PAGE EIGHT
arEDFORD fATL TRIBUNE, MEDFOTID, OREGON", "WEDNESDAY. SEPTEMBER 21. 1938.
The Characters
Rdeo Stern, handsome author,
living on the French Riviera.
Archie Lamiden, myself. Hit-
got friend.
Otlilie Willi. American helreu.
Rene Gelu, a cartoonist with
distorted mind.
Teilerdsy: Dunning It telling us
about "the big swindle. The
deaths of prominent men were
predicted m an astrological mag-
aztne, and insurance collected all
over the world when the deaths
occurred.
Chaper IS
Marked For Murder 1
THE insurance man from Lloyd'
Dunning continued, immedi
ately bought a codv of the Gri-
i.oire tut rtoaiq-e for the dcivI-
ous year.
- There, set out in smudgy type
and with the flowery and fantastic
verbiage which the writer affected,
were four predictions which made
his skin tingle and his heart beat
pereeptibly quicker, for they fore'
east, with a remarkable precision
of detail, the sudden d ?aths of four
eminent gentlemen who had met
their ends in the previous year.
The Grin ire hai been cub
lished in January. The deaths had
occurred in the following March,
May, August, and November. Mr.
Pockett was a level-headed man.
He still refused to believe in the
predictive powers of astrology, but
instead a very cu iuus and jin
later idea occurred to him nam
ly, that these deaths and the re
sultant highly profitable insur
ance claims, had been engineered
oy some person or persons, and
that one of them, with a distorted
sense of humor, was amusing him
elf by announcing them in ad-
vance through the medium of the
Grtmoire.
His holiday was nearly at an
end. He found time to visit Nice
and Inspect the small printing es
labllshmrr.t when the Grimoire
saw the light each first of January,
but the oroDrietor. while admit
ting the publication and marketing
or the precious production, abso.
lutelv and comoletelv refused tt
disclose the name of the client who
was responsible for It. There was
nothing more to be done. If he
toia nis suspicions to the local do.
lice, they would laugh at him: if
he asked for help in tracing the
mysterious astrologer, tney would
show him the door. He went home.
Back in London he postulated
hla theory to a colleague from the
Bureau Veritas, and found, to his
amazement, that he was being
taken seriously. The guest's Gallic
imagination was fired: he asked
variety of pertinent questions, sug
tested a detail or two to round off
the picture, and returned to Paris
promising further discussion at an
early date.
' Here Mr. Dunning paused to
iook regretruuy at nis empty glass,
and Hugo nromDtlv refilled It.
The next chapter of the story
opened, he said, with the visit to
Paris of a representative of the
American Bureau, to whom Mr.
Pockett's friend mentioned the
ineory which had gripped his im
agination as firmly as it had the
. Englishman's. The visitor, whose
pocket had been severely depleted
oy tne demise of the South Ameri
can President listened, was lm
pressed, and, with the energy of
nis race, insisieo on immediate ac
tion. After that, said Mr. Dunning,
things began to hum.
Meetings were held of repre
sentatives of the three great clearing-houses,
as a result of which It
was decided that investigation was
ustined, and It was agreed to em
ploy some reliable firm to carry
out Inquiries. In the end and
here Mr. Dunning swelled with
jusunaoie pride his organization
was chosen, and the first thing that
he was able to bring to light was
the fact that behind the myriad In
surances on the two most recent
deatha loomed large the figures of
three men: they were, in short, the
source of the capital which had
turnisnea me original premiums
oiani, venner and Jtakovsky.
One Controlling Brain
THE existence of the Big Swin-
die was now established, and
DUnnlnff')! IVMra uinm mn,M,.,.l
to go full speed ahead, with all the
financial backing that was re
quired: but for the moment the
cent seemed to have petered out
Only, one fact began to emerge.
Behind all these individuals and
tne groups that directed them,
there must be one controlling oer-
onallty. one brain that plotted
and schemed, that evolved the
pians not only ror the money-mak
trig side of the business, but for
the organized crime that made
sucn pront-making possible.
