Mineral Point tribune. (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1869-1938, 1890-11-20

progress. The Baroness had never
looked so lovely. In the prime of her
womanhood, her figure was displayed
to the greatest advantage in evening
dress, | looked around me. Pfesb.
Dakoutsk. Phloblosh and Chenkamin--
all were there. The gathering Was
honeycombed with the nihilistic ele-
ment.
felt my hand suddenly grasped.
and turning around was confronted by
-Gurloff. He was without disguise OF
any kind. | regarded him with wonder
mept The second in command Of the
secret police, he must be well known
to tho peoDle.
| had the fourth dance with the Bar
oness Woronsko. 1t was marked a
waltz on my programme. She danced
superbly. | myself understand the
divine art. As to the strains of en-
chanting music we iloated down the
long ballroom, could not but wish
myself thousand miles away from st.
Petersburg. 1t went hard with me to
betray that splendid creature. | am a
Frenchman, and have to confess that
she affected me powerfully.
The music ceased, and she led me
into a conservatory. We were hardly
seated when she spoke and said:
81 am the one chosen to instruct you
by our circle. Tomorrow you will be
presented to the Emperor. Being a
foreigner, he will extend to you the
royal hand, as is his custom"
She paused and glanced nervously
around. Quitting my side for a mo-
ment, she parted the thick shrubbery
and peered out through the glass into
the darkness.
81 thought heard a sound in the
garden" she said.
knew it was the noise occasioned
by Pierre Chauffaud and the men with
him in scaling the wall surrounding the
grounds.
20. it is nothing" said, but feeling
all the time very much like a villain.
''Do not be alarmed"
She returned, seated herself by my
side and resumed:
"You have been chosen by our circle
to rid the world of this tyrant. Take
this ring. No do not place it on your
hand yet. Its touch is death, if you are
not extremely careful. Keep it in its
case, and just before you are admitted
to the audience, place it on your finger.
The slightest contraction of your
fingers will pierce the hand you hold
with a small hollow needle. Retain
the Cars hand in your own, respect
fully, for a moment. During that brief
interval you can inject into his palm a
deadly poison. Its action is sufficiently
slow to afford you ample opportunity
to make your escape"
Horror stricken, | gazeC upon the
deadly ring. TO my amazement. it
was an exact counterpart of the ring in
the photograph.
Whose ring is thisP" I gasped.
recoiIing from her. Could she be q
murderessp
''The ring was GurloiT's." she an
swered, in Il low ton 1T was suited
to the purpose, and he contributed it
to the cause. 1t was fitted as YOU see
it now by the Hungarian, Rudolph
Pfesh."
saw it all now. Gurlotf had him
self murdered his chief at the order
of the circle. and had sent to Paris for
a detective, thinking to thus divert
suspicion by apparently taking extra
ordinary pains to discover the per-
petrator Of tho crime.
A sudden look of terror passed over
The face of the Baroness. | saw at
once that | had done something or let
fall some exclamation to arouse her
suspicious, or had Gurloff discovered
me to her and was she simply Turing
me on. If the latter, she had rcpented
early of playing with the fire. With a
swift movement she passed me, aud
standing for a moment in the door of
the conservatory uttered peculiar
cry. In an instant a crowd of desper-
ate men gathered in the doorway, fore
most among them Gurloif.
You thought to learn all our secrets
and bctray us" Kissed GurloH point
ing his finger ut me. He is a
mouchard, gentlemen. Seize him.
Your lives depend upon it.'
The crowd dashed forward, at their
head the Murderer of Pelaulski.
Down with the mouchardm they
yelled, and dozen hands were on my
throat.
Crash! Bang! Thudw Pierre
Chauilaud aud his men were breaking
nto the conservatory from the outside.
The next moment the crowd scattered
like chaif, but | never relaxed my hold
on GurloIf's throat. He was beaten al
most into iusensbility and secured.
Two weeks afterwards he was ar
raigned for the murder of Chief
Pelaufski and convicted on purely cir
cumstantial evidence. The twisted
ring was proved to be his property,
aud was in his possession on the night
of the commission of this crime. The
impression of the thumb of his right
hand exactly correspondent with the
wax impression taken from the dead
mans throat. He suffered death on
the scatfod.
The Baroness Pfesh and many MEM
bers of the circle were eXiled to the
gold mines of Kara. The ring with
which it had been proposed to murder
the Car was sent for by that diguitary.
He caused the poison to be injected in-
to the paw of hound, and the animal
died in great agony. Then the ruler