PACE SEVEN CAPE MAY S™ AKD WAVE FEBRUARY 13? 1915.

• * " ~ 1 : t ; The Exploits of Elaine : A Detective Novel and a Motion Picture Drama \ ■ i| i

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IBy ARTHUR B. REEVE [ The Well-Known Nocelltl and the I Creator of the "Craig Kennedy" Stories I

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Presented in Collaboration With the Pathe Players and the Eclectic Film Company [ '

Copyright. 1B14. by the Star Company. All Foreign Right* Reserved. Copyright, I»H. ny tDe star vompan

SYNOPSIS. The New IV, rk police nre mystified by « series of murder* «>r prominent men. Tlin principal clue to the murderer Is the wane wllir a "clutching htiml " The luteal vie- . Podce. the tnsurutee president. His dBttjchtcr. Elaine, employs Craig Kcnne.lv. the famous sclent ill. d. tectlv.-, to try to unravel »1ie mystery. What Kenn.dv accomplishes is told by liis friend. Jameson THIRD EPISODE The Vanishing Jewels. Banging away at my typewriter the next day. in Kennedy's laboratory. ' was startled by the sudden, insistent ringing of the telephone near me. "Hello," I answered, for Craig was at work^t his table, trying still to ex tract some clue from the slender evidence thus far elicited In the Dodge mystery. "Oh,' Mr. Kennedy." I beard an ex cited voice over the wire reply, "my friend, Susio Martin, is here. Her fa ther has just received a message from that Clutching ifand and — " "Just 9 moment. Miss Dodge." 1 Interrupted "This is Mr. Jameson." "Oh!" came back the voice, breathless and disappointed. "Let me have Mr. Kennedy — quick." I had already passed the telephone to Craig and was watching htm keen ly as he listened over .it. He motioned to me for a pad and pencil that lay near me. "Please read 'he letter again, slower. Miss Dodge." he asked, adding, "there isn't time for me to see it — just yet. Hut I want It exactly You say It is made up of separate words and type cut from newspapers and pasted on note paper?" 1 handed him paper and pencil. "All right, now. Miss Dodge, go | ahead " As he wTote he indicated to me by j his eyes that he wanted me to read ! I did so: Btur'evimi Man In. Jewel*. N-i fifth Avenue. New York City Fir As \"U h ive 'frilled to deliver it." I 110 oo I .1,1,11 r, .1, your main diamond ras. .-,i exactly noon today * "Thank you, Miss Dodge." couttntie.' • Kennedy, laying down the' pencil "Yes. 1 understand perfectly — signed by that same Clutching Hand. Let me «ee," pondered, looking- at his i watch. "It is now half-past eleven , Very' well. 1 sha'i meet you and Miss i

Martin at Mr. Martin's store directly." It lacked live minutes of noon when 1 •Kennedy and 1 dashed up before Mar « tin's and dismissed our taxlcab. A remarkable scene greeted us at 1 we entered the famous jewelry shop Involuntarily 1 drew back. Squarely 1 in front ,of us a man had suddenly raised, a revolver and leveled it at us. ' "Don't!" cried a familiar voice.) "That is Mr. Kennedy!" Just then, from a little knot of peo ' pie. Elaine Dodge sprang forwaTd with a cry and seized the gun. Kennedy turned to. her. apparently not half so much concerned about the automatic that yawned at him as about the anxiety of the pretty girl who had intervened. The too eaget plain-clothes man lowered the gun sheepishly Sturtevant Martin was a typical so,; clety business man. quietly- but richly j dressed In the excitement 1 glanced about i hurriedly Directly in front of me was a sign tacked up on a pillar, which read: "This store will be closed at noon to day. Martin ft Co." All 'he customers were gone.

