The evening world. Newspaper, October 7, 1922, Page 14

¥ & THE EVENING WORLD, SATURDAY, OCTOBER 7, 1922. THE HOUSE OF PERIL BY LOUIS TRACY The Master Mystery Story of New. York Life COPYRIG Y EBEOWARD dy G6 bo be Bs nw ee | ‘hat’s all right, Mrs. Riordan, neral Pursuing, and generally cap- Stuart. ‘How mubh have you spent a large consignment of lard that had be spotted there, and the rumbl e said. “His name is Benson, 1 turing, law-breakers was their bvel- of the ten dotlars I gave you? been poured into a dress sult, ap- the traffic sort of kep’ him contp| : Inking of employing him as a ness. Winter, he had no doubt, would even dollars, sir," was the peared from the restaurant. he sajd. But he was a long tim | cer Flanagan Meets Mysterious “= give a cigar with a cheery word to a prompt answer “Now! What'is it?’ he demanded, getting to sleep, and thought he Mrs. Riordan's face and hands be. criminal in, the condemned ¢ell, and “Have you, begad? Been going after the waiter had explained in made a mistake, as the car . * trayed suspicious incredulity as to Furneaux would certainly have some some, ch?” torrential Neapolitan that this mad busses rattled by till after 1.8 ] Benson's fitness for tHe post quip for the official who switched on “Ona-fifty for a hatr-gut, shave an’ would only talk nonsense. he dozed, but was awaken ea Se Tres in O O 1 You are taking the book by the ‘"@ current at the execution. Recol- bath, fifty cents for a meal,.an’ five‘ *“gaid Stuart meekly. window being raised rather : . cover,"’ laughed Stuart, ‘He is, or [ction of the little detective’s inge- dollars for a room till this day week. V. Pucet's eyes nearly bulged clean as though to avold disturbing’ ‘ . used to be, a good soldier, a cheerful, MWY brought Mary Dixon back into Couldn't get a decent one for less, out of the lard as they withered his body. He got up, and had a look, BS & 6 d-working pne as weil, Anyhow, ‘he Picture, ; ; sir.”” satellite, Ho uttered no word, but saw n tall man in evening ¢ | ing e . oun ear Nl try him out. .: T bald Sgt still hase af he can The conversation was taking an un- the man vanished. “Pardon,”’ he said, standing on the first-floor balcony } After a, Bath) Bnd w change Of Ure re che Per iee ee teo Coyne: looked for turn. Stuart tnusted, ‘al- bowing’ to Btuart, ‘"¥ou) know the an Avenue house, It wae yeu | clothing Stuart Nt a pipe and sat Bn Ge tee tee Cotee ah Mode fiervously room, yes?" yeeen land's house, I may say. ] HE 1 P rk dowoete do some hard thinking, As {O-Teht I'll seo him botled in olf vyven, well,’ he wad. “Let's get “Firat on the left, ten’t 17” Antonto, wiping the neck of « j en a a a t happened, he was on leave for f'8t) My best plan is to clear owt. 11.) trom sorious toples. I'veMhad a . “Si Signore. It is ready. Your of Chiant!, interrupted the j two mor nd only a week of his But I wonder who the other oe of them to-day, T want friends haf arrive “and, such ‘is queer reticenc | furlough had explred@ With the ex- ™&n can be tt A Souple! of month, Stuart thanked him and found Win- some great events, had no my CAPT. STUART GETS AN IMPORTANT CLUE hone tf ven cue aren sete ft land's name mentioned befor Re had speed Icke ont semis) linn tor) SON) tube ctaid tor ti oP rarneaue .con- find & hundred-dollar btlhiad Mae | igi Weal Ne: HAR, Be enjoyed an been in the dining-room five minutes, oer make out on twenty-five © suited a wrist-watch So did Winter. which he did not. ’ . idle hour co 1917, Instead, there. “ Corporation lawyer was talking of x . * Not to be outdone, Stuart shot back “ven though the heavens. fi i; fore, of loafing on some sea-front, 80me rubber combination, and spoke tenson did not r for a moment. jis left cuff. must cat,’ said Winter, almost ver ears Onversa 10n a u or joining a fishing party in Maine, °f 4 Mr. Dixon. He was afraid to speak. At last he “Not late, I hope,” he sald dictively. “I breakfasted at 8.80, he had dee led an a thorough r - Which Goes to Show Van Cortland tr icssciy a ities “Mighty good job that pretyy muttered In a staccato voice “On the dot," agreed Furneaux. a cup of coffee in one hand ané daughter of his drew Tony van ae “Sure T can, sir." ‘The walter brought a tray, and Stu- telephone in the other." nd in the matrimonial lottery," ran Stuart turned away, fumbled with art, who 1 never seen amber-col- “Don't make ahy more notse ] ; 1 by a dally ride in the Park, a sharp the