The San Francisco call. [volume], October 30, 1910, Page 14, Image 14

About The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913

Image provided by: University of California, Riverside; Riverside, CA

                
AN AMERICAN GIRL HELD SLAVE BY
THE HIGHBINDERS OF SHANGHAI
fSfoNE Man, Mn B. F. Meehan, of Chicago, Murdered
\yin an Effort to Rescue : Her from 4 [T^e House pf-a
Thousand Doors " — Her Pitiful Plea to (MX [Samuel
Garrefson Cornell, of Ne^'Yprk,WhoAlsa^iem
to Save Her from Her Frightful Imprisonment in an
Underground City
It is not often 'that a man possessed with the
true spirit of adventure maintains anything like a
permanent base, but Samuel Garretson _ Cornell,
the writer of the following true and amazing
story, has for years held a quiet, peaceful, public
office in New York city attached- to v the board of
magistrates. . «^
A scion of an aristocratic Buffalo family, tho
6tepson of a diplomat, a po«tgradaate student
There was something fervent in her manner when she thanked me and begged me to hurrvl
in Germany, married to an Italian noblewoman,
he had an excellent beginning as a cosmopolitan.
Though still a young man he has been round
and round the world and into every known* quar
ter w» it, speaks all the principal languages and
numerous dialects and uses many of them so well
that his nationality is often a matter of doubt
among the outland people.
He is a giant physically, is a crack shot, horse
man and swordsman, and since he is full of the
love of adventure it is easy to see that he would
find his share of it The following narrative is of
an experience in a place where few decent white
men ever have gone and come out alive.
Samuel Garretson Cornell
EVER since the establishment of the foreign con
cessions at Shanghai, when the various powers
• were given tracts along the Bund and each lit
tle tract became a colony of the nation to which
it belonged, there has been talk of the underground
life of thecity. It is known that in Canton and other
Chinese cities old secret societies or guilds construct
ed elaborate subterranean systems and in San Fran
cisco and New York the "Little Chinas" have done
the same thing in a much smaller way. The fire in
San Francisco revealed that "the ground under China
town was literally honeycombed. .
The very uses to which the underground parts of
Shanghai are put keep their secrets secure and many
a white man who has spent half his life in the city
will tell you that beyond rumor he knows nothing
about Shanghai having any underground inhabitants.
The statement that there is such a thing, may be
laughed at even among the ignorant.
I am in a position to state positively; that there is
an underground, for I have been there and escaped
with my life after a most .peculiar set' of circum-,
stances. How extensive it is I can not say, but I
emerged half a mile from where I went below the
surface of the ground and I saw fully a thousand per
sons down there. .
It is a well known fact among the cosmopolitans
of the concessions that if it is needful to have a man
killed, be he white, yellow or brown, one need only
walk down the Bund, step into the Chinese city and
ask the first Chinese he meets:
"Where is Wai Yung?"
That particular Chinese may not. know, but if he
does not he will take you to some one who does know,
and that second man will take! you to a third,' who will
satisfy himself as < to who you are and whether you
are a fit person to see Wai Yung. . If? you; pass' the
examination you will be taken through tortuous
streets and passageways into a dark hall and will walk
for perhaps five'minutes, making" turns and twists" in
absolute darkness, coming -at: last to a room where
you , interview a personage who is said '• to be Wai
Young. The room, is stifling buf chill. It mustbe
underground. The light is furnished by a lamp.
"What do you want?" says Wai Yung.
"I want a man killed." ". '"*
"Is he a white man?"
The visitor answers yes or no as the case may, be,
and if he says yes the price for the killing it set at
$100, save in the case of an Englishman:: -It costs
$200 to get an Englishman killed,^because of -the ef-;
forts the English government .will make to .get . his
murderers punished. A' Japanese, will- cost^ssoo, 'be
cause of the risk of retaliation; the Japanese being the
only people able to cope in any degree at all-with'the
subtle methods of the highbinders. . a
DELIVER THE GOODS -
When the price is paid the goods are delivered
within ; 24 : hour 3, unless the victim of the plot leaves
Shanghai by. sea or. barricades himself in jhis house.
