WIDENER LIBRARY
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142542.1.15
SHORT
STORY
COLLECTION

FPIWPWARD PRESCOTT
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LLORE


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CLINTON
PATTEE
THE CONDESA (LADY NAN)
FINDS ONE OF HER AFGHAN ATTENDANTS HOLDING A KNIFE AGAINST THE
SIDE OF A HOTEL CHAMBERMAID WHO PROVES TO BE A
SECRET AGENT OF WILHELMSTRASSE


THE INTERNATIONAL
ADVENTURE LIBRARY

THREE OWLS EDITION
THE
UNSEEN HAND
Stories of Diplomatic Adventure
BY
CLARENCE HERBERT NEW
W. R. CALDWELL & CO.
NEW YORK


CONTENTS
CHAPTER
PAGE
I. THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES.. 3
II. “The ALDERSHOT AFFAIR” ..... 34
III. TOUCHING UPON THE HONOR OF ISLAM .
IV. THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND .... 106
V. THE GREATER PLOT .. ..... 145
VI. THE SKAGER-RACK—AND KITCHENER . . 178
VII. THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP IN THE PYRENEES 213
TERIOUS
P IN THE
RENEES
VII. A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP IN ROUMANIA
.
246
IX. THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES AND THE GREEN
CIRCLE . ....... .. 278
X. THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION . . . . 310
XI. CAPT, CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT OF THE RUS-
SIAN REVOLUTION ...... . 344





THE UNSEEN HAND





THE UNSEEN HAND
CHAPTER I
THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES
(YOUNG Simmons had appeared in Fleet Street as a
fledgling war-correspondent for the Ladies' Farm &
Home Weekly of Columbus, Ohio, having been
dizzily elevated from the society column by a managing
editor who had no other available material. And he was
endeavoring to impress a Young-American point of view
upon the men who were shuttling between St. Bride's
House and Adelphi Terrace while they waited for trans-
portation and faked their daily cables from anything they
could pick up around Whitehall.
Someone had put him up at the Press Club as a matter
of esprit de corps. Somebody else invited him to dine at
the Savage, where he met such men as Palmer, “R. H. D.”
Irwin, and other of the Olympians who happened to be
passing through at the time. Simmons had read “Gal-
legher,” thought it a rather improbable sketch, and ven-
tured to correct, upon some trifling point, the big kindly
man who, in a few short months, was to become only a mem-
ory. He expressed his convictions upon the bogey of Euro-
pean diplomacy-pointed out that nothing good was ever
accomplished in world politics by such means, and that


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 5
There was material for consideration in Barremore's
questions. In fact, none of them had happened to get
just that slant on the situation before. But Simmons,
apparently, had not yet acquired the mental development
which promptly recognizes incontrovertible fact.
"Oh, I think weight of public opinion accounts for that
sort of thing! Surely you don't take any stock in that
Diplomatic Free Lance rubbish? I've never seen the
claim made that he was anything but a fictitious character."
“Nor I, sir. But some of us here are positive that a
number of individual coups attributed to him actually
have taken place within the last three years. I'll go even
further: I'll bet a hundred dollars that practically every
bit of diplomatic strategy which has been credited to this
same mysterious "Free Lance” will prove authentic if
the secret history of this war is ever written! Because
if they were entirely imaginary, Germany would be a
darned sight nearer victory than she is to-day. It's only
circumstantial evidence, of course, but every newspaper
man who has been on this job for a year or more will
admit the belief that some unseen hand has intervened
not once, but fifty times since 1914—to save England from
disaster, and, in so doing, unquestionably preserved the
structure of modern civilization that we have so labor-
lously built up. Whose hand it was, we may never know;
most of its work could not have been accomplished if his
identity were known-or that of others who have pre-
sumably assisted him. But to express disbelief in the
momentous part which diplomatic intrigue is constantly
playing in this war is to ignore one of the most self-evident
facts concerning it."


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES
7
something in the natuh of a julep. Not a properly con-
structed one, of cou'sebut sufficiently resembling the real
thing to ansuh the purpose temporarily. Shall we-eh?
Will yo' do me the hono'?”.
Having experienced considerable difficulty in getting
anything so like a breath from home, during their sojourn
in England, they accepted the Colonel's hospitality-
afterward returning to the smoking lounge near the great
dining room, where they seated themselves, to watch the
occasional celebrities as they came out, and chat over old
times in Washington.
"You're still connected with the State Department,
Colonel?”
"Yes, suh. In one capacity or anotheh, I've served
through seven administrations. I suppose my position
amounts to something like a Fou’th Assistant Secretary of
State-the person who has served in the Depa’tment until
he knows the wo’ding of every treaty—the political status
of every man connected with otheh Govʼments. It was
that so't of knowledge which made it advisable that I
should be where Ambassado? Page might consult me
frequently, fo' a month or so. It was an oppo'tunity fo'
Seeing London and France which I was really much
pleased to accept."
As they were chatting over affairs in the States, a
smooth-shaven man of striking appearance came out of
the big dining room with a woman whose beauty and taste
in dress attracted general attention. They were in con-
ventional dinner-clothes, but it was evident that the man
was more accustomed to uniform and that they were both
well-known personages. As Colonel Dinwiddie caught


THE UNSEEN HAND
sight of them, he abruptly stopped talking, took a second
look, and rose from his chair. He was approaching the
man with outstretched hand before the war correspon-
dents could stop him and whisper that he might be making
a mistake.
“Mistuh Grisscome, suh, this is one of the most delight-
ful suhprises of my life! It must be fifteen yeahs since I
last had the pleasure of talking with yo' at the State
Department in Washington! I really feahed yo' might
be no longer living, suh!”
· Now the personage was a man of rare tact and demo-
cratic ideas-qualities which had been partly respon-
sible for his wide popularity. He saw at a glanceas did
his charming companion-that the elderly gentleman was
quite honest in his supposed recognition of an old friend.
So he grasped the outstretched hand with courteous
warmth, to gain time while he decided how to explain the
mistake without making it too embarrassing for the
genial Southerner. Barremore, however, had got his
wits together by this time, and came to the rescue.
“Your Lordship, may I present my old friend, Colonel
Jefferson Dinwiddie, of Virginia and Washington-at
present attached to our Embassy in London! Colonel,
this is His Lordship, Rear Admiral, the Earl of S
You supposed him an American whom you'd known very
well; of course case of misleading resemblance."
A flush of mortification crept into the handsome old
Virginian's face, but as he took another look at the Earl
-it was succeeded by an expression of mystification.
The resemblance was so unbelievably perfect-allowing,
of course, for the slight changes of fifteen years. He was


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 9
beginning to apologize for his mistake when the Earl
courteously stopped him.
"If you're connected with the American Embassy,
Colonel, we should know each other, anyhow, and I'm
really obliged to Mr. Barremore for the introduction.
Being taken for someone else is not an unusual experience,
I assure you! Sometimes, I fancy I must have grown
from a standardized pattern. And it's quite possible
that we have met, don't you know. I'm frequ’ntly in the
States—know a lot of your Governm’nt people. Er--
my dear” (turning to the Countess, who had been a
smiling and interested spectator), “let me present Colonel
Dinwiddie. Mr. Barremore you already know. We
must have quite a number of mutual acquaintances,
Colonel. Er—why not compare notes some evening?
Let's see? I believe we're dining at home, Thursday
evening-in Park Lane. Could you gentlemen come to
us then? No other engagem’nt, I hope? Very good!
We'll expect you, then, at seven-thirty.”
As they returned to where Grant was sitting, the
Colonel was dazed. Barremore was trying to puzzle out
something which eluded him.
"Must have been a pretty striking resemblance,
Colonel?”
“My boy—I'm feeling a little anxiety about myself—
really! Must be feeling my age more than I supposed.
I don't think I eveh made a mistake like that befo' in
my life! Why, I would sweah to yo', even now, that His
Lo’dship is Mistuh Cyrus K. Grisscome--a very wealthy
Bostonian who did some valuable secret service wo'k
to' ou Gov'ment during the Roosevelt administration.


10
THE UNSEEN HAND
He was carried on the Navy Register three or fo' yeahs as
Commander Crespinge, and his yacht was used as a fast
scout cruiser. But-of cou’se—that's impossible! It's
merely one of those stahtling resemblances yo' read about
in wo'ks of fiction. I can sca'cely express to yo’ my
appreciation of his cou’tesy in smoothing oveh my blundeh.
The invitation, of cou’se, was merely a part of it—which we
must decline with a note of thanks, to-morrow. It was
very tactfully done!”.
"It certainly was, Colonel! His Lordship and Coun-
tess Mona are among the most popular couples in Europe
to-day. And you'll not make the mistake of declining
their invitation, either! Under the circumstances, it was
amost unusual and courteous thing to do-wouldn't happen
once in a million times, over here. But he meant it. We
shall be expected in Park Lane on Thursday evening-and
I can assure you that many of our American society climbers
would pay a round five thousand in cash to substitute for
us. I'm wondering—just wondering—whether he had any
object behind natural kindness in that invitation?”
Next day, when Grant and Barremore stepped into the
Press Club in Salisbury Square, one of the Reuter men,
who had been glancing through a copy of the Kölnische
Morgenblatt, commenced to chuckle over an article until
some of the other men asked what was amusing him so much.
“The German mind! The ponderous workings of the
German mind! Listen to this, will you!” (Translating,
as he read):
f evidence were needed to show what utter fools the English
are-how far they still wander from a realization of our purpose


· THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 11
and determination-one should merely note their continued
failure to take us seriously after the two last bloody years. In
spite of the fact that we are regularly obtaining details of their
army and naval plans far in advance of their own Parliament,
they stupidly assume that all danger from our perfect spy system
has been reduced to a negligible minimum. Their newspapers
discuss dangerous questions, and their magazines enlarge upon
them, quite as if it were impossible for us to obtain copies of
them. One of the Cassell monthlies, for example, devotes quite
a lengthy article to an identification of the infamous “Diplo-
matic Free Lance” and his associates. This man, it will be
remembered-by the most contemptible betrayal of confidence
reposed in him by former German hosts, who had entertained
him and the woman masquerading as his wife, upon the sup-
position that they were people of breeding who belonged to the
aristocracy–has been the solitary exception among Englishmen
to prove really dangerous to us, and a rope is waiting for him as
soon as he is caught. Various conjectures have been made by
Wilhelmstrasse as to his identity-but the truth is now kindly
volunteered for us by the fools across the Channel. It seems that
he is—as we have been morally certain for some time—a sport-
crazed English peer who has never been credited with the slight-
est political ability–Lord Trevor, of Dartmoor. In his nefar-
lous and unprincipled schemes against us, he has been assisted
by the woman known as Lady Nan Trevor; by a Sir Francis
Lammerford, who was once dismissed from the English Foreign
itice for conduct unbecoming a gentleman and diplomat; by a
Jackamoor servant, calling himself an Afghan prince; by a Sir
edward Wray, whose thinly veiled name is easily recognizable
by every German who recalls the black treachery of August, 1914;
by an unprincipled attaché of the American Embassy in Paris;
and by the old reprobate, Cavaliere Scarpia, in Italy. Editori-
ally, we take this opportunity to thank Messrs. Cassell & Co.


12
THE UNSEEN HAND
for receipt of their magazine-with the information contained-
and express our conviction that this choice association of
criminals will mysteriously die on their own ground, in one way
or another, within a few weeks.
As the Reuter man finished the paragraph, there was a
roar of laughter around the room.
“The bloomin' blighters! The confidin' systematie
babes in the wood! They read a bloomin' magazine
story clear through from start to finish-written by a man
who's not even English, I'm told-an' then are so dem-
nition thick they don't even know it's pure fiction! My
word! What a beastly lot of rotters! Fancy their never
even turnin' up Burke or Debrett an' findin' there are no
such people as Viscount Trevor of Dartmoor or Sir Francis
Lammerford in the British Peerage!”
“Aye! But-stop a bit! There are quite enough
Trevors and Wrays to give the massive German mind an
impression that it is on the right track. One Englishman
is like another of the same name to 'em, you know; an'
it'd be just like 'em to attempt exterminatin' a whole
family until they were jolly well sure they'd struck the
right one, don't you know!”
“Oh, thunder! If an editor doesn't know a purely
imaginary story when he reads it, he'd better get a job
shovelling coal!”
"How did this Diplomatic Free Lance business start-
anyhow?”
“Blessed if I know! Several years ago—when all
Europe was holding its breath over the audacity of a bril-
liant coup by England—I asked an Under Secretary in


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 13
Downing Street if one of their men was responsible for it,
He said, most emphatically, no! Said that Government
could never have authorized the methods used nor
recognized, publicly, the man who scored for it. He be-
lieved it could have been done by nobody save a man
‘working on his own'-as a free lance. Well, other
coups have followed that one in rapid succession-par-
ticularly since the war started—until anything for which
there's no accounting is set down as the work of England's
mysterious Free Lance. Whether that magazine chap
originated the idea as pure fiction, or whether he's some-
body really in the know and taking that method of record-
ing actual underground history, may never be definitely
published. But I'll say this much: I know of at least
eighteen separate instances where coups described as the
work of this mysterious English Free Lance have actually
been verified two or three months later. It's legend-
a joke, if you like-Baron Munchausen and Sherlock
Holmes combined, gossip, hearsay, pure fiction, as far as
anything that Germany really knows. And yet—I've got
a hundred quid in my pocket that says it's all of ninety
per cent. fact! And I'm talking as an Associated Press
man who has been writing European politics for all of
twenty years—who has stayed with this war since the day
the Germans entered Luxembourg.”
Although the topic was merely one of casual discussions
when newspaper men had exhausted pretty well every-
thing else, Barremore was becoming obsessed by it.
Suppose the anecdotes, the magazine stories, the German
comment, were actually the outcroppings of a far-reaching
influence in the war which, for obvious reasons, could not


14
THE UNSEEN HAND
be made public until the lapse of time nullified the danger
of such a revelation? Suppose the magazine man respon-
sible for the fiction was really on the inside using this
method of preserving for future generations a record of
the actual secret-service work that was silently doing
more than armies or submarines toward swinging the
balance of final decision against the Teutonic empires?
According to the law of averages, it was probable that
some, if not all, of those associated with the Free Lance
would lose their lives before the end of the war as a natural
result of their activities. The pitchers cannot forever
go to the well immune. Suppose—the Free Lances being
killed, and their chronicler also passing away without
revealing their identity-all record of this vital force in
the war should be lost to future readers of history.
Barremore, of course, recognized that, even were he in
possession of the real facts, he could not publish them-
certainly not until after the death of those concerned;
which meant that any time he spent in probing the mys-
tery would represent just that much unproductive labor
for several years at least. But his pride as a journalist
-his sense of loyal obligation eventually to place credit
where credit was due--made him the more determined to
ferret out the truth. During the next two days—while
waiting for cable news to break-he spent several hours in
the British Museum looking up the “S "peerage, the
records of several county families, and everything he could
find on India during the late 90's. Then he called upon
three retired East Indians-giving the impression that he
was collecting data for a book on Indian society during
the period when they were in office—and obtained a mass


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 15
of apparently trivial information from which, upon com-
paring it with what he already had, he drew some rather
amazing deductions.
He was doing for the Associated Press a series of inter-
views with men and women then prominent in London.
One of these—the Condesa de la Montaneta-was occupy-
ing, with her Moorish servants, a suite at the Carlton.
She was a wealthy Spanish widow who had come to
England with letters of introduction which promptly
opened the doors of London's most exclusive aristocracy
to her, and had become, within a few weeks, exceedingly
popular. It was understood that she had rented a pied-à-
terre with several unusual features, somewhere in Bel-
gravia, and was staying at the Carlton until it should be
ready for her. A description of this little house, with
personal data concerning its mistress, being the sort of
thing Barremore was obtaining for his syndicate, he se-
cured an interview one afternoon when she had returned
from a week-end in Surrey.
Within five minutes, he found himself yielding to the
fascination of her undeniable beauty and Castilian accent,
She was seated at a davenport between two windows when
he was admitted to her suite, and excused herself long
enough to address some envelopes before turning around
to chat with him. Her profile, in the somewhat darkened
room, was squarely against the window at her left; some-
how, it seemed oddly familiar. In the course of his jour-
nalistic experience, he had learned to distinguish between
the essentials in a person's appearance or manner and the
little accessories which, so frequently, made up an almost
impenetrable disguise. Of these essentials, the most


16
THE UNSEEN HAND
important is the profile, which may be somewhat altered,
but very seldom is. And the Condesa's impressed itself
upon his mental retina with the clear-cut familiarity of the
head on a new silver dime. In no other detail did she
resemble any one he knew, save as a general brunette
type. At the end of half an hour-when he was rising
from his chair to go-it came upon him with stunning
force that her profile was identical with that of Mona,
Countess of S
Now Countess Mona, while by no means a blonde, was
enough lighter in the tones of her complexion and hair to
make it seem almost impossible that dyes alone could be
responsible for the difference, and stood about five feet
four-as nearly as Barremore could remember. As she
gave him her hand in parting, Madame la Condesa was
all of five feet seven-her eyes were but an inch or two
lower than his own. A different arrangement of the hair
made the Condesa's face appear much fuller. She was a
heavier woman by two or three stone than the Countess
Mona, if appearances could be trusted. The expression,
the play of features, was different—as was the taste in
clothes. Yet-the profiles were identical; and that of
Madame la Condesa was not in keeping with her face at
other angles. It was the clean-cut outline of a more
slender woman's face.
From the Carlton, Barremore strolled westward to
Park Lane. Walking along by the Park railing, he
studied the appearance of the houses opposite and tried -
to recall something connected with one of the blocks when
he had first visited London, as a young fellow, several
years before. Presently, he remembered that an older


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 18
building had been torn down to make way for the four-
dations of a new house, then in process of erection. He
had walked through the lot to its rear on Park Street,
curious as to the object of certain excavations, forty feet
below the ground-level. At the time, he had supposed a
public building of some sort was being erected upon the
site, and soon forgot the peculiar excavations. But he
now recalled their exact appearance, and, though he
couldn't definitely locate the lot, saw that it must be
either the one covered by a detached Jacobean resi-
dence, or that containing a block of four city houses
adjoining it. That the excavations he remembered could
have been intended for the foundations of the four houses,
was out of the question-they didn't correspond in rela-
tive position or outline. Which apparently settled the
question as to their having been used for the Jacobean
mansion or vaults under its surrounding grounds. The
mansion was the well-known town residence of the Earl
and Countess of S-
Next evening, when he and Colonel Dinwiddie reached
the house, they were introduced to four other guests in the
drawing room. As the party sat down to dinner, Barre-
more encouraged the lady at his right to describe her ex-
periences as a Red Cross nurse while he covertly studied
his fellow guests and tried to recall what he'd heard con-
cerning them. The gentleman opposite a tall spare
man whose strongly marked face expressed power and
mentality-was a Baron W- , who had been for many
years in the Diplomatic service but was now supposed to
be serving for the duration of the war in some other capac-
ity. From stray remarks overheard elsewhere, also


18
THE UNSEEN HAND
from their manner of addressing him, the war corres-
pondent inferred that he had been an intimate friend of
the Earl and Countess Mona for many years.
Another man with an air of distinction, near the end of
the table, might have been taken for an Englishman who
had spent much of his time in the tropics—unless the
observer happened to be expert in ethnographic distinc-
tions. His clipped moustache had the typical English
cut; his manner of expressing himself was essentially Eng-
lish. But to a close observer who knew something of
racial peculiarities, he was unmistakably Oriental-pre-
sumably Hindu or Afghan. Barremore remembered him
as Sir Muhammad Jubbur Khan Bahadur, G.C.S.I.,
brother of the Maharajah of J- Educated at Oxford
and maintaining, for many years, a beautifully furnished
London residence on Grosvenor Square, he was a well-
known figure among the clubmen, a wealthy man of con-
siderable influence in Indian affairs, but so thoroughly
British in manner and appearance that his name came as a
surprise in any introduction. It occurred to the journalist
subconsciously that from the rear entrance of the Earl's
grounds on Park Street to Sir Muhammad's house, was
but a few steps—two or three blocks at the outside.
As they adjourned for coffee and cigars to a big library
at the right of the main hall, Barremore was struck with a
haunting sense of familiarity. Hours later it occurred to
him that the room had been almost photographically
described in stories of the Diplomatic Free Lance, but his
mind was occupied at the time with an estimate as to the
thickness of the outer wall behind the bookcases which
lined the south side of the library. The window embras-


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 19
ures gave an impression of ordinary thickness for the walls
of such a house. He remembered, however, that, viewed
from the outside, there had seemed to be a six-foot ex-
tension to that wing, unaccounted for in the regular shape
of the room—which brought back a recollection of the
original excavations again.
Colonel Dinwiddie proved a decided success as a dinner
guest. The finished representative of gentlemen planters
for several generations in Virginia, he was a desirable
acquisition to any social gathering, while thirty years'
experience in the State Department of the United States
had given him a knowledge of the world's political history
which any university would have been glad to secure for its
faculty. As Barremore noted the attention given the
Colonel by His Lordship and two of his guests, it
seemed to him that for some occult reason the Virginian
was really the guest of honor that evening. When they
were in the big library, Baron W- called his attention
to some of the family portraits on the walls.
“As a descendant of the old county families, Colonel,
you doubtless have some of these portraits by Rey-
nolds, Lawrence, and Romney on your own walls.
What I wished to point out, however, was the curious
repetition of family traits through succeeding generations.
Notice, for example, the striking resemblance between
Lord Francis
S p ainted by Sir Peter Lely, and his
grandson, Colonel Viscount S- painted by Reynolds
so many years later. (Er-would Your Lordship mind
standing just under the Viscount's portrait for a moment?
Thanks!) You see, Colonel? His Lordship might have sat
for either of those paintings—done long before he was


20
THE UNSEEN HAND
born. Odd, how a strain will perpetuate itself like that
through all the intermarriages—isn't it!”
· Again, something vaguely aroused speculation in Barre-
more's thoughts as to whether this little by-play upon the
part of His Lordship’s most intimate friend could have
been premeditated—could have been deliberately thought
out-for a purpose? To anyone who had mistaken the
Earl for someone else, it was about as conclusive proof
concerning his identity and that of his ancestors as could
be offered. There were the portraits-so genuinely
Romneys and Lawrences that there was no doubting the
period in which they had been painted. There was the
living descendant of the originals. There was no getting
away from the close resemblance. Yet the more Barre-
more thought it over, the more convinced he became that
a theory which had been persistently growing in his mind
was absolutely correct.
Walking through Green Park toward the American
Embassy, shortly after midnight-when the settling down
of a black fog made it temporarily impossible to get any
bearings—he and the Colonel stumbled upon a bench, and
sat down to smoke a cigar in the hope that the mist
would presently lift. Muffled sounds came to them from
beyond the Park limits, but after listening intently they
decided that nobody else had ventured through that part
of the Park in the murk.
After a momentary silence, it occurred to the war-
correspondent that no safer place could be found in Lon-
don for a discussion of the Free Lance mystery with the
Colonel—and the necessity for such a discussion appeared
unquestionable, if the Virginian was to understand the


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 21
danger of any reference to his supposed recognition of an
old friend in His Lordship of S , as Barremore saw
it.
“Colonel, I believe we've stumbled upon something
that Germany would give each of us a million to know!
something which any unscrupulous newspaper man would
publish, regardless of consequences. Do you remember
all of those names which the Kölnische Morgenblatt quoted
from that story in the Cassell magazine?”
“Yes, suh-I may say that I certainly do! Yo' must
remembeh that I have read articles concerning this mys-
terious Free Lance befo'—so am quite familiah with the
names of his supposed associates. Even as fiction, you
know, that so't of thing would natu'ly be of interest to one
in my official position.”
"Exactly! And you can understand my interest in it.
Colonel, I've been digging a little since you met the Earl
in the Cecil, the other evening, and I've turned up some
rather amazing isolated facts which fit together like pieces
of a Chinese puzzle. But, in discussing them, we must
avoid mentioning real names. Suppose we assume his
family name to be ‘Trevor,' instead of what it is? Suppose
we call his most intimate friend 'Sir Francis Lammerford,'
instead of 'Baron
W a nd his wife, ‘Lady Nan
Trevor,' instead of 'Countess M- Suppose we men-
tion another most intimate friend as Sir Abdool Mo-
hammed Khan, instead of 'Sir M- J - Khan
Bahadur”? And understand that “Sir Edward Wray' is
a thinly veiled reference to their friend in Downing
Street? Get me? Understand what I'm driving at?” ,
"I follow yo', suh-pehfectly!”


THE UNSEEN HAND
“Good! And you'll know exactly who I'm really talk-
ing about when I mention any of those names?”
“Pehfectly, suh. I see yo' reason fo’ the precaution-
even out heah in this fog."
"All right. I'm going to give you a little biographical
sketch as I see it; and I'll say, frankly, that I've had proof
enough to satisfy me.
"We'll go back to the time when Cyrus K. Grisscome
the only surviving member of a well-known Boston family
-began piling up money in Western mines and railway
development before he was thirty-five. He proved a
splendid organizer and executive, but his greatest ability
was shown in his knowledge of men and human motives.
As a boy in high school, geography and history were fads
with him. When he could afford it, he fitted up a large,
fast yacht with scientific apparatus for marine study.
Roosevelt had a good many common interests with him;
they cruised together for a couple of months. When he
became President and began to give us a real Diplomatic
Service for the first time in American history, Grisscome
made occasional suggestions which proved exceedingly
valuable so much so, that he was finally induced to
undertake secret and delicate work that couldn't be recog-
nized by any Government, if successful, or the secret agent
saved if he happened to be caught at it. Grisscome was
successful-almost unbelievably so—for several years.
Then the Taft administration came in. Grisscome's
services and character were neither understood nor appre-
ciated. He could get no backing without red-tape ex-
planations that would have been simply impossible in the
circumstances. Our Diplomatic Service became about


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 23
what it had been before the Roosevelt administration
which expresses the condition, adequately. Grisscome
was thoroughly disgusted. He had money to burn-
arranged for an indefinite absence, put his mining affairs
in the hands of his Western partner, and left on his yacht
for a protracted stay in the Orient. Get me so far?”
“Yes, suh; yo' are entirely correct in rega'd to Mistuh'
Grisscome's connection with ou' Gov'ment. I can vouch
fo' that.”
"Well, in the Hong Kong Club, he met John Satterlee,
the ship speculator, and his friend Culpeper Zandtt, the
war-correspondent. They put through a couple of big
deals together. Then Grisscome drifted up through the
Khyber Pass into Afghanistan. Happened to save the
life of a young khan who had been educated at Oxford and
whose family was even older than the Ameer's. Abdool
Mohammed attached himself to Grisscome as a friend
and exploring companion, feeling instinctively that the
American was a born leader and a great personage in his
own country. They drifted down into the Madras Pres-
idency—were hunting in the back country of Mysore
when they ran across a mighty sick English baronet in an
abandoned dâk bungalow, his servant having run away
from what he supposed to be cholera but which proved to
be enteric. It wasn't long before Abdool was struck with
the marvelous resemblance between Grisscome and the
Englishman, who had been a Deputy Commissioner in
Madras, his family estate in Devonshire having been gam-'
bled away in the time of George the Fourth. Sir George
Trevor grew steadily weaker and died ten days later, but,
while they stayed there taking care of him, he told Griss-


24
THE UNSEEN HAND
come a great deal about his life, his family connections and
friends-went into it so minutely, as dying men often do,
that Grisscome, who had one of those marvelous photo-
graphic memories, got a pretty complete mental picture
of the baronet's history and personality.”
“Go on, suh! I find yo'narrative vastly interesting:
- "Sir George left a few papers with data containing the
names of his family solicitors, addresses and photographs
of London friends, and a few simple matters to be wound
up. When Grisscome reached Madras, three different
persons stopped him on the streets, addressing him as Sir
George Trevor, and congratulating him upon his improved
health. For a joke, he started in to wind up the baronet's
connection with Indian life-merely from curiosity as to
whether it was possible to carry out such a deception.
Hinted at finding a considerable amount of buried loot in
an old rock-temple, up country, which had been aban-
doned for centuries—but didn't make it definite enough to
give the Government any valid claim upon what he'd
found. Then he and Abdool went to England-from
Aden-on his big yacht. He'd had her partly rebuilt
and registered under another name—the Ranee Sylvia-
as having been recently purchased by him. Called upon
the Trevor solicitors in London, was promptly recognized
as 'Sir George,' and commissioned them to buy back the
Devonshire estates. When this had been done, he ran
down for a week to look them over and found that the
family who had occupied the place for ninety years had
neither made any alterations in the old manor-house,
which had been erected around a Twelfth Century Nor-
man tower, nor even removed the old Trevor portraits


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 25
from the Elizabethan 'long gallery. Some of his neigh-
bors met him riding on the county roads and addressed
him as 'Sir George.' The thing got to be something more
than a joke; he decided to play the game and see how long he
could get away with it, having secret service work in mind.”
“But, my deah suh, he couldn't possibly remembeb
every one the baronet had known-by sight!”
“I'm coming to that. Grisscome, as you may remem-
ber, was a man whom it was exceedingly difficult to catch
napping—at any time. His mind worked like an elec-
tric spark—and he had intuition. It was known to every
one in Madras that Sir George had been in poor health
for a year or more-his memory and ability to carry out
his duties as Commissioner becoming so much affected
that the doctors ordered him up country to recuperate.
When Grisscome happened to see a man's or a woman's
face lighting up with an expression of recognition, he met
them half way-spoke of the partial amnesia which his ·
illness had left and begged them to recall themselves to
him, which they naturally did with considerable detail.
"He drifted about the London clubs for a few months-
then got restless. Went to Downing Street, introduced
himself to Sir Edward Wray as the unknown person who
had sent in some exceedingly important information from
Afghanistan, and suggested attempting a most audacious
political bluff at the then-approaching Kiel manquvres
of the German Navy. Wray saw the point-admitted
its potential value to England—but said Government
couldn't authorize such an attempt or in any way pro-
tect the man who made it. Grisscome, however, went
ahead and pulled it off successfully. From that moment


26
THE UNSEEN HAND
he has been the most brilliant secret-service diplomat in
Europe, scoring coup after coup for England-invariably
without authorization or protection. His services even-
tually reached a point where the Crown simply had to con-
fer a peerage upon him. He refused, at first, telling
Wray who he really was, and the circumstances which
led to his impersonating Sir George Trevor so amazingly.
Then Wray sprung a solar plexus one on him by explaining
that Garter King-at-Arms had traced out the Trevor
connections until they proved Grisscome, of Boston, a
second cousin of Sir George, and his only-surviving heir
to the title!”
'“Upon my hono', suh! That is the most amazing cir-
cumstance, if true, which has eveh come within my ex-
perience! Go on, suh!”
“Shortly before they made him Viscount Trevor of
Dartmoor, a girl of sixteen turned up from Madras-an
only child of Captain Guy Tremaine, who had been the
most capable officer of the Indian Secret Service and was
killed in Cabul by Russian agents. She had been a com-
panion of her father in his confidential work and had a
marvelous education of a most unusual sort. Tremaine
and Trevor had been very chummy. The Captain's will
named Trevor as Nan's guardian if he would accept the
charge. Although, of course, he had never seen the
girl before, she thought she recognized him at once; they
were mutually pleased with each other. As time passed,
she proved to have so much knowledge of Oriental intrigue
and was such a phenomenal linguist that they simply
couldn't keep her out of the game in which her capacity
proved almost equal to that of her guardian. As she grew


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 27
into womanhood, they quite naturally fell in love with
each other; but he was more than twenty years older, and
thought marriage with her preposterous. There was no
avoiding it, however; he had spoiled her for any lesser
breed of man, and he was so magnificently preserved
kept himself so remarkably fit—that he passed for years
younger than his age. Even to-day, he is one of the most
superb horsemen, fencers, and aviators in Europe. Som
they were married. Took a honeymoon on their yacht-
and pulled off a most amazing coup for England during
the voyage.”
“And the men associated with them in their Secret
Service wo'k? One infers there must be othehs—who
assist them.”
"I'm coming to them. Sir Francis Lammerford was
Dean of the King's Messengers for several years, and was
then supposed to have retired, after coming into money,
He was frequently in India, knew Tremaine very well,
though he hadn't seen Nan since she was seven or eight.
Abdool had met him in Cabul two or three times, and Sir
George Trevor, as Deputy Commissioner, had been also
an intimate friend. He guessed the substitution before
Trevor had been in London a year, and was so captivated
by the idea that he got to be thicker with the new Sir
George than he had ever been with the original-recognized
in him a far bigger, more forceful man. Naturally, they
were soon working together in underground diplomacy.
Lammerford simply couldn't keep out of the game when
he saw two such players as Trevor and Nan Tremaine at
work. Raymond Carter, of the American Embassy in
Paris, you must know very well, Colonel. He had met


28
THE UNSEEN HAND
Grisscome in Washington, and suspected his identity from
the night he crossed the Channel with Trevor in a biplane.
Scarpia, whom the Kölnische Morgenblatt referred to as
'the old Italian reprobate' is better known as 'the old
bald eagle of Italian diplomacy.' He's past eighty-six-
but so active and well preserved that he doesn't look
sixty-five. Bald as a billiard-ball-hooked nose and
drooping white moustache-piercing, deep-set eyes-and
knowledge under that polished brown dome of his that
would turn Europe inside out if he ever took the notion
to blab all he knows. You hear very little of him, these
days; he goes regularly, every year, to an oasis in the
Sahara to recuperate. Even this war wouldn't stop him.
But he gave Trevor material assistance in influencing
Italy to break with the Triple Alliance when she did.
Scarpia is a world-famous character; there is no mas-
querading in his case, and the mere mention of his name in
association with Trevor's is in itself a verification of
Trevor's being much more substantial than merely a
name in fiction.”
"And—will yo' tell me, suh, yo' reasons fo' supposing
Lady Nan Trevo' and our charming hostess to be
identical?”
“First place our 'charming hostess' appears to be
playing the big game at this very moment! You were
introduced at the Carson reception, last evening, to that
Spanish beauty, Madame la Condesa de la Montaneta.
Did you happen to get a glimpse of her profile?”
“Upon my wo'd-yes, suh! I wondered at the time
who she reminded me of! But-she's a much taller
woman, eh?"


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 29
"Notice the heels of her shoes, when she was sitting
down? ‘Louis' heels—the tallest ones I ever saw—three
inches, at least! Notice our hostess's feet this evening?
She wore what are sold in the States as ‘misses' shoes-
with low rubber heels. She has beautiful feet, but prides
herself upon being a long-distance walker and never wears
‘Louis' because she says they take the spring out of
her instep. Now—allow for differences in arrangement of
the hair, costume, manner, accent, complexion. Discover
some dermatological secret for swelling the flesh over the
cheek-bones a little, and you'll find but one woman play-
ing the two parts. I rang up our hostess, last evening,
when the Condesa was at the Carson reception, and was
told that she was spending the day in Hants. Just
before we turned up for dinner, this evening, I sent up my
card to the Condesa at the Carlton, and was told that
she was in Essex. When one is in evidence, the other is
not.
"There's a German plot brewing, Colonel-right here in
London. And you can bet your last cent that Lady Nan
Trevor is on the job! Keep your eye on His Lordship for
the remainder of your stay over here; keep tab on the
gentlemen we've designated as Sir Francis Lammerford
and Sir Abdool (who was given a 'G.C.S.I.' at the Del-
hi Durbar for his services). Before you go home, you
may pick up more hints concerning the underground
diplomacy of Europe than you obtained at the State
Department in all your thirty years' service! This is the
real thing over here, Colonel—they fence with the buttons
off the foils. A slip means something more than death
for the fencer! It may prove a national catastrophe


30
THE UNSEEN HAND
within a few hours! Above all, keep this point fixed in
your mind. Lord Trevor and his associates are myths-
mere characters in fiction. If you happened to express
any other belief, it might cost the lives of men and women
who are winning this war for civilization. If you and I
outlive them, we may some day talk-to our grandchildren
—and write vital history which cannot be written to-day.”
After a silence of several minutes, broken only by muf-
fled echoes through the fog, the Colonel said, reflectively:
“After all, suh, yo' mysterious Free Lances are really
as intangible as this fog, fo' all we actually know to the
contrary. Yo' have wo’ked out a most ingenious and
entirely possible theory concerning Grisscome's activities
fo' the last ten or fifteen yeahs—but yo’ve no proof that a
co't would accept. Lo'd Trevo's house, which has been
described in fiction, appeahs to closely resemble that of
ou' host of this evening—but such use by authors of
famous mansions, in their fiction, is considered entirely
permissible, and is frequently practised. My recognizing
Grisscome was evidence of a so't; yet I know now that I
couldn't sweah to him. No, suh! At dinner, this evening,
I noticed little differences in manner-in accent-of which
he was unconscious.”
“Colonel, he has been cultivating that manner and
accent ever since he took up Trevor's personality in Lon-
don—as a pose-giving the impression that he's an out-
of-door man who has no head for State affairs at all. As
for his house-well; the first excavation made for it was a
thirty-by-fifty hole, forty feet deep, under the lawn at the
south side, with a narrow passage leading twenty feet
north. This was roofed over with brick arches at a depth


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 31
of twenty-five feet, and the ground filled in solid above it.
The next excavation was a deep trench, five feet wide,
leading from a position under what afterward became that
Jacobean library to the southeast corner of the grounds
at the rear, on Park Street-where a small brick dwelling
now stands. At the bottom of this trench a brick tunnel
was constructed, and the ground filled in above it. After
all traces of these excavations had been obliterated, the
work stopped and the lot was boarded up.
"Three months later, it was said to have been pur-
chased from a speculator by the Earl of S Then
other contractors began digging for the cellars under the
house itself, and laying the main foundation walls. In
the south wall, there is a space unaccounted for which
provides ample room for a secret stairway, from both
tunnel and secret vault, to the top of the house, and I
think one of the biggest chimneys is a ventilating shaft.
I'll venture to say you might search that house a
dozen times—sounding the walls and floors-without
discovering how one gets in or out of that tunnel and vault.
They have been described-as melodramatic 'properties'
of a good story; but who believes in their actual existence?
People don't build houses that way in this Twentieth
Century, you know; it simply isn't done. The mere sug-
gestion of such things is one of the strongest arguments in
favor of fictional unreality. Seems to me this fog is
lifting a little! I think we can find our way around
Buckingham Palace now, and down back of the Watney
Brewery to the Embassy."
They managed to cross in front of the Palace without
mishap, but the fog shut down again as they turned into


32
THE UNSEEN HAND
Catharine Street-one of the narrow byways in the maze
between Buckingham Gate and Victoria Street. Unless
directly over them, street lamps were not even an incan-
descent blur in the mist. House-railings ended abruptly
in gateways-through which a false step might send one
down in a nasty fall. The curb was a guide only as far as
the next street-which one rarely crossed in a straight
line. In the mist-laden atmosphere, there were eddies
along which echoes of voices travelled with amazing dis-
tinctness, only to be snuffed out in the middle of a word.
As they felt their way along in silence, foot by foot, to-
ward Palace Street, a guttural voice which seemed less
than ten feet away startled them to an abrupt standstill.
“Ja! The arranchments iss almost completed. In a
few weeks, we get the final informations. Undt then these
verdamten English will haf der taste of frightfulness on their
own groundt, eh? Psst! Vas ist? We haf peen fol "
[There was a quick scuffling of feet on the wet pavement-
a faint stirring of the mist.]
“Surrender—ye bloody 'Un! (Watch out for 'im on
't'other side, O'Rourke! Head'im hoff, below-Muggins!)
Ah!-Would ye, now, ye bloody devil!” [The blaze and
whang of an “automatic” cut loose in four stuttering
shots.] “Then ’ave a taste of me b’yonit, damn ye, an'
see 'ow hit feels!” [A death-scream pierced the mist,
ending in a bubbling groan. There was a sound of run-
ning feet which, by luck, held straight up the narrow
street. Then—the calm crisp voice of authority.]
“Who is it, Sergeant? That spy you've been trailing?"
"Aye, Sir! 'E kime hout of yon 'ouse, six hours gone
an'a fox runs back to 'is ’ole, if ye give 'im time. T'other


THE MYSTERY OF THE FREE LANCES 33
bloke got aw'y, but we've marked 'im well. Them bloody
'Uns is ’atchin' up somethin', Sir, but hI'm thinkin' we'll
’ave 'em in clink before they pulls it hoff!”
There was a shuffling tramp, as of many feet moving in
concert with a heavy burden. For ten minutes, the two
Americans leaned against a dripping railing-waiting for a
chance to resume navigation with a minimum of risk.
The spats of four soft-nosed bullets had scattered brick-
dust within a few feet of their heads. From somewhere
in the neighborhood, a big clock boomed two. Then the
crisp New York and soft Virginian voices gradually trailed
away until they were lost in the fog.
"Most stupendous times the world has ever seen!
...... Unbelievable things happening all
about you when you least expect them "
“Bewildering to one's senses, suh . . . . . .
a consciousness of struggling unreality. . . . . . .
One accepts, as mattehs of co'se, the most impossible
things—even yo' Diplomatic Free La- -"


CHAPTER II
“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
T THREE in the afternoon, a smart landaulet up-
holstered in Venetian-red suède rolled noiselessly
A up to the ladies' entrance of the Carlton Hotel.
From his glass-enclosed sentry-box the doorman tele-
phoned the reception office that the Condesa de la Monte-
neta's car was at the door, and one of the clerks repeated the
information over the wire to Madame's suite on the third
floor, where her two Moorish maids were assisting her into
a hat and wrap just over from Paris—the envy of every
woman who saw them. When she had descended in the
lift, her footman-who, with the chauffeur, had also the
appearance of being a Moor-assisted her into the lan-
daulet.
As the Condesa's goings and comings were of interest to
every one in the hotel on account of her undeniable beauty,
taste in clothes, wealth, and social prominence, it was quite
in the natural order of things for the page and chamber-
maids in charge of the third floor to be standing at the
end of the corridor watching her as she came along to the
lift. It was also a matter of daily occurrence for one of
the maids to enter the room presently with an armful of
clean towels and-attaching the hose to a baseboard-plug
-groom the carpets and furniture with a vacuum cleaner
during Madame's absence. The two Moorish girls oc-
34


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
35
cupied a small room at the end of the suite and were
usually more or less in evidence when any of the hotel
employees came in—not that they appeared suspicious,
but they were seldom out of sight long enough for out-
siders to do any prying whatever. This time, however,
the chambermaid heard them talking in one of the farther
rooms as if they hadn't noticed her coming in-and she
made the most of a long-awaited opportunity.
Leaning the nozzle of her cleaner against the door-
casing, she went noiselessly over to the davenport where
the Condesa's correspondence by the morning's post lay
neatly piled. It seemed to be, however, the pigeonholes
which particularly interested the girl. With practised
rapidity, she ran through a number of papers and letters
-opened the secret drawer which every one knows how
to open in the usual desk of this sort-and then began
going systematically through the pile of correspondence.
After fifteen minutes or so, she became conscious of a
pricking sensation through the left side of her corset.
Turning, with a chill of apprehension, she saw a pair of
gleaming black eyes over her left shoulder. The point of
a slender Moorish knife, with a razor-like edge, was press-
ing gently yet painfully into her flesh-and she realized
that one quick shove from the sinewy arm would send it
through her heart.
“Thou hast the desire to read what is written to the
great and beautiful one? Aie! Thou shalt tell her of thy
desire when she returns. Until then shalt thou sit in
that corner with folded arms—and one will sit by thee
with this knife against thy side.”
Perforce, the girl made the best of it. To her amaze-


36
THE UNSEEN HAND
ment, Madame la Condesa paid no attention to the tableau
in the corner when she finally returned. The other maid
removed her hat and wrap, followed her into the dressing-
room, where she took off Madame's afternoon costume,
and replaced it with a négligée. Then the Condesa
walked leisurely out and sat down before the davenport.
She spoke beautiful English, with here and there a pretty
Spanish accent.
“Ah! You found her going through my papers, Aye-
sha? I see! I wonder what you discovered of interest
among them, Meess? Let me see. You are the maid on
thees floor, I believe? An' your name is Betty—the short
for Elizabeth, of course or should I say Bettina-eh?”
To her utter amazement, the girl noticed a peculiar
position of Madame's hand as she lightly touched a wisp
of hair just above her ear. Half incredulously, the cham-
bermaid closed her eyes for a second and let her teeth
rest upon her lower lip. It was a natural facial expression
of weariness or pain, and would have attracted no atten-
tion from anyone not particularly observant-but it was
promptly answered by another imperceptible signal from
Madame, who began to smile at the maid's confusion and
amazement.
“If you could have assisted me, I should have made use
of you before this, Betty. The Herr Chudleigh Sammis,
who is Member of Parliament, told me there were two of
you, and a man, in this hotel—but it is dangerous that
more than a few of us should know one another. There
are too many of the Downing Street people to watch each
one and note with whom they appear to have a secret under-
standing. As to my papers here, I am quite sure you


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
37
found nothing to interest you. We of Wilhelmstrasse are
not careless—as you know. But you will forget every-
thing you have seen in this room-everything which con-
cerns me in any way! You recognize this ring, do you
not?” [She held out her left hand, upon one finger of
which was a beautiful table-cut emerald which the maid
knew at a glance was worn only by those high in authority
among the Wilhelmstrasse secret agents.] “Very good!
You will make no mistake in regard to me! If I find myself
in danger and can make use of you, I will give the emergency
signal. If I need your assistance with a secret communi-
cation, I will ring the bell of my suite three times—so!
Meanwhile, you will hint to your two companions in the
hotel that I am not to be interfered with or spied upon in
any way. A hint should be enough—without giving them
further information concerning me. If they do not take
that hint, they are likely to hear from Berlin-unpleas-
antly. Now—you may go.”
The girl knew that several women of the nobility were
among the higher, inner circle of the German Secret Serv-
ice, and had no doubts whatever that the Condesa was one
of them. Dropping upon one knee, she kissed the hand
extended to her-murmuring profuse apologies for her
mistake, and then hurriedly left the suite.
A few moments later, Madame was about to dress for
dinner when there was a knock at the outer door of the
suite, and Ayesha admitted Lady Blanche Parker, who-
with Colonel Sir Thomas Parker, K.C.B.—was occupying
a suite upon the same floor of the hotel while her town
house was being redecorated. She had been among the
Dirst to whom the Condesa had taken a personal fancy after


38
THE UNSEEN HAND
her arrival in London, and a somewhat intimate friendship
had sprung up between them. Just now she appeared
nervous—ill at ease.
“You were about to dress for dinner, Condesa? Don't
let me delay you! May I come in and chat while you
change?”
“I've really nothing on hand for the evening before
eleven, my dear--and, one should not talk confidentially
before one's maids, don't you know. (You see? I have
adopt the English idiom. Si!) Let us remain here
where there is nobody to overhear. I theenk you are
not quite yourself. No. Tell me!”
“Oh-it's quite stupid of me to care! Men do such things
- I suppose they don't really mean anything by it, half
the time! Before this horrible war started, I thought I
was the happiest woman in England! I loved my hus-
band so much that I was foolish over him-I really did!
And I hadn't the least doubt in the world that he returned
it. We'd lived within a few miles of each other, in
Hants, ever since we were born-I used to be crazy
over the way he sat a horse when he rode to hounds-
practised, day after day, so I could keep up with him and
take the same jumps that he did. Then we settled down
in Feathercote together, living a perfectly ideal life.
Finally the war came—and I'd the awful dread that Tom
would be among the first killed. I knew, of course, that
his regiment would be sent at once, because they were
veteran troops. He was slightly wounded near Lille
and sent home. After he recovered, his capacity for
organization got him a billet at one of the training camps;
then he was transferred to Aldershot because it was his


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
39
home neighborhood and he knew practically everybody
within a radius of twenty miles. He's been most successful
in the recruiting, you know. Well, of course his duties
gave him little time for me—but his business with the
War Office made it advisable to spend at least half his
nights in town, and I thought I should see a lot more of
him, up here.”
"And don't you? I see you with el Señor Coronel in the
beeg dining room almos' every evening.”
“Yes—but his manner has been very much changed
during the last few weeks. He is more preoccupied-gives
me less of the old perfect companionship. To-day I found
out why! I came into our suite rather quietly, and walked
through to the room where he does his writing. He was
sitting at his desk, as I expected. But-one of the hotel
maids was standing by his side, leaning on his shoulder.
His arm was around her, and he was-well-hugging her!
She-she seemed to be enjoying it—the hussy!”
“Oh—as you say, my dear, men do those things without
theenking twice about them. They consider it
mere passing amusement. You may be sure you ’ave
nothing 'serious to fear from a hotel servant-it
would be quite too ridiculous! In the lifetime of my 'us-
band, El Conde de la Montaneta, he had that weakness-
like other men. But I was la Doña Condesa-I never
did notice such little occurrences when he was indiscreet.
There was one-a mantilla-maker of Seville—who dance'
mos' divinely. El Conde would take her for a ride in the
country in hees grand motor-car—the poor theeng needed
fresh air. But I could discover no difference in hees
respec'an' affection for me-no-nevaire. Which of


40
THE UNSEEN HAND
the maids did el Señor Coronel honor with hees em-
brace?"
“The-the-well, I suppose some people might call her
quite good-looking, in a bold, provocative way! It was
that—that Betty woman!”
“So? El Coronel showed mos' perfec' taste when he
married you, my dearan' he compliments you by select-
ing a different but mos' handsome type for hees passing
amour. The little Betty, she ees really beautiful, I theenk
if one dressed her au grande dame. She ees plump-full
of fire. What man with blood in hees veins could help
the little embrace-perhaps a kiss or two—from a ripe
little baggage like that, if there was opportunity and she
was not unwilling! Eh, my dear? Pouf! Eet is nothing.
A moment's relaxation-to lighten the anxieties of hees
professional work. Come! I will propose you a diver-
sion. You trust me, do you not? You do not theenk I
would deliberately rob you of your ’usband's love?”
“You-rob me-Condesa? K-I don't understand!”
“I will be more plain. I weesh to show the young
wife that passing flirtation ees merely a game weeth mos'
men—that it has nothing to do with the love they have
for their wives. It ees merely the excitement of the chase
-the capture—the collecting tribute. Look you, my
dear! You shall throw me in the society of el Señor
Coronel-arrange that we shall be tête-à-tête, with no
one to observe an' listen. Me I am handsome woman,
no? I shall make your ’usband to flirt weeth me and
forget the little Betty entirely. When I get him ver' much
work' up, I shall make him to laugh with me at the game
we both play. I shall keess him good-bye and say the


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR"
41
joke mus' not go further any more because you are my dear
friend and would be annoy' if you should discover us when
we were careless. Then will he be punish' for the little
Betty, with her neat ankles an' pretty figure. He will
remember that yours are much prettier-and-and belong
to him. You see?”
“Yes I see. But-suppose you should fall in love
with Tom yourself? I-I'd be afraid of you, Condesa!”
“I would make el Coronel Tom theenk I loved him, my
dear-an' you also would theenk so until we ’ave the final
laugh. But, for me, there is one man in all the world.
He is married man. I shall never have him—even if hees
wife die, he might never marry me. But once, he save'
my life an' nearly lost hees own. From then, I am loving
him more than everything in the world! With other men,
I flirt to pass the time. Si! Why not? But none of
them shall have me except that one. When Andalusians
really love, eet ees forever!”
Lady Parker's eyes were star-like with admiration.
"Oh! That is something perfectly ideal, Condesa! 1-I
could love Tom like that if-if I thought he cared for me
the same way! I suppose I mustn't try to guess who it
is?”
"It ees better not, my dear. If you desire, I shall flirt
weeth your 'usband, an' distrac'hees mind. But I
will not love heem-I promise you that. You shall stan'
behind the scenes an' see the game. When you tire of it,
I will stop playing.”
About one o'clock in the morning, a clerk in the hotel
office-very well liked by the guests, on account of his
pleasant manner and ability for straightening out their


42
THE UNSEEN HAND
various grievances-went quietly from his room in the
employees' quarters up to the roof over the Haymarket
side. As one of those who conducted the business of the
hotel, his presence in any part of it, at any hour, would
have been accepted as being in the line of his duties. So
also, to a lesser extent, the third-floor chambermaid,
Betty—who appeared upon the roof a few moments later,
gazing into the murky atmosphere overhead in a terrified
search for bomb-dropping zeppelins.
The few detached areas of flat roof, above the curved and
sloping mansards, had been protected in a way that made
demolition of the building unlikely. Their surface had
been covered to a depth of three feet with bags of sand-
and above the mansards which sloped toward the inner
courts had been stretched a canopy of steel wire netting.
After the one rather disastrous raid of German dirigibles,
two watchmen had been stationed on the roofs, each night,
to warn guests upon the upper floors in case of another-
but their services had been discontinued after a while
because of their doubtful utility in such an emergency.
So that,excepting some of the help whose fears or cur-
iosity impelled them to go up at night for a look around
the roofs were deserted.
As Betty stepped cautiously over the sand bags toward
one of the farther chimneys, she stopped to gaze upward
as if looking for a dirigible. Her actions were so entirely
natural that, had anyone been watching her, it is doubtful
if he would have been suspicious. Eventually, she step-
ped around behind a massive chimney-where Mr. James
Crofton, the office clerk, was imperturbably smoking an
excellent cigar.


