1AT OOUWTY

ken Coin

ON BOUGH

UGH | £1

and Adventure

bmeh »r,a Into the rliU*e which * os bend graters for that porthe island. Here he was before the chief. From the look of him and bis subjects. Count Frederick fancied himself to be somewhere off the African

May we to drown in a bumper health all

will Artak to the health of Michael

preapertty of hi* klnxdom ” “ exclaimed MW>_,

Whether these people were friends or toee he could not tell at Brut, for he understood nr'ther their lanpuace nor their gesticulations, but it oc-

hlm Jtat whlcherer they

might be it would not be amiss tor impress them with a feeling of his own power. He could not tell whether or not they were familiar with the effect of Drearms, but recalled all be had read of the terror inspired In garage minds by the use of such weapons. He drew from his pocket the pistol which he had earned, and looked about him for

object at Which to aim

A wild dock was floating In the lagoon not far array, and at this Count _Frederick took careful aim, and fired -with the extraordinary good lock km It outright. This feat brought out moet ludicrous actlrtty amongst the

they flung

themselres before him, clasped 1 knees, and laid their foreheads op as Man Friday had f Crusoe of old. Obrl ously they were not disposed favor with him now. and not to attack

only

though In truth be felt himself tar

that 1 recall it hare I seen her friend. Frederick. They hare been jmc days or hours tell which

“Tour majesty.“ rejoined flschlo. “It la astonishing bow a keen brain like your own can guess another's secrets! I si so make s claim to humble intelligence enough to hare gusss-d r wishes In this matter, but alas. 1 • be of no service to your majesty, grieve to add. neither can anyone t be of service." ‘ “What? She it dead!' Oh. not eo bad as that But aha la

They led him through the village to e where be waa offered food and —both now Imperatively craved tp bis starved body. Unable to understand what waa ds(tred of Mm. and Indifferent as to the ng of the colloguy going on about him. for some time hla Interest In life and Ita affairs waa so lax that he paid no attention to anything that waa happening. At length, however, he noticed something which caused him to take a sudden and eager Inter oat in hla surroundings. Two mon came running evidently from a distant part of the Island and evidently bearers of news of tome Importance. as could be proved by the reception given their hurtled story. But what was that story? There U a certain virtue In neceenUy Itself. There Is a certain common

“Gone—where?" “To her own country—back to America of which your majesty has heard her boast to freely." "How do you know this, my fri* dr desteded Michael. SaBflo smiled. “Who should I betterr said ha “Let me confess. Wa took yonder young lady a prisoner and carried her away with us; but we could not hold her as such. Indeed. no longer hold any quarrel with Oretxbcffen and there was no longer question of prisoners as between the two kingdoms. This yourg lady was seen to take ship." “At what port?" "At oura. your majesty. Her astonishing Ingenuity enabled her to escape from our guards. Like Catiline of old. she has escaped, she has evaded, she has broken forth! And a good riddance of her, so Bay we all!” "All. my good Bachlo? 1 am not sure. How shall 1 rid my memory her eyes eo beautiful, her hair so lovable. her figure—her so charmin' and delicate figure? FortaM doee not often repeat such favo». We may not expect to Bee her like again at nay early date." •That Is aa it is." said Bachlo. pretending to heave a vast sigh of sympathy. "But what can we do? She took It all Into her own hands, s by this time is well on her way America. There U not the slightest doubt regarding either her departure her destln. on—she was ratner bold abotn it. tu fact, and made no icret of her plans " “Was she a spy. think yon. Bachlo? “Without doubt, your majesty, and well rue It that she did not receive the punishment fit for a spy. True, she waa beautiful—" Tea. yes!" asserted Michael. “Such m. such a figure—think you that aha will return?" “1 truly hope not. your majesty, returned Bachlo fervently, and for onoe he epoke the truth, even on the cha .es of uffending this amorous king.

CHAPTER LXV.