Not long ago Judge AVifley, a courageous' Arnerican
official, cleaned up all of Shanghai that fell '\u25a0 w\ thin 1 his
jurisdiction and quite a bit that did not,; but there
were limits to 'his powers. The great: secret things
he could not. touch, and 'when I was in : Shanghai; not
long. ago I fourid them just^the" same as they always
have been. Shanghai is still % the "clearing house for .
the renegades and cutthroats of the jorient.
/One "night I 'had- just *had my! dinner at; the\Astor
house and -was woridering: .what ; I -/should r do for the
evening, when the manager made me acquainted with
an intimate friend of his named ;Phelps. v After, a bit
we planned a drive out^the BubblingfWell road.to the
Alhambra, which was at'that -time, a,; gay -drinking
resort below stairs with a characte/ that. was a cut.
between' the Haymarketin Ncw;.York'and ! the Troca- .
dero in London. .'Upstairs, was- every sort ,of .popular '
gambling game; with possibilities for play as -high as
any place in the world.- - -\u25a0 A ' , ,
"There is not one of ; those wheels that is straight,"
said my friend, "except the one on thejend^ THey.let
the tourists and outgangers play at those other wheels
and the people: who are i in 'on the -know -play at . this •
one. -The r croupier, however, -is Ramon, ; an: \u25a0 Indo- :
Chinese born in > the Philippines. \u25a0 He is ; the cleverest
sleight of /handyman inthe world,^ I believe: We^ will;
play at -his table, but keep ypur eyes' on'Ramon."
AYe played for:a time and I detected nothing wrong,
Jhough when : we cashed ; in .it seemed; to me that
whereas I. .very nearly .broke even . I should ; have been .;
$100 ahead. In 'a rough sort,of 'way.lfhad an idea of
the number of bets" lost and the number' of \u25a0 times I "
had i made my number 'or. color. We .went below; and ,
met some other meir.we' kriew," : but;l'-got to thinking;,
about the cleverness of -Ramon and decided to .visit his
wheel once again- to . see if I had? been cheated. ' . ''\u25a0.„
,1~-have : always T had a fondness for eighteens and
nineteens and now I playedthem consistently, "losing
steadily in regular, bets of-^ 15; chips. ; At last an il8;
came, and, doing: as* croupiers do'theworld over,-Ra
mon paid; me by stacking the" pay chips even with the "
bet .chips on the t board.;; A . moment before*: I . had \
counted , my bet c stack and now t - 1 - ran : the nail . of { my ';
index 'finger . down; iti .It was '! shy .three chips, and so
of; course: were all > the other stacks -in "t" t which \u25a0• he was
paying me my^wirinings. •' i *
"Coriie on, Ramon, cbnaeon." . A stack of ellipsis not.
a yard of ' flannel < that will" shrink," 1 1 ' said ; in a ; half
whisper to him:; ; ~i V. : "'^ ' v
His ; dark mousy; eye caught mine and ;:he ?saw:;i , was ',
certain. .Without much s ado; he^measured up' the added ;.
three chipsibneverystackjfrThis?seemey -to affectmyi
luckand^ina little while I was v a heavy winner; then r
I . droppe"d the size of ;rny -bets" arid stood ' watching^
him in his sleight , of ihand work, \u25a0;, literally'.^ accumulat- ; '
ing; hundreds of Vdollars;'in;"aifew^houVs's'timeiby v the;.;
niriibleriess : of his hands. ;The; wheel ;^w^s, straight; I
but" the croupier : crooked k a3 (tlvev letter; Zf; ;' , : ; ;
When the night's s play; vyas/bverf l' was ;leaying:the"v
second \ floor- with i.PhelpsJ w^^?^ ;I'felt:a;i©ucli'qn?my.;'
arm -i and stood^ beside: me;! \u25a0 an. :• ingratiating.
. smile^bn-Jiis' dark face. "]- ; V : : . \: ._ v ",•"/'
'you \u25a0 are' not 'otherwise jengagVd r wbuld*y6u^rmt ;
like to see some" of : the; places about -the city: to which =
Ifcan take you ';"-. he said in Spanish. ' .. ' \u25a0
There was^violent^^ opposition to the. syggestion; on
the; other side 6i i^me^.'to- judge' ffomV'tKeikick^ inrthej
shins I/.received.'biit I : -fsaw^^•an7oppqrtunHyrinj\th'e7in-'" ; l
VitatidnB and accepted ; it ; with alacrity'..'; Ramon ;:Hvas^
bent i on one 'of .'two \u25a0- things, closing; my. ' mouth" 1 - by^
placing me' under obligations ;to;him;;or?clpsing" : my."'
mouthjna more permanent way: \We 'would' see.;//: ;
I ; carelessly \u25a0 dropped fa. numbe r ; on • the'- ground before the "door.