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
43
As he noticed the direction from which she had ap-
proached, he started, apprehensively.
“Gott! Bettina! You came over the middle of those
bags-yess?”
“Why, of course I did! Suppose anyone had been
watching? It would never do to give an impression of
skulking about, up here!”
"So? Better that risk than get blown to the devil be-
fore you have accomplished your work! Look you,
Bettina! At every yard distance, all over this roof, is a
bag of sand in which there are one or more sticks of dyna-
mite. Your weight upon the loosely packed sand is
sufficient to explode a stick, if it happened to come just
right! If one explodes, they'll all go off! When just one
little bomb from a zeppelin happens to drop on this roof,
it must surely set off all the dynamite! There's enough
of it up here to destroy every building within a hundred
yards! I've planted those sticks, one at a time, and if we
hear an explosion in another part of the city, we must:get
out of this hotel as quickly as we can dress!"
“Ach, Gott! Johann—this is terrible! It is not as if
we were killing the English soldiers! If your dynamite
goes off, it will kill all these pretty little children in the
hotel—the young girls, just coming to their marrying
time. They have done Germany no harm!”
“Woman—such talk is foolishness! Those kinder will
grow up to be Englander men and women-mothers of
Englander soldiers! They must be taught to fear Ger-
many! That fear must be foremost in the mothers'
minds so the children will be marked with it! They must
know it iss not safe to defy the kaiser as they haf done!”


44
THE UNSEEN HAND
“But, look you, Johann—these English only swear to
fight us the more when we do such things! There has
been no trouble in recruiting since the zeppelins came!
I have been here much longer than you, and our campaigns
of 'frightfulness' have had just the opposite effect from
what we expected!”
“Ach! You are a woman! You cannot under-
stand these things like the officers of our General Staff!
But enough! Tell me what you haf discovered among the
papers of the Condesa.”
“Suppose you tell me, Johann, why you thought there
might be anything of interest to us among them?”
“I am told by Karl Berndorf that the Condesa's family
were practically unknown before she married the Conde
de la Montaneta, six years ago—which is suspicious.
Spanish grandees do not marry that sort of women, except
morganatically. She hass, with her, four servants who are
supposed to be Moors. They talk with each other in
Arabio—very true—but in much too pure Arabic for the
Moors of Tangier or Cadiz, where Madame came from.
Since her arrival in London she hass become quite inti-
mate with some of the most brominent men and women in
the country—she could scarcely haf brought letters that
would haf secured such an entrée for her in a space of
seven or eight weeks. She spends money as if her wealth
were almost unlimited—yet Berndorf was quite possitive
that the old Conde's estates in Andalusia had become very
much curtailed before his death. I don't know, exactly,
what to make of her, myself. Her Castilian iss so perfect
that she must be Spanish, and yet--"
"She is probably of the Austrian Court circle, my friend


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
45
--with a family dating back to Charles Fifth, or earlier,
which accounts for her Spanish blood and home. And
she is of Wilhelmstrasse, like ourselves-only far higher
in authority. By the ring she wears, I think she must be
one of the Imperial Special Agents. One of her Moorish
maids caught me going through the papers in her desk, and
held a knife against my ribs for three long hours—until
Madame returned. I thought I must be drugged or
dreaming when she casually gave me the first recognition
sign-it made me feel like a fool! Getting caught at her
papers like a clumsy sneak-thief, when some of those
Cabinet men are probably dropping Government secrets
to her which neither you nor I could get if our lives de-
pended upon it! Oh, they wouldn't know they were telling
her anything dangerous for England! Trust her for that!
But the woman is a hypnotist and a mind-reader. She
said that the Herr Chudleigh Sammis had told her there
were three of us in this hotel-and I'm beginning to think
she must have been working with him in influencing the
Cabinet Ministers.”
“Himmel! And I never even dreamed! It explains
those Moorish servants, too! They must be high-caste
Hindu revolutionists—the sort who will stop at nothing
so long as they smash the English Raj! Valuable tools, if
one knows how to handle them! Look you, Bettina!
The Condesa hass become most intimate with Lady Par-
ker—the Herr Colonel iss fascinated with her; I saw him
looking at her as she talked with her ladyship in the foyer,
last night. Why wouldn't she haf a better chance than
you to obtain the plans from him?"
"She might-if he were anywhere near her own rank.


THE UNSEEN HAND
But-women of her position do not go as far as those in
our station of life to obtain what Wilhelmstrasse requires.
They will risk and sacrifice life-yes, if necessary. But
giving themselves is something they are not likely to do.
I'll admit that they're often successful, without."
"Er—you would pay the price, if necessary-Bettina?”
“That's something you'll never know-it's none of your
business! I think I can make the Colonel tell me anything
I want to know—when the conditions are just right. But
if I can't, I'll ask Madame's assistance; you need have no
doubts upon that score! Katrina heard Her Ladyship
accepting an invitation for charity bridge to-morrow after-
noon—when the Colonel is likely to be at Aldershot-and
he asked me if I would come to their suite about three,
with the vacuum-cleaner. He's quite sure to be there."
On the following day Lady Parker motored away from
the hotel at half-past two-Sir Thomas being presumably
at Aldershot. It occurred to her that he might run up to
the city earlier than usual and amuse himself with the
pretty chambermaid if she happened to be on duty at that
hour—but the Condesa had talked to such good purpose
that she believed it merely a passing foolishness upon her
husband's part which she would better ignore, and she was
dwelling with mischievous anticipation upon his punish-
ment for it when the Condesa herself should take a hand.
So she was in no hurry to return before it was time to
dress for dinner.
At a few moments after three, Betty-in her dainty
apron and short black skirtcame to Sir Thomas's door
with the reel of vacuum-hose and long nozzle, letting her-


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”.
self in with a pass-key but taking care to bolt the door on
the inside. As on a previous occasion, the Colonel was at
his desk in the sitting room. While pointing out what he
wished done, he managed to get a half-reluctant kiss or
two that made him hungry for more. Presently, he told
her to let the cleaning go for a while--and drew her down
upon the sofa by his side.
"Betty, you use a dev'lish sight better language than any
hotel chambermaid I ever saw! I'd be quite int'rested,
don't you know, if you'd tell me all about yourself an'
how you happen to be in such a position as this. Might
be able to help you on a bit, d’ye seemone never can say.
I fancy your family are a cut above the ord'n'ry lot-
what?"
“Oh, my people were really very decent, sir. My
father was a younger son of Major Bundy, who served in
the Crimea-one of the Dorset Bundys, you know. There
wasn't money enough to purchase a commission for him
after his eldest brother went into the Guards, so he took
orders and was appointed curate of a small parish on the
Shaftesbury estates. He was made rector when we girls
were in our 'teens, but died a year afterward--and of
course, left us practically nothing. The living was a small
one. My mother died several years before, and my sister
married a small tradesman in Southampton. So there
was nothing left for me to do but go out in service. We'd
been decently educated, of course I could have obtained
a position as governess, but the wages are not so high as I
get here, and I have a few hours to myself, every day.
These grand hotels require maids who have some edu-
cation-enough taste to assist the guests with their clothes,


48
THE UNSEEN HAND
if necessary—and present an attractive appearance.
When my father was living, my social position was good
enough to permit of my calling upon any family in the
county-while now, I'm a servant, and must know my
place. But I'm much more independent, here, and am
putting by a good bit of money each month. In a few
years I shall go to America and open a little millinery shop.
Over there I'm as good as anybody.”
“Faith, and so you are in London--if people only
knew it! I suppose you make a bit in tips, as well?”
"Perhaps more than you'd think, Sir Thomas. To a
girl who has scrimped and denied herself even necessities
while trying to be a lady on nothing a year, it's quite too
ridiculous to have a fat dowager give one half a sovereign
merely for selecting her most becoming gown, and turning
her out at her very best for some dinner party! And the
men! Why, I've had an old duke give me three sovereigns
for promising to forget all about it after I'd slapped his
face for trying to kiss me!”
“Eh? What's that? Do you mean to say it's an
ord'n'ry occurrence for men to-er-take advantage of
your position-and-er-kiss you? My word!”
“No. There's a difference between kissing one and
--well-trying to do it.”
"But what-eh? Dash it all, you know—I've-eh?
And I believe I've never tipped you a pennymas yet!
Leave all that sort of thing to Her Ladyship, don't you
know! Of course, if I'd known about your family-in-
excusable liberty, you know! Quite welcome to slap me
if you wish! And-er--"
"I trust, Sir Thomas, that you've too much taste and


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
49
good sense to offer me money, now that you know some-
thing of my private affairs. I permitted you to do what
you did because you have always treated me kindly-
never taken a low advantage of me. There's no great
harm in your kissing me, I fancy-but if you were seen
doing it, I should probably lose my position here. I should
have to complain of you to the management. Rather
than have any trouble with a wealthy guest, they'd give
me the sack.”
"Faith, you need have no fears upon that score! If
they discharged you, I'd find something better at once-
or see that you had a good start in some other place. I
say, Betty-er-do you know, I-I think an awful lot
of you! 'Pon honor, I do! I say! Would it be possible
for me to see you outside, anywhere? When do you-er-
get out of the hotel? Where do you go?”
"I have three evenings off each week. Sometimes I
go to a cinema show with two of the other maids. Occas-
ionally, Mr. Crofton takes me out to a burlesque-or to
one of the Strand restaurants for dinner. Or we go to a
dance hall, where he teaches me the latest steps.”
"Crofton? You mean the clark in the hotel office?
Decent young fellow, that! You're not engaged to him
-what?”
“No fear! Why did you wish to know that?"
"Well-d'ye see-after all, y'know, Crofton's merely a
middle-class chap-not your sort, really. And-er-I'd
jolly well like to have you go about with me-if we can
manage it. And-er- "
"You couldn't take me to a theatre, Sir Thomas, or any
public place where Her Ladyship might see us. Of course,


'50
THE UNSEEN HAND
when I am dressed for the street or for an evening out, I
fancy no one in the hotel would recognize me. But still,
Her Ladyship must be very well known in London so-
ciety."
“Erquite so, my dear. But I've cousins and other
women relatives, d'ye see, whom I freq’ntly show the sights
when they're up for a day or so. If Her Ladyship happens
to run across us-most unlikely, don't you know I can
introduce you as one of ’m-or-er-one of a brother
officer's family, d’ye see?-up from Aldershot for the even-
in.' Eh? Meet me to-morrow evenin' in the lounge at
the Cecil-an' we'll go somewhere for dinner--make a
night of it. Eh? You will? That's jolly! Now-eh?
Just one more kiss to seal the bargain?"
For a second or two her lips clung to his with a warmth
that made him dizzy; then she was gone. He sat down
at his desk and foolishly tried to fix his attention upon the
papers he had been examining.
Two weeks later she accompanied him to his town house
in order that he might show her some books and pictures
which he had recently purchased. The decorators had
finished their work. His butler had been up from Hamp-
shire, superintending the cleaning for a day or two, and
had finally returned-leaving the house ready for occu-
pancy at any time he should be ordered to bring up the
requisite staff of servants. A watchman inspected the
premises, outside, at intervals—but the Colonel had told
him that he should be working late, that night, with his
private secretary. They had the house to themselves.
She had met him, that evening, in a chiffon gown of


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIRS 51
dark green which amazed him by its perfect taste and the
way it set off her blonde prettiness. How she had man-
aged to dress in such a garment in the servants' quarters
of a hotel he couldn't understand. [She had really gone,
with her maid's uniform covered by a mackintosh, to the
house of a very respectable widow in Soho-a place which
had been a secret rendezvous of German spies since the
third month of the war—and changed there.] They had
dined at a quiet but famous restaurant just off Pall Mall,
and the Colonel had taken rather more than his usual
allowance of champagne. When he produced two cob-
webby bottles of Burgundy from his own cellar she made
no remonstrance—but, had he noticed it, there was a
calculating look in her eyes. She had learned, before this,
about how much stimulation was needed to loosen his
tongue-but the exact point at which mind and memory
became oblivious to what he did was still a little uncertain.
How far to let him go in his drinking-where to stop him
before he became drowsily speechless-was a matter of
nice calculation.
Early that afternoon the Condesa had motored to the
Trevor mansion in Park Lane. Had any of her acquain-
tances been in the drawing room when she was
admitted-presumably to call upon Lady Trevor-they
would have been much astonished by the liberties she
took. Running upstairs to Her Ladyship’s boudoir, she
closed the door and called up the Foreign Office, asking
the operator to “put her on” to the private office of Sir
Edward Wray, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs.
In a moment his voice came over the wire, saying that
he would motor out to Park Lane at once. She received


52
THE UNSEEN HAND
him in the big library on the ground floor fifteen minutes
later.
“What mare's nest have you been stirring up, Nan?”
“You've been looking up Colonel Sir Thomas Parker,
as I asked?"
“Aye—but there's nothing fishy that we can discover
except his weakness for women. An' that's hereditary,
you know."
“I had supposed it must be” (dryly). "Tell me all
you know about the man, Ned. I've heard of his court-
ship and marriage-in fact, pretty much everything Lady
Blanche could give me.”
“Well—let me see. He was a son of General Sir
Harrington Parker, who was on the staff of Engineers in
the sixties' and had a good deal to do with the permanent
improvements at Aldershot in 1890. It's within ten
miles of Feathercote—the Parker estate in Hampshire
you know. Sir Thomas was a lad of eighteen at the time
the reconstruction was started-and, during his vacations,
he rode all over the place with his father. Had a taste
for engineering even then-and was permitted to super-
intend bits of the minor construction work occasionally.
I fancy he must have preserved every plan his father drew
-because the War Office is finding his knowledge of
Aldershot and other military camps valuable even now,
and he frequently runs over to Feathercote for the purpose
of consulting old drawings on file there."
“Do you know whether duplicates of those drawings
were preserved in the War Office?”
“Never had occasion to look up anything of the sort,
but, unquestionably, there must have been."


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
53
"Do you suppose Kitchener has men in his department
who would be able to put their hands on those Aldershot
drawings within half an hour or so?”
"I fancy there'll be no doubt of that. I'll have them
put me on to him, and ask to have the papers sent here at
once, if you think they'll be of use to us.” (The telephon-
ing was a matter of but a few moments-War Office calls
having right of way.)
"Well-go on with the Colonel's history. We've not
finished with that, yet. When a man of forty-three has
as young and pretty a wife as Lady Blanche, quite devoted
to him, why does he kiss pretty chambermaids in a hotel,
if he's presumably sober?”
"Eh? My word! Been up to that sort of thing, has
he? Er-just casually, as anyone might, or is he taking
her on for a continuous performance?”
"Well—I fancy he's had her out to dinner and the
theatre more than once.”
"Humph! Must be a cut above the ord'n'ry hotel
maid! Is she pretty? Good taste in clothes?”
"Quite! She's a Wilhelmstrasse woman, Ned. What
I'm trying to get at is her chance of pumping him for
anything he may know."
"Why—h-m-m-m! Might be a bit serious if there were
anything in his head that Wilhelmstrasse desired to know!
For at least five or six generations the men of his family
have been unable to resist a pretty woman. His great-
grandfather jilted an English lady to run off with the
princess of a small German State. Their marriage was
never recognized, and he was killed in a duel with her
cousin. His grandfather married a baroness-lovely


54
THE UNSEEN HAND
woman, four beautiful children and lived openly with a
well-known prima donna in Paris. His father had vari-
ous affaires in different parts of the world—wherever the
War Office sent him on engineering work. They've all
been quite open about it, don't you know-never seem to
realize that what they do is anything more than a pecca-
dillo which anyone of taste should ignore. They've all
been fond of their wives and families, too-but there's
something in the blood which catches fire at the glimpse
of a pretty face or ankle. The trait is not uncommon.
There's many a prominent and respectable man in London
who has it.
“The principal thing which int’rests me in this affair of
Sir Thomas's is what the little baggage may get out of him
- and from the information at our disposal, I can think of
practically nothing! The Colonel has no knowledge of
where troops are going when they leave Aldershot. His
work deals with barrack-construction-seeing that the
various units are quartered to advantage for prompt as-
sembling and departure when the orders come sanitary
matters that sort of thing. He's not in position to know
anything about munition-supply, new guns, new aero-
planes, or anything like that. Of course, he must have
some knowledge that. Germany would like to obtain, but
it's second-hand when it comes to him; he's not the man
from whom they'd attempt to get it. (Ah, here comes
Leftenant Graham, from the War Office, with a bundle
of papers-the, Aldershot drawings, no doubt.) I say,
Nan-you'd best disappear until I've sent him off again,
don't you know! The Condesa de la Montaneta isn't
supposed to be int’rested in anything of this sort-and


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR” 55
I fancy you've no intention of discarding your make-up at
present."
When the lieutenant had delivered the Aldershot draw.
ings to Sir Edward and had left the house, Lady Nan-
still with the black hair, darker complexion, and fuller
figure of the Condesa-returned to the library, and they
sat down to a study of the various plans in detail. The
earlier sketches appeared to have been submitted to the
War Office for a reconstruction of Aldershot Camp prior
to those adopted during the administration of Secretary
Stanhope in 1890. These were followed by the tentative
plans subsequently approved, in part-including the re-
placing of the old wooden huts of the Crimean period by
substantial brick and stone barracks. Considerable at-
tention appeared to have been given the question of
water supply—a number of drawings illustrating plans
for bringing pure drinking water from streams or ponds at
considerable distance. The system eventually carried
out was found in its proper place, and was shown as com-
pleted in a survey made of the district in 1898-evi-
dently a tracing from General Parker's original. It was
Lady Nan who presently discovered upon this old survey
of the General's some dotted lines which represented a
four-foot main of cast-iron piping-not connected with
the system which had been adopted, but leading off north-
westward from a point near Fleet Pond, and terminating
in the woods of Bramshill Common eight miles away. An
asterisk called her attention to a note upon the margin
of the tracing, in writing so fine and faded with age that
she used a magnifying glass to read it.


56
THE UNSEEN HAND
Dotted lines represent section of four-foot water main laid
underground at time the work was abandoned. Part of Sir
John Folkham's plan in 1884 for bringing water from River
Kennet, six miles S. W. of Reading. Was to have been emer-
gency supply-location of line known only to Engineer Corps,
in whose charge pumping station was to have been maintained.
Plan was approved by Her Majesty, the Queen-but after ten
months' work it was decided by War Office that artesian wells
could be sunk, if necessary, at far less expense.
For several moments Lady Nan studied the dotted
lines on the tracing, noting the location of turnpikes and
other roads which crossed them between Aldershot and
the spot where they terminated. Then she took from one
of the library files a section of Bartholomew's half-inch-
to-the-mile topographic map covering Berkshire, with the
borders of Hampshire and Surrey.
“Ned, this is what Wilhelmstrasse is after-the original
of this tracing! They want to know the exact survey-
line of that old, long-forgotten water main. It must be
there, just as it was laid down over thirty years ago.
Probably a good deal eaten with rust, and yet, with neither
water nor fresh air in it for all that time, there wouldn't
be so much oxidization, after all. Now, what possible
use could any German spy in England make of that water
main? The Aldershot end of it is at the extreme westerly
edge of the camp. Even if they had men enough in Berk-
shire, they couldn't get them crawling through that pipe
fast enough to surprise the troops now camped around
Aldershot; we must have over two hundred thousand
there at this moment. My word! That's a lot of men,
isn't it-for one instruction camp!


"THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR” 57
"Do you suppose that's the idea working in the German
mind-a force of nearly a quarter of a million picked troops
bunched within a limited radius? Couldn't have any-
thing to do with a zeppelin attack, could it, Ned? I say!
We're getting warm, don't you think? And we've spent
all the time we need to on these drawings. The location
of that old water main is undoubtedly what they're trying
to get out of Sir Thomas--and that pretty little devil
Betty will somehow manage it before she's through with
him. Hmph! I shall have to take a hand in this—there's
not a moment to lose! Is Achmet out there with my car?
Let me lock this tracing in George's safety vault, down
underground, and you take the rest back to Kitchener
with my best love and thanks for the loan of them.
. . . Oh, wait a moment! Perhaps I'd better keep
one of those other drawings with this one-I think I can
use it to advantage. Any one of the final plans will do!”
The Condesa knew that Sir Thomas's duties would
keep him at Aldershot most of the following afternoon.
Starting at two o'clock, she motored the thirty-three
miles in something over an hour-and was in the ladies'
room at the Officers' Club, with the wife of a well-known
general, when Sir Thomas came in for his tea before run-
ning up to town. As both were returning in time to dress
for dinner at the Carlton, she invited him to accompany
ber—an opportunity which he accepted with every appear-
ance of unexpected pleasure. The Colonel admired his
wife's distinguished friend extremely, but hadn't dared,
for obvious reason, to make any advances in the way of
flirtation; so when she started in with him on a basis of
friendly intimacy, he began to imagine himself a devil


THE UNSEEN HAND
of a fellow with the women. By the time they reached
town, the flirtation had progressed far enough for her to
agree that she would accompany him, that evening, to
a rather exclusive cabaret in the West End, patronized
by well-known musicians and writers. She was the
woman-of-the-world in every word and action-so bril-
liant in repartee that his duller wits found it difficult to
keep pace with her. One of the handsomest women in
London--alluring, provocative, and beginning to be a
celebrity. He knew, the moment they entered the cabaret,
that her presence with him added materially to his repu-
tation. Under conditions of this sort his infatuation
was a foregone conclusion.
Inside of a week it had reached a point where he scarcely
looked up from his papers when Betty came into his suite
at the Carlton--which provoked and alarmed that in-
triguing young person. Before the Condesa took a hand
in the game, she had obtained a part of what she hoped to
get from him, but it wasn't enough for her purpose.
Furthermore, she was in doubt as to where she stood with
the Condesawho certainly appeared to be interfering
as far as Sir Thomas Parker was concerned. Bettina,
however, gave no indication of having noticed this until
she went into the Condesa's suite, one day, and was
invited to sit down for a chat after the Moorish maids
had been sent from the room.
"Bettymyou remember the day you were interested in
my papers, and spent a few uncomfortable hours being
prodded by Ayesha's knife?”
“Oh, yes, madame. I think your maid would have
enjoyed killing me!”


"THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
59
"Had you made any resistance she most certainly
would have killed you! That girl is worth her weight in
kronen to anyone in our position! Well, you learned
something about me which surprised you even as we
were surprised to know that you also were of Wilhelm-
strasse. Since then we have ignored your comection
with Berlin--and of course you've paid no further atten-
tion to me in that respect. Still, one cannot help noticing
things which are apparent for anyone to see. I was in a
theatre-box, one evening, when you sat in the stalls with
Colonel Sir Thomas Parker. I could only guess at your
object in cultivating him-until he began paying me
very marked attentions. Then I heard all about his
father's connection with Aldershot, and knew that you
must be working upon the plan which was under con-
sideration several months ago. My own work has been
in a different quarter altogether-in fact, I know nothing of
the details which have been worked out in your affair. But
an opportunity presented itself, unexpectedly, to pick up
something which I am quite sure you can use to advantage.
I didn't dare keep it so made a tracing upon strong parch-
ment tissue, at a certain house where I was sure of being
undisturbed, and put the original back where I found it."
She drew from a drawer in her davenport a tracing of the
old Folkham Water System, just as it had been drawn by
General Parker in 1884, showing the dotted lines of the
four-foot main, which had been partly laid down and
then abandoned. Betty picked up a large reading glass
and eagerly examined the drawing--going over it with an
attention to detail which indicated considerable knowledge
of engineering.


60
THE UNSEEN HAND
“It will be useful, madame, because the original-
which we stole from a library drawer at Feathercote-Sir
Thomas's place in Hampshire-was accidentally de-
stroyed. A draught blew it into a sea-coal fire at our
rendezvous in Soho. I was hoping-really hoping-that
you had managed by sheer luck to obtain a plan of the
present tent-encampments on Laffan's Plain and Farn-
borough Common-including the new barracks in the
North and South Camps. That is the only thing we
need to complete our preparations. The attempt should
be made within a fortnight, because the number of troops
now drilling there is larger than any future concentration
is likely to be. The time to strike is now-as soon as we
possibly can! The weather predictions are for a week or
more of fog and rain-ideal conditions for the attempt!”
“You had already located the line of that four-foot
main?”
“Six months ago! Our spies near Aldershot had talked
with some of the older villagers west of the camp who
remembered when the pipe was laid down, but couldn't
point out the exact line. It was that report which started
the discussion in Berlin. We leased three old manor
houses in different localities. Two are near Hartford
Bridge, and the other is on the border of the woods north-
east of Bramshill Park House. There are thirty-five
acres belonging to this manor-almost entirely wooded.
We made borings in several places, and had the luck to
strike the main less than three hundred feet from the
house. It was a simple matter to excavate a tunnel from
the cellar to it, but it took us a month before we could
locate the line as far as the woods of Blackbushes, and tap


"THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
61
it for ventilation without being caught. Of course, the
air in it would have killed anyone attempting to crawl
through before that. By the end of the second month
we had rigged a little track for a miniature car and cleaned
out the entire length to the first section, north of Fleet
Pond at Aldershot. Then we commenced tunnelling in two
directions, one toward the North Camp and the other
toward the South Camp, with provision for piping under
the present tent-encampments on Laffan's Plain, Farn-
borough Common, and Long Valley. That work has
been completed. Our tunnels are twenty feet under-
ground; we don't dare go upward toward the surface until
we know exactly where we can shove up the ends of two-
inch pipes without detection.”
“You have your materials all assembled for the work
when the time comes?”
“Oh, yes, madame. We excavated a large chamber,
underground, and brought in the machinery piece by
piece. We run the place as a stock farm-breeding horses.
The stables are fifteen hundred feet from the manor
house, so that army officers who come to purchase mounts
very rarely stop there. With nearly two hundred horses,
mares, and foals, we use a great deal of hay and straw.
All of our lime and acid-the glazed tiling for the storage
tank and the conduit through the big water main-has
been fetched to us inside great loads of hay and straw for
the stables. It has been slow work, getting the amount we
needed for the attempt, but it is amazing how much can
be accumulated in six months. For the past fortnight
we have been running eight air-compressors by small
paraffin motors and storing the liquid chlorine in an air-


62
THE UNSEEN HAND
tight, porcelain-lined reservoir adjoining that underground
chamber. The manor house stands upon high ground,
and the big water main was laid twenty-five feet below
the surface at that point-o the liquid chlorine will run
down into, and along it, by gravity. The end section of
the main at Aldershot is a hundred feet lower than that at
Bramshill Park, and we have laid a porcelain-lined con- i
duit through it for the entire distance, to carry the stuff.
From the end of that conduit we will connect two-inch
cast-iron pipes and shove them a few inches above the
ground in spots among the tents and barracks where they
will not be noticed-admitting the chlorine to them
through a heavy gate-valve at the proper moment."
“You speak as though you had seen all these prepara-
tions yourself, Bettina!”
"I have, madame. It was necessary for me to know
exactly what papers and drawings we required. Of course,
if we cannot obtain the plan of the tent-encampments, we
must take our chances in coming up to the surface at
spots determined by an underground survey—but that
greatly increases the risk.”
“Suppose I succeed in obtaining that plan for you? I
wonder if it would be safe for me to fetch it down to that
manor house? Do you raise thoroughbreds at that stock
farm? I ride in the Park every morning. That would
be a perfectly reasonable excuse for motoring down
there."
"Oh, yes, Madame--and Franz Schufeldt would feel
much honored if you would inspect his work. One never
knows whether he will succeed or fail in an attempt like
this, but it helps his standing in Wilhelmstrasse if it is


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR” 68
known that he performed his part of the work faithfully.
It would please us much, madame, if you would inspect
the work and report it in Berlin.”
"The only point to be considered is whether by any
chance my visit to that manor house might be remembered
afterward, and arouse suspicion? We couldn't afford that
- because my work is even more important than yours.”
“We have sold horses to several of the aristocracy,
madame-besides the army. You would be safe enough
at the stables. And Franz could offer you tea at the
manor house."
Three days later the Condesa motored down to Hamp-
shire and had little difficulty in locating the Bramshill
Stock Farm owned by Mr. Frank Sheffield—a genial,
fox-hunting county squire whom nobody would have
thought of being other than a roast-beef Englishman.
After purchasing a beautiful chestnut mare for saddle use
she accepted his courteous suggestion of tea, and gave
him a lift in her car to the manor house. When secure
from observation in his study she handed him a flat
parcel which she had been carrying in her muff. When
he unfolded this upon his desk it proved to be a tracing of
the plan, less than ten months old, upon which the tent-
encampments and new permanent barracks had been
laid out-in fact, a detailed survey of everything in the
Aldershot district, with smaller sheets of each camp.
After going over it for half an hour he led her down into
the cellar by a concealed stairway and, through a tunnel,
into the large underground chamber where the air-com-
pressors, vats, and great storage reservoir were. From


64
THE UNSEEN HAND
one corner of this he took her through a descending tunnel
which ended in the old four-foot water main. Here he
showed her the porcelain-lined conduit which had been
laid along the bottom of the piping-providing an inner
sluiceway for the liquid chlorine, sixteen inches wide and
six high. At either side of this had been laid small rails
upon which ran a miniature flat-car about large enough to
carry an average-sized man, lying at full length. At
one end of it was an electric motor, fed from a storage
battery—and through the line of piping there was a strong
current of fresh air from an electrically driven fan.
Madame was strongly tempted to explore the entire
seven miles of piping and inspect the system of tunnelling
under Aldershot-but it would have taken at least three
hours, and her long stay at the manor house might have
been remembered.
After she had left him, Mr. Sheffield (or Franz Schu-
feldt, as he was known in Berlin) motored over to Alder-
shot, with the details of the tracings fixed in his mind,
and satisfied himself that they were correct in every
particular.
Next evening proved rainy and foggy. At ten o'clock
a company of sappers left the South Camp in two motor-
vans and disappeared, around Fleet Pond, on the road
which led through Blackbushes. In the heart of the
woods they came upon a cavalry patrol sitting his horse
where a little blind path left the road—which was a rough
one, seldom used. Following him along this path, they
came to a big oak-in the bark of which they could just
make out the lines of what had once been engineering
symbols cut many years before. Here, after lighting a


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR” 65
dozen lanterns, they began digging a hole ten feet in
diameter-using great care to work as noiselessly as pos-
sible. At a depth of four feet they came upon a big
cylindrical something which they carefully avoided strik-
ing with their spades. After two hours' work they had
dug down at each side of the great cylinder until they
could stow a number of packages under it.
Twice, while digging, they had heard a rumbling sound
inside which seemed to approach from the westward and
then recede again. Each time this occurred they stood
without making a sound until the noise had died away
entirely. When their preparations were complete, several
ends from a main wire were attached to the packages under
the big cylinder and they walked back to the road, paying
out the wire after them. Then one of the engineers
turned a crank in a square box-and there was a stunning
concussion which shook the ground for a radius of half a
mile. Groping their way back to where they had been
digging, they found a yawning pit twenty feet deep and a
hundred feet in diameter. The mangled trunks of a dozen
trees had fallen into it, and upon opposite sides were torn
and twisted sections of four-foot iron piping-choked
solid with débris. Leaving guards at the edge of the pit,
the sappers climbed into their motor-vans and returned
to Aldershot.
In the meanwhile, three troops of cavalry had ridden
by another road to Bramshill Park, silently drawing a cor-
don about the stock farm and manor house-concealing
themselves behind trees and shrubbery. There they
waited until some men from the house came along in a
car. These were quietly arrested and sent to Aldershoto


66
THE UNSEEN HAND
mendor
In the next two hours several other men and one woman
came from the house and stables, being arrested like
their fellows. At ten in the morning the troopers closed
in, but the house appeared to be deserted, and the under-
ground chambers also. Dynamite was then placed in
various places, and the entire plant blown out of existence,
after the troopers had ridden to a sufficient distance to be
safe from the liberated chlorine in the big reservoir.
Late that evening Madame la Condesa-beautifully
gowned for the opera---was awaiting the arrival of her
escort, a Cabinet Minister, when there was a faint tapping
at the door of her suite, and Ayesha admitted the girl
Betty. When they were alone, with the doors locked,
Betty staggered to a chair-her teeth chattering. Pouring
a glass of wine, the Condesa held it to her lips until she
had swallowed it—then said, guardedly:
“Wait a few moments until your nerves are steadier,
my dear. You increase the danger for all of us by going
to pieces in this way!”
"I know that, madame-oh, I know it! But every
second, I seem to feel the hand upon my shoulder; I fear
some man I never saw before will take me by the elbow
and whisper in my ear that I must go with him-quietly,
without any show of resistance as they did to poor
Johann in the hotel office half an hour ago! · It was done
just as quietly as that. Johann knew—but he spoke to
the manager and asked if he could go out for an hour or
two with the gentleman upon a matter of importance;
then he put on his hat and coat and walked out with the
man, smoking a cigarette. It was the same with Katrina,
on the second floor! A gentleman spoke to her in the


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR”
67
'corridor--told her to get into the servants' lift and go up
to her room for her wraps. He didn't let her out of his
sight a second-made her walk out of the servants' en-
trance ahead of him! She knew there was no escape-s0
she didn't try to run away in the street. Mr. Chudleigh
Sammis had been spending half an hour with Colonel
Parker in his suite on this floor. He saw me in the cor-
ridor when he came out-whispered that he was leaving
by the night train for Liverpool, and sailing on one of
the Lamport and Holt steamers for Buenos Ayres; said
he would tell the reporters that he was going down to
study labor conditions in Argentina.”
“The worst move he could possibly make-dangerous
for all of us! Looks suspicious! They'll never let him
sail! We must try to catch him on the telephone! What
is it all about, anyhow?”
“Haven't you seen the evening papers, madame? It
is said that someone at Aldershot heard a faint noise
underground which made him suspect our tunnelling.
Some of the Engineer officers looked up the old recon-
struction drawings, traced that line of water main, sus-
pected our stock farm, and began watching it. Last
night the sappers dynamited a section of the piping in the
woods two miles west of Aldershot. This morning a
cavalry detail arrested nine of us from the manor house
found your tracings and other papers in Franz's desk
and blew up the whole plant. It is thought that half a
dozen men, including Franz himself, are buried alive in
the tunnels under the camps. The others were all shot at
sunset. Johann and Katrina will be shot in the morning
or hanged in the Tower, where they were taken."


THE UNSEEN HAND
“Do you think that any of them betrayed you or the
rest of us in London?”
“No, madame; they died without any admission of
their Wilhelmstrasse connection, I am sure. But if
Sir Thomas by any chance remembers what he told me in
the library of his town house-the night he was drunk
there, alone with me or if the disappearance of those
plans is traced to you, madame-well, that would settle
it!”
“Bettina, in the game we play, nothing is more certain
to arouse suspicion than the slightest evidence of apprehen-
sion. I have faced death more than once with a laugh of
amazed denial upon my lips—when I could see no possible
escape, and believed my life was measured only by seconds.
Never admit being guilty even while you are dying!
That is a principle in all underground diplomacy. Do not
compromise others even if you must yourself die! The
safest place in the world for Chudleigh Sammis is on the
floor of the House of Commons-representing his con-
stituency. The safest place for you and me, just now, is
right here in this hotel-doing exactly what we've been
doing every day! I doubt if the management knows
anything whatsoever against you. Your duties here con-
stitute an almost perfect alibi.”
Considerably reassured, Betty left the Condesa's
suite and tried to forget her haunting terror in the activi-
ties demanded by her position. But for a fortnight
several of the guests who really liked the girl thought from
her paleness and lassitude that she must be coming down
with a serious illness. In the room she occupied with
three other girls, up under the roof, the dread of a zep-


“THE ALDERSHOT AFFAIR" 69
pelin raid and annihilation from the dynamite in the sand
bags over her head was enough to prevent her sleeping
for more than a few moments at a time. Upon the streets,
the passing glance of any unknown man sent a chill down,
her back which made her feel faint. One night-at the
house in Soho—she typed a warning to the hotel manage-
ment concerning the dynamite. When no attention was
paid to it, she sent another anonymous warning—and was
immensely relieved when finally the explosive was re-
moved. The constant strain she had been under for ten
months in London had developed a functional weakness in
her heart which nothing but rest and freedom from anxiety
could relieve. Had she known that she was under con-
stant espionage from Downing Street men, she would
probably have died of heart failure. But with the idea of
using the girl to obtain future information vital to the
safety of England, Lady Nan insisted that she be left
unmolested unless caught in some fresh plot against the
Empire. As for madame herself, Betty felt a wondering
admiration for her sang froid and apparent indifference
to deadly risk.


CHAPTER III
TOUCHING UPON THE HONOR OF ISLAM
F ALL the varied conglomerations of human
activity in London—that melting-pot of all races
—there are few more interesting to the casual
observer than the seething life of the great docks which
line the Thames for more than seven miles, counting east-
ward from the Tower.
In the blurring atmosphere of a foggy day, the Royal
Albert Dock is a maze full of mysterious monsters from
which come echoes of strange Eastern tongues guiding
the passage of indefinite shapes from unseen depths
up, overhead-and into the cavernous maws of deeper
shadows on the quays. In the brightness of an occasional
sunny morning it is a riot of color from the orange-red
of a rusty “tramp” to the black and buff of the great
P. & 0. boats. Scarlet turbans, brown faces, black
beards, pink caftans, white Hindu drawers, wrappings of
manila and palm-leaf, teak logs, baled tobacco. Over
all, the spicy tang and smell of the Orient, mixed with soft-
coal smoke and odors peculiar to London itself.
Upon the forecastle of a big East India steamer, one
morning, half a dozen Hindus were squatting around a
bowl of rice-steaming hot, from the galley-pawing out
of it handfuls which, for convenience, they transferred to
smaller bowls from which they ate. Four were members
70


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
71'
of the Lascar crew-shipped in Bombay. The fifth had
come aboard at Port Said-taking passage in the Oriental
steerage for a few rupees. The active man with the black
beard and green turban-to whom the others paid marked
respect, as one who had made the pilgrimage had taken
his steerage passage from Aden, having gone down the
coast of the Red Sea to Mecca on the "te-rain," as he said,
over the line of the new Turkish railway.
Both the Hadji and the man from Port Said, having
paid that which was demanded for their passage to Lon-
don, were privileged to squat upon their heels all day long
chewing betel, smoking their chibouks, listening to the
narratives of such as had the gift, partaking of food when
it was served out and demeaning themselves as persons of
importancemen of wealth who travelled for pleasure.
But the obvious incompetence of a Karachi donkey-
engine man had called forth such a stream of invective in
the vernacular from the Hadji, that the Lascar muallim
suggested a demonstration of proficiency-the result being
that, at the end of the voyage, the Hadji's passage-money
was returned to him with a bonus of twenty rupees for
services rendered en route. The Port Said Turk-having
made himself useful in other ways-broke even, getting
his passage in lieu of pay. And they were now question-
ing the Lascars who had been to London before, as to
what caravanserai was safest for Oriental travellers
which of them was noted for a minimum of insect life;
where the principal mosques were located, the bazaars,
the objects of interest; whether it was cheaper to hire a
camel for travelling through the country or use the "te
rain," at native rates.


72
THE UNSEEN HAND
The bare facts set forth by the Lascars as to the fun-
damental differences between London life and that of the
Orient would have branded them as the children of liars
had it not been for the incomprehensible wonders already
witnessed on their way up the Thames. They told of
things so amazing as to be almost unbelievable, in spite
of the fact that both the Hadji and his fellow-passenger
had been in Bombay and other large cities of the Angrezi
Raj. To a student of Eastern life the conversation
around that rice bowl upon the littered forecastle of the
Shanklin Hall would have been illuminating.
After much discussion it was decided that the two
should accompany the Lascar bo’s'n to a house where he
was accustomed to lodge, over Bromley way--thereby
avoiding the more exhorbitant charges of the sailors'
lodging-houses and lower-class hotels in the Dock quar-
ter. When the Hadji and his fellow-traveller appeared in
the gangway in their picturesque caftans and white draw-
ers, fastened tightly around their ankles—their personal
belongings tied up in cotton cloths of saffron-color and
pink-the Muallim objected to his bo’s'n leaving the ship.
Upon which, the four of them squatted patiently upon
the deck and proceeded to argue the matter-the bo’s'n
swearing by the beard of the Prophet that his intentions
were merely to secure accommodations for the holy Hadjis
where they would be neither robbed nor eaten alive, and
that he would honorably return to his duties aboard
ship in the morning. There was no hurry. It was
approaching noon, and the 'longshore stevedores were
doing most of the work in discharging the cargo; so they
chatted and smoked for nearly an hour, at the end of


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
73
which the three were permitted to go ashore 'with passes
which got them safely through the Dock gates without
serious delay from the military guard.
Getting into a third-class compartment at Central
Station, they rode as far as Canning Town, where they
changed to the top of a bus going west over the River
Lea Bridge into Bromley. Dwellers in the East End of
London are accustomed to the sight of picturesque Orien-
tals-every race on the globe, for that matter-so no
particular attention was paid to the swarthy Hindus with
their bright-colored bundles. Your Hindu is not a chat-
terer, by nature, when in a strange land. He keeps a
tight mouth, an open eye, and a hand which stealthily
fondles the haft of a knife under his coat at times—that
he may be ready to defend himself upon occasion.
The detached house to which the Lascar took them was
owned by a thrifty Bengali who knew the requirements of
his countrymen and the profit to be made thereby in a city
where the usual manner of living was so entirely foreign
to them. A Chinaman would have got more profit out
of the same house, because he would have lined each wall
to the ceiling with bunks—but his was the only race which
might have beaten the Bengali. In the basement he
served coffee, kabobs, pilau-accompanied by a narghile
from the row which hung upon hooks around the room
at any hour of the day or night, so couldn't very well
utilize that space for lodgings. But in each room of the
upper floors a raised platform-eighteen inches high and
seven feet wide-ran along one side and end, with a mat-
tress of burlap-covered excelsior two inches thick. If
they lay fairly close to each other, even the smaller


94
THE UNSEEN HAND
rooms could thus be made to accommodate half a dozen
sleepers at least. And, in justice to the Bengali, it must
be admitted that he sprayed insect-powder over each
burlap mattress at least once every two months. Of
course, each guest usually brought with him a certain
number of pensioners which maintained a floating aver-
age, so to speak-but from the Oriental viewpoint, the
place was fairly comfortable.
After depositing their bundles in a cellar bin provided
for that purpose, the Hadji and his friends proceeded to
regale themselves with pilau, sweets, and coffee-followed
by narghiles and a comfortable period of relaxation upon
the basement divan. As it happened, they had the place
to themselves for an hour or so. When this was quite
apparent, occasional low remarks were tentatively drop-
ped-considered-answered briefly. Such a matter, now
as had been mentioned in the Mediterranean-touching
upon profit to be had from knowing ones in the great
Angrezi city? Aie, there was no mistake! Such a one
in Arabia had mentioned a name, and a place. If, now,
a True Believer were to find that one and obtain a certain
chit-so thin that it could be rolled into a ball no bigger
than a hazel nut and swallowed, upon occasion-'t was
said that a hundred rupees might be had for carrying
such a matter to a certain other place. Behold, also
there was profit in the knowledge of where certain Turkish
armies were, at that time, and how soon they would fall
upon the Angrezi in Egypt. Touching upon the tale
borne by that one who had come down the Nile to Port
Said, it was sure that a jihad was brewing in the Soudan.
Here, also, be knowledge that might be turned to ac-



CLINTON
PGTTEE
SIR ABDOOL MOHAMMED KHAN
ENTERING THE MOHAMMEDAN LODGING-HOUSE NEAR THE DOCKS,
IN THE EAST END OF LONDON





THE HONOR OF ISLAM
75
count with certain ones who would pay for good tidings in
London. Aie! Achmet, the bo’s'n, knew well this great
and terrible city of the Angrezi, and need not return to the
Docks until morning. By night would he take them to a
certain place, and be given refreshment for his trouble
even a rupee or so if fortune favored them.
As they smoked, and talked in monosyllables-ampli-
fied by expressive shrugs and glances which conveyed
fuller meanings without words-a tall Pathan came down
the steps from the street. Clapping his hands, he motioned
for narghile and sherbet-proceeding to make himself
comfortable near them on the rough divan. From his
appearance and caste marks he might have been khan-
samah in the house of some wealthy personage; his cloth-
ing was of better quality than that of the Hadji. Evi-
dently, he frequented the place because of the coffee
served by the Bengali, but a veiled glance or two made
them doubt that he was a lodger. He seemed one fa-
vored by Allah with money and position among the
Angrezi, yet bore himself with the courtesy and humility
of a True Believer.
Like the average Oriental in a strange country, the last
arrival minded his own business-apparently absorbed in
his thoughts. Presently the Hadji ventured a guttural
salutation-being a privileged person because of his pil-
grimage. The stranger responded with the customary
Mohammedan proverb, and permitted himself to be
drawn into a somewhat halting discourse upon matters of
interest to be observed in the great city of the Angrezi.
The Lascar was for making the most of his time
ashore-proposing that they should journey westward


76
THE UNSEEN HAND
during the afternoon and visit this place or that. This
suggestion appealed to the man from Port Said, but the
Hadji preferred remaining in surroundings more familiar
to him until he'd had a little more time to adjust himself
say, until night, when the wonders of the city would
be more amazing. Possibly the stranger would play with
him a game of chess or pachesi, to pass the time? Aie
it was even so. The man clapped his hands-upon which
the Bengali's son fetched a chess-board and placed it
upon the divan between them.
The Lascar and the Port Said man went out upon a
voyage of discovery-leaving the other two playing their
game with great deliberation and few words. Again
the room was empty save for the two players. A great
stove at the farther end kept the temperature above 70°
and steam from the mass of wet clothing had condensed
upon the two small windows during the forenoon until the
panes were opaque. In the rear the Bengali could be
heard scolding two of his women.
When the stranger first came into the room he had
noticed a loose end of the Hadji's green turban which had
been tucked over his left ear; there were, also, a bruise-
discoloration upon the second finger of his right hand and
a small birthmark upon the side of his neck. When cer-
tain that nobody could overhear them, he said-in a very
low tone, without perceptibly moving his lips: .
"We couldn't be sure as to just what boat you'd catch-
but there aren't over thirty of these Oriental lodging-
houses within a reasonable distance of the Docks, and
we've paid occasional visits to each of them during the
last two weeks. There's always a lot of gossip which may


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
77
be picked up—so the time was by no means wasted.
Now—what do you suggest?”
“H-m-m—the Port Saïd man is a Turco-German spy
through whom we can reach a nest of 'em here in London.
Have us followed to-night, when we go into the City.
On the third day you'd best have us both arrested by an
ordinary ‘Bobby'-upon some petty charge--and taken
before a magistrate. He will discharge the Port Said
man for lack of evidence, but hold me. At night he will
send me west to Scotland Yard in a closed motor-van
in which there will be a change of clothing. You can sit in
front with the chauffeur. Give me time to change then
speed up until you're sure nobody is following us, set me
down at Number 395 Park Street, and dismiss the van.
My people in Park Street will recognize me, even with this
beard."
Having thus briefly covered every point necessary to a
thorough understanding they switched back to Urdu and
went on with their chess.
That night the Lascar took his companions—with
several changes from the Underground to electric tram
and 'bus—to what seemed a semi-respectable boarding-
house in Bethnal Green. Among the twenty or more
occupants were Russians, Poles, Orientals, Swiss, and
West Indians—if one judged them by language and racial
appearance. But had a stranger of either nationality
applied for room or board, he would not have been ad-
mitted without certain passwords and credentials. Had
suspicion been aroused as to where he might have obtained
them, he never would have left the place alive. For a
Turk may easily pass for any Mohammedan Oriental;


THE UNSEEN HAND
a conspiring Soudanese for a West Indian; a Russian,
Pole or Swiss, for German or Hungarian.
A certain rug-dealer-Dimitri by name was the man
for whom they inquired. They were left waiting at the
door until he came down to them, but after noting certain
almost imperceptible peculiarities about their clothing and
hearing three names mentioned, he took them to a large
room upon an upper floor where other men were drinking
beer and discussing certain matters in whispers.
It was daybreak when they returned to the Bengali's
-the Lascar going on to his ship in the Royal Albert
Dock. Next afternoon, as the Hadji and the Port Said
man were strolling along one of the East End streets, they
were arrested upon the complaint of a tradesman who
claimed they had purchased in his shop certain packages of
tobacco for which they had paid him but half price, claim-
ing that to be all the stuff was worth. The Hadji had
indeed bargained for two boxes of Turkish tobacco and
endeavored to beat the tradesman down-after the
manner of the East, where standardization of prices is
a thing unknown-but to the best of the Port Saïd man's
understanding the tradesman had rather unwillingly
agreed to the Hadji’s valuation. As he'd really had noth-
ing to do with the transaction, the magistrate discharged
him, but, at the shopkeeper's request, held the Hadji.
The whole affair was so entirely the sort of thing which
the Port Saïd man had seen happen a dozen times in
various cities that he had no suspicion of its being a
“plant”—and returned next day with the Lascar Mual-
lim of the Shanklin Hall, who testified to the Hadji's
being a very just and holy man, ignorant of Angrezi


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
79
customs. The magistrate informed them that he had
been about to dismiss the prisoner with a reprimand when
a Scotland Yard officer had detained him on suspicion of
being a German spy, and taken him away for examination.
If no evidence was found against him, he would be un-
doubtedly set at liberty and returned to the Bengali's
lodging-house within a day or two.
Meanwhile the Hadji had been taken away in a closed
motor-van-which, after many twistings to baffle those who
might have followed it, set him down at a small dwelling
in Park Street. When he emerged from the van, he was
in an English morning suit, with a Fedora hat-and carry-
ing a russet-leather Gladstone bag. Inside the house, he
proceeded to a dressing room on the second floor with the
manner of one thoroughly at home changed into a suit of
better quality, trimmed and brushed his beard to a shape
nearer the Van Dyck, and then descended to a rear room,
in the wainscoting of which there was a concealed panel giv-
ing access to a subterranean tunnel which ran back under the
grounds of a handsome Jacobean mansion that faced Park
Lane. At the end of the tunnel he ascended a long flight of
steps, glanced through a peep-hole, pressed a button which
actuated an electric buzzer somewhere, and then touched a
spring which swung back a section of bookcasing in a
spacious library.
As the casing swung back into place with a slight click,
he saw that the room was empty—but he had scarcely
walked across it when Lord Trevor of Dartmoor came in
from the ball and closed the door behind him.
“Gad, Abdool! I fawncied I heard the buzzer! We'd
been fearin' something must have happened! Nan will


80
THE UNSEEN HAND
be down in a few moments. My word, old chap, I've
not seen you lookin' like that since the old days in Madras
an' Afghanistan! I'll wager you passed for a Mesopo-
tamian with no diffic'lty! Sit down an' give us the story!"
For several years, His Lordship had cultivated the pose
of a sport-loving peer with no head for politics and some
of his mannerisms were well-known features of a world-
famous personality.
“I will try to avoid the vernacular, O friend of my
father's son--for brevity's sake. The situation in Turkey,
just now, is about like this: Enver Bey appears to be
steadily losing influence. There is a widespread hope of
getting back to the Old Turk régime concluding a peace
with Russia and the Entente before Turkey becomes com-
pletely dismembered. They hope to save Stamboul-
and might make almost any concession to do so. Prob-
ably that will be out of the question when the peace
terms are discussed, but we might concede them Brousa
and Smyrna. On the other hand, Germany promises
them not only Stamboul but slices of Albania_Serbia
-the whole of Georgia. If Germany is able to convince
them that she is winning the war, their fears may in-
duce them to go on with the fighting until they are de-
feated beyond hope of recovery, but if we can manage to
exert influence in various quarters now, it may result in a
coup by which Turkey will be eliminated as an adversary.
The feeling against Teutonic rule is strengthening-
whether it breaks out in immediate rebellion or not. I've
talked with people of every class; they feel that Turkey was
drawn into this war against her will and that the final
result will be disastrous for her. But the unfortunate


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
81
feature of the situation, so far as we are concerned, is the
lack of leadership for anything like organized revolution."
“And yet—there are men in Turkey who are fully
capable of handling anything of the sort at forty-eight
hours' notice.”
"Prince Suleiman, for example? Hairi Bey? Prince
Said Halim?”
"Saïd Halim is a prince of Egypt; any Englishman in
Cairo would tell you he was the chief instrument of Abbas
in trying to stir up an Egyptian jihad against us. But
I've had a number of confidential talks with Halim; he
has a broader knowledge of European politics and more
common sense than the majority of his countrymen. For
instance, he knows the English have never interfered
with the Mohammedan religion on the contrary, have
safeguarded its observance in Egypt, India, and Persia.
He knows that his country has enjoyed greater pros-
perity under our supervision than it ever knew before.
On the other hand, he's been getting a daily object-lesson
of the autocratic rule Germany will impose upon Islam
if she gets control of Turkey. Between two evils, he has
the sense to choose the lesser. Neither Abbas nor any
other Egyptian prince will ever govern Egypt as advan-
tageously for his own people as we have done, in spite of
our mistakes there. Until the Turkish Empire became
infested with German secret agents, the Osmanli rec-
ognized the fact that it was only British and French in-
fluence which permitted their unmolested occupation of
the Bosphorus and the Dardanelles. Hairi Bey has been
Minister of Pious Foundations-a strong believer in the
old régime. He is in position to command a very large


82
THE UNSEEN HAND
following throughout the Empire if he can escape assassi-
nation long enough to get a revolution fairly started. As
for Prince Suleiman, he is a man fifty-six years old
experienced in political intrigue, fairly popular, a possible
heir to the throne—but more valuable for his backing
than for leadership. I've in mind two other men you've
not mentioned, who might jump into the limelight at a
psychological moment. But the great trouble in Turkey,
just now, is to know who may be trusted! When you
complicate Oriental intrigue with German propaganda,
one scarcely dares trust his own eyes or hands.
“If we could only bring about some incident or coup
which would galvanize every Mohammedan in the Em-
pire-unite all Mussulmans in one great wave of religious
frenzy- ”
“By Jove, Abdool! Do you know, that was exactly
what was runnin' through my mind! An' the thing was
beginnin' to assume substance! You've been in Stam-
boul within the month haven't you? Er-quite so!
The city's a perfect inferno of rioting, assassination an'
intrigue, of course--mosques in use as hospitals, dead
men in every street-women an' children, too. Well,
in all that mess, did you get a glimpse of old Mussa
Hazikem? was he goin' about in the streets an'mosques?"
“You mean-the Sheik-ul-Islam?”
“That's the man! The supreme head of Moham-
medanism in Turkey an' Egypt!”
"Aie! Thou art gifted with the wisdom of Nag,
0 Thakur Bahadur! He has visited all the mosques,
ordered special readings of the Koran for the wounded,
organized a corps of hospital assistants from the Ulema.


