THE SUNDAY OREGONIAN, PORTLAXDf AUGUST 6, 1S05.
"RAFFLES, THE AMATEUR CRACKSMAN"
By E. W. Hornung, Author of "The Shadow of the
Rope," "The Rogue's March," Eta
No. XIII
The Wrong
House
Tkjl' BROTHER RALPH, who now
11 lived with me on the edge of Ham
" Common, bad come home from Aus
tralia with a curious affection of the eyes,
duo to Ions exposure to the glare out
there, and necessitating the use of clouded
spectacles In the open air. He had not
the rich complexion of the typical coloniSt,
being. Indeed, peculiarly pale, but it ap
peared that ho had been confined to his
berth for the greater part of th.e voyage,
while his prematurely gray hair was suf
ficient proof that the rigors of -bush life
had at last undermined an originally
tough constitution. Our landlady, who
spoiled my brother from the first, was
much concerned on his behalf, and wished
to call In the local doctor, but Ralph said
dreadful things about the profession and
quite frightened the good woman by arbi
trarily forbidding her ever to lot a doctor
Inside her door: I had to apologize to
her for tho painful prejudices and vio
lent language of "these colonists," but the
old soul was easily mollified. She had
fallen In love with my brother at first
sight, and she never could do too much
for him. It was owing to our lanfllady
that I took to calling him Ralph, for the
first time in our lives, on her beginning
to speak of and to him "as "Mr. Raffles."
"This won't do," said he to me. "10s
a name that sticks:"
"It must be my fault! She must have
. heard it from me," said I, eelf-reproach-
fully.
"You must toll her -it's the short for
Ralph."
"But it's longer."
"It's the short," said he, "and you've
' got to tell her so."
Henceforth I heard as much of "Mr.
Ralph,' his likes and his dislikes, what
he would fancy and what he would not,
and, oh, what a dear gentleman he was,
that I often remembered to say, -Ralph,
old chap," myself. .
It was an ideal cottage, as I said when
I found It, and in it our delicate man be
came rapidly robust. Not that the air was
also Ideal, for, when It was not raining, we
had the same faithful mist from Novem
ber to March. But it was something to
Ralph to get any air at all, other than
night air, and the bicycle did the rest.
"We taught ourselves, and may I never
forget our earlier rides through and
through Richmond Park when the after
noons were shortest, upon the Incompara
ble Ripley Road when we gave a day to
it. Rallies rode a Becstqn Humber, a
Royal Sunbeam was good enough for me,
but he Insisted on our both having Dunlop
tires.
"They seem the most popular brand. I
had my eye on the road all the way from
Ripley to Cobham, and there were more
Dunlop marks than any other kind.
Bless you, yes, they all leave their special
tracks, and we don't want ours to be
" extra special; the Dunlop's like a rattle
snake, and the Palmer leaves telegraph
wires, but surely the serpent is more in
our line."
That was the "Winter when there were
so many burglaries Jn the Thames Val
ley from Richmond upward. -It was said
that the thieves used bicycles in every
case, but what is not said? They were
sometimes on foot, to my knowledge, and
we took a great interest in the series, or,
rather, sequence, of successful -crimes.
Raffles would often get his devoted old
f lady to read him the latest local ac
counts, while I was busy with my writ
ing (much I wrote) in my own room.
We even rodo out by night ourselves to
see If we could not get on the track of
the thieves, and never did we fail to find
hot coffee on the hob for our return. We
had Indeed fallen upon our feet. Also,
'the misty nights might have been made
for the thieves. But their success was
not so consistent, and never so enormous
as people said, especially the sufferers!
who lost more Valuables than they had
ever been known to possess. Failure was
often the caitiffs' portion, and disaster
once; owing, ironically enough, to that
very mist which should have sorved
them. But I am going to tell the story
with spme particularity, and perhaps
some gusto, you will see why who read.
The right house stood on high ground
near the river, with quite a drive (in at
one gate and out at the other) sweeping
past the steps. Between the two gates
was a half-moon of shrubs, to the left of
the steps a conservatory, and to their
Tight the walk leading to the tradesmen's
entrance and the back premises; here
also, was the pantry window, of which
more anon. Tho right house was the
residence of an opulent stockbroker wh
wore a heavy watchchain and seemed fair
game. There "would have been two objec
tions to it had I been the stockbroker.
