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diff --git a/old/63752-0.txt b/old/63752-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 8cef739..0000000 --- a/old/63752-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,9273 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg EBook of Frank Merriwell on the Boulevards, by Burt L -Standish - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this ebook. - -Title: Frank Merriwell on the Boulevards - Astonishing the Europeans - -Author: Burt L Standish - -Release Date: December 05, 2020 [EBook #63752] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - -Produced by: David Edwards, Barry Abrahamsen, and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FRANK MERRIWELL ON THE -BOULEVARDS *** - - - THE MEDAL LIBRARY - - FAMOUS COPYRIGHTED STORIES - FOR BOYS, BY FAMOUS AUTHORS - - -This is an ideal line for boys of all ages. It contains juvenile -masterpieces by the most popular writers of interesting fiction for -boys. Among these may be mentioned the works of Burt L. Standish, -detailing the adventures of Frank Merriwell, the hero, of whom every -American boy has read with admiration. Frank is a truly representative -American lad, full of character and a strong determination to do right -at any cost. Then, there are the works of Horatio Alger, Jr., whose keen -insight into the minds of the boys of our country has enabled him to -write a series of the most interesting tales ever published. This line -also contains some of the best works of Oliver Optic, another author -whose entire life was devoted to writing books that would tend to -interest and elevate our boys. - - - PUBLISHED EVERY WEEK - - ------------------------------------------- - - - To be Published During December - - 339—In School and Out By Oliver Optic - - 338—A Cousin’s Conspiracy By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 337—Jack Harkaway After By Bracebridge Hemyng - Schooldays - - 336—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Great Scheme - - - To be Published During November - - 335—The Haunted Hunter By Edward S. Ellis - - 334—Tony, the Tramp By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 333—Rich and Humble By Oliver Optic - - 332—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Stage Hit - - 331—The Hidden City By Walter MacDougall - - 330—Bob Burton By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 329—Masterman Ready By Capt. Marryat - - 328—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Prosperity - - 327—Jack Harkaway’s By Bracebridge Hemyng - Friends - - 326—The Tin Box By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 325—The Young By G. A. Henty - Franc-Tireurs - - 324—Frank Merriwell’s New By Burt L. Standish - Comedian - - 323—The Sheik’s White By Raymond Raife - Slave - - 322—Helping Himself By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 321—Snarleyyow, The Dog By Capt. Marryat - Fiend - - 320—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Fortune - - 319—By Right of Conquest By G. A. Henty - - 318—Jed, the Poorhouse By Horatio Alger, Jr. - Boy - - 317—Jack Harkaway’s By Bracebridge Hemyng - Schooldays - - 316—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Problem - - 315—The Diamond Seeker of By Leon Lewis - Brazil - - 314—Andy Gordon By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 313—The Phantom Ship By Capt. Marryat - - 312—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - College Chums - - 311—Whistler By Walter Aimwell - - 310—Making His Way By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 309—Three Years at By A Wolvertonian - Wolverton - - 308—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Fame - - 307—The Boy Crusoes By Jeffreys Taylor - - 306—Chester Rand By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 305—Japhet in Search of a By Capt. Marryat - Father - - 304—Frank Merriwell’s Own By Burt L. Standish - Company - - 303—The Prairie By J. Fenimore Cooper - - 302—The Young Salesman By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 301—A Battle and a Boy By Blanche Willis Howard - - 300—Frank Merriwell on By Burt L. Standish - the Road - - 299—Mart Satterlee Among By William O. Stoddard - the Indians - - 298—Andy Grant’s Pluck By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 297—Newton Forster By Capt. Marryat - - 296—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Protege - - 295—Cris Rock By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 294—Sam’s Chance By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 293—My Plucky Boy Tom By Edward S. Ellis - - 292—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Hard Luck - - 291—By Pike and Dyke By G. A. Henty - - 290—Shifting For Himself By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 289—The Pirate and the By Capt. Marryat - Three Cutters - - 288—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Opportunity - - 287—Kit Carson’s Last By Leon Lewis - Trail - - 286—Jack’s Ward By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 285—Jack Darcy, the All By Edward S. Ellis - Around Athlete - - 284—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - First Job - - 283—Wild Adventures Round By Gordon Stables - the Pole - - 282—Herbert Carter’s By Horatio Alger, Jr. - Legacy - - 281—Rattlin, the Reefer By Capt. Marryat - - 280—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Struggle - - 279—Mark Dale’s Stage By Arthur M. Winfield - Venture - - 278—In Times of Peril By G. A. Henty - - 277—In a New World By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 276—Frank Merriwell in By Burt L. Standish - Maine - - 275—The King of the By Henry Harrison Lewis - Island - - 274—Beach Boy Joe By Lieut. James K. Ortón - - 273—Jacob Faithful By Capt. Marryat - - 272—Facing the World By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 271—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Chase - - 270—Wing and Wing By J. Fenimore Cooper - - 269—The Young Bank Clerk By Arthur M. Winfield - - 268—Do and Dare By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 267—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Cruise - - 266—The Young Castaways By Leon Lewis - - 265—The Lion of St. Mark By G. A. Henty - - 264—Hector’s Inheritance By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 263—Mr. Midshipman Easy By Captain Marryat - - 262—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Vacation - - 261—The Pilot By J. Fenimore Cooper - - 260—Driven From Home By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 259—Sword and Pen By Henry Harrison Lewis - - 258—Frank Merriwell In By Burt L. Standish - Camp - - 257—Jerry By Walter Aimwell - - 256—The Young Ranchman By Lieut. Lounsberry - - 255—Captain Bayley’s Heir By G. A. Henty - - 254—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Loyalty - - 253—The Water Witch By J. Fenimore Cooper - - 252—Luke Walton By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 251—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Banger - - 250—Neka, the Boy By Capt. Ralph Bonehill - Conjurer - - 249—The Young Bridge By Arthur M. Winfield - Tender - - 248—The West Point Rivals By Lieut. Frederick - Garrison, U. S. A. - - 247—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Secret - - 246—Rob Ranger’s Cowboy By Lieut. Lionel - Days Lounsberry - - 245—The Red Rover By J. Fenimore Cooper - - 244—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Return to Yale - - 243—Adrift in New York By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 242—The Rival Canoe Boys By St. George Rathborne - - 241—The Tour of the Zero By Capt. R. Bonehill - Club - - 240—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Champions - - 239—The Two Admirals By J. Fenimore Cooper - - 238—A Cadet’s Honor By Lieut. Fred’k - Garrison, U. S. A. - - 237—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Skill - - 236—Rob Ranger’s Mine By Lieut. Lounsberry - - 235—The Young By G. A. Henty - Carthaginian - - 234—The Store Boy By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 233—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Athletes - - 232—The Valley of Mystery By Henry Harrison Lewis - - 231—Paddling Under By St. George Rathborne - Palmettos - - 230—Off for West Point By Lieut. Fred’k - Garrison, U. S. A. - - 229—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Daring - - 228—The Cash Boy By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 227—In Freedom’s Cause By G. A. Henty - - 226—Tom Havens With the By Lieut. James K. Orton - White Squadron - - 225—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Courage - - 224—Yankee Boys in Japan By Henry Harrison Lewis - - 223—In Fort and Prison By William Murray Graydon - - 222—A West Point Treasure By Lieut. Frederick - Garrison, U. S. A. - - 221—The Young Outlaw By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 220—The Gulf Cruisers By St. George Rathborne - - 219—Tom Truxton’s Ocean By Lieut. Lounsberry - Trip - - 218—Tom Truxton’s School By Lieut. Lounsberry - Days - - 217—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Bicycle Tour - - 216—Campaigning With By Wm. Murray Graydon - Braddock - - 215—With Clive in India By G. A. Henty - - 214—On Guard By Lieut. Frederick - Garrison, U. S. A. - - 213—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Races - - 212—Julius, the Street By Horatio Alger, Jr. - Boy - - 211—Buck Badger’s Ranch By Russell Williams - - 210—Sturdy and Strong By G. A. Henty - - 209—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Sports Afield - - 208—The Treasure of the By Lieut. Lionel - Golden Crater Lounsberry - - 207—Shifting Winds By St. George Rathborne - - 206—Jungles and Traitors By Wm. Murray Graydon - - 205—Frank Merriwell at By Burt L. Standish - Yale - - 204—Under Drake’s Flag By G. A. Henty - - 203—Last Chance Mine By Lieut. James K. Orton - - 202—Risen From the Ranks By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 201—Frank Merriwell in By Burt L. Standish - Europe - - 200—The Fight for a By Frank Merriwell - Pennant - - 199—The Golden Cañon By G. A. Henty - - 198—Only an Irish Boy By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 197—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Hunting Tour - - 196—Zip, the Acrobat By Victor St. Clair - - 195—The Lion of the North By G. A. Henty - - 194—The White Mustang By Edward S. Ellis - - 193—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Bravery - - 192—Tom, the Bootblack By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 191—The Rivals of the By Russell Williams - Diamond - - 190—The Cat of Bubastes By G. A. Henty - - 189—Frank Merriwell Down By Burt L. Standish - South - - 188—From Street to By Frank H. Stauffer - Mansion - - 187—Bound to Rise By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 186—On the Trail of By Edward S. Ellis - Geronimo - - 185—For the Temple By G. A. Henty - - 184—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish. - Trip West - - 183—The Diamond Hunters By James Grant - - 182—The Camp in the Snow By William Murray Graydon - - 181—Brave and Bold By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 180—One of the 28th By G. A. Henty - - 178—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Foes - - 177—The White Elephant By William Dalton - - 176—By England’s Aid By G. A. Henty - - 175—Strive and Succeed By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 173—Life at Sea By Gordon Stables - - 172—The Young Midshipman By G. A. Henty - - 171—Erling the Bold By R. M. Ballantyne - - 170—Strong and Steady By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 169—Peter, the Whaler By W. H. G. Kingston - - 168—Among Malay Pirates By G. A. Henty - - 167—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - Chums - - 166—Try and Trust By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 165—The Secret Chart By Lieut. James K. Orton - - 164—The Cornet of Horse By G. A. Henty - - 163—Slow and Sure By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 162—The Pioneers By J. F. Cooper - - 161—Reuben Green’s By James Otis - Adventures at Yale - - 160—Little by Little By Oliver Optic - - 159—Phil, the Fiddler By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 158—With Lee in Virginia By G. A. Henty - - 157—Randy, the Pilot By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 156—The Pathfinder By J. F. Cooper - - 155—The Young Voyagers By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 154—Paul, the Peddler By Horatio Alger. Jr. - - 153—Bonnie Prince Charlie By G. A. Henty - - 152—The Last of the By J. Fenimore Cooper - Mohicans - - 151—The Flag of Distress By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 150—Frank Merriwell’s By Burt L. Standish - School Days - - 149—With Wolfe in Canada By G. A. Henty - - 148—The Deerslayer By J. F. Cooper - - 147—The Cliff Climbers By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 146—Uncle Nat By A. Oldfellow - - 145—Friends Though By G. A. Henty - Divided - - 144—The Boy Tar By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 143—Hendricks, the Hunter By W. H. G. Kingston - - 142—The Young Explorer By Gordon Stables - - 141—The Ocean Waifs By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 140—The Young Buglers By G. A. Henty - - 139—Shore and Ocean By W. H. G. Kingston - - 138—Striving for Fortune By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 137—The Bush Boys By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 136—From Pole to Pole By Gordon Stables - - 135—Dick Cheveley By W. H. G. Kingston - - 134—Orange and Green By G. A. Henty - - 133—The Young Yagers By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 132—The Adventures of Rob By James Grant - Roy - - 131—The Boy Slaves By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 130—From Canal Boy to By Horatio Alger, Jr. - President - - 129—Ran Away to Sea By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 128—For Name and Fame By G. A. Henty - - 127—The Forest Exiles By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 126—From Powder Monkey to By W. H. G. Kingston - Admiral - - 125—The Plant Hunters By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 124—St. George for By G. A. Henty - England - - 123—The Giraffe Hunters By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 122—Tom Brace By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 121—Peter Trawl By W. H. G. Kingston - - 120—In the Wilds of New By G. Manville Fenn - Mexico - - 119—A Final Reckoning By G. A. Henty - - 118—Ned Newton By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 117—James Braithwaite, By W. H. G. Kingston - The Supercargo - - 116—Happy-Go-Lucky Jack By Frank H. Converse - - 115—Adventures of a Young By Matthew White, Jr. - Athlete - - 114—The Old Man of the By George H. Coomer - Mountains - - 113—The Bravest of the By G. A. Henty - Brave - - 112—20,000 Leagues Under By Jules Verne - the Sea - - 111—The Midshipman, By W. H. G. Kingston - Marmaduke Merry - - 110—Around the World in By Jules Verne - Eighty Days - - 109—A Dash to the Pole By Herbert D. Ward - - 108—Texar’s Revenge By Jules Verne - - 107—Van; or, In Search of By Frank H. Converse - an Unknown Race - - 106—The Boy Knight By George A Henty - - 105—The Young Actor By Gayle Winterton - - 104—Heir to a Million By Frank H. Converse - - 103—The Adventures of Rex By Mary A. Denison - Staunton - - 102—Clearing His Name By Matthew White, Jr. - - 101—The Lone Ranch By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 100—Maori and Settler By George A. Henty - - 99—The Cruise of the By James Otis - Restless; or, On Inland - Waterways - - 98—The Grand Chaco By George Manville Fenn - - 97—The Giant Islanders By Brooks McCormick - - 96—An Unprovoked Mutiny By James Otis - - 95—By Sheer Pluck By G. A. Henty - - 94—Oscar; or, The Boy Who By Walter Aimwell - Had His Own Way - - 93—A New York Boy By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 92—Spectre Gold By Headon Hill - - 91—The Crusoes of Guiana By Louis Boussenard - - 90—Out on the Pampas By G. A. Henty - - 89—Clinton; or, Boy Life By Walter Aimwell - in the Country - - 88—My Mysterious Fortune By Matthew White, Jr. - - 87—The Five Hundred By Horatio Alger, Jr. - Dollar Check - - 86—Catmur’s Cave By Richard Dowling - - 85—Facing Death By G. A. Henty - - 84—The Butcher of By William Murray Graydon - Cawnpore - - 83—The Tiger Prince By William Dalton - - 82—The Young Editor By Matthew White, Jr. - - 81—Arthur Helmuth, of the By Edward S. Ellis - H. & N. C. Railway - - 80—Afloat in the Forest By Capt. Mayne Reid - - 79—The Rival Battalions By Brooks McCormick - - 78—Both Sides of the By Horatio Alger, Jr. - Continent - - 77—Perils of the Jungle By Edward S. Ellis - - 76—The War Tiger; or, The By William Dalton - Conquest of China - - 75—Boys in the Forecastle By George H. Coomer - - 74—The Dingo Boys By George Manville Fenn - - 73—The Wolf Boy of China By William Dalton - - 72—The Way to Success; By Alfred Oldfellow - or, Tom Randall - - 71—Mark Seaworth’s Voyage By William H. G. Kingston - on the Indian Ocean - - 70—The New and Amusing By F. C. Burnand - History of Sandford and - Merton - - 69—Pirate Island By Harry Collingwood - - 68—Smuggler’s Cave By Annie Ashmore - - 67—Tom Brown’s School By Thomas Hughes - Days - - 66—A Young Vagabond By Z. R. Bennett - - 65—That Treasure By Frank H. Converse - - 64—The Tour of a Private By Matthew White, Jr. - Car - - 63—In the Sunk Lands By Walter F. Bruns - - 62—How He Won By Brooks McCormick - - 61—The Erie Train Boy By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 60—The Mountain Cave By George H. Coomer - - 59—The Rajah’s Fortress By William Murray Graydon - - 58—Gilbert, The Trapper By Capt. C. B. Ashley - - 57—The Gold of Flat Top By Frank H. Converse - Mountain - - 56—Nature’s Young By Brooks McCormick - Noblemen - - 55—A Voyage to the Gold By Frank H. Converse - Coast - - 54—Joe Nichols; or, By Alfred Oldfellow - Difficulties Overcome - - 53—The Adventures of a By Horatio Alger, Jr. - New York Telegraph Boy - - 52—From Farm Boy to By Horatio Alger, Jr. - Senator - - 51—Tom Tracy By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 50—Dean Dunham By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 49—The Mystery of a By Frank H. Converse - Diamond - - 48—Luke Bennett’s By Capt. C. B. Ashley, - Hide-Out U.S. Scout - - 47—Eric Dane By Matthew White, Jr. - - 46—Poor and Proud By Oliver Optic - - 45—Jack Wheeler; A By Capt. David Southwick - Western Story - - 44—The Golden Magnet By George Manville Fenn - - 43—In Southern Seas By Frank H. Converse - - 42—The Young Acrobat By Horatio Alger, Jr. - - 41—Check 2134 By Edward S. Ellis - - 40—Canoe and Campfire By St. George Rathborne - - 39—With Boer and By William Murray Graydon - Britisher in the - Transvaal - - 38—Gay Dashleigh’s By Arthur Sewall - Academy Days - - 37—Commodore Junk By George Manville Fenn - - 36—In Barracks and Wigwam By William Murray Graydon - - 35—In the Reign of Terror By G. A. Henty - - 34—The Adventures of Mr. By Cuthbert Bede, B. A. - Verdant Green - - 33—Jud and Joe, Printers By Gilbert Patten - and Publishers - - 32—The Curse of Carnes’ By G. A. Henty - Hold - - 31—The Cruise of the Snow By Gordon Stables - Bird - - 30—Peter Simple By Captain Marryat - - 29—True to the Old Flag By G. A. Henty - - 28—The Boy Boomers By Gilbert Patten - - 27—Centre-Board Jim By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 26—The Cryptogram By William Murray Graydon - - 25—Through the Fray By G. A. Henty - - 24—The Boy From the West By Gilbert Patten - - 23—The Dragon and the By G. A. Henty - Raven - - 22—From Lake to By William Murray Graydon - Wilderness - - 21—Won at West Point By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 20—Wheeling for Fortune By James Otis - - 19—Jack Archer By G. A. Henty - - 18—The Silver Ship By Leon Lewis - - 17—Ensign Merrill By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 16—The White King of By William Murray Graydon - Africa - - 15—Midshipman Merrill By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 14—The Young Colonists By G. A. Henty - - 13—Up the Ladder By Lieut. Murray - - 12—Don Kirk’s Mine By Gilbert Patten - - 11—From Tent to White By Edward S. Ellis - House - - 10—Don Kirk, the Boy By Gilbert Patten - Cattle King - - 9—Try Again By Oliver Optic - - 8—Kit Carey’s Protégé By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 7—Chased Through Norway By James Otis - - 6—Captain Carey of the By Lieut. Lionel - Gallant Seventh Lounsberry - - 5—Now or Never By Oliver Optic - - 4—Lieutenant Carey’s Luck By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 3—All Aboard By Oliver Optic - - 2—Cadet Kit Carey By Lieut. Lionel - Lounsberry - - 1—The Boat Club By Oliver Optic - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - Horatio Alger, Jr. - - --------------------------------------------------------- - -The greatest and most famous writer of rattling good tales of adventure -for boys, was Horatio Alger, Jr. He is the Dickens of juvenile -literature. His best works are published in the Medal Library at ten -cents per copy. For sale by all newsdealers. - - - ALGER, HORATIO, JR. - - 42. Young Acrobat, The. - 50. Dean Dunham. - 52. From Farm Boy to Senator. - 61. Erie Train Boy, The. - 87. Five Hundred Dollar Check, The. - 118. Ned Newton; or, The Adventures of a New York Bootblack. - 122. Tom Brace. - 130. From Canal Boy to President. - 138. Striving for Fortune. - 154. Paul, the Peddler. - 159. Phil, the Fiddler. - 163. Slow and Sure. - 166. Try and Trust. - 170. Strong and Steady. - 175. Strive and Succeed. - 181. Brave and Bold. - 187. Bound to Rise. - 192. Tom, the Bootblack. - 198. Only an Irish Boy. - 202. Risen From the Ranks. - 212. Julius, the Street Boy. - 221. Young Outlaw, The. - 228. Cash Boy, The. - 234. Store Boy, The. - 243. Adrift in New York. - 252. Luke Walton. - 260. Driven From Home. - 264. Hector’s Inheritance. - 268. Do and Dare. - 272. Facing the World. - 277. In a New World. - 282. Herbert Carter’s Legacy. - - -If these books are ordered by mail, add four cents per copy to cover -postage. - - - --------------------------------------------------------- - - - STREET & SMITH, Publishers, NEW YORK - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - Frank Merriwell on the Boulevards - - OR - - ASTONISHING THE EUROPEANS - - - - By - BURT L. STANDISH - Author of - - “The Merriwell Stories“ - - - - - Publisher’s Logo - - - - - _STREET & SMITH PUBLISHERS_ - - _79-89 Seventh Avenue, New York_ - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - Copyright, 1899 - By STREET & SMITH - ──── - FRANK MERRIWELL ON THE BOULEVARDS - - - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - FRANK MERRIWELL ON THE BOULEVARDS - - ──────── - - - - - CHAPTER I. - - “MADEMOISELLE MYSTERIE.” - - -“Well, fellows, what do you think of Paris?” asked Frank Merriwell, -settling himself into a comfortable position on his chair. - -With his three Yale friends, Frank had been in the French capital a day. -The party had crossed from England the previous day, and, after a good -night’s sleep, the first for three of the party on French shore, they -had sallied forth to spend the day seeing the sights of Paris. - -“Paris!” cried Harry Rattleton, striking an attitude in the middle of -the room; “Paris is a—a relief!” - -“I should say so!” nodded Jack Diamond, standing by a window, from which -he could look out upon the brilliantly lighted Place Vendome, in the -center of which rose the majestic Vendome Column, the most imposing -monument of all Europe. “After London, Paris is heaven!” - -“Haw!” grunted Bruce Browning, who was in his favorite attitude of rest, -stretched at full length on a comfortable couch. “Paris would be all -right, if it wasn’t full of Frenchmen.” - -“As for that,” smiled Frank, “it is full of Englishmen, Americans, and -people from all over the world, and every well-educated Frenchman can -talk English, you know.” - -“Paris is beautiful!” cried Diamond. “Look at that column out there! -Just think, the bronze from which it was built was furnished by Austrian -and Russian cannon captured in battle by the French! From base to -summit, it is covered with bronze figures, in relief, forming a -miniature army, with cannon, horses, and accouterments, ascending by a -spiral road to the massive figure of Napoleon at the top. Oh, it is a -sight for the eyes of the world!” - -“The statue, yes,” nodded Frank. “Think of robing Napoleon in the garb -of a Roman emperor! That is the one thing in bad taste about the column. -But that was not always so.” - -“How’s that?” exclaimed Rattleton. “Have they changed his clothes from -the original suit given him?” - -“That is not the original statue at the top of the column.” - -“No? Why, how——” - -“After Waterloo, when the Bourbons once more governed France, they took -Napoleon’s statue down. The original one represented him in the cocked -hat and old gray coat, immortalized on many a field of victory.” - -“And they never put it back?” - -“In its place, they erected a monstrous _fleur-de-lis_. However, this -combination of the emblem of the Bourbon family and a memorial of -Napoleon was perfectly absurd, and the people protested against it. -Louis Philippe yielded to the desire of the masses, and the present -figure of Napoleon was erected. This monument was shamefully treated by -the communists.” - -“Eh! Why, they didn’t bother themselves with that, did they?” - -“They pulled it down. It was necessary to lay a thick bed of tan along -the street, to mitigate the shock when it fell. The national troops -arrived in time to prevent its complete ruin, and it was reconstructed -as you see it.” - -“It’s strange that people like the communists, nihilists, anarchists, -and that sort, always, when possible, destroy everything they can in the -way of sculpture, architecture, and art. They seem possessed by a -senseless rage against the beautiful. Such human beings plainly show the -low and brutal in their natures. They rob themselves of sympathy by -their acts, and make themselves detested, as they should be. God did not -put us into the world to hate and destroy,” declared Diamond. - -“Oh, say, give us a rest!” grunted Browning. “I’m tired.” - -“As usual.” - -“Now, don’t fling that!” growled the big Yale man. - -“Merriwell has kept us on the jump all day, seeing things. He trotted us -from the Trocadero to Prison Mazas, and that is pretty nearly from one -end of the city to the other. He has shown us all the sights——” - -“I beg your pardon!” exclaimed Merry, with a laugh. “I haven’t begun to -show you anything of the sights of Paris. All I tried to do was give you -a general idea of the city.” - -“Dow the hickens—I mean, how the dickens—you ever learned so much about -Paris is what puzzles me,” burst forth Rattleton. - -“It’s a wonder to all of us,” admitted Diamond. “Why, you seem perfectly -familiar with the city, Frank.” - -“To a certain extent, I am familiar with it. You know, I spent three -weeks here in company with our old friend, Ephraim Gallup, and my -guardian, poor Professor Scotch, and I was on the hustle all the time, -so I got the lay of the land pretty well.” - -“But, great Scott! why didn’t you ever say anything about it?” - -“Never had occasion.” - -“Didn’t you meet with any adventures in Paris worth relating?” - -“Oh, I met with adventures enough, I assure you.” - -“Pleasant adventures?” asked Harry, with a grin and a wink. - -“Well, I hardly think they’d be designated as pleasant.” - -“Lovely girls, and all that sort of thing?” - -“There was one girl concerned.” - -“Only one?” - -“She was quite enough, under the circumstances. She was an anarchist.” - -“Huah!” grunted Bruce. - -“Whew!” whistled Harry. - -“Jove!” exclaimed Jack. - -“I fell in with a New York newspaper reporter, who had been sent over to -investigate and write up the recent bomb outrages in this city. Being -seen with him, I was spotted by the anarchists, who regarded him as a -spy. I was warned to leave France, but didn’t fancy being driven out -that way.” - -“Well, that was interesting!” ejaculated Diamond. - -“Rather!” drawled Bruce. - -“It was hot stuff!” said Rattleton. - -“It was the night after Grand Prix, the great French horse-race, that I -received my first warning. It came from a masked woman. Wynne, the -reporter, followed her, but she slipped him. On the night after Grand -Prix, all Paris turns out to enjoy itself, and be gay. It was at the -Jardin de Paris that I saw her again, in the midst of the mob that was -dancing and singing there in the open air. I caught her by the wrist, -and she tried to stab me.” - -“Whew!” again whistled Rattleton. - -“Huah!” once more grunted Browning. - -“Jove!” was Diamond’s repeated ejaculation. - -“Her friends were on hand to aid her, and she managed to break away, and -slip me, as she had Wynne. Afterward, at a place called the Red Flag, I -ran across Wynne. Anarchists resorted there, and they tried to stop us -both. Wynne got away, but I was roped in. Somebody rapped the senses out -of me, and I came to myself in a dungeon-like place, a captive.” - -They knew he was telling the truth, for Frank Merriwell never lied, but -it dazed them to think he had never mentioned the matter before. - -“What happened next?” breathlessly asked Harry. - -“The woman, who was known as ‘Mademoiselle Mysterie,’ came there to kill -me. I was bound and gagged, and she had a dagger to finish me off. I -couldn’t squeal, and so I smiled at her. Then what do you think -happened?” - -“Can’t guess.” - -“You tell.” - -“Go on!” - -“She fell in love with me,” said Frank quietly. - -“What?” - -“The deuce!” - -“Come off!” - -“She did,” nodded Merry, smiling. “She decided not to kill me. She -resolved to save me, even though I had been condemned to die by the -bomb-throwers, who were convinced that I was dangerous for them. Then, -when the real executioner came into the cellar to do the job, she struck -him senseless with a stone, and set me free.” - -Bruce Browning sat up, and stared at Frank. - -“I’ll admit that you are the queerest chap alive!” he growled. “You had -such an adventure here in Paris, and yet you never told any of us a word -about it! Merriwell, I don’t understand you, and I thought I knew you -pretty well.” - -Now Frank laughed outright. - -“I had no occasion to say anything about it, you know.” - -“Most fellows would have made an occasion. Supposing the story of that -adventure had been known at college. You’d been a king-pin from the very -first.” - -“Oh, I don’t know about that. You know, a fellow’s record before he -enters Yale doesn’t cut much ice there. It’s the record he makes -afterward that counts. In almost any other college it is different. A -man’s standing amounts to a great deal elsewhere. At Yale, he makes a -standing for himself. If he attempts to bolster himself up by tales of -what he has done, he is regarded with suspicion and contempt. You know -this is true. It is to his direct disadvantage to boast.” - -“But it was not necessary for you to boast. You might have told your -friends. You never told any of us.” - -“Never!” exclaimed Diamond. - -“Not a word!” came reproachfully from Rattleton. - -“Not even when we were coming here,” growled Browning resentfully. - -“Well, I’ve told you now, you know.” - -“Not everything,” said Jack eagerly. “Go on. How did you escape?” - -“Fought my way out through dynamiters, aided by the woman. The men were -in a room where a Russian manufacturer of infernal machines was -explaining how his devilish inventions worked. He had all his bombs -spread out on a table. I got through that room, and out of the building, -and I was lucky. What happened behind me, I can only surmise. It is -certain one of those bombs was exploded, and it exploded others. The -building was wrecked, the anarchists were killed, and among them was -found the body of the woman who had saved me, their queen. She is buried -at Mont Parnasse, and I paid for the stone that marks her grave.” - -Browning struggled to his feet, and stood there, colossal, imposing, -outraged, his hands on his hips. - -“I have considered you my friend,” he said; “but I feel like punching -you now! Why, you even trotted us round all day, and never once -mentioned this!” - -“I didn’t want to bore you.” - -“Bore us—bore us with a yarn like that! Why, it’s exciting enough to -furnish a plot for a novel! And you actually passed through such an -adventure here in Paris?” - -“Didn’t I say so? Do you think I’m drawing the long bow?” - -“No, but——” - -“But what?” - -“It is so remarkable. Why, you came to Yale in the quietest way -possible. Any one might have taken you for a country lad just getting -out into the world, for all of anything you had to tell of yourself.” - -“What if I had told the story I’ve just related to you? What if I had -related a number of yarns about my adventures in various parts of the -world? What if I had begun at college by prating of the things I had -done?” - -“You’d been set down as a howling liar!” exploded Rattleton. - -“Exactly,” nodded Merry. “If I had an inclination to speak of such -things, I put it aside, and kept corked up. You need not set it down as -modesty, unless you like; you may call it horse-sense.” - -They talked over Frank’s adventure, just related, for some time, asking -him many questions about it, for it was a most fascinating story. - -“Those must have been tot old himes—I mean hot old times,” said -Rattleton. - -“I should say so!” agreed Diamond. “You struck a circus in Paris, and -that’s straight! I hardly think anything like that will happen while you -are here this time.” - -“Not likely,” admitted Merry. “I don’t believe I care about having -anything like that happen again. It’s well enough to talk about, but I -was rather too near being snuffed out to enjoy it at the time.” - -There came a timid knock on the door. - -“Come!” called Frank. - -The door opened falteringly, and Mr. Maybe, Frank’s tutor, looked in -hesitatingly. - -“Mr. Merriwell,” he said, “I think you had better retire. You must be -tired, and, you know, your studies——” - -“Hang it, Mr. Maybe!” exclaimed Merry; “I’m not going to begin cramming -again the moment we reach Paris. You must give me two or three days to -look round with my friends, and enjoy the sights.” - -“You have wasted to-day, sir, and——” - -“Wasted it? No. We’ve taken in the streets, the boulevards, the Seine, -the Luxembourg Gardens, the Champs-Élysées, the Bourse, and so forth. -To-morrow, we will visit other places of interest—Versailles, the -Trocadero, the Grand Opera-House, perhaps, the Eiffel Tower. There are -thousands of beautiful things to be seen in Paris, Mr. Maybe, and I -advise you to get out and circulate. It will do you good.” - -“You must have been reading the guide-books, to know so much about -Paris,” said Maybe. “I’m going to bed, and I advise you to do the same. -Good night.” - -He retired, closing the door. - -“He doesn’t even dream you ever saw Paris before,” said Rattleton. - -“Well,” grunted Browning, from the couch, on which he was stretched once -more, “I think I’ll take his advice, and go to bed. I know I shall sleep -like a top to-night. I don’t believe an earthquake would disturb me.” - -“But your snoring is likely to disturb everybody else on this floor,” -declared Rattleton. “I’m glad Merriwell has taken pity on me, and -arranged it so I don’t have to sleep with you. You’ll have an entire bed -and a whole room to yourself to-night.” - -“What a relief that will be!” murmured the big fellow. “How sweetly I -will slumber!” - -He did not notice that his three companions looked at each other -knowingly, while Frank changed a laugh into a choking cough. He did not -suspect what was in store for him that night, so he arose, bade good -night to the others, and went to his room. