The Tucumcari news and Tucumcari times. [volume], October 17, 1918, Image 2

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THE TUCUMCARI NEWS
mm i i t miii i iniiiiimiimii jl I
i
LONG LIVE THE KING
By May
Roberts Rinehart
Copyright 1917, by the Rldgway Company
ALL RIGHTS RESERVED
Copyright, 1917, by Mary Roberts Rinehart
fttihO'imm imfifr--1'11111111'
CHAPTER I.
The Crown Pajnce Run Away.
The Crown Prlnco sat In tho royal
box and swung his legs. This was
hardly princely, but the royal legs did
not quite reach tho floor from tho high
crimson-velvet seat of his chair.
Prince Ferdinand William Otto was
bored. Ills royal robes, consisting of
a pair of bluo serge trousers, a short
Eton Jacket, and o stiff, rolling collar
of- white linen. Irked him.
He hod been brought to tho ojiora
houso under a misapprehension. Ills
aunt, the Archduchess Annundatn, had
strongly ndvecnted "Tho Flying Dutch
nan and hi English governess. Miss
Braltnwnlte, had read him some In
spiring literature about It. So here ho
was, and the Flying Dutchman wns not
ghostly nt all, nor did it fly. And In
stead of flying, after dreary cons of
ringing, it was moved off on creaky
rollers by men whose shadows were
thrown grotesquely on tho sea back
ing. Tho orchestra, assisted by a bass
Bolo and Intermittent thunder In the
wings, wns making a danfenlng din.
One of tho shadows on the sea back
ing took out Its handkerchief and
wiped Its nose.
Prince Ferdinand William Otto look
ed across at the other royal box, nnd
caught his Cousin nedwlg's eye. She
also had seen tho 'handkerchief : she
took out her own scrap of linen, nnd
mimicked tho shadow. Then, Her
Itoyol nighncss the Archduchess An
nunclnto being occupied with the
storm, she winked across at Prince
Ferdinand William Otto.
In flie opposite bo wore his two
cousins, (ho Princesses Hedwlg nnd
nildn, attended by nedwlg's lady In
waiting, ncdwlg wns eighteen. The
crown prince liked Hedwlg better thnn
nildn. Although she hnd been Intro
duced formally to tho court at tho
Christmas-eve ball, nnd had been duly
presented by her grandfather, the
king, with tho usual string of pearls
nnd her own cnrrlnge, she still ran off
now nnd then to have tea with the
crown prince and Miss Bralthwalte In
tho school room at tho palace; and she
could cat a great deal of bread and but
ter. . 'i
Ir'Tho crown prince yawned, although
It was but the middle of the after
noon. Catching nedwlg's eye, he ran
his fingers up through'' his tblck yel
low hnlr and grinned, nedwlg blushed.
She hnd confided to hltn,onco, whllo
they wore walking In tho garden at
the summer palace, that she was
thinking of being in love with a young
lieutenant who wns attached to the
king's suite. The prince who was
called Otto, for short, by the family,
because he actuolly had eleven names
the prince hid been much Interested.
For some time afterward he hod both
ered Miss Brolthwoltc to define being
In love, hut he had had no really satis
factory answer.
In pursuance of his quest for In
formation, ho had grown quite friendly
with tho young officer, whose name
was Lnrlsch, ond hnd finally asked to
have him ride with him nt the royal
riding school. The grim old king hud
grnntcd the request, but It hnd been
quite fruitless so far after all. Lieu
tenant Larlsch only grew quite red ns
to the ears when lovo was mentioned,
although ho appeared not unwilling to
bear Iledwlg's name.
So now Ferdinand Wllllnm Otto ran
his lingers through his fair hair, which
was a favorite gesture of the lieuten
ant's, ond Hedwlg blushed. The arch
duchess, sitting well bock, wns nod
ding. Just outsldo tho royal box, on
Hie red velvet sofa, General Mettllch,
who was the chancellor, and had come
because ho had been Invited nnd stayed
outside bocauso he sold ho liked to
hear music, no; see It, was Found
asleep. Ills martial bosom, with Its
gold braid, was rising nnd fulling
peacefully. Uesltlo him lay tho prince's
crown, u small black derby hot.
