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Would-it not be better to fly at once before it became too late ? He pondered for a long time. He looked at his watch; he started when he realised that he had been sitting in his bedroom thinking for nearly half an hour‘. It was then five minutes to ten. Round by the road it was moral than an hour’s Walk, but if To cut aC-TOSS the fields he could cover the the distance in less than fifteen minâ€" utes. He could lower his portmanâ€" team from the “‘dngow to t‘: e groundf by one of the sheets off his bed, walk i out of the house quietly, pick up his bag, and be ofi‘ Without a soul being the wiser. I He ram a comb through his hair, and repainted his moustache, took a final look at himself in the mirror (the alcolzol had brought his color back) and extinguished both his Canâ€" dles. He walked to the door and opered it, but did not cross its threshold. He was arrested by the furious ringing of a. bell, the sound of hurrying feet, talking below, and there came up to him the word "murde' er. " He shut the door and supported himself against it, he needed support just then. It had been found out. 1hen nlzcady, and they won: after him ! What a fool that. ho had not. escaped before! He looked at hi“; watch, there was yet time. The railway line ran beyond the foot of the garden; he could even fee the signalâ€"light \vl'izh was there. He would hurry along the line to the station. It had been dark, he argued, the outline of his figure had been seen pex‘haps in the summer dusk, but ro- cognition, impossible! Yet, if 119 witness had been able to see his figure! And then fear seized on him again. That night there was a late train down from London. He knew that, because Ashley was coming home by it. Once a. week the company ran a. theatre train, leaving London at midnight. There was therefore a late up~train on that occasion, and he knew that to-night he. could leave Graynewood station for London at 10.25. Then another drink of the brandy made him change his mind. ".l'hy should he cut and run ? Would not that very act cxu-lte suspicion? Bot- ter light a cigar and stroll downâ€" stairs as if he had been in the house all the evening. There was nothing like putting a bold fme on thingsâ€" so the brandy told him. He was throwing his things into his portmnnteau us he thought, this, Thcn‘hc Suddenly stopped. He heard the clutter of many feet coming up the stalls. He sprung to the door and turned the key in it. 1f they were alter him he would sell his life dearlyâ€"he would not be taken alive. He felt in his breast. for tl:c sheath- Just by the open study window he caught his foot in the wire-edging of one of the flowm-beiis, and meas- ured his length on the grass. lie uttered a curse, but remained still for a. moment, fearing that Sir George, Who was sitting by his studyâ€"table with his back to the window, might have heard him. Then he rose and hurried into the house, up the stairs to his room. , He lit the candles on his dressing- ‘table with trembling hand“, and looked at his reflection in the glass. He started back in afl'right, he was as white as a ghost ! How thank- ful he was that he had had some enough to avoid chiming tle house openly X Unlocking his Gladstcne bag, and extracting a small spirit-flask, the contents brandy, he poured some 'i-n- to the glass on his washhandstand and drank on the contents. The spilit; brought back the color to his cheeks, hope to his heart. dearlyâ€"1).: He felt in knifkgon‘ towards the Hull. Its open door,- way faced him, but he avoided it. He crept round LLe house to enter the back way, hoping to [each his ’bedroom unnoticed, by the s-‘en‘anls’ staircase. He felt, that he must look terrorâ€"stn'cken, and Fe wuntcl to remove that look and to think before he faced any one. He cursed his luck; it mu dropped from him Wh’n he Um gumsâ€"more evir‘encc him! The steps 111uried I; (iconâ€"passed. To gave a thankfulness, and, afler \v sweat from his brow, strap ru nn‘i his fiidx ‘As fast as his legs would can'y him the Frenchman run, spurred on 'by those two words, "Coward I mur- derer l” which never Leased to ling in his ears. He had been seen ! All his trouble, the risk he had gone to, were wasted, and presently the hue- andâ€"cry would be out against him for murder. What a fool he had been! This was the end of Li's scheming I He slipped and stumbled and again as he ran in Ha MWMGWeemammaewang 39 WMfiWSmeafisfitfi «W? "‘ DfiSflE’éWg u. n. x.