Manasseh

 A Romance of Transylvania

 Retold from the Hungarian of Dr. Maurus Jókai Author of "Black Diamonds, " "Pretty Michal, " "The Baron's Sons, " etc. 

 By Percy Favor Bicknell Translator of "The Baron's Sons"

 Boston L. C. Page & Company 1901

 _Copyright, 1901_ BY L. C. PAGE & COMPANY (INCORPORATED)

 _All rights reserved_

 Colonial Press Electrotyped and Printed by C. H. Simonds &. Co. Boston, Mass. , U. S. A. 

 CONTENTS. 

 CHAPTER PAGE

 TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE vii

 I. FELLOW-TRAVELLERS 1

 II. A LIFE'S HAPPINESS AT STAKE 13

 III. AN INTRUDER EXPELLED 19

 IV. A BIT OF STRATEGY 24

 V. HOLY WEEK IN ROME 34

 VI. THE CONSECRATED PALM-LEAF 52

 VII. AN AUDIENCE WITH THE POPE 60

 VIII. AN UNWELCOME VISITOR 65

 IX. THE ANONYMOUS LETTER 79

 X. THE FOURTEENTH PARAGRAPH 90

 XI. THE DECISION 103

 XII. A GHOSTLY VISITANT 109

 XIII. A SUDDEN FLIGHT 127

 XIV. WALLACHIAN HOSPITALITY 137

 XV. BALYIKA CAVE 158

 XVI. A DESPERATE HAZARD 179

 XVII. IN PORLIK GROTTO 188

 XVIII. TOROCZKO 198

 XIX. A MIDNIGHT COUNCIL 213

 XX. MIRTH AND MOURNING 231

 XXI. THE SPY 245

 XXII. THE HAND OF FATE 256

 XXIII. OLD SCORES 266

 XXIV. A CRUEL PARTING 292

 XXV. SECRETS OF THE COMMISSARIAT 302

 XXVI. SOLFERINO 307

 XXVII. AN HOUR OF TRIAL 314

 XXVIII. A DAY OF RECKONING 318

TRANSLATOR'S PREFACE. 

A few words of introduction to this striking story of life inSzeklerland may not be out of place. 

The events narrated are supposed to take place half a century ago, inthe stirring days of '48, when the spirit of resistance to arbitraryrule swept over Europe, and nowhere called forth deeds of higher heroismthan in Hungary. To understand the hostility between the Magyars andSzeklers on the one hand, and the Wallachians on the other, --a state offeud on which the plot of the story largely hinges, --let it beremembered that the non-Hungarian elements of the kingdom wereexceedingly jealous of their Hungarian neighbours, and apprehensive lestthe new liberal constitution of 1848 should chiefly benefit those whomthey thus chose to regard as enemies. Therefore, secretly encouraged bythe government at Vienna, they took up arms against the Hungarians. TheCroatians and Serbs, under the lead of Ban Jellachich and other imperialofficers, joined in the revolt. The most frightful atrocities werecommitted by the insurgents. Hundreds of families were butchered in coldblood, and whole villages sacked and burned. These acts of massacre andrapine were especially numerous on the eastern borders of Transylvania, among the so-called Szeklers, or "Frontiersmen, " in whose country thescene of the present narrative is chiefly laid. 

The Szeklers, who also call themselves Attilans, claim descent from aportion of that vast invading horde of Attila the Hun, which fell backin defeat from the battle of Châlons, in the year 451, and has occupiedthe eastern portion of Transylvania ever since. The Magyars are of thesame or a nearly kindred race, and speak the same language; but theirancestry is traced back to a later band of invaders who forced their wayin from the East early in the tenth century. The Wallachians, or"Strangers, " form another considerable group in the population ofHungary. "Rumans" they prefer to call themselves, and they claim descentfrom the ancient Dacians, and from the conquering army led against thelatter by Trajan. Besides these, Germans, Croatians, Serbs, Ruthenians, Slovaks, and other races, contribute in varying proportions to theheterogeneous population of the country. 

The Hungarian title of the book is "Egy az Isten, "--"One is theLord, "--the watchword of the Unitarians of Transylvania. The want of anadequate English equivalent of this motto has led to the adoption ofanother title. In this, as in all the author's romances, love, war, andadventure furnish the plot and incident and vital interest of thenarrative. 

As early as 1568, three years after the introduction of Unitarianisminto Poland, John Sigismund Szapolyai, the liberal and enlightenedvoivode of Transylvania, issued a decree, granting his people religioustoleration in the broadest sense. The establishment of the UnitarianChurch in Hungary, on an equal footing with the Roman Catholic, theLutheran, and the Calvinist, dates from that time. Through many trialsand persecutions, through periods of alternate prosperity and adversity, it has bravely maintained its existence up to the present day, and nownumbers nearly sixty-eight thousand members. Though a comparativelysmall body, the Unitarians of Hungary "hold together well, " as ourauthor says, and exert an influence in education and in all that makesfor the higher life, quite out of proportion to their numbers. 

As in so many of Dr. Jókai's novels that have appeared in English, ithas been found necessary to abridge the present work in translation. Notuntil we have endowed publishing houses which can afford to disregardthe question of sales, shall we see this author's books issued in alltheir pitiless prolixity, in any country or language but his own. It isto be noted, in conclusion, that the excessive wealth of incident withwhich the following story abounds is characteristic of the author'sstyle. Broken threads and occasional inconsistencies are found in allhis works, and if they are met with here, it is not because of, but inspite of, the abridgment which the book has undergone. 

MANASSEH

CHAPTER I. 

FELLOW-TRAVELLERS. 

Our story opens in an Italian railway station, in the spring of 1848. From a train that had just arrived, the passengers were hastening tosecure their places in another that stood waiting for them. A guard hadsucceeded in crowding a party of two ladies and a gentleman into one ofthese itinerant prison-cells, which already contained seven occupants, before the newcomers perceived that they were being imposed upon. Avigorous protest followed. The elder of the two ladies, seizing theguard by the arm, addressed him in an angry tone, first in German, thenin French. 

With the calm indifference of an automaton, the uniformed officialpointed to a placard against the wall. _Per dieci persone_ was theinscription it bore. Ten persons, it seemed, were expected to findplaces here. 

"But we have first-class tickets, " protested the lady, producing a bitof yellow pasteboard in proof of her assertion. 

The guard glanced at it with as little interest as he would havebestowed on a scarab from the tomb of the Pharaohs. Shrugging hisshoulders, he merely indicated, with a wave of his hand, places wherethe three passengers might, perhaps, find seats, --one in this corner, asecond yonder, and, if its owner would kindly transfer a greasy bundleto his lap, a third over there. 

This arrangement, however, was not at all to the liking of either theladies or their escort. The latter was altogether disinclined to accepta seat between two fat cattle-dealers, being of no meagre dimensionshimself. 

"We'll see about this!" he exclaimed, and left the compartment in questof the station-master. 

That dignitary was promenading the platform in military uniform, hishands behind his back. The complainant began to explain the situation tohim and to demand that consideration to which his first-class ticketentitled him. But the _illustrissimo_ merely opened his eyes andsurveyed the gentleman in silence, much as a cuttlefish might have doneif similarly addressed. 

"_Partenza-a-a!_" shouted the guards, in warning. 

The indignant gentleman hurried back to his compartment, only to findthat, in his absence, three additional passengers had been squeezed intothe crowded quarters, so that he himself now raised the total tothirteen, --a decidedly unlucky number. The ladies were in despair, andtheir attendant had begun to express his mind vigorously in his nativeHungarian, when he felt himself touched on the elbow from behind, andheard a voice accosting him, in the same tongue. 

"My fellow-countryman, don't heat yourself. Not eloquence, butbacksheesh, is needed here. While you were wasting your breath I had aguard open for me a reserved first-class compartment. It cost me but atrifle, and if you and your ladies choose to share it with me, it is atyour service. "

"Thank you, " was the reply, "but we shall not have time to change; wehad only two minutes here in all. "

"Never fear, " rejoined the stranger, reassuringly. "The _due minute_ isa mere form with which to frighten the inexperienced. The train won'tstart for half an hour yet. "

The two ladies were no less grateful to their deliverer than wasAndromeda of old to the gallant Perseus. They gladly accepted thecomfortable seats offered them, while their escort took a third, leavingthe fourth for their benefactor, who lingered outside to finish hiscigar. At the second ringing of the bell, he gave his half-smokedHavana to a passing porter, mounted the running-board of the movingtrain, and entered his compartment. 

Seating himself, the young man removed his travelling-cap and revealed abroad, arched forehead, surmounted by a luxuriant growth of hair. Thickeyebrows, bright blue eyes, and a Greek nose were the strikingcharacteristics of his face, which seemed to combine the peculiaritiesof so many types and races, that an observer would have been at a lossto classify it. 

The other gentleman of the party was of genuine Hungarian stock, stoutin figure and ruddy of countenance, with a pointed moustache, which heconstantly twirled. The younger of the two ladies was veiled, so thatonly the graceful outlines of a face, evidently classic in itsmodelling, were revealed to the eye. But the elder had thrown back herveil, exposing to full view an honest, round face, blond hair, livelyeyes, and lips that manifestly found it irksome to maintain that silencewhich good breeding imposes in the presence of a stranger. 

The ladies' escort was a very uneasy travelling companion. First hecomplained that he could not sit with his back toward the engine, as hewas sure to be car-sick. The young stranger accordingly changed placeswith him. Then he found fault with his new seat, because it was exposedto a draught which blew the cinders into his eyes. Thereupon the youngman promptly volunteered to close the window for him; but this only madematters worse, for fresh air was indispensable. At this, the blond ladygave up her place to the gentleman, and he, at last, appeared satisfied. Not so, however, the lady herself; she was now seated opposite thestranger, to whom she and her companions were so greatly indebted, andthe feeling of indebtedness is always somewhat irksome. 

Women on a journey are inclined to regard a stranger's approach withsome suspicion, and to be ever on the alert against adventurers. A vaguemistrust of this sort concerning the young stranger may have beenaroused by the mere fact that, Hungarian though his language indicatedhim to be, he and the ladies' escort indulged in no interchange ofcourtesies so natural among fellow-countrymen meeting by chance in aforeign land. Nevertheless the blond lady strove to assume an air that, on her part, should signify an entire absence of interest in all thingsrelating to her _vis-à-vis_. Even when the sun shone in her face andannoyed her, she seemed determined to adjust the window-shade withoutany help from the stranger, until he courteously prevailed on her toaccept his aid. 

"Oh, what helpless creatures we women are!" she exclaimed as she sankback into her seat. 

"You have yourselves to blame for it, " was the other's rejoinder. 

If he had simply offered some vapid compliment, protesting, for example, that women were by no means helpless creatures, but, on the contrary, the rulers of the stronger sex, and so of the world, --then she wouldhave merely smiled sarcastically and relapsed into silence; but therewas something like a challenge in his unexpected retort. 

"_Par exemple?_" she rejoined, with an involuntary show of interest. 

"For example, " he continued, "a lady voluntarily surrenders thecomfortable seat assigned to her, and exchanges with a man who occupiesan uncomfortable one. "

The lady coloured slightly. "A free initiative, " said she, "is seldompossible with a woman. She is ever subject to a stronger will. "

"Yet she need not be, " was the reply; "with the fascination which sheexerts over men she is in reality the stronger. "

"Ah, yes; but suppose that fascination is employed over a man by womenthat have no right thus to use their power?"

"Then the legitimate possessor of that right is still at fault. Iffascination is the bond by which the man can be held, why does she notmake use of it herself? A face of statuesque beauty that knows not howto smile has often been the cause of untold unhappiness. "

At these words the younger of the two ladies threw back her veil, perhaps to gain a better view of the speaker, and thus revealed justsuch a face as the young man had referred to, --a face with large blueeyes and silent lips. 

"Would you, then, " the elder lady continued the discussion with somewarmth, "have a wife employ the wiles of a coquette toward her ownhusband, in order to retain his love?"

"I see no reason why she should not if circumstances demand it. "

"Very good. But you must admit that a wife is something more than asweetheart; maternal duties and cares also enter into her life, andwhen, by reason of her exalted mission as a mother, anxieties and fearswill, in spite of her, depict themselves on her face, what then becomesof your pretty theory?"

The attack was becoming too warm for the young stranger, and he hastenedto capitulate with a good grace. "In that case, madam, " he admitted, "the husband is bound to show his wife nothing but the purest devotionand affection. The Roman lictors were, by the consul's orders, requiredto lower their fasces before a Roman matron; she was undisputed mistressin her sphere. The man who refuses to render the humblest of homage tothe mother of his children deserves to have a millstone hung about hisneck and to be cast into the sea. "

The blond lady seemed softened by this unconditional surrender. "Are youon your way to Rome, may I ask?" she presently inquired, her questionbeing apparently suggested by the other's reference to ancient Romancustoms. 

"Yes, that is my destination, " he replied. 

"You go to witness the splendid ceremonies of Holy Week, I infer. "

"No; they do not interest me. "

"What!" exclaimed the lady; "the sublimest of our Church observances, that which symbolises the very divinity of our Saviour, does notinterest you?"

"No; because I do not believe in his divinity, " was the calm reply. 

The lady raised her eyebrows in involuntary token of surprise at thismost unexpected answer. She suddenly felt a strong desire to fathom themysterious stranger. "I believe the Vatican is seeking an unusuallylarge loan just now, " she remarked, half-interrogatively. 

The stranger could not suppress a smile. He read the other's surmisethat he might be of Hebrew birth and faith. "It is not the papal loan, madam, " he returned, "that takes me to Rome; it is a divorce case. "

"A divorce case?" The blond lady could not disguise her interest atthese words, while even the statuesque beauty at the other end of thecompartment turned her face fully upon the speaker, and her lips partedslightly, like the petals of an opening rosebud. 

"Yes, " resumed the young man, "a separation from one who has denied andrejected me for the sake of another; one whom I must for ever shun inthe future, and yet cannot cease to love; one whose loss can never bemade good to me. I am going to Rome because it is a dead city andbelongs equally to all and to none. "

The train halted at a station, and the young man alighted. After a fewwords to the guard he disappeared from sight. 

"Do you know that gentleman?" asked the blond lady of her escort. 

"Very well, " was the reply. 

"And yet you two hardly exchanged a word. "

"Because we were neither of us so disposed. "

"Are you enemies?"

"Not enemies, and yet in a certain sense opponents. "

"Is he a Jew or an atheist?"

"Neither; he is a Unitarian. "

"And what is a Unitarian, pray tell me?"

"The Unitarians form one of the recognised religious sects of Hungary, "explained the man. "They are Christians who believe in the unity ofGod. "

"It is strange I never heard of them before, " said the lady. 

"They live chiefly in Transylvania, " added the other; "but the greatbody of them, taken the world over, are found in England and America, where they possess considerable influence. Their numbers are not large, but they hold together well; and, though they are not increasingrapidly, they are not losing ground. "

The younger lady lowered her veil again and crossed herself beneath itsfolds; but her companion turned and looked out of the window with acurious desire to scrutinise the wicked heretic more closely. Both theladies, as the reader will have conjectured, were strictly orthodox intheir faith. 

The train soon started again, after the customary ringing and whistlingand the guards' repeated warning of "_partenza!_" But the young hereticseemed to put as little faith in bells and whistles and verbal warningsas in the dogma of the Trinity; for he failed to appear as the trainmoved away from the station. The ladies who owed so much to his kindnesscould not deny a certain feeling of relief at being freed from thecompany of one who cherished such heterodox religious convictions. 

"You say you are well acquainted with the young man?" the blond ladyresumed. 

"Yes, I know him well enough, " was the answer. "His name is ManassehAdorjan, he is of good old Szekler descent, and he has seven brothersand a twin sister. They all live at home in their ancestral castle. Someof the brothers have married, but all live together peacefully under oneroof and form one household. Manasseh seems to have been recognised bythe family as the gifted one, --his brothers are nothing more than honestand intelligent Szeklers, --and for his education and advancement in theworld all worked in unison. When he was only twenty years old this younggenius became a candidate for the council. In Transylvania it is thecustom to make the higher government appointments from all four of therecognised religious sects, --Roman Catholic, Calvinist, Lutheran, andUnitarian. From that time dates our mutual hostility. "

"Then you are enemies, after all. "

"In politics, yes. However, I must not bore you ladies with politicalquestions. Suffice it to say, then, in regard to Manasseh Adorjan, thata sudden change of government policy, and the defeat of his party, gavethe young man a fall from his proud eminence and led him to turn hisback, for a time at least, on his native land; for he scorned to seekthe preferment that was so easily within his reach by renouncing hisprinciples and joining the opposite party. "

"Now I understand, " interposed the blond lady, "what he meant by his'divorce case, ' and his parting with one who had denied and rejectedhim, but whom he could never cease to love. Those were his words, andthey referred to his country. "

"Yes, probably, " assented the other; "for the young man is unmarried. "

At the next station the subject of this conversation suddenlyreappeared. 

"Ah, we thought you were lost, " exclaimed the elder of the two ladies, with a not unfriendly smile. 

"Oh, no, not lost, " returned Manasseh; "what belongs nowhere and to noone cannot be lost. I merely took a seat on the imperial. Come, friendGabriel, "--turning to the ladies' escort, --"will you not join me there?The view is really fine, and we can smoke also. "

The one thus familiarly addressed, and whose name was Gabriel Zimandy, accepted the invitation after a moment's demur. The ladies were left tothemselves. 

CHAPTER II. 

A LIFE'S HAPPINESS AT STAKE. 

"A splendid country this!" exclaimed Gabriel Zimandy, when he hadlighted his meerschaum and found himself at leisure to survey thelandscape. "Too bad the Austrians have their grip on it!"

"Look here, " interposed Manasseh, "suppose we steer clear of politics. Do you agree?"

"Did I say anything about politics?" retorted Gabriel. "I merely alludedto the beautiful view. Well, then, we'll talk about beautiful women ifyou prefer. You little know what a tender spot you touched upon with theladies. I refer to the brunette--not to the blond, with whom you weretalking. "

"Ah, is the other a brunette? I did not get a good look at her. "

"But she got a good look at you, while you were discussing the duties ofwomen toward their husbands, the subject of divorce, and Heaven knowswhat else besides. "

"And did I awaken any unpleasant reminiscences?" asked the young man. 

"Not in the bosom of your fair antagonist, --she is already a widow, --butin that of her companion, who sat silent and listened to all you said. She is on her way to Rome to petition the Pope to annul her marriage. "

"Is that so!" exclaimed Manasseh, in surprise. "I should have said shewas just out of a convent where she had been placed to be educated. "

"What eyes you have! Even without looking at her you have guessed herage to a month, I'll warrant! She is my client, the unfortunate PrincessCagliari, _née_ Countess Blanka Zboroy. You know the family: theirestates are entailed, so that all but the eldest son have to shift forthemselves as best they can. The younger sons go into the army or theChurch, and the daughters are wedded to rich husbands, or else they takethe veil. But it so happened that once upon a time a rich bishopbelonging to this family made a will directing that his property beallowed to accumulate until it became large enough to provide a snugfortune of a million florins for each of his relatives; and this end wasrecently realised. But by the terms of the will, the heirs are allowedonly the usufruct of this legacy, and, furthermore, even that is to beforfeited under certain circumstances, as for example, if allegiance berefused to the reigning dynasty, or if the legatee renounce the RomanCatholic faith, or, in the case of a woman, lead an unchaste life. Anypart of the estate thus forfeited goes to the remaining legatees in anequal division, and so you can imagine what a sharp watch the severalbeneficiaries under this will keep over one another. A million is nobagatelle; the game is worth the candle. But to come back to ourstarting-point, Countess Blanka was joined in marriage with PrinceCagliari as soon as she left the convent. You must know the prince, atleast by reputation; he plays no small part in the political world. "

"I have met him several times, " replied Manasseh. 

"At court balls in Vienna, doubtless, " said the advocate; "for, old asCagliari is, he still turns night into day and burns the candle at bothends. When he married Countess Blanka he was very intimate with theMarchioness Caldariva, formerly known to lovers of the ballet as 'thebeautiful Cyrene. ' She practised the terpsichorean art with such successthat one day she danced into favour with an Italian marquis who honouredher with the gift of his name and rank, after which he shot himself. Themarchioness now owns a splendid palace in Vienna, a present from PrinceCagliari, who, they say, forgot to deliver up the key to her when hemarried Countess Blanka. It is even whispered that the marchionessherself tied the bridegroom's cravat for him on his wedding-day. Well, however that may be, the prince took the young lady to wife, much as arich man buys a horse of rare breed, or a costly statue, or any otherhigh-priced curiosity. But the poor bride could not endure her husband'spresence. She was only a child, and, up to the day of her marriage, hadno conception of the real meaning of matrimony. The prince has neverenjoyed a moment's happiness with his young wife. His very first attemptto offer her a husband's caresses caused her to turn deadly pale and gointo convulsions; and this occurred as often as the two were left alone. The prince complained of his hard lot, and sought medical advice. It wasreported that the young wife was subject to epileptic attacks. A man ofany delicacy would have accepted the situation and held his peace; butthe prince took counsel of his factotum, a certain Benjamin Vajdar----"

An involuntary movement, and a half-suppressed exclamation on Manasseh'spart, made the speaker turn to him inquiringly; then, as the other saidnothing, he resumed:

"This factotum is the evil genius of the family, and the two togethermake a pair hard to match. The prince has obstinacy, sensuality, arrogance, and vindictiveness; and his tool has brains, cunning, andinventiveness, for the effective exercise of the other's eviltendencies. Cagliari finally went back to the beautiful Cyrene forconsolation; but she was bent on proving her power over him, and at herbidding he heaped all sorts of indignities upon his innocent andhelpless wife. At last, to crown all, he instituted divorce proceedingsagainst her. This was the price he paid to regain the fair Cyrene'sfavour, but I am convinced that Benjamin Vajdar is at the bottom of itall. The prince bases his suit for a separation on his wife's allegedepileptic attacks and consequent unfitness for the wedded state. Ofcourse that is all nonsense. I am not an epileptic, nor wont to bite orscratch people; but I can't approach this Cagliari without experiencinga sort of foaming at the mouth and a twitching of the muscles, as if Imust pitch into the man, tooth and nail. My view of the case is that myclient finds her husband's attentions so abhorrent that she even swoonswhen he offers to kiss her; and so I am going to apply for a totaldissolution of the marriage, for if the other side win their case thepapal edict will forbid a second marriage on the wife's part. And justimagine a young girl like her, in the first bloom of youth, scarcelytwenty years old, compelled to renounce all hope of wedded happiness. Weare now on our way to Rome to see whether my fair client's personalappeal may not avail somewhat with her judges. They cannot but take pityon her if their hearts are human. Prince Cagliari has of late lostfavour at the Vatican, and all the conditions are in our favour; butthere is one man whom I fear, --that cool and crafty Vajdar. I fell inwith him in Venice, and asked him whither he was going. 'To Milan, ' saidhe, but I knew he lied. He, too, is bound for Rome, and he will be thereahead of us, or at least overtake us. If we could only reach Rome first, I am confident we should win the game. But I fear he may be on this verytrain. Why, how warm you look! The perspiration stands in drops on yourforehead. Does my pipe annoy you? No? Well, as I was saying, I suspectthe fellow is on this train with us, and if he falls into my hands I'llwring his miserable neck! He thinks he's going to ruin the young life ofmy client and bury her alive, does he? We'll see about that. "

"He shall not do it!" exclaimed the other, with emphasis. 

"Good for you, my friend! And if you can propose some scheme for balkinghim, I'll take my hat off to you. Tell me, now, how can the princessmake sure of outwitting her foes, and so escape the horrible fate ofbeing buried alive?"

"She can turn Protestant, and then the Church of Rome will have no claimwhatever on her. "

"Very good, but how about the million florins left her as a goodCatholic by the bishop?"

Manasseh Adorjan crumbled his cigar in his fingers. "If the princess hasa woman's heart in her bosom, " he declared, "she will throw her millionaway in return for the love of a true man. "

CHAPTER III. 

AN INTRUDER EXPELLED. 

Meanwhile the train had reached another station, a junction where a haltwas made for refreshments, pending the arrival of a connecting train. The advocate was hungry, and accordingly made his way to thedining-room, being first warned by his companion to use despatch, asotherwise, on returning to the ladies, he might find his compartmentfilled. 

"And what will you do meantime?" asked Gabriel. 

"I have my sketch-book with me, " replied Manasseh, "and I am going todraw the view from my perch up here. "

"Ah, I did not know you were an artist. "

"Yes, I am an artist, and nothing more. "

Upon the arrival of the connecting train and the ensuing scramble forseats, the ladies of our little party felt some anxiety lest theirprivacy should be rudely broken in upon by unwelcome strangers. PrincessCagliari bent forward and looked down the platform, but immediately drewback again. Too late, however; she had been seen; and a momentafterward a young man, of sleek and comely appearance, immaculatelydressed, and carrying in one hand a small cane whose peculiar headbetrayed the fact that it concealed a rapier, sprang lightly on thefoot-board and entered the compartment. 

"Ah, what an unexpected pleasure, Princess!" he exclaimed by way ofgreeting, lifting his hat and appropriating the corner seat oppositeher. 

"Pardon me, " said Blanka, "but that seat is engaged. The gentleman whois with us--"

"Why, then, didn't he leave something--coat, or umbrella, orhand-bag--in proof of his claim to the seat?" interrupted the intruder. "The seat is now mine by railway usage, and I cannot deny myself thepleasure of sitting opposite you, my dear princess. "

Blanka controlled her indignation as best she could, but her companionfelt called upon to come to her aid with an energetic remonstrance. 

"Mr. Vajdar, " said she, severely, "you should know what is expected of agentleman in his conduct toward a lady. You are well aware that theprincess cannot endure your presence, nor are you ignorant of thereason. "

The handsome young man drew a gilt pasteboard box from his side pocket, removed the cover, and offered the contents to the last speaker. "MadamDormandy, you are fond of sweets. Permit me to solicit your acceptanceof these caramels. They are freshly made, and are really excellent. "

But Madam Dormandy turned her back disdainfully on the peace-offeringand looked anxiously out of the window. "Where can Mr. Zimandy be allthis time?" she murmured, impatiently. 

"How long will you continue to dog my steps?" asked the princess, addressing the intruder in a voice that trembled with passion. 

"Only to the grave, " was the smiling reply; "there we shallseparate--you to enter the gates of paradise, where I despair of gainingadmission. "

"But what reason have you for wishing my ruin?"

"Because you yourself will have it so. Have I ever made any secret of mydesigns or of my motives?"

"Are you determined to make me leave this compartment?"

"You would gain nothing by so doing, " was Vajdar's cool retort. "I couldnot possibly forego the pleasure of your company, in whatever way youmight choose to continue your journey. "

"What is your purpose in all this?" demanded Blanka. 

"To make you either as happy as a man can make a woman, or as wretchedas only the devil himself can render a human being. "

"I defy you to do either. "

"Futile defiance! The game is in my hands, and I can make you as oneburied alive. "

"God will never allow such an iniquity!" cried the princess. 

"Ah, my dear madam, you forget that we are on our way to Rome, wherethere are churches by the score, but no God. "

Blanka shuddered in spite of herself, and drew her shawl more closelyabout her, while her foe crossed one leg over the other and smiledself-complacently. 

The warning cry "_partenza!_" sounded along the platform, and theladies' escort came running in alarm from the dining-room and sought hiscompartment. 

"Have I your seat, sir?" coolly inquired Benjamin Vajdar of the man whohad so lately promised to wring his neck. 

"Oh, no, certainly not, " mumbled the doughty advocate, in considerablesurprise and confusion, as he caught his breath and meekly looked aroundfor a vacant place. 

A lightning-flash from the blond beauty's eyes and a mocking smile fromthe dandy rewarded this courteous forbearance. But the mocking smilechanged the next instant to a sudden expression of disquiet, if not ofactual fear. Manasseh Adorjan stood in the doorway, and Blanka noted aswift interchange of glances between the young men, like the flashingof two drawn swords. 

"That place is already engaged, sir, " said Manasseh, quietly. 

Benjamin Vajdar's face flushed quickly, and then as suddenly paled. Inhis eyes one could have read rage, hate, and fear, and his right handclutched the head of his cane convulsively, as if about to draw theweapon therein concealed. But Manasseh still stood regarding himfixedly, and the intruder yielded without a word. Taking up his satchel, he left the compartment. The whole scene had occupied but a moment. Whatwas it that gave one of these men such power over the other, like thatof a lion-tamer over his charge?

Manasseh himself took the vacated seat, without offering it to theadvocate, and sat looking out of the window as long as Vajdar was insight. At length the train started, and as it soon entered on a stretchof monotonous, waste territory, Blanka yielded to the drowsy lullaby ofthe smoothly rolling wheels, and fell asleep. Once or twice she halfopened her eyes and was vaguely conscious that the young strangeropposite her was drawing something in the sketch-book that lay open onhis knee. She pushed her veil still farther back from face and brow, hardly aware what she was doing, and again fell asleep. 

CHAPTER IV. 

A BIT OF STRATEGY. 

A sharp whistle from the locomotive awakened the sleepers. 

"Where are we now?" asked Blanka. 

"Near Bologna, " answered the artist, who alone had remained awake; "andthere I have to leave the train, which continues on, via Imola, toAncona. "

"You leave the train? But I thought you, too, were going to Rome, " saidthe princess, in surprise. 

"So I am, " was the reply, "but by another route. My luggage will gothrough to Ancona, and thence by diligence to Rome, while I push on overthe Apennines to Pistoja and Florence. It is a harder road, but itssplendid views amply repay one for an occasional climb on foot by the_vetturino's_ side; and then, too, I shall reach Rome one day ahead ofyou, who go by way of Ancona. "

Blanka listened with interest. "Couldn't we take that route also?" sheasked. "What do you say to it, Maria? We could quietly leave the trainat Bologna and let our trunks go on to Rome without us. "

"But are the mountain passes safe?" queried Madam Dormandy, turning toManasseh. "Is there no danger of highwaymen?"

"Bad men are to be feared everywhere, " replied the young man; "but asfor highway robbers, they are much more to be apprehended by thosetravelling with valises and trunks than by the tourist that simplycarries a satchel slung over his shoulder, as I intend to do. In mystudent days I used to tramp over these mountains in every direction, and the brigands never molested me. Whenever I fell in with a band Iused to group the men together and sketch them. Artists have nothing tofear from gentlemen of the road. "

"And besides, we are two able-bodied men, and I always carry a brace ofpistols--don't you?" spoke up the advocate, his professional zealkindling at the prospect of stealing a march on the enemy. 

"I carry no weapons of any kind, " calmly replied the artist. 

"Oh, I fear no harm from bad men, " exclaimed the princess; "there is butone bad man whom we need to dread. "

The others easily guessed to whom she referred; but Gabriel Zimandy wasbent on making her meaning still plainer. 

"He'd better not follow us into the mountains!" he cried, "for if theyoung rogue falls into my hands he'll wish he'd never been born. Luckyfor him he took our friend's gentle hint; had he kept his seat a momentlonger there would have been serious trouble. "

"Ha, ha!" laughed Madam Dormandy; "how surprised he will be when hefails to find us at Ancona and is obliged to journey on by diligencewith our baggage, but without us!"

"We shall be hurrying on ahead of him over these grand old mountains, "added the princess, with enthusiasm, her cheeks glowing in pleasedanticipation. "And we have to thank you, Mr. Adorjan, for thesuggestion. " With an impulsive movement she extended her hand to theyoung artist, who scarcely ventured to touch her finger-tips in return. 

"Very well, then, " said he, "we will try the mountain road; and let ustake no luggage but what we can carry in our hands. When we come to abeautiful waterfall we will sketch it, and when we chance upon a fineview we will celebrate its beauties in song. "

"Yes, and people will take us for strolling minstrels, " interposed theprincess; "and we must drop our real names and titles. Mr. Zimandy shallbe the impresario, and Madam Dormandy the prima-donna; they can pass forhusband and wife. We two can be brother and sister. What is yoursister's name?"

"Anna. "

"Lend me her name for a little while, will you? You don't object?"

Manasseh turned strangely sober. "It would be only for your sake that Ishould object, " he replied. "The bearer of that name is a veryunfortunate girl. "

So they agreed to leave the train at Bologna and take the mountain pass. It only remained to hoodwink Benjamin Vajdar, and Manasseh Adorjanpromised to effect this. He alighted before the train had fairlystopped, having first directed the others to go into the waiting-room. "That young man will not stir from his seat, nor will he even look outof the window, " added Manasseh, with as much confidence as if he hadacquired a talisman which enabled him to control the other's actions. 

As the train rolled out of the station the artist rejoined his party, with the welcome assurance that their enemy was now out of their way. 

"Is there a mysterious relation of some sort between you two?" askedBlanka. 

"Yes--one of fear: I tremble every time I see the man. "

"You tremble?"

"Yes; I am afraid I shall kill him some day. "

With that, and as if regretting that he had said so much, he hurriedaway to engage a carriage to take them to Vergato. During his absencethe advocate explained to his client that the Unitarians have anespecial horror of bloodshed. He declared that some of them shrank fromtaking even an animal's life and abstained entirely from the use ofmeat. 

Blanka shook her head incredulously. She could not conceive of agentleman's being forbidden by his scruples to use arms when theoccasion demanded. How else, she asked, could he defend his honour, hisloved ones, the women entrusted to his charge?

When the four were seated in their carriage, the gentlemen facing theladies, Blanka led the conversation back to the point at which Manassehhad dropped it. 

"You said you feared you should kill that young man some day, " shebegan. "Does your religion forbid you to kill a man--under anycircumstances?"

"With a single exception, " he replied; "but that exception is out of thequestion in this instance. "

Blanka wondered what the single exception could be, but refrained fromasking. "Are you well acquainted with Mr. Vajdar?" she inquiredpresently. 

"We have known each other from childhood, " was the reply. "Whatever Ipossessed was shared with him. His father was my father's steward; andwhen the steward proved false to his trust and gambled away a large sumof money committed to his care, and then shot himself, my father adoptedthe little orphan, and always treated him exactly as he did his ownchildren. He grew up to be a bright and promising young man, and neverfailed to win a stranger's favour and confidence. But woe to those thatthus confided in him! My poor sister, my dear, good little Anna, trustedhim, and all was ready for their wedding when he disappeared, desertingher at the very altar. "

Even the shades of approaching nightfall could not hide the expressionof pain on the speaker's face. 

"When did this occur?" asked Blanka, gently. 

"Last year--in February. "

"The date of my marriage, and of my first seeing that man, " was Blanka'ssilent comment. She pondered the possible connection between the twocircumstances. Benjamin Vajdar had left his affianced bride soon afterseeing Princess Cagliari; he had then entered Cagliari's service asprivate secretary, and, a little later, divorce proceedings had beenbegun by the prince against his young wife. 

"Was it Mr. Vajdar's troubled conscience that made him leave us themoment you appeared?" she asked, after a pause. 

"No, " said Manasseh; "he has no conscience. When he has an object inview, all means are legitimate with him. He knows neither considerationfor others nor shame for his own misdeeds. "

"And yet he certainly played the coward before you. "

"Because he knows that I possess certain information, certaindocumentary evidence, by which, if I chose, I could hurl him down inconfusion and disgrace from any height, however lofty, which he mightsucceed in attaining. "

"And you refrain from using this evidence against him?"

"To use it would be revenge, " replied the young man, calmly. 

"Is revenge forbidden where you live?"

"Yes. "

"Has your sister never found a balm for her wounded affections?"

"Never. My people are of the kind that loves but once. "

"Pray tell me where it is that your people have their home, " urged theprincess. "Is it on an island in the moon?"

"Indeed, princess, it is not unlike those glimpses of the moon that weget through a large telescope when we examine, for instance, the rockyisland known to astronomers as 'Plutarch, ' or that named 'Copernicus. 'Everything where I live would seem to you to savour of another planet. On the maps the place is put down as 'Toroczko. ' It is in a mountaingorge, entered by a narrow path along the riverside and through a cleftin the rocks. The northern side of this narrow ravine, being in somemeasure exposed to the southern sun, is clothed with woods; thesouthern is a great wall of bare rock rising in terraces, or giantsteps, that might well suggest the dreariness and desolation of alandscape in the moon. This barren expanse of naked rock is called theSzekler Stone, and was formerly surmounted by the castle of a Hungarianvice-voivode. Its ruins are still to be seen there. The lower slopes ofthis mountainside are cultivated now, and the ploughshare is graduallyforcing one terrace after another to yield sustenance to the farmer. Thus it is that by these cultivated terraces the centuries of the town'shistory can be numbered. For there is a village there, deep down in therocky ravine, as if on the floor of a volcano's crater, and in thatvillage live the happiest people in all the world. Do not think meunduly prejudiced by the fact that I am one of them. No, I am notprejudiced. Strangers also find no terms of praise too high for thosehappy and industrious people. Noted English and German travellers havevisited my native valley and afterward written books about it, as othertravellers have about Japan or Circassia. Indeed, those two countrieshave something in common with my own. My people have developed andperfected industries peculiar to themselves, as have the Japanese, andthey also are proud of their handsome women, as are theCircassians--except that the girls of Toroczko are not for sale, nor, for that matter, are they to be had by foreigners, even for love. Theircharms bloom only for their own countrymen, and by them they arejealously guarded. They never work in the fields, and so their fairfaces are never tanned or freckled. The young maidens keep their rooms, and spin, weave, and embroider for their own adornment. When Sundaycomes and they all go to church, they fill six benches and form averitable 'book of beauties, ' of various types, both blond and brunette, which, however, one cannot so easily distinguish, owing to the richlyworked kerchiefs under which their hair is hidden. Their entire costumeis snow-white, even to the fine sheepskin bodice worn by each. "

"Ah, your young women think of nothing but dress, I fear, " remarkedBlanka. 

"By no means, " protested Manasseh; "on the contrary, their childhood andyouth are largely devoted to education. The people of our little valleymaintain a high school for boys and a seminary for girls, as well as acharity school for the poor. "

"Then your people must be rich. "

"No, not rich. There are no lords or ladies among them, and they havesuffered more from the ravages of war than any other community inHungary. "

"But how, " asked Blanka, "can they afford to dress their young women insilks and laces, and give both boys and girls an education? They musthave some fairy talisman for conjuring wealth out of the rocks on whichtheir houses stand. "

"And so they have. Their talisman is industry, and out of their rockysoil they conjure riches in the shape of iron, --the best that can befound in all Transylvania. The same men that fill the church everySunday, in holiday attire, dig and delve under ground the remaining sixdays of the week. Another secret of their modest wealth is theirabstinence from strong drink. There is not a single grog-shop inToroczko. But I fear I am wearying you. "

Blanka begged him to continue, and took occasion to ask him why he didnot go back to the beautiful valley which he seemed to love so warmly. 

"Because, " was the answer, "my people are now enjoying a period ofhappiness in which I have no part. If misfortune should ever overtakethem, I should go back and strive to lighten it, or at least I wouldbear it with them. "

CHAPTER V. 

HOLY WEEK IN ROME. 

It was evening when the travellers reached Rome. They had accomplishedthe journey in the time promised by Manasseh, and now the query wasraised, could their enemy, by any possibility, have outstripped them?

Upon the coachman's inquiring to what hotel he should take hispassengers, Gabriel Zimandy drew out his memorandum-book and read thename of a house recommended to him by his landlord at Vienna. Europeaninnkeepers, be it observed, join together in a sort of fraternity formutual aid in a business way, passing their guests along from city tocity and from hand to hand, sometimes even providing them with lettersof introduction. 

The cards of the hotel in question bore the important announcement, "German is spoken here;" and this was an advantage not to be despised. 

"You will come with us, won't you?" said the advocate, turning with acourteous bow to Manasseh. 

"Where German is spoken? No, I thank you. If I announce myself as aHungarian, they will kiss my hand and then charge the kiss on the bill;if I say I am a German, I shall get a drubbing and be charged for that, too. I prefer to hunt up a modest little inn where, when I register fromTransylvania, the good people will think it is somewhere in America, perhaps in the neighbourhood of Pennsylvania. The Yankees, you know, arehighly respected in Italy. "

"I regret exceedingly--" began the advocate. "Among so many strangers itwould have been very pleasant to have----"

"At least one enemy within call, " interrupted the young man, with asmile. "Well, you see, I am likely to be in Rome some time; so I shalllook up a quiet room for myself near the Colosseum, where the sun shinesand I can carry out certain plans of my own. "

The carriage turned into a brilliantly lighted street and passed astately palace before which a richly sculptured fountain was sending itsstreams of sparkling water into the air. 

"The Palazzo Cagliari, " remarked Manasseh, but without any significantemphasis. 

A natural impulse of curiosity moved Blanka to turn and look at theancestral mansion of her husband's family. A moment later Manassehsignalled the driver to stop, and alighted from the carriage aftershaking hands with his fellow travellers. Gabriel Zimandy said theyshould be sure to meet again soon; Madam Dormandy hoped they might allgo sightseeing together in a few days; but Blanka said nothing as shebowed her farewell. 

Reaching their hotel, our three travellers were greeted by the landlordwith unmistakable tokens of surprise. 

"And have your excellencies met with no mishap on the way?" he tookearly occasion to inquire. 

"Certainly not. Why?"

"Your coming was announced in advance by our Vienna agent, andaccordingly we reserved rooms for you. But at the same time anotherguest was also announced, a gentleman of high station from Hungary; andthis afternoon word came that this gentleman and all his party had beencaptured by bandits in the ravine at the foot of Monte Rosso, andcarried off into the mountains, where they will have to stay until theirransom is forthcoming. We feared your excellencies were of the party. "

"No, " said Gabriel; "we came by way of Orvieto. "

"Lucky for you!" exclaimed the landlord. 

"What is the name of the gentleman you refer to?" asked the princess, ina tone that betrayed the keenness of her interest. 

"It's a queer name, " answered the landlord, "and I can't remember it. But I'll find it for you in my letters of advice and send it up to yourroom. "

Blanka had hardly laid aside her wraps when a waiter knocked at her doorand presented a card on a silver salver. "Conte Benjamino de Vajdar" wasthe name she read in the landlord's handwriting. 

 * * * * *

On the following morning, Blanka sent for the hotel-keeper and desiredhim to procure for herself and her two companions admission tickets toall the sacred ceremonies of the coming week. The worthy man fairlygasped at the coolness of this request. Tickets to the Sistine Chapel, to the Tenebræ, to the Benediction, and to the Glorification--and forthree persons? Why, money couldn't buy them at that late hour, hedeclared. Admission tickets to paradise would be more easily obtainable. At the very utmost, places might still be procured on some balconyoverlooking the Piazza di San Pietro, but only at extremely high prices. Yet the view from such a position would be a fine one; and mine host, without waiting to listen to any objections, hastened away to securetickets, if they were still to be had. 

The princess made her lament to Gabriel Zimandy over her poor success inobtaining what she so ardently desired, and that gentleman sought toconsole her with the assurance that it was highly venturesome forladies to trust themselves in the crowd that always attended the churchceremonies of Holy Week, and that she could read all about them muchmore comfortably in the newspapers. Blanka, however, took so much toheart the disappointment of her pious wishes, and came so near the pointof tear-letting, that the advocate felt obliged to sally forth in personto see what he could do to console her. In less than an hour he was backagain, breathless and exultant. He ran up-stairs with the agility of amuch younger and less corpulent man, and hastened to the princess'sroom, regardless of the fact that she was at the moment under herhair-dresser's hands. 

"Victory!" he cried, panting for breath. "The impossible is achieved, and here are tickets for all three of us--to everything--to the Tenebræ, the washing of feet, the Last Supper, the Resurrection, the relics, theBenediction--"

"But how did you get them?" interrupted the ladies, overcome withcuriosity. Madam Dormandy had come hurrying out of her room at the firstsound of his voice, and she and the princess now proceeded to pelt theirvictorious envoy with a volley of questions. 

"Well, you see, " replied the lawyer, gradually recovering his breath, "it is a curious story. As I was tearing across the Corso, intent on myerrand, I felt some one catch me by the coat-tail and heard a voicecall to me in Hungarian, 'Haste makes waste!' I wheeled about, and therestood our Arian friend. "

"Manasseh Adorjan?"

"Yes. He asked me if we had our affairs all in order, and I told him, byno means. I complained to him of our ill luck in securing tickets to thesacred ceremonies, and that it seemed impossible to get even anywherenear the Vatican. 'Well, ' said he, with that confoundedly seriousexpression of his that you don't know whether to take as a sign of jestor earnest, 'let me see if I can't make it possible for you. ' 'But, 'said I, 'you don't imagine that you, a fallen statesman and an Arianheretic, can gain what is denied to Spanish princesses of the strictestorthodoxy?' 'You shall soon see, ' he answered, and proceeded to lead methrough one crooked street after another, until we found ourselves infront of a palace, at whose door a military watch was posted. He handedhis card to the doorkeeper, and presently we were ushered into ananteroom, where Adorjan left me while he himself went with a man whoseemed to be a private secretary, or something of the sort, into thenext room. It wasn't long before he came out again and put three cardsinto my hand. 'There they are, ' said he. 'Why, you are a regularmagician!' I couldn't but exclaim. 'Oh, no, ' he replied, 'I am noCagliostro; the explanation is simple enough. This is the Frenchembassy, and Monsieur Rossi is an old friend of mine. I have visited hisfamily often. So when I asked him for tickets to all the ceremonies ofHoly Week for two Hungarian ladies and their escort, he gave them to meat once. But now you must look sharp, for cards enough have been givenout to fill the Sistine Chapel six times over, and there will be ascramble to get in. '"

The princess was as pleased as a child. Her dearest wish was gratified;but, singularly enough, she owed this gratification to the very man whomshe felt the necessity of avoiding and forgetting. It was, however, tothe mysterious charm of the approaching ceremonies that she looked foran effective means of diverting her thoughts from forbidden channels. Yet the fact remained that he himself had opened the way for her to thisearnestly desired distraction, and to Blanka it seemed as if hisinfluence over her was only increased and strengthened by his absence. 

"What return, pray, did you make for all this kindness?" she asked. 

"A very ungracious one, I fear, " replied Gabriel. "After receiving thesetickets, which are worth many times their weight in gold, I told ourbenefactor that I feared they would profit us little, unless he procuredone for himself, also, and acted as our guide. "

"You asked him to escort us?" exclaimed the princess, consternation inher tone. 

"I know it was a strange request, " admitted the advocate, "to ask aheretic to witness the Passion, and the Resurrection, and theGlorification. It is like burning incense before his Satanic Majesty. Naturally enough, he refused at first point-blank, alleging that he hadno right to thrust himself as attendant on two ladies without theirinvitation. 'Well, then, ' said I, 'don't go as the ladies' escort, butjust show me, your fellow countryman, the way about, else I shallcertainly get lost, and find myself in the Catacombs instead of theVatican. ' Finally, I forced him to yield, and so he is to accompany us. "

In the afternoon of the same day Manasseh Adorjan called on theprincess, and brought her a piece of good news of the utmost importance. Her trunks, and those of her friends, had arrived safely and promptly, and were at the custom-house. She had concluded that they had falleninto the bandits' hands, but it seemed that it was not the diligence, after all, that the robbers had waylaid; it was a post-carriage engagedby one of the travellers in the hope of reaching Rome a few hoursearlier than the public conveyance. This one traveller only had beencarried off into the mountains by the bandits, who had despatched aletter from their captive to Rome, addressed to Prince Cagliari, andpresumably relating to the ransom. But as the prince was at present inVienna, and postal communication between the two cities was at that timeslow and uncertain, the ransom stood a good chance of being considerablydelayed. This was a hint to the princess to make the most of theinterim, and plead her cause at the Vatican, before her enemy could putin an appearance and damage her case. Manasseh, however, betrayed nosign of possessing any knowledge of the pending divorce suit, butcontinued to bear himself with the courteous reserve of a newacquaintance. Two things he sought thenceforth to avoid, --paying courtto the beautiful young princess, and speaking lightly of things heldsacred by her. 

Complying with the expressed wish of the two ladies, in the evening hemade with them the round of the principal churches, which now all woregala attire. He took his seat on the box by the coachman's side, andpointed out, in passing, the buildings and scenes of special interest. In one of the churches he showed the ladies facsimiles of the four nailsused in the Crucifixion; of the originals, one, he explained, waspreserved in St. Peter's, and another had been used to make the circleof the Iron Crown. He even bought as a souvenir one of these facsimiles, which a Cistercian monk was offering for sale. He obtained alsoconsecrated palm-branches with gilded leaves, and bribed the custodianof the three sacred orange-trees planted by the Apostles to give hisparty each a tiny leaflet. He schooled his face to betray no incredulitywhen the keepers of the various holy relics recited their virtues, andrelated the miracles wrought by them. And when Blanka knelt in prayerbefore a statue of the Madonna, he withdrew respectfully to a distance. It was an earnest petition she offered before the blessed Virgin, aprayer for rescue from her enemies, and for strength to resist everytemptation. And she knew not that her rescuer and her tempter were oneand the same person, and that he stood there behind her at that verymoment. 

Of a highly impressionable temperament, and fresh from her convent life, the princess was so moved by the sacred emblems about her, and by theirholy associations, that she could not conceive of any one's viewingthese objects with less of awe and reverence than herself. And when herconductor recounted the legend of the sacred lance in the chapel of St. Veronica, --how the Roman lictor Longinus had pierced the Saviour's sidewith this lance, and been himself struck blind the same instant, but hadimmediately recovered his sight when he rubbed his eyes with the hand onwhich four drops of the Redeemer's blood had fallen, --Blanka could notbut ask herself whether another such miracle might not be wrought, andanother blind man be restored to sight. She dreamed of this miracle thatnight, and made a vow to the Virgin that in case of her deliverance fromher present difficulties, she would show her gratitude by presenting theMadonna with a jewel more precious than any that adorned her crown: shewould offer this young man himself, who now refused to worship at hershrine. The princess felt herself rich enough to buy this jewel for heroffering. Her heart held inexhaustible treasures, of which no man as yetcould claim any share. She ceased to fear him against whom she hadhitherto felt obliged to be on her guard; so much strength had shegained from the sacred relics that she now thought herself strong enoughto make conquests of her own. 

In the morning Manasseh came early to escort the ladies and GabrielZimandy to the Sistine Chapel. Upon gaining the Piazza di San Pietrothey found a vast throng already assembled, through which the young manwas forced to pilot his charges. Blanka was compelled to cling fast tohis arm, while Madam Dormandy took the advocate's, and so they made thebest of their way forward. As if by instinct, Manasseh knew where acourteous request would open a path before them, where to resort to moreenergetic measures, and where a couple of _lire_ would prove mosteffectual. At length he was successful in gaining the very bestposition in the chapel, and here, unfolding a camp-stool which he hadbrought with him under his overcoat, he offered Blanka a seat, whenceshe could view the ceremonies in comfort, and without annoyance from thepushing and crowding multitude. 

Alas, poor Blanka! She only learned later from her father confessor whata sin she had committed in thus yielding to the weakness of the flesh, instead of standing through all the weary hours of that morning. A goodChristian should not think of bodily comfort while his Saviour hangsbleeding on the cross. But she did not know this at the time, andtherefore her escort's kind attention was most grateful to her. 

The Tenebræ is one of the most impressive of all the ceremonies of HolyWeek in Rome. The Sistine Chapel is draped entirely in black, and onlythe soft rays of thirteen wax candles serve to lessen the darkness, outof whose depths, as out of the blackness of the tomb, sounds theantiphony of mourning and lamentation. The human forms moving to and frobefore the cross are hardly distinguishable, but have the appearance ofvague shadows. Then the candles are, one by one, extinguished, untilonly a single taper is left burning on the altar--that is Jesus. And inthis darkness, symbolic of grief and mourning, an invisible choir singsthe _Miserere_, Allegri's world-renowned composition, whose mysticnotes bring so vividly before us that last scene on Golgotha, --the agonyof the dying Saviour, the taunts of the lictors, the wailing of the holywomen, the shrieks of the dead whose graves are opened, and who cryaloud for mercy, and finally the rending of the Temple curtain, and thechorus of angels in heaven. All this affects even the most hardened ofskeptics with a power that cannot be withstood. For the time being theimagination is mistress of the reason. 

As the crowd poured out of the chapel after the ceremony was over, Blanka shot a glance of scrutiny from beneath her veil at the young manby her side. His face wore its wonted look of seriousness, the utteropposite of careless indifference, but at the same time wholly unlikethe devout rapture of a believer. In fact, his expression betrayed buttoo clearly that his thoughts were little occupied with what he had justwitnessed. 

"Have you heard the _Miserere_ many times before?" asked Blanka. 

"Twice only, --once in the Sistine Chapel, and again in St. Stephen's atVienna. "

"But I thought its production was forbidden elsewhere than in Rome, "said the princess. 

"Formerly that was the case, " replied Manasseh, "the publication ofAllegri's work being strictly prohibited; but after Mozart had heard itonce and written it down from memory, its reproduction could not beprevented. So I had a chance to hear it in Vienna, where, however, itwas but ill received, some of the audience even being moved tolaughter. "

"For what reason, pray?"

"Oh, not from any frivolity or irreverence, but because the music, whichsounds so grandly impressive here in the Sistine Chapel, strikes one asa mere confusion of discordant notes amid other surroundings. "

On the following day came the washing of the Apostles' feet. Chosenpriests from thirteen nations of the earth gathered in the PaulineChapel to receive this humble service at the hands of the Pope himself. The thirteenth of these chosen ones represented the angel that is saidto have appeared with the appointed twelve in St. Gregory's time. Thenfollowed the Last Supper, at which also the holy father ministered tothe Apostles in person. 

The next day was Saturday, and Gabriel Zimandy declared himselfsurfeited with holy ceremonies. Madam Dormandy agreed with him and beganto complain of a fearful headache. Then the two united in maintainingthat the princess looked utterly worn out and in need of rest. ButManasseh, who, by appointment, just then came upon the scene to offerhis escort for the day, laughed them all three to shame. 

"That is always the way, " said he; "people tire themselves out so beforeSaturday that on that day five-sixths of the crowd stay at home to saveup their strength for Easter, and thus miss one of the most impressivespectacles of the week, --the adoration of the true cross. "

Poor Gabriel was now given no rest: he was forced to accompany theothers once more to the Sistine Chapel, though he declared himselfalready quite stiff and sore with so much standing. 

The chapel was at its best; the black hangings had been removed, thelight from the windows was softened, candles burned on the altar, and, as Manasseh had predicted, so many of the sightseers had stayed at homethat ample room was left for those who were present. The generalmultitude could find little pleasure in the ceremony of the day, --theworship of a piece of wood about three yards in length, and unadornedwith gold or silver. The Pope and the cardinals, gowned with no pretenceto magnificence or pomp, knelt before the relic as it lay on the altar. It was but a fragment of the original cross, broken in the strife thatattended its rescue. This piece is said to have been saved and carriedoff by an emperor, making his way barefoot from Jerusalem to Alexandria, where another emperor concealed the precious relic in a statue, andfinally the Templars bore it in triumph through pagan hordes fromConstantinople to Rome. And now, when the head of the Church, the pastorof a flock of two hundred million human beings, the keeper of the keysof heaven, approaches this bit of wood, he strips himself of hissplendid robes, removes the crown from his head, the shoes from hisfeet, and goes, simply clad and barefoot, with humble mien, to kneel andkiss the sacred emblem. The cardinals follow his example, and meanwhilethe choir sings Palestrina's famous composition, the "Mass of PopeMarcellinus, " a wonderful piece that must have been first sung to thecomposer by the angels themselves. 

When the last notes of the music had died away, the bells of St. Peter'sbegan to ring, the hangings before the windows were drawn aside, andMichael Angelo's marvellous frescoes were fully revealed to the admiringgaze of all present. The swords and halberds of the guards were oncemore raised erect, and the choir, the prelates, and the pilgrims joinedin a common "Hallelujah!"

"Hallelujah!" cried Gabriel Zimandy also, rejoicing that the ceremonywas finally ended. "Never before in all my life have I been socompletely tired out. "

On his return to the hotel, he stoutly protested against attending anymore Church functions, and argued at length the inadvisability of theladies exposing themselves to the heat and fatigue of the Easterservice. Finally, and most important of all, he added that he had beengranted an audience with the Pope and must prepare his address, whichwas to be in Latin. 

"We are infinitely indebted to you, friend Manasseh, " he concluded, "forall your kindness; but you see for yourself how the case stands withme. "

"Yes, yes, I understand, " replied the young man. "The audience is fixedfor day after to-morrow, and of course you wish to prepare for it. Letme suggest, too, that you pay the French ambassador, to whose house Itook you the other day, the courtesy of a call; he knows a little Latin, although, to be sure, it can't equal your own. "

This suggestion, casual though it was meant to appear, made it evidentto the advocate that he owed the early granting of his request to thepowerful influence of the French minister. And Manasseh, on his part, was not slow to perceive that the advocate's chief concern was lest hisfair client, at this critical time, should be seen in public in thecompany of a strange young man. It might hurt her case irremediably. 

With a full understanding of the situation, Manasseh took leave of theprincess, who indeed was looking very down-hearted at the prospect ofmissing what she had so ardently desired. But she was schooled to thedenial of her own pleasure, and so quietly shook hands with hercaller--then went to the window to watch his retreating form. 

CHAPTER VI. 

THE CONSECRATED PALM-LEAF. 

Early the next morning the cannon began to boom from the Castle of St. Angelo. Gabriel Zimandy sprang out of bed and dressed himself quickly. His first care was to tap at Madam Dormandy's door and inquire for herhealth. The patient answered in a pitiful voice that the guns werefairly splitting her poor head, and that she did not expect to live theday through. This reply seemed to be quite to the advocate's liking: ofthe lady's succumbing to her ailment he had not the slightest fear, while he now felt assured that it would be impossible for his client togo out that day. What conception had he, heartless man, of the longingthat filled the young woman's soul for the papal blessing, to which sheascribed such miraculous power, but which to him was nothing more than aLatin phrase?

Soon the bells began to ring from all the church-towers of the city, anda stream of people in gala attire poured toward St. Peter's. Poor Blankasat at her window with eyes fixed on a certain corner, around which shehad the day before seen Manasseh Adorjan's form disappear. The clocksstruck twelve, thirteen, fourteen--by Italian reckoning of time; thecrowds began to thin, and at last every one seemed to have betakenhimself to St. Peter's. An open carriage halted in the now desertedstreet in front of the hotel, and Blanka recognised in its occupant thevery person whose image had been so persistently before her mind's eye. 

"Pardon me, princess, for intruding, " began Manasseh in greeting, as heentered the young lady's presence; "but yesterday I saw that you weredisappointed at not being able to attend the Easter service at St. Peter's. I have found means to remove that disappointment, I hope. "

The princess felt her pulse quicken with eager delight, while at thesame time she shrank back in nameless apprehension of what the young manmight be going to propose. 

"I fear it is too late, " she replied, quietly. "I am not even dressedfor the occasion. "

"You have time enough, " returned the other, reassuringly. "The Frenchminister's wife has kindly offered to take you with her. Seats for theladies of the embassy have been reserved and can be easily reached by aspecial entrance. They are very near the _loggia_ where the papalblessing will be pronounced. In an hour Madame Rossi will be here; thatwill give you time to get ready. "

"And are you going with us?"

"No, that will be impossible, as the reserved seats are for ladies only;but I will escort Madame Rossi and her daughter to your door, and youwill, I am sure, find them very pleasant company. For myself, I shallhunt up some sort of a perch where I can get a view of the day'sfestivities. "

So saying, the young man hurried away. 

Against this plan Gabriel Zimandy could raise no objections. Indeed, hesaw the policy of making friends with the French embassy, and as long asManasseh was not to accompany the party his professional schemes were inno wise endangered. 

When Manasseh returned with the French ladies he sought the lawyer. "Come, my friend, " he urged, "if your legs have nothing to say againstit, if your religious belief permits, and if you have studied your Latinspeech enough for one day, I will find you a good shady spot where youcan witness what no mortal eye has seen in all these eighteen Christiancenturies, and is little likely to see again in eighteen centuries tocome. "

"What may that be?"

"A Pope of the Romish Church, pronouncing his blessing from the _loggia_of St. Peter's on the Roman army, preparatory to its marching forth tofight for freedom. Durando's troops are now marshalled in St. Peter'sSquare, awaiting the papal blessing on the swords drawn for liberty andcountry. It has, I know, been your dream to witness a sight like that, and now I come to invite you to its realisation. "

"Well, well, that is something worth while, " admitted the advocate. "Thewhole Roman army, and Durando himself! Surely, I can't afford to missit. " The invitation had driven quite out of his head all the objectionsso strenuously urged the day before. 

The ladies had no difficulty in reaching the places reserved for them;for the gentlemen, however, it was not so easy to find evenstanding-room. But at length Manasseh guided his companion to one end ofthe scaffolding which supported the ladies' platform, and there foundfor him a V-shaped seat in the angle of two beams, while he himselfstood on a projecting timber which afforded him room for one foot, andclung to the woodwork of the platform with both hands. The discomfort ofhis position was lightened for him by the fact that, only a few feetabove, he could see Blanka's face as she sat with eyes directed towardthe _loggia_ where the Pope was soon to appear. 

It was a grand spectacle. The whole army--infantry, cavalry, artillery--was drawn up in the immense _piazza_, each regiment carryingtwo flags--the banner of the Church, on which were depicted the keys ofheaven, and the red, white, and green flag of Italian freedom. Thebackground to this scene was furnished by the cathedral itself, a vastthrong of spectators crowded the foreground, and the whole united toproduce an effect of pomp and grandeur that fairly beggars description. 

The clocks struck eighteen--midday. The great bell sounded in thewestern turret of the cathedral, and the booming of cannon was once moreheard from the Castle of St. Angelo. The service within the cathedralwas at an end, the leather curtains that hung before the great bronzedoors parted, and out poured the procession of pilgrims, until the wholewide expanse of the portico was filled. Mysterious music fell on the earfrom somewhere above: a military band stationed aloft in the cupola hadstruck up a psalm of praise, and it seemed to the listeners to come fromheaven itself. Silver trumpets--so the faithful believe--are used inrendering this piece. 

All faces were now turned toward the _loggia_, a sort of projectingbalcony high up on the front of the cathedral. A sound like the murmurof the sea rose from the multitude: each spectator was shifting hisposition, and seeking a clearer view. Then the _loggia_ became suddenlyfilled with moving forms, --cardinals in their splendid robes, knights inmediæval armour, pages in costly livery. The crown-bearers advanced withtwo triple tiaras, one the gift of Napoleon I. , the other presented bythe queen of Spain, and both sparkling with diamonds. A thirdcrown, --the oldest of all, originally simple in form, then a doublediadem, and finally a threefold tiara, --encircled the head of the Popehimself, who, seated on a golden throne, was borne forward to the stonebreastwork, on which two crowns had been placed by their bearers. Thepontiff rose from his seat and the sun shone full upon his venerableform. He wore a white robe embroidered with gold, and his appearance wasradiant with light. The benignant smile that illumined his countenanceoutshone all the diamonds in his triple crown. 

How happy was Princess Blanka at that moment! and hers were the fairestgems in all that costly array, --two tears that glistened in her largedark eyes as she gazed intently on the scene before her. 

The two youngest cardinals took their stand on either side of the Pope, each holding a palm-leaf in his hand. Then, over the awed and silentthrong before him, in a voice still strong, sonorous, and vibrant withfeeling, the aged pontiff pronounced his blessing in words at oncesimple, sincere, and gracious. 

Blanka and Manasseh exchanged glances, and the young man felt atear-drop fall upon his cheek. From that moment an indissoluble bondunited the two. 

When the benediction was over, a stentorian voice from the multitudecried, "_Evviva Pio Nono!_" The shout was caught up by all the vastthrong, and sent heavenward in a united cry of ever-swelling volume. Notmerely Pius IX. , but St. Peter himself seemed to stand before thejubilant multitude, opening heaven's gates with one key, and the portalsof an earthly paradise of freedom with another. The two cardinals casttheir palm-leaves down to the people, and as they fell, flutteringuncertainly, now this way, now that, all eyes followed them to see whoshould be the happy ones to secure the precious emblems of benedictionand absolution. One leaf, after hovering in the air a moment, sank inever narrowing circles until it lodged on the flag of a volunteerregiment, whereupon a mighty cheer burst from thousands of throats. Theother, borne hither and thither by shifting breezes, was finally waftedtoward the raised platform where sat the ladies of the French embassy. Ahundred hands reached eagerly for it as it sank lower and lower; but onearm, extending higher than the others, secured the prize. It wasManasseh who from his elevated position, intercepted the coveted tokenas it fell, and he immediately turned and presented it to PrincessCagliari, amid a storm of applause from the onlookers. 

The princess was a beautiful woman, but at the moment of receiving thissymbol of forgiveness and blessing, her face gained such a look ofradiant happiness as can only be imagined on the countenance of an angelin his flight to heaven; and to her that precious leaf meant heavenindeed. But when she turned to thank the giver he had disappeared. 

"That was really grand, " admitted Gabriel Zimandy, as his friend pilotedhim through the surging throng to the nearest cab. "To think of thePope's giving his blessing to an army mustered in the cause of liberty!Such a sight was never seen before. "

"No, " returned Manasseh; "and you must make haste to push your client'scause while he is in his present good humour, which may not last. "

"But, surely, you don't mean that his Holiness is in any way triflingwith the people, do you?" asked the advocate. 

"I am fully convinced, " replied the other, "that Pio Nono is a gentle, good-hearted, upright man, and a gracious pontiff; but I also believethat, at the very first engagement, the Austrians will give the piousDurando a most unmerciful whipping. What direction the wind will take inRome after that, no mortal can tell. You will do well, however, to makethe most of your time while that palm-leaf is still green. "

CHAPTER VII. 

AN AUDIENCE WITH THE POPE. 

On the following day came the audience with his Holiness, Pius theNinth. 

The Very Reverend Dean Szerenyi was first sent by the master ofceremonies to instruct the lawyer and his client in the details of theirapproaching interview. This envoy even took pains to indicate in whatsort of toilet ladies were expected to appear. The gown must come uphigh about the neck and might be of any colour desired, or of black silkif the wearer was in mourning. Jewelry was not forbidden. A lackey inred livery would usher the strangers into the audience-chamber. Theirpetition must be carried in the hand. In the throne-room--where ladieswere permitted to gaze to their hearts' content on the splendid displayof Japanese porcelain--the major-domo would marshal the company in adouble file, and there they would wait until his Holiness appeared. 

"But look here, " interposed Zimandy, with a troubled look, "does thePope know I am a Calvinist?"

"He never asks about the religious belief of those who seek an audiencewith him. On all alike he bestows his blessing, assuming that all whocourt his favour have an equal need of his benediction. "

"Are there very many asking an audience at this time?"

"Only eight hundred. "

"E-e-e! Eight hundred! How am I ever going to get a chance to deliver myLatin speech that I have been working on all night?"

"You will not be called upon for it at all. It is not customary in ageneral audience with the Pope to make set speeches. His Holinessaddresses whom he chooses, and they answer him. All petitions are takenin charge by the secretary. "

"Then it is lucky I put into mine everything that I intended to say. Well, give my respects to his Holiness, and tell him I was the one whomade the motion in the Pest Radical Club to have his portrait hung onthe wall in a gilt frame; and if he is a smoker, I should be happy tosend him some superfine--"

But the dean had urgent matters to attend to, and begged to take hisleave without further delay. 

Our travellers, with the eager promptness characteristic of Hungarianson such occasions, were the first to be ushered into the antechamber atthe Vatican. Consequently they had an opportunity to hear the names ofall the other petitioners announced by the footman as they came in byones and twos and in little parties. They seemed to be all foreignprelates, princes, ambassadors, and other high dignitaries; and, indrawing them up in line, the major-domo gave them all precedence overour party, much to the latter's humiliation and disgust. It is notpleasant to stand waiting for a whole hour, only to find at its end thatone is no farther forward than at first. 

But when the antechamber was nearly full, a uniformed official enteredby a side door and made his way to the very foot of the line where theHungarians were standing. 

"Serenissima principessa de Cagliari! Nobilis domina vidua de Dormand!Egregius dominus de Zimand!"

This ceremonious apostrophe was followed by a wave of the hand, whichindicated that the persons addressed were to follow the speaker, andthat they were granted the special favour of a private hearing beforehis Holiness. Through the long hall, past lines of waiting men andwomen, they made their way; and as they went, inquiring looks andsuppressed whispers followed them. The princess was recognised by manyas the fortunate recipient of the consecrated palm-leaf on the daybefore, and they whispered one to another, "Ah, _la beata!_"

This sudden turn of affairs drove Gabriel Zimandy's Latin speechcompletely out of his head, so that he could not have given even thefirst word. As he hastened forward in all his court toggery, as hecalled it, he could have sworn that there were at least fifty swordsdangling between his legs and doing their best to trip him up. Afterpassing through a seemingly endless succession of splendid halls andstately corridors, the party was ushered into an apartment opening onthe magnificent gardens of the Vatican. Here it was that Pio Nono waswont to receive the ladies whom he favoured with a private audience. 

The princess and her companions stood before the august head of theChurch, the sovereign who acknowledges no earthly boundaries to hisdominions. Blanka felt a deep joy in her heart as she looked on thatbenignant countenance, her eyes filled with tears, and she sank on herknees. The Pope bent and graciously raised her to her feet. He laid hishand on her head, and spoke to her words of comfort which she enshrinedin the inmost sanctuary of her heart. 

When the audience was over and our friends had retired, Gabriel Zimandycould not have given any coherent account of what had passed, nor, indeed, was he in the least certain whether he had unburdened himself ofhis Latin speech, or stuck fast at the _beatissime pater_. MadamDormandy, however, was sure to enlighten him as soon as they regainedtheir hotel. He knew at least that the written petition which he hadcarried in his hand was no longer on his person; hence he must haveaccomplished his main object. 

Madam Dormandy alone seemed to have kept her wits about her through itall. She was able to tell how the Pope, while Zimandy was stammeringsome sort of gibberish, --Hebrew or Greek, for aught she knew, --had takenhis snuff-box from a pocket behind, and smilingly helped himself to apinch of snuff. Further, the snuff-box had looked like a commontortoise-shell affair with an enamelled cover; and after he had takenhis pinch, he had put his hand into the pocket of his gold-embroideredsilk gown and drawn out a coarse cotton handkerchief such as theFranciscans use. 

But these little details had entirely escaped the princess and herlawyer. 

CHAPTER VIII. 

AN UNWELCOME VISITOR. 

One day, when Blanka announced her intention of visiting the Colosseumfor the purpose of sketching it, Gabriel Zimandy declared that he couldnot be one of the party, and the two ladies must get along without hisescort. He said he was going to the Lateran, in his client's interest, and added that he had just received unwelcome news from Manasseh. 

"Then you have told him what brought us to Rome, " said the princess. 

"Are you angry with me for doing so?" asked the advocate. 

"No, no; you were quite right. What word does he send you?"

"I'll read you what he says--if I can; he writes an abominable hand. 'While you are seeing the sights of Rome with the ladies, ' he begins, 'important events are taking place elsewhere. General Durando has had ataste of the Austrians at Ferrara, and found them hard nuts to crack. Inhis wrath he now proclaims a crusade against them, fastens red crosseson his soldiers' breasts, and is pushing forward to cross the Po. Butthis action of his is very displeasing to the Pope, who does not lookkindly on a crusade by a Roman army against a Christian nation. Accordingly he has forbidden Durando to cross the Po. If now the generaldisobeys, all those whose powerful favour your client at present enjoyswill lose their influence; and should he suffer defeat beyond the Po, ashe well may, your client's enemies could hardly fail to gain the upperhand. You will do wisely, therefore, to press an issue before it is toolate. '"

"But is it possible that I should be made to suffer for a defeat on thebattle-field?" asked Blanka. 

"H'm! _Quidquid delirant reges, plectuntur Achivi_, " returned theadvocate, sententiously; and he hurried away without explaining that thequotation meant, --Whenever kings fall to quarrelling, the common peoplesuffer for it. Such was the old Greek usage. 

Blanka was thus left to find her way to the Colosseum with MadamDormandy, under the guidance of an abbot, whom they had secured ascicerone; and, while the reverend father entertained the young widowwith a historical lecture, the princess seated herself at the foot ofthe cross that stands in the middle of the arena, and sought to sketchthe view before her. But her success was poor; she was conscious offailure with every fresh attempt. Three times she began, and as oftenwas forced to discard her work and start over again. The Colosseum willnot suffer its likeness to be taken by every one; it is a favour thatmust be fought for. 

High up on the dizzy height of the third gallery sat a wee speck of aman with an easel before him. Even through an opera-glass the painterlooked like an ant on a house-top. He wore a broad-brimmed straw hat, and behind him a large umbrella was opened against the fierce rays ofthe Italian sun. Thus protected, he sat there busily at work. Blankaenvied him: he had mastered the mighty Colosseum and caught itslikeness. How had he set about it? Why, naturally enough, he had climbedthe giddy height and conquered the giant from above. She resolved tocome again, early the next morning, and follow his example. With thatshe tore the spoiled leaves impatiently from her sketch-book, and threwthem down among the thistles that sprang up everywhere between thestones of the ruin. It was getting late, and she was forced to return toher hotel and dress for the theatre. 

The way back led past the Cagliari palace, and Blanka noted withsurprise that its iron shutters were open and the first storybrilliantly lighted. The gate, too, was thrown back, giving a view ofthe courtyard, which wore rather the aspect of a garden. Who could havewrought this sudden transformation in the deserted old mansion?

A still greater surprise awaited the princess when she reached herhotel. The proprietor himself came down the steps to open her carriagedoor, assist her to alight, and escort her to her rooms. 

"Thank you, sir, but pray don't trouble yourself, " began Blanka. "I canfind my way very well alone. "

The innkeeper persisted, however, although the double doors to which heled her, and which he threw open before her, were not those of her ownapartment. The ladies found themselves in a sumptuously furnishedanteroom, from which, through a half-opened door, they looked into aspacious drawing-room yet more luxuriously fitted up, with oil paintingson its walls and potted plants in its four corners. Leading out of thisapartment, to right and left, were still other elaborately furnishedrooms, which a footman in gold-braided red livery obsequiously threwopen. 

"While the princess was out, " explained the hotel keeper, with a bow anda smile, "I had this suite of rooms put in order for her reception, andhope they will give entire satisfaction. "

"No, no, my dear sir, " protested Blanka, "they appear far toomagnificent for my needs, and I prefer to remain where I was. And howabout this footman?"

"A servant of the house, but now dressed in the princess's livery, " wasthe reply. "Henceforth he is to be at your sole disposal, and a liveriedcoachman in a white wig, with a closed carriage, is also ordered toserve you. All this is in compliance with directions from high quarters. A gentleman was here in your absence and expressed great displeasurethat Princess Cagliari and her party were lodged in a suite of only fourrooms. Where is his card, Beppo? Go and fetch it. "

Blanka had no need to look at the card: she knew well enough whose nameit bore. Controlling her agitation, she turned calmly to the hotelproprietor. "I must beg you, " said she, "not to receive orders from anyone but my attorney. Otherwise I shall feel obliged to leave your hotelat once. Let my old rooms be opened for me again, and engage no specialservants on my account. " So saying, she returned to her former quarters. 

With no little impatience she awaited the advocate's return, and as soonas he appeared questioned him eagerly for news. 

"None at all, " he answered, wearily. "I've been running around all day, and have accomplished absolutely nothing; couldn't find the people Iwished to see, and those I did find pretended not to understand a wordI said. If I only knew where that fellow Manasseh had hidden himself!"

"I could tell you, " thought Blanka, but did not offer to do so. "Well, "said she, aloud, "if you have no news, I have. Look at this card. "

The lawyer put on his eyeglasses and read the name, --"Benjamin Vajdar. "

"Prince Cagliari is in Rome also, " added Blanka. 

The advocate looked at her. "So Vajdar has been here, has he? Did yousee him?"

"No; but he is sure to come again. I have given orders that he is to bereferred to you. I have nothing to say to him. "

"Just let me get hold of him!" cried Gabriel, with menace in his looks, and then added: "I only wish I knew where to find Manasseh. "

"I know, " said the princess to herself. She had learned his address by acurious accident. When she and the young painter went to see the SistineChapel together they were called upon, as are all visitors, to givetheir names and addresses. Thus she could not avoid hearing the streetand number of Manasseh's temporary abode, and this street and number shehad afterward written down in her sketch-book--foreign names are so hardto remember. 

When her lawyer had withdrawn she sought her book and turned its leavesin search of the address. But though she hunted through all the pagesagain and again, she could not find the memorandum which she felt sureshe had made. Suddenly she remembered having torn out and thrown awaytwo or three leaves, --those containing her futile attempts to sketch theColosseum. 

At this point a letter was delivered to the princess. It was from PrinceCagliari, and asked Blanka to assign an hour at which to receive him. She answered the note at once, naming ten o'clock of the followingmorning. 

Promptly on the hour appointed the prince's equipage appeared at thehotel door, and he himself came up the stairs, leaning on hisgold-headed cane. He enjoyed the full use of only one foot, although hisgouty condition was not very apparent except when he climbed a flight ofstairs. Ordinarily he showed admirable skill in disguising his defect. He was still a fine-looking man, and only the whiteness of his hairbetrayed his age. Clean-shaven and of florid complexion, he wore aconstant smile on his finely chiselled lips, and bore himself with agraceful air of self-assertion that seldom failed of its effect on thewomen whom he chose to honour with his attentions. 

The head waiter hurried on before him to announce his coming. Blanka metthe prince in her antechamber. He took her offered hand and at the sametime barred the waiter's exit with his cane. 

"Is the princess still lodged in these rooms?" he demanded. 

The servant could not find a word to say in apology, but the princesscame to his aid. 

"I wished to remain here, " said she, calmly. 

The domestic was then dismissed and the visitor ushered into the nextroom. 

"I greatly regret, " he began, "that you chose to put aside my friendlyintercession on your behalf. These quarters do not befit your rank. Furthermore, by retaining a Protestant lawyer you appear to challenge meto the bitterest of conflicts. "

"Do you so interpret my action?" asked Blanka, proud reproach in hertone. 

"No, Blanka, assuredly not. Your own noble heart moved you rather to usemild measures--in spite of your attorney. You generously refrained frompushing your advantage against me while I was detained elsewhere andwhile my secretary was also unavoidably delayed. In return for thisgenerosity, Prince Cagliari comes to you now, not as your opponent in asuit at law, not as a husband to claim his wife, but as a father seekinghis daughter. What say you? Will you accept me as a father?"

Blanka was almost inclined to believe in the speaker's sincerity; yet hehad caused her far too much pain in the past to admit of any suddenreconciliation in this theatrical fashion. She remained unmoved. 

"Bear in mind, my dear Blanka, " proceeded the prince, "that the key tothe situation is now in my hands. Recent important events have made me a_persona grata_ at the Vatican, and now the first of the conditionswhich I feel justified in imposing on you is that you acquiesce in thearrangements which, with all a father's forethought, I have made foryour comfort during your sojourn in Rome. If the case between us is toreach a peaceful settlement, we must, above all things, avoid theappearance of mutual hostility; and it is a hostile demonstration on thepart of Princess Cagliari to be seen driving about the city in a hiredcab, and occupying, with her party, a suite of only four rooms. My dutydemanded that I should at least offer you the use of the Cagliaripalace, which consists of two entirely distinct wings, with separateentrances, stairs, and gardens; but I knew only too well that you wouldhave rejected the offer. "

"Most certainly. "

"Therefore nothing was left me but to order the apartments in this hotelcommonly occupied by visiting foreign princes to be placed at yourdisposal. No burdensome obligation, however, will be incurred by you inacceding to this arrangement, as I shall, in the event of ourseparation, see that the expense is deducted from the allowance which Ishall be required to make you. "

Blanka, who was naturally of a confiding disposition, not infrequentlyreposed her confidence where it was undeserved, --a failing not to bewondered at in one so young. Her husband was one of those in whom shethus sometimes placed too large a measure of trust, although she hadearly learned that no word from his mouth was to be accepted in itsobvious meaning. Yet this matter of her apartments in the hotel seemedto her of such trifling moment that she let him have his way andconsented to make the change which he desired, albeit at the same timestrongly suspecting a hidden motive on his part. 

"I am very glad, my dear Blanka, " said Cagliari, when the princess hadindicated her willingness to comply with his request, "to find youdisposed to meet me half-way in this matter. We will, then, leavefurther details to the hotel keeper. He will provide you with servantsin the livery of our house. How many do you wish--two?"

"One will suffice. "

"And if he does not suit you, dismiss him and demand another. You shallhave no ground for suspecting me of placing a spy upon you in the guiseof a servant. "

"Even if you should, it would trouble me little. A spy would findnothing to report to you. "

"My dear Blanka, no one sees his own face except in a mirror; others cansee it at all times. "

"Have you anything to criticise in my conduct?"

"Nothing, I assure you. I know your firmness of principle. I look at younow, not through the yellow glass used by a jealous husband inscrutinising his wife, but through the rose-coloured glass that a fondfather holds before his eyes in regarding a beloved daughter. If youtravelled in a stranger's company on your journey to Rome, that may verywell have been a mere matter of chance. If you left the accustomed routeunder his escort, you may have done so to avoid suspected dangers. Ifyou are seen again in Rome at this stranger's side, I see nothing inthat but his recognition of his duty toward you, --the courtesy of afellow countryman acquainted with Rome toward a lady visiting that cityfor the first time. And if you walked together arm in arm, it wasundoubtedly because of the pressure of the crowd, which always justifiesa lady in seeking the protection of the first man available. "

This speech filled Blanka with indignation and dismay. Weapons werebeing forged against her, she perceived; but she could do nothing. Hadshe offered a denial, her glowing cheeks would have testified againsther. She held her peace, accordingly, and preserved such outwardcomposure as she was able. 

"_N'en parlons plus!_" concluded the prince, fully aware of his triumph. "No one shall boast of outdoing Prince Cagliari in magnanimity, --noteven his wife. Where you have knelt and sued for mercy, I too willkneel; what you have written in your petition I will subscribe to, andadd still further: 'We are not husband and wife, we are father anddaughter. ' And you shall learn that this is no empty phrase. I do notseek to sever the bond between us; I exchange it for another. "

All this was uttered in so friendly a tone, and with such seeming warmthof feeling, that no one unacquainted with the speaker, and not knowinghim for the most consummate of hypocrites and the cleverest of actors, could have listened to him without being moved almost to tears. But hishearer in this instance knew him only too well. She knew that JeromeCagliari was most to be feared when he professed the noblest sentiments. 

Rising from his chair, he added, as if it were a matter of the mosttrifling importance:

"This afternoon I will send my secretary to you. "

"Your secretary?" repeated Blanka, with a start. "Pray send me anybodybut him, --a notary, a strange lawyer, an attorney's clerk, a servant. Iwill receive your instructions from any of these, but not from yoursecretary. "

"And why not from him?"

"Because I hate him. "

"Then you hate the man who is your best friend in all the world, --yes, even a better friend than I myself. If I were to ask heaven for a son Icould pray for no more excellent young man than he. He has my fullconfidence and esteem. "

"But if you knew why I hate him!" interjected Blanka, in a voice thattrembled. 

"Before you bring your accusation against him, " rejoined the other, "remember you are speaking, not to your husband, but to your father, whowishes not only to set you free, but also to make you happy. Accordingly, I will send Mr. Benjamin Vajdar to call on you to-morrowafternoon, to open the way for a harmonious settlement of the affairbetween us. I beg you to receive him as my confidant andplenipotentiary, and not to let your attorney know of his coming. Formyself, I shall, with your permission, allow myself the pleasure ofcalling on you again. "

With this the prince kissed Blanka's hand, and withdrew. 

Scarcely had he gone, when Gabriel Zimandy presented himself to learnthe object of Cagliari's visit. But Blanka obeyed orders, and kept backthe chief motive of his coming, saying simply that he had askedpermission to order a larger and finer suite of rooms for her use, andthat in this matter she had thought best to humour him. The advocateacquiesced, recognising the importance of securing the prince'sgood-will under present conditions. 

CHAPTER IX. 

THE ANONYMOUS LETTER. 

No sooner had her lawyer left her than a letter was delivered to Blankaby one of the hotel servants. It was unsigned, and to the followingeffect:

 "PRINCESS CAGLIARI:--Be cautious. Prince Cagliari is carrying out a fiendish scheme against you. Like yourself, he is bent on securing a divorce, but only that he may marry you to his protégé and favourite. He is even capable of selling his own wife. Hitherto you have been Cagliari's wife, and the Marchioness Caldariva his mistress; now he wishes to reverse these relations, and make the marchioness his wife, and you his mistress. Be on your guard. You are in the country of the Borgias. "

The princess was not a little disturbed by this communication. Monstrousas was the plot which it purported to disclose, she could not disbelieveit when ascribed to the two men in question. Certain fearfulremembrances of the past confirmed her suspicions, and even inspired herin her distress with thoughts of suicide. 

But what if this letter were merely a trap? Who could have written it?Who, in that city, where so few knew even of her existence, wassufficiently familiar with her private affairs to be able to write it?Whom could she now consult, with whom share her anxious forebodings?Involuntarily she took up her sketch-book, and turned its leaves oncemore. In vain; the address was gone--gone with the leaves she had tornout and thrown away in the Colosseum. 

Having no further engagements for that morning, she proposed to hercompanion a second visit to the Colosseum, that she might once moreessay the sketch which had baffled her the day before. Both MadamDormandy and the advocate signified their readiness to accompany her, the more so as a party of German visitors was planning an inspection ofthe Colosseum's subterranean chambers and passages, and Zimandy proposedto join them. 

Blanka made it her first care, on arriving at the Colosseum, to searchfor the lost sketch-book leaves; but though she remembered exactly whereshe had dropped them, neither she nor her friend could discover theleast trace of them. Who could have appropriated them? The artist in thegallery had been the only stranger present at the time of her previousvisit. 

While the advocate and Madam Dormandy went with the German party toinspect the lower regions, Blanka remained above, on the plea that suchsubterranean excursions made her unwell. There were no robbers or wildbeasts to molest her in the arena during the others' absence, and, besides, the entrances were all guarded. 

She sat down at the foot of the cross, but not to draw, for her mind wasnot now on her sketch. Plucking the dandelions that grew in profusionabout her, she fashioned them into a chain and hung it around her neck. The thought came to her, as she was thus engaged, that of all theChristian martyrs torn to pieces by wild beasts in that arena, not oneof them, when the tigers and hyenas leaped upon their prey, felt such aterror as hers at sight of the monsters that seemed to be closing inabout her to rend her limb from limb. 

How happy the artist must be up there in the lofty gallery! For there hewas, still at work on his picture. The artist is the only really happyman. He need fear no exile; every land is his home. No foreign tonguecan confuse him; his thoughts find a medium of expression intelligibleto all. Wars have no terror for him; he paints them, but takes no partin them. Storms and tempests, by land or sea, speak to him not ofdanger, but are merely the symbols of nature's ever-varying moods. Popular insurrections furnish his canvas with picturesque groupings ofanimated humanity. Though all Rome surge with uproar about him, he sitsunder his sun-umbrella and paints. The artist is a cold-blooded man. Hepaints a madonna, but his piety is none the greater for it. He draws aVenus, but his heart is still whole. He pictures God and Satan, butprostrates himself before neither. How independent, too, he must feel ashe wanders through the world! He asks no help in the production of hiscreations. The priest need not pray for rain or sunshine on his account. He seeks no office or title from prince or potentate. He desires nofavour, no privilege, nor does he even require the advantage of arecognised religious belief. With his genius he can conquer the world. 

Art it is, moreover, that makes woman the equal of man. The woman artistis something more than man's other half; she is complete in herself. Shedoes not ask the world for a living, she does not beg any man to giveher his name, she kneels before no marriage-altar for the priest'sblessing; she goes forth and wins for herself all that she desires. 

An irresistible impulse drove Blanka to ascend to the painter's loftyperch in order to see how he was succeeding in the task which sheherself knew not even how to begin. 

An artist engrossed in his work heeds not what is going on around him. The painter in this instance wore a simple canvas jacket, spotted withoil and colours here and there, and a straw hat, broad of brim andventilated with abundant holes. The princess, looking over hisshoulder, was far less interested in the painter than in his work. Indeed, the artist himself was so absorbed in his task that, to savetime, he held one of his brushes crosswise between his teeth while heworked with the other. Yet the instinct of politeness impelled him, assoon as he heard the rustle of a lady's skirt behind him, to remove hisbroad-brimmed hat and place it on the floor at his side. 

"Manasseh!"

Startled surprise and gladness spoke in that word, which slipped out erethe speaker's discretion could prevent it. The young man turned quickly. 

"Princess!" he exclaimed, "where did you drop from?"

"I was not looking for you, " she stammered, thus betraying that she hadbeen seeking him and was rejoiced, heart and soul, at the chance thathad led her to him. 

Manasseh smiled. "No, not for me, but for the painter wrestling with theColosseum from this lofty roost. I saw you yesterday attempting the sametask from below. "

"And you recognised me--so far off?"

"I have very good eyes. I also saw that you were dissatisfied with yourattempts, for you tore out one leaf after another from your sketch-bookand threw them away. "

"Did you find them again?" asked Blanka, breathlessly. 

"I made it a point to do so, Princess, " was the reply. 

"Oh, then give them back to me, please!"

"Here they are. "

No creditor ever did his distressed debtor a greater favour insurrendering to him an overdue note than did Manasseh in restoring thelost leaves to their owner. She replaced them carefully in hersketch-book, assuring herself, as she did so, that the missing addresswas on the blank side of one of them. What if it had caught the youngman's eye? How would he have explained its presence there?

She sat down to rest a moment on the stone railing of the gallery, herback to the arena and her face toward Manasseh, --an arrangement thatvery much interfered with the artist's view of what he was painting. Thesun shone directly in her eyes, and she had no sunshade, having lefthers in the carriage. The arena was so shaded that she had needed nonethere. Manasseh adjusted his umbrella so as to shield the princess, andthe rosy hue which its red fabric cast on her face reminded him of the_Horæ_ that precede the sun-god's chariot at dawn, their forms glowingwith purple and rose-coloured tints in the morning light. 

"I am very glad I happened to meet you, " said Blanka, speaking moresedately this time. "The party I came with is down below listening toan archæological lecture on the _cunei_, the _podium_, the _vomitorium_, and heaven knows what all, in which I am not interested. So I have timeto discuss with you, if you will let me, a point which you raised theother day and which I have been puzzling over ever since. You said thatwhere you used to live revenge is unknown; and that, though you weresuffering under a grievous injury and had the means to exact fullsatisfaction, yet you would not take your revenge. I too am suffering inthe same manner, and that is why I am now in Rome. I have pondered yourwords and have imitated your example. Possessing the means of revenge, Irefused to use them. I loosed my enemy's hands when they were bound. DidI do well?"

"Yes. "

"No, I did not. I should have taken my revenge. Revenge is man's right. "

"Revenge is the brute's right, " Manasseh corrected her. "It neverrepairs an injury that has once been done. In this I and the handful ofmy fellow-believers differ from mankind in general. In our eyes war isrevenge, the duel is revenge, capital punishment is revenge, revolutionis revenge. Those who profess themselves followers of Jesus too oftenforget that when he was dying on the cross he said, 'Father, forgivethem, for they know not what they do. '"

"That was said by Jesus the man; but Jesus the God has ascended intoheaven, whence he will come to judge the quick and the dead. And that isrevenge. "

"That conception of the Judgment is one that I cannot entertain, "returned Manasseh. "Man has made a god of the noblest of men, and hasmade him like those earlier divinities who slew Niobe's innocentchildren with their arrows. "

Blanka was sitting so far back on the stone railing that the artist feltobliged to warn her of her danger. 

"Oh, I am protected by guardian angels, " she replied, lightly. Shewished to learn whether one of those angels was then before her. "Ireceived this morning an anonymous letter, " she continued, "and as itcontains certain facts which only you could know, my first thought wasthat you had written it. "

"I assure you, I have never written you a letter, " declared Manasseh. 

"Please read it. " She handed him the letter. 

How quickly the young man's calm face flushed and glowed with passion ashe read! The martyrs of old could forgive their enemies for the torturesinflicted on them; but could they also pardon the inhumanity shown totheir loved ones? Manasseh crumpled the paper in his hand withvindictive energy, as if he had held in his grasp the authors of thatdetestable plot. Yet what right had he now to take vengeance on a manwhom he had refrained from punishing on Anna's behalf? Anna was his ownsister, and as such a beloved being. Her life had been spoiled by thisman, yet her brother had been able to declare, "We do not seekrevenge"--although this revenge was easily in his power. And what wasBlanka to him? A dream. And did this dream weigh more with him than thesorrow that had invaded his own family?

He returned the letter to its owner. "Just like them!" he mutteredbetween his teeth. 

"Prince Cagliari is in Rome, " remarked Blanka. 

"I know it. I met him, and he spoke to me and thanked me for theattentions I had shown his wife during Holy Week. "

It was fortunate for the princess that she sat in the rosy light of thered umbrella, so that her heightened colour passed unnoticed. 

"He called on me this morning, " said she, "and showed himself verygracious. His position is now stronger than it was, affairs at theVatican being guided at present by those who look upon him with favour. "

"Yes, I know that, " said Manasseh. 

"How do you know it, may I ask?"

"Oh, I have wide-reaching connections. My landlord is a cobbler. 'Messere Scalcagnato' lounges about the _piazza_ by the hour, istherefore well instructed in political matters, and keeps me dulyinformed of all that takes place at the Vatican. "

The princess gave a merry laugh at the thought of Manasseh's takinglessons in politics from the professor of shoemaking. A little feelingof satisfaction contributed also to her display of good humour: she wasassured by Manasseh's words that his address was still the same that shehad noted in her sketch-book. But her laugh was immediately followed bya sigh, and she folded her hands in her lap. 

"I wage war with nobody, Heaven knows!" she exclaimed, sadly. "I havemerely sued for mercy, and it has been promised me. "

"Princess, " interposed the young man, gently, "I cannot intervenebetween you and your enemies, but I can arm you with a weapon of defenceagainst their assaults. If you wish to repulse the man whom you fear andwho pursues you, --to give him such a rebuff that he will never againdare to approach you, --then wait until he makes the proposal which youdread, and give him this answer: 'Between you and me there is acanonical interdict which renders our union impossible; it is containedin the fourteenth paragraph of the Secret Instructions. ' As soon as yousay that he will vanish so completely from your presence that you willnever set eyes on him again. "

"Wonderful!" cried Blanka. "That will surely be a miracle. "

"Such it may always remain to you, " returned Manasseh, "and you maynever know how deep a wound you have inflicted. But you must thenceforthlook for no mercy. Sue urgently for a decision, and be prepared for aharsh one. "

"Thank you, " said Blanka, simply. "_N'en parlons plus_"--repeatingPrince Cagliari's phrase. 

With that she stepped lightly to the stone block which the artist hadbeen using for a chair, and, seating herself on it, began to copy inoutline his painting of the Colosseum, as if that had been the solepurpose of her coming. Nor did she so much as ask permission thus toviolate the rules of professional courtesy. This sketching from afinished picture she found vastly easier than drawing from the objectitself, a task which always proves elusive and baffling to the beginner. Manasseh took his stand behind her as she worked, but his eyes were notwholly occupied in following her pencil. 

Meanwhile the archæological explorers had abundant time to inspect allthe subterranean passages and chambers of the Colosseum, and it was onlywhen they emerged into the arena and began to seek their lost companion, with loud outcries, that she started up in some alarm and made haste toretrace her steps. 

Manasseh picked up the dandelion chain that had fallen from her neck andput it in his bosom. 

CHAPTER X. 

THE FOURTEENTH PARAGRAPH. 

Blanka was now like a boy who fears to stay at home alone, and to whomhis father has therefore given a loaded gun as a security. The lad has ashuddering eagerness to encounter a burglar, that he may try his weaponon him, never doubting but that he can kill a giant if need be. Let therobbers come if they wish; he is armed and ready for them. 

In this confidence Blanka's entire mood underwent a change: she becamelight-hearted almost to the point of unrestrained gaiety. At the verydoor of her hotel she began to exchange pleasantries with the landlord, who came forward to greet her with the announcement that a gentleman, acount, had called upon her in her absence. 

"Count who?" asked the princess, whereupon she was presented with a cardbearing the name of Benjamin Vajdar. But she read it without losing aparticle of her serenity, and then ordered an elaborate lunch. 

While her dishes were preparing, she sent for a hair-dresser and for amaid to assist at her toilet. She wished to make herselfbeautiful--even more beautiful than usual--and, indeed, she accomplishedher object. Her slender form, its height accentuated by a long bodice, looked still taller from the imposing manner in which her hair wasdressed. Her features, until then somewhat drawn by the strain ofconstant anxiety, gained now a vivacity that was matched by the addedcolour that glowed in her cheeks. A single morning in the Italian sunhad, it would have seemed to an observer, worked wonders in herappearance. But what she herself marvelled at most of all was the newlight that shone in her eyes. What could have caused thistransformation? The weapon which she held in her hands, --"the fourteenthparagraph of the Secret Instructions. " What cared she that to her thesewords were utterly meaningless? It sufficed her to know that there wassuch a paragraph; _he_ had told her so. 

A waiter announced that her lunch was served. Ordinarily Blanka ate nomore than a sick child; now she was conscious of an appetite like thatof a convalescent making up for a long series of lost meals. Thedainties which she had ordered tasted uncommonly appetising. While shewas busy with her oysters, the head waiter informed her that the "count"had come a second time and begged leave to wait upon her. 

"Show him up, " promptly replied the princess, without allowing herlunch to be interrupted in the least. 

The handsome young man already introduced to the reader was ushered in. The situation in which he found the princess seemed scarcely toharmonise with his plans. It rendered exceedingly difficult any approachto the sentimental. 

"Set a chair for the gentleman, " Blanka commanded her attendant, speaking, as if from forgetfulness, in Hungarian, and then correctingherself with a great show of surprise at her own carelessness. "_Grazie!_ And now, sir, pray be seated. You will pardon me if I go onwith my lunch. We can converse just the same. This man will notunderstand a word we say. We may consider our interview entirelyprivate. "

Vajdar misinterpreted the situation: he thought the princess feared him, as of old, and that therefore she kept her servant in the room. Thisbelief only added fuel to his evil passions. He who sees himself fearedgains an increased sense of power. 

"I come bearing the olive-branch, Princess, " he began, in smoothaccents. 

At this Blanka turned suddenly to her attendant. "That reminds me, " sheexclaimed; "Beppo, the waiter forgot my olives. "

Vajdar had taken a chair and drawn up to the table. "The prince wishes, "he continued, "to keep his promise and to show you all the affectionateconcern of a father toward his daughter. " He produced a roll ofmanuscript from his pocket. "There are certain points in your marriagecontract which must be discussed. Prince Cagliari made over to you, atthe time of your union, one million silver florins. If you should gainyour suit you would retain this sum in full; otherwise you would lose itall. He now offers you the following compromise. The principal is not tobe paid into your hands, but you are to receive the interest on it, atsix per cent. , during your lifetime. And, more than that, one-half ofthe Palazzo Cagliari is placed at your disposal as a dwelling. "

The princess bowed, as if in assent, but expressed the hope that sheshould not be obliged to stay long in Rome. 

"I think you will find it advisable to remain some time, at any rate, "said the young man. 

"But I wish to return home, to Hungary, where, as you know, I have anestate of my own. "

"That will be impossible, because the Serbs have burnt your castle tothe ground. "

"Burnt it to the ground? But my steward has not informed me of this. "

"And for a very good reason: the insurgents chopped off his head on hisown threshold. "

Even this intelligence could not destroy Blanka's appetite. She ate hersardines with unusual relish, and Vajdar could see that she gave littlecredence to his words. 

"Stormy times are ahead of us, " he went on, "and I assure you this isthe only safe retreat for you, --the holy city, the home of peace. "

"As is proved by the iron shutters on the windows of the Cagliaripalace, " remarked Blanka. "But tell me, if I should wish to choose myown household and my own intimates, would that liberty be allowed me?"

"Undoubtedly. Nevertheless, it would be greatly to your advantage tosurround yourself with persons speaking the language of the country andfamiliar with its ways. "

"And if I should win my cause, and should take a fancy to marry again, could I select a husband to suit myself?"

This was too much. It was like throwing raw meat to a caged tiger. 

"Without doubt, " murmured Benjamin Vajdar between his teeth, at the sametime casting furious glances at the servant behind his mistress's chair. 

Suddenly the princess changed her tactics. She wished to show her enemythat she dared leave her entrenchments and offer battle in the openfield. 

"Caro Beppo, " said she, turning to the servant, "clear the table, please, and then stay outside until I call you. Meantime, admit noone. "

The two were left alone, and Vajdar was free to say what he wished. Blanka made bold to rise and survey herself coquettishly in the mirror, as if to make sure of her own beauty. She was the first to speak. 

"All these favourable turns in my affairs are due to your kindintervention, I infer, " she began. 

"Without wishing to be boastful, I must admit that they are. You knowthe prince: he has more whims and freaks than Caligula. He has momentswhen he is capable of throttling an angel from heaven, and gentle moodsin which he is ready to do his most deadly enemy a secret kindness. These latter phases of his humour it was my task to lie in wait for andturn to your account. Whether this was a difficult task or not, you whoknow the prince can judge. "

"You will find me not ungrateful, " said the princess. "In case theunpleasant affair which has called me to Rome is settled satisfactorily, I shall make over to you, as the one chiefly instrumental in effectingthis settlement, the yearly allowance intended for me by the prince. Formyself I retain nothing further, and wish nothing further, than mygolden freedom. "

Vajdar's face glowed with feeling. He was a good actor and could summonthe colour to his cheeks at will. 

"But even if you should give me your all, and the whole world besides, "he returned, "I should count it as dross in comparison with one kindword from your lips. I know it is the height of boldness on my part tostrive for the object of my longing; but an ardent passion justifieseven the rashest presumption. You remember the fable of the giants'piling Pelion upon Ossa in order to scale Olympus. I am capable offollowing their example. You would cease to look down on me were I oflike rank with yourself; and this equality of station I shall yetattain. "

"I am sure I shall be the first to congratulate you. "

"The prince has promised to be a father to you if, as the result of apeaceful separation, he ceases to be your husband. A somewhat similarpromise he has made to me also. "

"Does he intend to adopt you as his son?" asked Blanka. 

"Such is his purpose, " replied Vajdar. 

"And what, pray, is his motive in this?"

Benjamin Vajdar averted his face, as if contending with feelings ofshame. "Do not ask me, " he begged, "to betray the weakness of my poormother. Hers was an unhappy lot, and I am the child of her misfortune. He whose duty it is to make that misfortune good is--Prince Cagliari. "

Blanka could hardly suppress an exclamation. "Oh, you scoundrel!" shewas on the point of crying, "how can you dishonour your mother in hergrave, and deny your own honest birth, merely to pass yourself off as aprince's bastard son?" Instead of this she clapped her hands andexclaimed: "How interesting! It is just like a play at the theatre. 'Isnot the little toe of your left foot broken?' 'Yes. ' 'Then you are myson. ' Or thus: 'Haven't you a birthmark on the back of your neck?' 'Ihave. ' 'Let me see it. Aha! you are my long-lost boy. ' Or, again: 'Whogave you that half of a coin which you wear on a string around yourneck?' 'My mother, on her death-bed. ' 'Come to my arms. You have foundyour father. '"

Her listener was convinced that he had to do with a credulous childwhose ears were open to the flimsiest of fairy tales. He proceeded toentertain her with further interesting details of his story, after whichthe princess produced the anonymous letter she had that morningreceived. First smoothing it out on her knee, --for it had been sadlycrumpled by a certain hand, and, indeed, even bore the impression of aman's thumb in oil, --she presented it to her visitor. 

"Please read that, " said she, "and then explain it to me. "

Vajdar had no sooner glanced at the letter than he perceived that theenemy, by a feigned retreat, had been decoying him over a mine whichthreatened presently to explode. Yet his assurance did not desert him. 

"A stupid bit of play-acting!" he exclaimed, throwing the letter down onthe table. 

"But whose interest could it have been to indulge in play-acting at myexpense?" asked Blanka. 

"I can tell you, for I recognise the handwriting. The MarchionessCaldariva wrote you that letter. "

"The Marchioness Caldariva? Is she here?"

"To be sure. The prince never travels without her. "

"But what motive had she thus to injure herself and, perhaps, preventher marriage with the prince?"

"Motive enough for a woman, " replied Vajdar, --"jealousy. "

"Jealousy!" repeated Blanka, in astonishment. 

But one glance at the face confronting her was a sufficient explanation. That handsome face, smiling with triumph and self-confidence, made hertingle with wrath and scorn from head to foot. This man, it appeared, was impudent enough to play the rôle of suitor to his patron's wife, andalso, at the same time, to pose as the object of a sentimentalattachment on the part of that patron's mistress. And he smiledcomplacently the while. 

"Sir, " resumed the princess, whom that smile so irritated that sheresolved to use her deadly weapon without further delay, "I appreciateyour devotion to my cause, but I cannot deceive you. I must notencourage hopes that would end only in disappointment. Let this matternot be referred to again between us. "

"But how if it were imposed by the prince as the indispensable conditionof a peaceful settlement of your relations with him?"

"I cannot believe that such is the case, " replied Blanka, calmly. "Buthowever that may be, I cannot bind myself by any promise to you, knowingas I do that the question of matrimony between us is one that the canonsof the Romish Church forbid us to consider. "

"Ah, you have been studying ecclesiastical law, I see, --an error likethat of the sick man that reads medical works. You undoubtedly have inmind the tenth paragraph, which forbids a son to marry his father'sdivorced wife; but you should have read farther, where it is declaredthat a marriage pronounced null and void by the clemency of the Pope isas if it never had been, and thus offers no hindrance to a subsequentunion. "

"No, " rejoined the princess, "I did not refer to the tenth paragraph. The paragraph which renders our union impossible is the fourteenth. "

The shot was fired, the mark was hit. Like a tiger mortally wounded theman sprang up and stood leaning on the back of his chair, glaring athis assailant with a fury that made her draw back in alarm. With whatsort of ammunition had the gun been loaded, that it should inflict sodeadly a wound, --that it should cause such a sudden and completetransformation of that complacently smiling face?

"Who told you that?" demanded Vajdar so furiously that Blanka recoiledinvoluntarily. "Only one person could have been your informant, and Iknow who that person is. I shall have my revenge on both of you forthis!"

With that he was gone, hurrying out of the room and out of the hotel asif pursued by a legion of devils. Beppo came running to his mistress, and seemed surprised not to find her lying in her blood on the floorwith half a dozen dagger-thrusts in her bosom. 

"Well, " he exclaimed, "whoever that man may be, I shouldn't like to meethim on a dark night in a narrow street. "

Blanka told her servant that if the gentleman who had just left evercalled again, she should not be at home to him. Then she sent herobedient Beppo away, as she wished to be alone. First of all, she mustponder the meaning of those mysterious words that had proved so potentin routing her enemy. She could hardly wait for her lawyer to return, soeager was she to question him in the matter. 

"Well, " began the advocate on entering, "what have you accomplished?"

"I have not made peace. "

"Why not?"

"Because it would have cost more than war. All negotiations are brokenoff. Read this letter. "

"A devilish plot!" cried the lawyer wrathfully. "But they are fullycapable of carrying it out, all three of them. Did you show this toVajdar?"

"Yes. "

"And was that why he ran out of the hotel in such an extraordinarymanner that the very waiters felt tempted to seize him at the door?"

"They had no such thought, I'll warrant, " returned Blanka. "They are allin his pay. To-morrow I leave this place. You must find me a privatedwelling. "

"I have one for you already. The Rossis are moving out of the embassy, and have engaged a private house. They invite you to share their newquarters with them. There is ample room. "

"Oh, how fortunate for me!"

"And yet the affair is not so altogether fortunate, after all. Rossi hasfallen from favour, and with his fall the whole liberal party loses itsinfluence at the Vatican. "

But what did the princess care for the liberal party at that moment? Shewas thinking of the lucky chance that had made it possible for her tomeet Manasseh again--at the house of their common friends. 

"Now I must beg you, " said she, changing the subject, "to press my suitas diligently as possible. But first let me ask you a question. You arethoroughly familiar with the marriage laws of the Romish Church, aren'tyou?"

"I know them as I do the Lord's Prayer. "

"Do you remember the fourteenth paragraph?"

"The fourteenth paragraph? Thank God we have nothing to do with that. "

"Why 'thank God'?"

"Because the fourteenth paragraph has to do with state's prisonoffences; it declares null and void any marriage, if either of thecontracting parties has committed such an offence. "

The mystery was clear to Blanka now. 

CHAPTER XI. 

THE DECISION. 

Gabriel Zimandy came to the princess one day with a very downcast mien. 

"Our case makes no headway, " he lamented, "and the reason is that youradvocate is a Protestant. Now there are two ways to remedy this: eitheryou must dismiss me and engage a Roman Catholic lawyer, or I must turnRoman Catholic myself. The latter is the shorter and simpler expedient. "

Blanka thought him in fun, and began to laugh. But Zimandy maintainedhis solemnity of manner. 

"You see, Princess, " he went on, "I am ready to renounce the faith of myfathers and incur the world's ridicule, all to serve you. I am goingthis morning to the cardinal on whom the whole issue depends, to ask himto be my sponsor at the baptism. "

The princess pressed his hand warmly in sign of her appreciation of hisdevotion. 

In a few days the lawyer carried out his purpose and was received intothe Church of Rome. The newspapers gave the matter considerableprominence, and it was generally expected that the godfather's presentto the new convert would be a favourable decision in the pending divorcesuit. And, in fact, a week later the decision was rendered. It was tothe following effect:

The husband and wife were declared divorced, but with the proviso thatthe latter should never marry again, and the former not during hisdivorced wife's lifetime. Thus the coffin-lid was closed on the youngwife, who was, as it were, buried alive; but in falling it had caughtand held fast the bridal veil of the Marchioness Caldariva, who couldnot now hope to be led to the altar so long as the princess remainedalive. Had there been in this some malevolent design to wreak vengeanceon the two women at one stroke, the purpose could not have been betteraccomplished. 

The further provisions of the decree of the Roman Curia were ofsecondary importance. Prince Cagliari was required to pay to PrincessZboroy--for Blanka retained her rank and title--an annuity of twelvethousand ducats, to give over for her use as a dwelling one wing of theCagliari palace, and to restore her dowry and jewels. These latter termswere evidently to be credited to Gabriel Zimandy's generalship; for hisclient might have found herself left with neither home nor annuity. Sothe lawyer's conversion had met with its reward even in this world. 

But Blanka's enjoyment of house and home and yearly income was madedependent on a certain condition: she was never to leave Rome. Thenature of the decree rendered this provision necessary. As she wasforbidden to contract a second marriage, her judge found himself obligedto keep her under his eye, to make sure that his mandate was obeyed; andno more delicate and at the same time effective way to do this couldhave been devised than to offer her a palace in Rome and bid her enjoyits possession for the rest of her life. This was surely kinder thanshutting her up in a convent. 

After the rendering of this decree Blanka lost no time in takingpossession of that half of the Cagliari palace assigned to her, and inengaging a retinue of servants befitting her changed surroundings. Herown property yielded her an income equal to that which she received fromthe prince, and thus she was enabled to allow herself every comfort andeven luxury that she could desire. Of the two wings of the palace, Blanka's faced the Tiber, while the other fronted upon the publicsquare. Each wing had a separate garden, divided from its neighbour by ahigh wall of masonry, and the only connection between the two parts ofthe house was a long corridor, all passage through which was closed. What had once been a door, leading from the room which Blanka now chosefor her bedchamber into the corridor, was filled in with a fireplace, whose back was formed by a damascened iron plate. This apartment theprincess selected for her asylum, her hermitage, where she could beutterly shut out from the world. 

The next day after the decision was rendered, Blanka was greeted by herbosom friend, the fair widow Dormandy, with the announcement of herengagement to Gabriel Zimandy. They intended to be married in Rome, shesaid, and then return to Hungary, whither the bridegroom's businesscalled him. It was clear to Blanka now why her lawyer had been so readyto renounce "the faith of his fathers. " It was more for the sake ofwinning the hand of Madam Dormandy, who was a devout Catholic, and ofmarrying her then and there, in Rome, than on account of his client'sinterests. Here let us take leave of the worthy man and let him departwith God's blessing, his newly married wife by his side, and hishonorarium from Princess Blanka in his pocket. 

Thus the divorced wife, who was yet hardly more than a girl, foundherself left alone in Rome. She shut herself off entirely from theworld, never venturing into society lest people should whisper to oneanother as she passed, --"_la condannata!_" She received no one but herfather confessor, who came to her once a week. The sins which she had toconfess to him were, --the doubting of providence, rebellion againsthuman justice, forbidden dreams in waking hours, envy of others'happiness, aversion to prayer, and hatred of life--all sins for whichshe had to do penance. 

Meanwhile quite a different sort of life was being led in the other wingof the palace. She could not but hear, from time to time, sounds ofmirth and gaiety in the adjoining garden, or even through the solidpartition-wall of the house. Voices that she knew only too well, andsome that she hated, penetrated to her ears and drove her from one roomto another. 

In due time, however, the malarial fever of the Italian summer came toher as another distraction. It was an intermittent fever, and for sixweeks she was subject to its periodical attacks, which returned everythird day with the constancy of a devoted lover. When at length shebegan to mend, her physician prescribed a change of air. Knowing thathis patient could not absent herself from Rome and its vicinity, he didnot send her to Switzerland, but to Tivoli and Monte Mario; and evenbefore venturing on these brief excursions she was obliged to askpermission at the Vatican. The convalescent was allowed to spend herdays on Monte Mario, but required to return to Rome at nightfall. Goodmorals and good laws demanded this. 

Nevertheless, even this slight change--the drives to and from MonteMario, and the mountain air during the fine autumn days--did theprincess good, and eventually restored her health. 

Meanwhile there was more than one momentous change in the politicalworld, but Blanka heeded them not. What signified to her the watchwordof the period, --"Liberty?" What liberty had she? Even were all the worldbeside free, she was not free to love. 

CHAPTER XII. 

A GHOSTLY VISITANT. 

It was the irony of fate that the mansion which had been assigned as apermanent dwelling-place to the woman condemned to a life of asceticism, had been originally fitted up as a fairy love-palace for a beautifulcreature, possessed of an unquenchable thirst for the fleeting joys ofthis earthly existence. Over the richly carved mantelpiece in Blanka'ssleeping-room was what looked like a splendid bas-relief in marble. Itwas in reality no bas-relief at all, but a wonderfully skilful bit ofpainting, so cleverly imitating the sculptor's chisel that even a closerinspection failed to detect the deception. It represented a recumbentSappho playing on a nine-stringed lyre. The opening in thesounding-board of the instrument appeared to be a veritable hole overwhich real strings were stretched. 

This painting Blanka had before her eyes when she lay down to sleep atnight, and it was the first to greet her when she awoke in the morning. Nor was it simply that she was forced to see it: Sappho seemed able tomake her presence known by other means than by addressing the sightalone. Mysterious sounds came at times from the lyre, --sometimes simplechords, and again snatches of love-songs which the princess could haveplayed over afterward from memory, so plainly did she seem to hear them. Occasionally, too, the notes of a human voice were heard; and though thewords were muffled and indistinct, as if coming from a distance, the airwas easily followed. These weird melodies came to Blanka's ears nearlyevery evening, but she did not venture to tell any one about them. Shetried to persuade herself it was all imagination on her part, and fearedto relate her experience, lest she should incur suspicion of insanityand be consigned to a less desirable prison than the Cagliari palace. 

One evening, as she was preparing to retire, and was standing for amoment before her mirror, the Sappho seemed to give vent to a ripple oflaughter. The princess was so startled that she dropped the candle sheheld in her hand. Once more she heard that mysterious laugh, and thenshe beat a hasty retreat to her bed and buried herself in the pillowsand blankets. But, peeping out at length and throwing one more glance atthe picture, which was faintly illumined by her night-lamp, she heardstill another repetition of the mysterious laughter, coming apparentlyfrom a great distance. Was this, too, an illusion, a dream, a trick ofher imagination? If the painted Sappho was alive, why did she give thesesigns only at night, and not in the daytime as well?

November came, and with it rainy days, so that Blanka was constrained tosuspend her drives to Monte Mario and remain in the house. Every eveningshe sat before her open fire with her eyes fixed on the glowingphoenix with which the back of the fireplace was adorned. It was thework of Finiguerra, the first of his craft to discard the chisel for thehammer. The many-hued feathers of the flaming bird were of steel, copper, brass, Corinthian bronze, silver, and gold. Especiallyresplendent was the bird's head, with its gleaming red circle around thebrightly shining eye. This eye glowed and sparkled in the flickeringlight of the crackling wood fire until it seemed fairly endowed withlife and vision. 

One evening, as the princess was watching this glowing eye, it suddenlyvanished from the bird's head and left a dark hole in its place. Then, as if not content with this marvellous demonstration, the phoenix nexttook flight bodily and disappeared, apparently up the chimney, with arattling, rasping sound, as of the creaking of cogged wheels, leaving awide opening where it had been. The coals which still glowed on thehearth presently died with a hissing noise, and only the soft light ofthe shaded lamp diffused itself through the room. Out of the mysteriousdepths of the fireplace stepped the white-clad form of a woman. 

"I am the Marchioness Caldariva, " announced the unbidden guest. 

The suddenness and the mystery of it all, as well as the name thatgreeted her ears, might well have startled the Princess Blanka. Thestrange visitor was of tall and slender form, and suggested, in herclosely fitting gown of soft material, a statue of one of the pagangoddesses. Her thick blond hair was carelessly gathered into a knotbehind; her complexion was pale, her blue eyes were bright andvivacious, and her coral lips were parted in a coquettish smile. Everymovement was fraught with grace and charm, every pose commandedadmiration. She followed up her self-introduction with a laugh--a laughthat sounded familiar to her listener. It was the Sappho's tones thatshe heard. Blanka gazed in wonder at the mysterious apparition. Shethought she must be dreaming, and that this was but another creation ofher own fancy. 

"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the visitor, "an original way to pay a call, isn'tit?--without warning, right through the back wall of your fireplace, andin _négligé_, too! But as you wouldn't visit me, I had to come to you, and this is the readiest communication between our apartments. Youdidn't know anything about it, did you? The back of your fireplace is asecret door. If you press on the green tile here at the left, thephoenix flies up the chimney, and then if you bear down hard on thisone at the right, it returns to its place again. Do you see?"

As she spoke the white lady stepped on the tile last designated, andstraightway the phoenix descended and filled the opening through whichshe had just made her entrance. 

"On the other side, " she continued, "is a piece of mechanism which willonly work when a secret lock has been opened, and to effect this thebird's eye must first be pushed aside to make room for the key. Yourignorance of all this became apparent to me when I found both of the twokeys in my room. One of them belongs to you, and I have brought it togive you. Without it you might be broken in upon most unpleasantly bysome unwelcome intruder. But with the key in your possession, you caninsert it in the lock whenever you wish to guard against any suchintrusion. "

With that the speaker handed over the key, and then went on:

"Now you will be able to visit me, just as I do you. One thing more, however, is necessary. You generally have a fire in your fireplace, andnot every woman is a Saint Euphrosyne, able to walk barefoot overglowing coals. Here is a little bottle of liquid with which you canquench the flames at pleasure. It is a chemical mixture expresslyprepared for this purpose. And in this other bottle is another liquidfor rekindling the fire, --no secret of chemistry, this time, but onlynaphtha. Let us try it at once, for your room is cold and I have nothingon but this dressing-gown. "

The flames were soon crackling merrily again in the fireplace. Blanka, much bewildered and still doubting the evidence of her senses, sank downon a sofa, while her unbidden guest seated herself opposite. Theprincess raised her eyes involuntarily to the Sappho over themantelpiece. Again the familiar laugh fell on her ears. 

"You look up at the Sappho, " said the marchioness. "You have heard herplay and sing and laugh more than once, haven't you? Well, you shalllearn the secret of it all. A jealous husband once had the passageconstructed which connects our two apartments. You know the story ofDionysius's Ear. Here you see it in real life. A hollow tube runs fromthe opening in the lyre directly to my room, and through this thejealous husband was able to hear every sound in his wife's chamber. Through it, too, you have heard me sing and play and laugh, and I haveheard tones of sadness from your room, and exclamations in an unknowntongue, with no cheering word to comfort you and drive away yoursorrow. Three days ago, about midnight, you began to sing, and that timeI could follow the words, --'_De profundis ad te clamavi, Domine. '_ Don'tlook so surprised. You are not dreaming all this, and I am really theMarchioness Caldariva, better known as 'the beautiful Cyrene. ' I haveintruded on you this evening, but to-morrow you will admit me of yourown free will, and the day after you shall be my guest. We will signalto each other through the tube when we are alone and disengaged, and weshall soon be great friends. "

Blanka started slightly at the bare thought of friendship with thiswoman. 

"I am in love with you already, " continued the Marchioness Caldariva. "For the past week we have been meeting every day. We kneel side by sidein the same church, for I go to church regularly; but you have notnoticed me, because you never raise your eyes from your prayer-book tolook at your neighbours' bonnets and gowns. As for me, now, I watch youall the time I am praying. Daily prayers are a necessity with me. In themorning I pray for the sins I have committed the day before, and in theevening for those to be committed on the morrow. Another bond ofsympathy between us is the similar lot to which we are bothcondemned, --a life unblessed by domestic happiness, --and we cherishtherefore a common hatred of the world. You, however, show yours byleading a solitary life of mourning, I mine by amusing myself the bestway I can. If I were strong enough to follow your example, I should doso, but I can't live without distraction. You are strong; I am weak. Iadmire in you your power to humble your enemies before you. You weretold, weren't you, that I wrote that anonymous letter?"

Blanka looked at the speaker with wide eyes of inquiry and wonder. Shebegan at length to place confidence in her words. 

"And you were told the truth, too, " continued the other. "Oh, those twomen are intriguers of the deepest dye. I was accused of upsetting theirplan. I was told how mercilessly you had repulsed one of them. Really, that was a master stroke on your part. The fourteenth paragraph! Hehimself confessed the secret to me, --how he forged a note, some yearsago, in the name of a good friend of his, who now holds theincriminating document in his possession. With it he can at any timecrush his false friend and deliver him over to a long imprisonment. Thetrembling culprit wished to free himself at any cost from this sword ofDamocles suspended over his head, and he proposed to me two ways toeffect the desired end. One was for me to seduce the young artist andthen, as the price of my smiles, cajole him into surrendering the fatalnote. "

The beautiful Cyrene threw at her listener a look full of the proudconsciousness of her own dangerous charms. Blanka drew back in namelessfear under her gaze. 

"The other way, " proceeded the marchioness, "was to have himassassinated if he refused to give up the forged paper. "

Blanka pressed her hands to her bosom to keep from crying out. 

"Between these two plans I was asked to choose, and I rejected themboth, --the first because I knew the young man adored you, the secondbecause I knew you reciprocated his feeling. "

The princess rose hastily and walked across the room, seeking to hideher tell-tale blushes. 

"Come, " said the marchioness, lightly, "sit down again and let us laughover the whole affair together. You see, I would have nothing to do witheither tragedy. I prefer comedy. Both of our arch-schemers have nowtaken flight from Rome; they were seized with terror at a street riotthe other day, and they won't come back again, you may be sure, unlessit be in the rear of a besieging army. So now we have the Cagliaripalace quite to ourselves, and can sit and chat together all we please. But I must say good night; I've gossiped enough for one while, and I'msleepy, too. "

Once more the fire was extinguished and the phoenix made to yield apassage, after which Blanka found herself alone again. She shuddered atthe thought of having lived for months with an open door leading to herbedroom. She debated with herself whether to stick her key in that doorand leave it there permanently, while she herself sought anothersleeping-room, or to yield to the charm of her unbidden guest andacquiesce in her plan of exchanging confidential visits. The strangenessand mystery of it all, and still more the hope that her neighbour mightlet fall an occasional word concerning Manasseh, at length prevailedover her fears and scruples, and determined her to receive the other'sadvances. 

On the following evening she gave her servants permission to go to thetheatre, --the play representing the defeat of the Austrian army by theItalians, --while she herself, after having her samovar and othertea-things brought to her room, took up her mandolin and struck a fewchords on its strings. The reclining Sappho answered her, and a fewminutes later there came a knock on the back of the fireplace. 

"Come in!"

The phoenix rose, and the fair Cyrene appeared, this time in fulltoilet, as for a fashionable call, her hair dressed in the English mode, a lace shawl falling over her pink silk gown, from beneath which one gotan occasional glimpse of the richly embroidered underskirt and a pairof little feet encased in high-heeled shoes. 

"You were going out?" asked the princess. 

"I was coming to see you. "

"Did you know I was waiting for you?"

"I told you yesterday I should come, and I knew you were expecting mefrom your sending your servants away to the theatre. "

"And you knew that too?"

"Yes, because they took mine along with them. So here we are all aloneby ourselves. "

The consciousness of being the only living creatures in a whole househas a delicious charm, fraught with mystery and awe, for two youngwomen. Blanka took her guest's hat and shawl, and then proceeded tostart a fire on the hearth. The fair Cyrene meanwhile caught up hermandolin and began to sing one of Alfred de Musset's songs, full of thewarmth and glow of the sunny South. Presently the hostess invited herguest to take tea with her, and asked her at the same time her baptismalname. 

The marchioness laughed. "Haven't you heard it often enough? They callme 'Cyrene. '"

"But that isn't your real name, " objected Blanka. "You were notchristened 'Cyrene. '"

"I use it for my name, however, and no one but my father confessor callsme by my real name, so that now I never hear it without thinking that Imust fall on my knees and repeat a dozen paternosters in penance. Besides, my name doesn't suit me at all. It is Rozina, and I am as paleas moonshine. You might far better be called Rozina, for you have suchbeautiful rosy cheeks, and I should have been named Blanka. I'll tellyou, suppose we exchange names: you call me Blanka, and I'll call youRozina. "

The suggestion seemed so funny to Blanka that she burst out laughing, and a woman who laughs is already more than half won over. 

"Now, then, " continued the other, "we can chat away to our heart'scontent. There's no one to listen to us or play the spy--a good thingfor you to know, Rozina, because all your servants are hired spies. Yourdoorkeeper and his wife keep a regular journal of who comes in and whogoes out, what visiting-cards are left, whom you receive, where youdrive, --which they learn from your coachman, --whom you visit, and evenwith whom you exchange a passing word. Your maid reads all your lettersand searches all your pockets. Even your gardener keeps an account ofall the flowers you order; for flowers, you know, have a language oftheir own. Be sure you don't buy a parrot, else it will turn spy on you, too. "

"Who can it be that is so suspicious of me?" asked the princess, insurprise. 

"Have you forgotten the strict terms of your uncle's legacy, and are youunaware how slight an indiscretion on your part might furnish yourrelatives with a pretext for contesting your right to a share of theproperty? Do you forget, too, how trifling an error might result in thecutting off of your allowance from Prince Cagliari?"

"Well, let them watch me, if they wish, " returned Blanka, composedly. "Ihave no secrets to hide from anybody. "

"A rash assertion for a woman to make, " commented the other, as shepoured herself a glass of water. "How warm this water is!" sheexclaimed, after taking a sip. 

Blanka sprang up and offered to bring some ice from the dining-room. 

"Aren't you afraid to go for it alone?"

"Certainly not; the lamps are all lighted. "

While the hostess was out of the room, her guest turned over Blanka'sportfolio of drawings, and among them found her outline sketch of theColosseum. 

"You sketch beautifully, " commented the marchioness, upon the other'sreturn. 

"It is my only diversion, " replied the princess. 

"This view of the Colosseum reminds me of one I saw at the Rossis'. "

"The artist may have chosen the same point of view, " returned Blankawith admirable composure. 

"I called on him at his studio lately, " proceeded the marchioness. "Ihad heard one of his pictures very highly praised. It represents a youngwoman sitting on the gallery railing in the Colosseum, with the sunlightstreaming on her through a red umbrella. The warm glow of the sunbeamsis in striking contrast with the deep melancholy on the girl's face. Ioffered the artist two hundred scudi for the piece, but he said it wasnot for sale at any price. "

Blanka felt as powerless in the hands of this woman as a rabbit in theclutches of a lion. The beautiful Cyrene closed the portfolio andexclaimed:

"Rozina, these men are terrible creatures! They make us women theirslaves. But the woman's first and dominant thought must ever be to findsome escape from her bondage. "

With that she jumped up and ran out of the room, as if taken suddenlyill. Her hostess followed to see what was the matter, and found hersitting in a corner of the adjoining apartment. 

"You are weeping?"

"Not at all; never merrier in my life!"

Nevertheless, two tears were shining in the fair Cyrene's eyes. 

Next she ran to the piano and began to rattle off "La Gitana, " whichCerito had just made so popular throughout Europe. 

"Have you the score?" asked the marchioness, turning to Blanka. 

"No, but I can play it from memory. "

"Then play it to me, please. "

Blanka complied, and the other began to dance "La Gitana" to herplaying. The spirit and feeling, the coquettish grace and seductivecharm, which the dancer put into the movements of her lithe form, challenge description. If only a man could have seen her then! Fromsheer amazement Blanka found herself unable to control her fingers, which struck more than one false note. 

"Faster! Put more fire into it!" cried the dancer. But Blanka could notgo on. 

"Ah, you don't remember it, after all. "

"I can't play when I look at you, " was the reply; and the MarchionessCaldariva believed her. "You could drive a man fairly insane. "

"As long as the men will torment us, we must be able to pay them back. "She took Blanka's arm and returned with her to the other room. "Woe tohim who invades my kingdom!" she continued. "He is bound to lose hisreason. Do you wish to wager that I can't drive all Rome crazy over me?If I took a notion to dance the 'Gitana' on the opera-house stage forthe benefit of the wounded soldiers, all Rome would go wild withenthusiasm, and the people would half smother me with flowers. "

"I will make no such wager with you, " returned Blanka, "because I know Ishould lose. "

The beautiful Cyrene changed the subject and invited the princess toattend one of her masked balls, --"a masquerade party, " she explained, "of only forty guests at the most, and those the chief personages ofRoman society. I ferret out all their secrets and can see through theirmasks; but I use no witchery about it. My guests are admitted by ticketonly, and my major-domo, who receives these cards, writes on the back ofeach a short description of the bearer's costume. So I have only to goto him and consult his notes to learn my guest's identity. "

"But cannot your guests also procure information from the samesource--for a consideration?"

"Undoubtedly. My domestics are none of them incorruptible. "

Blanka laughed, and Rozina hastened to take advantage of her goodhumour. 

"And now just imagine among these forty masks one guest who comesneither through the door, nor through the major-domo's anteroom, so thatno card, no personal description, no cab-number, no information of anykind, is to be had concerning her from my servants. She is acquaintedwith all the secrets of those around her, but no one can guess hersecret, or fathom her mystery. Meanwhile a young painter has taken hisseat in one corner behind a screen of foliage, and sketches the livelyscene before him. He is the only one who, with beating heart, guessesthe name of the mysterious unknown. What do you say, --will thisbewitching guest from fairyland deign to figure as the chief personageon my young artist's canvas?"

"Before deciding, may I see a list of those whom you have invited?"

"Certainly--a very proper request. " The marchioness handed over her fan, the ribs of which were of ivory, and served the owner as tablets. Theywere covered with a miscellaneous list of well-known names from allclasses, and the last among them was Manasseh Adorjan's. "You can ordera costume of black lace, spangled with silver stars, " the fair Cyrenewent on; "then, with a black velvet mask, you will be ready to appear asthe Queen of Night. "

Blanka offered no objection to this plan. 

"I will admit you upon signal, through our secret passageway, into myboudoir, and from there you will pass, when the way is clear, into theladies' dressing-room, and thence into the ballroom. With this fan ofmine in your hand, you will, after some instructions from me, be able topuzzle and mystify all whom you address, while no one will be in aposition even to hazard a surmise as to your identity. When you tire ofthe sport, come to me, pretend to tease me, and then turn and run away. I will give chase, and under cover of this diversion you will slip outof the room, and return to your own apartments by the same way you came, while I continue the hunt and summon all present to aid me in finding mymysterious guest. "

Such was the speaker's influence over Blanka, that the latter could notgive her a refusal. Accordingly, when the two parted, it was with theunderstanding that they were soon to see each other again at themarchioness's masquerade. 

CHAPTER XIII. 

A SUDDEN FLIGHT. 

Blanka sat in her room, with closed doors, preparing her costume for themasked ball. Affairs in the world outside had moved rapidly during thepast few days. In the feverish excitement of that revolutionary period, mob violence was threatening to gain the upper hand. Shouts ofboisterous merriment reached the princess from the street. From theadjoining wing of the palace, too, other sounds, almost equallyboisterous, fell on her ear at intervals. The fair Cyrene wasentertaining a company of congenial spirits. 

Gradually the noise in the street grew louder, until it seemed as if acage of wild animals had been let loose before the Cagliari palace. Suddenly, as Blanka stood before her fire, all her senses alert, she sawthe glowing phoenix rise from its position, and her fair neighbourstood in the opening. 

"Put out your fire, and let me in, " bade the marchioness. "I haveemptied my extinguisher. Don't you hear the mob storming my palacegates? The soldiery who were summoned to restore order have made commoncause with the rioters, and we are in frightful peril. Quick! Out withyour fire, and let me and my guests through. We can make our escape byyour rear door, and so gain the riverside in safety. "

Blanka could not refuse this appeal. She opened the way for themarchioness and her motley company to pass out; then she herself, firstclosing the secret passage between the two wings of the palace, followedthe other fugitives and, gaining the street by a wide détour, engaged acab to take her to the Vatican. 

"His Holiness receives no one this afternoon, " was the announcement madeto her at the door. 

Almost in despair, and bewildered by the sudden turn of events which hadthus cast her homeless on the streets, the princess returned to hercarriage. 

"Do you know where Signor Scalcagnato lives?" she asked the driver. 

"Scalcagnato the shoemaker, the champion of the people? To be sure I do:in the Piazza di Colosseo. But if the lady wishes to buy shoes of himshe should not address him as _Signor_ Scalcagnato. "

"Why not?"

"Because he will ask half as much more for them than if he were calledplain _Citizen_ Scalcagnato. "

After this gratuitous bit of information the coachman whipped up hishorse and rattled away toward the Colosseum with his passenger. 

Arriving at the shoemaker's shop, Blanka was received by a little man oflively bearing and a quick, intelligent expression. 

"Pst! No words needed, " was his greeting. "I know all about it. I amCitizen Scalcagnato, _il calzolajo_. Take my arm, citizeness. CittadinoAdorjano lives on the top floor, and the stairs are a trifle steep. Heis out at present, but his studio is open to you. "

The young lady was reassured. The honest cobbler evidently did notsuspect her of coming to meet his tenant by appointment, but took herfor an artist friend on a professional visit, or perhaps a customer cometo buy a picture. The shoemaker took the artist's place, in the latter'sabsence, and sold his paintings for him. Perhaps, too, the artist soldhis landlord's shoes when that worthy was abroad. 

Thus it was that Blanka took the offered arm without a misgiving, andsuffered the cobbler to lead her up the steep stairway to the littleattic chamber that served her friend for both sleeping-room and studio. It was as neat as wax, and as light and airy as any painter coulddesire. A large bow-window admitted the free light of heaven and at thesame time afforded a fine view of the Palatine Hill. Leaning for amoment against the window-sill, in mute admiration of the prospectbefore her, the princess thought how happy a woman might be with thisview to greet her eyes every day, while a husband who worshipped her andwas worshipped by her worked at her side--or, rather, not _worked_, but_created_. It was a picture far more alluring than any that the Cagliaripalace had to offer. 

"Pst!" the cobbler interrupted her musing; "come and let me show you theportrait. "

So saying, he conducted her to an easel on which rested a veiledpicture, which he uncovered with an air of pride and satisfaction. 

The feeling of rapture that took possession of Blanka at sight of herown portrait was owing, not to the fact that it was herlikeness, --radiant though that likeness was with youth and beauty andall the charm of an ideal creation, --but to the thought that _he_ hadpainted it. 

"The price is thirty-three million, three hundred and thirty-threethousand, three hundred and thirty-three _scudi_, and not a _soldo_less!" announced the shoemaker, with a broad smile. Then he laid hisfingers on his lips. "Pst! Not a word! I know all. It will be allright. "

Blanka saw now that he had recognised her the moment she entered hisshop. 

"The citizen painter is not at home, " continued the other, "but he willturn up at the proper time where he is wanted. Sun, moon, and stars mayfall from heaven, but he will not fail you. No more words! What I havesaid, I have said. You can now return home, signorina, and need giveyourself no further uneasiness. Whatever occurs in the streets, you neednot worry. And finally"--they had by this time reached the ground flooragain--"it will be well for you to take a pair of shoes with you, tomake the coachman think you came on purpose for them. Here's a goodstout pair, serviceable for walking or for mountain-climbing. You canrely on them. So take them along; you may need them sometime. "

"But how do you know they will fit me?" asked Blanka. 

"Citizeness, don't you remember the stone footprint of our Lord in thechurch of _Domine quo vadis_? And may not the footprint of an angel havebeen left in the sand of the Colosseum for a devout artist to copy inhis sketch-book? Such a sketch is enough for the Cittadino Scalcagnatoto make a pair of shoes from, so that they cannot fail to fit. "

The princess turned rosy red. "I have no money with me to pay for them, "she objected. "A footman usually accompanies me and pays for all mypurchases; but to-day I left him at home, and I neglected to take mypurse with me. "

"No matter; I understand. I'll charge the amount. Here, take this purseand pay your cab-fare out of it when you reach the square. Don't go homein a carriage, but on foot. You needn't fear to do so, with a pair ofshoes in your hand. If your gold-laced lackey were with you, you mightmeet with insult and abuse; but walking alone with the shoes in yourhand, you will not be molested, and you will find all quiet at home bythis time. Now enough said. I know all. You can pay me back later. "

With that the little shoemaker escorted his guest to her carriage andtook leave of her with a polite request--intended for the cabman'sear--for her further patronage. 

Following the mysterious little man's directions, Blanka reached homeunharmed, and found everything there as she had left it. Whateverviolence the rioters may have allowed themselves in storming themarchioness's quarters, her own wing of the palace, for some reason thatshe could only vaguely conjecture, had been spared. After assuringherself of this, the princess tried on her new shoes, and found thatCitizen Scalcagnato was no less skilful as a shoemaker than eminent as apolitician and a party-leader. 

The house was now still and deserted, although the sounds of riotousexcess were faintly audible in the distance. The servants had evidentlyfled at the same time that Blanka and the marchioness left the palace. Looking out of her rear window, the princess noticed that her gardengate was open; it must have been left swinging by her domestics in theirflight. She was hastening down-stairs to close it, when a man's formappeared before her in the gathering gloom, and she cried out in suddenterror. 

"Do not be alarmed, Princess. " The words came in a firm, manly voicethat thrilled the hearer; she recognised the tones. Manasseh Adorjanstood before her. "I could not gain admittance by the front door, " heexplained, "so I went around to the garden gate. "

"And how is it, " asked Blanka, "that you have come to me at the verymoment that I was seeking you?"

"I wished, first, to bid you farewell. I am going home, to Transylvania, for my people are in trouble and I must go and help them. As long asthey are happy I avoid them, but when misfortune comes I cannot stayaway. War threatens to invade our peaceful valley, and I hastenthither. "

"Has the hour come, then, when you feel it right to kill yourfellow-men?"

"No, Princess; my part is to restore peace, not to foment strife. "

Blanka's hands were clasped in her lap. She raised them to her bosom andbegged her fellow-countryman to take her with him. 

The colour mounted to his face, his breast heaved, he passed his handacross his brow, whereon the perspiration had started, and stammered, inagitated accents:

"No, no, Princess, I cannot take you with me. "

"Why not?" asked Blanka, tremulously. 

"Because I am a man and but human. I could shield you against all theworld, but not against myself. I love you! And if you came with me, howcould you expect me to help you keep your vows? I am neither saint norangel, but a mortal, and a sinful one. "

The poor girl sank speechless into a chair and hid her face in herhands. 

"Hear me further, Princess, " continued the other, with forced calmness. "I have told you but one reason why I sought you here to-day. The otherwas to show you a means of escape from this place, where you cannotremain in safety another day. You must leave Rome this very night, andthat will be no easy thing to accomplish now that all the gates areguarded. But I have a plan. Above all things, you must find a lady totake you under her protection, and that, I think, can be effected. Citizen Scalcagnato issues all the passports for those that leave thecity by the Colosseum gate. From him I have learned that the CountessX---- is to leave for the south to-night. I have obtained a pass foryou, and you have only to make yourself ready and go with me tothe Colosseum gate, where we will wait for her carriage. She isa good friend of yours and cannot refuse to take you as hertravelling-companion. Do you approve my plan?"

"Yes, and I thank you. "

"Then a few hours hence will see you on your journey southward. I shallset out for the north, and soon the length of Italy will separate us. Isit not best so?"

Blanka gave him her hand in mute assent. 

 * * * * *

An hour later Manasseh and Blanka stood in the shelter of the gateway bywhich the countess was expected to leave Rome. They had not long towait: the sound of an approaching carriage was soon heard, and when ithalted under the gas-lamp Blanka recognised her friend's equipage. Thegate-keeper advanced to examine the traveller's passport, and as thecarriage door was thrown open Blanka hastened forward and made herselfknown. 

"What do you wish?" demanded the liveried footman. 

The princess turned and looked at him. Surely she had seen that face andform before in a different setting, but she could not recall when orwhere. So much was evident, however, that the speaker was more wont togive than to receive orders. Blanka turned again to the open carriagedoor and plucked at the cloak of the person sitting within. 

"You are fleeing from Rome, too, Countess, " said she. "I beg you to takeme with you. "

But the carriage door was closed in her face. 

"Countess, hear me!" she cried, in distress. "Have pity on me! Don'tleave me to perish in the streets!"

Her petition was unheeded. The footman drew her away and, as he turnedto remount the vehicle, whispered three words in her ear:

"_È il papa!_"

It was the Pope, and he was fleeing! The spiritual ruler of the world, the king of kings, Heaven's viceroy upon earth, was flying for his life. The judge fled and left the prisoner to her fate. Blanka felt herselfabsolved from all her vows. She plucked from her bosom the consecratedpalm-leaf, tore it to pieces, and threw the fragments scornfully afterthe retreating carriage. Then she turned once more to Manasseh. 

"Now take me with you whithersoever you will!" she cried, and she sankon his bosom and suffered him to clasp her in a warm embrace. 

CHAPTER XIV. 

WALLACHIAN HOSPITALITY. 

Manasseh had not much choice of routes in making his way, with hiscompanion, to Transylvania. After leaving Italy, he bent his coursefirst to Deés, as the road thither seemed to offer no obstacles topeaceful travellers. Troops were, indeed, encountered here and there onthe way; but they suffered Manasseh and Blanka to pass unmolested. Manasseh had fortunately provided a generous hamper of supplies, so thathis companion was not once made aware that they were passing through adistrict lately overrun by a defeated army, which had so exhausted theresources of all the wayside inns that hardly a bite or a sup was to behad for love or money. 

The weather was unusually fine, as the sunny autumn had that yearextended into the winter. The Transylvanian was perfectly familiar withthe region, and entertained his fellow-traveller with legends andstories of the places through which they passed. In the splendidchestnut forests that crowned the heights of Nagy-Banya he told her theadventures of the bandit chief, Dionysius Tolvaj, who kept the wholecountryside in terror, until at last the men of Nagy-Banya hunted himdown and slew him. In his mountain cave are still to be seen his stonetable, his fireplace, and the spring from which he drank. Manasseh alsorelated the adventures of bear-hunters in these woods, and told aboutthe search for gold that had long been carried on in the mountains, andoften with success, so that many of them were now honeycombed withshafts and tunnels. 

Up from yonder valley rose the spirit of the mountains, a white andvapoury form, with which the sturdy mountaineers fought for thepossession of the hidden treasure. In reality, however, it was no genie, but simply the fumes of sulphur and arsenic from the smelting works ofthe miners, who never drew breath without inhaling poison. And yet theylived and throve and were a healthy and happy people, the men strong, the women fair, and one and all fondly attached to their mountain home. 

One evening Manasseh pointed to a town in the distance, and told hiscompanion that it was Kolozsvar. As they drew nearer they saw that itwas garrisoned with a division of the national guard. Manasseh was nowamong people who knew him well, and he did not expect to be asked toshow his passport. But he was mistaken. Suddenly a hand was laid on hisarm and a firm voice saluted his ears. 

"So you thought you'd slip by me without once showing your papers, didyou? A pretty way to act, I must say!"

Manasseh turned to the speaker, who proved to be a short, broad-shouldered, thick-set man, in a coarse coat such as the Szeklerswear, high boots, and a large hat. His arms were disproportionately longfor his short body, his beard was either very closely cut or sadly inneed of the razor, and his legs were planted widely apart as heconfronted the travellers in a challenging attitude. Perhaps he wishedto invite Manasseh to a wrestling bout. 

Blanka looked on in surprise as she saw the two men fling their armsaround each other. But it was not the embrace of wrestlers. Theyexchanged a hearty kiss, and then Manasseh cried, joyfully:

"Aaron, my dear brother!"

"Yes, it is Aaron, my good Manasseh, " returned the stocky little man, with a laugh; and, throwing aside the jacket that hung from his neck, heextended his right hand to his brother. Then he turned to Blanka. "Andthis pretty lady is our future sister-in-law, isn't she? God bless you!Pray bend down a bit and let me give your rosy cheek a little smack of akiss. "

Blanka complied, and brother Aaron gave her blushing cheek much morethan "a little smack. "

"There, " declared the honest fellow, with great apparent satisfaction, "I'm delighted that you didn't scream and make a fuss over my bristlybeard. You see, I haven't had a chance to shave for four days. Threedays and nights I've been here on the watch for my brother and hisbride. "

"And what about our two brothers, Simon and David?" asked Manasseh, anxiously. "Are they alive and well?"

"Certainly, they are alive, " was the answer. "Have you forgotten ourcreed? Our life is from everlasting to everlasting. But they are reallyalive and in the flesh, and, what is more"--turning to Blanka--"they aresure to come to meet us and will expect to receive each a nosegay fromtheir brother's sweetheart. "

Blanka smiled and promised not to disappoint them, for there were stillplenty of autumn flowers in the woods and fields. 

"Yes, " said Aaron, "you'll find posies enough on the road. We are goingby a way that is covered with them. If you don't believe it, look atthis bouquet in my hat; it is still quite fresh, and I picked it in theTorda Gap. Have you ever heard of the Torda Gap? There is nothing likeit in all the world; you'll remember it as long as you live. It is asplendid garden of wild flowers, and there you will see the cave of thefamous Balyika, --he was Francis Rakoczy's general. Thence it is only astep to the Szekler Stone, and we are at home. Do you like to walk inthe woods?"

"Nothing better!"

Here Manasseh pulled his brother's sleeve. "Do you really mean to takeus by the way of Torda Gap?" he whispered. 

"Yes, " returned the other, likewise in an undertone; "there is no otherway. "

A blare of trumpets interrupted this conversation, and presently a squadof hussars came riding down the street, every man of them a raw recruit. 

"Look, see how proud he is on his high horse!" interjected Aaron. "Henever even looks at a poor foot-passenger like me. Halloa there, brother! What kind of a cavalryman do you call yourself, with no eyesfor a pretty girl? Oh, you toad!"

With this salutation Aaron called to his side the young lieutenant whorode at the head of the hussars. He bore a striking resemblance toManasseh, --the same face, the same form, the same eyes. Indeed, the twohad often been mistaken for each other. There was only a year'sdifference in their ages. The young hussar gave his hand to Manasseh, and while they exchanged cordial greetings they looked each othersteadfastly in the eye. 

"Whither away, brother?" asked the elder. 

"I am going to avenge my two brothers, " was the reply. 

"And I am going to rescue them, " declared Manasseh. 

"I am going forth to fight for my country, " was the other's rejoinder. 

Then the rider bent low over his horse's neck, and the two brotherskissed each other. 

"But aren't you going to ask your new sister for a kiss, you youngscapegrace?" cried Aaron. 

The youthful soldier blushed like a bashful girl. "When I comeback--when I have earned a kiss--then I will ask for it. And you willgive me one, won't you, dear sister-in-law, even if they bring me backdead?"

Blanka gave him her hand, while a nameless dread showed itself in herface. 

"Never fear!" cried the young man. As he gave Blanka a radiant look hesaw tears glistening in her eyes. "I shall not die. _Egy az Isten!_"[1]

[Footnote 1: See preface. ]

"_Egy az Isten!_" repeated the elder brother. 

Then the young hussar put spurs to his horse and galloped to the head ofhis little company. 

"Come, let us be going, " said Aaron, and he led the way toward thefarther end of the town, where the family owned a villa which they usedwhenever occasion called them from Toroczko to Kolozsvar. Adjoining thehouse lay a garden which was now rented to a market-woman, who madehaste to prepare supper for the travellers. Blanka went into thekitchen and helped her, but not before the woman had been instructed inwhat was going on and warned not to breathe a word to the young mistressof the dangers that encompassed them all in those troublous times. Itwas Manasseh's desire to lead his bride home without giving her causefor one moment of disquiet on the way. 

"Can you sleep in a carriage?" the market-woman asked her, withoutpausing in her baking and boiling. "Now as for me, many's the time I'veslept every night for two weeks in my cart when I was taking apples tomarket. One gets used to that sort of thing. The gentlemen propose toset out for Torda this very night, because to-morrow is the greatmarket-day in Kolozsvar, and there'll be troops of peddlers and dealersof all sorts coming into town, and farmers driving their cattle andsheep and swine, so that you couldn't possibly make head against them ifyou should wait till morning. "

Blanka readily gave her consent to any plan that seemed best to herconductors. 

Aaron meanwhile had brought out three good horses from the stable andharnessed them to a travelling carriage. "Water behind us, fire beforeus, " he remarked to Manasseh as he buckled the last strap. 

Wallachian troops were holding the mountain passes about Torda, and hadeven threatened Toroczko; but thus far the inhabitants had not allowedthemselves to be frightened. Now, however, there was a report thatGeneral Kalliani was approaching from Hermannstadt with a brigade ofimperial soldiery. Consequently it was to be feared that a generalflight from Torda to Kolozsvar would soon follow; and, when once thestream of fugitives began, it would be impossible to make one's way inan opposite direction. Therefore our travellers had not a moment tolose. 

Blanka was by this time well used to travelling by night, and sheentered cheerfully and without question into the proposed plan. Alonging to reach "home, " and perhaps a vague suspicion of the perilsthat threatened her party, made her the more willing to push forward. When danger braces to action, a high-bred woman's power of endurance isalmost without limit. 

Aaron drove, Manasseh sat beside him, and thus the entire rear seat wasleft to Blanka, who was so swathed and muffled in wraps and furs thatshe was well-nigh hidden from view. Despite all the plausibleexplanations, she came very near guessing the well-meant deceit that waspractised upon her. 

"Why, your horses are saddled!" she exclaimed to Aaron. 

"Yes, to be sure, " calmly replied the mountaineer. "That's the customin Transylvania; we put saddles on our carriage-horses just as in Styriathey buckle a block of wood over the horse's neck. "

Blanka appeared satisfied with this explanation of Transylvanian usage. Aaron gave his good Szekler steeds a free rein. They were raised in themountains and could, if need were, trot for twenty-four hours on astretch without food or water; then, if they were unharnessed andallowed to graze a little, they were able to resume the journey withunslackened pace. The driver had no occasion to use reins or whip: theyknew their duty, --to pull lustily when the road led up-hill, to holdback in going down-hill, to trot on a level, to overtake and pass anycarriage in front of them, to quicken their pace when they heard onebehind, and to halt before every inn. 

Aaron, turning half around on his seat, beguiled the time by tellingstories to his fair passenger, to whom his fund of amusing anecdotesseemed inexhaustible. When at length, as they were ascending a longhill, he noticed that she ceased to laugh at his tales, but sat inertand with head sunk on her bosom, he put his hand into his waistcoatpocket and, drawing out an enamelled gold watch, pressed the stem andheld it to his ear. 

"Half-past twelve, " he murmured. 

The man himself was a gold watch encased in a rough exterior, a nobleheart in a rude setting. His horny hands were hardened by toil, but hehad a clever head on his shoulders; he was well endowed with mother-wit, quick at repartee, merciless in his satire toward the haughty andoverbearing, cool and good-humoured in the presence of danger, --inshort, a genuine Szekler, heart and soul. 

When, then, his repeater had told him the hour, Aaron turned andaddressed his brother. "The young lady is asleep, " said he, "and now youand I can have a little talk together. You asked me how our two brotherscame to be captured. Let me begin at the beginning, and you shall hearall about it. You know when freedom is first born she is a puny infantand has to be suckled. That she cries for blood instead of milk issomething we can't help. So all the young men of Toroczko enlisted inthe militia, --every mother's son of them, --and they are now serving inthe eleventh, the thirty-second, and the seventy-third battalions. Youask me, perhaps, why we mountain folk must needs take the field whenalready we are fighting for our country all our life long in the bowelsof the earth. You say it is enough for us to dig the iron in ourmountains without wielding it on the battle-field; else what do theprivileges mean that were granted us by Andreas II. And Bela IV. , bywhich we are exempted from military service? It's no use your talking, Manasseh; you've been away from home. But had you been here and seenand heard your brother David when he stood up in the middle of themarketplace, made a speech to the young men around him, and then buckledon his sword and mounted his horse, you would certainly have mounted andfollowed him. How can you quench the flames when every house is ablaze?All the young men were on fire and it was out of the question to dampentheir ardour. Besides, this is no ordinary war; freedom itself is atstake, and that is a matter that concerns Toroczko. All the Wallachiansaround us, stirred up by imperial officers sent from Vienna, took uparms against us, and nothing was left us but to defend ourselves. Thepeople took such a fancy to our brothers that there was no other way butto make them officers. You cry out against the good folk for lettingtheir commanders be taken prisoners. But don't make such a noise aboutit. " (Manasseh had thus far not once opened his mouth. ) "You shall soonsee that your brothers were no fools, and did not rush into dangerrecklessly. You know that soon after the Wallachian mass-meeting atBalazsfalva came the Szekler muster at Agyagfalva, and presently wefound ourselves like an island in the midst of the sea. A Wallachianarmy ten thousand strong, under Moga's command, beset us on all sides, while we had but three hundred armed men all told, --just the number thatLeonidas had at Thermopylæ. Our eldest brother, Berthold, who, since heturned vegetarian, can't bear to see a chicken killed for dinner, and isdead set against all bloodshed, advised us to make peaceful terms withthe enemy. So we drew lots to see who should go out and parley withthem, and it fell to our brother Simon. He took a white flag and wentinto the enemy's camp; but they held him prisoner and refused to let himgo. Then David started up and went after him, with an offer of ransomfor his release. But they seized him, too, and so now they have themboth. Meanwhile the Wallachs are threatening, if we don't surrender tothem and admit them into Toroczko, to hang our two brothers before oureyes. We on our part, however, turn a deaf ear to the rascally knaves, and would perish to the last man before we would think of yielding. It'sno use your screaming in my ears, you won't make me change my mind. I'mready to treat with people that are reasonable, but when they bite me Ibite back. I agree with you it's a hateful thing to have two of ourbrothers hanged; noblemen are not to be insulted with the halter; theirhonour should be spared and their heads taken off decently. But what canwe do? Can we hesitate a moment between two noblemen's deaths and thedestruction of all the peasantry? One man is as good as another now. Soyou may make as much rumpus as you please, it won't do any good. I amtaking you to Toroczko, and as our two brothers are as good as lost tous, you must take the command of the Toroczko forces. You have seen thebarricade fighting in Vienna and Rome, and you understand such things. So, then, not another word! I won't hear it. "

Manasseh had not uttered a syllable, but had permitted his brother toargue out the matter with himself. 

"I don't gainsay you, brother Aaron, " he calmly rejoined, "not in theleast. Take me to Toroczko, the sooner the better; but we shall not getthere by this road. Do you see that great cloud of dust yonder movingtoward us?"

"Aha! What sharp eyes you have to see it, by moonlight too! I hadn'tnoticed it before. All Torda and Nagy-Enyed are coming to meet us. Theymust have set out about the same time we did, to make the most of thenight. We can't get through this way, that's sure. But don't you worry. It's a sorry kind of a fox that has only one hole to hide in. Do you seethat gorge there on our right? It leads to Olah-Fenes. The people thereare Wallachs, it is true, but they side with us; to prove it, they havecut their hair short. Next we shall come to Szent-Laszlo, where Magyarslive. So far we can drive, though it's a frightful road and one of usmust walk beside the carriage and keep it from tipping over. We mustwake up the young lady, too, and tell her to hold on tight, or she'llbe thrown out. But never fear. The horses can be depended on, and thecarriage is Toroczko work and good for the jaunt. "

There was a halt, and Blanka awoke of her own accord. Manasseh turned toher, chatted with her a moment on the brightness of the stars and theclearness of the sky, then kissed her hand and bade her draw it backagain under her furs, else it would get frost-bitten. Thereupon Aaronreined his horses toward the mountain gorge he had pointed out, and theybegan their dangerous journey over a rough wood-road that led throughthe ravine. At one point it ran along the brink of a precipice, and asthey paused to breathe their horses the rumble of wagons on the highwayfrom Torda fell on their ears, sounding like distant thunder in thestill night. Then, to the north and south, red lights began to glimmeron the mountain peaks. 

"How beautiful!" exclaimed Blanka, as she gazed at them. Little did shesuspect that they were beacon-fires calling to deeds of blood andrapine. 

A turn in the road at length conducted the travellers through a gap inthe mountain range, and they had a view of the moonlit landscape beforethem. A noisy brook went tumbling and foaming down the ravine, and overit led a wooden bridge, at the farther end of which could be seen a rudeone-story house surrounded by a palisade. Five smaller houses ofsimilar architecture were grouped about it. The barking of dogs greetedthe travellers while they were still some distance off, and the crowingof cocks soon followed. 

"Do you hear Ciprianu's roosters?" Aaron asked his brother. 

"So you are acquainted with Ciprianu and his poultry?" returnedManasseh. 

"Yes, I know them well. Ciprianu is a Wallach, but a nobleman of Hungaryfor all that, and his poultry unique of its sort. The cocks are white, but in head and neck they bear a strong resemblance to turkeys, and theygobble like turkeys, too. They are a special breed and Ciprianu wouldn'tpart with one of them for a fortune. He guards them jealously fromthieves, and that explains why he has so many dogs. As soon as he hearsour carriage-wheels he'll come out on his veranda and fire off hisgun--not at us, but into the air, to let us know he's awake and ready tomeet friend or foe. "

The barking increased, the dogs sticking their noses out from betweenthe stakes of the palisade and joining in a full chorus. Presently ashot was heard from the front porch of the house. 

"Oh, they are firing at us!" cried Blanka, startled. 

"Don't be afraid, sister-in-law, " Aaron reassured her; "that shot wasn'taimed at us. " Then he shouted, in stentorian tones: "Don't shoot, Ciprianu, don't shoot! There's a lady with us, and she can't bear thenoise. "

At this there was heard a great commotion among the dogs, as of some onequieting the unruly beasts with a whip. Then the gate opened and asix-foot giant in a sheepskin coat, wool outward, and bearing a club, appeared. He exchanged greetings in Rumanian with Aaron, and theconversation that followed was likewise in that language, so that Blankacould not understand a word of it. The Wallach pointed to thesignal-fires on the mountains, and his face assumed an expression ofalarm. Finally he took one of the horses by the bridle, and conductedthe carriage through the gate and into his stronghold. 

"Why are we stopped here?" asked Blanka. 

Aaron gave her a reassuring reply. "Ciprianu says it is not best for usto go any farther to-night, as the rains have washed out the road insome places, and we might get into trouble in the dark. So we mustaccept his invitation and spend the rest of the night under his roof. "

Aaron had explained the situation only in part. The Wallachian'sargument for detaining them had much less to do with water than with thefires on the mountain tops. 

The dogs were kicked aside to make room for the strangers, and sundryvillagers appeared out of the gloom to reconnoitre the new arrivals. The country peasantry never give themselves a regular night's sleep, butlie down half-dressed in order to get up occasionally and look around inhouse and stable, to make sure all is as it should be. 

Ciprianu had a handsome daughter, as tall as himself and with regularfeatures of the old Roman cast. At her father's call she came out, lifted Blanka like a child from the carriage, and carried her into thehouse. It was a pleasant little abode, built of smoothly planed oakbeams and planks. The kitchen, which served also as entrance hall, wasas neat as wax and cheerfully adorned with brightly polished tinware. The fire on the hearth was still smouldering, and it needed only ahandful of shavings to make it blaze up and crackle merrily. The wallwhich separated the great fireplace from the next room was of glazedtiles, and thus the adjoining apartment was heated by the same fire thatwarmed the kitchen. Both the master of the house and his daughter weremost cordial toward their guests. The father spread the table, while thegirl put on the kettle and brought out the best that the house had tooffer of food and drink, pressing the refreshments upon Blanka in wordsthat sounded to her not unlike Italian, but were nevertheless quiteunintelligible. 

"They can both speak Hungarian, " whispered Aaron, when father anddaughter were out of the room for a moment, "but these are times whenthey choose to forget all tongues except their own. "

Blanka soon learned that her hostess's name was Zenobia. When they satdown to the table, Zenobia made as if to kiss her fair guest's hand;Blanka, however, would not allow it, but embraced the young woman andkissed her on the cheek. 

This act was noted by the father with no little pride and satisfaction. Blanka could not understand his words; she could only guess his meaningby the gestures and the play of countenance with which a Wallachianknows so well how to convey his thoughts. Thus, when Ciprianu put hishand first to his head, then tapped Aaron on the shoulder, kissed hisown fingers and then stretched them heavenward, made a motion with hishead and raised his eyebrows, bowed low, stood erect again, thumped hisbosom, and finally extended his great, muscular hands toward Blanka asif to caress her, she could not but infer that the Wallachian-Hungariannobleman was proud of the courtesy shown to his daughter. 

After this bit of eloquent pantomime, Ciprianu turned and hastened outof the room and into the courtyard, whence he soon reappeared amid agreat cackling of poultry. He brought with him, tied together by thefeet, a cock and a hen of that splendid breed that so strangelyresembles, in head and neck, the proudest of Calcutta turkeys. Thispair of fowls he presented to Blanka. She smiled her pleasure, andgladly accepted the gift, mindful of the new duties soon to be imposedupon her as a young housewife, and thinking that this present would be awelcome addition to her establishment. The generous host did not waitfor his guest's thanks, but disappeared again from the room. 

"Sister-in-law, " said Aaron, "you little suspect the value of thepresent you have received. Even to his bishop Ciprianu has never given acock and a hen of this breed at one time. So now we can sleep soundly inthis house, for we have a sure proof that you have won its master'sheart. With Ciprianu's cock and hen we can make our way unchallengedthrough the whole Wallachian army. They are as good as a passport forus. "

Blanka laughed, unaware of the full significance of his words. She waslike a saint walking over red-hot coals without once singeing the hem ofher robe. 

Ciprianu's house was, as is usual among the Wallachian nobility, wellfitted for the reception of guests. Everything savoured of thehouseholder's nationality, but comfort and abundance were everywheremanifest. Canopied beds were provided for all, only the master of thehouse, according to established custom, lay down before the kitchendoor, wrapped in his sheepskin, and with his double-barrelled musket byhis side. In an adjoining room stood two beds for Blanka and Zenobia. Aaron and Manasseh were likewise given a chamber in common. 

Curiously enough, one is often most wakeful when most in need of sleep. All her surroundings were so strange to Blanka that she found herselfwide awake and listening to the barking of the dogs, the occasionalcrowing of the cocks, the snoring of the master of the house, and hisfrequent mutterings as he dreamed of fighting with thieves andhousebreakers. Then her companion began to moan and sob in her sleep, and to utter disjointed sentences in Hungarian, of which she had sostudiously feigned ignorance a few hours before. "Oh, dear Jonathan, "she whispered, passionately, "do not leave me! Kiss me!" Then she moanedas if in anguish. 

Blanka could not compose herself to sleep. Only a wooden partitionseparated her from the room in which the two brothers slept. She couldhear Manasseh turning restlessly on his couch and muttering in his sleepas if in dispute with some one. 

"No, I will not let you go!" she heard him exclaim. "You may plunge mywhole country in blood, you may baptise my countrymen with a baptism offire, but I will never despair of my dear fatherland. Your hand has girtit round about with cliffs and peopled it with a peaceful race. It is mylast refuge, and thither I am carrying my bride. With your strong armrestore me to my beloved home. I will wrestle with you, fight with you;you cannot shake me off. I will not let you go until you have blessedme. "

The fisticuffs and elbow-thrusts that followed must have all spentthemselves on poor Aaron's unoffending person. At length the elderbrother wearied of this diversion and aroused his bedfellow. 

"With whom are you wrestling, brother?" he cried in the sleeper's ear. 

"With God, " returned Manasseh. 

"Like Jacob at Peniel?"

"Yes, and I will not let him go until he blesses me--like Jacob atPeniel. "

"Take care, or he will put your thigh out of joint, as he did Jacob's. "

"Let him, if it is his will. "

With that Manasseh turned his face to the wall, on the other side ofwhich lay Blanka, who likewise turned her face to the wall, and so theyboth fell asleep. 

And the Lord blessed them and spake to them: "I am Jehovah, almighty. Increase and be fruitful. From your seed shall spring peoples and races;for you have prevailed with God, and shall prevail also with men. "

CHAPTER XV. 

BALYIKA CAVE. 

The sun rises late in November. When Blanka awoke, every one else in thehouse was already up. Manasseh met her with the announcement that theirjourney was thenceforth to be on horseback, at which she was as pleasedas a child. So that explained why their carriage-horses had beensaddled. 

In the kitchen a plentiful breakfast stood ready, --hot milk, baconspiced with paprika, snow-white mountain honey, long-necked bottles ofspirits distilled from various fruits, cheeses rolled up in the fragrantbark of the fir-tree, --all of which was new to Blanka and partaken of byher with the keenest relish, to the great satisfaction of her host. Whatwas left on the table by his guests he packed up and made them carryaway with them, assuring them it would not come amiss. 

Zenobia was to guide the travellers on their way. Blanka laughed withdelight as she mounted her horse. At first she found it strange enoughto sit astride like a man, but when she saw the stately Wallachianmaiden thus mounted, she overcame her scruples and even thought it greatfun. The little mountain horses were so steady and sure-footed that itwas like being rocked in a cradle to ride one of them. 

The two young women rode ahead, while the men lingered behind a momentto drink a stirrup-cup with their host, who would not let them gowithout observing this ceremony. Entering the forest, Blanka accostedher companion. 

"Zenobia, call me 'Blanka, ' and speak Hungarian with me. You spoke itwell enough in your sleep last night. "

The Wallachian girl drew rein abruptly and crossed herself. "HolyVirgin!" she whispered, "don't lisp a word of what you heard me say, anddon't ask me about it, either. "

They rode on side by side up the slope of the mountain. Blanka was inhigh spirits. The turf was silvered with hoar frost, except here andthere where the direct rays of the sun had melted it and exposed thegrass beneath, which looked all the greener by contrast. A stately grovereceived the travellers. A silence as of some high-arched cathedralreigned, broken occasionally by the antiphony of feathered songsters inthe trees overhead. A pair of wild peacocks started up at the riders'approach and alighted again at a little distance. The ascent becamesteeper. Horses bred in the lowlands must have long since succumbed tothe strain put upon them, but Aaron's good mountain ponies showed noteven a drop of sweat on their sleek coats. 

Gaining the mountain top at length, the travellers saw before them awild moor threaded by a narrow path, which they were obliged to followin single file, Zenobia taking the lead. The sun was high in the heavenswhen they reached the end of this tortuous path and found themselves ata point where their road led downward into the valley below. A venerablebeech-tree, perhaps centuries old, marked this spot. It was the solesurvivor of the primeval forest that had once crowned the height onwhich it stood. Held firm by its great, wide-reaching roots, whichfastened themselves in the crannies of the rock, it had thus far defiedthe elements. Its trunk half hid a cavernous opening in themountainside, before which lay a large stone basin partly filled withwater. 

"Here we will rest awhile, beside the Wonder Spring, " said Zenobia, leaping from her horse and loosening her saddle-girth. "We'll take abite of lunch and let our animals graze; then later we will water them. "

"How can we?" asked Blanka. "There is scarcely any water here. "

"There will be enough before long, " was the reply. "That is why we callit the Wonder Spring: every two hours it gushes out, and then subsidesagain. "

Blanka shook her head doubtfully, and, as if to make the most of thewater still remaining in the basin, she used her hand as a ladle anddipped up enough to quench the thirst of her pair of fowls--for hervaluable present had not been left behind. 

Meanwhile Aaron had spread the lunch on the green table-cloth providedby good dame Nature, and had begun to cut, with his silver-mountedclasp-knife, a generous portion for each traveller. But Blanka declaredherself less hungry than thirsty. 

"The saints have but to wish, and their desires are fulfilled, " wasZenobia's laughing rejoinder. "Even the barren rocks yield nectar. Hearthat! The spring is going to flow in a moment. "

A gurgling sound was heard from the cavernous opening behind thebeech-tree, and presently an abundant stream of crystal-clear waterburst forth, flooded the basin, and then went leaping and foaming overthe rocks and down the mountainside into the ravine below. Blankaclapped her hands with delight at this beautiful appearance, anddeclared that if she were rich, she would build a house there and askfor no other amusement than to watch the spring when it flowed. Shelaughed like a happy child, and perhaps in all Transylvania, that day, hers was the only happy laugh that was heard. 

Aaron gathered a heap of dry twigs and made a fire, at which he taughtBlanka to toast bread and broil bacon, --accomplishments not to bedespised on occasions like this. 

In half an hour the spring ceased to flow. It stopped with a successionof muffled, gurgling sounds from the depths of its subterranean channel, ending finally with gulping down the greater part of the water that hadfilled the basin. Then all was still once more. 

Meanwhile something had occurred to trouble Blanka's happiness. Two orthree wasps, of that venomous kind of which half a dozen suffice to killa horse, lured from their winter quarters by the smell of food, werebuzzing about her ears in a manner that spoiled all her pleasure. Aaronhastened to her assistance, and suspecting that the intruders had theirnest in the hollow beech, he made preparations to smoke them out. Setting fire to a bunch of dry grass, he inserted it in the hollow ofthe tree and confidently awaited results. A sound like the snort of asteam-engine followed, and presently flames were seen bursting from thetop of the chimney-like trunk. The dry mould and dust of ages that hadcollected inside this shaft had now caught fire, like so much tinder, turning the whole tree in a twinkling into a mighty torch. 

"Oh, what have you done?" cried Zenobia, starting up. "Do you know thatyou have killed my father and set fire to the house that sheltered youlast night?"

Blanka at first thought the girl was joking, but when she saw Aaron'svexed expression and Manasseh's ruffled brow, she knew that the wordsmust have a meaning that the others understood, though she did not. 

"Quick!" exclaimed the Wallachian maiden. "Mount and away! You have nota moment to lose. I hasten back to my father. You can find your way downthe mountain by following the bed of the brook. Night must not overtakeyou in this neighbourhood. Oh, Aaron, may God forgive you for what youhave done this day!"

Out of the burning tree a pair of owls fluttered, blinded andpanic-stricken, a family of squirrels scampered off to a place ofsafety, and a nest of serpents squirmed and wriggled away from thatblazing horror. Yet neither owls nor squirrels nor serpents fled withmore headlong haste than did our travellers. Zenobia galloped back theway she had come, while the two men took Blanka between them andclattered down the rocky bed of the now nearly dry mountain torrent. 

Of all this Blanka could understand nothing. What great harm, shewondered, could come from the burning of an old beech-tree?

Toward evening the travellers found themselves on a height commanding awide view of the surrounding country. To the north rose the cliff wherethey had lunched at noon, and where they could still see black smokeascending in a column from the smouldering beech as from a factorychimney. To the southeast another column of smoke was visible, andtoward the same quarter Torda Gap opened before them in the distance. 

Aaron said they must halt here and rest their horses, whereupon allthree dismounted and Manasseh spread a sheepskin for Blanka to sit on;but she chose rather to go in quest of wild flowers. 

"Your Blanka is a jewel of a woman!" exclaimed Aaron to his brother. "From early dawn she sits in the saddle, bears all the hardships of thejourney, and utters not a sigh of weariness or complaint. With thatfiligree body of hers, she endures fatigues that might well make astrong man's bones ache, and keeps up her good cheer through them all. Nothing daunted by danger ahead, she makes merry over it when it ispassed. Yet once or twice I thought she was going to lose heart, but shelooked into your face and immediately regained her courage. But thehardest part of the journey is still to come. Turn your field-glasstoward Monastery Heights, yonder, where you see the smoke. Do you findany tents there?"

"Yes, and on the edge of the woods I see the gleam of bayonets. "

"That is the camp of Moga's insurgents, and it lies between us and theSzekler Stone. Every road leading thither is now unsafe for us. But hearmy plan. The insurgents hold Monastery Heights, and we must ride pastthem, through the Torda Gap. The millers of the two mills that stand oneat each end of the Gap are my friends. The Hungarian miller at Peterdhas shut off Hesdad Brook to-day, to clear out the mill-race. He does itonce in so often, and I know he is about it now. So we shall have notrouble making our way up the dry bed of the stream to the farther endof the Gap. The miller there has promised to give a signal if the roadthrough the Torda woods is clear, and unless it is blocked by theinsurgents we can push on at once to the saw-mill on the Aranyos, wherea four-horse team is waiting for us with twelve mounted young men fromBagyon as escort. But don't wrinkle your brow, we sha'n't come tobloodshed yet awhile. A dozen Bagyon horsemen make nothing of dashingthrough the whole Wallachian army, and not a hair of their heads will betouched. We shall be shot at, but from such a distance that we shallnever know it. We will tell the young lady it is the custom in ourcountry to receive bridal parties with a volley of musketry. When wereach the Borev Bridge we are as good as at home, and we shall be therebefore any one can overtake us, I'll warrant. "

"But what if the Torda woods are held by the enemy?" queried Manasseh. 

"Then we will take up our quarters for the present in Balyika Cave. Everything is provided there for our comfort, and we shall not suffer. We'll wait until the danger passes. Near the Balyika Gate we shall finda signal: a cord will be stretched from one rock to another, and a redrag hung on it if danger threatens, but a green twig if all is well. "

"And when you first proposed in Kolozsvar that we should go home by wayof Torda Gap, did you know the perils we should have to face?"

"Certainly, " replied Aaron. "You can read my heart, brother, like anopen book, and I need not try to conceal anything from you. Do yousuppose we should ever have taken up arms unless we had been forced todo so, even as you will exchange the olive-branch for the sword as soonas you find what is dearest to you in danger? You cannot do otherwise;the iron hand of destiny constrains you. You have brought yoursweetheart with you from Rome; your honour as a man obliges you to makeher your lawful wife. Our law, our canon, compels you to make your wayhome with her, for nowhere else can your wedding be duly solemnised. Suppose the enemy block your way: you are given a good horse, a trustysword and a brace of pistols, and then, with thirteen loyal comrades, including myself, you clear a path, through blood if need be, to thealtar whither it is your duty to lead your betrothed. "

While the two men thus discoursed on war and bloodshed, Blanka wasenjoying the late autumn flowers that the frost had spared. Indigo-bluebell-flowers and red and white tormentils were still in bloom, while inthe clefts of the rocks she came upon the red wall-pepper and a kind ofyellow ragwort. She had gathered a great bunch of these blossoms whenshe had the good fortune to find a clump of bear-berry vines, full ofthe ripened fruit hanging in red clusters and set off by the leathery, dark green leaves, which never fall. The bear-berry is the pride of themountain flora, and Blanka was delighted to meet with it. 

"Are these berries poisonous?" she asked Aaron, with childish curiosity, as soon as she rejoined her companions. 

He put one of them into his mouth to reassure her; then she had tofollow his example, but immediately made a wry face and declared thefruit to be very bitter. 

"But the berries will do to put in my bouquets for your two brothers whoare coming to meet us, " she said, as she seated herself on the sheepskinto rest a few minutes and to tie up her flowers. 

At these words Aaron's eyes filled, but he hastened to reply, withassumed cheerfulness:

"In Balyika Glen we shall find a still more beautiful species ofbear-berry. It, too, is a kind of arbutus, but of great rarity, andfound nowhere else except in Italy and Ireland. We call it here the'autumn-spring flower. ' The stems are coral-red, the leaves evergreen, and the blossoms grow in terminal umbels, white and fragrant, late inthe fall, while the berries do not ripen until the following autumn, sothat the beautiful plant bears flowers and fruit at one and the sametime, and thus wears our national colours, the tricolour of Hungary. "

"Oh, where does it grow? Is it far from here?" exclaimed Blanka, eagerly, starting up from her seat. She had lost all feeling of fatigue. 

"It is a good distance, dear sister-in-law, " replied Aaron. "To theTorda Gap is a full hour's ride, and thence to Balyika Glen about asfar; and I'm afraid somebody is tired enough already, so that we hadbest stay overnight in the mill and not push on until to-morrowmorning. "

"No, I am not tired, " Blanka asserted. "Let us go on this evening, " andshe was ready to remount at once. 

"But the horses ought to graze a little longer, " objected Aaron, "andeven then we shall fare much better if we walk down the mountain; itwill be easier for us than riding. "

With that he went off into the bushes and picked his hat full ofhuckleberries, returning with which he drew a clean linen handkerchieffrom his knapsack, used it as a strainer for extracting the juice of thefruit, and then presented the drink in a wooden goblet to Blanka. Sheleft some for Manasseh, who drank after her and declared he had nevertasted a more delightful draught. She seemed now fully rested andrefreshed, and eager to resume their journey. Aaron put two fingers intohis mouth and whistled, whereupon the three horses came trotting up tohim. He called them by name, and they followed him as a dog follows hismaster, while Manasseh and Blanka brought up the rear. Thus the partydescended the steep mountainside. 

The Torda Gap is one of the most marvellous volcanic formations inexistence. It is as if a mighty mountain chain had been rent asunderfrom ridge to base, leaving the opposing sides of the gorge rugged andprecipitous, but matching each other with a rude harmony of detail mostcurious to behold. The zigzags and windings of the giant corridor, threethousand feet in length, have a wonderful regularity and symmetry intheir bounding walls. The whole forms an entrance-way or passage ofsolid rock, the most imposing gateway in the world, and a marvel to allgeologists. 

The wonders of this mountain gorge, and the stories and legends thatAaron narrated as the travellers proceeded, made Blanka entirelyunconscious of the difficulties of the way. After leaving the Peterdmill behind them, they were forced to use the bed of the stream for aroad. Its waters were for the time being restrained, although numerouspools were still standing, in which numbers of small fishes dartedhither and thither and crabs were seen in abundance. As the ridersadvanced through the rocky passageway, its walls came nearer and nearertogether and left only a narrow strip of blue sky visible overhead, witha few slanting rays of the evening sunlight playing high up on one sideof the gorge. At length the passage became so straitened that only threefathoms' space was left between the confining walls. When Hesdad Brookis at all full one can make his way through only with great difficultyand by boldly breasting its waters. Therefore it is that very few peoplehave ever seen the gate of Torda Gap. Just above this narrow gateway issituated the natural excavation in the mountainside, called from itslast defender, Balyika Cave. 

As the travellers approached this spot, Aaron rode on ahead, ostensiblyto ascertain whether the water was still shallow enough to wade through, but in reality to look for the preconcerted signal and remove it beforeBlanka should come up. He had agreed with Manasseh, if the signal wasfavourable, to offer to show her the flower garden of Balyika Glen andto discourage all desire on her part to visit Balyika Cave, by allegingthat it was the haunt of serpents; but if the signal should beunfavourable, he was to employ all his arts to make the young lady eagerto inspect the cavern and pass the night there. 

He soon returned, and reported that it would be easy to wade theirhorses through the gateway, after which they could go and view thewonders of Balyika Cave. 

"But aren't there any snakes in the cave?" was Blanka's first and mostnatural inquiry. Every woman in her place would have put the samequestion. Ever since Mother Eve's misadventure with the serpent inParadise, women have cherished a deadly enmity toward the whole reptilefamily. 

"Yes, " was Aaron's reply, "there are snakes there. "

Manasseh drew a breath of relief, but this time he had mistaken hisbrother's meaning. 

"We need not fear them, however, " the elder made haste to add. "We willbuild a fire and drive them out. Our fowls, too, will be a still betterprotection for us; with their naked necks they will be taken forvultures by the snakes, and we shall have no trouble whatever. "

Manasseh now knew that dangers surrounded them, and that they must passthe night in the cave. Aaron, however, put forth all his eloquence todepict the charms of the place, likening its cavernous depths to thegroined arches of a cathedral, and telling how his ancestors hadmaintained themselves there for months at a time in the face of abesieging force. He assured Blanka that she would find it mostdelightful to camp there by a blazing fire; he and Manasseh would taketurns watching while she slept, her head pillowed on a fragrant bundleof hay. 

They passed through the giant gateway, and clambered up to Balyika Cave, a spacious chamber in the side of the cliff, rudely but stronglyfortified by a stone rampart that had been built to guard the entrance. A wild rosebush grew in the narrow doorway and seemed at first to refuseall admittance. Manasseh and Blanka waited without, while Aaron foughthis way through the brambles, which tore at his leather coat withoutinjuring it, and presently returned with three broad planks. He andManasseh held the briers aside with two of them and laid the third as abridge for Blanka to pass over unharmed. In a corner of the stone walllay a pile of hay, and behind it a supply of pitch-pine torches, one ofwhich Aaron now lighted. Then, like a lord in his own castle, he issuedhis orders to his companions. Manasseh was to lead the horses up, one ata time, and stable them in the rude courtyard, while Blanka wasinstructed to sit on a stone and arrange her flowers and feed herpoultry. Meantime the master of ceremonies made everything ready for theother two within the cave. 

The cock and hen were soon picking the barley from their mistress's lap, while she busied her fingers with the manufacture of a red necklace ofthe hips that grew on the wild rosebush. That other necklace, thedandelion chain, was treasured by Manasseh among his most preciouspossessions. Soon the horses were led up, stalled and fed, and thentheir groom drew in the wooden planks, according to his brother'sinstructions, and carried them into the cave, leaving the wild rosebushto resume its guardianship of the doorway. After this Aaron came out andoffered his arm, like a courteous host, to escort Blanka into thecavern. She was no little surprised, on entering, to find herself in astately hall, clean and comfortable, and lighted and warmed by acheerful fire of fagots in its centre. Near the fire stood a table, neatly spread with a white cloth, on which were placed glasses and apitcher of fresh spring-water. Beside the table a couch, rude butcomfortable, had been prepared for her repose. 

"Aaron, you are a magician!" cried the young girl. "Where did you getall these things?"

At this question the good man nearly let the cat out of the bag byexplaining that everything had long since been in readiness for theircoming. But he checked himself and considered his answer a moment. Tosay that he had brought all this outfit in his knapsack would have beentoo obviously a falsehood, so he sought another way out of thedifficulty. 

"I told the miller, " he replied, with a jerk of his thumb over oneshoulder, "that we should stay the night here, and he sent these thingsforward by a short cut over the mountain. "

Thus it was only the speaker's thumb, and not his tongue, that lied, bypointing backward to the mill just passed, instead of forward to theother mill at the upper end of Torda Gap. 

Aaron now offered to show the wonders of this rock palace, which, likethe Palazzo Cagliari, consisted of two wings, from the second of which alow and narrow passage led upward to the mountain spring whence thethoughtful host had procured fresh water for their table. The previousoccupants of this abode seemed to have been provided with not a fewconveniences. 

Returning to the fireside, Blanka was easily persuaded to try the couchthat had been spread for her. The three planks, laid on some flat stonesand heaped with sheepskins and rugs, made a very comfortableresting-place even for a lady. Blanka demanded nothing further, except aglass of water, and then begged Aaron to tell her some more stories, towhich she listened with her chin resting in her hand and her eyelids nowand then drooping with drowsiness, despite the interest she took in thenarrator's ingenious farrago of fact and fiction, of romance andreality. 

He told her how Balyika, the last lord of this castle, had held it foryears against the imperial troops; even after Francis Rakoczy'ssurrender he had refused to lay down his arms, but had maintained hisposition with a sturdy band of a hundred mountaineers. With this littlecompany he waged bitter warfare against his foes, losing his followersone after another in the unequal contest, until he alone was left. Eventhen he refused to yield himself, but outwitted all who strove to killor capture him. Finally he met the fate of many another brave man, --hewas betrayed by the woman he loved. He had been smitten with a passionfor the daughter of the Torda baker, the beautiful Rosalie; but heraffections were already bespoken by the butcher's apprentice, Marczi byname, a youth of courage and activity. However, she deigned to receivethe outlawed chieftain's attentions, her sole purpose being to entraphim and deliver him up to his foes. One evening, when she went to keepan appointment with Balyika, she notified the village magistrate and thecaptain of the yeomen. These two took an armed force and surrounded thelovers' rendezvous, thinking thus at last to capture their man. But hecut his way through the soldiery, and, fleeing over the mountain, madestraight for his cave in the Torda Gap, outstripping the pursuit of bothhorse and foot--with the single exception of the injured lover, Marczi, whom he could not shake off. The young man clung to his heels and chasedhim to the very entrance of his retreat, where, just as the robber chiefwas slipping through the opening of his cave, his pursuer hurled hishatchet with such deadly aim that it cleft the fugitive's skull, and hesank dead on the spot. 

"And that was how the last lord of the cave came to his end, " concludedAaron. 

"But what about Marczi and Rosalie?" asked Blanka. 

The narrator proceeded to gratify her curiosity by making the young manfall into the hands of the Mongols, after which he was captured by atroop of Cossacks; and then, when Aaron was putting him through asimilar experience with the dog-faced Tartars, his listener succumbed atlast to the drowsiness against which she had been struggling, and thestory was abruptly discontinued. 

"I never heard that tale before, brother, " said Manasseh, after assuringhimself that Blanka was really asleep. 

"Nor I, either, " was Aaron's candid reply; "but in a tight pinch a manturns romancer sometimes. I don't know, though, what fables we caninvent to keep the young lady here over to-morrow. You think upsomething, brother; don't let me go to perdition all alone for the lotof yarns I've been reeling off to your sweetheart. "

"Very well, " assented the other; "I'll set my wits to work. Now you liedown and rest a bit, while I stay up and tend the fire. At midnight Iwill wake you and lie down myself while you watch. "

Aaron lay down with a bundle of twigs under his head for a pillow, and, muttering a snatch of a prayer, was fast asleep in a twinkling. Manassehwas now left undisturbed to devise something new and surprising againsthis brother's awakening. Tearing a leaf from his sketch-book, he wroteas follows:

 "DEAR BROTHER AARON:--I cannot close my eyes in sleep while death threatens our brothers Simon and David. Nor can I endure the thought of my birthplace being turned into a bloody battle-field, and of the horrors of war invading the peaceful valley whither I am bringing my bride, and which has ever looked upon bloodshed with disapproval. It was my fond hope to give my wife a glimpse of mankind in something like its original sinless state, and to let her learn to know and worship the God of our fathers as a God of love and gentleness. I am seeking a way by which this cherished hope of mine may yet be realised. While the Lord watches over your slumbers, I go in quest of the insurgent leader. That which force and threats cannot effect may yet be accomplished by peaceful means. I go to rescue our brothers from imprisonment and death. No fears can hold me back, as no inducements could prevail on me to slip stealthily by their place of confinement and push forward to celebrate my wedding while they perhaps were being led out to execution. I go forth alone and unarmed, and I am hopeful of success. Meanwhile do you guard and cherish my beloved. Above all, take her away from this place early to-morrow morning. Our presence here is known to one man, and he may betray us. You know the way to Porlik Grotto; few people are even aware of its existence, so well is it hidden from the view of travellers. Thither you must conduct our companion, and I will join you there with our two brothers from Monastery Heights. I may perhaps be there before you. But if it should please God not to prosper my undertaking, take Blanka home with you, and, if the Lord preserves our family, treat her as a sister. She is worthy of your adoption. Break to her gently the news of my fate. In the accompanying pocketbook is all her worldly wealth, as well as my own savings. Take charge of it. My brother Jonathan resembles me in appearance, and is a much better man than I. To him I leave _all_ that I now call mine. 

 "Do not betray to Blanka any anxiety on my account. If God be with me, who shall prevail against me?

 "Your brother, "MANASSEH. "

CHAPTER XVI. 

A DESPERATE HAZARD. 

After finishing his letter, Manasseh took a number of banknotes out ofhis pocketbook and put them into his waistcoat pocket, and then softlyslipped the pocketbook itself, with his letter, under Aaron's pillow. OnBlanka's pure brow, as she lay asleep, he gently pressed a parting kiss, after which he heaped fresh fuel on the fire, stole out of the cave, saddled his horse, and rode away into the darkness. 

The signal-fire on Monastery Heights showed him where to find theWallachian camp. No outposts challenged his progress, and he made hisway unmolested to the ruined monastery which sheltered the insurgents. Fastening his horse to a tree, he turned his steps toward the belfrytower that marked the position of the cloister and the chapel, which, asthe only building on the mountain with a whole roof, served theWallachian leader and his staff as headquarters. 

Softly opening the door, Manasseh found himself in a low but spaciousapartment. Twelve men were seated around a table on which stood asingle tallow candle, whose feeble rays could hardly pierce theenveloping clouds of tobacco smoke. The company was engaged in thatengrossing pursuit which, as is well known, claimed so much of theofficers' time during the campaigns of the period, --they were playingcards. 

One chair in the circle was empty. Perhaps its former occupant hadgambled away his last kreutzer and left the room. At any rate, thenewcomer advanced without hesitation and took the vacant seat. It may bethat the players were too absorbed in their game to notice him; orpossibly they had so recently come together that they were not yetsufficiently acquainted to detect a stranger's presence; or, again, thefeeble light and the clouds of tobacco smoke may have rendered itimpossible to distinguish one's neighbours very clearly. Whatever thereason, the stranger's advent elicited no comment. A pocketful of moneyfurnished him all the language he needed to speak, and the cards weredealt to him as a matter of course. Opposite him sat the Wallachianleader. 

The game proceeded and the stakes rose higher and higher. One afteranother the losers dropped out, until at last Manasseh and theWallachian commander were left pitted against each other, a heap ofcoins and banknotes between them. Fortune declared for Manasseh, and heswept the accumulated stakes into his pocket. At this the others lookedhim more sharply in the face. "Who is he?" was asked by one and another. 

"Why, you are Manasseh Adorjan!" exclaimed the leader at length, inastonishment. "What do you mean by this rashness?"

The faces around him assumed threatening looks, and more than onemuttered menace fell on his ear; but the hardy intruder betrayed no signof uneasiness. 

"I trust I am among gentlemen, " he remarked, quietly, "who will not seeka base revenge on a player that has won their money from them. "

The words failed not of their effect. Honour forbade that a hand shouldbe raised against the fortunate winner. 

"But, Adorjan, " interposed the leader, in a tone of mingled wonder andvexation, "how did you come here and what is your purpose?"

"Time enough to talk about that when we have finished playing, " was thecareless rejoinder. "First I must win the rest of your money. So havethe goodness to resume your seats. "

The company began to laugh. Clenched fists relaxed, and the men clappedthe intruder jovially on the shoulder, as they again took their placesaround the table. 

"Haven't you a spare pipe to lend me?" Manasseh asked his right-handneighbour. 

"Yes, yes, to be sure, " was the ready reply. 

Manasseh filled the proffered pipe, drew from his pocket a banknotewhich he rolled into a lighter, thrust it into the candle-flame, and sokindled his pipe, after which he took up his cards and began to play. 

A faint-hearted man, on finding his own and his brothers' lives thus atstake, would have sought to curry favour by allowing his opponents towin. But not so Manasseh. He plundered the company without mercy, asbefore, and as before he and his _vis-à-vis_ were at last left soleantagonists, while the others rose from their places and gathered ingroups about these two. Manasseh still continued to win, and hisopponent's supply of money ebbed lower and lower. The loser grewfurious, and drank deeply to keep himself in countenance. 

"Give me a swallow of your brandy, " said Manasseh, but he had no soonertasted it than he pushed the bottle disdainfully away. "Fusel-oil!" heexclaimed, making a wry face. "To-morrow I will send you a cask of myplum brandy. "

"No, you won't, " returned his antagonist. 

"Why not, pray?"

"Because to-morrow you shall hang. "

"Oh, no, " replied Manasseh, lightly, "for that would require my personalpresence, and I am needed elsewhere. "

The Wallachian continued to lose. Finally, in his fury, he staked hislast penny--"and your brothers' heads into the bargain!" he added, indesperation. 

The other took him up and staked his own head in addition to the bundleof notes which he threw down nonchalantly before him. 

They played, and again Manasseh won. A man less bold of temperamentmight have thought to gain his enemies' good-will by leaving hiswinnings on the table. But Manasseh knew better. His opponents, angeredby their losses, called him a robber, but still respected him. Had he, however, been so timid as to leave the money lying there, they wouldhave regarded his action as such an insult that he would have beencompelled to fight the entire company, one after another, in singlecombat. 

"Now, then, " said the leader, "we have time to talk. Why are youhere--to persuade us to release your two brothers and leave Toroczko inpeace?"

"A man of your discernment can fathom my motives without asking anyquestions, " replied Manasseh, with a courteous bow. 

"Well, let us see how you are going to work to bring this about. Yourbrother David, like the simple rustic he is, thought to talk me overwith Bible quotations. He preached me a sermon on the love of one'sneighbour, Christ's commandments, the almighty power of Jehovah, and alot more of the same sort, until at last I grew tired of it and had himlocked up to keep him quiet. Your brother Simon is a shrewder man; hehas been to school at Kolozsvar. He came to me with threats in hismouth, delivered a long harangue on the constitution, the powers of thegovernment, our past history, and kept up such a din in my ears thatfinally I had to shut him up, too. But you are the cleverest of thethree; you have been trained as a diplomat, and have taken lessons inVienna from Metternich himself. Let us hear what you have to say. "

"Set my brothers free, " returned Manasseh, boldly, "and promise me notto attack Toroczko; then I will give you sixteen fat oxen and twentycasks of plum brandy. "

The Wallachian sprang to his feet and clapped his hand to his sword. "Ifyou were only armed, " he exclaimed wrathfully, "you should pay for yourinsolence by fighting me. Do you take me for an Armenian peddler to bechaffered with in that fashion?"

Manasseh kept his seat on the edge of the table, swinging one footcarelessly to and fro. "If you were an Armenian peddler, " was his coolretort, "you would be far more sensibly employed than at present. Butwhy so angry? I offer you what you most need, food and drink; and I askin return what we most desire, peace. "

"But what you offer us we can come and take in spite of you. You threebrothers are now in our hands, and we have only to send word to thepeople of Toroczko that, unless they lay down their arms and surrenderthe town, we shall hang you from the turret of St. George Castle. "

"There are five more of us brothers at home, and, furthermore, in orderto reach St. George Castle you must push through the Gap or make yourway over the Szekler Stone, and you know well enough that the men ofToroczko have held this valley in times past against the whole invadingarmy of the Tartars. "

"You forget that there is still another way to reach Toroczko. "

"No, I do not forget it. You mean the bridge over the Aranyos. But ouriron cannon guard that bridge, and your bushrangers are hardly thetroops to take it. "

"Well, then, look out of yonder window toward the west. Do you see thatsignal-fire, and do you know its meaning? It means that a division ofregular troops, with artillery and cavalry, is on the way hither fromSzent-Laszlo. "

Manasseh burst into a laugh. "It means that a merry company ofpicnickers took their lunch this noon at the Wonder Spring, at the footof the great beech-tree. The wasps came out and plagued them, so theystuck burning grass into the hollow trunk, and consequently the wholetree was soon in flames. That is what you see burning now. "

"Manasseh, if you are lying to me!"

"You know me. You know I never lie. What I say is true. When I choosenot to tell the truth, I hold my tongue. Last night I slept atCiprianu's. There are no imperial troops to be seen for miles around. What is more, the Hungarian forces have left Kolozsvar. Whither havethey gone? I do not know; but it might befall you, while counting onmeeting with help, to stumble upon an enemy. After the first threeAdorjans, you will encounter a fourth, Jonathan, and he will give yousomething beside Bible quotations and Metternichian diplomacy. "

The Wallachian was visibly affected by this speech, but he sought tohide his concern, and cried out, in a harsh tone: "If you are triflingwith me, Adorjan, you'll find you have trifled with your own life. Ifyou have told me a lie, God in heaven shall not save you. "

"But as I have not told you a lie, God in heaven will save me, and I begyou to tell me where I may lie down and sleep, for I am very tired. "

"Shut him up in the bell-tower, " commanded the Wallachian. 

"Good!" cried Manasseh, with a laugh. "At least I shall be able to ringyou up early in the morning. "

"Inasmuch as you have offered us a supply of brandy and eighteen oxen, "were the leader's parting words, "we will have another interview in themorning. "

"Sixteen was the number, " Manasseh corrected him. 

A bed of hay under the bell was furnished the captive, and he was lockedup for the night, after which the company he had left held a council ofwar. 

CHAPTER XVII. 

IN PORLIK GROTTO. 

Complying with his brother's instructions, Aaron broke up his quartersat Balyika Cave early the next morning, and, descending with Blanka tothe bed of the stream, led her up the valley to Porlik Grotto, one ofnature's wonders known to few and seldom visited. From the top of itshigh-arched entrance hung cornel-bushes with brown leaves and redberries, while luxuriant wild grape-vines, with pendant clusters of ripefruit, climbed upward from below to meet them, the whole thus forming analmost perfect screen before the opening. Through the screen, however, an observant eye caught the gleam of the stalactites within; the sun'srays, piercing the foliage, lighted them up like so many sparklingchandeliers. But our two travellers' thoughts were not on the beautiesof the place. 

"If Manasseh should only come out now to meet us!" they both exclaimedat once. 

"There!" cried Aaron, "we both wished the same thing, and we have a sortof superstition here that a wish so uttered by two at the same time isbound to be fulfilled. "

But Manasseh did not appear. 

"Look there, " said Aaron, with forced cheerfulness, pointing out thewonders of the grotto; "see how the limestone pillars grow together fromabove and below, till they meet and make one solid column. " And all thewhile he was thinking: "What if Manasseh should come back, not alone, but with our two brothers! Yet is it right to ask so much of fate? Willnot Heaven be angry with me for cherishing such a wish? Ah, let Manassehhimself come, even if he must come alone and with evil tidings!"

"See there, my dove, " he continued aloud to his companion, "how thearches extend back, one behind another, with balconies along the sides, just like a theatre, and high up yonder a perch for the gallery gods. "Meanwhile he was saying to himself: "Oh, that brother of mine ought tohave been here long ago if he was coming at all. " Then, aloud to Blanka:"Hear me play on the organ up there, --for theatres have organssometimes. You notice the pipes, side by side, some longer and someshorter, each for a different note. But you stay here, --the rocks arewet and slippery, --while I go up and play you a pretty tune. "

With that he clambered up the side of the cavern to a series ofstalactites that presented somewhat the appearance of organ-pipes, anddrew the handle of his hatchet across them, assuring his listener thewhile that he was playing a beautiful melody. Blanka was expected tolaugh at this, and had Manasseh only been there, she could have done sowith a light heart. 

"Don't you think this back wall looks like a stage curtain?" Aaron wenton. "With a little stretch of the imagination you might take it for thecurtain in the Kolozsvar theatre, with Apollo and the muses painted onit. One feels almost like stamping one's feet, to make it go up and theplay begin. " But the undercurrent of the speaker's thoughts was quitedifferent. "What if Manasseh shouldn't come by noon--by nightfall?" hewas asking himself. "Then what is to become of this poor girl?" Aloudonce more: "That lad Manasseh must have made a little mistake--just likethese young men! He probably took the longer way, instead of followingmy advice. But just look out toward the entrance, and see how the sunshines in through the leaves and lights up the whole grotto like a fairypalace. "

Blanka, however, was feeling so heavy of heart and, in a vague way, sofearful of impending misfortune, that she was in no mood to enjoy thesplendours around her. She crossed her hands on her bosom and, in thehalf-light of this mysterious subterranean cathedral, yielded to theawe-inspiring influence of the place and gave utterance, in a subduedchant, to these words of the psalmist:

 "Hear me, O God, nor hide thy face, But answer, lest I die. "

Aaron could control his feelings no longer. Throwing himself down on hisface, he began to sob as only a strong man can when he is at last movedto tears, not by any selfish grief, but by the very burden of his loveand anxiety for others. 

But at that moment the psalm was broken off, and Aaron heard himselfcalled three times by name. He rose to his knees and looked toward theopening of the grotto, where a glad and unexpected sight met his eyes. Glorified by the flood of light that poured in from without, appearedthe forms of three men, the middle one being the tallest and stateliest. They were Manasseh and his two brothers, David and Simon. 

Aaron sprang up and threw himself on them with an inarticulate cry likethat of a lioness recovering her lost cubs. Embraces and kisses were notenough: he bore them to the ground and thumped them soundly on the backin the excess of his emotion. 

"You rascal, you good-for-nothing, you shameless rogue, to worry me likethat!" he exclaimed, accosting now one, now the other of his two lostbrothers, after which he embraced them both once more. 

"And am I of no account?" asked Manasseh. "Have I no share in all this?"

"You are your brothers' father, " Aaron made answer, "before whom theyprostrate themselves, even as the sheaves of Joseph's brethren bowedbefore his sheaf. We are all your humble slaves. " So saying, he threwhimself at Manasseh's feet and embraced his knees. "Torda Gap is, indeed, a place of wonders, but the greatest wonder of all you havewrought in rescuing your brothers. "

This unrestrained outburst of joy opened Blanka's eyes and made her seethat there was far more behind the meeting of these brothers than shehad at first suspected. She knew now that the vague dread which hadoppressed her, and from which she had sought relief in sacred song, hadnot been unfounded. Thus it was that she felt all the more impelled totake up the psalm where she had broken off, and to pour out her gladnessin the concluding lines:

 "He hears his saints, he knows their cry, And by mysterious ways Redeems the prisoners doomed to die, And fills their tongues with praise. "

Much rejoicing then followed, and the two brothers, whom Manasseh nowpresented to Blanka, told her all about the preparations made forreceiving the bridal party at the Borev Bridge. Then all five sat downand emptied the lunch-basket with which Ciprianu had provided hisguests; for thenceforth they would not need to carry their supplies withthem. Toward noon they mounted their horses, David and Simon takingBlanka between them, and the other two bringing up the rear. 

"Now tell me all about it, " began the elder brother, as he rode a littlebehind with Manasseh. "You must have had the eloquence of Aaron and themagician's power of Moses, to prevail on Pharaoh to let your people go. "

"I have wrought no miracle and used no eloquence, " was the reply. "But Ishowed our foes neither fear nor haughtiness. I joined their circle, butdid not spoil their entertainment. They questioned me, and I told themthe truth. I asked them for peace, and offered them a price that Ithought we were able to pay. "

"How high a price?" asked Aaron. 

"Sixteen oxen and twenty casks of plum brandy, " was the matter-of-factreply. 

"If my arm were only long enough, wouldn't I box your ears!" exclaimedAaron, by way of giving vent to his admiration. 

"They wished to do something of the sort to me up yonder, too, when theyheard my offer, " returned the other. "But then they reconsidered thematter, and at last came to see that it was a very fair proposal, andone that needed no lawyer or interpreter to make clear to them. They allunderstood it, and finally declared themselves satisfied. "

"But where did you get the two horses for our brothers?"

"I bought them, and I gave a price, too, such as is paid only for thebest English thoroughbreds; but half of the money was what I won fromthe sellers themselves last night. "

"So you have been playing cards with the Amorites, you godless man!"

"They held me prisoner till morning, while they took counsel togetherwhat to do with me and my two brothers. Some of them were for sendingour heads, minus our bodies, to Toroczko, with a demand to surrender thetown, else they would storm it and not leave one stone on another. Butthe upshot was that they led me out in the morning and told me my termsof peace were accepted. They abandon their plans against Toroczko, disperse to their homes, and promise henceforth to be our goodneighbours, as heretofore. "

"Did they swear to this?"

"Before the altar, and a priest administered the oath. "

"With two candles on the altar?"

"Yes. "

"Then they will keep their word. "

"And I, as plenipotentiary and envoy extraordinary, gave them a writtenand sealed pledge to restrain my people from all acts of hostilityagainst them. "

"That will cost you a hard fight when you get home. "

"But I shall win. The Wallachians will respect the peace, and we shallavoid all contention with them. Their leader, when he handed me ourpassport, said to me: 'You now have no further cause for uneasiness sofar as we are concerned. My comrades and I will do your countrymen nofurther harm. As to the supplies offered by you, we accept them as agift, not as a ransom. One parting word I have to add, however, and Ibid you mark it well: we cannot promise you that some day a renegadefrom your own midst may not plunge your town into war and bloodshed. 'With that we shook hands and kissed each other; and I can assure youpositively that from here to the Aranyos our way will be clear. "

"But how did you win them over so easily, I should like to know? Surely, the sixteen oxen and a few casks of brandy could not have done it. "

"I gained my end simply by telling the truth. I told them about oursetting the beech-tree on fire. They had taken it for a signal, and themistake might have cost them dear. "

"And did they believe you?"

"No, they doubted my word and discussed the matter a long time in theircouncil, one party being strongly opposed to any change in theirpreconcerted arrangements; and this faction pressed urgently for myimmediate execution. "

"What, then, was it that saved you?"

"A mere chance--no, it was Providence, rather. It was a heart that beatwith warm human feeling and a will that was prompt to act. In the midstof their discussion a messenger came from Ciprianu and confirmed thetruth of my words. "

"From Ciprianu? Then the messenger must have ridden all night. "

"Yes, through a trackless wilderness and over rugged mountains. "

"I do not see how mortal man could have accomplished it!" exclaimedAaron, shaking his head. 

"It was not a man; it was a woman that effected the impossible. She cameto Monastery Heights to attest the truth of my statement by assuring theinsurgents that what they took for a signal-fire was merely the resultof an accident. The woman who saved us three from death was Zenobia. "

At this point Blanka interrupted the conversation of the two brothers. She laughingly demanded to know what they were so earnestly discussingtogether. 

"We can't agree on what guests to invite to our wedding, " was Manasseh'sready reply. "Aaron would have only the immediate family, but I am infavour of inviting all our friends. What are your wishes in the matter, my angel?"

"I have no relatives or friends that I can invite to my wedding, "answered Blanka, gently, "but I shall feel very happy if all your familycan be present, even to your youngest brother, whom we met in Kolozsvar. You must send for him to come home. "

"He will be there, dear heart, " Aaron assured her. 

"And stay! I have a friend, after all, --a friend that I have made sincecoming into this country, and should much like to see at my wedding. Itis Zenobia, Ciprianu's daughter. "

 * * * * *

At sunset they reached the Aranyos River, beyond which lay thelonged-for home, the happy valley which, from Manasseh's description, had so often been the subject of Blanka's dreams. At last she was to seeToroczko. 

CHAPTER XVIII. 

TOROCZKO. 

It was a new world to Blanka, --that busy mining community, where cloudsof black smoke from the tall chimneys of the smelting works and ironfoundries met the eye in every direction, and the cheerful hum of toilconstantly saluted the ear. 

The Adorjan family gave the newcomer a most hearty welcome. With Anna, Manasseh's twin sister, the girl whom Benjamin Vajdar had so cruellywronged, Blanka felt already acquainted. They embraced without waitingfor an introduction, and when they drew back to scan each other's faces, they could hardly see for the tears that filled their eyes. Blanka wassurprised, and agreeably so. She had prepared herself to see a facestamped with the melancholy of early disappointment, whereas she nowbeheld a fresh, rosy-cheeked countenance, golden locks, and blue eyes inwhich no tears had been able to dim the dancing light of a lively andcheerful temperament. Other women there were also in thefamily, --Rebecca, Berthold's wife, and Susanna, the helpmate ofBarnabas, with a little circle of children around each. 

The home-coming of the long-absent brother with his betrothed wascelebrated, in accordance with time-honoured custom, with a great dinnerthat filled the spacious family dining-room to its utmost. Blanka couldnot sufficiently admire the skill and patience with which Susannadirected the feast and ministered to the varied wants and the individualtastes of so many guests. The eldest brother and his family werevegetarians and would touch no meat, but indulged freely in milk andeggs, butter and cheese. With them sat Doctor Vernezs, who was evenstricter in his vegetarianism; the sole contribution from the animalkingdom that he allowed in his diet was honey. Brother Aaron sat besideBlanka, and partook freely of a dish of garlic that had been providedespecially for him. He offered some to Blanka. 

"I can eat this all my life, " said he, with a roguish twinkle in hiseyes, "but you only eleven weeks longer. "

She understood the allusion. In Szeklerland a lover and his sweetheartbear themselves with much decorum and mutual respect throughout theentire period of their engagement. Only after the wedding do theyexchange the first kiss. 

Anna wished to come to her new friend's aid at this embarrassingjuncture. "It won't be so long as that, Aaron!" she exclaimed. 

"Let us reckon it up, my little turtledove, " returned the brother. "To-morrow we will tell the parson that our sister Blanka wishes to joinour communion. The law requires her to wait two weeks after this firstannouncement and then to go and declare her purpose a second time. Afterthat follow six weeks for the divorce proceedings. That makes eightweeks. Then the banns have to be published three successive Sundays, andso we make out the eleven weeks, as I said. For seventy-seven days andnights, then, our peach-blossom will be your companion, sister Anna. "

Anna and Blanka embraced each other with much affection. The lattershowed no embarrassment at Aaron's plain speech. 

"I will add five days to the seventy-seven, " said she, with a smile. 

"How so?" asked the brother and sister. 

"Because I shall not go to the parson to-morrow, but shall wait untilafter Sunday. I am going to your church on that day, and till then Ican't tell whether I wish to belong to it or not. "

This prudent resolve met with Aaron's hearty approbation. 

 * * * * *

It was not long before Anna and Blanka became the warmest of friends. They shared the same room together, and the newcomer was allowed to lookover all her companion's books, drawings, --for she, like her twinbrother, was an artist, --keepsakes, and treasures of every sort. One dayshe came upon something that made her start back as if stung by anadder. It was a little portrait in an oval frame, a man's face, highlyidealised by the artist, and yet strikingly true to life. Evidently thehand of love had depicted those lineaments. The eyes were bright, thelips wore a proud smile, the whole expression was one to charm thebeholder. It was Benjamin Vajdar's likeness, and no ghost could havegiven Blanka a greater start. It was as if her most hated foe hadpursued her into paradise itself, to spoil her pleasure there. 

Anna noticed her friend's involuntary movement, and she sighed deeply. "Did Manasseh tell you about him?" she asked. 

"I know him well, " replied Blanka, and she could not control an accentof abhorrence in her voice as she spoke. 

Anna clasped her companion's hand in both her own. "I beg you, " sheentreated, in tones at once sad and tender, "if you know aught ill ofhim, do not tell it me. "

"You still love him?" asked the other, in compassion. 

The young girl sank down on the edge of her bed and hid her face in herhands. "He has killed me, " she sobbed; "he has done much that a man, anhonourable man, ought not to do; and yet I cannot hate him. We may say, 'I loved you yesterday, to-morrow I shall hate you, ' and we may act asif we meant it; but we cannot really _feel_ it. "

"My poor Anna!" was all Blanka could say. 

"I know he is dishonourable, " admitted the girl; "there are women herethat report everything to me, thinking thus to cure me. But what does itavail? A sick person is not to be made well with words. How many a womanhas waited for the return of an absent lover who may perhaps have gonearound the world, or to the north pole, and who yet cannot get beyondthe reach of her love and yearning!"

"If it were only the earth's diameter that lay between you!" murmuredBlanka. 

"True, " replied Anna, resting her head on her hand; "the wide world isnot so effective a barrier as a bewitching face that has once thrustitself between two loving hearts. That is harder to circumnavigate thanthe earth itself. "

"If a pretty face were all that stood between you----" began the otheronce more, sitting down beside her friend and putting her arms abouther. 

"Yes, yes, I know, " the poor girl interrupted; "the whole world andheaven and hell stand between us. All the laws of honour, of faith, andof patriotism, tear us asunder. I cannot go to him where he is, but yetit may be that he will come back to me--some day. "

"Do you think so?"

"I believe it as I believe in one God above us. Not that I think wecould now ever be happy together; but I am convinced that the road whichhe took on going away from here will some day bring him back again toour door. Broken and humbled, scorned and repulsed by all the world, hewill then seek the one remaining asylum that stands open to him, and hewill find one heart that still beats for him from whom all others haveturned away. "

The speaker rose from her seat and stood erect, her face all aglow withnoble emotion. Was it an angel in love with a devil?

"See!" she continued, pointing to the little portrait, which wasencircled by a wreath of immortelles, "this picture here in my roomgives daily proof how lasting a thing love is in our family. My brothersall hate him with a deadly hatred, and yet they spare his likenessbecause they know that I still love him; they leave the little picturehanging in my room, nor offer to offend me by proposing another marriagefor me. They know how deep is my love, and they respect my feelings. Oh, I beg you, if you have reason to hate this man, yet suffer his portraitto keep its place, and turn your eyes away from it if it causes youoffence. "

But Blanka hated the man no longer. 

"Now I must not let you see me in tears, " said Anna, briskly. "I mustnot make myself a killjoy in the family. I am naturally of a happy, cheerful temperament, and interested in all that goes on around me. Myface shall never frighten people by being pale and wobegone. Just lookin the glass! I am as rosy-cheeked as you. "

With that she drew Blanka to the mirror, and began to dispute with heras to which could boast the more colour. 

"You are happy, " she continued, "and will be still happier. Manassehwill turn the earth itself into a paradise for you; just wait till youknow him as I do, to the very bottom of his heart. "

Blanka could not but smile at the sister's proud claim. Yet Anna was inearnest. 

"Perhaps you don't believe me, " said she. "Have you ever seen him inanger, with an enemy before him?"

"Yes. "

"How did he look?"

"On his forehead were two red spots. "

"Yes, and further?"

"His eyes glowed, his face seemed turned to stone, his bosom heaved, andhe strove with himself until gradually he recovered his self-control;then his features relaxed, he smiled, and presently he spoke as coollyand collectedly as possible. "

"Then you have never seen him really aroused, " affirmed the sister, "asI saw him once, when with one hand he seized a strong man who hadwronged him, and threw him down with such force that all his family hadto hasten to help him up. When he speaks in wrath he can strike terrorinto a multitude, and he is such a master of all weapons of warfare thatno one can vie with him. Now, then, have you ever really learned to knowhim?"

"Indeed, I think not, " returned Blanka, in surprise. 

"And hear me further, " Anna went on. "When our house witnessed the sadevent that spread a widow's veil over my bridal wreath, our whole familywas terribly wrought up. My brothers swore to kill the man wherever theyfound him, --all but Manasseh. Nor did I seek to allay their wrath, knowing but too well that it was justified. But I also knew that theywould never go forth into the world to hunt him down. To the people ofToroczko it is an immense undertaking to go even beyond the borders ofTransylvania, and, as a general rule, no power on earth could drag oneof them to Vienna or Rome. But Manasseh, I knew, must meet with thefugitive, as the two were to be dwellers in the same city and members ofthe same social circle. Manasseh, however, said not a word, and it wason him that I used all my influence. Still wearing my wedding-dress, Iwent to his room, where he was preparing for his journey. It happenedthat he was just putting a brace of pistols into their case; one of themhe still held in his hand. I went up to him, threw myself on his bosom, and appealed to him. 'Manasseh, ' I pleaded, 'my heart's treasure, unlessyou wish to kill me too, promise not to kill that man, --not to send hiswretched soul out of this world. ' Manasseh looked at me: his eyesglowed, as you have described, and two red spots burned on his forehead;his face turned hard, like that of a statue, and while he panted andstruggled with the demon in his bosom, the pistol-barrel bent in hisclenched hands like a wax taper, and so remained. I was wonder-struck. 'See!' I cried, 'you cannot shoot now any more with that pistol. So lethim go; don't lay a finger on him. ' Then my brother embraced and kissedme, and, lifting his hand to heaven, said, 'I promise you, sister Anna, that for your sake I will not kill the man, but will let him live. '"

How her lover's image grew in Blanka's heart and assumed largerproportions as she listened to this recital! The twin sister was thebrother's complement. It was necessary to know the nature of the one inorder to understand that of the other. Hitherto Manasseh's self-controlin foregoing all revenge had excited Blanka's wonder only; she hadthought that the secret of this self-mastery was to be found in a rigiddogma only, but now she perceived that what really shielded thewretched culprit was the magic influence of a woman's faithful heartthat could cease to love only when it ceased to beat. The pledge wonfrom him by his sister Manasseh had come to regard as no less sacredthan the articles of his faith. Thenceforth he commanded not merely thelove of his betrothed, but her adoration. 

 * * * * *

Blanka soon found herself leading a life that differed in every respectfrom that which she had so recently quitted. In the Cagliari palace shehad been left entirely to herself, and when she went abroad it had beenonly to witness scenes of intrigue and envy, dissipation and frivolity, hypocrisy and deceit, on every side. But in her new home she found alarge family of honest souls living in loving harmony under one roof, all its members engaged in active work for the common good, and sharingat a common table the bread that they earned. Every joy, every sorrowwas common to all, and so the newcomer was at once claimed as a sisterby all alike, and immediately became a universal favourite. Work wasfound for her, too, every one assuming that she would far rather workthan be idle; and, indeed, she would gladly have engaged in any toil, however severe, but the others would not let her overtax her strength inlabours for which they were much better fitted than she. A task wasfound for her, however, exactly suited to her capacity, --the keeping ofthe family accounts. She received a big book, in which she entered thecurrent expenses and receipts, with all the details of the familyhousekeeping that called for preservation. 

After the working days of the week came Sunday, the Lord's day. HowBlanka had looked forward to that first Sunday, how often pictured toherself the Toroczko church and its Sabbath service! It was a simplestructure, with four blank white walls, and a plain white ceilingoverhead. A gallery ran across each end of the room, and in the middlestood the pulpit, with the communion table before it. Men and women, youths and maidens, entered the sacred house through special doors. First came the young men and took their places in the galleries, thestudents all gathering in a body on the same side as the organ. Nextentered the married men in the order of their age, the wardens--or, asthey were popularly known, the "big-heads"--taking their seats in thefirst pew facing the pulpit. On the left of the pulpit were seated theforemost families of the place, with the Adorjans at their head. 

For the first time Blanka now saw the people assembled in their holidayattire, a costume peculiar to the place, and showing a mixture ofHungarian and German dress. The men wore black dolmans faced with lamb'sfleece, and further decorated with rows of carnelian and amethystbuttons, the setting of the stones being silver. Under the dolman wasworn a waistcoat of fine leather embroidered with threads of silk andgold, and around the waist was girt a belt, as broad as one's hand, ofred leather handsomely trimmed with strips of many-coloured skins. Tocomplete this imposing outfit, there was thrown over one shoulder ahandsome cloak richly embroidered with piping-cord, and furnished with ahigh collar made from the fur of the fox. A large silver brooch held themantle together at the breast, while six rows of silver clasps adornedit on each side. The whole costume was luxurious in its appointments, and yet no one would presume to find fault with it on that score. Thewearer had earned his adornment with the work of his hands. 

As soon as the men were seated, the women entered. A Parisian modistewould have been put to the blush by the ingenuity of design displayed bythese countrywomen's costumes. The dazzlingly white linen, the tastefulcombination of lace, embroidery, and furbelows, the handsome bodice andwoven belt, the richly trimmed cloaks, the skirts hanging in many folds, the silk pinafores, the black lace caps set off by white veils disposedin picturesque puffs and creases, --all betrayed a wealth of fancy andnicety of taste on the wearer's part that would be hard to match. 

After the matrons were seated, the maidens came in through the fourthand last door, entering now in pairs, now singly, and sat down on thetwo sides of the house, behind the married women. Finally the childrenwere admitted, --a splendid phalanx, a company of angels of the Murilloand Bernini type. 

The pride of the Toroczko church is its people. The churches of Romeboast many a masterpiece of early Italian art on their walls, but theirworshippers are ragged and dirty. The walls of the Toroczko temple arebare, but the faces of its congregation beam with happiness. No works ofsculpture, resplendent with gold and silver and precious stones, are tobe seen there. The people themselves are arrayed in costly stuffs andfurnish the adornment of the house. 

After a simple opening prayer, the pastor ascended the pulpit andaddressed his flock, in words intelligible to all, on such themes aspatriotism, man's duty to his fellow-man, the blessings of toil, therecompense of good deeds in the doer's own bosom, and God's infinitemercy toward his children. In his prayer the preacher referred to Jesusas the beloved Son of God, the model for mankind to follow, but he didnot deny salvation and paradise to those that chose other leaders fortheir guidance. 

After the service Blanka asked Aaron and Berthold to go with her to thepreacher as witnesses while she announced her purpose to join thechurch. After making this declaration in due form, she was reminded thatshe had two weeks in which to consider the matter carefully, at the endof which, if she was still of the same mind, she was to come back againand renew her declaration. 

"Two weeks longer, " sighed Blanka, "and then six weeks more for thedivorce!"

Aaron heard her sigh, and hastened to say: "If we make a special effortwe can shorten this period. Our law directs that an applicant for adivorce must either be a resident of, or own an estate in, Transylvania. Therefore, if you could acquire a piece of land here, we should onlyhave to wait for the consistory to assemble and ratify the divorcealready granted by the Roman Curia, with the added permission to marryagain. That done, nothing further remains to hinder the marriage. So youmust manage to buy a house-lot or something of the sort in Toroczko. "

"Have I money enough, do you think, to purchase an iron mine?"

"What, do you really propose to buy one?"

"Yes, --as my dowry to bring to Manasseh. He said he wished to begin anew career and turn miner. "

"Very well, then, we'll buy a mine and call it by your name, and itcan't fail to turn out a diamond mine. "

The purchase was made on that very day, and in the evening the transferof the property was solemnised with a banquet. It will be noted herethat there is a great difference between the Hungarian Unitarians andthe English Puritans. The strict observance of Sunday by the latterpresents a marked contrast to the joy and freedom with which the day iscelebrated by the former. The people of Toroczko gather in the eveningfor social intercourse, and even join in the pleasures of the dance, tothe music of a gipsy orchestra, until the ringing of the vesper bell. Taverns and pot-houses are unknown in the village. 

CHAPTER XIX. 

A MIDNIGHT COUNCIL. 

While blood was being shed on the banks of the Theiss, on the slopes ofthe Carpathians, and in the mountains of Transylvania, life at theAustrian capital went on much as usual. A grand ball given by theMarchioness Caldariva made its due claim on the attention of thefashionable world. After the last note of the orchestra had died awayand the last guest had departed, Prince Cagliari led the fair hostess toher boudoir. 

"How did it please you?" asked the prince, referring to the evening'sentertainment. 

"Not at all, " replied the other, throwing her bracelets and fan down onthe table. "Didn't you notice that not one member of the court circlewas present? They all sent regrets. "

"But the court is in mourning now, you know, " was Cagliari's soothingreminder. 

"And I am in mourning, too, " returned Rozina, in a passion. "How longmust I submit to this humiliation?" she demanded, compressing her lipsand darting a wrathful look at her devoted slave. 

"I swear to you, " replied the latter, vehemently, "as soon as I get wordof my divorced wife's death, our engagement shall be announced. "

"And how long is that woman to live?" demanded the angry beauty, in atone that startled the listener. 

"As long as God wills, " was all he could say in reply. 

The fair Cyrene drew nearer and laid her cheek caressingly against hisshoulder. "Do you know where your wife is now?" she asked softly, andwhen the other shook his head, she went on: "You see, I don't lose sightof her so easily. As for you, you could only shut her up in Rome andleave her there; but I knew how to go to work to rid ourselves of thisobstruction. The dogs of Jezebel were howling under her very windows, when there came a man blundering on to the scene and spoiledeverything, --a man who is a man, who is more than a prince, a man fromtop to toe, in short, who carried off the woman from Rome. I hoped theywould take flight to some foreign land, whence we might have obtained anofficial announcement of her death. Of course it might not have beentrue, but the fugitives would have changed their names, in allprobability, and an official certificate would have answered ourpurpose. Did you receive Blanka's letter, --the one she wrote you fromTrieste in November?"

"No, " replied the prince, much astonished at what he had just heard;"and I recently sent to her, by Vajdar, her allowance of fifteenthousand scudi for the current quarter. "

"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the marchioness, "a most affectionate and devotedfoster-son you have there! Your letters pass through his hands and are, according to your directions, opened by him. As to this last letter ofBlanka's, however, he must have forgotten to deliver it, and he countshimself blameless if a remittance of fifteen thousand scudi, directed toa person whose address cannot be found, goes astray. Really he has agenius for roguery. But you needn't get angry with him. The money hasnot gone out of the family: he spent it on diamonds for me. I learnedall about that letter, too, a month ago. "

"And may I inquire what the princess wrote me?"

"She begs leave to discontinue the enjoyment of your bounty, andannounces her intention of marrying again; and to that end she declaresher purpose of embracing the religion of her betrothed. "

"The most pleasing result of which will be the saving to me of sixtythousand scudi a year, which I will henceforth bestow on you. " Thespeaker laid a caressing hand on the woman's shoulder. 

"Don't touch me, sir!" cried the marchioness, drawing back. "If onewoman has had the spirit to say to you, 'There is your coronet and yourgold; pick them up. I need them no longer, for I am going to marry a_man_, who shall be my lord and king, '--why, you may find that anotherwoman can do the same. "

"But what would you have me do?" asked the other, helplessly; "followBlanka Zboroy's example and turn Protestant with you, so that we mightmarry each other?"

"Really, I have a good mind to say yes. What you propose in jest, sinfulas it is, may be more to your liking than what I have to suggest. "

"You have a plan, Rozina?"

"Yes. Before our loving couple can gain their end they must first reachToroczko. There, high up in the mountains, lies the dove-cote where theyhope to do their billing and cooing. But the surrounding woods are atpresent full of birds of prey, and--"

"Do you dare to think of such a thing?" interrupted the prince, with astart. The old _roué_ had a dread of ghosts by night; he was full of allsorts of superstitions; he disliked to have a beautiful woman allude tocertain unpleasant themes in his presence. 

"I am only letting my fancy play a little, " replied the marchioness, "but perhaps what I have in mind may come to pass. If not, then will bethe time for action. "

She fetched from her bookcase a military map of Transylvania. It gave inminute detail the mountains, hills, valleys, rivers, towns, and villagesof the country. 

"Here in this valley, " she resumed, pointing with her finger, "liesToroczko, and these positions that I have marked are held by theWallachian insurgents. Have you heard about their doings?"

"Yes, frightful accounts. "

"Well, then, what if our runaway couple should stumble upon the scene ofsome of these horrid deeds? Possibly your wife is even now lying in thebed of one of these mountain streams. "

"Horrible!"

"Horrible only if it were really so and we had no proof of it. But Ihave guarded against that. The war office receives detailed reports ofall that is going on in Transylvania, and a transcript of those reportsis furnished me. "

She produced a roll of manuscript and read a line or two, laughing asshe did so. She might have been reading Sanskrit, for all the princecould understand of it. Then she nestled softly at her listener's sideand began to stroke his chin with one velvet finger. 

"If you wish to make me very happy--to make us both very happy, " shemurmured, "bring me from the war office the key to this mysteriousmanuscript. Then we will sit down and decipher it together; and if itcontains the name I am so anxious to hear, you shall see how a lionesscan kiss her tamer's feet. "

The prince listened in silence. What effect her words were producing inhis bosom, she could only conjecture. She threw herself back on her sofawith a smile on her face. 

"What do you say?" she asked. "It is not yet too late to find some oneat the war office to do your bidding. Indeed, the hour is well suitedfor a confidential mission of that sort. And when you come back, if youfind me asleep, just whisper in my ear, 'News from Transylvania!'--and Iwill wake up at once. So good-bye for the present. I shall expect youback again soon. "

Prince Cagliari took leave of the enchantress and made his way to thecarriage that awaited him below. Entering it, he gave a direction to hiscoachman, and the carriage rolled rapidly down the street. 

Soon after the fair Cyrene--or Rozina, to call her by her realname--found herself alone, the tall clock in her boudoir struck ten, although the hour was nearer two. She rose at once, and taking a littlekey from her bosom, unlocked and opened the door of the old-fashionedtimepiece. But instead of hanging weights and a swinging pendulum, theopening revealed another open door beyond, through which stepped ayoung man, --Benjamin Vajdar. 

"So you've come at last?" the marchioness exclaimed. 

"Yes, and I have the key to the cipher despatches, too!"

All smiles and caresses, the siren led her visitor to the table on whichlay the mysterious correspondence. But before the two begin theirclandestine work, let us say a few words concerning the relationsbetween them. 

Months before, at a court ball to which Prince Cagliari's influence hadprocured the Marchioness Caldariva a much-coveted invitation, BenjaminVajdar, who then occupied a subordinate government position, was alsopresent. Struck with the beauty of the marchioness, he sought anintroduction, and, to make a long story short, was soon enrolled amongher willing slaves. Not long after this first meeting he threw up hismodest position and became Prince Cagliari's private secretary. A dayhad already been set for his marriage with Anna Adorjan, but he had thehardihood to write and beg to be released from the engagement. He didnot, however, think it necessary to announce in his letter that he hadchanged his religion and turned Roman Catholic. 

A desire to shine in society, meanwhile, and the difficulty of doing soon a small salary, had led him to employ dishonest and criminal meansfor replenishing his purse. He had raised money on his friend Manasseh'sforged signature. After entering the prince's service and findinghimself amply supplied with means, he went to his broker to redeem thefalse note, but, to his consternation, was informed by the money-lenderthat, in a moment of financial embarrassment, although the note was notyet due he had presented it to Manasseh, who had promptly discounted it. Benjamin Vajdar felt capable of murdering the broker. A noose now seemedplaced around his neck, and the end of the rope was held by the manwhose sister he had just wronged so shamefully. 

The new secretary's appearance in the prince's household served tohasten the impending outbreak between the recently married couple. Oneafternoon Blanka left the house and fled to a friend of hers in Hungary, whence her petition for a divorce soon led her, her friend, and herlawyer, as we have already seen, to Rome. The decree which was in duetime issued from the Vatican, that, so long as his divorced wife lived, the prince might not marry again, was a serious check upon certain petschemes cherished by the Marchioness Caldariva. 

 * * * * *

To return to the latter's boudoir, where she and her willing tool werebending over the cipher despatches, after long and fruitless search theycame upon a name familiar to them both, --Adorjan. It appeared that acertain Adorjan of Toroczko had gone out to parley with the insurgentforces then besieging the town, and they had seized him and held himprisoner. A second Adorjan had followed to ransom his brother, but hetoo was detained. Finally there came a third brother, --Manasseh. 

"Ah, at last!" cried the marchioness, eagerly. 

It appeared that this third Adorjan was on his way home from Italy, andwas accompanied by his fiancée, whom he left in care of his brotherAaron while he himself sought the insurgents' camp. He too was seizedand imprisoned, and preparations were made for the execution of thethree brothers; but in the morning, by some means or other, he succeededin persuading his captors to release all three of their prisoners and togive the whole party, including the young lady, Princess Blanka Zboroy, a safe-conduct to Toroczko, while the insurgents themselves dispersed totheir homes. 

"But go on!" urged Rozina; "what occurred after that in Toroczko?"

"Nothing further is said about Toroczko, " answered the other. 

"Have you no spies there?" demanded the marchioness. 

"No, there are no informers in Toroczko. There was one, but you havemade him your slave. "

"And you can sit there so calm and cool!" cried the woman, in a passion. "Just think, there is a man in that town in whose hand your good nameand your freedom lie. If he but takes a fancy, he can drag you in themud. You can count on no happiness, no security, without his consent. Remember, too, there is a woman with him who has smitten you in the faceand made you recoil, who is perhaps even now laughing at you, who is theobject of my deadly hatred, and during whose lifetime the door is closedto me into the world I wish to enter. So long as that woman lives thesun does not shine for me: I can show my face only at night. And can yousit there while those two are happy in each other's embraces? Oh, coward! How long are you going to let them live?"

Benjamin Vajdar did not venture to open his mouth. The marchioness drewa key from her bosom and held it before him. "Do you see that?" shewhispered, while for an instant a smile lighted up her face. "This keybelongs to the man who first brings me word of that woman's death. " Sosaying, she kissed the little key and held it to the other's lips tokiss also. "What do you say?"

"I am wont only to think and to act, not to promise, " was his reply. 

"Very well. _Au revoir!_"

The marchioness pulled her bell-cord three times for her maid, --a signalfor her visitor to retire. He hastened to the secret door, accordingly, and disappeared. Calling a cab, he ordered the driver to take him to theCafé de l'Europe. The head waiter told him, in answer to his inquiries, that Prince Cagliari was there also, --was, in fact, taking supper withtwo ladies in a private room. The secretary asked to be shown thither. 

"I knew you would turn up here before the night was over, " cried theprince, with a laugh, as the young man entered. "I had a cover laid foryou. "

The two young women were costumed as _fleurs animées_, --the one as aviolet, the other as a tulip. The remains of a generous meal were on thetable. The newcomer held out his glass to the tulip and begged her topour him some champagne. 

"One moment!" interrupted the prince. "First let me ask a question. Howmuch have you left of my wife's quarterly allowance that I sent her byyou?"

"That is exactly what I was going to speak to you about, " returned theyoung man. "I have to ask you for the next quarter's allowance also. "

"Indeed! And must you have it immediately?"

"If you please. "

"But haven't you already learned, from her letter which she wrote me inNovember, that she is about to change her religion and marry again, andthat consequently she declines all further assistance from me? Didn'tthis letter come into your hands?"

Benjamin Vajdar shrugged his shoulders and calmly proceeded to squeezelemon-juice on his oysters. "I assumed without question, " he rejoined, "that a man of Prince Cagliari's chivalrous nature would merely reply tothis letter: 'It is a matter of indifference to me how the princessorders her life; but so long as she bears my name she must not be forcedto go on foot and soil her shoes. '"

"Bravo!" cried the prince. "And you would have me give her a dower forher second marriage, would you, and a quarter's allowance into thebargain?"

"Let us not discuss that at present, " returned the other, "it would onlyspoil our evening. Time enough for serious matters to-morrow. "

"But I wish to discuss it now. "

"Very well. The truth of the matter is, the beautiful Princess Blanka isat this moment lying dead in the mountains of Transylvania. "

The prince recoiled. "Young man, I forbid you to indulge in suchill-chosen jests. "

Benjamin rose and made a low bow. "Such a lack of respect as a jest ofthat sort to my master and benefactor is an utter impossibility. "

"Well, then, sit down, and let us have no play-acting. Where do you saythis thing occurred?"

"Somewhere on the highway between Nagy-Enyed and Felvincz. She is lyingthere in the snow, transfixed with an insurgent's lance. " The speakertherewith proceeded to relate several episodes in the bloody drama thenenacting in Transylvania. 

"But why are you so sure that the princess is one of the victims?" askedthe listener. 

"The names are all recorded, " was the answer. "The first thing, therefore, for Prince Cagliari to do is to order the recovery of hiswife's body, that it may receive proper interment in his family vault. If you wish to convince yourself of the truth of my statements, I willgive you the key to the cipher despatches. The despatches themselves youwill find in a place that is always open to you. Go and read foryourself. "

"No, no, " cried the prince, "I will not look at the papers. What youhave said is enough for me. "

"Very well, " rejoined the secretary, quietly. "Then I will go and makeready to start at once for Transylvania. I am determined to find andbring back to you the remains of the Princess Blanka. It is a grim task, and calls for a heart of iron. "

"And a purse of gold, " added the other. "Here is my pocketbook to beginwith, and I will open an account for you with a Czernovicz banker. "

What was most important of all, the smooth-tongued secretary hadentirely omitted, --namely, that the subject of his ingenious story wasat that moment alive and well, and waiting to see the sun rise over theToroczko hills. 

After the prince had somewhat recovered from the effect produced uponhim by Benjamin Vajdar's announcement, he gave himself up to therapturous thought that now at last he could carry word to Rozina of hiswife's death. He sought her presence without delay. 

The marchioness, cosily ensconced on her sofa, was either asleep, orfeigned to be, when Cagliari entered and whispered in her ear:

"Rozina, my wife is dead!"

Her eyes opened and a quick flush of pleasure overspread her face. "How?When? Where?" she asked eagerly. 

"At Nagy-Enyed--killed by the insurgents. "

"Nonsense!" cried the marchioness. "Who told you so?"

"My private secretary, your favourite, Benjamin Vajdar. He has just readit in the despatches received at the war office. "

The listener's eyes flashed with scorn. 

"I am telling you the truth, " asserted the other, vehemently. "I giveyou my word of honour, it is as I say. I have this moment given Vajdarmy purse and despatched him to Transylvania to bring the poor woman'sbody back to Vienna. " The prince seated himself in an armchair oppositethe marchioness, and continued: "I am even more eager than you to seeher laid to rest in my family vault. My motives are deeper and strongerthan yours. You have been longing for Blanka Zboroy's death because herexistence meant humiliation to you. This thought has brought unrest toyour pillow, but a legion of demons chases sleep from mine. Shall aCagliari suffer any living woman to drag his name in the mire before allthe world--to laugh to scorn the decree of the Roman Curia--to scratchout his name after her own and replace it with that of a Szeklerpeasant? That may be allowed to pass among common people, but thedescendants of the Ferraras will find a way, or make one, to preventsuch a scandal. It has become a necessity in my eyes that _she_ shouldnot walk the same planet with me. "

The marchioness was listening by this time with wide eyes, flushedcheeks, and parted lips. 

"Of late I have suffered heavy losses, " the speaker continued. "Formerlymy income amounted to a million and a half; now it is barely half amillion. My estates in the Romagna have been confiscated, my serfs inHungary freed, and I have lost frightful sums by my investments. I knowmany a poor devil has been forced to wont himself to rags and poverty, but for one who has been a leader among men to debase himself and dragout a miserable existence in obscurity--never! Shall I, forsooth, suspend the erection of the votive church which I began at the seat ofmy ancestors twelve years ago? Or shall I, discarding the masterpiecesof a Thorwaldsen, embellish the sacred edifice with the rude productionsof a stone-cutter? Would you have me say to the woman I adore, 'My dear, hitherto we have lived in two palaces; henceforth we must be contentwith one'? But most impossible of all would it be to confess mypecuniary embarrassments to my banker and my major-domo, and to directthem to cut down my future expenditures by a third, to sell mypicture-gallery, my museum, and two-thirds of my collection of diamonds. No, no! What I am now telling you has never passed my lips before, norever will again; for I know how to apply the remedy, and I will notsubmit to humiliation, even though it should cost human blood to preventit. "

The speaker bent forward and went on in a more guarded tone:

"Now as to the woman of whom we were speaking. When her brothers gaveher to me in marriage, we entered into a contract which stipulated thatthe property of the one who died first should go to the survivor. Shewas young, I was old; the advantage was all on her side. Our divorce hasnot annulled this contract. If Blanka Zboroy dies, her brothers mustdeliver her property over to me. "

"But her fortune is only a million. "

"Don't you believe it. To be sure, her brothers paid her the interest ononly a million, but her property really amounts to five times that sum. My part thus far has been simply to await the turn of events. In Rome, as it appears, this woman's fate hung by a thread; but all at once shetook the insane notion of marrying again. However, that does notinvalidate the contract between us, as the Roman Curia, though itgranted her a divorce, did so on terms that will make it impossible torecognise her marriage with a Protestant. When death overtakes her, itwill be as the Princess Cagliari that she leaves this world. One thingwe must remember, however: the Protestant Church will require her torenounce her former faith in order to render her separation from herfirst husband valid. Yet, if she does this she will forfeit all claim toher property, which, by the testator's will, can descend only to RomanCatholic heirs. "

With both hands Rozina drew the prince's head down and whispered in hisear:

"She must die before this second marriage takes place. "

"I shall not meddle with destiny, " returned the prince, straightening upagain. "I shall be satisfied and ask no questions if Vajdar brings backa leaden casket containing the unhappy woman's remains. I shall renderher the last honours with princely pomp, and shall then give orders topursue and punish the insurgents who were responsible for her death. "

Rozina burst out laughing. It is always too irresistibly funny to seethe devil trying to wash himself clean. Even Cagliari himself was forcedto smile. 

"Yes, " said he, "that is a joke we may laugh at, if you like. But nowhear what I have to say further. If Blanka Zboroy renounces the faith ofher fathers and marries again, it will not suffice for her only to die. The man she marries must die also, the parson who joined their hands atthe altar, the witnesses of the ceremony, the whole family that receivedher in its midst, the schoolchildren that sang the bridal hymn, theguests who sat around the wedding-table, the people who looked out oftheir windows and saw the bridal procession pass, --yes, the whole townwhere this marriage took place must be destroyed, and I have it in mypower to accomplish this. Now are you satisfied?"

CHAPTER XX. 

MIRTH AND MOURNING. 

Meanwhile preparations were going forward in Toroczko for theapproaching nuptials. All preliminaries had been duly attended to, Blanka had joined the Unitarian Church, and nothing now stood in the wayof her marriage to Manasseh. 

In the courtyard to the rear of the Adorjan family mansion stood alittle house, containing two rooms and a kitchen, which Aaron secretlyfitted up in genuine Toroczko style, with carved hard-wood furniture, arow of pegs running around the wall and hung with a fine array of glazedearthenware mugs, and an old-fashioned dresser filled with pottery and adazzling display of bright new tinware. In the sleeping-room bedclothes, canopy, and curtain were embroidered by peasant maidens. This littlehouse was not to be shown to Blanka until her wedding day. 

During these preparations Aaron climbed the Szekler Stone every eveningand surveyed the horizon in search of any beacons blazing on thesurrounding hills. "If only no mishap befalls, to spoil everything!" hewould murmur to himself as he came down again. 

On the Sunday when the banns are published for the last time it iscustomary for all the friends of the young couple--and there is sure tobe a whole army of them--to assemble at the bridegroom's house, which inthe present instance was also the bride's. The banquet on this occasionis not furnished by the bridal pair: it is a farewell supper given bythe guests of the bride and groom, each of the company contributing aroasted fowl and a cake. The groom merely supplies the wine, but notgratis, as all pay for what they drink, and the sum thus collected goesinto the village school fund. 

On Monday morning the wedding festivities begin in earnest. At an earlyhour people are awakened by the firing of cannon, after which young menmount their horses and gallop hither and thither, and two others, accompanied by trumpeters, go forth to invite the village folk to thewedding and to bear the bridal gifts through the street. Then thenuptial procession moves, amid the glad ringing of bells, from the houseof the bride to the church. The old men head the line, the young mencome next, and the women follow, while the bridegroom with his escort, and the bride with her bridesmaids, are given a place in the middle ofthe procession. On coming out of the church, the newly married pairreceive a shower of flowers from the hands of the maidens gathered atthe door. But the ceremonies at the church by no means end the weddingfestival. What follows is peculiarly characteristic and important. Firstthe young men bearing the bridal cake run a race from the church to thebridegroom's house, the victor winning a silk neckerchief embroidered bythe bride. Then comes the rhymed dialogue, in which the representativesof the bride and of the groom chaffer with each other over the bride, but always with the result that the bridegroom's deputy gets the betterof his opponent--yet only after the bridegroom himself has promised tobe father and brother to his young wife, and to cherish her as the appleof his eye. Thereupon the maidens form a ring around the bride, singsongs to her to conquer her bashfulness, and so induce her to yield herhand to the bridegroom. After this the bridesmaids escort her to her newhome--which in this case was represented by the little house that Aaronhad secretly furnished for her. Neither Blanka nor Manasseh had evensuspected what he was about. 

Blanka found herself in the paradise of her dreams, and when herattendants had placed a gold-embroidered cap on her head, and she cameforth again into the courtyard, --which was now crowded with eagerfriends, --her hand in that of the man whose wife and queen she wasthenceforth to be, it seemed to her that the happiness of heaven itselfwas her portion. 

Five hundred guests partook of the wedding feast. Food and drink wereprovided in plenty, and every heart was filled to overflowing with thejoy of the occasion. And yet, to Blanka herself, something was stilllacking. "If Jonathan and Zenobia were only here!" she could not but sayto herself, and her happiness was not quite complete without them. 

Toward evening Aaron himself began to feel uneasy at theirnon-appearance. He had nearly exhausted his ingenuity in quietingBlanka's anxiety. Finally he played his last card. 

"Now, my angel, " said he, "you remember I promised you I would dance theSzekler dance at your wedding. Have the goodness to pay attention, andyou will see something that is not to be seen every day. "

The Szekler dance resembles no other terpsichorean exercise, nor is itby any means easy of execution. It calls for sinews of steel and greatsuppleness of limb. To make it still more difficult, the performer isobliged to provide his own music by singing a merry popular ballad whilehe dances. He throws himself first on one leg, then on the other, bending his knee and sinking nearly to the floor, while he extends theother leg straight before him, raises one hand above his head, and reststhe other on his hip. His heels must never touch the floor, nor may he, while bobbing thus comically up and down and trolling his lively ditty, suffer his face to relax from that expression of sober and dignifiedearnestness which marks the true Szekler. It is a dance and a display ofgreat physical strength and endurance at the same time. 

While Aaron's performance was still in progress, his brother Alexanderbroke through the circle of spectators and whispered something in hisear, whereupon the dancer immediately ceased his exhibition with thecry, "They have come!"

With an exclamation of joy Blanka sprang up from her seat. She wished tobe the first to welcome the long-awaited pair. 

"Sister-in-law, " cried Alexander, "don't go out! Don't let her go out!"

But it was too late. Two horses stood before the door, and on one ofthem sat Zenobia. Blanka ran to her and took her hand. 

"Have you come at last?" she exclaimed. "Oh, how long we've been lookingfor you! Let me help you down. "

Zenobia, however, sat silent and made no move to dismount. 

"Where is Jonathan?" asked Blanka. 

"There he is. " Zenobia pointed to the other horse, on whose back wasbound a swathed form--a corpse. 

"Jonathan!" cried Blanka, wildly. 

"Your brother killed my father, " Zenobia continued in a monotone, "andmy brothers killed your brother; and so it will go on now for nobodyknows how long. "

Blanka was stricken speechless with horror, but Anna, who followed her, broke out in lamentations, until a strong hand was laid on her frombehind and Aaron's voice was heard saying:

"Don't cry, don't make a noise! If the people inside hear you, they'llcome out and tear Ciprianu's daughter to pieces; and she is now ourguest. "

Anna buried her face in Blanka's bosom. 

"Alexander, " said Aaron, softly, turning to his brother, "go in and tellthe gipsy band to play a lively reel. The company must be kept amused. "

Meanwhile Manasseh had appeared. 

"Manasseh, " whispered Aaron, "come and help me lift our brother downfrom the horse. "

These words were to Manasseh like a dagger-thrust in his heart. Hisknees trembled under him. But presently he manned himself and hastenedto untie the ropes that held the inanimate form on the horse's back. 

Zenobia meanwhile went on talking in a low tone to Blanka. "In theskirmish at Felvincz, the Hungarians had one man killed, and he was theman. His horse carried him until I found him. You invited us to yourwedding, and here we are. Now you may, if you wish, take me in and sayto your guests, 'This is the daughter of that Ciprianu whose sons laidwaste Sasd and Felvincz and killed Jonathan Adorjan. '"

"Away, away!" stammered Blanka, waving her hand. She was terrified atthe thought of Zenobia's being found there by the people of Toroczko, and perhaps suffering violence at their hands. 

"Go in peace, " said Aaron. "My people will not pursue you. Let bygonesbe bygones between us. We owe each other nothing now. "

"I owe you nothing, Aaron, but I owe something to your sister and yoursister-in-law for the very kind invitation they sent me; and that is adebt which I will yet repay. To you, Manasseh, I have to say, rememberthose parting words on Monastery Heights: 'We make peace with you andswear to keep it; but if a traitor from your own number stirs updissension between us, then tremble!' Think of those words often. Andnow farewell, and God bless you!"

With that she turned her horse about and rode away, breasting the wind, which blew the snow into her face. 

"Where shall we lay the body?" asked Aaron. "The house is full ofguests. "

"Here, in our little cabin, " said Blanka. 

"What, in your bridal chamber?" gasped Aaron. "Oh, Father in heaven!"

But there was no other way. The two brothers bore Jonathan into thelittle house, unswathed his cold limbs, and laid him in the bridal beduntil his coffin should be ready for him. So death entered the littleabode and was the first guest. 

Blanka sat down on the edge of the bed and gazed at the dead face. Theresemblance between Jonathan and Manasseh was striking. This lifelessimage of her husband suddenly revealed to her all that had hitherto beenso carefully kept from her knowledge. When she met Jonathan in Kolozsvarshe had conceived of the war, to which so many stately cavaliers wereturning their horses' heads, as a kind of splendid tournament. Sheremembered now the promise she had made to give the young soldier a kisson his return home, and recalled how he had begged her to keep her wordeven though he came back dead. And he had come back dead, and nowclaimed the fulfilment of her promise. She bent down over him, and asshe did so the illusion that it was Manasseh himself lying lifelessbefore her, grew stronger still. She trembled as she touched her lips tothe dead man's marble brow, and with an outburst of sobs and tears shecalled aloud, "Manasseh!"

He was at her side in a moment, bending over her and pressing her to hisheart. So he was not dead, after all. She recovered her self-control, but she murmured in his ear:

"Oh, do not die! Never let me see you lying like that before me!"

Then she gave place to the three brothers, who likewise embraced thedead man. One by one the other brothers came out of the house ofrejoicing and entered the chamber of mourning. Alexander had summonedthem. The guests, however, found nothing strange in their disappearance, but merely gave themselves up the more unrestrainedly to the gaiety ofthe occasion. That the bride and groom should have vanished so suddenlywas entirely in accord with established usage: the loving pair had, itwas taken for granted, sought the spot where all the delights ofparadise awaited them. How different was the reality from theseconjectures!

Blanka watched through the long hours by the dead man's couch. So passedher wedding night. 

At early dawn the tolling of bells announced to the people of Toroczkothat death had laid his cold hand on one of their number. Those who hadbeen wedding guests the day before now came as mourners to the house ofthe Adorjans. 

The brothers were out on the mountainside. Graves for the dead inToroczko are hewn out of the solid rock, and the side of some bare cliffserves the people for a cemetery. Here each family has a vault, which, as years pass, penetrates more and more deeply into the mountainside, until in many cases it becomes a veritable tunnel. No name is carvedover these vaults, and only the memory of the survivors serves todistinguish one tomb from another. When a man dies, his relatives takeit on themselves to hollow out his grave in the cliff. This is an oldand pious custom. If, however, there is no man in the family to renderthis last service, the neighbours gladly offer their help. It would be agrievous thing in Toroczko to have one's grave dug by a hiredgrave-digger. 

In the afternoon the catafalque was erected in the church, and theentire population assembled to pay the last honours to the deceased. Thepeople sang, and the pastor delivered a funeral discourse. Then allaccompanied the remains to the rock-hewn cemetery. Men bore the coffinon their shoulders, and on the coffin lay the dead man's sword, crownedwith garlands, and his shako pierced with a bullet-hole. Leading theprocession marched a student chorus singing a dirge, while weeping womenbrought up the rear. When the family vault was reached, the sevenbrothers of the deceased took the coffin and laid it in the nicheprepared to receive it; then they rolled a great stone before theopening, came out of the vault, and kissed one another. 

After that a plain villager, an old and gray-haired man, mounted a stonepulpit and addressed the assembly, telling them who it was they wereburying, how he had lived, how he had been loved, and in what manner hehad come to his end. The speaker closed with the hope that the memory ofthe departed might last as long as there were dwellers in the valley tospeak his name. The pastor then blessed the grave and pronounced abenediction on the company before him. Finally the student choirrendered a closing selection, while the women and children left theplace in groups, and only the men remained behind. 

Aaron now ascended the stone pulpit and spoke. "Brothers and friends, "he began, "we have done our duty to the dead; now let us discharge ourobligations to the living. Enough of funeral dirges for the present! Letus now to arms!"

Three hundred men echoed his words. "To arms!" they cried, "to arms!"They were ready and eager to go in quest of the foemen at whose handstheir fellow-townsman had met his death. "Come, let us go home and armourselves!" said they, one to another. 

"We will meet in the marketplace!" called out Aaron from the stonepulpit, when suddenly he felt a strong hand on his belt behind, and hewas lifted down bodily from his place. He did not need to ask who dealtthus summarily with him; he knew that only his brother Manasseh wascapable of such a feat of strength. 

"What are you thinking of?" cried Manasseh, in a voice that all couldhear. "Have I not made peace with our neighbours and sworn in the nameof the one living God to maintain it, and would you put me to shame?"

"Have they not murdered our brother Jonathan?" demanded Aaron. 

