I
THE MEDFORD MAIL TRIBUNE, MEDFORD, OREGON, THURSDAY, JANUARY (5, 1010.
6
IDE PERFUME OF
THE IflDY IS BLACK
Ily fi.VSTON I.KKOUX,
Author of "Tho Mystery of
(lie Yellow Itoflm."
Copyright, 1000, hy Mretnno's
CHAPTER. V.
The Castle of Horrors.
TTTjllEN lie alights nt the Caravan
14 1 station, whatever the reason,
y I the traveler might almost fan
I or himself In tlie garden of
Ilesporldes. whose golden Apples ex
cited tho desire of the conqueror of
the .Veraean lion.
When, nfter ullghtlrig from the train,
wo came to the bank of the sea our
eyes were struck by n datsllng sil
houette of a castle standing upon the
peninsula of Hercules, which tho
works accomplished on the frontier
have, alas, nearly destroyed. The ob
lique rays of the sun which were fall
ing upon the walls and tho old square
tower made the reflection of the tower
glisten In the waters like a breast
plate. Tho tower seemed to stand
guard Ilka an old sentinel over tho
bay of Garavan before us like a bluo
lake of Are.
Upon the lower steps of the stair
"way which led to a tower was the
charming figure of Arthur fiance's
wife, who had been the beautiful
Edlfh Prescott
The voice of the young wife was her
greatest charm, although the grace of
her entire being was perfect. Sho
greeted us In the simple fashion tho
fashion of the Ideal hostess. Uoulcta
bllle and myself made an effort to tell
her that we bad Intended to look for
a stopping place in the village. Sho
lifted her shoulders with a gesture
that was almost childish and 6a Id that
our rooms were all ready for as.
"Come, come! You bavent seen tnt
chateau. Oh. I will show you la
Louvo another time. It is the only
gloomy corner In the plnee. It makes
me shiver. But, do yon know, I lovo
to shiver! Oh. M. Itouletabllle. you'll
tell me stories that will make me
hlrer someday, won't you?'
And, chattering' thus, she glided In
front of us In her white gown. She
made a singularly pretty picture In
this garden of the orient between the
threatening old tower and the carved
stone flowers of the mined chapel.
And at our left Is the inunfense tow
er of the twelfth century, wnlcb. Mme.
Edith tells us. the natives call "la
Ixmve" and which neither time uur
war nor tempest has been able to de
stroy. It is Jnst as it appeared In
1107. when the Saracens were able to
make no headway In their attacks
upon it. It was there that Mine. Edith
bad chosen to have her roe,ms. 1
stopped looking nt the objects around
s to loolrat tho people. Arthur Itanco
'was gazing at Mme. Darzac when my
eyes fell upon them, and Itouletabllle
seemed to be lost in thought and far.
far away from us all. Darzac and
8tangersoh were talking in low tones.
The same thought was Oiling the
minds of each one of these people,
both those who kept silence and tboso
who If they spoko were careful to say
nothing which could give a clow to
the thoughts.
We bad passed through the postern
and found ourselves In another court
Opposite us was the old donjon, Its
appearance was more than impressive.
It was high and square, and It was on
account of Its shape that It was
known as the square tower. And as
this tower occupies the roost impor
tant corner of the fortification it was
also known as the corner tower.
"That tower yonder in the opposite
corner," went on Edith, 4ia the Tower
of Charles the Bold, so called because
he was the duke who furnished the
plana when it became necessary to
transform the defenses of the chateau
so as to mako them resist the attacks
of tho artillery. Old Bob has made
this tower his study. I have never
been able to refuse old Bob anything
lie wanted. Old Bob," she added, with
a charming smile, "Is my uncle. That
Is the name be taught me to call him
by when I was a little thing. Ho went
to Paris on the 5 o'clock train, but be
will bo back tomorrow. Ah, here Is uii
oublletto!"
'And she showed us In the center part
'of the second court a small shaft
which she culled romantically an oubli
ette and above which a eucalyptus
tree, with its white blossoms and its
leafless limbs, leaned like a woman,
"over a fountain.
Since we had entered tho second
court wo understood better the topo
graphical plan of tho Fort of Hercules.
