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About Medford mail tribune. (Medford, Or.) 1909-1989 | View Entire Issue (Aug. 5, 1933)
PXOE EIGHT iranroRD icctl tribune, medpord, Oregon, stndat, sttgust 6, 1933. Ik,- HIDDEN DOOR BY FRANK L. PACKARD 8V0P8I8: Before he woe shot In the apartment of Colin Hewitt, the tcrlter. Redd Turner had ex- , acted a promise from Colin that the latter would deliver a Utter hidden in Reddy's room. Feddv vaa hot on the trail at the Mask, under world ctar, but the Mask wot first the dravt. The Hash later tele phoned Colin that if he does not meddle he will be eafe. Vow Colin has let himeelf into Reddy'e former rooming hovee, first determining that the present oeoupant of Jteddv'e room. Butch Connal, it not in .Veia York. Chapter Eight THB CURTAIN POLK HB to In the ball now, and here he stood (till again, this time to listen. Faintly, from upstairs some where, he could hear men's rolces, a snatch of laughter, and, unless he was far wide o the mark, the rattle of chips. There was no other sound. There was no light to be seen any where; but again the moonlight aided him, for the front doors wore glass-paneled and a streak of It, altering In lay along the hall. He started forward; but, as he tiptoed silently down the hall, he became all at once conscious of a sense of eerlness, coupled with a port of panicky Impulse to hurry and get It all over and done with quickly as possible. No reason for jt Ot course not! But somehow he did not feel at all -debonair, not nearly so nonchalant as he had felt In the cab. It was easier to write about this sort of thing! There were two doors that opened off the rlghthand side of the hall. He passed the first, reached the sec ond. This was the room that had once been Roddy's and was now oc cupied by Butch Connal. A sudden disturbing suggestion occurred to him. Butch Connal was away, but any one of Butch's crowd might be bunking up In there for the sight Nonsense! His lips Armed. He tried the door. Locked, ot course. His koys cams Into play again. The first one would not work nor the second. Ha was not so good, af ter all I He made a third attempt with a third key, and this time, attor persisting for a moment, he was suc cessful. H1b face cleared as the lock bolt clicked back responslrely. He pushed the door open a few Inches at a time, silently, and peered Into the room. There wae only one window a bay window that looked out on the rear, and the curtains that hung across the bay window, forming a sort of little al core, were not quite drawn. The moonlight flooding In enabled him to see plainly. The bed was un occupied. The room was empty. Colin slipped through the door way, closed the door quietly, and stepped swiftly across the room to the window. Behind the portieres In the window bay was a chair. He passed behind the curtains and, standing on the chair, reached up lor the heavy brass curtain pole. It came away readily enough from its supports as he lifted It, but Us .weight, even though the pole was ot course hollow, combined with the (weight ot the heavy portieres, was so much more than be had expected that It nearly caused him to lose his ibalance. He recovered himself with muttered Imprecation, stepped idown from the chair, and laid the bole and portieres on the floor. "The right-hand knob." Reddy had Mid. That would mean the right hand knob ss one faced the window, f course. Well, here It was the isual finishing touch to most curtain ioles, a ball-like ornament. It re ulred no effort to unscrew it. It :arae away readily. He probed, with his Angers Into the hollow of the pole. The envelope, twisted Into a roll, was there. He pulled It out, dattened It Into shape, tnd thrust It into his pocket. Ha screwed tbe knob back Into lace, picked up the pole, and back- ng Into the window bay, stood up gain on the chair. He hoisted the ole above his head to replace It on ts supports and his hands, In mid- Ir, became suddenly motionless. he portieres were slightly parted s they dangled in front ot him, and the track of tbe moonlight he :ould see the fai and ot the room. The door from the hall was being stealthily opened. hpHB blood tor an instant whipped through Colln's reins, pounding sit his eardrums, end then a cold, un natural calm settled upon him. The door was closed now, and a man was coming toward him across the room. He could sea but little ot the man's lacs, for It was mostly hidden by tbe other's hat brim but be could see quite plainly enough the revolver In the outflung band. - Colln's lips tightened Into a straight line. It