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? 8nc T ~f?lrwmntn 11 nnn i itii win I By HAROLD I Illustrated from Scenes I I Same Name by the Thai (Copyright, 11*14, bj This, the sixteenth episode of the interesting serial story, will be shown in motion pictures at the Casino Theatre tonight.) I CHAPTER XVI. I Treachery In the Household. The maid stole Into the house, won-! dering If she had been seen. She wanted to be loyal to this girl, but she was tired of the life; she wanted to bo her own mistress, and the small fortune offered her would put her on the way to realize her ambition. What had she not seen and been of life since she joined the great detective force! Lady's maid, cook, ship stewardess, flash woman, actress, clerk, and a dozen other employments. Her pay, until she secured some fat reward, was but twelve hundred a year; and hero was five thousand in advance, with the promise of five thousand more the minute her work was done. And it was simple work, without any real harm toward Florence as far as she was concerned. The whole thing rested upon one difftculty; would Jones permit the girls to leave tlie house? One day Florence found Susan sit imp in a ciiair, her head in her hands. "Why, Susan, what's the matter?" cried Florence. "I don't know what is the matter, dear, but 1 haven't felt, well for two or three days. I'm dizzy all the time, I can't read or sew or eat or sleep. "Why didn't you tell me?" said Florence, reproachfully. She rang for the detective-maid. "Flla, I don't know anything about doctors hereabouts." "I know a good one. Miss Florence. Shall 1 send for him?" "Do; Susan is ill." Jones was not prepared for treachery in his own household; so when he heard that a doctor had been called to attend Susan he was without the least suspicion that he had been betrayed. Mere than this, there had been no occasion to summon a doctor in the seven years Mr. Hargreave had lived here. So Jones went about his' petty household affairs without more thought upon the matter. The maid i had been recommended to him as one of the shrewdest young women in the detective business. The doctor arrived. He was a real doctor; no doubt of that. He invest!gated Susan's condition?brought about by a subtle though not dangerous poison?and instantly recommended the seashore. Susan was not j used to being confined to tho house; j she was essentially an out-of-doors little body. The seashore would bring j her about in no time. The doctor sug-' gested Atlantic City because of its mildness throughout the year and its nearness to New York. "I'm afraid sh? '-i have to go alone," ' said Jones, gravciy. "I shan't stir!" declared Susan "I j shan't leave rny girl even if 1 am sick." ! Susan caught Florence's hand and; T\rnooA/l 4* |/i v oouvi 11 . "Would you like to go with her,1 Florence?" asked Jones, with a shy glance at the strange doctor. The shy glance was wasted. The doctor evinced no sign that it mattered one way or j the other to him. "It is nothing very serious now/' he voluntered. "But it may turn out serious it' it is not taken care of at once." "What is the trouble?" inquired, Jones, who was growing loud of Susan. "Weak heart. Sunshine and good sea air will strengthen her up again. No, no!" as Jones drew forth his wallet. "I'll send in my bill the first of the month. Sunshine and sea air; that's all that's necessary. And now, good-dry." All l-'i .... sin ?vji> uuMiK'tiisiikr*, noT. xno iGRSt cause in tlio world for any one to Buspect that a new trap was being set by the snarers. The maid returned to the sewing room, while Florence coddled her companion and made much of her. Jones was suspicious, but dig in his mind as he would he could find no earthly reason for this suspicion 1 save that this attribute was now in- j etlnctive, that it was always near the top. If Susan was ill she must be I given good care; there was no getting around this fact. Later, he telephoned several prominent physicians. The atr&nge doctor was recommended as a good ordinary practitioner and In (good standing; and so Jones dismissed jhls suspicions as having no hook to 'hang them on. His hair would have tingled at the roots, however, had he known that :thls same physician was one of the 'two who had signed thd document which hAd accredited Florence with Inanity and hfcd all bat succeeded ,1a making a supposition a fact Nor was Jones gwgre of the fact that the MAC GRATH r y, =31 n the Photo Drama of thm rtnouser Film Company r Harold MacOrath) Telephone wire had been tapped recently. So when he finally concluded to permit Florence to accompany SuKnil tft Atlnniin f'ltu t ^ 1?