"I ain"t mad," protested Mr. Gubb, ""long as you"re goin" to pay me and Pete, and it"s business; I ain"t so set against puttin" up what the brick is worth."
Mr. Critz heaved a deep sigh of relief.
"You don"t know how good that makes me feel," he said. "I was almost losin" what faith in mankind I had left."
Mr. Gubb ate his frugal evening meals at the Pie Wagon, on Willow Street, just off Main, where, by day, Pie-Wagon Pete dispensed light viands; and Pie-Wagon Pete was the friend he had invited to share Mr.
Critz"s generosity. The seal of secrecy had been put on Pie-Wagon Pete"s lips before Mr. Gubb offered him the opportunity to accept or decline; and when Mr. Gubb stopped for his evening meal, Pie-Wagon Pete--now off duty--was waiting for him. The story of Mr. Critz and his amateur con" business had amused Pie-Wagon Pete. He could hardly believe such utter innocence existed. Perhaps he did not believe it existed, for he had come from the city, and he had had shady companions before he landed in Riverbank. He was a sharp-eyed, red-headed fellow, with a hard fist, and a scar across his face, and when Mr. Gubb had told him of Mr. Critz and his affairs, he had seen an opportunity to shear a country lamb.
"How goes it for to-night, Philo?" he asked Mr. Gubb, taking the stool next to Mr. Gubb, while the night man drew a cup of coffee.
"Quite well," said Mr. Gubb. "Everything is arranged satisfactory. I"m to be on the old house-boat by the wharf-house on the levee at nine, with _it_." He glanced at the night man"s back and lowered his voice.
"And Mr. Critz will bring you there."
"Nine, eh?" said Pie-Wagon. "I meet him at your room, do I?"
"You meet him at the Riverbank Hotel at eight-forty-five," said Mr.
Gubb. "Like it was the real thing. I"m goin" over to my room now, and give him the money--"
"What money?" asked Pie-Wagon Pete quickly.
"Well, you see," said Mr. Gubb, "he sort of hated to trust the--trust _it_ out of his hands without a deposit. It"s the only one he has. So I thought I"d put up a hundred dollars. He"s all right--"
"Oh, sure!" said Pie-Wagon. "A hundred dollars, eh?"
He looked at Mr. Gubb, who was eating a piece of apple pie hand-to-mouth fashion, and studied him in a new light.
"One hundred dollars, eh?" he repeated thoughtfully. "You give him a hundred-dollar deposit now and he meets you at nine, and me at eight-forty-five, and the train leaves for Chicago at eight-forty-three, halfway between the house-boat and the hotel!
Say, Gubby, what does this old guy look like?"
Mr. Gubb, albeit with a tongue unused to description, delineated Mr.
Critz as best he could, and as he proceeded, Pie-Wagon Pete became interested.
"Pinkish, and bald? Top of his head like a hard-boiled egg? He ain"t got a scar across his face? The d.i.c.kens he has! Short and plump, and a reg"lar old nice grandpa? Blue eyes? Say, did he have a coughin" spell and choke red in the face? Well, sir, for a brand-new detective, you"ve done well. Listen, Jim: Gubby"s got the Hard-Boiled Egg!"
The night man almost dropped his cup of coffee.
"Go "way!" he said. "Old Hard-Boiled? Himself?"
"That"s right! And caught him with the goods. Say, listen, Gubby!"
For five minutes Pie-Wagon Pete talked, while Mr. Gubb sat with his mouth wide open.
"See?" said Pie-Wagon at last. "And don"t you mention me at all.
Don"t mention no one. Just say to the Chief: "And havin" trailed him this far, Mr. Wittaker, and arranged to have him took with the goods, it"s up to you?" See? And as soon as you say that, have him send a couple of bulls with you, and if they can do it, they"ll nab Old Hard-Boiled just as he takes your cash. And Old Sleuth and Sherlock Holmes won"t be in it with you when to-morrow mornin"s papers come out. Get it?"
Mr. Gubb got it. When he entered his bedroom, Mr. Critz was waiting for him. It was slightly after eight o"clock; perhaps eight-fifteen.
Mr. Critz had what appeared to be the gold-brick neatly wrapped in newspaper, and he looked up with his kindly blue eyes. He had been reading the "Complete Con" Man," and had pushed his spectacles up on his forehead as Mr. Gubb entered.
"I done that brick up for you," he said, indicating it with his hand, "so"s it wouldn"t glitter whilst you was goin" through the street. If word got pa.s.sed around there was a gold-brick in town, folks might sort of get suspicious-like. Nice night for goin" out, ain"t it? Got a letter from my wife this aft"noon," he chuckled. "She says she hopes I"m doin" well. Sally"d have a fit if she knew what business I was goin" into. Well, time"s gettin" along--"
"I brung the money," said Mr. Gubb, drawing it from his pocket.
"Don"t seem hardly necess"ry, does it?" said Mr. Critz mildly. "But I s"pose it"s just as well. Thankee, Mister Gubb. I"ll just pile into my coat--"
Mr. Gubb had picked up the gold-brick, and now he let it fall. Once more the door flew open, but this time it opened for three stalwart policemen, whose revolvers pointed unwaveringly at Mr. Critz. The plump little man gave one glance, and put up his hands.
"All right, boys, you"ve got me," he said in quite another voice, and allowed them to seize his arms. He paid no attention to the police, but at Mr. Gubb, who was tearing the wrapper from what proved to be but a common vitrified paving-brick, he looked long and hard.
