"May your sleep to-night be sound!"
"Ay, ay, I hope so, and yours, too," grumbled our hero, placing an enormous quid of tobacco in his cheek, in order to remove the unpleasant taste of the vile liquor which he had just drank.
There was a pause of a few minutes; when suddenly the woman grasped Frank convulsively by the arm, and gazed into his countenance with wildly gleaming eyes.
"Tell me," she gasped, like one in the agonies of strangulation--"tell me the truth, for G.o.d"s sake--_did you change those tumblers_?"
"I did," was the answer.
"Then I am lost!" she almost shrieked--"lost, lost! The liquor which I drank contained a powder which will within half an hour sink me into a condition of insensibility, from which I shall only awake a raging maniac! I am rightly served--for I designed that to be _your_ fate!"
"Wretched woman, I pity you," said Frank, in a tone of commiseration.
"I deserve not your pity," she cried, writhing as if in great bodily torment--"my soul is stained with the guilt of a thousand crimes--and the only reparation I can make you, to atone for the wrong I intended, is to warn you to fly from this house as from a pestilence! This is the abode of murder--it is a charnel-house of iniquity; fly from hence, as you value your life--for an hour after midnight my husband, the terrible Dead Man, will return, and although you frustrated me, you cannot escape his vengeance, should he find you here. Ah, my G.o.d! my brain burns--the deadly potion is at work!"
And thus the miserable woman continued to rave, until the powerful drug which she had taken fully accomplished its work, and she sank upon the floor in a state of death-like insensibility.
"Thou art rightly served," thought Frank, as he contemplated her prostrate form--"now to penetrate into some of the mysteries of this infernal den!" Taking the candle from the table, he began his exploration in that fearful house.
In the apartment which adjoined the chamber he discovered little "Jack the Prig," fast asleep in bed. In the restlessness of slumber, the boy had partially thrown off the bed-clothes, and he exhibited upon his naked breast the picture of a gallows, and a man hanging! This appalling scene had been drawn with India ink, and p.r.i.c.ked into the flesh with needles, so that it never could be effaced. It was the work of the boy"s hideous father, who, not contented with training up his son to a life of crime, was anxious that he should also carry upon his person, through life, that fearful representation of a criminal"s doom.
"Would it not be a deed of mercy," thought our hero--"to take the poor boy from his unnatural parents, and train him up to a life of honesty and virtue? If I ever get the father in my power, I will look after the welfare of this unfortunate lad."
Frank left the room, and descending the stairs, began to explore the lower apartments of the house. In one, he found a large collection of tools, comprising every implement used by the villains in their depredations. There were dark lanterns, crowbars, augers, London _jimmies_, and skeleton keys, for burglary; also, spades, pickaxes, and shovels, which were probably used in robbing graves, a crime which at that period was very common in New York. A large quant.i.ty of clothing of all kinds hung upon the walls, from the broadcloth suit of the gentleman down to the squalid rags of the beggar; these garments Frank conjectured to be _disguises_, a supposition which was confirmed by the masks, false whiskers, wigs and other articles for altering the person, which were scattered about.
In a small closet which communicated with this room, our hero found dies for coining, and a press for printing counterfeit bank-notes; and a table drawer, which he opened containing a quant.i.ty of false coin, several bank-note plates, and a package of counterfeit bills, which had not yet been signed.
Having sufficiently examined these interesting objects, Frank pa.s.sed into the next room, which was of considerable extent. It was almost completely filled with goods of various kinds, evidently the proceeds of robberies. There were overcoats, buffalo robes, ladies" cloaks and furs, silk dresses, shawls, boxes of boots and shoes, cases of dry goods, and a miscellaneous a.s.sortment of articles sufficient to furnish out a large store. The goods in that room were worth several thousands of dollars.
"I shall now seek to discover the _secret outlet_ of the Dark Vaults,"
thought Frank, as he descended into the cellar of the house. Here he gazed about him with much interest; the cellar was damp and gloomy and his entrance with the light disturbed a legion of rats, which went scampering off in every direction, from a corner in which they had collected together; as the young man approached that corner, a fetid, sickening odor saluted his nostrils and a fearful thought flashed across his mind; a moment afterwards, his blood curdled with horror, for before him lay the dead body of a man, entirely naked, and far advanced in state of decomposition; and upon that putrefying corpse had the swarm of rats been making their terrible banquet!
Sick with horror and disgust, Frank precipitately retreated from the loathsome and appalling spectacle, satisfied that he had beheld one of the Dead Man"s murdered victims; and he shuddered as he thought that such might have been _his_ fate!