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto con
Fldered It all very wenrlsome. If one
could only wander around the corridor
or buy n Fondwleh from tho stand at
tho foot of tlxs great staircase or, bet
ter Htlll, If one could only get to the
street, nlone, nnd purchase one of tho
fig women tluit Miss Brnlthwolto so
despised! Tho crown prlnco felt In
his pocket, where his week's allow
ance of pocket money lay comfortably
untouched.
lib meditated. He could go nut
quickly, and bo back beforo they know
It. Even If be only wandered about
the corridor, It would stretch Ills short
legs. And outsldo It war a fine duy.
It looked already like spring.
With tho trepidation of a canary
who finds Ifls cago door open, and,
hopping to tho threshold, surveys tho
world before venturing to exploro It,
Prince Ferdinand William Otto rose
to his' feet, tiptoed past the Arch
duchess Annunclnta, who did not move,
end rooked around him from the door
way. He picked up his hnt nnd concealed
It by his side. Then nonchalantly, as
If to stretch his legs by walking ten
feet up the corridor and back, he
passed the dressing room door. An
other moment, ana he was out of sight
around n bend of the passageway, and
beli'tK him lay liberty.
Not quite! At the top of tho pri
vate staircase reserved for tho roynl
family a guard commonly stood. Ho
hod moved n few feet from his post
however, nnd was wntchlng tho stage
through the half-open door of a private
logo.
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto
passed behind him with outward calm
ness. At the top of tho public stair
case, however, ho hesitated. Here,
everywhere, were brass-buttoned offi
cials of the opcrn house. A garderobf
womnn stared at him curiously. The
little prince looked nt tho womnn with
appeal In his eyes. Then, with his
heart thumping, he rnn past her, down
the white marble staircase, to whero
the great doors promised liberty.
Olga, tho wardrobe woman, came
out from behind her counter and stood
looking down tho marblo staircase
after tho small flying figure.
The old soldier who rented opcrn
glasses at the second landing, nnd who
had left a leg In Bosnia, leaned over
the rolling. "Look nt thatl" ho ex
clnlmcd. "He will break n leg, the
young rascal I Onco I could have
but there, ho Is safe I The good God
watches over fools nnd children."
"It looked like the llttlo prince," eald
tho wardrobe woman. "I have seen
him often he has tho satno bright
hair."
But the opera-glnss man was not
listening. He hod drown a long saus
age from one pocket nnd n roll from
the other, nnd now, retiring to n far
window, he stood placidly eating a
bite of sausage, a bite of bread. His
mind wns In Bosnia, with his leg. And
because old Adclbert's mind was In
Bosnln, and because ono hears with
the mind, nnd not with the ear, ho did
not hear the sharp question of the
sentry who ran down tho stairs nnd
paused for n second nt tho cloak-room.
Well for Olgo, too, that old Adelbert
did not hear her reply.
"Ho has not passed here," sho sold,
with wide and honest eyes, but with
nn ear toward old Adolbprt. "An old
gentleman enme n moment ngo und
got a sandwich, which ho hod left In
Ills overcoat. Perhaps this Is whom
you are seeking?"
The sentry cursed, nnd ran down the
stnlrcuse, the nails In his shoes strik
ing sharply on tho marble.
Olgn of the cloak room leaned over
her checks, with her Hps curved up
In a smile. "Tho llttlo one!" she
thought. "And such courage 1 Ho will
make n rreut klngl Let him have his
prank like tho other children, und
God bless him and keep hltai"
Tho crown prince was Just n tsAflo
dazzled by the brilliance of his suc
cess. Ho paused for ono breathless
moment under the porte-cochero of the
opera house; then he took n long
breath, turned to tho left; nnd wns at
once swnllowed up In tho street crowd.
It seemed very strange to him. Not
that he was unaccustomed to crowds.
Had he not, that very Christmas, gone
shopping In the city, nccompnnled only
by one of his tutors and Miss Bmlth
wnlte, and bought for his grandfather,
the king, a burnt wood box, which
might hold either neckties or gloves,
and for his cousins sliver photograph
frames?
But this was different, and for n
rather peculiar reason. Prince Ferdin
and William Otto hod never seen tho
back of n crowd I The public was al
ways lined up. facing htm. smiling nnd
bowing and God-blessing him. Prlnco
Ferdinand William Otto had never
known the hacks could bo so rigid. It
was most Interesting.
