clared, and thus the matter dropped.

In Petrograd late that night, after the usual evening assembly of the
sister-disciples, when all the women had departed and I was again alone
with the monk, Protopopoff arrived, and said jubilantly:

"Your words to Nicholas have borne fruit regarding Yakowleff. The Emperor
spoke to me on the telephone, and, acting on his instructions, I ordered
a police search, when some documents in cipher were found in a drawer in
his writing-table."

"And you arrested him?"

"No. He seems to have somehow got wind of what was in progress, for he
left Petrograd yesterday for Helsingfors, and has escaped!"

"Escaped!" shrieked Rasputin, springing to his feet in dismay.

"Yes. Gone back to London, I believe."

The monk knit his brows and stood stroking his unkempt beard. He was
thinking out some further devilish plot.

"Feodor," he said at last, turning to me, "write down what I say."

I crossed to the table, and when I was ready he dictated the following:

"In consequence of his traitorous dealings with emissaries of a
foreign Power, I, Nicholas, refuse to grant Ivan Yakowleff his
application for a concession for improvements at Otchakov, and
hereby grant the privilege unreservedly to Alexander Klouieff, of
48 Kurlandskaya, Petrograd. Further, I order the arrest of Ivan
Yakowleff and the confiscation of all his property."

Alexander Klouieff! The fellow was an ex-agent of secret police, a man
ready to do any dirty work, even murder, for Rasputin, if paid for it--a
low-bred criminal of the worst possible type! So the concession was to be
given to him, and he, of course, would in due course, in exchange for
payment, hand it over to the monk, who would share the huge profits with
his friends.

"Nicholas shall sign that to-morrow," Rasputin remarked with confidence.
"As soon as he has done so I will see that copies be sent to each of the
men in London who have subscribed, and they will no doubt prosecute
Yakowleff for fraud. In any case, he is ruined and cast out, so he no
longer stands in our path."

"Excellent!" said Protopopoff. "Does Klouieff know?"

"Of course not. I shall pay him something for the use of his name before
he knows exactly what has transpired," was the crafty reply of the
"blessed Gregory"--as so many termed him.

Two days later I went as usual to the palace with my master, and he took
me with him along to the Emperor's room, in case any