The Climax-Madisonian. (Richmond, Madison County, Ky.) 1914-1917, 1915-07-07
SIXTEENTH EPISODE
THE CRYPTIC RING.

THE CRYPTIC RING.
Kennedy had been engaged for some
time In the only work outside of the
Dodge case which he had consented to
take for weeks.
Our old friend, DIR. Leslie, the coro-
ner, had appealed to him to solve a
very ticklish point in Tong murder
case which had set all Chinatown
agog. 1t was, indeed, very bewilder-
ing case. A Chinaman named Ii
Chang, leader of the Chang Wah Tong,
had been poisoned, but SO far no one
had been able to determine what poi
son 1t was or even to prove that there
had been a poison, except for the fact
that the man was dead, and Kennedy
had taken the thing up in a great
measure because of the sudden turn
in the Dodge case which had brought
US into such close contact with the
Chinese.
had been watching Kennedy with
interest, for the Tong wars always
make picturesque newspaper stories,
when a knock at the door announced
the arrival of DR.. Leslie, anxious for
some result.
Have you been able to find out any
thing yet?" he greeted Kennedy Gag
erly as Craig looked up from his mi
croscope.
Kennedy turned and nodded. "Your
dead man was murdered by means of
aconite, of which, you know, the active
principle is the deadly alkaloid aconi-
tine"
There are several treatments for
aconite poisoning" ruminated Ken
nedy. 81 would say that one Of the
latest and best is digitalin given hypo-
dermically." He took down a bottle
of digitalin from a cabinet, adding,
only it was too late in this case"
Just what the relations were be-
tween Long Sin and the Chong Wah
Tong have never been able to deter
mine exactly. But one thing was GER
tain: Long Sin on his arrival in New
York had offended the Tong, and now
that his master, WI Fang, was here
the offence was even greater, for the
criminal society brooked no rival.
In the dark recesses of poorly fur
nished cellar, serving as the Tong
headquarters, the new leader and sew
eral of his most trusted followers were
now plotting revenge. Long Sin, they
believed, was responsible for the muir
der, and, with truly Oriental guile,
they had obtained q hold over WI
Fang's secretary.
Their plan decided on, the China
men left the headquarters and made
their way separately uptown. They
rejoined one another in the shelter Of
a rather poor house, before which was
a board fence, in the vicinity of a
fashionable apartment house. A mo-
ment's conference followed, and then
the secretary glided away.
WI had taken another apartment
uptown in one of the large apartment
houses near parkway.
There Long Sin was now engaged
in making all possible provisions for
the safety of his master. Anyone
who had happened to glance up at the
roof of the tall apartment building
might have seen Long SINS figure sill
houetted against the sky on the top Of
the mansaFd roof near a f1agpole.
He had just finished fastening to the
dagpole stout rope which stretched
taut across an areaway some twenty
or thirty feet wide to the next build
ing, where it was fastened to a chin
ney. Again and again he tested 1t,
and finally with a nod of satisfaction
descended from the roof and went to
the apartment of WI.
There, alone, he paused for a few
minutes to gaze in wonder at the cryp-
tic ring which had been the net result
lions which Bennett, as the Clutching
Hand, had hidden. He wore it, strange
ly enough, over his index finger, and
as he examined it he shook his head
in doubt
Neither he nor his master had yet
been able to fathom the significance of
the ring.
Long Sin thought that he was unob.
served. But outside, looking through
the keyhole, was Wu's secretary, who
had stolen in on the mission which
had been set for him at the Tong
headquarters.
|
opened a secret box In which WI had
placed several packages of money
with which to bride those whom he
wished to get into his power. 1t was
Long Sins mission to carry out this
scheme, SO he packed the money into
a bag, drew his coat more closely
about him and left the room.
No sooner had he gone than the sec.
rotary hurried into the room, paused a
moment to make sure that Long Sin
was not coming back, then hurried
over to a closet near by.
From a secret hiding place he drew
out small bow and arrow. He sat
down at a table and hastily wrote a
few Chinese characters on a piece of
paper, rolling up the note into thin
quill which he inserted into prepared
place In the arrow.
Then he raised the window and deft-
ly shot the arrow out
Down the street, back of the board
fence, where the final conference had
taken place, was a rather sleepy-look-
ing Chinaman, taking an occasional
pun at cigarette doped with opium.
He jumped to his feet suddenly.
With a thud an arrow had buried It.
self quivering in the fence. Quickly
he seized It, drew out the note and
read It.
In the Canton vernacular it read
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