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Show IKkt T BLAZED TPAL. P 2s JWCONJUP05 ' fOUSE.ErC,ErC I tuLrBAFrl 'TSWf EESKIT SMITH. -i coRKfflT9ra, noBBa-Mfcsgiu. cqmramy. , ... -.vnfeSg , 1 SYNOPSIS. Percy Darrow, younir scientist In rch of a Job, enters the office of Fbom" McCarthy of New York. McCarthy Mc-Carthy has Just bean threatened by an anonymous message ordering him to flee So Europe. He does not take the message mes-sage seriously. Darrow goes up the (elevator to try for a position with Dr. Knox Suddenly the electric apparatus Jo the Atlas building goes out of busl-jnegg. busl-jnegg. Experts are unable to locate the .trouble. All at once, without apparent reason, electric connections are restored. PThe next evening McCarthy is warned Ithat unless he leaves at once for Europe a sign will be sent him at six. Promptly Prompt-ly at that hour the entire electric apparatus appar-atus of New York is cut oft. Percy Darrow Dar-row thinks he has a clue. He engages the help of Jack Warford, a college athlete. ath-lete. They visit McCarthy and offer to run down the cause of his mysterious trouble. McCarthy has just received another an-other warning by wireless. At six a deathly stillness falls on the Atlas building, build-ing, blotting out all sound. Next day the whole town is thrown Into darkness and all hearing suspended. Prof. Eldridge, the noted scientist, becomes Interested in he phenomena, Harrow's theory is that The man who Is sending the warnings has discovered some force by which he can cut through the vibrations of electricity, light and sound. McCarthy has dlsap-fieared. dlsap-fieared. Darrow places Eldridge in possession pos-session of all the facts in the case and of Ills own theories In relation thereto and challenges him to solve the mystery. More terrifying messages come. Darrow, Dar-row, through the newspapers, reassures he people. He fears the Unknown will istop the vibrations of heat which would mean complete annihilation of all life, nimal and vegetable. The Unknown threatens to wipe out the city. Thousands Thous-ands of people nee. CHAPTER XVI. The Professor's Experiment. Throughout all this excitement Percy Darrow did absolutely nothing. He spent all his time, save that required re-quired for meals and the shortest necessary nec-essary sleep. In a round-armed wooden wood-en chair in the wireless station of the Atlas Building. Jack "Warford sat with him. Darrow rarely opened his tnouth for speech, but smoked slowly a few cigarettes, and rolled many toore, which he held unlighted in the corner of his mouth until they dropped to pieces. ' He watched quietly all that went on; glanced through such messages as came In from Monsieur X, read the papers, and dozed. To reporters re-porters he was affable enough in his drawling slow fashion, but had nothing noth-ing to say. "Eldridge is doing this," he said to Iheni; "I'm only in the position of an Interested spectator." Eldridge had taken hold In a thoroughly thor-oughly competent way. Back of the cold precision of his undoubted scientific scien-tific attainments lurked, unexpected by most, a strong ambition and a less admirable hankering for the lime-light. His opportunity to gratify all these appetites ap-petites science, advancement, and tame was too good not to cause him the deepest satisfaction. "1 have determined," he told the reporters, re-porters, "that this particular Instrument Instru-ment alone receives the messages from the unknown perpetrator. Our Investigations must be initiated, therefore, there-fore, in this apartment." "How do you explain it?" asked one J of the reporters. "I can not explain it scientifically," admitted Eldridge, "but I can surmise that the fact either purposely or ac cidentally has to do either with this Instrument's location or with some slight and. undetermined peculiarity of its tuning." "You could easily, tell which by moving the instrument to another station sta-tion where they aren't getting the messages mes-sages now," suggested Darrow lazily. "Certainly," snapped Eldridge, "any child could deduce that. But I fail to see the use or necessity for the determination deter-mination at all unless in a spirit of frivolous play. Our task is not to discover dis-cover where the messages can be received, re-ceived, but whence they are sent." He gazed frostily at the man who had interrupted him. Darrow smiled oftly back. "How far will- your instrument carry car-ry in sending?" Eldridge asked Simmons. Sim-mons. " "Its extreme is about two hundred miles." "Then we can safely assume that a circle drawn with a two-hundred-mile radius would contain this man you call Monsieur X" the newspapers had adopted Darrow's nickname for the Unknown Un-known "6ince you have succeeded in communicating with him." "Marvelous," said Darrow to Jack but under his breath. "As the sending of Monsteur X is faint, it follows that he is somewhere Bear the periphery of this circle, or that he Is possessed of a primitive or weak Instrument. By the doctrine of probabilities we would be Justified In concluding against the latter supposition." suppo-sition." "How's that, Professor?" asked the Morning Register man. "It doesn't get to me." "He is evidently a man not only of scientific attainments, but of immense scientific possessions as is evidenced by these phenomenal results he is able to accomplish. But we are not Justified Justi-fied in reasoning according to the doctrine