“ o (1 row cw a sheet 1mm lis bed, and it through the handles of , went to the window. That the house there «as not a o be heard. Ho Iowa-ed tho CHAPTI R XX VIII gave a Sign after wiping v, strapped Or, The Sign of the Arrow fell 7 his ) the . Thou house, again dark do or: 1; ave imt the his Miss Westcar moved about the house like a. woman in a dream. '1".e house she had been builliug proved but of cardsâ€"it had tumbled down ,Hur plans, her ideas, her pictured fuâ€" Ituro had crumbled away. She was mad with an inward rageâ€"rage against the hand which had struck the blow, and so foiled the scheme for her future happiness. And who was the mmjderer? With Vere, she knew povfectly well ilmt lit, was not Reggie. Like Vere, St'ne lknew him too well to, for a moment imagine him guilty of blood-sheddix g. He was in custody, and under grin-c- 1y suspicious circumstancrs; but, that was all. The last train brought .A shon home. He was i1.cxpressibly shock- Just before midnight, a few min- utes late, the train reached Water- loo. As Lucy al-ighted she saw the Frenchman lifting his portmantcau Out of a carriage ahead. A porter took it and walked to the exit, the Frenchm an followingâ€"Lucy folloWQd him. theatre train. But there was another passenger from Graynewoodrâ€"a. woman came panting for breath, on to the plat- form as the train was starting. She was known to the officials, or she [would not have been allowed to leave Ewithout a. ticket. As it was, she 1was helped into the mming train, and she too was carried London- W‘ards. Free. she ran out of the station. The Gladstone bag" was on top of a hansom, and the Count was stand- ing on the step, calling to the dliv- er ,. "66A, Dean Street, Soho." In a. moment the cabman had whipped up his horse, and was drivâ€" ing away. Lucy hurried to cross the yard just as a. late arrival in a hansmn dashed into the station. Furious driving, a corfusod woman. and~ the horse’s hoofs did the the rest. There was a scream, and then the rapidly gathered together crowd picked her up, bleeding and sense- less. That was what luavpened at midâ€" night at Waterloo station. At Grayne Hall at the same hour ex- citement was x'eigning‘ Sir Geoage Grayne was Iyirg on the study floor dead, and his nephew Reginald was in the custody of the police, chaxged with his murder. The lust train brought .As home. He was inexpl‘essibly 5): ed to be met. with the tidings of uncle’s murder. For some time seemed too dazed to lealise it, sat as one petrified. Then his 1 was so deep that the servants ‘ greatly moved by it: they had thought him 50 qud of his 1111:“ The night thl‘ougfi in that In no man or woman slept. Dayb Vere Was prostrate with grief, for things looked black againm the man she loved, and who had only that evening told her he loved her still, and that); his infatuationâ€"his blind infatuaiionâ€"fm‘ Miss Westcur was at an end. They passed Ashley Grayne on the platform, but he did not appear to see them. He was there with his bicytlc, going back to Graynowood by the train. Lucy was startled at Seeing him, and started back. That moment widened the distance be- tween herself and the Frenchman. At the barrier, too, she had to ascerâ€" 1ain the amount of the fare, and pay it in cash. ‘ He was arresth in the study heâ€" side the dead man, and when tne servants entered the room he had the knifeâ€"a. keen, double-edged weapon-â€" with which the murder had been committed, in Izis hand. His late quarrel with his uurle was known to every member of the house- hold. He had been forbidden the house, and yet he was found on the premises in the dead man’s pres-cum. No zervant had admitted Hm; things indeed looked black against him. The horse which had knocked her down was, a, few minutes after draw- ing her unconscious form to the nearest hospital. The night through in that house no man or woman slept. Daybreak was Welcomed. breakfast was web comcd, anything to compel the doing of something and possible fol‘chful- ness 0! the dead master. The police had wired to London. feet of the ground, the rest of the distance he dropped. The railway line or the short cut 7 The former, quicker, but more dangerousâ€"he might catch his foot in the sleepers. So 130 hurried along on the path. He reached the sta- tion, and took his ticket for London. He was the only passenger on the platform. The train Came in late; He hurried into an empty compart- ment, and, hudd,ed in a corner, was carried Londonwmds. The train did not stop again till it reached the terminus, when, Within a few minuâ€" tes of its arrival, it returned as the and by the first down-' tive cameâ€"Detcstivc . local police mtth- ridi. of London assistance. t two hag and (In hr: jump ? ’ an end self by CHAPTER XXIX. togethet bodâ€"I u p nil tr “'H hin )\\'l “SOD A shley shqck- of his were not The policeman opened the door, and Janson entered. Veze and