IS MAINLY SCANDALOUS “And he died mysteriously?” “The doctors certified that he died from natural causes—heart failure.” “That is what the world believes, of course. His death was a nation’s loss, and the truth was hushed up. But you, Phil Poland, know it. Upon the floor was found something—a cigar—eh?” “Nothing very extraordinary in that, surely? He died while smoking.”... more...

THE YOUNG LORD. “Lay not up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust do corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal. “But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal. “For where your treasure is, there will your heart be also.”—St. Matt. vi. 19, 20, 21. “How can we reward the... more...

A word of explanation may help to an understanding of this record of a brief journey in China, in 1911, in the last quiet months before the revolution. No one who has ever known the joy of hunting impressions of strange peoples and strange lands in the out-of-the-way corners of the world can ever feel quite free again, for he hears always a compelling voice that "calls him night and day" to go... more...

CHAPTER I. THE TWIN EAGLETS. Autumn was upon the world -- the warm and gorgeous autumn of the south -- autumn that turned the leaves upon the trees to every hue of russet, scarlet, and gold, that transformed the dark solemn aisles of the trackless forests of Gascony into what might well have been palaces of fairy beauty, and covered the ground with a thick and soundless carpet of almost every hue of... more...

CHAPTER I.   . . . THIS ancient city,  How wanton sits she amidst Nature's smiles!   . . . Various nations meet,  As in the sea, yet not confined in space,  But streaming freely through the spacious streets.—YOUNG.   . . . His teeth he still did grind,  And grimly gnash, threatening revenge in vain.—SPENSER. "PARIS is a delightful place,—that is allowed by all. It is... more...

CHAPTER I Siegfried was born a Prince and grew to be a hero, a hero with a heart of gold. Though he could fight, and was as strong as any lion, yet he could love too and be as gentle as a child. The father and mother of the hero-boy lived in a strong castle near the banks of the great Rhine river. Siegmund, his father, was a rich king, Sieglinde, his mother, a beautiful queen, and dearly did they love... more...

CHAPTER I THE FOUNDATIONS OF ENGLAND 55 B.C.—A.D. 1066 "Ah, well," an American visitor is said to have soliloquized on the site of the battle of Hastings, "it is but a little island, and it has often been conquered." We have in these few pages to trace the evolution of a great empire, which has often conquered others, out of the little island which was often conquered itself. The mere... more...

ALL YOU COULD WISH FOR Ease of operation and convenience in carrying, lens and shutter equipment, quality of results and price—these, together with unquestioned reliability, are the factors which logically should determine the selection of a camera in every case. Anyone who contemplates the purchase of a camera, and who will make his selection upon this basis will find in the Premo line all that he... more...

CHAPTER I "The whole of this modern fabric of existence is a living lie!" cried Marzio Pandolfi, striking his little hammer upon the heavy table with an impatient rap. Then he dropped it and turning on his stool rested one elbow upon the board while he clasped his long, nervous fingers together and stared hard at his handsome apprentice. Gianbattista Bordogni looked up from his work without... more...

CHAPTER IAN OLD HOUSE There are certain old houses in New York City built of rose-colored brick and white stone which face Washington Square. On this morning in early winter a light snow covered the ground and clung to the bare branches of the shrubs and trees. In a drawing-room of one of the old houses a young girl was moving quietly about at work. She was alone and the room was almost entirely... more...