% Issued weekly. By Subscription, $2.50 per year. Entered as Second Crass Matier at the N. Y. Post Office by Street & SMITH i, 2 No ive Cents. ; ¥ ican Yout wy murat ice, heer Pric tion for the 1Cd FRANK AND JACK MADE THE DIVE AT THE SAME TIME, ni A as S ic] > Bs be aa j-~- _ reach. bs fingers, his nails s setaping on the roof, a “AN IDEAL PUBLICATION FOR THE AMERICAN YOUTH.” Tie Tor WEEKLY. pa et ee Subscription $2.50 per year. Entered as Second Class Matter at the N. Y. Post Ofice, by StREET & SMITH, at er ft. Y. ntered According to Act of Congress, in the year 1899 in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, W fashington, No. 162. NEW YORK, May 20, 1899. Price Five Cents. Contents of This Number. | ; Page. FRANK MERRIWELL AT HENLEY ; or, Life on a House-Boat an: he ae ae ge LOST IN THE JUNGLE - - APPLAUSE - . CORRESPONDENCE» Frank Nerrvel at Henley OR, Life on a House-Boat By BURT L. STANDISH. CHAPTER I. ‘THE ESCAPE. With Elsie Bellwood in his arms, Frank Merriwell made a wonderful leap for life, escaping from the roof of the burning building, ‘Martin Brattle, Elsie’s villainous cous- in, who had abducted her and brought _her into that wretched section of the East End, witnessed this remarkable escape and tried to follow. Strangled by smoke, weak from excitement and terror, he failed to make the leap successfully. Down he dropped, striking breast high : _on the edge of the roof he had tried to For one instant he seemed to: hang there, wildly clutching with his j he in the heart of Lon- don’s slums, to the roof of another build-. ing beyond a narrow alley. horrible fear showing in his contorted face and bulging eyes. Frank had placed Elsie on her Tout and he made one quick spring toward Brattle, thinking to reach the fellow, clutch him and hold him till lie could drag him over the edge onto the roof. But Merry did not reach the wretch. Finding no hold, Brattle slid from the edge and dropped from view, a_ terrible scream of despair breaking from his lips. ““That’s the last of him!’’ muttered Frank, as he turned away. Elsie had fallen in a limp heap on the roof. He bent over her, gathering her up in his strong arms once more. All around the windows of the miser- able houses were filled with the heads of the wretched beings who inhabited them. The fire had brought swarms of poor people out. It seemed incomprehensible 2 ‘ TIP TOP WEEKLY. that so many meu, women and children could inhabit the houses. The firemen had been slow in reaching the scene of the conflagration, as London firemen always are, but they were at work now, pouring streams on the doomed buildings and trying to save the houses near it. Hundreds of people had witnessed. the appearance of the trio on the roof of the burning structure and had seen Frank Merriwell make that ainazing leap across the alley. ‘The flaring light of the flames had shown Martin Brattle as he rushed to follow. He was seen to spring through the billows of black and yellow smoke that curled up over the edge of the roof, he was seen to strike and clutch at the edge of the other roof, and then they saw him slip back and go whirling down- ward. The lowest and iost degraded may be stirred by remarkable and thrilling deeds, and those ragged, wan-faced, pitiful wretches cheered Frank Merriwell. They, saw Frank gather into his arms once more the golden-haired girl and stand there on the roof, silhouetted against the sky, shown plainly by the light of the red and yellow flames. And now the building on which he stood was afire, having caught from the other! . ‘‘Hilsie,’? said Frank, right, sweetheart?” ‘Ves, Frank, ”? she answered, faintly. ‘“VYou have saved me! I knew you would! I prayed for you to come, and you came! ‘Heaven answered my prayer!” ‘“Vou need never fear Martin Brattle again. crimes to the Great Judge of all.” Sheshuddered, j “Oh, it was horrible!” she gasped. oc “are you all saw him as he clung there for a moment! | I saw the terrible look on his face! His eyes were turned toward me! I cam never } a bad scrape. : es ae it ” declared Frank. i He has gone to answer for his . youth. It was the ‘He brought it én himself. just retribution which he merited. But we are not yet safe, little sweetheart, for this building is afire, and we must’ get down somehow.”’ A door in the roof flew open, and uni- formed firemen came up, dragging a hose behind them. ‘““Hit’s time you was a-gettin’ hoff this roof, sir,’’ said one of them, respectfully, for he saw Frank and Elsie were not like the cominon herd of the slums. ‘‘It’s like this building will go before we can get the fire hunder control, sir,’?’ 7 ‘(Glad enough we’ll be to get off it,’’ ‘Cling fast; Elsie.”