£/ AUTHOR of 'THE CLOSED DOOR,” ETC ILLUSTRATIONS CD-RHODES cop'tKSffr by rue s^ary str pjblisrrc oo SYNOPSIS —12— Vu': I«,n Gregg. dining aboard with Uorn ■*y. ti'-- varlil Lola's owner, accidentally >c*es x torn photograph of a young giri. f'bat night the consul's saft- is robbed. Ti<'‘ p dice find that Hornby is a fraud t»o«i the Lola's name a false one. In ifOitdon Gregg is trapped r.early to his 3 of a murdered woman In Han noct. wood. The body disappears and in it-i otuce is found the body of Olinto. **4 *ar«d -Gregg^search Rannoch wood together, and find the body of Armida, IMinto’a wife When the police go to the tvootl^the body has disappeared. In Lon 3om Gregg meets Olinto. alive and well. Urogg traces the young girl of the torn photograph, and finds that she Is Elma Heath, niece of Baron Oberg. who lms [ake.u her to Abo, Finland. ar«l that she holds a secret affecting Woodroffe. On ?*** return to Rannoch Gregg finds the Leith courts fled from Hylton Chater, who hod called there. He goes to Abo, and a tilt with the police chief, is con ducted to Kajana. where he finds Elma. imprisoned. A surgical operation lias made ,ier deaf and dumb. He escapes with her. Pursuers overtaking them. Elma escapes nto the forest and Gregg is taken to Abo CHAPTER XII—Continued. _ The prisoner, your excellency, de sired to be brought here to you be fore being taken to Helsingfors. He "aid you would be aware of the facts.” And so I am," remarked Boranski, with a smile. ‘‘There is no conspiracy. You must at once release this geutle fcaaa and the other two prisoners.” But. excellency, the governor gen »rai has issued orders for the prison Br's arrest and deportation to Helsing fors/ That may be. Rut 1 am chief of police in Abo. and I release him.” The officer looked at me in such Mani: astonishment that I could not resist smiling i 1 am well aware of the reason of ■ihis Englishman's visit to the North,” added Boranski. “More need not be Mid Has the lady been arrested?” No. your excellency. Every effort >» being made to find ner. Colonel Kmtrnoft -has already been relieved of his post as governor of Kajana, and many of the guards are under arrest Tor complicity in the plot to allow the woman to escape.” Ah. >es. 1 see from the dispatches that a reward is offered for her re rapture.'' The governor general is deter rained that she shall not escape." re marked the other. flhe is probably hidden in the for feit, somewhere or other." "Of course. They are making a thor sugh searcli over every verst of it. tf she is there, she will most certainly he found." No doubt,” remarked Boranski, leming back in his padded chair and looking at me meaningly across the lit tered table. “And now l wish to speak lo this Englishman privately, so please lesye us. Also inform the other two arisoners that they are at liberty.” But your excellency does this upon ais own responsibility," he said anx iously. “Remember that 1 brought them to you under arrest." And I release them entirely at my »wn discretion," he said. "As chief o? police of this province, I am per mitted to use my jurisdiction, and I exercise it in this matter. You are ir liberty to report that at Helsing fors. if you so desire, but l should sug jest that you say nothing unless ab solutely obliged—you understand?” The manner in which Boranski t^oke apparently decided my captor. if*r after a moment's hesitation he saluting: tf that is really your wish, then i will obey." And he left. hlxcellency!” exclaimed the chief *■ i*o!ice, rising quickly and walking towards me as soon as the door was iosed and we were alone, "you have had a very narrow escape—very. 1 aid my best to assist you. I succeeded lu t.ribiug the water guards at Kajana m order that you might secure the odv's release. But it seems that just «•£ the very moment when you were ttrout to get away one of the guards isrned informer and roused Uie gov nrcor of the castle, with the result that: you all three nearly lost your dve*. The whole matter has been re ported to me officially, and." he added *v>»h a grim smile, “my men are now suarching everywhere for you." But why is Baron Oberg so ex v-emely anxious to recapture Miss MeathI asked earnestly. ‘; have no idea," was his reply. "The secret orders from Helsingfors to me are to arrest her at all haz ards—alive or dead.” ‘ Which means that the baron would not regret if she were dead,” I re marked, in response to which he nod ded in the affirmative. 