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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (April 25, 1915)
1C-A THE OMAHA SUNDAY BEE: APRIL 25, 1915. Here Wow Thee SEE ft AI M" Movseg Pictures- A DETECTIVE NOVEL AND A MOTION PICTURE DRAMA Presented by This Newspaper In Collaboration With the Famous Pathe Players. 4 x BMB.lt f H UOJUUfiL asMaau Featuring Miss Pearl White Elaine Dodge Mr. Arnold Daly "Craig Kennedy" Th Famous ScUntlflo Dstsotlv of Fiction. Mr. Edwin Arden Wu-Fang The Chinese llulir Criminal WRITTEN BY ARTHUR B. REEVE Tht Well-Known Novelirt and the Creator of the "Oral Kennedy" Stories Dramatized Into a Photo-Play by Chas. W. Ooddard, Author of "The Perils of Pauline." ETerrthlng 70a read here today rmi ran iw in Um laminating; Pathe Motion Picture at the) Motion Pict ure Theaters thla welt. Jfext Run day another chapter of "Tha KiplolU I Elaine" and new Pat be reels. tCepyclght. 1a by The "tar Co. Foreign Rights Reserved.) All ntMli ef Vrevioaa Chapters. Synopsis of Pwioue Chapter. The New York police are my''.lod hv a series of murders and other crimes. The rTlnclml clue to th criminate la a warn ng letter, which la sent the victim, aimed with a "clutching hand." The latest victim of the mysterious assassin Taylor Dodge, the wealthy Insurance president, HIS daughter, Klalne, emplov Craig Kennedy, the famous scientific do tertiva. to try to wnravei the mvaterv. Vhat Kennedy accomplice la told by hla friend, Jameson, a newspaper man. Enraged at the determined effort which Elaine and Craig Kennedy are making to rut an end ta fila crime, the Clutching Hand. aa thla strange criminal la known, retorta to all aorta of the moat diabolical schemes to put them out of the way. ISech chanter of the atory tella of a new plot against their Uvea and of the way the great detective uaea all hi skill to aavc thla pretty girl and himself from death. In a rareless moment the master crimi nal leaves a elue In the form of a type written letter. Through this Kennedy penetrates his disguise and the master criminal la killed In his effort to escape.. The Clutching Hand turns out to he none other thnn Elaine's own lawyer, Bennett a man long trusted by her fsther and fashionable society In gensral. After Bennett a death a Chlna'nan. who had hrn employed by him In some of hie criminal operations, learns that the n. aster criminal has hidden away a vast amount of stolen wealth, and his efforts to lorsts the treasure hrlnsa more perils to KJalne and atlra Kennedy to greater achievement In detective skill. CHAPTER XVII. The Ring and the Treasure Not a elua had been left by the kid naper when they had an mysteriously spirited Elaine away from the apart ment of AVu Fang. She had disappeared as completely aa If she had vanished Into tba thin air. Kennedy waa frantic. Wu and Long Sin themselves seemed to hay vanished, too. Where they held her, what had happened to her, wa a sealed book. And yet, no mov of our waa made, no matter how secret, that It did not seem to be known to them. It waa a though a wlerd, uncanny eye glared at tin, watch ing everything. Craig neglected no possibility In hi eager search. H even visited tha llttta housa In tha country which Elaln had given to Aunt Tabby, and spent several hour examining tha collapsed subter ranean chamber In the vain nop that It might yield a clue. But It had not It waa half filled with debris from above, where tha pillar ad given away that night when we had all nearly lost our lives. Still, there wa enough room In what remained of the cavern so that we could move about. Kennedy had even dug away some of tha earth and rock In th hope of dis covering aome trace of the atrange vis itor whom we had surprised at work. But here, also, ha had found nothing. It waa maddening. What might at any moment be happening te Elaineand he powerless te help hart " Vheecapebly, he waa f erred to tha con clusion that not only Elaine's amaslng disappearance, but the tragic succession of event which had preceded It, had been caused, In some way, by tha curi ously engraved rin which Aunt Joseph ine had taken from her. Craig had taken possession of the mys tlo ring himself, and now, forced back on thla aol elu. tt had occurred to him that If the ring were ao valuable, other attempts would, without doubt, be mad to gat possession of It. I came Into tha laboratory, one after neon, te find Kennedy aurounded by Jew. lee tool a hard at work making an -act copy of the ring. "What do you think of It. Wallerr" h asksd. holding up the replica. '"Perfect." I replied, admiringly. "What are you going to do with It?" "I can t say-yet." answered