^ 1 i ? w nvtuuviv v-1V. j ao IV1C|J11U11UU IU tho detective agency to send up a trusty man, who was shadowed from the moment he entered the Hargreave homo till he started for the railway station. He became lost in the shuffle and was not heard from till weeks later, in Havana. The Black Hundred I found a good profit' in the shanghaiing business. Susan began to pick up. as they say, the day after the arrival at Atlantic j City, due, doubtless, to tho cessation of the poison she had been taking unawares. The two young women began to enjoy life for the first time since they had left Miss Farlow's. i They were up with tho sun every dijy and went to bed tired but happy. No one bothered them. If some stray re- j porter encountered their signatures on the hotel register, he saw nothing to . excite his reportcrial senses. All this, of course, was due to Norton's policy of keeping the affair out of the papers. Following Jones' orders, they made friends with none. Those about the ]io 1 < I?especially the young men? ! v.hen they made any advances were I politely snubbed. Every night Flor- ' < nee would write to her good butler v.o report what had taken place during the day, and lie was left to judge for himself if there was anything to , arouse his suspicions. He, of course, believed the two were covertly guardc d by the detective he had sent after them. When Braine called up Olga lie found his doctor there. "Well, what's the news?" he asked. "I had better run down and inquire how the young iady is progressing,' said the doctor, who was really a first rate surgeon and who had performed a number 01 skilled operations upon various members of the Black Hundred ancut their encounters with the police. "I've got Miss Florence where TffMl wr\i\t 1* T4 ? *-? .?vvt ?(.in uvi. its up iu you now. "She ought to be separated from her companion. We have lel't them alone for a whole week, so .Jones will not worry particularly. A mighty curious < thhig has turned up. Before Hargreave's disappearance not a dozen persons could recollect what Jones looked like. Bo was rarely ever in sight. \\ hat clo you suppose that signifies?" "Don't ask me," shrugged the man of medicine. "1 shouldn't worry over Jones." "But we can't stir the old fool. Wo can't get him out of that house. I've tried to get that maid to put a little something in his coffee, but she stands off at that. She says that she ; did as she agreed in regard to Florence, but her agreement ended there. 1 " '> "* m", ' "t<^wv^" A?0.; ' "Why, Susan, What's the Matter?" Cried Florence. We have given the Jade five thousand already and she is clamoring for the balance." "Have you threatened her?" asked OlgJL limine smiled a little. "My dear woman, it is flfty-fifty. While 1 have a hold on her, it is not quite so good as she has on me. We are not dealing with an ordinary servant we could threaten and scare. No, indeed; a shrewd little woman who desperately wanted money. And she will be paid; no getting out of it. She will not I move another step, one way or the I other, after she receives the balance. I Hargreave will have a pretty steep bill to pay when the time comes." "She has no idea whe the mil-1 THE HORRY HERA lion is?" "If sho had, she's quite capable of lugging it off all by herself," said Braine. The doctor laughed. "Olga " went on Braine, "y>sn must look at it as I do; that it is still in the middle of the game, and wo havo neither lost nor won." "How do you know that Ilargreavo may not have at his beck and call an organization quite as capable if | not as lurge as