have me near his person as Vice-Bishop. I refused this honor flatly. We were handed a bill for the dinner. The Fathers began to squirm in their chairs, search in their pockets, in their socks, and finally told me that they had forgotten to take money along. They asked me to help them out in this difficult situation by footing the bill. I hesitated . . . . The fathers then told me that they had thousands of dollars at home and would refund the money, and as a friend I was under obligation to get Father Slunin, who ordered the dinner, out of a scrape. "Next week," they coaxed me, "we'll treat you to an even better supper, at which there will be the most beautiful women of New York."
There was nothing else left for me to do but pay $115.00 for the dinner for three. At the Father's request, I gave the waiter a $5.00 tip. On leaving the hotel the Fathers began to feel uneasy about having spent so much time with me, while in the Consistory both Alexander and Platon himself must have asked for them more than once. They implored me to send them home in an automobile. I offered to go with them, but they did not want it known that they had been out with me. "If someone squeals about our spree at the wrong time, we shall be severely reprimanded," they objected. Father Chepelev went for a taxi, and Father Slunin asked me for a personal loan of $50.00 until the next day. Since he had borrowed from me before this and returned the.money, I gave him $50.00 for himself and $10.00 for the machine. Father Slunin kept his word and returned the $50.00 the very next day. The Fathers left in a closed car. I surmised that they went not to the Consistory, but to a "conference" with the fair sex. This they did not wish me to know on witness.
CHAPTER XVI.
Russian Spies in America.
Before proceeding any further, it will be necessary to acquaint ourselves with the "Okhrankas'"—Secret Service, another phase of the unwholesome influence of Platon. These "Okhrankas" were connected with the Russian Consulate in New York and employed agents,
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