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A MODERN WIZARD
A MODERN WIZARD
G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS NEW YORK LONDON 27 WEST TWENTY-THIRD STREET 24 BEDFORD STREET, STRAND The Knickerbocker Press 1894 COPYRIGHT, 1894 BY G. P. PUTNAM'S SONS Entered at Stationers' Hall, London Electrotyped, Printed and Bound by The Knickerbocker Press, New York
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CHAPTER I.
CHAPTER I.
Early one morning, in the spring of eighteen hundred and seventy-three, two young lawyers were seated in their private office. The firm name, painted in gilt letters upon the glass of the door, was DUDLEY & BLISS. Mortimer Dudley was the senior member, though not over thirty years old. Robert Bliss was two years younger. Mr. Dudley was sorting some papers and deftly tying them into bundles with red tape. Why lawyers will persist in using tape of a sanguine color is an unsolvable mystery
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CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER II.
Jack Barnes, at this time, had just attained his majority. He was studying law with Messrs. Dudley & Bliss, and acting as their office assistant. But it was by no means his intention ever to practise the profession, which he was acquiring with much assiduity. His one ambition was to be a detective. Gifted with a keen, logical mind, a strong disposition to study and solve problems, and possessing the rare faculty of never forgetting a face, or a voice, he thought himself endowed by nature
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CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER III.
All New York, that afternoon, was treated to a sensational account in the afternoon "Extra" newspapers, of the supposed holocaust of the suspected murderer of Mabel Sloane. Yet in truth not only was Dr. Medjora safe and well, but he had never been in any serious danger. As soon as the police had abandoned the effort to batter in the door, Dr. Medjora turned and said to young Barnes: "It would serve you right were I to leave you in here to be burned, in punishment for your audacity in spying upon
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CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER IV.
Madam Cora Corona watched the destruction of the old mansion in which she had last seen her lover, with mingled feelings of horror and of hope. At one moment it seems impossible that the Doctor could find a means of escaping from the flames, whilst at the next she could but remember the manner of man that he was, and that having told her of his intention to surrender to the police, he would scarcely have chosen so horrible a death whilst immediate safety was attainable by simply opening the door
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CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER V.
In spite of the promises of the District Attorney, several months passed before the great murder trial was commenced. The public at last were delighted to hear that their love for the harrowing details of a celebrated crime was to be satisfied. A few of the newspapers of the sensational stamp announced that they, and they only, would have the fullest accounts, illustrated with life-like portraiture of the accused, the lawyers, the judge, the jury, and the chief witnesses. This promise was so wel
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CHAPTER VI.
CHAPTER VI.
On the following day the newspaper accounts of the trial, and especially of the sharp cross-examination of Dr. Meredith, attracted a tremendous crowd, which assailed the doors of the court-room long before the hour for opening. Every conceivable excuse to gain admission was offered. Men claimed to be personal friends of the prisoner, and women brought him flowers. Some essayed force, others resorted to entreaty, whilst not a few relied upon strategy, appearing with law books under their arms, an
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CHAPTER VII.
CHAPTER VII.
The first witness called, on the resumption of the trial, was a druggist, named Newton, who qualified as an expert pharmacist and chemist. He examined the pellets contained in the bottle identified by the professional nurse as the one which she had given to Mr. Munson. These he dissolved in water, and then submitted to chemical tests, from the results of which he pronounced them to be morphine. He testified that he recognized them as the usual pellets carried by physicians for hypodermic use. He
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CHAPTER VIII.
CHAPTER VIII.
When Mr. Dudley arose to open the case for the defence, the crowded court-room was as silent as the grave, so intense was the interest. He spoke in slow, measured tones, with no effort at rhetorical effect. Tersely he pictured the position of his client, assailed by circumstantial evidence, and encircled by a chain which seemed strong enough to drag him to the dreadful doom which would be his upon conviction. But the lawyer claimed that the chain was not flawless. On the contrary he said that ma
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CHAPTER IX.
