f i " S u n d ay' s coining. G ive him tim e. . . . . S o y o u 're n ot h ap p y, M arkh am d ear?" " W a s I d ra g ged a w a y fr o m another en gagem en t to rep ort on m y state o f m in d ?" " N o r.eed. Y ou r state o f m ind's e x e crable. . . *. C h eerio! I 've b rou gh t y ou som ething to think ab ou t." " D a m n it ! I 'v e g ot too m uch to think about rii)w." " H ere, have som e b rioch e." V a n ce ga v e the ord er f o r lunch w ith ou t con su ltin g either c f us. " A n d n ow f o r m y revelations. P op C lea ver w a sn 't in B oon ton fast M on day l.ig h t. He w a s v e ry m uch in the m idst o f ou r m odern G o m ir ia h , tr y in g to a rra n ge a m id n igh t p a rty ." " W o n d e r fu l!" snorted M arkham . " I lave in the fo n t o f y c u r w isdom . H is a lter ego, I take it, w as on the roa d to H opatcon gj T he su p ern a tu ra l leaves m e ifekk" Y c i m ay De as pa n cosm ic as you chftdse. C leaver w a s in N ew Y ork at j m idnight, cra v in g excitem en t." (T o be con tin u ed .) S . S .V A J N D IN E AWTHOR THE BENSON MURDER CASE No premiums w ith Salada but finest quality instead TH E STOR Y TH US F A R : F o r a m om ent the g ir l' s doubts re" M r. M a n n ix w a s w ith m e fr o m tu rn ed, and she g a ve V a n ce a searchh a lf-p a s t ten u ntil tin th e m orn in g look. in g ," A ly s L a F o sse tells V a n ce. " W h y a re you so in terested ? Y >u V a n c e had tra ced a p ictu re fo u n d in didn' t kn ow M a rg y , d id y o u ? She ithe a p a rtm en t o f th e m u r ie r e d M a r n ev er m entioned y o u ." g a r e t O dell to A ly s . H e is t r y in g to V a n ce laughed. p r o v s to M a rk h a m th a t Skeel did not " M y d ea r ch ild ! I on ly w ish 1 c o m m it th e m u rd er, desp ite the f a c t 751 S k eel' s fin g e r-p rin ts .'ere fo u n d in the knew w h y I am so deuced con cerned ithis a ffa ir ' P on m y w ord , I ca n ' t a p a rtm en t. V a n ce b elieves Skeel w as h id in g in a c lo s e 1 - w h ile the m u rd er giv e you even th e sketch iest exp la n a w a s com m itted. M arkh am rid icu les the tion. . . N o, I n ever m et M iss Odell. ` F r e s h f r o m t l t e g a r d e n s * th e o ry , b u t V a n ce is unshaken. H e be B u t it w ou ld offen d m y sense o f p r o lie v e s th e m u rd er w a s com m itted by p ortion i f 'i l r . Skeel w ere punished on e o f th e fo llo w in g f o u r : M a n n ix, and the rea l cu lp rit w en t fre e . M aybe FALLEN LIVE S C lea ver, D r. L in dqu ist o r Spotsw oode. h ave been spu rred to design super I 'm g e ttin g sentim ental. A sad fa te , H e is tr y in g to g e t som e in form a tion vaults that w ill sta ve off sa fe break R e ce n tly a m an, p ro sp e ctin g in the w h a t?" fr o m A ly s L a Fosse. ers, if not in definitely, at least as long m in in g region s o f A rizona, fou n d a " I guess I ' m g e ttin g s o ft, to o ." She as possible. How' s u cce ss fu l they rem ark able natural b ridge. It spans nodded her head, still look in g ^ s n ce C H A P T E R X X V III. h ave been was dem on strated in New a deep can on, forty-five fe e t in w idth. success." sq u a rely in the eyes. " I risk ed m y " I ' m su re it w ill be _ ________ , Y ork n ot lon g ag q , w hen w reckers T h e bridge is m ade by a great petri V a n ce spok e w ith d isa rm in g fr ie n d li-i h a p p y hom e to tell you w h a t I did, w ere a ctu ally called upon to dem olish fied tre e th at lies a cro ss the gorge. ness. " W e re you hom e a lone all M on - because som eh ow I believed you. a n ew ly built vault because a bank S cien tific m en say that, m an y a ges d a y e v e n in g ?" S ay, you w eren 't s trin g in g me, b y any m oved. T he outer shell o f the vault " H a rd ly ." T h e idea seem ed to am ch a n ce ?" since, this tre e w as p rostra ted by was a fo u r fo o t thick w all o f co n u se hsr. " I w en t to th e ` S ca n d a ls'-- som e terrific storm , and fe ll a cross V a n ce pu t his nand on his heart crete o r fireproofin g and protection b u t I cam e hom e ea rly. I kn ew L ou ey th e can on. B y the e ffects o f the and becam e serious. against earthquake shock . -- M