Kennedy, forlornly, ' but If I understand these Cn. nese criminals at all. I know that the enly way wa ran ever track them I through some trick. Perhaps the replica will suggest something to ua later. He placed tha copy In a velvrt-tlned he closely resembling that In which tha real ring lav, and dropped both Into hi poaket "Let see If Aunt Josephine haa re ceived any wort." he remarked abruptly anting n hla hat and coat, and nodding te me to follow. Kennedy and I were not the only visit ors to the subterranean chamber where It had seemed that the clue to the Clutch ing Hand' millions might be found. II though that hidden, watehlng ay followed ua The night after our own Unsuccessful search. Wu Fang, accom panied by Long tin, made hla way into the cavern. Aa they flashed their electric bull's eyea about tha place, they could see readily that we had already been digging there. Wu examined the safe which had been broken Into, while Long Bin repeated hla experiences there. And you aay tha re ess nothing else Itr demanded Wa. "Nothing but the ring which they got Vom ma." replied Long eia, ruefully. Strange vary strange. ruminated Wu. till regarding the empty strong box. Long Bin waa new going ever tha walla ef the cavern minutely, hla riose-ert seedy black ayes examining every square Sch ef It. A sudden low guttural exclamation usd Wu to turn quickly. Long Bin had 'isrokcred. beck of tha debris, a small Uong slot, cut Into the rock. Above It erc some peculiar marks. Wu hurried over te hla henchman, and together they tried to decipher what had been acratched on the rock. As Long Bin's slender and alnister fore finger traced over the Inscription, Wu suddenly csught him by ths elbow. "The ring!" he cried, aa at last he In terpreted tha meaning of the cryptic characters. But what about the ring? For a mo ment Wu looked at the alot In deep thought. Then ha reached down and withdrew a ring from his own finger and dropped It through the smt. They listened a moment They could heir the ring tinkle as though It were running down some sort of track-like declivity Inside the rock. Then, faintly they could hear It drop. It had fallen Into a little cup of a compartment below at their feet. Nothing happened. Wu recovered hla ring. But he had hit at last upon the Clutching Hand'a secret! Bennett hsd devised a Ting-lock which would open the treasure vault. No other ling except the one which ha had so carefully hidden waa of tha sUe or weight that would mov the lever which would set. the machinery working to open th treasur housa. Again Wu tried anotherof hla own rings, and a third time. Long bin dropped In a ring from hla finger. Still there was no result. "Tha ring which wa lost Is tha key to the puszle the snnly key," exclaimed Wu Fang finally. "We must recoter It at all hazards." To his subtle mind a plan of action seemed to unfold . almost Instantly. "Thcro ta no good remaining here." he added. And we have gained nothing by the rapture of the girt unless we can use her to rucover the ring." 'Long Bin followed his maater with a sort of Intuition. "If w have to steal It." he suggested deferentially, "It can b accomplished best by making use of tha Chong Wah Tong." The tong wa th criminal hand which they had offended, which had In fact stolen tba ring from Long Bin and sold It to Elaine. Tet In a game such as this enmity could not last when It was mutually disadvantageous. Wu took the suggestion. He decided Instantly to make peace with hla enemies and use them. Later that night. In hla car, Wu atopped near th little curio shop kept by th new tong loader. tong Bin alighted and entered th shop, while the tong man eyed him aus piciously. "My master hat com to make neaca " he began, saluting the tong leader behind the counter. Nothing 111 reality, could have nleaa.d tha tong men more, for In their heart they feared the maaterlike ubtlety of vu rang. The conference waa short and Long Bin with a bow left quickly to rejoin Wu. while the tong leader dis appeared Into a back room of the ahop where aeveral of the Inner circle sat. ah is asu, master." renoi-fxi t.. In when ha had made hla way back to th car around th comer in which w waa waiting. Wu amlled. and a moment lowed by hla alave In crime, entered tha eurto shop and passed through with gieat dlgnitv Into the room In the rear as the two entered, tha ... bowed with great respect iet us be enemies n wi. brieny. u. thw h;,p other as brothers." He extended hi. right hand, pelm down, a. he .poke. For a moment the tong stepped forward and laid hla own hand, palm down, aver that of Wu. On by one th. other, did th. .am. Including Long