The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-06-14

 figure clad in black velvet dressing gown.
 door opened noiselessy. Two men armed with rifles were disclosed stand ing at attention.
 Utterly cowed, the giant collapsed with abject fear of-death. Unable to use his strength his craven nature assumed conl- mand. He answered Rudolph's questions slavishly, striving to gain mercy.
 He confessed the murders and then confessed that his object in having the boy kidnapped had been to bring him up as a thief. By chance he had come into the hands of the banker at Nantes and had been brought up to honor and rectitude. After Duresne had escaped from the galleys he found that his son held an influential position in the bank. He had gone to him, disclosed to him that he was his father and had tried to make him rob the bank.
 The young man, mortified and heart broken, had refused. He had been unable to force himself to denounee his own father to the authorities; therefore he had fled from Nantes, leaving a letter to warn the banker of the conspiracy.
 If Rudolph had viewed the man with horror before, he looked on him now as a monster. When he set the trap, not knowing what it would catch, he had intended to let the criminal go free after getting what information he could. Now he realized that it would be wicked thing to turn him loose on society again.
 But the Grand Duke had an invincible loathing for society's remedy, the scaf- fold He wanted to see organized civili- zation reach a grade of intelligence where the treatment of criminals would consist in making them impotent to do harm, while still leaving them opportunity for repentance and reform.
 He came to a fearful resolution.
 At a signal a man entered whom Ru- dolph addressed as doctor. He listened to some whispered words. stepped back as if in fear. then recovered himself and bowed, saying: "As Your Highness wishes"
 May God forgive me if I do wrong" said Rudolph. "You have abused your great strength" continued he, turning to the trembling prisoner "I will paralyze that strength. You have made the weak tremble. You shall tremble before them. You have plunged your victims into night. I shall plunge you into night But I shall leave you your life for repentance When you go from here, punished, you shall go with enough to support you for the rest of your existence in retired spot. There may you repent and find forgiveness be- fore God ere you die.'
 Two servants advanced silently at a sign. Swiftly they gagged the School master at the doctors orders, and wheeled him away.
 Half an hour afterward he was led from the house, gnashng his teeth and sob ping. He was blind
 The Grand Duke at once set his agents on the track of Francois Germain. They traced him to lodgings in No. IT Rue de Temple; but they found that he had been followed there by suspicious characters. no doubt his fathers emissaries, and to escape them had fled again.
 They were unable to pick up the thread, but reported that a young seamstress, Mile. Rigollete, knew his address and re- fused to divulge 1t.
 Rudolph decided to take lodgings there as M Rudolph, fan painter. He had been there only few days before he found what mankind has always found and Is forever finding out anew to it's ever per- sonal surprise-that although the world seems so large the threads of human life cross and intercross at bewildering null titude of points.
 He had not occupied his room long be- fore he learned that a poor family, the Morels, living In the attic of the house. had been cruelty oppressed by the re- spected Jaques Ferrand, who had ruined the daughter as result of which the