s worth painting, but it is wholly beyond me to describe
it. Such exultation and glorious pride was worthy of the mightiest
gladiator that ever fought in an arena.

His long curly hair, shining with oil, escaped in disorder from his
marvellously shaped top hat, and the massive crowbar that had brought
him his hard-won victory stood upright on one end, grasped in his
gigantic hand. He smiled round on the gathering crowd, and the
procession moved proudly up the streets till within half an hour the
people following and cheering must have numbered many thousands.

We reporters rushed off to our various offices, and the streets were
soon afterwards lively with newspaper-boys shouting the news and waving
sheets of terrible and alarming headlines about the "escaped lion and
its fearful ravages," and the "strong man who had captured it after a
ghastly battle for his life."

Next day the morning papers did not publish a solitary line about the
great event; but in the advertising columns of every newspaper appeared
the prospectus of the travelling circus just come to town, and in
particularly bold type the public were told to be sure and see Yellow
Hair, the savage man-eating lion, that had escaped the day before and
killed a valuable horse in a private stable where it had been chased by
the terrified keepers; and, in the paragraph below, the details followed
of the wonderful strong man, Samson, who had caught and caged the lion
single-handed, armed only with a crowbar.

It was the best advertisement a circus ever had; and most of it was not
paid for!

* * * * *

"Guess you knew it was all a fake?" queried the news editor next
morning, as he gave me the usual assignment.

It was my first week on an American paper, and I stared at him, waiting
for the rest.

"That lion hasn't a tooth in its head. They dragged in a dead horse in
the night. You wrote a good story, though. Cleaned your pistol yet?"

X

THE SECRET CAVE OF HYDAS

CHAPTER I.--THE FIGHT AND THEFT IN THE MUSEUM

A tall, muscular, black-bearded, dark-eyed, beak-nosed native strolled
into the Lahore Museum, in the Punjab; he carried a massive
five-foot-long stick with a crook handle, and studded with short
brass-headed nails from handle to ferrule. He sauntered about until he
came to a case containing ancient daggers and swords, which arrested his
attention for some time.

About a dozen other visitors were in the