A NEW KING IN LUTHA
As the two riders approached the edge
of the village of Blentz a sentry barred their way.
To his challenge the American replied that they were
“friends from the castle.”
“Advance,” directed the
sentry, “and give the countersign.”
Barney rode to the fellow’s
side, and leaning from the saddle whispered in his
ear the word “Slankamen.”
Would it pass them out as it had passed
Maenck in? Barney scarcely breathed as he awaited
the result of his experiment. The soldier brought
his rifle to present and directed them to pass.
With a sigh of relief that was almost audible the
two rode into the village and the Austrian lines.
Once within they met with no further
obstacle until they reached the last line of sentries
upon the far side of the town. It was with more
confidence that Barney gave the countersign here, nor
was he surprised that the soldier passed them readily;
and now they were upon the highroad to Lustadt, with
nothing more to bar their way.
For hours they rode on in silence.
Barney wanted to talk with his companion, but as
king he found nothing to say to her. The girl’s
mind was filled with morbid reflections of the past
few hours and dumb terror for the future. She
would keep her promise to the king; but after life
would not be worth the living; why should she live?
She glanced at the man beside her in the light of the
coming dawn. Ah, why was he so like her American
in outward appearances only? Their own mothers
could scarce have distinguished them, and yet in character
no two men could have differed more widely. The
man turned to her.
“We are almost there,”
he said. “You must be very tired.”
The words reflected a consideration
that had never been a characteristic of Leopold.
The girl began to wonder if there might not possibly
be a vein of nobility in the man, after all, that she
had never discovered. Since she had entered his
apartments at Blentz he had been in every way a different
man from the Leopold she had known of old. The
boldness of his escape from Blentz supposed a courage
that the king had never given the slightest indication
of in the past. Could it be that he was making
a genuine effort to become a man to win
her respect?
They were approaching Lustadt as the
sun rose. A troop of horse was just emerging
from the north gate. As it neared them they saw
that the cavalrymen wore the uniforms of the Royal
Horse Guard. At their head rode a lieutenant.
As his eyes fell upon the face of the princess and
her companion, he brought his troopers to a halt, and,
with incredulity plain upon his countenance, advanced
to meet them, his hand raised in salute to the king.
It was Butzow.
Now Barney was sure that he would
be recognized. For two years he and the Luthanian
officer had been inseparable. Surely Butzow would
penetrate his disguise. He returned his friend’s
salute, looked him full in the eyes, and asked where
he was riding.
“To Blentz, your majesty,”
replied Butzow, “to demand an audience.
I bear important word from Prince von der
Tann. He has learned the Austrians are moving
an entire army corps into Lutha, together with siege
howitzers. Serbia has demanded that all Austrian
troops be withdrawn from Luthanian territory at once,
and has offered to assist your majesty in maintaining
your neutrality by force, if necessary.”
As Butzow spoke his eyes were often
upon the Princess Emma, and it was quite evident that
he was much puzzled to account for her presence with
the king. She was supposed to be at Tann, and
Butzow knew well enough her estimate of Leopold to
know that she would not be in his company of her own
volition. His expression as he addressed the
man he supposed to be his king was far from deferential.
Barney could scarce repress a smile.
“We will ride at once to the
palace,” he said. “At the gate you
may instruct one of your sergeants to telephone to
Prince von der Tann that the king is returning
and will grant him audience immediately. You
and your detachment will will act as our escort.”
Butzow saluted and turned to his troopers,
giving the necessary commands that brought them about
in the wake of the pseudo-king. Once again Barney
Custer, of Beatrice, rode into Lustadt as king of
Lutha. The few people upon the streets turned
to look at him as he passed, but there was little
demonstration of love or enthusiasm.
Leopold had awakened no emotions of
this sort in the hearts of his subjects. Some
there were who still remembered the gallant actions
of their ruler on the field of battle when his forces
had defeated those of the regent, upon that other
occasion when this same American had sat upon the
throne of Lutha for two days and had led the little
army to victory; but since then the true king had been
with them daily in his true colors. Arrogance,
haughtiness, and petty tyranny had marked his reign.
