Bemidji Daily Pioneer Newspaper, August 26, 1922, Page 2

\i - _sYNopsis TS R L.—During flu height of the “fi Qrleans carnival season Jachin l.h zncun. somewhat myaterious cit- Dr. Ansley, are discussing a 01 robberlcl by an individual known o4 the Midnight Masquer, who, invariably attired as an aviator, has long defled the police. . Joseph Maillird, wealthy bankez, is gving a ball that night, at which the Mgsquer has threatened to appear and roh the guests. Fell and Ansley, on their “to'the affair, meet a girl dressed as 00 lumbine, seemingly known to Fell, but “who accompanies them to the C’BAH‘ER IIL.—Lucle Ledanols, recent- ly the ward of her uncle, Joseph Mall- l-rl s whe Columbine. HAPTER TL—In hll library Joseph Mailiard and a group of friends are held up and robbed by the Midnight Masquer. ~Lucie Ledanois, the last of :gld rnmuy. 18 in straitened circum- Joseph Maillard’s handling ot fér funds has been unfortunate. Fell is s old: friend of her parents and deeply Interested in the girl. Henry Gramont, really the -prince de Gramont, son of :ul'tlnch father and an American mother, it who spurns the tije of prince, is enamored of Lucie and believes hlmux & mot unfavored suitor. CHAPTER V—Gnmnt'l chxul!l\lr Hammiond,- sergeant in the American rmy in France, and thers known to nt. lives with him. He' was the ol lnil Midnight Masquer, and Gramont, 0r &, particular purpose, after discover- ing Fammond’s activitis, assumes the rpk. ‘Where mmond. been a rob- ber for financial gain, Gramont, of «course, 1s not. He arranges to return he “lgot” to those whom he has robbed. The jewels and money, in individual pack- £ Ages, are Kot rea '*’{or delivery next day to their origina] owhers. That night lhey are stolen from Gramont's auto. (.‘HAPTER ‘X—Ben Cackberre, an in- dhldn-l of unsavory character, appears te be associated with Jachin Fell. He ‘has o peculiar Interview with one Mem- phis Izsy Gumberts, notorious. influential crook, -in which there la nminnnl refer- CHAPTER q!.ula summons Gra- M W her home and shows -him the ~his auto. He admits he fil lho Midnight Masquer, but convinces her that he had no thought of robbery. He refuses, however, to explain his pur- pose.. The -packsges are returned to si:ir owners. .JAPTER VIIL—Tnax evening Fell, Gramont, 'ard Dr. Ansley, at the® Krewe ot Comus ball, are accosted by an in- toxicated masked individual whom they recognize ak Bob Maillard. He invites room. ' They refuse, and Gramont.leaves the hufldll!l Joseph Maillard seeks his #on, feas mflmb"c scandal ll a result of ‘Bobls condif h Fell and Ansley mey fnd the room here thie Tevels ava x . Entering they discover an in- &ividual, attire as an aviator, in the act of robbing the intoxicated vyouths. In a struggle that ensues Maillard is shot ‘ana killed. The “Masquer” escapes. cflmzn IX.—Gra t, with Ham- mong, visits Terrebonne, & wild seation of the country, to inspect Lucie Ledanois’ llnd. which he believes contains oll. He l&dluuon- of apparently almogt un- le quantities of the stuff. While over a pool of water which clufly lhoWl traces of oil on its sur- face, Gramont hears his name spoken. CHAPTER <X.—He cannot see. the speakers, but the conversation ends singu- luly abruptly. Gramont does not investi- s, “Hammond finds o dead man . in some woods and ls charged by Ben Ca- cherrs and two other men with murder. Gramont can do nothing. The men_ take Hammond to the town of Houma. Later | Gramont finds a bloodstained knife where he had heard the voices. He then realizes that Cacherre was one of the men talk- ing, and is the murderer. P (Continued from lasy issue) gesture, and his crisp voice broka In upon the appalled silence. “Dead,” he . sald, curtly. “Shet twice—each bullet through the heart. Judge Forester, I'm afraid there Is no alternative but to call in the police. Gentlemen, you will kindly unmask— which one of you is Robert Maillard?” Amid a stunned and horrified silence the members of the Krewe one by one removed their grotesque headgear, staring’ at the dead man whose white face looked up at them with an air of grim accusation. But none of them came forward to claim kinship with the dedd man. Bob Maillard was not in the room. “I think” said the toneless, even voice of Jachin Fell, “that all of you gentlemen had better be very caveful to say only what you have seen— and know. You will kindly