inger, as he lifted it to his mouth.

Barter chuckled.

"Even the human casement cannot wholly hide the ape, eh, Naka Machi?"
said Barter.

Naka Machi hissed.

Barter returned to the porcelain slab banked with the lights and the
keys. He readjusted the keys and his face became thoughtful again.

Lecky turned smartly, still nibbling at his walnut, strode to the
bronze door and let himself out.

Through the heliotube directly above the key marked "B-2," Caleb
Barter watched him go, and kept watching him as he made his way to the
street. Barter looked ahead of his puppet, noting the cars which were
parked at the curb. He saw a stately limousine. He grinned. The
chauffeur was not in sight. Barter looked for him and found him at a
table in a nearby restaurant, his back to the window.

Barter looked back at his puppet and his face became serious with
concentration.

Lecky walked blithely along the street and turned right when he was
opposite the limousine. Without a moment's hesitation, he stepped into
the limousine, pressed the starter, shifted gears, turned in the
middle of the block and started swiftly uptown.

After Lecky had shifted gears he drove with his left hand alone. His
right was still busy with the walnut.

Barter now looked like a man in a trance, so deeply did he concentrate
on his task of guiding his soulless, ape-brained puppet, Lecky,
through the heavy traffic of Manhattan.

CHAPTER IV

_The Opening Gun_

"That list, Tyler," said Bentley, after he had somewhat calmed the
fears of Ellen Estabrook and had returned to the task of tracing
Barter, "is headed by Harold Hervey, the multi-millionaire. I know
Barter well enough to know that he'll go down the list methodically,
taking each person in turn. We'd best take immediate precautions to
guard the old man's home. For Barter, if not entirely ready to take
drastic steps, must be almost ready, else he couldn't issue his
manifestoes and take a chance of some slip-up before he could get
really started."

"Why do you suppose he named Hervey on the list?" asked Tyler.

"Because Hervey is a financial genius. Barter wishes not only to carry
out his plan of creating a race of supermen, but wishes at the same
time to maintain personal control of them. And to control Manhattan,
from which he logically hopes to extend his control to the whole
United States, then to the whole world, Barter must also control the
money marts. Hervey is the shrewdes