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HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Exeter Times-Advocate, 1930-06-19, Page 3’T“ IK (i THE STORY SO FAR Hugh Drummond and Peter Farrell are interested in Mr. Granger, who lives at Temple Tower, which is “ atrongly fortified. Miss Verney accepts a position as private se­ cretary to Mr. Granger and her friend (Freckles) Tom Scott is .staying with Hugh. Jojin, an old friend of Hugh’s, has the plans of Temple Tower but someone stole them out of his room. A bparder at Spragge’s Farm hides a rope ladder near the tower and at night uses it to climb the wall. Hugh > and his three friends also go- in tp,, find the big dog poisoned and ‘ the servant Gaspard 'choked to . ,death. They meet Victor Mat­ thews, a member of the New York .police, who retuns with them and gives the history of this myster­ ious person, in blacks NOW GO ON WITH THE STORY r ’““M’sieur,” I pleaded, “I did not fiuspect him. I was standing in the •door wondering what our next in- isjtnctions. .would be when he crept me from ’behind.” “‘Be silent, worm,” he said. “It is well for you, Rossignal, that your •shirt is Soaked with blood. Were it otherwise’ I might be tempted to think that this was tweejn you.” “‘By the blood of -sieur,” O'*4' TOE EXETER TIMES-APVPCATE ■ItMlWATt ITM3 w Ift. the Virgin, Mon- I cried, “I swear to you—• ‘■Be silent,” he snarled. “I said it iyas well for you that he hit so hiard. It.proves to me that you are only a fool, amd not a trajtor. Were you the second, Rossignal, I would •strangle you here and now with my wn hands. As it is, your punish­ ment is sufficient.” “But', M’sieur’,” I cried what am I to do?” “There was no answer, Le Bossu MaSque had gone. I was alone now, in every truth—miles from any­ where.’ > “So did the Nightingale ramble -on. We let -him talk, but there was ^obviously , nothing more that he could tellus. He was very incoh­ erent as to , date and times, and I think undoubtly remained in. that shed in a semi-delirious state for three or four days. How he finally Arrived at Rouen we never found <0.utc ’he hardly seemed to __ _ Anyway, ..the point' was. not important. \ jriw “‘He was brought up on a charge of .robbery with violence, arid sentenced io twenty-one years’ ' imprisonment in Devil’s Island. And. with that we can leaye him for the present. jAnd with that' also my story of the quarter of a century ago is practic- finished. Le Rossignal, with a -characteristic outburst of frenzied invective against the Toad, idisap- peared from the dock into twenty- 4>lie' years of hell. “Arid now, gentlemen, we pass ©nt of the region of certain fact into the region of guess-work. To take Uhe Toad first. I do not think there jcdii- be any doubt as,'to what he did. Over-conie by the thought of so nmich loot, he determined, to try ■and get it-all for himself. He laid the Nightingale, and went off the cai^. What happened then we we can only surmise. Perhaps he found he couldn’t manage the car: perhaps he’d lost, his ‘nerve. But ^somewhere in that area of country Hie ‘liid the stolen stuff. Probably he pkt in his pocket sufficient jewellry t-o keep him in comfort for many a long day. But the bulk of the stuff Ire must have hidden, intending to go back for it when the hue and wry was oVer.. Then he ran the car info a wood, hid it as well as he could and disappeared. And it is a Sfact that he did disappear. Years passed by: the war came, but’ never -a' trace of the Toad did we see. He ’vanished from the underworld of JParis as completely as a stone van­ ishes,, ih the sea. 'Many people be­ lieved he^was dead, though, person­ ally, I never agreed with them. JBtrt at last the whole thing was for- gbtten: even the search for the ^treasure Was abandoned. That had a-eally been hopeless from the first -unless we could lay our hands on lite Toad and make-him lead us to it. ' , •“As to what happened to Le Bos- ®u Masque we are equally in doubt. Many people believed that he had caught' the TOad',' and had murder­ ed him for his treachery, first com­ pelling him to, reveal the hiding­ place of the loot. nbeal to be said irhbugh, somehow, I never believed fit myself. No body was ever found fsmywhere that could, possibly have tmen the Toad’d. And I felt toler- ®3)iy certain that; a big man like Le Ttossu would never have taken the Hko'ubM to