A KNIGHT OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY by Edward Payson Roe (red seas under red skies .TXT) 📕

Turned toward Him His Grim, Rigid Face, And When A Man In the Uniform Of

An Officer Of The Law Rose And Stepped forward As If The One Expected

Had Now Arrived, His Heart Misgave Him Utterly, And For A Moment He

Found No Words, But Stood Before His Employer, Pallid And Trembling, His

Very Attitude And Appearance Making as Full A Confession Of Guilt As

Could The Statement He Proposed to Give.

If Pat'S Opinion Concerning Mr. Arnot'S "In'Ards" Had Not Been

Substantially Correct, That Inexorable Man Would Have Seen That This Was

Not An Old Offender Who Stood Before Him. The Fact That Haldane Was

Overwhelmed with Shame And Fear, Should Have Tempered his Course With

Healing and Saving Kindness. But Mr. Arnot Had Already Decided upon His

Plan, And No Other Thought Would Occur To Him Save That Of Carrying It

Out With Machine-Like Precision. His Frown Deepened as He Saw The

Reporter, But After A Second'S Thought He Made No Objection To His

Presence, As The Increasing Publicity That Would Result Would Add To The

Punishment Which Was Designed to Be A Signal Warning To All In his

Employ.

After A Moment'S Lowering Scrutiny Of The Trembling Youth, During Which

His Confidential Clerk, By Previous Arrangement, Appeared, That He Might

Be A Witness Of All That Occurred, Mr. Arnot Said Coldly:

"Well, Sir, Perhaps You Can Now Tell Me What Has Become Of The Funds

Which I Intrusted to Your Care Last Evening."

"That Is My Purpose--Object," Stammered haldane; "If You Will Only Give

Me A Chance I Will Tell You Everything."

"I Am Ready To Hear, Sir. Be Brief; Business Has Suffered too Great An

Interruption Already."

"Please Have A Little Consideration For Me," Said Haldane, Eagerly,

Great Beaded drops Of Perspiration Starting From His Brow; "I Do Not

Wish To Speak Before All These Witnesses. Give Me A Private Interview,

And I Will Explain Everything, And Can Promise That The Money Shall Be

Refunded."

"I Shall Make Certain Of That, Rest Assured," Replied mr. Arnot, In the

Same Cold, Relentless Tone. "The Money Was Intrusted to Your Care Last

Evening, In the Presence Of Witnesses. Here Are The Empty Envelopes. If

You Have Any Explanations To Make Concerning What You Did With The

Money, Speak Here And Now."

"I Must Warn The Young Man," Said The Policeman, Interposing, "Not To

Say Anything Which Will Tend To Criminate Himself. He Must Remember That

Whatever He Says Will Appear Against Him In evidence."

"But There Is No Need that This Affair Should Have Any Such Publicity,"

Haldane Urged in great Agitation. "If Mr. Arnot Will Only Show A Little

Humanity Toward Me I Will Arrange The Matter So That He Will Not Lose A

Penny. Indeed, My Mother Will Pay Twice The Sum Rather Than Have The

Affair Get Abroad."

The Reporter Just Behind Him Grinned and Lifted his Eyebrows As He Took

Down These Words _Verbatim_.

"For Your Mother'S Sake I Deeply Regret That 'The Affair' As You Mildly

Term It, Must And Has Become Known. As Far As You Are Concerned, I Have

No Compunctions. When A Seeming Man Can Commit A Grave Crime In the Hope

That A Widowed mother--Whose Stay And Pride He Ought To Be--Will Come

To His Rescue, And Buy Immunity From Deserved punishment, He Neither

Deserves, Nor Shall He Receive, Mercy At My Hands. But Were I Capable Of

A Maudlin Sentiment Of Pity In the Circumstances, The Duty I Owe My

Business Would Prevent Any Such Expression As You Desire. When Any One

In My Employ Takes Advantage Of My Confidence, He Must Also, And With

Absolute Certainty, Take The Consequences."

"Bad Luck Ter Yez!" Mentally Ejaculated pat, Whom Curiosity And The

Fascination Of His Own Impending Fate Had Drawn Within Earshot.

"What Do You Intend To Do With Me?" Asked haldane, His Brow Contracting,

And His Face Growing Sullen Under Mr. Arnot'S Harsh, Bitter Words.

"Do! What Is Done With Clerks Who Steal Their Employers' Money?"

"I Did Not Steal Your Money," Said Haldane Impetuously.

"Where Is It, Then?" Asked mr. Arnot, With A Cold Sneer.

"Be Careful, Now," Said The Policeman; "You Are Getting Excited, And You

May Say What You'Ll Wish You Hadn'T."

