“Don’t take it too hard, my boy,” he continued. “The world is wide. It would be easy to find a thousand places where your antecedents would be neither known nor questioned. You might be very happy elsewhere and there are a hundred thousand girls as beautiful and sweet as Virginia Maxon—remember that you have never seen another, so you can scarcely judge.” 

 “Why did he ever bring me into the world?” exclaimed the young man suddenly. “It was wicked—wicked—terribly cruel and wicked.” 

 “I agree with you,” said von Horn quickly, seeing another possibility that would make his future plans immeasurably easier. “It was wicked, and it is still more wicked to continue the work and bring still other unfortunate creatures into the world to be the butt and plaything of cruel fate.” 

 “He intends to do that?” asked the youth. 

 “Unless he is stopped,” replied von Horn. 

 “He must be stopped,” cried the other. “Even if it were necessary to kill him.” 

 Von Horn was quite satisfied with the turn events had taken. He shrugged his shoulders and turned on his heel toward the outer campong. 

 “If he had wronged me as he has you, and those others,” with a gesture toward the court of mystery, “I should not be long in reaching a decision.” And with that he passed out, leaving the door unlatched. 

 Von Horn went straight to the south campong and sought out Bududreen. Motioning the Malay to follow him they walked across the clearing and entered the jungle out of sight and hearing of the camp. Sing, hanging clothes in the north end of the clearing saw them depart, and wondered a little. 

 “Bududreen,” said von Horn, when the two had reached a safe distance from the enclosures, “there is no need of mincing matters—something must be done at once. I do not know how much you know of the work that Professor Maxon has been engaged in since we reached this island; but it has been hellish enough and it must go no further. You have seen the creatures in the campong next to yours?” 

 “I have seen,” replied Bududreen, with a shudder. 

 “Professor Maxon intends to wed one of these to his daughter,” von Horn continued. “She loves me and we wish to escape—can I rely on you and your men to aid us? There is a chest in the workshop which we must take along too, and I can assure you that you all will 

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