Alma record. (Alma, Mich.) 1878-1928, 1907-10-30

the grand duke. Steinbock attempts TO
kiss the princess and she is rescued by
Warrington. Stelnbock disappears for
good. Max Scharfenstein. an old Ameri-
can friend OF Warrington's reaches Bar
scheit. Warrington tells him OF the prin-
cess. Scharfenstein shows Warrington
locket with a picture Of a woman in
side. IL was on his neck when he, as a
boy, was picked up and adopted by ms
foster father. whose name he was given.
He believes IL to be picture OF his
mother The grand duke announces TO
the princess that she is TO marry Dopple-
kim the following week.
CHAPTER VI.
The princess rose at dawn the fol-
lowing day. She routed out Hans. the
head groom, and told him to saddle
Artemis, the slim-limbed, seal-brown
filly which an English nobleman had
given her. Ten minutes later she was
I'm the saddle, and the heaviness on
her heart seemed to rise and vanish
like the opal mists on the bosom of
the motionless lake. A pale star
blinked at her, and the day, flushed
like the cheek of waking infant. be-
gan drowsily to creep over the rolling
mountains.
How silent all the city was! Only
here and there above the chimneys
rose a languid film of smoke. The
gates of the park shut behind with a
clang, and so for time she was alone
and free. She touched Artemis with a
spur, and the filly broke into a canter
toward the lake road. The girls nos
trils dilated. Every flower, the thou
sand resinous saps of the forest, the
earth itself, yielded up cool sweet
perfume that was to the mind what
a glass of wine Is to the blood, exhil-
aration.
She would never marry Doppelkinn
never. That horrible Steinbock,
She was glad, glad that she had struck
him, again and again, across his lying
eyes and evil mouth. She had believed
that she knew the world; ii was all
yet a mystery; the older she grew the
less she understood. Wasn't anybody
good? Was everybody to be distrust-
ed? Which way should she turn now?
The world was beautiful enough; it
was the people in It, Poor Betty! She
had her troubles, too: but somehow
she refused to confde them She acted
very much as If she were in love
She would never marry Doppelkinn
never.
But how should she escape-how?
On Wednesday night she would be
given her quarterly allowance of
thousand crowns. and on Thursday she
must act. Yes, yes, that was IL,
How simple, She would slip over into
Doppelkinn, where they never would
think to search for her. She knew a
place in which to hide. From Doppel-
kim she would go straight to Dresden
and seek the protection of her old gov
erness, who would hide her till the
duke came to his senses. If only she
had an independent fortune, how she
would snap her fingers at them all
She was distracted by the sound of
jangllng steel Artemis had cast a
shoe. How annoyingl 1t would take
ten minutes to reach old Bauer's
smithy, and ten minutes more to put
on shoe. She brought the filly down
to a walk.
II only she were Betty, free to do
what she pleased, TO go and come at
will! She wasn't born to be a prin-
cess; she wasn't commonplace
enough; she enjoyed life too well. All,
II only she might live and act like
those English cousins of hers with
whom she went to schools They could
ride man-fashion, hunt man-fashion.
shoot, play cards and bet at the races
man-fashion, and nobody threatened
them with Doppelkinns. They might
dance, too till the sun came into the
windows and the rouge on their faces
cracked. But shell q use the en-
phasis to illustrate the decided mods of
her pretty head) Why, every sweet
had to be stolenl
Presently the smithy came into view,
emerging from a cluster of poplars.
She rode up to the doors, dismounted
and entered. Old Bauer himself was
at the bellows, and the weird blue
light kissing up from the blown Goals
discovered another customer. She
turned and met HIS frank glance OF adj
miration. Qf she hadn't turned IL
his admiration hadn't been entirely
frankly Instantly she sent Bauer a
warning glance which that old worthy
seemed Immediately TO understand.
The stranger was tall, well-made,
handsome. with yellow hair, and eyes
as blue as the sky is when the west
wind blows.
He raised his cap, and the heart of
the girl fluttered. Wherever had this
seemly fellow come from?
Good morning" said the stranger
courteously. Il see that you have had
the same misfortune as myself
You have lost a shoe? Rather an
noying, when one doesn't want sin
gle break in the going" She uttered