remain here until I have summoned the po- lice” He left the room, and if there were any dark implication hidden in his words, no one seenied to o?sen'e it. CHAPTER IX. v, ON the Bayou. At three o'clock on the morning of Ash 'Wednesday the great white Mal- son Blanche building was deserted and desolate, so far as its offices were coneerned. The cleaners and scrub- women had long since finished their tasks and departed. Out in the streets the tag-ends of carnival were running on'a swiftly ebbing tide. A. single ele- vator in the bullding was, however, Jn use. A single suite of offices, withe carefully drawn blinds, was lighted and- occupied. They were not ornate, these offices. 'They consisted of two rooms, a small retepfian room and a large private | | clear] oflge, both lned to the ceiling with books, chiefly 1aw books. 'In the larger room’ wege sitting three men. Onme of the three, Ben Chacherre, sat in a chalr tipped back against the wall, big‘ezes, clored. . Feom. fime to time B Copyright by Doubleday, Page and Compargy { bought it from @ man named Ham- | mond, as the evijlence will show very ne openea those sparkling black eyes of his, and through narrow-slitted lids directed keen glances at the other two men. One of the men was the chlef of police. The second was Jachin Fell, whose offices these were, “Even if things are as you say, which I don't doubt at all,” said the chief, slowly, “I can't believe the boy did it! And darn it all, if I pinch him there’s goin’ to be a h— of a scandal!’ Fell shrugged his shoulders, and made response in his toneless voice: “Chief, you're up against facts. Those facts are bound to come out and the newspapers will nail your hide to.the wall in a minute. You've a bare chance to save yourself by tak- ing In young Maillard at once.” The chiet chewed hard on his cigar. “I don’t want to save myself by put- ting the wrong man behind the bars,” he returned. “It sure looks like he was the Masquer all the while, but you say that he wasn’t. You say this was his only job—a joke that turned out bad.” “Those are the facts,” said Fell. “I don’t want to accuse a man of crimes I know he did not commit. We have the best of evidemce that he did com- mit this crime. If the newspapers fasten the entire Midnight Masquer business on him, as they're sure to do, we can’'t vely well help him. I have no sympat'ay for the boy.” “Of course he did it,” put in Ben Chacherre, sleepily. “Wasn’t he caught with the goods?’ The others pald no heed. The chief indicated two early editions of the morning papers, which lay on the desk In front of Fell. These papers car- ried full accouryts of the return of the Midnight stquen loot, explain- ing his robberls'n part of a carnival Jest. ‘The later edmuns, comin’ out now,” sald the chief{ “will crowd all that stuff off the {r t page with the Mail- lard murder. Darn it, Fell! Whether I believe it pr not, I'll have to ar- rest the yourig fool.” Chacherre ’‘chuckled. Jachin Fell smiled faintly. “Nothing «éould be plainer, chief,” he responded. ;“First, Bob Maillard comes to.us in fromt of the opera house, and talks about{ a great joke that he’s going to ;ing on his'friends across the way- “How'd J;ou know who he was?” in- terjected /the chief, shrewdly. “Gramorat recognized him; Ansley and I corfirmed the recognition. He was mon: or less intoxicated—chiefly more. N.ow, young Maillard was not in the rc om at the moment of the mur- der—u.niless he was the Masquer. Five minutes; afterward he was found In a nearlyy room, hastily changing out of an gv/ator’s uniform into his ‘masquer- ade. costume. Obviously, he had as- suned the guise of the Masquer as'a Joke on his friends, and the joke had a. tragic ending. Further, he was in (he ayiation service during the war, and so had the un!form ready to hand. You couldnt makes inyhody belleve that he hasn’t been the Masquer all the tyme!” “Of; course,” and tle chief nodded perpl pxedly. “It'd be a clear case— ,only you call me in smd say that he |wasrft the Masquer! D—n it, Pell, this thing has my goat!” “YWhat’s Maillard's story?” struck in Ben Chacherre. “He denles the whole thing,” sald the ' worried chief. “According to his stcry; which sounded straight the way he tylls it, he meant to pull off the Joke on his friends and was dressing in fhe Masquer's costome when he heqs«d the shots. He claims that the