The Princess and Joe Potter Part 9

Joe rose to his feet obediently, still holding the princess tightly in his arms, and Dan ordered Jerry to precede them into the street, in order to make certain the officers of the law were not in the vicinity.

"If you whistle once, we'll know n.o.body's there, an' twice means that we're surrounded."

Jerry, looking as important as the occasion demanded, set about doing the scouting for the party, and an instant later a shrill call rang out on the morning air, telling that the coast was clear.

Dan and Plums ranged themselves either side of Joe; Tim marched in advance, wary as an Indian hunter; and in this order the little party gained the street, the princess in high glee because of the numbers who were escorting her.

Joe neither spoke nor looked back. His heart was as heavy as though the shadow of a real crime hung over him, and, had he been going directly to prison, could not have appeared more despondent.

On the other hand, Dan Fernald was enjoying himself hugely.

Aiding a desperate criminal to escape from the clutches of the law was to him a most exciting adventure. He had always believed he possessed remarkable detective ability, and this was the first time an opportunity of establishing such fact had presented itself.

"If I don't get you two fellers out of this sc.r.a.pe, then I'm willin' to lay right down," he said, as Tim and Jerry led the way towards the west side of the city at a rapid pace. "I've kept myself posted on the detective business pretty sharp, 'cause I've made up my mind to go into it before long, an' by the time we finish this job I guess the perlice will find out what I'm made of. I ain't so sure but I shall join the force after you're straightened out."

"They wouldn't take on a feller of your size," Master Plummer said, with something very like a sneer; which was not seemly, in view of the fact that Dan was at this moment giving him the full benefit of his wonderful ability, simply through friendship.

"It don't make any difference about a feller's size; it's the head what counts. Before long you'll find out whether I've got one or not."

Joe gave no heed to his friend's words. His grief was so great that probably he knew nothing whatever regarding that morning journey, save that the princess, when not laughing and chattering at him, was eating, with evident relish, the sugar-besprinkled cake which Plums had slipped into her chubby hand.

The boy did not realise that he might be doing a grievous wrong against the parents of the princess by thus taking her from the city. He knew she would be cared for to the best of his ability, and it seemed as if those who loved her must realise the same. Of course he understood that she was to be restored to her father and mother as soon as it should be possible, but he failed to take into consideration the suffering which might be theirs because of her disappearance.

Therefore it was that, in all this wretched business, at the end of which he could see nothing but the open door of a prison, the only bright thing to him, amid the clouds of despair, was the companionship of the princess.

After the first slight sorrow at being forced to leave his home, Plums began to enjoy this flight, and discussed with Dan the possible enjoyment of a detective's life until the party arrived within a block of the ferry-slip.

It was yet so early in the morning that but few were on the street; but Dan had no intention of allowing the boy whom he was saving to enter the slip like an ordinary citizen.

Ordering a halt near the entrance of an alleyway which led between two stables, he said, with the air of a general:

"Tim, you scout along down towards the ferry-slip, an' see if anybody's there on the watch. We'll stay here so's we can sneak up through this alley if you should whistle twice. Jerry, you're to walk back about half a block, so's to make certain the perlice don't creep up on us from behind."

"But there ain't a dozen people in sight, an' we can see that there's no cop 'round!" Master Plummer exclaimed. "What's to hinder our goin' right on board the boat?"

"Look here, Plums, if you know more 'bout this kind of business than I do, take hold an' run the thing. We'll see how far you'll get before the whole crowd is nabbed."

"I don't know anything about it, of course; but I can see there's n.o.body between us an' the ferry-slip that would likely make trouble."

"If we depended on you, we wouldn't have got so far as we have," Master Fernald replied, disdainfully. "Jest likely as not, there's a dozen cops hid close 'round here, an' I ain't goin' to be fool enough to walk right into their arms."

Plums was silenced by this exhibition of superior wisdom, and Joe indifferent to whatever steps might be taken for his own safety; therefore Dan was not interfered with in his management of the affair.

The scouts set about their work, and not until fully ten minutes had pa.s.sed did the amateur detective give the word for the fugitives to advance.

