SERIAL STORY.

Marlborough Express, Volume XLIX, Issue 250, 21 October 1915, Page 3

SERIAL STORY.

THE WDY ill BLUE.

(By F. M. White.)

CHAFim XXII

THE SPIDER'S WEB,

Cluttcm contemplated the writhing Magcvvitch mtioh as if the latter had been some q-iaint specimen 6i\ a, microscopic slide under the searching analysis of the scientist. He could see ihe twitching of the thick lips and the oily ooze on the yellow skin. He knew this man inside and out, knew

| that he was playing on his nerves as iif they were so* many fiddlestrings, j and grr dually reducing him to a con- ! dition of absolute fear. This was the

sort, of thing Iv.j lil;ed. this was st^ne rewind for all that he had given up, and to his mind the subjugation of the wild animai made amends for many past sacrifices and disappoint-

' merits "Yoii flatter me," he said. 4 "But what would your associates say if they could hear your praise of Spencer Glutton? t And .what would'they think of it? What are you thinking about yourself?" f Migavitch gu;gled something, presumably of an ingratiating nature, in the bank of his throat. m ßut wli.ir/ he really was thinling was the exquisite delight it would be to have this superlative dcvii by the- throat in some dark room, ' or to catch him asleep in his bed with no cne looking on. It was gfll and wormwood to Magavitch to know that ho was being crushed by that remorseless thumb and that Oluttoii was using him as he would have used some clever perfovmming dog And there was no way out of it eithejk. "It is very pleasant to secy Sir Olutton again,"' he said. i:Well, it's mutual anyway," Glutton replied. ''But, so far as T "am concerned, my pleasure is of a different type altogether. Mme x is the joy that tli<s cat feels when it meets ihe mouse. And you are my mouse, Magavitch, and don't you forget it. , If you attempt to fool with me I'll crumple you up like a sheet of paper. T>o you hear what I say ? You know my power ''Oh, I do," said Magaviteh fawningly. "But, dear sir, you will not be hard on a r-oor old man who has seen the error of his way 3 and enly wants to spend the rest of his days in peace When I got your message my hear 5 was heav>- within me I said to myself the Lord Clutton has, found me out " "Oh, I did -hat years ago!" Clutton said drily. "All the same, it must hiive been rather a disagreeable surprise to, you when you got my message. You thought you were safe,. An hour ago I had forgotten "your very existence. You might have been dead and buried for all I knew or cared I had not the remotest idea where to find yen. And Ihen the mysterious agency which is behind me suddenly demanded thei presence of Magavitch if he were still in the land of. the li/ing. And within an hour I know where to find you, and the means whereby I can brine: you grovelling to my feet." "" Magavitch bowed humbling before this tirsde It was rather and slightly theatrical, bin- Clutton-knew his -nan. and that this mode of - address was far more* likely to impress him than any wcrds framed in a more diplomatic spirit '"Oh, I understand," Mag witch soid. "I will Jinswer truthfully any questions that your honorable lordship likes to ask." "Yes,-1 thought you would. Now, in the first place, how muny are there of yen at Balham? Are they the old gang -working the old way—and what do {.hey expect to gain? Why did they murder the. Grand Duke?* By the way, you have made a thorough mess of that business, as you will find out &ooner or later. But We need not diseis-i that for fclie moment. I want you to make a list of the men dewn Balhfc.m way who had a hand in the present affair. You need not trouble about it now. You had better post it so that I can have it th;-; first thing to-morrow morning And none-/of your typewritten lists, if you please." "And where would I get a typewriter from?" ■ Magavitch asked almost tearfully. "I tell you lam a poor man " , "You are nothing of the sort,'" Glutton retorted "You have been making money .all your life. And always by treachery and fraud and the fcetrj yal of your comrades. For years you have . made money .as a police spy and taken your shans of such outrages and robberies as < ame along. If I were only to say one word 01 drop a hint in certain quarters S your life wouldn't be worth a day's j purchase. It is all very well for you I now that you are old to hide yourself lin a Lcndon suburb and pass for a i poverty-stricken man who grubs a : living from th/« customers of the : gutter, but I bow a ?ood deal bolder. : I could tell you the names of at least • threo foreign brinks which Jiold valu- ; able securities of yours. I>o you .vant me to tell V'ou where you haVe hidden the spoil which fell into your hands :- after the.' death of the Grand I>uke ; Oro?" /

