Grand Forks herald. [volume] (Grand Forks, N.D.) 1916-1955, 1922-05-06

Az any rate, nothing happened un-
til late the following night. when sud
denly she heard revolver shots fired
below. Somehow she fancied that
help was coming. Her active msnd
c0ntrived q means of escape. In spite
of the fact that she was bound, she
managed to tip over a piece OF the
6cant furniture in such a way that
the window was smashed. BY rub
bling the ropes that bound her wrists
on the aS1ed ends Of glass she man
aged to free her hands. Removing
the gag and untying her ankles was
quick operation. She was free. :
The breaking of the glass had
passed unsuspectods in the fusillade Of
u shots. But when she managed
to gain the outside by dropping down
her captor saw her. With a shout.
he started after herr She ran wildly,
and as she did So, she missed, her
footing and fell many feet below,
fortunately catching her dress in some
scrub bushes. She was saved from
the fall hundreds Of feet below, but
clinging as she was to the very edge
OF. the perilous ledge, she could see
the hated face of Thornc peering ove,'
and coming at her
The rest Of the story We know our
selves,
Late though it was when we arrived
again back in the city and left Clare
at, her apartment, we were greeted al
Y own apartment by the sleepy hall
boy with q startling piece of news. It
was nothing less than q message to
Speed which had been sent over, by
Minna Oakieigh had been found
poisoned at an obscure New York ho-
tel.
We hurried oyer and found the
there and, as he grasped the hand of
Speed, one could feel what a shock
the sudden disclosure had been to
him, tactlesly made as 1t had been
by the police who found the body.
We mounted to the little room
where the discovery had been made.
There had not yet been time to re-
move the body which was lying, still
fully clothed on the bed.
Mrs. JamGs ldentiSied.
A glance was all that was needed
to confirm the suspicious which I al
ready had entertained. Minna Oak
leigh was the beautiful MRS. James"
She had left q lot to her husband,
but 1t was torn in half. The later
hall. which had contained some kind
OF q confession, was missing. Still
there was enough 80 that we could
reconstruct her story. though was
convinced that the missing half Of the
note was the important part that per-
haps led to the Black Menace.
& It was most feafBome az We looked
around the scanttiy furnished room
The power Of this b~iackrnAiier seemed
to be unlimited. Death followed every
attempt to reveal his identity, and he
must have had in his employ In
Vulnerable faithful henchmen TO cover
up his trail. Still, that was not 20
difficult to understand when one con-
he had been able for "a long time to
extort from society.
In her grip was q packet OF letters.
Many had been N~abstFacted, but there
was enough to reveal that Minna Oak
leigh was deep9in debt and other. N
tenglements that she dared not re-
veal. Il was the explanation of. her
interest," In Kennedy that night At the
Nystery Mansion. She had been try
Ing & llSt. secretly to- Get Kennedy
and CArsrjn her fight. i Is.
Speed FAXED In silent sympathy at
his friend. Oakletgh.
In one Of the letters there had been
mention OF the name Of Brkshkaya.
AZ he read Il. Oekleigh clehched his
"That woman he ground j III
I had known that ,Minna knew her
! might have prevented this"
6ynpathsticalIy Speed drew out OF
him his story. Quite Apparently as
We pieced Il together. there had been
web Of the BlaeE Menace.
fhat expIsihS everythins." he
aFnAnxd 20 ni9htf whflA Aisnma,