Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-06-11

bearing to the Prince letters from Lord Valetort
and the rebel leader.
There are times in mans life, if the man be of
the dominant type when anger can be so over
whelming that he remains outwardly calm; with
Prince Melnikoff when he found how he had been
overreached.
Valletort's natural anxiety to meet his daughter,
and Lord CARING ham's ready acceptance of any
means which brought him to his sister, played into
the hands of the insurgents, Now they had four
important hostages instead of two, and Ivan was
slow to point out this fact
In his communication he asked the Prince to
the fortunes of their house by carrying out
the compact made by his father.
Once you married to Natushka, he wrote,
1.-The warning elements will be united. Had not
your father and mine been a dishonorabe man, this
feud would have been healed generation ago. Now
it must cease. have cured your madness by we'd
ding this English girl to the young officer who
fortunately appeared from Moscow. Do you prove
yourself capable of abandoning folly, and give Ma
tushka the position which hers by right and should
be hers by law if there law in Russa'
A postscript had the significant words: THE
affair of your servant, Livansk, will be attended
to-"
The Prince, whose terrible wrath was masked by
hardly perceptible palor turned to the Cossack
officer. Know you anything of the contents of
these letters?" he asked
No. excellency | feared to return without
the English gentlemen. When they sided with that
big peasant l helpless; but l demanded their
written statements. l trust that they have borne
out my words?"
Yes. l hold you blameless. How many hours
ride is this mine Distant"
About two and half hours, excellency.'
g Assemble every armed in the castle. Let
forage and food for three days be brought. Send
messenger to the camp for three Maxims and
couple of feld-guns. There must be no delay. You
understand"
The officer did grasp part of the Princes
intent, There to be fighting, and quickly. He
saluted and vanished.
Boris Melnkoff at the parting of the ways
From small beginnings. the domestic disturbances in
his life had grown suddenly into affair of national
importance-the cloud no bigger than a hand had
swollen into tempest-and he the Governor of
Province, saw his projects wrecked and his career
threatened by a number of ignorant rustcs led
by fanatic.
He had hesitated too long If Ermyntrude and
the others Though he refused to credit the absurd
strong) left the country fugitives the resultant
scandal would reach imperial circles. In Russia if
anywhere in the world, the eleventh commandment
holds sway-if is rich and nobly born, and
sufficiently far away from St. Petersburg, he
may do as he likes, but he must not be found out
1t was high time he drew the sword in earnest
Old ties must be roughly broken What sword
and rifle began, the hangman should complete.
1t well known to him that the mountain
stronghold of his ancestor was impregnable under
ordinary conditions Yet he smiled grimly when
his officers told him that he would disaster
attempt to penetrate the recesses of the mine with
out guides while artillery useless against a
precipice three hundred feet high
For large body of troops to approach the cliff
itself would require the labor of months. The
whole valley crammed with the thorn thickets
for hico tta Iictri