fp~"
The Black Menace
By ARTHUR B, REEVE
■c - L
"Pink*”
There was a shattering of
and all was now 4n dark
less, Our flashlight had been
ftnashed.
'‘Thanks” muttered Kennedy
$amming on the brakes just
>rher® he stood, and leaping out
of the ear fugging at the tool
box back of us, where he had
placed his precious packages,
f ^WhWirijt! had been kind
Enough to furnish a clue to or
J»llh metal cajia.
' "* ‘Thanks’’” muttered Ken
nedy, jamming on the brakes
|\iat. where he stood, and leaping
but of tlie car tugging at the tool
box back of us, where ho had
)#aced his precious packages.
^Soaaone. had been kind
enough to furnish a clue to or
der. Of course they could not
*eaU*& haw little it, was that we
could sec as we had strained
%«r ©yes on the cliff above.
“Listen!” cautioned Speed,
•hutting off the engine.
"We did listen, in the silence of
the night we could hear the mil
lions of insects with their steady
dbrone. Hut above that there
•u something else. Faintly
laow there floated down what
•o\mded like a far-off cry fol
help.
We ffcaxod at each other in
•LM^ttnent. Could it be that w-e
had stumbled on what we
•ought* Was it Claire7 If not,
why the slot at is. Another
Whirred down, striking the hood
over the engine and glancing
-off at the rocks. We must have
t>een a fine target and I quickly
•hut off all the lights.
Kennedy and Jack by this
time were peering about us in
the drabness. From the side of
the road there led a torturous
tocky path, up the cliff side.
**8t»all we chance itt”, cried
Speed, by this time thoroughly
tkve to the possibilities of our
A TICKLISH BUSINESS
Kennedy did not wait to ans
wer. Already he had seized the
peettliar ease which he had car
ried so carefully from t.ho tool
hoi and began opening it as wo
•tartod scrambling up the nar
row trail in the rocks.
it was a ticklish business, but
Wo forged ahead, breathless.
Dike I fancied I saw a light mov
ing far above us along the cliffs,
but only for a moment, and then
it was gone.
dipping and drawling as best
Wo could we climbed, Kennedy
Still working at the cover of the
thing which he carried.
fkflt above us, some hundreds
of foot, a revolver flashed in
the blackness and a bullet clip
toed a branch of a tree over our
beads. In the momentary flash,
t could just make out a figure
disappearing behind a rocky
for shelter.
re hack,” directed Ken
nedy. "There’s no use for us to
take all the risk. Someone
Seems to have located us. Use
overy bit of shelter von can.”
"Split! Split! Split'”
The fusiiade grew hot as
^peed and I answered. There
Was no way of telling* whether
our assailant was alone or in
fort*. Neither of us could see
What we were aiming at other
than thelocation of the various
Bashes of light as the guns were
discharged, puctuating the black
ttess with dashes f light and
Waking the solemn echoes of the
bills reverberating like a battle.
There was something weird
•bout it all. And there was
Something extremely dangerous
too. Besides what would hap
pen when we closed in*
„ Suddenly we heard a cry
WMWo us—shrill and piercing.
Help!
Was it Clare? Sped muttered
UHder his breath that he recog
*&red her voice, and I believe
Unit his acute ear was'right. If
It was,would we be able to save
Her* Flow were we to surmount
that rocky eyrie?
KENNEDY PAUSES
In the shelter of the ledge now
Kennedy paused, as vve crowded
With him, protecting ourselves
an much as possible. Prom the
ease which he had now opened
be had by this time pulled wliat
looked like a peculiar gun. As
bo worked it, he jammed into
the breech a huge cartridge,
Hot like anything 1 had ever seen
before.
We watched breathlessly as
raimed the gun upward and
10
Frm the barrel came a streak
of light that described a para
hoha; far overhead. It mounted
and as it reached the top of its
arc, like that of a rocket, it seem
ed to burst.
Far above us there semed to
come a blinding light out of the
very darkness of the sky itself.
It was as though there had been
a shooting star suddenly re
leased from the other.
I gazed in admiration. The
thing floated in the air, wafted
along by a light current. In its
penetrating glare everything in
this grand scene stood out in
sharp relief. As I looked, I
could just make out in the air
a little parachute from which
something like a most powerful
magesium flare hung suspended.
It was ghostly and ghastly, as
the rays of the thing penetrated
what had hithert been hidden
from our vision.
