• S -■ ' * PAGE SEVEN CAP EM AY STAR AND WAVE SATURDAY, APRIL 17, 1915.

■Mi'.- > f The Exploits of Elaine j A Detective Novel and a Motion Picture Drama |! By ARTHUR B. REEVE | ! TbeWeD-Known Novelist and the Gealorol the "Gaig Kennedy" Stories % ' Presented in Collaboration With the Pathe Player* and the Eclectic Film Company

immhh rim SYNOPSIS. The New York police are mystified by a •eiies of murders and other. crimes. The principal clue to -the crlmlnalis the warning letter which Is sent the victims, slgm-d with a ••clutching hand." Th. latest victim of the mysterious assassin Is Taylor Dodge, the Insurance president. Ills daughter. Elaine, employs Craig Kennedy, the famous scientific detective, to try to unravel the mystery. What Kennedy accomplishes Is told by his friend Jameson, a newspaper man. Knraged at the determined effort which Klalne and Craig Kennedy are making to put an end to his crimes, thr Clutching Hand, as this strange criminal is known, resorts to all Bores of the most diabolical schemes to put them out of the way. Each rluipt. r of the story tells of a new plot against their lives and of the way the great detective uses all his skill to save this pretty girl and himself from death. TWELFTH EPISODE THE BLOOD CRYSTALS. "On your right is the residence of j Miss Elaine Dodge, who is pursuing the famous master criminal known as the Clutching Hand." The barker had been grandiloquently pointing out the residences of noted New Yorkers as the big sight-seeing car lumbered along through the streetsNo one had paid any attention to the unobtrusive Chinaman who sat inconspicuously in the middle of the car. He was Mr. Wong l,ong Sin. but no one saw anything 'particularly mysterious about an Oriental visitor, more or less, viewing New York city. Woitg was of the mandarin type, with long, drooping mustache, well dressed in American clothes, and conforming to the new customs of an Occldentalized China. Anyone, however, who had been watching Long Sin would have seen that he showed much Interest whenever any of the wealthy residents of the city were mentioned. The name of Elaine Dodge seemed particularly tp strike him. He listened with subtle Interest to what the barker said and looked keenly at the Dodgcnouse. The sight-seeing car had passed the bouse, when he rose slowly and motioned that he wanted to be let off. The car Ftopped. he alighted and slowly rambled away, evidently marveling greatly at the strange customs of these uncouth Westerners. Elaine was going out when she met Perry Bennett almost on the steps of the house. "I've brought you the watch." remarked Bennett. "Thought I'd like togive it to you myself." He displayed the watch which he himself had bought a couple of days before for her birthday. He had called for it himself at the Jeweler's, where it had now been regulated. "Oh. thank you," exclaimed Elaine. "Won't you come in?" They had scarcely greeted each other when Long Sin strolled along. Neither j of them, however, had time to notice the quiet Chinaman who passed the house, looking at Elaine sharply out of the corner of his eye. They entered and Wong disappeared down the ; street. "Isn't It a beauty?" cried Elaine, holding It out from lier as they entered the library', and examining it with great appreciation. "And. oh. do you know, the strangest thing happened yesterday! Sometimes .Mr. Kennedy | acts too queerly for anything." She related how Craig had burst in on her and Aunt Josephine and had almost torn the other watch off her wrist. "Another watch?" repeated Bbnnett, amazed. "It must have been a mistake. Kennedy is crazy." "I don't understand iL myself." murmured Elaine. Long Sin was revolving some dark . and devious plan bnic-atb his impassive Oriental countenance. He was no ordinary personage. In fact, he was astute enougb'to have no record. He left that to his tools. This remarkable criminal had established himself In a hired apartment down town. Long Sin. now in rich Oriental costume. was reclining on a divan smoking a strange-looking pipe and playing with two pet white rats. Each white rat had a gold band around bis leg. to which was connected a gold chain about a foot In length, and the chains ended in rings which were slipped over Wong's little fingers. Ordinarily he carried the pets up the capacious aleeve of each arm. A little Chinese girl, also in native costume, entered and bowed deferentially. "A Miss Mary Carson." she lisped In aoft English. "Let the lady enter," waved Long Sin, with a smile of subtle satisfaction. The girl bowed again and silently left the room, returning with a handsome. very well-dressed white woman. It would be difficult to analyze just what the fascination was that Long Sin exercised over Mary Carson. But as the servant left the room. Mary * bowed almost as deferentially as the little Chinese girl. Wong merely nodded in reply. After a moment he slowly rose and took from a drawer a newspaper clipping. Without a word he handed It to o

