1 DOLLAP MYSTCPT f miiL. ■ (J3y HAROLD MAC GRATH— —— 'yt SIO,OOO FOR 100 WORDS. " The Million Dollar Mystery" story *riU run for twenty-two consecutive weeks in this paper. By an arrangement with the Thanhouser Film company it has been made possible not only to read the story in this paper but also to see it each week in the various moving picture theaters. For the solution of this mystery story SIO,OOO will be given by the Thanhouser Film corporation. COXDITIOXB GOVERXIXG THE COXTEST. The pritb of S IO.OOO will he won by the man, woman, or child who writes the most acceptable solution of the mystery, from which the last tivo reels of motion picture drama will be made and the last two chapters of the story written by Harold MaoGrath. Solutions may be sent to the Than housor Film corporation, either at Chicago or Xeiw York, any, time up to midnight, Jan. 14. This allows several weeks after the last chapter has'been published. A board of three judges icill determine which of the many solutions received is the most acceptable. The judges are to be Harold MacGrath, Lloyd Lonergan, and Miss Maa Tinec. The judgment of this board will be absolute and final. Xothing of a literary nature will be considered in the decision, nor given any preference in the selection of the tcinner of the SIO,OOO prire. The last tiro reels, which will give the most acceptable solution to the mys tery. trill be presented in the theaters having this feature as soon as it is pos sible to produce the same. The storv corre sponding to these motion pictures will ap pear in the newspapers coincidentaUy, or as soon after the appearance of the pic tures as practicable. With the last two reels will be shoten the pictures of the win ner, his or her home, and other interesting features. It is understood that the news papers. so far as practicable, in printing the last two chapters of the story by Har old MacGrath, will also show a picture of the successful contestant. Solutions to the mystery must not be more than 100 words long. Here arc some questions to be kept in mind in connection with the mystery as an aid to a solution : Xo.l —What becomes of the millionairef Xo.2—What becomes of the SI ,000,000 f Xo. S—Whom does Florence marry f Xo. I —What becomes of the Russian countessf Xobody connected either directly or in -1 directly --with " The Million ltollar Mys tery " icill be considered as a contestant. SYNOPSIS OF PREVIOI'S CHAPTERS. Stanley Hargrcave. millionaire, nfter a ml rami on a escape from (he den of the *»n* of brilliant thieve* known an Blnck Hundred, Uvea the life of n recluse for eighteen year*. Hnrgrcnve aeeldentally meets limine, lender of the Black Han. dred. Knowing limine will try to Ret him, he escape* from hla own home by n balloon. Before escaping he write* n letter to the girl*' aehool where eighteen year* before he myatrrloualy left on the dooratep hla hnby daughter, Florence tiray. That day H» rgreave alao draw* one million dollar* from the bnnk, but It la reported that thin dropped luto the ■ea when the balloon he enenped In wna punctured. Florence arrive* from the girl*' achnol. Counte** Olgn, limine'* companion, vls- Ita her arfd clalma to be a relative. Two bogus detective* call, but their plot la foiled by Norton, a ncwapnper man. Ny bribing the cnptaln of the Orient Norton Inya a trap for limine and hi* gnng. Counte** Olgn nl*o vlalta the Orl cnt'a captain nnd alie cnally mil* Into the reporter'a nanrc. The plan prove* abortive through Brnlnc'a good luck, and only hireling* fall luto the band* of the police. After falling In their firat attempt the Black Hundred trap Florence. They n*k her for money, but *he cacapcs, again foiling them. Norton and the countc** call on Flor. cnce the next dny, once more anfe at home. The vlaltor* having gone, Jone* remove* a aectlon of flooring and from n cavity tnkc* n bo*. Purnued by mem ber* of the Black Hundred, he runhe* to the water front nnd nucceed* In drop ping the box Into the *ea. < onnte** Olga, achemlng to break the engagement exlntlng between Florence llargrenve nnd Norton, Invite* them both to her apartment* nnd pretend* to faint In the reporter'a nrma. Florence appear* In the doorway Juat at the planned moment, and na a result give* Norton back hla ring. Accomplice* of Brnlne nucceed In kid naping Florence while ahe la ahopplng and hurry her off to aea. Norton re ceives a wlrelcaa later Informing him thnt the girl hud leaped Into the aea and been drowned. Florenoe la picked np In a dazed con dition by a party of fishermen. The Black Hundred locate her nnd Bralne, disguised aa her father, succeed* In tak ing her back to aea with him. Florence seta Are to the boat and la rescued by a ship on which Norton has been ahiing haled. fOopyrlrht: 1014: By Harold MacGrath.] CHAPTER XI. WHEN Jones received the telegram that Florence was ante, the iron nerve of the twin brok® down. Th* suspense had been so "keenly tern- 1 hie that the sudden renction left him almost hysterically weak. Three weeks of waiting, 1 waiting. Not even the scoundrel and his wife who hnd been the principal actors in < the abduction had been found. From a 1 great ship in midocean they had disappeared. 