Macon beacon. [volume] (Macon, Miss.) 1859-1995, 1911-03-10

the old houses OF the French quarter.
Presently they entered the short side
street which l myself had seen for
the first time the previous night. J
pretended to busy myself with my
pipe. as they turned in at the very
gate which | knew. and knocked az
the door which | had entered with my
mysterious companion!
The door opened without delay;
they both entered.
So, then. Helena Won Ritz had other
| visitors. England and Mexico were in
deed comforting here in Montreal.
There were matters going forward
here in which my government was
concerned.
At the moment nothing better &C.
Cured to me than to return to my
room and wait for a time. 1t would
serve no purpose for me to disclose
myself, either in or out of the apart
ments of the baroness, and il would
| not aid me to be seer idling abOut the
neighbOrhoOd in a city where there
was so much reason to suppose straD-
| gers were watched. | resolved to
wait until the neXt morning, and to
AXE my friend Won R"ittenhOfen with
me. He need not know all that l
knew. yet in case OF any accident to
myself or any sudden contretemps. he
! would serve both as a witness and as
an excuse for disarming any sus-
picion which might be entertained re-
garding myself.
The next day he readily enough fell
in with my suggestion of a morning
stroll. and again we sailed forth, at
about nine o'clock having by that
time finished a d%ejeuner a la four
Ghetto with Jacques BertillOn, which
to my mind compared U~nfaVOrably
with n certain other | had shared.
A sense of uneasiness began to Op-
press me, l knew not why, before !
lac gone half way down the little
street rom the corner where we
turned. 1t was gloomy and dismal
enough at the best, and on this morn
ing an unusual apathy seemed to sit
upon it, for few of the shutters we're
down, although the hour was now mid
morning. Something said to me that IL
would be as we'll for me to turn back.
l might as we'll have don SO. We
passed up the little walk, and I
raised the knocker at the door; but
even as it sounded l knew what would
happen. There came to me that
curious feeling which one experiences
when one knocks at the door of a
house which lacks human occupancy.
Even more strongly l had that strange
feeling now, because this sound was
not merely that of unoccupied rooms
1T came from rooms empty and echo
ing!
1 tried the door. 1t was not
locked. l flung it wide, and stepped
within. At first | could not adjust my
eyes to h dimneSs. Absolute si-
lence reigned. | pushed open a shut
ter and looked about me. The rooms
were not only unoccupied, but unfur-
nished! The walls and floors were ut
terly bare. Not a sign of human oc-
cupancy existed. I FASTENED out to
the little walk, and looked up and
down the street, to satisfy myself that
l had made no mistake. No, this was
the number-this was the place.
Followed by my wondering COM
p~aniOn, l made such inquiry as I
could in the little ~neighborhood. I
could learn nothing.
Sir" said l to my friend, at last; Il
do not understand it. / have pursued,
but it seems the butterfly has flown
So, both silent. myself mOrOsely go.
we turned and made our way back
across the town.
Half an hOur later we were on the
docks at the river front, where we
could look out over the varied ship
ping which lay there. My scientific
friend counted one vessel after an
other, and at last pointed to a gap
in the line.
yesterday l wass here" he said,
and | counted all the ships and their
names. The steamer Modesto she lay
there. Now she ISIS gone
l pulled up suddenly. This was the
ship which carried Capt. Parke and
his friend Lieut.. Peel of the British
navy. The secret council at Mon
treal was, therefore, apparently end
ed! There would be an English land
expedition, across Canada to Oregon
Would there be also an expedition by
sea? At least my errand IN Montreal.
now finished, had not been in vain,
even though it ended in a mystery
and a query.