“What is it7” I panted
breathlessly as we three pressed
forward and upward along the
cliff aided by the light, though
it revealed us, too.
“A star shell. They use them
in warfare now-hanging in the
air ver N-Man’s Land.
We toiled upward, clinging to
rocks and roofs and vines, while
the star shell floated gracefully
in the air above, bathing the
whole face of the cliff now in
its weird light rays.
“Look!” pointed Speed.
A MASKED FORM
He was right. Bar above, in
the light of the star shell, we
could see Clare herself, clinging
to the edge of a jutting jagged
rook, as though she had run
from someone and had fallen, or
had been pushed over, catching
herself frantically.
And crawling along the ledge,
I saw a malignant, masked form,
back towards us, coming down
the cliff from above where there
was a little, hut, working his way
desperate. The figure was creep
ing slowly nearer to her.
Speed shouted and started up
ward with redoubled effort. But
it did not do any good.
On crept the figure. In an
other moment he would be upon
her, might loosen her grasp and
precipitate her into the rocky
abyss below.
Kennedy jammed another
cartridge into the gun and fired.
It was a desperate chance. Up
ward the star shell sped. It
burst drectly over the head of
the masked figure on the cliff.
The force of the explosion
seemed to loosen his grip. For
an instant he wavered, dazed.
Then he toppled with a shriek,
back—and down—down—down.
In the weird light we could
still sec Clare clinging to the
ledge, but no longer menaced.
There was a thud, far below
but no cry.
AVe struggled upward, expect
ing to be met by a hail of shot as
we did so.
Down below I could hear her
summons calling, “ Kennedy!
Hallo!”
We did not have breath
enough to answer. The star
wheel'was dying and we had to
press on with what remaining
strength we had.
On the ledge at last, we reach
ed over from above and pulled
Clare, half-fainting now with the
revulsion of feeling to safety.
*‘Jack!” she cried as she sank
back into his arms.
Speed bent over her in the dy
ing light of the star shell and his
lips touched hers.
Still the voice below was call
ing us. Kennedy turned from
the lovers and as toilsomely as
we had ascended, he and I start
ed back, but not to the road in
the gully. Rather wre turned to
ward the voice that was calling
us.
At last we gained the foot of
the ravine, still above the river,
but with the rocky walls rising
above us sheer to the ledge on
w'hieh wre had been.
As we approached from above
someone was climbing up from
below, but anticipating us. AVe
ran forward in the little level
shelf of the rock.
There was Ravenal, bending
over the senseless form of Brian
Thome.
‘‘I arrived too late,” he
nodded ruefully at us . ‘‘But at
least my clue wras good. Her
chauffeur dropped a hint about
this part of the country. But
you beat me to it.”
CHAPTER 13
The Infernal Machine
Our return to the city with
Clara was without incident ex
cept for the thrilling recital she
gave of how she had been car
ried off.
In spite of her nervousness,
ahe was able to relate quite con
nectedly what had happened the
fateful night, though it did not
seem to help us much. Always
it was only emissaries of the
Black Menace, like Werner or
Thorne, that we succeeded in
getting up with.
Tt seemed that after receiving
the falsified message from Min
na Oakleigh, she had worried
greatly until the arrival of a
man who convinced her that he
had been sent by Mrs. Oakleigh.
Almost frantic at the mere sug
gestion that Speed might have
fallen under the domination of
the fascinating Russian dancer,
Clare had finally started out in a
taxicab to go to the Mansion of
Mystery herself.
He had not got out of the city.
At first she noticed that the
driver, instead of following the
shortest route to the bridge to
Long Island, was on a side street
leading to the tough district of
the city, where the gas houses
were. She had rapped on the
window and remonstrated, but
it had no effect. Finally she be
came more insistant.
ihe driver stopped his car
and climbed down. Clare in a
moment was out of the car and
grasping her little revolver.
But at that very minute there
pulled up from around a corner
a big black limousine and from
it leaped out the very man who
had called on her to convinee
her that Mrs. Oqkleigh’g mess
age was genuine. Tt was Thorne.
Clare had faced them both
wi thher gun and as they advan
ced she snapped the trigger.
There was an explosion but nei
ther stopped. Again she fired,
but still no effect. She knew that
she could not have missed them,
but something must be wrong
with the gun. But it was too late.