ours?" suggested the physician. "That is not possible." Braine declared without hesitation. "Well, it begins to look that way to me. We've never made a move yet that hasn't been blocked." "Pure luck each time, I tell you; the devil's own luck always at the critical moment, when everything | seems to bo in our hands. Now, wo : want Florence, aud we've tried n. I hundred ways to accomplish this fact and failed. The question is, how to ! get her away from her companion?" i "Simple enough," said tho doctor complacently. "Out with it, if you have an idea." The doctor leaned forward and whispered a few words. "Well, I'm hanged!" Drain? laughed and slapped tho doctor on the shoulder. "The simplest thing in the world. Mad dog wouldn't bo in it. I always said that you had gray matter if you cared to exert yourself." "Thanks," replied the doctor dryly. "I'll drop down there tomorrow, if you say so, ostensibly to see the other patient. It will make a deuce of a disturbance." "Not if you scare tho hotel people." "That is what I propose to do. Tin v will not want such a thing known It would scare every one away for I -I |r-:\ i*.. v - \ f \?Xv !ScS- s A .' .V/- v ^ V liMi 8 SPM it&|> - ^AM .: ' :' : ' "" ' ' 1 : .'" . ^n.- ' "' .'' ': "";'' ' Encounter With C tho rest of the season. But of course this depends upon whether they are honest or in the hotel busiuess to make money." Again Braire laughed. "Bring her back to New York alone. Esculapius, and a fat check is yours. Nothing could be simpler than an idea like this. It's a fact; no man can think of everything, and you've just proved it to me. I've tried to do a general's work without aids. Olga, does any one i watch me come and go any more?" "No; I've watched, a dozen nights. The man has gone. Either he found out what he wanted or he gave up tho job. To my mind he found out what he wanted." "And what's that?" "Heaven knows!" discouragedly. "Come, doctor, suppose you and I go down to Daly's tor a little turn at billiards?" "Nothing would suit me better." "All aboard, then! Good-night, Olgu. Keep your hair on; I mean your own hair. We're going to win out, I don't you worry. In all games the minute you begin to doubt you begin to lose." That same night Norton sat at his desk, in his shirt sleeves, pounding away at his typewriter. From time to time ho paused and teetered his chair and scowled over his pipe at the starlit night outsido. Rang! would go his chair again, and clickity-click would sing the keys of the machine. The story' lie was writing was in the ordinary routine; the arrival of a great ocean liner with some political notables who were not adverse to de pouncing tuo present administration. You will have noticed, no doubt, that some disgruntled politician is always denouncing the present administration, it matters not if it be Republican or Democratic. When you are out. of a good job you are always prone to denounce. The yarn bored Norton because his thoughts were miles southward. He completed his story, yanked out the final sheet, called for a copy boy, rose and sauntered over to the managing editor's door, before which he paused indecisively. The "old man" j had been after him lately regarding j the Hargreave story, and he doubted I if his errand would prove successful. I However, he boldly opened the door and walked in. "Humph!" said the "old man," twisting his cigar into the corner of his i mouth. "Got that story?" Norton s&t down. "Yes, but I hare not got it for print yet Mr. Blair, r" I LD, CONWAY, S. C. when you gave me the Hargroave Job you gave me carte blanche." "I did," grimly. "But, on the other hand, 1 did not give you ten years to clear it up in." "Have I ever fallen down on a good story?" quietly. "M', can't remember," grudgingly. "Well, if you'll have patience I'll not fall down on this one. It's the greatest criminal story I ever handled, but it's so big that it's going to take time." "Gimme an outline." "I have promised not to," with a grimness equal to the "old man's." "If a line of this story trickles out it will mean that every other paper will be moving around, and