—
P E / ^ L o / r h M
Æ
3 (JY W. Me CONNELL
■■I
■ ■ >11-11.1 ■
i
—
gone! Instead was a gold lo ck et! Un­
ab le to believe h er eyes, she opened it
a t «Mice— h er priceless m iniature o f
Thornton B re n t w as m issing!
Fum bling again through her purse
stie found th is explanatory n ote penned
on the private station ary o f Capt.
Ilalp li P a y n e :
m
W Story o f “America F irst ” Un­
masking America’s Secret Foes
m
.i - ........ .
G uard th e p a ck e t in vour trav e lin g case
F ly to th e t uso del N orte on the G ra n a ­
d ian fro n tier. T h e re fu rth e r h siriictio n s
a w a it you. W e a r th e locket O r identifi­
catio n aud B r e n t's m iniature will l>e you rs '
again.
uicrciU-iS rvalizatlou o f what the dis­
grace th at had cotnc upon him meant
to both and n desire to have the m eet­
ing over with qulekly.
But never had she so adored him as
then. He stood erect, a trifle stiff,
smiling easily so th at she might not
disturbing aspect'. Every day some
unexpected development In our for­
eign relations was arising, exacting a
keener finesse, a more •harp finality,
u g reater precaution, hurhingeriug no
oue knew what form o f disputation yet
to come in the preservation of national
Independence,
T h e hour had arrived when some­
thing more than the cra ft o f our sta tes­
men wus necessary to avert national
d isaster. Ageucios hostile, mysterious,
unrecognizable, eluding detection, de­
fying offueement, Infested the land,
lurking lu every byway o f public life.
Even trivial events lu ordinary tim es
now took on a sin ister meaning to those
upon whose vigilance ttic protection of
a country uml its people depended. It
was a tim e when sober-minded men
were beginning to p ractice with a ritle
in the buck yard and women to gaze
upon th eir stalw art sons with tender­
ness horn in fe a r o f sacrifice. T h e
bosom o f Am erica, unumg young nnd
old w as inspired iu a new and solemn
patriotism .
P earl tn h er m otor c a r reflected upon
t h e s e tilings soberly. Slu* sighed.
They rode past tin* celebrated cen­
tra l railroad depot where the qu.o>
eyes o f both perceived th at the singe
o f th e night's dram a hud tern; or:
shifted . H alf a score o f foreign diplo­
m ats and a handful o f railroad em ­
ployees were surrounding u hearse. A
g'nuce told them th at in ii v as the
dead body o f the G ranadian aiO as.-.i-
M>r. Pearl marveled a t the h a ste d!s.
played in gettlug it out o f the coun­
try.
On reaching h er r e - T -Kt .
r *>
the house shut up foi
.
m issing Toko, who proceeded ^ oul .
toward the garage in tin* re a r o f tho
prem ises, slu* adm itted h erself. While
closing the door, she observed a ta x i­
cab on th e opposite side o f the thor­
oughfare. T h e driver was huddled in
his seat, apparently asleep. She won-
do red who m ight he lm 'ii if
< ”•
r t such an hour, fo r in none o f the
houses in the neighborhood w ere there
any lights.
In hoy own homo a supernatural
quietude prew iled .
W ith a l!file
shiver she quickly turned on the elec­
tric lights. Then she slowly mounted
the sta irs to h er bedroom.
in tin* a ct o f sw itching off th e cur­
rent a t the top o f tho stairs, she h a lt­
ed, listening, n ttra *>*d * • the sound
o f stealth y movome
>w followed
by a fa in t groan, due n. *v down the
steps and Into the library w h en ceT .
sound had come. H ere she scented
the odor o f chloroform . SimuMi ** mug»
ly she ¿tum bled over tne unconscious
person o f one o f h er m aids lying on
the floor and detected short, quick-
Dashes o f light iu the colonel’s " tra y .
She stole to the cu rtain s which sen-
am t ed th e two rooms, punning m e
folds side. She stepped b a e k v a rJs ,
startled . A strangely garbed num, Ins
buck toward her. w as fumbling over
some papers on the desk.
