Tensas gazette., 1916-11-24

Window.
ponent clear of the deck-boards and
fiinging him headforemost into the
black water. Then he turned and
braced himself for the charge OF the
second man. This second man he met
by dropping quite fat and unexpected
ly on the deck itself. He felt the
charging body 60 over his own. caught
at one still kicking foot as he twisted
quickly about, and before his opponent
could recover from that fall the patri-
archal boat owner had assisted his un.
welcome guest over the deck-lip after
his companion.
4 But, oddly enough. in that struggle
the bewhiskered old boatman had un-
dergone q sudden and startling change.
The clutching fingers Of his enemy In
the second contest along the boatdeck
had buried themselves In the thick
white beard decorating that launch
owners chin. And when this enemy
went overheard that fringe Of whis-
kers went with him. leaving at the
wheel q somewhat altered and consid-
erably younger looking man. And that
this unknown amender Of destinies
was still intent on nursing the secret
of his identity was further evidenced
by the fact that. before turning his
boat about and facing the ebb-tide cur.
rent of the North river, he carefully
adjusted over his nose q narrow band
of yellow cloth. with its little apron
of An inverted crescent. Still later.
as he closely watched the light-span.
gled shore line, he caught sight Of
two small winging eyes Of green and
red. Accepting this apparently as q
signal, he swung In close under the
shadow of q coal barge and made fast
at the slip end. where high above him
q waiting taxicab stood close beside
the, stringpiece. Yet. hurried as the
man in the mask seemed to be. he took
time to sit under one of the cabin
lamps and indite a short epistle. This
epistle, addressed to "Enoch Golden
and his friends" read as follows:
The Funds Of the Third National
bank vault are now In my possession
and will be duly returned to the right.
ful owners. But that ! may enjoy the
luxury Of the game a. we'll ~ the
name, ! am Withholding from those re-
turned funds the fifty thousand dollars
In gold which was formerly the prop
erty Of the man who, by expressing
the poor, has compelled this action.
When that man looks Into his own
heart and returns to the paths Of wis.
dom, this gold will be returned to him
by
THE LAUGHING MASK.
Still later that night while Davie
Manley and Margory Golden and heI
father were arguing and wondering as
to the origin and full meaning Of this
strange message, Legar and his men
emerging like water rats from the
river-front rendezvous close beside the
Owls Nest, piled into q harbor launch
with o muffied kicker and silently
made their way for Oyster Joe's.
Crowding into tho dimly lit sail loft
Of Oyster Joe. they found themselves
confronted, not by the millions II
stolen treasure. but by a iff-jointed
and blasphemous old man In white
whiskers. tied and lashed to one oi
his own shack beams.
Don't yelp at me about youl
damned gold" cried Oyster Joe. with
sulphurous string of oaths. wher
he was able to speak. Il never saw
any gold! All saw was that chain
lightning gink In q mask. the einl
who's double-crossed me twice at thu
same camel"
Legar staggered back into q broker
chair.
so it's the Laughing Mask again!
he said with an oath which, II quiet
toned, was even more impressive thar
Oyster Joe's believing imprecations.
.(TO BE CONTINUED.)