Martin himself was evidently verynervous and very aiuch alarmed. In- . deed, no one could blame him for rhat. Merely to have been singled out by this amazing master criminal was enough to cause panic. Already he had ^engaged detectives, prepared fot1 whatever might happen, and they bad advised him to leave the diamonds in the counter, clear the store and let the crooks try anything. If they dared. Just back of us. and ground the co»n er. as we canwTnT we had noticed a limousine which had driven up. Three faultlessly attired dandies had entered a doorway down the street, as we learned afterward, apparently going to a fashionable tailor's which occupied the second floor of the old-fashioned building, the first floor, having been renovated and made ready for renting Had Ave been there a moment sooner we*hiight have seen. I suppose, that one of them nodded to a taxicab driver. who was standing at a public hack stand a few feet up the Tilock. The driver nodded unostentatiously back at the man. In spite of the excitement. Kennedv quietly examined the showcase, which was. indeed, a veritable treasure store of brilliants Slowly the hands of the clock came nearer together, at noon. We all gathered about the showcase, i with its glittering hoard of wealth, forming a circle at a' respectable dis i tance. In deep-lunged tones 'he clock played the chords written, 1 believe.' by Handel. Then It began striking Nothing had happened We all breathed a slgli of relief ! "Well, it Is still there!" exclaimed Martin, pointing at the showcase with : a forced laugh, i Suddenly came a rending and crasn- ; j ing sound. It seemed as if the very j ' floor on which we stood was giving | ■ way. . | | The showcase, with all its priceless i I contents, went smashing Into the. eel- j lar below . J The flooring beneath the gase had | been rut through! , ; AH crowded forward, gazing at tne | black!1 yawning cavern 4 , Down below." three men. covered j , with smocks and their faces hidden i , , by masks, had knocked the props ! i away from the celling of the cellar. , j which they had sawed almost through ! 1 at their leisure, and the showcase had landed "mUHJ or ten feet below, shivered into a thousand bits. A volley of shots whizzed past us. : and another. While one crook was hastily stuffing the untold wealth of Jewels into 'a burlap bag the others had drawn revolvers and were firing up through the hole In the floor desperately "I-ook enjt!" cried someone behind , us before we could recover from our ; -tjyst surprise and return the fire. One of the desperadoes had taken a bomb front under his smock, lighted It aid thrown It up through the hole tn the floor. It nailed up over our heads and land- 1

ed near our little group, on the floor, the fuse sputtering ominously s , I heard an exclamation of fear from Elaine. Kennedy had pushed his way past us and picked up the deadly infernal machine in his bare hands. I watched him. fascinated. As near a® lie dared, he opproachml the hole in the floor still holc-ing the thing off at arm's length. Would he nevet throw It? He was coolly holding it. allowing [ the fuse to burn dow-n closer to the explosion point. I It w-as now within less than an inch of sure death. Suddenly he raised it and hurled the deadly thing down through the hole. We could hear the Impreoatlcns of the crooks as it Etruck the cellai floor, near them. "Leave the store — ouick!" rang out ! Kennedy's voice.

Down below the ciooks were beata hasty- retreat through . secret entrance which they had effected. "The bag! The bag!" we could one of them bellow. "The bohib — run!" cried another voice gruffly. The explosion that followed lifted fairly off our feet. I As the smoke from the explosion cleaved away, Kennedy could b' seen, ; the first to run forward. I Meanwhile Martin's detectives had rushed down a flight of back stairs that l.'d into a coal cellar. With coal , shovels and bars, anything they could lay har ds on. they attacked the door I that opened forward from the coal cellar Into the front basement wliere 1 j the robbers had been. 1 A moment Kennedy and Bennett i paused on the brink of the abyss - i which the bomb l.ad made, waiting foi ' , the smoke to decrease. Then they I began to climb down cautiously over 1 the plled-up wreckage The explosion had set the basement ) afire, but the fire hud not gained much '• headway by the time they reached the - basement. Quickly Kennedy ran to the door Into the coal cellar and opened It

