New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1905-03-26

wears economy in Russia, joined to the
bonus he had earned by passing the highest
possible language test, made the second
easy for such limited time. Yet, if
his heart was ahame, none knew of the
consuming fire. By neither word nor
look did he seek to win his way with the
girl. She, needless of consequences,
knowing only that she liked him, en-
couraged his presence on every possible
occasion, and caused him to be hated
by several people who did not even know
his name.
The brother and sister were curiously
alike. Their high-lineaged father was a
nonentity 1t had done the ValletOrt
strain a vast amount of good to be en-
1ivened by the new blood of the States,
while the Valletort fortunes were bene-
flied equally by an ineXhaustible supply
of American dollars Hence these two
Young aristocrats were free to think and,
practically, to act as they chose. The
girl especially, being only nineteen, lived
in a dreamland of her own. Secure in
rank and wealth, beautiful, accomplished
in the arts as taught by governesses and
masters, she now was vaguely compre-
hending the vastness of the world and
the position to which she was born.
| Any idea of love, of matrimony, had
not entered her pretty head. Perhaps
she did not stop to analyze her feelings
toward Frank Armstrong, with his sub
altern's pay and his hundred a year of
private means. The pity of it was that
they came together so early in that event
full month of furlough.
The days passed. Armstrong, musing
on the unhappiness of life because he
saw no possible chance of meeting
Ermyntrude in the next week (go to
Ascot on the off-Chance of an encounter
on the lawn he absolutely refused to do),
was electrified by receiving a nicely
worded invitation from the Countess of
Valletort to join her party at The Cedars.
| Go to Ascot, indeedi
So much for good resolutions. He
was there by the earliest train. Between
Carlingham and his sister the affair was
we'll managed. There were thirty guests
among them another Russian prince,
but this time not a Socialist lecturer
Frank, who saw him clearly for the first
time at dinner, knew in an instant that
the big, blond man had fascination for
Lady Ermyntrude, who sat beside him.
They CHANGED to be at the same table,
for the diners sat in fives and skies about
the spacious room.
Lord Valletort was there, and two
women well-known in society, both of
them secretly specializing as to the iden-
tity of the bronzed young officer They
knew his name of course, but that was
ALL and this lack of other index, at an
Ascot house-party, raised question, The
host, never saying much, cast from his
shoulders the onus of conversation with
the appearance of the soup.
Prince Melnikoff," he said, "my-er
-er-young friend Armstrong knows
your-er-country we'll.
'Oh, indeed?" said his highness, laugh
ing so that his strong, white teeth glist-
ened. Then he has the advantage
of me-"
Eth, what's that?" asked Valletort,
thinking his hearing had betrayed him,
for Prince Boris Melnikoff was a name,
parsonage, brilliant star of society
Il mean it, l assure you," said the
other. "Of course everybody knows St.
Petersburg, and | can find my way about