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+Project Gutenberg's Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf, by George W. M. Reynolds
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever.  You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf
+
+Author: George W. M. Reynolds
+
+Release Date: November 8, 2008 [EBook #27202]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ASCII
+
+*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK WAGNER, THE WEHR-WOLF ***
+
+
+
+
+Produced by Barbara Tozier, Bill Tozier and the Online
+Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net
+
+
+
+
+
+                         WAGNER, THE WEHR-WOLF.
+
+
+                       By GEORGE W. M. REYNOLDS.
+
+
+                                NEW YORK
+                            HURST & COMPANY
+                               PUBLISHERS
+
+
+
+
+_PART I._
+
+
+
+
+PROLOGUE.
+
+
+It was the month of January, 1516.
+
+The night was dark and tempestuous; the thunder growled around; the
+lightning flashed at short intervals: and the wind swept furiously along
+in sudden and fitful gusts.
+
+The streams of the great Black Forest of Germany babbled in playful
+melody no more, but rushed on with deafening din, mingling their torrent
+roar with the wild creaking of the huge oaks, the rustling of the firs,
+the howling of the affrighted wolves, and the hollow voices of the
+storm.
+
+The dense black clouds were driving restlessly athwart the sky; and when
+the vivid lightning gleamed forth with rapid and eccentric glare, it
+seemed as if the dark jaws of some hideous monster, floating high above,
+opened to vomit flame.
+
+And as the abrupt but furious gusts of wind swept through the forest,
+they raised strange echoes--as if the impervious mazes of that mighty
+wood were the abode of hideous fiends and evil spirits, who responded in
+shrieks, moans, and lamentations to the fearful din of the tempest.
+
+It was, indeed, an appalling night!
+
+An old--old man sat in his cottage on the verge of the Black Forest.
+
+He had numbered ninety years; his head was completely bald--his mouth
+was toothless--his long beard was white as snow, and his limbs were
+feeble and trembling.
+
+He was alone in the world; his wife, his children, his grandchildren,
+all his relations, in fine, _save one_, had preceded him on that long,
+last voyage, from which no traveler returns.
+
+And that _one_ was a grand-daughter, a beauteous girl of sixteen, who
+had hitherto been his solace and his comfort, but who had suddenly
+disappeared--he knew not how--a few days previously to the time when we
+discover him seated thus lonely in his poor cottage.
+
+But perhaps she also was dead! An accident might have snatched her away
+from him, and sent her spirit to join those of her father and mother,
+her sisters and her brothers, whom a terrible pestilence--_the Black
+Death_--hurried to the tomb a few years before.
+
+No: the old man could not believe that his darling granddaughter was no
+more--for he had sought her throughout the neighboring district of the
+Black Forest, and not a trace of her was to be seen. Had she fallen down
+a precipice, or perished by the ruthless murderer's hand, he would have
+discovered her mangled corpse: had she become the prey of the ravenous
+wolves, certain signs of her fate would have doubtless somewhere
+appeared.
+
+The sad--the chilling conviction therefore, went to the old man's heart,
+that the only being left to solace him on earth, had deserted him; and
+his spirit was bowed down in despair.
+
+Who now would prepare his food, while he tended his little flock? who
+was there to collect the dry branches in the forest, for the winter's
+fuel, while the aged shepherd watched a few sheep that he possessed? who
+would now spin him warm clothing to protect his weak and trembling
+limbs?
+
+"Oh! Agnes," he murmured, in a tone indicative of a breaking heart, "why
+couldst thou have thus abandoned me? Didst thou quit the old man to
+follow some youthful lover, who will buoy thee up with bright hopes, and
+then deceive thee? O Agnes--my darling! hast thou left me to perish
+without a soul to close my eyes?"
+
+It was painful how that ancient shepherd wept.
+
+Suddenly a loud knock at the door of the cottage aroused him from his
+painful reverie; and he hastened, as fast as his trembling limbs would
+permit him, to answer the summons.
+
+He opened the door; and a tall man, apparently about forty years of age,
+entered the humble dwelling. His light hair would have been magnificent
+indeed, were it not sorely neglected; his blue eyes were naturally fine
+and intelligent, but fearful now to meet, so wild and wandering were
+their glances: his form was tall and admirably symmetrical, but
+prematurely bowed by the weight of sorrow, and his attire was of costly
+material, but indicative of inattention even more than it was
+travel-soiled.
+
+The old man closed the door, and courteously drew a stool near the fire
+for the stranger who had sought in his cottage a refuge against the fury
+of the storm.
+
+He also placed food before him; but the stranger touched it not--horror
+and dismay appearing to have taken possession of his soul.
+
+Suddenly the thunder which had hitherto growled at a distance, burst
+above the humble abode; and the wind swept by with so violent a gust,
+that it shook the little tenement to its foundation, and filled the
+neighboring forest with strange, unearthly noises.
+
+Then the countenance of the stranger expressed such ineffable horror,
+amounting to a fearful agony, that the old man was alarmed, and
+stretched out his hand to grasp a crucifix that hung over the
+chimney-piece; but his mysterious guest made a forbidding sign of so
+much earnestness mingled with such proud authority, that the aged
+shepherd sank back into his seat without touching the sacred symbol.
+
+The roar of the thunder past--the shrieking, whistling, gushing wind
+became temporarily lulled into low moans and subdued lamentations, amid
+the mazes of the Black Forest; and the stranger grew more composed.
+
+"Dost thou tremble at the storm?" inquired the old man.
+
+"I am unhappy," was the evasive and somewhat impatient reply. "Seek not
+to know more of me--beware how you question me. But you, old man, are
+_not_ happy! The traces of care seem to mingle with the wrinkles of age
+upon your brow!"
+
+The shepherd narrated, in brief and touching terms, the unaccountable
+disappearance of his much-beloved granddaughter Agnes.
+
+The stranger listened abstractedly at first; but afterward he appeared
+to reflect profoundly for several minutes.
+
+"Your lot is wretched, old man," said he at length: "if you live a few
+years longer, that period must be passed in solitude and
+cheerlessness:--if you suddenly fall ill you must die the lingering
+death of famine, without a soul to place a morsel of food, or the
+cooling cup to your lips; and when you shall be no more, who will follow
+you to the grave? There are no habitations nigh; the nearest village is
+half-a-day's journey distant; and ere the peasants of that hamlet, or
+some passing traveler, might discover that the inmate of this hut had
+breathed his last, the wolves from the forest would have entered and
+mangled your corpse."
+
+"Talk not thus!" cried the old man, with a visible shudder; then darting
+a half-terrified, half-curious glance at his guest, he said, "but who
+are you that speak in this awful strain--this warning voice?"
+
+Again the thunder rolled, with crashing sound, above the cottage; and
+once more the wind swept by, laden, as it seemed, with the shrieks and
+groans of human beings in the agonies of death.
+
+The stranger maintained a certain degree of composure only by means of a
+desperate effort, but he could not altogether subdue a wild flashing of
+the eyes and a ghastly change of the countenance--signs of a profoundly
+felt terror.
+
+"Again I say, ask me not who I am!" he exclaimed, when the thunder and
+the gust had passed. "My soul recoils from the bare idea of pronouncing
+my own accursed name! But--unhappy as you see me--crushed, overwhelmed
+with deep affliction as you behold me--anxious, but unable to repent for
+the past as I am, and filled with appalling dread for the future as I
+now proclaim myself to be, still is my power far, far beyond that limit
+which hems mortal energies within so small a sphere. Speak, old
+man--wouldst thou change thy condition? For to me--and to me alone of
+all human beings--belongs the means of giving thee new life--of
+bestowing upon thee the vigor of youth, of rendering that stooping form
+upright and strong, of restoring fire to those glazing eyes, and beauty
+to that wrinkled, sunken, withered countenance--of endowing thee, in a
+word, with a fresh tenure of existence and making that existence sweet
+by the aid of treasures so vast that no extravagance can dissipate
+them!"
+
+A strong though indefinite dread assailed the old man as this astounding
+proffer was rapidly opened, in all its alluring details, to his
+mind;--and various images of terror presented themselves to his
+imagination;--but these feelings were almost immediately dominated by a
+wild and ardent hope, which became the more attractive and exciting in
+proportion as a rapid glance at his helpless, wretched, deserted
+condition led him to survey the contrast between what he then was, and
+what, if the stranger spoke truly, he might so soon become.
+
+The stranger saw that he had made the desired impression; and he
+continued thus:
+
+"Give but your assent, old man, and not only will I render thee young,
+handsome, and wealthy; but I will endow thy mind with an intelligence to
+match that proud position. Thou shalt go forth into the world to enjoy
+all those pleasures, those delights, and those luxuries, the names of
+which are even now scarcely known to thee!"
+
+"And what is the price of this glorious boon?" asked the old man,
+trembling with mingled joy and terror through every limb.
+
+"There are two conditions," answered the stranger, in a low, mysterious
+tone. "The first is, that you become the companion of my wanderings for
+one year and a half from the present time, until the hour of sunset, on
+the 30th of July, 1517, when we must part forever, you to go
+whithersoever your inclinations may guide you, and I---- But of _that_,
+no matter!" he added, hastily, with a sudden motion as if of deep mental
+agony, and with wildly flashing eyes.
+
+The old man shrank back in dismay from his mysterious guest: the thunder
+rolled again, the rude gust swept fiercely by, the dark forest rustled
+awfully, and the stranger's torturing feelings were evidently prolonged
+by the voices of the storm.
+
+A pause ensued; and the silence was at length broken by the old man, who
+said, in a hollow and tremulous tone, "To the first condition I would
+willingly accede. But the second?"
+
+"That you prey upon the human race, whom I hate; because of all the
+world I alone am so deeply, so terribly accurst!" was the ominously
+fearful yet only dimly significant reply.
+
+The old man shook his head, scarcely comprehending the words of his
+guest, and yet daring not to ask to be more enlightened.
+
+"Listen!" said the stranger, in a hasty but impressive voice: "I require
+a companion, one who has no human ties, and who still ministers to my
+caprices,--who will devote himself wholly and solely to watch me in my
+dark hours, and endeavor to recall me back to enjoyment and pleasure,
+who, when he shall be acquainted with my power, will devise new means in
+which to exercise it, for the purpose of conjuring up those scenes of
+enchantment and delight that may for a season win me away from thought.
+Such a companion do I need for a period of one year and a half; and you
+are, of all men, the best suited to my design. But the Spirit whom I
+must invoke to effect the promised change in thee, and by whose aid you
+can be given back to youth and comeliness, will demand some fearful
+sacrifice at your hands. And the nature of that sacrifice--the nature of
+the condition to be imposed--I can well divine!"
+
+"Name the sacrifice--name the condition!" cried the old man, eagerly. "I
+am so miserable--so spirit-broken--so totally without hope in this
+world, that I greedily long to enter upon that new existence which you
+promised me! Say, then, what is the condition?"
+
+"That you prey upon the human race, whom _he_ hates as well as I,"
+answered the stranger.
+
+"Again these awful words!" ejaculated the old man, casting trembling
+glances around him.
+
+"Yes--again those words," echoed the mysterious guest, looking with his
+fierce burning eyes into the glazed orbs of the aged shepherd. "And now
+learn their import!" he continued, in a solemn tone. "Knowest thou not
+that there is a belief in many parts of our native land that at
+particular seasons certain doomed men throw off the human shape and take
+that of ravenous wolves?"
+
+"Oh, yes--yes--I have indeed heard of those strange legends in which the
+Wehr-Wolf is represented in such appalling colors!" exclaimed the old
+man, a terrible suspicion crossing his mind.
+
+"'Tis said that at sunset on the last day of every month the mortal, to
+whom belongs the destiny of the Wehr-Wolf, must exchange his natural
+form for that of the savage animal; in which horrible shape he must
+remain until the moment when the morrow's sun dawns upon the earth."
+
+"The legend that told thee this spoke truly," said the stranger. "And
+now dost thou comprehend the condition which must be imposed upon thee?"
+
+"I do--I do!" murmured the old man with a fearful shudder. "But he who
+accepts that condition makes a compact with the evil one, and thereby
+endangers his immortal soul!"
+
+"Not so," was the reply. "There is naught involved in this condition
+which---- But hesitate not," added the stranger, hastily: "I have no
+time to waste in bandying words. Consider all I offer you: in another
+hour you shall be another man!"
+
+"I accept the boon--and on the conditions stipulated!" exclaimed the
+shepherd.
+
+"'Tis well, Wagner----"
+
+"What! you know my name!" cried the old man. "And yet, meseems, I did
+not mention it to thee."
+
+"Canst thou not already perceive that I am no common mortal?" demanded
+the stranger, bitterly. "And who I am, and whence I derive my power, all
+shall be revealed to thee so soon as the bond is formed that must link
+us for eighteen months together! In the meantime, await me here!"
+
+And the mysterious stranger quitted the cottage abruptly, and plunged
+into the depths of the Black Forest.
+
+One hour elapsed ere he returned--one mortal hour, during which Wagner
+sat bowed over his miserably scanty fire, dreaming of pleasure, youth,
+riches, and enjoyment; converting, in imagination, the myriad sparks
+which shone upon the extinguishing embers into piles of gold, and
+allowing his now uncurbed fancy to change the one single room of the
+wretched hovel into a splendid saloon, surrounded by resplendent mirrors
+and costly hangings, while the untasted fare for the stranger on the
+rude fir-table, became transformed, in his idea, into a magnificent
+banquet laid out, on a board glittering with plate, lustrous with
+innumerable lamps, and surrounded by an atmosphere fragrant with the
+most exquisite perfumes.
+
+The return of the stranger awoke the old man from his charming dream,
+during which he had never once thought of the conditions whereby he was
+to purchase the complete realization of the vision.
+
+"Oh! what a glorious reverie you have dissipated!" exclaimed Wagner.
+"Fulfill but one tenth part of that delightful dream----"
+
+"I will fulfill it all!" interrupted the stranger: then, producing a
+small vial from the bosom of his doublet, he said, "Drink!"
+
+The old man seized the bottle, and speedily drained it to the dregs.
+
+He immediately fell back upon the seat, in a state of complete lethargy.
+
+But it lasted not for many minutes; and when he awoke again, he
+experienced new and extraordinary sensations. His limbs were vigorous,
+his form was upright as an arrow; his eyes, for many years dim and
+failing, seemed gifted with the sight of an eagle, his head was warm
+with a natural covering; not a wrinkle remained upon his brow nor on his
+cheeks; and, as he smiled with mingled wonderment and delight, the
+parting lips revealed a set of brilliant teeth. And it seemed, too, as
+if by one magic touch the long fading tree of his intellect had suddenly
+burst into full foliage, and every cell of his brain was instantaneously
+stored with an amount of knowledge, the accumulation of which stunned
+him for an instant, and in the next appeared as familiar to him as if he
+had never been without it.
+
+"Oh! great and powerful being, whomsoever thou art," exclaimed Wagner,
+in the full, melodious voice of a young man of twenty-one, "how can I
+manifest to thee my deep, my boundless gratitude for this boon which
+thou hast conferred upon me!"
+
+"By thinking no more of thy lost grand-child Agnes, but by preparing to
+follow me whither I shall now lead thee," replied the stranger.
+
+"Command me: I am ready to obey in all things," cried Wagner. "But one
+word ere we set forth--who art thou, wondrous man?"
+
+"Henceforth I have no secrets from thee, Wagner," was the answer, while
+the stranger's eyes gleamed with unearthly luster; then, bending
+forward, he whispered a few words in the other's ear.
+
+Wagner started with a cold and fearful shudder as if at some appalling
+announcement; but he uttered not a word of reply--for his master
+beckoned him imperiously away from the humble cottage.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I.
+
+THE DEATH-BED--THE OATH--THE LAST INJUNCTIONS.
+
+
+Our tale commences in the middle of the month of November, 1520, and at
+the hour of midnight.
+
+In a magnificently furnished chamber, belonging to one of the largest
+mansions of Florence, a nobleman lay at the point of death.
+
+The light of the lamp suspended to the ceiling played upon the ghastly
+countenance of the dying man, the stern expression of whose features was
+not even mitigated by the fears and uncertainties attendant on the hour
+of dissolution.
+
+He was about forty-eight years of age, and had evidently been wondrously
+handsome in his youth: for though the frightful pallor of death was
+already upon his cheeks, and the fire of his large black eyes was dimmed
+with the ravages of a long-endured disease, still the faultless outlines
+of the aquiline profile remained unimpaired.
+
+The most superficial observer might have read the aristocratic pride of
+his soul in the haughty curl of his short upper lip,--the harshness of
+his domineering character in the lines that marked his forehead,--and
+the cruel sternness of his disposition in the expression of his entire
+countenance.
+
+Without absolutely scowling as he lay on that bed of death, his features
+were characterized by an inexorable severity which seemed to denote the
+predominant influence of some intense passion--some evil sentiment
+deeply rooted in his mind.
+
+Two persons leant over the couch to which death was so rapidly
+approaching.
+
+One was a lady of about twenty-five: the other was a youth of nineteen.
+
+The former was eminently beautiful; but her countenance was marked with
+much of that severity--that determination--and even of that sternness,
+which characterized the dying nobleman. Indeed, a single glance was
+sufficient to show that they stood in the close relationship of father
+and daughter.
+
+Her long, black, glossy hair now hung disheveled over the shoulders that
+were left partially bare by the hasty negligence with which she had
+thrown on a loose wrapper; and those shoulders were of the most dazzling
+whiteness.
+
+The wrapper was confined by a broad band at the waist; and the slight
+drapery set off, rather than concealed, the rich contours of a form of
+mature but admirable symmetry.
+
+Tall, graceful, and elegant, she united easy motion with fine
+proportion; thus possessing the lightness of the Sylph and the luxuriant
+fullness of the Hebe.
+
+Her countenance was alike expressive of intellectuality and strong
+passions. Her large black eyes were full of fire, and their glances
+seemed to penetrate the soul. Her nose, of the finest aquiline
+development,--her lips, narrow, but red and pouting, with the upper one
+short and slightly projecting over the lower,--and her small, delicately
+rounded chin, indicated both decision and sensuality: but the insolent
+gaze of the libertine would have quailed beneath the look of sovereign
+hauteur which flashed from those brilliant eagle eyes.
+
+In a word, she appeared to be a woman well adapted to command the
+admiration--receive the homage--excite the passions--and yet repel the
+insolence of the opposite sex.
+
+But those appearances were to some degree deceitful; for never was
+homage offered to her--never was she courted nor flattered.
+
+Ten years previously to the time of which we are writing--and when she
+was only fifteen--the death of her mother, under strange and mysterious
+circumstances, as it was generally reported, made such a terrible
+impression on her mind, that she hovered for months on the verge of
+dissolution; and when the physician who attended upon her communicated
+to her father the fact that her life was at length beyond danger, that
+assurance was followed by the sad and startling declaration, that she
+had forever lost the sense of hearing and the power of speech.
+
+No wonder, then, that homage was never paid nor adulation offered to
+Nisida--the deaf and dumb daughter of the proud Count of Riverola!
+
+Those who were intimate with this family ere the occurrence of that sad
+event--especially the physician, Dr. Duras, who had attended upon the
+mother in her last moments, and on the daughter during her
+illness--declared that, up to the period when the malady assailed her,
+Nisida was a sweet, amiable and retiring girl; but she had evidently
+been fearfully changed by the terrible affliction which that malady had
+left behind. For if she could no longer express herself in words, her
+eyes darted lightnings upon the unhappy menials who had the misfortune
+to incur her displeasure; and her lips would quiver with the violence of
+concentrated passion, at the most trifling neglect or error of which the
+female dependents immediately attached to her own person might happen to
+be guilty.
+
+Toward her father she often manifested a strange ebullition of
+anger--bordering even on inveterate spite, when he offended her: and
+yet, singular though it were, the count was devotedly attached to his
+daughter. He frequently declared that, afflicted as she was, he was
+proud of her: for he was wont to behold in her flashing eyes--her
+curling lip--and her haughty air, the reflection of his own proud--his
+own inexorable spirit.
+
+The youth of nineteen to whom we have alluded was Nisida's brother; and
+much as the father appeared to dote upon the daughter, was the son
+proportionately disliked by that stern and despotic man.
+
+Perhaps this want of affection--or rather this complete aversion--on the
+part of the Count of Riverola toward the young Francisco, owed its
+origin to the total discrepancy of character existing between the father
+and son. Francisco was as amiable, generous-hearted, frank and agreeable
+as his sire was austere, stern, reserved and tyrannical. The youth was
+also unlike his father in personal appearance, his hair being of a rich
+brown, his eyes of a soft blue, and the general expression of his
+countenance indicating the fairest and most endearing qualities which
+can possibly characterize human nature.
+
+We must, however, observe, before we pursue our narrative, that Nisida
+imitated not her father in her conduct toward Francisco; for she loved
+him--she loved him with the most ardent affection--such an affection as
+a sister seldom manifests toward a brother. It was rather the attachment
+of a mother for her child; inasmuch as Nisida studied all his
+comforts--watched over him, as it were, with the tenderest
+solicitude--was happy when he was present, melancholy when he was
+absent, and seemed to be constantly racking her imagination to devise
+new means to afford him pleasure.
+
+To treat Francisco with the least neglect was to arouse the wrath of a
+fury in the breast of Nisida; and every unkind look which the count
+inflicted upon his son was sure, if perceived by his daughter, to evoke
+the terrible lightnings of her brilliant eyes.
+
+Such were the three persons whom we have thus minutely described to our
+readers.
+
+The count had been ill for some weeks at the time when this chapter
+opens; but on the night which marks that commencement, Dr. Duras had
+deemed it his duty to warn the nobleman that he had not many hours to
+live.
+
+The dying man had accordingly desired that his children might be
+summoned; and when they entered the apartment, the physician and the
+priest were requested to withdraw.
+
+Francisco now stood on one side of the bed, and Nisida on the other;
+while the count collected his remaining strength to address his last
+injunctions to his son.
+
+"Francisco," he said, in a cold tone, "I have little inclination to
+speak at any great length; but the words I am about to utter are
+solemnly important. I believe you entertain the most sincere and earnest
+faith in that symbol which now lies beneath your hand."
+
+"The crucifix!" ejaculated the young man. "Oh, yes, my dear father!--it
+is the emblem of that faith which teaches us how to live and die!"
+
+"Then take it up--press it to your lips--and swear to obey the
+instructions which I am about to give you," said the count.
+
+Francisco did as he was desired; and, although tears were streaming from
+his eyes, he exclaimed, in an emphatic manner, "I swear most solemnly to
+fulfill your commands, my dear father, so confident am I that you will
+enjoin nothing that involves aught dishonorable!"
+
+"Spare your qualifications," cried the count, sternly; "and swear
+without reserve--or expect my dying curse, rather than my blessing."
+
+"Oh! my dear father," ejaculated the youth, with intense anguish of
+soul; "talk not of so dreadful a thing as bequeathing me your dying
+curse! I swear to fulfill your injunctions--without reserve."
+
+And he kissed the holy symbol.
+
+"You act wisely," said the count, fixing his glaring eyes upon the
+handsome countenance of the young man, who now awaited, in breathless
+suspense, a communication thus solemnly prefaced. "This key," continued
+the nobleman, taking one from beneath his pillow as he spoke, "belongs
+to the door in yonder corner of the apartment."
+
+"That door which is never opened!" exclaimed Francisco, casting an
+anxious glance in the direction indicated.
+
+"Who told you that the door was never opened," demanded the count,
+sternly.
+
+"I have heard the servants remark----" began the youth in a timid, but
+still frank and candid manner.
+
+"Then, when I am no more, see that you put an end to such impertinent
+gossiping," said the nobleman, impatiently; "and you will be the better
+convinced of the propriety of thus acting, as soon as you have learned
+the nature of my injunctions. That door," he continued, "communicates
+with a small closet, which is accessible by no other means. Now my
+wish--my command is this:--Upon the day of your marriage, whenever such
+an event may occur--and I suppose you do not intend to remain unwedded
+all your life--I enjoin you to open the door of that closet. You must be
+accompanied by your bride--and by no other living soul. I also desire
+that this may be done with the least possible delay--the very
+morning--within the very hour after you quit the church. That closet
+contains the means of elucidating a mystery profoundly connected with
+me--with you--with the family--a mystery, the developments of which may
+prove of incalculable service alike to yourself and to her who may share
+your title and your wealth. But should you never marry, then must the
+closet remain unvisited by _you_; nor need you trouble yourself
+concerning the eventual discovery of the secret which it contains, by
+any person into whose hands the mansion may fall at your death. It is
+also my wish that your sister should remain in complete ignorance of the
+instructions which I am now giving you. Alas! poor girl--she cannot hear
+the words which fall from my lips! neither shall you communicate their
+import to her by writing, nor by the language of the fingers. And
+remember that while I bestow upon you my blessing--my dying
+blessing--may that blessing become a withering curse--the curse of hell
+upon you--if in any way you violate one tittle of the injunctions which
+I have now given you."
+
+"My dearest father," replied the weeping youth, who had listened with
+the most profound attention, to these extraordinary commands; "I would
+not for worlds act contrary to your wishes. Singular as they appear to
+me, they shall be fulfilled to the very letter."
+
+He received from his father's hand the mysterious key, which he had
+secured about his person.
+
+"You will find," resumed the count after a brief pause, "that I have
+left the whole of my property to you. At the same time my will specifies
+certain conditions relative to your sister Nisida, for whom I have made
+due provision only in the case--which is, alas! almost in defiance of
+every hope!--of her recovery from that dreadful affliction which renders
+her so completely dependent upon your kindness."
+
+"Dearest father, you know how sincerely I am attached to my sister--how
+devoted she is to me----"
+
+"Enough, enough!" cried the count; and overcome by the effort he had
+made to deliver his last injunction, he fell back insensible on his
+pillow.
+
+Nisida, who had retained her face buried in her hands during the whole
+time occupied in the above conversation, happened to look up at that
+moment; and, perceiving the condition of her father, she made a hasty
+sign to Francisco to summon the physician and the priest from the room
+to which they had retired.
+
+This commission was speedily executed, and in a few minutes the
+physician and the priest were once more by the side of the dying noble.
+
+But the instant that Dr. Duras--who was a venerable looking man of about
+sixty years of age--approached the bed, he darted, unseen by Francisco,
+a glance of earnest inquiry toward Nisida, who responded by one of
+profound meaning, shaking her head gently, but in a manner expressive of
+deep melancholy, at the same time.
+
+The physician appeared to be astonished at the negative thus conveyed by
+the beautiful mute; and he even manifested a sign of angry impatience.
+
+But Nisida threw upon him a look of so imploring a nature, that his
+temporary vexation yielded to a feeling of immense commiseration for
+that afflicted creature: and he gave her to understand, by another rapid
+glance, that her prayer was accorded.
+
+This interchange of signs of such deep mystery scarcely occupied a
+moment, and was altogether unobserved by Francisco.
+
+Dr. Duras proceeded to administer restoratives to the dying
+nobleman--but in vain!
+
+The count had fallen into a lethargic stupor, which lasted until four in
+the morning, when his spirit passed gently away.
+
+The moment Francisco and Nisida became aware that they were orphans,
+they threw themselves into each other's arms, and renewed by that tender
+embrace the tacit compact of sincere affection which had ever existed
+between them.
+
+Francisco's tears flowed freely; but Nisida did not weep!
+
+A strange--an almost portentous light shone in her brilliant black eyes;
+and though that wild gleaming denoted powerful emotions, yet it shed no
+luster upon the depths of her soul--afforded no clew to the real nature
+of these agitated feelings.
+
+Suddenly withdrawing himself from his sister's arms, Francisco conveyed
+to her by the language of the fingers the following tender
+sentiment:--"You have lost a father, beloved Nisida, but you have a
+devoted and affectionate brother left to you!"
+
+And Nisida replied through the same medium, "Your happiness, dearest
+brother, has ever been my only study, and shall continue so."
+
+The physician and Father Marco, the priest, now advanced, and taking the
+brother and sister by the hands, led them from the chamber of death.
+
+"Kind friends," said Francisco, now Count of Riverola, "I understand
+you. You would withdraw my sister and myself from a scene too mournful
+to contemplate. Alas! it is hard to lose a father; but especially so at
+my age, inexperienced as I am in the ways of the world!"
+
+"The world is indeed made up of thorny paths and devious ways, my dear
+young friend," returned the physician; "but a stout heart and integrity
+of purpose will ever be found faithful guides. The more exalted and the
+wealthier the individual, the greater the temptations he will have to
+encounter. Reflect upon this, Francisco: it is advice which I, as an
+old--indeed, the oldest friend of your family--take the liberty to
+offer."
+
+With these words, the venerable physician wrung the hands of the brother
+and sister, and hurried from the house, followed by the priest.
+
+The orphans embraced each other, and retired to their respective
+apartments.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II.
+
+NISIDA--THE MYSTERIOUS CLOSET.
+
+
+The room to which Nisida withdrew, between four and five o'clock on that
+mournful winter's morning, was one of a suit entirely appropriated to
+her own use.
+
+This suit consisted of three apartments, communicating with each other,
+and all furnished in the elegant and tasteful manner of that age.
+
+The innermost of the three rooms was used as her bed-chamber, and when
+she now entered it, a young girl of seventeen, beautiful as an angel,
+but dressed in the attire of a dependent, instantly arose from a seat
+near the fire that blazed on the hearth, and cast a respectful but
+inquiring glance toward her mistress.
+
+Nisida gave her to understand, by a sign, that all was over.
+
+The girl started, as if surprised that her lady indicated so little
+grief; but the latter motioned her, with an impatient gesture, to leave
+the room.
+
+When Flora--such was the name of the dependent--had retired Nisida threw
+herself into a large arm-chair near the fire, and immediately became
+buried in a deep reverie. With her splendid hair flowing upon her white
+shoulders--her proud forehead supported on her delicate hand--her lips
+apart, and revealing the pearly teeth--her lids with their long black
+fringes half-closed over the brilliant eyes--and her fine form cast in
+voluptuous abandonment upon the soft cushions of the chair--she indeed
+seemed a magnificent creature!
+
+But when, suddenly awaking from that profound meditation, she started
+from her seat with flashing eyes--heaving bosom--and an expression of
+countenance denoting a fixed determination to accomplish some deed from
+which her better feelings vainly bade her to abstain:--when she drew her
+tall--her even majestic form up to its full height, the drapery
+shadowing forth every contour of undulating bust and exquisitely modeled
+limb--while her haughty lip curled in contempt of any consideration save
+her own indomitable will--she appeared rather a heroine capable of
+leading an Amazonian army, than a woman to whom the sighing swain might
+venture to offer up the incense of love.
+
+There was something awful in the aspect of this mysterious
+being--something ineffably grand and imposing in her demeanor--as she
+thus suddenly rose from her almost recumbent posture, and burst into the
+attitude of a resolute and energetic woman.
+
+Drawing the wrapper around her form, she lighted a lamp, and was about
+to quit the chamber, when her eyes suddenly encountered the mild and
+benignant glance which the portrait of a lady appeared to cast upon her.
+
+This portrait, which hung against the wall precisely opposite to the
+bed, represented a woman of about thirty years of age--a woman of a
+beauty much in the same style as that of Nisida, but not marred by
+anything approaching to a sternness of expression. On the contrary, if
+an angel had looked through those mild black eyes, their glances could
+not have been endowed with a holier kindness; the smiles of good spirits
+could not be more plaintively sweet than those which the artist had made
+to play upon the lips of that portrait.
+
+Yet, in spite of this discrepancy between the expression of Nisida's
+countenance and that of the lady who had formed the subject of the
+picture, it was not difficult to perceive a certain physical likeness
+between the two; nor will the reader be surprised when we state that
+Nisida was gazing on the portrait of her deceased mother.
+
+And that gaze--oh! how intent, how earnest, how enthusiastic it was! It
+manifested something more than love--something more impassioned and
+ardent than the affection which a daughter might exhibit toward even a
+living mother; it showed a complete devotion--an adoration--a worship!
+
+Long and fixedly did Nisida gaze upon that portrait; till suddenly from
+her eyes, which shot forth such burning glances, gushed a torrent of
+tears.
+
+Then--probably fearful lest this weakness on her part might impair the
+resolution necessary to execute the purpose which she had in
+view--Nisida dashed away the tears from her long lashes, hastily quitted
+the room.
+
+Having traversed the other two apartments of her own suit, she cast a
+searching glance along the passage which she now entered; and, satisfied
+that none of the domestics were about, for it was not yet six o'clock on
+that winter's morning, she hastened to the end of the corridor.
+
+The lamp flared with the speed at which she walked; and its uncertain
+light enhanced the pallor that now covered her countenance.
+
+At the bottom of the passage she cautiously opened the door, and entered
+the room with which it communicated.
+
+This was the sleeping apartment of her brother.
+
+A single glance convinced her that he was wrapt in the arms of slumber.
+
+He slept soundly too--for he was wearied with the vigil which he had
+passed by the death-bed of his father--worn out also by the thousand
+conflicting and unsatisfactory conjectures that the last instructions of
+his parent had naturally excited in his mind.
+
+He had not, however, been asleep a quarter of an hour when Nisida stole,
+in the manner described, into his chamber.
+
+A smile of mingled joy and triumph animated her countenance, and a
+carnation tinge flushed her cheeks when she found he was fast locked in
+the embrace of slumber.
+
+Without a moment's hesitation, she examined his doublet, and clutched
+the key that his father had given to him scarcely six hours before.
+
+Then, light as the fawn, she left the room.
+
+Having retraced her steps half-way up the passage, she paused at the
+door of the chamber in which the corpse of her father lay.
+
+For an instant--a single instant--she seemed to revolt from the
+prosecution of her design, then, with a stern contraction of the brows,
+and an imperious curl of the lip--as if she said within herself, "_Fool
+that I am to hesitate!_"--she entered the room.
+
+Without fear--without compunction, she approached the bed. The body was
+laid out: stretched in its winding sheet, stiff and stark did it seem to
+repose on the mattress--the countenance rendered more ghastly than even
+death could make it, by the white band which tied up the under jaw.
+
+The nurse who had thus disposed the corpse, had retired to snatch a few
+hours of rest; and there was consequently no spy upon Nisida's actions.
+
+With a fearless step she advanced toward the closet--the mysterious
+closet relative to which such strange injunctions had been given.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III.
+
+THE MANUSCRIPT--FLORA FRANCATELLI.
+
+
+Nisida's hand trembled not as she placed the key in the lock; but when
+it turned, and she knew that in another instant she might open that door
+if she chose, she compressed her lips firmly together--she called all
+her courage to her aid--for she seemed to imagine that it was necessary
+to prepare herself to behold something frightfully appalling.
+
+And now again her cheeks were deadly pale; but the light that burned in
+her eyes was brilliant in the extreme.
+
+White as was her countenance, her large black orbs appeared to shine--to
+glow--to burn, as if with a violent fever.
+
+Advancing with her left hand, she half-opened the door of the closet
+with her right.
+
+Then she plunged her glances with rapidity into the recess.
+
+But, holy God! what a start that courageous, bold, and energetic woman
+gave--a start as if the cold hand of a corpse had been suddenly thrust
+forth to grasp her.
+
+And oh! what horror convulsed her countenance--while her lips were
+compressed as tightly as if they were an iron vise.
+
+Rapidly and instantly recoiling as that glance was, it had nevertheless
+revealed to her an object of interest as well as of horror; for with
+eyes now averted, she seized something within the closet, and thrust it
+into her bosom.
+
+Then, hastily closing the door, she retraced her way to her brother's
+chamber.
+
+He still slept soundly; Nisida returned the key to the pocket whence she
+had taken it, and hurried back to her own room, from which she had
+scarcely been absent five minutes.
+
+And did she seek her couch? did she repair to rest?
+
+No; that energetic woman experienced no weariness--yielded to no
+lassitude.
+
+Carefully bolting the door of her innermost chamber, she seated herself
+in the arm-chair and drew from her bosom the object which she had taken
+from the mysterious closet.
+
+It was a manuscript, consisting of several small slips of paper,
+somewhat closely written upon.
+
+The paper was doubtless familiar to her; for she paused not to consider
+its nature, but greedily addressed herself to the study of the meaning
+which it conveyed. And of terrible import seemed that manuscript to be;
+for while Nisida read, her countenance underwent many and awful
+changes--and her bosom heaved convulsively at one instant, while at
+another it remained motionless, as if respiration were suspended.
+
+At length the perusal was completed; and grinding her teeth with
+demoniac rage, she threw the manuscript upon the floor. But at the same
+moment her eyes, which she cast wildly about her, caught the mild and
+benign countenance of her mother's portrait; and, as oil stills the fury
+of the boiling billows, did the influence of that picture calm in an
+instant the tremendous emotions of Nisida's soul.
+
+Tears burst from her eyes, and she suddenly relapsed from the incarnate
+fiend into the subdued woman.
+
+Then stooping down, she picked up the papers that lay scattered on the
+floor: but as she did so she averted her looks, with loathing and
+disgust, as much as possible from the pages that her hands collected
+almost at random.
+
+And now another idea struck her--an idea the propriety of which
+evidently warred against her inclination.
+
+She was not a woman of mere impulses--although she often acted speedily
+after a thought had entered her brain. But she was wondrously quick at
+weighing all reasons for or against the suggestions of her imagination;
+and thus, to any one who was not acquainted with her character, she
+might frequently appear to obey the first dictates of her impetuous
+passions.
+
+Scarcely three minutes after the new idea had struck her, her resolution
+was fixed.
+
+Once more concealing the papers in her bosom, she repaired with the lamp
+to her brother's room--purloined the key a second time--hastened to the
+chamber of death--opened the closet again--and again sustained the shock
+of a single glance at its horrors, as she returned the manuscript to the
+place whence she had originally taken it.
+
+Then, having once more retraced her way to Francisco's chamber, she
+restored the key to the folds of his doublet--for he continued to sleep
+soundly; and Nisida succeeded in regaining her own apartments just in
+time to avoid the observation of the domestics, who were now beginning
+to move about.
+
+Nisida sought her couch and slept until nearly ten o'clock, when she
+awoke with a start--doubtless caused by some unpleasant dream.
+
+Having ascertained the hour by reference to a water-clock, or clepsydra,
+which stood on a marble pedestal near the head of the bed, she
+arose--unlocked the door of her apartment--rang a silver bell--and then
+returned to her bed.
+
+In a few minutes Flora, who had been waiting in the adjoining room,
+entered the chamber.
+
+Nisida, on regaining her couch, had turned her face toward the wall, and
+was therefore unable to perceive anything that took place in the
+apartment.
+
+The mere mention of such a circumstance would be trivial in the extreme,
+were it not necessary to record it in consequence of an event which now
+occurred.
+
+For, as Flora advanced into the room, her eyes fell on a written paper
+that lay immediately beneath the arm-chair; and conceiving from its
+appearance that it had not been thrown down on purpose, as it was in
+nowise crushed nor torn, she mechanically picked it up and placed it on
+the table.
+
+She then proceeded to arrange the toilet table of her mistress,
+preparatory to that lady's rising; and while she is thus employed, we
+will endeavor to make our readers a little better acquainted with her
+than they can possibly yet be.
+
+Flora Francatelli was the orphan daughter of parents who had suddenly
+been reduced from a state of affluence to a condition of extreme
+poverty. Signor Francatelli could not survive this blow: he died of a
+broken heart; and his wife shortly afterward followed him to the
+tomb--also the victim of grief. They left two children behind them:
+Flora, who was then an infant, and a little boy, named Alessandro, who
+was five years old. The orphans were entirely dependent upon the
+kindness of a maiden aunt--their departed father's sister. This
+relative, whose name was, of course, also Francatelli, performed a
+mother's part toward the children: and deprived herself, not only of
+comforts, but at times even of necessaries, in order that they should
+not want. Father Marco, a priest belonging to one of the numerous
+monasteries of Florence, and who was a worthy man, took compassion upon
+this little family; and not only devoted his attention to teach the
+orphans to read and write--great accomplishments among the middle
+classes in those days--but also procured from a fund at the disposal of
+his abbot, certain pecuniary assistance for the aunt.
+
+The care which this good relative took of the orphans, and the kindness
+of Father Marco, were well rewarded by the veneration and attachment
+which Alessandro and Flora manifested toward them. When Alessandro had
+numbered eighteen summers, he was fortunate enough to procure, through
+the interest of Father Marco, the situation of secretary to a Florentine
+noble, who was charged with a diplomatic mission to the Ottoman Porte;
+and the young man proceeded to Leghorn, whence he embarked for
+Constantinople, attended by the prayers, blessings, and hopes of the
+aunt and sister, and of the good priest, whom he left behind.
+
+Two years after his departure, Father Marco obtained for Flora a
+situation about the person of the Lady Nisida; for the monk was
+confessor to the family of Riverola, and his influence was sufficient to
+secure that place for the young maiden.
+
+We have already said that Flora was sweetly beautiful. Her large blue
+eyes were fringed with dark lashes, which gave them an expression of the
+most melting softness; her dark brown hair, arranged in the modest
+bands, seemed of even a darker hue when contrasted with the brilliant
+and transparent clearness of her complexion, and though her forehead was
+white and polished as alabaster, yet the rose-tint of health was upon
+her cheeks, and her lips had the rich redness of coral. Her nose was
+perfectly straight; her teeth were white and even, and the graceful
+arching of her swan-neck imparted something of nobility to her tall,
+sylph-like, and exquisitely proportioned figure.
+
+Retiring and bashful in her manners, every look which fell from her
+eyes--every smile which wreathed her lips, denoted the chaste purity of
+her soul. With all her readiness to oblige--with all her anxiety to do
+her duty as she ought, she frequently incurred the anger of the
+irascible Nisida; but Flora supported those manifestations of wrath with
+the sweetest resignation, because the excellence of her disposition
+taught her to make every allowance for one so deeply afflicted as her
+mistress.
+
+Such was the young maiden whom the nature of the present tale compels us
+thus particularly to introduce to our readers.
+
+Having carefully arranged the boudoir, so that its strict neatness might
+be welcome to her mistress when that lady chose to rise from her couch,
+Flora seated herself near the table, and gave way to her reflections.
+
+She thought of her aunt, who inhabited a neat little cottage on the
+banks of the Arno, and whom she was usually permitted to visit every
+Sabbath afternoon--she thought of her absent brother, who was still in
+the service of the Florentine Envoy to the Ottomon Porte, where that
+diplomatist was detained by the tardiness that marked the negotiations
+with which he was charged; and then she thought--thought too, with an
+involuntary sigh--of Francisco, Count of Riverola.
+
+She perceived that she had sighed--and, without knowing precisely
+wherefore, she was angry with herself.
+
+Anxious to turn the channel of her meditations in another direction, she
+rose from her seat to examine the clepsydra. That movement caused her
+eyes to fall upon the paper which she had picked up a quarter of an hour
+previously.
+
+In spite of herself the image of Francisco was still uppermost in her
+thoughts; and, in the contemplative vein thus encouraged, her eyes
+lingered, unwittingly--and through no base motive of curiosity--upon the
+writing which that paper contained.
+
+Thus she actually found herself reading the first four lines of the
+writing, before she recollected what she was doing.
+
+The act was a purely mechanical one, which not the most rigid moralist
+could blame.
+
+And had the contents of the paper been of no interest, she might even
+have continued to read more in that same abstracted mood; but those four
+first lines were of a nature which sent a thrilling sensation of horror
+through her entire frame; the feeling terminating with an icy coldness
+of the heart.
+
+She shuddered without starting--shuddered as she stood; and not even a
+murmur escaped her lips.
+
+The intenseness of that sudden pang of horror deprived her alike of
+speech and motion during the instant that it lasted.
+
+And those lines, which produced so strange an impression upon the young
+maiden, ran thus:
+
+    "merciless scalpel hacked and hewed away at the still almost
+    palpitating flesh of the murdered man, in whose breast the
+    dagger remained buried--a ferocious joy--a savage hyena-like
+    triumph----"
+
+Flora read no more; she could not--even if she had wished.
+
+For a minute she remained rooted to the spot; then she threw herself
+into the chair, bewildered and dismayed at the terrible words which had
+met her eyes.
+
+She thought that the handwriting was not unknown to her; but she could
+not recollect whose it was. One fact was, however, certain--it was not
+the writing of her mistress.
+
+She was musing upon the horrible and mysterious contents of the paper,
+when Nisida rose from her couch.
+
+Acknowledging with a slight nod of the head the respectful salutation of
+her attendant, she hastily slipped on a loose wrapper, and seated
+herself in the arm-chair which Flora had just abandoned.
+
+The young girl then proceeded to comb out the long raven hair of her
+mistress.
+
+But this occupation was most rudely interrupted: for Nisida's eyes
+suddenly fell upon the manuscript page on the table; and she started up
+in a paroxysm of mingled rage and alarm.
+
+Having assured herself by a second glance that it was indeed a portion
+of the writings which had produced so strange an effect upon her a few
+hours previously, she turned abruptly toward Flora; and, imperiously
+confronting the young maiden, pointed to the paper in a significant
+manner.
+
+Flora immediately indicated by a sign that she had found it on the
+floor, beneath the arm-chair.
+
+"And you have read it!" was the accusation which, with wonderful
+rapidity, Nisida conveyed by means of her fingers--fixing her piercing,
+penetrating eyes on Flora's countenance at the same time.
+
+The young maiden scorned the idea of a falsehood; although she perceived
+that her reply would prove far from agreeable to her mistress, she
+unhesitatingly admitted, by the language of the hands. "I read the first
+four lines, and no more."
+
+A crimson glow instantly suffused the face, neck, shoulders, and bosom
+of Nisida; but instantly compressing her lips--as was her wont when
+under the influence of her boiling passions, she turned her flashing
+eyes once more upon the paper, to ascertain which leaf of the manuscript
+it was.
+
+That rapid glance revealed to her the import, the dread, but profoundly
+mysterious import of the four first lines on that page; and, again
+darting her soul-searching looks upon the trembling Flora, she demanded,
+by the rapid play of her delicate taper fingers "Will you swear that you
+read no more?"
+
+"As I hope for salvation!" was Flora's symbolic answer.
+
+The penetrating, imperious glance of Nisida dwelt long upon the maiden's
+countenance; but no sinister expression--no suspicious change on that
+fair and candid face contradicted the assertion which she had made.
+
+"I believe you; but beware how you breathe to a living soul a word of
+what you did read!"
+
+Such was the injunction which Nisida now conveyed by her usual means of
+communication; and Flora signified implicit obedience.
+
+Nisida then secured the page of writing in her jewel casket; and the
+details of the toilet were resumed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV.
+
+THE FUNERAL--THE INTERRUPTION OF THE CEREMONY.
+
+
+Eight days after the death of the Count of Riverola, the funeral took
+place.
+
+The obsequies were celebrated at night, with all the pomp observed
+amongst noble families on such occasions. The church in which the corpse
+was buried, was hung with black cloth; and even the innumerable wax
+tapers which burned upon the altar and around the coffin failed to
+diminish the lugubrious aspect of the scene.
+
+At the head of the bier stood the youthful heir of Riverola; his pale
+countenance of even feminine beauty contrasting strangely with the
+mourning garments which he wore, and his eyes bent upon the dark chasm
+that formed the family vault into which the remains of his sire were
+about to be lowered.
+
+Around the coffin stood Dr. Duras and other male friends of the
+deceased: for the females of the family were not permitted, by the
+custom of the age and the religion, to be present on occasions of this
+kind.
+
+It was eleven o'clock at night: and the weather without was stormy and
+tempestuous.
+
+The wind moaned through the long aisles, raising strange and ominous
+echoes, and making the vast folds of sable drapery wave slowly backward
+and forward, as if agitated by unseen hands. A few spectators, standing
+in the background, appeared like grim figures on a black tapestry; and
+the gleam of the wax tapers, oscillating on their countenances, made
+them seem death-like and ghastly.
+
+From time to time the shrill wail of the shriek-owl, and the flapping of
+its wings against the diamond-paned windows of the church, added to the
+awful gloom of the funeral scene.
+
+And now suddenly arose the chant of the priests--the parting hymn for
+the dead!
+
+Francisco wept, for though his father had never manifested toward him an
+affection of the slightest endearing nature, yet the disposition of the
+young count was excellent; and, when he gazed upon the coffin, he
+remembered not the coldness with which its inmate in his lifetime had
+treated him--he thought only of a parent whom he had lost, and whose
+remains were there!
+
+And truly, on the brink of the tomb no animosity should ever find a
+resting-place in the human heart. Though elsewhere men yield to the
+influence of their passions and their feelings, in pursuing each his
+separate interests--though, in the great world, we push and jostle each
+other, as if the earth were not large enough to allow us to follow our
+separate ways--yet, when we meet around the grave, to consign a fellow
+creature to his last resting-place, let peace and holy forgiveness
+occupy our souls. There let the clash of interests and the war of
+jealousies be forgotten; and let us endeavor to persuade ourselves that,
+as all the conflicting pursuits of life must terminate at this point at
+last, so should our feelings converge to the one focus of amenity and
+Christian love. And, after all, how many who have considered themselves
+to be antagonists must, during a moment of solemn reflection, become
+convinced that, when toiling in the great workshop of the world, they
+have been engaged, in unconscious fraternity, in building up the same
+fabric!
+
+The priests were in the midst of their solemn chant--a deathlike silence
+and complete immovability prevailed among the mourners and the
+spectators--and the wind was moaning beneath the vaulted roofs, awaking
+those strange and tomb-like sounds which are only heard in large
+churches,--when light but rushing footsteps were heard on the marble
+pavement; and in another minute a female, not clothed in a mourning
+garb, but splendidly as for a festival, precipitated herself toward the
+bier.
+
+There her strength suddenly seemed to be exhausted; and, with a piercing
+scream, she sank senseless on the cold stones.
+
+The chant of the priest was immediately stilled; and Francisco hurrying
+forward, raised the female in his arms, while Dr. Duras asked for water
+to sprinkle on her countenance.
+
+Over her head the stranger wore a white veil of rich material, which was
+fastened above her brow by a single diamond of unusual size and
+brilliant luster. When the veil was drawn aside, shining auburn tresses
+were seen depending in wanton luxuriance over shoulders of alabaster
+whiteness: a beautiful but deadly pale countenance was revealed; and a
+splendid purple velvet dress delineated the soft and flowing outlines of
+a form modeled to the most perfect symmetry.
+
+She seemed to be about twenty years of age,--in the full splendor of
+loveliness, and endowed with charms which presented to the gaze of those
+around a very incarnation of the ideal beauty which forms the theme of
+raptured poets.
+
+And now, as the vacillating and uncertain light of the wax-candles
+beamed upon her, as she lay senseless in the arms of the Count Riverola,
+her pale, placid face appeared that of a classic marble statue; but
+nothing could surpass the splendid effects which the funeral tapers
+produced on the rich redundancy of her hair, which seemed dark where the
+shadows rested on it, but glittering as with a bright glory where the
+luster played on its shining masses.
+
+In spite of the solemnity of the place and the occasion, the mourners
+were struck by the dazzling beauty of that young female, who had thus
+appeared so strangely amongst them; but respect still retained at a
+distance those persons who were merely present from curiosity to witness
+the obsequies of one of the proudest nobles of Florence.
+
+At length the lady opened her large hazel eyes, and glanced wildly
+around, a quick spasm passing like an electric shock over her frame at
+the same instant; for the funeral scene burst upon her view, and
+reminded her where she was, and why she was there.
+
+Recovering herself almost as rapidly as she had succumbed beneath
+physical and mental exhaustion, she started from Francisco's arms; and
+turning upon him a beseeching, inquiring glance, exclaimed in a voice
+which ineffable anguish could not rob of its melody: "Is it true--oh,
+tell me is it true that the Count Riverola is no more?"
+
+"It is, alas! too true, lady," answered Francisco, in a tone of the
+deepest melancholy.
+
+The heart of the fair stranger rebounded at the words which thus seemed
+to destroy a last hope that lingered in her soul; and a hysterical
+shriek burst from her lips as she threw her snow-white arms, bare to the
+shoulders, around the head of the pall-covered coffin.
+
+"Oh! my much-loved--my noble Andrea!" she exclaimed, a torrent of tears
+now gushing from her eyes.
+
+"That voice!--is it possible?" cried one of the spectators who had been
+hitherto standing, as before said, at a respectful distance: and the
+speaker--a man of tall, commanding form, graceful demeanor, wondrously
+handsome countenance, and rich attire--immediately hurried toward the
+spot where the young female still clung to the coffin, no one having the
+heart to remove her.
+
+The individual who had thus stepped forward, gave one rapid but
+searching glance at the lady's countenance; and, yielding to the
+surprise and joy which suddenly animated him, he exclaimed: "Yes--it is,
+indeed, the lost Agnes!"
+
+The young female started when she heard her name thus pronounced in a
+place where she believed herself to be entirely unknown; and
+astonishment for an instant triumphed over the anguish of her heart.
+
+Hastily withdrawing her snow-white arms from the head of the coffin, she
+turned toward the individual who had uttered her name, and he instantly
+clasped her in his arms, murmuring, "Dearest--dearest Agnes, art thou
+restored----"
+
+But the lady shrieked, and struggled to escape from that tender embrace,
+exclaiming, "What means this insolence? will no one protect me?"
+
+"That will I," said Francisco, darting forward, and tearing her away
+from the stranger's arms. "But, in the name of Heaven! let this
+misunderstanding be cleared up elsewhere. Lady--and you, signor--I call
+on you to remember where you are, and how solemn a ceremony you have
+both aided to interrupt."
+
+"I know not that man!" ejaculated Agnes, indicating the stranger. "I
+come hither, because I heard--but an hour ago--that my noble Andrea was
+no more. And I would not believe those who told me. Oh! no--I could not
+think that Heaven had thus deprived me of all I loved on earth!"
+
+"Lady, you are speaking of my father," said Francisco, in a somewhat
+severe tone.
+
+"Your father!" cried Agnes, now surveying the young count with interest
+and curiosity. "Oh! then, my lord, you can pity--you can feel for me,
+who in losing your father have lost all that could render existence
+sweet!"
+
+"No--you have not lost all!" exclaimed the handsome stranger, advancing
+toward Agnes, and speaking in a profoundly impressive tone. "Have you
+not one single relative left in the world? Consider, lady--an old, old
+man--a shepherd in the Black Forest of Germany----"
+
+"Speak not of him!" cried Agnes, wildly. "Did he know all, he would
+curse me--he would spurn me from him--he would discard me forever! Oh!
+when I think of that poor old man, with his venerable white hair,--that
+aged, helpless man, who was so kind to me, who loved me so well, and
+whom I so cruelly abandoned. But tell me, signor," she exclaimed, in
+suddenly altered tone, while her breath came with the difficulty of
+acute suspense,--"tell me, signor, does that old man still live?"
+
+"He lives, Agnes," was the reply. "I know him well; at this moment he is
+in Florence!"
+
+"In Florence!" repeated Agnes; and so unexpectedly came this
+announcement, that her limbs seemed to give way under her, and she would
+have fallen on the marble pavement, had not the stranger caught her in
+his arms.
+
+"I will bear her away," he said; "she has a true friend in me."
+
+And he was moving off with his senseless burden, when Francisco, struck
+by a sudden idea, caught him by the elegantly slashed sleeve of his
+doublet, and whispered thus, in a rapid tone: "From the few, but
+significant words which fell from that lady's lips, and from her still
+more impressive conduct, it would appear, alas! that my deceased father
+had wronged her. If so, signor, it will be my duty to make her all the
+reparation that can be afforded in such a case."
+
+"'Tis well, my lord," answered the stranger, in a cold and haughty tone.
+"To-morrow evening I will call upon you at your palace."
+
+He then hurried on with the still senseless Agnes in his arms; and the
+Count of Riverola retraced his steps to the immediate vicinity of the
+coffin.
+
+This scene, which so strangely interrupted the funeral ceremony, and
+which has taken so much space to describe, did not actually occupy ten
+minutes from the moment when the young lady first appeared in the
+church, until that when she was borne away by the handsome stranger. The
+funeral obsequies were completed; the coffin was lowered into the family
+vault; the spectators dispersed, and the mourners, headed by the young
+count, returned in procession to the Riverola mansion, which was
+situated at no great distance.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V.
+
+THE READING OF THE WILL.
+
+
+When the mourners reached the palace, Francisco led the way to an
+apartment where Nisida was awaiting their coming.
+
+Francisco kissed her affectionately upon the forehead; and then took his
+seat at the head of the table, his sister placing herself on his right
+hand.
+
+Dressed in deep mourning, and with her countenance unusually pale,
+Nisida's appearance inspired a feeling of profound interest in the minds
+of those who did not perceive that, beneath her calm and mournful
+demeanor, feelings of painful intensity agitated within her breast. But
+Dr. Duras, who knew her well--better, far better than even her own
+brother--noticed an occasional wild flashing of the eye, a nervous
+motion of the lips, and a degree of forced tranquillity of mien, which
+proved how acute was the suspense she in reality endured.
+
+On Francisco's left hand the notary-general, who had acted as one of the
+chief mourners, took a seat. He was a short, thin, middle-aged man, with
+a pale complexion, twinkling gray eyes, and a sharp expression of
+countenance. Before him lay a sealed packet, on which the eyes of Nisida
+darted, at short intervals, looks, the burning impatience of which were
+comprehended by Dr. Duras alone; for next to Signor Vivaldi, the
+notary-general--and consequently opposite to Nisida--sat the physician.
+
+The remainder of the company consisted of Father Marco and those most
+intimate friends of the family who had been invited to the funeral; but
+whom it is unnecessary to describe more particularly.
+
+Father Marco having recited a short prayer, in obedience to the custom
+of the age, and the occasion, the notary-general proceeded to break the
+seals of the large packet which lay before him: then, in a precise and
+methodical manner, he drew forth a sheet of parchment, closely written
+on.
+
+Nisida leaned her right arm upon the table, and half-buried her
+countenance in the snowy cambric handkerchief which she held.
+
+The notary-general commenced the reading of the will.
+
+After bestowing a few legacies, one of which was in favor of Dr. Duras,
+and another in that of Signor Vivaldi himself, the testamentary document
+ordained that the estates of the late Andrea, Count of Riverola, should
+be held in trust by the notary-general and the physician, for the
+benefit of Francisco, who was merely to enjoy the revenues produced by
+the same until the age of thirty, at which period the guardianship was
+to cease, and Francisco was then to enter into full and uncontrolled
+possession of those immense estates.
+
+But to this clause there was an important condition attached; for the
+testamentary document ordained that should the Lady Nisida--either by
+medical skill, or the interposition of Heaven--recover the faculties of
+hearing and speaking at any time during the interval which was to elapse
+ere Francisco would attain the age of thirty, then the whole of the
+estates, with the exception of a very small one in the northern part of
+Tuscany, were to be immediately made over to her; but without the power
+of alienation on her part.
+
+It must be observed that, in the middle ages many titles of nobility
+depended only on the feudal possession of a particular property. This
+was the case with the Riverola estates; and the title of Count of
+Riverola was conferred simply by the fact of the ownership of the landed
+property. Thus, supposing that Nisida became possessed of the estates,
+she would have enjoyed the title of countess, while her brother
+Francisco would have lost that of count.
+
+We may also remind our readers that Francisco was now nineteen; and
+eleven years must consequently elapse ere he could become the lord and
+master of the vast territorial possessions of Riverola.
+
+Great was the astonishment experienced by all who heard the provisions
+of this strange will--with the exception of the notary-general and
+Father Marco, the former of whom had drawn it up, and the latter of whom
+was privy to its contents (though under a vow of secrecy) in his
+capacity of father-confessor to the late count.
+
+Francisco was himself surprised, and, in one sense, hurt; because the
+nature of the testamentary document seemed to imply that the property
+would have been inevitably left to his sister, with but a very small
+provision for himself, had she not been so sorely afflicted as she was;
+and this fact forced upon him the painful conviction that even when
+contemplating his departure to another world, his father had not
+softened toward his son!
+
+But, on the other hand, Francisco was pleased that such consideration
+had been shown toward a sister whom he so devotedly loved; and he
+hastened, as soon as he could conquer his first emotions, to request the
+notary-general to permit Nisida to peruse the will, adding, in a
+mournful tone, "For all that your excellency has read has been, alas!
+unavailing in respect to her."
+
+Signor Vivaldi handed the document to the young count, who gently
+touched his sister's shoulder and placed the parchment before her.
+
+Nisida started as if convulsively, and raised from her handkerchief a
+countenance so pale, so deadly pale, that Francisco shrank back in
+alarm.
+
+But instantly reflecting that the process of reading aloud a paper had
+been as it were a kind of mockery in respect to his afflicted sister, he
+pressed her hand tenderly, and made a sign for her to peruse the
+document.
+
+She mechanically addressed herself to the task; but ere her eyes--now of
+burning, unearthly brilliancy--fell upon the parchment, they darted one
+rapid, electric glance of ineffable anguish toward Dr. Duras, adown
+whose cheeks large tears were trickling.
+
+In a few minutes Nisida appeared to be absorbed in the perusal of the
+will; and the most solemn silence prevailed throughout the apartment!
+
+At length she started violently, tossed the paper indignantly to the
+notary-general, and hastily wrote on a slip of paper these words:
+
+"Should medical skill or the mercy of Heaven restore my speech and
+faculty of hearing, I will abandon all claim to the estates and title of
+Riverola to my dear brother Francisco."
+
+She then handed the slip of paper to the notary-general, who read the
+contents aloud.
+
+Francisco darted upon his sister a look of ineffable gratitude and love,
+but shook his head, as much as to imply that he could not accept the
+boon even if circumstances enabled her to confer it!
+
+She returned the look with another, expressive of impatience at his
+refusal: and her eyes seemed to say, as eyes never yet spoke, "Oh, that
+I had the power to give verbal utterance to my feelings!"
+
+Meantime the notary-general had written a few words beneath those penned
+by Nisida, to whom he had handed back the slip; and she hastened to read
+them, thus: "Your ladyship has no power to alienate the estates, should
+they come into your possession."
+
+Nisida burst into an agony of tears and rushed from the room.
+
+Her brother immediately followed to console her; and the company
+retired, each individual to his own abode.
+
+But of all that company who had been present at the reading of the will,
+none experienced such painful emotions as Dr. Duras.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI.
+
+THE PICTURES--AGNES AND THE UNKNOWN--MYSTERY.
+
+
+When Agnes awoke from the state of stupor in which she had been conveyed
+from the church, she found herself lying upon an ottoman, in a large and
+elegantly furnished apartment.
+
+The room was lighted by two silver lamps suspended to the ceiling, and
+which, being fed with aromatic oil of the purest quality, imparted a
+delicious perfume to the atmosphere.
+
+The walls were hung with paintings representing scenes of strange
+variety and interest, and connected with lands far--far away. Thus, one
+depicted a council of red men assembled around a blazing fire, on the
+border of one of the great forests of North America; another showed the
+interior of an Esquimaux hut amidst the eternal ice of the Pole;--a
+third delineated, with fearfully graphic truth, the writhing of a human
+victim in the folds of the terrific anaconda in the island of Ceylon; a
+fourth exhibited a pleasing contrast to the one previously cited, by
+having for its subject a family meeting of Chinese on the terraced roof
+of a high functionary's palace at Perkin; a fifth represented the
+splendid court of King Henry the Eighth in London; a sixth showed the
+interior of the harem of the Ottoman Sultan.
+
+But there were two portraits amongst this beautiful and varied
+collection of pictures, all of which, we should observe, appeared to
+have been very recently executed--two portraits which we must pause to
+describe. One represented a tall man of about forty years of age, with
+magnificent light hair--fine blue eyes, but terrible in expression--a
+countenance indisputably handsome, though every lineament denoted horror
+and alarm--and a symmetrical form, bowed by the weight of sorrow.
+Beneath this portrait was the following inscription:--"F., _Count of_
+A., _terminated his career on the 1st of August, 1517_."
+
+The other portrait alluded to was that of an old--old man, who had
+apparently numbered ninety winters. He was represented as cowering over
+a few embers in a miserable hovel, while the most profound sorrow was
+depicted on his countenance. Beneath this picture was the ensuing
+inscription:--"F. W., _January 7th, 1516. His last day thus._"
+
+There was another feature in that apartment to which we must likewise
+direct our reader's attention, ere we pursue the thread of our
+narrative. This was an object hanging against the wall, next to the
+second portrait just now described. It also had the appearance of being
+a picture--or at all events a frame of the same dimensions as the
+others; but whether that frame contained a painting, or whether it were
+empty, it was impossible to say, so long as it remained concealed by the
+large black cloth which covered it, and which was carefully fastened by
+small silver nails at each corner.
+
+This strange object gave a lugubrious and sinister appearance to a room
+in other respects cheerful, gay, and elegant.
+
+But to resume our tale.
+
+When Agnes awoke from her stupor, she found herself reclining on a soft
+ottoman of purple velvet, fringed with gold; and the handsome stranger,
+who had borne her from the church, was bathing her brow with water which
+he took from a crystal vase on a marble table.
+
+As she slowly and languidly opened her large hazel eyes, her thoughts
+collected themselves in the gradient manner; and when her glance
+encountered that of her unknown friend, who was bending over her with an
+expression of deep interest on his features, there flashed upon her mind
+a recollection of all that had so recently taken place.
+
+"Where am I?" she demanded, starting up, and casting her eyes wildly
+around her.
+
+"In the abode of one who will not injure you," answered the stranger, in
+a kind and melodious tone.
+
+"But who are you? and wherefore have you brought me hither?" exclaimed
+Agnes. "Oh! remember--you spoke of that old man--my grandfather--the
+shepherd of the Black Forest----"
+
+"You shall see him--you shall be restored to him," answered the
+stranger.
+
+"But will he receive me--will he not spurn me from him?" asked Agnes, in
+a wildly impassioned--almost hysterical tone.
+
+"The voice of pity cannot refuse to heave a sigh for thy fall," was the
+response. "If thou wast guilty in abandoning one who loved thee so
+tenderly, and whose earthly reliance was on thee, he, whom you did so
+abandon, has not the less need to ask pardon of thee. For he speedily
+forgot his darling Agnes--he traveled the world over, yet sought her
+not--her image was, as it were, effaced from his memory. But when
+accident----"
+
+"Oh! signor, you are mistaken--you know not the old man whom I deserted,
+and who was a shepherd on the verge of the Black Forest!" interrupted
+Agnes, in a tone expressive of bitter disappointment, "for he, who loved
+me so well, was old--very old, and could not possibly accomplish those
+long wanderings of which you speak. Indeed, if he be still alive--but
+that is scarcely possible----"
+
+And she burst into tears.
+
+"Agnes," cried the stranger, "the venerable shepherd of whom you speak
+accomplished those wanderings in spite of the ninety winters which
+marked his age. He is alive, too----"
+
+"He is alive!" ejaculated the lady, with reviving hopes.
+
+"He is alive--and at this moment in Florence!" was the emphatic answer.
+"Did I not ere now tell thee as much in the church?"
+
+"Yes--I remember--but my brain is confused!" murmured Agnes, pressing
+her beautiful white hands upon her polished brow. "Oh, if he be indeed
+alive--and so near me as you say--delay not in conducting me to him; for
+he is now the only being on earth to whom I dare look for solace and
+sympathy."
+
+"You are even now beneath the roof of your grandfather's dwelling," said
+the stranger, speaking slowly and anxiously watching the effect which
+this announcement was calculated to produce upon her to whom he
+addressed himself.
+
+"Here!--this my grandsire's abode!" she exclaimed, clasping her hands
+together, and glancing upward, as if to express her gratitude to Heaven
+for this welcome intelligence. "But how can that old man, whom I left so
+poor, have become the owner of this lordly palace? Speak, signor!--all
+you have told me seems to involve some strange mystery," she added with
+breathless rapidity. "Those wanderings of which you ere now
+spoke--wanderings over the world, performed by a man bent down by age;
+and then this noble dwelling--the appearances of wealth which present
+themselves around--the splendor--the magnificence----"
+
+"All--all are the old man's," answered the stranger, "and may some day
+become thine!"
+
+"Holy Virgin!" exclaimed Agnes, sinking upon the ottoman from which she
+had ere now risen, "I thank thee that thou hast bestowed these blessings
+on my relative in his old age. And yet," she added, again overwhelmed by
+doubts, "it is scarcely possible--no, it is too romantic to be true!
+Signor, thou art of a surety mistaken in him whom thou supposes to be my
+grandsire?"
+
+"Give me thine hand, Agnes--and I will convince thee," said the
+stranger.
+
+The young lady complied mechanically; and her unknown friend led her
+toward the portrait of the old man of ninety.
+
+Agnes recognized the countenance at a single glance, and would have
+fallen upon the floor had not her companion supported her in his arms.
+
+Tears again came to her relief; but hastily wiping them away, she
+extended her arms passionately toward the portrait, exclaiming, "Oh! now
+I comprehend you, signor! my grandsire lives in this dwelling
+indeed--beneath this roof; but lives only in that picture! Alas! alas!
+It was thus, no doubt, that the poor old man seemed when he was
+abandoned by me--the lost, the guilty Agnes! It was thus that he sat in
+his lonely dwelling--crushed and overwhelmed by the black ingratitude of
+his granddaughter! Oh! that I had never seen this portrait--this
+perpetuation of so much loneliness and so much grief! Ah! too faithful
+delineation of that sad scene which was wrought by me--vainly penitent
+that I am!"
+
+And covering her face with her hands she threw herself on her knees
+before the portrait, and gave way to all the bitterness and all the
+wildness of her grief.
+
+The stranger interrupted her not for some minutes: he allowed the flood
+of that anguish to have its full vent: but when it was partially
+subsiding he approached the kneeling penitent, raised her gently, and
+said, "Despair not! your grandsire lives."
+
+"He lives!" she repeated, her countenance once more expressing radiant
+hope, as the sudden gleam of sunshine bursts forth amidst the last drops
+of the April shower.
+
+But, almost at the same instant that she uttered those words, her eyes
+caught sight of the inscription at the foot of the picture; and,
+bounding forward she read it aloud.
+
+"Holy Virgin! I am deceived--basely, vilely deceived!" she continued,
+all the violence of her grief, which had begun to ebb so rapidly, now
+flowing back upon her soul; then turning abruptly round upon the
+stranger, she said in a hoarse hollow tone: "Signor, wherefore thus
+ungenerously trifle with my feelings--my best feelings? Who art thou?
+what would'st thou with me? and wherefore is that portrait here?"
+
+"Agnes--Agnes!" exclaimed her companion, "compose yourself, I implore
+you! I do not trifle with you--I do not deceive you! Your grandsire,
+Fernand Wagner, is alive--and in this house. You shall see him
+presently; but in the meantime, listen to what I am about to say."
+
+Agnes placed her finger impatiently upon the inscription at the bottom
+of the portrait, and exclaimed in a wild, hysterical tone, "Canst thou
+explain this, signor? 'January 7th, 1516,'--that was about a week after
+I abandoned him; and, oh! well indeed might those words be added--'His
+last day thus!'"
+
+"You comprehend not the meaning of that inscription!" ejaculated the
+stranger, in an imploring tone, as if to beseech her to have patience to
+listen to him. "There is a dreadful mystery connected with Fernand
+Wagner--connected with me--connected with these two portraits--connected
+also with----"
+
+He checked himself suddenly, and his whole form seemed convulsed with
+horror as he glanced toward the black cloth covering the neighboring
+frame.
+
+"A mystery?" repeated Agnes. "Yes--all is mystery: and vague and
+undefinable terrors oppress my soul!"
+
+"Thou shalt soon--too soon--be enlightened!" said the stranger, in a
+voice of profound melancholy; "at least, to a certain extent," he added,
+murmuringly. "But contemplate that other portrait for a few
+moments--that you may make yourself acquainted with the countenance of a
+wretch who, in conferring a fearful boon upon your grandsire, has
+plunged him into an abyss of unredeemable horror!"
+
+Agnes cast her looks toward the portrait of the tall man with the
+magnificent hair, the flashing blue eyes, the wildly expressive
+countenance, and the symmetrical form bowed with affliction; and, having
+surveyed it for some time with repugnance strongly mingled with an
+invincible interest and curiosity, she suddenly pointed toward the
+inscription.
+
+"Yes, yes; there is another terrible memorial!" cried the stranger. "But
+art thou now prepared to listen to a wondrous--an astonishing tale--such
+a tale as even nurses would scarcely dare narrate to lull children----"
+
+"I _am_ prepared," answered Agnes. "I perceive there is a dreadful
+mystery connected with my grandsire--with you, also--and perhaps with
+me;--and better learn at once the truth, than remain in this state of
+intolerable suspense."
+
+Her unknown friend conducted her back to the ottoman, whereon she placed
+herself.
+
+He took a seat by her side, and, after a few moments' profound
+meditation, addressed her in the following manner.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII.
+
+REVELATIONS.
+
+
+"You remember, Agnes, how happily the times passed when you were the
+darling of the old man in his poor cottage. All the other members of his
+once numerous family had been swept away by pestilence, malady,
+accident, or violence; and you only were left to him. When the trees of
+this great Black Forest were full of life and vegetable blood, in the
+genial warmth of summer, you gathered flowers which you arranged
+tastefully in the little hut; and those gifts of nature, so culled and
+so dispensed by your hands, gave the dwelling a more cheerful air than
+if it had been hung with tapestry richly fringed. Of an evening, with
+the setting sun, glowing gold, you were wont to kneel by the side of
+that old shepherd; and together ye chanted a hymn giving thanks for the
+mercies of the day, and imploring the renewal of them for the morrow.
+Then did the music of your sweet voice, as it flowed upon the old man's
+ears in its melting, silvery tones, possess a charm for his senses which
+taught him to rejoice and be grateful that, though the rest of his race
+was swept away, thou, Agnes, was left!
+
+"When the winter came, and the trees were stripped of their verdure, the
+poor cottage had still its enjoyments; for though the cold was intense
+without, yet there were warm hearts within; and the cheerful fire of an
+evening, when the labors of the day were passed, seemed to make gay and
+joyous companionship.
+
+"But suddenly you disappeared; and the old man found himself deserted.
+You left him, too, in the midst of winter--at a time when his age and
+infirmities demanded additional attentions. For two or three days he
+sped wearily about, seeking you everywhere in the neighboring district
+of the Black Forest. His aching limbs were dragged up rude heights, that
+he might plunge his glances down into the hollow chasms; but still not a
+trace of Agnes! He roved along the precipices overlooking the rustling
+streams, and searched--diligently searched the mazes of the dark wood;
+but still not a trace of Agnes! At length the painful conviction broke
+upon him that he was deserted--abandoned; and he would sooner have found
+thee a mangled and disfigured corpse in the forest than have adopted
+that belief. Nay--weep not now; it is all past; and if I recapitulate
+these incidents, it is but to convince thee how wretched the old man
+was, and how great is the extenuation for the course which he was so
+soon persuaded to adopt."
+
+"Then, who art thou that knowest all this?" exclaimed Agnes, casting
+looks of alarm upon her companion.
+
+"Thou shalt soon learn who I am," was the reply.
+
+Agnes still gazed upon him in mingled terror and wonder; for his words
+had gone to her heart, and she remembered how he had embraced her when
+she first encountered him in the church. His manners, too, were so mild,
+so kind, so paternal toward her; and yet he seemed but a few years older
+than herself.
+
+"You have gazed upon the portrait of the old man," he continued, "as he
+appeared on that memorable evening which sealed his fate!"
+
+Agnes started wildly.
+
+"Yes, sealed his fate, but spared him his life!" said the unknown,
+emphatically. "As he is represented in that picture, so was he sitting
+mournfully over the sorry fire, for the morrow's renewal of which there
+was no wood! At that hour a man appeared--appeared in the midst of the
+dreadful storm which burst over the Black Forest. This man's countenance
+is now known to thee; it is perpetuated in the other portrait to which I
+directed thine attention."
+
+"There is something of a wild and fearful interest in the aspect of that
+man," said Agnes, casting a shuddering glance behind her, and trembling
+lest the canvas had burst into life, and the countenance whose
+lineaments were depicted thereon was peering over her shoulder.
+
+"Yes, and there was much of wild and fearful interest in his history,"
+was the reply; "but of that I cannot speak--no, I dare not. Suffice it
+to say that he was a being possessed of superhuman powers, and that he
+proffered his services to the wretched--the abandoned--the deserted
+Wagner. He proposed to endow him with a new existence--to restore him to
+youth and manly beauty--to make him rich--to embellish his mind with
+wondrous attainments--to enable him to cast off the wrinkles of age----"
+
+"Holy Virgin! now I comprehend it all!" shrieked Agnes, throwing herself
+at the feet of her companion: "and you--_you_----"
+
+"I am Fernand Wagner!" he exclaimed, folding her in his embrace.
+
+"And can you pardon me, can you forgive my deep--deep ingratitude?"
+cried Agnes.
+
+"Let us forgive each other!" said Wagner. "You can now understand the
+meaning of the inscription beneath my portrait. 'His last day thus'
+signifies that it was the last day on which I wore that aged, decrepit,
+and sinking form."
+
+"But wherefore do you say, 'Let us forgive each other?'" demanded Agnes,
+scarcely knowing whether to rejoice or weep at the marvelous
+transformation of her grandsire.
+
+"Did I not ere now inform thee that thou wast forgotten until accident
+threw thee in my way to-night?" exclaimed Fernand. "I have wandered
+about the earth and beheld all the scenes which are represented in those
+pictures--ay, and many others equally remarkable. For eighteen months I
+was the servant--and slave of him who conferred upon me this fatal
+boon----"
+
+"At what price, then, have you purchased it?" asked Agnes, with a cold
+shudder.
+
+"Seek not to learn my secret, girl!" cried Wagner, almost sternly; then,
+in a milder tone, he added, "By all you deem holy and sacred, I conjure
+you, Agnes, never again to question me on that head! I have told thee as
+much as it is necessary for thee to know----"
+
+"One word--only one word!" exclaimed Agnes in an imploring voice. "Hast
+thou bartered thine immortal soul----"
+
+"No--no!" responded Wagner, emphatically. "My fate is terrible
+indeed--but I am not beyond the pale of salvation. See! Agnes--I kiss
+the crucifix--the symbol of faith and hope!"
