The Detroit times., 1913-04-21
CHAPTER XVII.
QraMinn the Nat.

Drawing the Net.
| The zone OF danger" as the Bulle-
tin named It, was Immediately the
scene OF swarming activities. Be-
sides the expedition Immediately dis
| patched by the interests backing the
| investigation, several enterprising
newspapers saw a fine chance for
! big scoop. and sent out much-heralded
parties of their own. The activities
OF these were we'll reported. you may
be sure Public interest was al once
focused reassuringly Oh the chances
OF finding the annoying malefactor to-
| day or tomorrow: there no longer ex-
! listed a doubt that he would be found
| The weight OF dread was lifted. and Ia
the reaction people made light Of the
! Inconvenience and fun OF the men,
acing messages that now came in by
the dozen.
Ii was necessary 10 take extraor-
binary precautions against thieves and
fire; the people took them. II was
Decdful to slacken business In order
that the congestion Of the rush hour
might not again prove tragic; business
/ was slackened. People were willing
to undergo many things, because. aft
er all. they were but temporary. The
mailman Of the Catskills would soon
er or later be found; his pernicious
activities brought 10 conclusion. The
country to be searched was tremen-
dous. OF course. but the search was
thorough.
The public delivered itself joyously
to a debauch of rumors and OF "eX-
tras." The insistent alarms OF danger.
tricklins in slowly from the outside
I world dried in hn Of
! timism Only the more thoughtful. to
few OF whom these warnings came.
coupled them with Monsieur KS re-
peated threats. and walked uncertain
and In humility.
Percy barrow did not interest him
self In the search, nor did he desert
his post in the wireless office. There
he did nothing whatever. Jack War
ford stayed with him, but immensely
bored. 1t must be confessed. Once he
suggested that if barrow had nothing
FOR him TO do that afternoon, he
thought he would like TO go out for a
| little exercise.
Darrow shook his head
You may go, il you want to, Jack,
| said he, but II you do III have to get
some one else. This isn't much Of
job, but l may need you any moment"
All right" agreed Jack cheerfully.
only | wish you'd let fellow know
what to expect"
| barrow shook his head. The two
now practically lived In the Office.
Neither had taken his clothes of for
several days. They slept In their
chairs or on the lounge barrow read
the various messages from the I'm
known. glanced over the newspapers,
and doxed.
Thus there passed two days OF the
search. On the third day the inter
mittent phenomena and the messages
suddenly ceased. This fact was hailed
jubiliantly by all the papers as indi.
eating that at last the quarry had be-
come alarmed by the near-coming
, search. From the contracted district
still remaining to be combed over, no
body was permits ed TO depart: and so
closely was the Gordon drawn by so
large posse that il was physically i'm
possible for any living being to slip
by the line
Thus even II Monsieur X, con-
vlnced that at last his discovery was
imminent. should DEF troy his appar-
atus or attempt to move II and him.
self to place OF safety. he would And
LIS tstdDo Cut lnOuSdUuS OF men
were employed, and thousands more
drafted In as volunteers to render this
outcome assured.
II was an army deployed in an ir-
regular circle. and moving inward to-
ward its center. Men OF the highest
executive ability commanded Il. saw
to its necessary elaboration, eliminat.
ed all possibility OF confusion
through which any man could slip.
The occasion was serious, and it was
taken seriously.
or the outcome no one In touch with
the situation had a moments doubt
The messages and the phenomena had
continued to come from the danger
zone. II was OF course evident that
they could not have been sent from
eny portion OF the zone actually
searched and occupied by the search.
| ers. The remaining portion of the
zone, from which they were still COM
ing, had been completely surrounded
After that the Manifestations had
ceased. Therefore. Monsieur Y. must
be within the beleaguered circle. To
add TO the probabilities, az Eldridge
pointed ont. the remaining district
compassed the highest hills In the
zone-a fact on all tours with his
, hypothesis.
On the appointed morning the army
moved toward the center. Men beat
the ground carefully. so close to one
| another that they could touch hands
AS they closed in the ranks became
! thicker. Animals or many kinds, con
fused as the ranks closed In on them.
tried to break through the Gordon and
we're killed. Captains held order In
the front row, that the army might
rot become a crowd. Birds, alarmed
| BY the shoutipe. rose and whee'Ah
| In the city immense crowds watched
the bulletins sent momently from the
very field itself by private wires
strung hastily for the occasion En-.
terprising journals had prepared huge
rough maps. on which the contracting
circle was indicated by red lines. con.
stantly redrawn.' IL was discovery
before multitude. The imagination
of the public. fired by it's realization
OF this fact, stretched itself ahead OF
the distant beaters. bodying forth
what they might find
As the circle narrowed excitement
grew. All business ceased The
streets were crowded: the windows
, OF the buildings looking out on the
numerous bulletin-boards were black
with heads. Those who could not see
demanded eagerly OF IL ose who could