The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1903-07-18
In the BAD Counts Castle.

Sir William Magnay's story Count
Zarka" a.. G. Page & Co., BOSTON,, is
noticeable for its stately manner as well
as for its startling revelations. II is bound
in bright red, with three white swords
running down the back and nine white
swords on the front cover-twelve swords
to begin with and without opening the book.
The frontspiece is a picture Of duel with
swords fought by the Fraulein Phiiippa
Carlstein and the FIAulein Royda d'lvady
in the forbidding armory cut in the solid
rock beneath the Counts castle in Hun
gary. The picture shows that the ladies',
while engaged in desperate combat, at
tended to their skirts carefully in the grace
full present day street manner. Having
discarded their shirt waists they were not
dressed in the semblance of halos Fluted
petticoats and high-heeled shoes,
The reader, IL ne has good instincts and
knows his business, will detest the Count.
The Count was all wrong. His eyes were
bad. His smile was wotish, He had
become rich suddenly He had dealings
with the Russians. His castle was ram
bling and provided with disappearing
windowsa mighty queer arrangement.
We mistrusted him from the first; and
should think little OF our powers of dis
oernment if we had done anything else
As soon as We heard of the mysterious
disappearance Of Prince Roel of Raps-
berg we knew who had got him. We were
glad when Gersdorff the Chancellor, sent
his keen young secretary, HoraZ Galabn
to look after the Count and to investigate
his peculiar castle. When the secretary's
trusty young friend, Lieut., Osbert Won
Tressep of the Second Cavalry, whose
uncle was no other than StaPtssecretar
Won Tressen, climbed n tree to look in at
a lofty window Of the castle, and had no
sooner climbed it than the window vanished,
leaving blank expanse of grim unbroken
wall, We were dreadfully disappointed,
but we were quite sure as to the where
abouts Of the Prince.
The reader will hold his breath a little
later when the young secretary and the
Young Lieutenant climb up on the castle
roof and look down through a skylight
into the room in which the Prince is con-
fined They were not sure then that it
was the Prince, but we were. In the room,
at a table on which stood lamp, sat man
reading His head was bent over the book
and ,he seemed to be wearing some curious
kind of cap, but from his position it was
not possible to see his face. So he sat almost
motionless as the two men by turns
observed him, reading steadily, with one
elbow resting on the table, his head on his
hand, while with the other he occasionally
turned the leaf For a long time they
watched him, half fascinated, for. al art
from his surroundings, there was a sug-
gestion of strangeness and mystery about
thefigure. Suddenly he closed the book and
pushed il from him, then threw up his hands,
stretching back in al attitude Of weariness
As he did 40 Galabin, who was at that mo-
merit In possession Of the sry OLE started
back in nmazement. Won Tressen in Won
der looked through, and saw the cause Of
action. The man below in throwing up
his head disclosed a strange sight. For
the face which the watchers had expected
to see was covered by a mask, q white mask.
bearing some resemblance to a CHASTITY
human face, and fastened on by the curio us
headpece which had puzzled them"
The Prince was another case Of the man
In the iron mask The more we hate the
Count as we think OF It. The man lay
back In his chair with limbs stretched out
and the hideous face upturned for several