Co arV1231 Princess Zara 3 1924 031 283 371 olin.anx CORNELL UNIVERSITY LIBRARY WW B Cornell University 7 Library The original of tliis book is in tlie Cornell University Library. There are no known copyright restrictions in the United States on the use of the text. http://www.archive.org/details/cu31924031283371 PRINCESS ZARA Jk 1 *-^W.-i^l- ^ ViA^ 3 - Ji^'j > ,^, " I DO LOVE YOU ' (Page 215) PRINCESS ZARA BY ROSS BEECKMAN ILLUSTRATIONS BY BERT KNIGHT NEV YORK GROSSET & DUNLAP PUBLISHERS Copyright, 1908 — 09 by "W. T. WATT & COMPANT PutSshai January, igog THE THEME Two shall be born the whole wide world apart; And speak in different tongues, and have no thought Each of the other's being, and no heed; And these o'er unknown seas to unknown lands Shall cross, escaping wreck, defying death, And all unconsciously shape every act And lend each wandering step to this one end, — That, one day, out of darkness, they shall meet And read lif^s meaning in each other's eyes. Susan Mark Spalding. CONTENTS CHAP. PAGE. I. A Lady of Quality is II. A Warning 22 III. Two Shall be Born the Whole Wide World Apart 361 IV. Dan Derrington's Story 45- V. In the Presence of the Czar 6e VI. A Nihilist Spy fiP' VII. For Love of a Woman 85 VIII. The Princess' Oriental Garden loi IX. A Secret Interview 122 X. Sentenced to Death i43 XL For the Sake of the Czar 1591 XII. When Love was Born 177 XIII. Love Will Find a Way 191 XIV. The Scorn of a Woman 205 XV. The Murder of a Soul 216 XVI. The Moment of Vengeance 234 XVII. Love, Honor and Obey 249 XVIII. The Power of the Fraternity 265 XIX. Prince Michael's Anger 2^^ XX. In Defiance of the Czar 28&' XXI. One Eventful Night 299=. XXII. The Combat in the Snow 312-' XXIII. What the Czar Forgot 322: XXIV. Saberevski's Prophecy 335 PRINCESS ZARA PRINCESS ZARA CHAPTER I A LADY OF QUALITY THE Steamship Trave of the North German Lloyd docked at its Hobokeh pier at eight o'clock one morning in December. Among the passengers who presently departed from the ves- sel was a woman who attracted unusual attention for the reason that shd was accompanied by a consider- able suite of retainers and servants who were for a time as busy as flies around a honey pot, caring for their mistress' baggage, and otherwise attending to the details of her arrival. Nor was it alone for this reason that all eyes were from time to time turned in her direction. There was about her a certain air of distinction, wealth, power and repose, which im- pressed itself upon the observers. Many there were who sought eagerly an opportunity to scan the fea- tures of this young woman's face:, for that she was II PRINCESS ZARA young, was immediately apparent, and the fact added not a little to the interest that was manifested in her. The young woman, whoever she was, maintained an air of reserve which raised a barrier beyond which none of the curious might penetrate; and as if inso- lently disdainful of the attention she attracted, her face remained veiled; not too thickly, but effectively enough to set at naught these efforts of the curious throng. A view of her face was, however, not required to determine in the minds of the beholders that she pos- sessed more than ordinarily, the attractive feminine qualities. Her very presence told that; the air with which she moved about among her servitors; the simple gestures she made in giving her directions, and the quiet but resourceful and effective methods she used in administering her affairs, indicated that not only was she a person of great wealth, but that she was also high in place and in authority, and one who was accustomed to being obeyed. Her costume was hidden entirely beneath the mag- nificent furs which enveloped her, and even the maid who attended upon her immediate wants was more 12 A LADY OF QUALITY ekborately gowned and wrapped than the average feminine personage of the western world is wont to be. The immediate party of this distinguished pas- senger soon took its departure from the pier, leaving behind only those whose various duties consisted in caring for the seventy-odd pieces of baggage soon to be taken from the hold of the vessel; and this Immediate party departed from the pier in carriages, for the hotel where accommodations had already been secured. The young woman and her maid occu- pied a conveyance by themselves; other maids fol- lowed in a second one, and a third contained two footmen, a courier and her official messenger. At the hotel, where notice of her arrival in the city had been received, she was assigned to a suite of rooms which occupied the greater part of one entire floor and which included every convenience which the most illustrious personage travelling in the United States could have required, or would have found it possible to obtain. The courier at once sought the hotel office and registered as follows: 13 PRINCESS ZARA Her Highness Princess Zara de Echeveria and suite, St. Petersburg. And when his attention was called to the fact that the names of the entire party were required, he shrugged his shoulders and announced: " I regret, sir, that I do not remember the names of all the persons who comprise her highness' suite, but I will supply you presently with a list of them." In the parlor of the apartments occupied by the princess, her maid was removing the furs and wraps and making her mistress comfortable, for there is inevitably after a sea voyage, a few hours of fatigue which nothing but restful quiet and utter idleness will overcome; and therefore an hour or more later, when a visiting card was taken to the princess she did not even give herself the trouble to examine it, but said while she peered through half closed eyelids : " Whoever it Is, Orloff, say that I will not receive until four this afternoon." Down below, In the office of the hotel, the gentle- man who had sent up the card and who received this message in reply to It, shrugged his shoulders, glanced at the face of his watch to discover that It A LADY OF QUALITY was yet barely noon-time, crossed to the book stall where he secured something to read and thereby while away the time, and then having sought a comfortable chair in a secluded corner deposited himself in it with an air of finality which indicated that he had no idea of departing from the hotel until after he had se- cured the solicited audience. At four he sent a second card to the princess; at half past four he was admitted to her presence. If the eyes of that curious throng of people who had watched her arrival at the steamship pier could have seen her then, when this man whO' had waited so long was shown into her presence, they would have been amply repaid for their admiring curiosity con- cerning her. It is trite to speak of a woman as be- ing radiantly beautiful, commonplace to refer to it at all, save by implication, since feminine beauty is a composite attribute, vague and indefinable, and should possess no single quality to individualize it. Beauty such as that possessed by Princess Zara can neither be defined nor described. It is the tout ensem- ble of her presence and her personal charm. Zara de Echeveria needed no adornment to em- 15 PRINCESS ZARA phasize the attractions of her gorgeous self. She was one of those rare women who are rendered more attractive by the absence of all ornament and her dark eyes were more luminous and brilliant than any jewel she might have worn. Her gown, though rich, was simplicity itself, and inasmuch as her servants had found time during the hours since their arrival, to decorate the rooms according to the princess' tastes, she was surrounded by much the same settings that would have been contained in her own palatial home at St. Petersburg. When It is said that she was barely twenty-five in years; that her father had been a Spanish nobleman in the diplomatic service at the Russian capital, and that her mother was of royal birth, we have an explanation for the exquisitely fas- cinating and almost voluptuous qualities of her beauty, as well as for her royal manner of command. She did not leave her chair when this man was taken into her presence, but extended one small and perfectly formed hand upon which gleamed a soli- tary ring; the only jewel she wore that afternoon save a small pin in the lace at her throat, which was i6 A LADY OF QUALITY fashioned precisely after the same pattern as the ring. The man lost no time in raising that beautiful hand to his lips, and he bowed low over it, with a courtly grace as distinguished in its gesture, as wa» her reception of him. One wondered why such a man as this had been contented to endure five idler hours of waiting upon her serene pleasure; and yet if one had looked past him to her, one might have ceased to wonder, and have thought a lifetime of waiting would be as nothing, if possession of her at the end of it could be its reward. " It was kind of you to come to me so quickly after my arrival," she said to him in a low voice that was perfectly modulated. " It was kinder of you to receive me, princess," he responded, stepping back again to the center of the room and standing tall and straight before her in his commanding manhood. He was a handsome man, past fifty, distinguished, and like the princess he greeted, had about him the unquestionable air of authority. 17 PRINCESS ZARA " I am afraid I kept you waiting." " One does not consider moments of waiting, if Princess Zara be the object of it," he retorted, smiling. . " Won't you be seated? " " Thank you ; yes." He drew a chair forward so that they sat nearly facing each other across a low table upon which many of the princess' personal effects -had already been ar- ranged. Among them was a box of Russian ciga- rettes which she now indicated by a gesture, while with a smile which lighted her face wonderfully and gave to it that added charm that is indescribable, she said: " There are some of your favorite cigarettes, Saberevski. I had you in mind when I included them among my personal baggage, having no doubt that I should encounter you when I should arrive in this country; but little thinking that you would be the first to greet me. You will pardon me for not in- dulging in one of them myself, for you know that I have never acquired the habit. Nevertheless they will perhaps suggest to you the flavor of home, and i8 A LADY OF QUALITY may transport you for a moment to the scenes which I know you are longing for." " Thank you, princess," he replied, and lighted one. Then he leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and for a time there was utter silence between these two. The man seemed indeed to have been transported in thought, to his native environment, not so much by the odor and flavor of the cigarette he puffed with such calm enjoyment, as by the pres- ence of this magnificent creature who confronted him so daintily, and who received him so simply and yet so grandly. " You knew, then, that I was here in New York, princess?" he asked of her presently, peering at her through the smoke he was making; and he smiled comfortably across the distance that separated them. " I knew you were in America, Saberevski; and to me America means New York. I believed that you would not be long in making yourself known to me after my arrival, for I knew that the papers would announce it, and that your — shall I call it your duties ? — would require that you should not permit my presence here to pass unnoticed." 19 PRINCESS ZARA The man shrugged his shoulders, indulging him- self in another smile as he replied: " It is hardly kind of you to attribute this call to duty on my part. When I am in your presence I find myself wishing that there were no such things as duties to be performed. When I look at you, Zara, I wish that I were young again, and that I might throw duty to the winds and enter the; list against all others who seek you." An expression of annoyance, as fleeting as it was certain, came into her eyes, and she replied with a little show of impatience: " Spare me that sort of thing, Saberevski. One does not always wish to hear such expressions as that ; and coming from you, addressed to me, they are not pleasant." " Not even when you know them t6 be sincere, Zara? I spoke in the past tense, and only of what might have been were the disparity of our years less, and If the environment by which we are respectively surrounded could have been different." " In other words," she smiled back at him, now recovered from her impatience, " if the world had 20 A LADY OF QUALITY been created a different one, and if we were not our- selves; as we are." " Precisely," he replied, and laughed. " I did not even look at your card when it was brought to me," she said, with an abrupt change of the subject; " had I done so I would not have kept you waiting so long. Tell me something about your- self, Saberevski ; and why it is that you have deemed it wise, or perhaps necessary to become an ex- patriate, and to deprive St. Petersburg and all who are there, of your presence and your wise counsels." " I am afraid it is too long a story and hardly worth the telling at that. St. Petersburg has tired of me. I am better away from it, and it is much bet- ter with me away ; believe me." "And his majesty, the czar? Is he also of that opinion, my friend? " " His majesty, the czar, does me the honor, prin- cess, to approve of my present plans and conduct," replied Saberevski with slow and low toned emphasis. 21 CHAPTER II A WARNING ALEXIS SABEREVSKI leaned forward in his chair to secure another of the cigarettes, and having lighted it with studied delib- eration, resumed his former position gazing between half closed eyelids toward Princess Zara. It was quite evident that he had gone to her with a distinct purpose in view which he meant to fulfill before his departure; and it was plain to be seen that Zara appreciated the fact. While he was silent, she waited, but with a half smile upon her beautiful face, that was quizzical and somewhat whimsical, as if in her secret heart she was aware of the purpose of his errand but for reasons of her own did not wish to anticipate it. And he read her correctly, too. He believed that she understood him even better than he knew her; but viewed from his own standpoint he 22 A WARNING had a duty to perform in regard to her, and he had gone there to fulfill it. " Zara," he said, " when I saw the announcement of your intended visit to this country — " "Pardon me, Saberevski," she interrupted him;' " but did the knowledge of my expected visit come to you through a printed announcement, or were you informed of it even before the printers had set the type?" " I see that I must be quite frank with you," he laughed. " Between friends frankness is always best," she retorted. " In that case I will begin again, princess." " It would be better — and wiser." " When I was informed of your anticipated visit to this country I decided that I would be the first to welcome you here, and in making that decision I had a double purpose." " Yes." " One of them only, need interest us at this mo- ment, and that Is purely a personal one. You know, 23 PRINCESS ZARA Zara, how I have always regarded you, and how I do so now. Your father was my best friend; your ! mother — it is perhaps unnecessary that I should be more explicit regarding her." " Yes, Saberevski," said Zara in a low tone. " I know that you loved my mother, and that all your life you have remained true to your adoration of her, «ven though she never returned it; but go on." " I love you, Zara, more perhaps than I admit to myself; more profoundly than it would be wise for me to tell you, or agreeable for you to hear; but in the admiration and esteem I feel for you, there is included no sentiment which could offend you." " I know that, my friend." " I would like to talk with you quite openly for once, Zara, in order that you may comprehend per- fectly where I stand, and because I do not wish you to misconstrue any assertion I shall make, or to at- tribute to any one of them, another motive than I intend." " I think you may be assured of that." " You guessed correctly a moment ago, about my receiving intelligence concerning your visit here, be- 24 A WARNING fore the compositors set the type of the announce- ment; but the intelligence was incorporated among other things that were conveyed to me in the same manner, and by the same message. It had no direct significance, and beyond the mere statement of the fact, there was no comment. I was not directed to call upon you, and in fact there was no suggestion made that bore directly upon your presence here. But, Zara, the mere statement of your intention con- veyed to me very many suggestions which I have come here to-day to make known to you. I believe it to be my clear duty to do so." "Well, my friend?" " You know who and what I have been, and am. Always close to the person of the czar; for very many years deeply in his confidence, and possessing I believe his friendship to an extraordinary degree, it has been my pleasure as well as my duty to serve my emperor in many secret ways which our little world at St. Petersburg does not know or appreciate. The fact that I aim at present an expatriate, as you have so aptly stated, is due to reasons which I need not ex- plain, and which do not concern us just now. The 2S PRINCESS ZARA fact that I am one, has stationed me in New York by choice, and not by direction; but I thank God that I am here to greet you upon your arrival because I hope by very plain speaking to change a course you have determined upon, and to induce you — " " Wait one moment, Saberevski. Don't you think that you are getting rather beyond your depth? I appreciate all that you are trying so vainly to tell me. I know of your personal interest in me, and I honor you and thank you for it. But it is not like Alexis Saberevski to hesitate over a statement he has decided to make, and if I am not mistaken you began this discourse with a determination to be frank. Might I suggest that you make yourself more plain ? " " I have been called a diplomat of the first order, Zara," he replied, with a smile, " but your straight- forward methods, and my resolute purpose, make my course of procedure somewhat difficult. I will, however, be entirely frank." " That is better." " Zara de Echeveria, Alexis Saberevski informs you now that he knows you to be high in the councils of the nihilists." 26 A WARNING Was there a suggestion of pallor for an instant upon the countenance of the princess? Was there a quick but imperceptible intaking of her breath? Was there a deepening in the expression of her matchless eyes, and an imperceptible widening of them, as they dwelt upon her companion? Was there a stiffening of her figure in its attitude of quiet repose, and did her tnuscles attain a sudden rigidity, induced by that startling announcement ? • Saberevski could not have answered any one of these questions. So perfectly were the features and the facial expres- sion of Princess Zara under her control that she outwardly betrayed no sign of the effect of the an- nouncement. And yet it might well have affected her most deeply; might have startled her even into a cry of terror; should have filled her with instant fear, because this man who made it was one, who in his former official capacity could have condemned almost any person in Russia to exile by a gesture, or a word. And Zara did not doubt that his ofljclal capacity still obtained. She knew him to be an ex- patriate as she had announced. She understood that for some reason, not apparent, he had become a 27 PRINCESS ZARA voluntary, exile from his native country and city, and might never again return to the scenes he loved best. But she also knew that he was no less closely in the confidence of the Russian emperor, and could never be any the less inimical to the enemies of the czar. A statement such as he had made, coming from him, charging her with complicity in revolu- tionary acts which had for their object the assassina- tion of the Russian ruler and his possible successors, contained an implied threat more terrible in its con- sequences than any other one which could have been made; more terrible to her, personally, than to any other person against whom it might have been made, because she knew by the experiences of one of her girl friends, to what extremities of mental and moral torture a Siberian exile may be condemned. She made no reply. She remained perfectly mo- tionless and silent, waiting for him to continue. " You need not deny me, Zara, for I know," he went on presently. " How the knowledge came to me does not matter, and has no connection with this interview. But I know. That knowledge has cre- ated the duty which I have come to you to-day to 28 A WARNING perform. I want you to abandon your present pur- suits. Whatever the purpose of your visit to Amer- ica may be, I beg that you will forego it. I do not seek any confession, or even a statement from you, upon this subject. Indeed I should prefer that you make none. You cannot please me better than by listening to me in silence, so that when I leave you presently, you will know and I will know, that I will have no more knowledge concerning you and your entanglements with those people, than I possessed before I came. I would have it that way. I would have It no other way." She nodded her head, gazing at him intently, but with that same changeless expression of impersonal interest, as if she were listening to the discussion of a third party who was not known to her save by name. " Zara," he continued, " you will receive other cards than mine to-day, and you should know that every man or woman who will call upon you in behalf of the nihilists, is marked and known. You cannot engage in the business that brought you here, and afterward return to Russia in safety. The 29 PRINCESS ZARA secret police of our empire extends all over the world, and is as efficient in the city of New York, as it is in Moscow or St. Petersburg, so far as its require- ments deiiiand. I warn you, not in behalf of your i party, the principals of which I despise and abhor; not in behalf of any individual member of that rev- olutionist sect, but wholly in behalf of Zara de Echeveria, the daughter of my best friend, the off- spring of the only woman I ever loved. To-day while I talk to you, I am not Alexis Saberevski the friend of the czar, but I am Alexis Saberevski your friend. I have stepped outside my duty; I have taken it upon myself to come here to perform what may be a disloyal act to tny emperor, in order to warn; you against a course which can have but one end, and which can bring you to but one fate — Siberia." He left his chair and stood beside her. He reached down and took one of her hands, pressing it between the palms of both his own. " Zara," he said, with deep-toned feeling, " in some ways you are like a daughter to me; in others you are the reincarnation of the woman I loved so dearly; I love you for yourself, and for the sake of those two 30 A WARNING who gave you life. I shall never plead with you again. My duty will probably nevermore call me into your presence. When we part this day, it is likely to be for the last time. If danger befalls you because of the conditions you create through this en- tanglement, I cannot go to your rescue, or even to your assistance. I speak to you as with a voice from the grave, beseeching you in the names of your father and mother, to heed what I have said," " You have forgotten — " She began impetuously to answer, but he unclasped one hand from hers, long enough to make a warning gesture, and enunciated the one word: " Hush! Remember, Zara, you are not to speak until I have finished, and then upon a differ- ent subject. But I will answer your unspoken thought, for I read it in your manner. I have not forgotten your little friend Yvonne; nor Stanislaus, her brother. Indeed, my child, this very scene re- minds me of it, and renders all the more imperative the duty I am seeking to perform. Let the terrible fate of that poor girl appeal to you. Let the awful end of Stanislaus be a warning. Vengeance should have no part or place in your heart, even though 31 PRINCESS ZARA you believe that they cry out to you from their graves to undertake it. But they do not do that, Zara, and if either or both of them could speak now, they would voice the sentiments I have ex- pressed, and emphasize the warnings I have given. Go back to your home in St. Petersburg, my child, and leave politics alone. Alexander, the czar, ad- mires you and esteems you, but I who am his friend, warn you that the admiration and esteem of mon- archs can be no more relied upon than the shifting fogs of the Gulf of Finland." ' Again Princess Zara would have spoken, for her dark eyes lighted with a sudden fire and she half started from her chair with an eagerness that was im- petuously expressive. But Saberevski retained his clasp upon her hands, and without seeming to do so, restrained her where she was; after a moment he added : " Now, If you please we will change the subject. My duty as I saw It, has been performed, and nothing remains to be said. In a few moments I will leave you, and when I do so, we will probably part for the 32 A WARNING last time. Now, Zara, tell me something about yourself." There was a suspicion of tears In her upturned eyes as she looked at him from out of their glowing depths, but she took him at his word, and with a visi- ble effort brought back the smile to her countenance as he returned to his chair at the opposite side of the table. " There is little to tell you of myself, Saberevski," she replied, while he helped himself to another cig- arette. " You know what my life is, even though you have been absent from home almost a year." " Yes," he said, smiling, " one round of pleasures, and of conquest. Adorers waiting for you on every hand; lovers perhaps — " " No; not lovers," she interrupted him. "There is no place for them, Saberevski," and a shade of sadness which he attributed to the memory of Stanis- laus, clouded her eyes for a moment. Had he but known however, it was no recollection of that young officer of the czar's household, to whom reference has already been made and to whom Zara was once 33 PRINCESS ZARA betrothed, that affected her. It was a deeper and more far-reaching consideration that brought the ex- pression of pain for an instant into her eyes, and she longed to cry out the truth to her companion, then and there. Had she done so, her statement would have been something like this : " There is no room in my heart for a lover, for the reason that the cause I have espoused fills it com- pletely. The people whose wrongs I seek to re- dress, the victims whose wandering souls cry out for vengeance, and the women exiles in frozen Siberia whose fates are too terrible to relate, fill my whole heart and being so completely as to leave no room for personal love." She would have said that, and much more, but she restrained herself; and he rose to take his de- parture. She gave him both her hands, and In a low tone that was full of suppressed feeling, she said to him, at parting : " Do not think, my friend, that I have failed to appreciate all the goodness of your motives in coming 34 A WARNING to me to-day. From my heart I thank you, and if it should be as you say, that we may never meet again, although I see no reason for such a thing, I wish you to know that in parting, Zara de Echeyeria admired and esteemed you above all other men of her ac- quaintance. Good-bye." 35 CHAPTER III TWO SHALL BE BORN THE WHOLE WIDE WORLD APART WE need recite but one other interview which Princess Zara undertook that day. Sev- eral follow upon it, and there were many such during her stay of more than a week in New York City. Many came, were received and went away again; and the princess herself was frequently abroad in the streets, or at places of amusement, or was entertained by those who worship at the shrine of nobility. But there was one who called upon her the evening of the day of Saberevski's interview, to which it is necessary that we should refer. He came at ten o'clock, and was expected, for he was conducted to her presence immediately and was received without question, although it would have been immediately 36 TWO SHALL BE BORN THE WORLD APART plain to an observer that these two had never met before. The things which they discussed were largely- technical, and had to do with the conduct and activi- ties of various nihilistic agents who were scattered about over the world, outside of Russia. He was a man whose name does not appear again in this story and which therefore need not be mentioned now, but he was nevertheless one well known at the courts of Europe, and on the streets of New York and Washington. At the end of their discussion and interchange of confidences, when he rose to leave her and she gave him her hand, he said, recurring to the subject of their conversation : " Princess, If we had others like you, as sincere in their efforts for the betterment of our people, nihilism would soon become the dominant factor of Russian politics, and official oppression would cease to exist. If we had others like you, as good and as beautiful as you are, the czar would abdicate, or would consent to give us a parliament. As It is, 37 PRINCESS ZARA the struggle has only just begun, and I greatly fear that neither I nor you, young though you are, will live to see its end." " Thank you," she said. " I understand thor- oughly what you mean. It Is true that I am heart and soul in this movement. It is equally true that I am prepared to devote my fortune and my life to an attainment of the ends we seek." "Are you an extremist?" he asked her. "We have not touched upon that part of the subject as yet, princess." She hesitated. " If you mean by that expression, do I seek the life of Alexander? I could answer you In the affirma- tive without hesitation; but I would have to confess that my desire for vengeance upon him Is more of a personal quality, than of a political character. I am mindful of the fact that we cannot destroy a tree by lopping off one of Its branches, and whenever a czar Is dead, another lives to take his place and to permit the Injustices practiced in his name, to con- tinue. He is like the hydra-headed monster of chlld- 38 TWO SHALL BE BORN THE WORLD APART hood's tales, and another head grows as fast as one may be cut off." " You are a beautiful wofman, princess, and with that aid alone you should accomplish much." i " Yes," she admitted, as calmly as if he had re- ferred to a ring she wore on her hand; "but I find that to be the most unpleasant character of my em- ployment. To use such beauty as I have, and such attractions as I possess, for the winning of men to our cause, whether they be oificials or nobles, is hate- ful to me; and yet I do not hesitate." " It is not a difficult task for men to join the nihilists because of love for you; I could, myself, almost forsake it, did you ask such a sacrifice." " Shame on you 1 " she stormed at him, snatching away her hand and darting out of his reach. " Shame on you for that ! Those were treacherous words, and I expected them least of all, from you. You make me ashamed; ashamed for you, and for the cause I uphold. Are all men so weak, and so easily led ? Does the mere beauty of a woman make; cowards of them all ? Could a pair of flashing eyes, 39 PRINCESS ZARA or the touch of soft hands, change the destinies of an empire? " " They have done so more than once, princess." " You make me hate myself — and you." " I am afraid that you took me too literally," he said, with perfect composure, for although he knew that he had angered her, she was yet so beautiful in her impetuous resentment of his words that he was lost in admiration. Indeed he had uttered no more than the truth when he told her that he might even forsake the cause if such a woman as Zara could have been his reward ; and he knew by long years of experience, that he uttered the sentiments of nine men out of ten who might fall under her influence. " My mission is accomplished here," she told him, ^' and already my passage is engaged for the return voyage. I leave New York at once and I shall probably never return to it. What you have told me of the measures taken in our behalf, has encour- aged me greatly; and yet because of one thing you have said, I dread the return to St. Petersburg." " What was that, princess? " 40 TWO SHALL BE BORN THE WORLD APART " I must correct myself. You intimated it; you did not say it." "What was it?" " You suggested, in one statement you made, that you had reason to fear that the spy-system as arrayed against us at home, might be augmented by the addi- tion of skilled operators and experts from this coun- try, I had thought that we nihilists had a monopoly of that sort of employment, and that the czar and his nobles could claim only the loyalty of their own spies. But your suggestion fills me with doubt and dread. If Alexander were to introduce imported spies among our people — " He interrupted the princess by laughing heartily. " Again you took me too literally," he asserted. " Here and there, there may be one who will seek Russia and the czar for such employment, but it will be for the emolument it will bring, and cannot be induced by patriotic sentiment. We would have little cause to dread such people, since we would not be long in identifying them, and ultimately I believe they would assist, rather than retard our efforts." 