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER II. - - BRUCE’S LIVELY NIGHT. - - -Bruce really was tired. Big, strong fellow though he was, his laziness -overcame the energy it seemed natural he should possess, and a day of -hustling quite exhausted him. - -He was glad to have a room by himself, and he rolled into bed with a -satisfied grunt, muttering: - -“Now, nothing will disturb me till morning.” - -In a short time, he was asleep, and snoring. His slumbers, however, were -rudely disturbed. At first, it seemed like a dream. He fancied he could -hear the gong of a fire-engine that was thundering down upon him, while -he seemed helpless to get out of the way and escape. The gong pounded -furiously, and he struggled with all his might to flee. In the midst of -the awful effort, he awoke, sweat starting from every pore. The infernal -clatter and bang of the bell continued, and it sounded right there in -that room. - -With a snort, Bruce sat up. - -“Fire, I’ll bet a hundred dollars!” he blurted, as he made a dive to get -out of bed. - -His feet became entangled with the bedclothes, and he landed sprawling, -with a terrible thud that knocked the breath from his body. - -Clatter! bang! ding! bang! clatter! - -That bell was keeping it up at a fearful rate, and Browning floundered -around on the floor, becoming more and more helplessly entangled in the -bedclothing. - -“This is awful!” he groaned. “I’m tying myself all up here, and I’ll be -burned to death! The old hotel is afire, and that’s the alarm!” - -He was tempted to uplift his voice, and roar aloud for aid, but -refrained from doing so, and forcibly tore himself free from the -entangling clothing. - -“Keep cool, old man!” he said, as he got upon his feet. “The people who -lose their heads at fires get burned. The ones who keep cool escape.” - -Then he found the gas, and turned it on, but could not find a match. He -rushed round the room, bumping against chairs, barking his shins, and -bruising himself generally. Over one of the chairs he fell, and he got -so tangled up with it that it really seemed that the chair was clinging -to him, like a living creature. - -“Oh, yes!” he snarled. “Throw me down, and then pile onto me, will you! -Try to hold me down, so I’ll be burned to death, will you! Punch your -legs into my ribs, will you! Hit me in the eye, and upper-cut me on the -chin, will you! Get out!” - -He flung the chair from him, with great violence. There was a crash, a -thud on the floor, a whirring sound and the alarm-bell ceased to ring. - -Rather dazed, Bruce got up. He was still trembling, but he made a search -for his vest, found it, and secured a match. - -The stillness which followed the racket of the bell and the frantic -gyrations of the big Yale man seemed awful, and he was more frightened -than ever. If he had wished to shout then, it is doubtful if he could -have raised a cry that would have been heard outside his door. - -The first match he struck spluttered and went out. With the second, he -lighted the gas, the odor of which filled the room. Then he looked -around, and the sight that met his eyes filled him with wonder. - -The chair he had flung across the room had struck a small shelf, and -knocked down a clock of the forty-nine-cent variety, smashing it, and -scattering its works over the carpet. As he stood there, glaring at its -ruins, the truth began to dawn upon him. - -“It was that thundering alarm-clock!” he snorted. “The thing went off, -and spoiled my slumbers! There is no fire and no danger! I’ve been -fooled by a bargain-counter alarm-clock!” - -He felt like jumping on the ruins of the poor time-piece, but remembered -that he was barefooted, and it would be sure to hurt him. Then his eye -caught sight of a slip of paper attached to a ring in the case of the -clock. He picked it up. On the paper were these words, written in -English: - - “Good night! - Sleep tight!” - -Browning flung the clock-case into a corner, uttering a “woosh” of -indignation. - -“That’s what I call a pretty cheap joke!” he exploded. “My first night -by myself, and they couldn’t let me rest in peace! Oh, I’ll have revenge -for this!” - -He gathered up the clothing, and piled it back onto the bed, then turned -out the gas, and rolled in once more. - -“It’s like one of Merriwell’s old tricks,” he thought, as he buried -himself under the twisted clothing, and prepared to make up for lost -time. - -Being really tired, it was not long before his nerves quieted down, and -he began to snore once more. He was dreaming a very pleasant dream, when -there was a repetition of the former racket. Browning groaned, and -stirred. Then, with a snort, he sat up. - -“Murder!” he gurgled. “I thought I’d smashed the old thing so it -couldn’t go off again!” - -He flung himself out of bed, saying some very ugly words, and lighted -the gas once more. The remnants of the clock he had smashed lay quietly -in the corner, but the racket of an alarm-bell came from another part of -the room. Furiously he began to search for it, and, in about five -minutes, he found it in the top drawer of the dressing-case. - -To the clock was attached a card, on which was written: - - “Excuse me, please. I hope you are resting well.” - -Mad? Browning almost frothed at the mouth. He opened the window, and -flung the clock out with great violence. Then he slammed down the -window, turned off the gas, and went back to bed. - -“I’ll get even for this, if it takes me the rest of my life!” he -grumbled, as he settled down, and tried to make himself comfortable in -the twisted bed. - -Being exhausted, it did not take him long to doze again. Then another -clock began operations. Bruce made a flying leap from the bed, striking -the floor before he was fairly awake. - -“Ten thousand furies!” he roared, as he chased around the room about -twenty times, and broke the world’s record for the two-mile dash. “It’s -another one! Where is the fiendish thing? Let me get my hands on it! Oh, -I won’t do a thing to it!” - -In the course of four or five minutes, he found it, hidden behind a -picture. A tag was attached to it, and on the tag was written: - - “You must be very, very tired.” - -“Tired!” howled the big fellow. “I should say so! This is enough to make -anybody tired!” - -He dropped the clock to the floor, but it continued to rattle away. With -an exclamation of anger, quite forgetting that his feet were not encased -in boots, he drew off and kicked the clock up against the wall, with all -his strength, breaking his great toe-nail, and knocking the skin off the -two neighboring toes. - -“Yow!” he howled, as he held onto his injured toes with both hands, and -hopped around the room on the other foot. “Oh, my goodness! I’ve maimed -myself for life! I’ll be a helpless cripple as long as I live!” - -The clock gave a sort of derisive rattle, and stopped. - -Bruce sat down on the edge of the bed, and examined his injured foot. -After awhile, he bound up his toes with a handkerchief, and turned in -again. - -“I guess this is the end of it,” he decided. “They’ve spoiled my night’s -rest! It’s an outrage!” - -His nerves were not near the surface, so they soon became quiet, and, -despite what had happened, despite the injury to his foot, he began to -snore again. Then the fourth clock started out to get in its work. When -Browning awoke, and realized what was taking place, he was wild. He made -another jump, to get out of bed, caught his feet in the bedclothing -again, and struck on his forehead and nose, barking the latter, and -causing it to bleed slightly. - -“All the fiends of the hot place couldn’t devise greater torture!” he -frothed. “It’s villainous! It’s criminal! I’ll be a raving maniac before -morning!” - -He began to fling things around at a furious rate in his mad search for -the clock. At last, he found it in his grip, where it had been carefully -tucked. When he yanked it out, it flew from his fingers, and rolled -away. He scrambled after it on his hands and knees, upsetting a -marble-topped table, which struck him a terrible thump on the back of -the head, producing a swelling almost as large as a hen’s egg. - -When Browning got hold of the clock at last, he was the maddest man in -all France. He rushed to the window, and slammed it open. Then he hurled -the clock into the street, with a fearful violence, barely missing a -passing pedestrian, who shouted something about bombs, and took to his -heels. - -In yanking the clock from the grip, he had torn off a bit of paper. On -the paper he read these words: - - “Hope this doesn’t disturb you, old man.” - -It must be confessed that Bruce Browning made a few “dark-blue” remarks, -which would not look well in print. Then he searched all around the room -for another clock, but could not find one. - -“It’s the last of them,” he decided, looking at his watch. “A quarter to -three, and I haven’t slept ten minutes thus far to-night. Oh, I’ll be in -fine condition to-morrow!” - -But he felt that the trick must be worn out, and he went back to bed. -Exactly twenty minutes later, just as he was beginning to breathe -heavily, another clock began to bang away. Browning awoke, and groaned. - -“What! again?” he almost sobbed. - -He got up, and searched for the clock. It took him four minutes to find -it hidden among the slats of his bed. - -As in the other cases, a slip of paper was attached to the thing, and he -read: - - “Don’t you care, old man—it’ll soon be daylight.” - -He dropped the clock, and it went bounding merrily under the bed, -keeping up its cheerful racket. - -“Come out here!” he roared, thrusting himself after it. “Don’t try to -dodge me! Don’t try to hide from me!” - -He touched it, with a frantic sweep of his arm, but knocked it still -farther away. - -Then he tore a slat from the bed, and struck at the clock, knocking it -out on the farther side. When he tried to back out from beneath the bed, -the frame had him pinned across the shoulders, and he was forced to lift -it before he could get out. In a burst of anger, he turned it over on -its side. Then he got at the clock with the slat. - -“Oh, I’ll settle you!” he roared, making a crack at the clock, but -missing it entirely. “I’ll destroy you! I’ll hammer the stuffing out of -ye! I’ll annihilate ye! Take that—and that! Yow!” - -A piece of glass from the clock flew up and cut his face. The -coil-spring hopped out, sailed through the air, and settled around his -neck. - -He dropped the slat, and caught at the spring. - -“Come off, here!” he snarled, yanking at it. He cut his neck, and nearly -tore his left ear from his head in getting the spring off. - -Bleeding, perspiring, furious, he sat there in the middle of the floor, -and looked around. The room was a spectacle. Furniture was smashed and -scattered all about. The bed was upset, and the battered cases and -scattered works of three clocks lay around, and a mirror showed him that -he was almost the greatest wreck in the room. - -“To-morrow,” he hissed, through his clenched teeth, “to-morrow, I shall -be a murderer, for I shall kill the fiend who devised this piece of -business!” - -He decided that it was useless to try to sleep. He filled his pipe, and -sat in an easy chair by the window. On the chair he planted himself in a -comfortable position, prepared to wait for the next outbreak, and nip it -in the bud. Exhausted nature, however, conquered. He smoked ten minutes, -perhaps, and the pipe fell from his mouth. - -It was fortunate for him that the next clock got “into gear” just when -it did, for it aroused him so that he realized something was burning. He -jumped up, with a yell, for his pajamas were afire. With frantic haste, -he tore them off, smothering the fire, which had been caused by a spark -from his pipe, by the aid of a rug. And the clock played a merry -accompaniment while this was taking place. - -He found the thing beneath the grate in the fireplace, and it was -tagged. On the tag was written: - - “Isn’t it just perfectly lovely in Paris!” - -Once more he used the window, taking care this time not to hit anybody -upon the street. It was near daybreak, and Bruce Browning had spent a -very lively night. As the gray streaks of dawn crept in at his window, -he gathered some of the bedding in the middle of the floor, and lay down -there, where he fell asleep in the midst of the mess. - -In the morning, three young men stopped before Bruce Browning’s door, -and listened. - -“I can’t hear anything,” said Rattleton, with his ear against a panel. - -“I can’t see anything,” said Diamond, with his eye to the keyhole. - -“Then we will investigate, and find out if he has passed a pleasant -night,” said Frank Merriwell, taking a key from his pocket, and -preparing to fit it to the lock of the door. - -“Eh?” exclaimed Rattleton, staring at the key. “What’s that?” - -“Hey!” cried Diamond. “Is that the key to the door?” - -“Yes,” nodded Frank, with a smile. - -“Where did you get it?” - -“Took possession of it last night, after we’d distributed the clocks,” -Merry explained. “There’s a spring-lock on all the doors in this hotel, -and Browning never missed the key.” - -Frank softly inserted the key in the lock, and turned it. - -“I’ll bet a cannon wouldn’t arouse him now,” grinned Harry. “Needn’t be -so easy, Frank.” - -Merry pushed open the door, and the sight that met their gaze filled -them with astonishment. - -The room was a scene of disorder. Everything was upset, even to the bed. -The furniture was scattered about in confusion, and the floor was strewn -with the débris of shattered clocks. On the floor beside the overturned -bed, Browning was wrapped in a mass of twisted and tangled bedclothing. -A sheet was twisted round his throat, and his face was covered with -cuts, bruises, and blood. There was blood on the bedding, and it looked -as if a sanguinary encounter had taken place there. They came in, and -stood looking down at him. - -“Wheejiz!” snickered Harry. “It’s plain he had a lively time of it!” - -“Looks like he’d fought for his life!” muttered Diamond. - -“And he’s still enough to have lost the battle,” said Frank. - -“You don’t suppose he was driven to suicide?” gasped Rattleton, in -sudden alarm. - -“Oh, no,” assured Frank. “Look—he is breathing. Listen—he is muttering -some words in his sleep.” - -Browning groaned, and thickly muttered: - -“Fiends! You have ruined my sleep, but I’ll get square, if I——” - -Then the words became an incoherent jumble. - -Rattleton grinned. - -“Scrate gott, but he did have a lively time of it! Look at this room! -It’s a sight!” - -“Look at him!” directed Frank. “He’s a sight! How in the world did he -get battered and cut up like that?” - -“Merriwell,” said Diamond, “he’s sure to be pretty ugly about this when -he wakes up.” - -“Oh, he’ll get over it. But I don’t believe he’ll forget his second -night in Paris as long as he lives.” - -“It’s retribution,” declared Rattleton. “Night after night he has -tortured me, and kept me awake by his beastly snoring, and he’s been mad -enough to eat me when I kicked about it. I didn’t think the clocks would -disturb him at all.” - -“But it seems that they did,” observed Diamond, with a faint smile. - -Rattleton was for sneaking out of the room as quietly as possible, -without disturbing Browning, but Frank could not think of leaving -without letting Bruce know they had seen him. So they all stood around -the big fellow, and sang “Kathleen Mavourneen.” - -The big fellow grunted, groaned, kicked—awoke! - -For a few moments it was evident he did not catch on to the situation. -He lay there, amid the tangled bedding, staring up at the laughing lads, -and blinking in a comical manner, so that Rattleton broke down, and -began to laugh. - -“Huah!” grunted Bruce. - -Then Frank and Jack stopped, and Merry said: - -“Excuse me, please. I hope this doesn’t disturb you.” - -“Waugh!” Bruce struggled to a sitting posture, with the bedspread -twisted about his neck like a muffler. - -“I hope you are resting well,” snickered Rattleton. - -Browning began to tear at the bedspread, a look of rage coming to his -bruised and lacerated face. - -“You must be very, very tired,” observed Diamond seriously. - -A howl of fury escaped Browning’s lips. He looked around the room, and -saw the overturned furniture, and the shattered clocks. In a moment, he -remembered all the horrors of the previous night. - -“You imps of Satan!” he thundered, making a floundering jump to get upon -his feet. “I have sworn an oath of vengeance! My time has come! Not one -of you leaves this room alive!” - -Then his tangled feet tripped him up, and he sprawled on the floor, with -a crash, causing the three lads to shout with laughter. - -“You seem to be excited, Bruce,” said Frank. “I hope nothing happened in -the night to disturb you.” - -“Excited!” exploded Browning, tearing at the bedclothes, and ripping a -sheet from end to end. “Oh, no, I’m not excited! Let me get my hands on -you, Frank Merriwell! You’ll never put up another job like this!” - -“You should take something for your nerves,” advised Frank. “It’s plain -you have bad dreams. Why don’t you try Mrs. Soothlow’s Wynsling Syrup?” - -Browning got hold of a chair, and threw it at Frank, who dodged, and the -chair knocked down a mirror. - -“You’ll have a nice little bill to pay when you settle for things here,” -said Diamond. - -“You go to blazes!” cried the enraged giant. “You come round here and -grin at me, and you never had sense enough to think up a good practical -joke in all your life! Get out of here! Get out lively, if you want to -escape with your life!” - -“Alas! alas!” exclaimed Frank, with a tragedy pose. “He is mad!” - -“You bet I’m mad!” agreed Bruce. “I’m madder than a wet setting hen! -I’ll get back at you for this job!” - -He got onto his hands and knees, for the purpose of rising, but Merry -promptly pushed him over with his foot, causing the big fellow to gnash -his teeth. - -“Fellows,” said Merry, “we must commit him to an asylum for the -violently insane. It is plain that he’s dangerous.” - -Browning tore off the baffling bedspread, and again struggled to get up, -actually intending to wreak vengeance on them by personal violence; but -Merry caught hold of two ends of the spread, and tripped him up with a -loop of it, while Rattleton basted him on the head with a pillow, and -Diamond picked up all the clothes and flung them on top of him. To -finish the job, Merry turned the bedstead over upon him. - -“Now, will you be good?” chirped Rattleton. - -“We must leave you, Bruce,” said Diamond. - -“And we hope you will be feeling better when we return,” laughed -Merriwell. - -Browning protruded his head from one side of the mass that was piled -upon him, and gasped: - -“This—settles—it!” - -He would have said more, but they shouted with laughter again, and left -him there to extricate himself as best he could, closing the door behind -them as they went out. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER III. - - A WALK AND A WARNING. - - -After breakfast, Frank, Jack, and Harry started out for a stroll. -Frenchmen of leisure seldom see Paris in the morning. For that matter, -the majority of foreigners seldom see it at that time. It is the -universal belief that “gay Paree” is at its best at night, and -foreigners with that “frisky feeling” usually wear off much of their -exuberance at night, and sleep away forenoons in recuperating for -another night. But the Yale lads were there to see the city by day, as -well as by night. They found it very bright and beautiful that sunny -morning, as they strolled down the Rivoli. The fountains were sparkling -in the sunshine, and sparrows were chittering on the brink of the stone -bowls. They came to the Place du Châtelet, and strolled over the bridge, -where the heavy carts were rumbling, and an occasional omnibus rolled -along. From the bridge, the city looked very attractive, rising amid a -bower of trees, magnificent and graceful in architecture, and harmonious -in its general effect. Columns and arches could be seen, and, as they -walked onward slowly, they came in view of the great Cathedral of Notre -Dame, rising beyond the barracks. To the right was the Palais de -Justice, with its clock and turrets, and stalking sentinels, in blue and -vermilion. Then they came to the Place St. Michel, where there was a -jumble of carts and omnibuses at that early hour, rumbling about the -fountain of ugly, water-spitting griffins. - -As they strolled leisurely along, Frank talked to them of the places -they passed. Diamond was intensely interested in everything. Paris had a -history, and, for him, it was fascinating in a thousand ways. - -They passed on up the hill of the Boulevard St. Michel, where there were -tooting trams and dawdling gendarmes, strolling in the sunshine, and -Merry explained that, when they stepped from the stones of the Place St. -Michel, they had “crossed the frontier” and entered the famous Latin -Quartier. At last they came to the Luxembourg, which was a blaze of -flowers. They walked slowly along the tree-lined avenues, passing -moss-covered marbles and old-time columns, and strolled through the -grove of the bronze lion, till they came out to the tree-crowned terrace -above the fountain. - -Diamond uttered an exclamation of pleasure. - -“Beautiful!” he cried, gazing down at the basin, shimmering in the -morning sunshine. - -All around them were trees, and flowers, and statues, and winding walks. -At a distance, where ended an avenue of trees, the Observatory rose, its -white dome looming up amid the green like an Eastern mosque. At the -opposite end of the avenue was the massive palace, with its every window -fiery in the morning sunshine. Around the fountain doves were wheeling -and cooing. Bees were buzzing amid the flowers, and a gendarme, or -policeman, was loitering on his way. - -They found a place to sit down and talk. The bells of St. Sulpice chimed -the hour, and the palace answered them, stroke for stroke. It was all so -peaceful and beautiful that it did not seem possible men had ever fought -like wild beasts there in that happy city. It did not seem possible the -streets had been deluged with innocent blood, that wild-eyed fanatics -had razed the beautiful columns and statues, had burned, and wrecked, -and ruined. It did not seem possible that the city had been besieged, -and bombarded, and pillaged. They sat and talked of those things. - -“Those days are past forever,” said Rattleton. - -“Who knows?” spoke Frank. - -They looked at him in surprise. - -“What do you think?” asked Jack. “Do you look for another revolution in -France?” - -“It may come.” - -“What will bring it?” - -“Justice.” - -“By that you mean—just what?” - -“The reversal of the Dreyfus verdict—perhaps. To-day, France is resting -over a slumbering volcano; it is impossible to predict when the eruption -may occur.” - -“Then you believe there is a possibility that poor Dreyfus may obtain -justice?” - -“A possibility—yes. At any rate, the whole Dreyfus affair is an -ineffaceable blot on France. The country is army-ridden. The army -condemned the poor Jew to Devil’s Island, and the army can make no -mistake. The honor of the army must be maintained, at any cost, and so -conspiracy follows conspiracy, and forgery follows forgery, till the -whole affair is so tangled and twisted that a revolution may cut the -twisted skein, which nothing seems to unravel.” - -“And then what will happen?” - -“Who can tell? The streets of Paris may again run red with human blood, -works of art may be destroyed, beautiful buildings may be razed, and -from the ashes and ruins another form of government may rise. It is not -easy to foretell the future of France. Frenchmen are changeable. What -pleases them to-day they regard with indifference or contempt -to-morrow.” - -“Well, I fancy we’ll have a peaceful time here,” said Jack. - -“It’ll be a change from what we have been having,” came quickly from -Harry. “Things were exciting enough in England.” - -“Yes,” nodded Frank; “we did have a hot time there, take it all -together.” - -“And the wind-up was about as hot as anything,” grinned Rattleton. “We -went down into the country with Reynolds, where we thought it would be -dead quiet, and things fairly sizzled. Harris turned up again, and tried -to kidnap Elsie. The cross-country gallop turned into a man-hunt, and -Merry came near finishing Harris when he caught him.” - -“He escaped being hanged when he was drowned, after that,” declared -Diamond. “He’ll never trouble anybody again.” - -“Never,” nodded Frank. “I am glad his blood is not on my hands, but I -did come near finishing him at the bridge.” - -“You came out of your trance then,” said the Virginian. “Harris realized -that the time when you would spare him was past, and that is why he made -such a desperate attempt to escape by swimming the river.” - -“Let’s not talk about the poor devil,” said Merry seriously. “He is -dead.” - -“And so is his running-mate, Brattle.” - -“No. I have learned that Martin Brattle was not killed in London, but -was seriously injured, and taken to a hospital, where he gave a -fictitious name. I have reasons to believe he recovered.” - -“Well, it’s hardly probable he’ll ever trouble you again.” - -“I hope he’ll have sense enough to keep away from me. One thing that -happened in London I seriously regret.” - -“What was that?” - -“I do not know what became of the man of mystery, Mr. Noname, but it -seems that he must have perished in the East End fire, at which Brattle -was injured.” - -“He was a queer creature.” - -“And it was remarkable that he took such an interest in me. I did not -understand it then, and I do not understand it now. He claimed that he -was my guardian spirit—my good genius.” - -“He talked like a lunatic sometimes.” - -“And yet to him I owe so much! But for him, I might never have found -Elsie when Brattle carried her off. He led me straight to her, and then -he vanished. Before that, when I was in danger, he appeared, and warned -me; since then, no matter what danger has menaced me, he has not -appeared, so I fear he perished in the fire.” - -“Well, it’s not likely you will need to be warned in Paris, for I fancy -our visit here will pass off quietly, with nothing at all in the way of -dangerous adventure.” - -After awhile, they rose, and started to stroll back to the hotel. They -passed out of the Luxembourg to the Boulevard, but had not walked far -before a closed carriage drew close to the curbing. From behind the -curtained window a black-gloved hand reached out, and beckoned, while a -voice called: - -“Frank Merriwell!” - -Merry started at the sound of that voice. It seemed to stir slumbering -memories in his heart, and it caused a strange sensation to pass over -him. The hand disappeared, reappeared, held a folded paper toward Frank. -Again the voice spoke his name. Merry stepped toward the cab, and took -the bit of paper. Then he reached to draw the curtain, but the driver -whipped up his horses, and the cab rolled away. - -He unfolded the paper, and read: - - “In Paris, you must face perils such as never before menaced - you, but I shall be near to warn you of danger.” - - “THE MAN WITHOUT A NAME.” - -Frank would have pursued the carriage, but it was rolling away too -swiftly for him to overtake it. - -His companions observed his excitement, and, as such agitation was -something rare in him, they knew it meant more than they could -understand. - -“What is it?” asked Diamond. - -“What’s the matter?” spluttered Rattleton. - -Frank stared at the slip of paper. - -“It must be a trick,” he said. “Did either of you see the person who -handed me this?” - -Neither of them had. - -“I saw nothing but his hand,” said Jack. - -“And that was covered by a black glove,” spoke Harry. - -“What’s it say?” asked the Virginian. - -Frank read it aloud, and then looked into the faces of his friends. - -“What do you think of it?” he asked. - -“You can search me!” gasped Harry. “I don’t know what to think of it. -Dut the whickens—no; what the dickens does it mean?” - -“It can’t be from the Man of Mystery,” asserted the Virginian. “Still, -he called himself the Man Without a Name.” - -Frank stared hard at the writing on the paper. After a little, he said: - -“It is as if one had risen from the dead, for I believe this came from -Mr. Noname.” - -“Well, this mysterious business is getting thin!” cried Jack. - -“I think it’s getting thick,” said Harry. - -“What’ll you do, Frank?” asked the Virginian. - -“Nothing; simply wait for developments.” - -“You must be getting rather tired of this. Here, we were just saying -we’d have a peaceful, jolly time here in Paris, and right on top of it -the fun begins. Why should you be in danger here? Harris will not -trouble you, and Brattle is in London. You are practically a stranger in -a strange city. I think it’s rot! I don’t take any stock in it.” - -“Whether you take any stock in it or not, you must confess that it is -rather odd.” - -“It couldn’t be a joke? You don’t suppose Browning——” - -“I thought of that, but it doesn’t seem likely. I’ll wager that Bruce is -sleeping off the excitement of last night.” - -The more they talked about it, the more mystified they became, till, at -last, they gave it up. Frank put the paper in his pocket, and they -continued their careless stroll back to the hotel. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER IV. - - BRUCE ANGRY. - - -It was high noon when they reached the Place Vendome, having taken their -time in returning. As they approached the hotel, Browning came out, and -stood on the marble steps, smoking a cigar. Rattleton began to grin as -they drew near, and the big fellow scowled blackly at them. They took -off their hats, and saluted him, with mock courtesy. - -“Behold, he hath risen!” cried Frank. - -“At last, at least, at loost!” gurgled Harry. - -“Before you, gentlemen,” said Diamond, “you see a most imposing man.” - -“That’s right,” nodded Merry; “he’s imposed on everybody he could borrow -money from.” - -“He had a very strong face,” observed Rattleton. “I believe he could -travel on it.” - -“It looks as if he’d been traveling on it,” smiled Frank. - -“I should advise the gentleman to turn farmer,” said Harry. - -“Yes,” said Frank; “he might be able to raise a beard.” - -Browning did not seem to take this chaffing in good part, for he scowled -blackly, uttered a growl, swung down the steps, and started off. - -“Where are you going, old man?” called Frank. - -Browning did not answer, or turn his head, but continued walking away. - -“He’s niffed,” said Jack. “That’s queer, for him.” - -“He’ll get over it,” declared Rattleton. - -But Frank was perplexed and disturbed. - -“I don’t like it, fellows,” he declared. “Never saw Bruce take a joke -that way before.” - -“Oh, he’d thought it a fine thing if it’d been on somebody else,” said -Harry. “Let him go. I’m hungry. Let’s have some lunch.” - -He caught hold of Frank’s arm, attempting to draw him into the hotel, -but Merry would not go. - -“I don’t like it,” he confessed. “I don’t care to carry a joke so far -that any of my real friends will take offense.” - -“Bosh! If Browning is mad about that, it will do him good to let him -alone till he recovers.” - -Frank continued watching Bruce striding away across the square, and into -the Rue Castiglione. - -“Go order lunch, fellows,” he said. “I’m going to bring Browning back.” - -“Don’t be fool enough to chase after him!” advised the Virginian. - -But Frank would not listen, and away he started after the big Yale man, -who was striding along as if he had an important engagement to keep. It -was near the obelisk that stands by the beautiful fountain in the Place -de la Concorde that Frank overtook his college chum. Bruce had paused a -moment in the midst of this most beautiful square in the whole world, -probably, utterly unaware that he had been followed, when Merry came up, -and put a hand on his shoulder. - -“Come, old man,” said Frank; “come back to the hotel, and have lunch -with us.” - -Browning wheeled about, and scowled at Merry. - -“Who are you addressing?” he growled, like an angry dog. - -“Oh, come!” exclaimed Merry; “drop it! Don’t take a joke from a friend -to heart in this manner.” - -“Friend!” rumbled the big fellow, with scorn and contempt. “Do you call -yourself my friend? Bah!” - -Merriwell was astonished more than ever, but he was not willing to think -Bruce in earnest. - -“Of course I call myself your friend!” he exclaimed. “Are you going to -get sore over a harmless joke?” - -“I am done with you!” declared Browning dramatically. “I understand your -boasted friendship now! You would make a laughing-stock of any friend -you might have! Don’t grin at me! I am in earnest! I see through your -hollow friendship now! I understand you at last! Leave me! I am done -with you!” - -“Surely, you do not mean that, Browning?” - -“Surely I do!” - -“Impossible!” - -“Do you think so? Well, you’ll see! I shall look for another hotel! I -shall go it alone, and no thanks to you, Frank Merriwell! Don’t dare -ever again call me your friend! I am your enemy! All I ask is that you -keep away from me, now and forever!” - -Frank caught his breath, astounded beyond measure. Browning was glaring -at him in the fiercest manner imaginable, and he seemed angry enough to -smite Merry full in the face. - -“Look here, Bruce,” said Frank, “I had no idea you could be so -thin-skinned. If I had thought you’d take it this way, I would not -have——” - -“It’s too late to tell what you would not have done! You’ve done it!” - -“But without a thought of——” - -“I advise you to think next time. We were enemies when you first came to -Yale, and we’ll be enemies when you return there, if you are lucky -enough to get back. I can make it pretty hot for you, and I think I -will.” - -Frank’s face flushed, and he drew off a bit. - -“If you are willing to let a little thing like a joke ruin our -friendship——” - -“Little thing!” again interrupted Browning. “What do you call a little -thing? I didn’t come here to Paris with you to be made a guy! I don’t -come here to stand as a butt for your wretched jokes! You have been -pretty popular in your day, but you’re outgrowing it, and you won’t cut -so much ice in the future. I’m no sycophant, to crawl round after you, -and let you impose on me just as you please!” - -“You are quite unreasonable, old man. I scarcely looked for anything -like this from you, and I think you’ll come to your senses in time.” - -“Think what you like; from this time, you and I are quits!” - -Then Browning turned, and crossed the square toward the Champs-Élysées, -leaving Merry there by the fountain. As he walked away, the big fellow -grinned, and muttered: - -“You didn’t expect that, did you? Oh, I’ll get back at you, Frank -Merriwell! You’ll find there is somebody else who can play at that -little game! I wonder how you like it!” - -Frank Merriwell stood there in the midst of the Place de la Concorde, -and watched Browning depart. On one side lay the swiftly flowing Seine, -spanned by a bridge five hundred feet in length; on the opposite side, -to the north, a beautiful street disclosed the majestic portal of -Madeline. To the left was the Garden of the Tuileries, while to the -right opened the Champs-Élysées. The fountain tinkled and splashed in -the sunshine, and over the smooth, hard pavement cabs came and went like -swarms of insects. It seemed that this splendid square, where crowds of -joyous people seemed forever crossing and recrossing, had been -appropriately named, “The Place of Peace,” but there Frank Merriwell had -failed to make peace with his offended comrade, and, as he stood -reflecting, he remembered all the horrors that had taken place there on -that spot where fell the shadow of the obelisk. - -There had been erected the hideous guillotine, the glittering blade of -which had descended upon the necks of thousands of the aristocracy of -France, among whom were Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI. The very ground -beneath the stones was soaked with human blood, for there, day after -day, the imbruted mob had gathered to sing, and laugh, and shout, as -head after head of old and young, weak and strong, proud and beautiful, -rich and famous, had rolled from the gory scaffold to mingle in the -common basket. - -Frank shuddered with horror as he thought of the “knitting women” and -“The Vengeance,” described by Dickens. He closed his eyes for a moment, -and his vision showed him the scaffold, and he could hear those women -calmly counting the blood-dripping heads as they continued to knit, -knit, knit, and the scarlet blade rose and fell, cutting short the -thread of a human life each time it descended. He saw the long lines of -tumbrels rumbling through the streets, surrounded by the armed guard and -the howling mobs, all headed toward this blood-cursed spot, bearing -helpless and innocent victims to doom. - -In fancy, he saw a royal carriage enter that square, and stop near the -raised platform, above which rose the blood-red post of the guillotine, -and he saw Louis XVI. alight from the carriage, to be immediately -surrounded by his executioners. He saw Louis remove his coat and cravat, -and then object when they tried to bind his hands. He saw the confessor -remonstrate with Louis, till, at last, the doomed man stretched out his -hands, saying: “Do what you will; I will drink the cup to the dregs!” -Frank pictured him, with a firm step, ascending to that blood-soaked -platform. Then the drums beat, to drown his words; the spring was -touched, and the fearful knife slid down the grooves. - -Then came Marie Antoinette, not in a closed carriage, like the king, but -in an open cart, the same as the poorest wretch of them all. For a -moment she had recoiled from the cart, which she saw beyond the gate of -the courtyard, and then she had advanced up the steps, with firm and -steady tread, armed guards on every hand, a hooting mob welcoming her -appearance. And thus she had ridden through the streets to that fearful -square, now called “The Place of Peace.” On the scaffold, she had looked -over the seething mob to the Garden of the Tuileries, and the scenes of -her former happiness, while a tear had rolled down her pale cheek. -“Farewell, my children!” she had murmured; “I go to join your father.” -Then she bowed her head, the knife fell, and the frightful deed was -done. - -France may erect fountains in the midst of that beautiful square, but -all the water in the world will not wash away the blood that has been -shed there! - -Frank Merriwell gave himself a shake, as if throwing off these gruesome -thoughts, and banishing the horrid visions. Browning had disappeared. - -“I was a fool to let him go like that!” muttered Merry. “If I am to -blame, I’m willing to apologize, and I feel sure Browning will accept an -apology.” - -Then he hurried across the square, and followed Bruce. Frank fancied he -must soon overtake Browning, but he was surprised to traverse the entire -length of the Elysian Fields before catching a glimpse of the big Yale -man. - -Browning was turning into a side street as Frank observed him. He seemed -walking as if to keep an appointment with some one. Puzzled not a little -by what had happened, and by Browning’s mysterious behavior, Frank -followed at a distance. - -At last, Browning came to a little café, and he entered, without once -looking back. Merry decided that it was an ordinary drinking-saloon, and -he wondered if Browning had gone in there for the purpose of indulging -freely in intoxicants. - -After a moment of hesitation, Merry followed. The moment Frank stepped -inside the door, he decided it was a cheap place, indeed. From the -outside, it did not look so bad; but, once inside, it reminded him of -the den of the Red Flag, where he had found the well-known ruffians of -Paris assembled. - -A few men were drinking at tables. They looked at Frank suspiciously as -he glanced them over. He saw nothing of Browning. A door opened into -another room. To that door he advanced. A man met him, and asked, in -French, what he wanted. - -“I am looking for a friend,” answered Merry, likewise in French. - -“Have you the sign?” - -“The what?” - -“The sign.” - -“No; I don’t know what——” - -“Then you cannot enter.” - -At this moment, a voice from within cried out something in very bad -French, and the man at the door suddenly stepped aside, saying: - -“Enter.” - -Frank hesitated a moment, and then stepped into the room. Immediately -the door closed behind him with a click. - -Frank stood there looking around in the dim light which came through a -curtained window. He saw there were several persons in the room. At the -farther end was a passage. - -“_L’espion!_” - -The word was hissed through the gloom, and it put Frank on the alert in -a moment. - -Somebody had called him a spy! What did it mean? All around him, men -rose up, and, in that moment, he realized he had walked into grave -peril. Out in the passage, a door opened, admitting a faint gleam of -light. Somebody passed through the door, and Frank was certain he -recognized Bruce Browning hurriedly leaving. - -“Browning!” he called. “Browning, stop!” - -He leaped toward the passage. - -Slam! The door closed, and the departing person was gone. - -Bang! Another door slammed in his face, and he was kept from entering -the passage. - -Like a flash, Frank whirled about. Somewhere, he fancied, he heard a -person hammering on a door, the blows echoing along the closed passage. -He was not armed, and he realized that some sort of danger beset him. It -was startling, because it was so unexpected and mysterious. Out from the -men who had risen, one advanced. Even in the gloom of the place, to -which Frank’s eyes were not yet accustomed, there seemed something -familiar about this person. - -“It is Frank Merriwell!” exclaimed an exulting, triumphant voice. “We -are met again!” - -The hammering which echoed through the passage became a crash, as if a -door had fallen before an assault. Then followed something like a sodden -blow, and a groan. What queer thing was happening beyond the door at -Frank Merriwell’s back? - -“Yes, we are met again!” exulted the man that confronted Frank. “Look at -me! You know me!” - -The man bent forward, and Frank’s eyes seemed to pierce the gloom. In -amazement, Merry started back against the door. - -“Martin Brattle?” he exclaimed, in doubt. “It can’t be!” - -“Oh, but it is!” declared the man. “You thought me dead; but, you see, I -am not. I have followed you here. I have come for Elsie!” - -“Elsie!” - -“Yes. Where is she?” - -“She is not in Paris.” - -“You lie! I know she is here! You shall send a message that will bring -her to you—and to me!” - -“Are you crazy, Brattle? Did your fall rob you of reason? Elsie Bellwood -is in England. She did not accompany me to France.” - -“And you think you can make me believe that? Bah! I know you, Frank -Merriwell! You are a great bluffer, but the game will not go now!” - -Then he turned to the other men, crying, in broken French: - -“Down with the spy! Don’t let him escape! I have told you who he is! -Down with him!” - -And they sprang, like famished tigers, at Frank! - -Frank Merriwell felt that it was to be a fight for life against terrible -odds. He leaped aside, caught up a chair, swung it over his head, and -splintered it with a blow that stretched one of his assailants on the -floor. - -Then Frank laughed! It was the old-time, reckless laugh that broke from -his lips in moments of great danger. It sounded weird and uncanny now, -and, for a single instant, it seemed to check the assault of his many -foes. - -“At him!” screamed Brattle. “Capture him! Down with him!” - -Merry flung the broken chair at the man who was urging the others on. It -struck him, and sent him sprawling and spluttering. - -“Come on, my fine fellows!” invited Frank. “Or, if you won’t come on, -I’ll come to you!” - -He did! With a leap, he was among them. Never had the young Yale athlete -used his hard fists to better advantage. He was fresh and unhampered, -and he cracked about him at the heads of those men, leaping, darting, -ducking, diving, striking all the time. One man he smashed on the ear, -another he hit in the eye, a third he struck fair and full in the pit of -the stomach, having dodged a blow himself. And Frank laughed again, -exulting in the fury of the fight. - -Those Frenchmen were astonished, for they had not conceived that one -lone Yankee could make such a fight. They had fancied it would be the -easiest thing in the world to leap on the American, crush him down, bind -him, make him captive. But he was like a whirlwind among them, and he -sent them flying in all directions. - -“_Mon Dieu!