TH4BION
AUTHOR OF "MKKINKPA" "ARETHUM'ITCM
/907 OY
SYNOPSIS.
B&raUa. a Tartar girl , hecamo enamored
ot a golden bearded stranger \\lio wan
prospecting and studying herbs.In tlio
Vicinity ot her homo In central Asia , and
revealed to him the location of a mlii'j
of rubles hoping that the stranger would
love her In return for her dlsi'loMire
.They were follo\vod to the cave by the
Elrl's rohitlvcn. who blocked up the en
trance , and drew oft the water supplv.
leaving the couple to dlo. Barak.i'n cousin
Enad , her betrothed , attempted to climb
down a cliff overlooking the mlnf. but
the traveler shot him. The stranger wnn
revived from a water gourd S.ind car
ried , dug his way out of the tunnel. " " < !
departed , deserting the girl and carrying
ft bag of rubles. Baraka gathered nil the
gems she could carry , and Hturted In pur-
Hull. Margaret IJouno ( Murgatita mi
iCordova ) , a famous pritna doium. became
engaged In London to Kointnutln Lo-
kothotl , a wealthy QrceU Ilmmuer. Her
intimate friend was Countess Leven.
Known an Lady Maud , wl > t > e husband
liad been hilled by a bomb In St ivtors-
luirg : tind Lady Maud's most Intimate
Srlend was Ilufus Van Toip , fj A moil-
can , who had become one of the uciiosi
fnon In the world. Van Toip was In love
( With Margaret , and rushed to London as
noon as ho heard of her betrothal , no
offered Lady Maud $5,000,001' tor her j)0t
charity If she would aid him In wlnnins
Jtho singer from Logothetl. Himika approached
preached Logothetl at Versailles with
rubles to Bell. He presented a luby to
ftlargarot. Van Torp bought a yacht and
bent It to Venice. Ho was visited b >
JBaraka In male attire. She save him a
fruby after the American had told her of
laving seen In the United States a man
answering tl.e description of the ono she
loved. The American followed Margaret
So tllo Bayreuth "Parsifal" festival. Mar-
tearet took a liking to Van Toip. who pre-
feonted her with the ruby Baraka md
'Clven ' him. Count Krallnsky , tt Uus'jliin. '
arrived at Bayreuth. Van Torp believed
.him to be the one ttaraka was pursuing ,
tliaralca was arrested In London on the
charge of stealing from rinney , a jew
eler , the ruby uhe had sold to Logothetl.
Two strangers weie the thieves. Lady
Maud believed that Logolheti's associa
tions with Baraka weto open to suspi
cion , and BO Informed Marg.iret. > an
Torp believed that Kralinsky was the
cowboy ho hud known In his young man
hood. Logothetl accuicd Uaruhti's re-
, lpaso , and then , with her aH hla guest ,
rwent to uea on his yacht Ultima. Buraku
Explains lier plans for revenge on the
.man who had deserted her and left her
to die. Logothetl succeeds In modelatlng
ttit-r rage. Ltidy Maud arrived In Bay
reuth. Margaret and Van Torp entered
Into an agreement to build u tremendous
'opera ' house In Now Yoils. The thlel who
fctolo the ruby from Mr. Plnney was nr-
Tcsted in New York and the Mono rei-ov-
lered. Lady Maud confided to Van Torp
* hat she believed Kr.iHnsUv to bo the
( husband she had believed dead. Van
Torp promised his help to unravel the
mystery. The party gathered on Van
ETorp's yacht and Lady Maud discovered
* hat Kralinsky Is her husband. He of-
Ifered to rejoin and be tiuo to her. She
Wiised. Logothetl took Jlaraka nshoie
ta.t Naples to procure her a proper outfit.
He proposed to marry her , halt In JocU-
Ourtty. and uhe agreed to do so If she
could find the man she sousht. "Van
fforp's yacht arilved at Messina , and not
finding Logothetl there the party went on
[ to Naples. The yachts met and Baraka
a-ecognlzed in Krallnslcy the man she
nought Logdthetl , Baraka and Spire
Vent aboard the Lancashire Lass.
CHAPTER XV. Continued.
