Show r crie re recluse c k use Z of fifth C avenue I 1 IT H Z I 1 WYNDHAM i MARTYN to in me th vow stat st ill jr VM service STORY PROM FROM THE START from the th comfortable comfort abl financial situation to which he h hed been born peter milman american gentlemen gentleman ot of the old school and last of his family is in practically reduced to penury through the misfortune of a friend unwisely trusted lA learning arning of 0 brewers brewer a suicide which means the destruction of hl last hope ullman engages a french butler achille lutry who speaks no english and IT ir to 6 replace sneed servant of long banding tan standing ding by lutry milman ends letters to prof fleming bradney ployd floyd malet and neeland darnea barnes men once of ct high position in response reB the tha three call on him at his home ea cach h rat relates a tee the circumstances the that at wr their careers ahmon convinces convince them that their mt misfortunes were all due to one man paul baxon ie he explains how chiefly through his belief in ployd malet us as a great sculptor and the victim of malevolent circumstances cum cume stances he had subscribed to a press clipping bureau and kept a detective on radons s track lea learning ning much to It halona axons discredit r though nothing by which he could be reached legally himself ile f impoverished through rax ons financial crookedness mil man proposes pro pones an association of the four men an association outside the law which shall pull down rixon and force him to disgorge hla hill ill gotten financial gains following Mil milhans mans s disclosures his three guests litter A con consultation 81 practically c ally decide to jot join him in the fight against paul braxon CHAPTER V continued 4 not that I 1 ever heard of the mt mil manx mans have always been shrewd conservative serva tive men inen poor pool old peters the last of em and abc tb best it may be theres something crazy in wanting to live down here bere and yet wha when I 1 see what a beautiful hone bhea lies got land and think of my shaa at understand ders der stand and lih why y he fici vas wanta to keep beep it barnes nodded a geolat genial good night might to his visitors he did aid not understand why they hung bung back already he was visioning the future he would buy a great ranch in Cal california fornia and there with splendid horses to ride he would pass the rest of tits his days and of course he would have hla his daughter when the three roen men la in evening dress were summoned to breakfast in the japanese garden they found their host similarly clad whether lie hail not been to bed or whether he had dressed thus to make their own garb less singular they did not know they knew only that they found him free from embarrassment tind find as courte courteous owl ly considerate as he had been at dinner not during the meal was wag anything said eald about his proposition mil mini talked freely of tits bis garden find and the rare raie plants in tt it A little dial at his big side attracted Erad notice ile he saw that a ware was attached to it leading to the north wall A little burglar device of my own allman explained by it I 1 am en to detect the presence of anything on the iron screen which shuts shut title this place in for example if I 1 find the dial indicates five pounds in weight and that the object Is moving I 1 can tell almost certainly it la Is a wondering wandering cat if a hundred and sixty pounds I 1 can be sure of IT burglar looking for an opening cats cate are frequent visitors in the score of yeara this garden has existed I 1 have had no more than seven burglars what happens to them names barnes asked how do you get them MOM 1 I extinguish the lights here end and the shades are drawn back by illuminating mina ting the marked area I 1 see the intruder and have him at my mercy I 1 keep deepa a loaded shotgun handy on ani 1 l there to Is seldom any difficulty in the mat matter terr only one ever got through the alarm must have been out of bf order for or he sawed his way in during dinner and broke his neck on a stone known very amusingly as the stone ot of afie file respectful visitor I 1 am very well protected here I 1 have had time to elaborate certain devices which make irie feet feel perfectly safe the police ahsu boeme that my cellar lg Is the alfr attraction a ebion it la Is stored with what wan laid down many years yeara aggans ago and the law allows me to teen Wati watching hIng the speaker carefully B bradney ra adney had come to the that hla his boat befit visa wholly ane tye ive made up my mind be said aid when AchIl achillia achille lil hild bad PIM cone said bald illman aman Ill mao ile he felt if bradney failed that balet would be dissuaded bellr tin ni with you yoo ii i 1 I thought you would be when YOU yon had had lne jo 0 o reflect that what to Is unlawful la not aldaya I 1 am very nery and you mr got earl count gift la A 1 1 7 dont nUr efti auman an hai any doubts about me nealand barnea remarked peter milman smiled milled a little hills ile he rather liked abla big wan man 1 I 1 had no doubts about you now that we are weed let ua dacuss the thing first of all bradney said bald whit what are re your plans 1 1 I I haveko have po plans milman returned I 1 see ee that you look disappointed disappoint et hyl dently you me to hit have the whole thing cut and dried that gen clemen seems unreasonable liable what object should I 1 have in inviting you here it I 1 were ible able to accomplish the thing alone I 1 approach the problem with an open mind my contribution toward it will be to entertain you tor to three months if at the end of that time we are not successful this house will no longer bot be ny iny home we shall have failed and it if we are still at large there will be five hundred dollars each for you all expenses will be borne by toe me I 1 hope you are not dismayed by my news I 1 do not think you will be you have not been chosen idly in professor braileey Brail Brall ney we have a great intellect nt fit to expend itself on our common problem in mr malet we have the quick mind and vivid imagination of the artist mr keeland barnes brings to us physical prowess prow jesa and an extensive knowledge ot of the underworld der world and its ways my contribution seems small by comparison first said bald fleming bradney let us na collate all documents that bear on the subject I 1 assume you have data concerning paul braxon mr 1111 man 1 I have a great deal said lits his host 1 I know details of hla his personal and business life that he cannot possibly suspect but how bradney asked if you rarely go out and never