_“ they cried. “He is a fury! He is a madman!” - -“I am a trifle mad,” admitted Frank, as he skilfully kicked one fellow -full in the face, sending him flying across a table. “It starts me a bit -to be jumped on in this manner. Good morning! Have you used Pear’s -soap?” - -With this question, he came round at a fellow who had tried to grapple -him behind, hitting him a smashing blow that flung him bodily against -the partition. There were yells, and groans, and curses. Men were -scrambling over each other on the floor, struggling up, and falling -again. There came the crash of glass and the splintering of wood. - -Somebody struck at Frank with a chair, but he dodged the blow, so that -it did not fall fairly, although he felt it on his shoulder. Then he -wrenched the chair from the man’s hands, and beat him down with his own -weapon. - -“I think I shall enjoy this after awhile!” he exclaimed. “It’s a real -lively time!” - -“Fight as much as you like!” snarled the voice of Brattle. “You can’t -get out! We have you, and you’ll be used all the worse for making such a -row!” - -“Come over where I can get another crack at you!” invited Merry. “If I -could hit you once more, real hard, I wouldn’t mind what happened after -that!” - -“I’ll get a crack at you before I’m done, see if I don’t!” - -“You will follow your friend Harris, and he won’t trouble anybody -again!” - -“You killed him?” - -“No; he drowned himself.” - -“I’ll not follow him till I have settled with you! Down with him, men!” - -A door opened and closed, and a huge form loomed in the gloom of the -place. - -Frank saw it, and cried: - -“Browning! You are just in time! Come on, old man, give me a hand!” - -The gigantic form loomed at Merry’s side, and then Frank was struck a -terrible blow that stretched him on the floor. - -“Treachery!” he gasped, trying to struggle up. “Browning, you have -turned——” - -They piled upon him. With a fearful effort, he flung them right and -left. - -“Hold!” - -There was a sudden burst of light, as the door leading to the passage -flew open. A man entered, bearing a lamp that was lighted. Struggling to -his feet, Frank Merriwell saw the Mystery was there, having entered from -the passage! - -The strange man was dressed in black from his head to his feet. His hair -and his beard were black as the raven’s wing, and his deep-set eyes -seemed like pools of ink, while his face was pale as marble. His -appearance caused the ruffians to desist for a moment from their attack -on Frank. There was something terrible in the demeanor of the man who -called himself Mr. Noname. Before him Martin Brattle shrank and cowered. - -But one of the ruffians uttered a snarl, crying, in French: - -“Down with them both! They are both spies!” - -The mob crouched like tigers about to spring. - -“Back!” rang out the deep voice of the mysterious man. - -They paused. - -“Back!” he cried, lifting one hand above his head. “I hold a bomb here, -and, by the eternal heavens, I’ll drop it, and blow this building to -atoms, if you do not keep off!” - -That stopped them. They could see a round object in his uplifted hand, -and a sudden fear seized upon them. There was something in his pose and -manner that awed them. - -“Now,” said the strange man, speaking to Frank Merriwell, “the time for -you to depart has come. No one will lift a hand to stop you. The way is -open.” - -Frank realized that the Mystery had appeared at the proper moment to -save him, and he was thankful, but cool. - -“And you,” he asked, “what will you do?” - -“I will go with you. Never fear for me. Nothing can harm me. But I shall -blow them to pieces if they try to stop us!” - -Frank stepped past him, and entered the passage. Still holding his hand -uplifted, the Man of Mystery retreated backward into the passage. - -With a swift movement, he placed the lamp on a shelf, and closed the -door, crying loudly, in perfect French: - -“The first man who tries to enter by that door will be blown to a -thousand fragments!” - -He stepped softly to Frank’s side. - -“Follow!” he said. - -At the end of the passage was the door by which Merry had fancied he saw -Browning departing. Now it was shattered and broken, as if it had been -struck by a battering-ram, and Frank remembered the blows which had -resounded through the passage, and the crash that had been followed by -groans. Frank also remembered the gigantic figure that had appeared in -the darkened room where the battle was taking place, and how he had -thought it Browning returned to his aid. But the giant had struck him -down with a blow, and he could not believe Bruce had done that. - -Out by the shattered door they passed, and found themselves in a yard -that was surrounded by a high stone wall. In the wall was an iron gate, -but it opened at the touch of the Mystery. Beyond the gate, they were -beneath some drooping trees, which seemed to lack the sunlight which was -shut off by the crowding buildings. - -The Man Without a Name did not pause. He led the way to a door, and, to -Frank, it seemed that all portals yielded like magic to his touch, for -the door flew open before him. Soon they had passed on, and emerged upon -a narrow street. - -“You are free,” said the Mystery. “But go not back to that place. It is -a nest of serpents.” - -“My friend—he went in there.” - -“Your friend?” said the Mystery questioningly. “Who is your friend?” - -“Bruce Browning.” - -“Who is your friend?” repeated the strange man. “You can be sure of no -friend but me. I am ever constant. Other friends may fail you, but I -will not.” - -“But he is back there!” - -“How do you know?” - -“I followed him in there.” - -“And found him not. Trust not friends whom you fail to find in your hour -of need.” - -“I cannot go away while he may be in peril!” - -“You cannot go back, and escape with your life! It is a devils’ nest! -The vipers of Paris are there. They plot, and rob, and slay. Among them -is an enemy who has followed you across the ocean. He has paid them to -destroy you. Keep away from the nest of vipers. Even though you saw your -friend go in there, did you not see him come out?” - -“Who are you?” cried Frank, amazed. “How is it you know so much? How is -it you are always near when I am in peril?” - -“There is a tie that binds us.” - -“What tie?” - -“Fate.” - -“I do not understand this mystery.” - -“It is not for you to understand now. The time may come when the scales -will fall from your eyes, and you shall know all.” - -The man seemed ready to turn away, but Frank put out a hand appealingly. - -“Can’t you tell me more?” he pleaded. “I thought you had perished in the -fire in London.” - -“Fire cannot destroy me. My time has not come.” - -“Why is it that the sound of your voice seems to awaken echoes of memory -within me? Why is it I feel a strange thrill run over me when you are -near? Why is it I trusted you from the very first, even though you -seemed an enemy?” - -“Does not your heart answer those questions?” - -“My heart struggled with the problem, but cannot answer it. I am -mystified—bewildered—dazed.” - -“I tell you the time will come when the scales shall fall from your -eyes, and the mystery be revealed unto you. I have proved that I am -worthy of trust, have I not?” - -“Yes—yes!” - -“Trust me, and wait.” - -“But why do men shrink before you? I am sure it was more your presence -than the bomb that cowed those tigers.” - -“The bomb!” said the strange man. “There was no bomb!” - -“No bomb?” - -“No; nothing but this.” - -In his extended hand, the Man of Mystery held an oval-shaped cake of -dark-colored substance. - -“What is it?” wondered Frank. - -“Soap!” - -“What?” - -“Soap—nothing more!” - -“Impossible!” gasped Merry. “Impossible that you cowed those ruffians -with a cake of soap!” - -“It is the bomb with which I threatened them. When I entered the passage -by that broken door to go to your rescue, I found the lamp and the cake -of soap on a shelf. The lamp I lighted, and the cake of soap I took with -me. You witnessed the result.” - -“Astounding!” gasped Frank. “It is almost beyond belief! Talk of -nerve—that takes the cake!” - -“We shall meet again,” said the Mystery. “Go back to the hotel now, and -do not worry about any false friend. Farewell, for a time.” - -Then the man turned, and walked away along the narrow street. - -Frank hesitated, watching him. When the man was far along the street, -Merry hurried after him. He was in time to see the strange being reach -the corner, and enter a closed carriage that seemed waiting for him. -Away rolled the carriage. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER V. - - FRANK IN A QUANDARY. - - -Wondering greatly over what had happened, and not a little troubled -thereat, Frank Merriwell returned to the hotel. The singular appearance -of the Mystery in Paris, the remarkable behavior of Browning, the -turning up of Brattle, the encounter in the café, and the rescue by Mr. -Noname were events of an order to fill him with astonishment. It is a -credit to Frank that the behavior of Browning troubled him more than -anything else. It had not seemed possible that big, good-natured Bruce -would turn against Frank for a little thing like a harmless practical -joke; but, when Merry thought over the talk in the Place de la Concorde, -and Browning’s manner, he was led to confess to himself that it might be -that Bruce was actually too angry for reason. - -“He’ll be sorry for it,” thought Frank. “He must have known I followed -him to that café, and he dodged out by the back way, as I entered that -darkened room where those ruffians were. I saw him departing.” - -Then he thought of the sound of blows echoing along the passage, the -crash, and the groans. He had found the door broken down, but it had -told him nothing. - -But the giant who appeared in the darkened room, and struck him down—who -was that? He knew it had looked just like Browning, but it was not -Browning, for nothing could have led the big fellow to such dastardly -work. - -“I’ll find Bruce back at the hotel,” Merry told himself. “He will laugh -at me for the chase he has given me.” - -He hurried his footsteps. His brain was in a whirl. The mystery of the -Man Without a Name was enough to bewilder him, and that, added to the -other things that had happened, put him in a maze. And, only a few short -hours before, he had promised himself that his visit in Paris was to be -quiet and uneventful! - -When he reached the hotel, he found Jack and Harry watching for him. -They plied him with questions, but he answered nothing till he had -asked: - -“Is Bruce here?” - -“We have seen nothing of him,” they declared. - -“He must be here,” insisted Frank. - -“It’s strange we have not seen him, if he returned.” - -They looked for him, but he was not in his room, nor could he be found -about the hotel. Frank threw himself upon a chair, and stared at the -floor, with a troubled look. - -“What’s the matter?” asked Diamond. “Hanged if you don’t look as if -you’d been in a scrimmage!” - -“I have,” said Merry quietly. - -“What?” - -Both lads stared at him. - -“Kit your quidding—I mean quit your kidding!” spluttered Harry. - -“I am not kidding,” assured Merry. “I have been in one of the hottest -scraps of my life.” - -Then he told them about it, and they listened with growing amazement. -When he told them of the appearance of Brattle, both lads leaped to -their feet. - -“That fellow here?” shouted the Virginian. - -“Poly hoker!” panted Rattleton. “Have you been having a pipe-dream, -Merry?” - -“It’s no dream. Mart Brattle is in Paris. He has followed me here, -thinking to get hold of Elsie Bellwood.” - -“But Elsie is in London.” - -“He didn’t know it. He thought she came to Paris at the same time we -came.” - -“Well, it was a most unfortunate thing when that thug escaped being -killed in London!” cried Diamond. - -“It would have been no great loss to the world,” confessed Frank; “but -he did escape, and he is here. But for Mr. Noname, Brattle’s gang must -have downed me in the end. That man appeared at just the right moment to -pull me out of the scrape.” - -“And stood the ruffians off with a bomb?” said Rattleton. - -“A bomb that was no bomb at all,” smiled Frank, amused by the -recollection. - -“No bomb?” - -“How was that?” - -Frank explained, causing Jack and Harry to collapse. - -“That’s the greatest trick I ever heard of!” exclaimed the Virginian in -admiration. “I’ll never again say anything about Mr. Noname. A man who -can do a thing like that is all right.” - -They talked over all that had happened. It was very remarkable, and -created no end of discussion. Diamond alone thought it possible Browning -had been in earnest. Rattleton could not conceive that Bruce would -remain offended, and Frank had felt all along that the big fellow would -come round. - -“But he’s shown what he’s made of,” said Jack. - -“And you would have taken it just as much to heart, if you had been in -his place,” said Harry. “You are a poor fellow to take a joke.” - -Jack flushed. - -“When I know it’s a joke, I can take it,” he asserted. - -Tutor Maybe appeared at this juncture, and began to talk with Frank -about his studies; but Merry was in no mood to discuss such matters -then, and he promptly said so. - -“To-morrow, or the day after, will be time enough,” he said. “Don’t -bother me now. I have enough on my mind.” - -It was not considered advisable to alarm the tutor by telling him of -Frank’s adventure, and Maybe was left to fret and worry as much as he -liked, while the boys went out to look after Bruce. The day passed, and -Browning failed to return. As evening drew on, Frank grew restless and -anxious. He could not think that the big fellow was remaining away out -of pique or anger, and he began to fear, despite the remembered -assurance of Mr. Noname, that some thing had happened to Bruce. - -Again and again he thought of the strange hammering at the door in the -passage of the queer café, the crash, and the groans. At last, for all -of any danger he might encounter, he resolved to visit the place again. -From his trunk Merry took out a revolver, which he carefully loaded. -Diamond and Rattleton watched him with curiosity, not to say anxiety. - -“Where are you going?” the Virginian asked, after awhile. - -“To the dive where I had the little scrap,” declared Frank. - -“No, not there?” - -“Yes, right there.” - -Jack rose. - -“Come, Rattleton,” he said; “we must get our shooting-irons.” - -“What do you intend to do?” asked Merry. - -“Go with you,” asserted Diamond grimly. - -“You bet!” nodded Harry, with satisfaction. “If you are going back into -that hornets’ nest, we’ll be right with you. But why don’t you notify -the police, and——” - -“Be notified to keep away from the place? Excuse me,” said Frank grimly. -“I do not care for the French police in mine. But, with a gun at hand, -I’ll be able to take care of myself.” - -“With Rattleton and myself at hand, you’ll be better able to take care -of yourself, and so we are going along,” said Jack, as he marched out of -the room. - -Jack and Harry armed themselves, and announced to Frank that they were -ready. The trio started out, prepared for any kind of an adventure they -might encounter. - -“If I knew where to find Mr. Noname now,” said Merry. “But it’s more -than even money he will find me, if I run my nose into any danger. He -always pops up at the right moment.” - -The lights were beginning to twinkle when they turned into the crooked -little street, and approached the café where Frank had met with his -adventure. Merry strode along, with swinging step, seeming anxious to -reach the place as soon as possible. When they came in front of the -narrow little door, a white-aproned old man was lighting the gas within. -As they entered, they saw men sitting at the tables, eating, drinking, -and smoking, while white-aproned waiters served them. - -Frank had made sure of the place, but, somehow, it did not seem quite -the same by gaslight. The door to the back room was open, and Merry -advanced, without hesitation, to it. He expected that he would be denied -admittance, but, to his astonishment, no one asked him for “the sign,” -and he stepped into the room, where the tables were covered by cloths, -and a few rather respectable-looking old men were drinking and smoking, -as they chatted in the seclusion of the place. - -More dazed than ever, Frank looked round the place, and it seemed quite -unfamiliar, save that there was a door just where he felt certain the -entrance to the passage must be. Two long steps took him to the door, -but it was fastened, and refused to move at his touch. The old men -looked at him in surprise. A waiter came up, and mildly asked what he -wanted. Everything seemed so quiet and peaceful there that he wondered -if he could be dreaming. By day, the place had been dark and sinister, -filled with human tigers; by night, it was alight, and seemed in every -way a respectable café. - -Frank’s companions observed the bewildered look on his face, and they -wondered if he had made a blunder. - -“What does monsieur want?” again asked the waiter. - -“I want to see the proprietor,” said Frank boldly, speaking in most -excellent French. “It is important. Tell him that I must see him at -once.” - -“Yes, monsieur.” - -The waiter bowed low, and departed. After a little, he returned with a -gentlemanly looking man, who had a white mustache and imperial, and -carried himself with a military air. - -“Monsieur,” said the waiter to Frank, “this is M. Delambre.” - -M. Delambre bowed in a most courteous manner. - -“And what favor may I have the honor of doing you, gentlemen?” he asked -suavely. - -“I was here this afternoon,” said Frank, speaking boldly and to the -point. - -“And you return again to-night,” smiled M. Delambre in a flattered -manner. “That speaks well for the manner in which you were entertained. -Accept my thanks.” - -“Oh, I was well entertained!” exclaimed Frank. “It was in this room, -too. Here I came, alone and a stranger, and here I was set upon by a -pack of ruffians, from whom I barely escaped with my life!” - -M. Delambre seemed thunderstruck. He started back, and stared at Merry, -one hand uplifted. - -“Monsieur,” he cried gently, “what are you saying? Are you mad? Or are -you jesting, after the manner of some foreigners?” - -“I am neither, M. Delambre; I am speaking the truth, as you must know.” - -“Be careful, sir. I have a respectable place here, and I cannot afford -to have my business ruined.” - -“Your place seems respectable enough now, but it was filled with -ruffians this afternoon. In this very room, I fought a band of them, and -they came near doing me up. Now, M. Delambre, I have some questions to -ask you, and it is best that you answer them.” - -The Frenchman drew himself up haughtily. - -“Sir, you are insulting!” he said harshly. “I can prove by a hundred -persons that my house is thoroughly respectable, and I will permit no -one to injure me by such stories. I advise you to leave here at once, or -I will call in the gendarmes!” - -“Call them, if you like,” said Merry, with perfect coolness. “I do not -believe you care to attract attention to yourself and your place.” - -M. Delambre made a gesture of despair. - -“You foreigners—you Englishmen!” he cried. “It is useless to argue with -you!” - -Frank did not fancy being called an Englishman, and he told the -Frenchman as much. - -“I am an American, and in America we have a way of coming straight to -the point. Now, see here, M. Delambre, I do not wish to make you any -trouble, but I am trying to find out something about a friend whom I -followed into this place. He has disappeared.” - -The Frenchman held up both hands, a look of horror on his face. - -“Monsieur,” he cried, “do you mean to add that I know something about -the disappearance of your friend? That is still worse! You have added to -the insult! I beg you to leave my place at once, or I shall be forced to -call my waiters, and have you ejected!” - -“Now, see here, sir,” came grimly from Merry, “I advise you to go slow -about this ejecting business! I don’t think you can summon enough -waiters to eject my friends and myself.” - -“Let him try it!” exclaimed Diamond. - -“Do let him try it!” urged Rattleton. - -Both of Frank’s friends looked very eager for a scrimmage, and the -proprietor of the café showed still further agitation. Again Frank plied -him with questions, but now he took another turn, relapsing into grim -silence, shrugging his shoulders, sneering, and scowling. It was useless -to coax, or threaten, or cajole. M. Delambre closed up like a clam, and -nothing could they learn from him. - -“Better make a complaint to the authorities, Merry,” suggested Diamond. -“Better have the joint placed under surveillance.” - -Frank did not fancy being baffled in such a manner, but he realized that -his efforts were wasted. Some of the waiters came and stood near, -scowling at the three lads, which made Diamond long for a pitched -battle. Rattleton, also, expressed an “itching” to punch a few heads. - -Merry knew better than to create a disturbance there then, and so he was -forced to beat a retreat, giving over the effort to obtain any -information concerning Browning. When they were outside, he turned, and -surveyed the front of the place closely. - -“I suppose you are sure you’re right?” asked Jack. “This is the place?” - -“Beyond a doubt,” declared Frank. “There are some clever rascals in -there, and M. Delambre is chief of them all.” - -But Merry was more downcast over the outcome of the affair than he cared -to let his friends know. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER VI. - - TRAPPED. - - -The Champs-Élysées were blazing with light from the Arch of Triumph to -the Place de la Concorde. The café-chantants were in full blast. Colored -electric lights spelled out the names of the different places of -amusement. Swarms of cabs and carriages, with their yellow side lamps, -came and went. Long rows of tables stood under the trees, surrounded by -men and women, who were dining in the open air, bareheaded, chatting, -laughing, joyous. - -Down the broad avenue went the three American lads, returning to the -hotel, where they hoped to find the missing one. The sound of music and -singing from the theaters lured them not. The sound of talk, and -laughter, and tinkling glasses at the tables did not stop them. The -sight of all these people enjoying themselves as human beings can enjoy -themselves in no other part of the world did not check their footsteps. - -Frank Merriwell had been there before, and he knew all this by heart; -but, to Jack and Harry, the sights and sounds were new and novel. At -some of the tables, they saw parties of respectable Americans, people of -high standing and good breeding, eating and drinking there, beneath the -lighted trees at the edge of the sidewalk, utterly unconscious that they -were doing anything remarkable. And yet no amount of money could have -induced those same persons to sit around a table place at the corner of -Thirty-third Street and Broadway, in New York. In Paris, they were ready -and glad to adopt the manners of the natives. - -Leaving all this behind, the boys hastened to the hotel, where they were -again disappointed, for Browning was not there. They looked at each -other helplessly. - -“Something serious has happened to him,” asserted Frank. “I feel it—I -know it!” - -“He is to blame for it all!” exploded Jack petulantly. “If he had not -taken a nif, and posted off by himself, you’d never run into that joint -where you had the scrap. If he’s been knocked down, and robbed, and -murdered, he brought it on himself.” - -Frank was beginning to feel miserable. He went to his room, where he -paced up and down. Then he stole out of the hotel, all by himself, and -started back along the route over which he had followed Bruce that -morning. Down in the midst of the Elysian Fields he paused, and sat -down, all alone, at a table, where he ordered a drink of ginger-ale, and -sat sipping it. - -Frank had about made up his mind to go to the authorities, and report -that the big Yale man was missing. He hated to do it, but he feared he -was making a mistake in neglecting to do so. As he sat there, several -persons brushed past his table. Who had dropped a slip of paper upon it, -he could not tell, but he found it lying there before him. - -Merry picked it up. There was writing upon the paper. It said: - - “Come to the Theater of the Republic. I will meet you there. I - am watching Mart Brattle, and do not wish to leave him. - - BROWNING.” - -Frank gave a great jump. He bent over, and examined the writing. - -“Browning’s hand!” he exclaimed. “This is from him, but how did it get -here?” - -There was a mystery. Mysterious happenings were crowding fast. - -Frank began to fancy that he understood why Browning had remained away -from the hotel all day. The big fellow had been tracking Brattle. Frank -sprang up, completely thrown off his guard for the moment. He did not -stop to think it over. The Theater of the Republic was near at hand, and -soon he was hurrying toward it. - -As he approached the entrance, a man suddenly appeared at his side, and -grasped his wrist, speaking a single word into his ear: - -“Stop!” - -Frank faced the man like a flash. - -It was Mr. Noname! - -“Stop!” commanded the Mystery. “You are going straight to your death!” - -Needless to say, Frank stopped. - -“You here?” he exclaimed. - -“Yes—in time to stop you from falling into the trap. You have been -summoned to enter that place. In there, behind a column which you must -pass, stands a man with a dagger hidden in his sleeve. He means to place -that dagger in your heart!” - -Despite himself, Frank shivered. - -“How do you know this?” - -“How do I know anything? Do not ask me. Have I ever deceived you?” - -“Never.” - -“I am not deceiving you now. I know whereof I speak.” - -“But, my friend, the one I seek has summoned me there.” - -“No! The summons was a forgery. Your friend is not there.” - -Wondering still more, Frank snatched the scrap of paper from his pocket, -and scanned it again, standing there in the glare of lights, which made -the place as bright as day. - -“It is his writing!” he exclaimed. - -“A forgery, I tell you!” persisted Mr. Noname. “A clever one, perhaps; -but your friend did not write it. Your deadliest enemy is in there. He -is watching the assassin he has hired to do the job. The assassin has -laid his plans well, and expects to escape after he has struck you -down.” - -Frank was convinced, for never had he known the Mystery to tell him -anything but the truth. - -“What can I do?” he asked. - -“Keep away.” - -“I can’t do that. You say my enemy is in there? You say Brattle is -there, then?” - -“Yes; he is there.” - -“I want to find him. I wish to shadow him.” - -“Better leave him to me.” - -“I cannot leave everything to you. My friend Bruce Browning has -disappeared. You cannot tell me where to find him.” - -“Can’t I?” - -“Can you?” - -“Perhaps not just now,” admitted the Mystery; “but, if you want to -know——” - -“I do! I shall not rest till I find out!” - -“Then I will help you to find out.” - -“I am sure this man Brattle has had a hand in the disappearance of my -friend. If not, how does it happen that he knows Browning is not with -me? Brattle must be followed—he must be tracked to his hole!” - -“Let me do it.” - -“You cannot do everything. I must have a disguise. I must go in there! I -am determined to go in there!” - -“Come with me.” - -“Where?” - -“I will see that you have what you want.” - -They sprang into a cab, the man of mystery spoke to the driver, and away -they went. It was not a long drive. The cab dropped them at the door of -a dark, little shop. The Mystery knocked with his knuckles against a -pane in a window, and soon the door opened. They entered. A coal-oil -lamp lighted the place. - -“Felix,” said Mr. Noname, “my young friend wants a disguise. It must -change his appearance so his best friend will not know him.” - -“_Oui_,” grunted Felix, the withered old keeper of the shop. “I will -make him so his own mother could not know him.” - -And when Frank issued from the place, less than twenty minutes later, -Felix had kept his word. Frank was made up to look like a sap-headed -English swell, and his clothes were of the style affected by so many -British tourists, who seemed to delight in making themselves as -conspicuous and ridiculous as possible. Frank carried a heavy stick, and -his hair was combed down over his forehead in a bang. The expression on -his face was one of vapid stupidity. He wore a monocle, and he walked in -an affected manner. - -Thus Frank appeared at the door of the Theater of the Republic, where he -paid the price required, and entered. A woman was singing on the stage -as Merry came sauntering in. Men were sitting everywhere about the -tables, talking to women. No one seemed paying much attention to what -was taking place on the stage. - -Frank Merriwell looked for the assassin by the pillar—and fancied he -found him. A man was loitering near one, his hat pulled over his eyes. -This man seemed to scan the face of every person who entered. - -“Brattle must be near,” decided Frank. - -He took a position where he could watch, and waited to get track of -Brattle. The man by the pillar was impatient. It was plain he had about -given up. At last, he turned, with an impatient gesture, and declined to -remain on the watch longer. - -Frank knew well enough that this was one of the ruffians who had -attacked him in the saloon. He resolved to try his disguise upon the -man. - -Approaching the hired assassin, he paused, and drawled: - -“Me good fellaw, can yer tell me what houah Anna Held comes on? I have -seen the little peach in Hamerica, don’t y’ ’now, and I want to see her -hagain, don’t y’ hunderstand. Ya-as, by Jawve!” - -The man made a swift and rather savage retort in French, shrugging his -shoulders, and turning his back on Merry. - -Frank smiled to himself. - -“In rather bad temper, I take it,” he thought. “Failed to see anything -of your game, and so you are impolite.” - -Another man came up hurriedly, and spoke to the one who had been -loitering by the pillar. It was Brattle. With boldness, Merry addressed -his enemy, his face wearing an expression of idiotic anxiety: - -“I say, me deah man, cawn’t yer tell me what time Anna Held comes on? -I’d like to see her hagain, ye hunderstand.” - -“Oh, go to the devil, you wooden-headed chump!” exclaimed Martin -Brattle, grasping his companion by the arm and turning toward the door. - -“Haw! Very wude cwecher!” gasped Frank, thrusting the head of his cane -into his mouth and staring after them. - -He did not let them escape, but when they reached the open air he was -following them. It was no easy thing to shadow two men along the -brilliantly lighted Champs-Élysées, but Frank did the job in a manner -that would have done credit to a professional detective; and, after a -time, they turned into another street, where it was easier. - -Frank followed them a long, long time, for they did not seem to suspect -that he was at their heels. Then, to his infinite disgust, he lost them. -They seemed to melt into the very stones of the street. Frank was -certain they must have entered some place near at hand, but he had not -seen them do so, and he could not tell which way to turn. - -He was thoroughly aroused. - -“Well, I’ve done a smart trick!” he muttered. “I’ve let them get away -after tracking them here! What would the Mystery say to that?” - -“That you did well to track them so far,” murmured a voice, and the -Mystery stepped out of a dark doorway within ten feet of him. - -The appearance of the strange man gave Frank a start, despite his strong -nerves. - -“You?” he gasped. “How does it happen that you are here?” - -“Do not ask questions now. You wish to know where those men went?” - -“Yes.” - -“This way.” - -Mr. Noname drew Frank in at the doorway. They passed through a narrow -passage, ascended a flight of stairs, descended another, and yet -another, crossed a cemented cellar, ascended some stone steps, and came -out into the little back yard of the café where the fight had taken -place that day. Directly before Frank, beneath the gloomy trees, was the -shattered door, now mended and standing in place. - -“There is where you will find them,” asserted the Mystery; “but this -door is closed now, and it is barred on the other side. Wait. I will -pass to the other side and open it for you.” - -“How can you do anything like——” - -Frank stopped and caught his breath. He was alone! The Mystery had -disappeared! - -“Well, talk about your modern magic—this beats anything yet! That man -comes and goes like a disembodied spirit.” - -The Mystery had promised to open that door, and Merry had confidence to -believe he would keep his word, so he waited there in the narrow yard -beneath the gloomy trees. He heard a distant clock tolling the hour, and -the sound gave him a chill, like a bell pealing for the passing of a -soul. - -Frank pushed against the mended door, but it stood firm before him. He -moved about and explored the yard. In this manner it seemed that at -least an hour passed. Of course it was not so long, but time dragged -slowly with him waiting there. Frank was growing impatient, when he -heard a sound behind him, and wheeled about. Black shadows were -appearing under the trees. There was more than one of them—there were -several! Those shadows moved like creatures of life. They seemed to -crouch and steal toward him. In the blackness under the trees there was -a whisper. Frank Merriwell recoiled against the mended door, his heart -leaping into his mouth. - -“Trapped!” - -The word leaped to his lips, and his hand flew for a weapon. In that -instant those shadows darted forward and sprang upon him. He tried to -draw his revolver, but it was knocked from his hand. In falling it was -discharged when it struck the ground, and the flash lighted for a single -instant the triumphant face of Frank’s enemy, Martin Brattle. - -Merry struck hard and sure for that face, and his fist landed. The man -was knocked down, but he struggled up, snarling: - -“Crush him down! Capture him! Don’t kill him! I have a use for him! Take -him alive!” - -“If you can!” panted Merry, fighting like a tiger at bay. - -They leaped upon him, and he hurled them back. They tried to beat him -down, but he stood like iron before their blows. He sent them reeling, -cursing, falling. He felt that he had been betrayed at last by the -mysterious man who had led him to that spot. A score of times Diamond -had warned him that Mr. Noname would turn on him, but he had not heeded -the words of the Virginian. Now it had happened. The Man Without a Name -had brought him there to that yard and left him in order that he might -be captured by Brattle and his gang. - -The thought made Frank fight with such fierceness that they could not -beat him down. They hurled him against the door time after time, till, -at last, it flew open beneath the shock. Frank’s heels caught on the -stool, and he fell backward into the passage. - -Before he could rise, five men were on him. A light gleamed near and he -was dragged farther in. Then he was beaten into non-resistance, and his -hands were tied. At last he was a captive in the hands of Martin -Brattle! - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER VII. - - IN THE WINE-CELLAR. - - -Frank was carried down a shaking flight of stairs into a cellar, where -there were barrels and wine-casks and long shelves of bottles, covered -with dust and cobwebs. They placed him on a bench, and the light of -their coal-oil lamps showed him something that caused him to start and -groan. - -Bruce Browning was there, standing in the center of the cellar, bound -securely to a stone pillar, a gag in his mouth. The eyes of the big Yale -man met those of his chum, and there was an instant understanding -between them. - -Frank knew why Bruce had not returned to the hotel. At last the mighty -giant had been conquered and made a captive. In that look volumes were -spoken. Bruce expressed his anger, grief, and regret, while Frank showed -his sympathy. - -They had found each other, but they were helpless and in the power of -desperate men. The faces of those men were covered by masks, with the -exception of that of Brattle. It seemed that Martin did not care to -attempt to conceal his identity. There were seven of them in all. - -Brattle stood before Frank and sneered at him. - -“Poor fool!” he said. “Did you think you could get the best of me? With -all your tricks of disguise, you are not smart enough to cope with Mart -Brattle.” - -Frank was not gagged. - -“It must take a great rascal to match you,” he said. - -“I confess that I did not know you in the theater,” said Brattle; “but I -knew you after you had followed us so far.” - -Frank was disgusted. - -“So you discovered I was following you?” he muttered. - -“Yes. Then I was certain it must be you; but how you found your way into -that yard is what beats me. You disappeared from the street in a -twinkling, and next you were in that yard when we came to hunt for you.” - -“And you don’t know how I got there?” - -“I don’t know how you found the way.” - -Frank wondered if the man spoke the truth. He wondered if, indeed, the -Mystery had not betrayed him after all. If not, what had become of Mr. -Noname? Frank remembered how many times that strange man had appeared -and saved him from his enemies, and he began to wonder if it would not -happen again. - -“Tell me how you found your way into that yard,” commanded Martin -Brattle. - -Frank laughed. - -“That is something for you to find out,” he said. - -“You will not tell?” - -Brattle snapped his fingers. - -“It makes little difference. To-night ends your career in France. You -shall die, Frank Merriwell, and you will never tell anything you may -have learned to anybody else.” - -“Bah!” exclaimed Merry. “You boast; but I doubt if you have the nerve to -carry out your threats.” - -“You will not doubt long. Let me tell you something. Do you see these -men about me?” - -“I am not blind.” - -“They are the most desperate cutthroats in all Paris. There is not one -of them who has not killed his man. They live by robbery and murder.” - -“Well, I see you have chosen fit associates, Brattle.” - -“Don’t get funny!” growled the man. “I don’t like it!” - -“You may not like it, but it is the truth. They are fit associates for -you. You have lived by robbery, and I doubt not that you will be -executed for murder.” - -“Better keep a civil tongue, Merriwell!” snarled Brattle. “You are in my -power, and I can make you die a thousand deaths!” - -“I have but one life, and so you can make me die but one death.” - -Brattle stood with his hands on his hips, scowling down at his victim. -The masked ruffians were farther back. They remained silent, and it is -doubtful if any of them understood what was being said. - -“You do not know me, Frank Merriwell. I have sworn to get even with you -for all you have cost me.” - -“I have known others to swear such an oath. One who did so, a pal of -yours, was drowned in England. Drowning is too easy a death for you.” - -“Go on! You are digging your own grave with your words!” - -“A little while ago you said you had decided to kill me, anyhow. What -difference does it make?” - -“Before I kill you you must tell me where to find Elsie Bellwood. In -what part of Paris is she?” - -“She is not in Paris.” - -“Don’t lie!” - -“I am not lying, Brattle. You have fooled yourself. Elsie did not come -to Paris at all. She is in England.” - -“I do not believe it!” - -Frank laughed shortly. - -“You are at liberty to believe what you like. It makes no difference to -me. I am not telling you this to aid you in any way, but simply to show -you that you have made a fool of yourself by chasing on here to France, -thinking you were following up Elsie Bellwood.” - -“Where is she in England?” - -“That is for you to find out, Brattle.” - -“You refuse to tell?” - -“I do.” - -“I’ll make you tell!” - -“You can’t.” - -“We shall see.” - -Brattle turned to one of the men and asked him in French for his knife. -When he turned back, he held a long, glittering blade in his fingers. - -“Now,” he said, resting one knee on the bench and grasping Frank by the -neck, “we’ll see if you can be made to tell!” - -The point of the knife was at Frank Merriwell’s throat. Merry felt it -pricking there, but he never winced or showed the least sign of fear. - -Brattle was surprised. - -“Can you feel the knife?” he sneered, “or are you too scared to feel -anything, you young fool?” - -“I can feel it very plainly, thank you,” said Frank. “I should say that -the point must be just above my jugular vein.” - -Brattle cried out something in French, and there came muttered -exclamations of astonishment and admiration from the ruffians who were -watching everything. They could not help admiring the nerve of the -captive. In the center of the cellar Bruce Browning was twisting and -straining at his bonds, the veins beginning to stand out like cords on -his face and neck. - -Martin Brattle had seen Frank Merriwell under other circumstances, and -knew Merry was nervy, but this was something more than the villain had -anticipated. - -“If I were to give a very slight pressure, this keen blade would -penetrate your jugular vein, and then all the doctors in Paris could not -give you one hour of life.” - -“That’s right, Brat,” admitted Frank. “When the jugular is penetrated, a -fellow is done for.” - -“Then speak!” ordered Martin fiercely. “Speak, or I will tap the vein, -and you shall see your life-blood spouting from your neck!” - -Browning’s teeth cracked as they grated together. - -“It’s no use,” said Frank coolly; “you can’t force me to speak in that -way, Brattle. Go ahead with your devilish work.” - -Martin Brattle sprang back and stood