But now , nt the very moment of
( ineetlng Margaret , ho knew that if he
found her very angry with him , he
rwould simply listen to what she had
| to say , make a humble apology , state
itho truth coldly , and return to his
own yacht with Baraka , under her
ivory eyes , nnd in full sight of Lady
'Maud ' and Mrs. Rushmorc. Besides ,
lie felt tolerably sure that when Spire
failed to carry out the young Tartar
girl's murderous Instructions , she
would forget all about the oath she
Imd sworn by the "Inviolable water of
the Styx" nnd try to kill him with her
own hands , so that it would be neces-
foary to take her away abruptly , nnd
leven forcibly.
; Before the Erinna had quite lost
[ her way , Logotheti had his naphtha
'launch ' puffing alongside , and ho got
Into it with Baraka and Spire , and the
[ Lancashire Lass had barely time to
[ lower her ladder , while still moving
clowly , before the visitors wore there.
Baraka bade Logothetl go up first ,
nnd trod daintily on the grated steps
Ins she followed him. The chief mate
'and ' chief steward were waiting at the
'gangway. ' The mate saluted ; the
Reward led the visitors to the main
aaloon , ushered thorn In and shut the
door. Spire was left outside , of
'course. '
j Mr. Van Torp shook hands coldly
fwlth Logothetl ; Baraka walked direct-
Jly to Kralinsky , and then stood stone-
Etill before htm , gazing up steadily
into his oyes.
I Neither Margaret nor Mrs. Rushmore -
[ more was to be seen. Van Torp and
iLogothotl both watched the other two ,
ooklng from ono face to the other.
Kralinsky , with his cyo-glnss in his
ye , surveyed the lovely young bur-
iarlan unmoved , and the silence lasted
alf a minute. Then she spoke In her
.own language and Kralinsky answered
[ her , and only Logothetl understood
what they said to each other. Probably -
, ably it did not occur to Kraliusky that
the Greek knew Tartar.
| "You are not Ivan. You are fatter ,
nd you have not his eyes. "
Logothetl drew a long breath.
"No , " answered Kralinsky. "I am
.Turyl , his brother. I never saw you ,
but ho told me of you. "
"Where is Ivan ? "
"Dead. "
/ The proud llttlo head was bowed
down for a moment nnd Buraka did
not speak till several seconds had
passed. Then she looked up again
[ suddenly. Her dark eyes were quite
dry.
dry."How
"How long ? "
"More than four months. "
"You know it ? "
"I was with him and burled hltn. "
"It Is enough. "
Bho turned , her head high , and went
: o the door , nnd no one hindered her ,
from going out
"Mons. Logothetl ! " Lady Maud
called him , and the Greek crossed the
saloon and stood by hr. "tie is not
the man , I nee , " she Bald , with a
vague doubt In her volcu.
"No. "
Van Torp was speaking with Kra-
llnsky In low tones. Ltuly Maud spoke
to Logotheti again , after an Instant , In
which she drew a painful breath and
grew paler.
"Miss Donne knows that you are on
board , " she said , "but she wishes mete
to say that she will not see you , and
that she considers her engagement at
an end , after what you have done. "
Logothetl did not hesitate.
"Will you kindly give a IUCKBHRC to
MIsa Donne from mo ? " he asked.
"That quite depends on what it Is , "
Lady Maud answered coldly.
She felt that she herself had got
something near u death-wound , but
she would not break down.
"I beg you to toll Miss Donne that I
yield to her decision , " said Logothetl
with dignity.Ve are not suited to
each other , and It IB better that we
should part. Hut 1 cannot accept as
the cause of our parting the fact that
I have given my protection to a young
girl whom 1 have extruded from great
trouble and Imve treated , and still
treat , precisely as I should have
treated Miss Donne if che had been
my guest. Will you tell her that ? "
"I will tell her that. "
"Thank you. Good-morning. "
He turned and went towards the
door , but stopped to speak to Van
Torp ,
"This gentleman , " he said , "is not
the man my guest was anxious to llml ,
though he is strikingly like him. I
Imve to thank you for giving her an
opportunity of satisfying herself. Good-
mornlug. "
Mr. Van Torp was extremely grate
ful to Logothotl for having ruined
himself In Margaret's eyes , and would
In any case have seen him to the
gangway , but he was also very anx
ious to know what Krnllnsky and Ba
raka had said to each other In Tartar.