+
+And, as he uttered these words, he pressed to his lips an ivory crucifix
+of exquisite workmanship, which he took from the table.
+
+"The Virgin be thanked that my fearful suspicion should prove
+unfounded!" ejaculated Agnes.
+
+"Yes--I am not altogether lost," answered Wagner. "But _he_--the unhappy
+man who made me what I am---- And yet I dare not say more," he added,
+suddenly checking himself. "For one year and a half did I follow him as
+his servitor--profiting by his knowledge--gaining varied information
+from his experience--passing with the rapidity of thought from clime to
+clime--surveying scenes of ineffable bliss, and studying all the
+varieties of misery that fall to the lot of human nature. When he--my
+master--passed away----"
+
+"On the 1st of August, 1517," observed Agnes, quoting from the
+inscription beneath the portrait of the individual alluded to.
+
+"Yes; when he passed away," continued Wagner, "I continued my wanderings
+alone until the commencement of last year, when I settled myself in
+Florence. The mansion to which I have brought you is mine. It is in a
+somewhat secluded spot on the banks of the Arno, and is surrounded by
+gardens. My household consists of but few retainers; and they are
+elderly persons--docile and obedient. The moment that I entered this
+abode, I set to work to paint those portraits to which I have directed
+your attention--likewise these pictures," he added, glancing around,
+"and in which I have represented scenes that my own eyes have witnessed.
+Here, henceforth, Agnes, shalt thou dwell; and let the past be
+forgotten. But there are three conditions which I must impose upon
+thee."
+
+"Name them," said Agnes; "I promise obedience beforehand."
+
+"The first," returned Fernand, "is that you henceforth look upon me as
+your brother, and call me such when we are alone together or in the
+presence of strangers. The second is that you never seek to remove the
+black cloth which covers yon place----"
+
+Agnes glanced toward the object alluded to and shuddered--as if the veil
+concealed some new mystery.
+
+"And the third condition is that you revive not on any future occasion
+the subject of our present conversation, nor even question me in respect
+to those secrets which it may suit me to retain within my own breast."
+
+Agnes promised obedience, and, embracing Wagner, said, "Heaven has been
+merciful to me, in my present affliction, in that it has given me _a
+brother_!"
+
+"Thou speakest of thine afflictions, Agnes!" exclaimed Wagner; "this is
+the night of revelations and mutual confidences--and this night once
+passed, we will never again allude to the present topics, unless events
+should render their revival necessary. It now remains for thee to
+narrate to me all that has befallen thee since the winter of 1516."
+
+Agnes hastened to comply with Fernand's request, and commenced her
+history in the following manner:
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII.
+
+THE HISTORY OF AGNES.
+
+
+"When you, dear brother--for so I shall henceforth call you--commenced
+your strange and wondrous revelations ere now, you painted in vivid
+colors the happiness which dwelt in our poor cottage on the borders of
+the Black Forest. You saw how deeply your words affected me--I could not
+restrain my tears. Let me not, however, dwell upon this subject; but
+rather hasten to explain those powerful causes which induced me to quit
+that happy home.
+
+"It was about six weeks before my flight that I went into the forest to
+gather wood. I was in the midst of my occupation, gayly thrilling a
+native song, when the sound of a horse's feet upon the hard soil of the
+beaten path suddenly interrupted me. I turned around, seeing a cavalier
+of strikingly handsome countenance--though somewhat stern withal, and of
+noble mien. He was in reality forty-four years of age--as I afterward
+learnt; but he seemed scarcely forty, so light did time sit upon his
+brow. His dress was elegant, though of some strange fashion; for it was
+Italian costume that he wore. The moment he was close to the spot where
+I stood he considered me for a short while, till I felt my cheeks
+glowing beneath his ardent gaze. I cast down my eyes; and the next
+instant he had leapt from his horse and was by my side. He addressed me
+in gentle terms; and when again I looked at him his countenance no more
+seemed stern. It appeared that he was staying with the Baron von
+Nauemberg, with whom he had been out hunting in the Black Forest, and
+from whom and his suite he was separated in the ardor of the chase.
+Being a total stranger in those parts, he had lost his way. I
+immediately described to him the proper path for him to pursue; and he
+offered me gold as a recompense. I declined the guerdon; and he
+questioned me concerning my family and my position. I told him that I
+lived hard-by, with an only relative--a grandsire, to whom I was
+devotedly attached. He lingered long in conversation with me; and his
+manner was so kind, so condescending, and so respectful, that I thought
+not I was doing wrong to listen to him. At length he requested me to be
+on the same spot at the same hour on the morrow; and he departed.
+
+"I was struck by his appearance--dazzled by the brilliancy of his
+discourse; for he spoke German fluently, although an Italian. He had
+made a deep impression on my mind; and I felt a secret longing to meet
+him again. Suddenly it occurred to me that I was acting with
+impropriety, and that you would be angry with me. I therefore resolved
+not to mention to you my accidental encounter with the handsome
+cavalier; but I determined at the same time not to repair to the forest
+next day. When the appointed hour drew near, my good genius deserted me;
+and I went. He was there, and he seemed pleased at my punctuality. I
+need not detail to you the nature of the discourse which he held toward
+me. Suffice it to say, that he declared how much he had been struck with
+my beauty, and how fondly he would love me; and he dazzled me still more
+by revealing his haughty name; and I found that I was beloved by the
+Count of Riverola.
+
+"You can understand how a poor girl, who had hitherto dwelt in the
+seclusion of a cottage on the border of a vast wood, and who seldom saw
+any person of higher rank than herself, was likely to be dazzled by the
+fine things which that great nobleman breathed in her ear.
+
+"And I was dazzled--flattered--excited--bewildered. I consented to meet
+him again: interview followed interview, until I no longer required any
+persuasion to induce me to keep the appointments thus given. But there
+were times when my conscience reproached me for conduct which I knew you
+would blame; and yet I dared not unburden my soul to you!
+
+"Six weeks thus passed away; I was still innocent--but madly in love
+with the Count of Riverola. He was the subject of my thoughts by day--of
+my dreams by night; and I felt that I could make any sacrifice to retain
+his affection. That sacrifice was too soon demanded! At the expiration
+of the six weeks he informed me that on the following day he must return
+to Italy, whither important affairs called him sooner than he had
+anticipated. He urged me to accompany him; I was bewildered--maddened by
+the contemplation of my duty on the one hand, of my love on the other.
+My guardian saint deserted me; I yielded to the persuasion of the
+count--I became guilty--and there was now no alternative save to fly
+with him!
+
+"Oh! believe me when I declare that this decision cost me a dreadful
+pang; but the count would not leave me time for reflection. He bore me
+away on his fleet steed, and halted not until the tall towers of
+Nauemberg Castle appeared in the distance. Then he stopped at a poor
+peasant's cottage, where his gold insured me a welcome reception. Having
+communicated the plan which he proposed to adopt respecting our journey
+to Florence, he took an affectionate leave of me, with a promise to
+return on the ensuing morning. The remainder of the day was passed
+wretchedly enough by me; and I already began to repent of the step I had
+taken. The peasants who occupied the cottage vainly endeavored to cheer
+me; my heart was too full to admit of consolation. Night came at length,
+and I retired to rest; but my dreams were of so unpleasant a nature--so
+filled with frightful images--that never did I welcome the dawn with
+more enthusiastic joy. Shortly after daybreak the count appeared at the
+cottage, attended by one of his numerous suite--a faithful attendant on
+whom he could rely implicitly. They were mounted on good steeds; and
+Antonio--such was the name of the servitor--led a third by the bridle.
+This one the count had purchased at an adjacent hamlet, expressly for my
+use. He had also procured a page's attire; for in such disguise was it
+agreed that I should accompany the count to Italy.
+
+"I should observe that the nobleman, in order to screen our _amour_ as
+much as possible, had set out from Nauemberg Castle, attended by Antonio
+alone, alleging as an excuse that certain affairs compelled him to
+travel homeward with as much celerity as possible. The remainder of his
+suit were therefore ordered to follow at their leisure.
+
+"Oh! with what agonizing emotion did my heart beat, as, in a private
+chamber of the cottage, I laid aside my peasant's garb and donned the
+doublet, hose, cap and cloak of a youthful page. I thought of you--of
+your helplessness--your age,--and also of my native land, which I was
+about to quit--perhaps forever! Still I had gone too far to retreat, and
+regrets were useless. I must also confess that when I returned to the
+room where the count was waiting for me, and heard the flattering
+compliments which he paid me on my appearance in that disguise, I
+smiled--yes, I smiled, and much of my remorse vanished!
+
+"We set out upon our journey toward the Alps; and the count exerted all
+his powers of conversation to chase away from my mind any regrets or
+repinings that might linger there. Though cold and stern--forbidding and
+reserved--haughty and austere in his bearing toward others, to me he was
+affectionate and tender. To be brief, yet with sorrow must I confess it,
+at the expiration of a few days I could bear to think, without weeping,
+of the fond relative whom I had left behind in the cottage of the Black
+Forest!
+
+"We crossed the Alps in safety, but not without experiencing much peril;
+and in a short time glorious Italy spread itself out at our feet. The
+conversation of the count had already prepared me to admire----"
+
+At this moment, Agnes' narrative was interrupted by a piercing shriek
+which burst from her lips; and extending her arms toward the window of
+the apartment, she screamed hysterically, "Again that countenance!" and
+fell back on the ottoman.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX.
+
+CONCLUSION OF THE HISTORY OF AGNES.
+
+
+In order that the reader may understand how Agnes could perceive any
+object outside the window, in the intense darkness of that tempestuous
+night--or rather morning, for it was now past one o'clock--we must
+observe that not only was the apartment in which Wagner and herself were
+seated brilliantly lighted by the silver lamps, but that, according to
+Florentine custom, there were also lamps suspended outside to the
+veranda, or large balcony belonging to the casements of the room above.
+
+Agnes and Wagner were, moreover, placed near the window which looked
+into a large garden attached to the mansion; and thus it was easy for
+the lady, whose eyes happened to be fixed upon the casement in the
+earnest interest with which she was relating her narrative, to perceive
+the human countenance that appeared at one of the panes.
+
+The moment her history was interrupted by the ejaculation of alarm that
+broke from her lips, Wagner started up and hastened to the window; but
+he could see nothing save the waving evergreens in his garden, and the
+light of a mansion which stood at a distance of about two hundred yards
+from his own abode.
+
+He was about to open the casement and step into the garden, when Agnes
+caught him by the arm, exclaiming wildly, "Leave me not--I could not--I
+could not bear to remain alone!"
+
+"No, I will not quit you, Agnes," replied Wagner, conducting her back to
+the sofa and resuming his seat by her side. "But wherefore that
+ejaculation of alarm? Whose countenance did you behold? Speak, dearest
+Agnes!"
+
+"I will hasten to explain the cause of my terror," retorted Agnes,
+becoming more composed. "Ere now I was about to detail the particulars
+of my journey to Florence, in company with the Count of Riverola, and
+attended by Antonio; but as those particulars are of no material
+interest, I will at once pass on to the period when we arrived in this
+city."
+
+"But the countenance at the window?" said Wagner, somewhat impatiently.
+
+"Listen--and you will soon know all," replied Agnes. "It was in the
+evening when I entered Florence for the first time. Antonio had
+proceeded in advance to inform his mother--a widow who resided in a
+decent house, but in an obscure street near the cathedral--that she was
+speedily to receive a young lady as a guest. This young lady was myself;
+and accordingly, when the count assisted me to alight from my horse at
+the gate of Dame Margaretha's abode, the good widow had everything in
+readiness for my reception. The count conversed with her apart for a few
+minutes; and I observed that he also placed a heavy purse in her
+hand--doubtless to insure her secrecy relative to the _amour_, with the
+existence of which he was of course compelled to acquaint her. Having
+seen me comfortably installed in Dame Margaretha's best apartment, he
+quitted me, with a promise to return on the morrow."
+
+Agnes paused for a few moments, sighed, and continued her narrative in
+the following manner:
+
+"Fortunately for me, Dame Margaretha was a German woman, who had married
+an Italian, otherwise my condition would have been wretched in the
+extreme. She treated me with great kindness, mingled with respect; for
+though but a poor peasant girl, I was beloved and protected by one of
+the most powerful nobles of Florence. I retired early to rest:--sleep
+did not, however, immediately visit my eyes! Oh! no--I was in Florence,
+but my thoughts were far away in my native Germany, and on the borders
+of the Black Forest. At length I fell into an uneasy slumber, and when I
+awoke the sun was shining through the lattice. I arose and dressed
+myself, and to my ineffable delight found that I was no longer to wear
+the garb of a page. That disguise had been removed while I slept, and in
+its place were costly vestments, which I donned with a pleasure that
+triumphed over the gloom of my soul. In the course of the morning rich
+furniture was brought to the house, and in a few hours the apartments
+allotted to me were converted, in my estimation, into a little paradise.
+The count arrived soon afterward, and I now--pardon me the neglect and
+ingratitude which my words confess--I now felt very happy. The noble
+Andrea enjoined me to go abroad but seldom, and never without being
+accompanied by Dame Margaretha; he also besought me not to appear to
+recognize him should I chance to meet him in public at any time, nor to
+form acquaintances; in a word, to live retired and secluded as possible,
+alike for his sake and my own. I promised compliance with all he
+suggested, and he declared in return that he would never cease to love
+me."
+
+"Dwell not upon details, Agnes," said Wagner; "for, although I am deeply
+interested in your narrative, my curiosity is strangely excited to learn
+the meaning of that terror which overcame you ere now."
+
+"I will confine myself to material facts as much as possible," returned
+Agnes. "Time glided rapidly away;--months flew by, and with sorrow and
+shame must I confess that the memories of the past, the memories of the
+bright, happy days of my innocence intruded but little on the life which
+I led. For, though he was so much older than I, yet I loved the Count of
+Riverola devotedly. Oh! Heaven knows how devotedly! His conversation
+delighted, fascinated me; and he seemed to experience a pleasure in
+imparting to me the extensive knowledge which he had acquired. To me he
+unbent as, doubtless, to human being he never unbent before; in my
+presence his sternness, his somber moods, his gloomy thoughts vanished.
+It was evident that he had much preying upon his mind; and perhaps he
+loved me thus fondly because--by some unaccountable whim or caprice, or
+strange influence--he found solace in my society. The presents which he
+heaped upon me, but which have been nearly all snatched from me, were of
+immense value; and when I remonstrated with him on account of a
+liberality so useless to one whom he allowed to want for nothing, he
+would reply, 'But remember, Agnes, when I shall be no more, riches will
+constitute your best friend, your safest protection; for such is the
+order of things in this world.' He generally spent two hours with me
+every day, and frequently visited me again in the evening. Thus did time
+pass; and at length I come to that incident which will explain the
+terror I ere now experienced."
+
+Agnes cast a hasty glance toward the window, as if to assure herself
+that the object of her fears was no longer there; and, satisfied on this
+head, she proceeded in the following manner:
+
+"It was about six months ago that I repaired as usual on the Sabbath
+morning to mass, accompanied by Dame Margaretha, when I found myself the
+object of some attention on the part of a lady, who was kneeling at a
+short distance from the place which I occupied in the church. The lady
+was enveloped in a dark, thick veil, the ample folds of which concealed
+her countenance, and meandered over her whole body's splendidly
+symmetrical length of limb in such a manner as to aid her rich attire in
+shaping, rather than hiding, the contours of that matchless form. I was
+struck by her fine proportions, which gave her, even in her kneeling
+attitude, a queen-like and majestic air; and I longed to obtain a
+glimpse of her countenance--the more so as I could perceive by her
+manner and the position of her head that from beneath her dark veil her
+eyes were intently fixed upon myself. At length the scrutiny to which I
+was thus subjected began to grow so irksome--nay, even alarming, that I
+hurriedly drew down my own veil, which I had raised through respect for
+the sacred altar whereat I was kneeling. Still I knew that the stranger
+lady was gazing on me; I _felt_ that she was. A certain uneasy
+sensation--amounting almost to a superstitious awe--convinced me that I
+was the object of her undivided attention. Suddenly the priests, in
+procession, came down from the altar; and as they passed us, I
+instinctively raised my veil again, through motives of deferential
+respect. At the same instant I glanced toward the stranger lady; she
+also drew back the dark covering from her face. Oh! what a countenance
+was then revealed to me--a countenance of such sovereign beauty that,
+though of the same sex, I was struck with admiration; but, in the next
+moment, a thrill of terror shot through my heart--for the fascination of
+the basilisk could scarcely paralyze its victim with more appalling
+effect than did the eyes of that lady. It might be conscience qualms,
+excited by some unknown influence--it might even have been imagination;
+but it nevertheless appeared as if those large, black, burning orbs shot
+forth lightnings which seared and scorched my very soul! For that
+splendid countenance, of almost unearthly beauty, was suddenly marked by
+an expression of such vindictive rage, such ineffable hatred, such
+ferocious menace, that I should have screamed had I not been as it were
+stunned--stupefied!
+
+"The procession of priests swept past. I averted my head from the
+stranger lady. In a few moments I again glanced hurriedly at the place
+which she had occupied--but she was gone. Then I felt relieved! On
+quitting the church, I frankly narrated to old Margaretha these
+particulars as I have now unfolded them to you; and methought that she
+was for a moment troubled as I spoke! But if she were, she speedily
+recovered her composure--endeavored to soothe me by attributing it all
+to my imagination, and earnestly advised me not to cause any uneasiness
+to the count by mentioning the subject to him. I readily promised
+compliance with this injunction; and in the course of a few days ceased
+to think upon the incident which has made so strange but evanescent an
+impression on my mind."
+
+"Doubtless Dame Margaretha was right in her conjecture," said Wagner;
+"and your imagination----"
+
+"Oh, no--no! It was not fancy!" interrupted Agnes, hastily. "But listen,
+and then judge for yourself. I informed you ere now that it was about
+six months ago when the event which I have just related took place. At
+that period, also, my noble lover--the ever-to be lamented Andrea--first
+experienced the symptoms of that internal disease which has, alas!
+carried him to the tomb."
+
+Agnes paused, wiped away her tears, and continued thus:
+
+"His visits to me consequently became less frequent;--I was more
+alone--for Margaretha was not always a companion who could solace me for
+the absence of one so dearly loved as my Andrea; and repeated fits of
+deep despondency seized upon my soul. At those times I felt as if some
+evil--vague and undefinable, but still terrible--were impending over me.
+Was it my lord's approaching death of which I had a presentiment? I know
+not! Weeks passed away; the count's visits occurred at intervals growing
+longer and longer--but his affection toward me had not abated. No: a
+malady that preyed upon his vitals retained him much at home;--and at
+last, about two months ago, I received through Antonio the afflicting
+intelligence that he was confined to his bed. My anguish now knew no
+bounds. I would fly to him--oh! I would fly to him:--who was more worthy
+to watch by his couch than I, who so dearly loved him! Dame Margaretha
+represented to me how painful it would be to his lordship were our
+_amour_ to transpire through any rash proceeding on my part--the more
+so, as I knew that he had a daughter and a son! I accordingly restrained
+my impetuous longing to hasten to his bedside:--I could not so easily
+subdue my grief!
+
+"One night I sat up late in my lonely chamber--pondering on the
+melancholy position in which I was placed,--loving so tenderly, yet not
+daring to fly to him whom I loved,--and giving way to all the mournful
+ideas which presented themselves to my imagination. At length my mind
+grew bewildered by those sad reflections; vague terrors gathered around
+me--multiplying in number and augmenting in intensity,--until at length
+the very figures on the tapestry with which the room was hung appeared
+animated with power to scare and affright me. The wind moaned ominously
+without, and raised strange echoes within; oppressive feelings crowded
+on my soul. At length the gale swelled to a hurricane--a whirlwind,
+seldom experienced in this delicious clime. Howlings in a thousand tones
+appeared to flit through the air; and piercing lamentations seemed to
+sound down the black clouds that rolled their mighty volumes together,
+veiling the moon and stars in thickest gloom. Overcome with terror, I
+retired to rest--and I slept. But troubled dreams haunted me throughout
+the night, and I awoke at an early hour in the morning. But--holy angels
+protect me!--what did I behold? Bending over me, as I lay, was that same
+countenance which I had seen four months before in the church,--and now,
+as it was _then_, darting upon me lightning from large black eyes that
+seemed to send shafts of flame and fire to the inmost recesses of my
+soul! Yet--distorted as it was with demoniac rage--that face was still
+endowed with the queen-like beauty--the majesty of loveliness, which had
+before struck me, and which even lent force to those looks of dreadful
+menace that were fixed upon me. There were the high forehead--the proud
+lip, curled in scorn,--the brilliant teeth, glistening between the
+quivering vermilion,--and the swan-like arching of the dazzling neck;
+there also was the dark glory of the luxuriant hair!
+
+"For a few moments I was spell-bound--motionless--speechless. Clothed
+with terror and sublimity, yet in all the flush of the most perfect
+beauty, a strange--mysterious being stood over me: and I knew not
+whether she were a denizen of this world, or a spirit risen from
+another. Perhaps the transcendent loveliness of that countenance was but
+a mask and the wondrous symmetry of that form but a disguise, beneath
+which all the passions of hell were raging in the brain and in the heart
+of a fiend. Such were the ideas that flashed through my imagination; and
+I involuntarily closed my eyes, as if this action could avert the
+malignity that appeared to menace me. But dreadful thoughts still
+pursued me--enveloping me, as it were, in an oppressive mist wherein
+appalling though dimly seen images and forms were agitating; and I again
+opened my eyes. The lady--if an earthly being she really were--was gone.
+I rose from my couch and glanced nervously around--expecting almost to
+behold an apparition come forth from behind the tapestry, or the folds
+of the curtains. But my attention was suddenly arrested by a fact more
+germane to worldly occurrences. The casket wherein I kept the rich
+presents made to me at different times by my Andrea had been forced open
+and the most valuable portion of its contents were gone. On a closer
+investigation I observed that the articles which were left were those
+that were purchased new; whereas the jewels that had been abstracted
+were old ones, which, as the count had informed me, had belonged to his
+deceased wife.
+
+"On discovering this robbery, I began to suspect that my mysterious
+visitress, who had caused me so much alarm, was the thief of my
+property; and I immediately summoned old Margaretha. She was of course
+astounded at the occurrence which I related; and, after some reflection,
+she suddenly remembered that she had forgotten to fasten the house-door
+ere she retired to rest on the preceding evening. I chided her for a
+neglect which had enabled some evil-disposed woman to penetrate into my
+chamber, and not only terrify but also plunder me. She implored my
+forgiveness, and besought me not to mention the incident to the count
+when next we met. Alas! my noble Andrea and I never met again.
+
+"I was sorely perplexed by the event which I have just related. If the
+mysterious visitress were a common thief, why did she leave any of the
+jewels in the casket? and wherefore had she on two occasions
+contemplated me with looks of such dark rage and infernal menace? A
+thought struck me. Could the count's daughter have discovered our
+_amour_? and was it she who had come to gain possession of jewels
+belonging to the family? I hinted my suspicions to Margaretha; but she
+speedily convinced me that they were unfounded.
+
+"'The Lady Nisida is deaf and dumb,' she said, 'and cannot possibly
+exercise such faculties of observation, nor adopt such means of
+obtaining information as would make her acquainted with all that has
+occurred between her father and yourself. Besides--she is constantly in
+attendance on her sire, who is very, very ill.
+
+"I now perceived the improbability of a deaf and dumb female discovering
+an _amour_ so carefully concealed; but to assure myself more fully on
+that head, I desired Margaretha to describe the Lady Nisida. This she
+readily did, and I learnt from her that the count's daughter was of a
+beauty quite different from the lady whom I had seen in the church and
+in my own chamber. In a word, it appears that Nisida has light hair,
+blue eyes and a delicate form: whereas, the object of my interest,
+curiosity, and fear, is a woman of dark Italian loveliness.
+
+"I have little more now to say. The loss of the jewels and the
+recollection of the mysterious lady were soon absorbed in the
+distressing thoughts which the serious illness of the count forced upon
+my mind. Weeks passed away, and he came not; but he sent repeated
+messages by Antonio, imploring me to console myself, as he should soon
+recover, and urging me not to take any step that might betray the
+existence of our _amour_. Need I say how religiously I obeyed him in the
+latter respect? Day after day did I hope to see him again, for I knew
+not that he was dying: and I used to dress myself in my gayest
+attire--even as now I am appareled--to welcome his expected visit. Alas!
+he never came; and his death was concealed from me, doubtless that the
+sad event might not be communicated until after the funeral, lest in the
+first frenzy of anguish I should rush to the Riverola palace to imprint
+a last kiss upon the cheek of the corpse. But a few hours ago, I learned
+the whole truth from two female friends of Dame Margaretha who called to
+visit her, and whom I had hastened to inform that she was temporarily
+absent. My noble Andrea was dead, and at that very moment his funeral
+obsequies were being celebrated in the neighboring church--the very
+church in which I had first beheld the mysterious lady! Frantic with
+grief--unmindful of the exposure that would ensue--reckless of the
+consequences, I left the house--I hastened to the church--I intruded my
+presence amidst the mourners. You know the rest, Fernand. It only
+remains for me to say that the countenance which I beheld ere now at the
+window--strongly delineated and darkly conspicuous amidst the blaze of
+light outside the casement--was that of the lady whom I have thus seen
+for the third time! But, tell me, Fernand, how could a stranger thus
+obtain admission to the gardens of your mansion?"
+
+"You see yon lights, Agnes!" said Wagner, pointing toward the mansion
+which, as we stated at the commencement of that chapter, was situated at
+a distance of about two hundred yards from Fernand's dwelling, the backs
+of the two houses thus looking toward each other. "Those lights," he
+continued, "are shining in a mansion the gardens of which are separated
+from my own by a simple hedge of evergreens, that would not bar even the
+passage of a child. Should any inmate of that mansion possess curiosity
+sufficient to induce him or her to cross the boundary, traverse my
+gardens, and approach the casements of my residence, that curiosity may
+be easily gratified."
+
+"And to whom does yon mansion belong?" asked Agnes.
+
+"To Dr. Duras, an eminent physician," was the reply.
+
+"Dr. Duras, the physician who attended my noble Andrea in his illness!"
+exclaimed Agnes. "Then the mysterious lady of whom I have spoken so
+much, and whose countenance ere now appeared at the casement, must be an
+inmate of the house of Dr. Duras; or at all events, a visitor there! Ah!
+surely there is some connection between that lady and the family at
+Riverola?"
+
+"Time will solve the mystery, dearest sister, for so I am henceforth to
+call you," said Fernand. "But beneath this roof, no harm can menace you.
+And now let me summon good Dame Paula, my housekeeper, to conduct you to
+the apartments which have been prepared for your reception. The morning
+is far advanced, and we both stand in need of rest."
+
+Dame Paula, an elderly, good-tempered, kind-hearted matron, shortly made
+her appearance; and to her charge did Wagner consign his newly-found
+relative, whom he now represented to be his sister.
+
+But as Agnes accompanied the worthy woman from the apartment, she
+shuddered involuntarily as she passed the frame which was covered with
+the black cloth, and which seemed ominous amidst the blaze of light that
+filled the room.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+FRANCISCO, WAGNER AND NISIDA.
+
+
+On the ensuing evening, Francisco, Count of Riverola, was seated in one
+of the splendid saloons of his palace, pondering upon the strange
+injunction which he had received from his deceased father, relative to
+the mysterious closet, when Wagner was announced.
+
+Francisco rose to receive him, saying in a cordial though melancholy
+tone, "Signor, I expected you."
+
+"And let me hasten to express the regret which I experienced at having
+addressed your lordship coldly and haughtily last night," exclaimed
+Wagner. "But, at the moment, I only beheld in you the son of him who had
+dishonored a being very dear to my heart."
+
+"I can well understand your feelings on that occasion, signor," replied
+Francisco. "Alas! the sins of the fathers are too often visited upon the
+children in this world. But, in whatever direction our present
+conversation may turn, I implore you to spare as much as possible the
+memory of my sire."
+
+"Think not, my lord," said Wagner, "that I should be so ungenerous as to
+reproach you for a deed in which you had no concern, and over which you
+exercised no control. Nor should I inflict so deep an injury upon you,
+as to speak in disrespectful terms of him who was the author of your
+being, but who is now no more."
+
+"Your kind language has already made me your friend," exclaimed
+Francisco. "And now point out to me in what manner I can in any way
+repair--or mitigate--the wrong done to that fair creature in whom you
+express yourself interested."
+
+"That young lady is my sister," said Wagner, emphatically.
+
+"Your sister, signor! And yet, meseems, she recognized you not----"
+
+"Long years have passed since we saw each other," interrupted Fernand;
+"for we were separated in our childhood."
+
+"And did you not both speak of some relative--an old man who once dwelt
+on the confines of the Black Forest of Germany, but who is now in
+Florence?" asked Francisco.
+
+"Alas! that old man is no more," returned Wagner. "I did but use his
+name to induce Agnes to place confidence in me, and allow me to withdraw
+her from a scene which her wild grief so unpleasantly interrupted; for I
+thought that were I then and there to announce myself as her brother,
+she might not believe me--she might suspect some treachery or snare in a
+city so notoriously profligate as Florence. But the subsequent
+explanations which took place between us cleared up all doubts on that
+subject."
+
+"I am well pleased to hear that the poor girl has found so near a
+relative and so dear a friend, signor," said Francisco. "And now
+acquaint me, I pray thee, with the means whereby I may, to some extent,
+repair the injury your sister has sustained at the hands of him whose
+memory I implore you to spare!"
+
+"Wealth I possess in abundance--oh! far greater abundance than is
+necessary to satisfy all my wants!" exclaimed Wagner, with something of
+bitterness and regret in his tone; "but, even were I poor, gold would
+not restore my sister's honor. No--let that subject, however, pass. I
+would only ask you, count, whether there be any scion of your
+family--any lady connected with you--who answers this description?"
+
+And Wagner proceeded to delineate, in minute terms, the portraiture of
+the mysterious lady who had inspired Agnes on three occasions with so
+much terror, and whom Agnes herself had depicted in such glowing
+language.
+
+"Signor! you are describing the Lady Nisida, my sister!" exclaimed
+Francisco, struck with astonishment at the fidelity of the portrait thus
+verbally drawn.
+
+"Your sister, my lord!" cried Wagner. "Then has Dame Margaretha deceived
+Agnes in representing the Lady Nisida to be rather a beauty of the cold
+north than of the sunny south."
+
+"Dame Margaretha!" said Francisco; "do you allude, signor, to the mother
+of my late father's confidential dependent, Antonio?"
+
+"The same," was the answer. "It was at Dame Margaretha's house that your
+father placed my sister Agnes, who has resided there nearly four years."
+
+"But wherefore have you made those inquiries relative to the Lady
+Nisida?" inquired Francisco.
+
+"I will explain the motive with frankness," responded Wagner.
+
+He then related to the young count all those particulars relative to the
+mysterious lady and Agnes, with which the reader is already acquainted.
+
+"There must be some extraordinary mistake--some strange error, signor,
+in all this," observed Francisco. "My poor sister is, as you seem to be
+aware, so deeply afflicted that she possesses not faculties calculated
+to make her aware of that _amour_ which even I, who possess those
+faculties in which she is deficient, never suspected, and concerning
+which no hint ever reached me, until the whole truth burst suddenly upon
+me last night at the funeral of my sire. Moreover, had accident revealed
+to Nisida the existence of the connection between my father and your
+sister, signor, she would have imparted the discovery to me, such is the
+confidence and so great is the love that exists between us. For habit
+has rendered us so skillful and quick in conversing with the language of
+the deaf and dumb, that no impediment ever exists to the free
+interchange of our thoughts."
+
+"And yet, if the Lady Nisida _had_ made such a discovery, her hatred of
+Agnes may be well understood," said Wagner; "for her ladyship must
+naturally look upon my sister as the partner of her father's
+weakness--the dishonored slave of his passions."
+
+"Nisida has no secret from me," observed the young count, firmly.
+
+"But wherefore did Dame Margaretha deceive my sister in respect to the
+personal appearance of the Lady Nisida?" inquired Wagner.
+
+"I know not. At the same time----"
+
+The door opened, and Nisida entered the apartment.
+
+She was attired in deep black; her luxuriant raven hair, no longer
+depending in shining curls, was gathered up in massy bands at the sides,
+and a knot behind, whence hung a rich veil that meandered over her
+body's splendidly symmetrical length of limb in such a manner as to aid
+her attire in shaping rather than hiding the contours of that matchless
+form. The voluptuous development of her bust was shrouded, not
+concealed, by the stomacher of black velvet which she wore, and which
+set off in strong relief the dazzling whiteness of her neck.
+
+The moment her lustrous dark eyes fell upon Fernand Wagner, she started
+slightly; but this movement was imperceptible alike to him whose
+presence caused it, and to her brother.
+
+Francisco conveyed to her, by the rapid language of the fingers, the
+name of their visitor, and at the same time intimated to her that he was
+the brother of Agnes, the young and lovely female whose strange
+appearance at the funeral, and avowed connection with the late noble,
+had not been concealed from the haughty lady.
+
+Nisida's eyes seemed to gleam with pleasure when she understood in what
+degree of relationship Wagner stood toward Agnes; and she bowed to him
+with a degree of courtesy seldom displayed by her to strangers.
+
+Francisco then conveyed to her in the language of the dumb, all those
+details already related in respect to the "mysterious lady" who had so
+haunted the unfortunate Agnes.
+
+A glow of indignation mounted to the cheeks of Nisida; and more than
+usually rapid was the reply she made through the medium of the alphabet
+of the fingers.
+
+"My sister desires me to express to you, signor," said Francisco,
+turning toward Wagner, "that she is not the person whom the Lady Agnes
+has to complain against. My sister," he continued, "has never to her
+knowledge seen the Lady Agnes; much less has she ever penetrated into
+her chamber; and indignantly does she repel the accusation relative to
+the abstraction of the jewels. She also desires me to inform you that
+last night after reading of our father's last testament, she retired to
+her chamber, which she did not quit until this morning at the usual
+hour; and that therefore it was not her countenance which the Lady Agnes
+beheld at the casement of your saloon."
+
+"I pray you, my lord, to let the subject drop now, and forever!" said
+Wagner, who was struck with profound admiration--almost amounting to
+love--for the Lady Nisida: "there is some strange mystery in all this,
+which time alone can clear up. Will your lordship express to your sister
+how grieved I am that any suspicion should have originated against her
+in respect to Agnes?"
+
+Francisco signaled these remarks to Nisida; and the latter, rising from
+her seat, advanced toward Wagner, and presented him her hand in token of
+her readiness to forget the injurious imputations thrown out against
+her.
+
+Fernand raised that fair hand to his lips, and respectfully kissed it;
+but the hand seemed to burn as he held it, and when he raised his eyes
+toward the lady's countenance, she darted on him a look so ardent and
+impassioned that it penetrated into his very soul.
+
+That rapid interchange of glances seemed immediately to establish a kind
+of understanding--a species of intimacy between those extraordinary
+beings; for on the one side, Nisida read in the fine eyes of the
+handsome Fernand all the admiration expressed there, and he, on his
+part, instinctively understood that he was far from disagreeable to the
+proud sister of the young Count of Riverola. While he was ready to fall
+at her feet and do homage to her beauty, she experienced the kindling of
+all the fierce fires of sensuality in her breast.
+
+But the unsophisticated and innocent-minded Francisco observed not the
+expression of these emotions on either side, for their manifestation
+occupied not a moment. The interchange of such feelings is ever too
+vivid and electric to attract the notice of the unsuspecting observer.
+
+When Wagner was about to retire, Nisida made the following signal to her
+brother:--"Express to the signor that he will ever be a welcome guest at
+the palace of Riverola; for we owe kindness and friendship to the
+brother of her whom our father dishonored."
+
+But, to the astonishment of both the count and the Lady Nisida, Wagner
+raised his hands, and displayed as perfect a knowledge of the language
+of the dumb as they themselves possessed.
+
+"I thank your ladyship for this unexpected condescension," he signaled
+by the rapid play of his fingers; "and I shall not forget to avail
+myself of this most courteous invitation."
+
+It were impossible to describe the sudden glow of pleasure and delight
+which animated Nisida's splendid countenance, when she thus discovered
+that Wagner was able to hold converse with her, and she hastened to
+reply thus: "We shall expect you to revisit us soon."
+
+Wagner bowed low and took his departure, his mind full of the beautiful
+Nisida.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI.
+
+NISIDA AND WAGNER--FRANCISCO AND FLORA--THE APPROACH OF SUNSET.
+
+
+Upward of two months had passed away since the occurrences related in
+the preceding chapter, and it was now the 31st of January, 1521.
+
+The sun was verging toward the western hemisphere, but the rapid flight
+of the hours was unnoticed by Nisida and Fernand Wagner, as they were
+seated together in one of the splendid saloons of the Riverola mansion.
+
+Their looks were fixed on each other's countenance; the eyes of Fernand
+expressing tenderness and admiration, those of Nisida beaming with all
+the passions of her ardent and sensual soul.
+
+Suddenly the lady raised her hands, and by the rapid play of the
+fingers, asked, "Fernand, do you indeed love me as much as you would
+have me believe I am beloved?"
+
+"Never in this world was woman so loved as you," he replied, by the aid
+of the same language.
+
+"And yet I am an unfortunate being--deprived of those qualities which
+give the greatest charm to the companionship of those who love."
+
+"But you are eminently beautiful, my Nisida; and I can fancy how sweet,
+how rich-toned would be your voice, could your lips frame the words, '_I
+love thee!_'"
+
+A profound sigh agitated the breast of the lady; and at the same time
+her lips quivered strangely, as if she were essaying to speak.
+
+Wagner caught her to his breast; and she wept long and plenteously.
+Those tears relieved her; and she returned his warm, impassioned kisses
+with an ardor that convinced him how dear he had become to that
+afflicted, but transcendently beautiful being. On her side, the blood in
+her veins appeared to circulate like molten lead; and her face, her
+neck, her bosom were suffused with burning blushes.
+
+At length, raising her head, she conveyed this wish to her companion:
+"Thou hast given me an idea which may render me ridiculous in your
+estimation; but it is a whim, a fancy, a caprice, engendered only by the
+profound affection I entertain for thee. I would that thou shouldst say,
+in thy softest, tenderest tones, the words '_I love thee!_' and, by the
+wreathing of thy lips, I shall see enough to enable my imagination to
+persuade itself that those words have really fallen upon my ears."
+
+Fernand smiled assent; and, while Nisida's eyes were fixed upon him with
+the most enthusiastic interest, he said, "I love thee!"
+
+The sovereign beauty of her countenance was suddenly lighted up with an
+expression of ineffable joy, of indescribable delight; and, signaling
+the assurance, "I love thee, dearest, dearest Fernand!" she threw
+herself into his arms.
+
+But almost at the same moment voices were heard in the adjacent room:
+and Wagner, gently disengaging himself from Nisida's embrace, hastily
+conveyed to her an intimation of the vicinity of others.
+
+The lady gave him to understand by a glance that she comprehended him;
+and they remained motionless, fondly gazing upon each other.
+
+"I know not how it has occurred, Flora," said the voice of Francisco,
+speaking in a tender tone, in the adjoining room--"I know not how it has
+occurred that I should have addressed you in this manner--so soon, too,
+after the death of my lamented father, and while these mourning garments
+yet denote the loss which myself and sister have sustained----"
+
+"Oh! my lord, suffer me to retire," exclaimed Flora Francatelli, in a
+tone of beseeching earnestness; "I should not have listened to your
+lordship so long in the gallery of pictures, much less have accompanied
+your lordship hither."
+
+"I requested thee to come with me to this apartment, Flora, that I might
+declare, without fear of our interview being interrupted, how dear, how
+very dear, thou art to me, and how honorable is the passion with which
+thou hast inspired me. Oh, Flora," exclaimed the young count, "I could
+no longer conceal my love for thee! My heart was bursting to reveal its
+secret; and when I discovered thee alone, ere now, in the gallery of
+pictures, I could not resist the favorable opportunity accident seemed
+to have afforded for this avowal."
+
+"Alas! my lord," murmured Flora, "I know not whether to rejoice or be
+sorrowful at the revelation which has this day met my ears."
+
+"And yet you said ere now that you could love me, that you did love me
+in return," ejaculated Francisco.
+
+"I spoke truly, my lord," answered the bashful maiden; "but, alas! how
+can the humble, obscure, portionless Flora become the wife of the rich,
+powerful and honored Count of Riverola? There is an inseparable gulf
+fixed between us, my lord."
+
+"Am I not my own master? Can I not consult my own happiness in that most
+solemn and serious of the world's duties--marriage?" cried Francisco,
+with all the generous ardor of youth and his own noble disposition.
+
+"Your lordship is free and independent in point of fact," said Flora, in
+a low, tender and yet impressive tone; "but your lordship has
+relations--friends."
+
+"My relations will not thwart the wishes of him whom they love,"
+answered Francisco; "and those who place obstacles in the way of my
+felicity cannot be denominated my friends."
+
+"Oh! my lord--could I yield myself up to the hopes which your language
+inspires!" cried Flora.
+
+"You can--you may, dearest girl!" exclaimed the young count. "And now I
+know that you love me! But many months must elapse ere I can call thee
+mine; and, indeed, a remorse smites my heart that I have dared to think
+of my own happiness, so soon after a mournful ceremony has consigned a
+parent to the tomb. Heaven knows that I do not the less deplore his
+loss--but wherefore art thou so pale, so trembling, Flora?"
+
+"Meseems that a superstitious awe of evil omens has seized upon my
+soul," returned the maiden, in a tremulous tone. "Let us retire, my
+lord; the Lady Nisida may require my services elsewhere."
+
+"Nisida!" repeated Francisco, as if the mention of his sister's name had
+suddenly awakened new ideas in his mind.
+
+"Ah! my lord," said Flora, sorrowfully, "you now perceive that there is
+at least one who may not learn with satisfaction the alliance which your
+lordship would form with the poor and humble dependent."
+
+"Nay, by my patron saint, thou hast misunderstood me!" exclaimed the
+young count warmly. "Nisida will not oppose her brother's happiness; and
+her strong mind will know how to despise those conventional usages which
+require that high birth should mate with high birth, and wealth ally
+itself to wealth. Yes; Nisida will consult my felicity alone; and when I
+ere now repeated her name as it fell from your lips, it was in a manner
+reproachful to myself, because I have retained my love for thee a secret
+from her. A secret from Nisida! Oh! I have been cruel, unjust, not to
+have confided in my sister long ago! And yet," he added more slowly,
+"she might reproach me for my selfishness in bestowing a thought on
+marriage soon, so very soon, after a funeral! Flora, dearest maiden,
+circumstances demand that the avowal which accident and opportunity have
+led me this day to make, should exist as a secret, known only unto
+yourself and me. But, in a few months I will explain all to my sister,
+and she will greet thee as her brother's chosen bride. Are thou content,
+Flora, that our mutual love should remain thus concealed until the
+proper time shall come for its revelation?"
+
+"Yes, my lord, and for many reasons," was the answer.
+
+"For many reasons, Flora!" exclaimed the young count.
+
+"At least for more than one," rejoined the maiden. "In the first
+instance, it is expedient your lordship should have due leisure to
+reflect upon the important step which you propose to take--a step
+conferring so much honor on myself, but which may not insure your
+happiness."
+
+"If this be a specimen of thy reasons, dear maiden," exclaimed
+Francisco, laughing, "I need hear no more. Be well assured," he added
+seriously, "that time will not impair the love I experience for you."
+
+Flora murmured a reply which did not reach Wagner, and immediately
+afterward the sound of her light steps was heard retreating from the
+adjacent room. A profound silence of a few minutes occurred; and then
+Francisco also withdrew.
+
+Wagner had been an unwilling listener to the preceding conversation; but
+while it was in progress, he from time to time threw looks of love and
+tenderness on his beautiful companion, who returned them with
+impassioned ardor.
+
+Whether it were that her irritable temper was impatient of the restraint
+imposed upon herself and her lover by the vicinity of others, or whether
+she was annoyed at the fact of her brother and Flora being so long
+together (for Wagner had intimated to her who their neighbors were, the
+moment he had recognized their voices), we cannot say; but Nisida showed
+an occasional uneasiness of manner, which she, however, studied to
+subdue as much as possible, during the scene that took place in the
+adjoining apartment.
+
+Fernand did not offer to convey to her any idea of the nature of the
+conversation which occupied her brother and Flora Francatelli; neither
+did she manifest the least curiosity to be enlightened on that head.
+
+The moment the young lovers had quitted the next room Wagner intimated
+the fact to Nisida; but at the same instant, just as he was about to
+bestow upon her a tender caress, a dreadful, an appalling reminiscence
+burst upon him with such overwhelming force that he fell back stupefied
+on the sofa.
+
+Nisida's countenance assumed an expression of the deepest solicitude,
+and her eloquent, sparkling eyes, implored him to intimate to her what
+ailed him.
+
+But, starting wildly from his seat, and casting on her a look of such
+bitter, bitter anguish, that the appalling emotions thus expressed
+struck terror to her soul--Fernand rushed from the room.
+
+Nisida sprung to the window; and, though the obscurity of the evening
+now announced the last flickerings of the setting sunbeams in the west,
+she could perceive her lover dashing furiously on through the spacious
+gardens that surrounded the Riverola Palace.
+
+On--on he went toward the River Arno; and in a few minutes was out of
+sight.
+
+Alas! intoxicated with love, and giving himself up to the one delightful
+idea--that he was with the beauteous Nisida--then, absorbed in the
+interest of the conversation which he had overheard between Francisco
+and Flora--Wagner had forgotten until it was nearly too late, _that the
+sun was about to set on the last day of the month_.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII.
+
+THE WEHR-WOLF.
+
+
+'Twas the hour of sunset.
+
+The eastern horizon, with its gloomy and somber twilight, offered a
+strange contrast to the glorious glowing hues of vermilion, and purple,
+and gold, that blended in long streaks athwart the western sky.
+
+For even the winter sunset of Italy is accompanied with resplendent
+tints--as if an emperor, decked with a refulgent diadem, were repairing
+to his imperial couch.
+
+The declining rays of the orb of light bathed in molten gold the
+pinnacles, steeples, and lofty palaces of proud Florence, and toyed with
+the limpid waves of the Arno, on whose banks innumerable villas and
+casinos already sent forth delicious strains of music, broken only by
+the mirth of joyous revelers.
+
+And by degrees as the sun went down, the palaces of the superb city
+began to shed light from their lattices, set in rich sculptured masonry;
+and here and there, where festivity prevailed, grand illuminations
+sprung up with magical quickness, the reflection from each separate
+galaxy rendering it bright as day far, far around.
+
+Vocal and instrumental melody floated through the still air; and the
+perfume of exotics, decorating the halls of the Florentine nobles,
+poured from the widely-opened portals, and rendered the air delicious.
+
+For Florence was gay that evening--the last day of each month being the
+one which the wealthy lords and high-born ladies set apart for the
+reception of their friends.
+
+The sun sank behind the western hills; and even the hothouse flowers
+closed up their buds--as if they were eyelids weighed down by slumber,
+and not to wake until the morning should arouse them again to welcome
+the return of their lover--that glorious sun!
+
+Darkness seemed to dilate upon the sky like an image in the midst of a
+mirage, expanding into superhuman dimensions--then rapidly losing its
+shapeliness, and covering the vault above densely and confusedly.
+
+But, by degrees, countless stars began to stud the colorless canopy of
+heaven, like gems of orient splendor; for the last--last flickering ray
+of the twilight in the west had expired in the increasing obscurity.
+
+But, hark! what is that wild and fearful cry?
+
+In the midst of a wood of evergreens on the banks of the Arno, a
+man--young, handsome, and splendidly attired--has thrown himself upon
+the ground, where he writhes like a stricken serpent, in horrible
+convulsions.
+
+He is the prey of a demoniac excitement: an appalling consternation is
+on him--madness is in his brain--his mind is on fire.
+
+Lightnings appear to gleam from his eyes, as if his soul were dismayed,
+and withering within his breast.
+
+"Oh! no--no!" he cries with a piercing shriek, as if wrestling madly,
+furiously, but vainly against some unseen fiend that holds him in his
+grasp.
+
+And the wood echoes to that terrible wail; and the startled bird flies
+fluttering from its bough.
+
+But, lo! what awful change is taking place in the form of that doomed
+being? His handsome countenance elongates into one of savage and
+brute-like shape; the rich garments which he wears become a rough,
+shaggy, and wiry skin; his body loses its human contours, his arms and
+limbs take another form; and, with a frantic howl of misery, to which
+the woods give horribly faithful reverberations, and, with a rush like a
+hurling wind, the wretch starts wildly away, no longer a man, but a
+monstrous wolf!
+
+On, on he goes: the wood is cleared--the open country is gained. Tree,
+hedge, and isolated cottage appear but dim points in the landscape--a
+moment seen, the next left behind; the very hills appear to leap after
+each other.
+
+A cemetery stands in the monster's way, but he turns not aside--through
+the sacred inclosure--on, on he goes. There are situated many tombs,
+stretching up the slope of a gentle acclivity, from the dark soil of
+which the white monuments stand forth with white and ghastly gleaming,
+and on the summit of the hill is the church of St. Benedict the Blessed.
+
+From the summit of the ivy-grown tower the very rooks, in the midst of
+their cawing, are scared away by the furious rush and the wild howl with
+which the Wehr-Wolf thunders over the hallowed ground.
+
+At the same instant a train of monks appear round the angle of the
+church--for there is a funeral at that hour; and their torches flaring
+with the breeze that is now springing up, cast an awful and almost
+magical light on the dark gray walls of the edifice, the strange effect
+being enhanced by the prismatic reflection of the lurid blaze from the
+stained glass of the oriel window.
+
+The solemn spectacle seemed to madden the Wehr-Wolf. His speed
+increased--he dashed through the funeral train--appalling cries of
+terror and alarm burst from the lips of the holy fathers--and the solemn
+procession was thrown into confusion. The coffin-bearers dropped their
+burden, and the corpse rolled out upon the ground, its decomposing
+countenance seeming horrible by the glare of the torch-light.
+
+The monk who walked nearest the head of the coffin was thrown down by
+the violence with which the ferocious monster cleared its passage; and
+the venerable father--on whose brow sat the snow of eighty winters--fell
+with his head against a monument, and his brains were dashed out.
+
+On, on fled the Wehr-Wolf, over mead and hill, through valley and dale.
+The very wind seemed to make way: he clove the air--he appeared to skim
+the ground--to fly.
+
+Through the romantic glades and rural scenes of Etruria the monster
+sped--sounds, resembling shrieking howls, bursting ever and anon from
+his foaming mouth--his red eyes glaring in the dusk of the evening like
+ominous meteors--and his whole aspect so full of appalling ferocity,
+that never was seen so monstrous, so terrific a spectacle!
+
+A village is gained; he turns not aside, but dashes madly through the
+little street formed by the huts and cottages of the Tuscan
+vine-dressers.
+
+A little child is in his path--a sweet, blooming, ruddy, noble boy; with
+violet-colored eyes and flaxen hair--disporting merrily at a short
+distance from his parents, who are seated at the threshold of their
+dwelling.
+
+Suddenly a strange and ominous rush--an unknown trampling of rapid feet
+falls upon their ears; then, with a savage cry, a monster sweeps past.
+
+"My child! my child!" screams the affrighted mother; and simultaneously
+the shrill cry of an infant in the sudden agony of death carries
+desolation to the ear!
+
+'Tis done--'twas but the work of a moment; the wolf has swept by, the
+quick rustling of his feet is no longer heard in the village. But those
+sounds are succeeded by awful wails and heart-rending lamentations: for
+the child--the blooming, violet-eyed, flaxen-haired boy--the darling of
+his poor but tender parents, is weltering in his blood!
+
+On, on speeds the destroyer, urged by an infernal influence which
+maddens the more intensely because its victim strives vainly to struggle
+against it: on, on, over the beaten road--over the fallow field--over
+the cottager's garden--over the grounds of the rich one's rural villa.
+
+And now, to add to the horrors of the scene, a pack of dogs have started
+in pursuit of the wolf--dashing--hurrying--pushing--pressing upon one
+another in all the anxious ardor of the chase.
+
+The silence and shade of the open country, in the mild starlight, seem
+eloquently to proclaim the peace and happiness of a rural life; but now
+that silence is broken by the mingled howling of the wolf, and the deep
+baying of the hounds--and this shade is crossed and darkened by the
+forms of the animals as they scour so fleetly--oh! with such whirlwind
+speed along.
+
+But that Wehr-Wolf bears a charmed life; for though the hounds overtake
+him--fall upon him--and attack him with all the courage of their nature,
+yet does he hurl them from him, toss them aside, spurn them away, and at
+length free himself from their pursuit altogether!
+
+And now the moon rises with unclouded splendor, like a maiden looking
+from her lattice screened with purple curtains; and still the monster
+hurries madly on with unrelaxing speed.
+
+For hours has he pursued his way thus madly; and, on a sudden, as he
+passes the outskirts of a sleeping town, the church-bell is struck by
+the watcher's hand to proclaim midnight.
+
+Over the town, over the neighboring fields--through the far-off forest,
+clanged that iron tongue: and the Wehr-Wolf sped all the faster, as if
+he were running a race with that Time whose voice had just spoken.
+
+On, on went the Wehr-Wolf; but now his course began to deviate from the
+right line which he had hitherto pursued, and to assume a curved
+direction.
+
+From a field a poor man was turning an ox into the main road, that he
+might drive the animal to his master's residence by daylight; the wolf
+swept by, and snapped furiously at the ox as he passed: and the beast,
+affrighted by the sudden appearance, gushing sound, and abrupt though
+evanescent attack of the infuriate monster, turned on the herdsman and
+gored him to death.
+
+On went the terrific wolf, with wilder and more frequent howlings, which
+were answered in a thousand tones from the rocks and caverns overlooking
+the valley through whose bosom he was now careering with whirlwind speed
+along.
+
+It was now two o'clock in the morning, and he had already described an
+immense circuit from the point where he had begun to deviate from a
+direct course.
+
+At a turning of the road, as he emerged from the valley, the monster
+encountered a party of village girls repairing with the produce of their
+dairies, and of their poultry-yards, to some still far distant town,
+which they had hoped to reach shortly after daybreak.
+
+Fair, gay, and smiling was the foremost maiden, as the bright moon and
+the silver starlight shone upon her countenance; but that sweet face,
+clad in the richest hues of health, was suddenly convulsed with horror,
+as the terrible Wehr-Wolf thundered by with appalling howls.
+
+For a few moments the foremost village maiden stood rooted to the spot
+in speechless horror: then, uttering a wild cry, she fell backward,
+rolled down a steep bank, and was ingulfed in the rapid stream that
+chafed and fretted along the side of the path.
+
+Her companions shrieked in agony of mind--the wail was echoed by a
+despairing cry from the drowning girl--a cry that swept frantically over
+the rippling waters; and, in another moment, she sank to rise no more!
+
+The breeze had by this time increased to a sharp wind, icy and cold, as
+it usually is, even in southern climes, when the dawn is approaching;
+and the gale now whistled through the branches of the evergreen wood in
+the neighborhood of Florence--that vicinity to which the Wehr-Wolf was
+at length returning!
+
+Still was his pace of arrow-like velocity--for some terrible power
+appeared to urge him on; and though his limbs failed not, though he
+staggered not in his lightning speed, yet did the foam at his mouth, the
+thick flakes of perspiration on his body, and the steam that enveloped
+him as in a dense vapor, denote how distressed the unhappy being in
+reality was.
+
+At last--at last a faint tinge was visible above the eastern horizon;
+gradually the light increased and put to flight the stars.
+
+But now the Oriental sky was to some extent obscured with clouds; and
+the Wehr-Wolf gnashed his teeth with rage, and uttered a savage howl, as
+if impatient of the delay of dawn.
+
+His speed began to relax; the infernal influence which had governed him
+for so many hours already grew less stern, less powerful, and as the
+twilight shone forth more plainly in proportion did the Wehr-Wolf's
+velocity diminish.
+
+Suddenly a piercing chill darted through his frame, and he fell in
+strong convulsions upon the ground, in the midst of the same wood where
+his transformation had taken place on the preceding evening.
+
+The sun rose angrily, imparting a lurid, reddened hue to the dark clouds
+that hung upon the Oriental heaven, as if the mantling curtains of a
+night's pavilion strove to repel the wooing kisses of the morn; and the
+cold chill breeze made the branches swing to and fro with ominous
+flapping, like the wings of the fabulous Simoorg.
+
+But in the midst of the appalling spasmodic convulsions, with direful
+writhings on the soil, and with cries of bitter anguish, the Wehr-Wolf
+gradually threw off his monster-shape; and at the very moment when the
+first sunbeam penetrated the wood and glinted on his face he rose a
+handsome, young, and perfect man once more!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIII.
+
+NISIDA'S EMOTIONS--THE DISGUISE--THE PLOT.
+
+
+We must now return to Nisida, whom we left gazing from the window of the
+Riverola mansion, at the moment when Wagner rushed away from the
+vicinity of his lady-love on the approach of sunset.
+
+The singularity of his conduct--the look of ineffable horror and anguish
+which he cast upon her, ere he parted from her presence--and the
+abruptness of his departure, filled her mind with the most torturing
+misgivings, and with a thousand wild fears.
+
+Had his senses suddenly left him? was he the prey to fits of mental
+aberration which would produce so extraordinary an effect upon him? had
+he taken a sudden loathing and disgust to herself? or had he
+_discovered_ anything in respect to her which had converted his love
+into hatred?
+
+She knew not--and conjecture was vain! To a woman of her excitable
+temperament, the occurrence was particularly painful. She had never
+known the passion of love until she had seen Wagner; and the moment she
+did see him, she loved him. The sentiment on her part originated
+altogether in the natural sensuality of her disposition; there was
+nothing pure--nothing holy--nothing refined in her affection for him; it
+was his wonderful personal beauty that had made so immediate and
+profound an impression upon her heart.
+
+There was consequently something furious and raging in that passion
+which she experienced for Fernand Wagner--a passion capable of every
+extreme--the largest sacrifices, or infuriate jealousies--the most
+implicit confidence, or the maddest suspicion! It was a passion which
+would induce her to ascend the scaffold to save him; or to plunge the
+vengeful dagger into his heart did she fancy that he deceived her!
+
+To one, then, whose soul was animated by such a love, the conduct of
+Fernand was well adapted to wear even an exaggerated appearance of
+singularity; and as each different conjecture swept through her
+imagination, her emotions were excited to an extent which caused her
+countenance to vary its expressions a hundred times in a minute.
+
+The fury of the desolating torrent, the rage of the terrific volcano,
+the sky cradled in the blackest clouds, the ocean heaving tempestuously
+in its mighty bed, the chafing of a tremendous flood against an
+embankment which seems ready every moment to give way, and allow the
+collected waters to burst forth upon the broad plains and into the
+peaceful valleys--all these occurrences in the physical world were
+imagined by the emotions that now agitated within the breast of the
+Italian lady.
+
+Her mind was like the sea put in motion by the wind; and her eyes
+flashed fire, her lips quivered, her bosom heaved convulsively, her neck
+arched proudly, as if she were struggling against ideas that forced
+themselves upon her and painfully wounded her boundless patrician pride.
+
+For the thought that rose uppermost amidst all the conjectures which
+rushed to her imagination, was that Fernand had conceived an invincible
+dislike toward her.
+
+Wherefore did he fly thus--as if eager to place the greatest possible
+distance between herself and him?
+
+Then did she recall to mind every interchange of thought that had passed
+between them through the language of the fingers; and she could fix upon
+nothing which, emanating from herself, had given him offense.
+
+Had he then really lost his senses?
+
+Madly did he seem to be rushing toward the Arno, on whose dark tide the
+departing rays of the setting sun glinted with oscillating and dying
+power.
+
+She still continued to gaze from the window long after he had
+disappeared; obscurity was gathering rapidly around; but, even had it
+been noonday, she would have seen nothing. Her ideas grew bewildered:
+mortification, grief, anger, suspicion, burning desire, all mingled
+together and at length produced a species of stunning effect upon her,
+so that the past appeared to be a dream, and the future was wrapt in the
+darkest gloom and uncertainty.
+
+This strange condition of her mind did not, however, last long; the
+natural energy of her character speedily asserted its empire over the
+intellectual lethargy which had seized upon her, and, awakening from her
+stupor, she resolved to waste not another instant in useless conjecture
+as to the cause of her lover's conduct.
+
+Hastening to her own apartments, she dismissed Flora Francatelli, whom
+she found there, with an abruptness of gesture and a frowning expression
+of countenance amounting to an act of cruelty toward that resigned and
+charming girl; so that as the latter hastened from the room, tears
+started from her eyes, and she murmured to herself, "Can it be possible
+that Donna Nisida suspects the attachment her brother has formed toward
+me? Oh! if she do, the star of an evil destiny seems already to rule my
+horoscope!"
+
+Scarcely had Flora disappeared in this sorrowing manner, when Nisida
+secured the outer door of her own suit of apartments, and hurried to her
+bed-chamber. There she threw aside the garb belonging to her sex, and
+assumed that of a cavalier, which she took from a press opening with a
+secret spring. Then, having arranged her hair beneath a velvet tocque
+shaded with waving black plumes, in such a manner that the disguise was
+as complete as she could render it, she girt on a long rapier of finest
+Milan steel, and throwing the short cloak edged with costly fur,
+gracefully over her left shoulder, she quitted her chamber by a private
+door opening behind the folds of the bed curtains.
+
+A narrow and dark staircase admitted her into the gardens of the
+Riverola mansion. These she crossed with a step so light and free, that
+had it been possible to observe her in the darkness of the evening, she
+would have been taken for the most elegant and charming cavalier that
+ever honored the Florentine Republic with his presence.
+
+In about a quarter of an hour she reached the abode of Dr. Duras; but
+instead of entering it, she passed round one of its angles, and opening
+a wicket by means of a key which she had about her, gained access to the
+gardens in the rear of the mansion.
+
+She traversed these grounds with hasty steps, passing the boundary which
+separated them from the gardens of Wagner's dwelling, and then relaxing
+her pace, advanced with more caution to the windows of this very
+apartment where Agnes had been so alarmed two months previously, by
+observing the countenance at the casement.
+
+But all was now dark within. Wagner was not in his favorite room--for
+Nisida _knew_ that this was her lover's favorite apartment.
+
+Perhaps he had not yet returned?
+
+Thus thought the lady; and she walked slowly round the spacious
+dwelling, which, like the generality of the patrician mansions of
+Florence in those times--as indeed is now the case to a considerable
+extent--stood in the midst of extensive gardens.
+
+There were lights in the servants' offices; but every other room seemed
+dark. No; one window in the front, on the ground-floor, shone with the
+luster of a lamp.
+
+Nisida approached it, and beheld Agnes reclining in a pensive manner on
+a sofa in a small but elegantly-furnished apartment. Her countenance was
+immediately overclouded; and for an instant she lingered to gaze upon
+the sylph-like form that was stretched upon that ottoman. Then she
+hastily pursued her way; and, having perfected the round of the
+building, once more reached the windows of her lover's favorite room.
+
+Convinced that he had not returned, and fearful of being observed by any
+of the domestics who might happen to pass through the gardens, Nisida
+retraced her way toward the dwelling of Dr. Duras. But her heart was now
+heavy, for she knew not how to act.
+
+Her original object was to obtain an interview with Wagner that very
+night, and learn, if possible, the reason of his extraordinary conduct
+toward her: for the idea of remaining in suspense for many long, long
+hours, was painful in the extreme to a woman of her excitable nature.
+
+She was, however, compelled to resign herself to this alternative; and,
+having let herself through the wicket belonging to the physician's
+gardens, she directed her steps homeward.
+
+On her way she passed by the gate of the Convent of Carmelite Nuns--one
+of the wealthiest, most strictly disciplined, and celebrated monastic
+establishments in the Florentine Republic.
+
+It appeared that a sudden thought here struck her; for ascending to the
+steep leading to the gate, she paused beneath the lamp of the deep
+Gothic portico, took out her tablets, and hastily wrote the following
+words:
+
+"Donna Nisida of Riverola requests an interview with the Lady Abbess
+Maria to-morrow at midday, on a matter seriously regarding the spiritual
+welfare of a young female who has shown great and signal disregard for
+the rites and ordinances of the most Holy Catholic Church: and in
+respect to whom the most severe measures must be adopted. Donna Nisida
+will visit the holy mother to-morrow at midday."
+
+Having written these words, Nisida tore off the leaf and thrust it
+through a small square grating set in the massive door of the convent.
+Then ringing the bell to call attention to the gate, she hastily pursued
+her way homeward.
+
+She had gained the gardens of the Riverola mansion, and was advancing
+toward the door of the private staircase leading to her chamber, when
+she suddenly perceived two dark figures standing within a few yards of
+her. Fearful that they might be domestics belonging to the household,
+she hastily and noiselessly retreated within the deep shade of the wall
+of the mansion, and there she remained motionless.
+
+We must now detail the conversation which passed between the two
+individuals whose presence in the garden had thus alarmed the Lady
+Nisida.
+
+"But are you sure of what you say, Antonio?" demanded one of the men.
+
+"By Saint Jacopo! I cannot be mistaken," was the reply. "The closet has
+been locked up for years and years, and the old count always used to
+keep the keys in an iron chest, which was also carefully locked and
+chained round. What can the place possibly contain but a treasure?"
+
+"After all it is only conjecture on your part; and that being the case,
+it is not worth while to risk one's life----"
+
+"You are a coward, Stephano!" exclaimed Antonio, angrily. "The closet
+has got a heavy, massive door, and a prodigiously strong lock; and if
+these precautions were not adopted to protect a hoard of wealth, why
+were they taken at all, let me ask you?"
+
+"There is something in what you say," replied Stephano; "but you do
+wrong to call me a coward. If it were not that we were cousins, and
+linked by a bond of long maintained friendship, I would send my rapier
+through your doublet in a twinkling."
+
+"Nay; I do not mean to anger thee, Stephano," cried the valet. "But let
+us speak lower: chafe not, I pray thee!"
+
+"Well--well!" said the other, gloomily; "go on, in the name of your
+patron saint! Only keep a guard upon your tongue, for it wags somewhat
+too freely; and remember that a man who has been for fifteen years the
+captain of as gallant a band as ever levied contributions on the lieges
+of the republic, is not to have '_coward_' thrown in his teeth."
+
+"Let it pass, good Stephano!" urged the valet. "I tell thee that a
+closet whereof I have spoken, can contain naught save a
+treasure--perhaps in gold--perhaps in massive plate."
+
+"We can dispose of either to our advantage," observed the bandit, with a
+coarse chuckle.
+
+"Will you undertake the business?" demanded Antonio.
+
+"I will," was the resolute answer; "and as much to convince you that
+Stephano is not a coward, as for any other reason. But when is it to be
+done? and why did you make an appointment to meet me here, of all places
+in Florence?"
+
+"It can be done when you choose," replied Antonio; "and as for the other
+questions, I desired you to meet me here, because I knew that you would
+not refuse a fine chance; and, suspecting this much it was necessary to
+show you the geography of the place."
+
+"Good!" observed the robber-chief. "To-morrow night I have a little
+affair in hand for a reverend and holy father, who is sure to be chosen
+superior of his order if his rival in the candidature be removed; and in
+four-and-twenty hours the said rival must be food for the fishes of the
+Arno."
+
+"Then the night after that?" suggested Antonio.
+
+"Pre-engaged again," returned the bandit-captain coolly. "A wealthy
+countess has been compelled to pledge her diamonds to a Jew; on Sunday
+next she must appear with her husband at the palace of the Medici; and
+on Saturday night, therefore, the diamonds must be recovered from the
+Jew."
+
+"Then the husband knows not that they are so pledged?" said Antonio.
+
+"Scarcely," answered the brigand. "They were deposited with the Jew for
+a loan which the countess raised to accommodate her lover. Now do you
+understand?"
+
+"Perfectly. What say you to next Monday night?"
+
+"I am at your service," responded Stephano. "Monday will suit me
+admirably, and midnight shall be the hour. And now instruct me in the
+nature of the locality."
+
+"Come with me, and I will show you by which way you and your comrades
+must effect an entry," said Antonio.
+
+The valet and the robber-chief now moved away from the spot where they
+had stood to hold the above conversation; and the moment they had turned
+the adjacent angle of the mansion, Nisida hastened to regain her
+apartment by the private staircase--resolving, however, to see Wagner as
+early as possible in the morning.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIV.
+
+THE LAST MEETING OF AGNES AND THE STRANGER LADY.
+
+
+While all nature was wrapped in the listening stillness of admiration at
+the rising sun, Fernand Wagner dragged himself painfully toward his
+home.
+
+His garments were besmeared with mud and dirt; they were torn, too, in
+many places; and here and there were stains of blood, still wet, upon
+them.
+
+In fact, had he been dragged by a wild horse through a thicket of
+brambles, he could scarcely have appeared in a more wretched plight.
+
+His countenance was ghastly pale; terror still flashed from his eyes,
+and despair sat on his lofty brow.
+
+Stealing through the most concealed part of his garden, he was
+approaching his own mansion with the air of a man who returns home in
+the morning after having perpetrated some dreadful deed of turpitude
+under cover of the night.
+
+But the watchful eyes of a woman have marked his coming from the lattice
+of her window; and in a few minutes Agnes, light as a fawn, came
+bounding toward him, exclaiming, "Oh! what a night of uneasiness have I
+passed, Fernand! But at length thou art restored to me--thou whom I have
+ever loved so fondly; although," she added, mournfully, "I abandoned
+thee for so long a time!"
+
+And she embraced him tenderly.
+
+"Agnes!" cried Fernand, repulsing her with an impatience which she had
+never experienced at his hands before: "wherefore thus act the spy upon
+me? Believe me, that although we pass ourselves off as brother and
+sister, yet I do not renounce that authority which the real nature of
+those ties that bind us together----"
+
+"Fernand! Fernand! this to me!" exclaimed Agnes, bursting into tears.
+"Oh! how have I deserved such reproaches?"
+
+"My dearest girl, pardon me, forgive me!" cried Wagner, in a tone of
+bitter anguish. "My God! I ought not to upbraid thee for that
+watchfulness during my absence, and that joy at my return, which prove
+that you love me! Again I say, pardon me, dearest Agnes."
+
+"You need not ask me, Fernand," was the reply. "Only speak kindly to
+me----"
+
+"I do, I will, Agnes," interrupted Wagner. "But leave me now! Let me
+regain my own chamber alone; I have reasons, urgent reasons for so
+doing; and this afternoon, Agnes, I shall be composed--collected again.
+Do you proceed by that path; I will take this."
+
+And, hastily pressing her hand, Wagner broke abruptly away.
+
+For a few moments Agnes stood looking after him in vacant astonishment
+at his extraordinary manner, and also at his alarming appearance, but
+concerning which latter she had not dared to question him.
+
+When he had entered the mansion by a private door, Agnes turned and
+pursued her way along a circuitous path shaded on each side by dark
+evergreens, and which was the one he had directed her to take so as to
+regain the front gate of the dwelling.
+
+But scarcely had she advanced a dozen paces, when a sudden rustling
+among the trees alarmed her; and in an instant a female form--tall,
+majestic, and with a dark veil thrown over her head, stood before her.
+
+Agnes uttered a faint shriek: for, although the lady's countenance was
+concealed by the veil, she had no difficulty in recognizing the stranger
+who had already terrified her on three previous occasions, and who
+seemed to haunt her.
+
+And, as if to dispel all doubt as to the identity, the majestic lady
+suddenly tore aside her veil, and disclosed to the trembling, shrinking
+Agnes, features already too well known.
+
+But, if the lightning of those brilliant, burning, black eyes had seemed
+terrible on former occasions, they were now absolutely blasting, and
+Agnes fell upon her knees, exclaiming, "Mercy! mercy! how have I
+offended you?"
+
+For a few moments those basilisk-eyes darted forth shafts of fire and
+flame, and the red lips quivered violently, and the haughty brow
+contracted menacingly, and Agnes was stupefied, stunned, fascinated,
+terribly fascinated by that tremendous rage, the vengeance of which
+seemed ready to explode against her.
+
+But only a few moments lasted that dreadful scene; for the lady, whose
+entire appearance was that of an avenging fiend in the guise of a
+beauteous woman, suddenly drew a sharp poniard from its sheath in her
+bodice, and plunged it into the bosom of the hapless Agnes.
+
+The victim fell back; but not a shriek--not a sound escaped her lips.
+The blow was well aimed, the poniard was sharp and went deep, and death
+followed instantaneously.
+
+For nearly a minute did the murderess stand gazing on the corpse--the
+corpse of one erst so beautiful; and her countenance, gradually relaxing
+from its stern, implacable expression, assumed an air of deep
+remorse--of bitter, bitter compunction.
+
+But probably yielding to the sudden thought that she must provide for
+her own safety, the murderess drew forth the dagger from the white bosom
+in which it was buried: hastily wiped it upon a leaf; returned it to the
+sheath; and, replacing the veil over her countenance, hurried rapidly
+away from the scene of her fearful crime.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XV.
+
+THE SBIRRI--THE ARREST.
+
+
+Scarcely ten minutes had elapsed since the unfortunate Agnes was thus
+suddenly cut off in the bloom of youth and beauty, when a lieutenant of
+police, with his guard of sbirri, passed along the road skirting
+Wagner's garden.
+
+They were evidently in search of some malefactor, for, stopping in their
+course, they began to deliberate on the business which they had in hand.
+
+"Which way could he possibly have gone?" cried one, striking the
+butt-end of his pike heavily upon the ground.
+
+"How could we possibly have missed him?" exclaimed another.
+
+"Stephano is not so easily caught, my men," observed the lieutenant. "He
+is the most astute and cunning of the band of which he is the captain.
+And yet, I wish we had pounced upon him, since we were so nicely upon
+his track."
+
+"And a thousand ducats offered by the state for his capture," suggested
+one of the sbirri.
+
+"Yes; 'tis annoying!" ejaculated the lieutenant, "but I could have sworn
+he passed this way."
+
+"And I could bear the same evidence, signor," observed the first
+speaker. "Maybe he has taken refuge in those bushes."
+
+"Not unlikely. We are fools to grant him a moment's vantage ground. Over
+the fence, my men, and beat amongst these gardens."
+
+Thus speaking, the lieutenant set the example, by leaping the railing,
+and entering the grounds belonging to Wagner's abode.
+
+The sbirri, who were six in number, including their officer, divided
+themselves into two parties, and proceeded to search the gardens.
+
+Suddenly a loud cry of horror burst from one of the sections; and when
+the other hastened to the spot, the sbirri composing it found their
+comrades in the act of raising the corpse of Agnes.
+
+"She is quite dead," said the lieutenant, placing his hand upon her
+heart. "And yet the crime cannot have been committed many minutes, as
+the corpse is scarcely cold, and the blood still oozes forth."
+
+"What a lovely creature she must have been," exclaimed one of the
+sbirri.
+
+"Cease your profane remarks, my man," cried the lieutenant. "This must
+be examined into directly. Does any one know who dwells in that
+mansion?"
+
+"Signor Wagner, a wealthy German," was the reply given by a sbirro.
+
+"Then come with me, my man," said the lieutenant; "and let us lose no
+time in searching his house. One of you must remain by the corpse--and
+the rest may continue the search after the bandit, Stephano."
+
+Having issued these orders, the lieutenant, followed by the sbirro whom
+he had chosen to accompany him, hastened to the mansion.
+
+The gate was opened by an old porter, who stared in astonishment when he
+beheld the functionaries of justice visiting that peaceful dwelling. But
+the lieutenant ordered him to close and lock the gate; and having
+secured the key, the officer said, "We must search this house; a crime
+has been committed close at hand."
+
+"A crime!" ejaculated the porter; "then the culprit is not here--for
+there is not a soul beneath this roof who would perpetrate a misdeed."
+
+"Cease your prating, old man," said the lieutenant, sternly. "We have a
+duty to perform--see that we be not molested in executing it."
+
+"But what is the crime, signor, of which----"
+
+"Nay--that you shall know anon," interrupted the lieutenant. "In the
+name of his serene highness, the duke, I command you in the first place
+to lead me and my followers to the presence of your master."
+
+The old man hastened to obey this mandate, and he conducted the sbirri
+into the chamber where Wagner, having thrown off his garments, was
+partaking of that rest which he so much needed.
+
+At the sound of heavy feet and the clanking of martial weapons, Fernand
+started from the slumber into which he had fallen only a few minutes
+previously.
+
+"What means this insolent intrusion?" he exclaimed, his cheeks flushing
+with anger at the presence of the police.
+
+"Pardon us, signor," said the lieutenant, in a respectful tone: "but a
+dreadful crime has been committed close by--indeed within the inclosure
+of your own grounds----"
+
+"A dreadful crime!" ejaculated Wagner.
+
+"Yes, signor; a crime----"
+
+The officer was interrupted by an ejaculation of surprise which burst
+from the lips of his attendant sbirro; and, turning hastily round, he
+beheld his follower intently scrutinizing the attire which Fernand had
+ere now thrown off.
+
+"Ah! blood-stains!" cried the lieutenant, whose attention was directed
+toward those marks by the finger of his man. "Then is the guilty one
+speedily discovered! Signor!" he added, turning once more toward Wagner,
+"are those your garments?"
+
+An expression of indescribable horror convulsed the countenance of
+Fernand; for the question of the officer naturally reminded him of his
+dreadful fate--the fate of a Wehr-Wolf--although, we should observe, he
+never remembered, when restored to the form of a man, what he might have
+done during the long hours that he wore the shape of a ferocious
+monster.
+
+Still, as he knew that his garments had been soiled, torn and
+blood-stained in the course of the preceding night, it was no wonder
+that he shuddered and became convulsed with mental agony when his
+terrible doom was so forcibly called to his mind.