panting, trembling, and glaring at -his captive. - -“What are you made of?” he faltered. - -“Flesh and blood,” was the answer; “but not the kind of flesh and blood -that quakes before a dastard like you!” - -“Still you know I can kill you!” - -“Yes; but I know you cannot make me squeal. I’d be ashamed to die after -begging to you! It would be dying like a coward! If I must croak, I -prefer to do it like a man! Go on with your work!” - -Whether they understood it or not, some of the masked ruffians, who -stood about with folded arms, murmured as if they were applauding. - -Never before had Bruce Browning felt such admiration for his college -chum. Always had he known Frank was brave, but now he knew he had nerves -of iron. Bruce did not wonder that Merry had been a winner at -everything, for he felt that any man with such nerve could not help -winning. - -Brattle swore. - -“I believe you think I am fooling with you!” he snarled. “I believe you -think I do not dare to kill you!” - -“Quite the contrary,” said Merry promptly; “I believe you are such a -coward that you dare murder me, for no one but a low-lived cur would -think of doing such a thing!” - -Again Brattle sprang on Frank and menaced him with the glittering knife, -on the very point of which was a single drop of blood. - -“Go ahead!” cried Merry. “Don’t be fooling around like this! Finish your -job!” - -Brattle drew off. - -“Not so quick,” he said. “I understand. You are eager that I should do -it, in order to have it over as soon as possible. But I have sworn to -make you tell where I may find Elsie Bellwood, and I’ll do it. Do you -know how I am going to make you do it?” - -“I haven’t an idea.” - -“I’ll tell you.” - -“Do.” - -“I am going to begin by cutting off your fingers one by one.” - -“A nice idea!” - -“Then I shall cut off your ears, your nose, and so on. I shall torture -you by inches till you tell me what I wish to know!” - -“You are a bigger coward than I thought!” observed Merry. “Not only -that, but you are a brute of the lowest type, Brattle. You are not fit -to mingle with men!” - -“Oh, you may say what you like! I have to get revenge on you! You robbed -me of Elsie! You ruined my business in New York! You put the police -after me! You made it necessary for me to fly from the country!” - -“What a fine thing that was for the country!” - -“I followed you to England to get possession of that girl, and also to -get square with you. In London you brought more trouble on me. Because -of you, I lay weeks in a hospital. At first they said I might not -recover, but I vowed that I would not die till I was able to say I had -squared my debt with you. I lived, and I am here to square that debt!” - -“Well, you have made talk enough about it. Go ahead with the job.” - -“You seem anxious to have the torture begin.” - -“Or anxious to have it over.” - -“Well, it will not end very quickly. Do you still fancy I am fooling -with you? Well, you shall see! I will begin right away by taking a -finger from your hand. No; I think I will begin by taking off your -ears.” - -Browning was straining at his bonds again. He saw the wretch bend over -Frank with the knife and reach to slice off one of Merry’s ears. Then, -with a mighty surge, the Yale giant burst his bonds asunder. He tore -himself free, snatched the gag from his mouth, gave a roar like that of -a mad lion, and flung himself on Brattle. - -The villain was knocked down in a moment. He screamed for help, and the -other ruffians attacked Browning. Bruce was a perfect whirlwind. He -caught one of the men up and whirled him round his head like a club, -knocking the others over and tumbling them in heaps. He was magnificent -in his rage and strength. - -“Give it to ’em, Bruce!” cried Merry from the bench, exulting in the -turn the tide had taken. “Lay on, and spare not!” - -“Oh, I’ll give it to them!” roared the big fellow. “I’ll crack their -heads! I’ll mow them down! Where’s that cur who was going to cut off -your fingers and your ears? Let him stand forth! I want to get one more -crack at him!” - -Some of the men fled screaming from the cellar, but more were knocked -stiff and senseless on the cemented floor. Bottles crashed down from the -shelves and barrels were upset. The fight did not last long, for the men -could not stand before the Yale giant. When they had been knocked out, -or had fled, Bruce hastened to set Frank free. - -They looked for Brattle, but he was one who had escaped by flight. - -“We must get out of here,” said Merry. “I fancy we have no time to -lose.” - -“You are right,” said a deep voice, and they looked up to see the Man of -Mystery standing on the stairs. “I have found you at last, led here by -the sounds of battle. I feared I had lost you forever. Come; I will lead -you from this place. You must get out before the gang recovers.” - -They sprang up the stairs after him, and he led them out to the yard -where the battle had taken place. Through the passage which he knew he -escorted them from the yard and brought them to the open street. - -“There,” he said, “you are free. Go!” - -A door closed behind them, and when they tried to open it they were -unable to do so. The Mystery was gone, and to them he remained a mystery -still. - - * * * * * - -“Was it possible, Frank,” cried Bruce, as they were talking it over the -next day, “that you really thought me angry with you? My dear fellow, -that was part of the joke. It was my plan to get back at you.” - -“Well, it was pretty good acting,” laughed Merry. - -“I enjoyed it when I found you were chasing me up. I dodged into that -café by accident, and I found a way out by the back door, which opened -into that little yard. The door closed behind me, and then I felt that -something was wrong. I hammered on it, but it would not open before me. -Then I put my shoulder to it and burst it open.” - -“The pounding and the crash I heard!” exclaimed Frank. - -“I don’t remember much after that till I found myself bound to that -stone pillar in the cellar,” said Bruce. “I think somebody struck me on -the head with a club as I stumbled into the passage.” - -“And I heard you groan!” exclaimed Frank. - -“Well, it has turned out pretty well, even though Brattle escaped. He’ll -meet his just deserts pretty soon.” - -“That is certain,” nodded Frank. “But now I most desire to see the Man -Without a Name and thank him for what he has done. He has promised that -I shall see him again.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER VIII. - - THE BLACK BROTHERS. - - -Paris at night, three days later. - -Frank Merriwell was strolling along the Avenue de l’Opera, which was -lighted as brightly as a ballroom. On either hand were rows and clusters -of tables, where men and women were sitting in the open air, sipping -their cool drinks and chatting animatedly. It was like walking the floor -of a long dining-room. This, Frank told himself, was one of the -pleasures of Paris at night. Nowhere else in the world could such a -spectacle be seen. The promenaders of the boulevards were patrolling the -avenue. They were men whose main ambition in life seemed to be to -acquire reputations as _boulevardiers_, reputations easily obtained by -persistently patrolling certain streets at certain hours day after day, -week after week, month after month. - -About it all there was something strictly and solely Parisian. In Paris -alone could one so quickly imbibe the feeling of utter freedom and so -quickly fling aside all sensation of restraint and unfamiliarity. At -least, so thought Frank just then, as he swung along the avenue, -light-hearted, buoyant, careless. To Merry it seemed that he had not a -care in the world. It seemed that he would never again have a care. - -The appearance of the women sitting out of doors under the trees, with -their heads bare, made the city so homelike and friendly that it was as -if everybody knew everybody else. - -Frank came to the Boulevard des Capucines and paused a moment in front -of the Café de la Paix. Now at his back were the cafés, blazing with -electric lights, blushing in gorgeous upholstery, glittering with -magnificent mirrors, and thronged by well-dressed men and women. Across -the square the Grand Opera-House rose, beautiful, artistic, majestic. - -“I will sit down a few moments,” thought Merry, as he started toward the -table. - -Just then a man stumbled and fell against him quite heavily. His first -thought was that the man must be intoxicated, but he remembered he was -in Paris, and, turning quickly, he saw a refined-looking gentleman, past -middle age, with gray mustache and imperial, pressing his hand to his -heart, while there was a look of distress on his pale face. - -Quick as thought, Frank grasped the man gently and firmly, politely -saying: - -“Permit me, monsieur. Can I be of assistance to you?” - -The stranger gasped as he attempted to reply, and the only word Merry -understood was “Rest.” The young American assisted the stranger to a -seat by the table, and then bent over him solicitously, again asking how -he could be of assistance. - -“You have done all you can, thank you, my friend,” murmured the -gentleman, as his unsteady hand placed his jewel-decorated cane on the -table. “I was seized by a pain in my heart, but it is passing now. You -were about to sit down here. Do not let me prevent.” - -Frank took a chair at the table, and the man looked at him searchingly. - -“If the curiosity is pardonable, may I ask if you are English?” inquired -the stranger, taking a handkerchief from his pocket and using it to -absorb a tiny drop of blood that had appeared on his wrist. - -“I am an American, monsieur.” - -The man showed fresh interest. - -“An American!” he exclaimed, his face still remaining pale. “I might -have guessed it! I have been in America. Americans love justice and -liberty.” - -“You have hurt yourself, monsieur?” said Frank, as the man continued to -press the handkerchief to his wrist. - -“It is nothing—a slight scratch. But I received it in a peculiar manner -a few moments ago. A woman spoke to me. I attempted to pass on, and she -became angry, and struck at me with a hatpin. She barely touched my -wrist here—enough to draw blood.” - -“I had no idea women were so vicious in Paris—at this early hour of the -night.” - -“It’s seldom they are. In London it would not be strange. This woman -spoke French imperfectly. I do not think she was French. At least, I -hope not.” - -“She seemed Spanish in her readiness to strike with a weapon,” said -Frank. “But you are very pale, monsieur, I fear you are harmed in some -other manner.” - -“Your solicitation speaks well for you, and is further proof that you -are American, not English. An Englishman would not take such interest in -a stranger.” - -“Perhaps it is a proof of my freshness,” smiled Merry. - -“Freshness? What do you mean by that?” - -“In English that is slang. It means that a person is too forward, too -presuming, lacking in reserve and discretion.” - -“The American is impulsive, but to me that is his charm. Having been in -America, I know the Americans who come to France do not fairly represent -the people of the country.” - -Frank glowed. - -“I am glad to hear you say that, monsieur!” he cried. “In England, -America is judged by the Americans who come to London, much to the -misfortune of my native land. The newly rich, the uncultured, the bores -and the snobs of America rush to England and France as soon as possible, -and they are taken to be representative Americans.” - -“I know this is true, and I am glad to meet in France a representative -American—outside the Latin Quarter. Monsieur, my card.” - -Frank accepted the white bit of cardboard, on which was engraved: - -“M. Edmond Laforce.” - -“The Duke of Benoit du Sault!” exclaimed Merry, in surprise, looking up. - -“Yes, monsieur,” bowed the Frenchman, lifting his eyebrows. “But how is -it you know that?” - -“Why, you know all America takes a great interest in the Dreyfus case, -with which you have been concerned, or, at least, with which newspaper -reports have connected you.” - -The Duke of Benoit du Sault frowned a little. - -“The newspapers! the newspapers!” he exclaimed. “They have given me the -publicity I shunned. I have sought to do quietly what I could for that -unfortunate man on——Pardon me, monsieur; what do you think of Dreyfus?” - -“I think as think nine Americans out of ten, if not ninety-nine out of a -hundred.” - -“And that is—what?” - -“That Dreyfus is innocent!” - -The face of the duke seemed to clear, although it remained strangely -pale, while there seemed to be something of a hunted look in his -piercing eyes. - -“I am glad to hear you say that,” he spoke in a low tone. “I have known -that America sympathized with him.” - -“My card, monsieur.” - -Frank took his card from a morocco case and passed it across the table, -adding: - -“A friendly exchange, that may serve as an introduction, if you care to -have it so.” - -“Of course I care to have it so, Monsieur Merriwell,” said the duke, -immediately extending his hand, which Frank accepted. - -The young American noticed that the hand of the man was cold as ice, and -it trembled the least bit in his grasp. - -“I am sure, monsieur, that you are not feeling well,” he said. - -“I am feeling strangely,” admitted the Frenchman, with a shrug of his -shoulders. “I do not understand what it is, unless——” - -He shivered again, glancing around with that hunted look. Then he tried -to force a laugh, saying: - -“It cannot be so. For all of the sign, I will not believe my time has -come. I have a work to do, a great work—for the honor of France!” - -Frank had read in the newspapers—Frank’s trip occurred some years -ago—how the Duke of Benoit du Sault had taken up the work for Dreyfus -just where Monsieur Zola had been forced to abandon it, and how by doing -so he had aroused an army of rabid and howling enemies about his ears. -To escape imprisonment, Zola, the great novelist, had fled from France, -and it was more than hinted that the Duke of Benoit du Sault might have -to do likewise. - -Frank was confident of the innocence of Dreyfus, the unfortunate Jew, -who had once been an officer in the French Army, but had been accused of -betraying the army’s secrets to rival powers, had been publicly -disgraced and condemned to life imprisonment on Devil’s Island, a barren -bit of rock and sand, far from France, on the burning bosom of a torrid -sea. - -Merry had read with great interest about the case, and, being a lover of -justice, it was but natural that his soul should be stirred when he -thought how Dreyfus had been convicted and condemned on evidence of -which he knew absolutely nothing. The trial had been conducted in -secret, and the public at large, like the condemned man, knew nothing of -the proofs which established Dreyfus’ guilt. - -The story of Madame Dreyfus’ devotion, and her unceasing efforts in -behalf of her husband had touched Merry. He read how she had appealed to -power after power, but all her appeals had seemed in vain till Monsieur -Zola had cast himself into the arena, like a gladiator, and taken up the -battle. But even Zola, great novelist and political factor as he was, -was unable to stand against the army, and in France “the army can do no -wrong,” so it was claimed that Dreyfus had been justly judged, and all -who sought to show otherwise were enemies of France. The agitation -aroused a terrible sentiment against the Jews, and there were repeated -riots in the courts and on the streets. Zola and his friends contended -against public sentiment and prejudice, and the whole affair which -followed was a travesty of justice. - -Even though the daring novelist was forced to flee from France to escape -imprisonment, the agitation accomplished something. The one man who had -done more than all others to convict Dreyfus was likewise forced to -leave the country. In England he confessed that he, under instructions -of others, had forged the document which had mainly served to convict -the Jew. However, this man Esterhazy had told so many stories about the -case that it was easy now to claim that this was but another lie, and, -strangely enough, in a short time, he retracted the statement. - -When the chief of police was forced to confess that he had forged -certain documents which seemed to establish the guilt of the prisoner of -Devil’s Island, there was a terrible commotion in Paris. The chief of -police committed suicide without delay, or was murdered. The friends of -Dreyfus made another mighty effort to have him brought back to France -and given a fair trial. For a time it looked as if they must succeed, -but all the power of the army was brought against them, and effort after -effort was frustrated. One after another those officers who had been -concerned in the conviction of Dreyfus resigned; but their places were -filled by men who expressed themselves as fully confident that the Jew -had been justly judged. The reversal of the verdict would mean the -disgrace of men high in power, who had been instrumental in certain ways -in bringing about the conviction, and so an innocent man was doomed to -languish out his life in an iron cage on the burning rock of Devil’s -Island, afar in the brassy bosom of a sun-scorched sea. - -There were Frenchmen who believed Dreyfus innocent and who loved justice -enough to desire his innocence proven, even though it rent the republic -in twain. Edmond Laforce, the Duke of Benoit du Sault, was one of these. -He placed his wealth and his life at the disposal of the friends of -Dreyfus, and he set about devoting himself to the mighty task of forcing -France to bring the prisoner back and give him a fair trial. The duke -had tried to do his work quietly, but the newspapers had found out about -him, and Frank Merriwell had read of him. Thus it came about that Merry -knew the man’s title the moment he read his name on the card. - -“You have my sympathy, sir,” assured Frank. “To me it does not seem -possible that fate will permit poor Dreyfus to die on that desolate -island without being brought back and having a fair trial.” - -“The ways of God may not be measured by man,” said the duke solemnly; -“but, like you, I believe that Dreyfus must be brought back, no matter -what may come of it. They say to show him innocent means a revolution in -France—means that the streets of Paris must again run with blood. Let it -come! Better that than to have him die in Devil’s Island and afterward -to have his innocence established. If he is truly guilty, it will be -established beyond a doubt by another trial. That will end it forever. -If he is innocent, it will mean the everlasting disgrace of France to -have him die on that island!” - -For a single moment a flush came into the duke’s cheeks, faint, indeed, -but still perceptible. It faded quickly, and then, of a sudden, he -pressed his hand to his heart once more, uttering a smothered cry of -pain. - -Frank leaned across the table in instant solicitation, a strange feeling -of dread assailing him. - -“What is it, monsieur?” he asked. - -“The pain——” - -“Again?” - -“Yes.” - -“Shall I order something?” - -“A little brandy, please.” - -Frank gave the order quickly, and the brandy was brought at once by a -waiter. With trembling hand the duke lifted the glass and sipped the -liquor. - -“Are you subject to such attacks?” asked Merry. - -The gentleman shook his head. - -“No,” he asserted, “never before a few moments ago have I felt one. I do -not understand it.” - -He stopped speaking, his eyes fastened on the slight scratch on his -wrist, which he had received from the hatpin in the hands of the vicious -woman who had accosted him. He trembled as he looked. - -“Strange!” he murmured, as if speaking to himself. “The pain seems to -shoot from that scratch to my heart. Can it be——No, no! I will not -believe it! The sign was given to frighten me. This is nothing. It will -pass away.” - -Despite his attempt to assure himself, however, it became plain that a -great terror had seized upon him. He fought against it, trying to throw -it off. - -Frank noticed this agitation, and he observed that the duke again looked -round in a hunted manner. No one seemed paying any attention to them. -The duke’s hand fell from his heart to the table, and he leaned toward -Merry. There was a peculiar gleam in his eyes. - -“I have made enemies by the stand I have taken,” he said. “It has proved -fatal for more than one man who espoused the cause of Dreyfus.” - -“It has proved fatal?” questioned the young American. “What do you -mean?” - -“What I have said. More than one has given up his life because he dared -proclaim the innocence of Dreyfus and work to establish it.” - -“I have not heard of such cases.” - -“Of course not. Why should you? The Black Brothers do their work in -silence.” - -“Who are the Black Brothers?” - -“A band of men sworn to keep Dreyfus on Devil’s Island at any cost.” - -“Do you mean to tell me there is such an organization of men in France?” -gasped Frank, in horror. - -“There is.” - -“It does not seem possible!” - -“There are said to be seven of the Black Brothers,” said the duke, -speaking in guarded tones. “They are seven of the most desperate -creatures in all France, and they are the hired assassins of the enemies -of Dreyfus. They are paid to destroy such friends of the condemned man -as may seem dangerous, and they are guaranteed protection by the men who -employ them.” - -“Horrible!” exclaimed Merry. “It’s like a grisly conception of some -romancist. But I think the law would be able to reach the murderers.” - -“Not yet, for as yet there is no proof that they have committed murder.” - -“The victims——” - -“Have died suddenly and strangely, one and all, and yet no man knows the -cause of their death.” - -“How is that?” - -“Each one has been warned to leave France within ten days. One alone has -heeded the warning. The others are dead.” - -“They were murdered?” - -“Of that there can be no doubt, yet on none of them was found a mark to -tell how they died. It seemed that heart trouble cut short their lives.” - -Frank started a bit, thinking how strangely the duke had been seized by -pains in his heart. The Frenchman seemed to read the thoughts of his -companion, and his face appeared to turn yet a shade paler than it had -been. - -“I have fancied that I might be able to detect the manner in which the -Black Brothers do their work,” he said; “but now I fear I shall fail. -The pains at my heart are terrible symptoms, and I fear I am to be the -next victim.” - -“Oh, no! That cannot be!” - -“I have been given the sign.” - -“What sign?” - -“The sign of the Black Brothers! the sign of death!” - -“When?” - -“This is the tenth day since I received it!” whispered the duke. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER IX. - - THE BLOOD-RED STAR. - - -Frank was startled, to say the least. He looked at the man searchingly, -wondering now that the duke could be as calm as he seemed. It was plain -he had more nerve than Merry had thought. - -“The tenth day!” exclaimed Frank. “Then your time is up!” - -“Yes,” said the duke, with strange calmness. - -“That means——” - -Merry stopped. - -“I have told you what it means.” - -“And you have not heeded the warning?” - -“I have not been driven from France.” - -“And you do not fear the Black Brothers?” - -The French nobleman drew himself up proudly. - -“A Laforce never turns his back on danger,” he declared. - -“But such terrible peril! It were different if you could face your -foes.” - -“Yes, it is hard to be beset by unseen peril.” - -“Still you do not fear?” - -The duke hesitated a little, and then spoke slowly. - -“I believe that the bravest may feel fear at times,” he confessed. “In -battle it is different, but when one knows a peril he cannot see may be -creeping upon him slowly and surely he must be made of more than flesh -and blood not to feel a thrill of fear.” - -“It is a terrible thing!” exclaimed the young American earnestly. “It is -like being chained in a pit where the water is rising inch by inch.” - -“It is worse. The prisoner in the pit can see the water rise, but a man -to whom the sign of the Black Brothers has been given knows the danger -is creeping upon him, but he cannot see it.” - -Now Frank felt a strong thrill of admiration for this old Frenchman who -could remain thus cool in the face of an unseen and deadly peril. - -“If you meet the fate of the others—what then?” - -“The assassins cannot destroy every friend of Dreyfus, and justice shall -triumph at last.” - -“But are you willing to be a sacrifice?” - -“No! Still I have lived, and my years to come are not many, at most. If -I fall, I have faith to believe that it will mark the turning-point in -favor of the prisoner of Devil’s Island. I believe that somehow, -sometime, France shall emerge from the clouds and be purged of the stain -upon her.” - -It gave Frank Merriwell a sensation he had never before experienced to -be sitting there before the Café de la Paix, in the heart of Paris, -calmly speaking with a man who had been doomed to death by a mysterious -band of assassins, and who knew that, were the assassins to carry out -their fearful threat, he had not many hours more to live. All around -them was life and pleasure, and nothing but the seriousness of the duke -could impress Merriwell with the real horror of the situation. - -“This sign of which you speak—what is it?” - -Edmond Laforce felt in his pocket and brought something forth. This he -placed upon the table. - -It was a metal star, dark-red in color, with points numbered from one to -seven. Upon it were the words, “Ten days.” Beneath the words appeared -the dreadful death-machine of France, the guillotine. Frank gazed on the -blood-red star with deep interest. - -“This,” said the duke, with forced calmness, “is the sign of the Black -Brothers. The seven points of the star represent the seven members of -the assassin band.” - -“You have kept it!” exclaimed Merry. “Why didn’t you throw the thing -away?” - -“What good? It’s work was done when I received it.” - -“How did it come to you?” - -“I was sitting at dinner in the Deux Mondes. My first order had not been -filled when, happening to glance upon the table before me, I saw this -blood-red star lying there. That is how it came to me.” - -“Ah!” exclaimed Frank, with a sudden feeling of relief. “Then it was not -sent to you direct?” - -“No, in a sense it was not.” - -“You found it by accident.” - -“So it seemed.” - -“And it may not have been meant for you at all!” - -“Perhaps,” said the duke frankly, “that is the reason why I have not -left France. Perhaps, I have thought, it might not be meant for me.” - -“I see,” said the American youth eagerly. “But you know beyond a doubt -that it is the sign of the Black Brothers?” - -“Yes; it is their sign of death. It is strange I have told you all this. -I have not talked to others of it, but something led me to speak to you. -Perhaps it was the strange pains in my heart. They gave me a shock. I -thought of the others who had died suddenly and unaccountably. Your -sympathy with Dreyfus led me to talk on, till now you know all.” - -“Monsieur, it may be you have alarmed yourself needlessly. There is a -chance that you have not been selected as a victim.” - -“A chance—yes. But you must remember that I am marked as a friend of -Dreyfus. It would be most natural that I had been selected to fall by -the Black Brothers.” - -“I understand your feeling in the matter, and I admire your nerve. -Still, I hope you may live to see Dreyfus given a fair and open trial.” - -Laforce was about to speak in reply to this, when he was again seized by -the pains in his heart, and this time they seemed to overcome him for -some moments. Frank arose in agitation, proposing to call for a -physician, but the duke restrained him with a gesture. - -“I shall see my doctor as soon as possible,” he said in a faint voice. - -“I believe you need medical aid at once.” - -“If it is the doom of the Black Brothers, medicine will not save me! I -fear it may be! Who can tell? Wait, and listen. I have in my possession -something that may prove the innocence of Dreyfus. If I should die -suddenly, it must not be found upon me, for it would be sure to fall -into wrong hands. You claim to have sympathy with Dreyfus, and I wish -you to do me a favor.” - -“What favor?” - -The duke again felt in his pocket, producing a metal ball somewhat -larger than an ordinary marble. For a moment he exposed it to Frank, and -then he hid it in his hand. - -“This,” he half whispered, “holds what may some day prove poor Dreyfus -innocent. I am going to give it into your keeping till to-morrow night -at this hour, when I will meet you here, and accept it from you—if I am -living!” - -The duke glanced around, as if to make sure they were not watched, and -then he covertly and quickly passed the tiny metal ball to Frank, who -felt a strange thrill as he received it. - -“Put it away at once,” whispered the Frenchman. “Do not tell a soul that -you have it. Promise me you will not tell.” - -Frank wondered at his readiness to accept the trust, and still more he -wondered at the man’s willingness to trust him, a stranger. Still, he -understood the remarkable position in which Laforce was placed. The man -feared he might drop dead at any moment, and he did not wish the thing -to be found upon him. - -“What if you do not meet me here to-morrow to receive it back?” asked -Merry. - -“I shall be dead.” - -“I know; but what shall I do with it then?” - -“Keep it till the right one calls for it.” - -“The right one?” - -“Yes, Monsieur Merriwell.” - -“How shall I know the right one?” - -“He will give you a signal.” - -“What signal?” - -“He will press his left hand over his eyes, and say, ‘Justice calls.’” - -“Is that all?” - -“That is all. And now, perhaps, it will not be well for us to remain -longer together. I might arouse suspicion if certain ones were to see us -talking thus earnestly for a long time. I have trusted you, not because -I was forced to trust some one, but because your face has told me you -may be trusted.” - -“Thank you, monsieur.” - -Laforce waved his hand. - -“It is I who owe you thanks, Monsieur Merriwell. I hope to see you here -to-morrow evening at this hour.” - -“I hope you may.” - -“Till then, guard that tiny ball with your life, for it may give life -and liberty to the innocent man on Devil’s Island.” - -Edmond Laforce, the Duke of Benoit du Sault, picked his jeweled cane -from the table, and rose to his feet. Frank rose, also, and their eyes -met again. - -“I will not offer my hand again, as we know not what eyes are on us,” -said the duke. “Till to-morrow night—or forever—farewell!” - -He turned, and walked away, and Frank Merriwell returned to his hotel, -to think of the strange things he had heard, and to wonder if they could -be true. The following morning, he read in _Figaro_ that the Duke of -Benoit du Sault had been found dead in his bed. The report stated that -it was plainly and undoubtedly a case of heart failure, but Frank -Merriwell knew that it was murder! - -He sat staring at the paper in a dazed way, thinking of his meeting with -the doomed man the previous night, and all the strange things the duke -had told him across the little table in front of the Café de la Paix. -Now he knew beyond a doubt that the Black Brothers had found another -victim. The strange pains Laforce had felt were but the warnings of his -coming dissolution. - -There was something uncanny and terrible about it, something that gave a -chill to Frank Merriwell’s warm blood. Surely, the enemies of the -prisoner of Devil’s Island were ready to resort to any extreme of crime -to keep the friends of the unfortunate man from securing justice for -him. They counted human lives as nothing in their terrible work. - -And that was France—happy France. - -From the first, Frank had felt sympathy for Dreyfus, and now it seemed -that he was in some way connected with the miserable captive in the iron -cage on that dread island. He felt in his pocket for the tiny metal ball -given him by Edmond Laforce. It was there. He took it out, and examined -it closely, for the first time. It seemed too light to be a solid piece -of metal, and yet he could see no flaw in it, no opening, nothing but -the polished surface. - -The dead Duke of Benoit du Sault had said that the ball might some day -prove the innocence of Dreyfus. How could that be? - -Frank asked himself the question, as he sat there with it in his -fingers, turning it over and over. Was it not possible that the duke had -been mentally unbalanced? - -That was a new thought, and it gave the young American a start. Surely, -the uncanny story the man had told seemed like the imaginings of a -diseased brain, and men had gone mad in France from thinking of the -Dreyfus affair. Perhaps the duke had become crazed from brooding over -it, and had imagined the story of the Black Brothers, the blood-red -star, and the metal ball that was to prove the innocence of the -condemned man. - -It was possible he had caused the star to be made by his own directions. -Or, perhaps, having found it as he claimed, he had woven around it the -weird story which he had revealed to Frank. - -Surely, it was easy enough for a Frenchman who was mentally unsound to -have such conceptions, and to believe in them. But the most remarkable -part of it all was that the duke should die on that night which he -claimed completed the tenth day of grace allotted to him by the Black -Brothers. - -Frank had read that sometimes human beings become so firmly convinced -that they must die at a certain time that they bring about the thing -they fear. Had this been the case with the duke? - -It was possible; and, still, Merry could not quite bring himself to -believe the whole thing had been an hallucination of the dead man’s -diseased brain. He had promised the duke to guard the metal ball with -his life, and he resolved to do so now, even though Laforce was dead. - -As he sat there, staring at the tiny ball, Wellington Maybe, his tutor, -came softly into the room. - -“Mr. Merriwell,” said the little man in a small voice, “I think to-day -we will review——” - -“Nothing,” spoke Frank abruptly, putting the ball back into his pocket. -“I have studied faithfully for the past three days, and to-day I shall -take a rest.” - -“But——” - -“There are no ‘buts’ about it, Mr. Maybe. You are at liberty to spend -the day as you please. I heard you say yesterday that you wished to -visit the art galleries at Versailles. You will have a good opportunity -to-day.” - -Mr. Maybe knew it was useless to argue with Merry, when his mind was -made up, and so he did not attempt it further, but withdrew, shaking his -head, leaving Frank once more to his thoughts. - -“I could not study to-day, after what has happened,” muttered Merry. “I -should be thinking all the time of the Black Brothers, the blood-red -star, and the dead Duke of Benoit du Sault.” - -There was a shout of laughter in an adjoining room, and Rattleton came -bounding into the room, lazily pursued by Browning, who was growling -about some sell he had “bought.” - -“Oh, you’re a mark!” chuckled Harry. “Everybody catches you. You’re a -sucker.” - -“Speaking of suckers,” said Diamond, following them in, “do you remember -the time Browning went fishing in a fresh-water pond, and brought back a -fine string of mackerel.” - -“Oh, that was a lie!” grunted the big fellow, flinging himself down on -an easy chair, and getting out his pipe. “You fellows used to think that -yarn funny. It’s stale now.” - -Rattleton continued to chaff the big Yale man, but Merry took no part in -this, which the others noticed after awhile. - -“What’s the matter, Frank?” asked Diamond. “You look all fussed up. -Anything gone wrong?” - -Frank felt like telling them all about it, but he remembered his promise -to Edmond Laforce, and refrained. - -“Don’t mind me,” he said. “I am not feeling in the best of spirits this -morning.” - -Now, it was such a remarkable thing for him to feel other than in high -spirits that they all stared at him blankly. - -“Why, I thought you were enjoying France since Mart Brattle has ceased -to trouble you?” said Jack. - -“So I am,” assured Merry, rising, and walking to the window, where he -stood, looking out, his hands in his pockets. - -As Frank stood there, he noticed on the opposite side of the wide street -a man, who was lingering in a doorway. The man was dressed in black, and -he looked up at the hotel in a searching way. After a little, he seemed -to observe Merry at the window, and then he drew back into the doorway. -There was something odd about the man’s behavior, which caused Merry to -retreat from the window, but remain where he could see the doorway. -After a time, the man appeared in the doorway again, and gazed up at the -hotel. - -Somehow, Frank felt that the fellow was a spy or shadower. For whom was -he watching? Merry turned from the window, and announced that he was -going out. - -On the street, Frank looked around for the man in the doorway, but could -see nothing of him, which caused him to wonder if he had been wrong in -thinking he was a spy. - -Direct to the Deux Mondes Frank went, and there he made inquiries about -the dead duke. All he learned was that Laforce had retired shortly -before midnight, apparently in good health, and had been found dead in -the morning, the early discovery being made as his door stood slightly -ajar. There were no marks of violence nor anything to indicate the man -had not died a natural death. To Merry, it seemed rather strange that -the duke had left his door open; and, if he had not left it open, why -had it been found ajar in the morning? - -Somehow, it seemed that the hand of death had opened that door. Frank -pictured the grim agent of destruction creeping in on the man as he -slept, and accomplishing the dread work. It was not strange that the -American youth again felt a chill in his warm blood. Frank asked if -there had been anything queer in the behavior of the duke previous to -his death, and was told that he had seemed rather odd and moody for a -few days. - -Then, with all the skill he could command, Merry sought to discover if -there was a taint of insanity in the Laforce blood, but no one seemed to -know that such was the case. The conviction that Edmond Laforce had met -death at the hands of assassins, for all that he bore no mark of -violence, grew upon Frank Merriwell. - -And Frank began to feel that it was his duty to solve the mystery, if -possible. Fate had connected him with the remarkable tragedy, and it -would be cowardly not to accept the commission placed on his shoulders -by chance. As Merry turned to leave the hotel, he noticed a man, who had -been lingering near while he asked the questions. In a moment, he -recognized the man in black, whom he had seen in the doorway opposite -his hotel. - -On the street, Frank walked briskly to the first corner. As he turned -into the next street, he gave a quick backward glance. The shadower in -black was coming! - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER X. - - “JUSTICE CALLS!” - - -“Followed!” - -Merriwell muttered the word. He knew there was a spy on his track. It -was not a pleasant thing to think that it was possible he had been -spotted by the Black Brothers. It was not a pleasant thing to think that -it might be he had been marked as a victim. - -Perhaps he would be the next to receive the blood-red star, the fearful -symbol of death! - -“I’ll make sure he is shadowing me,” thought Frank. - -Then he quickened his steps, turning from street to street, boarded an -omnibus, left it after a little for a cab, and left the cab at the Rond -Point de l’Etoile, where he paused to gaze at the wonderful and -awe-inspiring Arch of Triumph, the grandest triumphal arch ever -constructed, which was erected in commemoration of Napoleon’s victories. -For some minutes Frank quite forgot everything else in viewing the grand -structure, situated at the union of twelve broad and beautiful avenues, -“each of which sweeps away as grandly as the radiance of a search-light -on the sky at night.” - -It was not strange that, for the time, he forgot the black shadow that -had been following him. He turned into the magnificent Avenue des Champs -Élysées. Thoughtfully, he walked along, unmindful of the glittering show -about him. He had fell to meditating once more on the mystery of the -death of Edmond Laforce. Scarcely noting where he was going, he turned -into a side street. - -All at once, he turned square about, and stopped. Frank’s eyes were -keen. At a distance, on the opposite side of the street, a man was -buying a paper at one of the little kiosks at which newspapers are sold -in Paris. - -“It is the shadower!” muttered the American youth, with a strange, -jumping