Western liberal. (Lordsburg, N.M.) 1887-1919, 1917-01-19


to a bunch Of crooks on q forged
orderi"
The captain called to a couple Of
his men.
"Tierney. and you Doolan, take this
bug-shooter IN charge"
"Then telephone TO stonington him
SELF" cried the frantic Marley strug-
Cling in the grip OF his captors. Get
him on the wire himself, and see what
he saysl"i
Patterson" he called out. Take
charge here, and don't let this motor
truck move an inch until I verify this
order Of stonington's." Then he
turned to Manley. You come with
me-"
The triumphant light soon went out
Of young MaRley's face, however, as
he stood beside the captain in the
telephone booth. He could hear that
Official call for the number, ask for
S%tonington, and crisply demand Of the
banker II the order for the vault trans
fer was authentic or not.
"Of course it's authenticl And /
want to know what this game isl
What are you and your bunch out
there trying to put over?"
But Manley knew what he knew.
Il tell you that wasn't Stonington
that spoke. It couldn't have beenl"
cried the desperate young secretary.
The captain was already on his feet
and fighting his way back to the fire
lines.
Then suppose you go up and tell
him he's been dreaming" Knocked the
irate official. Then get his affidavit
to that effect and amble back with it."
Manley himself was already darting
for the door.
That's just what Ill do" he called
out as he made for the corner of
Broadway on the rum, and there, still
on the run, leaped to the running
board OF an empty taxicab north
bound.
Manley's wait on Stonington's door
step was doubly disquieting. Still
more dlsquieting, however, was that
obese bankers reply to the questions
so 1ercely hurled at him.
Il gave out no such order. And no
such telephone call ever came to my
house tonight"
Then get your phone, quick!" Man
ley warned him. Get police head
quarters and stop that raid. Stop it in
side Of ten minutes or your banku
look like a last years bird nest!"
The excited man Of finance, who
had been shouting to mis- servants, sud-
denly ran to the nearest desk phone
and struggled with the instrument. But
his struggles were fruitless."
my phones dead" he cried out to
Manley. Il can't raise central! l
can't raise anything!"
'Then beat it for that bank of
yours" advised Manley as ne made for
the door.
Take me with you; for Gods sake
take me with you" cried Stonington,
catching up his hat and coat and fol-
lowing him.
Il can't" retorted the young man
az he darted for his waiting taxi. "I've
got to look for a crook called Oyster
Joel"
The police lines about the ruins of
the Third National bank, as Manley
went s%currying through the streets lit
tie dreaming that a stranger had pre-
coded him on hat errand, had al
ready been strengthened by addition
al reserves as the great motor truck
with its bank guards was piled higher
and higher with the gold from the
blistering vaults. Then came the call
for "Gangway!" And it became more
and more evident that no timely in
perception was to rob Legar and his
men Of their spoils. The heavy truck
was already crawling out from the
curb, its great wheels %crunching over
cinders and charred wood, as a mes
senger ran up to the officer in charge,
calling him to the telephone.
That official held the receiver in his
hand as the motor truck, gathering
speed as 1t threaded its way through
a narrow aisle Of open asphalt formed
by surging humanity, rounded the cor
ner into Broadway, Numbered north
ward for three blocks, and again
turned eastward.
By the time John Stonington's Ian
daulet reached the bank, following the
warning already sent on from head
quarters, an empty vault lay amid the
smoking ruins and Legar's galleon on
wheels, loaded to the brink with it's
stolen gold, had slipped away unchal-
lenged through the darkness and all
trace Of 1t had been lost.
The objective Of that wheeled gal
leon, however, seemed to have been
nicely appreciated by Oyster Joe, quiet
ly smoking on the deck Of an extremely
powerful-engined but extremely dirty
launch moored in the shadow Of a
wharf. That worthy, indeed, showed
a marked preference for gloom, since
neither his cabin nor his deck lamps
, were alight. Equally without light
was the numbering truck which
crawled cautiously down to the lip Of
the wharf Whara aftar an avohanga