seemed as though there had endured an eternity ot time since be had first seen that door begin to open, though In reality he knew It could have been but scarcely more than the passing ot a second. "Don't move I" snarled the man. "You've got your hands above your head keep 'em there!" Colln's mind was delving, prob ing swiftly. What was he to do? Not a nice situation. Not likely, but there was always the possibility that one of Butch Connal's crowd, or one of the gangsters who lodged in the house had seen him come in here; if not, then the Mask, both by tele phone and physical contact through proxy for, disguised or not. It was a certainty that this was not the Mask In person was becoming ubiquitous tonight. This man wss too tall to be tbs Mask. "All right, but this thing's heavy," Oolin complained) then coolly; "And may I ask what you are doing here, and who you are?" "You're kind ot fresh, ain't you?" snarped the other. "Well, you won't be so fresh when I'm through with you! Bee? It don't matter who I am. What matters Is that yon are a guy named Colin Hewitt" "I am." Colin admitted. "But how do you know?" "You're some talker, ain't you?" sneered the man. "I don't need to see your map. I followed you here from your dump, that's how I know." "Oh, no, you didn't!" Colin refuted confidently. "I'm quite sure ot that" "Sure, you're sure!" the man chuckled evilly, "Gummed up your trail and kept your eyes open, didn't you? You're a hot detective writer, you are! Maybe If you get out of this alive, which the chances are you won't, you'll be able to hand out some of the real goods for a change. You were a laugh with your head go ing around like it was on a swivel trying to make snre no one was lamping you." Colln's Ire rose. All doubt that he was dealing with one ot the Mask's tools was gone now, and it was ob viously true that he had been out witted, but this arraignment was a bit stiff. THANK you!" ha said rartly. "Toll me hnw." "Aw," sniffed the man contemptu ously, "there was nothing to ltl I was waiting just around the oorner with a car where I could watch that dinky little alleyway ot yours In case you came out. I didn't know whether I'd need a car or not, but I had It there. See? "You got a taxi before you'd gone half a block. I passed your taxi and after that I kept you In sight be hind. When you got uptown a bit where there was more traffic, you passed me; Get It? And when your taxi stopped on Fifth Avenue, I was going by you at about sixty per. I didn't have to worry any mora I knew where you were going then and I didn't mind giving you a fen minutes to get your work in so's I could get the goods on you like have." The curtain pole was heavy. Bui It wss only in a sort ot aubconscioui way that Colin was aware his armi were beginning to ache with thi strain. He waa trapped. He hit msddted and been caught In thi act And Reddy's letter was in hh pocket "Thanks," ha said again ourtly. "You have refused to Introduce your self, but I suppose, after all, that wpuld be superfluous. As I take It you are representing a certain per sonage known to both of us as the Mask, and " Cut It out!" Interrupted the man savagely. "You've gaasod plenty. We'll get down to cases." A sudden inspiration dawned In Colln's mind. Grim, swift humor, sn ironlo laugh at himself was In his soul. It was what ha would have had bis "daring and resourceful" bero do, of oourse, if he had bees writing the scene. Well, if It was plausible, there wss a chancs, an even chance If he could bslt tbs trap. This thing weighed a ton. How much longer could he stand here balanced on the chair like some trick performer on a stage? (Copyright, MM. rrank L. Paohari) Colin tains s wHd Shan la, tomorrow, WBW YORK. Aug. I. VP) Trad ad business continued on the up rend last week with gains dtstrlb Titsd In more directions, the Dun Bredstreet Review satd yesterdsy. The Improvement was emphatic despite minor fluctuations In Isolated places, the gsncy added. Regarding the balance of retail purchasing against production and wholesale operations, the agency said "the fact that consumer buying thus far has trmied somewhat the hectic gains in wholesale commitments and Industrial production has created no oauae for concern, aa spending habits acquired under the stark grlmnese ot the last three years were not ex pected to be ohanged with one fell swoop." Broken windows glased by Trow- hrldge Cabinet Works. IE! SALEM, 37 oente Ore., Aug. 8. (p) The an hour minimum wage adopted for Oregon, Washington and California women cannery workers haa not been uperaeded by Presi