The Washington times., 1918-12-24
CHAPTER TX.
CHAPTER TX.
1 Encounter An Old Acquaintance
Who Leads Me 20 q DeliEhtfuI
Surprise

He stood in the center Of the
room, facing the door, his legs
straddled apart, planted firmly on
the ground, one hand behind his
back, the other, withered and USE
less like the rest OF the arm, thrust
into the side pocket of his tunic.
He wore a perfectly plain undress
uniform OF field-gray, and the un-
usual simplicity of his dress,
coupled with the fact that he was
bare-heared, rendered him so I'M
like his conventional portraits in
the full panoply OF war that !
doubt IL / should have recognised
him-paradoxical as II may seem
but for the havoc depicted In every
lineament Of those once so familiar
features.
Only one man in the world
today could look like that. Only
one man in the world today could
show, by the ravages in his face,
the appalling weight of response
bility slowly crushing one OF the
most vigorous and resilient person.
alitiss in Europe.
His figure, erstwhile erect and
well-knit. seemed to have shrunk,
and his withered arm, unnaturaIly
looped away into his pocket, as
sumed q prominence that lent
something sinister to that forbid
ding gray and harassed face.
His head was sunk forward on
his breast. His face, always in
tensely sallow, almost Italian in
its olive tint, was livid. All its
alertness was gone; the features
seemed to have collapsed, and the
flesh hung habbIly, bulging in deep
pouches under the eyes and in loose
folds at the corners Of the mouth.
His head was grizzled an iron
gray but the hair at the temples
was white as driven snow. Only
his eyes were unchanged. They
were the same gray, steely eyes,
restless, shifting, unreliable, mir
rors OF the mans impulsiye, way
ward and tickle mind.
He lowered at me. His brow
was furrowed and his eyes flashed
malice. In the brief instant in
which I gazed at him I thought of
a phrase a friend had used after
seeing the Kaiser in one OF his
angry moode-"His icy, black
look"
was SO taken aback at finding
myself in the Emperor's presence
that / forgot my part and remained
staring in SPECIFICATION at the ap-
partition. The other was seeming
ly too busy with his thoughts to
notice my forgetfulness for he
spoke at once. imperiously, in the
harsh staccato Of a command.
what is this hear?" he said.
''why has not Grundt come? What
are you doing here7"
BY this time had elaborated
the fable / had begun to tell in the
corridor without I had II ready
now: IL was thin, but II must suf-
nee.
"If your majesty will allow me,
I will explain" said. The En-
peror was rocking himself to and
fro, In nervous irTitability, on his
feet His eyes were never steady
for an instant: now they searched
my facs, now they fell to the door,
now they scanned the ceiling.
"DT. Grundt and I succeeded In
cur guest, dangerous though II
was. As your majesty Is aware,
the the the object
had been divided. ."
"Yes, yes, I know! Go onr" the
other said. pausing for q moment
In his rocking.
at was to have left England first
with my portion. could not get
away. Everyone Is searched for
letters and papers at Tilbury.
devised q scheme and we tested
II, but it failed"
"How? It faiIed?- the other
cried
with no detriment to the sue
cess of our mission, your majesty"
Explain! What was your strata
Eem?"
81 cut q piece Of the lining from
q handbag and in this ] wrapped
a perfectly harmless letter ad-
dressed to an English shipping
agent in Rotterdam.
81 then pasted the fragment Of the
lining back in its place in the bot
tom OF the bag. Grundt gave the
bag to one OF our number as an
experiment to see IL 1t would eIude
the vigilance of the English police"
\ light OF interest was growing
in the Emperor,s manner, banishIng
his iIl-temper. Anything novel al
ways appealed to him.
"Well?" he said.
THE rUse was detected, the letter
was found and our man was fined
twenty pounds at the police court.
II was than that DR.. Grundt decided
to send me.
you've got IT with you?" the
other exclaimed eagerly.
''No, Your Majesty" I said. II
had no means Of bringing II away.