Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1910-02-24
CHAPTER XIV.
The Mysterious Korean Boy.

tHC myStCTIOuS NOTGdH boy.
This was the letter of the princess:
My dear Mr.. Hardy:
You nave no doubt heard, long ere this.
of our rescue from the Inflated Push
kin. Your own adventures on the river,
and your safe arrival in Stryetensk, are
all known to me, through the kindness
of the police. Believe me that 1 was dis
appointed to the verge of evaporation,
on learning that 1t was not through your
efforts that we were saved. Your hero
ism loses nothing in my eyes from the
fact, and you had already done enough
to establish yourself in my estimation as
a very gallant and noble gentleman. I
hardly know how to thank one so mod
est and self-effacing as yourself for all
that you have lone for me. I can only
repeat that I owe my life to you, and
that I am deeply and %eternally grateful.
If you are ever in Moscow, / shall ex-
pect you to call on me at my house on
the Boulevard Prechistenka-any one can
tell you where it is, / hope that your
affairs will bring you here before very
long, that we may talk over our eXtraor-
binary experiences together. In the
meantime, you must think of me as your
very since and grateful friend,
ELIZABETHA ROMANOVNA.
Hardy read this letter over half a
dozen times, and the oftener he read
it the more satisfaction it gave him.
There was a certain delicacy in the
expression Of her gratitude, without
any hint at reward other than the
offer of her friendship, which be-
tokened an entire appreciation of his
character and understanding of his
motives. He spent most of the day
thumbing his English-Russian die
tionary and composing his reply,
which, being in a language in which
he was as yet a novice, was somewhat
stilted. This, in effect, is what he at
last worked out:
Most Noble Lady:
l beg that you will no longer give a
thought to the part which I played upon
the Amur. To be of service to so charm
ing and exalted a lady as yourself is a
happiness and distinction which calls for
no further reward. If I am, in addition,
to be honored by your friendship, my
recompense is far greater than my
desert. Very cordially yours,
FREDERICK CORTLAND HARDY.
Baruch, when he came in the even
ing, cast a critical eye over the letter
and pronounced it excellent.
Even as it is he declared, "it
would be possible for the lady to UNI
derstand it, and she would not laugh.
Nevertheless, there r two or three
little alterations to be made-you
would scarcely call them corrections"
"You are as polite as a ~Frenchman,
iMordecai. Your two or three little
alterations have amounted to rewrit-
ing the whole thing. Now we will adj
dress the envelope. 1 think you had
better do that, SO as to get it exactly
right. 1t goes to her highness, the
Princess Elizabetha Romanovna, Pre-
echistenka street, Moscow"
At the mention OF this name,
lBaruch's face grew livid, and his eyes
glowed with sudden hate.
'Romanovna!" he Kissed, "of the
Romanoffs of Moscow? | have good
cause to hate and detest that name.
That accursed house was most violent
in the prosecutions that resulted In
the expulsion of the Jews from Mos
cow. They used all their influence
to bring this about, BECAUSE they COW
ieted certain property owned by the
Hebrews, which the latter refused to
sell. A whole peaceful and industri-
Gus community vas uprooted In a sin.
gle night, driven from their homes
and their vocations, ordered to leave
with their wives and families, their
sick and their old, and to make shift
as best they could, in the accursed
Pale. MY father, the trusted and hon
'ored cashier Of a bank, with a salary
tof $500 a year, a position to which he
had risen through 20 years Of faithful
service, was kicked out like a dog,
and told to go. You cannot realize
what suffering all this led to. My fa-
Their, reduced to mental tasks to sup
port his family, died in six months OF
grief. / have small love for the blood
Of Romanoff. They are all insolent
tyrants and ~oppressors."
my dear Mordecai,p replied Hardy,
believe me, your tale Of wrong fills
me with pity and Indignation, and
do not wonder at the strength Of your
feelings. / have small doubt that all
you say Of the Romanoffs Is true, with
one exception, You must except the
princess, who is a sweet and noble
lady, with as tender and as generous
a heart as ever beat in q woman'a
breast"
The Jew made no reply, but quietly