The next tour was full of remark
able things. For one, ho dodged be
hind n street car and was almost run
over by a toxical). The policeman on
tho corner cntno out, and taking Fer
dinand Wllllnm Otto by tho shoulder,
Cuvo him a talking to and n shaking.
lerdlnand William Otto wns furious,
but policy kept him silent ; which i
proves conclusively that the crown
prince had not only Initiative witness
his lllght hut self-control nnd di
plomacy. Lucky country, to hove In
prospect such a king !
Prince Ferdinand William Otto hod
the fulfillment of n greot desire In his
small, active mind. This was nothing
less than n ride on the American
scenic railroad, which had secured a
concession In a for corner of tho park.
Hed wig's lieutenant had described It
to him how ono was taken In n small
car to n dizzy height, nnd then turned
loose on n track which dropped giddily
and rose again, which hurled one
through sheet-Iron tunnels of Incredible
blackness, thrust ono out over u gorge,
whirled ono In mod curves around cor
ners of precipitous heights, and finally
landed one, pouting, breathless, shock
ed, nnd reeling, but safe, nt the very
platform where one hod purchased
one's ticket threo eternities, which
were only minutes, before.
As tho early spring twilight fell, tho
gas Inmps nlosg the allcc, always burn
ing, mado a twin row of polo stars
ahead. At the end, even as tho wan
derer gazed, he saw myriads of tiny
red, white, and bluo lights, rising high
In tho air, outlining tho crags and
peaks of the sheet Iron mountain
which was his destination. The land
of desire was very near!
There came to bis ears, too, tho oc
casional rumble thnt told of some pal
pitating soul being at that moment
buried nnd twisted nnd Joyously
thrilled, as per tho lieutenant's descrip
tion. Now It is n strange thing, but true,
thnt one docs not reach tho land of
deslro nlone; because tho half of
pleasure Is the sharing of It with somo
one else, and the land of desire, nlone,
Is not tho land of desire at all. Quito
suddenly, Prlnco Ferdinand William
Otto discovered that ho was lonely. At
that moment there was a soft whirring
off to one sldo of him, nnd n yellow
bird, rising nnd falling erratically on
the breeze, cnrecwxl suddenly nnd fell
at his feet
Prlnco Fcrdlnnnd William Otto bent
down and picked It up. It wns a small
toy aeroplane, with yellow silk planes,
"Qeel Did You See It Go That Time?"
guy ropes of waxed thread, and n
wooden rudder, Its motive power
vested In n tightly twisted rubber. Ono
of the wings was bent Ferdinand
William Otto straightened It und
looked nround for the owner.
A small boy was standing under tho
next gas lamp. "Geo!" ho sold In
English. "Did you seo it go that
time?"
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto eyed
the stranger. Ho was nbout his own
ago, and was dressed In u short pair
of corduroy trousers, much bloomed nt
the knee, n pair of yellow llussln
leather shoes that reached well to his
culves, nnd. over nil, a shaggy white
sweater, rolling almost to his chin. On
tho very baclc of his head ho had tbo
smallest cap that Prlnco Fcrdlnnnd
Wllllnm Otto hod over seen.
"This Is tho best time for flying."
Uo sold, In his perfect English. "All
the exhibition flights nre nt sundown."
Tho boy walked slowly over ond
stood looking down nt htm. "Yot ought
to see It lly from the top of Pike's
Peak I" lie remarked. He hnd caught
sight of tho despised derby, ond his
eyes widened, but with Instluctlvn
good breeding he Ignored it. "That's
Pike's Peak up there."
He Indicated the very top of the land
of desire. The prince stared up.
"How does one get up?" he queried.
"Ladders. My father's tho manager.
Ho lets mo up sometimes."
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto
stareil with new awe at the boy. He
found the fact much moro remarkable
than If tho stranger hod stated that
his father was tho king of England.
Kings were, ns you may soy, directly
In Prlnco Ferdinand Wllllnm Otto's
lino, but scenic railroads--
"I had thought of taking n Journey
on It," he sold, after a second's re
flection. "Ho you think your father
will sell me a ticket?"
"Billy Grimm will. I'll go with
you."
Tho prlnco rose with alacrity. Then
!io stopped. Ho must, of course, ask
tho stningo boy to be his guest. But
two tickets! Perhaps his ollowonco
was not sufficient.
"I must see first how much It costs,"
he said with dignity.
Tho other boy laughed, "Oh. gee I
You come with me. It won't cost any
thing," he sold, ond led tho way
toward the towering lights.
