One Wonderful Night

o a large, white-fronted building of severe architecture. Above the main entrance two green lamps stared solemnly into the night, and their monitory gleam seemed

eingall of a policeman in uniform w

ookout in case you turned up unexpect

because the Police Headquarters of New York, unlike any similar department outside the bounds of the United States, makes the press welcome, and gives deta

gues' Gallery of photographs in a large album. He turned as the door opened, straightened himself, and revealed a wizened face, somewhat of th

hout a moment's hesitation, he added: "Good-e

ange of compliments, though he could not imagine how a person who had n

r, who had lighted a cigar on e

home in that respect. I am a hard smoker. Let m

ine. I bought them in London, but they ar

id the little man. Seeing the question on the faces of b

of tobacco. Poor old Steingall there has pretty fair eyesight, but his nos

hief constituents. I'm not surprised you make an occasional hit as a detective, because the average cr

apper of the cigar given him by Curtis, and he wa

e a prize-fighter, and can drive his fist through a three-quarter inch pine plank. But we hunt well together, being a unique combination of science and brute force.… B

pted Steingall. "Is there anythi

. At twelve-thirty I mu

t happened since you put on poor Hunter's overc

t Clancy was never more discursive, never more prone to chaff and sneer at his special friend, Steingall, than when hot on the trail of some particularly acute and daring malefactor. The Chief of the Bureau, of course, knew by these signs that his trusted aide

ook an original view

ood-looking, you say?" w

ve," said Curtis, though hardly prepared for

d and lady-li

efits her

ect is concerned.… Well, a man never knows much about a woman anyway, and

sk what

age, Mr. Curtis, I take it you have not

inly right in

ulated, 'pon my soul. You will have the rare experience of constructing a divinity out of a wif

et the detective's pe

matter of form. It may be legal-indeed, I believe it is-but there can be no dispute as to the nature of the bond betwee

no obstacles

on

te s

olut

were a comedian who had sco

dy you throw away your last slender chance of freedom, and you will find her waiting at the gate of the State Penitentiary when you c

e trouble to conceal his opinion that the New York Detectiv

. "From what little I can grasp of a curiously involved affair, it seems to me that there are weightier interests than o

" and Clancy's tone became so serious that Devar laughed outright. "Don't misunderstand me, Mr. Cur

pinions. I confined my

head and ears in love with your wife? Nom d'un pipe! Doesn

which was not altogether unwarrantable, but Clancy jerked out his hands

take the fair one to a hotel, flout her father, a British peer, and hold a banquet at which the Chief of the New York Detective Bureau is an honored guest; and then you have the hardihood to tell me that your actions constitute an immaterial side issue in the biggest sensation New York has produced this year. Young man, wait till the interviewers get hold of you to-morrow! Wait till the sob sisters begin gushing over your bride-a pretty one-with a title! Name of good little gray man! They'll whoop yo

present thought that Clancy was sl

and tell us how you came to drive Count

peared. He had changed his clothes and linen, but one glance at his nose showed that I had marked my bird, even if the porter hadn't given me the mystic sign at the right moment. I received my orders, and off we went, a second cab following, with the driver of my taxi as a fare. Evidently, the Count was not well posted in New York distances, because he grew restive, and wondered where I was taking him. He tried to be artful, too, and when we reached East Broadway he pulled me up at the corner of Market Street, told me to wait, and lodged a five-dollar bill as security, saying I would have annozzaire when we got back to the hotel. Didn't that make things easy? He plunged into the crowd-you know what a bunch of Russians, Hungarians, and Polish Jews get together in East Broadway about ten-thirty-so I rushed to the second cab, swapped coats and hats again, gave the taxi-man the five-spot, and put him in charge of his own cab. In less than a minute I overtook the Count, just as he was crossi

e mantel-piece. He rose, threw ope

fficiently to escape recognition, not so much by the Count as by others who may

e moment, nor one that might be assumed more readily. Boots offered the main difficulty, but Clancy's purchase fitted Devar, and Curtis made the best of a pair of canvas shoes, while a mixture of grease and coffee ext

quiry office, and Devar tested the realism of his appearance by disregarding the chauffeur of the splendi

in,

t of his seat instantly,

" he began, where

ight, Arthu

is here for Mr. Howard Dev

cuckoo, and

had not seen for a considerable time except for a fleeting glimpse on the arrival of the Lu

said, "and if it's your ghost you must ha

uarters at the moment, and gav

id Steingall, "tel

p, looked at the det

poor fellow, all unconsciously, was now gathered into the net which had spread its meshes so wide in New York that night. He could not understand why his employer's son should be gallivanting around the city in com

