A
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( DARKEST RUSSIA
I
- BY II GUATTAN DONNELLY.
Copyright , IWO , by Street as Smith , All rights rCllorYCl1.
CHAPTER XII-Continued.
KatherIne , her head erect and with
, ' " her haughty ; air , walked Ull to her
r husband. "Constantino , I should
have been horn an cmlH'ess. I was
born to command ! Ay , " and her face
' . . assumed even a prouder look , "I
should have been the great Katherine
- , herself . for even she would never
. have ruled Russia with a rod of Iron
as I would "
Karslcllff said nothing ; he probably '
ably agreed with hor.
, "Hrg Olga returned yet ? " ho pres
. ently asked. i
. ; "No ; she will como with the Bar
. . oness van Rhlne1Jerg. " Then after a
moment's thought "Olga Is heartless
anyhow , " she added. "Sho prefers
the society of the baroness to mine ,
and was overjoyed when I gave her
( permission to drive home with the
baroness last night from the Nazi
moffs' . "
Even as she spoke the great bell
sounded outside , and a moment later
the voIce of the Baroness von Rhine.
Rhine-
to the residence part of the mansion.
f "Oh , certainly , you along must
como. I am always at home made
welcome here. " It was the baroness
I who spoke , and almost Immediately
after she entered the room , accom-
panted by General Co1Jb.
Both Karslchetf and the countess
could not conceal their annoyance.
The baroness appeared not to notice
it-Cobb could not help observing It.
"Ah , we are here-here we are , "
gushingly exclaimed the baroness , approaching
preaching Katherine , "I am so early
call ] ] , Is It so not ? And my friend , ze
good General Cobb , who the life save
or our dear Alexis. "
Katherine bowed frigidly. "You
( ,1 are welcome , " she said , with marked
emphasis on the pronoun.
. The baroness Interrupted her. "You
see , see you : , " she said , turnIng
gayly to Cobb , " 'ou see you are welcome -
come , Is It not. I tell ] ] General Cobb
he come with me must since he have
great good frIend in zo Countess
Karslchen' , after he have saved Olga's
husband that to be some time soon
r Is. "
Cobb bowed and smiled sl1ghtly.
The signal bell sounded In the of'
ficlal anteroom.
Katherine was now doubly annoyed.
Karslcheff was himself furIous. He
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had disliked the AmerIcan from the
first. "You will pardon me , " ho said ,
I ' 1Jut this Is my private office , and , "
ho added , as the bell rang again ,
"pressing business demands my at-
tention. "
< Katherine caught his eye , and her
( look conveyed a meaning. It would
not do to openly Insult the haroness.
Olga had reason for great expectation
tions In that quarter , and It was well
understood that the baroness' wedding .
ding girt to her young friend would
'je something magnificent.
Karslchoff understood. "Come , " be
said , with an effort to appear pleasant .
ant , "and let me show you the painting . I
Ins I spoke of last night. I am sure
General Cobb will enjoy it , " and he
made a step toward the door.
"I shall bo delighted , " said Cobb.
"And I shall ] ] be too delighted too , "
added the baroness , laying her hand
on the American's arm.
"Olga will rejoin you after she has
laid off her wraps , " said the countess.
" 1 am glad , " she added with n sneer ,
which for the life 9f her she could !
not help uttering , "that you had room
for her In your carrlago. "
The baroness was palo as she left
the room In company with Cobb , pre-
ceded by Karslcheff. "Olga , " she
thought , "not at hOlDe. What did it
mean ? What could It mean ? ' She
dared not question ! the countess ,
whose remark Indicated that she sup-
posed that Olga had returned just
then with the 1Jaroness. The baro-
ness supposed that Olga , who had
left the house when she went to inquire -
quire for her , had been at her par-
ents' home long 1Jefore.
As her husband and the visitors
left the room , Katherine touched the
call-1Jell.
Radaloff entered.
"Well ? "
"Madame , I have obeyed your instructions .
structions- "
"Is the girl here ? " peremptorily interrupted -
terrupted the countess.