shdts startled him and made him chg nge back. He swears that he had nof. entered the other room at all, ex- cespt in his masquerade clathes. He 89 ys the murderer must have been the ¢ al Masquer. (It's likely gh, be ause all young Malllard's crowd Khew A headquarters man frol Momlk wilt be here tomorrow to trace the Nop- |parell Twelve - that . Gramont ' now |owns.” Chacherre whistled under his bruth. “What?" i Jachin Fell ‘smiled- slightly ‘and nodded. “Yes. If Gramont remains at Paradis, I may send him on down there—I'm not :wure yet. I intend to get something on that man Ham- mgond.” “But you ean%t land him that way, master! He bomght the car—" “And who soll the car to the ga- rage people? They bought it.inno- cently”Y A pecduliar smile twisted Fel's lips awszy. “In fact, they e R e e e e e ———y oot p————————————— i et e ooy e i Ben ( Chacherre \started, since he had sold tRat car bimiself. Then a slow grin game into his thin featureé—a grin fhat widendd Into a noiseless laogh, . —_— — THE BEMIDJI DAILY PIONEER “Ffaster, you are magnificent!” he sald, and rose. “Well, if there is nown- ing turther on hand, I shall go to bed.” “An, excellent program,” sald Jachin Fell, and took his hat from the desk. “I must get some sleep myseif.” They left the olflce and the build- ; together: ree houl ,mg—w-m the dawn had set In—: &fla‘ gray and dismal dawn that “upon a city littered with the aftermath of carnival. “Lean Wednesday” it was, in sober fact. Thus far, the city in general was ig- norant of the tragedy which had taken place at the very conclusion of its gayest carnival season. Within a few hours business - and social' circles would be swept by the fact of Joseph Maillard’s murder, but at this early point of the day the city slept. The morning papers, which tdday carried a news 'story. that promised to shock and stun the entire community, were not yet distributed. . Rising before daylight, Henry Gra- mont and Hammond breakfasted early and were off by six in the car. They were well outside town and sweeping on their way to Terrebonne parish and the town of Paradis before they realized that the day was pot going to brighten appreciably. Instead, it remained very cloudy and gloomy, with a° chill threat of Tain in the.air. Wegther mattered little to’Gramont. When finally the excellent highway was left behind, and they started on the last lap of their leventy ~mile ride, they found the parish roads execrable and the going slow. Thus, noon was at haud when they at length pulled in- to Paradis, the town- closest to Lucie Ledanois’ bayou land. The rain was | still holding off. “Too cold -to 'rain,” observed Gra- mont. “Let’s hit for the hotel and get something to eat. Tl have to locate the land, which is somewhere néar town.” They discovered the hotel to be an ancient structure, and boasting prices worthy of Lafitte and his buccaneers. ‘A8 in many small towns of Louisiana, however, the food proved fit for a king. After a light luncheon of quail crayfish bisque, and probably illegal venison, Gramont sighed regret that he could eat no more, and set about inquiring where tlie Ledanois farm lay. There was very little, indeed, to Paradis, which lay on the bayou but well away from the railroad. It was a desolate spot, unpainted and unkempt. The parish seat of Houma had robbed it of all life and growth on the one hand; on the-other, the new oil and gas district had not-yet touched it. Southward: ‘lay. the swamp—fully forty ‘miles of it,. merging by degrees into the Gulf: ‘Forty miles of cypress marsh and winding bayou, uncharted, unexplored save by occasional hunters or semi-occasional’ sheriffs. No - man knew who or what .might be in those swamps, and no one cared to know. The man who- brought' in fish or oysters in his skiff -might be a bayou fisherman, and he might be a mur- derer wanted in ten states. Curiosity was apt to prove extremely unhealthy. Like the Atchafalaya, where chdnce travelers find themselves abruptly or- dered elsewhere, - the Terrebonne swamps. have their own secrets and know how to keep them. Gramont had no difficulty: in locat- ing the Ledanois land, and he found that it was by no means in the swamp. A part of it, lying. closer to Houma, had been sold and was now.included in the new oil district; it was this por- tion which Joseph Maillard had sold off. : The remainder, and the