For Bobby Thorpe to bring n small
boy to rldo with him was an everyday
affair, Billy Grimm, nt the ticket win
dow, hardly glanced at tho boy who
stood, trembling with anticipation, In
the shadow of tho booth.
Tho car came, nnd they climbed In.
Perhaps, as they moved off, Prince
Ferdinand William Otto had n qualm,
occasioned by tho remembrance of tho
English child who hod met an un
timely end; but If he did, ho plucklly
hid It
"Put your lid on the floor of tho cor,"
said Bobby Thorpe, depositing his own
atom there. "Father says, If you do
that, you'ro perfectly sofe."
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto di
vined that this referred to his hat
and drew a small breath of relief. And
then they were off, up an endless, click
lug roadway, whero at tho top the car
hung for n breathless second over tho
gulf below; then, fairly launched, out
on a trestle, with the city far hencnth
them, and only tho red, white, nnd blue
lights for company; nnd Into n tunnel,
filled with roaring noises nnd swift
moving shadows. Then come the cud
of nil things n flying lenp down, n
heart-breaking, delirious thrill, un up
ward sweep Just ns tho strain wns too
great for endurance.
Above the ronrlng of tho wind In
their ears, neither child had heard the
flying feet of n dozen horses coming
down the nllee. They never knew that
a hatless young lieutenant white
lipped with fear, had checked his
horso to its haunches nt the ticket
booth, and demanded to know who wns
In tho land of desire.
"Only the son of tho manager, and
n boy friend of his," replied Billy
Grimm, In what ho called the lingo of
tho country. "What's wrong? Lost
nnybody?"
But Hedwlg's lieutenant had wheeled
his horso without n word, nnd, Jump
ing him over the hedge of tho nllee,
was off In a despairing search of the
outskirts of tho park, followed by his
cavalrymen.
As tho Inst horse looped tho hedge
ond disappeared, tho car come to n
stop nt the pjlotform. Quivering.
Prince Ferdinand Wllllum Otto reached
down for the despised hat.
"Would you like to go around
again?" nsked Bobby, quite casually.
Ills highness gasped with Joy. "If
If you would be so kind!" he sold.
And at the lordly wove of Bobby's
hand, the car moved on.
CHAPTER II.
Disgraced.
At eight o'clock that evening the
Crown Prince Ferdinand William Otto
approached the palace through the
public square. He approached It
slowly, for two reasons. First he did
not wont to go bock. Second, ho wos
rather frightened. He had an Ideu
that they would bo disagreeable.
There seemed to bo n great deal go
ing on nt tho palace. Currloges were
rolling In under tho stono archway
nnd, having discharged their contents,
mostly gentlemen In uniform, were
moving off with n thundering of hoofs
that reached from the vaulted roof of
tho entrance. All the lights were on
In the wing where his grandfather,
the king, lived alone. As his grand
father hated lights, and went to bed
arly, Prlnco Ferdinand Wllllum Otto
was slightly puzzled.
no was very dirty, nis august face
was streaked with soot, and his au
gust hands likewise. His small derby
hat was carefully placed on the very
back of his head at the anglo of the
American boy's cap. As his collar had
watched his neck, he had, at Bob
by's suggestion, tnken It off nnd
rolled It up. Ho decided, ns he waited
In the square, to put It on ngafrf.
Miss Bralthwalto was very pecullur
about collars.
Came a lull In tho lino of carriages.
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto took
n long breath nnd started forward.
As he advanced ho stuck his bunds
In his pockets and swoggered a trllle.
It was, as nearly as possible, an ex
act Imitation of Bobby Thorpe's walk.
And to keep up his courage, ho quoted
that young gentleman's farewell
speech to himself; "What d' ymi
care? They won't eat you, will they?"
Prince Ferdinand William Otto stood
In the shadows and glanced across.
The sentries stood like wooden men,
hut something was wrong In tho court
yard Inside. Tho guards were oil
standing, and there seemed to bo a
great many of them, And Just ns ho
hod made up his mind to take the
plunge, so to speak, a part of his own
Jt'glmcnt of cavalry came out from the
court yard with a rendering of hoofs,
wheeled at the street, and clattered
off.
Very unusual, all of It.
The Crown Prince Ferdinand Otto
felt In his pocket for his handkerchief,
and, moistening a comer with his
tongue, wlied his face. Then he wiped
his Mines. Then, with his hands In
his trousers pockets, ho sauntered In
to the light.
