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Show THE RETURN of ' ANTHONY TRENT & ByWyndham Martyn Copyright by Barse A Hopkln WN'U Servic STORY FROM THE START Anthony Trent returns to New York after nearly four years' absence. ab-sence. Once known as the master mas-ter criminal, Trent la going straight. The purser accuses Trent of Jumping overboard from the Poltlania at Liverpool, but 1b disappointed r.-hen Trent shows no surprise. He learna his friend. Capt. Frank Sutton, is in Sing Sing. At New York Trent is startled to find eomebody occupying oc-cupying his house. The strangei is Sutton CampbelC the brother of his best friend, who Is serving ten years In prison. Trent Is , asked by Campbell Sutton to force Payson Grant to a written confession, having crookedlv obtained ob-tained all of Captain Sutton's possessions and later married his wife. Trent, after long hesitation, hesita-tion, consents. Trent starts on a campaign to accomplish the downfall of Payson Grant- He learns from an old friend, Clarke, that Captain Sutton has escaped from Sing Sing, and also learns that Captain Sutton has no brother. CHAPTER III Continued "Walt!" Campbell Sutton cried anx iously. It was an anxiety dictated by fear of physical punishment, Trent decided. He was maddened by the remembrance of the many confidences he bad made to this man who had gained his shelter under false pretenses. pre-tenses. "Put up your hands," Trent cried. Then he hit him with the strength and skill of the trained boxer. His powerful left landed squarely on the nose of his opponent, on that proud and high-arched '-nose which reared itself arrogantly from the yel- low and unhealthy face. Never had his band telegraphed such' a queer sensation to its directing brain. The Impression was tint of hitting some-ting some-ting soft and pliable, something that distinctly was not of the osseous character of the bridge of the human nose. Too astonished to follow up the blow, he glanced at his knuckles. Adhering Ad-hering to them was a material like putty and a yellow greasy stain. He did not even attempt to stop the man who had called himself Campbell Sutton Sut-ton when he fled along the passage and locked the door of the bathroom The masquerader had a false face as well as a false name I He would probably be driven to desperate meas- ures now. The bathroom barricade could not be held Indefinitely. The situation was rather absurd. Was he to break in the bathroom door and run the risk of being shot through the panels, or sit waiting UDtii sleep or hunger acted as his allies? Trent rapped on the door, standing aside from it so that novThot could hit him. "Wait," said the voice. "I'll be out In a minute if you'll promise to talk this over before attacking me." "All right," Trent said. A few minutes later he heard the bathroom door unlatched. Firm steps came along the corridor. Anthony Trent looked up to see the face ol liis old adjutant. Captain Sntton, peering peer-ing through the door. Sutton stood there a moment In doubt of his re ceptiou. "Trent," Sutton said, "I owe yon a thousand apologies." "Yes," Trent said, without smiling. " think you do." It was the Captain Sutton he had known so well with very slight physical phys-ical changes. Now that the disfiguring disfigur-ing grease-paint and built-up nose hud gone there was the same kindly face and shrewd, humorous eyes. There was no resemblance to the Campbell Sutton be had grown to detest. "I was going to tell you," Sutton cried, "I'll swear I was on the point of It a hundred time, old man." "But you didn't." "I lost my nerve. I've been nearly three years In Sing Sing, almost caught a score of .times, and I sort of leaned on my fictitious brother. He gave me courage." Trent looked at Sutton, and his face expressed concern. "Your eye is discolored." "Yes," Sutton agreed, "you have a wicked left. Think what would have happened If my nose had been genuine." Trent sat down and rocked with laughter. He was relieved enormous ly to And Sutton safe when he htil thought of him fl8 one In constant dread of the police. And gone was the obstinate disinclination to work with Campbell Sutton. He took Sutton's Sut-ton's hand In his own and sho"k It a half-minute. "I've got to know all about it." he said, "1 mean about the break from Sing Sing nnd your nasal transformation." transforma-tion." He forced Sutton into the chair the execrable Campbell lifid pre-empted and opened a new bos of cigars. "Kidgway. president of the Society for the Diminution of Diet, never hail any dilliculty In seeing me. I Imagine he stood well with the am horlries. I see you know about the p:irt he played. It was a shameful assault in a way, but I didn't hurt him. I had studied hliii for a long ,ime. i bnow how he walked and talked. I went up the stoop hill to Os Ining and took in a matinee at a moving picture house. There was n man asleep next to me. I left Ridgwa s hat and took his. I got out before he woke up ; but it was already dusk, and I walked down to the river not ten blocks from the prison and took a boat and rowed over to the Jersey side. 1 exchanged Rldgway's clothes and the sleeper's hat for a sweater, khaki shirt and pants. Then I climbed on to the top of the Palisades, and when morning broke I was in Fort Lee. I was near a moving picture studio. A number of extras were being engaged and 1 was assumed by a casting director to be one of the applicants. 