From the other side Martin, followed by the police and the detectives. burst in. "Fire!" cried one of the policemen, leaping back to turn in an alarm from the special apparatus upstairs. All except Martin began beating out the flames, using such weapons as they already held in their hands to down the door. To Martin there was one thing paramount — the jewelB. In the midst cf the confusion, Elaine, closely followed by her friend. Susie, made her way fearlessly Into the stifle of smoke down the stairj. "There are your jewels. Mr. Martin." cried Kennedy, kicking the precious burlap bag with his foot as if it had been so. much ordinary merchandise, and turning toward what was in his mind the most important thing at stake — the direction taken - by the agents of the Clutching Hand. "Thank heaven!" ejaculated Martin, fairly pouncing on the bag and tearir.e it open. "They didn't get awuy with them — after all!" he exclaimed, examining the contents with satisfaction. Events were moving rapidly. The limousine had been standing Innocently enough' at the curb near the corner. Vitb the taxicab .close behind it Less than ten minutes after Ujey had entered, three well-dressed men came out of the vacant shop, apparently from the tailor's above, and climbed leisurely Into their car. I As the last one entered, he half turned to the taxicab driver, hiding j 1 from passers-by the sign of the Clutching Hand, which the taxicab 1'river returned in'tlie same manner. Then the i big car whirled up the avenue. All this we learned later from a , street sweeper who was at work near ; by. Down" below, while the police and ! detectives were putting out the fire. : Kennedy was -examining the wall of ; • ; the -pilar, lookine for the. spot where ; • : the crooks had escaped. "A secret door!" he exclaimed, a i he paused after tapping alon^ the wal i ' to determine Its character. "You cai . * see how the force of the explosion ha i loosened It." i Sure enough, when he pointed it ou '■ to us. It was plainly visible. One o I i the detectives picked up a crowbar am i ! others, still with the hastily selectei : implements they had seized to figli • ; the fire, started in to prv it open. 'I As it yielded Kennedy rushed hi E way through: Elaine, always utterl ! fearless, followed. Then the rest o < | us went through. The: ; seemed to be nothing, how ! ever, that would help us in the cells i | next door, and Kennedy mounted th I steps of a stairway in the rear, » » The stairway led to a sort of-ston [ room, full of barrels ^nd boxes, hi « otherwise characterless. When I a , ' rived Kennedy was gingerly hoidjQ s I up the smocks which the crooks jta , 'We're on the right trail." common ] ed Kla.i e as he showed them to he but where do you suppose the owi | ers are?" Craig shrugged his shoulders an g cave a quick look about "Evidentl , they came in from~and went away b g the street." he observed, hurrying t ■ the door, followed by Elaine. , On the sidewalk he gazid up th avenue, then catching sight of th j-i street cleaner, called to him. r "Yes. sor." replied the man. stolid!; • looking up from his work. "I see thr« i gintlemen come out and get into a ■ i automobile." ' "Which way did they go?" asks i Kennedy. | For answer the man jerked h thumb over his shoulder in the general (numb nis snouiuer in uie general

1 direction uptow-n. With keen glance. Kennedy strained . , his eyes. Far up the avenue he could ! ! descry the car threading its way in j and ou among the others, just about j ' disappearing. | ' A moment later Craig caught sight of the vacant taxicab and ooked his finger at the driver, who answered pro: lptly bv cranking ,his engine "You saw that limbnr.ine standing ' here?" asked Craig. S "Yes." nodded the chauffeur, with a ' show of alertness. 1 "Well, follow- it." ordered Kennedy. . jumping into the cab. \ ■ "Yes, sir." Craig w-as just about to close the door when a slight figure flashed past us and a dainty foot was placed on the ( "htep. "Please, Mr. Kennedy." pleaded Elaine, "let me go. They may lead to my father's slayer." "She said it so earnestly that Craig could scarcely have resisted if he had wanted to do so. Just as Elaine and Kennedy were moving off 1 came out of the vacant store, with Rennett and the detectives. "Craig!" 1 cried. "Where are you j going?" Kennedy stuck his head out of the I window, and I am quite sure that he was not altogether displeased that I ( was not with him. "Chasing that limousine." he shout- ( 1 ed back. "Follow us in another car." A moment later he and Elaine were Bennett and 1 looked about. "There are a couple of cabs — down there." 1 pointed out at the other end of the block "I'll take one, you take 1 the other." Who. besides Bennett. ifcent In the other car I don't know, but it made no difference, for we soon lost them. Our driver, however, was a really clever fellow. Far ahead now we could see 1 the limousine drive around a corner, ' making a dangerous swerve. Ken1 nedy's cab followed, skidding danger1 oasly new a pole. But the taxieab was no match tor

