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diff --git a/old/66161-0.txt b/old/66161-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index 0e21733..0000000 --- a/old/66161-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,8844 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of Special Detective (Ashton-Kirk), by -John T. McIntyre - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: Special Detective (Ashton-Kirk) - -Author: John T. McIntyre - -Release Date: August 29, 2021 [eBook #66161] - -Language: English - -Produced by: D A Alexander, David E. Brown, and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SPECIAL DETECTIVE -(ASHTON-KIRK) *** - - - - - -SPECIAL DETECTIVE - -(ASHTON-KIRK) - - - - -THE NEW LONDON LIBRARY - -Uniform with this Volume: - - - ASHTON-KIRK, INVESTIGATOR - By John T. McIntyre. - - SECRET AGENT (ASHTON-KIRK) - By John T. McIntyre. - - ASHTON-KIRK, CRIMINOLOGIST - By John T. McIntyre. - - PENITENTIARY POST - By K. and R. Pinkerton. - - THE LONG TRAVERSE - By K. and R. Pinkerton. - - THE LURE OF THE HONEY BIRD - By J. Weedon Birch. - - AT THE KRAAL OF THE KING - By J. Weedon Birch. - - THE RIGHT TO LIVE - By Ermine Allingham and A. E. Coleby. - - THE CALL OF THE ROAD - By Herbert Allingham and A. E. Coleby. - - THE SHADOW OF THE YAMEN - By Ben Bolt. - - DIANA OF THE ISLANDS - By Ben Bolt. - - THE DIAMOND-BUCKLED SHOE - By Ben Bolt. - - THE PRIDE OF THE RING - By Ben Bolt. - - THE IMPOSSIBLE LOVER - By Ben Bolt. - - MARRIAGES OF ADVENTURE - By Emile Gaboriau. - - AN ADVENTURESS OF FRANCE - By Emile Gaboriau. - - THE LEROUGE CASE - By Emile Gaboriau. - - PLUCKY POLLY PERKINS - By Herbert Allingham. - - - - - SPECIAL - DETECTIVE - - (ASHTON-KIRK) - - BY - JOHN T. McINTYRE - - _Author of “Ashton-Kirk Investigator,” - “Secret Agent (Ashton-Kirk),” etc._ - - [Illustration] - - LONDON: - G. HEATH ROBINSON & J. BIRCH, LTD. - 17-18, TOOK’S COURT, CURSITOR STREET, E.C.4 - - - - - FIRST PUBLISHED AT HALF-A-CROWN - FEBRUARY, 1922. - - _All rights reserved._ - - _Printed in Great Britain by Miller, Son & Compy., - Fakenham and London_ - - - - -INTRODUCTION - - -Ashton-Kirk is a young man of means and position. The unusual has a -sort of fascination for him; his subtle perception, and keen, direct -habit of mind cause him to delight in the investigation of those crimes -which have proved too shadowy for the police. - -In “Ashton-Kirk, Investigator,” another book dealing with his -experiences, he was concerned with the strange case of the murder of -the numismatist, Hume. In “Secret Agent,” he was involved in a crisis -between two nations; and a great war was averted by his skill and ready -courage. - -In this volume, he is called upon by an ancient friend who has been -plunged into an appalling series of circumstances of which he can make -nothing, except that all concerned are in immediate and deadly peril. -And it is here shown how the special detective’s acute mind, deft -manipulation and resourcefulness warded off a terrible danger. - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER PAGE - - I. MR. SCANLON RELATES SOME PECULIAR CIRCUMSTANCES 9 - - II. SHOWS HOW MATTERS STOOD AT SCHWARTZBERG 17 - - III. IN WHICH THE SPECIAL DETECTIVE TAKES UP THE HUNT 28 - - IV. TELLS SOMETHING OF THE MAN IN THE ROLLING CHAIR 35 - - V. SPEAKS OF ASHTON-KIRK’S FIRST VISIT TO SCHWARTZBERG 45 - - VI. IN WHICH ASHTON-KIRK INDICATES MUCH BUT SAYS LITTLE 62 - - VII. SHOWS HOW MR. SCANLON MET THE MAN WITH THE SOFT VOICE 80 - - VIII. TELLS HOW THE NIGHT BREEZE BLEW FROM THE NORTHWEST 88 - - IX. IN WHICH SOME THINGS ARE DONE AND SOME OTHERS ARE SAID 97 - - X. SHOWS HOW MRS. KRETZ SPOKE HER MIND 103 - - XI. TELLS SOMETHING OF TWO GENTLEMEN WHO WERE ENCOUNTERED - UNEXPECTEDLY 112 - - XII. SPEAKS OF THE MANNER IN WHICH THE GATES OF SCHWARTZBERG - WERE OPENED 122 - - XIII. DEALS WITH SOME HAPPENINGS OF THE NEXT DAY 127 - - XIV. IN WHICH ASHTON-KIRK HEARS MATTERS OF INTEREST 143 - - XV. TELLS HOW AMAZEMENT FILLED THE MIND OF MR. SCANLON 151 - - XVI. SHOWS HOW THE GREAT SWORD WAS MISSED FROM THE WALL 162 - - XVII. SPEAKS OF A HARP WHICH WAS PLAYED IN SILENCE 174 - - XVIII. DEALS MAINLY WITH SOME NEWS FROM MEXICO 187 - - XIX. IN WHICH ASHTON-KIRK PAYS HIS SECOND VISIT TO - SCHWARTZBERG 197 - - XX. TELLS HOW ASHTON-KIRK POINTED OUT CERTAIN MATTERS - OF INTEREST 205 - - XXI. SHOWS HOW THE GREAT SWORD SPOKE TO SCANLON 222 - - XXII. IN WHICH A MATTER OF MUCH INGENUITY IS CONSIDERED 234 - - XXIII. CONCLUSION 241 - - - - -SPECIAL DETECTIVE - -(ASHTON-KIRK) - - - - -CHAPTER I - -MR. SCANLON RELATES SOME PECULIAR CIRCUMSTANCES - - -Ashton-Kirk, student of crime, sat cross-legged upon a rug; -thoughtfully he drew at the big pipe; the wreaths of smoke drifted over -the tottering towers of books with which he was surrounded, and eddied -out at an open window. - -“Fuller,” said he, “get me the name Campe.” - -The nimble fingered assistant ran through the cards of a filing system. - -“Campe--Mexico--financiers?” said he, at length, turning his head. - -“Right,” spoke Ashton-Kirk. - -“Volume II,” said Fuller, closing the drawer. “Shall I have it sent up?” - -“Yes.” - -In a few moments, Stumph, gravest of men servants, entered, bearing a -bulky folio which he placed before his employer. - -“In a short time,” said Ashton-Kirk, “Mr. Scanlon will call. Bring him -up as soon as he arrives.” - -Stumph silently withdrew; the special detective puffed at the -meerschaum and nodded to Fuller. - -“Let’s see what we have about the Campes,” requested he. - -Fuller took the book, opened it at the index, and then turned over -until he came to a certain page. He read: - -“This family came, originally, from Bavaria, their forbears residing -in the city of Munich. The name was then Von Campe. A Frederich Ernest -Von Campe made a fortune as a brewer before the French Revolution. His -three sons trebled this by lending it at a high rate of interest to the -various needy German states during the Napoleonic wars. - -“When Maximilian entered Mexico, the Von Campes helped to finance -the venture. When he fell, they very cleverly managed to save their -money by coming to an understanding with the succeeding republican -government. For more than fifty years the family has been in Mexico, -financing government and private enterprises. - -“Some twenty-five years ago they dropped the ‘Von,’ becoming simply -known as Campe.” - -Fuller then went on to read the doings of the Campes as contained in -the record; it was merely a series of “high spots” such as might be -gathered about a family of the same consequence anywhere. When he had -finished, Ashton-Kirk looked dissatisfied. - -“I find, from time to time,” said he, “that this record is badly kept. -It is loaded with the usual, when, as a matter of fact, it is intended -solely for the unusual.” He drew at his pipe for a moment, and then -added: “I want intimate information regarding this family--especially -of their doings during the last few years.” - -“Very well,” said Fuller, briskly. “I’ll start with the -Mexican-Pacific Bank. They ought to know a deal about the Campes -because they did a lot of business with them, according to what we have -here.” - -As Fuller opened the door to leave the study, Stumph appeared with a -big, fresh-faced man who clutched a hard-rimmed hat in his nervous grip. - -“Mr. Scanlon,” said Stumph; and then he followed Fuller out of the room. - -“Glad to see you, Kirk,” said Mr. Scanlon, in a voice which suited his -proportions. “I hope I haven’t come butting in.” - -“Not a bit of it,” the crime student assured him. “Here, have a chair; -also have a cigar.” - -Mr. Scanlon sat in the chair, and pinched the tip off the cigar. He had -blue, good-natured eyes, the sort accustomed to laugh; but now they -were grave enough, and little troubled wrinkles showed at their corners. - -“You look up to your ears in work,” said he, his eyes upon the books. - -Ashton-Kirk smiled. - -“On the contrary, I’ve been resting,” he answered, his gaze also upon -the books, and filled with the mist which comes of deep plunges into -the past, or into the annals of lands that never were. “When I’m -overtaxed or too tightly strung there’s nothing so relaxes me as the -ancient romances; there’s nothing near so quieting as the sayings of -the wise old monks, spoken in the cool of the cloisters.” - -Mr. Scanlon nodded appreciatively. - -“Personally, I’m very strong for all those old fellows,” said he. “They -had speed, control and change of pace.” - -“Their greatest charm is their simplicity,” said Ashton-Kirk, as he -refilled his pipe. “They believed things as children believe them. -Their days were rare with faith; their nights with wonders. But,” and -there was regret in the speaker’s voice, “the world has turned many -times since then. There are no more wonders; and surprise, as they knew -it, has ceased to exist.” - -Mr. Bat Scanlon, one time athlete and gambler, but now a handler of -champions, brushed the first short plume of ash from his cigar. He -shook his head. - -“Wrong!” stated he, confidently. “Altogether wrong. You get behind the -scenes too much; you see the insides of things too often. Wonder is -as thick as ever it was; and surprise is still on the job. If there’s -any falling off, it’s in ourselves. We’ve grown cross-eyed looking at -fakes; we haven’t the vision to know a wonder when we see it.” - -A volume of Burton lay upon the table at his hand. He picked it up. - -“Here’s Bagdad,” said he, riffling the pages, sharply. “Bagdad, a -city stuffed with strangeness. But,” and he looked at Ashton-Kirk, -earnestly, “had it really anything on this town of ours? Were its -nights deeper? its silences more mysterious? I think not. Let any -man--with his eyes open--mind you--go out into one of our nights, and -he’ll meet with as many astonishments as Haroun Al Raschid, the best -prowler of them all.” - -Ashton-Kirk smiled through the thickening smoke. It were as though he -had convinced himself of something. - -“Your defence of present day interests is so keen,” said he, “that I’m -inclined to hope this case you have holds some exceptional features.” - -Scanlon nodded. - -“And yet,” with a gesture, “I’m not so sure. I can’t put my fingers on -a single thing, or even give it a name.” - -“It has something to do with this young fellow Campe, I think you said.” - -“It has all to do with him,” stated Mr. Scanlon. “And that’s one of -the things that makes it so queer. He’s the last one I’d expected to -get mixed up with anything of the kind; and he’s a gone youngster if -somebody with more stuff than I have don’t step in and take a swing at -it.” - -There was a short silence; the smoke from the cigar mingled with that -of the pipe; eddying in the draught from the window they wove in and -out intricately, finally mingled and drifted out into the big world. - -“Suppose you go carefully over the affair as you know it,” suggested -Ashton-Kirk. “I got very little of it over the telephone.” - -Scanlon drew at the cigar and gazed at the opposite wall where there -hung that Maxfield Parrish print of the wonder-stricken brown sailors, -peering into the unknown from the bow of their ship. - -“If this was my own matter,” said he, “I could take every individual -happening by the neck and shake the information right out of it. But as -it stands, I’ve only got a good straight look at one thing that’s at -all plain to me.” - -“What’s that?” asked Ashton-Kirk. - -“Fear,” replied Scanlon, in a low-pitched voice, his mouth twisting -wrily as he shaped the word. “Stark, white-faced fear; the kind that -turns a man sick just at the sight of it.” - -The big man frowned for a moment at the brown sailors peering out over -their mystic sea. Then he resumed. - -“As I said a few moments ago, I was surprised at a young fellow like -Campe indulging in a recreation like being afraid; for in him we have -a wide-awake chap, graduate of one of the big colleges, holder of a -middle distance record and known for his pluck. And for such a one to -lock himself up in a big country house and go to shaking at every sound -he hears is not quite pleasant.” - -“Fear, when properly planted, sinks deep and lasts long,” said -Ashton-Kirk. “I’ve seen strong men quite like rabbits, in the grip of -something they didn’t understand.” - -“I got acquainted with young Campe a couple of years ago when he sprung -a tendon and they thought a big race was lost for his college. They -sent for me as old Doc. Emergency and I tinkered him up enough to go -the distance. After that he got friendly. When he graduated, every one -expected he’d go back to Mexico. But he didn’t. He went into a German -importing house here--a kind of partner, I think. - -“I’d always taken him for a casual kind of chap; he never seemed to -take things very seriously, and had a very frequent laugh. But about a -year ago I noticed a change. He didn’t talk so much; if he laughed at -all it didn’t have the old-time colour; and he got to sitting staring -at the ground. When I’d talk, he’d listen for a while; then he’d sort -of drift away. I could tell by his expression that he wasn’t getting a -thing I was saying. Finally he took to walking the floor, biting his -nails and whispering to himself.” - -Ashton-Kirk shook his head. - -“Pretty bad,” said he. - -“That’s what I thought. And I mentioned the fact to him. But he tried -to laugh--it was a complete failure--and said there was nothing wrong. -He was a little nervous; and even that, so he said, would wear off -after a while. - -“The day I spoke to him in this way was the last I saw of him until -about two weeks ago. Then I got a letter, asking me to pack a bag and -run up to Marlowe Furnace for a visit. ‘The shooting’s good,’ says he, -‘and I’ve got a brace of dogs that’ll give you some excitement.’ - -“‘This,’ says I, to myself, ‘is just about the right thing. Nothing’d -suit me better now than to fuss with a dog and a gun.’ - -“So I wrote him I’d come at once. Marlowe Furnace, if you don’t know -the place, is about twenty miles out, tucked away among the hills. It -was quite a place in revolutionary times; they beat out sword blades -and bayonets there, and cast cannon, and the round shot to stuff them -with. - -“There’s only a few houses, with an inn for summer visitors; and -there’s a little covered bridge crosses the river, just like a -picture on a plate. Campe was holding out at Schwartzberg, or Castle -Schwartzberg, as the people of the town call it. The castle is a -regular robber-baron kind of a place, with a wall around it, towers, -battlements, little windows with heavy bars, and all the rest of the -fixings.” - -“I know it,” said Ashton-Kirk. “It was built by a German officer who -came over with Baron Steuben during the Revolution. When peace came, -he decided he liked the section well enough to stay. He was rich, and -built Schwartzberg in the effort to get some of the colour of the old -land into the new.” - -“It was something like that,” said Mr. Scanlon, nodding. “And the -builder must have been related, in a way, to the Campes. Anyhow, they -came into the castle some years ago. Well, to be invited to a place -like that was not usual with me; and I felt a little swelled up about -it. - -“‘You’ve been asked because of your qualities as a sportsman and boon -companion,’ says I to myself; ‘the discriminating always pick you for -an ace.’ - -“But twenty-four hours later I had learned my true status,” said -Scanlon, his brows corrugating, and his thick forefinger tapping the -table. “I had been asked to Schwartzberg to act as a body-guard, and -for nothing else in the world.” - -“I see,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“Mind you, the situation has never been put into plain words. In fact, -it’s never been even hinted at. But things happened, queer things, with -no meanings attached, and so I gradually understood. A body-guard I -was; and my job was to protect young Campe from something out among the -hills.” - - - - -CHAPTER II - -SHOWS HOW MATTERS STOOD AT SCHWARTZBERG - - -Scanlon paused for a space; he examined a loose place in the wrapper -of his cigar, while Ashton-Kirk sat waiting, upon his rug, his hands -clasping his knees. - -“When I first grabbed at this fact,” said the big man at length, “I -gave it a good looking-over. But I kept still, mind you; I said no more -than the folks at the castle--and they were saying nothing at all. I -tackled the thing from every angle, but nothing come out of it. And -yet, all the time, young Campe shivered; and, somehow, I felt that he -had cause to do so. I could feel the thing, whatever it was, at every -turn, in every shadow, in every sound.” - -“The condition of Campe probably had its effect upon you,” said -Ashton-Kirk. “He communicated his state of mind to you.” - -“In other words,” said Mr. Scanlon, “I was stuck full of suggestion. -Well, don’t burden yourself with that notion any longer. I’ve had some -brisk experiences of my own from time to time; and a man with a murky -past doesn’t go in for mental influences, not even a little bit. But be -that as it may, I hadn’t been at Schwartzberg five days before I, too, -began to feel like sending out an S.O.S. for help. And now, in a little -more than twice that time, I come knocking at your door and urging you -to do something.” - -“I get a general atmosphere of fear--of an impending something--of an -invisible danger,” said Ashton-Kirk. “But there’s nothing in what -you’ve told me which permits of a hand-grip, so to speak.” - -“I told you,” began Scanlon, “there isn’t a single thing which----” - -“I don’t expect anything definite,” said the special detective. “Give -me the details of your stay at Schwartzberg. Perhaps we can draw -something from those.” - -“Right,” said Mr. Scanlon. “Well, as soon as I put my foot on the -station platform at Marlowe Furnace, the thing began. The station man -said to me: - -“‘You going to Schwartzberg?’ - -“‘Yes,’ says I. - -“‘A party’s been asking about you,’ says he. - -“‘One of Campe’s people, I suppose.’ - -“‘No,’ says he. ‘I know all them. The party was a stranger.’ - -“I thought this a little queer, but I had my getting out to Campe’s -place to think of; and as it was late and very dark, I said nothing -more except to ask my way. - -“‘Take the road down to the river,’ says the station man. ‘Then cross -the bridge and turn to your right. You’ll see a lot of lights that look -as if they were hanging away up in the air. That’s the castle.’ - -“So, bag in hand, I started off. It was a starry night; but there was -no moon and starlight isn’t much good on a road where the tree branches -meet on either side. But I was in the right direction and in a little -while I made out the outlines of the covered bridge. - -“‘Like a Noah’s Ark,’ says I, as I started across. Footsteps inside -covered bridges on a still, dark night are apt to stir up a lot of -other sounds; so when I began to hear a kind of shuffling alongside of -me, I wasn’t surprised. ‘An echo,’ says I, and didn’t even turn. - -“But when an electric hand torch shot a little tunnel of light through -the darkness and hit me in the ear, I came about, quick enough. - -“‘I ask your pardon,’ says a smooth kind of a voice. - -“‘That I grant you, willingly,’ says I. ‘But, believe me, friend, -you’ll have to be sharp to get anything else.’ - -“The worst of an electric torch in a dark place,” complained Mr. -Scanlon, “is that the party holding it has a good sight of you; but all -you can do to him is wink and look foolish. These being the conditions -I didn’t lash out at the party as I felt like doing, not knowing just -what he was; so I waited for him to show his hand. - -“‘You are on your way to Schwartzberg, I think,’ says the voice. - -“‘On my way is right,’ says I, as confidently as I could. ‘And I count -on getting there all safe and sound.’ - -“The party with the torch appeared to be tickled at this; for he began -to chuckle. - -“‘I’m very fortunate in meeting you,’ says he. - -“‘Good,’ says I. ‘I always like to find people in luck. And now, if -it’s no trouble, suppose you explain your reason for stopping me.’ - -“‘Of course,’ says he. ‘To be sure. I’ve a small favour to ask of you,’ -he says. ‘If you’ll be so kind, I’ll have you carry this to young Mr. -Campe.’ - -“And like that,” here Scanlon snapped his fingers, “the light went out, -and I felt the party put something into my hand. - -“‘No explanation will be needed,’ says the voice, if anything a little -smoother than before. - -“‘What I have given you will tell its own story.’ - -“Then I heard the pit-pit-pat of careful feet going back across the -bridge. I waited for a little to see if there was to be anything -further; but as there wasn’t I put the thing the stranger had given me -into my pocket, and took up the journey once more. At the end of the -bridge I looked up the river; there was a sort of mist lifting from the -water, but high above this a battery of lights twinkled and blinked in -the distance. - -“‘If that’s Schwartzberg,’ says I, ‘Campe’s got her well lit up.’ - -“I struck along a road which led over the hills; and in half an hour I -was thumping at the gate of the castle. - -“There was a little empty space after my knock,” said Scanlon. “Then I -heard footsteps and the sound of whispering. Suddenly I was flooded by -a light from somewhere over the gate; I heard a man mention my name in -a kind of a shout; then the gate opened, I was dragged in, and it swung -shut after me, the bolts and things falling into place with a great -racket. Young Campe had me by the hand and was shaking away for dear -life. - -“‘I’m glad to see you, old chap!’ says he. ‘Glad as I can be. But I -never expected you on a train as late as this!’ He left off shaking my -hand and took to slapping my back; it all seemed feverish to me; but -like a dud, I took it all for just plain delight in seeing me. ‘You -see,’ says he, ‘it’s a pretty quiet kind of a place out here; and when -you came a-knocking, we couldn’t imagine who it could be.’ - -“After which,” continued Mr. Scanlon, “I was led across a courtyard and -through a high narrow doorway like a slit in the wall. A few steps down -a stone paved corridor and we turned into a room that was a ringer for -Weisebrode’s Rathskellar. And while I was looking around at the place, -Campe went on talking as if he’d never stop. This wasn’t usual, and as -I now had a good view of him under the light, I noticed that he was -pinched looking; there were hollows in his face and neck that I’d never -seen there before. - -“‘Well,’ says he, ‘here you are, old man, and there never was a person -so welcome anywhere before. You see,’ and his voice sank a little, -‘there’s been things about here that----’ - -“‘Take care,’ says some one. And as I looked around I saw a short, -blocky German standing beside us, his hand at a salute. He was sort of -grey around the temples and he had as grim a face as I ever saw. - -“Young Campe gave a sort of gulp. ‘Quite right, sergeant,’ says he. -Then, to me, he goes on: ‘This is Sergeant-Major Kretz, once of the -Kaiser’s army, and an old friend of my father’s.’ - -“The sergeant-major saluted once more, but his face was like granite. - -“‘I will take your hat and coat,’ says he; and then a thing happened -which, for suddenness, has got anything I ever saw licked to a -standstill; and I’ve seen some sudden doings in my day. I pulled off -my overcoat and gave it to the sergeant-major. He took it kind of -awkwardly; something dropped from one of the pockets and slid across -the sanded floor. - -“‘Don’t be so confoundedly clumsy, Kretz,’ says Campe, and he stooped -and picked the thing up. But when he got it in his hands and gave it -one look, he threw it from him and gave a gurgling sort of cry. Then he -swung around and leaped on me like a madman, both hands digging into my -throat.” - -Ashton-Kirk shook the ash from the meerschaum and nodded at his visitor. - -“Rather impulsive,” said he. - -The big man’s hand caressed his throat; it was as though he still felt -the clasp of the young fellow’s fingers. - -“It was no easy job tearing him loose,” said he. “He stuck to me like a -wildcat; his intention was to do for me on the spot.” - -“What was the thing that set him off?” asked the crime specialist. - -“After I’d got him into a chair with the sergeant-major holding him,” -answered Scanlon, “I had a look at it. It was a smooth stone about the -size of an egg, though not that shape, green in colour, and with a -humped up place on one side of it. I had no recollection of ever having -seen it before, and I was puzzled about how it got into my pocket. But -while I was puzzling, it flashed on me. - -“‘It’s the thing that fellow gave me while I was crossing the bridge,’ -says I. - -“‘Let me up,’ says young Campe to the German. There was something -nearer sanity in his eyes than there had been a few moments before; so -the sergeant-major let go of him. - -“‘What fellow?’ says Campe. - -“‘I didn’t know him; it was dark and I didn’t even see him. He spoke -to me on the bridge coming from the station. He gave me this thing -for you. He said you’d ask no questions, but he didn’t mention,’ I -couldn’t help adding, ‘the other thing you’d do.’ - -“Campe grabbed my arm with both hands. - -“‘If you can,’ says he, ‘try and forget that I lost my head just now. -If you knew what a bedeviled man I am, you’d only wonder why I don’t go -permanently mad.’ - -“Then he stood looking at the green stone, which the sergeant-major had -put upon the table; his lips twitched, his face was white. - -“‘Oh, they are cunning,’ says he. ‘They know the nature and substance -of fear. They play upon it with the expertness of devils. But,’ and he -lifted one clenched fist, ‘they’ll never break my nerve; I’ll hold out -against them, no matter what they do.’” - -“That was pretty direct,” spoke Ashton-Kirk. “What followed? Did he say -anything more?” - -“The German sergeant-major took him away before he could indulge in -any further remarks; I didn’t see him again until next morning; and -then nothing at all was said about the doings of the night. A couple of -times I was on the point of asking him to put me up in the reason for -his goings on; but something in his manner and expression kept me back. - -“In the late afternoon we all went out for a breather among the hills. -But it was more like an expedition into the enemy’s country than an -exercise. They put a couple of Colt automatics in my pocket, and each -of them took one. Also the sergeant-major carried a Mauser rifle with -kick enough to have killed at a couple of miles. - -“‘Sometimes there are vagrants who get impudent,’ said Campe. ‘I’ve -known them to attempt robbery; so we may as well be prepared.’ - -“Next day we took the dogs and guns and tried for some birds; at night -we locked the place up like a prison. The days that followed were about -the same; I never felt so thick a depression anywhere as there was in -Schwartzberg. For hours no one would speak; our meals would go through -like a funeral rite; sometimes I’d catch myself chewing my food to the -tune of a dead march. After dinner we’d have a gloomy game of cards; at -about ten we’d all go off to bed, one by one, and seem glad to do it.” - -“Your first visit wasn’t pleasant,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“I got no fun out of it except the tramping around, and then only when -I’d go off by myself. I’d have cleared out as soon as I’d sized matters -up, but there were two things kept me back. First, I like young Campe, -and I wanted to help him out; second, something was doing of a piquant -nature, and I had a curiosity to know what it was. - -“Several times, from my bedroom windows, I saw Kretz prowling about -the courtyard or upon the wall. Once I fancied I caught the creeping -of a couple of figures beyond the wall. I went out to look up the -nature of the stunt, and almost got myself shot by what Campe afterward -called prowling tramps. On the following night as I sat reading in my -room, I heard a woman’s scream--sudden and high with fear. There was -a rush of feet along empty corridors, sharp voices and the slamming -of doors. I grabbed up my automatic and, all in disarray, I broke for -the scene of excitement. But half-way down a flight of stairs I came -upon Sergeant-Major Kretz, quite calm, but looking a little grimmer, if -anything, than I’d ever seen him before. - -“‘It’s nothing,’ he tells me. ‘The Fräulein was frightened. All is -right. You need not bother.’” - -“There’s a woman, then, at Schwartzberg?” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“Two of them, to be exact,” returned Scanlon. “One’s an aunt of -Campe’s; the other is a companion, or something of the kind. The girl I -see often, but the aunt very rarely. But I never did more than nod to -either of them until the night Campe was cut.” - -“Cut!” - -“In the body,” said Scanlon. “That was two nights ago. I had gone to -bed rather later than usual and had, I think, been asleep only a few -minutes when I was awakened by a sound. I sat up and listened. Then -it came again. Far off, as though among the hills, came a roaring; it -started like a murmur at first, and grew in volume until it rumbled -like nothing I’d ever heard before. Then it died away, and only its -echo remained, drifting above the hillsides. - -“‘Thunder,’ says I. - -“But the sky was filled with stars, and they shone as brilliantly as -stars ever shone before. Once more came the roaring in the night; with -my head thrust far out at the window, I listened. A door opening on the -courtyard slapped to, suddenly; quick footsteps sounded and Campe’s -voice, high and angry, came to my ears. The gate opened before him; I -could see him, a revolver in his hand and with all the appearance of -madness, rush away in the direction of the great sound. - -“I commenced jumping into my clothes, a garment at a jump; a brilliant -tongue of light shot from the top of Schwartzberg, and began to sweep -the country round about much like the searchlight of a battleship. - -“‘They are strong on equipment,’ says I to myself, as I grabbed my gun -and made for the door. This time I met no one on the stairs, nor in -the courtyard, when I reached it, nor yet at the gate. Once outside -I looked up; the light was streaming out over the hills from the -tallest turret of the castle; and in the gloom beside the reflector I -saw Kretz, his Mauser in his hands, his face turned as though he were -grimly picking up each detail as the light brought it out. - -“I had noted the direction which Campe had taken; so I struck after -him. Two hundred yards away from the castle I heard his revolver begin -to speak; then there came the eager straining breaths of men engaged -in a struggle, the grinding of feet, and a heavy fall. I had all but -reached the spot when the great ray swept round and held fast. I saw -young Campe stretched out upon the ground; and over him stood the girl, -all in white, with her face upturned, her arms outstretched toward the -high turret as though imploring the grim rifleman to hold his fire.” - -“Well?” asked Ashton-Kirk. - -“She was a peach; and Campe was nearly done. I lifted him, and with my -automatic held ready, and the girl trailing behind, I got back to the -castle where I heard the gate closed and locked behind me with some -thankfulness.” - -“Was Campe badly hurt?” - -“He had a long, peculiar cut down his chest and stomach, not deep, -but ugly looking. It was just as though some one had made a sweep at -him with something big and heavy and keen, and he had pulled back in -time to escape most of it. But he was about next day; he thanked me -for going out after him, but would explain nothing. It was after this -that I tried to reason it out for the last time. But it’s no use--the -thing’s beyond yours truly. So here I am.” - -The singular eyes of Ashton-Kirk were full of interest; he arose from -his rug and took a couple of turns up and down the room; then he threw -open a bulky railroad guide and his searching finger began to run in -and out among the figures. - -“There’s a train for Marlowe Furnace at 8.4,” said he. - -Then he pressed one of a series of bells in the wall, and, through a -tube, said to some one below: - -“Have dinner half an hour earlier. And set places for two.” - -“I didn’t think you’d jump into the thing with any such speed as this,” -remarked Mr. Scanlon, highly gratified. - -“It looks like a case which will admit of no delay,” replied -Ashton-Kirk. “Something of a deadly nature is lowering over -Schwartzberg; that’s plain enough. And that young Campe is so secretive -about it is an indication that it’s one of those things which cannot -well be spoken of to the police.” - - - - -CHAPTER III - -IN WHICH THE SPECIAL DETECTIVE TAKES UP THE HUNT - - -After dinner, Ashton-Kirk smoked a cigar with his friend; then he -retired to dress for the journey to Marlowe Furnace. When he reappeared -he wore a rough, well-fitting grey suit, a grey flannel shirt, a cloth -cap and a pair of springy tan shoes. In his hand he held a heavy -hickory stick, which he balanced like a swordsman. - -“You looked primed for work,” approved Bat Scanlon, as he stood up and -buttoned his coat across his big chest. - -“Your story of the doings in and about Schwartzberg holds out a promise -of entertainment,” smiled Ashton-Kirk. “And I’ve noticed that things of -that sort are always more appreciated if they are prepared for and met -half-way.” - -“Good!” praised Mr. Scanlon, who was in high good humour at his success -in gaining the interest of the specialist in the unusual. “Fine! That’s -the kind of talk I like to hear. It puts a man somewhere. Locking -himself up and shivering never got anybody anything yet. And then -going mad and rushing out to have unseen parties chop at him is even -worse. When I taught boxing to the boys out at Shaweegan College I used -to hand them this advice: ‘Always keep after your man--don’t let him -get settled. And the best guard for a blow is another blow--started -sooner.’” - -“Excellent,” agreed Ashton-Kirk. “And it’s a thousand pities you -didn’t impress it upon young Campe. If you had, he’d never have been in -his present state of mind and body.” - -The huge shoulders of Scanlon shrugged in disbelief. - -“Campe was past all reason when I got to him,” maintained he. “To talk -candidly would only have spoilt any chance I had of doing him a good -turn.” - -The 8.4 was a dusty ill-kept train, which started and stopped with -a series of jerks. After an hour on board of it, among a lot of -uncomfortable, sour-looking passengers, the two got off at Marlowe -Furnace. The station was a shed-like structure with a platform of -hard-packed earth, and a brace of flaring oil lamps. An ancient, with -a wisp of beard and thumbs tucked under a pair of braces, watched them -get off. - -“The station agent,” said Scanlon. - -The train went panting and glaring away into the darkness; it had -disappeared around a bend when the station official nodded to Scanlon. - -“Evening,” greeted he. - -“Hello,” said Scanlon. - -“Back again, I see.” - -“Yes--once more.” - -“Nobody asked for you to-night.” - -“That so?” said Scanlon, his glance going to Ashton-Kirk. - -The detective dug carelessly at the hard-packed earth of the platform -with the tip of the hickory stick. - -“The person who asked for my friend the last time he stopped off here -was a stranger to you, I understand.” - -The ancient official took one of the thumbs from under a brace and -raked it thoughtfully through the wisp of beard. - -“Don’t remember ever seeing him before,” stated he. - -“I suppose you couldn’t recall what he looked like?” - -The ancient looked injured. - -“I’m sixty-seven year old,” said he, “but I got good eyesight, and a -better memory than most. That man I talked to that night was a stranger -at the Furnace. If I’d ever set an eye on him before I’d remembered -him. He was fat and white and soft looking. And he talked soft and -walked soft. When he went away, I’d kind of a feeling that I’d been -talking to a batter pudding.” - -“Have you seen him since?” asked the crime student. - -The old man shook his head. - -“No. And I don’t know how he got here or went away, unless he drove or -come in a motor. He didn’t use the trains.” - -The road down toward the river was steep, and lined with trees -upon each side; their interwoven branches overhead, as Scanlon had -explained, were dense enough to keep out most of the light. “It’s -pretty much the same kind of a night as the one I used when I first -came here,” said Bat. “Stars, but no moon.” - -The wooden bridge, with a peaked roof over it, crossed the river at the -foot of the road; the square openings upon either side showed the dark -water flowing sullenly along. - -“Look,” and Bat Scanlon pointed out at one of the windows of the -bridge. “There are the lights of Schwartzberg.” - -Some distance away--perhaps a mile--and high above the west bank of -the river, hung a cluster of lights. So lonely were these, and so -pale and cold that they might well have marked the retreat of some -necromancer, in which he pored over his dark books of magic. - -“It’s a peculiar thing,” said Ashton-Kirk, his eyes upon the far-off -lights, “what various forms fear takes. Here is a man who, apparently, -is in constant terror of some one, or something, and yet we find him -lodged stubbornly in a place where a secret blow might be levelled at -him with the greatest ease.” - -“That struck me more than once,” spoke Mr. Scanlon. “And I felt like -putting it to him as a question shaped something like: ‘Why stay here -when there’s places where there’s more folks? Why stick around a spot -where there’s always some one cutting in with an unwelcome surprise, -when you can get good house-room in places where there’s plenty of -burglar alarms?’” - -Their feet sounded drearily upon the loose planks of the bridge; and -when they emerged at the far end they found themselves upon a narrow -road which ran off into the darkness. - -“On, over the hills, in and out, and up and down, until it lands you at -Schwartzberg gate,” said Scanlon. - -They climbed to the top of a hill; the sky was thick with stars, and -the light from them touched the high places with pale hands. But the -hollows were black and deep looking; mystery followed the course of the -slowly running river. - -“What is there round about Campe’s place?” asked the crime specialist. -“Is this the only road that leads there? What are his neighbours like?” - -“To the first of those questions,” said Mr. Scanlon, “I reply, -fields--also hills--also woods. There are roads passing Schwartzberg -upon either side. As to neighbours, there’s a few farmers, and their -help. And then there’s the man who flags the bad crossing down by the -river, and the inn.” - -“Ah, yes, you mentioned the inn before,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“A big, old-fashioned place--built back in the old days.” - -“With a wide hearth and a hearty old landlord, whose father and -grandfather owned the house before him.” - -“Well, that’s how it ought to be, to be in the picture; but it happens -that this landlord has been here for only about six months.” - -Scanlon heard the hickory stick slashing at a clump of dried brush; -then the crime specialist spoke: - -“How far away is it?” - -“A couple of miles.” - -“Maybe it’d be as well if we went there and bespoke a bed, if they’ll -take us in,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -Scanlon seemed surprised. - -“I guess they’ve got room,” said he. “But I had it in my mind you were -going to Schwartzberg.” - -“I will pay it a visit, if I’m permitted, when I’ve had a chance to see -something of its surroundings. Your story, you see, shows plainly that, -whatever the nature of Campe’s danger, it comes from the outside.” - -Scanlon seemed struck by this; then he nodded and said: - -“I guess that’s right. But don’t you think a good chance to pump Campe -for some inside information would be better than anything else?” - -“In its proper place, perhaps. But I want to look over the outside, -uninfluenced. Five minutes’ talk with a man in Campe’s state of -mind might colour one’s thoughts to such an extent that it would be -difficult to see anything except with his eyes.” - -“That sounds sensible enough,” agreed Bat. “And if there’s anything in -the world you don’t want to get doing, it’s seeing things as he sees -them.” - -They followed the narrow road for some distance, and then the big man -turned off into a path which led through a stretch of farm land. - -“This is a short cut,” said he. “I followed it frequently when I was -out with the gun. It’ll bring us to a road a bit beyond this wood; and -the road leads on to the inn.” - -A hundred yards further on they topped the crest of a hill; before them -loomed a dense growth of trees which covered the slopes round about. - -“It’s a fine kind of a place in summer, I should think,” said Scanlon, -as they halted. “But of an autumn night when the air gets chill, the -stars look far away, and there’s a pretty well settled belief that some -queer things are about, it’s got its weak side. When I was staying in -Canyon, I swore in as a deputy one night and started out into the hills -with the magistrate to look for two lads who’d held up a train and got -away with a bag full of money. That country was much wilder than this, -and was further away from anywhere; but,” with a look at the gloomy -wooded slopes, “believe me, it couldn’t compare with this for that -uncertain feeling.” - -As they stood gazing about, Ashton-Kirk’s head suddenly went up. He -bent forward in the attitude of listening. - -“What is it?” asked the big man. - -“Hark!” - -Far away, among the hills to the north, came a deep muttering, Scanlon -clutched the crime specialist’s arm. - -“That’s it!” he cried. “Listen to it lift. It’s the thing I heard -roaring in the night.” - -Low, growling, ominous at first, the sound grew in volume. Then it -pealed like a mighty voice, rolling and echoing from hill to hill, -finally subsiding and dying in the muttering with which it began. - -“According to custom,” remarked Scanlon, in an uneasy tone, “Campe is -now due to take his gun in hand and dash for the gate. And, if he does, -they’ll do more than slash him. I’ve got an idea they’ll get him this -time.” - -As he said the last word, a shaft of brilliant light shot from the -tower of Schwartzberg, and flashed to and fro across the countryside. - -Then came the quick, far-off pulsation of a rifle; in the widening beam -of white light they saw a woman crouching down as though in fear; and -then they caught the figure of a man, running as though for his life. - - - - -CHAPTER IV - -TELLS SOMETHING OF THE MAN IN THE ROLLING CHAIR - - -“Campe!” cried Bat Scanlon, his eyes upon the fleeing man, and his hand -going, with the instinctive movement of an old gun man, to his hip. -“And giving his little performance outside once more.” - -But the keen eyes of the crime specialist had picked up details which -the other had missed. He shook his head. - -“No,” said he. “Campe is a young man, you say. This is one past middle -life. And also he seems sadly out of condition, and does not run at all -like a man who once took middle distance honours.” - -The searching column of light still clung to the running man; again and -again came the light shocks of the distant rifle. - -“The woman has faded out of the lime-light,” observed Scanlon. - -“And the man is trying his best to duplicate the feat. Look--there he -goes!” - -With a wild side leap, the fugitive vanished into a shallow ravine, out -of range of both the ray and the rifle. At this the searchlight was -snapped off and darkness once more settled over the hills. - -“Your German sergeant-major is a poor shot,” commented Ashton-Kirk. “He -had his man in full view and missed him repeatedly.” - -Scanlon shook his head. - -“It must have been the light,” said he. “Kretz can shoot. I’ve seen him -at it.” - -They stood in silence for a few moments; the country road about seemed -heavier with shadows than it had been before the appearance of the -shifting beam of light; the stars looked fainter. - -“That’s the second time I’ve seen that girl out here in the night,” -continued the big man. “And each time the noise came, and things -started doing. I wonder what’s the idea?” - -“I fancy it’s a trifle early to venture an opinion upon anything having -to do with this most interesting affair,” said his companion. “But,” -quietly, “we may stumble upon an explanation as we go further into it.” - -“I hope so,” said Scanlon, fervently. Then, in the tone of a man who -had placed himself unreservedly in the hands of another, “What next?” - -“I think we’d better go on to the inn.” - -If the other thought the crime specialist’s wish would have been to -take up their course in the direction of the recently enacted drama, -he said nothing. He led the way along the narrow path, and through the -gloomy growth of wood. They emerged after a space into a well-kept -road, and holding to this, approached a rambling, many gabled old house -which twinkled with lighted windows and gave out an atmosphere of -cheer. A huge porch ran all around it; an immense