The house was one of a row, though a
goodly row, and an army-crammer had
established himself next door. There Is a
type of such institutions in the suburbs
the youths go about in knickerbockers'
smoking pipes, except on Saturday nights
when they lead each other home from
me last train. It was none of our busi
ness .to spy upon these boys, but their
manners and customs fell within tho field-
?LS?!ailOTL And we d,d not choose
Bf ht "p,on vKch the whole row was
likely to be kept awake.
The night that we did choose was as
misty as even the Thames Valley is can-
Siol.nl makIng them' ePd
gasoline upon the plated parts of his
our dear landlady cosseted us both and
prayed we might see nothing of the naSy
n0t iaylns M the rewtrd
would be very handy to them that got
vV V?5' n0U!lnS of honor and glory.
Wo had promised her a liberal perquisite
in the event of our success, but sho must
not .give other cyclists our idea by men
tioning it to a soul. It was about mid
night when we cycled through Kingston
to Surbiton, having trundled our machines
across Ham Fields, mournful in the mist
as those by Acheron, and so over Teddlnir
ton ' Bridge. ,
I often wonder why the pantry window
is the vulnerable point of nine houses
out of ten. This house of ours was al
most the tenth, for ' the window in ques
tion had bars of sorts, but not the right
sort. The only bars that Raffles allowed
to beat him, were the kind that let into
. the stone outside; those fixed within are
merely screwed to tho woodwork, and
you may unscrew as many as necessary
if you take the trouble and bave the
time. Barred-windows are usually devoid
, of other fasteners worthy tho name; this
one was no exception to that foolish rule,
and a push with the penknife did Its busi
ness. I am giving householders some
valuable hints, and perhaps deserving a
good mark from the critics. These, in
any case, are the points that I would see
to, were I a rich stockbroker in a river
side suburb. In giving good advice, how
ever, I should not have omitted to say
that we had left our machines In the
seml-clrcular shrubbery In front, or that
Raffles bad most Ingeniously fitted our
lamps with dark slides, which enabled
us to lave them burning.
It proved sufficient to unscrew the bars
at tho bottom only, and then to wrench"
them to either side. Neither of us had
grown stout with advancing years, and
Jn a fqw minutes we had both wormed
through Into tho sink, and thence to the
floor. It was not an absolutely noiseless
process, but once in the pantry wo were
mice, and no longer blind mice. There
was a gaB bracket, but we did not middle
with that. Raffles -went armed these
night with a better light than gas; if It
were not Immoral, I might recommend a
dark lantern, which was more or less his
patent. It was that handy invention, the
electric torch, fitted by Raffles with a
dark hood -to fulfil the functions of a slide.
I had held it through the bars while he
undid the screws, and now he held it to
the keyhole, in which a key was turned
upon tho other side.
There -was a pause for consideration,
and In the pause we put on our masks.
It was never known that these Thames
Valley robberies were all committed by
miscreants decked In the livery of crime,
but that was because until this night we
had never even shown ourmasks. It was
a point upon which Raffles had Insisted
on all feasiblo occasions since his furtive
return to the world. Tonight It twice
nearly lost us everything but you shall
hear.
There is a forceps for turning keys
from the wrong side of the door, but the
implement is not so easy of manipula
tion as it might be. Raffles for one pre
ferred a sharp knife and the "corner of
tho panel. You go through the .panel
because that is thinnest, of course In
tho corner nearest the key, and you use
a knife when you can, because It makes
least noise. But it does take minutes,
and even I can remember shifting the
electric torch from one hand to tho other
before the aperture was large enough
to receive the hand and wrist of -Ttafflcs.
He had at such times a. motto of which
I might havo made earlier use, but the
fact is that I have only once before de
scribed a downright burglary In which
I assisted, and that without knowing It
at tho time. The most solemn student
of these annals cannot affirm that he
has cut through many doors in our com
pany, since (what was to me) the maiden
effort to which I allude. I, however, have
cracked only too many a crib in conjunc
tion with A. J. Raffles, and at the cru
cial moment he would whisper, "Victory
or Wormwod Scrubbs, Bunny!" or in
stead of Wormwood Scrubs It might be
Portland Bill. This time It was neither
one nor tho other, for with that very
word "victorj'" upon his lips they whit
ened and parted .with the first taste of
defeat.
