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About Omaha daily bee. (Omaha [Neb.]) 187?-1922 | View Entire Issue (Jan. 7, 1906)
ILL aN the center of an Immense plain, moss cov in d. almost a morass, at the southern edge of the Carpathian, near the Oaliclan borderland, workmen are building one of the strangest, most mysterious, and weird structures In all the world. What It Is, why It la, and fur what purpose no one In all the great pluln south of t'ngvar known. Then;, within sight of the Carpnthlan hills. In a country almost devoid of trees, hitch, lint, desolate, and unproduc tive, the Count Alexander Beregpok Is erect ln a grand structure: " The Castl.? of Mystery It Is called all through that district. The Magyar peasants and the gypsy tribes xhun the plains; soldiers, encamped miles from the scene uf operations, turn back all the curious ones, and these soldiers themselves are not permitted to approach within a mile of where an army of Imported workmen are engaged in rearing the strange edifice. fount Beregpok is a member of one of the richest landed families In the Dodrogko. and the holdings of the family comprise tens of thousands of acres of wild land. The old castle of the Beregpok family stands on the plain uf Bodrog. near the cultivated land, which It overlooks from an eminence. Southward for scores of miles the land lies flat and desolate, more desolate than the moors of Britain and less adapted, even, to agriculture. At times the plain Is crossed by the gypsy caravans, and In fair times the plain In the vicinity of the towns Is dotted with their tents and wagons, but mostly It Is deserted. A few herds grate by day along the edges of the vast plain, and at night It is given over to the wild animals, and, according to the nativts, to the evil spirits. Recognized Authority on Masonry. The young count spent moot of his early life in Vienna and In Paris. Highly educated, a student in the strictest sense, he promised to attain prominence In the world of letters. At 't he had won some recognition in Hungary by his writings, especially with his brochure on Early Masonic lodges of Hungary." At 24 he was recognized in Paris as an authority on Masonic history of Western Europe, and his investleatlon Into Masonic rites among the Magyar tribes in th" Carpathians was received with much Interest by student. He early Identified himself with Masonry, and his Interest In the organization was Intense from the begin ning. Frequently he spuke of devoting his life to Investi gation of Masonic rites among the seml-clvilized peoples of the world, and especially In China and In North America among the Indian tribes of the southwest. This, however, he has not yet attempted, devoting his entire time to his Investigation among the people of his own part of the country. Tart of the estates of the count were situated In the Immense, almost boundless, plain that runs for scores of miles south from the foothills of the Carpathians. Two railroads cut the edges of the great plain, but It would be hard to And a more deserted, desolate part of the world. Moss and lichen, scrub trees, here and there a pool of water, grasses, mud that Is the country, a high plain, cold, wind swept, and almost useless from an agricultural viewpoint. Far to the southward, near the center of the vast plain, there arises a gently sloping hill on which is a spring that pours In a pure stream down the hillside. Guarded by Mounted Soldiers. Without warning, wlfYout notice, one day last spring, a force of cavalry from Eperjes was shipped Into the country. It established picket posts at short Intervals In a circle two miles around that hill. Then the railway " goods " trains began to bring car after car of stone and cement, all surroundod by heavy canvas and covered as If to hide It all from the eyes of the curious. At the same time a 'crowd of workmen appeared possibly 100 of them skilled artisans, and not from that part of Hungary. Carts were loaded with the stone, squads of soldiery ac companied each caravnn, and train after train of carts moved southward across the plain towards the hill. The rumor spread that Count Beregpok was building a castle on the hill. Curious peasants walked towards that hill, only to be turned back by mounted pickets who rode their beats in arcs around the hill. The peasants simply were warned that no visitors were allowed. Meantime the horde of workmen was busy. Those who approached within two miles of the hill could see some massive structure arising. Curiosity was aroused to the highest degree. Caravan after caravan of carts, evidently loaded with cut stone, or other building material, moved across the plain owards the scene. Residents of the dis trict, excited over the mystery with which the building had been surroufiiled. strove to lift the veil of secrecy and discover what was going forward. They made attempts to learn from the workmen something about the "Castle of Mystery." In that effort they made a discovery which added to the mystery. They learned that every workman employed In the building of the castle was a Mason. Peasants Wild with Curiosity. That add. d fuel to the tire of curiosity. People said that Count Beregpok was striving to build another tower of Babel. Others declared he was erecting a huge r treat for the Masons of the world. Members of the Masonic order who lived In the district talked with the builders. Whether or not they were let Into the secret- no one knows, but. after they had talked with the builders, they ceased to show curiosity any longer and strove to their best ability to qul t the talk of the others. Again and again daring persons strove to pierce the line of defense at night, but after three