doc-trine of probabilities. Therefore, we shall proceed methodically. I have already made my preparations." Eldridge looked about him with an air of triumph. "I am fortunate enough to have, in the present crisis, unlimited financial backing," he said. "Therefore, I am in a position to carry out the most exhaustive ex-haustive of experiments." He stretched his hand out for a long roll, which he laid flat upon the table, pinning down the corners. "Here is a map of the Eastern States," said he. "I have drawn a circle cir-cle on it with a two-hundred-miles radius. At this moment a private Instrument In-strument with a full crew to string sending and receiving wires Is two hundred miles from here on a railroad. It has for its transportation a private train, and it will be given a clear right of way." He turned to Simmons. "Have you found yourself able to communicate com-municate with this Monsieur X at any time?" "Communicate!" echoed Simmons. "Why, he's easier to talk to than a girl who wants an ice-cream soda!" "Then send this: 'Your messages have been communicated to the people. Be patient' " "What do you get?" asked Eldridge, after a moment. "Oh, a lot of the same sort of dope," answered Simmons wearily. "Do you want it?" "No, it is not necessary," replied Eldridge. El-dridge. "But listen for another message mes-sage from about the same distance when he has finished." Silence fell on the room. At the end of ten minutes Simmons raised his head. "I get 'O K Q' over and over," said he. "Want that?" "That," replied Eldridge with satisfaction, satis-faction, "Indicates that my crew on the special train In the Adirondacks two hundred miles away has heard your message to Monsieur X." He glanced at his watch. "Now, if you would be so good as to afford me a moment's assistance," he requested Simmons, "I wish to disconnect from your battery one of your powerful Ley-den Ley-den Jars, and to substitute for it one of weaker voltage. I ventured to Instruct In-struct my delivery man to leave a few in the outer hall." "That will weaken the sending power of my instrument," objected Simmons. "Exactly what I wish to do," replied Eldridge. "He's clever all right," Darrow mur- iPil I Crowded Close About the Table to Examine the Map. mured admiringly to Jack. "See what he's up to?" "Not yet," muttered Jack. The substitution completed, Eldridge El-dridge again glanced at his watch. "Now," he instructed Simmons, "send the letters 'Q E D,' and continue to do so until you again hear the letters let-ters 'O K Q.' ". Simmons set himself to the task. It was a long one. At last he reported his answer. "He sends '0 K Q ten,' " he said. Eldridge turned to the reporters. "That means that the substitution of the smaller Leyden Jar for one of the larger reduced the sending power of this Instrument Just ten miles," said he. "My crew has quite simply moved slowly forward until it caught our sending here." "Next," he instructed Simmons, "Bee If you can communicate with Monsieur X." The operator speedily reported his success at that. Eldridge removed his glasses and polished their lenses. "Thus, gentlemen," said he, "from our circle of two-hundred-mile radius we have eliminated a Btrlp ten miles wide. Naturally If this weakened sending send-ing reaches only one hundred and ninety miles, and our antagonist receives re-ceives our message, he must be nearer than one hundred and ninety miles. We will now further reduce the strength of our sending and try again." The younger men present broke Into a shout. "Good work!" 6omebody cried. They crowded about, keenly Interested in this new method of man-hunting. Only Darrow, tipped back In his chair against the wall, seemed unexcited. To Jack's whispered question he shook his head. "It's Ingenious," he acknowledged, "but he's on the wrong tack." That was as far as he would explain, and soon dropped into a slight doze. Throughout the greater part of the night the experiment continued. At near four o'clock in the morning Simmons raised his head after a long bout of calling to announce that he could get no reply from Monsieur X. "He's got tired of your fool messages," mes-sages," remarked the Register man. "And I don't wonder! Guess he's gone to bed." Eldridge said nothing, but replaced the Leyden Jar he had but Just removed. re-moved. "Try one," said he. "I get him," reported Simmons, after a moment. "Send him anything plausible and reassuring," commanded Eldridge hastily. has-tily. He turned to his small and attentive at-tentive audience in triumph. "Thus, gentlemen," he anno;aced, "we have proven conclusively that our man is located between forty and fifty miles from New York. If we draw two circles, with this building as center, the circumference of one of which is fifty, the other forty miles away, we define the territory within which the malefactor in question is to be found." The people in the room crowded close about the table to examine the map upon which Professor Eldridge had drawn the circles. "There's an awful lot of country some of it pretty wild," objected the Bulletin man. "It will be a long job to hunt a man down in that territory." "Even if it were as extensive as a hasty review of the facts might indicate," indi-cate," stated Eldridge, "I venture to assert that enough men would be forthcoming forth-coming to expedite such a search. But modifying circumstances will lighten the task." "How's that?" asked the Banner man, speaking