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fl i il ma mmmv ujlwch a i the acton free press nun t otyf rep jnbb lort tory the secret of the sands john sdorr douoias hyak amwarwo cmt puot or tia ptoaaer airways at tnety in uw offim r aipsmtsndant hal ails the utur watmaun an elabotata pretmm or wanhnf ow the litter m reports on hi faattwm manns any imb there wo en abstracted look tn hi crey eye eemrml time in the pan few mlipitee he had reached tor the telephone only to return to the re port again hu oldyoung face and tiaffam eyee revealed only too clearly fear which had been preying on hu mind and fraying hu nerves to the breaking point a thin smile now flickered on hie gray lip he turned lmpahenuy to his young chief pilot mo tree your waiting around byran he mapped bit voice ragged with emotion don piatt isnt due yet far half an hour he a good pilot ifeerea nothing to worry about yet martin and stole are good pilot too bryan reminded the euperlntendent olle aprang to his feet his lean face twitching he glared balafully at the eunbroneed young pilot for a moment and then started to pace up and down the office luce a trapped animal he paused before an air map and bryan saw bis eyes following the air trail from salt lata dty to los angeles the air trail on which within two weeks the two pilots martin and stole had van- mat what gets me said oilaa fiercely turning to bryan beacon lights all the wayl yet those two fellows disappeared m though- the earth had opened tip and swallowed them its two month to a day tharhartln failed to how up here at the i a- airport six weeks for stole night flyings danger ous sure but there was no fog and they were both flying new planes well said bryan plaoaongly my friend don piatt hnx due yet no don isnt due yet ouea drop ped into his creaking swivel chair and turned to bryan his thin mouthrdrawn in a white hard line its not know ing that whats eating the heart out of me bryan not knowing if wed found wreckage in the mountains or on the mojave desert even if wed known they were having trouble when they left their last stop but no we scour the country for weeks and cant find a trace of em vanished completely vanish ed olles shuddered and flicked the reports with trembling anger he wet his lips with his tongue sometimes i feel ss ii rm executioner to you fellows i send you out to salt lake city frisco or phoenix and i dont know what im sending you out to perhaps to your death i perhaps to whatever fate martin and stole met and i dont know what it was or why dont think i havent imagined solu tions to their disappearance i have lota of em bryan fantastic things i i lie awake nlghu trying to drive them out of my head i sit here at this desk wait ing waiting waiting i think ill go crasy watting for the radio operator to give me the reports on the looatlon of the planes i feel some of my sanity re turning when one of my planu reaches its destination weve beaten the un known another time listen said bryan gently you take this thing too hard we dont hold what happened to martin and stole to you you cant help it ollra laughed harshly mow old am i twentysix tcntyaren i cant rrmenrber i mosnt like this two months and a day ago but i tell you itt not knowing not knowing what happened to those two fine fellows not knowing when ill send another man out to the same fate he reached for the tele phone again but the night buy entered at that moment with a dlmsy paper fttwi dun ptott growled giles the boy nodded handed him the sheet and departed olles took the message in lrembllnt hand and read it hi eyes glowed and the drep itiirs of hi face relaxed fcllht- ly u h handed it to bran pidiaoi e ir grtuuf to a solution n bohn read hie message ahosd of chrdule luiilnm on the mojatv- pilot of grounded plunr aigiialuug dull r is think it m uc martin or stole don piatt otlea telaed hl telephone itsdlu operator 1m- trktl hoarsely l-righ- tbn say t- to gel piatt find out if it u ms rtu i or stole otlr roe again and walked to the window he stared out onto the field illuminated by flood light then tie he- tunied to his swivel chair and miuled ai uoatf don piatt know his ult be muttered if be thinks its one of thoe tat fellows it must be he must know our plane and our uutgnla the moon u bright and you can see almost a well on the desert by moonlight as by sunlight if a pilot signalled him and the plane looked rile ours martin or stole mu be sttter thf telephone rang and olles reached for it what you cant get paui try again kasp trying i an hour went by and the operators repeated efforts to reach piatt failed aar did any other word