or four of the adventurous ones were captured by the mounted pickets and given lashings with whips, these efforts ceased. From afar It could be seen that the army of workmen was making rapid progress, for the outlines of a great building appeared, and soon the trains brought In and the carts carried away furniture, paintings, draperies, and other goods. Evidently, so the people said, the castle had been planned at Vienna, the stone cut there, the furnishings made there, else how could such a building have been erected within seVen months? But why any person should build a castle at a remote spot, practically isolated from all the world. In the middle of a vast desolation, they could not Imagine. Therefore those who were curious began to Investigate. The sol diers were withdrawn within a few weeks after the final cart load of stuff had trailed across the moor from Eperjes, and, a few at a time, the workmen departed. Not one of the workers would tell a word of what he knew, unless, perhaps, he told It to some man with the mystic grip of the Masonic fraternity, nnd. when the castle was finished and furnished, and the count remained there with his retinue of followers, the secret was as deep and the mystery as great as when the first guarded cart went out across the expanse of grass, nnd weeds, and moss. Visited by Mysterious Men. People from Munkacs, and t'ngvar, and Eperjes ven tured out towards the castle site after the soldiers had withdrawn, and some of them approached within half a mile of the hill. They found the whole hill surrounded by a wide ditch, filled with water, nnd on the other side they saw beautifully laid out grounds, wltti the grass al ready springing up on the carefully built slopes of the old hill. At the top of the hill they saw a seven turreted castle of plain, fine hewn granite and polished marble. The building was severe, heavy, and without ornamenta tion, according to the description of those who caught glimpses of It from afar, and over the grand entrance, they say, are carved the square and compass, the symbols of masonry. At all times guards patrol around the outer edges or the moat, serving simple warnings on those who ap proach, not to make any attempt to cross the water. At times the Count Beregpok makes visits to the out side world, going to Paris or Vienna, and every few days when he Is at home carriages take men across the desolate moors to the castle. Who these men are, why they come, nnd what they do durlhg their visits with the count In the ' Castle of Mystery " no one knows. It Is known that no woman ever has crossed the moat or entered the castle. Whether the building of his castlo Is but a whim of the wealthy young nobleman or whether It Is the rendez vous of the leaders of the secret society to which he has devoted his life, the people have not been able to deter mine. All that they know is that the castle is there, and they shun the moor more than ever. ;eeeeeo PARSEE WEDDING IN BOMBAY. PARIS HAT. HORSES' G YMNA SI UM. MAKE A DERBY HAT. The ladle of the family are not usually clal requeat. EMPRESS' HAND Mil present at such functions unless by spe DECORATED MLMMY. J This head of a mummy waa found in Amine, Egypt. The hcaddiejsj is formed of heavy dark leaves. TOMBSTONE CARVER. It Is that of Tl An. the iwagtr em preu of China. 1 he third and fourth rin gers have wonderful long rutlls protected by carved and painted shields. vr mmm 1 ' The lombatones in the vtlley of Josaphat are carved after they have been placed over the grave. mm mm? . One of the millinery eccentricities fash ionable In Paris has a sweeping brim surmounted by a high waving plume. The French aulin model sketched above shows various shades of mouse brown and gold. TO BE KING. I! MiUM iVM'".'."r The youner is Prince Alexander, son uf Uaaaon VII.. king of Norway. iiii-iff' ii i n -i I. i " 'fl The cavalry schools of France have a regular gymnasium for horses, where, by means of suitable apparatus, they train them In many difficult tricks. The particu lar kind of leap which this horse Is being made to practice is called " croupade." NO SKYSCRAPERS. NAPOLEON'S CHAIR. 1! flu -fit. hlJ til i,.3. i - I! ... , ' This view of 1. minute circus, in the heart of London's business district, shows the average height of buildings there. The county council building act. enforced In the city, prohibits the erection of any . , , . building over 1... feet in height. The main T, 1? '.' Cair f, W?Z . , u n building may be eighty feet high, and - - ' ii.i.u i ' ' - .4 ' I '-L-HJUt " - 41 . ... ". -- . t - : I ' :f- ; a , . . .... . , Many steps are necessary In the making of a derby hat. They are: 1) Cutting the material Into a triangle; O bending Into a cone shape: Ct) fulling: (4) pressing cone over mold; (,) finishing the crotn; (8) binding the rim: (7) turning the rim. The eighth picture shows the finished hat. ROUGH OPAL. VEIL'S BORDERS. BrVl'K,ti'rVif'.T'rtt l- F T nai there may be two extra stories In the roof. VINAIGRETTE. emptror used it at 8t. Helena SWALLOW'S I LIGHT. What rouRh opal looks like. This iden tical piece was thrown st (ieorgt Htneter, the famous London dealer In precious stout s. and hitting his saddle, split, reveal ing a good piece of opal, as shown here. Trxse patterns were favorites for veil borders among the beautlis of lassie Uretce and Rome. NO PREJUDICE. pi , ijOas in the French city of Beauvala a small vehicle, butlt with two wheels and drawn by a man or boy, ia In common uaa. It la called a vioaigreua. T 4 ww S:, l' mm This snapshot shows how swallows, flying high in air, look when on the wing. Photograph of group of schoolboy i:. Berlin shows two American tvegroev lu are arm In arm with the Otrnuni