barn stood upon one -side; and half-a-dozen giant sycamores towered above all. - -“There it is,” said Scanlon. “And it looks as though it had been there -for some time, eh?” - -“A fine, cheery old place,” commented Ashton-Kirk, his eyes upon the -erratic gables, the twinkling windows and the welcoming porch. “Many a -red fire has burned upon its snug hearths of a winter night; and many a -savoury dish has come out of its kitchen. Travelling in the old days -was not nearly so comfortable as now; but it had its recompenses.” - -Their feet crunched upon the gravel walk, and then sounded hollowly in -the empty spaces of the porch. Scanlon pushed open a heavy door which -admitted them to a great room with a low ceiling, beamed massively, -and coloured as with smoke. The floor was sanded; a fire of pine logs -roared up a wide-throated chimney; brass lamps, fixed in sockets in the -walls, threw a warm yellowish glow upon polished pewter tankards and -painted china plates. The tables and chairs were of oak, scrubbed white -by much attentive labour; prim half curtains graced the small-paned -windows. - -A short man with a comfortable presence, a white apron and a red face -came forward to greet them. - -“Good-evening, Mr. Scanlon,” said he, cordially. “I’m pleased to see -you, sir. I’d been told you’d given us up and gone off to the city.” - -“Just for a breather, that’s all,” Scanlon informed him, as he and the -crime specialist sat at a table near to the blazing hearth. It was -still autumn, but there had been a dampness and a chill in the night -air which made the snugness of the inn very comfortable. - -The red-faced landlord smiled genially. - -“I might have known that, even if the shooting is none too good, the -bracing air would bring you back.” - -Ashton-Kirk glanced about the public room. A small, cramped-looking man -sat at a table with a draught board before him, studying a complex move -of the pieces through a pair of thick-lensed glasses. A polished crutch -stood at one side of his chair, and a heavy walking stick at the -other. Deeply absorbed in the problem and its working out was another -man, younger, but drawn-looking, who coughed and applied a handkerchief -to his lips with great frequency. - -The hearty looking landlord caught the glances of the crime specialist, -and smiled. - -“My customers are a fragile lot,” said he in a low voice. “The inns get -only that kind in the winter,” as though in explanation, “and some of -them are worse than these. It’s the air that does it.” - -“Makes them ill?” smiled Ashton-Kirk. - -“Bless you, no!” The landlord placed a broad hand to his mouth to -restrain the great responsive laugh which seemed struggling in his -chest. “The air does ’em good, so the doctors say. Well, anyway,” his -humorous eyes twinkling, “it does _me_ good by getting me over the slow -season. If it wasn’t for them, I’d have to close up after September’s -done.” - -Scanlon ordered some cigars and coffee, and as the host moved away to -procure these, he said: - -“The doctors are a great lot, eh? Once they piled all the high-coloured -drugs into you that you’d hold; and now they talk fresh air until you’d -almost believe you could live on that alone. There’s one old codger -who’s got a pet patient here--some sort of a rare and costly complaint, -I believe--and he insists on fresh air at all stages of the game. The -patient, it seems, likes an occasional change; but the doc. is as deaf -as a post to everything except the sighing of the wind.” - -Coffee and cigars were served. - -“Both black and strong,” said Ashton-Kirk, as he tested one after the -other. - -“The coffee, sir, as Mr. Scanlon knows, is made after my own recipe,” -stated the landlord. “I’d not recommend it to one of my invalid guests, -sir, nor to a well one as a regular tipple. But it has the quality and -the touch, if you know what I mean.” - -“White is to move and win,” stated the cramped-looking man. He rubbed -one side of his nose with a hand that shook, and there was complaint -in the gaze with which he fixed the pieces. “But I can’t see how it’s -going to do it.” - -“White is to move, and win in four other moves,” said the drawn-looking -man, coughing into the handkerchief. - -“Which makes it all the more difficult,” said the other. His palsied -hand fumbled purposelessly with the pieces; and the look of complaint -deepened. The man with the handkerchief coughed once more, and looked -mildly triumphant. - -“They seem to be constantly engaged in these mad diversions,” said -Scanlon, his eyes upon the two. “At times, when I’ve been here, I’ve -seen the excitement rise to that degree that I’ve considered calling -out the fire department.” - -Just then there came a strident voice from another apartment. - -“Who the devil is it?” it demanded. “If matters of importance are to be -interfered with in this way, it’s time that something was done----” - -Here the man with the cough reached out and clapped to a door, shutting -out the voice. The landlord looked discomfited. - -“I beg your pardon, Mr. Shaw,” said he. “I know it’s annoying to you; -but Mr. Alva must be worse to-day, and so is very impatient.” - -The drawn-looking man coughed hollowly. - -“I’m very sorry for the gentleman’s condition,” spoke he, huskily. “But -he should remember that there are others here who are equally ill in -their own way; and that his outbursts are not at all agreeable.” - -The strident voice was lifted once more, this time muffled by the door; -then another voice was heard remonstrating and apparently advising. -Then there followed a soft rolling sound, the door opened once more -and an invalid’s chair made its appearance, propelled by a squat, dark -servant, whose flat nose and coarse straight hair gave him the look of -an Indian. - -Beside the chair hopped a peppery little man with white hair and -eye-glasses from which hung a wide black string. - -“It makes no difference who he is,” declared the peppery little man, -fixing the glasses more firmly upon his nose and speaking to the -occupant of the chair. “The facts remain as I have said. But, Mr. Alva, -there seems to be very little use in advising you. In spite of all I -can say you’ll keep indoors. Suppose it is dark? The darkness can’t -hurt you. Suppose it is damp? You can protect yourself against that. -Air is what you want--fresh air--billions of gallons of it.” - -The man in the chair was wasted and pale; his almost fleshless hands -lay upon the chair arms; his limbs seemed shrunken to the bone. - -Bat Scanlon looked at Ashton-Kirk and nodded. - -“Whatever it is that’s got _him_ has got him for good,” spoke he, in a -low tone. “I never saw any man’s body so close to death without being -dead.” - -The eyes of Ashton-Kirk were fixed upon the sick man with singular -interest. - -“And yet,” said he, in the same low-pitched way, “his head is very much -alive. It probably would not be too much to say that it is the most -vital thing in the room.” - -Scanlon looked at the invalid with fresh interest. He saw a dark face, -not at all that of a sick man, and a pair of burning, searching black -eyes. There seemed to be something unusual about the upper part of the -head, but the man was so muffled up, apparently about to be taken out, -that the nature of this was not quite clear. - -“Drugs,” stated the peppery little man, “are useless; time has no -effect. To reach a case of your kind, air must be supplied--clear -air--air containing all the elements of life. If I am to make a well -man of you where others have failed, you must do as I say.” - -“He’s the fresh-air crank I was telling you about a while ago,” Scanlon -informed the crime specialist, softly. - -“If I must go out,” spoke the invalid in a surprisingly strong voice, -“wrap me up well. I feel the cold easily.” - -The little doctor began arranging the blankets about the shrunken -limbs; and while he was doing so, Ashton-Kirk arose. - -“Let me assist you,” said he, with that calm assurance which is seldom -denied. - -Deftly he tucked in the coverlets upon the opposite side, and buttoned -up the heavy coat. But when he reached for the muffling folds about the -sick man’s head, all the sureness seemed to leave his fingers; Scanlon -was astonished to see him bungle the matter most disgracefully; -instead of accomplishing what he set out to do, he succeeded in -knocking the covering off altogether. - -“Pardon me,” he said, smoothly enough. - -The invalid returned some commonplace answer; and the doctor set about -repairing the result of the volunteer’s awkwardness. - -“Your intentions are the best in the world,” smiled he, “but I can see -that you have spent very little of your time about sick beds.” - -Then he opened the door, and beckoned the Indian. The chair rolled out -upon the porch, and a moment later could be heard crunching along the -gravel walk. - -Ashton-Kirk smoked his black cigar with much silent deliberation, -and sipped at the strong coffee. Several times during the next half -hour Scanlon attempted to bring him out of this state by remarks as -to the inn and its population. But he received replies of the most -discouraging nature, and so gave it up. When the cigar was done, the -crime specialist arose and stretched his arms wide in a yawn. - -“I think I’m for bed,” said he. - -Scanlon looked his astonishment, but said nothing. His imagination had -pictured some hours of looking about among the darkened hills--just -how and what for he had little idea; and this announcement suddenly -bringing the night to a close was not in the least what he had expected. - -“All right,” was his reply. “That’ll do for me, too.” - -Rooms were assigned them, and each was provided with a candle in a -copper candlestick; and so they went off up the wide staircase. From -the adjoining room, Bat Scanlon heard the sound of pacing feet for -some time; after a little they stopped, but for all that he had no -assurance that the special detective had gone to bed. So he stepped out -and knocked at his door. - -Entering, he found Ashton-Kirk, his hands deep in his trousers pockets, -standing staring at the grotesque flare of the candle. - -“Hello,” said the big man, “I thought you were regularly sleepy.” - -“I am--a little. But an idea occurred to me downstairs, and I’ve been -trying to follow it out.” - -Once more he resumed his pacing, his hands behind him, his eyes upon -the floor. - -“Imagination is, perhaps, man’s greatest gift,” said he. “Without it -there would be little accomplished in the world. But there are times -when one is forced to put the brakes upon it, or it would lead one -astray.” - -Scanlon looked at him curiously. - -“What’s set you off on that?” asked he. - -Ashton-Kirk stopped in his pacing, and lifted his head. - -“That object he had given you on the bridge upon the occasion of your -first visit, and which afterward had such a startling effect upon young -Campe--what did you say it was like?” - -“It was a stone--not very big--dark green in colour--and with a kind of -hump upon one side of it.” - -The crime student nodded; there was a look in the singular eyes which -Bat Scanlon had seen there only upon rare occasions. - -“I remembered it as being something like that,” said Ashton-Kirk. He -took up the interrupted pacing for a moment; then paused once more. -“What do you make of that sound we heard out on the hills to-night?” - -Scanlon shook his head. - -“You’ve got me,” said he. “That’s one of the things I put up to you -when I called you in as a consultant.” - -Ashton-Kirk stood looking at him, nodding his head. - -“Ah, yes, to be sure. Well, we’ll see what can be done. And now,” with -a look at his watch, “if you don’t mind being turned out, I think I’ll -go to bed.” - -“You mean to have a try at the Schwartzberg folks in the morning?” - -“Yes.” - -Scanlon turned and had his hand upon the door-knob when the crime -specialist spoke again. - -“Rather a peculiarly shaped head that man in the chair has.” - -“I noticed it,” replied Scanlon. “It seems to slant back from just -above the nose. Gives him an unusual look.” - -“Unusual--yes. I don’t think I ever saw that exact conformation except -in----” here he stopped short. “Well,” with another nod, “good-night. -See you in the morning.” - - - - -CHAPTER V - -SPEAKS OF ASHTON-KIRK’S FIRST VISIT TO SCHWARTZBERG - - -On the following morning, Ashton-Kirk and Scanlon breakfasted at the -inn; then they each smoked another of the black cigars. At about nine -o’clock they paid their bill and left. - -“This road,” said Bat Scanlon, as they trudged along, “is rather -direct; it leads on to an old mill built years ago, and now abandoned, -and then down to the river.” - -“All things considered,” spoke Ashton-Kirk, twirling his hickory -stick, his keen eyes searching the ground, “we’d better get away from -the roads and paths this morning, and head for Campe’s place, across -country.” - -Without any comment, Scanlon followed his lead. Down one slope and up -another they went, skirting ravines and gullys, but always keeping -the towers of Schwartzberg in sight. The crime specialist seemed in -excellent humour; he whistled little airs, and cut at the stubble and -withered stalks with his stick. But always were the keen, observant -eyes travelling here and there; once or twice he left his companion and -darted away; but he always returned in a very short time, smiling and -shaking his head. - -“An interesting place,” said he. “There are many indications of -enterprise and thought. I shall have to go over it carefully; it -promises to repay even a great deal of labour.” - -“Look there,” said Scanlon. - -Ashton-Kirk’s eyes followed the pointing finger. Upon the wall of -Schwartzberg even at that distance could be seen a human figure. - -“It’s Campe,” said Scanlon. “He’s just noticed us.” - -As he spoke, the man on the wall drew out a field-glass and trained it -upon them. Long and earnestly he looked; then without making a sign, he -lowered the glass, turned and disappeared. - -“Gone to tell Kretz that I’ve hove in sight and am bringing a -stranger,” said Scanlon. - -As they approached the building its details became more distinct. The -grey stone, the narrow windows, the massive wall, the towers, indeed, -all about the edifice, called up memories of those old feudal keeps in -the Rhine country. - -“It wouldn’t surprise me in the least to see the gates swing wide, -and the Baron and his men, with bows and bills, ride forth to bid us -stand,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“Well, there goes the gate,” said Scanlon, shading his eyes from the -sun. “And here come Campe and the sergeant-major. I don’t see any bows -nor bills; but it wouldn’t surprise me if both packed a perfectly -competent ‘gat’ somewhere about his person, ready to bring into action -should you demonstrate anything but friendship and good will.” - -“I shall be careful to put nothing else on display,” smiled -Ashton-Kirk. “And now,” with seriousness, “one word before they get too -near. I am simply a friend of yours. You saw me in the city, and as I -professed an interest in Schwartzberg, you brought me out to put in an -hour showing me over the place if the owner does not consider it too -great a liberty.” - -“I get you,” said Mr. Scanlon, briefly. - -Here the two advancing men came up. Young Campe was a well-built fellow -and of good height. But his face was pale; there was a wild look in -his eyes, and his manner indicated extreme nervousness. Scanlon’s -description of the German sergeant-major was quite accurate; he was -square built and grim-faced; there was a thick greyish patch in the -hair above each ear; and he carried himself with the stiff precision of -a man trained in a European barrack. - -“How are you?” cried Scanlon, shaking Campe by the hand. “Would have -got here last night, but I had a friend with me, and we stopped at -the inn. Mr. Ashton-Kirk,” nodding toward that gentleman, by way of -introduction. - -Campe shook hands with the specialist in crimes, and Kretz saluted -after his military fashion. - -“Mr. Ashton-Kirk listened to me tell about Schwartzberg until he felt -that he couldn’t live another day without taking it in,” Scanlon -informed them. “So he’s come over this morning, hoping it wouldn’t be -asking too much.” - -Campe’s haunted eyes searched Ashton-Kirk; it was on his lips to refuse -the request, when the other stopped him by saying: - -“I hope you’ll pardon me; but the fact is, I am something of a -student of the period in which your house was built, and its absolute -following, line for line, of the ancient plan, is of great interest. -The Count Hohenlo, builder of the place, was related to you, I -understand.” - -“An ancestor of my mother’s.” - -“Indeed. That’s very charming. The Count’s career in this country was a -most romantic one. The part he played in the history of the republic -in its infancy has been obscured by the fanfare made in behalf of men -not nearly so notable. His duel with the Frenchman, De La Place, was an -exquisite piece of knight errantry; and his defence of the ford below -here, while the British occupied the city, was an act of daring which -the historians do not make the most of.” - -A faint flush came into the cheeks of young Campe. - -“It’s an unusual thing to come upon one who knows anything of the -Count’s life or doings,” said he. “I agree with you that the historians -do not make the most of the exploit of the ford, nor do they give him -any of the credit that is his due in other matters. It is my intention -to write his biography some day; and I hope in that way to give him, in -some small part at least, the place among the great outlanders which is -rightfully his.” - -“Splendid!” applauded the crime specialist, while Bat Scanlon stood by -and looked and listened in amazement. “That’s a fine idea. The romance -of two periods, and of three countries is in your hands. Such things -are done too seldom in this day; in our hurry and bustle we have no -time for the heroes of the past.” - -Young Campe looked at Sergeant-Major Kretz. But the grim face of the -German was turned away; it was as though he knew what was to be asked -in the look, and so saved himself the mortification of giving advice -which he felt would not be taken. - -“I am living a more or less retired life just now, Mr. Ashton-Kirk,” -said Campe, “and make it a rule to receive no one. But,” and here his -gaze went to Scanlon, “since you are a friend of Mr. Scanlon’s, and -are on the ground, it would hardly do,” and here he smiled, though -faintly, “to turn you away.” - -“Kirk,” said Scanlon, “has been my friend for years. He’s quite a -fellow in his way and has been of service to many folks, who were -ready to put up their hands and quit. Now, here’s your little matter,” -eagerly: “he could take hold of that, and----” - -But the voice of Ashton-Kirk broke in on him swiftly, but with a -smoothness that covered its haste. - -“Our friend Scanlon,” said he, smilingly, “is something of an -enthusiast. He has too much confidence in my little array of historical -incident. But,” and his singular eyes looked steadily into those of -Campe, “if I can be of any assistance to you in the memoirs which you -mean to prepare, you may command me. I shall be only too glad.” - -“That’s what I thought,” stated Scanlon, blowing his nose and growing -very red. “I know you’ve got this historical stuff stuffed in till it’s -over your ears; so what’s more natural than that you should give Campe -a lift?” - -“It may be that at some future time, when I am in the frame of mind for -quiet study, I shall avail myself of your knowledge, sir,” said Campe, -as they walked toward the castle. “But at the present time,” and once -more the smile, though even fainter than before, showed itself, “I am -much taken up with more active matters, and have not the leisure.” - -Kretz took a huge key from his pocket and unlocked the gate; then he -stood aside and the others passed in. The gate was at once relocked. - -“This,” said Ashton-Kirk, as he looked about, “would resist a -considerable force, even in these days.” - -The high grey wall towered above their heads; it was a great thickness -and its strength was evident. - -Young Campe looked up at it and shook his head. - -“It’s strong enough,” said he. “But for all that, Mr. Ashton-Kirk, it -cannot keep out thoughts; and thoughts, if they are strongly marked and -along a definite line, are more to be feared than armies.” - -They crossed the flagged court of which Scanlon had spoken and entered -by the high, narrow door. A gloomy passage brought them to a room, the -same, evidently, in which Bat had been received, for it was furnished -with heavy oaken tables and chairs of ancient design, had a vaulted -ceiling and was ornamented with the heads of huge stags and boars, and -with trophies of arms, all of a day far past. - -A girl stood at one side feeding a thrush through the bars of a basket -cage; she was attired in a gown flowing and white, her hair was the -colour of yellow silk, parted in the centre, and hanging down over her -breast in two thick braids. - -“Miss Knowles,” said Campe, and the girl turned. “A friend of Mr. -Scanlon,” continued the young man, “Mr. Ashton-Kirk.” - -The girl was very beautiful; her skin was like velvet, and her colour -like roses. She was smiling as the crime specialist bowed to her; but -upon the instant that his name was mentioned, the receptacle which held -the grain she had been offering the bird fell to the stone floor and -smashed; the delicate colour left her cheeks; she stood staring, her -blue eyes full of consternation. - -“Grace!” cried Campe, in alarm. - -But in a single instant she had recovered herself; the colour rushed -back to her face, the smile returned to the lips. - -“It is nothing at all,” she said. “That headache of which I complained -yesterday seems not to have all gone. I’ve felt a little faint several -times this morning.” - -“You should not be about,” said Campe, anxiously. “And perhaps it would -be best if a doctor saw you.” - -The girl smiled sweetly. Her teeth were magnificent; and her lips were -scarlet. - -“Some stunner, eh?” whispered Bat Scanlon to Ashton-Kirk. - -“To be about is the best thing I can do,” said Miss Knowles. Then with -a mischievous look, “Mr. Kirk will think I’m quite an invalid.” - -She was really a splendid creature, large and beautifully formed; her -complexion, her eyes, the great crown of yellow hair and the flowing -white gown gave her the appearance, backed as she was by the grey -trophy-hung wall, of having stepped out of a mediæval picture--the -stately lady of some great baron, or the daughter of a belted earl. - -“Invalids seem rather plenty hereabouts,” said Ashton-Kirk with a quiet -smile. “But none of them at all resembled you, Miss Knowles.” - -It seemed, to the eyes of Bat Scanlon, that a change came into -the beautiful face--a subtle something, swift as the thought that -occasioned it, and gone as quickly. - -“You’ve been to the inn,” she said with a gesture of dismay. “Poor -things; isn’t it dreadful? Some of them are really heart-breaking, -they seem so helpless.” - -“You’ve visited the inn yourself, then?” and there was a mild note of -inquiry in the pleasant voice. - -“Oh, no; but I ride sometimes among the hills of a morning. It’s a -glorious place for that; and I meet them stalking slowly along, or -being wheeled in their chairs. Perhaps it is the contrast between the -vigour of the season and their wretched state, but at any rate I feel -very bad about it all.” - -“Mr. Kirk is a student of American history, and is interested in -Schwartzberg and the builder,” Campe informed the girl. “I am about to -show him over the place. Will you go along?” - -“Indeed, yes.” Then to Ashton-Kirk, “I never get tired of the splendid -old building; most of my time is spent in wandering about from room to -room, imagining the history it does not possess,” with a smile which -once more showed her beautiful teeth. “Oh, if it were only as rich in -romance as it seems to be! If the good Count Hohenlo had only performed -some of his deeds here.” - -“Who knows,” smiled Ashton-Kirk, “but that it has been left to a later -time to give the old place the needed touch.” - -“But,” said Miss Knowles, lightly, as she followed Campe out of the -room and along a passage, “there are no strange knights to beat upon -the portals with the handles of their swords; there are no arquebuseers -to swarm over the wall.” - -“No; that’s gone for good; but,” and Bat Scanlon thought he detected -an undercurrent of something in the crime specialist’s voice, “as Mr. -Campe suggested a while ago, high walls cannot keep out thoughts. Peril -in these later days is not as candid as in feudal times--it has a -mysterious quality--we can neither hear nor see it, at times, but it is -there, nevertheless.” - -The girl looked at the speaker; and there was a smile in her blue eyes. - -“And you think a place like Schwartzberg might get its romance in such -a very modern manner! I’ll not believe it. Nothing but the clash of -arms will satisfy me!” - -Young Campe laughed, but there was very little of mirth in the sound. - -“Why,” said he, “it may come to that in the end.” - -But Miss Knowles made a pretty gesture of protest. - -“Please don’t make game of me, Frederic,” she said. “You mean the tramp -scoundrels who have been giving you so much trouble. They make very -poor substitutes for men in armour, and I refuse to consider them.” - -Room after room was visited and admired; each was in keeping, both -in furnishing and decoration, with the period of the building’s -architecture. - -“It is really tremendous,” said Ashton-Kirk, “and must require a horde -of servants to keep it in order.” - -“We have only two besides Kretz--and they are his wife and daughter.” - -“I should like to see the kitchen,” said the crime specialist. “Very -different, I suppose, from our present compact institutions.” - -The kitchen was as huge as imagined; its bricked floor was scrubbed -clean; its copper utensils gleamed upon the walls; the great fireplace -held a turnspit upon which hung a goose, attended by a stolid-looking -girl. - -“The sergeant-major’s daughter?” asked Ashton-Kirk. - -“Yes, and here is her mother.” - -A heavy, vacant-looking woman entered the kitchen with some vegetables; -she gave but a passing glance at the visitors, and tucking up her -sleeves, proceeded indifferently about her duties. - -As they reached the roof of Schwartzberg, Ashton-Kirk saw the -searchlight, which he had witnessed in operation the night before, -mounted on one of the towers. It was a powerful affair, and seemed in -perfect order. But as to its uses Campe said nothing; he passed it by -as though it did not exist. - -Away in every direction stretched the faded countryside; the hills -swelled, the tops of the denuded trees waved starkly in the breeze. - -“The prospect is sober at this time of the year,” said Ashton-Kirk, as -he gazed out over the hills. “But the summer at Schwartzberg, I should -say, is very beautiful.” - -Young Campe nodded. - -“Yes,” said he, “it is. I have not spent such time here before now; but -the pleasant months would be well enough--if there were nothing else.” - -“Ah!” said Ashton-Kirk, “there are drawbacks, then. Nothing serious, I -hope?” - -He looked at the young man with a smile. - -“The plumbing, perhaps,” said he. “It seldom is what it should be in -houses like this.” - -But Campe shook his head, and made no reply. His eyes, still with the -old haunted look lurking in them, went out over the country, and one -hand stroked his chin. - -There was very little conversation while they remained upon the roof. -Descending, they were passing along a broad corridor when the sound of -a harp, waveringly played, was heard and a voice singing a _lied_. - -Ashton-Kirk, trailing observantly along in the rear, saw the girl start -at this and pause. A strange look came into her face; her hand went to -her lips as though to prevent the words she was already speaking. - -“Surely,” she said, sweetly, “Mr. Kirk should not go without a view of -the tapestries.” - -Young Campe looked perplexed. - -“You see,” said he to Ashton-Kirk, “there are some rare hangings--some -six or seven centuries old, I understand. And they are quite well worth -seeing. But my aunt is there,” and he gestured toward a door, “and I’m -not at all sure that she----” - -He hesitated; and the girl spoke quickly. - -“She’ll be pleased to see a visitor.” - -Then without waiting for a reply, she knocked upon the door and went -in. In a moment she held the door wide and smiled out at the three men. - -“You may come in,” she said. - -Upon entering the apartment Ashton-Kirk noted that it was much more -elaborately furnished than the other portions of the castle. Various -periods had been called upon for luxurious fittings; costly rugs -were upon the floor; magnificent paintings covered the walls; small -carvings, very miracles of workmanship, were many; and the tapestries, -which hung against and covered the far wall, were gorgeous examples of -that ancient mystery. - -“My aunt, Miss Hohenlo,” said Campe, “Mr. Ashton-Kirk.” - -“I hope you’ll pardon the intrusion,” said the crime specialist. - -Miss Hohenlo smiled graciously. She was a small woman, and thin, with -faded brown hair and dull grey eyes. She was elaborately dressed and -rather showily; about her neck hung a string of splendid jewels. Her -hands were remarkably small and white and well kept; she fingered the -strings of a gilt harp, and showed them delicately and to advantage. - -“Indeed,” said she, “it is no intrusion. Any friends of Frederic are my -friends; I try to impress that upon him. The tapestries are, of course, -wonderful, and that lovers of beauty should desire to see them is, of -course, to be expected.” - -She had a mincing, artificial manner of speech, much after the way of -a lady in a mid-Victorian novel; not once did she forget her hands; -carefully she touched the strings of the harp; with many little turns -and flourishes she showed their whiteness, their smallness, their -delicacy. - -She spoke of the tapestry and not of her hands, but it was plain to -be seen which of the two she thought the more worthy of attention; so -Ashton-Kirk conversed with her and admired the caresses she bestowed -upon the strings. - -“The harp,” said Miss Hohenlo, “is a beautiful instrument; in fact, -I will say it is the most graceful of instruments. The Romans and -the Greeks, also, preferred it to the lyre and other forms of string -arrangement.” - -“It is perhaps the most ancient of instruments,” said Ashton-Kirk. -“We trace it back to the Egyptians, and have no assurance that it was -not known even before the time of that astonishing people. That the -tight-drawn string of some warrior’s bow first suggested the musical -possibility of the form is more than likely true. Can you not imagine -the earliest minstrel chanting his song of victory to the twanging of -the bowstring which helped to bring that victory about?” - -Never once since they entered the room had the golden-haired Miss -Knowles taken her eyes from the face of the woman with the harp; and -she wore a curiously expectant expression which Ashton-Kirk did not -fail to note. - -“Miss Hohenlo is devoted to her instrument,” she said. “And such -attachment is always charming.” - -Miss Hohenlo simpered, colourlessly. - -“To me it is but a toy,” she said. - -Miss Knowles laughed. It was a light laugh and had a musical sound; but -there was something behind it which caused the crime specialist’s eyes -to narrow and grow eager. - -“A toy,” said Miss Knowles. “Oh, surely you don’t mean that--after the -nights you’ve shut yourself up with it in your hands.” - -The dull eyes of Miss Hohenlo, so it seemed, grew duller than ever; she -looked into the beautiful face before her, and lifted one slim hand to -her faded hair. - -“My dear Grace,” she said, “you are such an observant creature.” The -eyes turned upon Ashton-Kirk, and she went on: “And I had hoped that my -poor studies were unnoticed. One can never be sure of anything.” - -Here young Campe, who had been impatiently intent upon the tapestries, -now turned to Ashton-Kirk. - -“These are, perhaps, as early examples of Flemish weaving as one would -be likely to find. They came into the possession of my family about the -time of the French Revolution, a period when much that was rare and -costly was kicking about, helter-skelter.” - -Ashton-Kirk examined the hangings with admiration. - -“From the design,” said he, “I’d venture that they came from the looms -of either Bruges or Arras. The hand of Van Eyck--or a follower of Van -Eyck, is unmistakable; and the greater part of their designs went to -the weavers of those two cities.” - -Between two windows was a narrow strip of the tapestry, and in -examining this the attention of Ashton-Kirk was drawn to a huge, -two-handed sword which hung against it. - -“A rather competent looking weapon,” said he; “and one which, no doubt, -has seen excellent service.” - -Miss Knowles came nearer. - -“And who can be sure that its days of service are over?” said she, with -a smile. - -A few moments before the crime specialist had caught something behind -her laugh; now he fancied a still more subtle something was hidden -behind the smile. - -“This blade was carried in the army of Barbarossa, at the siege of -Milan,” said young Campe. - -“And by one of Miss Hohenlo’s remote ancestors,” added Miss Knowles, -and again came the enigmatic smile. “You should hear her tell the -story. It’s really delightful. Sometimes I think she cares more for the -sword than she does for the harp.” - -Miss Hohenlo advanced gingerly; there was something so mincing in her -manner, so entirely like the old maid of tradition, that Mr. Scanlon -winked very rapidly and watched her with something like fascination. -She stroked the bare blade with one small hand. - -“It’s ugly,” she said. “It is rough and uncouth, much like a great -mastiff reared outdoors and having no place in the house. But it has -done much for the Hohenlos; it has gained them fortunes in the past; so -why should I not cherish it?” - -“Why not, indeed?” said Miss Knowles. - -Scanlon noted that this apartment seemed of great interest to -Ashton-Kirk; the tapestries were exclaimed over and talked about; the -paintings were reviewed; the carvings were gone over minutely; the -curious qualities and periods of various pieces of furniture were -discussed. - -“But the harp,” mused the watchful Bat. “The harp seems to be the extra -added attraction. It’s got something that puzzles him, and he keeps -going back to it again and again.” - -But it was not only the harp. The great naked sword hanging between -the windows, backed by the bit of ancient tapestry, also seemed of -continued interest. With a casual air, Ashton-Kirk more than once -examined it; and his eyes, as Scanlon alone saw, were darting interest -for all his seeming nonchalance. Once he took the weapon down and -tested its weight in a sweeping stroke. - -“It would take a person of some strength to use this with any effect,” -said he, and his eyes were upon Miss Knowles. - -“I hope,” said she, “that you are not one of those who believe that all -the power has gone out of the race--that those of old times could do -more than those of to-day.” She took the great weapon in her hands and -raised it aloft with ease. “See, even a woman could use it,” she said. - -And then with a smile she lowered the weapon and Campe replaced it upon -the wall. - -“I don’t think,” said the young man, “there’s anything else of -interest.” - -But Miss Knowles held up a protesting finger. - -“The vaults!” she said. “No one could say he had seen a castle without -visiting those parts of it that are underground.” - -But Campe did not at all take to the suggestion. - -“They are damp and gloomy,” he said. “We seldom go into them.” He -turned to Ashton-Kirk. “However, if you care to see them, I’ll be only -too glad.” - -“If it is no trouble,” said the crime specialist, his singular eyes -upon the beautiful face of Miss Knowles, “I’d be pleased to explore -them.” - -With Kretz carrying a lamp, the three men descended into the regions -beneath Schwartzberg. The damp from the near-by river had stained -the walls and the stones of the pavement, the heavy arches hung with -growths of fungus. The place was vast and gloomy; the radius of the -lamp was small and beyond it the shadows thickened away into absolute -blackness. The whole progress through the place seemed a bore to -Scanlon. - -“Cellars,” commented he, “are fine places to keep coal in. Men who -believe in encouraging industry have also been known to store wine in -their cellars, so that the spiders could have something to spin their -nets around. But for the purposes of exercise or for mild morning -strolls they have their drawbacks. As for myself, I should prefer----” - -Suddenly there was a smash of glass, the lamp fell into fragments -and the place was plunged into darkness. Scanlon, who was next to -Ashton-Kirk, felt him spring forward like a tiger; then came a sharp -pistol shot, followed by another and still another. - - - - -CHAPTER VI - -IN WHICH ASHTON-KIRK INDICATES MUCH BUT SAYS LITTLE - - -“A light!” cried Campe. “Strike a light, Kretz.” - -“No light,” said Bat Scanlon, softly. “It is no time for such things -when an unknown gentleman is about with a gun! And keep still.” - -The sergeant-major grunted something in German, apparently in approval -of this advice. At any rate, Campe subsided. There was a space of -silence. Then a footstep sounded; and Bat arose. - -“That you, Kirk?” asked he. - -“Yes,” came the quiet voice of the crime specialist. “I think it’s all -right now. Is there any way of getting a light?” - -A match crackled, then Kretz produced a candle stump from a niche in -the wall. This he ignited. Ashton-Kirk came into the dim circle of -radiance. - -“I’ll not ask whether you saw anybody,” said Scanlon. “But,” anxiously, -“did you feel anything of him?” - -“It’s rather wild firing in the dark,” returned the crime specialist. -“And, perhaps,” here there was a dryness in his tone, “that’s what kept -us from being more or less shot up.” - -“Let’s go over the place,” suggested Scanlon. “Whoever it was must be -still here. Get some more light, sergeant.” - -In a few minutes Kretz had a brace of stable lanterns; and with these -throwing their rays about, and revolvers held ready, the four men -made their way slowly through the cellars. There was no rubbish, nor -lumber; everything was open to the lamp-light. And no one was to be -found. - -“Hello!” said Scanlon, amazed at this. “Here’s a state of affairs. A -while ago I wondered how they got in; now I wonder how they got out.” - -Ashton-Kirk had gone over the place keenly; nothing, even the smallest, -seemed to escape him. Two small openings, heavily barred, allowed the -daylight to drift in, and with his eyes on these, he asked: - -“Are these the only means of ventilation?” - -“Yes,” answered Kretz. - -The crime specialist tested the bars; as he wiped his fingers upon -a handkerchief, he asked: “How many ways are there of entering the -vaults--from inside?” - -“One,” replied Kretz. “The way we came down.” - -“This sort of thing happened once before,” said young Campe. His manner -was quiet, but his voice was cold with dread. “The only difference was -that it was in the night, and----” - -The grim-faced Kretz, looking more granite-faced than ever in the -flickering light of the lanterns, growled something in a low tone; and -the young man stopped instantly. - -“It’s the tramps,” he added hastily. “We are greatly troubled by them. -Scanlon,” with a glance at the big man, “has seen something of their -work.” - -Taking one of the lights, Ashton-Kirk went over the place once more. -This time he gave much attention to the floor, and showed considerable -curiosity as to the walls. - -“You see,” said he, laughingly, but not once relaxing his attention, -“it is possible that the Count in his building of this place might -have contrived the secret passage which legend tells us went with such -buildings.” - -“No,” said Kretz. “There is a plan of the house. All is marked there. -Nothing is secret.” - -Much to Scanlon’s surprise, the crime specialist seemed to take this as -final. - -“It is a thing which should be brought to the attention of the police,” -suggested Ashton-Kirk. “Prowlers who have secret means of entering -cellars can’t be comfortable neighbours.” - -“It might come to that in the end,” said Campe as they climbed the -stone steps. He had a smile upon his lips, a wan hopeless sort of -thing, and in the lantern light his eyes looked sunken. “But the police -are sometimes very troublesome themselves.” - -They reached the upper hall, and Ashton-Kirk looked at his watch and a -time-table. - -“I have thirty minutes to reach the station,” said he. - -“I had hoped,” said Campe, “to have you for luncheon.” - -“Some other time I shall be delighted. But to-day there are some small -matters which must have my attention. Good-bye, and thank you.” - -Kretz swung open the outer door; they crossed the courtyard, and he -shot back the great bolts of the gate. The detective shook hands with -Campe; to Scanlon he said: - -“If it is at all possible, call upon me at ten o’clock to-morrow. I -think I shall then have something to tell you in regard to the affair -you spoke to me of yesterday.” - -“I’ll be on hand,” said Bat, with a nod of assurance. “Count on me.” - -From a window the beautiful, smiling face of Miss Knowles looked down -upon them. Ashton-Kirk took off his cap, and with a nod and a little -flourish he was off down the road, swinging with a long stride, and -twirling his hickory stick gaily. - -Next day the bell in the tower of the church next door was striking -ten when the punctual Bat Scanlon presented himself at the crime -specialist’s door. - -“Come in,” said that gentleman. “You are as sharp as time itself.” - -As usual, he had a pile of books about him; and the meerschaum pipe -was sending its pale vapours into the room. But these were a different -kind of books. Those which had been heaped about on the occasion of Mr. -Scanlon’s last visit were things of dreams and fanciful speculation; -but these, this morning, were keen and practical looking. The sheep -binding seemed to warn off triflers; the type seemed sharply cut and -decisive. And the very pipe itself seemed to wear a purposeful air; -instead of the leisurely drawing at it that had marked the other visit, -the puffs were now curt and contained a promise of other things. - -Bat Scanlon seated himself in the chair he had occupied before; and -while he lighted the cigar which was presented to him, his eyes went to -the print of the brown sailors peering away into the heart of the sea’s -mystery. And now, somehow, their attitude was changed. The mystery -ahead was as complete as before; indeed, it was, perhaps, more so; but -the brown men now seemed at ease; to-day they did not fear the unknown; -and, as he looked closely, it even seemed that they were pleased with -the unusualness of their situation. - -“Just the way I feel,” Bat told himself. “Kirk’s on the job and he’ll -fix it up as it should be. So why worry?” - -Ashton-Kirk opened a drawer and took out a folded paper. - -“When you called me on the telephone the other day,” said he, “I at -once set about looking up the Campe family history. My records had the -facts up to a few years ago. But I wanted complete information, so I -sent one of my men out to look them up. This is his report, brought in -to me this morning.” - -He seated himself upon a corner of the table and unfolded the paper. -Then he read: - - “_Report of Later Proceedings of the Campes._ - - “The family of Campe, as shown by such information as it is possible - to secure from banks doing business with them, contracting firms who - undertook their various enterprises and importing houses who have come - into financial contact with them, have been very clever and able. They - slipped naturally from the wreckage of one government into the favour - of the next without loss of any sort. Their interests grew; and they - seemed in a fair way to become to Central America what the Rothschilds - are to Europe, when suddenly about three years ago, things took a - change. Frederic Campe, Sr., head of the house, at about that time, - met his death while on board his yacht _Conquistador_, at Vera Cruz. - Something went wrong--just what it was will never be known, for no - one on board escaped--and the vessel was blown to atoms. Less than six - months later, William Campe, brother to the one lately dead, also met - a sudden and violent end. He was attending the ceremonies held at the - opening of a great concrete bridge which the family had provided the - money to build, when he in some unaccountable manner fell from it and - was killed.” - -“Humph!” ejaculated Scanlon, and knocked the ash from his cigar. - - “Henry, eldest son of Frederic, was the next to go,” read the crime - specialist. “One morning, not a great while after the affair at the - bridge, he was found stabbed to death in his own hall-way. The nature - of the wound which let out his life showed that the attack was a - particularly vicious one. Some very keen and very heavy weapon must - have been used, as the young man was cut open from his chest to his - waist line.” - - -Bat Scanlon sat suddenly erect in his chair. - -“Hello!” said he, in surprise. “Hello! What’s this!” - -“The nature of the wound has a rather familiar sound, I think,” said -Ashton-Kirk. - -“A slash down the front with some very heavy and very sharp weapon,” -said the big man, slowly. “That’s what young Campe got a few nights -ago. Not deep,” and Bat shook his head, “but it was just such a slash -as put this other one out of the running.” - -Ashton-Kirk resumed his reading. - - “At the death of Henry, Mexico had run out of male Campes. There only - remained a younger son who was then attending a university in the - United States. There were several daughters, but these have resided - for some years in Berlin. The greater part of the family interests in - Mexico and Central America have been disposed of, and what’s left is - being offered for sale. From this, it seems that what remains of the - family have no intention of returning south of the Rio Grande.” - -Here the crime specialist folded up the paper, and threw it upon the -table. - -“Is that all?” asked the big man. - -“Yes.” - -“Well,” declared Bat, “to my way of looking at it, it’s plenty. In view -of the way that man met his death in the hall-way, can you figure the -matters of the yacht and the bridge as accidents?” - -Ashton-Kirk shook his head. - -“At this distance we can’t say,” said he. “But the deaths of the three -have a stamp upon them which suggest----” - -“They were murdered,” said Bat. And then, with his eyes upon the other, -he added: “But why?” - -The crime specialist slipped from the table. With the big pipe laid -aside, he began to pace up and down the study. - -“This matter has some very curious and interesting aspects,” said he. -“It is more than likely as you suggest, that the three Campes of whom -you have just heard met their deaths at the hands of assassins. But, as -you also suggest, why?” - -He threw up the curtains and allowed the sun to fill the room; the -opening of the windows themselves permitted the air to rush in and -pursue the smoke clouds furiously about the place. The drone of the -crowds in the street, the roll of wheels, the cries of drivers to their -horses and to each other lifted to them in a confused movement of sound. - -“Murder,” said Ashton-Kirk, “is seldom undertaken without cause.” He -resumed his pacing, his hands deep in his trousers pockets. “Even -the lowest type of thug, waylaying his victim in a lonely place, has -the desire for money as his motive. The drunken loafer of the slums -beats his wife to death because she refuses him food which he has not -earned, or the price of more liquor which dulls his mind to the barest -requirements of life. The masked burglar does not take life wantonly, -but only when hard pressed and with the jail staring him in the face. -The poisoner is actuated by jealousy, or by the desire to remove -some one who bars his way to happiness or wealth. If the Campes were -murdered, there was a reason for it. And the fact that three of them -have so died, and a systematic effort seems to be proceeding to bring -about the death of a fourth, shows that the reason is not an individual -one.” - -“No,” agreed Bat Scanlon. “It’s a family matter. It’s something that -has to do with them as a bunch.” - -“The attention of the murderer,” said Ashton-Kirk, “was apparently -first fixed upon the head of the house, the elder Frederic. He was -blown up with his yacht. His brother William was the succeeding head. -He died in a fall from a bridge. Next, the eldest son of Frederic came -into control of the family finances. He was stabbed to death. The -last of them all, and the present head of the house, is your friend at -Schwartzberg. Beyond a doubt the eyes of the monster are now fixed upon -him.” - -“Well?” - -“It is possible,” said the crime specialist, “that some sort of demand -was made upon the elder Frederic. This was refused and murder followed. -Again the demand was made--again upon the head of the house--and again -was refused. Once more death made its grisly appearance. For the third -time the request was repeated to the person in control of the family’s -affairs; for the third time it was denied; and again death followed -swiftly.” - -“A request,” said Bat Scanlon. “For what?” - -Ashton-Kirk shook his head. - -“I don’t know,” said he. “And I merely mention this as a thing which -might be true, understand me. I do not know that it is. But, supposing -it is, perhaps your question can be answered. The business of the -Campes, as a family, was money. And as the family seems to have been -struck at, and not any individual, is it carrying the thing too far to -think that money may form the basis of the request?” - -“Not to me,” replied Mr. Scanlon, promptly. “In fact, it seems very -likely, indeed.” - -Ashton-Kirk continued his pacing up and down. For the most part he was -silent and intent, apparently thinking hard. Now and then, however, -his thoughts took form in muttered words, altogether unintelligible to -Scanlon, although that gentleman listened eagerly. After a time the -crime specialist pressed one of the series of bell calls, and Fuller -made his appearance. - -“Begin at once,” said Ashton-Kirk, “and put Burgess and O’Neil on the -job if you need help. Get together any facts as to the dealings of -the house of Campe during the time Frederic Campe--the one who your -report says died aboard his yacht--was at the head of the concern. Go -into this to the limit--don’t spare trouble, as it is important. Also -try and get some data as to this same Frederic Campe personally. Who -were his friends? what were his habits?