Oswald Langdon

OSWALD LANGDON
Or, Pierre and Paul Lanier.
A Romance of
1894-1898
By Carson Jay Lee
CHICAGO
THE LAKESIDE PRESS
1901

COPYRIGHT, 1900
BY
N. B. HAMILTON
IN
The United States of America and Great Britain.
Printed in Chicago, U. S. A.
FIFTH EDITION

TO ONE,
"STANDING WITH RELUCTANT FEET, WHERE THE BROOK
AND RIVER MEET."

CONTENTS
CHAPTER I
1
The Double Scare.--The Old Man's Arrest.--Little Jack's "Sprint."
CHAPTER II
4
The Storm.--"Bill of Particulars" not Demanded.--Sage Assurance of an
Oxford Graduate.--The Dream.
CHAPTER III
11
An Interesting Meeting.--A Barrier and Siege.--At the Parish
Church.--Strange Sense of Familiarity at First Sight.--Esther's Friend
from London.--Alice Webster as an Interloper.--Alice's
Infatuation.--Visit of Paul Lanier.--Lake Excursion.--Two Proposals.
CHAPTER IV
46
A London Conference.--The Lawsuit.--The Lake Tragedy.--Paul's
Fright.--Trip to London.--Investigations of Sir Donald and the
Solicitors.--The Hyde Park Confidence.--Thames Boat-Ride.--An
Embarrassing Situation.--Splash of Two Bodies.--At House of Jack
Bray.--A Mysterious Drive.
CHAPTER V

67
Parental "Air Castles."--An Unexpected Call.--Hurried
Departure.--Southampton Wharf Toughs and Bullying
Official.--Sledge-Hammer Blows of Drooping Pedestrian.--Aboard
Ship.--An "Ishmaelite" Finding "Casus Belli" in Fate.--Tempest on Bay
of Biscay.
CHAPTER VI
73
Return from Opera.--Esther Piqued at Alice's Conduct.--Search for
Oswald and Alice.--Finding of Hat and Handkerchief.--Harassed by
Reporters and Detectives.--Sleuths Employed by Sir Donald.--An
Optimist Turned Nemesis.--Esther's Clouded Vision.--Sir Donald's
Bluff.--The Conspirators Quit London.--Sir Donald and Esther Leave
for Paris.
CHAPTER VII
85
Oswald in India.--Calcutta too Cosmopolitan.--Seeking
Employment.--Trip to the Himalayas.
CHAPTER VIII
89
Pierre and Paul in Bombay.--A Rich Englishman and his Niece.--The
Laniers Dine with Sir Charles Chesterton.--Mutual Infatuation of Paul
and Agnes.--Paul's Proposal.--Sir Charles Demands Pedigree and
Inventory.--Sir Charles and Pierre Vie in Villainous
Recitals.--Matrimonial Decision Postponed.--Sir Charles and Pierre
Sail for Calcutta.--Paul's Growing Infatuation.--Agnes'
Caprices.--Thursday Evening Call.--The Tableau. "Eugene Aram"
Dream Lines Recital.--Chesterton Rooms Vacated.

CHAPTER IX
101
Interest in Paris Poor.--Losing Zeal for Man-Capture.--The Hospital
Confession.--The Convalescent's Mysterious Departure--The Trip to
Calcutta.
CHAPTER X
132
At Himalaya Camp.--"Lion" and "Bear."--"For Good of Kaiser and
Tsar."--Tippoo Kalidasa.--Claude Leslie.--Camp Discussions.--"Citizen
of the World."--Doctrine of "Merger."--New York's "Four
Hundred."--The Four Bandits.--Decorating Graves of the
Robbers.--"Vot Sendimendals!"
CHAPTER XI
155
Paul Haunted.--That Grewsome Drapery of Seaweed.--The Sunday
Call.--Chesterton Rooms Vacant.--Pierre's Letter.--"Josiah Peters" Sails
from Bombay.
CHAPTER XII
160
Search for Dodge Family.--Sir Donald and Esther "Shadowed."--The
Metamorphosed Stranger.--Mrs. McLaren Locates Mrs. Dodge.--Visit
of Sir Donald.--The Plot.--Arrest of the Conspirators.--Dodge's
Confession.--Release of the Laniers.
CHAPTER XIII