41 PRINCESS ZARA " Perhaps so." " There can be no doubt of your own loyalty to our cause, princess? " " Certainly not." *' Are the others like you ? Pardon me, there can be no others like you for there could never be another so beautiful and fascinating as you are. But are there others of your acquaintance high in position, who are working for the cause as diligently as you are?" " They are many. Their name is legion." They parted then. He to go about his several duties among the nihilistic sympathizers who could not return to Russia without including Siberia in their itinerary, and she to stride across the room and stand for a long time facing herself in the mirror, studying the features of her own beautiful face in an effort to detect there the fascinating qualities before which all men with who'm she came in contact seemed so ready to succumb. But her eyes were cold and hard as she regarded her own reflection in the glass. There was a fire 42 TWO SHALL BE BORN THE WORLD APART in their depths which could have attracted no man, and which would have repelled all alike, for It was threatening and sombre. Zara de Echeveria almost hated herself at that moment. Hated the beauty which gave her such power, and which exerted the magic that made slaves of men. The hour came when she entered a carriage again to be driven to the steamship wharf; when she stood upon the deck near the rail, and gazed, as she hon- estly believed, over the house tops of a city she would never see again. Fate, however, had builded differently for her, although she did not guess it; and she was going now to meet it as fast as the throbbing engines of the mechanical monster could bear her forward. When the great bulk of the vessel swung into the current of the North river, and she turned her eyes once more toward the wharf it had left, a waving hand attracted her attention, and she recognized the tall form of Alexis Saberevski as he bade her adieu. Beside him on the pier was another figure, 43 PRINCESS ZARA as tall and ^s straight as Saberevski's, and she saw them turn away together and walk up the pier until they were lost in the crowd. She did not know, then, that the other tall figure of a man was the one into whose arms she was fleeing, even though she left him there, unknown, upon that North river wharf, while she sailed away to the other side of the world. And he could foresee as little. But such is Fate. 44 CHAPTER ly DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY I HAD known Alexis Saberevski in St. Peters- burg; I had known him again in Paris. I had, in fact, encountered him at one time or another in almost every capital of Europe, and I was therefore not greatly surprised when, having just left the dining table at my club in my own native city, New York, his card was given to me with the information that the gentleman was waiting in the reception room. I had him up at once, with the courtesies of the club extended to him, and finding that he had dined, we ensconced ourselves in the depths of a pair of huge chairs which occupied one of the secluded corners of the library, each equally delighted to be again in the company of the other. We had never known each other intimately, and yet we were friends; friends after that fashion which sometimes comes 45 PRINCESS ZARA between men of pronounced characteristics, and which finds its expression in the form of a silent confidence, and an undoubted pleasure in each other's company. I knew Saberevski to be a particularly strong man. Strong in the highest and best acceptation and mean- ing of that word, for he was a giant in intellect and In character. He was also a mystery, and this fact possibly ren- dered him all the more interesting to one whose busi- ness it had always been to solve mysteries. I do not mean by that that I had ever made any effort to delve Into the secrets of Saberevski's past, or to read without his knowledge and consent, any portion of that history which he kept so carefully veiled; but the mere fact that an air of mystery did pervade his presence, Imparted to him a certain fascinating quality which might not otherwise have been appar- ent. I had not encountered him for several years, and our last parting had occurred in front of Browne's hotel, Piccadilly, standing near the entrance from Albemarle street. As I received his card from the club servant, the words he had uttered at that hour 46 DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY of parting returned to me, for I had made a mental note of them, at the time regarding them as being of much more import than was nakedly expressed, coming from such a man. He had said : " I shall probably never return to St. Petersburg or pass across the border of Russia again, Derrlngton; but I may, and probably will some day, find myself in New York; when I do, you shall know of it." That day when I received his card, the last words he had ut- tered to me recurred to my mind, and it was with unmixed pleasure that I presently greeted him, I knew that there had been a time when he was high in place at the court of his native city, St. Petersburg; I knew that he had been prominent in the favor of Czar Alexander, and I had no doubt that he was so still, notwithstanding the positive assertion once made by him that he would probably never pass the borders of Russia again. But this was only another phase of the mystery that surrounded him, and it belittled not at all my estimation of the man's char- acter, and the power he could sway if he chose to do so. How deeply he was, even at that moment, in the confidence of the Russian emperor, I was one day 47 PRINCESS ZARA to understand, although the moment of comprehen- sion was many months distant from me then. He had dined and so we had cigars served to us in that cozy corner where, with a table which held a box of them, together with some liquid refresh- ments and other conveniences, we settled ourselves for an uninterrupted chat. " It is good to see you, old chap," he told me in his frank and hearty way; "good to be with you again; to feel the clasp of your hand and to hear your hearty laugh. I have been thinking about you considerably of late, and this morning when I found that my wandering life had droppedme down in your city, I determined to look you up at once. In my baggage I found your card which contained this club address; and here I am." His big, hearty, infec- tious laugh rang through the room. There was no need to tell him of my own delight in his presence. My manner of greeting him had demonstrated that without any question of doubt. Presently he asked me : " What is your particular avocation just now, iDerrington ? Are you still at the old game ? " 48 DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY " Still at the old game," I replied, nodding my head solemnly. " I suppose I will always be at it in one way or another." " Your government won't let you go very far away from its reach," he said, with a quizzical smile. " Oh, the government! I have cut it, Alexis." "What? Left the service?" " Temporarily," I replied, and he laughed again, as loudly as before. There was reason for his levity, because placing my resignation in the hands of the- secretary had become a habit with me. I was peri- odically depressed by the duties of a secret service agent and as often determined to leave the service for good. But as often, I had returned to it upon the request of one department or another of my govern- ment, when my services were required in the line of some particular duty which officialdom was pleased to assure me could not be so well accomplished by any other person of its acquaintance. That was why Alexis Saberevski laughed. " Is your resignation still on file ? Or is it only lying on the table awaiting action, Daniel?" he: 49 PRINCESS ZARA asked me, and there was just a touch of ironic sug- gestion in his manner, which nettled me. " The resignation is a fact this time," I replied. " I have earned a period of rest, and I propose to take it." " Going abroad, Derrington? " " No." " Prefer to undergo the process of dry rot, here in New York?" " Yes; for a time at least." " Is there nothing on the other side of the water, that attracts you? " " Nothing at all." He switched his right leg to his left knee and blew a cloud of smoke into the air. " You're not a lazy chap, Dan," he remarked, as if he were deeply considering the verity of that statement. " One wouldn't pick you out as a blase individual who is tired of everything the world has to offer. You are as filled with energy and nervous force as any chap I ever knew; and you are not yet thirty-five." "Quite true," I admitted. SO DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY " Yet, like a craft that has fought its way through stortny seas around the world, you sit there and try to assure me that you are content to tie up against a rotting wharf, in an odorous slip, and pass the rest of your days in inaction. It isn't like you, Dan." " It looks very enticing to me just now, however.'* " The trouble is," he said, " that your American diplomacy and your amazing politics over her^, offer no opportunities to a man of your talents. You should go against the pricks of European intrigue. You ought to butt in, as you fellows express it, upon French statecraft which leaves nothing to be desired in the way of double dealings. You should try Austrian lies, or German, brutalities, or Italian and Spanish sophistry, or English stupidity. Believe me, one of these would offer many points of interest which should interest and engage your attention." "Why not Russian cruelty?" I asked. "That seems to be the only important nationality you have omitted." " Why not? " he repeated after me. " You seem to have tired of it yourself, Sa- berevski." 51 PRINCESS ZARA He shrugged his shoulders, leaning back in his chair, and the suggestion of a shadow passed across his handsome face. " Dan," he said with an entire change of tone that startled me into renewed Interest, " I haven't any doubt that you have always regarded me as a queer sort of chap, more or less shrouded by a mystery you could not fathom. And you were right." " I have never — "I began. But he raised a hand to arrest me. " I know it," he said. " You do not need to assure me of that. You are too much of a man, and your character is too broad and deep, for you ever to attempt an intimacy which was not invited. But it is my pleasure just now, old man, to give you a little bit of my history. It may interest you. And it may lead to a change in your views; not regarding you, but in connection with myself. I am a much older man than you are; fifteen years and more, I should say. All my life, up to the time we last parted, has been passed in the personal service of his majesty, the czar. I have been as close to him as any man can ever obtain, and I am probably the only 52 DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY one who has enjoyed his confidence to the extent of retaining it in the face of studied opposition on the part of the greatest nobles of the empire. But I have retained it, Dan, and to such an extent that I suppose myself to be the only man living to-day, against whom Alexander would not permit himself to be influenced. There is a reason for it and a good one, but I need not go Into that." " No," I said. " You need not tell me this at all, Alexis. I am quite glad enough to see you and to have you here, without explanation." He made a gesture of Impatience. " As If I did not know that," he added; " but as I said a moment ago, It Is my pleasure to recite some of these things to you, because since I came into this room and grasped your hand I have been impressed by the idea that there is a great work for you to do ; a great duty for you to perform. A stupendous obstacle to human development exists In one part of Europe to-day, which I believe you could overcome and demolish, if only you could be convinced of it. I wonder, Dan, if you would give the subject any thought If I were to suggest it to you ? " 53 PRINCESS ZARA " Try," I said. " I wonder if you would seriously consider one of the greatest achievements that remains undone in Europe to-day," he added, meditatively. " The obstacle to which you just now referred? " I asked. " Yes." "What is it?" " Nihilism." " Hell I " I replied with emphasis. But he took me literally, and not even the sug- gestion of a smile showed in his face as he replied : " That is the fitting word, Dan. It is hell. It is worse than that to hundreds of thousands of human beings, from the lowest mujik of the steppes, to the czar himself. It is a word which carries with it a certain magic which always spells the word iieath. It is death to those who antagonize it, and It is death to them that uphold it. It is death to the minister, the governor, the official, and it Is death to the poor devil who plots In the dark, secretly with his fellows, against the powers that rule him. 54 DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY Nihilism is well named, for it means nothing and it ends in nothing. Nihilo nihil fit! Whoever named the revolutionists of Russia so, builded better than they knew." I was watching Saberevski with some amazement. I had never heard him express himself in such terms before, and I had not supposed him capable, sympa- thetically, of doing so. I was not without a certain fund of knowledge regarding the subject he had in- troduced, for my professional duties had taken me more than once into Russia, and I had encountered much of the conditions he described. But I re- garded them, as well as Saberevski himself, with the American idea and from an American standpoint. It had always seemed to me so unnecessary that conditions should exist as I had heard them described over there. I had always believed that if the gov- ernment of Russia would only go about the work differently, it would be so easy to eradicate every phase of the so-called nihilism, and especially that branch of It practiced by those who are called ex- tremists. Evidently Saberevski entertained some- 55 PRINCESS ZARA thing of this view himself, although from the stand- point of a Russian, for he ended a short silence be- tween us by saying: " I have not finished what I was going to tell you, Dan. I have served Alexander, the czar, many years, and served him faithfully. There are reasons now why I can serve him no longer, in the capacity and at the places where he needs me most. My life which is of small moment, and his who is my Toyal master, would not be worth the weight of a feather if I were to show my face at St. Petersburg again. There is nothing remaining for me to do save to sit down quietly in some far country of the •world, and watch from a distance the passing of events which some day, near or far as the case may be, will end in his assassination. What my work has been and what it would still be if I could re- main near to his imperial majesty, you can guess, and I need not give it a name. But Dan, if I could succeed in convincing you of the opportunity that would be yours if you should go there, and if I could know that you had gone, determined to offer your services where they are most needed, then that far 56 DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY corner of the world where I would wait and watch events, would become a peaceful spot to me, for I know that you could succeed where all others have failed." Alexis Saberevski and I had many such conversa- tions as that one, after that, in which we discussed pro and con the suggestion he had made. It grew upon me and grew upon me until I be- came obsessed by the idea although I did not think that he guessed my eagerness. He remained in New York, and virtually became my guest at the club, during more than two months, and we were as constantly together as was possible and convenient. One afternoon while we were chatting as usual, I called his attention to a paragraph I had seen in the Herald of that morning which announced the arrival in New York of a Russian princess. The fact had not interested me, but recalling at the instant the idea that she was most likely known to my friend, I said: " Saberevski, one of your countrywomen, a princess whose name escapes me for I did not 57 PRINCESS ZARA notice it particularly, arrived in the city this morn- ing, and is at one of the hotels. I mention it be- cause you may not have seen the notice, and might like to pay your respects to her. You will find her name and a column or more of other information concerning her, in this morning's Herald." " Thank you," he said, " I will look it up." More than a week later while I was walking down Fifth avenue, a hansom cab stopped at the curb beside me, and Saberevski's face looked out. " Jump in, Dan," he said. " I want you to take a ride with me ; " and with no thought of hesitation, I complied. I did not even ask to be told our destination and was somewhat surprised when our conveyance stopped at one of the North river steamship piers. " You are not leaving the country, are you, Alexis? " I asked, as we got down. " No," he replied; "but someone I know is leav- ing. Will you walk to the end of the pier with me, or will you wait here ? " I recalled, later, that even then he left the choice to me. I accompanied him to the end of the pier. I S8 DAN DERRINGTON'S STORY asked no question concerning the person he Had re- ferred to, as sailing that day, and thought it rather strange that he seemed to seek no one, and expressed no desire to go aboard the vessel then about ready to steam away. When it had swung into the stream I ran my glance along the decks of the vessel from stem to stern, seeking a waving hand or a gesture of fare- well directed towards my friend. But I saw none to which he seemed to respond, until the ship was well into the current, when he suddenly raised his hand and waved it. At the same instant he took me by the arm and we returned to our conveyance. The following day at the club he came to me and placed a sealed envelope in my hand. It bore no address or superscription of any kind; but he said in giving it to me : " Dan, I wish you would put this sealed envelope inside one of your pockets and carry it with you care- fully until the time arrives to open it." " When will that be?" I asked him. " It will be when, some day in the future, you shall 59 PRINCESS ZARA be about to depart from the city of St. Petersburg." And as I showed some astonishment in my face, he continued : " Fate, or inclination, will take you there again, sometime, and the day will naturally follow when you will leave it. Count this sealed envelope as one of the mysteries in which I delight to wrap myself. But remember what I have asked you to do." " Repeat it," I said to him. " When you are about to take your departure from the city of St. Petersburg, if you should go there again, break the seal of this envelope and read the contents of a message I have written; or if your business should detain you there continuously, read it anyhow after six months. That is all." " And if I should not go there ? " I asked him. " In that case, keep the letter until you see me again, and return it unopened." Some months later I was in St. Petersburg. 60 CHAPTER V IN THE PRESENCE OF THE CZAR I HAD been in St. Petersburg less than an hour and was still pondering over the uncertainty of what first to do in order to begin the difficult task that I had set for myself, when I was startled by a sharp summons at my door. It opened before I could respond, and a total stranger entered the room. That he was an officer of that mysterious force known as the Russian Secret Police I had not a doubt, but I greeted him courte- ously, pretending not to see that there were others with him, who waited In the hallway. " I believe I have the honor of addressing Mr. Derrington," he said in perfect English, making use of my true name which however, was not the one mentioned in my passports, for I had crossed the border under the name of Smith. I bowed and In- dicated a chair which he declined with a wave of 6i PRINCESS ZAIL\ his hand but with a smile that was as genial as his face was masterful and handsome. " Perhaps you prefer to be called Mr. Smith," he continued. " It is, I understand, the name that is mentioned in your papers." " For the present, yes," I replied. " I regret that I am compelled to place you under arrest, Mr. Smith, but such is my unfortunate duty. You will have to take a short drive with me. I hope that you will not be detained beyond your patience. Take your wraps, and we will go at once if you please." " Certainly. Shall I leave the keys to my bag- gage here? " I knew Russia and I did not protest. " Thank you, yes; it will simplify matters. I have friends here who will take charge of your rooms until you return, or — " He did not finish the sen- tence but that inimitable smile shone upon me again and somewhat assured me, in spite of the fact that my perfect knowledge of Russian affairs rendered me thoroughly aware of my peril. We were presently in the street and driving rapidly away; whither, I did not know, for my com- 62 IN THE PRESENCE OF THE CZAR panion pulled down the curtains so that I could see nothing of the scenes through which we were pas- sing. I tried to keep note in my mind of the turns we made, and to remember the streets we traversed, but it was useless and I was convinced that my con- ductors were purposely confusing me. This con- viction forced upon me another; that my escort, or the people who had sent him to me, were informed regarding my past, and had somehow learned that I knew St. Petersburg as well as they did. During the drive which lasted nearly an hour we remained perfectly silent. I knew how utterly useless it would be to question the man at my side, and he volunteered not a word. Presently the pace was increased until the horses were on a run through the streets; then suddenly we flew around a corner at breakneck speed and stopped so abruptly that I was thrown forward on my face in spite of the robes in which I was swaddled. At the same moment I heard a gate clang shut behind us and was respect- fully bidden to alight. Night had just fallen when we left the hotel, and in the grim courtyard where I found myself after 63 PRINCESS ZARA the ride there was nothing discernible save the shadowy forms of my abductors, the champing, foam-flecked horses, and the somber walls of a huge building which loomed up on three sides of me. I had very little time for thought, for my companion took me familiarly by one arm and led me forward until we passed through a door which I did not see until it swung open before us. Then it closed as silently and as magically as it had opened, and I was led onward through darkness that was absolute, through corridors and rooms, at last emerging upon a dimly lighted hall, which seemed almost brilliant by comparison. There we paused and waited. " This does not seem like a prison," I said. "No; but it has often led to one," he replied grimly. " One word of advice to you before we proceed." " I shall appreciate it. Heaven knows I need it." " Do not on any account ask a single question lur- ing the experiences of the next half hour. Forget that there is such a thing as an interrogation. Per- haps, if you heed what I say, I may have the pleasure of riding back to your hotel with you." 64 IN THE PRESENCE OF THE CZAR I did not have time to reply, for a door opened and we started forward again, passing from room to room, each K'etter lighted than the last, until finally we entered one that was occupied. A man — a very large man — was seated at a desk, and he raised his eyes as we entered his presence. Never In my life was I so astonished as at that moment for I recog- nized him at a glance. I was in the presence of the czar. There was a very good reason for my astonish- ment. I had gone to St. Petersburg in the hope of obtaining an audience with the Emperor of all the Russias, but I had anticipated some difficulty in securing it, nor did I even wish for it in such a forcible and unsought manner. It was because I desired to keep the object of my visit a close secret that I had travelled incognito, and as I had imparted my secret to no living human being, I was naturally astounded that my object should he so quickly at- tained. A mental question shot through me in that instant when I realized where I was : In what man- ner could any person have learned of the true reason for my visit? and if it had not been learned and 65 PRINCESS ZARA transmitted to the czar, why was I conducted to the august presence? At the same instant I compre- hended that it would be the best policy for me to appear not to know in whose presence I was, so I simply inclined my head in the coldest bow I could master. "You speak Russian?" he demanded imperi- ously, advancing a step towards me. " Perfectly," I replied. "Your name!" " Daniel Derrington." I purposely made my reply as curt as his question, and I saw the shadow of a smile flit across his features. I knew then that I had taken the right course with him. "What is your nationality?" " I am an American." " Do you know who I am? " "I do, your majesty." This time I bowed with more show of ceremony, but he waved his hand com- mandingly, and In a voice much softer than he had used before, went on : " Forget that you do know. It is more than likely 66 IN THE PRESENCE OF THE CZAR that we will have many interviews of this kind and I wish them all to be on the plane of equals. That, I believe, is a condition which will come quite natur- ally to an American although it would be utterly im- possible to a European. Are you as well acquainted with the identity of your companion ? " " I regret to say that I am not," I replied, re- lapsing intO' my former manner. " Then permit me to introduce you. Mr. Der- rington, the Prince Michael Michaelovitch Gortshak- off. And now that you know each other, we will proceed. But first, be seated." My business during several years had taken me into astonishing situations, but never into one so astounding as this. I racked my brain in wonder- ing what it could portend; in conjecturing if it were real, or if it were only the " hearty meal before the execution." I longed to ask a few questions, but re- membering the advice that had been given me just before entering the room, I refrained. " You will be surprised to learn that I am entirely aware of the object of your presence in Russia," 67 PRINCESS ZARA continued his majesty, " for unless I am mistaken you believed your errand to be an inviolate secret. Is that true?" " Quite true." " And yet it is known to me. The best proof of that is that you are here." I bowed. " I knew a few hours after you left your own coun- try, that you had started. I was fully acquainted with your mission. My eyes, or the eyes of those who are in my confidence, have not been off you one moment since you arrived In Europe. They followed you to Paris, across Germany, and even into the hotel where our friend called upon you and where you are known as Mr, Smith." He paused an in- stant, and turning to the prince, added: " Tell him the prospective fate of Mr. Smith, prince." " Siberia," came the reply in one word, uttered calmly and coldly. "Siberia?" I repeated after him, and shrugged my shoulders; and the czar added: " Siberia." 68 CHAPTER VI THE NIHILIST SPY THE hackneyed simile of the cat and the mouse seemed to me to be especially appli- cable in the present instance. In one breath I was told that there would be many interviews of the kind I was then enjoying (?), and in the next that my destination was Siberia. It was cer- tainly paradoxical and somewhat threatening, but I still refrained from asking questions. Presently, as I made no further comment, the emperor resumed the conversation. " What brought you to Russia ? " he demanded, but in a tone that was not unkind. " The desire to obtain an interview with you," I replied, remembering his caution for me to ignore his rank. " For what purpose? " " To enter your service." 