Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1930-10-08
: CHAPTER xxxv.
THREE MEN OF BABYLON.

THREE MEN OF BABYLON.
7 SHOOK myself That wouldn't
do. I had not given the place
chance. II the cove had been the
A destination of the convicts their
launch was out there somewhere.
The wharf attracted me. I started
along it., cautiously picking my way
over the rotten planking. I moved with
absolute quietness. The wharf was
some IS feet wide and perhaps 200 feet
long. Several dilapidated sheds occupied
the lower end of 1t.
Suddenly stopped I had to stop
The wharf was broken in two. Where
I now stood, some 100 fest from the
beach, the piling had collapsed, A gap
perhaps 10 feet wide separated the two
sections. It was impossible to get across
the gap, except by swimming or boat
The lower half. where the sheds stood,
formed little island-a little fortress.
Just then I saw light.
A mere thread Of light it was. In
a twinkling 1t had gone. I breathed
deeply, gratefully. They were there
and Caroline was with them. Not a
shadow Of doubt fingered in my mind.
How was to get her away from them?
AS my eyes drilled into the darkness
something heaved itself up, stood erect
and became the figure Of q man. I
dropped, my heart In my throat,
supposed he was either lie Balafre
or Bee; then heard the faint dripping
of his garments as he wrung them and
Samuels-the former. hoped. A
breaker sloshed around the piling Just
then and he did not hear my low
whistle. BY the +ime the water had
subsidized, he had moved down the wharf
and passed from sight.
Slipping out of my shoes and over
coat, I let myself down over the edge
Of the wharf, which was some four feet
above the water. Then hooked my
right arm around one OF the piles and
slid cautiously down 1t. I chung to a
ebbing fast.
Letting 60. was swept along Is
feet or so, when anchored myself to
another pile-the one up which the
man had climbed, I thought, as several
cross pieces were nailed upon it, forming
a ladder. My hand was upon one of
these cross pieces when heard voice.
What IL said I could not make out, but
a penetrating metallic quality in its tone
recalled to my mind the livid face of
lie Balafre.
The voice was blown toward me
through the piling from q point some
where under the wharf and I listened
The gurgle of the water was all heard
A barricade Of planking was erected
against two Of the center piles in a
cross-wise direction. I thought the
planking made right angle turn and
ran lengthwise with the wharf.
knew In flash what it was. The
convicts had built an oblong enclosure
large enough to give their launch secret
harborage, or they had found some sort
of an enclosure there and adapted it to
their needs. The latter, probably.
A carelessly erected barricade OF
rotting planking beneath ruined wharf
would not be apt to attract the atten-
ton of any one putting casually into the
cove. 1t was not unlikely, indeed, that
they had broken the gap in the wharf
to isolate themselves more effectively.
with one OF the sheds on the wharf,
supposed, and 1t occurred to me that
could not do better than make use Of
it. Flique-or Samuels-would have
his hands full, as doubted If either
lie Balafre or Bee would be taken alive
Striking out for the barricade, found
finger and toe hold In the planking-as
had surmised. it had been thrown to-
gether with deliberate carelessness-
| and hoisted myself to the top. which
was some two feet below the wharf.
Inside the enclosure the launch hac
expected to find. a powerful speedy.
| looking craft, swung at its moorings.
rectangle of light descended from a traI
In the floor Of the shed into the cockpit
of the launch, which was empty. Tht
light had made it possible to see the
barTicade. Iron bars driven into ont
of the piles gave access to the shec
above.
q learned afterwards that the
A@A4a -
this subterranean approach to the
wharf to facilitate their casual
smuggling operations.)
AS I dropped into the enclosure and
chung to the side of the launch,
heard lie Balafre's voice again.