Show R B I 1 ap pp y v Y Y v BANNS RM jr RAY J r 1909 LS y s CoW PAiry 11 II SYNOPSIS at the expense of a soiled boned hat robert nobert urine orme saves from arrest a girl I 1 in n a black t touring car who liaa has caused a c lam m on state street ile HB buys a new ha hat t and n d t given in ca change bangs afave u alve dollar bill bil with tern ember the person you pay t tills hi s to written on an it A second time h he helps the lady jady in the black car and learns that in torn tom and bessie they have anu mutual t ual friends lenda tr but igaina no further hint of h her er identity lie ile dis discovers Lovers another inscription r faion on the marked bill which in a I 1 t 4 attempt to decipher it tie he copies and d places trie the copy in a drawer in his apartment senor Por itol south amerl can calls and ana claims the marked bill afe onna refuses and a fight ensues in which la Is overcome ite ile calls in fenor minister from his country ry to vouch tor for him orrne orme still refuses to give up the bill orme orina goes BOBS for a walk and ana been two japs attack ile he rescues him returning to his rooms ormo me Is attacked attached by two japs who ef act alt a forcible exchange of the marked k for another ornia orm fanda 1 ads the girl of black car waiting tor for him she a also 1 so krit the lie bill orme tells his story she reco one of the japs as her fathers butler ler the second inscription on the he bill Is the tha key to the hiding place of important papers stolen from her father both japs and south americans american want the papers orme and the girl start atari out in the black car in quest of the papers in the university grounds in evanston Kv anston I 1 the he hiding place Is in located and anther another jap are there orme tells and the other jap escapes orme finds in makus pocket a folded slip of paper ile he takes the girl whose name Is still un known to him film to the tha home of a friend in evanston returning to the university grounds orme orma gets in conversation w with it 1 l a auard deuard at the lifesaving life alte saving station atlon at T they h ey hear ear a motor boat in trouble in th the e darkness on the lake they find tile tho crippled pa at in it aru are the jap with the tha papers and girl she burring into ormea hant but the jap eludes pursuit pur sult orme finds ton on the paper paper he be took from the waddress N parker street he agoes there andl and finds that arima teach ler r ot of jiu jitsu to Is on the third floor door ile he kiaha on alia clairvoyant on the fourth bloor desce descends was by the fire escape escapa and conceals himself under a table in ar arias imas room and tho the ap minister enter orme finds the pa apers ers in a drawer under the table and gu bs d atutes mining prospectuses prospect uses tor for them ile he learns agn tant t the papers are of international importance wit with apters a t time strait almit for signatures of fit that erht t ht mid M g the ew ution Is a iV bovere covered ithe girl irl appears an leaves aln atthe er be beang ng told that thi t A amel alta j i has the papers orrne rma aftem attempts ts to yet et away in a d discovered ove red art upon by arima and ma malau ku ire eludes them fend nd Is hidden in a closet by tho the clair clairvoyant joyant CHAPTER XII continued the silence thai that tl fIl alloyed loyed owed these preparations grow grew oppressive the clients were ere waiting for the right current land madam alla alia orme had no dou doubt at was using the interval to free herself item from her bonds in a little while some one started ane th e hymn over the river they beck on in to me and uie the others took it up lw omens voices chiefly struggling P through rough the melody in their trebles with the mumbled undertones under tones of or two men A draught cf c cooler air ormes cheek a hand found his about ider der a voice whispered under of the singing madam alta alia had the panel her lips were close to ear car in the creepy tension of waiting ormo orma had almost that madam madain alfas allaan ghosts were cheat and tile tho touch of her hand him start but her first words bilm ilm to himself dushl she whispered your chance in a minute put on a pair of black felt slippers here she groped along tho the floor and gave him the slippers they were large and went easily over his bis shoes now the black robe just behind you ile he took it from its peg and slipped into it cover your Tour head bead and face with the hood ile ho did as directed finding the eye holes with hla his fingers hide your hands in the sleeves now listen im going to keep them busy looking at the curtains when you hear a gong ring tares taree times come through the panel and go between the curtain and the wall hanging banging on the side aide toward the window the gas Is down to a pinpoint pin point those folks think they can see a lot more than they do but they wont see ee you unless you show some white anyhow be watching the cabinet keep outside the circle of chairs and work your way to the door of the next room there are hangings hannings hang ings there go through them find light enough in the next room to get to the door in the hall first stuff the robe under tinder the sofa find your hat under there you left it here bora when you came and I 1 tucked it away better wear