in the end will discover enough to spoil my end of it. I'll tell you this much: The most colossal band of thieves this country ever saw is at one end of the stick. And when I say that counterfeiting and politics and millions are involved, you'll understand how big it is. This gang has city protection. Wo are running them all into a corner; but we want that corner so deep that none of them can wriggle out of it." "Uinhm. Go on." "1 want two months more." The "old man" beat a tattoo with his fat pencil. "Sixty days, then. And if the yarn isn't on my desk at midnight, you?" "Hunt for another job. All right. I came in to ask for three days' leave." You're your own boss, Jim, for sixty days more. Whadda y moan counterfeiting?" "Those new tens and twenties. If I stumble on that right, why, I can turn it over without conflicting with tho o.her story." bWT % *T ^ '***Wtfki; v ! mM. : : *&>s ^iiv . ;S > i , i??'? :; ,. f:-1 I)-, ;> p| | '' \ | ^ " " '" " '' '"' >> . ..v-".'. ,.. .."* ,v. . - : )ne of the Gang. ' Well, go to it." "I'm turning in my regular work, j day in and day out, and while doing! it I've gone through more hairbreadth escapes than you ever heard of. They have been after me. I've dodged falling safes; I've been shanghaied, poisoned; but I haven't said a word." ' Gcod Lrord! Do you mean &U that?" "Every word, sir." "I'll make it ninety days, Jim; and if this story comes in I'll see that you get a corking bonus." "I'm not looking for bonuses. I'm proud of my work. To get this story is all I want. That'll be enough. Thanks for the extension in time. Good-night." So Florence received a long night letter in the morning. And the doctor arrived at about the same time. And called promptly upon his patient. "Fine!" he said. "The sea air was just the thing. A doctor always like* to find his advice turning out well." He glanced quizzically at Florence, who was the picture of glowing health. Suddenly he frowned anxiously. i*>u iilm'u not iook at mo/' sho laughed. "I never felt better in all my life." "Are you sure?" ho asked gravely. '"Why, what in the world do you mean?" Ho did not speak, but stepped forward and took her by the wrist, holding his watch in his other hand. Ho shook his head. Ho looked very solemn, indeed. "What is it?" demanded Susan, with growing terror. "On lo VOtir nwn rnr?m ImmnrHofcklTr , .WMJ and remain there for the present," he ordered. "I must see Miss Hnrgreavft alone." lie opened the door and Susan passed out bewilderedly. He returned to Florence, who was even more bewildered than her companion. The doctor began to ask her questions; how die slept, if sho was thirsty, felt pains in her back. She answered all these questions vaguely. Not the slightest suspicion entered her head that she was being hoodwinked. Why should sho entertain any suspicion? This doctor, who seemed kindly and benevolent, who had prescribed for Susan ;?ud benefited her, why should she doubt him? "In heaven's name, tell me what Is he matter?" she pleaded. "Stay here for a little while and I'll ne back. Under no circumstances cave your room till I return." He paced out into the hall, to meet the frantic Susan. "We must see the manager at once," ho replied to her querieB. "And wo must be extremely quiet about it. There must be no excitement. You had better go to your room. You must not go into Miss Ilargreave's. Tell me, where have you been? Have you been trying to do any charitable work among the poorer classes?" "Only once." admitted Susan, now on the verge of tears. "Only once is suiflclent. Come; i we'll go and see the manager to-1 gethdr." They arrived at the desk, and the manager was summoned. "I take it," began the doctor lowly, "that a contagious disease, if it oe_ I p& h: i ' . . <:s \ I . . a f ** y V. *. " . * < i I ?. % '?.. \ .^ . Lf-' * ' V. 1 : I..<; 1 Had 1".o Suspicion That She Was Being Hoodwinked. came known among your guocts. ^vcuid c: i ate a good deal of disturbturbanco! Good heavens, man, it would ruin my business for the) wnoie :' ason!" exclaimed the astounded manager. "1 a.