The Key West citizen. [volume], March 25, 1939, Page PAGE FQUK, Image 4

About The Key West citizen. [volume] (Key West, Fla.) 1879-current

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PAGE FQUK
DANGEROUS SERVICE
The Characters
Peter Mallone: Adventurous
journalist.
Petronella: His courageous
young sister.
Tony Lance: British agent, the
man Petrel loves.
Yesterday: Rene buried the
papers in the sand near the
wrecked plane. Peter is too ill
to get them. Amazed that Tony
asked him. Petronella determines
to do the job herself.
Chapter 31
Dangerous Mission
pETREL leant forward.
“Where did it come down?”
“Over there.” Said the driver,
"in a moment we shall see the lan
terns. There are two sentries
guarding it. In case thieves take
the instruments." Her eyes
strained across the hillocks of sand.
They went in waves, almost white
silver, in the moonlight, black in
the shadows. The wind had shifted
and fashioned the sand into the
lines of its own movement, as it
passed.
“Is-.it high, or in a hollow?” .
“They told me in Cairo, that he
hit the bank of a rise. We should
see the lanterns any time now.”
Suddenly her hands gripped the
back of the driver’s seat. “I can
see the plane, but there are no lan
terns,” she told him, hoarsely.
Against the sand, she saw the
silver of a wing, and a darkness
which must be the wreckage of
Rene’s machine. Hassan stopped
the car.
“Turn off the engine, and wait
here. I will walk.” Had the police
or military guard not arrived yet?
They stood still for a moment, lis
tening, staring at the distant plane.
There were two dark blots moving
near it.
“There are two camels there.
But the police would have lan
terns. It is a signal that all is well,”
insisted Hassan. “You must go in
the car. Perhaps there are Bedou
ins, or thieves. Who can tell? It is
not too rough. I think I can drive
there.”
“No, they will see the car com
ing. Perhaps they have seen us al
ready. I’m going to find out if there
is anyone there or not. If there
is-——” But her question stood an
swered. She gave a gasp of fear.
She had distinctly seen the figure
of a man detach itself from the
plane, and stand, looking towards
them, listening. Now a second
figure joined him. They were com
ferring together. The guards? Was
her fear absurd? Had they, for
some reason, decided against
showing any lights. It was possible.
But, since she came without escort,
were not guards or thieves equally
inconvenient? Why hadn’t she
thought of that before? They
would never allow her to take
papers found near the plane, with
out proper authority.
She turned to her driver. “Re
member how ve drove this eve
ning, over the desert? Turn on
your lights, and go towards the
plane. Seem to see the. guards,
suddenly, and bear away in a
circle, fast, back to the road. They
will probably chase you. Will you
do that? It will give me a chance
to get what I want. I’ll reach you
farther down the road. Drive right
away, with headlights. Creep back
as near as you dare, without them.”
“I understand. Mademoiselle.”
“I’ll stand on the step, and jump
off.” She opened the door, stood on
the running board. The headlights
snapped full on. The engine start
ed. Clinging to the door, as the
car rocked, and plunged across the
uneven ground. Petronella rode,
till they were within a hundred
yards of the aeroplane. Then she
dropped off, fell into soft sand. Her
heart was hammering. She picked
herself up, and ran, crouched and
flounderingly towards the plane.
As she had hoped, the guards
looked only at the car, approach
ing at the direct angle. They stood,
blinded by the headlights, waiting
for it They were Egyptians, she
noticed vaguely.
Murderers
AS THE car swerved and bore
away, they raised their arms,
yolled, and ran after it. Petrel
stopped abruptly, within a few
yards of the tragically smashed
machine, which she had seen in
the sky such a short time ago. She
stared. Lying on the ground, near
the stolidly munching camels,
were two figures in uniform. One
was gagged, and tied with rope.
His dark eyes rolling sidew-ays at
her, caught the light of the moon.
