The Yale expositor., 1916-10-26

voice startlingly close to his own
portly carcass called out with sud
den warning:
Look out for the Iron Claw!"
"Hows dat?" was the answering
cry OF the tingling Rastus.
Look out for the Iron Claw!" re-
peated the voice so close behind him.
"Wha-what iron claw?" demanded
the sweating Rastus.
I'll get you!" announced the bode-
full voice behind him. And at that
threat utter and unreasoning panic
seized the terrified Rastus, who, with
throaty below OF agony, charged
across a newly-dug garden and bound
ed like a rotund jackrabbit down
moonlit alley bordered with shadowy
fences.
At the end OF this alley Rastus
plunged through a narrow gate, and
charged bodily into the peaceful beer
garden belonging to the roadhouse OF
one Antonio Dibello, where sat four
men in quiet conference about one of
the little iron tables well out Of pub
! lie ken.
These men showed prompt resent
ment at this unheralded interruption
| to their talk. But as the parrot, with
it's head thrust through hole in the
gunnysack, repeated its shrill cry of
Look out for the Iron Claw" these
men rose in a body to their feet.
Their leader, who in even the dim
light from the garden lamps showed
himself to be q one-armed man with
a strangely-scarred face, sprang for
the terrified negro. Rastus, however,
was in no mood for either interruption
or argument. He merely emitted
whoop of reawakened terror and head
ed for home.
There he burst in upon the astound-
ed Jemima and collapsed with a
quavering groan Of exhaustion. But be-
fore Jemima could either understand
the nature of his ailment or investi-
gate the contents of his gunnysack. a
second and even more violent irrup-
ton took place. Legar and his men
dragged the quaking and gasping Ras-
tus to his feet, showed him into chair,
and snatched up the gunnysack From
it they took out the loudly-protesting
green parrot and wonderingly ex
amined 1t.
where did you get that parrot"
was the quick demand of the man who
wore an iron hook where hand ought
TO be. Rastus merely wheeZed and
shook in the legs and showed the
whites of his eyes. 1t was indeed
several minutes before he was so
much as awakened TO the fact that he
was not in the grip Of the law. But
once convinced of that fact. he became
voluble enough in his protestations tc
oblige the white gen'l'men" with any
information they desired. He even lee
those white gentlemen back to the
neighborhood OF Hannah's chicken
: coop.
So engrossed were they in their dis
coveries that they thereupon paic
scant attention to Rastus himself
who took advantage of that diversion
to disappear.
There were certain phases OF tha
hurried pursuit, however, which haC
not entirely escaped the attention o
a circumspect stranger who had mo
tored casually about the quiet streets
of Cedarton earlier in the evening
Aunt Jemima Watson, in fact, hat
scarcely recovered from the shocl
consequent upon the sudden invasion
of her cottage when she discovere'
Il | hU OF
stranger. And the fact that thi
| stranger wore a yellow mask did no
| add to her immediate peace OF mind
"All want to know. my good won
| an. is where those men are takin
| your husband
Il "Dey's takin' him back { whar h
1 done got dat bird" explained the M
] gress. The stranger started for tn
4 door. Then he stopped, dead shor
|, For lying overlooked on the foo
Il close beside battered water buckle
Il he caught sight of a familiar-lookin
4 oblong of yellow paper. In anothe
II moment he had possession Of 1t.
n "Where did that paper come from
y he demanded. For he knew that
:, was the long-sought Golden cha
which he held in his hand.
Dat done come from nah ont
d sweepin's," explained the other. "B'
n nah Rastus allows 1t hain't even WI
N a green tradin' stamp"
lie "Your Rastus may be right" WI
the strangers quiet reply. But ii
t. worth this much to me-" And Aul
m Jemima found ten-dollar bill thru
ID into her astonished pink palm. 9TH
st is yours, my good woman, IL you
er Just one thing, and do it quickly.
is. want you to go to the sheriff's, wal
ed him up, and get him to the hou
n where that woman called Hann'
ir- works. Tell him to get there In
an hurry, and to bring his men, or there
n be murder done in this village befo
IS the sun rises!"
Ily The man in the yellow mask wait
re- for nothing more. A minute later
TO was OF, running shadowlike throu