THE ISEK: OMAHA. SUNDAY. FEBRUARY 12. 1922. By Henry C. Rowland ' 'I" heir. ( llinr fialM, Vf aumiaif. tu iw eaa.Kiut and en ef iiuoooo I ffu4 Utr hw mi Mum, M.uive It. .Hum' im '' n W"1 ml l na Hi. r (-. iiiwmi hi. Mrla, Jrrmnf To "f In a Br im.uuuar. lamtln I Ui I'Ullicr t.:.. h to fiwalnd bf lltra Innimit 'ut. and mj.Uriuu. lurairtiar. It uni l tiniuuW uima (ii ,lur ad l-ara Muk la bit tvtvnm h M n-id mvm i br Vnrle Jrrr, hn ba nm iron hi ui.nl itrtititmt to mrrf hi rtt nun, M,r I i.n. ,s,n.-r, Mart Ix.uiirul Hlof, (.iTncB tlx In-arr Hl Run Rprtiue, t'x .hiit"il !!. la pni(fMr to tw tns Biarrtrd (a frrtU, linmii, M.il U(M thai h ht ba kimiaid lur iuiwa. romliuii lha firlnr l II.. I'uUvr pta. Aivatnioaird l' Ih rtunruuW, Mlt and J.iu- iu Hi piai-a, but And hc furri.wra tiartttir a bunitr.fa. KWlevmt thrj mt n huiauif Hruta nnun, lb o lril a .u,;,. u-J nip ia Ui rtirwiiua of Kr.f I.Uii'1 b d llir rW lh Pulwr lla, but Hi farrinr. Rod. Mall lur m tii llud tud i .n ,.ni.( la raiuue r.hin with bi tn miarui.lirr Ua h Ami kaurr InHria, 1B r nuim m ui run whoa rwhli t elawa. and Uk iwtui ia wmn. Kill u i hi Ih'r with ii..ir twn be r-.iv-r lni fllnf wilt, rnt-n Jr.im bul Tin kulaaper, h and).. thrf ttrrturr him. and lorn h di cor.r, thry bltr nil.uur J.ww-r Ii bjlTla sad bimarU or Ih kiunuiwr, An.itlwr boi vr.m od na and iir ink mlu. In Ui cabin. Iiir poan itul.l and bram br.Uriral Vila Uuhtar. Man ki. bar la .burk br out el 11. jnd br nana roturn i ".hwk" with uilrnwt. Jb rural, that tu mn and Ih iit ara aaia uratua and bylla. awl bM lhr an at onl't fwiou. Mail .fernanda an aroutilinc ef dam. and r"7t ' Th lMb,n u ' on bra. Nao7 tuma J." U"J Hop both oombaiaula-but U t bin In . baa brirayrd him. bxlvia. la bar ir ow Sim . huru, xlmiu her lura f.w him, nd Mall laarea Nanrjp rr.li, h.vl Irird to help him. SLJ" i ,l.'.U obJl",t loward Sam bovaua ut tba "0: TENTH rNSTALLM UNT. Another Mntertous Itoai. DKAR! " crlod Nanojr at Matfa vJlfd threat of rcnevtd battla with Sam Eprag-ua. "Haven't wt ba4 alrlf enough 7" "I shouldn't any you evar could hava ttat," aald Matt " Tour talent aa a troubla makr Is only equaled by your capacity for Inault" lie roue to his fwt and atartwl rlth truculent air toward whero Sam and Sylrla wera LU1 eacbanglnu mutual expressions of steem. But this belligerent mood met with no hostile demonstration whatever. At sight of Matt, Sam loosed his hold of Sylvia and ad vanced with a scarred but radiant face, eyes blinking from emotion and ammonia and his big hand outstretched. "Say. buddy," said be. "hfs call It a day's work. Tou win. I'm your prisoner. Give me your hand. I'm sorry I blew up." lie blinked at Watt's reddened eyes. "By rum. you got your dose, too." There was not that In Matt'a mature to reject this glad peace overture. It was evi dent that Sam af that moment would not have fought with a harbor pollcembn. His square face glowed with a sort of svrlmmlng rapture and his breath was coming In great gasps. " Well, Sam," said Matt, taking the out stretched hand, " I'm glad on the whole that It's broken your way. No doubt I was a lit tle hasty In my findings, but we've alA been pretty well wrought up over this." " I know it," Sam admitted contritely.-. " I must have been absolutely off my bear frigs. But It's all right now!" Matt then offered his felicitations to Syl via, who accepted them In a happy If em barrassed manner. ' , Hat gray eyes then passed thoughtfully between Matt and Nancy. "Whatever brought you two out here to look for us?" the asked. " It's a long story," said Matt, " and not entirely a pleasant one. Nancy and I have been more rivals than colleagues in this business." " Rubbish!" said Nancy, who, true to her usual technique of not missing anything that happened to be said or done, had Joined the group. "I thought you might be out here somewhere and told Mr. Holmes, and he tried to slip out here and get ahead of me." She looked at Matt. "Since you've managed to thrash around and burn the cabin down, let'a all go back to our cave, where we can be partly out of the wind and rain. It's a sort of penthouse in the rocks under the bank. When Is your boat coming, Sam?" Sam looked Intensely uncomfortable. "Well, to tell the truth," said he, "I told Jim not to come back untU tomorrow eve alng." Matt whistled softly, "What cheer, la dles?" he asked. Nancy wrinkled up her little nose. " Poor eheer, buddies," said she, and looked very serious. "It's going to rain all night and we've