It must be, he surmised, a man
of brilliant intellect, with interna
tional social connections that kept
him Informed, in advance, of the
movements of prominent person
ages in a number of countries, and
of the political and financial con
ditions in these same countries:
but It must furthermore be a man
who owed neither physical nor
fpritltual allegiance to any estab
lished order, a man of warped
morals and twisted mentality
and one, moreover, whose vanity
was such that he Judwd all means
Justified to achieve the end of his
personal enrichment So much he
could envisage without difficulty,
but when it came to picking the
Individual, he was completely
tuck.
"GeissP said Hugo and I with
one accord.
Dunning nodded slowly. "In the
ight of the events of the put twu
days," he admitted, "possibly so."
"But surely," 1 suggested, "the
quickest way to locate the person
would have been through the fel
low who printed the Grimoire?"
He beamed at me. "Son." he
drawled, "the investigation was
placed in my. hands one year ago,
and it took me lust three months
to reach that conclusion: but mind
you, I'd had a lot of ground to
cover before I got there! I sailed
for France in November. I got to
Nice and paid an informal call on
the printer's, only to discover that
he had expired three months ear
lier from heart-failure. Heart
failure is a convenient comolaint
The fact that the gentleman had
expired at the very moment that
the investigation had been decid
ed on might give one something to
tmnK about, but didn't help any in
tracing the author of the Grimoire
All that remained for me was to
wait until the first of January and
see if it appeared as usual."
"But the Dolice.' said Hun Im
patiently "surely by that time '
vou had called In the Sftrete?"
Mr. Dunning favored us with a
wink. "There are occasions when
man's actions are considerably
freer if he remains outside the law.
and particularly the French law.
The gentleman known as Vladimir
Rakovsky, who was one of the
three behind the Drevious venr'a
Insurances, has friends In high
places in Paris; you might call him
a second Staviskv on a smaller
scale: and he'd have smelled out
any inquiry involving himself
quicker than you'd smell a skunk.
I therefore continued to pursue my
investigations independently, and
on the first of January the Gri
moire a-neared."
Death In August
LIE paused dramatically. "The
ft A
Grimoire aooeared as usual.
but under no Imprint of publisher
or printer, and subsequent In
quiries elicited the fact that It
had been hawked round the news
agencies by an unknown indlvi.
dual, whom I have been unable to
trace. He was a tall fellow. I am
told, shabby, downcast down-at-the-heel.
down and out. Dirt-color
all over and a dirty soul."
He fumbled n his Docket and
extracted a shabby, crumpled
leaflet "Here we are." said ha.
opening it and adjusting a pair of
neii-rimmea glasses on his nose.
The predictions for the month of
August. Advertisements were car
ried in the previous issues, but not
vou will perceive, in this one. from
which I argue the use of a private
printing-press. The author is not
risking the disclosure of his identity."
I walked across and peered over
his shoulder The naner and nrint.
ing were of the cheapest and the
top of the page was ornamented
with a vividlv executed Hraurlns
of a goat
The month of Auaust. It re
marked encouragingly, would wit
ness some or the worst disasters in
the history of France, for strikes,
VII disturbances, epidemics, all
would take their toll of the un-
appy populat on.
sadistic crimes, it ran. would be
rampant: and finally, towards the
end or the month, an event would
shatter the very foundations of
international relations.
A prominent American Finan.
cier, honored and respected at
home and abroad, would meet
Ith a sudden and dreadful end
while vacationing on the RivWn
The assassin would, unfortunately,
make gonH his escape, and public
opinion in the United States would
be profoundly stirred.
The fact that he was negotiating
vast merger with certain promi
mt French banking houses was
not overlooked bv the assassins.
and his sudden demise would un
doubtedly create a panic in tha
oney-markets of the world.
Hugo by my side had been read.
g word for word with me while
Ottllle Wills, perched on the op
posite arm of Dunning's chair,
watched our faces anxiously.
"You see?" she broke out a trifle
breathlessly, as we came to tha
d "It's Uncle Vlrgoe it coulo
no one else. There's no one lika
m in American finance at tha
moment. But" She ran her fin
gers through her ehesnut curls
with an almost comical effect of
bewilderment "that merger! It
was only suggested last fall and
nothing appeared about it in tha
papers till late soring. Uncle Vir.
goe's been fighting for It tooth and
in out someone must have got
Ind of It"
Vladimir Rnkovalcv. f Imntr.
Ine?" Hugo suggested drvlv. and
nnlng nodded.