the uppers slippers down to the street never mind about returning them unless you care to come now be careful the rho japanese where are they at the other side of the circle jdonte worry about them only kids when it comes to my game now watt wait till I 1 get the things I 1 need she heard beard faint rust lings as she gathe gathered her paraphernalia soon she was back at the panel the last stanza of the hymn was waa drawing to a close celoso be sure aure you olow follow directions she w whiskered his 11 1 wu he H pressed her hand gratefully and and you wont forget me with a sudden yearning that seemed to be beyond her control she leaned her body against him her warm breath was on his face her arm found its ita way around him and held bold him convulsively oh she whispered 1 I cant bear to have you go dont forget mo me please dont forget me 1 I shall never forget you and what you havo have donofir done dono tor for rne me he be answered gravely you will come back and seo see me sometime 1 I will come back and I 1 should like ilka to bring a friend who will have even more cause to thank you than I 1 have A friend A tinge ot of apprehension colored C the question A a woman yes the soft curves of her body were quickly withdrawn from him oh ob she whispered 1 I dont bellove believe awant I 1 want to see her for ft a moment she stood motionless then she said are you sorry you kissed me no he be answered 1 11 I am not her lips brushed his bis forehead and he was alone groping with one hand he assured himself that the panel remained open all in black he awaited the signal and now strange manifestations began in tho the room without there were rap mappings Pings some faint some loud coming apparently from nil all quarters invisible fingers swept gently across the strings of a guitar then came the soft clangor of a 4 gong once twice three times orme slipped through the panel into the cabinet keeping close to the wall he moved to tho the left and worked out into the room the rap mappings pings were edw louder than before loud and continuous enough to cover any slight sound he might made A little gasp came from the circle as he went out into the room at first he thought that he bo had been seen to his eyes fresh from complete darkness the room seemed moderately light but the gas was little more than a tiny blue dot As he took a step forward he saw why the circle had bad gasped through the curtains of the cabinet came the semblance of a tenuous wraith in long trailing robes of white it was waa almost formless its ita outlines seeming to melt into the gloom advancing a little way nto into the circle it shrank back as though timorous then wavered from the circle came a womans comans voice anxious eager straining with heartbreak heart beart break oli oh my st slater sterl the figure turned toward her slowly extended its ita arms and glided back to the curtains where it stood as though waiting the sobbing woman arose from her chair and hastened toward the wraith Agu agnes esl she whispered imploringly wont you speak to me agnes the ghostly figure shook its head bead are you happy agnes tell me oh dont go until you have told me the figure nodded mutely and with a final slow gesture waved the woman back to her seat meantime orme orma cast his eyes over the circle dimly he saw faces some stolid 9 some agitated and there at the farther end were the two japanese in tent as children on these wonders their sparkling eyes were directed to the cabinet the apparition had disappeared between the curtains but now there was a fresh gasp of wonder as the figure of a little child stepped out into arito the room it did not go fr fer from the cabinet and it alternately advanced and retreated turning this way and that as though looking for some one it wants its mother exclaimed one of the women in the circle Is your mother here little one ona the child stared at the speaker then withdrew to the curtains they will begin to talk after a while explained the tha woman when the control gets geta stronger I 1 alwa always ys feel so tender for these theme little lost spirits that come back to hunt bunt for their loyed loved ones orme orine moved swiftly around the circle circie ile he passed so BO close to the japanese that he be could have touched them the felt slippers made his bis steps noiseless the thick rug absorbed the shock of hla his weight ile he passed through the hangings hannings hang ings of the doorway to the next room there he had bad no gaslight the window shades however were not drawn so closely but that a little daylight entered ile he the robe and stuffed it under the old sofa at one side ills hat bat as madam alta alia had bad said was there and he put it on and went to the hall door the circle had bad begun to sing another hymn orme orine got into the tb hall ball shut the door allez silently Lly and hurried down tho stairs tha long drawn strains of the song tollo ollow mc him and dying away as ha bo the street entrance in the lower hall tie removed the felt slippers and tossed them into a corner ile ho was amazed at the loudness loud aesa of the street noises and the glare of the sunlight as he be stepped to the sidewalk ile ho stood there blinking for it a moment until his bis eyes became accustomed to the light the toot foot procession of the city streamed