got no shelter but a sort of caved out place in the bank, and not a blessed thing to eat and I'm nearly starved." " We've got lota to eat," said Matt. " While you were trying to put out a blazing house with household ammonia I rescued my' blan ket roll and the sack of grub. There's no trouble about the eats, and unless I'm wrong there's no end of drinks not very far from here, if we could only manage to connect with it" " What's that?" asked Sam, with a look of burning interest " Let's Bet out of this," said Matt " and 111 tell you about it Nothing doing now be cause the tide's too high. Let's go." . He shouldered the provision sack, while Bam picked up the blanket roll, of which Matt had not found need to avail himself, the cot having been well supplied with bed ding. Then, as an afterthought Matt walked ver and picked up the extinguisher. . " What's the good of that?" asked Nancy. " I've pumped it dry." " As an old campaigner," said Matt, " I provided against such an emergency. There are two spare bottles of ammonia in the blanket roll." Sam looked mystified, and Matt being now in a yielding mood, explained briefly the qualities of his weapon. Sam laughed and rubbed his eyes. " Well, I guess I got you wrong. Matt" said Le. . " While not intended as an offensive or defensive arm," said Matt "it serves ex cellently well for such a purpose, as we can both honestly testify. Think how it would discourage a burglar. Any child or woman could use it in case of tyranny, on nurse or husband, but" he glanced at Nancy, " there should be a little preliminary practice on a dummy. Tou really ought to equip your shipyard with them, Sam. Festoon the cor ners of your buildings. This was not a fair test on the rhanty, because the contents had been adulterated. Now, let's get out of this." With Matt as guide, they proceeded to the (tony penthouse where he and Nancy had bivouacked. Matt unstrapped his blanket roll, while Sam quickly kindled a Are, when the place Immediately assumed all the aspects of a camp of castaways. Matt'a sack disgorged an array of delicacies at which Nancy looked with astonishment "I see where I shall have to run us a .vli .'-"! rj''" --V. w Vr. ' - ' " ', iv'fc- 1 5 . tW-: Vi7V nfu ."a'W' v ' - . ' . 4 . -r -vpf ' WzJ,X it' r Pi - . - 1 K i i Blut (Ribbon) v XjftcttonJ ViC - 'i f uf a f tr ' t V - " Bi'W nifon, liming over th mid of the bwat intent upon hi work, hauled to th surface of th Water a bulky object. delicatessen bill when I get back," said she. "You must have planned to spend about a month out here. But I suppose that you would probably have changed your mind at the end of twenty-four hours." "It was my idea," said Matt "that it I ran on anything suspicious which would seem to Indicate a probability of the boot leggers returning, the only thing for me to do would be to squat right down beside it and wait Everything comes to him who . waits, but as it has turned out, there was rather more coming to me than I had alto gether counted on. Besides, I have always been an advocate of Puddinhead Wilson's theory: 'If you see a chicken that ain't roostin comfortable, take it, 'cause if yoa don't want it yourself you can always find . somebody that does, and a good deed ain't never forgot"' "I must say," said Nancy, "that you do yoirself pretty well. Pork and beans, and . sardines and caviar, and boned chicken and ripe) olives, and pate de fole gras and Edam chedse, and gherkins " "The salt air always gives one an appe tite, said Matt apologetically, " and a good campaigner always figures out how much he Is apt to need and then, takes twice that amount Besides, I thought it might come on to Blow or something." With ya little fire burning cheerfully and a pot of ojam broth steaming on the edge of the coals(Sam and Matt having dug out the clams about twenty feet farther down the beach), the situation promised such improve ment than, despite the adverse conditions of weather, 4 Journalist reporting the event might hiavb written with perfect truth, "a good time was had by all." But the restless member of the coterie, whose nameV was Nancy, was by no means satisfied wltlt the validity of their title guar-" antee to content " This whole) business is going to be pretty hard to explain." said she reflectively. "All the mone reason for cutting out the explanation," s;iid Matt " After all, reputa tion is a word, rot an actual fact." " I thought it Was about time for another slur," said Nancy " But it