for the others' evident interest. "We have no means of surmising the method by which this man succeeds suc-ceeds in arresting vibratory motions of certain wave-lengthe," said Eldridge didactically, "any more than we are able to define the precise nature of electricity. But, as in the case of electricity, elec-tricity, we can observe the action of its phenomena. Two salient features leap out at us: one is that these phenomena phe-nomena are limited in time; the other that they are limited in space. The latter aspect we will examine, if you please, gentlemen. "The phenomena have been directed with great accuracy (a) at the Atlas Building; (b) at this city and some of its immediate suburbs. The peculiarity pecul-iarity of this can not but strike an observant ob-servant mind. How Is this man able, at forty or fifty miles distance, to concentrate con-centrate his efforts on one comparatively compara-tively small objective? We can only surmise some system of insulating screens or focal mirrors. I might remark re-mark in passing that the existence of this power to direct or focus the more rapid ethereal vibrations would be a discovery of considerable scientific moment. But if this is the method employed, why do we not cut a band of vibratory nullifications, rather than touch upon a focal point?" "Repeat softly," murmured the irrepressible irre-pressible Regifjpr man. "Why," explained Eldridge patiently, "are not the people and buildings between be-tween here and the unknown operator affected? The only hypothesis we are justified in working upon is that the man's apparatus is at a height sufficient suffi-cient to carry over intervening obstacles. ob-stacles. This hypothesis is strengthened strength-ened by the collateral fact that the territory we have Just determined as that within which he muBt be found lies in the highlands of our own and neighboring states. We may, therefore, there-fore, eliminate the low-lying districts within our radius." Percy Darrow opened one eye. "Perhaps he's up In a balloon," he drawled languidly; "better take along an aeroplane." Eldridge cast him a look of cold scorn; Darrow clOBed one eye. CHAPTER XVII. Drawing the Net The "zone of danger," as the Bulletin Bulle-tin named it, was immediately the scene of swarming activities. Besides the expedition Immediately despatched by the interests backing the investigation, investi-gation, several enterprising newspapers newspa-pers saw a fine chance for a big ticoop, and sent out much-heralded parties of their own. The activities of these were well reported, you may be Bure. Public interest was at once focused reassuringly on the chances of finding the annoying malefactor today or tomorrow; to-morrow; there no longer existed a doubt that he would be found. The weight of dread was lifted, and In the reaction people made light of the Inconveniences In-conveniences and fun of the menacing messages that now came in by the dozen. It was necessary to take extraordinary extraordi-nary precautions against thieves and fire; the people took them. The public delivered itself joyously to a debauch of rumors and of "extras." "ex-tras." The insistent alarms of danger, trickling in slowly from the outside world, dried up in the warmth of optimism. Only the more thoughtful, to a few of whom these warnings came, coupled them with Monsieur X's repeated threats, and walked uncertain uncer-tain and in humility. Percy Darrow did not interest himself him-self in the search, nor did he desert his post in the wireless office. There he did nothing whatever. Jack Warford War-ford stayed with him, but" immensely bored, it must be confessed. Thus there passed two days of the search. On the third day the intermittent intermit-tent phenomena and the messages suddenly sud-denly ceased. This fact was hailed jubilantly by all the papers "as indicating indi-cating that at last the quarry had become alarmed by the near-coming '"tie? it Men Beat the Ground Carefully. search. From the contracted district Btill remaining to be combed over, nobody no-body was permitted to depart; and so closely was the cordon drawn by so large a posse that it was physically impossible for any living being to slip by the line. Thus even if Monsieur X, convinced that at last his discovery was imminent, immi-nent, should destroy his apparatus or attempt to move it and himself to a place of safety, he would find his escape es-cape cut off. Thousands of men were employed, and thousands more drafted in as volunteers to render this outcome out-come assured. It was an army deployed in an irregular irreg-ular circle, and moving inward toward its center. Men of the highest executive execu-tive ability commanded it, saw to its necessary deliberation, eliminated all possibility of a confusion through which any man could slip. The occasion occa-sion was Berious, and it was taken seriously. Of the outcome no one in touch with the situation had a moment's doubt. The messages and the phenomena had continued to come from the danger zone. It was of course evident that they could not have been sent from any portion of the zone actually searched and occupied by the searchers. search-ers. The remaining portion of the zone, from which they were Btill coming, com-ing, had been completely surrounded. After that the manifestation had ceased. Therefore, Monsieur X must be within the beleaguered circle. To add to the probabilities, as Eldridge pointed out, the