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Show The Princess Elopes By HAROLD McGRATH Author of "The Ma or tho Bok," "Ho.rts nd Msks." Elo. . (Cop;rltit, lwtt, lu.bli.-Mrrrlll Co.) SYNOPSIS. Arthur Warrington. American consul to Marnclu'lt. tolls how reigning Ornnd Duke attempts to force hlii nelce. 1'rln-fCJS 1'rln-fCJS HUdcgnrde, to tmirry I'rlneo Dopple-jilim, Dopple-jilim, nil old widower. While riding horcebnek In tho country night overtakes him and ue seeks accommodations In u dilapidated castle. Here ho finds Princess Prin-cess HIMi'garde and u friend, Hon. Hetty Moore, of Knglund. They detain him to witness a mock marriage between the princess und a disgraced army olllrer. Hlelnhook, done for the purpose of foiling tho grand duke. Htelnhock attempts to kiss tho princess anil hIid Is rescued liy Warrington. Hlulnbock disappears for Rood. Max Hcharfvnsteln, an old American Ameri-can friend of Warrington's reaches Hnr-sehclt. Hnr-sehclt. Warrington tells him of tho prill-cess. prill-cess. Bcharfcnxteln shows Warrington a locket with a picture of a womun Inside. In-side. It was on Ids nerk when he. as a boy, was picked up und adopted by his foster father, whose namo ho was given. He believes It to Ik- a picture of his mother. Tho grand' duke announces to tlie princess that sho Is to marry Dopplo-kliui Dopplo-kliui the following week. During u morning's morn-ing's ride sho plans to esrnpe. Sho meets Hcharfensteln. Ho finds a purse sho has dropiied but does not discover her Iden-Ity. Iden-Ity. Warrington entertains at a public restaurant for a number of American medical students. Max arrives lato and relates nn Interesting bit of gossip to tlm effect that tho princess has run awny from llarsehell. He unwittingly offends a native olllcer and subjects himself to certain arrest. Max Is persuaded to take one of the American student's pnssiwirts mill escape. The granil duke discovers the escape of the princess. 8he leaves a note saying she has eloped. Kfforts are made to slop the princess at the frontier. Hetty Moore nsks for her passport. She asks Warrington for assistance In leaving leav-ing Ilarschelt, nnd Invites him to call on her In London. Max lluds tho princess In the railway carriage. Sho accuses him of following her. CHAPTERix-Contlnued. "I haven't tho slightest Idea of what you nro talking; about," he said, mightily might-ily discouraged. "I never saw this country till Monday, and never wnnt to seo It again." "From what aro you running awny then?" skeptically. "I am running nway from u man who slapped me In the face," bitterly; nnd all his wrongs returned to hlm. "Indeed ! " doi Isl vely . "Yes, 1!" Ho thrust out both IiIh great arms miserably. "I'm n healthy lot '.ting Individual, am I not, to bo running run-ning away from anything?" "Especially after having been a soldier sol-dier In the Spanish war. Why did you toll mo that your namo was Schorfon-stoln?" Schorfon-stoln?" "Heaven on earth. It Is Schnrfen-Rtoln! Schnrfen-Rtoln! I'm simply taking my chnnco on another man's passports." "I am unconvinced," ungraciously. Sho wns, howover. Inordinately happy; nt the sight of the picture of woo on 1 his face all her trust In hlm returned. She believed every word ho said, but she wanted to know everything. "Very woll; I see thnt I must tell ' you everything to get back Into your good graces Frnulein von Holdoloff." "If you over wero in my good graces!" Graphically ho recounted the ndvon-turu ndvon-turu ut Midler's. Ho was a capital , story toller, and ho mado a very good Impression. "If It hadn't been for the princess' eloping I should not have been hero," ! ho concluded, "for my friend would I hnve had a waiter bring mo that I chair." "Tho princess' eloping!" aghast. "Why, yes. It seems that sho eloped to-night; so the report came from tho palace." Tho girl sat tight, as thoy say; then suddenly sho burst Into uncontrollable