"No; our brother fell in battle like a brave soldier, with his sword inhis hand. And others of our land are fighting now for their country andwill die for her. We shall mourn them and honour their memory, but weare not wild Indians to exact a bloody vengeance for those fallen on thebattle-field. "

"Very well, brother Manasseh, but you need not charge us with being wildIndians. I do not ask that we should fall upon our neighbours and burntheir houses over their heads, but that we should be on our guard anddefend ourselves and our families the best we know how. Believe me, brother, I am as good a Christian as the next man; I go to church everyholy day, even when I am ill; but I feel easier, when I pray for mysoul's salvation, if I know my gun is loaded and primed. "

"Then you are no true believer in God, " returned Manasseh, in a tone ofreproof. "You worship that Jesus in whose name the massacre of St. Bartholomew was perpetrated, the burning of heretics sanctioned, and thecrusades undertaken; but you are no true follower of that Jesus who camewith a message of peace and good-will to mankind, and who said to Peter, 'They that take the sword shall perish with the sword. '"

"I am not so sure that he really said that, " rejoined Aaron, shrewdly. "Matthew has it that he did, but Mark and Luke make no mention of it, and, according to John, Jesus simply said to Peter, after the latter hadcut off the ear of Malchus, the high priest's servant, 'Put up thy swordinto the sheath. ' At any rate, I am not clear what I should have donehad he said it to me; but I know one thing, if I had been there when theSaviour handed the sop to Judas, I should have dealt Iscariot such ablow on the head that he wouldn't have had wit enough left to betray hismaster. And just so I will strike down the traitor who leads a foeagainst Toroczko, if he once comes within my reach. "

"What traitor do you mean?"

"The one that the girl spoke of yesterday when she said, 'If a traitorrises up from amidst your own people, then tremble!' I know whom shemeant now: with the insurgents is a man, lately come into notice, whosurpasses all his fellows in cruelty. He is our Iscariot. "

"What makes you think so?"

"Because he calls himself Diurbanu. No genuine Wallachian would havetaken the nickname of his king, Decebalus. It is as if one of us shouldcall himself Attila. Now, then, Manasseh, I love you and am ready tofollow your lead. I shall never forget how you went up to MonasteryHeights and came back with our two brothers. You knew how to serve thembetter than I. I would have avenged their death merely, but you savedtheir lives. So, as you made peace with Moga and his people, you have aright to ask us to keep it. Therefore we will demand no atonement fromthem for Jonathan's death. But when we hear that Diurbanu and his men, who know nothing about that peace and are no parties to it, areadvancing on Toroczko, then will be the time for us to act. "

"And I will take a hand with you, " declared Manasseh. 

Therewith the two brothers clasped hands and embraced each other, afterwhich the men all returned to their homes. 

CHAPTER XXI. 

THE SPY. 

Albeit the earth reeked with blood in those days, yet the spring of 1849saw the flowers blooming in as great profusion as ever, as if God'sblessing had been vying with man's curse to see which should outdo theother. 

On a beautiful afternoon in May, Blanka and Anna, with Manasseh andAaron, were climbing a steep and tortuous mountain path. Manasseh hadhis portfolio and some few other implements of his craft, while Aaroncarried the ladies' wraps and lunch-basket. With the exception ofiron-shod alpenstocks, none of the party were armed. The two men walkedon ahead, side by side, leaving the young women to loiter behind andpick mayflowers. Rhododendrons, orchids, and epigonitis rewarded theirsearch in abundance. From the valley below came up the bleating of goatsand the flute-like notes of the blackbird. 

"Are you really in earnest, Aaron, about defending the town from thisposition in case of an attack?" asked Manasseh. 

"Wasn't it from the Szekler Stone that our fathers repulsed the wholeMongolian horde?" was the rejoinder. 

"But that was in the old days, in old-fashioned warfare. "

"Well, the Wallachians are now no further advanced in military sciencethan were the Tartars then. "

"Yes, but at that time the Szekler Stone was in a condition fordefence, " objected Manasseh. 

"And how do you know I haven't put it in such a condition again?" askedthe other. 

"I should like to see how you have accomplished it. "

"I shall not show you, for you are not a soldier, and no civilian shallsee my fortifications. I will show them to the two young ladies; theycount as combatants. The other day they coaxed Alexander to lend themhis pistols, and since then they have been practising shooting at a markin the garden behind the house. "

"What, does my wife know how to handle a pistol?"

"To be sure; and it's no elderberry popgun, either. You may depend uponit, she'll sell her life dear. You needn't laugh. "

The rocky height known as the Szekler Stone commands a view of vastextent. Nestled among the hills, twenty-two villages may be countedfrom its summit, with the Aranyos River winding this way and that amongthem, like a ribbon of silver, until it empties into another tortuousstream which carries its waters to the Maros. But on the opposite side, toward the northwest, in striking contrast with this picture of happyhuman industry, a boundless waste of rugged, forest-clad mountain peaksmeets the eye, with no sign of house or hamlet. 

From the side toward Toroczko, which lay smiling in the valley, itsfruit-trees in full bloom, its fields looking like so many squares ofgreen carpet, and its church-spire rising conspicuous above the foliage, one could hear, like the throbbing of a giant's heart, the heavy beatingof steam hammers. There the scythe and the ploughshare were beingfashioned, and all the implements wherewith the hand of man subdued tohis use those rugged hillsides. 

"If I could only paint that picture!" sighed Manasseh. 

"You succeeded with the Colosseum, " was Blanka's encouraging rejoinder. 

"That was Rome, this is Toroczko. I could hit my sweetheart's likeness;my mother's is beyond me. "

Nevertheless he was determined to try his hand; so the others left himat work and went on to view the curiosities of the Szekler Stone. 

"Take good care of my wife, " Manasseh called to his brother, "and don'tlet her fall over any precipice. "

"Never fear, " Aaron shouted back. "The whole Szekler Stone shall fallfirst. "

"Promise not to take Blanka and Anna up Hidas Peak. "

"I promise. "

"On your honour as a Szekler and a Unitarian?"

"On my honour as a Szekler and a Unitarian. "

With that Manasseh let them go their way. But in the midst of hissketching it occurred to him that Aaron had only promised not to "take"the ladies up Hidas Peak, which might mean that he would not carry themup, but was at liberty to lead them; for Aaron was full of all suchquips and quibbles as that. Manasseh closed his portfolio, picked up histhings, and followed the path taken by the others. 

Yet there was no mischievous intent in Aaron's mind. He conducted Annaand Blanka to the verge of the gorge that separates the so-called HidasPeak of the Szekler Stone from the Louis Peak. This ravine is a deepcutting, down which a steep, breakneck path leads directly to Toroczko, but is very seldom used. On the farther side of the gorge may be seen acave in the rocks, popularly known as Csegez Cave. A rude stone rampartguards its mouth, and, as only a very narrow path along the brink ofthe precipice leads to this cavern, it could be easily held against anassault. 

On the summit of Hidas Peak was planted a bundle of straw, which wasvisible from a considerable distance, and served as a warning not toascend. Was it meant as a protection to the single fir-tree leftstanding there in lonely majesty, or to deter hay-thieves from cuttingthe grass that grew there? Perhaps it was a friendly caution tosightseers not to hazard the ascent, as it might cost them their lives. 

The two young women recognised at once the inadvisability of theirattempting this dangerous climb, but to Aaron the ascent was mere sport. He had often been up there before. Promising his companions that, ifthey would be on their good behaviour, and not stir from the spot, hewould climb the rocky height, blow a blast on his horn that should awakethe echoes, and bring them back a twig from the solitary fir-tree, heleft them seated on the grass and busy arranging the flowers they hadgathered. 

It seemed a long time before he gained the summit, and the young womengrew tired of sitting still in one place. Anna, true miner's daughterthat she was, spied some scattered bits of carnelian in the rubble nearby, and pointed them out to Blanka. Agate and chalcedony were also to befound among the loose stones, and often the three occurred together. Both Anna and her companion were soon busy gathering these treasures andpocketing the rarest specimens. Indeed, so intent were they on theirwork that they failed to note the approach of a strange man, until hestood within fifty paces of them. Whence could he have come? Had he beenconcealed behind some rock? What was his purpose in thus stealing on thetwo unprotected women? He wore the Wallachian peasant costume, --a highcap of white lamb's wool, from beneath which his long, black hair hungdown over his shoulders, a leather dolman, without sleeves, a broad beltwith buckles, under which his shirt extended half-way to his knees, andlaced shoes. He carried a scythe over one shoulder, and stood with hisback to the sun, so that his features could not be clearlydistinguished. 

The young women seized each other by the hand, and uttered a cry ofalarm. The sight of the strange figure seemed to work on them like anightmare, or like the ghost of some one known in life, but long sincelaid to rest in the grave. At first the man appeared to be as badlyfrightened as the young ladies. He halted, gave a start as of surprise, opened his mouth to speak, and then stood dumb, with staring eyes. Forseveral seconds he seemed undecided what to do next. Then he put himselfin motion and advanced toward the ladies, his face at the same timeassuming a wild, demoniac expression. He lowered his scythe from hisshoulder, and grasped it in his right hand. 

At that moment there sounded from the height above the trumpet-like pealof Aaron's horn. 

"Aaron! Aaron!" cried both young women in concert and with all theirstrength. 

The intruder, taking fright at sound of the horn and at the name, stoodstill and threw a look behind. 

"Run, _frate_!"[1] shouted Aaron from above, already descrying the man. 

[Footnote 1: Rumanian for "brother. "]

But the latter, counting with safety on a considerable interval beforeAaron could descend, started once more toward Anna and Blanka. Onlytwenty paces now intervened between him and them. His eyes glowed andhis face was distorted with a horrid expression, more brutal than human. His appearance might well have made the boldest recoil. Anna plantedherself before her companion, as if to shelter her, while Blanka feltonly a mad desire to run and throw herself over the precipice. Butsuddenly, when the man was only a few steps from them, he halted anddrew back as if some one had smitten him in the face, his kneestrembled, and an inarticulate cry escaped his lips. He seemed to haveencountered something from which he drew back in dismay, as the leopard, when pursuing a deer, turns tail at sight of a lion. Blanka and Annagave a backward glance and then started to run. Fear now left them, andas they ran they called aloud, in the glad assurance of help near athand, "Manasseh! Manasseh!"--until they reached him and threw themselvesinto his arms. 

Meanwhile the strange man, looking over his shoulder and seeing Aarondescending upon him with bold leaps and bounds, did not pause long toconsider, but dropped his scythe and ran for his life, down the steepside of the gorge, over rubble-stones and slippery boulders. 

"What are you so frightened at?" asked Manasseh, taking the matterlightly and kissing back the roses into the ladies' pale cheeks. 

Panting and gasping for breath, they could hardly stammer out the causeof their alarm, but managed to explain that a "terrible man" hadsuddenly come upon them and chased them. Yet neither Blanka nor Annawent on to say of whom this strange figure had reminded her. 

"You little geese!" cried Manasseh, laughing, "it was only a hay-thief. Grass grows on Hidas Peak, and ever since the days of King Matthias theSzeklers on the Aranyos have quarrelled with their neighbours over thecutting of it. The man who is on hand first with his scythe carries itoff. So that bugaboo of yours was merely a harmless peasant in quest offodder for his cow, and he took fright at sight of us and ran away. Look there, will you, he has dropped his scythe in his eagerness toescape. "

The two young women, still clinging to Manasseh, went with him toexamine the Wallachian's scythe. 

"A tool of our own make!" he cried, lifting it up and inspecting it. "Ithas our trade-mark. The snath is full of notches--probably the owner'srecord of work done and of his share in the harvest. "

The said owner was by this time far down the steep path. Aaron nowjoined his companions, much out of breath, red in the face, and withouthis hat, which he had thrown away in order to run the faster. He shoutedto the fugitive to stop, and, going to the edge of the ravine, snatchedup a great stone and hurled it after him. 

"Oh, heavens!" cried Anna, "what have you done? What if it should hithim?"

"If it hits him it will help him along the faster, " was Aaron's reply ashe caught up a second stone, smaller than the first, and sent it toovertake its fellow. But the fleeing form was too far down the hill toserve as a good target, and Aaron's stones bounded harmlessly by. 

"You might have killed him!" said Anna, reproachfully. 

"And that would have been the best thing for all concerned, " answeredAaron, giving his moustache a fierce pull. 

"But it would have been a piece of needless cruelty, " remarkedManasseh, --"and merely on account of a little hay that has not beentouched, after all. "

"He didn't come up here to steal hay; he is one of Diurbanu's spies. "

"But what, pray, could he spy out here?"

"What could he spy out? Oh, just see how sharp my brother Manasseh is!My fortifications and armament are on the Szekler Stone. Yes, you maylaugh now, but you won't laugh when you come to learn their value. Iwill show the ladies my cannon, but I won't let you see them, Manasseh. "

"Cannon, brother?" repeated Manasseh, laughing. "How in the world didyou ever get them up here?"

"My business is with the ladies now, " was all Aaron would say. "You sitdown on a stone and paint the beautiful view. My battery is not for youto see. Yes, I have a battery, all complete. If Aaron Gabor could fitout his Szeklers with artillery, why should not his namesake be able todo the same? You young women may see my big guns; I'll show them to you. But first promise me solemnly not to tell any mortal soul what yousee--not even Manasseh. "

Blanka and Anna both pledged themselves most solemnly to secrecy, whereupon Aaron led them up to a height on which stood the ruins ofSzekler-Stone Castle, one of the oldest monuments to be found in allHungary. 

After a short interval the three rejoined Manasseh, the two ladieslaughing and in the merriest of moods, scarcely heeding theirconductor's solemnly raised forefinger and sober mien, which were meantto remind them of their promise. But they betrayed no secrets; they onlylaughed. Yet Aaron thought it betrayal enough for them even to laugh. 

"That's always the way, " he muttered, "when you let a woman into asecret!"

They soothed and caressed him, but only laughed the more as they did so. 

"I wish you to understand that this is no trifling matter, " he declared, "and that I had good reason to send those stones after that prying spy. "

This allusion checked the young women's merriment at once, and a shudderran over them at the remembrance of what had passed. "Did we both havethe same thought?" whispered Blanka to Anna. 

"Yes, " returned the latter, with a sigh. 

That night, before she lay down to sleep, Anna veiled the littleportrait that hung in her room, as if to prevent her seeing it in herdreams. 

CHAPTER XXII. 

THE HAND OF FATE. 

Through the main street of Abrudbanya rode two men, one of them wearingan overcoat with silver buttons over his Wallachian dress, and a tuft ofheron's feathers in his cap, while at his side hung a curved sword, pistols protruded from his holsters, and a rifle lay across hissaddle-bow. His face had nothing of the Wallachian peasant in itsfeatures or expression. The other horseman, however, who rode at somepaces' distance in the rear, was manifestly of the peasant class. 

The horses' hoofs awoke the echoes of the vacant street. Silence anddesolation reigned supreme. Half-burned houses and smoke-blackened wallsgreeted the riders on every side. High up on the door-post of a churchappeared the bloody imprint of a child's hand. How had it come there?Grass and weeds were growing in the marketplace, and a millstone coveredthe village well. Here and there a lean and hungry dog crept forth atthe horsemen's approach, howled dismally, and then retreated among theruins. 

After this scene of devastation was passed, the highway led the ridersalong the bank of a stream, on both sides of which smelting works hadbeen erected, as this region is rich in gold-producing ore; but nothingexcept charred ruins was now left of the buildings. At intervals adeserted mill was passed, its wheel still turning idly under the impulseof the tireless stream. Leaving this mining district behind, the tworiders came to a settlement of a different sort, which had not beengiven over entirely to destruction. Only occasionally a house showedwindows or doors lacking, while many were wholly unharmed. Among thelatter was one building in whose front wall a well-preserved Romangravestone was set, its carving in high relief being still clearlyoutlined. Here had once been entombed the ashes of Caius Longinis, acenturion of the third legion. _Sit sibi terra levis!_ One of thedoor-posts had in ancient times served as a milestone, and the broadbench before the house was made from the lid of a sarcophagus, bearingan inscription which informed the archæologist what saffron-haired Romanbeauty had, centuries before, been laid to rest beneath it. 

The riders drew rein before this house, and straightway an old woman ofextraordinary ugliness stuck her head out of the little door. Among theWallachians one meets with the comeliest young women and the ugliest oldhags. Knock at any door, and it is sure to be opened by one of theseancient dames. 

"He isn't at home, " called out the old woman, without waiting to beaddressed. "He has gone to the 'Priest's Tree. ' You'll find him there. "

"Well, then, if you know where this 'Priest's Tree' is, go ahead andshow us the way, " commanded he of the silver buttons, unwilling even tohalt long enough to water his horse, so pressing was his errand. 

The way led through a vast forest, and when the riders reached theirdestination it was late evening, the darkness being further increased bygathering thunder-clouds. The so-called "Priest's Tree" is a giant beechstanding in a broad open space and fenced around with a hedge planted bypious hands. Under this tree have been sworn the most solemn of oaths, and the ground shaded by it is hallowed. Near by stands a wooden church, exactly like the churches to be seen in all Wallachian villages, itssteep roof and sides covered with shingles, and a pointed turretsurmounting the whole. The belfry has no bell, and the windows areunglazed, so that the breezes blow at will through the desertedbuilding. 

Our riders found a dozen or more horses tethered at the foot of the treeand watched by a few Wallachian lads, who were muffled in fur coatsagainst the approach of the storm. The beech furnished a good shelter:lightning could not strike it, as it was the "Priest's Tree. "

Leaving his horse in charge of his attendant, he of the silver buttonshastened on to the church door, where an armed sentry demanded his name. 

"Diurbanu, " was the reply, whereupon he was admitted. 

The interior of the church was very dark. Two wax tapers, indeed, burnedon the altar, but they flickered and flared so in the wind as to furnisha very insufficient light. The thunder-clouds without, however, were nowrent with frequent flashes of lightning, which served to illumine thescene within. About a dozen men were assembled there, sitting on thebenches that had once been occupied by worshippers, some wearing thecostume of the country, while others were dressed in military uniform. Before them, with his back to the altar, sat a man of commandingappearance, attired in a clerical gown with long, flowing sleeves. Inhis lap he held a little fair-haired boy, covering the child with one ofhis wide sleeves, and giving it the golden crucifix that hung from hisneck to play with. At times his long black beard completely concealedthe child's face. The little one was playing and prattling, giving noheed to the talk of the men about him and betraying no alarm at thetumultuous approach of the storm. 

The newcomer advanced and addressed the group:

"Gentleman and friends, glorious descendants of Decebalus and Trajan!"

"Never mind ceremony now, Diurbanu, " interrupted the wearer of the gown, in a deep, commanding voice. "What news? Let us hear your errand. "

"I am the bearer of instructions. "

"Out with them, then!"

"We must prosecute the war with might and main. There is no time tolose. Bem regards the Transylvanian campaign as ended, and has set outwith his whole army for the Banat, leaving only a few regulars to guardthe passes and to prosecute the siege of Karlsburg. Our part is to checkhim in his march on Croatia. "

"Or, in other words, " interrupted the man in the gown, "to prevent himfrom dealing Jellachich a fatal blow, we are to throw ourselves in Bem'sway. "

"The victors of Abrudbanya and Brad will not shrink from theundertaking, I should hope, " was Diurbanu's response. 

"Let us understand each other, " said the other, setting the little boyon his knee and trotting him up and down as he spoke. "Is it reasonableto suppose that we could, without cavalry, artillery, or experiencedcommanders, attack a fully equipped force with any hope of success, especially after that force has driven an Austrian army corps out ofthe country and shown itself able to repulse the Russian auxiliaries?"

"No one expects that of us. Our operations are to be confined to raidsin the mountains. "

"But no enemy is to be found now in the mountains. Don't you know that?You have just come over the mountains. Did you see any sign of theenemy?"

"We have foes enough there still. There is Toroczko. " Diurbanu's face, as he said this, was suddenly illumined by a blinding flash oflightning. 

"And Torda!" cried a voice from the benches. 

"No, we have nothing against Torda, " declared Diurbanu, almost angrily. 

"But what have we against Toroczko?" asked another voice. "The men ofToroczko have never done us any harm. So far we have received their irononly in the form of ploughs and shovels, scythes and wheel-tires. "

"Their sons are serving under Bem, " was the rejoinder, "and it is fromthem that we have received their iron in other shapes. Yet that is notthe main reason. Toroczko is a breeding-place of Magyar ideas and Magyarcivilisation, an asylum open to Protestant reformers, the pride of ahandful of people who hope to conquer the world by dint of their scienceand industry. The fall of Toroczko would spread a wholesome fear far andwide; it would be almost as if one should report the overthrow of Pestitself. Bem's men would halt on the march, panic-stricken at the news, and Bem himself would be forced to yield to their desires and return toTransylvania. And the more terrible our work of devastation, the morebrilliant will be the military success that must follow as its result. "

The thunder-claps came at such frequent intervals that the speaker couldwith difficulty make himself heard. When he had ended, the deep voice ofhim who wore the clerical gown began in reply:

"Listen to me, Diurbanu. You are deceived on one point. Those on whomyou count in this bloody work are sated with slaughter. So long as theythirsted for revenge they were eager to shed human blood; but now theyhave slaked their thirst and are beginning to rue their deeds. I saw afamily being cut down in the open street, and I rushed forward andsnatched this little flaxen-haired boy from the murderers' hands and hidhim under my cloak. At that a young man, the most furious one of theparty, aimed such a stroke at my head with his scythe that he wouldcertainly have split my skull had not my cap deadened the blow. Butthree days later this same young man came to see the child whose rescuehad filled him with such fury that he had lifted his hand with murderousintent against me, his anointed priest; and because the little boy criedfor his lost blackbird, the young man went into the woods and caughtanother for him. More than that, he would now gladly restore the boy'sparents to him if he could. Ever since I saved the little one's life hehas clung to me and refused to be parted from me. "

The priest spoke in a tongue strange to the little boy, who consequentlyunderstood not a word of what was said, but went on with his innocentprattle and laughter. 

"Comrades, " resumed Diurbanu, addressing the group before him, "all thisis wide of the mark. We are in the midst of war, and in war-times thesoldier must go whither he is sent. "

"Very well, Diurbanu, " was the reply, "our soldiers will go whither theyare sent. The wind can direct the storm-cloud whither it shall go, butcannot compel it to flash lightning and hurl thunderbolts at command. "

"But I know one storm-cloud, " rejoined Diurbanu, "that has not withheldits thunderbolts. "

"You mean Ciprianu and his men?"

"Yes. "

"But Ciprianu and both his sons are now fallen. "

"So much the better. He left a daughter who thirsts for revenge. "

"Do you know her?"

"She is my sweetheart. "

"And have you picked out the village whose destruction is to be herbridal gift? Which one is it?"

"I have told you already, --Toroczko. "

"But I say it shall be Torda!" cried a determined voice. 

"I protest. "

"Let us draw lots to decide it. "

"Very well, " assented Diurbanu, and, going to the altar on which stoodthe flickering candles, he wrote a name on each of two cards and threwthe bits of pasteboard into his cap. "Now who will draw?" he asked; butno one volunteered. "It must be an innocent hand that decides the fateof these two towns, " continued Diurbanu. "This little chap shall drawfor us. "

"What, this innocent child decide which town shall be given over to fireand blood and pillage!" exclaimed the priest. "An infernal contrivanceof yours, Diurbanu!"

But meantime the child had reached out a tiny hand and clutched at oneof the cards, which it handed to the priest. 

"Bring me one of the candles, " bade the latter. 

But no candle was necessary, for even as he spoke a flash of lightningpenetrated to the remotest corner of the little church. The group of menwhose heads were bent over the bit of cardboard started and cried outin concert:

"Toroczko!"

In the peal of thunder that followed the very ground shook under theirfeet and the building rocked over their heads. 

CHAPTER XXIII. 

OLD SCORES. 

The inhabitants of the doomed town were warned beforehand by a friendlyinformer what was in store for them. For two months they knew that theywere standing over a mine which awaited only the proper moment to betouched off. Nevertheless, during this time they went about their usualtasks, digging iron out of the bowels of the earth, sowing their grain, planting and weeding their gardens, spinning their flax, tanning theirhides, sending their children to school, and all betaking themselves tochurch on Sunday morning. The Sunday afternoon diversions, however, weresuspended, and in their stead the entire male population practisedmilitary drill. Even the twelve-year-old boy cried if he was not allowedto take part. All were determined to shed their last drop of bloodrather than let the enemy set foot inside their town. Even the womenbusied themselves sharpening axes and scythes, resolute in their purposeto defend their little ones or, if need were, to put them to death withtheir own hands and then slay themselves. No woman, no child, shouldfall into the enemy's clutches alive. 

It was the very last day of July. The fields were dotted with sheaves ofgrain, and the farmers were hastening to gather them in. They had beensurprised by countless numbers of crows and ravens which invaded thevalley and filled the air with their hoarse, discordant cries. Thoseexperienced in war knew that these birds were the usual attendants andheralds of armies. 

More definite tidings were not long in coming. Messengers from St. George arrived breathless with the report that Diurbanu's troops wererapidly approaching. But no one was disconcerted by the news; all wereready for the enemy. Throwing scythes and pitchforks aside, theysnatched up their firearms. Each battalion of the national guard had itsassigned position. The streets were barricaded with wagons, and the roadtoward Borev was laid under water by damming the brook, to prevent asurprise from that direction. Aaron, with forty other men, clambered upthe steep slope of the Szekler Stone to repulse the enemy from thiscommanding height, --forty men against as many hundred. They would havelaughed at their own folly had they but stopped to think. 

Toward noon the sturdy little band of defenders was increased by thecoming of fugitives from St. George. For these, too, there were armsenough in Toroczko. The effective force now in the village amounted tonearly four hundred. 

Manasseh was at home with the women of the family. They had declinedAaron's offer to conceal them in Csegez Cave, preferring to remain underthe family roof and there await what God had appointed them. Manassehnow embraced Blanka and Anna and bade them farewell. 

"Where are you going?" asked Blanka, in alarm. Jonathan's pale faceseemed at that moment to float before her vision, and she feared to partwith her husband, lest he should not return. 

"I am going to the enemy's camp. "

"Alone?"

"No, not alone. I am well attended: Uriel goes before me, Raphael is onmy right hand, Gabriel on my left, behind me Michael, and over my headIsrael. "

"But you are going unarmed. "

"No, I am armed with the peace treaty which our foes concluded with me, swearing not to attack Toroczko. That is my weapon, and with it I willwin a bloodless victory. "

Blanka looked sorrowfully into her husband's face, and in that look wasexpressed all that her tongue was powerless to utter, --her infinite lovefor the man and her deep despair at the thought of perhaps never againmeeting those eyes so full of love and tenderness for her. 

"I tried it once before, you know, " he reminded her, "and you know howwell I succeeded then. The leader of the Wallachians is an oldacquaintance of mine. " But this last was true in a sense that thespeaker little dreamed--as he was to learn later. 

Blanka pressed her husband's hand. "Very well, " said she, with a braveeffort at cheerful confidence, "do as seems best to you, and Heaven willcare for us. "

Manasseh could not suppress a sigh as he kissed his wife on theforehead. Anna, who could read her brother's face, knew what that sighmeant. 

"You need not be anxious about us, dear brother, " she said. "We areunder God's protection, and are prepared for the worst. We decided longago what we should do if we were forced to it. When all is lost that isdearest to us, --our loved ones, our home, our country, --we shall notwait tamely for the enemy to break into the house. Here are two pistols:each of us will take one of them and point it at the other's heart, eachwill utter the name that is last in her thoughts, and that will be thelast word that will ever pass her lips. Now you may go on your errandand need not fear for us. "

Manasseh's feelings were too deep for utterance. Without a word hekissed the dear ones before him and then left the house and hastenedaway. He turned his face toward St. George. He was alone and had noteven a stick in his hand. 

It was about four o'clock in the afternoon. To a good pedestrian St. George is only half an hour's walk from Toroczko. On the outskirts ofthe village Manasseh met scattered bodies of soldiery who surveyed himin much surprise; but, as he was unarmed, they offered him no injury. His calmness of bearing and the cool, collected look with which he mettheir scrutiny completely disarmed them. Besides, they were busy cuttingup slaughtered cattle and cooking their supper in the open fields. Aswas usual among such irregular troops, no outposts had been set tochallenge the approach of strangers. 

Manasseh accosted the first man whose face impressed him favourably, andasked for guidance to the commander's quarters. The man willingly gavehim his escort. On the way he went so far as to unbosom himself toManasseh, complaining that, at this busy season of the year, when allought to be at home, men were forced to make so long a march. Aftershowing the way to the house where the commander was to be found, hereceived a cigar from Manasseh, and acknowledged himself amply repaidfor his trouble. 

Manasseh advanced to the door and announced to a group of armed menlounging about it that he wished to see Diurbanu. 

"The general is not to be seen just now, " was the reply; "he is atdinner, and will not leave the table for some time yet. "

Manasseh drew a visiting-card from his pocket, and, first bending downone corner, sent it in to the general. The bearer of it soon returnedwith the announcement that Diurbanu bade the visitor wait awhile, andmeantime he was to be bound and confined in the cellar. Manassehassented to this peculiar reception. "Many men, many manners, " said heto himself. It would have been easy enough for him to leap the railingof the porch and flee to the woods before the others could lay hands onhim, but he had not come hither merely to run away again the nextmoment. 

"Very well, go ahead and bind me, " said he, good-humouredly, to theguards. But they looked at one another in helpless inquiry who shouldundertake to manacle this large, strong man. When at length two hadvolunteered to essay the task, it appeared that there was no rope inreadiness. "Go and get one, " commanded the prisoner; and when a stoutcord had been procured, he went on with his directions: "Now take mypocketbook out; you'll find some loose change in it which you may divideamong you. There is also a folded paper in the pocketbook; deliver itto the general and ask him to read it. Then take a cigar out of mywaistcoat pocket, light it and stick it in my mouth. "

These commands having been duly executed, two of the guards led theirprisoner down into the cellar, which appeared to be Diurbanu'santechamber for such visitors as came to him with troublesome petitions. Not satisfied with conducting him to the main or outer cellar, Manasseh's escort opened the iron door leading into an innercompartment, pushed him through it, and closed the portal upon him, after bidding him take a seat and make himself comfortable. 

Manasseh found himself in almost total darkness. Only an air-hole overhis door admitted a very feeble light from the dimly illumined outercellar. He began to consider his situation, comforting himself with thereflection that at Monastery Heights he had been treated in much thesame fashion, except that there his hands had not been bound. He hadbeen kept in confinement all night, and in the morning his terms ofpeace had been accepted. This time, too, he hoped for a like issue. 

When a cigar is smoked in the dark it lights up the smoker's face ateach puff. Suddenly a voice from out of the gloom called, "Manasseh!"

"Who is there?"

"I. "

It was a gipsy, whose voice Manasseh recognised. "How came you here, Lanyi?" he asked. 

"Diurbanu had me locked up--the devil take him!"

"What grudge had he against you?"

"He ordered me to play to him while he sat at dinner, " explained thegipsy; "but I told him I wouldn't do it. "

"Why not?"

"Because I won't make music for my country's enemies. "

His country, poor fellow! What share had he in that country beyond theright to tramp the public highway, and make himself a mud hut forshelter?

"Then he gave me a cuff, " continued the gipsy, "had me shut up here, andpromised to hang me. Well, he may break me on the wheel, for aught Icare, but I won't play for him even if he smashes my fiddle forrefusing. "

"Well, don't be down-hearted, my little man, " said Manasseh, cheerily. 

"I'm not a bit down-hearted, " declared the other. "I only thought I'dask you not to throw away your cigar-stump when you've finished smoking. You can walk, your feet are free; come here when you are through withyour cigar, and let it fall into my mouth, so that I can chew it. "

"But you'll find it a hot mouthful. "

"So much the better. "

This cynical gipsy phlegm exactly suited Manasseh's mood, and he exertedhimself to cheer the poor fellow up, promising to secure his release assoon as he himself should gain an audience with Diurbanu. 

"But you won't get out of here yourself in a hurry, " returned the gipsy. "Once in Diurbanu's hands, you might as well be in the hangman's. Already he has put to death seven envoys who came to treat for peace, and they were only St. George peasants. So what will he do to you whoare an Adorjan and wear a seal ring? But you've a breathing-spell yet. The others served him as a little relish before dinner; you are to bekept for dessert. One drinks a glass of spirits at a gulp, but blackcoffee is to be sipped and enjoyed. I know this Diurbanu well, andyou'll know him, too, before he's through with you. I'll bet you myfiddle, Manasseh, you won't live to see another day; but it serves youright! You could handle three such men as Diurbanu in a fair fight; yet, instead of meeting him on the battle-field, you walk right into hisclutches and let him bind you fast--like Christ on the cross. "

"Take not that name in vain, you rogue!" commanded Manasseh, sternly, "or I'll let you feel the weight of my foot. "

"Kick me if you wish to, " returned the vagrant, imperturbably; "but, all the same, if I had been Christ I wouldn't have chosen a miserabledonkey to ride on, but would have sent for the best horse out of BaronWesselenyi's stud; and as soon as I had the nag between my legs, I wouldhave snapped my fingers at old Pontius Pilate. "

The gipsy's eloquence was here interrupted by the sound of a key turningin the outer door of the cellar. 

"They're coming!" cried the fiddler; "and I sha'n't get yourcigar-stump, Manasseh. They'll take me out first. "

Through the hole above the iron door a reddish light could now be seen. Presently the iron door itself was opened, and two men, bearingpitch-pine torches, entered, and then stood one on each side of thedoor. Diurbanu came last, dressed in the costume of a Wallachianmilitary commander, his face flushed with wine and evil passions, andhis long hair falling over his shoulders. Despite his disguise, Manassehrecognised him at once. He saw that the gipsy's words had conveyed noidle warning. The man before him was none other than Benjamin Vajdar. Yet the prisoner lost nothing of his composure, but with head erect andunflinching gaze faced his deadly enemy. 

"Well, Manasseh Adorjan, " began the other, "you asked to see me, andhere I am. Do you know me now?"

"You are called Diurbanu, " replied Manasseh, coldly. 

"And don't you know another name for me? Don't I remind you of an oldacquaintance?"

"To him whom you resemble, I have nothing to say. I have come to you asto Diurbanu, I have placed in your hands the peace-treaty which yourpeople made with my people, and I demand its observance. "

"To convince you that I am not merely Diurbanu, but also another, lookhere. " With that he called one of the torch-bearers and held to theflame the paper he had received from Manasseh. 

The latter shrugged his shoulders and blew a cloud of cigar-smoke. 

"Do you understand now, " continued Diurbanu, "that there is one man inthe world who has sworn to march against Toroczko, treaty or no treaty, to leave not one stone on another in that town, and not one of itspeople alive to tell the story of its destruction? My day has come atlast--and Toroczko's night. " The speaker's features took on at thesewords an expression more like that of a hyena than of a human being. 

"Idle threats!" muttered Manasseh, scornfully, between his teeth. 

"Idle threats, are they?" retorted the other, striking the hilt of hissword and raising his head haughtily. "You think, do you, that I amjoking, and that I will take pity on you?"

"Oh, as for me, you may do what you please with me--torture me, kill me, if you choose. I am ready. But that will not help you to take Toroczko. All are in arms there and waiting for you. Go ahead with your plan. You'll find many an old acquaintance to receive you there. Our defencesare abundantly able to withstand your soldiers, who, you know wellenough, are tired of fighting and have no love for storming ramparts. Kill me, if you wish, but there will be only one man the less againstyou; and all the satisfaction you and your men will get from Toroczkowill be broken heads. Not one stone will you disturb in all the town. "

"We'll soon make you sing another tune, " returned Diurbanu, and he beganto roll up his sleeves, like an executioner preparing to torture hisvictim. "You shall hear our plan. I will be perfectly honest with you. While a part of my forces conduct a feigned assault in the valley, andso engage the attention of your men, my main body will descend on thetown from the direction of the Szekler Stone, and will assail it in therear, where none but women and children are left to receive the attack. What the fate of these women and children is likely to be, you mayconjecture from the fact that the assaulting party is led by a woman, --awoman whose heart is full of bitter hatred, a maiden whose father andtwo brothers have been killed before her eyes, a proud girl whom yourbrothers have driven from their door with insulting words. This woman isZenobia, Ciprianu's daughter, once your brother Jonathan's sweetheart, but now betrothed to me--or, at least, she fancies she is. While I keepyour armed forces busy, she will knock at the door of your house. At hersignal the work of carnage and destruction will begin. Your whole familywill fall into her hands. "

Manasseh shuddered with horror, and drew a deep breath. His head was nolonger proudly erect, his self-confidence was gone. "God's will bedone!" he murmured. 

"So I've found your tender spot, have I?" cried the other, with anexultant laugh. "Just think what is in store for your wife (but what amI saying? She is not your wife)--your mistress. "

At this insult to his adored Blanka, Manasseh's wrath blazed up andmastered him. He spit his burning cigar stump into the speaker's face. It was the utmost he could do. The other swallowed his rage at theindignity and wiped the ashes from his face, which presently broke intoa smile--a hideous smile. 

"Very good, Manasseh! One more score to charge up against you. I don'tattempt to even the account on your unfeeling body, but on your soul, which I know how to torture. For this last insult, as well as for ahundred former injuries, I shall wreak ample revenge on Blanka Zboroy, before your own turn comes. "

"Do not count too confidently on that, " rejoined Manasseh. "The momentyour ruffian crew break into our house, two women will put their pistolsto each other's hearts, and your men will find only a couple of deadbodies. "

"Ha, ha! To deprive you of even this last consolation, I beg to assureyou that the two women will not lay a finger on their pistols, becauseZenobia is to gain entrance to them before the men appear. She will cometo them in the guise of a friend and deliverer, promising to rescue themfor Jonathan's sake. She will furnish them Wallachian peasant clothes, help them about their disguise, and, amidst the general confusion, bringthem away with her, alive and unharmed, to St. George, so that you willhave the pleasure of seeing Blanka Zboroy in my power. Further details Iwill leave to your own imagination; and to enable you to pursue thesepleasant fancies undisturbed I will now say good night. "

"Manasseh!" called a voice from the darkness, when Diurbanu had gone. 

"Who calls? Or is it only a rat?" Manasseh had forgotten that hisdungeon contained another prisoner beside himself. 

"Yes, it's a rat, " answered the voice. "I heard my schoolmaster tell astory once about a lion that fell into a snare, and a mouse came andgnawed the ropes so as to set him free. If you will bend down here I'lluntie your knots with my teeth. "

Manasseh complied. The gipsy had splendid teeth, and he bit and tuggedat the knots until the prisoner's hands were free, and he felt himselfanother man altogether. 

"Now pull this stake out from under my knees, " directed the fiddler, whose hands were tied together and passed over his bent knees, wherethey were held fast by a stick of wood. His legs being freed, he slippedthe cords from his hands like a pair of gloves. He was no little elatedover his achievements. "And now we will sell our lives dear!" he cried, with a glad leap into the air. 

The rattle of small arms in the distance began to be heard, and throughthe little opening over the iron door a ruddy light as from a firebecame visible. At first Manasseh thought some one was coming again witha torch; but as the iron door did not open, and the red light grewconstantly brighter, he finally guessed the cause of the illumination. Those who were now assaulting Toroczko must have set fire to St. Georgefirst, to furnish the people of the former place an example of what theywere themselves to expect, and perhaps also to supply a light for theattacking party. The whole village was in flames. So it appeared thatDiurbanu's words had conveyed no empty threat. The work of revenge hadbegun with St. George, and now came Toroczko's turn. That the latterplace was offering a spirited resistance could be inferred from thelively firing that was to be plainly heard. But how would it be when theattack in the rear should begin, from the direction of the SzeklerStone? Could Aaron and his forty men offer any effectual opposition tothe invaders?

Night must have fallen ere this. Manasseh paced his prison cell inalmost unbearable impatience, as he listened to the distant firing, andwatched the red glow over the door growing gradually brighter. A heavybooming as of cannon was heard from the Szekler Stone. So the attack inthat quarter had begun, and Aaron's battery was at work. Zenobia must beleading the enemy into the town, for surely no means at Aaron's commandcould repulse the assaulting party. 

Manasseh was fast losing all self-control. "I will find a way out ofthis!" he cried, in a frenzy. 

Running to the door, he seized its iron ring and shook the heavy portalin impotent fury. Then he turned back and surveyed his place ofconfinement with searching eyes. It was now fairly well lighted by theruddy glare that came through the air-hole. The place had formerly beena wine cellar, but every cask and barrel was now gone. The support onwhich they had rested, however, remained behind. This was a massive oakbeam which had served to keep the wine casks from the damp earthen floorof the cellar. 

"Lanyi, " commanded Manasseh, in quick, energetic tones, "take hold ofone end of this beam, and we will batter the door down. "

"I'm your man!" responded the gipsy, with alacrity. He was small ofperson, but every sinew in his wiry frame was of steel. He grasped thebeam behind while Manasseh carried the forward end, and so theyconverted it into a Roman battering-ram. 

The booming of cannon was drowned now by the pounding on the iron door. The two prisoners wondered that no one in the house seemed to hear them. But those who might before have heard were engaged elsewhere, while tothose outside the noises in the street drowned all tumult in the cellar. 

At length the lock gave way under the tremendous battering to which itwas subjected, and soon the door flew open. The outer door was of wood, and yielded readily. 

"Hold on, stand back!" cried the gipsy, as Manasseh was about to run upthe stairs. "Wait until I take a peep and see if the coast is clear. I'll mayhap find a gun that some one has thrown down. "

"But I can't wait, " returned the other, brushing him aside. "I need nogun. The first man that dares get in my way shall furnish me with arms. I am going to seek my wife! Let him who values his life run from beforeme!"

He burst through the door, and sprang up the steps. No sooner was he inthe open air than an armed figure confronted him. But Manasseh did notstrike down this person, for it was a woman, --Zenobia. A dirk and abrace of pistols were stuck in her belt. 

"Take care!" she cried to Manasseh, and she made as if to shield himfrom view with her cloak. "Stay where you are!"

But Manasseh seized her by the wrist and shouted hoarsely in her ear:

"Where are my wife and sister?"

Zenobia understood his tone and the frenzy with which he grasped herarm. With a sad smile she made answer:

"Calm yourself. They are well cared for. They are at home in their ownhouse, where no one can harm them. "

He looked at her, in doubt as to her meaning. Zenobia handed him herweapons. 

"Here, take these, " she commanded. "You may need them. I have no furtheruse for them. " Thus, disarmed and in Manasseh's power, she stood calmlybefore him. "Now be quiet and listen to me, " she went on. 

The cannon thundered on the Szekler Stone in one continuous roar, whilefiery rockets shot from Hidas Peak in a wide curve and fell into thevalley below, hastening the mad flight of routed and panic-stricken men, who fled as if for their lives to Gyertyamos, Kapolna, and Bedellö, tothe woods, and into the mountain defiles. The burning village of St. George no longer offered them an asylum, and its streets were by thistime nearly deserted. 