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
83
He is personally loved as far as Bassora and Erzeroum.
The Germans hate him for the influence which they run
up against at every turn-and can't handle. If they
dared, they'd have him accidentally killed in the streets,
but they've sense enough to know what that would mean
to German influence in Turkey. You see, the man stands
for practically everything which is opposed to German
ideas of system and efficiency. As long as one of the
Faithful is regular in his religious observances, the Sheik
is quite willing that he should squat himself under a cy-
press on the bank of the Bosphorus and ‘go into the si-
lence' for as long as he damn pleases. That's up to him,
that's the good old Oriental temperament which the Sheik
would like to see preserved for another thousand years.
Let the man work when it suits him, according to his needs
• -and worship Allah as the Koran prescribes. But to
the German idea, all that represents an economic waste.
Each man should be a cog in the national machine-his
actions, work, manner of living, all portioned out by the
wiser 'man higher up'-the governing caste. Our 'blood-
brother' hath said:
“East is East-and West is West:
And never the twain shall meet.
"What thou hast in mind, then, O Protector of the
Poor, is something which concerns this holy man in
Stamboul?”
"Aye. If it could be pulled off, it would undoubtedly
have a most far-reachin' effect. But-d'ye see—it'll be
practically suicide to attempt it! It's possible-aye-


84
THE UNSEEN HAND
Just then the door opened, and Lady Nan came in-
with outstretched hands.
“Abdool-we feared something had happened! Ray-
mond Carter had word from the American Em-
bassy in Stamboul that a certain Mohammedan,
whom we knew must be you, had been talking revo-
lution in different parts of the Empire until the Ger-
mans were searching for him everywhere and that they
had finally hanged him. That was over a month ago!
How did you escape? Where have you been since then?”
"Making my way down the Aleppo-Medina Railway
until I could strike across on a camel to Jidda, and a little
coaster to Aden—then coming up on the Shanklin Hall in
the Oriental steerage.”
"But why did you waste time doing that, when every
hour was valuable and you knew we must be anxious about
you?”
“For excellent cause, O Chota Ranee. First, there was
need of talking revolution in Syria. Then I had word that
a Wilhelmstrasse man-born in Bagdad and speaking
Arabic as his mother tongue-was bringing messages
from revolutionists in the Soudan to German spies in
London. Also that he would take certain of our plans and
secrets back to Berlin when he escaped as he came. I
went aboard the Shanklin Hall at Aden-he at Port Saïd.
He believes me to be of Wilhelmstrasse in an even
higher capacity. We went to an Oriental lodging-house
kept by a Bengali, in Bromley—and, the other night, had a
long conference with a nest of German spies in Bethnal
Green. Had I abandoned my disguise in Egypt and come
up by rail from Marseilles, it would have been practically


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
85
impossible to locate that rendezvous. Furthermore, it
seems to me advisable that one or two of us should return
to Constantinople at once. There is a chance for a diplo-
matic coup just now which might influence the whole
Eastern situation. By going back the way I came, we
would be received anywhere in Turkey without sus-
picion.”
A little shiver of apprehension ran through Her Lady-
ship. “Whom would you suggest to accompany you,
Abdool?”
"Whoever is best fitted to do the work! If I can go
back with just one man who speaks Arabic and Urdu
fluently, with a few Turkish phrases for emergencies-
one who, with a little darkening of his skin, might pass for
Arab or Mesopotamian Turk—I think the chances are
something more than even for work that will eliminate
Turkey from the war and open the Dardanelles for supply-
ships to Russia. “Lammerford Sahib' could do it with
very little risk of detection—but he is in Petrograd and
can't be spared from there."
His Lordship crossed from where he was standing by the
big fireplace and sat down on the arm of Lady Nan's
chair-drawing her close against him for a moment:
"I fancy it's up to me, Nan,” he said. “There are a
few Downing Street men who speak Arabic, but they lack
my knowledge of the whole situation an' might get their
throats cut inside of a week, not knowin' just where
they'd blundered. It's a risk, of course—but you your-
self are still impersonating the Condesa de la Montaneta
here in London, thick as thieves with agents of Wil-
helmstrasse every day. I've been dreadin', freq’ntly,


86
THE UNSEEN HAND
that someone would kill you with cyanide or a knife!
There's no sense wastin' our breath in argum’nt-we've
our duty to do, like the men in the trenches—and all three
of us know it. So we'll just go on with the day's work an'
hope to pull through alive, for better times! Abdool, I
fawncy we'll get to work more quickly, and avoid a good
many of the fleas, if we run down to Beirut on the yacht
an' have 'em put us ashore from a dinghy some dark night!”
“Aye, Huzoor, but we are then compelled to make ex-
planations to the first men we meet-explanations which
may not be accepted. I love the fleas and other creatures
of Allah as little as thou, O friend of my youth, because it
hath come to pass that I am even as the Angrezi in my
washings and my cleanliness, now that I have wealth and
honors. Yet behold, Huzoor—if we go steerage in some
little steamer to Piræus, and from there in a Greek boat
to one of the smaller Turkish ports, we shall be passed on
from one crew to another as men who are what they claim
to be-Hadjis, both; for thou also didst go with the Holy
Carpet from Cairo, upon occasion. Thou hast touched
the veil of the Kaaba, and may speak knowingly of the holy
Serai at Mecca-of matters which be seen there and done."
There was a moment or so of silence, as His Lordship
weighed the possibilities.
“H-m-m-your way has its advantages, Abdool.
If I can pass successfully as one of the Osmanli, it reduces
the danger from German officers and secret agents to a
minimum. If I go in from a Greek port as an
American, I'll be constantly watched-no question as to
that. On the other hand, it'll be diffic'lt to carry out what
I've in mind without German uniforms an’ make-up.
heild so
the di plass


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
87
Still-Freddy Goldthwaite is on the ground. He should
be able to find whatever clothes we need-
"I regret to say Captain Goldthwaite is lying at the
bottom of the Bosphorus. He shot a Pasha'who was trying
to abduct a girl from the American College-got her safely
into the American Embassy. Afterward, they caught
him-and cut his throat.”
“My word! Poor old Freddy! I'm dev'lish sorry to
hear that, Abdool! Whom else have we in Stamboul,
just now? There's Cramer, I hope? Though we've had
Do word from him in five weeks! An' Tom Devereux-
Leftenant Archer-Sir Harry Bond-eh?”
"I fear that Archer Sahib was killed in Galata during
some of the street-rioting. He was disguised, but Deve-
reux recognized his body and buried it. The others were
alive and working when I left. Also there were three
young attachés from the Embassy who remained in dis-
guise after it was closed. They had shown much ability
in the Madrid and Vienna embassies before they
were sent to Stamboul. All speak Turkish very well.
I think we may count upon what assistance we need.
H-m-m-would it not be well for me to present you at
that Bethnal Green rendezvous, as a Bulgarian secret
agent entrusted with information for the German and
Turkish commanders in Constantinople? I gave strict
orders that no raid was to be made upon the place until
I said so—that we might bag four other men, and a num-
ber of plans stolen from us. The crowd, there, will un-
doubtedly give us memoranda on tissue-paper and mes-
sages that will help us materially in Turkey."
“Aye, that's a good suggestion. When we've our plans


88
THE UNSEEN HAND
all blocked out an' know just where we're to board our
steamer, I'll have a hint dropped by Downing Street to the
milit’ry details watching the outgoing boats-so that
we'll be neither detained nor searched.”
A fortnight after this conversation, two Syrian Moham-
medans went ashore from a Greek felucca at the little
seaport of Mersina in Asia Minor-from where they took
the railway up to Scutari by way of Adana and Konia.
They appeared to be very popular with the Greek captain
and his mixed Levantine crew-some of whom accom-
panied them to the nearest wine shop, where the Moham-
medans ordered mastic for themselves, thus saving their
face as Hadjis in good repute, with a proper reverence for
the Koran. By underground rumor—which operates
almost as rapidly as wireless—their status, nationality,
and loyalty as Turkish subjects were known throughout
the little seaport before they had taken their first meal in
the serai. They wore the customary tarbush with its
black silk tassel—but had wrapped green turban-cloth
around it, after the manner of those who discard the Ara-
bian burnous for a European coat but cling to a suggestion
of the old turban as a matter of religious prejudice.
Such men are held in great respect by all True Believers
throughout the Turkish Empire; their mere appearance
being usually a sufficient passport in any part of the
country.
. Getting into a caïque at the Scutari railway pier, with
their cotton-wrapped bundles of clothing and other per-
sonal effects, they were rowed across the mouth of the
Bosphorus to the Yeni Kapou, from where, shouldering
their bundles, they disappeared in the maze of narrow,


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
89
twisting alleys stretching northwest, through the Ak Serai,
along the valley formed by the Lycus brook between the
main ridge of old Stamboul and the hills of the Silivri
Kapou quarter. Most of the rioting and pillaging during
the war had been in the European quarter of Pera, north
of the Golden Horn. Street brawls and nightly assassina-
tions are common enough in old Stamboul at any time, be-
cause the constant intrigue, the network of narrow streets,
and the inviolable secrecy preserved about every Turkish
dwelling, lend themselves to that sort of thing; but the
war had scarcely brought a perceptible increase of them.
Knocking in a peculiar manner upon the door of a
small dwelling in an obscure and winding alley, they were
received by a bearded Turk, rather shabbily dressed, who
gravely bowed them into his selâmlik—where he clapped
his hands for a girl who brought them coffee and narghiles.
"Selâm aleykum, O Hamet Effendi.”
"Aleykum selâm, 0 Agha. A-i-e! Thou art the holy
Abdullah Hadji who honored my poor house two months
ago! And this be thy friend-another holy one! Sefa
gelden! Are you well, sirs?”
"Mashallah! As God wills. We are come a long way,
O Hamet-from a far country—that certain matters be
laid before thee and others among the Faithful. If so be
that thou hast room in thy house for such as we, it may
come to pass that we shall remain with thee for a week or
more. It hath been a refuge for the persecuted in other
times; perchance it may now serve as good a purpose.”
“My house is thine, O Hadji Abdulla-and all it con-
tains. Do with it as thou wilt.”
Sir Abdool's impersonation of a Turk from a southern


90
THE UNSEEN HAND
province was, of course, perfect–because he was Afghan-
born, and spoke several of the Oriental dialects fluently.
But Lord Trevor's appearance of genuineness was a
masterpiece of acting. His Turkish was not extensive
enough to risk a conversation in that language, but his
pronunciation of what he did know was perfect, from his
knowledge of Arabic-and his pilgrimage to Mecca,
several years before, had taught him little mannerisms
-Mohammedan customs—which vouched for him better
than any statements that could be made. It may be
doubted by the reader whether an Englishman or an
American could successfully impersonate an Oriental,
among Orientals. But a number of well-known instances
establish the fact. Captain Burton—whose translation
of the Arabian Nights is the best extant-made the pil-
grimage to Mecca without being once suspected. Lord
Kitchener, long before the Khartoum campaign, passed
among the Soudanese and other natives as one of them-
selves. Several men connected with the Indian Secret
Service and British Foreign Office have gone among the
natives time after time without discovery.
After a light meal the two went to another house in the
Yeni Kapou quarter, occasionally used as a rendezvous
by the English secret agents and-partly through excep-
tional luck, partly because of the extreme care taken in
approaching it never suspected to be other than the
private residence of a wealthy and influential Osmanli.
Here they were fortunate enough to find the Honorable
Tommy Devereux, Sir Harry Bond, Lieutenant Hedges,
and Captain Sir Philip Leicester, in various disguises
the last two having been attachés at the British Embassy


92
THE UNSEEN HAND
meseled
Trendince
For a moment there was silence-presently broken by
Devereux, with a sharp exclamation:
“By Jove! I know of one such place-but I don't
see Wait a bit-till I describe it! Colonel von
Holtzen, who is now one of the Staff in command of the
city, was quite thick with old Kara Pasha just before the
war started-used him to spread German influence among
the ‘Young Turk' party. They were chummy for a year
or more. Kara had been getting poorer for some time-
bought shares on the Paris bourse which proved a total
loss. So, for his influence, Von Holtzen lent him money
on his house over in the Psamatia quarter until it was
mortgaged for more than it was worth—then gave him a
good bit more for services rendered. Von Holtzen spent
the night with him frequently-used to bring German
officers and secret agents there for conferences-made
himself quite at home. Just after the first attempt to
force the Dardanelles, old Kara went down to the forts on
a commissary matter-and was killed by a fragment of
shell from one of our ships. Von Holtzen wound up his
estate-found the old Pasha had been saving the money
advanced him until he had over four thousand pounds,
Turkish, in the bank.
“There were three sons in the harim. The Colonel
paid over the money to them on the supposition that they
would look after their own mothers and possibly some of
the other women. Then he cleaned 'em all out of the
house, which he took over to satisfy his mortgage. Von
Holtzen is by way of bein' a woman-hater. At all events,
he never trusts one or has her near enough to learn any of
his business, so the rooms of the harim have been un-


THE HONOR OF ISLAM 93
occupied, and the entrance from the selâmlik locked,
ever since he took over the building. Now-his orderlies,
most assuredly, would never enter those rooms unless he
told them to, and he seems to have forgotten their exis.
tence doesn't need them- ”.
"How do you know that, Devereux?”
“I got in through the garden at the back, and prowled
about the house for whatever information I could find
-went through every room of the harim-slept there
one night.”
“Humph! You were safe enough from Mohammedan
intrusion--if the rooms were unoccupied! But you were
playing with death every minute! Suppose Von Holtzen
had taken a notion to inspect them?”
"Er-quite so. That's all in the game, don't you know,
At all events, it occurs to me that since he has lived there,
he seems to prefer holding most of his conferences with
the milit’ry crowd over in Pera—which frequently leaves
the house in charge of an orderly and a couple of old
Turkish servants, because his kavass and his adjutant
usually accompany him.”
“Is there any communication between that garden and
the harim?"
“Aye—the old sleeping room of the eunuch has a door
opening directly into the garden-and another into the rear
hall of the harim. The path from that door to the gate
runs just inside the high brick wall between two eight-
foot hedges. The house is considerably over a hundred
years old; you can imagine what that rear entrance may
have been used for, occasionally, with the Psamatia Kapou
and the Marmora beach less than six hundred yards away!”


94
THE UNSEEN HAND
“H-m-m-with any sort of luck, I'd say nothing
could better serve our purpose! We'd not have much
trouble in forcing the locks of those doors—from the
garden?”
“None at all! I fetched the keys along with me
thinking that harim might be a fairly good place in
which to lie up, in case the Germans or Enver Pasha's
men got to combing the city for any of us."
“By Jove! I'm beginning to fancy we may have some-
thing better than even chances, after all! You certainly
kept your wits about you, Devereux. Very good! Let's
get on to the next point! Who knows anything about the
usual daily movements of Mussa Hazikem, the Sheik-
ul-Islam?”
Sir Harry Bond started to speak—then hesitated.
“Go on, Sir Harry! Tell us anything you can!”
“Why, d’ye see—I know what the old chap has been
doin' right along for a month past, but there'll be no
sayin' he'll keep it up indefinitely. Parts of Santa Sofia,
the Achmet an' the Bajazid mosques, have been turned
into hospitals, d'ye see—the katib reads the noon prayer
to the wounded an'dyin' every day from the minber.
And at night, when the grease-lamps are lighted, the Sheik
himself comes into one or another of the mosques to see
how the patients are gettin' along—whether his pet
Ulema corps are carryin' out his instructions. Before
leavin', he mounts the steps of the minber an' repeats a
verse of the Koran. Awfully decent old chap, Mussa!
An' I have it rather straight that he prays to Allah every
noon for the overthrow of the ‘Young Turks' and the
Germans. He's a bit conservative-Mussa is! Knows


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
95
deuced well that if German efficiency ever takes root in
Turkey, it'll be good-bye to the Faith-sooner or later.
We've been sowin' our bit of trouble for the kaiser, down
here, by pointin' out how absolutely the English Raj
avoids the least meddling with any of the native beliefs
in India or Egypt. The Osmanli know that-every
blessed one of 'em! An' they're beginnin' to draw com-
parisons between the two sorts of government.
“However-gettin' back to old Mussa. To-morrow'll
be Friday—with the Mohammedan Sunday prayers in all
the mosques. I happened to notice they were doin' a lot
of sprucin' up at the little Daoud Pasha Mosque, quarter
of a mile from here-an' nosed about to see what was up.
Seems there's to be a private conference-several big men
of the Ulema. Now-say the Sheik is at the Bajazid
Mosque between eight an' nine in the evening, when I'm
quite sure they expect him? He'll drive from there to
Daoud Pasha in his brougham-along the tramway streets
to the Rue Hasseki. In this part of the town, there are
no electric lights except along some of the main streets.
Of course, I can only conjecture what you'll be up to, old
chap—but if it's anything in the line of temp'r'ry abduc-
tion, as I rather imagine, you'll scarcely have a better
opportunity than you'll get to-morrow night. Mussa is
so well known, an' considers himself so inviolable, that he
never even takes a kavass about with him.”
“Hmph! Seems as if everything was playing into our
hands! But I fancy it's because nobody has ever dreamed
of pulling off such a thing-anyone caught in the act of
doing it would be literally torn to pieces! Nice prospect,
if we happen to slip up! However, I see but one possible


96
THE UNSEEN HAND
stumbling-block in our attempting it. Abdool-will you
give us your opinion, frankly? Is it your belief that if
the Sheik-ul-Islam could see how thoroughly it might
swing the whole country away from the Germans and
‘Young Turks,' he might willingly submit to personal
violence and insult-for a few hours? Or, put it another
way-to get the proper effect, he must know nothing of
the reasons behind it until afterward-if ever. Do you
think he would then forgive those who had a hand in it,
and bear them no ill will?”
Sir Abdool reflected his mind ranging over fanati-
cism in other countries beyond Turkey.
“Huzoor, I have spoken to the Sheik-ul-Islam, as a poor
Hadji may speak to the supreme head of his faith in this
world. And, even so, I have found him courteous to one
so far beneath him in holiness and worth. He has great
breadth of mind. He sees nothing but disaster for the
Faith—for the Padishah—for Turkey–in this war. It is
conceivable that, proud man as he is, he would submit to
personal indignity-even temporary suffering—if by so
doing he could better the condition of all True Believers.
As to how he might deal afterward with those who so used
him, that would be as Allah decreed. Yet I think he
would forgive—knowing what they sought to bring about.
The man is too shrewd a politician not to see the probable
effect of what we may do.”
“M-w-e-l-l—that's about my impression of him.
Now comes another question: would you, as a True Be-
liever, have any scruples against making this attempt?
Would you be willing to assist us? If I'm thinking of com-
mitting a sacrilege for which there can be no possible ex-


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
97
cuse in Mohammedan eyes, were the true facts known,
we'd best not attempt it!”.
"Nay, Huzoor—I dared let myself dream, even in Lon-
don, what it was that lay in thy mind. We, of Hind, be
not as those who slumber even as they walk about. I
will do as you command me. For against the man who
knoweth that he intends no evil—who doeth a little evil
that great good may comeno evil may be charged. But
if we would prove ourselves like Nag in our wisdom, we
will permit no other follower of the Prophet to know what
it is we mean to do-or learn of it afterward. For myself
I have lived many years with the Angrezi—I see even as
they see, upon certain matters.”
"Thank you, old chap! That removes the last scruple
I had about going into this. There are six of us here
which should be enough for the job. Sir Harry, I'll
depend upon you to find out precisely what the Sheik's
movements are likely to be to-morrow night. Devereux,
here is a memorandum of some things I want smuggled in-
to that harim just after dark-an' you're to find out what
Von Holtzen will be doing to-morrow! If necessary, we
must send a fake telephone message that'll take him out
of the house for a couple of hours—but we'll hope he has
some conference to attend in Pera. The rest of you gen-
tlemen must get some German uniforms that will fit us;
we'll take the measurements now. Particularly, we'll
need the long gray-green military capes--with an extra
one to wrap about the Sheik.
*Abdool, will you get in touch with the Chief Hamal-
head of the Hamal Guild? Hint to him that some great.
outrage is likely to be committed by the Germans within


98
THE UNSEEN HAND
a few daysmask how many men he can get together from
his own and the other guilds, at an hour's notice. Unless
conditions have changed very much within the past five
months, you'll find him even willing to stir up a small revo-
lution if he's sure of reasonable backing. The hamals
(public porters) and firemen of the various quarters have
started most of the street rioting since last August, I'm
told. Keep his mind as far away from our real proposition
as you can! If he once suspected that, we probably
wouldn't live five minutes after we laid hands on the
Sheik.”
The next morning broke with a flurry of snow and a
chilly wind down the Bosphorus from the Black Sea.
With the approach of spring, the water in the Sea of Mar-
mora had begun to warm up a little, each noon-conse-
quently, the effect of this cold draught upon it from the
north was a fog which settled down upon the surrounding
hills and seemed to grow thicker toward night. In the
narrow streets of old Stamboul fog is the last straw in the
way of confusing the senses of those who attempt to navi-
gate them-particularly at night. And this proved an-
other favoring element in an enterprise which, in cold
blood, appeared little short of suicidal.
Various persons had offered to present the Sheik-ul-
Islam with a motor car after such things in the line of trans-
portation became practical, but he had steadily refused to
accept one. It savored too much of those modern ideas
which he felt to be undermining the Moslem faith. So he
drove about the city and suburbs in a rather shabby
brougham drawn by two excellent horses. In broad day-


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
99
light this equipage was recognized by everyone. At
night it bore a similarity to other vehicles which made it
less easily picked out. In a fog it might have been any
one of a hundred broughams. So, to lessen the chance of
making a mistake and losing an opportunity which might
not occur again for months, Sir Abdool was in the Sultan
Bajazid Mosque at seven o'clock-waiting there until the
Sheik arrived, about eight.
When his brougham drove away, down the Rue Koska,
following the tracks of the electric tramway, Sir Abdool
was swinging underneath, hanging on to the axles. Just
beyond the little mosque of Mourad Pasha the coach-
man turned into the narrower Rue Hasseki and Rue
Daoud Pasha. After passing the Hasseki Mosque, a shrill
cry appeared to come from the pavement under the broug-
ham-startling the coachman so much that he pulled up
his horses under the impression that he had run over some-
body. Then five ghostly figures came running out of a
narrow alley in the fog. While one held the horses' heads,
the others pulled the coachman from his box-gagging
and binding him. The door of the brougham was
wrenched open—the Sheik hauled out unceremoniously
upon the pavement, where he was bound and wrapped
in a long military cloak which effectually concealed his
official robes. Leaving the carriage in the middle of the
street, the coachman propped against the wall of a house,
the attacking party-afterward identified as German
officers marched away in the fog, down the next twist-
ing alley, with the Sheik between them-a savage whisper
in Arabic warning him that the slightest outcry would
promptly bring a knife between his ribs.


100
THE UNSEEN HAND
Mussa Hazikem was a man past middle age who had
been unaccustomed to physical exercise for many years.
The walk they forced him to take was really less than half
a mile--yet so roughly did they urge him on, twisting and
turning through a number of dark alleys, that he was com-
pletely exhausted when finally they reached a gate in a
brick wall. There was a step against which he stumbled,
pitching forward upon the stones and receiving an ugly
cut, upon his forehead, which bled profusely. He was so
nearly “all in" that they carried him the rest of the way“
gently enough. When they laid him upon a couch in a cold,
damp room which had the appearance of having been a
woman's apartment at one time, his senses were so con-
fused that his only clear impression was a whispered threat
--that the slightest outcry from him during the next few
hours would bring in someone to cut his throat. Unbind-
ing his arms and throwing a number of filthy rugs over him
to prevent his freezing to death, they went out of the room,
locking the door so quietly that he barely heard the
click of the bolt.
Twenty minutes later, as the chief of the Hamal Guild
was drinking mastic with a number of fellow hamals in a
low Turkish café near the Yeni Kapou, the Osmanli, Ab-
dullah, who had spoken to him on the previous afternoon,
came panting into the place with news which brought every
man to his feet with hoarse cries of rage. The holy Mussa
Hazikem-the Skeik-ul-Islam-representative on earth of
the Prophet himself-had been outrageously attacked by
German officers upon the public street, dragged from his
own brougham, bound and gagged-hauled off down a
filthy alley—to be butchered, in all probability!


102
THE UNSEEN HAND
belief. Presently there was a faint creak of the hinges
he knew the door was being cautiously opened, though he
couldn't see it in the pitchy blackness. Then came a
whisper:
“Art thou here, O Holy One? Father of the Faith-
ful!”
“Even so, my son-and in grievous plight."
“Deign to take my hand, Holy One—and step as
lightly as possible! There be three of us. We saw thee
attacked, and followed as quickly as might be-climbing
over the garden wall.”
“Thou art not Osmanli, my son! Thy tongue hath a
roughness like that of the Ingiliz !”
“It is even so, O Sheik. I am Captain Leicester of
the British Embassy—whom thou mayest have seen there
upon occasion. Leftenant Hedges and a good Turkish
friend are with me. Come quickly before we are discov-
ered!”
In the garden two other indistinct figures gently grasped
the Sheik by his elbows and partly supported him as he
walked out of the little gate. A short distance away,
they stopped at the house of a prominent Osmanli, who
telephoned for a carriage and administered restoratives to
Mussa.
As they left Von Holtzen's garden another ghost drag-
ged a struggling sheep into the harim, cut its throat, cau-
tiously opened the door communicating with the selâmlik,
and carrying the sheep in his arms, let fall a trail of bloody
drops which led from the street door to the harim. In the
room where the Sheik had been confined he left a pool of
blood upon the divan and floor, then carried the sheep's


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
103
carcass out through the garden just as Von Holtzen, with
his adjutant and the kavass, came home from Pera.
Calling for the orderly and Turkish servant, with
no response, Von Holtzen and the kavass proceeded to
search the lower floor-presently finding them, either
drunk or drugged, in one of the smaller rooms. Just
then they became conscious of a hoarse murmur in the
street. It grew louder-more ominous. In a few mo-
ments a mighty blow from a water-logged beam shattered
the front door, and a mob of crazed Mohammedans surged
into the selâmlik, demanding the Sheik-ul-Islam.
Von Holtzen's look of stupefied amazement was reflected
upon the faces of his adjutant and the kavass, but it
carried no conviction. In a moment someone looked
down at the floor-saw the trail of bloody drops! With
hoarse cries of rage the mob followed it-hesitated a mo-
ment before the door of the harim, which is, to all Moslems,
inviolable: then they smashed it in and fetched lights
from the selâmlik. On the dusty, half-rotting divan
were the Sheik 'srobes of office and his tarbush-soaked
with blood. The pile of filthy rugs bore mute testimony
to the sort of covering with which he had been insulted.
And upon a tabouret near the divan was a dirty plate with
two rancid ham sandwiches!
That quite settled it! They brought Von Holtzen in-
to the room with his four men and deliberately cut their
throats. Afterward they did other things which cannot
be described. They didn't burn the house, because fire is
too serious a matter in Stamboul—but they wrecked it.
And it is likely to stand for another hundred years as the
memento of a great outrage committed against the Mo-


104
THE UNSEEN HAND
hammedan Faith. No Mussulman will enter it. No
European will be permitted to lease or occupy it. No
man may destroy it and build again upon the site.
A few days later there was a conference at the secret ren-
dezvous in the Yeni Kapou quarter-Sir Abdool and his
mysterious friend being about to leave for England by way
of Asia Minor. They were congratulating themselves
upon the successful way in which their work had been
accomplished, and speculating as to its future effect. The
still unknown Hadji was inclined to think it would take
time to work out.
“The powder is getting warmed up to the exploding
point, gentlemen-but no leader has yet appeared. The
seed, however, has been sown. It will take time for the
story to reach the farther extremes of the Empire; never-
theless it will travel there just as surely, and will lose noth-
ing in the telling. Nor will it be forgotten that two
Englishmen from the British Embassy-remaining in
Stamboul at the risk of their lives—went out of their way
to rescue the Sheik-ul-Islam from what seemed unquestion-
ably a death-trap. The wiping out of Von Holtzen and
his people was only an incident. All Turkey will snarl
at the suggestion that it was a personal grudge upon his
part. They believe now that Mussa's abduction and
death had been decided upon as a coup d'état with the idea
of terrorizing all the conservative element among the Turks.
We have scored a coup that will, I think, have far-reaching
results—and there was one feature which I consider a
masterpiece. The man who thought it out certainly ap-
plied the finishing touch! Which of you was it that
left those rancid ham sandwiches by Mussa's divan in the


THE HONOR OF ISLAM
105
harim? Exactly the sort of thing which would occur to
the German mind as rations for a prisoner-yet so loaded
with possibilities that they were just that much dynamite!”
Devereux grinned: “Why-er-d'ye see-I fancy I
may as well claim that as my own little touch, old chap.
The Indian Mutiny, don't you know, started with pig's
fat on the cartridges. Pig is the limit in uncleanliness to
all True Believers.”


CHAPTER IV
THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
HILE Lord Trevor and Sir Abdool were re-
turning from Constantinople by devious ways,
on frowsy little tramp steamers-Sir Francis
Lammerford, after months of valuable and dangerous secret-
service work in Petrograd, was on his way home to London
for a brief rest. With the friendly assistance of the Secret
Police he had left Russia in the character of an American
with German ancestry taking the steamer across to Stock-
holm, then the railway down to Malmö, crossing the
Sound to Copenhagen; down through Denmark to Ham-
burg, Bremen, and Osnabruck—where certain banking
houses received him cordially as a supposed connection of
their American branch; then over into the Netherlands
from where he was to sail on one of the Holland-Amerika
liners. His being in The Hague, rather than Rotterdam-
from which port his steamer sailed two days later-was
accounted for by a visit to the Hague branch of his bank-
ing house before he left. In fact, the House of Van Es &
Co. wrote their Hamburg and Bremen correspondents that
they had received a call from him which they thought
might lead to increased American business.
Just here it may be of interest to explain that the For-
eign Office of every Government has ramifications in all
of the world's capitals which enable it to procure backing
106


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 107
and cre 'entials—often by cable, at a few hours' notice-
so that subsequent inquiries meet with satisfactory
assurance that a person has every right to claim such a
connection. Let us suppose, for example, the British
Embassy in Washington transacts different portions of its
business through Messrs. Brown Bros.of New York, Messrs.
Kuhn, Loeb &Co., and Messrs. Courthier Frères. Although
war and politics enter very little into the banking business
in a neutral country, Kuhn, Loeb & Co. represent, na-
tionally, the enemies of Brown Brothers. Hence, under
present conditions, it would be suicidal for the man in
Europe if the British Ambassador even asked for any backing
through the German firm. But Mr. Hermann Steinberger,
the well-known Wall St. broker (who is really Mr. Herbert
Stornfield, a secret agent of the British Foreign Office),
has an account with Kuhn, Loeb & Co. Having received
a request from the British Embassy in Washington, he
drops in for a confidential interview with the General
Manager of the German banking house tells him that a
fellow German-American is coming into Germany from
Sweden with the intention of going to England by way of
Rotterdam, thinking he may be able to pick up war secrets .
which will be immensely valuable to Wilhelmstrasse—that,
from the probability of there being English spies who
might easily spot collusion with an impostor in any Ger-'
man business house, it will be necessary for him to have
bona-fide American backing while in Germany. The
Manager winks-lights a cigar-
“Enough, my good Herr Steinberger! It iss done
efery week! We understand each other perfectly! Der
Vaterlandt haf received much valuable information


'108
THE UNSEEN HAND
through such channels. Let us see, now? Der chentle-
man's name iss— *—your friendt's name iss ? Der
Mister Charles Colmar, spelled mit a 'C.' Ja? Very
goodt! Mister Charles Colmar iss now upon der books of
this company as salesman in our bond department, at
present looking into der matter of loans-abroad in
Schweden. In a few days, comes der cable from our Ham-
burg House-do we know him? Undt we at once cable
back he iss all right. Ja! Don't mention it, my goodt
Herr Steinberger! We must all assist der Vaterlandt!"
Sir Francis knew The Hague from Scheveningen to
Oranje Plein with his eyes shut; he could have gone un-
erringly from the Staatspoor Station to any one of the
handsome detached residences in the Willems Park quar-
ter on a snowy winter night if every light in the city were
suddenly extinguished. But in his assumed character as
an American tourist, he did what the average American
tourist would do-asked which was the most expensive
hotel in town, knowing but the one synonym for home
comforts—and proceeded directly to the Hotel Paulez,
opposite the Royal Theatre.
Taking rooms there as the Heer Charles Colmar, of
New York, he enjoyed a most excellent dinner, but noticed,
while glancing through an English paper, that one of his
glasses was cracked. Out of doors, Lammerford's sight
was abnormally keen for his fifty-odd years, but to read
small print comfortably he required lenses of the second
power--unusually large because of the width between his
eyes. Sauntering out through the Vijver Berg, after
dinner, he strolled into the maze of narrow streets south-
west of the Plaats-coming eventually to an oculist's


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
109
shop on the ground floor of an old seventeenth-century
building with dormer windows in its steeply pitched roof.
In the darkness, he failed to notice the name over the door.
The place looked clean and businesslike, and the limited
display of optical goods in the window seemed to indicate
a painstaking craftsman; so he stepped in and looked at
various articles in the show-case while the oculist talked
with another customer at the further end of it, toward the
rear of the shop.
To Lammerford's surprise, he noticed that they were
speaking German-not Dutch. A glance at the proprie-
tor gave the impression that he might be Prussian or Sax-
on from his facial characteristics—not a Nederlander.
Then the other customer turned partly toward the door
for a moment, and Sir Francis recognized him as Mr. Phaid-
rig O'Meara—a junior attaché who had been at the Brit-
ish Legation there, for over a year, and who had been re-
ported in Downing Street as rather promising diplomatic
material. Sir Francis knew, however, what the British
Minister and even Sir Edward Wray did not: that Phaid-
rig O'Meara came of a family with strong Fenian sym-
pathies--was, in fact, a descendant of the famous Smith
O'Brien-and had rather expected to find him one of those
Irishmen who hoped for British defeat, rather than a loyal
supporter in the Empire's hour of need.
The few words of German Sir Francis caught seemed to
imply a certain amount of intimacy with this German ocu-
list, but Lammerford was fair enough to admit that
O'Meara could very honestly be obtaining information of
great value to the Foreign Office by cultivating that sort of
acquaintance. If the man was loyal and ambitious for a


*110
THE UNSEEN HAND
diplomatic career, as his superiors thought, his being in
that shop under such circumstances was proof both of his
trustworthiness and ability. On the other hand, if heredity
counted for anything, his presence there constituted a
serious menace to England.
It was quite evident that he had not recognized Sir Fran-
cis or even suspected him as a former acquaintance. It
was evident also to a close observer that the pair of them
were nervously irritated by the entrance of a stranger just
at that time. The oculist purposely ignored the pros-
pective customer for several minutes-presumably in the
hope that he would take offense and go out. Finally,
however, he came over to that end of the show-case and in-
quired with some abruptness what the stranger wanted.
Lammerford passed over his glasses. The German
glanced at them briefly, tossed them into a velvet-lined
drawer, and said: “To-morrow afternoon-four o'clock!"
Then he went back to an obviously makeshift talk with
O'Meara about-tulips.
Ten minutes after Lammerford went out the oculist
stepped to the door and started fastening his shutters for
the night. As he was doing so, he glanced up and down
the narrow street, then muttered: “All right!” O'Meara,
who had remained leaning upon the inner end of the
show-case, sauntered back through a rear door which gave
access to the house. The oculist then put out the lights
in his shop and followed him up to a room on the fourth
floor, under the pitched roof.
Half an hour later three men were admitted by the
street entrance to the house at one side of the shop, and
taken up to the same room. From the conversation


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
111
which followed one would have gathered that the well-
built, light-bearded man was a secret agent of Wil-
helmstrasse, and that the two companions who came in
with him were German business men of The Hague in
good standing among their Dutch neighbors. Schmidt,
the oculist, who appeared to be one of the lesser Wil-
helmstrasse agents, got down to business as soon as the
pipes were going and the beer circulating.
“We have been talking of many plans during the last
month, gentlemen, but when we came to test them out,
each one seemed impracticable--not likely to accom-
plish what we wish. O'Meara, however, appears to have
solved the difficulty. He has been outlining a scheme to
me which, in my opinion, cannot fail. We have all agreed
that anything producing a definite break with England
must automatically compel the Nederlanders to side with
us. It would place them between two fires, and we now
have three hundred thousand men encamped along the
borderready to enter Holland at a moment's notice.
It would be impossible for Holland successfully to resist
a sea attack from England and a land attack from Ger-
many at the same time she must side with one or the other.
I she breaks with England, that settles it-irrevocably." +
The other Wilhelmstrasse man had been thoughtfully
smoking, but a gleam came into his eyes at this.
"What is O'Meara's plan?” he demanded. “Let's
have it!"
"First to compromise the British Minister, here, so un-
mistakably that every newspaper in the city will do its
best to excite popular indignation against him-stir up
rioting against England--and then to have Sir Alan


112
THE UNSEEN HAND
assassinated in such a way as to make it appear that the
Dutch Government took no steps to protect him."
"Bah! That's an old game in diplomacy! It was even
tried against the Dutch Minister in London, a year ago!"
“And would have succeeded, my friend, had not the plan
been discovered and blocked by their verdammten Diplo-
matic Free Lance, of whom one hears such amazing stories.
It would have succeeded-don't forget that! The plan
is not new, I admit! But tell me, if you please, what plan
is new in diplomacy? Work out something which you
are sure is original in your own massive brain, and the next
schoolboy you meet will tell you it was tried in Assyria or
Babylonia three thousand years ago! This plan is as old
as the human race. And it has been successful in most of
the cases where it has been tried!
“But there are features about this scheme of O'Meara's
which make it different-more promising. This British
Minister has Dutch blood in him. He is a lineal descen-
dant of the Vanden Bempde family—which has made him
more than usually persona grata with Queen Wilhelmina.
When such a man is caught treacherously planning to be-
tray and annex the Netherlands, it will arouse ten times the
public indignation that it would if he were not partly
Dutch himself! Is it that you comprehend? On the
other hand, his assassination, not prevented by this Gov-
ernment, will be doubly exasperating to England after her
diplomatic care in trusting her representation to a man
who is partly Dutch in sympathy and blood. See the
point? As O'Meara has blocked it out, the plan cannot
fail! All he asks is one of the Cabinet ministers who can
be bribed to assist him.”


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 113
"Hmph! He doesn't ask much, this Irish friend of
ours! Bribing a Cabinet minister is a trifling detail, as
everyone knows!"
O'Meara grinned at this, and lighted a cigar.
"Faith, if it were easy, we'd not be wastin' our breath
upon such a matter now—'twould have been done long
ago! 'Tis not an easy job to pull off a coup of any sort in
diplomacy, but the fact that it's difficult makes it all the
more effective when successful. Let us go into this a bit,
now, an' see how it looks. We'll take, first, the Foreign
Minister—the Jonkheer Loudon; he's by way of being
a strong English sympathizer. Jonkheer Cort van der
Linden, Minister of the Interior, is equally so. General
Bosboom, the Minister of War, is a bit on the other side-
has much admiration for the German army and its
methods. I've been thinking him over, but I can't see
any way to get hold of him without riskin' too much in
case he's really loyal to his own country. Captain Ram-
bonnet, the Minister of Marine, is another of the same
sort. Doctor Mely, however, I know to be a German
sympathizer, and he's in business difficulties on account
of the war. The house in which he is a two-thirds owner
has met with heavy losses in Belgian investments and
accounts; he's been obliged to borrow heavily from banks
which are associated with those in Hamburg and Berlin.
Can any of you suggest a way of exerting pressure
upon him?”
After a moment's silence Rudolph Kirschwasser, a
wealthy German merchant of The Hague, spoke up.
“I should put him in the hands of Fräulein Katrina von
Kattenberg for a few weeks; she'll get him infatuated


114
THE UNSEEN HAND
very easily, and will know just where to put on the pres-
sure.”
"No! I object to mixing her up with this sort of thing
at all! In the first place, I don't think she'd do it; then,
before we get through with this, there's the ugly business
of assassination to consider. No! Keep her out of it!"
O'Meara spoke with some heat. It had been through
his own infatuation for the handsome Viennese, and his
frequent visits in the house where she had lived for years
with her uncle, that he had been drawn into contact with
the German element at The Hague; and he was jealously
averse to her being placed in a position where presumably
she would have to encourage familiarities from a man of
Dr. Mely's attractiveness. The others looked up in aston-
ishment at his outburst, then glanced understandingly at
each other..
. “Look you, my friend—the Fräulein has lived in The
Hague ever since she came to her uncle, a child of three,
after her father's death in Vienna. Von Kattenberg has
been here so long in business, has been identified with so
many national associations, that he is considered to all
intents a Nederlander. He is, however, the private banker
of Prins Heinrich-and has kept Wilhelmstrasse dosely
in touch with everything that happened here. The Fräu-
lein herself has been trained from childhood to assist him
in that sort of thing. More than that-she and her
uncle have maintained so entirely a neutral position
in this city that they are received by the best Dutch
families. A dozen of the young Nederlanders wish to
marry her. Mely himself is one of her open admirers-
though considerably older. She's the one person who


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 115
might involve him with us until it is too late to back out-
after which it will be an easy matter for her uncle to obtain
a number of Mely's outstanding notes, and put on the
screws until he doesn't know which way to turn.”
O'Meara was shrewd enough to see the force of all this,
and knew that further opposition would only make them
distrust him.
"Oh, very well! It's a beastly game to drag a woman
into, but if you're so sure of her securing Mely's assistance,
I suppose that outweighs my objections. You have a talk
with her, Kirschwasser, and explain the whole lay-out.
All I want of Mely is to conceal a package of papers, dur-
ing a certain interview, where he can discover them in a
compromising position and show 'em to his colleagues.
He'll have nothing whatever to do with the killing-no
blood on his hands, or anything of that sort. Even so, I
think your bribe will have to be so large that he can't re-
fuse it. Don't try a pifffing game with him, or you stand
to lose out!”
"You need have no fears upon that score, O'Meara!
The kaiser and his Government do nothing by halves.
We have already spent a hundred millions in acquiring
newspaper shares throughout the United States--and we
seldom make the mistake of trying to save a pfennig
where doppelkronen are needed.”
When Lammerford returned to his hotel, he sat down in
the smoking lounge with a cigar, to think over what he
really knew against O'Meara-finding, upon analysis,
that it amounted to little more than conviction as to the
man's political sympathies, judging from what his family


1116
THE UNSEEN HAND
had been in times past. Altogether, Sir Francis was in-
clined to suspend judgment until he had more definite
cause for suspicion.
If he could have gone directly to the British Legation in
the Hooge-Westeinde, that night, and had a conference
with Sir Alan, he would have done so. But for a man
known to German banking-houses as a German-American,
to visit openly a British Minister in war time was a little
too raw. He managed it next morning by accepting an
invitation to motor with a well-known Hollander who was
secretly a British agent-meeting Sir Alan as a stranger,
when their Dutch mutual friend invited the Minister to
return from Scheveningen in their car. During the oppor-
tunity thus offered Lammerford obtained considerable up-
to-the-minute information as to local conditions at The
Hague-and some additional points concerning O'Meara,
which set him thinking.
At two o'clock he called at Karl Schmidt's shop to ask
whether his glasses would surely be ready when promised.
Knowing the man for a Prussian, there had been nothing
really unusual in his ill-mannered abruptness of the pre-
vious evening—but Lammerford was suspicious of him
for all that. He knew that unless the oculist happened to
have a lens of that unusual size in stock, it was the better
part of a day's work to grind and fit one. Schmidt had
said the glasses would be ready by four o'clock—which
meant that he might have had to work two or three hours
on them before he went to bed. He employed two assis-
tants but, presumably, they had plenty of other work to
complete next day. So, calling at two o'clock, he couldn't
have reasonably complained if told that his glasses would.


