Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1905-01-18


men of the world, any sum might
name, would l mention figure, and
60 forth.
Il looked at his ugly face, his great
pendulous cheeks, the puffy mounds
of flesh under his beady eyes; and then
/ thought of NADIA, delicate, innocent,
childlike.
'In the end / told NJ Ionides eau
tiously that to my extreme regret the
matter could not be arranged.
He smiled and shrugged his fat
shoulders; but as he went out he re-
marked softly that in his experience
he had always found it possible to ar
range such matters.
"a few days later l had to leave
Paris On business. / was away about
as hours. When I returned l was in
formed that NADIA had disappeared.
Immediately l suspected the fat
Greek and decided to call upon the
gentleman when l had dined.
However, l had just finished the
meal in my own house in the Rue Bar
bet de Jcuy, and was slipping my coffee
alone, when the door of the room was
unceremoniously flung open.
Il sprang to my feet and confronted
wild, mad looking creature. Her
hair was disheveled, her clothes torn
and wet, her face distorted, her eyes
fixed and glazing. Nevertheless, it was
NADIA.
1.-THE girl was quite mad. At times
she would fall on the ground at my
feet moaning piteously, then in a fren-
Zy of hySteria she would rave at me,
and then again she would turn SILVER
ingly from me, and, crouching in q
corner, would sulk in silence. No con-
| nected story, hardly an ineligible SEN
tence, could I get from her. l sent for
assistance, and she was put to bed.
The good woman whose services I had
requisitioned came to me in about half
an hour, and her face was grave. She
told me that the girl had been terribly
ill-used. She was mass of bruises,
and across her sh oulders were the livid
marks made by the lash of a whip.
when l heard that l gave instruc-
lions that she should be properly
cared for, lit a cigar and walked across
VI.
81 found him alone in his magnifi
cent apartment, seated behind a rich
ly inlaid oak table. 1 thought 1 de-
tected amused expectation in his tiny
eyes, but there was certainly no shad
ow of fear in them. Evidently the fat
rascal Ielt secure behind his rampant
of gold. Evidently, too, his creatures
- L. i l.;
present violence, perhaps crouching be-
hind the heavy curtains which hung
at his side.
Indeed, as l drew near to the table
his great puffy right hand rested on it
within an inch of a button Of an cleo
trio bell
Il took all this in at glance, and be-
tween the door and the table, a matter
Of five PAGES, l had made up my mind
how l should kill this oily, SNUG faced
villain, for l knew that if l challenged
him he would rot fight.
81 apologized for the lateness of my
call. The fact is l said, laughing, I
am devoured by curiosity. You kept
your word and have got the girl; but
how the dickens did you manage it?"
He was taken aback little, think,
but he readily fell into my humor. He
laughed and chuckled over his achieve
| ment till his great sides shook. Then
he offered me money l would not lis
ten to this, assuring him that 1 con-
sidered myself fairly beaten, and con-
graduated him on his adroitness.
HE was delighted You are a man
after my own heart he declared. But
you need not congratulate me. The
~. The girl was fool Why, my dear
sir, she tried to kill me. Of course,
l had to give her a lesson, but it did
no good He raised his fat, beringed
hands in a gesture of disgust. You
know my little place on the Seine? She
was locked up in room high above the
river, but she jumped out of the win
dow and was drowned
From that time," went on Munro in
his queer, emotionless monotone, 81
| cultivated the acquaintance of M. Ion
ides, and We became inseparable Do
you know found him an amusing COM
panion?
Zone forenoon we were drinking
wine together in a famous cafe-he ate
and drank at all hours-and he hap
pened to turn his ponderous bulk away
so as to stare in comfort at a pretty
woman at a distant table. l took the
opportunity to drop little white pei
let into his glass.
"You know l have made study of
poisoIs. In this country there is a
prejudice against them nowadays, l
know, but it was not always so. The
| drug l used was an old Italian poison.
l believe originally it came from the
| east, but it owes its fame to the ex-
tensive use of it made by the Borgias
in Italy. Its popularity, which is also
its great virtue, is that it does not kill
its victim until the expiration of 80