--what interests, financial or -otherwise, did he oppose?” - -“It looks like a large order,” said Fuller. “I’ll have to get on the -ground.” - -“Take the next train south,” directed the crime specialist. “As soon as -you get anything, wire it in our private code.” - -“Right,” said the assistant. “Anything more?” - -“No.” - -Fuller left the room with hasty step; and Bat Scanlon nodded his -admiration. - -“You go after things with both hands in this shop,” said he. “And, as -I’ve always claimed, that’s the only way to get them done.” - -“Our little run out of town,” said Ashton-Kirk, “brought several things -to my notice which singly would, perhaps, have suggested nothing; but -collectively they indicated a possible condition, both picturesque and -dangerous.” - -“We ran into a small herd of things,” said Mr. Scanlon. “Just which of -them do you mean?” - -But Ashton-Kirk shook his head. - -“The indications may prove erroneous,” said he. “The hour we spent -among the hills around Schwartzberg was of the sort in which the -imagination operates vividly; and in such work as we are now on, care -must be taken as to what is fact and what fancy. Under such influences -as were then abroad, the mind strings thoughts much as a child strings -beads.” - -He paused in his pacing and stood by the window, looking down into the -shabby street. There was a tight look about the corners of his mouth; -the eyes glittered a bit feverishly. - -Up and down swarmed the alien horde in the street. The children seemed -countless; the sounds and smells were thick, and of the near East. - -The stands at the curbs, and at the walls of buildings were piled with -wares of strange make, and with food that was questionable. Merchants -in long coats, and with the inevitable cigarette between their fingers, -pleaded eloquently with hedging customers. - -Women in bright shawls, which were pulled up about their heads and -faces, huddled upon steps and peered out at the turmoil about them; -the dull red walls of the buildings and their dirty windows were -unpleasantly prominent in the morning sun. - -Suddenly Ashton-Kirk turned upon Scanlon. - -“What do you think of the Campe household?” he asked. “Take them one at -a time, beginning with the lowest in importance--how do they stand in -the light of your two weeks’ acquaintance with them?” - -“The lowest in importance,” said the big man, “would be Kretz’s -daughter. She’s got a head that was made to forget with, and about -as much character as a kitten. I’ve seen things duller than she is, -but they were not human things. As for her mother, I’ve heard her -speak twice--possibly three times. Each observation was pointed at her -daughter, was in German, and was, from the general sound, meant to tell -her exactly where she was wrong. But, though she might be economical as -a conversationalist, she does not stint her talent as a cook. For she -can and does cook with an abandon and fancy that would take the creases -out of the most crumpled appetite. Mrs. Kretz is the sort of a woman -who would greet a broken dish and the falling in of the roof with about -the same display of emotion. - -“Kretz himself is almost as eloquent as his wife. But though he talks -little, he sees everything. Campe tells me he’s been in the family for -ten years or more, and he has a lot of confidence in him. As far as I -can see--Kretz--I don’t know. There are some things about him and his -doings that I don’t understand; but then I can say the same for most of -the folks at the castle, if it comes to that.” - -“And the next?” asked Ashton-Kirk. - -“Well, I suppose it’s a matter of taste just who is next,” proceeded -Scanlon. “But to save any lengthy argument, suppose we say it’s Campe’s -aunt, Miss Hohenlo. I don’t see much of either of the ladies of the -castle, but Miss Hohenlo is the closest in that respect. As her name -shows, Miss Hohenlo is a maiden; and after one look at her face and -another at her figure I don’t wonder at it. Nature seems to have jumped -in between her and any chance she ever had of changing her condition; -for she’s got the finest little lot of spinster manners and ideas I -ever saw in one collection. In character she’s about as colourless -as water; and she counts about as much as a grain of rice powder on a -chorus girl’s nose. - -“But the other lady is different; you’ve seen her, and so I’ll say -nothing about her looks except what I said once before, and that is, -she’s a pippin! However,” and the big man bent his brows at the crime -specialist, “she has a way with her. As a matter of fact, she has -several ways, and I don’t understand any of them. Why did she drop the -dish when she first heard your name? and look as if she’d got the shock -of her life? What’s the idea of her wandering out among the hills at -night? The searchlight caught her standing over Campe’s senseless body -the night he was cut. And only the other night you and I saw the light -pick her up once more.” - -“I did not give much attention to the woman on that occasion,” said -Ashton-Kirk. “And so you think it was Miss Grace Knowles, do you?” - -“Who else could it have been?” demanded Bat. “And who else screamed on -the night Kretz met me on the stairs? And that’s not all.” Here the -speaker leaned toward the special detective, and his voice sank lower, -as though he feared to be overheard. “Last night I got a fresh slant -at her. Eh? With a candle, and hesitating along the hall-way. When she -got to the door of the room where you saw Miss Hohenlo, she stopped and -listened at the edges of it, as if she was making sure that no one was -there. I guess there wasn’t, for she opened the door and went in. - -“I was at the end of the hall when I saw this and I waited; for somehow -the thing didn’t look good. Then I heard footsteps coming along the -lower corridor and some one started up the lower flight of steps. Like -a flash the door of the room into which Miss Knowles had gone opened; I -didn’t see it--I heard it; for the young lady had blown out her candle. -It was Campe coming up, and he had a light. She was standing by the -door with as sweet a smile on her face as you ever saw anywhere, and -she gave him a lot of little nods. He was surprised to see her, but she -said: - -“‘I’ve just come to see if your aunt is awake. I did _so_ want some one -to talk to.’ - -“And so,” said Bat, “she knocked on the door, very gently, just as if -she wasn’t already sure that no one was there. And she seemed greatly -disappointed when no one answered. - -“‘Talk to me,’ says Campe. You see he fell for the bunk just as easy as -that. ‘Talk to me,’ says he. For when a man’s in love with a woman,” -continued Mr. Scanlon, sagely, “she can put anything across on him.” - -“And so you think Campe is in love with Miss Knowles?” - -“Up to his eyes.” - -The big man laid the end of his cigar in an ash tray, and put a hand -upon each knee. - -“I don’t know whether you noticed it,” resumed he, “but this same Miss -Knowles was peddling around a queer little line of samples yesterday -while you were there. What was she hinting about? Eh? What was she -saying one thing for, and meaning something else? She’s jollying Campe, -that’s plain to me; but what’s this thing she’s trying to shoulder on -to the little old maid?” - -“It’s a peculiar household,” said Ashton-Kirk. He went to the table -and began turning the leaves of one of the books carelessly. Scanlon, -glancing at it, saw an array of skulls of differing formations, all -down one of the pages. “And,” resumed the crime specialist, “it will -probably take some weighing and judging before we get them properly -placed.” - -Leaving the book open, he once more thrust his hands into his pockets -and resumed the pacing. - -“Music,” said he, “is a delightful thing. Its powers to quiet and to -uplift are tremendous.” There was a short pause, and then he added: -“What’s your opinion of the harp as an instrument?” - -Mr. Scanlon was very frank. - -“Now you’ve got me bad,” said he. “All I know about it is what I heard -a Sicilian do to it one season in Tucson. He was the orchestra in -‘File’ Brady’s saloon, and picked melody out of it to accompany the -ballad singers. And,” here he looked shrewdly at Ashton-Kirk, “I know -less about swords that you operate with both hands. As a weapon, this -style of thing had gone out before I came into the desire to mix it -with my fellow man.” - -Ashton-Kirk smiled and nodded. - -“I repeat,” said he, “that some of the things we heard and saw held a -great deal of interest. But how are we to associate them? What possible -connection has a delicate gilt harp with a mysterious noise in the -night? What has a green stone in common with a sword that was carried -in the siege of Milan? And what can there be between a beautiful woman, -radiant with life, and a creature three-quarters dead, who is wheeled -about in a chair?” - -The big, candid face of Scanlon grew stiff with amazement. - -“Why, look here!” said he. “Just where does that fellow----” - -But at a gesture from the crime specialist he stopped. And once more -Ashton-Kirk paused at the table; and again he began turning the leaves -of the book. - -“The studies of that ingenious old empiric of Antwerp, Gall, are most -amusing,” said he, as his eyes began to run from one pictured skull to -another. “The system he worked out and which he called ‘Zoonomy’ is -rich in suggestion, and,” nodding his head, “may contain more truths -than is generally supposed.” - -“He had something to do with skulls, I take it,” said Mr. Scanlon. - -“He had all to do with them in this particular regard, though his -system was afterward much amplified by Spurzheim, and the Englishmen, -George and Andrew Combe. His idea was that the skull’s development -followed that of the brain; that certain parts of the brain stood for -certain faculties; if the brain were large in this faculty the skull -would show it. And in that way we were to have a very convenient method -of judging the character of any particular person.” - -“I’ve heard of it,” said Mr. Scanlon. “A fellow I roomed with once used -to turn that trick at a bob a time. It was a fairly easy way of getting -money, but I couldn’t see very much more to it.” - -“You saw it practised by a fakir,” said the special detective, his eyes -still upon the turning pages. “And such things offer many opportunities -for crooked practitioners. But, after all, I don’t think it would -be at all difficult to prove that it has its basis in truth. It is a -well-known fact that nations, for example, have one general type of -head; and it is equally well known that the individuals of a nation -have the same general tendencies.” - -Here he pushed the book aside and his hand went to a brace of volumes -at the end of the table. - -“I put in some little time last night,” said he, “dipping into -Humboldt and Vater. There is a vast difference between their keen, -uncompromising intellects and the credulous minds of Gall and his -followers. And yet it is a bit startling to trace a line between them -which runs----” - -But here he looked up and met the inquiring look of the big man with a -smile. - -“You’re having a peep behind the scenes,” he said. “You’re seeing me -deep in a mass of preliminary speculations, and not at all sure as to -where they are to lead.” - -“But,” said Mr. Scanlon, with confidence, “you see something.” - -“Not very clearly,” and the keen eyes glittered with interest, “but I -think I see the mist breaking away at some points, and before to-day is -done I may be able to get my ranges. Perhaps by the time I get Fuller’s -second report I’ll have enough data to finish the case at a blow.” - -“Good,” said Mr. Scanlon. He got up and shook the crime specialist by -the hand. “That cheers me up. You see,” earnestly, “I’m as keen on this -thing as if it were my own--maybe more so. This boy is hard pressed, -and has called on me for help. I don’t want to fail him. I don’t want -it proved that he’s made a mistake.” - -“We’ll do our best,” said Ashton-Kirk, “to pull him through.” - -The big man’s face wore an anxious look. - -“But just where do I come in?” he asked. “While you are deep in the -struggle to put this thing right, what am I to do?” - -“That,” said Ashton-Kirk, “is exactly what I wanted to speak of. Your -part in this affair is to be important. Watch! Sleep--as some of the -naturalists say the wild things do--with your eyes open. Things are apt -to happen inside Schwartzberg.” - -“Inside,” said Scanlon. “But what about outside?” - -The other smiled. - -“Why, as to that,” said he, “suppose you leave the outside to me.” - - - - -CHAPTER VII - -SHOWS HOW MR. SCANLON MET THE MAN WITH THE SOFT VOICE - - -It was late in the afternoon when Bat Scanlon got off the train at -Marlowe Furnace and struck down the little road toward the covered -bridge. - -Upon the west bank he held to the regular road toward Schwartzberg; and -he had gone perhaps half the distance when he heard hoof beats behind -him; turning, he recognized Grace Knowles, mounted upon a powerful grey -horse. - -She waved her whip to him, smilingly, and as she came up, drew in her -mount. - -“It’s a very pleasant afternoon,” said she. - -Bat cast his eyes first at one point and then at another. The question, -it would appear, was a weighty one and must be carefully considered. -The sun touched the hilltops with a dull gold; the sky was filled with -sailing ribbons of white; and the breeze was bracing and free. - -He nodded. - -“Pretty good,” said he. “Reminds me of some of the afternoons we used -to have in the foot-hills when they were dragging the railroads over -them, and through them, and alongside of them.” - -“Mr. Campe has been telling me of some of your experiences,” said she, -her beautiful face filled with interest. “It must have been a very wild -life, there in the West in those days.” - -“It was all of that,” replied Bat, as he trudged along beside the grey. -“Wild is the word that just fits it. A fellow had to sleep with his -guns in his hands and a call for help in his mouth. We had some fine, -enterprising lads out that way. They’d go for anything, and stop at -nothing. But,” with a sigh, “it was tame enough before I pulled out. -Things seemed to have shifted, somehow.” - -“In what way?” asked Miss Knowles. - -“The West having taken to growing grain and feeding sheep, the East -seems to be providing the excitement necessary for the country’s -good,” stated the big man, calmly. “For example: I’ve see more little -proceedings around this village of Marlowe Furnace than I’ve seen in -some frontier towns with the hardest kind of names.” - -“You refer to what happened yesterday in the vaults,” said Miss -Knowles. “Yes, that must have been quite thrilling.” - -“It was also a bit dangerous,” said Bat, stoically. “I don’t object to -being shot at, mind you; but I do want to see the party that’s got the -matter in hand. This having surprise packages dealt one in the dark is -carrying the matter too far.” - -Miss Knowles smiled. - -“No doubt,” she said, very calmly, “it seems rather awkward.” There was -a pause, and she stroked the horse’s neck with her whip. “I suppose -your friend was also startled,” she said. - -“Almost into fits,” stated Bat. “He’s a fellow, you see, who’s not used -to such attentions; and to have them forced on him suddenly in that way -was too much for him.” - -Miss Knowles still smiled. - -“That is really too bad,” she said. “Being so abruptly treated,” -inquiringly, “I suppose he will not come again?” - -“You never can tell,” replied Scanlon. “Sometimes people take things -to heart; and again they laugh them off, like a pine-snake does -his worn-out jacket. You might never catch him within ten miles of -Schwartzberg again; and then he might walk in on us this very night.” - -The smile vanished from the beautiful face; and the blue eyes looked at -the big man steadily. - -“To-night,” she said, and there was a catch in her voice. Then, quietly -enough, “I don’t think Mr. Campe expects him.” - -“Mr. Ashton-Kirk is not the fellow to stand back for a little thing -like that,” remarked Bat Scanlon. “As a matter of fact, the time that -he’s not expected is more than likely to be the time he’d pick.” - -From somewhere over the rolling country a bell struck the hour. At once -the girl gathered her reins tighter. - -“I must hurry on,” she said. She waved her whip as the grey struck -into a long, easy gallop; and away they went down the road toward the -castle. The thoughtful eyes of Mr. Scanlon followed her until both -horse and rider were hidden behind the next rise of ground. - -“She knows Kirk,” thought he with a twist at the corner of his mouth, -and a sharp nod of the head. “She knew his name as soon as she heard -it, and she guessed what he came for. And now she’s anxious to know -when he’s coming again, is she? When I hint that he might bob up -to-night she takes fire, and goes off like a shot.” Here his eyes -snapped sharply and he went on: “And what is the answer to so much -agitation? Is something doing for this P.M.? Does the beautiful Miss -Knowles know it; does she think the horning in of a party of A-K.’s -intelligence might have awkward results?” - -As he proceeded along the road, Mr. Scanlon drew a tobacco pouch from -his pocket, also a packet of small papers, and formally rolled himself -a cigarette. With this properly lighted, he went calmly on, his brows -level and his expectations at their highest. - -“At first,” meditated he, “I took this thing in another way. It was -all worry. But now that I’ve shifted the responsibility to Kirk, I see -it differently. It’s an experience--an adventure. And, believe me, I’m -going to get out of it all there is in it.” - -When he reached the rise which the girl had ridden over, he sighted a -small road which his tramping trips had told him led down to the river. -By the side of this road, writing in a leather-covered book, was a man. -He was a fat man and soft-looking. - -“Hello,” said Mr. Scanlon, “Who’s this?” - -With much industry, the stranger wrote in the little book; and never -once did he lift his head. Scanlon halted. - -“There is something tells me,” was his thought, “that I have met with -this gentleman upon some past occasion. But where?” - -The little lane was one of the retiring sort; it had fallen oak leaves -covering it to the depth of one’s shoe tops; the crooked rail fences -gave it a homely look. - -The man with the book paused in his writing, and then went carefully -over what had been done; it did not seem to please him, and so he began -some alterations in the entry. - -Then, glancing up, he sighted Scanlon, and moved toward him softly. -When he spoke his voice was also soft. - -“I am a stranger,” said he. “And I fear I’ve lost my way. Can you -direct me to the station at Marlowe Furnace?” - -And with that Bat had him placed! There was something reminiscent in -the combination of softness, even at first glance; but the mention of -the railway station placed the tag upon him. It was the man whom the -old station agent had described--the man of the bridge--the man who had -given him the queer green stone. - -Quietly the big man blew out a thin spiral of smoke. - -“You go down this road,” said he, “until you come to a bridge. This you -cross. Ten minutes further on, and there you are.” - -The soft-looking man closed the leather-covered book; then he put it -away carefully in one pocket, and the pencil in another. - -“I am extremely obliged to you,” he said, gently. “Your directions, I -think, will be very easy to follow.” He stroked his white soft chin -with a hand that was equally thick and soft and white; and his eyes -searched Scanlon’s face. “You live hereabouts, I suppose?” - -“For the time being,” replied Bat, evenly. “It’s a nice kind of a -place, and I’m sticking around a while.” - -“Ah, yes, to be sure,” observed the soft man. “You are right. It is a -nice place. Very picturesque, and also very historical, I understand.” -He waved one hand in a stubby gesture toward the north. “I came that -way. And just above I saw a most astonishing house.” - -“Big one?” asked Bat. “Things on top?” - -“A very big one,” agreed the other. “Very big, indeed; and, as you say, -with things on the top.” - -“That’s Schwartzberg,” said Bat. “A German castle, only not in Germany. -The rule is to plant them along the Rhine, I believe, but the fellow -who put this one in must have thought one river as good as another. And -I agree with him.” - -The soft man laughed. If anything, his laugh was the softest thing -about him. As Bat listened to the laugh, and looked at the man’s eyes, -which were green and cold and steady, he felt his scalp prickle with -something like dread. But he puffed quietly at his cigarette; and, from -his manner, such a feeling was no nearer to him than the poles. - -“Oh, yes, to be sure,” said the soft-looking man. “He was quite right. -It is very stately--most charming, and adds to the picturesqueness of -the locality.” From where they stood the towers of Schwartzberg were to -be seen through the naked trees; and one fat, white finger pointed to -them. “The moon, now,” said the man, “must play about those portions of -the building very strikingly when it is at its full.” - -“I shouldn’t wonder,” said Bat. - -“In fact,” said the other, “night hereabouts must be very different in -many ways.” - -Bat agreed. - -“As to that,” said he, “I don’t know but what I agree with you. It _is_ -different.” - -The soft man moved softly nearer; there was an eagerness under his -smooth manner that was not lost upon Scanlon. - -“I love the night,” said he. “It is rather an old-fashioned thing to -do, I admit; but I love it, for all that. In these times when the -electric lights have robbed the heavens of their stars, and put out the -very moon, there are few who admire the night. But I love to walk in -it, to watch the canopy, to reflect upon the vastness of the universe.” - -“I was brought up in Kansas,” said Bat, “and in the days when there was -no end of stars, plenty of moon, and lots of chance for them to show -themselves. But to me, night was made to sleep in, and the only use I -had for either moon or stars was to see my way home by, if I happened -to be out after hours.” - -“Is it possible that you never walk out--here?” The soft man seemed -appalled, but the cold green eyes were as watchful as those of a cat. -“Is it possible that you never hear--from your window, perhaps--the -whispering of the night?” - -Bat laughed. - -“Whispering,” said he. “Well, if that’s whispering, let me say that -the night has some well developed voice. Up here,” he added, “it’s the -greatest place for thunder you ever saw. It comes up when you never -expect it.” - -“Thunder!” said the soft man; and the cold eyes seemed to smile. - -Bat nodded. - -“Pretty loud, too,” said he. “And as for taking little walks at -night--well, that’s hardly the thing to do hereabouts. You see, there’s -a lot of tramps about; and they make it a little dangerous. A friend -of mine up at the big place you were just talking about,” and Scanlon -gestured toward the castle, “is kept on the jump all the time by them. -They’re very forward; even undertake a little housebreaking now and -then, he says.” - -The soft man caressed one hand with the other. - -“Ah, well,” he sighed, “everything has its drawbacks. I suppose it’s -too much to hope for complete tranquillity. I thank you, sir, for your -courtesy. Straight on, did you say? and then across the bridge? Again, -thank you. You are very kind.” - -And so the soft-looking man moved softly down the road, and Bat stood -looking after him from beneath puckered brows. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII - -TELLS HOW THE NIGHT BREEZE BLEW FROM THE NORTHWEST - - -At dinner that evening Scanlon was surprised to find Miss Hohenlo. She -wore a faded little smile and nodded girlishly to the trainer. - -“It is such a task for me to dress,” she told him. “That’s why I -so seldom come down of an evening. But the coming of your friend -yesterday, and what Frederic has been telling me about him is quite -exciting.” - -Bat raised his brows inquiringly. - -“Telling you about him?” said he. - -“You know he mentioned his interest in old Count Hohenlo,” said Campe. -“My aunt is pleased with that.” - -“I see,” said Bat, and felt more at ease. Happening to turn his eyes in -the midst of his complacency, he found those of Miss Knowles fixed upon -him observantly. - -“Your friend, Mr. Ashton-Kirk, must be a man of much learning,” said -she. - -“He has so many books that it’d give you a headache just to look at -them,” said Bat. “As a child, they fed him learning with a spoon. He -knows more inside stuff about people whom ordinary people never heard -of than you’d think could be found out in half-a-dozen lifetimes.” - -“How very interesting,” said Miss Knowles. - -“Only to-day he was overhauling a group of musty old fellows who, so it -would seem, put in their lives poking around among skulls.” - -“Oh!” Miss Knowles said this, and her hands went up in a pretty -gesture, apparently of dismay. But Bat, somehow, was quite sure it was -to hide the expression that swept across her face. However, he went on, -calmly: - -“To find a dome that was fore and aft, or to put the tape around one -that leaned to one side, was life’s extreme limit for those chaps. They -even seem to have written books about bumps which any fairly strong man -could pack into the thumb of a lady’s glove.” - -“And is your friend also interested in this study?” asked the girl. - -“Only a little,” replied Scanlon. “He does not make a practice of any -one thing, as a matter of fact. He’s the kind of a fellow who has a -great many cards up his sleeve; and so he always has one to play when -it’s wanted.” - -“That,” said Miss Knowles, “is clever of him.” - -“And it’s so unusual to find a man interested in biographical bypaths,” -said Miss Hohenlo. “The Count, you know, figured largely in the court -of Frederic the Great; he was a friend to Voltaire and other men of -note, and gave his sword and his genius for the freedom of these -states.” - -“Sure,” said Bat. “He’s one that I missed, but I can appreciate him for -all that.” - -The delicate hands went out in a gesture extremely girlish; the -spinster’s faded face was full of rapture. - -“It is really remarkable how things come about,” she said, “and, -somehow, I feel that the visit of Mr. Ashton-Kirk will result in -something.” - -“I’m sure it will,” said Bat, calmly. - -“Frederic has been gathering documents for a long time,” she went on. -“I have a number of journals containing data of a most interesting -character, and there are letters without number from historical -personages. These together will show the beautiful fulness of the -Count’s life. When your friend comes again, we must not fail to call -his attention to them.” - -“On the next visit he’ll not miss a thing,” stated Scanlon, confidently. - -As they arose from the table Miss Hohenlo went to a window, raised it -and looked out over the country, now dimming under the hand of dusk. - -“If Schwartzberg had nothing else in its favour,” she said, -vivaciously, “we could always fall back upon the glorious weather. And -to-night,” with a gesture of the beautiful hands, “is more than usually -splendid.” - -As she stood there, framed in the high window, the spinster looked -even more angular than Scanlon had supposed her to be. Her faded hair -threw back nothing that the lamp-light gave it; her neck was thin, her -arms were long and awkward. Near her stood the stately Miss Knowles, -magnificent in her youth, her height, her long soft lines. The girl’s -complexion was more like cream and roses than ever; the splendid crown -of yellow hair was built up in a shining mass. - -Striking as was her beauty, and much as he would have liked to stand -and admire it, Bat Scanlon’s interest was called to something else. -The actions of Miss Hohenlo at the window were commonplace enough, -and yet, somehow, Miss Knowles seemed to attach much importance to -them. The girl stood talking with Campe. Their tones were low; and the -young man’s face had lost the strained look. The fear, which usually -held its place so fixedly in his eyes, was gone for the time, and an -eagerness had replaced it. - -“Fine for him!” was Bat’s mental comment. “If it don’t do anything -else, the entertainment will rest him up for a little, and that’s -something. And,” here his mouth twisted slightly at the corner, “the -lady is as interested as he is, but not at the same thing.” - -There was a subtle something going on which the big man did not grasp; -that it was proceeding was plain enough; but its meaning was lost upon -him. - -“I’m muffing it,” was his thought. “Right under it, too. It must be,” -sadly, “that the grand stand’s too big; a minor leaguer never does get -a right slant at anything until he’s out of the bush for a season. Kirk -ought to be here.” - -“How deep the shadows grow on the east of the hills,” remarked Miss -Hohenlo, sentimentally. “I love to watch them as they thicken and -lengthen in the evening.” She leaned farther from the window, a hand -outstretched. “There is only the faintest of breezes,” she continued, -“so little that one can scarcely detect its direction.” - -At this, the watching Scanlon saw the blue eyes of Miss Knowles narrow; -the look of interest upon her face deepened. - -“Now it’s the wind,” said Bat, to himself. “And I am up to my eyebrows -for sure.” - -“Frederic,” and Miss Hohenlo turned to her nephew, “see if you can -catch the wind’s direction.” - -Obediently the young man left the side of Miss Knowles. - -“It’s from the northwest, I think,” said he. “Yes, look there. Those -tall birches are stirring; you can see their tops against the sky.” - -“What wonderful sight you have, my dear,” said his aunt, as she fixed -her eye-glasses upon her insignificant nose, and strove to see the tree -tops he mentioned. “You must inherit it from your father’s family, for -ours have never seen very clearly.” She looked out into the dusk with -much affectation of fear. “Oh, dear, isn’t it very lonely out there?” -she said. “Darkness does make such a change, doesn’t it, Mr. Scanlon?” - -“One time,” said Mr. Scanlon, “when I had nothing else to do, I took a -short whirl at a theatrical enterprise in Dodge City. And that showed -me something fresh about the effects of darkness. Flood the stage with -light and you couldn’t stir a thrill in the audience, no matter to what -histrionic lengths you went. But put on the shadows and you began to -get them; shut off the lights altogether, and you could feel things -creeping right over the footlights.” - -“Could you really?” Miss Hohenlo was extremely juvenile in her gestures -of terror. “It must have been dreadful!” Then to her nephew: “You are -quite sure it’s from the northwest, Frederic?” - -“Yes, quite sure,” replied the young man a trifle impatiently. He -had gone back to the girl once more and taken up the low-pitched -conversation. - -“Perhaps,” said Miss Hohenlo, “it might change.” - -Young Campe did not hear this, so Mr. Scanlon said, reassuringly: - -“Not to-night it won’t. It’ll stick around that quarter till sunrise, -anyway.” - -“Isn’t it delightful to understand the laws of Nature?” said Miss -Hohenlo. “I never had a head for it, really.” - -A very few moments later she moved out of the room; Scanlon, with a nod -and a half-spoken excuse, left the girl and Campe together. Descending -the stone stairs, he let himself out into the courtyard, and lighting a -cigar he began walking up and down. - -The square figure of the German sergeant-major was to be seen upon the -wall; there was something intent in his attitude, indistinct though he -was. - -“A good watch-dog,” mused Bat, as he puffed away. “But, dash it, I -don’t get him! A fellow like that is useful if you know he belongs to -you; but when you get to thinking that he might----” Here the big man -paused and took the cigar from his mouth. “What happened to that lamp -in the vaults yesterday?” he demanded of himself. “What did it smash -for? It wasn’t till afterward that there were any pistol shots.” He -snapped his finger and thumb with a sharp popping sound. “I wonder if -Kirk thought of that,” he said in a low tone. “I’ll mention it to him -when I see him.” - -With the cigar burning freely, and his hands clasped behind him, -Scanlon trudged up and down. - -“Wind from the northwest, eh?” thought he. “That’s a funny kind of -thing. There was something to it, though. I could read it in that -girl’s face as plainly as I can read print. The old one seemed to want -to be sure just how the wind blew; and the young one seemed interested -in the desire. Wonder what kind of a little game it is, and how does -it work into the bigger one that’s going on?” - -He mused and smoked and paced, but the affair presented no aspects at -all understandable. Finally, in exasperation, Bat began a conversation -with the man on the wall. - -“Nice night,” he called. - -“Yes,” came the brief reply. - -“Think it’ll rain?” asked Bat. - -“The wind’s from the northwest,” stated the sergeant-major. - -Bat bit at his cigar viciously. Though not able to give any good reason -for it, he wished it would select some other quarter. - -“The northwest!” said he, to himself. “What the dickens is there about -the northwest that----” here he stopped, a thought taking shape in his -mind. “I’ll go out,” said he, gravely. “There might be something doing, -out that way; and if no one’s there it might break out.” - -He called once more to Kretz. - -“Hello,” answered the man. - -“Come down,” requested Bat, “and open the gate. I want to go out.” - -The sergeant-major descended from the wall. - -“To go out,” stated he, “is not wise. Outside there is danger--from the -tramps.” - -“Unbolt the gate,” said Bat, serenely. “I rather like tramps. In fact, -one of the regrets of my young life is that I’ve met so few of them.” - -“In the cellar,” said Kretz, as he shot back a bolt, “they fired at us.” - -“Maybe,” suggested Bat, “that volley ran them out of ammunition.” - -“You do not know how much they are to be feared,” said the German, -stubbornly. “I have served. I have seen danger. But,” and Bat saw his -head shake, “never any like this.” - -“To-night,” said the big man, “I feel like taking a chance. Stick -around, will you, so you can let me in when I get back.” - -Reluctantly the sergeant-major opened the gate; then he closed it -promptly and Bat, from the outside, heard him refastening it. - -“Is it that he is anxious that nothing should happen to me; or is it -that he wants nothing to happen to something else?” reflected Bat, as -he threw away the cigar, and stood by the gate looking away into the -night. “Little anxieties like that might work both ways, as I’ve seen -to my cost.” - -Slowly and quietly he passed around the wall, and at a point -overlooking the northwest he paused. - -“The Potomac at its quietest could never compare with this,” said he, -gently. “It’s as peaceful, apparently, as a pastoral on a post-card. -All it needs is a glint of moon, a fleecy cloud, and a happy pair of -lovers.” - -It was a serene, quiet night; the wind from the northwest was but the -merest puff; the shadowy hills lay long and looming on every side; the -stars were few and seemed very far away. - -“It’s on these still nights, though,” ruminated Bat, “that things that -make a noise usually have their beginnings. Some wise old lad, in the -days gone by, came through with a remark about the calm before the -storm; and as an observer, I’ll say that he held aces. Because it’s -always been my experience that your man always takes his longest rest -before he comes at you with both hands swinging. So the right rule -must be: the quieter the night, the wider you should keep your eyes -open.” - -Just then he turned his head and looked up at the castle. At an open -window he saw something move. It was a woman in white--a tall woman. -Bat’s straining eyes made her out. - -“The young one,” said he, softly. - -The window was dark, but the white of the gown was distinct; and the -outlines, vague though they were, were unmistakable. And she seemed to -be looking out over the swelling country toward the northwest. - -“There are events to be looked for, as I thought,” murmured Mr. -Scanlon. “Doings are being started just as sure as she stands in that -window.” - -He turned his eyes away from the shadowy window and toward the equally -shadowy quarter which held the girl’s attention. For a space all was -alike; it seemed evenly dark. Then he began to perceive points of light -between the hills; these were low places in the western sky which the -night had not stained completely black. Against one of these, Bat, as -he looked, caught a movement; some slinking, peculiar figures crossed -it and were at once swallowed up. - -“Right,” muttered Mr. Scanlon, grimly. “Just stay still for a little, -and I’ll be with you.” - -And with that he quietly descended the slope of the hill upon which -Schwartzberg stood, and made off into the darkness. - - - - -CHAPTER IX - -IN WHICH SOME THINGS ARE DONE AND SOME OTHERS ARE SAID - - -As Bat went cautiously onward, the place where he had seen the movement -marked in his mind, he was aware of a glimmering of light over his -shoulder. Turning his head he saw the rim of the moon pushing its way -above the trees behind him. - -“Hello!” said he. “Here’s our friend with the smiling face, and I -don’t know whether I’m glad to see him or not.” He stood gazing at the -disc, which mounted rapidly, throwing its cold rays along the hills. -“Anyway,” continued Bat, philosophically, “I caught him over my right -shoulder, and that means a run of luck. So with things fixed in my -favour, I’d better go on.” - -Keeping as much in the shadow as possible, he went his way. After a -time he drew near to a hill, higher than any of those about it, from -which he had more than once admired the ancient looking towers of -Schwartzberg. - -“I think I’d better top that,” he muttered, “and take an observation. -If there’s any one moving around out here I’ll be able to spot him in -the moonshine.” - -Carefully he ascended the rather steep side of the hill; the lessons -of his youth, when he trailed a Geronimo in the southwest or stalked -“Billy-the-Kid” were as clear in his mind as ever. - -“But the joints don’t work the same,” was the big man’s mental -complaint. “They creak enough to waken any fairly light sleeper, if -there were such camped in this vicinity.” - -He came to the top of the hill, and standing in the shadow of a tree, -looked about. The long, trailing moonbeams and the dusky shadows lay -side by side, as far as he could see. There was a path which wound up -the west side of the hill, down on the east and away toward the river; -as Bat looked westward along this it disappeared in the shadows which -clung to the slope. And he heard a sound. - -“Voices,” said he. Then, after a moment, “Voices and wheels.” - -Quietly he waited and listened. Away to the east he saw the ghostlike -loom of Schwartzberg in the moonlight; the breeze stirred the bare -limbs of the trees under which he stood. - -Bat smiled as he looked up at the branches. - -“Still from the northwest,” said he. “Well, hold to it. Maybe you’ll -bring us something.” - -Nearer and nearer came the sound of wheels--singularly