Taxes had gone even higher than under the corrupt
influence of the Blentz regime. The king’s
days were spent in bed; his nights in dissipation.
Old Ludwig von der Tann seemed Lutha’s
only friend at court. Him the people loved and
trusted.
It was the old chancellor who met
them as they entered the palace the Princess
Emma, Lieutenant Butzow, and the false king. As
the old man’s eyes fell upon his daughter, he
gave an exclamation of surprise and of incredulity.
He looked from her to the American.
“What is the meaning of this,
your majesty?” he cried in a voice hoarse with
emotion. “What does her highness in your
company?”
There was neither fear nor respect
in Prince Ludwig’s tone only anger.
He was demanding an accounting from Leopold, the man;
not from Leopold, the king. Barney raised his
hand.
“Wait,” he said, “before
you judge. The princess was brought to Blentz
by Prince Peter. She will tell you that I have
aided her to escape and that I have accorded her only
such treatment as a woman has a right to expect from
a king.”
The girl inclined her head.
“His majesty has been most kind,”
she said. “He has treated me with every
consideration and respect, and I am convinced that
he was not a willing party to my arrest and forcible
detention at Blentz; or,” she added, “if
he was, he regretted his action later and has made
full reparation by bringing me to Lustadt.”
Prince von der Tann found
difficulty in hiding his surprise at this evidence
of chivalry in the cowardly king. But for his
daughter’s testimony he could not have believed
it possible that it lay within the nature of Leopold
of Lutha to have done what he had done within the
past few hours.
He bowed low before the man who wore
the king’s uniform. The American extended
his hand, and Von der Tann, taking it in
his own, raised it to his lips.
“And now,” said Barney
briskly, “let us go to my apartments and get
to work. Your highness” and he
turned toward the Princess Emma “must
be greatly fatigued. Lieutenant Butzow, you will
see that a suite is prepared for her highness.
Afterward you may call upon Count Zellerndorf, whom
I understand returned to Lustadt yesterday, and notify
him that I will receive him in an hour. Inform
the Serbian minister that I desire his presence at
the palace immediately. Lose no time, lieutenant,
and be sure to impress upon the Serbian minister that
immediately means immediately.”
Butzow saluted and the Princess Emma
curtsied, as the king turned and, slipping his arm
through that of Prince Ludwig, walked away in the
direction of the royal apartments. Once at the
king’s desk Barney turned toward the chancellor.
In his mind was the determination to save Lutha if
Lutha could be saved. He had been forced to place
the king in a position where he would be helpless,
though that he would have been equally as helpless
upon his throne the American did not doubt for an
instant. However, the course of events had placed
within his hands the power to serve not only Lutha
but the house of Von der Tann as well.
He would do in the king’s place what the king
should have done if the king had been a man.
“Now, Prince Ludwig,”
he said, “tell me just what conditions we must
face. Remember that I have been at Blentz and
that there the King of Lutha is not apt to learn all
that transpires in Lustadt.”
“Sire,” replied the chancellor,
“we face a grave crisis. Not only is there
within Lutha the small force of Austrian troops that
surround Blentz, but now an entire army corps has crossed
the border. Unquestionably they are marching
on Lustadt. The emperor is going to take no chances.
He sent the first force into Lutha to compel Serbian
intervention and draw Serbian troops from the Austro-Serbian
battle line. Serbia has withheld her forces at
my request, but she will not withhold them for long.
We must make a declaration at once. If we declare
against Austria we are faced by the menace of the
Austrian troops already within our boundaries, but
we shall have Serbia to help us.
“A Serbian army corps is on
the frontier at this moment awaiting word from Lutha.
If it is adverse to Austria that army corps will cross
the border and march to our assistance. If it
is favorable to Austria it will none the less cross
into Lutha, but as enemies instead of allies.