He therefore opened the door for the
Greek , followed him out and shut it
behind him. Barnku nnd Spire had
disappeared ; they were already in the
launch , waiting.
"Now what did they say , if it Isn't
a rude question ? " asked the American.
Logothetl repeated the short conver
sation almost word for word.
"He said that his name was Yuryi , "
he concluded. "That is George in Eng
lish. "
"Oh , he's George , is he ? And
what's his dead brother's name , again ,
please ? "
"Ivan. That Is John. Before wo
part , Van Torp , I may as well tell
you that my engagement with Miss
Donne is at tin end. She was good
enough to inform me of her decision
through Lady Maud. One thing more ,
please. I wish you to know , as be
tween man and man , that I have
treated Baraka as I would my own
sister since I got her out of prison ,
and I beg that you won't encourage
any disagreeable talk about her. "
"Well , now , " said the American
slowly , "I'm glad to hear you say that ,
just in that -way. I guess it'll be all
right about any remarks on board my
ship , now you've spoken. "
"Thank you , " said Logothotl , mov
ing towards the gangway.
They shook hands with some cor
diality , and Logotheti ran down the
steps like a sailor , without laying his
hand on the man-rope , stopped on
board his launch and was off in a mo
ment.
"Good-by ! good-by , Miss Barrack ,
and good luck to you ! " cried Van
Torp , waving his cap.
Logothotl translated his words to
Baraka , who looked back with a grate
ful smile , as if she had not Just heard
that the man she hud risked her life
to find in two continents had been
dead four months.
"It was his portion , " she said grave
ly , when she was nlono with Logo
theti on the Erinna , and the chain
was coming in fast.
Van Torp went back to the main
saloon and found Lady Maud and Kra-
Husky there. She was apparently
about to leave the count , for she was
coming towards the door , nnd her
eyes were dark nnd angry.
"Refus , " she said , "this man is my
husband , and Insists that I should
take him back. I will not. Will you
kindly have me put ashore before you
start again ? My things are ready
now. "
"Excuse me , " answered Mr. Van
Torp , digging his largo thumbs into
his waistcoat pockets , "there's a mis
take. Ho'a not your husband. "
"Ho is , Indeed ! " cried Lady Maud ,
In a tone her friend never forgot.
"I am Boris Leven , " said Kralinsky
in an authoritative tone , and coming
forward almost defiantly.
"Then why did you tell the Tartar
girl that your name was George ? "
asked Mr. Van Torp , unmoved.
"I did not. "
"You've evidently forgotten. That
Greek gentleman speaks Tartar better
than you. I wonder where you learned
It ! He's Just told me you said your
name was George. "
"My name Is George Boris , " an
swered Kralinsky , less confidently.
lie was not a coward , but he hud
She Followed Him.
never been face to face with Van
Tofrp when he meant business , and the
terrible American cowed him.
"My husband's name IB only Boris
nothing else , " .said Lady Maud.
"Well , this isn't your husband ; this
is George , whoever he Is , * nnd if you
don't believe it , I'm going to give you
an object lesson. "
Thereupon Mr. Van Torp pressed
the button of a boll in the bulk-head
near tlio door , which he opened , and
ho stood looking out. A steward came
at once.
"Send me Stump. " said Van Torp in
a low voice , as he stepped outside.
"Yes , sir. "
"And , see here , send six sailors with
him. "
"Very good , sir. "
Mr. Van Torp went in again and
shut tlio door. Kralinsky disdained
flight , and was looking out of a win
dow. Lady Maud hud sat down again.
For the first time in her life she felt
weak.
In less than one minute the door
.opened and Stomp appeared , Impas
sive and respectful. Behind him was
the boatswain , a huge Northumbrian ,
and live young seamen In perfectly
new guernseys , with fair quiet faces.
"Stomp. "
"Yes , sir. " - "
"Take that man somewhere and
shave him. Leave his mustache on. "
Van Torp pointed to Kralinsky.
For once in his life Stomp gasped
for breath. Kralinsky turned a green
ish white , and seemed paralyzed with
rage.
