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Show V' r TiVft l" J JL 0ttttti1 S u,anlft. for bin orderly arrived with J long dugouts, each having a mast at the prow, a rope, fastened at the stern, was passed through a pulley I at the top of the mast and the other end attached to a shaggy horse. The general's baggage was piled into one of these dugouts and he seated himself comfortably In the midst. A muzhik with a paddle occupied the atern, another mounted the horse and they rode off, the animal scrambling over the stones by the shore or aplashlng through the shallow water, while the man with the paddle kept the boat clear of the bank. This Is the ancient mode of ascending Russian rivers, the method of "loshat and lotka," and two military stations, or about 30 miles, can thus be made In a day under favorable circumstances, by getting under way at four o'clock In the morn- sev"l 111 -- l tm 0T0, Mt HI rovo, eut 2H ing. To Hardy's mota consternation the princess and her maid followed In a second dugout. But there were two more waiting on the bank, their owners hoping that others of the passengers would wish to avail themselves of half-savag- K V- - ' fW I 1 1 hi II ""S IIfiX IIIIIIIk s picture. Hardy shouted again, and the four Chinese wheeled about and regarded him with startled malignancy that turned on the Instant to amuse ment Those four great brutes beheld one rather small, dark man, of dapper ap pearance, despite his week's river-trave- l a slender, dark man In a blue serge suit and negligee shirt, who me chanically adjusted his gold plnce-neas he advanced now at a slower gait The two Chinese with war bows fitted long arrows to the strings and, with a their tvpe. sudden lift of the left foot and a "Come on," cried Hardy to Smul- widening of the arms, they let drive. ders. "Let's follow them. It will be One arrow whizzed by Hardy's head a lark." and the other pierced his clothing, "A lark! What's that?" making a nasty scratch on his left "A lark? Why, fun, sport." side. Then the pistol cracked twlco :03pl moth .15 there, he ran as he never Xr Rounding a little turn In I I the road and a clump of trees, he came suddenly on a sight that thrilled him with rage and sickened him with fear, not for himself, but for the princess. There she was, struggling In the arms of a big Chinese, one of that tribe that Inhabita the wild regions of Manchuria. The beast had lifted ber In his arms and was running toward the woods with her, while another carried the maid. Two other Mongolians, with long war bows In their bands, completed the strange God! was ran before. til en Coin Soutienl Joe. IF SCENIC Hut Smulders sighed and shook his head, thinking of tho fair Viennese. airy "Ah, no," he said, "I do not care If It ia, Ku be an eagle. I cannot leave Cbulia. go irltirtl I loaf her too heavy." Hardy lost no time. By signs he Penal n; conveyed to one of the sailors that he wished his luggage carried ashore and piled Into the dugout. Soon he, too, nqulre ot was seated In the bottom, reclining cket ApaJ gracefully against his Impedimenta.his horse scrambling along In the wake of LakeCd the princess' lotka. They made but one military station the first day a largo square building, where a samovar Is kept always ready for travelers and the sledges that carry the malls over the Ice In winter. To Hardy's delight, the old general and the princess were extremely courteous to him and made him under stand by signs that he was welcome. in Is "How Much Water There the Shilka?" DaThe general's orderly foraged and produced some black bread, some milk I SYNOPSIS dirty and dusty uniforms, returning and a quantity of delicious fresh from some murderous and unrecorded caviar of the kind the Russians do not Hardy, a fashionable Boston raid into Manchuria. They seemed export. lust his wealth, was lilted fttiy man, The princess presided charmingly ana sent Dy a rriena to laae half Chinese and half im lrl of an American TradlnK Company Indian, and they swarmed on every at the samovar, after which she disapit Id Russia. On his journey through available portion of the deck. :an he met StapK-topeared for the night Hardy spread Neville, an KnuHshman. They agreed to The ship was off again at dawn, his blankets on the floor and was soon bus-loBecause of together to Hussla. were several feeling its way cautiously to avoid fast asleep. But he seemed no sooner circumstances ras moleiited by thethey Japanese. Hardy the shallow places. There were six to have closed his eyes than he was arrested and round upon his person s cabins on this boat, also. awakened again by the voice of the r papers showing maps or Jap forts. which were given over, general shouting at him in Russian. ray was proven guiltless. On a train learned, Hardy m. met Alsotne 8ano. daughter of a Jap It was only three o'clock, but the as a matter of course, to the princesr reliant. In Neville's shoes Jap found 'ur-- s with prepnra of forts, proving him to be a and the general. place was all man spy. Hardy departed for Rus- Ere the mists As she continued her course for sev- tions for departure. on a steamer, which' was wrecked "llr afterward. He was rescued by eral days, it was necessary for