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Show : ( The Mystery of "0 ! - Author of theSilverDagger 9 Copyright, by BudiU Prrih Yet, even if I held silent, I knew not in which direction to turn. I had apparently lost all touch with the girl. She had failed me completely either hy accident, or design. Her appointment ap-pointment with me had served to reveal re-veal only one fact which might prove of importance 247 Le Compte street was undoubtedly a link in the chain of the conspiracy ; It was the home of Ivan YValdron. Once I told this discovery dis-covery to Harris the way might be opened to closer investigation. But what had become of Harris? It was already approaching six o'clock, and the man had not telephoned me. Surely Sure-ly he must be aware by this time of the murder of Alva; the uselessness of seeking longer to find him alive. Was he also endeavoring to avoid me? was his purpose deceit? or had some suspicion arisen in his mind as to my really being Harry Daly? Aroused by this possibility, and unable un-able to remain quiet longer, I slipped a revolver from the depths of my bag into a coat pocket, and departed again r MYSTERY. 8ynopsl. In a New Tork Jewelry store Philip Severn, United States consular agent, notices a small box which attracts him. He purchases It. Later he discovers In a secret compartment a writing giving- a clew to a revolutionary movement In this country seeking to overthrow the Chilean government. The writing- mentions a rendezvous, and Severn decides to Investigate. Finding Find-ing the place mentioned In the writing writ-ing apparently deserted, Severn visits a saloon In the vicinity. A woman in the place la met by a man, seemingly by appointment, and Severn, his suspicions aroused, follows them. They go to the des-1 des-1 Ignated meeting place, an abandoned aban-doned Iron foundry. At the rendezvous ren-dezvous Severn is accepted as one of the conspirators and admitted. He meets a stranger who addresses him as Harry Daly. The Incident plays Into Severn's hands and he accepts It. His new acquaintance Is a notorious thief, "Gentleman George" Harris. Concealed. Severn hears the girl he had followed address ad-dress the conspirators. She urges them to hasten the work of the revolution. rev-olution. The girl discovers Severn listening. She accepts his explanation explana-tion of his presence and makes an appointment to meet him next day. He tells her his name Is Daly. Har-hls Har-hls informs him of a scheme he has to secure a sum amounting to J1,000,000, the revolutionary fund, and offers to "spilt" with him.. Severn Sev-ern accepts the proposition. Severn Sev-ern learns it was his new friend and a "Captain Alva" who had lost the box which started him on the trail. Harris tells him the woman Is Marie Gessler. He arranges ar-ranges to meet Severn next day at Tom Costlgan's saloon. Leaving the building, Severn finds the body of Captain Alva, stabbed to death with a hatpin dagger. He remembers remem-bers having seen It, or one like it, In Marie Gessler's hat. Severn Is forced to believe she Is the slayer. I CHAPTER VII Continued 10 There was no outwara sign of any surveillance as I turned Into the block ; Indeed except for a grocery truck before one of the houses, and an organ-grinder at the farther corner, cor-ner, entertaining a group of children, the street was entirely deserted. Mus-terlng Mus-terlng my courage, and with a feeling of deep excitement, I advanced up the steps of the house numbered 247, and, finding refuge In the outer vestibule, vesti-bule, rang the bell. I heard no distant dis-tant tinkle, but within a moment or two the door opened a crack, held in that position by a ciiain, and the face jf a middle-aged woman peered out at me. "Well, what is it?" she snapped, in no encouraging tone. "I should like to see Miss Conrad," I began apologetically. "I have an appointment ap-pointment with her." "Not here yer ain't, young man, for there ain't nobody by that name in this house." "Are you sure? This is 247( is it not? That was the number given me. She was to be here at two o'clock." "This yere is 247 all right. I ain't denyln' that," the voice more acid than ever, "but there ain't no Miss Conrad yere; so that's all there is about It." "But there must be." "Must be nuthin'i I guess I know. I've been yere seventeen years, an' ther never was nobody of that name sent me on this wild goose chase so lhat he might laugh over my simplicity, sim-plicity, liut was this true? If so. how was I to account for the strange coincident that both she and Harris had named the same number, and street? It could not have occurred merely through chance. Something must have happened In the meanwhile mean-while to overthrow all her plans, and to cause this rabid housekeeper to even deny her very existence. And I held the key of explanation the murder mur-der of Alva. Beyond all doubt here was both cause and effect. The girl had intended intend-ed to either see me herself, or by proxy in the form of this mysterious Miss Conrad. But what had since occurred had compelled a sudden change in plans, a necessity for concealing con-cealing her escape. There was no way In which she could notify me, but she might very easily have telephoned to her landlady. And, if the place was what I susplcloned it to be, she might have every confidence that her secret would be guarded. I glanced up at the front of the house, searching the windows but without results. The curtains were closely drawn to keep out the sun, and the place appeared forlorn and deserted. At the delicatessen shop on the corner I gained a gleam of light, but merely enough to strengthen my former judgment. The keeper, a flaxen-haired Swede, was loquacious enough, but had only been in business there a few weeks. "247 Le Compte, you say. Yes, she takes roomers ; some are men, and some are women. They come in here and buy, but I never ask the names; it was all cash, so why should I care? Sometimes I hear them cali names sure; but never Conrad. The woman what keeps the house? Wait and I tell you ; it is on the books ; ah ! you read as she wrote it for me Mrs. Augusta Au-gusta Waldron; maybe a widow? What you think? Bah, she never like anything I have to sell. I care nothing noth-ing for trade with her a cat this Mrs. Augusta Waldron." I left him with the familiar