Serbia has acted honorably toward Lutha. She has
not violated our neutrality. She has no desire
to increase her possessions in this direction.
“On the other hand, Austria
has violated her treaty with us. She has marched
troops into our country and occupied the town of Blentz.
Constantly in the past she has incited internal discord.
She is openly championing the Blentz cause, which
at last I trust your majesty has discovered is inimical
to your interests.
“If Austria is victorious in
her war with Serbia, she will find some pretext to
hold Lutha whether Lutha takes her stand either for
or against her. And most certainly is this true
if it occurs that Austrian troops are still within
the boundaries of Lutha when peace is negotiated.
Not only our honor but our very existence demands
that there be no Austrian troops in Lutha at the close
of this war. If we cannot force them across the
border we can at least make such an effort as will
win us the respect of the world and a voice in the
peace negotiations.
“If we must bow to the surrender
of our national integrity, let us do so only after
we have exhausted every resource of the country in
our country’s defense. In the past your
majesty has not appeared to realize the menace of
your most powerful neighbor. I beg of you, sire,
to trust me. Believe that I have only the interests
of Lutha at heart, and let us work together for the
salvation of our country and your majesty’s
throne.”
Barney laid his hand upon the old
man’s shoulder. It seemed a shame to carry
the deception further, but the American well knew that
only so could he accomplish aught for Lutha or the
Von der Tanns. Once the old chancellor
suspected the truth as to his identity he would be
the first to denounce him.
“I think that you and I can
work together, Prince Ludwig,” he said.
“I have sent for the Serbian and Austrian ministers.
The former should be here immediately.”
Nor did they have long to wait before
the tall Slav was announced. Barney lost no time
in getting down to business. He asked no questions.
What Von der Tann had told him, what he had
seen with his own eyes since he had entered Lutha,
and what he had overheard in the inn at Burgova was
sufficient evidence that the fate of Lutha hung upon
the prompt and energetic decisions of the man who sat
upon Lutha’s throne for the next few days.
Had Leopold been the present incumbent
Lutha would have been lost, for that he would play
directly into the hands of Austria was not to be questioned.
Were Von der Tann to seize the reins of government
a state of revolution would exist that would divide
the state into two bitter factions, weaken its defense,
and give Austria what she most desired a
plausible pretext for intervention.
Lutha’s only hope lay in united
defense of her liberties under the leadership of the
one man whom all acknowledged king Leopold.
Very well, Barney Custer, of Beatrice, would be Leopold
for a few days, since the real Leopold had proven
himself incompetent to meet the emergency.
General Petko, the Serbian minister
to Lutha, brought to the audience the memory of a
series of unpleasant encounters with the king.
Leopold had never exerted himself to hide his pro-Austrian
sentiments. Austria was a powerful country Serbia,
a relatively weak neighbor. Leopold, being a
royal snob, had courted the favor of the emperor and
turned up his nose at Serbia. The general was
prepared for a repetition of the veiled affronts that
Leopold delighted in according him; but this time
he brought with him a reply that for two years he
had been living in the hope of some day being able
to deliver to the young monarch he so cordially despised.
It was an ultimatum from his government an
ultimatum couched in terms from which all diplomatic
suavity had been stripped. If Barney Custer,
of Beatrice, could have read it he would have smiled,
for in plain American it might have been described
as announcing to Leopold precisely “where he
got off.” But Barney did not have the opportunity
to read it, since that ultimatum was never delivered.
Barney took the wind all out of it
by his first words. “Your excellency may
wonder why it is that we have summoned you at such
an early hour,” he said.
General Petko inclined his head in
deferential acknowledgment of the truth of the inference.
“It is because we have learned
from our chancellor,” continued the American,
“that Serbia has mobilized an entire army corps
upon the Luthanian frontier. Am I correctly informed?”
General Petko squared his shoulders
and bowed in assent. At the same time he reached
into his breast-pocket for the ultimatum.
