The Washington times., 1911-04-12

i Ou YOU, my Jdhc yShI StSoRs
Burke, the panell'
The servant protested stubbornly.
"''ris madness. your excellency. Re-
member the warning"
was ominously overcast with the shadow
of his displeasure. Keep your old
woman's fears for yourself"
What warning?' Kilrae interrupted.
Some cursed hag's trick that Burke
has carried with him from the bogs of
the old country. Ill have none Of it.
Come!"
Burke sank upon his knees, clutching
passionately at the presidents feet.
mo, master, no! See, I'm begging it
of We. I've had the warnin'-"
Cit up! VIII ye be doing my bidding
| now. or shall L"
The man rose and pushed aside a
panel in the wainscoting exposing a
| dark Well within the wall. Malone press
| ed a button, and flooded the well with
electric light. KiIrae saw a steel ladder
leading down from the opening.
| ons on me-"
You might be calling it life pre-
! server" answered Malone, "or a fire es-
! cape: Likely it'll be by way Of saving
ME life yet. go first"
He swung himself upon the ladder and
descended: Kilrae followed. The depth
| may have been twenty feet; at any rate,
1t carried them well below the surface
Of the earth. Malone fumbled with his
keys and unlocked a massive door Of
| steel.
| rs this a safe deposit vault?" Kill
Not exactly. colonel. 'Tis a medieval
| bit that I've remembered from me Wal
| ter Scott. Observe me ingenuity"
He pushed the door back, and Kilrae
| looked into a long, narrow hole through
| the earth, walled and rooted with tim
/ hprS- a intervals elactrip larnns hung
| forming a line which, in perspective,
seemed almost endless. Tie passage had
| width for one person only. Kilrae vent
| ed his wonder in an cath.
And where'H this be taking us?'
Shut the door behind YOU and follow
on. You'll know soon enough"
The minister Of war obeyed, the door
settling into place with no noise beyond
| the faint click of the latch. His presi-
| dent led the way with confidence and a
hurried eaSerness: In as much as they
! could not walk abreast, they moved in
silence. To F<ilrae the tunnel seemed
interminable ere they came upon anoth-
er door like the one which they had
| left behind-although, II anything, more
| heavy and more solidly embedded In its
key of the president and the two men
| stepped out into a close vestibule. Ma
| lone turned a switch, extinguishing the
| lights.
That serves as a signal to Burke" ;"
he explained. He knows we're all right
| now"
He slid back a section Of the wall, and
| they passed into a paneled room. whose
| furnishings, revealed by the glare of a
match, seemed luxurious in the extreme.
| Kilrae laid an imploring hand upon the
arm of the president.
Barry. friend" he whispered. L"
Speak up, man." cried the president,
with a note Of pleased triumph in his
voice. Never fear; there's none to
hear you in this house"
Are you sure Of that?'
Positive.
And why?"
."Tis mine. 1 own it, and 'tis de-
serted-hasn't had a tenant save
Barry Malone since l bought it for
my purpose" He had put his match
he looked into the face of his minister
of war. laughing at, his expression.
Man." he cried, you're breaking out
with curiosity like the measles!
consumed with the fever The house
is No. s.. Paseo de la Independence.
and by that token"
| Next door TO-
You guess me words. colonel. Ad-
jacent, by rare stroke of luck. to the
casa of the adorable Sonora de Casada-
Are you beginning to see the nght?"
Il am, Barry, but"
For the love of heaven, man, don't
croak! Am to be a hermit? Am to
have no amusement save lodging as
sassins? As for the danger, there's
none. Burke inspects this place
thoroughly every day. Me word for
1t, no human foot but ours has cross
ed the threshold for Ave years. Come,
! or the sonora Will be waiting dinner
for us-and 1 perish of hunger"
He laughed again and stepped out
into the gallery which surrounded the
/ In-~AI r.
sullen with misgivings. AS they
crossed the dark courtyard, whose
every yard of obscurity might we'll
hold hidden death for the man
out into fresh protestings..
"Confound 1t, Barry, this Is sheer
madness! l don't like it,
The president swore intolerantly.
Like it or not, colonel, you'll be
inspected Kilrae a second time by the
candle light IF you're going to pull
as long a face as that, you'll be like
skeleton at the. feast. Brace UP,
man! We dine with ladies this night"
Il am with you-and you know it
to the end, Malone. But this Is folly!"
Let be; it can't be mended."
Kilrae caught the presidents hand.
AT least" he begged, promise me
this, Barry"
What, then?"
That you'n not tell this woman of
the tunnel"
The senora?"
And why would I be telling herr"
Malone chuckled evasively.
But you won't will you? Promise
me, Barry!"
"Oh, then, If you're going to play the
old woman" The president shrug-
ged hts shoulders angrily.
''I have your word, thenF'
"Oh, If you insist,
Thank you; you'll never regret 1t,
They had come to the street door-an
immense affair, wide enough to admit
a team of horses and an equipage; II
was secured against intrusion by great
bars, but set in the lower corner was
smaller doorway for the ordinary pur-
poses of entrance and egress. This
Malone opened cautiously, and Kilrae
followed him to the street.
They covered the few steps that lay
between the two houses without attract
| ing notice. The reason for this were
twain: first, that the Paseo was WELL
nigh deserted, since the population
went en- masse of evenings to the ci.y's
heart, the Plaza de la Reforma; and,
secondly, that there was trouble in the
| municipal electric plant upon that par
| ticular night. For this you are not to
| blame Providence; you are to shrewdly
| suspect that Malone had hand in the
mischief, through his underlings. in
view of the fact that only the southern
| and more fashionable quarter of the
| CITY was without light. In the Paseo
To- he tybt r,,%