light wheels. -And the stumbling hoofs of the usual horse were absent. - -“Can it be some one doing a little hill climbing on a bicycle?” was the -big man’s silent question. “If so, he has an original turn of mind.” - -But in a few moments more a shape emerged from the shadows, coming up -the hill. It was a rolling chair; in it was a muffled figure and behind -it laboured a squat, strong-looking servant. - -“By Jove!” was Bat’s mental exclamation. “It’s the sick fellow from the -inn.” - -Upon reaching the crest of the hill the chair stopped. The squat -servant spoke to the invalid inquiringly, but in a strange tongue. - -“Lift me up,” directed the man in the chair. - -The stocky one did as directed; the patient turned his face toward -the castle, and his eyes remained fixed upon it for a long time. The -breeze moved softly; there was scarcely a sound to be heard. - -“He’s been here before,” mused Bat, from the shadow of the tree. “And -it’s not been for air, either.” Then Ashton-Kirk and his array of -pictured skulls occurred to the watcher, and he gazed at the peculiar -frontal formation of the sick man with attention. “I wonder,” was his -next thought, “how Kirk doped it out that this fellow was in on our -affair? and I also wonder what a skull with a flat place in front’s got -to do with it?” - -After a time Bat saw that the pale hands of the invalid were moving -as though he were fumbling impatiently with his wrappings. Then, for -a space, he’d remain perfectly still; as the pale moon shone directly -upon his face, Bat noted that his eyes during these periods of -stillness were closed. But once more they’d open and again the wasted -hands would begin to stir in the same impatient way. During the spaces -in which the sick man sat with closed eyes, the watcher often saw his -face twitch suddenly; and once he laughed out, clear and loud. - -For the space of half an hour this continued; then there was a long -period during which the sick one sat as though he were thinking. Then -he spoke quietly to his servant; promptly the man lowered him to a -reclining position, turned the chair about and wheeled it carefully -away in the direction from which they came. - -Amazed, Bat stood beneath the friendly tree. - -“Well,” said he, “I wonder what’s all that? There is something on the -range, that’s sure; but as far as my memory goes it’s the queerest bit -of business I ever witnessed. There he sits with his eyes shut, and -makes faces at the moon. And the lad that pushes him around instead -of calling for an ambulance seems to think it a perfectly natural -proceeding.” - -Scanlon gazed once more in the direction of Schwartzberg; a spot of -yellow light winked here and there from a window; but otherwise the -great place, lit as it was by the moon, seemed paler and more ghostly -than ever. - -“If that was a winter moon, and there was snow on the ground, and -the Christmas bells were ringing in the distance,” mused Bat, “I’d -understand why I feel as I do. Those trees over there would be the -Black Forest; there would be a small bright place among them showing -the charcoal burners at work; and in a couple of minutes along would -come a little old man with a white beard and a bundle of faggots on his -back. Then I’d know I was six years old and reading a story-book. But -being a man and grown to some size, I’m up in the air.” - -He stepped out from the shadow of the tree, and throwing his arms wide, -yawned luxuriously. Then he realized that several men stood beside him. - -“Hello!” said Bat, and brought the yawn to an abrupt termination. “How -are you?” - -One was the drawn-looking man whom he and Ashton-Kirk had seen at the -inn; the other was the brisk little physician whom they had seen upon -the same occasion. - -The drawn-looking man stood with stooped shoulders and regarded Bat -with wondering eyes. Then he coughed into a handkerchief. - -“It’s a very brilliant night,” suggested he. - -“Great!” replied Bat. - -The little physician fixed his eye-glasses firmly upon his nose. - -“It is a night,” stated he, “for being outdoors. As a matter of fact, -any night, or any day, are excellent for that purpose. The warm-blooded -animal requires great quantities of those forces which the air holds -for his use; and to get them he must go where it is. Otherwise he’ll be -ill.” - -“That sounds like a very good argument,” observed Bat, calmly. - -“As a rule,” stated the doctor, and he regarded Bat through his lenses, -“my patients resent the idea of outdoors. They look at it askance. -There is the suggestion of hardship in the mere idea. They want to be -coddled in a room full of poisonous vapours.” Still he looked at the -big man fixedly; then he continued, “You are not of sickly habit, I -think, and so you require no urging to take the air.” - -“Not a bit,” replied Scanlon. “To-night, as a matter of fact,” his -mind running back to the words of Kretz, “I was strongly urged to stay -indoors.” - -The drawn man coughed; he looked extremely fragile in the pale light; -his face was bloodless, and his eyes had a feverish glint. - -“In the main, the doctor is correct in his observations,” said he. “But -for all, I can’t help thinking there _are_ times when one should stay -inside.” - -Bat waited a moment, expecting a protest from the physician; but none -came; that gentleman was engaged with the moonlit landscape. - -“And such times?” asked Bat. “Just what are they like?” - -The drawn man wiped his lips, and his thin, bowed shoulders shrugged. - -“Perhaps one’s own discretion is best as to that,” said he, mildly. -“But, for the sake of an example, a skipper does not venture to sea in -the face of a storm; a mountaineer keeps from the passes in the season -of snows; a careful man does not force his way into those things which -do not concern him.” - -“I get you,” said Bat, thoughtfully. “But I also see some holes in your -argument. It’s not nearly so good as the doctor’s spiel for fresh air. -The skipper, if he’s on his job and has the craft, has no right to let -a blow keep him in bed; and I’ve seen real two-handed lads hold to the -passes in all weathers. So far as the careful man is concerned--well, -different people have different ideas about what makes up a man of that -kind. Your notion of one seems to be a man who wouldn’t take a chance -except in his own affairs. But, in my little book, he’s written down as -one who’d think his friend’s affair just as important--and he’d be just -as anxious to set it right.” - -“I think,” said the doctor, turning, “we’d better make our way down to -the road. The moon, in a few moments, will be under the clouds, and the -path is rather steep.” - -The drawn man coughed and nodded to Mr. Scanlon. - -“Good-night,” said he. “Now that you _are_ out,” and he smiled -disagreeably, “I trust you’ll enjoy yourself.” - -“Thanks,” replied the big man, coolly. “I’ve always had kind of a knack -of doing that; so I shouldn’t wonder if I did.” - - - - -CHAPTER X - -SHOWS HOW MRS. KRETZ SPOKE HER MIND - - -Bat Scanlon stood for a space under the neighbourly tree; he could hear -the drawn man coughing away into the gloom at the foot of the hill. - -“Now,” observed he, “am I indeed over my head. Not only have we one -man in this little matter who is so far through that he must be shoved -along in a chair, but here comes another who goes wheezing around on -one lung and throwing hints of a threatening nature.” - -He slipped an automatic pistol from his hip pocket--a black, bulky, -deadly thing; and he smoothed it with a feeling of satisfaction. - -“Hints are all very well,” he went on; “but they never did any harm, -and they never got anybody anything. Doing’s what counts; and all I’ve -got to say is, let somebody start doing something I don’t like.” - -Thinking it just as well to move from the spot he then occupied, Bat, -pistol in hand, made his way along the crest of the hill and struck -into a path which was to some extent shaded from the moon’s rays. He -had a very clear recollection of the brisk rattle of shots in the -vaults on the day before, and he had no desire to court another such. - -But he picked his way along through the rising ground without -mischance; the river gleamed coldly and smoothly; the walls and towers -of Schwartzberg looked darker at close hand, and lost the ghostly, -transparent quality which they had taken from the distance. Bat was -somewhat disappointed. - -“Here I take a gentleman’s promise--for that’s what it really was--of -some entertainment. I even think enough of it to draw a gun, and pick -the covered spots. And now there’s nothing doing. What the dickens is -the world coming to when a fellow can’t----” - -There was a loud splash from the river close by; looking quickly in -that direction Bat saw a bulky form stumbling about in the shallows -under a bank. Two other forms instantly appeared and steadied the burly -one; then all disappeared like a flash. - -“The curtain,” observed Bat, grimly, “is a little late in rising; but -it seems we’re going to have a show after all.” - -Holding to the shadow thrown by the high wall, he made his way -cautiously toward the spot. On the edge of the shadow he paused, but -there was no sound; so, with his automatic held ready, he stepped out -into the light and advanced toward the bank. A broken place was plain; -but no one was in sight. - -“The big fellow stood too close to the edge; then the thing caved in -and let him down into the water,” reasoned Bat. “But,” and his gaze -went about, “what’s become of him and the parties who offered the -helping hand in his time of need?” - -The river bank was clear of all obstructions for some distance above -and below Schwartzberg; the moonlight flooded it; there was no place -where any one could hide. - -“That being the case, and the prowling parties not being in sight, I -think I’ll step back where I can’t be so readily seen,” said the big -man. - -He had turned about and was moving away from the river when a rifle -sounded; clear against the moonlit sky he made out Kretz upon the wall. - -“Hello!” said Scanlon, his hands at his mouth like a megaphone. -“That’ll be about all of that.” - -The sergeant-major lowered his gun, and stood looking down; and within -a few minutes the big man was at the gate and hammering to be let in. - -Kretz admitted him, sullen-faced and silent. - -“Suppose you always take a look,” spoke Scanlon, after the gate had -been closed and fastened, “a good look, mind you, before you cut loose -with that gun of yours. And let this be especially the case when I’m -known to be outside.” - -“Twice to-night have I seen people near the river before I saw you. -Each time I called, but they said nothing. The third time I fired.” - -“And _I_ just happened along in time to be the goat,” grumbled Bat. -Then, with a sharp side glance at the sergeant-major’s grim face, he -added mentally, as he turned away, “That is, if you _didn’t know_ who -it was.” - -Inside he found the room where he usually spent the evenings with Campe -deserted. But from another apartment the voice of Miss Knowles was -heard laughing, and that of Campe answered with much animation. - -“Oh, come now,” said Mr. Scanlon, “if it was somebody other than that -blonde girl who was with him I’d say that this wasn’t half bad.” - -An atmosphere of change was about the rooms which had been so gloomy; -for the first time since he had been there, fear was sharing the centre -of the stage with something else. - -“If I’d only thought of Ashton-Kirk sooner,” said Bat, “the whole thing -might have been straightened out by now. His just coming here for an -hour, and Campe not even knowing who he was, has put a new face on -things.” - -He wandered about among the lower rooms for a time, and finally began -to run through the books in the library. - -But none of them pleased him, for it seemed a time for action; so -shutting the bookcase door, he turned away; and then he saw Kretz’s -daughter beckoning to him. - -“Eh?” said he, staring. - -“My mother,” said the girl, stolidly. “She is in the kitchen. She wants -you.” - -Then she vanished. For a few moments Mr. Scanlon continued his -stare--but now at the empty doorway. Then with the little twist at the -corner of his mouth, and with something like interest in his eyes, he -made his way toward the kitchen. - -The lamps, hanging from the beamed ceiling, threw but a dim light -about the huge room; a sullen fire burned in the fireplace; the copper -vessels gleamed dully. Upon a rush-bottomed chair near the blaze sat -Mrs. Kretz. In her strong hands were some long steel needles, and she -was knitting a stocking of blue wool. She nodded to Scanlon as he -entered. - -“Lena,” she said to the girl, “get a chair.” - -A second rush-bottomed chair was brought forward by the girl, who -then retired to a little distance and also took up the knitting of a -stocking of blue yarn--evidently the fellow to the one her mother was -engaged upon. - -“My husband,” spoke Mrs. Kretz, “is outside. He is watching. He will -not be in for some time.” - -Bat nodded. - -“And,” continued the woman, “while he is not here, I will have some -talk with you.” - -“Right,” said Mr. Scanlon. - -“In this house I have been since spring,” said Mrs. Kretz. “Was it in -April, Lena?” - -“It was in April,” agreed Lena. - -“Since spring,” said Mrs. Kretz. “And I am afraid.” - -The interest in Mr. Scanlon’s eyes deepened. - -“Of what?” he asked. - -But the woman gazed at him with an expression even more wooden than her -daughter. - -“I don’t know.” She laid the knitting on the hearth beside her and -folded her hands in her lap. “My husband knows. But my husband never -speaks of things to me. He does not trust women,” simply. “But I am -afraid. And Lena is afraid.” - -Mr. Scanlon leaned forward. - -“It isn’t only that something is going on which you don’t understand -that makes you afraid.” - -The woman considered this word by word and then shook her head. - -“No,” she said, “there is more.” - -“Something has happened--you’ve seen it--maybe more than once,” -suggested Bat. - -The big man had a pretty clear belief that for a guest to endeavour to -worm things out of his host’s servants was not altogether decent; but -in the present case he felt that the attempt was justified. - -“There have been many things happened,” spoke the woman. “They began -when we first came, and they have never stopped.” - -She sat looking at Bat for a moment, then she proceeded: - -“Do you know why you are here?” - -Bat nodded. - -“I never been told, but I’ve kind of guessed my way through it.” - -“They are afraid to tell,” said Mrs. Kretz. “They fear those outside -there; and they also fear the police.” - -“Huh!” said Mr. Scanlon. - -There was a long period of silence, for he felt that it were best to -let her go her own way. - -“For the people outside they watch,” said Mrs. Kretz, at length. -“Always outside. But,” and the strong hands knotted together suddenly -and her voice sank to a whisper, “who watches inside?” - -“Inside?” said Bat quietly. “Do we need a watch inside? Are we not all -friends in Schwartzberg?” - -Here the girl laughed, though she did not look up from her work. And -the laugh was one not pleasant to hear. - -“You do not know,” said Mrs. Kretz, and she shook her head. “You do not -see. One night since you came,” and here her voice was lowered once -more, “a woman screamed. And a shot was fired. Do you remember?” - -“I heard both,” said Bat. “But I don’t know the reason for either.” - -“Lena was sick--with her tooth,” said Mrs. Kretz. “I went to speak to -my husband. I saw the door of the vault standing open. And beside it -was Miss Knowles, the key in her hand. I knew something was about to -happen; I ran to the door to close it. Then the shot came--from below; -she screamed; I closed and made fast the door.” - -“Well?” - -“She is of the family,” said Mrs. Kretz, “and so I never knew how she -lied herself out of it.” - -“You feel sure she opened the door, eh?” The woman nodded. “What for, -do you suppose?” - -“To allow some one below to come up. But that thing is not all. Why -does she walk about in the corridors at night? What does she do outside -when all should be asleep but the dogs?” - -“You saw her one night,” said Lena, speaking suddenly. “The night Mr. -Campe was hurt.” - -“Yes,” said Bat. - -“On that same night,” spoke Mrs. Kretz, “I was arranging something in -the large room where the pictures are. There was only one small light -burning. I finished my work, and stood by a window, looking out. There -are long curtains at the window, and these hid me. I felt them stir, as -if in a draught; and I knew the door of the room had opened. I turned -and looked. Miss Knowles had come in. She crossed the floor very softly -and carefully, and stooped quite near to me where the great sword hangs -between the windows. She stood looking at this strangely; then she -reached up and took it down. And with it hidden as much as her wraps -would hide it, she went away.” - -“Well?” asked Bat, quietly. But there was eagerness in his eyes. - -“It was some hours after that when the great light flashed and we saw -you come staggering along with Mr. Campe on your back.” There was a -pause and the woman’s head rocked from side to side. “When he lay -wounded out there in the darkness, she stood beside him. Didn’t you -find them so?” - -“Yes.” - -“I saw the wound. It was I that washed and dressed it. A great long -one, not deep, but fearful when you thought what it might have been.” -Again she paused, and looked steadily at Scanlon. “It was just such -a cut as one could make with a very long and very heavy weapon,” she -said. “A weapon like the sword which hangs between the windows.” - -Bat caught his breath. - -“No!” said he, appalled. “No!” - -“You think a woman couldn’t do it? Well, don’t forget that this one is -tall and strong.” - -Bat gestured the idea away. He, himself, had spoken of Miss Knowles and -her doings suspiciously. But now that these suspicions were voiced by -another, and raised to a pitch of unthought horror, he almost sickened -at them. - -“Why,” said he, the recollection of many little glances and accents -rushing to his mind, “she might even be in love with him.” - -“He is with her,” corrected the woman. “And that, you know, is -different.” - -She once more took up the blue stocking and began to move the needles -in and out among the loops. Lena was stolidly engaged in a like manner, -never having lifted her head since she began, not even when she herself -had spoken. - -“Neither of them has any great width between the hair line and the -eyebrows,” said Bat mentally, as he looked from one to the other. “It’s -the sort of calm that passes all understanding; and those persons -gifted with it usually live blameless lives.” - -The kitchen clock tick-tocked away in its long, wooden case, as -drowsily as need be; the wooden kitchen things which were in view -looked heavy and commonplace. - -“But, for all they don’t seem very ready to grab a thing,” said Bat, to -himself, “these women have realized something. And that’s promising. -Things have happened here, and that’s the surest sign that things will -continue to happen. And this pair may turn out to be of use--if I don’t -expect too much of them.” - -The great fireplace faced the open door of the kitchen; they all sat -facing the fire, and so with their backs to the door. Bat, with a -tight, strained feeling in his brain, clasped his hands behind his head -and leaned back in his chair. - -“To you, who are a stranger, I say all these things,” said Mrs. -Kretz, busy with her needles. “And it is for this: You have been told -nothing--because they are afraid. You are Mr. Campe’s friend, and went -to help him. But how can you give help where you do not understand?” - -But agreed with this. - -“But,” said he, his eyes upon a great copper vessel which stood shining -dully from the chimney piece, “I could have wished you’d have some -other sort of information for me. For this puts me up against something -that’ll be pretty hard to do.” - -The kitchen doorway was reflected in the sheen of the copper vessel; -and, framed in this, his brooding eyes saw a man. It was a soft, -bulky figure, with white, fat hands and a round face with small -light-coloured eyes. And while he looked, it moved softly past the -doorway and was gone. - - - - -CHAPTER XI - -TELLS SOMETHING OF TWO GENTLEMEN WHO WERE ENCOUNTERED UNEXPECTEDLY - - -Mr. Bartholomew Scanlon stood up with much calmness. - -“I’m obliged to you,” said he nodding first to Mrs. Kretz and then to -her daughter. “And I’ll think over what you’ve said. It might lead to -something.” - -“There is my husband,” said the elder woman. “He thinks women are -foolish. You’ll not speak to him?” - -“About this? No. I’ll mention it to no one. And,” pausing in his -movement toward the door, “if you hear or see anything else which may -be useful to Mr. Campe, don’t make me wait for it.” - -“I will speak to you at once,” promised Mrs. Kretz, intent upon the -blue stocking. - -In the hall, outside the kitchen door, Bat Scanlon’s manner changed. -Bulky as he was and with forty years resting upon him, he was still a -well-conditioned athlete. Slower than he was at twenty, he was supple -enough when he set himself to it; and now he moved down the hall -swiftly and with the lightness of a boy. - -No one was in sight; the first door he came to stood open; it was a -sort of storage room for the servants, and no one was there. The next -door led to the vaults under the castle; this was closed. But a turn of -the knob showed that it was not locked. - -“The soft one oozed in by this route,” thought Bat, as he closed the -door. “And some thoughtful friend prepared the way for him, for -witness the fact that there are bolts on the door, as well as a lock.” - -Silently he rebolted the door; with some slivers of wood from the -storage room, pointed with his pocket-knife, he so jammed the bolts -that it would be no easy task to shoot them back. - -“In this way,” murmured Bat, putting away the knife, “I place some -small impediment in the path of the soft party should he desire to back -out of the premises in a hurry.” - -Quietly the big man went through the lower floor; each room was visited -and examined narrowly. But he found no one; there were no traces of any -one. At the foot of the stairs he paused; from above came the voice of -Campe, and in it there was lightness and ease. - -“The billiard ball is also merrily clicking,” said Mr. Scanlon. -“Evidently he is still engaged with the golden-haired Helen, and she -is making him forget his troubles.” He began quietly to ascend the -stairs. “But it might pay him to keep an eye open; for who knows when -her ambition might break out afresh, and she might take another swing -at him with the sword.” - -As his head appeared above the landing, he came in sight of the -billiard room door. This was open and a stream of light flowed out into -the hall. Standing flat against the wall, his back to the staircase, -and peering around the door-frame into the billiard room was the -soft-looking man. - -Gently Mr. Scanlon advanced; quietly he touched the man upon the -shoulder; then, as the head turned, skilfully he chipped him upon the -jaw. The body buckled, and crumpled into a soft mass in Scanlon’s arms. -Lowering it to the floor the big man stepped into the doorway. In the -billiard room were Campe and Miss Hohenlo. - -“Hello,” said the former with a startled look, but a manner expressive -of relief. “I _thought_ I heard somebody shuffling around out there.” - -“I’d like to speak to you a moment,” said the big man, “if,” with a -glance at the spinster, “Miss Hohenlo will pardon us.” - -Miss Hohenlo shook her faded hair and gestured prettily with her -beautiful hands. - -“Frederic has so many little secrets of late, and so many matters he -seems anxious to keep from me, that one, more or less, will make no -difference. I’ll rehearse my next play while you are gone.” - -Campe came out into the hall. Scanlon stood between him and the body -until he closed the door. - -“Now, sit tight,” admonished the big man, “and give me a lift.” - -With a face as grey as ashes, Campe looked at the senseless man. - -“Who is it?” he asked. “And how did he get here?” - -“As an answer to the first question, I’ll say I don’t know,” said -Scanlon. “To the second, he came in by way of the cellar; and the door -leading therefrom was unfastened by some one in the house.” - -“Again!” Campe looked as though death itself had clutched him. “Again!” - -“You’ve never thought it wise to put me up in these affairs of yours,” -said Scanlon, “so I’ll now have nothing to say in them. However, -that’ll not stop me from doing any little thing that I think needs -doing.” - -Campe put a trembling hand upon the big man’s arm. - -“Bat,” said he, quietly enough, “no man was ever more bedeviled than I -am, and I’ve not been exactly frank with you----” - -But Scanlon stopped him. - -“Some time we’ll both be in a humour for a talk,” said he, “and we’ll -save the matter till then. Just now there is another bit of business to -work off. Get hold of it by the legs.” - -Together they took up the heavy body and carried it down the hall to -Scanlon’s room, where they laid it upon the floor. - -“He looks,” observed Bat, “as if he’d got his last jolt; but he’ll live -to get many more, so don’t worry. What I want you to do, as a kind of -addition to your burden bearing, is to sit here and watch him. Got your -gun?” - -“Yes,” said young Campe. - -“If he comes to, advise him to keep still; if he refuses, poke the -barrel in his face. If he insists, hammer him over the head until he -grows peaceful.” - -“But,” said Campe, “what are _you_ going to do?” - -“Look around a little,” replied Bat, who had moved toward the door. -“I’ll not be gone long. Don’t say a word now, and watch your man.” - -Bat softly opened the door and stepped out into the hall. There was -nothing definite in his mind; but, vaguely, he felt that there were -more experiences to come. - -“If one man came out of the vaults, why not more?” he asked himself. -“If some one opened the door leading to those same vaults, how do I -know that he is not now opening another, leading somewhere else?” - -Quietly he slipped down the hall; the lights were only half up, and -the recesses were dim; but there was sufficient illumination for him to -see that no one was lurking in its length. Further on the corridor took -a sharp turn, and it was in this angle that young Campe’s rooms were -located. - -“Better luck there, maybe,” breathed Bat, as he stole along. - -But, when he turned the corner, he found that particular portion of the -hall in darkness. Instantly he realized that if any one were in hiding -there, he offered a fair mark; stepping quickly back around the angle -he turned out the nearest lights, so that he was as much in the dark as -the possible prowler. Again he moved forward; but he had not gone more -than half-a-dozen steps when he heard a slight sound ahead. He paused -and bent forward to listen. The sound continued, creaking, rasping, -complaining. - -“A door,” thought Bat. “A door with unoiled hinges--it’s being opened.” - -His hand went to his hip, and once more the thick automatic was out and -ready. The sound stopped; there was a silence for a time; then began a -rustling which was unmistakable--the rustle of a woman’s skirt. - -“The golden Helen!” was Scanlon’s next thought. “And promptly on the -job!” - -The rustling stopped; then a whisper came. - -“Paul!” - -There was no reply and again came the whisper. - -“Paul!” - -Once more came the creaking of hinges; another door had opened. - -“What is it?” came the answer. - -“Hush! Not so loud!” The whisper seemed filled with fear. - -Then Bat heard the woman move further forward; she spoke again, but -this time so low that he could not catch the words. - -“The deuce,” said the man, startled. “How do you know?” - -“I feel sure of it,” was the whispered reply. - -“Don’t lose your nerve,” said the man, swiftly. “This is the first good -chance we’ve had, and we must make the best of it.” - -“Be careful,” pleaded the woman. - -“I’ll be sure to,” said the man. “And now keep a lookout. If you hear -or see anything, give me the signal.” - -The hinges of the invisible door creaked as it closed; then the -rustling of the skirts began once more. As it approached Bat flattened -himself against the wall. Slowly the woman drew nearer; then she was -beside him, her skirts brushing him; but that she was unaware of his -presence was proved by her continuing in silence and without a pause. -But after a few moments Bat heard a slight sound as though she had -caught her breath suddenly, and she came to a halt. - -“She’s got to the turn in the hall,” said the big man, mentally, “and -she’s found the two lights off duty.” - -But the fact did not detain the woman, for once more the rustling began -and finally the listener heard it die away. - -“And now I may as well get on with my scouting,” was Scanlon’s -soundless resolution. “The man inside there may be engaged in a matter -that would interest me a great deal.” - -But he had barely got under way when he halted. - -“The skirts!” said he. “And coming back!” - -Sure enough they were. _Frou-frou, frou-frou_, they came, more sharply -than before, for the wearer was evidently moving at a brisker pace. - -“Something new!” said Scanlon. “Maybe she’s dropped to my doings, and -she’s going to put the party in the room on to it.” - -He felt that he could not chance the passage of the hall once more; his -groping hand had touched the wood of a door; now he found the knob, -opened the door silently as possible, slipped inside and partially -closed it. It was fortunate that he did so; for immediately afterward -came a short, snapping sound, and a flare of light filled the hall. -Scanlon stooped cautiously to the key-hole, and peered through it; -there, holding a lighted match above her golden head, stood Miss -Knowles. - -“Came back looking for little me,” was Mr. Scanlon’s conclusion. “Well, -look away, Helen of the crown of gold; for behind the door I’m going to -stick.” - -The match burned out; there followed the sound of some one moving along -the hall, and when silence had fallen once more, Scanlon began to stir. -But as he came from behind the door he caught a trickle of light in the -room. He stood staring at it for a moment; and then it dawned upon him -what it was. - -“Still another door,” murmured he. - -Gently he approached the light; it came, as he judged, from under a -door and through its key-hole. He listened; from the adjoining room he -caught the sound of rustling paper, and now and then the closing of a -drawer. - -“Isn’t he the thorough little ransacker, though?” continued Mr. -Scanlon, immediately interpreting these sounds. “Well, there’s no use -in putting him to needless trouble; I’d better go in and have a few -words with him--if I can open the door.” - -Fortunately he found that he could; the door swung in, and a man, who -stood under a light examining some papers at a table, lifted his head. -He put a handkerchief to his lips and coughed; then he nodded. - -“How do you do?” said he. - -Mr. Scanlon was equally polite. - -“I felt that I’d see you again,” stated he. “But I had no idea it would -be to-night.” - -The drawn-looking man turned over a few of the papers; then gathered up -the lot and threw them into a drawer. - -“Unexpected little things have a way of happening,” said he. “And it’s -as well that they do; for they are really of that elemental spice which -makes life worth while.” He dumped the contents of another drawer upon -the table, and nodded toward a chair. “Won’t you sit down?” he asked. - -“I don’t mind if I do,” said Mr. Scanlon, sociably. - -And so he sat down in the chair. And while the drawn man busied himself -with the fresh batch of papers, Bat took out the tobacco pouch and -the little packet of papers and rolled himself a cigarette. This he -lighted, and puffed away comfortably. - -“You seem to be hard at it,” commented he, after a pause, during which -he watched the labours of the other. - -The drawn man admitted that this was so by a gesture. - -“It’s a more or less difficult proposition,” said he. “This room is a -regular dumping-place for documents. They seem to have been snatched up -and brought here in barrels. Not the slightest care has been taken to -keep them properly classed.” - -“Tut, tut!” observed Mr. Scanlon. “That’s what I call just common -carelessness. They might have known that you’d call.” - -The drawn man coughed. - -“As to that,” said he, “I’m not so sure. We’ve made an effort to avoid -any extreme of publicity, you see.” - -“Quite, quite!” remarked Bat, understandingly. “Advertising’s a fine -thing, but not in all lines of endeavour.” - -The other raked over the papers impatiently. - -“Here,” said he, “we have an old will, a contract for hauling stone, -a marriage certificate, a receipt from the Mexican government for the -loan of ten millions of dollars, an estimate for steel rails, and a -laundry bill.” - -“That’s rather mixing them,” said Bat, framed in cigarette smoke. “But -keep at it; better luck next time.” - -Returning the papers to the drawer, the drawn man next opened a heavy -chest. He threw an armful of documents upon the table, and plunged into -them with covetous hands. - -“I would say that’s a promising lot, from its general appearance,” -commented Scanlon. “Of course,” casually, “I haven’t the least idea -what you’re looking for, but here there seems to be a holding to one -thing, a kind of a tight, official, important look, as it were.” - -The covetous hands became eager; Bat noticed this; he threw down his -cigarette; his muscles tightened; the automatic thrilled in his grip. - -“So you are short of ideas about what we want,” spoke the other, still -searching. “Has it never occurred to you to ask?” - -“Once or twice,” replied Scanlon. “But I never got down to it. For -instance, I met a friend of yours downstairs a while ago”--here the -drawn man coughed, his eyes lifting for an instant--“and I thought of -putting the question to him.” - -“Why didn’t you?” asked the drawn man, deep in the papers again. - -“He hadn’t come to, up to the time I left,” replied Bat. “I suppose I -must have hit him harder than I meant to do.” - -“Oh, well,” said the drawn man, tolerantly, “things of that sort _will_ -happen. They are hardly to be avoided, in fact.” - -He yawned and stretched his arms wide; the light over his head smashed -as he struck it and went out. There came the rattle of the automatic, -and the splintering of window glass; the dogs, always at large in the -courtyard at night, barked furiously. Bat heard the voice of Kretz from -the wall; the rifle sounded sharply, and then silence, broken only by -the sound of running feet beyond the wall. - - - - -CHAPTER XII - -SPEAKS OF THE MANNER IN WHICH THE GATES OF SCHWARTZBERG WERE OPENED - - -Through the fragments of the window sash and the shreds of the blind, -Bat Scanlon looked out upon the moonlit night. Directly under the -window was a roof, as near as he could judge, that of the stable. -Between this and the top of the wall there was a space of some twelve -feet. - -“And the fellow with the cough took it like a broad jumper,” commented -Bat. “Well, well, we live and learn.” - -Then a light illuminated the room behind him; he turned and met the -wondering face of Miss Knowles. - -“What has happened?” she asked, rather breathlessly. - -Bat surveyed her with much composure. He had been right in his estimate -of her beauty; that wasn’t to be denied. He was sure he’d never seen -a more splendid example of her type. Her figure was like that of the -queen in a story-book. Her complexion was like snow and rose petals; -her eyes were as deep and as blue as the sea. - -“If I hadn’t regular good reasons for believing what I do, one look at -her would scatter the whole fleet of suspicion,” was Bat’s thought as -he gazed. “She does it well. I never saw a better attempt at bluff. Ten -minutes ago she was talking to the crook; now here she is, asking as -innocently as you please: ‘What has happened?’” - -“I heard a noise as I sat in my room,” said Miss Knowles. “I heard -shots,” her face a trifle paler. “Has any one been hurt?” - -“No such luck,” replied Mr. Scanlon. He replaced the automatic in his -pocket and his broad back against the wall. “Fellow was just here -making free with some papers. I chanced to catch him, and he headed for -the window.” - -The girl approached the table and looked at the papers curiously; her -hands wandered among them and her eyes scanned one after another. - -“Did he take any of them?” she asked. - -A shock ran through the large frame of Mr. Scanlon; for it occurred -to him that he did not know. He was busy wrestling with this somewhat -unpleasant thought when hasty feet were heard tramping along the hall; -and in another moment Campe and the sergeant-major were in the room. - -“Who was it?” asked Campe. “Did you see him, Scanlon?” - -“I did,” replied Bat. “And I let fly at him.” - -Then in as few words as possible he related his experiences since -leaving Campe on guard over the unconscious prowler; he was careful, -however, to omit that part of it which dealt with the whispering and -the rustling of skirts in the hall-way. - -“Whatever his game is,” concluded the big man, “he was a pal of the -fellow you’ve got down the hall.” Here he caught the expression that -came into Campe’s face; at the same instant he noted that Miss Knowles -had left the room. How long she had been gone he did not know; but it -must have been while he was deep in his narrative. “The man’s still -there, ain’t he?” he asked Campe. - -“When I heard the shots I left the room,” said the young man. “Then -Kretz ran upstairs, and we came hunting you.” - -Without a word Bat rushed along the hall; the door of his room was -open, and the soft man was gone. Then down the stairs went Bat, three -at a leap. The plug still held in the bolt of the cellar door, so -he was sure that the prowler had not gone that way. There was only -one other way of escape. The gate! And when he reached the courtyard -the gate stood wide; the watch dogs were running in and out, whining -uncertainly and apparently still much excited. - -Both Campe and the German soldier had pressed hard after Scanlon; and -the young master of Schwartzberg was aware of the truth as soon as the -big man. - -“He’s gone,” said he, in a husky kind of way. “Gone!” - -“Well, if he’ll only stay gone, it’ll be all right,” spoke Mr. Scanlon. -“And while we’re thinking over the possibilities of that,” to Kretz, -“suppose you shut the gate.” - -The sergeant-major did as requested; at the order of young Campe, he -mounted guard upon the wall once more, and then both Campe and Scanlon -made a complete search of the castle; every nook and crevice was -examined, but evidently if there had been others they had also taken -occasion to depart with the opening of the portal. - -“The gentlemen who are in the habit of visiting you,” remarked Mr. -Scanlon to the master of Schwartzberg, “are very self-possessed, and -have more than the usual share of grey matter. I never saw any one -collection of persons with more up their sleeves than this lot appears -to have.” - -“They are cunning enough,” said the other; and there was a hopeless -note in his voice. “Sufficiently so to get the better of me, at all -events.” - -“In a fight like this,” advised Mr. Scanlon, “never admit, even to -yourself, that the opposition is on top of you. It has a bad effect. -Even the best of us has no real liking for a bruising battle, if we get -the bruising; and we’re only looking for an excuse to side step. And -thoughts like those provide the excuse.” - -At the cellar door Campe stopped. - -“We’ll not venture into the vaults,” said he, in a tired way. His face -had the sagged look which hopelessness brings, and his eyes were dull -and weary. “It may not be safe.” - -“It’s clear enough to me,” said Scanlon, bluntly, “that some one -has pretty plain sailing into these cellars of yours. They seem to -come piling in whenever the spirit moves them. I’d do something in -the matter if I were you, even if it was only to post a warning to -trespassers.” - -“There must be a way of getting in,” admitted Campe, dully. “I made -up my mind to that some time ago. But,” and his voice broke into a -sharpness that startled Scanlon, “a man whose life is in danger every -moment of it can’t take too many chances.” - -Bat put his hands on the young man’s shoulders and looked steadily into -his face. - -“Hold up!” said he, “Hold up! You’re up against something raw and hard. -But don’t let them stop you. No matter what the thing is--sit tight. -You’re going to win out.” - -“Win!” Campe threw up his hands and laughed mirthlessly. “You don’t -know the facts or you wouldn’t say that.” - -“Maybe I’m not on to _all_ the facts,” said Bat, stuffing his hands -into his pockets, “but I’m on to the very worst of the lot. And even in -spite of that, I say you’ll win.” - -“The worst!” said Campe, and his eyes searched Bat’s face. “What do you -mean?” - -“I mean just that--the worst! Listen. One time when I was a youngster -I was out with old Dick Bunder, packing stuff out to Gabriel City. Now -Gabriel was out on the desert and was made up of a half dozen houses -and a few tents around a water-hole. The first night I spent in the -place it was attacked by Apaches, and the thing went on for days. -Bitter, cruel work it was in the heat, with no sleep, and death barking -always from across the sands. The Apaches were bad, but,” and Bat shook -his head, “there was something worse.” - -“Yes?” said young Campe. - -“Much worse,” affirmed Bat. “And it was inside. Somebody was calling -off our hands to the enemy.” - -Campe’s face grew rigid; his mouth twitched and one shaking hand went -to it as though to hide his weakness. - -“Some one inside,” said he. “Inside! Yes, that’s a fearful thing. -Outside’s bad enough. But the other.” He stood, his fingers pressing -against his lips for a moment; then he asked, suddenly, “Did you find -the person out?” - -“I did,” answered the big man. “And I have found out the one in -Schwartzberg.” - -Campe stretched out the shaking hand and laid it against Scanlon’s -chest. - -“Don’t say anything more,” said he. “Not her name, for God’s sake! I -couldn’t stand that!” - - - - -CHAPTER XIII - -DEALS WITH SOME HAPPENINGS OF THE NEXT DAY - - -The remainder of the night passed without incident; and next morning, -Scanlon accompanied by Kretz, who carried the light, made a complete -tour of the regions beneath the castle. No one was hidden there; there -were only the massive walls and arches, the damp and the echo. - -“Locks and bolts seem to offer no hindrance to housebreakers,” said -Bat, speaking to Campe who met them when they came up. “So, with your -permission, we’ll have a few additional precautions.” - -Procuring a hammer and some heavy nails, the door to the vaults was -made fast. - -“Now,” Bat proceeded, “we are in a position to offer some defence -against another invasion. But,” and he glanced from Campe to the silent -German, and back again, “how the dickens they got into the cellar -puzzles me. I looked all around; but not a way could I see.” - -“If we can prevent any further entrances into the house itself, for the -present, we’ll be satisfied,” said Campe. - -Scanlon did not approve of this. It indicated a willingness to share -something with the enemy. - -“Which is always wrong,” he told himself, later, as he trudged along -the road on his way to Marlowe Furnace. “If it was my affair, I’d shake -it up till I had those crooks headed for the next county.” - -Campe had abruptly closed the conversation of the night before with -the request that no names be mentioned, and so Scanlon had been left in -a state of doubt. - -“He knows, or suspects about the girl,” thought the big man, “but what -about these other people? Has he got them placed? I’d ’a told him all -I’d seen and heard last night, but as he wanted silence, silence it is. -Anyway,” as an afterthought, “it might have been a wrong move to say -anything more than I did. Maybe Ashton-Kirk doesn’t want him told.” - -There were no letters for him at the village post-office, and he was -much disappointed. So much had happened to him in the last twenty-four -hours that he had the feeling that Ashton-Kirk must also have had some -exciting experiences which he would report at once. - -“But he hasn’t had time to say anything,” reasoned the big man. “Maybe -I’ll get something in the mail to-night.” - -He stood upon the post-office steps and lighted a cigar; while he was -puffing thoughtfully at this, he felt his arm jostled gently. Turning -he saw an old man with a basket on his arm, and a hand tangled in a -chin beard. - -“How d’ye do?” asked the old man. - -“Pretty fair,” said Bat. - -“Stopping up at Schwartzberg, ain’t you?” - -“Yes.” - -“Thought so. My name’s Henry; got a brother over at the station.” - -“Oh, yes,” said Bat. “I detect the family resemblance. How is he?” - -“Doing tolerable.” There was a slight pause, then the old man -disentangled the