P earl must have gasped aloud In her
sudden excitem ent or given some evl-
It was some minutes b efore she
gathered th a t an inexplicable turn o f
events was in je ctin g her. w hether she
willed or not, into the affairs o f the
man whom M ajor B ren t had set out to
remove, if possible, from the life of
! B erth a B onn was th ere, waiting.
SY N O P SIS.
“H ow dy!” she exclaim ed, fam iliar- P earl D are.
B erth a opened h er traveling case.
Capt. R alp h P ay n e. IT. S. A.. Is given se­ i ly. He m erely touched h er outstretched
c re t plans o f d efen se to deliver to P a n a ­ : tinkers. “ W ell! You know why I am T h ere lay a neat, oblong package re­
m a. He atten d s a ball at th e hom e o f his
here. Must 1 go to C aptain Payne for sem bling a silken envelope. It was
sw e eth ea rt.
Colonel
D a re s’ d au g h ter.
Sh e looked
P e a r l. As a clim ax to a se rie s o f m >: - ! the funds I need, or a re you prepared sealed and unaddressed.
te n o n s incid ents lie is arrested fo r t re a ­ j to be magnanimous in your own in- at it though;fully.
son. T h e am b assad o r of G ran ad a Is found
F o r one thousand dollars in crisp
dead and the plans m issing fro m P a y n e 's
te re s t?”
co a t.
He met h er challenge fran kly. “J new (rills, held together by a rubber
I told you th e truth. I am broke and hand, also lay in a conspicuous plu«e
SECOND EPISODE - »
in the case.
j facing ruin. A little Inter, perhaps—
Still smiling, she went dow nstairs
Out of the ta il o f his eye he saw hei
cynical sm ile and changed his tactles. and paid h er account out o f this mys­
Found Guilty.
“I am h ea rtily sorry fo r the shadows teriously acquired w ealth.
“ Have yon ever had anything forged
which I cast upon your early life
T h e ball a t th e G ranadian em bassy
on yon?" she queried o f the cashier,
B
erth
a
.
B
u
t
why
have
you
reopencc
continued w ithout interruption until a
th at painful chap ter at this la te d.’. te nnnb'e to ro«d?t tne fling, fo r she was
la te hour.
O rders from no less im­
portant personage than th e president | Tsn’t there some w ay by which we can tilled with no Itttio curiosity concern­
ing tht» locket m yster;
forbade m aking knowu to th e public, ) keep it closed and forget each o th er?”
“Never.” said lie. cb 'n ein s apprais­
fo r the tim e being at least, th e sudden -- She slu t gged contemptuously. “ IIow
ingly
at h er through Ins horn-rimmed !, ÿ/a’-e i v H * y - ? v A*
>4
aud m ysterious death o f Am bassador ! can I forge t ! You refused me honest
spectacles. li e n .i« irnp-shouldered
D e M ira— attribu ted to suicide— until love aud u clean name.”
H er voice chilled him. “In a few and bald-headed.
a fte r the prelim inaries o f an. inves­
B erth a turned nwrv. now laughing
tigation could be arran g ed ; and 60 months,” lie fenced, w eak ly ; “I sh all
outright,
and asked the iiielit porter
closely was th e secret guarded th a t probably be aide to settle upon you a
only a few of th e attach es w ere cogni­ sufficient sum to m ike you alw ays in­ something about enrlv morning trains.
\ i
lust h efo r° retirin g she hanpen“d to
zant o f the am bassador’s fa te .
T h e dependent. W on't th at suffice?”
T h ere w as a note o f jealou sy in the look down open the thoi ->np’ t »re and
absence o f Colonel D are, his d au g h ter
“So sew , the F»nre ni'tomohile con nialng
and his unfortu nate young colli »ague, nervous laugh which followed.
Cupt. Italph Payne, if noted a t till, o c­ you expect to m arry the D are m illion s! oplv th e fum iliar visnged Toko rustl­
ing hv. Sh e wondered why roe ca r (h e P riceless M iniature of Brent W as
casioned no comment among th e a s­ Is th a t it ? ”
“T h a t’s i t !” h e adm itted, a fte r a de- was out at (hat Into time and w hither
sem bly now wholly absorbed in th e
Missing.
it was bound. An hour later the ca r
j finnt silence.
pleasu re o f the momeut.