+
+His emotions were naturally considered to be corroborative evidence of
+guilt: and the lieutenant laying his hand upon Wagner's shoulder, said
+in a stern, solemn manner, "In the name of his highness our prince, I
+arrest you for the crime of murder!"
+
+"Murder!" repeated Fernand, dashing away the officer's arm; "you dare
+not accuse me of such a deed!"
+
+"I accuse you of murder, signor," exclaimed the lieutenant. "Within a
+hundred paces of your dwelling a young lady----"
+
+"A young lady!" cried Wagner, thinking of Agnes, whom he had left in the
+garden.
+
+"Yes, signor, a young lady has been most barbarously murdered!" added
+the officer in an impressive tone.
+
+"Agnes! Agnes!" almost screamed the unhappy man, as this dreadful
+announcement fell upon his ears. "Oh! is it possible that thou art no
+more, my poor Agnes!"
+
+He covered his face with his hands and wept bitterly.
+
+The lieutenant made a sign to his follower, who instantly quitted the
+room.
+
+"There must be some mistake in this, signor," said the old porter,
+approaching the lieutenant and speaking in a voice tremulous with
+emotion. "The master whom I serve, and whom you accuse, is incapable of
+the deed imputed to him."
+
+"Yes. God knows how truly you speak!" ejaculated Wagner, raising his
+head. "That girl--oh! sooner than have harmed one single hair of her
+head---- But how know you that it is Agnes who is murdered?" he cried
+abruptly, turning toward the lieutenant.
+
+"It was you who said it, signor," calmly replied the officer, as he
+fixed his dark eyes keenly upon Fernand.
+
+"Oh! it was a surmise--a conjecture--because I parted with Agnes a short
+time ago in the garden," exclaimed Wagner, speaking in hurried and
+broken sentences.
+
+"Behold the victim!" said the lieutenant, who had approached the window,
+from which he was looking.
+
+Wagner sprung from his couch, and glanced forth into the garden beneath.
+
+The sbirri were advancing along the gravel pathway, bearing amongst them
+the corpse of Agnes upon whose pallid countenance the morning sunbeams
+were dancing, as if in mockery even at death.
+
+"Holy Virgin! it is indeed Agnes!" cried Wagner, in a tone of the most
+profound heart-rending anguish, and he fell back senseless in the arms
+of the lieutenant.
+
+An hour afterward, Fernand Wagner was the inmate of a dungeon beneath
+the palace inhabited by the Duke of Florence.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVI.
+
+NISIDA AND THE CARMELITE ABBESS.
+
+
+Punctually at midday, the Lady Nisida of Riverola proceeded, alone and
+unattended, to the Convent of Carmelite Nuns, where she was immediately
+admitted into the presence of the abbess.
+
+The superior of this monastic establishment, was a tall, thin,
+stern-looking woman, with a sallow complexion, an imperious compression
+of the lips, and small, grey eyes, that seemed to flicker with malignity
+rather than to beam with the pure light of Christian love.
+
+She was noted for the austerity of her manners, the rigid discipline
+which she maintained in the convent, and the inexorable disposition
+which she showed toward those who, having committed a fault, came within
+her jurisdiction.
+
+Rumor was often busy with the affairs of the Carmelite Convent; and the
+grandams and gossips of Florence would huddle together around their
+domestic hearths, on the cold winter's evenings, and venture mysterious
+hints and whispers of strange deeds committed within the walls of that
+sacred institution; how from time to time some young and beautiful nun
+had suddenly disappeared, to the surprise and alarm of her companions;
+how piercing shrieks had been heard to issue from the interior of the
+building, by those who passed near it at night,--and how the inmates
+themselves were often aroused from their slumbers by strange noises
+resembling the rattling of chains, the working of ponderous machinery,
+and the revolution of huge wheels.
+
+Such food for scandal as those mysterious whispers supplied, was not
+likely to pass without exaggeration; and that love of the marvelous
+which inspired the aforesaid gossips, led to the embellishment of the
+rumors just glanced at--so that one declared with a solemn shake of the
+head, how spirits were seen to glide around the convent walls at
+night--and another averred that a nun, with whom she was acquainted, had
+assured her that strange and unearthly forms were often encountered by
+those inmates of the establishment who were hardy enough to venture into
+the chapel, or to traverse the long corridors or gloomy cloisters after
+dusk.
+
+These vague and uncertain reports did not, however, prevent some of the
+wealthiest families in Florence from placing their daughters in the
+Carmelite Convent. A nobleman or opulent citizen who had several
+daughters, would consider it a duty to devote one of them to the service
+of the church; and the votive girl was most probably compelled to
+perform her novitiate and take the veil in this renowned establishment.
+It was essentially the convent patronized by the aristocracy; and no
+female would be received within its walls save on the payment of a
+considerable sum of money.
+
+There was another circumstance which added to the celebrity and
+augmented the wealth of the Carmelite Convent. Did a young unmarried
+lady deviate from the path of virtue, or did a husband detect the
+infidelity of his wife, the culprit was forthwith consigned to the care
+of the abbess, and forced to take up her abode in that monastic
+institution. Or, again--did some female openly neglect her religious
+duties, or imprudently express an opinion antagonistic to the Roman
+Catholic Church, the family to which she belonged would remove her to
+the spiritual care of the abbess.
+
+The convent was therefore considered to be an institution recognized by
+the state as a means of punishing immorality, upholding the Catholic
+religion, persuading the skeptical,--confirming the wavering, and
+exercising a salutary terror over the ladies of the upper class, at that
+period renowned for their dissolute morals. The aristocracy of Florence
+patronized and protected the institution--because its existence afforded
+a ready means to get rid of a dishonored daughter, or an unfaithful
+wife; and it was even said that the abbess was invested with
+extraordinary powers by the rescript of the duke himself, powers which
+warranted her interference with the liberty of young females who were
+denounced to her by their parents, guardians, or others who might have a
+semblance of a right to control or coerce them.
+
+Luther had already begun to make a noise in Germany; and the thunders of
+his eloquence had reverberated across the Alps to the Italian states.
+The priesthood was alarmed; and the conduct of the reformer was an
+excuse for rendering the discipline of the monastic institutions more
+rigid than ever. Nor was the Abbess Maria a woman who hesitated to avail
+herself of this fact as an apology for strengthening her despotism and
+widening the circle of her influence.
+
+The reader has now heard enough to make him fully aware that the Carmelite
+Convent was an establishment enjoying influence, exercising an authority,
+and wielding a power, which--if these were misdirected--constituted an
+enormous abuse in the midst of states bearing the name of a republic.
+But the career of the Medici was then hastening toward a close; and in
+proportion as the authority of the duke became more circumscribed, the
+encroachments of the ecclesiastical orders grew more extensive.
+
+The Abbess Maria, who was far advanced in years, but was endowed with
+one of those vigorous intellects against which Time vainly directs his
+influence, received the Lady Nisida in a little parlor plainly
+furnished. The praying desk was of the most humble description; and
+above it rose a cross of wood so worm-eaten and decayed that it seemed
+as if the grasp of a strong hand would crush it into dust. But this
+emblem of the creed had been preserved in the Carmelite Convent since
+the period of the Second Crusade, and was reported to consist of a piece
+of the actual cross on which the Saviour suffered in Palestine.
+
+Against the wall hung a scourge, with five knotted thongs, whereon the
+blood-stains denoted the severity of that penance which the abbess
+frequently inflicted upon herself. On a table stood a small loaf of
+coarse bread and a pitcher of water; for although a sumptuous banquet
+was every day served up in the refectory, the abbess was never known to
+partake of the delicious viands nor to place her lips in contact with
+wine.
+
+When Nisida entered the presence of the abbess, she sank on her knees,
+and folded her arms meekly across her bosom. The holy mother gave her a
+blessing, and made a motion for her to rise. Nisida obeyed, and took a
+seat near the abbess at the table.
+
+She then drew forth her tablets, and wrote a few lines, which the
+superior read with deep attention.
+
+Nisida placed a heavy purse of gold upon the table, and the abbess
+nodded an assent to the request contained in the lines inscribed on the
+tablet.
+
+The interview was about to terminate, when the door suddenly opened, and
+an elderly nun entered the room.
+
+"Ursula," said the lady abbess, in a cold but reproachful tone, "didst
+thou not know that I was engaged? What means this abrupt intrusion?"
+
+"Pardon me, holy mother!" exclaimed the nun: "but the rumor of such a
+frightful murder has just reached us----"
+
+"A murder!" ejaculated the abbess. "Oh! unhappy Florence, when wilt thou
+say farewell to crimes which render thy name detestable among Italian
+states?"
+
+"This indeed, too, holy mother, is one of inordinate blackness,"
+continued Sister Ursula. "A young and beautiful lady----"
+
+"We know not personal beauty within these walls, daughter," interrupted
+the abbess, sternly.
+
+"True, holy mother! and yet I did but repeat the tale as the porteress
+ere now related it to me. However," resumed Ursula, "it appears that a
+young female, whom the worldly-minded outside these sacred walls
+denominate beautiful, was barbarously murdered this morning--shortly
+after the hour of sunrise----"
+
+"Within the precincts of Florence?" inquired the abbess.
+
+"Within a short distance of the convent, holy mother," answered the nun.
+"The dreadful deed was accomplished in the garden attached to the
+mansion of a certain Signor Wagner, whom the worldly-minded style a
+young man wondrously handsome."
+
+"A fair exterior often conceals a dark heart, daughter," said the
+abbess. "But who was the hapless victim?"
+
+"Rumor declares, holy mother----"
+
+The nun checked herself abruptly, and glanced at Nisida, who, during the
+above conversation, had approached the windows which commanded a view of
+the convent garden, and whose back was therefore turned toward the
+abbess and Ursula.
+
+"You may speak fearlessly, daughter," said the abbess; "that unfortunate
+lady hears you not--for she is both deaf and dumb."
+
+"Holy Virgin succor her," exclaimed Ursula, crossing herself. "I was
+about to inform your ladyship," she continued, "that rumor represents
+the murdered woman to have been the sister of this Signor Wagner of whom
+I spoke; but it is more than probable that there was no tie of
+relationship between them--and that----"
+
+"I understand you, daughter," interrupted the abbess. "Alas! how much
+wickedness is engendered in this world by the sensual, fleshly passion
+which mortals denominate love! But is the murderer detected?"
+
+"The murderer was arrested immediately after the perpetration of the
+crime," responded Ursula; "and at this moment he is a prisoner in the
+dungeon of the palace."
+
+"Who is the lost man that has perpetrated such a dreadful crime?"
+demanded the abbess, again crossing herself.
+
+"Signor Wagner himself, holy mother," was the reply.
+
+"The pious Duke Cosmo bequeathed gold to this institution," said the
+abbess, "that masses might be offered up for the souls of those who fall
+beneath the weapon of the assassin. See that the lamented prince's
+instructions be not neglected in this instance, Ursula."
+
+"It was to remind your ladyship of this duty that I ventured to break
+upon your privacy," returned the nun, who then withdrew.
+
+The abbess approached Nisida, and touched her upon the shoulder to
+intimate to her that they were again alone together.
+
+She had drawn down her veil, and was leaning her forehead against one of
+the iron bars which protected the window--apparently in a mood of deep
+thought.
+
+When the abbess touched her, she started abruptly round--then, pressing
+the superior's hand with convulsive violence, hurried from the room.
+
+The old porteress presented the alms-box as she opened the gate of the
+convent; but Nisida pushed it rudely aside, and hurried down the steps
+as if she were escaping from a lazar-house, rather than issuing from a
+monastic institution.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVII.
+
+WAGNER IN PRISON--A VISITOR.
+
+
+It was evening; and Wagner paced his narrow dungeon with agitated steps.
+
+Far beneath the level of the ground, and under the ducal palace, was
+that gloomy prison, having no window, save a grating in the massive door
+to admit the air.
+
+A lamp burned dimly upon the table, whereon stood also the coarse prison
+fare provided for the captive, but which was untouched.
+
+The clanking of the weapons of the sentinels, who kept guard in the
+passage from which the various dungeons opened, fell mournfully upon
+Fernand's ears, and every moment reminded him of the apparent
+impossibility to escape--even if such an idea possessed him.
+
+The lamp had burned throughout the day in his dungeon; for the light of
+heaven could not penetrate that horrible subterranean cell--and it was
+only by the payment of gold that he had induced the jailer to permit him
+the indulgence of the artificial substitute for the rays of the glorious
+sun.
+
+"Oh! wretched being that I am!" he thought within himself, as he paced
+the stone floor of his prison-house; "the destiny of the accursed is
+mine! Ah! fool--dotard that I was to exchange the honors of old age for
+the vicissitudes of a renewed existence! Had nature taken her course, I
+should probably now be sleeping in a quiet grave--and my soul might be
+in the regions of the blessed. But the tempter came, and dazzled me with
+prospects of endless happiness--and I succumbed! Oh! Faust! would that
+thou hadst never crossed the threshold of my humble cottage in the Black
+Forest! How much sorrow--how much misery should I have been spared!
+Better--better to have remained in poverty--solitude--helplessness--worn
+down by the weight of years--and crushed by the sense of utter
+loneliness--oh! better to have endured all this, than to have taken on
+myself a new tenure of that existence which is so marked with misery and
+woe!"
+
+He threw himself upon a seat, and endeavored to reflect on his position
+with calmness; but he could not!
+
+Starting up, he again paced the dungeon in an agitated manner.
+
+"Holy God!" he exclaimed aloud, "how much wretchedness has fallen upon
+me in a single day! Agnes murdered--Nisida perhaps forever estranged
+from me--myself accused of a dreadful crime, whereof I am innocent--and
+circumstances all combining so wonderfully against me! But who could
+have perpetrated the appalling deed? Can that mysterious lady, whom
+Agnes spoke of so frequently, and who, by her description, so closely
+resembled my much-loved Nisida--can she----"
+
+At that moment the bolts were suddenly drawn back from the door of the
+dungeon--the clanking chains fell heavily on the stone pavement
+outside--and the jailer appeared, holding a lamp in his hand.
+
+"Your brother, signor, is come to visit you," said the turnkey. "But
+pray let the interview be a brief one--for it is as much as my situation
+and my own liberty are worth to have admitted him without an order from
+the chief judge."
+
+"With these words the jailer made way for a cavalier to enter the
+dungeon;" and as he closed the door, he said, "I shall return shortly to
+let your brother out again."
+
+Surprise had hitherto placed a seal upon Wagner's lips; but even before
+the visitor had entered the cell, a faint suspicion--a wild hope had
+flashed to his mind that Nisida had not forgotten him, that she would
+not abandon him.
+
+But this hope was destroyed almost as soon as formed, by the sudden
+recollection of her affliction;--for how could a deaf and dumb woman
+succeed in bribing and deceiving one so cautious and wary as the jailer
+of a criminal prison?
+
+Nevertheless the moment the visitor had entered the cell--and in spite
+of the deep disguise which she wore, the eyes of the lover failed not to
+recognize the object of his adoration in that elegant cavalier who now
+stood before him.
+
+Scarcely had the jailer closed and bolted the massive door again, when
+Fernand rushed forward to clasp Nisida in his arms;--but, imperiously
+waving her hand, she motioned him to stand back.
+
+Then, with the language of the fingers, she rapidly demanded--"Will you
+swear upon the cross that the young female who has been murdered, was
+not your mistress?"
+
+"I swear," answered Fernand in the same symbolic manner; and, as the
+light of the lamp played on his handsome countenance, his features
+assumed so decided an expression of truth, frankness, and sincerity,
+that Nisida was already more than half convinced of the injustice of her
+suspicions.
+
+But still she was determined to be completely satisfied; and, drawing
+forth a small but exquisitely sculptured crucifix from her doublet, she
+presented it to her lover.
+
+He sank upon one knee, received it respectfully, and kissed it without
+hesitation.
+
+Nisida then threw herself into his arms, and embraced him with a
+fondness as warm, as wild, as impassioned as her suspicions had ere now
+been vehement and fearfully resentful.
+
+Her presence caused Fernand to forget his sorrow--to forget that he was
+in a dungeon--to forget, also, the tremendous charge that hung over his
+head. For never had his Nisida appeared to him so marvelously beautiful
+as he now beheld her, disguised in the graceful garb of a cavalier of
+that age. Though tall, majestic, and of rich proportions for a woman,
+yet in the attire of the opposite sex she seemed slight, short, and
+eminently graceful. The velvet cloak sat so jauntily on her sloping
+shoulder;--the doublet became her symmetry so well;--and the rich lace
+collar was so arranged as to disguise the prominence of the chest--that
+voluptuous fullness which could not be compressed.
+
+At length a sudden thought struck Fernand, and he inquired, in the usual
+manner, how Nisida had gained access to him?
+
+"A faithful friend contrived the interview for me," she replied, with
+her wonted rapidity of play upon the fingers. "He led the jailer to
+believe that I was a German, and totally unacquainted with the Italian
+tongue. Thus not a word was addressed to me; and gold has opened the
+door which separated me from you. The same means shall secure your
+escape."
+
+"Dearest Nisida," signaled Wagner, "I would not escape were the door of
+my dungeon left open and the sentinels removed. I am innocent--and that
+innocence must be proved!"
+
+The lady exhibited extraordinary impatience at this reply.
+
+"You do not believe me guilty?" asked Wagner.
+
+She shook her head in a determined manner, to show how profound was her
+conviction of his innocence.
+
+"Then do not urge me, beloved one, to escape and be dishonored forever,"
+was the urgent prayer he conveyed to her.
+
+"The evidence against you will be overwhelming," she gave him to
+understand: then with an air of the most heart appealing supplication,
+she added, "Escape, dearest Fernand, for my sake!"
+
+"But I should be compelled to fly from Florence--and wouldst thou
+accompany me?"
+
+She shook her head mournfully.
+
+"Then I will remain here--in this dungeon! If my innocence be proved, I
+may yet hope to call the sister of the Count of Riverola my wife: if I
+be condemned----"
+
+He paused:--for he knew that, even if he were sentenced to death, he
+could not die,--that some power, of which, however, he had only a vague
+notion, would rescue him,--that the compact, which gave him renewed
+youth and a long life on the fatal condition of his periodical
+transformation into a horrid monster, must be fulfilled; and, though he
+saw not--understood not how all this was to be, still he knew that it
+_would_ happen if he should really be condemned!
+
+Nisida was not aware of the motive which had checked her lover as he was
+conveying to her his sense of the dread alternatives before him; and she
+hastened to intimate to him the following thought:--
+
+"You would say that if you be condemned, you will know how to meet death
+as becomes a brave man. But think of _me_--of Nisida, who loves you!"
+
+"Would you continue to love a man branded as a murderer?"
+
+"I should only think of you as my own dear Fernand!"
+
+He shook his head--as much as to say, "It cannot be!"--and then once
+more embraced her fondly--for he beheld, in her anxiety for his escape,
+only a proof of her ardent affection.
+
+At this moment the jailer returned: and while he was unbolting the door,
+Nisida made one last, imploring appeal to her lover to give his assent
+to escape, if the arrangements were made for that purpose.
+
+But he conveyed to her his resolute determination to meet the charge,
+with the hope of proving his innocence: and for a few moments Nisida
+seemed convulsed with the most intense anguish of soul.
+
+The jailer made his appearance; and Wagner, to maintain the deceit which
+Nisida informed him to have been practiced on the man, said a few words
+aloud in German--as if he was really taking leave of a brother.
+
+Nisida embraced him tenderly; and covering her countenance, as much as
+possible, with her slouched hat, the waving plumes of which she made to
+fall over her face, this extraordinary being issued from the cell.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+FLORA FRANCATELLI--THE THREE NUNS--THE CHAIR.
+
+
+Nisida regained her apartment, by the private staircase, without any
+molestation. Having laid aside her male attire, she assumed a loose
+wrapper, and then, throwing herself into an armchair, gave way to her
+reflections.
+
+These were apparently of no pleasurable nature; for they were frequently
+interrupted by convulsive starts and rapid glancings around the room--as
+if she were fearful lest some terrible specter were present to scare
+her.
+
+Once or twice her eyes lingered on her mother's portrait; and then
+profound sighs escaped her bosom.
+
+Presently the beautiful Flora Francatelli entered the apartment; but
+Nisida made her a sign of dismissal.
+
+The maiden withdrew; and we must now follow her to her own chamber.
+
+On reaching her bedroom, Flora did not immediately retire to rest. She
+felt that she should not sleep, even were she to seek her pillow: for
+she had much--very much to ponder upon!
+
+There was a marked, undisguised reserve about her mistress which
+materially affected her. Although she could not control her affections,
+yet she felt as if she were acting with duplicity toward the Lady Nisida
+in having listened to the love-tale of Francisco, and, retaining that
+revelation of his affection a secret in her own breast.
+
+Yet--had he not implored, had he not enjoined her to keep that avowal to
+herself? Yes, and when she looked at the matter, as it were, face to
+face, she could not justly reproach herself:--nevertheless, that secret
+love weighed upon her conscience like a crime!
+
+She could not understand wherefore Nisida's manner had changed toward
+her. Francisco had assuredly made no communication to his sister; and
+nothing had transpired to excite a suspicion of the real truth in her
+mind. Still there _was_ a coolness on the part of that lady:--or might
+it not be that Flora's imagination deceived her?
+
+There was another, and even a more serious cause of grief weighing upon
+her mind. Dispatches had been received from the nobleman in whose suit
+her brother Alessandro had repaired to Constantinople; and the secretary
+of the council of Florence had intimated to Signora Francatelli (Flora's
+aunt) that Alessandro had abjured the faith of his forefathers and had
+embraced the Mussulman creed. It was also stated that the young man had
+entered the service of grand vizier; but whether he had become a
+renegade through love for some Turkish maiden, or with the hope of
+ameliorating his condition in a worldly point of view, whether, indeed,
+self-interest or a conscientious belief in the superiority of the Moslem
+doctrines over those of Christianity, had swayed Alessandro, no one
+could say.
+
+His aunt was almost heart-broken at the news. Father Marco, through
+whose influence he had obtained the post of secretary to the Florentine
+Envoy, was shocked and grieved; and Flora was not the less afflicted at
+an event which, as she had been taught to believe, must inevitably place
+her much-loved brother beyond the hope of spiritual salvation.
+
+Amidst the gloomy reflections excited by the Lady Nisida's coolness, and
+the disagreeable tidings which had been received concerning her brother,
+there was nevertheless one gleam of consolation for Flora Francatelli.
+
+This was the love which Francisco entertained for her, and which she so
+tenderly, so sincerely reciprocated.
+
+Yes, a maiden's first love is ever a source of solace amidst the gloom
+of affliction; because it is so intimately intertwined with hope! For
+the soul of the innocent, artless girl who fondly loves, soars aloft in
+a heaven of her own creation, dove-like on the wings of faith!
+
+It was already late when Flora began to unbraid and set at liberty her
+dark brown tresses, preparatory to retiring to rest, when a low knock at
+the chamber-door startled her in the midst of her occupation.
+
+Thinking it might be the Lady Nisida who required her attendance she
+hastened to open the door; and immediately three women, dressed in
+religious habits and having black veils thrown over their heads so as
+completely to conceal their faces, entered the room.
+
+Flora uttered a faint scream--for the sudden apparition of those
+specter-like figures, at such a late hour of the night, was well
+calculated to alarm even a person of maturer age and stronger mind than
+Signora Francatelli.
+
+"You must accompany us, young lady," said the foremost nun, advancing
+toward her. "And beware how you create any disturbance--for it will
+avail you nothing."
+
+"Whither am I to be conducted?" asked Flora, trembling from head to
+foot.
+
+"That we cannot inform you," was the reply. "Neither must you know at
+present; and therefore our first duty is to blindfold you."
+
+"Pity me--have mercy upon me!" exclaimed Flora, throwing herself on her
+knees before the nun who addressed her in so harsh, so stern a manner.
+"I am a poor, unprotected girl: have mercy upon me!"
+
+But the three nuns seized upon her; and while one held the palm of her
+hand forcibly over her mouth so as to check her utterance, the others
+hastily blindfolded her.
+
+Flora was so overcome by this alarming proceeding, that she fainted.
+
+When she came to her senses, she found herself lying on a hard and sorry
+couch in a large apartment, almost entirely denuded of furniture and
+lighted by a feebly-burning lamp suspended to the low ceiling.
+
+For a moment she thought she was laboring under the influence of a
+hideous dream; but, glancing around, she started with affright, and a
+scream burst from her lips, when she beheld the three nuns standing by
+the bed.
+
+"Why have you brought me hither?" she demanded, springing from the
+couch, and addressing the recluses with frantic wildness.
+
+"To benefit you in a spiritual sense," replied the one who had before
+acted as spokeswoman: "to purge your mind of those mundane vanities
+which have seized upon it, and to render you worthy of salvation. Pray,
+sisters--pray for this at present benighted creature!"
+
+Then, to the surprise of the young maiden, the three nuns all fell upon
+their knees around her, and began to chant a solemn hymn in most
+lugubrious notes.
+
+They had thrown aside their veils, and the flickering light of the dim
+lamp gave a ghastly and unearthly appearance to their pale and severe
+countenances. They were all three elderly persons: and their aspect was
+of that cold, forbidding nature, which precludes hope on the part of any
+one who might have to implore mercy.
+
+The young maiden was astounded--stupefied--she knew not what to
+conjecture. Where was she? who were those nuns that had treated her so
+harshly? why was she brought to that cold, cheerless apartment? what
+meant the hymn that seemed chanted expressly on her account?
+
+She could not bear up against the bewilderment and alarm produced by
+these questions which she asked herself, and none of which she could
+solve. An oppressive sensation came over her; and she was about to sink
+back upon the couch from which she had risen, when the hymn suddenly
+ceased--the nuns rose from their suppliant posture--and the foremost,
+addressing the poor girl in a reproachful tone, exclaimed, "Oh!
+wicked--worldly-minded creature, repent--repent--repent!"
+
+There was something so awful--so appalling--in this strange conduct on
+the part of the nuns, that Flora began to doubt whether she were not
+laboring under some terrible delusion. She feared lest her senses were
+leaving her: and, covering her face with her hands, so as to close her
+eyes against external objects, she endeavored to look inward, as it
+were, and scrutinize her own soul.
+
+But she was not allowed time to reflect; for the three nuns seized upon
+her, the foremost saying, "You must come with us!"
+
+"Mercy! mercy!" screamed the wretched girl, vainly struggling in the
+powerful grasp of the recluses.
+
+Her long hair, which she had unbraided before she was carried off from
+the Riverola mansion, floated over her shoulders, and enhanced the
+expression of ineffable despair which her pallid countenance now wore.
+
+Wildly she glanced around, as she was being hurried from the room; and
+frantic screams escaped her lips. But there was no one nigh to
+succor--no one to melt at the outbursts of her anguish!
+
+The three nuns dragged, rather than conducted her to an adjacent
+apartment, which was lighted by a lamp of astonishing brilliancy, and
+hung in a skylight raised above the roof.
+
+On the floor, immediately beneath this lamp, stood an armchair of
+wicker-work; and from this chair two stout cords ascended to the
+ceiling, through which they passed by means of two holes perforated for
+the purpose.
+
+When Flora was dragged by the nuns to the immediate vicinity of the
+chair, which her excited imagination instantly converted into an engine
+of torture, that part of the floor on which the chair stood seemed to
+tremble and oscillate beneath her feet, as if it were a trap-door.
+
+The most dreadful sensations now came over her: she felt as if her brain
+was reeling--as if she must go mad.
+
+A fearful scream burst from her lips, and she struggled with the energy
+of desperation, as the nuns endeavored to thrust her into the chair.
+
+"No--no!" she exclaimed, frantically; "you shall not torture me--you
+dare not murder me! What have I done to merit this treatment! Mercy!
+mercy!"
+
+But her cries and her struggles were alike useless; for she was now
+firmly bound to the chair, into which the nuns had forced her to seat
+herself.
+
+Then commenced the maddening scene which will be found in the ensuing
+chapter.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XIX.
+
+THE DESCENT--THE CHAMBER OF PENITENCE.
+
+
+Having bound Flora Francatelli to the chair in the manner just
+described, the three nuns fell back a few paces, and the wretched girl
+felt the floor giving way under her.
+
+A dreadful scream burst from her lips, as slowly--slowly the chair sank
+down, while the working of hidden machinery in the roof, and the steady,
+monotonous revolution of wheels, sounded with ominous din upon her ears.
+
+An icy stream appeared to pour over her soul; wildly she cast around her
+eyes, and then more piercing became her shrieks, as she found herself
+gradually descending into what seemed to be a pit or well--only that it
+was square instead of round.
+
+The ropes creaked--the machinery continued its regular movement, and the
+lamp fixed in the skylight overhead became less and less brilliant.
+
+And bending over the mouth of this pit into which she was descending
+were the three nuns--standing motionless and silent like hideous
+specters, on the brink of the aperture left by the square platform or
+trap, whereon the chair was fixed.
+
+"Mercy! Mercy!" exclaimed Flora, in a voice expressive of the most acute
+anguish.
+
+And stretching forth her snowy arms (for it was round the waist and by
+the feet that she was fastened to the chair), she convulsively placed
+her open palms against the wooden walls of the pit, as if she could by
+that spasmodic movement arrest the descent of the terrible apparatus
+that was bearing her down into that hideous, unknown gulf! But the walls
+were smooth and even, and presented nothing whereon she could fix her
+grasp.
+
+Her brain reeled, and for a few minutes she sat motionless, in dumb,
+inert despair.
+
+Then again, in obedience to some mechanical impulse, she glanced upward;
+the light of the lamp was now dimly seen, like the sun through a dense
+mist--but the dark figures were still bending over the brink of the
+abyss, thirty yards above.
+
+The descent was still progressing and the noise of the machinery still
+reached her ears, with buzzing, humming, monotonous indistinctness.
+
+She shrieked not now--she screamed not any more; but it was not
+resignation that sealed her lips;--it was despair!
+
+Suddenly she became aware of the gradual disappearance of the three
+nuns; as she descended, the wall seemed to rise slowly upward and cover
+them from her view.
+
+Then, for an instant there was a slight shock given to the platform
+whereon the chair was placed--as if it rested on something beneath.
+
+But no;--the fearful descent still went on--for, when she again
+stretched forth her hand to touch the walls, they appeared to be slowly
+rising--rising!
+
+She was now involved in almost total darkness; but far--far overhead the
+dim luster of the lamp was seen; and the four walls of the gulf now
+appeared to touch the ceiling of the room above, and to inclose that
+faint but still distinct orb within the narrow space thus shut in.
+
+The noise of the machinery also reached her still--but merely with a
+humming sound that was only just audible.
+
+For an instant she doubted whether she was still descending; but, alas!
+when her arms were a third time convulsively stretched forth, her fair
+hands felt the walls slipping away from her touch--gliding upward, as it
+were, with steady emotion.
+
+Then she knew that the descent had not ceased.
+
+But whither was she going? to what awful depth was she progressing?
+
+Already she conjectured, was she at least sixty yards beneath that dim
+yellow orb which every instant appeared to shine as through a deeper,
+deepening mist.
+
+For what fate was she reserved? and where was she?
+
+Suddenly it struck her that she was an inmate of the Carmelite Convent;
+for the rumors alluded to in a preceding chapter had often met her ears;
+and her imagination naturally associated them with the occurrences of
+that dreadful night.
+
+The piercing shrieks--the noise of machinery--the disappearance from
+time to time of some member of that monastic institution, all the
+incidents, in fine, to which those rumors had ever pointed, now seemed
+to apply to her own case.
+
+These reflections flashed, with lightning rapidity, through her brain,
+and paralyzed her with horror.
+
+Then she lost all further power of thought; and though not absolutely
+fainting, she was stunned and stupefied with the tremendous weight of
+overwhelming despair.
+
+How long she remained in this condition she knew not; but she was
+suddenly aroused by the opening of a low door in the wall in front of
+her.
+
+Starting as from a dreadful dream, she stretched forth her arms, and
+became aware that the descent had stopped; and at the same moment she
+beheld a nun, bearing a lamp, standing on the threshold of the door
+which had just opened.
+
+"Sister, welcome to the chamber of penitence!" said the recluse,
+approaching the terrified Flora.
+
+Then, placing the lamp in a niche near the door, the nun proceeded to
+remove the cords which fastened the young maiden to the chair.
+
+Flora rose, but fell back again on the seat--for her limbs were stiff in
+consequence of the length of time they had been retained in one
+position. The nun disappeared by the little door for a few minutes; and,
+on her return, presented the wretched girl a cup of cold water. Flora
+swallowed the icy beverage, and felt refreshed.
+
+Then, by the light of the lamp in the niche, she hastily examined the
+countenance of the nun; but its expression was cold--repulsive--stern:
+and Flora knew that it was useless to seek to make a friend of her.
+
+A frightful sense of loneliness, as it were, struck her like an
+ice-shaft penetrating to her very soul; and clasping her hands together,
+she exclaimed: "Holy Virgin! protect me!"
+
+"No harm will befall you, daughter," said the nun, "if you manifest
+contrition for past errors and a resolution to devote your future years
+to the service of Heaven."
+
+"My past errors!" repeated Flora, with mingled indignation and
+astonishment. "I am not aware that I ever injured a living soul by a
+word or deed--nor entertained a thought for which I need to blush!
+Neither have I neglected those duties which manifest the gratitude of
+mortals for the bounties bestowed upon them by Providence."
+
+"Ah! daughter," exclaimed the nun, "you interpret not your own heart
+rightly. Have you never abandoned yourself to those carnal
+notions--those hopes--those fears--those dreams of happiness--which
+constitute the passion which the world calls love?"
+
+Flora started, and a blush mantled on her cheeks, before so pale!
+
+"You see that I have touched a chord which vibrates to your heart's
+core, daughter," continued the nun, on whom that sudden evidence of
+emotion was not lost. "You have suffered yourself to be deluded by the
+whisperings of that feeling whose tendency was to wean your soul from
+Heaven."
+
+"And is it possible that a pure and virtuous love can be construed into
+a crime?" demanded the young maiden, her indignation overpowering her
+fears.
+
+"A love that is founded on, and fostered by ambition is a sin," replied
+the nun. "Marriage is doubtless an institution ordained by Heaven; but
+it becomes a curse, and is repulsive to all pious feelings, when it
+unites those whose passion is made up of sensuality and selfishness."
+
+"You dare not impute such base considerations to me!" exclaimed Flora,
+her cheeks again flushing, but with the glow of conscious innocence
+shamefully outraged by the most injurious suspicions.
+
+"Nay, daughter," continued the nun, unmoved by the manner of the young
+maiden; "you are unable to judge rightly of your own heart. You possess
+a confidence in integrity of purpose, which is but a mental blindness on
+your part."
+
+"Of what am I accused? and wherefore am I brought hither?" asked Flora,
+beginning to feel bewildered by the sophistry that characterized the
+nun's discourse.
+
+"Those who are interested in your welfare," replied the nun evasively,
+"have consigned you to the care of persons devoted to the service of
+Heaven, that your eyes may be opened to the vanity of the path which you
+have been pursuing, but from which you are so happily rescued."
+
+"And where am I? is this the Convent of the Carmelites? why was I
+subjected to all the alarms--all the mental tortures through which I
+have just passed?" demanded the young maiden, wildly and rapidly.
+
+"Think not that we have acted toward you in a spirit of persecution,"
+said the nun. "The mysteries which have alarmed you will be explained at
+a future period, when your soul is prepared by penance,
+self-mortification, and prayer to receive the necessary revelation. In
+the meantime, ask no questions, forget the world, and resolve to embrace
+a life devoted to the service of Heaven."
+
+"To embrace a conventual existence!" almost shrieked the wretched girl.
+"Oh! no, never!"
+
+"Not many days will elapse ere your mind will undergo a salutary
+change," said the nun, composedly. "But if you will follow me--as you
+appear to be somewhat recovered--I will conduct you to your cell
+adjoining the Chamber of Penitence."
+
+Flora, perceiving that any further attempt to reason with the recluse
+would be fruitlessly made, rose and followed her into a narrow, dark
+passage, at the end of which was a door standing half open.
+
+The nun extinguished her lamp, and led the way into a large apartment
+hung with black. At the further end there was an altar, surmounted by a
+crucifix of ebony, and lighted up with four wax candles, which only
+served to render the gloom of the entire scene more apparent.
+
+At the foot of the altar knelt five women, half naked, and holding
+scourges in their hands.
+
+"These are the penitents," whispered the nun to Flora. "Pause for a
+moment and contemplate them."
+
+A minute elapsed, during which the five penitents remained motionless as
+statues, with their heads bowed upon their bosoms, and their hands
+hanging down by their sides, as if those limbs were lifeless--save in
+respect to the hands that held the scourges. But, suddenly, one of
+them--a young and beautiful woman--exclaimed, in a tone of piercing
+anguish, "It is my fault! it is my fault! it is my fault!"--and the
+others took up the wail in voices equally characteristic of heartfelt
+woe.
+
+Then they lacerated their shoulders with the hard leathern thongs of
+their scourges; and a faintness came over Flora Francatelli when she
+observed the blood appear on the back of the young and beautiful
+penitent who had given the signal for this self-mortification.
+
+The nun, perceiving the effect thus produced upon the maiden, touched
+her upon the shoulder as a signal to follow whither she was about to
+lead; and, opening one of the several doors communicating with the
+Chamber of Penitence, she said in a low whisper--"This is your cell. May
+the Virgin bless you!"
+
+Flora entered the little room allotted to her, and the nun retired,
+simply closing, but not bolting the door behind her.
+
+A taper burnt before a crucifix suspended to the wall; and near it hung
+a scourge, from which last mentioned object Flora averted her eyes with
+horror.
+
+A bed, a simple toilet-table, a praying-desk, and a single chair,
+completed the furniture of the cell, which was of very narrow
+dimensions.
+
+Seating herself on the bed, Flora burst into an agony of tears.
+
+What would her aunt think when she received the news of her
+disappearance? for she could not suppose that any friendly feeling on
+the part of her persecutors would induce them to adopt a course which
+might relieve that much-loved relative's mind concerning her. What would
+Francisco conjecture? Oh! these thoughts were maddening!
+
+Anxious to escape from them, if possible, the almost heartbroken girl
+proceeded to lay aside her garments and retire to rest.
+
+Physical and mental exhaustion cast her into a deep sleep; but the
+horrors of her condition pursued her even in her dreams; so that when
+she awoke she was not startled to find herself in that gloomy cell.
+
+Casting her eyes around, she observed two circumstances which showed her
+that some one had visited her room during the hours she slept; for a new
+taper was burning before the crucifix, and her own garments had been
+removed,--the coarse garb of a penitent now occupying their place on the
+chair.
+
+"Oh! is it possible that I am doomed to bid farewell to the world
+forever?" exclaimed Flora, in a voice of despair, as she clasped her
+hands convulsively together.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XX.
+
+FRANCISCO AND NISIDA--DR. DURAS AND THE LETTER.
+
+
+The greatest confusion prevailed in the Riverola Palace, when, in the
+morning, the disappearance of Flora Francatelli was discovered.
+
+Nisida hastened, at an early hour, to her brother's apartment, and
+intimated to him the fact that she was nowhere to be found.
+
+Francisco, who was already dressed, was overwhelmed with grief at this
+announcement, and, in the first excess of excitement, conveyed to her
+his intention of seeking the young maiden throughout the city.
+
+He was hastening to quit the room, when Nisida held him back, and
+intimated to him that his anxiety in this respect would create
+suspicions injurious alike to his reputation and that of Flora
+Francatelli--the more so, as she was but a menial in the household.
+
+Francisco paused and reflected for a few moments; then, having tenderly
+embraced his sister, he hastily addressed her by the symbolic language
+in which they were accustomed to converse:
+
+"Pardon me, beloved Nisida, for having kept a secret from thee--the only
+one that my heart has ever so selfishly cherished."
+
+Nisida appeared to be profoundly astonished at this communication, and
+made an impatient sign for him to proceed.
+
+"You will not be surprised at my anxiety to seek after the missing
+girl," he continued, "when I intimate to you that I love her--and that,
+next to yourself, she is dearer to me than I can express."
+
+"Your passion can scarcely be an honorable one, Francisco," was the
+reproach conveyed by Nisida, while her countenance wore a corresponding
+expression.
+
+"I would sooner die than harbor an injurious thought in respect to that
+virtuous and beautiful creature!" responded the young count, his face
+flushed with the glow of generous emotions. "My happiness is intimately
+connected with this attachment, Nisida, and I feel convinced that you
+would rather forward my views than oppose them."
+
+"Yes, dear brother," was the reply which she conveyed to him: "your
+happiness is my only consideration."
+
+But, as she gave this assurance, an ill-subdued sigh escaped her breast,
+and she compressed her lips tightly to crush the emotions that were
+agitating her. A cloud evanescently appeared on the broad and marble
+forehead; the penciled brows contracted, and the eyes flashed
+brightly--oh! far more brightly than glanced the ray of the morning sun
+through the windows, upon the glossy surface of her luxuriant hair. A
+momentary spasm seemed to convulse the full and rounded form; and the
+small, elegantly shaped foot which peered from beneath her flowing robe,
+tapped the floor twice with involuntary movement.
+
+Mistress as she usually was of even her most intense feelings, and
+wonderfully habituated by circumstances to exercise the most complete
+command over her emotions, she was now for an instant vanquished by the
+gush of painful sentiments which crowded on her soul.
+
+Francisco did not, however, observe that transitory evidence of acute
+feeling on the part of his sister--a feeling which seemed to partake of
+the nature of remorse, as if she were conscience-stricken!
+
+For she loved her brother deeply--tenderly, but after the fashion of her
+own wild and wonderful disposition--a love that was not calculated
+always to prove friendly to his interests.
+
+Francisco paced the room in an agitated manner.
+
+At length he stopped near where his sister was standing, and intimated
+to her that Flora might perhaps have repaired to the residence of her
+aunt.
+
+Nisida conveyed to him this answer: "The moment that I missed Flora ere
+now, I dispatched a domestic to her aunt's cottage; but she has not been
+there since Sunday last."
+
+"Some treachery is at work here, Nisida," was the young count's
+response. "Flora has not willingly absented herself."
+
+At this moment Francisco's page entered the apartment to announce that
+Dr. Duras was in the reception-room.
+
+The young count made a sign to his sister to accompany him; and they
+proceeded to the elegant saloon where the physician was waiting.
+
+Having saluted the count and Nisida with his usual urbanity, Dr. Duras
+addressed himself to the former, saying, "I have just learnt from your
+lordship's page that the favorite attendant on your sister has most
+unaccountably disappeared."
+
+"And both Nisida and myself are at a loss what to conjecture, or how to
+act," replied Francisco.
+
+"Florence is at this moment the scene of dreadful crimes," observed the
+physician. "Yesterday morning a young female was murdered by a near
+neighbor of mine----"
+
+"I was astounded when I heard of the arrest of Signor Wagner on such a
+charge," interrupted the count. "He was latterly a frequent guest at
+this house: although, I believe, you never happened to meet him here?"
+
+"No," answered the physician; "but I saw him at the funeral of your
+lamented father, and once or twice since in the garden attached to his
+mansion; and I certainly could not have supposed, from his appearance,
+that he was a man capable of so black a crime. I was, however, about to
+observe that Florence is at this moment infested by a class of villains
+who hesitate at no deed of turpitude. This Signor Wagner is a foreigner,
+possessed of immense wealth, the sources of which are totally unknown;
+and, moreover, it is declared that the sbirri, yesterday morning,
+actually traced the robber-captain Stephano to the vicinity of his
+mansion. All this looks black enough, and it is more than probable that
+Wagner was in league with the redoubtable Stephano and his banditti.
+Then the mysterious disappearance of Flora is, to say the least,
+alarming, for I believe she was a well conducted, virtuous, estimable
+young woman."
+
+"She was--she was indeed!" exclaimed Francisco. "At least," he added,
+perceiving that the physician was somewhat astonished at the enthusiasm
+with which he spoke--"at least, such is my firm impression; such, too,
+is the opinion of my sister."
+
+"The motive which brought me hither this morning," said Dr. Duras, "was
+to offer you a little friendly advice, which my long acquaintance with
+your family, my dear count, will prevent you from taking amiss."
+
+"Speak, doctor--speak your thoughts!" cried Francisco, pressing the
+physician's hand gratefully.
+
+"I would recommend you to be more cautious how you form an intimacy with
+strangers," continued Dr. Duras. "Rumor has a thousand tongues--and it
+is already reported in Florence that the alleged murderer was on
+familiar terms with the noble Count of Riverola and Lady Nisida."
+
+"The duke himself is liable to be deceived in respect to the real
+character of an individual," said Francisco proudly.
+
+"But his highness would not form hasty acquaintances," replied the
+physician. "After all, it is with the best possible feeling that I offer
+you my counsel--knowing your generous heart, and also how frequently
+generosity is imposed upon."
+
+"Pardon the impatience with which I answered you, my dear friend,"
+exclaimed the young count.
+
+"No pardon is necessary," said the physician; "because you did not
+offend me. One word more and I must take my leave. Crimes are
+multiplying thickly in Florence, and Stephano's band becomes each day
+more and more daring; so that it is unsafe to walk alone in the city
+after dusk. Beware how you stir unattended, my dear Francisco, at
+unseasonable hours."
+
+"My habits are not of that nature," replied the count. "I, however,
+thank you cordially for your well-meant advice. But you appear to
+connect the disappearance of Flora Francatelli," he added, very
+seriously, "with the dreadful deed supposed to be committed by Signor
+Wagner!"
+
+"I merely conjecture that this Wagner is associated with that lawless
+horde who have become the terror of the republic," answered the
+physician; "and it is natural to suppose that these wretches are guilty
+of all the enormous crimes which have lately struck the city with
+alarm."
+
+Francisco turned aside to conceal the emotions which these remarks
+excited within him; for he began to apprehend that she whom he loved so
+fondly had met with foul play at the hands of the bravoes and banditti
+whom Stephano was known to command.
+
+Dr. Duras seized that opportunity to approach Nisida, who was standing
+at the window; and as he thrust into her hand a note, which was
+immediately concealed in her dress, he was struck with surprise and
+grief at the acute anguish that was depicted on her countenance.
+
+Large tears stood on her long, dark lashes, and her face was ashy pale.
+
+The physician made a sign of anxious inquiry; but Nisida, subduing her
+emotions with an almost superhuman effort, pressed his hand violently
+and hurried from the room.
+
+Dr. Duras shook his head mournfully, but also in a manner which showed
+that he was at a loss to comprehend that painful manifestation of
+feeling on the part of one whom he well knew to be endowed with almost
+miraculous powers of self-control.
+
+His meditations were interrupted by Francisco, who, addressing him
+abruptly, said, "In respect to the missing young lady, whose absence
+will be so acutely felt by my sister, the only course which I can at
+present pursue, is to communicate her mysterious disappearance to the
+captain of police."
+
+"No time should be lost in adopting that step," responded the doctor. "I
+am about to visit a sick nobleman in the neighborhood of the captain's
+office: we will proceed so far in each other's company."
+
+The young count summoned his page to attend upon him, and then quitted
+the mansion in company with the physician.
+
+In the meantime Nisida had retired to her own apartment, where she threw
+herself into a seat, and gave vent to the dreadful emotions which had
+for the last hour been agitating within her bosom.
+
+She wept--oh! she wept long and bitterly: it was terrible and strange to
+think how that woman of iron mind now yielded to the outpourings of her
+anguish.
+
+Some time elapsed ere she even attempted to control her feelings; and
+then her struggle to subdue them was as sudden and energetic as her
+grief had a moment previously been violent and apparently inconsolable.
+
+Then she recollected the note which Dr. Duras had slipped into her hand,
+and which she had concealed in her bosom; and she hastened to peruse it.
+The contents ran as follows:
+
+    "In accordance with your request, my noble-hearted and
+    much-enduring friend, I have consulted eminent lawyers in
+    respect to the will of the late Count of Riverola. The substance
+    of their opinion is unanimously this: The estates are
+    inalienably settled on yourself, should you recover the
+    faculties of hearing and speaking at any time previous to your
+    brother's attainment of the age of thirty; and should you enter
+    into possession of the estates, and allow your brother to enjoy
+    the whole or greater part of the revenues, in direct
+    contradiction to the spirit of your father's will, the estates
+    would become liable to confiscation by his highness the duke. In
+    this case your brother and yourself would alike be ruined.
+
+    "Now, the advice that these lawyers give is this: A memorial
+    should be addressed to his highness, exhibiting that you refuse
+    to undergo any surgical treatment or operation for the
+    restoration of the faculties of hearing and speech, inasmuch as
+    you would not wish to deprive your brother of the enjoyment of
+    the estates nor of the title conferred by their possession: that
+    you therefore solicit a decree, confirming his title of
+    nobility, and dispensing with the prerogative of confiscation on
+    the part of the prince, should you recover the faculties of
+    hearing and speech, and act in opposition to the will of your
+    late father in respect to the power of alienating the estates
+    from your own possession.
+
+    "Such, my generous-minded friend, is the counsel offered by
+    eminent advocates; and, by the memory of your sainted mother, if
+    not for the sake of your own happiness, I implore you to act in
+    accordance with these suggestions. You will remember that this
+    advice pretty accurately corresponds with that which I gave you,
+    when, late on the night that the will was read, you quitted your
+    sleepless couch and came to my dwelling to consult me on a point
+    so intimately connected with your felicity in this world.
+
+                    "Your sincerely devoted friend,
+                                               "JERONYMO DURAS."
+
+While Nisida was occupied in the perusal of the first paragraph of this
+letter, dark clouds lowered upon her brow; but as she read the second
+paragraph, wherein the salutary advice of the lawyers was conveyed to
+her, those clouds rapidly dispersed, and her splendid countenance became
+lighted up with joyous, burning, intoxicating hope!
+
+It was evident that she had already made up her mind to adopt the
+counsel proffered her by the eminent advocates whom the friendly
+physician had consulted on her behalf.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXI.
+
+THE SUBURB OF ALLA CROCE--THE JEW--THE ROBBER CHIEF'S LOVE.
+
+
+It was past the hour of ten on Saturday night, when a tall, powerfully
+built man emerged from what might be termed the fashionable portion of
+the city of Florence, and struck into the straggling suburb of Alla
+Croce.
+
+This quarter of the town was of marvelously bad reputation, being
+infested by persons of the worst description, who, by herding, as it
+were, together in one particular district, had converted the entire
+suburb into a sort of sanctuary where crime might take refuge, and into
+which the sbirri, or police-officers, scarcely dared to penetrate.
+
+The population of Alla Croce was not, however, entirely composed of
+individuals who were at variance with the law, for poverty as well as
+crime sought an asylum in that assemblage of forbidding-looking
+dwellings, which formed so remarkable a contrast with the marble
+palaces, noble public buildings, and handsome streets of the city of
+Florence itself.
+
+And not only did the denizens of penury and crushing toil, the artisans,
+the vine-dressers, the gardeners, the water-carriers, and the porters of
+Florence occupy lodgings in the suburb of Alla Croce, but even wealthy
+persons--yes, men whose treasures were vast enough to pay the ransom of
+princes--buried themselves and their hoards in this horrible
+neighborhood.
+
+We allude to that most undeservedly-persecuted race, the Jews--a race
+endowed with many virtues and generous qualities, but whose characters
+have been blackened by a host of writers whose narrow minds and
+illiberal prejudices have induced them to preserve all the exaggerations
+and misrepresentations which tradition hands down in the Christian world
+relative to the cruelly-treated Israelite.
+
+The enlightened commercial policy of those merchant princes, the Medici,
+had, during the primal glories of their administrative sway in the
+Florentine Republic, relaxed the severity of the laws against the Jews,
+and recognizing in the persecuted Israelites those grand trading and
+financial qualities which have ever associated the idea of wealth with
+their name, permitted them to follow unmolested their specific pursuits.
+
+But at the time of which we are writing--the year 1521--the prince who
+had the reins of the Florentine Government, had yielded to the
+representations of a bigoted and intolerant clergy, and the Jews had
+once more become the subjects of persecution. The dissipated nobles
+extorted from them by menace those loans which would not have been
+granted on the security proffered; and the wealthy members of the
+"scattered race" actually began to discover that they could repose
+greater confidence in the refuse of the Florentine population than in
+the brilliant aristocracy, or even in the famous sbirri themselves. Thus
+had many rich Jews established themselves in the quarter of Alla Croce;
+and by paying a certain sum to the syndic, or magistrate of this
+suburb--a functionary elected by the inhabitants themselves, and in
+virtue of a law of their own enactment--the persecuted Israelites
+enjoyed comparative security and peace.
+
+We now return to the man we left plunging into the suburbs of which we
+have afforded a short and necessary account.
+
+This individual was dressed in simple attire, but composed of excellent
+materials. His vest was of dark velvet, slashed, but not embroidered;
+and on his breast he wore a jazeran, or mailed cuirass, which was not
+only lighter than a steel corselet, but was equally proof against
+poniard or pike. In his broad leather belt were stuck two pairs of
+pistols, and a long dagger; a heavy broadsword also hung by his side.
+His black boots came up nearly to the knee--in contravention of the
+prevailing fashion of that age, when these articles of dress seldom
+reached above the swell of the leg. A large slouched hat, without
+plumage or any ornament, was drawn down as much as possible over his
+features; and the broad _mantello_, or cloak, was gathered round the
+body in such a manner that it covered all the left side and the weapons
+fastened in the belt, but left the sword arm free for use in any sudden
+emergency.
+
+Behind the wayfarer stretched the magnificent city of Florence,
+spreading over the deep vale, on both sides of the Arno, and, as usual,
+brilliant with light, like a world of stars shining in mimic rivalry of
+those that studded the purple vault above.
+
+Before him were the mazes of the Alla Croce, the darkness of which
+suburb was only interrupted by a few straggling and feeble lights
+gleaming from houses of entertainment, or from huts whose poverty
+required not the protection of shutters to the casements.
+
+And now, as one of those faint lights suddenly fell upon the wayfarer's
+countenance, as he passed the abode in which it shone--let us avail
+ourselves of the opportunity afforded by that glimpse, to state that
+this man's features were handsome, but coarse, bearing the traces of a
+dissolute life. His age was apparently forty; it might even have been a
+few years more matured--but his coal-black hair, mustachio, and bushy
+whiskers, unstreaked by silver, showed that time sat lightly on his
+head, in spite of the evident intimacy with the wine-cup above alluded
+to.
+
+Having threaded the greater portion of the suburb, which was almost
+knee-deep in mud--for it had been raining nearly all day, and had only
+cleared up after sunset--the individual whom we have been describing
+stopped at the corner of a street, and gave a shrill whistle.
+
+The signal was immediately answered in a similar fashion, and in a few
+minutes a man emerged from the darkness of a by-street. He also was
+well-armed, but much more plainly dressed than the other; and his
+countenance was such as would not have proved a very friendly witness in
+his favor in a court of justice.
+
+"Lomellino?" said the first individual whom we have described in this
+chapter.
+
+"Captain Stephano!" responded the other.
+
+"All right, my fine lad," returned the bandit-captain. "Follow me."
+
+The two robbers then proceeded in silence until they reached a house
+larger and stronger in appearance than any other in the same street. The
+shutters which protected the casements were massive and strengthened
+with iron bars and huge nails, somewhat after the fashion of church
+doors.
+
+The walls were of solid gray stones, whereas those of the adjacent huts
+were of mud or wood. In a word, this dwelling seemed a little fortress
+in the midst of an exposed and unprotected town.
+
+Before this house the robbers stopped.
+
+"Do you remain on the other side of the street, Lomellino," said the
+bandit-chief; "and if need be, you will answer to my accustomed signal."
+
+"Good, captain," was the reply; and Lomellino crossed over the way to
+the deep shade of the houses on that side.
+
+Stephano then gave a low knock at the door of the well-defended dwelling
+above described.
+
+Several minutes elapsed; and no sounds were heard within.
+
+"The old usurer is at home, I know," muttered Stephano to himself; for
+the moment he had knocked a gleam of light, peeping through a crevice in
+an upper casement, had suddenly disappeared. He now rapped more loudly
+at the door with the handle of his heavy broadsword.
+
+"Ah! he comes!" muttered the bandit-chief, after another long pause.
+
+"Who knocks so late?" demanded a weak and tremulous voice from within.
+
+"I--Stephano Verrina!" cried the brigand pompously: "open--and fear
+not."
+
+The bolts were drawn back--a chain fell heavily on the stone floor
+inside--and the door opened, revealing the form of an old and
+venerable-looking man, with a long white beard. He held a lamp in his
+hand: and, by its fitful glare, his countenance, of the Jewish cast,
+manifested an expression denoting the terror which he vainly endeavored
+to conceal.
+
+"Enter. Signor Stephano," said the old man. "But wherefore here so
+late?"
+
+"Late, do ye call it. Signor Isaachar?" ejaculated the bandit, crossing
+the threshold. "Meseems there is yet time to do a world of business this
+night, for those who have the opportunity and the inclination."
+
+"Ah! but you and yours turn night into day," replied the Jew, with a
+chuckle intended to be of a conciliatory nature: "or rather you perform
+your avocations at a time when others sleep."
+
+"Every one to his calling, friend Isaachar," said the brigand chief.
+"Come! have you not made that door fast enough yet? you will have to
+open it soon again--for my visit will be none of the longest."
+
+The Jew having replaced the chains and fastened the huge bolts which
+protected the house-door, took up the lamp and led the way to a small
+and meanly-furnished room at the back of his dwelling.
+
+"What business may have brought you hither to-night, good Captain
+Verrina?" he inquired in a tone of ill-subdued apprehension.
+
+"Not to frighten thee out of thy wits, good Isaachar," responded
+Stephano, laughing.
+
+"Ah! ha!" exclaimed the Jew, partially reassured: "perhaps you have come
+to repay me the few crowns I had the honor to lend you--without
+security, and without interest----"
+
+"By my patron saint! thou wast never more mistaken in thy life, friend
+Isaachar!" interrupted the robber chief. "The few crowns you speak of,
+were neither more nor less than a tribute paid on consideration that my
+men should leave unscathed the dwelling of worthy Isaachar ben Solomon:
+in other words, that thy treasures should be safe at least from them."
+
+"Well--well! be it so!" cried the Jew. "Heaven knows I do not grudge the
+amount in question--although," he added slowly, "I am compelled to pay
+almost an equal sum to the syndic."
+
+"The syndic of Alla Croce and the captain of the banditti are two very
+different persons," returned Stephano. "The magistrate protects you from
+those over whom he has control: and I, on my side, guaranty you against
+the predatory visits of those over whom I exercise command. But let us
+to business."
+
+"Ay--to business!" echoed the Jew, anxious to be relieved from the state
+of suspense into which this visit had thrown him.
+
+"You are acquainted with the young, beautiful, and wealthy Countess of
+Arestino, Isaachar?" said the bandit.
+
+The Jew stared at him in increased alarm, now mingled with amazement.
+
+"But, in spite of all her wealth," continued Stephano, "she was
+compelled to pledge her diamonds to thee, to raise the money wherewith
+to discharge a gambling debt contracted by her lover, the high-born,
+handsome, but ruined Marquis of Orsini."
+
+"How knowest thou all this?" inquired the Jew.
+
+"From her ladyship's own lips," responded Stephano. "At least she told
+me she had raised the sum to accommodate a very particular friend. Now,
+as the transaction is unknown to her husband, and as I am well assured
+that the Marquis of Orsini is really on most excellent terms with her
+ladyship--moreover, as this same marquis did pay a certain heavy
+gambling debt within an hour after the diamonds were pledged to you--it
+requires but little ingenuity to put all these circumstances together,
+to arrive at the result which I have mentioned. Is it not so, Isaachar?"
+
+"I know not the motive for which the money was raised," answered the
+Jew, wondering what was coming next.
+
+"Oh! then the money was raised with you," cried Stephano, "and
+consequently you hold the diamonds."
+
+"I did not say so--I----"
+
+"A truce to this fencing with my words!" ejaculated the bandit,
+impatiently. "I have an unconquerable desire to behold these
+diamonds----"
+
+"You, good captain!" murmured Isaachar, trembling from head to foot.
+
+"Yes, I! And wherefore not? Is there anything so marvelous in a man of
+my refined tastes and exquisite notions taking a fancy to inspect the
+jewels of one of the proudest beauties of gay Florence? By my patron
+saint! you should thank me that I come in so polite a manner to request
+a favor, the granting of which I could so easily compel without all this
+tedious circumlocution."
+
+"The diamonds!" muttered the Jew, doubtless troubled at the idea of
+surrendering the security which he held for a very considerable loan.
+
+"Perdition seize the man!" thundered Stephano, now waxing angry. "Yes,
+the diamonds, I say; and fortunate will it be for you if they are
+produced without further parley."
+
+Thus speaking the bandit suffered his cloak to fall from over his belt,
+and the Jew's quick eye recoiled from the sight of those menacing
+weapons, with which his visitor was armed, as it were, to the teeth.
+
+Then without further remonstrance, but with many profound sighs,
+Isaachar proceeded to fetch a small iron box from another room; and in a
+few moments the diamond case, made of sandal wood inlaid with
+mother-of-pearl, was in the bandit captain's hands.
+
+"Let me convince myself that it is all right!" exclaimed Stephano,
+examining the lid of the case. "Yes, there are the arms of Arestino,
+with the ciphers of the Countess, G. A.--Giulia Arestino--a very pretty
+name, by my troth! Ah, how the stones sparkle!" he cried, as he opened
+the case. "And the inventory is complete, just as it was described to me
+by her ladyship. You are a worthy man, Isaachar, a good man; you will
+have restored tranquillity to the mind of the beautiful countess,"
+continued Stephano, in a bantering tone: "and she will be enabled to
+appear at court to-morrow, with her husband. Good-night, Isaachar; my
+brave men shall receive orders to the effect that the first who dares to
+molest you may reckon upon swinging to the highest tree that I can find
+for his accommodation."
+
+"You violate your compact, Signor Verrina!" exclaimed the Jew, his rage
+now mastering his fears. "Wherefore should I pay you tribute to protect
+me, when you enter my house and rob me thus vilely?"
+
+"In this case a lady is concerned, good Isaachar," responded the bandit,
+calmly; "and you know that with all true cavaliers the ladies are
+pre-eminent. Once more, a fair night's repose, my much respected
+friend."
+
+Thus saying, Stephano Verrina rose from the seat on which he had been
+lounging; and the Jew, knowing that altercation and remonstrance were
+equally useless, hastened to afford the means of egress to so unwelcome
+a visitor.
+
+Stephano lingered a moment opposite the house until he heard the door
+bolted and chained behind him; then crossing the street, he rejoined his
+follower, Lomellino.
+
+"All right, captain?" said the latter, inquiringly.
+
+"All right!" answered Stephano. "Poor Isaachar is inconsolable, no
+doubt; but the countess will be consoled at his expense. Thus it is with
+the world, Lomellino; what is one person's misery is another's
+happiness."
+
+"Dost grow sentimental, good captain?" exclaimed the man, whose ears
+were entirely unaccustomed to such language on the part of his chief.
+
+"Lomellino, my friend," answered Verrina, "when a man is smitten in a
+certain organ, commonly called the heart, he is apt to give utterance to
+that absurdity which the world denominates sentiment. Such is my case."
+
+"You are, then, in love, captain?" said Lomellino, as they retraced
+their way through the suburb of Alla Croce.
+
+"Just so," replied the bandit chief. "I will tell you how it happened.
+Yesterday morning, when those impertinent sbirri gave me a harder run
+than I have ever yet experienced, I was fain to take refuge in the
+garden of that very same Signor Wagner----"
+
+"Who was yesterday arrested for murder?" interrupted Lomellino.
+
+"The identical one," returned Stephano. "I concealed myself so well that
+I knew I might bid defiance to those bungling sbirri--although their
+scent was sharpened by the hope of the reward set on my head by the
+prince. While I thus lay hidden, I beheld a scene that would have done
+good to the heart of even such a callous fellow as yourself--I mean
+callous to female qualifications. In a word, I saw one woman stab
+another as effectually as----"
+
+"But it was Wagner who killed the woman!" ejaculated Lomellino.
+
+"No such thing," said Stephano quietly. "The murderess is of the gentle
+sex--though she can scarcely be gentle in disposition. And such a
+splendid creature, Lomellino! I beheld her countenance for a few
+minutes, as she drew aside her veil that her eyes might glare upon her
+victim; and I whispered to myself, 'That woman must be mine; she is
+worthy of me!' Then the blow descended--her victim lay motionless at her
+feet--and I never took my eyes off the countenance of the murderess.
+'She is an incarnate fiend,' I thought, 'and admirably fitted to mate
+with the bandit captain.' Such was my reflection then; and the lapse of
+a few hours has only served to strengthen the impression. You may now
+judge whether I have formed an unworthy attachment!"
+
+"She _is_ worthy of you, captain!" exclaimed Lomellino. "Know you who
+she is?"
+
+"Not a whit," replied Stephano Verrina. "I should have followed her when
+she left the garden, and complimented her on her proficiency in handling
+a poniard, but I was not so foolhardy as to stand the chance of meeting
+the sbirri. Moreover, I shall speedily adopt measures to discover who
+and what she is; and when I present myself to her, and we compare
+qualifications, I do not think there can arise any obstacle to our
+happiness--as lovers are accustomed to say."
+
+"Then it was _she_ who murdered the Lady Agnes?" said Lomellino.
+
+"Have I not told you so? Signor Wagner is as innocent of that deed as
+the babe unborn; but it is not for me to step forward in his behalf, and
+thereby criminate a lady on whom I have set my affections."
+
+"That were hardly to be expected captain," returned Lomellino.
+
+"And all that I have now told thee thou wilt keep to thyself," added
+Stephano; "for to none else of the band do I speak so freely as to
+thee."
+
+"Because no one is so devoted to his captain as I," rejoined Lomellino.
+"And now that we are about to separate," added the man, as they reached
+the verge of the suburb, which was then divided by a wide, open space
+from the city itself, and might even be termed a detached village--"now
+that we are about to separate, captain, allow me to ask whether the
+affair of Monday night still holds good?"
+
+"The little business at the Riverola Palace, you mean?" said Stephano.
+"Most assuredly! You and Piero will accompany me. There is little danger
+to be apprehended; and Antonio has given me the necessary information.
+Count Francisco sleeps at a great distance from the point where we must
+enter; and as for his sister--she is as deaf as if she had her ears
+sealed up."
+
+"But what about the pages, the lackeys----"
+
+"Antonio will give them all a sleeping draught. Everything," added the
+robber-chief, "is settled as cleverly as can be."
+
+"Antonio is your cousin, if I err not?" said Lomellino.
+
+"Something of the kind," replied Stephano; "but what is better and more
+binding--we are friends. And yet, strange to say, I never was within the
+precincts of the Riverola mansion until the night before last, and--more
+singular still--I have never, to my knowledge, seen any members of the
+family in whose service Antonio has been so long."
+
+"Why, Florence is not much honored with your presence during the
+day-time," observed Lomellino; "and at night the great lords and
+high-born ladies who happen to be abroad, are so muffled up--the former
+in their cloaks, the latter in their veils----"
+
+"True--true; I understand all you would say, Lomellino," interrupted the
+captain; "but you know how to be rather tedious at times. Here we
+separate, I repair to the Arestino Palace, and you----"
+
+"To the cavern," replied Lomellino: "where I hope to sleep better than I
+did last night," he added.
+
+"What! a renewal of those infernal shriekings and screamings, that seem
+to come from the bowels of the earth?" exclaimed the captain.
+
+"Worse than ever," answered Lomellino. "If they continue much longer, I
+must abandon my office of treasure-keeper, which compels me to sleep in
+the innermost room----"
+
+"That cannot be allowed, my worthy friend," interrupted the captain;
+"for I should not know whom to appoint in your place. If it were not
+that we should not betray our own stronghold," continued Stephano,
+emphatically, "we would force our way into the nest of our noisy
+neighbors, and levy such a tribute upon them as would put them on their
+good behavior for the future."
+
+"The scheme is really worth consideration," remarked Lomellino.
+
+"We will talk more of it another time," said the captain. "Good-night,
+Lomellino. I shall not return to the cavern until very late."
+
+The two banditti then separated--Lomellino striking off to the right,
+and Stephano Verrina pursuing his way toward the most aristocratic
+quarter of Florence.
+
+Upon entering the sphere of marble palaces, brilliantly lighted villas,
+and gay mansions, the robber chief covered his face with a black mask--a
+mode of disguise so common at that period, not only amongst ladies, but
+also with cavaliers and nobles, that it was not considered at all
+suspicious, save as a proof of amatory intrigue, with which the sbirri
+had no right of interference.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXII.
+
+THE COUNTESS OF ARESTINO.
+
+
+We must now introduce our readers to a splendid apartment in the
+Arestino Palace.
+
+This room was tastefully decorated and elegantly furnished. The tapestry
+was of pale blue; and the ottomans, ranged round the walls in Oriental
+style, were of rich crimson satin embroidered with gold. In the middle
+stood a table covered with ornaments and rich trinkets lately arrived
+from Paris--for France already began to exercise the influence of its
+superior civilization and refinement over the south of Europe.
+
+The ceiling of that room was a master-piece of the united arts of
+sculpture and painting. First, the hand of the sculptor had carved it
+into numerous medallions, on which the pencil of the painter had then
+delineated the most remarkable scenes in early Florentine history. Round
+the sides, or cornices, were beautifully sculptured in marble the heads
+of the principal ancestors of the Count of Arestino.
+
+It was within half an hour of midnight, and the beautiful Giulia
+Arestino was sitting restlessly upon an ottoman, now holding her breath
+to listen if a step were approaching the private door behind the
+tapestry--then glancing anxiously toward a clepsydra on the mantel.
+
+"What can detain him thus? will he deceive me?" she murmured to herself.
+"Oh! how foolish--worse than foolish--mad--to confide in the promise of
+a professed bandit! The jewels are worth a thousand times the reward I
+have pledged myself to give him! wretched being that I am!"
+
+And with her fair hand she drew back the dark masses of her hair that
+had fallen too much over her polished brow: and on this polished brow
+she pressed that fair hand, for her head ached with the intensity of
+mingled suspense and alarm.
+
+Her position was indeed a dangerous one as the reader is already aware.
+In the infatuation of her strong, unconquerable, but not less guilty
+love for the handsome spendthrift Orsini, she had pledged her diamonds
+to Isaachar ben Solomon for an enormous sum of money, every ducat of
+which had passed without an hour's delay into the possession of the
+young marquis.
+
+Those diamonds were the bridal gift of her fond and attached, but, alas!
+deceived husband, who, being many years older than herself, studied
+constantly how to afford pleasure to the wife of whom he was so proud.
+He was himself an extraordinary judge of the nature, purity and value of
+precious stones; and, being immensely rich, he had collected a perfect
+museum of curiosities in that particular department. In fact, it was his
+amateur study, or, as we should say in these times, his peculiar hobby;
+and hence the impossibility of imposing on him by the substitution of a
+hired or a false set of diamonds for those which he had presented to his
+wife.
+
+It was, therefore, absolutely necessary to get these diamonds back from
+Isaachar, by fair means or foul. The fair means were to redeem them by
+the payment of the loan advanced upon them; but the sum was so large
+that the countess dared not make such a demand upon her husband's purse,
+because the extravagances of her lover had lately compelled her to apply
+so very, very frequently to the count for a replenishment of her funds.
+The foul means were therefore resorted to--an old woman, who had been
+the nurse of the countess in her infancy, and to whom in her distress
+she applied for advice, having procured for the patrician lady the
+services of Stephano Verrina, the bandit-captain.
+
+It is not to be wondered at, then, if the Countess of Arestino were a
+prey to the most poignant anxiety, as each successive quarter of an hour
+passed without bringing either Stephano or any tidings from him. Even if
+she feigned illness, so as to escape the ceremony of the following day,
+relief would only be temporary, for the moment she should recover, or
+affect to recover, her husband would again require her to accompany him
+to the receptions of the prince.
+
+Giulia's anguish had risen to that point at which such feelings become
+intolerable, and suggest the most desperate remedies--suicide,--when a
+low knock behind the pale-blue arras suddenly imparted hope to her soul.
+
+Hastily raising the tapestry on that side whence the sound had emanated,
+she drew back the bolt of a little door communicating with a private
+staircase (usually found in all Italian mansions at that period), and
+the robber chief entered the room.
+
+"Have you succeeded?" was Giulia's rapid question.
+
+"Your ladyship's commission has been executed," replied Stephano, who,
+we should observe, had laid aside his black mask ere he appeared in the
+presence of the countess.
+
+"Ah! now I seem to live--breathe again!" cried Giulia, a tremendous
+weight suddenly removed from her mind.
+
+Stephano produced the jewel-case from beneath his cloak; and as the
+countess hastily took it--nay, almost snatched it from him, he
+endeavored to imprint a kiss upon her fair hand.
+
+Deep was the crimson glow which suffused her countenance--her neck--even
+all that was revealed of her bosom, as she drew haughtily back, and with
+a sublime patrician air of offended pride.
+
+"I thank you--thank you from the bottom of my soul, Signor Verrina," she
+said in another moment; for she felt how completely circumstances had
+placed her in the power of the bandit-chief, and how useless it was to
+offend him. "Here is your reward," and she presented him a heavy purse
+of gold.
+
+"Nay, keep the jingling metal, lady," said Stephano; "I stand in no need
+of it--at least for the present. The reward I crave is of a different
+nature, and will even cost you less than you proffer me."
+
+"What other recompense can I give you?" demanded Giulia, painfully
+alarmed.
+
+"A few lines written by thy fair hand to my dictation," answered
+Stephano.
+
+Giulia cast upon him a look of profound surprise.
+
+"Here, lady, take my tablets, for I see that your own are not at hand,"
+cried the chief. "Delay not--it grows late, and we may be interrupted."
+
+"We may indeed," murmured Giulia, darting a rapid look at the
+water-clock. "It is within a few minutes of midnight."
+
+She might have added--"And at midnight I expect a brief visit from
+Manuel d'Orsini, ere the return of my husband from a banquet at a
+friend's villa." But of course this was her secret; and anxious to rid
+herself of the company of Stephano, she took the tablets with trembling
+hands and prepared to write.
+
+"I, Giulia, Countess of Arestino," began the brigand, dictating to her,
+"confess myself to owe Stephano Verrina a deep debt of gratitude for his
+kindness in recovering my diamonds from the possession of the Jew
+Isaachar, to whom they were pledged for a sum which I could not pay."
+
+"But wherefore this document?" exclaimed the countess, looking up in a
+searching manner at the robber-chief; for she had seated herself at the
+table to write, and he was leaning over the back of her chair.
+
+"'Tis my way at times," he answered, carelessly, "when I perform some
+service for a noble lord or a great lady, to solicit an acknowledgment
+of this kind in preference to gold." Then, sinking his voice to a low
+whisper, he added with an air of deep meaning, "Who knows but that this
+document may some day save my head?"
+
+Giulia uttered a faint shriek, for she comprehended in a moment how
+cruelly she might sooner or later be compromised through that document,
+and how entirely she was placing herself in the bandit's power.
+
+But Stephano's hand clutched the tablets whereon the countess had,
+almost mechanically, written to his subtle dictation; and he said,
+coolly: "Fear not, lady--I must be reduced to a desperate strait indeed
+when my safety shall depend on the use I can make of this fair
+handwriting."
+
+Giulia felt partially relieved by this assurance: and it was with
+ill-concealed delight that she acknowledged the ceremonial bow with
+which the bandit-chief intimated his readiness to depart.
+
+But at that moment three low and distinct knocks were heard at the
+little door behind the arras.
+
+Giulia's countenance became suffused with blushes: then, instantly
+recovering her presence of mind, she said in a rapid, earnest tone, "He
+who is coming knows nothing concerning the jewels, and will be surprised
+to find a stranger with me. Perhaps he may even recognize you--perhaps
+he knows you by sight----"
+
+"What would you have me do, lady?" demanded Stephano. "Speak, and I obey
+you."
+
+"Conceal yourself--here--and I will soon release you."
+
+She raised the tapestry on the side opposite to that by which Stephano
+had entered the room; and the robber-chief hid himself in the wide
+interval between the hangings in the wall.
+
+All this had scarcely occupied a minute; and Giulia now hastened to open
+the private door, which instantly gave admittance to the young,
+handsome, and dissipated Marquis of Orsini.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+THE LOVE OF WOMAN--GIULIA AND HER LOVER.
+
+
+Silence, and calmness, and moonlight were without the walls of the
+Arestino villa; for the goddess of night shone sweetly but coldly on the
+city of Florence, and asserted her empire even over the clouds that ere
+now had seemed laden with storm. Nor beamed she there alone--that fair
+Diana; for a countless host of handmaidens--the silver-faced stars--had
+spread themselves over the deep purple sky; and there--there--they all
+shone in subdued and modest glory--those myriads of beacons floating on
+the eternal waves of that far-off and silent sea!
+
+Shine on, sweet regent of the night--and ye, too, silver-faced stars,
+whose countenances are reflected and multiplied endlessly, as they are
+rocked to and fro, on the deep blue bosom of the Arno; while on the
+banks of that widely-famed stream, Nature herself, as if wearied of her
+toils, appears to be sleeping.
+
+Would that the soul of man could thus lie down in its night of sorrow or
+of racking passion, on the margin of the waters of hope, confident that
+the slumber of contentment and peace will seal his eyelids, heavy with
+long vigils in a world where conflicting interests need constant
+watching, and that the stillness of the unfathomable depths of those
+waters will impart its influence unto him!
+
+For, oh! if calmness, silence, and moonlight prevail without the walls
+of the Arestino villa, yet within there be hearts agitated by passions
+and emotions, from which the gentle genius of slumber shrinks back
+aghast.