The castlo hod been built In 1140 by
tho seigneurs of Mortola. In order
to Isolate it completely from the land
they had made an island of the pen In
milu by cutting away the narrow isth
mus wbtcb connected lr with the main
land. The Isthmus in tho course of
tho centuries had again resumed its
old form, tho drawbridge had been
thrown down, and tho trenches had
filled up. Tho walls of the Chateau
of Hercules followed the outllno of
the penlusula nud were built upon the
rocks, and tho latter In some places
extended over tho waters in such a
manner that a little ship might havo
taken shelter beneath them, fearing no
enemy while thus protected. This
building was marveloualy well adapted
for defense.
The fort was cntored by way of the
north gate, which guarded the two
towers, A uud A', conuected by u pus
euguwny, Theso. towers, which hud
suffered greatly during the last alogea
of the (lenooso, had boon repaired to
some slight extent some time after
j wurd nud had shortly before we came
to Kocben Houses boot) made habitable
by Mrs. Kuuce. who used tluun us serv
ants' quarters. The front of tho tow
er A served ns tuo Keepers lodge. A
! little door opened In the side of tho low-
or upon the passageway and enabled
I nuy one looking out to observe nil those
, who came or went. The entrance to
the castle was closed only by a little
gnto which any one might open nt
will. This entrance was the only ouo
by which it was possible to get Into
tho chateau. As 1 have said, lu pass
lug through this gate one found him
self In the first court, closed In on nil
sides by the walls and the towers. As
to tho towers B, B and B", which had
for a considerable time longer pre
served their uniformity nud their first
height and the pointed roofs of which
had been replaced by a platform de
signed to support the artillery, they
had later been razed to the height of
the boulevard parapets, and their
shape soemed almost like that of a
half moon. Tho new castle on the plan
Is nt C C.
La Louvc. as I have said, had not
been changed at all. but still reared
Its dark hulk against the blue waters
of tho Mediterranean, a strange, weird
figure, looking thousands of years old.
I have speken also of the ruins of tho
chapel. The noclent commons (shown
on the map by W), near he parapet j
between B and B', had been transform
ed into the stables and the kitchens.
One could only penetrate into the
second lnclosure through the postern
(Indicated by H), which Mrs. Arthur
Ranee called "the tower of the gar
dener" and which was actually only a
pavilion, formerly defended by the
tower B" nnd by another tower situ
ated at C and which had entirly dis
appeared at the time of the erection
, of the new castle (shown at O CO. A
moat and n wall started from B" to
( abut on I at the Tower of Charles tho
j Bold, advancing at C In the form of a
spur 10 tue miusi or me ursc court
nnd entirely Isolating the court, which
they completely closed in. The moat
ir'll exists, wide nnd deep, but tlx
M. Stnngerson was In "la Inivo," lu
the rear of tho Itanco suit.
Mme. Kdlth herself showed us Jo our
rooms, which recalled to us nothing of
that nmgnllleout past. They had boon
swept and garnished with a care that
was almost touching. As I have al
ready said, tho two Rleeplng rooms
were separated by n Utile parlor. '
After dressing for dinner t called !
Koulctnhlllu to ask him If bo were
ready. There was no answer. I wont
Into his room nnd discovered with
surprise that ho had already gone out.
1 went to tho window of his room. 1
which opened, like my own, upon tho ,
empty court. ' 1
But what was that dark shadow?
that ho would never touch wine ngaln.
Banco hud already known Miss Pros
cott's unohvtho duo old mail who boro
the ulcUnaiiio of "Old Bob" nnd wlu
was ns celebrated for bis advoitiurcs
as an oplotor ns for bis discoveries
as a geologist, llo seemed as gentle
ns a sheep, but ho had hunted many
a, tiger through tho pampas of South
America, lie had spout half his life
south of the Itto Negro among tho
Patagonlaus In seeking for the man
of the tertiary period, or, nt least, for
his fossils the man who must hnvo
been contemporaneous with the I in
menso mammoths and mastodons. He
generally returned from these o.tpodl
tlous with a respectable collection of
Standing erect nt tho prow of a little ttttins nnd femurs nnd also with a rich
tn of v h 1 n K n ft u H atp t t nt wnm v 1 1 1 '
keeping rhythmic ttma with tho two
oars. I recognised the form of Lar
snn. Why should 1 try to deceive my
self by saying even for ouo moment
that 1 was wrong? Ho was only too
easily to be recognized.
