Evening Republican, Volume 18, Number 57, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 7 March 1914 — The Flight of the Princess [ARTICLE+ILLUSTRATION]

The Flight of the Princess

An Audacious Hazard of Nikolai, Independent Agent, as Related by His Lieutenant, Summers

By H. M. EGBERT

(Copyright, 1913, by W. G. Chapman)

Nikolai had unfolded his scheme to me as our train ran through the pleasant, fertile plains of Saxony. “What would deter you, Summers,” he said, “is the rank of the persons most intimately concerned. Now to 1 my mind that is the best guarantee of success for our undertaking. You can strike at kings and queens where you cannot with impunity attack those of lower rank. Why ? Because these persons, being themselves outside the law, are loath to have recourse to it We take our lives in our hands, it is true, but we revert to the old conditions when each man was a law tjnto himself. I think we can succeed just because of the improbability of such an attempt And we can hold her to heavy ransom for the cause.” "But a princess!” I urged. “Where can we hold her?” “If once we get her into our automobile,” said Nikolai, “no power on earth can hinder us. We take her direct to the old castle that we have rented for the summer; it is two miles from any habitation and escape would be impossible. “But I admit,” he added, meditatively, “that an accomplice within the castle would help us materially.” He fell to thinking and would speak no more. Our plans were as follows: The Princess of Cassel-Wexel was to be married to the Polish Prince Poniatowski. The marriage was viewed with great aversion by the subjects of the tiny principality of eastern Germany, while the princess herself was rumored to cherish no unkindly feeling toward a handsome but impecunious guards officer, whose aspirations were, of course, destined to remain unfulfilled. Possibly, in these days of democracy, the king might in the end have given his consent; but the Polish marriage was necessary in the interests of state, and czar and kaiser had set their hearts on it. So it seemed improbable that anything could avert the approaching nuptials. But two weeks were to intervene before their consummation. Nikolai’s scheme was to obtain admittance to the castle in the guise of an under-ser-vant or of an American chauffeur, the supply of whom, for the many royal automobiles, was constantly beneath the demand. Then, with me as his assistant, we were to entice the princess for a ride, to kidnap her, and to secrete her in our castle, twenty-four miles away, and well within the borders of an unfriendly state, until a ransom could be arranged. We put up at the little capital town, dominated by the castle of the king of Cassel-Wexel, which seemed entirely to overshadow the narrow streets that engirdle it. In spite of the popular prejudice against the marriage, Hoch Cassel was en fete, and flags, bearing the Russian and German arms, hung from every window. Nevertheless, scraps of conversation that we overheard, contemptuous references to “the Polak,” whose carriage driven by magnificent bays, raced through the streets at all hours to the imminent danger of worthy citizens’ necks, bore witness to the condition of the public mind. “A chauffeur and a mechanician!” exclaimed our landlord, when we broached to him the fact that we desired a position. “And Germans born, returning from America to the fatherland? -Young men, your fortunes are made. His Highness Prince Rudolph loves all Americans since his return from that country last spring. And he is installing Innumerable automobiles in place of his old carriages. Go up to the castle at once and ask for the Herr Chamberlain; he will take you on. Oh, the salary is liberal; two marks a day and everything found.” . That morning we succeeded in obtaining an interview with the Chamberlain. Both of us were thoroughly proficient in the running of automobiles and we were immediately assigned positions in the royal stables —Nikolai as a chauffeur, I as a cleaner. Each of the chauffeurs had two automobiles in his charge; it was his duty to have them always in good repair, and when any of the royal family desired to ride, the chauffeur went with the vehicle that was selected. The other men were of the mechanic type and regarded us with animosity, except young Schmidt, a splendid specimen of a man, and of a bearing which would have consorted rather with patrician stock than with the humble family from which he had sprung. We three roomed together in a quaint, old-fashioned apartment at the back of the stable, and all night long when our confidence had been established he raved of the princess. It would have become exceedingly monotonous, but for the fact that Nikolai and I saw in him a possible tool for the fulfillment of our design. "You have not seen her?” he exclaimed, as he got into bed. “Ah, the universe was not completed until God made her. Such eyes—they would melt the candles upon our lady’s altar. Such hair —radiant as the sun. And when she smiles —! And they would marry her to an insolent lowbrowed Polak, whom she despises.”

