an invitation from Miss Marsnen to dine with ;her at the villia where, she was temporarily lodged, ten minutes* distance^ by rail from the city. Lively, dark-e,yed Mary, pale as a lily in her blaok dress ; my heait went oat to her in sympathy for her great sorrow. I loved her from the moment when she put both her hands in mine and welcomed me as a 1 friend and companion of her lost brother; and before many weeks had passed by I •had won' from her the &ssuranoe ! that my love was returned.