Oh, yea; It was ho! It was "tho
great Fred," as wo used to call him
when we looked upon him only ns the
wonderfully resourceful nnd brilliant
secret service ngent. Tho boat, silent,
with Its motionless statue at tho prow,
passed beneath the windows of the
square tower nud to the Bhorcs of the
Polnto do Garibaldi. The man stood
erect, his arms folded, his face turned
toward tho tower, a diabolical appari
tion on tho threshold of tho night.
display of skins of wild beasts, which
showed that the old snvnut knew how
to uso more modem arms than tho
stone ax nnd bow and arrow.
All theso details were given mo Inter
by Arthur itanco himself. Ho bad
been ono of "Old Bob's" pupils, but
had not seen him In many years until
he made tho acquaintance of Miss
Edith.
Miss Edith, upon tho occasion when
Arthur Banco had been presented to
her, hnd seemed somewhat more mel
nncholy than she usually was, because
she had received dlsquloting news of
her uncle. Tho latter for four years
buck hnd been absent In Patagonia.
In Ills last letter he bad told his nleco
i that ho waa HI and that ho feared that
wmcn slowly crept up behind him nnd he should uot llvo to see hor again.
enveloped aim in Its shades. Three months inter, howover. having
llhM hit hit.t ..nlttnt., I 1 ' . . .. .
" " . uuoum i iu i!ivu iuj . roceivcu nnomcr iciicr, sno suuucniy
eyes and beheld two figures in tho I resolved to go nil alouo to South Amor-
Court of Charles the Bold. They were
near the llttlo door of tho square tow
er. Ono of these forms the taller
was supporting the other nnd speak
ing in tones of entreaty. The smaller
attempted to break away, as if to
throw Itself into tho sea. I heard tho
voice of Mme. Darzac say;
uTIq "careful. It.
fiance. 1'ou shall not leave mo this
evening." itoulctabllle's voice answer
ed: "Ho must land upon the bank.
Let mo hurry to the bank." Mathlldo
spoko again. Her voice was terrible
to hear. "1. forbid you to touch that
man." '
HOCMJZ.
mem mat
mmrm,
lea and Join her uncle. During those
three mouths Important events had
transpired. Miss Edith hnd been
touched by the remorso of Arthur
Banco, and when Miss Prescott de
parted for Patagonia no ono was as
tonished to find that "Old Bob's" old
I pupil was going to accompany her. If
I Ihn nncmrrtmAnf tfrta tint nttlfln nn.
ferrcd to wait for the consent of tho
geologist. Miss Edith nnd Arthur
Banco were met nt St. Louis by tho
young womnu's uncle. Banco, who
hnd not seen him In years, declared to
him that he had, grown youuger. When
his nleco Informed htm of her engage
ment the uncle manifested great de
light. The three returned to Philadel
phia for tho wedding. Miss Edith had
never been In France, nud Arthur de
termined that their honeymoon should
be spent there, And It was thus that
they found, as will ho told a llttlo
later, a scientific reason for locating
In tho neighborhood of Mentonc, not
exactly In France, but a hundred me
ters' from the frontier, in Italy, at
Bochers Bouges.
PLAN 01? THE CASTLE OF HERCULES.
Tho gong hnd sounded for dinner,
and Arthur Banco was coming to look
for us, so wc repaired to "In Louve,"
In the lower ball of which we wcro to
dine. When we Vorc nil assembled
Mme. Edith asked whether any of us
had noticed a little boat which bad
mado tho circle of the fortress and In
which a man was stnndlng erect. The
man's strange nttltudo bad struck her.
she said, then added:
"Oh, I know who it la. for I know
the fisherman who rowed tho boat.
He Is a grent friend of 'Old Bob.' "
"Ah. then you know tho fisherman,
mndnme?" asked Routctabllle.
"Flo comes to the castle sometimes
to sell fish. Tho peoplo around the
village havo given him nn odd name,
which I don't know how to say in their
Impossible patois, but I can trnnslato
it They call him 'the hangman of
tho sea.' A pretty name, isn't It?"
