CATCHING THE BURGLARS--CONCLUSION
“That’s a great piece of news,” commented Dan, when Mr. Savage had
driven off down the road.
“Indeed it is. We must act quickly. I wish Mr. Roscoe was here now. But
he’ll be here to-night, and we can send him right over to Denville to
make the arrest.”
“Maybe it would be a good thing for us to do it ourselves.”
“No, I think not. As soon as Galt saw you he would flee, and might
escape. He wouldn’t know Mr. Roscoe. Besides I think it likely he is
planning a robbery in Denville, and he will stay there until he has
done the job.”
Mr. Harrison and Dan transacted their business and returned to Hayden.
Then they had an anxious wait until evening, when the detective was
expected back.
“I never knew such a long afternoon,” remarked Dan, about four o’clock.
They were at supper when Mr. Roscoe came in.
“No good news,” was the detective’s first remark, given in despondent
tones. “He’s a slippery, customer, that Galt.”
Mr. Harrison quickly related what the farmer had told him.
“Then we’ll start at once for Denville,” decided the detective. “Come
on. I may need help.”
The house was locked up and the three started off.
“Shall we hire a carriage at the livery stable?” asked Mr. Harrison.
“Mine is rather small.”
“It will be better to take yours, even if we are a little crowded, than
to go to a public place, and cause comment. We shall manage. Can your
horse travel fast?” asked the detective.
“Fairly so. It is only five miles to Denville.”
They were soon on their way through the gathering darkness, for it was
now fall, and the sun went down early.
“I only hope he stays at the hotel until we arrive,” murmured Mr.
Roscoe. “I never was after such a slippery fellow as he is. Every time
I thought I had him he was somewhere else.”
The last mile seemed the longest of all, and Dan thought some one must
have pulled up the marking stone, and set it down about twice as far
ahead as it ought to be. But at last they came in sight of the village
of Denville, and a little later they arrived at the hotel.
“You had better let me go ahead,” suggested the detective. “I am used
to this part of the game. If he saw you he might make a bolt to escape
before I could prevent him.”
Accordingly, after leaving the horse and carriage under the hotel shed,
Dan and Mr. Harrison remained in the shadow on the hotel porch, while
Mr. Roscoe went inside. He came out in a few moments.
“Galt is in the barroom, playing cards,” he announced. “I am going in
and arrest him. You had better stay at the front door, Mr. Harrison,
and make a grab if he comes out that way. Dan, you go around back, and
get one of the stablemen to help you, if he makes a bolt out that way.
I will wait three minutes for you to get there, and place yourself.”
Dan hurried around to the rear, and enlisted the services of a stout
Irish groom, briefly explaining what was about to take place.
Mr. Roscoe entered the barroom. At a table was Galt, dealing cards to
a number of men. Among them was a rather poorly dressed individual,
somewhat the worse for liquor.
No one paid any attention to the detective. Mr. Roscoe walked quietly
up to the table and, looking at Galt said:
“I want you to come with me.”
“Well, I like your impudence!” exclaimed the man. “Who are you? And why
should I go with you?”
“I would have explained privately if you had taken my hint,” said the
officer suggestively. “I am a detective, and I place you under arrest
for the robbery of the house of Dr. Maxwell, and the store of Hank Lee.”
Galt jumped to his feet. Before he could make a move the detective had
snapped a pair of handcuffs on his wrists.
“Now, I want you also,” he added, turning to the shabbily dressed man.
“Wan’ me? Wha’ fer?” was the stupid inquiry.
“As the accomplice in these robberies,” and the partly intoxicated man
was also handcuffed.
As might be expected the arrest created intense excitement. Men crowded
around the detective and his prisoners, but Mr. Harrison who had been
watching through the glass door, entered quickly and took charge of the
semi-intoxicated person, while Mr. Roscoe managed Galt.
Then Dan, who heard the commotion, and saw that no escape was being
attempted, went in. At Mr. Roscoe’s suggestion the boy telephoned to
the police of Denville, a couple of officers arrived, and the two
prisoners were soon in the town lock-up.
