The Boy Soldier; Or, Garibaldi's Young Captain — page 171: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

THE BOY SOLDIER; OR, GARIBALDI’S YOUNG CAPTAIN. 1 ;—_—_—_——_—_——_—-_— On the ecard was— CouNT Bonvzo, Capt. of Artillery, Hotel Victor, The note ran thus— CAPT. FRANK FORD, SiR,— Your hasty and ungentlemanly conversation with Mr. Lancaster, as reported to me to-day; requires an instant apology, or otherwise, as a gentleman,.I demand. that satisfac- tion which a soldier expects of any one, and condeseends to’ ask from such an impostor as Capt. Frank Ford. I remain, -DE SANGRI, Marquis de Noyolo, &c. P.S.—Any answer to this, addressed to my friend Count Bodzo, will receive instant attention. ; Dd. . “A challenge,eh ? Why, what an old fool Lan- caster must have been! I never insulted him. I have too much love for his daughter, and respect for his own old age for that. “T suppose he has magnified the matter over his wine, and this De Sangri, who has longed for a duel with me, has considered it a peg on which to hang a quarrel. ‘Well, so be it, I am not at all averse to the meeting, but will answer De Sangri’s challenge at once.” ; Frank sat down and wrote. . Hotel de Londres, To the MARQUIS DE SANGRI, MARQUIS,—I have never yet given utterance to any word of which I have felt ashamed to acknowledge, and I can assure you no single sentence of mine could have given offence to Mr. Lancaster, a gentleman whose life, under Providence, I lately. saved. : ' As your insulting language, however, leaves no doubt that on any .pretext, however slight, you desire a hostile ‘meeting, I should not be an English Volunteer if I declined, although you are perfectly well aware that recent wounds, received in battle, are still unhealed. I will say no more, but. leave further argument until our meeting. In the meantime, I refer your friend, Count Bodzo, to confer with my brother, Captain Tom Ford, of the King’s Navy, who is staying with me for a few days. I am, Marquis, Yours, &c!, FRANK FORD, Capt. (Brevet Major) of English Volunteers. “ There,” said Frank, ‘this upstart marquis has long desired this meeting, and much good may it do him.” So saying, he attired himself in his best uniform ate a hearty dinner, and went to the opera with his brother Tom. —— ee CHAPTER LXII. DETECTIVES: ON THE TRAIL—THE FATAL SHOT— THE ENCOUNTER AND DEATH, RADFEN was much too weak to think of starting in pursuitof Jonathan. — . He, therefore, by the inspector’s advice, entrusted the job” to Sergeant Gamble, a “plain clothes” man, who was very expert and bold. -\ Gamble first enquired at all the cab ranks near ane bank if any one had been called off within the 10ur. He found out from the waterman that a Han- som cab had been called off by a long-legged, clerical-looking person, _“ Where did he want to go ?” “Epping Forest.” ‘Did you hear him say so ?” “ No, but the driver told me.” ‘Get me a cab, then—the best on the rank. Did you see the party yourself ?”’ . $5 es,” _ “And could identify him ?” “Tn course I could.” ~~ “Hi, cabby |!” said Ganible, to the driver of a Hansom, “ how’s your horse—fresh ?” “As a daisy!” was the reply. Cab horses are always “fresh,” although out all night, and most part of the day very. often. “Then drive like the devil to Epping Forest. C)me along, waterman ; you must go also, I can’t do withont you, for I never saw the chap as I’m after in all my life.” Gamble and the waterman jumped into the cab, the driver cracked his whip, and off they went to Epping Forest. Through the dark and ailent streets they clattered at a fearful pace, until the horse was all afoam. From time to time Gamble peered out upon any passing vehicle. But cabby did not stop for anything, although he drove so near to the curb occasionally that there was great fear of his “spilling” his fare into the road, or smashing the cab. When they fairly got a mile or two into the country road, Gamblé stopped the cab, and asked one of the mounted rural police, ‘Seen a cab along the road to-night ?” « Yes.” : “ How long since ?” “An hour, and going like the devil. “* Murderer wanted, that’s all.” And on the Hansom cab rattled along, mile after mile, until in the distance they espied Epping Forest. Beside the roadside stopped Jonathan’s cab. Why ?” CHAPTER LXIIl. THE PURSUIT—WHAT CAME OF IT—THE SAD END— THE CONCEALED VILLAIN—THE FATAL SHOT. “Ts that the cab, waterman ?” asked Gardner, the detective, as his own conveyance bowled along at a sharp pace towards Epping Forest. *‘ Jest so, Mister Gardner.” “ Who drives it ?” *‘Old Job Perkins.” “JT know him well enough; he used to drive a four-wheeler.” ‘Yes, but he’s got up in the world lately.” * How do you mean ?” “T can’t explain it, for, as you see, Job is an art- ful old devil, and has more ways than one of making money these hard’ times.” “J don’t understand you, waterman.”’ “Well, what I mean, Mister Gardner, is. this here; you see, one rainy night when Job was driving a four-wheeler, he was called off his rank in a great hurry bya very suspicious-Jooking party, but as he drove along he heard some one calling out for him to stop ; he did so, and the party who called out for him to stop was no other than Puggy.” “Puggy, eh,” said Gardner, with a smile; “and where was this ?” “ Well, I heard Job say once it were in the next street to where old Ford was murdered in the Red House.” “ Oh, the Red House, eh, and on that very night, too? What brought Puggy so far from home, I wonder, on that particular night ?” said Gardner. « That I don’t know ; but this I do know, old Job said that Puggy was minding an old gent as fell down in a fit, and wanted Job to take him up; he refused at first, but when he discovered that the ehap who called him off the rank had hooked it in a very queer way, without going his journey and paying his fare, why he takes up the old gentleman © AMC OOS CO