69 PRINCESS ZARA " In what capacity? " " In any capacity for which I seem most fitted." His majesty smiled broadly as if my replies suited the humor he was in. I knew that I had made an impression that was not detrimental to me in his eyes, and thought that I began to see through the puzzle. The succeeding few moments convinced me that I was not mistaken. " Whose was the suggestion that determined your visit to Russia ? " he continued. " The suggestion came to me a long time ago — more than a year," I responded. " Since then it has been constantly in my mind, and at last I decided to act upon it." " That does not answer my question, Mr. Der- rington." " The Idea first came to me through an old friend; one whom I used to know here, in this country; one who afforded me very great assistance when I was here thfee years ago on a secret mission for my government." "What is his name?" " I have forgotten it." 70 THE NIHILIST SPY " You are troubled with a poor memory, sir." " Yes; concerning the names of friends who have assisted me when they have been compelled to place their own interests in jeopardy in order to do so." " Do you know Alexis Saberevski ? " " I do." " Can you tell me where he is now? " " In New York, I think." " Did you not have a definite' proposition to make to me, in case you were successful in securing an audience ? " " I did." " Very well, you have secured the audience. I will hear the proposition." I hesitated. Here before me ready at my hand was the very opportunity I had so eagerly sought and which I had determined to go to many lengths to obtain. Already I had undertaken great expense to arrive at this moment and to encounter a circum- stance very like the one by which I was now con- fronted; and yet I hesitated to take his majesty at his word and to render up the proposition he re- quired of me, and which I had travelled so far and 71 PRINCESS ZARA gone to such pains to submit. But you will admit that the circumstance was an unusual one, and that the very manner of my introduction to the Czar of all the Russias was calculated to be confounding to me and to place at naught my customary determined poise, and unswerving self-reliance. The abrupt mention of Alexis Saberevski, coupled with other insinuations already brought forward in our con- versation, confirmed me in the idea already half formed, that my apparent arrest at the hotel, my strange and mysterious journey through the night, and the threat of Siberia, were all in the nature of what we Americans call a "bluff"; were only in- tended to conceal the real purpose of this enforced interview. During that moment of hesitation, which was so short that it would not have been noticeable to a disinterested party, I decided that the perfectly frank and open course would be the best one to adopt with this giant of a man who confronted me; a giant not only in physique and stature, and in strength of purpose as well as in muscle, but in the wonderful power he swayed by the mere exertion of his will. 72 THE NIHILIST SPY I glanced upward into his eyes, which were bent half quizzically and not at all unkindly upon me, and then in words that flowed easily, and which came to me like an inspiration, I stated almost in one sen- tence, and certainly in one paragraph, the concise explanation of my presence in St. Petersburg at that moment. I said: " I believe that I can organize and maintain a secret service bureau in your majesty's interest, which will be more effective than all the present police force put together. In order to do so I must have my own way entirely, must be absolute master of the situation, as far as my men are concerned,' and can have no superior officer — not even the czar him- self. My plans have been formulated with care, and I can go into minute details whenever I am di- rected to do so." " Modesty is not one of your accomplishments, Mr. Derrington," " Possibly not; but thorough familiarity with the work I would do is one. Interference with my duties by any one no matter how high in place, would 73 PRINCESS ZARA render; my efforts impotent, and I should decline tinder such circumstances to undertake the task I have set for myself." "What is that task?" " The utter dismemberment and destruction of an organization of anarchists known as nihilists against whom I have already been twice pitted, and both times successfully." The czar arose from his chair and crossed the room to the window where he stood for some time peering out Into the darkness, in the interim drum- ming ceaselessly on the pane with the tips of his fin- gers. During that time there was not a word spoken. Presently he turned and came back to the chair where I was seated, towering over me like a veritable giant, the most magnificent specimen of masculine humanity I have ever seen; and according to his lights, as good as he was great in stature. When ultimately the nihilists succeeded in destroying him, they killed the best friend that Russia evei had on the throne. They did not, could not know it ; but I do. " Mr. Derrington," he said, speaking with great deliberation, as though he weighed each word he 74 THE NIHILIST SPY uttered, " we will end this farce of questions and answers. They are unnecessary as far as I am con- cerned, and are unworthy of you. A long time ago I held a conversation in this very room with your friend Alexis Saberevski who possesses my entire con- fidence. In that conversation he recommended you to me, and I directed him to put the bee in your bonnet that has been buzzing there ever since ; so you see that I really sent for you, although you did not know it. It was necessary that I should first be entirely convinced that I could trust you implicitly, before entering Into negotiations with you. I am convinced. I accept your service. You will sleep In the palace to-night, and to-morrow we will discuss your plans in detail. Mr. Smith has been arrested as a nihilist, and the morning papers will announce that he has started on his journey to Siberia. Mr. Derrlngton will remain in St. Petersburg and to- morrow he will decide what disposition to make of himself. The prince will act as your host for to- night." I got upon my feet and bowed to him, but he extended his hand in the most cordial manner; and 75 PRINCESS ZARA with a genial smile upon his face which rendered it handsome, and which won my affection as well as my respect, said: " It will be a pleasure to me to be upon terms of familiarity with one who wears no title and who does not wish for one. Henceforth we will count ourselves as friends, and forget relative positions and rank. Give me your hand." I was nearly as tall as he but much more slight in build, and my hand was almost lost In his great palm when they were clasped together. I forgot the czar in the magnificence of the man, and as I gave him my hand, I said: " My life goes with it, sir, if the necessity arises." " I believe you, Mr. Derrlngton. In the morning I will send for you. Good night." Then I followed the prince from the room and was presently conducted to an apartment which evi- dently had been designed for me; at least I so de- cided when I had an opportunity to examine It and to familiarize myself with all that it contained. The prince found some Russian cigarettes on the table, and lighted one while he said laughingly : " I see 76 THE NIHILIST SPY that you are prepared to entertain your guests, Mr. Derrington. Shall we chat together a little before we part for the night? " " If you will be so good as to remain with me, at least until I catch my breath, I will esteem it a great favor," I replied. " Is the boycott of the in- terrogation removed ? " " Certainly." " Then will you please tell me how the dev — " A hearty laugh interrupted me. " I know all that you would ask," he said. " Our mutual friend Alexis is more in the confidence of his majesty than any other man in the world, and this plot to induce you to come here and offer your services to the czar, was deliberately planned be- tween them nearly three years ago. From time to time Alexis dropped little hints to you which set you to thinking, and the thought finally blossomed into action. Had you confided your plans to any- body, even to Alexis, your services would not have been accepted. As It is, after to-morrow I tremble for you In the power that you will have, for in many ways It will be as great as that of the czar 77 PRINCESS ZARA himself. Shall I give you a bit of history in order that you may know something of what is expected of you?" " If you will do so." " Peter the Great organized a system of police which still endures, though to-day it contains only three members, the emperor, Alexis and myself. It is called the Fraternity of Silence. During all these years its members have been selected with the greatest care and with increasing difficulty so that now it has dwindled to nothing. In the mean time the necessity for it has grown greater, for nihilism in- fests the country like a plague. Without nihilism in Russia, Siberia would be unnecessary. The very faults which nihilism seeks to remedy are kept alive by its existence. If it were eradicated Russia would take its place among the liberal nations of the world, and it is the ambition of Alexander to perform that service for the empire he controls, just as it was his idea to free the serfs. But the character of our peo- ple is different from that of any other people in the world, and your task is not so much to find out and banish those who conspire against the czar, as it will 78 THE NIHILIST SPY be to convert the men who organize such conspiracies. You are to reorganize the Fraternity of Silence on a new plan, and the power to act upon your own judg- ment will be absolute. It may seem strange to you that considering yourself almost unknown you should have been selected for this work, but you must re- member that you have been recommended by one whose word Is entirely respected by the emperor, and that you have been under careful espionage for three years. Does the outline that I have given you ac- cord with the plans which you thought of submitting to the czar? " "Yes; largely." " Plots for the assassination of the emperor are batching every day. Our present system is not ade- quate. You must fill the breach." " Is the existence of this organization of which you ■speak known to anybody, prince?" " To nobody save those whom I have mentioned.*' "Not to any nihilist?" " Alexander, Alexis, you and I are the only living "beings who ever heard of it. No one else has ever known of it." 79 PRINCESS ZARA " Will you pardon me, prince, if I tell you that you are mistaken ? '' " Mistaken 1 Do you ftican, Mr. Derrington, that you doubt my word ? " He got upon his feet and I saw that he was angry, believing that I had wantonly offended him. I arose also and began to pace up and down the room taking care that each turn would bring me nearer to the heavy curtains which hung about one of the great windows. The prince repeated his question, this time in a louder and angrier tone than before, and when I made no reply was about to leave the room ; but I made a sign that compelled him to pause. At the same instant, being sufficiently near the curtain, I made a quick leap forward and with all my strength struck with my fist the exact point behind which I thought the head of the concealed person should be located. My aim was true and the blow was sufficient, for the body behind the curtain crashed against the hard- wood casing of the window and then sank to the floor, motionless, and in another instant I had dragged into view the senseless form of a man in the livery of the 80 THE NIHILIST SPY palace servants — a man whom the prince instantly recognized as a trusted servitor of the czar — one who had been told that a guest was expected to oc- cupy that chamber, and who had been detailed to wait upon me — one who had been especially se- lected for his loyalty and discretion. " That man heard and knew, and to-morrow the nihilists would have heard and known. Let us hope that they do not already know more than they should," I said, indicating the spy, and smiling up at the prince. The fellow was evidently not a Russian. He was a tall man, lithe and sinewy rather than muscular, but he had a handsome, Patrician face; and despite his condition of insensibility, or perhaps because of it, he seemed strangely out of place in the predicament in which he was now discovered. It was an extremely fortunate thing that I had become sensible of his presence in the room almost from the first, and that I had been able, therefore, to direct the conversation and my line of conduct, to the point of the present denouement. I could real- ize just how shocked Prince Michael was by the event; 8i PRINCESS ZARA just how puzzled his own reasoning powers were for the moment, because of this discovery of a spy con- cealed in the private room of the palace, who might, if I had not so fortunately discovered him, have be- trayed the real purpose of my presence there, even before the accomplishment of any results, I had expected to find a net work of spies sur- rounding the palace of the Czar of all the Russias, as well as inside it, and I knew because of my former experiences in the Moscovite capital, with what I would have to contend if circumstances permitted me, as they now promised to do, to take up and to perform what I considered would be the greatest work of my life. There before me on the floor, prostrate and senseless, although rapidly returning to consciousness, was the undoubted personal proof of the deadly danger of my mission; but as I had foreseen and forestalled this incident, so I believed! I would be able to foresee and forestall others that would be like unto it; and I determined to make the most of this one, by using It to an advantage which had instantly occurred to me when I saw and read 82 THE NIHILIST SPY the physiognomy, and behind that, the character of the man on the floor. His features and the general air of refinement about him, notwithstanding his dress and position, suggested refinement, and I believed that I could appeal to him in a way that would call forth some response if I were given the opportunity to do so. He was lying on his back with his right arm outstretched, and while the prince and I stood there regarding him with such different emotions, his eyelids fluttered and parted and he once more became conscious of his surroundings. Beside him on the floor, was a long knife, which I have no doubt he would have used upon me had my attack been less sudden and violent. As it was, he opened his eyes and gazed sullenly upon us, realiz- ing better than I did, the fate that was in store for, him now. I used the silken curtain cords with which to bind him, and when that was accomplished, placed him on one of the couches. " Was it your intention to commit suicide when you entered this room to spy upon us ? " I asked ; but he did not reply. " Prince," I added, turning 83 PRINCESS ZARA to my companion, " I think if you will leave me alone with this man, I will find a way to make him talk. Will you return in half an hour? " , " Would it not be better to — " " Must I wait until to-morrow for my authority? " I asked, smiling. So the prince bowed and left me alone with the spy. CHAPTER VII FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN I HAD discovered at a glance that the spy was not a Russian ; and that being the case he was presumably engaged in his present occupation for pay only, and I believed that I could turn what seemed to be a catastrophe into a decided advantage. Experience had taught me long ago that the Russian nihilist is a fanatic who possesses distorted ideas of patriotism upon which he builds a theory of gov- ernment, and that nothing short of death can turn him from his purpose. But with the foreigners who ally themselves with the fortunes of the nihilists — Germans, Frenchmen, Italians, etc. — it is different. They are always open to argument — for pay — although they are hardly to be relied upon even then, for they will sell out to another with the same celer- ity with which they formerly disposed of themselves to you. 8S PRINCESS ZARA " You are a Frenchman, are you not ? " I asked this man, as soon as we were alone together. *' Yes," he replied, reluctantly. " Do you know what is in store for you now ? " " Siberia, or death ; one is as bad as the other. I'm only sorry that I did not have a chance to use my knife before you struck me; that's all." " I have not a doubt of it. And yet you may escape both, Siberia and death, if you are reasonable." " How ? I'll be reasonable fast enough if you can prove that to me." " Do you speak English ? " " Yes ; as well as I do French, and Russian, and German, and half a dozen other languages." " Then you heard and understood everything that passed between thcprince and me? " " Certainly. I might have pretended that I did not, if I had thought to do so. Still it would have made no difference, any way." " Not much, that's a fact. Why did you hide in this room?" " To hear what you said. To get what informa- 86 FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN tion I could. I certainly did not do it for the fun of the thing." " Well, my man, I will make a bargain with you. If you will tell me all that I want to know and answer truthfully every question I ask, I will en- gage that you shall neither go to Siberia nor to your death. You will go to prison, and I will keep you there long enough to find out if your information is correct. If it is, I will set you free as soon as I can afford to do so; if it is not, then Siberia, and the worst that there is in that delightful country, too. What do you say?" " How long will you keep me In prison ? " " A month — six months — a year — as long as I deem it necessary. I shall want you near me where I can talk to you frequently, whenever the fancy takes me." " I'll see you damned first." " Very welL I'm sorry for you. A few months in a comfortable prison, with the best of food, books to read, paper and pens at your disposal, permission to communicate with your friends as often as you .87 PRINCESS ZARA please so long as I see your letters before they are sent away, ought to be preferable to ending your life in the mines of frozen Siberia; but the choice is yours." " It is." " Then why don't you accept my dffer? " " Because I don't believe you. You will get all that you want out of me, and then I will travel East any way." " That is a chance that you will have to take." I arose and walked across the room to give him an opportunity to think it over. " You look to me like one who has seen better days," I said, when I returned. "You evidently came from a very good family; you are an educated man, and you are young. In all probability you joined the nihilists without really meaning to do so, and having later been selected for this work here, on account of your ability, you were afraid to refuse it. Suppose that I should keep you imprisoned a year, or even two, what is that to the fate that awaits you if you re- fuse to do as I ask, or to that which you would 88 FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN have met, if you had refused to obey the men who commanded you to come here? Answer me." " A joke." " Precisely. Now, here is another question. If I should let you go free after you betray those men to me, what would your life be worth the moment you got upon the street, even if I provided you with passports out of the country? " " Nothing." "They would find you, wouldn't they?" " To a certainty." "And kiU you?" " As surely as you stand there." " On the other hand, if I send you to a prison here in St. Petersburg, as I have proposed, you will be thought by them to be dead, or in Siberia, which is about the same thing. In the mean time you can write to any one whom you wish to have know that you are still alive; you can receive replies under f an assumed name, and — " " Enough, sir. I accept. You guessed rightly when you said that I am not a nihilist at heart. I 89 PRINCESS ZARA am one because I love a woman who Is one. That will suffice for the present. Later, I may tell you more about it I am disposed to make another con- dition concerning her but I sec that it would be use- less; and perhaps you will grant me a favor if I ask it, when you discover that I have not deceived you in what I shall tell you." " You may be quite sure of it, if it is a reasonable one. Now tell me your name." " You do not care about my true name, I sup- pose? " " I want the one by which you are known among the nihilists." " Jean Moret." " And here, in the palace? " " The same." " I shall send you to your prison now. I cannot promise what it will be for to-night. To-morrow I will see you and will keep my word in every re- spect. In the mean time I want you to think over all that you have to say to me so that we may lose as little time as possible when we meet again." I left him then and went to the door. Outside, 90 FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN waiting in the corridor was the prince, and in a few words I explained to him what had taken place during his absence at the same time apologizing for having sent him from the room. Then I asked that the captain of the palace guard be sent for, and in a few moments Jean Moret was placed in his care. After that the prince and I smoked another cigarette together and then parted for the night. " Mr. Derrington," he said, as he was about to take his leave, " I am more than ever convinced that you are the right man in the right place. Tell me how you discovered the presence of that spy. I had no idea that he was there, and thought that we were entirely alone." " I knew he was there the moment we entered the room," I replied. " It is my habit to glanpe at everything in sight whenever I enter an apartment, and I do it now without realizing that I do so, if you can understand the seeming paradox. When we passed the threshold I saw instantly that one of the curtains did not hang properly, so I seated my- self in a position from which I could keep it in view. Twice I saw that it moved; a very little to be sure, 91 PRINCESS ZARA but enough to satisfy me that somebody was con- <:ealed behind it. That is the reason why I rather forced the conversation in English. The rest you know. I am convinced that the man we captured is the victim of circumstances, and I think I can make him very valuable." " Well," acknowledged the prince, " there might have been a man behind every one of the curtains and I would not have thought to suspect it. This service alone, Mr. Derrington, is worth all the pay you will draw from Russia." " Yes," I replied, " for I believe that the spy will confess to me that he was sent there with orders to murder the czar." " My God 1 And even now there may be others of the same sort in the palace." " No ; I hardly think that. The nihilists would not be likely to send more than one at a time on such a dangerous errand." Moret confessed to me the following day, and I speedily was convinced that ray suppositions con- cerning him were correct. He had not had the brutal courage to carry out his orders; and already 92 FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN he had received several warnings from his compa- triots that if another week passed without his accom- plishment of the design, his own life would pay the forfeit. He was in that room awaiting my arrival when he heard me approaching with the prince, and had concealed himself behind the curtain without any definite purpose other than to hear all that he could. It is hardly necessary, and there is not space, for me to go into the details of my subsequent talks with Moret. SuiEce it to say that the information I gleaned in that way, proved of inestimable value to my work. From it I learned the names of all the leading nihilists of St. Petersburg and Moscow, their meeting places, their passwords, and several of their ciphers. Concerning their plans for the future, beyond those in which he was personally engaged, Moret knew almost nothing; but he did put me in the way of finding out nearly all that I wished to know. Nor is it necessary that I should describe my subsequent interviews with the emperor. My plans were adopted almost without a correction — and most of those I suggested myself — so that 93 PRINCESS ZARA by the time I had been an inmate of the palace for a week, the reorganization of the Fraternity of Si- lence was well under way, and ere a month had passed it was an established fact. There was one point upon which Moret stub- bornly refused to talk, and that was concerning the woman who had led him into the difficulty, and who, he confessed, was the brains and the real head of the society. I questioned him very closely and so decided in my own mind that she was prominent at the capital; but at the last he positively refused to answer any further questions concerning her, saying that he would rather go to Siberia and have done with it at once, than to betray her. I desisted, there- fore, believing that ultimately he would denounce her to me without knowing that he had done so, and events proved that I was right although they also demonstrated that it would have been much better for all concerned had he trusted me implicitly In the beginning. Thus, at the end of a month succeeding the night of my ride from the hotel to the palace with the prince, I was prepared to commence work In earnest; 94 FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN but it must not be supposed that I had been idle, personally, during that time. In fact I was never so busy in all my life as during ] those four weeks of preparation for the stupendous task I had set myself; and you will understand that there were countless things to do, unnumbered details to arrange, and a thousand and one ramifications of the work to be planned and plotted and thoroughly comprehended, not alone by myself, but by the men I would gather around me to work under my direc- tion. The organization of a secret service bureau, no matter how general may be its duties, is at least a monumental task; but the organization of such a bureau as this one whose very existence must remain a secret from all the world, presented difficulties not to be met with or contended against under any other circumstances. It was necessary that I should become the chief over an army of men, and it was equally imperative that not one person among the rank and file of that army should know of my existence, as it was related to them. With the chiefs of departments and sec- 95 PRINCESS ZARA tlons, it was necessary that I should have intercourse and interviews, but I had already made my mental selection of persons to fill those positions, when I arrived in St. Petersburg, and the organization of the several departments was to be left in their hands. I was determined that there should be no phase of Russian life which could hide itself away from the skill of my investigating forces; from palace to hovel, from the highest official in the Russian diplo- matic service and in the army to the meanest servant or laborer, my sources of knowledge must extend, and every detail of it all must necessarily be so com- plete as to render it not only exact, but absolutely under my personal control and direction^ without however in any way creating the suspicion that I was personally interested. Presently you will un- derstand more perfectly how this all came about, and in quite a natural way it would seem, for always things accomplished seem easy enough to the casual observer; and you who read are only observers after all. You are receiving a bit of unwritten history which closely concerned the Russian empire and with- out which the assassination of Alexander would un- 96 FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN doubtedly have happened many years before it did, for I give to myself the credit of having extended the days of that really great but much misunderstood Moscovite gentleman. * At the time of my appearance in St. Petersburg the forces of nihilism had assumed proportions greater than they had ever attained before or will ever attain to again, thanks to my activities. The palace itself was a hotbed of conspiracy ; the rank and file of the army was so disaffected that the oiScers never knew whom they could depend upon or whom they might trust; a secret pressure of the thumb, indeterminate in its character but nevertheless sig- nificant, was likely to be received from any hand clasp, no matter where given or with whom ex- changed, and a princess or a countess was as likely to bestow it upon you as any ordinary person whom you niight chance to meet. The pressure itself was merely a tentative question which might be trans- lated by the words: " Are you a nihilist? " and you might understand It and reply to it by a returning pressure of acquiescence, or ignore it utterly, as you pleased. The pressure itself was so slight, was care- 97 PRINCESS ZARA lessly given and might so readily be attributed to a careless motion of the hand that it could not betray the person who made it; nor could the answering pressure do so. I had not been long at the palace before I dis- covered that many of the high officials who had ready and constant access there had become inoculated with the nihilistic bacilli and although I had no doubt that many of them were at heart loyal to the em- peror, I already knew better than they did the im- mensity of the obligation they had undertaken in swearing allegiance to an association of persons dom- inated by fanatics and by actual criminals whose trade was murder and whose chiefest pleasures and relaxation was the study of how best to bring about entire social upheaval. The confession of Moret enabled me to read every sign however slight that was made by these persons and the four weeks of my domicile In the apartment of the palace that had been assigned to me served me as nothing else could have done In this respect. You have already been told that this was by no means my first experience in St. Petersburg and with 98 FOR LOVE OF A WOMAN nihilism; but I must confess that extensive as my information had been and was I had never for a moment contemplated the vast resources of this rev- olutionary order, its unlimited ramifications and its boundless possibilities for evil. To discover as I speedily did that princes of the blood, that ladies high in place, that generals in the army and lesser officers under them were among the ranks of the nihilists, was an astounding fact which I had not contemplated and which I was ill prepared to receive so soon after my arrival. It extended the require- ments of my operation; it increased ten fold, nay a hundred fold, my obligations to the czar in whose service I was now sworn. It seems difficult to imagine a beautiful woman as being at the head and front of such an organiza- tion which discusses murder and which arranges for wholesale assassination with the same equanimity of conscience that a hunting party at an English country estate would arrange for the slaughter of rabbits and pheasants. But I was destined soon to discover that even this could be true. I was destined soon to be brought 99 PRINCESS ZARA in contact with a beautiful woman who was not only high in place and a favorite with the czar himself, but who was veritably a leader in the plots against him. ICO CHAPTER VIII THE princess' ORIENTAL GARDEN IN order better to carry out the plans I had made it was necessary that I should depart from the palace and I secured apartments in a respectable but quiet section of the city, where I established myself under the name of Dubravnik; and it was generally understood by those who came in contact with me that I was a pardoned exile who had been permitted to return under stipulated conditions, as such men are sometimes, though rarely, allowed to do. In the mean time I had gathered around me several certain individuals whom I had known and employed in the past, and whom I knew from ex- perience that I could trust; and there was not one Russian among them. The Russian may be trusted always wherever his heart is involved and his polit- ical conscience is at rest, but never unless those lOI PRINCESS ZARA forces are working in sympathy with the employ- ment of his hands and head. I sent to Paris for Michael O'Malley whose long residence there had outwardly transformed him from an Irishman to a Frenchman, and who for conveni- ence spelled his name Malet, thus retaining the sound ■without the substance. He opened a cafe, which because of its excellence speedily became the resort of the higher officers of the Russian army stationed at St. Petersburg. Every one of the waiters in his establishment were spies in his employ brought with him from Paris, and not one of them knew of my existence. Thus they did their work in the dark, but they did it well. Another Irishman, Tom Coyle, who looked like a Russian, established a cab stand on the English plan, and he had a small army of men under him who worked in the same way as Malet's servants. A Frenchman and his wife — their names were St. Cyr — ran a high class intelli- gence office, and furnished valets, maids, cooks, coachmen, etc., for the best families at the Russian capitol. I had one assistant who taught singing to the nobility, and another who was a master at loa THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN arms and gave lessons in the science of handling all kinds of weapons. In the less pretentious quarters of the city I had proprietors of fourth rate cafes on my list; also loungers, loafers, seeming drunkards, laborers. But more important than these I suc- ceeded In securing for one of my best men — an American — the management of the city Messenger Service; and one by one he contrived to replace the messengers by others of his own selection, until many of them were unknowingly members of my staff. Unknowingly, mind you, for therein existed much of the secret of my power. My workers did not know what they did. Canfield really did great work for me while he held that position, and I must not neglect to give him credit for It. O'Malley, Coyle, the