Amateur Fireman

by William Henry Giles Kingston

  CHAPTER IV.

  SAM THE DETECTIVE.

  The sidewalk merchants in the vicinity of the post-office were wellinformed of Seth Bartlett's loss by the time he arrived in that sectionof the city.

  Those who had not heard the story from Dan Roberts read an account ofthe destruction of Baxter Brothers' carpenter-shop in the morning papersduring the early part of the day before the business rush began, andthus it was Seth found himself the centre of a sympathizing crowd ofacquaintances as soon as he crossed City Hall Park.

  Master Barney had but just returned from a journey supposed to have beentaken in search of the boy who had robbed him, and he immediately castaside his own business troubles in order to "work the case against JipCollins," as he expressed it.

  Sam was among the throng gathered to meet the homeless bootblack, andwhen others would have asked for further particulars regarding theconflagration, even though Dan had given all the information in hispossession, the amateur detective checked the curious ones by sayingsharply:

  "This ain't any time to talk foolishness, 'cause if I'm goin' to take upthis case I must get right down to it before Jip has a chance to runvery far."

  "What do you mean by takin' up the case?" Seth asked in surprise, andDan Roberts replied quickly:

  "Sam says he's willin' to go after Jip Collins, an' will stick at ittill he catches him."

  "That's what I've 'greed to, an' I'm in dead earnest, Seth. Of courseyou can't afford to pay a reg'lar detective a whole lot of money jest tofind Jip for you; but I can do the work as well, an' you needn't put outa cent more'n I'm called on to spend for expenses."

  "What do _you_ want of Jip?" Seth asked in surprise.

  "To have him 'rested for settin' fire to your shed, of course."

  "_I_ don't want anythin' of the kind. I reckon he's sorry enough forwhat he did without my tryin' to make more trouble for him."

  "Do you mean to say you're willin' he should burn the shed an' comepretty nigh killin' you?"

  "Course I ain't willin'; but now it's been done there's no need for meto try to put him in jail, 'cause it won't do any good, an' I'd feel badto think any feller I knew was up to Sing Sing doin' time."

  It was evident that but few of the sidewalk merchants agreed with Sethin the view he took of the matter.

  The majority of them believed Jip should be pursued until captured, andthen punished to the full extent of the law.

  Some were inclined to the opinion that Sam Barney might possibly succeedin running down the culprit, but these credulous ones were the mostintimate friends of the amateur detective, and by far the larger numberof the throng thought a formal complaint should be lodged with theofficers of the law against the boy who had so nearly caused the deathof Seth and Dan.

  Sam Barney was literally astounded at the forgiving spirit which thewould-be fireman displayed, and this first burst of astonishment soongave way to something like anger.

  He said in what was intended to be a fine tone of irony:

  "Well, you're too good, Seth Bartlett, that's what's the matter withyou! Here's Dan been tellin' that you were jest about the same as deadwhen Ninety-four's men got in there. The snuggest house in town burned,an' you thrown out of a home! After all that you've got the nerve tosay there's no reason why we should catch Jip Collins! I ain't certainas you've got anythin' to do with it. S'posen the cops find out what wasdone--an' most likely Ninety-four's driver that you claim is a chum ofyours will tell 'em--how are you goin' to help it if they try to findhim?"

  "I can't, an' that's a fact; but I haven't got to start the thingmyself."

  "What would you do if you should meet him right here this very minute?"

  "I'm 'fraid I'd thump him."

  "'Fraid!" Sam repeated sarcastically. "Why, you ought'er pound his headoff, an' then have him jugged."

  "You see, it's jest like this, fellers," Seth said in an apologetic toneas he looked around at his friends and acquaintances, understanding fullwell that they disapproved of his leniency. "It's jest like this: If afeller gets to fightin' on the street he's likely to be pulled in forit, an' then perhaps he has to go down to the Island for ten days or so.Now you all know I'm tryin' to work into the Department, an' what kindof show would I stand if there was a record like that against me?Fellers who get up a name for fightin' don't 'mount to very much,'cordin' to what I've seen, an' that's why I said I was 'fraid I mightthump Jip. You see, what's done now will stand against me when I'm oldenough to be a fireman, an' I've got to look out mighty careful forthat. Now, so far's puttin' Jip in jail goes, I don't want anythin' todo with it."

