SOUTHERN OREGON MINER
YU’AN HEE SEE
By SAX ROHMER
LAUGHS►
O opjtt 1<M
8a.i
llohnwr.
WNU
CHAPTER V—Continued
She slipped a band Into a pocket
>f her jumper and produced a half
iheet of thin paper, "When I saw
ills," she continued, and her voice
frew very serious, "1 thought you
lught to know at once."
Haig removed "Mr.
Smith’s”
[lasses and took the torn sheet
from Eileen’s band. Scribbled In
pencil upon the paper were the fol
lowing words:
“Haig. chief Inspector Scotland
Yard, on board. Identify and ad-
rise.”
Alone once more. Dawson Haig bent
over his notes. Eileen bad slipped
In unnoticed. Sneer luck, and her
keen wit. bad come to his aid.
Doctor Oestler’s penciled scrawl
was obviously a translation of the
message:
"Ibjh head keeper searchlight
near home stop know telL”
Its deadly simplicity betrayed
genius. The IBJH was elementary,
the letters being merely those next
In the alphabet to HAIO, but the
fact that "Head Keeper Searchlight"
meant Chief Inspector Scotland
Yard, was one which no cryptogra
pher could ever be expected to dis
cover. “Near home" evidently cor
responded to On board; “Known"
to Identify; “Tell" to advise.
It was a system of analogies, and
he proceeded to apply It to the oth
er messages, with the result that
by lunch time be was satisfied that
at least the gist of these was in bis
possession.
He leaned back In his chair and
whistled softly. Five members of
this mysterious organization, pro-
fessedly strangers to one another,
were traveling in the Wallaroo, and
Doctor Oestler was evidently the
chief. Three were booked to Port
Said (since Len Chow had arranged
to cancel his further passage); two
to Australia.
What did their presence in the
ship mean? And wbat was the con
nection with the Limehouse mur
der? He was battled. Perhaps the
most alarming feature of the case
was the fact that these people
seemed to be supplied with deadly
accurate Information. Durham had
been Identified, so much was evi
dent Now they knew that he, Haig
was on board! Since be could not
recall having ever seen one of the
suspects In bls life—Franz Hartog
excepted—he Inclined to the Idea
that Durham, as well as himself, had
been notified to Doctor Oestler from
some well-informed source.
He bent over the messages which
he had decoded. Those sent by the
woman obviously related to the
chief engineer, one of them read
Ing:
“Organ grinder sure stop big boy
and next of kin not running signed
Vai."
This he had translated as follows:
“Chief engineer captured. Com
roander and chief officer no good.
Vai."
That this meant that Corcoran
had been bought over and become
a party to some crooked deal, Haig
did not believe for a moment He
read It to mean that the Infatuated
engineer was playing into the wom
an’s bands. He was to be used, in
some way, without his knowledge.
But—Haig stared up at the port
hole and asked the question aloud:
"In what way?"
Doctor Oesler’s radio correspond
ence frankly defeated him. He could
find no parallel, among the ship's
company, to the strange names era
ployed. And be bnd come to the
conclusion that It related to some
thing taking place elsewhere. Evi
dently, Doctor Dealer was a sort of
chief of staff; his outgoing meg
sages took the form of inquiries as
to the whereabouts of certain per
sons, and the replies presumably
contained the desired Information,
which, however, conveyed nothing
at all to Dawson llalg.
These messages were sent to a
telegraphic address In Paris which be
bad no means of tracing.
It was all very maddening, be
cause one (act emerged from all this
mystification. This complicated con
spiracy had nothing to do with drug
running. That enterprise had been
merely a side line, abandoned at the
first hint of danger.
What, then, did It mean?
Dawson Haig sat, his head rest
Ing upon one upraised hand—for
five minutes—for ten minutes . , ,
thinking hard—very hard.
How had Jo Lung, or the man of
whom Jo Lung was merely a crea
ture. learned of the Instructions sent
Sydney? They had been sent from
the Yard In code to the chief cus
toms officer.
