Northern Wisconsin advertiser. [volume] (Wabeno, Wis.) 1898-1925, 1917-10-26

eyes mite wider. Hes pukka-true
to type! Rob first and then kil!'
AS he watched. the thief drew the
sheet back from Hyde's face, with
trained fingers that could have taken
spectacles from the victims nose with
out his knowledge. Then as fish glide,
in and out among the reeds without
touching them, swift and soft and I'M
seen, his fingers searched Hyde's body.
They found nothing.
King moved In his sleep, rather
noisily, and the movement Knocked
book to the floor from the foot of his
berth. The noise of that awoke Hyde,
and King pretended to begin to wake.
yawning and rolling on his back (that
being much the safest position an I'M
armed man can take and much the
most awkward for his enemy.
"Thieves! !" Hyde yelled at the top OF
his lungs, cropping wildly for his pistol
and not finding it.
| King sat up and rubbed his eyes.
The native drew the knife, and-be-
| lieving himself In command of the
ituation-hesitated for one priceless
second. He saw his error and darted
for the door too late. With moves
ment unbelievably swift King was
there ahead of him; and with another
movement not so swift, but much more
disconcerting, he threw his sheet as
the retiarius used to throw q net In
ancient Rome. 1t wrapped round the
| natives head and arms, and the two
went together to the floor in twisted
stranglehold.
In another half-minute the native
| was grooming, for King had his knife
wrist in two hands and was bending it
backward while he pressed the mans
stomach with his knees.
The knife fell to the floor, and the
thief made gallant effort to recover
it, but King was too strong for him.
He seized the knife himself, slipped 1t
in his own bosom and resumed his hold
before the native guessed what he was
after. The train screamed itself to a
I'standstill at wayside station, and a
man with a lantern began to chant
| the stations name. The instant. the
trains motion altogether ceased the
heat shut in on them as If the lid OF
Tophet had been slammed. The prick
ly heat burst out all over Hyde's SKIN
and Kings too.
There was plenty of excuse for re.
laxing hold, and King made full use OF
| 1t. A second later he gave very good
pretense Of pain In his finger ends as
| the thief burst free. The native made
"a dive at his bosom for the knife, but
he frustrated that. Then he made
lprodigipus effort, just too late, to
Clutch the man again, and he did sue
coed in tearing loose piece of shirt:
but the fleeing robber must have won
dered, as he. bolted into the HACKER
shadows of the station building, why
such an 'iron-fngered, wide-awake
sahib should have made such truly
feeble showing at the end.
Hang it!-couldn't sou hold him7
We're you afraid of him, or what?. de.
manded Hyde, beginning to dress him
self. Instead of answering, King leaned
out into the lamp-ft gloom, and in a
minute he caught sight of sergeant
of native infantry passing down the
train. He made a sign that brought
the man to him on the run.
did you see that runaway" he
asked.
"Ha, sahib. I saw one running. Shall
1 follow?"
"No. This piece Of his shirt will
identify him. Take 1t. Hide it When
man with torn shirt, into which
that piece fits, makes for the telegraph
office after this train has gone on, see
that he is allowed to send any tele-
grams he wants to! Only, have copies
of every one Of them wired to Captain
King, care of the stationmaster, Delhi
Have you understoodT
''Ha, sahib."
"Grab him. and lock him up tight
afterward-but not until he has sent
his telegramsl"
"Atcha, sahib."
make yourself scarce, then"
Major Hyde was dressed, having per-
formed that military evolution in some
thing less than record time.
"Who was that you were talking
tor he demanded. But King did not
seem to understand until the native
sergeant had quite vanished into the
shadows.
The engine shrieked of death and
torment; the heat relaxed as the en-
CINE moved-loosened-le go-lifted
at last, and trainload of hot passen-
gers sighed thanks.
"What are you looking at?" Hyde
demanded at last, sitting on Kings
berth.
"Only a knife" said King. He was
standing under the dim gas lamp that
helped make the darkness more IN
bearable. He slowed the knife away
in his bosom, and the major crossed to
l. n