Charlevoix county herald., 1919-01-17

tries cast a reddish-yellow light about
a squalid interior of wooden counter
and half-filled shelves, where sat one
or two denizens of the quarter, hold.
ing long bamboo pipes and smoking in
passive sort of enjoyment.
So much saw and then Dual turned
to the great man who followed behind
me and spoke quickly in the native
tongue.
| In response he advanced. passed to
the front and set his hand on the latch
of the door swinging it before him and
stepping inside.
Dual and | followed. In a moment
we were in the shop.
The same little keeper of the place,
who had shown such palpable fear and
surprise at our advent of the night be-
fore. showed before me.
Like his fellows, he glanced up as
we entered, and began to chatter in
what seemed question TO me.
For the first time in my presence
the grim-faced giant opened his mouth
words in torrent of deep-toned
phrases, seemingly addressing the sew
eral occupants of the place in collec-
tive fashion.
At the end of his speech he waved
his arm in a gesture which seemed to
clear the room. They rose from before
him - those stolid-faced sons of the
East, and skunk out of the door. all
save the little keeper of the shop, who
glanced here and there in furtive
manner, while his companions scut-
tered away.
OF course, understood no word OF
what the hawk-eyed man had said,
but even without could see that they
seemed to have carried terror to all
those present.
/ glanced from the little shop-man,
whose face showed fear and sort of
desperate determination, to the man
who faced him, and surprised on his
thin-lipped mouth sort of awful
smile.
Again he waved an arm; this time
toward the door at the rear of the
room which led back to the entrance
to the tunnel, as l knew.
Very slowly and as one driven by
superior force the proprietor OF the
shop sidled along back of his counter
before the others advance.
So we reached the rear of the room
and passed through its door to another
apartment behind it.
And first of US all walked the keep
er of the shop.
He seemed cowed, overawed, but he
was still not without sort of cor
nered courage, such as the weak
things show at times in unacceptable
places.
OF sudden, and before had
dreamed of the action, he sprang for
ward, cried out in a shrill sort Of
scream and threw himself toward a
second door beyond us.
AS l followed that mad leap my
eyes distinctly saw an electric button
set into the frame of the door.
saw it and found my gaze fastened
upon it as a target toward which the
little man had launched himself in a
wild chance of sounding an alarm.
But he never reached it.
Have you ever seen a hawk strike a
running rabbit? l have, and to this
day l always liken that scene to the
other which transpired now.
AS the little figure hurled itself for
AL. Al.
acted, as quickly even as the hawk it.
self sweeps down.
He lunged from his position at the
others henls. His great arm with its
long talon-like nails reached out. its
fingers spreading like the claws of the
bird itself.
They spread out and closed with a
grasping, prehensile motion, and -
they closed on the throat of the man
who leaped before.
The little man screamed again -
screamed as the rabbit cries out when
the hawks claws pierce it.
The great hand dragged him back.
caught glimpse of his face, drawn
and distorted with pain and terror.
Then looked at the claw-like hand.
1t had caught him just under the
chin. Its long nails seemed buried in
the flesh of his scrawney neck and
while l looked tiny trickles of blood
started from beneath the strangling,
tearing fingers and ran down over the
yellow-brown skin OF the puny thing
they held.
With a heave the great arm raised
and held him striking and struggling
as the rabbit struggles, and the threads
Of blood widened and deepened, and
the eyes in his face. started and rolled
backward like the rabbits.
DUAL" l cried out. Semi! He
will kill him."
My friend shook his head.
Very slowly the great arm lowered
the writing thing it held, to the floor,
and released it. 1t lifted skinny hands
to its torn throat and moaned and
whimpered.
The great hand seized II again, this
time by the back of the neck, and
turned IL toward the rear of the room