the powerful limousine. On uptown ! they went, the only thing preventing j < the limousine from escaping being the ' f fear of pursuit by traffic police If the driver let out speed. They were con- ( tent to manage to keep just far enough ahead to be out of danger of having Kennedy overhaul them. As for us. ] we followed as best we could, on uptown, past the city line, and out into • the country. < There Kennedy lost sight alto- l gether of Yhe cur be was trailing, i Worse than that, we lost sight of , Kennedy. Still we kept on blindly. i trusting to luck and common sense in picking the road. I was peering ahead over the i driver's shoulder, the window down. ' trying to direct him. when we ap- ; broached a fork in the road. Here ! was a dilemma which mu6t be decided , at once, rightly o> wrongly. As we neared the crossroad I gave ! an involuntary exclamation. Beside | the road, almost on it. lay the figure of a man. Our driver pulled up with a jerk and 1 was out ofXhe car in an instant. . x There lay Kennedy! Someone had blackjacked him. He was groaning , and just beginning to show signs of . consciousness as I bent over. "What's the matter, old man?" 1 . asked, helping him to his feet. , He looked about dazed a moment. . then seeing me and comprehending, he I pointed excitedly, but vaguely. "Elaine!" he cried. "They've kidI naped Elaine!" , What had really happened, as we learned later from Elaine and others. , w-as that when the crossroads was 1 reached the three crooks in the llmou- ( sine had stopped long enough to speak ■ r to an accomplice stationed there, acj cording - to their plan for a getaway. ; He was a tough-looking individual who I i might have been hoboing it to the city. , i When. a/"lew minutes later. Kenf 1 nedy and Elaine had approached the B ! fork, their driver had slowed up. as If

in doubt which way to go. Craig had I i stuck his head out of the window, as j 1 had done, and, seeing the .crossroads. I had told the chauffeur to stop. There | stood the hobo. ] < "Did a car pass here, just now— a | i big car?'. called Craig. t The man put his hand to his ear, as . if only half comprehending. | , "Which way did the big car go?" re- | , pealed Kennedy. i , The hobo approached the taxicab i , sullenly, as if he had a grudge against cars in general. One question after another elicited , little that could be construed as Intel- ( ligence. If Craig had only been able to see. he would have found out that, 1 with his back toward the taxicab driver, the hobo held one hand behind him and made the sign of the Clutching Hand, glancing surreptitiously at the driver to catcli the answering sign. j while Craig gazed earnestly up the j. two roads. At last -Craig gave him up as bope- : less. "Well—go ahead — that way." he indicated, picking the most lively road. As the chauffeur was about to start he stalled his engine, j "Hurry!" urged Craig, exasperated j at the delays. The driver got out and tri«d to crank the engine. Again atld again he turned I it over, but somehow it refused to 1 start. Then he lifted the hood and be- ! gan. to tinker. "What s the matter?" asked Craig, 1 I impatiently jumping out and bending over the engine, too. 9 j The driver shrugged his shoulders, i I "Must be something wrong with the , ignition. 1 guess." he replied. Kennedy looked the car over hastily , "1 can't . see anything wrong." he | frowned. "Well, there is." growled the driver Precious minutes were speeding , away as they argued. Finally with hit j characteristic energy. Kennedy put the ! taxicab driver aside. "Let me try it." he aald. "Miss Dodge, will you arrange that apark ; . and throttle?"