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 117
n't be finished that day at all. Instead of which, Schmidt
immediately produced them-with the new lens in place.
Now, the one thing a Continental tradesman will not do
is deliver a hurry job before the hour at which he has prom-
ised it-particularly if the customer be an American,
with his absurd weakness for haste. Usually the trades-
man will make him wait longer in the hope of being able to
charge an additional fee for neglecting other work to com-
plete his. But there was no extra charge, and the job was
finished two hours ahead of time. When Sir Francis left
the shop he was convinced that Schmidt didn't want any
stranger in it, after a certain hour that afternoon, who was
unaccounted for.
On the spur of the moment, he entered a house on the
opposite side of the street and inquired for a furnished
room. As it happened, there was a vacant one in front,
which he promptly engaged for a week-saying that he
would sit down and write some letters before going to the
hotel for his luggage. From behind the blinds he watched
the oculist's shop until sunset—and was about to give it
up when he saw O'Meara coming down the little street
ahead of three Germans, one of whom he recognized as a
Wilhelmstrasse spy of considerable ability.
These men turned in at Schmidt's door a moment after
the Irishman had entered. In the time it took Lammerford
to get from his room into the street, he knew it was im-
possible for them to have reached the nearest corner, had
they come out of the shop-yet when he walked past it,
glancing in through the window, the place was empty
save for one of the apprentices. Obviously, Schmidt and
the four men were somewhere in the upper part of the


118
THE UNSEEN HAND
house. After a moment of quick thinking at the next
corner Lammerford decided that what he had seen might
prove of the utmost seriousness--too much so for O'Meara
to handle alonesupposing him to be loyal. If he were
not? If the Irishman was a traitor
His speculations were interrupted by the appearance of
a stylish limousine which spun around the corner, ran
smoothly down the block, and stopped before the oculist's
shop just long enough to permit a woman, muffled in a
dark silk opera-cloak, to hurry in at the narrow doorway
which gave access to the upper part of the house. In
fact, the car didn't appear to lose headway at all-van-
ishing around a bend in the narrow street before he could
make out its number or other distinguishing marks. He
had caught a fleet ng glimpse of an indistinct but hand-
some face inside which seemed hauntingly familiar-but
he couldn't place it.
The incident added to Lammerford's conviction that
something dangerous was afoot-whether against the
Nederlands Government individually or the Entente col-
lectively, he couldn't determine. Apart from the Legation
attachés--two of whom were detailed in the Grand Duchy
of Luxembourg-and two secret agents who passed as
resident Nederlanders, there was no one available in The
Hague for the peculiarly delicate and dangerous service
which appeared to be indicated. Inside of ten minutes
from the time he left his recently acquired room he came to
a decision, and took the two o'clock boat from Rotterdam
next day for Harwich, reaching Liverpool Street Station
at 11:30 P. M.
A message announcing his arrival having been dis-


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
119
patched from Harwich to a fellow American at the Tray-
ellers' Club that gentleman (secretly connected with
Downing Street) casually asked Sir Edward Wray over
the telephone whether it would be convenient for him to
join Lord and Lady Trevor at a late supper in their Park
Lane mansion. Sir Edward was obliged to leave a Duke's
box at the opera before the last act in order to make it-
but he didn't hesitate on that account. Consequently,
when Lammerford reached the house, he found the Trevors,
the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, and a hot dinner
awaiting him.
Although Her Ladyship's mixed Afghan and English
household were absolutely dependable, even to the point
of risking their lives when necessary, the dinner-talk was
confined to casual topics until they went across the hall
into the big Jacobean library for coffee and cigars. There,
Sir Francis outlined what he had noticed in Karl Schmidt's
shop at The Hague-together with what he had picked up
from Sir Alan during the motor ride from Scheveningen.
Sir Edward was inclined to minimize any probable danger
to the Entente from such a source-upon the ground that
Sir Alan was an exceedingly able diplomat who had his
Legation affairs well in hand, and that the resident secret
agents were undoubtedly well posted as to everything go-
ing on under the surface. But neither His Lordship nor
Lady Nan agreed with him.
“The chief point you're overlookin', Ned, is the loyalty
of Phaidrig O'Meara! If the man is true to his salt,
he'll have that situation well enough in hand to give us
ample warnin' before the critical moment—though if it
proves as big as Lammy fears, it may easily get beyond


120
THE UNSEEN HAND
him. Sir Alan's tendency, as we know, is to assume that
threatening incidents seldom amount to anything. One
hears the cry of 'wolf!' so everlawstin’ly in the Service
with so little comin'of it, half the time—that Ifawncy we all
get a bit careless, d'ye see. However, there's no gettin'
around what Lammy says about Phaidrig O'Meara's fam-
ily. O'Meara's father was among the Fenians under Colo-
nel O'Niel who crossed Niagara into Canada in May,
1866, killin' a good many Canadians before they were
captured. We know that the father, an uncle, an' three
cousins, took the celebrated Fenian Oath—but this boy
spent several years as apprentice in the counting-room of
another uncle in Bombay, goin' from that into the Con-
sular Service an' then into the Diplomatic. As far as his
record shows, there is nothing against him-but he pays
frequent visits to relatives in Dublin and Limerick, seemin'
to be upon the best of terms with 'em. All his family con-
sider a South of Ireland man who is loyal to the British
Government a renegade—they don't hesitate to call him
one. Now-is it possible that a man with his blood, on
excellent terms with his family, can be loyal to the Crown?”
"Faith, if you put it that way, George, I'd say it's not
possible! But-my word, man! If he's a traitor at heart
--eh? That means he's actually hand in glove with those
bally rotters over yon that Lammy's been nosin' out!
Actually conspiring with them while he's connected with
the British Legation an'having no end of Governm’nt
information to give away if he chooses! What?”
“That's precisely what Lammy's afraid of! If he's
right-an' I'll wager he is, because I know that Fenian
breed—there's nobody at The Hague in position to handle


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 121
a matter of such gravity. We've but two resident
Downing Street men there, because we've had more work
for the force, elsewhere, than twice the number could do.
One of 'em's the merchant who contrived that conference
with Sir Alan in his motor car; the other is the editor of
De Haagsche Dagblad, one of the papers controlled by my
syndicate. He knows me as the majority shareholder and
general director, but has no suspicion of my diplomatic
activities. I'd say, offhand, that he's bright enough to
give us mighty valuable assistance--an' my interest in
the affair, as a big press-syndicate director, will seem per-
fectly natural to him.”
"You mean to say you're thinking of going over there
yourself, George! Hmph! I fancy there's not another man
in England with your constitution, old chap. You get
back two days ago from Constantinople, with Sir Abdool-
an' from what you've both hinted, I gather that the risk on
your lives wouldn't have been worth a German Treaty
during any moment of the time you were in Turkey.
What you pulled off there was a miracle, no less! An'
now you talk of dippin' into another mess, with scarcely
a decent night's rest between!”
“How about 'Lammy'? He's been doin' things in Pet-
rograd for months that make a chap wonder he's alive.
When they sent me to Siberia, I fawncied the poor old chap
would be shot before my train crossed the Caucasus. He
starts home, peaceably, for a much-needed rest—but not
by way of Christiania; oh, no, indeed! Has to come down
through Hamburg an' Bremen to Holland, just for fear he
might miss something. We may jolly well thank our
lucky stars that he did, I fawncy! What? I say! Why


122
THE UNSEEN HAND
F
-
isn't it a good idea for Nan an' me to run over on the Ranes
Sylvia via the Hoek of Holland, anchor at Rotterdam-an'
run up to s’Gravenhage for a short visit to Her Majes-
ty, eh? I used to skate with her occasionally, when she
wore short skirts an' pigtails; she's not forgotten it,
either! Lady Nan and I have been guests in the Paleis
des Könings more than once, d'ye see, an' I rawther
fancy our bein' in The Hague just now may assist in
maintainin’ friendly relations between the two Govern-
m’nts. We'll take a suite at the Paulez until we've made
our formal call at the Paleis. Fortunately, the yacht-
or rawther Scout Cruiser S-49—happens to be coalin'at
Gravesend. The telephone connection is laid on as usual
--I'll just have 'em put Cap'n Forbes on the wire an' say
we'll breakfast aboard at six in the morning, then run
directly across. The Ranee does thirty-five knots
--but we'll say thirty-with an average sea. That'll
get us to the Hoek of Holland about noon, an' up
to The Hague before two o'clock—just twenty-four hours
after 'Lammy' left Rotterdam. I doubt if anything
much has happened since he was at the Paulez."
Upon returning to The Hague, it seemed advisable to
Lammerford that he should abandon his German-Amer-
ican impersonation, so he shaved off the beard which had
been a distinguishing feature of Mr. Charles Colmar. An
innocently worded press message from London had pre-
pared Editor Van der Beers for the arrival of his syndicate
director; consequently he had a legitimate business excuse
for calling upon Lord Trevor at the Hotel Paulez within
half an hour after the celebrated peer's arrival. It was
also natural enough thai Lord and Lady Trevor, accom-


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 123
panied by their friend Sir Francis Lammerford, should re-
turn with Van der Beers to inspect the recently built, up-
to-date home of the paper in the Spui Straat-but the
real purpose of the visit would have surprised many an
honest Nederlander who read De Haagsche Dagblad every
morning.
Opening from the editor's private office at the rear of the
top floor was a sound-proof director's room where con-
ferences might be held at any hour of the day or night with
practically no risk of their being overheard. Connected
with the directors' room was a small suite consisting of
bedroom and bath-for the private use of the editor or
any of his associates whose business at the newspaper
office required their presence there during the greater part
of the night. In fact, that floor of the building had been
planned with an eye to its use by men or women from
Downing Street when the necessity arose.
When Lord and Lady Trevor went to the Haagsche
Dagblad offices with Van der Beers and Sir Francis
they were shown into the directors' room, where Lammer-
ford described what he had seen at Karl Schmidt's shop
and what he suspected-withholding only their doubts as to
O'Meara's loyalty. After reflecting a moment, the editor
himself expressed this doubt.
“It's a bit rotten, you know, for any one in the Service
to question the loyalty of a brother diplomat, but there's
one feature in Sir Francis' story which simply can't
be overlooked. If O'Meara should prove a traitor,
his opportunity for gettin' us all into a devil of a
mess is altogether too good! I fancied I knew this
town like a book-yet I'd never heard anything


124
THE UNSEEN HAND
against that oculist Schmidt up to this moment. He's
German-oh, aye! But he's been in that shop for over
twenty years an’ hasn't appeared to bother his head over
the war, one way or another. He's by way of bein' an ex-
pert in his trade-has some of the wealthiest people in
town among his regular customers—lives above the shop
with his wife and the family of his son, who married the
Jufvrouw van Westerveldt. Faith, it looks to me as if
whatever German conspirators there may have been in
his shop were fetched there by O'Meara as a safe place for
a rendezvous! The matter appears serious enough to bear
investigation."
“Any suggestions, old chap?”
“Aye-we're rather in luck, as it happens. You no-
ticed the little book-shop next door to Schmidt's, Sir Fran-
cis? The proprietor is Jan van Oosten-a Nederlander of
very old family, with a lot of pride, who is under obliga-
tions to me. I had the luck to save his life and a good bit
of money for him-possibly saved his daughter from some-
thin' worse than robbery at the same time. His sympathies
are with the Entente, because he has education enough to
know that German success would mean the death-blow to
Holland. Now, I'd suggest that you drop in at his book-
shop in the morning, browse among the old editions until
His Lordship happens along--as a stranger to you-an'
goes in for the same purpose. Then I'll turn up, go back
into the house with Van Oosten, an' tell him who you are.
Watch your chance an' slip through the door from the
shop, behind a long bookcase—you'll be taken up to his
parlor, where you can explain as much as seems necessary.
Your Lordship prob’ly won't care to mess in this affair


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
125
too deeply, because it will mean unnecessary risk before
we're through-but a few hours in Van Oosten's house
may be of decided ‘news interest.'”
ı'his suggestion of Van der Beers's (who was the Hon.
Henry Wyndham in England) was acted upon next morn-
ing. When the three men had been taken up to the spot-
less Dutch parlor by Jan van Oosten and his pretty daugh-
ter, the Jufvrouw Geertje, it appeared that Lord Trevor
had been known to them by sight and reputation for sev-
eral years. Geertje, who had a capable business head and
managed her father's accounts, was a social favorite
among the younger set at The Hague and had been pres-
ent at functions where His Lordship was guest of
honor-partly from his record as a daring aviator, but
largely because of his personal charm and great wealth.
In fact, her interest was so evident that he found it very
flattering, and courteously drew her into a tête-à-tête in
lone corner while Sir Francis and Van der Beers were dis-
cussing the house next door with her father. In the midst
lof their talk she caught a word or two of the other conver-
sation-listened for a moment, her eyes opening widely
in surprise and apprehension—then turned to him for a
more complete explanation.
"Is that true, Your Lordship? You really believe
the Schmidts are German spies?”
"I fancy there'll be little doubt of it, Mejufvrouw.
We're by way of hoping that you and your father will not
object to our watching the house for a few days from
behind one of your window blinds. With your permission
we may even get into the house from one of your dormer


126
THE UNSEEN HAND
windows in the rear. It may seem to you that we are med.
dling with what is none of our business, but Sir Francis
was formerly connected with the Diplomatic Corps, and
since the beginning of the war he's been working to prevent
complications among the neutral countries, as far as pos-
sible. As a commanding officer in the British Navy, it is
my duty to assist him where I can.”
For a moment she appeared to be hesitating over some-
thing she had in mind.
“Your Lordship! I-something has just occurred to
me which I think you should know! Listen, please! My
room is on the next to the top floor-under the slope of the
roof. I have, up there, one of the old Dutch stoves with
tiles outside, and a tiled flue which connects with the chim-
ney. Between the stove and the chimney there is a space
of eighteen inches. These houses are more than two hun-
dred years old—I think this one must have been originally
connected with the Schmidts', next door, for my chimney
appears to have a flue from a fireplace in the correspond-
ing room on their side of the wall. The opening on my
side was bricked up, at some time or other, and faced with
tiles. I know the bricks can't be very thick, because I
frequently hear the sounds of voices from the next house,
through my stove. Two nights ago I heard some men talk-
ing in that room until long after midnight-I could even
catch an occasional word, but had no reason for paying
attention to it beyond wishing they would keep still and
let me sleep."
“Would you-er-be willing to have us mess up your
room by taking out some of those tiles and bricks, Mejuf.
vrouw?"


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
127
"That's what I was going to suggest to Your Lordship!
Would you—I'm quite sure there will be nobody on that
floor in the next house at this time of day—would you care
to come up with me and look at the chimney now? Father
has a number of house tools—we may be able to pry some
of those tiles loose.”
Telling her father what she had in mind, Geertje took
His Lordship up to her room-it being quite evident,
when he saw it, why she didn't care to have the other
men invade its privacy all at once. It was as neat and
dainty as the boudoir of a bride. While he examined the
tiling, evidently very old, judging by the depth of the
cracks between, she found a couple of sharp chisels and a
miniature crowbar. With these he had no difficulty in
prying off a number of the tiles—the mortar and fragments
falling upon papers which she had spread underneath.
Back of the tiling there was a single thickness of bricks
and by carefully manipulating the little crowbar he suc-
ceeded in prying two of them loose with so little noise that
it would have been difficult to hear it in the next room.
Working patiently for more than an hour, he removed
enough of the bricks to permit his crawling through into
the space behind them. Flashing a small electric torch
about him, he discovered that the chimney must have been
originally used as a secret passage between the two houses,
for there was a hinged panel six feet beyond the fireplace
in the other room. Sending Geertje for the oil-can from
her sewing-machine, he lubricated the hinges and the old
spring-catch-ascertaining from the exposed mechanisma
on the passage side just where the secret spring must be in
the wainscoting of Schmidt's room. After listening until


128
THE UNSEEN HAND
quite sure there was nobody on that floor in the other
house, he pulled back the catch and pried open the secret
panel, then worked it back and forth as he oiled the
hinges and lock-mechanism until he could open and close
it without a single protesting squeak.
From the appearance of the room on Schmidt's side, he
had no doubt whatever that it was used by the conspira-
tors for their secret conferences. Hoping to get a glimpse
of them before long, he picked a hole between the bricks
at the back of their fireplace and found that he could see
practically all who might sit around the big table. Then
he rejoined Geertje, helped her to remove all traces of his
work, and concealed the opening in her chimney by stand-
ing a low Japanese screen in front of it.
After explaining to the others in the parlor just what
they had done, and arranging that they should be called
by telephone the moment any of the conspirators were
noticed going into the oculist's shop, Trevor and his two
companions left the house. That night passed without
developments—as did several more. At the end of the
week Van der Beers received a telephone message at his
editorial office that O'Meara was then reading a newspaper
in the oculist's shop-evidently awaiting Schmidt's return.
Sir Francis happened to be with the editor at the moment,
and they soon located His Lordship by telephone.
Inside of fifteen minutes all three of them had entered
Jan van Oosten's book-shop, which was open during the
earlier part of the evening, and managed to slip back into
the house without being noticed—the door being concealed
behind a long and high bookcase.
When they were taken up to Jufvrouw Geertje's room,


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
129
His Lordship and Lammerford crawled through the hole
into the narrow passage behind the fireplace and sat down
with their eyes at the little crevices Trevor had made in
the fire-bricks. They had been there scarcely five min-
utes when they saw the oculist enter the room, followed by
O'Meara, Kirschwasser, and Stolb, the Wilhelmstrasse man.
Sitting down by the table, they waited until Schmidt
had produced cigars, pipes, and beer. Then Stolb told
them of the Fräulein's progress with the Cabinet Minister.
(As it happened, he did not mention either of them by
name.) It was her impression, he said, that the Minister
was completely infatuated. She anticipated little diffi-
culty in getting him to carry out their plan, and had told
Stolb the papers should be in her hands as soon as pos-
sible. While he was talking, O'Meara had drawn some
documents from an inside pocket-unfolding them on the
table.
“I have them all ready for her, Stolb—will hand 'em to
her to-night while I'm at the house. But first I'd like
your opinion—there may be something I've overlooked.
This one is a memorandum of just where every troop and
company of the Nederlands army is stationed at this mo-
ment-it betrays a knowledge of what he's not supposed
to know, upon Sir Alan's part, that will make the Cabinet
Ministers open their eyes. Here is a tracing of the War
Department map, showing the location and armament
of all the recent fortifications-together with the avail-
able munitions stored in each. Then comes this letter
from Sir Edward Wray, in the Legation cipher, with
forged initials which are rather convincin'. Of course, the
Intelligence Department of the Nederlands Government


130
THE UNSEEN HAND
could probably decode it with time and patience, but
I've slipped in a pencil memorandum of the translation.
The first third of the letter refers to matters under dis-
cussion between the two Governments-innocent enough.
But following that comes this paragraph:
“Concerning our arrangements for the immediate fu-
ture, we now have five hundred thousand men, equipped
for instant departure, where they can be embarked on trans-
ports within six hours. The transports are ready-field
artillery loaded upon them, with ample munitions. We
can have a dozen transports, disguised as cargo-boats
under the American and Argentine flags, up the Ni-
euwe Water and Holland Deep before their real errand is
suspected. With the German troops massed along the
border and half a million of our troops actually landed in
Holland, the Netherlands Government will not resist us.
It must join forces with the Entente, and we shall be able to
smash the German lines of communication. In the fu-
ture, of course, we must control Holland, absolutely, and
garrison her German border with our own troops. She
must become to all intents a part of the Empire.'
“The letter then goes on to deal with other matters—but
when the Dutch Cabinet Ministers read that paragraph, it
will be enough! Now—the plan is this: Our man will
frame up good reason for a call upon Sir Alan at the Brit-
ish Legation, with two of his colleagues from the Cabinet.
If for any reason he leaves the room for a moment, these
papers will be dropped by our 'catspaw' under the chair
in which he sat. If not, our man will tell his fellow Min-
isters after they leave the Legation that he saw the papers
drop from Sir Alan's pocket and quietly picked them up


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 131
with the idea that, in times like these, it might be we” to
get all the side points on other Governments which might
be obtained.” (Stolb banged his fist upon the table with
an exclamation of delight.)
"And the natural inference is that Sir Alan was inter-
rupted in decoding that cipher letter when the Ministers
arrived-stuffed letter and translation hurriedly into his
pocket as he went out from his private office to meet
them! Capital! Splendid! I didn't see how you were
to account for such stupidity as his having anything of
that sort upon him during such a conference-but, as
you've laid it out, the thing is entirely possible! What
happens next?”
"Our man is so indignant that he can't restrain him-
self when talking at his club with the editor of De Vader-
land, who is strongly pro-German. That editor at once
confers with the editors of two other pro-German papers.
In half an hour the story is on the bulletins—an extra
edition on the streets. If the story doesn't arouse a dan-
gerous burst of popular fury against Sir Alan I don't
know much about the Nederlanders. There will cer-
tainly be a rioting mob gathered in front of the Legation,
demanding that the Minister come out and show himself.
You can't scare Sir Alan, he's not that sort, and he'll
have perfect confidence in the ability of the Dutch Gov-
ernment to protect him. He will promptly appear at the
door or one of the windows. Stones will be thrown by
the mob-injuring him-smashing windows-and a few
shots fired. We will attend to that. One of the shots
will come from a man who hates England and never
misses. Sir Alan will be killed. The Dutch Government,


132
THE UNSEEN HAND
with proof in its hands of Entente treachery, will admit
the German troops and side with them.”
After a moment's silence, while the probable effect of
the plot sank into their minds, there was a chorus of ad-
miring exclamations. Shortly afterward the conspira-
tors left the house. When the listeners crawled back into
Geertje van Oosten's room, their faces were bitten deep
with consternation. Briefly, they told the editor and Van
Oosten what they had overheard-Lammerford summing
up the difficult features in the situation:
· "We don't even know which of the Cabinet was re-
ferred to as “our man!' That's something we'll have to
find out within a very few hours—also the identity of the
woman mentioned as “the Fräulein, who is undoubtedly
the one I saw in the limousine. We can't go to the For-
eign Minister with the story, because we haven't a shred of
proof against any of his colleagues at present, and while it
seems quite impossible, we're not entirely sure that he isn't
the man himself. We can and must warn Sir Alan to re-
ceive nobody at present without witnesses but he'll
laugh at the story when he hears it. He's just that
sort!”
Van der Beers had been thinking over the various details
of the plot and trying to match them with other things he
knew.
“I say, you know! The woman must be Katrina von
Kattenberg, who keeps house for her uncle, the banker.
They've been very circumspect in what they've said or
done since the war started, but every German of any prom-
inence who comes to The Hague is entertained at their
house. O'Meara has been openly one of her admirers


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 133
calls there almost every evening, when he can find a de-
cent excuse. And I know of at least two Cabinet Minis-
ters who are crazy about her. My word! I'm even
rather sure of the man whom she is to use as a cat's paw!
Van Kort had a quarrel, recently, with Loudon, the Fore
eign Minister. They don't speak to each other-take
opposite sides in every Cabinet meeting. And Katrina
von Kattenberg has been openly siding with Van Kort,
who owes his portfolio to Prins Heinrich. Van Kort is,
I should say, the only Minister whom it would be possible
for her to use in any such way as this!”
"Then I fancy we may take at least one step which ap-
peared dangerous until you explained this. If Van Kort
has quarreled with Loudon, the Foreign Minister will at
all events listen to what we know and what we suspect.'
Of course, he'll take no action without more proof-but
against an enemy like Van Kort you may wager he'll
keep his eyes open, and Trevor can describe the whole
plot to Her Majesty so that the Government will be fore-
warned. H-m-m-Van Kort gets those papers this even-
ing at the Von Kattenberg house; he probably won't be able
to arrange with his colleagues to call at the British Legation
to-night-and yet, he may! More likely, though, it will
be fixed up for to-morrow morning-just about the time
Sir Alan will naturally be goin' through his early post
from London. Well, we must shadow Van Kort and
O'Meara every moment. Harry, you know the minis-
ter better than we do, so we'll put him in your charge.
Lammy will keep track of O'Meara. And I will ask for an
interview with Her Majesty—at once!”
As the others preceded him down the stairs, His Lord


134
THE UNSEEN HAND
ship turned back to Geertje van Oosten, who was stand-
ing just outside the door of her pretty room.
“Geertje, Her Majesty and England both owe you a
debt which it will be difficult to pay, adequately. Had it
not been for your tellin' me about the chimney an' helping
us to overhear that conference in there, we might have been
groping in the dark until it was too late to save the Neder-
lands from the consequences of this beastly conspiracy. If
it is ever in my power to do anything for you, there'll be
no need of asking twice.”
Some womanly instinct told her this courteous English
peer-who had been one of her secretly admired celebri-
ties for years—was an even greater man than he seemed.
Some expression in her face revealed her liking for him.
He bent his handsome head until her lips touched his and
her arms crept around his neck—then he joined the others
downstairs. As she glanced at her face in the muslin-
framed mirror she knew that kiss would be one of her
most cherished memories until she died.
The three men were about to drift out, singly, through
the book-shop, when the bell of Van Oosten's private tele-
phone rang insistently in his study, back of the parlor,
and that sixth sense possessed by all who play the great
game prompted them to wait until he answered it. In a
few moments he came out of the study, rather breath-
lessly.
“Gentlemen Lady Trevor is now waiting at the Heer
Van der Beers' office in the Haagsche Dagblad building,
and wishes all of you to meet her there at once!"
They immediately left the house one by way of the


136
THE UNSEEN HAND
leagues in the Cabinet and insist upon their accompany.
ing him to the British Legation to-night, to demand a
certain explanation from Sir Alan-and that, when there,
he would know what to do with the papers. From one or
two references she gave I'm quite positive she must
have made him believe that the British Minister—though
a man of fifty-eight, with a charming family of his own-
had grossly insulted her at a moment when she happened
to be in his power, and that if this plan of theirs could be
carried out, it must ruin Sir Alan.
“Then she kissed him and he walked away so completely
hypnotized that he wouldn't have seen me if I had crossed
the street directly in front of him. It is raining quite
steadily, as you know, I'm sure that no one else was
anywhere near that limousine!”
They listened to her story in amazement-fitting it in
with what they already knew.
"Are you quite sure, Nan, that the man wasn't Jonkheer
van Kort-instead of Dr. Mely? It simply couldn't be
Mely, you know-unless we're altogether on the wrong
track!”
“Oh, I know Dr. Mely by sight as well as I know Harry
Wyndham here, and all the rest of the Cabinet, too! It
was Mely!"
“Then-my word! What! If your telephone mes-
sage had reached Van Oosten two minutes later, we should
have scattered to different parts of the city-shadowin'
Van Kort an' O'Meara! An' the fat would have been in
the fire before we knew where we were at! I say! I'll
go after Loudon, the Foreign Minister, at once for a wit-
ness! We must figure out some way of gettin' into the Von


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND 137
Kattenberg house within an hour, an' taking Loudon with
us ”
Van der Beers spoke up quickly:
“That's the simplest feature in the whole affair! The
Fräulein is giving a dance to-night-from ten till two!
The paper was requested to send a representative, of
course—which lets me in as a very desirable guest. Lou-
don and His Lordship would be more than welcome on
their own account-in fact, invitations are probably wait-
ing for them at this moment–including Lady Trevor, as
a distinguished visitor at the Paleis. Your Ladyship's
car is at the door; you and Lord Trevor can run back and
dress in twenty minutes, while Sir Francis gets hold of
Loudon! Meanwhile, I'll change right here and go on to
Von Kattenberg's ahead of you. Afterward Sir Francis
can keep track of O'Meara for the remainder of the night!
His Lordship and the Foreign Minister will meet me in the
men's dressing room."
A little less than an hour later-while Lady Nan was
the centre of an admiring group in one of the drawing
rooms—His Lordship and the Foreign Minister stepped
through a doorway on the second floor which Van der
Beers had indicated with a nod, in passing. For the mo-
ment it was empty. Hurrying across it, they slipped be-
hind a portière into the Fräulein's bedroom, beyond-
taking the precaution of opening a closet door in case they
might be obliged to conceal themselves. They had been
there scarcely ten minutes when the Fräulein Katrina
came into her boudoir with O'Meara—who gave her the
papers he had prepared, repeated a few particular instruc-
tions, and went out again. At the end of another ten min.


138
THE UNSEEN HAND
utes Dr. Mely cautiously poked in his head at the door,
and entered when she beckoned-closing it softly. Hand-
ing him the papers, she emphasized the necessity for acı
tion that night.
“I have sure information that Sir Alan will be at the
Legation between half-past eleven and twelve o'clock.
After showing the papers to your fellow Ministers and
leaving them in their possession, will you please go at once
to your club, where Belrode of the Vaderland will be wait-
ing for you. It will be easy to appear very much excited
by what you have discovered, and tell him the facts before
you remember that it may be indiscreet. Two other
editors are likely to be somewhere near-overhearing
enough to make them confer with Jonkheer Belrode. As
you see, there is nothing in all this which can possibly
injure you, my friend—the most that can be said is that
you were a trifle indiscreet in dropping too much of it to
Belrode. He will have the story on his presses by one in
the morning. Oh-you don't know what this means to
me! I feel that I shall never recover my self-respect until
that man is ruined for life! May I depend upon you? Jak
Then kiss me, and go-quickly!”
It was certainly a lingering caress. Just as he turned to
go, the Foreign Minister stepped back upon a loose board
in the bedroom, which creaked slightly.
“What's that? Is there any one in there?”
“Inpossible! That is my bedroom!” They tiptoed
over to the portière and drew it partly aside. The room
seemed empty—but the door of the closet in which her
clothes were hanging was slightly ajar. With that sub-
conscious modesty which most women possess, she went


1140
THE UNSEEN HAND
score! Sir Francis Lammerford was looking out for him
as he came down the stairs—and had three men waiting
outside in a motor-landaulet. We will find the Doctor,
handcuffed, in that landaulet-not more than a block
from here-awaiting your further instructions."
At eleven o'clock, Editor Belrode was called to the tele-
phone at his club. A voice he recognized as that of
Schmidt, the oculist, nervously gave him totally unex-
pected instructions.
“Mely was arrested for treason fifteen minutes ago.
They put him in a cell in the Oranje Barracks, with a guard
sitting outside where no political influence can get him
out! You must kill that story-quick! Get word to the
other editors! If a scrap of it appears in print, it will set
the police tracing out everyone connected with the affair."
A cautious inquiry by telephone confirmed the report of
Mely's arrest. Not in the least knowing where he was at,
Belrode set about killing the story-which had been in
type for three days, waiting for the word to release it. At
a conference in Van der Beers' office, shortly after mid-
night, the Foreign Minister announced his intention of
arresting all the conspirators before morning—but Lord
Trevor put the affair in a light he had not considered.
“I say,old chap—you arrest the Fräulein and her uncle,
for example? Suppose she calmly admits giving those
papers to Mely an' says she herself took them from Sir
Alan's pocket? Eh? Gave them to Mely to place before
the Cabinet! Sappose those pro-German newspapers
come out with the whole story, rearranged on that basis, a
few hours after the arrest? Of course, they won't have the
documents to back it up, and your being a witness of what


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
141
actually occurred will carry a good deal of weight-but
it's a story that neither my Governm’nt nor yours can
afford to have made public, just now! It's too much like
a match in a powder-magazine! What you can do, is
quietly hint to the Fräulein and her uncle that it may be
just as well to sell their house, close out his business inter-
ests, and leave the country inside of three days. Kirsch-
wasser also. That'll ‘keep 'em guessing,' as the Amer-
icans say—they'll not know how much proof you have
against them or whether you really mean to have them shot
if they don't take the hint. I fancy they'll go—without a
word. Mely, of course, your Cabinet will deal with as
severely as you like. You've proof enough to give him
the limit-but it will be safer to let it happen 'way off
somewheresay in Batavia. As for O'Meara, we'll at-
tend to him ourselves.”
When the Minister had left them, Van der Beers asked: '
“Would Your Lordship mind telling me why you oiled
the mechanism of that secret panel in Schmidt's house so
carefully? Did you anticipate concealing a force of men in
there to arrest the whole crowd? Seems to me you'd
make a corking good diplomat yourself, sir!”
“My word, no! That would have been showin' our
hand much too clearly, an' would have marked the Van
Oostens for trouble! I told our friend who has just left us
that it would be a good policy not to interfere with Schmidt
for the present, or even let him know he's under suspicion.
If Wilhelmstrasse gets an impression that he escaped all
implication in this affair, they're quite sure to use him an'
his house again, very soon, d'ye see? It's even quite pos-
sible they may kidnap Sir Alan or some of the Dutch Cab-


142
THE UNSEEN HAND
inet, an' conceal them in that old building. In that case,
don't you know, we've a means of gettin' in without their
knowledge an' havin' the game in our own hands."
The affair ended as it had begun-with O'Meara. He
expected arrest upon the charge of complicity with
Dr. Mely, but, apparently, there was no suspicion of his
connection with the affair. After a few nerve-racking
days he learned with astonishment that the Von Katten-
bergs were selling their handsome residence and going
back to Germany. As he had avoided the house in the
fear of compromising them, he knew of no reason for this
sudden move and finally called there in the evening for
an explanation. To his amazement, the butler took his
card in a contemptuous manner which made him exceed-
ingly angry-but he was stunned when the man came back
with the message that Fräulein von Kattenberg was not
at home to men who betrayed their own country.
As he walked slowly away from the house where he had
been for so many months an apparently welcome guest,
he gradually sensed the fact that he had been merely used
as an unscrupulous tool to further the underhand diplo-
macy of Wilhelmstrasse—and that the conspirators felt
for him nothing but contempt while taking advantage of
the secrets he betrayed to them.
It seemed as if rumor had been everywhere blackening
his name, even among the Nederlanders. When he drop-
ped in at his club, every former acquaintance cut him dead
-unmistakably. Even at a little restaurant where he was
known, in the Spui Straat, the waitress served him in
stony silence, and the cashier treated him as a stranger.


THE NEUTRALITY OF HOLLAND
143
During the day, it had seemed to him that his fellow
attachés at the Legation spoke rather abruptly upon sev-
eral occasions, but he noticed nothing else unusual until
he returned, about midnight. No one appeared to see
him as he came in and went up to his room.
He had been sitting there in the dark for half an hour
facing what he now realized to be the utter ruin of his ca-
reer, if nothing worse—when the door opened and Sir Alan
entered, followed by Lord Trevor and Sir Francis Lam-
merford. They locked the door, turned on the lights, and
seated themselves. He noticed, subconsciously, that
none of them cared to smoke. Presently Sir Francis Lam-
merford remarked in a reflective way:
“There's a difference, you know, between a man who is
an open rebel against the Governm’nt-riskin' his life
in a fair fight-and the sort of creature who cuts its throat
in the dark while pretendin' to be its loyal servant. The
Fenians gave us a good bit of trouble, back in the fifties
and sixties—but they were men who fancied they had a
grievance against England, an' were not afraid to risk
their lives by showin' it. Even to-day, the Irish who still
profess to hate England are quite open about it. In the
Orient, you know, one searches rather far before he finds a
man who'll actually betray his salt. O'Meara, if we send
you back to the Tower, it's a hanging matter, as you must
be aware-an' the whole story will have to be known. It
will blacken your family name for generations. On the
other hand, if you happen to die here at The Hague, while
presumably on duty in the Legation-why, there's nothing
more to be said. The people here know vaguely that you
betrayed your country, but they don't know the story in


144
THE UNSEEN HAND
detail. If you die, you're where you can do no further
mischief-and the situation in Holland under present con-
ditions is too delicate to risk dangerous complications by
allowing the facts of this affair to leak out.”
The man's throat was horribly dry. He kept moisten-
ing his lips with the tip of his tongue-looking from their
stern faces to the window and back again-realizing that,
incredible as it seemed, he was going to die-very soon.
He had determined while sitting there in the dark that he
would go to America, where nobody knew him--where he
would be received as if nothing had happened. But he
had forgotten what sort of men these were whom he had
betrayed. He would never see America. He would never
see another sunrise. For a moment, he thought, wildly,
of begging for at least that privilege; then some remnant
of the courage which had been that of his Fenian ancestors
made him straighten up in his chair.
“You-you have some particular way in mind—Sir Fran-
cis?” he asked.
Lammerford took a small capsule from his pocket and
soberly handed it to the doomed man.
"It's a matter of scarcely three seconds after the gela-
tine dissolves. Er cyanide, you know.”
O'Meara put the capsule between his lips and man-
aged to swallow it. For a moment he sat there looking at
them while the horror deepened in his eyes. Then there
was a convulsive shudder. The body sagged down in the
chair.


146
THE UNSEEN HAND
not underestimate the responsibility which rests upon
every woman of France to provide the nation with its
soldiers of the future.
At a corner table, one evening, were four officers who
had come down from the front on a week's furlough-three
of them Irish and the other a Gordon Highlander. They
were in high spirits—making the most of their brief res-
pite from the soul-deadening trench-life. They joked
with Marie, their waitress, exchanged anecdotes of va-
rious engagements, and discussed the entertainments to be
seen in Paris, with the absorbing interest of men who do
not know whether to-night's comedy or opera may be
their last. Presently two more Irish officers came in with
three ladies and a well-known member of the Chamber
seating themselves at a near-by table and bowing to the
group in the corner as Marie came in from the kitchen
with a pâté and four "bocks.”
For a moment or two she stood by the corner table,
easily holding her own in the duel of repartee; then she
moved on to take the order of a couple who had just en-
tered the room. Subconsciously, however, she was no-
ticing a subtle change in the talk among the Irish offi-
cers. As soon as she left them the voices of at least two
dropped to a more confidential tone; they appeared to be
discussing something which they preferred not having
overheard.
For one memorable year Marie had lived in London, as
the assistant of a Bond Street modiste, and had picked up
enough English to follow any ordinary conversation. By
occasional words that reached her from the table in the cor-
ner she sensed the fact that the officers were referring to


THE GREATER PLOT
147
some undertaking in which a number of their fellow coun-
trymen were interested—some approaching day upon
which certain plans would be carried out with the coöper-
ation of all.
There was nothing said which indicated a treasonable
element in whatever it was they were planning; in fact, it
was far more likely to be some preliminary concentration
for a summer offensive against the German lines. After
some consideration she decided that what little she had
overheard could have no other application, and almost
forgot the intensely patriotic incentive which prompted
her to listen so closely—almost, but not entirely. After
a while, passing the table of the Deputy, Henri Couramont,
she noticed that he was talking in much the same confiden-
tial manner to one of the officers at his table—which also
bore out the supposition of an impending army campaign.
When Couramont and his party left the Café des Trois
Gascons, the group of Irish officers were not long after
them. All appeared to be well known-the occasional
gendarmes saluting when their faces were recognized.
Three hours later Deputy Couramont came walking along
through the arcades of the Rue de Rivoli with Captain Tim
Delaney, who had followed him from the café. As they
reached the Rue Castiglione, the light from an arc-lamp
shone down upon their faces with a bluish-green reflec-
tion that distinctly revealed every line and feature to a tall
man in evening clothes who was coming down the other
arcade from the Place Vendôme. At first he noticed them
in merely a casual way as they stopped for a second or two
before crossing to the Hotel Continental; then a fleeting
expression upon the Deputy's face held his attention suffi-


148
THE UNSEEN HAND
In conse
ciently to make him study the man closely. He recognized
both of them in the second glance, but the expression he
had caught reminded him of someone who was not Coura-
mont, some man whom he couldn't remember to have seen
for years, a person whose name and identity escaped him,
spur his memory as he might.
His mind was still occupied with the evasive resembl-
ance when he dropped in at the Café Sylvain and found
there Gaston de Marais, of the Corps Diplomatique. In
the years preceding the war De Marais and Sir Francis
Lammerford had been diplomatic adversaries, but each re-
spected the other's ability, and their interests were now
identical, at least until the final readjustment of European
boundary lines. As Sir Francis had been in Russia for
several months—had been twice reported dead-the
Frenchman was genuinely pleased to see him.
“My dear friend! Is it really thou? Come! This is
a happy meeting! We will exchange experiences—with
champagne to stimulate the memory-eh?”.
For a while they chatted of various campaigns and the
political undercurrents which, more than the taking or
losing of trenches, moved the warring nations this way
and that toward the final showdown upon which a return
to peaceful life would be possible. After a while, Lammer-
ford casually mentioned having seen the Deputy, Henri
Couramont.
“The man appears to be gaining in political strength
if I'm a judge of stray gossip and the manner of people to-
ward him.”
“Ah oui! Couramont's leaders in the Courier du
Matin have been most daring; he has fought seven duels


THE GREATER PLOT
149
in consequence. He is a man to be reckoned with, and
the Cabinet are well aware of the fact—they even men-
tioned him for the Postes et Télégraphes portfolio."
"Let's see: he was from the Côte d'Or, wasn't he
originally?”
"I thought it was Haute-Saone-pretty well over toward
the Rhine valley, at that. Was he not running a small
weekly sheet at Belfort before he came to Paris-eighteen
years ago? It is said he gets his extreme hatred of the
boche from having lived within a stone's throw of him so
long."
“Seems pretty thick with the English and Irish offi-
cers!”
"Ah! That makes itself to be understood, my friend.
Officers are not permitted to say too much, you know
bat one may smile, affirmatively, when another makes a
tentative statement which is known to be true. One hears
that much of Couramont's accurate information concern-
ing matters at the front comes from his frequent déjeuners
with people of that sort. And, besides, one hears that
his mother was the daughter of an Irish baronet, which
makes the accounting for his excellent English-as his
early years on the German border gave him German which
is practically without accent."
Lammerford's mind was flashing from one half-remem-
bered face to another groping, considering, fitting to-
gether the various points in this gossip concerning the Dep-
uty and trying to construct inferences that would prove up.
“There's no question as to his patriotism, I suppose?
No chance of his having imbibed Prussian ideas from hav-
ing lived so long in close touch with them?”


150
THE UNSEEN HAND
“Pouf! You should hear him speak of the boche, my
friend! He spent a day last month in the trenches at
Verdun-and sat in a puddle of water for hours, potting
at every German head he could see! One hears that he
got two of them—the man is an artist with rifle or pistol!"
“Hmph! From what you say, De Marais, he appears
to be one of those tried and proved individuals to whom no
possible suspicion can attach? Eh?”
“It makes itself obvious that one's actions influence the
opinions of others more than the spoken word! The man
has given proof, at the risk of his life--and more than
once! Is it that you have something in mind concerning
this Couramont, mon ami?”
“No, there's nothing upon which I could base a frag.
ment of suspicion against him. Only—when you men-
tioned his early years upon the German border, I thought
of the many instances which show the extent to which a
Prussian will risk his life, unhesitatingly, if, at some crucial
moment, he may find himself in position to do the one vi-
tally important thing for his Government–the one thing
impossible were he known to be German. With Coura-
mont, as you say, one has proofs enough as to where his
sympathies lie and he's half English, or Irish, so that
removes even the possibility of any German taint in his
blood, n'est ce pas ? Well”-yawning slightly—“I've had
but six hours' sleep in two days. I shall have to make
some of it up. You must tell me where I may find you
most frequently, I may be in Paris for a week or so.”
Several years before, Sir George Trevor had maintained
by the year a four-room apartment in the Faubourg St.


THE GREATER PLOT
151
Honoré which, upon his elevation to the British Peerage, he
had turned over to Sir Francis Lammerford—the place
being looked after, in his absence, by a very attractive
widow of thirty-five who, after laying by a comfortable
dot, was shrewd enough to retain her personal liberty and
add to her fortune by acting as concierge for the five
buildings owned by M. Chartrain, the modiste of the Rue
de la Paix. Although just over fifty, her English tenant-
whose graying temples only accented the freshness of his
complexion and physical activity-could have married
her for the asking. But-as she was sensible enough to
realize-he might as easily have had more than one titled
beauty in London had he cared for settled family life.
Which explains the sort of care given his belongings in
Paris during his absence, and the personal attention which
enveloped him with a peculiarly comfortable warmth when
he was in residence at the little apartment in the Faubourg
St. Honoré. Returning to it after his chat with De Marais
he found Mme. Fauvette, in a dainty négligée, arranging
upon one of the smaller tables a silver tray with fruit,
little cakes, and wine glasses—while, just underneath,
stood a cooler in which two quarts of dry champagne were
packed in ice.
“M'sieu' le Chevalier has been away from Paris a long
time, and has doubtless been travelling constantly; he
will be très fatigué after his journey! Me, I do not know
of his arrival until I ascend, à dix heures, to close the win-
dow—and behold the portmanteau of M'sieu'! So-
voila! One makes the little celebration, obviously!"
Embracing her with a friendly warmth which belied his
years and brought the hot blood to her cheeks, he mo-


152
THE UNSEEN HAND
tioned her to the cushion-piled divan in one corner while
he rummaged in a closet for the Dimitrino cigarettes.
“Ah! It is like coming home, Julie! And you begin
by spoiling me, as usual! Me, I am just from the Sylvain,
so the cakes must wait until I have the appetite, but the
champagne we'll have while you tell me about yourself
since I left. Not married yet? Well, for that, the Saints
be praised! When you provide another husband for your-
self, I must change my pied-à-terre."
Had her warm heart been too unruly for her cool Pa-
risian brain—which had ever an eye to material advance-
ment-Madame Julie Fauvette might easily have made
for herself a most excellent match. She was in her prime
rather better than good-looking—with the education
many a Parisienne obtains through careful perusal of
first-class weekly and monthly periodicals, and a habit of
close observation which gave her a shrewd knowledge of
human nature a fund of information concerning those in
the public eye which Lammerford had found exceedingly
valuable upon more than one occasion. With a skill of
which she was probably unconscious, he gave the con-
versation a slant toward Government people leading
her around to what might have been called an “appre-
ciation" of the Deputy, Henri Couramont, whose polit-
ical ability she frankly admitted but whose influence in
the Chamber had appeared to have, sometimes, an ul-
terior motive which she couldn't puzzle out. Wishing to
emphasize some peculiar quality, which she felt without
being able to describe, she descended to her own quarters
for a recent copy of Le Monde Illustré which contained an
excellent half-tone print of the man.


THE GREATER PLOT
153
After they had discussed it for a while, she looked around
the apartment to make sure that everything had been pro-
vided for his comfort—then left him. Getting into paja-
mas and lighting a cigar, Lammerford went back to his
reading table for another glance at Couramont's portrait
in the magazine. It was an excellent one-reproduced
from a recent photograph-depicting the well-known
editor and politician as he appeared on the street. The
pointed beard was of sparse growth, revealing the lines of
jaw and chin—the features, line for line, as he had seen
them earlier in the evening. But the hauntingly familiar
expression-due, possibly, to the bluish-green light from
the arc-lamp-was lacking.
In the opinion of the British Foreign Office, Lammer-
ford's memory for names, past occurrences, and the faces
of people met but once or twice was almost as marvelous
as that of Il Cavaliere Scarpia—the old Italian eagle of
diplomacy. It was really a product of painstaking system
by which he recorded, mentally, such impressions as he
wished to retain for future use and it was frequently
strengthened by inducing mental stimulation of subcon-
scious impressions which had seemed of no importance at
the time. One of his methods for producing a species of
hypnosis in which his brain clarified and reproduced long-
forgotten incidents was the listening to classic music while
in a condition of complete relaxation. In the manor house
of his Cornwall estate in both his Paris and London
apartments—he had American phonographs of the latest,
most perfect type, with a collection which included hun-
dreds of the best orchestra records. After a final study of
the Deputy's face he turned out the lights, placed the


154
THE UNSEEN HAND
“Scala" record of the Tristan and Isolde prelude in the
machine, then stretched himself in the Morris chair with
his cigar. For an hour he played one record after another
in the dark-but the forgotten resemblance obstinately
remained just beyond his mental vision. He gained this
much, however, as a result of his concentration-an idea
as to how he might obtain some definite clue by purely
mechanical means.
In his talks with De Marais and Julie Fauvette, the
fact seemed to have been established that Couramont
had come to Paris, as a permanent resident, just eighteen
years before. Certain occurrences mentioned by each
fixed the time without much question. So that, if the man
had been elsewhere publicly active, it would have been
prior to that time-say nineteen or twenty years before.
In the days when illustrated periodicals depended entirely
upon wood-engraving, portrait wood-cuts were usually so
composite in their printed effect that establishing a per-
son's identity by means of one would have been gross in-
justice to the individual. But between 1888 and 1892
photo-engraving was perfected to such an extent that
the prints became reliable. A portrait "half-tone” in
a magazine of 1894-5, for example, would accurately
represent the man as he then looked. This was good
theory as far as it went-it pointed the direction in
which research might prove successful—but to make a
thorough investigation along those lines bulked as another
“labor of Hercules.” However, there are short cuts in
the working out of every theory.
Sir Francis knew that Couramont's early life was a
matter of little or no interest to him if it had been passed


THE GREATER PLOT
155
in France. If, however, it should prove to have been
spent in Germany or Austria? Ah! Here was the short
cut in his theoretic reasoning. If a man achieves prom-
inence in any German city, it's a foregone conclusion that
he will spend more or less time in Berlin. If his person-
ality stands out from the mass in Berlin, even for a brief
period, it is morally certain that one of the great illustrated
weeklies will reproduce his first obtainable photograph.
And the greatest of these in size and popularity is the
Illustrirte Zeitung.
At ten in the morning, after a déjeuner prepared by Ma-
dame Fauvette herself, Lammerford walked down to the
old Palais Mazarin and made out a “bulletin” of the vol-
umes he wanted in the Bibliothèque Nationale. He had
taken with him the copy of Le Monde Illustré in which
Couramont's portrait appeared, entering it on his “bulle-
tin” as personal property which he might afterward
carry out of the building. For over an hour he rapidly
turned page after page of the big volumes, dismissing
each portrait "half-tone” with a single glance as he passed
it. Then-in the fifth volume-his hand paused. At
the head of a paragraph recording a scandal which had
been the talk of Berlin society for a week or more, was the
picture of a young captain in one of the uhlan regiments.
Hauptman Heinrich Schmaltz had, by his good manners
and soldierly appearance, attracted the attention of the
imperial family-being given a very desirable command
at the Schloss. After a few months he was frequently
seen with a handsome Viennese countess who had been
five years married but detested her husband. The count
heard rumors and came to Berlin; there was a duel in


156 :
THE UNSEEN HAND
which the count was killed. Captain Schmaltz was
sent to America on a mission promptly arranged with
Wilhelmstrasse, and the countess disappeared at the same
time. The incident and the gossip came back to Lammer-
ford as he read the paragraph. So far as he knew Berlin
never heard of the young captain again. Yet the ex:
pression he had noticed upon Couramont's face had been
identical with the one caught in a glimpse of Captain
Schmaltz as he stood under one of the arched entrances of
the Schloss in Berlin, nineteen years before—with the light
from one of the park lamps falling upon his head and
sharply outlining it against the deep shadow under the
arch behind him.
Lammerford placed the two "half-tones" side by side.
That of the young captain showed merely a small mous-
tache, while the Deputy wore a thin Van Dyke_but the
lines of the face, the prominent chin and forehead, the
eyes, the whole expression, were unmistakable. The
popular leader of the French Chamber-supposed bit-
terly to detest everything German was, in fact, Hein-
rich Schmaltz formerly captain in a Berlin regiment of
uhlans, and in the service of Wilhelmstrasse at the
time he disappeared. For perhaps the thousandth time
Sir Francis knew that his sense of intuition had been
vindicated that what seemed an absurdly groundless
suspicion had been stimulated by that immer conscious-
ness of his which automatically recorded impressions and
stored them up for future use. Making a memoran-
dum of the volume and page numbers in the big German
weekly, he left the library, and went back to his aparte
ment with Madame Julie's Monde Illustré.


THE GREATER PLOT
157
To suppose that Schmaltz, or Couramont, had
reached his present standing in the political world of
Paris with any real hatred of the boche such as he pro-
fessed, was manifestly absurd. On the other hand, it
seemed equally so to assume that Wilhelmstrasse had
sent him into France nineteen years before with the object
of working up to such a position against some unforeseen
emergency where it would be of immense strategic value
to the German War Staff. And yet-proof is piling up
that Germany has been doing exactly that for the past
quarter-century with the one great object in mind
world domination—a crushing out of other Governments
by relentless system and overpowering force.
In the afternoon Sir Francis went down to the Ile de
la Cité and called upon his old acquaintance, Lépine, at
the Préfecture. Without implying that he was interested
in one more than others he asked for brief résumés of the
careers of certain French politicians--including the Cabi-
net ministers, two Senators and three Deputies. Know-
ing Lammerford to be associated with the British Foreign
Office, it was to Monsieur Lépine-a perfectly natural
inquiry. Since the conference of the Allies, at which it
was agreed that they should act in concert during the
remainder of the war, each of the chancelleries had been
vitally interested in the membership of the other Govern-
ments. A rather unusual harmony prevailed—but, under
the surface, there was necessarily a close observation of
opinions and actions among Government officials, every-
where, in order that anything which seemed to threaten
this harmony might be promptly dealt with.
With the vast amount of minute information at his


158
THE UNSEEN HAND
disposal, Lépine was able to give an accurate account of
what each man's private life had been, as well as that
recorded in the daily prints. If anything, Lammerford
seemed less interested in Henri Couramont's biography
than in those of more prominent men-the Prefect couldn't
decide whether his friend's request had been actually what
it appeared on the surface, or not. But Sir Francis left the
Boulevard du Palais with data concerning the Deputy
which gave him more than one clue as to where he might
look for evidence of nefarious activities. For one thing,
he learned that Mlle. Obregon, of the Folies Bergére—said
to be Couramont's bien aimée—was an intimate friend of
Mrs. Boyle Fitzpatrick, wife of a captain in one of the Irish
regiments, and that the four dined frequently with other
officers and their wives at the Café des Trois Gascons in
the Rue Vignon.
Lammerford had taken a table at the Trois Gascons
and was finishing his soup when they arrived that even-
ing. While studying the party in casual glances he was
conscious that his pretty waitress looked at him rather in-
tently as she brought in his meat course. The only other
diners in their vicinity were a group of Irish officers—too
much occupied with their own conversation to overhear
anything said in guarded tones. After glancing at them to
estimate how far her voice might carry, she leaned over
the handsome Englishman, arranging his dishes.
“M'sieu' does not, then, remember me? Behold—'
I am that Marie Latour whom les bêtes apaches were drag-
ging up the Rue Pierre Sarazin from the Boul Mich one
night, three years ago—when le bon M'sieu' anglais
knocked them down, and shot the one who drew a knife!”