He got to his feet and faced us.
unwieldy out somehow com
nding figure. 'That gentleman
as powerful connections, as I told
you. He has his finger on the
pulse of this country's political
financial arteries. No. sirl"
stretched himself, lifting hit
boulders and swelling out his
great chest "I'm not puzzling any
to now mat lniormation seeped
rough: but I'm not near the end
my story When I had read. dl.
gested. and absorbed that highly
informative oaragraDh. I nrnceeH.
ed to give a careful scrutiny to
the rest of the publication, and
rom tha rulinv :.ie verv , ni-
flcant fact emerged Throughout
le predictions ror the year, there
as no forecast of anv other sud.
en death "
wh st ed aoftlv. "Th n'.r.
frnld?"
Precisely!" he said.
tCowicSt Ills Unw galfmartlu
Tomorrow A plan of campaign.
STRANGE AS IT SEEMS By JOHN HIX
Tot further proof address the author, tncloatrjc a stamped earetopa to reply.
Eec U. S. Pat Off.
I S?I&6 -
MWi6HetWr5Ua k
dm FpN6D WHSELS If &&&r14lU
gf- Philadelphia HiwumA " xy mZ a I
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SUBURBAN HEIGHTS
By GLUYAS WILLIAMS
ewte mo oh juuv 24-, mi
m& VIM THE SfiMi SCORB-
49 910 9
WKftNShS iVteteUtibR ftND
FIRST yomH $ENI0R&M1bR
ftR&VIOttm CHftlRW)N OF
A SENftTE CoMMiTTEf!
m( yoMfiH to Conduct A
4HF)T HEARING; AND
FiRtf WoMM To Pre$lDg
uvck ine vmms.
1
UcKiuM IMa, I., -2J-3
Senate First Lady
When last July the death or
Senate Majority Leader Joseph T.
Robinson vacated tha seat or senior
senator rrom Arkansas, Junior Sen
ator Hattte Caraway was elevated
to till that post.
She became, In this manner, the
flrtt woman In United States history
to serve any state as Its senior sen
ator, scoring her rtrth "first" among
the natlon'a past and present women
senators.
On the death or her husband In
1631', Mrs. Caraway was chosen to
fill his seat as senator rrom Ar
kansas. Thus she became the first
woman ever elected to the senate
by popular vote.
Other rirsts or Senator Caraway
Include: rust woman chairman or
a senate committee; first woman to
conduct a senate hearing; and first
woman ever to preside over the
senate.
Toy Train Test
8trange as It seems, a toy train
was utilized in 1831 to allay the
tears or the puollo that passenger
cars could not stay on the track
when negotiating curves at ordi
narily high speeds.
Matthias W. Baldwin, Philadelphia
Jeweler and railroad engine builder.
In April. 1831, set up a small cir
cular track In the Philadelphia
museum. He constructed a model
engine and four cars, all equipped
with the rianged wheels commonly
in use.
Then, while crowds watched ras
clnated, the tiny train sped around
and around, clinging tenaciously to
the track. The experiment worked;
the public voted Its confidence In
the toy train.
Tomorrow: The bedbug that sold
for $10.
AIDES IN PARLEY
BERCHTESOADEN. Germany. Sept.
Jl-(AP) Envoys of Hungary and
Poland were-received today by Relcha
fuehrer Adolf Hitler in his retreat on
Obersalzberg to discuss the Cieho
Slovak crisis.
The Hungarian chief of atafl. Field
Marshal Mreeztes-Plscher, sat with
Premier Bel Imredl and roreUn
Minister Koloman Vnn Kenya during
their talk with Hitler and Oerman
rorelgn Minuter Joachim von Rib.
bentrop "rardini! the untenable
condition In Ciechoslovakia "
Poland's vlewa were presented by
Joseph Llnsl, polish amhasendor to
Berlin, at another conference
It was officially announced the
Hunearlan statesmen had told Hltr
they would stand tlrm tor the r'-tht
cf self-determination for the 7O0."00
Hunjarlans In Oechoslovnltla n
understood the Polish ambassador
discussed plana for rtrallnj v.itn th
Polish minority of sijout 100,000.
Deny Stop-Cln light
PORTLAND, Sept. 21. (AP) Jen
dlelton's request for Installation of
atop-go lights was denied by the
atate highway commission at a
meeting here last night.