Hardy had risen from the river they were Russian steamer. On reaching Vladl- - and Smulders to places on again under way, dim as ghosts, he was well treated. He started Siberia, meeting Princess Romanovna the deck for lying down, for the time Hardy reclined against his luggage the train. Hardy, boarded a vessel for comes at last when a man must sleep, and slept deliriously until the sun ui. ins and not nvruy snowed me being provided, like a horse, arose,1 when he was awakened by the 'rtnass as a rifle Bhot. princess with four legs, "one on each corner," stinging of a cloud of gnats. Sitting CHAPTER XI. he finds It necessary to measure his upright, he noticed that the lotka of the princess was deserted by its fair length on something. passenger. Casting his eyes about, he now to the test was It necessary Up the Amur. blackened ruins of Aigun and depths of the water constantly. Two observed maid and mistress strolling WtrultWifJ plsly Btory' of men and women men, one on either side of the prow, along the government road that tol lows the course of the Shilka and that o In that swoop of the Cossacks, sounding by means of stakes attached serves as a channel for the stream of t awful as to they picture of fire, slaughter ropes, swaying rhythmically reclalmw Into Manchuria. rapine, and the thousands tram- cast their wooden spears, chanting the Cossacks that pours wrs i by horses, cut down by the depths: "Chetyre. chetyrepolovena, The bank was high at this point and many the women were above him. plainly ra, or driven to death in the turbid pyat!" (Four, four and a hair, five!) visible In the bright sun. The Ro ur, Illustrated. steamer In Hardy's mind, As often as a her Japanese para manovna, twirling truma made pnase of the advance of Russian little captain passed, the IDAHO' sol on her shoulder, walked rapidly llzatlon; another and more pleas- - pet of his hands and shouted across to lT.D pnase was symbolized by the large its commander: "How much water is and with a Joyous freedom of motion tsried fully that testified to her love of the open t7mnaBium of there in the Shilka?" air. wathe that rumor jortuniti "ret buildlne of Blagovestchensk, that nroeresslve The disquieting "I wonder if she plays golf." mused fern was gaining city that could be seen from ter was rapidly falling and at that very moment he lorries wits of the Alexsav. confirmation by each report. Once Hardy, that he, too, was cramped, " RallroJ ie Imperial perceived cried: on which the men with the poles Line In the boat. He got out, there sitting 1 tie script, mbarked about dark, was a (three and a half), and the and struck vigorously accordingly, At resouro as. bottom. on the imaller boat than the Alexsay. steamer scraped stretch of sand de wide a D.B; across f HKhtor draft. There were only Tokrovka. a dreary Cossack village water. He was high during posited the and l akeCUj. Amur of the cabins, all forward, and near the junction me 15 some minutes cnmoing smaller a Pr princess was obliged to Shilka rivers, they found that drew bank, and when he at last reachedeieep the them Into three of boat awaiting mall was nowhere to be these, the the princess road, changed the other thrpo. llnrdv man- - but three feet of water. They seen. Indeed, the road at this point hullal a to obtain an rrom the rtver upper berth In a over again with scramble tor places, turned sharply "wagg cabin aft, but was soon baloo and a grand the foot of n around and disappeared "0 Ottt Of thin na tha Rimslnn he- - all save the general and the princess, hill. that It however, knew, Hardy into the aim smoked and he nmi filthv brand who moved leisurely to back the river, wind must Wrettes all cabins, like the superior beings therefore followed the wide dusty trail night, lighting them "ve minutes with they were. on a confidently, although it seemed to The next day they stuck fast matches tho trriri fnmea nf Into the heart of the wilder, und a boat's crew carried plunge with the Binoke, arose ness. Once or twice he asked him and river ts All Trai p. mingled the clouds to his nostrils and the anchor far up so rapidly, a stout haw self why he was walking 'M Pntlrp nul.ln dropped it, attached to Ttio Dnuuhina "Why, each time made answer: B NO. 12 and a to me oi means of course." with Hardy's surprise, kept the ser Then bv lotka, my to up keep steamer the window tightly closed, and, they deliberately warped was too thorough a gentleman to adof the same day they He dark Be ftrnSM At loose. nnnn to llmoa ouvorol . M l.tllTfJ to himself that he was pursuing the u in 214 fcet of wa mit the other, his fellow pasRen- - grounded for goodbelow a great tramp princess; he would not have done such ter a few yards on Beacon Btreet; why should '"waiatfly shut it again. imbedded athwart the a thing 'rose at Inst. on a government road In Sinml went steamer firmly It do cIiprkpH he of goa caiu There was no hope channel. with At any rate, It would be an beria? taking his blankets e air was either up or down for many d;.,s Indiscreet thing to do, as she would balmy and he soon ing come. The peasants took the ma his presump'P, lulled by the breathing of to would sim- be sure to crush him for " and the whispering