The Monticellonian., 1915-08-12
TWEnTY-FlRsT EPISODE
THE EAR IN THE WALL.

Elaine sat in the library reading one morning when her maid Marie entered, carrying long pasteboard box, dain- tily tied with ribbon.
 Some flowers for you, Miss Elaine, I think" she said handing the box to her mistress
 Marie left the room, and Elaine, af- ter contemplating for moment in keen anticipation what she thought at first was gift from Craig Kennedy, opened the box There lay a splendid bunch Of long gstemmed red and white roses.
 Nesting fin the green leaves was a little white note. She picked it up expectantly and tore it open
 Instantly, however, her face blanched. Instead of billet doux. it was tue most fearsome threat yet which the savage Chinese master crim- final, Wu Fang. had sent in the yenge- ful vendetta which he had sworn on account Of the loss of the Clutching Hands millions.
 Elaine had scarcely time to exclaim at its dire meaning when Kennedy himself entered.
 Good morning" he greeted cheer fly. then cut the greeting short as he caught the mortified expression on her pretty face. Why, what's the mat ter?"
 Elaine was too terrified even yet to speak. All she could do was to hand him the note:
 The first victim shall be Craig
 Kennedy or your aunt You may
 choose. Place the red roses in
 the window for your lover, the
 white for the silver-hsired one.
 At the end appeared the mysterious sign of the serpent, darting from his fangs death more than figurative.
 ..Wh-what shall l do?" she ap- pealed.
 Craig did not answer directly. He could not. Thoughtfully he walked to the window and gazed out. There was only dirty. bent cripple standing by the corner selling papers to pedes- trians
 Kennedy's forehead wrinkled in thought. He turned and walked back from the window Mechanically he picked up his hat and cane, then laid down the cane again.
 q must look into this at once," he said, lifting the flowers and putting them back into the box carefully, as if he expected trouble to come of the affair.
 "You-youll be very careful, Craig?" pleaded Elaine. as they left the library and went into the hall
 T will be-for you,' he repeated, with reassuring smile. "Oh-I for got my cane"
 Quickly he returned to the library, leaving her standing in the hallway. There he had purposely left his stick on the table beside the flowers. He selected some from the bunch of red roses and hastily stuck them in a vase and placed the vase on the window sill Then be picked up the cane and rejoined Elaine in the hall
 
 Outside the Dodge house the dirty, bent cripple looked about cautiously out of the corner of his eye.
 Suddenly he paused as if he had caught sight Of mendicancy officer bearing down on him. There on the window sill of the library was vase of red roses. Hastily he shuiied of on his way.
 As fast as his supposedly bent body could straighten itself safely out he hurried downtown with one idea--to reach the secret apartment of Wu Fang. the serpent.
 Wu, Long Sin and several other Chi. namen were gathered about a table on which was long oblong oak box. In the cover, which was open, were fas- tened on the inside two fiat spools Of silkencoyered wire. At each end of the box was placed an ordinary stor- age battery. and in a compartment be. tween. besides switches and connec- tions, were what looked like six sets of headgear much resembling those worn by wireless operators.
 This" said Wu, holding up a little black disk about as large as a watch with dozen or so little perforations in the face, lis the white devils little mechanical eavesdropper-the detec- taphone-the ear in the wall By its aid we shall learn all about our enc mics, where to strike. when to-"
 He stopped short as a servant en-