The other was neither bound, nor
gagged. He lay. with a knife buried
to its hilt in the stained jacket
covering his back. It was a sight
which terrified all thought of he.'
task from her mind. She almost
turned and ran for the road. But
anger preserved her purpose for
her. This was what Tony had sent
Peter to find!
She looked after the murderers.
They were still pursuing Hassan,
who was driving slower than she
liked, to encourage them. Even as
she realized it. she heard two shots
crack through the night
She turned. There were only
three boulders, thank heaven, any
where near the plane. Instinct
guided her. There could be no
other explanation, she thought
with that part of her mind which
was sick and hysterical with ter
ror, for the cool, matter of fact way
the other part of her brain was
functioning. The plane had buried
its nose and somersaulted. There
TWO VESSELS ARRIVE
Two of the Clyde-Mal<
lory Lines arrived in port during
the past 24 hours, the Ozark from
New Orleans and the Brazos from
C~ a Ives ton.
The Brazos reached port at
was the door to the reversed cock
pit. It was swinging open. Scat
tered on the ground were split
cushions, instruments, maps. She
had interrupted a search of the
Wreckage. Ren6 could have
crawled out. There! To that round
headed rock. The others were too
far away for a seriously injured
man to reach them. Down on her
hands and knees, she buried des
perate hands in the sand. She
sought. The sand was loose. Her
heart leapt, in amazed triumph.
She had them! She pulled out the
small, black mackintosh case, for
whose contents one, perhaps two
men had died.
Standing, she kicked back the
sand with her foot. A rifle lay at a
little distance from the dead guard.
She picked it up. She looked to
wards the lights of the car. She
needed its refuge desperately. She
ran, at an angle, towards the road.
Hassan would be gone, unless she
could reach him. A shot! She
dropped flat. But they were not
firing at her. Near the road she
saw the car, headlights still burn
ing, come to a slow standstill. Has
san was dead or wounded! But she
was within two hundred yards. If
only she could reach it. Petrel
crouch"d. planning her own salva
tion. Th? car was her only hope.
She must distract the two Egyp
tians, from dragging Hassan out,
make them tear back to the plane.
Pointing the heavy riffle skywards,
she fired.
. She heard shouts. Hassan’*
enemies turned, and ran back to
wards the plane. They passed so
close to her, crouched behind a
shelf of rock, that the sand dis
placed by their thudding feet fell
rattling on her back. When the
time came to run, would her legs
refuse to move, as a part of this
nightmare? But somehow, fear
seemed to have little effect on her
actions, tonight. The ruse could not
have worked more simply, and
successfully, had she been un
afraid. Had she picked up this old
rifle with real purpose, instead
of a helpless clutching at any
weapon of self-protection. Her
breath coming in gasping sobs,
Petrel reached the car. She ran to
the far door. The shadow of the
hood would hide her, making her a
difficult target. She opened it. Has
san was lying slumped over the
wheel, groaning.
Pursued
over, Hassan. I’m going to
'-J drive. We’ll get away.”
Afterwards, she realized that she
spoke in English. But he obeyed.
Thank heaven, the engine re
sponded at once, when she pressed
the self-starter. They were going
to get away! The car bounced for
ward. Where was that brake? Has
san put one hand down, and re
leased it for her. They were going
to get away! Petrel heard shots.
She knew they were being pur
sued. She felt a sharp sting in her
shoulder, glanced at it, saw blood,
and knew that she was lucky to be
sitting here alive, able to drive on.
The wpunded man lurched against
her. The dispatch case slipped from
her lap to the floor of the car,
among the gears. The cold barrel of
the rifle leaning against the door
beside her knocked to and fro, hit
ting her arm. She drove fast. Fast
er than she had ever driven before.
She was near the Camel Police
Station, when she saw the head
lights of three cars traveling to
wards her. Fear again! She had
thought she was safe, but now
there were more of them—going
to try to prevent her escape. Fast
er, faster! But as she passed them,
she heard a shout, caught a glimpse
of khaki police uniforms, and tin
hats; saw Tony’s face, white in the
moonlight, straining out of the
leading car. Tony!