Tho repast was ono of tho gloomiest
in my recollection. Tho specter of
Lnrsan hovered before our minds' eye;
we felt bis actual prcsonce.
(To be continued.)
LOS ANGELES IS
READY FOR MEET
0I Preparations (or Aviation Week
Completed Splendid Show Is
Promise.. Many Visitors
Aro Expected.
LOS AN'GKLKS, Jtui. O.-l'iopurn.
lions for aviation wook in tliia oilv
hnvo proceeded to the stage whom all j
tho wild-oyod enthusiasts in tho
aviation nnd aeronautical world, as
well ns thu absolute ornnlts, holiovo
tlial it is tli oir turn to gut into tho
game and denioustrnto what thoy can '
do, or, rather, what thoy think they
can do.
Tho Los Anngolen mooting in to bo
unite different from anything in tho
why of an exhibition of nirornft Hint '
has ovor boon nt tempted. WhoreuH
the Kttronunn moots havo boon more-'
ly competitions hotween aviators in
tests for distntico flights, high flights, '
and flights for speed and duration, i
tho Los Angeles moot will go much '
further than this in (hat it will have
every type of aircraft yot itivontod,
that lias shown any clement of huo
cess, and will afford tho flrnt oppor
tunity for tho gront nvintor to got
together nnd not only discuss nmong
themselves tho many advantages and
disadvantages of all tho various in
ventions, but to see them nil together
on one Held. Tho valtto of this to tho
men who aru making aviation hjstory
now cannot ho ovor-estimateu.
THE ROGUE RIVER LAND1 COMPANY
NO. 11 NORTH CENTRAL AVENUE
0 flora nn ospotMiilly irood foothill orchard for u low
price nnd. on good tornw. In Uicho dayu of advancing
priccH, it will pay to look into this.
' It puyia to deal with thj "Man Who Knows." When
tho l?oguo River Land Company wold tho Tronwon &
Guthrie orchard at Eaglo Point to tho priro winning
owners, four years ago, tho salesman, w. M. Holmes,
nnsuitjd (lie purchasers those Spitnonborgtrcos would
prodtrvo tho world's best apples, and subsequent erwita
prove tho soundness of his judgniont. By tho way:
Did St ever occur to you that moat of tho men who hare
won out in tho Rogue River Valley, bought thoir win
ning orchards through tho Roguo Rivor Land Com
pany? W. M. Holmes, Manager, is always at your aorvicc
for a good buy. '
TAXIDERMrST AND FURRIER
Send your trt)Vns to me for mount
ing. Dig gaan heeds, fish, birds and
rantnaanls Rtennted true to nature hy
improved mefhtdn. I do tanning, mnkr
fiw rugs, tnnke, remodel nnd cleat
fur garment. Express nnd mail or-
dars proBoptly attended to.
C. M. HARRIS.
405 Washinntoa Street, Portland, Or
Toleplwn Mwin 3(100.
WE DONT DELIEVE
YOU CAN BEAT TH-: J
Thirty-two aora a this tract, fi '
fmit land, abeut two miles fttj
a shipping pont. The buJldiw
conmnt of a fire -root box kmwo, I
good-wired barn, rte. There art '
12 nsres of 5 oafl ft-year-eld a;
pi en. inertly Ncwtowea, with eow-
laereuil poaen pheatod! beiww.
as finer. Mi three ootoh of
Konng poor fares und mm fussily
orchard. Fwr orefl in alfalfa.
Six or oicht aw f Wnber, fit
ly oak mid laurel. There in a
pumping plaat 0 Cko plooo which
mpplitfi water for & gardeo and
nMalfo, eiRipp4l witfe rnootiae
ongiuc. Alat 40 oda fm a
good Bchooi. T3ob rural Mnfl do
'livory aud taWpihone. Price
$10,fi00. Terms.
W. T. YORK & CO.
A New Year
of Prosperity
Is assured to
you if you pur
chase your
groceries of
Rex Grocery Co.
-trails had been toru down all the
length of the new castlo and replaced
hy the walla of the castle Itself.