Bin. the aggrieved. Peace waa restored. Wu had arisen to go. and the tong men were bowing a respectufl farewell. M turned and aaw a large vase. For a mo ment he paused before It. It waa an enormoua affair and waa apparently composed of a mosaic of rara Chin... enamels, cunningly put together by the oeri ana patient fingers of the oriental craftsmen. Extending from th widely curving bowl below was an extremely long, narrow, tapering neck. Wu looked at It Intently; then an Idea seemed to strike him. Ha called tha tong trader and the othera about him. Quickly he outlined the detalla of a plan. . "Have you received any word yetr asked Aunt Josephine, anxiously, when Jennings had ushered us Into the Dodge llhrsry. , Kennedy shook his head sadly. There waa no need to repeat the question te Aunt Josephine. The tesr in her eyes told only too plainly that aha herself had heard nothing, either. Craig bent over and placed his hand oa her shoulder. For the moment none of us could control our emotions. A few moments later Jennings entered the room aoftly again. "The expressmen are outside, ma'am, with a large pack age." he aald. "A package?- Inquired Aunt Josephine, looking up. surprised. "For me ere you sure?" Jennings bowed and repeated his re mark. Aunt Josephine followed him out Into the hail. There, already, the delivery men had set down a huge oriental vase with a re markably long and narrow neck. It waa. es, befitted such s really beautiful object of art. moat carefully crated. But to Aunt Josephine It came aa a complete surprise. "I can't Imagine who could have sent It." she temporised. "Are you quite aura It la for me?" Tha expressman, with a book, looked up from tha list cf names, down which h . ." J V .V? v .J 3 7 ;) Thar War Dlatoad to Our Astonished th Hidden Millions of the Clutching Hand. wa running hla finger. "Thl la Mrs. Dodge, Isn't It?" he aaked, pointing with hla pencil to the entry with th address following It. There seemed to be no name of a shipper. "Tee," she replied, dubiously, "but I don't underitand It. Walt lust a mo ment." She went to the library door. "Mr. Ken nedy," she said, "may I trouble you and Mr. Jameson a moment?" We followed her Into tha ball, and there atood gaslng at the mysterious gift, while aha related its recent history. "Why not set It up In th. library?" I suggested, seeing that the expreamen were getting restive at the delay. "If there la any -mistake they will send for It soon. No on. ever gets anything for nothing." Aunt Josephine turned to the express men and nodded. With th. aid of Jen nings they carried the vaaa into ths library, and there la was uncrated, while Kennedy continued to queatlon the man with th. book, without eliciting any further Information than that he thought It had been reconalgned from another ex press compsny. He knew nothing mors than that It had been placed on his wagon, properly marked and prepaid. When Kennedy rejoined us tha vaae had been completely uncrated. Aunt Josephine signed for It, and, grumbling a bit, tha expressmen left. There we atood, nonpulused by th curious gift. Craig walked around th vase, looking at It critically. I had a feeling of being watched, one of those sensations which psychologists tell us are utterly baseless snd unrounded. I wsa glad I had not aald anything about It when he tapped th. vase with hla cane, then stuck the can down th long, narrow neck, working It around aa well as he could. The neck was so long and so narrow, however, that hla stick could not fully explore the In side of the vsse, but It seemed to ma te ba quits empty. "Well,' there a nothing In It, anyhow," I ventured. I had spoken too soon. Kennedy with drew his cans, and on the ferrule, adher ing a though by aome sticky subs ts nee, waa a not. Kennedy pulled It off and unfolded it, whil w gathered about him. "Maybe It'a from Elaine," cried Aunt Josephine, grasping at a straw. We rend: Pear Aunt Josephine: This ts a token that I am unharmed. Have Mr. Kennedy give the ring to the man at the corner of Williams and Hrownle avenues at midnight tonight and they v.111 surrender me to him. ELAINE. P. 8. Have him com alon or my life will be In danger. We looked at each other In amasement "I thought aomethlng like thla would happen," remarked Craig at length. Oh." cried Aunt Josephine, "It's too good to oe true." We'll do tt" exclaimed Kennedy quickly, "only this Is ths ring that we'll give them." Ho drew from hla pocket the replica of the ring which he had mad. and showed It to Aunt Josephine. . Then he drew from another pocket the real ring. replacing tha replica. "Here's th. real one," he said In a low tone. "Quart It aa you would guard your life." Bhe took the ring, almost fearfully. It seemed as tf nothing but misfortune had followed It. Still, she realised that It waa necessary that she should tsk. care of It. if the plan was to work. And. oh, Mr. Kennedy." she Implored, aa we rose to go. 