follow ait object of that oat Of the country merely to kill Jiim. .’it was the loot he was after —not the Toad. We still felt his atcivities in,iParis, . though, as years went by they deemed to; grow less’ sand lesA And* there are strange ,®torles told ■bf'^'ihcrodfble deeds of .of heroism perforiped in the war a masked hunchback, who ap­ know i There was a great for the theory, peared suddenly in different parts of the line. Fiction, of course, but le poilu likes his ’little bit of myst­ ery—just’ as your Tommy does, “And so we come to the present moment and the strange reunion of of the principals in that drama of nearly thirty years ago. As a mat­ ter of fact, you will see that’ it is not quite so strange as it will ap­ pear at first sight, but ia perfectly logical affair, “It starts; with the release of the Nightingale from Devil’s Island five years ago. I was then working with the police in New York, but not be­ cause I had to. I happen to be of independent means, and I work for the love of the thing, not' foi’ tlie salary. And the case of all others that intrigued me most during my Whole career was. the one T have just told you. It was unsolved: I felt I had .been beaten, “Now I have a fairly good know­ ledge of the criminal nature. And quite by chance I happened to learn that an uncle of Le Rossigndl’s had died leaving liis money to his neph­ ew, “ 7 „ ’ / ‘ ‘ T that twenty-one years4'in Devil’s Is­ land Nightingale, believing,' as. lie did, that he -was there principally because of the Triad’s treachery. I chucked up my job and got on the heels of the Nightingale.' “Well, my guess proved right. He was now, for a man in. his position comparatively affluent, which' en­ abled him to be free from the nec­ essity of working. And, as I thought would prove the case, he was ob­ sessed with one idea, to the exclus­ ion of everything else, and that idea was revenge on the Toad. If Le Crapeau was still alive lie was go­ ing to find him. “Gentlemen, these past few years may seem to you dull: have been facsinating. and forwards, searching ing, the Nightingale has man.. Old companions years previously have been interr­ ogated: clues have been followed up only to be discarded. And all the time, unknown to him, I have been sitting on his heels, patiently wait­ ing. I knew that no one was better qualified to find the Toad than he was. He had access to information that I could never have got: in ad­ dition it was the sole driving force of his life. “It is true, I admit, that' at one period, when for rironths he seemed completely defeated,. I very nearly gave it up. And then quite sudden­ ly out of the blue, there came the message that .gave me the greatest thrill of my life. Itxwas proof of what I had. always thought in the days gone by. Just an, envelope hand ed to me by a gamin as I sat out­ side a cafe in Paris. ’ “‘Keep out of this., That was all that' was written on the paper: that —and the drawing I hadn’t seen for so many years. So Le Bossu (Moqije was on the trail, too. He also was following the Nightingale: he also was working on the same, lines as myself. A strange situation as you will agree: I and that greatest of criminals both using the same dog to hunt our man, and the dog quite unconscious of the fact that' he was being so used. It added zest to it, I cian assure you, It meant sleep- with one eye permanently open: it meant that the whole time it was necessary to look in every direction, not only at the Nightingale. Several times I sensed his presence near me how I.can’t the terrible under. He know him. “However, that is neither here nor there. Just as the obsession or Le Rossignol’s, life was to lay bls hands on the Toad, so the obsession of mine became the desire to catch Le Bossu Masque. It had turned' in­ to a/ duel between him and me. And that duel is now approaching its end.” For momnenit or two Victor Matthews fell silent, his eyes fixed on the little drawing still pinned to the tree above my head. And we, en­ thralled though we were, let him take his own time. “The rest,” he continued after a- is fairly soon told. Little by clue cer- But tak- then So I gambled -on the -result would produce on a man like to me they Backwards and ferret- chased his of twenty tell you. And remember handicap I was working knew me, but I didn’t it became increasingly while, little, from a clue