=NICK CARTER STORIES=
=New Magnet Library=
_Not a Dull Book in This List_
ALL BY NICHOLAS CARTER
Nick Carter stands for an interesting detective story. The fact that
the books in this line are so uniformly good is entirely due to the
work of a specialist. The man who wrote these stories produced no
other type of fiction. His mind was concentrated upon the creation of
new plots and situations in which his hero emerged triumphantly from
all sorts of troubles and landed the criminal just where he should
be--behind the bars.
The author of these stories knew more about writing detective stories
than any other single person.
Following is a list of the best Nick Carter stories. They have been
selected with extreme care, and we unhesitatingly recommend each of
them as being fully as interesting as any detective story between cloth
covers which sells at ten times the price.
If you do not know Nick Carter, buy a copy of any of the New Magnet
Library books, and get acquainted. He will surprise and delight you.
_ALL TITLES ALWAYS IN PRINT_
850--Wanted: A Clew
851--A Tangled Skein
852--The Bullion Mystery
853--The Man of Riddles
854--A Miscarriage of Justice
855--The Gloved Hand
856--Spoilers and the Spoils
857--The Deeper Game
858--Bolts from Blue Skies
859--Unseen Foes
860--Knaves in High Places
861--The Microbe of Crime
862--In the Toils of Fear
863--A Heritage of Trouble
864--Called to Account
865--The Just and the Unjust
866--Instinct at Fault
867--A Rogue Worth Trapping
868--A Rope of Slender Threads
869--The Last Call
870--The Spoils of Chance
871--A Struggle with Destiny
872--The Slave of Crime
873--The Crook’s Blind
874--A Rascal of Quality
875--With Shackles of Fire
876--The Man Who Changed Faces
877--The Fixed Alibi
878--Out with the Tide
879--The Soul Destroyers
880--The Wages of Rascality
881--Birds of Prey
882--When Destruction Threatens
883--The Keeper of Black Hounds
884--The Door of Doubt
885--The Wolf Within
886--A Perilous Parole
887--The Trail of the Finger Prints
888--Dodging the Law
889--A Crime in Paradise
890--On the Ragged Edge
891--The Red God of Tragedy
892--The Man Who Paid
893--The Blind Man’s Daughter
894--One Object in Life
895--As a Crook Sows
896--In Record Time
897--Held in Suspense
898--The $100,000 Kiss
899--Just One Slip
900--On a Million-dollar Trail
901--A Weird Treasure
902--The Middle Link
903--To the Ends of the Earth
904--When Honors Pall
905--The Yellow Brand
906--A New Serpent in Eden
907--When Brave Men Tremble
908--A Test of Courage
909--Where Peril Beckons
910--The Gargoni Girdle
911--Rascals & Co.
912--Too Late to Talk
913--Satan’s Apt Pupil
914--The Girl Prisoner
915--The Danger of Folly
916--One Shipwreck Too Many
917--Scourged by Fear
918--The Red Plague
919--Scoundrels Rampant
920--From Clew to Clew
921--When Rogues Conspire
922--Twelve in a Grave
923--The Great Opium Case
924--A Conspiracy of Rumors
925--A Klondike Claim
926--The Evil Formula
927--The Man of Many Faces
928--The Great Enigma
929--The Burden of Proof
930--The Stolen Brain
931--A Titled Counterfeiter
932--The Magic Necklace
933--’Round the World for a Quarter
934--Over the Edge of the World
935--In the Grip of Fate
936--The Case of Many Clews
937--The Sealed Door
938--Nick Carter and the Green Goods Men
939--The Man Without a Will
940--Tracked Across the Atlantic
941--A Clew from the Unknown
942--The Crime of a Countess
943--A Mixed-up Mess
944--The Great Money-order Swindle
945--The Adder’s Brood
946--A Wall Street Haul
947--For a Pawned Crown
948--Sealed Orders
949--The Hate that Kills