r. M a n n ix-- w a s co m in g ." w ater and tim e, it h as passed through " M y dea r M iss La F osse, when I " I tru st he a pp recia ted y o u r s a c r i Then ca m e a six-inch th ickn ess o f m an y sta ges o f m ineralization , and is fice. V a n ce , I believe, w a s d isa p leave h ere it w ill be as though I had m aterial e sp ecia lly developed as a Crib-cracking Versus Safenow a w on d erfu l tre e o f solid agate. D ism iss me and M r. poin ted b y this u nexpected a lib i o f n ever entered. p rotection again st the cutter-burner. And th ere it lies, m ak in g an agate M a m .ix ' s. I t w as, indeed, s- final that V a n D ine h ere fr o m y o u r m in d." making is a Struggle Not It con sisted o f large iron slabs, tlie b rid g e ov e r w hich m en m a y pass from fu r t h e r in te rro g a tio n con cern in g it " Som eth in g in his m anner banished outside face tool-p roof and its-in sid e Yet at an End seem d fu tile . A f t e r a m om en ta ry i hey m isg ivin g s, and she bade us filled with a c o r e o f m agnesium oxide sid e to side. T h is tre e seem ed to be' pa u se, he ch anged th e u b ject In N ew Y o fk a sixty-storey sk y j k itten ish fa rew ell. -- a m aterial m anufactured at N iagara a failu re w hen , th a t day in its prim e, " T ell m e ; w h a t do you know about scraper is rising, and at its heart is (T h u rsd a y , Sept. 13, a fte r n o o n ). F alls under a fu sin g tem perature o f it w as b rok en off by the storm and <a M r. C h arles C le a v e r? H e w as a " M y sleu th in g goes b etter," exulted a m am mottr^vault, an arm ored fo r 8000 degrees Fahrenheit, and p roof h urled to the ground. But, instead fr ie n d o f M iss O dell's." tress o f steel and con crete. Behind against trem endous heat. Inside this o f being a failure, to w hat n obler use " Oh, P o p 's all rig h t," T h e g ir l w as V a n ce, w hen wre w ere a ga in in the p la in ly relieved b y this tu rn in the street. F a ir A ly s w as a v erita b le the d cors o f that vault m ay lie $1,- cam e a seven-inch b u ttressin g wall cou ld it h av e b een put than thus to con versa tion . " A good scout. H e was m ine o f in fo rm a tio n -- eh, w h a t? Only 000,000,000. J tE v ery hum an and me con tain in g steel H -colum ns, heavy b ecom e a b ridg e o f agate, to stand ch anical devk-e will be em ployed to cou ntless c e rta in ly gon e on M a rg y . E ven a fte r y ou should h av e con trolled y o u rs e lf m etallic ribs, crossw ise round bars, a fo r a ges, and on w hich guard that treasure. W ill It be m ay w alk a cro ss the sh e th rew him o v e r f o r M i'. Sp ots b etter w hen she m entioned her be filling o f rich con crete, and a bin d in g hum an fe e t sa fe? o f steel plates h alf an inch thick bolt ch a sm ? T h is fallen tree is an illus w oode, he w a s fa ith fu l, as you m ight lov ed 's nam e-- rea lly, you should, V a n " I put that question to a distinguish ed to the H -beam s. sa y-- a lw a ys ru n n in g a fte r h er, send old th in g. I saw you ju m p and heard T he doors w ere tration o f cou n tless hum an lives you heave. Such em otion is m ost un ed vault engineer, w ho has built som e sm ooth-face, con ica l plug doors im per w hich have fallen, and se em ed to in g h er flow ers and presents. j o f the strongest vaults in existence, viou s to explosives. fall, but w h ich in tim e h a v e proved " Sonic men a re like th a t. P oor old becom in g in a la w y er." F r o m a booth in a d ru g -store near j His answ er amazed me. " A com peten t w re ck in g com pany to be bridges o v e r w hich others can P op! H e een phoned m e M on day " `Give me a m illion dollars with using the m ost m odern tools found it w alk to h on or, su cce ss and trium ph, n ig h t to ca ll up M a rg y f o r him and th e hote' he telephoned M a rk h a m : " I t r y to arra n ge a p a rly .