Evening star., 1927-10-08


NV it must be a cryptoSran
of some sort, but how
without hint Of the key
was she expected to solve it? Why
IL it were not a trick. had it not beer
mailed in plain writing, openly anl
honestly, or brought to her in person,
She was home. among friends
But Mrs. Madison had given orders
that no one but expected visitors
must enter or leave the estate, L,
was all very perpleXing, Yet she fell
that she must solve the riddle
Lowering the light still more, she
sank down on the side of the bed and
studied the characters abSorbedly
The message did not appear to be di
vided into words or sentences, and
only J. letters of the alphabet had
been used, although most of them
constantly repeated and were varying.
ly spaced by dots. Could those dots
represent missing letters?
Long she pondered over it and then.
procuring a pencil and paper from the
small desk in the corner, she set to
work trying various combinations,
but only failure seemed TO follow her
efforts.
The rain ceased and the wind quiet.
ed to gentle breeze, but a delicate
gray light stole in at the rift in the
curtains before a sudden inspiration
came TO Janet, and she began Scrib-
bling fast. Her tired face lightened
as she wrote. even though a shadow
of fear crept into her eyes, and when
she finished at last a little eXclama.
tfon of Joy broke from her lips, but It
was quickly huShed with her glance
at The window. 1t was almost MORN
ing? She had not moment to lose!
Turning out the light. Janet tiptoed
to the window and drew the curtains
slightly apart, pushing the window
open carefully inch BY inch. Then
going to her dress closet she took out
a pedestrienne suit, at the knickers
and short coat of which she had
looked askance when first shown her
new wardrobe, but which now she
considered the most sensible clothing
for the occasion confronting her.
When dressed, and with her fair hair
drawn up tightly beneath the little
cap. she looked like an engaging boy.
but there was little of the joyousness
OF youth in her face as she CROPPED
under the cushions of the chaiSe
Tongue for Philip Mariott's pistol and
thrust 1t in the belt beneath her coat.
Then taking two of the long. bolster
cushions, she tucked them under the
covers of the bed so that at a casual
glance it would seem that a slim form
rested there. and clasping her watch
about her wrist, she turned again to
the window.
The gray light of coming day had
deepened and was fast driving away
the shadows. but a mist arose from
the earth, still steaming with fallen
rain. and there was the merest hint
Of rose in the eastern sky.
No one was in sight as she stole to
the balcony rail and only startled
bird twittered sleepily when the
branch above swept down under the
pull Of her strong, slender arms.
Janet had made her way over the
convent walls in this fashion on more
than one innocent but forbidden ex-
cursion, and now she swung herself
up like Sqhirrel among the branches,
lowering her slim weight from one to
another till she dropped lightly to the
ground.
Bending low and instinctively seek.
ing cover under clumps of shr,,bbery
and behind stout old trees, she gained
the path leading beyond the tennis
courts which she had taken on the
previous day, but where it branched
off toward the woodland Janet chose
the other fork, although it promised
far less shelter. There was a pink
glow facing her on the horizon and
the mist was rapidly dissolving; birds
were waking everywhere and from
the direction of the garage and out
buildings near she caught the sound
of masculine voices. rough and harsh,
as they called to each other Fear of
discovery gave her renewed strength
and she fairly flew along the path.
but left it where it turned to the
green of the golf course and hid her.
self for a moment behind the con.
crete walls of the row of lighthouses
that bordered one end Of the swim.
ming pool.
Janet crouched low and felt in the