comment, ‘‘or he'd have been some papers on table, @nd sald in ored grape juice, tasted the contents can help,'’ suggested Furneay i bo ? turn in the courts at the Racket squeezed: dry by the Consolidation. the most matter uct tone he could of the glass. ‘Then he finished it. Well,” weit on Crossley, reac Saved ary 1xOn S Father Club, and a swim in the tank after- As matters stand, Tony's half mil- call to his aid “Converted?” inquired the little for the wine, "the hobo—says e wards. *For the other hours of the lion cleared off a mortga, bentu “Good! Take up y quarters in ™&n- . name ts Jackson—was disappointe Sf if ° day he had books to read, plays to which had nearly fallen m, and Dixon the kitchen. You'll soon find things to __/Absolutel he half expecteda burglary. Whi From Financial ulin and notes to make for an essay is well fixed now for the rest of his do—just like old times in Picardy, you _ They began an excellent meal, which was peeping over the wall the on “Cavalry in the Great War,’ life, unless he sells his shares and know. And—don't quarrel with Mrs, Was assisted by some admirable Chi- on the balcony seemed to throws ] which he hoped to find sometime in dabbles in more high finance.” Riordan. She's a slyt antl—three-star Torino. thing at him, so he ducked. An e and a rotten the pages of a service magazine, believe I can guess why V. Pucci bottle crashed into the bushes, flourishes like the green bay treo,’ Jackson took a second look. ‘The tuart, flung something again, a small ol “But didn’t van Cortland hold the cook, but she means well fo jt was no tangle of personal af- mortgage?" inquired some one. It was a long afternoon, More than airs that occupied his attention, He Phat's the amusing part of it. once Stuart found his thoughts dwel THE STORY TO, DATE. . bird In the tree-lined Main Street of a Georgia townlet, and there was a moc- ROWN, the butler of the Fifth Avenue mansion of Anthony bein snake curled up in a near-by reviewed cach cireumstance known to ‘The Consolidation had to buy him ling on Mary Dixoh. He expertenced iwi a ‘ otet Leb Bye eee pit hi cee baler a he VanCortland, finds his employer dead and twelve guests fitter pm tle Mage of ae Sp leniey him of the tragedy in which An- out, with arrears of interest. Rut an odd desire to “put himself right Winter. | “the passwort BOGE Coen Son Te ee e : vor od such sights a thony a Corth silppliec th vi rospectiv: on-In-law her’ in the matter of we police ri pbs itt pelea set unconscious around a table where the thirteen had gathered fect the mentality of the inhabitants. Ms Kae taiire ‘ana are : Ane ne of Le aga i at Mie home ie és ales Ga ae J vs polge and 1 haye a busy day, so we ered and knew by the Nght thal for a convivial celebration of the Ace Club the night before, Suppose the dou ols in A CY reasoning led to a dimly lightea ing old Dixon through a bank. ‘Tony what he would say itited hot noeces B: proper dintier: “What blind had been drawn. Not Argyleshire village habitually t pe in nee we parted?’ minutes did he realize that he ed Benson as a valet, and.in the house opposite could not Miss Dixe may have bly have seen him, and could ot rtiand—if any ting rid of something In that ‘Oo, as'soon as the light permit “Oh, that rubber dea Yes, that he {Kinks it was about 4.15—he vay be it. Certainly the engagement a search and found a curiously si was announced rathe hurriedly, gold ring, while lying about ince not even rumor bracketed tlYe pieces of the broken bottle, whiy young lady's name with any other smelt, and recognized the sce} van,! some strong dope. About 6 hi Vor soma occult reason, the state- clear of the park and beggeg™ 1ent pleased Stuart. In an unguarded thing to eat from the driver obay 1oment he refilled his glass, evidently night tax! outside the Great Nor clating the Chiant! more than Hotel, | “He hung about until after chirped When he offered the ring for a: min a Hark Avenue flat where elpganed up thirty thousand dollars in. sorveywhat disdainful A-goldfish in a bowl in the room is floating, dead. “A strange odor timt ' pervades the room. Capt. Stuart, an army officer, calls fot van Cortland to go fora i ride in Central Park and discovers the state of affairs. After talking with Morrison, the chauffeur;. Roberts, the valet; Marie, the maid. and Brown, Capt. Stuart calls Police Headquarters and in a few minutes a queer-looking little man appears at