950--The American Marquis
951--The Needy Nine
952--Fighting Against Millions
953--Outlaws of the Blue
954--The Old Detective’s Pupil
955--Found in the Jungle
956--The Mysterious Mail Robbery
957--Broken Bars
958--A Fair Criminal
959--Won by Magic
960--The Piano Box Mystery
961--The Man They Held Back
962--A Millionaire Partner
963--A Pressing Peril
964--An Australian Klondike
965--The Sultan’s Pearls
966--The Double Shuffle Club
967--Paying the Price
968--A Woman’s Hand
969--A Network of Crime
970--At Thompson’s Ranch
971--The Crossed Needles
972--The Diamond Mine Case
973--Blood Will Tell
974--An Accidental Password
975--The Crook’s Double
976--Two Plus Two
977--The Yellow Label
978--The Clever Celestial
979--The Amphitheater Plot
980--Gideon Drexel’s Millions
981--Death in Life
982--A Stolen Identity
983--Evidence by Telephone
984--The Twelve Tin Boxes
985--Clew Against Clew
986--Lady Velvet
987--Playing a Bold Game
988--A Dead Man’s Grip
989--Snarled Identities
990--A Deposit Vault Puzzle
991--The Crescent Brotherhood
992--The Stolen Pay Train
993--The Sea Fox
994--Wanted by Two Clients
995--The Van Alstine Case
996--Check No. 777
997--Partners in Peril
998--Nick Carter’s Clever Protégé
999--The Sign of the Crossed Knives
1000--The Man Who Vanished
1001--A Battle for the Right
1002--A Game of Craft
1003--Nick Carter’s Retainer
1004--Caught in the Tolls
1005--A Broken Bond
1006--The Crime of the French Café
1007--The Man Who Stole Millions
1008--The Twelve Wise Men
1009--Hidden Foes
1010--A Gamblers’ Syndicate
1011--A Chance Discovery
1012--Among the Counterfeiters
1013--A Threefold Disappearance
1014--At Odds with Scotland Yard
1015--A Princess of Crime
1016--Found on the Beach
1017--A Spinner of Death
1018--The Detective’s Pretty Neighbor
1019--A Bogus Clew
1020--The Puzzle of Five Pistols
1021--The Secret of the Marble Mantel
1022--A Bite of an Apple
1023--A Triple Crime
1024--The Stolen Race Horse
1025--Wildfire
1026--A _Herald_ Personal
1027--The Finger of Suspicion
1028--The Crimson Clew
1029--Nick Carter Down East
1030--The Chain of Clews
1031--A Victim of Circumstances
1032--Brought to Bay
1033--The Dynamite Trap
1034--A Scrap of Black Lace
1035--The Woman of Evil
1036--A Legacy of Hate
1037--A Trusted Rogue
1038--Man Against Man
1039--The Demons of the Night
1040--The Brotherhood of Death
1041--At the Knife’s Point
1042--A Cry for Help
1043--A Stroke of Policy
1044--Hounded to Death
1045--A Bargain in Crime
1046--The Fatal Prescription
1047--The Man of Iron
1048--An Amazing Scoundrel
1049--The Chain of Evidence
1050--Paid with Death
1051--A Fight for a Throne
1052--The Woman of Steel
1053--The Seal of Death
1054--The Human Fiend
1055--A Desperate Chance
1056--A Chase in the Dark
1057--The Snare and the Game
1058--The Murray Hill Mystery
1059--Nick Carter’s Close Call
1060--The Missing Cotton King
1061--A Game of Plots
1062--The Prince of Liars
1063--The Man at the Window
1064--The Red League
1065--The Price of a Secret
1066--The Worst Case on Record
1067--From Peril to Peril
1068--The Seal of Silence
1069--Nick Carter’s Chinese Puzzle
1070--A Blackmailer’s Bluff
1071--Heard in the Dark
1072--A Checkmated Scoundrel
1073--The Cashier’s Secret
1074--Behind a Mask
1075--The Cloak of Guilt
1076--Two Villains in One
1077--The Hot Air Clew
1078--Run to Earth
1079--The Certified Check
1080--Weaving the Web
1081--Beyond Pursuit
1082--The Claws of the Tiger
1083--Driven from Cover
1084--A Deal in Diamonds
1085--The Wizard of the Cue
1086--A Race for Ten Thousand
1087--The Criminal Link