Tho two sentries mnde no sign
when they saw Ferdinand William
Otto approaching. But one of them
forgot to bring his musket to salute.
Ho crossed himself Instead. And
something strained around tho other
sentry's lower Jaw suddenly relaxed
Into a smile as his royal highness
drew n hand from Its refuge nnd sa
luted. He glanced nt one, then at the
other, rather sheepishly, hesitated be
tween them, clapped his hot on moro
securely, and marched In.
"Tho young rascal I" sold tho sec
ond sentry to himself. And by turn
ing his head slightly for a sentry
lenrns to seo nil around like a horse,
without twisting his neck he watched
the runowny Into tho palace.
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto went
up the stono staircase. Hero and
there ho passed guards who stared and
saluted. Had ho not been obsessed
with the vision of Miss Bralthwalte,
ho would havo known Unit relief fol
lowed In his woke. Messengers clat
tered down the staircase to th" court
yard. Other messengers, breathless
and eager, flew to that lighted wing
where tho council snt and where the
old king, propped up In bed, waited
and fought terror.
His eyes, wenry with many yeo-s of
ruling, of disappointments ond bitter
ness, roved tho room. They came to
rest nt lost on the photograph of n
young man, which stood on his bed
side table.
Ho was n very young man, In a uni
form. He wns boyish, ond smiling.
There was a dog beside him, and Its
bend was on his knee. Wherever one
stood In the room, the eyes of the
photograph gozed at one. The king
knew this, ond beeouso ho wos quite
old, and because there were few peo
ple to whom n king dorcs to speak hie
Inmost thoughts, ho frequently spoke
to tho photograph. The older he
grow, the more lie felt sometimes, as
though It knew what he said.
"If they've got him," ho sold now
to tho picture, "It Is out of my hands,
nnd Into yours, my boy."
Much of his life hod been spent In ;
waiting, In waiting for a son. In watt-:
lug for that son to grow to bo n man, ,
In waiting whllo that son In his turn
loved nnd married and begot n man- j
child, in waiting, when that son had
died a violent death, for the time when
his tired bonds could relinquish the
scepter to his grandchild. j
Quito suddenly the door opened.
Tho old man turned his head. Just
Inside stood a very dirty small hoy.
The Crown Prlnco Ferdinand WI1-;
Horn Otto was most terribly fright-
enod. Everything wos at sixes and
levens. Miss Bralthwalte had been
crying her head off. ond on seeing him
hod follen In a faint. Not that ho
thought It was a real faint. He had
unmistakably seen her eyelids quiver.
And when she came to she had or
dered him no supper, and four pages
of German translation, nnd to go to
bod nt seven o'clock Instead of seven- ,
thirty for a week. All the time cry-,
in,, ui, jni men sue nun seiu nun '
to his grandfather, und taken aromatic j
ammonia.
His grandfather said nothing, but
looked at him.
"Here hero I am, sir," said the
crown prince from the door.
The king drew n long brenth. But
the silence persisted. Prince Ferdl-1
nana wiiuani uttc. rurtiveiy ruiaied
a dusty shoe against the back of n
trousers leg.
"I'm afraid I'm not very neat, ftlr,"
sold Prince Ferdinand William Otto,
and took n step forward. Until his !
grandfather commanded hltn, he could
not advance Into tho room.
"Come here," sold the king,
no went to the side of the bed.
"Where have you been?''
"I'm afraid I ran away, sir."
"Why?"
Prlnco Ferdinand William Otto con
sidered. It was rather an awful mo
ment. "I don't exactly know. I Just
thought I would."
You see, It wos really extremely dif
ficult To say thnt he was tired of
I
Ti iHN
tit : m
"Here I Am, Sir," Said the Crown
Prince.
things ns they were would sound un
grateful. Would, Indeed, be most Im
polite. And then, exactly why had ho
run away?
"Suppose," sold tho king, "you draw
dp n chair nnd tell mo nbout It. We'd
better tnlk It over, I think."
His roynl highness drew up n chair,
ond sot on It His feet not renchlng
the floor, ho hooked them nround tho
chnlr rung. This wos permissible be
cause, first, tho king could not see
them from his bed. Second, It kept
his knees from slinking.
"Probably you nro owaro," said tho
king, "that you havo ularmcd a greot
many people."