Mary. She looked at It with interest. . as one woman always does at the picture of another pretty woman. It was ( a newspaper cut of Elaine, - uDder , which was: "ELAINE DODGE, THE HEIRESS. WHOSE BATTLE WITH THE CLUTCHING HAND IS CREATING WORLD-WIDE INTEREST." "Now." he began at last, breaking the silence. "I'll show you Just what 1 want you to do." He went over to the wall and took down a curious long Chinese knife j from a scabbard which hung there | ' conspicuously. "See that?" he added, holding it up. j ; Before she could say a word he had i plunged the knife, apparently, into his | , j "Oh!" cried Mary, startled. I She expected to see him fall. But nothing happened, Wong laughed. It ; was an oriental trick knife, in which ] the blade telescoped into the handle. : ' "Look at it," he added, handing it ! to her. Long Sin took a bladder of water ! from a table near by and concealed it , under his coat. "Now, you 6tab me." he directed. Mary hesitated. But he repeated the command and she plunged the knife j gingerly at him. It telescoped. He made her try it over, and she stabbed liim more resolutely. The water from the bladder poured out. "Good!" cried Long Sin, much pleased. "Now," he added, seating himself beside her, "I want you to lure Elaine here." I had been amusing myself by rigging up a contrivance by which I ' could make It possible to see through, : or. rather, over, a door. Kennedy, who had been busy at the other end of the laboratory, happened i to look over In my direction. "What's the big idea, Walter?" he asked. It was, 1 admit, a rather cumbersome and clumsy affair. "Well, you see. Craig." I explained, j "you put the top mirror through the I transom of a door and — " Kennedy interrupted with a hearty burst of laughter. "But suppose the , door has no transom?" he asked. ' pointing to his own door. I scratched my head thoughtfully. 1 had assumed that the door would [ i . have a transom. A moment later ! Craig went to the cabinet and drew | i out a tube about as big around as a i putty blower and as long. I "Now. here's what 1 call my detectascope." he remarked. "None of your mirrors for me." "I know." I' said somewhat nettled, "but what can you see through that

. m ■H® 5 ■■ " Elaine Took Out the Package of Bills-

n putty blower? A keyhole is Just as s good." d "Do you realize how little you can y really see through a keyhole?" he res plied confidently. "Try It over there." , I did, and, to tell the truth, I could e see merely a little part of the hall, i- Then Kennedy Inserted the detects- , n "Look through that." he directed. I put my eye to the eye piece and g gazed through the bulging lens of i. the other end. I could see almost y the whole hall. i- I i. Elaine was playing with Rusty when | it Jennings brought in a card on which g was engraved the name. "Miss Mary it ; Carson." and underneath in pencil was y written "Belgian Relief Committee." e "How interesting," commented ]■ Elaine, rising and accompanying Jen- ; nlng8 into the draw ing room. "I wond j der what she wants?" > "Very pleased to greet you. Miss Caro son." she greeted her visitor.