laughter. It was tho drollest thing she i had over heard. Sho saw tho duke tearing around tho palace, ordering tho pollen hither and thither, sending tele-, tele-, grams, waking his advisors nnd drag- glng them from their bods. My! what I u hubbub! Suddenly sho grow serious. , "Have yon the revolver still?" "Yob." I "Toss It out of tho whitlow ; quick!" "Hut" "Do an I say. Thoy will naturally Koarchyou at tho frontier." Ho took out tho revolver and gazed regretfully ut It, while tho girl could not repress n shudder. "Whut a horrid-looking thing!" "I carried It all through the war." I "Throw It away and buy u new one." , "Hut tho associations!" "They will lock you up us u danger-' danger-' huh pernoii." Sho lot down tho window win-dow and. the cold night ulr rushed In. ' "(Jive It o me." He did so. Sho Hung : It far Into the night, i "There, that Is better. Some day I j cm will understand." "1 shall never understand anything In this country What are you running run-ning nway from?" "A man with a red nose." "A rod nose? Aro thoy so frightful hero us that?" "This one In lie Hunts -to marry me." "Marry you!" "Yes; rather remurkablo that any man should desire me as a wife, Isn't It?" Ho saw that sho wns Ironical. Hnv-Ing Hnv-Ing nothing to uy. he said nothing, but looked longingly at tho vncnnt space beside her. She rested her chin upon the sill of the window and gazed at the stars. A wild rush of the wind beat upon her face, bringing a thousand vague heavy perfumes and a pleasant numbing. How elovoroly she had eluded the duke's police! What a brilliant Idea It had been to use her private carriage key to steal into the carriage compartment compart-ment long before tho train was mnde. up! It had been some trouble to light tho lamps, but In doing so sho had avoided tho possible dutiful gunrd. Ho had peered In, but, seeing that tho lamps were lighted, concluded that oao of his fellows had been tho rounds. The police would watch nil those who entored or left tho station, but never would they think to search a carriage car-riage Into which no ono had been seen to enter. Hut oh, what a frightful predicament pre-dicament sho was In! All she possessed pos-sessed In tho world was a half-crown, scarce enough for her breakfast. And If sho did not llnd her governess at onco she would be lost utterly, and In Dresden! She choked back tho sob. Why couldn't they lot her bo? Sho didn't want to innrry any one thnt Is, Just yet. She didn't want her wings cllnjiod before sho had learned what n lino thing it wns to lly. Sho was young. "Oh!" "What Is It?" sho said, turning. "I have something of yours," answered an-swered Max, fumbling In his pocket, grateful for some oxcuso to brenk tho silence. "You dropped your purBO this morning, rormlt mo to return It to you. I hadn't tho remotest idea how I was going to return It. In truth, I had just made up my mind to keep It ns n souvenir." Site literally snatched It from his extended hand. "My purse! My purse! And I thought It vtob gono forever!" hugging It hys- a Ills clothes at tho consulate ho had left his mone . and nil ho had with hlm was some pocket chnnge. The girl saw his action nnd road the secret in the look of dismay wnlch spread over IiIr face. "You have no money either?" iho crlod. Sho separated the packet of notes into two etpial parts. "Hero!" Ho smiled weakly. "Tnko them!" "No, a thousand times, no! I have a watch, and there's always a pawnbroker pawn-broker handy, even In Kurope." "You offered to help mo," alio Insisted. In-sisted. "It is not qulto tho same." "Take a quurter of It." "No. Don't you understand? Ireult) couldn't." "One, Just on.