They were upon her, and stifling
her screams, they threw her into
the closed car which whirled off
rapidly.
What happened after that was
not clear, and we could only ac
count for it on the theory that
some stupefying drug must have
been given to her when she was
flung into the closed car.
Dimly she recollected having
been carried in the car for hours,
at the end of; which she seemed
to be recovering her conscious
ness and memory. It was too
late. She was not only bound and
gagged, but the country through
which she was passing was
strange, wild and uninhabited.
The next thing she remember
ed was when the car stopped at
the top of what seemed to be a
high bluff. She was taken out
and ordered gruffly to climb
down the side of the hill by a
rough trail, while the car whisk
ed away.
Some feet down the hill she
had come to' a deserted cabin on
the hillside. Into this the ab
ductor had led her and she was
forced into a room, a prisoner.
There was no way to communi
cate with the outside world, and
downstairs in the house she
could hear voices, as though
Thorne (had with him others.
Once she fancied she heard a
woman’s voice in an argument.
I wondered whether it might not
have been Breshkaya, prompted
by jealousy o fThornc and fear
ful that he might fall under the
spell of Clare.
FREED AT LAST
At any rate, nothing happened
until late the following night,
when suddenly she heard revol
ver shots fired below. Somehow
she fancied that help was coming.
Her active mind contrived a
means of escape. In spite of the
fact that she was bound, she'
managed to tip over a piece of
the scant furniture in such a
way that the window was smash
ed. By rubbing the ropes that
bound her wrists on the jagged
ends of glass she managed to
free her hands. Removing the
gag and untying her ankles was
a quick operation. She was free.
The breaking of the glass had
passed unsuspected in the fusi
lade of our shots. But when she
managed to gain the outside by
dropping down a story and a
half from the window, her cap
tor saw her. With a shout, he
started after her. She ran wildly,
and as she did so, she missed her
footing and fell many feet below,
fortunately catching her dress
in some scrub bushes. She was
saved from the fall hundreds of
feet below, but clinging as she
was to the very edge of the per
ilous ledge, she could see the
hered face f Thorne peering over
and coming at her.
The rest of the story we know
ourselves.
Late though it was when we
arrived again back in the city
and left Clare at her apartment,
we were greeted at our own a
partment by the sleepy hall boy
with a startling piece of news.
It was nothing less than a mess
age to Speed which had been
sent over by his valet.
Minnie Oakleigh had been
found poisoned at an obscure
New York hotel.
We hurried over and found the
place. Already her husband was
there and, as he grasped the hand
of Speed, one could feel what a
shock the sudden disclosure had
been to him, tactlessly made as
it had been by the police who
found the body.
We mounted to the little room
where the discovery had been
made. There had not yet been
time to remove the body which
was lying, still fully clothed on
the bed.
MRS. JAMES IDENTIFIED
A glance was all that was
needed to confirm the suspicions
which I already had entertained.
Minna Oakleigh was the beauti
ful “Mrs. James”.
She had left a note to her hus
band, but it was torn in half.
The later half, which had con
tained some kind of a confession,
was still missing. Still there was
enough so that we could recon
struct her story, though I was
convinced that the missing half
of the note vras the important
part that perhaps led to the
Black Menace.
It was most fearsome as we
looked around the scantily fur
nished room. The power of this
blackmailer seemea to be unlim
ited. Death followed every at
tempt to reveal his identity, and
he must have had in his employ
innumerable faithful henchmen
to cover up his trail. Still, that
was not so difficult to under
stand when one considered the
vast sums of money that he had
been able for a long time to ex
tort from society.
In her grip was ,a packet of
letters. Many had been abstract
ed, but there was enough to re
veal that Minna Oakleigh was
deep in debt and other entangle
ments that she dared not reveal.
It was the explanation of her
interest in Kennedy that night
at the Mystery Mansion. She had
been trying at last, secretly to
get Kennedy and Claro in her
fight.
Speed gazed in silent sympa
thy at his friend, Oakleigh
In one of the letters there had
been mention of the name of
Breshkaya. As he read it, Oak
leigh clenched his fists.
“That woman”, he ground
out. “If I had known that Minna
knew her I might have prevented
this.”
Sympathetically Speed drew
out of his his story. Quite appar
ently as we pieced it together,
there had been an attempt to en
tangle him in the web of the
Black Menace.
