The Washington times., 1918-08-12


to be in the open air
"She is here, my niece, said the
man. at Is her van"
He spoke some words In an in
comprehensible language to the old
veman, who rose and preceded
them into the interior Of the great
numbering wagon. Basil looked
around him in surprise as the
door was opened.
Basil leader, made no comment,
nor did he seem to notice his com
panion's evident surprise. He drew
back a heavy curtain and led the
way into the inner room.
Here, upon a rich couch, fully
dressed, lay q girl. A mass of black
hair framed q face as beautiful as
any that Basil had ever seen.
But the face was of ghastly
pzllor. The girl lay inanimate.
She was like ngure modelled in
wax
CHAPTER CXv1I-A FATEFUL
RECOGNITION.
."She is not dead?" The gypsy
put the question with apparent
trepIdation-
Basil leaned over the bed, steth-
oscope In hand.
mo-" he said. after \ cursory ex-
animation Of his beautiful patient
"She is not dead. She is not even
In danger of death. Her heart
beats normally. She is in . trance
or she has been drugged- When
did this come onG"
This afternoon-a few hours
ago. have seen her IN such
frances before, but never they last
like this. Never she, become so
white. She il what the gypsies
call 'somnanbulist' Then, too, she
read the future in a dream She
travel all over Europe and learn
mueh-it is new that she come to
Ameriea-Gnd In Americs" s".-He
shrugged his shoulders depreciat-
ingly. Evidently he was not
pleased with hiA niece's reception
in this country. "But she come
here not to perform he added
"she come here for other purposes"
50 the extrayagant decorations OF
the van was thus explained Basil
remembered the "Somnambule" Of
French fairs, the ''wahrsagerin" Of
the German. The luxuriously fur
nIshed little apartment was for the
edincation Of the witch's clients
cit "a new that we come TO Amer
lea" repeated the man. but lara she
win not leave her van behind She
say It IL her home"
From what part Of the world do You
conner asked Basil, wit hsome curl
oSity.
vaguely.
belong to the gypsy. Ny race u OF
every country. come to see my
brethren in this country. There are
many tribes, but my own people ean
me and I come am from TIE hnd
Of the Magyards-far away. But ths
Ziegeuner has no home"
He turned his attention once more
to the girl upon the bed she b not
III then7' he asked Presently she VIII
recover?
"she Is not H." said Basil. but
cannot say that she will not become
she tells fortunes-rsal or simulated?
''Ah. sir" said she man. evasively.
you ask much. Even / cannot say
that all Is real or all II false She
sleeps, but she can awaken when abe
pleases. She hold 4 little mirror
ah, sir, there It is"-he picked up
small silver mirror Of quaint designs
that lay on q low table beside the
girls bed-"and look into Ito
then she fall asleep"
She hypnotized herself in fact"
For a few minutes only. That Is
why / fear today. Since we come to
this country she have not told for
tunes Shs do as she will I control
her not"
He seemed unwilling to answer
questions aS to the girls movements
during the course OF the day. He
was apparently satiSed to know that
she was in no danger, and anxious TO
conclude the interview. And at that
moment, as II 10 prove that Basil had
been correct in his conclusions. cara
stirred and opened her eyes.
Her eyes were large ard black. and
a. beautiful aS Basil had pictured
them, judging what they must be from
what he had seen Of the girls face.
She was dark. and of the true
gypsy type: her features were deli
cate and exquisitely fashioned; her
lips were very red. It was as IL
all the color OF her cheeks had
flown to her lips-in the dim light
Basil could almost fancy them
blood-stained. He wondered. as he
gazed at them, fascinated, IL the
color was natural or due to a dye.
They were slightly parted. exposing
the white line of small sharp
teeth, and the corners OF the mouth
were drawn down, giving a sugEes-
ton of cruelty to the face. And
with IL all there was weird fascina-
ton which Basil could not under
stand. the suggestion of a fierce,
untamed nature. the hint OF q mys-
terious origin far away amid wild
forests-the charm which the un-
civilized not unfrequenuy has for
the cultured.
cara lifted q brown hand-her
skin was very dark-to her delicate
throat and coughed;. then her eyes
met those OF the stranger. For a
moment they rested upon him, and
he returned the gaze, entranced. 1t
seemed a. II those eyes awakened
strange memories within him.
thoughts which vanished as they
were half formed, associations Of
time and place quite apart from his
conscious self. It was q strange ef-
feet. and he could not analyze II.
even afterward when he recalled
the events OF his leisure.
To be Continued Tomorrow