This was shown by the way in which he dashed into the Rue des
Gravelliers, and by the precision of his course through the many winding
streets that lie between the Rue du Temple and the Rue Beaubourg. He
seemed to know this quarter of the capital by heart; as well, indeed,
as if he had spent half his life there. He knew all the wine-shops
communicating with two streets--all the byways, passages, and tortuous
alleys. Twice he almost escaped his pursuers, and once his salvation
hung upon a thread. If he had remained in an obscure corner, where he
was completely hidden, only an instant longer, the two detectives would
have passed him by and his safety would have been assured.
The pursuit presented immense difficulties. Night was coming on, and
with it that light fog which almost invariably accompanies a spring
sunset. Soon the street-lamps glimmered luridly in the mist, and then
it required a keen eyesight indeed to see even for a moderate distance.
And, to add to this drawback, the streets were now thronged with workmen
returning home after their daily toil, and with housewives intent on
purchasing provisions for the evening meal, while round about each
dwelling there congregated its numerous denizens swarming like bees
around a hive. May, however, took advantage of every opportunity to
mislead the persons who might be following him. Groups collected
around some cheap-jack's stall, street accidents, a block of
vehicles--everything was utilized by him with such marvelous presence of
mind that he often glided through the crowd without leaving any sign of
his passage.
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