“That explains everything,”
he groaned. “One night while
Minna was away, I dropped into
the Crystal Palace with some
friends. One of them introduced
this Breshkaya, a dancer up
there. I thought she was a bit too
interested in me, at the time. But
I didn’t suspect anything like
this. In fact, the party was get
ting too gay for me when I ex
cused myself. Breshkaya seemed
almost angry at my going, but
instead of keeping me, rather
disgusted me. Still I didn’t
think anything of it, at the time.
AGAIN STRUCK DOWN
As I listened, it was no more
than I expected. Again someone
who had been coming to the aid
of Clare had been struck down.
And at the same time one who
had stood up against the Black
Menace had been delivered a ter
rible blow.
Mrs. Oakleigh was one of the
most popular of the young socie
ty matrons. In her death she was
a pathetic figure. But our sym
pathy was for her husband. The
scandal was indeed a sad herit
age to leave behind. He was fran
tic, yet there seemed to him no
way to turn to avenge her ruin.
As we parted,, more than ever
now it was imperative to watch
Breshkaya. Kennedy tried to out
line some way of doing it,, but
indeed it was no light task, for
she was popular and had a host
of friends.
Therefore, the following day I
spent down at the Star anil about
town in an endeavor to pick up
such information about Bresh
kaya and particularly about
Minna Oa.kleigh as might prove
of value.
If I fancied that Breshkaya
would go into hiding after what
had happened, 1 found that I was
grossly mistaken.
I was able to find out very lit
tle about either Minna Oakleigh
or Breshkaya. The newspapers
were of course, full of the trage
dy to one high in social circles,
but when one dug under the vast
amount of sob stuff that was
printed, one found very little in
formation.
' As for Breshkaya, reports that
I was able to get of her during
the day from those whom I knew
in the “White Light" section
of Broadway seemed to indicate
that the death of Thorne had
been a hard blow to her. Some
how her dancing partner exer
cised a power over her that no
other man seemed yet to have a
wakened.
More that that, as nearly as I
could make out, Brshkaya seem
ed to be a changed woman. It was
not merely fancy. Thero was now
a hardness and heartlessness in
her that had been lacking before.
A CHANGE OF ATTITUDE
Many noticed the sudden dif
ference. No longer was she mere
ly the gay butterfly, thoughtless,
pleasure loving. Actually now
her every action seemed to be
coldy calculating. As I pieced
together what I learned from
her intimates, I could do no bet
ter than compare her to a mod
ern Gorgon. It seemed as if she
was determined that every man
who looked on her should be;
turned to stone, as it were, and
perish .
The more that I thought of the
change, the more I saw that our
search for the Black Menace
must revolve around this dancer,
and the more difficult it was go
ing to be. What the hold was that
the Black Menace might have on 1
her at once became the most ab
sorbing of problems for us.
It was after dinner that night
that I finis^e^, my collection of
details anadecidea upon return
ing to report to Kennedy.
He was not at our apartment
when I returned but on the table
I found a hastily scrawled note:
“Call from Speed to meet him
at labratory. You’ll find me
there.CRAIG”.
(To be continued next week.)
When She Marries.
H. L>. Mencken.
Not one woman In a hundred
marries her first choice. Her first
choice, perhaps, is not a living
CHURCHES IN SUMMER.
THOSE who claim to believe that
the power and influence of
churches is growing less will
find trouble in accounting for the
church program for Sioux City dur
ing the coming summer. Announce
ment that services will be continued
throughout the hot months in all
but one of the churches of the city
would have seemed a bit unusual
not so long ago. Today it is quite
the rule, not only in Sioux City but
in cities and towns generally
throughout the entire country.
A significant change has come
about in recent years both in the at
titude of many church organizations
and in results achieved. The sum
mer months, instead of being look
ed upon as a dead season for the
churches, have come to be regard
ed as a time for some of their mast
fruitful work. Not only do the
churches keep busy at home but they
have provided for giving opportunity
to hear their most able preachers in
the summer resorts and other points
reached by vacationists during this
period. Summer institutes and con
ferences have increased in number
and their influence, especially with
young people, is tremendous. A
great majority of the recruiting for
missionary, social service and min
isterial work is accomplished in
these gatherings.
