The Birmingham age-herald., 1923-08-05


 thought to use such a maneuver. But he was not fighting for himself. He was fighting for many thousand dollars worth of his employers roperty-property entrusted to his i care and well-night lost through his 1 gullibility.
 As Mansur, head down, caught him about the middle, Rourke's doubled right knee shot upward. It landed | on Mansur's face, in approximately the same general territory recently 1 covered by the swat of the bag, and with even sharper force.
 Back reeled Mansur, grogging and blinking. After him ,sprang Barry, ! hurdling the body of the bald-headed man, as he went. In mid-air, he felt himself jerked sideways. Against | the table edge he crashed; cltnging to that swaying surface to avoid 1 pitching headlong.
 The bald-headed man had recov- cred so far from the knockout punch l to the jaw as to reach up and grasp l one of Rourke's flying ankles. Now, as Barry regained his balance, the bald headed man was scrambling to his feet; and, in the same set of ges- lures, was hauling from an inner pocket an efficient-looking knife.
 Mansur, too, was coming on again, encouraged apparently by his con- federate's re-entrance into, the fray.
 Still clinging to the bag, Rourke vaulted the wide table. giving 1t a sprang back against the wall, close beside the telephone. Knocking tho receiver from the hook he awaited the double onset of his foes.
 They came on, in silent swiftness; approaching him from different sides. It was well planned.
 Robbers In here!" bawled Rourke, ! into the transmitter.
 Then he jumped to the nearest cor ner of the room; hoping the hotel operator had noted the signal of the knock ed down receiver In time to get his shouted words.
 Mansur gave a mumbled command to the bald-headed man, who ad- vanced on Barry, knife poised. Man sur himself ran to the telephone.
 "Oh. operator" he called sauvely into the transmitter, that was just
 He got no further. Down came the bag on the crown of his head; bringing him to the rug on all fours. Barry had abandoned the protection of his corner to strike the blow, be- fore his own warning could go for nothing.
 Then. standing astrlde tho half risen Mansur and exerting all his force and skill, Barry smote thrice. with the bag. Every blow crashed with nauseous force on the crook s unprotected head. Before the third was struck. Calvin Q. Mansur lay bronco n the floor. his scalp bleed ing.
 Barry. in his old fury, would have gone on striking indefinitely but the bald headed man had cleared the eb- stacle of the overturned settee and was at his throat. Rourke made a belated snatch at the descending kpife. Its blade cut his fingers to the bone, as he thrust aside its mangled hand, he managed to seize the knifer's wrist. And the two op- ponents closed In a death -grapple.
 Still Rourlte clung to the bag and to the nife-wrist. Only with the hand that held the bag could ho fend off his adversary. The latter was fighting like a Tiger; struggling to free his knife-arm or to bring the weapons point into contact with Barry's ribs. In the close-locke ed wrestle. the two mems heads came together. The thief drove his teett deep into Rourke's throat. Barry , sought in vain to shorten his Cwr arm, to bring the lethal bag into play.
 , Then the wrecked drawing was full of people. The bald-headed man seemed to sense rather than tC see their surging advent Tearing free his wrist he dived headlonG past snarled rugs and demolished chairs among the crowd, wriggling doorward
 Lunging after him, Barry caught him by the collar. The thief wheeled like a striking snake and stabbed By instinct, Barry flung up the bag nff a6e Q snapped short against Its metallic contents
 Then. hotel officials and two po- licemen grasped both combatants and, impartially, bore them to the floor by sheer weight of numbers.
 Said the office boy-this time wide eyed and respectful-as Barry Rourke limped into the store next morning.:
 ''Mr. Rtsel wants you, sir"
 Lame and sore and aching, Barry made his way into the sacred Spar tan office. He felt no fear, this time, no emotion at all. He had looked somewhat closely into the eyes of death not 30 hours earlier After that there was scant room for dread or fer thrill In the mere sum mons to go to q peaceful little old man. Rosel motioned him to seat "Rourke," said he, there's one point you didn't clear up In your report to me yesterday. You said you knocked that bald-headed man down, as he started to take the bag to his confederate in the next room and that's how the fight started?"
 Yes" answered Barry, too list less with reaction to remember to say sir"
 |"EIml" commented Rosel "Yet he was dressed like a woman. The po- lice tell me he Is one of the best fe- male impersonators known to the underworld. Do yCu mean to say you knocked him down, while you still believed he was woman?"
 "No," returned the listless Rourke q knew 1t was man, all right That's what made me know the whole thing was crooked. The char who called himself Mansur' had just said it was his wife. I knew it was Ia man. So I knew there was a swim dle in it. And T."
 "But how did you know it was 8 man?" insisted Rosel. If the get-uI and the voice and the manner were woman's-"
 "Mansur tossed the bag-key into her-his, mean-lap," explained Barry, weary of talking. She mean he-closed his--her-no-his- knees, to catch it. Women don't dc that. They open their knees to make a lap, when things are tossed tc them. Men shut their knees to- gether. because they haven't any skirts"
 "I-I-why, I believe they dol" ex claimed Rosel; adding In admiration And you were Sherlock Holme! enough to figure that out, all in { moment? Good boy! I'd
 "No." denied Rourke. q didn discover it. A girl told me"
 "A girl. eh?' bantered Rosel. "Ant you knew it must be true--just be oausa a eirl said it2n