The Detroit times., 1913-03-27
A NOVELTY IN MYSTERY STORIES
|. Tue SECREIQF
SAMUEL HOPKINS ADAMS
AUTHOR OF AVERAGE JONES ETC

hrsi, IN the form OF very brief note:
secondly. in the shape of formida BILE
looking document. The note began
Esteemed SIR, concluded Yours re-
morsefully,' and set forth. In some
what exotic language. that the writer.
fearing lapse OF courage that might
confuse his narrative when he should
come 10 give IL, had taken pen in
hand 10 commit ii TO writing. and
would the recipient kindly pardon
haste?' Herewith, twenty-one typed
pages.
Haste" cried Chester Kent griev-
ously Why. he's written me- the
story of his life"
Indeed, at cursory glance, II APP
peared 30. The initial paragraph
opened. Il was oorn OF poor but hon
est parents" Chester Kent groaned.
A little farther down the page the
| phrase, "Oh. that those innocent days
OF my happy childhood might return, -
rose and smote him in the eyes.
| Chester Kent snorted A desperate
| leap landed him in the midst OF page
| FIVE, where he encountered this gem.
with these fateful words the kind
old minister laid a faltering hand upon
my head. But enough"
quite enough" agreed Chester
Kent, and kicked the Star-master's
document into a corner.
II fell in crumpled heap with one
sheet. curving in upward protuberance.
conspicuous 10 the eye. On this sheet
there was handwriting, and the hand
writing was the same as that OF the
note Marjorie Blair had identified
Kent retrieved the paper, laid II on his
desk. selected a likely spot for one
more plunge. and dived into the turbid
food Of words. And behold, as he
turned so TO speak. the corner OF the
Narrative. the current became sud
denly clear. The muddled eloquence
fell away; and the style crystalized
into the tense quick testimony OF the
prime actor in a drama, intensely and
shudderingly felt
The reader ran through II with In
creasing absorption. Then. pencil in
hand, he attacked the first part Of the
precious screed and emerged from
scene OF literary carnage with
one brief paragraph in hand and
the slaushtered bodies OF many
eloquent pages strewing the floor.
That one paragraph stated that
Preston Jax. whose real name
was John Preston, had. after a
rebellious boyhood. run away to sea,
lived two years before the mast. pick
ed up a smattering Of education, been
assistant and capper for magnetic
healer, and had finally formulated
system OF astrological prophecy that
won him q slow, but increasing
renown The gist OF the system
was 70 assign some particular
and often imaginary star TO every sub
ject, and. by natural aptitude for
worming out secrets from the cred
ulous, lead them along the celestial
paths OF mysticism 10 a point where
he could reach their pocketbooks He
had been specially successful with wo-
men. One bit OF his philosophy Kent
had preserved unaltered
They bite slower than men, but
when they do take hold. they swallow
the hook so deep that you're lucky to
get II back at ALL
An hours work with a pencil that
should have been blue resolved the
document, under Kent's skilful and
remorseless edltorship, into Its salient
elements Obviously 1t was -!mpossi--
Bile to put II into alien hands for copy
ing Kent ordered up typewriter and
copied 1t himself The duplicate he
enclosed in his letter to Sedgwick
The original he put aside to sleep
upon. Thus IL ran: