After a six months’ residence in Oakleigh Gardens, during which time I gained a knowledge of London life and made myself acquainted with the majority of those devoted to our Cause resident in the metropolis, the first matter was placed in my hands. A few months previously, Ivan Grigorovitch, one of our Party, had been chosen to convey some instructions to the Petersburg centre. As he was well known to the Secret Police, he disguised himself as a French commercial traveller, and with a French passport journeyed from Marseilles to Odessa by steamer, intending to proceed thence to Petersburg, the ordinary route from London being considered too dangerous. His intentions, however, were frustrated, inasmuch as the Odessa police, who had been apprised of his advent, arrested him immediately on landing. A disaster resulted, for the papers found upon him were compromising, the plot was discovered, and wholesale arrests were made in Petersburg in consequence. Twenty-three persons of both sexes were tried in secret, and, according to the _Novosti_, the evidence given against them by Princess Kochkaryòv caused life sentences to be passed upon each of them. From facts that came to our knowledge, it was evident that some one who had learned our secret had divulged it to the police, therefore the five men forming the Nihilist Executive Committee—who must be known here as Paul Pétroff, Alexander Grinevitch, Nicolas Tersinski, Isaac Bounakoff, and Dmitri Irteneff—sat in council and condemned the Princess to death. We cast dice, and it fell to me to carry out the sentence! The cool, flippant manner in which my fellow-conspirators spoke of murder awed me. They noticed my scruples and pointed out that the woman had, by giving false evidence, been instrumental in the deportation of more than twenty innocent persons, therefore she must die. As I had taken an oath to carry out all commands of the Executive under penalty of death, I was compelled to obey. I had not far to search for Madame the Princess, for she was residing temporarily in London, having taken a furnished flat at Albert Hall Mansions, overlooking Hyde Park. In the stalls at the Avenue Theatre I first obtained an uninterrupted view of her. She was seated next to me, a fair form in a black evening dress that revealed her delicate chest and arms, with a gleaming diamond necklet around her white throat. Her age was about twenty-four, and her perfect oval face had a shade of sadness upon it, notwithstanding the great languishing violet eyes, and the tender winning mouth, while her auburn hair had been deftly coiled, and was fastened with a diamond star that flashed and sparkled with a thousand fires. In short, I thought her the most lovely woman I had ever seen. And I was plotting to kill her!