here and a there, tain the Toad had left France, where had he gone, and had he en the loot with him? And came a sudden and astounding bit of luck, course of Boulogne, sitting in Quai Gambetta. At the next table to him was a French ouvler, and I ven­ ture to think that not even the Bos­ su Masque himself would have recog­ nized me in that excellent workman. The cafe was fairly empty, and I was on the point of .going when two fish-4 ei’inen came in. They were both a little tight, and their conversation Was clearly audible. But what prin­ cipally attracted my attention was The Nightingale, in the his search, had reached and one evening he was a small wine-shop on the the fact that they obviously were full of money. “At first I listened idly, $nd then a stray sentence struck my ear, “' Le moulin a Bonneval.’ “The mill at Bonneval, and Bon-1 neval was the name of village be­ tween Chateaudun and Chartres. Moreover if was the nearest village to the quarry where the motor-car had been hidden during the day, Is­ n’t it an astounding fact how some­ times, after months and years of fruitless labour, a stray remark cas­ ually overheard may provide a clue As it stood, of course, there was nothing in jt—but the coincidence attracted my attention. It was. well it did. so: amazing so it seems that a chance remark was destined to end our search. “I stole a glance at the Nighting­ ale: he, too, had caught the phrase, and was listening intently, And after a while, as the full significance of their conversation sank into his mind he began to quiver like a terrier When it sees a rat. Sometimes th$ men lowered their voices, but for the inost part what the said was clearly audible. And one fact was soon es­ tablished definitely. These two sail­ ors owned the ketch Rose Marie,, and they and recently smuggled oyer a cargo copsisiting of three large wooden cases, which had been land­ ed on Romney Marsh somewhere be­ tween Rye and Dungness. Further, that these cases had something to do with the mill at Bonneval. “I give you my -word that by this time I was almost as excited as the Nightingale himself. I rememered that there was an old disused mill, standing a little from the road, about a kilometers north of Bonneval. “Was it' possible that that was the hiding-place for in vain? recipient of Marsh? “Then another thought struck me® was Lo Bossu Masque present? I glanced around the room: there were only some fisher-folk and a pale youth who looked as if he served in some shop. Honestly I could not think he was there, and yet'— He waved his hand at the tree hind me. ; “However,” he continued, “ may be that he wasn’t. The Night­ ingale is an ea3y man to track, and that may easily account' for it. To return to that evening. The two. sail­ ors (didn’t say much, but what they had said was quite enough to send the Nightingale flying over to Eng­ land. He has one gift which 'Jyou probably noticed the night before last.—-lie spoke English fluently. And that was a considerable help to him. It was'impossible for. him to telf of course, if the cases had been land­ ed on Romney Marsh because the. Toad was near at hand, or -simply because it is ’"ah admirably situated locality for smuggling.” “Hold hard a moment,” said Hugh How long ago did you overhear this conversation in tithe yine shop?” “About six weeks,” said Matthews.' “Rather more. Well, I can’t fell, you when the Nightingale first discover­ ed that the man lie wanted was. your next-door neighbour. He’s no fool, and presumably his suspicions at once fell -on a house fortified like Temple Tower. So did mine. But the Toad is a secretive gentleman, and suspicion is. not proof. Personally I have not seen the man who now calls himself Granger though I’ve lain up hours waiting for him. I assume that the Nightingale has at any rate, ■he has satisfied' himself somehojv- that Granger is the Toad. And so his quest is ended: he has found his en­ emy. Theatrical as all "those people' are, he has flashed his'warning ac­ ross the marsh—red and blue lights the colours of the gang. For years that man—ever since Rossignol was liberated from -Devil’s. Island—has lived in fear of being found. And now he lias been.” Young'Freckles took a deep breath “I say, chaps,” he remarked, “we are having a jolly party, aren’t we" And how do the Beaver and the girl come in?” “I was coming to them,” said