The Richmond palladium and sun-telegram. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1907-1939, 1907-11-03

me this morning are til Frenchiest of
| the French"
John Harrington protested smiling
ly that the shoemaker must have
made some mistake.
certainly told them to send the
same shoes that you always wear" he
said. What did they send YOU
In a moment the offending shoes
had been brought in by Fiorence's
maid, and Harrington had them in his
hand.
/ These are not the shoes l sent
you he said. There must be some
mistake about them"
( He turned them sole up in his hand
to look at the size, and as he did so
thin piece of brown paper came loose
from one of the heels and fluttered to
the floor, revealing a row of queer
little brass nails.
That must be some new fad" said
Florence. What are they for, tath-
err" But her father was already has
tening to the window to scrutinize
them more closely. One glance was
sufficient.
Good Cod cried the old man.
They're no nails; they're percussion
caps. Is there nothing that can save
us? Child, If you had set foot to the
floor with that devils continuance on,
your life would have been snuffed ont
like a candle. The man who did this
is a fiend incarnate, devil in human
form. Who else ever would have
! thought of such a santanic expedient
to destroy human iife?"
John Harrington trembled like a
leaf as he gathered his daughter to his
bosom For the first time in all his
long life of storm and stress he knew
himself beaten, utterly and complete
ly.
He sent his daughter to her room
and placed an arm guard at her door.
Then he retired to his study to face
the crisis that confronted him. He
had sacrificed Henry Caswei and
Joseph Phillips and would willingly
have faced torture himself, but when
his daughter was attacked he could
see no way out of it but surrender.
Late into the night he thought and
thought 1t was almost midnight when
he rose at last and stretched himself.
Next day was Friday. There was still
one more day left He had at last
decided on his line of action.
For the first time in ten days John
Harrington slept soundly-the sleep Of
tired child that fears no awakening
till morning.
He was early awake and left early
for his office. But half way down
town he spoke to the chauffeuer.
ALBERT" he said, '1et me out here.
The day is fine and I need exercise"
On the sidewalk he had recognized
James Elder, and he walked straight
to him. Elder bowed slightly, without
taking his cigar from between the
strong, white, even teeth.
Good morning" he said, swinging
his cane nonchalantly.
Harrington was too experienced in
dangerous games to lose his temper,
much as he would have liked to have
spoiled the clearcut features Of the
younger man.
Good morning, Elder he said, Il
am glad I met you. If you will come
to my office this afternoon at o'clock
l will settle with you. l surrender"
Good" said Elder. Il thought
you would prove reasonable when
you found the police couldn't touch
me. There isn't a thing I can be
charged with with any hope Of con-
viction."
Il know It, said Harrington, and
then added, reflectively, damn you"
Thanks" drawled Elder. AT 2
this afternoon"
Yes. Damn you," growled Harring-
ton.
Thanks" sneered Elder. "I'll be
there"
Harrington hurried on down the av-
enue to Twenty-third street and then
swung abruptly into Broadway. AT
the first drug store he purchased a
few cents worth of chemicals, placed
the packet in his pocket, paid for it,
and then fastened by way of TWEEN
tieth street toward Third avenue.
There he purchased more chemicals
at another drug store, and still more
at a third Then he returned to
Broadway and took a surface car
down to Duane street, where he alight-
ed In a nearby sporting goods store
he bought box of cartridges.
Then, calling hanson, he was
driven to his office In lower Broad
way. AS soon as his letters were an
swered he dismissed his secretary for
the day and gave orders that no one
on any pretext was to be admitted to
his private office until further orders
Locking the door he set to work
With a skill born Of his early days
when explosives were his hobby, he
compounded a cake Of pale brown hue
that looked like nothing so much as a
bar of soap. This he placed in neat
pasteboard box.
Then he found a travelling clock
which he wound and set. 1t ran
smoothly. This. too, he placed In the
pasteboard box One Of the glass sides
he removed. and to the tiny hammer
of the alarm he tied two or three par
lor matches firmly bound together.
From a drawer of his desk he took a
nail file and fastened 1t firmly in the
box just where the matches must
strike it when the alarm went off