CHAPTER IX.
FRITZ'S DISCOVERY.
Let us return to our ventriloquist detective and his venturesomeexpedition.
In heading the boat into the opening in the bluff, he had no idea howhis venture would terminate, but was urged on by a great curiosity toexplore the spot, feeling sure that it had some connection with thesmugglers' league.
The height of the aperture was insufficient to admit the passage ofthe boat with him sitting up; so putting the boat under headway he laydown and thus glided in.
In high tide, this opening, he concluded, was covered by water, whilein extreme low water the beach must be bare in front of the bluff, asthe water at this juncture now was quite shallow.
He almost immediately emerged into a cave in the heart of the bluff.
It was as large as a couple of good-sized rooms, and looked as if thewaters of many years had eaten it out.
The work of man, however, was seen in the planks overhead, which,resting on wooden supports, held the roof in place.
The water reached about midway into the chamber, and from its edge thepebbly ground ascended to the farther side of the cave, where a narrowaperture branched off--evidently cut as a passageway by the hand ofman.
Grounding his boat, Fritz stepped out and took a survey of hissurroundings.
"Dis don'd look ash if id vas a healthy blace at high tide, but Ireckon dot id vas der blace vere dey run in smuggled goods," he mused."Dot passage probably leads to a higher und dryer place."
Holding his revolver ready for use in case of emergency, he stolesoftly toward the subterranean passage, with a view to exploring it.
It was a dark, uninviting tunnel, of just sufficient width and heightto admit of a person's passage, and looked as if it might have noconnection with any other chamber, as he could see no light toindicate its terminus.
Nothing daunted, however, he entered it and walked along softly, readyfor any surprise.
A score of steps he went, and then emerged into what he concluded wasanother large subterranean chamber, but where all was of Stygiandarkness.
Luckily he had a close metal pocket-box of matches with him, andlighting one after another he discovered a half dozen lamps inbrackets around the chamber side.
One of them he soon lit, when he proceeded to inspect his situation.
As before stated, the sides of the cavern were walled up like acellar; and in size it was a hundred and fifty feet square, by ten ortwelve in height.
The ceiling overhead was planked, and these supported by rude pillarsresting upon the ground floor, as in the outer cave.
Here and there, scattered about, were heaps of straw, pieces of woodenboxes and canvas, and occasionally a bottle, or a piece of damagedsilk or lace.
At the opposite side of this chamber was a round hole in the ceiling,similar to a well, down through which hung a rope ladder to the floor.
This seemed to indicate that either there was another chamber,overhead, or else this was a means of access to the open air.
In the stone wall, at either side of the room, were doorways suppliedwith strong, grated iron doors, which were fastened with padlocks andchains.
"Vel, I be jiggered off dis don'd vas yoost like a regular brizon,"Fritz ejaculated; "und dis pe der blace vere der smugglers unpack deirgoods. I t'ought I vould discoffer somet'ings, off I come here. Vonderuff dey haff got somepody shut up mit dem cells? Dot vouldn't pe somuch off a 'sell,' neider, off I am any shudge."
Taking down the lamp, he proceeded to inspect the matter. Approachingthe right-hand dungeon, he peered in.
The place, evidently, was empty.
Crossing the cavern to the door of the other, to his surprise he sawthat this dungeon was occupied.
Upon a rude cot bed, a woman was stretched, apparently fast asleep.
As her face was turned from his view, he could not tell whether shewas young or old, pretty or ugly, but he was strangely impressed. Hersize--form--clothing, all aroused his suspicions that it really wasthe Leadville man's runaway daughter--Madge Thornton, or Thurston, asshe had called herself. He was staggered a moment by the very thought.
"Hello! vake oop--who you vas?" he shouted, rattling the door.
The woman gave a violent start, and sat up on her cot, with a gasp: itwas indeed the speculator's lost daughter!
"Goot! dot vas a nest egg for me!" was the thought that flashedthrough his mind, as he remembered the offered reward.
"Who are you?--what do you want?" the bride of Major Atkins demanded,eagerly, as she arose from her bed, and stepped falteringly toward thedoor.
"Vel, I am Fritz! You remember der chap Fritz, don'd you?"
"Oh! yes! yes! You are a friend to me--oh! say that you are, and thatyou have come to rescue me and take me back to papa!"
"Vel, I should snicker dot dot vas apoud der size off dercircumstance," the young detective grinned. "You don'd vas like dishotel, den?"
"Oh! no! no! I shall die if I remain here. Open the door--take me fromthis terrible place! Oh! please do this, sir, and I will always loveyou."
"Nixy! You mustn't do dot," Fritz replied, with a serious expression,"or you vil haff mine gal, Rebecca, in your vool. She's shealous, isRebecca, und id makes her madder ash a hornet bee, uff I even lookssweed at a potato pug--dot ish a fact. But I vil get you oud all dersame, if I can, vich I don'd know so much apoud, ash der door vasfastened tighter ash a brick. You see, your old dad he vas send medown dis vay to look vor you, und I dells him I find you, yoost like apook. I vas a reg'lar snoozer at findin' dings vot don'd pelong tome."