Matthews. “Paul Vandaii is- one of those men, well-known to the police to be criminals, who have not yet' succeeded in steering clear of trouble The only commandment' they keep is the eleventh—thou shalt not be found out. Thd lady has not, I think, ever 'been united to Vandaii in the holy bonds of matrimony, but she has been his inseparable' companion for three years.” “I suppose he is not the Bossu Masque?” I dsked. , Matthews shook his head. “Quite .impossible,” he said. “He is not old enougfi. Vandaii is a man of only about thirty-five. So that I rules him out. Oh, no! He comes In in a very different way. I have men­ tioned, if you remember, the Prince’s cousin, who chose his part­ ies for him. Now that cousin is also the Prince’s heir, and lie is alive to­ day in Paris, He inherited a|l the Prince’s money, and so is an ex­ tremely wealthy man. After the ri­ff air at tfie Chateau du Lac Noir, he offered an enormous reward for the, recovery of the stolen property—*no less than fifty thousand pounds., Naturally he, years ago, gave up all hope of getting it back, though the reward still stood. And then Vandaii and the lady tappeared on the scene. You have seen them, and you will re­ alize that they atfe people who aye': quite at home In the highest society.' At any rate, they met Count Vladi- mar—-that is the cousin—at supper they ■were unguarded was really from over the the get which we had searched And if so, who was the the, cases on Romney be- one night not very long ago. And the conversation came around to the affair at the Chateau du. Ugc Npir. My informant was the waiter-—who was not a waiter. To be more ex­ plicit, the Paris, police were after Vandaii over a little matter at Nice. They had no proof, but trying tp trap him in an moment. And the waiter a detective. “Well, he got nothing meal which helped him Nice business, but what he did was that Vladimar most categorical­ ly stated that the reward of the fifty thousand pounds .still held good.' He said it with a laugh, almost as if he implied that it might just as well be a million for the good it would do. But the dectecive caught a very sig­ nificant glance that passed between the two. And here they are, “How they spoted this place I can’t tell you. It may be that they, too, through friends in the underworld, have kept themselves posted in the Nightingale’s movements, realising as I did, that in him lay their best chance of being led to the treasure. At any rate, they are here.” ., “Well, gentlemen, so much for the past, and the original causes that have led up to the situation as it stands to-day. Of my doings since I have been here there is little to say. I have told you that the mam obsession of my life is to lay hands on the man who nearly murdered me to-night. And I had been laying up in a small place in Rye, watching and waiting for what I knew must happen, sooner or later—his arrival. I have kept my eye on le Rossignol: you saw me the othfer night when I very foolishly got caught in the light. But until to -night I did not know Le Bossu was here. I don’t know what took me there—restlessness, perhaps, or something deeper. Sounds strange, I know,” his voice grew al­ most solemn, “but I vertably believe, though I have never seen him until to-night, that' there is some channel of communication between him and me which ciannot be explained by any natural means. Gentlemen, I have' felt him near me in Paris: I know it. And to-night an overmastering, im­ pulse took me to Temple Tower. You know with what result. Suddenly I sa.w him—looming out of the dark­ ness—right on top of me. And al­ though I had half expected it, the shock at the moment was almost' paralysing, I even forgot to pull my gun till it was too late: he had gone. He paused and a dreamy came into his eyes. “But he is here, and J am here, and this time it is the end, one way or the other.” - ids For a moment or two no one spoke there was something awe-inspiring in the quiet finality of his words. Just as at iSpragge’s Farm the soft melodious voice of le-RossiginoLhad seemed to ring Granger’s death knell so, now, did this, second deadly hat­ red promise a fight to the finish. “Enough, gentlemen,” he went on in- his normal voice. “No good has ever come of dreaming. Will you re­ turn the compliment, and tell what has happened to you? Then we will draw up a plan of campaign and de­ cide what to do.” ,-So we told him everything: about the chimney-pot episode, the spark­ ing plugs, the stolen mlap, and Miss Verney’s letter. And when we had finished, he smoked a complete cig­ arette before he spoke. 