Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1916-05-04
CHAPTER VIII
Vibrations Made NisibIn

TN THE drawer of a desk in Victo,
i Briccone's labor conference room n,
the MurdoclS street house for weeks bat
lain undiscovered a fiat. circular piece nj
vulcanized rubber of the size of a watch
perforated by two dozen tiny holes ant
much resembling tea straincr This
! queer device was the receiving disk of q
! recordophone, the new almost-human tel.
! ephonic invention which automatically
does the combined work of eavesdropper
and stenographcr.
| Down from the under side of this we'll.
| hidden object, through a bored hole in
! the drawer like n furtive hair. Travelled a
! thin cord 1t slyly trailed the lower out
line of the desk to the edge of the carpet.
| under which II next scurrled like a
mouse's tail into a small heating register
where ii darted through dust into a room
beyond. from which it plunged finally. via
window casing into the world outside
If Briccone, the supposed l. w. w agi-
tator, had possessed eyes of superhuman
penetration he might have seen the strand
OF insulated wire dart along the edge of
| the concrete walk to the rear fence. and
then rush madly down the alley side of
the fence to the second house from the
corner. which II entered Here in the
kitchen the wire plunged into locked
rectangular box; with the sole key for
the same hanging on the key ring in the
pocket of one Monte Crispen, heir to mil
lions.
Brccone passed for n Neapolitan. He
was man above the average intelligence
IF his class an electrician by trade. He
had come to this country 10 years before
from Trieste, to which Adratic city he
made frequent trips before the war. AS
mountain guide in the Tyrol, a soldier in
the polyGlot Austrian army, a waiter in a
London hotel and what not else, he had
contrived to snatch up half-dozen lam
guages, among the rest English which he
spoke with purity. His linguistic ability
made him dangerous platform opponent,
for he was without scruple or fear.
Yet Monte had had this master of man
kinds misfortune checlmated almost from
the day he had rented the house in Muir
dock street Such is the power of mind
over mind, when a man of courage and
inherited talents sets firm hand to the
plow.
A generation ago TO get advance infor-
nation of the cOnspiracies of BriCcone 1t
would have been necessary for Monte 10
have secreted a confederate in some en-
brasure. behind curtains, under the floor
or elsewhere. But we now live in a mar
velous age and prOdigies of invention
peer IOTtn from tne advertising pages OF
the great periodicals with the imperti-
nence of old friends-dctagraphs vic
trolas, electric irons, kodaks, recordo-
phones, etc.
The recordophone that young Crspen
bought for installation in the Murdoch |
street house was the most improved, one !
very high-priced and sure-fTe of results. |
With the loyal Lars. aided by the absence |
Of a household. Monte set the perfected |
sound tran in RriCCOne's hpaduuarters the /
night following Strong Marley's announce !
ment that the alien agitator was at work ,
among the operatives of the Big Four, 1t
was an easy accomplishment, and once /
he recording box was in the vacant house
wo doors away, rented by Monte, all that |
he millionaire had TO do was call /
nightly and replace the used cylinders
With fresh ones.
CONTINUED TOMORROW !