-; sorry, hut this young lady's' companion has been stricken with ; smallpox?" The manager fell buck against his desk, his jaw fallen. Susan turned as white as the marble top. "The only way to avoid trouble is to have her conveyed immediately to Eoine place where she can be treated properly. Not a word to any one now; absolute secrecy or a panic." The man; ;er was glad enough to agree. "She is not dangerous at present, but it is only a matter of a few hours wit en the disease will become virulent. If you will place a porter before Miss Jlargreave's door till I make arrangements to take her away, that will simplify matters." Smallpox! Susan wandered aimlessly about half out of her mind with terror. There was no help against such a dread disease. Iler Florence, her pretty rosy cheeked Florence, disfigured for life . . .! "Miss Susan, where is Florence?" "O. Mr. Norton!" she gasped. "U'Wut'o .1 .. .j me u uuuii: . iHHi-ttllll V alert. "Florence ha3 the smallpox!" "Impossible! Coine with me." But the porter, having had the strictest orders from the manager, refused to let them into Florence's room. "Never mind, Susan. Come along." Out of earshot of the porter he said: "My room is directly above Florence's. We'll see what can be done. This smells of the Black Hundred a mile off. Smallpox! Only yesterday she wrote me that she never felt better. Have you wired Jones?" "I nfever thought to!" "Then I s'vill Our nlit frloYwla lit work again." "Hut it's the same doctor who sent me down here." Norton frowned. What followed all appeared In the reporter's story, as written three months later. He and Susan went up to his room, raised the flooring, cut through the ceiling, and with the fire escape rope dropped below. Ono glance at Florence's tear-stained face \'>*as enough for him. Norton's subsequent battle with the doctor and his accomplices made very interesting reading. Their escape from the hotel, their flight, their encounter with one of the cancr in 1hf> rnnrl nnH T.'Mrvf ence's blunder into the bed of quickrand, gave a succession of thrills to the readers of the Blado. And all this while the million accumulated dust, layer by layer. Perhaps an occasional hardy roach scrambled over the packets, no doubt attracted by the peculiar odor of the ink. TO BE CONTINUED NEXT WEEK BLAGKBOX! p Gtac* There Is a Strange and Re* rriarkable Mystery Connected With It! H. H. WOODWARD, Attorney and Counsellor at Law, CONWAY, S ~ HAL L. BUCK, Fire Insurance Office Conway National Bank Conway, S. C. 4 R. B. SCARBOROUGH Attorney at Law, CONWAY. S. C. LUM JUNG LAUNDRY, A CONWAY, S. C, Beginning July 1st. 1913 All persons uius* take tickets!for work left here P'witively no work delivered until ticket is pra- v sented. Laundry not colled for In f 30 days will be sold for charges. I. UM JUNG * i WILLIAM EUGENE KING, M D Physician and Surgecn Office in Piatt Drag Co. AYNOR,. - - - S. C. J. M. JOHNSON, CIVIKi.NO] N hiJSK Marion, 8 C. Railroad, City and Land Survo> and Drainage. Road-building an Sewers l>nn><?n*: . . . - uii'i jLSiue Printine W C SINGLETON A'tTOKNIiY AT LAW i Conway, S. C. >4 Oltico ?p !>t ir? liuck liuiktirg 1) A Spivey & Company On "THP rm>vn?.. - ...j wiU>LK" In I'EOri ES NATIONAL BANK BL'LG Hondn Fire ^ Lite And Other I N SllKANC E. D. A. SPIVEY. W. B. KING P CHAS. K. SCARBOROUGH, Conway, tt. O, g Complete WaterwnrUn ?*??? "? - ? ??k/%cAiiif O.?I ter and Ilot Air Heating Plaits I INSTALLED ANYWHERE , i-l I Only Plumbing and Heating goods aad I material of highest quality used. * I Full line of Tub, Toilet, Lavatory I Sink and other Bathroom Ace? Tin I and repairs on hand at Aiu w , I Plumbing and Heathy I PUT WATER AND HEAT I |M VOITO ? a v/uiv tlV/UOJh S. P. HAWES I Auto Supplies, Fancy Groceries I Ajax Tires, guaranteed 5000 I miles. ^ I PHONE 57. 1 QUICK DELIVERY. i*/l O I T. B. LEWIS, 1 Atty. and Counccllor at Latf I CONWAY, - - - S. C. I . O DR. J. D. THOMAS > I | Physician and Surgeon I LORIS, S. C. I lf.it 52 95 53 S3 S3 54 S3 S3 S3 Pi I r, COUNTY vs I 1 TRUST COMPANY 3 I U L- D Magrath S3 H Manager. Si I w Real Estate I Real Estate Loans b> I *a Bonds sa Insurance M H