The Daily Alaska empire., 1934-05-18

Silll IUEIS was uO duo WSi. Al s''-
 silence leigned within. The +n' light. sweeping from side to .HA gave fugitive glimpses of ~,A& deep hall with paneled wocdwost and richly furnished. But there W. something eerie about this sre:. place with it's teetering Gc;r aiS the snow seeping over the sill.
 They looked at each other. tnsn started as the door thundered sh1s behind them. Prop that damn tsing open," Connally shouted. and jerk ing out his service revolver. ad- vanced warily into the hall. He had glimpsed faint line of light under door farther down the hall. He tried the knob cautiously. then flung the door back with a quick motion. Hilleary had found the electric light switches near the front door. but could get no response from any of them.
 Armed and alert. Connally peered into the room-and stood rooted to the threshold. Over his shoulder came the sharp hiss of indrawn breath from his companion as he. too. saw.
 Connally's brain was swift In re- action. A moments examination of the gruesome burden of that room confirmed his worst fears. Don't touch anything here." he warned, backing away toward the door. "I saw a telephone out In the hall. If it's disconnected you'll have to drive back and report this" To his satisfaction. when he lifted the tele- phone receiver he heard the familiar buzz, and in few moments his call was through to the Fourteenth Pre- cinct.
 had no sooner re- - placed the telephone receiver than the clammy silence of this trag- ic house weighed down upon them again. The wind went whistling down the deep hall. stirring up for tive rustllngs. as of unseen draper ies. while the silent snow sifted far. ther and farther over the threshold. The one room in the house they had entered had been fairly warm. but the exposed hallway was as chill and biting as the outdoors.
 Hilleary swung his torch In ex- ploring circles. The que sting beam discovered refectory table bear ing several bronze candelbra with tall, tapering candles. These sput- tered and flickered a great deal be- fore they consented to burn. turn ing the hall into place of leaping shadows and shifting visibility.
 You take one light. and I'll take the other. and we can make sure there's nobody hiding on this floor. anyway" Connally suggested. "We can let the upstairs go until the others come"
 A rush of wind extinguished the candles in one swoop. wen have to fix that front door," Hilleary said.
 You light the candles again. I'll attend to the door," Connally re- piled. There was a sturdy Yale lock on the inside, but he found that the lock bar had been released while the door was open. and that conse- quently, the door could not be closed until that was set back. He did this and 1t locked automatically. He also noticed an old-fashioned key hang ing beside the door jamb. and. on trying 1t. found that this was for the ordinary lock below the knob.
 Guns in hand. they lifted the can delabra and looked in all the rooms opening from the central hall. The search was quickly made and yield ed nothing in the way of interest. There were two doors in the rear of the house. Each was not only locked. but bolted on the inside. Connally found key that fitted both locks and put 1t in his pocket. There was also short corridor that led to a side door. This was locked. but the key was not present. The door to the cellars had no lock. only a latch. but was bolted at the side and top. so 1t was left as found. after its securi- ty had been tested.
 Connally was just returning from this survey when there came a thunderous pounding at the front door. The policeman hastened to open the door. He was surprised when he saw that the first man to cross the threshold wore civilian clothes. but soon recognized Detec- tive-Sergeant Harper. and saluted. Next came Officer Clymer. then Smith. and lastly a figure in a gray overcoat slid jauntily past just as he swung the ponderous door shut. Once inside. Doyle was all eyes. as alert as pointer in the middle of . tall grass field.
 Harper pulled of his gloves. "Where are they?" he asked, sim. ply.
 "In there." Connally pointed to the closed door on the left. /Conurioht. 1881. bu Walter o. Brotpn