St. Cyrs and Canfield were really therefore the several component parts of my Immediate staff and those five were the only persons among all my hundreds of workers who knew Dubravnik to be their chief; and it Is a perfectly safe statement to say that in all St. Petersburg, nay In all the world at that time, there were but nine persons living who had the least knowledge or even 103 PRINCESS ZARA suspicion of my business; the nine were the czar, Prince Michael, the five already named, myself and Moret now in solitary confinement although in a comfortably appointed room in one of the prisons. It is well that I should say a word or two in reference to these assistants of mine, in passing. O'Malley was an Irishman of the finest type of bluff and honest manhood. I have known him and tried him through many a difficulty where his sterling qualities of character, his rugged honesty of purpose, his unfailing loyalty and devotaon to me and his uncanny qualities as an investigator had endeared him to me both professionally and personally beyond the expression of mere words to describe it. I knew that I could rely upon him absolutely in all emergen- cies and that he was utterly fearless in the face of any danger that might present itself. By opening the cafe described, patronized by the elite of the Russian capital he merely followed out a plan long before undertaken in Paris for a like purpose and through the workings of his waiters and other em- ployees he possessed sources of information and facilities for investigation unprecedented in their far 104 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN reaching possibilities. There is many a whispered word and undertoned conversation carried on at a supper table over the coffee or a bottle of wine which finds its way into the ears of servitors and O'Mal- ley's duties consisted not alone in piecing together after they were siippFied to him these scraps of con- versation, but in having his workers spy upon cer- tain personages when they appeared at the cafe and so anticipate secrets which they might have to un- fold. Even he had lesser men in authority under him and many of those who were almost directly under his employ believed that they were allied to the regular secret police and did not know of their employer's official capacity. Tom Coyle, a huge rough bearded Irishman who in outward appearance might have passed anywhere for a Russian, was not less efficient or less loved and trusted by me than O'Malley. As a proprietor of a cab stand every driver was a minion of his and served him precisely as O'Malley's waiters did their chief; and it may readily be determined that the power thus exerted for making reports, for knowing the distinction and the engagements of certain in- 105 PRINCESS ZARA divlduals was far reaching indeed. Coyle also had served me in the execution of many delicate missions of the past and I could depend upon him almost as absolutely as I could upon myself. The two St. Cyrs, husband and wife, were equally important factors in my work; indeed they pro- vided the most far reaching assistance I had, for if you will stop to consider a moment and will realize how absolutely at the mercy of house servants the ordinary citizen is compelled to be, you will under- stand how an employment agency operated for the purposes of espionage can discover and reveal secrets which otherwise might never find their way outside the family circle. There is no written document, no locked bureau drawer, no hidden pocket, no secret hiding place into which the prying eyes and fingers of maid or valet, house maid and general servitor cannot penetrate. These people did their work for the St. Cyrs and reported to them, knowing nothing whatever of why they made those reports or to whom they ultimately found their way. Canfield was also invaluable. As managing di- rector of the Messenger Service with many of his io6 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN employees working as spies, it was a comparatively easy matter to intercept letters and messages and to obtain a knowledge of the contents of documents through their skilled efforts. I have given this resume of conditions as I estab- lished them to avoid going into detail respecting the sources of the information I made use of, but it will be understood now how thorough was my knowl- edge whenever I chose to exert it. During the time that passed as I have described, I became a factor in St. Petersburg society. Sup- posed to possess unlimited wealth (accumulated, by the way, in Mexican mines, for it sounded well), with the crest of a noble family then extinct andl half forgotten ornamenting my cards and stationery, and introduced by Prince Michael, who was known to be high in favor with the czar, palace doors were thrown wide open to receive me. I was young then, and women said that I was handsome, while men found me genial, companionable, and their master at most games and with every sort of weapon; things which men respect even if they do resent them. The regular police systems, even to the mysterious 107 PRINCESS ZARA Third Section which has no equivalent or parallel in the world, were entirely ignorant of the existence of my espionage, and many times during the months that followed I fell under suspicion. My power was so much greater than theirs that I possessed one abundant advantage, that of knowing their spies; and many of these, from time to time, I purposely allowed to become inmates of my house, from which they inevitably carried away the precise information that I wished them to obtain. By the time the organization of the fraternity was completed, I had information in my possession which if it had gone to the emperor, would have created a social upheaval such as has never been witnessed in history. But many of the most an- archistic and irrepressible leaders of the nihilists were quietly arrested and sent where they would be rendered harmless, and others who were less violent, I left undisturbed and in seeming security, knowing that they would ultimately lead me to the point I wished to attain, the very root of the evil which I had determined to eradicate; but it was six months after my arrival in St. Petersburg when I met with io8 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN the adventure which I regarded as the most remark- able of my experience, and which is really the reason, for this story. " Well, Derrington," the prince said to me one night shortly after our return from a function of more than ordinary prominence. He had stopped at my rooms for a smoke and a chat before retiring. " Have you received an invitation from the prin- cess? " "What princess?" I asked. " Zara de Echeveria, the most beautiful woman in Europe.',' He was smiling now, and seemed to take it for granted that I should know to whom he referred. "The name is Spanish," I said; and I vaguely recalled having heard it somewhere before that day. But evidently it had made only slight impression upon my memory. "Yes; her father was a Spaniard, but she is a Russian of the Russians. Her title is given her by courtesy, from her mother's family. Is it possible that you do not know about her?" " Quite." 109 PRINCESS ZARA " It is not remarkable, after all, for she left the city shortly after your arrival and has only just returned. I paid my respects to her yesterday, and took the liberty of suggesting that she add your name to her lisL Look among your cards, and see if she has not sent you one." It was among the first that my hand lighted upon and naturally wc fell to discussing her. The rhap- sodies concerning her in which the prince indulged led me to interpose a remark, for which I was in- stantly sorry. " One would think that you were in love with her," I said. His face fell instantly, and for a moment he was visibly confused, but at last, with a conscious smile, he said, boldly: " Well, why not? I do not know that it is neces- sary to deny it since she is aware of it herself; and so, I think, is the whole city. I am a bachelor, and not turned fifty. Twenty-five years is not an impas- sable gulf, is it?" " Certainly not, my dear prince„ My remark was no THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN an ill timed pleasantry which you must pardon. Is she, then, so young? " Twenty-five," "Let me see; her ball, is for to-morrow — or rather, to-night, since it is now morning." " Yes. Will you go with me? I will then have the pleasure of presenting you." " Thank you ; yes." I did not see the prince again until he called for me on his way to the house of the princess where we found the parlors thronged, so that it was with difficulty that we presently made our way among the massed guests to the point where Zara de Eche- veria was receiving her friends. On our way to greet her. Prince Michael encountered many ac= quaintances who claimed a word with him, so afl last he drew me aside and we waited until there was a lull in the efforts of the crush around her; then he led me forward. " So glad to know you, Mr. Dubravnik," she said, in my own language. " The prince has told me that you have spent a long time abroad, and prefer III PRINCESS ZARA to speak English. I am also fond of conversing in that tongue. Will you be seated?" She made a place for me beside her, and we were soon engaged in conversation. The Princess Zara! It is frequently the case that we meet people who antagonize us the moment a glance or a handshake is exchanged, wkile our inner consciousness offers no explanation for the reasonless antipathy ; on the other hand Fate brings us sometimes in contact with per- sonalities which at once appeal to a sixth sense which is unexplainable and indefinable, but which seems to comprehend more than the combined five educated and trained sensibilities. What is that sixth sense? Who can tell? I only know that in one moment I felt as if I had known the princess all my life, and I knew instinctively that the same influences were affecting her. I will not attempt to describe her, more than to afford a mere outline for something that was in- describable, for the charm which pervaded the at- mosphere around her was felt rather than seen. It would be unfair to call her beautiful, as the prince 112 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN had done, for that word comprehends merely an outward and visible sign, and with the Princess Zara, although her beauty was striking, it was the least of her attractions. I had thought that I was born and had lived, devoid of that form of self consciousness which is called diffidence, although it is only an expression of egotism; but for the first time in my life I found myself ill at ease, and won- dering if I was appearing to advantage. I was con- scious of myself; and what was stranger still I real- ized that this trained society beauty, the undoubted heroine of unnumbered conquests, was as restless as I was. Princess Zara! The expression as I write it brings vividly back to me the moment when I stood beside her that night amid the throng of guests surrounding us, but never- theless conscious only of her presence. There are some occasions in the liv-es of men which they are not inclined to dwell upon or even to speak about; which they preserve jealously, as secrets in their own hearts,, selfishly indisposed to acquaint others with them lest some of the magic of the actual moment, reinduced "3 PRINCESS ZARA by retrospection, may be lost In the telling. But I could not recite the history of my experiences in St. Petersburg at that time without uncovering my innermost soul, as It was affected and Influenced by Zara de Echeveria, whose charm of manner, whose redundant beauty and powers of fascination, were beyond all effort at description. Her eyes were like stars, and yet were not too bril- liant. Glowing In their depths somewhere beyond visible ken, was the assurance of unspeakable prom- ise; and there seemed to emanate from her person- ality a glowing enthusiasm which thrilled whomever ■came Into her presence. The mere outward description of personal beauty "will be forever inadequate to describe the emotions that influence a man, when he sees for the first time, the feminine perfection of creation which he Is des- tined to adore. One may be fascinated, attracted, by any one of many qualities, or by all of them com- bined; one may discover perfection of form or feature, and may accept these suggestions as com- prising all that Is necessary to engender that quality 114 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN within us which we call love; but nearly always one finds that the imitation has been accepted for the real, and that it has been so accepted and claimed only because the genuine has never appeared. But whenever a man finds the real one, whenever it is his good fortune to encounter the genuine article, there remains no doubt in his soul of its reality. He sees and feels and knows. There is no denying the absoluteness of it. It is a perfect knowledge brought home to him with an absolute- ness, which for the moment, is almost paralyzing in its effect, and the immediate consequences of which are utterly beyond comprehension. Standing there In the presence of Zara de Ech- everia, surrounded as we were by throngs of guests, interrupted frequently as It was quite natural we should be, we two were yet as utterly alone as if we had been standing upon a solitary rock in the midst of a waste of waters beyond which the vision could not penetrate. We were utterly alone In a world by ourselves; and the strange part of it was that we both seemed "5 PRINCESS ZARA to realize the truth, although neither of us at that moment could contemplate the understanding of the other. Until I drove with the prince to that house where she received, my whole mind and intelligence had been centered upon the work I had to do at the Russian capitol; but having passed the portals of Zara's palace, and being taken into her presence, made the whole world appear suddenly small indeed, and left all that was great, and good, and worth attaining, encompassed in the very small space in which she stood. There was a sense of completeness to it all which is inexplicable; there was a compelling force em- anating from her, like the energy of radium, unseen but all powerful, which dominated me as surely, though nonetheless subtly, as the sun dominates the planets. I have; never remembered the words that passed between us at that first interview, for the reason that whatever I said, was uttered subconsciously, and be- came a mere incident in the great event. The meet- ing itself was the event. We had come together ii6 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN from different parts of the world. We w-ere bora of different nationalities. We had been nurtured differently, and every impulse of our respective lives had been trained in different grooves, and for differ- ent motives ; and yet out of that chaos of differences had happened the wonderful thing of our meeting. I suppose we talked as other people talk, wha meet and part for the first time as we met and parted then, if we were to be judged from the stand- point and observation of others. To me it was an epoch, focused into a moment of time. To her I now know that it was the same. I was suddenly conscious that there were many others who were waiting to claim her attention, and I got upon my feet. "So soon, Mr. Dubravnik?" she said. " Necessarily," I replied. " I cannot take to my- self all the delight of the evening." " You will return? " " If I may — when you are less occupied." I was acquainted with nearly all the guests and was stopped a dozen times on my way across the salon to where the prince was conversing with a 117 PRINCESS ZARA knot of men, and as I glanced backward towards the princess with each pause I made, I always met her eyes fixed upon me — unconsciously until they met my gaze — even though she was engaged with the people who formed the group around her. I did not seek the prince, after all. I turned aside realizing that I would rather be alone with the pleasurable thrill which still pulsed in my veins, than to crush it out with society talk, which was my particular aversion. I wandered on through the rooms, pausing for a moment here and there to ex- change greetings with acquaintances, and at last emerged upon the glass-covered garden which was a miniature forest of shrubbery, palms and floral miracles. It was a spacious place dimly lighted by lamps that were shaded by red and green and yellow globes, and it was traversed by paths that were car- peted with Eastern rugs, and bordered by alluring nooks so daintily arranged and so suggestive of all things sentimental as to be indescribable. The garden was an Oriental paradise, blooming In the midst of a Russian winter; and I thought with a smUe, a dangerous place for a bachelor even though he ii8 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN were alone — for it set hira to thinking. As if to render the contrast even greater there was a furi- ous snowstorm raging outside, and I could hear the wind howling and shrieking past the house, and the rattle of the snow as it hurled itsplf into fragments against the glass covering of the enclosure. I wan- dered on down the path I had taken as far as the extremity of the garden, and then turned into other paths. I paused once to light a cigar, and went on again, hither and thither, unheedingly; but at last I entered one of the Turkish nooks and composed myself comfortably among the cushions. There I gave myself up to the deliciousness of the hour, for no other word can describe it. There had seemed not to be another soul in the garden when I entered it, and I felt all that bliss which solitude lends to per- fect surroundings. There might have been a thou- sand persons traversing the paths, and I could not have heard them, but I was presently startled out of my reveries by hearing my own name — or rather the one by which I was known — pronounced in a voice which I had learned, in a few brief moments, to recognize. 119 PRINCESS ZARA " Dubravnik," said the princess, evidently in re- ply to a question concerning me. She uttered my name in a manner that thrilled me, too. Her com- panion, a man, responded: " Bah I A friend of Prince Michael's, and there- fore a friend of the czar's. It would be a dangerous experiment to sound him, princess." "Perhaps; we will discuss it another time, Ivan. Shall we go in here? " They had paused directly in front of the place; where I was concealed, or rather, only half con- cealed, for they could have seen me if either had chanced to look in ray direction. I could see them plainly. As it was, I nestled closer among the cushions and closed my eyes, expecting discovery; but for some reason — fate impelled, doubtless — they passed on a few steps, and entered another of the Turkish bowers which was the counterpart of the one that concealed me, and they seated themselves so near to me that I could have reached out one hand and touched them had it not been for the intervening screen of tapestry which partitioned the two enclosures. The few words I had overheard 1 20 THE PRINCESS' ORIENTAL GARDEN convinced me that I was not to listen to confidences of a sentimental nature; otlierwise I should have made my presence known-, and escaped. The sen- tence that had reached me, uttered by the man, sug- gested another reason for the tryst, and I therefore listened, convinced that it was my duty to do so. 121 CHAPTER IX A SECRET INTERVIEW I WONDERED if they would not detect the odor of my cigar, and thus discover that they were not alone in the garden, but the draft carried the smoke away from them; and then I became absorbed in what they were saying. " I can give you only a few moments, Ivan," murmured the princess. " My guests will miss me. Youi should have come to me later." " I know ; but it was impossible. There is a: meeting to-night, and our good friends are very anxious to hear something from you. When can you be present to tell them in your own words what you accomplished during your journey? " The tone of the question was masterful, and un- consciously I resented it. What right had any other man to address my princess in that manner? for already I found myself 122 A SECRET INTERVIEW regarding her as my princess. I knew now that I had wandered into the garden solely for the purpose of being alone to think about her, and that in my short journeys up and down the paths, finally ending among the cushions of the Turkish bower, I had had her with me for a companion. You will dis- cover by this statement that I was still mindful of her presence near me, even though I had left her in the drawing room while I went away alone; but it is always possible to conjure a personal presence if the mind is sufficiently intent upon it, and even, though that presence be not physical, it is neverthe- less real. The tone of the man who was speaking with her in the adjoining bower was masterful, as I have said. More than that it was familiar. It was even inti- mate, I thought, and I was conscious of a silent rage when I heard it. I sensed his words subconsciously, and yet I had thoroughly comprehended them. He had spoken of a meeting of their " very good friends " and I had no doubt to whom he referred; neither had I any doubt at the moment, that this man talking so 123 PRINCESS ZARA confidentially with the princess, was one of the " marked " members of that rapidly widening group of persons whom my busily engaged employees were learning to know. It was with a distinct shock, however, that I real- ized by virtue of the intimate manner of the man, that Zara de Echeveria must also be implicated with the nihilists, since he dared to speak to her so openly, so masterfully, and with such confident reliance upon the manner in which his communication would be received. Her reply convinced me sufficiently, had I required added conviction at that moment. " I do not know," she said. " Say that I will send word to them in the usual way, and at the earliest opportunity. Say that I was entirely suc- cessful; that everything in Paris and Berlin is in the most excellent condition, and that nothing — ab- solutely nothing, you understand — must be done without my knowledge and permission." " Our friends are becoming very impatient, Zara." " Zara I " I unconsciously repeated the name after him, but it was under my breath, so that not a sound escaped me. Who could this man be who 124 A SECRET INTERVIEW dared to address my princess by her given name, for in my secret soul she was my princess still, even though she had already said enough to convince me that she was an enemy to the czar whom I was serv- ing. " Let them. They must wait," she responded, with decision. " I will not be hurried. They are sworn to obey me. Tell them to await my pleasure. It is enough." " There are some among them — you know who they are — who chafe under this restraint, Zara. I am afraid that they will get beyond your control unless something is done speedily." " Let those who are loyal to me serve them as they would serve Alexander, if there is any sign of insubordination," was the haughty rejoinder. " Such is my order; and now, Ivan, you must go. Stay though! What of Jean Moret? " " He is dead." " Dead? Do you know that to be true? " " No. He has disappeared from the palace, no- body knows whither. He has not gone to Siberia and our agents cannot find him in the city prisons. 125 PRINCESS ZARA We have made every effort. Doubtless he betrayed himself in some manner and was quietly put out of the way." " I will investigate the matter. He might have betrayed us, if caught and put to the torture. I can make Prince Michael tell me. Moret was more fool than knave, and he might have been induced to talk." " He might have betrayed us; he would never betray you, Zara." " I do not think so ; and yet, it may be that I have gone too far with him. It is plain that I must make my prince talk." Her prince ! God ! How the expression rankled ! What revelations this overheard conversation was bringing to pass ! From being in the seventh heaven of bliss, transported there by the few moments I had passed in the society of Zara, I was now plunged intO' the hell of doubt, uncertainty, and disillusion- ment. She spoke of " her prince " — and there could be no possible doubt that she referred to Prince Michael — as if he were already a mere puppet in her hands, to bow before her and fawn at her feet, 126 A SECRET INTERVIEW as she willed it. And the prince, great and noble by instinct and nature, who had with such dignity admitted to me his love for her, was having his feel- ings and his affections played upon as a skilled per- former touches the keys of a piano. It was a new and unsuspected phase of Zara's character thus unfolded to me ; and it was a most dis- quieting one. Standing with her as I had done among, her guests, seated beside her as I had been for a few moments before I left her to go into the garden, I had believed in her as a devout worshipper believes in his deity, thinking no evil, believing that she could do no wrong, and placing her upon a pedes- tal that was high above all of the petty considerations of ordinary humanity. And then, as if to add to the sudden pain that was in my heart, this man who dared to address her by her given name, and whom she called Ivan, chuckled aloud as he remarked with unwonted intimacy: " You have only to encourage him a little, Zara. The prince will talk. Never fear. Your power — " " Encourage him ! " It is impossible to describe the sense of outrage which Zara de Echeveria man- 127 PRINCESS ZARA aged to include in the enunciation of those two words. Listening from my place among the cushions in the Turkish bower, I was conscious of a feeling of glad- ness that it was so ; that she resented the tone of the man, as well as the words he had uttered; that she repudiated utterly the insinuation he had made. " You use the term as if yoii thought it were a pleasure to me to lead men on, simply because God gave me the beauty and the power. I hate it; oh, how I hate it! Suppose that Jean Moret is dead, who, then, in God's name is responsible for his death? I, I alone! Do you think that I am so heartless that I can look upon such things with no pang of self-reproach? I wish that I were old and ugly, fortuneless and an outcast — or dead. Then I would not be compelled to prostitute my beauty and my talents to conspire with a rabble of scoundrels and convicts who discuss murder and assassination as if they were pastimes." " Hush! You do not realize what you say, Zara. Your own life — " She laughed outright, interrupting him. " My own life! Do you think I care for that? 128 A SECRET INTERVIEW I wish they would kill me and so end all this hate- ful, horrible scheming to murder and destroy." " Hush, Zara ! hush I You must not talk in that way." "Not talk that way?" The princess laughed somewhat wildly, I thought, from my place of con- cealment, but still she made no sound that could have penetrated much farther than I was distant from their interview. "Not talk that way?" she repeated, and this time was silent for a spell, as if she were herself considering the reasons why she should not do so. There had been more of fright than menace, in the tone of the man called Ivan, when he cautioned her, and I could imagine how terrorized any mem- ber of the nihilistic fraternity must be if there were the least danger that disloyal thoughts of theirs might find lodgment in unsuspected places. " I will talk that way; I will talk as I please; nor you, nor any one, shall stand between me and my liberty of action and speech. What care I for all the murderers and assassins who form this terrible society of which we are members? Hear me? They could only swear my life away as they have done to others in many 129 PRINCESS ZARA parallel cases. They could only destroy me; and Ivan, sometimes, upon my bended knees I pray for death. What matter would It be to me how death might come, so long as I am prepared to welcome It ? I hate and loathe myself when I stop to consider all the contemptible acts I am compelled to perform, when I pause to realize the utter prostitution of self-respect I am forced to undergo. In order to carry on the plots of our ' good friends,' as you call them. Good friends, indeed! To whom, let me ask you, do they demonstrate the friendly spirit? Where can you point to a friendly act done by any one of them, unless it is to a prisoner already condemned, or to an assassin who is In danger of arrest? My own life? " she laughed again. " Ivan, were it not that I honestly believe that I can, by myself accom- plish some great good in this undertaking, I would destroy that life with my own hands; for I tell you that It would be much easier to drive a poniard! through my own heart, or to swallow a cup of poison, than it is for me to make sport of the affections of such men as the stately, generous Prince Michael, or that poor love-sick fool, Moret. Hush! don't 130 A SECRET INTERVIEW say another word to me on the subject of warning, for It only angers me, and fills me with a contempt which I find it difficult to master." " But, Zara, you must not talk so. I cannot lis- ten." " Then leave me. Go. I wish to be alone for a time before I return to the salon. Deliver my mes- sage, and also the order I gave you." I heard no more after that, but I knew that he had gone, although there was no sound of his departure. Then I listened for the rustle of the princess' dress when she should move away. Presently it came. She sighed, then rose from the couch where she had been sitting, and I knew that she had stepped out upon the path. I closed my eyes, the better to think upon the remarkable revelations that had come to me as a result of that conversation. One, two, five, perhaps ten minutes I remained thus, turning the extraordinary Incident over In my mind. But presently I opened them again, lazily and slowly at first, and then with a sudden start, for they encoun- tered the form of the princess where she stood as motionless as a statue but with one arm extended 131 PRINCESS ZARA holding back a palm leaf which half filled the en- trance to my place of concealment. God knows what impulse it was that had impelled her, in parting with her recent companion, to pause at the Turkish bower in which I was concealed, and so, to discover me. I had heard no sound whatever. I had supposed that both were gone. The shock induced by the revelations I had just overheard, the disillusionment I had experienced in regard to Prin- cess Zara, had affected me more than I realized, and the act of closing my eyes and thinking it over had been the result of the same impulse which sends a frightened woman to her own room, to close the door behind her in order that she may be alone. By the act of closing my eyes, I shut out the world by which I was surrounded — that world which had now become so hateful to me because of the work I had to do. But nevertheless I looked up steadily into the eyes of the princess, wondering at the calm- ness and grace of her attitude, and amazed that she should not show more consternation than she did, at the discovery that there was a witness to her inter- view with the man Ivan. Save for a suggestion of 132 I LOOKED UP STEADILY INTO THE EYES OF THE PRINCESS (.Page 132) A SECRET INTERVIEW pallor which had driven away the natural flushes from her cheeks, and perhaps for an added bright- ness, or rather a different brightness, to her eyes, she was the same as ever, although the smile which she now bestowed upon me seemed a bit constrained. " You are not sleeping," she said, calmly, but with conviction. The remark was not a question; it was a statement. " No," I replied, as calmly. " And have not been asleep ? " " No." "You heard?" " Yes, princess, I heard." She was silent, and minutes passed before she spoke again, so that I began to wonder if she had decided to say no more. " Mr. Dubravnik," she said, and in English, " will you do me one favor in regard to this conversation you have overheard? Will you keep my confidence till to-morrow ? " I wondered again at the princess' coolness. Real- izing the peril she was in, as she must unquestionably have done, it was strange that she could command 133 PRINCESS ZARA herself so well as to remain perfectly in possession of all her faculties, in the face of such dire peril. For a moment I hesitated. It was a very great favor that she asked of me so calmly; just how great a favor it was, she could not know; and yet there was no reason why I should not grant her request, being what I was and who I was. In that interval I wondered what this beautiful creature before me would think, or say, if she could have guessed that it was the chief of the most remarkable secret service bureau in the world whom she was addressing; if she could have guessed that the very man among all other men, whom she would least have thought of taking intO' her confidence, was the one before her who had listened to the conversation. " Yes. I will do that," I replied, as deliberately as she had asked the question; and I watched her closely as I did so, holding myself well in hand, the while, in order that I might not instantly fall again under the spell of her fascinations. "And come to me then? I will expect you at noon." 134 A SECRET INTERVIEW " Yes, princess." " I thank you, sir. And now, if you will give me your arm, we will return to the drawing room." I could not help marveling at the wonderful self possession of the woman whose life, liberty, honor, happiness, and whose all, had been by means of the conversation I had overheard, placed utterly at my mercy. Even though I were really what she sup- posed me to be, am ordinary citizen, the danger was no less, for I had but to repeat what I had heard, to bring about an investigation which could result in only one way. Her composure was absolute as we ■walked side by side towards the house, nor did she once refer to the subject upon which we were both thinking so deeply. She was a shade paler than usual, but beyond that there was no sign that any- thing out of the ordinary had occurred; nor did she manifest any evidence of the nervous fear which would have prostrated most women In such a pre- dicament. Neither of us recurred to the subject that was up- permost in our minds. Indeed we were silent during 135 PRINCESS ZARA the moment that was required to traverse the length of the garden, and to pass from it into the house where the company was assembled. But I was conscious of a subtle change in the char- acter of my feelings towards Zara de Echeverla. The fascination that had enthralled me a little while back, was tempered now by a wholesome dread of this riotously beautiful creature who could use her God-given feminine attributes to attain such deplor- able ends. What had seemed to me to be a creature of utter loveliness, had now degenerated to a thing that was momentarily horrible, because what I had believed to be all purity, and all perfection, had sud- denly been revealed as something that was akin to unmoral. We parted at the door, she to cross the room and join a group of her guests who were clamoring for her while I loitered, with no purpose save to avoid comment on the apparent fact that the princess and I had been so long a time together in the garden. The prince joined me while I stood there. He was accompanied by a man whom he wished to introduce to me. 136 A SECRET INTERVIEW " Ah, Dubravnik," he said. " I have been look- ing everywhere for you. Didn't know but you had gone. This Is my friend Alexis Durnief. You've each heard me talk about the other, so you should be good friends." "Captain Alexis Durnief?" I asked, shaking hands with him. " The same," he replied. " Just returned from one of the far posts in Siberia, and I am very glad to be back here again. I haven't had an opportunity to greet the princess yet; you kept her in the garden so long." I thought that he gave me a significant glance as he made the laughing remark, but as the princess her- self joined us at that moment, I did not give it a; second thought. He gave her his arm, and they went away together, leaving the prince and myself alone. " I think, if you do not mind, I will go," I said. The house of Princess Zara had suddenly become hateful to me. "Whatl At this hour? Why?" Prince Mi- chael was amazed. 