Show s Mtf r IR Y < qWfl Co2C O 41 COPYRIGHT i 90C THe COAfAo1tVY 1 SYNOPSIS a fashionable Boston ck iinnly hlB wraith was Jilted lost nalfrlendatotake riaandosenttibS a friend to take rl 1 anndAflcrlcaii Trading Company f anu pnv hh Journey through Russia 4tnolcton Neville sup e net Engllslnnlln They agreed to an Because DC RUS Hussla her to they woro severnl clrcutnstnnccs tJapanese sIaNy ole3tmltbYCthe Japanese IInnlY pets olested showing nool maps of his Jup perRon CortR perl iguiltless On a train AIF mo tSano Udaughterr nt a Jar Aleomo shoeR Jnp Cound Nevlllos barn L Nevliroslitohim to be a 01 f HnrdY for fius Hardy departed tor nu spy which was wrecked miir a steamer He was rescued by afterward On reaching Vladl n steamer well treated He started omanovnu RI a f meetlnB Princess llomanovna ria boarded a vessel for Hardy rain M U allowed the princess his lardy rule shot The steamer ss as a Tho princess and her ardy nfltd bYrChinesenh eredettacked by Chinese Hardy ere thanked Mr lives The princess for his heroism Mniichurlnts thescraft Hardy slew their jornlnB arrows were hurled upon hkfns deck An attempt was hklns bOard the cssel The attacking renulspd nomanolT sneered were sol cltudu for the princess HIS ys i a msienBpr cross on MB shore To help put was aft hf ka awful out of torture hit misery Har taking his In Ms hands CHAPTER XIX A Perilous Mission g all this time the forest fires creasing In intensity and ng with great rapidity If red and narrow lanes of an zigzag to the waters edge I earns of fire Monster designs orked out on tho hillsides In tably an Immense heart andes and-es whore tho vegetation was the slopes woro spotted with s of flame afternoon tho heat on tho i was almost Intolerable and omfort caused to the eyes ie smarting smoko was great e was no longer any fear that n board would suffocate or from the Intensity of the heat I were undoubtedly at their and It was possible to live to Out there in tho middle of r there was no danger of the lelf catching fire and tho wind ps coming straight down the j brought coolness and life I from the wide Siberian plains ardy stood watching the scene ght the princess came up to I 1 said hare nothing to fear from tho I I fancy They must have jay j-ay They must think wo are most probable replied Hardy ear that It will be some time ire shall be able to take to tho ihe military station below e princess there Is a tele onnectlng with the one above 8slble for a boat of shallow J get down the river to a little E back The general asked the one of their number would not er to carry a dispatch to the 1 but I am ashamed to say that I j has responded They are do tr by the dreadful fate of poor 1 11 I go cried Hardy Ask the I to let me go 1 can keep to die of the stream till I have a the fires either wading or ig down the swift current o I i cannot extend more than a y so down the river n distance J sed 1 over and then I vlll take d Ighway I am a foreigner and pd shall not be In so great i I as a Russian It Is not a dlf P plertaklng i nm sure I shall II > ugh c princess left him without a ht ul t returned ten minutes later sadly and shaking her head as I thought she said This s refuses lie says It would be r p disgrace to tho Russian b I foreigner should undertake ba lng He Is making one moro the a < > the men Ho is calling them tie Japanese poltroons r d 1 hoped said Hardy sadly ou People would no longer re Jot e quite In the light of a for IJ AM far at least as tho proW pro-W 1 the boat are concerned I have earn the right to be counted f ° i If i imvo done anything ale 1 Tour own regard personally c loo as an especial favor toy to-y I thIs dispatch for mo and let d B oa I tell you again that IBO 01 hinny I-BO with or without itS It-S b refuse I shall on tho Instant C V the river and start on my J of You not to put It In that jeep tplled the prince if you 1 that way you know i cannot ot hope nm occasion may arise j 1 iiL that will allow nio In some p L htow In a befitting manner my tlasting gratitude to you nut j ate aolt I taking Iln unfair udvan are HrvltnB to place mo aI greater k f obligations to you sa for B 110 gratitude replied 01T iea I imply seeking n favor ile 1nlllodatoa lon from you > l nm tcr sou to write ll few 1I110s for IllY m 0 lour highness still refuse nth 3 jregdnl 1 liy und God bo with ii I u not meot again I beg 1l11 goodlly Os to pink of mo us ono 4 oar hand I on the rail but silo extended her arm and him detained Stay she whispered I wm write the dispatch for YOu I She wont to her cabin and Hardy made his few hurried preparations for departure which consisted simply In swallowing a few mouthfuls kouska In filling his oC za ± flask with vodka and In slipping into his pocket a flat bottle empty but tightly corked When he returned to the deck ho found the the princess awaiting him with dispatch ready Hardy wound it Into a tight cylinder and poked It Into the bottle which ho corked and put Into his pocket Thank you ho said simply to the princess She extended her hand and he took It holding It hut afraid to look Into her eyes it was an honest hand that held his own In a strong warm pros sure I shall pray for your safety she murmured all the time till 1 see or hear from you again He raised the hand to his lips then climbed lightly over the rail and droPPod Into the river The water reached nearly to his armpits at this place lIe did not look back but throwing himself on his Cure swam I return which they are certain to do when the flro subsides There said the general you havo your commands from an authority which you ought to respect if you do not heed mine I shall have another talk with the men I am sure they aro nshamed of themselves by this time It will be untipcessary for you to trouble yourself further about tho mat ter said the princess blushing slightly and looking down for aa man somo one has already gone Uomanoff started violently and fixed his eyes on her Who was 1t1 asked the general The princess throw her head back and regarded him defiantly The American she replied Ten thousand devils exclaimed nomanoff The meddlesome dogl Hut I refused to lot him go said Urn general it Is a disgrace to the Russian name I take all the responsibility said the Hotnanovim bravely Ho asked mo as a favor to write tho dispatch for him and I did so He has placed me under certain obligations and I felt I could not refuse And I suppose sneered Romanoff that if he were to ask you for a kiss it ltttu N 7 t ll I 1r h l l I t I I I II i f r i I q I I f f 1 i l I I I Regarded Him Defiantly I The American I She Replied with easy strokes the swift current sweeping him rapidly downward Soon his knees touched the soft sand and walk for some distance < ho was able to not far ere he tance Ho had gone stranded and abandoned came on a timber of raft and he rolled a piece from this which he guided to the He current He was glad to deep of this bit down again and float upon water cover his wood letting tho body for he was coming to a narrow and tho air was cr part of the stream very hot CHAPTER XX Romanoffs Wooing get I can can go I I tell you I tbiiuih somrtio Men have gone through worse wounded greater distance than 1 Romanoff who was speaking It was mined facing the gen He sat up and Ills would rise oral us though he und the pain consequent stlrrenell had wound caused him exertion till > sequent to turn palo 011 hilt Iw dill not wince Ho room on ono lying In the dining was cushions that extended the ullhulstNOl1 or three sides of It tended around I miles six The current Is at least an hour he Insisted and I could with fli0 to thing light to cling dlstuuco the entlro stifling ollll lire port Tho Bent was withn smoke wero milky boles w princess on At this moment the tOIOIl Bnrls she I excite ourseIr she said Dont unxlolly yourself will noulra i nursing oC effects my line till th ungrateful good of yau not to lie I thlnl It what 1 con do let 1110 show und still to starvo leave OU hlro s and Yes 1 lie care burned up or I rhllps or bo vben they tied off by till Ioncllllriuns you would think It your duty to grant even that Your gratitude no doubt will be undying You forget yomHelf sir cried Romanovnu turning on him with flashing flash-ing eyes You presume too much on your relationship One moresuch speech and I shall cancel your name from the list of my speaking acquaintances ac-quaintances General I await your sentence I beg that you will not passover pass-over my offense lightly Oh this Is all nonsense growled the general You know that I cannot can-not punish youwould not If I could If ono of the men had done this I should know what to do with him But no way has ever been devised for managing an unruly woman or preventing pre-venting her having her way With this ungracious speech he turned and left the room The princess prin-cess gazed after him sadly This then was her punishmentthe bravo old generals displeasure and It was not easy to bear I choose to forget your extraordinary extraordin-ary remark Boris she said sitting down by her cousin I shall remem are wounded and that hour that you yon must be suffering here In this hot smoky air I sympathize with Irritation too and think It jour much rather noble of you I would that a Russian had goneand she his laid her hand soothingly on Why did you not encourage my going go-Ing then ho asked still sullen