? He descended* through the trap, found his way down by flights of stairs, and was soon on the street, where the palpitating engines were pouring black columns of smoke from their shining funnels and roaring at the devouring flames, which roared back defiance in answer. The street was swarming with human beings. Policemen were there, trying to drive them back, so the firemen could have room to work. Water was hissing through the air from the firemen’s hose, and the men were doing everything in their power to check the conflagration. Men, women aud children were shouting and screaming, and there was a scene of terrible excitement on the street. ‘Supporting Elsie, Frank fought his way through the mob, © \ / “It's wonderful !"” panted ‘ee English “By Jawve! never saw anything, — 3 like it in all my life, don’t y’ ’uow, deat. boy! Isaw you come to the edge of the ca roof, and I thawt you were ina blooming arcu : saw ers make the ee Aj He had not pro- ceeded far before some one ace. hold. af him. jump. Wonderful! And you had Miss Bellwood in your arms! Marvelous!’ **T had to do it, that’s all,’ said Frank, as.if that explained everything. “I tried ta get into the place after the fire started, y’ understand,’’ said Dolph. *‘Never saw a fire spread like that. Couldn’t get through the grog. shop, y’ ‘now. It was nothing but a mass of fire in there. Wouldn’t have given a cent for your chawnce.. Thought you’d never come out.?? ““What became of the man who brought -us here??? ‘*Mr. Nonaime?”’ 66 Vas? ‘fReally, I don’t know.’ **Didn’t he escape from the bar-room ?”’ “tT don’t think. he came out, for I didn’t see him.. I am almost certain he didn’t come out.’’ Frank turned to look at the doomed building, which was now one mass of flame. Even as he looked, there was a sudden cracking sound, a swaying out- ward of the walls, and the roof fell in. ‘‘T am afraid that is the end of the Man of Mystery!’’? exclaimed Merry. ‘‘And the mystery of his life remains un- solved. None will ever know who he was or what he was.’’ “Anyhow; he proved that he really was a friend, don’t y’ ’now.”? ‘Ves I had no doubt of that. I can’t tell why, but I trusted him. How did the fire start?’’ ‘“There was some kind of a fight in the grog shop, and a | lamp. ‘was knocked over.’ ere ‘“Then he must have fought the ruf- fians there when I pursued Martin Brattle up the stairs.” _ “Who was that fellow who tried to fol- low you when you jumped from the epee?! ee is! | Ss “That was Brattle,” “Really!” TIP TOP WEEKLY. He’ll His evil career is never molest Elsie again.”’ ey Jawve! served him right!’ “Ves, over. To this Frank agreed. They forced their way through the in- creasing crowd of wretched beings. *fOh, for a cab!’ sighed Dolph. ‘*We must find one soon,’’ said ‘*Elsie is neatly overcome. She go much further.’ ; They left the crowd behind, but still they were in the streets misery and wretchedness hand, An omnibus came rumbling along, and they were about to get aboard when Doplh saw acab, which proved to be carrying no fare. In the cab they felt themselves. safe at last and on their way out of the slums. Frank. cannot where were on every CHAPTER II. DISCONTED JACK. Martin Brattle had taken care not to harm) Elsie, but, of course, it took some time for her to recover from the shock aud excitement of the thrilling experi- ence through which she had passed. And, of course, Frank Merriwell called daily at the Reynolds home to see her or to inquire about her. One day he returned to his lodgings with the information that she was quite like herself again. Sometimes Jack had accom panied him, and he seemed to spend many pleasant ~ moments in conversation with Juliet Reynolds.. All at once he stopped going aoe declined Frank’s urgent invitation to “fcome along.”’ . és And as Frank came back and stated that Elsie was quite recovered, Diamond rather eagerly said:. “Then there is no real reason why we should not -get out of London now, is there?’? 1 don’t know that there iss Lanswered ary Frank, looking sharply at the Virginian ; “‘but why are you so anxious to miove? I thought you were quite over your uneasi- ness and had come to enjoy life here.’’ “I strikes me we’ve had our fling in this town,’’ said Jack, vaguely. ‘‘You made a tight little sum off the Derby——”’ ‘*Which I have contributed to the So- ciety for the Aid of the Deserving Poor.’’ - ‘**Ves; thrown it away, as it were.”’ “*No; quite the contrary. You have seen much of London, old man, but you have carefully avoided the East End.”’ ‘*That’s right. I didn’t come here to prowl round in the slums.”’ ‘*And so you know nothing of the ex- treme wretchedness of the poor in Lon- don. If you had been in the slums, as I have been; ;if you had looked into the de- spairing ikea of the poor creatures down there.’? | benefit by that money ?”’ ‘IT do! Itook care to find out where the money was going before I donated 3 on ‘*Ves, but think how much good that money might have done you. it fairly off the Derby. You had to pay a good price for the privilege of entering a horse, with every apparent prospect of losing heavily. You won, and——’’ **T did not go into the thing for profit, but for sport. I have plenty of mnoney, so I devote the winnings tea good purpose.”’ “Oh, you’re a stickler for doing