dent Roosevelt's blanket code, Chu. H. Oram, Oregon stat labor com mt&sloner. said yesterday. Ths wag agreement, adopted by canners and welfare commissions of the three states, also provided for 27 Vi oenta an hour tor at least 86 per cent of all piece workers, with time and a quarter for all work over eight hqurs. Subsequently women workers were replaced by men at a lower wage on some of the Jobs in Salem canneries. Secretary of Labor Frances Per kins answered a query by Oram, stating that as far as women workers I are concerned, the trt -state agree ment stands for the entire 1838 can nery season. BETTER I FOR D.i BEND, Ore., Aug. lng no reference to 6. (yp) Mak hls duties as public works administrator for tbe northwest district, Marshall Dana of Portland last night addressed more than 1000 persons In Redmond at the annual picnic of the Central Ore gon Co-operative creamery. Dana confined his remarks to a discussion of ths dairying Industry In Oregon. He predicted better times are ahead. Dairymen, Dana said, stand a much better chance to emerge from Vie depression In a position to move Ahead with tbe times than do many men in other lines of business. PENDLETON, Ore, Aug. VP) Newspaper publishers and printers of eastern Oregon met yesterday dis cussing a code proposed by the Amer ican Newspaper Publishers' associa tion to meet provisions ot the Na tional Recovery Act. S'MATTER POP- By C. M. PAYNE i sat fKJrib I f ) IP " JB ifTy - -r SERIOUS READING By GLUYA5 WILLIAMS curias Uaaxisiita SffUfS DOWKTO READ PBflJS- AT WD CF TiJftT PARAeftAPH Fit SlOrJ OF INTER hlftflONAL MOWE- SflWS 1b KCOUNf IN AJUACErff TARY PROBLEMS BV PR0M1- COLUMN OF 60HMAN HOBS UP. NENf ECONOMY 8066 TWO FUOSHS ACtfHfitf OF aWMJ AJJD RHifRrfS TO IMlfcRNAHONM. MOMrTARV ?RPBlflr& W3NDFRS WHO FT IS THIS PICTURE OT VOMAH KLEfeATC TO BOOK BINDERS CONVENTION LOOKS LIKE TfeSSK PlO'JRE ROUND TO FAM ILY, NOME OF WHOM TrllKKs If U50K6 LIKE AWBODS, AKD SETTLES DOWN fO ARTiCLE A6AIN READS FiRsT AKD SECOND flMfc 6RAPH5 OVER A6AIN, REMEMBERS HE HAS NT SEEN THE BftSEBfUL SCORES, WtKHS 10 SPORT TAfcE MlTRFPi HERE, HERE, HE ISMT LI6HTS PIPE AfcAlW , REAPS AC- EXCLAIMS SUDDEHLV IPS COUSIN GEfflKfe ON UERV FAST TDRHS COUNT OF DRIVER 5TUN6 BV BEE. SUE FRISBIE "HKT PICTURE LOOKS BACK To MONETARY PROBLEMS WRECKS CAR, NONE INJURED, LIKE, WICH STARTS LrVEEr'ARttH snu nws m n5 60Nt our AND SmiLES to ARTICLE A6AIN MENT LAS1N6 LWU. BED-TIME (Copyright, 1933, by The Bril Syndicate, Inc.) r-s TAILSPIN TOMMY An Aerial Picnic Party Or Else? By qlkmn caarnM aa HAL FOBRJUX hll A PORTUNS 4k COMIN OF THS. SOUTH J4s ONE Of TtV VfirM tVte4S )U XvWj iWjatU 2e76-l"lCT9.us' "V THIWAy. American f( ResuLAR iifi '?. $Wl0WSJrf iWv h succeeo f Tom-- ' transport TS.pan Joas!K . iS I W L? m&s-Mh : UINTPTO ' " By EDWIN ALGER rPVHBR6ISyIk22 nq'i H)H' UNDBR-THe (hILL-I! WW SOMflHINV OVER, -? TOO. you7 h H JUST J Crr sa . THE NEBBS Let's Hope There's Some Mistake 75 By SOL HESS HANE auov OM WIS VWAV TO LAKE NOKCTCMEMUCH TO TRAKJSFEA A FLOCK OF FISH FftO-T THE LAKE. IWTO HIS BOAT " U0E IUISU HIM LOCK. r-s FILL IT UP ANJO TAKS A PEEK UWDES THE HOOD AIOO SEE IF I WEED OIL. SAY, DO VOU KMOVAJ AIOYTHIMS ABOUT LAKE NOKETCHEMUCH J THEV 5y IT'S GREAT FISHIMS THet LAKE. NJOKCTCMeMUCH . WEVER HEARD OF. THE PLACE &4 THEY'RE CATCHIKJ' SOME BIG OWES AT CHIPPEWA -THERE WAS A GUY BY TV-IE. MAME. OFCAMMACKCAME. ALOIOS THE OTHER DAT WHO HAO TO BUY A TRAILER TO TAKE. A MUSKIE HOME HE KETCHEO. YOU SAY YOU Of KJGVER HEARD NOKETCHEMUCH I I NOU HAVEWT LIVED ARCOWO HERE. LOWS. .MA.VE YOU , MOT VERY LOM&.OUW X I 1 SOT WORM WERE MY N FATHER CAME HERE WITH A TEAM OF OXEN, A WASOKJ CHOPPED OUT A HOME FOR HI MS ELF .THAT'S HOW LOK1G WE'VE BEBO II HERS AVJO I WEVER DID l HEAR OF LAKE yCJ NOKercHEMuCH I . tOSTrtH ISa T Tin M SfaKW be.) Trtto Hut W g S Tex Qfly CACU.M - BRINGING UP FATHER By George McManui M COIN TO Ta FAIR AT CHlCACO Af HEARD That dennjt MALON& l THEKE- WHERE KIN V riMD HIM AN' TME CANIC? H6 SAID HfcO LCT H8 KNOW AN HERE'S A LETTER I JUVT COT FROM HIM VUL KEAO IT- OO THAT- t-E AV& ME ARRIVED IN CHICAGO INTENOlN' TO GO To A HOTEL. BOT THE POUCE WUZ THERE AN' NOW HE HAo CELL NUMBER "SIX Ht S6NT PER LARRY CJTOOLt AN' WHEN UARRY ARRIVED THE POLICE WELD WIM'THENHETRIEOT ClT JIMMY DUCAN TO HELP HIM. BUTOIt-IMY1 IN JAILHIMSEL.F Am' TONY MAC ARONEY l AFRAID TO COME NEAR CHICACO- OUTSIDE OP THAT THEY ARE HAVIN'A FINE TIMS AT THE FAR- ites-an' we av FE.R TOO TO CALU ON Him a6 too KlN GlT A. COOD VIEW OF THE PAIR GROUNDS FROM HIS CELL. WINDOW- I j There's No Guesswork in Tribune A. B. C. Circulation
