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About Mt. Scott herald. (Lents, Multnomah Co., Or.) 1914-1923 | View Entire Issue (April 6, 1923)
f 75he \ B lind M an ) E yej BY WILLIAM M ac HARG*** EDWIN BALMER. V V Illustrations by RH.Ltvir^stone » ion hurried ahead, he went almost noiselessly. Hhe stood still, shivering a little now In the cold t and she Its tened, she no longer heard hla foot atepa. What she had don* waa done; then just aa ah* waa telling herself that It muet be many momeui* before •be would know whether be waa com Ing back, »he heard him returning; at some little distance, he spoke her name *o a* not to frighten her Stic knew at once It waa he, but u change CIIAI IKII 11 - Hob Connery, conduct«, K»l»ee order* to hold traiti for • party I In the tone surprised her. Hhe stepped • men and ■ etri board the train forward to meet him. ' father of the «Irl. Mr tturna Io the poreoa for whom the train wss bold "You found your friend F rhlllB L> Eaton, • young man eleo ’’Yes." boarded the train Porno tallo hlo dsugk lor and hie e^ rotary l«.n A»ory. to fled "What did he tell youf 1 mean ®ut what th,, oan ranaarwia* atm what Is wrong that you did not ex CHAl'Trit III.—The two make Xtoton's pect Y' omfwd'rifto“*' Th* t>B>° *" b’ She heard bls breath come faal. "Nothing," he dented. CHAITKH IV.—Eaton rerelvsa a tola- "No; you luuat tell met Can't you gram addreaaod to latwranco filli «ord. Which he «talma It warne him ho to I trust Bia!" being followed "Trust youl" he cried. He turned CHAPTEH V -Fanout« through the oar. to her and seised her hands. "Yo* Connery notlcoo Ooreer hand hanging ask me to—trust you r Outelde the berth If* aaeartolno ttarae't «YN0P6I» bail hae recently rung Perturbed, he Invaeiigatee and Bride Porno with hlo ahull crushed No ratio a aungeon. Dr atm lalr, on the train. "Yes: I've trusted you. Can't you CHAITKH VI - Sinclair reeognlaoo the Injured man no Beall Hantolna. who. al though blind, la a pei ullar power In the •nancial world aa advtaer to "big Inter toto"" Hie recovery la a matter of doubt CHAPTER VI!. — Circumstances point to Eaton aa Santolne'* aa- nailant. CHAPTER VIII.— Eaton 1» practically disced under arrest. lie refuses to make explanations aa to his previous movement* before boarding the train, but admit* he was the man who called on Warden th night the finan cier was murdered. CHAPTER IX.—Eaton plead* with Harriet Sarilmne to withhold judg ment, tolling her he ia in serious danger, though innocent of the crime againat her father. He feela the girl believea him. CHAPTKH X —Bentota* rocovor* suffi- clontly lo qusstlon Beton. who rofuaao lo rovoal hi* Montlty Tb* flnsncisr ro- eutr** Eaton lo a'rompany hlm lo tho hanloln* homo, whor* h* I* I* Ih* ponl- tton of • *oml-prt*on*r. CHAITER XI- toc lem meato a rssldsnt •f ih* hou**. Wallac* lliatchford. and ■ young girl. Mildred Davi* wlth wbom apparanti* ho I* aruuaintad, though thoy •onerai ina faci. Eaton** mlaalon I* lo •ocur* cartaio documento whlch ara vjtel te bla interrata, and hi* bota« admltlad lo tha houoa I* a ramarkabla stroks uf lue* Tha girl agraoa io ald hlm. H* bocomaa daaply Intaraotod Ut Hsrrtet ■**- teine. and aho ta hlm CHAITER XIL- Harriet toll* Eaton aha and Ronald A vary act a* “eyes" to ban tolna. ramllng to him lha docutnonta on which ha bane* hl* Judgment* While walking wllh her. two man ta an auto mobile deliberately attempt to run Eaton down. H* ewape* with alight Injuries Th* girl rwogni*** on* of th* man a* having bean on th* train oa which Ut*y ram* from Iteattl*. CHAPTEH XIII.-ban tolna questions Eaton ctoaaly. but the latter I* reticent The blind man tell* him h* I* convinced tho wttack made on him on lha train waa the result of an error, th* attack« hav ing planned to kill Eaton Rantolne telle Harriet ah* la to take charge of cartala paper* • onnr.ted with th* "'iaitron prop- «tlaa.* which had hitherto b**n In Avery'* charge. CHAPTER XV-At th* country club Eaton reveal* a remark able prod, lency at polo, eeetnlngly to Av*ry'e gratin a- tlon Eaton Induce* Harriet to allow him to leave tho ground* for a f*w minute* mat nigpt (Continued from last week.) Rhe herself wag trembling with her dealru to help him, but recollection of her father held her back; then swiftly there came to her the thought of Ue- brlel Warden; becauee Warden had tried to help him—In gome way and for gome reaaon which ahe did not know—Warden had been killed. Ant! feeling that In helping him there might be danger to hereelf, ahe auddenly and eagerly welcomed that danger, and made her decision. “You'll promise, Mr. Eaton, not te try to—leaver’ “Tee." "Let ua go out," she Mid. Rhe let! the way downstairs and, tn tho hall, picked up a cape; he threw It over her shoulders and brought hla overcoat and cap. But In hl* absorp tion he forgot to put them on until, as they went out into the garden