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$ $ £ $ : 53 + | seseseseteses The Mystery of ; Th Violin 240+0+040+04 Ana gentleman, ssir," hesitated 'the servant, his fascinated glance up- on that still, tragic ys Sa figure framed in the balcony windov "In the hail--a Mr. Geofirey Arnold. peis You to see him this once--for five minutes in a NWfetime, he ys. He will never trouble you again. It' 's life or death to hiin, I was to say." "Very clever; a dramatic touch! Just request the genticman to step from my premises, say that Mr. Bede Grafton declines to see his niece shachled for life to a fortune-hunter, musical genius or not, and then----" "No! Uncle, you could not--you csi not send those words to him-- stStand back, Annabel. cuss that afterwards." Old HKede Grafton waved his arm; the wild sob was lost, the imploring white face shrank back; the servant disappeared. In that pause, till the dull bang of a door 'below sounded, it seemed that the beat of a wo- man's heart could be heard in the silence. 'Then, one hand groping out as if in a mist, she was moving to- wards the door. "One moment!"' A trifle unstcady, still grim, the retired ironmaster's voice came from the arm-chair in the shadow. Something in ft riveted her attention, cven at such a moment. "Now! I promised that poor father of yours I would stand square be- tween you and the mistake so many women make. Is this the result of all my efforts to that end? No, Stand still; all the sobs in thy world cannot alter the fact that this man is an adventurer, whose dramatic ways and violin-playing have worked won you successfully, Here is your golden chance to pause and realize. You cannot--or you will not? You intend to become this man's play- thing for life?" "His wifel J must; I have prom- ised," the steady, far-nway whisper floated across. "T trust him; no wo- man coulll give o greater reason, One day--one day he will prove to you that he was worthy all the love and comfort I can give him now!'" "Very good; that should end it." He rose stiffly. "Well, T need not say a word as to what I meant to do for you~ that's past. I will write you a cheque for a Hundred, and you can go and marry him when and how you choose." fHe had sunk back into his chair, eyes closed and lins set. pause, and then two soft, trembling arms came round his neck from be- hind and held kim still, with a whis- per that he was never to forget. "Good-night, dear uncle--and good- bye. No, TI cannot take the cheque; Geoffrey and I do not ask it--trust that we shall never have to. You need not fear so for your Annabel. It may be a strugele for years yet, but is not that the time when he needs most a Wife's help and com- fort? And may you live--yes, may you live to share our happiness, and to know that it is you, per Annabel, who has made the mista She kissed his forchead, smoothed back the thin, grey hair, and seemed to wait. Some flint-like lump was in his throat, but no Word = could pass. And then the door had closed and he was alone. The last man to own it, he could havo said that in that moment the sunlight seemed to fade out of his life and leave it in eternal dua. It might have been six weeks later that Mr. Bede Grafton startled his coachman more than ordinarily by Bavagely directing him to drive to an obscure suburban strect. It was dark. At the corner Mr. Grafton alighted, turned up his coat-collar, muttered something, moved along the row of absurdly small villas. Now he drew a sharp breath at sight of a nameplate shining boldly in the lamplight. "Geoflety Arnold, Teacher of Violin. Terms low and tuition thorough."' Mad fvol! There was firelight flickering through the front-room Venctian blinds. Old Grafton bent and peered almost H'e a prospective criminal, peered until he made out the -- soft, unconscious § profile of the girl who had crept out of his life. She had gone from liim--gone to this other man, Whose spinal weakness prevent- ed him from following any real busi- mess, who taught music and begged stray engagements for a living, and whose sole assets in life were a rare old violin and a reputed talent for playing it. Repmted? That was word. As if to shame it, there wail- ed suddenly from that room the long-drawn, haunting sound of a bow drawn lovingly, -four strings. It thrilled old Graft- on, held him to the spot; it was like the sound of a loved and lost wo- man's voice heard echoing in dreams. He could not cee the player. but he fiad to hear the music--such music. Hark! tlie flood of fast, trembling | notes swelled and swelled as if it were a crescendo prelude to. the out- buret of some mighty celestial choir; then suddenly tiny dropped to a Mere murmur like the wind's moan among far-off trees," And so on and We'll dis- arm- A 2 2 sneering ° caressingly down | on eek mazes of melody, till, with a rich sweep of chords, it had and left a moment's ton stumbled, back as out of a sheen Mice realived that other people besides himself had been snared by the spell, and wal-ed away to his carriage. No; he would never forgive that | other man his presumption in tempt- ing away his Annabel. Never! Nev- er! He had seen her face once again, as he wished to do; had heard, in- cidentally, the man's violin-playing. Now they were both blotted from his life for ever! * Seven years! For seven years the bitter, incredible blank in 'iis life has lasted. 