“Good!” exclaimed Barney,
and then he leaned close to the ear of the Serbian.
“How long will it take to move that army corps
to Lustadt?”
General Petko gasped and returned
the ultimatum to his pocket.
“Sire!” he cried, his
face lighting with incredulity. “You mean ”
“I mean,” said the American,
“that if Serbia will loan Lutha an army corps
until the Austrians have evacuated Luthanian territory,
Lutha will loan Serbia an army corps until such time
as peace is declared between Serbia and Austria.
Other than this neither government will incur any
obligations to the other.
“We may not need your help,
but it will do us no harm to have them well on the
way toward Lustadt as quickly as possible. Count
Zellerndorf will be here in a few minutes. We
shall, through him, give Austria twenty-four hours
to withdraw all her troops beyond our frontiers.
The army of Lutha is mobilized before Lustadt.
It is not a large army, but with the help of Serbia
it should be able to drive the Austrians from the
country, provided they do not leave of their own accord.”
General Petko smiled. So did
the American and the chancellor. Each knew that
Austria would not withdraw her army from Lutha.
“With your majesty’s permission
I will withdraw,” said the Serbian, “and
transmit Lutha’s proposition to my government;
but I may say that your majesty need have no apprehension
but that a Serbian army corps will be crossing into
Lutha before noon today.”
“And now, Prince Ludwig,”
said the American after the Serbian had bowed himself
out of the apartment, “I suggest that you take
immediate steps to entrench a strong force north of
Lustadt along the road to Blentz.”
Von der Tann smiled as he
replied. “It is already done, sire,”
he said.
“But I passed in along the road
this morning,” said Barney, “and saw nothing
of such preparations.”
“The trenches and the soldiers
were there, nevertheless, sire,” replied the
old man, “only a little gap was left on either
side of the highway that those who came and went might
not suspect our plans and carry word of them to the
Austrians. A few hours will complete the link
across the road.”
“Good! Let it be completed
at once. Here is Count Zellerndorf now,”
as the minister was announced.
Von der Tann bowed himself
out as the Austrian entered the king’s presence.
For the first time in two years the chancellor felt
that the destiny of Lutha was safe in the hands of
her king. What had caused the metamorphosis in
Leopold he could not guess. He did not seem to
be the same man that had whined and growled at their
last audience a week before.
The Austrian minister entered the
king’s presence with an expression of ill-concealed
surprise upon his face. Two days before he had
left Leopold safely ensconced at Blentz, where he
was to have remained indefinitely. He glanced
hurriedly about the room in search of Prince Peter
or another of the conspirators who should have been
with the king. He saw no one. The king was
speaking. The Austrian’s eyes went wider,
not only at the words, but at the tone of voice.
“Count Zellerndorf,” said
the American, “you were doubtless aware of the
embarrassment under which the king of Lutha was compelled
at Blentz to witness the entry of a foreign army within
his domain. But we are not now at Blentz.
We have summoned you that you may receive from us,
and transmit to your emperor, the expression of our
surprise and dismay at the unwarranted violation of
Luthanian neutrality.”
“But, your majesty ” interrupted
the Austrian.
“But nothing, your excellency,”
snapped the American. “The moment for diplomacy
is passed; the time for action has come. You will
oblige us by transmitting to your government at once
a request that every Austrian soldier now in Lutha
be withdrawn by noon tomorrow.”
Zellerndorf looked his astonishment.
“Are you mad, sire?” he cried. “It
will mean war!”
“It is what Austria has been
looking for,” snapped the American, “and
what people look for they usually get, especially if
they chance to be looking for trouble. When can
you expect a reply from Vienna?”
“By noon, your majesty,”
replied the Austrian, “but are you irretrievably
bound to your present policy? Remember the power
of Austria, sire. Think of your throne.
Think ”
“We have thought of everything,”
interrupted Barney. “A throne means less
to us than you may imagine, count; but the honor of
Lutha means a great deal.”