the mansion and intro- duces himself as Mr. Furneaux of the detective force. After looking over the ground he orders that Dr. George Bright of East 83d Street be called. z ; ” : Capt. Stuart, chosen by Furneaux to notify Miss Mary Dixon, his fiancee, of Van Cortland’s death, performs thg disagreeable task, but is impressed by the fact that she shows no deep grief. Meantime Now will you te good?" Willie Djxon, Mary's young brother, one of the unconscious group, HEDEANE. cinta Atlas Wig- Lev omintear tought Ie wanda awakes after Furneaux has emptied the pockets of all the Ace Club ae yi ves pry int 3 une, curt, fo he sald he pets members and taken their fingerprints. j * ‘thing of the kind, We want didn't know its value, but woul Capt. Stuart aceompanies Willie Dixon to his home, meets Mary Mie aiticate her hrother, “We Guire, and suggested that Ja again, but learns nothing of her feelings regarding the death of the man she was to marry. He joins Furneaux and Chief of Detectives Winter at breakfast, where they discuss the case. 4 iscovery is nade of a threatening typewritten note in which } Van Cortland was told ‘he could never marry Mary Dixon. The suga about his Should return in half an hour. yw-members of the Ace Club. He hobo, of course, smoked a tra } tell you, ‘Then there's Holgate,’ thought he would go through w And we watt you'to hold of Mr, #3 he had a straight story to ps els cr and Mr, Ttobert @ darter to eleven Flanagan ERTS Os” PARSE REA MD 18 him and brought him in, Yor on't quite know ; ; Se Chief, at that {ime I knew nothi J ted an Italian dialect. “I shall be a poor dub as an ama- the yan Cortland affair, but Fla: Water as bey i ini i ur detectiv tempovsed Stuart ” Furneaux’s theory is that the murderer, after administering a ven ec oF Stuart. “aid, and kept qulet. ; 3 g ing th bal e int th e pold y like though It's a eign o! The policeman paused _an¢ | knockout draught to the party and pouring the balance into the gol ‘ace that you should admit Bit eyes clashed with’ those ofathy fish bowl, administered a deadly dose’ to van Cortlend by hypoder- iiknct Sour Koo We! sed nile detectives, Winter grunted » mic or otherwise and going to a balcony outside the window threw the of these young men’ mate deta A Furneaux stuck a fork into a | fn eer . D, is iHe lives—what they think, or think they Stuart wi are tt ‘1 nt into, the Central Park shrubbery. e Stuart was aware that som | Gunes or other instrume Fee Sti nehEen Dureiee Ker think—how they occupy themselves intelligence passed between the | eliminates all save three of the Ace Cl i : turing the hours when they are not put could not sense its meaning ingham and Baker. " z eT he butler tells of.a visit by Miss Baker and her father to Van Cortland and a conversation in which the dead man made light of the threatening note. nking, he heard later that this part Antonio staged a roast capon, Sur- detective, a fairly able man, wi rounded fby six plump quails, so Fu arded as a bit of a fool by hi ux was silenced for the moment. jeagues because he tried inval Winter removed a leg and a wing to retain foM@hls own use some vith one masterly sweep of the carv- of information which ought t CHAPTER V. thing he meant to Beeb lidden, bot -knife, nV. Puecl wheezed n. gone into the common stock. How Flanagan Died. Winter mover failed him in an “Pardon,” he sald. “Capt. Crossley whih tuart was much imp! emergency. ishes to see Mr. Wintary R. BRIGHT and his associate “img Roosevelt Hospital man, who UVaaw a? ainiicod Geen by the fact that peithér Wint expert from the Roosevelt had not met Furneaux before, eyed Furneaux, each obviously with impatience, urged Crossl Hospital pledged themselves definitely to the opinion that van Cortland’s death was the out- come of an irritant poison injected imto the blood through two small punctures on the left side of the neck, ‘They were quite unable to classify the poison, s! " “The post-mortem may or may not tell us,’ said the expert. “Unfortus nately we did not examine the sub- fect until some seven or elght hours efter death, when rigor mortis had wet in, but there are indications that @-apecies of paralysis was induced. Assuming that a state of almost com- *™ plete coma hag been created by a atrong dose of choral hydrate before the poison was administered, the lat- ter must have, been exceedingly, in- @eed inconceivably, powerful if it brought about speedy