+
+In the brilliantly lighted apartment, to which we have already
+introduced our readers, the Countess Giulia receives her lover, the
+dissipated but handsome Marquis of Orsini; the bandit-captain is
+concealed behind the richly-worked tapestry; and at the door--not the
+little private one--of that room, an old man is listening; an old man
+whose ashy pale countenance, clinched hands, quivering white lips, and
+wildly rolling eyes indicate how terrible are the feelings which agitate
+within his breast.
+
+This old man was the Count of Arestino, one of the mightiest nobles of
+the republic. Naturally his heart was good, and his disposition kind and
+generous--but, then, he was an Italian--and he was jealous! Need we say
+more to account for the change which had now taken place in his usually
+calm, tranquil, yet dignified, demeanor? Or shall we inform our readers
+that at the banquet to which he had been invited at a friend's villa
+that evening, he had overheard two young nobles, in a conversation which
+the generous wine they had been too freely imbibing rendered
+indiscreetly loud, couple the names of Giulia Arestino, his own
+much-loved wife, and Manuel d'Orsini, in a manner which suddenly excited
+a fearful, a blasting suspicion in his mind? Stealing away unperceived
+from the scene of revelry, the count had returned unattended to the
+immediate vicinity of his mansion; and from the shade of a detached
+building he had observed the Marquis of Orsini traverse the gardens and
+enter a portico leading to the private staircase communicating with that
+wing of the palace which contained the suit of apartments occupied by
+Giulia.
+
+This was enough to strengthen the suspicion already excited in the old
+nobleman's mind; but not quite sufficient to confirm it. The countess
+had several beautiful girls attached to her person; and the marquis
+might have stooped to an intrigue with one of them. The Lord of Arestino
+was therefore resolved to act with the caution of a prudent man: but he
+was also prepared to avenge, in case of the worst, with the spirit of an
+Italian.
+
+He hurried round to the principal entrance of his palace, and gave some
+brief but energetic instructions to a faithful valet, who instantly
+departed to execute them. The count then ascended the marble staircase,
+traversed the corridors leading toward his lady's apartments, and placed
+himself against the door of that one wherein Giulia had already received
+her lover.
+
+Thus, while silence, and calmness, and moonlight reign without--yet
+within the walls of the Arestino mansion a storm has gathered, to
+explode fearfully. And all through the unlawful, but not less ardent,
+love of Giulia for the spendthrift Marquis of Orsini!
+
+Sober-minded men, philosophic reasoners, persons of business-habits,
+stern moralists--all these may ridicule the poet or the novelist who
+makes Love his everlasting theme; they may hug themselves, in the apathy
+of their own cold hearts, with the belief that all the attributes of the
+passion have been immensely exaggerated; but they are in error, deeply,
+profoundly, indisputably in error. For Love, in its various phases,
+among which are Jealousy, Suspicion, Infidelity, Rivalry, and Revenge,
+has agitated the world from time immemorial--has overthrown empires, has
+engendered exterminating wars, and has extended its despotic sway alike
+over the gorgeous city of a consummate civilization, and the miserable
+wigwam of a heathen barbarism! Who, then, can wonder--if the theme of
+Love be universal--that it should have evoked the rude and iron
+eloquence of the Scandinavian Scald as well as the soft and witching
+poesy of the bards of more genial climes, or that its praises or its
+sorrows should be sung on the banks of the Arno, the Seine, or the
+Thames, as well as amidst the pathless forests of America, or the
+burning sands of Africa, or in the far-off islands of the Southern Seas.
+
+But, alas! it is thou, O woman! who art called on to make the most cruel
+sacrifices at the altar of this imperious deity--love! If thou lovest
+honorably, 'tis well; but if thou lovest unlawfully how wretched is thy
+fate! The lover, for whose sake thou hast forgotten thy duties as a
+wife, has sacrificed nothing to thee, whilst thou hast sacrificed
+everything to him. Let the _amour_ be discovered, and who suffers? Thou!
+He loses not caste, station, name, nor honor;--thou art suddenly robbed
+of all these! The gilded saloons of fashion throw open their doors to
+the seducer; but bars of adamant defend that entrance against the
+seduced. For his sake thou risketh contumely, shame, reviling, scorn,
+and the lingering death of a breaking heart,--for _thee_ he would not
+risk one millionth part of all that! Shouldst thou be starving, say to
+him, "Go forth and steal to give me bread; dare the dishonor of the
+deed, and make the sacrifice of thy good name for me. Or go and forge,
+or swindle, or lie foully, so that thou bringest me bread; for have I
+not dared dishonor, made the sacrifice of my good name, and done as
+much, ay, far more than all that, for thee?"
+
+Shouldst thou, poor, seduced, weak one, address thy seducer thus, he
+will look upon thee as a fiend-like tempter--he will rush from thy
+sight--he will never see thee more; his love will be suddenly converted
+into hatred! Yes, man demands that woman should dishonor herself for
+_his_ sake; but he will not allow a speck to appear upon what he calls
+_his_ good name--no, not to save that poor, confiding, lost creature
+from the lowest depths and dregs of penury into which her frailty may
+have plunged her!
+
+Such is the selfishness of man! Where is his chivalry?
+
+But let us return to the Arestino Palace.
+
+The moment Manuel d'Orsini entered the apartment by means of the private
+door, he embraced Giulia with a fondness which was more than half
+affected--at least on that occasion--and she herself returned the kiss
+less warmly than usual--but this was because she was constrained and
+embarrassed by the presence of the bandit-captain, who was concealed
+behind the tapestry.
+
+"You appear cool--distant, Giulia," said Manuel, casting upon her an
+inquiring glance.
+
+"And you either love me less, or you have something on your mind,"
+returned the countess, in a low tone.
+
+"In the first instance you are wrong--in the second you are right, my
+well-beloved," answered the marquis. "But tell me----"
+
+"Speak lower, Manuel--we may be overheard. Some of my dependents are in
+the adjacent room, and----"
+
+"And you wish me to depart as soon as possible, no doubt?" said the
+marquis, impatiently.
+
+"Oh! Manuel--how can you reproach me thus?" asked Giulia, in a voice
+scarcely above a whisper; for that woman who dared be unfaithful to her
+husband revolted from the thought that a coarse-minded bandit should be
+in a position to overhear her conversation with her lover:--"how can you
+reproach me thus, Manuel?" she repeated;--"have I not given thee all the
+proofs of tenderest love which woman can bestow? Have I not risked
+everything for thee?"
+
+"I do not reproach you, Giulia," he replied, pressing his hand to his
+brow, "but I am unhappy--miserable!"
+
+And he flung himself upon the nearest ottoman.
+
+"Oh! what has occurred to distract thee thus?" exclaimed the countess,
+forgetting the presence of Stephano Verrina in the all-absorbing
+interest of her lover's evident grief.
+
+"Am I ever to find thee oppressed with care--thee, who art so young--and
+so gloriously handsome?" she added, her voice suddenly sinking to a
+whisper.
+
+Manuel gazed for a few moments, without speaking, on the countenance of
+his mistress as she leant over him: then, in a deep, hollow tone--a tone
+the despair of which was too real and natural to be in the slightest
+degree affected, he said, "Giulia, I am a wretch,--unworthy of all this
+sweet love of thine!--I have broken the solemn vow which I pledged
+thee--I have violated my oath----"
+
+"Oh, Manuel!" ejaculated the countess, still forgetting the presence of
+the bandit: "thou hast----"
+
+"Gambled once more--and lost!" cried the marquis wildly. "And the sum
+that I am bound in honor to pay on Monday--by noon, is nearly equal in
+amount to that which thy generosity lent me the other day."
+
+"Holy Virgin aid you, my unhappy Manuel!" said Giulia.
+
+"For thou canst not?" exclaimed the young noble, with a profound sigh.
+"Oh! I am well aware that I have no claim upon thee----"
+
+"Ah! wherefore that reproach?--for a reproach it is!" interrupted the
+countess. "No claim on me! Hast thou not my heart? and in giving thee
+that, Manuel, I laid at thy feet a poor offering, which, though so poor,
+yet absorbs all others of which I may dispose! Do not reproach me,
+Manuel--for I would lay down my life to save thy soul from pain, or thy
+name from dishonor!"
+
+"Now art thou my own Giulia!" cried the marquis, pressing her hand to
+his lips. "An accursed fatality seems to hang over me! This habit of
+gaming entraps me as the wine cup fascinates the bibber who would fain
+avoid it, but cannot. Listen to me for one moment, Giulia. In the public
+casino--which, as thou well knowest, is a place of resort where fortunes
+are lost and won in an hour--ay, sometimes in a minute--I have met a man
+whose attire is good, and whose purse is well filled, but whose
+countenance I like as little as I should that of the captain of the
+sbirri, or his lieutenant, if I had committed a crime. This individual
+of whom I speak--for I know not his name--was the favored votary of Dame
+Fortune who won of me that sum which thy kindness, Giulia, alone enabled
+me to pay but a few days past. And now am I a second time this man's
+debtor. An hour ago he entered the casino; he stayed but for ten
+minutes--and in that time----"
+
+"Oh! Manuel, is not this conduct of thine something bordering on
+madness?" interrupted the countess. "And if thou art thus wedded to that
+fatal habit, how canst thou find room in thy heart for a single gleam of
+affection for me?"
+
+"Now dost thou reproach me in thy turn, Giulia!" exclaimed the young
+marquis. "But believe me, my angel," he continued, exerting all his
+powers to bend her to his purpose,--"believe me when I declare--oh! most
+solemnly declare, by all that I put faith in, and by all I hope for
+hereafter--that could I be relieved from this embarrassment--extricated
+from this difficulty----"
+
+"Heavens! how can it be done?" interrupted the countess, casting her
+eyes wildly round; for the time was passing--she suddenly remembered
+that the bandit was still concealed in the room--and then, her husband
+might return earlier than was expected.
+
+"Oh! if you despair of the means, Giulia," said the marquis, "I must fly
+from Florence--I must exile myself forever from the city of my birth,
+and which is still more endeared to me because," he added, sinking his
+voice to a tender tone,--"because, my well-beloved, it contains thee!"
+
+"No, Manuel--you must not quit Florence and leave a dishonored name
+behind thee!" exclaimed this lovely woman, who was thus sublimely
+careful of the reputation of him for whom she had so long compromised
+her own. "What can be done? would that I had the means to raise this
+sum----"
+
+"It is with shame that I suggest----" said Manuel.
+
+"What? Speak--speak! The means?"
+
+"Thy jewels, dearest--thy diamonds----"
+
+"Merciful heavens! if you did but know all!" cried Giulia, almost
+frantically. "These diamonds were pledged to the Jew Isaachar ben
+Solomon, to raise the sum with which thy last debt was paid, Manuel;
+and--but forgive me if I did not tell thee all this before--not half an
+hour has elapsed since----"
+
+She stopped short; for she knew that the bandit overheard every syllable
+she uttered.
+
+Nor had she time, even if she possessed the power, to continue her most
+painful explanation; for scarcely had she thus paused abruptly, when the
+door burst open, and the Count of Arestino stood in the presence of the
+guilty pair.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+THE INJURED HUSBAND--THE GUILTY WIFE--AND THE INSOLENT LOVER.
+
+
+In fury of heart and agony of mind, rushed the old lord into that
+apartment. Oh! how had he even been able to restrain himself so long,
+while listening at the door? It was that the conversation between his
+wife and the marquis had, as the reader is aware, been carried on in so
+low a tone--especially on the side of the countess, that he had not been
+able to gather sufficient to place beyond all doubt the guilt of that
+fair creature; and even in the midst of his Italian ire, he had clung to
+the hope that she might have been imprudent--but not culpable, as yet!
+
+Oh! in this case, how gladly would that old lord have forgiven the past,
+on condition of complete reformation for the future! He would have
+removed his young wife afar from the scene of temptation--to a distant
+estate which he possessed; and there by gentle remonstrances and
+redoubled attention, he would have sought to bind her to him by the
+links of gratitude and respect, if not by those of love.
+
+But this dream--so honorable to that old man's heart--was not to be
+realized; for scarcely was it conceived, when the discourse of the
+youthful pair turned upon the diamonds--those diamonds which he had
+given her on the bridal day!
+
+Giulia spoke clearly and plainly enough _then_--in spite of the presence
+of the bandit in that chamber; for she was about to explain to her lover
+how willingly she would comply with his suggestion to raise upon the
+jewels the sum he again required--a readiness on her part which might be
+corroborated by the fact that she had already once had recourse to this
+expedient, and for _him_--but she dared not adopt the same course again,
+as her husband might detect the absence of the valuables ere she could
+obtain funds to redeem them.
+
+When she acknowledged to her lover that "these diamonds were pledged to
+the Jew Isaachar ben Solomon, to raise the sum with which his last debt
+was paid," it flashed to the old nobleman's mind that his wife had
+exhibited some little confusion when he had spoken to her a day or two
+previously concerning her jewels: and now it was clear that they had
+been used as the means to supply the extravagances of an unprincipled
+spendthrift. How could he any longer cling to the hope that Giulia was
+imprudent only, and not guilty? Must she not be guilty, to have made so
+large a sacrifice and run so great a risk for the sake of the Marquis of
+Orsini?
+
+It was under the influence of these excited feelings that the Count of
+Arestino burst into the room.
+
+Fortunately--so far as outward appearance went--there was nothing more
+to confirm the old nobleman's suspicions; the youthful pair were not
+locked in each other's arms; their hands were not even joined. Manuel
+was seated on the sofa, and Giulia was standing at a short distance from
+him.
+
+But conscious guilt elicited a faint scream from her lips; and the
+boiling blood, after rushing to her countenance, seemed to ebb away as
+rapidly again--leaving her beauteous face as pale as marble; while she
+clung to the mantel-piece for support.
+
+"I am glad that your lordship is returned," said the marquis, rising
+from his seat and advancing toward the count in a manner so insolently
+cool and apparently self-possessed, that Giulia was not only astonished
+but felt her courage suddenly revive: "I was determined--however
+uncourteous the intrusion and unseemly the hour--to await your
+lordship's coming; and as her ladyship assured me that you would not
+tarry late----"
+
+"My lord marquis," interrupted the old nobleman, who was himself so
+taken by surprise at this unembarrassed mode of address, that he began
+to fancy his ears must have deceived him and his suspicions beguiled
+him; "on what business could you possibly have needed my services at
+this late hour?"
+
+"I will explain myself," returned Orsini, who was a perfect adept in the
+art of dissimulation, and who, never losing his presence of mind,
+embraced at a glance the whole danger of Giulia's position and his own,
+and the probability that their conversation might have been overheard;
+"I was explaining to her ladyship the temporary embarrassment under
+which I lay, and from which I hoped that your friendship might probably
+release me----"
+
+"And her ladyship spoke of her diamonds--did she not?" demanded the
+count, addressing himself to the marquis, but fixing a keen and
+penetrating glance on Giulia.
+
+"Her ladyship was remonstrating with me on my extravagancies," hastily
+replied the marquis, "and was repeating to me--I must say in a manner
+too impressive to be agreeable--the words which my own sister had used
+to me a few days ago, when explaining, as her motive for refusing me the
+succor which I needed, that she actually had been compelled to pledge
+her diamonds----"
+
+"Ah! they were your sister's diamonds that were pledged to Isaachar the
+Jew?" said the count, half ironically and half in doubt; for he was
+fairly bewildered by the matchless impudence of the young marquis.
+
+"Yes, my lord--my dear sister, who, alas! is ruining herself to supply
+me with the means of maintaining my rank. And as my sister and her
+ladyship, the countess, are on the most friendly terms, as you are well
+aware, it is not surprising if she should have communicated the secret
+of the diamonds to her ladyship, and also beg her ladyship to
+remonstrate with me----"
+
+"Well, my lord," interrupted the count impatiently, "your own private
+affairs have no particular interest for me--at this moment; and as for
+any business on which you may wish to speak to me, I shall be pleased if
+you postpone it till to-morrow."
+
+"Your lordship's wishes are commands with me," said Manuel, with a
+polite salutation. And having made a low bow to Giulia, he quitted the
+room--not by the private door, be it well understood, but by that which
+had ere now admitted the Count of Arestino.
+
+The moment the door had closed behind the Marquis of Orsini, the count
+approached his wife, and said in a cold, severe manner: "Your ladyship
+receives visitors at a late hour."
+
+He glanced as he spoke toward the dial of the clepsydra, and Giulia
+followed his look in the same direction; it was half an hour after
+midnight.
+
+"The marquis explained to your lordship, or partially so, the motive of
+his importunate visit," said Giulia, endeavoring to appear calm and
+collected.
+
+"The marquis is an unworthy--reckless--unprincipled young man,"
+exclaimed the count, fixing a stern, searching gaze upon Giulia's
+countenance, as if with the iron of his words he would probe the depths
+of her soul. "He is a confirmed gamester--overwhelmed with debts--and
+has tarnished, by his profligacy, the proud name that he bears. Even the
+friendship which existed for many, many years between his deceased
+father and myself, shall no longer induce me to receive at this house a
+young man whose reputation is all but tainted, even in a city of
+dissipation and debauchery, such as, alas! the once glorious Florence
+has become! For his immorality is not confined to gaming and wanton
+extravagance," continued the count, his glance becoming more keen, as
+his words fell like drops of molten lead upon the heart of Giulia; "but
+his numerous intrigues amongst women--his perfidy to those confiding and
+deceived fair ones----"
+
+"Surely, my lord," said the countess, vainly endeavoring to subdue the
+writhings of torture which this language excited,--"surely the Marquis
+d'Orsini is wronged by the breath of scandal?"
+
+"No, Giulia, he is an unprincipled spendthrift," returned the count, who
+never once took his eyes off his wife's countenance while he was
+speaking:--"an unprincipled spendthrift," he added emphatically,--"a man
+lost to all sense of honor--a ruined gamester--a heartless seducer--a
+shame, a blot, a stigma upon the aristocracy of Florence;--and now that
+you are acquainted with his real character, you will recognize the
+prudence of the step which I shall take to-morrow--that is, to inform
+him that henceforth the Count and Countess of Arestino must decline to
+receive him again at their villa. What think you, Giulia?"
+
+"Your lordship is the master to command, and it is my duty to obey,"
+answered the countess; but her voice was hoarse and thick, the acutest
+anguish was rending her soul, and its intensity almost choked her
+utterance.
+
+"She is guilty!" thought the count within himself; and to subdue an
+abrupt explosion of his rage, until he had put the last and most certain
+test to his lady's faith, he walked twice up and down the room; then,
+feeling that he had recovered his powers of self-control, he said,
+"To-morrow, Giulia, is the reception day of his highness the duke, and I
+hope thou hast made suitable preparations to accompany me in the manner
+becoming the wife of the Count of Arestino."
+
+"Can your lordship suppose for an instant that I should appear in the
+ducal presence otherwise than is meet and fitting for her who has the
+honor to bear your name?" said Giulia, partially recovering her presence
+of mind, as the conversation appeared to have taken a turn no longer
+painful to her feelings--for, oh! cannot the reader conceive the
+anguish, the mortal anguish, she had ere now endured when her husband
+was heaping ashes on the reputation of her lover!
+
+"I do not suppose that your ladyship will neglect the preparations due
+to your rank and to that name which you esteem it an honor to bear, and
+which no living being should _dishonor_ with impunity!"
+
+Giulia quailed--writhed beneath the searching glance which now literally
+glared upon her.
+
+"Nevertheless," continued the count, "I was fearful you might have
+forgotten that to-morrow is the reception day. And while I think of it,
+permit me to examine your diamonds for a few minutes--to convince myself
+that the settings are in good order, as you know," he added, with a
+strange, unearthly kind of laugh, "that I am skilled in the jewelers'
+craft."
+
+The old man paused; but he thought within himself, "Now what subterfuge
+can she invent if my suspicions be really true, and if my ears did not
+ere now deceive me?"
+
+How profound then was his astonishment, when Giulia, with the calm and
+tranquil demeanor which innocence usually wears, but with the least,
+least curl of the upper lip, as if in haughty triumph, leisurely and
+deliberately drew the jewel-case from beneath the cushion of the ottoman
+whereon she was seated, and, handing it to him, said, "Your lordship
+perceives that I had not forgotten the reception which his highness
+holds to-morrow, since I ere now brought my diamonds hither to select
+those which it is my intention to wear."
+
+The count could have pressed her hand as he took the case in his own--he
+could have fallen at her feet and demanded pardon for the suspicions
+which he had entertained, for it now seemed certain beyond all
+possibility of doubt, that the explanation volunteered by the marquis
+was a true one--yes, he could have humbled himself in her presence--but
+his Italian pride intervened, and he proceeded to examine the diamonds
+with no other view than to gain time to reflect how he should account
+for the abrupt manner in which he had entered the room ere now, and for
+the chilling behavior he had maintained toward his wife.
+
+On her side Giulia, relieved of a fearful weight of apprehension, was
+only anxious for this scene to have a speedy termination, that she might
+release the robber-captain from his imprisonment behind the tapestry.
+
+Three or four minutes of profound silence now ensued.
+
+But suddenly the count started, and uttered an ejaculation of mingled
+rage and surprise.
+
+Giulia's blood ran cold to her very heart's core, she scarcely knew why.
+
+The suspense was not, however, long--though most painful; for, dashing
+the jewel-case with its contents upon the table, the old nobleman
+approached her with quivering lips and a countenance ghastly white,
+exclaiming, "Vile woman! thinkest thou to impose upon me thus? The
+diamonds I gave thee are gone--the stones set in their place are
+counterfeit!"
+
+Giulia gazed up toward her husband's countenance for a few moments in a
+manner expressive of blank despair; then falling on her knees before
+him, clasping her hands together, she screamed frantically, "Pardon!
+pardon!"
+
+"Ah! then it is all indeed too true!" murmured the unhappy nobleman,
+staggering as if with a blow: but, recovering his balance, he stamped
+his foot resolutely upon the floor, and drawing himself up to his full
+height, while he half averted his eyes from his kneeling wife, he
+exclaimed: "Lost--guilty--abandoned woman, how canst thou implore pardon
+at my hands? For pardon is mercy, and what mercy hast thou shown to me?
+Giulia, I am descended from an old and mighty race, and tradition
+affords no room to believe that any one who has borne the name of
+Arestino has dishonored it--until now! Oh! fool--dotard--idiot that I
+was to think that a young girl could love an aged man like me! For old
+age is a weed, which, when twined round the plant of love, becomes like
+the deadly nightshade, and robs the rose-bush of its health! Alas! alas!
+I thought that in my declining years, I should have one to cheer me, one
+who might respect me, if she could not love me--one who would manifest
+some gratitude for the proud position I have given her--and the
+boundless wealth that it would have been my joy to leave her. And now
+that hope is gone--withered--crushed--blighted, woman, by thy perfidy!
+Oh! wherefore did you accompany the old man to the altar, if only to
+deceive him? Wherefore did you consent to become his bride, if but to
+plunge him into the depth of misery? You weep! Ah! weep on; and all
+those tears, be they even so scalding as to make seams on that too fair
+face, cannot wipe away the stain which is now affixed to the haughty
+name of Arestino! Weep on, Giulia; but thy tears cannot move me now!"
+
+And the old lord's tone changed suddenly from the deep, touching pathos
+of tremulousness to a stern, fixed, cold severity, which stifled the
+germs of hope that had taken birth in the heart of his guilty wife.
+
+"Mercy! mercy!" she shrieked, endeavoring to grasp his hand.
+
+"No!" thundered the Count of Arestino; and he rang violently a silver
+bell which stood upon the table.
+
+"Holy Virgin, what will become of me? For what fate am I destined?"
+implored Giulia, frantically.
+
+The old nobleman approached her, gazed on her sternly for nearly a
+minute, then bending down said, in a hollow, sepulchral tone:
+
+"Thou art doomed to eternal seclusion in the convent of the Carmelites!"
+
+He then turned hastily round and advanced to the door, to which steps
+were already distinctly heard drawing near in the corridor.
+
+For an instant Giulia seemed paralyzed by the dreadful announcement that
+had been made to her; but suddenly a ray of hope flashed on her mind,
+and darting toward that part of the tapestry behind which the robber was
+concealed, she said, in a low and rapid tone:
+
+"Thou hast heard the fate that awaits me. I charge thee to seek Manuel
+d'Orsini, and let him know all."
+
+"Fear not, lady; you shall be saved!" answered Stephano, in a scarcely
+audible but yet profoundly emphatic whisper.
+
+She had only just time to turn away when the count's faithful valet,
+accompanied by three nuns, wearing their black veils over their faces,
+entered the room.
+
+Half an hour afterward the Carmelite Convent received another inmate.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXV.
+
+THE MARQUIS OF ORSINI.
+
+
+Upon quitting the Arestino palace, the Marquis of Orsini suddenly lost
+that bold, insolent, self-sufficient air with which he had endeavored to
+deceive the venerable count, whose wife he had dishonored.
+
+For dishonor now menaced _him_!
+
+Where could he raise the sum necessary to liquidate the debt which he
+had contracted with the stranger at the Casino, or gaming-house? And as
+the person to whom he found himself thus indebted _was_ a stranger--a
+total stranger to him, he had no apology to offer for a delay in the
+payment of the money due.
+
+"Perdition!" he exclaimed aloud, as he issued rapidly from the grounds
+attached to the Arestino mansion; "is there no alternative save flight?
+Giulia cannot assist me--her jewels are gone, they are pledged to the
+Jew Isaachar--she was telling me so when the count broke in upon us.
+What course can I adopt? what plan pursue? Shall the name of Orsini be
+dishonored--that proud name which for three centuries has been
+maintained spotless? No, no--this must not be!"
+
+And in a state of most painful excitement--so painful, indeed, that it
+amounted almost to a physical agony--the marquis hastened rapidly
+through the mazes of the sleeping city, reckless whither he was going,
+but experiencing no inclination to repair to his own abode.
+
+The fact of the diamonds of his mistress having been pledged to Isaachar
+ben Solomon was uppermost in his mind: for the reader must remember that
+he was unaware of the circumstance of their restoration to Giulia--as it
+was at the moment when she was about to give him this explanation that
+the old Lord of Arestino had interrupted their discourse.
+
+The diamonds, then, constituted the pivot on which his thoughts now
+revolved. They seemed to shine like stars amidst the deep haze which
+hung upon his mind. Could he not possess himself of them? The name of
+Orsini would be dishonored if the gambling debt were not paid; and one
+bold--one desperate step might supply him with the means to save himself
+from the impending ruin--the imminent disgrace.
+
+But as the thoughts encouraged by those simple words--"the
+diamonds"--assumed a more palpable shape in his imagination, he shrank
+back dismayed from the deed which they suggested: for gamester,
+debauchee, spendthrift as he was, he had never yet perpetrated an act
+that could be termed a crime. The seduction of the Countess of Arestino
+was not a crime in his estimation--oh! no, because man may seduce, and
+yet may not be dishonored in the eyes of the world. It is his victim, or
+the partner of his guilty pleasure, only, who is dishonored. Such is the
+law written in society's conventional code. Vile, detestable, unjust
+law!
+
+To weigh and balance the reasons for or against the perpetration of a
+crime, to pause only for an instant to reflect whether the deed shall or
+shall not be done--this is to yield at once to the temptation. The
+desperate man who hovers hesitatingly between right and wrong,
+invariably adopts the latter course.
+
+And Manuel of Orsini was not an exception to the general rule.
+
+Silence, and calmness, and moonlight were still spread over the City of
+Flowers, while the marquis pursued the path leading to the suburb of
+Alla Droce. And the silver-faced stars shone on--shone on, brightly and
+sweetly, as the young nobleman knocked at the well-protected door of
+Isaachar ben Solomon.
+
+For a long time his summons remained unanswered; and he repeated it
+several times ere it received the slightest attention.
+
+At last a casement was opened slowly on the upper story; and the Jew
+demanded who sought admittance at that hour.
+
+"'Tis I, the Marquis of Orsini!" exclaimed the nobleman.
+
+"A thousand pardons, my lord; I come directly," answered the Jew, not
+daring to offend a scion of the omnipotent aristocracy of Florence, yet
+filled with some misgivings, the more painful because they were so vague
+and undefined.
+
+In a few moments Manuel was admitted into the abode of Isaachar ben
+Solomon, who carefully barred and bolted the door again, ere he even
+thought of alleviating his acute suspense by inquiring the nobleman's
+business.
+
+"Deign to enter this humble apartment, my lord," said the Jew, at
+length, as he conducted the marquis into the same room where he had a
+few hours previously received the bandit-captain.
+
+"Isaachar," exclaimed Manuel, flinging himself upon a seat, "you behold
+a desperate man before you!"
+
+"Alas! my lord, what can a poor, aged, and obscure individual like
+myself do to assist so great and powerful a noble as your lordship?"
+said the Jew in a trembling tone.
+
+"What can you do?" repeated the marquis: "much--everything, old man! But
+listen patiently, for a few moments only. A noble lady's fame, honor,
+reputation are at stake; and I am the guilty, unhappy cause of the
+danger that threatens her. To minister to my necessities she has pledged
+her jewels----"
+
+"Yes, yes, my lord--I understand," said Isaachar, trembling from head to
+foot, "'tis a plan by no means unusual nowadays in Florence."
+
+"Her husband suspects the fact, and has commanded her to produce her
+diamonds to-morrow----"
+
+"Her diamonds!" articulated the Jew in a stifling tone.
+
+"Yes, _her diamonds_," exclaimed Manuel emphatically; "and they are in
+your possession. Now do you understand me?"
+
+"I--I--my lord----"
+
+"Let us not waste time in idle words, Isaachar," cried the marquis.
+"Will you permit this scandal to be discovered, and involve the Countess
+of Arestino--myself--ay, and _yourself_, old man, in danger, and perhaps
+ruin? Perhaps, did I say? Nay, that ruin is certain to fall upon
+_her_--certain also to overwhelm _you_--for the Count of Arestino is a
+councilor of state, and," added Manuel, with slow, measured emphasis,
+"_the dungeons of the inquisition open at his commands_ to receive the
+heretic or the Jew!"
+
+Isaachar ben Solomon vainly endeavored to reply; fear choked his
+utterance; and he sank trembling and faint upon a low ottoman, where he
+sat, the picture of dumb despair.
+
+"Ruin, then, awaits the countess, ruin, and the inquisition yawn to
+ingulf you; and dishonor in having involved that noble lady in such a
+labyrinth of perils attends upon me," continued Orsini, perceiving that
+his dark threats had produced the effect which he desired.
+
+"My lord--my lord," gasped the unfortunate Israelite, who could not
+close his eyes against the truth, the terrible truth of the prospect
+submitted to his contemplation.
+
+"It is for you to decide against the ruin of one, two, three persons,
+yourself being he who will, if possible, suffer most," resumed the
+marquis, impressively--"it is, I say, for you to decide between exposure
+and the inquisition on one hand, and the surrender of those paltry
+diamonds on the other!"
+
+"The diamonds, the diamonds, they are gone!" exclaimed the Jew, his
+voice becoming almost frantic with the wild hope that suddenly struck
+him of being able to shift the danger from his own head to that of
+another. "The captain of banditti, Stephano Verrina, was here a few
+hours ago, here, in this very room, and he sat where your lordship now
+sits!"
+
+"Well, well?" cried the marquis, impatiently; for his heart began to
+grow sick with the fear of disappointment in respect to his plan of
+obtaining the diamonds of his mistress.
+
+"And Stephano Verrina took them from me--basely, vilely, wrenched them
+as it were from my grasp!" continued the Jew.
+
+"'Tis false! a miserable subterfuge on your part!" ejaculated the
+marquis, starting from his seat and striding in a menacing manner toward
+Isaachar ben Solomon.
+
+"'Tis true!--I will give your lordship the proof!" cried the Jew: and
+Manuel fell back a few paces. "Stephano came and told me all. He said
+that the countess had pledged her jewels for the sake of her lover--of
+you, my lord--you, the Marquis of Orsini. 'Twas to pay a gambling debt
+which your lordship had contracted; and that debt was paid within an
+hour or two from the moment when the sum was advanced on the diamonds.
+Moreover," continued Isaachar, still speaking in a rapid, excited
+tone--"moreover, Stephano was hired by the countess to regain them from
+me!"
+
+"Liar!" thundered the marquis, again rushing toward the defenseless old
+man.
+
+"Patience, my lord--patience for an instant--and you will see that I am
+no utterer of base falsehoods. The robber-captain examined the diamonds
+carefully--yes, most carefully--and, while occupied in the scrutiny, he
+let drop expressions which convinced me that he was hired by the
+countess. 'The inventory is complete,' he said, 'just as it was
+described to me by her ladyship. You are a worthy man, Isaachar,' he
+added; 'you will have restored tranquillity to the mind of this
+beautiful countess; and she will be enabled to appear at court to-morrow
+with her husband.' Now does your lordship believe me?"
+
+The marquis was staggered; for several minutes he made no answer. Was it
+possible that the Countess of Arestino could have employed the dreaded
+chieftain of the Florentine banditti to wrest her diamonds from the
+possession of Isaachar? or had the Jew invented the tale for an obvious
+purpose? The latter alternative scarcely seemed feasible. How could
+Isaachar have learned that the sum raised was for the payment of a
+gambling debt? Giulia would not have told him so. Again, how had he
+learned that this debt had been paid within an hour or two after the
+money was procured? and how had he ascertained that the countess had
+actually required her diamonds to accompany her husband the count?
+
+"Perdition!" ejaculated Orsini, bewildered by conflicting ideas,
+suspicions, and alarms: and he paced the room with agitated steps.
+
+Nearly a quarter of a hour elapsed--the silence being occasionally
+broken by some question which the marquis put to the Jew, and to which
+the latter had his reply ready. And each question thus put, and every
+answer thus given, only served to corroborate Isaachar's tale, and
+banish hope still further from the breast of the ruined nobleman.
+
+At length the latter stopped short--hesitated for a few moments, as if
+wrestling with some idea or scheme that had taken possession of his
+mind;--then turning abruptly toward the Jew, he said in a deep, hollow
+tone--"Isaachar, I need gold!"
+
+"Gold--gold, my lord!" ejaculated the Jew, all his fears returning;
+"surely--surely, my lord, her ladyship will supply you with----"
+
+"Fool--dolt!" cried the marquis, terribly excited; "do you not see that
+she herself is menaced with ruin--that the villain Stephano must have
+kept the diamonds for himself? that is, granting your tale to be
+true----"
+
+At this moment there was an authoritative knock at the house-door.
+
+"This is Stephano Verrina himself!" exclaimed the Jew. "I know his
+manner of knocking with the rude handle of his sword. What can he want?
+What will become of me?"
+
+"Stephano Verrina, say you?" cried the marquis, hastily. "Then admit him
+by all means; and the possession of the diamonds of the countess shall
+be disputed between him and me at the sword's point."
+
+Manuel d'Orsini was naturally brave, and the desperate position in which
+he was placed, rendered his tone and bearing so resolute--so determined,
+that Isaachar feared lest blood should be shed in his dwelling.
+
+"My lord--my lord," he said in an imploring tone, "depart, or conceal
+yourself----"
+
+"Silence, signor!" ejaculated the marquis; "and hasten to admit the
+captain of banditti. I have heard much of Stephano Verrina, and would
+fain behold this formidable chieftain."
+
+The Jew proceeded, with trembling limbs and ghastly countenance, to obey
+the orders of the marquis; and in a few moments he returned to the room,
+accompanied by Stephano Verrina.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVI.
+
+A COMBAT--THE DESPISED AND PERSECUTED ISRAELITE.
+
+
+Isaachar had taken away the lamp with him to give admission to the
+bandit, and the marquis had remained for a few instants in the dark.
+
+When the Jew reappeared, bearing the light, Orsini's first and natural
+impulse was to cast a rapid, searching glance at the brigand captain. At
+the same moment this individual burst into a loud, coarse, joyous laugh;
+and the marquis, to his profound surprise, recognized in Stephano
+Verrina the person with whom he had twice played so unsuccessfully at
+the gambling house.
+
+"Good, my lord!" exclaimed Verrina, flinging himself upon the ottoman
+which the Jew had ere now occupied; "there is not in all Florence a man
+whom I would rather have encountered than yourself."
+
+"You are somewhat pressing for the trifle--the miserable trifle in which
+I am indebted to you, signor," said the marquis haughtily; "seeing that
+scarce two hours have elapsed since I lost the amount at the casino."
+
+"Pshaw! who alluded to the affair, save yourself?" cried Stephano. "It
+was for another motive----"
+
+"Yes; and I also wished to see Signor Stephano Verrina for another
+motive," exclaimed Manuel emphatically.
+
+"Ah! then you know me, my lord?" said the bandit. "And yet methought I
+was a stranger to you, although you were none to me at the casino."
+
+"You were a stranger until now," continued Orsini; "but Isaachar knew by
+the knock which you dealt so lustily on his door, who was his visitor."
+
+"And your lordship was desirous to see me?"
+
+"Very much so. I believe you expressed a similar wish?"
+
+"Precisely, my lord," returned Stephano. "But as you hold the higher
+rank in the world, precedence in the way of explanation belongs to your
+lordship."
+
+"It is rather an explanation which I seek, than one which I have to
+give," rejoined Manuel, in a cold but resolute manner. "In a word, my
+business with thee is touching the diamonds of the Duchess of Arestino."
+
+"And my business with your lordship is touching the countess herself,"
+observed Verrina, also in a cool and deliberate manner.
+
+"Ah!" cried the marquis, with a sudden start.
+
+"Yes, my lord. But this is no place for explanations on that head,"
+added Stephano, glancing toward the Jew.
+
+"I understand you, signor; we must confer alone," said the marquis. "We
+will go out together presently; but in the meantime, one word concerning
+the diamonds which the Countess of Arestino----"
+
+"Employed me to procure for her," exclaimed Stephano, finishing the
+nobleman's sentence for him. "I presume that old Isaachar here has
+informed you of the particulars of my previous visit to him this
+night--or rather last night, for it is now the Sabbath morning."
+
+"I am well informed of those particulars, Sir Captain," returned Manuel;
+"but I would fain know what has become of the jewels which you obtained
+from Isaachar."
+
+"I might with reason question your lordship's right to catechise me----"
+
+"Ah! villain--would you dare?" exclaimed the marquis, his countenance
+becoming flushed with rage: for he imagined that the robber chief was
+trifling with him. "Far as you are beneath me--wide as is the gulf that
+separates the Marquis of Orsini from the proscribed bravo--yet will I
+condescend to wreak upon thee, base-born as thou art, that vengeance
+which the law has not yet been able to inflict."
+
+And Manuel unsheathed his weapon with such rapidity that the polished
+blade of Milan steel flashed like lightning in the glare of the lamp.
+
+"Since this is your object, I will bear with your humor," muttered
+Stephano, starting from his seat and drawing his heavy sword.
+
+"My lord--good Signor Verrina--in mercy--not here--I implore----"
+ejaculated the Jew, speaking in a piteous tone, and wringing his hands
+in alarm at this hostile demonstration.
+
+"Stand back!" thundered the bandit chief; and the Jew retreated to the
+most remote corner of the room, where he fell upon his knees and began
+to offer up prayers that no blood would be spilt--for he was a humane
+and kind-hearted man.
+
+The marquis and the captain of banditti crossed their weapons; and the
+combat began. The former was lighter, younger, and therefore, more
+active than his opponent; but the latter was far more experienced in the
+use of his sword; and, moreover, the space was too narrow to enable the
+marquis to gain any advantage from his superior agility. The fight
+lasted about ten minutes, when the bandit parried a desperate thrust
+that was made at him by his opponent, and at the next moment wounded the
+marquis in the sword arm. The weapon fell from Manuel's hand, and he
+stood at the mercy of his conqueror.
+
+"You are wounded, my lord--and the blood is flowing!" cried Stephano.
+"Hasten, friend Isaachar--and fetch water, bandages----"
+
+"It is nothing--a mere scratch," exclaimed the marquis, tearing away
+with his left hand the right sleeve of his doublet, and displaying a
+tolerably severe gash, which ran down the forearm lengthwise, and from
+which the blood trickled on the floor. "Be kind enough to bind it with
+my scarf, Signor Verrina, and let us continue in a more peaceful manner
+the discourse which has been somewhat rudely interrupted."
+
+Isaachar, however, supplied water in an ewer, and linen bandages; and
+the old man, forgetting the object of Manuel's predatory visit to his
+abode, hastened himself to wash and bind up the wounded arm.
+
+"Thou art a good Jew--and hast something of the feeling of the Christian
+in thee," said the marquis, when the operation was completed.
+
+"Didst thou ever suppose that different creeds made different hearts, my
+lord?" asked the old man, in a half melancholy, half reproachful tone.
+
+"Isaachar, I shall not forget this kindness on your part," said the
+marquis, blushing with shame at himself, when he reflected on the
+purpose for which he had sought the Jew's dwelling. "Heaven knows it is
+not in my power to reward you with gold; but whenever I may henceforth
+hear your race traduced, reckon upon me as its champion."
+
+The old man cast a look of gratitude upon the marquis; and, after some
+little hesitation, he said in a tremulous tone, "Your lordship hinted
+ere now--at least methought I understood as much--that you required
+gold. I take Father Abraham above to witness that I am not so rich as ye
+Christians deem me to be; but--since your lordship can say a kind word
+of the Jew--I--I will lend you such sum as you may need--without
+interest--without bond----"
+
+Orsini, in whose breast all generous feeling had not been entirely
+crushed by the vices which had proved his ruin, extended his left
+hand--for his right now hung in a sling--to the kind-hearted Jew,
+exclaiming, "There is the signor to whom I am indebted, worthy Isaachar;
+it is for him to say whether he will press me immediately for the sum
+that I have fairly lost to him with the dice."
+
+"Not I!" ejaculated Stephano, in his blunt, coarse manner. "And
+therefore your lordship need not lay yourself under any obligation to
+the Jew, who, after all, is a worthy signor in his way."
+
+"Yes," exclaimed the marquis, "I shall ever lie under an obligation to
+him; nor shall I be ashamed to proclaim the fact in the presence of all
+Florence."
+
+"And now, my lord," resumed Stephano, "I will give you that explanation
+relative to the diamonds which you might have had without bloodshed; but
+patience and aristocracy are as much at variance as a thief and the
+headsman. Read this paper, my lord; it is not the worst testimonial
+which I could produce in proof of good character."
+
+And he handed to the marquis the document which he had compelled the
+Countess of Arestino to sign.
+
+Manuel read it with astonishment.
+
+"Then she _has_ the diamonds in her possession!" he exclaimed; "and you
+must have seen her since I was there!"
+
+"My lord," replied Stephano, as he received back the paper, "I was at
+the Arestino Palace ere now, at the same time, and in the same room, as
+yourself. But this is a mystery I will explain presently. As for the
+diamonds--Isaachar here can tell your lordship what he has done with the
+_real_ stones, for those that I received from him which I handed to her
+ladyship were _false_."
+
+Orsini glanced toward the Jew, who was now pale and trembling.
+
+"It was to make inquiries on this point," continued Stephano, "that I
+came here on the present occasion. And to speak truly, it was also with
+the intention of making the old Israelite disgorge his plunder."
+
+"Plunder!" repeated the Jew, in a tone almost of indignation, in spite
+of the terror with which the bandit-captain inspired him. "Did I not
+lend my good golden ducats upon those diamonds? and must I be blamed, if
+knowing--ah! knowing too well, the base artifices of which many of even
+the best-born Florentine nobles and great ladies are capable, must I be
+blamed, I say, if aware of all this, I adopted a device which the
+wickedness of others, and not our own, has rendered common amongst those
+of our race who traffic in loans upon jewels and precious stones."
+
+"Isaachar speaks naught save the pure truth," remarked Orsini, blushing
+at the justice which dictated these reproaches against the aristocracy
+whereof he was a member. "Signor Verrina," he continued, "you are a
+brave man--and I believe you to be a generous one. Confirm this opinion
+on my part, by refraining from further molestation toward the Jew, and
+thou wilt doubly render me thy debtor."
+
+"Be that as you will, my lord," grumbled the bandit-chief. "And now let
+us depart--for I have much to communicate to your lordship."
+
+"I am ready to accompany you," returned the marquis, putting on his
+plumed hat, and settling his cloak with his left hand.
+
+"One word, my lord," said Isaachar, in his habitual nervous and
+trembling tone. "Should the Countess of Arestino _really_ need her
+diamonds--_really_ need them, my lord--I--should not--object--that is,
+my lord," he added in a firmer voice, as if ashamed at the hesitation
+with which he was expressing his readiness to do a good action, "I will
+at once give them up to her, trusting to her ladyship's honor to pay me
+my moneys at her most befitting convenience."
+
+"Her ladyship does not require them now!" exclaimed the bandit-chief,
+emphatically.
+
+The marquis looked at Stephano inquiringly, for there was something
+ominously mysterious in his words; but the brigand stalked in a dogged
+manner toward the door, as if anxious to hurry the departure so long
+protracted, and Manuel, having renewed the expressions of his gratitude
+toward Isaachar ben Solomon, hastily followed Verrina from the house.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVII.
+
+STEPHANO AND THE MARQUIS--THE STRONGHOLD OF THE BANDITTI.
+
+
+The moment Stephano and the marquis were alone together in the open
+street the former related all the incidents which had occurred at the
+Arestino Palace after the departure of Manuel himself; and the young
+nobleman now learned, with feelings of remorse and sorrow, that the
+unfortunate countess had been hurried away to the convent of the
+Carmelites--that species of inquisition the gates of which so seldom
+opened more than once for each new female victim.
+
+"But you promised to save her, signor!" he exclaimed, with enthusiastic
+warmth.
+
+"I gave this pledge in the manner described to your lordship," returned
+Verrina, "and I shall not swerve from it."
+
+"Think you that her liberation can be effected?" demanded Manuel.
+"Remember that the convent is protected by the highest personages in the
+state--that violence never will succeed in accomplishing the object--for
+should an armed man dare to pass that sacred threshold, every sbirro in
+Florence would fly to the spot----"
+
+"It is, then, your lordship who is afraid of attempting the rescue of
+the countess!" interrupted Stephano, in a contemptuous tone.
+
+"That observation is hardly fair, Signor Verrina," said the young
+nobleman; "considering that my right arm is disabled, and that the wound
+was received in combat with yourself."
+
+"I crave your lordship's pardon," exclaimed the bandit-captain. "My
+remark was most uncourteous--particularly to one who has ere now given
+no equivocal proof of his valor. But I pretend not to courtly manners;
+and such as I am you will find me faithfully devoted to your service and
+that of the Lady Giulia. The attempt to rescue her will be somewhat
+hazardous; it is, however, tolerably sure of success. But it can only be
+undertaken on certain conditions; and these regard your lordship's self.
+Indeed, had I not so opportunely met you at the Jew's house, I should
+have sent one of my fellows to you to-morrow."
+
+"In what way do the conditions that you speak of, regard myself?"
+inquired the marquis.
+
+"To this extent," returned the robber-chief; "that you accompany me to
+my stronghold, wherever it may be; that you join us in any project or
+plan that may be undertaken with a view to liberate the Countess of
+Arestino; and that you remain with us until such project or plan be
+attempted; then, whether it succeed or fail, you shall be at liberty to
+take your departure."
+
+"Agreed!" exclaimed Manuel; "and now permit me to ask you one
+question:--On what ground do you manifest this interest in behalf of the
+countess and myself? You are well aware that from me you have little to
+hope in the shape of reward; and that the countess will be in no better
+condition than myself to recompense you, even if you succeed in
+effecting her rescue."
+
+"I am well aware of this, my lord," answered Stephano; "and I will give
+you an explanation of my motives as frankly as you solicit it. In the
+first place it suits my projects to make friends as much as possible
+with nobles and great ladies; as no one can say how or when such
+interest may be available to me or to those connected with me. Secondly,
+I am not sorry to have an excuse for paying a visit to the Carmelite
+Convent; and in case of failure, it will be as well to have a Florentine
+noble amongst us. Because the statutes of our glorious Republic are
+somewhat unequal in their application; thus, for instance, if a plebeian
+commit sacrilege, he is punished with death; but a patrician is merely
+reprimanded by the judge and mulcted in a sum which is devoted to
+religious purposes. In this latter case, too, the companions of the
+patrician are punished only as he himself is. Now, therefore, your
+lordship's presence amongst us will be a guarantee for our safety.
+Lastly, for I have another and less selfish motive, I admire the spirit
+with which your lordship spends money, drinks a flagon of good wine, and
+loses your thousands at dice; for saving your lordship's presence, there
+is much in all those facts which finds sympathy with my own
+inclinations. Thus, everything considered, Stephano Verrina and fifty as
+gallant fellows as ever bore the name of banditti, are completely at
+your lordship's service, and that of the dear lady who has the good
+taste to prefer a dashing roistering blade like yourself, to a gentleman
+no doubt very worthy of esteem, but certainly old enough to be her
+father."
+
+The marquis made no reply to this tirade; but he reflected profoundly
+upon all that the robber-chieftain said as they walked leisurely along
+through the suburb of Alla Croce, and toward the city.
+
+He reflected because he now saw all the dangers that were associated
+with the step he was taking, the chance of being arrested with the whole
+band of lawless freebooters, and the dishonor that would attach itself
+to his name, were such an event to occur. But on the other hand, Giulia
+was immured in consequence of her love for him; and his naturally
+chivalrous disposition triumphed over selfish considerations. Could her
+liberation be effected, he would fly with her into another state; and
+the revenues arising from her own little patrimony which had been
+settled on herself at her marriage would enable them to live
+comfortably, if not affluently. And who could tell but that her husband
+might die intestate? and then all his wealth would become hers by law.
+
+Thus did he reason with himself.
+
+"Well, my lord--you do not reply?" exclaimed the robber-captain,
+impatient of the long silence which had followed his explanations. "Are
+you content to abide by the conditions I ere now proposed?"
+
+"Perfectly content," answered the marquis.
+
+He knew that it was useless to reason with the brigand against the
+spoliation of the convent, which he had more than hinted at; for it was
+not likely that the robbers would incur so great a risk as that involved
+in the sacrilegious invasion of the sacred establishment, unless it were
+with the hope of reaping an adequate reward.
+
+The bandit-chief and the young nobleman had now reached the boundary of
+the city; but instead of entering the streets, they turned abruptly to
+the right, Stephano acting as guide, and plunged into a thick grove of
+evergreens.
+
+"Here, my lord," said Stephano, stopping short, "you must consent to be
+blindfolded."
+
+"And wherefore?" demanded Manuel, indignantly. "Think you that I shall
+betray the secrets of your dwelling, wherever and whatever it may be?"
+
+"I entertain no such base suspicion," returned Verrina. "But we banditti
+are governed by a code of laws which none of us--not even I, the
+chief--dare violate. To the observance of this code we are bound by an
+oath of so deadly--so dreadful a nature, that bold and reckless as we
+are, we could not forget _that_. And I should alike break our laws and
+depart from my oath, were I to conduct an uninitiated stranger to our
+stronghold otherwise than blindfolded."
+
+"I offer no further opposition, Signor Verrina," said the marquis. "Fix
+on the bandage."
+
+Stephano tied his scarf over the nobleman's eyes, and then conducted him
+slowly through the mazes of the grove.
+
+In this manner they proceeded for nearly a quarter of an hour, when they
+stopped, and Stephano, quitting Manuel's hand, said in a low tone,
+"Stand still just where you are for a moment, while I give the signal,
+and do not move a single step--for it is a dangerous neighborhood."
+
+About half a minute elapsed, during which it struck Manuel that he heard
+a bell ring far--far under ground. The sound was very faint: but still
+he felt convinced that he did hear it, and that it appeared to come from
+the bowels of the earth.
+
+But he had not much time for reflection; for Stephano once more took his
+hand, saying, "You are now about to descend a flight of steps."
+
+They proceeded downward together for some distance, when the steps
+ceased, and they pursued their way on a flat surface of pavement; but
+the echoes of their footsteps convinced the marquis that he was treading
+a subterranean cavern or passage.
+
+Presently a huge door, sounding as if it were made of iron, was closed
+behind them, and Stephano exchanged a few words in a whisper with some
+one who spoke to him at that point. Then they descended a few more
+steps, and at the bottom another door was banged heavily, when they had
+passed its threshold,--the echoes resounding like pistol-shots
+throughout the place.
+
+For a few minutes more did they proceed on another level-paved floor:
+and then the gurgling rush of a rapid stream met the ears of the
+marquis.
+
+"Be careful in following me," said Stephano; "for you are about to cross
+a narrow bridge, my lord--and one false step is destruction."
+
+Slowly they passed over the bridge, which seemed to be a single plank of
+about thirty feet in length and excessively narrow, he had no doubt,
+both from the caution which he had received and the elasticity of that
+dangerous pathway.
+
+On the opposite side, the level-paved surface was continued; and at the
+expiration of another minute, heavy folding-doors closed behind them.
+
+"Take off the bandage, my lord," said Stephano, as he untied the knot
+which fastened the scarf at the back of the young nobleman's head.
+
+The Marquis of Orsini gladly availed himself of this permission; and
+when the bandage fell from his eyes, he found himself in a spacious
+cavern, paved with marble, hung with rich tapestry, and lighted by four
+chandeliers of massive silver.
+
+Six pillars of crystal supported the roof, and rendered the luster of
+the chandeliers almost insupportably brilliant by means of reflection.
+
+In the midst of this subterranean apartment stood a large table, covered
+with flagons, empty wine flasks, and drinking-cups; but the revelers had
+retired to rest--and the marquis and Stephano were alone in that
+banqueting-hall.
+
+"Follow me, my lord," said the bandit-captain; "and I will conduct you
+to a place where you will find as dainty a couch as even a nobleman so
+accustomed to luxury as your lordship need not despise."
+
+Thus speaking Stephano opened an iron door at the end of the hall, and
+led the way along a narrow and low corridor, lighted by lamps placed in
+niches at short intervals. At the end of this corridor he knocked at
+another door, which was opened in a few moments by a man who had
+evidently been aroused from his slumber.
+
+"I bring a guest, Lomellino," said Verrina. "See that his lordship be
+well cared for."
+
+Stephano then retraced his way along the corridor, and Lomellino closed
+and bolted the iron door.
+
+But no pen can describe the astonishment of the marquis when he found
+himself in a spacious room, heaped all around with immense riches.
+Massive plate, splendid chandeliers, gorgeous suits of armor and martial
+weapons incrusted with gold or set with precious stones, chalices and
+dishes of silver, bags of money piled in heaps, an immense quantity of
+jewelry spread upon shelves, and an infinite assortment of the richest
+wearing apparel--all these, suddenly bursting upon the young nobleman's
+view by the light of a lamp suspended to the roof, produced an effect at
+once brilliant and astounding.
+
+When Lomellino addressed him with a request to follow whither he should
+lead, it seemed as if some rude voice were suddenly awaking him from a
+delicious dream--save that the cause of his pleasure and wonder was
+still present. Then, ashamed at having allowed himself to be so
+attracted by the spectacle of boundless wealth around him, he followed
+Lomellino to an alcove at the further end of the caverned room, and the
+entrance of which was covered by a purple velvet curtain, richly fringed
+with gold.
+
+Within were two beds, having a screen between them. These couches were
+of the most comfortable description, and such as in those times were not
+usually seen elsewhere than in the dwellings of the wealthy. Near each
+bed stood a toilet-table and wash-stand, with ewers of massive silver
+and towels of fine linen; and to the walls hung two large
+mirrors--articles of exclusive luxury at that period. The floor was
+richly carpeted, and a perfumed lamp burned in front of the dial of a
+water-clock.
+
+Lomellino respectfully informed the marquis that one division of the
+alcove was at his service; and Manuel was too much wearied by the
+adventures of the evening not to avail himself of the information.
+
+The brigand seeing that he was wounded, but without asking any questions
+as to the cause, proffered his aid to divest the marquis of his upper
+clothing; and at length the young nobleman was comfortably stretched in
+one of the voluptuous beds.
+
+Sleep had just closed his eyelids, and he had even already entered upon
+a vision of fairy enchantment,--doubtless conjured up to his imagination
+by the gorgeous spectacle of the treasure-room,--when he was startled by
+screams which appeared to issue from the very wall of the alcove, at the
+head of his bed.
+
+He listened--and those screams became more and more piercing in their
+nature, although their tone was subdued, as if by the existence of a
+thick intervening partition.
+
+"Holy Virgin! what sounds are those?" he exclaimed, more in pity than in
+fear--for they were unmistakably female shrieks which he heard.
+
+"Perdition seize on those Carmelite nuns!" cried Lomellino; "they seem
+to have got another victim!"
+
+"_Another victim!_" murmured the marquis falling back in his bed, a prey
+to the most torturing feelings; and then his lips framed the sweet and
+tender name of "GIULIA!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXVIII.
+
+A FEARFUL ACCUSATION.
+
+
+Fair and beauteous art thou, O City of Flowers! with thy domes and
+spires, and turrets overlooking the Arno's silver stream, and crowding
+together in that river's classic pale; surrounded, too, by oak-covered
+hills, and cypress groves, and gardens of olives and evergreens, and
+presenting to the view of the spectator who stands on the lofty summit
+of Monte Senario, so vast an assemblage of palaces as to justify the
+saying of Ariosto, that it seemed as if the very soil produced them!
+
+Or seen from the olive-crowned hill of Fesole, consecrated by the genius
+of Milton, how glorious is thy rich combination of beauty, thou Athens
+of Etruria!
+
+The sun dawned upon the eventful night, the incidents of which have
+occupied so many chapters. The golden flood poured upon the Florentine
+scene, so fair even in winter, bathing in yellow luster the mighty dome
+of the cathedral of St. Mary, the ducal palace on its left, and the
+cupola of the Medicean chapel on its right, and bringing out into strong
+relief against the deep foliage of the evergreens the marble fronts of
+palaces, villas, and convents, seated amidst the hills, or scattered
+through the vale--the whole affording a rich and varied view, as if
+eternal summer reigned in that delightful region and beneath the purple
+canopy of that warm Italian sky!
+
+Alas! that the selfish interests, dark passions, conflicting feeling,
+clashing aims, and black, black crimes of men should mar the serenity
+and peace which ought to maintain an existence congenial to this scene!
+
+Scarcely had the orient beams penetrated through the barred casements of
+the Jew Isaachar's house in the suburb of Alla Croce, when the old man
+was awakened from a repose to which he had only been able to withdraw a
+couple of hours previously, by a loud and impatient knocking at his
+gate.
+
+Starting from his couch, he glanced from the window, and, to his dismay,
+beheld the lieutenant of police, accompanied by half a dozen of his
+terrible sbirri, and by an individual in the plain, sober garb of a
+citizen.
+
+A cold tremor came over the unhappy Israelite, for he knew that this
+official visit could bode him no good: and the dread of having
+encountered the resentment of the Count of Arestino, immediately
+conjured up appalling scenes of dungeons, chains, judgment-halls and
+tortures, to his affrighted imagination.
+
+The dark hints which Manuel d'Orsini had dropped relative to the
+possibility of the count's discovering the affair of the diamonds, and
+the certain vengeance that would ensue, flashed to the mind of Isaachar
+ben Solomon; and he stood, as it were, paralyzed at the window, gazing
+with the vacancy of despair upon the armed men, on whose steel morions
+and pikes the morning sunbeams now fell in radiant glory.
+
+The knocking was repeated more loudly and with greater impatience than
+before; and Isaachar, suddenly restored to himself, and remembering that
+it was dangerous as well as useless to delay the admittance of those who
+would not hesitate to force a speedy entry, huddled on his garments, and
+descended to the door.
+
+The moment it was opened, the sbirri and the citizen entered; and the
+lieutenant, turning shortly round upon the Jew, said, "His Excellency
+the Count of Arestino demands, through my agency, the restoration of
+certain diamonds which his lordship has good reason to believe are in
+your possession. But think not that his lordship is desirous of
+plundering you of these jewels which you hold as security for certain
+moneys advanced, for here is the gold to repay thee."
+
+Thus speaking, the lieutenant produced from beneath his cloak a heavy
+bag of gold; and Isaachar, now considerably relieved of his
+apprehensions, led the way into the apartment where he had received the
+Marquis of Orsini and Stephano de Verrina during the past night.
+
+"Hast thou heard my message, Israelite?" demanded the lieutenant.
+
+"Yes, yes; and his lordship is a worthy man--an estimable man. No
+oppressor of the poor defenseless Jew is he! Would that Florence
+abounded in such nobles as the Count of Arestino!"
+
+"Cease thy prating, Jew, and let us dispatch this business," cried the
+officer. "You see," he added, glancing toward his men, "that with these
+at my disposal, the ransacking of your dwelling would be a light and
+easy matter."
+
+"I will not render it necessary," returned the Jew. "Tarry ye here a few
+moments and the diamonds shall be delivered up."
+
+Isaachar proceeded into another apartment, the lieutenant following him
+as far as the passage to see that he did not escape. When the old man
+returned, he had a small rosewood case in his hand: and from this box he
+produced the stones which had been extracted from the settings the very
+day the jewels were first mortgaged to him.
+
+"Now, signor," said the lieutenant, turning to the citizen in the plain
+sober garb, "as you are the diamond merchant of whom his lordship the
+count originally purchased the precious stones which have been traced to
+the possession of Isaachar, it is for you to declare whether those be
+the true diamonds or not."
+
+The citizen examined the stones, and having pronounced them to be the
+genuine ones, took his departure, his services being no longer required.
+
+The lieutenant secured the rosewood case with its valuable contents
+about his person, and then proceeded to settle with interest the amount
+claimed by the Jew, as the sum which he had advanced on the jewels.
+
+While this transaction was in progress, the notice of one of the sbirri
+was attracted by the marks of blood which appeared on the floor, and
+which, as the reader will recollect, had been caused by the wound that
+the Marquis of Orsini had received from the robber Stephano.
+
+"It is decidedly blood," whispered the sbirro to one of his companions.
+
+"Not a doubt of it," observed another. "We must mention it to the
+lieutenant when he has done counting out that gold."
+
+"Do you know what I have heard about the Jews?" asked the first speaker,
+drawing his comrades still further aside.
+
+"What?" was the general question.
+
+"That they kill Christian children to mix the blood in the dough with
+which they make the bread used at their religious ceremonies," answered
+the sbirro.
+
+"Depend upon it. Isaachar has murdered a Christian child for that
+purpose!" said one of his companions.
+
+This atrocious idea gained immediate belief among the ignorant sbirri;
+and as the Jew now quitted the room for a few moments to secure the gold
+which he had just received, in his coffer in the adjacent apartment, the
+police officers had leisure to point out to their superior the traces of
+blood which they had noticed, and the suspicion which these marks had
+engendered.
+
+The lieutenant was not further removed beyond the influence of popular
+prejudice and ridiculous superstition than even his men: and though by
+no means of a cruel disposition, yet he thought it no sin nor injustice
+to persecute the Hebrew race, even when innocent and unoffending. But,
+now that suspicion, or what he chose to consider suspicion, pointed at
+Isaachar ben Solomon as a dreadful criminal, the lieutenant did not
+hesitate many moments how to act.
+
+Thus, when the Jew returned to the room with the fond hope of seeing his
+visitors take their speedy departure, he was met by the terrible words,
+uttered by the officer of the sbirri. "In the name of the most high
+inquisition, Isaachar, do I make you my prisoner!"
+
+The unhappy Jew fell upon his knees, stunned, terrified by the appalling
+announcement; and although he assumed this attitude of supplication, he
+had not the power to utter a syllable of intercession or of prayer.
+Horror had for the moment stricken him dumb: and a thousand images of
+terror, conjured up by the fearful words, "the inquisition," suddenly
+sprung up to scare, bewilder and overwhelm him.
+
+"Bind him, gag him!" ejaculated the lieutenant: and this order was
+immediately obeyed: for whenever a prisoner was about to be conveyed to
+the dungeons of the inquisition, he was invariably gagged, in order that
+no questions on his part might evoke answers at all calculated to afford
+him a clew to the cause of his arrest.
+
+This precaution was originally adopted in reference to those only who
+were ignorant of the charges laid against them: but it had subsequently
+become common in all cases of arrest effected in the name or on the part
+of the holy brotherhood.
+
+The Palazzo del Podesta, or ducal palace, was one of the most celebrated
+edifices in Florence. In strong contrast with the various beautiful
+specimens of composite Tuscan, combined with a well-assimilated portion
+of the Grecian character, which abounded in Florence, the ducal palace
+was remarkable for the stern and gloomy character of its architecture.
+Its massive and heavy tower, crowned with embattled and overhanging
+parapets, seemed to frown in sullen and haughty defiance at the lapse of
+Time. The first range of windows were twelve feet from the ground, and
+were grated with enormous bars of iron, producing a somber and ominous
+effect. Within were the apartments of the duke's numerous dependents;
+and the lower portion of the palace had been rendered thus strong to
+enable the edifice to withstand a siege in those troublous times, when
+the contentions of the Guelphs and Ghibelines desolated Florence. On the
+second floor there was in front a plain and simple architrave, and on
+that story the windows were high and arched; for those casements
+belonged to the ducal apartments. The upper stories were in the same
+style; but the general aspect was stern and mournful to a degree.
+
+The palace was built, as indeed nearly all the Florentine mansions then
+were, and still are, in the form of a square; and around this court,
+which was of an antique and gloomy cast, were numerous monumental
+stones, whereon were inscribed the names of the nobles and citizens who
+had held high offices in the state previous to the establishment of the
+sway of the Medici.
+
+It was beneath the Palazzo del Podesta that the dungeons of the criminal
+prison and also those of the inquisition were situated.
+
+In a cell belonging to the former department, Fernand Wagner was already
+a captive; and Isaachar ben Solomon now became the inmate of a narrow,
+cold, and damp stone chamber, in that division of the subterrane which
+was within the jurisdiction of the holy office.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXIX.
+
+THE VISIT OF THE BANDITTI TO THE RIVEROLA PALACE.
+
+
+It was Monday night, and within an hour of the time appointed by
+Stephano for the meditated invasion of the Riverola Palace.
+
+Francisco had already retired to rest, for he was wearied with vain and
+ineffectual wandering about the city and its environs in search of some
+trace that might lead him to discover his lost Flora.
+
+Indeed, the few days which had now elapsed since her mysterious
+disappearance had been passed by the young count in making every
+possible inquiry and adopting every means which imagination could
+suggest to obtain a clew to her fate. But all in vain. And never for a
+moment did he suspect that she might be an inmate of the Carmelite
+Convent, for, although he was aware of the terrible power wielded by
+that institution, yet feeling convinced that Flora herself was incapable
+of any indiscretion, it never struck him that the wicked machinations of
+another might place her in the custody of the dreaded Carmelite abbess.
+
+We said that Francisco had retired to rest somewhat early on the
+above-mentioned night, and the domestics, yielding to the influence of a
+soporific which Antonio, the faithless valet, had infused into the wine
+which it was his province to deal out to them under the superintendence
+of the head butler, had also withdrawn to their respective chambers.
+
+Nisida had dismissed her maids shortly before eleven, but she did not
+seek her couch. There was an expression of wild determination, of firm
+resolve, in her dark black eyes and her compressed lips which denoted
+the courage of her dauntless but impetuous mind. For of that mind the
+large piercing eyes seemed an exact transcript.
+
+Terrible was she in the decision of her masculine--oh! even more than
+masculine--character, for beneath that glorious beauty with which she
+was arrayed beat a heart that scarcely knew compunction, or that, at all
+events, would hesitate at nothing calculated to advance her interests or
+her projects.
+
+Though devoured with ardent passions, and of a temperament naturally
+voluptuous and sensual even to an extreme, she had hitherto remained
+chaste, as much for want of opportunity to assuage the cravings of her
+mad desires, as through a sentiment of pride--but since she had loved
+Wagner--the first and only man whom she had ever loved--her warm
+imagination had excited those desires to such a degree, that she felt
+capable of making any sacrifice, save one--to secure him to herself.
+
+And that one sacrifice which she could not make was not her honor: no,
+of that she now thought but little in the whirlwind of her impetuous,
+ardent, heated imagination. But, madly as she loved Fernand Wagner--that
+is, loved him after the fashion of her own strange and sensual
+heart--she loved her brother still more; and this attachment was at
+least a pure, a holy sentiment, and a gloriously redeeming trait in the
+character of this wondrous woman, of a mind so darkly terrible.
+
+And for her brother's sake it was that there was one sacrifice--a
+sacrifice of a tremendous, but painfully persevered-in project--which
+she would not make even to her love for Fernand Wagner! No, rather would
+she renounce him forever--rather would she perish, consumed by the
+raging fires of her own ungratified passions, than sacrifice one tittle
+of what she deemed to be her brother's welfare to any selfish feeling of
+her own!
+
+Wherefore do we dwell on this subject now?
+
+Because such was the resolution which Nisida vowed within her own heart,
+as she stood alone in her chamber, and fixed her eyes upon a document,
+bearing the ducal seal that lay upon the table.
+
+That document contained the decision of his highness in respect to the
+memorial which she had privately forwarded to him in accordance with the
+advice given her a few days previously by Dr. Duras. The duke lost no
+time in vouchsafing a reply; and this reply was unfavorable to the hopes
+of Nisida. His highness refused to interfere with the provisions of the
+late count's will; and this decision was represented to be final.
+
+Therefore it was that Nisida solemnly vowed within herself to persevere
+in a course so long ago adopted, and ever faithfully, steadily, sternly
+adhered to since the day of its commencement; and, as if to confirm
+herself in the strength of this resolution, she turned her eyes with
+adoring, worshiping look toward the portrait of her maternal parent,
+those eloquent, speaking orbs seeming almost to proclaim the words which
+her lips could not utter, "Yes, mother--sainted mother! thou shalt be
+obeyed!"
+
+Then she hastily secured the ducal missive in an iron box where she was
+in the habit of keeping her own private papers, and which opened with a
+secret spring.
+
+But did she, then, mean to renounce her love for Wagner? Did she
+contemplate the terrible alternative of abandoning him in his
+misfortune, in his dungeon?
+
+No--far from that! She would save him if she could; she would secure him
+to herself, if such were possible; but she would not sacrifice to these
+objects the one grand scheme of her life, that scheme which had formed
+her character as we now find it, and which made her stand alone, as it
+were, among the millions of her own sex!
+
+And it was to put into execution the plan which she had devised to
+effect Wagner's freedom, that she was now arming herself with all the
+resolution, all the magnanimity, all the firmness with which her
+masculine soul was capable.
+
+The dial on the mantel in the chamber marked the hour of eleven; and
+Nisida commenced her preparations.
+
+Having divested herself of her upper garment, she put on a thin, but
+strong, and admirably formed corselet, made so as to fit the precise
+contour of her ample bust, and completely to cover her bosom. Then she
+assumed a black velvet robe, which reached up to her throat, and
+entirely concealed the armor beneath. Her long flexible dagger was next
+thrust carefully into a sheath formed by the wide border of her
+stomacher; and her preparations for defense in case of peril were
+completed.
+
+She now took from a cupboard six small bags, which were nevertheless
+heavy, for they were filled with gold; and these she placed on a table.
+Then seating herself at that table, she wrote a few lines on several
+slips of paper, and these she thrust into her bosom.
+
+Having accomplished her arrangements thus far, the Lady Nisida took a
+lamp in her hand, and quitted her apartments.
+
+Ascending a staircase leading to the upper story, she paused at one of
+several doors in a long corridor, and slowly and noiselessly drew the
+bolt, by which that door might be fastened outside.
+
+This was Antonio's room; and thus, by Nisida's precaution, was he made a
+prisoner.
+
+She then retraced her way to the floor below, and proceeded to the
+apartment in which her father breathed his last, and where the
+mysterious closet was situated.
+
+No one until now had entered that room since the day of the late count's
+funeral; and its appearance was gloomy and mournful in the extreme; not
+only on account of the dark, heavy hangings of the bed, and the drawn
+curtains of the windows, but also from the effect of the ideas
+associated with that chamber.
+
+And as Nisida glanced toward the closet-door, even she trembled, and her
+countenance became ashy pale; for not only did she shudder at the
+thought of the horrors which that closet contained, but through her
+brain also flashed the dreadful history revealed to her by the
+manuscript--of which, however, only a few lines have as yet been
+communicated to the reader. But she knew all--she had read the whole;
+and well--oh! well might she shudder and turn pale.
+
+For terrible indeed must have been the revelations of a manuscript
+whereof the few lines above alluded to gave promise of such appalling
+interest,--those lines which ran thus: "Merciless scalpel hacked and
+hewed away at the still almost palpitating flesh of the murdered man, in
+whose breast the dagger remained deeply buried,--a ferocious joy--a
+savage, hyena-like triumph now----"
+
+But we are to some extent digressing from the thread of our narrative.
+
+Nisida placed the lamp in the chimney, in such a way that its light was
+concealed so as to leave all the immediate vicinity of the door in a
+state of complete darkness; and she seated herself in a chair close by,
+to await the expected events of midnight.
+
+Slowly, slowly passed the intervening twenty minutes; and the lady had
+ample leisure to reflect upon all the incidents of her life--ay, and to
+shudder too at one which had dyed her hand with blood--the blood of
+Agnes!
+
+Yet, though she shuddered thus, she did not look upon it with that
+unbounded, tremendous horror that would be experienced by a lady
+similarly placed in these times; for jealousy was a feeling that, by the
+tacit convention of a vitiated society, was an excuse for even murder;
+and, moreover, she possessed the true Italian heart, which deemed the
+death of a rival in love a justifiable act of vengeance.
+
+But she felt some compunction, because she had learnt, when it was too
+late, that Agnes was not the mistress of Fernand Wagner; and she was
+convinced that in affirming this much he had uttered the strictest
+truth.
+
+Thus was she rather grieved at the fatal mistake than appalled by the
+deed itself; and she shuddered because she knew that her fearful
+impetuosity of disposition had led to the unnecessary deed which had
+entailed so dark a suspicion and so much peril upon her lover.
+
+She was in the midst of these and other reflections connected with the
+various salient features of her life, when the door of the room was
+slowly and cautiously opened, and a man entered, bearing a lantern in
+his hand.
+
+Two others followed close behind him.
+
+"Shut the door, Lomellino," said the foremost.
+
+"But are you sure that this is the room?" asked the man thus addressed.
+
+"Certain," was the reply. "Antonio described its situation so
+clearly----"
+
+"Then why did he not join us?"
+
+"How do I know? But that need not prevent us----"
+
+Nisida at this moment raised the lamp from the fire-place, and the light
+flashing at that end of the room, produced a sudden start and
+ejaculation on the part of the banditti.
+
+"Perdition!" cried Stephano, "what can this mean?"
+
+Nisida advanced toward the robbers in a manner so calm, so dignified, so
+imperious, and so totally undaunted by their presence, that they were
+for a moment paralyzed and rooted to the spot as if they were confronted
+by a specter.
+
+But at the next instant Stephano uttered an exclamation of mingled
+surprise and joy, adding, "By my patron saint! Lomellino, this is the
+very lady of whom I spoke to you the other evening!"
+
+"What, the one who did the business so well in----"
+
+"Yes, yes," cried Stephano hastily; "you know what I mean--in Wagner's
+garden! But----"
+
+Nisida had in the meantime drawn from her bosom one of the slips of
+paper before alluded to; and, handing it to the bandit-chief, she made a
+hasty and imperious motion for him to read it.
+
+He obeyed her with the mechanical submission produced by astonishment
+and curiosity, mingled with admiration for that bold and daring woman,
+whom he already loved and resolved to win: but his surprise was
+increased a hundred-fold, when he perused these lines:--"I am the Lady
+Nisida of Riverola. Your design is known to me; it matters not how.
+Rumor has doubtless told you that I am deaf and dumb; hence this mode of
+communicating with you. You have been deluded by an idle knave--for
+there is no treasure in the closet yonder. Even if there had been, I
+should have removed it the moment your intended predatory visit was made
+known to me. But you can serve me; and I will reward you well for your
+present disappointment."
+
+"What does the paper say?" demanded Lomellino and Piero, the captain's
+two companions, almost in the same breath.
+
+"It says just this much," returned Stephano--and he read the writing
+aloud.
+
+"The Lady Nisida!" ejaculated Lomellino. "Then it is she who used her
+dagger so well in Wagner's garden."
+
+"Peace, silly fool!" cried Stephano. "You have now let out the secret to
+Piero. True, 'tis no matter, as he is as stanch to me as you are; and
+therefore he may as well know that this lady here was the murderess of
+the young female in Wagner's garden: for I saw her do the deed when I
+was concealed among the evergreens there. She is as much in our power as
+we are in hers, and we will let her know it if she means any treachery."
+
+"But how could she have discovered that we meant to come here to-night,
+and what our object was?" asked Piero.
+
+"Antonio must have peached, that's clear!" returned Stephano; "and
+therefore he did not join us, as agreed, in the hall down-stairs. But no
+matter. It seems there's gold to be earned in this lady's service: and
+even if there wasn't I have such an affection for her I would cut the
+throat of the duke or the cardinal archbishop himself merely to give her
+pleasure."
+
+Then turning toward Nisida, whose courage seemed partially to have
+abandoned her, for her countenance was ghastly pale, and her hand
+trembled so that it could scarcely hold the lamp, Stephano made a low
+bow, as much as to imply that he was entirely at her service.
+
+Nisida made a powerful effort to subdue the emotions that were agitating
+her: and, advancing toward the door, she made a sign for the banditti to
+follow her.
+
+She led them to her own suit of apartments, and to the innermost
+room--her own bed-chamber--having carefully secured the several doors
+through which they passed.
+
+The banditti stood round the table, their eyes wandering from the six
+tempting-looking money-bags to the countenance of Nisida, and then back
+to the little sacks; but Stephano studied more the countenance than the
+other objects of attraction; for Nisida's face once more expressed firm
+resolution and her haughty, imperious, determined aspect, combined with
+her extraordinary beauty, fired the robber-chieftain's heart.
+
+Taking from her bosom another slip of paper, she passed it to Stephano,
+who read its contents aloud for the benefit of his companions--"The
+trial of Fernand Wagner will take place this day week. If he be
+acquitted, your services will not be required. If he be condemned, are
+ye valiant and daring enough (sufficiently numerous ye are, being upward
+of fifty in all) to rescue him on his way back from the judgment-hall to
+the prison of the ducal palace? The six bags of gold now upon the table
+are yours, as an earnest of reward, if ye assent. Double that amount
+shall be yours if ye succeed."