"My father sent you? Oh! joyful news! Tell me--tell me, where is myfather?" and she clasped her hands, her face and eyes aglow witheagerness.
There was evidently nothing dazed or somnambulistic about her now.
"Vel, der last I see'd your old man, he vas at der blace vere you gotmarried. But he left for Long Branch to rustygate und keep a veddereye out for you, vile I took der rear trail, und skeer'd up der game.You see der old man dells me off I vind you und der money vot youstole vrom him, he vould giff me five t'ousand dollars. How vas dot?He vas yoost der man I haff pen vantin' to meed, vor a long vile.But, how apoud der money?"
"It is where no earthly hands but mine can find it, except I give thedirections!" the girl replied, with evident enthusiasm over the fact."When I left home, to come East and marry Major Atkins, I was in astate of half insanity, or somnambulism, they called it, and took themoney, and when I came to my senses found it in my possession. Itseems, as I have learned since, that before his leaving for the East,and at the same time when I was in my dazed state Atkins said that hehad a large roll of money in my father's safe, and that when I came, Ishould bring it. And to my surprise, I have also since learned that itwas not the first somnambulistic theft I have been guilty of. Upondiscovering the large sum upon my person, I put it in a place where itwould be safe, and came on to marry Major Atkins, whom I imaginedmyself to be in love with. We met--it was he who took me away from thehotel--and we were married, as I supposed, at the time, but it hassince been proved a base deception. Almost immediately after yourdeparture he demanded the money of me."
"Vel, you guff it oop to him, I subbose?"
"No, I did not," she replied, with an exhibition of spirit. "I toldhim I didn't have it--which was true--but he wouldn't believe that,saying that he had learned I had the money in my possession on leavinghome. Then I got angry and told him I wouldn't give it to him, if Idid have it. This in turn enraged him, and he declared the marriage tobe a sham, and that if I didn't surrender the money he would kill me.I defied him, and dared him to do it, whereupon he and the bogusminister seized upon me, and searched me, but failed to find themoney. The monster, Atkins, then knocked me down, and I becameinsensible. When I awoke, it was in this terrible underground place.He has been here several times, and threatened me, and alternated thematter by promising to make me his wife in reality, and the mistressof a princely home if I would give up the money. But, having found outwhat a vi
llain he is, I have firmly refused."
"Dot vas right! Ve will giff him der duyfel von off dese days--or, atleast, I vil, for smuggling. I don'd know vedder I can got you oud offhere or not! I ought der haff some tools, as id don'd vas some leedleshob preakin' iron mit a veller's hands."
"Oh! do try and release me, in some way--I do so want to get free!"
"Und I know dot. But, you see, id vas harder ash breakin' derconsditution to preak dis chain."
It was no easy job, indeed.
The chain was several feet in length, and made of short, stout weldedlinks. The padlock, too, was a formidable affair, such as could noteasily be broken, and Fritz did not have any keys with him.
He was stuck for once, in not knowing how to proceed, and was justcogitating over what was best to do, when he noticed something thatcaused him to start.
On glancing toward the rope-ladder, he perceived that it was moving!
Some one was descending it!
Did he remain here, discovery was inevitable, and discovery wouldprobably destroy all possibility of rescuing Madge.
These thoughts occurred to him like a flash.
"'Sh! some one is coming, and I must hide!" he said to Madge, in awhisper; then he hurried softly across the chamber, into the darkpassage, where he paused at a point where he could see without beingseen.
"I'll bet dot id vas der veller whose eye I blacked," he muttered.
And, sure enough, he was right.
A moment later, Major Atkins, _alias_ young Greyville, _alias_Griffith Gregg, came down the ladder into the cavern, his eyes yetshowing unmistakable evidence of the power of Fritz's shoulder-hits.
"What the devil's all the noise down here?" he demanded, approachingthe door of Madge's dungeon. "I thought I heard voices conversing."
"You probably heard me singing, Sir Monster!" Madge retorted,sarcastically. "You know I am in good humor for vocalism."
"The devil take you! It wasn't singing--it was talking I heard."
"Ah! perhaps you heard me saying over threats of what I'll do, when Iget free!"
"Now, what will you do?"
"I'll claw your eyes out--then I'll tie you and give you a thrashingwith a bull-whip."
"Bah! threaten what you like. I'll guarantee you'll remain here untilI get your amiable dad's swag."
"But you will never get it!"
"Won't I? When you begin to rot in your dungeon, and your tonguehangs out of your mouth for want of food and water, I fancy you'llcome to terms."
"But I won't, though!"
"Oh! we shall see. I won't argue with you. At the present moment Iwant to find out who it was I heard you conversing with!"
And to her horror he made for the dark passage.
Fritz, too, was considerably concerned, and began to make a rapid andstealthy retreat to the other chamber.
On arriving there, another thing startled him.
The tide had set in, and the hole in the face of the bluff was sonearly filled as to make escape with the boat impossible.