In the centre of the cellar an apparatus of singular appearance attracted his notice; and approaching it he instantly became convinced that this was the _secret outlet_ for which he sought. Four strong, upright posts supported two ponderous iron crossbars, to which were attached four ropes of great thickness and strength, these ropes were connected with a wooden platform, about six feet square; and beneath the platform was a dark and yawning chasm.
Closely examining this apparatus, our hero saw that by an ingenious contrivance, a person standing on the platform could, by turning a crank, raise or lower himself at will. He cautiously approached the edge of the chasm, and holding down the light, endeavored to penetrate through the darkness; but in vain--he could see nothing, though he could faintly hear a dull, sluggish sound like that produced by the flowing of a vast body of muddy water, and at the same time an awful stench which arose from the black gulf, compelled him to return a short distance.
"The mystery is solved," he thought--"that fearful hole leads to the subterranean sewers of the city, and also to the Dark Vaults beyond them. By means of that platform, the villains of the _Infernal Regions_ below, can pa.s.s to and from their den with facility and safety."
At this moment he heard the vast bell of the City Hall proclaiming the hour of midnight; and he remembered that the woman had told him that her husband, the Dead Man, would return in an hour from that time. At first it occurred to him to await the miscreant"s coming, and endeavor to capture him--but then he reflected that the Dead Man might return accompanied by other villains, in which case the plan would not only be impracticable, but his own life would be endangered.
"And even were the villain to come back alone," thought Frank, "were I to spring upon him, he might give some signal which would bring to his aid his band of desperadoes from the Vaults below. No--I must not needlessly peril my own life; I will depart from the house now, satisfied for the present with the discoveries I have made, and trusting to be enabled at no distant time to come here with a force sufficient to overcome the hideous ruffian and all his band."
Leaving the cellar, he traversed the entry and attempted to open the front door; but to his surprise it was securely locked, nor could all his efforts push back the ma.s.sive bolts which held it fast. He re-entered the room, and examining the windows, found them furnished with thick iron bars like the windows of a prison, so that to pa.s.s through them was impossible; and further investigation resulted in the unpleasant conviction that he was a prisoner in that dreadful house, with no immediate means of escape.
He again descended into the cellar, and began seriously to reflect upon the realities of his situation. He was a young man of determination and courage: yet he could not entirely subdue those feelings of uneasiness and alarm which were natural under the circ.u.mstances. He was alone, at midnight, in that abode of crime and murder; near him lay the corpse of an unfortunate fellow creature, who had without a doubt fallen by the hand of an a.s.sa.s.sin; he was momentarily expecting the return of that arch-miscreant, who would show him no mercy; a deep, unbroken silence, and an air of fearful mystery, reigned in that gloomy cellar and throughout that awful house--and before him, dark and yawning as the gate of h.e.l.l, was that black and infernal pit which led to the subterranean caverns of the Dark Vaults, far below.
"I will sell my life dearly, at all events," thought our hero, as he drew a bowie knife from his breast, and felt its keen, glittering edge; then impelled by a sudden thought, he advanced to the mouth of the pit, and cut the four ropes, which sustained the wooden platform, so nearly asunder, that they would be almost sure to break with a slight additional weight.
He had scarcely accomplished this task, when a strange, unnatural cry resounded throughout the cellar--a cry so indescribably fearful that it chilled his blood with horror. It was almost instantly followed by a low and melancholy wail, so intense, so solemn, so profoundly expressive of human misery, that Frank was convinced that some unfortunate being was near him, plunged in deepest anguish and distress.
In a few moments the sound entirely ceased, and silence resumed its reign; then Frank, actuated by the n.o.ble feelings of his generous nature, said, in a loud voice--
"If there is any unhappy creature who now hears me, and who needs my charitable aid, let him or her speak, that I may know where to direct my search."
No answer was returned to this request; all was profoundly silent.
Frank, however, was determined to fathom the mystery; accordingly, he began a careful search throughout the cellar, and finally discovered in an obscure corner an iron door, which was secured on the outside by a bolt--to draw back this bolt and throw open this door, was but the work of a moment; and our hero was about to enter the cell thus revealed, when a hideous being started from the further end of the dungeon, and with an awful yell rushed out into the cellar, and hid itself in a deep embrasure of the wall.
