A Narrow Escape

i the Beeond day after our arrival In Krasnoynrs'; we oarrowly escaped getting inio what miglit have been jerious trouble as the result ol au inexpected prequisiöon In the liouse of the acqualntance with whom Chamarín and Peterson were staylng. This acquaintance, it seenied. was under suspicion, and late in the evening, lurinr the absence of the two young i --...i i luir quartars, the pólice suddenly appeared with orders to makc a house-search. The search ivas duly made, but nothing of a suspieious nature was found except the two locked trunka of Bhamartn and Peterson. In reply to a question as to what was in them, the proprietor of the house Baid that he (lid not fcnow, that thcy were the property ol two of hls acquaintanees who had átopped íor a few days wlth Iiim on their way from Irkutsk to St. Peterslurg. L'pon being nsked where these acquaintances were, he replied that Jie (lid not know, that they usually vcnt out after dlnner and returned veen eleven and twelve o'clock. After a brief coñsnltátlon the polier officers declded that as thcy liad no orders to search the personal baggage of the house-ownerla guests they would not force the locks of bh trunks, but would merely cord and seal tlieni so that the contents could be tampered with and leavc them nntll morning. When Bhamarin and Peterson returned to thelr quarterers about midnight they fouad their trunks eord,! and sealed so tiiat they could not le opened. In one of them were many letters from political exiles and tonbe in Eastern siberia to (rienda and relaiives in Eviropean Kussia to co-opera te with me- and a photograph of myself that I had glven to marln with a dedication or inscription on the back that would reve;# to any intelligent pólice officer the Intímate nature of my relation with the political convicts. What was to be done? To break a pólice acal ander such circumstances would he a penal offense, and proba bly Lead to imprisonment and an Investlgation. To leave the letters and photograph in the trunk would be to insure their diHCovery and confiscation on the following morning, and that inight créate a very embarrassing simation for me, as well as for the authors of the letters and thelr biends. The two young men finally concluded to niake au attempt to get the trunk open without removing the cords or breaking the seals, and as the let t eis and photograph were mar the lxttom, and as the lid could not be raised even il' the trunk were unlocked, they decided to take out a part of the bottom and aïterwards replace i:. By working the rest of the night they succeeded in getting out one of the bottom boards, obtained tl1 dangerous letters and the photograph, put the board back without dlsturblng ing any ol the soals, and when the poliee came in tho morning stood by with unruïflod serenity and saw the tnmks searched. Of course nothing more dangeroua than a halr-brush, and nothing moro lncriminatlng iliau a hotel bill, could bc found. a bote] bill. could bé lound.- Oeorge Ki-nncn, in 8ept. Century.