1088--The Red Signal
1089--The Secret Panel
1090--A Bonded Villain
1091--A Move in the Dark
1092--Against Desperate Odds
1093--The Telltale Photographs
1094--The Ruby Pin
1095--The Queen of Diamonds
1096--A Broken Trail
1097--An Ingenious Stratagem
1098--A Sharper’s Downfall
1099--A Race Track Gamble
1100--Without a Clew
1101--The Council of Death
1102--The Hole in the Vault
1103--In Death’s Grip
1104--A Great Conspiracy
1105--The Guilty Governor
1106--A Ring of Rascals
1107--A Masterpiece of Crime
1108--A Blow for Vengeance
1109--Tangled Threads
1110--The Crime of the Camera
1111--The Sign of the Dagger
1112--Nick Carter’s Promise
1113--Marked for Death
1114--The Limited Holdup
1115--When the Trap Was Sprung
1116--Through the Cellar Wall
1117--Under the Tiger’s Claws
1118--The Girl in the Case
1119--Behind a Throne
1120--The Lure of Gold
1121--Hand to Hand
1122--From a Prison Cell
1123--Dr. Quartz, Magician
1124--Into Nick Carter’s Web
1125--The Mystic Diagram
1126--The Hand that Won
1127--Playing a Lone Hand
1128--The Master Villain
1129--The False Claimant
1130--The Living Mask
1131--The Crime and the Motive
1132--A Mysterious Foe
1133--A Missing Man
1134--A Game Well Played
1135--A Cigarette Clew
1136--The Diamond Trail
1137--The Silent Guardian
1138--The Dead Stranger
1140--The Doctor’s Stratagem
1141--Following a Chance Clew
1142--The Bank Draft Puzzle
1143--The Price of Treachery
1144--The Silent Partner
1145--Ahead of the Game
1146--A Trap of Tangled Wire
1147--In the Gloom of Night
1148--The Unaccountable Crook
1149--A Bundle of Clews
1150--The Great Diamond Syndicate
1151--The Death Circle
1152--The Toss of a Penny
1153--One Step Too Far
1154--The Terrible Thirteen
1155--A Detective’s Theory
1156--Nick Carter’s Auto Trail
1157--A Triple Identity
1158--A Mysterious Graft
1159--A Carnival of Crime
1160--The Bloodstone Terror
1161--Trapped in His Own Net
1162--The Last Move in the Game
1163--A Victim of Deceit
1164--With Links of Steel
1165--A Plaything of Fate
1166--The Key Ring Clew
1167--Playing for a Fortune
1168--At Mystery’s Threshold
1169--Trapped by a Woman
1170--The Four Fingered Glove
1171--Nabob and Knave
1172--The Broadway Cross
1173--The Man Without a Conscience
1174--A Master of Deviltry
1175--Nick Carter’s Double Catch
1176--Doctor Quartz’s Quick Move
1177--The Vial of Death
1178--Nick Carter’s Star Pupils
1179--Nick Carter’s Girl Detective
1180--A Baffled Oath
1181--A Royal Thief
1182--Down and Out
1183--A Syndicate of Rascals
1184--Played to a Finish
1185--A Tangled Case
1186--In Letters of Fire
In order that there may be no confusion, we desire to say that the
books listed below will be issued during the respective months in New
York City and vicinity. They may not reach the readers at a distance
promptly, on account of delays in transportation.
To be published in July, 1926.
1187--Crossed Wires
1188--A Plot Uncovered
To be published in August, 1926.
1189--The Cab Driver’s Secret
1190--Nick Carter’s Death Warrant
To be published in September, 1926.
1191--The Plot that Failed
1192--Nick Carter’s Masterpiece
1193--A Prince of Rogues
To be published in October, 1926.
1194--In the Lap of Danger
1195--The Man from London
To be published in November, 1926.
1196--Circumstantial Evidence
1197--The Pretty Stenographer Mystery
To be published in December, 1926.
1198--A Villainous Scheme
1199--A Plot Within a Plot
The Plot That Failed
OR,
WHEN MEN CONSPIRE
BY
NICHOLAS CARTER
Author of “A Plot Uncovered,” “The Cab Driver’s Secret,”
“Nick Carter’s Death Warrant,” etc.