1 told him of the faithful services of Felix, the Finlander, whereupon he said simply: “I told you that you might trust him implicitly.” “But now that you have shown your self my friend,” I said, ‘‘you will as sist Miss Heath to escape this man. who desires to hold her prisoner in that awful place? They are driving her mad.” “I will do my best," he answered, but shaking his head dubiously. “But you must recollect that Baron Oberg is governor general of Finland, with all the powers of the czar himself.” "And if Elma Heath again falls into his unscrupulous hands, she will die,” I declared. “Ah!” he sighed, looking me straight in the face, “I swear that what you say is only too true. She evi dently holds some secret which he fears she will reveal. He wishes to rearrest her in order—well—" he added in a low tone, “in order to close her lips. It would not be the first time that persons have been silenced in secret at Kajana. Many fatal acci dents take place in that fortress, you know.” CHAPTER XIII. “The Strangler.” Where was Elrna? What was the cause o£ her inexplicable disappear ance into the gloomy forest while we had slept? . I returned to the hotel where 1 had stayed on my arrival, a comfortable place called the Phoenix, and lunched there alone. Both Felix, the Finn, and my host, the wood cutter, had re ceived their douceurs and left, but to ' the last-named I had given instruc tions to return home at once and re port by telegraph any news of my lost one. A thousand conflicting thoughts arose w ithin me as I sat in that crowd ed salle a manger filled with a gob bling crowd of the commercial men of Abo. I had, I recognized, now to deal with the most powerful man in that country, and t suffered a distinct dis advantage by being in ignorance o£ the reason he held that sweet English girl a prisoner. The tragedy of the dastardly manner in which she had been willfully maimed caused my blood to boil within me. I had never believed that in this civilized twen tieth century such things could be. Why she had disappeared without warning I was at loss to imagine, yet I could only surmise that her (light had been compulsory. Another very curious feature in tlie affair was the sudden manner in w hich Michael Bo-j ranski had exacted his power and in- [ fluence in order to render me that » service. ! There was. I felt, convinced, some | hidden motive in all that sudden and ' marked friendliness. That he really i hated the English I had seen plainly when we had first met. and I had only compelled him to serve me by present- j ing the order signed by the emperor. | which made me his guest within the Russian dominions. Even that doeu-! ment did not account for the length he had gone to secure the release of the woman I now loved in secret. I could not bring myself to leave Finland, and allow Elma to fall into the clutches of that high official who so persistently sought her end. No. I would go to him and face him. I , was anxious to see what manner ofj! man was "The Strangler of Finland." j That same evening I left Abo, and traveled by rail to Helsingfors. At noon I descended from a drosky before a long, gray, massive building, over the big doorway of which was a large escutcheon bearing the Russian arms emblazoned in gold, and on en tering where a sentry stood on either side, a colossal concierge in livery of bright blue and gold came forward to meet me. Following his directions. I crossed a great, bare courtyard, and. ascend ing a wide stone staircase, was con fronted by a servant, who took my card to Colonel Lugauski. who he in formed me was the baron’s private secretary. After ten minutes or so tbe man returned, saying: "The colonel will see you if yon will please step this way,” and couducted me into the richly furnished private apartments of the palace, across a great hall filled with fine paintings, and then up a long, thickly carpeted passage to a small, elegant room, where a tall, baldheaded man in mil itary uniform stood awaiting me. "Your name is M’sieur Gregg,” he exclaimed in very good French, “and I understand you desire audience of his excellency, the governor general. I regret, however, that he never gives audience to strangers." "the matter upon which I desire to see his excellency is of a purely pri vate and confidential nature,” I said, for, used as I was to the ways of for eign officialdom, I spoke with the same firm courtesy as himself. “If I write the nature of my busi ness and inclose it in ar envelope, will you then take it to him?” I suggested. He hesitated for a short time, twist ing his mustache, and then replied with great reluctance: “Well, if you are so determined, you may write your business upon your card.” I therefore took out one, and on the back in French: “To give information regarding Miss Elma Heath.” Ringing a bell, he handed it to the footman who appeared. The response came in a few minutes. “His excellency will give audience to the English m'sieu.” The apartment of the governor gen eral was splendidly decorated, and in the center of the parquet floor, with his back to the light, was the thin, wiry figure of an elderly man in a funereal frock coat, in the lapel of which showed the red and yellow rib bon of the Order of St. Anne. His hands were behind his back, and he stood purposely in