"Mr. Arnot, Do You Mean To Have It Go Abroad To All The World That I

Have Deliberately Stolen That Thousand Dollars?" Asked the Young Man

Desperately.

"Here Are The Empty Envelopes. Where Is The Money?" Said His Employer,

In The Same Cool, Inexorable Tone.

"I Met Two Sharpers From New York, Who Made A Fool Of Me--"

"Made A Fool Of You! That Was Impossible," Interrupted mr. Arnot With A

Harsh Laugh.

"Dastard That You Are, To Strike A Man When He Is Down," Thundered

Haldane Wrathfully. "Since Everything Must Go Abroad, The Truth Shall

Go, And Not Foul Slander. I Got To Drinking With These Men From New

York, And Missed the Train--"

"Be Careful, Now; Think What You Are Saying," Interrupted the Policeman.

"He Charges Me With What Amounts To A Bald Theft, And In a Way That All

Will Hear Of The Charge, And Shall I Not Defend My Self?"

"O, Certainly, If You Can Prove That You Did Not Take The Money--Only

Remember, What You Say Will Appear In the Evidence."

"What Evidence?" Cried the Bewildered and Excited youth With An Oath.

"If You Will Only Give Me A Chance, You Shall Have All The Evidence

There Is In a Sentence. These Blacklegs From New York Appeared like

Gentlemen. A Friend In town Introduced them To Me, And, After Losing The

Train, We Agreed to Spend The Evening Together. They Called for Cards,

And They Won The Money."

Mr. Arnot'S Dark Cheek Had Grown More Swarthy At The Epithet Of

"Dastard," But He Coolly Waited until Haldane Had Finished, And Then

Asked in his Former Tone:

"Did They Take The Money From Your Person And Open The Envelopes, One

Carefully, The Other Recklessly, Before They Won It?"

Guided by This Keen Questioning, Memory Flashed back Its Light On The

Events Of The Past Night, And Haldane Saw Himself Opening The First

Package, Certainly, And He Remembered how It Was Done. He Trembled, And

His Face, That Had Been So Flushed, Grew Very Pale. For A Moment He Was

So Overwhelmed by A Realization Of His Act, And Its Threatening

Consequences, That His Tongue Refused to Plead In his Behalf. At Last He

Stammered:

"I Did Not Mean To Take The Money--Only To Borrow A Little Of It, And

Return It That Same Night They Got Me Drunk--I Was Not Myself. But I

Assure You It Will All Be Returned. I Can--"

"Officer, Do Your Duty," Interrupted mr. Arnot Sternly. "Too Much Time

Has Been Wasted over The Affair Already, But Out Of Regard For His

Mother I Wished to Give This Young Man An Opportunity To Make An

Exculpating Explanation Or Excuse, If It Were In his Power. Since,

According To His Own Statement, He Is Guilty, The Law Must Take Its

Course."

"You Don'T Mean To Send Me To Prison?" Asked haldane Excitedly.

"I Could Never Send You To Prison," Replied mr. Arnot Coldly; "Your Own

Act May Bring You There. But I Do Mean To Send You Before The Justice

Who Issued the Warrant For Your Arrest, Held By This Officer. Unless You

Can Find Some One Who Will Give Bail In your Behalf, I Do Not See Why He

Should Treat You Differently From Other Offenders."

"Mr. Arnot," Cried haldane Passionately, "This Is My First And Only

Offence. You Surely Cannot Be So Cold-Blooded as To Inflict Upon Me This

Irreparable Disgrace? It Will Kill My Mother."

"You Should Have Thought Of All This Last Evening," Said Mr. Arnot. "If

You Persist In ignoring The Fact, That It Is Your Own Deed that Wounds

Your Mother And Inflicts Disgrace Upon Yourself, The World Will Not.

Come, Mr. Officer, Serve Your Warrant, And Remove Your Prisoner."

"Is It Your Purpose That I Shall Be Dragged through These Streets In the

Broad Light Of Day To A Police Court, And Thence To Jail?" Demanded

Haldane, A Dark Menace Coming Into His Eyes, And Finding Expression In

His Livid Face.

"Yes, Sir," Said The Man Of Business, Rising and Speaking In loud, Stern

Tones, So That All In the Office Could Hear; "I Mean That You Or Any One

Else In my Employ Who Abuses My Trust And Breaks The Laws Shall Suffer

Their Full Penalty."