1t was a bent, stooping, white-haired man who tore open the letters addrissed to Mr. Bede Graf- i She had written He had kept his woid--ne er answered it. Nerve shoc.s were rare in his grim, quiet existence, but two were waiting tim this morning. The writing upon one eme'ope caught his eye and set Gis hand trembling strangely. He hes- itated, half inclined to tear the thing into fragments; then he obeyed the fascination. Yes; f.om--from Anna- bel, who had once breathed in this very room, "Dear Uncle--if I may write that word! I had prayed that the time might never come when I should need to as your help, but it is here, and for the sake of my dear husband I risk your refusal. We have been very happy, but Geoffery's health has brought us to a momentary crisis. He does not know I-have written, and I dare not say more than that the loan--not the gift--at this mo- ment of one half the sum you" one offered me might mean more than you may ever understand. Dare I hope for a reply? If you cannot do so much, it would be much to Fnuw that you had torgiven. Uh, oear wnile, every day I have longed to write that life is too brief for bitter- nuss!--Your Acnabel." He stared, the flinty lump forming and crumbling in his throat; tnen pushed the letter away--it seemed that her clear, chining brown eyes lool ed up from it into Lis. No! He took up his newspaper , and al- most the first words he saw have the Name of that very man--"Geofiery Arnold." Shock number two. He read through the paragraph, and it told him tnat Geoflery Arnold was one of five amateur violinists © who had emerged successful from all pre- liminary tests and entered upon the final stage for the great Danesbury pri e--one thousand pounds and a professorship. Musizians from all quarters of the world bad competed and--and this obscure Arnold fellow was one of five left in the struggle! The crucial hearing was announced for only ten days hence... . And yet she was writing in cee... terror and agony to ask his financial help? No! In any case, she had taken her choice of two men, = and should consi-tently abide by it. Mr. Grafton's servants reported him as pacing his room half that fame night. Twice his hand had gone to his cheque-book, and twice was stubbornly withdrawn. He had won, but the struggle was none the _ less deep. In crushing her he had come near crushing himself. How dared she write? What were the words she dared not put in the letter? of the ten had ticked Bede Grafton realized the uncertainty was a little more than he need bear. He would go and just smatch a look at the house, and possibly catch a glimpse of Annabel, to see whether the man's selfishness was killing her; no- thing more. Ile put a cheque for just fifty pounds in his pocket, but not to give her--or oply upon = such conditions that her husband could not benefit by it. This time he took a cab stealthily as far as that street corner, and then alighted--precisely as he had done once on a never-for- gotten night seven years ago, Eh, what---only seven? There it was still, bold and bright as ever--'Geoffery Arnold." The very words irritated him--of course, her name was Arnold now! He walked quickly by, hesitated, glared at the blinds, fought the final bit of a fight, and turned in at the gate. He would knuck just once. All would depend upon who answered. If An- nabel, he might hear her story and make her a proposal; if the man, he could stride away in contemptuous silence. Yes! Rat-a-tat! gible sound, * oe e * * For a niinute no tan- Then, as he brought himself to stoop and peer through the letter-slit--just the once--he be came aware of a queer sensation down his spine. Eh, what? Some- |thing was bending and breathing on |the other side, an inch away; wide |br own eyes seemed to be staring in- 'to his--he could be ulmost positive lof a glazed, scared expression in 'them. | '*Who's tkat, pray?' he blurted out Ishakily. 'Is that you, Annabel?' | He waited; and then---- "Oh, however did you know name?'"" came back a slow, amazed 'ttle voice, soft and clear. "That is |funny; I hadn't made a sound. Yes, I'm little Avnabel. Please, whoever lare you?' "Little Annabel!" gasping it, he lstood back and glared at the letter- slit. The possibility of a little An- inabel, strangely enough, had never occurred to the grim ol bachelor in this case. 