The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1905-08-31
TIE EVENING STOR
varenlxa Advantageous.

One morning several years ago two |
young men-TnToytsuin and Dronskf-l
were sitting in Dronskis room in War |
saw, Russian Poland. Matching revolu-
ton Suddenly there were footsteps
on the stairs and in another moment |
the door was thrown open and the po- |
lice rushed in. Turovtsuin nodded to-
ward Dronslxi and the police arrested
him. As they were taking him away |
he Feproaehed Turoytsuin with having |
betrayed him, waeFeupon the latter re- |
marked coolly that there was no be- |
trayaI, since he was simply doing his |
duty as an officer in the secret service. |
Dronski was sent to Siberia, where, |
after intolerable sufferings, he died OF
prison consumption.
Several years after Dronsk1's arrest, |
While TuroVtSuin, VINO was now clieI
of police in Russian Poland, was ridlng
in his carriage in Warsaw, man nfeQ
a shot at him. At the moment girl
who stood by the would be assassin
knocked up the weapon and saved |
lTuroytsuin's life. The man who fired
the shot was spirited away by accom-
plices so quickly that the police dla
not even get on his track: The chieI
saw the whole affair and directed lhat
! the girl be sent to his office. When
she arrived there he said to her:
"You are a brave girl to have IN
terfered with an assassin, and owe
you my life. What can do to repay
you %
please, exceIlency, 7 would like to
serve the government
/ .sIn what capacify?
'sIn the secret service. have many
friends among the revolutIonists, VINO
consider me one of them. l could
learn much of their plans and report
them to you
you shall have every opportunity,
and for every ruble : you aa !. earn VIII
| The girl. who gave her name as
Varenka Arkadyevna, from that mo-
ment enrolled in the secret police,
often bringing in information of the
revolutionists. There was a singular
| personality about her that fascinated
Turovtsuin. At times he thought she
loved him, and at times sne acted as
| if she hated him. There are few men
who will not be caught by such un-
certainty. Turovtsuin fell desperately
in love with her.
Varenka's bravery, too, was fasc1-
mating to her lover. She told him
that her real status was known to
some of her revolutionary friends, put
she did not fear to go where they
were though always armed TO the
teeth. One thing at last began s7g AM, 70
often led the police to capture some
reyoIutionist, when the force arrived
the bird had always flown
! Varenka lived in first class apart
government One day the chief APP
peared at her apartments with trouble
! written on his face.
| fsSweetheart" he said, 81 have no.
tieed that we never gain anything from
/ the information you bring US. every
meeting of revolutioniSts you nave toio
us of has for some reason failed TO
| take place. Besides, certain persons
whom we have intended to arrest nave
lin some unaccountable way been warn
ed and have escaped US. And now
comes one of our women in the secret
service bureau who accuses you of be-
ling a revolutionist, of giving them all
our secrets" -
ssWho is my accuser ?"
stKatia PeStsoff."
| varenka grew a shade winter. Go
ing to another room she took a pistol o.
from a drawer. put It IN her BOSOM ana
returning to her lover said:
| At may as well make a confession,
for Katia can prove her accusation
''Great heavnsr' exclaimed Iufov9-
suin. catching at the back of chair
"Do You remember Varenka went
on, your bosom friend Dronski ~
| ''I do gasped Turovtsuln
81 am his sister. I was far from him
at the time you betrayed and arrested
him. but I determined that some day
| [ would avenge him. While he sunef-
ed the tortures you heaped upon MN
my resolution grew stronger. Wheh
| he died I determined to execute a plan
/ I had formed. The man who hred at
you was my accomplice, ana lhefe
were twenty reVOlution1StS Standlng Dy
to take him to safety. I knocked up
his pistol on purpose to win your con-
fidence. Having won from you all L
can for my people, the moment OF my
/ supreme vengeance has come"
People living on the floor below heard
a shot and came running up the stairs
to see what was the matter. Varenka
stood at her door and asked them If
/ they had not heard a shot. They re-
piled that they had and that the SOUND
seemed to have come from that floor,
where,lpon she said that it sounded to
| her TO have come from the rear apart
meuts. She spoke as calmly as II she
| had been used to having shots hred
near her all her life. The excited peo-
nile went to the rear apartments TO
| learn that nothing unusual had occurred
there The occupaL is were sure that
| the shot had come from the front rooms.
| puzzled. the crowd went to Varenka's
apartments and knocked. There was no
| answer to their summons. They con-
| ferred. and, all agreeing that something
muat be wrong, they decided to burst
omen the door. They did so, and stretch :.
ed on the floor Turovtsuin, the chief OF
police lay dead
| Varenl5a Arkadyevna was never seen
| a oain in any part of Russia, though the
DoIice searched the empire for her HUI
MOI, saws that she is living in England
| an the large sums paid her by the ponce
| for her secret service work.
RUSSELL THORNE.
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GLOBE SIGHTS