“I hope the princess will select my automobile when next she goes riding," said Nikolai. ■ The young mechanic burst into a roar of laughter. “Ho! ho! That’s a good one!” he laughed. “Why don’t you know that she never stirs from the castle unless an armed servitor accompanies her? Why, it is said that she is in love with a rascal of a guardsman, who would elope with her, and, though banished from Cassel-Wexel, is believed to be lurking in Hoch Cassel. No, my friend, you will never see the princess, into your automobile, for if you so much as turn your head when driving her you receive a month’s wages and dismissal on the spot” "Summers," said Nikolai. to me on the following morning, as we sat together in the stable, “there is only one course for us to pursue. That young Schmidt is a regular sentimental German, and it is evident that, in his clownish way, he has fallen in love with the princess and would die to serve her. Now to unfold our scheme to him would mean immediate disclosure and our arrest. We must enlist his aid under the pretense that we are secret agents of the princess, who wishes to escape to her lover. Under that belief he will join us in our scheme —possibly the princess will herself willingly come with us —and we will drive into the country. Then stopping the machine, we will induce young Schmidt to descend under some pretext or other and will at once start her again and leave him behind us. Could anything be simpler?" The plan did indeed seem feasible. On the following night, having received many confidences from Schmidt as to the princess’s dislike for her Polish suitor, Nikolai very cautiously led up to his plan. I was not prepared for what followed. Schmidt had been sitting upon his cot, half undressed, listening with open mouth. Of a sudden he sprang to his feet, and leaping across the room, sprang upon Nikolai and threw his arms around his neck and kissed him impetuously upon either cheek. “God has sent you here,” he cried. “I was the valet of the Herr Lieutenant von Offenbach, the princess’ lover, and he obtained this post for me, through a mutual friend in the wild hope that I could bring the princess to him. And days have passed and, beyond the Sending of a little note, I have been unable to do anything.” “Your note was received by the Princess, Schmidt,” said Nikolai, “and she has communicated with her lover, who lies hidden in an old-castle across the frontier. He sent us here; but now, how can we help?”“The princess knows,” cried Schmidt rapturously. “If we can gain access to her suite all will be easy. I will see her this afternoon and slip a note into her purse making an appointment, for I drive the state carriage in which she rides with the Polak to the cathedral for the ceremony of the betrothal.” On the next afternoon we saw Schmidt, seated motionless upon the box of the carriage, holding in the prince’s bays; and, peering cautiously through a chink in the stable doors—closed by the chamberlain’s orders—we saw a slight, girlish figure with a crown of fair hair, enter the carriage upon the arm of her father: Then the coachman whipped up the bays and the carriage disappeared in the direction of the capitol. “All is arranged,” said Schmidt that night. “I told her to drop her handkerchief in signal of acquiescence. Tomorrow night at eleven o’clock we climb —or I climb, rather'—to the window of her room by means of the ivy which dings to the wall. —Bhe will be waiting for us. I affix a rope, carry her down —and all is done.” “And the automobile?” asked Nikolai. “You can obtain a permit to stay until midnight in the stable under pretense of making repairs. At twelve the castle gates are closed and armed sentries parade the grounds. We must take the risk of passing them. Surely we can gain the entrance before they have time to shut the gates —and they will not dare to fire on the princess. Now you must have the automobile waiting, ready to start, and. the moment that we descend, we shall make a rush for It and away we go.” “The only undesirable feature of that program," said Nikolai, “is that the actual work will be performed by another. That clod of a German is our solo reliance." “He will not betray us," said I. “The , clown is dn admirable tool —and simple as a child- Why, in America such a man with latent Ingenuity and resources, would make his million; yet here he is content to remain a clown." “God sends clowns to help the wise.” said Nikolai. Our conversation had been in English, and, though Schmidt knew that we had spent years in America, he was manifestly uneasy. Nikolai apologized for the use of the foreign tongue, and we spent the remainder of the evening discussing ways and