Petronella found the brake, and
pulled to a gradual standstill.
Stooping, she picked up the dis
patch case. Yes, he should have it.
But that was all. Never anything
else; never again, her love and
trust She remembered his ring.
She slipped it off. She threw it
away Into the sand. ‘Thou art my
Woman.” She laughed, a short,
hard laugh. That was what he had
thought, she had been soft enough
to agree with him. But it was not
true any longer- after tonight.
Tony had played his last game
with her. This time, it was her turn
to walk out She looked at the
gruesome figure beside her. Blood
oozed between the fingers which
covered his eyes. Another sacrifice
to Tony’s ambitio'n! She shud
dered. She had been a fool.
She was appalled by her own
lack of insight into his character.
She had had two proofs of his
hardness, but had refused to be
lieve. But for that fluke of hearing
Fleur crying in 'her room, she
might never have discovered what
he was really like, till it was too
late. She might have married him
before she found out how little
love meant to him.
Wearily she climbed out of the
car. She felt giddy. Her shoulder
was not painful, but the sight of
her own blood made her feel faint,
and afraid.
She walked down the moonlit
road to meet them. Tony and Mike
were there, and police —Tony
reached her first He seemed to
tower over her. He was as angry as
sh& was.
“Petrel, what the devil do you
mean by doing such a thing? What
in heaven’s name induced you to
take a risk like that? Oh, my dear,
you’re wounded!’ He tried to catch
her in his arms, but she stepped
back. She ranged herself beside
Michael.
(Copyright. S9S9. Oraee Elliott Taylor)
10:15 o’clock and at once began
discharging light freight. At
12:30 the ship sailed for New
York with shipments of live turtle
and canned turtle, bottles and a
miscellaneous assortment of art
icles.
Solve Hard To Please Hat Shoppers
*' * * *
m Bißlli $
§| *
< BHF
yj uHp apl
- - gm’ f SL . i.• jr
Ik ffm
wr wL Jm
wP
Jfl BL Jr
■.m M mm f
m ■§ f
m slfilß )Wi l \ _ L
mm JjL
jj W
If .hats get.tl\is small—well! But London milliners say the tinjr bonnets are
miniature copies of fullsized models designed for the hard to please womfen who must
> see several hats before deciding on one.
SECRETARY ICKES
BELABORS PRESS;
CAUGHT HIMSELF:
REVEALED IN WASHINGTON
AS PERPETRATOR OF DE
LUSIONS PULLED ON PUB-i
LIC
I
I
(Special to The Citizen)
WASHINGTON, March 25. j
Simon-pure Harold Ickes, who j
delights in attacks upon the press
1-
for alleged distort of the news, |
was revealed this week in Wash-1
ington as the perpetrator of one j
of the most skillful delusions
ever pulled on the public,
i The secertary of interior, it de-!
veloped through revelations of
former Attorney-General Cum- j
1 mings, has fooled an entire world, I
j including Congress, mapmakers,
movies and the press into think
ing that the huge dam out on the i
Colorado River was Boulder Dam
and not Hoover Dam.
Letter Hidden Away
Long hidden away in the
archives of the Interior Depart
ment —since January, 1935—was
; a letter from the Administration’s
highest legal authority to Mr.
Ickes ruling that the secretary
had illegally changed the name
ito Boulder Dam. Mr. Cummings
’ said the name was still officially
“Hoover Dam” in honor of the
chairman of the committee who
brought the Colorado River states
into the water compact to make
this greatest of water projects
| possible. The chairman was
Herbert Hoover.
The Ickes attempt to continue
the “smear Hoover” campaign
would never have become public
Ihad not the attorney-general
turned over his public papers for
compilation of a book, now pub
i lished by Charles Sdribner’s
| Sons.
Ickes' Letter
The letter from Secretary Ickes
i complaining about the use of the
1 word “Hoover”, dated January 17,
1 1935:
“Dear Homer:
I “On page 4 of (your) bill of
complaint in the case of the U. S.