"My hand's held!" gasped Raffles, and
the white of his eyes showed all round
the iris, a rarer thing than you may
think.
At the same moment I heard the shuf
fling feet and the low, excited young
voices on tho other side of tho door, and
a faint light shone round Raffles' wrist.
"Well done. Beefy!"
"Hang on to him!"
"Good old Beefy!"
"Beefy's got him!"
"So havo I so have I!"
And Raffles caught my arm with his
one free hand. "They've got me tight,"
he whispered. 'Tm done."
"Blaze through the door," I urged, and
might have done had I beon armed. But
I never was. It was Raffles who monopo
lized that risk."
"I can't It's the boys the wrong
house!" he whispered. "Curse tho leg
It a done mo. But you get out. Bunny,
while you can; never mind me; it's my
turn, old chap." ,
His one hand tightened in affectionate
farewell. I put tho electric torch In it be
fore I went, trembling In every Inch, but
without a word.
Get out! His turn! Yes, I would get
out, but only to come In again, for It was
my turn mine not his. Would Raffles
leave me held by a hand through a hole
In a door? What would he have done in
my place was the thing for roe to do now.
I began by diving head first through the
pantry window and coming to earth on -all
fours. But even as I stood up and brushed
tho gravel from the palms of my hands
and the knees of my knickerbockers, I
had no notion what to do next. And yet
I was half way to the front door before
I remembered the vile, crape mask upon
my face, and tore It off as the door flew
open and my feet were on the steps.
"He's In the next garden." I cried to -a
bevy of pajamas with bare feet and young
faces at either end of them.
"Who? Who?" said they, giving way
before me
"Some fellow who came through one of
your windows headfirst."
"The other Johnny, the other Johnny."
the cherubs chorused.
"Biking pastv-saw tho light why. what
have you there?"
Of course. It was Raffles' hand that
they, had, but now I was In the hall
among them. A red-faced barrel of a
boy did all the holding, one hand round
tho wrist, the other palm to palm, and
his knees braced up against the panel.
Another was rendering ostentatious but
.ineffectual aid. and three or four others
danced about In their pajamas. After all,
they were not more than four to one. I
had raised my voice, so that Raffles might
hear me and take heart, and now I raised
It again. Yet to this day I cannot ac
count for my Inspiration, -which proved
nothing less.
"Don't talk so loud," they were' crying
below their breath; "don't wake 'em up
stairs; this is our show."
"Then I see you've got one of them,"
said I, as desired. "Well. If you want tho
other you can have him, too. I believe
he's hurt himself." '
"After him, after him!" they exclaimed,
as one.
"But I think be got over the wall"
"Come on. you chaps, come on!"
And there was a soft stampede to the
hall door.
"Don't all deport me," I say!" gasped
the red-faced hero who hold Raffles pris
oner. "We must have them both. Beefy!"
"That's all vory well"
"Look here," I Interposed, 'Til stay by
you. 'Tve a friend outside. Til get him,
too."
"Thanks, awfully." said the 'valiant
Beefy.
The hall was empty now. My heart beat
high. '
"How did you hear them?" I Inquired,
my eye running over him.
"We were down having drinks game o'
nap In there."
Beefy Jerked his great head toward an
open door, and the tall of my eye caught
the glint of glasses In the firelight, but
the rest of it was otherwise engaged.
"Let me relieve you." I said, trembling.
"No, I'm all right."
"Then I must Insist."
And before he could answer I had him
round the neck with such a will that not
a gurgle passed my fingers, for they were
almost burled In his hot, smooth flesh.
Oh. I am not proud of It; the acb was as
vile .as act could be; but I was not going
to see Raffles taken, my one desire was
to be the Eavlng of him. and I tremble
even now to think to what lengths I might
have gone for its fulfillment. As It was,
I squeezed and tugged until one strong
hand gavo way after the other and camo
feeling -round for me, but feebly because
they had held on fo long. And what do
you suppose was happening at tho same
moment? The pinched white hand of Raf
fles, reddening with returning blood, and
with a clot of blood upon tho wrist, was
craning upward And turning tho key In
the lock without a moment's loss.
"Steady on. Bunny!"
And I saw that Beefy's ears were blue;
but Raffles was feeling la his pockets as
he spoke. "Now let him breathe," said
he. clapping his handkerchief over the
poor youth's mouth. An empty phial was
In his other hand, and the first few ster
torous breaths that the poor boy took
were the end of him for tho time being.