1 got a pay check that night for five dollars, but it was worth a good bit more than that "There was an old fellow there who was making up. It looked wonderful to me. I got him to make me up. He said I had a bum nose, but that with a little putty he could make me look wonderful. He was building a character char-acter nose for himself, and I watched At First Natica Sutton Took Little Notice of Him. I was an extra there for five days and when I left I had grease powder, spirit gum, liners and more than all nose putty and cheek pads. I practiced prac-ticed in your bathroom." "But how did you get in here?'' Trent demanded. "Your name was In the telephone directory. I tried the trick door but couldn't open it As to getting In from the house In the next street, you'll remember that Devlin figured It out I didn't think to have the luck to . find gas, water and light on. I don't see why now." "Sly housekeeper comes here three days a month to clean up. I had overlooked the ease with which the place could be entered You'd better stay on here. I'll stock the place completely, so you needn't go out. I don't think even those night prowls are safe." "Where will you be?" "Getting acquainted with Payson Grant." Sutton spoke apologetically. "1 played the part of my brother in rather a brutal fashion, I'm afraid I questioned your knowledge of those top-notchers because I was genuinely surprised. And more than that, I was delighted because I saw an opening wedge which not even the most hril liant intellect or sophisticated charm could win alone. It has always been one of my great trials that my wife would not make the sort of a home 1 wanted. I'm fond of children, for example. ex-ample. 1 like to dine at home more often than I dine out. She'd rather a man be decadent than domestic. Bui I gave her a square deal as well as 1 knew how. and I saved Payson from prison." "That Interests me." Trent said. "1 want facts to work on where he Is concerned. What did he do?" "1 thought I had many good friends. I Imagined they would instantly distinguish dis-tinguish between the false tales he spread about me and the truth. 1 used to believe that a man's character charac-ter would speak for him when he was miles away, or after he was dead." Sutton shook his nead. "In my case, at nil events. 1 was wrong. He spread the report that I had been cruel to her. Instead of dlsbcllertng him ttvy praised my wife for A brave face she had worn under tay brutalities. "When I first realized what Grant had done to me I was Insane. I'm grateful to whatever It was prevented prevent-ed my being a murderer. That killing rage has gone, but don't think I've forgiven." "How long did you save Payson Grant from prison?" Trent asked. "After his brokerage firm failed I took him into the office more from friendship than belief In his ability. ( was executor for the daughter of mj old friend Moshy. There was a greaf deal of real estate to look after and an enormous amount of detail. I should have had to engage a clerk to attend to it. It was an opportunity to give Payson- something to do and let him feel he was earning It." It was another instance. Trent saw, of a man being punished for rare and kindly instincts. Sutton had done the thing delicately, generously, and had suffered. Trent began to cbafe at the necessary delay before he could cross swords with the traitor. "He stole a lot of my ward's money. I replaced it. Rather weakly, I believed be-lieved In Payson's repentance. Your sentimentalist can always be led Into folly of this sort. Pity with him is never contempt. Looking back on the thing I can see that Payson began to hate me when 1 refused to take him into partnership. He argued that if I really had forgiven him and forgotten his folly he called it no more than that I would take him Into the firm. I had no children and no prospect of any. He began, by inference, to call me hard and miserly. He enlisted my wife on his side. I understand that he convinced her he could make two dollars grow where I had been content con-tent with one. In its ultimate analysis analy-sis this mean that for every gorgeous gown I had bought her she could, had I been more capable, have bought two. For every one pearl, two pearls; and so on, ad infinitum.'' "And of course you didn't go into the facts of the case and point out what a swine he was." There was temper In Trent's voice., "And I'll bet you didn't even let her know aboat those stolen funds." "He had my solemn word about tJat after I had forgiven him. I believed In that new leaf he turned over so ostentatiously." "Look here," said Trent, after an Interval of silence. "In the guise of an eider brother you threatened me. You said unless 1 undertook this thing you'd denounce me to the police. We must understand one another. Is that still your attitude?" Sutton shook his head. "No," he said slowly, "I've no right to enlist you in anything that may get you Into jail. In France you atoned for whatever laws you broke. Do aa you like ; I'll never say a word." Trent put his hand on the othar man's shoulder affectionately. "Yon know d d well I'm going through with it" CHAPTER IV The Dread of the Uncaptured. Payson Grant was one of those men in whom the seed of dishonesty might never have come to flower had not hl desires outrun his fortune. He wr born to the habit of spending moo-., and before the panic of 1907 be maw enough for bis wants. After a fruitless fruit-less endeavor to make the ends meet his needs as a bond salesman, he went to his close friend, Frank Sutton, and obtained a position. At first Natica Sutton took little notice of him. His brilliant good looks were nullified by his lack of fortune. She had experienced experi-enced sufficiently what lack of money rtieant In that year her father was striving to avert ruin. Frank Sutton had been most generous. gener-ous. He had aided John Barstow to get out of the mess creditably, and bought him a small estate In Virginia where he could hunt and fish in freedom free-dom from catastrophes manufactured in Wall street. And with Sutton's Increasing In-creasing wealth she hankered after the laurels of the society hostess. Sutton's Sut-ton's friends were mainly of the solid commercial classes who allowed their women to spend money, but themselves them-selves rebelled at dressing for dinner in their own homes It was not difficult for Payson Grant to comprehend Natica's dissatisfaction. dissat-isfaction. He enlisted on her side when his gain as an ally seemed of little moment. He knew she would presently come to rely on him as her chief abettor in this struggle she was waging with her hnshnnd (TO BE CONTINUED.) |