hand and jostled Scanlon’s arm once more. “Remember a -man that asked for you one night at the station--fat kind of a fellow?” - -“Yes,” said Bat. - -“Saw him last night.” - -“That so?” Bat was unmoved, smoking calmly. - -“Helped to take him to Doc. Sharpless’s. Found him in the road, not far -from Schwartzberg. Was coming along in a waggon with my brother when I -seen him. Only for the moon we’d run over him.” - -“What was wrong?” asked Scanlon, carelessly. - -“Don’t know. He told Doc. Sharpless he fell somehow. Doc. says he’d got -a bad bump.” - -The old fellow looked at Bat as though he expected him to say -something. But the big man examined the wrapper of his cigar in silence. - -“I’d never knowed who the fellow was,” said the man with the basket, -“only my brother was along. He told me.” - -Still Bat was silent, and the greater grew the old chap’s -disappointment. - -“We reckoned you’d like to hear about him,” resumed he. “Of course we -thought he must be a friend of yours.” - -“Entire stranger,” replied Bat, briefly. - -“Funny, aint it, how he should come asking after you like that, and you -not know him? And then to find him unconscious in the road out by the -castle, too. We thought that was very queer.” - -It occurred to Scanlon that the tone of the old man’s remarks was not -desirable. So he attempted to shift it about. - -“When a person feels that he must fall,” remarked Bat, “he should be -very careful in the selection of a place to fall in. Now the middle of -a roadway as a site shows carelessness don’t you think?” - -But the ancient refused to be side-tracked. He clung to his theme like -a terrier. - -“Yes, we thought it was kind of queer,” he re-affirmed. “But then,” -with a shake of his head, “I don’t know as we should, after all. For -there’s such a lot of queer things going on around Schwartzberg that we -shouldn’t be surprised at one more. What between some kind of thunder, -and gun shots and people running and racing about in the night, that -house has given this village something to think about.” - -Bat grinned, and smoked away. - -“So they think the castle’s a place of interest, do they?” he asked. - -“It’s a place they’re afraid of,” said the old man. Since he had failed -to get Scanlon to talk, he seemed determined to do the next best -thing--talk himself. “Tom Gould’s constable here, and he’s thinking of -looking into things.” - -“Oh, well,” said Bat, “we can’t blame Tom for showing a little -enterprise.” - -“There ain’t never been any such goings on at Marlowe Furnace before,” -stated the man with the basket. “And I don’t think folks’ll put up with -it much longer. Shots and strange noises and finding people hurt in the -middle of the road’ll never do. It ought to be seen into.” - -“Why don’t you speak to Campe?” suggested Bat. - -“How could I--or anybody else, if it comes to that?” demanded the -ancient. “How often is he seen? And when he does come out, why does he -look as if he was running away when he gits sight of anybody? What’s -wrong with him? What’s he afraid of? What’s he done--him with his dogs, -and his man on the wall, and his searchlight, frightening the women and -kids?” - -“I think,” said Bat, “you’re imagining a good deal of this. Anyway, -it’s Campe’s own place, and I suppose he can do as he likes on it.” - -He nodded to the old man with a smile, but as he walked away from the -post-office he was thoughtful enough. - -“Getting on the nerves of the population, eh?” said he. “Well, I don’t -wonder. A fellow can’t go slam-hanging around like that and not attract -attention.” - -He noticed, as he went along, that more than one person regarded him -curiously; little knots of people gathered behind him, their heads -together and no doubt deep in the discussion of the odd doings about -Schwartzberg. He had left Marlowe Furnace some distance behind when an -idea occurred to him. - -“I’ll just top a few of these hills to the left,” said he, “and stop -off at the inn. It wouldn’t surprise me if I saw or heard some little -thing of interest. These fellows with the lame lungs and the lame legs -seem to have more to them than a first glance shows.” - -So Mr. Scanlon confidently took the path across the hills. As a rule a -criminal caught in the act of housebreaking would not be expected to -linger in the neighbourhood of his exploit; but that the man with the -cough had departed was not at all in the calculations of Bat. - -“According to the dope of both Kirk and Mrs. Kretz, Campe is afraid of -the police,” was the way the big man reasoned it out. “Knowing the -nature of the thing which makes Campe afraid, the housebreaker knows -that the police won’t be called in. So, then, he’ll stick around, -waiting for another chance.” - -In the road which led to the inn Bat heard the sound of wheels; it was -the rolling chair containing the man with the flattened skull. The -black, glittering eyes of the invalid fixed themselves upon Bat as he -came up with the chair. The big man noted this and nodded. - -“Nice day,” said he. - -“Splendid,” replied the invalid, in his peculiarly strong voice. “In -fact there has been a succession of fine days. This district seems -specially favoured.” - -Bat nodded his head many times. - -“I’ve been thinking something like that myself,” he said. “There -seem to be things here which a fellow wouldn’t be likely to run into -anywhere else.” - -“I’ve noticed you a number of times with your dogs and gun,” said the -sick man. “The game is none too plentiful hereabouts, I should say.” - -“It depends a good bit on what you’re after,” stated Mr. Scanlon. - -“Yes, I suppose that is true.” - -The tone of the man in the chair was quieter than usual; his manner, -too seemed mild. But the expression of his full-lipped mouth was one of -infinite savagery; his eyes shone like those of a caged beast. - -“Doctor sent you out here, I suppose,” said Scanlon, as they went on -toward the inn. - -The invalid gestured with one wasted hand. - -“We who have no health,” said he, “are for ever under a doctor’s -directions. We can never follow our own desires.” - -Bat regarded the speaker attentively. - -“Any one,” was his thought, “who could make you do what you didn’t want -to do would be a good one.” - -But aloud he said: - -“So I fancy! The doc. who has you in charge, I’ve noticed, seems to -have some confidence in fresh air. I suppose that’s why you keep so -much to the roads?” - -“Yes,” replied the invalid. - -“Outdoors,” said Scanlon, “is a fine thing. I guess that’s why there is -so much of it. It’s full of benefits, night and day. Moonlight nights,” -sagely, “are especially good. Then you not only get the air, but you -get a view of things, which helps the mind. Last night was as bright as -day, and Schwartzberg looks well with the moon on it.” - -The beast in the man glared out more than ever from the black eyes, and -the teeth gleamed between the full lips. But he said, quietly: - -“Ah, yes; I can believe that Schwartzberg is an interesting place. I -have given it some attention since I have been here.” - -Bat nodded. - -“A number of people have,” said he. “We have visitors dropping in every -now and then.” - -“Some time _I_ shall go,” said the invalid. “I have been promising -myself that for a long while.” - -“Quite,” said the big man, easily; “of course. But the others only -stayed a little while. When you come, we’ll keep you longer.” - -“Thank you,” said the sick man. “You are very kind.” - -Here his chair turned into the gravel path leading to the inn door, and -Scanlon followed it. The cramped-looking man with the crutch and the -walking stick was stamping up and down. - -“The blood,” declared the cramped-looking man, “is the most important -thing in the body. It is meant to carry vigour to all our outlying -parts; but, sir, it carries other things at times--other things not so -desirable.” - -A tall man with a saffron complexion and a pair of thick blue -spectacles sat in a cane chair; his clothes hung about him as if he -had shrunken a half-hundredweight in a short time; his long hands, as -yellow as his face, were clasped before him. - -“I will not try to belittle the function of the blood,” said he in a -husky voice. “It would be foolish in me to do so. But you exaggerate -it, sir. And why? Your joints are solidifying through deposits of lime; -this is carried to the joints by the blood, and therefore you give -undue importance to that fluid.” - -“Undue importance!” The cramped man paused in his stumping and seemed -astounded. “Undue! But, my good sir, how can that be? It is life -itself.” - -The yellow-faced man jeered at this. - -“Fiddlesticks!” said he. “Fiddlesticks, Mr. Hirst. Since the time -Harvey discovered its circulation, sentimentalists have overpraised -this corpuscle-carrying agent. They have given it credit which it -in no way deserves. In much the same way poets and novelists have -misrepresented the heart. To them, this is the seat of affection--of -every noble impulse--where, as a matter of fact, it is nothing more -than a pump.” - -The cramped-looking man cast a look of complaint at every one on the -porch; then he was about to put it into words, but the yellow man -stopped him. - -“You spoke of the blood as ‘carrying vigour,’” said the latter. -“‘Carrying,’ mind you. And that’s all it does--carry. It remains for -other and more important things to make and introduce both that vigour -of which you speak and that lack of vigour. The liver, now; take that! -There’s a piece of machinery for you. There’s an organ which means -something.” - -The cramped man seemed amused. He cackled and hammered with his cane -upon the floor. - -“The liver,” said he; “why, I’ve known men to go on forty years who had -no livers at all. Because yours has refused to secrete and has painted -you up with jaundice, you put it in front, and belittle more important -things. With good blood, sir, a man need have no liver.” - -“Without a liver,” maintained the saffron-hued man, “he could not have -good blood.” - -Mr. Scanlon nodded to the landlord. - -“It’s a fine, uplifting conversation,” said he, in a low tone. “Do you -have to listen to them often?” - -The innkeeper smiled. - -“About two-thirds of the talk here is of symptoms,” answered he. - -“I once stopped at a hotel in Colorado,” said Bat, “where they were -loaded up with a gang something like this one of yours. They’d sit -around and draw diagrams of each other, and stick pins in the places -where their ailments were located. And I never saw one of them back out -when it came to the possession of the most deadly complaint. They were -as keen for the championship as a crowd of golfers round a green.” - -“These are about like that,” said the landlord. - -“It’s funny the way the thing works,” commented Bat. “A man can go -along all his life with no one paying the slightest attention to him; -then he accumulates a rare disease, and at once becomes an object of -interest. Can you blame him if he cherishes his aches and makes much of -his pains? They’ve lifted him out of the rut for the first time in his -life, and given him something to brag about.” - -The wheels of the rolling chair sounded upon the porch floor, and the -squat servant pushed it out into the hotel. Scanlon glanced about. - -“I don’t see the man with the cough,” said he to the landlord. - -“Mr. Shaw, I suppose you mean.” - -“Sort of a worn-out looking fellow,” said Bat, carelessly. - -“Mr. Shaw met with a small but rather painful accident,” said the -landlord. “It happened last night; he scratched and bruised himself by -falling into one of my hot-bed glasses, which some one left carelessly -in the way.” - -“I see,” said Bat. “Glass hurt much?” - -“About all broken,” said the innkeeper laconically. “But I can’t -understand who could have been touching it, and why.” - -Mr. Scanlon felt that he could enlighten the hotel man upon both these -points, but he judged it best to keep the matter to himself. Here the -man with the crutch stumped away into the hotel, and in a few moments -the landlord followed. The saffron-hued man turned his dark glasses -upon Scanlon. - -“I beg your pardon,” said he, “but I had not noticed you before. Are -you a guest of the house?” - -“No,” replied Bat. “Not yet.” - -“I was recommended here,” said the man. “Just came yesterday. I find -that most of the guests are here for a purpose.” - -“So _I’ve_ noticed,” replied Scanlon, agreeably. - -The jaundiced man shook his head. - -“Ah, the doctors,” said he. “If I could control my liver without their -attention, I’d be satisfied never to lay eyes upon another one of -them.” He studied Bat for a space, and then said in an awed tone, “The -liver, sir, is a most tremendous thing.” - -“So I’ve heard,” said Scanlon, cheerfully. “I suppose I’ve got one -myself, but it’s never introduced itself to me, and so I haven’t given -it much attention.” - -The saffron-hued man seemed appalled at this last. - -“Sir,” said he, “I am a stranger, and I know it is a very great liberty -to take, but I cannot help a word to you, now that I see it is needed.” - -“Sure,” said Bat, “go ahead!” - -“Some one--and a very wise person it must have been--has said: ‘In time -of peace, prepare for war.’ That, sir, should be the duty of every man; -he should not procrastinate; he should, so to speak, take his liver by -the forelock, and tame it--tame it, sir, completely.” - -“But,” protested Mr. Scanlon, “a liver that’s never, in its career as -such, said anything to its owner, seems to me to be tame enough.” - -The jaundiced one grew more agitated than ever. - -“Don’t be deceived,” begged he. “Don’t be imposed upon. They are things -given to the most deplorable treachery. One can place no faith in them -whatever; they are worthy of not the lightest confidence. They have -been known,” and here his voice shook a little, “to stop short in their -functions at an instant’s notice--and this after years of apparent -devotion.” - -“Well,” said Scanlon, “that does sound like a dirty trick, that’s a -fact. But what’s a fellow unaccustomed to such things to do? How is he -to know when to jump in with his corrective measures?” - -“Any time will do before the thing asserts its independence of you. If -it is mild, beware of it; for like as not it will eventually become -like an old man of the sea and rule you completely. Scourge it; drench -it with compelling draughts; submerge it completely; bombard it with -bitter pills.” - -“I suppose,” said Bat, “you speak as a man who neglected all these -measures.” - -“Utterly, sir, utterly!” The saffron-hued man shook his head sadly. “I -had no voice to speak a warning word; I was unlearned in the wiles of -the thing. Even after it had secured the whip hand of me, I could have -defeated it if I had been told how by a person of experience in such -struggles. With a few dozen bottles of ‘Seaweed Tonic’ I could have -stopped its assaults; and with a handful of ‘Grady’s Grey Granules’ I -could have put it to flight.” - -“Maybe,” said Mr. Scanlon, “I’ll lay in a stock of those some time.” - -“They are the only permanent hope of man,” declared the yellow -gentleman. “Behind a stockade made of the ‘Tonic’ and the ‘Granules’ -he can defy the encroachments of even the most evilly disposed of -livers.” - -Bat went inside, smoked a second cigar, and chatted with the landlord. -None of the guests was to be seen, and so the big man gradually drifted -into a conversation concerning them. But the landlord was apparently -without any information. - -“They come and they go,” said he, “and, as I said, I’m glad to have -them, to get over the autumn and the winter months. But I don’t know -anything about them except that they are sick.” - -After a time Scanlon, seeing that little was to be gained by lingering -about the inn, departed. He noted that the jaundiced man was not upon -the porch as he crossed it; but beyond that he never gave him a thought. - -However, when he saw him, small and far away on a hilltop, stooping, -studying and moving here and there, the big man manifested some -interest. - -“Hello!” said he; “what’s this?” - -Cautiously he made his way toward the spot, moving along fences and -keeping trees between himself and the other where it was possible. -Finally he was able to make out the man and his doings with little -difficulty. - -The saffron-coloured one had a glass in his hand and was examining the -hole of an oak tree which grew on the crest of the hill. - -“Same tree I stood under last night when I watched the fellow in the -rolling chair,” murmured Bat. “Wonder what he finds wrong with it?” - -From the tree the yellow man fell to carefully noting the dried stems -of some stunted bushes; then he studied something here and there upon -the ground, sometimes using the glass, but more often not. - -“If I didn’t have a first-class reason for suspecting invalids,” said -Mr. Scanlon, “I’d say this fellow was a botanist--maybe hunting a plant -which, when cooked, would have some sort of a discouraging effect on -the liver.” - -He watched the man for some time; carefully the saffron-hued one -went from place to place, from tree to tree, from one clump of dried -brush to another. Gradually he moved down one hill and up the side of -another. From the top of this a good view was to be had of Schwartzberg -through the trees, and stationing himself behind one of these, the -stranger looked long and searchingly toward the castle. - -Kretz was not to be seen upon the walls; but at one of the windows Bat -made out a woman’s figure. Apparently the saffron-hued man also saw -her; but apparently he desired a better view. So taking a field-glass -from a case which hung at his side, he trained it upon the window. - -He spent some little time in watching the woman; then putting the glass -away he moved along a road that ran between the hills at a sharp angle -from Schwartzberg. Much interested, Bat followed. Again the stranger -turned sharply, this time toward the river. And now Scanlon understood -his movements. - -“He’s been making for the waterside all along,” reasoned the big man. -“And he came this way so as not to be seen from the castle.” - -Evidently this was correct. The stranger, when he gained the river, -began walking along its margin in the direction of Schwartzberg, -concealed by a sharp rise in the ground. But his searching glances -seemed not to gain him the satisfaction he sought; and so, finally, -though he did not seem at all eager to do so, he approached that -portion of the riverside in full view of the castle. - -The river was fairly broad at this point, and its placid waters flowed -by with scarcely a ripple; a great mass of soft reddish rocks ran from -the walls of the castle down to the water’s edge. - -“He seems somewhat backward about putting himself on display,” said -Scanlon, as he watched the doings of the jaundiced man with keen -attention. “But, then, he may have the most urgent reasons for it, so -I’ll not pick on him for that.” - -From across the river came the sounds of laughing; some boys were -fishing from a boat, and were shouting to each other over some comic -misadventure. The saffron-hued man lifted his head and looked out -across the slowly flowing water; but the pause was for an instant only; -for he proceeded with the matter in hand. - -A dozen yards further on he stooped, and seemed to grow intent and -eager. Out came the lens which Bat had seen him use on the top of the -tall hill, and down on his knees he went to examine something on the -ground. - -“And right there,” said Bat, “is the place where the soft-looking party -broke through the edge of the bank and flopped into the water.” He -stood watching for a space, and then, unable to restrain his curiosity, -he pulled his hat firmly down upon his head and said: “I think I’ll -have a closer view of those proceedings. They may contain something I -ought to know.” - -With a light step he moved along the river bank until he was within a -half dozen paces of the stooping yellow man. Then he paused, and said: - -“Hello! What’s the idea? Lost something?” - -The yellow man replied promptly, without turning or lifting his head, -and in a voice from which every vestige of huskiness was gone. - -“Just working out a little idea, that’s all.” - -At the voice Mr. Scanlon gasped. Then the man’s head lifted without the -blue glasses. Even the yellow stain was no disguise. - -“Kirk!” said the big man. “Kirk, by George!” - - - - -CHAPTER XIV - -IN WHICH ASHTON-KIRK HEARS MATTERS OF INTEREST - - -The special detective smiled and nodded. - -“Just a moment,” said he; “there are a few little indications which I -want to make sure of, then I’ll talk to you.” Swiftly he worked with -the glass and a small ivory rule; then pocketing these he resumed the -blue glasses and arose to his feet. “I gather from your words and your -expression of face that you’re a trifle surprised!” - -“It’s a clean knock-out,” announced Bat. He looked closely at the other -and then shook his head. “I never understood before how much a man’s -eyes had to do with his appearance,” said he. - -“Hide the eyes,” said Ashton-Kirk, “and you are half disguised already. -Then a change in the voice and the dress and you are complete, only -needing some acting along the line of your assumed character. The rôle -of a sick man is one of the easiest to assume, as perhaps any physician -could tell you. The blue glasses are natural, then; also the tinted -skin and the huskiness of voice. A suit of clothes three or four sizes -too large at once sets you down as having lost a great deal of weight; -and then some intimate conversation regarding your particular complaint -places you above suspicion.” - -“Intimate conversation is good,” said Mr. Scanlon. “You talked about -yours with the freedom and knowledge of a man who had bred one for -years. But without that I’d not have recognized you; you fitted so -well into place among that outfit of crooks that I never thought of you -being something else.” - -“Crooks!” said Ashton-Kirk. “So you have found that out.” - -“Well, I should say yes. Since I’ve come here I’ve found out two things -at least; and they are that a man might be rolled in a chair and still -be a fairly competent criminal; and also that a man might cough and -cough, and be a villain still.” - -“I think you might go further than Alva and Shaw,” said Ashton-Kirk, -“and still be fairly safe.” - -“You mean the man with the crutch?” - -The crime specialist nodded. - -“Also the landlord,” said he. - -Bat whistled at this and stared. The other went on: - -“On our first visit there I fancied I caught a certain undertone of -insincerity; an indefinite air of pre-arrangement pervaded the place; -there were moments when I had the feeling that a sort of stage play had -been arranged for our benefit. This, with some other things, made me -somewhat curious, and yesterday I made a few queries at a small hotel -some miles away. As I expected, the proprietor was perfectly willing to -talk. He told me, as you did, that the innkeeper over yonder had only -had the place for about six months, and that his present guests came at -practically the same time.” - -“Ah!” said Mr. Scanlon. - -“Other guests had gone there from time to time, but things were very -unpleasant, and as no attempt was made to put them right, the newcomers -had never remained long.” - -“The unpleasantness was made to order, eh?” observed Bat. “The new -guests were not wanted.” He looked at the detective for a moment, then -he added: “That house is headquarters for the whole movement against -Campe.” - -“I have taken the liberty of learning the size and peculiarities of -the footprints made by the various gentlemen holding forth there, and -I find they correspond exactly with those of persons whose movements -hereabouts show an intense interest in Schwartzberg.” - -“Well,” said Bat, “I see there are various ways of coming at a fact. -You began with a mental impression and ended with the impression of a -foot; and I started with the expression of a lady’s face, and finished -with an expression of amazement.” - -“You’ve also been having some experiences then,” said Ashton-Kirk, -interest in his voice. “I rather fancied you would. And as there will -be no better time than the present, suppose you tell me just what they -were.” - -They seated themselves upon a flat rock out of eyeshot of Schwartzberg, -and Bat began a report of his adventures. He told of his meeting with -Miss Knowles on the road and her agitation at the thought of a fresh -visit from the crime specialist; of the soft-looking man who stood in -the lane writing in a leather-covered book; of Miss Knowles and her -interest in the direction of the wind; of his seeing her at the window -overlooking that point afterward; of the man in the chair and his -strange actions; of the meeting with the man with the cough and the -peppery little doctor; of the happening on the river bank; of his talk -with Mrs. Kretz; of the laying low of the soft man; of the whispered -conversation between the housebreaker and the woman in the darkened -hall; of the escape of the latter; of the disappearance of Miss Knowles -from the room, followed by the liberation of the prisoner. - -When Bat had finished--and he did not slight a detail--his friend -laughed softly. - -“Experiences--yes,” said he. “And you have a most excellent memory. -When you came to me the other day you complained of everything being -elusive and difficult to make head or tail of. It would seem, from what -you have told me now, that this had changed.” - -“Altogether,” said Scanlon. “I don’t know a great deal more of the -truth, but there’s no end to the happenings. As a matter of fact, I -seem to be squaring up to something all the time.” - -“And something of undoubted interest,” said Ashton-Kirk. He looked -toward the river and added, “That, I suppose, is the place where you -heard the man tumble into the water last night?” - -“Yes,” replied Bat; “there where the bank is broken.” - -“I’ll remember that,” said the other. “Indeed, it was in the hope of -coming upon something of the sort that I came this way.” - -Bat looked at him in surprise, but before he could speak the other went -on: - -“The matter of the northwest wind has a rare sound, and the affair of -the sword will in the end, I have no doubt, prove of much interest.” He -was silent for a space as though thinking, and then proceeded: “And so -Mrs. Kretz is inclined to suspect the girl of foul work?” - -Bat nodded. - -“She is,” said he. “And, much against my will, I’m inclined to do the -same.” - -“You say you heard her talk to Shaw in the dark hall; and afterwards -when she had suspected something wrong because of the lights further -along being turned off, she came back to learn who had done it.” - -“She did,” said Bat. “I saw her as plainly as I see you.” - -“Things fall together very oddly at times,” said the crime specialist, -more to himself than to Bat. “Very oddly.” Then to Scanlon: “Miss -Knowles, you say, was interested to know if Shaw had taken any of the -papers at which he was looking?” - -“Yes,” replied Bat. - -“I, also, am a trifle curious as to that.” The soulless blue glasses -were fixed upon the big man steadily. “What did Campe have to say in -the matter?” - -“Nothing,” replied Bat. “At least nothing that I heard.” - -“It’s curious,” said Ashton-Kirk, “how a man will hold to silence -regarding some things. In the midst of happenings which sap his courage -and weaken his will in everything else, this young man keeps his mouth -shut as to the cause of it.” - -“If it’s something which began with his father,” said Bat, “and you -think it might be, as your sending your man to Mexico shows--isn’t it -possible that Campe doesn’t know what it is?” - -But the crime specialist shook his head. - -“No,” said he. “If this were so, he would not hesitate to call in the -police.” - -“That’s true,” said Bat. “It never occurred to me.” - -“Your crippled man, in his chair on the hilltop, watching the moon on -the towers of Schwartzberg, is a pleasing thought,” said Ashton-Kirk. -The keen, complete form which he gave every word showed intense -interest. “He smiled, you say, and closed his eyes?” - -“And a couple of times he laughed,” answered Scanlon. - -“The hill is northwest of the castle, is it?” - -“Almost exactly, as far as I can make out.” - -“And Miss Knowles stood in a window facing in that direction?” - -“Yes.” - -“A little while before she had expressed, by certain mannerisms, an odd -sort of interest in that particular point of the compass?” - -“That was plain enough,” stated Bat. “Anybody who was there could see -it.” - -“It looks,” and again the vacant blue glasses fixed themselves upon Mr. -Scanlon, “it looks quite a bit like something pre-arranged. A signal, -perhaps.” - -But Scanlon shook his head. - -“No,” said he. “The hill is too far away. And another thing: moonlight, -no matter how bright, is uncertain. You can’t be dead sure of getting -an eye full of anything.” - -Ashton-Kirk nodded; the blue glasses looked rounder and more vacant -than before. But there was a deep wrinkle at the top of the nose -between them which told Scanlon that the detective had marked the -incident well. - -“It means something,” the big man told himself. “And he’ll hit on it -before he’s through. But _what_ it means and how he’s going to work on -it is too much for me.” - -After a little Ashton-Kirk arose. - -“Stay here,” said he. “I’ll not be more than a few minutes.” - -But he was gone a good half hour, and in that time Bat could see him -prowling up and down along the river bank, the blue glasses off and -the magnifying lens in his hands. The rocks in particular seemed to -interest him; and when he returned he carried a bit of one in his hand. - -“Soft, and almost crying its age aloud,” said he. “I know of no region -of such little interest to a geologist.” - -He stood for a space, the long yellow fingers crumbling the surface of -the soft stone; then he said: - -“The recent activity around here seems to prove one thing to me; and -that is that Campe’s enemies have made up their minds to end what might -very well be called the siege of Schwartzberg.” - -“Right,” said Mr. Scanlon. “They are pushing the job to its finish. And -I can tell you why. The girl has tipped them off that you are here, and -has handed them your record. They mean to rush the fight from now on, -afraid that you’re coming back.” - -“As you are not quite sure as to the people inside the castle,” said -the detective, “I will recommend that you keep even a keener watch than -before. But do so in such a way as not to attract attention. Especially -watch for small events; they are more apt to be of value to us than -showier ones; people as a rule are guarded as to the big things, while -the small ones are gone through often with no care.” - -“When do you hope to hear from Fuller?” asked Scanlon. - -“It will take the greater part of a week for him to reach the place -of operation, and with the best of luck two days will be taken up in -gathering the facts I want.” - -“A lot of things may happen in that time,” remarked the big man. “It -might be that before you get his report we’ll meet the rush of the -invalid corps in such a way that we’ll put them down for the count.” - -Ashton-Kirk made no reply; the big man waited for a moment or two; the -vacant blue glasses were fixed upon a point some little distance away. -Scanlon turned and looked in the same direction. - -“Hello!” said he, in a low tone. “Who’s that?” - -A man walked along the river bank, his head bent, his eyes upon the -ground. But as the two looked the head lifted and he saw them. He -started and stiffened suddenly. Then his hand went up in a salute, and -he moved toward them. - -It was the German sergeant-major, Kretz. - - - - -CHAPTER XV - -TELLS HOW AMAZEMENT FILLED THE MIND OF MR. SCANLON - - -There was something in the manner of Kretz as he approached that drew -Bat Scanlon’s attention. - -“I should say that he was somewhat peevish,” said the big man to -Ashton-Kirk. “But why I can’t say.” - -Indeed, the face of the German was grimmer than ever; his small grey -eyes looked from under their thick, overhanging brows in a way that -showed open hostility. - -“Hello!” said Scanlon. “Having a little exercise?” - -But the man ignored this. - -“Who is this?” asked he, and his angry eyes were fixed upon Ashton-Kirk. - -“A friend of mine,” replied Bat. “He’s stopping over at the inn. Only -had the pleasure of meeting him this morning, but I will say for him -that he has one of the most picturesque livers in captivity.” - -The German only looked grim. - -“This,” said he, “is private property.” - -“My name is Flood,” said Ashton-Kirk, huskily. “And I am sorry to -trespass.” - -“When you reach the edge of our domain in going back, be sure to wipe -your shoes,” admonished Scanlon. “We wouldn’t care to have you take any -of it away with you.” - -The man with a yellow face smiled. - -“Well, good-day, Mr. Scanlon,” said he. “I think I’ll make my way back -to the inn. You have been very kind.” - -“Not at all,” said Bat, with a wave of the hand. “Glad to do any little -thing I can for you at any time.” - -The fictitious Mr. Flood, saffron-hued, blue-spectacled and -stiff-gaited, moved away, taking a path which soon hid him from view -behind the rising ground. - -Kretz now turned to Scanlon. - -“You,” said he, “are a friend of Mr. Campe’s. Good! I am but a servant. -Good! It is not my place to say what you must not do. Is it not so?” - -“I think that statement would stand in most instances,” replied Bat. - -“I have the excuse,” said Kretz. “Herr Campe is now like a man who is -sick. He can’t help himself. You have seen that. And so his people must -be his eyes and his ears. They must also,” and here the square-cut -face tightened more than ever, “be his tongue. They must speak when he -cannot.” - -“I see,” said Bat. “And so you accordingly seized upon this occasion to -lift up your voice in his behalf.” - -“You are a stranger here,” said the German, who did not seem to listen -to what Bat said, much less understand it. “You do not know some things -which are known to me.” - -Bat blinked solemnly. - -“It seems to me I’ve heard that, or something like it, before,” said -he. “But don’t take so much credit for your exclusive information. You -might not have it as safely cornered as you think.” - -“The tramps----” began Kretz, but the big man stopped him impatiently. - -“Tramps grandmothers!” said he bluntly. “Don’t go on with that kind of -thing. I’m not an infant in arms to be fed with a bottle. If you have -no real out-in-the-open talk on this subject, keep quiet about it. I -passed the point where the tramps were long ago.” - -Kretz stood, with frowning brows, looking at the other. Then his right -hand went up in a salute. - -“Excuse!” said he. - -He regarded Bat for still another moment; then he came a step nearer. - -“You have known Herr Campe for a long time?” - -“Quite a while.” - -“Before you come he spoke much of you,” said the German. “He asked me -what I thought of sending for you. I said,” candidly, the hand lifting -to another salute, “not to do it.” - -“Why?” - -“I was not sure. It was a time when a man could _not_ be sure. All -strangers were dangerous.” - -“But I was a stranger to you only. Didn’t you give Mr. Campe any credit -for judgment, or knowledge of people?” - -“Herr Campe,” said Kretz, “as I have said, is like a man who is sick. -He does not know who his friends are. That, sir, was plain to me -when----” But he stopped shortly at this, his jaws snapping as though -to shut in any words which might complete the sentence. Then, after a -moment, he said: “You will be careful of the strangers?” - -Bat nodded. - -“Excuse,” said the man, and with another salute he turned and went on -his way along the river. - -Scanlon returned to the castle and was admitted, much to his surprise, -by Miss Knowles. - -“You must have gone a great way to-day,” she said, with a smile which -showed her beautiful teeth. - -“Quite a bit of a stride,” acknowledged the big man. “But then it’s a -bracing morning, and a fellow should put such days to good use.” - -“Kretz seems to think the same,” said she. “He asked leave to go, and I -promised to keep the gate. But,” and her head shook slowly, “he didn’t -cross the hills, as you did; he seemed to prefer to take the path along -the river.” - -“That so?” said Bat. And, mentally, he added: “Oh, golden Helen, what -makes you always speak in double meanings? This is the first time I’ve -seen you to-day, and you are at it already.” - -“But then Kretz has shown a preference for the river of late,” the girl -went on. “I’ve noticed that he likes to stand upon the wall overlooking -it.” - -“Every man to his own fancy,” spoke Mr. Scanlon. - -“It may be that it has reminded him of some stream he knew at home in -Germany. The banks are rather picturesque, don’t you think? At places -they are really wonderful!” - -The big man rolled himself a cigarette and considered. The river bank, -eh? What was all this talk about it--this talk, and other things? He -had noticed when he first came to Schwartzberg that the river had a -bank; as a matter of fact, it had two of them. But that’s all it, or -they, had been--just bank, or banks. - -“However,” his thought continued, as he proceeded with his cigarette, -“lately the thing’s been getting a whole raft of little attentions. -Last night I heard a fellow fall off of it; this morning it attracted -Ashton-Kirk greatly. The German, so it seems, likes little walks along -and little observations of it from the wall. And, last, the golden one -is at great pains to put me up in the facts as she sees them. ‘The -river bank,’ says she, as plain as day. ‘Take a good, long, sweeping -look at the river bank. And, once seen, do not forget.’” - -“I suppose, though,” said the girl, “to one who has, like you, Mr. -Scanlon, spent a great deal of his life in the wild places, a tame -little river like this has no charm.” - -Bat lit the cigarette and smoked peacefully. - -“As you say, the river is tame,” said he. “It has a way of slipping by -without forcing your notice; and in these days a river, like anything -else, if it wants attention, must speak out good and loud. But though -I never have been keen on bashful rivers, still river banks, of any -denomination whatsoever, have always been a strong point with me.” - -The girl’s eyes as she gazed at him were half smiling, half wondering. -She said: - -“One can never be altogether sure of what you mean.” - -Bat nodded, sorrowfully - -“Too bad, isn’t it?” remarked he. “When a fellow’s exposed to a thing -like that, he’s sure to catch it.” - -Here there was the sound of wheels without; a bell, evidently in -the kitchen, rang loudly. Miss Knowles and Scanlon were still in the -courtyard when Mrs. Kretz made her appearance in answer. While the -woman was opening the gate the girl said: - -“Your friend, Mr. Ashton-Kirk, did not arrive last night, after all?” - -“No,” replied Bat. “But then, as I said, you never know when to expect -him. He’s one of those fellows who have their own ideas about things.” - -The opened gate showed a waggon outside, one which Scanlon had noticed -more than once before. A package was handed to Mrs. Kretz, who at once -came in and relocked the gate. - -Miss Knowles held out her hand as though to take the package. There was -a sweet smile upon her face, but in the movement there was a swiftness, -an eagerness which Scanlon could not help but notice. - -“Not for me!” she said. - -“No,” replied the woman, sullenly. - -“For Miss Hohenlo, then. Give it to me. I will take it to her.” - -Reluctantly Mrs. Kretz handed her the parcel, and the girl, with a -smile and a nod to Scanlon, crossed the courtyard and disappeared. - -The woman fumbled at the bolts of the gate for a few moments; it was -plain to Bat that she desired to say something but was at a loss as to -how to begin. - -“You don’t care to have any of your work taken off your hands, I see,” -said he. - -The woman shook her head; her heavy face still wore the sullen look. - -“Always,” she said, “she does that.” - -“Well,” asked Bat, “what of it? I don’t see much in her carrying a -small package upstairs. It’ll not tire her.” - -Mrs. Kretz folded her strong, thick-fingered hands in her apron, and -again she shook her head in a stubborn sort of way. - -“It is not that,” she said. “It is not what you see. It is never what -you see in Schwartzberg, but always something else.” - -“Agreed,” said Mr. Scanlon. “That’s exactly how I feel about it myself. -But,” and he looked at her with the interest of a prospector who is -about to turn over some fresh soil, “just what is the idea this time?” - -“Always,” said Mrs. Kretz, “when a parcel comes by the waggon, she is -here to see. Never once does she let me take it in myself. And never -once does she take it where it belongs until she has looked inside.” - -“Ah!” said Scanlon. “I see.” - -“More than once I have watched,” said the woman. “It is not my place, -but I want to keep trouble from the house. Hours she will spend looking -and searching. Then she will tie the bundle up as it was, and take it -to whomever it is for.” - -Bat considered this for a space. - -“The mail now, does she do the same with that?” - -“Sometimes,” replied the woman, “when it is a package.” - -“Oh,” said Scanlon. “When it’s a package, eh? Never when it is anything -else?” - -“No.” - -Once more Mr. Scanlon considered. - -“That looks,” said he, “as if Miss Knowles were interested in the -coming of something of some little bulk.” He stroked his shaven jaw and -looked at the woman. “Now I wonder what it is she’s looking for?” - -The woman returned the look, and again Scanlon saw she desired to say -something, but did not know how to begin. - -“What is it?” he asked. “If you’ve got any suggestions to make, don’t -be backward.” - -“If you would see her searching and looking,” said the woman, “there is -a window near the stable. She always locks herself in that room.” - -Mrs. Kretz then returned to her kitchen, and Scanlon leaned with his -back against the wall and pondered. That he might the better do this, -he took out his tobacco pouch and the little sheaf of papers; then he -carefully shaped another cigarette. With the pale smoke hovering about -him, he turned the question over carefully. - -“It stands like this,” he told himself. “Something is doing that -threatens to knock out a friend of mine. Said friend asks me to give -him help. This I do. In the process of helping I run smack into the -fact that the girl he’s in love with is on the cross. She stands in -with the parties who are trying to get him. Mixed up in her efforts in -his direction is a desire to see what’s inside all the packages which -come to the house. I have a chance, maybe, to find our what the reason -is--by peeping in at a window. Question before the committee on morals: -Is it permissible to peep under such circumstances?” - -Evidently the said committee went into session at once, and a great -cloud of smoke arose above its meeting place. Mr. Scanlon, after a -space, threw the cigarette away with decision. - -“As it’s a case of out and out crookedness, the thing can be done -without sacrifice to the finer feelings. Therefore I’ll go and take a -peep at the lady with the package.” - -So down the courtyard went Mr. Scanlon; at the near end of the stable -was a grated window some dozen feet from the ground; a ladder stood -under it. - -“The Frau Kretz, I suppose, got up this way,” said Bat. “Therefore, so -shall I.” - -Peering in through the grating he saw that the room was the one the -servants used for storage. At a table stood Miss Knowles, and the -parcel, opened, lay before her. - -The room was a dark one, but the girl had lighted a large swinging lamp -and the rays fell downward upon the table. - -The observant eyes of Mr. Scanlon went all about the place; nothing in -the room was missed. - -“For you see,” mused he, “a fellow, in a case like this, never knows -just what belongs to the game being played, and what doesn’t.” - -It was a high ceilinged room, narrow, but long; shelves were upon two -sides of it, shelves loaded with packets and jars and labeled boxes. - -“How many of them are in on this business of the packet?” was Bat’s -mental query. “They all look innocent enough, of course; they seem to -be simple things having to do with the kitchen and the preparation of -meals. But are they what they seem to be? Or are they like a good many -things about this house--putting up an innocent front, but, in reality, -working as something else.” - -The big man had come to a mental state in which he took nothing for -granted. His stay at Schwartzberg had been one which shook his -confidence in his own judgment; there was nothing his senses told him -that he could accept without investigation. - -“The good old days when a fellow could take a glance at a thing, and -then pass it on, are gone by,” he’d sadly told himself more than once. - -“And they may never come again.” - -The parcel contained papers, small rolls, each tied with a tape. -Carefully the girl undid the fastenings of one of these; slowly the -sheets were unrolled and separated. Then, one at a time, they passed -under the eye of Miss Knowles; one at a time they were laid aside; and -when the little packet was examined, it was re-rolled and tied with -the tape once more. Profound was the amazement of Mr. Scanlon, perched -upon the ladder outside; he felt almost like rubbing his eyes: he could -scarcely believe his senses. For each sheet of the paper was absolutely -blank. - -Another and still another of the rolls was gone over in a like manner; -each blank sheet was studied; each little packet was faithfully -re-tied; and when all were done, the girl stood looking down at them -thoughtfully. The yellow lamp-light glinted in her hair; her smooth -skin looked inexpressibly fair; the pink in her cheeks was like the -softly-sunned side of a peach. For a long time she stood without -moving; then she assembled the rolls of blank paper and carefully -wrapped them as they had been when she received them from Mrs. Kretz. -After this she turned off the light, and with the package in her hand -she left the room. - -Mr. Scanlon stepped down from the ladder, his face a study. Walking the -length of the courtyard, his hands in his pockets, his cheeks puffed -out like small balloons, he fell once more to pondering. But evidently -his cogitations did not bring any enlightenment, for after a while he -removed his hands from his pockets and elevated them above his head. - -“I’m done,” stated he. “I am completely and absolutely beat. Every -minute I spend in this place puts it up to me more and more plainly -that I was never meant for anything but elementary purposes. After this -I will gaze and not even try to think. I will record like the camera -and the phonograph and leave the developing for a professional. I could -stand this stuff about the northwest and also the play of the sick man -in the moonlight. But when it comes to otherwise competent young ladies -displaying intense interest in sheets of blank paper, I’m done!” - -And once again Mr. Scanlon had recourse to his tobacco pouch; once -again he rolled himself a comforting smoke; and once again he fell into -amazement after amazement regarding the things which were going on -about him. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI - -SHOWS HOW THE GREAT SWORD WAS MISSED FROM THE WALL - - -The day passed slowly for Scanlon; he put in a few hours with the -newspapers, which were always brought to Schwartzberg about noon; then -he selected an armful of likely looking books and took them to his room. - -But the adventures therein related were not to his taste. He was in no -humour for the accumulation of unexplained incident; what he wanted at -that particular time was clarity--a breeze which would blow through the -castle of intrigue and drive out the obscuring vapours. - -“This fellow,” remarked he, turning the leaves of one of the books, “is -too much like myself. Here he starts out under a cloud; and as he goes -along, instead of getting rid of it, he adds to it. At page one hundred -he has a collection of clouds the like of which I never saw in a book -before. Then they proceed to break, and he has a fine little storm on -his hands, with thunder and lightning and wind. If it only cleared up -then, all right. But it doesn’t. The clouds still stick around; the -fellow never gets a chance to do anything, for he can’t see far enough -ahead.” - -He threw the book upon the table and yawned. Then he proceeded to dress -for dinner. - -Once more he was surprised to find that Miss Hohenlo would dine with -them. - -“Really,” she declared, girlishly, “I seem to be in splendid spirits. -I haven’t been well enough to come down to dinner for ever so long -before last night. I don’t understand it. There must be something in -the air.” - -“It is very possible,” spoke Miss Knowles, smilingly. “I think I have -detected it myself.” - -While the two women talked, Campe engaged his guest in conversation. - -“Kretz tells me that there was a stranger about the place to-day,” said -he, with an assumption of carelessness, but with a troubled look in his -eyes. - -Scanlon nodded easily. - -“A sick fellow,” said he. “From the inn over yonder. Something of a -botanist, I think. He said he was looking for specimens.” - -“Botanists don’t usually select November as a time for their work,” -observed Campe. “That was a subterfuge, and that he thought it -necessary to use one shows his intentions to be at least open to -question.” - -Bat acknowledged this with a nod. - -“Only a few of us ever lie without a reason,” said he. - -Miss Hohenlo, who had turned to listen, gesticulated admiringly and in -such a way that her small white hands were well displayed. - -“You have such a delightfully straightforward way with you, Mr. -Scanlon,” she said. “I think it’s so refreshing. I suppose it comes of -living so long in the West among people who have none of the subtleties -of over-civilization, and among the grand wild scenery.” - -“Maybe,” said Bat, “or it might be something else. You can’t always -put the brand on a straightforward talker, and his reasons for being -such, any more than you can on a botanist who picks the wrong time of -the year to carry on his researches. I knew a fellow named Cameron -once who kept the ‘Deuce High’ at Cripple Creek, and was the most civil -fellow I ever met. His next best thing was straightforward talk, and he -used to reel it off by the mile. Everybody took it in until one night, -in the middle of a speech, somebody caught him slipping cards from the -bottom of the pack. After that they sort of lost confidence.” - -“Such a wild, reckless life,” sighed Miss Hohenlo, her pretty hands -before her face, as though to shut it out. “And yet,” with an air, “I -could almost wish I were a man so that I might take part in it.” - -“You don’t have to be a man to do a little thing like that,” said -Scanlon. He addressed Miss Hohenlo, but as he spoke his eyes were upon -Miss Knowles. “Some women run a dead heat with the speediest of men.” - -“Oh, not really!” exclaimed the spinster. “You can’t mean it.” - -“It’s been my experience,” said Bat, “that the ladies are not a bit -different from men in their undertakings. They just go about it -differently.” - -Miss Knowles laughed a little. - -“I’m not quite sure whether you are complimenting us or no,” said she. -“But I don’t agree with you at any rate. No woman, for instance, could -have done what you did last night.” - -Bat shook his head. - -“She could,” stated he. “What is there to walking quietly down a dark -hall? Don’t you think a woman would have the nerve to do that?” - -Calmly he studied the beautiful face before him, and he saw a deeper -tint creep into the pink of her cheeks. - -“Oh, perhaps that,” said she. - -“And more,” insisted Bat. “Much more. What did I do but hold a quiet -conversation with the burglar as he went about his work. Is that too -much for a woman to do? I’ll venture that one of them has talked just -as quietly with a housebreaker, and almost under the same conditions, -before now.” - -The blue eyes of Miss Knowles fixed themselves upon him in a wide open -stare. There was a smile upon her lips, but in the eyes he could see -something else--something very like fear. - -Campe, as was usual with him, had grown absent-minded, and brooding; -apparently his mind was filled with suspicions as to the purpose of the -supposed prowler of the morning; at any rate he took no part in the -conversation; indeed, he did not seem to hear it. - -It was the voice of Miss Hohenlo which broke the silence. - -“My dear Grace,” said she, “you look frightened. You are really growing -nervy. And once I thought you were, as you look, a Brunhilde.” She -leaned toward the girl, looking at her curiously. “And the mere idea of -a woman engaging in such an adventure has frightened you.” - -Miss Knowles shook her golden head and laughed. Her blue eyes were -filled with amusement and the fear had vanished. - -“I was trying to imagine myself in such a position. And I think the -result was too vivid.” - -But Mr. Scanlon seemed doubtful. - -“I don’t think it was that,” spoke he, confidently. “It must have been -something else. You’d go through such an adventure and never wink an -eye.” - -Miss Hohenlo clasped her hands with delicate satisfaction. - -“Oh, Mr. Scanlon,” said she, “I’m delighted that you won’t permit Grace -to think meanly of herself. For, when you’ve come to know her as I do, -she is really a wonderful person.” Here the eyes of the two women met -in a look so rapid that Scanlon was unable to interpret it. “You are -quite right. I have the greatest faith in her courage, and what I said -a few moments ago in doubt of it was merely a jest. Grace, you know, -would really dare anything.” - -“Oh, please, Miss Hohenlo,” said the girl, in protest. - -“You would, my dear; you know you would. It would only require,” and -here the faded eyes went from the beautiful face of Miss Knowles to the -attentive one of Mr. Scanlon, “it would only require the necessity. Let -that be sufficient,” said Miss Hohenlo, nodding quite positively, “and -Grace would be equal to anything.” - -“I wish,” said the girl, “what you say were true. For there are many -such occasions,” and she smiled at Scanlon, “which arise and demand to -be met. And I’m afraid I don’t do the work very well.” - -After this Scanlon fell into a silence, not an absent one such as Campe -seemed plunged in, but alert and observant. When appealed to he replied -briefly, but he did not lose a word or miss an expression of either -face. - -“Here,” said he, mentally, “is where I break my new-made resolution. -For the time being I am not a non-reasoning recorder. I must reason, -or I’ll sink. And as something seems on the move between the ladies, I -don’t want to do that.” - -“You would do anything well, my dear Grace.” Here Miss Hohenlo’s white -hand smoothed her faded hair. “Anything in the world. But being clever -and ingenious and persistent, I am sorry to say, does not always bring -success. And if you have failed in any of your undertakings it is this, -and not yourself, that is to blame.” - -“I wish I could think so,” said the girl. “Perhaps I would then have -the energy to go on.” - -“Energy!” Miss Hohenlo laughed gently. “Oh, Grace, as if you could ever -lack that--you who are energy itself. Mr. Scanlon, please speak to her -again; she will insist upon doing herself these little injustices.” - -The tones of the two women were mild, their looks were kind, their -words were inconsequent; and yet underneath all these things the big -man seemed to detect a rapid play of meaning. - -“It’s there,” said he, to himself, “but, as usual, I am not getting it. -However, one thing is plain--the elderly lady is on top of the younger -one; and if it is at all possible, I’m going to find out how it is -before the night is done.” - -In this purpose events seemed to favour Scanlon. Miss Knowles proposed -a game of billiards with Campe after dinner, and as Miss Hohenlo -declined, Bat declined also; and so he was left alone with her in the -great room where the tapestries hung. - -The spinster caressed the strings of the gilt harp gently; Bat lounged -in a deep chair and talked to her. - -“Have you lived in this country very long?” he asked her, finally. - -“Only two years,” said she. - -Bat expressed his astonishment. - -“But you speak the language so well,” he said. - -She laughed, and the harp murmured under her touch. - -“You are thinking of my having lived in Mexico, or in Germany, before -that,” she said. “Well, I have. But, you see, I was educated in England -and the United States.” - -“Oh, yes,” said the big man; “that accounts for it then.” He watched -her for a little and listened to the soft sounds she drew from the -strings. “But Miss Knowles,” he said, “she speaks the language very -well also.” - -“She should,” replied Miss Hohenlo calmly, “seeing that she is -American.” - -“No,” said Bat, apparently much amazed. “I was sure she was German.” - -Miss Hohenlo laughed quietly. - -“It is very easy for Grace to create impressions,” she said. “She has -talent in that direction.” - -“I wouldn’t be a bit surprised if she had a lot of it,” agreed Mr. -Scanlon. “But it was the yellow hair and so on, I guess, that made me -think her a German.” - -“She dresses to conform with the background,” said Miss Hohenlo gently. -“Dear Grace, she is such a beauty. The braids of yellow hair and the -strength of her outline go very well with a place like Schwartzberg.” - -“You’ve been together a long time,” said Mr. Scanlon, “and you think a -lot of her, I know.” - -“She’s been with me since Frederic’s father died,” said Miss Hohenlo. -“She was the daughter of a friend and business partner. I am very fond -of her.” - -“I think,” said Mr. Scanlon, carefully, “your nephew is, also.” - -“Frederic!” Miss Hohenlo struck the strings and they reverberated -thrillingly. “He loves her.” - -“I had supposed something like that was the case,” admitted Bat. “He -never said anything, you know, but a fellow can usually size up these -matters.” There was a pause during which the harp spoke murmuringly, -and Bat kept the time upon the arms of his chair with his fingers. “And -do you know, when I did finally size it up,” he added, “it gave me -quite a start.” - -The beautiful hands left the strings and clasped themselves together; -Miss Hohenlo turned an incredulous face toward the speaker. - -“Gave _you_ a start!” she said. “Oh, Mr. Scanlon, one can’t imagine -anything like that.” - -“Well,” said Bat, “maybe you wouldn’t think so, seeing I turn the -scales at about fourteen stone, and was brought up in the open. But -start I did on that occasion.” - -“But why?” and the dull eyes of the spinster were full of wonder. “Why?” - -“Your nephew,” said the big man, “is a friend of mine. And a fellow -never likes to see a friend venturing into a thing which might not be -right.” - -Miss Hohenlo shook one pretty finger at him girlishly. - -“Oh, you bachelors,” she said; “you have such a dread of marriage.” - -“Nature always helps its own,” said Bat. “If it can’t provide you -with a courage to meet a thing, it supplies a fear which makes you -duck and in that way save yourself. But,” he frowned at a rug on the -floor before him, and stroked his chin, “it wasn’t of marriage I was -thinking.” - -“No?” - -“No,” said Bat, “it was the girl.” - -His eyes were still on the rug, but for all that he caught the sudden -tenseness of her attitude. - -“Grace!” she said, and there was a sharpness in her voice which was new -to him. “What do you mean?” - -The big man studied the rug under his bent brows. He felt that the -situation, now that he had brought it to this point, was a delicate -one, and knew that he must be careful. Indeed, it was so exceedingly -delicate and required so much care that under other circumstances he -would not have ventured to tackle it. But he wanted to help Campe; his -curiosity was aroused, and he felt convinced that there was something -hostile between the two women. And so he launched himself upon waters -which might prove a mill pond or a whirlpool. - -“Miss Knowles,” stated he, “is a good looker. She’s got a figure that -makes the best of them look like cripples, and I never want to see a -nicer smile. Along these lines she’s a winner, and I have nothing but -praise for her.” - -“But,” said Miss Hohenlo, attentively, “along some others you feel that -you can _not_ praise her.” - -Bat acknowledged this by a gesture. - -“Not that I am very definite in the matter,” said he, “for I’m not. You -see----” but he stopped short as he was about to add something else, -and after looking into the dull, uninteresting face before him, he -said: “You’ve been here at Schwartzberg for some time, I suppose.” - -“Since early summer. When Frederic wrote that he was here and meant to -stay for a time, I was overjoyed. You see, I love the memory of the old -count, my ancestor, and this place is so full of him.” - -“Being given to staying indoors and to music and such,” said Bat, -“you’d not be likely to see as much or notice as many things as some -one who goes about more; but, for all that, you must have seen that -there’s something the matter here in Schwartzberg.” - -Miss Hohenlo arose; leaving the harp, she walked to a window and stood -for a moment looking out into the darkness. When she turned, the dull -eyes were filled with tears; the small face was piteous with pleading. -All the affectation had vanished; her manner was simple and direct. - -“Mr. Scanlon,” she said, “you are a friend of Frederic’s, and I am glad -of the chance to talk with you upon this subject. As you say, there is -something amiss in Schwartzberg; I’ve been aware of it for months. But -my nephew is unapproachable upon the subject; I am ashamed to say he -is more like a frightened child than a man whose life has been put in -danger.” - -“Deep waters,” acknowledged Bat. “And they may even run deeper still.” - -The beautiful hands went out in a despairing gesture at this. - -“Oh, I hope not!” she exclaimed. “For his sake I hope not. And it’s a -torture to me to see him so.” She was silent for a moment, and then -went on: “I have given him every opportunity to confide in me, but -he will not. And so, Mr. Scanlon, I am like a stranger. Danger, even -death, perhaps, is hovering over the house, and I know nothing except -the little that comes to me by chance.” - -“Since I’ve been here I’ve felt about the same way,” said Scanlon, -“though, of course, I haven’t so much reason as you.” - -“I could not speak to Frederic, and I must not speak to the servants. -So,” said Miss Hohenlo, “there was left only--Grace.” - -Again there came the pause, this time longer than before. Finally -Scanlon said: - -“Well?” - -She came nearer to him. Never had she looked plainer or more angular; -never had her eyes seemed duller or her hair with less life. - -“But I could not speak to her. There was a something which stood -between us--perhaps the same feeling which you had--and it held me -back.” One of the delicate hands went out and rested on Scanlon’s -sleeve. “What is it?” she asked. - -But the big man could only shake his head. - -“At times,” said Miss Hohenlo, “she comes to me with the strangest -requests. They seem to be without meaning, and yet, somehow, I am -afraid of them.” - -“Requests?” - -“They seem silly,” said the spinster, a dazed look in the dull eyes. -“I’ve tried to give a meaning to them, but never could. For example, -she’ll often, of an evening, ask me to go to a window and pretend to be -interested in the direction of the wind. And she makes me promise not -to tell.” - -“Jove!” said Mr. Scanlon. - -“Then she has a way of jesting about my playing of the harp, and of -other things which seem to be odd in tone and in meaning. I’ve never -been able to understand them.” - -Scanlon nodded; he could readily see this as the things had made the -same impression upon himself. Then, guardedly, he began to speak. -Little by little he told Miss Hohenlo of the numerous things which -had attracted his attention to Miss Knowles since his arrival at -Schwartzberg. And when he had done, she stood staring at him like a -small scared animal. - -“It’s dreadful!” she said. “Who would ever have dreamed of such a -thing?” - -From the courtyard there came a dull complaining sound. - -“Hello,” said Scanlon, in surprise; “what’s that?” - -“It’s the gate,” spoke Miss Hohenlo. “Some one is opening it.” - -The night, though the month was November, was an exceedingly mild one, -and the windows were partly open. Through one of these they looked down -into the courtyard. Kretz was at the gate drawing the bolts, and beside -him stood Miss Knowles, a long, muffling wrap hanging to her feet. - -“She is going out,” breathed Miss Hohenlo. - -The big gate creaked open, and for a moment the girl and the grim-faced -German spoke in low tones. He seemed expostulating, but she appeared to -brush his words aside as being of no consequence. Suddenly their talk -ceased. Campe appeared, a cap upon his head, a stick in his hand. - -“Frederic!” Miss Hohenlo was amazed. “He, too, is going!” - -The gate swung to behind them, and the sergeant-major shot the bolts. - -“The last night those two were out there among the hills,” said -Scanlon, “he was slashed--and maybe with the sword which she had taken -out of this room.” - -At this a cry came from the woman. - -“Look!” she gasped, and pointed toward the narrow strip of tapestry -between the windows, the place where the great sword usually hung. - -“By Jingo!” cried Scanlon. “It’s gone!” - - - - -CHAPTER XVII - -SPEAKS OF A HARP WHICH WAS PLAYED IN SILENCE - - -There hung the long strip of tapestry between the two windows, but the -huge naked blade which usually rested against it was missing. For a -moment or two Scanlon could not take his eyes from the spot; he was -fascinated by the possibilities of the discovery. - -“Where can it be?” asked Miss Hohenlo. “What could it have been taken -for?” - -Bat took his eyes from the place where the sword had hung, and they -fixed themselves upon the speaker. - -“Under the circumstances,” said he, “and in the face of what I’ve just -told you, can’t you imagine what it _might_ have been taken for?” - -She put her hands before her face as if to shut out the idea. - -“Oh, no!” she said, helplessly. “No! Surely not that!” - -“Well,” said Scanlon, and he drew a deep breath as he said it, “maybe -not. But I’ve caught the notion so strongly that I don’t think I’ll -take a chance.” - -“You mean----” and she looked at him fearfully. - -“I’m going to find out whatever is fixed to take place. And, if you’ll -excuse me, I’m going to do it now.” - -Swiftly the big man left the room and lightly he ran down the stairs. - -“The gate!” said he to Kretz, who stood in the courtyard. “Open it!” - -The man stood looking at him, a curious expression upon his face; for a -moment it seemed to Scanlon that he was about to refuse. - -“Quick!” said Scanlon. All the suspicions that he’d had of the German -since coming to Schwartzberg were brought to a head in an instant. His -strong jaw grew rigid and his tone was almost menacing. - -The sergeant-major threw the bolts and turned the keys sullenly. As the -gate opened, Scanlon passed out. - -The big man looked about. The moon lurked behind the heavy mass of -clouds which covered the sky, but some of its radiance trickled through -and made things visible in a dim sort of way. Along the path leading -west from the castle he detected a movement, and at once he set out in -that direction. - -“I’ve heard of something like this once or twice before,” murmured he. -“Decoys have been used since men began to find it was surer to hit when -the punch wasn’t expected. Though,” and he shoved out his chin, “I -can’t say the facts make her that sort of a decoy. If there’s a blow to -be struck, it seems to me, she’ll strike it herself.” - -Scanlon’s stride was long and quiet; the path was of well-beaten earth -and free of stones, so he stepped out freely without fear of detection. -Finally he began to make out the figures ahead of him. - -“There they are,” said he, “and going along very contentedly.” He put a -hand to each side of his mouth and lifted his voice. “Hello!” he called. - -Young Campe wheeled like a flash, his hand going to his hip. - -“All right,” said Scanlon. “You needn’t trouble about that.” - -He approached hastily, his hands upraised. - -“Bat!” said Campe, in surprise. - -“We hadn’t expected you, Mr. Scanlon,” spoke Miss Knowles, sweetly. - -“No, I suppose not,” said the big man, and his tone was dry. “I just -thought I’d take a stretch along the path.” - -“It’s such a splendid night for that,” said Miss Knowles. - -“Not too bright,” exclaimed Campe. “A fellow doesn’t make such a target -as he would on a moonlit night. And yet with plenty of light to see by.” - -“Moonlight has its disadvantages, of course,” admitted Mr. Scanlon. -“And with matters as they now seem to be, you can’t do better than take -everything into account.” - -The girl and the young man went along on the path, and doggedly Scanlon -followed. - -“It always pays,” he continued, “not to slip anything when it comes to -a calculation. Doing that has cost many a man his life--and even more. -I recall one time out in the Black Hills country--but,” inquiringly, -“Maybe you don’t care to hear about that just now.” - -“Oh, yes, please,” said Miss Knowles. - -“I was riding with Captain Marsh’s troop in chase of some Sioux who’d -raided a little place called ‘Soldier Hat.’ They’d taken all the -fire-water they could lug--this, like as not, being the principal -object of the raid--and then headed for a camp they had among the -rocks. We got word six hours later, and made good time after them.” - -“In the night?” asked Miss Knowles. - -“It was night when we pulled up about half a mile from their camp. -Marsh wanted to see just how things lay for a rush on them; he -didn’t ask any of his men to go, but went himself. He’d reckoned -on everything, so he thought, but when he’d crept within fifty -feet of where the Sioux lay asleep something began to strike the -stones--chink--chank--chink--chank!” - -“His spurs,” said Miss Knowles. - -“He’d remembered his spurs, and taken them off. But his sword had -slipped and began to trail; before he could snatch it up the camp was -awake, and in two minutes the reds were off. The one thing he hadn’t -taken into his calculations,” said the big man, slowly, “was the sword. -And that’s what gave him away.” - -“Oh, what a pity,” said the girl. She turned her head and looked over -her shoulder at Scanlon as she spoke; it was too shadowy to catch the -expression in her face, but in her voice was that little break which is -apt to appear when one’s breath is short and quickly taken. “Success -meant so much to him, too, I suppose.” - -“He’d had his chance and missed it,” said Bat. “And,” shaking his head, -“who’d ever have thought of such a thing as that giving him away?” - -The girl drew the long muffling wrap about her carefully; she shivered -a little. - -“I had no idea it would be so cold,” she said. - -“Perhaps we’d better return,” said Campe, solicitously. - -“If you don’t mind,” she said. “I’m really chilled.” - -The big man smiled satirically through the gloom as he trailed along -behind, but now in the direction of the castle. - -“She’s pretty clever,” he thought, “and got plenty of nerve, but it -takes long experience in any game to stand up under the unexpected -little shock. That’s the thing that usually gets them when they’re off -their balance, and spills the beans all over the place.” - -Kretz seemed surprised when he opened the gate for them; his eyes -sought out those of the girl, but she passed into the house quickly. - -“You did not stay,” said the sergeant-major to Campe. - -“No; it was not so pleasant as it seemed.” - -Kretz shook his head and muttered something, and Scanlon felt his eyes -still upon them as they entered the narrow doorway. - -Miss Knowles had gone on up the stairs; they could hear her feet -pat-patting quickly on the stones. Campe seemed about to follow when -Scanlon said: - -“If you are not doing anything particular for the next half hour, I’d -like to speak to you.” - -“Certainly,” said Campe. - -They entered the big room hung with the heads of boars and stags and -the trophies of arms. - -“I am going to talk to you like a Dutch uncle,” remarked Mr. Scanlon, -calmly, as he stood beside one of the massive oaken tables. “Sit down, -light a pipe, and listen.” - -From a shelf he took a stone jar and a brace of pipes, with bowls of -baked clay and long reed stems. The pipes were filled with tobacco from -the jar and lighted; then they sat down at the table facing each other. -Campe smoked quietly, tilted back in his chair, his eyes upon the -floor. Scanlon examined him keenly, with the manner of a man who had -something of a job before him, and meant to go about it as carefully as -he could. - -“It was pretty close to three weeks ago that I first came here,” said -he. “And in those three weeks I’ve had a sort of miscellaneous time.” - -“I hope you’ve enjoyed yourself,” spoke Campe. “I’m afraid I’ve been -rather lacking in many ways, but things are in such shape with me just -now that----” - -Here Bat stopped him with a wave of the hand. - -“The shape that things are in with you just now,” said the big man, -“is what this talk is going to be about. You couldn’t have brought the -thing forward at a better moment.” - -Campe’s fingers tapped nervously upon the edge of the table; Scanlon -blew a cloud of smoke toward the ceiling and watched it curl and shift -formlessly. - -“You’ve never told me why you asked me here,” said the big man. “And -I never asked. But just the same I dropped to the facts in the first -couple of days.” - -Campe placed his pipe upon the table, and stared at the speaker with -frightened eyes. - -“Do you mean----” he began. - -“No,” said Bat, interrupting him, “I _don’t_ mean that. What the inside -of this affair of yours is--the real reason for it all--I don’t know. -But in the outside I am pretty well informed. You are cooped up here -with enemies all about you. Now at a single glance, a fellow wouldn’t -say they were a very dangerous lot; but,” wrinkling his forehead, “I’ve -seen them work a little, and I’ll say for them that they’ve got stuff I -can’t hit; and from all appearances, it’s the same way with you.” - -Here Scanlon paused and took a few pulls at the pipe to assure himself -that the tobacco was still burning. Campe said nothing during the -silence, and the big man took occasion to go on. - -“As you never volunteered anything,” said he, “I didn’t think it was my -place to ask questions. So I’ve watched the thing move along, and all -the time it got tighter and tighter, and sharper and sharper; and now, -to-night, I feel that I can’t draw another full breath until I tell you -what I think, and what you ought to do.” - -“Well?” said Campe. - -“In a civilized community,” said Scanlon, “the first thing a man does, -when pestered as you’re being, is to call in the police. That you’ve -kept so close, both with me and the police, shows that you’ve got a -secret on your hands--something that you’re not anxious to spread -around.” - -“Well?” asked the young man once more. - -“I’m not trying to pry into your affairs,” spoke Scanlon. “I don’t want -to know the object of the parties at the inn. And I’m not advising -you to consult the police, if you think you ought not to do so. But -what I am wanting you to do is to carry your idea regarding me a step -further.” - -“I hardly think I understand you,” said the other, looking at Scanlon -searchingly. - -“You will in a minute,” spoke the big man. “I was called in to help, -wasn’t I? Good! But, willing and all as I was, I wasn’t the right -party. I can handle small matters that are set down plainly for the eye -to see, but what you really want is a man that’s capable of putting the -hook into those that the eye can’t see, and one, at the same time, not -having anything to do with the police.” - -Campe smiled faintly. - -“That is an ideal combination,” said he. “But where is such a person to -be found?” - -“I think,” said Scanlon, “that I could provide such a one if you feel -inclined to talk to him--a fellow who is naturally put together for -getting to the bottom of things. I’ve seen him do one or two stunts -since I’ve known him that were fancy bits of reasoning, and I’ve been -told of some others that made my eyebrows curl.” - -There was a silence of some duration. The young man took up the pipe -once more and relighted it. Finally he spoke. - -“There is no use in my attempting to deny the situation here at -Schwartzberg,” said he, slowly. “I had hoped to keep it hidden, but -the last few days have shown me that such a thing is impossible. Your -judgment that the thing behind it all is one which I hesitate to make -public is correct. At first I wanted to fight it out--alone, but I see -that this, also, cannot be done.” - -He leaned toward Scanlon, his hands upon the edge of the table, -desperation in his eyes. - -“I need help,” he said. “I need it perhaps as badly as it was ever -needed before. For not only is my life in danger, but my sanity as -well.” - -“Tut! tut!” said the big man. “Hold tight! We’ll get you out of this -with everything standing.” - -“That there is some one whom you know--a private person--who has -shown cleverness in entanglements brought to his notice is, perhaps, -fortunate.” The young man looked at Scanlon, his face twitching -nervously. “But I’ll have to give the matter some consideration. I am -not sure that I can take any one into my confidence without doing an -injustice.” - -He got up and stood for some time troubled of face and with the -pinched, hollow look which Scanlon had watched since coming to the -castle. Then he said, simply: - -“I think I’m tired, now Bat, and I’ll go to bed. Somehow,” and his -smile was wan and a little piteous, “I don’t seem as able as I was a -short time ago. This thing has taken some of the snap out of me.” He -shook the big man by the hand, adding, “Thanks, old man, for the way -you’ve taken this thing, and also for the offer regarding your friend. -I’ll turn him over in my mind for a little, and then I’ll tell you just -what I’ve concluded to do.” - -After he had gone Bat sat at the oaken table and smoked. Three times he -refilled the pipe with the reed stem, and three times he knocked out -the ash. Then he also arose to his feet. - -“I think he’s about ripe for a consultation with Kirk,” he told -himself. “And the quicker he makes up his mind to it, the better. For -this little game is getting so close that I’m beginning to feel it -pinch.” - -He yawned widely and started for his room. - -Now, after the way of most big outdoor men, Mr. Scanlon, in his moments -of relaxation, was not at all light footed. Neither was he naturally -given to stealthy ways. But since coming to Schwartzberg he had -acquired both. - -“They have fallen upon me like a couple of garments,” he had -acknowledged to himself more than once. “And I’ve got to going around -as softly as a pair of gum shoes shot through a Maxim silencer.” - -It was in the hall, not far from the head of the stairs, that he -had seen the soft man on the night before; this fact must have been -subconsciously active, for he now slowly lifted his head above the -level of the floor, his eyes, as he did so, glancing swiftly ahead. -Both the hall and the stairway were dim; and before his eye had caught -anything, his ear got a soft step and the gentle closing of a door. - -“The golden Helen,” he said, a moment later, as he caught the outlines -of Miss Knowles. “What now, I wonder?” - -With the light foot and the stealthy manner, Bat had acquired the habit -of suspicion. He had reached the state where every movement which -he did not understand was an occasion for inquiry; each unexplained -sound caused him to prick up his ears. Under ordinary circumstances -the gentle closing of the door and the quiet movements of Miss Knowles -would have passed unnoticed. - -“But these are no ordinary times,” he told himself. “The golden one is -a very busy person, and so, when she goes pit-patting around, there’s -no harm in looking after her.” - -The girl flitted down the hall, and Scanlon quietly followed. But in -the dusk he lost sight of her. Reaching the place where he had last -seen her, he stared around; but nothing but shadows met his eye. - -“Gone into one of the rooms,” said he to himself. “But which, and why?” - -As he could think of nothing to do in the matter, he was turning away; -but just then a thought struck him. At the next turn in the hall was -the staircase leading to the next floor. - -“Suppose she has gone up there?” said he. - -The floor above was not used by any of the members of the household, -though all the rooms were completely furnished and open. Why any one -should go up there Mr. Scanlon could not think. - -“But,” reasoned he, “in Schwartzberg you can never tell. So I’ll climb -the stairs just for luck.” - -He proceeded to do so, not neglecting his light step. The upper hall -was in complete darkness, save for what faint light the windows -admitted, and he stood at the head of the stairs, looking carefully up -and down. After a pause he started along the passage; half-way to its -end he stopped suddenly. - -A dozen steps away was an alcove, about which were some partly drawn -hangings. These stirred gently as though moved by a breeze. - -“A window is open,” said Scanlon, mentally. “And some one is sitting by -it.” - -He remained motionless in the shadow and watched. Yes; some one was -there. A moment or two told him more. - -“I’m sure those are the folds of a white gown,” he told himself. “The -golden Helen is in the alcove. But what’s the idea?” - -Now Mr. Scanlon was quite sure of one thing. And that was that no one -would seek this unusual place and at such an hour without some purpose. -He fancied he caught a glint of a polished surface at those points -where the dim light caught it; then he became aware of a curious shape -which he could not altogether make out. Cautiously he shortened the -distance between himself and the alcove. And now he saw something else. -Between him and the patch of sky which showed through the window was a -series of perpendicular bars--very fine, and very close together. As he -followed these up and down he gradually began to sense the shape of the -other thing which had puzzled him. Then like a flash he got it all. The -thing was a harp--a gilt harp--upon which the faint light was glancing, -and the fine bars between him and the sky were its strings. - -Motionless, Bat stood and looked. The harp! Well, and then what? Firmly -fixed in the back of his mind for some days was the idea that he’d hear -more of the harp before the matter in hand was done. - -“And not in a musical way, either,” was his thought. “That instrument -means something else, and I’ll gamble that, when it comes out, it’ll be -something of interest.” - -Again he stood watching. He had a feeling of movement behind the -hangings; to be sure the breeze stirred them now and then; but it was -not that. - -“It’s the girl,” he said, mentally. “And she’s putting something over. -But what?” - -Across the strings of the harp stole a shadowy hand. Bat listened for -a sound, but none came. Again came the hand, and still again, but no -sound followed. - -“She’s playing,” he told himself. “Playing, and yet the strings are -silent.” - -Amazed, he stood and watched the shadowy flitting, but the strings -were still mute. And then, somehow, there came to the watcher’s mind -the scene on the moonlit hilltop the night before when the invalid sat -mutely in his chair and gazed at Schwartzberg. - -And with this Mr. Scanlon gave it up. As softly as he had come, just -so softly did he go; and when he reached his own room, he said, -bewilderedly: - -“This is what comes of breaking a resolution! I said I’d not try -to reason out any more of these things, but I broke the vow and am -punished. But here, on this spot, I renew it. Come what will, or go -what may, I’m finished!” - -And with that Mr. Scanlon went to bed. - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII - -DEALS MAINLY WITH SOME NEWS FROM MEXICO - - -The next day at Schwartzberg was uneventful. Scanlon saw very little of -Campe, and nothing at all of either of the ladies. Kretz was silent and -in no way interesting. - -Once, about the middle of the afternoon, Bat took a walk along the -river bank, but he saw nothing which caught his attention, and he did -not go far. The remainder of the day he lounged about, smoking and -reading. The day following was even more dull; except for a gallop in -the morning with Campe on a pair of well-conditioned horses, the time -was altogether unprofitable. Then two more days passed, one duller than -the other. - -“Even some light reasoning would be welcome,” complained the big man, -“but there’s nothing new to reason about.” - -Upon the fifth day, having seen nothing of the crime specialist, -Scanlon made up his mind to pay a casual visit to the inn. - -“It may be,” said he, “that he’s just curling up for a sight of me. And -there may be important news to pass on.” - -But he got no sight of the jaundiced man at the hostelry; indeed, there -was no one in view but the round bodied landlord, who laughed at Mr. -Scanlon’s jokes and was as affable as ever. - -Bat tramped back to Schwartzberg in a thoughtful mood. - -“A dead calm,” said he. “Complete and absolute. And not a sail in -sight. But,” with a lift of the eyebrows, “maybe it’s that thing I’ve -so often heard of--the calm before the storm.” - -In the middle of the afternoon the bell at the gate rang, and a little -later Kretz came in with a telegram. - -“For Mr. Scanlon,” said the German. - -The big man tore open the envelope. As he expected, it was from -Ashton-Kirk, and read: - -“‘See me in the city at nine o’clock to-night.’” - -“Anything important?” asked Campe who was watching him. - -“I’m called to the city,” replied Bat. He glanced at a time-table, and -added: “However, I’ll not leave until after dinner.” - -“Back to-morrow?” - -“More than likely.” - -During the time that had passed since his talk with Scanlon as to -the danger which threatened him, Campe had not once recurred to the -subject. But that he bore it well in mind Scanlon was confident. - -“He’s thinking it over,” the big man had concluded. “He’ll come to it -when he’s ready.” - -But the telegram from the special detective was almost an assurance -that Fuller’s report had been received; and if this were so, -Ashton-Kirk would, in all probability, soon be ready to take some step, -no matter what Campe’s attitude. - -At seven-thirty Scanlon entered a train, and an hour later he was in -the city; a taxi took him to Ashton-Kirk’s door, and Stumph showed him -at once to his friend’s study. - -“How are you,” said Ashton-Kirk, as he shook Scanlon, smilingly, by the -hand, “and how did you leave every one at Schwartzberg?” - -“I’m fine,” said Bat. “But there’s not much stirring at the castle. -After one mad outburst of enthusiasm, everything seems to have come to -a stand.” - -The crime specialist nodded. - -“The besieging army has not been very active, then,” said he. “I rather -expected that.” - -“You’d know more about the folks at the inn than I would,” said Bat. “I -went over there yesterday for the first time in days. But no one was -around. When did you leave?” - -“If I had taken the hints the landlord and help gave me,” said -Ashton-Kirk, grimly, “I’d have left the first day. I understand the -statement of the other hotel keeper very well now; you know he told me -that new guests never stayed long at the inn.” - -“They didn’t want you, eh?” Scanlon chuckled. “Well, what could they -do with a perfect stranger around, and all of them up to their ears in -important private business?” - -“But for once, anyhow, they failed,” said the special detective. “I -needed a certain length of time to collect what facts I was after, and -that time I was bound to stay. They did everything short to burn the -place about my ears, but I ignored their efforts and talked about my -liver. I got all the information I wanted by last night, and as Burgess -wired me that Fuller’s report had arrived, I left this morning.” - -“I sort of thought you’d had word from Mexico,” said Bat. “But before -you tell me what it is, maybe I’d better unload my further experiences -as Schwartzberg.” - -“Very well,” agreed the other, quietly. - -Thereupon the big man proceeded to relate all that had befallen him -since seeing the crime specialist upon the river bank in the guise of -a jaundiced man. Ashton-Kirk listened with interest and with narrowed -eyes, and when the other had finished, he rose to his feet. - -“One of the most curious things in all this business of investigation,” -said he, “is the way things have of falling together. At times this is -not only bizarre, but also astounding.” - -“Miss Knowles seems to be a fairly industrious lady, doesn’t she?” said -Bat. “Early and late she’s on the job. I couldn’t get anything out of -the business with the harp, though I’m sure she has a pretty well fixed -purpose; but the little game of the sword was plain enough.” - -The detective made no reply, but took a cigarette from a box upon the -table, lighted it and began pacing the floor. - -“It’s not easy to believe that a woman with a face like Miss Knowles -could put together a little job like that, though,” said Scanlon, also -lighting a cigarette. “If I hadn’t seen the thing working itself out, -I wouldn’t have believed it. And it took some nerve, after she failed -once, to get him out there among the hills so that she could take -another swipe at him.” - -Ashton-Kirk nodded and went on with his smoking and his pacing. - -“But,” said Bat, inquiringly, “why the sword? If she is leagued with -these people to do away with Campe, why isn’t it enough to do it in the -readiest way? Why must it be done with the big blade from the tapestry -room?” - -But the other’s mind seemed to be moving in another channel. - -“This parcel,” said he, “which you saw delivered, and which Miss -Knowles at once took charge