Haig suddenly stood up. “By
heavens!" he whispered. "They can’t
have
known — they
can't
have
known I It was a definite change of
plan on the part of the gang. They
removed their precious consignment
because . . .?"
Because of what?
CHAPTER VI
HE night train from Cairo to
Asuan pulled Into the station at
Keneh. Only two first-class passen
gers alighted there, a man and
a woman, a small, very slender
woman.
The woman shivered as they en
tered a saloon car which awaited
them In charge of a Nubian chauf
feur and groom.
“You shiver, little one." said Yu'an
Hee See.
The woman leaned against him
**I am so cold, Yu'an,” she ex
plained.
“In two days you will be In yonr
own apartments — amongst
yonr
scents and jewels and those other
toys you love, with service and
warmth, and those treasures amid
which I delight to see you playing "
He stroked her slender knee with
a plump, tapering hand, and his
words came as a high croon.
Where a large mosque grotesque
ly affected the continuity of the
bouses, they swung Into a narrow
side turning.
The driver skirted
one high wall of the mosque, came
Into the very shadow of the min
aret. and turned left again. Twenty
yards along, they pulled up.
Yu'an Hee See and the woman
passed across a roughly paved court
yard.
Light shone out from rooms on
the ground floor, and there was an
outer staircase leading up to a bal
cony illuminated by two One lattice
windows.
Yu’an Hee See and his compan
Ion entered a lighted room. On the
threshold they were met by Aswaml
Pasha. He bowed low over the ex
tended hand of Orange Blossom,
deeply saluting Yu'an Hee See.
“We have done our best, my lord,”
he said. “1 trust you will be happy
here for one night."
He clapped his hands, and an old
Arab woman appeared.
“My lady,” he bowed to Yu’an
Hee See's companion, "your apart
ment Is prepared; Magreba will at
tend you.” Orange Blossom followed
the aged attendant from the apart
ment.
“All are here?" Yu’an asked, upon
a very high note, which betokened
anxiety.
“AIL I have the list showing
where each man Is tonight"
Yu’an Hee See waved a plump
hand. ”1 do not wish to see ft."
“The detective from Scotland
Yard, who Is on the Wallaroo, has
been Identified. ... He Is In touch
with the American girl whom your
T
excellency has taken under your
protection I"
Yu'an Hee See began very aoftly
to hiss. "It la almost certain then,
that thia man had read the notea In
my b<x»k before. . . .?"
“I fear ao. Excellency."
Yu'an llee See, hla eyes nppnrent-
ly quite closed, nodded, slowly.
"He han had time to Inform oth
ers. But he cannot know all. Yet
this man It was who followed me to
Singapore a year ago . . . and has
escaped me since. . . . The Hang
man Is on board?" be whla|>ered.
•'He la."
A pause, then: “Instruct Doctor
Oestler." said Yu'an Hee See.
Aswaml Pasha nodded compre
hendlngly; whereupon Yu'an Hee
See began to laugh, hla red lipa
seeming to swell, but hla teeth
never ahowlng; the oblique allta of
hla eyea turned In the Egyptlan'a
direction.
jerked suddeuly, “the loss of n big
Ger mnn freighter somewhere oft
Suukltn about two years ago?"
Jack Rattray shook Ida head.
“1 wasn't on this run two years
ago. Why?"
“Well, there's no point In telling
you why, If you don't remember
the case," Haig replied. "But do
you recall the wreck of the Amer
ican steam yacht, Mixa Minnesota?"
“Clearly I We were only forty
miles off nt the time I An aunt of
Eileen's—l-ady Dakenham — win I oat
In her. What's the chief idea grill
Ing In your brain turn?"
"There are several Ideas
But I
admit they're a trifle hazy.
Did
you get an SO S from her?"
"Not a thing."
“Wasn't It funny they didn’t send
out a call for belli?" Dawson llalg
naked.
Rattray stared nt him. “No," he
replied. “In my opinion they bit
some small heavily laden craft, and
Dawson llalg aat in the room of the pair of 'em sunk almost at
Jack Hattray, the chief officer, or once."