.\u25a0\u25a0•v::-: '-\u25a0:::\u25a0\u25a0-. - \u25a0\u25a0\u25a0\u25a0.•\u25a0\u25a0>;•:\u25a0-' .«%:•:"\u25a0*"•- --.>V.":- -:-- / ;. .,. T;-' -'\u25a0•'. -:.•.•\u25a0\u25a0.-- .
< Taking a , carnage, ; we . drovev down -the :.Bubbling^
Well road :in the m after : midnight s nioonlight - 1 and '
stopped-at; a teahouse for; the usual itiresorrielshow: \h \u25a0
that ' sort foi* place,' and' then\ proceeded*- until-;, we came'
to the point' where' we shoulcThave gone I straiglit:bn''to'.
enter the Scbnces'sibris;- but* therdnver/., turned sharply
to;the left, and descended ;into^the; Chinese city. ; . ; .
.-..: After; a little .we passed 'underj a ; dark; arch; arid; then:
another^- I . have a good: bump ;bf- locality and tried; myi
best .to^keep ; 'my bearings. at 'all* times, . : biit ' ytryj soon*
I knew.;; I <was ' lost. ; Then?. we >lle t "the > carriage : arid \
"going \ along some . narrow, ) dark- passages -.came f to ; a
.heayyfdoor, \u25a0 at lwhich T Rarrion; Knocked. "'The ;typical;
oriental wicket was Vbperied • arid v a sbigVcoolie's V head :;
appeared.'/; He opened U the'* door '^wheti *»he^Heardvßa^
rribn's A-qice, arid after we^had^gonelonriri^the^dark.;
a little, way. Ramon opened a door and'ushered us into?
a great subterranean' chamber. ;- /^ ;; "\u25a0 V, ! .\u25a0•:•' \u25a0:'• \u25a0''.';'\u25a0, : /\,<i
[ I riot 'know; how; fan under \u25a0» ground ijt; is, 5
had been * going, down j; down for, fully/ three 1 : minutes.'^
It was ' thick with \u25a0smoke, but I \ saw draught "; in'- the',
vapor v overhead' so'; that t there;- muit:haye_.ibeen' ; :soniev
ventilating^ device; v^ :The- rbbni •. was with 'jteak-^
wood;- and -seemed < ".to ;be;'ceiled^with' it^as'iwell^asjl*,'
could ;see,\and i;all f abputswere ' liftlej: cubicles^or^cprn-;
partments with' tea^ood^pa'rtjtib^
runiup^ to^; the ; _ ceiling.^> fU'-J, ";•-..'•;•; ib'^Ml^rPfri-''^
' Inithe dimdight.lvcbuld riot. see^to' 1 the farther'end,^
but ,';l; could' make*' out ;side : passages;or:baysKwithimore;
cubicles,- and^there? seemed vto jb*e-aithrong: in jthet place"'
from; the sound*, of -many voices ".f and "*•: the ; j\ moving*,
masses :Icouldisee/.;lt!isfalmost^
picture'; of the > crowd iinl words.* /.^ small^ percentage ;
were j men-; in % .European : g'reVtl"nu'nlbe^c\u25a0;
worej; native dress *or mixed HMalayVrJapanese^orV
Filipino; garb, ";and" they -;wVrefof;'all.' colors; except^that't
of the "red. lndian.' . /-T ,\ ' • •»'"/ ' ;^ : 4 V..'
