Detective Bob Bridger — page 32: what you’re looking at

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

DETECTIVE BOB BRIDGER. 25 all he has been given to do as Bridger has done. There’s no mistake about it. Bridger’s a war-horse. So I call him ‘Old’ Bridger, something after the way folks call death ‘Old’ Death. If either of them gets on the trail of a man he’d better throw up the sponge.” “Tt would seem so,” returned the secretary, amused at the old man’s explanation. ‘Here is his report on the Mis- souri case: ‘Have secured ample evidence to convict the four men suspected. Was ably aided by the marshal of the district. The men are in prison.’ ” From that time on Bridger was kept on the go from one end of the country to the other, and became the hero of many desperate encounters and skillful and daring arrests. In the fall of the year ’73 he had barely ended working up a case of fraud connected with the navy-yard at Mare Island, California, when he received instructions to pro- ceed without delay to New York. The nature of the New York case was smuggling, and as it involved several prominent firms now in business, I will not give the particulars. However, as Bridger journeyed eastward he stopped off at the headquarters of the railway company under whose employ he had acted as conductor. It was evening when he entered the company’s offices, and he found the superintendent and the general manager in consultation. The superintendent explained to Bridger that General Grant was expected to arrive some time during the night on aspecial train, and that it was to proceed eastward over the line to Kane Station, to which point the illustrious passenger journeyed on a visit to his old friend, General Kane. Owing to an uncertainty regarding the time of the spec- ial’s arrival, no definite schedule could be arranged for it, and it would have to be ‘ wild-catted” over the road, re- quiring a skillful conductor. For reasons which the superintendent did not care to name, he did not wish to take his conductors from their regular runs, and he asked Bridger to run the train through. Glad to have command of a train on the old route for a few hours’ run, as a reminder of old times, he accepted the officer’s offer. on Shortly after midnight the train glided in upon the con- necting line. It consisted of two palace sleeping-cars, a baggage-car, and engine, cComicbooks (e(o)