Chapter 12: His Excellency

His Excellency President Tintinto, Chief Executive of one of the newer and cruder republics, visiting New York incognito with his Secretaries of War and of the Navy, had sent for John Recklow. And now the reception was in full operation.

Recklow was explaining. “In the beginning,” he said, “the Bolsheviks’ aim was to destroy everything and everybody except themselves, and then to reorganise for their own benefit what was left of a wrecked world. That was their programme--”

“Quite a programme,” interrupted the Secretary of War, with something that almost resembled a giggle. But his prominent eyes continued to stare at Recklow untouched by the mirth which stretched his large, silly mouth.

The face of the Secretary of the Navy resembled the countenance of a benevolent manatee. The visage of the President was a study in tinted chalks.

Recklow said: “To combat that sort of Bolshevism was a business that we of the United States Secret Service understood--or supposed we understood.

“Then, suddenly, out of unknown Mongolia and into the civilised world stepped eight men.”

“Yezidees,” said the President mechanically. “Your Government has sent me a very full report.”

“Yezidees of the Sect of the Assassins,” continued Recklow; “--the most ancient sect in the world surviving from ancient times--the Sorcerers of Asia. And, as it was in ancient times, so it is now: the Yezidees are devil worshipers; their god is Satan; his prophet is Erlik, Prince of Darkness; his regent on earth is the old man of Mount Alamout; and to this ancient and sinister title a Yezidee sorcerer called Prince Sanang, or Sanang Noïane, has succeeded.

“His murderous deputies were the Eight Khans of the Eight Towers. Four of these assassins are dead--Gutchlug, Yarghouz, Djamouk the Fox, and Yaddin-ed-Din. One is in prison charged with murder, --Albert Feke.

“Four of the sorcerers remain alive: Tiyang Khan, Togrul, Arrak, Sou-Sou, called The Squirrel, and the Old Man of the Mountain himself, Saï-Sanang, Prince of the Yezidees.”

Recklow paused; the pop-eyes of the War Secretary were upon him; the benevolent manatee gazed mildly at him; the countenance of the President seemed more like a Rocky Mountain goat than ever--chiselled out of a block of tinted chalk.

Recklow said: “To the menace of Bolshevism, which endangers this Republic and yours, has been added a more terrible threat--the threat of powerful and evil minds made formidable by psychic knowledge.

“For these Yezidee Sorcerers are determined to conquer, seize, and subdue the minds of mankind. They are here for that frightful purpose. Powerfully, terrifically equipped to surprise and capture the unarmed minds of our people, enslave their very thoughts and use them to their own purposes, these Sorcerers of the Yezidees assumed control of the Bolsheviki, who were merely envious and ferocious bandits, but whose crippled minds are now utterly enslaved by these Assassins from Asia.

“And this is what the United States Secret Service has to combat. And its weapons are not warrants, not pistols. For in this awful battle between decency and evil, it is mind against mind in an occult death grapple. And our only weapon against these minds made powerful by psychic knowledge and made terrible by an esoteric ability akin to what is called black magic, --our only weapon is the mind of a young girl.”

“I understand,” said the President, “that she became an adept in occult practices while imprisoned in the Yezidee Temple of Erlik at Yian.”

Recklow looked into the President’s face, which had grown very pale.

“Yes, sir,” he said. “God alone knows what this child learned in the Yezidee Temple. All I know is that with this knowledge she has met the Yezidees in a battle of minds, has halted them, confounded them, fought them with their own occult knowledge, and has slain four of them.”

The intense silence was broken by the frivolous titter of the Secretary of War:

“Of course I don’t believe any of this supernatural stuff,” he said with the split grin which did not modify his protruding stare. “This girl is merely a clever detective, that is the gist of the matter. And I don’t believe anything else.”

“Perhaps, sir, you will believe this, then,” said John Recklow quietly. “I cut it from the Times this morning.” And he handed the clipping to the Secretary of War.

NEW PLOT IN EAST

Moslem and Hindu Conspirators

Have Formed Secret

Organisation

Have World Revolution in View

Think to Rouse Asia, America, and Africa

to Outbreaks by Their

Propaganda.

Copyright, 1919, by The New York Times Company.

Special Cable to The New York Times.

July 1.--A significant event has recently taken place. Under

the name of the Oriental League has recently been established a

central organisation uniting all the various secret societies

of Moslem and Hindu nationalists. The aim of the new

association is to prepare for joint revolutionary action in

Asia, America, and Africa.

The effects of this vast conspiracy may already be traced in

recent events in Egypt, India, and Afghanistan. For the first

time, through the creation of this league, the racial and

religious differences which have divided Eastern conspirators

have been overcome. The Ottoman League, founded by Mahmud

Muktar Pasha, Munir Pasha, and Ahmed Rechid Bey, has adhered to

the new organisation. So have the extreme Egyptian nationalists

and the Hindu revolutionary group, “Pro India,” emissaries of

which were recently sentenced for bringing bombs into

Switzerland during the war at the instigation of the German

General Staff.

At a “Constituent Assembly” of the league, which took place in

Yian, there were present, besides Young Turks, Egyptians and

Hindus, delegates representing Persia, Afghanistan, Algeria,

Morocco, and Mongolia.

The league is of Mongolian origin. Its leading spirit is a