137 PRINCESS ZARA " Oh, there is no reason, other than that I feel like it," I told him, shrugging my shoulders and try- ing to look bored. " Then stay. Some of the best people are not here, yet. Or did your half hour in the garden up- set you, Dubravnik? " He essayed a light laughter as he asked the question, but it had a hollow sound, nevertheless. 1 " Not at all," I assured him. " I can assure you that it is an honor which the princessi confers upon very few of her friends, and never on new acquaintances. You are the only ex- ception I have ever known," he added. "Indeed? We met in the garden by accident, and in reality were together not more than two min- utes -^ the time that it takes to walk the length of it, so I do not feel as greatly honored as I might have done if she had gone there with me and had! given me all that time — " " I did not have an opportunity, for you never asked me to do so," said the soft tones of the princess Immediately behind me; and as I turned she added: 138 A SECRET INTERVIEW " but these rooms are suffocating, so if you will give me your arm now, Mr. Dubravnik, we will lead the way, and perhaps the others will follow. I know that the gentlemen are longing for an opportunity to smoke." " Dubravnik was on the point of leaving us," the prince called after her. " You arrived just in time, princess. Perhaps you can persuade him to change his mind." " Were you contemplating suicide, Mr. Dubrav- nik ? " she asked laughing ; but there was an under- current of gravity In her question which was deeply significant. " Something very like it," I replied, as gravely, *' since I was about to leave your presence." " Supposing you to be serious " — and I felt that her hand unconsciously tightened its clasp upon my arm as we moved away — " would it not be better for me to do the deed, than for you ? " " I am afraid that the supposition is altogether too foreign to my nature for me to entertain it, princess." We had entered the garden, and a throng of guests 139 PRINCESS ZARA were trooping after us. I glanced down at my companion, and saw that she was regarding me rather anxiously through her lashes. " Suicide Is the only solution for all problems at once," she said. " Pardon me; it is the solution for only one." "Only one? What is that?" " Moral cowardice." " But there may be circumstances where it offers the only means of escape from an alternative that is infinitely worse, Mr. Dubravnik." We were in the act of passing one of the little side paths, and I drew her into it, noticing that there was just a suggestion of resistance from my companion when I did so; but it was only for an instant. Then, as I paused abruptly underneath one of the green shaded globes, she added, as though she knew that I per- fectly understood her: " I have really been consid- ering the subject quite seriously." I looked down at her. The green hue of the light above us seemed to have transformed her into a spirit. It had changed the color of her dress, of her hair, and it had touched her cheeks as with a 140 A SECRET INTERVIEW magic wand which softened and heightened every| feature. Instead of transforming her into some- thing that she wasi not, I was convinced that it brought her back from what she was not to what she really was. At all events, I realized that she was in deadly earnest. In that moment I felt again all the spell of this woman's charm as she stood before me, beneath the glow of that shaded light, looking up into my face with her beautiful eyes now widened with serious concern, with her full, lithe, graceful body pulsing with life so close to mine, while she talked calmly, and seriously I knew, too, of destroying it by her own act. What a place to talk of suicide, there, in the midst of that oriental garden, voluptuous with a thousand unspoken suggestions, laden with the per- fume of flowers, glowing with the many colored lights that illumined it, rustling as with the sound of hidden insects as the gowns of gorgeously bedecked women brushed against the growing things! Over our heads, beyond the glass roof, the storm still howled, although with less violence, and the contrast 141 PRINCESS ZARA seemed strangely in keeping with the condition of my own mind, outwardly so calm and composed, yet torn by the thousand conflicting emotions that, were induced by the proximity of this entrancing- creature, and the knowledge of what her fate, and therefore mine, must inevitably be^ 142 CHAPTER X SENTENCED TO DEATH TO what lengths our conversation on that sub- ject might have gone I will never know, for at that instant we were interrupted by Prince Michael, who was seeking my companion. I had only time to utter one admonition : " Extremities should never bef resorted to until the necessity arises, nor is it wise for one to burn a bridge until it has been crossed; besides, you have an engagement at noon to-morrow which should be kept." " Which will be kept," she murmured, In reply. Then Prince Michael came upon us. The prince reported that many of the guests were calling for their hostess and so I utilized the op- portunity to take my leave, which I did notwithstand- ing the protests of my friend. He told me to make; use of his sanka, which would return and wait for 143 PRINCESS ZARA him after it had deposited me at my door; but when I left the house the storm had lulled almost to stop- ping and as the distance was not great I decided to walk. That decision very nearly cost me my life, and very materially altered my views regarding the princess as well as my intentions concerning her. As I passed through the house on my way to the street I met Captain Durnief, who stopped me for a mo- ment. " I feel like a, boy who is dressed in his first trous- ers," he said to me with a laugh. " You cannot comprehend the delight of returning to this place after the experiences I have undergone in Siberia, for even the life of an officer there is little better than that of a convict. I shall have the pleasure of meet- ing you often, Dubravnik, for I understand that you are frequently at the palace." " Shall you be there?" I asked. " Yes ; I am detailed to the palace guard. Have you enjoyed the evening here? " " Hugely." "Of course you have met the princess frequently." Durnief had a way of half closing his eyes when 144 SENTENCED TO DEATH he talked. He. evidently intended it to give him the appearance of indifference, but it had a directly opposite effect upon me, for it was palpably a mask to conceal the intensity of his gaze — - to hide the In- terest he felt in whatever he uttered at the time. " No," I said " this is my first acquaintance with her." " Then you should consider yourself greatly hon- ored." " I do," Possibly my monosyllabic reply was even shorter than it needed to have been for he gestured an almost imperceptible shrug, and hesitated while he again bestowed upon me that half quizzical glance which seemed to conceal a sneer, or which might: have been mtended to suggest that I should have understood some obscure meaning behind his words; but I chose not to see it. Then, as we shook hands at parting he honored me by a pressure of, his thumb which Moret had taught me to understand as the very faintest kind of an interrogation. I have al- ready mentioned it as often given by a nihilist to one whom he believes may be one with him. It was so famt and so uncertain that it might easily have 143 PRINCESS ZARA been mistaken for an accident, and like the glance 1 permitted it to pass unnoticed. It was about half past two in the morning when I emerged from the house. The air was exhilarat- ingly cold, and the storm' was nearly past. The clouds which had hovered over the city all the pre- ceding day and night were still in evidence, how- ever, so that the streets between the widely separated lamps were dark and lonely. The distance I had to go was something more than a mile, and I had traversed more than half of it and was In the act of turning a corner when directly beside me, and quite near, I saw a flash, was conscious of a loud re- port, and felt that I had received a sharp and telling blow on my head. When I was again conscious of my surroundings I was in my own rooms, while beside the couch upon which I had been placed were my valet, a physician, and my faithful coadjutor, Tom Coyle. " Hello, Tom; what's up? " I asked, feebly. " Faith, you'd have been up higher than you care to go just yet, Dannie, if I hadn't been drivin' wan av me own cabs this night, owin' to the sudden death' 146 SENTENCED TO DEATH av wan av me min," he replied. " The doctor says the bullet didn't hurt ye much, but ye'd havei been froze stiff if I hadn't found ye whin I did." " Tell me about it," I commanded. " Divil a bit there is to tell, more than I've already said. I was goin' to the princess' afther me fare, whin I heard a shot. I wint where I heard the sound and found you. That's all I know." " Where did the bullet strike me? " " Foreninst yer head, Dannie. Ye'll have a bald spot there, I'm thinkin'. But it only broke the skin an' hit ye a welt that made ye see stars this cloudy night. Now I'm goin'. Maybe I'll have a report for you whin I come back. There's snow enough. The blackguard ought to have left some tracks." There is a spot on the back of the head where a very light blow will bring about insensibility, and it was exactly on that spot that the bullet had struck me, taking off a little hair and skin, but otherwise doing no damage ; but I could not help connecting the attempt on my life with the experiences of the night; in other words, with the woman whose guest I had been and whose secrets I had overheard. I had 147 PRINCESS ZARA cherished a feeling of the utmost charity for her until that moment, but the " accident " changed all that, for I had not a doubt in my mind that It was by her order that somebody had made the attempt to as- sassinate me. After a few hours' sleep I felt as well as ever, and before the time to make my call upon the princess I paid a visit to Jean Moret. I had neglected to say that the only letter he had sent away since his imprisonment was one to his mother, from whom he had received a reply addressed through one of my agents, and in explanation of his reluctance to send more, he had said : " It is better that the world should think me dead." Concerning the woman for whose sake he became a nihilist, he never spoke. But the experiences I had passed through at the home of the princess, the preceding night, made me wise con- cerning the identity of the woman who had influenced him. Indeed I had h?d it from her own lips that she had played with this man, even as she had hood- winked the prince. What the relations between her and Moret might have been, in what manner they had been brought together in the past, and by what) 148 SENTENCED TO DEATH transformation of individuality he had dared to raise his eyes to a princess, I could not even conjecture. There was no doubt, however, that she had used him for one of the marionettes in her puppet show; and now he, poor devil, because of it, was safer in a prison cell, and no doubt happier, too, than he would have been at liberty. I wanted the man to talk and to talk about her, and I must confess what I did not at the moment realize that my desire found its source more in per- sonal resentment against any confidential passages that may have taken place between those two, than in my plain duty to the cause I was serving. There are many kinds of jealousy, and each kind will find its expression through innumerable chan- nels. If I had been charged with jealousy at that moment, I would have repudiated the suggestion with scorn and contempt; and yet I was jealous. I had thought rather deeply upon this approaching conversation with Moret, while on my way to inter- view him, but I was no nearer to a determination re- garding what I should say to him, when I entered the room he occupied in the prison, than I had been when 149 PRINCESS ZARA the idea first occurred to me. Now when I enteredl the room where he was imprisoned, I said : " Why is it, Moret, that you have never taken any further advantage of my promise that you could write and send letters ? " " There is no one with whom I care to communi- cate," he replied. " Not even with the princess ? " I asked the ques- tion idly, watching him from between half closed! lids. " With what princess ? " he asked calmly, and without a trace of surprise or resentment in his per- fectly trained countenance. " Zara dc Echeveria," I said, coldly. " I do not know her." " No I She knows you." " Indeed? It is an honor to be known by a prin- cess." " I have it from her own lips that she is responsi- ble for your presence in the palace." " Then surely there is no need to interview me on the subject." He was thoroughly my equal in this play-of-words. 150 SENTENCED TO DEATH " She was told in my presence that you were dead. Would you not like to hear what she said in re- ply?" I asked him, " If you care to tell me." " She said that it was better so; that if you lived you would have betrayed all your friends — includ- ing her; that in fact you were more fool than knave." " She IS not complimentary; but as I do not know her, it makes no difference." Nothing could have been more composed than Moret's manner was. "You will not discuss her?" " I would if I could, but I do not know her, mon- sieur." " Well, Moret, I like your loyalty, even to one who has used you as a mere tool, and who is now rejoiced to learn that you are dead, and out of her way, with the dangerous secrets you possess. I am going to her as soon as I leave you; perhaps she will talk about you again." Moret stared at me unwinkingly, but with a coun- tenance that was like marble in its intensity. I knew that he was suffering, and that my words were the cause of his agony. I knew that I was prodding 151 PRINCESS ZARA him deeply, and severely, thrusting the iron into his soul with as little compunction as a Mexican chara exerts when he " cinches " a heavily burdened burro. But I was doing it with malice prepense, and I was doing it for a purpose. 1 wished, somehow, to compel this man to talk freely with me about the princess, and yet all the time I was reluctant in ray own soul to have him do it. During that interval Moret was greater than I ; more chivalrous than I ; for he remained loyal to his duty towards her, as he saw it, in spite of the terrible accusation I had made against her womanliness, and notwithstanding all the insinuations I had put for- ward, respecting her utter disregard and contempt for him. " Perhaps she will do so," he said; " that is, if she knows aught to say of me." He was silent for a moment after that, and I waited, knowing that I had tried this man to the 'utmost point of his mental endurance. Presently he raised his eyes again to mine, and said: " Mr. Dubravnik, at the very beginning of our ac- 152 SENTENCED TO DEATH quaintance, when you made a prisoner of me in one of the rooms of the suite you were to occupy in the palace, I told you that I had gone Into this business for the love of a woman, and it was tacitly, if not literally agreed between us at that time, that the woman's personality and name should form no part of our future discussions. You have chosen, at thisi time, to mention a princess, to whom you give the name of Zara de Echeveria, and I have told you that I know no such person; that the name means nothing to me. What you may surmise, Mr. Du- bravnlk, can have no effect upon me, or upon your relations with me, or mine with you. So now I tell you once again, that while I am perfectly willing to believe myself to be morally free to discuss with you all phases of nihilism, I will not discuss this woman you have named, or any other woman." He bowed his head and I could see beads of sweat upon his forehead which betrayed the mental an- guish he was undergoing. I knew that it was far worse than physical torture, and as there was nothing to gain by prolonging it, and nothing more to be said, I withdrew. 153 PRINCESS ZARA At the end of another half hour I was announce(J to the princess. She received me in a diminutive bower of Oriental luxury. Her decorative tastes were decidedly East- ern and lavishly extravagant. She knew how to ar- range a room with the object of stealing away a man's reserve. There is something about the at- mosphere of well chosen surroundings which intoxi- cates judgment and murders discretion — which bars reason at the threshold and generates madness of thought and deed beyond it. A Solon in the princess' drawing room might become a pup- pet in her boudoir; in that fascinating atmos- phere a Jove would have degenerated to a Hermes, or Mars have cast away his sword and shield for the wings of Apollo. To enter It, was like awaking from a vivid dream of battle to find the soft arms of love around you, and to feel the lethargy of Infinite content. Add to this the person- ality of the Princess Zara, her half hesitating smile of welcome In which pleasure and dread were equally mingled ; suffuse her face with a quick blush, and in- stantly replace it with a touch of pallor; render her 154 SENTENCED TO DEATH manner with a suggestion of hauteur, softened by a gesture of timidity and doubt; listen to her voice, low-toned and infinitely calm yet vibrating in a minor chord of uncertainty and dread; feel the clasp of her hand, cold when it touches yours, yet instantly thrill- ing you with a glow induced by the contact, and — remain thoroughly master of yourself if you can. Retain, if you have the strength to do so, the opin- ions you had formed, the judgments you have passed. If you succeed, you are a giant; if you fail, you are just what I was — a man, and human. " You are punctual, and I am grateful," she mur- mured. " If you had been late — " All the hardness I had felt before returned to me then. " If I had been late you would have known the reason, princess," I said. " No; but I should have feared it." " I would have been dead." "Deadl" " Yes ; but, unfortunately, the attempt upon my life did not succeed, thanks to Fate and poor marks- manship." 155 PRINCESS ZARA J " The attempt on your life 1 I do not under- stand." I turned my head so that she could see where the plaster hid the wound made by the bullet of the would-be assassin, " A better marksman would have compelled me to break my engagement, princess," I said. She extended one hand and rested a finger lightly upon the wound, as though she intended the mere touch to heal it. With the other hand she gently turned my face towards hers ; yet she did it in a way that was devoid of intimacy. Somehow she changed what might have been suggestive of familiarity, into a gesture of womanly tenderness; and there was un- doubtedly horror in her eyes, and a flash of angry re- sentment, too. "You think that I am responsible for this?" she asked, releasing me and stepping backward. I bowed, but made no reply. Impulsively, she crossed the room, and from the floor, where she had doubtless thrown it after read- ing, secured a crumpled wad of paper, and after 156 SENTENCED TO DEATH straightening and smoothing it, gave it into my hand. " Read," she said. " ' Our interview in the garden was overheard by two persons besfde ourselves,' " I read, aloud. " ' One of them, fortunately, was a friend; the other may not keep the engagement made with you.' " " It is from Ivan," she said. " It is because I received that note that I would have been anxious if you had been detained. It did not occur to me to doubt that you would be prompt until I read that. I did not doubt you, Mr. Dubravnik. I might have killed myself, but I would not have — ah! To think that you could deem me capable of such an act as that! " " I did not princess, until — well, there was no other theory. At all events, I have changed ray mind. Who is Ivan ? " " My brother." " I did not know you had a brother." " Naturally, since his existence is forgotten. He was sentenced to Siberia when he was sixteen. Now he is thought to be dead, but he escaped, and is 157 PRINCESS ZARA here. He must have brought some one with him last night — somebody who listened to everything. Do you know what that note means, my friend? It means that you have been sentenced to death. It means that the nihilists will surely take your life; and oh, my God, there is no escape 1 " tS» CHAPTER XI TOR THE SAKE OF THE CZAR WHEN one is sentenced to death by the nihil- ists in Russia it sends a cold shiver down the back, no matter how brave and self-re- liant one may be, for those fanatics have an un- comfortable way of carrying out such decrees to the bitter end. However, I smiled and assured the princess that I thought I could find a way to avoid the consequences of my eavesdropping, and then awaited the moment when she would say more. For a long time she was silent, and during it I studied her carefully, for she was the most complex puzzle that I had ever encountered in the shape of a woman. I had heard enough to know that she was not only a conspirator against the life of the emperor, but that she was ostensibly if not really, the leader among her fellow conspirators; or if not the leader, then a leader. I had heard her talk glibly of assassination 159 PRINCESS ZARA and death, and I had heard her deplore in mental anguish the part she was forced to play in the game of Russian politics. In one moment I had believed her to be a heartless schemer, a murderess, and one who was devoid of compassion; and in the next I was forced to the conjecture that she was a victim of circumstances, and that she had no love for or sym- pathy with the cause she advocated. Now, as I watched her, the same emotions succeeded each other in my judgment of her character, and finally I summed them all up in the decision that she was a being who was swayed by impulses. There are seeming paradoxes which will explain just what myj conclusions were concerning Zara de Echeveria. She was deliberately impulsive; calculatingly reckless; systematically chaotic. The warm, Southern blood in her veins impelled her to deeds which were ren- dered thrice effective by reason of the fact that she applied to them the calculating coolness and method of her Russian ancestors. Hence the paradox. Presently she raised her eyes to mine. " Dubravnik," she said slowly, " there is one way of escape for you ; and there is only one." 1 60 FOR THE SAKE OF THE CZAR "What is that?" I asked. " You must become a nihilist." " I had thought of that," I returned coolly. For» indeed, I had thought of it, although not at all from the motive she understood me to mean. " You had thought of It? " she cried. " Do you say that earnestly, or only to lead me on? " " Was it not this very point that you were dis- cussing with your brother when you entered the garden last night, princess?" I asked, recalling the mention of my name between them at that time. " Yes ; I had said to him that you were the kind of a man who should be added tO' our ranks. I think you must have heard his reply." " Yes." ■ " Do you know what nihilism Is, Mr. Dubrav- nlk?" " No. I have always regarded It as a dangerous organization ; morally dangerous, I mean. You must not think that I have considered joining it for any other reason than to place myself In a position where I will feel that It is my duty to respect the confidence that I stole from you, rather than to betray It." i6i PRINCESS ZARA " Then you never had such a thou^t until you knew I was a nihilist? " " Never." " And you would join us for my sake ? " " No." " For whose, then?" " For the sake of the czar." " Ah ! You would join only to betray them all into the hands of the police 1 That is what you mean." Zara leaped to her feet. Her whole manner un- derwent a change and for the instant she was com- pletely dominated by a furious scorn which found its expression in every single pose of the attitude she assumed. Her eyes blazed with the sudden anger she felt at me, brought about more by the thought which came to her that I, whom she had stooped to admire, was nothing but a spy. A torrent of words rushed to her lips, at least her appearance was that she was on the point of denouncing me most bitterly; but I raised a hand and interrupted her, bending slightly forward, and speaking with sharp decision, 162 FOR THE SAKE OF THE CZAR although coolly, and with studied conciseness of ex- pression. " No," I said. " If I should become a nihilist, it would be to protect the emperor, not to betray your friends." Again her entire manner underwent a change. As. if she thoroughly believed me, the fury of scorn left her eyes, the angry glitter of them ceased, the rigidity of her attitude relaxed, and I saw that she was re- garding me with an expression of wondering amaze- ment, in which pity, and longing, not unmixed with admiration, were dominant. She was silent for the moment, but she kept her eyes fixed upon mine, and gradually they began to glow with that fire of en- thusiasm which no argument can ever hope to over- come. Looking upon her I realized that if she were not a nihilist at heart, she had become one by reason of some great mental cataclysm through which she had passed. I believed then, and I was to knowi later, that I was correct, and that nothing at present apparent could swerve her from her set purpose, or could influence her against the cause she had under- 163 PRINCESS ZARA taken, and was now upholding, so valiantly. The spasms of remorse that rushed upon her at times, and «uch feelings of repugnance as I had heard her ex- press in the garden, were only oases in the desert of her perverted judgment, engendered in her very soul by some terrible calamity through which she had personally passed, or regarding which she had been a close observer. When she spoke again, it was with low-toned softness, and she glided a step or two nearer to me, raising her beautiful eyes, now softened to an appealing quality, and clasping her hands in front of her with a gesture of suppliant helplessness that was almost overwhelming. " Do you think that we have no wrongs to right? " Bhe demanded. " I think you have many, princess, judging from your standpoint; but you cannot right them by com- mitting greater ones. Nothing can dignify or en- noble deliberate assassination, or wanton, cruel, secret murder. The nihilists are assassins, murderers, cut- throats." " You do not knowl You do not know! " " Perhaps not." 164 FOR THE SAKE OF THE CZAR " Having heard what you did — knowing, as you 3o, my secret — unwilling as I know you are, to be- tray me, what do you propose, Mr. Dubravnik? " I replied deliberately. " I have thought of joining the nihilists, but I have reconsidered the question, as impracticable. Therefore, I have decided that you must leave Rus- sia." " I ? Leave Russia ? Ordered away by you ? '* " Yes, princess." She laughed wildly, and again this creature of im- pulse underwent one of her lightning changes of •which I had seen so many evidences. She was in- dignant now, made so by offended pride, because of the affront my words had put upon her social status. She, a princess, high In place, to be ordered out of her own country by a man who was a stranger to her, was unprecedented. " Do you think that I am a weak thing to be or- dered about like that by a man whom I never met until last night? Beware, sir, lest you make me re- gret that the bullet did not do its work more effec- tively. I am a princess; I have wealth, power, influ- i6s PRINCESS ZARA entlal friends; do not think that the czar would believe what you would say, when he heard the story that I could tell him." I shrugged my shoulders carelessly. It was part of my purpose to anger her even to the point of mad- ness, for in that wiay alone could I hope to draw her out to the point or revealing herself to me truly. And besides, I was again falling under that fascina- tion which exerted such strange and compelling power over me. " If I believed you to be sincere in what you say now, it would make my unfortunate duty much more simple," I said. "Your duty! What is your duty? To betray a woman? " " Precisely that." " And you would do that? You? " ■ " If the alternative fails, yes." Again she rose from the couch upon which she had relaxed. She came and stood quite near to me, and with infinite scorn, impossible to describe, she said slowly : " I think our interview is at an end, Mr. Du- i66 FOR THE SAKE OF THE CZAR bravnik, for there Is evidently nothing to be gained by It. I much prefer to choose my friends among those whom you call assassins, than from frequenters of the palace — if the others are like you." I rose also, and bowed coldly. " As you will, princess," I said. " I promised to keep your secret twenty-four hours. You have still ten hours In which to do one of three things tp obviate the necessity that Is now upon me, of be- traying you." "Indeed!" haughtily. " The easiest one will be for you tO' notify me of your Intention to depart from the country. The sec- ond, quite as effective, was suggested by yourself last night when we talked of suicide. The third will per- haps prove more congenial than either of the others ; you can have me murdered." I bowed, and started towards the door, but she barred the way before I could reach It. i- " You shall not go ! " she cried, extending her arms as if to bar the way against my exit, and again her speaking countenance betrayed the Impulse withini her. This time it was terror. 