Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1916-05-17

kempt denizen of the hotpoint and
the Bowery saloon.
What is this nan doing here?" he
asked as he confronted the intruder.
This man is here at my request.
And the happiness of this house de-
pends much on his visit" was Da Es-
pares' retort
What has a crook like Red Egan
got to do with the happiness of this
house?" scoffed the irate Manley.
And what right have you to bring a
tool of Legar's into this room?"
But still Da Espares remained out
wardly calm.
Pardon" he replied. But this
man you call Red Egan is no longer
a crook and no longer a tool of Le-
glr's,"
Then what is he doing here?"
THAT, monsieur, concerns mostly
the young lady for whom have senti"
The soft-spoken foreigner swung
about as Margery Golden stepped q
little wonderingly into the room.
This, Miss Golden" said Da Es-
pares, IFS the man Of whom l spoke
TO you. AS your friend here protests,
this man has been a tool OF Legar's.
But he has tired of being the serv-
ant of so evil man. He now seeks
to have the state extend it's pardon
to him. And as a price for this par
don he is willing to deliver into our
hands Jules Legar!"
But what is the plan?" asked the
girl, with a touch of impatience.
Da Espares, with upthrust shoul-
ders, looked from the one to the other.
1t is a plan which we had thought
IL wise to keep a secret" he suavely
explained.
Mr.. Manley has earned the right
to be included in any secrets which
may involve the capture OF Legar,"
Margery Golden quietly assured the
family smiling count, who bowed in
acquiescence. And realizing the note
of authority in that reply. he outlined
the plan in as few words as possible.
That plan, with Red Egan as their
emissary, was not complicated one.
This renegade from Legar's gang was
that Margery Golden might be found
at such and such a spot, at such and
such time She would be alone. And
TO Legar and his men, waiting there,
1t would seem a simple enough matter
to recapture the girl. But that cap
ture would never be effected. For a
squad of police would be held there,
in hiding, and when the moment ar
rived, they would promptly surround
Legar and his men and put them
where they belonged.
I'm other words, monsieur, what we
propose to do is to set a trap, and
when this Iron Claw is about to gather
in his prey, he himself will be gath
cred in
You propose to set a trap" repeat
ed the incredulous Manley, 'and you
also calmly propose to take this un-
protected young girl and use her as
the bait for that trap"
"On the contrary, monsieur, she will
not be unprotected. Many duly ap-
pointed officers of the law will be
there. And, as l have already ex-
planned To her, | also will be there.
And Miss Golden, think, knows that
would readily give up my life for the
sake of keeping her from harm!'
rs that the way you feel about it?''
demanded Manley. swinging about to
the slightly frowning girl.
Count Da Espares and will carry
out this plan. and we will carry it
out, | hope, quite as successfully as
we may carry out still other plans.
And in the counts hands ! shall al
ways feel that | am fully protected"
David Manley, thus dismissed, had
the dubious satisfaction of knowing
that he had once more made a mess
OF things.
Yet he did not remain altogether in
active He watched his chance and
quietly installed a dictapnone in the
room, attaching the transmitter-disk
II the underside of the desk ledge
where Da Espares did most CT his ta k
ing and running his well-hidden wires
down through the floor to a linen
closet, which the ever-1ependahle VIII
sen threw open for him. There Man
ley made the discovery that police
headquarters had actually been ccm-
municated with and that the feint for
Legars capture. however it's end, was
intended TO carry every sign of sin
cerity.
Before another hour slipped by, how
ever Manley made two further dis
coveries. The first was that the ap-
pointed time for the coup had been
suddenly changed to an hour earlier
The second was that the trap for lie.
gar was not to be set along the wood
ed road leading up to the clubhouse of
the Greenoch golf links, as first decid.
ed upon. But Margery Golden was to
motor alone to the west end of the
turnpike bridge and there encounter
her old-time enemy of the Iron Claw
And the police, Da Espares assured
her, had been duly warned as to the
change of location.
Manley, on overhearing that declara
ton, promptly called up headquarters
and made the startling discovery that
no such message had gone in to the
authorities there
In five minutes he was in his OWL
car, Fastening to a conference with
central Office itself In another five
minutes. on learning from Wilson