CHAPTER XVI—INSPECTOR MARSH IN A TRAP. D

Otago Witness, Issue 2562, 22 April 1903, Page 60

CHAPTER XVI —INSPECTOR MARSH IN A TRAP. D

When a man tells me that he has never felt fear, I feel inclined to twist the words of the Psalmist slightly, and say without haste that all men are liar^ — that is, all men who boast that they hase never felt 0 chill at ihe heart, a sudden stagnation of the pulses, in the face of danger. I know that there are a few men who are bom without the sense of physical fear, but these are emotional and moral spoils. No, the bra.vesl man to my thinking is the man who does no* allow his fear — the better phrase is, perhaps, appreciation of danger — to iverpower his resolution — to sap his courage — to make slack his stiffened nerve — to stimulate his imagination to terrifying pranks. The brave man is he who sees his danger, faces it with a full knowledge of its extent, and strives with eveiy fibre of his being to overcome it or get round it. (In a tight place, as I have often found in my life, the longest way round is the shortest way out). If Mai&h could but lead these lines he would know that I hold him to have been a biave young man. Put yourself in his shoes. Imagine yourself in % house of many stairs, many rooms, many noles and corners — and in the dark ; somewhere in the el irk seven enemies, provided (you are sure) with deadly weapons which they will have no s- ruple in using. Imagine, I say, that every outlet is closed, and that you are absolutely unfamiliar with the position of doors, rooms, stairs, or any possible hiding place. You must giant, even though you be a, to i who has faced peril of superior numbers and deadly enmity in the open, i that, ia such a position as I have described^ '

you would be severely shaken. Marsh had to face superior numbers and deadly enmity in the daik and in a closely-confined space. When he found the door shut in his face, the only outlet from the house that he knew, it did not take him long to realise that his precipitancy and reckless enthusiasm had led him into the tightest of ' tight places. Six to one — nay, seven to , one — for, when it comes to fighting, the j female criminal is generally more vicious and treacherous, more diabolical in the suggestion of evil ingenuities, than half a dozen men — seven to one is long odds. ! And Marsh felt that if it came to fighting l for his life, his chances of success were 1 infinitesimally small. The only thing he ' could hope for was a good fight, to sell 1 hi? life at as high a price as possible. , That they would not scrup'e to kill him lie was certain ; for the cold-blooded way in which Sword had referred to the "dis-rn.s-a-r of lolin Oxborrow ,nd the indifferent fashion in which the other "directors ' had listened to the iecit.il gave Marsh [ no hope of leniency should he fall into their hand e . I All that I have set down here — tediously, ' I dare say— went through Marsh's brain : like lightning, ar.d like lightning he formed his plan. He was compelled to be quick about his scheme of defence, for, but a second or two after he found himself faced by the siiut door, his quick ears caught the J sound of deadened footsteps. They weie • coming down the stair — two of them, three of them, perhaps the whole seven— he ' could not tell. In an inner pocket he carried a six-clnmbered revolver. It was the work of a moment to slip his hand below • the "tight-fittino; india-rubbsr jersey and i possess himself of the weapon. The closing of his hand on the bufct seemed to give new strength to his arm, and from his aim to the rest of his body sped a curious , stiffening shiver, a general tightening op, j the body's answer to the call to arms. 1 He placed his back against the door and ' waited. His breath threatened every mo1 ment to break intc gasp-. He would have given worlds to sigh, to laugh, to Call out; but in silence lay his safety, and with a severe effort he controlled his breathing to . the merest inspiration, the merest corre1 sponding expiration j Would they fire into the darkness? Ought ihe to fire first— fire at a sound, a whisper, ! a footfall? No, it would be foolish of him to do th it. The flash would enable them jto see exactly where be stood. Doubtless > i tbey, too, had firearms pointed into the ' darkness, and ready to be discharged at the ; flare He listened intently. He thought he caught a sound of someone creeping on hard* and knees. Here might be someone with ii knife. A stab in the dark— the mere thought of it turns a man's blood cold. Then there was a creak as of a door j 1 svv ingiiig on its hinges , and then again all ] jwa.s still. The deadly cjuiet terrified, bei cause it was so mysterious. Minute after ' minute passed, and still he stood there, alert '' and watchful. And as minute after minute j ' passed, the strain on his nerves grew frreater— grew until, as he poered with tense eyeballs intJ the blackness, he fancied ue could see faces, luminous faces, hovering j before him He laughed at his fancy,, and ; the faces vanished; he attained his eyes; I the silent moments flew, and again the ' faces hovered before him. I Now no man can 'ong endure that sort i of thing. The ntive=s are bound to give j j way, the joints turn to water. The mind becomes a prey to ail manner of terrifying imaginings. The ears hear, and the eyes 1 &cc, and the outsti etched hands feel things 1 that have no reality, and yet -are more 1 deadly than the deadliest real things. How long ln> stood thus Marsh did not I know it might have been five minutes ; !it might have been five hours. He could I stand the tension no longer. The struggle must be ended one way or another. If he is to die, he is to die ; but at least he will do something. He moves for.yard, not quietly and cautiously, not teehng his way, but boldly, as if confident of every step Six paces he counts, seven, eight, nine— at the tenth pace his foot does not touch the lloor. His tread falls on empty space. He is tumbling into nothingness. 'For a century he seems to be falling. Yet he has fallen but Bft, and at the end ! of it he lies on something soft that gives I with his weight, and yet seems to be elastic and springy. At the moment when he realises this, he feels this soft something ' closing in about him as if it is being pushed and packed round him by many hands. He lis stifling ; he is being smothered. Then through this thick, all-enveloping cover he hears muffled and far-away voices. Then a hand seems to be thrust in, and his right *oot is touched. He is grasped by the ankle. He tries to kick, but there is a weight across his legs as if someone is sitting on them. Then another hand Is thrust in, and he is seized by the hair of the head. He tries to speak — call out — "lut he has no breath. Ah ! yes, he had, for now the covering is removed from bis face, and his eyes are blinded with a strong light. He looks up and sees the faces that — was it minutes ago, or was it hours? — he saw round the table of the boardroom apstairs. They are all there, the seven of them. At the same moment as his intelligence takes in their faces, it also notes this thing that covers him iv and holds him helpless. In the excited state of his nerves be laughs in ironical amusement. He cannot help but laugh. F'/r it is a feather bed. Yes, they are all there — the six men and j the woman. And in their hands he is as helpless as an Infant. He does try to struggle, but what good w;ll that do? For a moment he thinks of pulling the trigger and sending a bullet through himself. But while there it life there is hope, and the never-say-die spirit is strong in him. Another hand is thrust in ; his wrists are seized, and his weapon js taken from him. And then, and then only, is he set free. "Well, you've fairly trapped me, Sir Ermenred." "Ah, you know me," Sword answers. '1 don't know; y.0g,."

