CHAPTER III.
IN WHICH PHIL SLIPS OFF HIS COAT, AND RETREATS IN GOOD ORDER.
It is scarcely necessary for me to say that I was exceedingly indignantat the trick played upon me by Mr. Leonidas Lynchpinne; and I wasnot at all comforted by the reflection that he had used the cloak ofreligion to cover his designs. He had seen me counting my gold onboard of the steamer; and the wisdom of Mr. Gracewood's advice onthat occasion had already been demonstrated. If I had not carelesslyexhibited the contents of my shot-bag, the unpleasant event which hadhappened to me could not have occurred.
I went to work upon the lock of the door. I have said that I am fondof encountering a difficulty; but I must say that the difficulty ofopening that door was an exception to the general rule. I did notenjoy it at all. I fingered over it a while in the dark, with nosuccess, and with no prospect of any, till it occurred to me that thecandle and the matches which my companion had placed in the chair wereavailable. I felt about the floor till I found them, and soon had alittle light on the subject. The partition was a very superficial pieceof work, and I saw that, if I could not spring the bolt of the lock, Icould pull the door open.
The door did not come within half an inch of the threshold, and therewas a space equally wide at the top. I pulled the bottom out with myfingers till I could thrust the handle of my knife in at the side. Thedoor was thin, and sprang easily under the pressure. When I got a fairhold, I pulled it open, tearing out the fastening from the frame of thedoor. The creaking and cracking produced by the operation amounted to aconsiderable noise; but I made haste to use the advantage I had gainedbefore any of the villanous occupants of the house discovered me.
Taking the candle in my hand, I walked through the long entry towardsthe stairs by which I had come up. But I had gone but half the distancebefore I discovered the man Glynn hastening in the opposite direction.He was a burly fellow, and I suddenly experienced a feeling of regretthat I was not on the other side of him, for I was satisfied that anyconquest I might gain over him would be by the use of my legs ratherthan my fists.
"What's that noise here?" demanded Glynn, halting in the middle of thepassage.
"I made some noise in opening the door of the room."
"Lynch says some one is breaking into the rooms. Are you the one?"
"No; I didn't break in; I broke out. But if you will excuse me, I willgo, for I am in a hurry to get to the river."
"Never saw a rogue yet that was not in a hurry."
"What do you mean by that?" I demanded.
"Some one has been breaking into our rooms, and I only want to catchthe fellow that did it."
"I am not the fellow."
"Lynch says you are."
"Where is Lynch?"
"Gone out; I don't know where. What have you been doing up here?"
"I have been robbed of my money by the fellow you call Lynch; and Ionly want to get hold of him," I replied.
"That won't go down here," said Glynn, shaking his head.
"Well, I shall go down, any how."
"Not yet, till I see what you have been about here," added he, as hetook me by the wrist, and walked in the direction from which I had justcome.
Fully persuaded that I should make nothing by resistance, I determinedto await my opportunity, rather than spend my strength in a uselessbattle, in which I was liable to have my head broken. He led me tothe room I had just left, the door of which was open. The splintereddoor-frame betrayed my operations at once.
"Did you do that?" demanded Glynn, savagely.
"I did."
"Then you are the chap I've been looking for," said he, squeezing mywrist till the bones crackled.
"Lynch snatched my money, and then locked me into the room, while heran away. That's the whole story."
"I tell you that won't go down," added Glynn, giving me a rude shake.
"Isn't this the room to which you sent him and me, and didn't you givehim the key?"
"And didn't you break down this door? That's what I want to know."
"I have said that I did; and I have explained the reason of it."
"Redwood may settle the business to suit himself. Come down to theoffice."
He walked me through the long entry, and down the stairs to a roomadjoining that we had entered before. Glynn explained to the man Ihad seen with the silver box in his hand, and who was doubtless theproprietor of the house, what had occurred in the attic.
"I see," said Redwood. "This is a very pretty story; and this boy wantsto hurt the reputation of the house by declaring that he has beenrobbed here. As you say, Glynn, that won't go down."
"But it is true," I protested.
"You know it isn't true. How old are you, boy?"
"Thirteen."
"How much money did you lose?" asked Redwood, with an obvious sneer.
"Nearly a hundred dollars."
"In wildcat bank notes, I dare say."
"No, sir, in gold."
"That's a likely story! Boys of thirteen don't travel round much inthese times with a hundred dollars in gold in their trousers' pockets."
"But I had the money, and I have been robbed in this house."
"I don't believe a word of it. But you have been breaking down mydoors, and trying to get into my rooms. There isn't much law here, butyou shall try on what little there is."
