Tombstone epitaph., 1915-05-09

10 nave mdue Us appearance Ne NSIt enjoying a tete-a.tete after dinner, be- fore proceeding 10 a ball given that night at the palace. when We were in terrupted by the arrival of the young Boris. dressed in the imposing uniform of his office. He was quite lad. in deed, when had formerly known him he was a mere child. and had been accustomed to consider me in the light of a father.
 "He entered the room in which We were seated more abruptly that was, perhaps. consistent with his hlial re spect. but the agitation under which he evidently labovei furnished some excuse
 Mother he cried out as soon as he was inside the door. have you heard about the event of last night?'
 The princess. with gesture full of dignity. drew his attention 10 my pres ence.
 Boris" she exclaimed in a voice of reproof. You have omitted to pay your respects to the baron The young prince blushed, and has tened 10 make his apologies. with that grace which he iaherits from his par ent
 Say no more commanded; it is easy 10 see that you have something of importance which you wish 10 com municate 10 your mother. With madames permission. I will withdraw. But this neither of them would hear of. both mother and son assuring me that there was no secret which they would not intrust to my dis cretiou.
 It was then that my young friend proceeded to disclose the reason for his sudden appearance. and to astound US with the intelligence that he was himself the author Of the rumor which had so perturbed the society of St Petersburg. IL will. perhaps. save time if repeat the substance Of his story in my own words.
 You must know that the winter pal ace is one of the most colossal build ings in the world. Whole suites Of apartments in it are never used even. | but, in order 10 guard against all dan ger from the odious attempts of the Nihilists, a certain watch is maintained ! even in the most deserted quarters Of 1 the palace.
 The imperial suite, comprising eight | principal rooms, is trayersed through out its length by a corridor which | opens at one end on the first landing | of the grand staircase. at which point ! two Of the pages are always on duty, | day and night. At the other end the 1 corridor is closed by a door which is always kept locked. On the further | side of this door is disused gallery. | overlooking a garden in the rear of the | palace, and leading 10 a suite of rooms which had not been used for years. ! IL was at this spot that the young | prince had been on duty the preceding i night.
 You will understand that the task | of keeping guard al night in deserted | gallery vas by no means a pleasant 1 one. although no one page was re- | quired to be there for more than three hours in the twenty-four. Moreover, a small room opening out of the gallery | had been suitably furnished for the lads to relax themselves in during ! their solitary watch
 "On the night in question Boris had repaired 10 the gallery to relieve his comrade at nine o'clock. lie had sim. ply 10 remain there till twelve, and then, as soon as the clock struck, he was at liberty 10 retire 10 his own quarters.
 Tt wanted very few minutes to the hour. and he was pacing the gallery, impatiently waiting for his release. when he happened to stop opposite one of the windows. and look out into the grounds. It was a bright moonlight night, and every tree and shrub in the garden stood out with startling dis l tiuctness.
 He gazed idly, letting his eye roam over the expanse. when all at once his | attention was arrested by a sight cal culated to disturb anyone living in the alarmist atmosphere of the Russian court This was tall and closely muf. 1 lied figure, stealing along ln the
 broken shadows Of the trees. and mak- ing its way towards the nearest cor. ner Of the building.
 It was inevitable that the startled page should at once connect this fig ure with the audacioUs intrigues of the dreaded secret society whose plots con. stitute perpetual menace to the i'm
 perial throne. His impression that
 he was watching a Nihilist emissary
 was confirmed when he saw him con.
 fdentIy approaching a door in the wall
 of the palace, which was never used
 and was supposed to be securely fss
 tened against ingress and egress. This
 door, on the contrary. appeared to
 yield to a touch Of the mysterious wis
 itor who disappeared from sight be.
 heath its arch
 Greatly disturbed by what he had
 seen, Boris kept his station in the gal
 lery, considering what it was advisable
 for him to do. To have given the alarm
 might have teen of the greatest dan
 ger to the prince. The first person
 whom he approached with the news l might have been A secret Nihilisf and