sound of the na-me ringing in my ears the whole thing was traveling in a circle, and "the circle was growing continually continual-ly more compact. Blindly, I was stumbling up against it here and there most uaexpectedly. Augusta Waldron, beyond doubt, was Ivan Wal-dron's Wal-dron's wife. No wonder her house was designated the meeting place for those people. I returned to the hotel. Only as I stood before the door did I realize that the newsboys were calling out, "Extra! All about the murder!" I felt that my face was white, and that hy hand shook, yet I hastily bought copies of half a dozen sheets) shoving them into my pockets. The reports were mostly alike, exceedingly ex-ceedingly brief and unsatisfactory, except ex-cept that they conveyed the impression impres-sion that thus far the police possessed no real clue as to the perpetrator of the crime. No one connected with the meeting the night before was mentioned men-tioned in any article, nor was any suspicion sus-picion of such a meeting mentioned. I read the last line with a distinct feeling feel-ing of relief, dropping the paper on the floor. They had discovered no clue, nothing noth-ing whatever to work upon. The interior in-terior of the car had yielded no evidence evi-dence of its former occupant, the only reference being to mud on the floor. Outside all footprints had been obliterated ob-literated by the falling rain. No one in the neighborhood had heard a sound, or witnessed any movement. The whole affair was shrouded in mystery. mys-tery. What, under rhese conditions, was my duty? What could I either do, or say, to clarify this tragedy, and bring the guilty to justice? I sat there for an hour thinking and smoking, endeavoring en-deavoring to answer these queries. 1 could study out no clear way to any confession, which would not directly involve myself in the toils of the police, po-lice, or else implicate Marie Gessler, so as to make any defense on her part almost impossible. No doubt she was gullty yet I could not drive myself to openly charge her with the crime. There must be some extenuating circumstances, cir-cumstances, some unknown cause, which had led to the act. I could not forget her face, her manner, the clear, womanly look of her eye she was no murderess, and it was not in my heart to denounce her as such. Besides, if I took this responsibility it would only serve to shield other crimes of more importance than the violent death of this Chilean revolutionary the murder perhaps of many innocent victims, and the destruction of much valuable property. For Alva'r leath would hardly stop the plotting ai, 'dy on foot. The money was still her-, 'n New York ready to be Used ; the propagandists propa-gandists at Washington would never permit it to long lie idle. They would tind somewhere another leader, and I alone seemed to be In a position to balk their hellish purpose. Perhaps it was even by their orders that Alva had thus been put out of the way. He had acted too slowly, and suspicion. sus-picion. ml;;ht have been aroused as to his real purpose. On every side I was assailed with doubts. "They Tell Me You're Hunting Parker." for Costigan's, determined to learn the truth. I approached the same bartender bar-tender with whom I had spoken in the morning, and he must have recalled me at once, for, without answering my question he turned and called out to a heavily set, red-faced fellow at the lower end of the bar. "Dan, here is that guy who was asking for Parker. He ain't heard nuthin' from him." The other came forward, elbowing his way roughly through the crowd, and looked me searchingly in the face. "I'm Costlgan," he said shortly. "They tell me you're hunting Parker. Did you have an appointment with him?" "Yes ; he was to meet me here this morning. Then I left a telephone number, but he hasn't called me." "He ain't been back; that's the reason. rea-son. Come along with me; i want a private word with you." I followed him rather doubtfully, although al-though his words and actions appeared ap-peared friendly enough In a gruff way. He led the way to a closed door at the end of the bar, which, when opened, disclosed a small business office, containing con-taining merely a desk and two chairs. To his rather gruff invitation to sit down, I accepted one of these, chewing chew-ing at the cigar between my teeth, and endeavoring to appear quite at ease. Costigan, after securing the door, seated seat-ed himself at the desk, turning his swivel chair about so as to face me, bis freckled hands on his knees. "Oenrge told me about you this morning," he began. "At least I suppose sup-pose you're the lad; your name Daly?" I nodded, greatly relieved, but unwilling un-willing to trust my voice. The man did not know me ; had no suspicion. "Giad tor meet yer' and Costigan filled a pipe, and touched a match to the tobacco without removing his steady gaze from my face. "We never had no dealings together, but if yer tied up with George, it's quite likely we will have. He an' I hav' been pardners fer a long while. He's a h 1 of a good guy." "We just ran Into each other accidentally," acci-dentally," I explained, feeling that he expected me to say something. "Got onto ti e trail of the same boodle. He told you. I suppose?" "Xo. he didn't. Just said he'd run onto you. and that you were liable to turn a trick together. George don't slop over; that ain't his style." "But he spoke about me?" "Well, yes, In a way. But it wa'n't no more than I told yer. He had to go out afore you got 'round, so he said you was comln", an' for me to be decent to yer whenever yer blowed in." "How long was he to be gone?" ''You must have faith in me, in spite of all.'1 CTO Bli OONTINl.'HIJJ "Well, What Is It?" She Snapped. ever In this house. Besides, I'm house-cleanin' house-cleanin' and can't stand yere talkin' all day." "Do you know a man named KrantzT" I flung at her desperately, In a last effort to arouse some response, re-sponse, "Adolph Krantz." "No, I don't; theriln't none of those people yere, I tell yer." The door slapped shut In my face, and I heard a holt shot Into place the 'iterview was ended. ) Ktared a moment at the blank door In bewilderment; then turned away, nud slowly retraced my steps to the Mroet. So tl e young woman had de tlherately lied to n.t; hr d merely been making hei elf ul mv expense: hud |