"I reckon it's all straight enough now, an' we'll go on board the boat; but there's no tellin' what might have happened if I hadn't 'tended to the work in the right way."

Then Master Fernald walked a few paces in advance of his friends, moving stealthily, as if knowing danger menaced them on every hand, and casting furtive glances up and down the street until, had any one observed his movements, suspicions must have been aroused as to the innocence of his purpose.

Jerry paid for the ferry tickets out of his own funds, for it was the purpose of these rescuers to remain in the company of the fugitives until they should have escaped from the State.

Once on the boat, Joe wanted to remain in the ladies' cabin, because of the princess; but Dan would not countenance any such rash proceeding.

He insisted that they must take up their stations in what was, for the time being, the bow of the boat, where they could prevent possible pursuers from "sneakin' up on 'em."

The princess made no objection to this breezy position, otherwise the boy who was being rescued by Master Fernald would have flatly refused to obey orders; and thus the fugitives and their friends remained where every pa.s.senger on board must of necessity have seen them.

Dan gave his friends what he considered good advice during the pa.s.sage, and when the boat was nearing the slip on the Jersey side, summed up his instructions with a statement which electrified them all.

"You fellers are to hang 'round Weehawken till 'long towards dark, when Plums must come down to the ferry-slip. I'm goin' back to New York to fix up my business, so's I can stay with you till the worst of the trouble is over."

"Are you countin' on runnin' away with us?" Master Plummer asked, in surprise.

"That's jest the size of it. You fellers don't seem to know scarcely anything at all about takin' care of yourselves, an' if I don't 'tend to business you'll both be in jail before to-morrow mornin'. I'm goin' to size up things 'round perlice headquarters to-day, an' then come over to look after you. Jest as soon's the boat touches the slip, you two take a sneak, find some place where you can hide till night, an' then watch out for me."

Five minutes later, the fugitives stepped on Jersey soil, and Master Fernald's scouts were deployed to guard against an attack from the enemy until the two boys were lost to view in the distance. Then the amateur detective said, in a tone of grim determination, "Now, fellers, we'll go back, an' size up the cops in New York."

CHAPTER V.

IN THE CITY.

When Dan Fernald and his two a.s.sistants returned to their usual place of business in the city, they found Joe Potter's mercantile friends in a state of high excitement.

It seemed as if the eyes of each boy who was acquainted with Joe had been attracted to that particular advertis.e.m.e.nt, and business among a certain portion of the youthful merchants in the vicinity of City Hall Square was almost entirely suspended because of the startling information that "the lawyers were after Joe Potter."

It was only natural for each fellow to speculate as to the reason why the unfortunate fruit merchant should be "wanted," and many and wild were the theories advanced.

Some of the boys even went so far as to suggest that Joe had robbed a bank, and, in order to make such a proposition plausible, insinuated that he had failed in the fruit business simply for the purpose of deceiving the public as to the true state of his finances.

Little Billy Dooner ventured the opinion that "perhaps Joe had killed a _I_talian," but no one gave weight to the possible explanation, for Master Potter enjoyed the reputation of being as peaceable a boy as could be found in the city.

When each one of those more particularly interested had in turn given his theory regarding the mystery, without throwing any positive light on the subject, the conversation was always brought to a close with something like the following words:

"At any rate, he's gone a mighty long ways crooked, else the lawyers wouldn't spend money advertisin' for him."

The arrival of Dan Fernald and his a.s.sistants only served to heighten the mystery, for these young gentlemen positively refused to make any statement either for or against the missing boy, and the natural result was that they were credited with knowing very much more regarding the affair than really was the case.

Dan immediately a.s.sumed such an air as he believed befitted detectives, and hinted more than once that Joe's friends "would be s'prised before the day was ended."

Not until noon was there any change in the situation of affairs, and then a bootblack who worked in the vicinity of the Grand Central Station came down to City Hall Square with information that Plums was no longer attending to business.

"If he wasn't so bloomin' slow, I'd say he'd run away with Joe Potter,"

the informant added; "but as it is, he couldn't get out of the town in much less than a week, even if he humped hisself the best he knew how."