"Yes , madame , but pardon me , I- "
"That will do. BrIng her bere. "
"Pardon , madame , but let me
"
sa ' -
say"No
"No more ! You have obeyed your
orders , that Is enough. You should
know your place better than to attempt .
tempt to hold conversation with the
wife of the minister of police. BrIng
the girl here " And with a haughty
wave of her hand the countess turned
her back and brought the Interview
to a close.
nadaloff gazed at her a momp.nt.
A sinister smile appeared for a sec-
end on his face , and then with the
slightest shrug of his shoulders he
turned and left the room.
A moment later the door opened
and llda Baroslty entered the room
and found herself face to face with
the Countess Karslcheff.
CHAPTER XIII
Sentenced to Siberia
When the startling command :
"Surrender , traitors , In the name of
the Czar ! " fell upon the ears of the
Inmates of the Nihilist rendezvous ,
It was as a death knell , and had the
surprise been less Instantaneous than
It was , the conspirators would have
made a desperate resistance. For
they well knew , that captured as they
were , red.handed with all the evi-
dence of their guilt , that their doom
was sealed , and that from that mo-
ment their 's-perhaps even theIr
very hours-were numbered.
It was too lat to attempt escape
by the unseen doors that formed part
or the apparently solid was ] ] , for a
dozen rifles covered them , and the
soldiers , with fingers on the trIggers ,
were only waiting the order to fire.
So the prlsoners--lIomo In defiance ,
some In sullen resignation , some In
hopeless despair , stood still ; while In
obedience to the command of the of-
fleer , half a dozen soldiers speedily
descended and with drawn revolvers
pointed at the heads of the conspirators -
tors ordered them to throw up their
hands. Five minutes later , the cap-
tured , men and women alike , were In
Irons , and were seated In silence
waiting the arrIval ot the prison vans
to bear them away.
Under the direction of the officers ,
a search was then made ot the premo
Ises. The bombs , the wires , and the
battery left no doubt as to the pur-
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pose of the prisoners : nor was there
wanting still further proof of their
gultt. For Klrshkln , weak from loss
of blood , and paralyzed / by terror ,
crawled on his knees to the officer
and begging for his life offered to
betray his companions. Without coin-
mlttlng himself to promise anything ,
the officer Induced Klrshldn to proceed '
ceed , and the fear-strlckon wretch revealed -
vealod the hidden chambers on the
other side of the wall. ] ] Hero were
found papers revealing the ramifications '
tlons of the conspiracy and implicating .
ing thousands of Nihilists throughout
the emplro.
Among all the prisoners there wore
none who felt their fearful position
moro than did Ivan and Alexis , Olga
and llda. With blanched faces they
looked Into each other's eyes , only
to receive In return a sigh of hopeless .
less despair. Alexis , at the first 1110.
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went , had drawn the hood of his
greatcoat over his head , and Olga had
similarly concealed her features with
the cape of her mantle But these
precautions were needless at the
time , for when roughly ordered to
show their faces neither of them
were recognized by the officer or by
any ot his ! : ! meu. They jUdged by
Alexis' uniform , and by the rIch and
elegant dress ot Olga , that theIr pris-
oners were persons of no mean sta-
HOD ; but , since It was known that
Nihilists were to he found In all
ranks ot society , the only feeling of
the soldiers was one of gratification
that they had evidently caught some
great fish In the net destined for
mall fry. Their reward , they felt
sure , would be aU the greater.
In a few hurried words Ivan begged
Olga , who was almost faInting , to
keep up her courage ; that some
means would be found to effect her
release ; but his words produced little
comfort to the stricken girl , who
with her hands clasped In unspeakable .
able anguIsh , sat gazing at her hus-
band with a look of hopeless despair.
It was not of herself that Olga
thought. Ivan's fate ; her father's
grief ; her mother's deadly anger ; the
blow to the prospects of Nlcbolas-
all these , as the result of her arrest ,
flashed In turn through her distracted
mind.
Alexis sat , his hands clasped In
those of Ilda , a prey to the most conflicting -
filctlng emotions. He realized at
once that no explanation , however
true could save him from the fate
which he felt certain awaited him.
Degradation from his high rank , so-
cial ostracism , exile , perhaps death
ItsoIC-nU these he felt were the inevitable .
evitable result of his capture at such
a time and in such a place. For
Alexis had been one of the first to
be searched and In the breast of hIs
coat : had been found Ivan's cigar case
with the Rod Rouble therein ! He
felt that this one fact had sealed hIs
fate , and with such fortitude as ho
could command he resigned himself
to the InevItable , and awaited the
next move ot the soldiers.