seems to me that our position is ralther dubious. Matt and I have established Our case before the family, and Mr. Gates anfi Donovan, and Todd the constable. They alt know that we have been following tip these clues together." " Besides," said Matt in support, " we're relations. It's a family affair." "Quite so," mimicked Nancy. "But as things have developed it's all right for us. and it would be all ripht for Sylvia' if she were to appear to havebeen rescued and we were to carry back Sam in irons or some-' thing and hand him ovet to Justice. But for Sylvia and Sam to go back and announce that they had come to art understanding and were going to be married would look well " " Fishy," said Matt ', "Well, then," said Saml gloomily, "you can go ahead and carry me back in Iron and hand me over to Justice. I don't car a what happens now." ' "No more do I," cried Sylyla, "and Sam ia certainly not going to be carried in irons and handed over to Justice." t "Tou wouldn't have to presa the ease against him," said Matt then looked at Bam. " How did you manage it anyAow?" " Well," said Sam, " I had thi boat which was due to be delivered in Bar Harbor bo fore the end of the month. My brother and I started to take her down there, and then I decided to have a final word with Sylvia if I could manage it Mr. Gates and I bad a row about Sylvia last month. He'd gfct it into his head that this Grlscom dude would make her a better husband, and he told ma to sheer off. So I ran In there after dark with the idea of having it out with the old man and Sylvia, too, if it could be done. Then, Just aa luck would have it we came on her paddling around in her canoe, and I balled her and asked her to come aboard for a few min utes' talk, and she came. I guess we both lost our tempers, and the upshot of it was I made up my mind to carry her off." " Theit If you obeyed that impulse," said Nancy, " bow did the cabin happen to be all put in order?" " That had nothing to do with my kidnap ing Sylvia," said Sam. "I hadn't the least idea that the cabin had been fixed up. Some- body must have had that done with the idea of coming out here to camp. I carried Sylvia out to sea, hoping that I might be able to make her see reason and agree to marry me. But she swore from the first that she waa going to marry Griscom, and I swore she wasn't So when it looked as if it might take some time to persuade her, I had Jim land us here, and sent him in to the yard with the boat to take on stores and fuel for a long voyage, and send a note to John Gates to tell him she was safe." - "How safe?" Nancy asked. " Safe with me," said Sam doggedly. " He could take that any way he wanted to." " Sounds like a wide order," said Matt. "Where did you propose to go?" "Hadn't quite made up my mind," Sam answered. " Jusf cruise down to the east ward. I decided that if in ten days' time she couldn't be made to see things as I wanted her to, I'd bring her back and face the music." He leaned forward with a strained look in his face. " I'd felt for a long time that if I couldn't have Sylvia I didn't care much what happened." " Pretty rough on Sylvia, wasn't it?" Matt asked. " Tes," said Sam, " but aa I figured it out there was no man living that could ever love Sylvia as much as I did, or make her a better husband," he looked at them defiantly. " The proof of it was that I was willing to go to Jail for the rest of my life if I missed out I knew that Sylvia had cared for me ever since she was a little girl, and would have kept on caring if her father hadn't made a pot of money and got set up about it and Sylvia got her head turned by this Griscom fellow. I banked everything on being able to persuade her that I was right It wasn't as if I'd had nothing to offer her. My yard Is a big growing concern, and she'd never have lacked for anything that Grlscom could have given her. He's got no edge on me un less it's in never having had to work for his living. My people have lived on this land and done their part to make the country what it la ever since the first of them came ashore about two hundred and fifty years ago." Matt looked at him with an admiration which he made no attempt to conceal. Here, apparently, was the same spirit that had faced indomitably the carving of a foothold on a rugged and inhospitable shore, and, once planted there, successfully defied all ef forts of nature and politics and tyrannical laws to dislodge it but had grown and bur geoned and gripped wider and