-- M a yb e ii' I'd am ta k in g you to lunch. I h a v e n um which to build a vault,' he said, `and s e lf all but baffled by this vault. T he -- R e v. J. R . M iller, D.D. · d on e it, she w ouldn 't be dead n ow . . . . erou s confidences I w ou ld p o u r into there w ould still be h alt a dozen men best progress that the w reck ers could y o u r ea r." A debate ensued, b u t in in the w orlff' Tvho Could open and rob m ake through the walls, even w ith the T ha t Sore Thro at Needs Minard's. I t ' s a fu n n y w orld , isn 't it ? " i t ! '. advantage o f bein g able to attack " Oh, no end fu n n y ." V a n ce sm oked th e end V a n ce em ergad triu m p h a n t; RE AD ING " N or are these m en H oudinis, or th em from the inside, w as h alf an inch ca lm ly f o r a m in u te; I could n ot help and a m om ent la ter a ta x ica b w as Jim m y Valentines w ho open tum bler a day. T h ey w ho have read a bout every It to o k thirteen and one-half d r iv in g us dow n-tow n. a d m irin g his self-co n tro l. " W h a t tim e " A ly s is clever-- th ere are brains lock s w ith sandpapered fingers. They w oeks to dem olish the en tire vault. thing are th ou ght to understand did M r. C lea ver phone you M on day are experts in the use o£ tw o o f the Although a sa fe b reaker m igh t have everyth ing, t o o ; but it i3 n ot alw ays n ig h t-- do you r e c a ll? " F ro m his voiee in th a t fluffy head," h e rum inated. m ost terrible safe-breaking w eapons en tered it in less tim e, it is doubt so. R ea d in g fu rn ish es the m ind on ly on e w ould h ave th ou gh t the question " Sh e' s m u ch sm a rter than H ea th ; she know n-- the ` fluxing rod ' and the ful if he w ould h ave cared to tackle with m aterials o f k n o w le d g e ; it is knew at on ce th a t Skeel w a sn ' t gu ilty. o f no im portan ce. `oxyg en lance.' A gainst th ese latest the jo b . th in k in g th at m akes w h a t w e read " L e t m e see. . . ." She pu rsed her H er ch a ra cteriza tion o f th e im niacupotential tools o f safe breakers, no " W ith th e desig o f such fo rm id our. W e are o f the ru m inating kind, lip s p rettily. " I t w as ju s t ten m in U.te T o n y w a s in eleg a n t b u t h ow a; a b solu te d efen se is kn ow n . Th^ able vaults the advan tage lies tem and it is n ot enough to cram our Anj u te s t o tw elve. I rem em ber th a t the cu ra te-- oh, h ow a ccu ra te ! cial w orld is w aitin g to seu if porarily w ith the pro te cto rs o f m on ey selves with a great load o f co lle ctio n s lit tle ch im e clo ck on the m an tel over noticed , o f cou rse, h ow she truste' 1 w ill dare to use rath er than w ith the th ieves. Still, -- we m ust ch ew them over again. th e re w as s trik in g m id n igh t, and a f Touchir.' , w a sn 't it ? . . . I t' s a if ` im possible' in the th ere is alw ays the th reat a>f som e S om eth in g's am iss fiv st I cou ldn ' t h ear P op v e ry welly problem , V an . n e v er-en d J ^ ^ K -.te h r tween >afe milk u n exp ected d evelopm en t in ' be saffe Y o u see, I a lw a ys keep m y clock ten som ew here. ` EVILf · > ers and ^ K ^ J ) e a k e " s , " says H enry cra ck e r' s art, or o f som e super T he w orld is bad enough to darken H e w as silent, sm okin g, f o r several j m inutes f a s t so I 'll n ever be late fo r j M orton R obinson in Papular S cien ce, crim inal with th skill to use the means and d istress m y n oble m ind;' yet blocks. a n app ointm en t." i " B urglar-proof" vaults h ave per- n o w know n. It is against this pos thank heaven, the w ords o f S ch iller " M a n n ix.............. C u rious he should V a n ce com pared th e clock w ith his ! force undergone great and devolution- sib ility th at the va u lt b u ilders are are stil true, that " N o m an can love w atch . cro p up again A n d h e issued orders ary changes in the past fifty years. co n sta n tly m a tch in g th e ir w its in evil fo r e v il's sak e as he can love " R es, it's ten m inutes fa s t,-- A nd tc A ly s to keep m um . N ow , w h y ? From the days o f the eigh ties, when their th rilling w ar again st the unseen. fo r good n ess' sa k e." w h a t a bout the p a r t y ? " M a yb e the rea son he g a v e h er w as the a bank's idea o f the last w ord in -------------" Oh, I w a s U»o busy ta lk in g about re a l one. W h o k n ow s? On the other GRACES secu rity was a four fo o t thick door " Do you read all the health p o in ts ?" th e new show , and I had to refu se. hand, w as he w ith h is cite re am ie from V irtu e and gen uin e gra ces in them studded w ith cannon balls and bolted ` N ot all," answ ered M r. Chuggins. A n y w a y , M r. M a n n ix d id n ' t w a n t to h a lf-p a s t ten till ea rly m orn in g ? W ell, h om e into their vault's fram ew ork . . . selves speak w hat no w ords ca n ut- `In m y efforts to keep out o f th e h o s h a v e a p a rty th a t n igh t. . . I t w a sn ' t w ell. A g a in , w h o kn ow s? Som ething pried ter.