The vans arrived at length , and
under the escort of three troops ot
Cossacks , the prisoners havIng been
bundled In , the march began to the
great prison ot Pctropavlotlk. I
Ivan and 01lJ" Alexis and pda ,
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Ironed to each other , were ovldenn
the grand prize In the eyes of the
soldiers and police ) , for the van In
which they were ordered to take their
place had one entire troop 1\8 an es- J
cort. Following 0lUll0 the other ye- 1
.
bides laden with prisoners , anti last
of the procession came all the l nra-
phernnlla of the Nihilist hoal1quar- ,
tore , the printing press being a conspicuous -
spicuous o1Jject.
About haIr the distance to the
prison had been traversed when an
officer of the secret police galloped ] )
Ul1 to the procession and , presenting
a. paper to the officer commarullng
tlio detachment with the prisoners ,
caned a. . halt , and announcing his 1m-
thorlty , demanded one of the prison-
ers-"I\ girl , " the paper Hllld , "bearing
the name of Uda Baroslcy "
"I have no orders to give this girl
out of my custody , " said the commander .
mander of the escort.
"But , " said the othOl'-our friend
Radaloff "my orders are ImpornUve.
This girl Is to bo taken at onto to
the residence of the minister of police .
lice ! " O
"Sho Is Ironed to one of liar companions .
panlons , " saId the officer , "and I cannot .
not release her hero. See , " ho said ,
" 11 halt Is dangerous. An outbreak
may occur at any 11l0ment. "
"Doploy your column and report
with your prisoners aU to the minister ! : ! .
tel' of police , " salll another messenger .
gor , riding up to the commander and
saluting HS ho llrOPlel1tod a paper
"Thin settles our difficulty , " said
the officer , turning to Radnloff ; and
he gave ardors to change the direction .
tion of march. HaIr 1111 hour later the
prisoners with their escort had entered .
tered the courtyard of the official roal-
dence of the minister of police , and
Uda Baroslty was ordered to step
down alono. A sergeant of police \In.
locked liar Irons and she descended
the stops , to be received by Rndaloff
and taken into his private offico.
Rndalof looked curloullly at the
young girl. Ho had not forgotten his
Interview with her brother. "You are
lld& Barosley ? " bo said.
"I am "
"This Is then addressed to you , "
So saying , Hadaloff handed a letter
to IIda , and stood watchIng her intently .
tently as she broke the seal.
lIdl1 started with amazemont. The
letter she held In her hand announced
that her presence was desired at the
office of the minister ur polled , where
the case of her father , the exile
Michael Barosley , was being considered -
ored with n vIew to his pardon. It
added that her father even then was
at the residence of the minister , and
awaited the arrival ot hIs daughter !
And the letter was on official pallor ,
sealed with the official seal , and born
the signature : "Constantine Karsi-
cherr , minister of police : "
Clasping the letter first to her heart
and then pressing It passionately to
her lips , lilJa's eyes filled with tears.
"It Is true-It Is true , and I . shall
see my dear , dear father again. Oh ,
what joy , what happiness even for
moment In this dreadful hour of
our wretchedness and despair ! "
( 'fo 1Je continued. ) .
Wanted Roller Skates In Heaven.
Caroline Is five and Eleanor Is three
and ordinarily they are a.'I lighthearted .
cd as two little butterflies , but once
In a while they indulge In a serious
view ot IIfo. It was while she was In
ono of these graver moos ] that Caroline -
line looked up the the other day and
said : "Mama , . I don't want to die ; I
can't bear the Idea of being put down
In a big hole In the ground. " Her
mother , very much startled at the outburst .
burst , answered : "Why , Caroline , I
don't know that I have ever seen you
looking so well , and I hope you are not
going to dIe ; but just remember this
-It is not the you that Is put In the
earth ; the you goes up to heaven. "
"How does the you get there ? " ask-
ed the practical Eleanor.
"I think that an angel comes and
takes It. "
'Vcl1 , " said Eleanor , "when the an.
gel comes for me , I hope he takes me
out the front hall so I can grab up my
roller skates on the way.-Exchange.
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