+
+"It is a generous proposition," observed Lomellino.
+
+"But a dangerous one," said Piero.
+
+"Nevertheless, it shall be accepted, if only for her fair self's sake,"
+exclaimed Stephano, completely dazzled by Nisida's surpassing majesty of
+loveliness; then, with a low bow, he intimated his readiness to
+undertake the enterprise.
+
+Nisida handed him a third paper, on which the following lines were
+written:--"Take the gold with you, as a proof of the confidence I place
+in you. See that you deceive me not; for I have the power to avenge as
+well as to reward. On Sunday evening next let one of you meet me, at ten
+o'clock, near the principal entrance of the Cathedral of St. Mary, and I
+will deliver the written instructions of the mode of proceeding which
+circumstances may render necessary."
+
+"I shall keep the appointment myself," said Stephano to his companions;
+and another obsequious but somewhat coarse bow denoted full compliance
+with all that Nisida had required through the medium of the slips of
+paper.
+
+She made a sign for the banditti to take the bags of gold from the
+table, an intimation which Piero and Lomellino did not hesitate to obey.
+
+The private staircase leading into the garden then afforded them the
+means of an unobserved departure; and Nisida felt rejoiced at the
+success of her midnight interview with the chiefs of the Florentine
+banditti.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXX.
+
+FLORA'S CAPTIVITY--A COMPANION--THE LIVING TOMB.
+
+
+Six days had now elapsed since Flora Francatelli became an inmate of the
+Carmelite Convent.
+
+During this period she was frequently visited in her cell by Sister
+Alba, the nun who had received her at the bottom of the pit or well into
+which she descended by means of the chair; and that recluse gradually
+prepared her to fix her mind upon the necessity of embracing a
+conventual life.
+
+It was not, however, without feelings of the most intense--the most
+acute--the most bitter anguish, that the unhappy maiden received the
+announcement that she was to pass the remainder of her existence in that
+monastic institution.
+
+All the eloquence--all the sophistry--all the persuasion of Sister Alba,
+who presided over the department of the penitents, failed to make her
+believe that such a step was necessary for her eternal salvation.
+
+"No," exclaimed Flora, "the good God has not formed this earth so fair
+that mortals should close their eyes upon its beauties. The flowers, the
+green trees, the smiling pastures, the cypress groves were not intended
+to be gazed upon from the barred windows of a prison-house."
+
+Then the nun would reason with her on the necessity of self-denial and
+self-mortification; and Flora would listen attentively; but if she gave
+no reply, it was not because she was convinced.
+
+When she was alone in her cell she sat upon her humble pallet, pondering
+upon her mournful condition, and sometimes giving way to all the anguish
+of her heart, or else remaining silent and still in the immovability of
+dumb despair.
+
+Her suspicions often fell upon the Lady Nisida as the cause of her
+terrible immurement in that living tomb--especially when she remembered
+the coldness with which her mistress had treated her a day or two
+previous to her forced abduction from the Riverola Palace. Those
+suspicions seemed confirmed, too, by the nature of the discourse which
+Sister Alba had first addressed to her, when she upbraided her with
+having given way to "those carnal notions--those hopes--those
+fears--those dreams of happiness, which constitute the passion that the
+world calls love."
+
+The reader will remember that Flora had suspected the coolness of Nisida
+to have risen from a knowledge of Francisco's love for the young maiden;
+and every word which Sister Alba had uttered in allusion to the passion
+of love seemed to point to that same fact.
+
+Thus was Flora convinced that it was this unfortunate attachment, in
+which for a moment she had felt herself so supremely blest, that was the
+source of her misfortunes. But then, how had Nisida discovered the
+secret? This was an enigma defying conjecture; for Francisco was too
+honorable to reveal his love to his sister, after having so earnestly
+enjoined Flora herself not to betray that secret.
+
+At times a gleam of hope would dawn in upon her soul, even through the
+massive walls of that living tomb to which she appeared to have been
+consigned. Would Francisco forget her? Oh! no, she felt certain that he
+would leave no measure untried to discover her fate, no means unessayed
+to effect her deliverance.
+
+But, alas! then would come the maddening thought that he might be
+deceived with regard to her real position; that the same enemy or
+enemies who had persecuted her might invent some specious tale to
+account for her absence, and deter him from persevering in his inquiries
+concerning her.
+
+Thus was the unhappy maiden a prey to a thousand conflicting sentiments;
+unable to settle her mind upon any conviction save the appalling one
+which made her feel the stern truth of her captivity.
+
+Oh! to be condemned so young to perpetual prisonage, was indeed hard,
+too hard--enough to make reason totter on its throne and paralyze the
+powers of even the strongest intellect.
+
+Sister Alba had sketched out to her the course of existence on which she
+must prepare to enter. Ten days of prayer and sorry food in her own cell
+were first enjoined as a preliminary, to be followed by admission into
+the number of penitents who lacerated their naked forms with scourges at
+the foot of the altar. Then the period of her penitence in this manner
+would be determined by the manifestations of contrition which she might
+evince, and which would be proved by the frequency of her
+self-flagellations, the severity with which the scourge was applied, and
+the anxiety which she might express to become a member of the holy
+sisterhood. When the term of penitence should arrive, the maiden would
+be removed to the department of the convent inhabited by the professed
+nuns; and then her flowing hair would be cut short, and she would enter
+on her novitiate previously to taking the veil, that last, last step in
+the conventual regime, which would forever raise up an insuperable
+barrier between herself and the great, the beautiful, the glorious world
+without!
+
+Such was the picture spread for the contemplation of this charming, but
+hapless maiden.
+
+Need we wonder if her glances recoiled from her prospects, as if from
+some loathsome specter, or from a hideous serpent preparing to dart from
+its coils and twine its slimy folds around her?
+
+Nor was the place in which she was a prisoner calculated to dissipate
+her gloomy reflections.
+
+It seemed a vast cavern hollowed out of the bowels of the earth,
+rendered solid by masonry and divided into various compartments. No
+windows were there to admit the pure light of day; an artificial luster,
+provided by lamps and tapers, prevailed eternally in that earthly
+purgatory.
+
+Sometimes the stillness of death, the solemn silence of the tomb reigned
+throughout that place: then the awful tranquillity would be suddenly
+broken by the dreadful shrieks, the prayers, the lamentations, and the
+scourges of the penitents.
+
+The spectacle of these unfortunate creatures, with their naked forms
+writhing and bleeding beneath the self-inflicted stripes, which they
+doubtless rendered as severe as possible in order to escape the sooner
+from that terrible preparation for their novitiate--this spectacle, we
+say, was so appalling to the contemplation of Flora, that she seldom
+quitted her own cell to set foot in the chamber of penitence. But there
+were times when her thoughts became so torturing, and the solitude of
+her stone chamber so terrible, that she was compelled to open the door
+and escape from those painful ideas and that hideous loneliness, even
+though the scene merely shifted to a reality from which her gentle
+spirit recoiled in horror and dismay.
+
+But circumstances soon gave her a companion in her cell. For, on the
+second night of her abode in that place, the noise of the well-known
+machinery was heard; the revolution of wheels and the play of the
+dreadful mechanism raised ominous echoes throughout the subterrane.
+Another victim came: all the cells were tenanted: and the new-comer was
+therefore lodged with Flora, whose own grief was partially forgotten, or
+at all events mitigated, in the truly Christian task of consoling a
+fellow-sufferer.
+
+Thus it was that the Countess of Arestino and Flora Francatelli became
+companions in the Carmelite convent.
+
+At first the wretched Giulia gave way to her despair, and refused all
+comfort. But so gentle, so willing, so softly fascinating were the ways
+of the beautiful Flora, and so much sincerity did the charming girl
+manifest in her attempts to revive that frail but drooping flower which
+had been thrown as it were at her feet; at the feet of her, a pure
+though also drooping rosebud of innocence and beauty: so earnest did the
+maiden seem in her disinterested attentions, that Giulia yielded to the
+benign influence, and became comparatively composed.
+
+But mutual confidence, that outpouring of the soul's heavy secrets,
+which so much alleviates the distress of the female mind, did not spring
+up between the countess and Flora; because the former shrank from
+revealing the narrative of her frailty, and the latter chose not to
+impart her love for the young Count of Riverola. Nevertheless, the
+countess gave her companion to understand that she had friends without,
+who were acquainted with the fact of her removal to the Carmelite
+convent, and on whose fidelity as well as a resolute valor she could
+reckon; for the promise made to her by the robber-captain, and the idea
+that the Marquis of Orsini would not leave her to the dreadful fate of
+eternal seclusion in that place, flashed to her mind when the first
+access of despair had passed.
+
+Flora was delighted to hear that such a hope animated the Countess of
+Arestino: and throwing herself at her feet, she said, "Oh! lady,
+should'st thou have the power to save me----"
+
+"Thinkest thou that I would leave thee here, in this horrible dungeon?"
+interrupted the countess, raising Flora from her suppliant position on
+the cold pavement of the cell, and embracing her. "No, if those on whom
+I rely fulfill the hope that we have entertained we shall go forth
+together. And, oh!" added the countess, "were all Florence to rise up
+against this accursed institution, pillage it, and sack it, and raze it
+to the ground, so that not one stone shall remain upon another, heaven
+could not frown upon the deed! For surely demons in mortal shape must
+have invented that terrible engine by means of which I was consigned to
+this subterrane!"
+
+The recollection of the anguish she had suffered during the descent, a
+mental agony that Flora herself could fully appreciate, she having
+passed through the same infernal ordeal, produced a cold shudder which
+oscillated throughout Giulia's entire form.
+
+But we shall not dwell upon this portion of our tale; for the reader is
+about to pass to scenes of so thrilling a nature, that all he has yet
+read in the preceding chapters are as nothing to the events which will
+occupy those that are to follow.
+
+We said then, at the opening of this chapter, that six days had elapsed
+since Flora became an inmate of the convent, and four since
+circumstances had given her a companion in the person of Giulia of
+Arestino.
+
+It was on the sixth night, and the two inmates of the gloomy cell were
+preparing to retire to their humble pallet, after offering their prayers
+to the Virgin, for adversity had already taught the countess to pray,
+and to pray devoutly, too, when they were startled and alarmed by the
+sudden clang of a large bell fixed in some part of the subterrane.
+
+The echoes which it raised, and the monotonous vibration of the air
+which it produced, struck terror to their souls.
+
+A minute elapsed, and again the bell struck.
+
+Flora and the countess exchanged glances of terror and mysterious doubt,
+so ominous was that sound.
+
+Again a minute passed, and a third time clanged that heavy iron tongue.
+
+Then commenced a funeral hymn, chanted by several female voices, and
+emanating as yet from a distance, sounding, too, as if the mournful
+melody was made within the very bowels of the earth.
+
+But by degrees the strain became louder, as those who sang approached
+nearer; and in a short time the sound of many light steps on the stone
+pavement of the chamber of penitence were heard by Giulia and her
+companion in their cell.
+
+Again did they exchange terrified glances, as if demanding of each other
+what this strange interruption of night's silence could mean. But at
+that instant the hymn ceased--and again the loud bell clanged, as if in
+some far-off gallery hollowed out of the earth.
+
+Oh! in that convent where all was mysterious, and where a terrific
+despotism obeyed the dictates of its own wild will, such sounds as that
+funeral chant, and that deafening bell, were but too fairly calculated
+to inspire the souls of the innocent Flora and the guilty Giulia with
+the wildest apprehension!
+
+Suddenly the door opened, and Sister Alba, who presided over the chamber
+of penitence, appeared on the threshold.
+
+"Come forth, daughters!" she exclaimed; "and behold the punishment due
+to female frailty."
+
+The Countess of Arestino and Flora Francatelli mechanically obeyed this
+command; and a strange--a heart-rending sight met their eyes.
+
+The chamber of penitence was filled with nuns in their convent-garbs;
+and the penitents in a state of semi-nudity. On one side of the
+apartment, a huge door with massive bolts and chains stood open,
+allowing a glimpse, by the glare of the lamps, tapers, and torches, of
+the interior of a small cell that looked like a sepulcher. Near the
+entrance to that tomb, for such, indeed, it was--stood the lady abbess:
+and on the pavement near her knelt a young and beautiful girl, with
+hands clasped and countenance raised in an agony of soul which no human
+pen can describe. The garments of this hapless being had been torn away
+from her neck and shoulders, doubtless by the force used to drag her
+thither: and her suppliant attitude, the despair that was depicted by
+her appearance, her extreme loveliness, and the wild glaring of her deep
+blue eyes, gave her the appearance of something unearthly in the glare
+of that vacillating light.
+
+"No, daughter," said the abbess, in a cold, stern voice; "there is no
+mercy for you on earth."
+
+Then echoed through the chamber of penitence a scream, a shriek so wild,
+so long, so full of agony, that it penetrated to the hearts of Flora,
+the countess, and some of the penitents, although the abbess and her
+nuns seemed unmoved by that appalling evidence of female anguish. At the
+same instant the bell struck again; and the funeral hymn was recommenced
+by the junior recluses.
+
+Sister Alba now approached Flora and the countess, and said in a low
+whisper, "The vengeance of the conventual discipline is terrible on
+those who sin! That miserable girl completed her novitiate five months
+ago; and the night before she was to take the veil she escaped. This
+awful crime she committed for the sake of some man she had known ere she
+first entered the convent, and for whom she thus endangered her immortal
+soul. But her justly incensed relations yesterday discovered her
+retreat; and she was restored to this house of penitence and peace.
+Alas! the effects of her frailty were but too apparent; and that
+benighted girl would become a mother--_had she long enough to live_!"
+
+These last words were uttered with terrible significancy; and the nun
+turned aside, leaving Flora and the countess each a prey to the most
+unspeakable horror.
+
+In the meantime the helpless victim of ecclesiastical vengeance--the
+poor erring creature, who had dared and sacrificed everything for the
+love of her seducer--had risen from her suppliant posture, and flown
+wildly--madly round to the elder nuns in succession, imploring mercy,
+and rending the very roof of the subterrane with piercing screams. But
+those to whom she appealed turned a deaf ear; for a convent is a tomb in
+which all human sympathies are immured--a vortex wherein all the best
+feelings that concrete in the mortal heart are cruelly engulfed!
+
+And while this wretched girl--for she was scarcely yet a woman, although
+were life spared her, on the way to maternity--was thus fruitlessly
+imploring the mercy of hearts that were stern and remorseless, the hymn
+continued, and the bell tolled at short intervals.
+
+Suddenly at a particular verse in the funeral chant, the three nuns who
+usually did the bidding of the lady abbess, glided noiselessly--but
+surely, like black serpents--toward the victim--seized her in their
+powerful grasp--and bore her to the cell in which she was to be immured.
+
+The choir of nuns raised their voices, and the bell now clanged quickly
+with its almost deafening note--and those human and metallic sounds
+combined to deaden the screams that burst from the miserable girl, on
+whom the huge door at length closed with fearful din.
+
+The massive bolts were drawn--the key turned harshly in the lock and
+still the shrieks came from within the sepulcher where a human being was
+_entombed alive_!
+
+So sickening a sensation came over Flora and the countess, when the last
+act of the awful tragedy was thus concluded, that they reeled back to
+their cell with brains so confused, and such horrible visions floating
+before their eyes, that their very senses appeared to be abandoning
+them.
+
+When they were enabled to collect their scattered ideas, and the
+incidents of the last half-hour assumed a definite shape in their
+memories, the sound of hymn and bell had ceased--the chamber of
+penitence was deserted--the silence of death reigned throughout the
+subterrane--nor did even the faintest shriek or scream emanate from the
+cell in which the victim was entombed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXI.
+
+THE BANDITTI.
+
+
+The night of which we are speaking was destined to be one pregnant with
+alarms for the Countess of Arestino and Signora Francatelli.
+
+Scarcely had they recovered from the effects of the appalling tragedy
+which had just been enacted, when their attention was drawn to a strange
+noise on one side of the cell.
+
+They listened, and the noise continued--resembling an attempt to remove
+the massive masonry at that part of the stone chamber.
+
+"Merciful heavens!" said Flora, in a subdued whisper; "what new terror
+can now be in store for us!"
+
+But scarcely were these words uttered, when a considerable portion of
+the masonry fell in with a loud crash; and had not the countess and
+Flora already withdrawn to the vicinity of the door, when the mysterious
+sound first began, they would either have been killed or seriously hurt
+by the falling of the huge stones.
+
+A faint scream burst from Flora's lips, and she would have rushed from
+the cell, had not an ejaculation of joy escaped the countess.
+
+For at the aperture formed by the falling in of the masonry, and by the
+glare of the light that shone on the other side, as well as by the dim
+taper that burnt before the crucifix in the cell, Giulia had in an
+instant recognized the countenance of the Marquis of Orsini.
+
+"Manuel!--dearest Manuel!" she exclaimed, rushing toward the aperture:
+"art thou come to save me?"
+
+"Yes, Giulia," replied the marquis. "But by what good fortune art thou
+the very first whom it is my destiny to encounter? and who is thy
+companion?"
+
+"A good--a generous-hearted girl, whom you must save also from this
+dreadful place," answered the countess. "And as for this accidental, but
+most fortunate encounter, I can tell you no more than that this is our
+cell. It is rather for me to ask----"
+
+"We have no time to waste in idle talk, my lord," said Stephano, who now
+appeared at the aperture. "Pardon my roughness, noble lady--but every
+moment is precious. Is there any danger of an alarm being given?"
+
+"None that I am aware of," returned the countess. "The place where we
+now are must be a hundred yards below the surface of the earth----"
+
+"No, my lady--that is impossible," interrupted Stephano; "a hundred feet
+at the most--and even that is above the mark. But stand back, my lady,
+while we remove some more of this solid masonry."
+
+Giulia obeyed the robber-chief, and turned to embrace Flora with the
+liveliest manifestations of joy, which the young maiden sincerely
+shared--for escape now appeared to be at hand.
+
+The aperture was rapidly enlarged by those who worked on the other side,
+and in a few minutes it was spacious enough to admit the passage of a
+human form. Then Giulia and Flora quitted their dismal cell, and entered
+the innermost chamber of the robbers' hold, but from which the treasures
+described in a previous chapter had all been removed away.
+
+Giulia embraced the marquis with grateful affection; but Stephano
+exclaimed, "Come, my lord! Remember your oath, and join us in this
+expedition to the end!"
+
+At that moment the awful tragedy of the night flashed back to Flora's
+memory, from which nothing could have dispelled it even for an instant,
+save the thrilling excitement attendant on the escape from the convent;
+and in a few hurried words, she told the dreadful tale.
+
+But what was the astonishment of all present, when Piero, one of the
+banditti, exclaimed in a tone of mingled rage and grief, "'Tis Carlotta!
+the victim can be none other--the dates you have mentioned, signora,
+convince me! Yes--five months ago she fled from that accursed
+convent--and yesterday she disappeared. Ah! my poor Carlotta!"
+
+And the rude but handsome brigand wept.
+
+Flora, forgetting the danger of re-entering the walls of the terrible
+institution, exclaimed, "Follow me--it may not be too late--I will show
+you the cell----"
+
+And she once more passed through the aperture, closely followed by
+Stephano, Piero, Lomellino, and a dozen other banditti. The Marquis of
+Orsini stayed behind a few moments, to breathe a reassuring word to
+Giulia, whom he left in the treasure chamber (as that apartment of the
+robbers' hold was called), and then hastened after those who had
+penetrated into the subterrane of the convent.
+
+The party entered the chamber of penitence, where the long wax candles
+were still burning before the altar; and Flora having hastily given
+Stephano as much information as she could relative to the geography of
+the place, that chieftain placed sentinels around. Flora had already
+pointed out the door of the dungeon to which Carlotta had been
+consigned; and Piero hastened to call upon his mistress to answer him.
+
+It was a touching spectacle to behold that lawless and bold, bad man
+melting into tenderness beneath the influence of love!
+
+But no reply came from within that dungeon; and though the bolts were
+easily drawn back, yet the lock was strong, and the key was not there!
+
+By this time the penitents, who slept in the various cells adjoining the
+chamber, had become alarmed by the heavy tread and the voices of men,
+and had opened their doors. But they were desired to keep back by the
+sentinels, whom Stephano had posted around to maintain order and prevent
+a premature alarm, but who, nevertheless, gave assurances of speedy
+escape to those who might choose to profit by the opportunity.
+
+Suddenly a door, which Flora had never noticed before in the chamber of
+penitence, opened, and two recluses appeared on the threshold.
+
+"The abbess!" ejaculated Flora, yielding to a sudden impulse of alarm.
+
+But almost at the same instant Stephano sprung forward, caught the
+abbess by the arm, and dragged her into the chamber; then rushing up a
+flight of narrow stone steps, with which that door communicated, and
+which the other recluse had already turned to ascend, he brought her
+forcibly back also. This latter nun was Sister Alba, the presiding
+authority of the chamber of penitence.
+
+Her astonishment, as well as that of the lady abbess, at the spectacle
+of a number of armed men in the most private part of the entire
+establishment, may well be conceived; nor was this disagreeable surprise
+unmixed with intense alarm. But they had little time for reflection.
+
+"The key of that door!" cried Stephano in a fierce and menacing tone, as
+he pointed toward Carlotta's dungeon.
+
+The abbess mechanically drew forth the key from beneath her
+convent-habit, and Piero, rushing forward, clutched it eagerly. In a few
+moments it turned in the lock--the next moment the door stood open.
+
+But what a spectacle met the view of Piero, Flora, and those who were
+near enough to glance within! Stretched upon the stone floor of the
+narrow cell lay the victim--motionless and still! Drops of gore hung to
+her lips; in the agony of her grief she had burst a blood-vessel--and
+death must have been almost instantaneous.
+
+Flora staggered back--sick at the dreadful sight; and she would have
+fallen to the ground had not the Marquis of Orsini suddenly sprung
+forward to sustain her.
+
+"This is no place for you, young lady," he said. "Permit me to conduct
+you back to the companionship of the Countess of Arestino."
+
+Flora leant upon his arm, and he half carried, rather than led her away
+from the chamber of penitence into the robbers' hold. But as they passed
+through the aperture formed by the removal of the masonry, a terrible
+menace met their ears.
+
+"Vengeance!" cried Piero, furiously; "vengeance on the murderess of
+Carlotta!"
+
+"Yes--vengeance shalt thou have, comrade," returned the deep, sonorous
+voice of Stephano.
+
+But scarcely were those words uttered, when the loud clanging of the
+bell struck up; and the abbess exclaimed joyfully, "We are saved! we are
+saved!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXII.
+
+THE MYSTERY OF THE CHAIR--THE CATASTROPHE.
+
+
+The reader will recollect that when Flora Francatelli was released from
+the chair at the bottom of the pit or well, Sister Alba had led her
+along a narrow, dark passage communicating with the chamber of
+penitence.
+
+In a small dome-like cavity, hollowed out of the roof of this passage,
+hung a large bell; and in a cell opening from the side of the passage
+immediately beneath the dome, dwelt an old nun, who, for some dreadful
+misdeed committed in her youth, had voluntarily consigned herself to the
+convent of the Carmelites, and, having passed through the ordeal of the
+chamber of penitence, had accepted the office of sextoness in that
+department of the establishment.
+
+It was her duty to keep the chamber of penitence clean, maintain tapers
+constantly burning before the altar, supply also the cells of the
+penitents themselves with lights, and toll the bell whenever occasion
+required. She it was who had visited Flora's cell the first night of her
+arrival at the convent, to renew the taper that burnt before her
+crucifix, and to exchange the maiden's attire for the conventual garb.
+
+This old nun it was, then, who suddenly tolled the bell, at the moment
+when Piero and Stephano were menacing the abbess and Sister Alba with
+their vengeance, and when the Marquis of Orsini was bearing away Flora
+to the robbers' hold, that she might have the companionship of Giulia.
+
+The way in which the old nun rang the bell was such that the inmates of
+the convent would perceive it to be an alarm; and moreover, so sudden
+was its startling clang, that Stephano and Piero abandoned their hold
+upon the abbess and Sister Alba, and retreated a few paces, uncertain
+how to act; hence the exclamation of the superior of the convent, "We
+are saved! we are saved!"
+
+But little did that stern, imperious woman know of the desperate
+characters of those with whom she had now to deal. Ashamed of their
+momentary hesitation, Stephano and Piero rushed on the abbess and Sister
+Alba, and dragged them, in spite of their deafening screams, into that
+fatal cell, where they threw them headlong over the lifeless corpse of
+their victim.
+
+Scarcely, however, had they closed the door on the wretched woman, when
+the Marquis of Orsini returned; and, too well divining what had passed,
+he exclaimed, "In the name of Heaven, captain!--by all that is holy,
+Piero! I implore you not to consummate this dreadful crime!"
+
+"My lord," said Stephano, "ere we entered on this expedition to-night,
+you bound yourself by an oath to obey me as the leader. I command you
+then not to interfere with our proceedings; but, on the contrary, go and
+ascertain whence comes the clanging of that infernal bell."
+
+The marquis turned aside, sick at heart at the deed of vengeance which
+was in progress, but unable to remonstrate further, in consequence of
+the oath which he had taken. It was, however, a relief for him to move
+away from the vicinity of the living tomb, whence emanated the shrieks
+of the abbess and the nun; and guided by the sound of the bell, he
+rushed, with whirling brain and desperate resolution, into the passage
+leading from the chamber of penitence.
+
+In a few moments the clanging of the bell ceased, for the marquis had
+discovered the old sextoness in her cell, and compelled her to desist.
+
+All the events yet recorded in the preceding and the present chapter had
+occurred with a rapidity which the reader can scarcely comprehend,
+because their complicated nature and variety have forced us to enter
+into minute details requiring a considerable time to peruse. Those
+events which we are now about to describe also succeeded each other with
+marvelous speed, and occupied an incredibly short space of time,
+although our narrative must necessarily appear prolix in comparison.
+
+Extraordinary was the excitement that now prevailed in all the
+subterranean department of the convent. The victims of a stern but just
+vengeance were sending forth appalling screams from the fatal dungeon;
+and some of the penitents in their cells, which were still guarded by
+the sentinels, were also giving vent to their affright by means of
+piercing shrieks, though others remained tranquil in hope of the
+promised release.
+
+Stephano had entirely recovered his presence of mind, and now issued his
+orders with wondrous rapidity.
+
+Pointing to the door by which the abbess and Sister Alba had entered the
+chamber of penitence, he said, "Lomellino, that is the way to the upper
+part of the convent--there can be no doubt of it! Take Piero and half a
+dozen of the men, and hasten up that staircase. Secure the front gate of
+the building, and possess yourself of the plate and treasure. But no
+violence, remember--no violence to the nuns."
+
+Lomellino, Piero, and six of the banditti hastened to obey these
+commands, while Stephano remained below to act as circumstances might
+require. He went the round of the five cells belonging to the penitents,
+and enjoined those who were yielding to their terrors to hold their
+peace, as they had nothing to fear, but much to gain--at least, he
+observed, if they valued their freedom; and to those who were tranquil
+he repeated the assurances of speedy liberation already given by his
+men.
+
+For thirty years the old woman had not seen a being of the male sex; and
+she was terrified by the appearance of an armed man in that place which
+she had so long deemed sacred against the possibility of such an
+intrusion.
+
+"Fear nothing," said the marquis, "no one will harm you. But what will
+be the effect of that alarm which you have rung?"
+
+"Merely to warn those above that something unusual is taking place
+below," answered the old woman.
+
+"And by what means can access be obtained to this subterrane?" demanded
+the marquis.
+
+"There is a staircase leading from the chamber of penitence up into the
+hall of the convent----"
+
+"Of the existence of that staircase I am aware," interrupted the
+marquis, who had seen the abbess and Sister Alba enter the chamber of
+penitence a few minutes previously, as stated in the preceding chapter;
+"but are there no means of ingress or egress?"
+
+"Yes; follow me," said the sextoness.
+
+Taking up a lamp from the table in her cell, she led the way to the
+further end of the passage, threw open a door, and thrusting forth the
+light beyond the opening, exclaimed in a tone denoting a reminiscence
+the bitterness of which long years had scarcely mitigated--"That is the
+road whereby I came hither; and many, many others have traveled the same
+downward path!"
+
+The marquis seized the lamp, and beheld, a few paces from from him, a
+wicker chair, to which two ropes, hanging perpendicularly down, were
+fastened. He raised his eyes, following the direction of the ropes, but
+as there was now no other light in the pit than the feeble, flickering
+one shed by the lamp which he held, his glances could not penetrate the
+dense obscurity that prevailed above.
+
+"What means this chair, with its two ropes? and for what purpose is this
+narrow, square compartment, the mouth of which is shrouded in darkness?"
+inquired Manuel.
+
+"This is the method of descent to this region, for all those who come to
+this convent either as willing penitents, or who are sent hither against
+their inclination," returned the sextoness. "And though I came a willing
+penitent, yet never, never while the breath shall animate this poor,
+weak form, and reason shall remain, can I forget the mental agony, the
+intense anguish, of that fearful descent. Ah! it is a cruel engine of
+torture, although it tears not the flesh, nor racks the limbs, nor
+dislocates the joints. And even though thirty long years have passed
+since I made that dread journey," she continued, glancing
+upwards--"thirty years since I last saw the light of day--and though I
+have since learned and seen how much of the horror of that descent is
+produced by the delusion of mechanical ingenuity--yet still I shudder,
+and my blood runs cold within me."
+
+"To me, old woman," said the marquis, "your words are an enigma. But you
+have excited my curiosity: speak quickly, and explain yourself, for I
+may not linger here."
+
+"Behold this basket," returned the nun, without further preface--"these
+ropes connect it with complicated machinery in some chamber adjoining
+the well itself. In that basket those who are doomed to pass the ordeal
+of penitence are lowered from an apartment above. This apartment is
+really but a short distance overhead: but the art of the mechanist has
+so contrived the four wooden walls of the well, that when the descent of
+the basket ceases, those walls rise slowly upward, and thus descent
+appears to be continued. Then, when the affrighted female stretches
+forth her hands wildly, she encounters the ascending walls, and she
+believes that she is still going down--down--down! Oh! signor, it is
+most horrible, but a fitting prelude to the terrors of that place!"
+
+And she pointed back toward the chamber of penitence. The marquis was
+about to make some observation in reply to the strange disclosures of
+the old sextoness, when suddenly the din of a tumult, occurring, as it
+seemed, in that department of the convent far overhead, reached his
+ears, commencing with the rushing of many feet--the ejaculations of
+hostile bands--and then continuing with the clash of arms, and the
+shrieks of affrighted women--until, in a few moments, those ominous
+sounds were broken in upon and dominated by the wild, terrific cry of
+"Fire! fire!"
+
+"Oh! wherefore have I tarried here so long?" exclaimed the marquis; and
+he was about to return to the chamber of penitence, when a sudden blaze
+of light appeared at the mouth of the pit, thirty yards above. Looking
+hastily up, he beheld the flames rolling over the entrance of that well
+at the bottom of which he stood; and, in another minute, the forked fire
+burst from the sides, forcing for itself a way through the wooden walls;
+and the old dry timber and planks yielded to the devouring element as if
+they had been steeped in oil.
+
+But while the marquis was still standing at the bottom looking up the
+pit, the clash of weapons, the tread of many steps, and the
+vociferations of combatants appeared to grow nearer; then in another
+moment he became aware that the hostile sounds came down the well, and
+proceeded from the room far above, where the fire as well as the war was
+raging.
+
+Manuel had again turned around to hurry back to the chamber of
+penitence, when a loud cry of despair came vibrating down, and in
+another instant the heavy form of a man was precipitated into the well.
+The wicker chair fortunately broke his fall, and he rose with a dreadful
+imprecation.
+
+"Piero!" cried the marquis.
+
+"Ah! my lord, is it you?" said the bandit faintly, as he staggered back
+and fell heavily on the floor. "This is a bad business--the sbirri were
+alarmed, and broke in--Lomellino has got away, but the rest who were
+with me are slain----"
+
+"And you are wounded, Piero," ejaculated the marquis, rushing forward to
+assist the bandit, from whose breast he now perceived the blood to be
+flowing.
+
+"Never mind me, my lord!" said Piero faintly. "Haste and tell Verrina
+that--our men fought well--it was not their fault--nor mine--the nuns
+must have given--the--alarm----"
+
+His voice had grown fainter as he spoke: and, while the marquis was
+endeavoring to raise him, he fell back again, and expired with the name
+of Carlotta upon his tongue.
+
+The combat had ceased above, but the flames had increased in the well to
+such an extent that the marquis was compelled to beat a rapid retreat
+toward the chamber of penitence, whither the old sextoness had already
+fled. At the entrance of that apartment he met Stephano, who, alarmed by
+the clashing of arms and the cries of "fire" that had reached his ears,
+and which seemed to come from the direction of the passage, was hurrying
+thither to learn the cause. In a few words the marquis informed him of
+all that had occurred.
+
+"Back to the cavern, my friends!" cried Stephano, in a loud tone. "If
+the sbirri discover us there, we will resist them to the death."
+
+And followed by the marquis and two or three of his men, the captain
+passed through the aperture made from the cell recently occupied by
+Flora and the countess, into the treasure-chamber.
+
+But scarcely had those few individuals effected their retreat in this
+manner, when a tremendous crash was heard, cries and shrieks of horror
+and dismay burst from those who had not as yet passed through the
+opening, and then the roof of the chamber of penitence and all the
+adjacent cells gave way with a din as of a thousand cannon, burying
+beneath their weight the sextoness, the five penitents, the inmates of
+Carlotta's cell, and seven of the banditti.
+
+Those who were in the treasure-chamber felt the ground shake beneath
+their feet; the sides--although hollowed from the solid rock--appeared
+to vibrate and groan, and the aperture leading into the subterrane of
+the convent was closed up by the massive masonry that had fallen in.
+
+Flora and Giulia threw themselves into each other's arms, weeping
+bitterly; for they saw how dearly their freedom had been purchased, and
+they trembled for the result.
+
+But the Marquis of Orsini, although greatly shocked at the terrible
+sacrifice of human life which had occurred, exerted himself to console
+and reassure the two terrified ladies.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIII.
+
+LOMELLINO'S ESCAPE--STEPHANO'S INTENTIONS.
+
+
+Stephano Verrina was not the man to allow his energies to be paralyzed
+by the reverse he had just sustained. He immediately commanded a general
+muster of his men to be held in the banqueting-hall, that he might
+accurately ascertain the loss his corps had sustained.
+
+Giulia and Flora were left in the treasure-chamber to snatch a few
+hours' repose, if they could, as it was now past two o'clock in the
+morning, and the marquis accompanied Stephano to the banqueting-hall.
+Scarcely were the men mustered, when the usual signals announcing the
+approach of a member of the band were heard, and in a few moments
+Lomellino appeared amongst the troop.
+
+All crowded round him to hear the account which he had to give of his
+expedition and its failure.
+
+His tale was soon told. It seemed that on reaching what might be
+properly termed the main building of the convent, he found the greatest
+alarm and confusion prevailing amongst the nuns, the shrieks of the
+abbess, Sister Alba, and the penitents, and the alarm of the bell,
+having reached the ears of the recluses. Their consternation was
+increased almost to madness when they suddenly perceived several armed
+men emerging from the private staircase leading to the subterranean
+department, and Lomellino found it impossible to tranquilize them either
+by threats or fair speaking. A guard of sbirri must have been passing at
+the time, for loud knocks resounded at the gate, which the old portress
+immediately opened before Lomellino or any of his men could interfere to
+prevent her. A number of police officers rushed in, and then commenced a
+terrific combat between the banditti and the sbirri, the former of whom
+were forced into an apartment, the door of which was originally locked,
+but was burst open in the deadly struggle. There the strife was
+continued, when suddenly the cry of "Fire" arose, and the flames, which
+had caught a bed in the apartment, spread rapidly to the cumbrous and
+time-worn woodwork that supported the ceiling. How the fire originated,
+Lomellino knew not, but as some of the nuns carried lamps in their
+hands, and rushed wildly about in all directions in their terror, it was
+not very difficult to hazard a conjecture as to the cause of the
+conflagration. From that apartment, where the fire began, the flames
+drove the combatants into an inner room, and there Lomellino saw his
+comrade Piero hurled down some steep place, he himself being too sorely
+pressed by his assailants to be able to repair to his assistance.
+
+At length, seeing that all his companions were slain, Lomellino had
+fought his way desperately through the police-officers, and had
+succeeded in escaping from the convent, though closely pursued by three
+of the sbirri. They were rapidly gaining upon him, when an awful crash
+suddenly met their ears, as they were hurrying along the street leading
+to the wood; and, looking back, Lomellino beheld a tremendous pillar of
+flame shoot up from the place where the convent had stood, to the very
+sky, rendering for the space of a minute everything as light as day
+around. The building had fallen in, and Heaven only knows how many of
+the nuns and sbirri had escaped, or how many had perished beneath the
+ruins! Those officers who were in pursuit of Lomellino were so astounded
+by the sudden din and the column of flame, that they remained rooted to
+the spot where they had turned to gaze on the evidence of the
+catastrophe: and Lomellino had succeeded in effecting a safe and
+unobserved return to the stronghold.
+
+This account was particularly welcome to the robbers, inasmuch as it
+convinced them that the sbirri had no clew to the secret entrance of
+their stronghold, and that none of their band had been captured in the
+conflict: for they would rather hear of the death of their comrades than
+that they had been taken prisoners; because, were the latter the case,
+the tortures of the rack or the exhortations of the priest might elicit
+confessions hostile to the interests of the corps.
+
+Stephano Verrina now proceeded to count his men, who had mustered fifty
+strong previously to the expedition of that fatal night, which, it was
+ascertained, had reduced the number to thirty-six--seven, including
+Piero, having been slain by the sbirri, and as many having perished by
+the falling in of the chamber of penitence.
+
+The captain then addressed the troop in the following manner:
+
+"Worthy comrades,--our number is sadly reduced; but regrets will not
+bring back those gallant fellows who are gone. It, therefore, behooves
+us to attend to our own interests; and, for that purpose, I demand your
+attention for a few minutes. In pursuance of the resolution to which we
+came the night before last at the general council that was held, the
+treasures and possessions amassed during many years of adventure and
+peril have been fairly divided, and each man's portion has been settled
+by lot. The fourteen shares that revert to us by the death of our
+comrades shall be equally subdivided to-morrow; and the superintendence
+of that duty, my friends, will be the last act in my chieftainship. Yes,
+brave comrades,--I shall then leave you, in accordance with the
+announcement I made the night before last. It will grieve me to part
+with you; but you will choose another captain----"
+
+"Lomellino! Lomellino!" exclaimed the banditti with one accord; "he
+shall succeed our gallant Verrina!"
+
+"And you could not make a better choice," continued Stephano.
+"Lomellino----"
+
+"Pardon me, captain," interrupted the individual thus alluded to: "but
+is not that little expedition to take place on Monday, in case the lady
+requires it? We have received her gold as an earnest----"
+
+"And double that amount was promised if the affair should turn out
+successful," added Stephano. "But I have reasons of my own, which you
+may perhaps understand, Lomellino, for desiring that all idea of that
+business should be abandoned. And in order that the band may not be
+losers by this change of intentions, I will give you from my own share
+of our long accumulated treasures----"
+
+"No! no!" cried the banditti, enthusiastically; "we will not receive our
+gallant Stephano's gold! Let him act according to his own wishes!"
+
+"I thank you, my friends, for this generosity on your part," said
+Stephano.
+
+Their meeting then broke up; and the robbers sat down to the banqueting
+table, to luxuriate in the rich wines with which the stronghold was well
+stored.
+
+The Marquis of Orsini was compelled, through fear of giving offense, to
+share in the festival.
+
+"This resolution to abandon the command of your gallant band is somewhat
+sudden, meseems, Signor Stephano," he said: for not having been present
+at the council held two nights previously, he was unaware of the
+captain's intention until it was alluded to in that individual's speech
+on the present occasion.
+
+"Yes, my lord," was the reply; "the resolution _is_ sudden, But," he
+added, sinking his voice to a whisper, "a certain little blind god is at
+the bottom of it."
+
+"Ah! signor, you are in love!" said the marquis, laughing.
+
+"And therefore, I mean to turn honest man," observed Verrina, also
+laughing. "In truth, I am not sorry to have found a good excuse to quit
+a mode of life which the headsman yearns to cut short. Not that I reck
+for peril; but, methinks, twenty years of danger and adventure ought to
+be succeeded by a season of tranquillity."
+
+"Love has a marvelous influence over you, Signor Verrina," said the
+marquis; "for love alone could have inspired such sentiments in _your_
+breast."
+
+"I am fain to confess that your lordship is not far wrong," returned the
+bandit. "I have discovered a woman who is worthy of me--although she may
+not consider me to be altogether deserving of her. But of that no
+matter; for I am not accustomed to consult the inclinations of others,
+when mine own are concerned. And now a word in respect to yourself, my
+lord. When do you propose to quit this place? for according to my
+promise, you are now the master of your own actions."
+
+"The mysterious assault made upon the convent--the destruction of the
+entire establishment--and the lives that have been lost, will doubtless
+create a terrible sensation in Florence," replied the nobleman; "and
+should it transpire that I was in any way implicated----"
+
+"That is impossible, my lord," interrupted Stephano. "These men whom you
+behold around you could alone betray that secret; and you must have seen
+enough of them----"
+
+"To know that they are stanch and true," added the marquis. "Yes, on
+reflection, I perceive that I have nothing to fear; and therefore, with
+your leave, the countess, her young companion, and myself will take our
+departure to-morrow."
+
+"In the evening, when it is dusk," said Stephano. "But your lordship
+will not remain in Florence?"
+
+"The news which you brought me, a few days ago, of the arrest of that
+poor Israelite on a ridiculous but most monstrous charge, has affected
+me strangely," observed Manuel; "and as it is in my power to explain
+away that charge, I must tarry in Florence the necessary time to
+accomplish this object. The Count of Arestino will imagine that his wife
+has perished in the ruins of the convent; and hence her temporary
+concealment in the city will be easily effected."
+
+"Well, my lord," said Stephano, "it is not for me to dictate nor to
+advise. But as I always entertain an esteem for a man with whom I have
+measured weapons--and as I have somehow formed a liking for your
+lordship--pardon my boldness--I should recommend you not to remain in
+Florence on account of the Jew. The Lady Giulia might be discovered by
+her husband, and you would lose her again. To tell your lordship the
+truth," he added, in a low and confidential tone, "a friend of mine, who
+commands a trading vessel, sails in a few days from Leghorn for the
+Levant; and I intend to be a passenger on board, in company with the
+sweet lady whom I have honored with my affections. What says your
+lordship? will it suit you to embark in that vessel?"
+
+"A thousand thanks, Signor Verrina," replied the marquis; "but I must
+remain at Florence to prove the innocence of that poor, persecuted Jew."
+
+Stephano offered no further remonstrance; and the conversation which
+ensued possessed not the least interest for our readers.
+
+On the following evening the Marquis, Giulia, and Flora quitted the
+robbers' stronghold--all three were carefully blindfolded, and safely
+conducted amidst the dangers of the egress by Stephano, Lomellino, and
+another bandit. When in the grove with which the entrance of the
+stronghold communicated, the bandages were removed from their eyes, and
+the two ladies, as well as the marquis, were once more enabled to
+rejoice in their freedom.
+
+According to a previous arrangement between them, and in consequence of
+the intention of the marquis to remain a few days in Florence, Giulia
+accompanied Flora to the dwelling of the young maiden's aunt, who was
+rejoiced to behold the reappearance of her niece, and who willingly
+afforded an asylum to the countess.
+
+The marquis, having conducted the two ladies to the hospitable cottage
+of this good woman, returned to his own dwelling, his protracted absence
+from which had caused serious apprehensions amongst the few domestics
+whom his means permitted him to maintain. Ere we conclude this chapter,
+we shall observe in a few words that the greatest excitement prevailed
+in Florence relative to the attack on the convent and its destruction.
+Many of the nuns had escaped from the building at the commencement of
+the fire; and these took up their abode in another institution of the
+same order. But the thrilling events which occurred in the chamber of
+penitence did not transpire; nor was it ascertained who were the
+sacrilegious invaders of the establishment, nor by what means they had
+obtained an entry.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIV.
+
+THE ABDUCTION.
+
+
+It was originally Stephano Verrina's intention to observe good faith
+with Nisida in respect to the service on which she had intimated her
+desire to employ him and his band. But so dazzled was he by her almost
+supernatural majesty of beauty on that night when he and his companions
+encountered her in the Riverola palace, that he would have promised, or
+indeed undertaken, anything calculated to please or benefit her.
+
+When, however, he came to reflect calmly upon the service in which
+Nisida had enlisted him, he began to suspect that some motive more
+powerful than the mere desire to effect the liberation of an innocent
+man influenced that lady. Had she not put to death a beautiful creature
+who had resided in the same dwelling with Fernand Wagner? and did not
+that deed bear upon its aspect the stamp of an Italian woman's
+vengeance? Thus thought Stephano, and he soon arrived at the very
+natural conclusion that Nisida loved Fernand Wagner. Wagner was
+therefore his rival; and Verrina did not consider it at all in
+accordance with his own particular views in respect to Nisida, to aid in
+effecting that rival's liberation, should he be condemned by the
+tribunal.
+
+Again Stephano reflected that as Wagner's acquittal was within the range
+of probability, it would be expedient to possess himself of Nisida
+_before_ the trial took place;--and what opportunity could be more
+favorable than the one which that lady herself afforded by the
+appointment she had given him for the Sunday evening at the gate of
+Saint Mary's Cathedral?
+
+All these considerations had determined the bandit to adopt speedy and
+strenuous measures to possess himself of Nisida, of whom he was so madly
+enamored that the hope of gratifying his passion predominated even over
+the pride and delight he had hitherto experienced in commanding the
+Florentine robbers.
+
+The appointed evening came; and Stephano, disguised in his black mask,
+repaired a few minutes before ten to the immediate vicinity of the old
+cathedral. At the corner of an adjacent street, two men, mounted on
+powerful horses, and holding a third steed by the bridle, were in
+readiness; and, crouched in the black darkness formed by the shade of a
+huge buttress of the cathedral, two members of the troop which Lomellino
+now commanded lay concealed--for the new captain of banditti had lent
+some of his stanchest followers to further the designs of the
+ex-chieftain.
+
+A heavy rain had fallen in the early part of the day; but it ceased ere
+the sun went down; and the stars shone forth like beauty's eyes when the
+tears of grief have been wiped away by the lips of the lover.
+
+Stephano paced the arena in front of the sacred edifice; and at length a
+gentle tread and a rustling of velvet met his ears. Then, in a few
+moments, as if emerging from the darkness, the majestic form of Nisida
+appeared; and when Stephano approached her, she drew aside her veil for
+an instant--only for a single instant, that he might convince himself of
+her identity with the lady for whom he was waiting.
+
+But as the light of the silver stars beamed for a moment on the
+countenance of Nisida, that mild and placid luster was out-vied by the
+dazzling brilliancy of her large black eyes: and mental excitement had
+imparted a rich carnation hue to her cheek, rendering her so
+surpassingly beautiful that Stephano could almost have fallen on his
+knees to worship and adore her. But, oh! what lovely skins do some
+snakes wear!--and into what charming shapes does satan often get!
+
+Nisida had replaced her veil while yet Verrina's eyes were fixed on her
+bewitching countenance; then, placing her finger lightly upon his
+arm--oh! how that gentle touch thrilled through him!--she made a sign
+for him to follow her toward a niche in the deep gateway of the
+cathedral: for in that niche was an image of the Madonna, and before it
+burnt a lamp night and day. To gain that spot it was necessary to pass
+the buttress in whose shade the two banditti lay concealed.
+
+Stephano trembled as he followed that lady whom he knew to be as
+intrepid, bold, and desperate as she was beautiful:--he trembled,
+perhaps for the first time in his life, because never until now had he
+felt himself overawed by the majesty of loveliness and the resolute mind
+of a woman. But he had gone too far to retreat--even if that temporary
+and almost unaccountable timidity had prompted him to abandon his
+present design;--yes, he had gone too far--for at that moment when
+Nisida was passing the huge buttress, the two brigands sprung forth: and
+though her hand instantly grasped her dagger, yet so suddenly and
+effectually was she overpowered that she had not even time to draw it
+from its sheath.
+
+Fortunately for the scheme of Stephano, the great square in front of the
+cathedral was at that moment completely deserted by the usual evening
+loungers; and thus did he and his companions experience not the
+slightest interruption as they bore Nisida firmly and rapidly along to
+the corner of the street where the horses were in attendance.
+
+The lady's hands were already bound, and her dagger had been taken from
+her; and thus the resistance she was enabled to make was very slight,
+when Stephano, having sprung upon one of the horses, received the
+charming burden from the banditti, and embraced that fine voluptuous
+form in his powerful arms.
+
+The two men who had waited with Stephano's horse were already mounted on
+their own, as before stated, and the little party was now in readiness
+to start.
+
+"No further commands, signor?" said one of the banditti who had first
+seized upon Nisida.
+
+"None, my brave fellow. Tell Lomellino that I sent him my best wishes
+for his prosperity. And now for a rapid journey to Leghorn!"
+
+"Good-night, signor."
+
+"Good-night. Farewell--farewell, my friends!" cried Verrina; and
+clapping spurs to his steed, he struck into a quick gallop, his two
+mounted companions keeping pace with him, and riding one on either side,
+so as to prevent any possibility of escape on the part of Donna Nisida
+of Riverola.
+
+In a few minutes the little party gained the bank of the Arno, along
+which they pursued their rapid way, lighted by the lovely moon, which
+now broke forth from the purple sky, and seemed, with its chaste beams
+playing on the surface of the water, to put a soul into the very river
+as it ran!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXV.
+
+WAGNER AND THE TEMPTER--PHANTASMAGORIA.
+
+
+While Stephano was bearing away the Lady Nisida in the manner described
+in the preceding chapter, Fernand Wagner was pacing his solitary cell,
+conjecturing what would be the result of the morrow's trial.
+
+Nisida had visited him a second time on the preceding
+evening--disguised, as on the former occasion, in male attire; and she
+had implored him, in the language of the deaf and dumb, but far more
+eloquently with her speaking eyes and the expression of her beauteous
+countenance, to allow measures to be that night adopted to effect his
+immediate escape. But he had resolutely persisted in his original
+determination to undergo his trial: for by pursuing this course, he
+stood the chance of an acquittal; and he knew on the other hand that if
+he were sentenced to die, the decree of the human tribunal could not be
+carried into execution. How his escape from that fate (should death be
+indeed ordained) was beyond his power of comprehension; but that he
+possessed a superhuman protector he knew full well.
+
+Without revealing to Nisida his motives for meeting the criminal judges,
+he refused to yield to her silently but eloquently pleaded prayer that
+he would escape should gold induce the jailers to throw open the door of
+his cell: but he conveyed to her the assurance that the deep interest
+she manifested in his behalf only bound him the more sincerely and
+devotedly to her.
+
+During eight or nine days of his imprisonment, he had reflected deeply
+upon the murder of Agnes. He naturally associated that black deed with
+the mystery of the strange lady who had so alarmed Agnes on several
+occasions; and he had of course been struck by the likeness of his much
+loved Nisida to her whom his dead granddaughter had so minutely
+described to him. But, if ever suspicion pointed toward Nisida as the
+murderess of Agnes, he closed his eyes upon the bare idea--he hurled it
+from him; and he rather fell back upon the unsatisfactory belief that
+the entire case was wrapped in a profound mystery than entertain a
+thought so injurious to her whom he loved so tenderly.
+
+We said that Nisida had visited him on Saturday night. She had
+determined to essay her powers of mute persuasion once more ere she
+finally arranged with the bandit for his rescue. But that arrangement
+was not to take place; for on the Sabbath evening she was carried away,
+in the manner already described. And it was now, also, on that Sabbath
+evening that Wagner was pacing his dungeon--pondering on the probable
+result of his trial, and yet never ceasing to think of Nisida. His
+memory re-traveled all the windings, and wanderings, and ways which his
+feet had trodden during a long, long life, and paused to dwell upon that
+far back hour when he loved the maiden who became the wife of his first
+period of youth--for he was now in a second period of youth; and he felt
+that he did not love her so devotedly--so tenderly--so passionately as
+he loved Nisida now. Suddenly, as he paced his dungeon and pondered on
+the past as well as on the present, the lamp flickered; and, before he
+could replenish it with oil, the wick died in its socket. He had the
+means of procuring another light; but he cared not to avail himself
+thereof, and he was about to lay aside his vesture, preparatory to
+seeking his humble pallet, when he was struck by the appearance of a dim
+and misty luster which seemed to emanate from the wall facing the door.
+He was not alarmed; he had seen and passed through too much in this
+world to be readily terrified:--but he stood gazing, with intense
+curiosity and profound astonishment, upon that phenomenon for which his
+imagination suggested no natural cause.
+
+Gradually the luster became more powerful; but in the midst of it there
+appeared a dark cloud, which by degrees assumed the appearance of a
+human form; and in a few minutes Wagner beheld a tall, strange-looking
+figure standing before him.
+
+But assuredly that was no mortal being; for, apart from the mysterious
+mode in which he had introduced himself into the dungeon, there was on
+his countenance so withering--bitter--scornful--sardonic a smile, that
+never did human face wear so sinister an expression. And yet this being
+wore a human shape, and was attired in the habiliments of that age;--the
+long doublet, the tight hose, the trunk breeches, the short cloak, and
+the laced collar: but his slouched hat, instead of having a large and
+gracefully waving plume, was decorated with but a single feather.
+
+Fernand stood with fascinated gaze fixed upon the being whose eyes
+seemed to glare with subdued lightnings, like those of the basilisk.
+There was something awful in that form--something wildly and menacingly
+sinister in the sardonic smile that curled his lips as if with ineffable
+contempt, and with the consciousness of his own power!
+
+"Wagner!" he said, at length breaking silence, and speaking in a deep
+sonorous voice, which reverberated even in that narrow dungeon like the
+solemn tone of the organ echoing amidst cloistral roofs: "Wagner,
+knowest thou who the being is that now addresseth thee?"
+
+"I can conjecture," answered Fernand, boldly. "Thou art the Power of
+Darkness."
+
+"So men call me," returned the demon, with a scornful laugh, "Yes--I am
+he whose delight it is to spread desolation over a fertile and beautiful
+earth--he, whose eternal enmity against man is the fruitful source of so
+much evil! But of all the disciples who have ever yet aided me in my
+hostile designs on the human race, none was so serviceable as
+Faust--that Count of Aurana, whose portrait thou hast so well
+delineated, and which now graces the wall of thy late dwelling."
+
+"Would that I had never known him!" ejaculated Wagner fervently.
+
+"On the contrary," resumed the demon; "thou should'st be thankful that
+in the wild wanderings of his latter years he stopped at thy humble
+cottage in the Black Forest of Germany. Important to thee were the
+results of that visit--and still more important may they become!"
+
+"Explain thyself, fiend!" said Wagner, nothing dismayed.
+
+"Thou wast tottering with age--hovering on the brink of the
+tomb--suspended to a thread which the finger of a child might have
+snapped," continued the demon; "and in one short hour thou wast restored
+to youth, vigor, and beauty."
+
+"And by how dreadful a penalty was that renovated existence purchased!"
+exclaimed Wagner.
+
+"Hast thou not been taught by experience that no human happiness can be
+complete?--that worldly felicity must ever contain within itself some
+element of misery and distress?" demanded the fiend. "Reflect--and be
+just! Thou art once more young--and thy tenure of life will last until
+that age at which thou would'st have perished, had no superhuman power
+intervened to grant thee a new lease of existence! Nor is a long life
+the only boon conferred upon thee hitherto. Boundless wealth is ever at
+thy command; the floor of this dungeon would be strewed with gold, and
+jewels, and precious stones, at thy bidding--as thou well knowest!
+Moreover, thou wast ignorant--illiterate--uninformed: now all the
+sources of knowledge--all the springs of learning--all the fountains of
+science and art, are at thy disposal, and with whose waters thou canst
+slake the thirst of thine intellect. Endowed with a youthfulness and a
+vigor of form that will yield not to the weight of years--that will defy
+the pressure of time--and that no malady can impair,--possessed of
+wealth having no limit,--and enriched with a mind so stored with
+knowledge that the greatest sage is as a child in comparison with
+thee,--how darest thou complain or repent of the compact which has given
+to thee all these, though associated with the destiny of a Wehr-Wolf?"
+
+"It is of this fatal--this terrible destiny that I complain and that I
+repent," answered Wagner. "Still do I admit that the advantages which I
+have obtained by embracing that destiny are great."
+
+"And may be far greater!" added the demon, impressively. "Handsome,
+intelligent, and rich--all that thou dost require is power!"
+
+"Yes," exclaimed Wagner, eagerly--and now manifesting, for the first
+time since the appearance of the fiend in his cell, any particular
+emotion: "I have need of _power!_--power to avert those evils into which
+my sad destiny may plunge me,--power to dominate instead of being
+subject to the opinions of mankind,--power to prove my complete
+innocence of the dreadful crime now imputed to me,--power to maintain an
+untarnished reputation, to which I cling most lovingly,--power, too," he
+added in a slower and also a more subdued tone--"power to restore the
+lost faculties of hearing and speech to her whom I love."
+
+Strange was the smile that curled the demon's lips as Wagner breathed
+these last words.
+
+"You require power--power almost without limit," said the fiend, after a
+few moments' pause; "and that aim is within thy reach. Handsome,
+intelligent, and rich," he continued, dwelling on each word with marked
+emphasis, "how happy may'st thou be when possessed of the power to
+render available, in all their glorious extent, the gifts--the qualities
+wherewith thou art already endowed! When in the service of Faust--during
+those eighteen months which expired at the hour of sunset on the
+thirtieth of July, 1517----"
+
+"Alas!" cried Wagner, his countenance expressing emotions of
+indescribable horror; "remind me not of that man's fate! Oh!
+never--never can I forget the mental agony--the profound and soul-felt
+anguish which he experienced, and which he strove not to conceal, when
+at the gate of Vienna on that evening he bade me farewell--forever."
+
+"But thou wast happy--supremely happy in his service," said the demon;
+"and thou didst enjoy a fair opportunity of appreciating the value of
+the power which he possessed. By his superhuman aid wast thou
+transported from clime to clime--as rapidly as thought is transfused by
+the interchange of lovers' glances; and in that varied, bustling, busied
+life wast thou supremely happy. The people of Europe spoke of that
+western world, the discovery of which recently rewarded the daring
+venture of great navigators; and you were desirous to behold that new
+continent. Your master repeated the wish; and by my invisible agency, ye
+stood in a few moments in the presence of the red men of North America.
+Again--you accompanied your master to the eternal ice of the northern
+pole, and from the doorway of the Esquimaux hut he beheld the wondrous
+play of the boreal lights. On a third occasion, and in obedience to your
+wish, you stood with your master in the Island of Ceylon, where the
+first scene that presented itself to your view was an occurrence which,
+though terrible, is not uncommon in that reptile-infested clime.
+Afterward, my power--although its active agency was but partially known
+to you--transported you and the count your master--_now my victim_--to
+the fantastic and interesting scenes of China--then to the court of the
+wife-slaying tyrant of England, and subsequently to the most sacred
+privacy of the imperial palace at Constantinople. How varied have been
+thy travels!--how rapid thy movements. And that the scenes which thine
+eyes did thus contemplate made a profound impression upon thy mind is
+proved by the pictures now hanging to the walls of thy late dwelling."
+
+"But wherefore this recapitulation of everything I know so well
+already?" asked Wagner.
+
+"To remind thee of the advantages of that power which Faust, thy master,
+possessed, and which ceased to be available to thee when the term of his
+compact with myself arrived. Yes," continued the demon emphatically,
+"the powers which he possessed may be possessed by thee--and thou
+may'st, with a single word, at once and forever shake off the trammels
+of thy present doom--the doom of a Wehr-Wolf!"
+
+"Oh! to shake off those trammels, were indeed a boon to be desired!"
+exclaimed Wagner.
+
+"And to possess the power to gratify thy slightest whim," resumed the
+demon, "to possess the power to transport thyself at will to any clime,
+however distant--to be able to defy the machinations of men and the
+combination of adverse circumstances, such as have plunged thee into
+this dungeon--to be able, likewise, to say to thy beloved Nisida,
+'Receive back the faculties which thou hast lost----'"
+
+And again was the smile sinister and strange that played upon the lips
+of the demon. But Wagner noticed it not. His imagination was excited by
+the subtle discourse to which he had lent so ready an ear.
+
+"And hast _thou_ the power," he cried impatiently, "to render me thus
+powerful?"
+
+"I have," answered the demon.
+
+"But the terms--the conditions--the compact!" exclaimed Wagner, in
+feverish haste, though with foreboding apprehension.
+
+"THINE IMMORTAL SOUL!" responded the fiend, in a low but sonorous and
+horrifying whisper.
+
+"No--no!" shrieked Wagner, covering his face with his hands. "Avaunt,
+Satan, I defy thee! Ten thousand, thousand times preferable is the doom
+of the Wehr-Wolf, appalling even though that be!" With folded arms and
+scornful countenance, did the demon stand gazing upon Wagner, by the
+light of the supernatural luster which filled the cell.
+
+"Dost thou doubt my power?" he demanded, in a slow and imperious tone.
+"If so, put it to the test, unbelieving mortal that thou art! But
+remember--should'st thou require evidence of that power which I propose
+to make available to thee, it must not be to give thee liberty, nor
+aught that may enhance thy interest."
+
+"And any other evidence thou wilt give me?" asked Wagner, a sudden idea
+striking him.
+
+"Yes," answered the demon, who doubtless divined his thoughts, for again
+did a scornful smile play upon his lips. "I will convince thee, by any
+manifestation thou may'st demand, subject to the condition ere now
+named, I will convince thee that I am he whose power was placed at the
+disposal of thy late master, Faust, and by means of which thou wast
+transported, along with him, to every climate on the earth."
+
+"I will name my wish," said Wagner.
+
+"Speak!" cried the fiend.
+
+"Show me the Lady Nisida as she now is," exclaimed Fernand, his heart
+beating with the hope of beholding her whom he loved so devotedly; for,
+with all the jealousy of a lover, was he anxious to convince himself
+that she was thinking of him.
+
+"Ah! 'tis the same as with Faust and his Theresa," murmured the demon to
+himself; then aloud he said, "Rather ask me to show you the Lady Nisida
+as she will appear four days hence."
+
+"Be it so!" cried Wagner, moved by the mysterious warning those words
+appeared to convey.
+
+The demon extended his arm, and chanted in deep, sonorous tones, the
+following incantation:
+
+    "Ye powers of darkness who obey
+    Eternally my potent sway,
+    List to thy sovereign master's call!
+    Transparent make this dungeon wall;
+    And now annihilated be
+    The space 'twixt Florence and the sea!
+    Let the bright luster of the morn
+    In golden glory steep Leghorn;
+    Show where the dancing wavelets sport
+    Round the gay vessels in the port,
+    Those ships whose gilded lanterns gleam
+    In the warm sun's refulgent beam;
+    And whose broad pennants kiss the gale,
+    Woo'd also by the spreading sail!--
+    Now let this mortal's vision mark
+    Amidst that scene the corsair's bark,
+    Clearing the port with swan-like pride;
+    Transparent make the black hull's side,
+    And show the curtain'd cabin, where
+    Of earth's fair daughters the most fair--
+    Sits like an image of despair,
+      Mortal, behold! thy Nisida is there!"
+
+The strange phantasmagorian spectacle rapidly developed itself in
+obedience to the commands of the demon.
+
+First, it appeared to Wagner that the supernatural luster which pervaded
+the dungeon, gathered like a curtain on one side and occupied the place
+of the wall. This wondrous light became transparent, like a thin golden
+mist; and then the distant city of Leghorn appeared--producing an effect
+similar to that of the dissolving views now familiar to every one. The
+morning sun shone brightly on the fair scene; and a forest of masts
+stood out in bold relief against the western sky. The gilded lanterns on
+the poops of the vessels--the flags and streamers of various hues--the
+white sails of those ships that were preparing for sea--and the richly
+painted pinnaces that were shooting along in the channel between the
+larger craft rendered the scene surpassingly gay and beautiful.
+
+But amidst the shipping, Wagner's eyes were suddenly attracted by a
+large galley, with three masts--looking most rakish with its snow-white
+sail, its tapering spars, its large red streamer, and its low, long, and
+gracefully sweeping hull, which was painted jet black. On its deck were
+six pieces of brass ordnance; and stands of fire-arms were ranged round
+the lower parts of the masts.
+
+Altogether, the appearance of that vessel was as suspicious and menacing
+as it was gallant and graceful; and from the incantation of the demon,
+Wagner gleaned its real nature.
+
+And now--as that corsair-ship moved slowly out of the port of
+Leghorn--its black side suddenly seemed to open, or at least to become
+transparent; and the interior of a handsomely fitted up cabin was
+revealed.
+
+Fernand's heart had already sunk within him through foreboding
+apprehension; but now an ejaculation of mingled rage and grief burst
+from his lips, when, on a sofa in that cabin, he beheld his loved--his
+dearly loved Nisida, seated "like an image of despair," motionless and
+still, as if all the energies of her haughty soul, all the powers of her
+strong mind had been suddenly paralyzed by the weight of misfortune!
+
+Wagner stood gazing--unable to utter another word beyond that one
+ejaculation of mingled rage and grief--gazing--gazing, himself a kindred
+image of despair, upon this mysterious and unaccountable scene.
+
+But gradually the interior of the cabin grew more and more indistinct,
+until it was again completely shut in by the black side of the
+harbor--her dark hull disappearing by degrees, and melting away in the
+distance. Wagner dashed his open palm against his forehead, exclaiming,
+"Oh! Nisida--Nisida! who hath torn thee from me!"
+
+And he threw himself upon a seat, where he remained absorbed in a
+painful reverie, with his face buried in his hands--totally unmindful of
+the presence of the demon.
+
+Two or three minutes passed--during which Fernand was deliberating
+within himself whether he were the sport of a wild and fanciful vision,
+or whether he had actually received a warning of the fate which hung
+over Nisida.
+
+"Art thou satisfied with the proof of my power?" demanded a deep voice,
+sounding ominously upon his ear.
+
+He raised his hand with a spasmodic start; before him stood the demon
+with folded arms and scornful expression of countenance--and though the
+phantasmagorian scene had disappeared, the supernatural luster still
+pervaded the dungeon.
+
+"Fiend!" cried Wagner, impatiently; "thou hast mocked--thou hast
+deceived me!"
+
+"Thus do mortals ever speak, even when I give them a glimpse of their
+own eventual fate, through the medium of painful dreams and hideous
+nightmares," said the demon, sternly.
+
+"But who has dared--or rather, who _will_ dare--for that vision is a
+prospective warning of a deed to happen four days hence--who, then, I
+ask, will dare to carry off the Lady Nisida--my own loved and loving
+Nisida?" demanded Wagner, with increased impatience.
+
+"Stephano Verrina, the formidable captain of the Florentine banditti,
+has this night carried away thy lady-love, Wagner," replied the demon.
+"Thou hast yet time to save her; though the steed that bears her to
+Leghorn be fleet and strong, I can provide thee with a fleeter and a
+stronger. Nay, more--become mine, consent to serve me as Faust served
+me, and within an hour, within a minute if thou wilt, Nisida shall be
+restored to thee, she shall be released from the hands of her captors,
+thou shalt be free, and thy head shall be pillowed on her bosom, in
+whatever part of the earth it may suit thee thus to be united to her.
+Reflect, Wagner--I offer thee a great boon--nay, many great boons: the
+annihilation of those trammels which bind thee to the destiny of a
+wehr-wolf, power unlimited for the rest of thy days, and the immediate
+possession of that Nisida whom thou lovest so fondly, and who is so
+beautiful, so exceedingly beautiful."
+
+Desperate was the struggle that took place in the breast of Wagner. On
+one side was all he coveted on earth; on the other was the loss of the
+immortal soul. Here the possession of Nisida--there her forced abduction
+by a brigand; here his earthly happiness might be secured at the expense
+of his eternal welfare--there his eternal welfare must be renounced if
+he decided in favor of his earthly happiness. What was he to do? Nisida
+was weighing in the balance against his immortal soul: to have Nisida he
+must renounce his God!
+
+Oh! it was maddening--maddening, this bewilderment!
+
+"An hour--an hour to reflect!" he cried, almost frantically.
+
+"Not a quarter of an hour," returned the demon, "Nisida will be lost to
+you--haste--decide!"
+
+"Leave me--leave me for five minutes only!"
+
+"No--no, not for a minute. Decide--decide!"
+
+Wagner threw up his arms in the writhings of his ineffable anguish:--his
+right hand came in contact with a crucifix that hung against the wall;
+and he mechanically clutched it--not with any motive prepense--but
+wildly, unwittingly.
+
+Terrific was the expression of rage which suddenly distorted the
+countenance of the demon: the lightnings of ineffable fury seemed to
+flash from his eyes and play upon his contracting brow;--and yet a
+strong spasmodic shuddering at the same time convulsed his awful form;
+for as Wagner clung to the crucifix to prevent himself from falling at
+the feet of the malignant fiend, the symbol of Christianity was dragged
+by his weight from the wall--and, as Wagner reeled sideways, the cross
+which he retained with instinctive tenacity in his grasp, waved across
+the demon's face.
+
+Then, with a terrific howl of mingled rage and fear, the fiend fell back
+and disappeared through the earth--as if a second time hurled down in
+headlong flight before the thunderbolts of heaven. Wagner fell upon his
+knees and prayed fervently.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXVI.
+
+THE TRIAL OF FERNAND WAGNER.
+
+
+On the ensuing morning Wagner stood before the judge of the Criminal
+Tribunal of the Republic.
+
+The judgment hall was a large and lofty room in the Palazzo del Podesta,
+or ducal palace. The judges sat in antique and richly carved chairs,
+placed on a platform, beneath a canopy of purple velvet fringed with
+gold.
+
+On the left, at a handsome desk covered with papers, was seated the
+procurator fiscal or attorney-general of the republic, distinguished in
+attire from the judges only by the fact of the ermine upon his scarlet
+robe being narrower than theirs. Opposite to this functionary was a
+bench whereon the witnesses were placed. The prisoner stood between two
+sbirri in a small pew, in the center of the court. Defendants in civil
+cases were alone permitted in that age and country to retain counsel in
+their behalf; persons accused of crimes were debarred this privilege.
+Wagner was therefore undefended.
+
+The proceedings of the tribunal were usually conducted privately; but
+about a dozen gentlemen and twice as many ladies had obtained orders of
+admission on this occasion, the case having produced considerable
+sensation in Florence, on account of the reputed wealth of the accused.
+Perhaps, also, the rumor that he was a young man endowed with
+extraordinary personal attractions, had exercised its influence upon the
+susceptible hearts of the Florentine ladies. Certain it is, that when he
+was conducted into the judgment hall, his strikingly handsome
+exterior--his air of modest confidence--his graceful gait, and his
+youthful appearance, so far threw into the back-ground the crime imputed
+to him, that the ladies present felt their sympathies deeply enlisted in
+his behalf.
+
+The usher of the tribunal having commanded silence in a loud voice, the
+chief judge began the usual interrogatory of the prisoner.
+
+To the questions addressed to him, the accused replied that his name was
+Fernand Wagner; that he was a native of Germany; that he had no
+profession, avocation nor calling; that he was possessed of a large
+fortune; and that having traveled over many parts of the world, he
+settled in Florence, where he had hoped to enjoy a tranquil and peaceful
+existence.
+
+"The murdered female was reputed to be your sister," said the chief
+judge. "Was such the fact?"
+
+"She was a near relative," answered Wagner.
+
+"But was she your sister?" demanded the procurator fiscal.
+
+"She was not."
+
+"Then in what degree of relationship did she stand toward you?" asked
+the chief judge.
+
+"I must decline to reply to that question."
+
+"The tribunal infers, therefore, that the murdered female was not
+related to you at all," observed the judge. "Was she not your mistress?"
+
+"No, my lord!" cried Wagner, emphatically. "As truly as Heaven now hears
+my assertion, it was not so!"
+
+"Was she your wife?" demanded the chief judge.
+
+A negative answer was given.
+
+The chief judge and the procurator fiscal then by turns questioned and
+cross-questioned the prisoner in the most subtle manner, to induce him
+state the degree of relationship subsisting between himself and Agnes;
+but he either refused to respond to their queries, or else answered
+direct ones by means of a positive denial.
+
+The lieutenant of the sbirri was at length called upon to give an
+account of the discovery of the dead body and the suspicious
+circumstances which had led to the arrest of Wagner. Two of these
+circumstances appeared to be very strong against him. The first was the
+soiled and blood-stained appearance of the garments which were found in
+his chamber; the other was the exclamation--"But how know you that it is
+Agnes who is murdered?"--uttered before any one had informed who had
+been murdered.
+
+Wagner was called upon for an explanation. He stated that he had been
+out the whole night; that the blood upon his garments had flowed from
+his own body, which had been scratched and torn in the mazes of the
+woods; that on his return home he met Agnes in the garden; that he had
+left her there; and that he was told a young lady had been assassinated
+in the vicinity of his dwelling, he immediately conceived that the
+victim must be Agnes.
+
+When questioned concerning the motives of his absence from home during
+the entire night he maintained a profound silence; but he was evidently
+much agitated and excited by the queries thus put to him. He said
+nothing about the stranger-lady who had so frequently terrified Agnes;
+because, in relating the proceedings of that mysterious female in
+respect to his deceased grand-daughter--especially the incident of the
+abstraction of the antique jewels which the late Count of Riverola had
+given to her--he would have been compelled to enter into details
+concerning the _amour_ between those who were no more. And this subject
+he was solicitous to avoid, not only through respect for the memory of
+the murdered Agnes, but also to spare the feelings of Count Francisco
+and Donna Nisida.
+
+The judges and the procurator fiscal, finding that they could elicit
+nothing from Wagner relative to the cause of his absence from home
+during the night preceding the murder, passed on to another subject.
+
+"In an apartment belonging to your residence," said the chief judge,
+"there are several pictures and portraits."
+
+Wagner turned pale and trembled. The judge made a signal to an officer
+of the court, and that functionary quitted the judgment hall. In a few
+minutes he returned, followed by three subordinates bearing the two
+portraits mentioned in the sixth chapter of this tale, and also the
+frame covered over with the large piece of black cloth. On perceiving
+this last object, Wagner became paler still, and trembled violently.
+
+"There are six other pictures in the room whence these have been taken,"
+said the judge; "but these six are not of a character to interest the
+tribunal. We however require explanations concerning the two portraits
+and the frame with the black cloth cover now before us."
+
+The greatest excitement at present prevailed amongst the audience.
+
+"On one of the portraits," continued the chief judge, "there is an
+inscription to this effect,--_F., Count of A., terminated his career on
+the 1st. of August, 1517._--What does this inscription mean?"
+
+"It means that Faust, Count of Aurana, was a nobleman with whom I
+traveled during a period of eighteen months," replied Wagner; "and he
+died on the day mentioned in that inscription."
+
+"The world has heard strange reports relative to Faust," said the chief
+judge, in a cold voice and with unchanged manner, although the mention
+of that name had produced a thrill of horror on the part of his brother
+judges and the audience. "Art thou aware that rumor ascribes to him a
+compact with the Evil One?"
+
+Wagner gazed around him in horrified amazement, for the incident of the
+preceding night returned with such force to his mind that he could
+scarcely subdue an agonizing ebullition of emotion.
+
+The chief judge next recited the inscription on the other
+portrait:--"_F. W. January 7th, 1516. His last day thus._" But Wagner
+maintained a profound silence, and neither threats nor entreaties could
+induce him to give the least explanation concerning that inscription.
+
+"Let us then proceed to examine this frame with the black cloth cover,"
+said the chief judge.
+
+"My lord," whispered one of his brother judges, "in the name of the
+Blessed Virgin! have naught more to do with this man. Let him go forth
+to execution: he is a monster of atrocity, evidently a murderer,
+doubtless leagued with the Evil One, as Faust, of whose acquaintance he
+boasts, was before him----"
+
+"For my part, I credit not such idle tales," interrupted the chief
+judge, "and it is my determination to sift this matter to the very
+foundation. I am rather inclined to believe that the prisoner is allied
+with the banditti who infest the republic, than with any preterhuman
+powers. His absence from home during the entire night, according to his
+own admission, his immense wealth, without any ostensible resources, all
+justify my suspicion. Let the case proceed," added the chief judge
+aloud; for he had made the previous observations in a low tone. "Usher,
+remove the black cloth from the picture!"
+
+"No! no!" exclaimed Wagner, wildly: and he was about to rush from the
+dock, but the sbirri held him back. The usher's hand was already on the
+black cloth.
+
+"I beseech your lordship to pause!" whispered the assistant judge who
+had before spoken.
+
+"Proceed!" exclaimed the presiding functionary in a loud authoritative
+tone; for he was a bold and fearless man.
+
+And scarcely were these word uttered, when the black cloth was stripped
+from the frame; and the usher who had removed the covering recoiled with
+a cry of horror, as his eyes obtained a glimpse of the picture which was
+now revealed to view.
+
+"What means this folly?" ejaculated the chief judge. "Bring the picture
+hither."
+
+The usher, awed by the manner of this great functionary, raised the
+picture in such a way that the judges and the procurator fiscal might
+obtain a full view of it.
+
+"A Wehr-Wolf!" ejaculated the assistant judge, who had previously
+remonstrated with his superior; and his countenance became pale as
+death.
+
+The dreadful words were echoed by other tongues in the court; and a
+panic fear seized on all save the chief judge and Wagner himself. The
+former smiled contemptuously, the latter had summoned all his courage to
+aid him to pass through this terrible ordeal without confirming by his
+conduct the dreadful suspicion which had been excited in respect to him.