remaining district compressed the highest hills in the zone a fact on all fours with hia hypothesis. hy-pothesis. On the appointed morning the army moved toward the center. Men beat the ground carefully, bo close to one another that they could touch hands. As they closed in the ranks became thicker. Animals of many kinds, confused con-fused as the ranks closed in on them, tried to break through the cordon and were killed. Captains held order in the front row, that the army might not become a crowd. Birds, alarmed by the shouting, rose and wheeled. In the city Immense crowds wat.iJ.; the bulletins sent momentarily frons: the very field itself by private -wire strung hastily for the occasion. Enterprising En-terprising journals had prepared ncrge rough maps, on which the contractragr circle was indicated by red lines, constantly con-stantly redrawn. It was discovery bo-fore bo-fore a multitude. The imagination oT the public, fired by its realization at this fact, stretched Itself ahead of U distant beaters, bodying forth what they might find. As the circle narrowed excitement grew. All business ceased. The street were crowded; the windows of that buildings looking out on the numerous bulletin-boards were black with beads. Those who could not see demanded) eagerly of those who could. In the Atlas Building the wirelee operator hung out of his window. Beside Be-side him was Jack Warford. Darrow declined to Join him. "Tcrtft tell me," said he. Jack therefore reported back orer his shoulder the bulletins as they appeared. ap-peared. The crowds below read tbenx, their faces upturned. One ran: "Cordon now has surrounded the crest of the Knob. Station of Monsieur X determined de-termined among oak-trees. Men haiteeV-Picked haiteeV-Picked company surrounds." The crowd roared its appreciation and impatience. A long pause followed. Then came the next bulletin. "Search discovers nothing." A puzzled angry murmur arose, confused con-fused and chopped, like cross current in a tideway. Finally this was hunt out: "No traces of human occupancy." A moment's astonished pause ensued. en-sued. Then, ovr the vast multitude, its faces upturned In incredulous-amazement; incredulous-amazement; over the city lying sparkling spark-ling in the noonday sun fell the palE of absolute darkness. In the wireless office of the Atlae-Building Atlae-Building Percy Darrow laughed. CHAPTER XVIII. I Confusion Worse Confounded. The absolute failure of Eldridge'sr hypothesis immediately threw public-confidence public-confidence into a profound reaction-Certainty reaction-Certainty gave place to complete distrust. dis-trust. Rumor gained ground. The exodus increased. Where formerly only those who could do so without great sacrifice or inconvenience had left town, now people were beginning to cut. loose at any cost. Men resigned their positions In order to get their families away; others began to arrange ar-range their affairs as best they might,, as though for a long vacation. As yet panic had not appeared open'y in the-light the-light of day, but she lurked In tie? shadows of men's hearts. The railroads and steamboats were? crowded beyond their capacity. Extra-trains Extra-trains followed one another as close-together close-together as the block signals would: allow them to run. Humanity packed? the cars. It was like a continual series of football days. In three of them it was estimated that two hundred thousand thou-sand people had left Manhattan. Iti would have been physically Impossible for the transportation lines to have carried a thousand more. They had) reached their capacity;, the spigot wasi wide open. Percy Darrow showed Jack the headP-llnes headP-llnes to this effect. "Cheerful thought," he suggested-"Suppose suggested-"Suppose the whole four million should want to get out at the same time!" An hour and a half after the bulletin announcing the failure of the 6earcbf had been posted, Eldridge rushed intc the wireless office. The plague of darkness had lifted after fifteen minutes' min-utes' duration. "Call Monsieur X," he gasped to the day operator. In fifteen minutes, by rapid substitutions of batteries to weaken or strengthen the sending curi rent, he had redetermined his previous previ-ous data. Apparently, without the-shadow the-shadow of a doubt, Monsieur X wa within the circle. "He may be at sea," suggested the? operator. But Eldridge shook his head. The circle of the sea had been well ptt-r trolled, and for days. "Begin all over again," drawled Darrow. "I told you that you wer on the wrong track." Eldridge glanced at him. , "I can't say that you've done much!" said he tartly. "No?" queried Darrow, with one o? his slow and exasperating snifleR-"Perhaps snifleR-"Perhaps not. But you'd better get to thinking. You won't be able always to take things easy. You may have to hustle before long." "There has been,. I admit," said Ki-drldge Ki-drldge stiffly, repeating in substanea the interview he had already glvew out, "some flaw in our chain of reasoning. rea-soning. This it will be necessary to' review with the object of revision. Every physical manifestation must have some physical and definite cause;; and this can be found if time enough' is bestowed on it Often the process, of elimination is the only method fcr1 which the truth can be determined." Darrow chuckled. "Look out the proces of elimlnav-tion elimlnav-tion doesn't overtake you," he tv marked. (TO BE COKTHfUEJCX) . 1 |