'please get back my little girl for me." Craig clasped her hsnd. "I'll try my best" he replied fervently, psttlng hsr shoulder to cheer her up, aa aha sank Into a chair. Aunt Josephine waa worn out with the sleepless nights of worry since Elaine's disappearance. After we had gone, she tried to eat dinner, but found that aha had no appetite. All the evening aha est In the library, with a book at which she stared, though she scarcely read a page. However, aa the hours lengthened, she found herself nodding through eheer exhaustion. It was getting lata and her thoughts were still oa Maine. At the desk In th. library the waa examining the curious ring, which she had taken from her Jewel case, thinking of tha tcrible train of events that had followed It Although aha had Intended te alt up until aha received some word from Ksa nedy that night tha long strain had told on her and In aplt of her warty aaout lElatns. she decided, at length, t retire. She replaced the ring In the cesr, locked the esse, and turned out the lights "Oood night, Jennings." she said, as she passed the faithful old butler In the hall. tlood night ma'am." he replied, paus ing on his rounds to see that the doors and windows were locked. Aunt Josephine, clasping th Jeael case t si'-'. 'A ' tightly, mounted the stairs and entered her room. She locked th. door carefully and put th jewelry case under her pil low. Then aha switched off th. light. Tha moment Jenning's footsteps ceaaed downstair In the library, a amall piece of the vase seemed to break away from ytho rest of th. moaalc, as though It were knocked out from tho Inside. Then a large piece fell out, and another. At last from the strange hiding place a lithe figure, aa shlng as though bathed In oil, naked except for a loin-cloth, seemed to squirm forth like a serpent It was Wu Fang ths watchful eye which, literally as well aa figuratively, had been leveled at ua in on. form or anther ever since th. kidnaping of Elaine. Silently he tiptoed to the doorway and listened. There was not a sound. Just ss noiselessly then h. went back to the library table and. muffling the telephone bell, took down the receiver. He whis pered a number, waited, then whispered aome directions. A moment later he wormed his way out of th. IlLrary and Into the drawing room. On ha went cautiously, anake-like, up th. atalrs, until he came to the door of Aunt Josephine's room. He bent down and listened. There waa no aound except Aunt Josephine's breath ing. Silently ha drew from a fold In the loin-cloth a screwdriver and removed the screws from the hinges of th door. Quickly he pushed the bedroom door open, pivoting It on th lock. Just far enough open so that ha could slip through. Creeping along the floor, like a reptile whose sign ha had assumed, he came nearer and nearer Aunt Josephine's bed. As he paused for a moment hla quick eye seemed to catch alght of tha bulging lump under her pillow. His long, thin hand reached out for tt Aunt Josephine moved restlessly In her sleep. Instantly he selxed a murderous looking Chines, dirk fastened to his side and raised It sJSove her head ready to strike on the slightest outcry. She moved slightly, and relapsed Into a sound sleep again. Holding the knife above her, Wu slowly and quietly removed the Jewel case from under her pillow. Tn a country roadhouae Long Sin was waiting patiently. The telephone rang, and the proprietor answered. Long Sin waa at hla aide almost before he could hand over tha receiver. It waa Long Bin's maater, Wu. "Beware," came the whispered message over the wire. "Kennedy haa made a fa'ae ring. I'll g.t the real one. By tha great devil of Gobi, you must cut him off. "It Is done," returned Long Sin, hang ing up the receiver In great excitement. He humed out of the room and left the roadhouae Down tha road in an automol.il. bound between two China men, on at her head and the other at her feet, was Elaine. wiiduiI .m..i blankets, not even her face vi.ihi. tv,- guarda looked up startled as Long Sin sireaxeq out or the shadow to the car. "Quirk!" he ordered. 