"You see. Miss Dodge." began Mary, i "We're getting up this movement to I help the Belgians and we have splen- i did backing. Just let me 'show you Fome of the names on our commit- i tee." i She handed Elaine a llsL "I've just been sent to see if 1 can- i not persuade you to Join the commit- ! rt'ee and attend a meeting at Mrs. Rlv- ! I erton's," she went on. "Why — er." considered Elaine, j i thoughtfully, "er — yea It must be j all right with such people In it." | i "Can you go. down with me now?" 1 "Just as well as later." agreed | i Elaine. J i They went out together, and as they were leaving the bouse a man w ho had been loitering outside looked 1 : at Elaine, then fixedly at her compan- 1 Ion. ! I No sooner had they gone than he j : sped off to a car waiting around the ; corner. In the dark depths was a sin- , j ister figure, the master criminal him- ' self. The watefcar'nad been an emissary of the Clutching Hand. "Chief." he whispered eagerly, "you : know Adventurous Mary? Well, she's | got Elaine Dodge in tow!" j j ! "The deuce!" cried Clutching Hand j "Then we must teach Mary Carson. j ; or whoever she is working for, a les- i son. So one shall interfere with our i | affairs. Follow them!" i • •••••• ] I Elaine and Mary had gone downI town, talking animatedly — walking j ! down the avenue toward Mrs. Rivingj ton's apartment. " ! j Meanwhile, Wong Sin. still in his : | Chinese costume, was explaining to j ! another male servant Just what he i wished done, pointing out the dagger ! on the wall and placing the bladder ] ! under his jacket. A box of opium ; i I was on the table, and he was glv- ) ing most explicit directions. It was ] I into such a web that Elaine was be- • j ing unwittinly led by . Mary. , j Entering the hallway of the apart- ' menl. Mary rang the bell. ' The servant opened tile door and | Elaine and Mary entered. He closed ! j the door and almost before- they knew ! ; it was gone into the back room. Elaine gazed about it in trepdiation. : But before she could say anything. | Mary, with a great show of surprise. • j exclaimed. "Why, I must have made j a mistake. This isn't Mrs. Riving- j i ton's apartment. How stupid of me." j They looked at each other a mo ' ment. Then each laughed nervously, j 1 as together they started to go out of • the dooY. It was locked! Quickly they ran to another door j It was locked also. Just then the Chfnathan entered and ■ i stood a moment gazihg at them. They ■ j turned and Elaine .recoiled from him. Wong bowed. "" j "Oh. sir." cried Mary, "we've made a ; mistake. Can't you tell us how to j 1 get out?" ! "No speke Englis," he said, gild- j | ing out again from the room and j ' closing the door. ; Elaine and Mary looked about In j | despair. : "What shall we do?" asked Elaine. ! ' Mary said nothing, but with a hasty I glance discovered on the wall the j j knife which Wong had already told her about. She took It from its scab- 1 | bard. As she did so the Chinaman re- j turned with a tray on which were queer drinks and glasses. Atjhe sight of Mary with the knife he scowled blackly, laid down the ! tray, and took a few steps in her di- j rectlon. She brandished the knife ' threateningly; then, as if her nerve failed her. fainted, letting the knife j fall carefully on the floor so that It i struck on the handle, and not on the blade. Wong quickly caught her as she : fainted and carrying her out of the • room, banged shut the door. Elaine followed in a moment, loyally to pro- ' tect her supposed friend, but found that the- uoor had a snap lock on the other side. She looked about wildly, and in a i moment Wong reappeared. As lie advanced slowly and Insinuatingly, she drew back, pleading. Hut her words fell on seemingly deaf ears. She had picked up the knife which Mary had dropped, and when at last Wong maneuvered to get her cornered and was about to seize her. she nerved herself up and stabbed at him resolutely. Wong staggered back — and fell. As he did so. he pressed the bladder which he had already placed under his coaL A dark red fluid, like blood, oozed out all over ljjin and ran in a pool on the floor. Elaine, too horror-stricken at what had happened even to scream, dropped the knife and bent over him. He did not move. She rose quickly and ran through the now open door. As she did so. Wong seemed suddenly to come to life. He raised himself and looked after her, then with a subtle smile sank back into his former assumed posture on the floor, i When Elaine readied the other room she found Mary there with the Chinese servant who was giving her a glass of water. At the sight of her. the servant paused, then withdrew in- ! to another room farther back. Mary, now apparently recovering from her ] faintness. smiled wanly at Elaine. ! "It's all right." she murmured. "He is a Chinese prince who thought we i were callers." At the reassuring nod of Mary toward the front room. Elaine was overcome. "1 — I killed him!" she managed to gasp. "What?" cried Mary, starting up and trembling violently. "You killed him — " "Yes," sobbed Elaine. "He came at me — had the knife— 1 struck at him. — " The two girls ran Into the other I