f "That's no reason, why you shouldn't know me." An idea has come to the prisons^. "Well, then, who are you?" "My name wouldn't tell you anything. I'm anybody's servant." "How did you get in here?" "By the door." "By the door? Which door?' • ''The door all you millionaires came in by"You watched vs 1 / Ah, you watched us. Why did you watch us?' "Curiosity." "And curiosity, I suppose, made you enter the house?"' -Yes." "It looks suspiciously like burglary^ doe«n'l it?" "You loft the door open." "Why did you watch us?" "I sa.d curiosity." "And curiosity, I suppose, made you follow us upstairs and listen at the tiap window?"' "Ye*." "And what were you carrying firearms for?" "I want them in my business." "And what's your business?" "Helping myself, mostly ; just like you." "You are a ihief, then?" | "You say so." "Are you, or are you not?" "Oh, I le,ave that to you." "You say you watched us to-night. Is to-night the first time-?" "No." "When, then?" "Oh, other nights " "What nights? Xanie one." "I can't be certain." "Last week." "No, not last week.' 1 "Week before last?" "I'm not sure." Monsieur Bruyere here said something hurriedly to Sword, and the latter, as if impressed by the words, turned to Marsh again and spoke. "You listened at the trap window. What did you hear?" "Oh, I heard enough to show me that you fellows are in a very good way of business, and that it's a, bit like my own— -■ not much thought of." "Well, what else?" "I thought I wouldn't mind having a try at it myself." And now it was the Countess of Ullavan who spoke to Sword in quick whispers. "What a fool I am !" cried Sword. "What fools we all are ! A woman's brain goes straight to the weak point. Here, you fellow , what's the meaning of this indiarubber suit? What do you wear it for'/" This was the weak point. In his excitement Marsh forgot that the dress which had protected him would al«o betray him. He searched his brain for a plausible explanation. But he could find none. His brain seemed to go, and involuntarily he blurted out the truth. "To keep me dry while I was in the water watching you." "Ah!" ctied Sword "I know now what you are If you make such elaborate preparations as that, you can only be one thing, you Scotland Yard water-rat !" To this there was no answer. In a trice the indiarubber suit was ripped off him, and in the pockets of his ordinary clothes they found sufficient evidence to show them who their prisoner really was. "Ah !" said Sword, "you are Inspector Marsh then. Well," and he turned to the others. "I am afraid that the game is up. If we let this man go, he and his crew are down upon us. Equally, if we put him out of the way. the game is up. In any case we must clear."

The pale faces of Sword's confederates showed that they were fully alive to the situation. Barker Bennet and the Marquis were already setting a ladder to the opening of the floor"" overhead. "Stop a moment," said Sword "We've got to go. but I think we'll leave this gentleman behind us, and we'll leave nim in such a way that he can't get out for a few days— if at all Hold a light here, Oxborrow."

Sword strode forward to a corner of the room, where a lar^e gas bracket projected from the wall ITe seized the pipe, and putting all his weight on it, broke it off short The smell of gas began instantly to fill the unventilated cellar — for cellar it way. "N T ow." said he. "your handkerchiefs.** Knotting together three and three, they bound Marsh hand and foot and I ' flung him on the floor. "You like this house, Inspector Marsh," said Sword. "I daresay you'll be tired of it before you get out." One by one they climbed the ladder. The trap-door was set in its place, and in the darkness of an atmosphere already noxious with the fumes of coal gas, Marsh <vas l effc

alone to his fate,

(To be continued.)

— Births exceeded the number of deathc in England and Wale* last year by 405,739. The average increase during the preceding five yeara was .363,053. —Mr ftichard Mcos, formerly M.P. foil "Winchester, has .made a curious offer t, that ancient and famous borough. He de* circs to set aside £100 a year in perpetuity to defray the expenses of a banquet, or other entertainment, to be given eaob year on his birthday (May 30), to uch members of the corporation, citizens, and visitors a3 the mayor for the time being may invite. The corporation propose to accept the offer with thanks to Mr Moss, who is a Freemaa of Winchester.

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