eon from the missing pilot the una had deepened in atlas face bryan andrew stood at the window staring up at the moonlit cloudlets aky hoping against hope to see an aeroplane winging its way west ward had hi beat friend met the un known fate of those other two fine air men rm going home he said gruffly if theres any word will yob let me know chleff yes growled olles if theres any word bryan went home and went to bed but sleep was impossible he tossed and pitched through the interminable hours of the night ifgiwpg countless fan tastic solutions to donald piatts disap pearance only to reject them as they occurred to him sleepyeyed and halfexhausted he was at the office again at six olles eyed him with redrlnuned eyes when byran demanded if ny word had come yes said olles sarcastically the same word we received from martin and stole 1 silence i listen bryan take that two- seater on the field oorab the mojave along the salt lake olty route piatt may have wrecked bis ship in landing bryan nodded his arm young jaw set okeh chief he inquired of die mechanic if the ship had been fueled and conditioned for flight finding that it had been bryan donned his flying togs and climb ed into the rear cockpit settling his large body comfortably in the ptt he turned his ignition switch the motor burst into roaring song bryan gun ned the ship for many minutes then studying air gas and temperature gauges for a mtovute he released his broke and thrust his control stick for ward slightly u bring up the tall the aeroplane trundled forward with snarling spasms which changed to a purring highpitched drone byran pulled back the stick and the hard- baked earth of the landing field dropped away beneath him sptraung to gain altitude he presently levelled out nosing northeastward the stood beside an aeroplane which looked suspiciously like the one donald pitt had fjown bryan clicked off a message to olles and it flashed into his mind that he was doing preaelywfcatdonamhad done h was unwilling to leave donald here however when all their search bad fail ed to and this spot he fed his motor to prevent overflood- ing a the ship whined down toward the grounded aeroplane it was a pioneer alrrays shlpl where ws the second aeroplane donald had endeavored to help bryan was too overjoyed at the fact that donald watt was alive to be greatly concerned by the answer to this riddle his natural caution however urged him to land some distance away from the grounded machine then he taxled-to- ward it suddenly crisscross tracks in the sand caused his blood to run cold bryan first thought that the wheel tracks in hhe sand were an illusion due to shadows caused by ridges in the sand no ridges these they were the distinct marks left by landing gears and tu skids t they disappeared in a sand dune directly ahead he was entering a trap the man who had- stood beside the grounded aeroplane was running toward him shouting something the man was not donald piatt he was too short and he limped where had heseen that face before the answer flashed into bryans mind dirk pennington i one of the fellows bryan had known nti the training school i two men suddenly materialised out of that which appeared to be the sand dune ahead their appearance did not par ticularly astonish bryan although their biding place did he knew that sand dune for what it was a hidden hangar all these thoughts raced through his mind tn the few instants during which bryan was taxllng toward the limp ing pilot his action swiftly followed his thought his hand leaped to the throttle and the aeroplane roared its warning the twoseater flew across the ground gaining momentum the twoseater was wabbling free in space and bryan splrled above the grounded plane the two men had vanished again the lame youth was still waving the shirt feebly it seemed to bryan as though he knew his ruse would not work a second time the pilot vtalonod olles twitching at his desk and sought to relieve tils chiefs anxiety he radioed barely avoided tro think don piatt may be alive coming directly to airport bryan andrews a little over half an hour later bryan was in olles office he flattened out his desk hi jaw muscle showing whit and trained under hi tan get it chief peihirigton worked for yates yates company the columbia skyways was about pushed to the wall by us- because we kept more regular schedule and had few accidents sure i get itl barked olles yates goes out to see that we have less regular schedules and more aeeidenu than he does how were the outfit thats run- tnlng close to the wall i maybe were jumping to eonehulons chief i dont like to accuse anyone