Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1915-06-15
The Dragon
Seal
Its Mystery and Its
Solution.
By cLARISsA MAcKIE

+ BY cLARIssA MAcKIE I
1-s-si-s.i-i-s-sss-ssssii-s-si-i-s-i-s-i-ii-isss
Mason tilted back In his chair and
stared across the China sea, where
passing steamer slid through the oily
waters. The little whitewashed hut
with its tiny veranda facing the sea
and its bit Of garden looked like g
dozen others of it's kind which formed
the muddy little Chinese village.
Albert Mason had lived there evei
since the late uprising. He had be-
come separated from his tourist party
and. to his own great amazement dis
covered himself prisoner on a pirat'
ical looking craft which fed before the
wind at night and lay hidden In OBJ.
scure harbors during the day.
One day the junk had nosed into the
soft mud Of the Chekiang shore, and
Mason had been conducted to the lit
tie hut
Here" said his captor. bland look
ing, cold eyed Celestial, here you
stay, thief of the world. until you give
up the dragon"
Dragon" echoed Mason, hearing for
the first time the charge against him.
do you believe that I've kidnapped
part Of your menagerie"
The official shrugged his shoulders,
and his companion pulled his sleeve
speaking in Chinese, which OF course
Mason did not understand:
"Let the foreign devil stay here
awhile enjoying his own company.
Soon he will disgorge."
"He may escape" said the other eau
tiously.
HE will not" said the villainous
looking captain. "He cannot 80 be-
yond the confines Of his own garden.
The place is guarded night and day."
So Mason stood on the veranda Of
the hut and watched the junk go tee
tering away to the dim north whence
they had come.
He never forgot that first evening
when, after he had eaten fish and rice
and drunk tea, he had stepped on the
veranda.
He walked down the path to the
end Of the garden and looked at the
moon. Why not escape tonight-or
must he wait until his guards relaxed
their viligance and then make the ef-
fort?
"Now or never" he muttered and
pressed against the gate that opened
upon the muddy bank above the rest
less waves.
The gate resisted his efforts-it was
Us If some great weight held 1t closed.
Then came u bloodcurdling growl,
and there stepped into the moonlit
space before the stockade a huge
striped form with eyeballs like fame
and breath like pestilence.
Mason fled TO the other gate, and
again he met the flaming eyes and the
jungle smell
Men guarded him by day; man eat
ing tiger and his mate kept watch by
night.
Like a madman he few into the
house and locked the doors.
A year and day passed. and the
captain Of the junk came and asked
him If he would give up the dragon.
And Mason, raving with anger, bitterly
refused, although he knew not what
the man meant. And the captain smil-
ed and went away.
And now two years and two days
had passed and the junk had not made
her second visit to the prisoner.
His position was a singular one. he
was innocent of having broken any
law Of the country-of having commit
ted any crime. In his baggage there
was not q single thing that he had not
brought from home, except a few toys,
grotesque straw animals, gayly color
ed, which he had purchased from an
insistent street vender. The very next
day he had been trapped with some
hand luggage and spirited away from
Shanghai
"Its q case Of mistaken identity" he
told himself over and over again as he
restlessly tramped the garden paths,
envying the freedom Of the birds
swinging In space and the fishermen
of shore.
Back home there. In New Hamp-
shire, his wife and children We're
mourning him as dead. It was an ago
nizing thought
He went to his worn travelling bags
and listlessly turned over the con.
tents. There was little clothing left
That which he wore was In tatters.
There were pictures Of his family. his
case Of medicines for an emergency,
the straw toys-that was all. His
trunks, II unclaimed, were still IN
Shanghai.
The medicines were getting low. He
had been obliged to take most OF the
Quinine pills during his frequent at
tacks Of chills and fever. There was a
little brandy left-he was saving that
for some great emergency-and two
unopened bottles Of chloroform. These
were tightly sealed with wax, and the
contents appeared to be inviolate. he
had brought 1t to use when adding to
his collection Of lepidoptera, but his
cases and his butterfly nets and his
pins and other paraphernalia were In
the trunks.
Chloroform, willing servant, he
unused, his dark thoughts running on.
eliminating himself from bis horrid. ex-
istence.
And then, Ikea lightning fash re-
vealing unsuspected avenues Of escape,
came the idea.
The remainder Of the day he was
nervously excited. He took the pic
lures of his family, the brandy bottle
and the Quinine, the straw toys and
his one clean shirt and made a pack
age, which he belted around his chest
under his clothing. He cooked and
ate an enormous quantity Of rice and
fish; then he threw himself into his
hammock and slept heavily until 10
O'Clock.
He shook himself into wakefulness,
slung a jug Of cold tea from his shoul-
der and went into the garden.
In one hand he carried a large bath
sponge tied to a strong stick. In the
other hand he carried q bottle Of