Reporter and farmer. [volume] (Webster, Day County, Dakota [S.D.]) 188?-1946, 1899-01-12

E THE BLACK TERROR )
6 4 Romance of Russia. =
X by JOHN X. LEYS. q
- q

by JOHN X. LEYS.

was my answer.
And you have discovered nothing
yourselff' she asked, with a wistful
look that made my heart bleed for her.
"Ahr' | exclaimed, you must not
blame me. How could ! hope to sue
ceed when the police, with all their
experience and knowledge of st. Pc
tersburg. can do nothing. ! waited to
see the chief of the secret police, but
he had nothing to tell me-
II thought, perhaps, you might have
received a hint from one of the
Princes friends as to where he might
probably be found"
/ replied that | had made a point of
seeing and questioning every man
whom the Prince had called on, or who
had visited him. since his return to st.
Petersburg. and that not II of them
had been able TO give me rs much as a
hint that could be called useful.
II am sure you have done all you
could" murmured the Princess, and
she sat for a short time absorbed in
thought, her head leaning on her hand,
while her elbow rested on n table that
stood close to her chair. She was not
weeping, though her eyes bore witness
that she had shed many tears. Meth
er Princess Irene nor | spoke, but /
stole a look ut her, and she answered
me with one swift glance.
II won't detain you longer, MI.
Heath" said the Princess Kropenski,
quietly. lifting her head. You will
need rest and food. Any details you
may have to give us will keep until
another time"
/ had no idea that the lady would
wish to see me again that day; but in
less than an hour a timid knock came
to the door of my sitting room. and
when / opened it, to my surprise, the
mistress Of the castle stood on the
threshold. 1t was the first time since
my arrival at the castle that l had
been honored in such a way.
/ FASTENED to place a chair for the
Princess, but she declined, at first, to
take it, saying that she only intended
TO stay for a minute or two. She stood
leaning against the table that stood in
the center of my room, as IL trying TO
find words. At length she spoke:
II am afraid, Mr.. Heath, that we
iAtAN Ia < StNttitu Z w,
you. my daughter and /. Certainly We
ought not to have forgotten to thank
You. as L do most sincerely. for your
great hindness-for all the trouble that
you have given yourself on our ac-
count. / can hardly understand how
l came to be so forgetful; but my
mind was full of my husband, and be-
sides-I could not speak freely in my
daughters presence. | could not say
all i wished to say. But 10Y that we
are alone, / will tell you that, il you
wish to make my gratitude a thousand
times greater than it is, you will tell
me the whole truth"
How was | to resist those gentle,
pleading eyes, that fearful voice? And
yet | knew well ii would be a cruel
kindness to speak the awful truth to
this weak. loving woman. Better she
should think her husband dead. than
know him to be in the power of the
remorseless enemies his own evil deeds
had raised up against him! But how
could she guess that / had not told her
the whole truth?
''The whole truth, Pihcess?" l STAN
mered.
YES, the whole truth. / insist upon
knowing it. We are alone. You may
speak freely"
But, indeed, l did II ~you-what l
told you was the truth"
Yes. but not the whole truth. You
need not be afraid. The Prince, / have
been told, did not live a regular life
when he was a young There are
temptations in a great capital like st.
Petersburg which a man.
toned to control his passions, may find
1t hard to resist. III you have heard
hints among my husbands friends that
he had formed any attachments"
MY dear Princcssm | burst ont. Il
assure you you are mistaken. II there
had been any ENHANCEMENT OF the kind
you hint ut. | could not fail to have
heard something of ii. But there was
nothing nothing If the kind. The
breath of scandal never uttered the
Princes name.''
The poors lady was so much over
come by her feelings that she sank
into the chair I had placed for her and
shed a few tears; but | could see that
they were tears OF joy rather than of
grief.
If anything had happened to the
Prince, his body would have been
found long ago. she said. once more
raising her eyes TO my face. But
they SAG it Is certain that he must
have left his home of his w accord.
Do you think the Car can have in
trusted him with some secret mis-.
siong"
| caught eagerly at the idea.
Nothing would be more likely!' L
eclaimed. This would explain the ret
icencc of the chief Of police. You
know he refused 10 see me for n long
time, and when at last he consented to
see me, he would tell me nothing
But < he vas going away ON n Sc
cret mission. why did he not send me
n word. n hint, that | might know
what had becomesof him?"
Perhaps the summons came sud
denly, and tire Prince thought he
would only be away for a few days.
He may have been detained unexpect-
edly. Any day. any hour, news may
come that he has returned to ST. Pc
tersburg."f
The Princess sighed, and / saw that,
though she tried To think that this
might be the explanation OF the v
terry, her heart was not. satisfied. But
there was no more that / could say.
She left me, II not comforted, yet re-
lieved to find that she had not been
deserted for another of her own sex.
But ! guessed that the Princess