1 , “Captain Drummond,” lie -said quietly, “I congratulate you. I think your deductions are absolutely cor­ rect. Whether he meant to kill yo,u with the chimney pot, or only put you -qut .of the way temporarily, is immaterial—but' that wa's his first idea. And I think your .appearance on the scene has changed all his plans. He has only just arrived, of that I am sure. He came expecting to.find le Rossignol and me: instead, finds all of you, to say nothing of of the Vandalis.” He rose and began pacing up and down, his face working eagerly Us he emphasised each point. (To be Continued) , The Sixteenth of June, 1928 • i 11 . llg> .. ' God be with you, dear Southampton, throned upon your curving bay, In my heart you’re crowned for ever till that heart has turned to day! For there is a link between us that shall never snap away While the glorious month of pansies cap boast one perfect day. Bear with me awhile, Southampton, while my stricken heart shall pour Balm upon my wounded spirit, wounded now and evermore! Stricken I have been iand sorely, wounded also have been I ; And wounded souls and stricken hearts have ever been passed by In the mad rush of the world—-quite forgotten have they been. While flaunting wealth and vaunting power monopolise the scene. But such a sorrow flood is mine that my heart overflows. In flushing thoughts and rushing words that scorn the art of prose. Oh, how could I be prosy with a sick room in my sight, And the whitest soul I ever knew winging heavenward in its flight? Two short years ago I suffered five long weeks of agony, As my dear one slowly ■wasted; that sick room again I see. And I scent4 the fragrance of the flowers that in that room were piled With my loved one in the midst of them, a pale and wasting child! ’ Five long weeks my heart'was tortured with the strange uncertain pain Of the grim Doubt—shall she ever be her own sweet self again? There were times when, she would rally, when her eyes would flash with light, There were moments when she looked as if she fought a winning fight; But the clouds again would .gather and the sun would disappear, And at the root of all our hopes would gnaw a gruesome fear. And the light would fade from out -her smile, the joy from out her face, As she—and we—looked forward to 'the fate of all the race, , O sick room in Southampton beside the Little Lake, 1 shall ever love the Northland and its people for your sake, it look BRUCE COUNCJL GUESTS' OF HURON COUNCILLORS The members of Bruce County Council were entertained by Huron County Council at Goderich1', on Thursday of last^iVeOk. • During the afternoon a softball game and a quoit contest took place at Victoria Park and in the evening a' co’mpli menftary banquet was held’‘at St George’s Parish Hall. G. W. Hol man, clerk of Huron County' presid ed as chairman and toastmaster Warden A. C. -Baeker, of Huron, gave the address of welcome and Mayor H. J. A. Mac-Ewen gave a •civic welcome to the guests of the evening. Other speakers were! Reeve of Ripley;. W/ reeve of Clinton; .T.,Roy county engineer'of I-iurbn er, reeve of Lions’ Head; bertson, editor of . the Goderich Sig nal; Campbell Grant, reeve of Walk erbon; D. Willoughby, Brucb; W. J, Simpson, Edmunds;: .W. G. Me'dd. McfMllIari; M.P.; George1 Pc' J. A.'. McDonald; editor of .Chw ley Enterprise; J ___ reeve of Wjnglram,; J, W. Beattie, reeve of Seaforth; J, A. Johnston, Of, Mlldmay Gazette, and R, C.. Hays; of ‘Goderich. The musical part- dr the program was led by H. McGee Of Auburn. D. Mann Trewartha Patterson ; W. Ward W.H, Ro warden.of reeve of.St. ,. M.L.A.;T. SpCdton,M4 W. McGi'bbdh. Half the glorious month of pansies, half of June had passed away, And Southampton looked its proudest, throned upon its shelving bay; And the sunlight on the waters was reflected in her eyes, And the flowers within the sick-room had the glory of the skies! Yes, all nature was rejoicing at the high mid-summer noon; Oh, what would this dreary earth be if we had no month of June? Sure the Pagan love of nature is a ladder up to God— A ladder which philosophers as well as saints have trod— And that Pagan love