-, then!" sho pleaded. An Idea cumo to him. "Very well; 1 will tnko ono." And whon sho gave It to him ho folded It reverently nnd put It awny. "I understand!" sho cried. "You nre Just going to keep It; you don't Intend to spoad It nt all. Don't bo foolish!" "I shall notify my friend, when wo reach Doppolklnn, that I am without funds, and ho will telegraph to Dresden." Dres-den." "Your friends wore very wise In sending you away as thoy did. Aren't you always getting Into troublo?" "Yes. Hut I doubt tho wisdom of my friends in sending mo nway as thoy did," with a frank glance Into her eyes. How beautiful they wero, now that tho sparkle of mischief had loft thorn! Sho looked away. If only Doppolklnn Doppol-klnn wore young llko this! She sighed. "Can they force ono to mnrry In this country?" ho asked abruptly. "When ono Is In my circumstances." Ho wanted to ask what tlioso circumstances cir-cumstances were, but what ho said was: "Ib thcro anything I can do to help you'" 'You nro oven moro helpless than I am," softly. "If you aro caught you 'Perm to to You.'" torlcolly to her heart. Sho fovorlBlily tried to unlatch tho clasps. "You need not opon it," ho said quietly, even proudly. "I had no thought of looking Into It, even to prove your Identity." "Pardon! I did not think. I wns bo crazy to seo it again." She laid tho purse beside her. "You bco," with an hysterical catch la her voice, "all tho money 1 had In tho world was In that purse, nnd only heavon knows what misfortunes wero about to befall mo. There wero, and nre, a thousand crowns In the purse." "A thousand crownB?" "In bunk-notcR. Thank you, thank you! I am so happy!" clasping her hands. Then, witli a smile ns warm us the summer's sun, sho ndded: "You may come and sit close beside mo. You may even smoke." Max grew light-headed. This was as near heaven as ho ever expected to got. "Open your purse and look Into it," ho Raid. "I'm a hruto; you are dying to do so." "May I?" shyly. Then It came Into Max's mind, with all tho brilliancy of a dynamo spark, that this was the one girl In all tho world, tho Ideal he had been searching for; and he wanted to fall at her feet anil tell her so. "hook!" she cried gleefully, holding up the packet of bank-notes. "I wish," he Hald boyishly, "that you didn't have any money at all, so I could help you ami feel that you depended upon me." Sho smiled. How a woman loves this simple kind of llnttory! It tells her bettor what who may wish to know than n thousand hymns sung 4u praise of her beauty. Hut even us ho spoke a chill of horror hor-ror went over Max. Ho put his hand hurriedly Into his vest pocket. Kool! IAbs! How like a man! In changing will bo Imprisoned. I shall only suffer a tomporary Iosb of liberty; my room will bo my dungeon-keep." How big and handsome und strong ho looked! Whut a terrible thing It wns to bo born In purple! "Tell mo about yourself." His hand strnyed absently townrd his upper voHt pocket and thou fell to his side. Ho llcke.l his lips. "Smoke!" she commanded Intuitively. Intuitive-ly. "I said that you might." "I can talk hotter whon I smoke," ho advanced rather lamely. "May I, then?" gratefully. "1 command It!" Wusa't It fine to bo ordored about In this fashion? If only tho train might go on und on nnd on, thousands of miles! Ho applied a match to tho ond of his cigar and leaned back against tho cushion. "Whoro shall I begin?" "At tho beginning. I'm not ono of those novel readers who open a book at random. I do not nppreclato effects till I have found out tho causes. I want to know ovorythlng about you, for you interest mo." He began. Ho told hor that ho was a German by birth nnd blood. Ho had been born either In Germany or In Austria, he did not know which. He had boon found In Tyrol, In a rallwoy station. A guard had llrst picked him up, then a kind-hearted man named Scharfenstoln and taken hlm in charge, advertised for his parents and, hearing nothing, had taken him to America with him. "If they catch you," sho Interrupted, "do not under any consideration let thorn know thnt you wero not born In the United States. Your friend, the American consul, could do nothing for you then." (TO 1115 CONTINUED.) |