'Oh, indeed! Then I'm sth shall be 'told: I'm your gaand- junele. I suppose!"' my lot ou at 2 'Ch: 'istmas to ma kept crying very late, you know. I daren't open an inch; I promised mamma wouldn't even go near the door, be- cause of thieves. You might be a burelar just saying that on purpose, mightn't you? Could you stoop a bit lower?" He stiffened with indignation and yet had to chuckle; the situation sud- denly appealed to him He did stoop, to speak with deliberation. "Now does my voice sound like a 'burglars? Where is your father? j}Out? Humph! Mother out too? Ah! Well, I've called to sce you. Leave the door wide open if I' m such a ter- rible 'figure. That's it!' Doubtfully, dramatically, the door opened a few inches. He pushed im- patiently with his stick, but his queer sensation tingled again as he found himself staring down into a wee, oval face with starry, eves, and framed in fair hair. years scemed to roll back was looking down ut the little Anna- bel his hand had drawn away from a father's death-bod to his own quiet jmansion. This little duplicate was full of combined fear and wonder. "I'm six next week," she breathed, in awe, as he closed the door and grunted his way along to a kitchen. He might turn out to be a burglar yet. "Mamma went out after break- fast. She cried and kissed me, but I said I'd be brave as anything and mind the house. She had to go. Oh, yes, mamma cries a good deal lately but she doesn't let him sec, because he's miserable and can't sleep."' 'Hum; h! and why can't he sleep?"' he asked erie as he walked round; "why, I sa "How "a q know? Because he can't play his violin, I think. T-heard them talsing, and his forehead went down on this table with such a bang, and he said it would kill him if he couldn't play for his prize after all, I don't know where it is; I expect the strings Have broken again. So} wretched when the strings break, | isn't it? I'm sure, I don't think there's anything to offer you--unless --unless you like to cut the cake that | mother put away. I'd tell her you felt 'hungry, and made me have a bit. Daddy? Ob, he goes out every morn- ing, and comes home late, and al-| Ways says he's met someone and had his cinner out. Mamma went be cause she had this letter. Daddy's not to know, mind. The cake's" in that cupboard."' ' Mechanically, certainly not realizing old Bede Grafton took down the let- ter from behind a vase. Next mo- ment he had sucked in fis lips sharp- ly, as if to keep back a word. Only a few lines, but luminous ones. "Dear Madam,--I understand from a friend that you are anxious to ob- tain occasional employment in fancy- work, If you call here to-morrow at ten o'clock I can employ you for a few hours. I pay fairly, care to be disappointed."' And she had gone; it was to help her Geoffery, who must not know. He turned again to little Annabel. Small as she was, it struck her that he had never put his hand nicely on a little girl's head before, because he did it with his eyes half shut, as if unwillingly. "Deesn't your father work? Where does ke co every day? Is he -- does he still Have these pains?" "Oh, yes!" she whispered, at his ignorance, heard? The doctors said he stop using his eyes as something was growing over them. I'm sure of It, because,. you know, he often looks at me and doesn't see me standing there. One great, big doctor thought he could do something if daddy called at bis house, but he said two guineas for a beginning, and daddy couldn't pay that--not till he wins the prize. Oh, he does want to! And yet he hasn't played a note for over a week --isn't it funny? I think--I half be- lieve he gocs out to try and find some friends who'H let him have some money. But he doesn't tind em--I think they must have mov- ed!"' "Humph! That sort of friend has a knack of melting away."' old Bede Grafton drily commented. Lips pursed, Ke looked round again. The place was neat, but its neere would not bear too much analy" Then hae' a question that stagge.= himse hat's he like? + I--I' ve never seen him yet!" "Never secn daddy! Were!"' She led the way into a parlor, clutching his hand confidently now, "There he is, on the wall, beside mamma. Oh, you'd like my daddy! Tf you could only stay a little and hear him play his pieces! The people clapped him and shouted, and the newspapers said he would win the prize. Then we'll all be so happy--and then you can come to tea and supper, too Won't it be nice? Hut daddy had to pay such a lot money for debts and doctors!' He glared into the clever, delicate, sensitive face of Annabel's hero -- this man who was to win the Danes- bury prize. Nearer and nearer he was drawn; it didn't matter -- he = never sce the man's features surprised of his eye fell upon a little Mhe back of the mantel- shelf. In it lay_a slip of thin card- board, and a word upon it had