le sandy inlet. The bow of a
long black boat was resting on the sand, and six closely-blindfolded men
were sitting on the thwarts with oars out. Another stood on the beach
with the painter in his hands. The body of the Prince was carried from
the carriage to the boat, and laid in the stern sheets. Von Kessner and
Vollmar remained on board, and Phadrig went back to the carriage. At a
short word of command the oarsman backed hard, and the boat slid off the
sand into the smooth water of the little cove. Then she shot away and
melted into the light haze which hung over the outside sea.

The boat stopped under the shadow of the long, low-lying black hull of a
four-funnelled destroyer. A rope dropped from the deck and was made fast
by Vollmar in the bow. The blindfolded crew were helped up the ladder
which hung over the side and taken below forward. Then came a sharp
order: "All hands below"; and when the deck was deserted, Von Kessner
and Vollmar went up the ladder and were met on deck by Oscar Oscarovitch
in civilian dress. There was another man beside him in the uniform of a
lieutenant. He slacked off the tackle falls of the davits under which
the boat had brought up, dropped down the ladder and hooked them on.
When he got back to the deck the four men hauled first on one tackle
and then on the other, till the boat was up flush with the deck. The
falls were belayed, and Oscarovitch got into the boat and opened the
flap of the sleeping-sack. He touched the spring of an electric
pocket-lamp and looked upon the calm, cold features of his rival. Then
he buttoned down the flap again and returned to the deck. The four went
down into the cabin: glasses were filled with champagne, and as
Oscarovitch raised his to his lips, he said:

"Count and Captain Vollmar, I am satisfied. Let us drink to the New
Empire of the Russias and the sceptre of Ivan the Terrible!"

"And his illustrious successor!" added Von Kessner.

Within half an hour a small boat was lowered; the Chamberlain and
Vollmar got into it and rowed away toward the cove. The Russian officer
went on to the little bridge, signalled "full speed ahead" to the
engine-room, and then took the wheel. The screws ground the water astern
into foam, the black shape leapt forward and sped away eastward into the
glimmering dawn with its silent passenger lying in the swinging boat,
and the unseen watchers standing by the helmsman....

More earth-hours passed. The sun rose upon a lonel