by him suddenly a man turned in toward t the e doorway and with a startled exclamation cla mation stopped short orme found himself looking into the gleaming eyes of CHAPTER hlll an old man of the tha sea oh ob mr air orme you are tho the man I 1 most wished to see aeo the tha ministers voice carried a note of unrestrained eagerness ile ho extended his bis hand ormo orme accepted the salutation mustering the appearance of a casual meeting he be must keep out of the building 1 I was sorry that I 1 could not be at your apartment this morning continued and I 1 hope you did not wait too long oh to no replied orme 1 I waited for a little while but concluded tha I 1 something had called you away has senor recovered from his anil ety why no said dut but the course of events has changed ile ho linked his bis arm in ormes and walked along with him toward the center ot of the city you see ho he went on my young friend arlond overestimated the importance of that marked bill it d give tho the clue to the hiding place 0 ot certain papers which were wera of great value to him what he failed to realize was that the papers could be of little importance to others and yet so perturbed Is he that he be has baa asked me to offer a considerable reward for the recovery of these papers indeed yes sent a slanting glance at ormo orme the sum Is ridiculously targe large but he insists on an offering one thousand dollars quite a sum ourn said orme calmly he was interested in tho the ministers indirections As tor for the events of last night continued stopping short with a significant glance well said ormo orme indifferently were already gone when they went to look for them Is really very anxious doubtless added orme perhaps added utter n short wait wail he might even co as high as two thousand indeed then there will surely be many answers to his advertisement oh he will not advertise alen alca arante laughed already no na knows where the papers are while wilting for the clue of the bill he discovered what others had already availed themselves of it if that la is curious orme orma smiled how dd he discover that in a roundabout way I 1 wont take time for the story they walked along in silence for a lutlo little distance ormo orme was figuring on an escape for tho ministers clutch on hla his arm was like that of a drowning mans mano finally ho he sought the simplest means of getting away 1 I have an engagement ga gement he said 1 I shall have to leave you here thank you for walking with me thus far ile ho disengaged his abts arm my dear mr ormo sald said alca arante why should we beat around the bush why indeed eald bald ormo orme Por itol knows that his papers are in III your poses possession slon speaking speake tong foe li im I 1 offer you five thousand why do you drag into this 7 said ormo orme you know that he has merely been your agent from the start you think he has bungled but I 1 tell you you are tho the one who bungled for you picked him to do the work lie ile had bad bad luck hiring a burglar for you ile he lost hla his head when he ran away with another persons motor car and had bad to hand the marked bill to a country justice ile ho showed bad judgment when he tried to fool me with a fancy ile he hut but you are the real bungler senor any capable diplomat could tell you that yellow face grow grew white about the lips ills his eyes flashed balefully curse you youl I 1 he exclaimed you know more than to Is good for you take carel carat orme laughed in disgust oh drop this melodrama I 1 am not afraid of cheap in this country there are some crimes that are not excused by high office the ministers teeth showed you shall see my young friend doubtless but let me tell you one UD tt N they may have stolen the clue from you 1 I trust that you did not think me absurd for sending that detective to you that I 1 did so eo was a result of poor frantic insistence indeed my young friend was so afraid that you w would be robbed 1 I was robbed laughed orme trying to make maka light of the situation why how bow was that Alca trant 2 surprise was well assumed oh after I 1 said goodnight good night to you the two japanese caught me while I 1 was going through the tunnel to the courtyard my dear mr ormel they are clever those japanese and afterward you went out gain again what makes you think that bit his lip why ho he stammered the detective reported that you were absent when be arrived and therefore remarked orme coolly he got access to my apartment and after through my things went sound asleep in my bedroom where I 1 found him snoring when I 1 returned returned the minister swung his cane viciously at a bit of paper that lav on me lae sidewalk he ha was not a clever detective detect lv continued orm and as for dont you thlik he had better offer his reward to the japanese no replied they may have stolen the clue from you but 1 I have reason to think thit that the papers a thing it if anything happens to me my friends will know where to look for the criminal snarled dont be too sure it if necessary continued orme a word to certain persons as to the commission for building warships warB bips five hundred thousand la Is it not by the new arrangement in gold in ungovernable rage raised his light cane and struck orme fended bended the blow with his arm then wrenched the cane |