Elaine, equal to anything, did so, and 1 • Craig bent down and cranked the en- * | glne. It started on the first spin. 1 j "See;" he exclaimed. "There wasn't anything, after all." He took a step toward the taxicab. ' "Mr. Kennedy — look out!" cried 1 ' Craig turned. But it was too lateu rough-looking fellow had awak- 1 ened to life. Suddenly he stepped up ' Kennedy with a blackjack. As the heavy weight descended Craig crumpled up on the ground unconscious. With a scream. Elaine turned and started to run. But the chauffeur seized her arm. "Say, bo." he asked of the rough fellow. "what does Clutching Hand want with her? Quick! There's another cab likely to be along in a moment with that fellow Jameson in it." The rough fellow, with sen oath, seized her and dragged her into the taxicab. "Go ahead!" he growled, indicating the road. And away they sped, leaving Ken-nedy-unconscious on the side of the road, where we found him. "What are we to do?" 1 asked helper lessly of Kennedy, when we had at I last get him on his feet. His head still ringing from the force of the blow of the blackjack. Craig stooped down, then knelt in the dust of the road, then ran ahead a bit. where it was somewhat muddy, j "Which way— which way?" he muttered to himself. I thought perhaps the blow had affected him and leaned over to see what he was doing. Instead, he was studying the marks made by the tire xMthe Clutching Hand cab. ~More slowly now and carefully, we proceeded, for a mistake meant losing the trail of Elaine. We came to another crossroads and the driver glanced pt Craig. - "Stop!" ; he ordered. In another instant be was down In 1

the dirt, examining tne road lor marks. ( "That way!" he indicated, leaping x to the running board ! We piled back into tile car and pro- j ceeded under Kennedy's direction, as , ' fast as he would permit. So it con- ( tinued, perhaps for a couple of hoars j At last Kennedy stopped the cab , ' and slowly directed the driver to veer \ ^ ; an open space that looked panic- , ularly lonesome. Near it stood a cuestory brick factory building, closed. f : but not abandoned. As I looked about at thq unattractive scene. Kennedy already was down ; on his knees in the dirt again, study - ] ing the tire tracks. They were all> confused, showing that the taxicab we were following had evidently backed in and turned several times before going on. "Crossed by another set of tire ' ' tracks!" he exclaimed excitedly. ! studying closer. "That must have been the limousine, waiting." Laboriously he was following the course of the cars in the oper space. | when one word escaped him. "FootHe was up and off in a moment, be- | fore we could- imagine .what he was \ after. We had got out of the cab. and followed him as, down U th very shore of a sort of cove or hay. ' he went. There lay a rusty, discarded boiler on the beach, halt sub raerged^ln the rising tide. . At this ■ tank the footprints seemed to go > right down the sand -and iflto the waves, which were slowly obliterating • : them. Kennedy gazed out as if to make out a possible boat on the horizon where the cove widened out "I-ook!" I cried ' Further down the shore, a few feet. I had discovered the same prints, ^oing In the opposite direction, back toward the place from which he had ; just come. I started to follow them ■ but soon found myself alone. Kennedy had paused beside the old boiler ' j "What is It?" 1 asked, retracing my > j steps. ■ I He did not answer, hut seemed to he

