10 AWOI|ANDffIS lliw M H ?mMI im^ Copyright, 1816, by (jaorg* Br rr MoCutchaon. CONTINUED ' 'lf was due to the most stupendous exertion of self restraint on my part that I said, "Well. I'll be Jiggered!" Her audacity staggered me. "Madame," I exploded, "will you be food enough to listen to me? I am not to be trifled with. Tomorrow some time I shall enter the east wing of this building If I have to knock down all the doors on the place. Do you under stand, madame?" "I do hope, Mr. Smart, you can ar range to break In about ft o'clock. It will afford me a great deal of pleasure to give you some tea. May I expect you at S or thereabouts?" Her calmness exasperated me. 1 ■truck the stone balustrade an em phatic blow with my fist, sorely peel ing the knuckles, and ground out: "For two cents I'd do It tonlghtr "Ob, dear; oh, dear!" she cried meek tagly. "Yon most be a dreadful woman!" I cried out "First you make yourself at home In my house; then you suc ceed In stopping my workmen, steal my cook and menserranta, keep us all ■wake with a barking-dog, defying me ro my very face"— "How awfnlly stern you are!" "I don't believe a word you say ■bout a sick baby—or a doctor! It's , all poppycock. Tomorrow you will fled j yourself, beg and baggage, sitting at the bottom of this hJU waiting for"— j "Wait!" she cried. "Are jrou really. 1 truly In earnest?" "Most emphatically!" "Then I—l shall surrender," she said ▼ery slowly and seriously, I was glad to observe. "That's more like it!" I cried enthu clastic ally. "On one cosdiUop," she said. "You must agree In ndrance to let me staj on here for a month or two. It—it 1: most Imperative, Mr. Smart" "I aball be the sole judge of that madame," I retorted, with some dig nity. "By the way," I Went on, knit ting my brows, "how am I to get Intc I your side of the castle? Schmlck says j he's lost the keys." A good deal depended on her answer "They shall be delivered to you to morrow morning, Mr. Smart," she said aoberly. "Good night" The little window closed with a bnap ; ■nd I was left alone in the smiling; moonlight I was vastly excited, ever i thrilled by the prospect of a sleeplessl night "Britton," I said later, "I want to bej called at 7 o'clock sharp In the morn lng." Noting his polite struggle to con ' ceal his astonishment, I told him of mj 1 second encounter with the lady acrose the way. "She won't be expecting you at 7,' sir," he remarked. "And, as for that | she may be expecting to call on you instead of the other way around." "Right!" said I, considerably dashed j "Besides, sir, would It not be safei' to wait till tbe tourist party has come and gone?" "No tourists ienter this place tomor row or any other day," 1 declared firmly. "Well, I'd suggest waiting Just thf same, sir." said lie. evidently inspired. "Confound them!" I growled, some how absorbing bis presentiment He besltated for a moment near the j door. "Will yon put in the telephone, sir?" he asked respectfully. Very curiously I was thinking of it' at that Instant. "It really wouldn't be a bad Idea. Britton," I said, startled into commit ' tiug myself. "Save us a great deal of legging It over town and all that sort of thing, eh?" "Yes, sir. What I was about to sug gest sir. Is that while we're about 11 we might as well have a system ol electric bells put in—that is to say, sir Mn both wings of the castle. Very convenient sir, you see, for all par ties concerned." "I see," said I, impressed, and ther repeated it, a little more impressed after reflection. "I see. You are a very resourceful fellow, Britton. I an: Inclined to bounce all of the Scbmicks They have known about this from tbr start and have lied like thieves. Bj Jove, she must have an extraordinarj power over them or claim or some thing equally potent Now I think ol It, she mentioned a grandfather. Thai would go to prove she's related in some way to some one, wouldn't it?" "1 should consider it to be more that likely, sir," said Britton, with a per fectly straight face. He must bav< b£en sorely tried In the face of mj Inane maunderlngs. "Pardon me, sir but wouldn't it be a tiptop Idea tc have it out with tbe Scbmicks to night?" "Excellent idea, Britton. We'll hav« them up in my study." CHAPTER VI. "Who is thia woman?** CONRAD and Gretel appeared with Britton after an uncon scionable lapse of time, par tially dressed and grumbling "Conrad." said I, fixing the ancient with a stern, compelling gaze, "this has gone quite far enough." "Yes. mein herr?" "Do you serve ine. or do you serve the lady m the east wluc?" - •> •-v " -?.