Grand Street, and halted the car on

adway to the corner of Montgomery Street. We are going to Morris Siegelman's restaurant, which is a few doors higher

s,

lighted by the man'

death to-morrow when you read the newspapers, and

unction to the amateurs. "Think of all the bad language you ever heard, a

admitte

p any sort of sailor's chanty

inned Italians, placid Germans, wild-eyed and pallid Czechs, lounged along the thoroughfare, chatting with compatriots, or gathering in amused groups to hear the strange patter of some voluble merchant retailing goods from a barrow. From the interiors of tiny shops and cellars came eldritch voices crying the nature and remarkable qualities of the

lion people find habitation, food, and employment. They supply each other's needs, speak their own weird tongues, and by slow degr

's hospitable door was reached without incident. A taxi-cab was standing by the curb, and the driver, gazing at the living

e side of an apartment which had once been the parlor of a pretentious house, "this is the right sort o' dope-vodka-same as is supplie

et against the edge of the counter. Not to be outdone, Curtis began to sing. He had a good baritone voice, and entered with zest into the mad spirit of the frolic. The song he chose was redolent of the sea.

strolling down

the roll

t be true t

better off

bles. Beer was the favorite beverage; a minority was eating, the menu being strange and wondrous, and everyone was smoking cigarettes. When Curtis received his share of the poisonous decoction so vaunted by Steingall, he faced the company, glass in hand, and saw Count Vassilan seated in a corner c

mpanion bore only the slight resemblance of a kindred nationality to the men who c

Siegelman dispensed under the seal of vodka. Curtis laughed at the conceit, which was grotesque in its very essence. Wild and bizarre as his experiences ha

tered Steingall. "We seem to

" said Clan

er occupied by the Count. He skipped off the stool, and made for the vacant place; the others fo

back to the absorbed party beneath the window, and apologized with exaggerated politeness when his cha

hen?" he heard Vassi

irl, "but you sure meet-a dem here,

en he spoke, it was to the Hungarian, and in Magyar, but it was easy to g

o raise a row if we could m

e sunset, and admitted that he was ready fo

s and Slavs in the street I can start a r

ked the d

forbidden national melody. Far better than he knew, he sounded uncharted deeps in human nature. Andrew Fletcher of Saltoun stated an eternal truth when he wrote to the Marquis of Montrose: "I know a very wise man that believed that if a man were permitted to make all the ballads he need not care who should make the laws of a nation." Before Devar had finished the first verse people from the street were crowding in thr

some women in the café began to shriek. Not knowing in the least what was causing the commotion, the crowd surged into

They'll be knifin

ut, and the young Hungarian could have climbed after him nimbly enough had not Curtis insisted on helping him, and, pinioning his arms, f

wo! Take the c

Hungarian regained his feet. The hour yet wanted nearly ten minutes of being one o'clock, so the chauffeur had not budged from his post in the park. Devar told him to start the engine, and be ready to jump off without delay. Then they waited, and watched the corner of the square intersected by East Broadway, but neither Steinga

h you brought off in Siegelman's?" asked Curtis

n inspiration,"

d on a solid basis of

p a shindy by singing that song. In less than a minute an officer had been stabbed with his own sword, and a policeman shot, and it

s it al

strians their real name, but I couldn't

back in the ca

some idiot waved a black flag, but that was a symbol of the Boxer rebellion, and it meant someth

uddenly, and l

nd a gray automobile which was coming out of Fifth Avenue had been held up by a policeman stationed there. Curtis's attention was caught by the color and shape of the vehicle,

mercurial companion, "tell your man to overtake that car and run it into

iceman signaled the upt