deeper into the soil with the ratiocination of some rug ged and tenacious yet fruitful growth of which the yield gave back a generous tithe over what it withdrew. But it waa a plant amply provided with thorns and some of these had now resisted the invasion of its rights, and the result of this might easily have proven its destruction. Sam had counted on this, however, and was prepared to face it There was to Matt some thing admirable about this attivide, and to Judge from Sylvia's expression as her eyes rested on her stalwart uncompromising suitor, the same vision bad been vouchsafed to her. But Nancy, who not long before bad voiced this very idea to Matt, and expressed, a par tisanship which bad seemed .to blm unwar ranted, swung now to the opposite point of view. ' " That's all very well for you, Sam," said she, " but if you'd loved Sylvia as much as you claim, you would have considered her welfare first, and you couldn't have helped but see that, while things might have gone pretty bad for you in case of failure, it might have been Just as hard for her in a different way." " I thought of that Miss Upton," Sam an swered, " but I didn't count on failure." And he added with a sort of boyish frankness, " that's a word that I've never admitted as applying to me until about an hour ago." " Well," said Matt " all I can say is you're a mtghtly lucky chap. Good old extln guisher! " Nancy looked at him with that peculiar curling of the lip that Matt had now learned to regard as a sort of temperamental barom eter. " There you go Jumping at conclusions," said she. " It's all very well to tell Sam that he's in luck, but where does that get Sylvia? What are people going to say when they learn that Sam carried her off by force, and at the end of three days brought her back in love with him? " This query proved a facer. It was plain enough even to the impetuous Sam what " folks would say." The problems presented by Nancy baffled even Matt's ingenious mind. He was quick to appreciate-that while in fiction such an episode might be glossed or smoothed in some manner by a clever deceit or other tricky invention, yet in real life the truth had an unfortunate habit of invariably leaking out Nancy appeared to have seized upon the only possible solution, which was to bring Sam in a prisoner. But there were many serious objections to such procedure as, even if no legal action were to be taken against him, the damage to his and Sylvlais future position must nevertheless be very great. For a few moments they pondered this question, then Matt said suddenly; " Look here! Why not stick it on the boot leggers after all? " ' " How stick it on the bootleggers? " asked Nancy. " Easy enough," said Matt " So far every body thinks that Sylvia butted in on their operations and they grabbed her. Well, all we've got to do Is to tell about our excursion night before last and that we picked up a clew and came out here, and found her in the cabin, where they'd marooned her with supplies enough to last until she might be able to signal some passing boat' Then Sam learned about her disappearance and was on his way back to Join the search and got here about the same time we did. That part of it's true anyhow," he included proudly. Nancy looked at him, with less than her usual scorn. "There are moments," said she, " when a fiction writer is rather handy to have about" " Strikes me," said Sam, " that it's a good sound lie." "What if the bootlegger should be caught? " Sylvia asked. " I might be called to testify against them." "No danger," said Matt "Besides, all you'd have to do would be to say they weren't the ones. About half the population Is boot legging these days." The dreary rain continued, yet ft waa a cheerful little foursome which faced the pros pect of a night's very rough camp in the semi-cave. Matt and Sam made several trips to the ruins of the cabin in quest of its charred fragments. " A man that's been up against the extin guisher could follow this trail in the dark now," said Matt as they were lugging down their last load In the gathering gloom of the close of a perfectly hard working day. " I must have done about twenty miles of route marching since I landed on this Island of Unrest last night For a while I thought that my greatest ennui was going to be the tedium of loneliness in an abomination of desolation, which goes to prove" that you never can tell. It's actually turned out to be the liveliest place I've struck since I got