THE GREATER PLOT
159
"Ma foi ! One has the great pleasure in seeing thee
again, ma fille ! In the darkness of little streets it makes
itself very difficult to see a face distinctly. One remem-
bers we had a ‘bock’ in one of the Boul’ Mich' cafés, to re-
store thy nerfs, and that one accompanied thee to thy
apartment, for safety, afterward. My affairs made it
necessary that I should depart from Paris next morning,
so I had but the little souvenir of cerise ribbon to remind
me of the adventure. You have now a husband
oui ?”
"Ah, non-m'sieu'! . For two months only! He was
killed at the Marne. For a year, before, I was in your
big foggy London—where one acquires the anglais with
much labor; then I returned, before the war. M'sieu'
is perhaps of the Corps Diplomatique ?”
“And why think you that ma belle ?"
"Because one observes that M'sieu' came out of the Pré-
fecture this afternoon, and spoke to M'sieu' de Marais
on the Pont Neuf. M'sieu' has the bearing of un soldat;
yet he is never in uniform. One observes little things in
a place like this, concerning which it is desirable to speak
with someone who is of the Government. Oui ?”
Lammerford was apparently paying more attention to
his dinner than to the pretty waitress.
“Par exemple ?”
"Behold the Irish officers at the corner table! They
talk of the trenches—the Opera, the amusements of Paris
-when one is within hearing. The moment one is at a
little distance they mumble among themselves of other
matters.”
"Possibly orders for a new 'offensive'—which must not


THE GREATER PLOT
161
de La France, tout le temps. Perhaps I am foolish, that I
watch the officers so closely and suspect-ah, one does not
know what to suspect in such times! At least one does
no harm to be alert.”
She met him later, at a corner three blocks away, and
they rode in a taxi to her apartment. As she had her own
keys, there was no occasion to disturb the concierge;
they climbed the five flights of stairs in silence and bolted
her outer door after entering the suite. In order that no
attention might be directed their way from the apartment
across the court, she didn't turn on a single electric. Mo-
tioning him to an easy chair by the window, she fetched
her opera glasses and perched herself upon the broad arm
of it.
The night had proved warmer than usual, so that all
three windows of Captain Fitzpatrick's apartment were
open. Through a passage they could see the card-players
in a farther salon, but men and women drifted back to
the living room at the rear, from time to time examining
pictures upon the wall, books and curios upon the table,
or refreshing themselves from a cellaret in one corner. As
Lammerford focussed the opera glasses, a group of three
were examining one of the paintings, and called to Fitz-
patrick in the other room:
“I say, old chap! Is this the picture you did on the
Meuse?”
“Aye-an' I can assure you I've painted under more
favorable conditions! We'd a bomb-proof dug from
clay in front of the trench, with a floor of misfit planking
about six inches off the ground. It was right enough in
good weather-but after a day's rain, our feet were always


162
THE UNSEEN HAND
in the water. To get a decent light, I had my easel stuck
up at the trench-opening-had a narrow escape, once or
twice, before I finished the picture. Y'see that bit of a
patch on the canvas, where the color is laid on thick
with a palette-knife? That was done by a fragment of
shrapnel which missed my forehead by a quarter of an
inch an' made an awful hole in Tommy O'Brien, just be-
yond me, in the bomb-proof. It was two days before we
could get his body to the rear.”
“I see you've a bunch of new records! Taking them up
with you on Thursday?”
“Aye-as far as commissary-headquarters. Pat O'Don-
nel is the last of our crowd to be stuck with trench-detail;
we'll have him back of the lines next week. Then every
man will be available when the time comes-
“Faith, Boyle-mind the post! One never knows how
far a voice may carry, ye know!”
“True for you, Phaidrig! But there's no harm done.
'Tis understood that we talk a bit among ourselves on
what we hear of the Staff plans, an' everyone knows
there'll be somethin' afoot before long."
For an hour Lammerford and Marie Latour caught no
remarks from the other apartment which might be con-
strued as having a double meaning. Then Couramont
came into the rear room with one of the women for a glass of
wine. They were chatting upon commonplace topics, but
in the midst of it Sir Francis noticed her lips moving in an
undertone. Having had a good deal of practice in lip-
reading, he had little difficulty in understanding the ques-
tion she asked: “When is it to be, mon ami ?" But as the


THE GREATER PLOT
163
Deputy was standing with his back to the window, the
watchers could make nothing of his answer. In a few mo-
ments the party broke up-and Marie whispered:
"Is it that some danger threatens France, m'sieu'?”.
"Oui, ma belle ! One which is serious, of a certainty!
And it's a question whether one may discover the details
in time to kill the whole of it. Me I know, now, of a
dozen people who must be watched from hour to hour; yet
if one speaks of the matter to Monsieur le Préfet, it is pos-
sible that plans of the War Staff may be disarranged in
consequence. As yet, we have no proof that it is not
some portion of the summer campaign which they have
been discussing with so much secrecy—but me, I convince
myself that it is something more serious than that. You
will continue to watch, ma belle—both at Les Trois Gas-
cons and here. I will write down the number of my own
pied-à-terre in the Faubourg St. Honoré-so! You will
come to me if you learn anything of importance. My
concierge, Madame Fauvette, will admit thee to wait, if
I am not chez moi. In the meanwhile, I will find others to
keep our friends over there under observation.”
As he picked up his hat and gloves, there was an ex-
pression upon her pretty face which indicated the extent to
which his service three years before had won her affections.
He kissed her in friendly camaraderie-and went down
the stairs.
It was but eight or ten blocks to the Rue Royale, where
he dropped in at the Automobile Club-happening to
overhear a remark in the foyer which indicated a bit of un-
expected good luck. A member was speaking of the Eng-


164
THE UNSEEN HAND
lish Admiral and European celebrity, Lord Trevor of Dart-
moor, as having left the club not fifteen minutes before.
Calling a taxi, Sir Francis motored out to His Lord-
ship’s modest but perfect hôtel on the Avenue de Neuilly-
maintained in constant readiness for occupancy, the year
around, by his staff of English and Afghan servants. As
Lammerford was considered a member of His Lordship's
family, the Afghan khansamah welcomed him with deep
respect and ushered him up to the room he usually occu-
pied His Lordship not having arrived. Within a few
moments, however, Trevor came in-followed by Sabub
Ali, more companion than servant, with the suitcases.
Joining Sir Francis in the library, he lighted a long cigar
and drew a breath of quiet satisfaction.
“Gad, ‘Lammy,' it's a bit of luck, findin' you here
what!”
“That's the remark I made to myself when I heard you
were in Paris! I lost no time getting out here!”
“Why? Have you picked up another thread-when
nobody in the city appears to dream that anything of the
sort is brewing?"
“Hmph! I don't know what you've happened upon!
I've learned since morning that a prominent Deputy--an
intensely "loyal Frenchman' for eighteen years, mind you
is actually a Wilhelmstrasse agent, and is now planning
some coup so far-reaching and unexpected that I'm more
nervous than I've been in a good many months! What
do you know about it?”
“As to anything at this end-nothing! Of course,
there'll be little in the Paris papers for several days; we're
keeping the thing as quiet as possible for obvious reasons.:


THE GREATER PLOT
165
But-Sinn Feiners captured the Dublin post office, the
Métropole, and practically all of Sackville Street yester-
day-shot a number of officers as they were returning from
the races—are sniping off soldiers and civilians in every
direction; and have burned hundreds of buildings. Scat-
tered mobs of them are rising all through the South of
Ireland. We knew, of course, that they were armed and
drilling, but didn't look for any such treacherous out-
break while the Empire was fighting for its life! It'll
take fifteen or twenty thousand of the army to handle the
thing-an' there's no telling in how many other directions
it may show itself! Sir Roger Casement was arrested
near Tralee, after being put ashore from a German sub-
marine convoying a supply-ship with enough arms to
have set half Ireland ablaze, or at least all the disaffected
lot. Fortunately, three-quarters of the country is loyal to
His Majesty's Government, and will remain so! But "
"Ayebut ! Now listen to what I've stumbled upon!"
(As briefly as possible, he sketched the haunting resem-
blance in Couramont's face as he came out of the Rue de
Rivoli, and what he had since learned.) “There's not
one of those officers or the women, either, who isn't Irish
--and to the best of my knowledge, from the southern
counties. Couramont, or Schmaltz, we know to be a
Wilhelmstrasse spy who has been waiting eighteen years
to do, at some critica' moment, what he is ordered to do
by his superiors in Berlin-probably serving the Aus-
wärtiges Amt many times to good purpose, during those
years, as well. And, undoubtedly, there are a dozen or
more like him in this thing! From what you tell me, it's
rather obvious that what they and those Irish officers are


166
THE UNSEEN HAND
planning is the more serious part of the Sinn Fein plot
and they've worked in the surest possible way to avert
suspicion.”
- “We've certainly no proof to act upon yet, Lammy!
Wait a bit! I think I know of a way to get some! Do
you know or do you remember hearing about-Cor-
poral Dennis Corrigan, of that Limerick regiment? He
lost his left hand and wrist in the early retreat-the rear-
guard action and was decorated for an act of conspicuous
bravery. Being disabled, of course, he couldn't serve any
more, and he opened a gambling club for officers in the
Rue de Savoie, south of the Seine. It is winked at by
the Préfecture because he maintains a quiet, orderly
place where there is seldom any very high play-catering,
largely, to the foreign element in Paris, though his rooms
are patronized by journalists and members of the Chamber
as well.
"I happen to know that Corrigan was an old-time Fenian
-he's nearer sixty than forty-five, though you'd never
imagine it from his appearance. I also know practically
all the signs and passwords of the old Fenian organiza-
tion and the Sinn Fein. One of my press syndicate ed-
itors obtained them for me at the risk of his life. Now
it'll be a simple matter for me to obtain any sort of special
passport I wish, for one of my syndicate war correspon-
dents say, an Irish-American New Yorker. Eh—what?"
“Hmph! We'd best let no word of this reach Lady
Nan! She'd see the necessity, of course—but she'd have
not a moment's peace until you were back in London. I'd
undertake it myself—but your knowledge makes discova
ery less likely. I can watch the Trois Gascons and that


THE GREATER PLOT
167
apartment of Marie Latour's. It's even possible that
I may be able to conceal myself in Fitzpatrick's rooms
during the next twenty-four hours.”
Next evening the usual habitués of Corrigan's Club in
the Rue de Savoie observed with respectful interest the
skilful play and almost unbelievable luck of a well-set-up,
middle-aged stranger whose manner and occasional re-
marks indicated the American war-correspondent now
becoming so familiar to Parisians. The banque had
been winning heavily from its regular patrons when the
New Yorker arrived with Lieutenant James O'Connor
down for a two-day furlough—who had run across him in
the Café des Trois Gascons. The smile of half-recogni-
tion upon the American's face convinced O'Connor that
they had met before—“Reilly” being so thoroughly con-
versant with the families of Kerry and Cork, so prompt
with certain words and signs which such a man should
know, that the Lieutenant was anxious to have him meet
Corrigan without delay. His sitting-in at the game and
winning so irresistibly was merely incidental--but it won
the admiration of every Irishman in the room, most of
them having some knowledge of the deadly play a Tam-
many politician learns in New York.
Reilly at last cashed in for thirty thousand francs, the
bulk of which had been won by the house from a Russian
diplomat and one of the wealthy journalists of Paris be-
fore his arrival. Afterward O'Connor and a Major Phe.
lan escorted him through a concealed passage into another
building, where the one-handed Corrigan was smoking in
a little private den. The ex-corporal appeared to be


168
THE UNSEEN HAND
thoroughly informed as to Reilly's winnings and his sup-
posed antecedents_greeting him with a grin of apprecia-
tion.
“Faith, 'tis said a Tammany Irishman bates the
worrld, me fri'nd-an, it's mesilf believes it! Sit ye down
an' smoke a seegyar with me! (O'Connor, ye spalpane
-'tis yourself knows where there'll be a dhrap of tha rale
mountain dew in yon closet!) Tell me, now, Misther
Reilly-how's the b’ys in New Yorrk, an' what ye'll be
doin' over here in the newspaper line?”
Reilly-whom Lord Trevor's intimate friends would not
have recognized, so completely misleading were the
subtle changes he had made in dress and facial expression-
named several papers of the syndicate he represented;
exhibited very unusual credentials in the way of passport
and special permits to visit the trenches; and implied,
more by looks than words, that his errand in France was
not altogether a journalistic one. He delighted them by
handing over to Corrigan the entire thirty thousand francs
he had just won to be expended in any worthy cause
which the ex-corporal might have in mind-and casually
remarked that he had left Dublin two days before, com-
pletely disgusted with the impatience which had led to an
outbreak there at a moment when it was practically cer-
tain to fail.
They listened to this in amazement-then put a sin-
ister question or two which would have cost him his life
had he answered with the slightest hesitation. But he
exhibited such a grasp of details—having received by rad-
iogram, three hours before, reports of the Dublin situ-
ation which they would have no means of getting for seve
.


THE GREATER PLOT
169
eral days—that he convinced them by what appeared to
be absolute knowledge of far more than local conditions.
After demonstrating the force of his contention until they
saw it clearly, he risked a shot in the dark.
“I suppose you'll agree with me that the business over
yon changes matters a good bit? For, d'ye see, if you
attempt to go on with this end of the plan now, 'tis likely
that many of ye are bein' watched! Before ye can act
together, in one grand series of blows, they'll be nipping
first one and then another-till it's the devil's own mess
you'll be in, and a file of sharp-shooters against the first
wall for every man!”
It was a chance. He scarcely dared hope it would draw
them; yet it had been done with such consummate natu-
ralness that they must have been gifted with almost super-
human telepathy to have avoided the trap. They fell
into it with no suspicion of the bait.
"But-domn it all, man! There'll be never another
chance in years! 'Tis ourselves has schamed for months
-has watched this one an' that one till we know the day
an' the hour they'll be in certain places! 'Tis the wires
we've laid an' the frame-ups we've planned to lure thim
all into five diff'rent places the same hour-so we can
make a clane job of it! Joffre, Sarrail, an' ten Division
Ginerals will be in Rheims the same avenin'! Poincaré,
Briand, an' eighteen others of the Cabinet an' Chamber
will be comin' out of the Chamber at a certain hour av
the same night! They'll be two min doggin' every
Mimber of the British Cabinet-fourteen l'aders of the
Peers an' Commons-six admirals--an' eight major-gin-
erals over herewhin the hour strikes!”


170
THE UNSEEN HAND
“An' that night? Ye've set it for less than two weeks
away, of course! That's why I'm tellin' ye 'tis madness
after the fools' work in Dublin!”
“Man—'tis one wake from this night has been set fºr the
job!”
"Aye! While our own leaders are bein' shot in Dub-
lin or the Tower! When the eyes of Europe are watchin'
every Irishman in the British Isles and on the Continent!
Go awn with it, if ye will! This day, two weeks, ye'll all
be rottin' four feet under the sod! Send out the worrd, I
tell ye! Send out the worrd to-morrow! Put off the day
two months! Then 'twill come upon them like a blow in
the dark from heaven knows where--and ye'll paralyze
the Entente! Do it now, an' the Entente'll snuff ye out
like so many candle-wicks! Go awnany way ye like!
I'm tellin' ye—that's all!”
They were impressed, convinced even; yet the sudden
disarrangement of their plans threw them into momentary
panic. How to inform each member of their organization
in time? It seemed an impossible task.
“An' who'll carry the worrd to England, I'm wishin' to
know?” (This, from Corrigan.) “'Tis possible, no
doubt, to pass the worrd through France-an' I've a man
can go to Rome this night. But, d'ye see, the most of
us is detailed, here an' yon, behind the firin'-lines. They
get away for a bit of furlough to rest from the strain of con-
stant fightin'—but they must account for every move
they make. We've no way of givin' the whisper to those
in England unless one of us bears it there! 'Tis no aisy
job to go an' come as ye plaze in these daysas ye well
know, Reilly!”


THE GREATER PLOT
171
DIC.
• Reilly lighted a fresh cigar-spread open his special
passport upon the table.
"Faith, 'tis myself can do the job, if ye wish! My
papers 'll pass me with little trouble, d'ye see. I would not
be sittin' idle an' seein' a lot of the finest men old Ireland
ever grew-God bless her!-lined up against a wall an'
shot for makin' the mistake of strikin' before 'twas pos-
sible to drive the stroke home!”
The offer was made so naturally, spontaneously, that
it carried them off their feet and banished every particle
of suspicion they might have had. In half an hour he had
committed to memory a dozen names and addresses in
London, Manchester, and Liverpool, with additional
passwords, and the cards of three officers which had little
pencil-dots under certain engraved letters in each name.
Reilly was stopping at a little hotel frequented by
Americans in the Rue de L'Echelle, and O'Connor went there
with him when he left. In the morning the war corres-
pondent assumed that he would be shadowed by some of
the organization-so, after making a few purchases, he
walked along to the Café des Trois Gascons for a late
breakfast, casually sitting down at one of Marie Latour's
tables as if he preferred the quieter part of the room. She
had no recollection of ever having seen the man before;
yet something in the glance he gave her appeared fa-
miliar. When she brought his omelette and coffee, he said
-in so low a tone that it couldn't have been overheard
ten feet away:
“You remember M'sieur le Chevalier-who was in your
apartment last evening, ma belle ?”.
“M'sieu' is insulting! One does not comprehend!”


172
THE UNSEEN HAND
“Tres bien, ma fille! Me - I make my apologies, and I
entrust a message to your care. M'sieur le Chevalier will
be here for his coffee and rolls very soon. Whisper to him:
'The Calais boat—this afternoon—without fail!' He will
understand perfectly and you will have served France
better than you know. Another café-au-lait, if you please
—and bacon with the kidneys.”
The message was delivered in his exact words--Marie
feeling much relieved at Lammerford's assurance that it
was from one of the great ones in the Corps Diplomatique.
So it came about that Sir Francis was in the Gare du Nord
when the Calais train pulled out-having barely time to
run along the platform and jump into a compartment in
which there was but one other passenger, an American war-
correspondent who was reading an afternoon journal.
After the guard had inspected their tickets-proceeding
along the running-board outside of the coupés—Lammer-
ford borrowed a light for his cigar from the American, and
they fell into a casual discussion of the situation in the
trenches. Long before the train reached Calais, he was
asleep by the window at one end of the compartment-
and Reilly, at the other; yet Lammerford was now con-
versant with the whole plot and knew just what action to
take upon his return to Paris by the morning train.
When Reilly arrived at Charing Cross, a telegram from
Sir Francis had preceded him. Consequently, after reg-
istering at the Piccadilly Hotel, he was given a room and
bath on the second floor which, if required for such a pur-
pose, could be made part of a suite there being a com-
municating door on the opposite side of the bathroom.
He had assumed that Corrigan was telling only the simple


THE GREATER PLOT
173
truth when he said it was practically impossible for one of
their organization to leave for England without a good
deal of red tape which was sure to attract undesirable
attention. But he was also convinced that the Sinn
Feiner would manage in some way to have him followed
at every step if it were possible to do so-hence the pre-
cautions which Lammerford had taken for him.
He reached the hotel about midnight too late to see
the men whose names he had memorized; so after a sup-
per in the grill, he went to bed, turning off the lights with-
in fifteen minutes after locking the door of his room.
Meanwhile a wealthy mine-owner from the Cape-se-
cretly connected with Downing Street-had been given
the suite adjoining Reilly's. At ten o'clock Sir Edward
Wray, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, had arrived
at the Piccadilly in his motor and sent up a card to the
mine-owner, who received him in his suite. When Reilly
opened the door from his bathroom, at half-past twelve,
Sir Edward was smoking in the dark, while his mining
friend had shut himself into the further room of the suite.
During that half-hour interview in the dark, Sir Edward
was given names and addresses which he jotted down in
pencil to avoid mistakes.
For the next forty-eight hours Reilly was busy motore :
ing about London in a taxi, leaving cards, as a war-corres-
pondent desiring interviews, at the houses of various
people more or less prominent in the army or London so-
chety. In several instances he found the men at home
and gave them Corrigan's instructions--the Londoners
seeing the danger of immediate action in carrying out their
prearranged plan more quickly than had the men in


174
THE UNSEEN HAND
France. The fiasco in Dublin was having its effect upon
them, and the military executions had a very sobering
influence even while they enraged the conspirators almost
beyond endurance.
In each interview Lord Trevor-as the pseudo-Reilly
-had the feeling that the man with whom he had been
talking was merely an executive, that the brains of the
whole movement was a person of much greater influence
and prominence. Consequently his casual glances about
the different rooms took and recorded every little detail
which might be of use in tracing the chief conspirator. In
one house the gentleman was obliged to leave the room
for a few moments in response to a message from one of
the ladies of his family. During his absence Trevor
noticed a fragment of paper covered with fine handwrit-
ing upon the flat-topped library desk—a half page ap-
parently torn from some letter. The writing appeared
curiously familiar, but he couldn't place it—so he pock-
eted the scrap for more careful examination later.
i He knew that any one who might be following him about
during the day would consider his calling upon one or
two prominent men not connected with the conspiracy a
clever blind to cover the work he was actually doing-
so he motored around to his own Park Lane mansion about
six in the afternoon. As soon as he was inside and had
been recognized by his Afghan khansamah, he went into
the big library to search through half a dozen great scrap-
books which contained many thousands of handwriting-
specimens, arranged and indexed according to their style
—their heavy or light strokes, peculiar formations of
vowels and consonants, and general alignment. In the


· THE GREATER PLOT . 175
course of an hour he came upon two pages of specimens
very closely resembling the scrap he had managed to se-
cure—but not exactly. Upon the next page he found
a fac-simile-with a well-known signature under it.
“Lord Kilimainine! My word! A Kerry man, to be
sure—and yet—who'd have thought it! A man who has
served for years in the diplomatic service-has received
honors and preferment from the Crown!”
The man who left the Trevor mansion and motored
away in his taxi resembled Mr. Reilly in a general way.
The chauffeur didn't look at him closely, but drove him
back to the Hotel Piccadilly, where he paid the taxi-fare
and went in as if stopping there. At the desk, however, he
merely asked for a gentleman whom he knew was not in
at the time—and went out by the Regent Street entrance.
That was the last ever seen of Reilly, the New York war-
correspondent. His suitcase was held by the hotel people
for a month or so, and Scotland Yard notified, but it was
finally assumed that he had been waylaid and killed in
some mysterious manner.
At nine o'clock on the evening he disappeared, Lord
Trevor, with Sir Edward Wray and two officers of the Gen-
eral Staff, called upon Lord Kilimainine at his luxuriously
furnished town house. He received them courteously,
escorting the party back to his smoking room at the
rear of the house, overlooking a walled garden. Trevor
indicated the object of their visit by expressing his under-
standing that Kilimainine was rather well acquainted
with the French Deputy, M. Henri Couramont-asking
whether he could give them any information as to the


176
THE UNSEEN HAND
man's antecedents. The Irishman's eyes narrowed
slightly as he glanced from one to another of them. Sub-
consciously, he noticed that none of the four had lighted
the cigars he offered them.
“I've met the man, Your Lordship, more than once
but in a purely social way. Do you mind telling me your
object in asking such a question?”
“Why-er-Couramont was executed this afternoon,
in Paris, in a rather sensational way. He was arrested at
his offices in the Courier du Matin building-placed, hand-
tuffed, in an open cart-driven up and down the Champs
Elysées and the Boulevards for several hours with
a placard on his back. This placard stated that for
eighteen years he had posed as a loyal Frenchman, gain-
ing honors and position in Paris, while all the time he
was actually Captain Heinrich Schmaltz, a secret agent
of Wilhelmstrasse. At sunset in the Place de la Con-
corde, which was packed with one of the largest crowds
ever gathered there, he was shot. It had been discovered
that he was one of the chief instigators of a Sinn Fein plot
which contemplated a good deal more serious and wide-
spread action than the Dublin affair. The other leader is
known to be a certain Irish peer.”
With a smile of sardonic incredulity, as they supposed,
Kilimainine opened a drawer of the table by which he sat,
and reached in-apparently for a document which they
could see at the back of it. When his hand came out, how-
ever, there was a flash-a stunning report.
Lord Trevor winced a little as the ball went through the
inner muscles of his left arm-though the eye behind his
monocle continued to gaze inquiringly at his would-be


"THE GREATER PLOT
177
assassin. Then there came an answering flash from the
vicinity of his right hip. Lord Kilimainine sank back in
his chair, shot through the heart and Trevor was hurried
out of the house by one of the generals before the arrival
of the doctor or members of Kilimainine's family. As the
starched front of the dead man's evening-shirt was some-
what blackened by powder grains, it was assumed that he
had committed suicide.


CHAPTER VI
THE SKAGER-RACK_AND KITCHENER
ORD TREVOR'S wound proved to be a slight one
which kept him indoors but a few days. He was
going into the Admiralty for a conference, one
afternoon, when he passed a man of thirty-five or more
who walked with the nervously impatient step of an Amer-
ican. He had the manner of a student or inventor-a
type quite familiar to the Viscount. A few moments
later, while chatting with the First Lord of the Admiralty,
that statesman commented upon the annoyance to which
the Admiralty and the War Office were subjected from
visionaries with schemes for conducting the war, and in-
ventors with war-appliances of every description.
"Not ten minutes ago,” he said, “there was an Amer-
ican in here trying to interest me in a new machine for de-
tecting the exact location of distant wireless stations from
any given point. He obtained the appointment through
his Ambassador, so I was obliged to give him a few min-
utes and file a description of his device for examination
when some junior of the Signal Service has time and op-
portunity for a test. These chaps never seem to under-
stand that we have our own staff of experts at the Admir-
alty who are constantly experimenting along such lines
and are quite likely to have gone much further than
they!”
8


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 179
"Hmph! That's rawther in my line, don't you know
the Wireless Service. Might be worth our while to see
what the chap really hasmeh, what? Suppose you have
him bring his device to me in Park Lane? Since I put up
those long aërials in my own grounds, on two-hundred-foot
masts, I've caught more than one message from Berlin.
It would be a capital place for testin' out whatever he has,
don't you knowman' without takin' up the time of you
busy people. What?”
The Cabinet Minister picked up a card from his desk
and gave it to His Lordship—who talked for a few minutes
upon Service matters and then went out to his waiting car.
Glancing at the card, he mentioned an address to his Af-
ghan chauffeur. In fifteen minutes they stopped before
a small house facing the river in Cheyne Walk, Chelsea
kept by a naval officer's widow who let her upper rooms as
lodgings and provided breakfasts when required. In a
large front room Lord Trevor found the American, Hiram
Meredith, working over some battery fittings at a bench
which he had rigged up against the wall.
The man looked from the card to His Lordship's face,
and back again.
“You're really Lord Trevor of Dartmoor-the famous
Lord Trevor-no fooling? H-m-m-I sort of reco’nize
you, now, from the slew of pictures I've seen! Funny!
When I heard your step on the stairs, I'd have sworn you
were an American like me!”
“Faith, you're quite right as to that, Mr. Meredith! I
was born in Boston, don't you know. Saw you comin'
out of the Admir'lty, this awfternoon—an' Balfour told
me you had something new in the way of an electro-mag-


180
THE UNSEEN HAND
netic detector. I hold a Rear Admirl's commission in
the British Navy, d’ye see-an' others in the Aviation an'
Signal Services as well. You don't quite understand
that-eh? I've specialized in all three, don't you know
an' they frequ’ntly use me in advisory capacity. Now
-as to this invention of yours? Have you a workin'
model of the device, here, with which it would be possible
to make a test?”
“Sure! The whole thing's in that box on the end of
the bench! It's a leetle more bulky than the receivin'
instruments now in use, but it don't work to best advan-
tage unless on a pretty solid base so the size ain't so
much of an objection.”
“Are the adjustm’nts so delicate that it cawn't be moved
without puttin' the mechanism out of order?”
“Oh, hell, no! Move it anywhere you like, an' I'll have
it ready for business inside of an hour. I've heard a good
deal about you, Mister Lord-and thought, more'n once, it
would be a stroke of luck if I could get you interested in my
detector, cause you have a reputation of goin' the limit in
everything you tackle-but you was too biga man for me to
chase round after! You got millions where I got dollars! Of
course, that don't make you any better'n I am, as a man,
but it sure calls for a lot more of your personal time. I
tackled the Admiralty cause they got plenty of stations
where a test can be made. To save my soul I can't get
permission, here, to string a couple of short-len'th aërials
for experimentin'! Guess there ain't much question about
your gettin’’em to let you make a test ’most anywhere. So
you see how much I appreciate this call of yours. Jest say
where you want to have my machine toted, an' she'll be


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 181
there any time you like! I've got the goods, Mister Lord
you'll say so when you see the thing work!”
“There's one triflin' formality to be gotten around, Mr.
Meredith. Will the American ambassador vouch for
your friendship toward the British Governm’nt? Does
he know enough about you to guarantee that you won't
betray any war-secrets you may pick up through this
machine of yours?”
“Who-Page? Hell! I've pestered him so much
since I came over here that he knows all about me for
thirty years back! We're straight English descent and
if I couldn't do more good this way than by fightin' in the
trenches, I'd enlist over here. Suppose we go around to
the Embassy an' see him?"
“Very good! I was about to suggest that. An' we'd
best take along your machine in the car. I've my own
wireless, in the grounds of my town house, so you'll find
everything you require, I fawncy."
Assurances given by the American Ambassador being
entirely satisfactory, they went directly from Victoria
Street to Park Lane-where two of his Afghan servants
took the black box from the car and carried it to the rear
of the main ball, stepping into a small American elevator.
As the lift descended Meredith roughly estimated the
depth reached as, approximately, forty feet. The cage
stopped before a steel door set in solid masonry-and
when this was opened by His Lordship with a Yale key,
they walked along an electrically lighted passage until
they came to another steel door, opening into an under-
ground chamber fitted up with every known appliance
for wireless telephoning and telegraphy. The Afghans had


182
THE UNSEEN HAND
followed them with the box-which, at His Lordship's
suggestion, they placed upon a slate-covered concrete
bench running along one side of the room. With a nod of
satisfaction the American took off his coat, unbolted the
sides and top of the box, and carefully lifted his machine
out upon the slate foundation. He then made a number
of delicate adjustments by means of set-screws, connected
two of the binding posts to wires leading from a storage
battery which Lord Trevor pointed out-and finally ex-
pressed his belief that the instruments were in perfect
working order.
“Now, if you'll tell me where the aërial connection is,
Mr. Lord—I'll be able to show you something! By the
way, if you happen to have a large-scale map of every-
thing within a hundred miles, it'll help us a lot! We
can use a map of Europe, too, I guess—those aërials of
yours ought to catch anything within fifteen hundred
miles at the very least. In fact, I wouldn't be surprised
if you got the Arlington station at Washington, occasion.
ally."
“Oh, aye! We heard them when they were talkin'
to the Eiffel Tower in Paris. (Er-Sabub! You know
where to find the Ordnance maps, in the lib’ry-an' the
large-scale 'topographic' Europe! Fetch them down to
us, will you? An' you might have a bit of lunch an' some
wine sent down at the same time. We may be here for
two or three hours.)”
When the stately Afghan khansamah disappeared along
the passage, Meredith asked:
“How the devil do you ventilate this place? I'd say
we must be at least forty feet underground-no possible


THE SKAGER-RACK—AND KITCHENER 183
chance of any one hearin' your spark-yet the air's as
pure as in the hall of your house!”
"There's a fresh-air duct just under the eaves, forty-
two feet above the garden level, an' the exhaust goes out
through one of the chimneys-electric blower keeps it
moving-sound-deadeners like Maxim silencers in both
fues. My grounds are patrolled at night-no chance
of any one tamperin' with the aërials—an' the connec-
tion is taken down through one of the house chimneys,
which has a built-in pipe for the purpose. You can run
your wires to those two binding posts in the wall-just
below the lightning arrester.” In a few moments the
connections were made, and duplicate head-frames at-
tached to the instruments.
"P'raps I'd better give you some idea of how she works,
then you can see better what happens. The principle is
kinda like Marconi's recent invention—but my machine
goes a good deal farther than his in the way of exact results.
You've seen the radiating waves in a puddle, after you
chucked a stone in it--and of course you know the Hertzian
waves radiate the same way-an' that we talk of the indi.
vidual impulses through the air as five hundred-meter, fif-
teen hundred-metre, or two thousand-metre wave-lengths,
according to the electro-dynamic force of the splash made in
the atmosphere by the spark as the impulse is thrown off
from the aërials. A little splash in the pond makes little
ripples-only a few inches apart; a heavy splash makes
big ripples-several feet apart; and all the ripples grad-
ually flatten out so's you can't notice 'em as they get
farther an’ farther from the splash. Well, my instru-
ments register, to a mighty fine point, the weakening of


184
THE UNSEEN HAND
those wave-impulses in the air, so I'm able to gauge within
a quarter of a mile how far away the spark is that sends
’em. The matter of direction is a leetle more difficult to
get at. If you was standin' on an island in the middle of
a pond, an' a stone was dropped into the water, say, at the
eastern edge of it, the concentric ripples would only come
to your island on its east side; north, west, an' south of it
the water would be perfectly smooth. But if the pond
was pretty big, the ripples would be so long that you
couldn't hardly tell, fom the curvature alone, the exact
spot they was comin' from. All the same, the top of the
curve would hit your island a leetle mite before the rest
of it "
“And your device registers the varyin' intensity of the
wave-impulse along a certain sector of the compass
what?"
. "That's the idea exactly. This little incandescent
lamp is connected with a compass which can be electri-
cally isolated from different points, or bearings—the
needle bein' drawn to’ard the direction the waves are
comin' from. If no impulse is comin' from the west,
when the rheostat is set to a certain wave-length, the
lamp will remain black-though it will glow cherry-red if
the coil is exposed to the north an' south (supposin' the
impulse is comin' from the east). When it's exposed
fully to the east it gets its brightest illumination an'
throws the blackest shadow from a wooden peg on a re-
volvin' disc. By movin' the isolatin' sector around-notin'
the stren'th of the illumination an' shadow from the peg-
I get within one or two points of the true compass bearing.
Now, jest put on that head-frame, an' we'll make a test.”.


186
THE UNSEEN HAND
hold of your Navy code-book. Before you're so positive'
my instruments are wrong, perhaps you'd better figger
out that message! Wait a minute! You're dead sure I'm
wrong, Mister Lord-an' I'm dead sure I'm right! Sup-
pose we test this out a different way? You call up some
station you talk with, occasionally-don't tell me what it
is, or in what direction. Call it by the letters down in
your Navy code, or some other one that I don't know any-
thing about, so I can't possibly guess the name--and I'll
locate it for you to within quarter of a mile!”
“Very good! That's certainly a fair test!”
His Lordship sat down at the operating-table, started
his dynamo, moved the switch from under his key, and com-
menced calling a two-letter number. In three minutes he
caught the acknowledgment—asked a couple of questions
which were answered at length-and stopped. Mere-
dith figured for a moment then quietly said:
"Ninety-eight miles, air line, Southwest by West
and you were usin' eighteen hundred metres--a rather un-
usual len’th.”
Trevor spread an Ordnance map of southern England
upon the table measuring off the distance with the cellu-
loid compass-card and thread.
“Poole, by Jove! My word, Meredith-you win!
Even if you'd known the code an' recognized the call, you
couldn't have been sure enough-of the station that
would occur to me--to have figured the distance in ad-
vance. Just for conclusive proof, suppose we try that
same test on two other places?”.
His Lordship called a station in northern Scotland -
which answered after fifteen minutes and then a Naval


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 187
station in Ireland—both of which the American spotted
accurately. His distance was a mile short in the first
instance, and a quarter of a point off in regard to the Irish
one but the faults might have been due to imperfect
printing of the maps as easily as to inaccuracies in his in-
strument, on distances of that length. For practical pur-
poses, the instrument was a marvel- of such unquestionable
value to the British Government that Trevor determined
to obtain control of it before the inventor left Park Lane.
"I say, Meredith! You've patented the thing in the
United Kingdom?”
“Patent applied for-and granted in the United States.
The red tape makes it a lot slower over here."
"Hmph! I fawncy there are ways of pushin' matters-
an' you'd best not lose a day more than necess’ry!
I'll make you a proposition-which you may accept or
decline at once. First, you're to show me how to use
your instruments, myself. I will then make half a dozen
tests—to be quite certain I can operate it under varyin'
conditions. If the tests agree with those we have just
made, I will at once draw my cheque to your order for the
sum of twenty thousand pounds, purchasing a forty per
cent. interest in the manufacture, leasing, and profits of
your instruments. After which I will take it upon my-
self to secure patents in the United Kingdom, France, and
Italy-within a fortnight-patents to be owned by the
Limited Comp’ny we form. I'll guarantee the yearly lease
of five hundred machines at two hundred pounds each-by
the British Governm’nt or myself--as soon as they can be
manufactured under your supervision. My time is too
thoroughly occupied to chaffer with you in a number of ine


THE SKAGER-RACK—AND KITCHENER 189
a conference. When they reached the house, at ten in the
evening, Lord and Lady Trevor were busy in the
Jacobean library with half a dozen code-books and sev-
eral sheets of paper upon which a number of translations
had been worked out. As briefly as possible the Foreign
Minister and Sir Francis were given the facts concerning
Meredith's amazing instruments and the mysterious mes-
sage which had been picked up.
"Being sent from Woolwich,” said His Lordship, "one
naturally infers it to have been in the regular Navy code.
But according to that, all one can make of it is this—the
blanks representin' words which do not occur in our code
at all:
“Forty thousand infantry—on duty Sunday night,
northern munition factories—detailed for summer ma-
næuvres-17 Batteries 75 mm guns with General Staff-
and sentry details—mobilization ordered for 23rd—trans-
ports leaving for the Cape.'
“Of course, all this is simply gibberish. In the Army
and F. 0. codes it makes no better sense than this. I
cawn't be mistaken in what I heard, because Meredith
caught enough of it to repeat most of what I'd written be-
fore he even saw it. After workin' out this stuff, it oc-
curred to me to look up that Wilhelmstrasse code I man-
aged to sneak out of Berlin when ‘Lammy' an' I escaped in
the zeppelin-an', with that, I made a coherent message
out of the de-coding, though it appears childish when read:
**Family scattered for the present-children are at
the northern beaches-Father and Mother yachting around


190
THE UNSEEN HAND
the Island-Fred, and fifteen of the upper-form lads,
cramming with tutor in Scotland.'
“Now, of course we know that none of His Majesty's
officers are usin' the station at Woolwich Dockyard for
personal gossip with pals or relatives across the Channel
in times like these. If any of the signal quartermasters
did a thing of that sort he'd serve a month in clink for it.
But the fact that the message makes perfect sense in the
Wilhelmstrasse code proves that it was not one of our
officers gossiping with some friend, an' that the words most
assuredly have some ulterior meaning. We know it's a
favorite trick of Wilhelmstrasse to use a code within a
code. So, merely to form an hypothesis, let us assume a
few arbitrary key words an' see what we make of it. Sup-
pose, for example, the word family stands for the British
North Sea fleet-the word children for the light cruiser
squadron or torpedo flotilla--the words Father and Mother,
for the main fightin' ships—an'Fred and fifteen upper-
form lads to mean ‘one super-dreadnought and fifteen
first-class cruisers'. Eh-what? De-code the message
on that basis an’ it reads
“North Sea Fleet temporarily divided-cruiser squad-
ron and torpedo flotilla off Skager-Rack. Main super-
dreadnought squadron off Heligoland. One battleship
and fifteen' cruisers coaling or repairing at Rosyth.""
“My word, George! I wonder whether that's anything
like the actual disposition of the Fleet to-night?”
“It happens to be the Admir'lty orders to Jellicoesent
by one of the thirty-five knot destroyers from Sheerness


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 191
this awfternoon! When Meredith told me at five-fifteen
that Woolwich had been talkin' to a Telefunken station
in Brussels, I laughed at him! But I took down that
message myself-an' here's a translation which corresponds,
word for word, with the Admir'lty orders! The Rosyth
information was probʼly sent down by some German spy
on the spot; an' there's no question as to there bein' a
leak right here. You'd best get after that, Ned-an'
look sharp! The boches will take advawntage of any
chance they get, you may be quite sure! I'm goin' to
make it my business to look into that Naval station at
Woolwich. I happen to know both of the signal quarter-
masters in charge of it-an' I'd almost stake my life on
their loyalty!”
“But-deuce take it, old chap! The whole bally thing
is simply preposterous! When you come right down to
scientific facts, isn't your American inventor's machine
quite as much so? How the devil can you gauge so closely
the exact distance of an electric impulse travelin' thou-
sands of miles a second?”
“How is it possible to sit in a New York hotel and
carry on a conversation with someone in San Francisco
who is actually talkin' five hours later than you by the
sun and the clock? There's no room for doubt as to what
those instruments do. One shouldn't forget Marconi's
machine on similar lines which actually located a German
station in Rome three months ago."
While the men had been concentrating upon the ap-
parent treachery in the wireless station at Woolwich, as
being of the first importance, Lady Nan was trying to re-
member everyone associated with Admiralty officers,


192
THE UNSEEN HAND
intimately enough to be in a position where they might
possibly overhear some of the secret orders given. Pres-
ently she asked:
"George, can you give me an idea of just how many
people would be likely to know of those orders to the North
Sea fleet before they reached Jellicoe?”
“Why, I fancy I'll come rawther close to it, Nan. Bal-
four, as First Lord, might know of them or might not-
probably not, because it would be one of the workin' de-
tails which he could ascertain at any moment he desired
the information. But any of the four Sea Lords might
have the direct handling of the North Sea fleet-pre-
sumably, Admir'l Sir Henry Jackson, the First Sea Lord.
An' of course, that means their four private secretaries
also. Then there would be Vice Admir'l Oliver, Chief of
the War Staff, an' his assistant, Captain Day; Captain
Hall, Director of the Intelligence Division, an' his Assist-
ant, Captain Smith. The messenger sent on that de-
stroyer to Jellicoe was Commander John De Vincey-he'd
be the only one on the boat to know anything about the
orders. Of course, if Balfour had discussed them at all
with Sir Henry, either his own Naval secretary or his two
private secretaries would be likely to hear something of
it. Which foots up at least sixteen people at the Admir-
alty who might have had the information. Of course,
nobody at Woolwich Dockyard had any business to know
of the orders at all!”
She had been jotting down the names as he gave them,
and writing several others opposite each one. “I know
the families of all except those of the secretaries to Rear
Admiral Tudor and Commodore Lambert-and Captains


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 193
Day and Smith. Can you furnish any information re-
garding them, ‘Lammy'?”
“Yes, but it would be unnecessary. All four are
close-mouthed chaps who never discuss Service affairs
with any member of their families. They're in line for
very desirable promotion and would see that no act of
theirs jeopardized it. But-er-I fancy you've over-
looked three individuals who are not closely connected
with those we've mentioned. For example, there is Miss
Violet Wilmerton, an American who is a connection of
Lady Ranbourne's, and has been for several weeks a
house-guest of the Second Lord's family. Mr. Olav Nord-
stern-a British subject, of Norwegian family—is stopping
in the home of the Naval Secretary. And Mrs. De Pey-
ster, a charming young American widow, is the most in-
timate friend of Private Secretary Lampton's wife-at.
their house constantly, and frequently using permits ob-
tained by him to go over the warships with Mrs. Lampton.
Of course, if all our good friends are really as close-mouthed
as we believe, in the privacy of their homes, those three
people would have no opportunity for obtaining vital in-
formation; but they might pick up something an' deduce
a lot more, if they're particularly clever.”
"Have you any reason for suspecting either of the
three, ‘Lammy'?"
"Not the slightest! I've met all of them-frequently.
As far as I can judge, they all hate the boche as thoroughly
as we do, and want the Entente to win. In fact, Nord-
stern is unusually bitter for a man whose father was a
Norwegian-an’ the two American women are strongly
partisan in the way they talk."


194
THE UNSEEN HAND
“You say Miss Wilmerton is a connection of Lady Ran-'
bourne's—do you know where she comes from, in the
States? Is there any one to whom you might cable for
information concerning her?”
"Oh, aye. Her home is in Philadelphia. My friend
Biddle comes from one of the old Philadelphia families-
knows everybody's great-grandfather. He frequently
gives me valuable pointers; in fact, our correspondence is
such an active one that we have our own private code for
cablegrams.”
“Hmph! I wish you'd humor my curiosity, ‘Lammy,'.
by cabling him now-concerning Miss Wilmerton!”
“Certainly-if you wish.” (Taking a small memo-
randum-book from an inner pocket, Lammerford rapidly
jotted down a cipher cablegram which was promptly dis-
patched over Lord Trevor's private wire to the cable
office, where it was censored and passed without delay.)
"You speak as if you had some reason for bein' sus-
picious of the young woman, Nan?”
“I'd no idea she was staying as a guest in Hamilton
House until you told me. She went about quite a good
deal, last winter, with our friend Chudleigh Sammis, M.P.
-whom we know for a Wilhelmstrasse spy. After we
broke up that conspiracy to influence the Cabinet Min-
isters, and caused twenty-five well-known people to dis-
appear from London so mysteriously, she apparently,
quarreled with him for something he said or did-and
hasn't been seen with him since. If it was something
which made her suspect his loyalty to England was a trifle
lukewarm, that quarrel is the best guarantee we could
have as to her own honesty. But if they only pretended


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 195.
to break off the friendship because they feared he was
under suspicion, and didn't wish to jeopardize her own op-
portunities for doing Wilhelmstrasse work—eh? That's
really quite as possible as the other theory, you know."
For two hours longer they discussed various possibili-
ties connected with the leak at the Admiralty. Then
Sabub Ali came up from the telegraph-cellar with a code
message for Sir Francis Lammerford-just received from
Philadelphia, and passed by the Censor.
“Violet's parents, Thomas K. Wilmerton-first cousin,
Lady Susan—2nd wife, Lord Ranbourne--and Hilda von
Schemmerling, born Charlottenberg, aristocratic Prussian
family. With exception one other intermarriage, 1794,
with Helmuths of Vienna, Wilmertons American stock
since 1760. Thomas K. importer dyestuffs-factories in
Germany and Austria. Violet said to be engaged, May,
1914, Lieut. Karl von Ingen-German Embassy. En-
gagement supposed broken last year.”
When Sir Francis had read the message to them, an
expression of amazed understanding appeared in each face.
“My word, Nan! Your intuitions are a bit uncanny
at times! Faith, I fancy this settles Miss Violet Wilmer-
ton's standing in England! No bally doubt of it! She's
been workin' with that cursed fiance of hers in the Wilhelm-
strasse service ever since she came over herean' Chud-
leigh Sammis very shrewdly gave her the tip to quarrel
with him the moment the Cabinet plot fell through. D'ye
know, that bounder is breathin' a lot easier, just now-he
fancies we somehow missed him altogether in that affair,
an' is beginnin' to be a bit more careless in regard to the


196
THE UNSEEN HAND
people he talks with. I was against lettin' him alone when
Nan suggested it—but I'll frankly admit she was right.
He's the most valuable stool-pigeon in England to-day!"
"Well, on the ground of circumstantial evidence, we
may as well assume that the Admiralty leak is through
this Wilmerton woman. Even at the risk of havin' im-
portant information get across the Channel. I fawncy
we'd best let her alone for the present, in Hamilton House,
an' have Downing Street men track her, every step she
takes. She has confederates--prob’ly in various places.
By watchin' her constantly we'll get them before they can
do much damage.” (This decision was to cost the Brit-
ish Navy several of its biggest cruisers and seven thousand
heroic British sailors—as it worked out. Yet, neverthe-
less, it gave England control of the Baltic and tightened
the blockade around Germany.)
· Next morning, accompanied by a senior captain from
the Admiralty, Lord Trevor motored to Woolwich. With-
out referring, at first, to the wireless station, they ob-
tained information as to the occupations of every man on
duty at the royal arsenal and the Dockyard during the
previous afternoon. As His Lordship had expected, no
one had been in the operating-room of the wireless station
but the quartermasters detailed there for signal duty.
When they finally went into the operating-room, the two
quartermasters recognized His Lordship at once as the
Admiral who had recommended them for promotion after
very creditable service under him at the Dardanelles.
“Wilkins-you and Munn were on duty here yesterday
afternoon?”
Serien


THE SKAGER-RACK—AND KITCHENER 197
"Aye, sir.”
"Was any one else around this station-either in this
room, on the roof, climbing the aërial masts to make re-
pairs-or, say, within two hundred feet of the building,
during your watch?”
“No one but the engine-room artificer in charge of the
petrol-motors in the cellar, sir."
“You're positive of that, are you?”
“Aye, sir-quite positive.”
“What were you doing at two-bells-an' during the
fifteen minutes afterward?”
“'Avin' our tea an' cakes, sir. Sheerness was relievin'
us for twenty minutes while we b'ils our tea an' 'as our
bite, sir-as is customary, sir. We tikes their calls durin'
the ’arf-hour just before that, sir."
"Then, as far as you know, there was no message sent
from this station between four-fifty and five-fifteen yes-
terday afternoon?”
"None whatever, sir! The artificer will tell you the
motors an' dynamos was shut down for a quarter of an
hour, both sides of two-bells, sir.”
"Er-just where are your aërial connections?”.
“Right away ’ere, sir—these two heavy insulated wires
w'ich Your Ludship can see goin' up through the roof in
them two iron pipes. Outside the roof, they're in plain
sight, right away up to the aërials. The lightnin'-arrester
connection is just 'ere, sir, above the operatin' table
you can see the wires leadin' out above the window, an'
down into the ground.”
“Any metal connection between the aërials and the
skeleton-steel masts?”


THE SKAGER-RACK_AND KITCHENER 199
She appeared very much interested in everything they
saw-asking questions and making comparisons with
American naval yards. Here and there, some warrant
officer in charge of a detail was introduced to her and
asked to explain his particular work. None of these in-
troductions was overlooked by the lieutenant, who was
discussing Service matters with her friend's husband
but without making the espionage so marked as to be
tray him, it was impossible to be, in each instance, close
enough to overhear every remark she made.
So it happened that the lieutenant missed, altogether,
the few words breathed without a motion of the lips into
the ear of a young artificer who was explaining to her the
operation of a lathe in one of the machine-shops: “I
am dropping a little wad of paper by the edge of my skirt.
Put your foot on it. Wait until we are out of the shop!”
In the next breath, she thanked him, audibly, for ex-
plaining his machine to her, and walked on with the others.
The artificer bowed, and stood where he was until
they had passed through the door; then he resumed his
directing of the men under him. But as he stepped along
any one who had seen the wad of paper fall by Miss
Wilmerton's skirt would have wondered what became of
it. It was nowhere visible either under the lathe or any-
where on the floor.
At noon Garraway-the "artificer"-was off duty for
the afternoon watch. While changing from overalls
into his service uniform, one of his mates noticed him
prying off with his jack-knife, from the sole of his shoe, a
lump of pitch in which something was sticking-and ap-
parently tossing the object through the window into the


200 ;
THE UNSEEN HAND
river. That was all there was to it-a perfectly natural
action which the other man never thought of again. As
Garraway happened to be a good conduct man, he was
privileged to leave the Dockyard in his off-watch-so,
after duly reporting, he walked along Church and High
streets until he came to the little ferry, and took the first
boat across to North Woolwich on the other bank of the
Thames.
Lord Trevor, having left Captain Marshall in the com-
mandant's quarters for an hour or so, had taken the no-
tion for a walk about the river-streets of North Woolwich,
with the object of getting a look at the wireless-masts
from across the Thames—and was on the same boat. Al-
though in one of his habitual gray morning suits, he was so
frequently recognized and saluted as an admiral that Gar-
raway's fingers instinctively went to his cap as he caught
His Lordship’s glance-thereby leaving a subconscious
photograph of his face and appearance at the back of the
peer's brain-to be recalled later.
Garraway left the boat ahead of His Lordship and
walked smartly along North Woolwich Road until he came
to the corner of Tate Street, up which he turned until
he reached an unpretentious saloon upon the ground
floor of a cheap boarding-house. For no conscious reason
Lord Trevor had kept his swinging athletic figure in view,
as they walked along, and rather aimlessly turned up Tate
Street after the man. The door of the pub swung open
as the Viscount passed—and he saw Garraway seated at
a sloppy table in the farther corner with a stiff glass of
rum before him.
For half an hour His Lordship walked about the short


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 201
streets of North Woolwich and Silverton-getting views
of the towering wireless-masts on the south bank of the
river from various angles. Then it occurred to him that
he might beckon the warrant-officer out of the groggery
and ask him a few casual questions about the locality.
But, when he returned and glanced in at the door, Garra-
way had collapsed in his chair, with arms and head upon
the sloppy table apparently in a drunken sleep-and it
seemed useless to meddle with him.
Had Trevor obeyed his first impulse-entered the place
and, shaking the man into consciousness, compelled his
return to the dockyard-a life which England could ill
afford to lose might not have been snuffed out at its
zenith.
There was everything of common-sense against such
an action-nothing in the least suspicious about Garra-
way—yet the intuition was there, dormant, in His Lord.
ship’s mind—the infinitessimal chance granted by fate.
And common sense prevailed—as it was probably writ-
ten that it would prevail.
At the lower end of Tate Street an enormous gas-tank,
with a smaller one alongside, shut out the view of the
river from that point. Trevor had not realized, until he
stood looking directly up at them, the colossal size of the
larger one or the probable height of its framework from
the ground-level. Between it and the chemical works
there was a petroleum-soaked field extending to the water
bulkhead. Crossing the railway line, he walked over
this to the river-noticing that a five-foot sewer emptied
into the Thames in a line with Tate Street, and that a
refuse-drain from the big gas-tank evidently had been con-


THE SKAGER-RACK—AND KITCHENER 203
opened a door which had been concealed behind it,
walked through another passage—and stepped into a sub-
terranean room which had been fitted up as a secret wire-
less-station. A man was seated at the operating-table
with receivers clamped over his ears—listening intently,
But as Garraway came in, he took off the head-frame and
whirled around in his swivel-chair.
“Ach ! Mein lieber Von-er-Garraway! Soh! You
have something fresh to communicate? Yes?”
"I should say I had! But first–tell me, Karl! Are
you taking the chance of sending anything at this time of
day?”
"Nein! Nein! Though, if it wass necessary, I would!
Look you—those fools across the river at Woolwich, they
use always the two-thousand-metre wave, because they know
that all calls for their station will be sent at that length.
Of course-ja !-of course-maybe six or ten times every
day they made adjustment of t’e audion to listen for
other wave-lengths for a minute. But they pay no at-
tention. I haf lissen too often mit them. So, if when
they just stop talking with someone I begin sending
at twenty-five hundredt-or twelve hundredt—they
would notice nothing, even though we are here almost
alongside of them. But meinself-I wait until they take
their tea—with the receivers off their ears-at five o'clock.
Now, tell, me, mein Graf, wass iss ?”
“Secret service for me, I think. That girl Violet beats
the devil! How she manages to pick up what she does, I
can't imagine-but her information has been right every
time. She says it has been decided that Kitchener, Lloyd-
George, and 'K's' staff are to leave one of the ports in the


206
THE UNSEEN HAND
or less intact. But, to His Lordship's amazement, he could
see only five of the smallest cruisers below him. Flying
over the Kiel dockyards, he made out the dim shapes of
two superdreadnoughts about half completed, under im-
mense gantries. In the harbor were two small cruisers
and a few torpedo-boats-also what appeared to be a
couple of submarines, flush with the sea.
The mysterious absence of the main fleet was beginning
to have a sinister appearance. If not in the Canal or at
Kiel, where was it? For the next two hours Trevor flew
back and forth over the Danish Islands and the Catte-
gat-until, just at daybreak, he sighted a great flotilla
clustered in Jammer Bay off the north coast of Denmark
and well inshore. Flying close enough to make out the
various units and count them—the great superdread-
noughts Hindenburg, Dresden, and three others of the same
class, with a number of lesser battleships and cruisers,
surrounded by torpedo and submarine squadrons—they
whirled the biplane about before they were clearly seen
and headed for London on the wings of a northeast
wind that gave them something over a hundred miles an
hour.
It was nearly one in the afternoon when Trevor--who
had managed to change from the German uniform into Brit-
ish khaki and soak off the blond moustache came down
again in Hyde Park. In the house he found Sir Francis
Lammerford with Lady Nan-spending a part of the after-
noon in the hope that some message would come in from
the two aviators in case their daring flight over the German
naval base had proved successful. Without even waiting
to change his clothes, Trevor at once took them down with


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 207
him to the wireless cellar and connected a couple of spare
head-frames in order that they might listen-in.
"If I can't solve the mystery of that Woolwich message
within an hour or two, we're facin' a serious risk. The
entire German high seas fleet is hiding up off the north
coast of Denmark—with what appear to be a dozen ocean
raiders behind them! I fawncy the idea is to come out in
force, engage our light-cruiser squadron an' keep 'em busy
while those raiders sneak out to sea an' scatter all over the
world! If I'd had pontoons under the 'plane, I should
have risked bein' shot an' come down in the middle of
Jellicoe's main battle-fleet-but we'd have been drowned
or blown to atoms before there would have been any chance
to explain, d'ye see! As it is, I should be gettin' Jellicoe
by wireless this very instant-an' sendin' him up to the
Skager-Rack as fast as ever he can steam there! But if
I do so, the bounders who are playin' tricks on us at Wool-
wich are sure to catch the message-de-code it-an' warn
the German fleet before Hood an' Beatty can get rein-
forcements. If by any unimaginable luck I could stumble
upon some clue to that mystery down the river "
He had been adjusting the receivers over his ears as he
spoke-and suddenly his figure stiffened into alertness.
Some operator within a near-by radius was calling B-X-B
-B-X-B-B-X-B, the number of the Brussels station.
Carefully, but as rapidly as his unfamiliarity with the
instruments permitted, His Lordship manipulated the
switches and set-screws of Meredith's detector while
Sir Francis took down the message. Figuring the result
from the compass and dial-indicators, he made the location
exactly twenty-three miles-E. S.-which indicated


208
THE UNSEEN HAND
Woolwich on the map, without a chance of mistake.
When Lammerford had written out the message and de-
ciphered it from the Wilhelmstrasse code, it read:
"Light cruiser squadron now in mouth of Skager-Rack.
Main battle-fleet twelve hours away, at best steaming, and
gradually moving south. Attack in four or five hours.”
Trevor snatched up one of the telephones and called the
Admiralty, over his private wire, asking the operator to
put him on to the Commandant's private telephone at
Woolwich.
“Are you there, Admir'l? Are you there! Ah! Tell
me at once, if you please, just what messages have been
sent from your wireless-station within the lawst twenty
minutes!”
In less than three moments the answer came:
“Last message sent was at one-fifteen, Your Lordship!
Merely final instructions to one of our cruisers off Ushant.
Leftenant Baylis has been in the operating room since
eight-bells with Munn and Wilkins. I've just spoken
with him over the telephone, and he gives me this report."
“Thank you very much, Admir'l! Er-I say—could
you send a detail, fully armed, across the ferry, an' have
them meet me at the corner of Leonard Street an' North
Woolwich Road in possibly three-quarters of an hour?
You'll do so? Er—thanks! Have two of the men fetch
their hip-boots an’oilskins! I'll run down at once. (“Lam-
my,' just push the button on that emergency-wire for one
of the eight-cylinder tourin' cars, will you? Then it'll
be ready to start by the time we get up in the hall!)”
“What's the idea, old chap?"