"That is over, " said the Wallachian girl, calmly, and she led Manassehinto the empty house. "Aaron might as well stop now, " she murmured toherself; "for there are no more to frighten. " Then to Manasseh: "Youknow it takes two to get up a scare, --one to do the frightening and theother to be frightened. If I had but said to our men, 'Stop runningaway! Those are not the brass cannon of the national guard, but onlyAaron Adorjan's holes in the side of the rock, where he is harmlesslyexploding gunpowder; and that roll of drums that you hear on the Csegezroad does not mean an approaching brigade of Hungarians, but is only theidle rub-a-dub of a band of school children, '--if I had said that, Toroczko would now lie in ashes. But I held my tongue and let the panicdo its work. With this day's rout all is ended, and in an hour's timeyou can safely return home. When you meet your wife and sister, tellthem you saw me this evening, and let them know that the Wallachian girlhas forgotten nothing--do you hear me?--nothing. They wrote me abeautiful letter, both of them on one sheet of paper, a letter full oflove and kindness. They called me sister and invited me to your wedding, promising me that Jonathan should be there, too, and making me promiseto come. And when they had written the letter they even coaxed thestiff-necked Aaron, who hates us Wallachians like poison, to add hissignature to it, though I could see in the very way he wrote his namehow he disliked to do it. I promised to come, and I kept my word. AndJonathan came with me--I brought him. That night I told your wife andyour sister that I should come to Toroczko once more, and not with emptyhands, but should bring them something. I have come, and I bringthem--you, Manasseh, alive and unharmed. That is how a Wallachian girlremembers a kindness. "

She turned to go, but then, as if remembering something, came back anddrew a ring from her finger. 

"Here, " said she, "I will give you this ring. Do you remember it?"

"It belonged to my sister, " answered Manasseh, in a tone of sadness. "Ibought it for her to give to her lover as an engagement ring. Soonafterward he deserted her. "

"I know it. Her name is engraved inside the ring. The pretty fellow whogave it me told me all about it. He said to me: 'My pearl, myturtledove, my diamond, see here, I place this ring on your finger andswear to be true to you. But I can't marry you as long as that otherwoman lives who wears my betrothal ring, for our laws forbid it. Thatwoman dwells in the big house at Toroczko. You know her name and knowwhat to do to enable me to marry you. '"

Manasseh trembled with suppressed passion as he listened. The girlhanded him the ring and proceeded:

"Give her back her ring; it belongs to her. And tell me, did not thisman come to you and tell you how a shameless creature in woman's formwas to steal into your house, and, under the pretext of rescuing yourwife and sister, lead them away to misery and dishonour? Speak, did henot tell you some such story?"

"Yes, he did. "

Zenobia laughed in hot anger and scorn. "Well, then, " said she, inconclusion, "I have another present for you. The proverb says, 'Littlekindnesses strengthen the bonds of friendship. ' And this will be thesmallest of gifts I could possibly make you. The handsome young man whogave me this ring, and is betrothed to me--or thinks he is--liessomewhere yonder in a ditch. His horse took fright at the tumult, andthrew him so that he broke his ankle. His fleeing troops left him lyingthere; they stumbled over him and ran on; no one offered to help him up. They all hate him, and they see in his fall a punishment from Heaven. The Wallachian fears to lend aid to him that is thought to lie underGod's displeasure. The fallen man's horse you will find in the church. Mount it and hasten back to Toroczko. As for the rider, you will do wellto hang him to the nearest tree. You have a gipsy here to help you. Andnow farewell. "

She blew a little whistle that hung at her neck, and a lad appearedleading two mountain ponies. Zenobia mounted one, waved a final adieu toManasseh, and rode away with her attendant toward Bedellö. 

"Come, sir, " said the gipsy, touching Manasseh's elbow, "let us setabout what she told us to do. You go into the church and get Diurbanu'shorse while I go and find the rider. You have two pistols and a dagger. What, don't you want them? Then give them to me. "

The fiddler was proud to find himself so well armed. He made a belt ofthe cords he had brought with him from the cellar, and stuck the weaponsinto it. 

"Now we must hurry, " he urged, "or the people will be coming back. "

While Manasseh made his way to the church, his companion hastened insearch of Diurbanu. The little man had sharp eyes and keen wits. Heconjectured that the fallen rider, with his broken leg, would avoid thedry harvest-fields, over which the fire was rapidly spreading, and wouldbe found in the moist ditch beside the road. Nor was he wrong in thissurmise. He was soon saluted in a voice that he recognised. 

"Gipsy, come here!"

"Not so fast, " the fiddler replied. "How do I know you won't shoot me?"

"I have nothing to shoot with. I am lying in the water, so that even ifI had my pistols the powder would be soaked through. "

"But what do you want of me?"

"I wish you to save my life. "

"And won't you have me locked up afterward?"

"If you will help me get away from here I'll make you a rich man. Youshall have a thousand florins. "

"If you had promised me less I should have believed you sooner. "

"But I will pay you the money now. Come, take me on your back and carryme away. "

"Where to?"

"Into the church yonder. "

The gipsy laughed aloud. "First do your swearing out here, then, " saidhe, "for no one may curse God in his house. But what will you do in thechurch?"

"I will wait while you run to Gyertyamos and hire a carriage for me. Youshall have a thousand florins, the driver the same, and for every hourbefore sunrise that you accomplish your errand you shall receive anextra hundred. "

"You won't see the sun rise, " muttered the fiddler to himself as heobeyed the other's directions. 

The burden proved not too heavy for the little man's back; he could havecarried him all the way to Gyertyamos, but the horse must obey hisrider, so into the church he went with him. 

"There, Manasseh, " he cried, in triumph, "there's our man!" And hedropped his burden on the stone floor. 

Diurbanu cried out with pain as he fell, then raised himself on oneelbow and met Manasseh's gaze. 

"Kill me and be done with it, " he muttered, in sullen despair. 

But Manasseh remained standing with folded arms before him. "No, Benjamin Vajdar, " said he, "you shall not die by my hand. He who killsCain is seven times cursed. My promise to an angel whom you would havedestroyed is your safeguard. I shall neither kill you myself nor let anyone else lay hands on you. You are to live many days yet and continuein the way you have begun, obeying the sinful impulses of your wickednature, and doing evil to those that have done nothing but good to you. You weigh upon our house like a curse, but it is God's will thus toprove and try our hearts. Fulfil your destiny, plot your wicked scheme'sagainst us, and then at last, broken, humbled, scorned of all the worldbeside, come back to us and sue for pity at the door of those to whomyou have shown no pity. God's will be done!"

Manasseh allowed himself to use no reproach, no word of withering scorn, in thus addressing his enemy. He even spoke in German, to spare thefallen man's shame in the gipsy's presence. He had the horse inreadiness for its master, and bade the fiddler help him lift the injuredrider into the saddle and tie him there with ropes to ensure him againsta second fall, especially as one foot was now unfit for the stirrup. 

"Aha!" cried the little gipsy, "a good idea! We'll take him alive andshow him off in Toroczko. "

The fires in the village made the spirited horse restive and hard tomanage. Manasseh took him by the bridle and led him out of the church, the gipsy following at the animal's heels. 

"Turn to the right and begone!" whispered Manasseh to the rider, and hecaused the horse to make a sudden spring to one side. 

"Oh, he's got away!" cried the gipsy, in great chagrin. "Why didn't youlet me take the bridle? Catch me bringing you another thousand-florinprize, to be thrown away like that!"

"Never mind, my lad. From this day on you shall find a full trencheralways ready for you at our house. But now let us start for home. "

 * * * * *

Six weeks later Benjamin Vajdar made his reappearance in Vienna, the netresult of his expedition to Transylvania being, first, a heavy draft onthe bank-account of his chief, and, second, a limping gait for himself, which proved a sad affliction to him on the dancing-floor. 

CHAPTER XXIV. 

A CRUEL PARTING. 

At the close of the war the young men of Toroczko who had served in thenational guard returned home and resumed their work in the mines andiron foundries. The mining classes had always been exempt from militaryservice in the imperial army, and so the Toroczko young men had no fearof being soon called away again from their peaceful industry. 

Out of these young artisans Manasseh set about forming a guild for thebetter working of the Toroczko mines. He wished to make intelligent andskilful mining engineers of them, and so enable them to availthemselves, more fully than they had yet done, of the mineral resourcesof their native hills. And having now had some experience of militarydiscipline, these young men offered him material of no mean order forhis experiment. They seconded his efforts with a will, reposing theutmost confidence in their leader, and perceiving that he knewthoroughly what he was undertaking. 

It was a great piece of good fortune for Manasseh that he had a partnerin his enterprise who was in fullest sympathy with him, and in whom hecould place the utmost trust. This partner kept the accounts of thebusiness in which the two had invested their all, and showed the keenestintelligence and the most watchful vigilance in guarding their jointinterests. This expert accountant and able manager was none other thanManasseh's wife. In the third year of her marriage, however, she hadsomething else to engage her attention beside iron-mining: in that yearthe house of Adorjan was increased by the birth of twins, --Bela andIlonka, the former a likeness in miniature of his father, and the lattera second Blanka. But their aunt Anna insisted on sharing the mother'scares, and soon she assumed almost entire charge of the little ones, thus enabling Blanka to resume her business duties. 

In this way everything was running smoothly, when one evening there camea government order requiring all men between certain ages to reportwithin three days at Karlsburg for military service; any who refusedwould be treated as deserters. Three quarters of Manasseh's workmen cameunder the terms of this order; but they promptly obeyed and went toKarlsburg, where, after being found physically qualified, they wereenrolled for six years' service, --three extra years being added to theusual term because they had neglected to report voluntarily. 

This was a hard blow to Manasseh's enterprise. He resolved to go toVienna and petition for the exemption of his employees from militaryduty, claiming for them the miners' privileges which they had enjoyedhitherto. 

Well acquainted though he had been in government circles in the past, Manasseh now found everything changed and scarcely a familiar face left. Like the veriest stranger, he was forced to wait with the crowd of otherpetitioners in the war minister's anteroom until his turn should come. Much to his surprise, however, the great man's door suddenly opened andPrince Cagliari advanced to meet him with a face all smiles and words ofhoney on his lips. 

"Ah, my dear friend, how glad I am to see you!" began the prince. "Allwell at home? That's good. And what brings you hither, may I ask? Youcome on behalf of your countrymen who were recently drafted? Ah, yes. "(Then in a whispered aside: "We'll soon arrange that; a word from mewill suffice. ") Again aloud: "A very difficult matter, sir, verydifficult indeed! These recent complications in the Orient compel us toraise our army to its highest effective strength. " (Once more in awhisper, with a stealthy pressure of the hand: "Pray give yourself notthe slightest concern. I'll speak to his Excellency about it this veryminute. ")

Manasseh was by no means pleased at finding himself placed underobligations to Prince Cagliari, but he could not well refuse such agracious offer of assistance. Accordingly, when the prince returned andsmilingly informed him that he had put the petition in the minister'shands, and obtained a promise that it should be speedily taken underfavourable consideration, Manasseh forced himself to smile in return andto express his acknowledgments to his intercessor as he took leave ofhim. 

The petition was, in fact, taken under early advisement, and three daysafter Manasseh's return to Toroczko he was summoned to Karlsburg tolearn the issue. 

"Your memorial has reached us from Vienna with a refusal, " was thechilling announcement that greeted him. 

"Impossible!" cried Manasseh, in astonishment. "I was promised afavourable answer. "

The government official only shrugged his shoulders and laughed. 

"On what ground is the petition rejected?" asked Manasseh. 

"On the ground that those for whom you petition forfeited theirprivileges as miners by taking up arms in '48. Having taken them uponce, they cannot refuse to do so a second time. "

Manasseh's bitter reflections were somewhat sweetened by the thoughtthat, after all, he was not in any way indebted to Prince Cagliari. Buthe owed him more than he suspected. As he was turning to go, thegovernment official detained him a moment longer. 

"I hope, " said he, as if by way of a casual remark, "that your ownexemption from service is a matter of no uncertainty. "

"My own exemption!" repeated Manasseh, in amazement. It had not onceoccurred to him that he, a former government councillor, might bedrafted into the army. But he controlled his indignation at what seemedan ill-timed jest, and added, calmly: "At any rate, I cannot be chargedwith having forfeited my rights as a miner by taking up arms in 1848. "

"That remains to be seen, " was the cool reply. Then, after some searchamong his papers, the official produced a document from which he read asfollows: "'Mr. Manasseh Adorjan is alleged, on unquestionable authority, to have participated in the fight at St. George and Toroczko. In fact, he with his own hands took General Diurbanu prisoner and bound him witha rope to his horse. Only the animal's impatience of control saved therider and secured him his freedom. '"

After listening to this astounding accusation against him, Manassehrecognised that he was far more deeply in Cagliari's debt than he hadsupposed. 

 * * * * *

"I have accomplished my mission in brilliant style, " was his report whenhe reached home. "Not only my workmen are drafted, but I also along withthem. "

The women were struck with consternation, but Aaron burst out laughing. 

"Oh, you poor innocent!" he cried, "how can you be a soldier with oneshoulder six inches higher than the other?"

"What, am I really so misshapen as that?" asked Manasseh, in surprise. 

"To be sure, or at least you can make yourself so for the nonce. Don'tyou remember how our neighbour Methuselah's grandson went limping aboutwith one leg longer than the other, when the recruiting officer washere?"

"Methuselah's grandson may do that kind of thing, " answered Manasseh, "but not an Adorjan. I can't practise any deceit of that sort. "

"Deceit!" cried Aaron; "we are deceiving no one--only the government. "

"And is the government no one?" asked his brother. 

"Well, it's all right to outwit the Austrians, " muttered Aaron. 

"I don't agree with you, " was all Manasseh could say. "If I am orderedto march I shall obey. My poor lads are obliged to exchange the pick forthe rifle, and shall I, their master, shirk my duty?"

"Manasseh is right, " declared Anna. "What will do for a grandson ofMethuselah will not do for an Adorjan. When an Adorjan's name is calledhe must answer to it like a man. Our brother will be the pride of hisregiment, and will soon rise to be an officer; then he can obtain hisdischarge and come home. "

Manasseh pressed his sister's hand in gratitude for these words ofcourage and good cheer. 

"Yes, but suppose he has to go to war?" objected Blanka. 

"Never fear, " returned her husband. "Even if Austria becomes involved inthe present dispute, the Hungarian regiments are not likely to be sentto the front. They will be stationed in Lombardy, where all is as quietas possible. "

"Then I will go with you, " said Blanka, brightening up. 

"No, you must stay with us, " Anna interposed. "You and the children arebest cared for here, and, besides, if Manasseh goes away you will haveto look after the iron works. New hands are to be engaged, and ever somuch is to be done all over again. How can you think of leaving us inthe lurch? There will be no one but you to manage things; you alone candirect the works and put bread into our poor people's mouths. "

"Ah, me!" sighed the distressed wife; "and must I live perhaps a wholeyear without seeing Manasseh--a whole autumn, winter, spring, andsummer?"

Anna's eyes filled with tears and a sigh escaped her lips. How many aseason had she seen pass, without hope and without complaint! Blankaknew the meaning of those tears, and she hastened to kiss them away. 

And so it came about that the Toroczko young men, and Manasseh withthem, were sent off to Lombardy. Thence every month came a letter toToroczko, to Blanka Adorjan, from her devoted husband. The very firstone told her how he had risen from private to corporal and then fromcorporal to sergeant. But there he stuck. On parting with his wife, hehad consoled her with the confident assurance that in a year, at most, she would see him return; but the year lengthened into five. Little Belano longer sent meaningless scrawls to his father, but wrote shortletters in a round, clear hand, and even added verses on his father'sbirthday. But not a single furlough could that father obtain to go homeand see his dear ones. Nor did he gain his long-expected promotion to alieutenancy. The colonel of the regiment wrote letters with his ownhand to Blanka, praising her husband and telling her how he was lookedup to by all his comrades and esteemed by his officers; and yet he couldnot secure his promotion. Even the commandant at Verona had intercededfor him in vain. He must have a powerful enemy who pursued him withrelentless persistence. 

Blanka well knew who that enemy was, but she took no steps--for she feltthat they would have been useless--to try to soften him. Her family wereunited in opposing any suggestion on her part of undertaking a journey. She did not even venture to visit her husband in Verona. An instinct, aforeboding, and also certain timely warnings, kept her safe at home. 

This long period of trial and suspense was not without its chasteningeffect on the young wife's character. It developed her as only sternexperience can. On her shoulders alone rested the cares which herhusband had formerly shared with her. The iron works were now under hersole management. Foresight, vigilance, and technical knowledge werecalled for, and nobly did she meet the demand. 

Those five years brought her many a difficult problem to solve and manyan anxious hour. Once a hail-storm destroyed all her crops two daysbefore the harvest, and she was forced to buy grain from her own purse. Again it happened that the crop of iron itself was ruined by somethingfar worse than hail. Some one at Vienna dealt a mortal blow to all theiron mines in the land with a single drop of ink. He lowered the tariff, and native iron production thenceforth could go on only at a loss. ButBlanka was determined not to close her mines and her foundries. Sherecognised the hand that had dealt her this severe blow, but she knewthe harsh decree would have to be repealed before long, such an outcrywas sure to go up against it. So she pawned her jewels, kept all her menat work, --they seconded her efforts nobly by volunteering to take lessthan full pay, --and wrote nothing at all about her troubles toManasseh. 

CHAPTER XXV. 

SECRETS OF THE COMMISSARIAT. 

The mysterious workings of the commissary department are beyond theunderstanding of ordinary mortals. Therefore let it suffice us to takeonly a passing glance at those mysteries. 

Benjamin Vajdar was enjoying a tête-à-tête with the MarchionessCaldariva after the theatre. 

"Well, what has my cripple to report of his day's doings?" asked Rozina. "Is all going well in Italy?"

"We signed a contract to-day for supplying our army there with fortythousand cattle, " was Vajdar's reply. 

"Ah, that will make about two hundredweight of beef to a man, " returnedthe other, reckoning on her fingers. 

"Not an ounce of which will ever reach them, " said the secretary, with asmile; "but we shall make a couple of millions out of thetransaction, --a mere bagatelle for Papa Cagliari, however; not enough tokeep him in champagne. "

"A very clever stroke of yours, " commented the marchioness, withapproval; "and I can tell you of another little operation the prince hasin hand just now. Bring me the morocco pocketbook out of mywriting-desk, please. "

Vajdar limped across the room and brought the pocketbook. Rozina openedit and drew forth an official-looking document. 

"Here is a contract for so and so many bushels of grain to be furnishedto the army. You see it foots up a large sum, but the profits won't beso very great, after all, owing to the recent rise in prices on the cornexchange. "

"Oh, don't worry about that, " interposed Benjamin, with a knowing smile. "Who will ever know the difference if a quarter part of the total weightis chaff and clay? It will all grind up into excellent flour, and whenthe soldier eats his barley bread or his rye loaf it will taste all thebetter to him. There is nearly half a million florins' clear profit inthe transaction, at a moderate estimate. "

"Ha, ha, ha!" laughed the beautiful Cyrene. "So the soldiers must eathalf a million florins' worth of chaff and clay to enable Papa Cagliarito take his morning bath in champagne. "

"Well, what of that? It makes, at most, only two florins' worth to aman, and the soldier who loves his country ought to be glad to eat twoflorins' worth of her soil. Has the prince any other contract underconsideration?"

"Yes, a very important one. He has procured an order that the troops inItaly shall wear for their summer uniform cotton blouses instead oflinen, and he has the contract for furnishing the material. "

"But the prices named here are very low, " objected Vajdar, reading fromthe paper Rozina had handed him. 

"Ah, but let me explain. The cotton is to be thirty inches wide, with soand so many threads to the warp--according to the specifications. Butwhat soldier will ever think of counting the threads in his blouse, orknow whether it was cut from goods thirty inches wide or twenty-eight?So, you see, with a little trimming here and a little paring there wecan make a good hundred thousand florins out of the job. "

"But are our tracks well covered? Is there no risk in all this?"

"Fear nothing. There are eyeglasses that blind the sharpest of eyes. "

"How if there are some eyes that will not be fitted with these glasses?"

"Again I say, never fear. A victorious campaign covers a multitude ofsins. "

"And a lost one brings everything to light. "

"Not at all. A slaughtered army tells no tales. But, by the way, is notour Toroczko friend among those who are likely enough to fall some daybefore the French and Italians?"

"He is still in Lombardy, " said Vajdar, with a significant nod of thehead. "We have our eyes on him. "

"I am curious to know what this apostle of peace will do when he isordered into battle. You know, he and his comrades are Unitarians andentertain scruples against shedding blood, except in defence of home andcountry. Will Manasseh Adorjan fight when he is ordered to, or throwdown his arms?"

"In either case, he will die, " declared Benjamin Vajdar. 

"I should prefer to have him only wounded, " said the marchioness. "Thenhis mate would leave her nest in the mountains and hasten to nurse himin the hospital; and contagious diseases are not uncommon in militaryhospitals, where both patients and nurses are often swept off bythem--so quickly, too, that no one thinks of inquiring very closely intothe matter. "

"You are impatient, marchioness, " commented the secretary. 

"And you choose to remark upon it because I would have the prince awidower and a free man?"

With that the fair Cyrene nestled close at her fellow-conspirator'sside, and proceeded to caress him and to murmur soft words in his ear. 

And so the night sped, and the first peep of dawn overtook the twobefore they separated. 

CHAPTER XXVI. 

SOLFERINO. 

One of the most momentous battles in history was in progress, and thebattalion in which Manasseh Adorjan still served as a sergeant stoodfrom early morning until afternoon among the reserves, watching thefight. 

Leaning on his gun, Manasseh thoughtfully observed the transformation ofthat earthly paradise into a scene of slaughter. He thought how, intimes of peace, the cry of a single human being in distress would callready succour and excite the warmest sympathy; but now, when men weredying by thousands, their fellows looked on in the coldest indifference. He asked himself whether this fearful state of things, this deplorablesacrifice of a country's best and bravest sons, was a necessity, andmust still go on for ages to come. And while he thus communed withhimself he, too, held in his hands a weapon calculated to carry not onlydeath to a valiant foe, but also sorrow and anguish to that foeman'swife and mother, and perhaps destitution to his family. 

To the north of the fortress of Solferino rose a wooded height, sinceknown to the historians of that battle as Cypress Hill, anddistinguished as the point around which the conflict raged mostfiercely. Occupied alternately by each side, the opposing batteriesstormed it in succession, and the squadrons, now of one army, now of theother, marched up to assault it. But though they marched up, Manassehsaw none of them return. Austrians, French, and Italians, all seemed tobe swallowed up alike in that maelstrom of blood and fire. 

At four o'clock in the afternoon the battle was at its height. In theheat of the conflict one could see uniforms of all three armies mingledin inextricable confusion. The Austrian forces were at last becomingexhausted with toil and hunger. Whole regiments were there that had nottasted meat for a week--where were those forty thousand cattle?--and thebread dealt out to them was ill-baked, mouldy, gritty, and altogetherunfit to eat. 

A final and concentrated effort was determined upon. Reserves to thefront! Cypress Hill was to be stormed once more. A battalion of yagers, the pride of the Austrian army, charged up the fatal hill and succeededin taking it, after which the rattle of musketry beyond announced thatthe fight was being continued on the farther side. 

At this point Manasseh's battalion was ordered to hold the hill whilethe yagers were pushed farther forward. The order was obeyed, and thenManasseh learned what the cypress-crowned height really was: it was acemetery, the burial-ground of the surrounding district, and eachcypress marked a grave. But the dead under the sod lay not more closelypacked than the fallen soldiers with whose bodies the place was covered. Cypress Hill was a double graveyard, heaped with dead and dyingFrenchmen, Italians, Austrians, Hungarians, Poles, and Croatians, theirbodies disfigured and bleeding and heaped in chaotic confusion over themounds beneath which slept the regular occupants of the place. 

In the soldier's march to glory each step is a human corpse. Manassehtook care to step over and between the prostrate forms before him. Gaining the summit of the hill, he had an open view of the prospectbeyond. A large farm, since known to history as the _Madonna dellaScoperta_, lay before him. A high terrace facing the hill had beenconverted by the enemy into a fortress, which commanded the cemetery, and which the yagers were now pressing forward to take. The charge wasgallantly led, but after a fierce struggle, in which the assailantsexhausted their ammunition, and the engagement became a hand-to-handfight, the Austrians were driven back in confusion. 

Manasseh's battalion was then commanded to charge the terrace, fromwhich the enemy's battery was dealing such deadly destruction, and tocapture and hold the _Madonna della Scoperta_. The major gave thenecessary orders, but it was to Manasseh that every eye was turned atthis critical moment. Had he but shaken his head the whole battalionwould have stood still and refused to advance a step. If he said theword, however, his comrades would follow him, and attempt theimpossible. 

Manasseh looked up at the clouded heavens above, and breathed a sigh. The hour had come when he must bow before the iron will of destiny. He, the apostle of peace, must plunge into the midst of bloody strife. "Thywill be done!" he murmured, then advanced to the front of the battalion, and turned to address his comrades. 

"Forward!"

They obeyed him with alacrity, singing as they advanced, "A mightyfortress is our God, " and so began the assault. 

Not a shot was fired as they pushed forward at double-quick in the faceof a murderous artillery discharge from the terrace above. Gaining thefoot of the scarp, they planted their bayonets in the earthern wall, andso mounted the rampart, those behind helping up those in front. As theysang the last stanza of their hymn, the _Madonna della Scoperta_ wastaken--without the firing of a single shot. The major of the battalionwas beside himself with pride and exultation. He embraced Manasseh, andkissed him on both cheeks. 

"To-morrow will see you an officer with a medal of honour on yourbreast, " was his confident prediction. 

Manasseh smiled sadly. He knew better than the other what to expect. 

Meanwhile the enemy had not given up the fight. The terrace, theyperceived, must be retaken, and a detachment of French troops wasadvancing to storm it. 

"Let them come on!" cried the major, confidently. "We can handle them, ten to one. Give them a volley, my lads!"

But this time Manasseh shook his head, whereupon the whole battaliongrounded arms. 

"What do you mean?" exclaimed the major, astounded. 

Manasseh raised his hand to heaven. "_Egy az Isten!_" he cried, and allhis comrades followed his example. 

"What do you say?" asked the bewildered officer. 

"We swear by the God who has said 'Thou shalt not kill!'" was Manasseh'sreply. 

"But you are soldiers, and on the battle-field. "

"We do our duty, we go whither we are ordered, and we can die if wemust; but we will not take human life except in defence of our homesand our fatherland. "

"But, man, the enemy will kill you. "

"So be it. "

The commander threatened, begged, wept--all in vain. The only reply was, "_Egy az Isten!_" The men were willing to discharge their pieces ifnecessary, but it would only be a waste of ammunition: they would fireinto the air. 

Troops were now rapidly moving on the threatened position from twodirections, one party to assault, the other to defend. Fearful slaughterseemed imminent, and nothing was left for those who had so gallantlycarried the terrace but to die where they stood. Suddenly, however, athird power took a hand in the fray, and smote both assailants anddefenders with equal fury. The black clouds that had been gathering overthe battle-field opened and began such a cannonade as neither side couldwithstand. Wind, hail, lightning, and thunder, accompanied by an ominousdarkness in which friend was indistinguishable from foe, played suchhavoc with the puny combatants and their mimic artillery, that all wereforced to seek shelter and safety from the angry elements. Thus neitherside was left in possession of the field, but a third and a mightierpower than either claimed the victory in that day's fight. 

Manasseh and his comrades fled with the rest before the fury of thestorm. They succeeded in gaining a sheltered position where they foundcampfires burning, and thought themselves among friends. But they weremistaken. They had stumbled in the darkness upon the enemy's camp. 

CHAPTER XXVII. 

AN HOUR OF TRIAL. 

Manasseh and those with him were taken prisoners and sent to Bresci. What befell them there is matter of history. Adorjan was surprised onemorning by the receipt of the following: a coffee-coloured uniform, trimmed with red cord and its collar adorned with gold lace; a handsomesword in a gold-mounted scabbard; and an official document from theItalian war office, appointing him major of the battalion with which hehad been taken prisoner. 

The sight of these most unexpected presents could not but thrillManasseh with pride and exultation. Now at last it was in his power towreak vengeance on those who had so grievously wronged him, --to cut hisway, sword in hand, back to his downtrodden fatherland, perhaps even toexact a rich retribution at the oppressor's hands, and to restore hiscountry once more to a position of proud independence. Added to allthis, the seductive picture of future fame, of undying renown as apatriot and liberator, rose before his vision. Already, as hero of the_Madonna della Scoperta_, he had tasted the intoxication of martialglory. A strength and self-denial more than human seemed necessary if hewould turn his back coldly on the splendid prospect that opened beforehim as his country's avenger and deliverer. What words can do justice tothe conflicting emotions which Manasseh experienced in that hour oftrial? His comrades in arms and many of his dearest friends, he feltconvinced, would turn upon him with mockery and reviling if he shouldnow still cling to his principles and refuse to disobey the commandmentof his God, --"Thou shalt not kill. "

In Italy every house has its image of the crucified Saviour. Manassehstood now before one of these crucifixes, lost in troubled thought. ToJesus, too, the people had cried: "Be our general, lead us against theRomans, free your nation!" And he had answered them: "I will lead you toa heavenly kingdom, and will free all mankind. " Then he was heaped withscorn and abuse, was scourged by the Roman lictors, and was finallydragged before Pontius Pilate and crucified. But not the scourging, notthe crown of thorns, or the cruel nails, or the spear of Longinus, --noneof these was the really hard thing to bear. A man may suffer theseverest physical torture and still utter no cry. The cruelest of allwas the scornful laughter of those to whom he had brought salvation andeternal life, the blame of his fellow-citizens for whom he so freelyshed his life's blood. That was what only a man of divine nobility andcourage could endure. 

"I am but mortal!" cried the tempted man, in anguish. "I cannot attainunto such heights. " And he buckled on his gold-mounted sword. 

The crucified form, however, seemed to turn its eyes upon him in mildreproof and gentle encouragement. "I will lend you my aid, " it seemed tosay to him. 

But Manasseh hastened from the room and turned his steps toward thecommandant's quarters. Perturbed in mind and hardly master of himself, he started at the rattle of his own sword; and when some of his comradessaw him pass and cheered him with loud hurrahs, he hurried by and barelyreturned their salute. 

The general received him in his breakfast-room, where he was engagedwith his morning mail. Acknowledging Manasseh's greeting, he handed himan open letter. The Hungarian took it and read as follows:

 "Villafranca. Peace has been concluded. The Hungarian battalion is to be disbanded, and its members allowed to return home. "

This room, too, had its crucifix. It seemed to look down on Manassehwith the same gentle reproof, and to say, "Have I failed you in yourhour of trial?"

With the first ripening of the fruit in the Toroczko orchards, Manassehand his comrades were at home. Blanka came to meet her husband as far asKolozsvar, bringing her little daughter Ilonka with her. Bela could notcome, as he had just then a school examination. At the Borev bridge asplendid reception awaited the home-comers. A handsome little lad headedthe receiving party, waving a flag. 

"Who is that pretty boy?" Manasseh asked his wife. 

She laughed merrily, and rebuked him for not knowing his own son. But hehad not seen the child for six years. 

His brother Aaron, too, he hardly recognised, so gray had his hairturned under the anxieties of the past few years. The speech of welcomewhich the elder brother was to have delivered proved a total failure, owing to the emotion aroused in the orator's breast at sight of thereturned wanderer. But the most affecting part of it all to Manasseh wasthe appearance of his sister Anna. The poor girl, he could not fail tosee, was sinking into an early grave. 

CHAPTER XXVIII. 

A DAY OF RECKONING. 

Victory had neither glossed over nor defeat buried from sight thosedishonest army contracts. Louder and louder grew the murmurs against thefraud that had contributed so disastrously to the unhappy issue of thewar, until at last a high military officer opened his mouth anddeclared, emphatically, "The parties responsible for such an outragedeserve to be hanged!"

Soon after this bold utterance a decree went forth for an investigationof the scandal and the condign punishment of the guilty ones. Confusionand panic followed in more than one family of exalted station. Anobleman of proud lineage burnt all his papers and then opened the veinsof his wrists with a penknife, and so escaped the ignominy of a trial incourt. Another submitted to arrest, but no sooner saw his prison doorclosed upon him than he despatched himself by piercing his heart with abreast-pin. Two others vanished completely from sight and hearing thevery day the edict was published, and never showed themselves afterward. 

Benjamin Vajdar, black with guilt as he knew himself to be, chose theshrewder course of remaining in Vienna and calmly going about hisbusiness, with all the outward confidence of spotless innocence. Suspicion is much like a watch-dog; it leaps upon the man who quails. Prince Cagliari and the Marchioness Caldariva also remained quietly inthe city, and even went so far as to forego their wonted sojourn at theseashore when summer came. They seemed to have acquired a suddenextraordinary fondness for the Austrian capital. 

But one day the expected happened to Benjamin Vajdar. He was called tothe police bureau. The official who received him was an old friend ofhis who now gave signal proof of his friendliness. 

"Benjamin Vajdar, " said he, "you are ordered by the government to leaveVienna within twenty-four hours and go back to your native town, beyondwhich you are forbidden to stir. "

This mandate was a surprise to Vajdar, who had expected to be arrestedand tried, and had made his preparations accordingly. However, there wasnothing to do but submit to the inevitable. Further particulars orexplanations were denied him, except that he would find a special policeofficer placed at his service from that moment until he reached hisdestination, --which was a polite intimation that he was thenceforthunder government surveillance, and that any attempt at flight would befrustrated. 

He returned at once to his house, which adjoined that of the MarchionessCaldariva. Indeed, from his bedroom a secret passage, already referredto, led into Rozina's boudoir; but the clock-door had seldom opened tothe secretary of late. Toward seven o'clock in the evening he saw aclosed carriage drive away from the next door. 

"She is going to the opera, " said he to himself as he watched thevehicle turn a corner and disappear. He donned hat and coat andsauntered after it, the emissary of the police always ten steps in therear. Arrived at the opera-house, he purchased tickets for himself andhis faithful attendant, and then made his way to the box of themarchioness. 

Rozina received him with apparent cordiality and listened to hiswhispered account of what had befallen him. 

"Have you talked this over with Prince Cagliari?" she asked. 

"No, and I shall not, " replied Vajdar, with significant emphasis. "Thisis his doing. "

"What makes you think so, pray?" asked the marchioness, with an air ofsurprise. "Why should he plot the ruin of his own secretary andconfidant?"

"You yourself are the cause, " was the retort. 

The beautiful woman bent her head still nearer to him. Even her cruelheart felt the compliment conveyed in this acknowledgment of her power. "And what do you wish of me, my poor boy?" she murmured softly in hisear. 

"I wish an interview with you after the opera--a strictly confidentialinterview. "

"Very well. Come to me as soon as I get home, and I will admit you. "

"No; you shall not turn me away so easily, with an empty promise. "

"What, must I swear to you, then?"

"No, give me the little key, and I shall be sure of gaining admittance. "

"I am almost afraid to trust you with it, " objected the marchioness, with an arch look; "but still you shall have it--there! And now guard itwell, and be discreet. "

Vajdar kissed the hand extended to him and retired. The fair Cyreneturned again toward the stage and joined in the applause. One might havethought she was applauding the prima-donna; but no, she was applaudingherself. 

Benjamin Vajdar returned home, left the police officer quartered in hisantechamber, and, with his servant's aid, began packing his trunks. After that task was accomplished he waited impatiently for the close ofthe opera and Rozina's return. When his watch told him that he musthave waited long enough, he passed noiselessly through the secretpassage and opened the mysterious door in the tall clock at its fartherend. The marchioness was not there. One hour, two hours, he waited inher boudoir, and still she failed to appear. 

"Very well; so be it, " said Vajdar to himself. "You thought to outwitme; we shall see which will outwit the other. "

With that he opened the little writing-desk and took out themorocco-bound pocketbook which he seemed to know so well where to find. A single glance at its contents satisfied him that the papers he desiredwere still there. He quickly pocketed his prize and then paused to lookaround for the last time at the dainty appointments of the luxuriousapartment. 

"Adieu, beautiful Cyrene, adieu, for ever!" he murmured, a smile ofirony on his lips. 

Stealthily he had come, stealthily he withdrew. He did not take thetrouble to close the writing-desk, but he was careful to leave thelittle key sticking in the clock door, where its rightful owner would besure to see it. 

He found the police officer still awake and waiting for him. A cab wasquickly summoned, and the two started on their journey to Transylvania. 

When the Marchioness Caldariva entered her boudoir a little later, hereyes fell at once on her open writing-desk, and she perceived that themorocco pocketbook was gone. She laughed, but it was not a pleasantlaugh to hear. 

"Very good, " said she, half aloud; "you would have it so, and I am notto blame. "

 * * * * *

Anna Adorjan hovered on the brink of the grave. She had heard thatBenjamin Vajdar was charged with a penal offence, and she felt only toowell convinced that if such a charge had been brought against him hemust be guilty. If guilty, he would be sentenced to a term ofimprisonment, and she would never see him return to his old home as shehad once so confidently expected. She had nothing now to live for. Herdear brother Manasseh was restored to his family, and she was ready todie. 

"Brother, " she gently entreated, as she lay on her bed of pain, "if heshould by any chance ever come back to us, promise me to treat him asyou would if I were still here. You will promise me that, won't you?"

A silent nod of Manasseh's bowed head was her sufficient assurance thather slightest wish would be respected. 

"And even though he may never come back, I wish you to make myresting-place in the rocks large enough for two. Perhaps he will returnsometime, when he sees his life drawing to a close, and he may be gladto find a place ready for him by my side. You will do as I wish in thismatter, brother Manasseh, will you not?"

Another nod of the bowed head. 

 * * * * *

The prediction uttered by Manasseh, when his enemy lay in his power inthe desolate church at St. George, was completely fulfilled. Though hewould have infinitely preferred banishment to Siberia, Benjamin Vajdarwas forced to return to Toroczko, to the very house where he had beenreared, and there take up his abode as a state prisoner. The governmentmade him a pitiful allowance of three hundred florins a year, to keephim from starving. 

Thus it was, too, that Anna's words came true, and the man despised andrejected of all the world sought refuge in the house where he had beentenderly nurtured as a child. Thus did he return, vanquished in life'sbattle, to have his wounds bound by the hands of those he had sogrievously wronged, and to beg a place in that family circle into whichhe had done his utmost to bring sorrow and despair. 

Manasseh met the police officer at the door, and heard his announcementwith perfect composure. 

"We have no objection to raise, " said he, "against the decree of thegovernment. Benjamin Vajdar was formerly a member of our family, and sowe must provide for him. The state allowance of twenty-five florins amonth we beg leave to refuse. In our iron works there is a bookkeeper'sposition open to this man, and we shall ask him to assume its duties. Indeed, we shall ourselves probably be the gainers by this arrangement, as the keeping of our books has become too heavy a burden for my wife, and she will be glad to be relieved. But enough of this at present;to-morrow we will discuss the matter more at length. Meanwhile Mr. Vajdar is welcome to our house. "

Benjamin Vajdar's emotions can better be imagined than described. Tofind himself called upon to lighten Blanka Zboroy's duties and to livein constant sight of her happy home life, after all he had done in thevain attempt to spoil that life, was more than he had counted on. He bithis compressed lips till the blood ran. Opening the door of the chamberinto which he had been ushered, he hurried out to seek the freedom ofthe open air and to set his confused thoughts in order. On his way hisattention was caught by an unexpected sight. Through an open door he hada full view of a bier, on which rested a coffin, and in the latter, withhands folded on her bosom, lay the woman he had most cruelly wronged. Inthose clasped hands he saw a little picture wreathed in evergreen, --hisown likeness, which the dead girl had begged her family to bury withher. Now, if never before, the unhappy man saw what a wealth of love hehad cast aside, a love that, even in death caused by his base desertion, could forgive him his perfidy and carry his picture in a fond embracedown to the grave. As his guardian angel, she would bear it with her upto God's throne, and there plead his cause. Overcome at last by a floodof anguish and remorse, the guilty man cried aloud in his despair andfell prostrate beside the coffin, striking his head on its corner as hesank unconscious to the floor. 

Manasseh found him there and bore him back to his room. After puttinghim to bed and ministering to his wants, he went out with Aaron toprepare Anna's grave. 

"We must make it wide enough for two, " said he; "it was her wish. "

When, after several hours of hard work, the two brothers returned home, Manasseh went at once to his guest's room. Before his marriage thischamber had been occupied by him, and he still used it occasionally forwriting. In his absence Vajdar had risen and seated himself at the desk. Searching the drawer for writing-materials, he had come upon a sheet ofpaper yellow with age, and written upon in ink now much faded. Thedocument proved to be a promissory note, but the signature was soheavily scored through and through as to be hardly legible. BenjaminVajdar started violently as he took up the faded sheet and saw that theman whom he had so feared and hated had, by his own voluntary act, disarmed himself and put it out of his power to punish the fraudpractised upon him by his false friend. As if distrusting his ownconstancy and the binding force of his promise to his sister, Manassehhad, with a few strokes of his pen, rendered harmless what couldotherwise have been used as incriminating evidence against the forger. 

On entering the room, Manasseh detected a peculiar odour in the air. Benjamin Vajdar sat at the writing-desk, a morocco pocketbook openbefore him. A half-finished letter lay under the writer's hand, but hispen had ceased to move. His eyes met those of his host with a dullstare. 

"Don't come near me!" he cried, in warning. "Death is in this room!"

But Manasseh hurried to the window, threw it open, and then, snatchingup the pocketbook and the papers scattered over the desk, cast them allinto the fire that was burning on the hearth. Thus all the tell-taledocuments relating to certain fraudulent army contracts went up insmoke, but not before they had done their deadly work on one, at least, of the guilty men involved. Those papers had passed through the hands ofa second Lucretia Borgia, and not without reason had she applaudedherself that night at the opera when she permitted her dupe to extortfrom her the little key which she wore in her bosom. 

 * * * * *

Many years of untroubled peace and happiness for the Adorjan familyfollowed these events. The children and grandchildren born to Manassehand Blanka grew up to call them blessed, the labours of the Toroczkominers and iron-workers were prospered, and Heaven still smiles on thehumble homes of that happy valley. 

THE END.