Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-04-26


grasped Lady Mauds with both her small hands.
and looked up to her face with beseeching look that
could not be misunderstood. She wished Logotheti
to be informed of her captivity, and absolutely
confident that he would help her out of her trouble.
Lady Maud was less of that. however and said
so: but it clear that Baraka did not speak
a word of any language known to Lady Maud. who
no great linguist at best. Under these circum
stances it looked if there nothing to be done
for the poor girl who made all sorts of signs of dis
tress, when she that the Englishwoman
about to leave her, in sheer despair of being of any
Just then, however, the sergeant came to the
door, and informed the visitor that the girl had
aocomplce who spoke her language and knew some
English and that he would bring the man, if Mrs.
Foxwell wished to talk with him.
The result was that in less than half an hour Lady
Maud heard from Spiro most extraordinary tale of
which she did not believe single word. To her
plain English mind it all seemed perfectly mad at
first, and reflection she thought it outrageous
attempt to play. upon her credulity; whereas she
was thoroughly convinced that the girl had come to
grief in some way through Logotheti and had fol-
herself and her mpanion by stealing on the way,
Lady Maud's husband had been brute: but he
knew the East toerably well. having done some
military duty the Caucasus before he entered the
diplomatic service. His stories had chiefly illus
trated the profound duplcity of all Asiatics, and
she had not any reason to disbelieve them.
When Spro had nothing more to say, therefore.
she from the only seat there and shook her
head with air of utter incredulity, mingled with
the sort of plying contempt she felt for all lying in
general She could easily follow the case, by the
help of the sergeant and the police court reports.
and might be able to help Baraka hereafter when the
girl had served the sentence she would certainly get
for such important and Cleverly managed theft.
The poor girl impored and wept in vain; Lady Maud
could do nothing, and would not stay to be told any
more inane stories about ruby mines in Tartary.
She called the sergeant freed herself from Barakas
despairing hold on her hand and went out.
THOUGH it was hot, Lady Maud walked home.
She always walked when she in any distress
difficulty, for the motion helped her to think since
she young, strong and healthy, and only in her
twenty -nnth year. Just now, too. she was good
deal disturbed by what had happened. besides being
annoyed by the attempt that had been made to play
on her credulity in such gross way.
She was really fond of Margaret Dome, quite
apart from any admiration she felt for the prima
donna's genius, by which she might have been in
fluenced. In her opinion, the Tartar girls appeal
for help to reach Logotheti could mean only
If the girl had not been positively proved to be
thief, and had not attempted to impose upon her
by what seemed the most absurd falsehoods Lady
Maud would probably have taken her under her
own protection, as far the law would allow But
her special charity not for criminals or cheats
though she had sometimes helped and comforted
women accused of far worse crimes than stealing
In this instance she could do nothing, and she did
not wish to do anything. 1t fragrant
case and the law would deal with it in the right way
The girl had come to grief, no doubt by trusting
Logotheti blindly, and he had thrown her off
If she had sunk into the dismal depths of
behind the Virtue Curtain, most of her kind did,
Lady Maud would have gone in and tried to drag
her out, as she had saved Others. But Logotheti's
victim had taken different turn, had turned thief
and had got into the hands of justice. Her sin
would be on his head, no doubt: but no power could
avert from her the just consequences of misdeed
that had no necessary connection with her fall
Thus argued Lady Maud, while Baraka lay on her
pallet bed in her calico skirt and white cotton jacket
neither weeping nor despairng by any means.
otherwise yielding girlish weakness. but already
'evising means for carrying on her pursuit of the