Whether this creature were human or not, the rapidity of its flight prevented Frank from ascertaining, he cautiously advanced to the place where it had concealed itself, and by the dim light of the lamp which he carried, he saw, crouching down upon the cold, damp earth, a _living object_ which appalled him; it was a human creature, but so horribly and unnaturally deformed, that it was a far more dreadful object to behold than the most loathsome of the brute creation.
It was of pygmy size, its shrunk limbs distorted and fleshless, and its lank body covered with filthy rags; its head, of enormous size, was entirely devoid of hair; and the unnatural shape as well as the prodigious dimensions of that bald cranium, betokened beastly idiocy.
Its features, ghastly and terrible to look upon, bore a strange resemblance to those of the _Dead Man_! and its snake-like eyes were fixed upon Frank with the ferocity of a poisonous reptile about to spring upon its prey.
"Who art thou?" demanded our hero, as he surveyed the hideous object with horror and disgust.
It answered not, but again set up its low and melancholy wail. Then with extraordinary agility, it sprang from its retreat, and bounding towards the dungeon, entered, and crouched down in one corner, making the cellar resound with its awful shrieks.
""Tis more beast than human," thought Frank--"I will fasten it in its den, or it may attack me;" and closing the door, he secured it with the bolt. As he did so, he heard the deep-toned bell peal forth the hour of--_one_!
"It is the hour appointed for the return of the Dead Man!" said our hero to himself, with a shudder; and instantly it occurred to him that he might have descended to the Dark Vaults and escaped that way, had he not cut the ropes which supported the platform. But then he reflected that on reaching the Vaults he would be almost certain to fall into the power of the villains a.s.sembled there; and he ceased to regret having cut the ropes.
His attention was suddenly arrested by observing the platform descend into the abyss, moved by an unseen agency; for the apparatus was so contrived, that a person in the Vaults below could lower or raise the platform at will, by means of a rope connected with it.
Frank had antic.i.p.ated that the Dead Man would enter the house through the front door; but he now felt convinced that the miscreant was about to ascend on the platform from the Vaults; and he said to himself--
""Tis well--these almost severed ropes will not sustain the villain"s weight, and if he attains to any considerable height, and then falls, his instant death is certain."
The platform reached the bottom of the abyss--a short pause ensued, and then it began slowly to ascend; higher, higher it mounted, until our hero, fearing that the rope might not break, was about to cut it again, when a yell of agony reached his ear from the depths of the pit, and at the same moment the slackened condition of the rope convinced him that the platform had fallen. He listened, and heard a sound like the plunging of a body into water; then all was silent as the grave.
"The villain has met with a just doom," thought Frank; and no longer apprehensive of the return of his mortal enemy, he left the cellar, and entering the room above, in which the stolen goods were deposited, threw himself upon a heap of clothes and garments, and fell into a deep slumber.
It was broad daylight when he awoke; and starting up, his eyes rested upon an object which caused him to recoil with horror. The woman whom he had left insensible from the effects of the powerful drug which she had taken, was standing near him, her eyes rolling with insanity, her hair dishevelled, her clothes torn to rags and her face scratched and bleeding, she having in her own madness inflicted the wounds with her own nails.
"Ha!" she exclaimed--"had"st thou not awakened, I would have killed thee! Thy heart would have made me a brave breakfast, and I would have banqueted on thy life-blood! Go hence--go hence! thou shalt not unfold the awful mysteries of this charnel-house!--Ye must not behold the murdered man who lies rotting in the cellar, nor open the dark dungeon of the deformed child of crime!--"tis the hideous offspring of hideous parents--my child and the Dead Man"s! "Twas a judgement from Heaven, that monstrous being; we dare not kill it, so we shut it up from the light of day. Go hence--go hence, or I will fly at thee and tear thine eyes out!"
Frank left the room, and ascended to the chamber, hoping to find a key which would enable him to unlock the front door; and in a table drawer he discovered one, which he doubted not would release him from his imprisonment. Before departing, he wrote the following words on a sc.r.a.p of paper:--
"If the villain known as the _Dead Man_ still lives, he is informed that he is indebted to _me_ for his unexpected fall last night. Let the miscreant tremble--for I have penetrated the mysteries of this infernal den, and my vengeance, if not ordinary justice, will speedily overtake him!
SYDNEY."
Leaving the note upon the table, Frank descended the stairs, unlocked the door, and departed from that abode of crime and horror.
FOOTNOTES:
[Footnote 3: A _stool pigeon_ is a person who a.s.sociates with thieves, in order to betray their secrets to the police officers, in reference to any robbery which has been committed, or which may be in contemplation.