death, as the action of the heart and the arterial circulation would be much retarded by the drug. In some respects both the appearance of the tiny wounds and the subsequent condition of the body reminded me of snakebite.” “I thought of that," said Furneaux, “but dismissed it as too far-fetched. The distance between the punctures by his sna’ argued an unusually large head for a polsonous snake, as the polson fangs @re set close together, and the unseen into the eonveyance of such a repti! room was practically impossible, ereature would find the Zoo! “Why should you look to Central failing to accept the Park for developments?” he inquired. ae haa “Isn't that the natural . place _ @ecaped snake would make for?” “Well, yes.” Furneaux did not desire that a ne: needlessly wide civcle should share his a Of ditan Restaurant? course, these strange things do hap- pen. Ifa snake did the tric« we shall g00n have some dlood-curdling stories (arti from Central Park. I wonder if the eoincidence him curiously, “When do you gentlemen wish to hold the post-mortem?"’ he inquired. “This afternoon," said Dr, Bright “Very well, I'll see the Coroner and mike arrangements.”’ Thedoctors went out and the de- tectivel followed, taking. the key of the fatal room, “By the way,"' said Winter, after giving the butler certain instructions, particularly as to refusing all infor- mation to the press, and warning the other servants to keep still tongues, though the presence of a policeman lent some protection from prying vis- itors, “if that room was used as a - dining room why is it now known as drawing room?'’ It is the largest room In the house, sir, so the dining room table was taken thére on club rights.” “How often did the club meet?’ “Once a month—every fourth Thursday. This was to have been tho last meeting, “Because of the marriage?" “Yes, sir.” Probably Brown expected a ques- tion as to the reason underlying the Club's name, but the police knew the facts already. The Ace Club had at- tained a certain notoriety, Even the underworld of New York jealous of a really notable idea! “Charles, my lad, that doctor-man nearly surprised you Into an admission ite suggestion,” sald the two reached the Winter whe street. “It's these queer coinc grumbled the other. ‘Didn't dences,"* au give ‘serpe' to Stuart as a password to the Yh, blame me, of course, you rat!” But both men were destined to be d by a much more remarkable fore the day ended By the way," purred Furneaux, proffered cue, hadn't we better hammer out a line @M ax to that soldier?" ‘Shall we drop him “I dunno, Let's wait till after din- He may become an actlye nui- the balcony overlooking girl he's no good at ull.’ knowledge that the assassin had sance, and if he won't help with the stood on A venue about 2 o'clock that “You never can tell. Great events Fitth morning. For once his quick wits hinge on the most trivial ones, I re- betrayed him into saying some- member once seeing a@ brilliant red LEFT TO RIGHT—CAPT. STUART, FURNEAUX, WINTER, GAPT. CRO SSLEY. “Capt. Cro: orange-colored parrots on the eaves, and Irish peasants found emerald- green ‘vipers in thelr bogs, wouldn't these things have changed the history of the world?” Winter took off his straw hat and fanned himself vigorously. “Gee!'' he said, “those hot for a day like this.” But a long experience of the work- ings of Furneaux's mind, with its wild extravagances and fitful gleams of an almost phenomenal intuition, warned him that all this irresponsible chatter bout snakes had stirred into activity some m of seemingly insane thought whichs would develop into a quite tangible and demonstrable theory » they walked a whole block in silence, When Furneaux. spoke again it was only to say with con- viction ints are too “Yes. We need the services of the gallant captain, I guess he can stick on a horse, Yes, we'll use him, boot and saddle, whip and spurs."” Stuart, back in hig 57th Street flat, was proffered a fourth breakfast, which he deglined, ‘The elderly house- keeper, who “did for’? a number of tenants, explained that 8, 9 had given “the man’ the suit, shirt, collar, tle and boots, requested by the letter." Jey set down his glass. ‘There's hell to pay,’ he said. Mary Dixon had received the news her afflanced self-possession, He knew little of the wa and less of the idiosync modern soclety girl, only standard that of manners and appearance, sup- forces which attract high-minded, It ts, therefore, a tribute to Stuart's intelligence that he should have de- elded, without being aware of Brown's statement to tho detectives, And the mere “By jing!"