~V v .jr - . ! • '> '< * . N 77 ' . *'*"*» •< * . 1 % ■-' •> :# . ■ *, -' ;: \ 4 * v * r . * ~ • : ' ;V C '- " ; /f i * HARRISBURG STAR-INDEPENDENT, MONDAY EVENING, APRIL 26, 1915. 1 am a very old man," he whined. "I do," said he, with a great deal more wit than 1 thought be possessed. "I have been talking with the lady this evening," said 1. "Yes, mein herr; 1 know," said he. "Oh. you do, eh? Weil, will you be good enough to tell me what Is the meaning of all this two faced, under hand conduct on yonr part? I want the truth from yo\}. Who is this wo man, and why are you so infernally set upon shielding her? What crime has she committed? Tell me at once, or, by the Lord Harry, out you go to morrow—all of you!" "I am a very old man," he whined twisting his gnarled fingers, a sugges tion of tears in his voice. "My wif< is old. mein herr. You would not b« cruel. We bare been here for sixtj years. The old baron"— "Enough!" I cried resolutely. "Out with it, man! I mean all that I sny!' "Tomorrow, mein berr, tomorrow,' be mumbled in a final plea. I sboob my head. "She will ecplaln every thing tomorrow," he went on eagerly "I am sworn to reveal nothing, meli herr. My wife, too, and my sons. W« may not speak until she gives th< word. Alas, we shall be turned out t< die in our"— "We have been faithful servants tc the Rothhoefens for sixty years!" sob bed his wife. "And still are, I suspect!" I cried angrily. Mr. Poopendyke's common senst came in very handily at this critical Juncture. He counseled me to let th« matter rest until the next morning when it was reasonable to expect tlx lady herself would explain everything However, we forced something oul of Schmlck before bis stalwart sons came tramping up the stairs to rescut him. The old man gave us a touch ol Inside history concerning Scbloss Roth hoefen and Its erstwhile powerful bar ons. About the middle of the nineteenth century the last of the real barons-1 the powerful, landowning, despotic barons, I mean— enme to the end of hit fourscore years and ten and was laid away with great pomp and glee by th« people of tbe town across the river He was tbe last of the Rothhoefens for he left no male belr. His twe daughters had married Austrian noble men, and neither of them bad a malt descendant The estate, already In a state of financial as well a; physical disintegration, fell Into the bnnds ol women and went from bad to worst so rapidly thnt long before the last quarter of the century was fairly be gun the castle and tbe reduced bold lngs slipped away from the Rotbboef ens altogether and Into the control o) the father of the count from whom I purchased tbe property. The count's father, it appears, was a distiller o( great wealth in bis day and a man ol action. Unfortunately be died befort he had the chance to carry out hi? projects In connection with the reha bllltatlon of Scbloss Rothhoefen. even then a deserted, ramshackle resort foi paying tourists and a Mecca for an tiqne and picture dealers. The new count, my Immediate pre decessor, was not long In dissipating the preat fortune left by bis fatber the worthy distiller. He had rue through with the bulk of his patri mony by tbe time he was twenty-flv« and was pretty much run down at th< heel when he married In tbe hope ol recouping his lost fortune. Tbe Scbmicks did not like him. They did not approve of him as lord and master, nor was it possible for them tc resign themselves to the fate that had put this young scapegrace into tbt elioes. so to sucak. of the grim old barons Rothhoefen. who. whatever elac they may have been in a high banded sort of way. were men to the core This pretender, this creature without brains or blood, this sponging repro bate. was not to their liking. U 1 am to quote £onrad. who became quite forceful in his harangue against the recent order of things. He, bis wife and his sons, he assured me, were full of rejoicing when they learned that the castle had passed from Count Hohendabl's bunds into mine. I at least would i>ay them their wages, and I might, in a pinch, be depended upon to pension them when they got too old to b« of any use about the cas tle. All attempts on my part to connect the lady in the eHst wing with the history of the extinct Kotbhoefens were futile. He