Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1920-08-05

sage, for instance, that led from the
wagon shed to a trapdoor in che cell
lar--it had resulted, last night, in a
still further insight into the ingen-
uity and the sort OF remoreless mas
cation attained it's ends. The method
by which they tapped the wires,
communicating the telegraph system
of the railroad, the primary purpose
of which was undoubtedly to supply
them with the vital information that
| must OF necessity pass over the wires
and on which they based their own
plans, this gold shipment tonight, for
example, or the shipment of dia-
monds from New York of n few
weeks back, was ingenious enough;
but still more .ingenious, when using
their secret code and putting the
wires to another purpose. that of en-
aiding the Ladybird to direct his OPP
erations and send his orders as he
had done tonight, was the method
u. which those messages were re-
ceiyeu: Every sounder on the line
carried them, OF course, and when, in
| isolated cases, the gang was work.
ing at smaller places along the line.
they could readily enough, If expect
Ing @ message, as he, the Hawk, had
often done, keep within sound of an
instrument by the simple eXpedient
OF occupying a waiting room, or of
Longing on the platform outside the
operators window; but the vast ma
jority of the messages were for those
of the gang who maintained a sort
of branch headquarters in Selkirk,
and such method was neither prac-
teal nor possible. since the first es-
sential in making the scheme OF
value was that, without the chance
of single message being missed,
the messages should reach their des-
! tination at any hour Of the day and
night.
Again the Hawk smiled grimly. 1t
had puzzled him a good many times
but 1t puzzled him no longer! Last
night the Ladybird. quite uncon-
scious OF a rapt audience, had. by a
chance remark, disclosed the secret;
and tonight he, the Hawk. had seen
the plan in operation! The news
counter! 1t was simple enough; but
it held deadly significance in it's
proof of the fact that there were no
obstacles. too great. no details too
minute to stand in the way between
the Ladybird and the end he sought.
The news counter was directly be-
| meath the operators room upstairs.
| In the old, days, before the station
| had been enlarged and modernized.
| 1t had been n somewhat diminutive
affair, and where the news counter
now stood had been the superinten-
dents office. This had connected
with the room above by means of an
old fashioned speaking tube. When
| the alterations had been made, the
| mouthpieces. both above and below,
had been removed, the room above
| had been papered over, and the watt
| Ing room had been plastered: but, as
the wall had been left intact, the
speaking tube had remained en-
bedded-in the wall. Yes, it was
very simple! Say, a dint in the wall
In the operators room above, and a
slight tear in the paper that, If it at
tracted any attention at all in sur
roundings where the call boys backed
| their chairs against the wall and
kept their hair on end with nickel
thrillers. would at least never excite
suspicion! And below. with the desk
/ In the little office of the news coun-
| ter backed up against 1t, who was to
know that a hole had been punched
| in the wall, or, for that matter. in
the back OF the desk itself behind
the convenient little drawer so that
one could sit there and listen to the
sounder upstairs! Also. 1t was quite
| obvious now why, several months
| ago, the old lessee OF the news cotn-
ter had been bought out by some
| newcomers!
The Hawks lips frightened. The
game to its fun extent was wide
open now. The news counter ran
day and night. operated by four of
the gang In pairs, one always on duty
at the desk; while, should there, by
any chance or at any time, be an un-
welcome intruder in the office. the
drawer had only to be shut and the
sound was thereby eliminated. When
message broke" over the wires
above, the man on duty had only to
decipher 1t and telephone it to what
the Ladybird had referred to as the
boarding house"-the disguise. II
appeared now, under which the gang
maintained its headquarters In the
city. That was all there was to 1t!
Tonight, 1t was true, the opera ton
had been a little different; but the
reason for that. as the Hawk had all
ready decided in his own mind was
obvious enough. With MacVightie.
Lanson and the authorities general
ly. on the alert, due to the gold ship
| ment coming thru, the man had not
| dared to take the risk of telephone
ing any such message as he had re-
ceived. but had taken 1t outside to
where one of the gang. undoubtedly.
\ IN view of the Importance OF the
nights work, was on additional duty
and IN readiness to receive and
transmit 1t on the instant, say, to the
local headquarters. AS for the alb
sence OF the second man at the news
counter, who ordinarily preserved the
pretence of catering to the publtcs
1T was quite possible and Indeed
likely. that he had gone on sim
liar errand with q previous message:
or, II one of the rare occasions when
1t was necessary to telegraph q CT
pher message from Selleirk had aris-
en-, he might have gone-according
to the Ladybird again--to the little
suburban station at the east end of
the city, which was closed at night,
but to which an entry and the sub
sequent use Of the wire would pre-
sent little difficulty. since Mac
Vightia had finally yiuon In &c L..