rx>m. There Mary looked at the mo- j tioniess body on the floor and recoiled, horrified. Elaine noticed some spots on her and, seeing that they were stained by the blood of Long Sin. wiped the spots off on her handkerchief. dropping it to the floor. "I'gh!" exclaimed a guttural voice behind them. i It was the servant who had come "You — kill him — with knife?" lnsinI uated the Chinese. Elaine was dumb. The servant did not wait for an answer, but hastily j opened the hall door. To Elaine it seemed that something ' must be done quickly. A moment and j > all the house would be In uproar. Instead, he placed his finger on his I "Quick — no word." he said, lead- j | ing the way to the hall door, "and— oh, : , must not leave that — it will be ! j a clue." he added, picking up the | j bloody handkerchief and pressing It | into Elaine's hand. | They quickly ran out into the hall. | Go — quick!" he urged again, "and i the handkerchief in the bag. Let i no one see It!" -» j He shut the door. As they hurried j away Elaine breathed a sigh of relief. | They had reached the street. Afraid I i to run, they hurried as fast as they | could until they turned the first cor- ■ ; ner ; They pressed each other's hands and ; i parted.. Meanwhile in the front room Long Sin was on his feet again, brushing off and mopping up the blood, i "It worked very well, Sam," he said to the servant. They were conversing eagerly and , laughing and did hot bear a noise in ! the back room. A sinister figure had made its way means of a fire escape to a rear

i window that was "not barred, and si- , j lently he had stolen in on them. . t j They turned at a slight noise and ! saw him. Genuine fright was now on • j their laces as they looked at him. . open mouthed. \ "What's all this?" he growled. "1 | j am known as the Clutching Hand. 1 allow no Interference with my affairs. , 1 Tell me what you are doing here with Elaine Dodge." m , I Their beady almond eyes flashed J fear. The Clutching Hand moved me- , nacingly. There was nothing for the j astute Wong Long Sin to do but to 1 submit. With a low bow*. Wong spread out bis hands in surrender and submission. | "1 will tell you, honorable sir." be I said at length. N "Go on!" growled the crimiiiai. ' j Quickly Wong rehearsed what bad i happened from the' moment the idea i of blackmail entered bis head. "How about Mary Carson?" asked | Clutching Hand. "1 saw lier here." Wong gave a glance oflalmost superstitious dread at the man. "She wjll be back— is here now." be added, opening the, door at a knock and admitting her. Adventuress Mary had hurried back to see that all was right. /T^iis time Marv was genuinely scared at the lor bidding figure of which she had heard. "It is all right." pacified Wong. "Henceforth we work with the bou orable Clutching Hand." At home at last. Elaine sank down into a deep library chair and stared straight ahead. She saw visions of arrest and trial, of the terrible electric chair with herself in iL bound, and of the giving of the fatal signal for turning on the currentWere such tilings as these going to happen lo her. without Kennedy's help? Why had they quarreled? She buried her face in her hands and wept. Then she could s.and it no longer. She had not taken off her street clothes. She rose and almost fled from- the house. Kennedy and I were still in the laboratory when a knock sounded at the door. 1 went to the door and opened it. There stood Elaine Dodge. It was a complete surprise to Craig. "What is the matter?" he asked. She hesitated, then suddenly burst 1 oat, "Craig— 1— I am— a murderess!" j 1 had never before seen such a look on Craig's face as suddenly came over | iL Then she poured forth the story substantially as I have set it down, but 1 without the explanation, which at that time was not known to any of us. "Oh." expostulated Craig, there must 1 be some mistake, it's Impossible — impossible." "No," she asserted. "Look — here's* ■ my handkerchief all spotted with bloo(L0_