Reggie were sitting talking. He was endeavouring to comfort her, and she was endeavouring to com- fort. him. Tle union was filling in the time pleasantly. To the ser- geant's extreme surprise, the detecâ€" t'i»\e walked straight over to the prisoner, and, stretching out his hand, said: “How do you do, Mr. Reginald? I’m a. detecting from Lon-don, come down to get you out of this mess you are in." Vere impulsively sprang to her feet, and, seizing the detective’s arm, said : “Um! think not? Well, don't you let. me interfere with your 0])- inion, you know, all the same, it‘s just as well not to start counting your eggs before they’re laid. Lived here all your life, sergeant, ch '2” "Yen." “Looks a truly rural sort of place. The sergeant led the way to the butler's pantry. It had a hezn'ily barred window, and but one. door; it had been selected for that reason. Outside this a. policeman was on duty. “Maybe not," said Jansen; "but all the same, I’ll listen to the story from the lady’s lips, if you don't mind. Now you can say goodâ€"bye for a bit, can‘t you ‘2 The sergeant here has got a. fly wailing, and he will Want you to go with himâ€"down the \illuge, because, of COUJSC, there must be an examination before the magistrates. You must expect a. day or two's imprisoxmcnt whilst, we find the real muwderor, you know. And now”â€"-he put his arm through “1’Vc stretched a point, Mr. Janâ€" son, hero. The prisoner is engaged, I tn ink, to the daughter of the house and so I have permitted them to have an interview. You don’t think it Wrong ‘2" “Wrofig 7â€"in this particular case? Oh no !” "And now, Mr. Reginald, you quite understand that I don’t ask you any questions, and anything you may say may be used in evidence against you later on.” "I’ve tle him that,” interposed the sergeant. Jnusox. smiled. “I hate nothing to conceal,” said the prisoner. “Maybe not," said Jansen; "but all the same, I'll listen to the story from the lady’s lips, if you don't mind. Now you can say goodâ€"bye for a bii, can‘t you ‘2 The sexgeant detective, the amazc ing his n finger. job nephew trams 1 plain \0 on your Their i London dc fore he 11: London detective fell considc fore he had been half an F the premises. He had he story from all lips in, p: silence; and when the nm‘ru exhausted, and the local hm‘e got, the Fight sow by the car 1 have had a day or Lwo'sâ€"just : day or two'sâ€"experience more than you have, and by it I have learn that it, is not always U0 most guil‘ ty-looking man who is guilty." "Oh, there's no doubt in this case “You don’t believe him guilty 7" "Not a. scrap more than I am my- self.” "Thank God I” And then She swayed; but a, few sharp words from the detective actâ€" ed like a tenic. "Come, come, no fainting! I am down here to help the prisoner, and you must help me.” She was hérsclf again in a. mom-_ ent. ofl’lcm- to the a chance of .' â€"say goodâ€"b; will wait for talk to you.’ And that opinio [Ice sergczmt's mm a. better idea of it Perhaps it, was like that, to when all the “'hi] for information. a bad idea. He self the next timc; Murder eh ?" "Never been one except last year; Sir George’s Wife was murdered on the road some few miles from here." "What do you put on your face after shaving ‘2” asked the man who smelled of bav rum. "Com-tâ€"plas’cer usually,“ xepiied the nervous chap, so plain to them. ‘ 0 recent quarrel be'twco phew and the surreu 111cc into He houscu 7801‘geant," lte whispered, “if 1'10 careful I should not wonder if 1 got promoted over this little m. 11y that opinion coinciding with gonnth own, he began to have ‘1' idea of the London detective s it was his way to work hat, to pretend friendliness ill the while he was pumping )l'mation. After all, it. Wasn’t; idea. He would try it him- 3 next time he got a chance. (To be Continued.) two‘s imprisonment whiist the real muu'dercx', you know. w"â€"â€"-he put his arln through goaut's, and [ed that mystified ,0 the door to give the ldvers ‘e of a mom private farewell, nodâ€"bye. And you, miss, I lit for. 1 want to hme a face a truly rural sort of place. don’t crop up too often jug of RIM n1 poli ul 1‘0 Loo sure that t so-w by the SO :1 :onsiderably be :' an hour on \ad heard the in, practically, narrators were local sergeant. afe custody of :on threw cold acumen of Il‘goant look- 110 London by inn-03.80.] 1g and tam".