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ee ie . by or] 4 THE EVENING WORLD'S FICTION SECTION, SATURDAY, NOVEMBER 26, i%2i @he took his hand and raised it to her lips. “Go away now, Bob,” she said. And at that,instant the crash came, Mfe’s doom upon a stolen rapture. HUNGRY mouse had been darting round a deserted kitch- en, sniffing every bare board in his famished hunt for crumbe, To him the snoring wretch upon the sofa and the desperate two, afraid to speak of they lurked in the shadowy hall, meant nothing more than meaningless gestures from a race to be plundered and to be feared. They were evil gods upon whom his livelihood de- pended. He made the rounds of the kitchen for the last time. The new goddess hai given every crumb to the Moloch stom- ach of the stove. The mouse stopped and sat reflective. That sense of smell, keen aid to appetite, tickled his nose again and setn his long mustachios @-quiver. Cheese! Had not the drunk- love as melodrama. Spurling held his ground, a tolerant smile on hi )ips. “Wake up, Fred? we = laughed. “You've been dreaming. & dish has fallen and—" “I rather fancy I have been dream- ing—long enough. “But I’m awake now, old chap.” He came into the light of the big door, his hair disheveled, the collar of his misfit coat turned up. His face was distorted to the look of a fighting ape as he stood there. “What's your answer to that,” he howled, and his eyes lit upon Helen, “Give me knockeout drops so that you and your ie! . “Fred,” said Spurling, putting his hand gently on the madman’s shoulder, “I just dropped in to say how do you do, Helen said you were asleep, 80 I thought I'd stick around until 4 “Keep your hands off me!” Leffley tore himself away. “Aren't you sat- isfied with grabbing my wife?” i ‘My dear!” Helen came out and stood before him. ‘Fred, I sent for Bob “Bob, you've hurt him!” Helen ran to the spot where her hus- band lay. His mouth and eyes were wide open. Blood was rilling across the carpet’s worn nap. “Curious,” said Spurling as he knelt dowg. “I merely shoved him back. Hello!” He lifted the head and pointing care- fully, indicated a triangular fragment of china plate still clinging to a long wound in the temple. Presently he arose, His rugged face was a puzzle to see as he stood shaking his head. “Why don’t you do something?” Helen implored, her legs refusing to earry her to the epot where Fred's body lay so still. “Do what?” asked Spurling, quite without emotion, “He's dead.” “Dead.” Helen collapsed into a chair. Strange- ly enough her thought was for the man innocently involved in this terrific sit- uation. “Bob,” she heard herself saying, “you “Something wrong here, Captain Leffley ?” he asked, looking at Spurling. The mistake came like a signal in secret code to Helen's distracted mind, Spurling had opened his mouth, prob- ably to identify himself, when she fairly threw herself between the two men. “Judge Mallok,” she said, “it’s too terrible. I'm afraid my husband has killed a man.” “You don’t say so!” The official Coroner cf Scarletburg bectled his brows toward Spurling and asked, “How did it happen, Captain Leffley?” “We were upstairs,” broke in Helen again. “We heard a noise in the din- ing-room. Captain Leffley—” she mo- tioned toward Spurling—‘came down and found a man had broken in. It was terrible the way they fought. I saw them struggling and the man knocked down a dish—-he must have hit his head against a piece of it——" “You don’t say!” repeated Judge Mallok, Spurling stood mopping his wounded chin with a pocket handkerchief, “NOW LOOK HERE, IF YOU'RE GOING TO KEEP ON TAKING MONEY FROM SPURLING——” en god left a golden nugget balanced aloft on the tall old clock? The hunger- lust sent a tingle through his small body as the mouse leaped toward the drawing-room to crouch an instant at the foot of grandfather's clock. With the coolness of an experienced engineer he surveyed the physical de- tails of the ascent. The couch’s back just touched the mantelshelf; the man- tel’s pagoda top loomed ubove a heavy picture frame; the upper corner of the frame stood some ten inchos over the turrets of the ancient timepiece. Light as a feather the mouse ecram- bled across the legs of the sleeping gol, up the jigsawed crag which formed the gofa’s back; then he had gained the lofty plateau formed by the mantel’s tower sheif. Excelsior! With a nim- ble spring he took one spindle, then another. Up, up! Peer Gynt, vaulting the Gendin Edge, never felt a headier delight than came to the mouse, scal- ing heavenward toward that fabulous prize, golden among his people. Cheese! Having gained the mantel’s summit. he dropped noiselessly to the top of the picture frame. Far below he could gee the golden nugget on ite blue