186
Survey Expedition Disbanded.--The Star.--Oswald Sees Pierre and
Paul.--Meets Esther and Sir Donald.--The Call.--Esther's Changed
Manners.--Sir Donald's Tactics.
CHAPTER XIV
201
The Laniers Puzzled at Their Release.--Tentacles of the Octopus
Contracting.--Sir Donald and His Detectives Mystified.--Flight of
Pierre and Paul.
CHAPTER XV
210
The Retrospect.--Acquiesces in Fate's Opening Seals.
CHAPTER XVI
212
The Fugitives Disguised in London.--Paul's Caprices.--Advises Pierre
to "Avoid River Fogs."--Changed Shifts.
CHAPTER XVII
219
Back at Northfield.--Esther's Musings.--The Boat-Ride.--Repetition of
"Eugene Aram" Dream Lines.
CHAPTER XVIII
225

On the "Tramp" Steamer.--Odd Conceits.--The Handsome
Stranger.--The Consumptive.--"Ermine" Function.--It will be All Right
with Mother.--The Image Reflection.--The Stuttering German.--Human
Transfiguration.--Promethean Myth.--White Heat of Life's
Crucible.--Mother Left Out.--Arrival at New York.
CHAPTER XIX
237
Thames Pantomimes.--Pierre Discovers Paul's Craze.--Seeks to Elude
Pursuer.--A Long Swoon.--Paul's Vigils.--The Pose and Threat.
CHAPTER XX
247
Rasping Paradoxes.--Becoming Pessimistic.--Conference with Chief
Detective.--Charles at Home.--Criticises Oswald Langdon.--"A Daniel
Come to Judgment."
CHAPTER XXI
261
Studies Paul's Crazed Peculiarities.--Paul Missing.--His Return.--The
New Dagger.--The Alarm Clock.--Sleeps on his Father's Arm.--Tragic
Awakening.--The Arrests.
CHAPTER XXII
268
The "Corpus Delicti."--Sir Donald's Queer "Find."--Bessie
"Bottled."--"Cometh without Observation."--Charles and the Interesting
Strangers.--Visit of Veiled Woman.--Night Trip to Northfield.--An
Upturned Bloody Face.--Paul in Esther's Room.--Call at Detective
Headquarters.--A Misunderstanding.--Learns of the Arrests.--A

Recognition.--Mute Benediction.
CHAPTER XXIII
302 A Strange Story.
CHAPTER XXIV
363
At the Threshold of a New World's View.--The "Modus
Vivendi."--Letters to Sir Donald.--Oswald and the Newsboy.--Escorted
to "Old Slip."--The Arraignment.--"Turn Your Kidnaper
Loose."--Diplomatic Man-Catcher.--Oswald Attends
Church.--"Overcoming the World."--Meets Claude Leslie in Central
Park.--Enigma to Social Belles.--Claude Leaves for the West.--Marco
Salvini.--At Saint Vincent's.--The Delirium.--"The Star! The Star!
Mother!"--Inverted Spike-Prints.--Mystic Whisperings--The Letter.
CHAPTER XXV
387
The Evening's Meeting.--Angles of Cross-Purpose.--Sir Donald's Letter
to Oswald.--Paul Committed as a Madman.--Pierre's Odd Ethical
Caprices.--"Do Equity."--Esther Inspects Postmarks and Consults Ship
Schedules.--An Expected Proposal.--A Sad Home-Coming.--A
Northfield Reunion.--Ingenuous Assurance.--Puzzling
Interrogatory.--Wordless Betrothal.--Pierre's Release.--Double
Wedding.--Hopefully "Shadowed."

LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS

PAGE "THE STAR! THE STAR! MOTHER!" Frontispiece

"THERE WAS A FLASH OF STEEL, A BLOW AND THRUST,
FOLLOWED BY THE SPLASH OF TWO BODIES" 60
"WITH UPLIFTED HAND THE APPARITION SLOWLY
ADVANCED TOWARD THE COWERING PAUL, AS IF TO
STRIKE" 98
"WHEN WITHIN ABOUT A HALF-MILE, THE FOUR RAISED
THEIR WEAPONS" 149
"RAPTLY GAZING AT THE CHILD'S INNOCENT FACE, PAUL
SOFTLY CROONS SOME CRADLE MELODY" 283
"PO' SICK CHILE! YO' WHITE FACE 'MINDS ME OF MY OWN
MANDY CAROLINE JUST 'FO' SHE DIED!" 306
"THEN BEHOLDING PIERRE IRONED AND HELPLESS, PAUL
BURST OUT IN A HYSTERICAL LAUGH" 359
"THIS SAGE REPLY IS HEARD BY THE EAVESDROPPING
BESSIE" 407

PREFACE
Though to explain incurs a risk, the author