"You Are A Hard-Hearted wretch!" Thundered haldane; "You Are A Pagan

Idolater, And Gold Is Your God. You Crush Your Wife And Servants At

Home; You Crush The Spirit And Manhood Of Your Clerks Here By Your

Cast-Iron System And Rules. If You Had Shown A Little Consideration For

Me You Would Have Lost Nothing, And I Might Have Had A Chance For A

Better Life. But You Tread Me Down Into The Mire Of The Streets; You

Make It Impossible For Me To Appear Among Decent Men Again; You Strike

My Mother And Sisters As With A Dagger. Curse You! If I Go To Jail, It

Will Require You And All Your Clerks To Take Me There!" And He Whirled

On His Heel, And Struck Out Recklessly Toward The Door.

The Busy Reporter Was Capsized by The First Blow, And His Nose Long Bore

Evidence That It Is A Serious Matter To Put That Member Into Other

People'S Affairs, Even In a Professional Way.

Before Haldane Could Pass From The Inner Office Two Strangers, Who Had

Been Standing Quietly At The Door, Each Dexterously Seized one Of His

Hands With Such An Iron Grasp That, After A Momentary Struggle, He Gave

Up, Conscious Of The Hopelessness Of Resistance.

"If You Will Go Quietly With Us We Will Employ No Force," Said The Man

In Uniform; "Otherwise We Must Use These;" And Haldane Shuddered as

Light Steel Manacles Were Produced. "These Men Are Officers Like Myself,

And You See That You Stand No Chance With Three Of Us."

"Well, Lead On, Then," Was The Sullen Answer. "I Will Go Quietly If You

Don'T Use Those, But If You Do, I Will Not Yield While There Is A Breath

Of Life In me."

"A Most Desperate And Hardened wretch!" Ejaculated the Reporter, Sopping

His Streaming Nose.

With A Dark Look And Deep Malediction Upon His Employer, Haldane Was Led

Away.

Mr. Arnot Was In no Gentle Mood, For, While He Had Carried out His

Programme, The Machinery Of The Legal Process Had Not Worked smoothly.

Very Disagreeable Things Had Been Said To Him In the Hearing Of His

Clerks And Others. "Of Course, They Are Not True," Thought The

Gentleman; "But His Insolent Words Will Go Out In the Accounts Of The

Affair As Surely As My Own."

If Haldane Had Been Utterly Overwhelmed and Broken Down, And Had Shown

Only The Cringing Spirit Of A Detected and Whipped cur, Mr. Arnot'S

Complacency Would Have Been Perfect. But As It Was, The Affair Had Gone

Forward In a Jarring, Uncomfortable Manner, Which Annoyed and Irritated

Him As Would A Defective, Creaking Piece Of Mechanism In one Of His

Factories. Opposition, Friction Of Any Kind, Only Made His Imperious

Will More Intolerant Of Disobedience Or Neglect; Therefore He Summoned

Pat In a Tone Whose Very Accent Foretold The Doom Of The "Intelligent

Irishman."

"Did I Not Order You To Give No Information To Any One Concerning What

Occurred last Night?" He Demanded in his Sternest Tone.

Pat Hitched and Wriggled, For Giving Up His Forty Dollars A Month Was

Like A Surgical Operation. He Saw That His Master Was Incensed, And In

No Mood For Extenuation; So He Pleaded--

"Misther Arnot, Won'T Ye Plaze Slape On It Afore Ye Gives Me Me

Discharge. If Ye'Ll Only Think A Bit About Them Newspaper Men, Ye'Ll

Know It Could Not Be Helped a' Tall. If They Suspicion That A Man Has

Anything In him That They'Re Wantin' To Know, They The Same As Put A

Corkscrew Intil Him, And Pull Till Somethin' Comes, And Thin They Make

Up The Rest. Faix, Sur, I Niver Could O' Got By 'Em Aloive Wid Me

Letther Onless A Little O' The News Had Gone Intil Their Rav'Nous Maws."

"Then I'Ll Find A Man Who Can Get By Them, And Who Is Able To Obey My

Orders To The Letter. The Cashier Will Pay You Up To Date; Then Leave

The Premises."

"Och, Misther Arnot, Me Woife'Ll Be The Death O' Me, And Thin Ye'Ll Have

Me Bluid On Yer Sowl. Give Me One More--"

"Begone!" Said His Employer Harshly; "Too Much Time Has Been Wasted

Already."

Pat Found That His Case Was So Desperate That He Became Reckless, And,

Instead Of Slinking Off, He, Too Showed the Same Insubordination And

Disregard For Mr. Arnot'S Power And Dignity That Had Been So Irritating

In Haldane. Clapping His Hat On One Side Of His Head, And With Such An

Insolent Cant Forward That It Quite Obscured his Left Eye, Pat Rested

His Hands On His Hips, And With One Foot