The Unknown Countries. What now of those to whom

Bachlo bad ao lightly given rate Mancha to oblivion’ Certainly there waa left behind them no trees or cine which could give a hint of the traardlnary rtrcumslancee now menblcg them. They might all of them. Kitty. Count Frederick. II aa wall have been dead Indeed and sank at aea. no far as any hint of their

was concerned. They bad

tehed from the earth. The ship that

l: .r -•

as welt

t waa a strange and unreal counwblrh faced Count Frederic* when I he found solid land under foot once i more, lie turned to life and Its hap plover only with n dull apathy, n lag

! gtag tsUrcvt

Frederick did not note that the faithful Roloau bad become separated »' ! frau him In the confusion following 1 j the landing of the boat. In truth I (Mean eahatwted ae he waa. himself

on the part of these of the white man of the white man knew! They were : they had found a ed and cast upon

Urn, Mace the end would be the a

But now they added the last touch cruelty In their torture of her. that delay. They did not carry her. r<v jned to the wont, at once to meet her fate: but on the contrary led her away and left her alone for a time, a prey to her own reflections, the vic-

tim of her own Imaginations.

Only at times her strong will, her ctrong body, rebelled at the thought of death. Then she would 'cry out. 'RClean! Roleau!” ahe would exclaim. raising her hands; "Help, help! Come to me!" But more often than bis name, ahe invoked that of another, She heard her own voice, almost «etth out her own will, culling aloud for Count Frederick, the man eo late her

ly. yet ao ready and ao powerful In any time of stress or danger! iderick!" she moaned, again and

again. “Where are you? Why do yon

of bis

opportunity at the bend of ting Ms lag that ha

Frederick saw placed himself little band, and patIt np. ns showowner of this

powerful weapon, was the one Ira fit for this errand of discovery of tl

strange white woman.

CHAPTER LXVI. ^

The Caverns. When Kitty Gray awakened to scions ness upon the beach of a stn land whither she had been carried by no purpose of her own. ahe looked once more Into the face of peril. The savages who surrounded bar showed no sign of pity or ktedneea. Upon the contrary, whooping and yelling, they fell upon her and dragged her in aptle of herself toward their own village. This village had a ruler of Its own. no doubt chief for that part of the

But to all this, only the howling derlaJon of her captors made answer. M must. then, die! In the last moment of their caprice, or In the full time of their decision, they haled her once more forth from the hut, up to the brink of the sacrificial pit Itself, where now she the awakening flames. Facing tkia culmination of their heathen rites, whatever were their purposes, their innocent victim again made such battle ns she could against captors. Shrieking the called

savage of peculiarly fierce and forbidding visage, and Kitty felt her blood run cold aa she faced Ms evil gaze. The natives, yelling In glee, practically east her at bis feet. Evidently they were giving to Cneenr the things which they thought Caesar's—In this case, woman, spoils oplma of all wars and all quests. The evil face of the savage monarch relaxed Into a grin which made Kitty shudder. What woman waa this now brought by chance to the presence of this < Surely he htd never seen her like before. Moreover, abq waa alone, n oner, helpless. The progress ol reason hereabouts waa swift and simple.

Kitty Was Hald Suspended Above the Unknown Abyaa

gesture, or of the unspoken telepathic quality of the mind Itself. Count Frederick understood not one word of this language which he heard, yet be knew—because be must know— something of the subject which these

persons were discussing.

The men bad come far—one could tell that, their looks proved lL They had seen something strange, something extraordinary bad happened, some event of Interest or Importance bad occurred, else they would not have come eo fast and ao far. This waa

and the chief himself did not lack directness In hla methods. He gave a sign to hla men. and tha girl dragged away, struggling as best she might, and Bung Into a hut which she knew was to serve aa a prison. Here In a corner of the dark Interior ahe cowered In terror M ore the apparitions conjured up by her own

k to r

What waa that event? What could out of the ordinary on this

desert Island, unless It were something coming from beyond the narrow hortscu of that Island—say. a shipwreck. or the landing on these shore* of some survivor such ns be b'.mself

That would explain these hurried

messengers Rut tt that were true, who or what was the survivor or adventurer discovered In n distant pert

o; this same land? Was It a

men. waa It What was th

cited ejaculations, these

Guessing, rather than knee Count Frederick fancied that t sere telling shoe! a soman who ilmself bad been rat up by the

The keen In

an'a brain, for court less aincd In logic and naalyi

of the white

Ighl almost as '

is in finite!? .f three belt

ed to force ttFusion o< what

**r

to

wait. The thief himself came, little suspecting the resistance he was meet—that of aa enraged and despairing woman. So valiant did Kitty prove herself In repulsing his odious ad as. that he was glad enough give her up and make his way back to hla hammock, leaving her to her

own devices.