to gether, ahe reminded him; then he put on the cap. The night waa dear and cool, and no one but themeelveo seemed to be about the house. "Which way do you want to goF she asked. He turned toward the forested acre* of the grounds which ran down to a ravine at the bottom of which a little atream trickle«! toward the lake. As they approached the side of thia ravine, a man appeared and -» • f •he Removed th* Book* In Front ef a Wall Safa to th* Right of the Doer. believe a* much In me?" “Believe In you, Mlae Hantolne!” He crushed her Angers In his grasp. “Oh, my God, I wish I could!" "You wish you couldF she echoed The tone of It struck her like a blow, and she tor* her hand* away. “What do you mean by thatF He made no reply hut stood staring at her through the dark. "We must go back." he said queerty. "You're cold “ She did not answer but started back up the path to th* house. He seetned to have caught himself together against some Impulse that stirred him strongly. "The man out there who mw us? He will report to your fa ther, Mis* Santolne?" he asked un steadily. "Reports for Father are Arat made to me." “1 see." He did not ask her what ahe m < going to do; If he was assum ing that her permission to exceed hl* set limit* bound her not to report to her father, she did not accept that assumption, though *he would not re port to the blind man tonight, for ah* knew he must now be asleep. But ahe felt that Eaton was no longer thinking of thia. Aa they entered th* house and he helped her lay off her cape, he auddenly faced her. "We are tn a strange relation to each other, Miss Santolne—stranger than you know," he said unevenly. She waited for him to go on. “When the time come* that you comprehend what our actual relation la, I—I want you to know that I un derstand that whatever you have done was done because you believed It might bring about the greater good. I—I have seen In you—In your father —only kindness, high honor, sympa thy. If I did not know—" She started, gazing at him. what he Mid bad absolutely no meaning for her. “What la it that you know!” ahe demanded. He did not reply; hla hand went out to hers, seized It, crushed It, and he started away. Aa he went up the atalr*—still. In Ills absorption, carrying cap anti overcoat—site stood staring after him In perplexity. Investigated them. He recognised tha CHAPTER XVI girl'* figure and halted. "It’s all right, Willis,'' alia aald qui Th* Fight In the Study. etly. Eaton dismissed the man who had "Yea, ma'ain." been waiting In hla room* for him; he They paaaed the man and„ went locked the door and carefully drew down the path Into the ravine and up down all the window shade*. Then he the tiny valley. Eaton halted. put hla ovemmt, folded as he had "You don’t mind waiting here a few been carrying It under hla arm, on momenta for met” the writing table In the center of the "No," ahe eald. "Yon will return mom, and from Its fold* and pockets hsreF took a “breast-drill" such as Iron "Yea,” he Mid; and with that per workers use In drilling steel, an auto mission, he left her. matic pistol with three clips of car Both had apoken so that the man tridges. an electric Aashllght and a above could not have heard; and Har little bottle of nitroglycerin. He riet now noticed that, aa her compan loaded the pistol and put It In hla to Are bnt as a dull weight with which to strike. The grip of hla left hand clamped onto the short steel bar. and with lipa parted—breathing once. It seetned, for each heartbeat and yet choking, auffixatlng—be leaped for ward. At the Mme Instant—so that he could not bars been alarmed by Ea ton’s leap—the man who had been working moved his torrij, and the light fell upon Eaton. "IxM>k out!“ the man cried in alarm to hie companion; with the word the torch vanished. I The man toward whom Eaton rushed did not have time to switch off bla light; he dropped It InatMd; and as Eaton sprang for him. he crouched. Euton, aa be struck forward, found nothing; but below hla knees. Eaton felt a man's powerful arm* tackling him; aa he struggled to free himself, a swift, savage lunge lifted him from hia feet; he waa thrown and hurled backward. Eaton ducked hla bead forward and struggled to turn, aa he went down, eo thst a shoulder and not hl* head or back would strike the Aoor first He succeeded In this, though In hie effort he dropped the Jimmy. He clung with hl* right band to the pistol, and as he struck the floor, the pistol shot off; th* flash of flame spurted toward the celling. Instantly the grip below his knees was loosed; the man who had tackled him and hurled him hack had recoiled in the darkness Eaton got to hla feet but crouched and crept about behind a table, aim ing hl* pistol over It In the direction In which be supposed the other men must be. The sound of the shot had ceased to roar through the room; the gases from the powder only