H e r m anner sw iftly changed. T he again passed the U’ilton hotel, hut by tne j-ccnty fee! the natural em barrass­
M ajor Thornton B ren t, it is tru e.
ment.
\s lie lield her hand in a re­
having seen his party's h asty e x it, may mask o f the worldly woman illsup- th 's tim e B erth a w as sound asleep.
T h e autom obile on its return trip assuring clasp, she knew that he was
liave wondered what sudden notion [»eared fro m h er faca, flushed and re­
tiifiklnc tin* m aster effort of his life
took them off w ithout telling him about veallng mi outraged heart. Sh e s ta rt­ was not empty, however. In tf w ere
, >r self-control.
Colonel
Dure
and
Mu
jo
r
B
r
e
n
Y
re
-ced
­
eli
troni
th
è
sola
and
then
fo
r
tilt1
fu
st
it. H e w as, however, in a m easu re
They stood talking briefly, Incoher­
ing
to
the
form
er’s
residenc"
from
n
relieved and glad to be alone. Tw o tim e his w itlenfug eyes saw u plaln
ently. • ooking into i iich o ih er’s eyes,
secretly
convened
court-m
artial
of
gold
locket
attaelred
to
a
Chain
a
t
her
tilings had occurred to d istu rb his
tliev bow th a t som ething which bind
C aptain Payne.
equanim ity. H e had lo st the in sin u a t­ iliroat.
women Irrevocably and exult men.
It
was
obvious
th
at
th
's
wa«
no
hap­
l
’or
n
few
d
'stu
rh
in
g
seconds
B
ren
t
ing note from B erth a Bonn sent t n him
' f t th a t th is dread tiling lay bo-
a t the Dure resid ence earlier i a the j confounded if vltli the one in which py homecoming when tlie ear stopped
tv
i-en them Payne as well as she knew,
before
the
D
are
door.
Toko
stood
evening. T h is w as enough to Uirow j the governm ent ch em icals had been se­
and when without responding to Ids
llini into n panic of apprehension. And creted and given to his unfortunate aside a trifle more d cfere n fn l than
usual w hile the officers descended. sd in t pleading for b elief in ills Inno­
t\ie girl had. a fte r all, appeart *1 at brother officer.
H e sprang to h is fe e t ju s t as she T h e colonel seemed suddenly to have cence Pearl with a sob turned aside,
the ball. H e had seen and been f meed
wrenched th e ic c l 'i t from its fastenin g aged. Ilis eyes lacked luster. In con­ lie e.<uld not resent the inference Unit
covertly to ta lk with her.
site was not quite sure.
F r e e to pursue an appointm ent w ith and pressing a spring disclosed its tr a s t to th e extrem ely unctuous m ajor
\ moment la te r she was gone. If
a
t
h
is
elbow,
the
proud
hearing
o
f
ties
h er at his apartm ent, B re n t shipped contents to liim.
his heart fluttered when he heard lux
popular
regim
ental
commander
w
as
T
he
locket
rrm
tained
his
m
iniatu
re
aw ay from th e em bassy unobs erved
i-e - ling fo o tfa lls on the narrow stone
not m anifest.
and strod e to the W ilton, ca s t in a signed, dated and in scrib ed :
Toko, with an a ir of understanding, passagew ay, he gave no sign, receiv­
“T o My D artin g W ife.”
gloom of reflections upon has early
UDobtrusively pre< vd* d 'i i m b > the ing in , m i a- toni-dilng calm his personal
Tie drew b « ,• u tterin g an oath.
arm y life a fte r leaving W est P< c'rit
house,
which fo r the mom ru t apparent­ a ’ uvneya who were now arriving ou
She
turned
a
vay,
snapping
the
lid
A m ere ch it then, w as th is sim p le,
pm "/' u iatters of business.
ly
was
deserted.
meek-eyed daughter of the old frantieV shut. *4 f I w ere you, Thornton,” she
it'-n u ll he out in a Jiffy, P a y n e !"
drawled
w
iih
studied
iro
n
y
;
“I
B
ren
t
passed
into
the
library.
