Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1912-03-05
The Argus Daily Story
My Diplomatic Mission-By r. A. Mitchell.
Copyrighted. 1911. by Associated Literary Bureau


nished with funds. But they contin-
ued to be puzzled till they heard def
nitely from me later, for gave them
no satisfactory explanation. / also
learned that from this time they began
TO doubt me and took measures to get
the information they desired through
other parties.
Mr.. Claiborne was devoted to me on
the voyage. He talked about every
thing except diplomacy, on which he
maintained q rigid silence. did not
make the slightest attempt to draw
him out In that line. Any effort to do
so would have aroused suspicion. But
1t was not In accordance with my
plan to draw him out. Something far
deeper was in my mind. Besides, I
soon learned from him what was nee
essary for me to know. He told me
that he would remain at home only
long enough to make a report at the
foreign Office in London, after which
he would take little trip on the con-
tinent. well knew that this meant
a visit to the sultan of Turkey.
Everybody knows what an ocean
not reached England before Mr..
Claiborne and were engaged In what
in America we call Irritation. The
flirting, however, II 1t really was firt-
ing, was all on one side. An English
man is not an adept In such affairs.
The game at which he Is especially
expert Is not the game of love, but OF
diplomacy I was content, for the
time being at least, to let him have his
own way at the game Of diplomacy
provided I could have mine at the
game of love.
y 1 had not been in England eighteen
hours before l received an invitation
from a sister of Mr. Claiborne to visit
the family home, near London.
spent several days there, during
which, fear, the visiting was rather
between Mr. Claiborne and me than
between me and his mother and sis
tiers. Our affair reached a crisis one
evening when he told me that he must
run over the next morning to Paris
on business. Before going he told me
what I had been hoping for-not his
diplomatic secret, but that he wished
me to be his wife.
Before parting with him that even
ing-I was not to see him the next
morning-he admitted that he was go
ing farther than Paris. / asked him
If he was going still farther, and he
finally admitted that he would not
! stop till he reached Constantinople.
I asked him why he was going there,
I - An =
strated with him, saying that prom
Used wife should share all her fance's
secrets.
mot his governments secrets"
I threw my arms around his neck,
laughed and said:
you're going to Constantinople on
the matter of a treaty between Eng
land and Turkey"
Disengaging himself from me, he
| looked at me with establishment.
l told him that had been employed
| by whom / would not say-to get a
knowledge of that treaty; that l had
accepted the offer for the fun of the
thing and had declined to receive even
the money for my expenses. He de-
manded to know who had employed
me, and 1 refused to answer. That, I
considered, would be dishonorable.
Had 1 set out with the intention of
spying upon him his love for me
would have turned to hate, even
though 1 had weakened on the way
through love for him. My action was
incomprehensible to him. He became
convinced that 1 had had from the
first no intention of getting any diplO-
matte knowledge from him, but he
could not understand the reason gave
him for entering upon the matter at
all. 1 told him had yielded to a de-
sire to see something of the undercur-
rent Of diplomatic life. 1t was not re-
markable that he did not understand
this, for there was another reason IN
DERIVING the first.
And now it is time that give this
reason Before 1 made up my mind
to accept the Russian offer felt pref
ty sure that Edward Claiborne was to
be the man / was to prey upon. l had
seen him often, and the moment first
looked upon him the little god shot
one of his deadly arrows into me. But
ing the man / worshiped. The Rus
sian offer l regarded as a possible
means, at least an opportunity, to win
him.
He did not feel easy about me for
long while, but brought him around
in time, and we were married made
it a condition that he should not re-
turn to Washington. / didn't like the
prospect of facing the diplomats who
had employed me to do their spying,
having married the man / was to
spy upon. / learned, however, long
afterward that they had a very high
opinion of me since they had learned
that would not give them away even
to my own husband.
, have continued to be a diplomats
wife at many courts, but the diplomat
! &c effort by which received a husband
is the only one of my life / am quite
content to leave the ehicanery Of the
. service to others.