Evening star., 1898-09-17

| a moment with scared and blanched face
ABOUT her. Then the instinct of woman for
| the help and sympathy of man in the hour
| OF her extremity arose at once within her
She ran from the room. making her way to-
ward her brothers apartments near.
! Dick had just finished his dejeuner and
lay back luxuriously in an armchair. She
handed him the telegram. He bent with
knit brows over it. Then he said:
| 1t seems strange thing too. 1t is quite
possible, you know, that the thing may BE-
hoax"
| mo, no.
Il don't say it is. But such things have
| been 1t is quite possible"
| don't know. dear. We shall have to
get special train, 1 suppose. 1t may take
an hour or two, or three
you?" 'f' WIN
Send a telegram at once Then the
| train"
Gathering strength, she raised her head
went to an escritoire and wrote with fiut-
| ter1ng hand the message which Nansittart
| had showed to Folliet
| DICK took the telegram and summoned
| MS valet Then he dispatched another
| messenger for Honorine and bore Evelyn
| to couch. BY the time the queen arrived
| he had already set out
| At 4:30 Dick and EVELYN steamed away
| from the Care de lEst
| Ihey continued their journey safely until
| near O'Clock. Night was then falling. and
4, they had reached the little station of
| Wines. mere village. Here the railway
( ohicials had arranged to change engines
| and Harland in order to rest his sister
| and procure her food somewhat more sus-
| tanning than any they could carry, settled
| by telegram to break the journey and rest
| an hour in the local inn.
| The station consists of a mere platform
| without any building. Ten minutes walk
| from it is the inn, bearing on its ancient
sign in faded red letters the words, lie
| Dragon Dormant" 1t is of large size
rambling and decayed.
| In a quarter of an hour a man came run
ming from the train. asking when the tray
elers might be expected to continue their
| Journey. The landlord took the message
| up TO the parlor, and, not finding Dick
| there, proceeded to the bedroom There on
| his knees he saw him, with arms spread
| out over the coverlet. But OF Evelyn there
| was no sign.
| Then the alarm was raised and spread
| through the village. By the time the
apothecary had arrived. it was discovered
that the other two guests of the inn had
| also mysteriously disappeared.
| nat was now to be done? Dick remained
| unconscious. The apothecary. at his wits
end, hearing that the gentleman had come
IN special train,advised that he should be
put to bed in his saloon carriage, and taken
back to the nearest large town. So he was
carried on stretcher to the train.
| The train men, on their side, We're of
| opinion that their right destination now
| was Paris; and when, after a time. Dick
| opened his eyes, he was asked whether
| they should not return to their starting
point. He moaned a dull and half-uncon-
|
| in the morning was borne up the great
staircase of the Tuileries palace.
About the next morning Folliet arrived
at the Care de / Est.
He had telegraphed that his carriage
should await him at the station; he had
some rapid travelling to do that day. A. he
leaped from the train ne to the tee-
graph office and sent a message to the
management directing the retention of a
special at his disposal; then another to
Nansittart, containing this falsehood: Il
find already that much is in our favor
Absolutely no ground for despair Please
hope. Then he pelted himself into his car
rage ana went at galop across the
breadth of Paris-toward the Tuileries.
In half an hour he was sitting by the
side of Dick Harland's bed holding and
patting Dicks hand. But Dicks hand
was not easily held that morning. Hon
orlne's fingers were seeking to lull and
soothe the flushed forehead, but Dick did
not like that either. He was tossing with
fever, and ne was delirious. To Follet's
questions he answered with mere raw
ings.
Not much good to be got out of you
muttered Foliet.
But he got from the queen a good de-
scription of Dicks wound, and decided
that it had been inflicted with the butt
end Of a revolver, and he got this further
light from Dick himself-the oft-repeated
name cf Vines.
Wines, your majesty" he said, lis
where the event happened, 1 suppose?''
Yes, monsieur. The addresses of the
train officials are here, and their detailed
statements also, sent from the prefecture
All that could be done has already been
done in the way of telegraphing to the
police ell over the country
But Folliet wished to see the train Of
f1cials himself. They were off duty and
at home. This was his next Journey
From them he got no guidance except the
details as to the length of time they waited
and the like. He galloped then to the
prefecture. had some hurried interviews,
wrote some hurried Instructions, re-enter-
ed his carriage and started back for the
Care de TEst.
But half way he looked at his watch and
pulled the check rein. He was not far
from rue Brevet. He told the driver to
hasten to the rue Brevet.
At the end of the street he got out and
walked to Ne. 6. He had there a mes
sage to deliver and some instinct told him
that in coming here he was very far from
losing time. OF the concierge he inquired
If NJ. Armand DupreZ was at home.
No-Armand had flown to higher atmos-
pheres. Armand had migrated to No.
147 Boulevard Malesherbes. Armand was
rich. Armand was luxuriating in the for
tune which Marie derived from her uncle's
will Armand was living in a grand
house, If you please, with a fashionable
encourage. Armand had a silk hat, and
Armand was wearing a frock coat and
patent leather boots and an orchid.
No. 147 Boulevard Malesherhes! Folliet
hesitated Could ne go? Had he time?
He decided quickly. 1t was not far-he
would lose only few minutes.
Armand occupied a troisieme, the whole
of it, with half dozen unnecessary apart
ments, all splendidly furnished. When
Folliet was shown in he could hardly be-
lieve his eyes
"Ah, Monsieur DupreZ," he said holding
out his hand. You have seen me, yet, L
fancy you do not know me. l am NJ.
Folliet. the prefect of police. 1 have only
a few minutes before setting out from
Paris. Yet, you see, come to you.
have a message for you from Mr.. Vansit-
tart"
Pray be seated, monsieur" said Armand.
mo. This Is what 1 have to tell you, and
it is soon said Mr.. Vansittart spoke to
me of you at a time when he was in
great hurry, and his words were not many.
You have invented something?
quite so, monsieur
What is it?
"Oh, it is nothing; something for killing
Germans"
Mr.. Vansittart certainly does not think
it nothing, sir. Pray tell me what it is. L
nave reasons for asking"
I'm its present state, said Armand, 1t
is a contrivance for eXpelling from a gener
ator quantity of hydrogen every five min
utes sufficient to cover the space occupied
by about LOCO men. The hydrogen is mixed