ere to be taken before noon of the next day.

Oddly enough eighteen kidnapings were reported from various places in
Manhattan, Brooklyn and Queens.

"So," thought Bentley, "he's afraid to send out normal apes to capture
his eighteen key men. Maybe his control over them is not perfect.
That's it. I suppose--he needs human brains before he can exercise
perfect control. I suppose Stanley, Morton and Cleve did the
kidnapings."

- - -

Late that night Bentley kissed Ellen good-by, told her to keep up her
courage, and repaired to the rendezvous arranged for by Thomas Tyler
and his surgeon father. In the operating room was the cold body of the
anthropoid that had successfully abducted Saret Balisle.

"Young man," said Dr. Tyler, "just what is it you want me to do? I'm
not asking for your reasons. Tommy tells me you know what you're
doing. I must say though, I don't believe that story of brain
transplantation. No doctor would believe it for a minute."

Bentley looked at the dead ape.

"You'll take Tommy's word for it that that ape kidnaped Saret Balisle
to-day and took him down the face of a building, sixteen stories to
the ground?"

"Of course. Tommy wouldn't string his father."

"Well, part of your surgical work to-night will make it necessary for
you to look at that creature's brain. You'll recognize a human brain
in that ape's skull. After you've made that discovery, here's what I
want you to do: I'll strip to the skin; then I want you to place the
skin of that ape on me, so that from top to toes I am an ape. You'll
have to do the job so perfectly that I'll _be_ an ape--as soon as,
under your watchful eye and Tom's, I have mastered all the ape
mannerisms the three of us can remember. Can you do it?"

Tyler senior shrugged.

He motioned his son and Bentley to help him lift the huge ape body to
the operating table, and under the glaring light above he set to work
with instruments which gleamed like molten silver, then became a
sullen red....

CHAPTER IX

_The Furry Mime_

"Listen, boys," said Dr. Tyler, after he had removed the skin of the
ape, and for a few brief seconds had examined the brain, to shake his
head in astonishment. "I've an idea that may help you. It would be
impossible for you, Bentley, to play the ape well enough to fool this
mad Mind Master. But a hitherto unknown type of ape has just been
discovered in Colombia. I read the story of it in a scientific journal
to-day.