-- Shakespeare. w hich door, was inciden tally pital I lim it m y se lf to a study o f the m y fa u lt, w a s i t ? " queer a b ou t th a t business discussion. out com pletely b y th eives to the tune traffic regu la tion s." " N ot a b it o f it," V a n ce assured her. " Then C leaver. H e called up ju st Minard's W a.t fs Off Grippe. o f n early three m illion dollars . . . . " W o rk com es b e fo re pleasu re-- espe ten m inutes b e fo re m idnight-- oh, yes, to the up-to-date stron g-box such as c ia lly w o rk as im p ortan t as you rs. . . he ca lle I up. T h a t w a sn 't a fa ir y d escribed at the com m en cem en t of A n d now , there is one oth er m an I tale. B u t h ow could he telephone from this a rticle is a far cry. T h e p rogress w a n t to ask y o u about, and then I a speed in g c a r ? H e cou ld n 't. M aybe o f the opposed scien ces o f safe-m ak w o n 't b oth er you an y m ore. W h a t w as he re a lly w anted to have a p a rty with ing and safe-breaking has been an in th e situ ation betw een M iss O dell and Lis reca lcitra n t C a n a ry, don 't y ' know. terestin g one through the phase o f the D o cto r L in d q u ist?" B u t then, w hy. the bru m m agem a libi? " step ped" door, the in troduction of M iss L a F osse becam e gen u in ely F u n k ? M aybe. n itro-glycerin e and the " soup m an," p ertu rb ed . " B u t w h y th e circu itou sn ess?-- why the con e door m achined so closely " I w as a fr a id you w ere g o in g to d ' d n 't he ca ll h is lo s t love d irect? A h , that that artist could not get his a s k m e a bout h im ." T h e re w a s a p perh a ps he d id ! Som e one certainly " soup" into the cracks, and finally p reh en sion in h er eyes. " I d on ' t kn ow ca lled h er b y phone a t tw en ty minutes . . . last stage but on e . . . the oxyju s t w h a t to say. H e w a s w ild ly in to tw elve. a cety len e torch, w hich w ill bite lo v e w ith M a r g y ; and she led him on, " W e m ust look in to that, V a n .............. through a six-ich steel plate in a few to o . B u t she w a s s o r r y f o r it a ft e r Y e s, h e m a y ave called her, and then j m inutes, w a rd , because he g o t je a lo u s -- like a w hen a man answ ered-- w ho the deuce i , , To-day scien ce m eets the th reat of c r a z y person. w as th a t man anyw ay ? - h e m ay have Uje .cu tter.burnel, w itll com p osite a n n p n p / rr» 4 W'c l . l m f f l i . o r n v Q l " H e used to pester the life out o f appealed to A ly s. Q uite n atural, y w alls that em body m aterials resistan t h er. A n d on ce-- d o . y o u k n o w !-- he know . A n y w a y , he w a sn 't in Boonton. to heat, drills, and exp losives. Y et th rea ten ed to shoot h er and then shoot P oor M arkh am ! H ow u pset he' ll be even such walls can not m eet the new h im se lf. I told M a rg y t o look ou t fo r w hen he finds out. threat of the ` fluxing rod ' and the `ox y " B u t w h a t re a lly w orries me is that gen lance.' h im . B u t she did n 't seem to be a fra id . T h e first is sim ply a A n y w a y I th in k she w as ta k in g an sto ry o f the doctor. Jealous m a n ia : it stick o f soft steel w hich th e expert a w fu l ch ance. . . . O h ! D o you think squares w ith A m b roise's ch aracter operator holds again st the m etal to i t cou ld h av e been-- d o you rea lly p e rfe ctly . H e' s the kind th a t does go be burned. Then he applies the oxythink?" o ff his head. I knew h is con fession a cety len e flame to the tip o f the flux " A n d w a sn ' t th ere a n y one else," o f p a tern a lism w a s a red h errin g. M y ing rod, which oxidizes so rapidly that V a n c e in terru p ted , " w ho m ig h t have w o r d ! So th e d octor w a s m aking the tem perature can be raised to un f e l t th e sam e w a y ? -- any one M iss th rea ts and flourish ed pistols, eh ? believa b le heights. O dell had rea son to f e a .'