of nature now 'became a Christian faith, As nearer (despite the sunshine) fell the shadow of her death. Nature everywhere was calling, in the sick room and without; And with nature’s voice all clamant who could ever harbour Doubt? So on‘the sixteenth morning of the month of pansies, she United with the Christ in love forevermore would be. In the most Blessed Sacrament her Saviour she would meet; And all the bells of Heaven rang adown Southampton, street, And all the choirs of Heaven sang across the Little Lake, As I for her the Wine did pour, for her the Bread did break, The Wine and Bread, became the Blood and Body of the Lord; To all its pristine innocence her sick soul was restored, And the ’triumph strains of Heaven's choir were heard across the waters Returning to the Father's arms one more of Eve’s, lost daughters! That hour of her communion with her Lord shall ever be A sun-like light, a star-like hope, a heaven-like faith to me! When by the gloom of coming death my home is overcast, When my own life-tile is ebbing, when my strength is failing fast,-. Then may I still remember Southampton’s curving bay, . ?, . And the glorious June morning of my loved pne’s heavenliest driy—'* The day she rose o’er veils of sense to vision clear of “Him, Who heard her cry above the choirs of .all His ..Cherubims, , \ Who placed her (latest but qo.t least) in front of all His host,' Strong in the mighty strength of those who' m^ke His name their boast! 0 sick-room in Southampton beside the Little Lake, , Be around me—and within me—when, the storm on me shall break!’ / As she lived in Christ so died she. On the twentieth morn of June The broken harp of Ethel’s life began its Hereafter tune! And in my ears I hear it, It bids me “Follow on!” Though the Night 'be long and dark it is followed 'by the Dawn, And here and there along, the trail my lost one’s form I see— Not lost but won!—-the’ blithest in that goodly company Of all who bade’a last “Good Night” to those they left behind; The sweetest wor’ds that ever fell on ears of humankind! Good night but not good-bye to her who spake those cheery words Cheerier message never came from throats of summer birds! 'And is not’June the month of months to pray to God for all Who in the glorious month of June have heard the Father’s call? And as I go- Southamptonward -that goodly company Of lovely souls that flew to God in laughing June I see; 'd’er’tlih'tBlhe'Water Highway I see them rise and fly, These souls of whom-the memory can never, never die; Past Goderich and Kincardine I see them on the wing; O’er the deep gorge of Port Albert I hear their voices sing; O’er the- deep gorge of Port Albert on my heart they pour their balm, The deep gorge of Port Albert where I need my heart to calm’ O’er Port Elgin, o’er Southampton, I hear their melody; What rich and liquid throats they have—that goodly company! And richest and most liquid of all of them is hers, Whose voice could not be silent in ten thousand sepulchres; Whose voice—when it would reach to one she left on earth behind— Would ride the highest ocean wave and break the loudest wind! Be it deep gorge of Port Albert, be it street of Exeter, ‘ Be it sick-room of Southampton, tis the “Still small voice” shall stir My soul to higher flights and fights—for fight we must and will In the tumultuous world without, though the heart within be still! O sick-room in Southampton beside the Little Lake, I am rich with thee; without thee—what a desert I would make! J. J. F. f 1 I .1 I i Name Address Occupation MaU This 'Noiv F. J. RELBRIDGE Coupon Exeter, Ont. Send mo further particular of the tow Coot Confederation Series Policleo, as boned by the Confederation Lif^Association. Confederation Series’ New how Cost Policies Find Favour with Public They Save found favour because they'pro­ vide ^ufe insurance at lower cost, and yet policyholders to participate in profits. Pj^tniums are less, consequently you can bjiy .more insurance for yottr nionej and ovlde that much extra protection for our dependants, “Confederation Series” Policies may behgd on the Ordinary Life, Limited Payment Life and Endowment plans, and the Total Dis­ ability and Double Indemnity Beiiefits may be added; MaU this coupon and gd the particulars — do It now before conimitiipig ydtsrscl/ elsewhere. Confederation, Lif Association . Head Offitx Toroiito