On
post sergeant, who cam e tw ice a week-
’u“
y assured I ’.ninbridge, tho senior,
w ith his linens and darning, am i to wouldn’t calcu late on those D are mil­ the w all hung a splendid painting of
i -v.-i-. ly before lie was inside the door.
lio
n
s
to
prov
iso
tile
w
ith
an
incom
e.”
I
’ayne.
I
lis
eyes
were
rivi
ted
upon
it.
whose childish adoration, in tlw* grenl
B ren t sprang iq oil h er in sw ift and B u t In them th ere was no pity. A ‘ • '•inicbod.ff will pay for this dammilde
isolation of his life, his heart erf youth
voControllnhlC'
ragi c his vision blurred. stran ge uneasiness p >rnieat( d h i s , «••.itrage. T h e government seems to have
hungry to love, succumbed.
i •» its head e n tire ly !”
.
F o r years he had wondered w heth­ se,*uig only th a t f yrjrotten inscription senses. Turning, lie found 'J ko. he. i- i
I
n
;
lie,
bored,
motioned
them
to tit
o
f
ii
-*
im
pulsive
a
tel
sentim
ental
mo­
tatin
g
to
approach,
yet
with
an
evi­
er she was alive or dead. T h en, one
d w ri.
dent qm stlon on his lips.
day shortly a fte r his com m ission ns m a­ ment o * y ears ago.
' I w ant to talk to you about my
Th e I, N ket rolled on the lloor and
“W hat Is it. Toko?”
jo r and tra n sfe r to Colonel D are's regi­
Toko pointed to the portrait. His w ill,” said he briefly. “You can draw
ment, he w as som ew here w ith P earl at out o f tin i f re ich. P»erU.>a w as about
vlifu a knock on the door usually Inscrutable fa c e was expres- it up tomorrow and mnil it for my sig
an afternoon tea dance or som ething. to shriek
nature.”
brought
B
n
f t to his s e is e s . B erth a sive o f real regret.
Already had his subtlety in the a rt o f
The
law yers
seated
them selves
“ W hat was the charge ngain^t the
love gained fo r him a place In the reeovered the lo ck et w hile h e re lu ct­
heavily.
Balnhridge wondered wind
antly
an
sw
ered
'
eumneons.
captain
?”
heart o f th e colonel's daughter. Her
“He sold n valuable army secret to m anner o f man th is was.
At the tl resh 'id , snluting, stood an
glowing eyes and the rich color m an­
M eanw hile Pearl and her father
no
enemy coun.ry. Toko,” M ajor B ren t
tling h er cheeks told him that on th is orderly fr< m the :vai" office.
gloomily
returned to town.
occasion he w as fascin atin g her and
“Compli’ i< nts » if the
o f ptl}fr gruffly replied. “To G ranada.”
When T oko drew up at the war de­
“W
ill
he
bo
shot?’
th at, fo r the moment, his rival was nol and in stru ctio n s to hei 'd q u arters i
Brent shook his fiend. “T h e proof, partm ent to permit the la tte r to alight,
in her thoughts. l i e was on the point full dress t nifort j. s ir.” s ’-id ho from
while quite conclusive, was circum ­ la* lingered at tin* side o f tin* machine
o f proposing, knowing th at the idea a resp eecfii dista nee.
stan
tial. He has been sentenced to holding ids daughter's hand tightly.
w as not en tirely repellent.
jw
“ I'.e liruve, girl. Uemcmher that you
of life im prisonment in I hi* federal peni­
Then cam e the shock flint put n lu h is fa c t to a i oid
V 'JY
are a D are to whom Am erica stands
ten tiary. He will lie dismissed from ,
stop to his m atrim onial calcu lations B e r th » . who. taldng tidvaii.age . i f the
iirst.” Tu rning aw ay, he mumbled
fo r the present. F o r B erth a Bonn, a c­ situ n t.on , slipped o u t when a sa fe e x it tl, •» arm y a t sunrise.”
something about not seeing t a r until
“ I ,'**l*i »1 Captain Payne." said Toko,
companied by an atniuhle hon vivant, w as assu red .
late lu the follow ing afternoon. Pearl
had entered the room and. taking an
Sb ? im m ediately w ent to the Tsrfel a fte r n *<auso. “He was my frien d ." understood.