such a position that when I entered I could not at first He Turned Slightly. I Then Saw His Bony Face. set' his face against the strong, gray ■ light behind. Hut when the footman had bowed and retired and we were alone, he turned slightly, and I then saw that his bony face, with high cheek bones, slight gray side whiskers, hard mouth and black eyes set closely together, was of one who could act without any compunction and without regret. Truly one would not be surprised at any cruel, dastardly action of a man with such a face—the face of an op pressor. "Well?” he snapped in French in a high-pitched voice. “You want to see mo concerning that mad English girl? What picturesque lies do you intend to tell me concerning her?” “I have no intention of telling any | untruths concerning her." was my quick response, as I faced him un- | flinehingly. “She has told me suffi cient to—” His eyes met mine, and I saw by his draw n face and narrow brows that my words were causing him the utmost consternation. My object was to make him believe that I knew^ more than I really did—to hold him in fear, in fact. “Perhaps the man whom some know as Hornby, or Woodroffe, could tell an interesting story,” l went on. “He will, no doubt, when he meets Elma Heath, and finds the terrible affliction of which she has been the victim.” His thin, bony countenance was bloodless, his mouth twitched and his gray brows comracted quickly. “1 haven't the least idea what you mean, my dear sir,” he stammered. “All that you say is entirely enigmat ical to me. What have I to do with this mad Englishwoman's affairs?” “Only that you knew her. Remem ber. baron, that your secret is mine.” I said in a clear voice full of meaning “Very well. You know better than myself,” he laughed. “The offense for which she was condemned to confine mem in a icnross was the attempted assassination of Madame Vakuroff, wife of ihr- .pneral commanding the Uleaborg miliary division.” V-isassination!” I said. “Have you actually sent her to prison as a mur deress?” * “I have not. The criminal court of Abo did so,” he said dryly. “The of fense has since been proved to have been the outcome of a political con spiracy, and the minister of the inte rior in Petersburg last week signed an order for the prisoner’s transportation to the island of Saglialien." “Ah!” I remarked with set teeth- j “Because you fear lest she shall write down your secret." “You are insulting! You evidently do not know what you are saying.” he exclaimed resentfully. “I know what I am saying quite well. You have requested her removal to Saglialien in order that the truth shall never be known. But, Baron Oberg,” I added with mock politeness, > “you may do as you will, you may send Elma Heath to her grave, you may hold me prisoner if you dare, but there are still witnesses of your crime that will rise against you.” In an instant he went ghastly pale, and I knew that my shot had struck j its mark. The man before me was guilty of some crime, but what it was i only Elma herself could tell. "I merely wish to impress upon you i the fact that I have not the slightest interest whatsoever in the person in question.” he said coldly. ‘‘You seem to have formed some romantic attach ment towards tiiis young woman who attempted to poison Madame Vaku roff, and to have succeeded in rescu ing her t'rom Kajana. Y'ou afterwards disregard the fact that you are liable to a long term of imprisonment your self. and actually have the audacity to seek audience of me and make all sorts of hints and suggestions that I have held the woman a prisoner for my own ends!” “Not only do I repeat that. Baron Oberg," I said quickly. "But I also allege that it was at your instigation that in Siena the operation was per formed upon the unfortunate girl which deprived her of speech and hearing.” He laughed again, but uneasily, a forced laugh, and leaned against the edge of the big writing table near the window. "Well, what next?” he inquired, pre- ! tending to be interested in my allega tions. “What do you want of me?” “I desire you io give Mademoi selle Heath her complete freedom.” I said. “But her future is not in my hands. The minister in Petersburg has de- j creed her removal to Saghalien as a ] person dangerous to the state.” “You have posed in England as the | uncle of Elma Heath, and yet you here hold her a prisoner. For what reason?” I demanded. “She is held prisoner by the state— for conspiracy against Russian rule— not by herself personally." “Who enticed her here? Why, you, yourself. Who conspired to throw the guilt of this attempted murder of the general’s wife upon her? You—you. tile man whom they call ‘The Stran gler of Finland!' But 1 will avenge the cruel and abominable affliction you have placed upon her. Her se cret —your seeret, Baron Oberg—shall be published to the world. Y’ou are her enemy—and therefore mine!” “Very