â€" titious It, was Thurc was 11 uncle and s the nose 's;-â€"just a lore than vc learnt moat guil- foreâ€"- you our. the King Edward Used to be an Ath- lete, and the King of Spain. Likes Ping-Pong. Certainly no other crowned head in the world has ever become pro- ficient at so many different. games and sports as King Edward VII. He was more of a. wet than a dry bob in his early youth, and could pull a good om‘ with anyone. He never took kindly to cmquct, considering it too SIOW, but hockey he simply King Leopold of Belgium is the keenest of golfers. He has his own private course near Ostend, and this is said to be one of the finest on the Continent of Europe. King Leos pold's great height enables him to make a. long drive. The Tsar has alâ€" so played golf, but the Kaiser. on the other hand, will have nothing to do with the game. He CONSIDERS 1T T00 SLOW. No game is more generally popular in Royal circles than billiards. In fact, the majority of European rulâ€" ers play. Our King, the Tsar, the King of Portugal, the youth King of Spain, and the King of Greece may be mentioned as all being fond of billiards. Even the Shah of Persia is a. player of no mean order. While on his recent European tour, the Shah played billiards almost every day, his usual opponent being his Minister of Public Works. No single individual has more or finer billiardâ€"tables than the Sultan of Morocco. He recently ordered his eleventh from a French maker. But. his skill at billiards is not so great as it is at tennis. THE MANY GAMES THAT ROYALTIES PLAY. a good our with anyone. He never took kindly to cquuct, considering it. too SIOW, but hockey he simply delighted in, and he. was especially keen upon hockey on the ice. a game which he used to play on the lake at Sandringham up to'a. time when his sons were old enough to take part in it with him. So devoted was the King to lawn tennis that, when, as Prince 01' Wales, he was starting on his famous tour to India, he insisted on having a tennis court. arranged on the deck of the Serapis. It was surrounded with lofty netting, and there His Royal Highness was ready to play all day, however great the heat. Bowls has been a. pot. game of the King for many years, and he is no mean performer at quoits. Billiards he has alWays been fond of, and the table at San-dringham is a very per- fect one. Latterly His Majesty has not played billiards much, but he used at one time to be able to take a. neat break of thirty. Among distinguished tennis players must be mentioned the Sultan of Morocco. To tennis, indeed, he gives more attention than he does to the afi‘airs of State. He generally imâ€" ports Englishmen to play with him, as his own subjects do not, take kindly to the game. The exâ€"Queen of Madagascar, Ranâ€" avalonajoka III., is an adept at bilâ€" liurds. Once she preferred kiteâ€"flying to any other amusement, but since her enforced residence in France, she 'flnds that this pursuit attracts too much public attention, so she has turned to billiards instead, and is said to play a very fair game. Ballooning is coming more and more into favor as a. Royal amuse- ment. The Archduke Leopold Salvaâ€" tor, with his wife and seven-year~ old daughter, and accompanied by the Princess Therese (daughter of the Regent of Bavaria), recently took a, trip in the balloon Meteor. They rose to a height of 5,000 feet, and crossed the Danube. The}! were in the air for some three hours, and when they came down at Kornenburg they wired to the Emperor to tell him of their safe descent. The Kaisâ€" ‘er Wilhelm has always been most Of late he has taken to golf. He began about five years ago when staying in Germany. His approach- ing and putting are said to be bet- ter than his driving. He has a pri- vate course at Windsor. The King plays an excellent game of Whist, and at bridge he is also a. thorough and steady player. Football, for obvious reasons, is not usually included in the education of the heir to a throne. But crick- et the King has played. He never, however, cared much for it. THE PRINCE OF WALES is also a. rather indifierent performer with a hat, but plays a good game of tennis, and is one of the finest shots and horsemen in the Kingdom. Another Royal devotee to tennis is the German Kaiser. He used to play a. very fine game, but, of late, inâ€" creasing cares of State have prevent- ed his spending much time on ‘the court. The Kaiser’s brother, Prince Henry the Navigator, is a, capital athlete. On two Separate occasions he has jumped overboard and rescued men from drowning. The Prince resem- bles the Prince of Wales in being both a. sailor and a horseman. Durâ€" ing his visit last year to Ireland he played polo in the Phoenix Park. He helped to represent the Army and Navy against a civilian team. Prince Henry must also be numbered among the ranks of Royal tennis players. Golf has a fairly large following among Royal circles. The Grand Duke Michael of Russia is the best of Royal performers. He has taken to the game since his residence