CHAPTER IX.
The next day's proceedings began promptly, Dr. Medjora taking the stand for cross-examination. His evidence in his own behalf, it was generally conceded, had materially weakened the prosecution's case, and it was with much interest that the lawyers watched the outcome of his cross-examination. Mr. Munson began: "You have testified that Miss Sloane was a morphine habitué ." Before he could propound a question based upon this statement, the Doctor replied quickly: "I have not so testified." "You h
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CHAPTER X.
CHAPTER X.
"May it please your Honor and gentlemen of the jury," began Mr. Bliss, amidst an impressive silence, "in a few hours you will be called upon to act in a capacity which has been delegated to you by your fellow-men, but which finally is the province of our heavenly Father alone. You are to sit in judgment upon a human being, and accordingly as ye judge him, so shall ye be judged hereafter. I have not the least doubt of the integrity of your purpose; I fully believe that such verdict as you shall r
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CHAPTER XI.
CHAPTER XI.
The District Attorney himself arose to speak for the commonwealth. "May it please your Honor and gentlemen of the jury," he began, "you have just heard an able argument in behalf of the prisoner. Counsel has told you truly, that in this free Republic, which has become the refuge and asylum for the oppressed of all nations, the liberty of one man is as sacred as the rights of the whole people. He has also used the well-worn argument that the prisoner should have your sympathy, because of the weak
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BOOK SECOND. CHAPTER I.
BOOK SECOND. CHAPTER I.
"Leon! Leon!" The cry was low and weak, and the suffering woman fell back upon her pillow. The youth, though asleep, heard, and quickly responded to the call. He had been sitting in the large arm-chair, beside a rude wooden table, upon which stood a common glass lamp, with red wick, whose flickering flame shed but a dim ray across the well-thumbed pages of a book which lay open. While reading under such unfavorable circumstances, the boy had slumbered, his mind drifting slowly toward dream-land,
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CHAPTER II.
CHAPTER II.
On a bright, warm morning, a week later, Leon had already arisen, though it was barely past five o'clock, and having wandered off into a secluded spot in the woods, lay on the ground, his head pillowed against a tree trunk. Margaret Grath had been laid away beneath the sod, and the old home was no longer homelike to him, since her two sisters had moved in, to take possession until "the auction" which was to occur on this day. He had never liked these women, and they had lavished no affection upo
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CHAPTER III.
CHAPTER III.
All the neighboring towns-people knew that the Grath farm was to be sold on this day. The "bills" had been "out" for over two weeks. These were announcements, printed in large letters, on bright-colored paper, and hung up in barber-shops, grocery stores, post-offices and even nailed on trees. One might be driving along an almost deserted road, several miles from any habitation, and suddenly find himself confronted by one of these yellow and black "auction bills," which would notify him that upon
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CHAPTER IV.
CHAPTER IV.
Leon at this time was about twenty years old, but, as we have seen, he had already passed the crisis in his life which made a man of him. He was a curious product, considered as a New England country boy. Despite the fact that all of his life had been passed on the farm, except a brief period when he had been sent to another section, equally rural, he had adopted none of the idioms peculiar to the people about him. Without any noteworthy schooling, he could boast of being something of a scholar.
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CHAPTER V.
CHAPTER V.
Madame Medjora turned at the sound of her husband's voice with mingled emotion,—pleasure at seeing him at home again, for she still loved him with the passionate ardor of those earlier days, and anxiety, because her keen ear detected a tone of reproval in his words. Had she been a thoroughly wise woman that note of warning would have served to make her desist, but she was not to be baffled, when once she had determined to learn the meaning of anything that had aroused her curiosity or excited he
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CHAPTER VI.
CHAPTER VI.
