The Twin Ventriloquists: or, Nimble Ike and Jack the Juggler

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"Do you mean to tell me you did not yell fire?"

"No one yelled fire."

"And no one screamed in this house?"

"No one screamed."

At that moment the engines reappeared and the owner of the house said:

"I'll have this matter inquired into. If this is a joke you will find it an expensive one."

The foreman of the engine company approached and demanded:

"Where is the fire?"

"There is no fire," said the owner of the house.

"No fire?"

"No fire, and I don't know what the officer means by banging on my door and arousing my family at this hour of the night."

"And I can't understand," said the foreman, "what he means by calling out the engines every five minutes on a false alarm."

"There is my platoon of men, there is my roundsman. They will all testify they heard a cry of fire, followed by screams, coming from this house."

"Then your platoon of men and your roundsman will testify to a falsehood," said the house owner.

"Is there a fire in your house?" demanded the foreman of the engine company.

"No, sir."

"Is there a fire anywhere around here?"

"No, sir, not that I know of, unless it's in the upper story of these policemen."

"Say, sergeant, let me ask you one question: Have you received orders to test our department by these false alarms?"

"No, sir, I'll swear and prove that there came an alarm of fire from this house."

"That's what your men said down at the tenement house. I reckon it's a night off for the police department, or else they all want a night off. But let me tell you, if you didn't receive orders to give these fake alarms I'll know the reason why you did give them; that's all."

The sergeant was clear beat out. He apologized to the owner of the house, went down among his men and asked:

"Did you men hear those screams?"

"We did," came the answer.

"Did you hear the cries of 'fire, fire?'"

"We did," came the answer.

"All right; we'll find out about this."

"How are you going to find out all about it, sergeant?" popped in the roundsman.

"I don't know."

The roundsman was a friend of the two men who had been sent to the station house in disgrace, and he again asked:

"How about Jones and O'Brien?"

"I've been thinking about them."

"We heard it; they claim they heard the cries. I don't see how they can be held responsible."

"I don't know what to think of it."

"Can I advise?"

"Yes."

"Send the two men back on post and say nothing about the whole affair. That's my advice."

"Roundsman, it's all very strange."

"It is."

"It's one of the mysteries of the century."

"It is."

"I am not crazy. I'd think so, only we could not all go crazy."

"I'll swear I heard the cries."

The platoon started for the station house. The men were all greatly mystified, but a greater mystery was yet to confront them. The ventriloquists had been witnesses of the result of their pranks and determined to press the matter along. They followed the platoon at a safe distance, one of them going around the square so that they approached the station from opposite quarters. The men were just in the station; the last man was passing the door when right at his ears sounded a wild, unearthly yell, followed by the cry of "Fire! fire! fire!" The man stood like one paralyzed, then the sergeant rushed into the street. Not a soul was near, and yet even while he stood there again right at his ear sounded the weird cry, "Fire! fire! fire!" The man was dumfounded. He stood and gazed in wild dismay. The sergeant at the desk came rushing forth, demanding:

"What's the matter? Where's the fire? What are you all standing here for?"

"Do you think there is a fire?"

"Didn't you hear the cry?"

"Yes; did you?"

"I did."

"Then go find the fire. We've heard cries of fire all the night, but devil a fire can we find."

Jack and Ike had had fun enough in that one direction and they started off toward Ike's home. They had not gone far, however, when they struck another little adventure – a very peculiar one. Indeed, possessing their singular talents they were continually running into adventures, as their gifts gave them great powers in every direction. A little girl had stopped a crabbed, sleek-looking old gentleman and had asked him for alms. The man had said:

"Go to the station house," and he spoke in cruel, hard tones. The girl with a sigh turned away, and Ike said:

"Let's give that old skinflint a dose."

"Agreed," came the response.

Ike ran forward and dropped a silver dollar in the girl's hand and then slid along and joined Jack. The two secured advantage ground, for the old gentleman had stopped to gaze in the windows of one of the great hotel restaurants. Suddenly there sounded in his ears:

"Cruel, cruel old man!"

The old gentleman looked around in every direction and saw no one near him, yet the words had sounded, as stated, close beside his ear. While he was still gazing again there came a voice, saying:

"Cold, cold-hearted!"

The old gentleman looked around in an amazed manner, and with anger in his heart, but he saw no one. He became a little bewildered, when again there came a voice saying:

"Go to the station house! Go to the station house!"

The old man turned pale. It was the most mysterious incident of his whole life, and again came the words:

"Go to the station house!"

The admonition sounded close in his ears, and yet there was not a living soul near him that he could see. He began to tremble, and again, even while he glanced around, the voice repeated:

"Please give me money for bread," and there came the response in exact imitation of the old man's tones:

"Go to the station."

"Great Mercury!" ejaculated the man. "I am pursued by a phantom."

"Yes, you are pursued by a phantom, you who refused to give a poor child money for bread."

"I'll give the next child I meet a dollar," murmured the old man in trembling tones.

"You promise?"

"I do."

"All right; I'll leave you until my presence is required again. Good-night."

The old gentleman moved toward his home, and it is to be hoped he became a more charitable man.

The two lads started on their way and were moving on up Fifth Avenue when Ike, who was quick-eyed and observant, saw a man rush out of a hallway. The fellow's actions were suspicious and our hero remarked to his companion:

"Hello! Jack, there is something going on here."

The two lads determined to trail the man. They saw him go up the street, where he joined a second man. The ventriloquists stole up close, and both being lithe and active they were able to secure a position very near where the two men stood, and they heard one of them ask:

"Are you sure it's dead easy?"

"Yes."

"Are you sure you have the right house?"

"Yes."

"That woman is very smart."

"She is?"

"Yes."

"How do you know?"

"I've been watching her for weeks. There is something strange about her and her movements, but she's got the stuff; of that I am sure. She lives alone in that big house with only one servant – an old man – whom we can silence in about two minutes. She is a stranger in New York, and does not appear to have any friends. If we can get in there and away again we can make a big haul, and all in good movable swag. I'll bet she's got twenty thousand dollars' worth of diamonds alone, and where there are so many sparks there are other fireworks, you bet."

Ike and Jack appreciated that, indeed, they had "tumbled on to a big thing." The men did not talk in particularly low tones; no one appeared to be near them.

"We need a big haul."

"We do."

"I am run way down."

"I am also."

"We struck a big thing when we followed that woman from Boston."

"We did."

"We are not known in New York and the scent will be on natives."

"That's it exactly. We can get away with our haul, return to Boston and read the papers and learn how these smart New York officers are closing in on the robbers."