'Th. m... m get the ring himself. I will take care or Kennedy." An Inatant and thev w.r. i.ii. Long Sin slunk back Into the shadows irom wntcn he had come. Through the underbrush th wii Chi... msn made his way to an old ham. which siooa rack at some distance from the road, and entered the front A rka Tka. wss another door In ttle rear and one quit, large window. In the dim light of a lantern hanging from a rafter could be seen aeveral large barrela In a corner. Without a moment a hesitation Long Sin seised a bucket and placed It under the spigot of one of ths barrela. Tha liquid poured forth Into th. bucket and he emptied tha contents on the floor, filling th. bucket again and again and swinging It right and left In every direction until the barrel had finally run dry. Then he moved over to tho window, which he examined carefully. Satisfied with what he had done. h. ir.w . .un paper from hla pocket and hastily wrote a note, reatlng tha paper on aa old box. nru . 1 . ... .Turn nm nan nnisnea writing he folded up the note and thrust It into a little hollow-carved Chinese figure, which he took also from his pocket. These were, apparently, hla emergency Preparations which he wss ready to exe cute ta case he received such a message from his master as he had actually re ceived. With a final hasty glance about he extinguished the lantern, letUng the moonlight stream fitfully through the single window. Then he left the barn, with both front and rear doors open. Taking advantage of every bit of shelter he msde his way across ths field tn the direction f the crossroad, finally drop ping down behind a hug rock soms yeida I from th finger post that pointed each j way to Williams and Brownlee avenues. i Late that night Kennedy left his apart ment prepared to follow the Instructions In the note which had been so strangely, delivered in the vase. As he climbed Into a roadster he tucked the robe most carefully Into a corner under the leather seat. "For heaven s sake. Craig." I gasped from under the robe, "let me have a lit tles aJr." I had taken my place under the robe before the car wg driven up In front of the apartment lest some emissary of Wu Fang might be watching to ee that there was such a trick. "You'll get air enough when w. get started. Walter," he laughed back under hla breath, apparently addressing the engine. Kennedy waa a hard driver when he wanted to be. and enough waa at staKe tonight to make him drive hard. He whizzed along In th. roadster, and I was Indeed glad enough to huddle up under the robe. We had reached a point In the suburbs which wa deserted, and I did not rec ognize a thing when he pulled up by the side of the road with a Jerk. I peered through a crease In the corner of the robe and saw him slide out from under the wheel and atand by the aide of tha car, looking up and down. Ahead of us the road curved ahsrply, and I had no Idea what waa there, though Kennedy seemed to know the place. A moment later he pulled th robe partly oft me, and bent down as though examining the batteries on tha aide of the car. "Get out on the other aid tn th. shadow of the car.' Walter." he whispered, hosrsely. "Go down the road a bit only cut In and keep under cover. Thla Is Williams avenue. You'll see a big rock. Hide behind tt. Ahead you'll aee Brownie, avenue. Be prepared for anything. I shall have to trust th. rest to you. I don't know myself what's going to hap pen. I slid out and went along th. edge of th. road, as Craig had directed, and finally crouched behind a huge rock, feeling aa much tension a If I had been a boy playing at wild west. Only this might at any moment develop into the reality of a wild far east After a moment, to give me a chance, Craig himself left the car pulled up close by th. side of the road and went ahead on foot. At laat he cama to the cross roads Just around the bend, where, In the moonlight, he could read the signs: "Wlllisras avenue" and "Brownie. avenue.' H stood there a moment, then glanced at his watch, which registered both hands approaching the hour of twelve. He gazed about at the deserted country. Had the appointment been a hoax, after all, a scheme to get him away from the city for aome purpose? Suddenly, at his feet In the dust of th. road aomethlng heavy seemed to drop. H. looked about quickly. No on. waa In sight. He reached down and picked up a little Chinese figure. Tapping It with hi knuckle, h. examined It curiously. It was hollow. From the Inside he drew out a piece of paper. He strained his eyes tn the moon light and managed to make out: The Serpent Is a 11-wise and his fang la fatal. You have algnad the whit, gtrl'a death 'warrant. " Beneath thi sinister warning was tamped the serpent of Wu Fang. It waa not a hoax, and Kennedy atood there a moment gazing about In tense anxiety. Had th. uncanny eye observed his every action? Waa It atarlng at him now In the blackneas? Meanwhile, 