  "I can't see how that's goin' to give you a bad name," some one of thethrong cried.

  "I reckon it couldn't; but it might stand against Jip when he grows up,an' if I should let Sam take the case I'd be hurtin' Jip more'n he didme, so it wouldn't be fair."

  "But you don't allow folks can go 'round settin' fire to houses an'tryin' to burn other people up without havin' to pay for it?"

  "Course I don't, an' Jip ought'er get it hot for what he's done; but Iwon't be the one to send him up the river."

  "If that's the way Seth feels 'bout it we haven't got any right tokick," Dan suggested, and Sam Barney cried sharply:

  "I say we have! Jest 'cause Seth is gettin' so awful good on account ofwantin' to go into the Department, there's no reason why we should letJip Collins sneak away after what's been done, an' I'll take up the caseon my own hook rather than see him wiggle out of it."

  "Have you got the feller yet what stole your money?" Dan asked in ameaning tone, whereat the remainder of the company set up a loud shoutof derision, much to the amateur detective's discomfort.

  "If I haven't that's no sign I can't. I reckon I know enough 'bout thebusiness to handle two cases at the same time, if I want to, an' you'llsee if I don't pull Jip Collins over the coals before I'm a week older."

  Then Sam stalked away with the bearing of one who feels that he has beeninjured, and the remainder of the party discussed the events of theprevious night without further reference to the arrest of the evil-doer.

  When the subject had been exhausted Seth made inquiries concerning anybootblack's outfit which might be for sale, and half an hour later hewas once more the owner of a box and brushes.

  "The fire has cost me seventy cents, besides the breakfast we lost whenthe place was burned," he said to Dan, and the latter repliedmournfully:

  "I'd have been willin' to give a good deal more'n that right out of myown pocket, poor as trade has been, than to lose the snuggestlodgin'-place in this town. We'll never find anythin' that will come upwith that shed."

  "Cryin' won't help out on it. What we've got to do is to hunt up anothershanty where we can bunk in without givin' up too much money, for afterhavin' to buy a new outfit I can't afford to fool away good dollarspayin' for a bed at a reg'lar lodgin'-house."

  "You'll never get anythin' that will come up to the shanty Jip Collinsset on fire," Dan replied sadly, and as the realization of their losscame to him with redoubled force now that the time had arrived when theymust search for new lodgings, he gave way to anger against the boy whohad wrought them so much mischief, as if believing this would mendmatters.

  Seth waited patiently until his partner had indulged in such outburstseveral moments, after which he said sagely:

  "Now, look here, Dan, scoldin' won't fix things the least little bit,an' there's no sense in keepin' on tellin 'bout how big a villain JipCollins is. What we've got to do is to hustle, an' in the long run we'llfind that will pay better'n ravin'. Do you know of any place where wecan stop for a night or two till I've had time to look 'round more?"

  "If I did I'd taken it long ago, instead of payin' you fifteen cents aweek for half of your quarters."

  "Well, we've got to find one; that's all there is to it. Now, s'posen,instead of tryin' to do any more business to-day, we mosey right alongabout it."

  "Where you goin'?"

  "I don't exactly know. We'll kind-er loaf 'round; tha
t's the way I foundthe carpenter-shop, an' if it turns out we don't see a place, why, it'llbe a case of puttin' up the stuff for one night's lodgin's."

  "I ain't sure as I've got money enough left to pay for a reg'lar bed."

  "I reckon I can squeeze out what'll pay the bills if you're broke. Now,come on."

