The Portland daily press., 1898-04-08
COPYRIGHTED, 1897, BY WILLIAM lie ouEUx-

wears ago; but you have SO altered that
/ scarcely knew you. +" ~
81 was girl then, "she smiled. NOW
feel quite woman. Since l saw you
last l have sustained bereavement. MY
poor father rs, alas! dead"
"Deadn' echoed sympathetically.
Eyes" she sighed, with bitterness.
"He died of broken heart. On the day
we escaped from Petersburg my mother,
who was perfectly innocent, had unfortu-
nately fallen into the drag net OF the
police She was imprisoned for SIX
months, then sent to Siberia, but died OF
cold and fever on the road there. her
tragic end proved such a terriblea blow to
my father that even here in safety he
grew lnorose, his health, already broken
by long years OF imprisonment, fa1led,
and six months ago he died, and was
left alone.
"Your life is indeed q sad one. made.
moiselle,'' | said, for l we'll remembered
tho touching story she related when,
mere girl, pale-faced and agitated, she
came to implore the protection OF the
British Government on behalf of her aged
father. She had, with tears i'll her dark
brilliant eyes, told me a narrative or sys-
tematic persecution almost incredible;
how her father, d wealthy merchant, nav
ing fallen into disfavor with General
Sekerzhinski. the chief of Secret Police In
+ eleTSDur0, UDitU OlliOidA lAtsA ~ ~
cunning1y- devised plan to entrap hlm
into a political conspiracy. She ADMIT
ted that.at one time, during the Terror
that eliminated in the murder OF the
Gar Alexander H., her father had par
ticipated in ths revolutionary movement,
and had spent eight years of solitary con-
tinenent in the Peter Paul Fortress. Al
though be had long ago renounced all
revolutionary ideas it was of course easy
enough for an all-powerful official like
Sekerzhinski to discover evidence against
him. The "agents provocatours were
quickly at work, with the result thai Or
ders were in few days issued fer the
arrest of Korolenko for the murder OF q
woman in n low quarter or the city, ana
for the apprehension OF his wife and their
pretty daughter, Sonia, as accompllces.
The reason of this allegation was plain.
If the General had only alleged political
offence his victims could not be extradlteo
from foreign country, while for an ordl-
nary crime they could. Korolenko s wife
was arrested while shopping in he Nevsk1
Prospekt, but Sonia and her father, Tor
tunately, obtained word from friend OF
theirs in the secret service, and fed, sue
ceediny in escaping from st. Petersburg
into Finland. and nfter weeks of starva-
tion and terrible hardships found them
selves in Stockholm, whence they went to
Hamburg. Here they narrowly escaped
arrest by the German police, but succeed
ed in getting to Vienna, and thence to
Venice, Marseilles, Madrid, and after
wards to Paris, where they had heard a
large colony of Russian refugees resided.
After two days, however, owing to fact
they asscertained, they fled to London.
Here they believed themselves safe until
one day they received another telegram
fron their friend in .the secret police,
warning them that request for.thelr ex-
tradition was ON its way to London. 1t
was then, in desperation. that Sonia came
to crave an interview with Lord Warn
ham, and I had seen her on his behalf.
Her story of wrong, hatred, and heart
less persecution have only here briefly
outlined, but during the half-hour she
had sat in the waiting-room at the For
eign Office relating it to HE in detail she
spoke with such earnestness that was
Convinced of the truth, and resolved to
l would do all that lay in my power. she
had at last dried her tears, and gTasping
my hand as she went out, had said:
| 81 shall never forget your Kindness to
us, m'sieur. We are alone, friendless,
| forsaken, bounded down by a man who
has sworn to ruin my father and his
| family. That you can protect us, am
corfident. You can save us from the
mines-nay, you can gave our lives. ii you
will I appeal to you, our only friend.
Assist us, and you will ever receive the
thanks from one who is today on the
verge of despair and uicide. :"
| I promised, and she went away hopeful
and confident. But to secure their i'm
munity from arrest WAS by no means an
easy matter. Fortunately. however,
was on excellent terms with tho Secretary
of the Russian Embassy, and having OBJ
tanned the sanction of Lord Warnham,
who was always chivalrous where yer
| women We're concerned, treating them
with charming old-world courtesy, l
set about attaining my object, securing
| it at last, but being compelled in turn to
promise my friend assistance in an i'm
portant matter of diplomacy. The war
rant was next day returned to Russia I'M
| executed, and Sonia and her father were
| free.
From her had received a brief note in
response to my intimation OF the with
drawal of the warrant, apparently hastily
written, but thanking me- and declaring
| that they both owed their future happi-
ness to my exertlons For few days
reflected upon the strange drama Of real
| life that had been enacted, then the cir.
cumstances passed entirely out of my
mind.
Now, as she sat before me, older and
vet more beautiful. gazing into my eyes
with that intense, wistful lnok that had
attracted me when drst we hal met, all
her tragic story came back to me WILDLY,
and was not surprised at hor deep sorrow
at the loss OF her father she had loved so
dearly.
$50 you desire my assistance" ex-
clair, ed presently, after she bad been ex-
planning how lonely che was in eXileEfrom
her friends.
eyes, she said slowly, with emphasis.
esBut first tell me one thing. You are
acquainted With woman named Ella
Laing Do you know her past?'
Go be Continued.