would not commit himself. "Well." said I, yawning In helpleos collusion with the sleepy Gretel, "we'll let It go over till morning. Call me at 7, Britton." I went to bed, but not to sleep. It was very clear to me that my neigh bor was a disturber In every tense of the word. She wouldn't let me sleep. For hours 1 tried tq get rid of her, but she filtered Into my brain and prodded my thoughts into the most violent ac tivity. She wouldn't stay put. But finally 1 dropped off. I was aroused from my belated sleep by the sound of mighty cataracts and the tread of countless elephants. Too late 1 realized that the tourists were upon me! Too late I remembered that the door to my room bnd been left un locked! One hundred and sixty-nine were huddled outside my door, drink lng In the monotonous drivel of the guide who had a shrill, penetrating voice and not the faintest notion of a conscience. I listened in dismay for a moment and then, actuated by something more than mere fury, leaped out of bed and prepared for a dash acro«» the room to lock the door. On the third stride 1 whirled and made a flying leap into the bed. scuttling beneath the covers with the Rpeed and accuracy of a craw fish. Just In time, too, for the heavy door swung slowly open a second later and the shrill, explanatory voice was projected loudly Into my lofty bed chamber. "Come a little closer, please," said the morose man with the cap. "This room was occupied for centuries by the masters of Scbloss Rothboefen. It is a bedchamber. See the great ba ronial bed. It lias not been slept In for more than 200 years. The later barons refused to sleep in It because one of their ancestors bad been assassinated between Its sheets at the tender age of six. He was stabbed by a stepuncle who played him false." A resolute beholder spoke up, "Can't we step Inside?" "If you choose, madame. But we must waste no time." "1 do so want to see where the old barons slept." ' " To Be Continued Hard Pea Coal Drops 25c a Ton Wilkes-Barre Pea is now $4.95 a ton, and the drop in hard pea affects the price of other sizes with which it is mixed. Wilkes-Barre Xo. 2 Nut is now $5.65, Pill your bins now With range coal for next winter. These prices will advance July 1. H. M. KELLEY & CO. 1 N. Third Street Tenth and State Streets HOTEL IROQUOIS South Carolina Avenue e gazes at the flower of the Cincin nati Zoo, the marvelously perfect young giraffe Daisy, which he raised from birth. You can count on the fingers of one hand all the giraffe infants which the zoos of this continent have ever seen, and none bnt Daisy has lived more than a fortnight after birth. Dai sy is now four years old and the ad miration of every wild animal lover." he acid to the taste. This whitens them ami removes the bitter principle. The little button mushrooms ar® used for garnishes and the big caps are broiled or filled with fine forcemeat and baked in glass bells. For general purposes, after soaking ♦he mushrooms in the acid water drop them into boiling salted water and cook until they are tender. They require very littlo water but must be closely covered to keep in the steam; they will he tender in a few minutes. Some ways of servinjj them are: on toast, in purees, stutTcit with herbs and a rich sauce, baked, steamed, broiled and creamed. If you are so fortunate as to have A quantity of mushrooms that you are positive arc wholesome yon may make mushroom catsup, or dry them after they are steamed tender, or can them as you can corn. QUESJIONS AND ANSWERS "What is meant by a faggot of pars ley f—.lane," Reply.—This expression is frequent ly seen in French cookery books and means a mixture of parsley and other green herbs. You may use bay leaf, thyme, a bit of celery and a small green onion. It is intended to flavor meats and soups. Agaiu it may be just a bunch of parsley tied loosely. There are six varieties of parsley and all are used for garnishing and for flavoring. To-morrow—Pimentos. IT IffWlU.iLJ.il| UJLUJLULII. 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ProMaat-lflaaafW j : : jgmvmmmvmmmmwsl jaw/riigiHia Qnick Belief for Coughs, Colds and Hoarseness. Clear the Voice—Fine fox Speakers and Singers. 25c. GOEGAS' DRUG BTOEEB IS N. Third Bt. Penaa. Station The Harrisburg Hospital is open daily except Sunday, between 1 nml 2 o'clock p. m. for dispensing medical advice and prescriptions to those un able to pay for them.