in England. His wife, the Countess Togby, is also a good player. QUEENS WHO FLY KITES anxious to take a balloon trip. I( has been only the urgent representax tions of his advisers that have pro! vented his doing so. THE SULTAN OF MOROCCO is perhaps the only monarch Wha owns a. ballon. It. was ordered by him from Mons. Surcoup, the Franch‘ aeronaut. It measures 900 cubic yards. and is of the newest military type. The car is a model of elegance and cushioned in velvet. Attached is a. telephone by which connnunicuâ€" tion can be held with Lhe ground. Russia’s Tsar has been called a. very serious young man, but anyone who had ever seen him playing ping- pong' would certainly retract flint opinion. Although ping-pong has seen its best days in England, it is still popular on the Continent. The Kaiser plays it; King Leopold say! it. nITm-ds excellent exercise on a. wet Amongst European Royalties, thd two strongest are probably Princt George of Greece and the Tsaz‘evitch.~ Both these young men are very fond of boxing. The latter is a. pupil of an American athlete named L. J. Phclan, Phelnn declares he never had a better one. The young King of Spain is cred itod with remarking that when he has time for it he intends to go in strongly for pingâ€"pong. Even the Sultan of Turkey is said to have succumth to its fascination. If this is a fact, it is probably the only active game this monarch has eve played. He indulges, however, m cllgss, and if an excellent, pianist. As for Prince George, it is on row cord that his pOWers with his fist: once saved his life when he was at< tacked by roughs in the streets of Athens. There were three assailant: but the Prince polished them all 06 neatly. Fencing is taught Royalties. wields the foils excellently. So in his youth did King Carlos of Portu< gal. The latter is the finest. swim- mer among living Royalties, and al< so the most wonderful marksman. He recently won the Gastinne Renetta Medal in Paris, putting twelve shots in succession into a. running rabbit target. His Wife is, curiously enough, an adept at the same two sports, and the young Queen of Italy, Helena. is said‘ to be a crack shot with both rifle and revolver. The Duchess Carl Theodore of Bavaria and her sister, the Archduchoss Carl Ludwig, both handle a. light double-barrel with great skill. Queen Helena's brotherâ€"inâ€"IaW, ths Duke of the Abruzzi, is best known as a. Polar explorer. But, he is also a. magnificent mountain climber. To him belongs the record of the first ascent of the “Dames Anglaises,” which forms part of the Matterhorn. The Duke is a splendid fencer and shot, and also plays racquets and fives. Speaking of fencing the President of the United States must be men- tioned as a. skilful fencer with both rapier and broad sword. Recently he received a. nasty injury in the shape of a wound under the eye dur- ing a. fencing bout. Mr. Roosevelt is also a. good Wrestler. A professor of physical culture comes to the White House every day for a. wrestling bout. There are, says Engineering, 2,000 building societies in Great Britain and Ireland, having 600,000 members and $262,000,000 sterling in funds; 28,000 bodies, registered under the Friendly Societies’ Act, have 12,- 000,000 members and $13,000,000 in funds; 2,000 co-operative societies have 2,000,000 members and £40; 000,000 in funds; and 600 trade un- ions have more than 1,500,000 mem- bers, with nearly £5,000,000 in funds. In the 13,000 postofilce and other anings banks, there are more than 10,000,000 depositors, and over £2,000,000 sterling invested. It appears that in the nearly 50,000 thrift organizations with which the Registry of Friendly Societies has to deal, there are 27,000,000 of persons interested, and £360,000,000 engag- ed. ' “See that man ?" “The one with such a \figorous am healt‘y l:~olc 7" “Yes, You wouldn’t think he huc one foot in {he grm‘c, would you ’2' “No, inclccdâ€" He looks the pic- ture of health.” “Well, he is.” "What made you say lze had om foot in the game, then ?” "Because he has. He lost his foot in a. railway accident, and it was buried. You'd never think he coulc walk so naturally with a. cork ioot.’ But the man had gone, and 1:0 Was left to tall: to \‘acanry. The latest idea of the President is to bécome a. cricketer. He has en- gaged a. professional, and has recent- ly been playing with him and his own sons.â€"Pearson's Weekly. being I] ere a year. " “That's strange. All Ll‘ just getting to know W’i ft Wife: "The Swintm SOME BRITISH STATISTICS THE KING OF SPAIN King of Spain is cred marking that when he ‘ it he intends to go in A UG H’F AGAIN. birth to all callod a. but anyone aying ping- (1a young 01H m1 U‘C