[Illustration]
STREET & SMITH CORPORATION
PUBLISHERS
79–89 Seventh Avenue, New York
Copyright, 1903–1905
By STREET & SMITH
The Plot That Failed
(Printed in the U. S. A.)
All rights reserved, including that of translation into foreign
languages, including the Scandinavian.
THE PLOT THAT FAILED.
CHAPTER I.
TAMBOURINE JACK’S MESSAGE.
“I feared you would not come.”
The speaker, a beautiful woman of two or three and thirty, half
reclined on a sofa, in an elegant apartment.
A gentleman, rather old, had entered the room.
He was what he looked to be--one of New York’s money kings.
“It is for the last time, Louise,” he said, toying with his watch guard.
“And why for the last time?”
For a second the woman appeared downcast, and then, rising to her feet,
she said, pleadingly:
“You swore that you would always love me.”
“Yes,” he thundered, “but then I was not aware that the shy and modest
Louise Calhoun was a common adventuress. Truly, you would be a nice
woman to grace my home and be a second mother to my orphan children!”
“I shall force you to keep your promise!” The woman’s eyes blazed and
she clinched her hands until the nails sank deep into the flesh.
“Force me--you will force me!” exclaimed the gentleman.
“Those were the words I used, Hilton Field.”
“Why, you are a criminal.”
She buried her face in her hands, and, as she began to sob, dropped
upon her knees.
The banker was moved; he had loved this woman, who had introduced
herself to him as the daughter of a New England clergyman, and said
that she had come to New York with the intention of supporting herself
by giving music lessons. Indeed, she bore letters of introduction from
a man Mr. Field knew to be trustworthy.
He had helped the stranger along and often called to see her, the
outcome of which visits resulted in a proposal of marriage, which was
eagerly accepted, as he thought.
He was deceived.
Louise Calhoun could not marry the banker, and none knew this better
than herself.
Her whole body seemed to shake with the emotions born of her grief as
she knelt at Mr. Field’s feet.
When she removed her hands the old man saw that the face upturned to
his was tear-stained and pale.
“How could you, oh, how could you?” she moaned.
“Compose yourself, Louise.”
“Would you be composed if such an accusation was made against you?” she
asked, “by one you dearly loved?”
“My information comes from a detective,” Mr. Field said.
“He told you a falsehood! Would you not take my word before his?”
The banker hesitated.
Far better would it have been for him if he had not.
“Perhaps,” he said, “the man was wrong. Do you mind if I bring him face
to face with you to-morrow?”
“You will persist in doubting me;” and, as she spoke, the girl appeared
to be highly displeased.
“Louise, I owe a duty to my family,” Mr. Field said; “no one can come
in contact with them whom even the breath of suspicion might rest on.”
“What is the name of the man who dares to injure my good name?” she
asked, her eyes fastened on him as she awaited the answer.
“His name is Nicholas Carter,” replied the banker.
“Nick----”
She suddenly placed her hand over her mouth.
“Yes, Nick Carter. You seem to know him.”
“Only from reading of him in the newspapers. I read of a bold capture
of his only this morning,” she replied.
Mr. Field was lost in thought for a second.
Then he raised the young woman from the floor and seated himself beside
her on the sofa.
“Tell me you don’t doubt me.”
Her left arm was thrown around his neck, while her right hand fumbled
about in her pocket.
Louise Calhoun was all smiles now, as she drew the banker to her so
that his head rested upon her shoulder.
Then quickly did she tighten her grasp, drawing a handkerchief from her
pocket and applying it to his nostrils.
Mr. Field struggled, and succeeding in breaking away, staggered to his
feet.
Then he fell to the floor.
The drug had done its work.
Louise touched the prostrate man with her tiny foot, and assured
herself that he was insensible.
“The old fool!” she exclaimed, and her laugh rang shrilly through the
apartment, “marry him? I guess not!”
“Louise, you are a trump!”
The speaker, a young man who would be known anywhere for what he was,
a sport and gambler, emerged from behind a heavy curtain, where he had
been hid.
“How was my emotional acting, Elmer?” she asked.
The fellow kissed the woman, saying:
“Your husband is proud of his wife.”
His praise seemed to please her.
“Where are your men?” she asked.