Followed a short silence, then
rather, he ant at intervals fisc I ng
llalg naked, “la there much drug
up and down like a wild anlmaL
“It’s a most unholy
business," smuggling down that way?"
“Lots! Hashish for Egypt, most
said llattray. In hla alow fashion.
’T’ve been looking on, and I've seen ly. Also, the good old slave trade
things. Flrat thing: you're spot flourishes exceedingly."
“But where can the markets be.
ted! .. ."
“I know 1—and I can’t read Oeet- Jack?”
“There’s Mecca.
That's still a
ler's messages I They’re In a per
closed city. Fez. up In Africa And
fectly undecipherable code."
"Second thing.” Rattray went on: I'm told there's a small, sort of ex
"Two members of this slimy gang clusive market somewhere on the
are watching F.lleen; meaning Doc Nile In Egypt."
A rap on the door.
tor O. and Mr. Chow.
What for?
“Come tn!" Ilattrny called. The
She's not In their way. la she?"
Dawson turned, just Inside the door opened, and Eileen entered,
cabin door, and stared at the speak closing It carefully behind her.
“I've caught them!" she declared,
er. Then:
“You're right. Jack." he said her eyea sparkling with excitement
"I’ve seen them myself. 1 don't like —"at last 1"
“What?" Dawson llalg demanded.
It. and I don't understand IL”
“I saw the snnke charmer slip a
"But what's It all about?" llat
tray asked helplessly. “What are note Into the hand of Mr. Ix*n (’bow
as they passed on the promenade
all these birds doing on board?
three minutes ago!"
They’re a pretty unsavory crew. In deck,
•
•••••
my reckoning, anyway.
Oestler's
There
wns a dance after dinner
plausible enough, but there's a nasty
brute hidden onder that amiable that night.
Dawson llalg. desperately wor
smile. As for the 'snake charmer,
she'd drown her own twins. Then ried, went up onto the boat deck,
quite deserted nt the moment, and
there are the two Chinks on D deck
The learned one. with the glasses— leaned over the starboard rail.
The problem was one demanding
the little bloke. 1 mean, l^n Chow
—doesn't seem In the Number One the exercise of nil hla powers. And.
list to me. But his long pal with set like a jewel In this dark nffnlr.
the strangled face ought to be put was Eileen—a distracting figure (he
overboard. If I’m any judge. Then could not be blind to the truth)
there's the big German. Hartog—he and one npon which all too often
seems harmless enough and not in he found hla thoughts focused That
the same gallery at alL 1 don’t Eileen hnd twice proved of Incal
culable service did not altpr the plain
know what to make of IL"
tact that many times when he should
“And I.” aald Dawson llalg, con
tlnuing his restless pacing, “don’t have been concentrating upon the
know wliat to make of my report to mystery, he found himself concen
tratlng upon Eileen.
the chief. I’m acting on Informa
From a professional point of view
tlon. Rattray, that this scheme,
whatever It Is, cornea to a head be he was faced either with something
fore we reach Aden. And as I don’t very like ruin. or. alterne, vely. with
know what the scheme may be, I a triumph which must prove a step
can't reasonably expect Scotland ping stone In hla far flung amhl
Yard to go on granting me leave of tlons.
Granted this success—now doubly
absence and paying my expenses
indefinitely. You see. Pm supposed to be prayed for—he might dare to
to be In charge of the Limehouse think about Eileen as lie longed to
think about her; not ns the charm
murder easel"
ing sister Oi an old friend, nor even
“1 know." said Rattray, and pro
duced his slow smile. "It's never a capable little helper, but as . .
been clear to me what the passenger Eileen.
Where did the clew lie to these
list of the Wallaroo bad to do with
mysterious activities? What should
IL”
be his next move? It was madden
“It Isn't dear to me," Haig con
fessed. "But 1 know there la a Ing to wntch. to know some Incom
connection. And I know I have my prehenslble plot stretching from
hand on the solution of the mystery Limehouse to Paris. Paris to Mar
sellles, and thence to Port Said-
ir only I can grasp IL"
He paced up and down awhile further. perhaps—was fermenting
under hla very eyes coming to ma
longe< then;
“Do you remember. Jack," he turlty. and yet—to do nothing!