back from the war a couple of years ago." "Hold onl Mat," said Sam, and stopped short in his tracks. "Maybe it isn't over yet" Matt fetched up willingly enough, for his load was heavy and he was tired. Then from the direction of the cove came the muffled but staccato report of that sort of big heavy but dependable one cylinder make and break motor which the smaller fishing craft of all that part of the coast find best and surest for their arduous, dangerous, and poorly paid service in supplying society with the food stuff least appreciated and than which there is none of greater value which is fish. "Now here, Sam," said Matt "is where, after great trial and tribulation, I may finally manage to score. That must be the bootleggers coming back after their stuff. Let's drop this cordwood and beat it down to camp and douse the fire. Follow me, old scout I'm a licensed guide for this pop ular resort It's a wearing billet, but it's going to have its compensations." "On our way, brothers," said Sam, and flung down his load. Again history repeated itself. Matt by this time thoroughly Informed as to the topography of the region, took the same trail which he had followed when rushing to the rescue of Nancy. And not so very long ago he leaped from the ledge of the bank, spilled himself In the loose sand, and scram bled up as Sam followed his Fairbankian stunt They arrived breathless at their bivouac, where Nancy, an apt pupil In the science and art of strategy, had already cov ered the camp fire with scooped up handfuls of loose wet sand. Peeriag around the corner of their re treat, they discovered a small sloop rigged boat of about six or seven tons gliding up to the spot where the trawl line was led ashore. " I know that boat" said Sam. " She waa built in our yard about thirty years ago about the time that I was bom. She belongs now to a young fellow named Bill Emerson. I thought he was driving for the garage, and here he ia out doing a little Job of boot legging." There flashed immediately across Matt's retentive memory the name of the driver of his flivver, confided him in a loquacious mo ment i " WeU, 111 be darned," said he. " Is that really Bill? He told me he'd quit fishing and gone in for driving cars. Bill's all right, but he talks too much. I must say, though, Sam, that he spoke mighty well of yon. He said, ' Everybody likes Sain, if he does get rough sometimes.' " "Did he?" said Sam thoughtfully. " Tes." said Matt " and he stood up for the Gates family, too. But he's got no use for Freddy Griscom. Well, it's too bad that Bill should be running a side line like this." O, everybody'a doing it" said Sam mood ily. " I soppose I ought to go down and collar Bill " Too ! mi all"," Mil Mtt Plll i a ( Uy. nj tl da cm turn bard tarnod dollar by Ml'tn j rUv tba b famine, irt him $a 10 It" Nancy Iniorruplod this tt.ainpiniiln of Hill Wll, ef all Ih buu.lirB that v-f mld up In the amira of th community, ou cerialnly laha lh prim. Mn't," M she "la lra anybody at ail in It that you d-.nl hapM-n to know alt about?" I'va aii).tlii"d all lhat brfr, Nsnry," aald Matt "W wrists naturally try i taim all run bUiuI human character and moilvve whwravir w iicountr them. In the proaent I airrea with Ham that w'l Ntt-r lay off 1UII. Th tnnh l, I've kn 'quite an Iium"! In him. I'm olng lo nd him to a akin tt tor ef my a. quauiiatwa to sxh Lf h can't do something fr his ai-nr." fUm '.lrtl a churkle. " il.itt'n got Hill an right" id h. "Now lt' UMifh him and ara how big a lulmi h's rrally doing." "Don't worry about that," said Matt "From what Nam-y and I w the othir nliiht. It i no plkT trmle." He turnrd Nancy. " You em, Nancy, while lropuue may be a risky thing to obey blindly, It doe aoio Unira get you aoinewbora after all." "I'm waiting to -," aald Nancy. "I really hope you're right bcau up to thla tlmn It aroma to hava rrsullvd In Just one fiasco after anothnr." "Well, that may be." Matt admlUM. "b-jt anyway It got ua out hurt, and it baa led to a better understanding between Hum and Sylvia." lie rubbud his handa with such a satisfaction as might have been Wt by hi Illustrious namiwake who, aftor being visited by the disbelief of clients and the acorn of offlelal and ofllckoua collouKuea, was ab'e eventually to reveal hlmnelf In hia true quail ties of an unerring sleuth. "It's all very well to ridicule instinctive deduction, but It does sometimes happen that it works out in the end dcKplte fortuitous circumstance which mny