Magavitch uttered a cry of fear. Was there anything this" fiend in-' I carn.ite ctyd not know? He was shak- ! ing in an ague of apprehension from- \ head to foot, the little beads of : perspiration were trickling down his ncse It was not fur him to know that this last barbed shaft of -Glutton's was an arrow frqni a bow drawn at a venture, Jut that it had gone home to the feather Clutton could see to his secret delight. Ho was on the right track now, but it would not be vise to press tlw advantage unduly. •TV ell, if it is a painful subject I won t pursue it,'" ho went on. "Let us revert for a moment to the subiect ot -typewriters. I understand that your people use a Concordia nv\cliiner "You talk in ;i hmjrtiage that makes me dizzy,' Magavitch wailed. 'Oh, I think net. It i* p] a ir to me --hat the passing of the years has in no way dimmed the razor blade of ycur intellect. Now, you are nut going, to be so foolish'as to deny that to the forger and the blackmailer the t\pre\witer has proved of valuable assistance. You see. it gets rid ->f the painful necessity of imitating h-md-writing, and saves all sorts of awkward questions in the law courts. A man need no longer be cross-examined or v-orried by handwriting exports when he can buy a sheet or tw.» of paper and put his ideas down in printed letters. ls r.':-rly everybody uses the typewriter now.' and ihe receipt of a letter so written passes as a matter of course. Now, sup?)ose you warned to get n piirngrinh* in a n<;wspaper which yon knew that the editor would not pass in t%v ordinary way how nould you set about it r" '•! am an old-f&Rhioned mon,'' Magf-FjtcJi jtuun-Med, ""and rhe.sti mod-

em 'deas they confuse me. I should not have thought of it." "Perhaps not, but somebody did, and you know it as well as I do. We will take it for granted for the moment that it is necessary to get this paragraph inserted in some leading newspaper in such a way as to cause the editor to believe that it came from some highly trusted correspondent —a correspondent whose work wcnld be published as a-matter of course. Such, a journalist is discovered, and by a fortunate chance his copy is always typed. A sensational paragraph is prepared and sent to the favofed journal, with the writer's name typed on the copy. It goes into tho paper and causes a great sensation, a'U the meie so because it is in the hands of thu public^before the actual crime is commit tell. Now, :hat is a daring thing to do, Magavitjh. I dare say you thought that this would strike terror in certain quarters, md show how clover and merciless the murderers are, and how certain -Uiev felt of their ground. You " see. I know a great deal, Magavitch.'' Maga\itch turned and twisted r.nd writhed in his (hair. His heart was full of black and bitter malice, but his eyes v ere troubled, and his breath came in fitful gasps. "There is nobody like your honorable lordship," he fawned. "Nobody in the world. What you speak of. of course- you know, but to me all this is as so much in a foreign language." "What, aren't you convinced yet?" Olutton said smilingly. "You will be telling me presently, that you never hoard the name of" j Pascoe before. Now you wouldn't ask me to believe that'"

Masaviteh threw up his hands with the air of a man. who surrenders at discretion, /-ll his defences were berten to the ground and there was r othing to gain and everything to lose by struggling against such merciless logic any longer. It was many years since ;\fagf.vi'teh had first tried a fall with the man before him, and in all their battles of wit he ooukl not rociill a single instance where he had come out pf the encounter without grievous discomfiti re. And there were many other cosmopolitan scoundrels who' had gone in gaily to win where Magnvitch- had so signally failed. And -w here'were-' they all now? Some were dead, some ." wandering cbout iho world broken and beaten, some-lying in the gaols of Eurepe, whilst others had paid a swift and more terrible penalty.

"I will do anything you like/ Magnvitclv said'humbly. "I night have known sonr-othing lilio this >a& comirg when Zara walked into my shop so late last night and demanded of me a black mackintosh."

"Yes, ratleri startling, wasn't H?" Chitton queried. "Did you happen to have any of/these black mackintoshes left? I' understand that the lady in question wanted a, cloak of the" Oarl-oneri pattern. Is that correct r"

"t)h, yes, oh, yes!" the badgered Magtvitch muttered, showing some signs of temper^ for vhe first time. ''Wliy does youi noble lordship ask me these questions when, at the same time lie can oni-wei* them so much belter u.han I?''

''Tliat is quite right," Clutton said. '"'And now -permit me to ask you a question which you really can answer better than I can. lam told that recently those Oarhoneri cloaks have gone oiit of fashion. As stage properties in the great drama of the criminal anarchist they are quite exploded. Therefore, if you have one or two m stock- yvu would soli them to anybody Now I happen to know that one of these is worn by a young lady who at present is appearing at the. Sovereign 'Iheatre. It was not/a .difficult matter without frightening her to discover where the bought that cloak. Now I say that it came fron> your cstfcblislmient?, .Now, please don't argue, because I never speak without bring si>re of^my facts. Ii i§ a second-hand cloak, and I have no doiil't that you purchased it for a few shillings. l ' Without prevarication, who did you buy it from? And, if you don't tell me the truth, I .^liall invite 3ou .to leave at or.co and wash my nands of you entirely. If I adopt Ijliat coiu'sev.-.y")j: will know pretty well what is likely to happen.'1

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Magavitch grovelled once more. He was ready to do anything' or say anything rather thsn forfeit the conhdence of his patron. ''Very wcll > then," Clutton said. "Givo me your «';ddress. I will come and see ye i. to-morrow night, soon alter ton! No.v be off." Magaviteh crcjjt. from the room ond Clutton reached for his telephone. ThcM-o was no Mgn of victory on his face as he called up a certain number. Everything was going well now. "Is that'eleven five six Hatton Uardenr:' he asked. 'I wished to speak to Mr Reginald Hermann. Oh, chat is Mr Hermann. You know me— Spencer Cluttcn? Will ,you come round and toe me at once, please t (To be Continued.) ,