The Washington times. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1902-1939, 1910-07-18
By CRITTENDEN MARRIOTT

/ lies al right, he declared cheer
/ fully THAT cut amt no more.n
! scratch L guess IL was Just a sort of
/ last straw. so TO speak He's beau
/ leading a terrible strenuous Iife for his
/ age once We get out OF here heu be
Z an rlght 10 snort order
But can We get out?" It was Marian
/ who asked
/ Get outZ SureI Men the Looten-
: ant'u set you out in short order Won't
we. LCJtZ
| THAI what Wen 90. Miss Marian
| 7 chimed IN come, Curly, let's in
! With a glance at the Count. who stin
{ lay cTOuched on the floor glazing al the
! altar with hOrrOF-striCEen eyes. Curly
and ] walked over 70 the stone and ex-
Ii was cubicsL about four feet on a
side. and was or some dark-CoiOred
stone. on IL rested q r0ugh-hewu,
| VERY formidable, and Curly, indeed
regarded g. with frank contempt
/ Gosh ne exclaimed is that the
/ Burning Image they've been alnging
ST Us sOT Lord. IOOreuant- i could
rake a better man than that out Of
mud"
better keep away from iu all the same.
II looks all right, but it's got a dead
~ reputation and there's no use in
taking any more chances than you've
BAH You watch me- with sud
den spring tne pialnzm1n swung him
self up and seated himself on the
I IDOLS head, kicking his heels against
its SIZE.
From old experience 7 knew there
was no use lu arguing with Curly So
down. Don be fool. Curly / said.
sternly.
but how's a rock like that goln- TO
hurt a fellow
Look al him" I pointed 70 the
count, who was Croucned against the
/ val as far from the image as he
could get "He thinks IL can hurt.
Curly glanced az the count. -Thel
son Of a gun cvas look scared, don't
He does I've got my own ideas
about his stone. It's pitchbIende, uu-
less ~ very rluch mistaken, and the
l4lra teUGc is the ore from which
cut t'.1t ooes1r matter now TEe
main hing is that his place fs deadly
Tor so->e reason o. other and we've
EoL 10 get out OF IT, Even IL the image
IS harmless, those Indian devils viii
PC beaIlng the door down as soon as
tney get over their panic We've got
TO get out
Cur looked around him. How Won
goin 10 do it, be asked. Didn't hear
Iis JEplols say there warn't no other
yes, but 7 think he IVES lying. III
wager there's another way. and he's
got % tell Us. Tae trouble is how 20
make him
How to make him. Don't you bother
MAKE I'm tell all right al right I owe
him one anyway And the frCnEiars-
man turned a balefuI glance on the
count
AZ. right Go ahead
1lE-J turned 90 the Shrinking Russian. /
come on colonel. lie said Wen JUST
Try the image Oh ygu for awhile Come
atong ana 81 on has lap and tell Us how
you Ike It He graSpeG the count by I
ne arm and dragged him 10 his feet /
But with = ---- r- 4o~---- ----------s.r..r- E
vyrenched himself free and 6arte6 across
the room 20 -Fhere the lantern hung on
me Wal- Before we suspected his pur- T
pose. ne pluCkeG y from 5ts place and /
hurled IL 90 the ground, leaving the 4
room II darkness
I would have sprung forward. but the /
quick-wItted plainsEuan caught my arm !
He trying 90 get out- he Kissed 4
Stan stll and listen His revolver 4
clicked IS he spoke '.Ah-"
\ faint creak came from the direction I
or The altar and Curly fired twice in +
rapid sequence, the thunder OF his piS-
tCi re-erbrati1q through the narrow I
space while its r4y.-hIe fash lit up the
scene exposing FOR one binding instant I
the image, ana close beside IL the benz
form OF Ihe count
1 felt rather than saw Curly spring I
forward and heard his triumphant CIV - I
I've Eur him. LcctFEanL- Scratch q Z
match. quick, If you're got one. and I
( CROPPED for the bundle Curly had
SnarChed UD from the g tar and breath Z
ed sigh Of relief as my hand touched I
a waterproof box hale fun OF matches 4
In q moment the lantern was blazing 4
again Illuminating the scene
Close by the altar CTouChed Curly. E
ciutcninE The itr-p form OF the Russian 4
Here's the way out lCcteuant, ne
cried II got him Just IN time
He had The 2l-lr had been Tipped /
back disclosing an open traDdOor- {
down In the darkness Count Truman {
OFFS body lay half In and half ont ca /
the hole. Just where Curly's bullet haa 4
rs he dead2~ I asked
Hen never be no de1Cer- returned I
tie plai1Sman Cynicaiiy- say looteu- \
ant. 7 IL proud Of that shot I FREQ the q
first az q venture and the second Dy I
the light OF the first 7 just took some T
large chances That's shootIn'. amt 4
1T surely is, Curly Let me lift the /
body out OF the way we must set out \
OF here or Wen suffer"
picked ND the corpse Of the count !
and laid it decentIy behind the altar.
coming, back just in time TO see Curly
DISAPPEARING down the stairs In a /
moment I heard his voice
It's dark as the dickens down here,
De reported IF YOU can spare that
lantern d minute.
Come sey it, ] interrupted, but we
haven't cime to invest gate The count
wanted 20 so down there and I guess
its al right for us Anyhow. we've
got no choice
ftitlEr MISS AaAlDl-f~ ta.'4tA ALLtst'tl.
turning 20 Marian we mUst-Ahl
that's good was afraid we'd have
trouble
Marian was standing az my elbow.
supporting the bishop. What shall I /
lO2" she asked
we must leave at once" I declared
can Won set your Eucle TO so down
the stairs heree Curly VIII help
passed the lantern down TO the plains
man as I spoke
Marian nodded surely" she an
Swered- Come, uncle dear. We must
go.
The bishop, though stiH out Of his
head was entirely rraCtable and readily
squeezed through the opening and dis
appeared down the stairs. the gradual
leSsening OF the light marking his prog
reSs
Left at the top in the darkness, I felt
my way 10 the image and knocked a
chunk Of rock from its body with nv
machete- For. while I realized the eT-t
IRENE danger OF having Jhe stun about
me- 7 was determined to run some risk
rather than foreEo all attempt 10 solve
Its mystery. Then I hurried after the
rest.
There was little tirne1to snare. As
descended the stairs heard the click Of
a bolt and saw line of light suddenly
appear at the door BIZ which we had