of--you are quite sure it contained only -blank paper?” - -“I didn’t see it opened,” replied Bat. “But I saw it repacked, and -that’s all that went back into it.” - -Ashton-Kirk smiled in a dreamy sort of way; the smoke wreathed above -his head and his eyes were half closed. - -“Did you notice,” he asked, “how the package was wrapped?” - -“Just heavy manilla paper,” said Bat, “and tied with a kind of a mixed -coloured string.” - -The dreamy smile deepened; the face of Ashton-Kirk grew out of the -smoke wreaths like a nodding Buddha, so utterly peaceful was it. - -“That’s very interesting,” said he, in a pleased tone. “This little -matter of yours shows more and more quality with every step.” He paced -up and down the floor, still smoking and still with the smile upon his -face. “And it was after the receipt of this parcel that the sword was -missed from its place upon the wall?” - -“It was,” answered Bat, staring. “But look here! You seem to be -connecting these two things; for my part, I can’t see them even near to -each other.” - -“To-morrow, perhaps,” said Ashton-Kirk, “we’ll take a few moments -to explain things. Just now, however, there is work to do of a more -serious nature.” - -He went to a cabinet and opening a drawer took out some typed sheets. - -“Fuller telegraphed his report in a private cipher,” said he, “and -this is the translation. He was rather fortunate in the matter, for -one of his first queries put him upon the track of exactly the people -he was after--those who knew young Campe’s father both privately and -as a business man, who were Americans and were willing to talk. Within -twenty-four hours he had these facts,” tapping the sheets, “on the -wire.” - -He then read: - - “‘The Campes in Mexico seem to have been a family that held the - respect and good will of the community. Their business dealings were - always carried on on a high plane, and they were personally affable - and easily approached. For years success marked all their ventures; - their undertakings brought rich returns and seemed constantly - increasing. - - “‘The house was seldom for very long out of the public eye. However, - about five years ago, there came a lull in their doings. Their - ventures were few; and in the completion of some large contracts they - were known to have borrowed money. - - “‘This lull continued for about the space of a year, and seemed to - grow more and more pronounced. The public was unaware of anything - wrong, but those on the inside knew that the Campes had lost a very - great deal of money; and as time passed it was a question as to - whether they would recover or no. - - “‘But, suddenly, recover they did, and brilliantly. Some of their - copper holdings developed amazingly, and in a short time they were - going along at their usual winning pace, just as though nothing had - ever happened. During this commercial halt, if I may so call it, I - find there was also a sort of social one. And as you asked me to pay - special attention to the friends of the head of the house, I looked - into their social sagging with a good deal of interest. - - “‘In its efforts to regain its financial footing during the time of - depression, the house of Campe dealt with people with whom it would - have hesitated to associate itself in days more flush. Also it made - acquaintances, possibly through these dealings, with people who were - entirely unknown in those circles in which the family had always - moved. One of these in particular was a man named Alva, who had once - been a professor of physics at Chapultepec. He was, I understand, a - peculiar sort of person, a cripple, who made a boast of his Indian - ancestry. Alva bore a bad reputation, and was considered wonderfully - clever in many ways. There was another of these new-made friends--an - American--named Evans, a fat, smooth individual----’” - -“Hello!” exclaimed Mr. Scanlon, in recognition, “do I once more meet my -friend of the covered bridge?” - - “‘This American,’” continued Ashton-Kirk, his eyes still upon the - sheets, “‘is known to have been in various sorts of trouble in - Honduras and Guatemala; but just what these offences were I have not - been able to learn. However, the Guatemalan Minister of Police of the - period in which these things took place is now that country’s Minister - at Washington; something might be learned from him. During the period - of the Campe family’s depression, Frederic Campe, father to the - Frederic now in the United States, was quite intimate with both Alva - and Evans. They were received frequently at his house and, apparently, - highly esteemed. But when the financial turn came, this intimacy grew - less apparent; finally it ceased altogether. It was probably a year - after this that Frederic Campe met his death on board his yacht.’” - -The special detective laid the sheets upon the table, and looked at -Scanlon. - -“Well,” he asked, “what do you think?” - -“To me,” replied that gentleman, “it looks as though you’d hit the -thing fair on the point that last day I was here. Some kind of an -understanding was had with this man Alva and the other fellow, Evans. -But the elder Campe broke it off after he got flush again; they hung on -and kept insisting on his doing whatever it was that he’d promised to -do. He refused, and they finally got him.” - -The detective laughed. - -“Good!” said he. “My theory as to what might possibly have happened and -Fuller’s report you’ve put together very well indeed.” - -“But,” ventured Scanlon, “though it might be clever enough, this -guessing at things won’t get us anything unless we carry it further.” -He looked at the crime specialist inquiringly. “What do you think we’d -better do next?” - -Ashton-Kirk pressed one of the series of call bells, then he lighted -another cigarette. - -“I’d like to have just a little more information about this man Alva,” -said he. “He interests me immensely. Atavism is one of the most -curious and fascinating things in the world,” he continued, as he -rested against one corner of the table, his singular eyes upon the big -man. “One never knows when to expect it, and it sometimes takes the -most peculiar of forms. A strain of blood, a physical peculiarity will -suddenly appear after an absence of generations, and----” - -Here there came a knock upon the door, and a small compactly built man -entered the room. - -“Burgess,” spoke the crime specialist, “early in the morning go down to -Parker’s and borrow a surveying outfit--a complete one--tell him not to -miss anything, and also to tell you how they’re used.” - -“Enough to go through the motions?” said the compact man with a grin. - -“Exactly. Then take O’Neil and go out on the first train you can get to -Marlowe Furnace. Find a place called Schwartzberg up along the river on -the west bank, and about a mile above the station. Make that the centre -of your movements for the day; don’t get out of hearing of the usual -signal, and when you do hear it make for the house at once.” - -Burgess nodded. - -“Right,” said he. “And all the time we are hanging around we’ll be busy -laying off the land with the surveyor’s stuff, eh?” - -“Yes,” replied Ashton-Kirk. - -“Anything else?” asked the man. - -“No.” - -Burgess nodded and took his departure. - -Ashton-Kirk, in spite of the fact that he had talked freely upon -certain points of the case with Scanlon, had said little or nothing as -to his movements in the immediate future. - -Nevertheless there was something in the air of the study which seemed -to promise action--sharp, light-producing action--and the big man was -pleased. - -“You seem to be getting ready for a little something,” spoke Mr. -Scanlon. - -The other smiled. - -“To-morrow, more than likely, will be a busy day,” said he, “and it’s -always best to prepare for such a little ahead.” - -“What do you expect to happen?” asked Mr. Scanlon, curiously. - -“Anything. But one thing will almost surely take place. And that is: -the Campe matter will be solved for good and all.” - - - - -CHAPTER XIX - -IN WHICH ASHTON-KIRK PAYS HIS SECOND VISIT TO SCHWARTZBERG - - -Scanlon was not at all an impatient man, but the length of time -consumed by Ashton-Kirk next morning over his toilet and his breakfast -rather put him on edge. - -“I like to see a man fussy about his appearance,” said he to himself. -“It’s a sign that he’s in health. Breakfast is also a good sign. The -fellow that can cheerfully face his morning meal is usually all right -inside. But both things can be carried to extremes. When there’s -pressing matters to be carried through what matter how you look; when -a puzzle of weeks’ standing is about to turn over on its edge and give -a last kick, a chop, an egg and a roll shouldn’t be the things to -interfere with its doing.” - -But though the big man was in a highly excited state, Ashton-Kirk was -as calm as an August afternoon. He smoked a good-sized cigar after -breakfast and read the newspapers. To the amazement of Mr. Scanlon he -even showed interest in such things as the tariff, the building of a -new cup defender, and the international aspect of canal tolls. - -However, at about ten o’clock a long telegram came; when he read this -his inactivity ceased; at once he rang for his car, and when it arrived -he and the big man got in. It was a brisk, sunny November day, and -they sped through the city streets and finally into the country roads -with that smoothness and ease possible to the modern automobile. They -flashed by the little station at Marlowe Furnace and across the covered -bridge; then, as they climbed the first hill on the west bank they -sighted the towers of Schwartzberg. - -“And also two very industrious surveyors,” said Ashton-Kirk, his keen -eye picking out two small figures in the distance, who appeared deeply -absorbed in the measuring of some land. - -Mr. Scanlon was pleased with the whole idea, and said so. - -“It may be,” said he, “that we’ll need a little help. And this is about -as good a way to have a couple of willing lads hanging around as a -fellow could think of.” - -Sergeant-Major Kretz was upon the wall; when the car drew up at the -gate he scrambled down inside. A moment or two later the gate was -opened, and Campe, much surprised, made his appearance. - -“Back again,” said the big man, cheerfully, as he got out, followed by -the investigator. “Everything all right?” - -“Everything,” replied the young man. He shook hands with Ashton-Kirk, -and added: “I’m very glad to see you again.” - -Scanlon looked about. There was no one within ear-shot, so he remarked: - -“You didn’t say anything further about that matter we talked about the -other night, so I thought I’d help you make up your mind by bringing my -friend to see you.” - -If he expected young Campe to show surprise at hearing that -Ashton-Kirk was the person mentioned in that conversation, Scanlon was -disappointed. The young man merely said, quietly: - -“It was rather a difficult thing to solve for myself. I’m glad that -you’ve done it for me.” Then addressing the special detective, he -added: “Will you come in?” - -The car was driven into the courtyard; then the two men followed Campe -into the house. When they had seated themselves at a table in one -corner of the trophy-hung room, Ashton-Kirk said: - -“It is always more or less presumptuous to interfere in the private -affairs of another. However, there are times, and all persons of -experience have encountered them, when this does not hold good. A man -occasionally gets into such deep water that he is helpless; at the same -time there may be reasons, as I understand there are in your case, -which may prevent his asking for help.” - -Young Campe regarded the speaker attentively. - -“Well?” said he. - -The long fingers of Ashton-Kirk pattered upon the edge of the table; he -met the gaze of the other with steady eye. - -“In such cases,” said he, “comparison usually figures very strongly. -Some danger threatens a man. But he fears to appeal for help. Why? -Because the thing which threatens is as nothing compared with another -thing which a call for help might expose.” - -Scanlon saw the peaked face of young Campe twitch, but the intent look -never left his eyes. - -“What more?” asked he. - -“And yet it may be,” said Ashton-Kirk, “that this hidden thing may be -none of the endangered person’s doing. A demand may be made upon him by -those threatening him, which he may be unable to meet.” - -“Well?” said the young man again, and Scanlon noticed that his voice -trembled a little. - -“Suppose,” said the crime specialist, “a wealthy family fell into hard -days. Suppose the head of that family, in a moment of weakness, allowed -himself to be approached by--well, we’ll say--a criminal organization. -Let us further suppose that after he had gone into a shady matter -pretty deeply, his position suddenly and legitimately mended, and in -consequence he washed his hands of all crooked dealing.” - -“Go on,” said young Campe, and his face was pale as death. - -“Again let us suppose,” continued Ashton-Kirk, calmly, “that in so -leaving the councils of the criminals he took with him something -vitally necessary to their success. They demanded it of him; he -refused; and, to still further suppose, we’ll say that one morning a -yacht called the _Conquistador_ was blown into----” - -Here the young master of Schwartzberg came to his feet; his eyes -gleamed like those of an insane person, and his voice was husky and -broken. - -“What do you know?” he asked. - -“I think,” replied Ashton-Kirk, quietly, “I have a fair idea as to what -_has_ happened in Mexico, and what _is_ happening here. And if you care -to have me proceed in the matter, and will lend me what assistance I -need, there is a good chance that by this time to-morrow you will have -left all your fears and worries behind you.” - -For a moment the young man sat staring; then he reached forward one -shaking hand and laid it upon the speaker’s arm. - -“Sir,” said he, “if you can do that, you will have saved me from death -or from the madhouse.” - -Ashton-Kirk placed his hand upon that of Campe. - -“Consider it done then,” said he quietly. “Scanlon has told you, -perhaps, that I have some small talent in matters of this sort. And I -think,” nodding and smiling, “I see a fairly open field before me.” - -Bat looked impressively at the master of the castle. - -“He’s had this thing cooking only since the day I first brought him -here,” said he. “But he’s got a fire under it as hot as a lower berth -in Hades. And so if he says he’ll serve it to-day, all done, believe -him. For he’s just the kind of a fellow to do it.” - -“Mr. Ashton-Kirk’s first visit here was not all chance then,” said -Campe. - -“Not quite,” returned Bat, unblushingly. “You see, along about the time -of that visit I had got it fixed fast in my mind that everything was -not just what it ought to be around here; and as I didn’t think myself -man enough for the job, I took a day off and got Kirk.” - -“Thank you,” said Campe. “I felt all along that something of the sort -would be the best thing I could do, but I never quite got up the -courage to take the step. If there had been myself only to think of,” -and his glance went from the big man to Ashton-Kirk, “I might have done -it. But there was some one else, and that is what stopped me.” - -Now, however, that the time for action seemed to have arrived, there -was a stain of colour in his cheeks, his hand grew steadier, and a look -of purpose came into his eyes. - -“You spoke of my giving you assistance,” said he to the crime -specialist. “Give it a name; I am ready.” - -“Good!” said Ashton-Kirk, satisfaction in his voice. “Then we’ll begin -at once.” He went to a window and looked out into the courtyard where -the warm sun flooded the stones. “It’s a beautiful day,” said he. Then: -“You have no car here, Mr. Campe?” - -“No, we have no use for one, as we seldom go any distance.” - -“A run will be a novelty. Take my car. Also my driver, and both Miss -Knowles and your aunt.” - -Campe looked at him questioningly. - -“I went over the house some days ago,” said Ashton-Kirk, calmly, -meeting the look, “and I should like to go over it again--in my own -way.” - -There was a little space of silence; once Scanlon thought the young man -was about to refuse. But when he spoke, “Very well,” he said. - -“As the country round about is a fine one, and you have not done it -before, don’t be in a hurry to return,” spoke the special detective. -“Take plenty of time. And say nothing to the ladies as to why I am -here. We don’t want to startle them, you know.” - -“I will say nothing,” said young Campe, and then he left the room. - -The next half hour was spent by Ashton-Kirk in smoking and talking with -Scanlon upon almost every other subject than the matter in hand. Then -Campe returned, and with him were Miss Hohenlo and Miss Knowles. - -The former was all on a flutter, but the younger woman, so Scanlon -noticed, was eager-eyed and watchful. - -“She knows that something’s doing,” observed Bat to himself. “And she’s -wondering just what it is.” - -“It’s so very kind of you, Mr. Ashton-Kirk, to come again so soon,” -said Miss Hohenlo, girlishly. “It will do Frederic such a great deal -of good to get his mind into some fresh matters. He’s been so very -downcast of late; and I’m quite sure that interesting himself in Count -Hohenlo’s life and times will benefit him greatly.” - -“And it’s so kind of you to put your car at our service,” said Miss -Knowles. “We go out so little since we came to Schwartzberg. Frederic -came swooping into the room just now with the news, and we were as -delighted as children.” Her eyes went to Scanlon, and then back to the -crime specialist. “But,” she suggested, “won’t you find it very dull -here while we are gone?” - -“Quite the contrary,” replied Ashton-Kirk. “There are many things in -which I can interest myself.” - -“There are some of the Count’s journals in the library,” said Miss -Hohenlo. “Please don’t overlook them. His views upon his time are quite -charming.” - -“Quite,” said the tall Miss Knowles. “I’ve read one or two of -them--charming, leisurely things, in the most beautiful handwriting.” - -“The Count knew so many wonderful people,” said Miss Hohenlo. “His -anecdotes of them are so striking and so characteristic. It was a day -when personal quality told in one’s favour. Nowadays people are so -hopelessly alike.” - -Ashton-Kirk smiled. “Don’t you think they only appear to be so?” said -he. - -But Miss Hohenlo shook her head. - -“No,” she said, “I am quite sure that as time goes on, people grow more -and more alike. We live in such crowds, you see, there is very little -opportunity for us to be different.” - -“In the Count’s day, dress had so much to do with the impression -one made,” said the special detective. “Many a man has won fame by -introducing a new periwig, or had himself talked about in the coffee -houses for months because of an elaboration of the buckles of his -shoes.” - -When the car containing the two women and young Campe rolled through -the gateway and the gate closed behind them, Scanlon looked at -Ashton-Kirk. - -“Well,” said he, “where do we begin?” - - - - -CHAPTER XX - -TELLS HOW ASHTON-KIRK POINTED OUT CERTAIN MATTERS OF INTEREST - - -As Ashton-Kirk was about to reply to his friend’s question, the door -opened and Kretz came into the room. He saluted stiffly. - -“Herr Campe,” said he, “told me to come to you. He said you would speak -to me.” - -“Did he say anything more?” - -“He told me to obey your orders.” - -Ashton-Kirk nodded. - -“Good!” said he. “Well, sergeant, I have a bit of work to do about the -castle, and Mr. Scanlon is to be my guide.” - -With not a vestige of expression upon his granite-like face, the -sergeant-major again saluted. - -“Now,” went on Ashton-Kirk, “I expect to be engaged for an hour or -more. Keep watch at the gate, if any one approaches--any one, mind -you--report to me before you admit him.” - -Kretz nodded stiffly and departed; and then Ashton-Kirk turned to -Scanlon. - -“Are your nails still in the door to the vaults?” - -“They are,” replied Scanlon, proudly. “Up to their heads, and holding -like grim death.” - -“Get a tool of some sort. We’ll have to draw them.” - -With a claw hammer Scanlon pulled the nails without much difficulty. -Then the two descended into the regions below. Ashton-Kirk carried an -electric torch, which shot a small, searching column of light ahead -through the gloom. - -“It beats a lamp or a lantern,” said Bat, his mind going back to the -morning upon which their visit to the cellars was greeted with a volley -of shots. “If there are any volatile parties hanging around, they can’t -get such a fair slam at us.” - -The rays of the torch danced along the floor, the ceiling, the walls -and into corners. Satisfied that there were no prowlers in the vaults, -the light ceased its erratic flashing; it now became intent, and fixed -itself upon some small spaces for quite long periods of time. - -“Again the floor seems to attract him,” thought the big man. -“Footprints and such.” - -But the crime specialist seemed annoyed. - -“There has been a great deal of tramping up and down by all of us,” -said he. “Quite a number of very definite impressions are to be found -in the dust, but----” he stopped suddenly, the beam of light held to a -place in the floor, fixedly, and his breath drew in with a sharpness -that told of a discovery. - -“What is it?” asked Bat, anxiously. - -“Look!” - -The crime specialist pointed to what appeared to be a long streak -in the dust upon the vault floor. It was broken here and there by -footmarks, but seemed to continue for some distance outside the radius -of the light. - -“I see it,” said Bat, mildly. “But what is it?” - -“Here is another just like it,” spoke Ashton-Kirk, “and running the -same way. And there is still another, but not so heavy, between the -other two.” - -Sure enough, as Bat looked, he saw two deeply marked streaks, with -a third not so pronounced between them; they held their relative -positions and ran away in the same direction as far as his eye could -follow. - -“I get the three of them,” said Mr. Scanlon. “And once again I ask for -the answer.” - -“It looks,” and the glow of the torch began to follow the course of the -lines, “as though our friend Alva, from the inn, had been here.” - -“It’s got through,” said Bat, tapping his head dolefully. “It’s got -through at last. These marks were made by the wheels of his chair--two -big ones outside, and one small one in the middle.” There was a silence -as the eyes of the big man followed the spreading rays of the torch. -“Alva, you know, promised to drop in some time,” continued Bat. “And I -can see that he’s a man of his word.” - -The detective followed the wheel marks; they led directly across the -vault to the east wall. - -“Right slam into it,” spoke Mr. Scanlon from the darkness of a half -dozen yards away. “Looks like they had an accident on the line.” - -But Ashton-Kirk did not hear; he was too intent upon what was before -him. Up the wall crept the shaft of light, and about four feet above -the floor it rested upon a heavy iron ring. - -“Hello,” said Scanlon, approaching and staring at the ring with -interest. “Was it here that they chained the unhappy captive in the -days of old?” - -Ashton-Kirk examined the ring keenly; then the rays of the torch -flashed over the wall, all about it. As it approached the floor once -more he suddenly exclaimed: “Ah!” And down he went on his knees in the -dust. - -Scanlon, bending forward, saw a place at the edge of a great block of -stone where a thick, greenish fluid had apparently oozed through. - -“From the river, I guess,” he said. “We’re pretty close to it, you -know.” - -Ashton-Kirk touched the fluid with a finger tip; then he held out his -hand toward his friend. - -“Is the odour at all familiar?” he asked. - -Scanlon sniffed, gingerly. - -“By George!” exclaimed he. “Crude oil.” He stared at the other. “What’s -it doing here?” - -Ashton-Kirk arose to his feet. - -“Take hold of the ring,” directed he. Bat did so. “Now pull.” - -As Scanlon put his weight to the pull, he felt something give; to his -astonishment the whole mass of stone before him turned smoothly upon an -invisible pivot; before him was a dark opening bricked, and extending -apparently for a long distance underground. For a moment or two Bat was -too dumbfounded to speak, but at length he thrust his hands deep into -his pocket and said: - -“Well, I’ve read about them, and I’ve heard about them, but this is the -first I ever saw.” The torch lighted up the passage for some distance, -and as the big man peered into it, he went on: “It’s all properly -mouldy, and it’s got the water trickling between the bricks, the damp -patches and the fungus, just as Sylvanus Cobb and the others used to -write about.” - -But, underneath the astonishment, his mind had apparently been moving, -for he went on in another tone: - -“The crude oil was put on the working parts by the fellows at the inn -when they found that the stone didn’t move smoothly. And now,” turning -upon Ashton-Kirk, “I am wise to all the interest that’s been taken in -the river bank of late. This passage opens somewhere on the bank, and I -was the only one that didn’t know it.” - -But Ashton-Kirk shook his head. - -“I didn’t _know_ it,” said he. “But I _did_ suspect. The fact that -certain persons gained entrance to the cellar whenever they felt -disposed to do so pointed very strongly to the existence of just such -a passage as this. That it did not appear in the plan of the castle of -which Kretz spoke meant nothing; such things are never shown in plans. -My attention was attracted toward the river bank as a possible place -for the passage’s outlet, because Schwartzberg is near the bank, and -it has always been a custom to have such secret ways lead down to the -brinks of rivers wherever possible. A river, I suppose, suggested a way -of escape.” - -As the crime specialist ceased speaking, he entered the passage, and -Scanlon followed. It was almost circular in shape, and the big man -could walk without bending his head. - -“Fortunately for the builder, the stone through which the cut was made -was soft, as I showed you the other day,” said Ashton-Kirk. “If it had -been good solid granite, I think Schwartzberg would have been left -without its secret way.” - -At the far end of the tunnel daylight filtered in between some faded -tangled growth. A heap of stones, cement clinging to them, lay in the -way. - -“The tunnel was sealed,” said Ashton-Kirk, “and when the criminals laid -siege to the castle they broke it open.” - -Bat Scanlon protruded his head; in a few moments he drew it back. - -“No wonder no one ever got wise to this,” said he. “It opens right -under that big rock that hangs over the water; and the water runs -directly underneath. They must have had some little time getting the -man of the chair in, unless they have a boat.” - -After they had looked about interestedly for a while, they left the -tunnel, and closed the massive stone door. Ashton-Kirk then picked up -the wheel tracks with the torch rays, and this time he followed them in -the opposite direction. - -“Trying to find out what the crippled party was up to,” Bat told -himself. “Well, it must have been something important, seeing as he -went to such a lot of trouble to get here.” - -Here and there went the special detective, his keen eyes following the -wheel marks. Alva, so it seemed, had been rolled to all parts of the -vaults, and the track was, to Scanlon’s notion, hopelessly tangled. But -Ashton-Kirk seemed to see much that was interesting and of consequence; -at length, however, he straightened up, stretched the tightness which -the stooping posture had produced out of his back and shoulders, and -smiled at his companion in a way that spoke of much satisfaction. - -“Our friends were here quite recently,” he said. “In fact, I will -venture to say that they were here last night, and, perhaps, upon -each of the preceding nights. All the indications speak of acute -interest--and failure.” - -“Failure!” said Scanlon. “In what?” - -Ashton-Kirk smiled once more. - -“In what they came for,” said he. “And--having failed--they will come -again.” - -His interest in the vaults seemed to have exhausted itself; and so he -ascended to the first floor with Bat at his heels. After making the -door fast, the big man asked: - -“Well, where do we give the next look? In the room where the tapestries -are?” - -“Ah! You have not forgotten the tapestries!” The crime specialist’s -eyes snapped. “I never saw finer. Campe has a prize in them, indeed.” - -“The tapestries are fine--for those folks who are strong for them,” -admitted Bat. “But there are other things in that room that would get -me quicker than they would.” - -“As your interest is so keen,” smiled Ashton-Kirk, “we may as well take -the tapestry room first. Who knows what interests we may uncover there?” - -Scanlon led the way upstairs and pushed open the door of the room in -question. The sun shone in; the painting, the carvings, the tapestry, -the rare rugs and furniture showed to wonderful advantage. - -“They’ve got it a step or two ahead of me,” admitted Mr. Scanlon, “but -for all that, I’ll say it’s some room. Class from every angle.” - -The harp stood, muffled, near a window, and the big man was gratified -to see Ashton-Kirk go directly to it and strip off the cover. - -“The harp,” said Bat, “is an emblem of Erin, and I have nothing against -it. But there is something about this particular one that I don’t like, -for every time I look at it I feel it’s got something on me.” - -Ashton-Kirk examined the instrument with much attention; there was a -pleased look upon his face; his singular eyes shone with interest; and -now and then he uttered a low exclamation. His fingers ran over the -strings. Then, at length, he stepped back and stood nodding and smiling. - -“That,” said he, “is exceedingly clever. As a matter of fact I don’t -know when I’ve encountered anything more ingenious.” - -“Eh?” said Scanlon, blankly. - -But the crime specialist did not seem to hear him, and then, before Bat -could ask a question, he had turned away and was glancing interestedly -about the room once more. - -“There’s the sword,” said Bat, desirous that this important feature in -the doings about Schwartzberg should not be overlooked. - -“Ah, yes.” The other nodded and glanced at the huge weapon with -appraising eyes. “A very powerful arm. The Hohenlo who carried it at -Milan was a person capable of giving good service, no doubt.” - -But after one glance the speaker turned away; evidently it was not -the sword he was looking for. His keen eyes, wandering about, went -from object to object; then a small, beautifully fashioned desk caught -his glance, and he went to it. First one drawer and then another was -opened; they held stationery, letters apparently awaiting answers, -small bills and other matters. At length Bat, who was absorbed in -watching the turning out of the desk, gave an exclamation. - -“Hello!” said he. “There we are.” - -He pointed to some neatly tied packets in the bottom of a drawer. - -“They are the things--the rolls of blank paper I saw Miss Knowles -looking at in the storage room,” said he. - -Ashton-Kirk took up one of the packets and untied it. Very carelessly, -as Scanlon thought, he ran over the sheets; then he tossed them back -in the drawer. - -“I think,” said the crime specialist, after a moment, “that we have -seen about all we want to see for a space. Inside, that is. But outside -there may be one or two little matters which it would be well to pick -up.” He was about to turn away from the desk; then pausing, he reopened -one of the drawers and took out a tangled mass of strings which lay in -the bottom of it. “Put these in your pocket,” said he, handing them to -Scanlon. “We may need them to tie something together.” - -Reluctantly Bat left the house with him, and glumly passed through the -gate which Kretz held open. - -“Of course,” said he, to himself, “it’s not for me to kick. But it does -seem to me that the place to get the good going over is the house. And -here we haven’t done any more than look at a few corners of it.” - -It was now considerably past noon; the sun was warm and the brown -hills, with here and there a patch of vivid green, stretched away to -the south, the west and the north. To the east the river slipped by -smoothly, and toward the river Ashton-Kirk turned his steps. He paused -upon an overhanging mass of rock and looked over its edge. - -“It’s under this, I think, that we found the opening to the secret way.” - -“Yes,” replied Bat. - -After studying the situation for a little, the special detective moved -on. He held to the river banks for the better part of a mile; then he -paused. - -“Just a moment,” said he to Scanlon. He left the path and sprang down -the bank; plunging into a tangle of shrivelled vines and small trees -he disappeared for a few moments, and when he reappeared his face wore -a satisfied look. - -“Now, then,” said he, cheerfully, “we’ll take a brisk little walk -across country. And at the end of it I may be able to show you -something that will surprise you.” - -So away they went, up-hill and down-hill, and Scanlon noted that their -way was taking them in the general direction of the inn. - -“Your life in the West,” said Ashton-Kirk, after a period of silence, -“must have made you acquainted with the various Indian tribes.” - -“A good many. I’ve eaten with Pawnees, and hunted with Crows; I’ve -broke horses with the Cheyennes, when I was a youngster, and I’ve -fought the Sioux and the Apache. Another man and I once put in a season -with the Navajos; and one time again, I had a party of Blackfeet chase -me through about a hundred miles of mountain, with never a stop.” - -“The Navajos are an interesting tribe,” said the crime specialist. -“Their fabrics and their pottery are picturesque and not without beauty -of design and form.” He was silent for another space, and then asked: -“You are not acquainted with any of the tribes further south?” - -“None across the border,” said Bat. - -“Mexico has some races of interesting savages. Her hill people are -hardy and independent, and they’ve never been subdued.” - -“I’ve heard of them,” replied Bat. - -“But ancient Mexico possessed still more noteworthy people. Humboldt, -Vater and others who have studied their remains have written very -interestingly of them. Auahuac was the ancient name of Mexico, and the -first known race to occupy the land was the Quinome.” - -“Some time ago!” remarked Mr. Scanlon, as they strode along. “Before -even friend Columbus had a chance to hang up his name.” - -“Yes,” replied Ashton-Kirk. “But just how long the Quinomes remained it -is not known, for a number of wandering tribes seemed to have entered -afterward, paused and then took up their way once more. Afterward the -Toltecs came from the west--later more tribes, to the number of seven, -one of whom was the Aztec.” - -“I’ve heard of them,” said Scanlon. “Rather queer looking old scouts; -had heads flattened in front, and----” but he paused, his eyes going to -Ashton-Kirk in a curious look. Then he pursed up his mouth, and began -to whistle softly. - -The crime specialist’s head was bent, and he stabbed at the stubble and -the brown weeds with his stick; there was an expression upon his face -that told of one deep in speculation. - -“The Aztecs, as you suggest, were not a physically beautiful people. -And their civilisation was as deformed as their persons.” There was -a halt as they breasted a hill; then he proceeded: “It has come down -as a sort of tradition that Cortez, when he burned his ships, marched -against a people of mild nature and advanced culture. Nothing could -be more erroneous. They were a savage race who had conquered their -neighbours by superior brutality; their intelligence was inferior to -the North American Indian of the same time; it is true that they had a -written language, but their character was greatly inferior to that of -the Hindoos and other peoples.” - -“A popular lecture,” was Mr. Scanlon’s mental observation. “But it -seems to me it’s going to land somewhere.” - -“The Aztecs made no roads,” said Ashton-Kirk, lifting his head and -looking about as though searching for a given spot; “and they had no -domestic animals. Both these things speak strongly against them. But -the most fearsome thing about them was their religion.” - -He paused in a place between two small hills; in the ground was a -bowl-shaped hollow. Scanlon looked at this and at the surroundings with -interest. - -“Some days ago I had occasion to speak to you of the theory of Gall, -the Antwerp empiric, as to the skull and the brain and their effects, -one upon the other. It was the custom of the Aztecs to flatten the -heads of their children by continued pressure; this resulted, finally, -in the altering of their skulls as a people. And who knows what effect -this deformity had upon their inclinations. The horrors of their -religious observances may, perhaps, be traced to it altogether.” - -“Like as not,” admitted Mr. Scanlon. - -The crime specialist kicked away some brush which lay beside a log -near by, and in this way he disclosed a huge bundle of something like -parchment. With Scanlon’s help he unrolled it; it was made up of a -number of prepared sheepskins, and to the edges ropes were attached. - -“Ha!” said Bat, as he looked at it. - -“Suppose we were to throw this over the hollow which you see here; then -suppose we were to draw it taut with the ropes after having passed them -around stakes--taut and tauter still until the skins will stretch no -more.” Ashton-Kirk looked at the big man inquiringly. “What should we -have?” - -“A drum!” cried Bat. “An immense drum!” He returned the look of the -other, adding, with wonder: “And it’s a drum we’ve heard roaring in the -night.” - -“Right,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“You knew it was here,” said Scanlon. - -“Yes. I came upon it after a little search one day while prowling -about in the guise of a man with a disobedient liver.” He regarded the -drumhead in silence for a while, and then went on: - -“The Aztecs’ places of worship were shaped like pyramids, and were -composed of terraces, one above the other. Here their terrible war god, -Huitzilopochtli, was propitiated by human sacrifice. A great drum was -beaten, notifying all in the city that an offering was to be made. The -pinioned victim was thrown face upward across the sacrificial stone, -which was green in colour and with a humped up place which fitted into -the small of his back; with a blow of a great keen blade his body was -laid open.” - -The breath caught in the big man’s throat. - -“No!” said he, his wide open eyes upon the other’s face. “No!” - -He continued to stare, and, slowly, what he had just heard began to -form in his mind. - -“The stone,” said he, “green, and with a hump on it! The roaring of a -great drum! A cut down the front!” His hand closed upon Ashton-Kirk’s -arm. “I’ve seen and heard things like these, and I know a man with a -flattened skull. But what’s the answer?” - -“The greater part of the Mexican population is mixed with Indian -blood,” said the crime specialist. “And one of the most curious studies -I know of is the atavistic tendency--that is, the tendency to recur -to an ancestral type or deformity. A thing may lie dormant in ten -generations of men or animals, and then suddenly assert itself in all -its fullness.” - -“You think, then----” began Scanlon. - -“That the man in the rolling chair, Alva, is a ‘throwback’; that his -deformed head is an assertation of the old Aztec strain; that if this -deformity had anything to do with the fiendish character of the Aztecs, -it might naturally be supposed that it has had some effect upon him.” - -“I think I get you,” said Bat Scanlon, slowly. “Check me off, and see -if I’m right. This fellow, Alva, is the leader of the party at the -inn. He’s done for three of the Campe family already, and is reaching -for a fourth. The answer to this, so you tell me, is that his Indian -ancestors loved blood spilling, and that the thing’s broke out in him.” - -“That’s a part of the answer. It was only after failing in something -else, remember, that the murder mania took possession of him. And -boasting of his Indian ancestry, as Fuller reports, it is not at all -strange that his murderous tendency should find vent in the ancient -form.” - -Bat nodded. - -“But why all the frills? Why this?” touching the drumhead with the toe -of his shoe. “Why the execution stone?” - -“All part of a system for terrorizing Campe. And you’ve seen how it -succeeded. They knew he would understand; through fear of the death -which overtook his father, his uncle and his brother, they hoped to -bring him to some sort of terms.” - -“I see,” said the big man. He stood in silence for a time, apparently -digesting what he’d heard; then he asked, curiously: “But how did you -drop to all this? How did you begin? How did you work it out?” - -“My starting point,” said Ashton-Kirk, “was when you told me the -landlord had had the inn only a short time. I knew that if there was a -band working on the Campe affair they would have headquarters in the -neighbourhood; and what you said looked promising.” - -“That’s why you wanted to go there before you tried anything else,” -said Mr. Scanlon. - -The crime specialist nodded. - -“As I told you, the atmosphere of the inn struck me unfavourably as -soon as I had a chance to feel it. I got the impression that there was -an understanding between the people we saw there; and then it occurred -to me that they were fakes; with the exception of Alva there wasn’t a -genuine invalid in the lot.” - -“The man with the cough is a fairly lively person,” said Bat. - -“The idea of this,” said Ashton-Kirk, “was that as invalids they would -escape attention; it would form a reason for their being at the inn; -and so far as Marlowe Furnace and the country round about is concerned, -they were successful.” - -“Count me among the simpletons,” said Bat. “I didn’t fall until they -fell on me.” - -“You recall that we heard the voice of Alva that night, off stage, so -to speak, and lifted very high. I at once felt that this was the voice -of authority, and I was curious to see him. The Indian who pushed his -chair first attracted my attention when they came in. I knew he was -not a North American; this, and the fact that the Campe trouble had its -beginning in Mexico, must have started my mind on its course. I had, -also, the rolling of the drum and the green stone stored in the back of -my memory; and when I saw the peculiar indications of Alva’s skull I -felt interested enough to get a less obstructed look.” - -“Then your knocking those wrappings from off his head wasn’t an -accident after all.” - -“A little subterfuge,” smiled Ashton-Kirk. “And a moment after seeing -it I had the skull, the rolling sound, the green stone and Mexico all -revolving in my mind. Before I slept that night I had them associated. -When I got you to leave the road next morning and cut across country -toward the castle, it was because I saw the wheel marks of Alva’s chair -leave it at the same place; and I was curious to see where he had gone -the night before.” - -“And this thing which made you send Fuller to Mexico next day--how did -you get that?” - -“It was a theory, built up around what I had already seen.” - -Here the crime specialist looked at his watch. - -“Do you know,” said he, surprised, “that it’s three o’clock, and I -shouldn’t wonder if the touring party had returned.” - -They turned and slowly began the tramp over the hills toward -Schwartzberg. - -The afternoon sun lay warm and red on the western slopes of the hills, -and where it fell upon the walls of the castle it had a peculiar effect. - -“Even is broad day, Schwartzberg is no easy place for me,” said -Scanlon, his eyes upon the grey pile. - -“How is that?” asked the special detective. - -“It must be,” said the big man in reply, “that the things that have -happened in and about the castle have so coloured my feelings towards -it that I can see it only in one way.” - -“And that is----” - -“A place of peril,” answered Scanlon, soberly. “A place where danger is -always waiting to reach out its hand and give you something when you -are not expecting it. As you know, I’m not the kind of a fellow to pick -up impressions of this kind; but Schwartzberg’s put its mark on me deep -and strong, and I can’t shake it off.