Outside the hut Kitty conld row hear lend cries, orders, clamatlooa. all the sounds of a crowd gathering—(or what purpose aba could not guess. The mrenin* of this also waa not long left tn doubt tor her Again the door of her hut was dark ened. and again the natives Intruded upon her privacy Forceful bands

Tha latter, mclllng hla bldeoea pt pointed to a pi at the brink of deep {41 In the ground lie etgus to Klllr whlrh she ioo

Tea. she saw It now— she was suffer the most horrible of deaths, that by fire! Perhaps they

■r It?

with which one* ahe could conjure— called also upon the last t spoken by human hearts In despair. Who shall tell whether or not there be higher powers controlling clrcumm such aa these? At least, at this crucial moment there came a •cue. if rescue It might be called. There burst from the corner of the nearby forest a strange. Ill-* ha pen. half clad figure, whether or not human Kitty scarce could tell. It waa a man. white man. clad In Uttered frageau of what once had been a white ins garment. Brawny, hairy, repulsive Indeed, of guttural and Incot apeech. be seemed Ilka no white man Kitty Gray ever bad seen. A swm conviction came to her that he was a amen ted. that be waa a lunatic—perhaps preserved from death by the very reaeon of hla lunacy. Whoever or whatever be was. hla design now seemed not unfriendly to the victim of these savage ceremonl) already la progress. Sweeping aside with blows of hla great arms the ages who clustered about her. caught Kitty up In a gorillalike brace, and with bonne criea of defiance made hla way with her to the cover of tha woods. The natives did not pursue them— Kitty could not tall why Indeed, ehe scarce bad time to reason. In new terror at the formidable appall tlon which now had her In charge. Then slowly, finding him not i friendly, she found time to ponder and to plan. Certainly this being waa. or had been, a white man. Certainly be conld or once could have employed Intalllglble apeech—might again be able

to do ao.

But apeech of Intelligible sort the did not hear. Only he bore her aw. to some distance, until at length ia In the cover of the forest, he set her

Kitty looked about her. She found herself In n situation which ahe could liken to nothing else In all her expo-

A ateep trail led down the declivity ! a craterlike opening, evidently the mouth of a great cavern reaching back under the MU. The opening would not easily have been guessed by a stranger In thoae parts, even though passing close by In the forest. It waa. In abort, the mouth of one o. the vaultllke aeriea of caverns formed In the lava rock of what bad once been a volcanic bill. Below, within, all seemed dark. cold, allent. It waa a refuge—though what a refuge. She waa rescued—but by

what a rescuer!

He beckoned to her now. and ahe followed him down the steep slope. Came then long stretches of underground passagei. how many, how long. Kitty could not tell. At least she lived. In spite of all her terrors. In spite of all these additional doubta. ahe still lived. She might have been more disposed to make some effort In her own behalf, had ahe not felt full upon her that strange oppression always experlunred by any human being finding himself deep beneath the aurfara of that earth upon wMch, and not under which, he waa born to walk. Bo far as ahe could see. her captor had no plan save that of safety from pursuit. And ahe allll lived—she could say ao much as that. If no morel

CHAPTER LXVIL

age with whom he could bold no con verse. But even aa bs stood before the but of this old ruffian Count Frederick> eye caught tight of something which Luted hla heart to leap. It was n little object, an unimportant Item wMch might have escaped any other eye than hla. Yet hla gaze waa drawn to It Irresistibly. It was a bit of doth, a torn trifle of tolled ard eea-encrusted checkered doth a portion of a woman’s garb Count Frederick recognized it at once a* a part of the dress skirt In which he had last seen Kitty Gray garbed. There waa no mlstiiMny tt- He knew well aa the pattern of Ma own apparel. She had been here! The mysterious white woman waa Kitty Gray! Now Indeed Count Frederick of Gretiboffer became the man of action Away now with doubt and despair— and welcome again the fierce resolve of a brave man determined to live and conquer, determined once more to achieve the dearest purpose of hit

life!