Tree Sprouts In Auto
HOLLAND, Mien. (UP) A car has
sprouted a seedling tree here. A seed
lodged In the crack between the
front fender and the body and took
root there. The owner of the car,
believe It or not, 'la c. E. Ripley.
Ojm Vote Held
THE DALLES, Sept. 31.-(AP)-Quall-ried
voters In school district No. 12.
comprising The Dalles and environs,
voted today on the construction of
a $105,000 school gymnasium.
Citizens Build Road
TEMPLE. N. H. (UP I For the sev
enth consecutive year, townspeople
participated In "Good Roads day."
The men built a section of road In
return for a dinner served by their
womenfolks.
Lauds Sewage Plnnt.
PORTLAND, Sept. 21. (AP) Port
land's sewage disposal plant was de
scribed aa an "Ideal WPA project" by
Harry L. Hopkins, national WPA
chief, yesterday.
W1U4AI16
THE EN"fcRTMNMENf AVfriE WOtfrtdLV CLUB ATr
MEET INS Af MRS. PLUMER.'S HAD 10 BE CAUEP IV
OFF, BECAUSE EACH TIME THE5lHf5FR BE6AN , YriE
MEW BABV NDfcf DOOR BE6AN TOO, AND THE BABV si
PROUEP TO HAVE 5UPER10R1UN6 POWER- gift
(Copyright 1838. by The Bell ByndieaU, Inc.) ' "6- J
S'MATTEF POl
PAYNg
WATKINS GLENS. N. Y. (UP)
Charles Halght Is the proud owner
or e, letter rrom Hell. Halght. a
philatelist, mailed a letter to the
postmaster of Hell. Norway. The
postmaster cancelled It and sent it
back.
TAILSPIN TOMMY Dirty Work . . . At the Palms' Pylori I
Bv C M
)8. q.ufSr "Si W1 ftaf '(Oopyrlgit, 1838, by The Bell gmaicate. Inc.)
rL s, I -Have -Pull.t J
By HAL FORREST
V
tub sacotio PVLOM
THREt SUPER SPEED
PUWHES, THE JUPITEO., THE
SILVEO. STREAK AMD THE
COMET, ALL BUNCHED UP,
AND IT SEEMED AS THOUGH
A COLUSIOM WAS INEVITABLE,
AS SNOOT DELIBERATELY
CROWDED HIS COMET AGAINST
THE OTHER SHIPS, PORCING
THEM AGAINST THE PYLON !
THE THICK HAD PREVENTED
TOMMY PBOM TI6ING HIS
MERCURY FOP. PLACE AT
THE THIRD PYLOTl.. FOB HE
HAD TOtSQAe SK.Y
QUICKLY TO A00 PILIN6
INTO THE SHIPS AHEAD
AS IT WAS TOO LATE TO
MAKE A WIDE BANK..
323L
ZTZ5?3 1 IWfWEeis
ArjD PUTSME ! k
. r C ' J.f ftESSEO,LA6E WvtUlPE TO HiL roE5T,
r ' 1 1 , r ,i ,N. i I n-T'.nn,.,i Iv-m; naj. w m;l vlhh of nouaj; ts.T. plam.
LOOK THE COMET
IS TRYING TO PLACE
I nBJLIK NEK Id II
IV ITS SLIP-STREAM 1
BEN WEBSTER'S CAREER Prof. A. A. Adit
By EDWIN ALG"
Aa3mi ut rISn ,Sr - W 1 HAVE KEN SENT Jr5tlJ 6EE, PROF. ADIT, I'M Tf NCW, Y0UNS NEVHR BE HASTY ABOUT T AW, ER, ITi
iSwiyXB Ui..1?m Wg? ' ZiA HEBE BV THE GCMRrWENTr AFRAID t CAN'T TELL li MAN. LET KEEPIN6 ANVTVUN6 J ER, YES, K'il sJl
IWIM' X JSf'l 'aVt o' W TO 1NOJIRE INTO YOUR VOU VIRY MUCH - ME WARN SECRET FROM THE t 1 6UESS WWWil
MiM'l A' A- ADIT-t,l SIR-fff POULTRV METHODS- Y f? VSEE, OUR METHODS AW VOU! r: 60VER1SMENT.1 DO I 1 L SOJ fVWMi
THE NEBB3 Good Deed Steve ' 1 1
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