Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1909-11-28
CHAPTER ".
Felix Surmounts . Difficulty

agely impatient the other moody and preOccu-
pied sprawled listlessly in Marulitch's fiat in
the Avenue Victor Hugo, and, though it was
evening, each was reading The Matln. That
is to say, each pretending to read; but
their thoughts did not follow the printed words.
Alexis III. had reigned only ten days, yet the
most enterprising of the Paris newspapers was
already making feature of a column headed,
Our dear Alec, day by day." 1t ought to have
been an interesting record to these two men, yet
it evidently was not etenth so humorous as
1.-The Matn" believed, since there was deep
frown on both faces
At last Marulitch flung the paper aside with an
angry snarl. "Ah, bah J" he growled. May the
demons fly away with our dear Alec and his
doings day by day! A nice pair of fools we made
Of ourselves when we pitchforked him INTO
power!"
Patience, nv friend, patiencel' said the
Greek EVERYTHING comes to him who waits,
and Alec will fall far when his luck changes. 1t
NAV be Tomorrow or next week. but he must
experience reverse He IS like gambler at
Monte Carlo who stakes max1mums Just De-
cause the table is running favoraby." /,
"Psh!" snorted Maruitch. What else
would a gambler do?"
What indeed?" agreed Beliani, though a
far less alert intelligence than Marulitch's
might have known that he was annoyed. The
pink and white Julius, whom his friends had
nicknamed "le beau Comte,' did not fail to
catch the contemptuous note OF that purred
answer. He sprang up from his chair, ransacked
q
those priceless cigarettes, the produce of a sin
gle southwestern hillside at Salonica, that are
manufactured solely for the Sultan of Tur-
key: ;,
laughed ed harshly. why should we QUARREL
We were idiots Let us, then, admit it,
Were WEI"
Can YOU deny it? We arranged the first
move beautifully. With Theodore out of the
way"
The Greek turned his head swiftly and
looked at the door Marulitch lowered his
voice.
mo need to refer to Theodore. you will say?
How can one avoid it? His death was the cor
Gle of mine had become King, the path would
be clear for the final coup before the year was
out. And now where are we! What purpose
do we serve by self delusion? Each days news
paper bears witness to our foily Alec carries
the Assembly by storm; Alec captures a
would-be assassin; Alec aouts Austria; Alec
disbands the Seventh Regiment and hands its
officers to the police; Alec attends the funeral
of Theodore and Helena and takes over their
servants and debts; Alec tells the Sultan that
he exists in Europe only on sufferance; Alec
draws map of kosnovia and decorates 1t with
| railways; Alec bathes in the Danube at SIX,
breakfasts at seven, attends christening at
eight, wedding at nlne review at ten, a me-
mortal service in the cathedral at eleven,
lunches at twelve, receives provincial deputa
tons at one inaugurates the DelgratZ Polo
| Club at two and the Danubian Rowing Club at
three-Alec round the clock, and all Europe
agape to know what next he will be up to-and
YOU and l here, unknown, unrecorded-you
and l. the brains, the eyes, the organizers
| of the whole affair! Oh it makes sick when
| I remember how l stood like an idiot in old
Delgrado's fiat and let the jump in and
snatch from the fathers hands the scepter
| had purchased SO dearlv!"
THE Greek rose languidly, strolled to the
door, and threw it open. A bow stood
in the lobby. and it was easy to see by his limo
cent face that his presence there was inspired
| by no more sinister motive than to deliver
| newspaper
Beiani took it, closed the door, listened
| moment, and unfolded the damp sheet. He
glanced at its foreign news. . lie Soir gives
prominence to a rumor that King Alexis will
marry Montenegro Princess" he murmured
composedly.
"Mirabel, of course!"
"She is unnamed
That's it. l know know! He will marry
Mirabel. By Heaven if he does, Ill shoot him
mvsef!'
THE trial of the regicides is fixed for June
l." went on Beliani, wholly unmoved by Maru-
litch's vehemence Now, the vital question
| is, How far can Stampoff be relied on?"
| "How does reliance Stampoff con-
Germ Mirabel9''
| Il am not thinking of Mirabel. but of julius
and Constantine. If Stampoff tells young
Bayard everything, Delgratz is no place for
/ a,,1 NV xratar