"I can prove all I say by my friends on board of the steamer."
"It's too late to do anything to-night, Glynn. You must keep him tillmorning. Lock him up in No. 10."
"I'm not going to be locked up in No. 10," I protested, my indignationgetting the better of my discretion, for I could not help thinking ofMr. Gracewood and his family fretting and worrying about me all night;and a sense of the injustice to which I was subjected stung me to thesoul.
"Perhaps you are not; but we'll see," replied Redwood, with his handon the knob of the door which opened into the room I had first enteredwith Lynchpinne, and in which I heard voices.
"Is the man I came with in there?" I asked, pointing to the door.
"No; take him round to No. 10, Glynn."
"Come along, youngster," said the man, as he seized me by the collar ofmy coat, and dragged me out into the entry.
I was powerless in the grasp of the stout fellow, and he led me alongthe entry till we had almost reached the door by which we had enteredthe building. At a door on the right, marked No. 10, in red chalk, mycustodian halted. Setting his candlestick upon the floor, he appliedthe key to the door, for he still held me by the collar with one hand.I had no taste whatever for being locked up in No. 10, which I saw wasan inner chamber, like the gambling apartment I had first visited.
While Glynn was unlocking the door, a piece of strategy occurred tome, which I instantly adopted. Like the prudent shipmaster, who issometimes compelled to cut away a mast to save the ship, I was obligedto sacrifice my coat to obtain my liberty. Throwing my arms behindme, I slipped out of the garment, and sprang to the outside door,leaving the coat in the hands of Glynn. Fortunately the door was ajar,and throwing it open, I fled down the stairs with a celerity whichdoubtless astonished my burly jailer.
"Stop, you rascal!" shouted Glynn; but, without pausing to consider thepolite invitation, I promptly declined it.
"The next instant the iron candlestick struck me in the back, butinflicted no damage upon me. It was followed by another missile, whichI did not identify, and then by my coat. I do not think the fellowmeant to return the garment I needed so much on a cool night; but,having it in his hand, he threw it at me, as he had everything elsewithin his reach. I grasped the coat, and ran down the street, closelypursued by Glynn. Finding I was attracting the attention of people inthe street, two or three of whom attempted to stop me when they saw aman was pursuing me, I turned into a cross street. I ran with my coaton my arm, and soon distanced my clumsy pursuer. I turned severaltimes, but I had no idea where I was or whither I was going, and I soonfound myself out on the prairie.
PHIL ESCAPES FROM GLYNN. Page 40.]
No one was near me, and I was satisfied that Glynn had abandoned thechase. I put on my coat, and walked leisurely in the direction whichI thought would lead me to the river. I was vexed and discouraged atthe loss of my money. My first mishap gave me some experience of thedisadvantages of civilization, for in the field and forest from which Ihad come, we had no gamblers, or thieves, except the Indians. It wouldbe a very pretty story to tell Mr. Gracewood, that I had not been smartenough to take care of myself, in spite of my boast to that effect, andthat I had lost all my money, except a little change in silver, which Icarried in my vest pocket. It was exceedingly awkward and annoying, andI was almost ashamed to meet my excellent friend.
I continued to walk, keeping the houses of the town on my left,expecting soon to see the river. But it seemed to me that the longer Iwalked, the more I did not see it, and the less became the probabilitythat I should see it. In a word, I could not find any river, and Iconcluded that I was journeying away from it, instead of towards it.The houses on my left diminished in number, and I saw that all thelights were behind me. I thought that, by this time, Glynn had givenup the chase, and was probably busy in attending to the wants of thegamblers in Redwood's den. Turning to the left, I walked towards thecentre of the town, and soon struck a broad street, which had been laidout, and on which an occasional house had been erected.
This course brought me to the middle of the place, and in front of thehotel. I ventured to inquire the way to the river. Taking the directionpointed out to me, I reached the landing-place without furtherdifficulty. I found the place where the steamers stopped, but there wasno boat to be seen. I visited every point above and below the landing;I inquired in shops and offices, and of everybody I met; but I couldnot discover the steamer's boat, and no one had seen it or heard ofit. It was very strange, and I was perplexed, but not alarmed. A tripof seven miles in a boat, even in the evening, was not a very perilousundertaking, and I was not willing to believe that any accident hadhappened to my friends.
I had seen a clock in one of the stores where I had called, and I knewit was half past eight. The boat must have arrived at least an hourbefore, if it had come at all; but I had almost reached the conclusionthat my friends had abandoned the excursion. But if they had come, Mr.Gracewood would go to the prayer-meeting, expecting to find me there,and I went in search of such a gathering.