A. plaintiff v. the State of Ari
zona, defendant, there is a ref-
I erence to ‘water discharged at
Hoover (Boulder) Dam’. Having
gone to great lengths to give to
Boulder Dam its original and
i proper name, which my pred
ecessor in office attempted felon
iously to take from it, for which
i praiseworthy and meritorious
j public act I have been roundly
'condemned by reactionary Re
publican papers in all parts of the
country, I may say that the ref
erence in this bill of complaint
to ‘Hoover Dam’ gives me noth
ing at all to cheer about. I should
have been glad to point out what
was undoubtedly merely an in
advertence but I lacked the op
portunity, since I did not see the
< bill of complaint until after it
had been printed and filed with
the Supreme Court”.
Cummings' Reply
The following is the reply of
Attorney-General Cummings:
“Dear Harold:
‘This acknowledges your letter
of the 17th of January about
Boulder Dam, and I am not sur-
• THE KEY WEST CITIZEN
CONCERT SUNDAY
AT ART CENTER
EXCELENT PROGRAM TO BE 1
1
RENDERED BY HOSPI
TALITY BAND
There will be an open-air con
cert given tomorrow afternoon,
beginning at 4:30 o’clock, on the j
lawn adjacent to the Art Cen-1
ter on Front street by the Key j
West Hospitality Band. The pro
prised by your perturbation.
Even in the midst of great events,
the misuse of a cherished name
is apt to be upsetting.
“The difficulty fn this particu-!
lar instance seems to grow out i
of the fact, that while the term i
‘Bouldef Dam’ is used as often as j
possible and scattered somewhat!
promiscuously in strategic places!
in the bill of complaint, neverthe-!
less the drafters of that docu- j
ment seemed to feel it necessary j
in describing the dam to use the
title employed by Congrss in acts
appropriating money for its con- i
struction.
“I believe these acts refer to
the dam as ‘Hoover Dam’ (see 46
stat. at large 1146:47 stat. at large
118; and 47 stat. at large 535).
Moreover, the dam is referred to
as ‘Hoover Dam’ in the contract
between the United States and
the Metropolitan Water District,
under which contract, I under
stand, the dam is actually being
constructed. Our department was
not aware there had been any
change in its technical name
since the order of Secretary Wil
bur made on the 17th of Septem
ber, 1930.
“I rather doubt whether it is
feasible to do anything about the
matter at this late day, even if it
were deemed appropriate to do
so. In other words, it looks to
me very much like water over
the Hoover (Boulder) Dam. When
I see you, I shall extend my
commiseration in person”.
Let Us Estimate
on YOUR Printing
POSTERS
BOOKLETS
STATIONERY
OFFICE FORMS
at Reasonable Prices
PHONE
51
THE ARTMAN PRESS
THE CITIZEN BLDG.
i gram to be rendered under the
i direction of A. Barroso,' band
j leader, follows:
March, The Cadet’s Own, L. P. j
! Laurendeau.
| Selection, Mile. Modiste, V. j
i Herbert.
; Waltz Hesitation. Valsc de-Ma
iCoeur, W. K. Jerome. ,
i Indian Characteristic, Passing j
of the Red Man, King.
American Song, Around the j
Campfire, T. S. Seredy.
Valse Intermezzo, Springtime, j
!G. Drumm. • >•. ■ j
March, Floto’s Triumph; Fred, i
Tewell.
Finale, Star Spangled Banner,
Key.
ENTERS SUIT
,i.l < .
TRENTON, N. J.—Charging
that an automobile accident
caused him to lose his sense of
j smell, Walter McKee of this city, i
| is suing Dominick Berlanti, whose ,
;car struck him, for $31,000.
Annual Electric Range Sale!
A set of electric Cooking Utensils will be given away with each 1939
model General Electric Range sold and installed during this sale. Al-
liberal allowance will be made for your old stove.
at A New Lower Cost
you can now enjoy the cleanliness, cool kitchen com
fort, the speed and economy, and the better results
of modern electric cookery. All these are yours
with the new General Electric—plus added advant
ages no other range can offer.
