Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1914-07-24

$1,000 -A@A
his fellows eyes.
Sir feet behind the wrought iron bar
rier the god stood over his altar, one
hand stretched out, brandishing that
dreadful sword, still wet from the
blood OF victims. At some time, per
haps days later, after exhaustion had
made resistance impossible, that Sc
cret gate In the iron wall would open
again, and, one by one, they would be
dragged of by the priests TO the sac
rifice.
II Haynes could reach the sword he
calculated that he could hew his way
through the soft iron, whose malleable
properties made 1t more serviceable as
cage than any structure of steel.
which might haply have been frac-
tured or disjointed by repeated blows.
But it was so closely wrought that he
could pass only two fingers Of one
hand between the interstices. He
looked at Beyers in despair. But the
others had resigned themselves to the
inevitable; husband and wife were tax
Ing last farewell of one another, OBJ
livious Of his presence. In that hnur
of peril he was forgotten, and for an
instant, as he recalled all that he had
endured for his wife and daughter,
little fire of jealousy smouldered 10
Haynes heart. 1t was but momentary
but ere 1t died 1t sent back his thoughts
with a rush to Mary. Perhaps she too
stood in some such deadly danger.
Perhaps-he shuddered and turned
sick with horror at the unhallowed
thought-perhaps that was her blood
upon the sword
He set his wits to work examining
the iron structure. There seemed no
way of assaulting 1t without the sword
But he perceived that there was a
space of about four inches between the
bottom of the steel and the ground.
and that the point of the sword, held
In the IDOLS hand, reached to within an
inch of the flooring and was turned to-
ward him. His eye could measure a
straight line from where he stood to
the point and thence to the sword hiit
From the deep pocket OF his coat he
drew a fiat, round object, resembling
In size and shape nothing so much as
ono OF those toy roulette wheels used
by amateur gamblers. This was the
gyroscope. From another pocket he
took the little motor, unscrewed 1t
from the tiny tank, and looked inaide
The tank contained almost a quarter
OF q pint Of gasoline-half its capacity
Haynes never Travelled without this ap-
paratus. which had often proved his
salvation. Now, desperate as his de-
sign was, 1t seemed to open to them
the only possible avenue Of escape
The gyroscope was so we'll made and
spun so easily that quarter Of pint
would serve to keep 1t running for
perhaps an hour. And he could do so
much in that period. He started the
motor and Its low buzzing startled the
lovers from their rhapsody, Haynes
went up to Beyers.
DO you happen to have a piece of
string about your" he asked.
Beyers felt in his pockets doubtful
ly. mo-" he answered what should
] do with piece of string?"
You, Eleanor"
She shook her head.
Then tear off the hem of your pet.
ticoat." said Haynes impatiently.
Even in that peril she hesitated. No
woman likes to wear q petticoat with
dragged hem, nor lie the dislike les
sened even when she stands in a Chi
nese pagoda, awaiting death at the
hands Of blood-thirsty priest. She
hesitated one moment; then, stoop-
ing, she rent off long strip OF filmy
lace and gave 1t to her father. Haynes
tore it into two strips, folded and
joined them. One end he fastened to
the body Of the machine. the other to
the stop which controlled its action.
and he held the loop in his hand, in the
manner OF reins. Then, while the 9th.
ers watched with languid interest. he
aimed the little gyroscope at the point
Of the sword and started it beneath
the cage.
1t flashed across the floor, missed
the sword point, and pulled up with
jerk that threw Haynes against the
ironwork Pulling hard on the right
rein, he shut on the mechanism; then
with the left rein he pulled back the
machine. Again and again he launched
this strange missile, aiming In the half
darkness at the edge Of that blood
stained weapon, and always missing
1t. Twenty-eight times he did this.
At the twenty-ninth attempt the
gyroscope struck the sword point fair
ly; 1t trembled, and then running
straight as an arrow. 1t raced up the
blade along the narrow edge, reached
the hilt. dashed into the idols porce-
lain hand that held the sword, and
smashed It from the armored body.
The sword fell crashing to the ground,
It's hilt toward the ironwork of the
cage. Haynes thrust his hand under
the structure, grasped the hilt, and
drew back the sword. Then he drew
back the gyroscope and shut on the
motor.
Haynes held the heavy weapon aloft
and looked at it. It was of the finest
steel, such weapon as is used by off,
eial executioners for beheading their
victims. Motioning to Beyers and his
daughter to stand as far back as pos
sible, Haynes swung the weapon aloft
and brought 1t down upon the MALE.
able iron with all his force, denting
and cutting into it. Again and again
he swung the sword with the full force
of his arm. And at each blow the
structure trembled and bent and twist
ed, until at last he had hewn a space