I believe with the general that ato unable to go that tho effort you would almost certainly havo resulted In your death And you dont want mo to die I suppose You would be dosolated by departure for another sphere my Boris dont ho sarcastic Of course I should be desolutod as you call It if anything happened to you I > Eliiabctha said Romanoff eagerly eager-ly you know why I enduro it so III when others perform services for you You know that I would undertake any task that might win your regard your love that I would gladly face any danger In your behalf And now that thisthis Americanhas saved your life I could kill him for it You did not want my life saved then she asked sweetly Oh you aro enough to try tho temper of an angel You know what I mean I did not want him to do It You aro under no obligation to him for saving your life You know that there Is not a man in your circle of acquaintance who would not consider It the greatest luck In the world to have a chanco to bravo danger for i you and that such an opportunity should have come to this this Bo generous Boris If you wish to win my esteem interrupted the princess > prin-cess and dont bo unreasonable In your envy You havo braved danger for me and aro now wounded fighting In my behalf and I am nursing ydi Can you not Imagine that there are those who would envy your present 1 position You aro not grateful oven for tho favors that you do receive Think of your wound which Is really quite serious Well then you bo serious for once said Romanoff smiling in spite of himself and toll mo that you love jne Suroly you cannot doubt my do vollon Do you think it quite fair to bring that subject up hero she asked 1 when you know that you have mo at a disadvantage But you always find some excuse for not talking to mo about It You always evade mo in somo way But I am not a man ho cried fiercely to bo evaded or escaped I lovo you as only a Romanoff can lovo 1 shall not give up suing for your hand while I live and woe to the man who crosses my path Oh If I could only fight z t It w ti fi4 te 3 L l i II 7 i i ti 4 1 I f Nothing Except That Your Hardy Remained There In Japan with Her for you 1 would wade through seas of blood but I would have you I would have you Romanovna shuddered but she came nearer loving him at that Instant than at any other moment of her life If you will not talk of these matters mat-ters now will you after we get to Moscow 7 1 Perhaps she replied softly but U > 1 us about Japan unless It Irritates j n wound to talk hy there Isnt much to tell I passed myself off as an Englishman and Rounded all classes of people I took note of the popular feeling of tho strength of tho national defenses and resources and made plans of the principal fortifications and sea approaches ap-proaches All the time I was thinking of you and wearing my heart out for I another sight of your Yes I exclaimed tho princess This is most absorbing about the conditions condi-tions of affairs there I moan And what conclusion did you arrive at my dear cousin 7 I became positively convinced that I tho Japanese mean to mnko war on Russia that no diplomatic temporizing temporiz-ing can postpone the struggle much longer Tho whole nation to a man to n 1 wonuni to a child Is united against us by tho bonds of tho most fanatic hatred Their population comprises no classes no disaffected races they arc a unit in this matter limo war will bo one to tho death and they will fight until tho last man Is killed I concluded moreover thai they are not n foo to bo despised They are a formidable sea power and thuy can throw largo and well equipped armies Into Manchuria and Korea within a very Cow weeks after tho first blow Is struck I shall advise tho Little Father to begin pouring troops Into tho far cast and to strengthen the defenses and garrison of Port Arthur Immediately I shall ask to be sent to tho front with tho first troops that goOf go-Of course you will my bravo cousin cried tho princess admiringly admiring-ly and you will como back from tho war covered with glory and 1 shall be proud of you I But I can scarcely bellovo that Japan is so formidable an adversary as you say You will Bee replied Romanoff with conviction Well let her begin thtwar said tho princess rising her eyes Hashing Thoro can bo only ono outcome of It and that will result in tho added prestige and power of Holy Russia But tell mo moro of your personal adventures ad-ventures Why they are not particularly interesting In-teresting I passed off all right enough as an Englishman till this fellow Hardy came along Mr Hardy You mot him there You did not tell mo this nor has ho No and I surmise tho fellow has good reason not