made the air heavier. The other two men tn the room also waited, invisible and .silent. The only light, In the great curtained room, came from the single electric torch lying on the floor. This lighted the legs of a chair, a corner of a desk and a circle of books In tbe cases on the wall. A* Eaton's eyes became more accustomed to the dark ness, he could see vague shapes of I furniture. If a man moved, he might be made out; but If he stayed still, probably he would remain Indistin guishable. | The other men seemed also to have recognized this; no one moved tn the ‘room, and there was complete silence, i Eaton knelt oo one knee behind hla table; now he was wildly, exultantly excited; hla blood leaped hotly to hla hand pointing hla pistol; he panted, almost audibly, for breath, but though hla pulse throbbed through his head too, his mind was clear and cool as he reckoned bis situation and bls chance*. He had crossed tbe Padflc. the continent, be had schemed and risked everything with the mere hope of getting Into this room to discover evidence with which to demand from the world righting of the wrong which had driven him as a fugitive for Ave year*; and hfre he found the man who was tbe cause of It all, before him In the same room a few paces away In tbe dark t For It waa Impossible that this was not that man; and Eaton knew now that thia was he who must have been behind and arranging and directing tbe attacks upon him. Eaton had-not only seen him and heard hl* voice, but he had felt hl* grasp; that sudden. In stinctive crouch before a charge, and the savage lunge and tackle were tbe Instant, natural act* of an old lines man on a championship team In the game of football as It was played twenty year* before. That lift of the opponent off hie feet and the heavy lunge hurling him back to fall on his head was what one man—In the rougher, more cruel days of the col lege game—had been famous for. On the football field that throw sufficed to knock a helmeted opponent uncon sclous; here It was meant, beyond doubt, to do more. Upon so much, at least, Eaton's mind at once was clear; here was hie enemy whom he must destroy If he himself were not first destroyed Other thoughts, recasting of other re lations altered or overturned in theli hearing by the discovery of this man here—everything else conld and must wait upon the mighty demand of that moment upon Eaton to destroy this enemy now or be himself destroyed. Eaton shook In his paMlon; yet coolly ha now realised that hl* left shoulder, which had taken the shock of his fall, was numb. He shifted hla pistol over to cover a vague form which had seemed to move; but. If it. had stirred. It was still again now. Eaton strained to listen. It seemed certain that the noise of the «hot. If not the sound of the struggle which preceded It, must have raised an alarm. Basil Santolne, as Eaton knew, slept above; a nurse must be waiting on duty somewhere near. Eaton had seen the row of but ton* which the blind man had within arm'* length with which he must be able to summon every servant In the house. So It could not last much longer now—this deadlock In the dark. And one of the two, at least, seemed te have recognized that Eaton had moved, warily and care fully, but he had moved; a revolver flashed before him. Instantly and without consciousness that hla Anger pulled the trigger. Eaton’s pistol flashed back. In front of him. the flame flashed again, and another spurt of Are spat at one side. Eaton flred back at this—he was prostrate on the floor now, and whether he had been hit or not he did not yet know, or whether the blood flowtng down bla face was only from a splinter sprayed from the table behind which he had hid. He flred again, holding bl* pistol far out to one aide to confuse the alm of the other*; he thought that they too were doing “It’s All Right, Willi*," Rhe «aid Qui the Mme and allowed for it In hls alm. He pulled hls trigger a ninth time— etly. pocket; then he carefully Inspected the other things. He raised a shade and window, and Mt In the dark. The night waa cloudy and very dark. He gutted at the south wing of the house; the win dows of the Orst floor were dosed and lite curtains drawn; but tonight there was no light In the room. Thea In the dark tie moved to th* table where he had left hl* overcoat, and distributed In hie pockets and within hie clothing the article* be bad brought; and now he felt again In the overeoet and brought out a abort, strong bar of steel curved and battened at one end— ■ “Jimmy" for forcing the window*. Eaton slipped off hla shoe* and went to hla room door; be opened th* door and found the hall dark and quiet. He stepped out, closing bl* door care fully behind him, and with great cau tion he descended th* attire. He went to a window In the drawing room which waa aet In a recess und ao placed that It was not visible from