The star and Newark advertiser. [volume] (Newark, N.J.) 1908-1909, 1908-05-14

room for a second.
stop, mani" Missed the burglar to
doctor. It's the police and we'll
all get p%inched. l know the way out
of this building"
How"
There's a secret tunnel leading to
Chinatown. That's why l broke in
here in running from the police before.
That tunnel would have gotten me out
of the fix. Hurry, I'm burning"
The flames were already upon them.
1T is the only way" yelled the doc
tor, grabbing up old man Ryerson from
the bed. You carry the girl, and,
Mag. you'll have to look out for your
self. Where's the %tunnel?'
Just as the front door crashed in
under the blows from the detectives,
assisted by the special policemen who
had been on quarantine duty, the burg
lar, carrying the figure of Miss Ryer-
son over his shoulder, darted out into
the hall, followed by the doctor, carry
ing Ryerson and Mag, who had extin-
guished the burning clothes. At the rear
end of the hall the burglar lifted a
blind trap door and descended into a
dark hole, the steps being formed of
mouldy bricks.
As they got into the hole and closed
the trap door after them they heard
Captain Carroll cry to his men:
The house is on fire; turn in an
alarm. quick"
Placing Miss Ryerson on the damp
dirt floor, the burglar threw aside a
pile of the rubbish on one side of the
cellar and revealed a panel made of
earth. but fastened to a series of
boards. This opened like a door on
hinges, but when closed could not be
told from the balance of the side of
the room, except by a minute inspec-
lion. The thief showed on this panel,
and it swung open. He told the doctor
and the woman to enter, to do which
they had to stoop quite low, thus
making it more difficult for the doctor
and the burglar to carry their human
burdens. When they were in the tun-
mel the burglar closed the panel after
them and placed a heavy bar across
it, h Il securing their retreat from the
burning house.
THE tunnel bends quite a Bit aid
the thief; but go ahead, and keep
your left hand to the wall. You will
come out all right -
The physician followed Instructions,
and Mag went after him, the burglar
| vi i w III l0dI IL lhG imp
form of Miss Ryerson on his shoulder.
They had gone hardly a hundred
yards when Mag stopped short and
commenced to wall. It had just ool
CURED to her that she had come away
without thinking about little Laura
that Laura would be burned to death,
so far as she knew.
ooh, what do you care!" shouted the
doctor at her; you never cared for
her, and / guess she's better off" "
But Mag was for going back until
Markay threatened to shoot her dead
If she attempted such a thing, and
then she followed in the procession.
After many turns and declivities and
risings in the tunnel, which had been
built, apparently, to bewilder pur-
suers. the party came up against a
closed door.
wait a minute there" called the
burglar; II get you out there" Again
he placed the young lady on the ground
and went forward, lighting a match.
Near the upper rim of the door he
found the knotted end of a stout
string. He pulled this once, waited
several seconds, and then pulled it four
times rapidly. Far off somewhere could
be heard the tinkling of a bell in re-
spouse to the pulling of the string.
In a minute the door was swung
open and there stood a Chinaman, All
Fong, the keeper of a Chinese shop
on the first floor of a building in La
fayette street, and of an opium div
on the second floor. This tunnel from
the Campbell place house led to a Sc
cret stairway connecting with the
opium den, and had been dug by the
Chinese as a means of escape for
themselves and their patrons when
ever the police or others unwelcome
might choose to make unexpected Wis
it's.
ITS all right, All Fong." said the
burglar, "these are friends of mine.
Give us the back room upstairs and
Ill make it worth your while. In the
meantime take this and the thief
handed the Celestial two gold watches
and several rings which were a part of
the loot he had taken from the jewelry
store in Main street when the police
intercepted him..
All Fong showed them up to the
back room, from the closely curtained
windows of which the refugees could
see the recently deserted house in
Campbell place being consumed in
the high-leaping flames.
"You walt here a second the bur-
glar said to the doctor as he placed
Miss Ryerson, still unconscious. on a
low, broad couch commonly used by
the opium smokers. Ryerson was also
deposited there, and old Mag sank
into a corner exhausted, bluhbering
something about having lost her Laura
and her jug of booze. The thief step
ped out into the next room. n as the
result of a rather long whispered con-
v~ersation with All Fong. the Oriental
slipped a huge revolver into his pocket
and the burglar ~~re-entered the back
room.
81 guess everything is all right now"
said the burglar confidently, as he
moved a low tabourette in a far corner
where he had a command of the whole
room. As he seated himself on this he
dashed out the big pistol and in the
same second had the drop on DR.. Mar
kay:
Don't make a move or I'll shoot"
he said calmly, his eye following down
1 the long barrel of the weapon; I'll
ask you to let me take that gun from
you"
He moved over cautiously to where
the doctor sat motionless and took the
revolver from his pocket.
.--HI 1s-au,1- fIfzF