"Say," said Mr. Critz to Mr. Gubb, "I"m the goat. You stung _me_ all right. You worked me to a finish. I thought I knew all of you from Burns down, but you"re a new one to me. Who are you, anyway?"
Mr. Gubb looked up.
"Me?" he said with pride. "Why--why--I"m Gubb, the foremost deteckative of Riverbank, Iowa."
THE PET
On the morning following his capture of the Hard-Boiled Egg, the "Riverbank Eagle" printed two full columns in praise of Detective Gubb and complimented Riverbank on having a superior to Sherlock Holmes in its midst.
"Mr. Philo Gubb," said the "Eagle," "has thus far received only eleven of the twelve lessons from the Rising Sun Detective Agency"s Correspondence School of Detecting, and we look for great things from him when he finally receives his diploma and badge. He informed us to-day that he hopes to begin work on the dynamite case soon. With the money he will receive for capturing the Hard-Boiled Egg, Mr. Gubb intends to purchase eighteen complete disguises from the Supply Department of the Rising Sun Detective Agency, Sloc.u.m, Ohio. Mr. Gubb wishes us to announce that until the disguises arrive he will continue to do paper-hanging, decorating, and interior painting at reasonable rates."
Unfortunately there were no calls for Mr. Gubb"s detective services for some time after he received his disguises and diploma, but while waiting he devoted his spare time to the dynamite mystery, a remarkable case on which many detectives had been working for many weeks. This led only to his being beaten up twice by Joseph Henry, one of the men he shadowed.
The arrival in Riverbank of the World"s Monster Combined Shows the day after Mr. Gubb received his diploma seemed to offer an opportunity for his detective talents, as a circus is usually accompanied by crooks, and early in the morning Mr. Gubb donned disguise Number Sixteen, which was catalogued as "Negro Hack-Driver, Complete, $22.00"; but, while looking for crooks while watching the circus unload, his eyes alighted on Syrilla, known as "Half a Ton of Beauty," the Fat Lady of the Side-Show.
As Syrilla descended from the car, aided by the Living Skeleton and the Strong Man, the fair creature wore a low-neck evening gown. Her arms and shoulders were snowy white (except for a peculiar mark on one arm). Not only had Mr. Gubb never seen such white arms and shoulders, but he had never seen so much arm and shoulder on one woman, and from that moment he was deeply and hopelessly in love. Like one hypnotized he followed her to the side-show tent, paid his admission, and stood all day before her platform. He was still there when the tent was taken down that night.
Mr. Gubb was not the only man in Riverbank to fall in love with Syrilla. When the ladies of the Riverbank Social Service League heard that the circus was coming to town they were distressed to think how narrow the intellectual life of the side-show freaks must be and they instructed their Field Secretary, Mr. Horace Winterberry, to go to the side-show and organize the freaks into an Ibsen Literary and Debating Society. This Mr. Winterberry did and the Tasmanian Wild Man was made President, but so deeply did Mr. Winterberry fall in love with Syrilla that he begged Mr. Dorgan, the manager of the side-show, to let him join the side-show, and this Mr. Dorgan did, putting him in a cage as Waw-Waw, the Mexican Hairless Dog-Man, as Mr. Winterberry was exceedingly bald.
At the very next stop made by the circus a strong, heavy-fisted woman entered the side-show and dragged Mr. Winterberry away. This was his wife. Of this the ladies of the Riverbank Social Service League knew nothing, however. They believed Mr. Winterberry had been stolen by the circus and that he was doubtless being forced to learn to swing on a trapeze or ride a bareback horse, and they decided to hire Detective Gubb to find and return him.
At the very moment when the ladies were deciding to retain Mr. Gubb"s services the paper-hanger detective was on his way to do a job of paper-hanging, thinking of the fair Syrilla he might never see again, when suddenly he put down the pail of paste he was carrying and grasped the handle of his paste-brush more firmly. He stared with amazement and fright at a remarkable creature that came toward him from a small thicket near the railway tracks. Mr. Gubb"s first and correct impression was that this was some remarkable creature escaped from the circus. The horrid thing loping toward him was, indeed, the Tasmanian Wild Man!
As the Wild Man approached, Philo Gubb prepared to defend himself. He was prepared to defend himself to his last drop of blood.
When halfway across the field, the Tasmanian Wild Man glanced back over his shoulder and, as if fearing pursuit, increased his speed and came toward Philo Gubb in great leaps and bounds. The Correspondence School detective waved his paste-brush more frantically than ever. The Tasmanian Wild Man stopped short within six feet of him.
Viewed thus closely, the Wild Man was a sight to curdle the blood.
Remnants of chains hung from his wrists and ankles; his long hair was matted about his face; and his finger nails were long and claw-like.
His face was daubed with ochre and red, with black rings around the eyes, and the circles within the rings were painted white, giving him an air of wildness possessed by but few wild men. His only garments were a pair of very short trunks and the skin of some wild animal, bound about his body with ropes of horse-hair.
Philo Gubb bent to receive the leap he felt the Tasmanian Wild Man was about to make, but to his surprise the Wild Man held up one hand in token of amity, and with the other removed the matted hair from his head, revealing an under-crop of taffy yellow, neatly parted in the middle and smoothed back carefully.
"I say, old chap," he said in a pleasant and well-bred tone, "stop waving that dangerous-looking weapon at me, will you? My intentions are most kindly, I a.s.sure you. Can you inform me where a chap can get a pair of trousers hereabout?"