The Mystery of the Forbidden City; OR DR. JACK'S WIDOW.

Auckland Star, Volume XXXII, Issue 126, 29 May 1901, Page 6

The Mystery of the Forbidden City; OR DR. JACK'S WIDOW.

St. gtorgf RtfMftrae, AnAhtfT nf • Liti'e "L=3 HiUinßiL,' "The Spider's W :b,' • Miss Pauline, r.t New i'nrk,' 'T'n« Captain of the KaL'tr,' 'iliaa Caprice,1 etc., etc.

CHAPTER XXXV. AT LAST. For one, Larry was glad To know the crisis must be close at hand— whether for good or ill, they could not long be prevented from knowing , what the result of their mission was to be. His hopes still ran high, but his fears managed to keep on a level ; with them, so that much of the time lie "was engage/1 with an unruly team, j first one and then the other plunging j ahead. j He could not quite get out of his ; mind the man whom Avis had discover- : ed in the act of spying upon them. The fact that Kai Wang considered i the matter so trifling went far toward j quieting any fears he may have felt j on this score. j Having passed through one experience | however Larry felt as though some J similar calamity was impending. The conditions seemed favourable, just as on that other occasion. Then it had been Dr. Jack who had I suffered." Now the rest of them might j be in line to receive the flings of out- j rageous fortune. j As the little man was something of a philosopher in his way, he could accept even the roughest decrees of fate with a degree of patience. Besidei bravery and coolness entered into the deal to a considerable extent. Avis had hold of his arm, and he believed he felt her hand tremble, which ■would not have been at all singular under the peculiar conditions governing the case. SoLarry, for the third time, whispered that word "Courage" in her ear, and thus strengthened she again faced the uncertain future. Other doors greeted their vis-ion. Some were ajar and received no consideration. Then again they would come to one that had the appearance of being fast. Kai Wang evidently did not mean to allow any good thing to slip his notice. He was a man who believed in getting the worth of his money once he had made an investment, and this venture could surely be looked upon in such a light. One does not always have to risk money jn such a case. There are other chances to be taken. And when life itself is the stake, surely the investment becomes worthy of the name. At any Tate Larry' realised why their guide had taken 'the heavy key. It might serve to open other doors besides that in which the supposed Emperor .was confined. Thus far, however, no door had been found that could not be readily opened upon the exercise of a little muscular power. And as each was passed in turn, poor Larry's hopes, which at the start had been so high, began to sink lower as he realised how much smaller their chances became. What if after all the risks they had assumed the rumour turned out to be j without foundation? This he could not believe, since Kai iWang had it on the best of authority, and he was not the one to make a misitake on this score. Of course there was always a possibility that the prisoner of the palace might turn out to be some other than .the friend they yearned to find—a stranger perhaps who had fallen into the hands of the Chinese authorities, and for certain political reasons was treated with this severity. It now began to look very serious, for they must be near the end of the passage, and unless something turned up Speedily, disappointment would overwhelm them. Kai Wang showed no sign of weakening. He strode over to another grimJooking door that was closed and tried to find -whether any resistance would indicate the need of that wonderful key. When Larry saw him push in yam he felt a sudden thrill. Had the critical moment come? Unconsciously he put out his hand and caught the arm of his cousin. Not a word did he say, but there was something in his manner and his eager look that must have warned her, for she seemed to draw in a long breath, and the glow of resolution appeared in her clear eyes. Meanwhile, the good Kai Wang swung his big key forward and thrust it into the lock. It must have been a master key, for it appeared to fit any door equally No doubt, in the average Chinese mind, a key was a key, and they saw no reason why it should not do ( double fluty. As Kai Wang pushed the door open there was a general advance all along the line, each of them having a desire to enter the chamber first. On the part of Larry and Avis the Teason would not be hard to find, since the deeper emotions of the heart enter-, ed into it. With Lord Eackett it was simply a flesire to meet any danger that might by chance lie beyond. Thus the whole four pushed in. And Kai Wang forgot to remove that enchanted key from the lock. Perhaps he had good and sufficient reasons. Perhaps he had grown weary of the manual labour involved in carrying it around. Or it might be the blessed thing slipped entirely from his mind. This last was more than likely the case, for Kai Wang was almost as eager with regard to the identity of the pris- j oner under the imperial palace as Larry himself, and now that the time seemed at hand when this enigma was about to be solved, it was perhaps excusable In him to forget such a small thing. Upon such minor matters great events often turn, however. When the light of the lantern dispelled the darkness that'had hung like