without plenty of proof but it looks funny funny t ni get the sheriff to run out with a bunch of men and nab those babies who have been waylaying our planes with distress signals some one is going to pay for this i walt a minute said bryan quietly we cando all you say but perhaps don plstt will get hurt if those fellows show resistance persuasion la better than force every timet now if i fly out there and fall into their trap then therell be one more of my men likely tb get hurt when the sheriff anally has to go out to rescue you l i dont believe it chief i you see i know dirk pennington pretty wall he may be weak but hes not fundamentally bad it seem better to me to set him on the tight track than to send him up to prison for a stretch and have him permanently started wrong td like to are longer crisscross lines of los angeles streets dropped behind him to be replaced by mtt on the d a pointed to a star small farms and orange groves p on the desert he then ex before long these farms had given way plained to olles all that had happened to the foothills while ahead of him barely visible in the distance as he slowly boomed the aeroplane lay the tawny desert dotted wlor blooming sage- bush here it was that his interest in the terrain streaming under him began to awaken his goggled eyes swept the undulating sea of sand dunes and sage looking always for a small dot or two olles gray eyes burned so thats u eh a trap what can be its purpose whom was dirk pennington working for we can get my former instructor on the phone said bryan grimly hell know he looked up the number in the book and called roberts sorry if 1 got small dots donalds plane and the ship fi p ow n this la andrews call- he had gone to aid the desert took on a savage grandeur bed crags reared up ahead against on osurc sky still the aeroplane he sought was not visible heat rays shimmered into mirages in the hot dead sir the sandy waste seemed dead lifeless his- hope dwindled as the map pinned po his instrument board showed bryan that he was approaching the nevada line finally he turned to his short wave set giving the communication signal in a moment the code signal making known that he was heard came through his earphones he clicked out a message on the keys giving his approx imate position and asking fur further orders the reply came tn two minutes trom mcmahon the day superintendent return to l a taking a more northerly course mcmahon bryan turned northward for nearly ten miles and then turned travelling south west hla return trip was but a repeti tion of the trip out he was unable to find any trace of donald piatt a arro- plane mcmahon s stuart man with a square jaw met bryan when he landed this will finish ua if it keeps up he grunted three planes vanish in three month no wundcr our business u falling oft there were a lot of reporters around here this morning and you can depend on it theyll plssler it all over the front pages mcmahon s predict km proved true the mysterious disappearance of the pioneer airways lng its pretty important or i wouldnt haw called you can you tell me whom dirk pennington is working for what he worked for zedobla yates you think hes our of a job now thanks a lot bryan placed the telephone back on the no early riain g to dro w up the furnace when i you use old com- panya anthracite your fire burns longer more steadily more evenly because tld companys an thracite is harder more compact bh lost tonauu inquire now about modern anthracite bubn1no equipment j b mackenzie son coal and coke uimber badders sappues contraetsts try persuasion and if it doesnt work you can use force what say all right said olles try your method and when it falls iii come to your assistance bryan grinned rtbanks chief half an hour later bryan was hovering above the grounded aeroplane there was bo evidence of life around it but as he started to spiral down pennington appeared from the sand dune waving his shirt bryan landed and rolled up to the grounded machine he stepped out smllihg t two men appeared a and walked toward him dirk pennington shifted uaeasuy as the two men apr preached bryan recognised them as two other classmates friends or dtrki you think youre going to take me prisoner he laughed but youre not what melee you think were not one of the young men demanded gruffly because rve been in to l a since i left here and the super knows all about this trap the two young men exchanged signifi cant glances dirk pennington smiled faintly it was white of you to tell us that bryan he said but why should you why didnt you come with the patrolmen instead of alone if i hadnt felt there