  Unconsciously Seth led the way toward Ninety-four's house, not reallybeing aware he was proceeding in that direction, and after walkingseveral blocks in silence Dan asked almost sharply:

  "Are you countin' on their lettin' us hang 'round the engine-house?"

  "Course not. The firemen can't do anythin' like that, you know. We wasmighty lucky to get a bed there last night, an' wouldn't had it exceptthat we'd been burned out."

  "Then what are you goin' up this way for?"

  "There's jest as much chance 'round here as anywhere, an' of course I'dsooner live near Ninety-four, 'cause I do a good deal of shinin' for themen. Then ag'in, I don't want to lose run of 'em, for perhaps some day'Lish Davis'll give me a lift into the Department."

  "There's no use lookin' here, 'cause we'd known if there was any placethat would suit us."

  "I ain't so sure of that. You see, we wasn't lookin' for one, an' now ifwe go along with our eyes open there's no tellin' but what we mayrun----"

  Seth ceased speaking very suddenly, for at that instant the clanging ofgongs could be heard far up the street, and Dan exclaimed:

  "That sounds like Ninety-four."

  "Course it is. I'd know her if she was in the middle of a hundred, an'all of 'em comin' straight for me."

  There was no longer a thought in the mind of either of the boysregarding the necessity of finding a home that night.

  Under no ordinary circumstances would Seth have allowed himself to beprevented from getting possible "points," and although Dan did not sharein the aspirations of his friend, he was equally excited by the prospectof "going to a fire."

  The two waited breathlessly an instant, expecting Ninety-four wouldcontinue straight on toward them, when from the opposite direction camethe clatter of wheels and the booming notes of the gongs telling of thecoming of a second engine, and they knew that at some point midway thetwo engines would be turned at right angles with their present course.

  "Come this way! It looks to me as though Ninety-four was slackenin' up!"Master Bartlett cried as he darted forward, and Dan readily followed theadvice, for while he did not approve of his friend's devotion to theFire Department, he understood full well that Seth was thoroughlyconversant with all such matters as might be learned by an outsider.

  "There she goes, an' I wouldn't wonder if the alarm came from some ofthem big storage warehouses, for Ninety-four is headin' straight towardthem."

  The first engine had swung sharply around to the left, and the driver ofthe second was urging his horses forward at yet greater speed, in thehope, perhaps, of getting first water, when the two boys dashed up thestreet at their best pace, for to Seth at least there was but one engineand one point of attraction at any conflagration, however extensive.

  While it is probable he could have "picked up as many points" from othercompanies, it did not so appear to him, and in his mind it was only fromthe crew of Ninety-four he could gather such information as was mostdesired.

  Before they neared the station from which the alarm had been sent thethrong on the sidewalks, added to from nearly every house, had soincreased that it was only by taking to the street regardless of thedanger to be apprehended from hose-carts, hook-and-ladder trucks,patrol-wagons, or water-towers, that the boys could make anysatisfactory headway, and because of their being thus hampered in theirmovements Ninety-four's men had already begun their work when Seth andDan arrived at a point outside the fire lines where they could see themachine.

  Here a single policeman kept the crowd in check, and Seth whisperedexcitedly to his partner:

  "Now's our time! If we're anyways smart we'll get in before that coppercan catch us. Wait till somebody tries to pass, an' then scoot. Don'tstop if he yells, 'cause he won't dare leave here to chase us."

  "I thought 'Lish Davis said he'd have his eye out so's you couldn't getinto the fire lines?"

  "That's what he said."

  "Ain't you 'fraid he'll be mad if he finds you in there?"

  "He knows I've got to do this thing, else I'll never get posted on thebusiness; but of course if we should sneak in an' he told us to marchstraight out ag'in, I'd feel as though I ought'er go. We won't standvery near Ninety-four, an' then there'll be less chance of his knowin'we're around."

  The opportunity which Seth desired came a few seconds later.