Oh, but it was villainous, mr part espe
cially, for ho must havo been far gone
to go the rest of thfr "way eo readily.
I began by .saying I was not proud of
this deed, but Its dastardly character
has coma home to mo mora than ever
with the penanco of writing It ' oat. . I
sco In myself, at least my then self, i
things that I never saw quite so clearly
before. Yet let me be quite sure that
I would not do the same again. I .had-not
the smallest desire to throttle this inno
cent lad (nor did I) but only to extricate
Raffles from the most hopeless position
he was ever In; and, after all, It was
better than a blow from "behind. On the
whole, I will not alter a word, nor whine
about -the thing eny more.
We lifted the plucky fellow Into Raf
fles place In the pantry, locked-the door
HEs8'KLhNBMm1 !' jh9 UK9lfkMPwMtrS' jflffiBflWEfk1 wS(H
'l nlM H
TO BOTH WORMED TRTtOCGH.
on him, and put the key through the
panel. Now was the moment for thinking
of ourselves, and again that infernal
mask which Raffles swore by came rear
being the undoing of us both. We had
reached the stops when we were hailed
by a voice, not from without, but from
within, and I had Just time to tear the
accursed thing from Raffles' face before
he turned.
A stout man with a blond mustache was
on the stairs. In his pajamas, like the
boys.
"What are you doing here?" said he.
"There has beon an attempt upon your
house," said I, still spokesman for the
night, and still on (he wings of. Inspira
tion. "Your sons"
"My pupils." '
"Indeed. Well, they heard It, drove "off
the thieves, and have given chase."
"And where do you come In?" inquired
the stout man, descending.
"We were bicycling past, and I actually
saw ono fellow come headfirst through
your pantry window. . I think he got over
the wall."
Here a breathless boy returned.
"Can't see anything of him." he gasped.
"It's true, then." remarked the cram
mer. "Look at that door," said L
But. unfortunately, the breathless boy
looked also, and now he was being Joined
by others equally short of wind.
"Where's Beefy?" he screamed. "What
on earth's happened to Beefy?"
"My good boys," exclaimed the cram
mer, "will one of you be kind enough to
tell me what you've beon doing, and what
these gentlemen have been doing for you?
Come in all. before you get your death.
I see lights in the classroom, and more
than lights. Can these be signs of a
carouse?"
"A very innocent one. sir." said a wcll-sct-up
youth with more mustache than
I have yet.
"Well, Olphert, boys will bo boys. Sup
pose you tell me what happened, before
we come to recriminations."
The bad old proverb was my first warn
ing. I caught two .of the youths exchang
ing glances under raised eyebrows. Yet
their stout, easy-going mentor had given
me such a reassuring glance of sidelong
humor, as between man of the world and
man of the world that it was difficult to
suspect him of suspicion. I was never
theless itching to be gone.
Young Olphert told his story with en
gaging candor. It was true that. they had
come down for an hour's nap and cigar
ettes; well, and there was no denying
that was whisky in the glasses. The boys
wero now all back; in their classroom, I
think, entirely for tho sake of warmth;
but Raffles and I wero in knickerbockers
and Norfolk Jackets, and very naturally
remained without, while the army-crammer
(who wore bedroom slippers) stood
on the threshold, with an eye each way.
The more I saw of tho man the better I
liked and the rooro I feared him. His
chief annoyance thus far was that they
had not called him when they heard the
noise, that they had dreamt of leaving
him out of the fun. But he seemed more
hurt than angry about that.
"Well, sir," concluded Olphert, "we left
old Beefy Smith hanging on to his hand,
and this gentleman with him, so perhaps
he can tell just what happened next?'
"1 wish I could." I cried, with all their
eyes upon me, for I had had time to
think.
"Some of you must have heard me say
Td fetch my friend In from the road?"
"Yes, I did," piped an innocent from
within.
"Well, and when I came back with him
things were exactly as you see them "now.
Evidently tho man's strength: was too
much for tho boy's; but whether he ran
upstairs or outside I know no more than
you do."
"It wasn't like that boy to run cither
way," said tho crammer, cocking a clear
blue eye on me.
"But if ha gave chase?"
"It wasn't like him even to let go."
"I don't believe Beefy ever would," put
in Olphert, "That's why wo gave him
the billet."