icght from the post of the door which had torn off tht* fragment of doth, and held It before the gaze ol the chief—before the eyes of all hit men. They knew what he meant when he demanded to see the wearer of thU bit of doth. They dreaded the might of hla anger fall back before the men ace of the little steel tuba, unfamiliar as It waa to them. They knew that thU man would kill unless be found that which he sought—the captive but now rescued from the doom of fire. Frederick s own men fell tn behind Mm. and a right lusty contest directly rrose between these two factions or tribes, whichever they may have been As for Frederick Mmaelf. he had not time for matters of this sort. He hurried to but after but, tore aside roof after roof, wall after wall, hunting for the woman whom above all things he most desired to see. He did not find Hla questions brought no response. Drawn by a horrible suspicion of the meaning of this fire built at the brink of the pit. he hurried thither to Join the group of lingerers there, and now by mere chance found confirmationand found hope as well. He saw the print of a small boot »el In the sand, other footmarks Just beyond—tt was a trail. Yea. yea. she n there. But the footprints The trail ended as though the maker of tt had flown up Into the air Beyond, the Imprint of Urge and misshapen feet still led. Count Frederick now turned savage ly upon these gibbering creature* about bin., and the meaning of hla demand was perfectly apparent them. Threatening to throw them Into the fire which they had prepared for another, he got from them •hriekf of protest, much shaking of the bead In denial, and much pointing on toward the forest which lay ahead Some came to him and abowod him the two lines of footprints, the one line continuing on and pointed forest, although themselves not venturing to follow. With n new terror In his heart, yet feeling a conviction that Kitty Gray still lived, be did not pause to wreak a present vengeance upon these creature*, but hurried on along the broken

trail.

The doglike craft of one or two of bis own band of savages aided him. Not slacking speed, they pointed out where the trail ran. Now and again Count Frederick could see on the earth the Imprint of the woman's feet where for a time she had rested or been put down. At length, at the brink of the abyss before which Kitty Gray recently had stood, he saw the double imprint again—where both captive and captor had stood and looked down The trail led on. and down, whlthei none could guess. Frederick of Gretzboffeii did not stop to guess, but plunged forward Impulsively Whoever or whatever might be this creature which had carried her off. here at least was hla .air. The dusty floors of the cavern, lit by the flare of such torches as they found ready for such work, still retained the record. Captor and captive had walked here. Dec; it and deeper Into the caverns nnder the hill they followed the trail, until at length the distracted eyes of Count Frederick saw on ahead something to give him pause. Ha saw Kitty Gray standing, alive, apparently unhurt. In a vast apart tnent of these subterranean vaults! Be yond. the floor seemed to break off— to what depth he could not gueaa. No egress at either extremity of the sub terranr.an chamber could be seen from where be stood The trail led thither, to where ahe stood—to where at her side stood also a strange misshapen figure of a man. or what had been a

THE UE

By CLARISSA MACKIE. i JSOOOWSCOWMvv’I'W’I'MWK'SOOOWWOMl The long studio was dim with the'^

of a wet afternoon. Outalde T the windows the November rain fall \

i *

The man

itlessly, lighting a another, only smoked Into the grate, and gaunt, with premalt: haggard face

In the Bewele of the Earth. Count Frederick and his little band of warrior* did not at once arrive upon the solution of the mystery of the strange white woman. The childlike caprice of the native# led him hither and thither, to this village and to that. so that a considerable time bad elapsed I -tore at length he found him self upon the arena of the late fateful happening*, although himself at that time still ignorant alike of the occur ranee* and their reuse To him tbi* waa bet on* more «<**• Ullage, one

The woman Bitting beside the fire watched him with grave. Incuriooa eyes. The firelight shone on her folded white hands and touched a brilliant ring Into bpt flame. Sometimes the same flame burned in her eyes. The man. accustomed to her quiet presence, had forgotten her. Once he passed bealde the great oak table and looked at a large package stamped with many foreign labels and sealed with a curious splash of green

wax.

