"Then do it! Do one good action before you die."
"I will, do not fear, but listen first to the confession of a dying man."
"Speak, I am listening," said the detective, quietly, raising the head of the sufferer and supporting it on his arm.
"Caleb Hook," began the burglar. "I am a man of many evil deeds. Listen to the story of my life."
"In my youth I was a machinist; I had two friends; Frank Mansfield was the name of one, Elijah Callister, the other.
"Our home was in the upper part of New York, now known as High Bridge.
"Near us lived two twin sisters, beautiful girls, both. Their names were Helen and Maria Dupont.
"I married Maria, my friend Mansfield Helen, and then the trouble began.
"Little by little, by Callister I was led into crime, and for years we have worked together, he making plans for burglaries, I furnishing the tools and assisting to carry them out.
"Frank Mansfield—I speak now of the father of the lad you know by that name—would not join us. In fact, he never suspected Callister, although he knew well what I was about myself.