' ? TERMS $069 r*
As low a* M,n,l ‘
!• *
-- ~~—i
"SPEEDSTER"—G-55 JM i||hj||
-•* '4 4 4 4 | jfj I
a **
■ tot*
I I ELECTRIC
' jj| R COOK ERY
fef. I H , I 1
Wm S 1 .1 x<jlT ■■
mm fi Sh m SB
WT~
m • m U J3B Wf
HiHHjry • hi
bsp l^
"COMET"—G-32 FREE—ELECTRIC COOKING UTENSILS!
The Key West Electric Company
IN KEY WEST
• 1
, .'(•••••••■•••••••••••••I
Monday
Sale Day at Municipal Sponge I
i Dock.
i New W.P.A, Adult Education
, class in Practical English starts.!
6:30 p. m. High School.
Wednesday
j * Sale Day at Municipal Sponge!
Dock.
Friday
Key West Boat Club meeting,
; open to visitors. 8 p. m. Light- •
house Building Three.
Sale Day of Sponge fishermen
at Municipal Sponge Dock, cor- ;
ner of Grinnell and Caroline ;
Streets. 9:30 a. m.
i ■ — |
i Shuffleboard courts open to the'
public daily are at Courthouse
Square. Bathing Beaches are at
south ends of Duval and White
Streets. Swimming pools are at |
Roosevelt Boulevard and Yacht
Basin. Tennis and Handball
courts, diamondball field, picnic
tables, riding devices for chil
i dren, checkers, chess, domino
tables, horseshoe court at Bay- 1
view Park. For further infor-
I mation concerning Key West ap
ply at the Chamber of Commerce
or The Key West Citizen. Tour
of Key West booklets are at the
Chamber’s offices.
Subscribe to The Citizen —20c 1
weekly.
"■ ,
10 ICfc©*
ANSWERS TO TEN
TEST QUESTIONS
Balow art> th# axuwars to t#*t
questions printed on Pag# 2
; 1. No.
, 2. William Green.
! 3. About one-ninth.
' 4. Fujiyama.
| 5. Argentina.
! 6. Two.
7. Young Women’s Christian
Association.
| 8. Denmark.
! 9. Key Pittman of Nevada.
| 10. Strait of Juan de Fuca.
The mines of Sudbury, Ont., |
' supply 85 percent of the world’s
i nickel.
OVERSEAS
TRANSPORTATION CO., INC.
Fast, Dependable Freight and Express Service
—between—
MIAMI and KEY WEST
Also Serving All Points on Florida Keys between
MIAMI AND KEY WEST
O
TWO ROUND TRIPS DAILY
(Except Sunday)
uirect Between Miami and Key West.
DIRECT EXPRESS:
Leaves Miami 2:00 o’clock A. M., arriving Key
West 7:00 o’clock A. M.
Leaves Key West 9:00 o'clock A. M., arriving
Miami 2:00 o’clock P. M.
LOCAL:' (serving all intermediate points)
Leaves Miami 9:00 o’clock A. M., arriving Key
West 4:00 o’clock P. M.
Leaves Key West 8:00 o’clock A. M., arriving
Miami 3:00 o’clock P. M.
—o
Free Pick-Up and Delivery Service
Full Cargo Insurance
a
Office: 813 Caroline St. Telephones 92 and 68
Warehouse—Corner Eaton and Francis Streets
SATURDAY, MARCH 25, 193$
BRING SMALL AMOUNT
LYNCHBURG, Va.—Slugs and
mutilated coins wfiich had been
saved from the collection plates
in the First Baptist Church of
this city for 40 years brought
$1.48 when they were sent to
the Treasury Department at
Washington.
BENJAMIN LOPEZ .
FUNERAL HOME |
I Established 1885 1
( Licensed Funeral Director*
and Embalmar*
I 24 Hour Ambulance Service j
; Phone 135 Night 698 j