“We will take them to Hayden in the morning,” said the detective.
“Well, I’m glad this job is over.”
“So am I!” exclaimed Dan joyfully. “My innocence can now be proved.”
Amid great excitement the prisoners were brought to Hayden early the
following day. The news spread like wildfire that the men who robbed
Hank Lee’s store had been captured. A big crowd gathered at the jail.
“So they’ve got th’ rascals, eh?” asked Hank, when some one told him.
“I’ll go have a look at ’em. Did they say Dan Hardy was one of their
gang?”
“I don’t know,” replied the man who brought the news.
Hank lost no time in going to the jail. The prisoners were just being
taken to cells. Hank gave one look at the poorly dressed man, and
exclaimed:
“Simon!”
“Oh, is that you?” asked the man. “Hello, Hank! You ain’t goin’ t’
prosecute your own brother, fer takin’ a few cigars, are you?”
“Brother? Are you his brother?” asked Mr. Harrison of the prisoner.
“That’s what I am. I’m his own brother, Simon Lee.”
“My good-for-nothing brother you mean!” exclaimed Hank. “I disown you!
You’ve disgraced me! To think of your being a robber,” and he was much
chagrined.
“Oh, I didn’t do it all. Galt did the most of it. I only helped.”
“Poor weak fool,” murmured Galt, who seemed cool enough under the
circumstances.
We need not further concern ourselves with the burglars except to say
that they both confessed to robbing the doctor’s house, and Mr. Lee’s
store.
There were three in the gang, but the third member was never caught.
It was also learned that the men Dan had seen that night were the
burglars, and they were hiding the doctor’s silverware, which they
afterward removed.
Simon Lee, it appeared, was a man with a weak nature. He had fallen
into criminal ways, been associated with Galt, and then had tried to
reform. For a time Galt had lost track of him, and then, learning he
had a brother who kept a store in Hayden, he had hunted out the small
village, and, on a threat of disclosing a certain crime in which Simon
was concerned, had compelled the fellow to join him in other illegal
acts. They had planned a robbery in Denville but were arrested before
they could accomplish it.
Part of Dr. Maxwell’s silver was recovered, but Hank Lee never got any
of his money back. Both burglars were sentenced to long terms in prison
and there was never any occasion for putting Dan on trial.
“Well, that turned out well, but I am sorry for those men--sorry for
their evil ways,” said the old soldier to Dan, one day, toward the
beginning of winter, when they were in their new cottage, near the
completed machine shop.
“Yes, I feel as if a load had been lifted from my shoulders,” replied
the boy.
“I never had any doubt about the outcome, but I am glad you were so
completely and quickly vindicated. It was quite a shock to Hank Lee,
to find his own brother had robbed him. But, Dan, I want to talk about
something pleasanter now. I have a proposition to make to you. I have
been observing you for some time, and I have made up my mind, if you
will consent to it, that I will adopt you as my son.”
“Your son?”
“Yes. I am all alone in the world, and so are you. Why should we not
always be together?”
“It is too good of you!”
“Nonsense. It will give me something more to live for. Then you agree?”
“Oh yes, and thank you so much!” and Dan’s face showed his pleasure.
“Then I will have the papers drawn up at once. Now another matter,--I
have decided to send you to school, and, if you like, to college. There
is nothing in this world like education, and the best use I can put
some of my money to is to enable you to rise in life.”
“Oh, Mr. Harrison. I never expected this!”
“Nor did I expect my legacy. It is good luck for both of us.”
And so it proved. Dan acquitted himself well at school, and if you
should go to Hayden now you would find it quite a thriving town, with
a large machine shop, of which Dan Hardy, no longer a farm boy, is the
head, having succeeded to all Mr. Harrison’s interests when that good
soldier became too old to take an active part. And here we will leave
Dan Hardy and his friends, for he has many.
THE END
TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES:
Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_.
Obvious typographical errors have been corrected.
Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized.
Archaic or variant spelling has been retained.