210
THE UNSEEN HAND
They found twenty sailors waiting for them under the
command of a midshipman three blocks west of the gas-
tank. On the way down, Trevor had remembered the
artificer, Garraway, drunk in the Tate Street pub-and
had been speculating upon the general appearance of the
place. It stood within a few feet of the sewer—a vague
suspicion concerning it had been growing in his mind. So
he ordered ten of the sailors around into Tate Street from
the north-telling them to stand on the sidewalk outside
and send in two or three men at a time to buy drinks, as
if they were merely awaiting orders and had no suspicion
of the place. The men with oilskins and rubber boots he
ordered across the open field to the river bulkhead and
told them to wade up inside of the five-foot sewer-search-
ing with electric torches for heavily insulated wires along
the west side of the culvert. The rest he posted in North
Woolwich Road, near the corner of Tate Street.
In half an hour the men who had been searching the
sewer came up to report that they had found two wires
resembling, in size, the trunk feeders of a trolley-line-
coming out of a twelve-inch pipe opposite the big gas-tank
and disappearing through a hole in the west side of the
culvert eight hundred feet from the river. They had
paced the distance across the open field and estimated the
spot to be, approximately, where the sailors were stand-
ing-outside the pub.
That was enough. The saloon was suddenly raided
and wires found in the cellar leading back to the under-
ground operating-room-where the man Karl and two
accomplices were taken after a desperate resistance, dur-
ing which one of the sailors was killed and three others


THE SKAGER-RACK-AND KITCHENER 211
badly wounded. The spies and the barman were taken
out to the open field-stood upon the river bulkhead-and
summarily shot, in the presence of several hundred spec-
tators who lined Factory Road. Examination of the big
gas-tank showed the connections to have been made with
heavy copper wires inside the hollow steel columns which
upheld the towering framework.
As the spies were being executed, Trevor was in the
Dockyard wireless station, persistently calling the flag-
ship of Admiral Jellicoe's fleet until she answered-and
urging the Admiral to hurry toward the Skager-Rack as
fast as he could steam. That the warning came too late
to save a few of England's finest cruisers and nearly seven
thousand sailor-heroes was due to the unfortunate com-
bination of circumstances—but the delayed attack by the
heavier units of the fleet resulted in the destruction of
practically all the German raiders that had tried to sneak
out, and the passage into the Baltic of five powerful Eng-
lish cruisers.
A week later a survivor of the cruiser Hampshire
desperately clinging to a fragment of the signal-spar,
after seeing the heroic “K. of K.” go down to his ocean
tomb-noticed one of his messmates, an artificer, by name
of Garraway, calmly inflating a rubber vest which kept
him afloat without the slightest exertion. In a single
flash of comprehension he recalled having seen the man
go into the magazine, fifteen minutes before the explosion,
to repair some rubber packing around the door-and
realized what must have been in the kit-bag he carried.
Knowing he was doomed never to reach the shore in that


212
THE UNSEEN HAND
heavy sea-which rolled him under the spar every few
moments-he grinned with indomitable purpose at the
scoundrel's life-preserving vest, and managed to draw his
service automatic from its holster. The weapon spoke
twice. Garraway threw up his arms, gasped, and rolled
over face downward—the air whistling out of his bloody,
punctured vest.
“Damn ye f'r a bloody, murderin' boche, Garraway!
An' I 'opes ye'll find it so bally 'ot in 'ell, when ye gits
below, that the blubber'll sizzle off'n yer bones-s'elp me!
I'm a-goin', my own self, in a little while, Garraway—but
I'opes it'll be to the place where I can stand salutin' when
Kitchener goes by with Gabriel an' 'Bobs'!"


CHAPTER VII
THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP IN THE PYRENEES
\HE entertainment at Stalton House in aid of the
allied Field Hospitals included dancing in the
stately old Tudor ballroom, with “bridge” in the
smaller rooms at either side. Among those on the floor,
Lord and Lady Trevor had been attracting attention by
their perfect dancing of an intricate variation in the Ar-
gentine tango—but they were by no means the only ce-
lebrities who had temporarily deserted the card-tables for
the fascination of rhythmic motion. Statesmen, Cabinet
Ministers, foreign diplomats-of all ages and sizes —
danced with an absorption that was rather amazing, con-
sidering their every-day activities.
A man who had been watching the dancers from a seat
behind one of the pillars seemed particularly interested in
the military attaché of the Spanish Embassy, Major Don
Julio Zacata—who was chatting behind a group of potted
palms with the Honorable Chudleigh Sammis, M. P.
They were discussing the arrival, that morning, of a Ger-
man submarine at Baltimore-and the keen-faced Amer-
ican who sat behind the pillar had an impression that the
Member of Parliament concurred rather strongly, for a
loyal Englishman, with the Spaniard's open admiration of
the exploit. The submarine had been lucky-no ques-
tion as to thatbut as a feat of seamanship, her perform-
213


214
THE UNSEEN HAND
ance was no more remarkable than the crossing of the At-
lantic, some months previously, by the five American sub-
marines built at the Fore River yards for England, or that
of the English submarines which penetrated the Sea of
Marmora after the passage through the Mediterranean
and the thickly mined Dardanelles. It was by no means
sure, at that moment, that the German submarine would
return safely to Bremen. The American was trying to
puzzle out some underlying reason for Sammis's affability
to the Spanish attaché when Lady Trevor caught a glimpse
of his face, in passing, and promptly fetched His Lordship
around behind the pillar.
“Raymond Carter! Where in the world did you drop
from? We heard that you'd left the American Embassy
in Paris four months ago, for a well-earned vacation-but
there was no word of you from any one in the States! Did
you really go home at all?” He was still holding her hand
with one of his and looking at her delightedly as he ex-
tended the other to His Lordship.
“Why should I? This thing over here is too stupen-
dous to leave and some of its most interesting features
are not on the firing-line. For instance your Member of
Parliament, yonder, appears to have some pretty good
reason for cultivating Major Don Julio Zacata, who is
-entre nous of the Hapsburgs. Oh, he's Spanish-born,
all right, and a duly accredited attaché of the Spanish
Embassy—but I'll bet a good yellow double eagle that
his sympathies are not with England and France in this
row! Not by a thousand miles! You could have him
recalled upon excellent grounds—but of course you won't.
Because he also happens to be a distant connection of Al-


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP 215
fonso himself, and you don't want to get that bright
young man down on you!”
Lady Nan, glancing round the big hall, noticed that
some of the people were observing their meeting with Car-
ter-marking him as an old friend of two celebrities who
were known in nearly every quarter of the globe.
"See here, Raymond! Evidently you've been pro-
curing information of value to us somewhere! If we
stand talking here another five minutes there may be
people in the house who will suspect the fact. Better go
to your club now and afterward come around to Park
Lane."
“H-m-m-is there one of your high-powered motors
outside, Lady Nan?”
“Yes. We've grown so accustomed to the unexpected
that we never use anything else, now-even for social af-
fairs. In fact, we've disposed of every car that isn't ca-
pable of doing ninety miles at a pinch. Ranjeet Singh is
waiting outside we are leaving in half an hour. Two-
five-five is our carriage number.”
“I'll spot Ranjeet without calling the number and get
into the car with my collar turned up—first telephoning
Park Lane to send another for Your Ladyship-same car-
riage number. Then, if Trevor will come out in a few
moments and meet me, two blocks up the street, we can
watch for that Spaniard when he leaves. Unless I'm
guessing wrong altogether, your Member of Parliament
will be with him-and they'll drive off in a car, somewhere,
for a private conference. Now-do we understand each
other? Good! I'll try to create an impression that our
acquaintance is merely casua!!*


216
THE UNSEEN HAND
If any secret agent of Germany was at Stalton House
that night-and the Foreign Office assumed this to be
highly probable-he undoubtedly contented himself
with a close observation of Lady Nan, figuring that
secret agents of the British Government were likely to
be among the numerous acquaintances with whom she
talked at various times. If Lord Trevor's departure was
noticed at all, it was assumed that he had left early for a
game of cards at his club or had possibly gone to the Admi-
ralty-being one of the most popular Admirals in the
service. Carter may have been recognized as having had
some former connection with the American Embassy in
Paris—but he was one of those artists among diplomats
who possess the ability to present such an average appear-
ance as to be easily confused with hundreds of other men
of the same complexion, height, build, dress, and manner.
It was raining when he left the house, so his stepping into
the Trevor landaulet and driving off up the street at-
tracted no attention. His Lordship came out with the col-
lar of his mackintosh turned above his ears and his Fedora
hat-brim pulled down until they made an effectual dis-
guise. When Major Zacata appeared with the Hon.
Chudleigh Sammis, fifteen minutes later, Trevor's motor
was drawn up near by, and it glided silently after their
car, half a block in the rear.
As Carter had anticipated, the attaché had no inten-
tion of going back to the Spanish Embassy in Grosvenor
Gardens. Instead of heading west, his chauffeur cut
down through St. James's Square and Whitehall to West-
minster Bridge, then south into Surrey, along Brixton
Road, through Croyden. As the car was starting up the


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
217
grade to Nore Hill and the Woldingham Downs, the bril.
liant glare of an acetylene lamp was turned full upon it
from the side of the road, and a figure in khaki stepped out
to cover the chauffeur with a levelled magazine rifle.
When he stopped, Major Zacata leaned out to ask what
the trouble was. The sergeant was polite but firm.
“Youll have to account for yourselves, gentlemen!”
“Si! Si! I am Military Attaché of the Spanish Em-
bassy-an' my frien', he ees Honorable Señor Sammis,
the Member of your Parliament! We proceed to the
villa where we are guest', near Woldingham!”
“Er-quite so! I should have recognized you at once!
I'm Kaiser Bill, myself, don't you know! Might as well
stow all that, an' turn up whatever identification you
happen to have about you !"
Zacata was furious, but instantly drew a card case
from his pocket as Sammis was producing his own.
“My card! You may also examine my chauffeur's
license if you weesh!"
The cards and other papers being apparently satis-
factory, the sergeant returned them with a salute.
“These seem to be sufficient, sir; you may proceed!
But, if convenient, it would be advisable to do your mo-
toring during the day—any one not cennected with the
Army is quite sure to be stopped.”
Ranjeet Singh had seen what happened in time to
throw out his clutch at some little distance back from the
pickets, but Zacata had gone scarcely a hundred yards
when His Lordship leaned out of the landaulet in the
glare of the acetylene lamp, with his hat off, and said,
in a low voice:


218
THE UNSEEN HAND
"On His Majesty's Service, Sergeant! Don't delay us!"
The man recognized his face as exceedingly familiar;
the air of command was unmistakable. He was saluting,
a little doubtfully, when His Lordship continued, rapidly:
“You've been in this neighborhood several days? Aye?
Have you heard of any villa or manor house which has
been recently leased to someone in London, either a
Member of Parliament or a foreigner?”
“Yes, sir. That's why I allowed that other car to pro-
ceed. There's an old house on the top of Woldingham
Hill, a mile away from any other one-you reach it by a
lane from the turnpike, before it dips down to Titsey. It
has the reputation of being haunted-vacant for several
years, they say, around here. But a gentleman from Lon-
don took it during the winter an' spent a good bit of tin
putting it in repair. Comes down for the week-ends.
Butler and old housekeeper appear to be in charge when
he's away.”
Thanking him courteously, Trevor settled back in his
seat, and Ranjeet took the hill on “high.” The brief
conversation had taken but a minute yet the other car
was out of sight in the rain and darkness. On the higher
ground, Ranjeet turned up his lamps, and all three closely
examined the earth at the side of the macadam as they
ran along. Presently they passed a spot where tyre-
marks in the soft clay showed where a car had turned into
an opening through the hedge so narrow that the twigs
must have brushed the mud-guards as it went through.
Turning off his lights, Ranjeet drew up at the side of the
road, a little further along; after which Lord Trevor and
the American walked rapidly back to the narrow lane.


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
219
After proceeding cautiously for a mile, they came upon
a manor house nestling in waist-high gorse on the crest
of the Downs. There were lights in two windows upon
the ground floor and one at the rear, evidently in the kit-
chen or butler's pantry. Feeling sure that somebody
would have been told to watch the lane, they cautiously
circled the place, in the gorse, at a distance of five hundred
feet, and approached it from the west. In the darkness
they stumbled against something which proved to be a
flag-pole-considerably over a hundred feet high, judg.
ing by the thickness of the lower mast.
“Hmph! The beauty of the flag-pole idea, Raymond,
is that one can never be sure it isn't always used, quite
innocently, for the Union Jack or Red Ensign-when the
master of the house is in residence-until he makes a most
searchin' investigation. I fawncy three-quarters of the
country houses in the British Isles have, each, their flag-
mast! If one were to examine all of them, it would take
some doing—what? Search about, carefully, within a hun-
dred-foot radius, an' see if you cawn't locate a well, or a
partly sunken ice-house-something of the sort!”
In a few moments they came upon the wooden hatch
of a cistern-evidently piped to collect rain-water from
the roofs of the manor house. Removing the hatch and
flashing a ray from an electric torch down inside, they saw
that the top of the water was about seven feet below the
ground-level, and that what appeared to be a drain-
three feet in diameter-opened from the bricks, at one
side, directly under the hatch, about two feet above the
water. Lowering himself until he could throw his light
into this drain, Trevor saw a reel of copper "aërials”.


220
THE UNSEEN HAND
twenty feet back from the cistern-plenty long enough to
be hoisted to the top of the pole by the flag-halyards-and
he had barely shut off his own light when he saw a re-
flection at the other end of the drain three hundred feet
away. To swing himself out of the cistern and replace
the hatch was the work of but a few seconds.
“Faith, they're comin' through that drain at this mo-
ment, old chap, to string up those aërials an' begin sending.
We'd best make a detour through the gorse an' see if we
cawn't get in close to those lighted windows at the side!”
The narrow spaces between the Tudor mullions of the
windows were fitted with diamond-shaped panes, the
lower section opening outward upon hinges and being
partly overgrown with ivy. This gave the watchers an
excellent opportunity to peer through the leaves without
being seen. The room proved to be a spacious library
with a low, raftered ceiling and a beautifully carved stone
fireplace at one side. Sammis and the Spanish attaché
were smoking comfortably in big leather chairs at one
side of a massive centre table. Near them a handsome
woman was half reclining on a divan, playing with the
long ears of a dachshund. Trevor and the American
Chargé d'Affaires muttered exclamations at the sight of
her.
"Lady Violet Penngwylder, by Jove! Who is also Con-
desa de Saltaluna by reason of her inherited Spanish
estates! There's been a good bit of talk about her care-
lessness in regard to appearances, you know! A hand-
some widow cawn't go about, openly, with a foreigner-
or any one else, for that matter-without stirrin' up gos-
sip! Well, we've ample time to discuss her later. Just



CLINTON
PETTERS
LORD TREVOR
"HANDING RAYMOND CARTER ONE OF THE RECEIVERS, HE PLACED THE
OTHER AGAINST HIS OWN EAR . . . THE VOICES IN THE ROOM WERE
1 DISTINCT AS IF THEY HAD BEEN WITHIN SLX FEET OF THE SPEAKERS





THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
221
now, we've to hear what they're sayin', if possible! We
cawn't pry open one of these windows without makin' a
noise they'll hear, but I carry a couple of dictaphones in any
car I happen to be usin'—so we'll not do so badly in spite
of that. Glass vibrates even more than a metal dia.
phragm, under certain conditions.”
He took from his mackintosh pocket a compact dicta-
phone transmitter from which he unscrewed the pro-
tecting rubber mouthpiece-holding the diaphragm flat
against one of the window-panes. Then, handing Carter
one of the receivers, he placed the other against his own
ear, and the tones of the voices in the room were as distinct
as if they had been within six feet of the speakers. Sam-
mis had evidently been asking for certain information
which the Major was giving him, Lady Violet supple-
menting it with an occasional remark.
“You ask, my frien', how many of ze men we expec' to
’ave before we bring off ze grran' coup? We ’ave now
thirty thousan'. They are scatter' in many pueblos an'
cities where nobody notice them. To-morrow, othair
steamer' weel arrive-ten thousan' more men—who weel
scatter as ze othairs. In a few days there weel be in
Spain forty thousan' men of German birth-mos' of whom
’ave live' so long in Latin country' that t’ey pass for Span-
ish or Italian, mos' certainly. In our own organization
-w'ich comprise many of ze brigand', we ’ave twenty
thousan'. Seexty thousan' ees not beeg army-ver' true
-but eet will be sufficient for ze surprise an' ze compro-
mise. For to move them, we ’ave more as t'ree hundred
box-cars-an' there ees leetle station, ver' quieet, w'ere
ze seexty thousan' can be load' in one day. We 'ave


222
THE UNSEEN HAND
secret agent in every station along ze line to cut ze tele-
graph before we start, an' cooperate with us in taking ze
railway buildings."
“Suppose the big strike isn't settled by the time you
want to move your men?”
“Look you, my frien’! zose striker are mostly affiliate'
weeth our organization. Ze strrike, he weel not be settle'
until we are ready to move! Observe! Ze railway, he
ees all tie'-up-everywhere-nozzing ees move' in ze way
of trrain'. Ze line clear-nozzing in ze way wen we weesh
to run express after express of ze box-car! Ze people be-
yond ze frontier, they t’ink our strike ees all settle', an'
that we move ze goods-train' w’ich ’ave been waiť so
long."
“And the Condesa? Where does she come in?”
Lady Violet stretched herself like a lazy cat, smiling.
“I throw a little snuff in the eyes of His Majesty and
the leaders in the Cortes. I was rather intimate with the
Queen when she was Princess Victoria of Battenberg, and
used to get along beautifully with His Majesty. They
invite me to visit them frequently. Well, I ask the
King whether his country is prepared, in case it happens to
become involved in the war. He assures me there is no
possibility of such an eventuality—but I tell him a few
things I've heard, and suggest the advisability of stock-
ing-up on munitions, at least. Whether he actually or-
ders the War Department to increase the munitions re-
serve or not, he is bound to see that there really should be
a large stock in the country. So, if he learns that a few
public-spirited business men among his subjects have
made large purchases abroad, in that line, he is more


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
223
likely to thank and decorate them than to suspect any
ulterior motive. Meanwhile, I keep telling him certain
confidential gossip I've picked up in regard to the inten-
tions of the Entente toward him in the near future. He
doesn't believe it-yet-but he is doing a good bit of
thinking, and will be getting more suspicious of the Allies
as the months pass. If he happens to hear that certain
officers in the War Department have been exceeding their
authority, he will not be disposed to investigate too
closely.”
“Excellent, Condesa! Capital! One can scarcely over-
estimate the value of such work inside the Palacio Real!”
The conversation drifted to less serious matters—and
the listeners, outside, thought it advisable to make their
escape before any of the household came prowling about.
When they were in the landaulet, racing back to London,
Carter expected that His Lordship would at once order
the arrest of Sammis and the recall of Zacata.
"No; we don't want to stir up their Embassy and strain
diplomatic relations between the two countries. You
may be quite sure that house was never leased in Zacata's
name, or Sammis's, either--not with the chance of that
wireless outfit bein' discovered on the place! We'll wait
until those three have gone back to London, and then
seize the place with everyone who happens to be in it at
the time. For six months we've known Sammis to be a
Wilhelmstrasse spy, an' have been watchin' him, d'ye
see-which has enabled us to make several rather impor-
tant arrests. I fancy he's no suspicion of the extent to
which he has been constantly under espionage. We'll
permit him an' Zacata an' the Condesa to imagine thei:


224
THE UNSEEN HAND
connection with this house, down here, hasn't been traced
at all-an' that we've taken it over because we somehow
located the wireless messages from it. I'm beginnin' to
have some inkling as to what may be doin' in Spain—but
you can probably fill in a few gaps! What did you dis-
cover there?”
“You're familiar, of course, with the various services of
the big Spanish steamship line—the Compañia Trasat-
lantica—and know there are smaller ones more or less
affiliated with it? Well, for the last three months irregu-
lar chartered steamers, running in some of those lines,
have been fetching men from South and Central America
to work newly developed mines and other industries in
various parts of Spain. They talk Spanish as if it were
their native tongue-even some of the local dialects—but
I'd be willing to bet that every one of them is either
Austrian or German formerly engaged in developing the
foreign trade of those countries. Probably few, if any,
not in the secret, have noticed that all of them were landed
at Barcelona. Some are undoubtedly still in that city-
but the majority left almost immediately on trains going
north, into the interior. One of our Secret Service men
happened to be in Barcelona on another matter, and was
just curious enough to keep tally on the rather unusual
immigration proposition. He told me that, in two months,
over thirty thousand men had come to Barcelona by stea-
mer. Not immigrant families, mind you, but able-bodied
men, none over forty-five! He also put me on to another
thing which'll bear examination. The two largest arm
and ammunition houses in Barcelona, with branches in
Toledo, Madrid, and Seville, have been importing ship-


226
THE UNSEEN HAND
“He would naturally have the placing of contracts for
new army uniforms, wouldn't he? Of course! And if
he could get them supplied from the United States more
reasonably than they could be made in Spain, it would be a
nice little rake-off for him, wouldn't it? With the amount
of graft all through the Spanish Government, nobody
would pay any attention to the importation of more uni-
forms than the army could possibly need for the next
year-eh? Well, the bald fact is that over seventy thou-
sand uniforms, all grades, and all branches of the service,
have been imported from the United States and stored at
the regular Government depots of the Q. M. D.”
“Are you sure that none of them has been shipped to
some place in the north of Spain?”
“That never occurred to me! But there'd be nothing
to prevent the Q. M. D. cars being shunted at some
junction outside of Barcelona and sent north. I don't
just see ”
“What that crowd want of Spanish uniforms? Hmph!
I fancy I do! I say, Raymond! This affair is a good
bit too serious to overlook! If it were left to Alfonso an'
the cooler-headed leaders in the Cortes, there'd be not
the slightest danger in the world of their bein' dragged into
this war! They know that Spain is exposed to hostile
attack on every side, an' that the Entente navies could
bottle them up-tight-inside of three days. Spain has
everything to lose an' nothin' in the world to gain by
meddlin' in this "
“Unless "
“What?"
“Unless the propagandists have lied so convincingly,


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
227
all through Spain, that the people really believe the Cen-
tral Powers are bound to win the war and impose their
peace terms upon all Europe! In that case, a little ma-
terial assistance at the psychological moment would be
handsomely rewarded in the final settlement-or rather,
the Spaniards would be made to believe that it would.
Take the case of Bulgaria. Nothing could have been
more treacherous and short-sighted than Ferdinand's
throwing in with the Germans when he did. He hasn't
as yet a realization of what is coming to him in the wind-
up-thinks it was a coup d'état which is to make him
one of the powers of Europe. But in a few months he'll
begin to think differently—his people are beginning to
wake up, even now. On the present status, however, he
constitutes a pretty good argum’nt for the propagandists in
Spain. They've watched the opening-up of the Oriental
Railway to Stamboul—the joining of the Turkish, Bul-
garian, and German armies. It looks as if Bulgaria would
get a very satisfactory slice of the pie, and become more
powerful. If Spain could render a similar service and get
some of the pie for herself-probably the whole of Portu-
gal, at least—the decision to help Austria and Germany
would be very popular throughout the peninsula!”
“With a good many, aye! But I fancy a majority of
the people love England an' France much better than
they do the Teutons. First place, they're a Latin race.
When Charles the First-in his minority-made that fa-
mous pilgrimage with the Duke of Buckingham, incog-
nito, to visit the Infanta and the Spanish Court, it appealed
to the streak of romance in every Spaniard's heart. It's
one of the great traditions in Spain to this day. And


228
THE UNSEEN HAND
King Edward, when he also was El Principe de Gales, did
a good deal to perpetuate it. He was immensely popu-
lar down there. Then again, Queen Victoria Eugenie has
made herself loved by the whole nation; and she's an
English princess. Alfonso is still in love with her; he
himself is one of the best-liked rulers the country ever
had. He is of Austrian blood, but he has dev'lish little
use for Germany or Hohenzollern ideas. There's one point
upon which you may wager a good bit: whatever Alfonso
does, he'll have the bulk of his people behind him. Ray-
mond, I'm goin' around to Cap Cerbere on the Ranee,
with my biggest cruisin' biplane aboard! I'll have no
difficulty in gettin' permission from the French War
Office to do all the scoutin' I please along the Pyrenees;
in fact, they all recognize the value of my services, an'
give me carte blanche. If you care to come along, you'll
get a bit of excitement, I fancy; but don't blink the pos-
sibility that we may neither of us come back!"
There was a conference in Park Lane, that night, be-
tween Lord Trevor, the Foreign Secretary and Sir Fran-
cis Lammerford, at which the facts picked up at the manor
on Woldingham Downs were thoroughly discussed, and
arrangements made to keep the Spanish Embassy attachés
under close surveillance. Then His Lordship and Ray-
mond Carter motored down to Southampton, where H.
M. Scout Cruiser, S-49—formerly the deep-sea yacht
Ranee Sylvia-lay waiting for them with steam up. Up-
on the second morning following, she passed Gibraltar,
and by midnight was off the boundary between France ;
and Spain. Trevor had been somewhat undecided as to


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
229
where he might expect to find concrete evidence of the
plot, but he now got out a set of the Ministére de la Guerre
topographic maps and sat down with Carter in his private
saloon, aft, to discuss the question.
“The ‘special detail from the War Departm’nt which
was handed to me by the captain of that thirty-
knot French destroyer, this morning, permits me to do
practically whatever I please anywhere in French terri-
--tory and authorizes me to demand assistance, if I need it,
from local forces. But I fancy they've no idea as to what
we're up to. Now, I'm almost positive that we'll find
what we're lookin' for at this end of the Pyrenees rather
than the other ”
“Why so? What's your argument?”
"An expedition by way of San Sebastian would have
merely Bordeaux for its objective. It is doubtful if fifty
or sixty thousand men could take and hold the city even
with the advantage of a partial surprise—but they simply
couldn't get there without some warning of their ap-
proach, and if they did, they'd merely stop the commerce
entering France through that port, which would be im-
mediately diverted elsewhere. But on this end, the moun-
tain' boundary comes right out into the Mediterranean,
with low land to the north and south of it. In goin'
around Cap Cerbere, the railway line actually has to tun-
nel under promontories in three places, and on the Span-
ish side there's nothin' but the little pueblo of San Mig-
uel de Culera within eight or ten miles of the border. The
place has no communication except by mule-trails, aside
from the railway. Back of it are almost inaccessible
mountain valleys with altitudes of fifteen hundred to


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
231
“H-m-m-your reasoning is pretty convincing; per-
haps you're on the right track. You figure, of course,
that a German expedition must be camped in some hidden
valley or ravine along the southern slope of the Pyrenees
-but wouldn't such a camp be liable to discovery if it
were located too near the Mediterranean, or the Bay of
Biscay at either end?”
“More so than if it were in the middle of the high Pyre-
nees, of course, but they have no choice in the matter.
There are but two railways from Spain into Europe: San
Sebastian-Biarritz, on the west; Figueras-Perpignan, on
the east. Between them, along the whole two hundred
and fifty miles across the neck of the peninsula, there are
but four roads crossing the high passes of the Pyrenees,
and they are out of the question for infantry or field
artillery. Charlemagne crossed merely the low foot-hills
at the west end, only thirty-three miles from the Bay of
Biscay; the famous pass of Roncesvalles, where Roland
and his rear-guard held back the Moors, is but thirty-
five hundred feet above sea-level. Hannibal crossed with-
in twelve miles of the Mediterranean, at the east end-
where the summit of the pass was less than a thousand
feet above sea level, though the peaks on either side were
over three thousand. But this German expedition-to
get moving as quickly as it must in order to have any
chance whatever--can't be located more than a couple of
hours' march from an entraining platform on the railway.
They might use Hannibal's pass and come down upon the
little single-track French railway at le Boulou, but it
would be impossible for them to collect enough box-cars
there without giving the whole affair away. At San


232
THE UNSEEN HAND
Miguel de Culera they can assemble all the cars they please
- during this strike, while no trains are running-with-
out its appearing to be anything more than congestion
caused by the strike itself.”
Two hours later H. B. M. S-49 anchored in the se-
cluded cove which had been picked out by His Lordship on
the chart, and as soon as it was dark the big cruising bi-
plane soared up from a runway that had been rigged be-
tween the mainmast and the stern. Following the little
river and valley to the west of Cap l'Abeille, Trevor kept
at sufficient altitude to see the stars over the crests of the
mountains, rising to nine hundred meters and crossing the
Pic du Col del Touro less than a hundred feet above its
summit, but a good twenty-seven hundred feet above
sea-level. Swinging E.S.E. along the crest—while Car-
ter kept his prism-binoculars upon the black mass of the
valleys and ravines below-he flew toward the Mediter-
ranean. In less than two minutes, however, an exclama-
tion from Carter made him swing the 'plane around in a
circle.
“By Jove, old chap! There is a camp down there,
as sure as fate! The fires have burned low-must
have finished their dinner an hour ago—but I can make
out the glow of the embers distinctly! The whole out-
fit is bunched within the space of a mile, up and down the
ravine, and a third of a mile across, I should say! From
the blackness, down there, I think the ridges are pre-
cipitous on each side of them and the ravine twists like
a letter S at the foot, so that nobody can see up into it
from below!"
"Can you get any idea as to the number of fires?”
cie,


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
233
wy, peacekels
“Keep circling, and I'll try. Five—ten-fifteen-
about thirty fires across the width of the ravine--and at
least three times that many up and down."
"Say, roughly, three thousand little fires. If you fig-
ured only ten men to each fire, that would give you thirty
thousand, but they are likely to average nearer twenty.
The sun only gets into that ravine for a couple of hours
each day; undoubtedly it's very cool at night. I'd say
there must be forty or fifty thousand men there, at least
possibly sixty thousand. Look here, Raymond! I've
got to know something more definite about that crowd!
There are features concernin' that camp which appear
quite impossible, don't you know. Can you make out
anything which looks like a small patch of clear level
ground?”
"Not here! Run down toward the coast a bit!” (In
five minutes Carter made out something which looked
like a cleared space through his glass.) “Over to the
right! Easy! Circle around here, a little lower! That
looks like bare ground-fairly level-at the mouth of a
little valley! Drop a bit lower! Go down another hun-
dred feet! Turn to the left, and come down in a straight
run-against the wind!”
The ground was covered with small stones-inter-
spersed with patches of ragged turf—but the stout rubber
wheels sprang and bumped over it until the big ’plane
came to a standstill. Hauling it in behind some ever-
green trees at one side of the space, Trevor looked at the
compass on his machine and started climbing the low ridge
to the north. After an hour's tramping they came down
into a ravine along the bottom of which ran-to their


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP 235
time. The uniforms make everything look regular to
the people of San Miguel an' other towns in this locality.
His commissary sends along a daily quota of food for the
camp in milit’ry trains to San Miguel-run by the soldiers
themselves, of coursean' from there to the camp by
motor-trucks. In a country even more rotten with graft
than the United States, who is goin'to ask any questions-
make any investigation-as to whether he's feedin' ten.
thousand or fifty thousand men? German agents in
America are shippin' the provisions an' munitions through
Barcelona, of course. No food requisitions to arouse
suspicion! The people along the line see the provision-
trains go by-but they don't count the cars or know what's
inside of 'em. Supposing there is a summer camp of
the regular Spanish Army in the mountains, who is there
at San Miguel to notice what a frightful lot of canned
stuff an' other provisions is bein' transported in those
motor-trucks?
“Then comes the crownin' use of the Spanish uniforms!
Fifty thousand Spanish troops run up into France con-
cealed in box-cars—train after train of 'em-an' seize the
railway junctions-killing a lot of soldiers an' others who
resist! How is Spain goin' to disavow such an act? An’
keep out of the war, after that? The Trojan wooden
horse all over again! It'll be another case of the Goeben
an' Breslau ! Turkey had no more idea of bein' drawn
into this war than Spain has at this moment! Gad! If
it were only possible to discover their magazine, up here -
an' they fancy themselves too secure to put a guard about
it? My word, Raymond! I mustn't drag you into this
-but I mean to have a go at it if it's the lawst thing I do!”


236
THE UNSEEN HAND
With a forcible remark from Carter that he wasn't there
as a tourist, they followed the motor-road-hiding in the
bushes when any one approached—until they reached the
hidden ravine. Cautiously scouting around it, they came
down in the rear of a portable steel warehouse that proved
to be the Quartermaster's supply-depot. The sergeant
in charge was just locking up for the night when Trevor
stepped in-saying that he had a requisition from the Gen-
eral in command of the camp. Suspecting nothing, the
sergeant walked back to the rear of the big shack, where an
acetylene lamp stood on his desk-as Carter shut and
locked the door behind him. Before the fellow could make
a noise His Lordship felled him with a single blow-then
bound and gagged him. Taking up the lantern, they noise-
lessly examined the stock on the shelves-systematically
arranged in various sizes and ranks--selecting the uni-
forms of a colonel and major of engineers. Then, making
a bundle of their own clothes, they hid it among the low
cedars at the back of the warehouse and started walking
quite openly through the camp, having overheard the pass-
word given by one of the officers in charge of a truck as he
passed the outer sentry.
In one of the tents four subalterns were playing pinochle
by the light of a single lantern-all getting upon their
feet and saluting as the supposed staff officers entered.
Trevor addressed them grufily, in German-but with a
twinkle in his eye which softened the tone to some extent.
“Soh, Hauptman! You burn the light after taps-ja!
Well-for the moment, we are not so strict-no! This
being cooped up, here, is tiresome business! In a few days,
now, it will be different-ja! You will allow me to in-


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP 237
spect your revolver, please!” (The weapon was promptly
handed to him-butt first-and proved to be loaded,
in perfect condition.) “Excellent, Hauptman! And the
men in your company—you have inspected their rifles
and bandoliers, to-day?” (It was a chance shot-but
Trevor had amazing luck in getting the information he
wished by just such means.)
“Ja, mein Oberst ! There are, of course, no cartridges
-as you are aware, mein Herr; but they have been drilled
in receiving and stowing them quickly, at the maga-
zine.”
“Ja! The order was given to avoid the possibility of
accidental discharge which might attract attention over
the passes. You will come outside, and estimate for me
how quickly your company can reach the magazine from
their tents, in the event that orders come unexpectedly!”
“Ja, mein Oberst—will you permit that I pace the dis-
tance at the regulation step and take the time, by my
watch?"
“Do so! We will accompany you!”
This was almost unbelievable luck-and yet-the
pseudo Colonel's questions had been quite what he might
have been expected to ask.
The steel munition sheds were up a little side ravine
that branched off from the main camp about half way, and
opened out like an inverted V. From the piles of shells
and cases of small-arm cartridges under the sheds Trevor
estimated that all of the munitions imported from North
and South America had been transported to the camp,
ready for the departure of the expedition. When they
had accompanied the captain back to his tent, they re-


238
THE UNSEEN HAND
turned-and walked up to the magazine as if they had
business there. A single sentry was pacing back and forth
in front of the nearest shed. Upon being asked where the
munitions for the Engineer's battalion were stored, he
pointed out a shed in the middle of the group, and saluted
as they walked back to it by the occasional flash of an elec-
tric torch.
Under the Engineers' shed Trevor found what he was
looking for a lot of dynamite sticks, packed in sawdust,
and coils of fuse. Making sure that intervening piles of
shells concealed them from the sentry, they attached a
length of fuse to a heavy stone and suspended it from one
of the roof-beams. Tying on another length, two feet
above the stone, they led it away outside of the shed, esti-
mating that it would burn about fifteen minutes before it
reached the knot and let the stone drop. Then they
placed a dozen sticks of dynamite directly under the stone
-and went back through the camp. Making their way
among the cedars where they had left their clothes, they
climbed the steep ridge, and were nearly at the top of it
when a dull rumbling of the ground was succeeded by a
roar and concussion which dislodged showers of loose
rock from the precipitous sides of the main ravine and
swept it from one end to the other.
They were thrown to the ground by the force of the ex-
plosion, but received nothing worse than superficial bruises.
Below, in the ravine, there followed a few moments of
deathly silence--then a confused murmur, punctuated
with shrieks of mangled and dying men. Little points of
light appeared, here and there, as officers ran about the
camp with their lanterns to ascertain the extent of the


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
239
disaster. The shouts of a commanding officer came dis-
tinctly up to them as he gave rapid orders to throw out
pickets in every direction and arrest everyone leaving or
approaching the ravine.
"Faith, Raymond-if we're caught, it's all over with us!
We'd best get away from here on the jump-an’ without
makin' any noise, at that!”
They had marked the place where they first came upon
the macadam road by a large boulder, but it was now out
of the question to go down in that direction and look for it;
so they were forced to get their bearings as best they could,
and naturally lost them. At daybreak they knew they
must be within a few miles of the cleared spot in which they
had left the big ’plane—but thoroughly appreciated the
risk of moving in any direction. Toward noon they
cautiously made their way up a high ridge and found them.
selves looking down upon the powder-blasted sides of the
ravine in which the camp was located. As nearly as they
could judge, the explosion must have swept the upper two-
thirds of it-killing or disabling more than half the men in
the tents-and, by studying the contours of the lower hills,
they could see where the course of the macadam road must
be.
Estimating the point where they came upon it to be
about a mile below the camp, they could see, approxi-
mately, where they might expect to find the 'plane. For
another three hours they cautiously scouted over the
lower ridges-gradually approaching their destination,
Once they had a narrow escape-when they came upon twa
pickets concealed behind some boulders. But Trevor
questioned them so vigorously in German as to whether


240
THE UNSEEN HAND
they had seen any strangers in the vicinity, or any foot-
prints, that they had no suspicion whatever. Just at
nightfall the two aviators found the cleared spot and their
'plane—but Trevor discovered that, in coming down upon
the rough ground, two of his controlling-wires had been
snapped in places very difficult to get at without a light.
There was nothing to do but tackle the job as best he
could, and do it carefully regardless of the time it took.
Twice he had to throw a ray from his electric torch upon
the frame, at the risk of being seen by the German pickets.
At ten o'clock they heard voices on the ridge above them.
Half a dozen men appeared to be cautiously descending to
where they were at work. Carter listened for a moment
-then calmly asked:
“How much longer, old chap?"
“Three minutes —if everything else is in working order!
Help me drag the machine out from these trees, so that it's
heading across the open ground! I don't know what
we're going to strike, out there, but we must take a chance
on that! Now, then! Get up in your seat an' be ready to
swing those propeller-blades around when I jump for
mine!”
“If there aren't more than half a dozen, we can prob-
ably drop them before they see us!"
“Aye, but their shots might easily put the 'plane out of
business, and then we'd be at the mercy of any detail that
came runnin' down to their assistance! There: If nothin'
else gives way, I fancy we can make it, now! Ready?
Let her go!"
Trevor's wonderful mufiler silenced the exhaust from
the two big motors, but the bumping over the stones made


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
241
some unavoidable noise. There was a rush through the
cedars, down the sides of the ridge, and a dozen crackling
shots as the biplane lifted into the air. The bullets came
near enough to whistle unpleasantly, but fortunately
touched nothing. Inside of an hour the machine floated
gently down until its pontoons rested on the water along-
side H. B. M. S-49 in the cove at Cap l’Abeille. As soon
as the biplane was hoisted aboard the anchor was raised
and the cruiser slipped out to sea in the darkness, run.
ning south at full speed.
At ten in the morning she lay-to-outside the three-
mile limit-off the harbor of Alicante, and His Lordship
went ashore in a fast power-launch. To the customs and
military authorities he showed credentials as Special En-
voy to His Majesty King Alfonso-being promptly sent
up to Madrid in a motor capable of doing eighty miles an
hour—the railway service being unreliable on account of
the strike.
At Biarritz, some years before, Lord Trevor had ren-
dered a service to Alfonso which that bright and grateful
young monarch never expected to forget, and Lady Nan
held a place among Queen Victoria's most intimate friends.
So, as soon as His Lordship arrived at the capital, a royal
equerry called upon him with the request that he present
himself at the Palacio Real without the formality of secur-
ing an interview through Sir A. H. Hardinge, the British
Ambassador. As a matter of diplomatic courtesy, Trevor
stopped for a moment, on the way, to notify Sir Arthur of
his mission and the Royal command, but didn't take that
gentleman with him, for reasons which Sir Arthur could
easily surmise. As His Lordship entered the apartment


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
243
followed to the lonely manor on Woldingham Downs;
the presence of the Condesa de Santaluna, and the work
she admitted doing in Madrid; the trip on the cruiser to
Cap Cerbere and the night flight over the Pyrenees; the
discovery of the big camp-apparently occupied by Span-
ish troops; Carter's discoveries as to the men, munitions,
and uniforms which had been coming into Barcelona
from abroad. Then came a graphic description of the
terrific magazine explosion, though he was careful not to
admit having anything to do with it-and their final es-
cape in the biplane. When he finished, Alfonso sat for
several moments in deep thought.
“H-m-1--the Minister of War has duly reported the
establishment of a summer camp in that vicinity by the
Quartermaster General for the purpose of mountain-cam-
paign and battery practice There has been no discus-
sion about it, because it was assumed to be merely routine
work of the War Department. The actual strength of my
army, on a peace footing, is less than two hundred thou-
sand men, of which fully three-quarters are regularly sta-
tioned in various provinces and islands. So a concen-
tration of fifty thousand men in any such camp as that
would require a royal order, ratified by the Cortes--because
France would justly consider it a somewhat threatening
mobilization on her borders. If you are correct in your
estimate as to the number of men up there the amount of
munitions stored in that magazine your story is proved
without question, and I consider that Your Lordship was
entirely justified in blowing up that magazine!”
“Pardon me, Your Majesty, I said nothing about my
blowing up the magazine!”


244
THE UNSEEN HAND
"It wasn't necessary! Had I been in your place, .I
should have done it myself! But we must neither of us
admit it. Facts of that sort are too easily twisted until
they become dangerous. I say, Trevor, how many will
that biplane of yours carry safely?”
“It was built for six men, at a pinch-scouting over
enemy lines. After I have carefully overhauled it, I
fancy there'd be little risk in carrying four.”
“Then I think I will make a personal investigation of
this matter. Two of my Cabinet Ministers are Span-
ish to the backbone--they would cheerfully risk their
lives to prevent our being drawn into this war. We'll
take them as witnesses, after telling them your story,
run up from Barcelona to the bay near San Miguel on
one of our own cruisers, and make the flight from that
point. You can join us on the Ranee at Barcelona.”
The King's plan was carried out next day, the under
sides of the big 'plane being painted in yellow and red
stripes to fix its identity from below as a Spanish machine.
Owing to this coloring, not a single shot was fired as it
flew over the camp in the ravine, the German commander
taking it for granted that the Spanish Quartermaster Gen-
eral would be able to account for anything seen by the
aviators. Had he guessed the identity of the men who
could be seen examining the effects of the explosion
through their prism-binoculars, he would have brought it
down by shell-fire if it had been his last act on earth! As
it was, the camp was surprised a week later by several
regiments of the Spanish Army which had silently crept up
the ridges and covered the ravine with machine-guns
from above, before any defense could be made by the


THE MYSTERIOUS CAMP
245
munitionless conspirators. On their return to Madrid,
His Majesty made a request of Trevor:
"Er-in regard to the Condesa de Santaluna, would it
be possible to get her back in England upon some excuse
before you arrest and deal with her? I'd rather Her
Majesty would never know of her complicity in this affair
--they have always been intimate friends."


CHAPTER VIII
A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP IN ROUMANIA
THE Trevors had been guests at the Palacio Real
but a day or two before the heavy wagers being
made among dignitaries of the Spanish Court,
that Roumania would enter the war on the German side
within two months, attracted their attention. There had
been daily communication between Trieste and a high-
altitude wireless outfit in the Pyrenees owned by private
parties, and there was no question but that Madrid was
getting confidential information from Berlin and Vienna.
While His Lordship and Lady Nan were discussing this
rumor with Their Majesties—who were as strongly pro-
Ally as their Court was in sympathy with Germany and
Austria-Sir Abdool reached Gibraltar on one of the Brit-
ish cruisers, and came up to Madrid for a conference with
them. Through Oriental channels he had learned that
German influence was being used in Bucharest success-
fully—that the Roumanian situation was far more crit-
ical than had been supposed by the Entente. After
some discussion it was decided that he and Lord Trevor
should make their way up through Bulgaria, if possible
having Lady Nan await their return at Gibraltar after
her stay with the King and Queen had come to an end.
Four days later a long gray shadow-practically invisible
at five miles in bright daylight, and not to be seen
246


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
247
at any distance on a rainy day-approached swiftly to
within ten miles of the Bulgarian coast, off the Gulf of
Lagos. From the mainmast, right aft to the stern, a
broad runway had been constructed near the mast a
large cruising biplane rested upon its stout landing-wheels.
The upper plane had a width of sixty feet-there were du-
plicate motors and propellers; tanks carrying a sixty-
hour supply of petrol. For scouting and aërial fight-
ing, the machine was designed to carry four men with con-
siderable impedimenta-and ahead of a stiff breeze, it
had a record of seven hundred miles in six hours' con-
tinuous flight.
As the cruiser's engines stopped, ten miles offshore, an
active man in the uniform of a rear admiral in the British
Navy appeared on the after-deck and spoke to the mécan-
icien who was tuning up the wire stays of the big ’plane.
"Ready to start, Harry?”
“Aye, sir-she'll do now, I fancy! I've stowed the
two portmanteaus where they balance each other-but
they can be dropped off in a second, at any time.”
In the ward-room, below--which had been the Ranee's
main saloon before she was placed at the disposal of the
Admiralty-Sir Francis Lammerford and one of the Brit-
ish Cabinet Ministers were chatting with Sir Abdool.
He was dressed in tweeds of similar cut to the suit into
which Trevor changed as soon as he came below. As
they were preparing to leave, His Lordship suddenly
remembered a question he had meant to ask Sir Fran-
cis.
“ Lammy', when was the lawst information you had
concernin' Effingham? I should know, of course, through


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
249
level on top of that range where I took you when we made
the flight from Saloniki, I suppose?”
“That's the place! It's not the highest point of the
ridge can't see that from the city—but it's forty-three
hundred feet higher than Sofia, and in plain sight.”
Roughly, the air-line distance from the Ægean Sea was
just under two hundred miles—more than half of which
lay along the valley of the Karasu. They were troubled
very little with cross-currents until they went over the
Rilo Dagh, 9,845 feet above sea-level, where the cold was
intense for an hour. Being well protected against this,
however, they finally descended without accident in a
small clearing which had been used by Austrian engineers,
several years before, for a triangulation point. Con-
cealing the big 'plane in a ravine which ran along one side,
Trevor opened two cans of red fire and made a trail of the
powder along the precipitous edge of the mountain facing
the Bulgarian capital, 4,300 feet below them on the plain
of the River Isker—a quantity calculated to burn for half
an hour.
When he had lighted this they hurried down a rough
trail to a point where the road ended, two miles from the
little village of Dragalevski.
By the time they had covered the four miles of descent
they came upon a motionless automobile in the woods at the
end of the road, with a solitary figure in the driver's seat.
"That you, Stannard?”.
"Aye. Just a chance that I happened to see your sig-
nal! That nest of intrigue, down yonder, is gettin' worse
all the time--in fact, I wonder every morning that half of
us are alive! But there's a reaction against Teutonic in


250
THE UNSEEN HAND
fluence alreadyman' I'm supposed to be an American
engineer employed by a syndicate, here, on mining an' rail-
way-development projects. I've been concealed half the
night in an upper room of a house near the infantry bar-
racks-getting a line on some members of the Sobranje.
I just happened to poke my head through the roof-scuttle
before your light went out.”
“Suppose any one else noticed it?”
“There was no indication that they did. People are
either conspiring in some private room or asleep at this
time of night-an' there's always a bit of military signallin'
goin' on, one place or another. Even if some of the officers
noticed your fire, they wouldn't suspect anything until
they compared notes with the detachments coming back
in a week or so."
“We're carryin' Austrian passports, Stannard-with
Hungarian an' Turkish visés on them. May need en-
tirely diff'rent papers when we leave for the north. What
are the chances of gettin' settled in town without bein'
stopped an examined by some official?”
“H-m-m-I can get you into the city before two o'clock.
The railway station is on the other side, as you know-an'
there's no watch kept upon vehicles comin' in by the Drag-
alevski Road. I'll drop you at the gate of the Austrian
Legation an' get out of sight before any one recognizes me.
The Austrian Minister should be able to send you along be-
fore daylight to lodgings where no questions will be asked
--if you manage to convince him that you belong to his
own Foreign Office, or Wilhelmstrasse. Say you came
in over the Serbian border by motor; a lot of oficers are
comin' an' goin' that way.”