After the trial of Dr. Medjora, the young men who had so successfully defended him became rapidly prominent. Within six months they were retained in another celebrated case, and won new laurels. Within five years they were counted among the first lawyers of the Metropolis, and had already a practice which assured them ease and comfort for their declining years. Mr. Dudley continued to be the ardent student that he had always been, and those who knew how well versed he was in law, were not at all
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CHAPTER VII.
CHAPTER VII.
During the six months which followed, Leon advanced rapidly in his studies. His regular routine was to spend a specified number of hours each day in the magnificently appointed chemical laboratory; to accompany the Doctor upon many of his professional rounds, especially to hospital cases, and to the tenements of the poor; and in the evening it became usually their custom to spend an hour together, during which the Doctor gave his pupil oral instruction, rehearsed him in what he had already learn
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CHAPTER VIII.
CHAPTER VIII.
On the following morning, when Leon entered the laboratory, he found Dr. Medjora busily engaged upon a chemical analysis. He, therefore, without interrupting him, went to his own table, and took up his morning's task. Half an hour passed in silence, and then the Doctor spoke: "Good-morning, Leon," said he. "I hope that the late hour at which you retired last night did not interfere with your rest?" "On the contrary, Doctor," said Leon, "I slept very soundly; so soundly that I did not awaken as e
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CHAPTER IX.
CHAPTER IX.
During the next three months Madame Medjora waited and watched. She watched for another letter to Leon. She judged the writer by herself, and she decided that Matilda Grath would not abandon her project, having once decided that she possessed knowledge, by the judicious use of which she could extort money. She knew that Leon had no means of sending her such a sum, and she was sure that Doctor Medjora would never part with one penny under compulsion. He was a man who ruled others. He was never to
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CHAPTER X.
CHAPTER X.
The Judge offered very slight resistance as Doctor Medjora urged him forward, and even in the pitchy darkness of the laboratory he made no effort to free himself. He was no coward, and in defying this man whom so many feared, he showed that he feared no man. The Doctor went straight to the trap-door, and began to descend the stairway. His reason for having no light in the laboratory was, that he did not wish the Judge to know by what way they went down. As the trap-door was open, he would not su
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CHAPTER XI.
CHAPTER XI.
I must explain more fully how the scene just related was pre-arranged. As Dr. Medjora told the Judge, it had been a common occurrence for him to hypnotize Agnes whenever favorable occasions presented. These had not been infrequent, because the girl had exhibited a great fondness for the study of chemistry, and therefore often visited the Doctor in his laboratory. Since the advent of Leon, this habit had been discontinued, or only rarely indulged, and the Doctor, appreciating the maidenly reserve
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CHAPTER XII.
CHAPTER XII.
With Leon, the Doctor's suggestion had worked differently, though none the less potently, despite the fact that the lad himself did not detect the symptoms, as did the girl. I think a woman's instincts are more attuned to the influences of the softer passions than are a man's. Certainly it has been often observed that she will recognize evidences of love, which man passes by unnoted and unheeded. If a girl is quicker to discover that she is loved, she also admits sooner that she is in love, thou
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CHAPTER XIII.
CHAPTER XIII.
Early in the morning of the same day upon which Leon had offered himself to Agnes, Madame Medjora, reading her Herald , had at last found the long-awaited personal, "Come," the signal which she had arranged with the detective. Immediately after breakfast, therefore, she had started forth to learn what had been discovered. Arrived at the agency, she was at once ushered into the presence of Mr. Barnes. "Well," said she, scarcely waiting to be seated, "what have you found out?" "I have learned ever
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WORKS BY R. OTTOLENGUI.
WORKS BY R. OTTOLENGUI.
An Artist in Crime "One may safely say that it ranks with the best detective novels yet published in this country."— Boston Times. "'An Artist in Crime' is the best detective story which has been published in several years."— New Haven Palladium. A Conflict of Evidence "This particular book is the best of its kind, and just what its title sets forth…. It is a masterpiece of consistent theory and will bear reading any time and any place."— Omaha Excelsior. A Modern Wizard G. P. PU
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