“They will be outside at half-past eleven”--he pulled out his watch and
glanced at it--“why, it is that time now!”
Elmer, as Louise called him, drew a long piece of thin rope from his
pocket and pinioned the old man.
When he had completed the job, he said:
“This night’s work will pay handsomely or I’ll eat my head; then for
Europe with the swag, sweetheart.”
The rascal left the house and soon returned with two brutal-looking
fellows, who awkwardly removed their hats.
Two more villainous-appearing gentlemen in the yeggman line it would
be hard to find.
“You, Mackrell, get the old gent by the head,” said one of them, “and
I’ll collar his feet.”
“All right, Skip.”
They carried the banker from the house and placed him in a grocery
wagon that was in waiting, and drove rapidly off.
This move was accomplished without discovery.
Investigation into some cases of the disappearance of rich persons
would establish the fact that they were kidnaped.
The gentlemanly rascal did not accompany his friends.
He could trust them; he had often done so before and found that they
would not go back on the man who paid them well.
The pair were members of the gang that Elmer had organized, and without
taking active part in their crimes, he was their acknowledged leader.
It seems strange that an organized gang of nearly two hundred ruffians
could exist long in the great metropolis, but Elmer Greer’s did until
they were--but that is anticipating.
Returning to the apartment where he had left his wife, he said:
“Louise, you must leave here.”
“Why?”
“It is probable that the banker’s friends knew he was coming here.”
“What then?” she remarked; “they know he often calls here; there can be
no suspicion cast on me.”
“He spoke about Nick Carter,” said Greer.
“Well?”
“Perhaps he might have come with the old chap and is now waiting for
him.”
“Elmer, never until now did I believe you to be an idiot,” said the
woman, “but your words force that conviction upon my mind. If Nick
Carter were outside do you suppose they would ever be able to carry the
old fellow out?”
“I am a fool; I spoke thoughtlessly,” replied Greer.
There was a sharp knock on the door which caused both the guilty pair
to start.
The man hid himself in his former place of concealment.
“Come in,” said Louise, faintly.
The door opened and a huge dog sprang into the room, followed by its
master.
The woman screamed.
“Don’t be afraid, miss, it is only me and Crackers. We won’t hurt her,
will we, Crackers, old boy?”
Louise was not so much afraid of the evil-looking cur as she was of the
monstrosity that accompanied it.
The newcomer was not over four feet in height, although his body
seemed to have been intended for a man at least two feet taller.
He wore a pair of pants at least a dozen sizes too large and his coat
hung about him in folds.
His head was very large, and the heavy shock of red hair that covered
it seemed to add to its size.
“Don’t come near me,” cried Louise, as the creature approached the sofa.
“I won’t harm you.”
“Who are you?” exclaimed Elmer Greer, issuing from his hiding place.
“Don’t you know me?”
“No,” replied the villain. “Come, be quick, answer my question.”
The fellow began to laugh and his laughter seemed more like the scream
of a hyena than anything else.
“I’m Tambourine Jack,” he said, at length, drawing a tambourine from
under his coat and jingling it, at which the dog Crackers set up a
dismal howl.
Greer caught the fellow, but released his hold when he felt the dog’s
teeth grasp his leg.
“Down, Crackers, down,” cried Tambourine Jack, shaking himself free.
Elmer drew his pistol and pointed it at the cur.
“Don’t shoot, you’ll be sorry,” said the owner. “I have business with
you. Come nearer; I must not let the lady hear it.”
The rascal stooped to enable Tambourine Jack to whisper to him.
When he had received the other’s communication, Elmer Greer became
deathly pale.
“Great Heaven!” he cried, “what you tell me cannot be true! How do I
know you speak the truth?”
“Give me your hand and I will convince you,” said Tambourine Jack,
stretching out his grimy fist.
Greer took the proffered hand, and when he released it his pallor
deepened.
“Do you believe me now?”
“I do,” replied the rogue. “You are one of us and dare not lie.”
“Come, Crackers, come; we have finished our business here.”
The dog made a snap at Elmer as he passed him, for which he was
rewarded with a kick from his master.
When the door closed upon the strange individual and his four-footed
companion, Greer said:
“Prepare for the worst, Louise. I fear we stand on the brink of a
volcano!”