; -Never^had I seen 'sb^mariy 1 different 'SoftsVofCpeoplef
in ,: so/uniform \u25a0•\u25a0 a; state i of * drugged f and drunken ( de-;
pravity. " v — \u25a0'.''-.».-/.. i -,". * ••- .>j
;' '>.;Ramon : i,wa sv on e•oVthe; b e s t •' of { the -man y.; • ? 1 1 » was
plain^that'he was a great-man among theihaWtues.^jl
•saw. s.everal?wKite% men' whom "I I recognized jas: beach,
combers,";.! fugitives (from* justice,! discredited* sons? of
resident; family^ type- etc.' The women were an 'amaz
ing mixture/alsb.JhouglT most of 'them were'' Chinese
; and girls.- r.>"/> ;. '~'\: ,'.>-;. v : / • j- "- \u25a0
"".^Taking 'scatsliri 'bneibf^thyicubicleso ßamon ordered
food; *! wine, f cigars; an d; women 5 to" keep us ; company;
Of the^physical^comforts.; brought to. usino exception,
could'be taken." Served -in .Chinese'fashionnheyiAvere
all' of .nthe\very : best; ."and l l - found "myself \u25a0- wondering
[wfiVreyt^
vv * The;! greatest interest', centered in the .wonien; v who_
came tb--sjt with us:^ One w as ; a :|>aridsome: girl -from
,the Friendly, islands,' arid! her,^coppery, skin and; bronze
gold; hair; and" her magnificent. teeth;-arms- and shoul
;defs:;wouldVhave'-made-her 'conspicuous 'anywhere.'
The ' second-- was - half half Samoyede^ -with
; s"malii.:glittering;black. eyes arid -'a". thin, graceful 'body.
The; third' ; ;Was a talL whiter girl of .the \u0084 type: of woman
hood **bne; sees so "frequeritly'jin California.^ Her- figure
would have -been excelled
I emaciated,' .and -her face, with- all the misery and :suf :
'feringj written' ;6n r it, : was -beautiful; while. 1 her- eyes
"were the^saddest things I* have-ever seen in all myrlife.
\u25a0 .•Th'ei- Polynesian girl was' a T favorite of -Ramon's and
the, Samoyede. half .casteVsat down'-by^PJielps, who was
ov"erwh"elin"e'dby the startling, naturelpf the; place. The
tall ..white'; girl 'gathered her loose attire ;about her and
sat' down to lierdreary task of being entertained.-- No
sooner -haia I; spoken to her in -English than a great
cnange<went over her. _\u0084- •> \u25a0 * -"-, t -\u25a0' \u25a0 |jj§fp*§^|i \u25a0
v ''I thought yoii^ were German,", ;said 'she -in . an *ac-.
cent^that/was unmistakably 'western American". "-•"** You
are an ' American. You are the .first American I .have,
seen 'here;- for two 'years. , Hb\y; do ' you; come to/ be
u"Afe*ybu^ a : gambler ?'\u25a0' she : asked NwithTpeculiar in-:
tensity, v .--.V : " . .' . : ?r*'iSY, '\S-~' r^d< \u25a0' .'.'\u25a0•" \u25a0 ' "'.' ".•\u25a0'\u25a0
' 'Ltold her very frankly "that I ; was a plain American
traveling- and: nothing- more. \u25a0,\u25a0.-\u25a0. ." -
,*', Allf the i-AvHile she was \u25a0\u25a0"watching, the others with
apprehensive r caution, -particularly 'the Samoyede girl
and -Ramon. -; She seemed to be "gathering Ihefself for
an r; effort- of: some ;sort, and I watched her curiously.
Very '(soon" I; understood -what that effort was. ; . She
'was \u25a0 in;such a oriental and^phj'sical [state- that; she- could
:;-<-••„ ;•:.' " ./'•.-., .' :- " '- / r . -. \u25a0; - : : "; '.W •: ' -•;-; '\u25a0 ..:":-"
I: dissemble* only : with 'the greatest : dinicultjv, and \ she
;must dissemble to be able to say to me;\yith a placid
/smile »qnj her; face things -which must be "said then 'or
\u25a0 her/ opportunity ' might; be^ lost: * Theref ore ; as | she
;^looked; at" -'me half laughingly ->'ahd spoke^.iii^a! very low
'} tone ith'at : ;xnight /have .been' tHe^coquetry''expected' v of
;her irl '.was l amazed at/.th'e: words ; I Heard. • . ,'-',
"I* am askingyou for the:love-of";heaven; ; to;get.me
out,of,*here; quick;, get me.outof here, get^rne outrof
\u25a0\u25a0 here,; before <I \u25a0 lo«e my :mind.' 'I; am 'a^ San 'Francisco
I girl i md? my * is ' well-off. : ; I ; ran - away with :\u25a0 a
. man: l- thought was 'all ; right'- arid :iriarried ? him, .but {he
; brought me; here an^d ; l^
?Ijhayejse.en'but;On'e^whom:I f dare
I'am not the 'only _on c. ; There: are; a; lot of other white
giris.and.every.riow^and.then brie kills herself. .^That
*is .what .I[am afraid of. ; \u25a0 1 1 ' is \u25a0 that^or ' take to dririkf^ or
;keep!from thinking, v and:l -will not; give up
•^t.^'l^willfnot.Jiwiliinotjfb'u^^ohJplease,^
"\u25a0 v^ '"* ,*: .