"He may havo followed him through,
the pantry window." I suggested, wildly.
"But the door's shut," put in a boy.
"I'll have a look at It," sild the cram
mer. And the key no longer In the lock, and
the Insensible youth within! The key
would be missed, the door kicked In; nay.
with the man's eye still upon me. I
thought I could smell the chlorofom, I
thought I could hear a moan, and pre
pared for either any moment. And how
he did stare! I have detested blue eyes
ever since, and blondo mustaches, and the
whole stout, easy-going type that Is not
such a fool as it looks. I hade brazened
It out with the boys, but the first grown
man was too many for me, and the blood
ran out of my heart as though thero was
no Raffles at my back. Indeed, I had for
gotten him. I had so longed to put this
thing through by myself! Even in my
extremity It was almost a disappointment
to me when his dear cool voice fell like a
delicious draught upon my ears. But Its
effect upon the others Is more interesting
to recall. Until now the crammer had
the center of the stage, but at this point
Raffles usurped a place which was always
his at will. People would wait for what
he had to say as these people waited now
for ttie simplest and most natural thing
In the world.
"One moment!" he had begun.
"Well?" said the crammer, relieving me
of his eyes at last.
"I don't want to lose any of the fun"
"Nor must you," said the crammer, with
emphasis.
"But we've left our bikes outside, and
mine's a Becston Humber," continued
Raffles. "If you don't mind, we'll bring
'em in before these fellows get away on
them."
And out ho went without a look to see
tho effect of his words, I after him with
a determined imitation of his self-control.
But I would have given something to turn
round. I believe that for one moment tho
shrewd" Instructor was taken In, but as I
reached the steps I heard him asking his
pupils whether any of them had seen any
bicycles outside.
That moment, however, made the dif
ference. We were In the shrubbery, Raf
fles with his electric torch drawn and
blazing, when we heard them kicking at
the pantry floor, and In the drive with
our bicycles before man and boys poured
pell-mell down the steps.
We rushed our machines to the nearest
gate, for both were shut, and we got
through and swung it home behind us in
the nick of time. Even I could mount be
fore they could reopen the gate, which
Raffles held against them for half an in
stant with unnecessary gallantry. But
ho would see me In front of him, and so
It fell to me to lead the way.
Now, I have said' that it was a very
misty night (hence the whole thing), and
also that these houses were on a hllL
But they wero not nearly on the top of
the hill, and I did what I firmly beliqvo
that almost everybody would have done
In my place. Raffles, indeed, said he
would have dono It himself, but that was
his generosity, and he was the one man
who would not. What I did was to turn
In the opposite direction to tho other
gate, where we might so easily have been
cut off, and to pedal for my life up hill!
"My God!" I shouted when I found It
out,
"Can .you turn In your own length?"
asked Raffles, following loyally.
"Not certain."
"Then stick to it- You couldn't help 1L
But it's the devil of a hill!"
"And here they come!"
"Let them." said Raffles, and bran
dished his electric torch, our only light
as yet. ,
A hill seems endless In the dark, for you
cannot see the end. and with tho patter
of bare feet gaining; on us, I thought this
one could have no end at alL Of course,
the boys could charge up it quicker than
we could pedal, but I even heard the
voice of their stout instructor growing
louder through the mist.
"Oh. to think I've let you In for this!"
I groaned, my head over the handle
bars, every ounce of my weight first on
one foot and then cn the other. I glanced
at Raffles, and In the white light of his
torch -be was doing it all with his ankles,
exactly as though ho had been tiding In a
gymkhana.
"It's the most sporting chase I was ever
in," said he. v
"All my fault!"
"My dear Bunny, I wouldn't have missed
It for the world I"
Nor would he forge ahead of me,,
though he could have done so in a mo
ment, he who from his boyhood had done
everything of vthe kind so much" better
than anybody else. No, he must ride a
wheel's length behind me, and now we
could not only hear the boys running, but
breathing also. And then of a sudden I
saw Raffles on my right striking with his
torch; a face flew out of the darkness to
meet the thick glass bulb with tho glow
ing wire inclosed; it was the face or the
boy Olphert, with his enviable mustache,
but Jt vanished with the crash of glass.