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
251
“Very good! Fawncy we can pull that off with little
diffic'lty-I know practically all of their recognition-signs
an' passwords! At all events, Harry, there'll be no use in
your waitin' longer than to-morrow night. If neither of
us turns up by that time, you can start back to the Ranee.
It's possible we may come out by way of Odessa an' rum
down off the Bosphorus on one of the Russian cruisers; in
that case Lammerford will get a wireless message from us,
an' you can fly over Stamboul with the 'plane."
The ride into the city was accomplished silently, with-
out meeting any one who gave them more than a passing
glance. At the Austrian Legation, five minutes' talk with
the Minister convinced him that they were distinguished
members of the diplomatic corps, on secret service for the
Teutonic powers; and he sent them, as guests, to the
house of a handsome Viennese who lived, with a supposed
husband, in the aristocratic residence quarter south of the
palace.
The four met at breakfast-taking stock of and testing
each other in ways which any one unfamiliar with secret-
service methods would never, have suspected. Trevor
(as Colonel von Pappenheim) and Sir Abdool (as Narub
Pasha) were thoroughly convincing in their assumed rôles.
Liechtenstein jokingly tested the Afghan with a few halt-
ing words of Arabic, but was so promptly flooded with the
real thing that Madame Irma laughed at him. From the
Colonel's accent, she judged him a Berliner-asking after
a number of acquaintances in that city whom he seemed to
know rather intimately.
On Trevor's part, however, he was considerably doubt-
ful as to just where Madame Irma and her supposed hus-


252
THE UNSEEN HAND
band stood. That they were not really married, he was
certain-after catching a side remark between them in
Russian, which they appeared to speak a little too well for
Austrians. That it might be possible they were actually
secret agents of the Entente, rather than of Germany and.
Austria, did not surprise him in the least.
Of all the spots in Europe during the year 1916, Sofia
and Bucharest were preëminent as places where people
were most emphatically not what they appeared to be.
Liechtenstein and his wife might be loyal Austrians--dis-
tant connections of the “Prince,” as he claimed-or with
equal probability, they might be secret agents of the Allies
who had succeeded in gaining the confidence of the Aus-
trian Minister to such an extent that they were obtaining
vital information for London, Paris, and Petrograd. Half
the deputies in the Sobranje were opposed to the German
alliance-saw in it the eventual ruin of Bulgaria-con-
spired, day and night, to free their country from it. The
other half were quite as strongly determined to go on with
what they had begun, as the only possible way out of the
mess.
Trevor's interest in the Bulgarian capital was, at this
time, merely a transient one. He meant to sow a few
seeds of discord, if possible, but his objective was Rou-
mania; and it was necessary for his plans that they should
enter that country from the Teutonic side as emissaries of
Germany—under the rose. He could easily have reached
Petrograd in a British submarine and entered Roumania
from the Russian side with no difficulty at all; but in that
case, it would have been a more dangerous problem to gain
the confidence of Germans in Bucharest to a point where


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
253
they accepted him as one of themselves. Madame Irma
von Liechtenstein presented a possible element of danger
which he dared not overlook. If she were a loyal Aus-
trian, her letters of recommendation would prove exceed-
ingly valuable in Bucharest; if, on the other hand, she
were an agent of the Entente, she would be certain to write
ahead and prepare a fatal trap for him, if indeed she didn't
manage to have him put out of business in Sofia.
While they were discussing mutual acquaintances in
Roumania one morning she happened casually to mention
the Fräulein Hilda von Helmuth, who occupied a hand-
some residence of her own on the upper Calea Victoriei in
Bucharest. Trevor's detached glance and perfectly com-
posed manner betrayed no hint of the sudden interest this
name aroused in him. He lighted a cigar-rather delib-,
erately.
“Could it be possible that the Fräulein you mention is
the one who was visiting friends in Berlin about eight
months ago?”
“Why-yes. Hilda was in Berlin just about that
time!”
“Er wasn't it she who disappeared from there so mys-
teriously a few weeks later-supposed to have been killed
or something of the sort?”
“I never heard of her being killed-nor she, either, I
imagine! She's at her home in Bucharest now!” .
“You surprise me! We can't be speaking of the same
person. H-m-m-tell me, madame, did she ever men-
tion to you her acquaintance with a Doktor Liebknecht,
who was Ober Redakteur of the Deutches Reichspressbund ?
You seem to be a rather intimate friend—if we are


254
THE UNSEEN HAND
speaking of the same woman; she would possibly have
mentioned the Doktor to you."
Madame Irma gave him a penetrating but swiftly
veiled glance-the conversation was taking a most amaz-
ing turn, if this Colonel von Pappenheim were really what
he claimed to be.
“I think there can be no mistake as to identity, Herr
Oberst. Hilda has spoken to me of this Doktor Lieb-
knecht more than once. I have an impression that he
saved her life in Berlin-at a time when, through some
horrible misunderstanding, she was suspected of being a
French spy, and would have been shot before there was any
chance of proving her innocence.”
“Soh? And did she tell you of finding herself near Mt.
Snowdon, in Wales-after disappearing from Berlin, where
I am quite positive she is supposed to have been drowned
at sea?”
The color faded out of Madame Irma's face; it was at
least half a minute before she dared trust herself to speak.
"Herr Oberst, it seems to me you must be of Wilhelm-
strasse, rather than Vienna, and have picked up some
rather amazing misinformation concerning my poor
friend!”
"At least, I can assure you of one thing, madame I do
not share all of my information with Wilhelmstrasse.
Unless she has been recognized in Roumania by some Ber-
lin agent familiar with the story, Fräulein von Helmuth is
officially supposed to be dead. She was invited by a staff
officer, in whose house she was staying, to go with him for
a short trial flight in a new zeppelin, from Nauen. This
Doktor Liebknecht and another officer were also of the


256
THE UNSEEN HAND
For several moments Madame Napaulova thought over
in silence what had been told her.
“Irma, you and Leichtenstein mean to have those men
put away somewhere or left in the hands of unscrupu-
lous Bulgarians who will probably kill them-yes? You
certainly have no idea of letting them get into Roumania
and use their influence toward swinging the country over
to the German side! But I fear you'll be making the
same terrible mistake that we did concerning Doktor
Liebknecht right here in Sofia. D'Arlenon was warned by
Hilda von Helmuth not to harm him until absolutely posi-
tive as to which side the man was on. He thought he
had proof enough-abducted the Doktor and turned him
over to three Bulgarian assassins who would have cut his
throat if he had not outwitted them completely. Then we
obtained information which strongly indicated his being
one of the most famous men in Downing Street.
"I don't see how it is possible for this Von Pappenheim
to know what he does of the Doktor's escape from Berlin
unless Liebknecht himself gave him the details! And if
he did that, you may depend upon it that Colonel von Pap-
penheim is actually on our side-taking this way of getting
into Roumania in order to be accepted by the Germans
as one of themselves! For Heaven's sake, don't make the
mistake D'Arlenon did; men of Leibknecht's ability are
altogether too rare! Send word about him to Hilda by
some messenger you can trust. Or rather-let me do
that! One of our Petrograd men goes up to-morrow."
Several days later Von Lemholtz-the Imperial Ger-
man Minister at Bucharest—was giving final instructions


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
257
to a Wilhelmstrasse man who was about to leave for Ber-
lin, and the talk had gotten around to a couple of recent
arrivals who had been under espionage from the moment
they entered the city.
"This Herr Oberst von Pappenheim and Narub Pasha,
who have so mysteriously disappeared during the last
twenty-four hours, are bigger men than either you or I,
my good Franz! I was sure of them at first, in spite of
the letters they brought from the Austrian Legation at
Sofia. In our first interview they gave no indication of
being other than two wealthy business men of the United
States, as they claimed, over here to secure orders for war
material. But when I invited them to motor out of the
city with me and began testing them a little, I became posi-
tive that they were of the inner Wilhelmstrasse circle
men who are unquestionably in the confidence of the kai-
ser and the War Staff. You will understand, of course,
that it is not for either of us to mention our knowledge of
that fact, or even to hint at it. If we did so, it might de-
feat the objects for which they are in Roumania-and
might cost us our official positions, if nothing worse. You
will know nothing of them when you reach Berlin-be-
yond what they wish to be known here—that they are
American business men. You will make no mistake about
that, my good Franz!”
“Nein-if Your Excellency is quite sure of your facts?”
"Pouf! Major von Zimmerling and Karl Schumm
have corroborated them. Not in so many words, you
understand! They have simply assured me that those
two supposed Americans must be given all the assistance
which can be extended to them while in this vicinity. By


258
THE UNSEEN HAND
that, I know they have been tested in every possible way
And Von Pappenheim, himself, gave me information
which will prevent our making a stupendous blunder in
the case of another valuable agent of Wilhelmstrasse.
Did you hear anything in Berlin concerning a certain
Hilda von Helmuth-about eight months ago?”
“The Fräulein von Helmuth! Hmph! A spy of the
Quai d'Orsay who escaped from Nauen in a new zeppelin
and was drowned in the Atlantic Ocean a few days later!”
“On the contrary, my good Franz! She is living here
in Bucharest, to-day, in a handsome residence of her own
which she has occupied for several years! You remember
the case of Von Spiegel—who was caught with secret
memoranda of the War Staff in a belt under his shirt-and
shot at sunrise?"
“Donner! That is not easily forgotten! It cast sus-
picion upon everyone in the Service!"
“Precisely! As did also the man Rupert Wormser
who was caught with practically the same evidence!
Well, it was the Fräulein von Helmuth who shadowed
them and secured the proof in both cases! And until
very recently she has been supposed a French spy! Von
Pappenheim told me this information had been sent to
Von Jagow by letter—but suggested that any one going to
Berlin within a week or so had better repeat it personally.
The Fräulein has given me valuable information right
here in Bucharest and is in position to obtain more, through
her wide acquaintance among the court officials. Her
real status must be thoroughly understood in Berlin as
soon as possible in order to prevent regrettable mistakes.”
“Hmph! I'm glad Your Excellency told me this. One


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
259
of the most deadly features in this game we play is assum-
mation, and we're too often shot by our own people on
suspicion that we're traitors! By the way, did I under-
stand that Von Pappenheim and the Pasha have myster-
iously disappeared?”.
“Yes. They had a suite at the Grand Hotel Boule-
vard on the Elizabeta and have made quite a number of
acquaintances here during the last four or five days—but
nobody has seen anything of them since Thursday noon,
when they motored out to the Jockey Club.”
“H-m-m— Wonder if any of the Entente people
have done away with them?”
. "Von Zimmerling and Schumm are looking into that
now—they are too valuable men to be wiped out without a
severe accounting! But my personal belief is that they
have assumed other characters for the purpose of procuring
information here in Bucharest. Even from our brief
acquaintance, I should imagine them artists at that sort of
thing.”
While Von Pappenheim and Narub Pasha were under
discussion at the German Legation, two dignified Turks of
the better class were taking coffee, after their pilau and
kabobs, in the selâmlik of a house in the eastern, or Sara-
cenic, quarter of Bucharest. From a curtained archway
came the tinkle of an Oriental guitar and the caterwauling
which passes for song among Arabs and Osmanli, but to
this the dignified Pasha gave not the slightest attention
until the monotonous syllables were varied by a rich con-
tralto voice singing a plaintive Russian melody. He
was courteously ignoring it, after the manner of Orientals,


260
THE UNSEEN HAND
when an apologetic smile appeared under the white beard
of his host.
“What thou hearest, Pasha Effendi, hath a strange
sound in the ears of Osmanli—but we, in Bucharest,
adopt some of the feringhee customs as a means of better
acquaintance with those among whom we live. Also,
the times be changing from the old order. Some of our
women receive education in Paris and other cities of the
giaour, and very many of our young men. Even I do not
insist upon the yashmak, as when I was a young married
man with my first wives; my women seldom wear it in the
house, and I sometimes permit them to eat with those who
I know will respect them. Again, there be matters spoken
of in the bazaars by this one or that one. There be wo-
men's gossip in the houses of the giaours which is picked up
and remembered in the harim, where the tale is told me as
it was heard. Thus knowledge is come by which may be
used by thee and me. Thou wert speaking of senators
and deputies who may be under German influence-who
recently favored commercial treaties with Germany and
Austria? Touching upon such a matter, one hears these
things: First-there is Lacoresco, a Senator and former
Cabinet Minister. He is secretly supported by Vascelor,
Brundei, Dudesti, Cantemir, and others who be lesser men.
The Roumanian people do not favor German influence in
any way. Her Majesty is English-a Princess of Saxe
Coburg Gotha, but her father was King Edward's brother
and she hath a large following here. The King is a Hohen-
zollern prince he hath imposed his will upon Parliament
with the assistance of the men I named to thee. But, look
thou! He is more concerned with the future of Roumania


262
THE UNSEEN HAND
ished into the air. Sir Abdool had vaulted from the car at
a turn of the road in the suburbs without being noticed by
the chauffeur-and had entered an apparently unoccupied
house, from which he presently emerged as a Turk of the
old régime, with turban and baggy trousers. His Lord-
ship, as Colonel von Pappenheim, had dismissed the car at
the club-house, and returned to the city with a couple of
Roumanian officers who set him down near the end of the
Elizabeta Turning into a narrow alley, he exchanged his
Fedora hat for a cloth cap which he drew from his pocket
and-moistening his fingers from a small bottle took all
of the upward twist from the ends of his blond moustache,
giving it an English droop instead. He then assumed a
rather slouching gait entirely different from his military
German bearing. The changes were slight enough in
themselves; yet nobody who had not closely studied his
face and figure would have recognized him as the same man
when he walked down the Strada Lipscani and entered the
office of Resboiul, one of the leading daily newspapers.
Telling a page on the lower floor that he wished to see
the editor in chief upon matters connected with the Inter-
national Press Syndicate, he was presently taken upstairs
to a private room where a man of forty-five-either
French or Italian, from his appearance-was seated at a
large flat desk. When the door was closed Trevor offered
his cigar-case to the editor, lighted a long brown invincible
himself, and pulled a chair up close to the desk.
“You prob’ly don't recognize me, Effingham-but you
will when I ask about that trunkful of clothes I left here
eight months ago. S-s-h! Better not mention names!
There's too much German influence here. A couple of us


264
THE UNSEEN HAND
caller, a Major Konstantine Radeff, whom she introduced
as a Bulgarian-formerly a member of the Sobranje,
and more recently squadron-commander in a cavalry regi-
ment which had been active in the Serbian campaign.
After they had chatted for a while upon casual topics,
she took them to a smoking den on the second floor which
had been made sound-proof for the purpose of secret con-
ferences. When the leather-upholstered door was closed,
she joined them with a Turkish cigarette and did some
necessary explaining.
“Major, you know that I am supposed to be in the
service of Wilhelmstrasse. Our good friend, the Herr
Oberst, assures me that it is again safe for me to venture
into Berlin—though it seems a miracle that he has been
able to create that impression there. You both know,
however, that my sympathies and my services belong
elsewhere. The Colonel himself is accepted by every
Wilhelmstrasse agent in Bucharest as being unquestion-
ably one of them. Yet he assisted me to escape from Ber-
lin when I certainly would have been shot within a day or
two. You, Major, are accepted by every German or Aus-
trian as a Bulgar from Sofia—who has fought with them
against the Serbs. Yet to one who knows certain things
--you ride, sometimes, like an officer of Cossacks, and
you understand the subtle point of a joke in Russian as
no Bulgar ever understood it. You and I both have sus-
pected that several of our Roumanian senators and dep-
uties were secretly using their influence in favor of Berlin
for more solid reasons than mere conviction, but we haven't
been able to obtain sufficient proof to expose them in the
newspapers or to justify more extreme measures. Where


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
265
we failed, the Colonel and a friend who is with him have
succeeded. They know that large sums of money and
other considerations have been accepted here by twenty-
five or thirty men in public life and have the evi-
dence!”
“Then we are, at last, in position to strike a blow,
Fräulein! There should be no delay!”
“What do you suggest, mon ami? I think the problem
may not prove quite as simple as you imagine. These men
are all prominent and influential.”
Radeff lighted a cigar. A look of vindictive unscrupu-
lousness appeared in his crafty eyes.
“Each of those men is more dangerous—both to Rou-
mania and the Entente—than a whole brigade in the field!
A dead snake can poison no more people!”
Von Pappenheim raised a slightly protesting hand.
"Depends somewhat upon how wide an acquaintance,
how many personal friends and relatives, the dead snake'
happens to have, don't you know! I've known 'dead
snakes' that were considered martyrs—and refused to stay
buried. I'll not deny, Major, that I've killed men when
there was no other alternative—but they had an equal
chance with me, as a rule. Assassination has never seemed
entirely justifiable in my country.”
“Suppose we say execution instead of the more offensive
word? Your country executes traitors and criminals, I
presume?”
"Aye—but usually after a fair trial, in which they have
every opportunity to produce evidence in their own de-
fense.”
"Suppose you are convinced of their guilt, and there is


266
THE UNSEEN HAND
no time for a trial? Suppose the opportunity for execu-
tion may not come again?”
“Oh, extreme cases demand extreme measures, of course.
But I think we may accomplish our object with these mem-
bers of the Roumanian parliament and yet avoid assassi-
nation. For example, suppose half a dozen of them, and
as many loyal Roumanians, were invited to dinner either
by Von Lemholtz or Von Zimmerling-known to be a
representative of Wilhelmstrasse—and that there were
other guests believed to be in sympathy or connected
with the Teutonic powers? Include a couple of leading
newspaper editors. Place an expert pickpocket among
the dinner servants. Have him plant imperial Russian
banknotes, of ten thousand roubles each, in the pocket-
ets of those men we desire to eliminate. I will supply the
money. Er—do you begin to catch the idea?”
The Fräulein clapped her hands in sheer delight as the
Machiavellian inference became clear in her mind. “Oh!
But that is exquisite, mon ami ! C'est un coup trop
beau ! You see it, do you not, Konstantine? At the
close of the meal, when everyone is in good humor, some-
one denounces those men-some loyal senator, shall we
say, who has been tipped off to demand that they be
searched! I've just the man in mind—Stefan Macelari
country! He searches them-finds the Russian money!
It is just as treacherous for our senators to sell themselves
to Russia as to Berlin! The editors will print a full ac-
count of their treachery; public opinion will force them
to resign in disgrace! As for the Wilhelmstrasse men,
they will be certain they have been betrayed by those


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
267
who were in their own pay and will put no more confidence
in any of the twenty-five! It completely disarranges
their organization, here compels them to search for other
tools at a time when public sentiment is turning against
them!”
As the plan became clear to Radeff, a gleam came into
his partly veiled eyes. There were features about it which
appealed to him in ways that had not occurred to the
other two. He came of a more primitive race-a people
who seldom favored diplomatic methods where force
appeared to be the simpler one. His education, however,
enabled him thoroughly to appreciate the finesse of Von
Pappenheim's suggestion.
“It would be a master-stroke, Colonel! I think Von
Zimmerling a better man to give the dinner than Von
Lemholtz. The Imperial German Minister would prob-
ably hesitate about giving any such an affair in the Lega-
tion, though he would undoubtedly attend it with the
rest of us in some other place. Von Zimmerling lives in
a house big enough for such an entertainment, and it is
generally understood to be a rendezvous of Teutonic
politicals. No real evidence, of course—but the people
here think so, and that couldn't be better for our purpose.
Now, if I convince Von Zimmerling that some of his Rou-
manian tools are betraying the kaiser, he'll give that din-
ner-and make a point of seeing that everyone invited
gets there, too! He can find out by telephone what
night most of them are free-get others to shift any en-
gagements which might interfere. Every minute those
senators and deputies are unmolested is dangerous for the
Entente-I think I will go to Von Zimmerling at once


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP 269
can't be sure that I didn't leave this house before he
reached here.”
“Were you intending to go back to the Grand Hotel
Boulevard as Von Pappenheim—when you left this
house?”
“I think not. There are investigations I want to make
before that dinner is arranged—couldn't make them as
the Colonel.”
“Then you'd better-- (But pardon me—what was it
you were going to ask?)”
“About this Major Radeff? Are you quite sure of him?
A mistake in knowing what such a man really is would
mean disaster to our Governm’nts and annihilation for us,
you know!”
“My personal knowledge of Radeff-who is really
Boris Kokenoff, a Muscovite dates back eighteen years.
His mother was murdered by Austrians in Galicia; his
fiancée was deceived and abandoned in Berlin by a cap-
tain of the Imperial Guard. Were he allowed to carry
out his own inclinations with any Teutonic prisoners who
were in his charge, I wouldn't care to be in their positions.
I know less of you, my dear friend, than I do of that man."
“Hmph! I gave you details, a few hours ago, which
only one man on earth could possibly have told. No,
ma belle! You know the Governm’nt I serve even better
than I know yours--and I believe there is that feeling be-
tween us which would prevent our ever betraying each
other, even though I'm a married man very much in love
with my wife. We have faced death together--twice.
The weight of a hair in the balance would have destroyed
us. I asked you about Radeff because there is something


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
271
seating his guests and what he meant to provide as enter-
tainment.
“I have my doubts,” he said, “as to whether Radeff can
really prove what he claims against those men who have
been in our pay, because we have watched them too closely
and paid them too liberally-far larger amounts than we
ever dreamed of paying our tools in France and England.
Bucharest is noted for the frightfully high play which is
customary at all the clubs. When a man frequently
gambles away a hundred thousand leë in a single night, he
isn't tempted by a paltry twenty thousand marks-es-
pecially if he is very prominent in public life. But-we
shall see! If Radeff proves his charge, we shall have to
begin all over again in Roumania–because it will be im-
possible to trust a single one of the twenty-six politicians
we have already bought!”
As the evening approached, Lord Trevor's mind was
constantly prodded by that sixth sense which had so fre-
quently warned him to be on his guard against the un-
expected. He felt, intuitively, that something not on
the cards would happen; yet, consider the scheme as he
might, from every angle he could find no point upon which
to hang a definite suspicion. That he and Sir Abdool were
under more or less espionage he accepted as part of the
game and took his measures accordingly. He knew
that the more elusive he proved to be, the more closely
the espionage would be drawn, but was not aware that
communications from Madame Liechtenstein and the
Russian diva, in Sofia, had established him even more
securely as a Wilhelmstrasse man. Being positive that
he was really an agent of the Entente, they were further-


272
THE UNSEEN HAND
ing his activities in every way they could. It was a game
of counter-intrigue, with no individual entirely certain as
to the real status of any other, but assuming certain prob-
abilities because there was no other way of reaching a
working basis.
By seven o'clock on Wednesday evening all of the in-
vited guests had assembled at Von Zimmerling's house.
The majority of them had no suspicion of ulterior mo-
tives behind the invitation-supposing it to be merely
one of those occasional entertainments for which he had
acquired a reputation in Bucharest. There was, natur.
ally, an assumption that the war and Roumanian poli-
tics would be touched upon during the evening, because
it was impossible for any function to escape those sub-
jects under the circumstances. But even the six traitor
senators hadn't the faintest idea that they were suspected
of taking German money or other substantial consider-
ations. (There had been considerable transferring of
desirable real estate also.)
Von Zimmerling's chef was a Hungarian from Budapest;
the meal, a gastronomic triumph thoroughly appreciated
by the guests. Just before coffee was served a party of
Circassian girls came into the room through a rear door
and performed an Oriental nautch that left very little to
the imagination. Then a première from the National
Theatre appeared in a black chiffon ballet-costume-
giving a dance, upon one end of the long table, which any
lover of the terpsichorean art would have gone miles to
see.
During the meal Lord Trevor (as Colonel von Pappen.
heim) had been watching-waiting—for the startlingly un-


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP 273
expected. As the dinner progressed, the situation grew
more tense for him. He was as certain that something
would happen-entirely outside of the prearranged plan
-as he was of Von Zimmerling's taste in wines, and was
keyed up to a nerve-wrecking pitch with the determina-
tion that it must be turned to the advantage of the Entente
if he could only think quickly enough after it happened.
The coffee appeared-accompanied by Havanas that
one would scarcely have expected in a Balkan capital.
Trevor had been watching two of the waiters so closely
that he knew just when they must have shoved the ten-
thousand-rouble notes into the inside coat pockets of Sena-
tors Lacoresco, Vascelor, Frundei, Dudesti, Cantemir,
and Revoloff. These gentlemen were representatives of
the oldest families in Roumania-very prominent so-
cially and politically-universally respected. At the mo-
ment they were filled to repletion with an excellent dinner
and numerous glasses of wine so that, as the waiters
bent over them to remove articles from the table, to pour
their coffee or wine, they were very far from being suf-
ficiently alert to notice a hand inside the lapels of their
coats as a waiter leaned against them in reaching across
their shoulders.
As the guests lighted cigars and commenced to 'sip their
coffee, there was absolutely nothing to suggest what was
coming. Then—the thing happened! Trevor saw La-
coresco suddenly stiffen in his chair, start to rise-and
sag back, an inert, lifeless mass of clay. The other five
were similarly affected inside of two minutes. Laco-
resco had been sitting near the head of the table, on Von
Zimmerling's right-and for a moment the German sup-


A MACHIAVELLIAN COUP
275
sell not only Germany but their own country to Russia!
The proof will be found upon them at this moment-for
they received payments from Russia not half an hour
before they entered this house. Major Radeff! Will
you search the bodies and produce the proof!”.
There was a deathly silence as Radeff-his face chalky
white--produced, from one pocket after another, Russian
bank-notes of large denominations. Von Pappenheim
had beaten his carefully arranged plans by a matter of
seconds and it streaked through his mind that every
German, Austrian, or Bulgarian in that room would es-
cape from Bucharest by a hair if he were lucky enough
to get out at all. Again Trevor spoke. There was an omi-
nous menace in his final remarks.
“One regrets that so pleasant an evening must have so
tragic an ending—but this execution had to be carried
out! It was necessary to demonstrate that our Govern-
ment will tolerate neither opposition nor treachery! You
will all go to your own homes now. Within an hour
these bodies will be sent to an undertaking establishment,
where their relatives may claim them.”
The loyal Roumanians and other guests were stunned.
In silence they took up their hats and coats in the hall,
and went out. As Sir Abdool walked along the now
deserted streets with Effingham, the editor drew a long
breath of gasping amazement.
"My God! That was the most stupendous thing I
ever saw done in the diplomatic service! Somehow, it
hadn't occurred to me that one of our Downing Street men
would descend to assassination-cyanide poisoning, at
that! It's not done, you know! Who Von Pappenheim


276
THE UNSEEN HAND
really is I've not the faintest idea but I had supposed
him one of the big men in our service.”
“The greatest one of all, Effingham! You'd never recog-
nize the man from what you've seen of him, here. He
is our famous Diplomatic Free Lance—and what he has
just done in that house is, I think, the most amazing coup
of his entire career! Radeff was the poisoner—not Von
Pappenheim! The Colonel has been suspicious of that
man ever since this affair was suggested to him. You
know all the details of the original plan-which must
have been effective as far as those senators were concerned.
But Radeff, with his insane hatred of all Germans, went
far beyond his instructions—or anything we really dreamed
he'd do. When the Colonel saw these men dying in their
chairs he realized the whole catastrophe and his mar-
velous brain saw the only way out. The cardinal princi-
ple with Germany, in this war, has been a fixed belief in
frightfulness, terrorism, intimidation. Nothing could be
more essentially German than what they consider the
just execution of those men for treachery-not to their
own country, but to the German Empire! The insolence
of such an idea, from the Roumanian viewpoint, wouldn't
occur to them.
“Von Zimmerling and Von Lemholtz are undoubtedly
admiring the Colonel beyond measure, at this moment,
for what they consider his sublime nerve in openly assum-
ing the responsibility for such a killing. They believe-
honestly believe that it will have the effect of so intimi-
dating Roumanian politicians that none of them will
dare have any dealings with Russia, or support any move-
ment to intervene on the side of the Entente.


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES
279
the Bobbies somehow an' stick pretty close to the spot.
Er-how about gettin' on? Could you make it, d’ye
suppose?”
"Aie, Thakur Bahadur, it may be done by one who
hath a keen scent, and ears that catch the whisper of feet
upon the stones. 'Tis but the feeling one's way along
the kerbs of Old Bond Street and of Grosvenor Square."
The shorter man who had followed through the outer
court started, slightly, at the sound of the other's voice.
That of the chauffeur was new to him, but so unmistake
ably Oriental as to identify his employer. There was but
one English peer who maintained a household of high-caste
Afghans. Foran instant the stranger hesitated within two
feet of His Lordship, debating whether to speak or not.
Then, with a shrug of diffidence, he was turning away
when a gust of wind thinned thefog until his face was dimly
revealed by the motor-lamps. His Lordship saw it-
hesitated until sure of the other's identity—then sprang
forward and grasped his arm.
"I say! Jimmy Grantham! My word, old chap,
this is a bit of luck-what? One hears of you occasion-
ally, don't you know—but you're like an old fox, stickin'
close to his hole. Seems years between the times you
come out into the open! Eh?”
“Why—it's—it's very kind of Your Lordship to re-
member me, I'm sure "
“Cut that, Jimmy-cut it, d'ye hear! You've no ex-
cuse for takin' that tone with me, an' you know it! Now,
where were you goin'? To your diggin's—or around to
the laboratory in the Royal Institution? Eh?”
Grantham's face expressed intense surprise at this evi-


280
THE UNSEEN HAND
dent knowledge of his activities upon the part of the
most popular and the third wealthiest peer in the British
Empire.
“Your Lordship has heard, then, of my experimenting-
around at the 'Institution!' Ah-yes—you might have
run across one of the old crowd who'd happened to see me
there
“Faith-it's a bit more than that, Jimmy. The man
who isolated the active principle in cyanocin cawn't ex-
pect to be entirely overlooked by the scientists, you
know! Sir Robert Forby told me what you'd been at,
down in Manchester-an' it struck us that the lab' in the
Royal Institution would be splendidly equipped for such
work. We're both on the Board, you know.”
“Then I really owe the professorship to you !
“On the contr'ry! To nothin' but your own good
head-piece, old chap! The 'Institution is fortunate in
gettin' brains of your sort-always lookin' about for 'em.
Er-if you are headed that way, take me along an' ex-
plain some of the things you've been diggin' at. I've an
hour or two. Were it not for the mass of work piled up-
on one by this cursed war, I'd have looked you up months
ago.”
“Aye-between your naval service as Rear Admiral,
and the startling things one hears of your doing in the Av-
iation Corps, I should imagine you'd little time even for
the affairs of your own vast properties, Trevor. If you
really care about spending an hour with me and I thor-
oughly appreciate what that means from a man in your
position-suppose we step up to my diggings in the Al-
bany, yonder. They're a good cut above my old lodgings


282
THE UNSEEN HAND
Then the chemist drew his old friend's attention to a sticky
brown sediment in the bulb of a large retort.
“There's one of the most curious and powerful drug-
principles which has ever come within my knowledge, Tre-
vor. It's merely residuum, as you see-precipitated in
the distillation of certain heavy alcoholic solutions. I
was after something which could be used in a one-hun-
dredth attenuation to build up a synthetic liquor for use
as a general substitute, after the war. Spirituous liquors
are quite certain to be distilled in time of peace, no matter
what the Government restriction may bemor smuggled.
But it is possible to produce chemical substitutes with
the full taste, yet with ninety per cent. less of the normal al-
coholic effects. This is being tested out upon three young
doctors who volunteered to assume whatever risk there
might be--and the first two months show entire success.
"But that stuff in the retort is a vastly different matter.
Taken internally, it is actively toxic. I figure the fatal
dose, to the average man, as something like ten grains.
But the fumes of the stuff, when burning, produce a very
remarkable effect-and are dangerous to about the same
degree as successive attacks of delirium-tremens-that is,
the first time a man steeped his tongue and throat in the
fumes from twenty-five or thirty grains of the stuff, he
would get the same after-effect as a mild case of D. T.-
recovering in perhaps forty-eight hours. If he should
breathe the fumes again within a week, the effect would be
that of protracted D. Т. A third dose, of that strength,
within a fortnight would kill any man whose heart wasn't
entirely sound. These, however, are the effects one might
naturally infer from such residuum


284
THE UNSEEN HAND
because, next day, I knew by the smell that he'd been
smoking a harmless cigar which I'd purposely left for
him.”
“H-m-m-I s'pose you'd get pretty much the same re-
siduum as that from a distillation of almost any alcoholic
liquors-not?”
“That occurred to me, when I found what the stuff
would do. Tried a dozen liquors in different combina-
tions—but obtained nothing approaching that residuum.
You see, I was using a very unusual combination of alco-
holic solutions not liquors in the commercial sense."
“Er-would there be any difficilty in gettin' that exact
combination again?”
“Not for me-because I keep a sort of blind key to
everything I work out-in symbols. But another chem-
ist might not hit it in a hundred thousand times.”
“About how much of it have you, there?”
“Oh-roughly-possibly eight hundred grains.”
“Jimmy, the next time you make a really scientific
test of that stuff, I wish you'd do it under my direction-
after I've made certain arrangements, don't you know!
Er I say, old chap we used to be fast pals in the Mad-
ras days—I fawncy you'd do anything in reason for me-
what?"
“You're jolly well sure of that without asking, Trevor!
Why, man, it seems I owe even this professorship to you!
Oh, yes, I do-it was your suggestion to the Board that
got me down here! What is it you want done?”
"Er would you entertain a proposition to sell me the
secret of that stuff, outright? For example I'm to have
what's in that retort, an' you're never to distill any more


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES 285
of it except as I order. Nobody else to have a grain of
it! You name your own price, of course.”
"How would you want to use it, Trevor? I'd have to
know all about that before I considered - "
“Oh, I'm no unscrupulous criminal! My reputation
is pretty well known all over the world. I want that
stuff to use in this war-in the int'rests of the British an'
French Governm’nts. An' i'll give you fifty thousand
pounds for absolute control of it-memoranda of the for-
mula to be sealed and filed in my underground vaults at
Trevor Hall in South Devon.”
"That's about all you need to say, Trevor! Such a
sum will make me independent for life with leisure to
carry out experiments in lines which particularly appeal
to me. And I trust you more than any man I've ever
known. Want this residuum now? I'll scrape it out of
the retort and put it in a glass jar for you."
From the Albany, His Lordship was driven through the
fog by his Afghan chauffeur to Park Lane, where nearly
all of the Cabinet and a few other statesmen had been
gathering, during the past hour, in the big library on the
ground floor. Large platters of cakes and sandwiches had
been placed upon one end of the massive centre table-
under which six floor-plugs connected as many telephones
with trunk-wires leading from the house switchboard, in
a vault forty feet below the garden level-and a monster
samovar of polished brass filled the room with a pungent
aroma of Java coffee. Apparently it was to be an all-night
conference. The Asquith ministry had fallen, two days
before and the “little Welshman" had been laboring


286
THE UNSEEN HAND
almost incessantly, with the other men scattered about
the room, to form a new War Government. Every face
bore traces of the thirty months' strain, particularly that
of Sir Edward Wray—who had been England's Foreign
Secretary for eleven strenuous years—and the Premier
himself, huddled down in a big chair by the Dutch fire-
place-shaken, at times, by the hacking cough which had
been tormenting him for the past week. He was almost at
the limit of his endurance.
Dyvnaint's mansion in Park Lane had been selected
for the conference because of the absolute privacy offered
by its big Jacobean library—a room thirty by forty, with
a coved ceiling fifteen feet above the black oak floor.
As Trevor came into it, one of the statesmen was mak-
ing a formal motion to appoint a chairman of the confer-
ence—but the Earl stopped him with a protesting hand.
“Gentlemen—when business men get together for a
conference at which time is an important consideration,
they dispense with all formality and accomplish more
in three hours than any parliamentary debate has ever
done in a week! We're here upon the most urgent sort
of business—time is the first consideration. It is under-
stood by all of us that His Majesty has asked our friend
over there by the fireplace to form a new Ministry; sup-
pose we hear his preliminary ideas upon the subject?”
(The former War Minister straightened up a little in his
chair and glanced around the circle with eyes which fairly
burned.)
“Thank you, Trevor! England's greatest need at this
moment is for men able and willing to cut the whole bale
of red-tape with one slash of the shears! Now, gentlemen,


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES
287
the first question I would like to settle definitely is that
of the Foreign Office. I fancy we'd all like to have His
Lordship retain the portfolio, if he will come a little fur-
ther toward our way of thinking.” (Sir Edward Wray
had received his peerage a few weeks before, according to
precedent. His thin, ascetic face bore the marks of phys-
ical suffering, as he sat thinking for a moment before re-
plying. Finally, he glanced around at them with a faint
smile.)
"I fully appreciate the offer, sir, but there are vari-
ous reasons why I should decline. I am in poor health-
not able to give the Department all it demands. I've
held the portfolio for eleven years—it is difficult for me
to see matters in other than the diplomatic light. For
exampleGreece! After the revolution of 1828-29,
England, France, and Russia guaranteed the autonomy of
Greece as a constitutional kingdom-and placed Otto of
Bavaria on the throne in '33. The Greeks kicked him out
in ’62—and we put George of Denmark in his place. In
international usage, we are guardians—and Greece is our
ward. If we obey a popular demand which springs from
ignorance of the situation-depose Constantine, and seize
the country-every neutral nation will say at once that we
are treating Greece as Germany treated Belgium-that
the Entente is no better than Germany, and that we are all
a parcel of cutthroats together. We shall lose favor, sym-
pathy, and support in the very quarters where we need the
most. It will lead to greater restrictions upon our pur-
chases in the United States. I am aware that many of
you consider the demands of the war situation paramount
to every other feature, and I am quite sure that another


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES 289
tent. You accept? Good! Dyvnaint, we want you
for the Admiralty- "
“Deuced kind of you, sir—but it would be a mistake!”
“Why so? Your naval and aërial exploits are known
all over Europe! It will prove a most popular appoint-
ment!”
"Possibly; but it would prevent my serving England in
other ways known to three or four of these gentlemen-
serving in a far more vital way than I could as First Lord.
There are dangers which never appear until awfter the
catastrophe happens, don't you knowman' I've person-
ally been the means of avertin' so many of 'em during the
past fifteen years that I know better where to hunt for
them than almost any one else in the Governm’nt, d'ye
see? While I'm mentioning the subject, I wish to say
this: A request from me for the instant coöperation of
the Foreign Office, the Adm'r'lty, the Board of Trade, or
the Home Office should be understood to mean business
when I make it. His Majesty_Wray-Balfour-Curzon
-will all tell you that the work I've been doing is of the
very first importance to England. I'm spending my own
fortune like water-risking my life constantly-doing it
with the utmost willingness an' pleasure. But I must
have prompt and unlimited support, or there'll be ca-
tastrophes which 'll be felt in our farthermost colonies.”
(The Prime Minister frowned slightly, as he tried to stifle
the cough which shook him. This sounded rather dicta-
torial from a man who wouldn't accept a portfolio.)
“H-m-m; suppose we consider it wiser, for what seem
good reasons, to withhold that support in some instances,
My Lord? What will you do-go ahead without it?"


290
THE UNSEEN HAND
“Undoubtedly. An' your Ministry won't lawst for-
ty-eight hours! That's not a threat, sir; it's a statement
of fact. You're trying to form a business Governm’nt
here, to-night-a Governm’nt whose very existence is
dependent upon efficiency. I've been doing things for
England for many years, an' the fact that you never heard
of 'em rawther implies that I'm not much of a talker.
Were you to antagonize such services as mine, you'd com-
mit a ruinously fatal blunder right at the start of your
administration.”
“Er-would Your Lordship mind describing those ser-
vices more definitely—so that we may form some estimate
of their value?”
· “Not for a million sterling! Ask His Majesty, if you
like; or Alfonzo of Spain-Nicholas of Russia–Poincaré
- Vittoré Emanuele. They 'll "give you no details—but
they'll suggest rawther plainly that it'll be advisable to
give me whatever support I ask-unofficially. Come,
sir-we're wasting time! We'd best consider this point
settled an' go on to the next one! I'd suggest Jellicoe as
First Lord, but I know you're prejudiced in favor of a
civilian. What's the matter with Carson, here? He's
a capital organizer, an' immensely popular."
For a moment, the man of the people and the descendant
of the Crusaders looked each other in the eye-apprais-
ingly. There was in the Earl of Dyvnaint a force-
initiative, and a mental quickness which surprised the
Premier considerably. Here was an English peer-sup-,
posed to be encrusted with all the reserve, the courtesy,
and the hide-bound conservatism of his class—handling a
situation with a snap and an apparent consciousness of


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES 291
reserve power not to be ignored. The new Prime Minister
recognized a force which must be invaluable to his Min-
istry—or land it on the rocks if interfered with. He
didn't attempt to deceive himself for more than a few mo-
ments. This courteous gentleman-with a world-wide rep-
utation as a sport-loving peer having no head for State
affairs—was really a man whose power and influence
seemed a bit startling. They were intangible. It spoke
volumes for the Minister's real statesmanship that he was
able to accept Trevor at his implied valuation, promising
whatever support he needed, and proceed rapidly with the
formation of his Cabinet—which was practically com-
pleted before sunrise.
As the conference broke up, Trevor drew Wray and Bal-
four aside asking them what they knew of a recently
arrived attaché of the Russian Embassy in Belgrave
Square, Major Stefen Lupokovitch. Wray said that his
information went no further than the man's duly-presented
credentials on file in the Foreign Office, but Mr. Balfour
was of the impression that he had seen the man be-
fore.
"He is older than he appears, Trevor. I had the Down-
ing Street portfolio in '78—Lupokovitch reminds me of a
man who was mixed up in some Berlin intrigue at that time
-in fact, I'd almost swear to him. His mother was the
old Gräfin von Husstadt, who had a big house in Charlot-
tenburg. Seems to me I recollect an intimacy with
Stuermer, who was recently the Russian premier.”
"Hmph! That rawther bears out my own opinion of
the fellow! I say, Balfour! I fancy I'll try a bit of ex-
periment to see if I can't find out where he really stands,


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES 295
Green Circle. They've not been idle during the year.
There are now ten in the inner circle which works out the
plans and gives the orders. Under them is the outer cir-
cle-numbering four hundred and fifty-including many
in the Congress of Nobles, which is the oldest and most
powerful organization in all Russia and which has just
voted to continue the war indefinitely. We have our
agents in their most secret councils! Outside of these four
hundred and sixty, we have upward of five thousand sworn
associates who will either carry out instructions themselves
or look the other way when certain things are done in the
departments or bureaus for which they are responsible.
“Just at present, we've met with a slight reverse in the
removal of Stuermer and the appointment of Trepoff.
Stuermer contrived to block the army plans and muddle
the munition-supply until it was too late to give Roumania
'any effective assistance. Just now Trepoff is hurrying,
day and night, to hold the German armies down there,
and force them back before they dig in for the winter.
But Rasputin, the monk, has been planning with the Ger-
man party in Petrograd to lay a trap for Trepoff which
must force his resignation--and then put in an even
stronger man than Stuermer as premier. You will see! In
spite of anything the Duma and the Moujiks can do, we'll
beat them and make a separate peace with Germany be-
fore spring!
"The proposals now coming from Germany to the En-
tente apparently give Russia very much the worst of it
-no restoration of territory or other compensation. But
it is well understood in Petrograd that Germany will give
' us the whole of Roumania, neutralize the Bosphorus and


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES 297
tin' glove in lef" trouzhers pocket. Ha-ha-ha! Simple
'nough thing-eh, m'ami ? An' yet-it-simple 'nough
shing-an' yet-it-wha' was it I w's goin' shay! Ah!
Shimpleshing--yet-been loshing too much sheep-
of late! Shimple sing-an' zyet-mph-mph!”
Lupokovitch's arms rested upon the table, and his head
now dropped forward upon them. He was breathing
heavily, with a peculiar gasp. Trevelyan came around
the table and shook the unconscious figure, but without
rousing it in the least. Then he turned to the Prime Min-
ister, who was becoming seriously alarmed.
“He'll come out of it in an hour or so without remem-
bering anything that happened—you understand, of course,
that I gave him a drugged cigar! We'll carry him into
the next room until this one can be thoroughly aired—I
don't care to risk even the fumes from that cigar in a close
room. We'll come back and work over him here--but at
the last moment, I fancy we'd better let him come out of
it as if he'd merely dropped asleep while talking with us.”
“You-er-fancy any reliance is to be placed upon
what he said, Mr. Trevelyan? It's rather incredible, you
know!"
"The man was perfectly unconscious of what he was
saying, sir-emptying his mind of all he'd been keeping
bottled up in it at the suggestion conveyed by my ques-
tions, and under the influence of a very powerful drug.
You may be quite certain that what he said has been fill-
ing his mind for months. I've a memorandum of the
names he mentioned—and I think I'd better leave for Pet-
rograd with Earl Trevor and Baron Lammerford as early
in the morning as the Admiralty can give us one of the


298
THE UNSEEN HAND
big cruising submarines. That's the quickest way to get
there—some risk, going through the Cattegat, but we
must chance that!”
“But-but-what do you and Dyvnaint expect to ac-
complish in Petrograd, Mr. Trevelyan? If the intrigue
there is as widespread as this man said, what can three of
you possibly do?”
“Something along the line of what His Lordship re-
cently did in Roumania and Sweden, sir! Do you suppose
his Earldom was given him for nothing! Petrograd is, to-
day, a worse hotbed of intrigue than Stamboul was in the
days of Hassan Bey and Midhat Pasha. We've been con-
gratulating ourselves upon the prompt and emphatic re-
pudiation of the German peace proposals by the Duma
and the Congress of Nobles—but we do not dare over-
look the fact that there may be another upheaval there to-
morrow which will again place German influence upper-
most. A blow must be struck in Roumania and the Odessa
region by the Russian army before it is too late! The
men in England best fitted to cope with this peculiar sort
of problem must have transportation, funds, Government
backing, the very instant we ask for it. You're something
of a hustler yourself, sir-and must see the force of this!"
That England's new Premier did see it was shown by the
hearty coöperation he ever afterward gave in everything
concerning Lord Trevor and his unknown activities. But
since that evening, and though he has been present at sev-
eral dinners where Mr. Arthur Trevelyan also was a guest,
he has never smoked another cigar given him by the
wealthy American. He accepted Trevelyan's explanation
of how he had substituted the duplicate cigar case-ad-


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES
299
mired his clever sleight-of-hand—but he doesn't like to
think of what might have happened had the American
miscalculated somewhere. As Trevelyan walked away
from the Cecil with Grantham that night the two states-
men having volunteered to drop the sleepy and un-
suspicious Russian in Belgrave Square-he said:
"I hope the use to which we put your chemical dis-
covery meets with your approval, old chap, and that you
don't regret selling the formula to His Lordship? He
doped those cigars and gave them to me, so the secret is
known to nobody except you two."
“H-m-m; this demonstration, to-night, was successful
even beyond my anticipations! I've been a student of
psychology all my life. That Major Lupokovitch had his
tongue about as perfectly under control as it is possible
for any human being to have it. If the stuff will loosen
up a mind like that, there's practically nothing in that
line it won't do! It's even more dangerous than I
supposed! You and His Lordship intend using it in Pet-
rograd, I infer? H-m-m-if it proves as valuable to the
British Government there as it did this evening, I'm more
than satisfied to have the formula in Trevor's hands. I've
known him a good many years—he's a man of honor. But
I'll tell you one thing—if you happen to be interrupted by
some outsider while having a private conference with a
Russian who is under the influence of that residuum at the
moment, I wouldn't give a sixpence for your lives! The
man must have time to recover in a natural manner-or
else he's bound to suspect that he's been drugged. From
my observations, so far, the subject regains consciousness
without a trace of recollection-but human brains aren't


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES
301
the Earl of Dyvnaint, Baron Lammerford, and Sir Abdool
Mohammed Khan aboard. With one or two narrow es-
capes in going through the mine-fields, it made a quick
passage into the Baltic, anchoring in open water just off
the island fortress of Kronstadt, from where the three mo-
tored into Petrograd over the ice.
Before going to the British Embassy on the Quai du
Palais, they called upon M. Pokrovski at the Imperial For-
eign Office and presented their special-mission credentials
which had been hastily prepared for them by Secretary
Balfour in Downing Street. As the only place in Petro-
grad where they could be reasonably sure of escaping po-
lice surveillance was their own Embassy, they took up
temporary quarters, there with Sir George Buchanan-
and, as it was of the utmost importance that they get in
touch with the Russian secret police immediately, they de-
cided to attend a reception ball at the French Embassy,
where General Serge Lipowski was sure to appear some
time before midnight.
It was but a short walk along the Quais to the French
Embassy, after dinner. The building was filled with one
of the most brilliantly dressed and cosmopolitan assem-
blages they had ever seen-among whom each of the three
found many old acquaintances. About eleven, a well-
built man with an iron-gray fringe surrounding the bald
spot on his elongated skull came up to Lord Trevor, in a
corner of the ballroom, with extended hand. He was
dressed in a uniform less conspicuous than most of the
others, but instantly recognized as that of the dreaded
Imperial Secret Police.


302
THE UNSEEN HAND
“This is a very pleasant surprise, Your Lordship! I've
been wishing for many months to apologize for exiling
your protégé, Mr. Silas Bartlett, last year. It was quite
unavoidable, you see, because the man-like other head-
strong Americans-would persist in compromising him-
self with some of the most dangerous conspirators in Pet-
rograd.”
They were standing where a low remark apparently
could not be overheard, but Trevor smilingly switched
the talk into Hindustani which he knew General Lip-
owski understood fairly well.
“We brought three other men like Bartlett from Down-
ing Street in the submarine, General. To be quite frank
with you, I stumbled upon rather serious information in
London concerning the old Green Circle. It has more
members and associates now than it had a year ago. Your
wholesale clean-up put an end to its activities for several
months—but you know better than I do that matters
have been going wrong here under the surface.
“Now-either Baron Lammerford or I will introduce
two of those men to you at our Embassy, to-morrow, if
you'll call upon us there. The third, we will hold in re-
serve for the present, until we see where he can be used
to advantage; but you'd better visé his papers so that he
may go and come without interference. We'll have to
work in our own way, upon the special information we've
obtained—but we'll need your coöperation and protection
at every point. Do we get it? You know what our
assistance was worth last year!”
“I've not forgotten that, Your Lordship. Neither you
nor your men will have anything to fear from the police,


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES
303
and you will receive all the assistance it is possible for us to
give. Of course, if your men intend worming their way
into the Green Circle, there will be hours when it will be
difficult if not impossible for us to protect them—but
we're all taking chances these days. I will call at the
Embassy to-morrow. If your men will return with me to
the Bureau, my lieutenants will observe them carefully
and instruct them in signals for assistance in emergency."
Later, when the Earl stood talking with a Grand Duch-
ess-one of the handsomest women in all Russia-she
indicated, by a slight gesture, a man of medium size in a
very ornate uniform, who was standing near them. Low-
ering her voice to a confidential tone, she said:
“There is a man who promises to go far if his remark-
able development continues. He is Count Boris Ga-
zonoff-a man of influence in the General Congress of
the Association of Nobility-who is showing a capacity in
the way of organization which makes him one of the most
valuable executives in the Department of Ways of Com-
munication. His genius in that line has been recognized
during the last forty-eight hours by an appointment which
gives him practically control of the railway traffic manage-
ment. With a man like General Ivan Ossipovitch as
Assistant Director of Munitions and Supplies, there will
be a straightening-out of the conflicting departmental
orders which have so muddled things that one army after
another has been forced to retreat from strong positions
for lack of supplies at the critical moment.”
In a second or two Earl Trevor recognized the names
as two of the three Green Circle chiefs mentioned by Ma-


304
THE UNSEEN HAND
jor Lupokovitch and as being the real heads of the Cama
arilla.
“H-m-m-as Your Highness says, Russia needs that
sort of men to handle war problems in a businesslike way.
And you must not criticise too harshly if it takes him a
little time to reorganize "
“Oh-one cannot expect the traffic blunders to stop in
a day, or a month-the system is too vast a one. (One mo-
ment! When I catch the Count's eye, I'll present him to
you.)"
During the conversation with Gazonoff, His Lordship
'understood, indirectly, that the Count was accustomed
to go over State papers in his own library every after-
noon—and inferred that he denied himself to practically
all callers during that time. At four, the next afternoon,
a stylish motor landaulet rolled up to the Count's resi-
dence on the Kamennoi Ostrow-(an island in the Neva
given over exclusively to palatial mansions of the aristoc-
racy)—and two well-dressed gentlemen sent in their cards,
with one from Major Stefan Lupokovitch-Attachế of
the Russian Embassy in London-introducing them.
After a short delay the Count received them in his pri-
vate library-and they had been alone with him scarcely
ten minutes when he smilingly accepted them as would-
be associates of the dreaded and famous Green Circle.
Trevor was now wearing a dark Van Dyck beard and mous-
tache. He was apparently two inches shorter and forty
pounds heavier, and he had the yellowing complexion of
one with a congested liver. His French and Russian
were so perfect that he might have claimed either coun-
try as his own-but he said that he was really a Dublin
-
-
-
-
-
- -
-
-
-
-
-
---------


306
THE UNSEEN HAND
and put them in France so suddenly that the full English
force will be needed to strengthen their lines. You can
easily see that a serious revolution in Ireland, coming at
such a time, is likely to completely disorganize British
plans. That and your Russian disaster will dishearten the
Entente everywhere-it will immensely strengthen your
pro-German peace party here possibly enable you to
pull off a coup d'état and get control of things.
“If you think favorably of our plan, I think we should
have a clear understanding of what you are in a position to
do here and meet a number of your associates—with whom
we may communicate as to various details when the dual
arrangements are complete. It would, of course, help us
materially if you could smuggle a few thousand men over
to the United States, or put us in touch with Germans
there who might be willing to venture on our Irish ex-
pedition. Additional money will also help—though we
are prepared to go ahead if we don't scrape up another
rouble.”
Gazonoff was more than pleased. He had not sup-
posed it possible that anything like a serious rebellion
would be attempted in Ireland for some time, consider-
ing the Dublin fiasco, and it occurred to him that the
Green Circle could scarcely make a better investment
than appropriating a couple of million roubles for such an
enterprise. He intimated as much—but mentioned only
two or three of the names which Trevor had hoped to get.
In a few moments the Earl decided to risk one of the
drugged cigars and offered it-apparently taking another,
from the same case, for himself.
The result exceeded even his expectations. For twenty


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES
307
minutes the Count—with no consciousness of what he
was doing-poured out such a mass of Russo-German
intrigue that they had difficulty in jotting down the es-
sential points as he spoke. Among other things, he de-
scribed in detail just how nineteen trainloads of munitions
and food for the armies in Roumania were to be sent wan-
dering over Central Asia through a confusion of orders—
at a time when it would cause the certain defeat of those
armies, or their hopeless retreat. Finally he fell into so
heavy a stupor that they feared a weak heart might have
been fatally affected by the drug.
Assuming that several of his household must be agents
of the Green Circle, it seemed exceedingly dangerous to
risk their coming in unexpectedly and finding him in such
a condition. So they touched a push-button on the wall,
and when his private secretary answered the call, said that
he had been attacked by a fainting-spell while talking
with them. The secretary admitted that the Count was
a heavy smoker who, occasionally, had functional trouble
with his heart; but after they had unfastened his collar
and forced a few drops of aromatic ammonia between his
lips, be slowly regained consciousness.
When Gazonoff began to feel himself again, he was quite
annoyed at what he supposed a seizure caused by tempo-
rarily impaired digestion. He scouted the idea that there
was anything wrong with his heart and sent his secretary
out of the room-after which he took from a drawer of
his desk a box of black cigars. As he was clipping the
end of one Trevor drew a morocco case from his pocket
and opened it.
“Er-one moment, Your Excellency! Your health


308
THE UNSEEN HAND
and clear brain are too valuable to our cause to risk any
needless tampering with them. After such a fainting-
spell as you've just had one of those black cigars might
injure you seriously—and, with all due respect to your
tobacco importer, I'm quite sure you'll find these milder
ones of much better flavor. They're specially made for
me in Havana at twenty guineas the hundred.”
The Count accepted another long cigar and lighted it
-his face expressing intense satisfaction as he drew in the
first puffs. Then his visitors got up to leave, saying they
would call again within a few days. The cigar was some-
thing better than Gazonoff had ever smoked in his life
putting him in such a thoroughly contented frame of mind
that he walked out through the main hall with them as far
as the porte-cochère.
When they were rolling back to the Quai du Palais, a
Downing Street man from the Embassy acting as chauf-
feur, Lammerford asked:
“What in heaven's name did you do that for! Every-
one in the house is sure to know we've drugged him, now!"
“Not as I figure it, Lammy—though I'll admit there's
some risk! In this morocco case there were four cigars- each
of them loaded with fifty grains of the stuff-a dose that
would kill an ox, according to Jimmy Grantham-particu-
larly a man with Gazonoff's weak heart. Before we were
off the Island, I fancy he was trampin' up an' down that
hall, yellin' out everything he knew at the top of his voice.
His secretary an' servants 'll be paralyzed with fear for
about two minutes; then they'll grab an' gag him, thinkin'
the man has suddenly gone crazy. He'll die in their


THE SHIFTING MINISTRIES 309
arms. There'll be no trace of poison in him for an autopsy
to show many physician in Petrograd will call it a case of
tobacco-heart. An' those nineteen trainloads of muni-
tions for the armies in Roumania will not be back-tracked
into Central Asia! I'll give Serge Lipowski enough of a
hint to make jolly well sure they won't! When Gazonoff
told us how nearly that plan was completed, I knew he'd
have to go before we left that house! With the fate of
nations at stake one doesn't consider individual traitors
of that stamp! An' we've our work cut out for us, ‘Lam-
my! I fancied we might go back in a fortn't or so-but
it'll be a longer job than that. We've a business Govern-
m’nt at home now-things should move with a more re-
lentless purpose; an' I fancy we can do more for England
right here, in the next month or so, than anywhere else on
the globe!”