y - Ijam* as "certain ; that she ; was Uellingj tlie- truth ras'^l
am^that^lam living, and ;I 'answered ;quite 'Vs. if-. I -were
'tellingfsome.joke.^ If ;eithe^
yeribus^weVwoUld : have* been-suspectVd v atj o'nceJ; ; i^ : \u25a0;\u25a0'
'•\u25a0 ? /-^^o'n't ; even , know ;> how? to ;gett out of' here myself,
i^Will;;Ramoii'help : v me?'' ? ..'", V ; * .•*--" r ?" .",'-'. } ' "-;,--/
\Vi«'^Nb;Vhe^ knows Hhe'Vothers> would 'find out- and7kill
;Him; v :>YbutCariVget;away.7;.^\.r.' : )/^T^i-'-.- > *'.« -.
;-i? 'IDo'rybutfaiowlthe .w^y- out?" .. •. ' \u25a0 ''\u25a0 . '
:h;^"I: h;^"I 'got laYplati ;< from; a? Chihesej girl . a 'year* ago,^but
!;me^ :'doorsi of
-which ' I -t 'know; but Lthere \ are ;• guardst at " them. : * Is'' it
Jdaylightjor^dark^ outside v now,?", V ; '] .j'i ( . T
rv/'ltfisTdark-^-about l^ ' o'clock! inUhJeinibrning.'-'r""^- *
•'-;\u25a0; l'l^am^alrnost blind^ at^times -f fofh Jbeing, away- from
ithets^unlighT^o^lohg^
! I/se^\it^againVi- ; H^
t;Jr :^^:!^;^;.;:^v;:^:;^;-:
>;• She; seemed; to ;it ]i or ,*gran ted - that * I * 'meant ; and
* had* a"; plan 'perfectly VrrahgecL^ '\u25a0'- - ; • - . v?- -'
.--• The San Francisco Sunday Call
' "Of course I have a gun in my pocket," I said. T#
take a -chance in a minute", but I can't. see that'ther*
is^any: chance.' The_ most I could do would be t»
shoot -five; times and, if I was lucky, kill five men/,
then: I would be knifed or shot and you would b»
killed/ "-. •
CHICAGO MAN MURDERED
/'Not- 1 would not. I would not be beaten even.
,W hit e girls are too hard 'to get. They did not touch
•"mc'ibefore." , \u25a0 \u25a0'- '
Have you tried to get away?"
* "Yes", the man? l .asked before tried to get me
through the door 'you just came in. His name was
B.~F; Meehari,. and he came from Chicago, he said.
They killed him just as you have said they would kill
you.";
.I. confess that I iooked down, silent and hesitant.
\"Qh,.-i suppose it". is a whole lot for a woman like I
am now to ask of_ a man who is a stranger to her, but
I am not a bad woman. I have escaped a lot that the
others go through. When my husband left me here
I: did not "know 1 whether ~ he was dead or alive, or
whether I was deserted or he had been taken away
and' killed. ""I do 'not know now only what I have
heard. He may be alive and looking for me every
where.... I. was very ill and Paquin was very good to
me and -kept me away "from the others tillnow. He
is' dying— oh, my heavens, he may be dead even now.
You must get me out*of here. If you don't try I will
kill myself before your eyes. , Oh, no. I wouldn't do
that; forgive me if I. talk a little wild."
r "See here," I said, "I will leave the matter to yotL
I 'will /make the effort- to fight my way out of here
with .you this very minute if you. think there is a
chance. "Now, what do. you say?"
"No," it would be throwing your life away, and since
you put the matter in so plairi a way I will not
alLovy it."
-:. "Thank- you. The only other thing I can think of
is to use a little strategy. I give you ray word of
honor that when I leave here tonight I will mark
down every step I take and I will come back with
enough help to. get. you."'