| She opened the bag and displayed the blood-spotted handkerchief- He 1 took It and examined it carefully. i "Elaine," he said earnestly, not at ! I all displeased I could see, that some- . I thing had come up that might blot out ■ I the past unfortunate misunderstanding, "there <eimply. must be something |i wrong here. Leave this handkerchief i with me. I'll do my best." "Thank you," she said simply as 1 she left the laboratory. Craig went to work abruptly without 1 a word. On the laboratory table he placed bis ; splendid microscope and several cases I of slides, as well as Innumerable ml- : cro-photographs. He had been working for some time when he looked up. "It Is dog's blood— not human blood." he said simply, "but what's the game back of all thi6 — that's the main quesUon now." It was not much later that Elaine | received a second visit from Mary"Do you know why the servant allowed us to leave the apartment?" j whispered Mary with a glance about fearfully, as If the walls had ears. "No — why?" inquired Elaine anxiousI ly* "He's a tong man who has been | chosen to away with the prince. He followed me, and says you have done his work for him. If you will give him ten thousand dollars for ex- , penses he will attend to hiding the ! body." Here, at least.was a way ouL "It is the safest way out of the . trouble. Yes. Ill do IL I'll stop at the bank now. and get the money." They rose and Mary preceded her, • eager to get away from the house. I At the door, however, Elaine asked j her to wait while she ran back on | some pretext. Our telephone rang In the middle 1

mi

Elaine, Too Horror-Stricken Even to Scream, Dropped the Knife and Bent Over Him.

of our conversation on blood crys- 1 ■ tals. and Kennedy himself answered iL ' It was Elaine asking Craig's advice. "They have offered to hush the j thing up for ten thousand dollars." she said in a mu filed voice. She seemed bent on doing it. and no amount of argument from him could > stop her. She simply refused to ac- I cept the evidence of the blood crys- j tals as better than what her own eyes I told her she had seen and done. "Then wait for half an hour." he j answered, without arguing further, i "You can do that without exciting ! suspicion. Then go with her to her ! hotel- and hand her over the money." \ "All right— I'll do It.'.' she agreed. "What is the hotel?" Craig wrote on a slip of paper what she told him — "Room 509. Hotel La Cosic." Hastily he threw- on his street coaL "Go into the ba'-k room and get me a brace and bit. Walter, ' he said. . I did so. When I returned I saw j that he had placed the detectascope and some stuff in a hag. He shoved in the brace and bit also, i "Come on — hurry'" he urged. We must have made record time In getting to the La Coste. It was an ornate place, where merely to breathe was expensive. We entered, and by some excuse Kennedy contrived to get past the vigilant bell-hops. We passed the telephone switchboard and entered the elevator, getting off at the fifth floor. With a hasty glance up and down the corridor, to make sure no one was about. Kennedy came to Room 509. then • passed to the next room. 511. opening the door with a skeleton key. Quickly Craig went to the door which led to the next room, it was. of course, locked also. He listened a moment carefully. Not a sound. Quickly. with an exclamation of satisfaction. he opened that door also and went into 509. This rop:n was much like that in which we had already been. He opened the hall d ">r. "Watch here. Walter." he directed, > "Let me know at the slightest alarm." | Craig had already taken the brace and bit from the bag and started to here through the wall in Room 611, , selecting a spot behind a picture of a j Spanish dancer — a spot directly back 1 of her snapping black eyes. He fin- : ished quickly and inserted the detects- j scope so that the lens fitted as an eye In the picture. The eyepiece was in j room 611. Then he started to brush up the pieces of plaster on the floor. "Craig." I whispered hastily as I heard an elevator door, "someone's coming!" He hurried to the door and looked. "There they are," he Bald, as he aaw Elaine and Mary rounding the corner of the halL