? " B ad, bad. I dor.' t lik j it. W ith those " The ` oxygen la n ce' has been known " N o ." M iss L a F osse shook her ears o f his, he w ou ld n ' t hesitate to for som e tim e. It con sists o f a long h ead . " M a rg y did n 't know m a n y men pull the tr ig g e r. P a ra n oia -- th a t's it. sm all iron pipe through w hich oxygen in tim a tely. Sh e did n 't ch a n ge often , D elu sion s o f persecu tion. P roba b ly gas is forced . T he business end o f · i f you k n ow w h a t I m ean. There th ou g h t th e g ir l and P op -- or m aybe the pipe is heated red-h ot by a cu t w a sn ' t anybod y else outside o f those th e g ir l and Spotsw oode-- w ere p lot ter-burner. T h e h o t iron ign ites in Some folks take pain fo r granted. y o u 've m entioned, e x cep t, o f course, tin g h is m ise ry and la u g h in g at him. th oxyg en stream and flares so fierce They let a cold " run its course.' ! M r. Spotsw oode. H e cu t P o p o u t " Y ou ca n 't tell a bout those chaps. ly that it w ill burn its w ay straight severa l m onths ago. She w e n t to din T h e y ' re deep-- and t.iey 're dangerous. through anything. Blast fu rn a ce men T h ey wait for their headaches to " wear off." n e r w;ith h im M on d a y n igh t, too. I T h e ca n n y A ly s h a d him sized up-- use the oxygen la n ce to cu t aw ay I f suffering from neuralgia or from neuritis, w anted her to go to the ` S can dals' w ith w a rn ed th e C an ary a ga in st h im .............. `frozen ' steel from the tapholes o f the they rely on feeling better in the morning. Taken b y and la rg e , it ' s a devilish furnace. m e-- th a t's h o w I k n ow ." Meantime, th ey suffer unnecessary pain, V a n c e ro se and held ou t his hand. tan gle. A n y w a y , I fe e l ra th er bucked, " So expert must be the men behind unnecessary, because .there is an antidote. " Y o u ' ve been v e ry kind. A n d you w e' re m ov in g-- oh, u ndou btdly w e' re these instrum ents that on ly h a lf a ; Aspirin tablets always offer immediate relief h a v e n o th in g w h a tever to fe a r . N o m ovin g-- th ou gh in w h a t d irection I dozen men in the w orld are capable j from various aches and pains we once had t o I t 's b ea stly an o f breaking into a vault w ith them. on e sh all ever kn ow o f our little v is it ca n 't even <juess. endure. I f pain persists, consult you r doctor as to its cause. F ortunately these men are n ot crim n oyin ' ." th is m orn in g ." M arkh am w a s w a itin g fo r us at the inals. T h ey are experts w hose nam es " W h o do you think killed M a r g y ? " Save yourself a lot o f pain and discom fort M oreover there are H e greeted V an ce ar w ell known. T h e re w as gen u in e em otion in th e B a n k ers' C lub. through the m any proven uses o f Aspirin. practical o b je ctio n s to the use o f such g i r l ' s voice. " L ou e says it w as p rob irrita b ly. Aspirin is safe. Always th e same. A ll drug T h e ox yg en pipe is stores with com plete directions. " W h a t h av e you g o t to tell me th a t' s tools illegally. a b ly som e b u rg la r w h o w anted her dangerous to u se w ith ou t cu m ber so dam ned im p o rta n t?" je w e ls ." And it gen erates b il " N ow don't g et ra tty ." V a n ce w as som e shields. " I ' m too w ise t o sow discord in this " H ow ' s y o u r lode-star, low s o f b lack sm oke when it m eets h a p p y m en age b y even q u estion in g M r. beam ing. ca st iron, leadin g to probable detec M a n n ix ' s opin ion ," said V a n ce, h a lf Skeel, b e h a v in g ?" " So f i.r h e's done everth in g that' s tion. b a n te rin g ly . " N o one know s w h o' s " Still, in fa ce o f possib ilities from g u ilty ; b u t the p olice a gree w ith M r. pu re a nd refined excep t jo in the TRADE M A RK R E ® . their frien d s the enem y, en gineers C h ristian E n d ea v or S ociety." M a n n ix." TEA Which WinsCrdok or Bank? i V e e t //e # * P a in. 7 SPIRIN