occur to discredit the observer." Matt took his glasses and leveled them on the solitary figure in tho nloop, who had picked up a long pole, apparently a boat hook, and waa evidently attempting to secure th drift of line which Matt had previously dis covered. Nancy for the moment was silenced by thla diatribe on the part of a colleague who up to this moment she had covered with scorn and obloquy. Sam also appeared to be impressed. For he was looking at Matt with that respect which a hand worker who becomes In time entirely a brain worker is apt to bestow upon the individual who has been the latter from the beginning and whose efforts had been ap plied simultaneously in both directions. "I guess you've scored, Matt" said he, "like you said you would before we got through." Well, it's about time," said Matt "1 understand now why it was so impossible to get anything out of him about the people In the old Putney place. Every time I tried to pump him he shot off at a tangent, like the extinguisher a little while ago, and wouldn't talk about anything but the Gates family-" "What did he think about my disappear- ance?" Sylvia asked. . " He said that you were sure to be found, because you were a champion swimmer and expert canoeist and he said that everybody wished you'd marry Sam Sprague and not that Grlscom cuss." "Well, It's nice to please everybody," said Sam, " especially when it starts In with your self." "I'm afraid that's about as far as Mr, Holmes ever gets," said Nancy. " Look, that boy has got the line and he's hauling it in. Now, why culdn't we have done that?" "Because he's right over where it's an chored," said Matt " A dozen men couldnt haul In a fifteen pound anchor with a good hold a hundred yards away, but a small boy could snake it up from Just over it" Bam was staring at Bill Emerson with covetous eyes; for, although a young man of good habits, like most strong and salty indi viduals, he enjoyed his glass at times and this was one of the times. It was tantalizing to stand there at the edge of the cave and watch the weedy youth in the little black sloop hauling from the depths such a luxury as had now become not only dangerous to get but even more so to drink when got and Sam felt there could be no such risk to eyes or stomach in what was at the end of that tarred hemp line the boy was hauling in so . nonchalantly. " I'd like to go down there and hold him up for enough to drink your health and Syl via's," said Matt enviously, " but since be knows you all so well and I've already had a sample " he checked himself, for he was about to say of bis freedom In imparting local gossip but on second thought said no par ticular reason for giving away hia source of information. " A sample of what? " asked Nancy with work of quick suspicion. "Bootleg whisky," said Matt, turning tba) corner on two wheels. " Some time ago I was color blind for about a month aa the result of having been persuaded to accept the hospitality of a chance acquaintance." " I don't think it would do any harm if yoa were to go down there alone," said Sam. " Tou could say that you've come out hera to comb the island for Sylvia." The same thought had occurred to MaQL Moreover, it seemed to him that since now he had no longer any intention o. putting in a claim for the reward he might at least be Justified in making a little profit out of infor mation which he had come by so arduously. " All right" he answered. " The rest of you keep out of sight and I'll go down and sea what I can do." " Tou stay here," said Nancy. " We dont want that stuff nor to be mixed up with it" " Speak for yourself, my dear," said Matt and before the indignant girl could raise a detaining hand he stepped clear of tho shelter and started down the shore. Bill Emerson, leaning over the side of the boat intent upon his work, did not discover the approaching figure until he had hauled to the surface of the water a buSty object which appeared to be a fish or lobster car. Then, having caught a turn of the line, ha unhooked the block of the throat halyards, slipped this into the bight around the crata, and, seizing the running end, was starting to haul the car up aboard with the aid of hia double tackle when Matt came within hia lin of vialon. The startled boy desisted from his task and stood staring at Matt who was about fifty yards dUtant " Hello, Bill," called Matt affably. " Found some aunken treasure? " Contlnn.d Hrxt Similar. (Copyright: 1122: Henry C. Rowlaul )