Across the hall. r"h"Ugh w^ did not It at the time, in room 540, already Wong Sin had token up hia sta- | tion, Just to be handy. There he had ! with his servant, playing with • two trained white rata. Wong placed them up his capacious sleeves and carefully opened the door ! to look out Unfortunately he was , juat in time to see the door of 609 open and disclose us. We hurried Into 511 and shut the door. | Kennedy mounted a chair and applied his eye to the detectascope. Just then Marv and Elaine entered the next room, Mary opening the door with a regular key. "Won't you step In?" she asked. Elaine did so and Mary hesitated in the hall. Wong Sis had slipped ouL on noiseless feet aod taken refuge behind some curtains. As he saw her alone, he beckoned, to- Mary. "There's a stranger In the next room." he whispered. "1 don't like him. Take the money and as quickly as possible get out and go to my apartment." At the news that there was a suspicious stranger about Mary showed great alarm. Everything was so rapid now that the slightest hesitation meant disaster. Perhaps by quickness eTen a suspicious stranger could be fooled. 6he reasoned. At any rate, Wong Sin was resourceful. She had better trust him. Mary followed Elaine Into the room, 1 where she had seated herself already, and locked the door. ' *Have you the money there?" she i asked. j "Yes." nodded Elaine, taking out , the package of bills which she ha# got ; from the bank during the half-hour delay. All this we could see hv gazing alternately through the detectascope. Elaln^ handed Mary the money. j Mary counted It slowly. At last she

| looked up. J "It's all right." she said. "Now. Ill ■_ take this to that tong leader. He's In ' a room only Just across the hall." | She went out. | Mary had just succeeded In getting on the elevator fcs Kennedy hurried • down the hall. The door was closed ! and the car descended. He rang the | push bell furiously, hut there was ' He dashed back to the room with us and jerked the telephone receiver. I "Hello — hello — hello!" he called. ' There seemed to be no way to get 1 a connection. What was the mati ter? ! He huiried down the hall again. Down Ih the hotel lobby, with his j follower, the Chinaman paused before the telephone switchboard, .where two j girls were at work, i "You may go." ordered Wong. and. ' as his man left, he moved over close j to the sw-itchboard. I Just as a call from 609 flashed up. i Wong slipped the rings off his little fingers and loosened the white rats | on the#blephone switchboard itself. , With a shriek the telephone system of the Coste went temporarily out of ( business. Kennedy had succeeded in finding the alcove of the floor clerk In charge of the fifth floor. There on bis desk i was an Instrument having a stylus on the end of two arms, connected to a ! system of magnets. It was a telauto- | graph. Unceremoniously Craig pushed the j clerk out of his seat and sat down > I himself. It was a last chance, now | that the telephone was out of comi ' mission. ' Dow nstairs in the hotel office, where the excitement had not spread to even- one, was the other end of the electric long-distance writer. It started to write, as Kennedy i wrote, upsiairs: "House Detective— quick — hold worn an with blue chatelaine bag, getting out of elevator." The clerks downstairs saw it and ; shouted above the din of the rat-bait-1 ing: 1 "McCann— McCann!" The clerk had torn off the message from the telautograph regisier and 1 handed it to the house man, who pushed his way to the desk. ' Quickly the detective called to the ' bell-bops. Together they hurried af- ' ter the" well-dressed woman who had ! just swept out oi the elevator. Mary ' had already passed through the excited lobby and out and was about to cross the street— saie. 1 McCar.n and the bell-hops were now 1 in full cry after her. Flight was use ' less. She took reiuge in indignation ' and threats. [ lint McCann was obdurate. She passed quickly to tears and pleadings ' j it bad no effect. They insisted on 1 leading her back. The game was up "Here." cried Kennedy, "take her up J in the elevator. I'll prove the caae." "Now— not a word of who she is in | the papers, McCaun." Kennedy eoneluded. referring to Elaine, "Yea know, it wouldn't sound we!! for the i Ka Coste. As for that woman— well. 1 I've got the money back. You can take-_her off — make the charge." ' As the house man left with Mary I ' handed Craig ^rts bag. We moved !o ! ward tbe^door. and as we stood there [ a moment w ith Elaine, he quietly hand ed oyer to/her the big roll of money, i If he had been less of a scientist, he 1 , mightNbave understood the look en ' her face, but. with a nod to me. he turned and wenL j As she looked first at him, then at the paltry ten thousand in her hand, Elaine stamped her little foot In vexation. "I'm glad ~ 1 didn't say anything more." she cried. "No — no — he shall beg my pardon first — there!" (TO BE CONTINUED.)