THE STORY FROM THE BEGINNING
•
Matt Ksarnsy, young American living In !x>ndon, says good-by to hla
slater Eileen, on board the Wallaroo. The ship la conveying 12.000,000 In
gold to Auatralla. On hla way borne Kearney meets Inspector Dawson
Haig, of Scotland Yard, very much In love with Eileen Haig Is on the trail
of opium, which ho la convinced la concealed In Jo Lung's warehouse.
Called to other duty. Haig delegatee Kearney, with Detective Norwich to
vlalt the place and find out what he can While In the warehouse Kearney
picks up and carries away a notebook, which he turns over to llalg. Yu'an
Hee See, leader of a band of International thievea. la at Jo Lung s He
sends two of hla followers after Norwich and Kearney, one of whom he
realizes must have picked up the notebook. Haig la puzzled over cryptic
notes In the book, referring to the Wallaroo Moon after leaving Kearney
Norwich la murdered, but Kearney Is not overtaken While Haig la por
Ing over the book, a monstrous creature enters, seizes It, and escapes
At Cairo Yu'an confers with hla lieutenant, Aswaml Pasha, over a mys
.erlous coup they are planning llalg boards the Wallaroo at Marseilles
disguised. From radio messages ho decodes, he realizes that members of
Yu'an’s gang are on board, aud that they have recognized him.
At which point in hla reflections,
he was seized from behind In a
Steely grasp ami lifted lightly, as
n nurse might lift an Infant I 11«
was In I lie grip of that creature of
Yu'an Ih-e Nee's called "th« Hang
man." But of this fact lies win Ig
norant.
Swung luu k oivr the alioulder of
Ills unseen, bill Incredibly powerful
nssallaid. lie recognized, with a cold
chill of dread, that he was nlmut
to be hurled Into the seal
Aulomatbnlly to Ida mind sprung
those Inal ructions which every |s»-
lice officer rccehea. In jlu-jiisu Illa
fists were uoelesg, flung high. Impo
tent, nlatve Ida head But the cun
ning grip which told him that ho
wns dealing with an expert, held
him so poised that inly at one mo
men! —for which dangerously, llalg
must wult—could lie counter.
That moment came—ns Hie seem
ingly Irresistible forward awing com
menced which wns to hurl hlin
Into the sen. He checked a cry In
Orangs Blossom Followed ths Aged
Attendant From the ApartmenL
hla throat. He was Icy cool. And,
following the curve of that mighty
throw. Inatead of endeavoring to
check It as an III Informed victim
would have done, he swung forward,
drew up his knees, and kicked back
ward with all hla strength I
It was sheer guesswork, hut one
heel registered dully upoi the head
of the athlete who held him aloft
That death awing won nevei com
pleted. llalg dropped with a crash
upon the rnll, hung perlloualy for
a moment—and felt a vlsellke grip
upon hla anklea. . , .
He waa tlpfied forward, forward
Irresistibly—until he saw the lights
of portholes beneath, the lower
ones reflecting the sea. He clawed
at the rail. That silent horror
behind him. hanging above him!
Clutching grimly, he klcked-
klcked again . . got a hold with fai
led hand higher up. and realize«
that the man was craning right over
waa reaching down to relax that de
tolnlng grip. In des|M*ratlon, rest
Ing his head against the lower rail
he managed at last to free bl
ankles, to draw hla legs down.
Then, with al) hla remainin
strength, he shot both feet upward
There was an Impact—a stifled crj
Ills jacket, held In clutching fingers
awept down over hla head, but h«
clung on—clung on dizzily,
A wrench—a bulky shape strenke«
post him ... a dull splash. Th«
Hangman hnd failed 1
Disheveled, panting, llnlg dragge«'
himself hack to the deck He leane«1
dizzily against a boat, striving |«
adjust hla disorder Already the plan
waa forming which later he carried
out. No one knew that the thug
was overboard No one should eve-
know. but the shark«, until his al
aence was discovered'
(TO HE CONTINUED)