Dyke Darrel the Railroad Detective

"My dear boy, it's dangerous---"

A low laugh cut short the further speech of
Mr. Elliston.

"I supposed you knew me too well, Harper,
to imagine that danger ever
deterred Dyke Darrel from doing his duty."

"Of course; but this is a different case.
'Tis said that four men were
engaged in the foul work, and
that they belong to a league of
desperate ruffians, as hard to deal
with as ever the James and Younger
brothers. Better leave it to the
Chicago and St. Louis force, Dyke. I
should hate to see you made the
victim of these scoundrels."

Mr. Elliston laid his hand on the
detective's arm in a friendly way,
and seemed deeply anxious.

"Harper, are you aware that the
murdered messenger was my friend?"

"Was he?"

"Certainly. I would be less than
human did I refuse to take the trail
of his vile assassins. You make me
blush when you insinuate that
danger should deter me from doing my duty."

And thus that daring detective Dyke Darrel and his whole barrel full of alliterations takes off on his adventure.

I am sorry. That quote was just too good not to share. I have been poking around Project Gutenberg under the P's these past couple days and finding amusing books such as Dorothy Dale, a girl of today which was a series started by that great syndicate that wrote Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys. I almost think Dyke Darrel could be another one of those, except it seems the characters are not young teens like I might expect. But then, I have not looked up the author yet, nor even finished the first chapter. But Project Gutenberg states the author's name is a pseudonym, so perhaps it is a series written by some other person in his own right.