167 PRINCESS ZARA " No? Is your brother Ivan here to complete the work so badly begun, princess? " I purposely ren- dered my question insolently offensive. For a moment she gazed at me in horror; then, with a sob in her throat, she stepped aside and pointed towards the door. " Go," she said. " I should not have detained you." But as I was about to take her at her word she burst into a passion of tears. At the same in- stant she leaped towards me, and seizing me with both hands, drew me back again to the middle of the floor. " No — no — no — no ! " she cried. " You shall not go! Don't you know that you would be shot down at the door of my house, or at best before you had gone a hundred feet away from it? Have you forgotten that your appointment with me to-day was known by those who have decided upon your death ? Will you force me to acquiesce in your mur- der, even though you believe me capable of commit- ting it?" I knew that what she said was undoubtedly true, for I had neglected my usual caution in not provid- i68 FOR THE SAKE OF THE CZAR Ing for an emergency of this kind; but I pretended to be incredulous. " Yet I cannot remain here indefinitely, princess," I said. "It is the only way to save your life. If you leave here before I have seen those who would kill you, you will not live fifteen minutes after my door closes beiund you. Oh, I beseech you, take the oath ; promise me that you will take the oath, and let me go and tell my friends that you will do so." She was pleading with me now, with her hands supplicatlngly extended, and with an expression of such utter terror in her face because of the calamity which threatened me, that my soul was for a moment moved tO' pity for this woman, who could pass through so many phases of emotion in so short a period of time. But nevertheless it was not my purpose to betray that pity, then, I had still then?" " To the house of Prince Michael." "I cannot go there! Oh, indeed, I cannot go there! " " You must disappear for a time, Zara. The prince is my friend and yours; more than that, he loves you, and better than all, he is a prince among men as well as a Prince In rank. Will you not still trust me?" She sighed and said no more, but as the britzska dashed onward she nestled closer to me, as though she found comfort in the thought that the authority was taken out of her hands, and when at last we came to a stop before the prison doors, she whis- pered : " I trust you. Do with me as you will. I will obey." tWithln the prison, I found Canfield awaiting me, 272 THE POWER OF THE FRATERNITY and I gave him and Coyle a few hurried instruc- tions; but we were soon on the road again, and in due time arrived at the house of the prince, we pass- ing in by a side entrance. Presently, courtly and grave, but as white as mental suffering can render the face of a man, he came to us. " You are welcome," he said, extending his hand, first to her and then to me. " The house is at your disposal, princess, and I need not say that there are no servants here to spy on you. I know them all,, and your presence will be as secret as the grave." She thanked him, and was proceeding to explain some of the circumstances which had brought us there when he stopp'ed her with a gesture. " It is true that I do not understand," he said,. " but Dubravnik is my best friend and he will telL me all that is necessary to tell. In the meantime, I am commanded by his majesty, the czar, to remain at the palace for a few days. Let me entreat you to regard everything here as your own." " Twenty-four hours will suiEce, prince," I said. " After that time the princess can return in safety to her own home." 273 PRINCESS ZARA " Then, if you will excuse me," he murmured, flowing low over Zara's hand, *' I will proceed at once to the palace, where I am even now expected. I will await you there, Dubravnik," he added, and the glance that he cast upon me made me wonder if I had not, perhaps, trusted — or, rather, tried — this chivalrous man too far, in taking the princess to his house. Zara saw and correctly interpreted the glance, for as he left the room upon my assurance that I would follow him at once she put her hands in mine and said: " Are you indeed assured of your own safety, Dubravnik? At, yes, I shall always call you by that name. Arc you assured of your own safety? Tell me truly." " Perfectly; and of yours, also. Have no fears." Then I raised her hands to my lips, and kissed them both, first one and then the other, again and again; and she, standing on tiptoe, pressed her lips to my forehead. "Love, honor, and obey," I murmured; and she repeated after mc: 274 THE POWER OF THE FRATERNITY " Love, honor, and obey." Then I left her. It was still early in the day, but at that time ot the year darkness settles over the earth while yet the day is young, and night was already abroad in the streets. I had much to do ere the dawn of another day, for the time had come when the power of the Fraternity of Silence must be asserted; when I felt that the work that I had agreed to do for the czar was nearly completed. My drag net was ready, and the time had come to cast it. 275 CHAPTER XIX PRINCE MICHAEL'S ANGER NOBODY but myself in all Russia was famil- iar with the secrets and the mysteries of the Fraternity of Silence. In organizing at, I had anticipated just such a moment as the one *hat faced me now; that is, an emergency where I Tvould have to depend entirely upon the loyalty of tny men, and my own superior knowledge of who and what they were, for my safety. The partial description already given of that or- ganization conveys only a faint idea of its perfection and completeness. The different departments were thoroughly under the control of their several heads, and those heads were all men whom I could im- plicitly trust, and I knew that I might even dare to snap my fingers at the power of the police system itself, so great was ray own. I had men every- where ; and my gift of remembering names and faces, 276 PRINCE MICHAEL'S ANGER a gift the Almighty had bestowed upon me, gave me the advantage of knowing nearly all of them by sight, although there was not a score, all told, who knew me; and those were every one importations of my own, upon whose devotion I could thoroughly depend, even in the face of regular police opposition- More than that, I had men within the ranks of the police, even within the fold of the mysterious and dreaded Third Section. I realized fully the danger to my own person: in going upon the street at that hour, when I had within so short a time been condemned to death by the extremists — the most implacable element among: the nihilists. They do not dread death themselves- so long as they accomplish the death of him who has been condemned, and one who has fallen under the ban of their disapproval is in as great danger in broad daylight, among a hundred companions,, as he is on dark streets and among unfrequented byways. I thought it best, therefore, to provide as. well as possible against another attempt to assassi- nate me, and therefore sought my own apartnients before going to the palace. I intended to adopt a 277 PRINCESS ZARA disguise of some kind, and, moreover, I had given orders for several of my leaders to meet me there, and I knew that I would find them waiting. They were there when I arrived — Coyle, Can- £eld, Malet, St. Cyr, and with them several of their lieutenants. There was another one there also, whose hands were tied behind him, and whose feet were fastened together, while, by way of additional se- curity, he was tied to the chair in which my friends had seated him. That man was Ivan, the brother of Princess Zara. I did not glance at him as I ^entered, but notwithstanding his presence, proceeded ;at once to business, instructing my men in exactly what they were to do that night. And he listened intently, first with anger and even rage, then with scorn and contempt, but finally with wonder and genuine fear. I had arranged the affair for the purpose of teaching Ivan de Echeveria a moral les- son. I had determined to save him, even against himself — for Zara's sake. In order to convey some idea of the moral effect that the meeting had upon him, I must outline a part of it. One by one my men read off lists of the 278 PRINCE MICHAEL'S ANGER nihilists under their jurisdiction, accurately describ- ing them, as well as the several disguises that the^ were in the habit of wearing, the meeting places of the different branches of the society, and where the members of those branches were to be found at cer- tain hours. Included in the lists were names of many prominent people in the city, ofEcers in the army, policemen on duty, spies in private families,, in hotels and cafes, in the palace, at the barracks, in the prisons, and, in fact, everywhere. As name after name: was read off, until the number amounted to many hundreds the face of Ivan de Echeveria be- came as pale as death, and when, at last, his own. sister's name was read, and I remarked grimly that she was already a prisoner, and would be on her" way to Siberia within the week, he broke out in curses and threats, to which, of course, not one of us paid the slightest attention. When he found that" we did not notice him in any way, but proceeded quietly with our business, he relapsed into a moody silence, and I knew that my moral lesson was work- ing. I knew that I could save Zara's brother, for that is what I meant to do. When the lists were 279 PRINCESS ZARA completed, and I had given my orders regarding who was to be arrested that night, and who was to be spared, having directed that certain of them be told that they could obtain passports out of the country under certain conditions, I dismissed my leaders, and at last stood alone in the presence of Ivan. " Now, sir," I said coldly, " what do you think of it?" " I think that this night will see the end of our cause, until other children are born who will grow up to know the wrongs to which the people of Russia have to submit. You may crush out nihilism to-day, but you cannot crush it out forever. It will spring up again like — " " Like the poisonous weed that it is. I expect that, but this present growth will be cut down to- night. You do not ask what is to be done with you, Ivan." "Why should I? I know." " I am afraid that you do not." " One who would send my beautiful sister to Siberia — Bah ! I will not talk with you." 280 PRINCE MICHAEL'S ANGER " Have I been unmerciful except to those who are confessed murderers, and those who are only await- ing a chance to kill? " " No," he replied, reluctantly. " Do you not see how impossible it is to accom- plish what your people want to do, by the commis- sion of crimes? You, who were one of the men waiting to kill me as soon as I came out of the house of your sister — what was your first thought when my men fell upon and arrested you ? Did you not think that your sister had betrayed you all to me?" " Yes." " Did you not say so ? " He hung his face in shame and answered : " Yes." " Is that not the thought among your friends at this moment, and would the life of your sister be safe from them if she were in her own house to- night? " " It would not." " And yet, you call such people your friends — those who would without question put her to death 281 PRINCESS ZARA on mere suspicion — to a death to which you have helped to condemn her by your own foul suspicions and the more foul utterance of them. Shame on you, Ivan de Echeveria I Shame on you 1 " Pain contorted his face, and he was silent. " Did you fire the bullet that so nearly killed me ? " I asked. "No, I did not do that, but I directed that it be done. You would not have escaped If I had held the pistol." " Perhaps not. It is unimportant, any way. Have you not wondered why I brought you to this house?" " To torture me ; that, at least, is what you are aoing." " I brought you here to save you." " To save mel " "Yes; from the folly of your youth. You are a man in years, but a boy In every act you commit. Have you manhood enough left In you to want to save your sister, who now, thanks to you, has two enemies to face? Russia would send her to Siberia, and the nihilists would murder her. She would have 282 PRINCE MICHAEL'S ANGER sacrificed herself for you — she offered to do so. Are you willing to sacrifice yourself for her?" " God knows that I am." "Will you prove it?" "Oh, that I might!" " You shall have the chance. I cannot quite trust you, Ivan, or, for her sake, I would loosen your bonds and set you free now. But you would hasten to your friends and warn them of their danger, and by that act, you would destroy your sister forever — by that act you would kill her. She is safe and will be safe, if they are not warned of what is to happen to-night. Shall I set you free, and trust to your honor not to go to them? " "No — no — nol For God's sake, no! Leave me bound! Tie me more tightly! Do not let me go! Kill me if you will, but do nothing to injure her. Oh, are you telling me the truth ? " " The whole truth, Ivan. I will leave you as you are until I return. I do not think you will escape; I do not think that you will try to do so. But you must understand one thing : This night forever ends 283 PRINCESS ZARA your connection with nihilism. That is the sacrifice you must make to save your sister. Will you make it?" " If it will save her, I will make it. But will it ? " " If I find you here when I return, and if you are still in the same mood, I will take you to her, and she shall reply to that question for herself." I left him then, and having altered my appearance sufficiently so that I would not be recognized in the darkness, and being assured that the orders that I had given respecting the work of my men for that night would be carried out, I hastened to the palace. I knew that I had a difficulty to face, for although I had unlimited confidence in the chivalry and gener- osity of Prince Michael, I also knew that he had an ungovernable temper, and I began to fear that my delay in following him might have led him to say something to the emperor, which would encompass me with puzzling conditions. As soon as I arrived at the palace I was told that the prince was awaiting me in his apartments, and I hurried to him. He rose as I entered the room, and, bowing stiffly, with- 284 PRINCE MICHAEL'S ANGER out extending his hand as was his invariable habit, said coldly: " You are late, Mr. Derrington. I expected you an hour earlier, at least." "I am very sorry, prince," I replied; "more' sorry than I can say, to have kept you waiting, but I have been unavoidably detained." " May I ask if it was at my house ? " " I was at my own apartments." "Ah!" It was evident that he did not believe me, and that he meant me to understand that he did not, but I was determined not to quarrel with him. There- fore I remained silent. " May I venture to ask an explanation of the ex- traordinary proceedings of the evening? " he asked, icily. " Yes ; I think I owe you that much. But would it not be better if I first offered my respects to the czar? Then I can return here, and we can enjoy a long chat together." " His majesty knows that you were to come to 285 PRINCESS ZARA me first. After I have heard you, we will go to him together." " Am I to understand, prince, that you have told his majesty of the occurrences of to-night? " " You are to understand exactly that. I have told him all; at least all that I could tell." " Indeed ! In that case, we will go to him to- gether. Such explanation as I have to make will be made in his presence. Whatever explanations there are to make are entirely in the princess' behalf, andl I regret that I took you at your word and supposed that you would wait for me. She can offer you her own thanks at a more opportune time." I saw that he was endeavoring with all his strength to control himself, but the veins on his forehead swelled until I thought that they would burst. For a full minute we stood facing each other thus, both silent, and then he turned and led the way in the direction of the official cabinet. " Prince," I said, just before we entered, " you have no cause to quarrel with me. Remember that in the interview that is to come." 286 PRINCE MICHAEL'S ANGER He stopped short, and turned and faced me be- fore the door of the czar's cabinet. " Are you quite sure of that? " he demanded. " I am quite sure. I remember another interview of this kind, when you advised me what not to do. You have no warmer friend in Russia than Daniel Derrington, prince." For a moment he pondered. I saw that he was hesitating, for I knew that he really liked me. But I also knew that he loved the princess, and that he was jealous, for I had done an unprecedented thing in taking her to his house under the circumstances. For a woman to commit herself to the care of a man in the way the princess had trusted herself to me, meant much more In Russia than It does In New York. The prince could find no excuse for the act; still less for my delay in following him when he left his own house in our possession. Presently he spoke. His words came slowly and with careful deliberation. " What I say now, Mr. Derrington, you may accept in whatsoever spirit you please, but upon my soul / do not believe you! " I bowed, and we entered the cabinet together. ,♦ 287 CHAPTER XX IN DEFIANCE OF THE CZAR IN all the interviews I had had with the czar during the many months of my association with him he had maintained the condition that he had himself made at the beginning, which was that we should meet on the basis of friends and equals. [Whenever we were alone together he commanded me to forget that we were other than two friends who were enjoying an opportunity for a chat with each other, and as at such times we invariably con- versed in French, he always insisted that I should address him by the simple term " monsieur." When the prince was with us, as was nearly always the case, the degree of familiarity was slightly, though hardly perceptibly modified, and I must say that I had learned to enjoy such occasions exceedingly. For Alexander I had begun to feel a sincere affec- tion. I doubt if there was any other man in Russia 288 IN DEFIANCE OF THE CZAR who understood him so thoroughly as I did. Dur- ing these familiar hours we had passed together he had told me many things concerning himself, his ideas, and his hopes; and these confidences had re- vealed the real man — that is, the man behind the czar — to me, and I knew that of the thousands of crimes attributed to him only a few had ever come to his knowledge until It was too late for him to interfere, or too impolitic for him to do so. In- tellectually, he was not preponderant ; indeed he was rather deficient In this respect; but he was naturally a kindly disposed man, and at the beginning of his reign, and indeed through more than half of it, he proved that fact to the people. It was just before the time of my arrival in St. Petersburg that he allowed himself to fall more and more into the power of the nobles who in reality ruled the empire, and who do so still. Easily influenced by those in whom he trusted, thousands of crimes were com- mitted In his name of which he had no knowledge and of which he had never known. At all events, I liked him, and moreover, I had thorough faith in my own influence over him. 289 PRINCESS ZARA In like proportion to my familiarity at court and- to the emperor's fondness for my society, I was cordially hated by the nobility; but as they feared ' me quite as much as they hated me, and as my real standing among them remained a mystery, I was constantly fawned upon to a degree that was nauseat- ing. Even the story I had so lately heard from the lips of the princess had not materially lessened the liking I felt for Alexander, for I could under- stand much better than she could, all the influence that had been brought to bear upon the emperor not to pardon the woman in whose possession had been found cyanide of potassium intended for his wine. I did not believe he had intended that she should go to the island of Saghalien; I did not be- lieve that he could be held accountable for the evils that befell poor Yvonne in the isolated garrisons of Siberia. He. had been convinced that she intended to poison him, and he banished her; there his part of the evil ceased. The awful things that happened in the garrison he did not know about, could not hear about, for I believe that among all his friends, I was the only one who dared to tell him the truth. 290 IN DEFIANCE OF THE CZAR Even the prince lied to him, for I had often heard him do so. As to the killing of Stanislaus, who could blame the czar for that? The man had endeavored to kill him; had twice snapped a pistol in his face and still held it in his hand when the emperor tore it from his grasp and struck him on the head with it. iWho would not do the same? I repeat all this as my excuse for still feeling that affection for him which our intercourse had taught me. The real criminal in the case of the story of Yvonne was Durnief. Him I hated, and his name was on one of the lists that had been read off to me before going to the palace that night. There were special orders concerning him, too — but that will be dealt with later. Now, as I entered the cabinet with the prince,, I confess that I had some doubts concerning my reception for I had no idea what the prince had said to his majesty, and I knew only too well the in- clination of the czar to listen to anything that had a suspicious side to it, particularly if that suspicion concerned one of his closest and most intimate asso- 291 PRINCESS ZARA dates. I could at any time, within five minutes, have poisoned the mind of the czar against the prince; and I did not doubt that he could accomplish the same delicate attention for me. The prince preceded! me; the czar rose as we entered. His majesty was alone, and I advanced at once with extended hand, as he had often requested me to do when I discovered him thus ; but he bowed coldly, feigning not to see it. I halted, drew myself up, and returned his bow in the same manner that he had given it. Then I waited for him to speak. " You are late, sir," he said. " You have kept me waiting." " I was not aware that your majesty expected me," I replied. " Otherwise I should have been here sooner." " The prince expected you and led me to do the same." " Had the prince done me the honor to tell me he intended to receive me in your cabinet, I should have understood. The prince — perhaps uninten- tionally — deceived me." 292 IN DEFIANCE OF THE CZAR Prince Michael flushed hotly, but said nothing. The czar smiled grimly. " What detained you ? " he demanded. " The same business which detains me in Russia, your majesty." "Ah; you were concerned in the work of our fraternity?" " I was." " I understood that you were much more pleasur- ably employed." " Whoever gave you so to understand that either did not know, or lied." I turned so that I half faced the prince, and I saw that he made a motion as if to spring upon and strike me; but he did not dare to commit such an act in the czar's presence, and long training got the better of his temper. " Why, sir, did you take Princess Zara d'Echeveria to the house of Prince Michael?" continued the czar. " Because I believed him to be an honorable man who would stand ready to protect her good name, and who would conceal from all the world, even from 293 PRINCESS ZARA your majesty, the fact that she was there. Because lie had told me that he loved her, and I was innocent enough to believe that his love was unselfish; and further, because I regarded him as my friend. There are three reasons, your majesty, any one of which seems to me to be sufficient." " But why was it necessary to take her anywhere? " " That, your majesty, is a question which I must answer to you alone." " Do you mean that you will not tell the prince? " " I mean that it was my intention to tell the prince as soon as I arrived at the palace, but that now I deem It unnecessary. He has taught me a lesson in hospi- tality that is as new as it is unique." " Perhaps she will explain the strange affair her- self." " I have no doubt that she will, your majesty." " I have sent for her. She will remain here in the palace as long as danger threatens her. She should be here by now." " May I inquire of your majesty whom you sent? " " The captain of the palace guard." " Captain Durnief?" 294 IN DEFIANCE OF THE CZAR " Yes." I looked at my watch, replaced it in my pocket, and then said calmly : " Captain Durnief will not return with the prin- cess, your majesty." Then I saw the heavy frown of rising anger. I knew my man, for kings and emperors are less than men of the world when it comes to studying them. Their own opportunities for observing others are so miJch more limited. The czar angry, was a much easier man to influence than the czar satirical. " What do you mean ? " he demanded. " Why will Durnief fail to carry out my personal orders? Dare the princess refuse to accompany him? " " She most certainly would not have the bad taste to refuse, and if she did so, the captain would doubt- less bring her by force ; but Captain Durnief has the misfortune to be, by now, a prisoner." " Dtirnief a prisoner! The captain of my per- sonal staff arrested I By your order, sir?" " By my order, your majesty." " You have dared to do this? " " I would dare to arrest the prince, or your own 295 PRINCESS ZARA son, if I found either of them inimical to your maj- esty's interests, and I beg you, sir, to understand that I gave the order before I knew that your majesty had sent him on the errand so treacherously suggested by Prince Michael." I was angry at the prince for in- volving my affairs so meanly. I could not withhold the thrust. "It is a lie I" It was the prince who spoke; but before I could reply to the accusation, the czar waved his hand and commanded silence. " Was it the princess who informed you that Dur- nief was a nihilist?" he asked calmly, the smile re- turning to his face. *' No," I replied, understanding the motive behind the question. For I could read the czar like a book, and I already knew much concerning the villainy of Durnief ; " but it was he who informed your majesty that SHE was one." " By heaven, Derrington, you know too much ! I begin to think that the days of your usefulness are past, in St. Petersburg. There seems to be no limit to the authority you assume, and now you have be- 296 IN DEFIANCE OF THE CZAR gun to dictate to me. I will not have it. I com- mand that you tell me why you thought it necessary to take the princess from her own house to-night." I knew that the crucial moment had come. I knew that if I weakened now, I was lost. The only possible escape for me, was to see the czar alone, and that I determined to do. The manner of the prince, upon my arrival at the palace, his conduct in the cabi- net, the greeting accorded to me by the czar and his bearing towards me since then, led me to a shrewd guess which I determined to hazard. I decided to play my last card by making one bold statement. " Your majesty," I said, deliberately, " has never until now, had less than perfect confidence in me. The prince, being jealous, and too impatient to await an explanation at my hands, has prevailed upon you to order me under arrest, for a time, in order that I may not return to his house where I have left the princess. If I do not mistake, he now has such an' order, signed by you in person, in one of his pockets. Permit me to inform your majesty, and him, that there is another reason why he procured that order; he has guessed that my men, at this moment, have in- 297 PRINCESS ZARA structions to place him under arrest. He only sought to anticipate me, that is all. Order Prince Michael to his apartments, and direct him to remain in them, your majesty; for unless I am free to act as I see fit, this night, I would not give that " — and I snapped my fingers — " for the life of a single member of the royal family." Then I folded my arms, and waited. 