"I'm sorry, fir. I didn't think"
"A prince's duty Is to think. Where
did you go)"
"To the park, sir. I I thought I'd
like to sec the pnrk by myself. It's
very hard to enjoy things with Miss
Hrnlthwoltc. sir. She does not really
enjoy tho things 1 like. Nlkky nnd
I"
"By 'Nlkky' you mean Lieutenant
Larlsch?"
"Yes. sir."
"Go on."
"We llko the same things, sir tho
Pike's "cok-or-Bust, nnd nil that."
Tho king raised himself on his el
bow. "What was Hint?" he demanded.
Prince Fcrdlnnnd Wllllnm Ottc.
blushed, nnd explnlned. It wns Bob
by's name for tho peak nt the top of
the scenic railway. He had been on
the railway. He had been his en
thusiasm carried him nwny. His
checks Hushed. He snt forward on the
edge of his choir, and gestlculnted.
"I wos awfully happy, sir," he ended.
"It feels like Hying, only safer. And
the lights are pretty. It's llko fairy
land. There were two or three times
when It seemed ns If we'd turn over,
or leop the track. But wo didn't"
The king lay hack and thought More
than anything In the world ho loved
this boy. But the occasion demanded
n strong bond. "You were happy," he
sold. "You were disobedient, you
were causing grave anxiety nnd dis
tressand you were hnppy I The first
duty of o prince Is to bis country. His
first lesson Is to obey laws. He must
always obey certain laws. A king Is.
but tho servant of his people. Some
day you will he the king. You nre be
ing trained for thnt high office now.
And yet you would set the example
of Insubordination, disobedience, nnd
reckless disregard of the feelings of
others."
"Yes, sir," said Prlnco Ferdinand
William Otto, feeling very small afid
ashamed.
Not only thnt. You slipped nwny.
You ,j not B0 openy " You BnenUJd
j.L, n thief
u?"
Are you proud of
"No, sir."
"I shall" sold the king, "require no
promise from you. Promises nre poor
things to hold to. I leave this matter
In your own hands. Otto. You will be
punished by Miss Bralthwalte, nnd for
the next ten days you will not visit
me. l ou may go now."
Otto got off his chair. He wns feel
ing exceedingly crushed. "Good night,
sir," he said. And wotted for hi
grandfather to extend his hand. But
the old king lay looking straight ahead.
with his mouth set In grim lines, nnd
his hands folded over his breast.
At the door the crown prince turned,
ond bowed. His grandfather's eyes
were fixed on the two gold eagles over
the door, but the photograph on the
table appeared to be smiling nt him.
Until late that night General Mett
llch ond the king tnlked together. The
king hnd been lifted from his bed nnd
sat propped In a great choir. Abovo
his shabby dressing gown his face
showed gaunt and old. In n straight
chair facing hlui snt his old friend nnd
chancellor.
"What It has shown Is not entirely
; bail." snld the king, after a pause.
1 "The boy has Initiative. And he made
no attempt at evasion. He Is essential
ly truthful."
"What It has also shown, 6lre, 1
that no protection Is enough. When,
I, who love the lad, and would when
I could sleep, otid let him get away,
os I did"
"The truth Is," sold the king, "we
ore both of us getting old." He tapped
with his gnarled fingers on the blanket,
that lay over his knees. "Tho truth
Is also," ho observed n moment later,
"that the boy has very few pleasures.
Ho Is alone a greot deal."
General Mettllch raised his shnggy
head. Many years of wen ring a sol
dler's cap had not Injured his heavy
gray hair. He had bristling eyebrows,
white now, nnd o short, lighting mus
tache. When he was Irritated, or dls
agreed with any one, his eyebrows
came down nnd the mustache went up.
Many years of association with his
king hod given him the right to talk
to him ns man to man. They even
quarreled now and then. It was a
bravo man who would quarrel with old
Ferdinand II.
So now his eyebrows enrno down
and his inustncho went up. "How
nlone, sire?"
"You do not regard that bigoted
English woman as a companion, do
you?"
"She Is a thoughtful and conscien
tious womnn, sire," ho sold stiffly. It
happened that ho hnd selected her.
"Sho does her duty. And as to the
boy being lonely, ho has no tlrao to be
lonely. His tutors"
"How old is he?"
"Ten next month."
Tho king snld nothing for a time.
Then "It Is hard," ho said at laBt
"for soventy-four to see with the ejes
of ten. As for this afternoon why In
tho name of a thousand devils did
they toko him to seo tho 'Flying:
Dutchman?' I detest it"
(TO BQ CONTINUED.)
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