"It 1s Temple's private seal, .and yet—" HU mutter died Into allenea And yet—Jim Temple had been dead for tea years and the seal with Its owner was lying In the muddy depths of the Yangtze river. “Why should this package come to mo out of China—now?" he questioned himself as he resumed Ms restless tramping to smd fro. What a horrible night that had bean! Black and storm driven, and the wind bad whined around the flapping sails of the Junk— Suddenly he weal to the table, switched on the electrolier and sat down before the package. HU Jaw was set grimly and n bitter smile edged Ms Upe. For n while there was no sound within the room save the twanging of several strings and the rustle of papers. At Inst box and wrappings were cast aside and there waa revealed before him the perfect model of a Chinese pleasure Junk—the replica of that other craft on the Tangtse river. How perfect tt was In every detail! What cunning artisan had contrived the mlnUture craft with 1U hull of fine bamboo. 1U awnings of gause. tt* sails of silk, and in 1U tiny cabin were carved and Inlaid tables and lockers. 1 And in the stern, behind carved doors, was a little shrine containing an Idol before which stood four Ivory votive candles. There waa a pervading amatt—of Iccenao and th tang of opium. Aa one watches a did lure, the man crouched % hU chair and stared with horrified eyos at the

Junk.

The length of the table appeared to be tho turgid yellow stream which U China's greatest waterway. Tho Junk seemed to rock on IU bosom and— waa not the wind whining? And there waa the beat of rain—and In tha shadow* beyond the circle of light 'ay thoae dim Asiatic shores. The helmsman waa a tall, wickedlooking Chinaman, and the group of sailors huddled In the bow; how their shrill, sttocato voices pierced the That was the captain, that fleshly scoundrel with the Inacrutahla face and the heart of a devil. He remembered the captain. And the two other men were foreigners. He noted without surprise that one was Jim Temple, the other was himself. The two white men on the mats were quarreling over a woman’s picture. Without looking now he knew tt waa the portrait of the girl he aflsor* ward married. They were quarreling, and finally the shorter of the two. clad In gray, leaped at the threat of the other and they fought viciously nattl at last the little man went over tha side and the beat of rain on the skylight drowned his criea. The Yangtze waa roaring delight over another victim. The tall man In white (himself) returned to the mat* and threw himself upon hU face and lay quiet. The captain smiled evilly at the helmsman and shrugged Ms fat aboul-

! disi

i and han>-« for

Thar brou own wnnrton

Ufa. In(o t:*»

Chief who had dereiod Kr i.lfhlreoty to th# eacndea

he was only or

of t

“Mademoiselle!" cried Count Fred erick. high and clear. “Courage!" and sprang forward. •.•w this strange creature that bad brought Kitty Gray hither seamed to fancy himself about to ba robbed of bis captive. For one moment he stood availing the onslaught of Count Frederick and hla nlllea. than with hoarse cry he caught Kitty Gray In hla arm* again A pace or so. and *fcr was held au-ipanded above the un known ab>*s which lav below Men aclugly. her capicr turned upon his aa kaiiant a face which at least offered one conclualon. He made no coherent speech, but his attitude spoke loud Count Frederick hatted. Ons atop mre. and the girl would be poingwd into eternity. •TO RE CONTINUED >

e river roared!

Suddenly the storm paused, wind stilled and the rain ceaaec drumming on the skylight The m»n lifted hts head and b hi* hand across hla eyes. He sighed brokenly and for the Bret time he looked beyond tho shadows and saw the woman sitting there watching him. "What la the matter, dearf ahe asked quietly. The question broke hla reeling sense* to th* eege of an abysmal tear "You—here - now?" he whispered. He tn ought that ne ebouted the qnae-

Why. yea. dear—had you forgotten?' ahe asked calmly. Tha wavering smile on her face a leaded under bir. intent gaxe lie leaned across the table, hla shaking huger* touching the Junk. -You—saw?” Bun she smiled at him. "I a»w nothing.' ahe ilea. “It you saw you will understand everything, he went on uvcparaiety, hla nungry eyes on her*. In that Used that tn her analone reposed Ms future pcwco. ear. as I love you. > saw nothr to him now and