South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1922-12-01
THE THING on THE HEARTH
Begin Here Today.


Mysterious. incredible tragedy
had been the fate OF
RODALAN. the world genius. whose
tremendous brain power had been
conferred on the commercial man
ufacture OF precious stones. The
scientific world was startled when
the preliminary papers Of Rod
man showasG that By synthetic
chemistry he was about % turn
cut sheets OF emerald and rub-esI
weighing several pounds at no
more cost than the manufacture
OF ordinary window glass.
The Orient was shocked. It
meant tremendous destruction Of
wealth. Then one day, bearing a
gift worth thousands, there came a
strange creature from the Shan
Monastery IN Asia Powerful, in
talligeut -welrd-thi man had
been delegated by his religious order
90 serve the great genius and pro-
tect hun from evil.
Then came the tragedy. The one
man in the world needed % solve
the mystery was ~ Jonquelie,
groatest OF French detectives.
Go on wits the Story.
CHAPTER II
AZ soon as France could release
JonqusIle. 10 sent him. Rodman
genius was tho common properly
az the world. The American govern
mcnt could not. even with the YER
Get OF trial court, let Rodman's
death go by under the smOke-screen
OF such a weird, inscrutablc mys-
terry.
1 was 90 meet Jonquelle and come
here with him. But my train into
New England was delayed. and
when I arrived at the station. I
found that JOnquelie had gone down
10 have a look at Rodman's coun-
try-house, where the thing lad hap
pened
It was on an isolated forest ridge
Of the Berkshires. no human soul
within a dozen miles OF it--a com
Portable stone house in the English
fashion. There was a big drawing
room across one end OF il.
Rodman used this drawing room
shattered and locked. Not even this
big. yellow. serville creature who
took exclusive care OF him in the
house was allowed 10 enter. except
under Rodman's eye. What he saw
in the final scenes Of the tragedy,
he saw boxing in through crack
under the door The earlier things
he noticed when he put logs on the
fire at dark
Time is hardly a measure for the
activities OF the mind. These re-
Elections winged by in a scarcely
perceptlble interval Of IT, They
have taken me some time to write
out here, but they crowded past
while the big Oriental was speaking
in the pause between his words.
The print" he continued, was
the first condrmatory but il was
not the first indicatory sign.
doubt II the Master himself noticed
the thing at the beginning"
The Master was sunk in his la
Dor. and while that enveloped him,
the first advances Of the lure would
have gone by unnoticed-and the
day was at hand when the Master
was receptive. He had got his work
completed; the formulate. penciled
out, were on his table. I knew by
the relaxation. OF all periods thi.
is the one most dangerous to tn,
human spirit"
He sat silent for a moment. hl
big fingers moving on the arms o.
the chair.
Il knew he added Then he wen
on. But it was the one thina
against which I could not protec
him. The test was 70 be permitted. .
he turned sharply toward me. tn,
folds of his face unsteady.
"Excellency!" he cried. Il woul,
have saved the Master woul,
have saved him with my soul
damnation. but il was not permitted
on that first nigh; n the Italian,
tent I said all I could"
His voice went into a higher note
Twice, for The Master, 1 have
been checked and reduced in merit
For that bias I was myself encircled
wcs in an agony OF spirit when
knew that the thing was beginning
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