1 had mads my way stealthily, peering Into the bushes and careful not even to step on anything that would make a nolae and was now, an I have aald, crouched behind the big rock to which Craig had directed me. I heard him go along the road and look about cautiously, but could hear and aee noth ing els. I had begun to wonder whether Ken nedy might not have made a mistake when, suddenly, from behind the shadow ot another rock ahead of me, but toward Brownlee avenue. I saw the tall, gaunt figure of a man rise In the moonlight slmost as If tt had sprung from the very earth. My heart gave a leap as he quickly reised his right arm and hurled eome-J ins as isr aa ne couia in the direction Theatre SOUTH OMAHA Every Wednesday Episode No. 17 April 28 Lmr!(D 16th and Dinnoy Every Thursday Episode No. 16 April 29 DIAMOND THEATRE 3410 Lake ftt. Every Tuesday. Episode No. 18 April 37 LOTHROP Thoatro 821 a N. 24 Ui Street Episode) No. IS. April 80 ALAMO THEATRE Epoorwh,r4d V;uao Fcr Bookings Write Palhe Exchange Inc. 1312 Farnin St. Onihineh" that Kennedy had Uken. If It had been a bomb, followed by an explosion. I would not have been surprised. But no sound followed as the figure dropped back, a U' It had been a wraith. I stole out from my own hiding place In the shadow of my rock and darted quickly to the shelter of a bush nearer the figure. The figure was no wraith. It turned tn steal away. I remembered Kennedy's jart- ing words, ir the man ever gained the darkness of a clump of woods. Just be yond us, he was as good as safe. Trr, was the time to act. I leaped at him and he went down, roll ing over and over in th. underbrush and stubble. We fought fiercely, but 1 could not seem to get a glimpse of his face, which waa muffled. He waa powerful and atronger than I nd after a tough tussle he broke loose But I had aucceeded. nevertheless. I had delayed him Just long enough. Kennedy heard th. sound of th. struggle and waa now crashing through the hedge at the crossroads In our direction. I managed to pick myself up. Just as Kennedy reached my side, and, together, we followed the retreating flrnra .. I, made Its way among the shadows. Across the open space before us we followed him end at last saw him dlve.into an old barn. A moment later we followed hotfoot Into the barn. As we entered we could hear a peculiar grating noise, aa though a door waa aprung on Its ruaty hinges. The front door waa onen. Rriit,nii. .. man had gone through and closed the vwia, ooor. We threw ourselves ee-alnat th. k.b door, but It did not yield. There waa no ume io waate and we turned to rush out again by the way We had come; Just as the front door was slsmmed shut The man had trapped ua. w h.4 t-r both doors open, had run through, braced me oacK aoor. then had ruah.it arn..n outside Just In time to brace the front door also. j c"ld hear his feet crunching the dry leaves and twl as he went around the aide of the barn again. Together we threw ourselves arainat th, j, but. although It yielded a little, he had -arrea u so that it would resist our united strength for aome time Again and again we threw ourselves against It It was horribly dark in there, except for an oblong spot where the iiumigni siresmea in through a window. Suddenly the pal. silver of the moonlight on the floor reddened. The man 'had struck a match and thrown It Into a mass of oil-soaked straw and gunpowder which protruded through one of the weather-beaten boarda near the floor. It was only a matter of a second or so now when the fire swept into the barn itself. There wss no beating it out. Same one had literally soaked the straw and the floor with oil. It aeemed as though th. whole place buret Into a sudden blaze of tinder. Outside we could hear foot steps rapidly retreating toward the shel ter of the .clump of woods. For a second I looked dismayed at th. rapidly mounting flames. "A very pretty situation T trTA eaa tie. a laugh. "But I ho De he drwan' think we'll stay hero snd burn, with a Der- fectly good window In full view." I took a step forward toward dow, but before I could take another Kennedy yanKed me back. "Don't think for a moment that h. overlooked that," he shouted. Cra;g looked around haatllv. In a roi. ner. just hack Of us. wss a lone- no1. TT. snatched it up and moved cautiously to ward the window, keeping the pole as level aa possible as he endeavored to get a leverage an the sash. The flamea were mounting faster and higher, ' licking up everything. "Keep back, Walter." he muttered, "JuBt as far ar you can." He had scarcely ralaed the window fraction of an Inch when an old, rusty, heavy anvil and a bent, worn plowshare