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXI - -SHOWS HOW THE GREAT SWORD SPOKE TO SCANLON - - -But the automobile voyagers had not returned when the two men reached -Schwartzberg. - -“Campe is taking plenty of time, as per request,” observed Mr. Scanlon, -as they settled down to wait. “Unless,” and he looked at the other, -“you think something has happened to him.” - -But Ashton-Kirk shook his head. - -“No,” said he. “Just at this time I think Campe is perfectly safe from -Alva and his crowd. When you first came to me with the story I felt -that the matter was one of life and death--that it would not wait an -hour. But after studying things hereabouts for a little I saw that -in this I had been mistaken. The criminals will not be in a hurry to -murder Campe. He is the last of his family, and they want what he -knows, or can give, more than they want his life.” - -It was fully five o’clock, and the dusk was thickening when they heard -the heavy braying of the auto horn outside. A little later the two -ladies whisked past the library door, and then Campe entered, dusty, -and with an eager look. - -“You must have had a good run,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“I kept them away as long as I could without attracting their -attention. But,” and the eager look increased, “what news?” - -“We’ve looked around a bit,” said Ashton-Kirk, “both inside and -outside; and we saw a number of things which interested us greatly.” - -Campe stood looking at the speaker for a moment; then he said: - -“I can see that you are not ready to tell me the result of your -investigation. Very well. But when the time comes,” and here his lips -twitched a little, “don’t delay.” - -At dinner Miss Knowles was very lovely, and the elder lady was flushed -and animated. - -“An automobile trip,” thought Bat, as he listened to the spinster’s -chatter “should be prescribed for the good lady frequently. It’s done -her good.” - -“Baron Steuben received no more than his due when Congress granted him -lands and honours,” she was saying to Ashton-Kirk. “But Count Hohenlo -was overlooked disgracefully.” - -“He had little popular or official recognition,” replied the crime -specialist. “But he lived in the hearts of those who knew him, and they -wrote him down in their memories as a gallant soldier, a true friend -and a lover of freedom.” - -Then Miss Hohenlo talked of the letters written by the old hero; of the -journals he had kept in court and camp; of his plans and intentions; of -his adventures. Her eyes were no longer dull; her plain face was full -of spirit; her gestures, no longer affected, were sharp and stirring. -And while she talked Miss Knowles was very quiet, listening with -attention. And, as she did so, Mr. Scanlon watched her, speculatively. - -“Still on the lookout,” mused the big man, “still with her eyes and -ears open. I never saw any one stick closer to a job than she does. -But what she hopes to get out of the talk of the maiden lady I can’t -understand.” - -After dinner, as Miss Hohenlo was passing from the room, Scanlon -saw Ashton-Kirk overtake Miss Knowles as she was about to follow. -The singular eyes of the crime specialist were fixed upon her face -intently, and when he spoke his voice was so low-pitched that none but -the girl could hear. But whatever it was he said, she turned pale and -Bat saw her hands tremble. Then without a word of answer she cast a -frightened look about her and disappeared. Ashton-Kirk turned to Campe. - -“Perhaps you’d care for a game of billiards,” said he. Then seeing the -young man’s surprised look, he added: “I’d be glad to join you myself, -but I think I’ll have my hands rather full of other things. Your aunt -would, I dare say, be delighted.” - -Campe continued to look at the speaker for a moment, then he said -slowly: - -“Why, yes, very likely she would. She’s very clever with the cue, you -know.” - -Fifteen minutes later, as Ashton-Kirk and Scanlon sat in the library, -the big man patiently awaiting the other’s pleasure, the click of the -balls began to come from the billiard room. Ashton-Kirk stood up. - -“Now,” said he, and Scanlon followed him into the hall. Quietly they -went until they reached the door of the room where the tapestries hung. -Here they entered and found Miss Knowles, pale, tall and with the -frightened look still in her eyes, standing in the middle of the floor. - -Ashton-Kirk closed the door gently, and turning faced the girl. - -“Now,” thought Mr. Scanlon, “for a showdown. Here is where the golden -Helen is to be brought up with a sharp turn.” - -“Miss Knowles,” spoke the detective, quietly, “may I ask just how long -you have known what I am?” - -“I thought I knew you--when I first saw your face,” answered the girl -in a low voice. “But I did not place you. It was not until I had heard -your name that I knew you. You had been pointed out to me once at a -Departmental reception at Washington.” - -“I see,” said the other. Then with a smile: “You seem a trifle startled -that day when you recognized me.” - -“I was,” replied the girl, “for your appearance as Schwartzberg meant -only one thing to me: That all that I had suspected was true--that -Frederic was fearfully in danger--and that you had been sent for to -trace out his enemies.” - -“Ha!” said Mr. Scanlon, and Ashton-Kirk glanced at him with a smile. - -“I rather thought it was something like that,” said the latter -gentleman. “But there are a number of other questions I’d like to have -you answer, so that there will be no mistake as to your position in the -matter. Do you mind my asking them?” - -“Why, no,” she said. - -“On the night that you heard the thunderous noise out among the hills, -and Mr. Campe madly rushed out to look for his tormentors, how did it -come that you stood beside him when he was discovered, wounded?” - -The girl looked surprised. - -“I had followed--thinking to help him.” - -“How soon after?” - -“A moment or two.” - -Again Ashton-Kirk looked at Scanlon. - -“Between the time you saw Campe without at the gate, and the time you -got downstairs, I think it could have happened.” - -“It could,” replied Mr. Scanlon. - -“There are a number of little things which Mr. Scanlon could not -understand,” said the crime specialist to the girl. “For example, how -he came to see you in the hall, apparently looking for some one, on the -night he discovered the housebreakers.” - -“He saw me?” She looked at Scanlon. “When?” - -“When you lighted the match. But I heard you before that--talking to -the fellow who jumped through the window.” - -“You heard me talking to----” the girl was amazed; then a sudden -thought seemed to come to her, and she stopped. “And then,” she said, -searching Scanlon’s face, “what did I do?” - -“You went away,” replied the big man. “I heard you go down the hall. -But you came back, and it was then you struck the match.” - -The girl’s golden head shook slowly. - -“I did not go away and return,” she said. - -“But I heard----” - -“The first woman you heard was not I!” - -It was now Mr. Scanlon’s turn to stare. - -“Miss Knowles,” said he, “I don’t want you to think I’m trying to -put anything at your door that shouldn’t be there. But you expected -something to happen that night--I saw it in your face in the afternoon.” - -The girl did not reply for a moment; she looked at him, steadily. - -“I think I know what you mean,” she said, at last. “It was when you -spoke of Mr. Ashton-Kirk coming that night. I was frightened then, as -I was frightened a while ago when I was asked to await him here. I felt -sure that if he were expected something was about to happen.” - -Mr. Scanlon frowned. - -“You see,” said he, “these are queer times, and when a fellow get mixed -up in such, and sees things that he don’t fathom, about the only way -open to him is to ask to have them explained.” - -“I think I can understand that feeling very well,” she said. “There are -many things for which I too have sought an explanation.” - -“When you left the room that night of the burglar’s visit,” said Bat, -“and while I was telling Campe and his man what had happened, you did -it very quietly.” - -“I had a reason,” said the girl. “I hurried away to find the person -whom I’d been seeking when you saw me strike the match.” - -“Well, were you successful?” - -“I was. I saw who opened the gate and liberated your prisoner.” - -Mr. Scanlon mopped his face, which had grown suddenly heated. - -“The wind’s changing,” said he to the crime specialist. “It’s beginning -to blow from a new quarter altogether.” - -But Ashton-Kirk was looking at the girl. “You see how it is?” said he. - -“Yes,” she replied. “And now that I do, I think it very strange that it -did not occur to me before. But I was so full of the thought of helping -Mr. Campe, even though he did treat me like a child and refused to -confide in me, that I never dreamed any one might suspect me of being -one of those who were threatening him.” - -She turned to Scanlon. - -“I thought all the time that you would understand. That is why I hinted -at this and that, and called your attention in an indirect way to those -things which excited my suspicions. - -“And, oh,” with a gesture, “there were so many of them. I suspected the -people at the inn from the beginning because I once saw a crippled man -there who had been a friend of Mr. Campe’s father in Mexico, and who -afterward, for some reason, became his enemy. The strange footprints -which I’d see of a morning upon the river bank put dread into my heart, -and the stealthy figures that I’d see there sometimes of a night, as -I looked from my window, filled me with fear. I then began to suspect -a traitor in Schwartzberg, and took to searching and prying and -listening; and on the night when I found the door to the vault standing -open and saw a stranger ascending the stairs, I felt sure of it.” - -“Was that the night that Mrs. Kretz shut the door, and there was a -pistol shot, and you cried out?” asked Bat. - -“Yes,” replied Miss Knowles. “But,” she went on, “I think I had other -reasons to be suspicious. As you say, Mr. Scanlon, these are queer -times. Things here are odd--strange; like yourself, I do not understand -them. What is there about this harp,” and she laid her hand upon the -instrument, “which attracts me so strongly--for what purpose is it -being used other than the melody a player it could strike from its -strings? Take that great blade upon the wall,” here she turned her -face toward the two-handed sword resting against the strip of tapestry -between the windows. “It seems evident enough--there does not look to -be anything about it of a secret nature. And yet there is! But I don’t -know what, though I have tried to discover many and many times; and -I have stolen it away to my room more than once. But it was no use.” -There was a short silence, then she went on, to Scanlon: “On the night -that you followed Mr. Campe and me out along the path, and you told the -story of the officer whose sword trailed upon the ground, I felt sure -that you had discovered something about this weapon, and were, perhaps, -trying to convey it to me secretly. But I saw afterward that this was -not so.” - -“Tell me,” said Scanlon, who felt much as if the floor were slipping -from under his feet, “what was the idea of the walk on that night?” - -“Mr. Campe was depressed; his spirit was sinking; he shook with fear of -what was outside. I knew that facing a danger was tonic, while cowering -at the mental picture of it was spirit-killing. So I thought it would -do him good if he went out, voluntarily, if only for a few moments--no -matter what the danger. Of course he did not understand why I wanted -him to go; neither did Kretz, who protested very strongly.” - -Bat looked at the crime specialist, who smiled in an amused sort of -way; then he said to the girl: - -“You say you took the sword to your room to examine it? How about the -harp? Ever take that away with you?” - -“I have,” replied Miss Knowles. “Some nights ago I secreted it on the -floor above, and when everything was quiet I went there.” - -“You sat in an alcove behind some curtains,” said Bat. “It was dark. -The window was open. You picked at the strings of the harp, but made -no sound.” - -“You saw me?” the girl seemed startled. - -“I did. What were you doing?” - -“What I had seen done more than once before. And I was trying to -understand.” - -Once more Scanlon looked toward Ashton-Kirk, and now that gentleman -spoke. - -“This interest in Schwartzberg as to the location of the wind of an -evening. You noticed it?” - -“Yes.” The girl’s blue eyes went to the speaker, full of interest. -“But, like the other things, I could never understand it.” - -“You saw some one strike the harp strings at night at an open window; -was it always the same window?” - -“No.” - -“It depended upon the direction of the wind--the window selected always -opened in the direction from which the breeze was blowing.” - -“Yes.” - -“Did that not suggest something to you?” - -“It did. A signal. But,” with a gesture, “it could not have been. There -was no sound.” - -Ashton-Kirk turned to the harp; his long supple fingers ran over the -strings, and they responded stirringly. Bat Scanlon leaned toward Miss -Knowles. - -“I think,” said he, “I’ve got just one more question to ask you, and -here it is: What about that package that came the other day--the one -with the blank paper in it?” - -“Oh, I don’t know!” The girl seemed weary with the things which she did -not understand. “It was like the other packages that came here. Always -blank paper; never a single thing which would lead me to even guess at -what they meant.” - -“When you saw the man Alva in the moonlight,” spoke Ashton-Kirk, -addressing Scanlon, his fingers still gently plucking at the harp -strings, “did you pay particular attention to the hill he had selected?” - -“It was a high one,” said Bat. “But I think that’s all.” - -“There was another advantage,” said the special detective. “There were -no intervening trees. From that hilltop to Schwartzberg there is one -clear sweep.” - -He ceased strumming at the harp and his eyes went toward the sword upon -the wall. A step or two, and he had it in his hands. - -“It brought fortune to the Hohenlos, eh?” said he, and his eyes seemed -dreamy as he gazed at it. “A good blade!” Then the eyes lifted, and he -continued: “Those strings, Scanlon, where are they?” - -“Here,” said the big man, taking the tangled mass from his coat pocket, -and offering it to the other. - -“Pull one out. That’s it. Thanks.” - -Ashton-Kirk took the proffered string; it was quite long, and trailed -upon the floor in a soiled heap. Starting at a point close to the hilt, -he began wrapping the string around the sword blade. - -The big man watched his friend narrowly as he worked with the string -and the sword blade. He felt that in this, queer as the proceeding -seemed, there was to be an explanation of some things that had gone -before. - -“Kirk’s the fellow to explain them,” he told himself, as he watched. -“He’s never in a hurry to do it, of course; and maybe that’s the reason -why he never makes a mistake. But explain them he does; and don’t let -that get away from you.” - -Miss Knowles was also intensely interested; she followed the fingers of -the special detective with the utmost attention. Carefully Ashton-Kirk -wrapped the string about the great blade. Often he paused and inspected -what he had done, as though to make sure that it was what he wanted. - -“The romance which might attach to a weapon of this sort,” said he, -“is endless.” Slowly he worked, and carefully. Every moment or two he -paused and surveyed what he had done. “For history, poetry, drama, -all tell us that such blades were forged when romance was thick upon -every hand. What backs has it hung across in journeys through strange -lands? What strong hands have clasped its hilt as the desert’s dust -showed the cohorts of the infidel? What scaling ladders has it mounted? -What castle walls has it topped? What helmets and plates of proof -has it rung upon? What captive damsels has it freed? What number of -the oppressed and helpless has its hiss and its swing released from -tyranny? What stout squires have ridden behind its owner? What brawny -lanz-knechts have cheered to see it flash, and have pressed after it -into the heat of the fight? - -“And now,” continued the crime specialist, “to what base uses has it -come. From being the weapon of a hero, it becomes the means of one -criminal communicating with another.” - -“What!” exclaimed Scanlon. - -“Look!” - -Ashton-Kirk held the sword, hilt up, and with the flat of it toward -them. To the amazement of the big man, he saw lettered in black ink, -down the length of the closely wrapped string: - - W - A - T - C - H - - S - C - A - N - L - O - N - - - - -CHAPTER XXII - -IN WHICH A MATTER OF MUCH INGENUITY IS CONSIDERED - - -“Hello!” said Bat, his eyes almost bulging at the sight. “What the -dickens is that?” - -For answer the crime specialist unwound the string, drew another from -the many in Scanlon’s hands, and wrapped it around the blade in turn. -Once more he held up the weapon and now they read: - - T - O - N - I - G - H - T - -“I get it,” said the big man, “not all, but some. Those packages sent -Miss Hohenlo had nothing at all that was worth looking at _inside_; it -was _outside_ that their interest lay. In the string.” - -“I think,” said the girl, wonderingly, “I’ve heard of some such a thing -as this before. But it never occurred to me to apply it in this case.” - -“Alva has a wooden sword the exact shape and dimensions of this,” said -Ashton-Kirk, tapping the weapon. “When he desired to send a message -to his confederate in Schwartzberg he’d wrap a string about the stick -and carefully ink his communication, letter after letter, down its -length. After this he’d unwind the cord, tie it about a parcel of -blank paper and dispatch it. There was nothing about it that would -excite suspicion; it held its secret until wrapped around the blade of -the sword; then bit by bit the inked portion fell into place, forming -the letters, and the writing was read.” - -“All these strings are messages then,” said Scanlon. He frowned -perplexedly, and asked: “But why write this way? Why not a letter, and -a cipher inside?” - -“The letter might, in some way, be opened.” - -“But it couldn’t be read.” - -“Perhaps not; nevertheless a cipher writing would attract notice, and -in the face of such happenings as Schwartzberg has been experiencing, -suspicion would be sure to follow.” - -“That’s right,” said Bat. Then with a nod at the strings: “Going to -read them all?” - -“No,” said Ashton-Kirk. “It is hardly worth while.” He threw the heavy -sword upon a table and crossed to the harp once more. “They must be -very brief, and little could be got from them at best. They, for the -most part, merely appointed a time for the real communications.” - -“The real ones!” - -“Yes; and those were received and answered upon the strings of the -harp.” - -Scanlon gazed at the girl, and then his eyes went wonderingly back to -the other. Miss Knowles took an eager forward step. - -“How?” she said. - -“Upon my first visit,” said Ashton-Kirk, “I knew that you were calling -my attention urgently to this instrument. And, in consequence, I took -especial interest in it. I noted some peculiarities, but I did not -form any conclusions until after I’d had Scanlon’s report of what he’d -witnessed, and had another and specialized examination of its parts a -while ago. - -“The harp,” he went on, glancing at his two hearers, “is not, as a -rule, a powerfully made thing. This is especially so in the case of -those of this small size. The wood and the metal that go into its -construction are light.” His keen glance now fixed itself upon Miss -Knowles, and he asked: “Do you know whether this instrument has been -sent away at any time recently for repairs?” - -“It has. Shortly after we came here,” she answered. “Something was -broken, I understood.” - -Ashton-Kirk nodded. - -“The gilding is much newer in some places than it is in others,” said -he. “It’s the sign of the repairer of anything that he never does all -over a job with his finishing tool, merely touching up the parts he’s -worked upon. - -“More than likely,” he went on, his eyes now upon the harp, “the -sending of the instrument away was for a reason altogether different -from the one given out. For in those parts where the tinker’s hand is -plainest, I find that some very important and unusual departures have -been made.” - -“The upper strings are odd,” said the girl, eagerly. “I often noticed -them. They are of metal.” - -“And very heavy--of steel I should say; and they are strung to an -astonishing tension--infinitely higher than the customary strings of -the harp. The ‘pull’ of a number of steel strings of this thickness, -and keyed to this pitch, would be too much for a frame of the ordinary -sort. It would be pulled asunder. Consequently this one has been -powerfully re-inforced; the keys are of a special type, and the sockets -in which they turn appear marvellously strong.” - -“But why all this?” asked Scanlon, his frowning gaze upon the harp. - -“It was found necessary to establish a means of communication between -the inside of Schwartzberg and the outside. Letters or written messages -would not do; signal lights might be seen; secret meetings were almost -impossible, for one could not often steal successfully in and out of a -place watched as this one is.” - -“No,” agreed Scanlon, “it couldn’t be depended on. And neither could -the vaults be used as a meeting place. For the door to them is the most -watched thing in the house.” - -“A way must be had,” said Ashton-Kirk, “and one that must be silent and -secret. This man, Alva, as Fuller’s report tells, is an able physicist, -and so the method hit upon of bridging this difficulty must be his.” He -looked at them as though asking their particular attention. “The eye,” -said he, “is capable of vision only up to a certain point. It will -follow an object going up into the air; then the object will disappear; -it is ‘out of sight.’ However, though the object can’t be seen, it is -still there, still going upward. - -“You’ve heard the yell of the siren, a thing used upon the seagoing -ships?” he proceeded. “You’ve heard its shriek mount and mount, getting -higher and higher, and finally you ceased to hear it? But it had not -stopped. It was still going on, only it had reached a pitch so high -that it was out of ear-shot. It was only when it began to fall and had -reached the point where you had lost it, that you began to hear it -once more.” - -Mr. Scanlon drew down one corner of his mouth and blinked a great -number of times. - -“What do you know about that!” said he. - -“Perhaps the world’s greatest authority upon sound,” Ashton-Kirk -went on as he took some notes from his pocket-book, “is the German, -Helmholtz. In his book ‘On the Sensations of Tone’ he says: - -“‘The simple partial tones contained in a composite mass of musical -tones produce peculiar mechanical effects in nature, altogether -independent of the human ear and its sensations, and altogether -independent of merely theoretical considerations. These effects -consequently give a peculiar objective significance to this peculiar -method of analyzing vibrational forms.’ - -“Then,” continued Ashton-Kirk, “this master of sound goes on to speak -of the phenomenon of sympathetic resonance. He says on this point: -‘When, for example, the strings of two violins are in exact unison, and -one string is bowed, the other will begin to vibrate.’ And in another -place: ‘Gently touch one of the keys of a pianoforte without striking -the string, so as to raise the damper only, and then sing a note of -the corresponding pitch, forcibly directing the voice against the -strings of the instrument. On ceasing to sing the note will be echoed -back from the piano. It is easy to discover that this echo is caused -by the string which is in unison with the note, for directly the hand -is removed from the key, and the damper is allowed to fall, the echo -ceases.’ - -“We see, in the case of the siren, and in other things, that some tones -are so high that they are not heard. Also we see, by Helmholtz, that -when a string keyed to a certain tone is struck, another string, keyed -to the same tone, will at once take up the sound, or vibration----” - -Here Miss Knowles interrupted him, eagerly. - -“I think I see what you mean,” she said. “These unusual strings upon -the harp, this great strengthening of the frame, means that it is keyed -to this inaudible pitch. That some one outside has an instrument of -some sort keyed in unison; and when the harp string is touched, the -other vibrated in sympathy.” - -“And that these vibrations, made in long or short waves, or in groups, -much, perhaps, as the telegraph code is made, formed a ready means of -communication.” - -Mr. Scanlon seemed appalled. - -“Well,” said he, after a short pause, “I think I’ve absorbed the most -of it. But I’m not sure. However, there is one thing I _am_ sure of, -and that is that I’ve got a cabinet sized photograph of the party -who’s got the other instrument. That’s what Alva had that night on the -hilltop when I saw him sitting in the moonlight. He was exchanging -silent talk with Schwartzberg.” Then an idea seemed to strike him, and -he frowned again. “There is one thing that I don’t quite get. And that -is: If these vibrations, or tones, or sounds, whatever you call them, -were too high to be heard, how did the receivers of them make them out?” - -Ashton-Kirk shook his head. - -“As to that,” said he, “I am not prepared to say just now. A further -search into the thing might bring it out, but I’m not sure. But this I -will say: The sense of touch is marvellously sensitive in some people; -one every now and then hears some wonderful story with regard to it. -Fine, delicate hands may be the answer to your question.” - -“Another thing,” said the girl. “Why was the wind required to always -be from the direction of the person sending the vibrations to -Schwartzberg? You’ll say to carry them. But what of the answer to them? -Would not the wind which carried the vibrations from one quarter hold -back those sent from the one opposite?” - -“Only in part, unless the wind was very strong. And I think if you -can remember the nights upon which this means of communication was -used, they were fairly calm. The fact that the wind at the time of the -signals was always from the direction of the person outside might be -explained by that person’s superior knowledge of the medium in use. -Having a more perfect understanding of it, he was the more able to read -its fainter manifestations.” - -Here a small clock hurriedly struck the hour of nine. And Ashton-Kirk -looked at Scanlon. - -“And now,” he added, “I think it’s time to drop speculation for a -space. There is some work ahead of us which is going to be sharp and of -the sort that leaves not even a trace of doubt in the mind.” - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII - -CONCLUSION - - -Ashton-Kirk, with Miss Knowles and Scanlon, entered the billiard room a -few moments later. - -Miss Hohenlo greeted them despairingly. - -“Frederic’s game is disgraceful,” she said. “I never saw him play so -badly.” - -“In that case,” laughed Ashton-Kirk, “it will be a charity to relieve -you of him. Miss Knowles, I am sure, will take his place with credit.” - -The girl gave him a quick glance; then she went to the table and took -the cue from Campe’s hand. - -“I don’t think I have much of a chance against Miss Hohenlo,” smiled -she. “She’s always been too clever for me.” - -“My dear,” cried the spinster, reproachfully, “you play an excellent -game. Indeed, I am never quite at ease with you.” - -“That maiden-lady’s pretty able,” spoke Scanlon to Ashton-Kirk, a few -moments later in the hall; “and in other things besides billiards. She -must be on that something’s happening, that you first put Campe on -guard over her and now the girl, and yet she goes on as if nothing was -to be feared.” - -“Calmness in the face of danger usually comes from a lack of -imagination,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“But,” protested Scanlon, “you wouldn’t say she had any shortcoming -like that, would you? I think the way she switched the matter of the -northwest wind on to the shoulders of the girl is a good proof that -she’s all there in that respect. And the way she grabbed, that same -night, the fact that the sword was missing, and pieced the fact on to -my suspicions of Miss Knowles, and the same weapon was rather cute.” - -Here Campe came out of the billiard room and joined them. - -“What now?” he asked. - -“I think,” said Ashton-Kirk, “the last act of this drama of yours is -about to be played.” - -“Good!” said Campe, his eyes burning. “Whatever it develops--good!” - -“Are you armed?” - -“I always am--now,” answered the young man, sadly. “I haven’t taken a -step without a firearm in readiness for months.” - -“And you, Scanlon?” - -“All right,” replied the big man. - -When they reached the lower floor, Ashton-Kirk said to Campe: - -“Please call your man. We’ll need him.” - -“Wait!” Mr. Scanlon held out one large protesting hand. “What do you -want him to do?” - -“We are going into the cellars. I think it best that some one be left -to watch the hall thereabouts, and the cellar stairs.” - -Bat nodded. - -“Thought it was something like that,” said he. “And that’s why I wanted -to know. Now I want to say this. Kretz may be all right; then, again, -he may not be.” - -Campe gazed at the speaker astonished. - -“I should as soon distrust myself as Kretz,” said he. “I’ve known him -for years, and he is in every way worthy of confidence.” - -“May be so,” admitted Bat. “May be so. But things break the other -way sometimes, you know. So let’s be sure.” He looked at the others -inquiringly. “How about that day when we were shot at in the cellar?” -said he. “How did the lamp come to smash? It happened, remember, before -a shot was fired.” - -Ashton-Kirk smiled. - -“If that’s all you have against the sergeant-major,” said he, “I think -he will do. As it happens, I know just what caused the smash; some one -from the darkness struck it. I saw the hand that did it, but not the -owner thereof.” - -Scanlon was silent for a moment; then he said: - -“Well, I don’t set myself up as a judge. I was wrong in some other -matters, so there’s no reason why I shouldn’t be wrong in this one of -Kretz’s. So, if _you_ think he’s O.K., I’m willing to.” - -“There is only one traitor in Schwartzberg,” said young Campe, -mournfully. - -“Who’s that?” asked Scanlon. - -“I think you know,” replied the young man. “And, as I said to you -before, there’s no need to mention names.” There was a brief silence, -then he added: “Something made me suspect that everything was not -right. But I was never sure of anything,” to Ashton-Kirk, “until the -night before your first visit here.” - -“You saw some one picked up by the searchlight while Kretz was firing -at a man who was running away,” said the crime specialist. “We saw her, -too.” - -“When she returned,” said Campe in a low tone, “I asked her why she -went, how she got out, and what was her errand. But she couldn’t -answer. And ever since she has avoided the subject.” - -“I made one of my customary mistakes that night, too,” said Scanlon. -“I picked the wrong lady, and I thought you meant her, too.” Then to -Ashton-Kirk: “Shall I call the sergeant-major in?” - -“Yes,” replied Ashton-Kirk. - -In a few moments the German entered, and he listened, grim and -unwinking, to the detective’s instructions. - -“Here I shall stand,” said he, “until you tell me--no more.” - -“That’s enough--if you keep your eyes open.” Then to Scanlon -Ashton-Kirk said: “Do you think you could find a hatchet?” - -“I’ll have one in a minute,” replied the big man. - -He produced one from the storeroom. Ashton-Kirk then went to the outer -gate and blew a shrill signal. Almost at once Burgess and his companion -appeared out of the darkness, and followed the special detective into -the castle. Then the electric torch flashed along the vault steps as -the five descended. The door closed and Kretz was heard to shoot the -heavy bolts. - -“It’s rather early to expect anything definite,” said the crime -specialist. “But you’d better see that your weapons are ready, for all -that.” - -And when they reached the floor of the vault each had a heavy automatic -in his hand. Quickly they went through the place and found it empty. - -“No one here,” said Mr. Scanlon, fingering the grip of his weapon -regretfully. Then in another tone he added, to Ashton-Kirk: “But, I -say, what makes you think there will be?” - -“Some days ago,” replied the special detective, “in my journeying about -in the guise of an invalid, I came across a boat hidden along the -river bank, and the indications were very strong that it belonged to -the people at the inn.” - -“Well?” asked Scanlon. - -“When you told me of your experience with the man who went through Mr. -Campe’s papers,” said Ashton-Kirk, “I thought a paper was the object -of the visit. And so it was--but only as a thing that would lead to -something else. This latter fact I suspected from the contents of the -telegram received by me this morning; and I was convinced of it when -we made our search of the vaults a few hours ago. The paper sought was -one which held certain directions; the man with the cough found it that -night before he leaped through the window. The paper could not have -been clear to them; it pointed to something hidden here in the vaults -of Schwartzberg; they searched, but without success. At length, perhaps -last night, Alva came, as we saw by the wheel tracks of his chair. His -superior intelligence at once showed itself, and located what they -sought.” - -Young Campe gave a cry. - -“So it was in Schwartzberg, as they said!” he exclaimed, despairingly. - -“You never knew it, then?” asked Ashton-Kirk. - -“I knew nothing, except that I was threatened with death unless I gave -up what I had never seen and knew nothing of. I told them so a hundred -times, but they would not believe me.” - -“You could have given them the run of the place,” suggested -Ashton-Kirk, “and let them search for themselves.” - -The jaw of the young man set. - -“No,” said he. “They asked that, but I refused. You, I think,” and he -looked at the other steadily, “know why.” - -“I think I do,” said Ashton-Kirk. - -“But,” spoke Mr. Scanlon, “tell me how you know they located what they -were after?” - -“In that far corner,” said the crime specialist, “there is a heavy -flag, set in the floor. Very recently, so I noted to-day, some one has -scraped away the cement at its edges. There has been an effort to raise -it, but the attempt has failed because of a lack of tools.” - -“I’ve got it,” said Bat. “When you walked me up along the river this -afternoon, that place where you left me to go poking among the tangled -old vine was the place where you discovered the boat. And you saw tools -in it; and that’s what told you they were coming to-night.” - -“Well done,” laughed-the detective. “Very well done indeed!” - -Then Campe, who had patiently kept himself from asking questions, -seemed unable to contain himself any longer. One query followed another -in rapid succession, and in a few moments Ashton-Kirk found himself -deep in statements and explanations. The torch had been snapped off; -they stood in the darkness of the vaults, talking in low tones. - -And when everything had been told him, the young man was silent for a -space. Then he said: - -“The way you have gone about this is quite wonderful--I would not have -believed that such a meagre array of detached facts could be so pieced -together, and made into a whole so direct and significant. But even now -I do not understand how you made up your mind as to the nature of the -thing these men seek.” - -“When I read Fuller’s statement, contained in his report, that -the former head of the Guatemala police was now that country’s -representative at Washington, I wired at once asking information as to -the man Evans and the nature of his offences in Guatemala. The telegram -I received this morning,” to Scanlon, “was in answer to that, and it -said----” - -Here the voice died away; there was silence for a moment. - -“Well,” asked Scanlon, “what did it----” - -“Hush!” - -Again there was silence. Then, little by little, a sound reached the -ears of the big man--a faint scraping--and then a murmur. - -“They are coming,” said the crime specialist. “This way.” - -For an instant the torch flashed to show them their way; then, safe in -the shadows, they waited. A glimmer of light danced in the darkness, -then it flooded a narrow space; the door to the underground passage had -been opened; a man stepped into the vault. To the surprise of Scanlon -he recognized the soft gentleman. - -“Hello!” was Bat’s mental exclamation. “He’s here again, is he? Maybe -we’ll play a return engagement; our act went big last time.” - -The newcomer looked carefully about and as he was doing so a second -man entered. This was the drawn man, Shaw. He turned and helped the -Indian servant with the rolling chair, in which lay Alva. After this -came Hirst, who had discarded both his crutch and stick, and then the -landlord of the inn, with the peppery little doctor carrying some heavy -tools. - -“What is the time?” asked Alva in his strong voice. - -“Almost ten,” replied the soft man. - -“We’d better get to work at once,” spoke Alva. “Get the bars.” - -“Wait,” said the soft man. “I want to have a look at the door.” - -The rays of the lantern came creeping toward the five crouching in the -shadow. But the edge of the illumination did not quite reach them as -the man went by and softly up the step. After a little he returned; the -rays lighted up the inquiring faces of those awaiting him. - -“All right,” he reported. “It seems to be still nailed fast.” - -“Now,” said Alva, impatiently, “to work. And let us get out of this -hole. I can feel the dampness creeping into my very bones.” - -The watchers saw them cluster about the point indicated by Ashton-Kirk -a short time before. The yellow light of the lantern played about them -quaveringly; Alva, with his misshapen head and his burning eyes, sat -propped up in his chair, waiting. - -Iron chinked against stone; there came a grinding and a straining as -the men threw their weights on the bars; then followed a panting of -breath, muffled exclamations, and a huge slab of stone from the floor -leaned against the wall. - -“The light!” cried Shaw. - -The rays shone down on the place which the flag had covered a few -moments before. - -“There they are!” came the smothered cry of the soft man. - -Shaw snatched at something; in a moment it was out upon the floor. -It was a flat package, wrapped in lead foil and tied with cord. A -knife-blade cut the binding, the foil was torn away, as was layer after -layer of oiled paper; then the rays of the lantern glanced upon the -surface of a number of metal plates. - -“They are the plates! It’s Joe’s work!” The soft man was exultant and -waved his arms. - -“How many are there?” asked Alva. - -“Four,” replied Shaw. “And all in perfect condition.” - -“In six months,” babbled the soft man, “there will be some ‘stuff’ in -circulation in Mexico that will never be detected. ‘Stuff,’” and here -he laughed almost hysterically, “that’ll be better than the genuine. -Joe was the workman; he knew how to go over a plate.” - -“And he also knew how to wrap one so that the damp wouldn’t get a -chance to work on it,” said Shaw. “Hold the lantern closer.” - -Under the light the drawn man inspected the plates closely. - -“Great work!” said he, at length. “Never saw better.” Then he looked at -the soft man. “How long did your brother put in on them?” - -“I’m not sure. A good many months, though. And it was all done in this -place. Joe worked himself to death over them, he was sick when old -Campe got cold feet, backed out of the job and hurried north. He must -have given Joe some kind of a story to get him to hide his work in -this way; he was a wise old fox, as you know. Anyway, he went back to -Mexico; Joe died before he could get any kind of word to me; and there -we were, up a tree.” - -“Well, we are safely down again,” came the strong voice of the cripple; -“but don’t let us wait here. Get the plates together, and we’ll be -off.” - -Shaw obeyed; carefully he placed the plates one upon another, the -layers of oiled paper between. He had them all nicely adjusted when -they were snatched from his hand, and a voice said quietly: - -“Careful now, gentlemen. Don’t do anything hasty. There are five guns -between you and what you want.” - -Startled, amazed, snarling, the seven stared at Ashton-Kirk. Faintly -they saw the burly form of Scanlon in the shadow, and beside him the -master of Schwartzberg and the two detectives; in the polish of the -black automatics which these held there was a silent menace. - -Ashton-Kirk nodded to the soft man, and smiled. - -“The Guatemala police also admired the work of your brother,” said -he. “They say they never saw better.” Then without turning his head: -“Scanlon!” - -“Right here,” answered the big man, promptly. - -“How long do you think it would take you to undo the work of Joe Evans, -engraver, upon four plates, counterfeiting the notes of the Mexican -Republic?” - -“With a hatchet,” replied the big man, “about once second to each -plate.” - -The engraved steel clashed upon the floor at his feet. - -“I’ll take the torch, too,” said Bat, “so’s to be sure and make a job -of it.” - -“Steady now,” said the detective, as his keen eye noted a movement on -the part of the criminals. “And you, Mr. Shaw, keep away from that -lantern. I understand the sudden extinguishing of lights is a specialty -of yours.” - -The light of the torch fell upon the four steel plates; Mr. Scanlon -placed them face up, and with a few sharp cuts from the edge of the -hatchet upon each ruined them for ever. And then, once more, they -clashed upon the floor, this time at the feet of the intruders. - -“There they are,” observed the big man, lazily. “Seeing that you were -at so much trouble to get them I’d hate to see you go without them----” - -“I suppose,” said Alva, and his full lips drew back and showed his -teeth in a smile, “you will now call the police.” - -“I hardly think we’ll go to that extreme,” replied Ashton-Kirk. “The -Mexican government possibly would be interested to know who was guilty -of the murder of three members of the Campe family, but we’ll hold that -in reserve for a while, at least.” - -“You couldn’t prove anything,” sneered Alva. - -“Don’t be too sure of that, Mr. Alva. The mark of your hand is plain in -your work, and it would not be at all difficult to tie you up in it.” -He nodded to the man, quietly. “But,” said he, “we’ll say nothing about -that now. I’m giving you a chance--not for your sake, nor for the sake -of any of your friends, of course--but to spare an entirely innocent -young man a family scandal.” - -He pointed to the underground passage. - -“Waste no time in going,” said he. “And let us see no more of you.” - -Sullenly the seven, like wild beasts, longing, but not daring to leap -upon their captors, turned to the passage. Alva’s chair was rolled into -it, then the other followed, muttering and with many sidelong glances. - -“Good-night,” called Scanlon into the tunnel. “Hope you’ve had a good -time.” - -Then the great stone swung shut and closed them out. - -“I don’t think you’ll ever be bothered by any of those gentlemen -again,” said Ashton-Kirk, to Campe. “They were interested in the -plates, and not at all in you. However,” as they ascended the steps, -“I’d have that passage filled in, if I were you, and meant to spend -much time at Schwartzberg.” - -Kretz opened the door at Campe’s summons. The entire household seemed -gathered in the lower hall about the door. - -“The Fräulein Hohenlo,” and the grim German motioned toward that lady, -“would go down to you. But I would not let her.” - -“You are not hurt?” asked a voice, and the golden-haired girl came -forward toward young Campe. Her voice was low and trembling, and she -moved unsteadily. - -“Take care!” cried Ashton-Kirk, sharply. He was not a moment too soon -in the warning, for Campe had barely time to leap forward and catch the -fainting girl in his arms. - -Miss Hohenlo, white, and with a deadened look in her eyes stood looking -at Ashton-Kirk. - -“He was not injured?” she asked. - -“Who?” said he. - -“Alva.” Then, quietly, for she seemed to understand that all was over, -“He is my husband.” - -“No,” replied Ashton-Kirk. “He is safe enough.” Then looking at the -woman with narrowing eyes, he continued: “He has just about reached -the river bank. Will you join him there?” - -Dumbly she went down the hall, her hands seeming to grope the way. - -“Kretz,” said the special detective, “open the door.” - -The German moved after the woman, and in a few moments they heard the -great gate open and close. - -“Well,” said Mr. Scanlon, with a long breath, “that’s all finished! And -it seems to me,” nodding to Ashton-Kirk, affably, “it’s a pretty fair -kind of a job.” - - -_The Stories in this Series are_: - - ASHTON-KIRK, INVESTIGATOR - ASHTON-KIRK, CRIMINOLOGIST - SECRET AGENT (ASHTON-KIRK) - SPECIAL DETECTIVE (ASHTON-KIRK) - - - - -TRANSCRIBER’S NOTES: - - - Italicized text is surrounded by underscores: _italics_. - - Obvious typographical errors have been corrected. - - Inconsistencies in hyphenation have been standardized. - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK SPECIAL DETECTIVE -(ASHTON-KIRK) *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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