receive tho the alarm must have been out of order I 1 tors can you yon get at this information which must most surely be very difficult of access in the beginning by bv design I 1 ins ns determined to find out what dorcea had bad pulled you and malet down later by accident I 1 spoke not not long ago of my cellar my father laid down a great deal ot of port in 1871 1 when I 1 was born it Is a wine I 1 do not greatly care for A lawyer named loddon coddon who has acted for me tor for some years 1 id also radons confidential attorney ills his name never appears publicly in radons affairs he Is engage mainly in keeping hit ht client clear of the effects of aeller In IL discretions loddon coddon had dined with mi ma many times and this port induces amazing loquacity in bill it if I 1 live doubted his assertions lie ile digs ins wasted blasted the more loudly these dinners became at last a most interesting part of my life I 1 drew him on deliberately never permitting ill him to see my keenness allman smi smiled ledi for every bottle of 0 my port loddon coddon drank he repaid roe me a hundred fold it was when liddon loddon learned that malet had made the settlers that he told me in so many words that his client was responsible I 1 will not weary wary you yon with details I 1 have hae a careful record of every conversation it soothed lits ego to talk and lie he believed me harmless yes gentlemen I 1 know a great I 1 deal about paul balton and d you think hell he be easy to defeat Brad rity asked no more dangerous man lives in all new york peter milmon said eald gravely that Is why I 1 have been so careful in selecting my companions CHAPTER VI although paul baxon had always professed oed a great belief to in his own v destiny he be had ua never er th thought alit to ta be a multi in alre hi 1104 round 0 4 hamue himself suddenly a national figure 1 amused him to read newspaper account of him himself people assumed that t lie he had newly come acorns to new york whereas h he had been for or sere yeara a a power powe r working g through other men 1 it wits was as an a architects clerk be dia dl covered the graft which was possible in the building trade among the group of illiterate men who wet wei hold ing up big jobs and levying blaiki blackmail nall froni fi roni contractor in the nameon him e I 1 of labor aig he soon soon became d a lender ile he was lou educated ex cunning inning the price of sie cess was wait the betrayal of his benefactor and he had not hesitated to lakeit ma make keit it at the age of forty two he took tile his place with the living powers in wall fi street treet hated liked by few but des despise despian by alij none publicity overwhelmed him at last mrs and her family returned from ri europe mirope where 1 tor for soni some years they nad lived at a large price he purchased great rock kock formerly er lythe the home of bellington of the Tract tl action loi trust andu and tie knew he must till fill it with k bis Is cifes friends and entertain in the manner of the very rich at this period of hla his life the idea of power obsessed him he did not want to run the risk ot of losing what lie he had gained he was waa 1 not anxious for any unsavory episodes of his past to arise there had been many and with most women were concerns concerned he grew 1 less ess intrigued with women as the idea of senatorial se honors bonore forced itself upon apon him senator union of new york I 1 no state honors for him he desired to be sent to washington leddon his bis lawyer licked his thick lips at the thought im satisfied said baxon that n nobody con can pull me down jim cat tray was danger dungerow ouK but beo in slum aln sing for seven years beus hell be out in five said Lod coddon loddon doll and jims dangerous because he ha knows a hotl jot jim will be out in less than vint hint baxon retorted brights disease dl sensa hes incurable you yott took look like a brights disease type loddon coddon better be moderate if you want to help me to the united states senate ive got a chance women are voting against the old machine type of politician and im going to cultivate the women and pose as the pioneer of anew a new day baxon chuckled a little lie he was a tired looking man slim and a little stooped he had fine hands bands and good features he could bring readily to his aid the sales naJi a forced enthusiasm which seemed gen alne to those who did not know him blui he knew he would do well in politics if no old ghosts arose to co confound 11 found him for years ears now he had been living among men beneath him lu iu intelligence a lucky turn had made him independent of them f to go to the senate from new york would be an expensive matter buthe but ho waa was prepared to vay pay to that aind it would bo be necessary to conserve his fortune ills ilia wife after years of living in iii second ruto rate hotels was Inelli inclined aed to lo a reckless extravagance domestic life at great rock koek was strained yet roson saw that the era of great en was at hand ile he knew that as he was now a ma man in the pub lie ile eye lie ble had better do the thing well the life of relatively small email things was over not again would he be deal with the baser sort of men much of his bis amusement came from watching the men he controlled trying to assert themselves there was coddon loddon for instance at be heart ar t of ua th e sh shyster lawyer type and filled with the ideals of petty graft a wealthy beni had bought him a partnership with a respectable firm and he be had to guide his professional conduct accordingly accor dingli loddon coddon for the moment was filled with glee at his own fortune he wished blaxon to regard him as an equal instead of snapping order at him he ventured to disagree with his patron my su uc deess cess said stopping him with a gest gesture pre Is due tw to two things one is a total absence of pity another that I 1 only use men that I 1 can crush if they get out of hand JI jim in caffray was one youre another he looked at the gross form formless creature and sneered when I 1 pipe you shall dance and if you dont dance to my liking what happens the atar association will dis bar you you yoi may try to incriminate me but you a shred of at evidence of anything crooked not a check letter telegram or a dictaphone conversation ke j p me in good humor leddon loddon and vork ork for me and youil go tar far try to be independent or indiscreet IndI seree t and ishall break you why paul loddon coddon cried got into you im the loyalist loya lest follower you ou ever had and you know it TO BE BB CONTINUED forgiveness Is better than revenge pit |