"Take his heard off , sir , you mean ? "
"Yes. Leave his mustache. Hero ,
mon , " added Van Torp , "take that fel
low outside ami hold him down fn a
chair while Stomp shaves him. See ? "
The boatswain looked doubtful. "lie's
pretending to be somebody he's not , "
said Van Torp , "on my ship , and 1
want to see his face. It's mutiny if
you don't obey orders ! "
"Aye , aye , sir , " responded the boat
swain cheerfully , for he rather liked
the job since there was a good reason
for it.
But Instead of going about his busi
ness gently , the Northumbrian giant
suddenly dashed past Van Torp in a
flush , and jumped and hurled himself
head foremost at Krnlinsky's legs , ex
actly as if he were diving. In the
count's violent fall the revolver he
had drawn was thrown from his hand
and went off in the air. The boat
swain hud seen It In time. The big
man struggled a little , but the five
seamen held him fast nnd carried him
out kicking.
"Stemp. "
The valet was preparing tj follow
the prisoner , and was quite calm
again.
"Yes , sir. "
"If he won't sit still to bo shaved ,
cut Hs head off. "
"Yes , sir. "
Van Torp's eyes were awful to see.
He had never been so angry in Ills
life. He turned and saw Lady Maud
pressing her handkerchief to her right
temple. The ball had grazed it ,
though It had certainly not been
meant for her.
"Rufus ! " she cried In great distress ,
"what have you done ? "
"The question Is what he's done to
you , " answered Van Torp. "I b Mevo
the bluckguitrd has shot you ! "
Wandering Alone In Search of Plants
and Minerals.
"It's nothing. Thank God it hit me !
It was meant for you. "
Van Torp's rage instantly turned
into tender cure , and he insisted on
examining the wound , which was
slight but would leave a scar. By a
miracle the ball had grazed the angle
of the temple without going near the
temporal artery , and scarcely singeIng -
Ing the thick brown hair.
Van Torp rang and sent for water
and absorbent cotton , and made a
very neat dressing , over which Lady
Maud tied her big veil. Just us this
was done Stomp appeared at the door.
"It's ready , sir , if you would like to
como and bee. I've not scratched him
once , sir. "
"All right. " Van Torp turned to
Lady Maud. "Do you feel faint ? Lean
on my arm. "
But she would not , and she walked
bravely , holding herself BO straight
that she looked much taller than ho ,
though sno felt as if she were going
to execution.
A moment later she uttered a loud
cry and clung to Van Torp's shoulder
with both hands. But as for him , ho
said only two words.
"You hellhound ! "
The man was not Boris Leven.
The eyes , the upper part of the face ,
the hulr , even the flowing mustaches
were his , but not the small retreating
chin crossed by the sharp , thin Bear
of a sword-cut long healed.
"I know who you are , " said Van
Torp , surveying him gravely. 'You're
Long-legged Levi's brother , that dis
appeared before he did. I remember
that scar. "
"Let me off easy , " said Long-legged
Levl's brother. " '
"I've not done you
any harm. "
"Beyond wounding Lady Maud , aft
er trying to pass yourself off as her
dead husband. No. I won't let you
off. Boatswain , I want this man ar
rested , and we'll take him and all his
belongings before the British consul
in Messina in less than an hour. You
just attend to that , will you ? Some
body go and tell the captain. "
"Ayo , aye , sir. "
The rest is soon told. A long in
quiry followed , which led to the solu
tion of the mystery and sent Count
Yuryl Loven to Siberia ; for ho wna
Boris Loven'H twin brother.
The truth turned out to bothutlhoro
had been three brothers , the youngest
being Ivan , and they had all entered
the sumo Cossack regiment , : uul hud
served in the Cuucuaus , where moHt
ofllccra learn the Tartar language ,
which is spoken by all the different
tribes. It will he simpler to designate
them by the English equivalents for
their numcH.
Uorla hehuvod himself tolerably
well In the army , but both hla broth
ers , John and George , who was his
twin , worn broken for cheating at
cards , and emigrated to America. So
long us they all were their bcnrds as
officers of Cossnolc regiments usual
ly do , they were very much alike.
They wore nil educated mon of rcllncd
tuatos , and particularly fond of mimic.
When his two brothers worn cash
iered , Boris resigned , entered the dip
lomatic Horvico , married Lady Maud
Foxwoll. ami was killed by a bomb
In St. Petersburg.
