The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1912-03-30

day Kelvin, sitting in calm pomp, with his two huge, gaudily liveried negroes behind him, enigmatically dis posed of one agitated patriot after an- other.
 Just now Kelvin was entertaining a delegation picked by himself. They were his cabinet officers,' and they were pale and nervous to a man. Add ed to them were two strangely out of place groups, the one consisting of Henry and Lillian Breed, Jens Nelson and Dr. Zelphan and the other of Rol- Dns and Elsie White. All of these had been admitted by private door. The arrival of the latter two groups was fisconcerting to Phillip at the mo- ment, although, after a slight period of cogitation, he had ordered them both admitted. Rollins and Elsie White came last, and the moment they had entered Phillip ordered the door to be relocked. He had been upon the point of making an important an- nouncement to his waiting and ap- parently prepared cabinet, and now, his small audience once more quiet, he raised his hand impressively, but be- fore he could speak Elsie White hur- ried forward to him.
 Look in your desk quickly, but care fully!" she cried. "An internal ma- chine is concealed there, timed to ex- plode at twelve!'
 She was deathly pale. There were dark rings under her eyes. Evidently she had passed sleepless night. Phil lip, obeying his habit of mentally ig- noring sudden and agitated thoughts that he might consider them in forced calmness. looked down upon her com passsonately, and the moment for which Elsie had waited all these years had at last arrived. Today she stood nearer to him in affection than any other living creature. Love had come to him at last. Well, there was still time. He had fought and he had won. The moment of his triumph was at hand, and with the fruits of that triumph he would crown love. He glanced at the clock. It was then bare ly 10. Jens Nelson had started hastily toward the door, but now he returned to the side of Dr. Zelphan.
 According to that, we have plenty of time," Phillip said calmly.
 s'Lookv' Elsie frantically insisted. "The machine might be faulty. It was timed for 12 because it is known that you never leave until 1, but there is danger this very second. Every act of your daily routine has been stud jed, and in a half dozen places these things lie in wait for you. Here is a list of them" And she gave him a paper. Moreover, today at noon there will be flashed from one end of the country to the other by telegraph and by wireless George Blagg's com mand to begin fighting. He has an immense secret army ready awaiting this word. Only a small proportion of the men are armed, but they intend to take their weapons from the sol diers and capture the states simulta- neously from coast to coast"
 "How do you know these thingsY Kelvin demanded.
 What little color there had been in Elsie's face left it suddenly. Even her lips were as white as paper. '1 can- not tell you," she murmured faintly.
 Kelvin nodded his head. He sur missed that this vast conspiracy had Ben White as. one of it's weak arms.
 ''But hurry Phillip, hurryw plead ed Elsie, using his familiar name un- consciously. "If you find there what I have told you, you may know that ail the rest is true"
 "It is probably true enough" replied Phillip calmly. Herbert, I had wish ed you to be here when I made my announcement. but you know what it is, as do the others of my cabinet, and what your share in it is to be. I shall excuse you for the time being. Wire at once to every military force under your command to be in readiness for this uprising"
 One of the attendants opened the private door and let Herbert out. Kel- win stopped and opened every drawer of his desk on either side, but found nothing. He turned to Elsie with a slight smile, but she was on her knees now in front of the desk, with her ear applied to it.
 "Search further,.., she insisted. "I hear something ticking"
 Again Kelvin looked through the drawers and found nothing unusual.
 "Pull out the bottom one on this side and look underneath it,' she directed, with now almost frantic insistence.
 Kelvin did so. Under the right hand bottom drawer, in the six inches of fnclosed space left beneath it and the floor. he found wooden box. Apply ing his ear to it, he detected a faint ticking. He handed it to one of the negroes.
 Have this removed to some safe place at once," he ordered.
 "'Deed, no-not mev' protested the quaking voice of Peavey as he very, very gently slid the box on the desk and then sprang away from it. "Ah's suttainly boun' an 'termined to be planted in nah grave whole, An is!''
 Sam, though curious ashen gray with fear, picked up the box, but one of the big officers, white man, took it quietly from his hands and went out the door with it.
 Kelvin turned slowly to his cabinet. "Gentlemen," he began, "the United States is in a condition of absolute anarchy"
 "Wait minute" suddenly quavered the shrill voice of Henry Breed. "Wait a half hour, Phillip. I wouldn't be