  Two gentlemen who were curious to see the workings of the FireDepartment nearer at hand than was possible while they remained outsidethe lines, approached the officer on duty with the idea that it wasonly necessary to bluster or threaten a little in order to pass himwithout difficulty, and while they were alternately entreating andthreatening Seth gave the signal.

  Stooping until their heads were beneath the rope, the two boys darted upthe street, which was covered with a veritable network of hose, andbefore the officer was fully aware of their intentions they were lost tohis view amid the panting, quivering monsters of steel and iron whosemission is to save, rather than destroy.

  "There's 'Lish Davis on the engine!" Dan said, speaking indistinctlybecause of his breath, which came thick and fast. "It looks to me as ifhe has seen us."

  "We'll keep over this way a bit where there's no danger of his comin'.Watch our men try to get up that stairway! Ain't they the dandies!"

  The fire was, as Seth had first surmised, in a storage warehouse, and itappeared from the outside as if the entire second floor of the buildingwas in a blaze.

  The men had battered in the doors only to be met by a mass of flameswhich seemed to roll in huge columns down the staircase to the newoutlet which had thus been made, and just as the boys arrived the bravefellows were momentarily beaten back by the scorching element untilthey stood on the first landing in plain sight of Seth and Dan.

  Jerry Walters and Joe Black were at the nozzle, with Ben Dunton close inthe rear, and at the moment Seth called his partner's attention to thescene the captain of Ninety-four shouted encouragingly:

  "Now, hit it up, boys! Get in there! Get in! Get in!"

  Then it was the flames retreated momentarily, and those who were doingsuch gallant battle advanced step by step up the stairs seemingly intothe very midst of the fiery cloud, until they were entirely hidden bythe downpour of black smoke which came from the open doorway in volumesufficient to drive back even those on the sidewalk.

  While this desperate fight was in progress other men had raised a ladderand were prying open one of the iron shutters on the second floor inorder to use more hose, and, yet trembling with apprehension for thesafety of those friends who had last been seen in the very midst of thefiery element, Seth involuntarily glanced toward the remainder of thecompany on the outside, while Dan looked back to make certain 'LishDavis was not preparing to drive them from their place of vantage.

  That which he saw reassured him so far as any immediate danger of suchkind was to be feared, for the driver of Ninety-four was unhitching hishorses, knowing from the general appearance of the blazing building thatthe company had a long task before them.

  At that instant a crashing, rending noise as of an explosion soundedhigh above the din, and one of the iron shutters which the men had beentrying to force open was hurled from its fastenings and thrown outwardinto the street, falling within half a dozen feet of where Davis wasbusy with his horses.

  Following it was a mighty rush of flame as if the interior was aseething mass of fire; loud shouts of command rang out, and then cameeven above all the din the clatter of a horse's iron-shod hoofs as hedashed madly away in affright. Involuntarily Seth had followed with hiseyes the flight of the shutter, and, unconscious of even having made amovement, he sprang toward Ninety-four as if in the time of danger thatwas his post of duty.

  He saw th
e heavy mass of metal as it struck the pavement, and instantlyafterward was aware of what very few gave heed to because of the factthat all eyes were fixed upon the building, from whence might naturallybe expected another explosion.

  The nigh horse of the team, one that had been in service only a fewweeks, leaped forward in frantic terror, and by some strange mishap wasdragging his driver behind him.

  At the moment Seth had no thought of possible danger to himself. Hismind was upon 'Lish Davis's peril to the exclusion of everything else,and almost involuntarily he sprang toward the maddened animal, Dan closeat his heels.

  It was by accident rather than good judgment that he succeeded ingaining a hold of the bridle just above the bit, swinging himselfoutward by aid of his elbow to avoid being struck by the beast'sforefeet.

  His weight was not sufficient to bring the frightened animal to astandstill instantly; but he succeeded in checking his speed so far thatthe engineer of Ninety-four had time to come to his assistance, andbetween the two the runaway was stopped.

  A buckle on Davis's coat had caught in one of the rings of the harness,and this it was which held him prisoner after having been thrown fromhis feet by the animal's sudden plunge.