Realization hy tne cnurcnes uiat
religion is not a thing apart from, but
a thing very closely identified with
the every-day life of the community,
has brought about this change, or at
least has been a big factor In doing
so. When the church is the center
not only of the religious but of the
social, athletic and eerhaps educa
tional work as well (many churches
are maintaining vacation schools of
various sorts) It 1b not hard to keep
up Interest In them. It would, on the
other hand, be extremely hard to get
consent to close them down.
Nothing has been lost by the
churches throughout this evolution.
But the gain has been tremendous.
Realization that religion means right
living, Improvements of living condi
tions, and that it is a Job to be
thought about and worked at seven
days in tbe week means broadening
the viewpoint of the church’s mission
until It will be hard for anyone to
deny that its wellbeing is essential
to himself individually. Which is
the attitude the church must create
and maintain if it is to fulfill its mis
sion of Christianizing the world.
In perfecting a maahtne for testing the
psychology of color, a University of
Pennsylvania professor has solved a
problem which defied thu c'Capw y
scientists for many years,
I
Visit Canada this summer
—see for yourself the op
portunities which Canada
offers to both labor and
capital—rich, fertile; vir
gin prairie land, near rail'
ways and towns, at $15 to
$20 an acre—long terms if
desired. Wheat crope last
year the biggest In history;
dairying and hogs pay well;
mixed farming rapidly in
creasing.
Excursion on 1st and 3d!
Tuesday of Each Month
from various U.S. points, tingle
fare plus $2 for the round trip.
Other special rates any day.
Make this your summer outing
—Canada welcomes tourists—
no passports required—have a
great trip and see with your
own eyes the opportunities that.
await you.
For full information, with frag
booklets and maps, write
A REAL SHINE
EVERY TIME
•SXgK
POLISHES
LIQUIDS OR BASTES
* iTOnEnummm *
Do Your Foot Hurt?
When shoes pinch or corns and bunions
ache, get a package of Alien's Foot*
Ease, the antiseptic, healing powder to
be shaken into the shoes. It takes th«
sting out of corns, bunions and callouses,
and gives instant relief to Smarting, Ach
ing, Swollen feet At night when your
f^€t aqjie and burn from walking or
dancing sprinkle some Allen's Foot
Ease ia the ffiot:ba|h and you will solve
your foot troubles. Over 1,500,000 pounds
of powder for the feet were used by our
Army and Navy during the war. Sold
everywhere.
FRECKLES
Don’t Hide Them With a Veil) Remove
Them With Othine—Double Strength
Thl» preparation for the treatment ot
freckles Is usually so successful In removing
freckles and giving a clear, beautiful com.
plexlon that it Is sold under guarantee to
refund the money If It fall*.
Don't hide your freckles under a veil:
get an ounce of Othlne and remove them.
Bven the first few applications should show
a wonderful Improvement, some of tha
lighter freckle* vanishing entirely.
Be sure to ask the drugglat for the
double-strength Othlne; It 1* this that la
aold on tha money-back guarantee.
LONG A PRIVILEGED CLASS
Prerogatives of Spanish Grandees
Placed Them Almost on an (
Equality With Royalty.
The name Spanish grandees is given
to the higher nobility of Spain—dating
from the Thirteenth century—who at
one time enjoyed almost royal privi
leges. They held their honors by In
heritance, were exempt from taxation,
and could leave the kingdom, and even
enter the service of a foreign prince
at war with Spain, without Incurring
the penalties of treason. In addition
they had the right to remain covered
in the presence of the sovereign and
could not be summoned before any
civil or criminal tribunal without a
special warrant from the king. In na
tional assemblies the grandees took
precedence of the titled nobility.
Ferdinand and Isabella greatly cur
tailed these peculiar privileges, and
Charles V limited their number of
families to 1G and reduced them to a
dependent condition. Their dignities
and prerogatives were totally abolished
by Joseph Bonaparte, but these were
partly restored by Ferdinand VII on
his accession to the throne.
Reclaimed Italian Marshes.
Seven tons of rice per hectare Is the
record average yield from what was
until a short time ago worthless, un
healthful marsh lands just south of
Rome. Wheat, barley, beets, alfalfa,
tomatoes and llax are grown on land
reclaimed by filling and drainage, and
Ihe former marsh lands support a to
mato cannery, where 120 tons of to
matoes are concentrated every day.
American Consul Leon Dominlan,
Rome, informs the Department of
Commerce. Over six thousand acres
of land have already been brought into
usefulness.