Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-04-05
The Argus Daily Story
At Four O'Clock-By Clarissa Mackie.
Copyrighted. 1911. by Associated Literary Bureau


almost fainting
A small kerosene lamp was placed on
a kitchen chair and threw a feeble
light around the bare. dirty room
Near him. leaning against the wall.
was Edith Lane. still wearing her
street attire, but looking white and
distraught with a great fear. Her an
kleS and wrists were tied securely,
but her face was free. She was star
ing wildly at something on the floor
not three feet distant from them
There was something cylindrical in
shape, and attached to 1t by wires was
an ordinary nickel alarm clock ticking
away in the most resolute manner.
The hands pointed to past IL o'clock.
"Tell me everything you know about
the matter. dear" commanded Dick
as he recognized that they We're to be
the victims Of a dynamite plot and
whenever that clocks hands reached
the fateful point there would be the
end Of the world for them.
Edith told him in voice that she
vainly tried to steady of the girl who
had lured her to a tenement building
under plea of a dying mother and how
when the tenement had been reached
she had been bound and gagged and
made to wait until darkness came.
when she was taken blindfolded in a
carriage to this cottage.
A man and a girl, both foreigners,
had arranged the time clock that op-
Grated the deadly machine. and they
had told her that at o'clock in the
morning she and her lover would be in
eternity. Then the girl had gone forth
for awhile and returned to say that
Dick was on his way.
Then it was not you who tele-
phoned to me?" demanded Dick.
mo; haven't had the opportunity"
at must have been some one who
knew me-who knew us both. Did
you recognize either of themT
"No; they were masked. OF course
could guess that the girl was the
one who had lured me. but the man
/ did not know, only It seemed as
though one of his hands was familiar
"a livid scar like a cross on the back
of the right hand. 1t was a work
mans rough hand"
You saw it at the paymaster's wick
ct, dear" said Dick quietly. "Jaros
Wostokow has a scar like that. He's
been sore on me for a long time, but
l can't see why he wants to include
you in his devilish scheme of revenge"
LAS lure to bring you, Dick"
HE said the thing would go off at
o'clock" asked Dick.
Eyes. What can we do? can't stir
hand or foot"
IF he said o'clock it was to delude
US with the belief that we had plenty
Of time to free ourselves. It's proba-
bly, set for midnight" Dicks teeth
gritted at the bag that partly envel-
Oped his head. After a few minutes
of frantic effort his head was thrust
through, and then, rolling over on his
side, he worked his way along the few
feet of space that separated him from
the clock. When he was near enough
to study the alarm dial on the face he
saw that he was right. 1t was set for
10 o'clock, and it was now fifteen min
utes before midnight.
How he reached the lamp Dick new
err knew. 1t required heroic effort to
brace himself against the chair with
out knocking it over. He held his
bound wrists above the fame in the
chimney and did not vince as his
flesh scorched. After an eternity of
waiting the heavy cord that bound
his wrists charred through and broke
away under the strain of his muscles.
'The rest is easyr' he called cheeri-
ly to the girl. He found his pocket
knife, cut himself free from the bag
and the cords at his feet and fastened
to release his sweetheart. For an in
slant they stood in thankful apprecia-
ton of their deiverance from death;
then they prepared to leave.
There isn't time to put this thing
out of business and save our lives,
too" explained Dick hastily ITO tell
the truth, | don't know just what to
do, and there's danger of killing US
both If | NEEDLE with 1t. I'll take
look around and see If the house is
empty. If there's no other living be
ing here well have to cut out and
run. It's a good thing the cottage
stands alone. The explosion won't
harm much else except the building"
Inc mousse proved 10 DE enIlFely
empty. In fact. there were ITO Let''
cards I'm the windows. Dick extin-
guished the lamp. led Edith to the
door, and in n moment they were has
tening down the street toward the car
line.
Their car was bouncing down the
avenue at a good pace when a clock
struck midnight. Almost at the same
instant there came from the direction
OF Vroon street mufiled roar
Dicks hand closed tightly on that
Of his sweetheart II was the work
ing out OF Jaros Wostokow's revenge.
and by Gods grace they had been
saved from death.
JarOs never went back to the foun-
dry to work. When the police sought
him he and his daughter had disap-
peared. and later it was learned that
they had returned to their old home in
Russia.