John and George1 Kopurutod In
America when they were tired of
punching cattle.
John was Homothing of a naturalist
and was by far the moist gifted of the
three us well : IB the most daring. Ho
gravitated to China and at last to
Mongolia , wandering alone in ucurch
of pluntH nnd minerals , nnd It was to
him thut Buraka showed the ruby
mine. Ho got back to civilization
with his trcuBiira nnd took It to
I'otorshurp ; unmolested ,
There ho found George earning a
poor living in an obscure position in
the public service , bin conduct In the
army having been condoned or over
looked. John , who WUH the Incarna
tion of nt'lflHlmosH , would do nothing
for him. George , exnspoiated by him ,
and half starved , murdered him In
such 'a way that ho was supposed to
have died by an accident , took posses
sion of Ills hoard of unsold rubles , and
wrote to bin twin brother to como and
shuro the fortune John had left them.
George and Boris hud been In con
stant correspondence , and hud ovou
helped ouch other with money from
time to time. Some wcokts olupscd
after Boris' return to St. Petersburg
before his death , and during that lime
ho told George , who know London
well and had , moreover , helped him In
his attempt to get n divorce , a vast
number of details about his married
life and his wife's behavior , her char
acter and tastes. Then Boris WUH
killed In the street , and George left
the country and changed his name ,
with the vague idea that his own was
not a very cr"dltnbl < one and that if
ho kept it he might bo troubled by his
brother Boris' numerous creditors. He
began llfo over again as Kralinsky.
Ho had not entertained the least In
tention of passing himself for Boris
and claiming Lady Maud as his wife
till ho mot her , and her beauty made
him lose his head completely when ho
saw that she took him for her hus
band. Ho would have been found out
Inevitably sooner or lutijr , but Van
Torp's vigorous action shortened Lady
Maud's torments.
George was tried , and Russian JUB-
tico awoke , possibly under pressure
from England. The family history of
the LoveiiB was exhumed nnd dis
sected before the courts. The creditors
of Boris Lcvon appeared In leglona
and claimed thut In proper course
ho should have inherited the rubies
from hia murdered brother , and would
then have been able to pay his debts.
The court thought so too , and ordered
the confiscated treasure to bo sold.
But since It hud been Boris' , the
law was obliged to declare that the
residue of the money , after paying the
debtH , was the property of Countess
Leven , Boris' widow.
Lady Maud thus found herself In
possession of a considerable fortune ,
for she accepted the Inheritance when
she WUH assured that It would go to
the Russian crown if she refused it.
Tlio wealth Lady Maud thus com
mands enables her to carry much
further than formerly the peculiar
form of charity which she believes to
bo her own invention , if it may bo
properly called charity at all , nnd
which consists in making it worth
while and agreeable to certain unfor
tunate people to Hvo decent lives in
quiet corners without starving , in
stead of calling to them to come out
from behind the virtue-curtain nnd bo
reformed in public. It is a very ex
pensive charity , however , and very
hard to exercise , nnd will never be
popular ; for the popular charities are
those that cost least and arc no trou
ble.
ble.Mine.
Mine. Konstantinos Logotheti Is
learning French and English on the
Bosphortis with her husband , and will
make a sensation when ho brings her
to London and Paris. On the day of
his marriage in Constantinople Logo
thetl received a letter from Lady
Maud telling him how sorry she was
that she had not believed him that
day on the yacht nt Scnlotta , nnd say
ing that she hoped to moot his wife
soon. It was an honest apology from
an honest woman.
Ho received a letter a few days
later from Margaret , and on the same
day n magnificently printed nnd reck-
lebsly Illustrated booklet reached him ,
forwarded from Paris 1 ho letter wna
from Margaret to tell him that nho
also took buck what nht had thought
about Baraka and hoped to nco htm
and her before long. She said shit
was glad , on the whole , that he had
aetod like a lunatic , bpcaus > o it was
likely that they would both bo hap- (
prior. She herself , Bho said , was go
ing to bo married to Mr Van Torp nt
St. George's , llnnover square , before
Hulling for New York , \\horo nho wan
going to King nt the opera after
Christmas. ] f he should bo In town
then she hoped ho would come and
bring his wife.