* he muttered, find @ match, for his pipe What does it matter to me Deliberately to the Chief of ly that Such thrilling my teries constituted their normal day's thing if they tackled their the sombre mien of mutes at a fu- about three days, and they tell me he weighed in half of the plunder on a pearl necklace for the girl, Another instance of how money makes money."’ “And spends it—on a woman,” Inughed a man. Stuart noted the speaker, whom he disliked already, though for no Now he loathed him, Tho er protested quietly. 1ey are to be married early in he said Independence Day?" went on the othe: Well, that's one view of matri- mony. Hope you keep to it, Monty.” The retort seemed to score with “those who knew pth speakers, and “Monty" dropped the subject. Later, Stuam learned from a friend that the would-be cynic was Mont foyn, an unimportant type of man-about- town, who was always to be seen at theatrical premieres and the newest dance clubs At two o'clock the hall-bell rang in his flat, and soon a tall, straight- limbed fellow, who wore Stuart's clothes with as much distinction as tuart hunself, appeared at the door, nd saluted smartly. ilad to see you, Benson,” sald the do West 47th Street eledtric sign announcéd that the pro- prietor was V. Pucct. He entered. An ill-lighted stair upper stories. Ben lay tho public restaurant, which was crowded inclined for a few. moment from the t took 8 glance, and rushed gown again more hastily ‘Flanagan Is dead,’” should have deemed it necessary to warn her of a danger that did not exist did He abandon the hemo, At half past seven he approached r of the Restorato Milano In it letters and an led straight to the th, on the right, nd nelsy. He was halfway up the stains when a sharp-eyed Italian waiter, all hatr, eyes, mustache and white apron, came els. Vot you vant?" aid Stuart, not di respite 1 over- pping at his Hi! Mistar *“Anti-pastor, edy which hi Jowed all his waking hours bene! Coom dis vay." ‘utti-frutti! Corpo di Baecho!"’ “Vill you say vot you vant? Si?” “Buenaserte!"* “Maledetto!"’ growled the Itallan, hing up a few steps, Then he art's measure in a quick “Signore! Signore Pucci!" he al- most, screamed. A fat, placid man, who resembled ith a surprised afr. Si, signe he ‘Ask him to Joins. . . . Cross- ley,” he told “Stuart, the Police Captain for this ‘distri A solidly built man came in, Evi- dently he had hurried, and His face was somewhat drawn. ’ “What's up?’ sald Winter, “Bad news, Chief." “Have you dined? ‘Tell us while you eat.” “I can't eat, but't— “Yes. Use that large glass. Signor Vittorio—another quart of the same.” The proprietor crooked his finger at his assistant, and the two went off. Crossley fortified himself as recom- mended, “There “Flanagan {s dead!" “How?” “I dunno. It beats me.” He glanced at ‘Stuart. “Go ahead, This gentleman ts in tt up té the neck, if you mean the van Cortland case. ' “I suppose I do. I can't tell. Anyhow, here's the story in short. Last night. a hobo made up his mind to sleep in Central Park. He crept among the bushes until he reached the boundary wall of Fifth Avenue, as he thought he would not on with his narrative, thougl deed, the man had wasted no hitherto. “Well,” he sald, with a nagan entered the charge briefly and got Jackson rem; There was no question of bail, t Jackson, I am told, repeated his before the Magistrate. Fla came away with the ring, for tt purposes, and was fiddling with it in the charge room o'clock when he contrived to s his finger with a hidden claw darted out when something wi leased in a seal shaped like a head. He thought nothing of 1 hq complained of feeling fai paralyzed, In half an hour h 80 Ill that we sent for the polic geon, who dosed him with But tt was no use. Flanagan He quit about twenty minutes: and !s lying there, all Comite his skin yellow." “Nom de Dieu! ‘That's our er cried Furneaux, his voles cr’ with excitement. ‘Where's thy Cap?" “I've got it here. Catch me ing the damned thing around fo body else to monkey with!"’ (To be Continued—Monday = Start To-Day— _——isf Finish To-Morrow- The New and Fascinating Way of Readii a Good Short Story Every Day. Guess at the Ending—Then Get a Surpris In The Evening World . | Beginning Monday, October 9