Tho pavement of the Inner court
tho Court of Cbarlea the Dold, as tho
old guidebooks of thu country call It
still was a little higher than that of
the outer court. Ono could penetrate
into the old castlo only (designated
by F) by a llttlo door. K. The old In
habitants ot the country never spoke
of it except as the square tower, to
distinguish It from the round tower,
or tho Tower of Charles the Dold, as
they sometimes called the latter. A
parapet similar to the one which
closed in the outer court was built be
tween the towers B", P and L. closing
tho inner court as firmly as tho outer.
We have seen that the round tower
had been In years past torn down to
half Its former height.
This tower bad a number of Uny
chambers above and an Immense octa
gon chamber below. One descended
Into this chamber by a steep and nar
row stairway. The celling of tho oc
tagon room wns supported by four
great cylindrical pillars, and from Its
walls opened three enormous embra
sures for three enormous cannons. It
was of this room that Mme. Edith
had wished to make a dining room.
Tho great windows bad been enlarged
aud mado square, although they wero
still guarded by barriers of iron. This
tower (shown on tho map at L) was
tho spot chosen by Mme. Edith's uncle
for a workshop and tho abiding place
of bis collection.
Of thp chateau of tho seventeenth
century, known as tho now castle,
they had only repaired two bedcham
bers on the first floor and a llttlo sit
ting room for guosts. It was to these;
that Ilouletablllo and myself wero as
signed. The Darzacs wero lodged ip
the square tower. Two rooms tho
windows of which opened upon the
balcony were reserved In this square
tower for "Old Bob." who slant there.
I descended to the court, whero l
found Ilouletablllo alone. I spoko to
blm, but bo did not answer. I went
on Into tho outer court, and I saw
Darzac coming toward mo In greatest
excitement II 0 called out:
"Did you see him V
"Yes. I saw him," I replied.
"And sho my wife lo you know
whether sho saw him?"
"She saw him too. Sho was with
Iloulotablllo when he passed."
Robert Darzac was trembling like
an nspeu leaf, no told mo that when
ho saw tho boat and Its passbngcr bo
bad rushed like a madman to tho
shore, but that before be had reached
tho Polnto do Garibaldi the bark bad
disappeared as If by enchantment.
Darzac left me and hurried away to
seek Mathlldo. But he returned
gloomy and grieved, The door of his
wife's apartment was locked, and she
would not see blm.
Wo. remained together upon tho ram
part gazing at tho night which bad
carried Larsan away. In order to
change tho direction of his thoughts I
asked him a few questions regarding
tho Itanco household. Ho told mo that,
Bfter tho trial at Versailles, Itanco had
returned to Philadelphia, and tbero
one evening at a family dinner party
bo bad fouad himself seated besldo a
fbaralng young girl who had Interest
ed blm at once by a display of inter
est in Ilteraturo and art. Somowbat
haughty, yet gentlo and melancholy,
sho at onco recalled to the young man
tho heroines of Walter Scott, who, ho
soon learned, was her favorlto author.
From tho first sho attracted htm
strongly. But Itanco bad so far for
got himself as' to drink too much wine,
no never realized what his offenso
had boon, but bo knew that ho must
havo committed some frightful breach
of politeness when Miss Edith, with
boigbtcned jcoior, requested mm nor
to address her again. Upon tho mor
row he wont to call on tho young lady
and nntroated her uurdon. uweariuc
At Prices Strictly in
Keeping with the
Quality of 4 Our
Stock which is
Unexcelled
A Trial-will Convince You
Resolved
That with the beginning
of the New Year, I will
trade where I receive
the greatest value for my
money In other words
iERex Market
Huth & Pech Props. Phone 32?1
Allen Reagan
The Square Deal Grocers
P. O. Hanson. Tom Moffat
We make any kind and stylo of windows. Wo carry
glass of any size on hand.
Medford Sash & Door Co.
1
Wire to Us to
Wire for "You"
Why not got, in touch with tho best electrical con
tractors in Medford H Electrical work is too impor
tant and too "particularr" to bo left to anyone but
exports, and wo will not only do tho work skillfully
and perfectly, but supl tho best and most reliable
of appliances.
Southern Oregon Electric Company
TEL. 1091. 38 , jUTH CHtAPB
I