well,” he growled between his teeth, advancing towards me threateningly, his fists clenched in his rage. “Recollect, m'sieur, that you have insulted me. Recollect that I am governor general of Finland." “If you were czar himself. I should not hesitate to denounce you as the tyrant and mutilator of a poor, de fenseless woman.” “And to whom. pray, will you tell this romantic story of yours?” he j laughed hoarsely. “To your prison I walls below the lake of Kajana? Yes.! M’sieur Gregg, you will go there, and once within the fortress you shall never again see the light of day. You threaten me—the governor general of Finland!” he laughed in a strange, high-pitched key as he threw him self into a chair and scribbled some thing rapidly upon paper, appending his signature in his small, crabbed handwriting. “I do not threaten,” 1 said in open i defiance. “1 shall act.” “And so shall I,” he said with an evil grin upon his bony face as he blotted what he had written and took it up, adding: “In the darkness and silence of your living tomb you can tell whatever strange stories you like concerning me. They are used to idiots where you are going,” he added grimly. “Oh! And where am I going?" “Back to Kajana. This order eon signs you to confinement there as a dangerous political conspirator, as one who has threatened me—it consigns you to the cells below the lake—for lire!” I laughed aloud, and my hand sought my wallet, wherein was that all-pow erful doeumeut—the order of the em peror which gave me, as an imperial guest, immunity from arrest. 1 would produce it as my trump card. Next second, however, I held tn> breath, and I think I must have turned pale. My pocket was empty! My wallet had been stolen! Entirely and helplessly I had fallen into the hands of the tyrant of the czar. We faced each other, and 1 looked straight into his gray, bony face, and answered in a tone of defiance: “Ah! you surely do not think that (. after ten years’ service in the British diplomatic service, would dare to coine to Finland upon this quest—would dare to face the rotten and corrupt officialdom which Russia has placed within this country—without first tak ing some adequate precaution? No. baron. Therefore I defy you. and I j leave Helsingfors tonight." "You will not. You are under ar | rest.” I laughed heartily and snapped my fingers, saying: “Before you give me over to your police, first telegraph to your minister of finance. Monsieur de Witte, and inquire of him who and what I am.” “I don’t understand you.” “You have merely to send my name and description to the minister and ask for a reply,” I said. “He will give you instructions—or. if you so desire, ask his majesty yourself.” "And why, pray, does his majesty concern himself about you?” he asked, at once puzzled. “You will learn later, after I am confined in Kajana and your secret is known in Petersburg.” "What do you mean?” "I mean,” I said, “I mean that I have taken all the necessary steps to be forearmed against you. The day I am incarcerated by your order the whole truth will be known. I shall not be the sufferer—but you will.” My words, purposely enigmatical, misled him. He saw' the drift of my argument, and being of course una ware of how much I knew, he was still in fear of me. My only uncertainty was of the actual fate of poor Elmu. My wallet had been stolen—with a purpose, without a doubt—for the thief had deprived me of that most im portant of all documents, the open sesame to every closed door, the ukase of the czar. “You defy me!” he said hoarsely, turning hack to the window with the written order for my imprisonment as a political still in his hand. "But we shall see." “You rule Finland,” I said in a hard tone, “but you have no power over Gordon Gregg.” “I have power and intend to exert , it.” "For your own ruin,” I remarked with a self-confident smile. “The czar may be your patron, and you his fa vorite, but his majesty has no toler ance of officials who are guilty of ! what you are guilty of. You talk of | arresting me!” I added with a smile, j “Why. you ought rather to go on your ' knees and beg my silence." He went white with rage at my cut ting sarcasm. He literally boiled over, for he saw that I was quite cool and had no fear of him or of the terrible punishment to which he intended to consign me. Besides which, he was filled with wonder regarding the exact amount of information which Elina had imparted to me. "Arrest me if you like. Denounce me by means of any lie that arises to your lips, but remember that the truth is known beyond the confines of the Russian empire, and for that reason traces will be sought of me and full explanation demanded. 1 have taken precaution. Xavier Oberg.” 1 added, “therefore do your worst. 