feeling at his heart. “I have not been able to shake him! There -is no doubt about it now—I am spotted!” - -He returned to the hotel, making no further effort to throw the spy off -his track. He found Browning lounging, smoking, and reading. Diamond and -Rattleton had gone out. Ten minutes after entering his room, Frank -approached the window, and looked out. In the doorway, on the opposite -side of the street, was the same figure in black! - -“Browning!” - -“Huah?” - -“Come here.” - -“What’s the matter?” asked the big fellow lazily. “I’m in a blamed -comfortable position.” - -“I want you to come to this window a moment.” - -Grumbling somewhat, Bruce dragged himself up, and walked heavily across -the room. - -“What is it?” he asked. - -Frank flung open the window. - -“Look out,” he directed. - -“I’m looking.” - -In the open window, Frank pointed straight at the man in the doorway. -The man looked up, and saw him, but did not stir, or make an effort to -conceal himself. - -“Do you see that man down there, Bruce—the man in black, who is standing -on those steps?” - -“Yes.” - -“He’s a spotter.” - -“Eh? What?” - -“He has followed me ever since I left this hotel this morning.” - -“The dickens you say!” - -“He was standing just where he stands now when I looked out this -morning.” - -“Well, what’s the matter with him? What’s he want?” - -“I don’t know what he wants, but I know he has followed me everywhere. -After I discovered it, I made an effort to throw him off.” - -“But couldn’t?” - -“No; not even when I dodged round corners, took an omnibus, and then -deserted that for a cab.” - -Browning whistled. - -“Well, that’s queer!” he said. “Do you fancy he’s some ruffian Mart -Brattle has hired to do you up?” - -“Of course, I do not know who or what he is, but I do know he is a spy.” - -“Well, we haven’t any particular use for spies, have we, Merriwell?” - -“It doesn’t seem to me that we have.” - -“Then I’ll just go down and wipe him off the face of the earth!” growled -Bruce. “Rattleton said I needed exercise. This will give me what I -need.” - -“What will you do?” - -“Smash him!” - -“And get yourself into trouble. You will be arrested.” - -“Well, are you going to let every sneak that wants to chase you around -wherever you go?” - -“I do not like it, but you must remember that I have no proof the man -has chased me. When I have such proof, I’ll have him arrested for -annoying me.” - -“Better lead him to some good place where I can get at him. Say, Merry, -get him to follow you down to the river, and I’ll throw him off a -bridge. That’s what he needs—a good ducking will cool him off properly.” - -“I have taken a fancy to corner him first, and demand to know why he has -chased me. I think I’ll go down and do it.” - -“I’m going with you.” - -They descended to the street; but, when they reached it, the man in -black had disappeared, nor could they find anything of him. - -“He took the hint, and sneaked just in time,” muttered Bruce. “Oh, if I -could have thumped him once!” - -They lunched together, Rattleton and Diamond having failed to return to -be with them. Wellington Maybe had gone to Versailles. The afternoon was -spent in the Bois de Boulogne, and, although Frank looked for him often, -no more was seen of the shadow in black. - -At the hour that evening when he had agreed to meet Edmond Laforce in -front of the Café de la Paix, Frank was there, sitting at the same -little table. To save his life, he could not tell why he had come there. -Something had seemed to draw him, and he came alone. - -Thus far, he had said nothing to his friends and companions about his -meeting with Laforce, and the strange things that followed. In part, he -had promised secrecy to the dead man, and he knew he could not tell a -part without revealing the whole, unless he placed himself in an awkward -position. He sat there, watching the flow of life around that table, and -thinking of the Black Brothers, the blood-red star, and the mysterious -metal ball which might hold the fate of Dreyfus, and which lay safely in -his pocket. He wondered when any one would call for that ball, if ever. -How could any one know it was in his possession? - -As he was thinking of this, a man paused a moment squarely in front of -the table, looked straight at Frank, and spoke two words: - -“Justice calls!” - -These words gave Frank a great start, for, despite all that had -happened, they were most unexpected. But the sign that was to accompany -the words was not given. The man did not cover his eyes with his hands. - -Merry waited for this, and was about to speak, when the stranger added: - -“Not here. Follow.” - -Then he turned, and walked slowly away, not once looking back. - -Frank hesitated. The signal had not been complete, nor had the man -seemed to expect to receive anything there. It was plain he fully -expected Frank would follow. Perhaps he had not wished to receive the -metal ball there in that public place, and so he had given enough of the -signal for Merry to understand, and follow him to a place more suited. -Frank arose. As he did so, his hand slid round to his hip, where he felt -a loaded revolver nestling in his pocket. - -“It’s more than even chances I shall not need it,” he muttered; “but it -is there, in case I do.” - -He was half tempted to remove it to another pocket, from which it could -be produced more easily and expeditiously, but, being aware he could not -do this without being seen by those around, he refrained. - -The man who had spoken to him was crossing the square, and Merry -followed at a distance. The man turned into the Rue Auber, and still he -did not look back. It seemed plain that he fully expected Frank to -follow him without hesitation. - -Merry felt that he was entering upon a most peculiar adventure, and he -seemed to scent danger in the air. There was something mysterious and -awesome about the affair. He felt that an unseen tie connected him with -the wretched captive far away on a barren, rock-bound island, in the -midst of a torrid sea. Perhaps, at that moment, he held the fate of -Dreyfus in his grasp! - -Frank was resolved that no man should receive the metal ball from him -till he had first given the signal complete, as described by Edmond -Laforce. - -“Guard that tiny ball with your life,” the duke had said. - -“I will!” Frank vowed. - -The man he was following turned into another street, and still Merriwell -followed him, on and on. After a time, the youth began to wonder if he -had not been mistaken. Surely, the man would pause, or look back, if he -had expected Frank to follow. - -“Well, as long as I have pursued him thus far, I’ll keep it up,” Merry -decided. - -At last, the man stopped before a little shop, from the windows of which -a light shone. Still without looking back, he lifted his hand, and -pointed at the door of the shop. Then he entered. In front of that shop, -Frank stopped. In his ear something seemed whispering a warning. - -“If I am in danger,” he thought, “where is Mr. Noname, who has warned me -so many times?” - -And he actually looked around, as if expecting to see the Man Without a -Name near at hand. Whether Frank was in danger or not, Mr. Noname did -not appear. - -“I have seen nothing of him since the night he led me out of the trap -into which Mart Brattle had lured Browning and myself.” - -And it really seemed that the strange man would appear if there was any -great danger for Frank. Again Merry’s hand went back to his revolver. He -took it from his hip pocket, and dropped it into a side pocket of the -coat he wore. - -“It’s ten to one I am making a fool of myself,” he said. “I am an -American, and there is no reason why the Black Brothers should select me -for a victim. I am not dangerous enough for them to feel that my life -must come to an end.” - -Then he entered the shop. - -An old man, with spectacles set astride his nose, was in the front room. -He bowed to Frank, saying softly: - -“Monsieur, the gentleman waits for you in that room.” - -He pointed to a narrow door that was standing open. It was plain now -that Frank had not been deceived in following the man who had spoken to -him before the Café de la Paix. That man had known he would follow, and -the old man in the shop had expected him to enter. - -Wondering what would happen next, Frank passed through the narrow door. -The man he had followed was standing in the middle of the small room, -beside a table, on which stood a lighted lamp. He bowed gravely as -Merriwell appeared. He had a thin, sharp face, and a pair of unpleasant -eyes. - -“Monsieur,” he said, “justice calls!” - -He held out his hand as he spoke. - -Frank Merriwell looked him straight in the eyes for a moment, and then -quietly said: - -“Justice has often called in vain.” - -He did not offer to take the little ball from his pocket and pass it to -the man, for the signal was not complete. They stood there in silence, -looking at each other, the young American cool and self-possessed, the -Frenchman stern-faced and frowning. Frank fancied that the man showed -disappointment. - -Once more the stranger repeated the words: - -“Justice calls!” - -Frank was tempted to turn his back, and walk out of the place without -another word. He had vowed to hold fast to the little ball till the -proper signal was given, and something seemed to tell him that this -unknown man who sought possession of it had no right to claim it. - -After some seconds, the stranger said: - -“Justice should not call in vain to you, for you have what may give -justice to one who is in sore need of it. Come, monsieur, I am waiting.” - -“There is another who is waiting in an iron cage. It seems that the ways -of justice are so slow that his short life may be spent in waiting.” - -“Then you are his enemy?” cried the man. - -“He has many enemies,” said Frank evasively. - -“But you—you have been trusted as a friend.” - -“Why should I be trusted? I am an American. He is nothing to me.” - -“Do you speak the truth?” - -“Why should he be aught to me? He is not a countryman of mine. If France -sees fit to let him rot in his prison cage, what is it to me? It is her -disgrace.” - -The moment he spoke those final words, Frank was sorry, for he saw he -had lost an opportunity to draw the man on by deceiving him into -believing he had no sympathy with the captive of Devil’s Island. He had -begun well, but deception formed no part of Frank Merriwell’s nature, -and it was hard for him to repress his real feelings. A strange smile -came to the face of the man. He shrugged his shoulders, and nodded. - -“You are right—you are discreet, Monsieur American. It may be well for -you to have a care, and take no interest in the captive of whom you -speak, but you have been given a trust. I have come to relieve you of -that.” - -“When the right man comes, he may receive what he seeks. You have failed -to convince me that you are the right man.” - -Frank retreated a step toward the door, keeping his eyes on the man -before him, and his hand near the hidden revolver. Now Merry knew he was -in danger, for he was convinced that the stranger had no right to the -metal ball that was said to hold in its heart the fate of Dreyfus. - -The Frenchman fixed his piercing eyes on Merry, saying quietly: - -“Wait a little. Let’s talk it over.” - -“There is no more to be said.” - -“You have what I seek. I have called for it, and I have given the -signal.” - -“Have you?” - -Frank was cool. He had slipped a hand into the side pocket of his coat, -and his fingers gripped the butt of his revolver. The coolness of the -American youth seemed to anger the other. - -“You know I have!” he cried. “If you refuse to give it up, you are false -to your trust!” - -“If I gave anything to you, I should be false to my trust.” - -“Why?” - -“Because you are an impostor, a fraud!” - -“Harsh words, Monsieur American!” - -“But true. You know it. You thought to deceive me, but you have failed.” - -“Oh, come,” purred the man in an oily manner. “Why is all this? I came -to you in the manner that you expected one to come. I have done my part; -do yours. Justice calls.” - -“It is useless for you to repeat those words. From your lips, they are -meaningless.” - -Frank had retreated to the door. Now he placed a hand behind him, and -made a discovery. The door was closed! It had swung quietly to behind -him. - -The Frenchman smiled into his face, and he realized that he was trapped! - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XI. - - BRUANT, THE STRANGLER. - - -Frank Merriwell removed his hand from his coat pocket, and his fingers -gripped the butt of a revolver, on the shining barrel of which the -lamplight glinted. At that moment, he felt disgusted with himself -because he had walked into the snare, and yet it was not strange he had -done so, for the failure of the man to give the complete signal before -the Café de la Paix had seemed natural enough, considering the publicity -of the place. Naturally, Merry had reason that he should follow the man -to some more secluded spot, where the complete signal would be given, -and he would surrender the precious ball, without being seen by eyes -that should know nothing of its whereabouts. But now it seemed plain -that the man knew no more than the words of the signal, and that did not -make it complete. This being the case, Frank had no thought of giving up -the tiny ball. - -The door had closed softly behind him, and he was alone in that room -with the man he had followed there. His hand found the knob of the door, -and he satisfied himself that it was fastened. Again the Frenchman -smiled into his face, a smile of craft and triumph. - -“Monsieur should not hurry,” he said in his purring voice. “I am sure he -will not hurry, for I wish to talk with him more.” - -The man saw the revolver in Frank’s hand, but he seemed to heed it very -little. Merry leaned against the door, crossing his feet. He was quite -as cool as the Frenchman. - -“Perhaps you are right,” he said. “I had thought to keep an engagement, -but it is rather late, and it will make little difference if I do not -appear. I shall make an excuse that I was in very detaining company.” - -“Monsieur is skilful in the use of words, and he speaks French -beautifully. One might almost believe him a Frenchman, from listening to -his language. Won’t you sit down?” - -The man motioned toward a chair near the table, on which stood the lamp, -bowing politely. - -“After you, monsieur,” said the American youth, with equal politeness, -indicating another chair. “I do not like to sit with my back toward the -door, for doors unexpectedly opened sometimes admit dangerous drafts.” - -“It will not be politeness for me, as your host, to be seated first,” -protested the man. - -“Perhaps we had better disregard the matter of form on this occasion. -There are times when it is not well to be too conventional. I pray you -be seated first.” - -“Very well; but I ask your pardon, in advance, for the breach.” - -The man started to sit down. - -“Not there, my dear friend,” said Frank. “Be kind enough to take the -chair to the left.” - -“As you like,” said the man, with a shrug of his shoulders. - -He sat down; and then, still holding his revolver in his hand, Frank -advanced to the table, and sat on the chair the man had first attempted -to take. - -“This is more comfortable,” said the Frenchman. “It distressed me to see -you standing.” - -“The ease with which you are distressed over the inconvenience of others -does you great credit,” said Merry, with a curl at the corners of his -lips. “Now we are seated, you are at liberty to say whatever you have to -say.” - -“Thank you,” bowed the man, placing his hands on the table before him, -and leaning slightly toward Merry. - -Frank noticed those hands for the first time. Although the fingers were -long, they were also thick and muscular, and there was something about -them suggestive of great strength. The man saw Merriwell looking at his -hands, and a strange, chilling smile hovered on his face. - -“What do you think of them?” he asked. - -“Eh? Of what?” - -“My hands.” - -“Why do you ask?” - -“I saw you looking at them. Are they not very strong?” - -“They seem to be.” - -“They are. There are no hands in Paris like them. They are the most -famous hands in all this city.” - -Frank wondered what the man could mean by all this. - -“What do I care about your hands!” he cried, forgetting for the moment -his assumption of suavity. “I did not stop here to talk of them.” - -“No, monsieur; you stopped here because the door was closed.” - -“I believe you are right.” - -The Frenchman bowed. - -“I am sure I am right,” he said. “But I saw you looking at my hands. -They attracted your attention. It is not strange. They are very strong. -Look.” - -He spread the sinewy fingers out till his hands looked like huge talons, -and then he brought them slowly together, as if gripping something, and -crushing it. There was something so horribly suggestive about this -action that the lips of the American youth were pressed together, and -there was a frown on his forehead. - -“If I had something within the grasp of those fingers,” purred the man -across the table, “they would close just the same. They can crush -anything but iron, and that they can bend.” - -“I beg your pardon,” said Frank impatiently. “Was it to boast of the -strength of your hands that you induced me to stay?” - -“I thought of telling you about it, my cool young friend from America. -After I have told you all, we will talk of something else.” - -The hands unclosed, and lay on the table. Surely, there was something -fascinating about them, and Frank took his eyes from them with -difficulty. - -“Now,” said the Frenchman, in that same purring voice, “suppose that -those hands were to close on a human throat, Monsieur American. What -chance would the owner of that throat have to escape with his life? They -would crush the windpipe, and end a human life with ease. I did not lie -to you when I told you those hands were the most famous in all Paris. -They have given me my name.” - -Frank was silent. - -“I have used those hands,” continued the man, “and I expect to use them -again—perhaps to-night. They have felt human throats!” - -Merriwell felt a creepy sensation stealing over him. - -“Did you ever hear of Claude Bruant?” asked the man. - -“Never.” - -“Then you have not been long in Paris. I am Claude Bruant, but I have -another name, given me in honor of the work these hands have done. I am -more often called The Strangler!” - -“A very pretty name for a man like you, and most appropriate,” said the -American youth, with unruffled coolness. “I should say it fitted you -very well. But there are ropes that strangle, as well as hands, and in -France the guillotine is sometimes used by the executioner. Sometime you -may discover how very beautifully it works!” - -The lips of the man curled back from his teeth in a wolfish smile. The -nerve of this youth, scarcely more than a boy, was too much for him. If -he had thought to terrify Frank Merriwell, he realized now that he had -failed utterly. For all of his anger and disappointment, which were -betrayed by that wolfish smile, he could not help admiring the lad who -had remained unruffled by all he had said. - -That the American appreciated the situation was certain, for he had been -keen to scent danger, and his language had shown that he possessed an -unusually acute brain. The Strangler knew little of Americans, save what -he had seen of them in Paris, and he had fancied that they could be -intimidated with ease. He had expected to become more blunt and direct -in his threats, but now he felt that it would be useless. - -Still, he was angry, and further threats came rolling to his tongue -without being summoned. - -“You are very clever, Monsieur American!” he sneered; “but there is such -a thing as being too clever. Do you know that?” - -“Without doubt, you are right, Monsieur Strangler. You have shown -considerable cleverness yourself, but you are bound to overstep the -limit in time, and then——Well, you know.” - -“Ah, monsieur, I fear you will not live to see that time!” - -“There is no reason why I should not, for I am much younger than you.” - -“Accidents will happen, you know. A strong hand, or two of them, might -find the way to your throat.” - -“I hardly fear there is danger of that. A bullet is much swifter than -human hands.” - -Frank smiled as he handled his revolver. - -“And do you know how to shoot?” - -“Monsieur, there is a fly crawling toward the lobe of your left ear. If -you will permit me, I’ll guarantee to shoot him off without breaking the -skin on your ear, and then there will be no flies on you.” - -Frank rested his elbow on the table, and pointed the revolver at Bruant. - -Instantly the man held up those fearful hands, with the palms toward the -young American, saying: - -“I beg you will not shoot! Not that I fear harm, of course; but that is -a pet fly of mine, and he has a way of crawling to the lobe of my left -ear every evening at about this hour. If you were to destroy him, I -should miss him very much.” - -“That being the case, I would not think of harming him for the world; -but, if you will turn your head, I’ll agree to brush the dust from your -eyebrows without ruffling them in the least.” - -“Monsieur, it would be easy to hit a large mark across a table, but -could you hit a small mark across a room?” - -“I am willing to exhibit my skill. If you will hold a cigarette in your -teeth, I think I may be able to clip it close to your lips, without -knocking out a single tooth, or drawing blood.” - -“That would be very good; but would you yourself dare make such a test?” - -“It is an easy thing for you to learn. All you have to do is to take a -cigarette in your lips, and stand against that door yonder.” - -“Thank you, but I am certain you will not urge me to arise after I have -assured you that I am much tired, not having slept well for several -nights.” - -“As you like. It was for your pleasure I proposed giving the exhibition -of my skill. Under any circumstances, you should not doubt my ability to -hit a man across a table.” - -“Let us talk of other things.” - -“As you choose,” bowed Frank, feeling well satisfied by what had passed -between them. - -“It is needless to waste words,” said Bruant. - -Merry lifted his eyebrows. - -“You make the discovery after a great many have been wasted,” he smiled. - -“Now I will talk direct.” - -“Do!” - -“You have what I want.” - -“Still you continue to waste words, for you told me that once before.” - -“Well, monsieur, I tell you so again!” came rather sharply from the -Strangler, his suavity beginning to break down before the coolness of -the young American. “You have what I want. I led you here to obtain it -from you.” - -“You have been to considerable trouble.” - -“And I am not to be baffled!” - -“You may promise yourself that as much as you like, but you must seek no -such assurance from me.” - -“I promise you that! As truly as that door is closed, you shall not -leave this room till it is delivered to me! On it the fate of a good man -depends, and I must have it! Why attempt to baffle the efforts of -justice by seeking to keep it?” - -“Why attempt to deceive me, Monsieur Strangler? You are not the friend -of justice, but of something quite different. There is no reason why I -should deliver anything into your hands.” - -“You value your own life?” - -“That I will admit.” - -“Then, that is reason enough.” - -“I shall defend my life with this weapon. Further than that, what is to -hinder me from compelling you to rise and escort me from this room? I -have a weapon in my hand, and I can put a piece of lead through your -body in a twinkling, if I choose. Were you to refuse, I might shoot -you.” - -“And that would be a serious thing for you.” - -“Not in this case, which would be purely one of self-defense. By your -words, it is evident that Claude Bruant, the Strangler, is known in -Paris, and it would not matter much if one of his intended victims were -to end his life. In fact, it seems probable that every honest man would -rejoice, and the one who did the deed would be applauded, if not -rewarded.” - -“You have that matter reasoned out to your own satisfaction, I presume?” - -“Fully.” - -“Well, let me tell you that the friends of the Strangler are within -call. Were you to become careless with that pistol——” - -“I should not give you time to call.” - -“The report of the weapon would suffice. My voice would not be needed.” - -“How many friends have you near?” - -“Oh,” grinned Bruant, with a shrug of his shoulders, “there are -enough—four or five.” - -“Five—not more?” - -“Why are you so anxious to know?” - -“Because this revolver holds six shots. That would be one for you and -each of your five friends. I really think I had better begin on you, and -let the others come along later. I’ll take them as they come!” - -The astounded Frenchman began to fear that the American really -contemplated carrying out the idea. - -“Wait a little!” he urged. “You can save yourself trouble by handing -over the article. When you have done that, you will be permitted to -depart unharmed. I will guarantee that not a hand shall be raised -against you.” - -“You are very kind!” - -“Then you will comply?” - -“No.” - -“You refuse to give it up?” - -“I have nothing to give you.” - -At last, Bruant realized that the American could not be wheedled or -frightened into handing over the metal ball. Indeed, all this talk had -been a waste of words, and the anger in Bruant’s heart was intense. A -sudden idea came to him. One thing he had not tried. Fool that he was, -he had forgotten that all Americans are ready to sell their very souls -for money! - -The Strangler grinned with sudden satisfaction. He leaned on the table -close by the lamp, lowering his voice. - -“Monsieur American,” he said, “what you have is very valuable to me, and -I am willing to pay for it. I was wrong in not coming to an -understanding concerning its value at once. I will buy it from you, and -you shall be well paid.” - -There was a dark frown on the face of Frank Merriwell, and he looked as -if he longed to dash his clenched fist into the evil face that was -grinning at him with sudden satisfaction. - -“You have made a mistake, Monsieur Strangler,” he said grimly. “I have -nothing to sell you.” - -Bruant stared. - -“But, perhaps, you doubt that I will pay? Oh, I can give you positive -assurance of that!” - -“I do not need it.” - -“I will bring the money here to this room, and place it on this table, -before you.” - -“Spare yourself the trouble.” - -“It may be you doubt me? It may be you think I will bring you harm? Then -we will both sit still, and I will call old Mezin to bring the money.” - -“I tell you that you are giving yourself needless trouble.” - -“Wait till I have named a price.” - -“Bruant,” said Frank Merriwell clearly and distinctly, “you cannot -command enough money to buy anything of me! Do you think I’d touch one -coin of your crime-stained money! I should feel that every piece was -dripping with the blood of Dreyfus!” - -“Most Americans are not such fools!” - -Bruant had quite lost control of his temper now, and he snarled the -words. - -“Most Americans cannot be bought with ill-gotten coin!” - -“Then you absolutely refuse, at any price?” - -“I do!” - -They looked at each other across the table, defeat flushing the dusky -face of the Strangler with black blood. There was nothing but utter -fearlessness in the face of the young American. - -The Frenchman turned his head toward the lamp, and gave a sudden great -puff. Then, as it went out, plunging the room in darkness, he sprang to -one side, and flung himself bodily across the table, his hands diving -out in search of a human throat! - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XII. - - M. DE VILLEFORT. - - -Frank Merriwell’s movements had been equally swift. The instant the -light went out, he swung his body far to one side, and thus it happened -that Bruant’s hands grasped nothing when he made that savage clutch -across the table. But the violence of his spring flung the table against -Frank, who was unable to extricate himself, and over they went, with a -crash, upon the floor. - -A curse escaped the lips of the Strangler. - -“You can’t escape my hands!” he hissed. - -He caught hold of Merry, and it was wonderful how swiftly his hands -leaped up to the throat of the young American, and fastened there. Frank -felt that the supreme moment had come. He pushed the muzzle of his -revolver against one of the fellow’s elbows, and fired upward. The -bullet must have shattered the man’s arm, and the hold on Frank’s throat -relaxed in a moment. - -“Hereafter,” said the American youth, “you will do your strangling with -one hand!” - -A furious snarl of anger and pain came from the wounded wretch, and, -striking out with his fist, judging well where to hit, Frank Merriwell -struck Bruant down in the dark. Then, in a most remarkable manner, he -found his way across the room to the door that had closed behind him -when he entered. Satisfied he had reached the door, he flung his -shoulder against it, and burst it open. - -The old man in the front shop stared at him, open-mouthed. - -“Monsieur,” said Frank quietly, “the man in the back room needs the -services of a skilful surgeon.” - -Then he walked out of the place, and no hand was raised to halt him. He -was not a little surprised at the easy manner in which he had escaped, -for he had expected to fight his way out of a nest of desperadoes. - -Even after he was on the street, and walking swiftly from that spot, it -did not seem possible he had been fortunate enough to get away so -quickly, and with such little difficulty. On leaving the shop, he had -returned the revolver to his pocket, as a man hurrying along the streets -of Paris at night, with a loaded revolver in his grasp, is sure to -attract considerable attention. - -Just then attention was something little desired by Frank. He had been -forced to use his revolver in self-defense, but he had not shot to kill. -He felt sure he had simply broken the arm of the man who had clutched -his throat. When it was all over, Frank wondered somewhat at his perfect -tranquillity, for he was not shaking in the least. - -In Paris, he had expected to rest, and enjoy life. He had fancied no -dangers would beset him there, but he had found such dangers as he had -seldom known, and his adventures were of the most sensational nature. -When he was a little distance from the shop, he felt in his pocket, to -make sure the precious metal ball was still there. His fingers found it, -and he was well satisfied. - -“Not till the right one comes will I part with it,” he muttered. - -Now he felt certain the Duke of Benoit du Sault had spoken nothing but -the simple truth when he claimed that in some manner the tiny ball might -help to establish the innocence of the captive of Devil’s Island. No -longer was he inclined to believe the duke mentally unbalanced. He was -now willing to accept the story of the Black Brothers and the blood-red -star. It was uncanny and weird enough, and still it aroused in him a -desire to solve the mystery, and learn the whole truth. - -Frank walked swiftly, now and then turning, to make sure he was not -followed. Unstopped and unmolested, he made his way straight to the -hotel. There he found Diamond and Rattleton, engaged in a game of -pinochle, while Browning reclined on a couch, and filled the room with -smoke. Tutor Maybe was sleeping soundly in bed, where he had been for -some hours. - -“Look here, Merriwell,” cried Rattleton, as Frank appeared, “this thing -must stop!” - -“That’s right,” grunted Browning, while Diamond looked at Merry -reproachfully and accusingly, and said nothing. - -“What’s the matter with you fellows?” asked Frank, with a smile. - -“Looks happy, doesn’t he?” chuckled Rattleton, winking at Bruce. - -“As a clam,” said the big fellow. “He must have had a very pleasant time -this evening.” - -“I have,” confessed Merry. “I have enjoyed myself exceedingly, I assure -you.” - -“The brazen creature!” gasped Rattleton. “My! my! but I never thought it -of him!” - -“Nor I,” came from the big fellow on the couch. “I say, Merry, what’s -her name?” - -“What’s who’s name?” - -“Oh, don’t give us any of that!” said Harry. “It won’t go with this -crowd!” - -“I should say nit!” growled Bruce good-naturedly. “Own right up like a -man. What’s her name? Is she an artist’s model? Oh, I’ll bet you’ve been -over in the Quarter!” - -“And only away from Elsie Bellwood such a short time!” said Diamond, -more in reproof than in jest. “I did not think it of you, Frank!” - -Frank laughed pleasantly. - -“My dear boys,” he said, “you are off your trolleys.” - -“Now, don’t tell us there isn’t a girl in it!” shouted Rattleton, -flinging down his cards, and rising to his feet. “I have always regarded -you as the soul of veracity, and I do not wish to lose faith in you -now.” - -“Remember, my dear boy,” said Browning in a fatherly way, “that you are -in Paris—naughty Paris. You must have a care not to lose your veracity -along with your other good qualities.” - -“It is the second evening you have been out alone,” said Harry. “You are -not in the habit of meandering around all by yourself in a strange city. -You are a person who enjoys company.” - -“I’m afraid he’s had company enough,” said Diamond soberly. - -Now, when Frank thought of what had actually happened, and what his -friends seemed to imagine had happened, he sat down and laughed most -heartily. - -“He’s becoming depraved fast!” exclaimed Rattleton. “He can laugh over -it in a heartless manner.” - -“Yes; he’s going to the dogs, sure enough!” grunted Bruce. “It’s a -shame! He was able to withstand temptation till he came here to naughty -Paris.” - -“Boys,” said Diamond, “I’m afraid it’s no joking-matter.” - -And that made Frank laugh still harder. - -Wiping his eyes, Merry said: - -“My dear Diamond, surely you have not been affected by the air of Paris? -You are constant enough to Juliet, whom you left in England.” - -Jack’s face turned crimson. - -“Oh, that’s nothing serious!” he protested, scowling at Frank, and -trying to make Merry understand that he did not wish too much said -before the others. - -But Harry and Bruce were quick to catch on, and they made it rather warm -for Diamond for some minutes. - -“Oh, you fellows think you are smart!” exclaimed the Virginian. “You are -ready to turn from Frank any time, and pick at me, but you can carry it -too far!” - -“Take your medicine,” advised Browning. “Don’t fly off the handle. You -must stand a little jollying, when your turn comes. You laughed with the -others when the alarm-clock joke was worked on me.” - -The boys tried to induce Frank to tell where he had been, but he kept -them guessing, till, at last, Browning and Rattleton gave up in disgust, -and went to bed. Frank was preparing to retire, when Diamond came and -sat down near-by. Merry took the revolver from his pocket, wiped it out, -and slipped a fresh cartridge into the cylinder. Jack regarded him -curiously while he was doing this. - -“Have you been carrying that around?” asked the Virginian. - -“I took it with me this evening,” nodded Merry. - -“And used it?” - -“Yes.” - -“For what purpose?” - -“I am not in the habit of using a pistol unless it is necessary.” - -Diamond looked puzzled and troubled. - -“See here, Frank,” he said, “you have been acting rather strange for a -day or two.” - -“Have I?” - -“Yes. What’s up?” - -“Perhaps I may tell you sometime.” - -“Merriwell, am I your friend?” - -Frank turned about, and faced Diamond, who looked very grave and -earnest. - -“I sincerely hope you are, and I have every reason to believe so,” he -said. - -Jack was nervous. - -“I have something to say to you,” he faltered. - -“Well, old man, I am ready to listen. Go ahead.” - -Plainly, it was not easy for the Southerner to begin. Frank was -surprised to see Jack so embarrassed. - -“I am ready to listen,” said Frank quietly. “Fire away, old man.” - -“Merriwell, as I am your friend, I hope you will take in good part what -I have to say.” - -“Don’t fear about that, Jack. Go ahead.” - -“I know Paris is a rather giddy place, and—and——” Jack paused, to clear -his throat, flushing, and looking more embarrassed than ever. “There is -something in the atmosphere here that seems to take hold of the most -staid.” - -“Yes; a fellow feels new life and buoyancy.” Frank wished to say -something to encourage the Virginian, although he was wondering more -than ever what his companion could be driving at. - -“Yes. Some old men, who must be good, sober citizens at home, act in a -most ridiculous manner as soon as they come here. I have seen some of -them in this hotel. They are giddy, and they make me sick!” - -“But I fail to see what connection this has with me.” - -“Er——Oh, it doesn’t have any real connection, but——Why, what I want to -say is, that you have—you have acted rather strange for a day or two.” - -“You said that before.” - -“I believe I did. Don’t you ever think of Elsie since coming to Paris, -Frank?” - -“Every day.” - -“But, you know, you have been so strange—you have taken to going out -alone—and—and you haven’t seemed to want anybody to go with you, -especially at night. Now, Frank, are you sure you have not been affected -by the atmosphere here? Are you sure you think of Elsie as much as you -should?” - -Frank stared in open-mouthed amazement for some moments, and then he -dropped on a chair, bursting into a hearty, ringing laugh. - -“By Jove!” he cried. “I didn’t think that was what you were driving at, -old man! I didn’t suppose you could really think such a thing of me! Oh, -say, it’s too much! And you are all ready to give me a dose of fatherly -advice! Oh, ha! ha! ha! Say, this is the funniest thing yet!” - -Jack was crimson. - -“Don’t!” he pleaded; “don’t laugh at me like that! Those fellows will -hear you, and they’ll be rubbering around in a minute! Please don’t -laugh, Frank!” - -“How can I help it?” gasped Merry, trying to repress his mirth. “It is -too ludicrous! And you really thought I must be running after a girl, or -girls, because I have acted odd! Oh, Jack!” - -“Well, now, you must confess that I had reasons. Rattleton and Browning -think so, too.” - -“Do they? Well, let them think. It makes no difference to me. I will -take the trouble to tell you that nothing of the kind has happened. -Don’t be silly, old man. I appreciate all the good advice you were about -to give me, but it isn’t needed.” - -Diamond felt decidedly awkward, but Frank put him at his ease with a few -words. The Virginian apologized, but Merry assured him that apologies -were not needed. - -“Perhaps to-morrow, or the next day,” he said, “I may have something to -tell you.” - -“If you are in danger——” began Jack. - -“One never knows when danger may come,” interrupted Frank. - -“You seldom carry a revolver. When you do——” - -“It is liable to be needed.” - -“And you needed it to-night?” - -“Rather. I used it.” - -Merry would make no further explanation, and Diamond went to bed that -night much mystified and not a little troubled. - -It was not at all remarkable that Frank Merriwell did not sleep very -well that night. Surely, it would have been remarkable if he had. His -slumbers were broken by dreams of blood-red stars, men in black, and a -pair of large, sinewy, evil hands. In his dreams, he fought again and -again to keep those hands from his throat. - -In the morning, his friends noticed that he looked worn and unlike -himself. Diamond, perhaps, thought most of it, and he decided that Merry -must be in some serious trouble. Jack longed to urge Frank to unbosom -himself, but felt that it might be better to wait till Merry should do -so of his own accord. After breakfast, Merriwell began pegging away at -his studies, much to the satisfaction of Tutor Maybe. Browning, Diamond, -and Rattleton went out for an “airing.” - -Midway in the forenoon a card was brought Frank. On it was engraved the -name, “Murat de Villefort.” Beneath the name was written, with a -lead-pencil, “Justice calls!” Murat de Villefort proved to be a tall, -slender, supple-appearing man, with a coal-black mustache and imperial. -His face was rather harsh and stern, but his manners were pleasant and -acceptable. - -Frank surveyed the man critically, wondering if he could be another -impostor. - -“Monsieur Merriwell,” said the visitor, “I trust you will be glad of the -opportunity to get rid of your charge.” - -“Of what do you speak?” asked Frank evasively. - -“I speak of that for which I have called.” - -“You will have to speak still more plainly, monsieur.” - -“Excuse me,” said M. de Villefort coldly. “I fear you are demanding too -much. You have but to discharge your duty, and deliver it into my -hands.” - -“When I am certain it will be discharging my duty, I may deliver the -‘it’ of which you speak. You are not the first who has sought it.” - -“I am not?” - -“No.” - -“But you have not let it go?” cried the man in apparent alarm. “Don’t -tell me you have let it pass from your hands! _Mon Dieu!