of the ter philosophically; they rent free, tion. But he certainly had Just as were, Hilt ho .... . a n ply live where they to get out and wa'Jt as J a bread and milk of the good As right thus and was he Ssn?ks. When Rod saw fit to send she. about come soliloquizing to the conclusion that pasgrngers and ttie bnggnge had on. Sed ovor to another steamer water they would go he was in a fair way at last of making trlflkS l0BS watcr nnd wa8' an ass of himself, he thought he heard CHAPTER XII. , "Htfly fni. f thn a shrill scream In the distance. ListenIn his mouth, he all save the nrlncess and L ing with his heart Tn the Rescue. first the cry was folfor a"ra. of smaller holding ca- sure, was do, the general the would what despairing wild, others This new put .... steamer brought .... nf Irkutsk". ror, as lowed by woman in the most a 111 of , as nary t shrieks, 2 'huletlnn rumor that the everybody knew, he fear. . .n,t th-- - White excruciating lor 'I"KH, WHICH shouted Hardy, on a , "Coming! coming!" for the genkar would his In pocket ' feeling and, falling r nnA Into account. which, thank turo-- l .ate. --' maae eral's American pistol, they took on a detach-,,":".- ; were intentions , J r the cola general's the cHva'.ry In "faded, . 81m y- XortU-America- n sup-wdl- jr ui first-clas- pre-em- 2 down-comin- "Tres-polovena- mail-steame- fc A-- or s WN, 1 multi-lingua- a"? ery 3d first-clas- s .ble sand-bank- iium. VF V '- -- I.' .1 I 7 B- '1 i i aaey re(uoo d Drutf Co ' otffii s and the two Chinese fell sprawling. with bullets through their bodies. The other two promptly dropped the faint ing women and started to run. Hardy aimed deliberately at the one who had seized the princess and fired. It was a long shot, but the bullet took effect, as a scream of pain testified. Neither the princess nor the maid evinced any signs of reviving, but lay there huddled on the ground as though dead. Hardy ran to the edge of the bluff and there, as good fortune would have It, was the general's lotka, and the general himself strolling along leisurely on the sand. The American shouted so loudly and flung his arms about so wildly that the orderly, the two muzhiks and even the governor himself, were soon scrambling up the steep bank toward him. The Romanovna had revived by the time they all reached ber. and sat In the tall grass putting up her abundant ' hair, woman fashion, and looking about with awakening eyes. She was as pale as a ghost and held out her hands appeallngly. Hardy ad the general helped her to herject, and it was the American who supported her until her trembling limbs regained their strength. The general surveyed the dead Chinese, and then, standing squarely In front of Hardy, removed his cap and made a low bow. At the next station they found a small government boat the Pushkin, awaiting them, that drew only one foot of water. It had been sent down by the authorities to pick up the general, and Courtland Hardy, leader, was taken on board and one of the four cabins was given to him, although one 1 1 the greatest heiresses In all Russia was thereby compelled to occupy a room with her maid. , CHAPTER XIII. Woman's Gratitude. The princess was sitting on one of the benches of the upper deck, attired In the costume of Little Russia, with the Japanese parasol turned toward the sun, over her shouder. Hardy had rather avoided her since the Incident of the brigands, as he felt that any attempt at friendship on his part would be tiking advantage of the service he had been able to render her a service which, he assured him self, he would have performed Just as eagerly for the humblest peasant woman on the boat. The Romanovna, In fact, bad been nearly prostrated since that dreadful happening, re malning In her cabin until now, under the care of her maid. "Monsieur," che said to Hardy, who was promenading the little deck. He threw away his cigar, removed his hat and bowed very low. He noticed that she was still pale and that her eyes looked unnaturally large. "Parlei' vouz Francais,, monsieur?" she asked, sweetly, with a perfect Parisian ac cent "Un peu, madame," he replied, "but unfortunately, very badly." "Ah, but you do speak It!" she cried with animation, "you speak it well, or at least well enough to enable me to express to you my undying gratitude I owe you my life, monsieur! Pray, sit down here beside me. I owe you my escape from a horrible, a hideous rate." Hardy sat beside her on the bench "You owe me nothing, madame," he said; "there was no grent danger for me, really. The the obligation is all on my side. There Is not a muzhik or Bouriat on the boat who would not have done the same thing. They are all envious of my great good for tune." "I owe you, nevertheless, my life," she insisted, "and you have my ucdy Ing gratitude, as I said. I do not know how I shall ever be able to re pay you!" Hardy frowned. "I did not do It with any thought of repayment of any kind, madame," he said. "You will best recompense Struggling In the Arms of a Big Chinese. me If you will dismiss all thought of obligation. It would pain me to think that I had Imposed any such imaginary burden on you.' I am more than repaid in my own satisfaction. I trust you