Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1911-06-12

province Tor town or an Island we
/ will mark the same on our map. and
( the agreement shall be immutable. If
we do not proceed thus we shall make
no treaty and both suffer the penalty"
The count saw the necessity. but
| acQuiesced reluctantly. The boundary
ran for a distance OF some 500 miles,
at times the natural division being
mountain chain. at times a river. The
| field on which the game was played
was so broad that only one who had
| head fitted for the purpose could re-
tain at one time its different parts.
/ The players sat down to work at 10
! ID the morning and never ceased even
| for meal till 10 at night Then on
! the concessions of both parties they
drew the treaty. When it was finish
| ed ii must be signed. for every step
| in 1t was irrevocable.
Won Gratz put his signature to 1t
| without reading it The count dread
ed TO do the same. but there was no
escape. Then his antagonist leaned
back in his chair while Won Steinwitz
read the document He had not half
| finished IL when he paled. His enemy
had secured an overwhelming advan-
tage.
For a few moments the count gave
| himself up for lost. Then suddenly
| he remembered his instructions to his
daughter. He had given them with a
| view to providing for such a contin-
| gency as this and had observed the re-
| suits. Retaining his presence OF mind,
| he expressed no dissatisfaction with
the treaty. The seals OF both principal
| ties were attached. and the instrument
| was de facto.
"You will remain as my guest few
| days longer" said the count, while
| engrossed copies are being made, then
i suppose 1 shall be obliged to part
with you"
And your head" added Won Gratz.
For the first time the two looked at
each other, not with duplicity, but IN
! their true relations.
"Yes," replied the count in a tremu-
lous voice. with my head"
Had / not played q better game
than you it would have been my head
to drop under the AK"
cit surely would"
"a boundary line equitable to both
sovereigns could not pertain to this
treaty. For centuries both have spill
| ed blood over it, and now that an ad-
vance has been made in the method
of settlement one of US must get the
better of the other. and the one that
is beaten dies"
"How can It be otherwiseP'
what may come in future times l
know not. Perhaps it may be grow
ing sense of justice when diplomacy
will not mean an intellectual battle
with armies looking on to give moral
| support to the players. In the case
before US love comes in to abrogate
that treaty we have Just made and
construct another. In striking you
strike your daughter. whom 1 love.
That 1 cannot do"
Taking up the treaty, he tore it into
| bits.
"Now let us make a compact in
| spired not by armies, not by ships, not
| by intelIectual> superiority, but by
love-"
The old count looked at his younger
victor in establishment Then beads of
perspiration stood out on his face, and
he trembled. Lastly he folded Won
Gratz In his arms with the words:
"My noble son."
1t was the lover who made the new
draft of the treaty, while the old man
| sat giving his faculties time to regain
their equilibrium. For an hour Her.
| man jotted down memoranda, making
erasures and adding new data on the
map. then wrote out the articles Of
agreement When the statement was
| finished he handed it to the count, re-
marking:
'"There is no war in that: there is
peace. There is no victory gained by
intellectual supremacy; there is pros
perity. 1t is not based on justice, for
human justice is seldom determinable.
1t is based on the one simple word
love-"
Won Steinwitz read the document
and saw in it that equal division of
who possessed the slightest sense Of
equity.
When the treaty was presented to
the two sovereigns each thought the
other had gained the lions share. But
after reading IL each saw this was not
SO and felt a sense of relief and sat
isfaction that necessity for bloodshed
was past and bis people might devote
themselves to binding up their wounds,
filling the soil and making articles
necessary to their comfort
When IT became known that a maid
en- had inspired the treaty and that
she was to marry one Of its makers
both principalities rose up to celebrate
the nuptials. Gifts poured in from all
quarters, and there was more enthusi-
asm Ia the festivities than at any
royal marriage that had ever oc-
CURED