He
gave
B
.'e
n
t
another
uncom
fortable
adjoining table, observed and adroitly oftie •. H ere she deposited the loci u*t
(t was during tin* short homeward
flaunted recognition into his startled w it! th e clerk fo r S a fe keeping. 1 be look. “I don’t believe th at he was
drive, alone, that th ere dawned upon
eyes.
clerk gave h e r th e usual duplicate r r- guilty.” *
B ren t becam e furious fo r no very Pearl th e grim signitnwnee o f the o f­
Sim ilar encounters followed. Then ce.p t, num/ icred aAd In blauk, on whii to
fen se to r which her lover hud been con-
He never hml
cam e le tters containing re q u v ts for h e r signu' ure in h e r own hnndwritin t explain able reason.
vlcted. Already had the cau se and pre­
money. B ren t, alw ays extravagant, be­ " a t a nty 'essary rvqniroinent. She pu t liked Toko. His Kngli.-h was too in
dicam ent o f tills b rillia n t young A m eri­
gan to find him self head over heels in th is iu h er purse ni>d turned a w a j * /niffernbly blunt. He turned away to
can officer been noised shout. T n e
An Episode in M ajor B ren t's Past.
debt. H is position made refu sal o f her with a f eellng of securb'y. Ineuri« u sly 1 /tde his feelings
r-rc e ts w ere unusually a le rt with peo­
demands im possible.
u the hall stixid P eart wringing Imr
sh e r»t .served the ord irly from th e
ple. At corn ers under lamp-posts nn-n d< nee o f her presence, fo r the Intruder
l i e reached the “F ” stree t side of w ar r jfiee aw aiting the m ajor. Then
han«. N T h e hopelessness o f it all was and women were grouping around news skillfully hiding his fa ce turned Im­
th e W ilton in a fever. Unnoticed by she 'v e n t to h er own tuom . Hardly* wrlrfen nn fi“ r
Xt wns Plaln ,h n ' hoys. T h e nam e of Itulph Payne was mediately nr.d leaped through an open
him at the curb stood th e D are au ­ had s te entered when ft nm the pave-
th o colon «il had told her everything
on everybody's lips. T o hep sham e window, making off in the shadows.
tomobile. Toko s i t at the wheel qu iet­ roor ,t rose the sh rill c r y o f m elted ,
see hon— alone." she sahl
" I must
P earl heard h er own linked with his by
Nbe was a fte r him In a second, but
ly smoking a -ig arette .
i a y \ slx»ys.
p'teonslv. nj nrnaohlnz the . iioijg r.
a knot o f workmen a t a culvert over when she reached the ground he had
At th at hoar the hotel lobby wo? ,
T h e lioarse. bellow ing rolces in
B ren t ft mu! ' 1' m1 ■> mIMlth jr
which h er c a r bounded.
disappeared. Then th e throbbing o f
p ractically deserted.
When B re n t j ~ ,,_,i t .;|r judefir ja rr*d tn>on ht
• i h - roinnei ' t * 1
“In th ese perilous tim es, there nln’t a m otor a ttra cted h er to th e street.
passed through the por<ly darkened i wrought nerves. S irx in 'ja g le y e m * the w ar departm ci
on ie, \N ij no
no telllu ’ w ho's u truitor aud who's not. Just In tim e to discover a tax icab ra c­
lounge he stepped hack as if to c o ' j - « «he w as unable to catch a r y m e-mms
ing away.
Even she— ”
ceol
his person. In the desoeo^.ng » or even in
in telligible v ir*l in th is syd- ' V ‘.e interrupted w ith a determined
H er eyes now fell upon the ca r still
no* words stung her. Toko sudden­
cage
were Colonel D are and V e a r l, ’ den vocal
outburst. Sh e took a d l« fhap-e
»
off h - r head. “1
* 'nl dri' ‘ ly increased his speed and the ca r was w a!iln c In fro n t o f th e house opposite.
w ith
Payne and M ajor S te e 'e of this I out of h er
purse and goinj d o w n s'a h ’ m? to the b a rrack s a f te r J ^ *'f ’i 1'* ' 1
T h e driver w as fooling with the mag-
quickly out of enr-diot.