other windows In the house. Ila opened thia window and let himself down upon the lawn. He gulned the south comer of the wing, unobserved or al least without sign that he had been seen, and went on around It. He stopped at the first high French window on the south. A* he tried to slip bls Jimmy under the bottom of the Msh, the window, to bl* amaze- meat, opened silently upon Its hinges; It had not been locked. The heavy curtain* within bung Just In front of him; he put out hl* hand and parted them. Then he started back Io aston ishment and crouched close to the ground; Inside the room was a man moving about, bashing an electric torch before him and theu exploring an Instant In darkneea and dashing hla torch again. Eaton had not been at all prepared for thia; now he knew auddenly that he ought to have been prepared for It If the man within the room was not the one who had attacked him with the motor, he was closely allied with that man. and what he waa after now waa the Mme thing Eaton was after. He drew bl* pistol, and loosing the Mfety, he made It ready to Are; with bla left hand, he clung to the short, heavy Jimmy. He stepped Into th* great room through the curtains, and treading nolaeleasly In hla stocking feet, he advanced upon the man, mov ing forward In each period of dark- nera between the flashes of the elec* trie torch. Now. at the further side of the room, another electric torch flashed out. There were at least two men In the room, working together—or rather, one was working, the other super vising; for Eaton heard now a steady, almost Inaudible grinding noise ** th* second man worked. Eaton halted again and waited; If there were two, there might be others. Hla pulses »ver* beating faster and hotter, and lie felt the blood rushing to hl* head and hia hands growing cold with hl* excitement; but he was conscious of no fear. He crouched and crept forward noiselessly again. No other light appeared In the room, and there waa no sound elsewhere from the darknera; but the man who supervised had moved doser to the other. The grinding noise had stopped; It was followed by a sharp click; the men. side by side, were bending over something; and the light of the man who had been working, for a fraction of a second shot Into the face of the other. He muttered some short, hoarse Imprecation, but before Eaton heard the voice, he had stopped as If struck, and his breath had gone from him. HI* tnstnnt's glimpse of that face astounded, stunned, stupefied him. He could not have seen that man! The fact was Impossible! He must have been mad; hie mind must have beconie unreliable to let him even Imagine It Then catue the sound of the voice— the voice of the man whose face he had seen I It waa he I And, In place of the paralysis of the first instant now a wild, savage throe of passion seised Eaton; his pulses leaped so It seemed they must hurst hl* veins, and he gulped and choked. He had not filled In with Intone fancy the fea ture* of the man whom he had seen; the voice witnessed too that the man in the dark by the wall waa he whom Eaton—if he could have dreamed such a fact aa now had been disclosed— would have circled the world to catch and destroy: yet now with the de struction of that man In hie power— for he had but to alm and empty his automatic pistol at Ave paces—such destruction at this moment could not suffice; mere ehooting that man would be petty. Ineffectual. Eaton'* fingers tightened on the handle of hla pistol, but he held It now not as a weapon The first known log house, built by white men within tbe bounds of what ia now Colorado, was erected in 1816 for a troop of Spanish cavalry patrol- ing the Arkansas, near the site of Pueblo. In * volcanic crater in the Sangro de Cristo Mountain* in San Isabel National Forest is an apparently bot tom less pit, with black marble sides, ip which depth soundings of 1,50« feet I have failed to touch bottom. EFFECTS OF SHADED LIGHTS ARE PLEASING "N g.r^u.—rJ Eaton’* Pistol Flashed Baek. he had not counted hl* allots, but be knew he had had seven cartridges tn the magazine and one in tbe barrel— and tbe pistol clicked without dis charging. He rolled over farther away from the spot where he had last flred and pulled an extra clip of car tridge* from hls pocket. Tbe blood was flowing hot over hl* face. He made no effort to staunch it or even to feel with hls finger* to And exactly where or bow badly he bad been hit. He Jerked the empty cartridge clip from hl* pistol butt and snapped In the other. He swept hl* aleeve over hls face to clear tbe blood from bis brow* and eyes and stared through tbe dark with pistol at arm's length loaded and ready. Blood spurted over hl* fsce again; another sweep of hl* sleeve cleared It; and be moved hls pistol-point back and forth In the dark. Surely now the sound of firing in that room must have reached the man In the