means until our plans had been completely worked out. , On the following day 1 managed to put the prince’s largest automobile out of commission by injuring the mo ,tpr. Then I reported the matter to the chamberlain, who cursed me freely. “Every day we need that machine for the guests who are* arriving,” he said. i P When he had cooled down I suggested that Nikolai and I could repair the damage that evening if we could obtain a permit to remain In the stable. He cast a sharp glance at me, hemmed and hawed, and finally consented. This was the first success; at eight o’clock we two were left alone In the converted stable where the machines were housed. “Mind you do good work,” grumbleC the chamberlain, coming on us suddenly and finding us seated in a corner discussing our project. “Curse you for a pair of Yankee idlers. You will mend that machine and make it as good as new or stay here all night until you have done so.” I laughed when he was gone. The injury was soon repaired, and we remained waiting fcr the appointed hour to arrive. Once Schmidt looked in cautiously and reassured us. “It is all right,” L j said. “But Caere is one difficulty—happily not z serious one. His Highness the Polak is put on one of his furious night rides. God grant we do not run into his bays, for they gallop like the wind, and heaven knows how many miles they could run before we distanced them. At eleven one of you watch the princess’s window. When you see the flicker of a match be ready.” At half-past ten, when the suspense

was beginning to be unbearable, the chamberlain paid us a surprise visit. "Well, fellows, have you mended the machine?” he asked. . “It is getting on,” said Nikolai, guardedly, assiduously bending over a spare tire, which he was carefully deflating. “It must be ready by morning,” stormed the chamberlain, tearing his hair. “His highness, the prince, requires it to go to meet the parents of His Higness Prince Poniatowski. Ten thousand devils! it is the best and fastest of them all.” “Calm yourself,” said Nikolai. "I mean, deign to be assuaged, Herr Chamberlain. We have located the injury. By twelve it will be mended.” We hoped he would go. But he stood there, having apparently taken a sudden and unexpected interest in the great racing automobile. We had to explain itq mechanism to him; he examined the motor, the gasoline tank; he wanted the cubic contents of the inflated tires. Did he suspect something? We had almost given up hope when, at five minutes before eleven, he rose suddenly and stretched himself. "The devil, but my old back aches,” he said, in a mollified tone. “His highness would raise the devil with me if the machine were not in running order tomorrow.” He strode to the door, and, as we followed him. I caught sight of a tiny spurt of flame at the princess’s window. The chamberlain perceived it,, too. He looked in astonishment up through, the clustering ivy; and then—l saw a

form that dung from the window sill, and presently a tiny, slippered foot protrude. Luckily I kept my self-possession. I ran back into the garage and began cranking furiously. I don’t know what Nikolai did, but a moment later I heard a stifled scream, the sound oY a fall upon wet turf; and then the chamberlain, his eyes protruding with horror, backed toward the garage. But all this while I was cranking and the automobile was commencing to snort like ar impatient race horse. Next momer’ 2Ahmidt and Nikolai came running into the garage, half leading, half carry ing~~flie princess. They placed' her in the automobile and sprang in. i cranked once more; suddenly the thing began to start, and as I leaped in—there was no time to steer for anything but the center of the door —the machine caught ■ the chamberlain in the middle of his broad back and hurled him dozen feet away. I heard the thud of his body; and then he began screaming. On the instant a blaze of electric lights appeared in the vacated npartment of the princess. “Here! Get out of this!” yelled Schmidt; and, pushing me aside, he took the wheel. The machine was leaping over the Prince of Cassel-Wex-el’s rose bushes. We rushed across the broad lawns toward where an open space appeared in the high wall that surrounded the castle. “Close the gates i" I heard somebody yell; and the cry seemed to be taken up on every side. But they were too late. Just as the iron gates began to turn inward we were through with a bound and a leap, and hurling up dust on the highroad that led into Hoch Cassel. I heard the cries behind us die away;