_ If you have, -all is ruined!” - -He seemed very sincere in his alarm. - -“I assure you that nothing passes from my hands till I am certain it -passes into the possession of the proper person.” - -De Villefort seemed relieved. He drew a deep breath, saying: - -“I feared for a moment that you had been deceived into giving it up to -some impostor.” - -“Impostors do not succeed very well with me, monsieur.” - -“You are very shrewd, Monsieur Merriwell,” bowed the Frenchman, in a -flattering manner. “It was fortunate for justice that you were chosen as -the guardian of such treasure.” - -“Thank you. Then you know nothing of my encounter with one who sought to -obtain it from me?” - -“Nothing, monsieur. When did this happen?” - -“Last night. In a little shop not far from Gare St. Lazare.” - -“And were you given the sign?” - -“In part.” - -“By whom?” - -“One who called himself Claude Bruant, and claimed to be known as the -Strangler.” - -De Villefort started. - -“The Strangler?” he cried. “A desperate wretch, who has been well paid -by the enemies of justice to do their vile work! And you escaped his -hands?” - -“I am here.” - -“I see. It is remarkable. You are very wonderful. How did you escape?” - -“With the aid of this,” said Merry, quietly taking his revolver from his -pocket. “I doubt much if the Strangler ever has much use of one of his -hands again, as I shattered his arm with a bullet.” - -Again De Villefort complimented Frank in a most profuse manner. - -“Justice owes you a greater debt than it can ever repay,” he declared. -“If the captive of Devil’s Island ever escapes, it may be that he will -owe his salvation to you.” - -“You are complimentary, indeed, M. de Villefort. I assure you, I -appreciate your words very highly.” - -And still Frank made no move to deliver the little ball into the man’s -hands, for De Villefort had not given the complete signal. The man held -out his hand. - -“Now, I presume, you will answer the call of justice, Monsieur -Merriwell.” - -Frank smiled coolly. - -“Perhaps as I answered it last night.” - -De Villefort frowned. - -“This is no time for delay,” he said sternly. “With me, time is -precious.” - -“Thus far, then, you have wasted it,” declared Frank, growing more and -more suspicious. - -All at once, as if struck by a sudden thought, the Frenchman flung out -his hand, with a strange gesture. An instant later, he lifted that hand -to his eyes, saying: - -“Justice calls.” - -It was the signal, and, at last, it had been given correctly. It came as -a surprise to Frank, for he had begun to believe that De Villefort would -fail to give it. Merry hesitated, for, even though the signal had been -given, he felt a strange reluctance to part with the precious ball -delivered into his hands by the dead Duke of Benoit de Sault. - -The Frenchman lowered his eyes, and stood looking at the youth -expectantly, commandingly. Slowly, Frank felt in his pocket for the -precious ball. He felt a great desire to know what secret it contained -that might serve to bring justice to the wretched prisoner of Devil’s -Island. - -Merry drew the metal ball from his pocket, and the eyes of De Villefort -glittered strangely when he saw it. The man seemed to be holding himself -in check. - -“Here it is,” said Frank regretfully. “I have thought that I should be -glad to get rid of it, but now I part with it most reluctantly, I -confess.” - -Then he looked up suddenly, and surprised that strange, crafty, -triumphant look in the glittering eyes of the Frenchman. It gave Frank a -shock. It was as if some one had shouted into his ears, “Beware—beware! -He is fooling you!” Frank had been on the point of delivering up the -mysterious ball, but now he hesitated. - -De Villefort became aware that something had aroused the suspicions of -the shrewd American. And then, like a flash, the Frenchman’s arm darted -out, and his fingers snatched the ball from Frank! That act told Frank -Merriwell as plainly as words that the man had no right to the tiny -sphere. - -“Thank you, Monsieur Merriwell!” cried Murat de Villefort triumphantly. -“You have guarded the treasure well, and you may be consoled to know it -has reached good hands at last.” - -He laughed outright, and that laugh was as if he had struck Merriwell -between the eyes. It removed the last doubt from Frank’s mind. Although -the man had given the signal, he had no right to the metal ball. The -precious sphere had fallen into the hands of the enemies of Dreyfus! - -That ball had brought nothing but trouble and danger to Frank, and -almost any other person would have felt gladness to get rid of it, -especially as he could know he had fulfilled his promise to the dead -duke. Not so Frank Merriwell. In an instant flashed before his eyes a -vision of the poor wretch on the burning rock of Devil’s Island, doomed -to spend the remainder of his days there, just because that tiny ball -had fallen into hands for whom it was never intended! - -That was enough. - -Murat de Villefort had been swift in his movements, but Frank was -equally swift. He sprang upon the man, with the fierceness of a panther. -Then began a sharp and terrible struggle for the possession of the tiny -ball. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XIII. - - DOOMED. - - -“Give it up!” - -“Never!” - -“You shall!” - -“Never!” - -“I’ll take it!” - -“You cannot!” - -“We’ll see!” - -In a very few moments, M. de Villefort was astounded by the strength of -the American youth, who seemed scarcely more than a boy. Once his -fingers had closed on the ball, the man believed it safe in his -possession, but he soon realized that he must fight if he would retain -it, and he must fight as never before had he fought. Grappled in each -other’s embrace, the men swayed and staggered about the room. They -struck against pieces of furniture, which they upset. They glared into -each other’s eyes, and panted as they fought. - -Frank had clutched the man’s wrist, and his object was to pin De -Villefort against the wall, and force him to return the ball. But the -Frenchman was slippery, and it was not easy for Merry to carry out his -plan. However, De Villefort had not the endurance to stand against the -American youth, and he soon realized that his strength must give out, -while Frank seemed as fresh and strong as at first. - -“Fool!” panted the Frenchman. “I gave you the signal!” - -“By accident, perhaps.” - -“You know that is not possible!” - -“And I know you have no right to the ball!” - -“You are mad! Do you wish to share the fate of the Duke of Benoit du -Sault?” - -“His fate? Why, the papers say he died a natural death!” - -“He died as others have died—and as you may die!” - -“Now I know you have no right to the ball! Now I know you are not the -friend, but the enemy, of justice! You shall not leave this room with -the ball!” - -De Villefort made a furious effort to tear himself from Frank’s grasp, -panting as he struggled: - -“You may force me to use a dagger!” - -“If you try it, I’ll give you an arm to match that of your friend Claude -Bruant, the Strangler!” - -“What is it to you, fool of an American! Is it possible you are one who -is working to bring disgrace on France?” - -“No! France has already disgraced herself!” - -Villefort found he could not get away. He was desperate when Frank -finally forced him up against the wall. Twisting his wrist free, he -lifted his hand, and slipped the tiny ball into his mouth. Immediately, -Frank realized what the man meant to do. - -He intended to swallow the little ball! - -Quickly, Merry clutched De Villefort by the throat, pinning him with all -his strength against the wall, and holding him there, so that he could -not swallow. The Frenchman tried to tear that hand from his throat, but -he could not do it. Frank’s fingers seemed made of iron, and they sank -into the man’s throat till there came a cracking sound beneath them. - -De Villefort’s mouth opened, and the tiny ball came out with his -protruding tongue. Frank caught it skilfully. - -“Thank you!” he said with mocking politeness. - -Then he took his hand from the Frenchman’s throat, and stepped back, -releasing him. Like a limp rag, De Villefort slid down the face of the -wall to the floor, on which he dropped softly, gasping in the most -painful manner for breath. Frank slipped the ball into his pocket, -retreating a few steps. With absolute coolness, he stood watching the -gasping Frenchman. - -Murat de Villefort glared at him, with terrible hatred. He made a -gurgling sound in his throat, but his words, if words he tried to speak, -were inarticulate. - -“It is a shame to choke a man so hard, unless the job is finished,” said -Merry, with his hands resting on his hips. “I do not like to resort to -such extreme measures, but, in this case, you forced me to, monsieur.” - -De Villefort seemed to gnash his teeth. He dragged himself up to a -sitting posture, with his back against the wall, and sat there, rubbing -his throat, and breathing with a rasping sound. - -“I trust you will be all right in a short time, monsieur,” continued the -youth from across the ocean, “so that I may have the extreme -satisfaction of kicking you out of this room. Nothing can give me more -pleasure, I assure you, than to kick you with all the violence I can -command.” - -“You—you whelp!” panted the man against the wall. - -“You were very polite a short time ago,” said Frank. “Even then, it -seemed to me that your politeness was artificial. The real ruffian -showed through the veneering.” - -“Fool!” gurgled the Frenchman, once more. - -“I came near being fooled,” admitted Frank; “but I tumbled to you just -in time. I wish you to make as much haste as possible, for I do long to -kick you!” - -“Your end will come soon!” - -“Not till I have delivered the ball into the proper hands, I trust.” - -“That ball will destroy you!” - -“What, after the wretched failures made by the Strangler and yourself? -Oh, I am beginning to enjoy this, I assure you. I had thought Paris -rather tame, but you have made it seem real lively, and have added zest -to my visit here.” - -De Villefort was at a loss for words. Never in all his life before this -day had he encountered a person like this cool American lad. He realized -now that Frank Merriwell was something more than a boy—was something -more than an ordinary man. - -“Come!” cried Frank commandingly; “get up! You are able to do so now.” - -Merry walked to the door, and flung it open. With some difficulty, De -Villefort struggled to his feet, aided by the partition. He sidled -toward the door in a manner that was rather laughable, and Frank -followed him up. - -“You shall shed tears of blood for this!” snarled the Frenchman. - -“All right,” cheerfully said Merry. “I’ll lay in a fresh supply of -handkerchiefs, so that I may be ready for the sorrowful occasion.” - -“Your life shall be the forfeit!” - -“Oh your threats are becoming tiresome! Walk out of the room like a man, -not like a whipped dog. You are not giving me a fair chance to kick -you.” - -But the Frenchman suddenly turned, and ran out of the room so swiftly -that Frank had no chance to kick him. Frank closed the door, with -satisfaction. - -When the boys returned, they were somewhat surprised to find Frank in -rare spirits. He laughed and joked with them in his old-time manner, and -again they were the jolly party of Yale students that had started out to -“do” London and Paris. The struggle in Frank’s room had not disturbed -Wellington Maybe, and no one in the hotel besides Merry himself knew -anything about it. - -Mr. Maybe complimented Frank on the manner in which he had stuck to -study on the forenoon of such a beautiful day. Maybe took his meals in -the hotel, but the boys were in the habit of eating wherever they chose, -and their search after novelty took them to many places. - -Browning, who was a great eater, told of a little café he had found, -where they had some rare dishes, and where the cooking was of a high -order. His tale aroused the hungry boys so that they all demanded to be -taken to the place at once. - -It proved to be a rather modest little restaurant on a side street. -There was something of a bohemian air about the place, and a number of -stout, red-faced men were eating there. - -The boys had a table by themselves, and they settled down to order -almost everything on the bill of fare. Browning declared that his -morning walk had made him hungry enough to dine off a fried boot, or any -old thing of the sort. While they were waiting, they chatted and told -stories, after their usual wont. There was more or less chaffing, and -Frank seemed to have a streak of wit, for everything said seemed to give -him an opportunity for a play of words. - -At last, the food came on, and Browning could scarcely remain seated -when he obtained a whiff. The dishes were arranged on the table, and the -waiter departed for something that had been omitted from the order. - -“Well, you can bet I’m going to begin the demolishing!” exclaimed -Browning. “Oh, say! I won’t do a thing to this!” - -And then, just as Frank was on the point of speaking, something seemed -to fall, with a jingling sound, on his plate. Diamond bent forward, to -see what it was. - -“Rubber!” grinned Rattleton. “Sit up straight, and perhaps one will fall -in your plate.” - -“What is it?” grunted Bruce. “Sounded like a piece of money. Are they -beginning to throw money at us?” - -“If so, with his usual luck, Merry gets the first piece,” said Harry. - -As for Frank, he saw what had fallen on his plate, and lay square in the -middle of the white surface. It was a blood-red star! - -At it Frank stared for a moment, and then he leaped to his feet, and -looked around, to see from whence it came. First, he looked up at the -ceiling, but it did not seem possible it had fallen from there. Then he -looked in other directions. At the nearest table sat two old men, who -were eating busily, and talking quite as busily as they ate. They seemed -utterly absorbed in their own affairs, and both were laughing at a story -one of them had lately told. The other people in the place were eating -and talking in a similar manner, and not one seemed to be noticing the -four American lads at the table in the corner. - -Frank sat down, and his face was very pale. He stared at the red symbol -of death that lay on his plate, and he thought how the terrible sign had -come to the doomed Duke of Benoit du Sault. He doubted not for an -instant that the star had been intended for him. - -Ten days of life had been given to him, and then, if he were not beyond -the borders of France—death! And was it certain that death could be -escaped by fleeing from the soil of France? - -About the mystery there was something to chill the stoutest heart, and -it was not strange that Frank Merriwell turned pale when he saw that -crimson star lying on his white plate. It would have been different if -there had been any way to fight the horrible doom that seemed to creep -with absolute certainty upon every person who received the blood-red -star. - -It seemed, however, that the only resort a person had, on receiving the -star, was to fly from France without delay—to get as far from the -terrible Black Brothers as possible. On the star were the words, “Ten -days,” and a drawing of the guillotine. - -Diamond reached to take it from Merry’s plate, but Merry caught him by -the wrist, saying in a strained voice: - -“Don’t touch it!” - -Frank’s tone caused every one at the table to stare at him. - -“What’s the matter?” asked Jack, astonished. “No one here but me shall -touch it,” declared Frank. “It was meant for me.” - -“Huah!” grunted Browning. “Never knew him to be so greedy before. Who -wants your old star, anyhow? Keep it, and eat it, if you want it!” - -He continued eating. Diamond, however, knew something was wrong. He saw -the sudden change that had come over Frank, and his heart was filled -with alarm. - -What did it mean? He was unable to answer his own question. - -“I did not mean to take it,” he said. “I was simply going to look at -it.” - -“You shall not touch it!” - -Now Rattleton was attracted by the change in Merriwell. - -“Is it so valuable?” he asked. - -“It is deadly!” said Frank. “It is the symbol of murder and bloodshed!” - -“Boo!” said Browning. “Throw it away!” - -“No,” said Merry, taking the star from his plate and putting it into his -pocket. “It was meant for me, and I accept it. It is a challenge from -the Black Brothers!” - -Even Browning lifted his head and stared at Merry. - -“Dut the whickens—no, what the dickens is the matter with you?” -exclaimed Rattleton. “What are you talking about, anyhow?” - -Of Frank’s companions, Diamond was the only one who seemed to have any -realizing sense of the fact that the dropping of the red star on Frank’s -plate was an incident of deep significance. He was trying to read -Frank’s face, and what he saw there filled him with alarm. Surely this -great change in Merry meant something. A few moments before, Frank had -been the jolliest one of the party; now he was pale and stern, with a -strange light gleaming in his eyes. His mouth was set together till the -blood was forced from his lips, and a deep shadow had fallen on his -face. - -Jack felt in his heart that, in some manner, that red star was connected -with the trouble into which Frank had fallen. But not even Diamond could -imagine for one moment the terrible meaning of it all. - -“A star,” grunted Browning. “Merriwell has been a star all his life, and -so it is natural they should begin to throw stars at him now.” - -And he kept on eating. - -“Come, fellows,” said Frank to Jack and Harry, “aren’t you going to -eat?” - -“When you do,” said the Virginian. - -Frank prepared to begin, and the others did likewise; but Diamond, -watching Merry covertly, decided that it was a poor meal Frank would eat -that morning. He was right. Frank tried to force himself to eat, but the -food was tasteless, and it seemed to choke him. He kept up a pretense of -eating till at last he fell into a brown study, staring at the table. - -He took out the red star and looked it over and over. Diamond nudged -Rattleton and nodded toward Merry significantly. Harry, who had an -opportunity, leaned closer, so he could see what was on the star. - -Browning was the only person who did justice to the food before him. The -big fellow was so hungry that he declared he should have continued -eating if a star from the skies had fallen on the table. At last it was -over. Frank paid the bill, and they left the restaurant. - -Diamond longed to ask questions, but refrained. Browning, however, -attempted to chaff Merriwell about the star, but discovered that Frank -did not seem to hear anything he was saying, and gradually closed up, -aware at last that something was wrong. They had not walked far from the -restaurant before Frank suddenly wheeled and looked round. - -On the opposite side of the street, which in that quarter happened to be -rather deserted, a man dressed all in black was walking slowly in the -same direction as the American lads. - -“The black shadow is again on my heels!” muttered Frank. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XIV. - - IN THE BROTHERHOOD’S POWER. - - -“I want to quest you an askion—I mean, I want to ask you a question,” -said Rattleton, speaking to Diamond one evening four days later. - -They were alone in a room at the hotel where they were stopping. - -“All right,” said the Virginian gloomily. “Ask away, but I don’t know -that I’ll be able to answer it.” - -“What I’d like to know,” said Harry, “is what ails Frank Merriwell.” - -“Well, you have come to the wrong place to find out,” said the -Virginian. - -“You know something is the matter with him?” - -“Yes, anybody can see that.” - -“Even Browning knows it now.” - -“I have known it for some time, and I have tried to find out, but I -might as well not.” - -“He has been so queer since the time when that red star fell on his -plate in the restaurant.” - -“He was queer before that. He had not been like himself in two days.” - -“But he was not as he is now.” - -“No,” confessed Jack. - -“Now he talks of a black band of assassins, a metal ball that holds the -fate of Dreyfus, and of the time between the falling of the red star and -the death that must follow. By Jove! Diamond, I am afraid something is -the matter with Merry’s upper deck!” - -“You mean that his mind is affected?” - -“Yes. What do you think?” - -“I don’t know what to think.” - -“And he has not remained in the hotel much of any but a little while -nights since the star came to him.” - -“And one night he did not come in till three o’clock in the morning. Oh, -yes, it is strange!” - -“He never smiles any more. He is like a man contemplating death.” - -“Or fighting it. There is a look of determination on his face, and he -has said over and over that he must bring the Black Brothers to their -end before ten days expire, or come to his own end. Now, who in the name -of all things mysterious are the Black Brothers?” - -“Ask me an easy one. I didn’t come to you to answer questions, anyhow!” - -“He does not sleep,” declared Diamond. “Night after night I awakened -repeated, only to find him wide-awake. Perhaps he will be pacing the -floor, but even if he is in bed, I discover he is wide-awake. He acts as -if he feared some terrible danger, and yet sought to overcome it.” - -“But why doesn’t he tell us about it?” - -“That’s it,” nodded Harry; “why doesn’t he? It’s not like him to be so -secretive.” - -“Surely he can trust some of us, if he can trust anybody. I have tried -to find out something from him, and I have failed.” - -“Same here.” - -“He has said several times that he will tell soon, but soon has not come -yet.” - -“I move that we get hold of him and make him tell.” - -“If you will suggest a way by which we may force Frank Merriwell to talk -when he has resolved to keep his mouth shut, your suggestion will be -worth considering.” - -They stared at each other in silence, puzzling over the strange affair. - -“He clings to that star,” muttered Diamond. “But that is not all, for I -have seen him staring at a small metal ball, which he kept turning over -and over in his fingers. He seemed to be hypnotized with the thing. Once -I asked him what the thing was, and what do you suppose he answered?” - -“Give it up. You tell.” - -“One word.” - -“What word?” - -“Justice! Now tell me what he meant by that, if you can! Tell me why -that tiny ball should contain justice!” - -“Don’t!” cried Harry. “Didn’t I say I came to ask you questions? Here -you are shooting them at me one after another.” - -“Well, I’ve longed to shoot them at somebody for some time.” - -“Jack.” - -“What?” - -“I am beginning to fear it’s really true that Frank is going daffy! You -know there’s something queer about his father and mother. It’s said his -father was a most eccentric man, and his mother was a delicate little -woman. Frank has been altogether too brilliant! I’m afraid, Diamond, -that our comrade is getting nutty.” - -“I won’t believe it!” exclaimed the Virginian, in hot rebellion at the -thought. “I won’t believe that splendid fellow can be destroyed in such -a manner! I won’t believe that brilliant mind can be clouded! Don’t -speak of it again!” - -“You will not believe, and yet you fear. Where do you suppose he is -now?” - -“I haven’t the least idea.” - -At that very moment Frank Merriwell was a helpless captive in the hands -of the dreaded Black Brothers! - - * * * * * - -Around Frank Merriwell were stone walls. He was standing in the midst of -a cellar, with his back bound to a pillar. At one end of the cellar was -a wooden door; at the other end was a flight of stairs. Around Frank -stood seven men, all dressed in black cloaks and hoods. - -Frank had made a desperate attempt to hunt down the Black Brothers, but -the result had been that he had fallen into their clutches. But a few -moments before he had been bound to the pillar. His hat and coat were -gone, for he had not succumbed without a struggle. The leader of the -band stepped forward. - -“At last, my brothers,” he said, in a deep voice, “we have captured the -one most dangerous to us and to the honor of France. He is in our power, -and we can destroy him.” - -“We can,” said the others, in unison. - -“But first,” said the chief, “we must find on him the precious ball that -contains one-half of the torn document that proved the innocence of -Dreyfus.” - -At last Frank knew what the metal ball contained. The chief began to -search Merry, and he soon found the ball and brought it forth. A -muttering exclamation of triumph and satisfaction escaped the lips of -the others as their leader held up the tiny ball. - -“Here it is!” he cried. “At last the fate of Dreyfus is in our grasp!” - -There were exclamations of satisfaction. - -“I will open it,” said the chief. “The paper shall be removed and -destroyed at once.” - -He examined the ball closely and then pressed hard on a certain spot. -Immediately it flew open in his hands! - -Then there was a cry of anger and fury from the lips of the man. - -“A thousand fiends!” he shouted. “It is empty!” - -The hollow ball did not contain the torn paper they had expected to -find! - -“Empty?” gasped the others. - -“Yes! It has been opened, and the paper has been removed!” - -The captive bound to the pillar laughed. They turned on him in fury. - -“You found the way to open the ball, and you removed the paper!” snarled -the chief. “Tell us where it is, you American meddler!” - -“You are entirely wrong,” coolly said Frank. “I am certain the ball has -not been opened since it came into my possession, and I know nothing of -the paper it contained.” - -“Don’t lie!” - -“I am not lying.” - -“What shall we do with him, brothers?” asked the chief. - -There was a sudden swishing ring of steel, and seven bright swords came -leaping from their scabbards into the hands of their owners. - -“We must destroy him!” said the hooded band. - -Seven swords were pointed at Frank’s breast. - -“For the honor of France he must die!” declared the chief. “When I have -counted to three, each man shall plunge his sword through the captive’s -body!” - -He was not given an opportunity to count. There came a sudden thundering -and hammering at the door. Then there was a summons to open in the name -of France. - -“The gendarmes!” gasped the Black Brothers. “They have tracked us here! -They have located us at last!” - -Bang! bang! bang! - -The hammering at the door was furious and terrible. - -Crash!—the door was falling! - -In a moment the seven members of the murderous band took to flight, -escaping from the cellar by the other door, and when the officers came -swarming down the stairs, they found no one to arrest, but were greeted -politely and cheerfully by the young American who stood with his back -bound against a pillar in the middle of the cellar. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XV. - - ANOTHER WARNING. - - -Frank’s adventures preceding his incarceration in the cellar, from which -he was rescued by the gendarmes, can be briefly told. As soon as he -realized that the Brothers had doomed him to death, and that his every -move was shadowed, he set himself earnestly to the task of hunting down -the band of assassins. - -First he went to the police, and told the story of the mystery connected -with the death of the Duke of Benoit du Sault, omitting all mention of -the metal ball which he knew would be taken from him if he mentioned its -existence. His story was laughed at by the police. They seemed to regard -him as a crank, a person deranged, or one seeking notoriety, and treated -him with small courtesy. - -His reception at the hands of the police was so discouraging that if he -were not filled with the purpose to render every aid in his power, under -the present circumstances, to the poor prisoner of Devil’s Island, he -would have been disheartened. He made an attempt to locate the band, in -order to lay before the police absolute evidence of such an -organization, and thus it happened, while working on the case alone, he -fell into the hands of the dreadful seven, and was taken captive to the -cellar. - -When the force of gendarmes rushed in, there was Frank bound to the -pillar. The capture of the conspirators, rather than the rescue of their -late prisoner, seemed to be their purpose. Pausing to question as to the -direction of the flight of the Brothers, they made off in pursuit -without making the least effort to release the captive from his bonds. - -Down the stairs came a man who walked with dignity, but who was followed -by a wildly excited youth. The youth was Jack Diamond. The man was the -mysterious Mr. Noname. - -“Here he is,” quietly said the Man Without a Name, as he caught sight of -Frank. - -Jack gave a shout of joy and rushed forward. - -“Frank, are you alive?” - -“Sure thing,” laughed the nervy young American. “But the gendarmes came -at just the right moment. If they had delayed ten seconds longer, you’d -have found me with seven large holes in my skin.” - -“I brought them here,” said Mr. Noname. - -“Then I again owe you my life,” came with genuine thankfulness from -Merriwell. “The debt is getting pretty heavy, sir.” - -“There is no debt. I have told you I am your good genius. You must -believe me now.” - -“I do! I have believed you for some time. But how can I repay you for——” - -“There is nothing to be repaid. Some day you shall understand what seems -so mysterious now.” - -Diamond was hastening to set Frank free. The Virginian knew better than -to question him then and there. - -“Thank you,” said Merry, as he stepped away from the pillar, rubbing his -arms to start the circulation. “This is much better. That position was -becoming painful.” - -“Where are the devils who brought you here?” hissed Jack. - -“They took to flight when the gendarmes began hammering at the door up -there. There was another way out of the cellar, and the officers are -after them.” - -“The officers will not capture them,” announced Mr. Noname. “My mission -is complete now that you have been saved.” - -Frank seized the strange man’s hand and wrung it warmly. A thrill shot -over him at the touch. It was a most peculiar sensation, and afterward, -when he thought about it, he wondered much. - -“Again I must thank you!” said the young American, with deep feeling. “I -do not understand how it is that you always arrive in time to save me.” - -“There is an unseen tie between us. When you are in danger, I am drawn -to you by a power which no man may measure. I feel your peril, and I -hasten to your aid. The stars may fade into endless night, and the sun -may turn to ashes, but death alone can break the bond between us!” - -Strange words, like those that fall from the lips of a person demented, -and yet they impressed Frank Merriwell. Somehow, he felt that there -really was a bond that held this man of mystery and himself linked -together. - -“Let’s follow the police!” urged the Virginian. “Let’s help hunt down -those devils!” - -“Stop!” - -The command came from the lips of Mr. Noname. - -“Let them go,” said the man. “You cannot do any good.” - -“Let them go!” panted Jack. “Let them get off after they have nearly -murdered my friend! Well, I’m not built that way! If I can do anything -to bring them to justice, you bet I’m going to do it!” - -“That is well enough, but you can do nothing.” - -“How do you know?” - -“I know! The officers will not capture one of them. In a little while, -they will return here. If Mr. Merriwell is here, they will take him into -custody, perhaps. They will ask him a hundred questions. They will throw -a cloud of suspicion over him. They will not believe the story he tells -them. They will have him shadowed when he is set at liberty, if he is -set at liberty. In short, they will make life in Paris rather unpleasant -for him.” - -“And you advise—what?” - -“That we all get out of here at once, before the officers return.” - -“But there are others on guard outside this building,” said Jack. - -“I know a way to pass them.” - -“He is right,” decided Frank, remembering his unpleasant experience with -the police. “Come.” - -“Just as you say,” said Diamond regretfully; “but I’d like to help mob -those whelps.” - -They mounted the stairs and clambered over the broken door, following -the Man of Mystery. Above they were in darkness, but he led them on. -Their feet awoke the echoes of empty rooms and corridors. They passed -through doors and made many turns. At last they stopped. Barely had they -done so when, somewhere in the darkness, a voice was distinctly heard to -say: - -“The decree is made, the red star has fallen, and Frank Merriwell is -doomed to die!” - -The words were distinctly spoken, but it was impossible to tell from -whence they came. Jack Diamond gripped Frank’s arm. - -“Do you hear?” he whispered. - -A scornful laugh came from Merriwell’s lips. - -“I hear,” he said derisively; “but who fears a coward who lurks in the -darkness and spends his breath in threats! It is nothing.” - -Then, once more, the voice spoke: - -“The days from the falling of the red star till the time of death are -ten, and they are passing!” - -Immediately Frank cried: - -“Before the ten days are over, the last of the assassin band of Black -Brothers shall meet his just deserts!” - -“That is right,” came solemnly from the lips of the Man of Mystery. “The -end of the brotherhood is near!” - -These words were spoken in French, and the Man Without a Name seemed to -command the language without an accent to mar his pronunciation. -Following his words, silence reigned in the old building. - -“Let’s get out!” muttered Diamond, who feared no enemy he could see, but -who now felt, despite his courage, a strange chill stealing through his -veins. - -The man who was leading them found and opened a door. When they had -passed through, he barred the door behind them, and again led them on -till they stood beneath the open sky. Then, when Frank turned to speak -to the Mystery, who seemed to have halted to fasten the last door, he -found the man had vanished. The door was closed, and Mr. Noname was not -with them! - -“Gone!” exclaimed Frank. - -“Where?” gasped Jack. - -Merry tried the door, but it would not move. - -“That must explain it,” he said. “He stepped back through that door, and -closed it behind him.” - -“What for?” - -“You know as well as I.” - -“Don’t say that! This whole affair is a mystery to me. I do not -understand any part of it. You have puzzled me for days by your strange -actions. I knew something was going wrong. To-night, when I could stand -it no longer, I left the hotel, meaning to walk and think. Almost -immediately I ran upon this man who is known as Mr. Noname. He told me -you were in great peril. How did he know that?” - -“How does he know about so many things? You can answer the question -quite as well as I.” - -“He led me here, and we found the officers ready to break in. It seemed -that he had told them of your peril, and informed them where to find -you. He showed them how to enter the building and reach the door at the -head of the cellar stairs. Why, he seems to know almost everything!” - -“He is a marvel,” said Frank. “Whoever and whatever he is, I owe him my -life several times over. I shall not forget that.” - -“Why doesn’t he come out and tell us who he is? Why does he act in such -a remarkable manner?” - -“You can ask a hundred questions about him that I cannot answer. The -only thing of which I am absolutely certain is that he is my friend.” - -“Are you absolutely certain of that?” - -“Of course I am! Why do you ask such a question?” - -“Because I do not believe you can be certain of anything in connection -with that man.” - -“Why not?” - -“Something tells me he is crazy, and a crazy man cannot be trusted.” - -“I have every reason to believe he may be trusted fully and completely, -and I shall continue to trust him.” - -“Of course you will do as you like about it, Frank.” - -To this Merry said nothing in reply, and the two young Americans made -haste to get away from that vicinity. Not far away they found a Jew’s -shop, where Merry procured a coat and hat. - -On the way to the hotel, Jack said: - -“Don’t you think it is about time to trust me, Frank?” - -“I do trust you, old man.” - -“You are wrong.” - -“How?” - -“You have not trusted me of late.” - -“In what way?” - -“You have had a secret from me. You cannot deny me.” - -“Even that is not proof that I do not trust you.” - -“Then you confess you have had a secret?” cried the Virginian eagerly. - -“Yes.” - -“I knew it!” - -“But it has been a secret from all my friends, as well as you.” - -“Still you did not dare to trust me!” came reproachfully from Diamond’s -lips. - -“That was not my reason for keeping the secret from you, Jack.” - -“Wasn’t?” - -“No.” - -“What was the reason, then?” - -“I was pledged to secrecy. I had promised to keep it for a time, and you -know Frank Merriwell never breaks his word.” - -“I know that, old man, but——” - -“Come into this theater, Jack, and I will tell you all about it.” - -They had reached the brilliantly lighted Champs-Élysées, where the -theaters were in full blast, even at that hour. The sound of music and -singing came from the tree-bowered region beyond the archway of a door, -and Diamond followed Merry to the ticket-office. Frank purchased -tickets, and they passed through into the garden, where hundreds of -people were seated beneath the trees, gathered in groups around little -tables, drinking cooling beverages, chatting, laughing, and seeming to -pay very little heed to the singer on the distant stage. A breath of -cool air, the scent of flowers, and the tinkle of water fountains added -to the charm of the place. The shadows were above the trees, which shut -off the electric lights from the sky. The boys had visited this -particular café-chantant before, and they soon found a table where they -could sit and talk without disturbing anybody. The orchestra sawed away -when the singer had retired, and then two black-face “comedians” came -out with banjos, and prepared to inflict a “turn” on the unresenting -spectators. - -“Just like a roof-garden act in New York,” said Frank. “I’ll guarantee -those gentlemen will spring the same old gags, done over into French, -and half the jokes will be robbed of their points because of the -translation.” - -“Well, we didn’t come here to listen to them,” said the eager and -impatient Southerner. “You were going to tell me something, Merry.” - -“Yes,” nodded Frank, as he ordered two lemonades from a waiter, “I feel -free now to tell you the whole story, for the metal ball is no longer in -my possession.” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XVI. - - FRANK AND JACK. - - -“What are you talking about?” asked Jack, in a puzzled way. “Frank, has -anything gone wrong with your brain?” - -“I think not,” smiled Merry quietly. - -“But you have acted so strangely! This is not the first time you have -spoken of the metal ball, the blood-red star——” - -“Which you saw fall before me, and which I have here.” - -Frank took the crimson star from his pocket and placed it on the table -before them. - -“It is the sign of death!” he said. “It came from the Black Brothers, -from whose hands I was saved this night. There are seven of the -brothers, and there are seven points to the star.” - -Diamond gave himself a shake. - -“Come, come, Merriwell!” he exclaimed. “What sort of rot is this? Excuse -me for using the word ‘rot,’ but no other word seems appropriate. It is -like a chapter from a sensational story. You haven’t been reading French -detective novels till they have turned your brain, have you?” - -“Nothing of the sort, Diamond,” replied Frank calmly. “I know it seems -most remarkable, and I do not wonder you think it crazy nonsense. I -remember that I thought Edmond Laforce insane.” - -“Who is Edmond Laforce?” - -“He is, or was, the Duke of Benoit du Sault.” - -“But he is dead.” - -“Yes, murdered in his bed by the Black Brothers!” - -“Nonsense! He died in a perfectly natural manner, of heart failure.” - -“All men die of heart failure, but there was a cause for the death of -Edmond Laforce. A star exactly like this one before us had fallen into -his hands, and he was doomed to death. He knew it. He knew his time was -limited to ten days.” - -“Why was this?” - -“Because he was doing everything in his power to save Dreyfus from -Devil’s Island. Because, through his work, he had become dangerous to -the existence of the Anti-Dreyfus League.” - -“The Anti-Dreyfus League? Is there such an organization?” - -“Yes.” - -“Is it the same as the Black Brothers?” - -“No. The Black Brothers are simply the executioners of the great and -powerful league, which contains some of the wealthiest and most -influential men in France. The league is sworn to hold poor Dreyfus on -his prison island. I have learned that not all the members of the league -are aware, that there is a band of assassins connected with the -organization. The league is like a secret order. A man may join it, and -yet he may never be initiated into its deeper mysteries. He may join it -by simply pledging himself to use all ‘honorable’ means to keep Dreyfus -on that island. That is the first degree. There are other degrees, and -only the right ones to take them are advanced. When a man takes the -highest degree, he pledges himself, in case of necessity, to commit -murder to perpetuate the imprisonment of Dreyfus. When he has taken this -degree, he knows all about the Black Brothers, but those who have never -advanced beyond the lower degrees know nothing of the connection of the -league with the seven assassins. They furnish money to be used in the -work of ‘honorably’ keeping Dreyfus on the island, and are quite unaware -that much of that money goes to pay the assassins in black.” - -Jack Diamond listened with increasing astonishment. - -“And do you mean to tell me that such things can be here in France?” he -cried. - -“Are such things so very strange? You must not forget that it was here -the Commune existed. It was here the bloodiest revolution of history -took place. These streets have run red with human blood!” - -“But it seems so calm, so peaceful now! There seems no hint of anything -wrong.” - -“The calm is all on the surface. The French people are peculiar. At any -moment the storm may break forth. The men who seem so calm and happy at -one moment, in another instant may turn to wrangling, raging, -bloodthirsty demons. You cannot measure a Frenchman by the standard of -an American. They are different, the same as an American differs from an -Englishman.” - -“But how did you learn so much about this league?” - -“Since the day the red star fell before me, I have been doing my best to -hunt down the Black Brothers, and gradually I have learned the things -just told you.” - -“But this star, Merry, is——” - -“The sign the Black Brothers give one who has been doomed to die by the -death council of the league.” - -“And you are one?” - -“Yes.” - -“Why?” - -“Because the Duke of Benoit du Sault gave me the metal ball, which he -said contained something that might help prove the innocence of -Dreyfus.” - -“When did he give you this?” - -“The very night of his death. I met him in the Place de l’Opera. He had -been seized by strange pains in his heart, and I assisted him to a seat -by a table before the Café de la Paix. Those pains alarmed him. It was -the tenth day after he had received the red star. He thought he might be -dying, and, finding I was an American and in full sympathy with Dreyfus, -he entrusted me with the metal ball, pledging me to secrecy, and making -me promise to defend it with my life, till a person with the proper -signal called for it. My promise of silence has caused me to keep still, -and has given you an opportunity to say I did not trust you.” - -Diamond had been intensely interested all along, but now he was athrob -with excitement. - -“But you are telling me now!” he exclaimed. “The metal ball—where is -it?” - -“Gone.” - -“Gone?” - -“Yes. I am released from my pledge.” - -“You delivered it into the proper hands?” - -“No.” - -“What then?” - -“The Black Brothers took it from me.” - -“Then they obtained the precious secret that was to liberate Dreyfus?” - -“Nothing of the sort.” - -“They did not?” - -“No.” - -“Why not?” - -“I fancied the secret would become theirs till I saw the chief of the -seven open the ball before me, as I stood bound and helpless, with my -back against that stone pillar.” - -“What did it contain?” - -“Nothing.” - -Jack fell back in his chair. - -“It was——” - -“Empty,” nodded Frank. - -After a little the Virginian eagerly asked: - -“How was that? Explain it!” - -“I cannot. All I know is that the hollow metal ball which had caused me -so much trouble was perfectly empty. The Black Brothers were infuriated -at the discovery, and my death was set to occur at once. They drew their -swords and were ready to run them through my body when the first blow -fell on the door at the head of the stairs and the officers demanded -admittance.” - -Jack was silent, thinking of the wonderful things he had heard. - -“I have no doubt but the story seems almost beyond belief,” said Frank; -“but you came with Mr. Noname and found me in the cellar. You know I did -not tie myself to that post. Here is the red star, which is the sign of -death. The metal ball I cannot show you, as that has passed beyond my -possession.” - -“Good heavens! What are you going to do, Frank? Why don’t you get out of -Paris and out of France?” - -A grim look came to Merry’s face. - -“Do you advise me to run away?” he asked. “Would that be manly?” - -“Manly! Merciful goodness! do you think you can defend your life against -the powerful Anti-Dreyfus League and its tools, the Black Brothers? This -Dreyfus affair is nothing to you.” - -“You are wrong!” - -“How?” - -“It is something to every man who loves liberty and justice!” - -“But you cannot be willing to sacrifice your life in the cause. It is -not required of you. There are others who may do that.” - -“The existence of the league is well known; before I leave France I am -going to try to show that the seven assassins in black are connected -with the league. If I can do that, it may be that the league will go to -pieces, for the decent ones in the lower degrees, who know nothing of -its connection with murderers, may withdraw and denounce it.” - -“And, in the meantime, you may follow other victims of the Black -Brothers! It is horrible to think of! But the papers said the Duke of -Benoit du Sault died a natural death.” - -“Because they did not know any better. He was murdered!” - -“How?” - -“That is yet a mystery. I have thought much about it. I remember that he -told me of an encounter with a bold woman of the streets. When he -repulsed her, she struck him with a pin, inflicting a wound on his left -wrist. That was bleeding when he was attacked by the pains. I remember -that, from his manner, it seemed that the pains shot up his arm.” - -“Then you think the wound on his wrist may have——Oh, pshaw! That must be -nonsense, Frank! That could not have killed him. Those pains were -brought on by the excitement of the encounter with the woman. His heart -had been wrong all along, and it failed him that night.” - -“Still,” said Frank Merriwell, “you must admit it is most singular that -that night was the tenth one after he received a star exactly like this -blood-red one I hold in my hand.” - -Diamond was more deeply impressed than he wished to acknowledge. He did -not wish to believe that Merry, his friend, had been selected as a -victim by the dreaded Black Brothers. - -He had been with Frank when the red star fell on Merry’s plate one day -at a queer little restaurant, where they were taking lunch. At the time -he observed the remarkable change that came over his friend, who, having -been gay and light-hearted, suddenly grew sober and stern. Jack thought -about this now. He thought of other things which had seemed so -mysterious to him, and he did not wonder at Merry’s strange acts. Still, -it was most remarkable that Frank, a stranger and a foreigner, had been -drawn into the affair. - -Jack’s sympathy was with the unfortunate prisoner of Devil’s Island, -believing Dreyfus had been unfairly and unjustly condemned, but, -hot-blooded though he was, he felt certain he would have a care not to -permit himself to become involved as Frank had been. But Diamond was not -one to reproach a friend, or to desert him in the hour of trouble. He -was ready to stand by Frank through any peril. - -That Frank was in great peril he could no longer doubt. That Frank had -been condemned to die by the Anti-Dreyfus League was apparent. Jack’s -soul rebelled at the thought that such a thing could be in a city like -Paris. And it was terrible to fancy that Merry might come to his end as -had the Duke of Benoit du Sault, without a single mark being left on his -body to tell how his death had been accomplished. - -Jack leaned across the table and spoke earnestly. - -“Why should you stay here in Paris, Frank, and wait for those murderous -wretches to accomplish their dastardly work? Why don’t you get out? -There is nothing to keep us here. In fact, I am beginning to feel that I -have seen enough of this place.” - -“And it was only yesterday,” retorted Frank, with a smile, “that you -said you could live a year in Paris without getting tired.” - -“Did I say that?” - -“Sure.” - -“Well, I’ve changed my mind. If you were fighting an enemy like Harris -or Brattle, it would be different. By the way, where is Brattle?” - -“You tell.” - -“He has disappeared.” - -“Completely.” - -“Perhaps he is connected with the very ones who are doing their best to -snuff you out.” - -“Not likely. They would not trust him.” - -“And yet he may have aided to throw suspicion on you.” - -“It is possible, but does not seem probable.” - -Frank Merriwell sipped his lemonade, which had been served, seeming cool -and unconcerned, as if deadly danger had never visited him in all his -life. The black-face comedians had retired, and there was a sudden burst -of applause, as a popular chanteuse appeared. She began to sing, and the -young Americans resumed their conversation. - -“I do not feel like running away now,” said Merry grimly. - -“You know the old saying,” muttered Jack: “‘He who fights and runs -away,’ etc.” - -“I know, but there is no reason why I should run. I can do the -anti-Dreyfus men no harm now.” - -“Perhaps they do not know that. Your sympathy is with Dreyfus?” - -“Yes. I believe he was unjustly condemned. I believe everything points -to Esterhazy as the guilty man.” - -“But the _bordereau_, the paper which convicted him——” - -“Was forged by Esterhazy, I firmly believe. Of late, everything has -tended to prove that. There was no real reason why Dreyfus should have -acted as a traitor. It could not have been from anger or disappointment, -as he had the finest prospects of an excellent military career.” - -“And Esterhazy——” - -“Always an adventurer and a soldier of fortune, always begging money -from the money-lenders, always extravagant and dissolute, there were -many reasons why he might have been guilty. Letters of his, which he -cannot deny, and in which he abused France unmercifully, have been -found. Those letters are in the possession of the friends of Dreyfus, -and will be used at the proper time.” - -“But it has been claimed that Dreyfus was dissolute, that he was a -gambler, and an associate of the low and vicious.” - -“It has been claimed, but it has not been proven. Instead, in many -instances, it has been shown conclusively that such charges against him -were utterly false. It has been shown that others by the name of Dreyfus -have been confounded with him. I do not suppose he was a man without -faults, but those faults and failings make his unjust and cruel -condemnation none the less horrible.” - -“You feel strongly about this, Frank.” - -“I do! I confess it. And I feel more strongly now than ever before. I -feel like going into this thing deeply, but it now seems that I have -done everything in my power, and that has proved to be—nothing!” - -“Have you other reasons to believe Dreyfus innocent?” - -“Yes. It has been shown that he was not even aware of some of the -secrets given away in the forged papers. He had not been placed in -position to acquire the knowledge contained in those papers. The -dastards who sought his ruin incorporated in the papers what they -thought he knew, but they were wrong.” - -“This being the case, how is it possible to hold him longer on Devil’s -Island without a fair and open trial?” - -“In America or England it would not be possible. In France it is -different. He is a Jew, and you see the powerful feeling that has been -aroused against the Jews. He was condemned by the army, and it is a -firmly entrenched belief in this country that the army can do no wrong. -To give him another trial now, at which he might be able to clear -himself fully, would be to confess that there was a possible doubt in -the matter. That, it is said, would throw discredit on the army. If he -were to be shown innocent, it might bring on a revolution.” - -“And so they are going to let an innocent man rot on Devil’s Island -rather than give him justice and confess that a terrible wrong has been -done?” - -“You must remember that it is ‘for the honor of France!’” - -“It is the dishonor of France!” exclaimed Diamond hotly. “It means the -eternal disgrace of France!” - -“The day must come when the whole truth will be known.” - -In this speech Frank was prophetic. The day did come when the whole -wretched conspiracy came to light, and the unfortunate Dreyfus was -publicly proclaimed innocent. - -“So much the worse for France if Dreyfus dies on that island.” - -“You are getting warm over it, Jack,” laughed Merry. - -“A trifle,” confessed the Virginian. “Who wouldn’t?” - -“It is enough to warm up almost anybody,” agreed Frank. “I think you -begin to understand how I feel. And you must see why I guarded that ball -with my very life.” - -“But that contained nothing.” - -“When it was opened it contained nothing. I believe there was a time -when it contained a paper that would have aided in proving Dreyfus -innocent.” - -There was a low, musical laugh near at hand, and a voice spoke in -French, saying: - -“Messieurs, you are so eager, so earnest! I wonder what it can be you -talk of so animatedly? It cannot be of Mademoiselle Held, for you have -scarcely glanced toward the stage. Yet I’ll wager I can read the truth -in your faces and tell you your very thoughts.” - -A woman, slender, supple, graceful, attired in airy evening-dress, with -a mask hiding the upper part of her face, stood beside the table. -Without being invited, she sat down there. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XVII. - - MADEMOISELLE NAMELESS. - - -Both lads were surprised, not to say startled. She saw this plainly, and -laughed softly, fluttering a jeweled fan. - -“You are Americans,” she said positively. “You are not accustomed to -some things you find in Paris.” - -“That is very true,” murmured Jack Diamond, a frown on his face. - -Frank lay back in his chair and studied the woman. He saw she had a -beautiful neck and chin, while there was something strangely fascinating -about the eyes seen through the twin holes in the mask. They were -coal-black, like her hair, and seemed forever in motion. When the -woman’s lips parted, she showed two rows of pearly teeth. - -“How do you think I know you are Americans?” she asked. - -“Give it up,” said Diamond. - -“I know—I read it in your face. I can read other things there. I read -that you are friends—very great friends.” - -“Astonishing!” said Jack, with mild sarcasm, while Frank continued to -keep silent. - -The woman turned on Merry. - -“You are so still all at once! You suspect something—me? Ha! ha! ha! -Because I wear this mask? Oh, no, no! Why, I can do that here. No one -minds it. They know me. I tell them their fortunes. All have heard me. -You want me to tell your fortune—yes?” - -She leaned forward, seeming to peer more closely into Frank’s face. - -“Your past is all written there,” she declared. “I see it plain. In -America, though young, already you are famous. It is wonderful! No man -as young as you has ever become so famous in America. You are known all -over the land, and there all young men long to be like you.” - -Frank smiled. - -“I fear you are given to exaggeration and flattery,” he said. - -She shook her head. - -“I speak the truth as I read it. Is it not true?” - -She turned in her appeal to Jack. The Virginian remembered how famous -Frank had become in a short time, and he said: - -“To some extent it is true, but it’s an easy guess.” - -The woman shrugged her shapely shoulders and fluttered her fan. - -“Oh, not so easy!” she exclaimed. “I have but begun. When I am done, say -I am an impostor—if you can.” - -“I beg your pardon,” came quietly from Frank; “I must tell you honestly -that I take no stock in the mummery of fortune-telling. I do not wish to -seem rude, but you are interrupting——” - -“I know; still you will thank me when I am done. I am going to tell you -of the terrible dangers you have been in, of the deadly perils to come, -and how you may escape them. This night you have been in danger! This -night you have been close to death! You escaped by a miracle.” - -“Where were you that you learned so much?” - -“I read it in your face, but the stars tell me many things. To-night the -stars have told me of you, Frank Merriwell.” - -She knew his name! - -Frank’s interest increased swiftly, and she laughed as she saw it. - -“I knew you would listen,” she declared. “No one refuses to listen to -me.” - -“You must have been listening to our conversation,” said Diamond. - -Again she shrugged her shoulders. - -“I do not need to do that. I heard some words just when I came up. I -heard you speak of Dreyfus, the traitor. But I did not need that to tell -me you were interested in him. You hope to see him free again.” - -“As hope thousands of good citizens of France.” - -“No; they are not good citizens! But why argue! It was not for that I -sat here. I was tired, and I needed amusement. It would amuse me to -astonish you by reading your fortune. Monsieur Merriwell was warned of -his danger. He might have escaped it, but he chose not to do so. He came -near losing his life. If he heeds not the warning he has received, he -will yet lose his life.” - -“How do you know so much?” cried Jack. - -“You must be connected with the Anti-Dreyfus League,” muttered Frank. - -She shook her head. - -“It is not well for a foreigner to come to France and have so much -knowledge. It is not fortunate for him if he meets wrong ones and takes -too much interest in Dreyfus, the Jew. It may be thought he has come to -France for that very reason, and then his peril shall be great, for -hundreds of good men have sworn to protect the honor of France with -their very lives.” - -“Who are you that knows so much?” asked Frank sharply. - -“I am called Mademoiselle Nameless.” - -“Nameless?” muttered Jack, instantly thinking of the man who called -himself “Mr. Noname.” - -“Yes, I am called that, and it is enough for you to know me by that -name.” - -“Why do you refuse to tell us your true name?” asked Merry. - -“My true name is something I tell nobody.” - -“Then remove your mask and show your face.” - -She drew back. - -“If I see fit to warn you of your great danger, and still keep my face -concealed, I have a right.” - -“You cannot explain how it is you know so much.” - -“The stars conceal nothing from Mademoiselle Nameless.” - -“You cannot make a level-headed American take stock in such trash.” - -“It matters little. You must know I have told you nothing but the truth. -There is but one thing for you to do, Frank Merriwell. You have been -marked for death, and there is but one way to escape.” - -“How is that?” - -“Abandon everything and fly from France without delay.” - -“Like a cowardly cur!” exclaimed Merry. “No, thank you!” - -“Beware!” - -“If I am murdered, it will simply be another human life added to the -list set against the wretches who are exerting every power to keep an -innocent man on Devil’s Island. I know all about the time-limit, and I -have yet several days left before the murderous band will carry their -threat into full execution.” - -“You cannot be sure of that.” - -“It has been thus with others.” - -“But you have lifted your hands against those who seek to protect the -honor of France.” - -“I’ve simply tried to expose the human whelps who seek to murder me!” - -“It is enough. By that you have added to the peril that besets you. At -any time destruction may swoop down upon you. Heed my warning. Fly from -France!” - -“Oh, I rather think you are making this thing much worse than it really -is.” - -“Not the least.” - -“If I am slain by the Black Brothers, I have friends who will take my -place in the work of hunting the dastardly band down.” - -“There will be no proof that you are slain by them. Remember how others -have fallen. There were no marks of violence on them. The thought should -chill your heart with terror. I tell you to go, Monsieur Merriwell. I -beg you to go. It is your only way to escape death. You must listen to -me.” - -She leaned on the table, all eagerness and excitement, her eyes dancing. -Somehow those eyes made Frank think of a snake. They seemed to fascinate -him. - -“Tell me why you are so eager for me to go?” he asked. - -“I cannot tell you, save that I am earnest, for I know what it means to -you. Promise me you will drop this Dreyfus affair and leave the country. -If you do that, your life may be spared. If you do not promise, your -doom is sealed, and death may swoop down on you at any moment.” - -“It is remarkable that you should know so much about me, a stranger, and -take so much interest in me. I believe you must somehow get close to the -Black Brothers. Can you deny it?” - -“I deny nothing!” she proudly cried. “You may think what you like! I -have warned you. Once, for the last time, I tell you your doom is -sealed!” - -She had closed her fan, and now she leaned across the table, reaching as -if she would tap Frank on the wrist with it, by the way of emphasis. It -was his left wrist she attempted to touch with the fan. - -And he had no warning thrill to tell him of the frightful peril that was -so near. - -A hand came down over the woman’s shoulder, grasped her wrist, held it! -Another hand snatched that fan from her grasp before it had touched -Frank Merriwell! - -“Even the rattlesnake gives warning before striking!” said a deep, -well-known voice. - -“Mr. Noname!” exclaimed Frank. - -It was the Mystery who had suddenly appeared and snatched the fan from -the woman’s hand. - -“Mr. Noname and Mademoiselle Nameless!” murmured Jack Diamond, looking -from one to the other. “Which is the greater mystery?” - -The woman had fallen back in her chair, and she was staring at the -Mystery through the twin holes in her sable mask, her bosom rising and -falling tumultuously. The Man Without a Name fixed her with a steady, -piercing, accusing look. There was horror and condemnation in his gaze, -and she seemed to feel it. - -“When the enemies of Dreyfus are forced to get a woman to do their -wretched work of murder, they have fallen pretty low!” said the man, -with deep contempt. - -“Murder?” came from Frank. - -“What does he mean?” gasped Jack. - -The woman seemed to force a laugh from her lips, which had grown -colorless beneath their rouge. - -“What are you talking about, you old fool?” she exclaimed, rather -coarsely. “You are crazy! You should be incarcerated in an asylum, and -not permitted to run around here and frighten folks with your wild -babble.” - -Mr. Noname drew himself up, speaking quietly, so that he did not seem to -be saying anything unusual. In fact, everything that had taken place at -that table had occurred so quietly that those at the tables in the -immediate vicinity were not aware anything out of the ordinary was -happening. - -“Others whom I have exposed in their deviltry have tried to make the -public believe me insane,” said Mr. Noname. “They have not been -successful, for always have I proved everything I have charged against -them. You, woman with the hidden face, I charge with an attempt at -murder!” - -Again she forced that scornful laugh. - -“Gentlemen,” she said, turning to Merry and Diamond, “will you be good -enough to call a waiter. I wish to enter complaint against this crazy -man.” - -“Call a waiter,” said Mr. Noname. “I will call one for you.” - -He did so, making a signal which caused one of the waiters to approach. - -“Now enter your complaint!” said the Mystery, in a low, cold tone of -voice, his eyes fixed on the woman; “but remember that I have this fan -in my possession.” - -The waiter came up, and asked what was wanted. - -“The lady requested that you be summoned,” said Mr. Noname. “She is the -one who wants you.” - -The waiter turned toward her inquiringly. She hesitated, while Mr. -Noname regarded her in grim, unbroken silence. All at once she laughed. -Then she ordered absinthe for herself, and told the waiter to bring any -drinks the others might wish. - -The waiter looked to the others for orders, but received none. He -departed. - -“Oh, why do you stare at me like that, old man?” cried the masked woman. - -“I stare at you because I can see beneath that mask; I can see beneath -the flesh that covers your bones; I can see the grinning death-head you -carry on your shoulders!” - -“How terrible! You would do well at frightening children. Why, you would -be as good as a jack-in-the-box! Give me back my fan.” - -“No.” - -“You will not?” - -“No.” - -“It belongs to me. You have no right to take it! Give it back!” - -“No.” - -The Man of Mystery was perfectly calm and determined in his refusal. -Frank and Jack looked on wonderingly. The woman turned swiftly on Frank -Merriwell. - -“I appeal to you!” she cried. “You are a gentleman. Will you see me -insulted and robbed of my fan in such a manner?” - -“You do well to appeal to one you were about to strike like a snake!” -said Mr. Noname, with a sneer. “A few moments ago you thought to destroy -him, and now you appeal to him to protect you from insult! You do well!” - -“He is mad!” gasped the woman. - -“She knows I speak the truth,” spoke the Mystery. “She cannot deny it.” - -“I do deny it!” - -“Indeed! I can prove every word I have spoken.” - -“You can prove nothing! Who will believe anything you may say, old fool! -Give me that fan!” - -She reached for it in a commanding manner. He leaned forward, as if to -comply, but made a sudden motion, as if he would tap her on the wrist -with the fan, as she had been about to tap Frank Merriwell when it was -snatched from her hand. She jerked her hand back, with a low cry of -terror! - -Although the face of Mr. Noname remained as stern and grave as that of a -stone image, a sound like a scornful, triumphant laugh escaped his lips. - -“It’s all I ask,” he said. “Just hold out your wrist and permit me to -tap you lightly with this fan.” - -She made no move to do so. - -“If you will do that,” said the man, “I’ll promise to restore the fan to -you instantly.” - -Still she sat silent. The waiter came with the drink she had ordered. -She threw a piece of money on the table, then caught up the glass and -swiftly swallowed its contents. - -Immediately she seemed to recover her nerve. - -“You can see that he is crazy, Monsieur Merriwell,” she said to Frank. -“No one but a crazy man would make such a proposition.” - -“You attempted to tap Frank Merriwell on the wrist with this fan, which -you held in a peculiar manner. All I ask before restoring it to you is -that I may tap you on the wrist in like manner.” - -“The desire of an insane person!” she declared. - -To Jack Diamond it seemed that she was right, but something told Frank -Merriwell that Mr. Noname knew very well what he was about. - -The Man of Mystery said: - -“I presume you have heard that it is best to humor the insane in any -little whims they may have. That being the case, why not humor me now. -It is a simple thing I ask, and entirely harmless, of course. Why not -permit me to tap you on the wrist with this fan, Mademoiselle Nameless, -as you call yourself?” - -“Because I do not choose to do so.” - -“Because you know such a blow would be followed by death, swift, sure, -and certain!” declared the Mystery fiercely. “Because you know the end -of your life would come as came the end of the miserable wretches -condemned by the Anti-Dreyfus League. Because you know the poison would -be injected into your veins, and in a few hours it would reach a vital -spot!” - -“Look out for him!” cried the woman. “He is about to become violent!” - -“This fan is a deadly instrument!” continued the strange old man. “Had -you tapped Frank Merriwell with it, no power on earth could have saved -him from death!” - -She sprang up with a scream that attracted attention. - -“He is mad!” she cried, pointing at Mr. Noname. “You can see it in his -eyes! He is about to attack me! Help! help!” - -She turned to flee, and the man reached out to grasp her. In a moment -there was a great commotion in the theater. Two or three men leaped -between the woman and Mr. Noname, offering her protection. But she -waited for nothing. With all haste, she made her escape. - -“It is too bad for her to get away like that,” said the Man of Mystery, -sitting down quietly at the table. - -The men turned to look at him. Some of them were threatening, some -talked of having him arrested. He paid not the slightest attention to -them, apparently, but he leaned across the table and spoke to Jack and -Frank in a low tone of voice. - -This is what he said: - -“These men are members of the highest degree in the Anti-Dreyfus League! -They are sworn to commit murder, if needs be, to keep the prisoner of -Devil’s Island safe in his cage of iron!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XVIII. - - THE DEADLY FAN. - - -Both Frank and Jack were startled to know that some of the men of the -league of which they had been speaking before the appearance of the -strange woman were so near. Instantly Merriwell understood how it was -that the woman had known so well what they had been talking about. -Although those men had seemed to pay little or no attention to the two -young Americans, it was almost certain that some of them had been -listening attentively to the words which fell from the lips of Frank and -Jack. - -Now these men scowled blackly at the Man of Mystery, speaking rapidly to -each other in French. Every word was understood by Frank, and he knew -they were talking of having Mr. Noname arrested and shut up till his -insanity could be determined. - -“You are in danger, sir,” said Merry, speaking to the strange man. - -“Not the least,” was the quiet declaration. - -“You hear what they are saying?” - -“Yes.” - -“They talk of having you arrested.” - -“But they will not do it.” - -“Why not?” - -“Because they do not dare.” - -“Do not dare?” - -“No. They realize that I know too much about them. The only danger is -that one of them may drive a knife into my back as I sit here.” - -Although he said there was such danger, the Mystery paid not the -slightest attention to the men behind him. He sat there as if he felt -himself quite secure from harm. Frank believed this was a display of -courage, and he admired the man for it. - -Jack Diamond was somewhat bewildered. At last he began to understand the -full extent of the peril which beset Frank Merriwell, even though he -could not see why harm could have come to Frank if the woman had carried -out her intention of tapping him on the wrist with her fan. The men -about continued to threaten. Mr. Noname spoke in a calm tone of voice, -which was loud enough for them to hear. - -“The day that I am arrested I will make an exposure that will startle -all France. I know the names of the men who are behind the work that is -being done. I can tell their methods of work. If I speak, Dreyfus will -leave Devil’s Island within a month!” - -“Hush!” whispered Jack. “Yow are drawing terrible danger on yourself! -You will be the next man doomed by the league!” - -The unsmiling face of Mr. Noname expressed a great deal. - -“They may pronounce my doom, but no earthly power can cut short the -thread of my life till my work is complete. I fear them not. However, -they may well beware of me. I am not here to meddle in their affairs, -but I am the guardian angel of Frank Merriwell, and woe to them if harm -comes to him!” - -The Frenchmen could not help hearing all this. They muttered among -themselves, standing in a group. The entertainment continued on the -stage, but the hour was late, and soon the theater would close for the -night. There was to be but one “turn” more. Some of the men went away. -Three of them sat down at a table, from which some women had departed. -They talked in low tones, occasionally glancing toward the trio at the -adjoining table. - -“They have left three on guard,” said the Mystery, although he had not -turned his head, and it was impossible to tell how he knew this. “We -shall be watched. They will shadow you to-night, Frank Merriwell, and -you must have a care. They are desperate now, and it is impossible to -tell when or how you may be struck.” - -“But I have yet four days of the ten days of grace.” - -“You have nothing!” - -“How is that? Ten days always expire between the falling of the red star -and the death of the doomed one.” - -“That may be true in the past.” - -“But now——” - -“You are not certain of another hour!” - -“Why not?” - -“Why not! You know that this night the Black Brothers would have -destroyed you but for the coming of the police!” - -“That was because they had me in their power, and they were enraged by -their failure to find in my possession what they sought.” - -“That may have been the reason, then. It is probable that they believe -you still have the missing paper in your possession.” - -“Which I have not.” - -“They do not know that; you could not make them believe it.” - -“And so——” - -“It is plain they have decided to cut you off without delay. The masked -woman was sent here to do that.” - -“How could she do it?” - -“She attempted it!” - -“Tell me how.” - -“With this fan!” - -“That fan? Why, she simply sought to tap me on the wrist with it.” - -“That would have been enough.” - -“You talk in riddles. Make yourself plain.” - -“Indeed, he talks like a madman!” thought Diamond. - -“With this very fan more than one victim of the league has been -destroyed!” asserted the Man of Mystery. - -Frank restrained any impatience he may have felt, although the man -seemed beating about the bush in a baffling manner. - -“How could that be?” he asked. - -“You know in what peculiar manner the victims have died. On none of them -has been found a mark of violence.” - -“I know.” - -“Yet you have believed they were murdered?” - -“Yes.” - -“That being the case, the crime must have been carried out in a -remarkable manner.” - -“Of course.” - -“I took no interest in the Anti-Dreyfus League and the Black Brothers -till I discovered that you had become involved, through your meeting -with Edmond Laforce, the Duke of Benoit du Sault. Immediately on -learning that, I began my investigations, and I have learned many -startling things. How I learned them, it matters not. Let it suffice to -say that I have ways of obtaining knowledge—ways unknown to other men. -You did not know I was near, to guard you, when you were in great -peril.” - -“No; I thought you had disappeared completely, along with Martin -Brattle.” - -“Brattle has disappeared, but he will turn up again, if you remain here -long enough.” - -“Do you know where he has gone?” - -“Yes.” - -“Where?” - -“To London.” - -Frank started. - -“To London?” he cried. “Why has he gone there?” - -“Elsie Bellwood is there.” - -“And he—the dastardly wretch!