1 Doubtless they had hidden among the im- 1 migrants, who, for a little money, would have fooled all the officers on bosrd. There 1 was no doubt in Jones' mind that the pair had landed safely at Madrid. ' As for Susan, she did hare hysterics. » eihe went about the room, wailing and laugh 1 inc 1 " and wringing her hands. Toil would 1 have thought by her actions that Florence I hnd just died. The sight of her stirred the j saturnine lips of the bntler into a smile. Rut 1 he did not remonstrats with her. In fact. t he rather envied her freedom In emotion. Man cannot let go in that fashion; it is a sign of weakness; and he dared not let even Susan see any sign of weakness in him. So the reporter had found her, and she was safe and sound and on her way to New \ork? Knowing by this time something of tlie reporter's courage, he was eager to learn how the event had come about. When he had not heard a telephone message from Norton in forty-eight hours, he had decided that the Rlack Hundred had finally suc ceeded In getting hold of him. It had been something of a blow; for while he looked with disfavor upon the reporter's frank re gard for his charge, he appreciated the fact thnt Norton was a staff to lean on, and hnd behind him all the power of the press, which included the privilege of going everywhere even if one could not always get back. As be folded the telegram and put it int'i his pocket, he observed the man with the opera glasses over the way. He shrugged. Well, let him watch till his eyes dropped out of his head; he would see only that which w«is intended for his eyes. Still, it was irk some to feel that no matter when or where you moved, watching eyes observed and chronicled these movements. Suddenly, not being devoid of a sense of dry humor, Jones stepped over to the tele phone and called up her highness the Priii cess Perigoff. " Who Is it?" He was forced to admit, however reluc tantly, that the woman had a marvelous!} - fine speaking voice. " It is Jones, madam." " Jones?" " Mr. Hargreave's butler, madam." "O! You have news of Florence?" "Yes." It will be an embarrassing day for humanity when some one invents a pho tographic apparatus by which two persons at the two ends of the telephone may ob serve the facial expressions of each other. " W hat is it? Tell me quickly." " Florence has been found, and she is on her way back to New York. She was found by Mr. Norton, the reporter." "I am so glad! Shall I come up at once and have you tell me the whole amazing story?" " It would be useless, madam, for I know nothing except what I learned from a tele gram I have just received. Rut no doubt some time this evening you might risk a call." " Ring up the instant she returns. Did she say what train?" " No, madam,'* lied Jones, smiling. He hung up the receiver and stared at the telephone as if he would • force his gaze in and through it to the woman at the other end. Flesh and blood! Well, greed was stronger than that. Treacherous cat* Let her play;- let her weave her nets, dig her pits. The day would come, and it was not far distant, when she would find that the mild eyed mongoose was just as deadly as the cobra, and far more cunning. The heads of the Rlack Hundred must be destroyed. Those were the orders. What good to denounce them, to send them to a prison from which, with the aid of money and a tremendous secret political pull, they might readily find their way out? They must be exterminated, as one kills off the poisonous plague rats of the orient. A wom an? Iu the law of reprisal there was no sex. Shortly after the telephone episode (which rather puzzled the princess) she received a wire from Rraine, which announced the fact that Florence and five had escaped and were coming to New York on train No. 25. and advising her to meet the train en route. She had to fly about to do it. When Capt. Rannock released Rraine, he had been in no enviable frame of mind. Tricked, fooled by the girl, whose mind was as unclouded as his own! She had suc ceeded in bribing a coal stoker, and had taken him unawares. The man had donned the disguise he had laid out for shore ap proach, and the blockhead Rannock had never susivected. He had not recognized Norton at all. It was only when Ranuock explained the history of the shanghaied stoker that lie realized his real danger. Norton! He must be pushed off the board. After this episode he could no longer keep up the pretense of being friendly. Norton, by a rare stroke of luck, had forced him out Into the open. So be It. Self-preservation is in no wise looked upon as criminal. The law may have its ideas about it, but the In dividual recognizes no law but its own. It was Rraine whom he loved and admired, or Norton whom he hated as a dog with rabies hates water. With Norton free, lie would never again dare return to New York openly This meddling reporter aimed at his ease and elegance. He left the freighter as soon as a boat could carry bim ashore. The fugitives would make directly for the railroad, and thither he went at top speed, to arrive ten minutes too late. " Free!" said Florence, as the train begau to increase its spe*»d. Norton reached over nnd patted her hand. Then lie sat hack with a sudden shock of dismay. He dived a hand into a pocket, into another and another. The price of the tele pram he had sent to Jones was all he had had in the world; and he had borrowed that from a friendly stoker. In the excitement he had forpotten all about such a contingency as the absolute need of naonej.^,- THE TELEGRAPH, HARRISBURG, PA.. SEPTEMBER 1914.