largest gor- tion, lay north of Paradis and ran|, along the west bank of the bayou for half a mile. A lonx-lbnndoned farm, it was high ground, Wwith the timber well cleared off and excellently lo- cated; but tenmants were hard to get and shiftless when obtained, 'so that the place had not been farmed for the last five years or more. After getting these facts, Gramont consulted with Hammond. “We'd better buy some grubihere in town and arrange to stay a conple of | nights on the farm, It necessary,” he said. “There are some bulldings there, so we'll find shelter. Along the bayou are summer cottages—L believe some of them rather pretentious places— and we ought to find the road pretty decent. It's only three or four miles out of town.” With some. provisions piled in the car, they set forth. The road wound along the bayou side, past anclent '‘Cajun farms and the squat homes of fishermen. Here and there had been placed camps and summer cottages, nestling amid groups of huge oaks and cypress, whose fronds of silver-gray moss hung in drooping clusters: like pale and ghostly shrouds. i ‘Watching the road closely, Gramont suddenly found the landmarks 'that had been described to him, ahd or- dered Hammond to stop and turn in about the party that was to be held fn that room during the Comus ball—" “No mattery said . Fell, coldly. “Chief, this is an open and shut case; the boy was bofihdi to' lie. That he Rilled his father was an accident, of course, but none the less it did take place.” E “The boy's a wreck this minute.” The chief held a match to his unlight- ed cigar.’ “But you say that he ain’t the original Masquer?” “No!” Fell spoke quietly. “The original Masquer was another person, and had nothing to do with the pres- ent case. This Information is confiden- tial and between ourselves.” “Oh, of course,” assented the chief. “Well, I suppose I got to pull Maillard, but I hate to do it. I got a hunch that he ain't the right party.” & “Virtuous man!” Fell smiled thinly. “According to all the books, the chief of police is only too glad to fasten the erime o gnybodr—el’ . ———— (Continued in Next \(ss=e) [ It's toasted. This oneextra process gives a delightful quality that can not be duplicated | e e e RAGS Bring us your eleaa oot ton rags--Ro buttons, bands ar woolep aloth accepted. Pioneer Office Plumbing | Heating Robert J. Russell 313 Eourth Street PhLones 'SZO-W—OZO-R Larsont& Larson SPECIALISTS EXAMINING EYES FITTING GLASSES Office, First Floor 213 Third St Office Phone 131 Res. 310 il N > Night phones 332 or 358 l'L R e A e THE MILK WITH A PURPOSE Its purpose is to bring. you food- cheer, 'Koors Pas- teurized milk is the milk you should use in the kitchen, in the dining room and for a beverage , . when you have a thirst. - BEMLDJI MINN. ¥ McKee Furniture and Undertaking Company H N McKE. Licensed Embalmer and Funeral Director PHONE 222-W RESIDENCE PHONE 222-R 120 THIRD STREET, O.M.OLSON ! LICENSED EMBALMER A_It_{& FUNERAL DIREC- Day phone 178 N * Vice-President Calvin Coolidge, specral address,. Wed-' nesday, Sept. 4 6. ‘Auto Races, featuring Sig Haugdahl in his 3-mile-a- minute car, and 88th Divisien Reunion, Saturday; Sept. 2. Lillian Boyer’s Flying Circus — Lillian Boyer in pass- ages from Auto to low-fl stand and in tween two Battle Planes at night, illuminat ing Plane before grand- aerial acrobatics; thrilling combat be- antly with fireworks. Dr. Carver s Dlvmg Horse in 40-foot Jump Dozen big Vaudeville and: Clrcus acts on stages before i grandstand ‘Auto Polo each afrérerori and everiipg\. Spectacular Firewlmks Display, “Mystic China, evening. Horse Races, $22,000.00in purses, Scpt 4,5,7and’8."; ed bnllx- each Auto Races, Wednesday, Sept_6 and Saturday. Sept.9 C.’A. Wortham Shows, 25 atrréctidns; - $1,500,000.00 Livestock and Poultsy Show. - Biggest Farm Products Show in the World. '$500,000.00 International Art Exposition. 80 Acres of'Létesr Farm Machinery. Big Evening Horse Show—-Sept. 4,5,6,7 and 8. Cash prizes, $8,165.00. Northwest Automobile Exposition. Steel Machinery Bulldmg Demonstratlon of Club Work by 850 bpys and glrls in n;w Boys and Girls’ Glub Work B Entire Buddlng Exhlbltwn of Women $ and Chlldren s Work. of Eleetrrcai Exhlblts. ‘ Dozen Feature Bzinds and Orchestras. i 1] FARE AND ONE- ‘I'HIRD ROUND TRIP ON ALL RAILROADS ' Mammoth- Corrrbinéd Exhibit by State -Departments; ] : !