Intelligence bureau close heh' q < l
! {0
w hat th e clam %■ wai about, pur* o f . "
But p ea rl well knew flint the tim e s. | nefo. Sh e ran to him. gesturing dra-
D istress was stamped upor _ their fea* chased a | &[ er. It <x»nt;» ined a v rt~/
And th a t ended It. S h e " ‘,h t*
Indeed, w ere perilous, fo r she could , m aflcally In th e direction o f th» fast,
tu res and he w as grimly aw are th at I account of th** tra -edy at. • ¡he Granatd-
It way arranged r t the la “'. ’ t-'f*1 1 ro t have bc-m in h er fa th e r s house­ fading red lights.
the hulge In M ajor Steel e-g right c o a t . an em bassy.
so th at Colostel 1 >:IJ*e eolfld lex ’’ He
hold und remained lanornnt o f national i "Qulok, please, follow thnt car. I'll
pocket was caused by » revolver tight- j
T h « hotel lobby wop s»*ethlng with «H-tiisrht cooler^nee nf
affiilrs. T h e tim e had com e when in»*n psv you any price. I ’m Miss D a re !”
ly clenched In his co n ' );a|e(j fist. Colo- excited people B erth e «lid net e s c a " ?
orrom pany 1 er. for th • visit wa- n‘
had censed to speak In J e s t o f the T u r­ I T h e driver shifted Into gear before
to
he b rief
and
t!*»-r<*
nel Dare, noticing P r c ja t, quickly drew (fie th rill c f the niomot (t. In awed id* espanly
tle bay incident, the H aitian uprising, •be w as fairly Inside. Sh e swung h er
him aside.
j |Pnre eho re-entered th e elevator. As irer® rofn-.* d etails for 1dm nion*
v th** M exican hfnwl nnd of our perplexi­ swaying body Into th e tonneau clos­
H e spoke bluntly. “P tiyne Is— -jn d er , f w r«t upward It pa« rd B ren t re a ’i*
Kettle ? t the b arrack s whs-re at day-
ties with all Latln-A m ertca. It was ing the door with a hang, only to find
arre st.
T h e Pamama defense plans to descend. He Ignot sd her passiag l»reaTf ho w as to p rf-.d e over tiic t ,ir
v f 11 known th at foreign m en o f war. h erself pinioned by a pair of steel-coid
and the chem ical w afejrs n e c e s s a iy to sm ile o f m ocking s ireetness.
She mat dlsrij ‘‘-•«al scenes of th e court-m ar­
In fighting trim , bad fo r some tim e hands. H er outcry was unheard save
th e ir interpretntJon h a v e —'" he look ed laughed to h<-rsclf.
tialed o f rer.
been m yateriously patrolling the Cnrrl- by th e m ysterious man into whose
at
B ren t
meaning!* —“dlsappeat cd-
s i,» npered her pt
t he tt It gratefu l fo r h er fa th e r's -’ip-
r‘-e to put th e
b**an s r d the P a cific; and the financial arm s she had unexpecteilly fled.
a t ere fo r instru o tions."
change a w iv and di* v
______
covered,
to - h - er |K*rr In th is trying ordeal, for no soon­ and com m ercial intim acy o f the south­
Then agpln P earl smelled ehloro-
curious calm env eloped B re n t a n d am azem ent, th at th e • («plicate Involve er had she entered C aptain Payne *
ern hem isphere, with Europe and tim
a fa in t sm ile played upon his thin 111 * f» r her locket, w hich
she had pla wd qu arter t and found tie r-"If alone with
Continued ou page I
Orient» lately bud assum ed «. aew
him j ¿an there, came to lux the
0.« P * ap p ro ach ed . h i s nnartm eqiu'' there, h u t a fen . me m en u ago.. 1 «
N ovelized From the Alotion Picture Serial o f the Same
Name Released by Pat he
“Watt beJ
------------
!” Brent shut
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rr~
d°or
r-
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