"Excuse a journalist's liberty in coming to you. I am the special correspondent of the St Petersburg Gazette and have come to do the Czar's visit, and I should very much like a word with you on the matter."
"I don't see where I can be of any help, but if there's anything I can tell you, fire away," I said. "I've had a couple of hours' drill this morning, however, and I have to be on the parade ground in less than an hour, so you must excuse me if I have my breakfast while we chat. But perhaps you'll join me?"
"With the greatest pleasure," and down he sat, and while the servant was in the room for the first few minutes, he chatted away like the bright and pleasant fellow he appeared to be. But as soon as my man had left the room, his manner changed suddenly and his voice took a direct earnest tone that made me look at him in some astonishment.
"Don't have that fellow back again. Is it all acting, or don't you really recognise me? I knew you in a moment."
"Did you? Well, I certainly don't know you. I never met a journalist——" He broke in with a short laugh and waved his hand with a quick gesture of imperative impatience as he stared at me hard. His manner annoyed me.
"Well, if you're not what you said you were, what the devil are you doing here? What do you want?" I felt like pitching him out of the place.
"Didn't you expect me?"
"Expect you? No; how should I?"
"Instructions were sent to prepare you."
"I can only say I haven't the ghost of a notion what you want."