Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1908-08-14

44cI HDtt4. W mere IF anu l met 10 NlS-
cuo- matter which is 10 secret to
yuur majesty. he asked for Miss Now
bray. And the message that came
down ! heari. II was that Miss Now
bray would he delighted To see his
royal hghness This left no doubt in
my mind that after giving out that she
would leave today he lady had re
manned IN krcnburg for the express
purpose OF u.cctiuG her dear friend the
8 prince. the handsumeSt and best dress
! cd young man in Europe-after your
majesty. OF course. And 1t was quite
natural for her TO hope that, as she was
supposed to be gone and you were fol
lowing her. this evenings escapade
/ would never be discovered
. please spare me your deductions,
| chancellor" said the emperor CURLY,
land pray understand now, If you
| have not understood before, that I am
with you in this expedition not to
prove you right, but wrong, and moth
ing you can say will convince me that
| the princes actress and Miss MOwbray
| are one. Ii We find woman at the
| hunting lodge 1t will not be the lady
We seek unless she has been kidnapped,
and as you Will Presently be obliged
to eat every word you've spoken the
fewer such bitter pills you provide for
yourself to swallow the better"
| Thus snubbed by the young man
| whom he had held in his arms, an i'm
| perious as we'll as an imperial infant,
the old statesman sought sanctuary in
silence But he had said that which
had been in his mind to say. and he
was satisfied. Meekness was not bis
meter, yet he could play the part Of
the faithful servant, humbly loyal
through injustice and misunderstand-
ing, and he played it now, because he
knew 1t to be the one effective role.
He sat beside the emperor with bowed
head and STOPPING shoulders which
suggested the weakness Of old age, his
hands clasped before him, and from
time to time he sighed patiently.
AS they glided under the dark arch
Of the Buchenwah Leopold spoke
| again.
You have led me to suppose that
our call at the hunting lodge will be a
| surprise visit to the prince. That is
the case, isn't it?"
Count Won Breitstein would have pre-
ferred that the question had not been
asked. He had intended to convey the
| impression which the emperor had re-
ceived, but he had not clothed it in
actual statement Luckily the prince
was as clever as he was good looking.
and he could be trusted as an actor;
otherwise the old man would have
been still more reluctant to commit
himself
"Were our visit expected we should
not be likely to find the lady," said he.
THE prince and are on such friendly
terms, your majesty, that he didn't
mind confessing he was to have pref
ty actress as his guest He also an
swesed few questions asked con-
corning her freely and frankly. for to
do SO he had to tell me only what the
world knows. How could he dream
that the flirtations or the visits Of
Miss Jenny Brett could be of the
slightest importance to the emperor Of
Rhaetia? Had he guessed, however.
that the entertainment he meant to
offer her might be interrupted natural
~ he would have taken some means to
protect her from annoyance"
This nights work will give him
cause to pick a private quarrel with
me II he likes" said the emperor, con-
WINGED Of the chancellor's good faith.
Il don't think he will choose, your
majesty. You are in a mood to be glad
II he did. fear. But, no; I need not
fear. You will always remember Rhae-
tia and put her interests before your
own wishes"
You weren't as confident Of that a
few hours ago."
Even then 1 knew that when the
real test should be applied your mai
esty's cool head would triumph over
the hot impulse Of youth. But, see;
we're passing through the village Of
1nseleden. fast asleep already, every
window dark. In six or seven minutes
at this speed we shall be at the lodge"
The emperor laughed shortly. add
another seven minutes to your first
seven and we shall be out Of the lodge
again. with Chancellor Won Breitstein
a sadder and a wiser man than he
went in"
MeeknesS was once more the part
for the old man to play, and, raising
his hands, palm upward. In a gesture
OF generous indulgence for his young
sovereign, he denied himself the pleas.
ure Of retort
The hunting lodge in the wood. now
the property Of the chancellor's &C.
commodating young friend, had until
recently belonged to a Rhaetian semi
royal prince who had been compelled
by lack of sympathy among his cred
ftors to sell something and had prompt
ly sold the thing he cared for least.
The present owner was keen sports
man and, though he came seldom to
the place. had spent a good deal Of
money In repairing the quaint rustic
house.
Years had passed since the emperor
had done more than pass the lodge
gates, and now the outlines Of the low
rambling structure looked strange to
him silhouetted against a spanxled
sky. He was glad of this, for he had
spent some Joyous days here as a boy.
and he wished to separate the old i'm.
pressions and the new.
Two tall chimneys stood up like the
pricked ears Of some alert crouchina
animal. The path to the ledge CLEANED
white and straight In the darkness a
parting In the rough black hair Of q
giant. The trees whispered gossip to
each other in the wind, and 1t seemed
to Leopold that they were evil things
telling lies and slandering his love.
He hated them and their rustling,
which once he had loved; he hated
the yellow eyes Of the animal with the
pricked ears. glittering eyes which
were lighted windows; he hated the
young prince who owned the place.
and he would have hated the chan.