a pall upon the cell, eager eyes ranged I around, searching every inch of apace, j looking for some sign. i A ureal wave of disappointment rolled i ..ver'the brave heart ot Larry when his vision failed to connect with any niov- j i ing figure. j I There .was n rude pallet at one end I jof the grim dungeon, and an earthen- ■ j ware bowl or two near by. but no human ! I being. i Had the authorities in some secret i manner, learned of this contemplated !raid on the palace, and removed tin , ; ■ mysterious prisoner either temporajriiy or permanently? j The bare thought gave "him a chill. ; J On his part Lord Rackett also e\-- j [perienced a feeling of keen chagrin; jand disappointment, but he would not i give up so easily. These Englishmen can be very stub- ! j born when* they choose, and dislike exceedingly to yield to unpleasant conditions. As for Kai Wang, he did what wns I the proper thing under .the circumstances—walked directly forward Lo> I the cot to make an examination. The others clustered about him, I eager t«) learn what the sagacious Chinaman might have to say concerning , matters. ; Kai Wang made a hasty exaniiua- j tion. It did not take those keen, slanting j eyes of, his long to discover certain facts. When one has educated himself in this line, small things become patent that might easily escape the vision of I ordinary beholders, j "The" man we aeek was here confined," declared Kai Wang, holding something aloft. Larry looked at it and his heart seemed to almost cense beating; the I article thus displayed to their gaze j was a belt with a Singular buckle in the front—a buckle probably two and a half by three and a half inches in diameter' composed of bronze and representing in a rude manner some East Indian scene such as might be common enough in Hindostan. Larry knew that buckle us well as he did'his own name, and when last he had set eyes upon it the bolt was upon the person of the bravest of the brave—none other than Dr. Jack himself. And even in that dreadful moment, when doubt gave way to certainty, and this in turn was succeeded by new alarming fears, Larry remembered who was at his side, and he turned to ascertain how Avis took it. The shock had been a severe one, but even under such a strain that brave heart never thought of giving way. Larry saw a face that, despite the yellow pigment used to give it the true Chinese tint, was transformed with a rare delight; a sudden radiant joy f.ashed from dazzling eyes, vine} she. reached out her hancT to Kai Wang. "Give it to me, please —it belonged to my Jack," and as the belt fell into her hands she pressed it to her lips ; with holiest emotions. Thereupon Kai Wang and Larry exchanged glances, and their wise heads after the manner of men who knew it all. Although it afforded great pleasure to discover in this fashion that the man they sought had at least survived the affair of that dreadful night in the Forbidden City, still there were other , problems yet to solve that neededtheir immediate attention. Where was he now? What new and terrible disaster had befallen him? Had the change of rulers supposing such to have taken place in the Manchu dynasty, made any dirtei'ence with regard to the fate of the mysterious prisoner. It was always possible. So long as Li Hung Chang remained in power there existed a friendly feeling toward foreigners, but now r that he was' virtually exiled from Peking, and his influence at a low ebb, it was reasonable to suppose this 'bitter auimosity on the part of the dowager empress toward the fanquey, or "foreign devils," would make itself felt in every way possible. The prisoner of the palace was one of whom the party in power stood in j more or less awe—his boldness in seeking , an audience with the emperor dazed them, and so long as the signed papers had never been discovered they had evidently feared to assassinate him. Now that the resolute woman behind the throne had shown her true colours, and 'her old-time grasp upon political affairs had been resumed, it might be expected that some move would be made toward cutting the Gordian knot, either by releasing the famous prisoner, with a severe admonition to never again enter the sacred streets of the Forbidden City, or else disposing of him after some usual cruel Chinese fashion —probubly the latter. Lord Rackett was not satisfied. Things looked too natural to suit him. He did not believe Dr. Jack would suti'er them to drag him from his cell to execution without a most desperate resistance. There was a bit of wood lying by the. pallet that might have served in lieu of a cudgel, and in the hands of ■one entirely great would have proven i mightier than a sword. ■ i Yes; Lord Kackett was inclinedto believe that had such a tragedy occurj red on this night, there would be! I much evidence of it in the immediate vieirity, A few dead Chinamen and gore galore would be the natural indication that Dr. Jack had been overwhelmed. 1 Nothing of the kind greeted their j scrutiny. And, more than this, the door had ! been locked. Had they dragged the inmate of the I dungeon off to decapitation, in order ito thus celebrate the new regime inaugurated this night, it did not seem j likely that any one would have taken i the trouble to lock the door upon ay j empty cell.

Lord Kaekett was by nature o£ an investigating disposition. Many of hii countrymen are, and this peculiar nature has led them to all corners of the. earth worth possessing. Alter they investigate they conclude to settle down, send for their cousins, and grow up with the country. It runs in the blood. Investigation is the avaut courier of civilisation. E'lymplon had walked over to the farther wall, when; something had attracted his attention, and the others speedily hurried to his side, when they heard him utter an exclamation that announced a discovery. Here they found evidences of labour. In the wall was a series of holes one above the other, and leading upward, like the successive rounds of a ladder. I Only a persisteni nature could have jdug these out, hour by hour, during I the weeks that had elapsed since the i prisoner was thrown into the dungeon. j' Plvmpton snatched the lantern from Larry and held it aloft, but its 'light was feeble and failed to disclose i what he. sought. Still he did not lose hope, an.l fanicied he saw an indistinct object clinging up beyond. "Dr. .Jaclc. are you there. We are friends come to rescue you!" he bawiled. j Then those below heard a voice ex- ] claim: ! "Thank God!" i There was a distinct movement of the uncertain object above them, a • human form descended the rude lad- | der in the wall and landed with a i bound just in front of them. j (To be continued.) I __ !___-—.-■-•■ i—j-=