T tl the ahe housenbold Hou II I 11 I L lir devil bevil 1 l of or fc sam barn louie lome T E j by E spence de pue sp 1 I by joseph jospph B bowles in the very heart of 0 san francisco ix 11 a certain breathing place colu bajil ai Vort portsmouth squaire sauli little ling en cm a summer das da across the grass grasa camo came another fig ure a little taller a little bldr than quong ling and neither white nor cabine but a part of both when it was directly behind the tha chinese boy it khot out Us its hands and clapped them tightly over the other a eyes and cried in a merry voice who ohof ming foo of course was waa the prompt response thy th y curled girled themselves comfortably un con the tha grug near the edge of the gravel path content as two young aai animals I 1 here comes sam louie cried ling biang foo suddenly lie he a 8 boing to stop atop ito ho little rascals ra scala do you have naught to do but idle naked asked born barn loue affably fits aa he paused a moment nothing honorable friend but to idle and tell stories corlee sf well it if that bo be all let this ald add to the of thy idleness catch cutting oo off a generous e of augar cane from one of the sticks he carried he locked it into the air and passed on forsbe for the time all else was forgotten in the pleasurable crunch of teeth upon the lent cane Ilor forgotten gotten till a rat fat sleek chinaman la in american apparel pare and another with a great led sear scar across his cheek passed by and a word or so floated to the at al ways wide open ears of ming foo Understand 1 there ought to bo be about three thousand thou dollars and you must get every cent of that was all out dut it was enough to anest a pair of stout cowig you ig jaws midway la the act of sending a set of m vette hite teeth into the juicy v enough to cause ming mang roo foo to td stare wonderingly after the retreat ing gilr p clr and note thit th it they settled theu nelves on a bench and that they joined by a third chinaman la in the last archal ming roo foo lecog decol nihed a hatche of tho the ping conr tong long ills ebes ejes danced joyously and thrusting his big stumpy piece of cane within his blouse he be pulled quong ling a ear car down alobe to his lips whig per ed something then scampered off and left iett the tha smaller boy wondering end and the patched trousers as they disappeared around a corner quong lings patience bad become amodt exhausted when one of the three iran on te bench wandered oil off in another ri moment loment the other two pirt part ed cd grung in opposite dIrt tons and AS an lie ha held bold his big gaye on the empty bench he saw a cap and a close head ilse from the low shrub buy ty lust just behind it oh quong ling quong ling quon a ling a ling he sang dancing around on the tha tips of his toes big biggert thine eh we to re coln to 10 to lo a big thing to niehl come long with me and tell you all about it ihen with many gesticulations and contortions and swellings of the chast ming poo told what lie ha had beard as lie he lay in the shrubbery ilow how on this it night agh t the store of mow G gum ura for ft horn bom sam louie worked was to be ba robbed that it was to punish the pi tor lor for daring to cross the hatchet man in daring to refuse to bear false witness in some mitter before the police as well as to gain the money that there were and mysteries tacit lack of this that it lind had to ilo do with the tongs and much more so that in tho the end quong ling qute quivered reI with the mystery and excitement ot of it and ming poo foo ing his robust little chest fairly aln ain t it big aln ain t ve me coln to stop it bin ain t we coln t do mole moie than big det elives would bould when the smaller adventurer asked I 1 ilowe ming poo foo grew in stature as he ha exclaimed never neler mind you come with me show you I 1 rn white possibly it was oming to that little tic of white in him that the follow ing things happened ile he was waa only 13 12 but ho he knew very much and quong ling vaa tas his devoted admirer there was no place in the cli virter of which ming roo did not have the run avery calum joint was waa to him a homo borne and a place to lay bis hi bead every enery pawnshop was hla his mus museum euni and the chetter the tier was his bla especial place ot of pat sn an that it was waa with no difficulty that he gained for himself and tot fol lowr low r to this place of amuse me ile ho strutted a ackois ros the stage and room to th 4 dressing room behloul and got in peoples way and bullied the actors and aad finally disappeared in the depths bolo bol ovand and the fact was not even no among rows upon rows of 0 masks whole beala some or of thorn them in fact racks rack B of swords miniature pagodas pagoda q thrones and ancient aamott they rel re aled undisturbed disturbed ja and ming roo pulled and hauled