Evening star., 1923-09-11

and one beneath his mattress; but the
two that seemed to show the best
prints he wrapped carefully in bits of
old paper and returned to his pockets.
So far his plan had worked excellent
~, but IT is one thing TO have sud-
den inspiration, quite another to nurse
II along against seeming impossibili-
ties SO thought Pete as he studied
long and hard on the next step.
He thought of the light on the hill.
II certainly meant something! Per
maps a message would come to him
during the night. That was it! The
signal was to put him on his guard;
he went to the window. More wood
had been thrown in the fire and
tongues of flame shot high into the
air. throwing a dancing light nearly
10 his window. Certainly no messen-
ger could approach 1t from that side!
he took stock once more of the room
ana observed again how bare and
square II was Heavy boards formed
the partition and there were
no doors save the locked one, just
outside of which a gangster slept.
His eyes swept the ceiling and he OBJ
served little cracks here and there.
but on the whole 1t presented a job
well done; at least, no human could
come through it!
Still, Pete refused to relax his vigil
by the window. The night must be
he doggedly refused to sleep. The
! kerosene light sputtered. its yellow
fame giving way, little by little, to
oily black smoke. The guards out
side, one sleeping while the other
watched, had kept the fire burning
brightly throughout the night. The
room was becoming bitterly cold. but
the memory of his coat and the man
1t covered made the frost in the air
seem almost welcome. In spite of
himself. as the minutes dragged on.
his head refused to remain erect.
Time after time it sank Imply for
ward. only to be jerked back by an
iron will. But nature could not be
denied, and the mods, following each
other in rapid succession, soon be-
came fitful slumber.
A sudden feeling that he was not
alone in the room reused him with
start. He whirled to face the door,
and turned the sputtering wick in the
lamp higher, as he searched every
corner of the room. He was mistaken.
Just another trick of overwrought
nerves, he told himself, and settled
settled when a creaking overhead
brought him again to his feet. Tap
tap-tap-something soft like a padded
hammer was striking the board above
him. He located the spot, and as
though fascinated. watched a knot.
nearly TWO lnCneS WlUe, ITSC crack az
the center, then crumble and finally
fall. Silence followed, as breathless-
ly he waited. eyes glued on the hole.
Then fingers, lily white in the near
darkness, stole through, and released
a bit of folded paper, plummet-like.
straight into his lap. Moving eau
tiously from the proximity of the
window he hurriedly opened the note
and read:
Escape means death to Hawkins
and you. Sims trip to Jumbo Point
and back will take ten days. Watch
out for Bull, he means to kill you.
Hawkins safe for present. Burn this.
now. Tam
He read the words again, this time
more slowly. Then he removed the
smoky chimney of the lamp and
touched a corner of the paper to the
flame. Sudden light flooded the room
and Peter looked cautiously out at
the guards. But If they had seen it,
they had no concern over it. and Pete
eagerly raised his eyes again to the
knothole. The fingers reappeared
Pete leaned close to the light and
read: Three swings come to light.
two swings repeated three times,
Eliot returning. One complete circle
at midnight, Hawkins well, improv-
ing"
Pete crammed the code into his
pocket and stood face up under the
hole. Fearing to speak he made the
motion of writing on his outstretched
palm, and almost Immediately his an