? There was something so unguardedly fervent in her
manner when she thanked me and begged me to
hurry that Ramon began to suspect that we were en
gaged in no ordinary, dallying conversation and leaned
over 'to take his share in what we had to »ay.
.-, Itvwas an hour before we left, and then we passed
through a number of other bays or cubicles and at
last through another guarded door that let us into
a passage, along which I followed Ramon by sound
only, as the .place was black as the inside of a atone
ink bottle. Suddenly we came to a little door that
swung open at the touch, then to another, and as it
closed behind us I found that we were in Bubbling
Well road! - \ W--'
Now, it happens that I have a habit that is by no
means unusual among men who travel off the beaten
track of carrying some primary medicines with me,
and I had in my coat pocket a little phial of white
sodium tablets. Uncorking this covertly I carelessly
dropped a numberon-the ground directly before the
door. They were plainly visible in the moonlight. I
made a trail of them until we came to a cluster of
things bythe way which J could use for a landmark.
We got a carriage in a short time and after bidding
Ramon good night ; X drove like .mad into the conces
sions and began waking up every person of courage
and influence whom I. knew. Half the men I got out
of bed admitted frankly that whHe they were sure
and always had been sure as long as they had lived
in Shanghai that suclfthings existed, they were not
prepared to antagonize the gamblers, highbinders and
others concerned in the doings.
\u25a0 It was a night that will be remembered in the for
eign concessions for a long time. The story of the
girl was one that had a strong appeal in it, and before
daybreak I had a volunteer posse of half a dozen men
well armed and we: were driving back along the road.
Picking up my landmark we followed the trail of
tablets back to the door, and using a dark lantern we
had brought with us went inside. Very soon we struck
the second d©or, but beyond it the passage led us into
an old compound built over by the extension of the'
upper stories of the surrounding houses, and search as
we would we could not find its continuance. TheTe
were, many small, exits to the compound, but when we
explored them they led to nothing. It would have
been necessary to tear down 20 houses thereabouts
to lay bare the entrance to the descending tunnel,
and at last we were compelled to give up. I wm even
laughed at for my pains by one or two~of the party.
At 2 o'clock that .afternoon I was due. to take the
ferry boat down the river to Wah Chung, where the,.
big steamboats lie, to go on board a steamboat. bound
for the south. I hurriedly got everything in readiness
for departure. so that I could spend the remainder of
my time in continuing the search. Then I went to a
very high official and told him the whole story. He
had already heard it at home, as it waj the talk of
the concessions. When I had finished giving him the
accurate details he said :
"Mr.' Cornell, men come to Shanghai and are never
heard of s again. Sometimes in a Chinese dying room
white men and, once in a while, white women are
found who have died naturally whose identity is a
complete mystery to us. It is a matter of record that
under, the city somewhere the old secret guilds built
subterranean labyrinths, but never have I found a man
willing to imperil his life by telling any of the secrets.
I .am of, 1 half a mind to arrest Ramon and a dozen
other men' of his kind, and the only thing that defers
'nieis the certain knowledge that not one of them
could be induced to_ lead the way to this place, which
is ; popularly; called 'the House of the Thousand
' Doors.' Now you will never be able to re-enter it
after all the efforts' you have made. 7. I advise you to
go your way, and I will put my best men at work to
try.and trade the girl out. By bartering favors I may
be. able to do what you could not do with 40 men
armed with Winchesters. I will cable you if I suc
ceed."' " . .. ,'
-* ;Reluctantly-I went.down.the river, for the despair
ing sadness in the eyes of the girl haunted pic. -It
was maddening to think that I was compelled.to leave 1
behind ; one -of my own countrywomen In such misery
"and; helplessness. A week later, not having heard
from the official, I cabled him from Singapore and his
reply read: '
; "No \u25a0 information secured. Case absolutely hope
.Therefore, if she is alive, a San Francisco girl is still
a. slave in the power of the blacklegs of underground
Shanghai. " If any man who reads this can*scnd me a
line : or : two" of further information concerning her or
her history or knows of any means of finding the way
back : into ' that subterranean labyrinth : I will deeply
appreciate : a- letter • at \ the Delta -Phi ; ciub, New York
cny. . . » ... .-,..