The booklet was an niuiouncoment ,
Interleaved with line etchings , to the
effect that "Tho Mine , da Cordova nnd
Rufiis Van Torp Company" would
open their new opera house in Fifth
avenue less than two years hence
with a grand Wagner festival , to last
two montliH , and to Include the per-
formuneo of "Pnrslfnl" with entirely
now scenery , and the greatest llvlns
iirllsls , whoso names were given.
Mr. Vun Torp hud told the alva
thut ho would like her to cheese n
wedding present which nhe really
wanted , adding that ho had n few
things for her nlieady. He produced *
some of them , but nome were on pa
per. Among the lutfer was a house In
Now York , overlooking the park and
copied exactly from her own in Lon
don , the English architect having boon
sent to Now York himself to build It.
Two binnll Items were two luxurious
private enra of nntiroly different pat
terns , one for America and ono for. .
Europe , which she was always to tiso ;
when Bho traveled , professionally on
otherwise. He suld ho did not c'voj '
her the LancuBhlro Luna because It
-wasn't quite now" having boon about
ton months In the water but ho had
his own reasons , ona of which was
that tlio yacht represented n senti
ment to him , and was what ho would |
lluve called n "nouvlnor. " But It she
could think of anything else she fun-1
eled , "now was the time. "
She Kuld that there was only on
thing ho should really like , but that
she could not have it , because it wna
not in the market. Ho asked what It
was , and "It turned out to be the ruby
which Logothotl hud given her , and
hud taken to Pinney'B to bo cut , and
which hud been the caiiwo of so many
unexpected evcntn , Including her uiar-
rlugc. Logothctl hud It In bin posses
sion , she supposed , but ho hud shown
good lusto In not trying to press It on
her us a wedding present , for she
could not have accepted it. Neverthe
less , she wanted It very much , more
as a remembrance than for its beauty.
Mr. Van Torp said ho "thought ho
could fix that , " and he did. Ho wont
directly to Mr. Plnney and asked
what had become of the stone. Mr.i
Plnney answered that It was now cut
and was in Ills safe for sale. The
good man had felt that It would not
bo tactful to offer It to Mr. Vun Torp.
Logotholl , who was a line gentleman
In his way , hud ordered It to bo sold ,
when a good opportunity offered , nnd
directed that the money should be
given to the poor Greeks In London ,
under the supervision of Lady Maud
Loven , the Turkish ambassador nnd
the Greek minister , as a committee.
Mr. Plnney , after consultation with the
best exports , valued it at 14,001) )
pounds. Mr. Van Torp wrote . , chock
for the money , put the stone Into an
inner pocket , and took It to the diva.
"Woll , " ho said " '
, smiling , "horo'a
your ruby , anyway , Anything else to
day ? "
Margaret looked at him wonderingly -
ly , and then opened the small moroc
co case.
"Oh oh oh ! " she cried , In rising
intimations of delight. "I never saw
anything so beautiful In my life ! It's
over p much more glorious than * . nen
I lust saw it ! "
"It's been cut since then , " observed
Mr. Van Torp.
"It ought to have n name of Its own !
I'm sure It's more beautiful than many
of the named crown jewels ! " She felt
half hypnotized as she gazed into the
glorious depths of thu great stone.
"Thank you , " she cried , "thank you so
very much. I'm gladder to have It
than all the other things. "
And thereupon she threw her mag
nificent arms around Rufua VanTorp'a
solid neck and kissed his cool flat
cheek several times ; nnd It seemed
quite natural to her to do so ; nnd she
wished to forget how she liad once
kissed ono other man , who had kissed
her.
her."It
"It wants a name , doesn't it ? " as
sented Mr. Van Torp.
"Yes. You must find ono for it. "
"Well , " ho said , "after what's hap
pened , I suppose we'd better call it
'The Diva's Ruby. ' "
THE END.
Sugar from Old Rags.
Sugar is now manufactured In Ger
many from old rags. The rags are
treated with sulphuric acid nnd converted -
verted Into doxtrlno. This Is treated
with a milk of lime , and is then sub
jected to a new bath of sulphuric acid ,
which converts tt Into glucose. The
glucose obtained by this process in
Identical with that of commerce , and
may bo used in the same tfay for con-
fectlomv ices , etc.