caught his attention as being icidental. forward peer again; and turned 6 mam- about; ae cht but do aia coin- He stumbled back -- went tning ij upon tragedy behind. Ile had stared at a Pledge-ticket. Geoffery Arnold's rare old violin lay at this moment in the Ilgrip of a West-end pawnbroker. The crucial day of the Danesbury prize was next Thursday. Unless Anna- bel's husband could raise forty-five pounds fnd interest by that day, his chance was a dead one. Now he knew; now he understood! His own servants would hardly have recoznized old Grafton's face as he turned once more to little Anna- bel, the duplicate. It was different-- convulsed, yet somehow softencd--as if a mask Had fallen away. He stoop- ed and gripped her wrists, jerking peas a husky, ass yb whisper:-- Brave, are you? Could you let me in, if I get back in an hour? Will you mind the place till oe and not tell a soul I've been She nodded at once; fe was becom- ing rather fantastic and dreamlike to her--as it was partly to himself. And then,. as he coughed loudly, his thin old fingers had closed furtively uwoon that ticket, and he had shultled out. And little Annabel sat there like a figura of stone, listening, her hands strained together. He had taken somcthing and gone--he was a burg- lar calling himself a grand-uncle. But at last--at last came his tap and cough. Yes, it was the funny old gentleman, with thing bulky under his arm. in, crept into the parlor, left his par- cel there, and tip-toed out. "Don't touch it. You can kiss me,"' he whispered, "Er--just say that Uncle Grafton came, and -might pos- sibly be up this way again, but he doesn't want any thanks. Remember that? Oh, and this is for little An- nabel. Buy a patent lock, and keep out burglars! Good-bye.' | He was gone, as fearsomely as he 'had come; but she knew he was real, because a sovereign lay shining in the palm of her hand. And on ithe table, there, under the cloth-- yes, he wouldn't mind her having Just one peep. She looked, and ooked, and puzzled--and then sud- rare came the quick rattle of a key th hall-door. She flew out, gc reaming breathlessly. | "Look! Why didn't you keop away? --ho might have come again! My uncle--stuich a grand one! A sovereign --and something on the table there-- it looks just like.daddy's violin . . Mamma, dear, don't cry! He didn' t --he only took one little thing off the mantel-shelf; I watched all the time; he never touched the cake! Ought I to have screamed out? . . . Mamma, what's the matter? Did he steal dad- dy's violin and bring it back? Can daddy go on playing now? Will he-- ! will he win the prize?" 4 The mother's whisper was lost. But the world answered little 'Annabel's question one week later. nd a gruff old "burglar" saw the announcement in the papers. He hadn't looked for it~--oh, no! it hap- lpened to catch his eye. "It's the iddie, not the man," he muttered to lhimself. And that very evening he alighted 'furtively at the corner of that same obscure street. Impossible to tell, but it looked very much as if the 'success of his first felonious attempt had stimulated him to risk another. --London Tit-Bits. eee serene GREAT WARSHIPS. About Three New British War Vessels. Facts The three armored cruisers of the current shipbuilding programme which are to be laid down at Ports- mouth, Devonport and Pembroke will reach the high water mark in cruis- er egies vessels, which will be named anirittenr, Shannon, and D age will practically be battleships. In both power and size they will ex- ceeed anything of their class afloat. The following are the particulars of the ships :-- Guns--Four 9.2-inch; ten 7.5-inch. Shells--380 pounds and 200 pounds Rate--Four shelis per minute Penetration--2 1-2 feet of iron. Armor belt--300 feet of six-inch steel. Gun protection--Kight-inch steel. Speed--Twenty-three knots. Horse-power--57,000. Boilers--Water-tube. Displacement--14,600 tons. Cost--About--£800,000 Mr. Philip Watts, the designer, made a_ study of warship =e when he was in private service the. great firm of Armstrongs, Yyneside, and his investigation him to develop a combination of the speed of the cruiser og the battle ship's strength in gun The broadside dincsaces will be 100 pounds heavier than in our pre- sent best cruisers. The guns will be longer and more powerful, and their striking power three and a half times as great as that of the latest cruisers afloa Plainly densities the new cruisers will be as effective at three miles as other cruisers now are at two miles, and in general power they will be half as strong again as vessels of the County class and twice as Pow- erful as those of earlier design. The power of attack with 2.2-inch that of the newest French ship,~ the Edgar Quinct. The 9.2-inch guns will be mounted in pairs on barbet- tes on the forecastle and upper ait decks nch guns will be