His hands caught the irons, and he drew himself upon the platform.
There he stopped a little while for breath and looked around.
No one seemed to have witnessed his feat, and he congratulated himself in silence that so far he had succeeded almost beyond his expectations.
In another minute he was going down the iron rungs of the ladder with the escaping villain in his mind.
By that time George Richmond was far away, but the detective hoped still to overhaul him.
He gained the street, none the worse for his startling adventure, but, of course, the quarry was gone.
A few yards distant on a corner with the lamplight falling upon his figure stood a policeman, and Carter went toward him.
The copper had seen a man pass a short time before, and told Nick so.
“He went that way a little fast,” said the policeman, pointing down the street, and as Carter started off a carriage came around the corner.
The light for a moment fell upon it, and the detective caught sight of a man’s face at the window.