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION 311
roubles—found Earl Trevor the most fascinating man of
her entire acquaintance and tried to secure a promise
that he would drop in upon her for tea the next afternoon.
His Lordship regretted that previous engagements pre-
vented his calling before the end of the week, but said
that an American friend of his, then in Petrograd, was
very anxious to meet her, and asked if he might give Mr.
McMurtagh a card. Having no suspicion that Count
Gazonoff, while under the influence of a drugged cigar,
had mentioned her as one of the Camarilla—and being
in the mood to grant Trevor almost anything he asked
-she at once consented to receive his friend next
day.
When the Honorable Aloysius presented himself in
the drawing room of her luxurious Tudor palace on the
Kamennoi Ostrow (literally, “Stony Island”), she was
positive they had never met before, though he mentioned
so many mutual acquaintances that it seemed odd they
had never happened upon each other. Unconsciously
comparing the two men, she fancied McMurtagh shorter
and heavier than Earl Trevor. He wore a close-clipped
moustache-had dark hair and a swarthy complexion-a
distinguished-looking man in any company, and nobody's
fool. Without knowing just why, she liked him at once
-unreservedly—as did her other guests.
He outstayed the other callers and, by secret recogni-
tion-signs, convinced her that he was affiliated with the
Green Circle--saying that he had sought the interview to
warn her of the compromising things Gazonoff had said
before he died. McMurtagh gave her the impression that
the work of the Green Circle was really repugnant to him


314
THE UNSEEN HAND
peared to connect with the affair at all. He had but re-
cently arrived from America, was known to be conferring
with Green Circle leaders upon an Irish uprising timed to
follow a German coup d'état in Petrograd, and was not sup-
posed to have had any interest in the monk, one way or
another. Prince Kussupoff was, at the moment, on the
train to join his imperial wife in the Crimea, a fact which
the Princess Xenia carelessly mentioned as though all
must be aware of it.
For an hour after dinner the conversation in the great
hall of the palace, where everyone had gone to smoke, was
confined.to general topics. But after the few loyal Russian
callers had taken their leave, the talk became more ex-
plosive. Hints and thinly veiled accusations went back
and forth like ripostes in a fencing-match. It was Grand
Duke Feodor who presently became more personal in his
insinuations.
“This is the worst blow our organization has yet re-
ceived! We could have better spared any one rather than
Rasputin! The man had his faults and was a moujik,
as everyone knows—but he was the only one who could
always influence the Emperor against any particular
statesman in public office. Every time the Progressives
-curse them-have managed to seat a premier or for-
eign secretary, Rasputin has unseated him by working up-
on His Majesty's weak points, and we've nobody left for
that sort of work! We'll know, sooner or later, who were
responsible for his shooting—and I promise you they'll
follow him without delay! Aye, even if the evidence
points to some who are here at this moment, regardless of
sex!”


316
THE UNSEEN HAND
live! You would stand aside--refuse to assist, either with
your fortune or your personal influence! Others have
died for less—much less--considering what you might be-
tray if the whim seized you!”
“If the whim seizes me, Feodor Feodorovitch, rest as-
sured that I shall say what I wish to say, concerning any
one; and neither thou nor others in the Circle will remove
me one moment before my allotted time. What is writ-
'ten-will be! Your Highness, I wrote out a list of sev-
eral hundred names, this morning, with an accompanying
statement, and placed it, sealed, beyond your reach. It
is supposed to be a codicil to my will. Within an hour
after my death or disappearance is reported, it will be
opened and read by men whose loyalty to Russia has been
tested a hundred times. I am a noble, of Tartar blood,
and I do not betray my Order unless it threatens the ex-
istence or welfare of my country. You will be wise if you
do not proceed to extremes which bring that conviction
home to me. What I don't know, I can't judge. But
don't forget that list in the hands of my executors! Who
knows what names or what proofs of treason may be
found in that document if I should disappear suddenly?"
The Grand Duke was almost beside himself, but upon
his forehead and those of the others beads of perspiration
began to gather.
“Curse you, Xenia! I believe you shot Rasputin
yourself!”
The Honorable Aloysius had been an interested listener
in one corner, but the talk appeared to be reaching a point
where anything might happen if the strain increased.
Lighting a cigar, he interrupted with a good-natured drawl:


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION
317
“If your organization has a secret service, as one infers
it must have, I fancy you're rather badly served by it-
because I stumbled upon a few bits of information yester-
day which convinced me that your scoundrelly monk was
selling you out. If you are good judges of character, you
must have seen that the fellow was fairly insane in his
desire for power. And knowing that fact, it would occur
to an onlooker like myself that he stood to gain a lot more
from the Czar and the Russian Government than from
Germany. When this war is over, Russia will continue to
exist as she did before. She may be more powerful-or
less—but I fancy even the kaiser hardly expects to control
her entirely, unless he's an utter fool. Your monk
expected to remain here in the Russian Court, of course.
Well, he had more to sell the Czar than he had to sell your
organization-and stood to gain far more by it."
It was apparent that some, if not all of the men, didn't
relish this suggestion or such interference upon the part of
a mere visitor in Russia-an outsider, even though he
might be a prospective fellow conspirator. They listened
with ill-concealed impatience and disbelief.
"It is easy, Sir American, to accuse a dead man of
treachery!”
“Yes—you were sure to say that, of course. But, one
moment! Last evening I was passing a house in the old
quarter of the city—the sort of place which might be
occupied by a tradesman in good circumstances and which
becomes a lodging-house ast he neighborhood deteriorates.
Rasputin came out of that house in a sneaking sort of way
that made me step back for a better look at the place. In
about three minutes General Serge Lipowski-who, I


818
THE UNSEEN HAND
understand, is the responsible man behind the Russian
Police-came out in much the same manner and went off
in the opposite direction.
“This morning I was introduced to a young officer who
supposed me unquestionably on the side of the Entente.
He was so full of a rumor he'd heard that he couldn't
help repeating it to us—a rumor that Lipowski had dis-
covered a plot to cut the trusses of a long Volga railway
bridge with oxy-acetylene, and send half a dozen supply
trains racing down to it from those munition factories
along the river, in response to a hurry-up telegram from
the front. Of course, the first train will smash through
into the river, but everyone along that section of the line
is in the plot and no warning will be sent back to the fol-
lowing trains.
“The cavalry captain who told us the story said the
information came to Lipowski from one of the most promi-
nent men in the reactionary party—a man probably con-
nected with the mysterious Green Circle-and that prepa-
rations have been made not only to repair the bridge be-
fore those trains are sent over it, but to arrest more than
a hundred people implicated in the plot.
“Now, I'm an outsider, as you say—not entirely in
your confidence as yet. But I've heard enough to know
the destruction of those munition trains was planned in
just about that way; and I suggest that General Ossipo-
vitch, who I understand has succeeded Count Gazonoft
in handling the transportation system, make himself
noticeably active in getting those particular trains to the
Roumanian armies in the shortest possible time. If any
of you see him to-night, you'd best tell him what I've said.


320
THE UNSEEN HAND
as Lipowski unless some of the prominent nobles backed
him in the betrayal of their former associates. One way
of getting at the probabilities in that line would be to in-
vestigate, among yourselves, just how many were fully
conversant with the details of this bridge-wrecking propo-
sition. It is an engineering matter which I should have
supposed out of that monk's line altogether. He prob-
ably knew the fact but not the details—and Lipowski is
quite evidently in possession of all the technical data.
When you find out which members of your organization
were in position to give such information, I think it may
be an obvious precaution to keep an eye on them for a
while. Frankly, I've been amazed at the extent and
power of your organization. Anything of its size is sure
to be in danger of treachery where you least suspect it.
That seems unavoidable.”
This was even more disquieting to at least eight of the
party in the big hall.
That the man whom they'd considered their strongest
influence in the web of German intrigue at Petrograd
should have proved a traitor who had been eliminated
none too soon-possibly by some of their own associates
was startling enough. But the more they considered
this Irish-American's further suggestions the more it
seemed treachery might be stalking at their very elbows.
In the silence which followed McMurtagh's remarks,
they noticed that one of their number was looking fixedly
at the Honorable Aloysius in a peculiar manner. The
Baroness Sophie Mourakoff had been for six years one of
the reigning beauties of Petrograd and Moscow. De-
scended from an old Slav family, she was considered


322
THE UNSEEN HAND
ties in making away with a woman of her position and
vast wealth. But for a British peer, masquerading as an
Irish-American for the purpose of defeating coups planned
by the German intrigue in Petrograd, there was no pos-
sible immunity, once his real purpose was suspected.
Trevor had been in hundreds of tight places within the pre-
vious ten years, but he realized, as he sat there surrounded
by all the evidences of wealth and ultra-civilization in
one of Russia's most famous palaces, that his life had
never been in greater danger. Yet, as always in moments
of greatest risk, his manner was never more genially self-
possessed. His assumption that there could be no pos-
sible reason for suspecting him of any questionable pro-
ceeding was convincing; he seemed to be surrounded by
an aura of genuineness and puzzled bewilderment as he
answered her question.
“I fancy you can't possibly be right in that statement,
Baroness—though I'll admit I didn't look at the chauf-
feur when I stepped into that landaulet. It was my
friend's car. Now I think of it, she made some remark
about her own man being called away that evening by
the death of a relative, and sending another chauffeur to
fill his place temporarily. But-even so, what possible
object could that infernal monk have in such masquerad-
ing? Why—the doctors say he must have been shot be-
fore that hour! We were driven straight from the French
Embassy to my friend's residence—the car was put in
the garage on the premises.
“Those facts are too easily verified to be disputed. And
even though I didn't get a square look at the chauffeur,
I'm quite positive I should have recognized Rasputin


324
THE UNSEEN HAND
sudden death—which appears to have left things rather
up in the air. Just now, it seems to me that we can do
nothing but mark time until your organization is more
certain of carrying out its plans without betrayal and
disaster. Once we start anything in Ireland, we must go
through with it—or hang."
The young Baroness had been thoughtfully studying
McMurtagh's face as he spoke. Unless her knowledge of
human character was more faulty than she believed, the
man was as genuine as he seemed. When he said he
would have shot the monk had there been any reason
for so doing, his manner carried the conviction that per-
sonal fear was an element which had been left out of his
make-up. On a basis of ordinary probability, it did
seem ridiculous that Rasputin should have voluntarily
disguised himself as the unknown lady's chauffeur-the
Baroness's statement that she had recognized the monk
was merely a shot in the dark-she was by no means cer-
tain of it. As for McMurtagh's statements, they hadn't
a flaw-his position among them was exactly what he
claimed, and Baron Stellanovski had expressed himself
as entirely satisfied with the credentials the two men had
brought from London. Cold reason told her this Irish-
American should prove a valuable co-worker in the Ger-
man cause a confrére to be cultivated and assisted in
every possible manner. But—instinct favored the im-
pression that she was yet very far from plumbing the man's
depths or the secret motives in what he did or said. He
was magnetic-curiously so. She was vaguely aware
that the Princess Xenia also was finding the man a mys-
tery worth studying. An alliance, of course, was imposa


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION 325
other peide betoou are
sible-he wasn't even of aristocratic birth. But-a love
affair—under the rose? Was there a limit at which the
Tartar blood of the Tarazines would balk, once its latent
fire became thoroughly aroused? Was there, for that,
matter, such a limit among the Mourakoffs? Presently
several of the men drifted away to the billiard room and
the rest to other parts of the house. The Grand Duke
led McMurtagh aside before going out to his car.
"M'sieur Américain—you are evidently an excellent
judge of character and you've been a guest here long
enough to have formed some opinion as to what the Prin-
cess might do under certain conditions. Have you any
idea what turned her against our organization?”
“Probably a combination of several things. She's
proud of her blood older than the Romanoffs—and her
descent from Ghenghis Khan. She's the noble of Russia
to her finger-tips, with all the sense of obligation to
Order and Country which that implies. When Rasputin
danced that Khylsty thing here, the other night-being
the moujik he was-she was outraged in all her racial
sensibilities. Then-the German atrocities—the inex-
cusable murders of women and children on land and sea-
are things at which even a Russian princess balks—things
which should never have occurred. She is beginning to
think that if such methods are necessary to preserve auto-
cratic government, there is neither honor nor object in
being an aristocrat. I think she has the impression that
Germany will never make any concession to Russia which
hasn't ‘a string to it,' as we say in the States. She is be-
ginning to doubt that the national interests of the two
countries can ever be compatible. I don't think so my“.


326
THE UNSEEN HAND
self—but that, of course, is none of my affair. I'm out
for Ireland—any combination that will defeat England!
The Green Circle is playing my game, and I'm not con-
cerned with its application to Russia-we have troubles
of our own.” (McMurtagh offered the Grand Duke a
cigar, and lighted a fresh one himself. He gave the im-
pression of discussing an abstract matter which didn't con-
cern him.)
"H-m-m; how dangerous would you consider her? What
course is she likely to take?”
“Your Highness is asking a question which no man has
ever been wise enough to answer, concerning an intelligent
woman. Personally-I would about as soon antagonize
her as play with so much dynamite. She may be bluffing
about that list in the hands of her executors—but I doubt
it! I fancy we're all safe enough from any action of hers
as long as none of us is directly implicated in something
which seriously menaces Russia's future. Let her learn
that some of the Green Circle have treacherously betrayed
the country into an overwhelming disaster, and she's
quite capable of going before the Duma with everything
she knows—but if you do nothing worse than scheme for
delay and half-hearted campaigning, I don't think we
need fear anything from her. She's one of the most inter-
esting enigmas Iever met-keeps me guessing all the time!"
Later the Honorable Aloysius was passing through the
long Tudor gallery on the way to his own second-floor
suite-rather close to the oak wainscoting of the solid wall
that formed the side opposite the windows—when every
light in the sconces was suddenly extinguished. The
moon had not yet risen, so that the darkness was impen-


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION 327
etrable. As he stood wondering if something could have
happened to the palace dynamo in the cellar, there was a
slight click in the wainscoting—a faint draft of air-and a
small but firm hand grasped his arm. He caught a barely
audible whisper, close to his ear:
“Step this way—very quietly. Now lift your foot about
eight inches-don't stumble over this baseboard.”
As he was being led along a narrow passage in pitchy
darkness, there was a faint click behind them. The panel
closed in the wainscoting, presenting an appearance of
solidity that would have deceived any one examining it
from the gallery side-particularly as it was backed with
four inches of oak and would have given back no hollow
sound if rapped upon.
The lights in the gallery sconces flashed up again just
as the young Baroness opened a door at the farther end.
Having noticed McMurtagh going in that direction a mo-
ment before, she glanced along the gallery expecting to
see him-but decided that he must have passed through
rather briskly to his own suite, which happened to be in
the same wing as her own, though his windows were upon
the opposite side, where she had no glimpse of them.
Meanwhile the Honorable Aloysius had been led
around several turns in the narrow passage--evidently
constructed within one of the thicker walls—until a
fresher and faintly perfumed atmosphere told him they
had stepped into a rather spacious room. As he stood in
the middle of it, listening intently for the footsteps of his
mysterious guide, three incandescents flashed up in a table-
lamp by his side--and he saw that he was in a private
study of the Princess Xenia’s. Through an open door, one


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION 329
ment! At six, that monk was in the house I described to
the Grand Duke and the rest of them disguising himself
in the uniform of a Russian admiral. Fully half of that
great beard he buttoned inside the collar of his uniform
coat; that big mane of his was turned up and covered with
a wig of shorter hair. I'd suspected he might threaten
you for reasons of his own, and followed him for two hours
-saw him drive up to your porte-cochère in a stylish limou-
sine and send in his admiral's card, asking for an immedi-
ate interview. Your servants, presumably, didn't recog-
nize the fellow at all. You were already in the secret of
our plan to exile him that night--so had little fear of his
threats. But I went back and met him near that house
when he came out dressed as the Countess's chauffeur.
He must have had a rather complete wardrobe of disguises
there all of which are probably in General Lipowski's
possession by this time. If any of the Green Circle were
in the habit of meeting him at that old house, they're
pretty sure to avoid it after what I said this evening. It
was my description of the place which made the state-
ments appear only the literal truth-some of them must
have known the building."
“M'sieur, if you were really conscious of your deadly
personal danger in the hall, this evening, you are a brave
man! Now, who—and what are you?”
“I don't think I quite understand?”
“Oh-yes-you-do, mon ami ! You understand per-
fectly! I thought at the time that the assistance you
offered us in getting rid of that moujik was rather sur-
prising --considering your affiliation with the Green Circle
and your coming to Petrograd for the express purpose


330
THE UNSEEN HAND
of coöperating with it. It was natural enough for any
gentleman to be disgusted with Rasputin, to put him
in his proper place; but you went a great deal further
than that. To-night you've gone all the way, and your
life wouldn't be worth a copper kopeck if the Green
Circle knew what I know about you! Stop a bit! I
remember that you came to me with a card from the Earl
of Dyvnaint, the famous Lord Trevor! Is it by any
chance possible that you are a member of the English
secret service in Downing Street? That would account
for everything!”
“Do I appear to be the political mouchard, Your High-
ness?”
"Au contraire, you have the manner of the nobility.
And one knows the diplomatic service is an honorable
profession which includes men of title in every country.”
“But I am an American-nobility isn't one of our na-
tional institutions."
“Possibly you were born in America-but you're not
an American of the present day! That is certain!”
“What do you mean by that? What's your idea of a
Twentieth Century American?”
"A hybrid- a mixture of European dregs with a bour-
geois and tradesman class which has forgotten the principles
of liberty-equality, justice, and humanity—upon which
the United States was originally founded! Insulting-
am I not? And yet-I mean no insult! The whole
world is dumbfounded at the spectacle of a national pa-
tience so far beyond anything human that it submits to a
hundred outrages that would have meant war in any other
nation! America permits her women and children to be


332
THE UNSEEN HAND
question as to whether we can further block the efforts of
the Green Circle-without losing our lives too soon.”
“Then Your Highness is really determined to work
against that crowd? As a loyal Russian, I really don't
see how you can do anything else; but without their co-
operation our Irish uprising is quite impossible, you know!
Major Brady and I need them in our business!”
“Enough, my friend! You've no more interest in Ire-
land than I. You need fear no betrayal from me even
if you refuse my assistance. It seems, however, that it
might prove valuable, in various ways."
“For example: Could you invite General Ossipovitch
to be your guest for the week-end-arriving to-morrow
evening in time for dinner? I mean-make sure of his
being here and have the Grand Duke in the house at the
same time? I'm well aware of your detestation for the
man."
“Why—that should be managed, if I go about it in-
directly. Though I don't quite see
"I was told in London that the active chiefs of the Green
Circle were Count Boris Gazonoff who died the other day,
just after we'd had a secret conference with him-General
Ivan Ossipovitch, who has taken over the army transpor-
tation since Gazonoff's death-and Baron Stellanovski,
who has so many deputies of the Duma in his power, one
way and another, that he almost controls it. When the
Count died, it upset their plans a good deal. You say I've
been fortunate enough to do a little more in that direction.
If the suspicions of other Circle members can be definitely
focussed upon General Ossipovitch, you can imagine what
may happen to him and how much his elimination will in-


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION
333
crease the muddle. That would leave only Stellanovski,
of the leaders; probably something may occur to us in
regard to him as we go along. But-if you permit me to
warn Your Highness—you will be playing with death at
every step, and you have far more to lose than I. Better
consider before you decide.”
There was a winning kindness about the man which in-
fluenced her strongly, and an impression of latent force.
Who or what he really was she couldn't decide, but that he
was far more of a personage than he chose to appear seemed
unquestionable. In her level, straightforward glance there
was an expression which told him that he might have
taken her in his arms and kissed her without rebuke-but
glancing over her shoulder at that moment, it seemed to
him that one of the panels in the dark oak wainscoting had
become warped by the heat of the room until it had sprung
back half an inch from its surrounding moldings.
A quick comparison of the adjoining panels showed no
such effect in any of them; he saw that it must be the
secret door by which she had brought him into the room.
But he distinctly remembered the click of a spring-lock
behind them when she was turning on the lights. If, by
sheer mischance, someone had discovered the secret of
the panel in the gallery-had crept along that passage to
overhear what they were saying? With a finger upon his
lips, he stealthily circled the wall until, without making
a sound, he stood beside the panel. Suddenly placing his
hand flat upon it, he gave a powerful shove inward. There
was a sound of someone falling backward upon the floor of
the passage. Before the man could struggle up, Trevor was
upon him-wrenching a knife from one hand and dragging


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION, 335
Grünwald was slow-witted—but painstaking and re-
lentless, once he started upon the track of anything; so
be began by trying to imagine where he would have con-
cealed the spring if he had been a carpenter constructing a
secret door. His first guess was somewhere under the
molding of the baseboard—but his fingers ran along it for
several feet without finding anything. He tried the up-
per molding, with the same result. Then he fell to study-
ing the carved foliage upon the panels themselves. It was
close to one in the morning-nobody happened to come
through the gallery. Suddenly one of the panels swung
inward before him, without his knowing just what he had
touched to release the spring. With a quick glance to be
sure he was unobserved, he stepped through-gently
closing the panel behind him.
· When Trevor had satisfied himself that the fellow had
no accomplice hidden in the passage, he returned to Xenia's
study, where she was lounging on the divan-the revolver
upon her knee, covering the Count, who sat composedly
in a near-by chair. The supposed Irish-American quietly
dropped into his former place on the divan-by the Prin-
cess. But for the blue-black revolver, one might have
supposed them in the midst of a friendly chat-but there
was a tenseness in the atmosphere which made the Count
vaguely uneasy. Of course, it was ridiculous to suppose
for a moment they would do him bodily harm—when he
explained how mere curiosity had led him to investigate
the secret panel and see where the passage led to! The
Green Circle was too dangerous an organization to antag.
onize-- his standing in it was too well known to the other
members. As the seconds ticked away with the silence


340
THE UNSEEN HAND
Count's own room, where they searched his pockets after
sending his valet to 'phone for a physician. A letter
which they found among his other papers, with the ink less
than a day old, caused the assassination of two men prom-
inent in the Council of the Empire a week later. As for
Grünwald's sudden taking-off, the doctors pronounced it
unquestionably a case of heart disease. After the Baron-
ess mentioned his acting queerly when she met him in the
gallery on the previous night, there was never a suspicion
connecting any one with the case.
That afternoon Earl Trevor (in whom nobody would
have recognized the Honorable Aloysius) motored from
the British Embassy, where he was staying, to the house
of the Countess Wirdovski in time for afternoon tea.
Before leaving, a conference was managed with General
Serge Lipowski, who also had dropped in to pay his
respects. As it was advisable that Lipowski's call upon
the Countess should be a brief one, the Earl got down to
business without loss of time.
“General, is the Grand Duke Feodor familiar with your
handwriting? Sufficiently to identify it if only initialled
by way of signature?”
“Hmph! He should recognize it-he's had occasional
1-O-U'S for my losses at the club! If that is a requisite
in some plan your Downing Street' men are trying to put
through, you're in luck, because I'm obliged to be exceed-
ingly careful that my handwriting is not too well known in
Petrograd! What's up? My secret police report that the
reactionaries in both the Council and the Duma appear to
be quarreling among themselves rather bitterly. De
you know anything about it?"


THE BREEDING OF SUSPICION 343
that's sad, the night! Will you be telling me the name of
the lucky man till I call him out?”
Somehow it seemed to her that there was a meaning
look in the Irish-American's face--a subtle warning against
what she was about to do. As she refused the tea, he
laughingly went over to join the Grand Duke-making
some remark in a low tone before passing on. In a mo-
ment Feodor sauntered over and sat down by the Baron-
ess, who, in spite of her repugnance to that sort of thing,
had stolen a look at the scrap of paper. Presently she
handed it to him-behind her fan-explaining that it
must have dropped out of Ossipovitch's pocket.
Three nights later General Ossipovitch was fatally shot
by two unknown men who had somehow disposed of the
chauffeur while his car was waiting outside the house of a
lady upon whom he was calling.
Next day General Lipowski learned through his secret
channels that the Honorable Aloysius McMurtagh-
whom he knew only as a brilliant secret service agent from
Downing Street—had become exceedingly popular with
the reactionaries and the pro-German party—a man whose
growing influence was most surprising in a mere, transient
visitor. And Lipowski chuckled.


CAPT. CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT 345
bassy in Petrograd-and three agents, acting under their
orders. The typewritten sheets bear the endorsement:
“Notes from the statements of Capt. Eversley Creighton
—th Hussars (“F.O. 143”) during a private interview with
the Rt. Hon. the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs,
May 3, 1917”—and no attempt has been made to arrange
them in official form, the narrative commencing as follows:
“Although we had been securing a mass of information
which neither Berlin nor the Russian Government dreamed
of our having, concerning the German intrigue in Petro-
grad, it was understood at the British Embassy that the
situation was calling, more and more insistently, for a
wider diplomatic experience than mine or any of the men
under me-a super-intelligence capable of understanding
the probable ramifications of a plot merely from the
character or antecedents of some individual connected with
it. This became evident in October and November.
Consequently, we were jolly well bucked up when His
Lordship of Dyvnaint-the famous Admiral, Earl Trevor
--arrived in Petrograd on E-69 with Baron Lammerford,
who was Dean of the King's Messengers in the old days
before I joined the Service.
“They took up quarters at the Embassy for obvious
reasons-it was the one place in Petrograd where we might
confer with them privately without having every word
reported by General Serge Lipowski's Russian Police.
(The Duma people burned the Prefecture before I left,
and fancied they destroyed all of the documental secret
information collected there for years—but the old fox had
removed every paper of real value before they got to him.)


346
THE UNSEEN HAND
“At the time of His Lordship's arrival, we were told that
he had brought with him in the submarine three of the
most brilliant men in the service-who were remaining
aboard E-69, out in the Gulf of Finland, until such
time as they could be introduced to General Lipowski in
some agreed-upon disguises, and receive the coöperation
of his secret police. During the next fortnight we met all
three of them in their assumed characters and they were
so jolly good at that sort of thing--such beautiful linguists
—that I fancy I shouldn't recognize any of them in London
if they were introduced to me as they really are.
“Thechap with whom I came most frequently in contact,
and with whom I esteem it an honor to have worked,
appeared in Petrograd as Major Michael Brady—a Dub-
lin Sinn Feiner who knew the city very well and had come
there to secure coöperation from the pro-German element
in a coup that would be simultaneous with another uprising
in Ireland. His companion was supposed to be an Irish-
American capitalist, the Hon. Aloysius McMurtagh. The
third man was made up as an oriental valet of McMur-
tagh's so jolly well that it would have been impossible to
suspect him of being English. I fancied that he might be
Sir Abdool Mohammed Khan, G. C. S. I., the Afghan
prince who also accompanied Earl Trevor—but the valet
was at least two inches shorter, and Sir Abdool was pres-
ent at several public receptions when both McMurtagh
and his man were known to be at the Tarazine Palace.
“The German secret organizations in Petrograd are
known among the reactionaries as the Green Circle and
Camarilla. Any open discussion of their work or objects
is quite likely to be fatal-has been fatal in many cases.


348
THE UNSEEN HAND
“The whole winter had been a succession of alternating
premiers and foreign secretaries. First a Liberal Pro-
gressive ministry and Russian success on the eastern front
—then resignations, a pro-German ministry, a mess of
Rasputin court intrigue-Russian and Roumanian re-
verses from lack of munitions and support. A dozen
times the situation looked hopeless to us in spite of any-
thing which could be done. Miliukoff, the strongest leader
in the Duma, we had to sneak away from his house in a
limousine one night and get him aboard our submarine
to save his life. Agents of the Green Circle were combing
the city for him with positive orders that he must be killed
before morning.
“McMurtagh had me invited, two or three evenings, to
the Tarazine Palace—where I heard German plans so
openly discussed that a separate peace with Berlin seemed
to me only a matter of weeks, though the Princess Xenia
showed a contempt for the Green Cricle which made me
fear they'd murder her. But it was not until Baron Stella-
novski, at Brady's suggestion, had me spend a few nights
at his big house on the Aptekarsky that I got into the real
game and had a chance to study the inner workings of the
most amazing intrigue which has ever throttled the Gov-
ernment of a great nation.
“I had known the Baron as head of a prominent bank-
ing-house on the Nevski, with branches in most of the
world's capitals, and by jolly good luck our acquaintance
had begun in a way that made him suppose me a Wilhelm-
strasse spy. Last fall a Captain Gregorio Czechzin, of
the Serbian Signal Corps, came to Petrograd with funds to
put up a high-powered radio station in the suburbs for


350
THE UNSEEN HAND
such backing the radio station was ready to operate in a
very short time. I opened up communication with Sa-
loniki and Bucharest, giving the messages only to officers
or statesmen whom we knew were loyal to Russia. For
Stuermer and his crowd I cooked up messages which
seemed to them of great importance, but concerning which
the Entente was fully posted before they got them. So
when Major Brady suggested the Baron's having me as a
house-guest in order to meet and confer with some of the
Green Circle people, Stellanovski thought himself quite well
aware of my real identity and interests as a Wilhelmstrasse
man—was under supposed obligations to me, in fact.
And his invitation was a cordial one. They needed me
in their business.
“The Baron's house was managed by a niece whose
mother had married a Berliner. Returning to Petrograd
after the death of her parents, to manage property left
by her mother, she had naturally taken up residence with
her bachelor uncle. There was a large retinue of servants
besides two private secretaries and three Green Circle
people employed in clerical work; but seldom more than
two or three house-guests at any one time. Fräulein
Olga had too much of the Prussian domineering in her
make-up to be popular with either men or women, so
that people invited to stay in the house were almost inva-
riably friends of Stellanovski rather than his niece. One
infers that she was an excellent housekeeper, and I happen
to know something of her capacity for intrigue. It was
altogether cold blooded, for—though rather a handsome
woman-she hadn't the least personal charm. But she
was a shrewd reader of character, an exceptional linguist,
tity
won
his
lend
as se
he's -
short
unmis
quant:
dumm
which
He'd i
without
someone
Then, w
measure


CAPT. CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT 351
and had a gift for scientific deduction which made her a
holy terror when a man of Stellanovski's brains used it
as he did. For example:
“The evening of my arrival one of the deputies from a
central Asiatic province was dining there, accompanied
by his wife-a simple-minded woman who knew too much
of her husband's everyday life, and thought she was fur-
thering his interests by talking about it when in the com-
pany of those she considered influential. After they left,
Olga came to her uncle in his private study, where the
Major and I were smoking with him, and dryly gave us the
gist of what she had wormed out of them without asking
a single direct question:
“Karatoff has struck indications of oil on some of his
land, but has no money to bore for it or handle the quan-
tity he thinks there is eight hundred feet down. He
won't form a development company, because it would cut
his profits in half. Is looking for somebody who'll
lend him a hundred thousand roubles, with a mortgage
as security, but admits that the only portion of his land
he's willing to pledge isn't worth that. He has sunk a
short well, using his own moujik labor, and has struck
unmistakable indications that oil exists there—in unknown
quantity. If you care to loan him the money through a
dummy, he's too simple-minded to question the form in
which it comes to him or the real identity of the lender.
He'd jump at the chance to borrow on his personal notes
without security—which gives you opportunity to have
someone approach him with marked Bank of Russia bills.
Then, when he seems likely to vote for some objectionable
measure in the Duma, he can be given to understand that


354
THE UNSEEN HAND
act
pro
eve
ish
bis
dol
sig
put
it i
squ
as
mig
happened to be discussing various pro-German plans.
Brady and I got on our feet to leave the room, but Stel-
lanovski motioned for us to sit down again-introducing
us as men who knew all about the caller and might not be
quite what we seemed.
“After opening a fresh box of cigars and motioning toward
wine on the table, he chatted with the man for a while on
the political situation, then he took from a drawer in his
desk what appeared to be a rather lengthy note, in a square
envelope—and asked Pluvinskow to glance over it.
Brady and I watched him without appearing to do so.
His expression after a first reading was one of puzzled
amazement; then the color went out of his face as he sput-
teringly protested:
“But-my dear Baron, I don't understand! This
letter gives the impression of having been written by me
-in fact, the writing and the signature are very clever
forgeries! But- '
“Stellanovski wheezed for a moment or two until the
cubebs relieved him. “Ah! That is what I wished to
ascertain, M'sieur Pluvinskow. It didn't seem possible
to me that you could have written so compromising a
letter-discussed so dangerous a matter in writing. But
I naturally wished to be sure. This-er-note was
found among the papers of a person recently caused to be
arrested on a serious charge by my bank, and I put it in
my pocket before any one had an opportunity to study or
identify the signature. Of course, if you pronounce it a
forgery that simplifies my course: I shall send it to Gen-
eral Lipowski and have his secret police run down the
criminal if possible. There happens to be no money trans-
WO:
be
CON
Ei
Ow
qu
rea
thie
Ev


CAPT. CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT:. 355
action involved, but we bankers, in self-defense, must
prosecute anything in the nature of clever forgery wher-
ever we find it.'
“Observe, if you please, the entire plausibility, the devil-
ish ingenuity, of the Baron's position. Pluvinskow wet
his lips and swallowed two or three times before he spoke.
“Er-Baron, suppose General Lipowski is inclined to
doubt my statement that the letter is not genuine? This
signature is amazingly good! Don't you see where that
puts me with the secret police? If he takes the view that
it is really mine, it means ruin for me-possibly a firing-
squad!'
"The banker was apparently sympathetic-undecided
as to his proper course. 'H-m-m-you-er-think it
might be difficult to prove it a forgery?'
“How can I prove it? I've nothing but my personal
word! It's not, unfortunately, anything which might
be cleared by an alibi! A man writes notes at any time,
in any place. Or he doesn't ! How is one to prove it,
either way? You have in your hand a very clever and
compromising duplicate of my writing and signature.
Either I wrote that note—or I didn't! But will Lip-
owski and his police give me the benefit of the doubt?
Why should they? And if they don't? There's little
question as to what happens to me!'
“Well—but what the devil am I to do in the matter?
If you think Lipowski will doubt your innocence, what
reason can you give me for believing it? If you did write
the letter, there's no question whatever as to my duty!
Even though you were an intimate friend of long stand-
ing-which you're not-I would hardly dare suppress it.


358
THE UNSEEN HAND
the web was dotted with flies who rarely knew how they
got there or why their struggles to free themselves were
unavailing! I fancy very few of his victims even guessed
the devilish finesse with which he patiently worked to get
them in his power. There's little doubt in my mind that
it would have been impossible, while he lived, to make
any permanent headway against the German intrigue
with which the Russian Government was fairly rotten.
I caught a glance from Major Brady's eyes while the
Baron was replacing the papers in his safe which told me
the man had got to go—but we had neither of us worked
out a plan for eliminating him without bringing down
destruction upon men who were really valuable to Russia.
“At midnight I had an appointment to play auction at
the Club Anglais on the Dvortsovaia, which is much fre-
quented by leading politicians and high Government offi-
cials—and I hadn't been in the card-room ten minutes
before I overheard various discussions of a speech made in
the Duma by Prof. Paul Miliukoff, leader of the Consti:
tutional Democrats. It seems he had been pitching into
the reactionaries without gloves-stating instances where
they had blocked war measures and giving names with-
out much regard to whom he might antagonize. It
must have been a good bit more daring than anything
ever said on the floor of the Duma before, and what he
hinted must have bordered upon what those chaps con-
sidered treason against the Romanoff dynasty. Just as
I was getting interested, Miliukoff himself came in-a
heavy-featured man in a bowler hat-hadn't bothered to
dress for the club-too much absorbed in what he was try-
ing to do.


CAPT. CREIGHTON’S ACCOUNT 359
“Miliukoff's friends were endeavoring to keep him from
saying too much there—where there were fully as many
reactionaries as progressives—and they presently drifted
off to a corner of the smoking-room with some young
Russians who knew me as the Serbian captain, Gregorio
Czechzin. Excusing myself from the card-party for a few
minutes, I strolled over and was presently introduced.
The Professor gave me a pretty searching look, but
appeared to be satisfied as to the side I was really on.
He took a chance which I never would have taken in his
place—but he was a fanatic on real constitutional govern-
ment and didn't give a rap whether he risked his life or
not. As I shook hands with him, he said:
“Captain, you people down there in Serbia will set up
a republic very soon after this war is over! It's in the
air! The day of autocratic government is past! Since
the awakening we had as to our inner rottenness after the
war with Japan, we have accomplished more in Russia
than the world even dreams, and the time is almost ripe
to throw off all concealment. Fifteen years ago, men who
even talked of what we've actually accomplished in va-
rious zemstvos would have found themselves in Siberia
without knowing how they got there. I've been a polit-
ical convict in the mines myself! To-day, not even the
dreaded Russian police dare arrest us for talking of consti-
tutional government. But this German intrigue is going
to strangle us all—undo our work for at least fifty years
unless we get rid of it by drastic measures! Gentlemen,
those measures will be taken if we have to overturn the
entire Russian Government!
"Of course the chap had forgotten where he was and


362
THE UNSEEN HAND
retiring with brevet rank after coming into a comfortable
estate. Next morning, when Stellanovski was almost
helpless from asthma, the Major suggested writing out a
prescription which had been most efficacious in Bengal,
if the Baron cared to have it put up by his own chemist,
a perfectly natural and kind suggestion-apparently no
chance for him to prescribe anything dangerous without
discovery by the chemist-no opportunity for tampering
with it. The Baron sent out for the stuff at once, had it
fetched into the study, where we were then conferring with
him. Tried it. Obtained unquestionable relief-was
most grateful to the Major.
“His desk was at the right of a window fitted with double
sashes and protected by a steel grille. In a corner of
the wall at his right was the panel of wainscoting with
the safe behind it. At his left was a broad table upon
which he spread out maps, books, and documents for
examination. The chairs in which we sat were on the
other side of this, with their backs to the well-filled book-
shelves which lined that wall clear to the door. During
our talk, he had opened the safe to obtain memoranda as
to the proposed coöperation with the rising in Ireland-had
then pushed the door shut and shoved the panel in place
without turning the combination.
“Brady's prescription was taken in half a glass of water-
ten drops to the dose. The empty glass, bottle of med-
icine, and carafe of water stood on the table when he turned
his back upon us to open the safe. The Major casually
reached an arm across the table, with a small phial con-
cealed in the palm of his hand, and poured a few drops of
colorless liquid upon the bottom of the glass. Then he
sibly
You
that
matc.
: "T
settle
ably a
then,
He qui


"364
THE UNSEEN HAND
th
reg
in
he
Du:
by I
at a
jous!
The
ourse
there
went
docum
“Of
took out package after package of papers, and glanced
over the memoranda indorsed upon the outside of them.
Presently he came back and sat down by me with two
large bundles which he untied and spread upon the table.
My nerves are rather dependable, but I expected every
moment that the Baron would regain consciousness or
that we'd hear a knock on the door.
“Brady, however, went through those papers as methodi-
cally as if he had all day for the job. He even made
copies of half a dozen. Five others he took from the
package and put in his pocket. They would be missed
eventually—but possibly not for several weeks, and we
expected a lot to happen in that time. When he had
carefully placed everything back in exactly the position
he found it, the Major closed the safe door, turned the
combination, and shoved back the wainscoting. It was
most unlikely that the Baron would remember he hadn't
locked it himself. In another five minutes Brady had
restored him to consciousness in a chair by the open win-
dow-on our side of the long table. Stellanovski had no
idea that he'd lost himself for more than two or three min-
utes, and was breathing so much more comfortably than
he had in several days that he was very grateful.
“Had he discovered the loss of those papers within the
hour, I don't think he would have suspected us for a mo-
ment.
"Neither Brady nor I relished the job of killing the man.
It's a rotten thing to do when you're guests in a chap's
house, no matter how badly he needs killing. But every
day the Baron lived meant the possible loss of several
thousand lives to the Entente.
taken i
down t
upper
crested,
mencing
of fifteel
vious lo
outside o
the name
utes' con
young wif
He was ki
had been r
in political
influence ha
letters to be


CAPT. CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT 365
“He was at "that moment the chief driving force behind
that cursed Green Circle, with more than six thousand
regular and associate members in every part of Russia,
in the Russian Embassies of every Allied Nation. While
he lived, terrorizing influential members of Council and
Duma, it was impossible to get any real concerted action
by Russian armies in the field for more than a few weeks
at a time. Progressive Ministers found themselves myster-
iously blocked from the first days of their administration.
The man had to be eliminated. If we funked the job
ourselves, we had to find some other way—that was all
there was to the proposition. And that's why the Major
went through those papers in the safe; he wished to find a
document that would start something.
“Of course we couldn't examine closely those we had
taken in the Baron's house quite too risky. We motored
down to the British Embassy and locked ourselves in an
upper room. Presently we came across two notes on
crested, scented paper in a woman's handwriting-com-
mencing ‘My dear Alexis'-asking for immediate loans
of fifteen and twenty thousand roubles—referring to pre-
vious loans-signed with initials. On the back of the
outside one the banker had pencilled by way of reference
the name ‘Wirdanoff.' Brady decided, after a few min-
utes' consideration, that it must refer to the beautiful
young wife of Stanislas Wirdanoff, a deputy from Odessa.
He was known to be completely infatuated with her; it
had been rumored even that he deferred to her judgment
in political matters. This told us exactly how the Baron's
influence had been used except that we believed both
letters to be forgeries used to coerce her. The girl had had


CAPT. CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT
365
CUVUNT
disclose. But McMurtagh told us she had placed a
written statement and list of names with her executors
to be made public immediately upon report of her death
or disappearance and they didn't dare lay a finger on
her.
“We didn't entirely trust her or Rodzianko until they
began commending Miliukoff's speech in the Duma and
planning a safe refuge for him where he could still keep in
touch with the progressive leaders. None but ourselves
knew where the man had disappeared to after he left the
British Embassy. The Princess feared he had been cap-
tured by Stellanovski's murderers—until we told her he
was in a safe place. McMurtagh asked if the Professor
would be safe in her palace—which is a miniature replica
of Hampton Court, and contains suites where a person
might live for months without being seen by others in the
building. She said that her servants were devoted to her
-would answer for the concealment and safety of any
one in the palace. We were commissioned to submit the
propasition and see what the Professor thought of it.
"He didn't hesitate an instant-said he'd known for
some time that the Princess Xenia Tarazine was really
more democratic than many of the zemstvo leaders. We
brought him to the palace next evening and he stayed
there nearly a month. Then we had a conference in that
secluded library which made me jolly well fancy I must
be out of my head.
“You know, while Germany is considered almost the
limit in the way of military autocracy, Russia has been,
for centuries, the most absolute despotism in the world.
To suggest for one moment the near possibility of a real.


'368
THE UNSEEN HAND
democracy in the Russian Empire would have gotten a
man laughed out of any Chancellery in Europe. Yet the
Princess-who traces her ancestry back to Ghenghis
Khan--the President of the Duma, and Professor Miliu-
koff began seriously to discuss just that possibility. In-
stinctively I got out of my chair to examine the doors and
windows-for, if what they were saying happened to be
overheard either by one of the Green Circle or any officer
of the Court, I wouldn't have given much for our chance
of living twelve hours. Mind you, we'd been having two
or three assassinations of prominent men every day or so,
for months; aye, and women, too-countesses, Court
beauties, wives and daughters of well-known men.
"I gathered from a study of Xenia's face, as she talked,
that she was secretly quite infatuated with McMurtagh-
he was a handsome chap, with a most charming person-
ality-and that he'd been largely responsible for her
coming over to the progressive side. It seems he and
young Prince Kussupoff were of the party which abducted
Rasputin the night after he insulted the Princess in her
own palace, and were present when the mysterious woman
shot him. That caught her fancy. However-getting
back to their discussion-Miliukoff began giving details
of the progressive organization which amazed me. I
knew Russia had been greatly humiliated by the drubbing
she got in the Japanese war, but had supposed the feeling
confined almost entirely to the aristocracy-didn't think
the people had enough interest in the Government to
bother their heads about such a question. I knew, of
course, that the whole country had been working together
in the effort to defeat Germany. But Miliukoff's talk


370
THE UNSEEN HAND
through the mass to its bottom layers! The Nihilists
gave the first indication of this determination to change
such conditions—and were shot for their crimes, as they
deserved to be. Individual assassination amounted
merely to murder—it was opposing a child's pop-gun to
a forty-two centimetre cannon. The Russian people
revere the Czar, as a man-though few of them consider
him divine. We have no wish to injure him, but he is
showing himself incapable of governing us; he sometimes
listens to German intrigue when he ought to shoot the
man or woman who whispers it. He makes strong, patri-
otic decisions—but lacks the punch to put them in prac-
tice regardless of opposition. So-after a little while
we shall ask him to retire to private life and permit some
abler man to run the nation.'
“Really, you know, I had to pinch myself! That sort of
talk in Russia! But there was a sanity about it so very
different from the Nihilist rot one always hears in Petro-
grad and Moscow that it gripped me-just as it did Her
Highness and Rodzianko. I could see that she was mull-
ing it over in her mind; presently she began asking ques-
tions-slowly, carefully, considering exactly what she
wanted to get at before she spoke.
“You say, Professor, that you're blocked just now by
some influence in the Government which you can neither
combat nor trace? Have you no idea of the people who
might be responsible for it?
“Well, presumably the Green Circle, Your Highness-
but one hears there are six thousand or more members,
and has no idea whether they are one's immediate confrères
upon the floor of the Duma or the acquaintances with
trace? Havenment whic
might be


CAPT. CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT 371
whom one lunches at the restaurants. Some of the aris-
tocracy are members—some are not. Whom is one to sus-
pect? Of all who may be in such an organization, who are
the real leaders behind it? If we were sure of their iden-
tity, where are we to get sufficient proof to curtail their
activities in the Government? I assure you it is like an
invisible wall of granite against which we bump our heads
and bruise our brains without making progress! I be-
lieve one half the well-meaning deputies in the Duma,
and at least one third of the Councillors, are being terror-
ized by an influence which they dare not defy! Give me
some lever by which I can pry that fear off their minds,
and I believe I could get together a revolutionary major-
ity in forty-eight hours!
“I can name to you three leaders of the Green Circle
who have recently been eliminated very opportunely.
If they had lived, Russia would have experienced another
overwhelming catastrophe within the last week. They
were Rasputin, Count Boris Gazonoff, and General Ivan
Ossipovitch, who was on the point of sending thirty muni-
tion trains wandering all over Siberia instead of to their
destination on the western front.'
“Here the Major quietly came into the discussion with a
remark so full of unbelievable possibilities that I found
myself gasping at what it opened up:
“And I, Professor, can give you the name of the Chief
who plays with the Green Circle like a set of chessmen-
the gross black spider who wheezes in the centre of the
web and catches political flies upon every thread of it.
Baron Alexis Stellanovski is the man. In a safe, at his
mansion on the Aptekarsky, are files of blackmailing docu-


CAPT. CREIGHTON'S ACCOUNT 373
of date as slavery, to which it was closely related. This
from a Russian aristocrat, if you please!
"When Brady and I left the Palace Tarazinė, I felt as if
I were merely one of the procession-things were moving
a bit too fast for me.
"Next morning, we called upon the deputy Stanislas
Wirdanoff, at the hotel where he maintained a suite.
He was a fine, upstanding chap with snapping black eyes
and a lot of go to him—you'd say he'd be as jealous as
Othello where any woman belonging to him was concerned.
Brady got at his errand in so quiet and courteous a way
that the fellow didn't go off half-shot as men of his tem-
perament are likely to do. He looked at the letters the
Major handed him-listened to the statement that we
both knew Stellanovski to be a forger and had no doubt
he had intimidated Madame Wirdanoff with deliberately
forged letters. The point which seemed to occupy his
mind to the exclusion of everything else was that the
Baron had terrorized-tormented—his passionately loved
wife until she was a nervous wreck.
“The devilish wording of the letters showed why she
hadn't dared come to him with them. Also he was evi-
dently remembering his votes upon certain measures in
the Duma-votes which her supposed wishes had most
certainly influenced, and which he now saw had betrayed
his country into political chaos at a time when every
effort should have been exerted toward a rigorous prose«
cution of the war. Presently he said that he should have
to see the Baron personally-in some public place, if pos-
sible. I told him that Stellanovski intended to occupy
a box during the Diaghileff Ballet at the Theatre Marie,


374
THE UNSEEN HAND
that night, and he thanked me rather effusively for the
information.
“When we left him, Brady hurried me up to the Club
Anglais-after telephoning General Lipowski to meet us
there. Serge Lipowski was too good a diplomat, himself,
to go blundering through the club inquiring for us; we
happened upon each other quite by accident in the bil-
liard room when it was practically empty. The Major
told him that Stanislas Wirdanoff would be at the Théâtre
Marie that night, and would probably kill one of the Green
Circle leaders whom he had every right to kill. He sug-
gested that Lipowski's secret police be on hand to arrest
Wirdanoff, temporarily, in order to save him from being
wiped out by the Green Circle—and the General promptly
agreed to this.
“Then Brady said that while Baron Stellanovski was
away from home that evening he wanted the house raided
and everyone in it taken away before he returned-it
being understood that not a soul would be in the house
when he came back and that there would be no evidence
of any disturbance about the place. The impression
given Lipowski, of course, was that we'd be waiting for
the Baron ourselves, and were planning to do something
with him. This would prevent the police from searching
the house for papers when the arrests were made and find-
ing that safe. You see, we had our own uses for those
papers. In other hands, they might gum things up-and
certainly would not be used as we proposed, even though
the General was on our side.
“The more I saw of Brady and McMurtagh, the more
I admired the precision with which their brains worked.


376
THE UNSEEN HAND
He was like a chip tossed upon the surface of a beaving
ocean.
“The rest is current history which may be read in the
newspaper files of all libraries. To-day Russia is to all
intents a republic-but, from our experience with the
many seething undercurrents—the ignorance of the masses
and the anarchist opposition to all government-I'd wager
a good bit that a reign of terror is coming, throughout the
country, which will make the French Revolution a comedy
by comparison.
“Within the last hour it has been hinted to me that one
of our confrères in Petrograd was the famous Diplomatic
Free Lance himself. I had a suspicion of this more than
once—though I can't decide which of the two he could
have been-McMurtagh or Brady. They both had an
active hand in the revolution-no question as to that.
In fact, I'm inclined to think they made it possible for
Miliukoff to succeed.”
THE END