crashed down to th. floor directly over the spot where I should have been if he had not dragged me away. I started back aghast. Nothing had been over looked to finish us off. "I think you msy try It safely now, all rlsht" amlled Kennedy, coolly. We climbed ut of the window, not an instant too aoon, from the raging Inferno about ua Having gained the ojump of woods the gaunt figure had paused long enough to Featuring Edwin Arden as "THE CHINESE MA8TEK CRIMINAL" em 1528 So. 13th St. Episode Mo. 15 Today April 25 Best Projection in The City Theatre Nicholas Theatre Council Dluffo, la. Episode No. 10 April 27 FAUOMTE Theatre 17th and Vinton St. Episode No. 16 April 27 gloat over his clever scheme. Instesd. ho saw us making good our escape. With a gesture of Intense fury he turned. There rvas nothing more for him to do but tn zigzag his way to safety across country. The barn was now burning fiercely and it wss almost as light ss day about us. Kennedy paused only long enough to look down at the ground where the fire had started. "fe. Walter," he exclaimed, pointing to a square Indentation in the aoft soil. "No white man ever made a footprint like that" I bent over. The rrints had th square ness of those paper-layered soles of a Chinaman. "Long Sin," cane the name Involun tarily to my lips, for I knew that Wu would delegate Just such a Job to his faithful slave Kennedy did not pause an Instant longer, but in the light of the burning barn, as best he could, started to follow the trail In a deanerata andaavnr lth.. to overtake Long Sin, or at least to find tne nnai direction in which he would go. At th entrance to the passageway which led to the little underground cham ber In which we had sought tho treasure hidden bv the Clutchlns- Hand Wu waa seated on a rock waiting Impatiently, though now and then Indulging a sinister smile at the subtle trick by which he had recovered the ring. The sound of approaching footsteps dis turbed him. He was far too clever to leave anything to chance, and, like a serpent, h. wriggled behind another rock and waited. It was only a glance, how ever, that he needed to allay hla suspl clons. It waa Long Sin, breathless. Wu stepped out beside him so quietly that even the acute Long Sin did not hear. "Well?" he said In a guttural tone. Long Sin drew back In fear. "I ha-e failed, oh master." he replied In an im plorlng tore. "Even now they follow my tracka" It was bad enough to confess defeat without the fear of capture. Wu frowned. "We must work quickly, then," he muttered. v He picked up a dark lantern nearby, in dicating another to tered the cave, flashing the lights ahead of them. 'Be csrefjl," ordered Wu, proceeding gingerly from one stepping stone to an other. "W shall be followed no farther than this." He paused a moment and pointed his finger at the earth. Everywhere, except here and there where a stone projected, was a sticky slimy substance. It was an old trick of primitive races. "Bird lime," hissed Wu, pointing at the viscid substance of the Juice of the holly bark, extracted by boiling, and mixed with a third part of nut oil and grease. They passed on from stone to stone until they earn, to the aubterranean chamber Itself. Without a moment's hesitation, Wu mad. his way toward the rock in which thev- had found th. alot with Its cryptic Inscription. Long Sin watched his maater In silent admiration as. at last, he drew forth th. mystic ring for which they had dared all. Without a word. Wu drooped It I th. slot. It tinkled down the runway, a protuberance hit a trigger and pushed It a hair's breadth. A noise behind them caused the two to turn startled. Elven Wu had not ex pected it. On the other aide of the chamber, a great rock in the ground slowly turned, as though on a pivot They watched, fascinated. Even then Wu did not forget the precloua ring, but aa the rock turned, reached down quickly and recovered It from the cup at the floor. Inch by inch the pivoted rock moved on Its axis. They flashed their lanterns full on It and. as It moved, they could aes disclosed huge piles of gold and silver coins and bars and ornaments, a chest literally filled with brilliants, set and unset rubles, emeralds, precious stone of every conceivable variety, a cave that would have staggered even Aladdin the rich reward of the countless marauding operatione of Bennett's other personality. For a moment they could merely atand . In avaricious exultatulon. Painfully and slowly we managed to trail Long Sln'a footprints, until we cam to a road where they were lost In the hard macadam. There was no time to (Continued on Page Ten Column Three) Theatre ) i