ermite. I have told the secret to the
police, and they are only waiting to find who destroyed Morowitch's
correspondence under the letter 'P' to apprehend the robber of his safe.
Your secret is out."

"Revenge! revenge!" Poissan cried. "I will have revenge. Francois,
bring out the jewels--ha! ha!--here in this bag are the jewels of Mr.
Morowitch. To-night Francois and I will go down by the back elevator to
a secret exit. In two hours all your police in New York cannot find us.
But in two hours you two impostors will be suffocated--perhaps you will
die of cyanogen, like Morowitch, whose jewels I have at last."

He went to the door into the hall and stood there with a mocking laugh.
I moved to make a rush toward them, but Kennedy raised his hand.

"You will suffocate," Poissan hissed again.

Just then we heard the elevator door clang, and hurried steps came down
the long hall.

Craig whipped out his automatic and began pumping the bullets out in
rapid succession. As the smoke cleared I expected to see Poissan and
Francois lying on the floor. Instead, Craig had fired at the lock of the
door. He had shattered it into a thousand bits. Andrews and his men were
running down the hall.

"Curse you!" muttered Poissan as he banged the now useless lock, "who
let those fellows in? Are you a wizard?"

Craig smiled coolly as the ventilation cleared the room of the deadly
cyanogen.

"On the window-sill outside is a selenium cell. Selenium is a bad
conductor of electricity in the dark, and an excellent conductor when
exposed to light. I merely moved my coat and hat, and the light from the
furnace which was going to suffocate us played through the glass on the
cell, the circuit was completed without your suspecting that I could
communicate with friends outside, a bell was rung on the street, and
here they are. Andrews, there is the murderer of Morowitch, and there in
his hands are the Morowitch--"

Poissan had moved toward the furnace. With a quick motion he seized the
long tongs. There was a cloud of choking vapour. Kennedy leaped to
the switch and shut off the current. With the tongs he lifted out a
shapeless piece of valueless black graphite.

"All that is left of the priceless Morowitch jewels," he exclaimed
ruefully. "But we have the murderer."

"And to-morrow a certified check for one hundred thousand dollars
goes to Mrs. Morowitch with my humblest apologies and sympathy," added
Andrews. "Professor Kennedy, you have e