We listened also. There certainly was a most peculiar noise that tank. Was it a muffled scream? Kennedy reached down and picked a rock, bitting the tank with a resounding blow As the echo died dowp. he listened again. Yes, there was a sound — a scream, perhaps— s woman's voice, faint but unmistakable I looked at his face Inquiringly. Without a word I read tn it the confirmation of the thought that had flashed into my mind. Elaine Dodge was inside! First bad come the limousine, with Its three bandits, to the spot fixed on as a rendezvous. Later had come the taxicab. As It hove into sight, the three well-dressed crooks had drawn revolvers, thinking perhaps the plan for getting rid of Kennedy might possibly have miscarried But the taxicab driver and the rough-faced fellow had reassured them with the sign of the Clutching Hand, and the revolvers were lowered. As they parleyed hastily, lbs roughneck and the fake chauffeur ' lifted Elaine out of the taxi. She was ; bound and gagged. "Well, now we've got her. what shall we do with her?" asked one. "It's got to 'be quick. There's another cab." put in the driver. "The deuce with that" "The deuce with nothing." he returned. "That fellow Kennedy's s clever one. He may come to. If he does, he won't miss us. Quick, now!" "See," cried the third. "See that old boiler down there at the edge of the water? Why not put her in there? No one'll ever think to look in such a place." With a hasty expression of approval, the roughneck picked Elaine up bodily. ; still struggling vainly, and together ' they carried her. bound and gagged, j to the tank. The opening, which was toward the water, was small, but they managed, roughly, to thrust hir in. A moment later and they had rolled up a huge bowlder against the small entrance, bracing it so that It would be impossible for her to get out from the inside Then they drove off hastily. Frantically Elaine managed to loosen the gag She screamed Her voiee seemed to be bound around by the iron walls as she was herself She shuddered. The water was rising — had reached her chest, and was still rising, slowly, inexorably. What was that? . Silence? Or was someone outside? Coolly, in spite of the emergency. Kennedy took in the perilous situation. The lower end of the boiler, which was on a slant on the rapidly shelving beach, was now completely under water and impossible to get at. Besides, the opening was small, too small Kennedy gazed about frantically and his eye caught the sign on the ; factory: I * OXYACETYLENF. WELDING CO. : "Come. Walter." he cried, running : up the shore. | A moment later, breathless, we reached the doorway. It was. of ! course, locked. Kennedy whipped out his revolver and several well-directed i shots through the keyhole smashed the lock. We put our shoulders to it ! and swung the door open, entering the factory. Reside a work bench stood two long ' cylinders, stuciiled with bolts. I "That's wj»at I'm looking lor." exclaimed Craig; "Here. Walter, take claimed t raig. nere,

one. I'll take the other— and the tubes — and — " ' We ran. for there was no time to lose. As nearly as I could estimate It. the water must now be slowly closing over Elaine. "What is it?" I asked, as he Joined the tubes from the tanks to the ; peculiar hooklike apparatus he carried. "An oxyacetylene blowpipe." he mnt- ' tered back feverishly. "Used for welding and cutting. -too." he added. With a light he touched the nozzle instantly a hissing, blinding flameneedle made the steel under it tncan i descent. The teri^fic heat from one nozzle made the steel glow. The stream of oxygen from the second completely consumed the hot me! a- | Kennedy was actually cutting ou' a huge hole' in the still exposed surface of the tank— all around, except for a few inches, to prevent the bfittvy piece from falling inward As Kennedy carefully bent outward the section of the tank which he haU cut. he quickly reached down and lifted Elaine, unconscious, out of the 1 Gently he laid her on the sand, it was the work of onlv a moment U cut the cords that bound her hands There she lay. pale and sti'l. Wa* she dead? Kennedy worked frantically to re vive her . At last, slowly, the color seethed to return to her pale lips. Her eyelids fluttered Thee her great, deep eyes opened. As she looked up and caught sight of Craig bending anxiously over her she seemed to comprehend. For a moment both were silent Then Elaine reached up and took his hand. "Craig." she whispered, "vou— ' you've saved my life!" Her tone was eloquent. "Elain-," he whispered, still gar.lag down Into her wonderful eyes, "the Clutching Hand shall fay for this! U , la a fight U a flpish between as!" «TO Bat CONTINUED.)

A Remarkable Scene Greeted Ua

Kennedy Quietly Examined the Showcase.