+
+For, oh! the subject of that picture was indeed awful to contemplate! It
+had no inscription, but it represented, with the most painful and
+horrifying fidelity, the writhings and agonizing throes of the human
+being during the progress of transformation into the lupine monster. The
+countenance of the unhappy man had already elongated into one of savage
+and brute-like shape; and so admirably had art counterfeited nature,
+that the rich garments seemed changed into a rough, shaggy, and wiry
+skin! The effect produced by that picture was indeed of thrilling and
+appalling interest!
+
+"A Wehr-Wolf!" had exclaimed one of the assistant judges: and while the
+voices of several of the male spectators in the body of the court echoed
+the words mechanically, the ladies gave vent to screams, as they rushed
+toward the doors of the tribunal. In a few moments that part of the
+court was entirely cleared.
+
+"Prisoner!" exclaimed the chief judge, "have you ought more to advance
+in your defense, relative to the charge of murder?"
+
+"My lord, I am innocent!" said Wagner, firmly but respectfully.
+
+"The tribunal pronounces you guilty!" continued the chief judge: then,
+with a scornful smile toward his assistants and the procurator
+fiscal--who all three, as well as the sbirri and the officers of the
+court were pale and trembling with vague fear--the presiding functionary
+continued thus:--"The tribunal condemns you, Fernand Wagner, to death by
+the hand of the common headsman; and it is now my duty to name the day
+and fix the hour for your execution. Therefore I do ordain that the
+sentence just pronounced be carried into effect precisely at the hour of
+sunset on the last day of the present month!"
+
+"My lord! my lord!" exclaimed the procurator fiscal; "the belief is that
+on the last day of each month, and at the hour of sunset----"
+
+"I am aware of the common superstition," interrupted the chief judge,
+coldly and sternly; "and it is to convince the world of the folly of
+putting faith in such legends that I have fixed that day and that hour
+in the present instance. Away with the prisoner to his dungeon."
+
+And the chief judge waved his hand imperiously, to check any further
+attempts at remonstrance; but his assistant functionaries, the
+procurator fiscal and the officers of the court, surveyed him with
+mingled surprise and awe, uncertain whether they ought to applaud his
+courage or tremble at his rashness. Wagner had maintained a calm and
+dignified demeanor during the latter portion of the proceedings; and,
+although the sbirri who had charge of him ventured not to lay a finger
+upon him, he accompanied them back to the prison of the Palazzo del
+Podesta.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXVII.
+
+THE SHIPWRECK.
+
+
+Ten days had elapsed since the incidents related in the preceding
+chapter. The scene changes to an island in the Mediterranean Sea. There,
+seated on the strand, with garments dripping wet, and with all the
+silken richness of her raven hair floating wildly and disheveled over
+her shoulders, the Lady Nisida gazed vacantly on the ocean, now tinged
+with living gold by the morning sun. At a short distance, a portion of a
+shipwrecked vessel lay upon the shore, and seemed to tell her tale. But
+where were the desperate, daring crew who had manned the gallant bark?
+where were those fearless freebooters who six days previously had sailed
+from Leghorn on their piratical voyage? where were those who hoisted the
+flag of peace and assumed the demeanor of honest trader when in port,
+but who on the broad bosom of the ocean carried the terrors of their
+black banner far and wide? where, too, was Stephano Verrina, who had so
+boldly carried off the Lady Nisida?
+
+The gallant bark had struck upon a shoal, during the tempest and the
+obscurity of the night, and the pilot knew not where they were. His
+reckoning was lost--his calculations had all been set at naught by the
+confusion produced by the fearful storm which had assailed the ship and
+driven her from her course. The moment the corsair galley struck, that
+confusion increased to such an extent that the captain lost all control
+over his men; the pilot's voice was unheeded likewise.
+
+The crew got out the long-boat and leaped into it, forcing the captain
+and the pilot to enter it with them. Stephano Verrina, who was on deck
+when the vessel struck, rushed down into the cabin appropriated to
+Nisida, and by signs endeavored to convey to her a sense of the danger
+which menaced them. Conquering her ineffable aversion for the bandit,
+Nisida followed him hastily to the deck. At the same instant that her
+eyes plunged, as it were, into the dense obscurity which prevailed
+around, the lightning streamed in long and vivid flashes over the
+turbulent waters, and with the roar of the billows suddenly mingled
+deafening shrieks and cries--shrieks and cries of wild despair, as the
+long-boat, which had been pushed away from the corsair-bark, went down
+at a little distance. And as the lightning played upon the raging sea,
+Nisida and Verrina caught hurried but frightful glimpses of many human
+faces, whereon was expressed the indescribable agony of the drowning.
+
+"Perdition!" cried Verrina; "all are gone save Nisida and myself! And
+shall we too perish ere she has become mine? shall death separate us ere
+I have reveled in her charms? Fool that I was to delay my triumph
+hitherto! Fool that I was to be overawed by her impetuous signs, or
+melted by her silent though strong appeals!"
+
+He paced the deck in an excited manner as he uttered these words aloud.
+
+"No!" he exclaimed wildly, as the tempest seemed to increase, and the
+ship was thrown further on shoal: "she shall not escape me thus, after
+all I have done and dared in order to possess her! Our funeral may take
+place to-night--but our bridal shall be first. Ha! ha!"--and he laughed
+with a kind of despairing mockery, while the fragments of the vessel's
+sails flapped against the spars with a din as if some mighty demon were
+struggling with the blast. The sense of appalling danger seemed to
+madden Stephano only because it threatened to separate him from Nisida;
+and, fearfully excited, he rushed toward her, crying wildly, "You shall
+be mine!"
+
+But how terrible was the yell which burst from his lips, when by the
+glare of a brilliant flash of lightning, he beheld Nisida cast herself
+over the side of the vessel!
+
+For a single instant he fell back appalled, horror-struck; but at the
+next, he plunged with insensate fury after her. And the rage of the
+storm redoubled.
+
+When the misty shades of morning cleared away, and the storm had passed,
+Nisida was seated alone upon the strand, having miraculously escaped
+that eternal night of death which leads to no dawn. But where was
+Stephano Verrina? She knew not; although she naturally conjectured, and
+even hoped, that he was numbered with the dead.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXVIII.
+
+THE ISLAND IN THE MEDITERRANEAN SEA.
+
+
+Fair and beauteous was the Mediterranean isle whereon the Lady Nisida
+had been thrown.
+
+When the morning mists had dispersed, and the sunbeams tinged the ridges
+of the hills and the summits of the tallest trees, Nisida awoke as it
+were from the profound lethargic reverie in which she had been plunged
+for upward of an hour, since the moment when the billows had borne her
+safely to the shore.
+
+The temperature of that island was warm and genial, for there eternal
+summer reigned, and thus, though her garments were still dripping wet,
+Nisida experienced no cold. She rose from the bank of sand whereon she
+had been seated, and cast anxious, rapid, and searching glances around
+her. Not a human being met her eyes; but in the woods that stretched,
+with emerald pride, almost down to the golden sands, the birds and
+insects--nature's free commoners--sent forth the sounds of life and
+welcomed the advent of the morn with that music of the groves.
+
+The scenery which now presented itself to the contemplation of Nisida
+was indescribably beautiful. Richly wooded hills rose towering above
+each other with amphitheatrical effect; and behind the verdant panorama
+were the blue outlines of pinnacles of naked rocks. But not a trace of
+the presence of human beings was to be seen--not a hamlet, nor a
+cottage, nor the slightest sign of agriculture! At a short distance lay
+a portion of the wreck of the corsair-ship. The fury of the tempest of
+the preceding night had thrown it so high upon the shoal whereon it had
+struck, and the sea was now comparatively so calm, that Nisida was
+enabled to approach close up to it. With little difficulty she succeeded
+in reaching the deck,--that deck whose elastic surface lately vibrated
+to the tread of many daring, desperate young men--but now desolate and
+broken in many parts.
+
+The cabin which had been allotted to her, or rather to which she had
+been confined, was in the portion of the wreck that still remained; and
+there she found a change of raiment, which Stephano had provided ere the
+vessel left Leghorn. Carefully packing up these garments in as small and
+portable a compass as possible, she fastened the burden upon her
+shoulders by the means of a cord, and, quitting the vessel, conveyed it
+safe and dry to the shore.
+
+Then she returned again to the wreck in search of provisions,
+considerable quantities of which she fortunately found to be uninjured
+by the water; and these she was enabled to transport to the strand by
+means of several journeys backward and forward between the shore and the
+wreck. The occupation was not only necessary in order to provide the
+wherewith to sustain life, but it also abstracted her thoughts from a
+too painful contemplation of her position. It was long past the hour of
+noon when she had completed her task; and the shore in the immediate
+vicinity of the wreck was piled with a miscellaneous assortment of
+objects--bags of provisions, weapons of defense, articles of the toilet,
+clothing, pieces of canvas, cordage, and carpenter's tools. Then,
+wearied with her arduous toils, she laid aside her dripping garments,
+bathed her beauteous form in the sea, and attired herself in dry
+apparel.
+
+Having partaken of some refreshment, she armed herself with weapons of
+defense, and quitting the shore, entered upon that vast amphitheater of
+verdure to which we have already slightly alluded. The woods were thick
+and tangled; but though, when seen from the shore, they appeared to form
+one dense, uninterrupted forest, yet they in reality only dotted the
+surface of the islands with numerous detached patches of grove and
+copse; and in the intervals were verdant plains or delicious valleys,
+exhibiting not the slightest sign of agriculture, but interspersed with
+shrubs and trees laden with fruits rich and tempting.
+
+Nature had indeed profusely showered her bounties over that charming
+isle; for the trees glowed with their blushing or golden produce, as if
+gems were the fruitage of every bough.
+
+Through one of the delicious valleys which Nisida explored, a streamlet,
+smooth as a looking-glass, wound its way. To its sunny bank did the lady
+repair; and the pebbly bed of the river was seen as plainly through the
+limpid waters as an eyeball through a tear.
+
+Though alone was Nisida in that vale, and though many bitter
+reflections, deep regrets, and vague apprehensions crowded upon her
+soul; yet the liveliness of the scene appeared to diminish the
+intenseness of the feelings of utter solitude, and its soft influence
+partially lulled the waves of her emotions. For never had mortal eyes
+beheld finer fruit upon the trees, nor lovelier flowers upon the soil;
+all life was rejoicing, from the grasshopper at her feet to the
+feathered songsters in the myrtle, citron, and olive groves; and the
+swan glided past to the music of the stream. Above, the heavens were
+more clear than her own Italian clime, more blue than any color that
+tinges the flowers of the earth.
+
+She roved along the smiling bank which fringed the stream until the
+setting sun dyed with the richest purple the rocky pinnacles in the
+distance, and made the streamlet glow like a golden flood. And
+Nisida--alone, in the radiance and glory of her own charms--alone amidst
+all the radiance and glory of the charms of nature--the beauteous Nisida
+appeared to be the queen of that Mediterranean isle. But whether it were
+really an island or a portion of the three continents which hem in that
+tideless ocean, the lady as yet knew not.
+
+Warned by the splendors of the setting sun to retrace her way, she
+turned and sped back to the strand, where the stores she had saved from
+the wreck were heaped up. When first she had set out upon her exploring
+ramble, she had expected every moment to behold human forms--her
+fellow-creatures--emerge from the woods; but the more she saw of that
+charming spot whereon her destinies had thrown her, the fainter grew the
+hope or the fear--we scarcely know which to term the expectation. For no
+sign of the presence of man was there; Nature appeared to be the
+undisputed empress of that land; and Nisida returned to the shore with
+the conviction that she was the sole human inhabitant of this delicious
+region.
+
+And now, once more seated upon the strand, while the last beams of the
+sun played upon the wide blue waters of the Mediterranean, Nisida
+partook of her frugal repast, consisting of the bread supplied by the
+wreck and a few fruits which she gathered in the valley. The effects of
+the tempest had totally disappeared in respect to the sea, which now lay
+stretched in glassy stillness. It seemed as if a holy calm, soft as an
+infant's sleep, lay upon the bosom of the Mediterranean, now no longer
+terrible with storm, but a mighty emblem of mild majesty and rest!
+
+Nisida thought of the fury which had lately convulsed that sea, now so
+placid, and sighed at the conviction which was forced upon her--that no
+such calm was for the mortal breast when storms had once been there! For
+she pondered on her native land, now, perhaps, far--oh! how far away;
+and the images of those whom she loved appeared to rise before
+her--Francisco in despair at his sister's unaccountable
+disappearance--and Fernand perchance already doomed to die! And tears
+flowed down her cheeks, and trickled upon her snowy bosom, gleaming like
+dew amongst lilies. Of what avail was the energy of her character in
+that land along whose coast stretched the impassable barrier of the sea?
+Oh! it was enough to make even the haughty Nisida weep, and to produce a
+terrible impression on a mind hitherto acting only in obedience to its
+own indomitable will.
+
+Though the sun had set some time, and no moon had yet appeared in the
+purple sky, yet was it far from dark. An azure mantle of twilight seemed
+to wrap the earth--the sea--the heavens; and so soft, so overpowering
+was the influence of the scene and of the night, that slumber gradually
+stole upon the lady's eyes. There now, upon the warm sand, slept Nisida;
+and when the chaste advent of the moon bathed all in silver, as the sun
+had for twelve hours steeped all in gold, the beams of the goddess of
+the night played on her charming countenance without awakening her. The
+raven masses of her hair lay upon her flushed cheeks like midnight on a
+bed of roses, her long black lashes reposed on those cheeks, so
+surpassingly lovely with their rich carnation hues. For she dreamt of
+Fernand; and her vision was a happy one. Imagination played wild tricks
+with the shipwrecked, lonely lady, as if to recompense her for the
+waking realities of her sad position. She thought that she was reposing
+in the delicious valley which she had explored in the afternoon--she
+thought that Fernand was her companion--that she lay in his arms--that
+his lips pressed hers--that she was all to him as he was all to her, and
+that love's cup of enjoyment was full to the very brim.
+
+But, oh! when she slowly awoke, and under the influence of the
+delightful vision, raised her eyes in the dewy light of voluptuous
+languor to the blue sky above her, the sunbeams that were heralding in
+another day cruelly dispelled the enchanting illusions of a warm and
+excited fancy, and Nisida found herself alone on the sea-shore of the
+island.
+
+Thus the glory of that sunrise had no charms for her; although never had
+the orb of day come forth with greater pomp, nor to shine on a lovelier
+scene. No words can convey an idea of the rapid development of every
+feature in the landscape, the deeper and deepening tint of the glowing
+sky, the roseate hue of the mountain-peaks as they stood out against the
+cloudless orient, and the rich emerald shades of the woods sparkling
+with fruit. The fragrant rose and the chaste lily, the blushing peony
+and the gaudy tulip, and all the choicest flowers of that delicious
+clime, expanded into renewed loveliness to greet the sun: and the citron
+and the orange, the melon and the grape, the pomegranate and the date
+drank in the yellow light to nourish their golden hues.
+
+Nisida's eyes glanced rapidly over the vast expanse of waters, and swept
+the horizon: but there was not a sail, nor even a cloud which
+imagination might transform into the white wing of a distant ship. And
+now upon the golden sand the lovely Nisida put off her garments one by
+one: and set at liberty the dark masses of her shining hair, which
+floated like an ample veil of raven blackness over the dazzling
+whiteness of her skin. Imagination might have invested her forehead with
+a halo, so magnificent was the lustrous effect of the sun upon the
+silken glossiness of that luxuriant hair.
+
+The Mediterranean was the lady's bath: and, in spite of the oppressive
+nature of the waking thoughts which had succeeded her delicious dream,
+in spite of that conviction of loneliness which lay like a weight of
+lead upon her soul, she disported in the waters like a mermaid.
+
+Now she plunged beneath the surface, which glowed in the sun like a vast
+lake of quicksilver: now she stood in a shallow spot, where the water
+rippled no higher than her middle, and combed out her dripping tresses;
+then she waded further in, and seemed to rejoice in allowing the little
+wavelets to kiss her snowy bosom. No fear had she, indeed, no thought of
+the monsters of the deep: could the fair surface of the shining water
+conceal aught dangerous or aught terrible? Oh! yes, even as beneath that
+snowy breast beat a heart stained with crime, often agitated by ardent
+and impetuous passions, and devoured by raging desire.
+
+For nearly an hour did Nisida disport in Nature's mighty bath until the
+heat of the sun became so intense that she was compelled to return to
+the shore and resume her apparel. Then she took some bread in her hand,
+and hastened to the groves to pluck the cooling and delicious fruits
+whereof there was so marvelous an abundance. She seated herself on a bed
+of wild flowers on the shady side of a citron and orange grove,
+surrounded by a perfumed air. Before her stretched the valley, like a
+vast carpet of bright green velvet fantastically embroidered with
+flowers of a thousand varied hues. And in the midst meandered the
+crystal stream, with stately swans and an infinite number of other
+aquatic birds floating on its bosom. And the birds of the groves, too,
+how beautiful were they, and how joyous did they seem! What variegated
+plumage did they display, as they flew past the Lady Nisida, unscared by
+her presence! Some of them alighted from the overhanging boughs, and as
+they descended swept her very hair with their wings; then, almost to
+convince her that she was not an unwelcome intruder in that charming
+land, they hopped round her, picking up the crumbs of bread which she
+scattered about to attract them.
+
+For the loneliness of her condition had already attuned the mind of this
+strange being to a susceptibility of deriving amusement from incidents
+which a short time previously she would have looked upon as the most
+insane triflings;--thus was the weariness of her thoughts relieved by
+disporting in the water, as we ere now saw her, or by contemplating the
+playfulness of the birds. Presently she wandered into the vale, and
+gathered a magnificent nosegay of flowers: then the whim struck her that
+she would weave for herself a chaplet of roses; and as her work
+progressed, she improved upon it, and fashioned a beauteous diadem of
+flowers to protect her head from the scorching noonday sun.
+
+But think not, O reader! that while thus diverting herself with
+trivialities of which you would scarcely have deemed the
+haughty--imperious--active disposition of Nisida of Riverola to be
+capable--think not that her mind was altogether abstracted from
+unpleasant thoughts. No--far, very far from that! She was merely
+relieved from a portion of that weight which oppressed her; but her
+entire burden could not be removed from her soul. There were moments
+when her grief amounted almost to despair. Was she doomed to pass the
+remainder of her existence in that land? was it really an island and
+unknown to navigators? She feared so: for did it join a continent, its
+loveliness and fruitfulness would not have permitted it to remain long
+unoccupied by those who must of necessity discover it.
+
+And oh! what would her brother think of her absence? what would Fernand
+conjecture? And what perils might not at that moment envelop her lover,
+while she was not near to succor him by means of her artifice, her
+machinations, or her gold. Ten thousand-thousand maledictions upon
+Stephano, who was the cause of all her present misery! Ten
+thousand-thousand maledictions on her own folly for not having exerted
+all her energies and all her faculties to escape from his power, ere she
+was conveyed on board the corsair ship, and it was too late!
+
+But useless now were regrets and repinings; for the past could not be
+recalled, and the future might have much happiness in store for Nisida.
+For oh! sweetest comes the hope which is lured back because its presence
+is indispensable; and, oppressed as Nisida was with the weight of her
+misfortunes, her soul was too energetic, too sanguine, too impetuous to
+yield to despair.
+
+Day after day passed, and still not a ship appeared. Nisida did not
+penetrate much further into the island than the valley which we have
+described, and whither she was accustomed to repair to gather the
+flowers that she wove into diadems. She lingered for the most part near
+the shore on which she had been thrown, fearing lest, if away, a ship
+might pass in her absence.
+
+Each day she bathed her beauteous form in the Mediterranean; each day
+she devoted some little time to the adornment of her person with wreaths
+of flowers. She wove crowns for her head--necklaces, bracelets, and
+scarfs,--combining the flowers so as to form the most wild and fanciful
+devices, and occasionally surveying herself in the natural mirror
+afforded her by the limpid stream. Purposely wearing an apparel as
+scanty as possible, on account of the oppressive heat which prevailed
+during each day of twelve long hours, and which was not materially
+moderated at night, she supplied to some extent the place of the
+superfluous garments thus thrown aside, by means of tissues of cool,
+refreshing, fragrant flowers.
+
+Thus, by the time she had been ten or twelve days upon the island, her
+appearance seemed most admirably to correspond with her new and lonely
+mode of life, and the spot where her destinies had cast her. Habited in
+a single linen garment, confined round the slender waist with a cestus
+of flowers, and with light slippers upon her feet, but with a diadem of
+roses on her head, and with wreaths round her bare arms, and her equally
+bare ankles, she appeared to be the goddess of that island--the genius
+of that charming clime of fruits, and verdure, and crystal streams, and
+flowers. The majesty of her beauty was softened, and thus enhanced, by
+the wonderful simplicity of her attire; the dazzling brilliancy of her
+charms was subdued by the chaste, the innocent, the primitive aspect
+with which those fantastically woven flowers invested her. Even the
+extraordinary luster of her fine dark eyes was moderated by the gaudy
+yet elegant assemblage of hues formed by those flowers which she wore.
+Was it not strange that she whose soul we have hitherto seen bent on
+deeds or schemes of stern and important nature--who never acted without
+a motive, and whose mind was far too deeply occupied with worldly cares
+and pursuits to bestow a thought on trifles--who, indeed, would have
+despised herself had she wasted a moment in toying with a flower, or
+watching the playful motions of a bird,--was it not strange that Nisida
+should have become so changed as we now find her in that island of which
+she was the queen?
+
+Conceive that same Nisida who planned dark plots against Flora
+Francatelli, now tripping along the banks of the sunlit stream, bedecked
+with flowers and playing with the swans. Imagine that same being, who
+dealt death to Agnes, now seated beneath the shade of myrtles and
+embowering vines, distributing bread or pomegranate seeds to the birds
+that hopped cheerfully around her. Picture to yourself that woman of
+majestic beauty, whom you have seen clad in black velvet and wearing a
+dark thick veil, now weaving for herself garments of flowers, and
+wandering in the lightest possible attire by the seashore, or by the
+rippling stream, or amidst the mazes of the fruit-laden groves.
+
+And sometimes, as she sat upon the yellow sand, gazing on the wavelets
+of the Mediterranean, that were racing one after another, like living
+things from some far off region, to that lovely but lonely isle, it
+would seem as if all the low and sweet voices of the sea--never loud and
+sullen now, since the night of storm which cast her on that strand--were
+heard by her, and made delicious music to her ears! In that island must
+we leave her now for a short space,--leave her to her birds, her
+flowers, and her mermaid-sports in the sea,--leave her also to her
+intervals of dark and dismal thoughts, and to her long, but ineffectual
+watchings for the appearance of a sail in the horizon.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XXXIX.
+
+THE WEHR-WOLF.
+
+
+It was the last day of the month; and the hour of sunset was fast
+approaching. Great was the sensation that prevailed throughout the city
+of Florence. Rumor had industriously spread, and with equal assiduity
+exaggerated, the particulars of Fernand Wagner's trial, and the belief
+that a man on whom the horrible destiny of a Wehr-Wolf had been
+entailed, was about to suffer the extreme penalty of the law, was
+generally prevalent.
+
+The great square of the ducal palace, where the scaffold was erected, was
+crowded with the Florentine populace; and the windows were literally alive
+with human faces. Various were the emotions and feelings which influenced
+that mass of spectators. The credulous and superstitious--forming more
+than nine-tenths of the whole multitude--shook their heads, and
+commented amongst themselves, in subdued whispers, on the profane
+rashness of the chief judge, who dared to doubt the existence of such a
+being as a Wehr-Wolf. The few who shared the skepticism of the judge
+applauded that high functionary for his courage in venturing so bold a
+stroke in order to destroy what he and they deemed an idle superstition.
+
+But the great mass were dominated by a profound and indeed most painful
+sensation of awe; curiosity induced them to remain, though their
+misgivings prompted them to fly from the spot which had been fixed upon
+for the execution. The flowers of Florentine loveliness--and never in
+any age did the republic boast of so much female beauty--were present:
+but bright eyes flashed forth uneasy glances, and snowy bosoms beat with
+alarms, and fair hands trembled in the lover's pressure. In the midst of
+the square was raised a high platform covered with black cloth, and
+presenting an appearance so ominous and sinister that it was but little
+calculated to revive the spirits of the timid. On this scaffold was a
+huge block: and near the block stood the headsman, carelessly leaning on
+his ax, the steel of which was polished and bright as silver. A few
+minutes before the hour of sunset, the chief judge, the procurator
+fiscal, the two assistant-judges, and the lieutenant of sbirri, attended
+by a turnkey and several subordinate police officers, were repairing in
+procession along the corridor leading to the doomed prisoner's cell.
+
+The chief judge alone was dignified in manner; and he alone wore a
+demeanor denoting resolution and at the same time self-possession. Those
+who accompanied him were, without a single exception, a prey to the most
+lively fear; and it was evident that had they dared to absent themselves
+they would not have been present on this occasion. At length the door of
+the prisoner's cell was reached; and there the procession paused.
+
+"The moment is now at hand," said the chief judge, "when a monstrous and
+ridiculous superstition, imported into our country from that cradle and
+nurse of preposterous legends--Germany--shall be annihilated forever.
+This knave who is about to suffer has doubtless propagated the report of
+his lupine destiny, in order to inspire terror and thus prosecute his
+career of crime and infamy with the greater security from chances of
+molestation. For this end he painted the picture which appalled so many
+of you in the judgment hall, but which, believe, my friends, he did not
+always believe destined to retain its sable covering. Well did he know
+that the curiosity of a servant or of a friend would obtain a peep
+beneath the mystic veil; and he calculated that the terror with which he
+sought to invest himself would be enhanced by the rumors and
+representations spread by those who had thus penetrated into its feigned
+secrets. But let us not waste that time which now verges toward a
+crisis, whereby doubt shall be dispelled and a ridiculous superstition
+destroyed forever."
+
+At this moment a loud, a piercing, and an agonizing cry burst from the
+interior of the cell.
+
+"The knave has overheard me, and would fain strike terror to your
+hearts!" exclaimed the chief judge; then in a still louder tone, he
+commanded the turnkey to open the door of the dungeon. But when the man
+approached, so strange, so awful, so appalling were the sounds which
+came from the interior of the cell, that he threw down the key in dismay
+and rushed from the dreadful vicinity.
+
+"My lord, I implore you to pause!" said the procurator fiscal, trembling
+from head to foot.
+
+"Would you have me render myself ridiculous in the eyes of all
+Florence?" demanded the chief judge sternly.
+
+Yet, so strange were now the noises which came from the interior of the
+dungeon--so piercing the cries of agony--so violent the rustling and
+tossing on the stone floor, that for the first time this bold
+functionary entertained a partial misgiving, as if he had indeed gone
+too far. But to retreat was impossible; and, with desperate resolution,
+the chief judge picked up the key and thrust it into the lock.
+
+His assistants, the procurator fiscal, and the sbirri drew back with
+instinctive horror, as the bolts groaned in the iron work which held
+them; the chain fell with a clanking sound; and as the door was opened,
+the horrible monster burst forth from the dungeon with a terrific howl.
+Yells and cries of despair reverberated through the long corridor: and
+those sounds were for an instant broken by that of the falling of a
+heavy body.
+
+'Twas the chief judge, hurled down and dashed violently against the
+rough uneven masonry, by the mad careering of the Wehr-Wolf as the
+monster burst from his cell. On, on he sped, with the velocity of
+lightning, along the corridor, giving vent to howls of the most
+horrifying description.
+
+Fainting with terror, the assistant judges, the procurator fiscal, and
+the sbirri were for a few moments so overcome by the appalling scene
+they had just witnessed, that they thought not of raising the chief
+judge, who lay motionless on the pavement. But at length some of the
+police-officers so far recovered themselves as to be able to devote
+attention to that high functionary--it was, however, too late--his skull
+was fractured by the violence with which he had been dashed against the
+rough wall, and his brains were scattered on the pavement. Those who now
+bent over his disfigured corpse exchanged looks of unutterable horror.
+
+In the meantime the Wehr-Wolf had cleared the corridor, rapid as an
+arrow shot from the bow; he sprung, bounding up a flight of steep stone
+stairs as if the elastic air bore him on, and rushing through an open
+door, burst suddenly upon the crowd that was so anxiously waiting to
+behold the procession issue thence.
+
+Terrific was the yell that the multitude sent forth--a yell formed of a
+thousand combining voices, so long, so loud, so wildly agonizing, that
+never had the welkin rung with so appalling an ebullition of human
+misery before! Madly rushed the wolf amidst the people, dashing them
+aside, overturning them, hurling them down, bursting through the mass
+too dense to clear a passage of its own accord, and making the scene of
+horror more horrible still by mingling his hideous howlings with the
+cries--the shrieks--the screams that escaped from a thousand tongues.
+
+No pen can describe the awful scene of confusion and death which now
+took place. Swayed by no panic fear, but influenced by terrors of
+dreadful reality, the people exerted all their force to escape from that
+spot; and thus the struggling, crushing, pushing, crowding, fighting,
+and all the oscillations of a multitude set in motion by the direst
+alarms, were succeeded by the most fatal results. Women were thrown down
+and trampled to death, strong men were scarcely able to maintain their
+footing, many females were literally suffocated in the pressure of the
+crowd, and mothers with young children in their arms excited no
+sympathy.
+
+Never was the selfishness of human nature more strikingly displayed than
+on this occasion: no one bestowed a thought upon his neighbor: the
+chivalrous Florentine citizens dashed aside the weak and helpless female
+who barred his way with as little remorse as if she were not a being of
+flesh and blood; and even husbands forgot their wives, lovers abandoned
+their mistresses, and parents waited not an instant to succor their
+daughters.
+
+Oh! it was a terrible thing to contemplate, that dense mass, oscillating
+furiously like the waves of the sea, sending up to heaven such appalling
+sounds of misery, rushing furiously toward the avenues of egress,
+falling back baffled and crushed, in the struggle where only the very
+strongest prevailed, laboring to escape from death, and fighting for
+life, fluctuating and rushing, and wailing in maddening excitement like
+a raging ocean. Oh! all this wrought a direful sublimity, with those
+cries of agony and that riot of desperation. And all this while the wolf
+pursued its furious career, amid the mortal violence of a people thrown
+into horrible disorder, pursued its way with savage howls, glaring eyes,
+and foaming mouth, the only living being there that was infuriate and
+not alarmed, battling for escape, and yet unhurt.
+
+As a whirlpool suddenly assails the gallant ship, makes her agitate and
+rock fearfully for a few moments and then swallows her up altogether, so
+was the scaffold in the midst of the square shaken to its very basis for
+a little space, and then hurled down, disappearing altogether amidst the
+living vortex.
+
+In the balconies and at the windows overlooking the square, the awful
+excitement spread like wild-fire, and a real panic prevailed among those
+who were at least beyond the reach of danger. But horror paralyzed the
+power of sober reflection, and the hideous spectacle of volumes of human
+beings battling, and roaring, and rushing, and yelling in terrific
+frenzy, produced a kindred effect, and spread the wild delirium among
+the spectators at those balconies and those windows. At length, in the
+square below, the crowds began to pour forth from the gates, for the
+Wehr-Wolf had by this time cleared himself a passage and escaped from
+the midst of that living ocean so fearfully agitated by the storms of
+fear. But even when the means of egress were thus obtained, the most
+frightful disorder prevailed, the people rolling in heaps upon heaps,
+while infuriate and agile men ran on the tops of the compact masses, and
+leapt in their delirium, as with barbarous intent.
+
+On--on sped the Wehr-Wolf, dashing like a whirlwind through the streets
+leading to the open country, the white flakes of foam flying from his
+mouth like spray from the prow of a vessel, and every fiber of his frame
+vibrating as if in agony. And oh! what dismay--what terror did that
+monster spread in the thoroughfares through which he passed; how wildly,
+how madly flew the men and women from his path; how piteously screamed
+the children at the house-doors in the poor neighborhoods! But, as if
+sated with the destruction already wrought in the great square of the
+palace, the wolf dealt death no more in the precincts of the city; as if
+lashed on by invisible demons, his aim, or his instinct, was to escape.
+
+The streets are threaded, the suburbs of the city are passed, the open
+country is gained; and now along the bank of the Arno rushes the
+monster, by the margin of that pure stream to whose enchanting vale the
+soft twilight lends a more delicious charm.
+
+On the verge of a grove, with its full budding branches all impatient
+for the spring, a lover and his mistress were murmuring fond language to
+each other. In the soft twilight blushed the maiden, less in bashfulness
+than in her own soul's emotion, her countenance displaying all the magic
+beauty not only of feature but of feeling; and she raised her large blue
+eyes in the dewy light of a sweet enthusiasm to the skies, as the
+handsome youth by her side pressed her fair hand and said, "We must now
+part until to-morrow, darling of my soul! How calmly has this day, with
+all its life and brightness, passed away into the vast tomb of eternity.
+It is gone without a single hour's unhappiness for us--gone without
+leaving a regret on our minds--gone, too, without clouds in the heavens
+or mists upon the earth, most beautiful even at the moment of its
+parting! Tomorrow, beloved one, will unite us again in your parents'
+cot, and renewed happiness----"
+
+The youth stopped, and the maiden clung to him in speechless terror: for
+an ominous sound, as of a rushing animal and then a terrific howl, burst
+upon their ears! No time had they for flight, not a moment even to
+collect their scattered thoughts. The infuriate wolf came bounding over
+the greensward, the youth uttered a wild and fearful cry, a scream of
+agony burst from the lips of the maiden as she was dashed from her
+lover's arms, and in another moment the monster had swept by.
+
+But what misery, what desolation had his passage wrought! Though unhurt
+by his glistening fangs--though unwounded by his sharp claws, yet the
+maiden--an instant before so enchanting in her beauty, so happy in her
+love--lay stretched on the cold turf, the cords of life snapped suddenly
+by that transition from perfect bliss to the most appalling terror!
+
+And still the wolf rushed madly, wildly on.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It was an hour past sunrise; and from a grove in the immediate
+neighborhood of Leghorn a man came forth. His countenance, though
+wondrously handsome, was deadly pale; traces of mental horror and
+anguish remained on those classically chiseled features, and in those
+fine eloquent eyes. His garments were soiled, blood-stained, and torn.
+
+This man was Fernand Wagner. He entered the city of Leghorn, and
+purchased a change of attire, for which he paid from a purse well filled
+with gold. He then repaired to a hostel, or public tavern, where he
+performed the duties of the toilet, and obtained the refreshment of
+which he appeared to stand so much in need. By this time his countenance
+was again composed; and the change which new attire and copious ablution
+had made in his appearance, was so great that no one who had seen him
+issue from the grove and beheld him now, could have believed in the
+identity of the person. Quitting the hostel, he repaired to the port,
+where he instituted inquiries relative to a particular vessel which he
+described, and which had sailed from Leghorn upward of a fortnight
+previously.
+
+He soon obtained the information which he sought; and an old sailor, to
+whom he had addressed himself, not only hinted that the vessel in
+question was suspected, when in the harbor, to be of piratical
+character, but also declared that he himself had seen a lady conveyed on
+board during the night preceding the departure of the ship. Further
+inquiries convinced Wagner that the lady spoken of had been carried by
+force, and against her will, to the corsair vessel; and he was now
+certain that the demon had not deceived him, and that he had indeed
+obtained a trace of his lost Nisida!
+
+His mind was immediately resolved how to act; and his measures were as
+speedily taken.
+
+Guided by the advice of the old sailor from whom he had gleaned the
+information he sought, he was enabled to purchase a fine vessel and
+equip her for sea within the space of a few days. He lavished his gold
+with no niggard hand, and gold is a wondrous talisman to remove
+obstacles and facilitate designs. In a word, on the sixth morning after
+his arrival at Leghorn, Fernand Wagner embarked on board his ship, which
+was manned with a gallant crew, and carried ten pieces of ordnance. A
+favoring breeze prevailed at the time, and the gallant bark set sail for
+the Levant.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XL.
+
+WAGNER IN SEARCH OF NISIDA.
+
+
+The reader may perhaps be surprised that Fernand Wagner should have been
+venturous enough to trust himself to the possibilities of a protracted
+voyage, since every month his form must undergo a frightful change--a
+destiny which he naturally endeavored to shroud in the profoundest
+secrecy.
+
+But it must be recollected that the Mediterranean is dotted with
+numerous islands; and he knew that, however changeable or adverse the
+winds might be, it would always prove an easy matter to make such
+arrangements as to enable him to gain some port a few days previously to
+the close of the month. Moreover, so strong, so intense was his love for
+Nisida, that, even without the prospect afforded by this calculation, he
+would have dared all perils, incurred all risks, exposed himself to all
+hostile chances, rather than have remained inactive while he believed
+her to be in the power of a desperate, ruthless bandit. For, oh! ever
+present to his mind was the image of the lost fair one; by day, when the
+sun lighted up with smiles the dancing waves over which his vessel
+bounded merrily, merrily; and by night, when the moon shone like a
+silver lamp amidst the curtains of heaven's pavilion.
+
+His was not the love which knows only passionate impulse: it was a
+constant, unvarying tender sentiment--far, far more pure, and therefore
+more permanent, than the ardent and burning love which Nisida felt for
+him. His was not the love which possession would satiate and enjoyment
+cool down: it was a feeling that had gained a soft yet irresistible
+empire over his heart.
+
+And that love of his was nurtured and sustained by the most generous
+thoughts. He pictured to himself the happiness he should experience in
+becoming the constant companion of one whose loss of hearing and of
+speech cut her off as it were from that communion with the world which
+is so grateful to her sex: he imagined to himself, with all the fond
+idolatry of sincere affection, how melodiously soft, how tremulously
+clear would be her voice, were it restored to her, and were it first
+used to articulate the delicious language of love. And then he thought
+how enchanting, how fascinating, how fraught with witching charms, would
+be the conversation of a being endowed with so glorious an intellect,
+were she able to enjoy the faculty of speech. Thus did her very
+imperfections constitute a ravishing theme for his meditation; and the
+more he indulged in dreams like these, the more resolute did he become
+never to rest until he had discovered and rescued her.
+
+Seven days had elapsed since the ship sailed from Leghorn; and Sicily
+had already been passed by, when the heavens grew overclouded, and
+everything portended a storm. The captain, whom Wagner had placed in
+charge of his vessel, adopted all the precautions necessary to encounter
+the approaching tempest; and soon after the sun went down on the seventh
+night a hurricane suddenly swept the surface of the Mediterranean. The
+ship bent to the fury of the gust--her very yards were deep in the
+water. But when the rage of that dreadful squall subsided, the gallant
+bark righted again, and bounded triumphantly over the foaming waves.
+
+A night profoundly dark set in; but the white crests of the billows were
+visible through that dense obscurity: while the tempest rapidly
+increased in violence, and all the dread voices of the storm, the
+thunder in the heavens, the roaring of the sea, and the gushing sounds
+of the gale, proclaimed the fierceness of the elemental war. The wind
+blew not with that steadiness which the skill of the sailor and the
+capacity of the noble ship were competent to meet, but in long and
+frequent gusts of intermittent fury. Now rose the gallant bark on the
+waves, as if towering toward the starless sky, in the utter blackness of
+which the masts were lost; then it sank down into the abyss, the foam of
+the boiling billows glistening far above, on all sides, amidst the
+obscurity. What strange and appalling noises are heard on board a ship
+laboring in a storm--the cracking of timber, the creaking of elastic
+planks, the rattling of the cordage, the flapping of fragments of sails,
+the failing of spars, the rolling of casks got loose, and at times a
+tremendous crash throughout the vessel, as if the whole framework were
+giving way and the very sides collapsing!
+
+And amidst those various noises and the dread sounds of the storm, the
+voices of the sailors were heard--not in prayer nor subdued by
+terror--but echoing the orders issued by the captain, who did not
+despair of guiding--nay, fighting, as it were, the ship through the
+tumultuous billows and against the terrific blast.
+
+Again a tremendous hurricane swept over the deep: it passed, but not a
+spar remained to the dismantled bark. The tapering masts, the long
+graceful yards were gone, the cordage having snapped at every point
+where its support was needed--snapped by the fury of the tempest, as if
+wantonly cut by a sharp knife. The boats--the crew's last alternative of
+hope--had likewise disappeared. The ship was now completely at the mercy
+of the wild raging of the winds and the fury of the troubled waters; it
+no longer obeyed its helm, and there were twenty men separated, all save
+_one_, from death only by a few planks and a few nails! The sea now
+broke so frequently over the vessel that the pumps could scarcely keep
+her afloat; and at length, while it was yet dark, though verging toward
+the dawn, the sailors abandoned their task of working at those pumps.
+Vainly did the captain endeavor to exercise his authority--vainly did
+Wagner hold out menaces and promises by turns; death seemed imminent,
+and yet those men, who felt that they were hovering on the verge of
+destruction, flew madly to the wine-stores.
+
+Then commenced a scene of the wildest disorder amidst those desperate
+men; and even the captain himself, perceiving that they could laugh, and
+shout, and sing, in the delirium of intoxication, rushed from the side
+of Wagner and joined the rest. It was dreadful to hear the obscene jest,
+the ribald song, and the reckless execration, sent forth from the cabin,
+as if in answer to the awful voices in which Nature was then speaking to
+the world. But scarcely had a faint gleam appeared in the orient
+sky--not quite a gleam, but a mitigation of the intenseness of the
+night--when a tremendous wave--a colossus amongst giants--broke over the
+ill-fated ship, while a terrible crash of timber was for a moment heard
+in unison with the appalling din of the whelming billows. Wagner was the
+only soul on deck at that instant: but the fury of the waters tore him
+away from the bulwark to which he had been clinging, and he became
+insensible.
+
+When he awoke from the stupor into which he had been plunged, it was
+still dusk, and the roar of the ocean sounded in his ears with deafening
+din.
+
+But he was on land, though where he knew not. Rising from the sand on
+which he had been cast, he beheld the billows breaking on the shore at
+the distance of only a few paces; and he retreated further from their
+reach. Then he sat down, with his face toward the east, anxiously
+awaiting the appearance of the morn that he might ascertain the nature
+and the aspect of the land on which he had been cast. By degrees the
+glimmering which had already subdued the blackness of night into the
+less profound obscurity of duskiness, grew stronger; and a yellow
+luster, as of a far-distant conflagration, seemed to struggle against a
+thick fog. Then a faint roseate streak tinged the eastern horizon,
+growing gradually deeper in hue, and spreading higher and wider--the
+harbinger of sunrise; while, simultaneously, the features of the land on
+which Wagner was thrown began to develop themselves like specters
+stealing out of complete security; till at length the orient luster was
+caught successively by a thousand lofty pinnacles of rock; and finally
+the majestic orb itself appeared, lighting up a series of verdant
+plains, delicious groves, glittering lakes, pellucid streams, as well as
+the still turbulent ocean and the far-off mountains which had first
+peeped from amidst the darkness.
+
+Fair and delightful was the scene that thus developed itself to the eyes
+of Wagner; but as his glance swept the country which rose
+amphitheatrically from the shore not a vestige of the presence of man
+could be beheld. No smoke curled from amidst the groves, no church spire
+peeped from amongst the trees; nor had the wilderness of nature been
+disturbed by artificial culture.
+
+He turned toward the ocean; there was not a trace of his vessel to be
+seen. But further along the sand lay a dark object, which he approached,
+with a shudder, for he divined what it was.
+
+Nor was he mistaken; it was the swollen and livid corpse of one of the
+sailors of his lost ship.
+
+Wagner's first impulse was to turn away in disgust, but a better feeling
+almost immediately animated him: and, hastening to the nearest grove, he
+broke off a large bough, with which he hollowed a grave in the sand. He
+deposited the corpse in the hole, throwing back the sand which he had
+displaced, and thus completed his Christian task.
+
+During his visit to the grove, he had observed with delight that the
+trees were laden with fruit; and he now returned thither to refresh
+himself by means of the banquet thus bountifully supplied by nature.
+Having terminated his repast, he walked further inland. The verdant
+slope stretched up before him, variegated with flowers, and glittering
+with morning dew. As he advanced, the development of all the features of
+that land--lakes and woods; hills undulating like the sea in sunset,
+after hours of tempest: rivulets and crystal streams, each with its own
+peculiar murmurs, but all of melody; groves teeming with the most
+luxurious fruit of the tropics, and valleys carpeted with the brightest
+green, varied with nature's own embroidery of flowers--the development
+of this scene was inexpressibly beautiful, far surpassing the finest
+efforts of creative fancy.
+
+Wagner seated himself on a sunny bank, and fell into a profound
+meditation. At length, glancing rapidly around, he exclaimed aloud, as
+if in continuation of the chain of thoughts which had already occupied
+his mind, "Oh, if Nisida were here--here, in this delicious clime, to be
+my companion! What happiness--what joy! Never should I regret the world
+from which this isle--for an isle it must be--is separated! Never should
+I long to return to that communion with men from which we should be cut
+off! Here would the eyes of my Nisida cast forth rays of joy and
+gladness upon everything around; here would the sweetest transitions of
+sentiment and feeling take place! Nisida would be the island queen; she
+should deck herself with these flowers, which her fair hands might weave
+into wildly fantastic arabesques! Oh! all would be happiness--a
+happiness so serene, that never would the love of mortals he more truly
+blessed! But, alas!" he added, as a dreadful thought broke rudely upon
+this delightful vision, "I should be compelled to reveal to her my
+secret--the appalling secret of my destiny: that when the period for
+transformation came round, she might place herself in safety----"
+
+Wagner stopped abruptly, and rose hastily from his seat on the sunny
+bank. The remembrance of this dreadful fate had spoiled one of the most
+delicious waking dreams in which he had ever indulged; and, dashing his
+hands against his forehead, he rushed wildly toward the chain of
+mountains which intersected the island.
+
+But suddenly he stopped short, for on the ground before him lay the
+doublet of a man--a doublet of the fashion then prevalent in Italy. He
+lifted it up, examined it, but found nothing in the pockets; then,
+throwing it on the ground, he stood contemplating it for some minutes.
+
+Could it be possible that he was in some part of Italy? that the ship
+had been carried back to the European Continent during the tempest of
+the night? No; it was impossible that so lovely a tract of land would
+remain uninhabited, if known to men. The longer he reflected the more he
+became convinced that he was on some island hitherto unknown to
+navigators, and on which some other shipwrecked individual had probably
+been cast. Why the doublet should have been discarded he could well
+understand, as it was thick and heavy, and the heat of the sun was
+already intense, although it was not yet near the meridian.
+
+Raising his eyes from the doublet which had occasioned these
+reflections, he happened to glance toward a knot of fruit trees at a
+little distance; and his attention was drawn to a large bough which hung
+down as if almost broken away from the main stem. He approached the
+little grove; and several circumstances now confirmed his suspicion that
+he was not the only tenant of the island at that moment. The bough had
+been forcibly torn down, and very recently, too; several of the fruits
+had been plucked off, the little sprigs to which they had originally
+hung still remaining and bearing evidence to the fact. But if additional
+proof were wanting of human presence there, it was afforded by the
+half-eaten fruits that were strewed about.
+
+Wagner now searched for the traces of footsteps; but such marks were not
+likely to remain in the thick rich grass, which if trampled down, would
+rise fresh and elastic again with the invigorating dew of a single
+night. The grove, where Wagner observed the broken bough and the
+scattered fruits, was further from the shore than the spot where he had
+found the doublet; and he reasoned that the man, whoever he might be,
+had thrown away his garment, when overpowered by the intensity of the
+heat, and had then sought the shade and refreshment afforded by the
+grove. He therefore concluded that he had gone inland, most probably
+toward the mountains, whose rocky pinnacles, of every form, now shone
+with every hue in the glorious sunlight.
+
+Overjoyed at the idea of finding a human being in a spot which he had at
+first deemed totally uninhabited, and filled with the hope that the
+stranger might be able to give him some information relative to the
+geographical position of the isle, and even perhaps aid him in forming a
+raft by which they might together escape from the oasis of the
+Mediterranean, Wagner proceeded toward the mountains. By degrees the
+wondrous beauty of the scene became wilder, more imposing, but less
+bewitching, and when he reached the acclivities of the hill, the groves
+of fruits and copses of myrtles and citrons, of vines and almond shrubs,
+were succeeded by woods of mighty trees.
+
+Further on still the forests ceased and Fernand entered on a wild region
+of almost universal desolation, yet forming one of the sublimest
+spectacles that nature can afford. The sounds of torrents, as yet
+concealed from his view, and resembling the murmur of ocean's waves,
+inspired feelings of awe; and it was now for the first time since he
+entered on the region of desolation, having left the clime of loveliness
+nearly a mile behind, that his attention was drawn to the nature of the
+soil, which was hard and bituminous in appearance.
+
+The truth almost immediately struck him: there was a volcano amongst
+those mountains up which he was ascending; and it was the lava which had
+produced that desolation, and which, cold and hardened, formed the soil
+whereon he walked. It was now past midday; and he seated himself once
+more to repose his limbs, wearied with the fatigues of the ascent and
+overcome by the heat that was there intolerable. At the distance of
+about two hundred yards on his right was a solitary tree, standing like
+a sign to mark the tomb of nature's vegetation. Upon this tree his eyes
+were fixed listlessly, and he was marveling within himself how that
+single scion of the forest could have been spared, when the burning
+lava, whenever the eruption might have taken place, had hurled down and
+reduced to cinders its verdant brethren.
+
+Suddenly his attention was more earnestly riveted upon the dense and
+wide-spreading foliage of that tree; for the boughs were shaken in an
+extraordinary manner, and something appeared to be moving about amongst
+the canopy of leaves. In another minute a long, unmistakable, appalling
+object darted forth--a monstrous snake--suspending itself by the tail to
+one of the lower boughs, and disporting playfully with its hideous head
+toward the ground. Then, with a sudden coil, it drew itself back into
+the tree, the entire foliage of which was shaken with the horrible
+gambolings of the reptile.
+
+Wagner remembered the frightful spectacle which he had beholden in
+Ceylon, and an awful shudder crept through his frame; for, although he
+knew that he bore a charmed life, yet he shrank with a loathing from the
+idea of having to battle with such a horrible serpent. Starting from the
+ground, he rushed--flew, rather than ran, higher up the acclivity, and
+speedily entered on a wild scene of rugged and barren rocks: but he
+cared not whither the windings of the natural path which he now pursued
+might lead him, since he had escaped from the view of the hideous
+boa-constrictor gamboling in the solitary tree.
+
+Wearied with his wanderings, and sinking beneath the oppressive heat of
+the sun, Wagner was rejoiced to find a cavern in the side of a rock,
+where he might shelter and repose himself. He entered, and lay down upon
+the hard soil; the sounds of the torrents, which rolled still unseen
+amidst the chasms toward which he had approached full near, produced a
+lulling influence upon him, and in a few minutes his eyes were sealed in
+slumber. When he awoke he found himself in total darkness. He started
+up, collected his scattered ideas, and advanced to the mouth of the
+cavern.
+
+The sun had set: but outside the cave an azure twilight prevailed, and
+the adjacent peaks of the mountains stood darkly out from the partially
+though faintly illuminated sky.
+
+While Wagner was gazing long and intently upon the sublime grandeur of
+the scene, a strange phenomenon took place. First a small cloud appeared
+on the summit of an adjacent hill; then gradually this cloud became more
+dense and assumed a human shape. Oh! with what interest--what deep,
+enthusiastic interest, did Fernand contemplate the spectacle; for his
+well-stored mind at once suggested to him that he was now the witness of
+that wondrous optical delusion, called the mirage.
+
+Some human being in the plain on the other side of that range of
+mountains was the subject of that sublime scene; might it not be the
+individual of whom he was in search, the owner of the doublet? But, ah!
+wherefore does Wagner start with surprise?
+
+The shadow of that human being, as it gradually assumed greater density
+and a more defined shape--in a word, as it was now properly developed by
+the reflection of twilight--wore the form of a female! Were there, then,
+many inhabitants on the opposite side of the mountains? or was there
+only one female, she whose reflected image he now beheld? He knew not;
+but at all events the pleasure of human companionship seemed within his
+reach; the presence of the doublet had convinced him that there was
+another man upon the island, and now the mirage showed him the semblance
+of a woman!
+
+Vast--colossal--like a dense, dark, shapely cloud, stood that reflected
+being in the sky; for several minutes it remained thus, and though
+Wagner could trace no particular outline of features, yet it seemed to
+him as if the female were standing in a pensive attitude. But as the
+twilight gradually subsided, or rather yielded to the increasing
+obscurity, the image was absorbed likewise in the growing gloom; until
+the dusky veil of night made the entire vault above of one deep,
+uniform, purple hue. Then Wagner once more returned to the cavern, with
+the resolution of crossing the range of hills on the ensuing morn.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLI.
+
+THE ISLAND QUEEN.
+
+
+Oh! how beautiful--how enchantingly beautiful seemed Nisida, as her
+delicate feet bore her glancingly along the sunny banks of the crystal
+stream, to the soft music of its waters. How the slight drapery which
+she wore set off the rich undulations of that magnificent form! How the
+wreaths and garlands of fantastically woven flowers became the romantic
+loveliness of her person--that glowing Hebe of the South!
+
+Holding in her fair hand a light, slim wand, and moving through the
+delicious vale with all the soft abandonment of gait and limb which
+feared no intrusion on her solitude, she appeared that Mediterranean
+island's queen. What, though the evening breeze, disporting with her
+raiment, lifted it from her glowing bosom?--she cared not; no need for
+sense of shame was there! What though she laid aside her vesture to
+disport in the sea at morn?--no furtive glances did she cast round; no
+haste did she make to resume her garments; for whose eye, save that of
+God, beheld her?
+
+But was she happy? Alas! there were moments when despair seized upon her
+soul; and, throwing herself on the yellow sand, or on some verdant bank,
+she would weep--oh! she would weep such bitter, bitter tears, that those
+who have been forced to contemplate her character with aversion, must
+now be compelled to pity her.
+
+Yes; for there were times when all the loveliness of that island seemed
+but a hideous place of exile, an abhorrent monotony which surrounded
+her--grasped her--clung to her--hemmed her in, as if it were an evil
+spirit, having life and the power to torture her. She thought of those
+whom she loved, she pondered upon all the grand schemes of her
+existence, and she felt herself cut off from a world to which there were
+so many ties to bind her, and in which she had so much to do. Then she
+would give way to all the anguish of her soul--an anguish that amounted
+to the deepest, blackest despair, when her glances wildly swept the
+cloudless horizon, and beheld not a sail--no! nor a speck on the ocean
+to engender hope. But when this tempest of grief and passion was past,
+she would be angry with herself for having yielded to it; and, in order
+to distract her thoughts from subjects of gloom, she would bound toward
+the groves, light as a fawn, the dazzling whiteness of her naked and
+polished ankles gleaming in contrast with the verdure of the vale.
+
+One morning after Nisida had been many, many days on the island, she was
+seated on the sand, having just completed her simple toilet on emerging
+from the mighty bath that lay stretched in glassy stillness far as the
+eye could reach, when she suddenly sprung upon her feet, and threw
+affrighted looks around her. Had she possessed the faculty of hearing,
+it would be thought that she was thus startled by the sound of a human
+voice which had at that instant broken upon the solemn stillness of the
+isle--a human voice emanating from a short distance behind her. As yet
+she saw no one; but in a few moments a man emerged from the nearest
+grove, and came slowly toward her.
+
+He was dressed in a light jerkin, trunk-breeches, tight hose, and
+boot--in all as an Italian gentleman of that day, save in respect to hat
+and doublet, of which he had none. Neither wore he a sword by his side,
+nor carried any weapons of defense; and it was evident he approached the
+island queen with mingled curiosity and awe.
+
+Perhaps he deemed her to be some goddess, endowed with the power and the
+will to punish his intrusion on her realm; or peradventure his
+superstitious imagination dwelt on the tales which sailors told in those
+times--how mermaids who fed on human flesh dwelt on the coasts of
+uninhabited islands, and assuming the most charming female forms, lured
+into their embrace the victims whom shipwreck cast upon their strand,
+and instead of lavishing on them the raptures of love, made them the
+prey of their ravenous maws.
+
+Whatever were his thoughts, the man drew near with evident distrust.
+But, now--why does Nisida's countenance become suddenly crimson with
+rage? why rushes she toward the stores which still remained piled up on
+the strand? and wherefore, with the rapidity of the most feverish
+impatience, does she hurl the weapons of defense into the sea, all save
+one naked sword, with which she arms herself? Because her eagle glance,
+quicker than that of the man who is approaching her, has recognized
+_him_, ere he has even been struck with a suspicion relative to who
+_she_ is--and that man is Stephano Verrina!
+
+Now, Nisida! summon all thine energies to aid thee; for a strong, a
+powerful, a remorseless man, devoured with lust for thee, is near. And
+thou art so ravishingly beautiful in thy aerial drapery, and thy wreaths
+of flowers, that an anchorite could not view thee with indifference! Ah!
+Stephano starts--stops short--advances: the suspicion has struck him!
+The aquiline countenance, those brilliant large, dark eyes, that
+matchless raven hair, that splendid symmetrical maturity of form, and
+withal, that close compression of the vermilion lips, O Nisida! have
+been scanned in rapid detail by the brigand!
+
+"Nisida!" he exclaimed; "Yes, it is she!"
+
+And he bounded toward her with outstretched arms.
+
+But the sharp sword was presented to his chest; and the lady stood with
+an air of such resolute determination, that he stopped short gazing upon
+her with mingled wonderment and admiration. Heavens! he had never beheld
+so glorious a specimen of female loveliness as that whereon his eyes
+were fastened,--fastened beyond the possibility of withdrawal. How
+glossy black was that hair with its diadem of white roses! How miserably
+poor appeared the hues of the carnations and the pinks that formed her
+necklace, when in contrast with her flushing cheeks! How dingy were the
+lilies at her waist, compared with her heaving breast!
+
+The reason of the brigand reeled, his brain swam round, and for a moment
+it seemed to him that she was not a being of this world; not the Nisida
+he had known and carried off from Italy, but a goddess, another and yet
+the same in all the glory of those matchless charms which had heretofore
+ravished--no, maddened him!
+
+And now the spirit of this bold and reckless man was subdued--subdued,
+he knew not how nor wherefore; but still subdued by the presence of her
+whom he had deemed lost in the waves, but who seemed to stand before
+him, with flowers upon her brow and a sharp weapon in her hand--radiant,
+too, with loveliness of person, and terrible with the fires of hatred
+and indignation!
+
+Yes! he was subdued--overawed--rendered timid as a young child in her
+presence; and sinking upon his knees, he exclaimed--forgetful that he
+was addressing Nisida the deaf and dumb--"Oh! fear not--I will not harm
+thee! But, my God! take compassion on me--spurn me not--look not with
+such terrible anger upon one who adores, who worships you! How is it
+that I tremble and quail before you--I, once so reckless, so rude. But,
+oh! to kiss that fair hand--to be your slave--to watch over you--to
+protect you--and all this but for thy smiles in return--I should be
+happy--supremely happy! Remember--we are alone on this island--and I am
+the stronger; I might compel you by force to yield to me--to become
+mine; but I will not harm you--no, not a hair of your head, if you will
+only smile upon me! And you will require one to defend and protect
+you--yes, even here in this island, apparently so secure and safe;--for
+there are terrible things in this clime--dreadful beings, far more
+formidable than whole hordes of savage men--monsters so appalling that
+not all thy courage, nor all thy energy would avail thee a single moment
+against them. Yes, lady, believe me when I tell thee this! For
+many--many days have I dwelt, a lonely being, on the other side of this
+isle, beyond that chain of mountains--remaining on that shore to which
+the wild waves carried me on the night of shipwreck. But I hurried away
+at last--I dared all the dangers of mighty precipices, yawning chasms,
+and roaring torrents--the perils of yon mountains--rather than linger on
+the other side. For the anaconda, lady, is the tenant of this
+island--the monstrous snake--the terrible boa, whose dreadful coils, if
+wound round that fair form of yours, would crush it into a hideous,
+loathsome mass?"
+
+Stephano had spoken so rapidly, and with such fevered excitement that he
+had no time to reflect whether he were not wasting his words upon a
+being who could not hear them; until exhausted and breathless with the
+volubility of his utterance he remembered that he was addressing himself
+to Nisida the deaf and dumb. But happily his appealing and his suppliant
+posture had softened the lady: for toward the end of his long speech a
+change came over her countenance, and she dropped the point of her sword
+toward the ground.
+
+Stephano rose, and stood gazing on her for a few moments with eyes that
+seemed to devour her. His mind had suddenly recovered much of its wonted
+boldness and audacity. So long as Nisida seemed terrible as well as
+beautiful, he was subdued;--now that her eyes had ceased to dart forth
+lightnings, and the expression of her countenance had changed from
+indignation and resolute menace to pensiveness and a comparatively
+mournful softness, the bandit as rapidly regained the usual tone of his
+remorseless mind.
+
+Yes; he stood gazing on her for a few moments, with eyes that seemed to
+devour her:--then, in obedience to the impulse of maddening desire, he
+rushed upon her, and in an instant wrenched the sword from her grasp.
+But rapid as lightning, Nisida bounded away from him, ere he could wind
+his arms around her; and fleet as the startled deer, she hastened toward
+the groves.
+
+Stephano, still retaining the sword in his hand, pursued her with a
+celerity which was sustained by his desire to possess her and by his
+rage that she had escaped him. But the race was unequal as that of a
+lion in chase of a roe; for Nisida seemed borne along as it were upon
+the very air. Leaving the groves on her left she dashed into the vale.
+Along the sunny bank of the limpid stream she sped;--on, on toward a
+forest that bounded the valley at the further end, and rose
+amphitheatrically up toward the regions of the mountains!
+
+Stephano Verrina still pursued her, though losing ground rapidly; but
+still he maintained the chase. And now the verge of the forest is nearly
+gained; and in its mazes Nisida hopes to be enabled to conceal herself
+from the ruffian whom, by a glance hastily cast behind from time to
+time, she ascertains to be upon her track. But, oh! whither art thou
+flying thus wildly, beauteous Nisida?--into what appalling perils art
+thou rushing, as it were, blindly? For there, in the tallest tree on the
+verge of the forest to which thou now art near,--there, amidst the
+bending boughs and the quivering foliage--one of the hideous serpents
+which infest the higher region of the isle is disporting--the terrible
+anaconda--the monstrous boa, whose dreadful coils, if wound round that
+fair form of thine, would crush it into a loathsome mass!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLII.
+
+THE TEMPTATION--THE ANACONDA.
+
+
+In the meantime Fernand Wagner was engaged in the attempt to cross the
+chain of mountains which intersected the island whereon the shipwreck
+had thrown him. He had clambered over rugged rocks and leapt across many
+yawning chasms in that region of desolation,--a region which formed so
+remarkable a contrast with the delicious scenery which he had left
+behind him. And now he reached the base of a conical hill, the summit of
+which seemed to have been split into two parts: and the sinuous tracks
+of the lava-streams, now cold, and hard, and black, adown its sides,
+convinced him that this was the volcano, from whose rent crater had
+poured the bituminous fluid so fatal to the vegetation of that region.
+
+Following a circuitous and naturally formed pathway round the base, he
+reached the opposite side; and now from a height of three hundred feet
+above the level of the sea, his eyes commanded a view of a scene as fair
+as that behind the range of mountains. He was now for the first time
+convinced of what he had all along suspected--namely, that it was indeed
+an island on which the storm had cast him. But though from the eminence
+where he stood his view embraced the immense range of the ocean, no
+speck in the horizon--no sail upon the bosom of the expanse imparted
+hope to his soul.
+
+Hunger now oppressed him; for he had eaten nothing since the noon of the
+preceding day, when he had plucked a few fruits in the groves on the
+other side of the island. He accordingly commenced a descent toward the
+new region which lay stretched before him, fair as--even fairer
+than--the one which had first greeted his eyes.
+
+But he had not proceeded many yards amidst the defiles of the rugged
+rocks which nature had piled around the base of the volcano, when he
+found his way suddenly barred by a vast chasm, on the verge of which the
+winding path stopped.
+
+The abyss was far too wide to be crossed save by the wing of the bird:
+and in its unfathomable depths boiled and roared a torrent, the din of
+whose eddies was deafening to the ear.
+
+Wagner retraced his way to the very base of the volcano, and entered
+another defile: but this also terminated on the edge of the same
+precipice.
+
+Again and again did he essay the various windings of that scene of rock
+and crag: but with no better success than at first; and after passing a
+considerable time in these fruitless attempts to find a means of descent
+into the plains below, he began to fear that he should be compelled to
+retrace his way into the region of verdure which he had quitted the day
+before, and which lay behind the range of mountains. But the thought of
+the hideous snake which he had seen in the tree caused a cold shudder to
+pass over him--then, in the next moment, he remembered that if the
+region on one side of the mountain were invested with reptiles of that
+terrible species, it was not probable that the forests which he beheld
+as it were at his feet, were free from the same source of apprehension.
+Still he had hoped to find human companionship on this side of the
+mountains which he had so far succeeded in reaching--the companionship
+of the man who had cast away the doublet, and of the woman whom he had
+seen in the mirage.
+
+And was it not strange that he had not as yet overtaken, or at least
+obtained a trace of, the man who thus occupied a portion of his
+thoughts? If that man were still amongst the mountains, they would
+probably meet; if he had succeeded in descending into the plains below,
+the same pathway that conducted him thither would also be open to
+Wagner. Animated with these reflections, and in spite of the hunger
+which now sorely oppressed him, Wagner prosecuted with fresh courage his
+search for a means of descent into the lovely regions that lay stretched
+before him, when he was suddenly startled by the sound of a human voice
+near him.
+
+"My son, what dost thou amidst this scene of desolation?" were the words
+which, uttered in a mild benignant tone, met his ears.
+
+He turned and beheld an old man of venerable appearance, and whose
+beard, white as snow, stretched down to the rude leathern belt which
+confined the palmer's gown that he wore.
+
+"Holy anchorite!" exclaimed Wagner--"for such must I deem thee to
+be,--the sound of thy voice is most welcome in this solitude, amidst the
+mazes of which I vainly seek to find an avenue of egress."
+
+"Thus it is oft with the troubles and perplexities of the world, my
+son," answered the hermit, "that world which I have quitted forever."
+
+"And dost thou dwell in this desolate region?" asked Fernand.
+
+"My cave is hard by," returned the old man. "For forty years have I
+lived in the heart of these mountains, descending only into the plains
+at long intervals, to gather the fruits that constitute my food:--and
+then," he added, in a tone which, despite the sanctity of his
+appearance, struck cold and ominous to the very heart of Wagner,--"and
+then, too, at the risk of becoming the prey of the terrible anaconda!"
+
+"Thou sayest, holy hermit," exclaimed Fernand, endeavoring to conquer a
+feeling of unaccountable aversion which he had suddenly entertained
+toward the old man, "thou sayest that thy cave is hard by. In the name
+of mercy! I beseech thee to spare me a few fruits, and a cup of water,
+for I am sinking with fatigue, hunger, and thirst."
+
+"Follow me, young man," said the hermit; and he led the way to a cave
+opening from a narrow fissure in the rock.
+
+The anchorite's abode was, as Wagner had expected to find it, rude and
+cheerless. A quantity of dry leaves were heaped in one corner--evidently
+forming the old man's couch; and in several small hollows made in the
+walls of rock, were heaps of fruit--fresh and inviting, as if they had
+only just been gathered. On the ground stood a large earthen pitcher of
+water. Upon this last object did the thirsty Wagner lay his left hand;
+but ere he raised it, he glanced hastily round the cave in search of a
+crucifix, in the presence of which he might sign the form of the cross
+with his right hand. But to his astonishment the emblem of Christianity
+was not there; and it now struck him for the first time that the
+anchorite wore no beads around his waist.
+
+"Young man, I can divine your thoughts," said the hermit, hastily; "but
+drink, eat, and ask a blessing presently. Thou art famished, pause not
+to question my motives. I will explain them fully to thee when thy body
+is refreshed with that pure water and those delicious fruits."
+
+"Water shall not pass my lips, nor fruits assuage the cravings of
+hunger, until I know more of thee, old man!" exclaimed Wagner, a
+terrible suspicion flashing to his mind; and without another instant's
+hesitation or delay, he made the sign of the cross.
+
+A yell of rage and fury burst from the lips of the false anchorite,
+while his countenance became fearfully distorted--his eyes glared
+fiercely--his whole aspect changed--and in a few moments he stood
+confessed in shape, attire and features, the demon who had appeared to
+Fernand in the prison of Florence!
+
+"Fiend! what wouldst thou with me?" exclaimed Wagner, startled and yet
+unsubdued by this appearance of the evil spirit amidst that region of
+desolation.
+
+"Mortal," said the demon, in his deepest and most serious tones, "I am
+here to place happiness--happiness ineffable--within thy reach. Nay, be
+not impatient: but listen to me for a few moments. 'Twas my power that
+conducted thy ship, amidst the fury of the storm which _He_ whose name I
+dare not mention raised, to the shores of this island. 'Twas my
+influence which yesterday, as thou wast seated on the sunny banks,
+filled thine imagination with those delicious thoughts of Nisida. And it
+was I also who, by the wonders of the mirage, showed thee the form of
+the only female inhabitant of this isle. And that one female,
+Wagner--that woman who is now as it were within thy reach--that lovely
+being whose presence on this island would teach thee to have no regret
+for the world from which you are separated, and whose eyes would cast
+forth rays of joy and gladness upon everything around--that charming
+lady, who has already decked herself with those flowers which her fair
+hands have woven into wildly fantastic arabesques, that being is thy
+Nisida, the Island Queen."
+
+"Fiend! you mock--you deceive me," cried Fernand, wildly hovering
+between joyous hope and acute fear.
+
+"Did I deceive thee, Wagner, when I showed thee thy Nisida in the power
+of the corsairs?" said the demon, with a smile of bitter, sardonic
+triumph. "I tell thee, then, that Nisida is on this island--there, in
+the very region into which thou wouldst descend, but to which thou wilt
+find no avenue save by my aid."
+
+"Nisida is here--on this island," exclaimed Fernand in an ecstasy of
+joy.
+
+"Yes--and Stephano, the bandit, likewise," added the demon. "It was his
+doublet which you found--it was he who slaked his thirst with the juice
+of the fruits which I, then invisible, beheld thee contemplate with
+attention."
+
+"Stephano here also!" cried Wagner. "Oh! Nisida--to thy rescue!"
+
+And he bounded forth from the cave, and was rushing madly down one of
+the tortuous defiles leading toward the chasm, when the voice of the
+demon suddenly caused him to stop short.
+
+"Fool!--insensate mortal!" said the fiend, with a derisive laugh. "How
+canst thou escape from these mountains? But tarry a moment--and behold
+thy Nisida--behold also her persecutor, who lusts after her."
+
+Thus speaking; he handed Wagner a magic telescope, which immediately
+brought the most remote objects to a distance of only a few yards.
+
+Then what a delicious scene met Fernand's eyes! He beheld Nisida bathing
+in the sea--sporting like a mermaid with the wavelets--plunging into the
+refreshing depths--then wringing out the water from her long raven hair,
+now swimming and diving, then wading on her feet,--unconscious that a
+human eye beheld her.
+
+At length she came forth from the sea, beauteous as a Venus rising from
+the ocean; and her toilet commenced upon the sand. But scarcely had she
+decked herself with the flowers which she had gathered early in the
+morning for the purpose, when she started and rose up; and then Wagner
+beheld a man approaching her from the nearest grove.
+
+"That is Stephano Verrina!" murmured the demon in his ears.
+
+Fernand uttered a cry of dismay, and threw down the telescope.
+
+"You may save her--save her yet," said the demon, speaking in a tone of
+unusual haste. "In a few minutes she will be in his power--he is strong
+and desperate; be mine, and consent to serve me--and in a moment Nisida
+shall be clasped in thy arms--the arms of thee, her deliverer."
+
+"No--no! I will save her without thine aid, dread fiend!" exclaimed
+Wagner, a prey to the most terrible excitement.
+
+Then making the sign of the cross, he rushed forward to leap the yawning
+chasm; his feet touched the opposite side, but he lost his balance,
+reeled, and fell back into the tremendous abyss, while the demon, again
+baffled, and shrinking in horror from the emblem of Christianity,
+disappeared with cries of rage and vexation.
+
+Down--down fell Wagner,--turning over and over in the hideous vacancy,
+and clutching vainly at the stunted shrubs and dead roots which
+projected from the rugged sides of the chasm.
+
+In another moment he was swallowed up by the boiling torrent; but his
+senses did not leave him, and he felt himself hurried along with the
+furious speed of the mad waters. Thus nearly a minute passed; and then
+his headlong course was suddenly arrested by the boughs of a tree,
+which, having given way at the root, bent over into the torrent. He
+clung to the boughs as if they were arms stretched out to rescue him; he
+raised himself from amidst the turbid waters--and in a few moments
+reached a bank which shelved upward to the edge of a dense forest.
+
+Precisely on the opposite or inner side there was an opening in the
+rocks, and Wagner's eye could trace upward a steep but still practicable
+path, doubtless formed by some torrent of the spring, which was now
+dried up amidst the mountains above,--that path reaching to the very
+basis of the volcano.
+
+Thus, had circumstances permitted him to exercise his patience and
+institute a longer search among the defiles formed by the crags and
+rocks around the conical volcano, he would have discovered a means of
+safe egress from that region without daring the desperate leap of the
+chasm, desperate even for him, although he bore a charmed life, because
+his limbs might have been broken against the rugged sides of the
+precipice.
+
+Between the opening to the steep path just spoken of, and the shelving
+bank on which Wagner now stood, there was so narrow a space, that the
+bent tree stretched completely across the torrent; thus any one,
+descending from the mountains by the natural pathway, might cross by
+means of the tree to the side which Fernand had gained.
+
+"This, then, must have been the route by which the villain Stephano
+emerged from the mountains," he said to himself, "and the fiend deceived
+me when he declared that I could not reach the plains below without his
+aid."
+
+Such were his reflections as he hurried up the shelving bank: and when
+he reached the summit his glance embraced a scene already described to
+the reader.
+
+For, flying wildly on toward the forest, was his beauteous Nisida,
+scattering flowers in her whirlwind progress, those flowers that had ere
+now decked her hair, her neck and her waist.
+
+At some distance behind her was the bandit Stephano; with sword in hand
+he still maintained the chase, though breathless and ready to sink from
+exhaustion. Not an instant did Wagner tarry upon the top of the bank
+which he had reached; but darting toward Nisida, who was now scarce
+fifty yards from him, he gave vent to an ejaculation of joy.
+
+She saw him--she beheld him: and her speed was checked in an instant
+with the overpowering emotion of wonder and delight.
+
+Then, as he hurried along the verge of the forest to encounter her--to
+fold her in his fond embrace--to protect her,--she once more sprung
+forward, with outstretched arms, to fly into his arms, which were open
+to receive her. But at that instant there was a horrible rustling amidst
+the foliage of the huge tree beneath which she was hastening on;--a
+monstrous snake darted down with a gushing sound, and in another moment
+the beauteous form of Nisida was encircled by its hideous coils.
+
+Then fled that wondrous self-command which for long years she had
+exercised with such amazing success:--then vanished from her mind all
+the strong motives which had induced her to undertake so terrible a
+martyrdom as that of simulating the loss of two faculties most dear and
+most valuable to all human beings;--and with a cry of ineffable anguish,
+she exclaimed, "_Fernand, save me! save me!_"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLIII.
+
+NISIDA AND WAGNER.
+
+
+Oh! with what astonishment and joy would Wagner have welcomed the sound
+of that voice, so long hushed, and now so musical even in its rending
+agony,--had not such an appalling incident broken the spell that for
+years had sealed the lips of his beloved! But he had no time for
+thought--there was not a moment for reflection. Nisida lay senseless on
+the ground, with the monster coiled around her--its long body hanging
+down from the bough to which it was suspended by the tail.
+Simultaneously with the cry of anguish that had come from the lips of
+Nisida, exclamations of horror burst alike from Wagner and Stephano.
+
+The latter stood transfixed as it were for a few moments, his eyes
+glaring wildly on the dreadful spectacle before him; then, yielding to
+the invincible terror that had seized upon him, he hurled away the
+sword--knowing not what he did in the excitement of his mind, and fled!
+But the gleaming of the naked weapon in the sunbeams met Wagner's eyes
+as it fell, and darting toward it, he grasped it with a firm
+hand--resolving also to use it with a stout heart. Then he advanced
+toward the snake, which was comparatively quiescent--that portion of its
+long body which hung between the tree and the first coil that it made
+round the beauteous form of Nisida alone moving; and this motion was a
+waving kind of oscillation, like that of a bell-rope which a person
+holds by the end and swings gently.
+
+But from the midst of the coils the hideous head of the monster stood
+out--its eyes gleaming malignantly upon Wagner as he approached.
+Suddenly the reptile, doubtless alarmed by the flashing of the bright
+sword, disengaged itself like lightning from the awful embrace in which
+it had retained the Lady Nisida, and sprung furiously toward Fernand.
+But the blow that he aimed at its head was unerring and heavy; its skull
+was cloven in two--and it fell on the long grass, where it writhed in
+horrible convulsions for some moments, although its life was gone.
+
+Words cannot be found to describe the delirium of joy which Wagner felt,
+when having thus slain the terrible anaconda, he placed his hand on
+Nisida's heart and felt that it beat--though languidly. He lifted her
+from the ground--he carried her in his arms to the bank of the limpid
+stream--and he sprinkled water upon her pale cheeks.
+
+Slowly did she recover; and when her large black eyes at length opened,
+she uttered a fearful shriek, and closed them again--for with returning
+life the reminiscence of the awful embrace of the serpent came back
+also. But Wagner murmured words of sweet assurance and consolation--of
+love and joy, in her ears; and she felt that it was no dream, but that
+she was really saved! Then, winding her arms round Fernand's neck, she
+embraced him in speechless and still almost senseless trance, for the
+idea of such happy deliverance was overpowering--amounting to an agony
+which a mortal creature could scarcely endure.
