d without ostentation as becomes
a world's reformer, a distributing office on each one of the four. Somehow
I could never work myself up to be really alarmed at jolly ANNA BALABANOFF,
but I fancy she has done as much harm since as most people achieve here on
earth. Her job was to work into Italy; but in those days, when war
conditions still prevailed, she couldn't do much more than stand on the
shores of the Lake of Lugano and scowl at the opposite side, which is
Italian. Do you remember the lady's photograph in our daily Press? If so
you will agree with me that even that measure was enough to start unrest in
Italy....

Charles, my lad, let us break off there and leave you for a week all of a
tremble. In the course of these Sensational Revelations we are going to see
something of the arrangements made for the break-up of the old world,
which, with all its faults, we know we still love. The process of
reconstruction is not yet defined, and will probably not be attempted in
our time. In any case, when things arrive at that stage, there will be no
Charles and, I am still more sorry to say, no Henry.

Now, whatever you may think about it, I for one am not prepared to be
scrapped and to become part of a dump of oddments waiting instructions for
removal from a Bolshevist Disposals Board. You know what these Disposal
Boards are; one's body might lie out in the rain for years while the
minutes were being passed round the Moscow Departments. I have worried
myself to death about it, and now I am going to worry you. I am going to
make your flesh creep and your blood run cold. No use your telling me you
don't care what is coming along in the future, provided you can be left in
peace for the present. _I shall tap you on the shoulder and shall whisper
into your ear the resolutions passed with regard to you as recently as the
end of July last at Moscow._. I'll make you so nervous that you daren't get
into bed, and, once in bed, daren't get out again. I expect to have you mad
in about three weeks, and even then I shall pass more copies of this paper,
with more revelations in them, through the bars of your asylum window.

All that for sixpence a week is not expensive, is it, dear Charles?

Yours ever,

HENRY.

(_To be continued._)

* * * * *

[Illustration: _Officer._ "WHEN YOU SEE A MOON LIKE THAT, THOMPSON, DOESN'T
IT SOMETIMES MAKE YOU FEEL A LITTLE BIT SENTIMENTAL?"

_P.O._ "NO, SIR, I CAN'T