29S CHAPTER XXI ONE EVENTFUL NIGHT A NIHILISTIC bomb exploded in the cabinet of the czar would scarcely have created more consternation than did my statement. The emperor himself started back in amazement, and then turned his face which was white with rage and terror, upon Prince Michael. The prince, instead of shrugging his shoulders and! laughing at the charge I had made, committed the mistake of turning deathly pale, and at once pro- testing his innocence. It was that protest which decided the battle of wits in my favor. Alwaysi ready to doubt those who were nearest to him, the! czar remembered instantly that I could gain nothing by playing the traitor. He recalled also many in- stances, small in themselves but sufficiently prominent now, when the prince had deceived him. That, he knew I had never done. I had always possessed the 299 PRINCESS ZARA courage to tell him the truth even when it was un- pleasant. The habit of truthfulness told, then. He believed me, and he doubted the prince. More than that, I seemed to him to know everything, for it proved to be true that the prince had persuaded him to sign an order for my temporary arrest — or rather, my detention in the palace. It had been done when they were alone in the cabinet together, and how I could have learned of it was a puzzle which he could not fathom. The more the prince protested, the more certain the czar became that I had spoken the truth, and while he glowered upon the unhappy man who became paler and more uncertain in his speech with every effort, I stood calmly by with my arms folded, not enjoying the situation, but determined! to win the fight. " Michael," said his majesty at last, " give me the order to which Mr. Derrington refers." I knewi then that I had won, and while the prince tremblingly produced It, I waited. The czar passed it to me with the words, " You may destroy it, Mr. Derring- ton," and then added : " Prince Michael, you will retire to your apartments and remain there until I 300 ONE EVENTFUL NIGHT send for you. I will spare you the indignity of an arrest until I know more. Go! " I did not look at the prince as he left the room, and I have always regretted it, for if I had done so and had I seen the agony that must have been written on his face I might have saved him. I did not be- lieve the charge against him when I made it, and there was no such thing as a direction to any of my men to arrest him. I charged him with com- plicity with the nihilists solely to get rid of him, and by that means to save myself and Zara, knowing that later I could save him, also; that he would ul- timately forgive me, and that I could bring the em- peror to regard it as a most excellent joke, for the czar dearly loved a joke if it were at the expense of some other person. Indeed I intended before I left the emperor's presence, partially to allay his fears concerning the prince by assuring him that my infor- mation amounted to nothing more than a mere sus- picion which had been strengthened by his effort to detain me in the palace. But events demonstrated the fact that in making the charge I had builded better than I knew. I loved the prince, and that 301 PRINCESS ZARA episode is one of the greatest regrets of my life. If ever a man was guilty without crime, he was. But I anticipate. " Derrington," said the czar as soon as we were alone; he addressed me in French by which I knew that I was restored to favor; " you have startled me to-night in a way that I shall not soon forget. Is it true that Michael — ah, no, I cannot believe it, for if he is unfaithful, whom can I trust? " " You must not cease to trust him entirely, yet, monsieur," I replied. " The charge against him is based upon evidence that may be disproved; but my drag net is out to-night, and the dawn will see nearly every nihilist in St. Petersburg in prison, or on the way out of Russia. If you had been prevailed upon to detain me I tremble for what might have hap- penedj" "Tellmc— " " Do not, I beg of you, detail me now, monsieur. Every moment is precious. My men are swarming over the city, and even now the prisons are filling up. I must get to work, for this is a matter to which I must personally attend." 302 ONE EVENTFUL NIGHT "And Michael?" " Leave him where he is, in his apartments, until I return." "When will that be?" " Soon after daylight." " Then come to me at once. Have me awakened if I am sleeping; but I shall not be." " I will do so." " One word more. What of the princess? " " She would have been murdered to-night by the nihilists had I not arrested her as one, conducted her through the prison, and thence on to the house of the prince." " Why did you not bring her here and place her in my care?" " She would not wish to come here, monsieur. Princess Zara once had a lover who became crazed, and was killed here in the palace by one of the guards, I believe, so — " " Yes — yes, I understand. You did right. Stopl One word more before you go. This con- spiracy to which you referred, against the whole: 303 PRINCESS ZARA royal family ; are you sure that you have got at the root of it?" " As sure as I am that I am here in the presence of the Czar of Russia," "You have never failed me yet, Derrington;" and he grasped me by the hand. " And I never will, monsieur." " Well, go. I shall expect you soon after day- light." In reality there was little for me to do that night, more than I had already done, and yet it was im- possible that I should be shut up in the palace with so much taking place throughout the city, immedi- ately under my direction, and over which it was im- perative that I must retain supervision. I knew that there would be frequent demands upon me for author- ity to do and perform certain things, and it was im- portant that I should be on hand. I was always provided with the necessary papers for anything in the oiEcial line that I might be called upon to per- form. This had been arranged in the beginning, the better to preserve the secret of my business in St. Petersburg. I had innumerable imperial pass- 304 ONE EVENTFUL NIGHT ports signed and sealed in blank, and there was no outside authority exercised by any official of the realm which I was not prepared to meet. In short, my power was in many respects greater than that of the czar himself for I was always prepared for what- ever I might have to do In any or all of the depart- ments of the empire. The wholesale arrests which I had ordered for that night, I had long had under consideration, and that I had decided to make them a little sooner than was my first intention, was due in part to the danger surrounding the princess; in part to my own sud- denly formed determination to complete my business there and return to the United States; and lastly, to the fact that the last few reports that I had received so nearly completed the knowledge I had striven to attain, that I came to the conclusion that my work was about done, and that it was time to draw the net. My salary was enormous, and already amounted to a competence, and I knew that if I remained in Russia, sooner or later somebody would find me out ; and then there would be short shrift for me, between the nihilists on one hand, and the jealous nobility 305 PRINCESS ZARA on the other, for the latter saw In me nothing but an interloper who had stolen their prerogatives. My first business on leaving the emperor, was to call upon Jean Moret, for now his usefulness was past, and the time had come for me to keep my word with him, and set him free. Somewhere in the world he would be able to find a safe haven of shelter;from the enemies who would claim vengeance; and now, after my net was drawn this night, there would be few active nihilists remaining to seek his life. " Well, Jean," I said, as I entered the room where he was confined, " would you like to leave prison and Russia?" " Indeed I would, sir," he replied. " There Is nothing that would make me quite so happy as that. Has the time come to let me go?" " I think so. Are you quite sure that there is nothing that would make you as happy as permission and passports to leave the country? " " Quite." " Not even — " " No, not even that to which you refer, or are about to refer. I have had plenty of time for 306 ONE EVENTFUL NIGHT thought, since you brought me here, and I have unraveled the fact that I made a consummate fooL of myself. I will not deny that I still love her, or that I probably always will love her, but I know that she never did, and never will, love me. That ends- it, you see, and so I am glad to get away." " Was it the princess, Jean? " I asked. " You have been very good to me, Mr. Derring- ton, and I ought to deny you nothing. Still I hope you will not ask me to tell you anything concerning^ the woman I was foolish enough to love so madly." " I honor you for that expression, Jean, and I will, ask you only one question. You can reply to it readily enough. Do you love her still, and well enough, so that you wish her every happiness? So well that you cherish no ill will against her for what she did to you ? " " I would give up my liberty, now, to be assured that she might always be happy; yes, even to know that she has broken with the nihilists; for sooner or later they would lead her to Siberia. Will yoa answer one question for me, Mr. Derrington? " " Willingly." 307 PRINCESS ZARA " Has she been arrested?" He did not appreci- ate the confession ihvolved in his question. " No ; and she will not be. She has also broken ■with the nihilists. And, Moret, I wish you to know that I honor you for not telling me her name. I know to whom you refer." He was silent a moment, until with some confusion in his manner, he said: " I would like to shake hands with you, Mr. Der- rington. You are a good man, and in whatever country Jean Moret finds a home, there you will always find a friend of yours." We had some other conversation, and then I gave him his passports, together with sufficient money for his needs. I personally conducted him from the place of imprisonment, and we finally parted in the street. That was the last I ever saw of Jean Moret, hut whatever his ultimate fate, I knew him to be a man of sterling qualities. From there I made my way to the office of my friend Canfield, where it was arranged that I should receive the reports of my men, and there, closeted ^ith Canfield, I remained until daylight. Messen- 308 ONE EVENTFUL NIGHT gers were coming and going constantly, and I knew long before dawn that every plan that I had laid had worked out just as I intended it should. I knew that when the sun rose, there would not be a half dozen real nihilists at liberty in St. Petersburg, and that the order would be paralyzed and broken throughout the empire. To just one portion of the night's work, I paid particular personal attention, and that was to the arrest and disposition of those who knew Zara and Ivan, personally, and who were aware of her condemnation to death by the order. Many of those who were arrested that night, were sent to Siberia for life, and others, for long terms of imprisonment; but I could not be criticised for that, for they one and all deserved to go. I was yet to meet with an adventure before I returned to the emperor, however. After leaving Canfield I sought an interview with. O'Malley. I found that without going out of my way, I could pass the residence of the prince, where I believed Zara to be peacefully sleeping, for I knew that Dumief must have suffered arrest before there was opportunity for him to carry out the czar's 309 PRINCESS ZARA order. I had taken the precaution to instruct Coylc,' early In the evening, to place a good watch on the house, fearing there might be a chance that one of the spies of the nihilists had succeeded in following us, and that they might attempt an attack upon her, there. Of Durnief, I had not thought again, for when the czar told me that he had been sent after the princess, I had every confidence that the man would be arrested before he could gain admittance to Zara's presence. Later, at Canfield's office, I had received the report that he had been taken. It was just breaking day as I approached the liouse, and I could see that a light was burning in the room where I had left her. I decided at once that she had determined to remain in that room, and had probably not thought of retiring. I could not criticise such a reluctance, under the circumstances; and while I was congratulating myself upon the fact that she would not have to pass such another night as this one, I saw the front door swing suddenly open, and the form of a woman In whom I instantly recognized Zara, ran down the steps and leaped Into a waiting droshka, which had hitherto escaped my 310 ONE EVENTFUL NIGHT notice. Instantly the horses started away at a gallop- I was two hundred feet distant. There was not a person in sight, for Coyle, believing, doubtless, that all danger was past, had withdrawn his guard. There are times in our lives when peril, in threat- ening a loved one, brings out the best there is in a man, and renders him suddenly capable of coping with any emergency. I knew of but one way to stop those horses, and I used it. Always a good shot, I drew my revolver, aimed it at the nearest horse, and pulled the trigger. Then, before the sound of the first report had lost itself along the street, I fired again. One of the horses pitched forward, shot through the brain, I knew; the other fell upon the first, and I ran forward at all speed, towards the wrecked and overturned droshka. 3" CHAPTER XXII THE COMBAT IN THE SNOW AS I ran, I saw an officer in uniform leap from the interior of the droshka, and draw his sword in preparation for my attack, while his yemschik, whip in hand, scrambled from the snow, and assumed a place beside him. They evidently supposed the attack, to be of a very different char- acter than it really was. The wounded horse was struggling and kicking, and I found time io think of the grave danger that its hoofs might injure Zara, "whom I judged to be unconscious from fright, or because of the shock; and so, heedless of my own necessities in undertaking an assault upon the two men, who now faced me, I fired a third bullet into the maddened animal. Then, as I sprang to the attack, I saw and recognized the man who con- fronted me, and my heart bounded with thanksgiving 312 THE COMBAT IN THE SNOW that I had taken that route to the palace. I recog- nized Alexis Durnief. The report of his arrest had been false, or he had managed in some way to escape; and even then, in that instant of rushing onward upon the two men, I could not help wondering by what means he had managed to entice Zara from the house in which she had taken refuge. I had two bullets remaining in my revolver; at least I thought so, and I raised it, and pulled the trigger a fourth time, thus placing the yemschik effectually out of that combat, and rendering it impossible for him ever to engage in others; and then, when barely ten feet away from the scoundrelly captain, I leveled the weapon at him and ordered him to throw down his sword. He laughed derisively, for he was not a coward, and he knew that death would be far preferable to the fate that would be his, if he were captured alive. " So ! It is my friend Dubravnik, is it? " he said, insolently, but in a tone as cool as though he were greeting me in a ballroom. " You have killed my horses, and my yemschik; why not do the same for me?" 313 PRINCESS ZARA I hesitated. To shoot a man like that, was against every im- pulse of my soul; and yet he was armed with a weapon as deadly as mine, if once I should get within reach of its point. I possessed none with which to meet him on even ground. But, inside the droshka, was unquestionably the unconscious form of the woman I loved. The occasion was a crisis. There could be no temporizing. Zara must be rescued. " Throw down your sword, or I will certainly kill you ! " I commanded him, again. " Kill," he replied, laconically. There was no other way, and I pulled the trigger. There was no report. Durnief did not fall, as the horses, and his yemschik had done. He stood unharmed, for the cartridge was bad, or the chamber of my revolver was unloaded. Instantly he under- stood that he had me at his mercy, and with a deadly smile upon his face he leaped forward to run me through. As he sprang towards me, I hurled the pistol with all my strength towards him. It struck him squarely 314 THE COMBAT IN THE SNOW in the breast, staggering him, and forcing him off his guard. Then, before he could recover, I sprang past the point of his weapon. I seized his sword arm, by the wrist, with my left hand, and threw my other arm around his body. We were as evenly matched as though we had trained at weights and measurements for the combat, and for a moment we struggled madly together, while I exerted all my strength to bend his wrist backward, so that he would be compelled to drop his sword. It seems strange that such a struggle, taking place in the streets of a great city immediately following upon the four reports of my pistol, had not attracted attention and drawn somebody to the scene, but the passing night had been one of terror; policemen had been called away from their posts, and at that hour, just after dawn, when everything was quiet, nobody heard, or if they heard, feared to come. In using all my effort to compel him to drop his weapon I neglected the other necessary points of the struggle, and although I succeeded in my design, he forced me backwards at the same Instant so that I fell beneath him, but I still had my right arm tightly 315 PRINCESS ZARA clasped around him, and I hugged him to me with all the strength that I could master. With Durnief, it was a straggle for life, liberty, and everything that he possessed, and he fought with all the desperation of a madman. With me, it was life, and the woman I loved, and I fought coolly, knowing that he could not get away from me, believing that I could tire him out, and satisfied that I could prevent him from securing his sword again. He managed to wrench his hand from my grasp, and he struck me a savage blow on the head with his fist, but I threw the other arm around him then, and hugged him all the tighter, so that he was unable to repeat the blow. It was a strange combat. A person ten feet away could not have heard it, for there was no sound save our heavy breathing. The snow deadened every noise that might have been made otherwise. The air was bitterly cold. Presently I became conscious of the fact that my opponent was striving with all his might to force me in a certain direction, and I correctly conjectured that he had been able to discover the location of the sword and was making an attempt to reach it. 316 THE COMBAT IN THE SNOW So I bent my energies to avoiding his effort. My life had been largely one of adventure, and I had taken part in many combats, but never before in one like this where it was simply a matter of endurance, where neither party to the fray was suffering injury, and where the hope of success was so evenly divided. Odd as it may seem, while pinioning him thus so that he could not act on the offensive, I began to conjecture how long we might hold out, and the probability of assistance arriving to end it; and it was the uncertainty of the nature of that assistance that concerned me most. I have said that there were not half a dozen con- fessed nihilists remaining at liberty in St. Petersburg, but there were hundreds, ay, thousands of nihilistic sympathizers, and there were hundreds of others who had become allied to the nihilists in some ex- trinsic way, who were in sympathy with the order, even if only passively so. If one or more of such were to happen along the assistance would surely be upon the side of my enemy, and certain defeat and death would be my portion. If a mere citizen were to interfere, the captain who still wore his uniform, 317 PRINCESS ZARA would secure the proffered aid, not I. He would be believed, not I, and hence I understood that what- ever advantage there might be in the way of inter- ference, was on his side. Appreciating these facts, I exerted my strength to the utmost to turn the tide of battle in my favor, but I could accomplish nothing. He was as strong as I, though not more powerful, and so I relapsed again into the mere effort to hold him helpless, and to take the chances of wearing him out before acsistance should come. It seemed to me as though an hour passed thus; in reality, it may have been only a few moments, foi' minutes are long under such circumstances; and then there came an interruption — and a strange one. " With whom are you struggling, Captain Dur- nlef?" I heard a voice say. ^ " Zara 1 " I exclaimed, before Durnief could reply. " With an assassin who has shot our horses, mur- dered the yemschik, and who would assassinate you, princess," panted Durnief. " Zara ! " I called to her again. " It is I — Dubravnik." I heard her gasp, and although I could not sec 318 THE COMBAT IN THE SNOW her, I was conscious that she deliberately walked around us, probably to obtain a better view of me; and in that moment I think I doubted her; but I tightened my grip around the man I held, and waited grimly for events to shape themselves. " Dubravnik? " she said, in a low tone, as if she were not convinced; but I did not speak again; and the captain also remained silent. Minutes, which seemed like hours, passed in another deathlike silence, broken only by the panting of Durnief. I wondered if Zara had fainted, or had gone for help, or what! There seemed to be no good reason for the silence, and the waiting. Why did she not grasp the sword, and send its point through one of us? It did not much matter to me, then, which one she might choose for its sheath. Soon, however, I heard a sound directly above me — a sound which a stick might make in smiting the ground, and I felt that Durnief shuddered. In another instant it came again, and his arms relaxed, but only to tighten about me the more convulsively. Then a short pause, which was followed by the thud- ding sound of a blow heavier than its predecessors, 319 PRINCESS ZARA and instantly following' it, the tensioned muscles of Durnief relaxed. His arms fell from their clasp around me. I pushed him aside as though he were dead, and for a moment believed that he was; then springing upright, to my feet, I was just in time to catch the tottering form of my princess, who, though not unconscious, had spent her last remaining strength in that third blow. Her left hand held Durnief'a sword. In her right was the mujik's whip, and I saw that she had used the stock of it to aid me. " I stood for a long time, with the sword pressed against his back, where it would have pierced his heart," she murmured in my ear, while she clung to me. " I wanted to kill him, but I could not do it. Then I found the yemschik's whip, but I had not the strength to strike. Do you wonder why I left the house ? The yemschik came to get me. He brought a note, signed by you. It said that my brother had been wounded, and was at ray house; that it was safe for rae to go there now. I hastened. I ran to the droshka, and sprang inside before I knew that It was occupied. Durnief was there. He seized me. Something was wrapped around my head, and 320 THE COMBAT IN THE SNOW I lost consciousness, I think. Then I heard sounds, as if men were fighting, and I crawled from the overturned droshka, and saw you two struggling to- gether, in the snow. I was dazed, frightened, and very weak. I did not remember what had happened ; I did not recognize you. I thought, at first, that it was Durnlef whom I should assist, and I stood there, watching the struggle for a long time, trying to re- member. Then recollection came, for I heard your voice. It recalled to me my senses. I remembered who Dubravnik was. Is It not strange that I should have forgotten? Even for a moment, is it not strange that I should have forgotten ? " " No, dear, no," I replied. " Then I found the sword, in the snow. I re- membered that I wanted to kill Durnlef, and I put the point against his back. But I could not press upon it. I tried, but I could not do It. It was horrible, Dubravnik, horrible. I tried a second time, and the point of the sword was actually piercing his clothing, when my eyes fell upon the whip. I secured It. There ! See 1 He Is reviving. Seize him, for he must not escape." 321 CHAPTER XXIII WHAT THE CZAR FORGOT I TOOK Zara back to the house of the prince, where I was well known to every servant of the establishment, for I had been a constant and an honored guest, there. From it I despatched messengers to O'Malley, and to Coyle, and presently sent Dumief away to prison, in charge of the former, while the latter brought a conveyance which took Zara and me to the home of my princess. It was a much quicker return than I had anticipated, at the time we departed from that house together, but the condition in which we found it, told only too plainly what might have been my sweetheart's fate, had I trusted to appearances, and left her there. The nihilists had lost no time in searching for her, when they were made to believe that she had be- trayed them. The place was almost a wreck. It had been searched, and the searchers had not hesi- 32a WHAT THE CZAR FORGOT tated to become despoilers, also. Nevertheless it was a happy homecoming for Zara, for looking upon the devastation that had been wrought in her absence, she turned to me with a smile, and said : " I have lost much, this past night, Dubravnik, in shattered idols and broken toys, but I have gained the whole world, too, for I have found you." When I had seen Zara safely inside her own door, and had given her every assurance of her entire safety, I had myself driven to the palace. Although I had promised to see the emperor as soon as I arrived, I felt that it was my first duty to interview Prince Michael, in the hope that the events of the preceding day might be reviewed in a better spirit. Accordingly, I proceeded at once to his apartments, after the captain of the guard had assured me that his majesty was still sleeping, not having retired until nearly daylight. When I rapped upon the door of the room occupied by the prince, as a sleeping apartment, there was no response, and I repeated the summons, more loudly than before. Still I waited in vain, and at last, feeling some mis- givings, and being assured by the guard in the cor- 323 PRINCESS ZARA ridor that the prince had not left the room since he had gone to it the preceding evening, I turned the handle and entered. I found him there. He was seated in a chair near one of the great windows through which the lately risen sun was shining full upon him ; and the moment my eyes discovered him I started with horror, for I saw that he was dead. Instantly I stepped back through the door, and told the guard to call his captain, pointing out the lifeless form of the prince, and ordering him to tell nobody but his superior officer of the fact. Then I reentered the room and approached the body of my former friend. There was a pistol beside him on the floor where It had' fallen from his nerveless grasp after the fatal deed was performed, but he reclined as easily in the chair as though he had dropped asleep naturally, for a short nap instead of forever. I " Poor Michael I " I murmured. " Did I drive you to this? Would that I had not spoken." I turned to glance around the room, professional instinct getting the best of me even in that moment of sorrow, and I quickly espied a letter upon the 324 WHAT THE CZAR FORGOT table. It was addressed to his majesty, the emperor, and was tightly sealed, so I placed it in my pocket and started to leave the room. At the door I met the captain of the guard with two of his men, and them I instructed to keep watch, but on no account to touch anything without his majesty's permission. Then I sought the czar. " Well, Derrington ? " he asked, as soon as I was admitted to his presence. "What of the night? Is the conspiracy crushed, and have you been success- ful?" " Entirely so. Nihilism is effectually crushed for many years to come. My work in St. Petersburg is really done, I think. At least I can assure you that you will have no cause to fear the hand of an assas- sin for a long time; until this weed starts up anew." " We are safe, then. Thank God for that." " You are perfectly safe. The prisons are full to overflowing. I have sent many of the less guilty ones over the border with instructions not to return for many years to come. You will miss a few faces at court. You will be forced to fill a few vacancies in the army, The next caravan across Siberia will 325 PRINCESS ZARA be a larger one than the last, and the population of this city will be depleted by nearly three thousand souls counting all that I have enumerated." " This is glorious news to awaken to — glorious! I cannot repay you the debt I owe you, Derrington." i " Now that you have heard the good news, can you bear to hear some that is not so good, mon- sieur? " " What! Is there bad news also? " " Necessarily, there must have been some fatali- ties." "Ah! Some one was killed? Some friend of mine?" " Yes. Some one has killed himself." "Durnief?" " No. He is a prisoner." "Why keep me waiting? Tell me at once." " I greatly fear, your majesty, that I am respon- sible for this death. Here is the letter he left. Read it. I do not know what it contains. I only just now discovered the body." "Michael!" He exclaimed as soon as he saw the handwriting. I made no reply and he broke the 326 WHAT THE CZAR FORGOT seal and read the last words of his lifelong friend. Presently he returned it to me. " Read," he said, and I read. My Friend, — In death, qualities of rank cease, hence I address you as I have always felt towards you — as my friend. Derrington was right ; he told the truth, and I lied. I am not now and have never been a nihilist in spirit, but it is true that I am one in fact. I joined them in a moment of folly, to protect a friend whom I knew to be one. I have never allied myself to them, and have never attended one meeting of theirs. The friend for whose sake I joined has been gener- ous, and no demands have been madeupon me; nev- ertheless, I am guilty. Yet, believe me my friend, when with my last breath I assure you that I have never harbored one disloyal thought towards you or yours, and I should unhesitatingly have betrayed the ' nihilists had I ever known of a single circumstance inimical to you. But I can live no longer under this disgrace, so I die. I beseech you let not the truth of my dishonor be known abroad. I was unjust to Der-i 327. PRINCESS ZARA rington, and I crave his pardon. I loved him as a brother, and as brothers quarrel at times, so did we. He is faithful ; trust him. May God lead you in the right; may He preserve your life and your empire, and may He have mercy upon me. i Michael. Alexander was true to his friendship for Prince Michael. He mourned him sincerely, and nobody ever knew the true cause of the prince's death. The emperor respected that last wish of his dead friend. There was yet more mischief to be done, however, by that arch villain Durnief, for while we were still occupied with the care of Prince Michael's remains, the czar sent for me in haste. " This is a day of surprising missives," he said. " Here is another letter for you to read." I took it in my hand and glanced at the signature. " Durnief," I said, with a sneer. " Why should I read it? The man cannot tell the truth." " Because I desire you to do so." The note began in the usual form of addresses to the emperor, and was as follows ; 328 WHAT THE CZAR FORGOT You have ere this been informed, and supplied with ample proof, that I am among the ranks of your enemies, the nihilists. I confess it, but I be- came one of them for selfish motives, not for political ones. Never mind that. It is not my intention to intercede for mercy, for I know that your heart is a stranger to that quality. It is to tell you a truth that you should know. It is to tell you that the one most dangerous of all nihilists, is to go free ; is to remain in Russia ; is to have access to your palace ; is spared by your trusted spy, Dubravnik; is upheld by him. This nihilist to whom I refer, has been, ever since the death of my one time rival, Stanislaus, the most dan- gerous of all the extremists. This nihilist leader is a woman, and her name is Zara de Echeveria. Du- bravnik will spare her ; he will spare her brother who is as violent as she is. One last word. I will never go to Siberia for I have the means to cheat you out of the pleasure of sending me there, and when you read this, I shall have been an hour dead. Alexis Durnief. 329 PRINCESS ZARA " Well," demanded his majesty, " what have you to say?" " Nothing." "Nothing!" " No." " Have you arrested her?" " I have not." " Where is she now? " " In her own home. I took her there this morn- ing. Listen for a moment, and I will tell you how that occurred." Then I related in detail the story of my struggle with Durnief, the rescue of Zara, her heroism in as- sisting me, and I told of the final capture and im- prisonment of the captain. But his majesty shook his head in a doubt, " I believe Durnief's letter. She is a nihilist," he said. " She must be arrested." I shook my head, but he did not see the motion and continued : " I believe that the princess is the friend to whom poor Michael referred. He was in love with her and nothing short of the love of a woman could have made him disloyal to me. Yes, I believe t^iat she is 33q iWHAT THE CZAR FORGOT what Durnief says she Is. I order you to place her under arrest at once." " She shall not be arrested," I said, coldly. *' What ! " he cried, " you dare to disobey me? " " Yes," I replied, " I dare to disobey such an or-' der as that. It shall not be." " Are you a traitor, also? Was Michael right? " There was that sneering smile upon his face now, but I held my ground. " I am not a traitor, but I will not carry out your request, and I will not permit it to be carried out." He was aghast at my effrontery. He could only gaze at me In amazement, too greatly confounded for speech; and I continued: "Listen to me one mo- ment, your majesty." " I will not listen to you. The road to Siberia may be traveled by you as well as by the friends whom you apprehended last night, and by heaven, you shall follow it ! " " You forget one thing," I said. " You have for- gotten — " "What have I forgotten?" " The Fraternity of Silence." 