“The moment before I had been bewildered because I could see no one, but at sight of this man I was much more bewildered.

“He was a very large man, a giant in height, with long, yellow hair, which hung below his shoulders.  He was dressed in a red silk shirt, that was belted at the waist and hung outside black velvet trousers, which, in turn, were stuffed into high, black boots.  I recognized the costume at once as that of a Russian servant, but what a Russian servant in his native livery could be doing in a private house in Knightsbridge was incomprehensible.

“I advanced and touched the man on the shoulder, and, after an effort, he awoke, and, on seeing me, sprang to his feet and began bowing rapidly, and making deprecatory gestures.  I had picked up enough Russian in Petersburg to make out that the man was apologizing for having fallen asleep, and I also was able to explain to him that I desired to see his master.

“He nodded vigorously, and said, ’Will the Excellency come this way?  The Princess is here.’

“I distinctly made out the word ‘princess,’ and I was a good deal embarrassed.  I had thought it would be easy enough to explain my intrusion to a man, but how a woman would look at it was another matter, and as I followed him down the hall I was somewhat puzzled.

“As we advanced, he noticed that the front door was standing open, and with an exclamation of surprise, hastened toward it and closed it.  Then he rapped twice on the door of what was apparently the drawing-room.  There was no reply to his knock, and he tapped again, and then, timidly, and cringing subserviently, opened the door and stepped inside.  He withdrew himself at once and stared stupidly at me, shaking his head.

“‘She is not there,’ he said.  He stood for a moment, gazing blankly through the open door, and then hastened toward the dining-room.  The solitary candle which still burned there seemed to assure him that the room also was empty.  He came back and bowed me toward the drawing-room.  ‘She is above,’ he said; ’I will inform the Princess of the Excellency’s presence.’

“Before I could stop him, he had turned and was running up the staircase, leaving me alone at the open door of the drawing-room.  I decided that the adventure had gone quite far enough, and if I had been able to explain to the Russian that I had lost my way in the fog, and only wanted to get back into the street again, I would have left the house on the instant.

“Of course, when I first rang the bell of the house I had no other expectation than that it would be answered by a parlor-maid who would direct me on my way.  I certainly could not then foresee that I would disturb a Russian princess in her boudoir, or that I might be thrown out by her athletic bodyguard.  Still, I thought I ought not now to leave the house without making some apology, and, if the worst should come, I could show my card.  They could hardly believe that a member of an Embassy had any designs upon the hat-rack.