plate. Now here was an enterprise to try the mettle of a mouse. Sure must be his foot, keen his eye; for should he leap an inch to one side or the other, then must he fail ignobly down the fathom- less abyss behind the clock. After a short pause he_ tensed every muscle. took careful aim and \ The whispemng pair leaped apart at the crash of broken china from the drawing-room. Helen drew her hands do her breast, Spurting stepped boldly into the light. “Who the devil threw that?” came Leffley’s throaty growl. Helen, huddled in her corner. saw by Spuriing’s expression that Fred had @een him and that they were glaring at one another. “Thought you'd try to get me while was asicep, eh what!” demanded pitching his wolce to the key of to come and see you. i1ll——" “You're a liar. clock.” He pointed hig bony finger toward the tall timepiece which had ceased to tick some thirty years ago. “You'll feel differently about this in the morning,” said Helen. “Oh, be still!” His arm swung round and the back of his hand struck her full across the face, She recovered her senses to realize the two men had grappled and were wrestling furiously. Their writhing bodies, closely locked, seemed to be keeping time to the contortions of a modern dance. Neither spoke a word. A rosewood chair went down in their progress toward the old-fashioned couch. An arm shot out and struck a table which went spinning on its castors. Then Helen screamed, giving away to her terror. The fight went silently on. They were within six feet of the tall clock when Spurling's shoulders heaved forward and Leffley fell, face down, upon the carpet, “I'm sorry,” said Bob, and as he turned toward her she saw the bleeding scratch across his chin. You looked so You're a liar by the NEXT SATURDAY’S COMPLETE STORY THE CROOKED FAIRY By ARTHUR TRAIN When Squinty Saw a Safe He Cracked It, When Dean Saw a Duty He Did It—They Met, and Then Arthur Train Spins One of His Best Stories of Love and High Finance ORDER YOUR EVENING WORLD IN ADVANCE must get away somehow “Be sensible,” he replied brusquely. “You can’t be left to this mess.” In the next lot Caesar barked fiercely. “They've heard the noise,” she whis- pered. “Bob, I'm afraid. What can we do?” “Stay here and tell the truth,” he muttered ard continued to stare at the corpse, “But they won't understand. body knows us here.” “That's a point in our favor,” replied Spurling. “Helen, it's a plain case of accident. Just a sliver of broken plate — it’s “Nobody's fault. We can’t lose anything by sticking to facts.” “No. No. We mustn't do that—Bob, we've got to think of something _ The bell in the hall ting-a-linged fiercely, dispelling any thoughts which might have crowded into her poor head, The man and woman stood palsied like robber mice discovered. Again the bell jangled. “I'll go,” No- said Spurling gruffly. 'NDGE MALLOK, a curious figure, the tails of his night-shirt show~- ing between ‘his rubber boots and mackinaw coat, stood in the doorway pugkering his shaggy white brows. “Must have given you a right smart tussle, Captain,” said the Judge, and his look was far from gloomy. “Well, you couldn't do better than call me in. I'm the Coroner, Let's have a look at the rascal.” . He passed across to where the corpse lay huddled on the floor. When he’knelt down and began rummaging the pockets of Fred's queer suit Helen turned away. There fell a long si- lence, “The scoundrel must have stolen this suit,” said the Judge finally. “Chicago make, Not a thing in the pockets— thought he'd fill ’em up here, I reckon. Hm.” It seemed an hour that he stooped there in his ghastly inspection. Hele.i’s heart was pounding like a broken ens gine, What had he found? What would he suspect? But his broad face was all a-beam as he came to his feet and extended 2 hand to Spurling. “Captain Leffley,” he said, “allow me to congratniate you. You've certainly done us a distinguished service. Scar- Jetburg will indeed thank you. There's cne scamp won't be bothering decent people for a while.” “It wae purely accidental,” Spurling informed him coldly. “Do you know, Captain, I almost got that man myself. Caesar began to bark, so I jumped out of bed and saw him coming across the lawn. I was just reaching for my gun when he started cross-lots—1 thought he'd taken fright and run away. But when I heard Mrs. Leffley scream I knew in a minute what was up. Lucky you were home. Captain.” “Thenk you,” replied Spurling. Judge Mallok gave the corpse an- other d'sdainfiul inenection “Death by ereident,” he proclaimed with a merry wink. “The verdict's as good as in, There'll be some forma to fill in il min over and ring up the wagon " THE END. a AIL rights ved Printed by arrangem with dletrtian Newerunar Service, New Yoru,