to Soon after his arrival ar-rival 1 became convinced that tho police were on my trail So 1 attempted at-tempted to throw suspicion on him I conducted him to the fortifications of Yokohama and ho In seeming Innocence In-nocence took photographs of them I also made a copy of my draft of the fortifications and slipped It Into his overcoat pocket Wo wero arrested and after much palaver wo were sent on our way There was n Japanese girl on the train by tho way to whom ho mado love In the most open manner man-ner They wore as thick as two billing bill-ing doves Ho was Infatuated with bur said that her cheeks wero tinged with moonllg < that she was yellow because her mortal clay was mixed with golddust and that alto was a Queen of Fairyland Ho must bo something of n poet said the princess laughing nervously this Mr Hardy Now If you could talk to tho women nice that my dear cousin Wore you not Jealous of him 7 Jealous Jealous of his success with a coolie girl Not I who know such women as you Ellzabetha I But tills Japanese gill ChIll is In m I tonsely exciting What has she to do i with tho story Nothing except that your Hardy remained there In Japan with bar and I was sent homo as I supposed on n steamer from Hakodate I had not boon out long bolero I found that 1 t i had boon betrayed and that I was to F x bo locked up Bomowhcro on an Island Such woro the orders but tho crow were actuary planning to kill mo 1 escaped killed two or three of thorn put to sea In an open boat was picked up by a Chinese sampan and so got r l back to Russia t My bravo Boris Tho Virgin val with you and besides thoy found I f that they had captured a lion i But I havo not finished tolling you about this American I am convinced L that ho Is a Japanese sympathizer and that ho suggested to tho authorities Ics thoro that I was not nn Englishman English-man Ho Is n low follow and 1 strongly suspect that ho Is a Tow He vas coming over hero ho said to run t a store Ho Is a libertine I am sure u and remained behind to conduct his r intrigues with the Japanese girl tlf U Msomo I believe she called herself Bulk this Is moro conjecturo Doris hfl and I must not believe those things against him till they are proved I + r Why must you not believe In thom What reason have you for regarding t him with much favor Tell mo k Because ho has shown himself so Car as I havo observed a gontloman i I1 1 of tho most resolute courage and tins a l most refined and delicate sentiments Oh ho hash Well when I toll you that ho Is I n low fellow probably an enemy of Russia a llbortlno porhaps a Jew I cannot listen to you Boris said t tho princess you really must be more generous Her voice was low y r but there was an angry light In her M = t eyesHas w Has the follow been making love 4 to you as ho did to the Japanese sneered Romanoff The princess arose and moved away i I said that I would not quarrel with you Boris sho murmured ht Thoro woro tears in hor lovely bluo oyes She was suro now that aha o r could nover lovo her cousin mod tube know that thq Imputations aalnst t r Hardy who as far as her own observations ob-servations went approached very V near to her Ideal of a chlvalnc gentleman h gen-tleman would rankle In hor bosom w like a poisoned arrow l Yq She walked over to Smuldcrs and r was Inquiring after him In Gorman f which shoo understood when she heard tho loud shriek of a whistle and the general rushed Into the room 1 Vo are saved ho cried Two boats with 20 soldiers on them have come down the river They were sent h down as soon as news of the fire was telegraphed to tho station above Thoy have a launch with them and her highness can bo transferred without with-out oven wetting her dainty foot 111m forgiven thon general asked the princess I have been severely punished In enduring your displeasure oven for so short a time BeUuty such as yours madamo can do no wrong replied tho gallant general extending his ban Perhaps said Romanff grimly l the Chinese will get him anti servo him as they did Stenka They wero taken on the two fresh boats In the early dawn and steamed a t y away by the light of a red sun that stained with dragons blood the clouds j I piled In masses above tho blackened forests still fiercely burning As they mado a bond In the river that shutout shut-out from sight the stranded Pushkin j the ashgray veil lifted for a moment from the Manchurian side revealing the great dross and the form of brave Stenka Pugachoff hanging on it The Russians crossed themselves and uncovering un-covering their heads prayed silently for the repose of his soul Then raising rais-ing their hands to heaven they swore vengeance h vengeanceTO TO nE CONTINUED |