1 repeat again that I defy you!” He paced the big room, his thin, clawlike hands still clenched, his yel low teeth grinding, his dark, deep-set eyes fixed straight before him. If he had dared he would have struck ihe down at his feet. But he did not dare. 1 saw too plainly that even though my wallet was gone 1 still held the trump card—that he feared me. I had led him to believe that I kne* everything, and that his future was in my hands, while he. on his part, was anxious to hold me prisoner, and yet dared not do so. The baron had halted, and was look ing through one of the great windows dow n upon the courtyard below, where sentries were pacing. The palace wis for him a gilded prison, for he dat'd uot go out for a drive in one or other of the parks or for a row on the " ti ter across to Hogliolmen or Dagero j being compelled to remain there for I months without showing himself pub ' liely. People in Abo had told me that when he did go out into the streets of Helsingfors it was at night, and tie usually disguised himself In the uni form of a private soldier of the guard, thus escaping recognition by those who. driven to desperation by injustice. sought his life. (TO UK CONTINUED ) Robbery r hat Hurt. When a thief drove out of the town of Silverlield. N'ev.. with a team of horses belonging to Curley Jones, a mine owner, he took with him tbe only conveyance in the town. As a its suit. Jones was compelled to walk ..’ti miles over mountain and desert to uo tify the sheriff. 5M0US MAKERS OF BELLS f'rans and Pieter Hemony, Natives of Lorraine, Said to Have Excelled in the Craft. Most of the bells of Holland and ^eigiuni are of the manufacture of the Hetnonys, two brothers, who lived between 1597 and 1680. The Hemonys —Frans, the elder, and Pieter, the younger brother—were natives of Lorraine who early established them selves at Zutfen. They were excellent '-'-.i'Lsmen, producing bells of peculiar beauty of form, and possessed a mar velous faculty for tuning bells. Theirs . was the golden age of carillon-making, and their bells remain predominant In the towers of the Low Countries today, it is interesting to notice their con temporaries in the Netherlands, for the carillon was the manifestation In music of the spirit of a people who at the same time were showing great genius in many other directions. Rembrandt, Ver Meer, Rubens. Van t*,ek, Frans Hals and Pieter d'Hooch lived at this period. Likewise, • u vea de Key, the master builder, and Visscher, the famous engraver,, and Vondel, the dramatist and poet. Tromp and De Ruyter were winning their naval victories and Grotius was writing his great works on interna-: tional law. The brothers Hcmony made theirI first carillon in 164r, for the Wine-! house tower at Zutren. During 35! years the Hetnonys made scores of carillons, the total value of which, Van der Straeten says was surely more than 3.000.000 francs—*600,000— a- enormous sum for the time Copper Eaves Troughs and Spouts. Many people are coming to see that copper eaves troughs and conductor spouts are valuable In more wavs than one. In addition to the facts that these copper troughs and spouts prac tically never wear out—lasting a life time without any attention of any kind, not even requiring painting— they are splendid conductors of elec tricity—and naturally act as protec tion against lightning. They cost no more to put on than iron, which would make it seem that they were about right for the uses mentioned. PLEA FOR THE OLD HOME LIFE Return to It Would Be of Benefit to the Nation, Is the Opinion of New Yorker. Afeain we hear the praises sung of "the old-fasliioned mother”—it is a theme to arouse tender memories and to inspire imitation among the women of today, remarks the New York Mail , The old-fashioned mother, home-loving and devoted to her children, caring tor them in sickness and in health, from the cradle to the end—it was she who made the home and kept it, and who made the nation strong and great in the stability of its units, the homes. But there was the old-fashioned fa ther, too, who found his greatest pleas ure in being by the side of the old-fash ioned mother, with their children about them. To him the family fire side was the best place on earth, and he helped to make it such, and mother and father were the best people in the world in those days when they nightly gathered their brood about them for the family hour—the best hour in the twenty-four. Parents of today lose much by not ! being old-fashioned, their children lose more and the nation suffers most of all, for no people can be truly strong \ when the hearthstone ceases to draw with compelling force, and when fa ther and mother and children are sep arated in the pursuit of the excite ments that take the place of the old fashioned home life. When Tommy Swore. Here is a minor tragedy of the war. but a very real one, says the London Mirror. Tommy had not tasted tea for days; he was longing for tea with an intensity which only comes upon one in a French