was something worth salvaging in you dirk i wouldnt have had the least leniency but rve known you to do many ge things and rd like to see you getung a fresh start that applies to you other two fellows too what do you think it will get you to be waylaying our planes for zedobla yates bryan was taking a shot in the dark but their faces showed surprise and he knew his guess had been good he will keep you on until weve been broken then what hell let you out what made you do it the three young men shifted uneasily dirk stared at the ground we were all working for yates he confessed in a low voice he let us out as his business went down hill due mostly to his refusal to get modem types of planes and equip ment we had been out of work for months and were desperate he called the three of us in and proposed that we should stop your planes by pretending distress and then taking your pilots prisoners we didnt want to do the work but he threatened that he wouldnt give us rtcommcndatlons and we couldnt irct jobs elsewhere so we waylaid mar tin with one of youa planes and used martins plane to get assistance from stole and piatt it was our plans to hold them and whatever other pioneer airwaya men we could flag down until the reputation for unreliability caused your company to go out of business didnt you feel rotten trying to break b company which never did you any cdnadasfavouritetea cat all a harm dirk asked bryan rotten rve felt like a dog every minute of the time i and what youve said about yates turning against us when we had done his contemptible work fits in exactly with what rve reasoned out lor myself we soon- realised we were dupes but we had martin then and if we set him free yates would not pay us im glad its all over and m take my punishment like a man yes agreed one of the other pilot well take our medicine heres the dose i prescribe said bryan with a faint smile the three of you arc witnesses to what yates wee trying to do it is up to you to see that the pioneer airways gets its reputation cleared before the public if youll 9 continued an page seven win motion picture awards for his work in captains courageous and for her workin the oood eortli spencer tracy and lulse ralncr werv awarded the accolades for the best motion picture performances of 1037 by the academy of motion picture arts and sciences thirteen hundred hollywoodlus were present at the banquet where the goldplated statuettes were presented to the popular stars ahthracitc the iolid fuel for solid comfort carrolls l i m i t i 0 clar s pork and beans f corn syrup wuk am ss 3 m- s s mill o ti 25c pie apples v vis 36 f g n4 tm 23c t 16 special gravst hwh a coffee tomatoes firm ripe delicious kuby o it ac kcd special tt far potatoes 10c good mealy cooker 15 tb peck for third aeroplane was i front page news it remained front page news for nearly a week while the search tor thr missing machine continued at mhltr heat hope that donald piatt without food or water perhaps injured might remain alive in the uajove dcert i then bewail to fade the search was finally discontinued as hopeless meonwhue the pilot watched for any trace of thrlr lost comrades whencrcr their night took them over the mojave reluming from tialt lake city one night i r month after donald piatt had vanish- ed br an noticed a splash of white on the desert his body stiffened as he siarrd ahead moonlight nooded the earth and he was able to dlsungulsh a man atklly wattag a shirt the man i carrotstnew size bunches for 5c oranges medium large delicious navels sweet per dozen 19c spinach 13c fresh and curly tbs for o celery stalks nice size for 9c cabbage f 4c tomatoes 3 no t 20c bonlt smokd fillets poi 17 si cu rd salmon i ib i 24c oxci qi oats cr prti 21c hainan g crisco 1 lemon cream sandwiches 2 pound 25 eatra spectl oui rjuu 10c prunes 3 pound 25 sturt ptctin jsm raspberry 32o j 23 rd pclm red rose lb pcli 3u j 0l sci s pid s ik pclj up iom ih it qk cm flakes 8c qkr phd rice 12c q4 pd wheat 9c 21 old colon pi maple syrup 2 o bh 51 boi btl aunt imim pancake flour plifj tch flo pi 17c grapefruit texas seedless medium oq large scisjc carrolls limited good shoes tow toung amd old pftsatv a d rachlin acton au lid bi pineapple 2 25c moasfch psitay flour- tb 69c oa c old cheese p- 25c special fscist soap woodburvs 2 ca 15c jienk flostinj cstbolic soap 3ovi4e 25c huumui sfwusums tamo utra 6 yew b f improved quaut peas 3 i it mi nun ro rova saia jokxtcxi ptt floor wax i ib r- 59 comfort sosp lot laundry 4 15c pi sosp wbh naphtha 3 10c special cleanser 3 13c mux street stoke closed wednesday atrsnoons free delivery phone ms i