MANUFACTURING OF
Conditions Under Which the Substance Is Harmless
THE visitor to Dodson,- Just out of
Kansas City, knew that dynamite
would explode, and that was about all
he knew concerning it. The little plant
there where Kansas City people dally
deal with this powerful explosive had
often occurred to him as a source of
investigation, says the Kansas City
Star, but there-Is an inborn timidity
in all peoplo when It is suggested hat
they make a close scrutiny of dynamite.
The attitude of the superintendent was
the customary one of the long-suffei
Ing compassion for the uninitiated as
the visitor timidly piped his questions.
"What is dynamite and how is it
made?" ho reiterated.
The questioner reddened a little as
he thought of the length, height and
breadth of his Ignorance. The superin
tendent pulled open a desk drawer and
handed out a stick of some soft sub
stance covered with a shell of heavy
paraffined paper. Opening one of the
nicely crimped ends, a soft substance
was seen that looked something like
flne cornmeal which has been dampen
ed and firmly pressed.
"That's some of It," was the brief ex
planation. .
"Looks harmless enough," said the
visitor, in an indifferent tone, laying
It pack upon the desk with a well-concealed
qualm of nervousness.
"And as harmless as It looks, except
under certain definite conditions." was
the quick rejoinder In a tone suggest
ing considerable professional pride.
"And the conditions?" v
"Nothing less than a detonating- cap,
buried in one end of the stick and set
off by a special kind of fuse."
"How about a sudden jar?" was ask
ed. In reply, he raised tho stick with
which he had been emphasizing his re
marks and hurled It to the floor with
all his strength. The visitor restrained
with greatdlfficulty an impulse to shat
ter tho-International record fo.r the
standing high-Jump.' and prepared to
continue the study of high explosives
in such a manner as to preclude forcible
demonstrations.
"No danger from that source,'' con
tinued the Informant, "so long as your
.powder remains in its . normal condi
tion. When partially frozen, however,
some dynamites - may be exploded by
violent concussion; it depends a great
deal upon the composition of the dope."
rThe dope?"
"Yes. You see, all dynamites consist
in general of nitroglycerin mixed with a
more or less complex absorbent called the
'dope. Two elements universally used
In the 'dope are sawdust or wood pulp
and nltrato of soda. They are nonex
pjosive. but both, especially" the latter,
when ignited, give off a large volume of
gas. which expands and adds consider
ably to the force of the nitroglycerin
explosion. The nitrate of soda is im
ported by thousands of tons from Chile
and other South American regions,
where it Is found In vast natural beds
and known as Chile saltpeter. You re
member the dispute over the ownership
of these" deposits Was the casus belli i
In the late Chile-Colombia affair." -i
"Yes." the visitor responded, remin-
iscently; "ana tne otner ingreaiems 01
the dope?"
"Well, you see." he replied, after a
moment's hesitation. It would be a
hard matter to explain to you In 20
minutes all that has been discovered
and utilized in 20 years of research.
Over there is the laboratory building,"
pointing to a small red building at some
distance, wnere could be seen an oc
casional figure moving around amid a
labyrinth of retorts, glass tubes and
what not. "We employ an experienced
chemist to conduct constant experi
ments with a view to hitting upon
some new active absorbent which shall
be cheaper, safer and more effective
than that now In use."
Accepting tho hint, the visitor paused
to sum .up. "Then dynamite consists In
nitroglycerin mixed with a number of
noncxplosive substances, which togeth
er act as an absorbent?"
"Exactly."
"And the nitroglycerin? What Is that
made of and how do you make it?"
"Nitroglycerin is formed when pure
glycerine is agitated with a mixture of
nitric and sulphuric acids. Come along
I'll show you how it is done."
Leaving the office, we struck out toward
a large frame building high up on the
bluff and flanked on either side, at wide
Intervals by other "houses" of the plant.
On our way to the nitroglycerin house or
"nltrater" we passed some long, rambling
buildings from which Issued dense white
and red fumes' which set us coughing and
gasping at a great rate. "Here's where
we make the acids for the nitroglycerin."
was tho explanation, "and over there."
pointing tq a huge iron tank of a boiler
like appearance. "Is where the acids are
mixed and whence they are driven In
sultablo quantities by compressed air to
the nltrater.'"