room above; surely be rnpst be summoning bl* servants. Eaton listened; there was still no sound from the rest of the bouse. But overhead now, be beard an almost Im perceptible pattering—the sound of a barefooted man croaslng the floor; and he knew that tbe blind man In the bedroom above was getting up. Shaded lamps and candles are becoming more and more popular for lighting purposes and tbe effects gained by their use ar* much more pleasing than the brilliant lighting formerly used. Little, if any, overhead lighting would be necessary In this living room. A pair of parcbnieat-shaded torchierà on the table shed a soft glow sufficient for everything except reading, and a conveniently-placed table and lamp supply a good reading light when deaired. ON THE JOB! 266 Morrison Street, the Jewelry Store—and the Optical Store is square across the street at 269 Morrison Street—I have no other branch stores. We have a full and complete shop filled with men who have been with me for years and who are true to their em ployer and their work — Honest, industrious, Loyal to both you and me. Diamonds, Watches, Jewelry of modern make. Our Optical Store right square across the street. DR. HURLEY is in charge. We want your trade— your parents have aways traded here. STAPLES—The Jeweler 266—269 MORRISON ST., PORTLAND, OREGON 266 Morrison St., Portland, Oregon CHAPTER XVII Under Cover of Darkness. Basil Santolne was oversensitive to sound, as are most of the blind; In the world of darkness In which he lived, sounds were by far the most significant—and almost the only— means he had of telling wbat went on around him; he passed hls life listen ing for or determining the nature of sounds. So the struggle which ended In Eaton’s crash to the floor would have waked him without the pistol- shot* Immediately following. That roused him wide-awake Immediately and brought him sitting up In bed. for getful of hls own condition. His hand went at once to tbe bell board. and be rang at the Mme time for tbe nurse outside hls doer and for tbe steward. Santolne did not consider the pos sibility of robbery of plate or Jewelry long enough to have been said to con sider It at all; what he felt was that the threat which had been hanging vaguely over himself ever since War den's murder was being fulfilled. But It was not Santolne himself that was being attacked; it was something San tolne possessed. There was only one sort of valuable article for which one might enter that room below. And those articles— Santolne pressed all tbe bells again and then got up. He had heard nbso- > lutely no sound outside, as must be made by anyone escaping from the. room below; but the battle seemed! over, tine aide must have destroyed the other. The blind man stood barefooted on the floor, hls hands clasping in one of the bitterest moments of hls rebellion against, and defiance of, hls helpless- neM of blindness. Below him—as he believed—hls servant* had been Mcri- J Being life for him; there in that room be held In trust that which affected the security, the faith, the honor of others; his guarding that trust In volved hls honor no less. And partic ularly, now, he knew he was bound, at whatever coat, to act; for he did not doubt now but that hls half-pris- j oned guest,, whom Santolne had not ' sufficiently guarded, was at the bot tom of tbe attack. The blind man be- | lleved, therefore, that It was because of hls own retention here of Eaton ’ that the attack had been made, hls servants had been killed, the private secrets of hls associates were In dan ger. Undoubtedly there was danger below; but that was why he did not call again at the other door for some one elM to run a risk for him. He put hls hand on the rail and started to descend th* stairs. He was almost steady In step and he bad firm grasp on the rail; he noticed that now to wonder at it When he had aroused at the sound of firing, hls blindness, as always when something was hap- ' penlng about him. was obtruded upon him. He felt helpless because he was blind, not because he bad been In jured. He had forgotten entirely that for almost two weeks he had not stirred from bed; he had risen and stood and walked, without staggering, to th* door and to ths top of the , stairs before, now, he remembered. So what he already had done showed him that he had merely again to put his Injury from hl* mind and he could go on. He went down the stair* al most steadily. (Continued Next Week.) Investment Department Portland Railway, Light and Power Company ROOM 605 ELECTRIC BLDG.. AS THE STATE ’ Portland, Oregon RVICE is the badge of the great and there is no Great- n e s s without it. — Henry Ford. It is our opinion that he who SERVES need not worry about the DOLLARS. They will follow as the night, the day. The Columban Press, Inc. LOBBY RAILWAY EXCHANGE BUILDING PRINTERS—PU BI.ISHER8—LI NOTYPERS BROADWAY 2242