Richmond times-dispatch. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1914-current, 1918-02-17

to the edge Of the roof and peereJ
/ over.
Ramsey" he cried. catching sight
o; him below. where he had Knocked
down the man left on guard and dashed
! into the warehouse.
! The cmissaries had little time 20
I ;hink. Together they lifted the inert
c'y Of the Hidden Hand and carried
swiftly across the roof TO the other
-Jrner. where there was n derrick, with
a beam fastened to an iron chain
Quickly they dashed the body to the
: beam and swung 1t over the edge Of the
[ roof just'as Ramsey came on
Two OF them fell upon Ramsey and.
in a sudden on-rush, IT, ,w him and
stunned him. Then. before he could
recover. all clinging TO the beam let
/ Reaching the ground. they unlashed the
/ body and carried 1t quickly 20 Il nook in
] an adjoining building, where they COW
cred it with burlap bags. Then then
ran TO the help Of the man whom they
! had seen knocked down in the base
mcnt by Ramsey.
/ Meanwhile. Doris had let herself
down the chimney by the rope until she
| came to the firepit OF the furnace be-
low. /. was an oil-burning furnace
and by the dim light Of small pilot
jet she could sec 20 grope her way out
under the horizontal boiler
/ She started for the stairs, when
suddenly another emssary, who had
! been left on guard, jumped at her
and almost overpowered her. She
struggled with him and broke loose
There was only one way to go. and
that was back into the oil-burnins
furnace. She darteG into it and banged
the door, punching the little round door
/ of the draft hole open. Through this
opening she leveled her gun and fired.
/ The cmissary returned the shots, but
! Doris was now in what was practically
an armored fortress. She could fire at
. him. but he could not hit her, and he
rctreated for safety.
BY this time. on the roof Ramsey
had recovered and found that the gang
had escaped with the body. But from
the chimney he could hear cries below.
lie realized that ii was Doris. and
down The stairs nc dashed. seeking the
engine room.
AS he dashed in after the cmissary
whom Doris was holding at bag, the
other, whom he had Knocked out be-
fore, crept up on him. From the draft
hole in the fire pit Doris saw it and
fro nat iDct . I,n ,f
the Hidden Hands emissaries ran in
and in the general melee Ramsey was
thrown 10 the Goor. while they began
searching him for the lockct.
Doris waited her chance AMI Grcd
One OF them fell. but the others quick
" jerked Ramsey to his feet. placing
and the girl.
Hands up" they shouted at Ramsey.
AS he threw up his hands, palms
backward, he carried by the barrel his
gun. which he dropped from his sleeve,
an old trick.
Standing shielded by Ramsey, the
emissares called to another. who
turned and crept along the wall. care
full TO keep out of the range of Doris's
gun.
/ AS he approached as near to the fire
box door as he dared his hand reached
out and turned lever. then another,
and another of a series. They were
little faucets that released successive
jets of oil. and as they were released
the oil burst successfully into flame
from the pilot jet
Inside. Doris shrank in horror as one
flame after another licked out along
both sides of her, growing hotter and
hotter every moment. She screamed
as she felt the fierce heat, while the
cmissary slowly increased the flow and
pressure of oil. She beat OIL the door
1t was latched on the outside
She was trapped in the terrific heat
Of the furnace,
Doris screamed with pain as she
beat on The iron door with her fists
Tic flames were getting more intense
! every moment. and she would be roast
ed TO death if she were not rclea sed
in few seconds.
/ The two emissaries who were hold
ing Ramsey turned for a moment to
look AZ the iirc-pit door. and in that
instant Ramsey saw his chance
Suddenly he lowered his arms and
as he did SO the gun up his sleeve
slipped down and he caught it in his
: hand. fIe bowled over one Of the
men with his left hand as he levclcd
the gun. with the right at the other.
/ iiut the fellow on the floor was too
quick. He seized Ramsey's legs and
topplcd him over as the other man
wrenched at his wrist. The gun dis
charged harmlessly and the four were
now in an incxtricable mass of legs
and arms and bodies as they rolled
over and over.
oh. jack" moaned Doris. writhing
| in the heat OF the flames In the fur
mace and still beating on the door OF
her prison.
| She would have fred but for the al
most certain chance Of hitting Ramsey
in the struggle.
! Outnumbercd as he was. though,
Ramsey did not lose his head AS he
struggled over the floor there was