in lbarbettes on the upper deck, five on each ait. - led BRITISH RULE IN INDIA The Work of the District Officers Constitutes the Govern- ment, England's rule in India does not rest "either upon the sword or up- on the eternal moralities," but ra- ther upon the practical common sense and hard work of its district officers--"the men in i ren " as Lord Curzon called them, the Chicago News. The 259 < districts into which British India is divided vary greatly in area and their pop- ulations range, roughly speaking, be- tween 2,000,000 and 750,000. There are infinite varieties of climate, agri- culture, race, religion and language, but the unit is the same and the district officers discharge similar functions and incur responsibilities, whether they be working in remote Assam or in more accessible Bombay. The district officer of the plains and the British colleagues live during the summer in the furnace-like heat which Kipling and others have pic- tured. Lord Curzon is said to have used no exaggeration in describing the fierceness of the summer when he said that "the skies are like brass, the earth is like iron and dur- ing the greater part of the day every chink and crevice must be closed to keep out the ravening FARD-WORKING OFFICIALS. There is not much leisure for the Englishmen, since the work of rul- yr go of often people preoccupies ™, awn to darkness. In the old- er pr@vinces the district officer is known by the suggestive name of collector, for he is primarily respon- sible for collecting the dues of the Government, We is, however, some- thing more than a collector; he is a land agent on a grarid scale. and is more concerned in anabling the peo- ple to live and prosper than he in exacting revenue. This, oldest source of revenue in India, is also the most important both to the Government, to which it brings over $95,000,000, and to the people whose well-being and happiness de- pend chiefly on moderation in as- sessment and on honesty and hu- manity in collection. It is the district officer who must prevent the powerful from throw- ing their burden of taxation on the weak, « He must check oppression, unfairness and prejudice on the part of his Indian subordinates in their dealings with the people, and he must detect at once any signs of decadence or symptom of decay in the village and its agriculture. The district oflicer must be an all-round man. He superintends the excise and assesses the income, license and other taxes, and he is responsible for the finance of his district. But the collector or lund agent has most important duties. magigtrate of the district. presents the Government, main- tains peace and oF "he controls the police, and is 7 msible for the jail. ¥ siting eeeetietorers MORE THAN IMITATORS, Are People of Great Initiative. Not very Jong ago the Western world regarded the Japanese as mere imitations; it is now generally ad- mitted that they are a people of great initiative. But they are also good imitators, as the British Con- sul at Kobe and Osaka shows in his latest report. He records that the import of cotton yarns again shows a big decrease, due to the increased growth of the Japanese industry, which 'is gradually but surely, oust- ing Lancashire coarse counts from the market. Among. woolen manu- Japanese © |factures the outlook for the import- ed article would not appear be particularly bright. The consul adds that the manufacture of flannels in Osaka has greatly improved, and the mportation has, therefore, decreased considerably, Woolen blankets are being made very satisfactorily, lik wise a kind of army cloth which promises to be a severe competitor of the imported article. Supplementing his remarks in last year's report on the import of indi- go, the consul quotes the following statement, made by merchants hith- erto engaged in the trade "The Indian article is absolutely driven out of the market, and there can be no doubt that the Java product will follow suit, as it is evi- dent that the strides w 'hich the Ger- man chemists are making that the cost of production is being lessened. So far as we are concerned we have had to give up business. | Other Pritish firms are similarly placed, and the whole of the business is in the hands of Germans." The passing, of the Government's Tobacco Manufacturing Monopoly Act will have an important effect on the trade in the fragrant weed, in which British capital is considerably interested. It prohibits the import of all manufactured tobacco except by persons licensed by the. State, anc the manufacture of to- bacco 'except by the State. T he only branch of the tobacco trade still al- lowed to exist is the export of the leaf. a First Physician--'So the operation was just in the nick of time?" Sec- ond ~ Paysician--"Yes;- in "another twenty-four hours the patient 'vould heve recavered without iy." :