+
+"Oh! Nisida," at length exclaimed Wagner, "was it a delusion produced by
+the horrors of that scene?--or did thy voice really greet mine ears ere
+now!"
+
+There was a minute's profound silence--during which, as they sat upon
+the bank of the stream, locked in a fond embrace, their eyes were fixed
+with fascinating gaze upon each other, as if they could not contemplate
+each other too long--he in tenderness, and she in passion.
+
+"Yes, Fernand," said Nisida, breaking that deep silence at last, and
+speaking in a voice so mellifluously clear, so soft, so penetrating in
+its tone, that it realized all the fond ideas which her lover had
+conceived of what its nature would be if it were ever restored, "yes,
+Fernand, dearest Fernand," she repeated, "you did indeed hear my voice,
+and to _you_ never again shall I be mute."
+
+Wagner could not allow her time to say more: he was almost wild with
+rapture! His Nisida was restored to him, and no longer Nisida the deaf
+and dumb, but Nisida who could hear the fond language which he addressed
+to her, and who could respond in the sweetest, most melting and
+delicious tones that ever came from woman's lips.
+
+For a long time their hearts were too full, alike for total silence or
+connected conversation, and while the world from which they were cut off
+was entirely forgotten, they gathered so much happiness from the few
+words in which they indulged, and from all that they read in each
+other's eyes, that the emotions which they experienced might have
+furnished sensations for a lifetime.
+
+At length--she scarcely knew how the subject began, although it might
+naturally have arisen of its own spontaneous suggestion--Nisida found
+herself speaking of the long period of deception which she had
+maintained in relation to her powers of speech and hearing.
+
+"Thou lovest me well, dearest Fernand," she said in her musical Italian
+tones; "and thou would'st not create a pang in my heart? Then never seek
+to learn wherefore, when at the still tender age of fifteen, I resolved
+upon consummating so dreadful a sacrifice as to affect dumbness. The
+circumstances were, indeed, solemnly grave and strangely important,
+which demanded so awful a martyrdom. But well did I weigh all the misery
+and all the peril that such a self-devotion was sure to entail upon me.
+I knew that I must exercise the most stern--the most remorseless--the
+most inflexible despotism over my emotions--that I must crush as it were
+the very feelings of my soul--that I must also observe a caution so
+unwearied and so constantly wakeful, that it would amount to a
+sensitiveness the most painful--and that I must prepare myself to hear
+the merry jest without daring to smile, or the exciting narrative of the
+world's stirring events without suffering my countenance to vary a hue!
+Oh! I calculated--I weighed all this, and yet I was not appalled by the
+immensity of the task. I knew the powers of my own mind, and I did not
+deceive myself as to their extent. But, ah! how fearful was it at first
+to hear the sounds of human voices, and dare not respond to them; how
+maddening at times was it to listen to conversation in which I longed to
+join, and yet be compelled to sit like a passionless statue! But mine
+was a will of iron strength--a resolution of indomitable power! Even
+when alone when I knew that I should not be overheard--I never essayed
+the powers of my voice, I never murmured a single syllable to myself so
+fearful was I lest the slightest use of the glorious gift of speech
+might render me weak in my purpose. And strange as it may seem to you,
+dearest Fernand, not even on this island did I yield to the temptation
+of suddenly breaking that long, that awful silence which I had imposed
+upon myself. And, until this day, one human being only, save myself, was
+acquainted with that mighty secret of ten long years, and that man was
+the generous-hearted, the noble-minded Dr. Duras. He it was who aided me
+in my project of simulating the forlorn condition of the deaf and dumb:
+he it was who bribed the turnkeys to admit me unquestioned to your cell
+in the prison of the ducal palace. And for years, perhaps, should I have
+retained my wondrous secret even from _you_, dearest Fernand; for
+through dangers of many kinds--in circumstances of the most trying
+nature, have I continued firm in my purpose; abjuring the faculty of
+speech even when it would have saved me from much cruel embarrassment or
+from actual peril. Thus, when the villain Stephano Verrina bore me away
+by force from my native city, I maintained the seal upon my lips,
+trusting to circumstances to enable me to escape from his power without
+being compelled to betray a secret of such infinite value and importance
+to myself. But when I found that I was so narrowly watched at Leghorn
+that flight was impossible, I seriously debated, in my own mind, the
+necessity of raising an alarm in the house where I was kept a prisoner
+for two whole days; and then I reflected that I was in the power of a
+desperate bandit and his two devoted adherents, who were capable of any
+atrocity to forward their designs or prevent exposure. Lastly, when I
+was conveyed at dead of night on board the corsair-ship, the streets
+were deserted, and the pirates with whom Stephano was leagued, thronged
+the port. I therefore resigned myself to my fate, trusting still to
+circumstances, and retaining my secret. But that incident of to-day--oh!
+it was enough to crush energies ten thousand times more powerful than
+mine: it was of so horrifying a nature as to be sufficient to loose the
+bands which confine the tongue of one really dumb."
+
+And a strong shudder convulsed the entire form of Nisida, as she thus,
+by her own words, recalled so forcibly to mind that terrible event which
+had broken a spell of ten years' duration.
+
+Fernand pressed her to his bosom, exclaiming, "Oh, beloved Nisida, how
+beautiful dost thou appear to me!--how soft and charming is that dear
+voice of thine! Let us not think of the past, at least not now; for I
+also have explanations to give thee," he added, slowly and mournfully;
+then, in a different and again joyous tone, he said: "Let us be happy in
+the conviction that we are restored to each other; let this be a
+holiday--nay, more," he added, sinking his voice almost to a whisper;
+"let it be the day on which we join our hands together in the sight of
+Heaven. No priest will bless our union, Nisida; but we will plight our
+vows--and God will accord us his blessing."
+
+The lady hid her blushing, glowing countenance on his breast, and
+murmured in a voice melodious as the music of the stream by which they
+sat, "Fernand, I am thine--thine forever."
+
+"And I am thine, my beauteous Nisida; thine forever, as thou art mine!"
+exclaimed Wagner, lifting her head and gazing on her lovely, blushing
+face as on a vision of heaven.
+
+"No; she is mine!" thundered the voice of the forgotten Stephano, and in
+a moment the bandit flung himself upon Wagner, whom he attempted to hurl
+into the crystal but deep river.
+
+Fernand, however, caught the arm of the brigand and dragged him along
+with him into the water, while a terrific scream burst from the lips of
+Nisida. Then furious was the struggle that commenced in the depths of
+the stream. But Stephano lay beneath Wagner, who held him down on the
+pebbly bottom. In another moment Nisida herself plunged into the river
+with the wild hope of aiding her lover to conquer his foe, or to rescue
+him from the grasp which the bandit maintained upon him with the
+tenacity that was strengthened rather than impaired by the agony of
+suffocation.
+
+But she rose again to the surface in an instant by the indomitable
+influence of that instinct for self-preservation which no human being,
+when immersed in the deep water, can resist if the art of swimming has
+been attained. Again she dived to succor her lover, but her aid, even if
+she could have afforded any, was no longer necessary, for Fernand rose
+from the crystal depths and bore his Nisida to the bank, while the
+corpse of the drowned bandit was carried away by the current.
+
+Wagner and Nisida were now the sole human inhabitants of that isle--the
+king and queen of the loveliest clime on which the sun shone. Toward the
+sea-shore they repaired, hand in hand, and having partaken of the fruits
+which they gathered in their way, they set to work to form a hut with
+the planks, cordage, and canvas of the wreck. It will be remembered that
+Nisida had saved the carpenter's tools, and thus the task became a
+comparatively easy one.
+
+By the time the sun went down a tenement was formed, rude, it is true,
+but still perfect enough to harbor them in a clime where the nights were
+warm and where the dews prevailed only in the verdant parts of the isle.
+Then with what joyous feelings did Nisida deck the walls of the hut with
+a tapestry of flowers and prepare the bridal couch with materials which
+she had saved from the wreck.
+
+Softly and sweetly shone the moon that night; and, as its silver rays
+penetrated through the crevices of the little cottage so hastily and so
+rudely formed, they played kissingly upon the countenances of the happy
+pair who had wedded each other in the sight of Heaven.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLIV.
+
+ALESSANDRO FRANCATELLI.
+
+
+In order that the reader should fully understand the stirring incidents
+which yet remain to be told, it is necessary for us to explain certain
+particulars connected with Alessandro Francatelli, the brother of the
+beautiful Flora. It will be recollected that this young man accompanied
+the Florentine envoy to Constantinople, in the honorable capacity of
+secretary, some few years previous to the commencement of our tale.
+
+Alessandro was strikingly handsome, tall, well-formed, and of great
+physical strength. His manners were pleasing, his conversation agreeable
+to a degree. Indeed, he had profited so well by the lessons of the
+excellent-hearted Father Marco, that his mind was well stored with
+intellectual wealth. He was, moreover, a finished musician, and played
+the violin, at that period a rare accomplishment, to perfection. In
+addition to all these qualifications, he was a skillful versifier, and
+composed the most beautiful extemporaneous poetry, apparently without an
+effort. But his disposition was by no means light or devoted to pursuits
+which worldly-minded persons would consider frivolous. For he himself
+was worldly-minded, keen, shrewd, far-seeing, and ambitious. He deplored
+the ruin which had overtaken his family, and longed ardently to rebuild
+its fortunes, adding thereto the laurels of glory and the honors of
+rank.
+
+The situation which he enjoyed in the establishment of the Florentine
+envoy appeared to him the stepping-stone to the attainment of these
+objects, but the embassy had not been long settled at Constantinople,
+when Alessandro found that his master was one who, being ignorant
+himself, was jealous of the talents displayed by others. Great interest
+had alone procured the envoy the post which he held as negotiator
+plenipotentiary with the Ottoman Porte, on behalf of the Republic of
+Florence; and the Turkish reis-effendi, or minister of foreign affairs,
+soon perceived that the Christian embassador was quite incompetent to
+enter into the intricacies of treaties and the complex machinery of
+diplomacy. But suddenly the official notes which the envoy addressed to
+the reis-effendi began to exhibit a sagacity and an evidence of
+far-sighted policy which contrasted strongly with the imbecility which
+had previously characterized those communications. It was at that period
+a part of the policy of the Ottoman Port to maintain spies in the
+household of all the foreign embassadors residing in Constantinople; and
+through this agency the reis-effendi discovered that the Florentine
+envoy had condescended to avail himself of the brilliant talents of his
+secretary, Alessandro Francatelli, to infuse spirit into his official
+notes.
+
+The reis-effendi was himself a shrewd and sagacious man; and he
+recognized in the abilities evinced by the youthful secretary, those
+elements which, if properly developed, would form a great politician.
+The Turkish Minister accordingly resolved to leave no stone unturned, in
+order to entice so promising an individual into the service of the
+sultan. To accomplish this object indirect means were at first
+attempted; and the secret agents of the minister sounded Alessandro upon
+the subject. He listened to them at first in silence, but not
+unwillingly. They grew bolder, and their speech became more open. He
+encouraged them to lay bare their aims; and they hinted to him how
+glorious a career might be opened to him were he to enter the service of
+the high and mighty sultan, Solyman the Magnificent, who then sat upon
+the proud throne of the Ottoman Empire.
+
+The more attentively Alessandro listened, the less reserved became those
+who were instructed to undermine his fidelity toward his master, the
+Florentine Envoy. They represented to him how Christians, who had
+abjured their creed and embraced the Moslem faith, had risen to the
+highest offices, even to the post of grand vizier, or prime minister of
+the empire. Alessandro was completely master of his emotions; he had not
+studied for some years in the school of diplomacy without learning how
+to render the expression of his countenance such as at any moment to
+belie the real state of his feelings. He did not, therefore, suffer the
+spies and agents of the reis-effendi to perceive how deep an impression
+their words had made upon him; but he said and looked enough to convince
+them that the topics of their discourse would receive the most serious
+consideration at his hands. His mind was already made up to accept the
+overtures thus made to him; but he affected to hesitate, for he saw that
+his services were ardently longed for, and he resolved to drive as
+advantageous a bargain as possible.
+
+He was one afternoon lounging through the principal bezestein or bazaar,
+when he was struck by the elegant form, imposing air, and rich apparel
+of a lady who rode slowly along upon a mule, attended by four female
+slaves on foot. The outlines of her figure shaped the most admirable
+symmetry he had ever beheld; and though her countenance was concealed by
+a thick veil, in accordance with the custom of the East, yet he seemed
+to have been impressed with an instinctive conviction that the face
+beneath that invidious covering was eminently beautiful. Moreover, the
+eyes whose glances flashed through the two holes which were formed in
+the veil so as to permit the enjoyment of the faculty of sight, were
+gloriously brilliant, yet black as jet. Once, too, when the lady raised
+her delicate white hand, sparkling with jewels, to arrange the folds of
+that hated veil, Alessandro caught a rapid, evanescent glimpse of a neck
+as white as snow.
+
+The little procession stopped at the door of a merchant's shop in the
+bazaar; the slaves assisted the lady to dismount, and she entered the
+warehouse, followed by her dependents, the mule being left in charge of
+one of the numerous porters who thronged in the bezestein.
+
+Alessandro lingered near the door, and he beheld the merchant displaying
+various pieces of rich brocade before the eyes of the lady, who,
+however, scrupulously retained the dense veil over her countenance.
+Having made her purchases, which were taken charge of by one of the
+slaves, the lady came forth again; and Alessandro, forgetting that his
+lingering near now amounted to almost an act of rudeness, was chained to
+the spot, lost in admiration of her elegant gesture, her graceful yet
+dignified carriage, and the exquisite contour of her perfect shape. Her
+feet and ankles, appearing beneath the full trousers, that were gathered
+in just at the commencement of the swell of the leg, were small and
+beautifully shaped; and so light was her tread, that she scarcely seemed
+to touch the ground on which she walked.
+
+As the lady issued from the door of the merchant's shop, she cast a
+rapid but inquiring look toward Alessandro, though whether in anger or
+curiosity he was unable to determine, for the eyes only could he see,
+and it was impossible for him to read the meaning of the glances they
+sent forth, when unassisted by a view of the general expression worn by
+her countenance at the same time.
+
+Accident, however, favored him far more than he could have possibly
+anticipated. At the very moment when the lady's head was turned toward
+him, she tripped over the cordage of a bale of goods that had shortly
+before been opened beneath the painted awning over the front of the
+shop, and she would have fallen had not Alessandro sprung forward and
+caught her in his arms.
+
+She uttered a faint scream, for her veil had shifted aside from its
+proper position; and her countenance was thus revealed to a man, and
+that man evidently by his dress a Christian!
+
+Instantly recovering her self-possession, she readjusted her veil, gave
+a gentle but graceful inclination of the head toward Alessandro, mounted
+her mule by the assistance of the slaves, and rode away at a somewhat
+hasty pace. Alessandro stood gazing after her until she turned the angle
+of the nearest street, and it struck him that her glance was for an
+instant cast rapidly back toward him, ere she disappeared from his view.
+
+And no wonder that he stood thus rooted to the spot, following her with
+his eyes; for the countenance which accident had revealed to him was
+already impressed upon his heart. It was one of those lovely Georgian
+faces, oval in shape, and with a complexion formed of milk and roses,
+which have at all times been prized in the East, as the very perfection
+of female beauty; a face which, without intellectual expression,
+possesses an ineffable witchery, and all the charms calculated to
+fascinate the beholder. The eyes were black as jet, the hair of a dark
+auburn, and luxuriantly rich in its massive beauty; the lips were of
+bright vermilion, and between them were two rows of pearl, small and
+even. The forehead was high and broad, and white as marble, with the
+delicate blue veins visible through the transparent complexion.
+
+Alessandro was ravished as he reflected on the wondrous beauty thus for
+a moment revealed to him, but his raptures speedily changed to positive
+grief when he thought how improbable it was that this fair creature
+would ever cross his path again. He entered the warehouse, made a small
+purchase, and inquired casually of the Turkish merchant if he knew who
+the lady was. The reply was in the negative, but the merchant informed
+Alessandro that he had no doubt the lady was of some rank, from the
+profound respect with which her slaves treated her, and from the
+readiness with which she paid the prices demanded of her for the goods
+she had purchased, Turkish ladies generally being notorious for their
+disposition to drive a hard bargain with traders.
+
+Alessandro returned to the suburb of Pera, in which the mansion of the
+Florentine Embassy was situated--his mind full of the beautiful creature
+whose countenance he had seen for a moment, and whose soft form he had
+also for a moment--a single moment--held in his arms. He could not apply
+himself to the duties of his office, but feigned indisposition and
+retired to the privacy of his own apartment. And never did that chamber
+seem so lonely, so cold, so cheerless. His entire disposition appeared
+to have become suddenly changed; he felt that the world now contained
+something the possession of which was positively necessary to his
+happiness. One sole idea absorbed all his thoughts: the most lovely
+countenance which, in his estimation, he had ever seen was so indelibly
+reflected in the mirror of his mind, that his imagination could
+contemplate naught besides. He knew not that whenever he went abroad, he
+was watched by one of the spies of the reis-effendi; and he was
+therefore surprised when, on the following day, that secret agent of the
+minister whispered in his ear, "Christian, thou lovest--and it depends
+on thyself whether thou wilt be loved in return!"
+
+Alessandro was stupefied at these words. His secret was known, or at
+least suspected. He questioned the individual who had thus addressed
+him, and he found that the incident of the preceding day was indeed more
+than suspected--it _was_ known. He besought to know who the lady was;
+but the spy would not, or could not satisfy him. He, however, promised
+that he would endeavor to ascertain a point in which Alessandro appeared
+to be so deeply interested. The intriguing spirit of Turkish dependents
+is notorious: the reader will not therefore be surprised when we state
+that in a few days the spy made his appearance in Alessandro's presence
+with a countenance denoting joyous tidings. The young Italian was
+impatient to learn the results of the agent's inquiries.
+
+"I know not who the lady is," was the reply; "but this much I have to
+impart to you, signor--that she did not behold you the other day with
+indifference; that she is grateful for the attention you paid in
+offering your aid to save her from perhaps a serious accident--and that
+she will grant you a few moments' interview this evening, provided you
+assent to certain conditions to be imposed upon you, respecting the
+preliminary arrangements for your meeting."
+
+"Name them! name them!" exclaimed Alessandro, wild with joy, and almost
+doubting whether he were not in the midst of a delicious dream.
+
+"That you consent to be blindfolded while being conducted into her
+presence--that you maintain the most profound silence while with those
+who will guide you to her abode--and that you return from the interview
+under the same circumstances."
+
+"I should be unworthy the interest which she deigns to manifest in my
+behalf, were I to refuse compliance with those terms," answered
+Alessandro.
+
+"An hour after sunset," said the spy, "you will meet me at the gate of
+the Mosque of Selimya;" and with those words he hurried away, leaving
+the young Florentine in a state of excited hope, amounting to a delirium
+of joy.
+
+Alessandro was well aware that adventures, such as the one in which he
+found himself suddenly involved, were by no means uncommon in the East;
+and that ladies of the most unimpeachable virtue, as well as of the
+highest rank, frequently accorded interviews of this private nature to
+those men who were fortunate enough to merit their attention--such
+visits being the first step toward matrimonial connections. But then he
+remembered that he was a Christian, and the fair object of his devotion
+was probably of the Moslem faith. What, then, would be the result? Was
+some wealthy lady of high rank about to abandon her creed for his sake?
+or would the sacrifice of his faith be required as the only condition on
+which his complete happiness might be achieved? He knew not--cared but
+little; it was sufficient for him that he was to meet the charming being
+whose image had never once quitted his mind, from the first moment he
+had seen her in the bezestein!
+
+Even before the appointed hour was Alessandro pacing the square in front
+of the splendid temple which the Sultan Selim--the conqueror of
+Egypt--had erected, and which bore his imperial name. At length the
+agent, for whom he waited, made his appearance. This man, though
+actually a Turkish dependent in the service of the Florentine Envoy,
+was, as before stated, neither more nor less than one of the numerous
+spies placed by the reis-effendi round the person of that embassador.
+Alessandro was aware of this, in consequence of the offers and
+representations that had been made to him through the means of this
+agent, and though the youth suspected that the man knew more concerning
+the beauteous idol of his heart than he had chosen to admit, yet he had
+seen enough to convince him of the inutility of questioning him on that
+head.
+
+It was, therefore, in silence that Alessandro followed his guide through
+several by-streets down to the margin of the waters of the Golden Horn.
+There a boat, in which two rowers and a female slave were seated, was
+waiting.
+
+"Here, must you be blindfolded," said the spy.
+
+For a few moments Alessandro hesitated, in regret that he had gone so
+far with this adventure. He had heard fearful tales of dark deeds
+committed on the waters of the Bosporus and the Golden Horn; and he
+himself, when roving during his leisure hours along the verdant banks of
+those waters, had seen the livid corpse float with the tale-telling
+bow-string fastened round the neck.
+
+The spy seemed to divine his thoughts.
+
+"You hesitate, signor," he said; "then let us retrace our way. But
+remember," he added in a low tone, "that were treachery intended, it
+would be as easy to perform the deed where you now stand, as on the
+bosom of that star-lit gulf."
+
+Alessandro hesitated no longer, but suffered himself to be completely
+hooded in a cap which the spy drew over his countenance. He was then
+conducted into the boat and guided to a seat next to the female slave.
+The spy leapt upon the strand, the boatmen plied their oars, and the
+skiff shot away from the bank, no one uttering a word.
+
+
+
+
+[END OF PART I.]
+
+
+
+
+_PART II._
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLV.
+
+THE LADY OF CONSTANTINOPLE.
+
+
+For upward of half an hour did the boat skim the surface of the Golden
+Horn, the dip of the oars in the water and the rippling around the sharp
+prow alone breaking the solemn silence of the night. At length the skiff
+stopped, and the female slave took Alessandro's hand, whispering in a
+low tone, "I will serve as thy guide, Christian; but speak not till thou
+hast permission."
+
+She then led him from the boat, up a flight of steps, and through a
+garden--for he occasionally came in contact with the outstretching
+branches of shrubs, and there was moreover a delicious odor of flowers,
+as he proceeded in the total darkness of his blindfolding. At the
+expiration of ten minutes the guide stopped; and Alessandro heard a key
+turn in a lock.
+
+"Enter there," said the slave, pushing him gently forward, and speaking
+in a low tone. "Take off the cap--attire yourself in the raiment you
+will find ready provided, and then pass fearlessly through the door at
+the further end of the room. You will meet me again in the hall which
+you will thus reach."
+
+And, without waiting for a reply, the slave closed and locked the door
+through which Alessandro had just passed. Hastily did he remove the cap,
+which had indeed almost suffocated him; and he now found himself in a
+small apartment, elegantly furnished in the most luxurious Oriental
+fashion, and brilliantly lighted. A table spread with confectionery,
+cakes, fruits, and even wines--though the fermented juice of the grape
+be expressly forbidden by the laws of the Prophet Mohammed--occupied the
+center of the room. Around the walls were continuous sofas, or ottomans,
+so conducive to the enjoyment of a voluptuous indolence; the floor was
+spread with a carpet so thick that the feet sunk into the silky texture,
+as into newly fallen snow; and whichever way he turned Alessandro beheld
+his form reflected in vast mirrors set in magnificent frames. There were
+no windows on any side of this apartment; but there was a cupola fitted
+with stained glass on the roof, and Alessandro judged that he was in one
+of those voluptuous kiosks usually found in the gardens of wealthy
+Turks.
+
+Precisely as the slave had informed him, he found an elegant suit of
+Moslem garments set out on the sofa for his use; and he hastened to
+exchange his Italian costume for the Oriental raiment. As he thus
+attired himself, it was necessary to contemplate himself in the mirror
+facing him, so as properly to adjust clothes to which he was totally
+unaccustomed; and it struck him that the garb of the infidel became him
+better than that of the Christian. He did not, however, waste time in
+the details of this strange toilet; but as soon as it was completed he
+opened the door at the further end of the room, in pursuance of the
+instructions he had received. Alessandro found himself in a large marble
+hall, from which several flights of stairs led to the apartments above.
+The place was refulgent with the light of numerous chandeliers, the
+glare of which was enhanced by the vast mirrors attached to the walls,
+and the crystal pillars that supported the roof.
+
+Not a human being met Alessandro's eyes; and he began to fear either
+that he had mistaken the directions he had received, or that some
+treachery was intended, when a door opened, and the female slave,
+wrapped in a veil, made her appearance. Placing her forefinger upon that
+part of the veil which covered her lips, to enjoin silence, she led the
+way up the nearest staircase, Alessandro following with a heart beating
+audibly. They reached a door at which a negro male slave was stationed.
+
+"The hakim" (physician), said Alessandro's guide, laconically addressing
+herself to the negro, who bowed in silence and threw open the door. The
+female slave conducted the pretended physician into a small but
+splendidly furnished ante-room, in which there were several other
+dependents of her own sex. A door at the further end was opened, and
+Alessandro passed through into another, larger, and still more
+magnificently furnished room; the door closed behind him, and he found
+himself alone with the idol of his adoration.
+
+Half seated, half lying upon cushions of scarlet brocade, the glossy
+bright hue of which was mellowed by the muslin spread over it, appeared
+the beauteous creature whose image was so faithfully delineated in his
+memory. She was attired in the graceful and becoming dualma, a purple
+vest which set close to her form, and with a species of elasticity
+shaped itself so as to develop every contour.
+
+But in accordance with the custom of the clime and age, the dualma was
+open at the bosom, sloping from each lovely white shoulder to the waist,
+where the two folds joining, formed an angle, at which the purple vest
+was fastened by a diamond worth a monarch's ransom. The sleeves were
+wide, but short, scarcely reaching to the elbow, and leaving all the
+lower part of the snowy arms completely bare. Her ample trousers were of
+purple silk, covered with the finest muslin, and drawn in tight a little
+above the ankles, which were naked. On her feet she wore crimson
+slippers cut very low, and each ornamented with a diamond. Round her
+person below the waist she wore a magnificent shawl, rolled up, as it
+were, negligently, so as to form a girdle or zone, and fastened in front
+with two large tassels of pearls. Diamond bracelets adorned her fair
+arms; and her head-dress consisted of a turban or shawl of light but
+rich material, fastened with golden bodkins, the head of each being a
+pearl of the best water. Beneath this turban, her rich auburn hair,
+glowing like gold in the light of the perfumed lamps, and amidst the
+blaze of diamonds which adorned her, was parted in massive bands,
+sweeping gracefully over her temples and gathered behind the ears, then
+falling in all the luxuriance of its rich clustering folds over the
+cushion whereon she reclined. Her finger-nails were slightly tinged with
+henna, the rosy hue the more effectually setting off the lily whiteness
+of her delicate hand and full round arm. But no need had she to dye the
+lashes of her eyes with the famous kohol, so much used by Oriental
+ladies, for those lashes were by nature formed of the deepest jet--a
+somewhat unusual but beauteous contrast with the color of her hair. The
+cheeks of the lovely creature were slightly flushed, or it might have
+been a reflection of the scarlet brocade of the cushion on which, as we
+have said, she was half-seated, half-lying, when Alessandro appeared in
+her presence.
+
+For a few moments the young Italian was so dazzled by her beauty, so
+bewildered by the appearance of that lady, whose richness of attire
+seemed to denote the rank of sultana, that he remained rooted to the
+spot, uncertain whether to advance, to retire, or to fall upon his knees
+before her. But in an encouraging tone, and in a voice musical as a
+silver bell, the lady said: "Approach, Christian!" and she pointed to a
+low ottoman within a few paces of the sofa which she herself occupied.
+Alessandro now recovered his presence of mind; and no longer embarrassed
+and awkward, but with graceful ease and yet profound respect, he took
+the seat indicated.
+
+"Beauteous lady," he said, "how can I ever demonstrate the
+gratitude--the illimitable, boundless gratitude which fills my heart,
+for the joy, the truly elysian delight afforded me by this meeting?"
+
+"You speak our language well, Christian," observed the lady, smiling
+faintly at the compliment conveyed by the words of Alessandro, but
+evading a direct reply.
+
+"I have for some years past been in the service of the Florentine envoy,
+lady," was the answer; "and the position which I occupy at the palace of
+the embassy has led me to study the beauteous language of this clime,
+and to master its difficulties. But never, never did that language sound
+so soft and musical upon my ears as now, flowing from those sweet lips
+of thine."
+
+"The Moslem maiden dares not listen to the flattery of the infidel,"
+said the beauteous stranger in a serious but not severe tone. "Listen to
+me, Christian, with attention, for our meeting must not be prolonged
+many minutes. To say that I beheld thee with indifference when we first
+encountered each other in the bazaar, were to utter a falsehood which I
+scorn; to admit that I can love thee, and love thee well," she added,
+her voice slightly trembling, "is an avowal which I do not blush to
+make. But never can the Moslem maiden bestow her hand on the infidel. If
+thou lovest me--if thou wouldst prove thyself worthy of that affection
+which my heart is inclined to bestow upon thee, thou wilt renounce the
+creed of thy forefathers, and embrace the Mussulman faith. Nor is this
+all that I require of thee, or that thou must achieve to win me. Become
+a true believer--acknowledge that Allah is God and Mohammed is his
+prophet--and a bright and glorious destiny will await thee. For although
+thou wilt depart hence without learning my name, or who I may be, or the
+place to which you have been brought to meet me,--though we shall behold
+each other no more until thou hast rendered thyself worthy of my hand,
+yet shall I ever be mindful of thee, my loved one! An unseen, an unknown
+influence shall attend thee: thy slightest wishes will be anticipated
+and fulfilled in a manner for which thou wilt vainly seek to
+account,--and, as thou provest thy talents or thy valor, so will
+promotion open its doors to thee with such rapidity that thou wilt
+strain every nerve to reach the highest offices in the state--for then
+only may'st thou hope to receive my hand, and behold the elucidation of
+the mystery which up to that date will envelop thy destinies."
+
+While the lady was thus speaking, a fearful struggle took place in the
+breast of Alessandro--for the renunciation of his creed, a creed in
+which he must ever in his heart continue to believe, though ostensibly
+he might abjure it--was an appalling step to contemplate. Then to his
+mind also came the images of those whom he loved, and who were far away
+in Italy:--his aunt, who had been so kind to him, his sister whom he
+knew to be so proud of him, and Father Marco, who manifested such deep
+interest in his behalf. But on his ears continued to flow the honeyed
+words and the musical tones of the charming temptress; and, as she
+gradually developed to his imagination the destinies upon which he might
+enter, offering herself as the eventual prize to be gained by a career
+certain to be pushed on successfully through the medium of a powerful,
+though mysterious influence--Florence, relatives, and friends, became as
+secondary considerations in his mind; and by the time the lady brought
+her long address to a conclusion--that address which had grown more
+impassioned and tender as she proceeded--Alessandro threw himself at her
+feet, exclaiming, "Lovely houri that thou art--beauteous as the maidens
+that dwell in the paradise of thy prophet--I am thine. I am thine!"
+
+The lady extended her right hand, which he took and pressed in rapture
+to his lips. But the next moment she rose lightly to her feet, and
+assuming a demeanor befitting a royal sultana, said in a sweet, though
+impressive tone:
+
+"We must now part--thou to enter on thy career of fame, I to set in
+motion every spring within my reach to advance thee to the pinnacle of
+glory and power. Henceforth thy name is Ibrahim! Go, then, my Ibrahim,
+and throw thyself at the feet of the reis-effendi, and that great
+minister will forthwith present thee to Piri Pasha, the grand vizier.
+Toil diligently--labor arduously--and the rest concerns me. Go, then, my
+Ibrahim, I say, and enter on the path which will lead thee to the summit
+of fame and power!"
+
+She extended her arms toward him--he snatched her to his breast, and
+covered her cheeks with kisses. In that paradise of charms he could have
+reveled forever; but the tender caresses lasted not beyond a few
+moments, for the lady tore herself away from his embrace and hurried
+into an adjacent apartment. Alessandro--or rather, the renegade,
+Ibrahim--passed into the anteroom where his guide, the female slave,
+awaited his return. She conducted him back to the hall, and advanced
+toward the door of the voluptuous kiosk, where he had changed his
+raiment.
+
+"Goest thou forth a Christian still, or a true believer?" she asked
+turning suddenly round.
+
+"As a Mussulman," answered the renegade, while his heart sank within
+him, and remorse already commenced its torture.
+
+"Then thou hast no further need of the Christian garb," said the slave.
+"Await me here."
+
+She entered the kiosk, and returned in a few moments with the cap,
+which, in obedience to her directions, he once more drew on his head and
+over his countenance. The slave then led him into the garden, which they
+treaded in profound silence. At length they reached the steps leading
+down to the water, and the slave accompanied him into the boat, which
+immediately shot away from the bank. Alessandro had now ample time for
+calm reflection. The excitement of the hurried incidents of the evening
+was nearly over, and, though his breast was still occupied with the
+image of his beautiful unknown, and with the brilliant prospects which
+she had opened to view, he nevertheless shrank from the foul deed of
+apostasy which he had vowed to perpetrate. But we have already said that
+he was essentially worldly-minded, and, as he felt convinced that the
+petty jealousy of the Florentine Envoy would prevent him from rising
+higher in the diplomatic hierarchy than the post of secretary, he by
+degrees managed to console himself for his renegadism on the score that
+it was necessary--the indispensable stepping-stone to the gratification
+of his ambition.
+
+Thus by the time the boat touched the landing-place where he had first
+entered it, he had succeeded to some extent in subduing the pangs of
+remorse. The female slave now bade him remove the cap from his face and
+resume his turban. A few moments sufficed to make this change; and he
+was about to step on shore, when the woman caught him by the sleeve of
+his caftan, and, thrusting a small case of sandal-wood into his hand,
+said: "She whom you saw ere now, commanded me to give thee this."
+
+The slave pushed him toward the bank: he obeyed the impulse and landed,
+she remaining in the boat, which instantly darted away again, most
+probably to convey her back to the abode of her charming mistress. On
+the top of the bank the renegade was accosted by the spy whom he had
+left there when he embarked in the skiff.
+
+"Allah and the Prophet be praised!" exclaimed the man, surveying
+Alessandro attentively by the light of the lovely moon. "Thou art now
+numbered amongst the faithful!"
+
+The apostate bit his lips to keep down a sigh of remorse which rose to
+them; and his guide, without uttering another word, led the way to the
+palace of the reis-effendi. There Alessandro or Ibrahim, as we must
+henceforth call him--was lodged in a splendid apartment, and had two
+slaves appointed to wait upon him. He, however, hastily dismissed them,
+and when alone, opened the case that had been placed into his hands by
+the female slave. It contained a varied assortment of jewelry and
+precious stones, constituting a treasure of immense value.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLVI.
+
+THE APOSTATE IBRAHIM.
+
+
+Constantinople, like haughty Rome, is built on seven hills--the houses
+being so disposed that they do not intercept the view commanded by each
+on the amphitheatrical acclivities. But the streets are narrow, crooked,
+and uneven; and the grand effects of the numerous stately mosques and
+noble edifices are subdued, and in many cases altogether lost, either by
+the very insignificant width of the thoroughfares in which they stand,
+or by the contiguity of mean and miserable wooden tenements.
+
+The mosque of St. Sophia, once a Christian church, with its magnificent
+portico, supported by marble columns, its nine vast folding doors,
+adorned with bas-reliefs, and its stupendous dome, a hundred and twenty
+feet in diameter; the mosque of the Sultan Solyman, forming an exact
+square with four noble towers at the angles, and with its huge cupola,
+in the midst; the mosque of the Sultan Ahmed, with its numerous domes,
+its tall minarets, and its colonnades supported by marble pillars; and
+the mosque of the Sultana Valida, or queen mother of Mohammed the
+Fourth, exceeding all other Mussulman churches in the delicacy of its
+architecture and the beauty of its columns of marble and jasper,
+supplied by the ruins of Troy--these are the most remarkable temples in
+the capital of the Ottoman empire.
+
+The Grand Bezestein, or exchange, is likewise a magnificent
+structure--consisting of a spacious hall of circular form, built of
+free-stone, and surrounded by shops displaying the richest commodities
+of Oriental commerce. In the Ladies' Bazaar there is a marble column of
+extraordinary height, and on the sides of which, from the foot to the
+crown, are represented in admirable bas-reliefs the most remarkable
+events which characterized the reign of the Emperor Arcadius, ere the
+capital of Roman dominions of the East fell into the hands of the
+descendants of Osman.
+
+But of all the striking edifices at Constantinople, that of the Sultan's
+Palace, or seraglio, is the most spacious and the most magnificent.
+Christian writers and readers are too apt to confound the seraglio with
+the harem, and to suppose that the former means the apartments belonging
+to the sultan's ladies; whereas the word seraglio, or rather _sernil_,
+represents the entire palace of which the harem, or females' dwelling,
+is but a comparatively small portion.
+
+The seraglio is a vast inclosure, occupying nearly the entire site of
+the ancient city of Byzantium, and embracing a circumference of five
+miles. It contains nine enormous courts of quadrangular form, and an
+immense number of buildings--constituting a complete town of itself. But
+within this inclosure dwell upward of ten thousand persons--the entire
+court of the sultan. There reside the great officers of state, the body
+guards, the numerous corps of bostandjis, or gardeners, and baltojis, or
+fire-wood purveyors--the corps of white and black eunuchs, the pages,
+the mutes, the dwarfs--the ladies of the harem, and all their numerous
+attendants.
+
+There are nine gates to the palace of the sultan. The principal one
+opens on the square of St. Sophia, and is very magnificent in its
+architecture. It is this gate which is called the Sublime Porte--a name
+figuratively given to the court of the sultan, in all histories,
+records, and diplomatic transactions. It was within the inclosure of the
+seraglio that Alessandro Francatelli, whom we shall henceforth call by
+his apostate name of Ibrahim--was lodged in the dwelling of the
+reis-effendi or minister of foreign affairs. But in the course of a few
+days the renegade was introduced into the presence of Piri Pasha, the
+grand vizier--that high functionary who exercised a power almost as
+extensive and as despotic as that wielded by the sultan himself.
+
+Ibrahim, the apostate, was received by his highness Piri Pasha at a
+private audience--and the young man exerted all his powers, and called
+to his aid all the accomplishments which he possessed, to render himself
+agreeable to that great minister. He discoursed in an intelligent manner
+upon the policy of Italy and Austria, and gave the grand vizier
+considerable information relative to the customs, resources, and
+condition of these countries. Then, when the vizier touched upon lighter
+matters, Ibrahim showed how well he was already acquainted with the
+works of the most eminent Turkish poets and historians; and the art of
+music being mentioned, he gave the minister a specimen of his
+proficiency on the violin. Piri Pasha was charmed with the young
+renegade, whom he immediately took into his service as one of his
+private secretaries.
+
+Not many weeks elapsed before the fame of Ibrahim's accomplishments and
+rare talents reached the ears of the sultan, Solyman the Magnificent;
+and the young renegade was honored with an audience by the ruler of the
+East. On this occasion he exerted himself to please even more
+triumphantly than when he was introduced to the grand vizier; and the
+sultan commanded that henceforth Ibrahim should remain attached to his
+person in the capacity of keeper of the imperial archives.
+
+We should observe that the dispatches which the Florentine Envoy wrote
+to the government of the republic, contained but a brief and vague
+allusion to the apostasy of Alessandro Francatelli; merely mentioning
+that the youth had become a Mussulman, and entered the service of the
+grand vizier, but not stating either the name which he had adopted or
+the brilliant prospects which had so suddenly and marvelously opened
+before him. The Florentine Embassador treated the matter thus lightly,
+because he was afraid of incurring the blame of his government for not
+having kept a more stringent watch over his subordinate, were he to
+attach any importance to the fact of Alessandro's apostasy. But he hoped
+that by merely glancing at the event as one scarcely worth special
+notice, the Council of Florence would be led to treat it with equal
+levity. Nor was the embassador deceived in his calculation; and thus the
+accounts which reached Florence relative to Alessandro's renegadism--and
+which were not indeed communicated to the council until some months
+after the occurrence of the apostasy itself--were vague and indefinite
+to a degree.
+
+And had Ibrahim no remorse? Did he never think of his lovely sister
+Flora, and of his affectionate aunt who, in his boyhood, had made such
+great and generous sacrifices to rear them honorably? Oh! yes;--but a
+more powerful idea dominated the remembrance of kindred, and the
+attachment to home--and that idea was ambition! Moreover, the hope of
+speedily achieving that greatness which was to render him eligible and
+worthy to possess the charming being whose powerful influence seemed to
+surround him with a constant halo of protection, and to soothe down all
+the asperities which are usually found in the career of those who rise
+suddenly and rise highly--this ardent, longing hope not only encouraged
+him to put forth all his energies to make himself master of a glorious
+position, but also subdued to no small extent the feelings of
+compunction which would otherwise have been too bitter, too agonizing to
+endure.
+
+His mind was, moreover, constantly occupied. When not in attendance upon
+the sultan, he devoted all his time to render himself intimately
+acquainted with the laws, polity, diplomatic history, resources,
+condition, and finances of the Ottoman Empire; he also studied the
+Turkish literature, and practiced composition, both in prose and verse,
+in the language of that country which was now his own! But think not,
+reader, that in his heart he was a Mussulman, or that he had
+extinguished the light of Christianity within his soul. No--oh! no; the
+more he read on the subject of the Mohammedan system of theology, the
+more he became convinced not only of its utter falsity, but also of its
+incompatibility with the progress of civilization. Nevertheless, he
+dared not pray to the True God whom he had renounced with his lips; but
+there was a secret adoration, an interior worship of the Saviour, which
+he could not and sought not to subdue.
+
+Solyman the Magnificent, was an enlightened prince, and a generous
+patron of the arts and sciences. He did not persecute the Christians,
+because he knew, in his own heart, that they were further advanced in
+all human ideas and institutions than the Ottomans. He was, therefore,
+delighted whenever a talented Christian embraced the Moslem faith and
+entered his service; and his keen perception speedily led him to discern
+and appreciate all the merits and acquirements of his favorite Ibrahim.
+
+Such was the state of things at Constantinople, when those rapidly
+successive incidents, which we have already related, took place in
+Florence. At this time immense preparations were being made by the
+sultan for an expedition against the Island of Rhodes, then in the
+possession of the Knights of St. John, commanded by their grand master,
+Villiers of Isle Adam.
+
+This chieftain, aware of the danger which menaced him, dispatched envoys
+to the courts of Rome, Genoa, Venice, and Florence, imploring those
+powers to send him assistance against the expected invasion of the
+Turks. Each of these states hastened to comply with this request; and
+numerous bodies of auxiliaries sailed from various ports in Italy to
+fight beneath the glorious banner of Villiers of Isle Adam, one of the
+stanchest veteran champions of Christendom.
+
+Thus, at the very time when Nisida and Wagner were united in the bonds
+of love on the island of which they were the possessors--while, too,
+Isaachar the Jew languished in the prisons of the Inquisition of
+Florence, at which city the chivalrous-hearted Manuel d'Orsini tarried
+to hasten on the trial and give his testimony in favor of the
+Israelite--and moreover while Flora, and the Countess Giulia dwelt in
+the strictest retirement with the young maiden's aunt--at this period,
+we say, a fleet of three hundred sail quitted Constantinople under the
+command of the kapitan-pasha, or lord high admiral, and proceeded toward
+the Island of Rhodes. At the same time, Solyman the Magnificent crossed
+into Asia Minor, and placing himself at the head of an army of a hundred
+thousand men, commenced his march toward the coast facing the island,
+and where he intended to embark on his warlike expedition. His favorite
+Ibrahim accompanied him, as did also the Grand Vizier Piri Pasha, and
+the principal dignitaries of the empire.
+
+It was in the spring of 1521 that the Ottoman fleet received the army on
+board at the Cape in the Gulf of Macri, which is only separated by a
+very narrow strait from the Island of Rhodes; and in the evening of the
+same day on which the troops had thus embarked, the mighty armament
+appeared off the capital city of the Knights of St. John.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLVII.
+
+THE SIEGE OF RHODES.
+
+
+On the following morning, salvoes of artillery throughout the fleet
+announced to the inhabitants and garrison of Rhodes, that the sultan was
+about to effect a landing with his troops.
+
+The debarkment was not resisted; for it was protected by the cannonade
+which the ships directed against the walls of the city, and the
+Christians had no vessel capable of demonstrating any hostility against
+the mighty fleet commanded by the kapitan-pasha.
+
+Villiers of Isle Adam, the generalissimo of the Christian forces, had
+reduced to ashes all circumjacent villages, and received their
+inhabitants into the city itself. But the Ottomans cared not for the
+waste and desolation thus created around the walls of the city; but
+while their artillery, alike on land and by sea, maintained an incessant
+fire on the town, they threw up works of defense and established depots
+of provisions and ammunition. The sultan went in person accompanied by
+Ibrahim, and attended by a numerous escort, to reconnoiter the
+fortifications, and inspect the position of his troops.
+
+On the other side, Villiers of Isle Adam distributed his forces in such
+a manner that the warriors of each nation defended particular gates.
+Thus the corps of Spaniards, French, Germans, English, Portuguese,
+Italian, Auvergnese and Provincials, respectively defended eight of the
+gates of Rhodes; while the lord general himself, with his body-guard,
+took his post at the ninth. For the knights of Rhodes comprised natives
+of nearly all Christian countries, and the mode in which Villiers thus
+allotted a gate to the defense of the warriors of each nation, gave an
+impulse to that emulative spirit which ever induces the soldiers of one
+clime to vie with those of another.
+
+The Ottoman troops were disposed in the following manner: Ayaz Pasha,
+Beglerbeg (or governor) of Roumilia, found himself placed in front of
+the walls and gates defended by the French and Germans; Ahmed Pasha was
+opposed to the Spaniards and Auvergnese; Mustapha Pasha had to contend
+with the English: Kasim, Beglerbeg of Anatolia, was to direct the attack
+against the bastion and gates occupied by the natives of Provence; the
+Grand Vizier, Piri Pasha, was opposed to the Portuguese, and the sultan
+himself undertook the assault against the defenses occupied by the
+Italians.
+
+For several days there was much skirmishing, but no advantage was gained
+by the Ottomans. Mines and countermines were employed on both sides, and
+those executed by the Christians effected terrible havoc amongst the
+Turks. At length in pursuance of the advice of the renegade Ibrahim, the
+sultan ordered a general assault to be made upon the city, and heralds
+went through the entire encampment, proclaiming the imperial command.
+Tidings of this resolution were conveyed into the city by means of the
+Christians' spies; and while the Ottomans were preparing for the attack,
+Villiers of Isle Adam was actively employed in adopting all possible
+means for the defense.
+
+At daybreak, the general assault commenced, and the aga (or colonel) of
+the janizaries succeeded in planting his banner on the gate intrusted to
+the care of the Spaniards and Auvergnese. But this success was merely
+temporary in that quarter; for the Ottomans were beaten back with such
+immense slaughter, that fifteen thousand of their choicest troops were
+cut to pieces in the breach and the ditch. But still the assault was
+prosecuted in every quarter and every point, and the Christian warriors
+acquitted themselves nobly in the defense of the city. The women of
+Rhodes manifested a courage and zeal which history has loved to record
+as most honorable to their sex. Some of them carried about bread and
+wine to recruit the fainting and refresh the wearied, others were ready
+with bandages and lint to stanch the blood which flowed from the
+wounded, some conveyed earth in wheelbarrows, to stop up the breaches
+made in the walls, and others bore along immense stones to hurl down
+upon the assailants.
+
+Oh! it was a glorious, but a sad and mournful sight--that death-struggle
+of the valiant Christians against the barbarism of the East. And many
+touching proofs of woman's courage and daring characterized that
+memorable siege. Especially does this fact merit our attention:--The
+wife of a Christian captain, seeing her husband slain, and the enemy
+gaining ground rapidly, embraced her two children tenderly, made the
+sign of the cross upon their brows, and then, having stabbed them to the
+heart, threw them into the midst of a burning building near, exclaiming,
+"The infidels will not now be able, my poor darlings, to wreak their
+vengeance on you, alive or dead!" In another moment she seized her dead
+husband's sword, and plunging into the thickest of the fight, met a
+death worthy of a heroine.
+
+The rain now began to fall in torrents, washing away the floods of gore
+which, since daybreak, had dyed the bastions and the wall; and the
+assault continued as arduously as the defense was maintained with
+desperation. Solyman commanded in person the division which was opposed
+to the gate and the fort intrusted by the lord general of the Christians
+to the care of the Italian auxiliaries. But, though it was now past
+noon, and the sultan had prosecuted his attack on that point with
+unabated vigor since the dawn, no impression had yet been made. The
+Italians fought with a heroism which bade defiance to the numerical
+superiority of their assailants; for they were led on by a young
+chieftain who, beneath an effeminate exterior, possessed the soul of a
+lion. Clad in a complete suit of polished armor, and with crimson plumes
+waving from his steel helmet, to which no visor was attached, that
+youthful leader threw himself into the thickest of the medley, sought
+the very points where danger appeared most terrible--and, alike by his
+example and his words, encouraged those whom he commanded to dispute
+every inch of ground with the Moslem assailants.
+
+The sultan was enraged when he beheld the success with which that
+Italian chieftain rallied his men again after every rebuff; and, calling
+to Ibrahim to keep near him, Solyman the Magnificent advanced toward the
+breach which his cannon had already effected in the walls defended so
+gallantly by the Italian auxiliaries. And now, in a few minutes, behold
+the sultan himself, nerved with wonderful energy, rushing on--scimiter
+in hand--and calling on the young Italian warrior to measure weapons
+with him. The Christian chieftain understood not the words which the
+sultan uttered, but full well did he comprehend the anxiety of that
+great monarch to do battle with him; and the curved scimiter and the
+straight, cross-handled sword clashed together in a moment. The young
+warrior knew that his opponent was the sultan, whose imperial rank was
+denoted by the turban which he wore; and the hope of inflicting
+chastisement on the author of all the bloodshed which had taken place on
+the walls of Rhodes inspired the youth with a courage perfectly
+irresistible.
+
+Not many minutes had this combat lasted, before Solyman was thrown down
+in the breach, and the cross-handled sword of his conqueror was about to
+drink his heart's blood, when the renegade Ibrahim dashed forward from
+amidst the confused masses of those who were fighting around, and by a
+desperate effort hurled the young Italian warrior backward.
+
+"I owe thee my life, Ibrahim," said the sultan, springing upon his feet.
+"But hurt not him who has combated so gallantly: we must respect the
+brave!"
+
+The Italian chieftain had been completely stunned by his fall; he was,
+therefore, easily made prisoner and carried off to Ibrahim's tent.
+
+Almost at the same moment a messenger from Ahmed Pasha presented to the
+sultan a letter, in which was stated that the grand master, Villiers of
+Isle Adam, anxious to put a stop to the fearful slaughter that was
+progressing, had offered to capitulate on honorable terms. This
+proposition was immediately agreed to by the sultan, and a suspension of
+hostilities was proclaimed around the walls. The Ottomans retired to
+their camp, having lost upward of thirty thousand men during the deadly
+strife of a few hours; and the Christians had now leisure to ascertain
+the extent of their own disasters, which were proportionately appalling.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLVIII.
+
+THE PRISONER.
+
+
+In the meantime Ibrahim had ordered his prisoner, the young Italian
+chieftain, to be conveyed to his tent; and when the renegade's slaves
+had disencumbered the Christian of his armor, he began to revive. As
+Ibrahim bent over him, administering restoratives, a suspicion, which
+had already struck him the moment he first beheld his face, grew
+stronger and stronger; and the apostate at length became convinced that
+he had seen that countenance on some former occasion.
+
+Ordering his slaves to withdraw, Ibrahim remained alone with his
+prisoner, who was now able to sit up on the sofa and gaze around him.
+
+"I understand it all!" he exclaimed, the blood rushing back to his pale
+cheek; "I am in the power of the barbarians!"
+
+"Nay, call us not harsh names, brave chieftain," said Ibrahim, "seeing
+that we do not treat you unworthily."
+
+"I was wrong!" cried the prisoner; then, fixing his fine blue eyes upon
+the renegade, he added, "Were you not habited as a Moslem, I should
+conceive, by the purity with which you speak my native language, that
+you were a Christian, and an Italian."
+
+"I can speak many languages with equal fluency," said Ibrahim,
+evasively, as a pang shot through his heart. "But tell me thy name,
+Christian--for thou art a brave man, although so young."
+
+"In my own country," answered the youth, proudly, "I am called the Count
+of Riverola."
+
+We have before stated that Ibrahim was the complete master of his
+emotions: but it required all his powers of self-possession to subdue
+them now, when the name of that family into which he was well aware his
+sister had entered fell upon his ears. His suspicion was well founded;
+he had indeed seen Francisco before this day--had seen him when he was a
+mere boy, in Florence, for Alessandro was three or four years older than
+the young count. But he had never, in his native land, exchanged a word
+with Francisco; he had merely, occasionally, seen him in public; and it
+was quite evident that even if Francisco had ever noticed him at that
+time, he did not recollect him now. Neither did Ibrahim wish the young
+count to ascertain who he was; for the only thing which the renegade
+ever feared was the encounter of any one who had known him as a
+Christian, and who might justly reproach him for that apostasy which had
+led him to profess Mohammedanism.
+
+"Lord Count of Riverola," said Ibrahim, after a short pause, "you shall
+be treated in a manner becoming your rank and your bravery. Such,
+indeed, was the command of my imperial master, the most glorious sultan;
+but even had no such order been issued, my admiration of your gallant
+deportment in this day's strife would lead to the same result."
+
+"My best thanks are due for these assurances," returned Francisco. "But
+tell me how fares the war without?"
+
+"The grand master has proffered a capitulation, which has been
+accepted," answered Ibrahim.
+
+"A capitulation!" exclaimed Francisco. "Oh! it were better to die in
+defense of the cross, than live to behold the crescent triumphant on the
+walls of Rhodes!"
+
+"The motive of the grand master was a humane one," observed Ibrahim; "he
+has agreed to capitulate, to put an end to the terrific slaughter that
+is going on."
+
+"Doubtless the lord general acts in accordance with the dictates of a
+matured wisdom!" exclaimed the Count of Riverola.
+
+"Your lordship was the leader of the Italian auxiliaries?" said Ibrahim,
+interrogatively.
+
+"Such was the honorable office intrusted to me," was the reply. "When
+messengers from Villiers of Isle-Adam arrived in Florence, beseeching
+succor against this invasion, which has, alas! proved too successful, I
+panted for occupation to distract my mind from ever pondering on the
+heavy misfortunes which had overtaken me."
+
+"Misfortunes!" exclaimed Ibrahim.
+
+"Yes--misfortunes of such a nature that the mere thought of them is
+madness!" cried Francisco, in an excited tone. "First, a beauteous and
+amiable girl--one who, though of humble origin, was endowed with virtues
+and qualifications that might have fitted her to adorn a palace, and
+whom I fondly, devotedly loved--was-snatched from me. She disappeared I
+know not how! All trace of her was suddenly lost, as if the earth had
+swallowed her up and closed over her again! This blow was in itself
+terrible. But it came not alone. A few days elapsed, and my sister--my
+dearly beloved sister--also disappeared, and in the same mysterious
+manner. Not a trace of her remained--and what makes this second
+affliction the more crushing--the more overwhelming, is that she is deaf
+and dumb! Oh! Heaven grant me the power to resist, to bear up against
+these crowning miseries! Vain were all my inquiries--useless was all the
+search I instituted to discover whither had gone the being whom I would
+have made my wife, and the sister who was ever so devoted to me! At
+length, driven to desperation, when weeks had passed and they returned
+not--goaded on to madness by bitter, bitter memories--I resolved to
+devote myself to the service of the cross. With my gold I raised and
+equipped a gallant band; and a favoring breeze wafted us from Leghorn to
+this island. The grand master received me with open arms; and, forming
+an estimation of my capacities far above my deserts, placed me in
+command of all the Italian auxiliaries. You know the rest; I fought with
+all my energy, and your sultan was within the grasp of death, when you
+rushed forward and saved him. The result is that I am your prisoner."
+
+"So young--and yet so early acquainted with such deep affliction!"
+exclaimed Ibrahim. "But can you form no idea, Christian, of the cause of
+that double disappearance? Had your sister no attendants who could throw
+the least light upon the subject?" he asked, with the hope of eliciting
+some tidings relative to his own sister, the beauteous Flora.
+
+"I dare not reflect thereon!" cried Francisco, the tears starting into
+his eyes. "For, alas! Florence has long been infested by a desperate
+band of lawless wretches--and my God! I apprehend the worst--the very
+worst."
+
+Thus speaking, he rose and paced the spacious tent with agitated steps;
+for this conversation had awakened in his mind all the bitter thoughts
+and dreadful alarms which he had essayed to subdue amidst the excitement
+and peril of war. A slave now entered to inform Ibrahim that the sultan
+commanded his immediate presence in the imperial pavilion.
+
+"Christian," said Ibrahim, as he rose to obey this mandate, "wilt thou
+pledge me thy word, as a noble and a knight, not to attempt to escape
+from this tent?"
+
+"I pledge my word," answered Francisco, "seeing that thou thyself art so
+generous to me."
+
+Ibrahim then went forth; but he paused for a few moments outside the
+tent to command his slaves to serve up choice refreshments to the
+prisoner. He then hastened to the pavilion of the sultan, whom he found
+seated upon a throne, surrounded by the beglerbegs, the councilors of
+state, the viziers, the lieutenant-generals of the army, and all the
+high dignitaries who had accompanied him on his expedition. Ibrahim
+advanced and prostrated himself at the foot of his throne; and at the
+same moment two of the high functionaries present threw a caftan of
+honor over his shoulders--a ceremony which signified that the sultan had
+conferred upon him the title of beglerbeg, or "prince of princes."
+
+"Rise, Ibrahim Pasha!" exclaimed Solyman, "and take thy place in our
+councils, for Allah and his prophet have this day made thee their
+instrument to save the life of thy sovereign."
+
+The newly-created pasha touched the imperial slipper with his lips, and
+then rising from his prostrate position, received the congratulations of
+the high functionaries assembled.
+
+Thus it was that in a few months, protected by that secret influence
+which was hurrying him so rapidly along in his ambitious career, the
+Italian apostate attained to a high rank in the Ottoman Empire; but he
+was yet to reach the highest, next to that of the sovereign, ere he
+could hope to receive the fair hand of his mysterious patroness as the
+crowning joy of his prosperity, for her image, her charming image, ever
+dwelt in his mind, and an ardent fancy often depicted her as she
+appeared, in all the splendor of her beauty, reclining on the sofa at
+the dwelling to which he had been conducted with so much precaution, as
+detailed in a preceding chapter. On the following day peace was formally
+concluded between the Ottomans and the knights of Rhodes, the latter
+consenting to surrender the island to the formidable invaders. An
+exchange of prisoners was the result, and Francisco, Count of Riverola,
+again found himself free within twenty-four hours after his capture.
+
+"Your lordship is now about to sail for your own clime," said Ibrahim,
+when the moment of separation came. "Is there aught within my power that
+I can do to testify my friendship for one so brave and chivalrous as
+thou art?"
+
+"Nothing, great pasha!" exclaimed Francisco, who felt his sympathy
+irresistibly attracted toward Ibrahim, he knew not why, "but, on the
+other hand, receive my heartfelt thanks for the kindness which I have
+experienced during the few hours I have been thy guest."
+
+"The history of thy afflictions has so much moved me," said Ibrahim
+Pasha, after a brief pause, "that the interest I experience in your
+behalf will not cease when you shall be no longer here. If then you
+would bear in mind the request I am about to make, gallant
+Christian----"
+
+"Name it!" cried Francisco; "'tis already granted!"
+
+"Write me from Florence," added Ibrahim, "and acquaint me with the
+success of thy researches after thy lost sister and the maiden whom thou
+lovest. The ships of Leghorn trade to Constantinople, whither I shall
+speedily return, and it will not be a difficult matter to forward a
+letter to me occasionally."
+
+"I should be unworthy of the kind interest you take in my behalf, great
+pasha, were I to neglect this request," answered Francisco. "Oh! may the
+good angels grant that I may yet recover my beloved sister Nisida, and
+that sweetest of maidens--Flora Francatelli!"
+
+Francisco was too overpowered by his own emotions to observe the sudden
+start which Ibrahim gave, and the pallor which instantaneously
+overspread his cheeks as the name of his sister thus burst upon his
+ears--that sister who, beyond doubt, had disappeared most strangely.
+
+But, with an almost superhuman effort, he subdued any further expression
+of the agony of his feelings, and, taking Francisco's hand, said, in a
+low, deep tone: "Count of Riverola, I rely upon your solemn promise to
+write me, and write soon and often. I shall experience a lively pleasure
+in receiving and responding to your letters."
+
+"Fear not that I shall forget my promise, your highness," responded
+Francisco.
+
+He then took leave of Ibrahim Pasha, and returned to the city of Rhodes,
+whence he embarked on the same day for Italy, accompanied by the few
+Florentine auxiliaries who had survived the dreadful slaughter on the
+ramparts. The hustle and excitement attending the departure from Rhodes
+somewhat absorbed the grief which Ibrahim felt on account of the
+mysterious disappearance of his sister Flora.
+
+Solyman left a sufficient force, under an able commander, to garrison
+the island, which was speedily evacuated by Villiers of Isle Adam and
+his knights; and by the middle of May the sultan, attended by Ibrahim
+and the other dignitaries of the empire, once more entered the gates of
+Constantinople.
+
+Not many days had elapsed when, at a divan or state council, at which
+Solyman the Magnificent himself presided, Ibrahim Pasha was desired to
+give his opinion upon a particular question then under discussion. The
+renegade expressed his sentiments in a manner at variance with the
+policy recommended by the grand vizier; and this high functionary
+replied, in terms of bitterness and even grossness, at the same time
+reproaching Ibrahim with ingratitude. The apostate delivered a rejoinder
+which completely electrified the divan. He repudiated the charge of
+ingratitude on the ground of being influenced only by his duty toward
+the sultan; and he entered upon a complete review of the policy of the
+Grand Vizier Piri Pasha. He proved that the commerce of the country had
+greatly fallen off--that the revenues had diminished--that arrears were
+due to the army and navy--that several minor powers had not paid their
+usual tribute for some years past--and, in a word, drew such a frightful
+picture of the maladministration and misrule, that the grand vizier was
+overwhelmed with confusion, and the sultan and other listeners were
+struck with the lamentable truth of all which had fallen from the lips
+of Ibrahim Pasha. Nor less were they astonished at the wonderful
+intimacy which he displayed with even the minutest details of the
+machinery of the government; in a word, his triumph was complete.
+
+Solyman the Magnificent broke up the divan in haste, ordering the
+members of the council to return each immediately to his own abode. In
+the evening a functionary of the imperial household was sent to the
+palace of the grand vizier to demand the seals of office; and thus fell
+Piri Pasha.
+
+It was midnight when the sultan sent to order Ibrahim Pasha to wait upon
+him without delay. The conference that ensued was long and interesting,
+and it was already near daybreak when messengers were dispatched to the
+various members of the divan to summon them to the seraglio. Then, in
+the presence of all the rank and talent in the capital, the sultan
+demanded of Ibrahim whether he felt sufficient confidence in himself to
+undertake the weight and responsibility of office. All eyes were fixed
+earnestly upon that mere youth of scarcely twenty-three, who was thus
+solemnly adjured.
+
+In a firm voice he replied that with the favor of the sultan and the
+blessing of the Most High, he did not despair of being enabled to
+restore the Ottoman Empire to its late prosperity and glory. The
+astronomer of the court declared that the hour was favorable to invest
+the new grand vizier with the insignia of office; and at the moment when
+the call to prayer, "God is great!" sounded from every minaret in
+Constantinople, Ibrahim Pasha received the imperial seals from the hand
+of the sultan.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XLIX.
+
+THE NEW GRAND VIZIER.
+
+
+The call to prayer, "_God is great_," sounded from every minaret in
+Constantinople, when Solyman the Magnificent raised the renegade Ibrahim
+to a rank second only to his own imperial station. The newly appointed
+prime minister received the congratulations of the assembled dignitaries
+of the empire; and when this ceremony was accomplished, he repaired to
+the palace of the viziership, which Piri Pasha had vacated during the
+night.
+
+A numerous escort of slaves, and a guard of honor, composed of an entire
+company of Janizaries, attended Ibrahim to his new abode, the streets
+through which he passed being lined with spectators anxious to obtain a
+glimpse of the new minister.
+
+But calm, almost passionless, was the expression of Ibrahim's
+countenance: though he had attained to his present high station
+speedily, yet he had not reached it unexpectedly; and, even in the
+moment of this, his proud triumph, there was gall mingled with the cup
+of honey which he quaffed. For, oh! the light of Christianity was not
+extinguished within his breast; and though it no longer gleamed there to
+inspire and to cheer, it nevertheless had strength enough to burn with
+reproachful flame.
+
+The multitudes cheered and prostrated themselves as he passed; but his
+salutation was cold and indifferent, and he felt at that moment that he
+would rather have been wandering through the Vale of Arno, hand-in-hand
+with his sister, than be welcomed in the streets of Constantinople as
+the Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire!
+
+O crime! thou may'st deck thy brow with flowers, and adorn thy garments
+with the richest gems--thou may'st elicit the shouts of admiring
+myriads, and proceed attended by guards ready to hew down those who
+would treat thee with disrespect--thou may'st quit the palace of a
+mighty sovereign to repair to a palace of thine own--and in thy hands
+thou may'st hold the destinies of millions of human beings; but thou
+canst not subdue the still small voice that whispers reproachfully in
+thine ear, nor pluck from thy bosom the undying worm.
+
+Though Ibrahim Pasha felt acutely, yet his countenance, as we have
+before said, expressed nothing--he was still sufficiently master of his
+emotions to retain them pent up in his own breast; and if he could not
+appear perfectly happy, he would not allow the world to perceive that
+his soul harbored secret care. He entered the palace now destined to
+become his abode, and found himself the lord and master of an
+establishment such as no Christian monarch in Europe possessed. But as
+he passed through marble halls and perfumed corridors lined with
+prostrate slaves--as he contemplated the splendor and magnificence, the
+wealth and the luxury, by which he was now surrounded--and as he even
+dwelt upon the hope--nay, the more than hope, the conviction, that he
+should full soon be blest with the hand of a being whose ravishing
+beauty was ever present to his mental vision--that still small voice
+which he could not hush, appeared to ask what avail it was for a man, if
+he gain the whole world but lose his own soul?
+
+But Ibrahim Pasha was not the man to give way to the influence of even
+reflections so harrowing as these; and he immediately applied himself to
+the business of the state, to divert his mind from unpleasurable
+meditations. Holding a levee that same day, he received and confirmed in
+their offices all the subordinate ministers; he then dispatched letters
+to the various governors of provinces to announce to them his elevation
+to the grand viziership; and he conferred the Pashalic of Egypt upon the
+fallen minister, Piri Pasha. In the afternoon he granted audiences to
+the embassadors of the Christian powers; but the Florentine envoy, it
+should be observed, had quitted Constantinople some weeks
+previously--indeed, at the time when the sultan undertook his expedition
+against Rhodes; for the representative of the republic had entirely
+failed in the mission which had been intrusted to him by his government.
+
+In the evening, when it was quite dusk, Ibrahim retired to his
+apartment; and hastily disguising himself in a mean attire, he issued
+forth by a private gate at the back part of the palace. Intent upon
+putting into execution a scheme which he had hastily planned that very
+afternoon, he repaired to the quarter inhabited by the Christians. There
+he entered a house of humble appearance where dwelt a young Greek, with
+whom he had been on friendly terms at that period when his present
+greatness was totally unforeseen--indeed, while he was simply the
+private secretary of the Florentine envoy. He knew that Demetrius was
+poor, intelligent and trustworthy; and it was precisely an agent of this
+nature that Ibrahim required for the project which he had in view.
+
+Demetrius--such was the young Greek's name--was seated in a small and
+meanly furnished apartment, in a desponding manner, and scarcely
+appearing to notice the efforts which his sister, a beautiful maiden of
+nineteen, was exerting to console him, when the door opened, and a man
+dressed as a water-carrier entered the room.
+
+The young Greek started up angrily, for he thought the visitor was one
+of the numerous petty creditors to whom he was indebted, and whose
+demands he was unable to liquidate; but the second glance which he cast,
+by the light of the lamp that burnt feebly on the table, toward the
+countenance of the meanly dressed individual, convinced him of his
+mistake.
+
+"His highness the grand vizier!" ejaculated Demetrius, falling on his
+knees; "Calanthe!" he added, speaking rapidly to his sister, "bow down
+to the representative of the sultan!"
+
+But Ibrahim hastened to put an end to this ceremony, and assured the
+brother and sister that he came thither as a friend.
+
+"A friend!" repeated Demetrius, as if doubting whether his ears heard
+aright; "is it possible that Heaven has indeed sent me a friend in one
+who has the power to raise me and this poor suffering maiden from the
+depths of our bitter, bitter poverty?"
+
+"Dost thou suppose that my rapid elevation has rendered me unmindful of
+former friendships?" demanded Ibrahim; although, had he not his own
+purposes to serve, he would never have thought of seeking the abode, nor
+inquiring after the welfare of the humble acquaintance of his obscure
+days.
+
+The young Greek knew not, however, the thorough selfishness of the
+renegade's character; and he poured forth his gratitude for the vizier's
+kindness and condescension with the most sincere and heart-felt fervor:
+while the beauteous Calanthe's large dark eyes swam in tears of hope and
+joy, as she surveyed with mingled wonder and admiration the countenance
+of that high functionary whose rapid rise to power had electrified the
+Ottoman capital, and whom she now saw for the first time.
+
+"Demetrius," said Ibrahim, "I know your worth--I have appreciated your
+talents; and I feel deeply for the orphan condition of your sister and
+yourself. It is in my power to afford you an employment whereby you may
+render me good service, and which shall be liberally rewarded. You are
+already acquainted with much of my former history; and you have often
+heard me speak, in terms of love and affection, of my sister Flora.
+During my recent sojourn in the island of Rhodes, a Florentine nobleman,
+the Count of Riverola, became my prisoner. From him I learned that he
+was attached to my sister, and his language led me to believe that he
+was loved in return. But alas! some few months ago Flora suddenly
+disappeared; and the Count of Riverola instituted a vain search to
+discover her. Too pure-minded was she to fly of her own accord from her
+native city; too chaste and too deeply imbued with virtuous principles
+was she to admit the suspicion that she had fled with a vile seducer.
+No; force or treachery--if not _murder_," added Ibrahim, in a tone
+indicative of profound emotion, "must have caused her sudden
+disappearance. The Count of Riverola has doubtless ere now arrived in
+Italy; and his researches will most assuredly be renewed. He promised to
+communicate to me the result, but as he knew not to whom that pledge was
+given--as he recognized not in me the brother of the Flora whom he
+loves--I am fearful lest he forget or neglect the promise. It is,
+therefore, my intention to send a secret agent to Florence--an agent who
+will convey rich gifts to my aunt, but without revealing the name of him
+who sends them--an agent, in a word, who may minister to the wants and
+interests of my family, and report to me whether my beloved sister be
+yet found, and if so, the causes of her disappearance. It seems to me
+that you, Demetrius, are well fitted for this mission. Your knowledge of
+the Italian language, your discreetness, your sound judgment, all render
+you competent to enact the part of a good genius watching over the
+interests of those who must not be allowed to learn whence flow the
+bounties which suddenly pour upon them!"
+
+"Gracious lord," said the young Greek, his countenance radiant with joy.
+"I will never lose any opportunity of manifesting my devotion to the
+cause in which your highness condescends to employ me."
+
+"You will proceed alone to Italy," continued Ibrahim; "and on your
+arrival in Florence, you will adopt a modest and reserved mode of life,
+so that no unpleasant queries may arise as to your object in visiting
+the republic."
+
+Demetrius turned a rapidly inquiring glance upon Calanthe, who hastened
+to observe that she did not fear being left unprotected in the city of
+Constantinople. Ibrahim placed a heavy purse and a case containing many
+costly jewels in the hands of Demetrius, saying: "These are as an
+earnest of my favor and friendship;"--then, producing a second case,
+tied round with a silken cord, he added, "And this is for my aunt, the
+Signora Francatelli."
+
+Demetrius promised to attend to all the instructions which he had
+received; and Ibrahim Pasha took his leave of the brother and the
+charming sister, the latter of whom conveyed to him the full extent of
+her gratitude for his kindness and condescension toward them in a few
+words uttered in a subdued tone, but with all the eloquence of her fine
+dark eyes.
+
+"Did I not love my unknown protectress," murmured Ibrahim to himself, as
+he sped rapidly back to his palace, "I feel that Calanthe's eyes would
+make an impression upon my heart."
+
+Scarcely had he resumed his magnificent garb, on his return home, when a
+slave announced to him that his imperial majesty, the sultan, required
+his immediate attendance at the seraglio, whither he was to repair in
+the most private manner possible. A sudden misgiving darted through
+Ibrahim's imagination. Could Solyman have repented of the step which he
+had taken in thus suddenly elevating him to the pinnacle of power? Was
+his viziership to last but a few short hours? had the secret influence,
+which had hitherto protected him, ceased?
+
+Considering the times and the country in which he lived, these fears
+were justifiable; and it was with a rapidly beating heart that the new
+minister hastened, attended only by a single slave, to the dwelling of
+his imperial master. But when he was ushered into the presence of the
+sultan--his own slave remaining in the ante-room--his apprehensions were
+dissipated by the smiling countenance with which the monarch greeted
+him. Having signaled his attendants to retire, Solyman the Magnificent
+addressed the grand vizier in the following manner:
+
+"Thy great talents, thy zeal in our service, and the salvation which I
+owed to thee in the breach at Rhodes, have been instrumental, oh,
+Ibrahim! in raising thee to thy present high state. But the bounties of
+the sultan are without end, as the mercy of Allah is illimitable! Thou
+hast doubtless heard that among my numerous sisters, there is one of
+such unrivaled beauty--such peerless loveliness, that the world hath not
+seen her equal. Happy may the man deem himself on whom the fair Aischa
+shall be bestowed; and thou art that happy man, Ibrahim--and Aischa is
+thine."
+
+The grand vizier threw himself at the feet of his imperial master, and
+murmured expressions of gratitude--but his heart sank within him--for he
+knew that in marrying the sultan's sister he should not be allowed the
+enjoyment of the Mussulman privilege of polygamy, and thus his hopes of
+possessing the beautiful unknown to whom he owed so much appeared to
+hover on the verge of annihilation. But might not that unknown lady and
+the beauteous Aischa be one and the same person? The unknown was
+evidently the mistress of an influence almost illimitable; and was it
+not natural to conceive that she, then, must be the sister of the
+sultan? Again, the sultan had many sisters; and the one who had exerted
+her interest for Ibrahim, might not be the Princess Aischa, who was now
+promised to him! All these conjectures and conflicting speculations
+passed through the mind of Ibrahim in far less time than we have taken
+to describe their nature; and he was cruelly the prey to mingled hope
+and alarm, when the sultan exclaimed, "Rise, my Vizier Azem, and follow
+me."
+
+The apostate obeyed with beating heart, and Solyman the Magnificent
+conducted him along several passages and corridors to a splendidly
+furnished room, which Ibrahim immediately recognized as the very one in
+which he had been admitted, many months previously, to an interview with
+the beauteous unknown. Yes--that was the apartment in which he had
+listened to the eloquence of her soft, persuasive voice--it was there
+that, intoxicated with passion, he had abjured the faith of a Christian
+and embraced the creed of the false Prophet Mohammed. And, reclining on
+the very sofa where he had first seen her--but attended by a troop of
+charming female slaves--was the fair unknown--his secret
+protectress--more lovely, more bewitching, than she appeared when last
+they met.
+
+An arch smile played upon her lips, as she rose from the magnificent
+cushions--a smile which seemed to say, "I have kept my word, I have
+raised thee to the highest dignity, save one in the Ottoman Empire--and
+I will now crown thine happiness by giving thee my hand."
+
+And, oh, so beauteous, so ravishingly lovely did she appear, as that
+smile revealed teeth whiter than the Oriental pearls, which she wore,
+and as a slight flush on her damask cheek and the bright flashing of her
+eyes betrayed the joy and triumph which filled her heart--so elegant and
+graceful was her faultless form, which the gorgeous Ottoman garb so
+admirably became, that Ibrahim forgot all his recent compunction--lost
+sight of home and friends--remembered not the awful apostasy of which he
+had been guilty--but fell upon his knees in adoration of that charming
+creature, while the sultan with a smile which showed that he was no
+stranger to the mysteries of the past, exclaimed in a benignant tone,
+"Vizier Azem! receive the hand of my well-beloved sister Aischa!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER L.
+
+THE COUNT OF ARESTINO--THE PLOT THICKENS.
+
+
+Return we now to the fair city of flowers--to thee, delightful
+Florence--vine crowned queen of Tuscany! The summer has come, and the
+gardens are brilliant with dyes and hues of infinite variety; the hills
+and the valleys are clothed in their brightest emerald garment--and the
+Arno winds its peaceful way between banks blushing with choicest fruits
+of the earth.
+
+But, though gay that July scene--though glorious in its splendor that
+unclouded summer sun, though gorgeous the balconies filled with flowers,
+and brilliant the parterres of Tuscan roses, yet gloomy was the
+countenance and dark were the thoughts of the Count of Arestino, as he
+paced with agitated steps one of the splendid apartments of his palace.
+The old man was actually endowed with a good, a generous, a kind and
+forgiving disposition; but the infidelity of his wife, the being on whom
+he had so doted, and who was once his joy and his pride--that infidelity
+had warped his best feelings, soured his temper, and aroused the dark
+spirit of vengeance.
+
+"She lives! she lives!" he murmured to himself, pausing for a moment to
+press his feverish hand to his heated brow; "she lives! and doubtless
+under the protection of her paramour! But I shall know more presently.