Arrived at the last-mentioned building,
and having accustomed our eyes to the
semi-darkness, which appeared Stygian
after the glare of the midday sun. we saw
a series of large leaden tanks set In tiers,
to the highest of which my courteous
guide led. me. It looked like a churn of
herculean proportions the agitator being
driven by a. powerful steam engine. Into
this receptacle, which was already charged
with a weighed amount of the mixed
acids, there flowed a tiny stream of pure
golden glycerine. An attendant seated on
a stool gazed steadily at a large thermom
eter, the lower end of which projected into
tho swirling liquid within the tank.
"Why do you watch the temperature so
closely?" I asked.
"Over SO Is dangerous," he replied with
out looking up.
"At what point would an explosion bo
likely to occur?" I pursued, with one eye
on tho thermometer, which stood at 76,
and the other on the door, which stood
ajar.
'Td let her down at 50," with one hand
on a small lever and tho 'other pointed
below, where we could see. " through a
hole In the floor, a tremendous open
and the naked wire thickened to the eye
like a tuning-fork struck red-hot.
I saw- no more of that. One of them
had crept up on my side also; as I looked,
hearing him pant, he was grabbing at my
left handle, and I nearly sent Raffles Into
the hedge by the sharp turn I took to
the right. His wheel's length saved him.
But my boy could run. was overhauling
me again, seemed certain of me this time,
when all at onco the Sunbeam ran easily;
every ounce of my weight with either foot
once more, and I was over tho crest of
the hill, the gray road reeling out from
under me as I felt for my brake. I looked
back at Raffles. He bad put up his feet.
I screwed my head round still further,
and there were the boys In their pajamas,
their hands upon their knees, like so many
wicket-keepers, and a big man shaking
his fist. There was a lamppost on the
hilltop, and that was the last I saw.
We sailed down to the river, then on
through Thames Dltton as rar as Esher
Station, when we turned sharp to the
right, and from the dark stretch by Im
ber Court camo to light In Molesey, and
wero soon pedaling like gentlemen of
leisure through Bnshley Park, our lights
turned up, the broken torch put out and
away. The big gates had long been snut.
but you can maneuver a bicycle through
the others. We had no further adventures
on the way home, and our coffee was still
warm upon the hob.
tank filled with 9000 gallons of cold run
ning water.
"And then?"
"Get away," was the laconic reply.
Threading our way back to the door
through the numerous tanks which were
used in washing the finished nitroglycerin
from the excess of acid, we passed to the
"mlxhouse," 200 feet below and around the
bend of the hill. Here some men were
mixing a huge mealy mass In a large,
shallow bin of polished wood.
"They're mixing the nitroglycerin with
the dope," explained the superintendent.
"Here In the next bin Is a batch of the
finished dynamite, ready for the packers."
I looked cordially mystified at the last
term, but was soon enlightened.
Passing around the bluff we came to the
first of a series of small buildings, in each
of which a gang of men were hammering
away for dear life, ramming or "packing"
the dynamite through large tin funnels
Into paper csilnders, which form the outer
covering's of the finished cartridges. At
the end of this line of buildings was the
"casehouse" where the sticks are weighed
and boxed In cartons for the market.
As we paused before the door of a great
vaultlike structure at the end of our tour
and contemplated the towering plies of
boxes stored within. I could not resist tho
query. "But how Will you ever dispose of
all this?
"Not a great deal there," was the re
sponse, as the veteran cast his practiced
eye over the stock. "At the rate of three
cars a week we have only a little over a
month's supply on hand."
"And where Is all thl3 force let looser
I asked.
"In tho mines and quarries of the West
ern States. A little goes to the coal fields,
but not much. Black powder Is liked bet
ter there because of its tendency to rip
the coal up Into largo blocks, which would
be pulverized and rendered inconvenient
to work by tho sudden shock of a dyna
mite explosion. Then. too. sovoral million
pounds may go to the big dlch on the
isthmus."
"Several million pounds!" the visitor
gasped, and when he got home he dragged
down the family ntins and. looking at tlw
insignificant little thread of land between
the Americas, wondered how It would look
six months hence.
Ildnor Civil . War Veteran.
Oscar Eaton, a voteran of tho Civil
War. over 85 years old and a resident
of Oswego, Or., was presented with a
silver badge last Sunday by his com
rades, A. C. Sloan, G. E. Caukins and
T. G. Darr, In honor of his services
during- the war and because of his age.
In presenting the emblem, his com
"S.
household saying.
