The Ordway new era., 1917-08-31

stumbled OUT into the OhoetorounV
Passage.
noises. to boot--as though the intruderi
were moving furniture about. Then all
sounds ceased.
OF sudden. simultaneously, Patrfn
and Parr turned startled faces toward
the vault door.
Round its edges thin wells of smoke
We're seeping into the chamber.
'Thcy have fired the house ~
The strained. frightened whisper was
Patria's. Mechanically Parr nodded.
Already the atmosphere in the vault
was oppressive-so imp 'egnated with
smoke il was difficult to breathe, so
warm that perspiration beaded brows
and hands.
Another five minutes: he heard a lit
tie choking cough, and turned to PAT
ria. She was on her feet, swnying,
eyes blank, hands plucking feebly at
the throat of her waist. AS she turned,
the light died out from her face and
she slipped slackly forward upon the
table.
Half-maddcned. Parr put n shoulder
with his weight behind II against the
vault door. 1t swung Quito admit n
sitting cloud of bitter smoke together
with blast of heated air that might
have come from n furnaces NAV.
Tugging the door shut again. he
turned and began rapidly to circle the
walls. hoping against hope to discover
somewhere another exit.
In his haste he tripped over the
broken box of coin and fell against the
framed portrait of the first John Chan
ming. Its aged cord parted and the
portrait fell with a crash, exposing the
inner face of stout door of steel.
Plucking frantically at its bars and
bolts. Parr succeeded in dislodging
them. The door swung out. A gust of
damp. cold air invaded the vault. Be
yond the opening little was visible--a
Shiny b-!ck flooring between arched
walls of brick fading into bIackness--
nothing more.
Stepping back. Parr gathered the ill.,
sensible girl up in his arms and STUN
bled out into the underground passage.
Once beyond the threshold he put his
back against the door and swung II
into place. Then he blundered blindly
on.
Twenty PAGES through inky murk
He stubbed his toes against a
step, and gently putting down his bur.
| den, found and struck u match.
The brief-lived flame discovered q
short flight of stone steps ascending to
| fiat roof. AT the top was no sign Of
any doorway or fastening. Yet some
| way of escape must be there! He ran
up the steps, crouched on the top.
most. placed his shoulders against that
fiat roof of stone. and heaved nightly
and heaved and heaved.
| Grudgingly, half-inch by half-inch,
the stone yielded; then more rapidly ;
in the end one tremendous final effort
overturned it, and Parr sprawled out
of the opening into fresh alr and morn
ing sunlight.
He picked himself up to realize q
walled garden in the rear of the resi-.
dence whose every window spouted
smoke and flame. Then he hurried
back to Patria. took her once again In
his arms, and bore her to the upper
world.
She recovered swiftly. Two min.
utes more, and they stood In a quiet
news on the far side of the walled
garden. And there. for little, they
hesitated-Patria turning Instinctiyely
to Parr for counsel, Parr struggling
to regain his polse.
At length, consulting his watch, he
announced
The first thing to do. OF course, IL to
see about safeguarding that treasure,
Its safe enough for the time being :
and ! know where to flnd the risht
men to stand guard over il aftse ~
dsemen and police have eoas. iatss,
VEN - about ttansfsrrina t1-4bni
1 ehefs's plsnty of dr. ~ fhaf !; ~ {61Iii3
es2e 10; yseie. . n n ~ sIs|