331 PRINCESS ZARA "Bah!" " I foresaw this moment, your majesty, and my men have their orders to meet it. If I am molested, every nihiUst who was arrested last night — every one who was in prison in the city before that time — will be liberated in an hour, and you have not soldiers nor policemen enough to stop the tide that will flow against you then. Your empire will crum- ble like dust, and your life will go out like the snuff- ing of a candle. For the present, I am the Czar of Russia, and you are only Alexander Alexandrovitch." He sat still and looked at me with staring eyes. " You are only a man, after all, monsieur," I con- tinued more softly. " In your fears for the safety of your family, for your empire, and for yourself, you are led to do unjust things. Only an hour ago you said that you owed me a debt that you could never repay. You do owe me a debt, and you can repay it if you will forget for a moment that you are a monarch, and remember that you are a man. You can repay all you owe me, and more, if you will still be my friend, and forget that this scene has occurred ; and when you have done that, I will tell ypu that 33? WHAT THE CZAR FORGOT Zara de Echeveria is to be the wife of Daniel Der- rington ; is to leave Russia forever with her husband, and were she the worst nihilist in the empire — and I know that she is not — she will be far away from any temptation to do you harm, and under the guid- ance of one who has proven his devotion to you. I will tell you more: I will leave the direction of the affairs of the fraternity in the hands of one of my men who is as expert as I am, and who is in every way as worthy of your confidences as I have proven myself to be — Canfield." The czar rose unsteadily to his feet and came towards me with his right hand extended. " Derrington," he said, slowly, " I have been un- just. If I had other friends like you, who dared to tell me the truth as it is, and not distort it out of all recognition — if there were others here who dared to defy me when defiance alone will make me see things in their right light, Russia would be the better for it. Go to Zara d'Echeveria. Tell her that I wish her to come here. Tell her that the Czar of Russia will ask her forgiveness for an act that he could not avoid committing. She will understand. 333 PRINCESS ZARA You shall be married in the palace, and you will both remain in Russia." Then he put his arms around me in Russian fashion and bade me go. 334' CHAPTER XXIV SABEREVSKI'S PROPHECY ALL this time I had forgotten Ivan, whom I had left, bound and helpless, at my rooms, and who, I knew, must be suffering untold tortures of doubt and dread, concerning the happen- ings of the night. So now I hastened to him with all speed. Poor chap, he was nearly done for by the strained position he had been compelled to maintain for so long a time, but I have always believed that it did him good, and that without it he might have been less tractable, when the time came for a reconciliation with his sister. It gave him an opportunity for the right sort of meditation, which, perhaps, he had never enjoyed before. Every time the temptation came to him to break his bonds and make his escape, he remembered that he must remain where he was, for the sake of the sister he loved so well, whose 335 PRINCESS ZARA life would be forfeited so easily, if he should carry, to his nihilistic friends the knowledge he possessed. I found him weak, and worn, but still firm in the de- termination to await my coming. I unbound him, gave him food and wine and as soon as he was suf- ficiently recovered ordered my droshka and took him to Zara's house. I made him wait until I had gone to her, and told her of my last interview with the emperor, and I succeeded in securing her reluctant consent to go to the palace with me that day. Then I called to Ivan, and when I saw the brother and sister clasped in each other's arms, I left them alone together. What passed between them, I have never been told, and I never thought it necessary to ask. I only know that when I was presently called into the consultation, Ivan offered me his hand, tenderly, and I grasped it, warmly. " You qre to be my brother," he said; " and Zara tells me that you two are going to America, to live. May I go with you, Dubravnik? Will you take me, also, out of this hell of plotting and scheming, and this chaos of exile and death? Will you make an 336 SABEREVSKI'S PROPHECY American of me, and let me be your brother, in- deed?" After that, we three passed a very happy hour to- gether, after which I hurried away, with the assur- ance that Zara would accompany me into the pres- ence of the czar,^ that evening. I had not told her of the death of Prince Michael, for the knowledge of it, and why he had killed himself, could only cast a shadow over the great joy she was now experienc- ing; afterward, there would be a time and place for the telling, and I did not want the knowledge of it to come upon her with a shock, just now. Weeks afterward, when we were on the deck of the steamer that was taking us to my own country, as we stood together, overlooking a moonlit sea, she reached up, and with one of her soft, fair hands, turned my face towards hers with a gesture that was characteristic; and I loved it. " Dubravnik," she said — she still insists that she will always address me so, because it is the name by which she first knew me — "I do not know my- self, any more. I am not the same woman who was once so vengeful. Love has taught me how to for- 337 PRINCESS 2ARA give. Love has made me over again. 1 am no longer the same Zara." " No," I said lightly, " for now you are Zara Derrington." " Tell me," she asked, after another interval of gazing across the waters, " shall we see Alexis Saberevski, over there, where your home is? " I did not answer the question, for upon the in- stant she mentioned the name of my friend, it re- called to me the circumstance of my last parting with him. I remembered the sealed envelope he had given me, and the instructions that came with it. I had forgotten it entirely, until that moment ; but now, without replying to her question, I drew the missive from my pocket and broke the seal. What I read there seems wonderfully prophetic to me, even now, and I read it over a second time, in my amazement. Then I gave it to Zara. " Read," I said, " for there is the answer to your question." And this is the letter Zara read aloud to me, while we two leaned against the rail of the vessel that was bearing us to our home across the sea. The man in 338 SABEREVSKI'S PROPHECY the moon was looking down, and smiling upon our happiness, and shedding sufficient light for my sweet- heart-wife to see Saberevski's written words. They were : — Derrington, these written words are to make you and Zara de Echeveria known to each other. Months will pass, and many of them may do so, be- fore you will read what is written here; and it may be, it likely will be, that you are standing side by side when you break the seal of the last communication, written or oral, which I shall probably ever submit to you. For our paths, henceforth, will lead us widely apart, Derrington. You are a free agent, the arbiter of your own destiny; I am one who can take no initiative regarding the paths I must tread. But this letter is not to speak of myself, but is to tell you about her, If, perchance, when you read these words, you have never met. ' Yesterday, when a ship sailed away from Its pier In the North River, you accompanied me to the dock, amazed that I should ask you to do so, and doubt- less wondering all the while why I made no effort to 339 PRINCESS ZARA see, or to speak with any person, there. But when the ship had swung into the stream, you saw me wave my hand in farewell to some person among those who thronged her decks. That person was Zara de Echeveria, the princess to whose presence in New York you lately called my attention, but re- specting which I was already informed; for at the moment of your communication I had already seen her, and talked with her, and we had parted as you and I will do when I place this, letter in your hands — forever. You are going upon a mission, Derrington, al- though it may be that you have not decided in your own mind to do so; but the decision is there, await- ing your recognition of it. Your mission will take you to Russia, to accomplish the great work I have suggested to you. I have willed it that you must go, and go you will. You will serve the czar as faithfully as I have done ; but better, because you are not a Russian, and you have not the inborn awe of title and rank. And you will have been successful in that mission when you have read these written words, for I shall 340 SABEREVSKI'S PROPHECY instruct you not to break the seal until you are ready to take your departure from that country, which you will never do without having attained success. You are to serve the czar, and for him and in his name, will achieve the disruption of the nihilist societies of St. Petersburg, and therefore of the empire. I know your thoroughness, and I anticipate that very many among the prominent revolutionists will soon be known to you. Among them you will find the name I have written here — Zara de Echeveria. I present her to you, Derrington, by this letter, as if we three were standing together in the form of formal introduction. I am a fatalist, and I know that you two will meet, and read your destinies in each other's souls. If you are already together, there will be no need of this letter, save to tell you how thoroughly and how well I love you both. God has written your futures on the same page of the book of destiny, and I have read the writing. You are created for one another, and as surely as God's love watches over us all, just so surely has He put the seal of enduring human love upon you both. Why it will be so, and how it will come about, I have not PRINCESS ZARA the skill to tell, but my prophetic vision looked into the futures of you both, when I talked with you, one after another, yesterday; and I saw you passing down the declining years of life, hand in hand, and heart with heart, like one. If Zara be not with you, seek her. The name will be familiar to you, by reason of your late employment, even though she may have escaped your personal recognition till now. There- fore, I repeat, if Zara be not with you now, turn about and seek her. I charge you so. But something tells me that you will be together, standing side by side, happier in the great love that has come to you both, than all your dreams have ever promised. Therefore, I bless you and may the good God who made you for each other, hold you in his keeping always. Saberevski, Zara and I were both strangely silent after the reading of the letter, but I took her quietly in my arms, and she pillowed her head against my shoulder while we looked out across the moonlit sea, prais- ?43 SABEREVSKI'S PROPHECY ing God, and insensibly calling down blessings upon the name of our good friend. " Saberevski knew me to be a nihilist, and warned me against it that day," she said to me. " He was the dearest friend I ever had," I replied; and she murmured: " He was a good man." Who can tell how Alexis Saberevski could have foreseen this meeting of the ways, between Zara and me ? What was it that directed his prophetic vision across the mystery of many months, to discover us two, standing side by side, when we perused his letter? What was it that told him that we would love and wed? Many years have passed since that night on the steamship's deck, and we have never seen nor heard from Saberevski since. He was a mystery to me when I knew him; he re- mains a mystery still. But the greatest mystery of all is love. THE END 343 BOOKS ON NATURE STUDY BY CHARLES G. D. ROBERTS Hudiomely bound in doth. Price, 75 cenb per Tolnme, poilpaid. THE KINDRED OF THE WILD. A Book of Animal Ufe. With illustrations by Charles Livingston Bull. Appeals alike to the young and to the merely youthful-hearted. Close observation. Graphic description. We get a sense of the great wild and its denizens. Out of the common. Vigorous and full of character. The book is one to be enjoyed; all the more because it smacks of the forest instead of the museum. John Burroughs says : " The volume is in many ways the most brilliant collection of Animal Stories that has appeared. It reaches a high order of literary merit." THE HEART OF THE ANCIENT WOOD. Illustrated. This book strikes a new note in lit erature. It is a realistic romance of the folk of the forest — a romance of the alliance of peace between a pioneer's daughter in the depths of the ancient wood and the wild beasts who felt ner spell and became her friends. It is not fanciful, with talking beasts ; nor is it merely an exquisite idyl of the beasts themselves. It is an actual romance, in which the animal characters play their parts as naturally as do the human. The atmosphere of the book is enchanting. The reader feels the undulating, whimpering music of the forest, the power of the shady silences, the dignity of the beasts who live closest to the heart of the wood. THE WATCHERS OF THE TRAILS. A companion volume to the « Kindred of the WUd." With 48 full page plates and decorations from drawings by Charles Livingston Bull. These stories are exquisite in their refinement, and yet robust in thdr appreciation of some of the rougher phases of woodcraft. "This is a book full of delight. An additional charm lies in Mr. Bull's faith- ful and graphic illustrations, which in fashion all their own tell the story of the wild life, illuminating and supplementing the pen pictures of the anthois."— Literary Digest. RED FOX. The Story of His Adventurous Career in the Ring- waak Wilds, and His Triumphs over the Enemies of His Kind. Wth 50 illustrations, including frontispiece in color and cover design by Charles Livingston Bull. A brilliant chapter in natural history. Infinitely more wholesome reading than the average tale of sport, since it rives a glimpse of the hunt from the point of view of the hunted. " Tn True in substance but will interest old and yc enow animals and the Chicago Record-Herald. GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, - - New York fascinating as fiction. It will interest old and young, city-bound and free-footed, those who know animals and those who do not." — FAMOUS COPYRIGHT BOOKS IN POPULAR PRICED EDmONS Re-issues of the great literary successes of the time, library size, printed on excellent paper — most of them finely illustrated. Full and handsomely bound in cloth. Fiice, 75 cents a volume, postpaid. NEDRA, by George Barr McCutcheon, with color frontispiecet and other illustrations by Harrison Fisher. The story of an elopement of a young couple from Chicago, who decide to go to London, travelling as brother and sister. Their diffi- culties commence in New York and become greatly exaggerated when they are shipwrecked in mid-ocean. The hero finds himself stranded on the island of Nedra with another girl, whom he has rescued by mistake. The story gives an account of their finding some of the other passengers, and the circumstances which resulted from the strange mix-up. POWER LOT, by Sarah P. McLean Greene. Illustrated. The story of the reformation of a man and his restoration to self- respect through the power of honest labor, the exercise of honest in- dependence, and the aid of clean, healthy, out-of-door life and sur- roundings. The characters take hold of the heart and win sympathy. The dear old story has never been more lovingly and artistically told. MY MAMIE ROSE. The History of My Regeneration, by Owen Kildare. Illustrated. This autobiography is a powerful book of love and sociology. Reads like the stranrrost fiction. Is the strongest truth and deals with the story of a man s redemption through a woman's love and devotion, JOHN BURT, by Frederick Upham Adams, with illustrationi . John Burt, a New England lad, goes West to seek his fortune and finds it in gold mining. He becomes one of the financial factors and pitilessly crushes his enemies. The story of the Stock Exchange manipulations was never more vividly and engrossingly told. A love story runs through the book, and is handled with inuute skill. THE HEART LINE, by Gelett Burgess, with halftone illustra- tions by Lester Ralph, and inlay cover in colors. A great dramatic story of the city that was. A story of Bohemian life in San Francisco, before the disaster, presented with mirror-like accuracy. Compressed into it are all the sparkle, all the gayety, all the wild, whirling life of the glad, mad, bad, and most delightful city of the Golden Gate. GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers. - • New York FAMOUS COPYRIGHT BOOKS IN POPULAR PRICED EDmONS Re-issues of the great literary successes of the time, library size, printed on excellent paper— most of them finely illustrated. Full and handsomely bound in doth. Price, 75 cents a volume, postpaid. CAROUNALEE. By Lillian BelL With frontispiece by Don Wheeler Keith. Carolina Lee is the Uncle Tom's Cabin of Christian Science. Its keynote is " Divine Love" in the understanding of the knowledge of all good things which may be obtainable. When the tale is toldl the sick healed, wrong changed to right, poverty of purse and spirit turned into riches, lovers made worthy of each other and happily united, including Carolina Lee and her affinity, it is borne upon the reader that he has been giving rapid attention to a free lecture on Christian Science ; that the working out of each character is an argu- ment for " Faith ;" and that the theory is persuasively attractive. A Christian Science novel that will bring delight to the heart of every believer in that faith. It is a well told story, entertaining, and cleverly mingles art, humor and sentiment HILMA, by William Tillinghait Eldridge, with illustrations by Harrison Fisher and Martin Justice, and inlay cover. If is a rattling good tale, written with charm, and full of remark- able happenings, dangerous doings, strange events, jealous intrigues and sweet love making. The reader's interest is not permitted to lag, but is taken up and carried on from incident to incident with ingenu- ity and conta^ous enthusiasm. The story gives us the Graustari and The Prisoner of Zenda th rill, but the tfle is treated with fresh- ness, ingenuity, and enthusiasm, and the climax is both unique and satisfying. It will hold the fiction lover close to every page. THE MYSTERY OF THE FOUR FINGERS, by Fred M. White, with half ton« illustration* by Will Grefe. A fabulously rich gold mine in Mexico is known by the picturesque and mysterious name of The four Fingers. It originally belonged to an Aztec tribe, and its location is known to one surviving descen&nt — a man possessing wonderful occult power. Should any person un- lawfully discover its whereabouts, four of his fingers are mysteriously removed, and one by one returned to him. The appearance of the final fourth betokens his swift and violent death. Surprises, strange and startling, are concealed in every chapter of this completely engrossing detective story. The horrible fascination of the tragedy holds one in rapt attention to the end. And through it runs the thread of a curious love story. GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, . . New York MEREDITH NICHOLSON'S FASCINATING ROMANCES Handsomely bonnd m cloth. Price, 75 centi per volame, poitpaid. THE HOUSE OF A THOUSAND CANDLES. With a (rontU. piece in colors by Howard Chandler Chruty. A novel o£ romance and adventure, of love and valor, of mystery and hidden treasure. The hero is required to spend a whole year in the isolated house, which according to his ^andfather's will shall then become his. If the terms of the will be violated the house goes to a young woman whom the will, furthermore, forbids him to marry. Nobody can guess the secret, and the whole plot moves along wiu an exciting zip. THE PORT OF MISSING MEN. With illustration* by Clar- ence F. Underwood. There is romance of love, mystery, plot, and fighting, and a breath- less dash and go about the telling which makes one quite forget about the improbabilities of the story ; and it all ends m the old- fashioned healthy American way. Shirley is a sweet, courageous heroine whose shining eyes lure from page to page. ROSAUND AT REDGATE. Illustrated by Arthur I. Keller. The author of "The House of a Thousand Candles" has here given us a bouyant romance brimming with lively humor and opti- mism ; with mystery that breeds adventure and ends in love and hap- piness. A most entertaining and delightful book. THE MAIN CHANCE. With iUustrations by Harrison Fisher. A "traction deal "in a Western dty is the pivot about which the action of this clever story revolves. But it is in the character-draw- ing of the principals that the author's strength lies. Exciting inci- dents develop their inherent strength andweaknesss, and if virtue wins in the end, it is quite in keeping with its carefully-planned antecedents. The N. Y. Sun says : " We commend it for its workmanship — for its smoothness, its sensible fancies, and for its general charm." , ZELDA DAMERON. With portraits of the characters by ; John Cecil Clay. " A picture of the new West, at once startlingly and attractively true. • * • The heroine is a strange, sweet mixture of pride, wil- fulness and lovable courage. The characters are superbly drawn ; the atmosphere is convincing. There is about it a sweetness, a whole- someness and a sturdiness that commends it to earnest,, kindly and wholesome people." — Boston Transcript. GROSSET & DUNLAP, PubUshers, . . New York BRILLIANT AND SPIRITED NOVELS AGNES AND EGERTON CASTLE Handsomely bound in cIotL Price, 75 cents per volume, postpaid. THE PRIDE OF JENNICO. Being a Memoir of Captain Basil I Jennico. " What separates it from most books of its class is its distinction of manner, its unusual grace of diction, its delicacy of touch, and the i fervent charm of its love i>assages. It is a very attractive piece of | romantic fiction relying for its enact upon character rather than inci- dent, and upon vivid dramatic presentation. " — Tke Dial. " A stirring, brilliant and dashing story." — TAe Oatlook. THE SECRET ORCHARD. lUustrated by Charles D. Williams. The " Secret Orchard " is set in the midst of the ultra modern society. The scene is in Paris, but most of the characters are English speak- ing. The story was dramatized in l^ndon, and in it the Kendalls scored a great theatrical success. " ArtfuSy contrived and full of romantic charm • » • it Pos- sesses ingenuity of incident, a figurative designation of the unhal- lowed scenes in which unlicens ed love accomplShes and wrecks faith and happiness." — Athenaeum. YOUNG APRIL. With illustrations by A. B. Wenzell. " It is everything that a good romance should be, and it carries about it an air of distinction both rare and delightful." — Chicazo Tribune. " With regret one turns to the last page of tiis delightiul novel, so delicate in its romance, so brilliant in its episodes, so spark- ling in its art, and so exquisite in its diction. " — Worcester Spy. FLOWER O' THE ORANGE. With (rontisptece. We have learned to expect from these fertile authors novels grace- ful in form, brisk in movement, and romantic in conception. This carries the reado' back to the days of the bewigged and beruffled gallants of the seventeenth century and tells him of feats of arms and adventures in love as thrilling and picturesque, yet delicate, as the utmost seeker of romance may ask. MY MERRY ROCKHURST. lUiutrated by Arthur E. Becher. In the eight stories of a courtier of King Charles Second, which are here gathered together, the Castles are at their best, reviving all the I fragrant charm of those books, like 754* Pride of jennico, in which they first showed an instinct, amounting to genius, for sunny romances. The book is absorbing » * * and is as spontaneous in feeling as it is artistic in execution." — New York Tribune. GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publishers, • • New York FAMOUS COPYRIGHT BOOKS IN POPULAR PRICED EDITIONS Re-issues of the great literary successes of the time, library size, printed on excellent paper— most of them finely illustrated. Full and handsomely bound in doth. Price, 75 cents a volume, postpaid. THE CATTLE BARON'S DAUGHTER. A Norel. By Harold BindloM. With illurtrations by David Ericioa. A story of the fight for the cattle-ranges of the West. Intense in- terest is aroused by its pictures of life m the cattle country at that critical moment of transition when the great tracts of land used for grazing were taken up by the incoming homesteaders, with the in- evitable result of fierce contest, of pa^isionate emotion on both sides, and of final triumph of the inevitable tendency of the times. WINSTON OF THE PRAIRIE. With illustrations in color by W. Herbert Dunton. A man of upright character, young and clean, but badly worsted in the battle of life, consents as a desperate resort to impersonate for a period a man of his own age — scoundrelly in character but of an anstocratic and moneyed family. The better man finds himself barred from resuming his old name. How, coming into the other man's pos- sessions, be wins the respect of all men, and the love of a fastidious, delicately nurtured girl, is the thread upon which the story hangs. It is one of the best novels of the West that has appeared for years. THAT MAINWARING AFFAIR. By A. Maynard Barbour. With illuitrationi by E. Piaiited Abbott. A novel with a most intricate and carefully unraveled plot. A naturally probable and excellently developed story and the reader will follow the fortunes of each character with unabating interest • • • the interest is keen at the close of the first chapter and in- creases to the end. AT THE TIME APPOINTED. WiA a frontispiece in color* by J. H. Meurchand. The fortunes of a young mining enrineer who through an accident loses his memory and identity. In his new character and under his new name, t he hero lives a new life of struggle 'and adventure. The volume will be found highly entertaining by those who appreciate a thoroughly good story. GROSSET & DUNLAP, Publisher*. . ■ New York FAMOUS COPYRIGHT BOOKIS IN POPULAR PRICED EDITIONS _ Re-issues of the great literary successes of the time. Library size. Printed on excellent paper — most of them with illustra- tions of marked beauty — and handsomely bound in cloth. Price, 75 cents a volume, postpaid. THE CIRCULAR STAIRCASE, By Mary Roberts Reinhart With illustrations by Lester Ralph. In an extended notice the New York Sun says : " To readers who care for a really good detective story ' The Circular Stair- case ' can be recommended without reservation. The Philadelphia Record declares that " The Circular Staircase " deserves the laur els for thrills, for weirdness and things unexplained and inexplicable THE RED YEAR, By Louis Tracy " Mr. Tracy'gives by far the jnost realistic and impressive pic. tures of the horrors and heroisms of the Indian Mutiny that has been available in any book of the kind * * * There has not been in modern times in the history of any land scenes so fear- ful, so picturesque, so dramatic, and Mr. Tracy draws them as with the pencil of a Verestschagin of the pen of a Sienkiewics." ARMS AND THE WOMAN, By Harold MacGradi With inlay cover in colors by Harrison Fisher. The story is a blending of the romance and adventure of the middle ages with nineteenth century men and women ; and they are creations of flesh and blood, and not mere pictures of past centuries. The story is about Jack Winthrop, a newspaper man. Mr. Mac- Grath's finest bit of character drawing is seen in Hillars, the bro- ken down newspaper man, and Jack's chum. LOVE IS THE SUM OF IT ALL, By Geo. Gary Eggleston With illustrations by Hermann Heyer. In this " plantation romance " Mr. Eggleston has resumed the manner and method that made his " Dorothy South " one of the most famous books of its time. There are three tender love stories embodied in it, and two unusually int^estin^ heroines, utterly unlike each other, but each possessed of a peculiar fascination which wins and holds the read- er's sympathy. A pleasing vein of gentle humor runs through the work, but the " sum of it all " is an intensely sympathetic love story. HEARTS AND THE CROSS, By Harold Morton Cramer With illustrations by Harold Matthews Brett. The hero is an unconventional preacher who follows the line of the Man of Galilee, associating with the lowly, and working for them in the ways that may best serve them. He is not recognized at his real value except by the one woman who saw clearly. Their love story is one of the refreshing things in recent fiction. GROSSET & DUNLAP. Publishers, . . NEW YORK FAMOUS COPYRIGHT BOOKS IN POPULAR PRICED EDITIONS Re-issues of the great literary successes of the time. Library size. Printed on excellent paper— most of them with illustra- tions of marked beauty — and handsomely bound in cloth. Price, 75 cents a volume, postpaid. tTHE SHUTTLE, By Frances Hodgson Burnett ) With inlay cover in colors by Clarence F. Underwood.'' This great international romance relates the story of an Ameri- can girl who, in rescuing her sister from the ruins of her marriage to an Englishman of title, displays splendid qualities of courage, tact and restraint. As a study of American womanhood of modem times, the character of Bettina Vanderpoel stands alone in litera- ture. As a love story, the account of Iier experience is magnificent. The masterly handling, the glowing style of the book, give it a literary rank to which very few modern novels have attained. THE MAKING OF A MARCHIONESS, By Frtuices Ho48son Burnett niustrated with half tone engravings by Charles D. WilUams. With initial letters, tail-pieces, decorative borders. Beautifully printed, and daintily bound, and boxed. A delightful novel in the author's most charming vein. The scene is laid in an English country house, where an amiable Eng- lish nobleman is the centre'^of matrimonial interest on the part of both the English and Americans present. f%Graceful, sprightly, almost delicious in its dialog^ie and action. It is a book about which one is tempted to write ecstatically. THE METHODS OF LADY WALDERHURST. By Francis Hodgson Burnett A Companion Volume to " The Maldns of ■ MnrrhioneM." With illustrations by Charles D. Williams, and with initial letters, tail-pieces, and borders, bv A. K. Womrath. Beautifully printed and daintily bound, and boxed. "The Methods of Lady Walderhurst " is a delightful storr which combines the sweetness of " The Making of a >&rcbioness, with the dramatic qualities of " A Lady of Quality." Lady Wal- derhurst is one of the most charming characters iv modem fiction. JVAYENNE, By Percy Brebner With illustrations by £. Fuhr. This romance like the author's The Princess Maritza is charged to the brim with adventure. Sword play, bloodshed, justice |^own the multitude, sacrifice, and romance, mingle in dramatic episodes that are born, flourish, and pass away on every page. GROSSET & DUNLAP. Publishers, . . NEW YORK l' III