the about until final ly he lound found these there articles he should not a great deal a cupler mache mask of hideous design and nary proportions and a few yards of bellow silk nor was the of thoe things without V detection in ili the smallest degree nor beyond hir resources reio the tha next thing was to la possess of 0 a bunk in the roar rear ot mow alow gum store without that tha knowledge ot of sim boult loul tills this also alao wib wa though basely beffre the i wore were pul pug up for lahe atar a lono lun wait 1 aln poo foo mill j bously a cogaer co I 1 raer the I 1 in az add ho draw v aj 4 E quong ling 1 a alii n and an d they t heya oivi I 1 V H rt I 1 listened a moment ent reached luto lato the bunk lor for the shih they bad brought from the theater tiptoed out of the sleeping room and made their way laito alto the store hero here this 11 do ming foo whig selecting electing fc a place behind a low pile of boxes now let lets a tie this mask to you and you are not to say a word till I 1 tell you to squeal then do it as aa loud OB its you can as loud as aa you can he repeated nervously tho mask which was waa almost three feet lit ili height had two to green horns at its top to each of the horns ming foo tied a little bunch of punks which he lighted as aa the pungent aroma floated through the room and mingled with the vegetable and animal odors ha h gave three little perfunctory bobs ot his head next he tied as best he be could in the dark this high mask to the body of hw hia snuffle chuffie shuttle shuf lle approaching steps without came to their ears distinctly in front of the door some one ballad halte ei and even to the spot where the trembling boys stood the low whisperings carreal carr carri lal aft rap kap bang the pounding of the door through the room like e clap ot thunder I 1 who chos a there came from the inner room with a lighted candle in his hand band which abich hla his sleep swollen face and eyes ces sam loule louie came shut fling lulng out cout who a s there therea he demanded deni suspiciously auspiciously us its he be laid a hand band upon the bar of the tha door ming roo coul boull 11 see tor for he be lial baj climbed up a little way aay on the tha boxes lor for that purpose mow gum open quickly came tho the pi re response in a low to tone ale sara sana loula louie halt half turned the bar but not all convinced threw it back into place how am I 1 to know that it Is mow gum he be asked in anju answer er to this there ft as a halt half im patient open sam louie am I 1 mow gum your employer to be kept hept in the tha street and denied admission to ray my own place I 1 in his bis growing excitement ming roo foo climbed to top of the boxes sara sam bouli evidently satisfied threw down dowa I 1 4 4 01 ij 14 Y A A devitt A devill howled tho the others the bar the door flew open as though a pressure had rested against it all the while silently almost instantly four villainous high binders swarmed through the opening now that it 11 was waa too late sarn sam louie saw the awful mistake that he had made lie he gave a low animal like cry the candle clattered to the floor he tried to turn and run lut lat a ready b hind bind ind reached for him one ot them abe n pressed the sharp point ot of a drife against his throat NN b heie ei e la Is the key key to tho the sate safe another pi ess ass it in wis tho the command the man mith ith tha knife dug it viciously into the prostrate man mans a neck the rather uncertain light of the tha street flickered in through the open door end and made it all quite plain to ming boo I 1 oo 00 1 now when I 1 say scream do it loud he whispered hoisting quong ling upon ui on hn hid shoulders he raised him till just the I 1 orna arna with the burning punks punk s were on a level with the tops of 0 the tha boxes I 1 if lie he non con t tell drive the knife clear in was the impatient command they beard and it was waa instantly an answered by a moan of pain from sam louie I 1 nov no prompted ming roo I 1 aul such a as aa it wast waa A acre screna im ot of acre screens ims in which there was tal all the voice and all the terror ot of quong ling mho ho could see nothing and who mho had frightened himell by hla his own voice A A devill devil howled the others sL anding still to stare with a yell of fear from the ora erg aney and fell over them belv selva s and each other in an effort to get into the street stet barn loula louie had faunte 1 or lie be too rulif probably lu a gone caroa the triumphant hour of 0 ming roq roo for or quong ling lias on the floor he made baste to bar the alor thon thin bs h d incel a mad elfin daug dance ana nil wa waed b hla Is battered cap aloft an analou dlou FO fairi bwy kiy days set to come it hlll ill kw h devil jat of sam sain i an A I 1 put pill to fligh ir 3 11 d tiie n n 9 t ong 0 aa IVA va