are quite recovered from the shock." "But you were wounded! The general tells me that you were wounded. Do not deny it!" she commanded, smiling. "The entire boat knows of It. It is fortunate the arrow was not poisoned." "Not wounded," replied Hardy; "merely scratched." The princess fixed her eyes on him for several moments. "I have always Insisted," she murmured, "that the American gentlemen compare favorably with those of any country In the world, and now I know It Pray do me the honor to sit here and talk with me a while. We will change the subject, If you desire. How do you like our Russia?" Hardy talked with her for an hour or so. She spoke slowly and distinctly for him, and he found, under such delightful auspices, bis French was a much more practical and useful acquirement than he bad thought. They talked of the Increasing activity of the Chinese marauders, of the possibility of war with Japan, of the wild flowers of Siberia, of Russian and American society. He found her Intensely patriotic, and firm In the belief that Russia could crush Japan in a month, should hostilities actually break out. As they were thus engaged In conversation the general approached, and, bowing before the princess, proposed zakouska to Hardy. "Ah, monsieur," she laughed, "do you know the great Russian Institution of zakouska?" "Yes," he replied. "It was about the first Russian word I learned, and I have heard It more frequently thnn any other since." "Then," she said, rising and taking the general's arm, "we will have zakouska in my cabin. Will you do us the honor of Joining us?" "Certainly." replied Hardy, with alacrity. "I find it a most delightful custom!" And all day long they steamed up the winding and yellow Amur through virgin solitudes of rolling prairie, through interminable stretches of primeval forest, with medieval Russia on the right and ancient, prehistoric China on the left. The grinding and Jarring of the little steamer on the sand was now a Ocmatter of hourly occurrence. casionally a large river boat would be passed, high foundered and dry, either deserted or occupied by a few passengers, patiently waiting for the water to rise. Many rowboata drifted by, laden with more fortunate people, going with the swift current rather than against It To these the captain shouted continually: "How Is the water in the Shilka?" And ever came the same reply: off that Hardy, Btuck for good. thought they wera It was necessary to wake up the passengers, with the exception of her highness, the princess, and drive them all over to one aide of the boat to list her. After an hour ot most exciting work, during which the captain dashed forward and back on the bridge, gesticulating with his entire body and shouting like a madman, they got off and were under way again, only to make another hour's stop for wood. This time, as before, a bewblskered muzhik was sitting on the bank by a flaring fire. He could be seen very distinctly from a great distance, and as the steamer approached the officer In command shouted at blm again and again. The soundness with which he waa sleep ing, with bead upon breast and arma folded upon knees, gave rise to con- slderable amusement among such ot the passengers as were awake. The plank was laid and several of the crew ran up to him. One ot them pushed him and he sprawled over. . ' "He's dead!" announced the sailor. "Dead?" "Yes, sir; transfixed by an arrow." He put his foot upon the man's breast and, seizing something, pulled. A moment later he held up in the light of the bonfire a Chinese war arrow; then, throwing It to the earth, be stooped and wiped his hand upon tho grass. . '' ' Toward morning they stuck on the sand again, In a wide part of the river, with dense forests on either bank. The steamer drifted about and blocked up a narrow channel through which they were attempting to pass. The sand came level with the surface ot the water on either hrvnd. The captain tried In vain all the expedients known on the Amur; he attempted to lift the boat around by means of a mast planted at her side In the river; he sent the anchor up stream and essayed to drag hpr through bodily by means of the windlass; he added to this power the pulling force of a wooden windlass, set up on one bank of the river, whose long cross bar waa manned by half the boat's crew, but without aueceaa. "Wrhat Is the matter?" the princess, coming out on the deck about nine o'clock In the morning, asked Hardy. are stuck for good," explained the American. "I hope you slept "e well?" "Excellently, thank you! But I hope we are not stranded, as I have Invited some friends to a house party at my country place near Moscow." A rowboat drifted Into the mouth ot the channel and lodged against the side of the steamer. It contained four dead, one of whom was a priest in long robes. He was lying flat on hie back, with his head lolling horribly over the side, his venerable beard All were floating In the water. pierced wjth arrows. The general offered the princess his arm and . her below. "Zakouska?" he said, patting bet "Falling, slowly falling." At midnight they ran upon a sand hand. bank and had such difficulty getting con-duct- ' t (TO BE CONT1NTK!).) ' |