Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1910-08-04

When the situation beanie more tnan
he could bear he blew out his brains
When Olga heard the news OK Ills
death she was not stricken BY gf'ei.
She cried out her Joy to a now cloud.
less sky, for he had justified the great
love that had been theirs ana would
be theirs to the end Of time.
From passive believer In the ooc-
trlnes of her father and bis circle she
became Mt once their most impassioned
exponent. She threw herself heart
and soul into the deliberations and
transactions Of the great red circle;
her father understood and yet wns
amazed.
Then he was put to death by the
class she had come to hate-one more
stone in the scpulcher Of her tender.
girlish ideals. When the time came
she Travelled to Graustark in response
10 the call Of the committee Of ten; she
came prepared to kill the creature she
would be asked to kill. Ard yet down
in her heart she was sore afraid.
She was there not TO Kill n man
crown old IN wrongs to her people. but
TO destroy the lfa of n gentle, limo
cent boy Of seven!
There We're times when her heart
Bhranli from the unholy deed she had
been selected to perform. But there
was never a thought of receding from
the bloody task set down for her.
On Saturday night, following the
last visit Of Truxton King to the
armorer. the committee Of ten met In
the underground room to hear the lat
est word from one who could not be
with them in person, but was always
there In spirit. If they were to believe
his most Jealous utterances. The Iron
Count aIarlanx, protested hater OF all
that was rich and noble. was the
power behind the committee OF ten.
, The assassination of the little prince
and the overthrow Of the royal fam
lily awaited his pleasure. He was the
man who would give the word.
Alas for the committee Of ten! The
widest fox iA,the history OF the world
was never so willy as the Iron Count.
Some day they were to find out that
/ he was using them to pull his choicest
chestnuts from the fire.
Tho committee was seated around
the long table in the sitting. breath
less room. the arlnorer at the head.
Those who came By way Of the sewer
had performed additions in the queer
toilet room that once had been secret
vault for the storing OF feudal plum
| der. What air there was came from
the narrow ventilatcr that burrowed
Its way up to the shop Of William
Spantz or through the chimney hole
in the ceiling. Olga Platanova sat far
down the side, a moody. inscrutable
| expression in her dark eyes. At
Spantz's right lounged Peter Brutus,
lawyer, formerly secretary to the
Iron Count and now his sole represent
ative among these people. He was a
dark faced, snaky eyed young man,
with mop of coarse black hair that
hung ominously low over his high, re.
ceding forehead.
julius Spantz. the armorer's son, a
. placid young man Of goodly physical
proportions. sat next to Brutus, while
down the table ranged others deep in
the consideration Of the worlds grnv-
est problems. One Of the women was
Nine. Drovnask. whose husband had
been sent to Siberia for life. and the
other Anna Cromer. rabid red lee
! turer, who had been driven from the
United States. together with her anna
Bile husband. an assassin Of some dis
tinction and many aliases. at present
foreman IN charge Of one Of the bridge
building crews on the new railroad.
Every man in the party. and there
were eight. for Olga was not a men,
Der Of the "ten," wore over the lower
part Of his face false black beard Of
huge dimensions--not that they were
averse to recognition among them
selves. but in the fear that by some
hook or crook Dnngloss or his agents
might be able to look in upon them
Brutus was speaking. "The man Is
spy. He has been brought here
from America to Tullis."
Eve shall continue to watch his
every movement" sud William Spantz
Time will tell. When we are posi-
tive that he is detective and that
he Is dangerous there is a way to stop
his operations"
"Dangloss suspects more than one Of
US" venturcd Brutus. his gaze travel
Ing toward Olga. There was lewd ad-
miratlon in that steady glance. but
we'll fool the old fox. The time will
soon be here for the blow that frees
Graustar!l from the yoke"
1t appeared in the course of his re-
marks that Marlanx had friends and
supporters IN all parts Of Crnustark.
Hundreds Of men In the hills, inc1ud.
ing honest shepherds and the dishonest
brigands who thrlved on them. coal
miners and wood stealers. hunters and
outlaws were ready to do HIS bidding
when the time was ripe. Moreover.
Mnrlnnx had been successful in his
design to fill the railway construction
crews with the rifrrnff Of all Europe,
all Of whom wcrc under the control Of
leaders who could sway them In any
movement provided 1t was against law
! ana order.
With II cunning that commands ad-
miration. the Iron Count deliberately
sanctioned the essassinat ton Of the lit
tho prince Of the reds. knowing that
the condemnation Of tho world would
fall upon them instead Of upon him
and that his own actions following the
reGicide would at once stamp him us
irrevocably opposed to anarchy and all
, Of its practices!
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