village. He had just enough tea and sugar to make one tinful, but no hot water, and no i French with which to ask for it. With j wild gesticulation he sought to explain ! to a woman his need. She took the; tin of tea and sugar and disappeared into her cottage. Anon she emerged triumphant, with the tin full of cold water and Tommy’s whole stock of tea floating about in it. Then it was that French came to him. He says he spoke it like a—trooper Deep Snow in Scotland. Snow fell last winter to a depth yf over three feet in the upland districts of Athol and Strathtay. and on severe! sheep-grazing holdings it was irapo* sible to gather the sheep herds. *n one ease a shepherd's dog successfully located a sheep which got enveloped In a large wreath. The dog scraped away the snow, disclosing the pres ence of the sheep, which was none th» worse for its confinement. For some time hand feeding of hill herds ar 1 higli-lying grazing stocks had to be re sorted to. While hay is fairly plenti ful this season the stock of roots available is somewhat small. Offered Opportunity. Not long ago a certain Michigan food inspector was watching a stand where for one cent a dab of Ice cream on a soda cracker was banded out He thought himself quite unnoticed, when a pretty miss held out half-eatea cracker to him saying, much to the delight of the crowd: "I bet you’re one of those nosy food inspectors. Here, just taste this and see if it s sanitary." WEST VIRGINIA'S BAD ROADS Farmers Lose Immense Sums Each Year Through Their Inability to Get Products to Market. “Bad roads in West Virginia cost the state $50,000,000 a year,” declared A. D. Williams of Morgantown, state road engineer, to a Washington Post representative the other day. “1 mean by this that at least that much money is wasted every year by reason of the inability of the farmers to get their products to market. Thousands oi tons of apples ami other fruit, garden truck and food supplies are allowed to rot in the orchards and gardens because the roads are too bad to haul it to market. Just to illustrate, Joe Swope, editor of a county paper, noted that he was paying one dollar a bush el for apples. A neighbor in an ad joining county, sixteen miles away wrote the editor and said he would Well-Graded, Finely Built Macadar? Road in West Virginia. give the newspaper man all the ap pies he wanted if he would haul there away. “The buildiug of good roads is a tre mendous economical problem, not ’ merely one of convenience. The au j tomobile undoubtedly has been largelj instrumental in bringing about the good roads movement, or rather ir giving impetus to it. That and th« high cost of living are principal fac tors in the general campaign now go ing on in many states for good roads West Virginia this year will spenc $5,000,000 in improving her highways the different counties having voter bonds to that amount, and ia tho w hole United States the amount spent fo; good roads this year will probablj reach $250,000,000. Last year' we spent about $200,000,000, and the inereasf this year will be fully 20 per cent, 1 be | lieve.” -- DRAG THE ROADS When the smiles of spring ap pear Drag the roads; When the summertime is here, Drag the roads; When the corn is in the ear. In the winter cold and drear, Every season of the year, Drag the roads. When you've nothing else to do. Drag the roads: If hut for an hour or two Drag the roads; It will keep them good as new ; With a purpose lirin and true. Fall in line; it's up to you— Drag the roads. —The Kansas Industrialist. More Drags Needed. The splitlog drag has contributes more toward the economic mainten ance of public highways than any im plement of modern usage. It does noi require special acts of the legislature bond issues nor expensive educationa ' campaigns to make it available as usually precedes construction work. A drag can be built or purchased for $2t and is easily operated by anyone wht can drive a team. We need more drags. Tar-Macadam Road. The tar-macadam road has giver the best service of any form of streel surfacing tried in Calcutta. Two Good Schemes. There are two schemes which mas be' used to advantage on the roads The first is to grade with a traction mgine. the second to let the grading by contract. No Permanent Development. Without good roads, there can be no development that will be perma nent and enduring. Place for Tractor. The tractor is finding a great place > S. Hth ht.. Lincoln. Neb., says: “I had a dull, iheavy ache across iniy kidneys and I [got so stiff and ilanie. that it was hard for me to stoop or lift. I had [dizzy spells and headaches and felt drowsy. D o a n’s Kidney Pills s t r e nitthened mv Kinneys and arter that, the gradually left me. I non signs of kidney complaint.'' ailments have no Gat Doan'a at Aay Stars. 50c a Bos DOAN’S **»«** FOSTER-MILBURN CO., BUFFALO, N Y w. N. U., OMAHA, NO. 36-1915.