Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1919-08-10

Hospital ana, passing IL, LOOK prONer-
ed seat at the gatekeeper's lodge. After
the pipe and tea he inquired, quite
casually, 1.-THE foreign doctor will not
return this EVENING"" s,i5
mo. venerable sir" replied the
keeper. ~ "..F
"And who is in charge here during
the night?"
"Dr. Chang. his assistant. is in
charge, sir"
please say to him that visitor
from another city would like the
honor Of meeting him. (slipping
good-sized coin into his palm). ~.
ALAS, sir, DR.. Chang and the head
nurse are both away at the bathing
hall, but the second nurse will escort
you, if you wish to go into the hos
pital, SIR"
Thank you, I want very much to
see II an old friend of mine Is a pa
tient here"
Duly escorted by Hoo Sing, the sec
ond nurse, Wang Foo entered the
male ward No. 8, and passed along
from bed to bed, until he came to the
place where the unfortunate victim
of the 'lukewarm tea was asleep
under his quilt. He paused and asked
Hoo Sing about him, quite as
tonishing the nurse with his famili-
arity with the case and utterly dis
arming any suspicion he might have
about q visit to the ward at this late
hour of the night. Poor chap" he
said. ut certainly went hard with him
for his unfilial spirit"
1T certainly did. SIR" sA
"But my heart goes out to him now,
for he certainly has suffered. Won
der IL you couldn't just run down to
the fruit sellers by the Hong Kew
bridge and buy him q dozen oranges
and hide them away under his bedding
for him? See, here is the money and
a wine tip for yourself"
II ought not to leave the hospital
alone. sir, when the doctor is away.
but itnwon't be for very long, so I
think I can risk it."
Here, this window is very near the
ground; I'll help you out and you can
slip quietly down there without any
one being the wiser"
Suiting the action to the word, the
nurse climbed out the window and
crept away in the direction Of the
bridge, leaving Wang Foo alone in
the ward. The moment he realized
the situation he rose and, looking
very carefully about him, stepped
softly over to the last bed in the cor
ner and, leaning forward. eagerly
scrutinized the face Of the patient.
He was asleep. His face and skin
were as yellow as the golden letters
on the scroll above his bed. He was
breathing slowly and painfully. On
the wooden tablet his name was
written, Ting Tai Foo" and after it
the significant words, "Poison-Un-
known" The detective unfastened the
upper buttons of his sleeping jacket
and, uncovering his chest, revealed
stretching across from shoulder to
Shoulder string of seven round
scars.
1.-THE Abbot's beads; the Abbot's
beads" he exclaimed, II have found
them at last"
He started and looked hastily
around, but no one had heard him and
not a patient seemed to be stirring.
He retraced his footsteps and. bidding
the gatekeeper good night, turned
sharply around into the adjoining
street. Summoning the first two jim
rikishas. he bargained with them for
a very special duty, which was no
less than to assist him in returning a
patient to his home from the for
eigner's hospital-a duty they are al
ways glad to undertake.. He hurried
with them to the window through
which the nurse had gone for the
oranges: it was but the work of q
moment for him to push the two
coolies through it and to point them
to the bed where the poison victim
lay soundly sleeping. In an instant
more they had wrapped him up in his
colored quilt, passed him out through
the window and were dragging his
jinrikisha through the back streets
Of the settlement in the direction Of
the Chinese city gates.
When DR.. Evanstone made his
rounds through the hospital on the
following morning, he came to bed
No. IL nthe corner of ward No. 3
and noticed that the patient was MISS
ing. DR.. Chang and the two nurses
all disclaimed any knowledge Of the
escape and the gatekeeper swore that
no patient had passed through the
door-there was only one conclusion,