—he has gone there to—to——” - -“Have no fear; he will not accomplish his purpose.” - -“Why not? How do you know?” - -“Because I have sent one of my agents to London.” - -“One of your agents?” - -“Yes. I have many agents, for I have plenty of money to hire shrewd men -to work for me. I enjoy spending my money. I have more than a score of -men in my employ here in Paris, and they are shrewd men, too.” - -A light began to dawn on Frank Merriwell. If Mr. Noname spoke the truth, -it showed how he became possessed of so much astonishing information. -With a score of spies in his employ, he could pry into affairs which -would be sealed to the efforts of a single individual. But Merry was -thinking of Elsie Bellwood, and her danger, if Martin Brattle had -returned to London. - -The Man Without a Name seemed to read his thoughts, for he said: - -“Fear not. I sent one of my most trusted agents along with Brattle. -Every effort of the rascal will be baffled, for I have given -instructions to protect Elsie Bellwood, at any cost. He is to see that -no harm comes to her, even if he has to hire a hundred men to guard her, -without her knowledge, night and day.” - -Diamond was listening, with astonishment unbounded. Who was this -wonderful man, who did not hesitate at any expense, and who could afford -to employ hundreds of men for such a purpose? - -The whole yarn seemed crazy enough, and still the Virginian was -impressed, despite himself. And Frank Merriwell felt that Mr. Noname -spoke nothing but the solemn truth. Believing this, he breathed easier -for the safety of Elsie. - -“If what you say is true,” said Diamond, “you should be able to destroy -Martin Brattle, and bring his evil work to an end. Why don’t you do it?” - -The Mystery gazed fixedly at Jack for some moments, and then answered: - -“No matter how much power I possess, I have never yet destroyed a human -life. I am waiting till Brattle brings about his own destruction, which -he will do as surely as we are sitting here at this moment.” - -Frank thought of Sport Harris, and others who had wrought their own -destruction, and the belief that evil-doing brings its just deserts grew -upon him. Diamond seemed to feel rebuked. He sat back on his chair, -biting his lips. - -“Now,” said Mr. Noname, “I will complete telling you about this fan.” - -He lifted it from the table, and the eyes of all three were turned upon -it. - -“This,” he declared, “is the instrument by which Frank Merriwell was to -be removed from the world!” - -“But how?” urged Merry. - -“Look here—see me press on the fan like this, as I hold it in this -manner. Now, look near that end, which is toward you, and you will -discover protruding from the side of the fan a tiny needle-point. Look -close. Do you see it?” - -They saw it. - -“Now, I release the pressure here,” continued the Man of Mystery, “and -that point disappears, having slid back into its socket.” - -This was true. - -“When the woman reached out to tap Frank Merriwell on the wrist, she -pressed on the fan to cause the needle-point to project. If she had -struck him, she would have pricked his flesh with that point.” - -“Go on!” urged Merry breathlessly, his face growing pale as he -anticipated what was coming. - -“The point of that needle is covered with a strange and subtle poison. -Your blood would have been inoculated with it. From that moment, unless -the piece of flesh about the needle-prick had been cut out, and the -wound cauterized, the poison would have been working in your system. You -would have heeded the wound on your wrist very little, or not at all, -for it would not have swelled, or seemed troublesome. After a time, you -would have felt pains in the region of your heart. Then it would have -been too late for any earthly power to save you!” - -“Good God!” gasped Jack Diamond, overcome by his feelings. “Can such a -thing be true?” - -“It is true,” affirmed the Mystery. - -“Then, for Heaven’s sake, Frank, let’s get out of France as quickly as -we can! If the prick of a needle will cause death, there is no telling -when we may be done to death!” - -Jack Diamond’s agitation was not strange, under the circumstances. It -would have been far more remarkable if he had shown no agitation. - -Frank sat there, staring at that fan. For the first time, he fully -realized how close to death he had been, and his face was a trifle pale. - -“You are absolutely positive of what you say?” he finally asked. - -“Do you doubt?” asked the Man of Mystery. “If I have not told you the -truth, why is that needle hidden in the fan?” - -“Why, indeed?” - -Frank did not doubt any longer. - -“Give me the fan!” he exclaimed. “I want it! I want to keep it, along -with other curiosities I have gathered in various parts of the world.” - -“You are not yet out of France. You seem to feel that you will leave the -country. Are you going at once?” - -“What do you mean? Am I going to run away?” - -“You realize your danger. There is nothing to keep you here longer. Why -shouldn’t you go?” - -“Do you urge me to go?” - -“I urge you to do nothing. Follow your own desires.” - -“I must have time to think it over. I do not fancy being driven out of -the country in such a manner! If there was a show of making a fight——” - -“But you see now what dangers beset you. In a moment, when you know not, -death may descend upon you. Your enemies believe you are dangerous to -them. You cannot convince them otherwise.” - -“Come, Frank!” urged Diamond. “You know I am not a coward, but this -business is altogether too much. You can’t fight such sneaking and -dastardly foes. A brave man hates to retreat, but foolish persistence is -not bravery.” - -Frank actually laughed aloud. - -“This is the first time on record that Jack Diamond ever gave anybody -such counsel,” he declared. “If he were in my shoes, I’ll wager he would -be stubborn enough to stick right here, no matter what came.” - -“Oh, no!” cried Jack. “I can fight an enemy that comes out into the -open, but I want nothing of the kind that skulks and sneaks.” - -“What will you do?” asked Mr. Noname, his eyes fixed on Frank’s face. - -“Think it over till to-morrow,” was the answer. “Give me the fan.” - -“No; I shall keep it.” - -Frank was disappointed. - -“It is a thing I should prize.” - -“I may need it.” - -“For what?” - -“Evidence.” - -“Against whom?” - -“That woman.” - -“Then you expect to see her again?” - -“Perhaps so; perhaps not. Who can tell? However, when I have all the -evidence I want, I may place it before the police. Just now, it would -not do, for they would call me a madman, and shut me up.” - -“I haven’t a doubt of it.” - -“While it is known there exists an Anti-Dreyfus League, the public at -large will not believe the league will resort to dishonorable means and -crime in order to keep the captive fast on Devil’s Island. If any man -were to tell the whole truth about the organization, he would be called -a raving maniac, and placed in a cell without delay.” - -Frank was much disappointed, for he longed to possess that fan, which -would be a great and valuable addition to his collection of curious -things gathered in various parts of the world. He knew that Mr. Noname -spoke the truth, however, and he understood why the man wished to secure -and retain as much evidence against the league as possible. - -“Besides,” said the Mystery, “they will try to recover this fan. If you -were to have it in your possession, it might add to your peril.” - -“Then let it alone, Frank!” exclaimed Jack. “You do not want it! You are -in danger enough!” - -“That’s true,” confessed Merry. “I fancy I’ll have my hands full to look -out for myself.” - -“The theater is about to let out,” said Mr. Noname. “It will be well for -you to leave before the crowd does. In the crowd, something might happen -to Mr. Merriwell between this table and the street.” - -Jack grasped Frank’s arm. - -“Let’s go at once!” he said. - -Frank arose quietly. - -“Good night,” he said, speaking to Mr. Noname. “When shall I see you -again?” - -“No person can tell,” was the answer. “I do not know. I will keep the -fan. Farewell.” - -It was plain the Mystery spoke of the fan in order that the men near -might hear, and know it was not in the possession of Frank. Mr. Noname -seemed to fear no peril to himself. When they were outside the theater, -Jack again urged Frank to leave France without delay. - -“Let’s not talk about it any more to-night,” said Merry. “I am tired.” - -“Tired!” exclaimed the Virginian. “Good gracious! I don’t see how you -can think of that now! What has happened is enough to make anybody -forget fatigue. Why, while you remain in France, you cannot feel safe -for a moment! On the street, or in your room at the hotel, you are in -danger of being assassinated! It is horrible!” - -Frank realized the full dimensions of the peril. - -“It’s rather too much sport,” he confessed. “I didn’t bargain for -anything of the sort.” - -“It will not be from a lack of courage, if you leave France,” urged -Jack. “Why should you remain here to be killed? You can do no good by -staying here longer.” - -“Perhaps not.” - -“Of course you cannot. How can you?” - -“We have planned to stay longer.” - -“That makes no difference. I have seen enough of Paris, and so have -Browning and Rattleton. We did have a splendid time in England, but -now——” - -“You were the most eager to get away from England.” - -“You know why, Frank. I explained it all to you. Since leaving there, I -have tried to forget Juliet Reynolds. I find I can’t forget so easily.” - -“And now you are ready to go back to her?” - -“I did not say that.” - -“But you meant it. I am afraid you are hard hit, Jack.” - -“I’m afraid so, too, Merry; and, still, I know I’d never be happy if I -were to win her, and marry her. I must keep away from her, that is all. -It’s my only salvation.” - -“Can you?” - -“I can, and will!” - -“That is a good resolution.” - -“But it is not what we were talking about. You have explained why you -had a secret from the rest of us, and I understand it now, but I do not -understand your desire to remain longer in Paris.” - -“Did you ever know Frank Merriwell to turn his back on danger?” - -“No; but this is different. What have you to gain by continuing the -fearful risk? Nothing.” - -“Look here, Diamond, I may have nothing to gain, but there is one thing -I fear if I leave France now.” - -“What is it?” - -“I fear I shall never forgive myself for doing so.” - -“Better never forgive yourself than to be murdered.” - -“I don’t know. I’d rather be dead than to always feel myself a coward.” - -This brought a fierce protest from Jack, who declared there would be -nothing cowardly in going away. Over this point they argued for some -time, till Merry again protested that he was too tired to talk further -about it that night. - -“Jack,” he said, “I want you to promise me something.” - -“Name it.” - -“I want you to promise to say nothing about what has happened. You are -not to let Browning or Rattleton know the particulars.” - -“Why? Why shouldn’t they know now? I think it is your duty to tell them, -Frank.” - -“It will disturb them, without doing the least good. Why should they be -alarmed needlessly? No. Yet a little while longer you must be silent. I -will say when you may tell everything.” - -It was not easy to induce Jack to make the promise, but Merry succeeded, -at length. - -Rattleton and Browning were in bed, and asleep, when the hotel was -reached. Under the door of Frank Merriwell’s room, a sheet of paper had -been thrust. On the paper was written: - - “The end draws near!” - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XIX. - - THE BOMB. - - -When, at last, he went to bed that night, Frank Merriwell slept the -sleep of exhaustion. He did not know that all through the dark hours -Jack Diamond watched over him like a faithful dog. He did not know that -Diamond was unable to close his eyes in sleep. He did not know the -Virginian paced the room, thinking, thinking, thinking. The light burned -low, as Diamond had turned it on. Frank lay breathing regularly, -perfectly motionless in the bed. After walking up and down a long time, -after looking from the window out upon the street, where a few stray -human beings flitted past beneath the electrics, Diamond came and stood -beside the bed, looking at Frank. - -Jack’s heart was full. He was beset by deep emotions. - -“The whitest fellow who ever drew the breath of life!” he murmured, as -he gazed at his sleeping comrade. “In many ways, he has made me what I -am. I know it now. He has been my model, and, as far as possible, I have -tried to be like him. I am not ashamed of having a model! If all fellows -could have one like Frank Merriwell, and they would try to imitate him, -it would be well for them. - -“He has shown me my failings without once mentioning them to me. Never -has he told me I was mean, and fretful, and a poor comrade, yet I know I -have been. I know lots of fellows would have sickened of me, but Frank -Merriwell has not. He has seemed to understand me, and to know all my -petulance and ill temper would pass away in time. He has shown me how to -be master of myself, and the task of conquering myself has been, at -times, the hardest thing I ever attempted. I don’t think I’ve always -succeeded in my efforts, but I am sure I have at times, and I have felt -better for it. - -“And now, to think that such a fellow should be in danger of losing his -life at any moment, although he is in perfect health, and has the -brightest prospects before him! It is awful! He has made all plans to go -back to Yale in the fall, and, goodness knows, Old Eli needs him badly -enough! Why, I believe the fellows would mob us if we permitted him to -be assassinated here in Paris! - -“Think of Frank Merriwell, the darling of Yale, murdered by a lot of -cowardly wretches, who are fighting to keep an innocent man in a living -tomb! And his peril is something awful! Those dastards are powerful, and -it is folly to defy them. Frank must leave France at once! But how may -he be induced to go?” - -That was a question for Diamond to study over, and he spent more than an -hour trying to answer it. Once he muttered: - -“I must put up a job with Browning and Rattleton, and carry him away! -It’s a desperate plan, but it must be done. Can I get them to join me? -How will I work it?” - -He pondered on various plans, but remembered that he had given Frank a -promise to say nothing to Bruce and Harry about the terrible danger by -which Merry was beset. - -“I was a fool to make such a promise!” he exclaimed. - -The temptation to break it was strong, but Diamond was a fellow of -veracity, and he was forced to decide that he would not follow that -course. If he did not, how could he induce Rattleton and Browning to -join him in his wild project to carry Merry bodily from France? - -After a time, he decided that it would be impossible. They would think -him crazy if he proposed such a thing. Then he began to plan other -schemes. At last, he decided to telegraph the whole facts to Dolph -Reynolds. He would ask Dolph to send a despatch, stating that Elsie -Bellwood was seriously ill. - -“I’ll do it!” the Virginian exclaimed. “He may never forgive me, but -I’ll stand it! It is for his good, and it shall be done! To-morrow, I’ll -lose no time in sending the message to Reynolds. Frank will be hustling -out of France in a few hours. Heaven grant that he may get out before -the Black Brothers do their dastardly work!” - -It was daybreak before Jack closed his eyes. Even then, he could not -sleep soundly. He dreamed that Merriwell was in frightful peril. He -seemed to see Frank enfolded in the coils of a monster serpent, and -struggling to escape. For all of his struggles, the coils drew tighter -and tighter, slowly crushing the life from Merry’s body. He saw Frank’s -eyes bulging from his head, and his tongue hanging out, and the sight -filled him with such horror as seldom comes to one, save in dreams. He -tried to rush to the rescue of the friend he loved, but seemed frozen to -the ground, unable to move hand or foot. He tried to shriek with anguish -of soul, and—— - -Frank Merriwell shook him till he awoke! - -“Come, come, old fellow!” laughed Merry. “You were having a fearful time -of it. You seemed to be straining every nerve, and the gasps and gurgles -that came from your throat appeared to indicate that you were -strangling. It must have been a bad dream.” - -“It was,” said Jack gloomily. “And the worst is that I fear it is -prophetic.” - -He then told Frank what he had dreamed. - -“Oh, pshaw!” cried Merry lightly. “You were affected by our experiences -last night. I don’t know that I wonder at it, but I rather think there -is no great danger that the serpent will crush me. Take a good look at -the bright sunshine coming in at that window, and let it drive the -clouds away.” - -“It’ll take more than sunshine to do that, as long as we remain in -France, Merriwell,” declared the Virginian. - -To his surprise, Frank seemed almost light-hearted. This was something -Diamond could not understand. Jack had determined to make one more -appeal to Merry, and this he did; but Frank turned the subject, and more -than ever was the Virginian determined to carry out his plan of drawing -his friend from France by means of the false telegram. - -Rattleton was up, but it was necessary to drag Browning out of bed. Both -Harry and Bruce were delighted to find Merry once more in a lively mood. - -“Now you seem like yourself,” declared Rattleton. “You have been glum -enough for awhile. Acted like you were under a spell, but I rather think -the spell is lifted.” - -“If he only knew!” thought Jack. - -After breakfast, Diamond looked for an opportunity to get away from the -others, to send the telegram to Dolph Reynolds; but, when he started -out, he was joined by Frank. - -“A good, brisk walk will do us both good,” said Frank. “Come on, old -man.” - -Diamond was not ready with excuses and subterfuges, and so he went -along, hoping something would turn up to give him the opportunity he -sought. Frank did not loiter in the gardens, but sought the crowded -thoroughfares of the city, for the business portion of Paris was -a-bustle thus early in the day. - -It was mid-forenoon when they halted for a moment, and stood on a -curbing, where they could look along one of the thoroughfares of the -city. Jack had kept his eyes open, for he felt that Frank was constantly -menaced by deadly danger. He it was who saw a man approach a window in -the second story of a building opposite where they stood, and fling it -open. - -“Look, Frank!” he exclaimed. - -“Where?” - -“Up there!” - -“What is it?” - -“Mr. Noname! What is he doing there?” - -Frank recognized the man who had opened the window as the mysterious -being known as Mr. Noname. Something queer in the actions of the man -caused both lads to watch him. He stepped back from the window for a -moment, and there was a little flare of light, as if he had struck a -match. Then he came to the window, with a spring, thrust his head out, -looked up and down the street, and lifted his hand. - -“A signal!” said Jack. - -But it was not a signal. In the hand of the strange man was an object -from which a tiny wreath of blue smoke curled upward. He lifted that -hand, and flung the smoking object straight at Frank Merriwell! A cry -escaped the lips of Diamond. - -“A bomb!” he shouted. - -Down toward the young American flew the object, and then, quick as -thought, Frank Merriwell caught the spluttering thing with the skill of -a baseball-player! - -“Drop it! Run!” - -Diamond caught hold of Frank as he gasped the words. Instead of that, -Frank Merriwell lifted the bomb to his mouth, caught the fuse in his -teeth, and bit it off! - -By his remarkable presence of mind, Frank Merriwell had prevented an -explosion, perhaps had saved his life and Diamond’s. He had bitten the -fuse off close to the bomb. - -Jack Diamond was paralyzed with astonishment. - -Frank spat the end of the fuse from his mouth, observing: - -“I rather think that will prevent the thing from doing any damage.” - -“Great heavens!” gasped the Virginian. “How could you think to do it?” - -“Had to think. Case of necessity. Now, I want to know what this means.” - -“It means murder! It means treachery! That old madman threw the bomb!” - -“Mr. Noname?” - -“Yes.” - -“I saw him.” - -“He’s turned on you, Frank.” - -“Looks that way. He’ll have to explain.” - -“He can’t.” - -“He’s gone from the window.” - -That was true; the Mystery had disappeared. This astonishing scene had -been witnessed by several persons. Two officers came hurrying up, and -asked a score of questions. - -“It’s a bomb,” explained Frank. - -“Le bomb! le bomb!” cried the crowd that had gathered. - -“And the man who threw it is in that building!” shouted Diamond. “He -threw it from that open window. He is in there now. Capture him! Arrest -him!” - -“Arrest him!” shouted the crowd. - -“You know him? You can identify him?” asked the officers. - -“In a minute!” - -“Come with us!” - -They dashed across the street, and entered the café, from the second -story of which the bomb had been thrown. Up-stairs they dashed. - -“It will go hard with Mr. Noname if he is caught now,” said Frank. - -“It should!” hissed Diamond. “The man is a maniac! I have felt it all -along! I have feared him!” - -Diamond was eager to capture the Mystery, but, when the room was reached -from which the bomb had been thrown, all they found was a quiet-looking, -smooth-faced man, who was seated at a table, drinking coffee, and -looking over a morning paper. The officers demanded of Frank and Jack if -that were the man. They seemed disappointed when both lads declared it -was not. Then they questioned the man, who seemed greatly surprised. Had -he seen another person in the room? He had. A man had entered a short -time before, but he had not noticed him in particular, as he was sitting -with his back toward the window. The man had just left the room in a -hurried manner. Whither did he go? The door by which he had departed was -pointed out. - -The officers were eager to capture the bomb-thrower. It would be greatly -to their credit. They hastened from the room by the door. Frank and Jack -followed. Barely were they out of the room when Frank stopped. - -“This is mighty queer,” he said. - -“What?” asked the Virginian. - -“That the man in there knows nothing of the bomb-throwing.” - -“That’s right.” - -“I believe he knows more than he has told.” - -“You may be right.” - -“He should be watched.” - -“Sure thing.” - -“Go back, and keep an eye on him, Diamond.” - -“All right.” - -Jack rushed back to the room, and then a cry came from him. Wondering -what had happened, Frank hurried after him. - -“What is it, Jack?” he asked. - -“The man!” - -“What?” - -“Gone!” - -It was true. The man had lost no time in getting out of that room. His -coffee was on the table, and his paper lay on the floor. Frank Merriwell -dashed down the stairs, hoping to prevent the man from escaping. He was -too late to do so, however, for the stranger had left the restaurant. -Once outside in the crowd, he had melted away. - -“We have been chumps!” exclaimed Frank regretfully. “I am sure he was -the one who could have explained everything.” - -“I am sure of it, too,” nodded Diamond. - -The search through the building did not result in the capture of the man -who threw the bomb. - -Of course, Frank was requested to accompany the police to headquarters, -and tell everything he knew, while the café was placed under -surveillance. Frank told his story, and the bomb was turned over to the -police, who promised to make a thorough investigation. - -“Which will result in nothing,” said Diamond gloomily. “They have taken -your address, Merry, but all they will do is call round at the hotel, -and pump you with questions.” - -Frank was puzzled more than he wished to confess. It seemed certain that -Mr. Noname had deliberately attempted to destroy him, and that was -something he could not understand. If the man was an enemy, why had he -saved his life so many times? - -Diamond redoubled his argument for leaving France with all possible -haste. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XX. - - FRANK PROTECTS THE MYSTERY. - - -Mystery had followed mystery with astonishing swiftness, and the very -atmosphere of Paris now seemed full of danger and death. Of this Frank -Merriwell and Jack Diamond were aware, while Bruce Browning and Harry -Rattleton were in blissful ignorance. Harry and Bruce did not understand -why, as soon as Merry and Jack returned to the hotel, they shut -themselves into a room, and seemed to hold a secret conclave. - -Diamond’s excitement had increased. He paced up and down the floor, his -face pale, and his eyes glowing. - -“I tell you, Merriwell, it is madness to remain here!” he asserted. “You -must confess it now. The one on whom I believe you depended almost -wholly for protection has turned against you. What can you do now? I am -certain you had begun to think this Mr. Noname possessed of supernatural -powers, and you fancied he could protect you from the assassins who -sought your destruction. Now you can no longer rely on his aid. Instead -of that it is certain he will do all he can to destroy you.” - -“Why should he?” - -“Answer your own question.” - -“I cannot.” - -“I can!” - -“Then do!” - -“He is mad.” - -“You think so?” - -“I have no doubt of it. I have believed it all the time. You know, I -have told you so before.” - -“I know.” - -“He has the eyes of a maniac.” - -“Do you say that because his eyes are deep and dark?” - -“No. They have a strange glitter. He seems to look a person through and -through.” - -“That is true.” - -“Besides, at times his words have been those of a maniac. He has not -talked like a sane man. You must confess it.” - -“I do not know.” - -“You must know—you do know! You cannot say you have never observed -anything remarkable in his language. He has claimed to be your good -genius.” - -“Well he might, for he has saved my life repeatedly.” - -“He has seemed to.” - -“What do you mean by ‘seemed to’?” - -“How do you know he has not been plotting your destruction all the -time?” - -“It is not possible.” - -“It is possible! Wait a minute. You have been in no end of trouble since -you met him, haven’t you?” - -“Yes, but——” - -“How do you know he has not been at the bottom of it all?” - -“Ridiculous!” - -“Nothing of the sort!” persisted the Virginian warmly. “It would be like -the unaccountable acts of a madman. He might get you into all this -trouble, Frank, so that he could pretend to save you.” - -“Why should he do that?” - -“Who can account for the actions of a madman? He wishes to make himself -notorious. He had wished that you should believe him very wonderful. He -may have plotted against you all the time, and——” - -“No!” cried Frank; “I cannot, and will not, believe that of Mr. Noname!” - -“Thank you!” - -The door had swung open, and Mr. Noname himself stepped in, speaking the -words of thanks as he entered. Diamond stood in the middle of the room, -thunderstruck for the moment, his hands clenched, his finely chiseled -face stern and grim. - -The Man of Mystery closed the door behind him, and turned toward the two -young Americans, quietly saying: - -“I have just learned of what happened to you this morning, Mr. -Merriwell, and I have come here to listen to the story from your own -lips.” - -“Well, that is what I call bluff!” grated Jack. - -“Why should you come to me, when you were concerned in it?” asked Merry. -“You know what happened as well as I. But I am glad you have come, for -now you must give me an explanation.” - -“You say I know what happened, but I swear that I know nothing beyond -what I have heard!” - -“You were there.” - -“I was not.” - -“Liar!” panted the Virginian. “We both saw you! We saw you throw the -bomb!” - -The strange man turned his dark eyes on the hot-blooded Virginian, and -he spoke in a calm tone: - -“It makes no difference what you may think you saw. I deny taking any -part in it.” - -“Do you deny that you hurled a bomb at me?” asked Frank, astonished. - -“Yes.” - -“Deny it as much as you like!” cried Diamond; “you did it! But for -Merriwell’s quick wit, we should have been blown to pieces! You tried to -kill us!” - -“What folly! Why should I try to kill you?” - -“Answer that question yourself.” - -“I answer it by swearing that I know nothing about it. Of you, Mr. -Merriwell, I ask to know the full story. As I have saved you from danger -and death many times, I appeal to you now.” - -“And this is the creature who professed to be your guardian angel!” -sneered Jack. “This is the creature who said he’d always be near to -protect you!” - -The Mystery made a gesture, half of anger, half of reproof. - -“You know not what you are saying,” he declared. “Tell me all, Frank -Merriwell.” - -Frank did so, in a very few words. The man listened till he had -finished. - -“Now,” exclaimed Diamond, “what have you to say to that? We both saw you -at the window! We both saw you throw the bomb!” - -“You may have thought you saw me.” - -“Listen to that, Frank! What do you think of it for nerve?” - -“It seems,” said the man, “that somebody who looked like me must have -thrown this bomb.” - -“That is thin! Why, do you think we would not know your clothes, your -beard, your long black hair, your face? We are not fools! You are the -man! You have pretended to be Merriwell’s friend, but to-day you sought -to blow him to pieces!” - -“I would sooner think of putting a gun to my head, and blowing out my -own brains,” said the man solemnly. - -“Bah! You cannot make us believe that now!” - -“I have been misunderstood all my life,” said the man rather sadly. “It -is not remarkable that such should be the case now. Well, it makes no -difference. I do not care. I will continue to prove my friendship to -Frank Merriwell by protecting him from peril.” - -“By Heaven!” shouted Diamond fiercely; “you shall answer for your -attempt on his life! I believe you have been at the bottom of all his -trouble in Paris! I believe you have brought all this danger upon him! -You shall not escape now!” - -The Mystery took a step toward the door, but, of a sudden, the Virginian -drew a revolver, and pointed it straight at the man, fiercely -commanding: - -“Stop! Take another step, and I’ll drop you! You shall not slip away -this time!” - -The man paused, and looked at Frank. - -Merry had been surprised by the swift action of his friend, and now he -cried: - -“Down with that revolver, Diamond! If you do not——” - -“Never!” snarled Jack. “If you will not hold this man for the officers, -I will! I shall turn him over to them, and——” - -“You will do nothing of the sort!” - -Frank made a leap, and was upon Diamond. He grasped Jack’s wrist, and, -like a flash, wrenched the revolver from his hand. Then he turned to the -Man Without a Name. - -“Go!” he said. “I will protect you once, in return for the many times -you have protected me. For all that appearances are against you, I will -trust you.” - -“And you shall never have cause to regret it,” assured the Mystery, as -he departed. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - CHAPTER XXI. - - THE TURN OF THE TIDE. - - -It was impossible to tell when a Dreyfus agitation would break out in -France during those anxious months. The day following the events just -related, one took place. The courts were in session, and the friends of -Dreyfus sprang a surprise by having a new feature of the case called up, -and an attempt made to reopen the whole affair. Then, in a most amazing -manner, a great array of evidence in favor of the prisoner of Devil’s -Island piled up. It fairly took away the breath of his enemies. - -English and American newspapers printed the report that a steamer had -been sent to Devil’s Island, with a strong military guard, for the -purpose of taking Dreyfus off, and bringing him back to France, where he -would have a new trial. These reports were cabled to Paris without -delay. Everybody sought confirmation of them, and then a prominent -French paper came out with the assertion that it was absolutely true, -and that Dreyfus was on his way to France even then! - -All Paris seemed to be hushed in waiting for some great thing that must -follow. - -Jack Diamond was the first to get hold of the paper that printed the -cabled reports from the English and American papers, and announced -beneath that it was absolutely true that Dreyfus was on his way to -France. Diamond had tried to keep Frank Merriwell in the hotel while the -excitement was going on in the streets, but had not been successful. -Frank had persisted in venturing out to witness “the sport,” although -Jack had warned him that he was taking his life in his hand. Nothing had -happened to Merry, however. - -Diamond came rushing into the hotel with the newspaper, and placed it -before Frank, pointing out the report mentioned. Frank read it, and his -face flushed with satisfaction. - -“Frank!” warned Jack. - -“What is it?” - -“The Black Brothers will be desperate now. They will be striking their -final blows. You had better keep still, and lay low.” - -“I believe the whole Anti-Dreyfus League will be hunting their holes. I -do not believe the Black Brothers will have much to do but lay low.” - -“That’s a queer idea.” - -“See if I am not right.” - -Frank was elated, and he could talk of nothing else, save the turn of -the tide in favor of Dreyfus. He insisted on going out that night, and -they dined in the open air, beneath the trees, Browning and Rattleton -going along. - -The American lads were surprised at the calmness of the people, who had -seemed so wildly excited a short time before. Listening, they heard men -quietly saying, one to another, that Dreyfus was coming back at last. -Some of them said there would be bloodshed the hour he set his feet on -French soil, but they said it quietly, as if it were useless to struggle -against fate. - -Several striking-looking men came and took a table near Frank and his -friends. These men talked with more excitement than had any others that -night, but they were not arguing over the fate of Dreyfus. Instead, they -were discussing the disruption of the Anti-Dreyfus League. - -“Listen to that, Jack!” breathed Frank. “Those men belong to the -league.” - -“They are members of the lower order.” - -“That is plain, for they are discussing the doings of the higher order.” - -“And they do not seem pleased over it.” - -“Not much!” - -“It seems that there has been a serious split in the league.” - -“Sure thing.” - -“And that means—just what, Frank?” - -“The moment the league gets out from behind the Black Brothers, the -assassin band hunts its hole. Those creatures will no longer be -dangerous. The league paid them to do its bloody work, and, when the -league ceases to exist, the Brothers will cease to be.” - -“You may be right.” - -“I’m sure of it! Oh, my dear fellow, things are coming out all right in -France! Justice may sleep for a time, but there comes an hour when she -awakens. That hour has arrived.” - -“Well, dow the hickens—I mean, how the dickens is it that you are so -intensely interested in the business, anyway, Frank? You and Jack talk -as if it might be a matter of life or death with you.” - -“So it may,” declared Merry. - -Browning gave a grunt. - -“Huah!” he said. “Don’t talk in riddles. What do you mean, anyhow?” - -“That’s right,” urged Rattleton; “what do you mean?” - -“That the turn affairs have taken may save my life.” - -“Your life?” mumbled the big fellow. - -“Your life?” gurgled Harry. - -“That’s what I said.” - -“And it is gospel truth!” nodded Diamond solemnly. - -“Oh, say!” came from Harry; “get down onto the earth, and give it to us -straight! Merry might be stringing us; but when did you start in backing -him up in his practical jokes, Diamond?” - -“There is no joke about this. I should say Frank is ready to tell you -about the whole thing. When he does, you’ll drop dead!” - -“As much as that?” murmured Browning. “I haven’t made a will.” - -“What do you wish to leave?” asked Harry, with a grin. - -“My will; it’s all I have to leave, and I want to leave something.” - -“Tell us about this business,” urged Rattleton, speaking to Frank. Merry -had decided to do so, and he explained the whole affair in a few -well-chosen words. Their amazement increased as he proceeded. It did not -take them long to see that he was in sober earnest, and they listened -breathlessly. When he had finished, they were indignant. - -“And you never told us?” questioned Rattleton resentfully. - -“Not a word!” came angrily from Bruce. - -“I found out the truth by accident,” said Diamond. - -“Is that the proper way to treat your friends, Frank?” asked Bruce -almost sorrowfully. - -Merry then explained how he was bound to secrecy as long as the metal -ball was in his possession. - -“Yes; but you did not tell after that.” - -“I didn’t know but I should be forced to flee from France to save my -life,” said Frank; “and, to be honest, I didn’t want you to know I had -taken to my heels.” - -From any other fellow, this might have seemed a reasonable explanation; -but, although it was spoken openly and honestly, it seemed like a -confession of a weakness, and they were looking for nothing of the sort -in him. However, if he really had a weakness, it seemed natural that he -should be the first to discover it, and expose it. - -“That’s a pretty slim excuse!” growled the big Yale man. “I think you -have treated us in a thundering shabby manner!” - -“I can’t help it, boys. I may have to skip out of France now, but -something tells me that the hour of great danger is past.” - -At this moment, a man and a woman sat down at a table just vacated by a -party. The man was tall, dark, scowling; the woman was young, handsome, -scornful. There was something extremely unpleasant about her, even -though she was handsome. As she sat down with her companion, he said -something that caused her to laugh. Frank Merriwell started as if he had -been shot. His hand went out, and fell on Jack Diamond’s arm. - -“I have heard that laugh before!” he whispered. “She is Mademoiselle -Nameless!” - -“The woman who tried to murder you!” replied the Virginian. - -“The same!” nodded Merry. - -As the man and woman sat down, several of the men at another table, -those whom the boys had heard talking together, bowed coldly to the -newcomers. One or two of the men stared at them in stony silence. - -The man with the woman returned the stare, and his lips curled with -contempt. He was a dangerous-looking fellow, but no more dangerous than -the woman. There was something about her that proclaimed her desperate -and deadly. - -Frank had a fine opportunity to study her face. It was not long before -she saw him, and she actually smiled upon him! That smile angered him, -but he held himself in check. - -The woman spoke to her escort, and she was heard to say: - -“There is the young American who caused so much disturbance, Monsieur -Merriwell. I think there was too much fuss made over him.” - -“Oh, I don’t know,” growled the man, looking Frank over. - -Then he said something to her, as if he did not wish to be heard by -anybody else, but she immediately gave him away by exclaiming: - -“You are sure, Louis—you know the very paper that was in the ball has -reached the courts?” - -“Keep still!” he growled. “It’s not necessary to tell everybody of it!” - -“Oh, what’s the use! The game is up, anyhow!” - -“Yes; and you are advised to keep your mouth closed. You may be arrested -with others.” - -“If I am, I may take a fancy to tell some surprising things,” she -laughed. “Just look out that I am not arrested, Louis.” - -It was plain both had been drinking, else they would not have spoken so -loudly. Their words created a stir among the men at the next table. -Those men turned, and stared at the young Americans, and then they -jabbered among themselves. All at once, one of them rose, and approached -the table at which the four lads were sitting. - -Diamond was on the alert instantly. He watched the man with the eyes of -a hawk, thinking he might do something to injure Frank. - -The Frenchman spoke politely. - -“I beg a thousand pardons, gentlemen,” he said; “but what I have just -heard leads me to believe one of your number is Monsieur Merriwell. Am I -right?” - -“Yes, sir,” bowed Frank. “I am the one.” - -The man looked at Frank. - -“I have heard you met with a rather unpleasant adventure recently, -Monsieur Merriwell.” - -“I have had many of them. To what one do you refer?” - -The Frenchman hesitated, and then he seemed to decide to come out -flatly. - -“It is said you were captured by some ruffians, who attempted to slay -you, but were prevented by the gendarmes. Is that true?” - -“It is.” - -“And, further, that the ruffians were seeking to obtain possession of a -paper that had been delivered into your hands by Edmond Laforce, the -Duke of Benoit du Sault. How about that?” - -“I know nothing of the paper,” answered Frank truthfully. - -“Then you have not turned it over to the courts?” - -“No, monsieur. I have never seen it.” - -“Nevertheless, in some manner, that paper has reached the courts. It is -said it will clear Dreyfus. Of that I have doubts, for I believe Dreyfus -guilty. However, I wished to confirm the story that you were connected -with the affair. I understand your life has been threatened?” - -“And that is true. I have been told that I must leave France, or the -Anti-Dreyfus League would destroy me.” - -“Well, there is no reason why you need fear the Anti-Dreyfus League.” - -“Why not?” - -“That order no longer exists. Monsieur Merriwell, you need have no -further fear of the league.” - -“How about the tools of the league?” - -“They are harmless now, for the league is not behind them. There is no -reason why they should molest you.” - -There was a scream, and a sudden commotion at the adjoining table. -Several gendarmes had appeared there, and they were arresting the man -and the woman. The man was furious, and made a struggle. He tried to -draw a weapon and place it at his head, plainly with the intention of -committing suicide, but he was prevented and disarmed. Then irons were -placed upon him. A hand fell on Frank Merriwell’s arm. He turned his -head, and saw the Man of Mystery at his elbow. - -“You have witnessed the arrest of the chief of the Black Brothers!” said -Mr. Noname, with great satisfaction. “I have hunted him down! I have -placed the officers upon him!” - -“You?” - -“Yes! The band is scattered and broken. One has committed suicide -to-night, while two others have been arrested. Three have fled from -Paris. My hired spies have done their work swiftly and well!” - -“And you have brought all this about?” - -“Even so. More than that, I have solved the mystery of the -bomb-throwing. In a drawer of the very table at which the man sat, -drinking coffee and reading a paper, when you rushed into the café to -capture the bomb-thrower, I discovered—these!” - -He held up a false beard, a long-haired wig, and a slouch hat. - -“What are those?” asked Diamond. - -“The disguise worn by the fellow who threw the bomb. He made himself up -to look like me. Without doubt, he was the man who was drinking coffee -when you entered the room. He was one of the band of Black Brothers.” - -“I believe it,” nodded Frank. - -Now they again turned their attention to the gendarmes, who were -marching their prisoners away. As they departed, the woman turned, and -saw Frank standing and staring after her. - -“Good night, Monsieur Merriwell!” she called. “You have no reason to -leave France now. There is no more danger for you. I admire your nerve, -and that is why I tell you this. Good night, and farewell forever!” - -In truth it was “farewell forever.” On the following morning, the woman -was found dead on the cot in her prison cell. On her left wrist was a -tiny drop of blood that had oozed from a slight puncture, like a -pin-prick! - -The tide in the affairs of justice in France had turned at last, and in -the great work of charity toward the unfortunate man who had endured -years of torture indescribable on Devil’s Island Frank had had a part, -and no small one, either, as he was to learn later. Looking back on that -time of danger for the French Republic, before the great public had come -to realize that a principle was above a party-cry in the affairs of -democracy, it seems strange that a leading part in the struggle was -taken by an American, a mere lad. But, as a French statesman said, when -this comment was made before him: “_Oui, monsieur!_ A lad, a mere lad, -if you will; but, remember, this mere lad was an American lad, and the -type of the best of young American manhood!” - -Frank’s stay in France was not ended, and he had still to encounter many -dangers at the hands of his enemies, but we must leave him for the -present. Of one thing, however, there need be no doubt. Whatever his -perils, whatever dangers might threaten, Frank Merriwell was not the lad -to quail. For he was American to the core, and Americans do not fail. It -might take Frank’s enemies a long time to find it out, but, eventually, -they would realize all the French statesman meant, when he said: “This -mere lad was an American lad, and the type of the best of young American -manhood!” - - - THE END. - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - -[Illustration: - - Medal Library No. 344 -] - - ------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - - - - ● Transcriber’s Notes: - ○ Missing or obscured punctuation was silently corrected. - ○ Typographical errors were silently corrected. - ○ Inconsistent spelling and hyphenation were made consistent only - when a predominant form was found in this book. - ○ Text that was in italics is enclosed by underscores (_italics_); - text that was bold by “equal” signs (=bold=). - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK FRANK MERRIWELL ON THE -BOULEVARDS *** - -***** This file should be named 63752-0.txt or 63752-0.zip ***** -This and all associated files of various formats will be found in: - http://www.gutenberg.org/6/3/7/5/63752/ - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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