  "Are you hurt?" Seth asked anxiously, still retaining his hold of thebridle, and the driver replied grimly as he scrambled to his feet:

  "A man is bound to get a few knocks after such a course of treatment;but I reckon that all the harm which has been done is a little skinbroken here and there. Do you know, lad, it's a mighty dangerous thingto jump for a horse in that fashion?"

  SETH CATCHES THE HORSE. _Page_ 68.]

  "I caught him all right, sir."

  "Yes, that I know, else I wouldn't be standing on my feet this minute;but suppose you had missed your hold? He would have had you under hisfeet in a jiffy."

  "But he didn't, so I can't see as that counts very much; but all thesame, I was willin' to take the chances."

  'Lish Davis, having assured himself that he had spoken correctly so faras personal injuries were concerned, took charge of the horse; theengineer went back to his post, and Seth, fearing lest he should bedriven outside the line, was making his way toward the building oncemore with Dan by his side when the driver shouted:

  "Come back here, you young rattle-brain! How did you get inside thelines?"

  "Crept under the rope when the copper wasn't lookin'. It ain't any veryhard job to do that."

  "Don't you know you're liable to be arrested for doing anything of thatsort?"

  "Well, we had to take the chances, you see, 'cause it wouldn't do tomiss a fire like this," Seth replied, half apologetically, and Dan criedin his shrill tone:

  "It's mighty lucky for you, Mr. Davis, that he did sneak inside thisonce."

  "I ain't likely to forget that, you rapscallion; but it has got nothingto do with you lads being where you don't belong, and that's right abouthere."

  "Please don't send us away!" Seth cried imploringly. "We'll keep out ofsight so the chief won't see us, an' nobody will know where we are."

  "I'll take precious good care you can't get into more mischief. Comeover here, both of you, an' stick right by Ninety-four till I give theword to leave. Don't you dare to so much as move till the engine does,an' if there's any more mishaps, steer clear of them instead of doingyour level best to run into trouble. Are you hearing what I'm saying?"

  "Yes, sir," Seth replied meekly, and then the boys obeyed readily, forMr. Davis had stationed them in the very place above all others wherethey could see everything which occurred, and Dan said in a tone ofsatisfaction:

  "It was a mighty good thing, your stoppin' that horse. You never had abetter chance to see a fire than this is, an' we'd better hold on to itprecious close."

  "That's a fact; but I ain't gettin' so many points as I might if wewalked 'round."

  "You'd better be satisfied with what's a soft snap, even if you don'tget points," Master Roberts replied grimly, and then he gave himself upto the pleasure of watching the battle between the firemen and theelements, for a third alarm had been rung in, and the number of men atwork round about was more than either he or Seth had ever seen engagedat any one time before.

  The hours passed to these two small but decidedly interested spectatorsas if they were composed of no more than one quarter the usual number ofminutes, and when night came the conflagration was subdued but notextinguished.

  Ninety-four had gotten first water, and, consequently, would be the lastto leave the scene.

  Here and there the companies dismissed from this particular duty weretaking up their hose, or already driving away in order to be ready forthe next alarm.

  The throng of spectators just outside the lines had diminished in numberuntil no more than an hundred remained, and 'Lish Davis came up with theappearance of one who has already done his full duty.

  "Hello, Amateur! Still here, eh?"

  "You told us to stay, sir."

  "I didn't allow that you'd hold on to go out with us. We're like to behere till well towards morning, an' if you lads have got the price of abed about your clothes you'd better be leaving. If you haven't, I'llante up something to hire one."

  "We've got the money, sir," Seth replied; "but seein' 's we belong toNinety-four jest now, why can't we stay till she pulls out?"

  "Please yourself, Amateur, please yourself," was the grim reply, and asthe driver turned away he muttered, "If that bloomin' little dufferdon't get into the Department it won't be 'Lish Davis's fault, an' thatgoes for a fact."