ble as the blunder appeared to be, we had left our revolvers in our “best” clothes. “Hark,” cried Schmidt again. Above the whir of our automobile, above the noise of f the wheels, we heard three sharp reports like pistol shots. Schmidt smiled grimly. - “The prince is urging his horses with his whip,” he said, and drove the machine on at full speed. We leaped over obstructions, we swayed from side to side, coming within an ace of overturning now in one ditch, now in another. And all the while r: heard the sound of the galloping bays. “He takes the shorter road down the ’ mountain,” said Schmidt. “At the crossroads, one mile ahead, we meet.” We said nothing; there was nothing tn say. We sat in silence behind the driver, whose arm still encircled the waist of the princess; and she seemed either to sleep or to be happy there. It was a strange denouement —that we, who had planned the plot, should thus play second fiddle to this clown. The sound of the horses’ hoofs grew louder. The crossroads appeared in front of us. And then, emerging from behind a cluster of trees, galloping furiously down the mountain side, we saw the coach of the prince, and a man upon the box who lashed his maddened horses. Suddenly Schmidt pressed the brake. There was a long grinding skid —and we came to a halt just as the driver pulled in his sweating team and rushed for our machhrs. “Hold the princess,” cried Schmidt, and rushed toward him. And then— Well, I do not know how it happened, but suddenly, before wo could collect ourselves for defense, the two of them were upon us, and in a trice we were pinned under them and help-

the lights in the castle windows, now all ablaze, drew together as we literally cut off the highroad abruptly and rushed the machine along a narrower path that led into the open fields. The night was dark, and here and there tiny lights flickered in farm-house windows. Nikolai caught Schmidt by the arm. “That is all very well, Schmidt,” he shouted, “but your way doesn’t happen to be ours. You are going in the wrong direction.” • 1 glanced at Schmidt. He sat impassively tn the seat, one arm encircling the body of the princess, who seemed to have fallen into a swoon. Her eyes were closed and her lipa slightly parted. “To the devil with you!” cried Schmidt, throwing off my companion’s arm. “Listen!” he added. On the highroad behind us there came faintly to our ears the sound of galloping horses. And there were six or eight of them. I knew what threatened us. These were the bays of Prince Poniatowski, and he had been alarmed and was in full pursuit. It seemed incredible that he dould overtake us. Doubtless he had been nearing the castle wh/sn the alarm had been given, and was trying to intercept us by some shorter route, for the sounds now came from a road parallel with ours, some fifty yards away, which I could see gleaming like a broad, white ribbon as the moon emerged suddenly from under a cloud. "We must shake him off,” Schmdit cried. "Have you < pUto!?*!.. Neither of us was armed. Incredi-

less. I felt a pistol pressed against my forehead. I looked up into the laughing eyes of Schmidt. And the man with him was not the prince, as I had seen his photograph in the shop windows of Hoch Cassel, but a young fellow of about Schmidt’s age and build and carriage. "Gentlemen,’’ said Schmidt calmly, "since you are at our mercy, yield and giva us your pledge to obey our instructions. I should be loath to kill you.” "Who are you?” spluttered Nikolai. "Herr Lieutenant von Offenbach, at your service,’’ said Schmidt, bowing. "Gentlemen, my brother. Do you pledge yourselves?” We did. We had to. We got into the automobile again and the five of us proceeded at a more leisurely pace, leaving the prince’s coach standing in the road, the horses trembling and shivering in front of it. "I will not ask you what your motives were, gentlemen, in seeking to steal my promised bride,” said the lieutenant. "It may have been some chivalrous intent, or some more sinister reason. But inasmuch as you have played Into my hands, I thank you. “I own that at one time I had begun to despair, imagining you to be spies of the Polak, until I happened overhear some of your very frank English conversations, which, needless to say, I understood perfectly. It was then that I contrived to have my brother, who was acting as tbe PolaK's coachman, run away with his team and pre-

• i " tend to pursue us. The actual distance covered by the coach was less than a mile. The sounds came clearly at night from that mountain road — and your Imagination did the rest I do not think he could have caught us had not the route he was to take been careful* laid out by us in advance. “1 am now taking my bride across the frontier, where before the night is gone, we shall be united according to the rites of the Roman Catholic church, which, as you know, are indissoluble. I trust that I may have the pleasure of your company as witnesses.” “Well,” whispered Nikolai, after a pause, “we thought that we were making use of our friend Schmidt, but it seems that he was making tools of us. Confound him,” he added, suddenly enraged. “We played into his hands at every step. Why, we even cranked up his automobile for him.” "And ran over the chamberlain,” I added, laughing at the recollection. “And lost our ransom.” continued Nikolai in a whisper. “We 11 . I said, “we’re here and we •- can’t help it. And so let ns say ’goodluck’ to them.”

THEY PLACED HER M THE AUTOMOBILE.