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? , , , J , t j run-down condition of the system. I had noap
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failed to perform their full ing that made me miserable. I began the use of
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the system and been ab- Columbus, Ohio. Victor : Stotbojs,
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Entrance No. 162 First Street
Our spacious and handsome new offices will occupy the en tiro sec
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WHY DO YOU SUFFER
WHEN YOU CAN BE CURED?
Call and consult the well-known Dr. C. Gee Wo. He will be honest
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Patients out of the city write for blanks, book and circular. Inckwa 4
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162 FIRST STREET, PORTLAND, OREGON.
Fleaaa mention this paper.
"But I think It's an occasion for Swltl
vans," said Raffles, who now kept them
for such. "By all my gods. Bunny. It's
been the most sporting night we ewer
had In our lives! And do you know which
was the most sporting part of it?"
"That up-hill ride?"
"I wasn't thinking of It."
"Turning your torch Into a truncheon?"
"My dear Bunny! A gallant lad I hated
hitting him."
"I know," I said. "The way you get us
out of the house!"
"No, Bunny," said Raffias, blowing
rings. "It came before that, you slnaer,
and you know It!"
"You don't mean anything I did? said
I, self-consciously, for I began to see that
thl3 was what he did mean. And now at
latest it will also be seen why tnls story
has been told with undue and InsxciMafete
gusto; there is none other Hke It for mo
to tell; It -is my one ewe-lamb in all these
annals. But Raffles had a ruder name
for it.
"It was the Apotheosis of the Bunny."
said he, but In a tone I never shall forget.
"I hardly knew what I was doing or
saying." I said. "The whole thing was a
fluke."
"Then,'.' said Raffles. "It was the kind
of fluko I always trusted you to mako
when runs were wanted."
And he held out his dear old hand.
DYNAMITE
Its Varied Uses.
rades eulogized the old soldier for the
services he had rendered the country,
and complimented him on the Ions nd
useful life he had led. The presenta
tion was a complete surprise to Mr.
Eaton, and when the badge was pinned
on his breast he was deeply afCeeted.
The veteran was a member of Twenty
sixth Michigan Infantry, first division
of the second army corps of the Army
of the Potomac.
With the Houseboat Col
ony on the River.
(Continued Prom lage 39.)
flpied by Mr. and Mrs. George Collins and
Dr. George AlnsHe. By the time Mr.
Morris anchors the Casa Chalupa at the
upper end of Ross Island, the chain
houseboats will bo complete, and It will
take caller3 an. entire day to pay visits to
their friends on the water.
Figures on tho Cost.
The. cost of a houseboat depends en Its
foundation. If it rosts on a htiM th
cost is far greater than if the ftoat ia
made of logs, but there is also greater
danger of leakage. But the hull has the
advantage of being easily towd. white
there is always danger of the boat en
logs turning turtle. A house on legs ean
be purchased at prices ranging from UtD
to $100 or 52CO, according to the size, ami
the cost of furnishing, of course. depeJHkt
upon the taste and resources of the own
ers. Inquiry among tho regular house
boat dwellers on tho Iowor river puts the
price of a good five-room house on a large
log to float at about $29). This is a small
expenditure when one comes to compare
it with cottages on land, and the nice part
of the houseboat Is that there la no tand
rent to pay nor lots to buy. The river Is
one of the free things on this earth,
and whether rich, poor, high, low or IwHI
feront. it can bo utilized and onjyeL
The family who fits up a comfortable
boat, where the husband ami brothers
may enjoy the Summer's outing and at
tend to business- at the same time. Is get
ting more out of life than those who s
to fashionable coast and mountain re
sorts, and It goes without saying that
the children enjoy it better. They learn
to swim like fish and get brown as ber
ries from being on tho water.- The pres
ent honsoboat colony seems to think that
the delightfully cool nights add as much
charm to this Bohemian life on the water
as any other feature, and love to tell how
cool and comfortable they were during
the recent hot spell when we. In the city,
were suffering with the heat.
MARION MACRAE.
l....1...1.V.a1TOrTg.
THE BLOOD
S. S. for the blood" has crown to he a
When the blood is out of order, or
C. GEE WO
THE GREAT CHINESE DOCTOR
Formerly located at 233 Alder Street, Corner Third,
for the pant live years
HAS MOVED
To the In rare brick building nt southeast corner ot
First and Morrison streets.