+Antonio is faithful--he will not deceive me!"
+
+And the count resumed his agitated walk up and down the room. A few
+minutes elapsed, when the door opened slowly, and Antonio, whom the
+reader may remember to have been a valet in the service of the Riverola
+family, made his appearance.
+
+The count hastened toward him, exclaiming: "What news, Antonio?
+Speak--hast thou learnt aught more of--of _her_?"
+
+"My lord," answered the valet, closing the door behind him, "I have
+ascertained everything. The individual who spoke darkly and mysteriously
+to me last evening, has within this hour made me acquainted with many
+strange things."
+
+"But the countess?--I mean the guilty, fallen creature who once bore my
+name?" ejaculated the old nobleman, his voice trembling with impatience.
+
+"There is no doubt, my lord, that her ladyship lives, and that she is
+still in Florence," answered Antonio.
+
+"The shameless woman," cried the Count of Arestino, his usually pale
+face becoming perfectly death-like through the violence of his inward
+emotions. "But how know you all this?" demanded his lordship, suddenly
+turning toward the dependent; "who is your informant--and can he be
+relied on? Remember I took thee into my service at thine own
+solicitation--I have no guarantee for thy fidelity, and I am influential
+to punish as well as rich to reward!"
+
+"Your lordship has bound me to you by ties of gratitude," responded
+Antonio, "for when discarded suddenly by the young Count of Riverola, I
+found an asylum and employment in your lordship's palace. It is your
+lordship's bounty which has enabled me to give bread to my aged mother;
+and I should be a villain were I to deceive you."
+
+"I believe you, Antonio," said the count: "and now tell me how you are
+assured that the countess escaped from the conflagration and ruin of the
+institution to which my just vengeance had consigned her--how, too, you
+have learnt that she is still in Florence."
+
+"I have ascertained, my lord, beyond all possibility of doubt," answered
+the valet, "that the assailants of the convent were a terrible horde of
+banditti, at that time headed by Stephano Verrina, who has since
+disappeared no one knows whither; that the Marquis of Orsini was one of
+the leaders in the awful deed of sacrilege, and that her ladyship the
+countess, and a young maiden named Flora Francatelli, were rescued by
+the robbers from their cells in the establishment. These ladies and the
+marquis quitted the stronghold of the banditti together, blindfolded and
+guided forth by that same Stephano Verrina whom I mentioned just now,
+Lomellino (the present captain of the horde), and another bandit."
+
+"And who is your informant? how learned you all this?" demanded the
+count, trembling with the excitement of painful reminiscences
+reawakened, and with the hope of speedy vengeance on the guilty pair,
+his wife and the marquis.
+
+"My lord," said Antonio, "pardon me if I remain silent; but I dare not
+compromise the man----"
+
+"Antonio," exclaimed the count, wrathfully, "you are deceiving me! Tell
+me who was your informant--I command you--hesitate not----"
+
+"My lord! my lord!" cried the valet, "is it not enough that I prove my
+assertions--that I----"
+
+"No!" cried the nobleman; "I have seen so much duplicity where all
+appeared to be innocence--so much deceit where all wore the aspect of
+integrity, that I can trust man no more. How know I for certain that all
+this may not be some idle tale which you yourself have forged, to induce
+me to put confidence in you, to intrust you with gold to bribe your
+pretended informant, but which will really remain in your own pocket?
+Speak, Antonio--tell me all, or I shall listen to you no more, and your
+servitude in this mansion then ceases."
+
+"I will speak frankly, my lord," replied the valet; "but in the course
+you may adopt----"
+
+"Fear not for yourself, nor for your informant, Antonio," interrupted
+the count, impatiently. "Be ye both leagued with the banditti
+yourselves, or be ye allied to the fiends of hell," he added, with
+fiercer emphasis, "I care not so long as I can render ye the instruments
+of my vengeance!"
+
+"Good, my lord!" exclaimed Antonio, delighted with this assurance; "and
+now I can speak fearlessly and frankly. My informant is that _other_
+bandit who accompanied Stephano Verrina and Lomellino when the countess,
+Flora, and the marquis were conducted blindfold from the robbers'
+stronghold. But while they were yet all inmates of that stronghold, this
+same bandit, whose name is Venturo, overheard the marquis inform
+Stephano Verrina that he intended to remain in Florence to obtain the
+liberation of a Jew who was imprisoned in the dungeons of the
+inquisition: and this Jew, Venturo also learnt by subsequent inquiry
+from Verrina, is a certain Isaachar ben Solomon."
+
+"Isaachar ben Solomon!" ejaculated the count, the whole incident of the
+diamonds returning with all its painful details to his mind. "Oh! no
+wonder," he added, bitterly, "that the marquis has so much kindness for
+him! But, proceed--proceed, Antonio."
+
+"I was about to inform your lordship," continued the valet, "that
+Venturo, of whom I have spoken, happened the next day to overhear the
+marquis inform the countess that he should be compelled to stay for that
+purpose in Florence; whereupon Flora Francatelli offered her ladyship a
+home at her aunt's residence, whither she herself should return on her
+liberation from the stronghold. Then it was that the maiden mentioned to
+the countess the name of her family, and when Venturo represented all
+these facts to me just now, I at once knew who this same Flora
+Francatelli is and where she dwells."
+
+"You know where she dwells!" cried the count, joyfully. "Then, Giulia,
+the false, the faithless, the perjured Giulia is in my power! Unless,
+indeed," he added, more slowly--"unless she may have removed to another
+place of abode----"
+
+"That, my lord, shall be speedily ascertained," said Antonio. "I will
+instruct my mother to call, on some pretext, at the cottage inhabited by
+Dame Francatelli: and she will soon learn whether there be another
+female resident there besides the aunt and the niece Flora."
+
+"Do so, Antonio," exclaimed the count. "Let no unnecessary delay take
+place. Here is gold--much gold, for thee to divide between thyself and
+the bandit informant. See that thou art faithful to my interests, and
+that sum shall prove but a small earnest of what thy reward will be."
+
+The valet secured about his person the well-filled purse that was handed
+to him, and retired.
+
+The Count of Arestino remained alone to brood over his plans of
+vengeance. It was horrible--horrible to behold that aged and venerable
+man, trembling as he was on the verge of eternity, now meditating
+schemes of dark and dire revenge. But his wrongs were great--wrongs
+which, though common enough in that voluptuous Italian clime, and
+especially in that age and city of licentiousness and debauchery, were
+not the less sure to be followed by a fearful retribution, where
+retribution was within the reach of him who was outraged.
+
+"Ha! ha!" he chuckled fearfully to himself, as he now paced the room
+with a lighter step--as if joy filled his heart; "all those who have
+injured me are within the reach of my vengeance. The Jew in the
+inquisition; the marquis open to a charge of diabolical sacrilege--and
+Giulia assuredly in Florence! I dealt too leniently with that Jew--I
+sent to pay for the redemption of jewels which were my own property! All
+my life have I been a just--a humane--a merciful man; I will be so no
+more. The world's doings are adverse to generosity and fair-dealing. In
+my old age have I learnt this! Oh! the perfidy of women toward a
+doting--a confiding--a fond heart, works strange alterations in the
+heart of the deceived one! I, who but a year--nay, six months ago--would
+not harm the meanest reptile that crawls, now thirst for
+vengeance--vengeance," repeated the old man, in a shrieking, hysterical
+tone, "upon those who have wronged me! I will exterminate them at one
+fell swoop--exterminate them all--all!" And his voice rang screechingly
+and wildly through the lofty room of that splendid mansion.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LI.
+
+THE MEETING.
+
+
+On the bank of the Arno, in a somewhat retired situation, stood a neat
+cottage in the midst of a little garden, surrounded by no formal pile of
+bricks to constitute a wall, but protected only by its own sweet hedge
+or fragrant shrubs and blooming plants. Over the portico of the humble
+but comfortable tenement twined the honeysuckle and the clematis; and
+the sides of the building were almost completely veiled by the vines
+amidst the verdant foliage of which appeared large hunches of purple
+grapes.
+
+At an open casement on the ground floor, an elderly female, very plainly
+but very neatly attired, and wearing a placid smile and a good-natured
+expression upon a countenance which had once been handsome, sat watching
+the glorious spectacle of the setting sun. The orb of day went down in a
+flood of purple and gold, behind the western hills; and now the dame
+began suddenly to cast uneasy glances toward the path that led along the
+bank of the river.
+
+But the maiden for whose return the good aunt felt anxious, was not far
+distant; indeed Flora Francatelli, wearing a thick veil over her head,
+was already proceeding homeward after a short ramble by the margin of
+the stream, when the reverie in which she was plunged was interrupted by
+the sounds of hasty footsteps behind. Ever fearful of treachery since
+the terrible incident of her imprisonment in the Carmelite Convent, she
+redoubled her speed, blaming herself for having been beguiled by the
+beauty of the evening to prolong her walk farther than she intended on
+setting out--when the increasing haste of the footsteps behind her
+excited the keenest alarms within her bosom--for she now felt convinced
+that she was pursued.
+
+The cottage was already in sight, and a hundred paces only separated her
+from its door, when a well-known voice--a voice which caused every fiber
+in her heart to thrill with surprise and joy--exclaimed: "Flora! beloved
+one; fly not! Oh! I could not be deceived in the symmetry of thy
+form--the graciousness of thy gait--I knew it was thou."
+
+And in another moment the maiden was clasped in the arms of Francisco,
+Count of Riverola. Impossible were it to describe the ecstatic bliss of
+this meeting--a meeting so unexpected on either side: for a minute
+before, Flora had deemed the young nobleman to be far away, fighting in
+the cause of the cross, while Francisco was proceeding to make inquiries
+at the cottage concerning his beloved, but with a heart that scarcely
+dared nourish a hope of her reappearance.
+
+"Oh! my well-beloved Flora!" exclaimed Francisco; "and are we indeed
+thus blest, or is it a delusive dream? But tell me, sweet maiden, tell
+me whether thou hast ceased to think of one, from whose memory thine
+image has never been absent since the date of thy sudden and mysterious
+disappearance."
+
+Flora could not reply in words--her heart was too full for the utterance
+of her feelings; but as she raised the veil from her charming
+countenance, the tears of joy which stood upon her long lashes, and the
+heavenly smile which played upon her lips, and the deep blushes which
+overspread her cheeks spoke far more eloquently of unaltered affection
+than all the vows and pledges which might have flowed from the tongue.
+
+"Thou lovest me--lovest me--lovest me still!" exclaimed the enraptured
+count, again clasping her in his arms, and now imprinting innumerable
+kisses on her lips, her cheeks, and her fair brow. Hasty explanations
+speedily ensued, and Francisco now learnt for the first time the cause
+of Flora's disappearance--her incarceration in the convent--and the
+particulars of her release.
+
+"But who could have been the author of that outrage?" exclaimed the
+count, his cheeks flushing with indignation, and his hand instinctively
+grasping his sword; "whom could you, sweet maiden, have offended? what
+fiend thus vented his malignity on thee?"
+
+"Hold, my lord!" cried Flora, in a beseeching tone; "perhaps you----"
+
+And she checked herself abruptly.
+
+"Call me not '_my lord_,' dearest maiden," said the count; "to thee I am
+Francisco, as thou to me art Flora--my own beloved Flora! But wherefore
+didst thou stop short thus? wherefore not conclude the sentence that was
+half uttered? Oh, Flora--a terrible suspicion strikes me! Speak--relieve
+me from the cruel suspicion under which I now labor; was it my
+sister--my much lamented sister, who did thee that foul wrong?"
+
+"I know not," replied Flora, weeping; "but--alas! pardon me, dear
+Francisco--if I suspect aught so bad of any one connected with thee--and
+yet Heaven knows how freely, how sincerely I forgive my enemy----" Her
+voice was lost in sobs; and her head drooped on her lover's breast.
+
+"Weep not, dearest one!" exclaimed Francisco. "Let not our meeting be
+rendered mournful with tears. Thou knowest, perhaps, that Nisida
+disappeared as suddenly and as mysteriously as thou didst; but could she
+also have become the victim of the Carmelites? And did she, alas! perish
+in the ruins of the convent?"
+
+"I am well assured that the Lady Nisida was not doomed to that fate,"
+answered Flora; "for had she been consigned to the convent, as a
+punishment for some real offense, or on some groundless charge, she must
+have passed the ordeal of the chamber of penitence, where I should have
+seen her. Yes, Francisco--I have heard of her mysterious disappearance,
+and I have shed many, many tears when I have thought of her, poor lady!
+although," added the maiden in a low and plaintive tone, "I fear,
+Francisco, that it was indeed she who doomed me to that monastic
+dungeon. Doubtless, her keen perception--far more keen than in those who
+are blessed with the faculties which were lost to her--enabled her to
+penetrate the secret of that affection with which you had honored me,
+and in which I felt so much happiness."
+
+"I confessed my love to Nisida," interrupted Francisco; "but it was not
+until your disappearance I was driven to despair, Flora. I was mad with
+grief, and I could not, neither did I, attempt to conceal my emotion. I
+told Nisida all: and well--oh! well--do I recollect the reply which she
+gave me, giving fond assurance that my happiness would alone be
+consulted."
+
+"Alas! Was there no double meaning in that assurance?" asked Flora,
+gently. "The Lady Nisida knew well how inconsistent with your high
+rank--your proud fortunes--your great name, was that love which you bore
+for a humble and obscure girl----"
+
+"A love which I shall not be ashamed to own in the sight of all
+Florence," exclaimed Francisco in an impassioned tone. "But if Nisida
+were the cause of that cruel outrage on thee, my Flora, we will forgive
+her--for she could have acted only through conscientious, though most
+mistaken, motives. Mistaken, indeed! for never could I have known
+happiness again hadst thou not been restored to me. It was to wean my
+mind from pondering on afflictions that goaded me to despair that I
+embarked in the cause of Christendom against the encroachments of Moslem
+power. Thinking that thou wast forever lost to me--that my sister also
+had become the victim of some murderous hand,--harassed by doubts the
+most cruel--an uncertainty the most agonizing,--I sought death on the
+walls of Rhodes; but the destroying angel's arrow rebounded from my
+corselet--his sword was broken against my shield!
+
+"During my voyage back to Italy--after beholding the crescent planted on
+the walls where the Christian standard had floated for so many, many
+years--a storm overtook the ship; and yet the destroying angel gave me
+not the death I courted. This evening I once more set foot in Florence.
+From my own mansion Nisida is still absent: and no tidings have been
+received of her. Alas! is she then lost to me forever? Without tarrying
+even to change my travel-soiled clothes, I set out to make inquiries
+concerning another whom I love--and that other is thyself! Here, thanks
+to a merciful Heaven, my heart has not been doomed to experience a
+second and equally cruel disappointment; for I have found thee at last,
+my Flora--and henceforth my arm shall protect thee from peril."
+
+"How have I deserved so much kindness at thine hands?" murmured the
+maiden, again drooping her blushing head. "And oh! what will you think,
+Francisco--what will you say, when you learn that I was there--there in
+that cottage--with my aunt--when you called the last time to inquire if
+any tidings had been received of me----"
+
+"You were there!" exclaimed Francisco, starting back in surprise not
+unmingled with anger; "you were there, Flora--and you knew that I was in
+despair concerning thee--that I would have given worlds to have heard of
+thy safety,--I, who thought that some fiend in human shape had sent thee
+to an early grave?"
+
+"Forgive me, Francisco: forgive me!" cried Flora, bursting into tears;
+"but it was not my fault! On the night following the one in which the
+banditti stormed the convent, as I ere now detailed to your ears, I
+returned home to my aunt. When the excitement of our meeting was past,
+and when we were alone together, I threw myself at her feet, confessed
+all that had passed between thee and me, and implored her advice.
+
+"'Flora,' she said, while her tears fell upon me as I knelt, 'no
+happiness will come to thee, my child, from this attachment which has
+already plunged thee into so much misery. It is beyond all doubt certain
+that the relations of the count were the authors of thy imprisonment;
+and their persecutions would only be renewed, were they to learn that
+the count was made aware of your reappearance in Florence. For thy sake,
+then, my child, I shall suffer the impression of thy continued absence
+and loss to remain on the minds of those who may inquire concerning
+thee; and should his lordship call here again, most especially to him
+shall I appear stricken with grief on account of thee. His passion, my
+child, is one of boyhood--evanescent, though ardent while it endures. He
+will soon forget thee; and when he shall have learnt to love another
+there will no longer be any necessity for thee to live an existence of
+concealment.'
+
+"Thus spoke my aunt, dear Francisco, and I dared not gainsay her. When
+you came the last time. I heard your voice; I listened from my chamber
+door to all you said to my aunt, and I longed to fly into your arms. You
+went away and my heart was nearly broken. Some days afterward we learnt
+the strange disappearance of the Lady Nisida and then knew that you must
+have received a severe blow, for I was well aware how much you loved
+her. Two or three weeks elapsed, and then we heard that you were about
+to depart to the wars. Oh! how bitter were the tears that I shed, how
+fervent were the prayers that I offered up for your safety."
+
+"And those prayers have been heard on high, beloved one, exclaimed
+Francisco, who had listened with melting heart and returning tenderness
+to the narrative which the maiden told so simply but so sincerely, and
+in the most plaintive tones of her musical voice.
+
+"Can you forgive me now?" asked the blushing maiden, her swimming eyes
+bending on her lover glances eloquently expressive of hope.
+
+"I have nothing to forgive, sweet girl," replied Francisco. "Your aunt
+behaved with a prudence which in justice I cannot condemn; and you acted
+with an obedience and submission to your venerable relative which I
+could not be arbitrary enough to blame. We have both endured much for
+each other, my Flora; but the days of our trials are passed; and your
+good aunt will be convinced that in giving your young heart to me, you
+have not confided in one who is undeserving of so much love. Let us
+hasten into her presence. But one question have I yet to ask you," he
+added, suddenly recollecting an idea which had ere now made some
+impression on his mind. "You informed me how you were liberated from the
+convent, and you mentioned the name of the Countess of Arestino, whom
+circumstances had made your companion in that establishment, and to whom
+your aunt gave an asylum. Know you not, dearest Flora, that fame reports
+not well of that same Giulia of Arestino--and that a woman of tarnished
+reputation is no fitting associate for an innocent and artless maiden
+such as thou?"
+
+"During the period that the Lady of Arestino and myself were companions
+in captivity," responded Flora, with a frankness as amiable as it was
+convincing, "she never in the most distant manner alluded to her love
+for the Marquis of Orsini. When the marquis appeared in the convent, in
+company with the robbers, I was far too much bewildered with the passing
+events, to devote a thought to what might be the nature of their
+connection; and even when I had more leisure for reflection, during the
+entire day which I passed in the stronghold of the banditti, I saw
+naught in it save what I conceived to be the bond of close relationship.
+I offered her ladyship an asylum at the abode of my aunt, as I should
+have given a home, under such circumstances, to the veriest wretch
+crawling on the face of the earth. But in that cottage the countess and
+myself have not continued in close companionship; for my aunt
+accidentally learnt that fame reported not well of the Lady of Arestino,
+and in a gentle manner she begged her to seek another home at her
+earliest leisure. The countess implored my venerable relative to permit
+her to retrain at the cottage, as her life would be in danger were she
+not afforded a sure and safe asylum. Moved by her earnest entreaties, my
+aunt assented; and the countess has almost constantly remained in her
+own chamber. Sometimes--but very rarely--she goes forth after dusk, and
+in a deep disguise; the marquis has not, however, visited the cottage
+since my aunt made this discovery relative to the reputation of the Lady
+of Arestino."
+
+"Thanks, charming Flora, for that explanation!" cried the young count.
+"Let us now hasten to thine aunt; and in her presence will I renew to
+thee all the vows of unalterable and honorable affection which my heart
+suggests, as a means of proving that I am worthy of thy love."
+
+And, hand-in-hand, that fine young noble and that beauteous, blushing
+maiden proceeded to the cottage.
+
+Two persons, concealed in an adjacent grove, had overheard every
+syllable of the above conversation. These were the valet Antonio, and
+his mother, Dame Margaretha, at whose dwelling, it will be recollected,
+the unfortunate Agnes had so long resided, under the protection of the
+late Count of Riverola.
+
+"This is fortunate, mother!" said Antonio, when Francisco and Flora had
+retired from the vicinity of the grove. "You are spared the trouble of a
+visit to the old Signora Francatelli; and I have learned sufficient to
+enable me to work out all my plans alike of aggrandizement and revenge.
+Let us retrace our way into the city; thou wilt return to thy home--and
+I shall hence straight to the Lord Count of Arestino."
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LII.
+
+THE GREEK PAGE--SONG OF THE GREEK PAGE--A REVELATION.
+
+
+Three months had now elapsed since Ibrahim-Pasha had risen to the
+exalted rank of grand vizier, and had married the sister of Solyman the
+Magnificent. The sultan daily became more attached to him; and he, on
+his part, acquired influence over his imperial master. Vested with a
+power so nearly absolute that Solyman signed without ever perusing the
+hatti-sheriffs, or decrees, drawn up by Ibrahim,--and enjoying the
+confidence of the divan, all the members of which were devoted to his
+interests,--the renegade administered according to his own discretion,
+the affairs of that mighty empire. Avaricious, and ever intent upon the
+aggrandizement of his own fortunes, he accumulated vast treasures; but
+he also maintained a household and lived in a style unequaled by any of
+his predecessors in office. Having married a sister of the sultan, he
+was not permitted a plurality of wives;--but he purchased the most
+beauteous slaves for his harem, and plunged headlong into a vortex of
+dissipation and pleasure.
+
+For some weeks he had manifested the most ardent and impassioned
+attachment toward Aischa, who, during that period, was happy in the
+belief that she alone possessed his heart. But the customs of the East,
+as well as the duties of his office, kept them so much apart, that he
+had no leisure to discover the graces of her mind, nor to appreciate all
+the powers of her naturally fine, and indeed well-cultivated intellect;
+so that the beauty of her person constituted the only basis on which his
+affection was maintained. The fervor of such a love soon cooled with
+satiety: and those female slaves whom he had at first procured as
+indispensable appendages to his rank and station, were not long in
+becoming the sources of new pleasure and voluptuous enjoyment. Aischa
+beheld his increasing indifference, and strove to bind him to her by
+representing all she had done for him. He listened coldly at first; but
+when, on several occasions, the same remonstrances were repeated, he
+answered angrily.
+
+"Had it not been for my influence," she said to him one day, when the
+dispute had become more serious than preceding quarrels of the kind,
+"you might still have been an humble secretary to a Christian noble."
+
+"Not so," replied the grand vizier; "for at the very time when I first
+beheld thee in the Bezestein, certain offers had been secretly conveyed
+to me from the reis-effendi."
+
+"In whose service you would have lingered as a mere subordinate for
+long, long years," returned Aischa. "It was I who urged you on. Have I
+not often assured you that your image dwelt in my memory after the
+accident which first led to our meeting--that one of my faithful women
+noticed my thoughtful mood--and that when I confessed to her the truth,
+she stated to me that, by a singular coincidence, her own brother was
+employed by the reis-effendi as an agent to tempt you with the offers to
+which you have alluded? Then, inquiries which my slave instituted,
+brought to my ears the flattering tidings that you also thought of me,
+and I resolved to grant you an interview. From that moment my influence
+hurried you on to power--and when you became the favorite of the mighty
+Solyman, I confessed to him that I had seen and that I loved you. His
+fraternal attachment to me is great--greater than to any other of his
+sisters, seeing that himself and I were born of the same mother, though
+at a long interval. Thus was it that my persuasion made him think higher
+and oftener of you than he would else have done--and now that you have
+attained the summit of glory and power, she who has helped to raise you
+is neglected and loved no longer."
+
+"Cease these reproaches, Aischa," exclaimed Ibrahim, who had listened
+impatiently to her long address, "or I will give thee less of my company
+than heretofore. See that the next time I visit thee my reception may be
+with smiles instead of tears--with sweet words instead of reproaches."
+And in this cruel manner the heartless renegade quitted his beauteous
+wife, leaving her plunged in the most profound affliction.
+
+But as Ibrahim traversed the corridors leading to his own apartments,
+his heart smote him for the harshness and unfeeling nature of his
+conduct; and as one disagreeable idea, by disposing the spirits to
+melancholy, usually arouses others that were previously slumbering in
+the cells of the brain, all the turpitude of his apostasy was recalled
+with new force to his mind.
+
+Repairing to a small but magnificently furnished saloon in a retired
+part of the palace, he dismissed the slaves who were waiting at the
+door, ordering them, however, to send into his presence a young Greek
+page who had recently entered his service. In a few minutes the youth
+made his appearance, and stood in a respectful attitude near the door.
+
+"Come and sit at my feet, Constantine," said the grand vizier, "and thou
+shalt sing to me one of those airs of thy native Greece with which thou
+hast occasionally delighted mine ears. I know not how it is, boy--but
+thy presence pleases me, and thy voice soothes my soul, when oppressed
+with the cares of my high office."
+
+Joy flashed from the bright black eyes of the young Greek page as he
+glided noiselessly over the thick carpet, but that emotion of pleasure
+was instantly changed to one of deep deference.
+
+"Proceed," said his master, "and sing me that plaintive song which is
+supposed to depict the woes of one of the unhappy sons of Greece."
+
+"But may not its sentiments offend your highness?" asked the page.
+
+"It is but a song," responded Ibrahim. "I give thee full permission to
+sing those verses, and I should be sorry were you to subdue aught of the
+impassioned feelings which they are well calculated to excite within
+thee."
+
+The page turned his handsome countenance up toward the grand vizier, and
+commenced in melodious, liquid tones, the following song--
+
+
+    SONG OF THE GREEK PAGE.
+
+    "Oh, are there not beings condemned from their birth,
+    To drag, without solace or hope o'er the earth,
+      The burden of grief and of sorrow?
+    Doomed wretches who know, while they tremblingly say,
+    'The star of my fate appears brighter to-day,'
+    That it is but a brief and a mocking ray,
+      To make darkness darker to-morrow.
+
+    "And 'tis not to the vile and base alone
+    That unchanging grief and sorrow are known,
+      But as oft to the pure and guileless;
+    And he, from whose fervid and generous lip,
+    Gush words of the kindest fellowship,
+    Of the same pure fountain may not sip
+      In return, but it is sad and smileless!
+
+    "Yes; such doomed mortals, alas! there be
+    And mine is that self-same destiny;
+      The fate of the lorn and lonely;
+    For e'en in my childhood's early day,
+    The comrades I sought would turn away;
+    And of all the band, from the sportive play
+      Was I thrust and excluded only.
+
+    "When fifteen summers had passed o'er my head,
+    I stood on the battle-field strewn with the dead.
+      For the day of the Moslem's glory
+    Had made me an orphan child, and there
+    My sire was stretched; and his bosom bare
+    Showed a gaping wound; and the flowing hair
+      Of his head was damp and gory.
+
+    "My sire was the chief of the patriot band,
+    That had fought and died for their native land,
+      When her rightful prince betrayed her;
+    On his kith and kin did the vengeance fall
+    Of the Mussulman foes--and each and all
+    Were swept from the old ancestral hall,
+      Save myself, by the fierce invader!
+
+    "And I was spared from that blood-stained grave
+    To be dragged away as the Moslem's slave,
+      And bend to the foe victorious,--
+    But, O Greece! to thee does my memory turn
+    Its longing eyes--and my heart-strings yearn
+    To behold thee rise in thy might and spurn,
+      As of yore, thy yoke inglorious!
+
+    "But oh! whither has Spartan courage fled?
+    And why, proud Athens! above thine head
+      Is the Mussulman crescent gleaming?
+    Have thine ancient memories no avail?
+    And art thou not fired at the legend tale
+    Which reminds thee how the whole world grew pale,
+      And recoiled from thy banners streaming?"
+
+"Enough, boy," exclaimed Ibrahim: then in a low tone, he murmured to
+himself, "The Christians have indeed much cause to anathematize the
+encroachments and tyranny of the Moslems."
+
+There was a short pause, during which the grand vizier was absorbed in
+profound meditation, while the Greek page never once withdrew his eyes
+from the countenance of that high functionary.
+
+"Boy," at length said Ibrahim, "you appear attached to me. I have
+observed many proofs of your devotion during the few months that you
+have been in my service. Speak--is there aught that I can do to make you
+happy? Have you relations or friends who need protection? If they be
+poor, I will relieve their necessities."
+
+"My lips cannot express the gratitude which my heart feels toward your
+highness," returned the page, "but I have no friends in behalf of whom I
+might supplicate the bounty of your highness."
+
+"Are you yourself happy, Constantine?" asked Ibrahim.
+
+"Happy in being permitted to attend upon your highness," was the reply,
+delivered in a soft and tremulous tone.
+
+"But is it in my power to render you happier?" demanded the grand
+vizier.
+
+Constantine hung down his head--reflected for a few moments, and then
+murmured "Yes."
+
+"Then, by Heaven!" exclaimed Ibrahim Pasha, "thou hast only to name thy
+request, and it will be granted. I know not wherefore, but I am attached
+to thee much. I feel interested in thy welfare, and I would be rejoiced
+to minister to thy happiness."
+
+"I am already happier than I was--happier, because my lips have drunk in
+such words flowing from the lips of one who is exalted as highly as I am
+insignificant and humble." said the page, in a voice tremulous with
+emotion, but sweetly musical. "Yes, I am happier," he continued--"and
+yet my soul is filled with the image of a dear, a well-beloved sister,
+who pines in loneliness and solitude, ever dwelling on a hapless love
+which she has formed for one who knows not that he is so loved, and who
+perhaps may never--never know it."
+
+"Ah, thou hast a sister, Constantine?" exclaimed the grand vizier. "And
+is she as lovely as a sister of a youth so handsome as thou art ought to
+be?"
+
+"She has been assured by those who have sought her hand, that she is
+indeed beautiful," answered Constantine. "But of what avail are her
+charms, since he whom she loves may never whisper in her ear the
+delicious words, 'I love thee in return.'"
+
+"Does the object of her affections possess so obdurate a heart?"
+inquired the grand vizier, strangely interested in the discourse of his
+youthful page.
+
+"It is not that he scorns my sister's love," replied Constantine; "but
+it is that he knows not of its existence. It is true that he has seen
+her once--yet 'twere probable that he remembers not there is such a
+being in the world. Thus came it to pass, my lord--an officer, holding a
+high rank in the service of his imperial majesty, the great Solyman, had
+occasion to visit a humble dwelling wherein my sister resided. She--poor
+silly maiden! was so struck by his almost god-like beauty--so dazzled by
+his fascinating address--so enchanted by the sound of his voice, that
+she surrendered up her heart suddenly and secretly--surrendered it
+beyond all power of reclamation. Since then she has never ceased to
+ponder upon this fatal passion--this unhappy love; she has nursed his
+image in her mind, until her reason has rocked with the wild thoughts,
+the ardent hopes, the emotions of despair--all the conflicting
+sentiments of feeling, in a word, which so ardent and so strange a love
+must naturally engender. Enthusiastic, yet tender; fervent, yet melting
+in her soul; and while she does not attempt to close her eyes to the
+conviction that she is cherishing a passion which is preying upon her
+very vitals, she nevertheless clings to it as a martyr to the stake! Oh!
+my lord, canst thou marvel if I feel deeply for my unhappy sister?"
+
+"But wherefore doth she remain thus unhappy?" demanded Ibrahim-Pasha.
+"Surely there are means of conveying to the object of her attachment an
+intimation how deeply he is beloved? and he must be something more than
+human," he added, in an impassioned tone, "if he can remain obdurate to
+the tears and sighs of a beauteous creature, such as thy sister
+doubtless is."
+
+"And were he to spurn her from him--oh! your highness, it would kill
+her!" said the page, fixing his large, eloquent eyes upon the
+countenance of the grand vizier. "Consider his exalted rank and her
+humble position----"
+
+"Doth she aspire to become his wife?" asked Ibrahim.
+
+"She would be contented to serve him as his veriest slave," responded
+Constantine, now strangely excited, "were he but to look kindly upon
+her: she would deem herself blest in receiving a smile from his lips, so
+long as it was bestowed as a reward for all the tender love she bears
+him."
+
+"Who is this man that is so fortunate as to have excited so profound an
+interest in the heart of one so beautiful?" demanded the grand vizier.
+"Name him to me--I will order him to appear before me--and, for thy
+sake, I will become an eloquent pleader on behalf of thy sister."
+
+Words cannot express the joy which flashed from the eyes of the page,
+and animated his handsome though softly feminine countenance, as,
+casting himself on his knees at the feet of Ibrahim Pasha, he murmured,
+"Great lord, that man whom my sister loves, and for whom she would lay
+down her life, is thyself!"
+
+Ibrahim was for some minutes too much overcome by astonishment to offer
+an observation--to utter a word; while the page remained kneeling at his
+feet. Then suddenly it flashed to the mind of the grand vizier that the
+only humble abode which he had entered since he had become an officer
+holding a high rank in the service of Solyman, was that of his Greek
+emissary, Demetrius; and it now occurred to him, that there was a
+striking likeness between the young page and the beautiful Calanthe:
+whom he had seen on that occasion.
+
+"Constantine," he said, at length, "art thou, then, the brother of that
+Demetrius whom I dispatched some three months ago to Florence?"
+
+"I am, my lord--and 'tis our sister Calanthe of whom I have spoken," was
+the reply. "Oh! pardon my arrogance--my presumption, great vizier!" he
+continued, suddenly rising from his kneeling position, and now standing
+with his arms meekly folded across his breast--"pardon the arrogance,
+the insolence of my conduct," he exclaimed; "but it was for the sake of
+my sister that I sought service in the household of your highness. I
+thought that if I could succeed in gaining your notice--if in any way I
+could obtain such favor in your eyes as to be admitted to speak with one
+so highly raised above me as thou art, I fancied that some opportunity
+would enable me to make those representations which have issued from my
+lips this day. How patiently I have waited that occasion, Heaven knows!
+how ardent have been my hopes of success, when from time to time your
+highness singled me out from amongst the numerous free pages of your
+princely household to attend upon your privacy--how ardent, I say, these
+hopes have been, your highness may possibly divine. And now, my lord,
+that I _have_ succeeded in gaining your attention and pouring this
+secret into your ears, I will away to Calanthe and impart all the
+happiness that is in store for her. Though the flowers may hold up their
+heads high in the light of the glorious sun, yet she shall hold hers
+higher in the favor of your smile. Generous master," he added, suddenly
+sinking his voice to a lower tone and reassuming the deferential air
+which he had partially lost in the excitement of speaking, "permit me
+now to depart."
+
+"This evening, Constantine," said the grand vizier, fixing his dark eyes
+significantly upon the page, "let your sister enter the harem by the
+private door in the garden. Here is a key; I will give the necessary
+instructions to the female slaves to welcome her."
+
+Constantine received the key, made a low obeisance, and withdrew,
+leaving the grand vizier to feast his voluptuous imagination with
+delicious thoughts of the beauteous Calanthe.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LIII.
+
+THE SULTANA VALIDA--THE THREE BLACK SLAVES.
+
+
+In the meantime the Princess Aischa, the now neglected wife of the grand
+vizier, had repaired to the imperial seraglio to obtain an interview
+with her brother, Solyman the Magnificent. The sultan, as the reader has
+already learnt, was deeply attached to Aischa. Their mother, the
+sultana, or empress mother, who was still alive, occupied apartments in
+the seraglio. Her children entertained the greatest respect for her: and
+her influence over the sultan, who possessed an excellent heart, though
+his sway was not altogether unstained by cruelties, was known to be
+great.
+
+It was therefore to her mother and her brother that the beautiful Aischa
+proceeded; and when she was alone with them in the Valida's apartment,
+and removed her veil, they immediately noticed that she had been
+weeping. Upon being questioned relative to the cause of her sorrow, she
+burst into an agony of tears, and was for some time unable to reply. At
+length, half regretting that she had taken the present step, Aischa
+slowly revealed her various causes of complaint against the grand
+vizier.
+
+"By Allah!" exclaimed the sultan, "the ungrateful Ibrahim shall not thus
+spurn and neglect the costly gift which I, his master, condescended to
+bestow upon him! What! when the Shah of Persia, the Khan of the Tartars,
+and the Prince of Karamania all sought thine hand, and dispatched
+embassadors laden with rich gifts to our court to demand thee in
+marriage, did I not send them back with cold words of denial to their
+sovereigns? And was it to bestow thee, my sister, on this ungrateful
+boy, who was so late naught save a dog of a Christian, ready to eat the
+dirt under our imperial feet,--was it to bestow thee on such an one as
+he, that I refused the offers of the Persian Shah! By the tomb of the
+prophet! this indignity shall cease!"
+
+"Restrain your wrath, my son," said the Sultana Valida. "Ibrahim must
+not be openly disgraced: the effects of his punishment would redound on
+our beloved Aischa. No--rather intrust this affair to me; and fear not
+that I shall fail in compelling this haughty pasha to return to the arms
+of his wife--ay, and implore her pardon for his late neglect."
+
+"Oh! dearest mother, if thou canst accomplish this," exclaimed Aischa,
+her countenance becoming animated with joy and her heart palpitating
+with hope, "thou wouldst render me happy indeed."
+
+"Trust to me, daughter," replied the Sultana Valida. "In the meantime
+seek not to learn my intentions; but, on thy return home, send me by
+some trusty slave thy pass-key to the harem. And thou, my son, wilt lend
+me thine imperial signet-ring for twelve hours!"
+
+"Remember," said the sultan, as he drew the jewel from his finger, "that
+he who wears that ring possesses a talisman of immense power--a sign
+which none to whom it is shown dares disobey; remember this, my mother,
+and use it with caution."
+
+"Fear not, my dearly beloved son," answered the Sultana Valida,
+concealing the ring in her bosom. "And now, Aischa, do you return to the
+palace of your haughty husband, who ere twelve hours be passed, shall
+sue for pardon at thy feet."
+
+The sultan and Aischa both knew that their mother was a woman of
+powerful intellect and determined character; and they sought not to
+penetrate into the secret of her intentions.
+
+Solyman withdrew to preside at a meeting of the divan; and Aischa
+returned to the palace of the grand vizier, attended by the slaves who
+had waited for her in an anteroom leading to her mother's apartments.
+
+It was now late in the afternoon, and the time for evening prayer had
+arrived ere the Sultana Valida received the pass-key to Ibrahim Pasha's
+harem. But the moment it was conveyed to her, she summoned to her
+presence three black slaves, belonging to the corps of the bostanjis, or
+gardeners, who also served as executioners, when a person of rank was to
+be subjected to the process of bowstring, or when any dark deed was to
+be accomplished in silence and with caution. Terrible appendages to the
+household of Ottoman sultans were the black slaves belonging to that
+corps--like snakes, they insinuated themselves, noiselessly and
+ominously into the presence of their victims, and it were as vain to
+preach peace to the warring elements which God alone can control, as to
+implore mercy at the hands of those remorseless Ethiopians!
+
+To the three black slaves did the Sultana Valida issue her commands; and
+to the eldest she intrusted Solyman's signet-ring and the pass-key which
+Aischa had sent her. The slaves bowed three times to the empress
+mother--laid their hands on their heads to imply that they would deserve
+decapitation if they neglected the orders they had received--and then
+withdrew. There was something terribly sinister in their appearance, as
+they retired noiselessly but rapidly through the long, silent and
+darkened corridors of the imperial harem.
+
+It was night--and the moon shone softly and sweetly upon the mighty city
+of Constantinople, tipping each of its thousand spires and pinnacles as
+with a star.
+
+Ibrahim Pasha, having disposed of the business of the day, and now with
+his imagination full of the beautiful Calanthe, hastened to the
+anteroom, or principal apartment of the harem.
+
+The harem, occupying one complete wing of the vizier's palace, consisted
+of three stories. On the ground floor were the apartments of the
+Princess Aischa and her numerous female dependents. These opened from a
+spacious marble hall; and at the folding-doors leading into them, were
+stationed two black dwarfs, who were deaf and dumb. Their presence was
+not in any way derogatory to the character of Aischa, but actually
+denoted the superior rank of the lady who occupied those apartments in
+respect to the numerous females who tenanted the rooms above. As she was
+the sister of the sultan, Ibrahim dared not appear in her presence
+without obtaining her previous assent through the medium of one of the
+mutes, who were remarkably keen in understanding and conveying
+intelligence by means of signs. A grand marble staircase led from the
+hall to the two floors containing the apartments of the ladies of the
+harem; and thus, though Aischa dwelt in the same wing as those females,
+her own abode was as distinct from theirs as if she were the tenant of a
+separate house altogether.
+
+On the first floor there was a large and magnificently furnished room in
+which the ladies of the harem were accustomed to assemble when they
+chose to quit the solitude of their own chambers for the enjoyment of
+each other's society. The ceiling of the anteroom; as this immense
+apartment was called, was gilt entirely over; it was supported by twenty
+slender columns of crystal; and the splendid chandeliers which were
+suspended to it, diffused a soft and mellow light, producing the most
+striking effects on that mass of gilding, those reflecting columns, and
+the wainscoted walls inlaid with mother-of-pearl, and with ivory of
+different colors. A Persian carpet three inches thick was spread upon
+the floor. Along two opposite sides ran continuous sofas, supported by
+low, white marble pillars, and covered with purple figured velvet
+fringed with gold. In the middle of this gorgeous apartment was a large
+table, shaped like a crescent, and spread with all kinds of preserved
+fruits, confectionery, cakes, and delicious beverages of a non-alcoholic
+nature.
+
+The room was crowded with beauteous women when the presence of Ibrahim
+was announced by a slave. There were the fair-complexioned daughters of
+Georgia--the cold, reserved, but lovely Circassians--the warm and
+impassioned Persians--the voluptuous Wallachians--the timid Tartars--the
+dusky Indians--the talkative Turkish ladies--beauties, too, of Italy,
+Spain, and Portugal--indeed, specimens of female perfection from many,
+many nations. Their various styles of beauty, and their characteristic
+national dresses, formed a scene truly delightful to gaze upon: but the
+grand vizier noticed none of the countenances so anxiously turned toward
+him to mark on which his eyes would settle in preference; and the ladies
+noiselessly withdrew, leaving their master alone with the slave in the
+anteroom.
+
+Ibrahim threw himself on a sofa, and gave some hasty instructions to the
+slave, who immediately retired. In about a quarter of an hour he came
+back, conducting into the anteroom a lady veiled from head to foot. The
+slave then withdrew altogether; and Ibrahim approached the lady, saying,
+"Calanthe--beauteous Calanthe! welcome to my palace."
+
+She removed her veil; and Ibrahim fixed his eager eyes upon the
+countenance thus disclosed to him; but he was immediately struck by the
+marvelous resemblance existing between his page Constantine, and the
+charming Calanthe. It will be remembered that when he called, in a mean
+disguise, at the abode of Demetrius, he saw Calanthe for the first time,
+and only for a short period; and though he was even then struck by her
+beauty, yet the impression it made was but momentary: and he had so far
+forgotten Calanthe as never to behold in Constantine the least
+resemblance to any one whom he had seen before.
+
+But now that Calanthe's countenance burst upon him in all the glory of
+its superb Greek beauty, that resemblance struck him with all the force
+of a new idea; and he was about to express his astonishment that so
+wondrous a likeness should subsist between brother and sister, when the
+maiden sunk at his feet, exclaiming, "Pardon me, great vizier; but
+Constantine and Calanthe are one and the same thing."
+
+"Methought the brother pleaded with marvelous eloquence on behalf of his
+sister," said Ibrahim, with a smile; and raising Calanthe from her
+suppliant posture, he led her to a seat, gazing on her the while with
+eyes expressive of intense passion.
+
+"Your highness," observed the maiden, after a short pause, "has heard
+from my own lips how profound is the attachment which I have dared to
+conceive for you--how great is the admiration which I entertain for the
+brilliant powers of your intellect. To be with thee, great Ibrahim, will
+I abandon my country, friends--ay, and even creed, shouldst thou demand
+that concession; for in thee--and in thee only--are all my hopes of
+happiness now centered!"
+
+"And those hopes shall not be disappointed, dearest Calanthe!" exclaimed
+Ibrahim, clasping her in his arms. "But a few minutes before you entered
+this room a hundred women--the choicest flowers of all climes--were
+gathered here; and yet I value one smile on thy lips more than all the
+tender endearments that those purchased houris could bestow. For thy
+love was unbought--it was a love that prompted thee to attach thyself to
+me in a menial capacity----"
+
+The impassioned language of the grand vizier was suddenly interrupted by
+the opening of the door, and three black slaves glided into the
+anteroom--half crouching as they stole along--and fixing on the
+beauteous Calanthe eyes, the dark pupils of which seemed to glare
+horribly from the whites in which they were set.
+
+"Dogs! what signifies this intrusion?" exclaimed Ibrahim Pasha, starting
+from the sofa, and grasping the handle of his scimiter.
+
+The chief the three slaves uttered not a word of reply, but exhibited
+the imperial signet, and at the same time unrolled from the coil which
+he had hitherto held in his hand a long green silken bowstring. At that
+ominous spectacle Ibrahim fell back, his countenance becoming ashy pale,
+and his frame trembling with an icy shudder from head to foot.
+
+"Choose between this and her," whispered the slave, in a deep tone, as
+he first glanced at the bowstring and then looked toward Calanthe, who
+knew that some terrible danger was impending, but was unable to divine
+where or when it was to fall.
+
+"Merciful Allah!" exclaimed the grand vizier; and throwing himself upon
+the floor, he buried his face in his hands.
+
+In another moment Calanthe was seized and gagged, before even a word or
+a scream could escape her lips; but Ibrahim heard the rustling of her
+dress as she unavailingly struggled with the monsters in whose power she
+was. The selfish ingrate! he drew not his scimiter to defend her--he no
+longer remembered all the tender love she bore him--but, appalled by the
+menace of the bowstring, backed by the warrant of the sultan's signet
+ring, he lay groveling on the rich Persian carpet, giving vent to his
+alarms by low and piteous groans.
+
+Then he heard the door once more close as softly as possible: he looked
+up--glared with wild anxiety around--and breathed more freely on finding
+himself alone! For the Ethiopians had departed with their victim! Slowly
+rising from his supine posture, Ibrahim approached the table, filled a
+crystal cup with sherbet to the brim, and drank the cooling beverage,
+which seemed to go hissing down his parched throat--so dreadful was the
+thirst which the horror of the scene just enacted had produced.
+
+Then the sickening as well as maddening conviction struck to his very
+soul, that though the envied and almost worshiped vizier of a mighty
+empire--having authority of life and death over millions of human
+beings, and able to dispose of the governments and patronage of huge
+provinces and mighty cities--he was but a miserable, helpless slave in
+the eyes of another greater still--an ephemeron whom the breath of
+Solyman the Magnificent could destroy! And overcome by this conviction,
+he threw himself on the sofa, bursting into an agony of tears--tears of
+mingled rage and woe. Yes; the proud, the selfish, the haughty renegade
+wept as bitterly as ever even a poor, weak woman was known to weep!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+How calm and beautiful lay the waters of the Golden Horn beneath the
+light of that lovely moon which shone so chastely and so serenely above,
+as if pouring its argent luster upon a world where no evil passions were
+known--no hearts were stained with crime--no iniquity of human imagining
+was in the course of perpetration. But, ah! what sound is that which
+breaks on the silence of the night! Is it the splash of oars? No--for
+the two black slaves who guide yon boat which has shot out from the
+shore into the center of the gulf, are resting on the slight sculls--the
+boat itself, too, is now stationary--and not a ripple is stirred up by
+its grotesquely-shaped prow. What, then, was that sound?
+
+'Twas the voice of agony bursting from woman's throat; and the boat is
+about to become the scene of a deed of horror, though one of
+frequent--alas! too frequent--occurrence in that clime, and especially
+on that gulf.
+
+The gag has slipped from Calanthe's mouth; and a long loud scream of
+agonizing despair sweeps over the surface of the water--rending the calm
+and moonlit air--but dying away ere it can raise an echo on either
+shore. Strong are the arms and relentless is the black monster who has
+now seized the unhappy Greek maiden in his ferocious grasp--while the
+luster of the pale orb of night streams on that countenance lately
+radiant with impassioned hope, but now convulsed with indescribable
+horror.
+
+Again the scream bursts from the victim's lips; but its thrilling,
+cutting agony is interrupted by a sudden plunge--a splash--a gurgling
+and a rippling of the waters--and the corpse of the murdered Calanthe is
+borne toward the deeper and darker bosom of the Bosporus.
+
+The sun was already dispersing the orient mists, when the chief of the
+three black slaves once more stood in the presence of the grand vizier,
+who had passed the night in the anteroom, alone, and a prey to the most
+lively mental tortures. So noiselessly and reptile-like did the hideous
+Ethiopian steal into the apartment, that he was within a yard of the
+grand vizier ere the latter was aware that the door had even opened.
+Ibrahim started as if from a snake about to spring upon him--for the
+ominous bowstring swung negligently from the slave's hand, and the
+imperial signet still glistened on his finger.
+
+"Mighty pasha!" spoke the Ethiopian in a low and cold tone; "thus saith
+the Sultana Valida: 'Cease to treat thy wife with neglect. Hasten to
+her--throw thyself at her feet--implore her pardon for the past--and
+give her hope of affection for the future. Shouldst thou neglect this
+warning, then every night will the rival whom thou preferrest to her be
+torn from thine arms, and be devoted as food for the fishes. She whom
+thou didst so prefer this night that is passed sleeps in the dark green
+bed of the Bosporus. Take warning, pasha; for the bowstring may be used
+at last. Moreover, see that thou revealest not to the Princess Aischa
+the incident of the night, nor the nature of the threats which send thee
+back repentant to her arms.'"
+
+And, with these words, the slave glided hastily from the room, leaving
+the grand vizier a prey to feelings of ineffable horror. His punishment
+on earth had begun--and he knew it. What had his ambition gained? Though
+rich, invested with high rank, and surrounded by every luxury, he was
+more wretched than the meanest slave who was accustomed to kiss the dust
+at his feet.
+
+But, subduing the fearful agitation which oppressed him--composing his
+feelings and his countenance as well as he was able, the proud and
+haughty Ibrahim hastened to implore admittance to his wife's chamber,
+and when the boon was accorded, and he found himself in her presence, he
+besought her pardon in a voice and with a manner expressive of the most
+humiliating penitence. Thus, at the moment when thousands--perhaps
+millions, were envying the bright fortunes and glorious destiny of
+Ibrahim the Happy, as he was denominated--the dark and terrible
+despotism of the Sultana Valida made him tremble for his life, and
+compelled him to sue at Aischa's feet for pardon. And if, at the same
+instant of his crushed spirit and wounded pride, there were a balm found
+to soothe the racking fibers of his heart, the anodyne consisted in the
+tender love which Aischa manifested toward him, and the touching
+sincerity with which she assured him of her complete forgiveness.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Return we again to that Mediterranean island on which Fernand Wagner and
+the beauteous Nisida espoused each other by solemn vows plighted in the
+face of Heaven, and where they have now resided for six long months. At
+first how happy--how supremely happy was Nisida, having tutored herself
+so far to forget the jarring interests of that world which lay beyond
+the sea, as to abandon her soul without reservation to the delights of
+the new existence on which she had entered. Enabled once more to use
+that charming voice which God had given her, but which had remained
+hushed for so many years,--able also to listen to the words that fell
+from the lips of her lover, without being forced to subdue and crush the
+emotions which they excited,--and secure in the possession of him to
+whom she was so madly devoted, and who manifested such endearing
+tenderness toward herself, Nisida indeed felt as if she were another
+being, or endowed with the lease of a new life.
+
+At first, too, how much had Wagner and Nisida to say to each other,--how
+many fond assurances to give--how many protestations of unalterable
+affection to make! For hours would they sit together upon the seashore,
+or on the bank of the limpid stream in the valley, and converse almost
+unceasingly, wearying not of each other's discourse, and sustaining the
+interests and the enjoyment of that interchange of thoughts by flying
+from topic to topic just as their unshackled imagination suggested. But
+Fernand never questioned Nisida concerning the motive which had induced
+her to feign dumbness and deafness for so many years; she had given him
+to understand that family reasons of the deepest importance, and
+involving dreadful mysteries from the contemplation of which she
+recoiled with horror, had prompted so tremendous a self-martyrdom:--and
+he loved her too well to outrage her feelings by urging her to touch
+more than she might choose on that topic.
+
+Careful not to approach the vicinity of large trees, for fear of these
+dreadful tenants of the isle who might be said to divide its sovereignty
+with them, the lovers--may we not venture to call them husband and
+wife?--would ramble hand-in-hand, along the stream's enchanting banks,
+in the calm hours of moonlight, which lent softer charms to the scene
+than when the gorgeous sun was bathed all in gold. Or else they would
+wander on the sands to the musical murmur of the rippling sea,--their
+arms clasping each other's neck--their eyes exchanging glances of
+fondness--hers of ardent passion, his of more melting tenderness. But
+there was too much sensuality in the disposition of Nisida to render her
+love for Wagner sufficient and powerful enough to insure permanent
+contentment with her present lot.
+
+The first time that the fatal eve drew near when he must exchange the
+shape of man for that of a horrid wolf, he had said to her, "Beloved
+Nisida, I remember that there are finer and different fruits on the
+other side of the island, beyond the range of mountains; and I should
+rejoice to obtain for thee a variety. Console thyself for a few hours
+during mine absence; and on my return we shall experience renewed and
+increased happiness, as if we were meeting again after a long
+separation." Vainly did Nisida assure him that she reckoned not for a
+more extensive variety of fruits than those which the nearest grove
+yielded, and that she would rather have his society than all the
+luxuries which his absence and return might bring; he overruled her
+remonstrances--and she at length permitted him to depart. Then he
+crossed the mountains by means of the path which he had described when
+he escaped from the torrent at the point where the tree stretched across
+the stream, as described in the preceding chapter; and on the other side
+of the range of hills he fulfilled the dreadful destiny of the
+Wehr-Wolf! On his return to Nisida--after an absence of nearly
+twenty-four hours, for the time occupied in crossing and recrossing the
+mountains was considerable--he found her gloomy and pensive. His long
+absence had vexed her: she in the secrecy of her own heart had felt a
+craving for a change of scene--and she naturally suspected that it was
+to gratify a similar want that Fernand had undertaken the transmontane
+journey. She received his fruits coldly; and it was some time ere he
+could succeed in winning her back to perfect good humor.
+
+The next interval of a month glided away, the little incident which had
+for a moment ruffled the harmony of their lives was forgotten--at least
+by Nisida;--and so devoted was Fernand in his attention, so tenderly
+sincere in his attachment toward her--and so joyful, too, was she in the
+possession of one whose masculine beauty was almost superhumanly great,
+that those incipient cravings for change of scene--those nascent
+longings for a return to the great and busy world, returned but seldom
+and were even then easily subdued in her breast.
+
+When the second fatal date after their union on the island approached,
+Wagner was compelled to urge some new but necessarily trivial excuse for
+again crossing the mountains; and Nisida's remonstrances were more
+authoritative and earnest than on the previous occasion. Nevertheless he
+succeeded in obtaining her consent: but during his absence of four or
+five-and-twenty hours, the lady had ample leisure to ponder on home--the
+busy world across the sea--and her well-beloved brother Francisco.
+Fernand when he came back, found her gloomy and reserved; then, as he
+essayed to wean her from her dark thoughts, she responded petulantly and
+even reproachingly.
+
+The ensuing month glided away as happily as the two former ones; and
+though Fernand's attentions and manifestations of fondness increased, if
+possible, still Nisida would frequently sigh and look wistfully at the
+sea as if she would have joyed to behold a sail in the horizon. The
+third time the fatal close of the month drew nigh, Wagner knew not how
+to act; but some petulance on the part of Nisida furnished him with an
+excuse which his generous heart only had recourse to with the deepest,
+the keenest anguish. Throwing back the harsh word at her whom he loved
+so devotedly, he exclaimed, "Nisida, I leave thee for a few hours until
+thy good humor shall have returned;" and without waiting for a reply he
+darted toward the mountains. For some time the lady remained seated
+gloomily upon the sand; but as hour after hour passed away, and the sun
+went down, and the moon gathered power to light the enchanting scene of
+landscape and of sea, she grew uneasy and restless. Throughout that
+night she wandered up and down on the sands, now weeping at the thought
+that she herself had been unkind--then angry at the conviction that
+Fernand was treating her more harshly than she deserved.
+
+It was not till the sun was high in the heavens that Wagner reappeared;
+and though Nisida was in reality delighted to find all her wild alarms,
+in which the monstrous snakes of the isle entered largely, thus
+completely dissipated, yet she concealed the joy which she experienced
+in beholding his safe return, and received him with gloomy hauteur. Oh!
+how her conduct went to Wagner's heart!--for he knew that, so long as
+the direful necessity which had compelled his absence remained
+unexplained, Nisida was justified in attributing that absence to unkind
+feelings and motives on his part. A thousand times that day was he on
+the point of throwing himself at her feet and revealing all the details
+of that frightful destiny; but he dared not--oh! no, he dared not--and a
+profound melancholy seized upon his soul. Nisida now relented, chiefly
+because she herself felt miserable by the contemplation of his
+unhappiness; and harmony was restored between them.
+
+But during the fourth month of their union, the lady began to speak more
+frequently and frankly of the weariness and monotony of their present
+existence; and when Fernand essayed to console her, she responded by
+deep-drawn sighs. His love was based on those enduring elements which
+would have rendered him content to dwell forever with Nisida on that
+island, which had no sameness for him so long as she was there to be his
+companion; but _her_ love subsisted rather sensually than mentally; and
+now that her fierce and long-pent up desires had experienced
+gratification, she longed to return to the land of her birth, to embrace
+her brother Francisco; yes, even though she should be again compelled to
+simulate the deaf and dumb. The close of the fourth month was at hand,
+and Wagner was at a loss how to act. New excuses for a fresh absence
+were impossible; and it was with a heart full of anguish that he was
+compelled to seize an opportunity in the afternoon of the last day of
+the month, to steal away from Nisida and hasten across the mountains.
+Oh! what would she think of his absence now?--an absence for which he
+had not prepared her, and which was not on this occasion justified by
+any petulance or willfulness on her part? The idea was maddening, but
+there was no alternative.
+
+It was noon on the ensuing day when Fernand Wagner, pale and care-worn,
+again sought that spot on the strand where the rudely constructed
+cottage stood; but Nisida was not within the hut. He roved along the
+shore to a considerable distance, and still beheld her not. Terrible
+alarms now oppressed him. Could she have done some desperate deed to rid
+herself of an existence whereof she was weary? or had some fatal
+accident befallen her. From the shore he hastened to the valley; and
+there, seated by the side of the crystal stream, he beheld the object of
+his search. He ran--he flew toward her; but she seemed not to observe
+him; and when he caught a glimpse of her countenance, he shrank back in
+dismay--it was so pale, and yet so expressive of deep, concentrated
+rage!
+
+But we cannot linger on this portion of our tale. Suffice it to say that
+Wagner exerted all his eloquence, all his powers of persuasion to induce
+Nisida to turn a kind glance upon him; and it was only when, goaded to
+desperation by her stern silence and her implacable mien, he exclaimed,
+"Since I am no longer worthy of even a look or a syllable, I will quit
+thee forever!" It was only when these words conveyed to Nisida a
+frightful menace of loneliness, that she relented and gradually suffered
+herself to be appeased. But vainly did she question him relative to the
+cause of his absence on this occasion; he offered a variety of excuses,
+and she believed none of them.
+
+The month that followed was characterized by many quarrels and disputes;
+for Nisida's soul acquired all the restlessness which had marked it ere
+she was thrown on the island, but which solitude at first and then the
+possession of Wagner, had for a time so greatly subdued. Nevertheless,
+there were still occasions when she would cling to Wagner with all the
+confiding fondness of one who remembered how he had saved her life from
+the hideous anaconda, and who looked up to him as her only joy and
+solace in that clime, the beauty of which became painful with its
+monotony--yes, she would cling to him as they roved along the sands
+together--she would gaze up into his countenance, and as she read
+assurances of the deepest affection in his fine dark eyes, she would
+exclaim rapturously, "Oh! how handsome--how god-like art thou, my
+Fernand! Pardon me--pardon me, that I should ever have nursed resentment
+against thee!"
+
+It was when she was in such a mood as this that he murmured in her ears,
+"Nisida dearest, thou hast thy secret which I have never sought to
+penetrate. I also have my secret, beloved one, as I hinted to thee on
+that day which united us in this island; and into that mystery of mine
+thou mayest not look. But at certain intervals I must absent myself from
+thee for a few hours, as I hitherto have done; and on my return, O
+dearest Nisida! let me not behold that glorious countenance of thine
+clouded with anger and with gloom!"
+
+Then ere she could utter a word of reply, he sealed her lips with
+kisses--he pressed her fervently to his heart, and at that moment she
+thought he seemed so divinely handsome, and she felt so proud of
+possessing the love of a man invested with such superhuman beauty and
+such a splendid intellect, that she attempted not a remonstrance nor a
+complaint against what was but the preface to a fifth absence of
+four-and-twenty hours. And when Fernand Wagner reappeared again, his
+Nisida hastened to meet him as he descended from the mountains--those
+mountains which were crossed over by a surefooted and agile man with so
+much difficulty, and which he knew it would be impossible for him to
+traverse during that mad career in which he was monthly doomed to whirl
+along in his lupine shape--yes, she hurried to meet him--receiving him
+with open arms--smiled tenderly upon him--and led him to the sea-shore,
+where she had spread the noonday meal in the most inviting manner.
+
+The unwearied and unchanging nature of his love had touched her heart;
+and, during the long hours of his fifth absence, she had reasoned on the
+folly of marring the sweet harmony which should prevail between the only
+two human tenants of that island. The afternoon passed more happily than
+many and many a previous day had done; Nisida thought that Fernand had
+never seemed so handsome, though somewhat pale, and he fancied that his
+companion had never appeared so magnificently beautiful as now, while
+she lay half reclining in his arms, the rays of the setting sun faintly
+illuminating her aquiline countenance, and giving a glossy richness to
+the luxuriant black hair which floated negligently over her naked
+shoulders.
+
+When the last beams of the orb of day died flickeringly in the far
+horizon, the tender pair retired to their hut rejoicing in the serene
+and happy way in which the last few hours had glided over their
+heads--when a dark figure passed along the sand and stopped at a short
+distance from the door of the rudely constructed tenement.
+
+And assuredly this was no mortal being--nor wore it now a mortal
+shape--but Satan--in all the horrors of his ugliness, though still
+invested with that sublimity of mien which marked the mighty fallen
+angel--Satan, clothed in terrors ineffable, it was.
+
+For a few moments he stood contemplating the hut wherein the sleepers
+lay; dread lightnings flushed from his eyes, and the forked electric
+fluid seemed to play round his haughty brow, while his fearful
+countenance, the features of which no human pen may venture to describe,
+expressed malignant hate, anticipated triumph, and tremendous scorn.
+
+Then, extending his right hand toward the hut, and speaking in that deep
+sonorous tone, which when heard by mortal ears, seemed to jar against
+the very soul, he chanted the following incantation:--
+
+    "Woman of wild and fierce desires!
+    Why languish thus the wonted fires
+    That arm'd thine heart and nerved thine hand
+    To do whate'er thy firmness planned?
+    Has maudlin love subdued thy soul,
+    Once so impatient of control?
+    Has amorous play enslaved the mind
+    Where erst no common chains confined?
+    Has tender dalliance power to kill
+    The wild, indomitable will?
+    No more must love thus paralyze
+    And crush thine iron energies;
+    No more must maudlin passion stay
+    Thy despot soul's remorseless sway;
+    Henceforth thy lips shall cease to smile
+    Upon the beauties of this Isle;
+    Henceforth thy mental glance shall roam,
+    O'er the Mediterranean foam,
+    Toward thy far-off Tuscan home!
+    Alarms for young Francisco's weal,
+    And doubts into thy breast steal;
+    While retrospection carries back
+    Thy memory o'er time's beaten track
+    And stops at that dread hour when thou
+    With burning eyes and flashing brow,
+    Call'd Heaven to hear the solemn vow
+    Dictated with the latest breath
+    Of the fond mother on the untimely bed of death."
+
+Thus spoke the demon; and having chanted the incantation, full of menace
+and of deep design, he turned to depart.
+
+Sleep was still upon the eyes of Fernand and Nisida as they lay in each
+other's arms--the island and the sea, too, were sleeping in the soft
+light of the silver moon, and the countless stars which gemmed the vault
+of heaven,--when the dark figure passed along the sand, away from the
+rudely-constructed tenement.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LIV.
+
+
+When the sun rose again from the orient wave, Fernand repaired to the
+grove, as was his wont, to gather fruits for the morning repast, while
+Nisida bathed her fair form in the waters of the Mediterranean.
+
+But there was a gloom upon that lady's brow, and there was a somber
+flashing in her large dark eyes which denoted an incipient conflict of
+emotions stirring within her breast.
+
+She had retired to rest, as we have seen on the previous evening, with a
+heart glowing toward her beloved and handsome Fernand--she had fallen
+asleep with the tender sounds of his musical yet manly voice in her
+ears, and the image of his beautiful countenance in her mind--but in the
+night--she knew not at what hour--strange dreams began to oppress her,
+ominous visions filled her with anxiety.
+
+It seemed as if some being, having right to reproach and power to taunt,
+whispered to her as she slept, stern remonstrances against the idle,
+voluptuous, and dreaming life she was leading, mocking her for passing
+her time in the maudlin delights of love, calling upon her to arouse her
+latent energies and shake off that luxurious lethargy, teaching her to
+look upon the island, beauteous though it were, as one vast prison in
+which she was confined, from whence there were, nevertheless, means of
+escape, raising up before her mental vision all the most alluring and
+bustling scenes of her own fair, native city of Florence, then bitterly
+reproaching her for having allowed her soul to be more wrapped up in the
+society of Fernand Wagner, than solicitous, as it was wont to be, for
+the welfare of her brother Francisco, creating, too, wild doubts in her
+imagination as to whether circumstances might not, after all, have
+united her brother and Flora Francatelli in the bonds of a union which
+for many reasons she abhorred, and lastly thundering in her ears the
+terrific accusation that she was perjured to a solemn and an awful vow
+pledged by her lips, on a dread occasion, and to the dictating voice of
+her dying mother.
+
+When she awoke in the morning her brain appeared to be in confusion, but
+as her thoughts gradually settled themselves in the various cells of the
+seat of memory, the entire details of her long dream assumed the
+semblance of a connected chain, even as we have just described them.
+
+For these thoughts had arisen in the nature and order commanded by the
+demon.
+
+Fernand Wagner saw that the mind of his lovely companion, his charming
+bride, was ruffled; and, as he embraced her tenderly, he inquired the
+cause. His caresses for the moment soothed her, and induced her to
+struggle against the ideas which oppressed: _for there are thoughts that
+Satan excites within us_, which we can wrestle with--ay, and conquer if
+we will.
+
+Finding that Nisida became more composed, and that she treated her
+mournfulness and his agitation merely as the results of a disagreeable
+dream, Fernand rose, hastened to perform his own ablutions, and then
+repaired to the adjacent grove, as above stated. But Nisida remained not
+long in the Mediterranean's mighty bath; the moment Wagner had departed
+from her presence, thoughts which had recently passed in sad procession
+through her brain came back with renewed vigor; forcing themselves, as
+it were, upon her contemplation, because she offered but a feeble
+resistance to their returning invasion. And as she stood on the shore,
+having donned her scant clothing, and now combing out her long,
+luxuriant hair, to the silk richness of which the salt water had lent a
+more glorious gloss--she became a prey to an increasing restlessness--an
+augmenting anxiety, a longing to quit the island, and an earnest desire
+to behold her brother Francisco once again, sentiments and cravings
+which gave to her countenance an expression of somber lowering and
+concentrated passion, such as it was wont to exhibit in those days when
+her simulated deafness and dumbness forced her to subdue all the
+workings of her excited soul, and compress her vermilion lips to check
+the ebullition of that language which on those occasions struggled to
+pour itself forth.
+
+"O Italy! Italy!" she exclaimed in an impassioned tone; "shall I ever
+behold thee again? O! my beloved native land, thou too, fair city, whose
+name is fraught with so many varied reminiscences for me, am I doomed
+never to visit ye more?"
+
+"Nisida--dearest Nisida!" said Wagner, who had returned to her
+unperceived, and unheard--for his feet passed noiselessly over the sand;
+"wherefore those passionate exclamations? why this anxious longing to
+revisit the busy, bustling world? Are not the calm and serene delights
+of this island sufficient for our happiness? or art thou wearied of me
+who love thee so tenderly?"
+
+"I am not wearied of thee, my Fernand!" replied Nisida, "nor do I fail
+to appreciate all thy tender affection toward me. But--I can conceal it
+from myself and from thee no longer--I am overcome with the monotony of
+this isle. Unvaried sunshine during the day, unchanging calmness by
+night, pall upon the soul. I crave variety, even the variety that would
+be afforded by a magnificent storm, or the eruption of yon sleeping
+volcano. My thoughts wander in spite of myself toward Italy; I think,
+too, of my brother--the young and inexperienced Francisco! Moreover,
+there is in our mansion at Florence, a terrible mystery which prying
+eyes may seek to penetrate,--a closet containing a fearful secret,
+which, if published to the world, would heap loathing execrations and
+disgrace on the haughty name of Riverola! And now Francisco is the sole
+guardian of that mystery, which he himself knows not, or at least knew
+not, when last we were together. But it requires a strong and energetic
+mind, like my own, to watch over that awful secret. And now, Fernand,
+dear Fernand, thou canst not blame me, thou wilt not reproach me, if I
+experience an irresistible longing to return to my native land?"
+
+"And know you not, Nisida," said Wagner, in a tone of mingled
+mournfulness and reproach, "that, even if there were any means for thee
+to return to Florence, I could not accompany thee? Dost thou not
+remember that I informed thee, that being doomed to death, I escaped
+from the power of the authorities--it matters not how; and that were I
+to set foot in Florence, it would be to return to my dungeon?"
+
+"Alas! all this I remember well--too well!" exclaimed Nisida. "And think
+not, my Fernand, that I feel no pang, when I lay bare to thee the state
+of my soul. But if it were possible for us to go to Italy, thou couldst
+dwell secretly and retiredly in some suburb of Florence, and we should
+be together often--very often!"
+
+"No--Nisida," answered Wagner; "that were impossible! Never more may I
+venture into that city--and if thou couldst even find the means to
+revisit thy native clime, thither must thou go, and there must thou
+dwell _alone_!"
+
+For Wagner knew full well that were the lady to return to Florence, she
+would hear of the frightful incidents which marked his trial and also
+the day of his escape; and, though he had at first inclined to impart to
+her the terrible secret of his fate--yet subsequent and more calm
+deliberation in his own mind had convinced him of the imprudence of
+giving her love a shock by such a tremendous--such an appalling
+revelation.
+
+"Fernand," said Nisida, breaking silence after a long pause, during
+which she was wrapped in profound meditation, "thy words go to my heart
+like fiery arrows! O my handsome--my beautiful--my beloved Fernand, why
+does destiny thus persecute us? It is impossible for thee to return to
+Florence:--it is equally impossible for me to renounce the first
+opportunity which Heaven may afford for me to repair thither! My God!
+wherefore do our fates tend in such opposite directions? to separate
+from thee were maddening: to abandon my brother Francisco--to desert the
+grave and solemn interests which demand my presence at home, were to
+render myself perjured to a vow which I breathed and which Heaven
+witnessed, when I knelt long years ago at the death-bed of my mother!"
+
+"After all thou hast said, my beloved Nisida," exclaimed Fernand, in a
+voice expressive of the deepest melancholy, "I should be wrong--I should
+be even criminal to listen only to the whispering of my own selfishness
+and retain thee here, did opportunity serve for thy departure. But on
+this island shall I remain--perhaps forever! And if the time should come
+when you grew wearied of that bustling world across the sea, and thy
+memory traveled to this lonely isle where thy Fernand was left behind
+thee,--haply thou wouldst embark to return hither and pass the remainder
+of thy days with one who can never cease to love thee!"
+
+Tears came into the eyes of Nisida--of her who so seldom, so very seldom
+wept;--and throwing herself into Wagner's arms, she exclaimed, "God
+grant that I may revisit my native land; and believe me, oh! believe me,
+when I declare that I would come back to thee the moment the interests
+of my brother no longer demanded my presence!"
+
+They embraced fondly, and then sat down upon the sand to partake of
+their morning repast.
+
+But the thoughts of both were naturally intent upon the recent topic of
+their discourse; and their conversation, though each endeavored to force
+it into other channels, reverted to the subject which was now uppermost
+in their minds.
+
+"What must my poor brother Francisco conjecture to be the cause of my
+prolonged, and to him mysterious absence?" said Nisida, as her eyes were
+cast wistfully over the wide expanse of waters. "Methinks that I have
+already hinted to thee how the foolish passion which he had conceived
+for a maiden of low degree and obscure birth, compelled me, in
+accordance with his nearest and best interest, to consign the object of
+his boyish love to the convent of the Carmelites? Yes, and it was with
+surprise and dismay incredible that I heard, ere I was torn away from
+Florence by the villain Stephano, how that convent was sacked and
+destroyed by unknown marauders----"
+
+"Full intelligence of which terrible sacrilege you communicated to me by
+signs the second and last time you visited me in my dungeon," observed
+Wagner.
+
+"And I heard also, with increased fear," continued Nisida, "that some of
+the inmates of that convent had escaped; and, being unable, in
+consequence of my simulated deafness and dumbness, to set on foot the
+necessary inquiries, I could not learn whether Flora Francatelli was
+amongst those who had so escaped the almost general ruin. O! if she
+should have survived that fatal night--and if she should have again
+encountered my brother! Alas! thou perceivest, my Fernand, how necessary
+it is for me to quit the island on the first occasion which may serve
+for that purpose!"
+
+"And wouldst thou, Nisida," asked Wagner reproachfully, "place thyself
+as a barrier between the Count of Riverola and her whom he loves?"
+
+"Yes!" ejaculated Nisida, her countenance suddenly assuming a stern and
+imperious expression: "for the most important interests are involved in
+the marriage which he may contract. But enough of this, Fernand," she
+added, relapsing into a more tender mood. "And now tell me--canst thou
+blame me for the longing desire which has seized upon me--the ardent
+craving to return to Florence?"
+
+"Nay--I do not blame thee, dearest Nisida!" he exclaimed; "but I pity
+thee--I feel for thee! Because," he continued, "if I understand rightly,
+thou wilt be compelled to feign deafness and dumbness once more, in
+order to work out thy mysterious aims;--thou wilt be compelled to submit
+to that awful martyrdom--that terrible duplicity which thou wilt find so
+painful and difficult to resume, after the full enjoyment of the blessed
+faculties of speech and hearing."
+
+"Alas! such will be my duty!" murmured Nisida; "and oh! that destiny is
+a sad one! But," she exclaimed, after a moment's pause, and as a
+reminiscence appeared suddenly to strike her, "dost thou not think that
+even such a destiny as that becomes tolerable, when it is fulfilled as
+the only means of carrying out the conditions of a vow breathed to a
+well-beloved and dying mother? But wearisome--oh! crushingly tedious was
+that mode of existence;--and the first bright day of real happiness
+which I enjoyed, was that when I first knew that thou didst love me! And
+again, Fernand--oh! again was I supremely happy when, one evening--thou
+may'st remember well,--it was the eve that my brother and the minion
+Flora exchanged tender words together in the room adjoining that where
+we were seated--on that evening, Fernand, I besought by signs that thou
+wouldst breathe the words--_I love thee!_ and thou didst so--and I drank
+in those words as a person dying with thirst would imbibe pure spring
+water placed to his lips!"
+
+Fernand pressed Nisida to his heart--for he saw, in spite of her anxiety
+to return to Italy, that she really loved him.
+
+But though sensual and impassioned feelings led the beauteous Nisida
+thus frequently to melt into softness and tenderness when she
+contemplated the wondrously handsome countenance of Fernand, yet from
+this day forth her longing to return to Italy became more earnest--more
+irresistible; and she would compel him to sit by her side for hours
+together on the shore, while she eagerly watched for the appearance of a
+sail in the horizon. And Fernand, who divined her object, himself now
+longed for the advent of a ship;--so sincere was his love for Nisida
+that he was ready to make any sacrifice in order to promote her
+happiness. Thus passed away the sixth month; and on the afternoon of the
+last day thereof, when Wagner was about to observe to her that the time
+had now arrived for him to pass the mountains once again, she said of
+her own accord, "Fernand, my beloved, when next you visit the other side
+of the island, you would do well to raise some sign, or leave some
+permanent mark to show that there are inhabitants on this island. For a
+ship might touch at that point--the sailors might seek the shore for
+water, and they would then search to discover where those who raised the
+signal-post are dwelling."
+
+"Your wish shall be fulfilled, dearest," answered Wagner; "and without
+delay will I seek the other side of the island."
+
+They then embraced tenderly, and Fernand departed, once more to fulfill
+his frightful doom! Nisida watched his receding form until it was lost
+in the groves intervening between the plains and the acclivities of the
+range of mountains; and then she seated herself again on the sand,
+wondering of what nature her husband's secret could be, and why it
+compelled him to absent himself occasionally from her. Though _he_ kept
+an accurate calculation of the lapse of time, and counted the passing
+days with unvarying precision, yet she retained no such faithful
+calendar in her memory, and had not observed that his absence always
+occurred on the last day of the month.
+
+The hour of sunset was now rapidly approaching, and as Nisida was
+wrapped in thought, but with her eyes fixed wistfully upon the mighty
+bosom of the deep, a slight sound as of the rustling of garments fell
+upon her ears. She started up and glanced suddenly around. But how
+ineffable was her astonishment--how great was her sudden joy, when she
+beheld the figure of a man approaching her; for it instantly struck her
+that the same ship which had conveyed him thither might bear her away
+from a scene which had latterly become insupportably monotonous.
+
+The individual whose presence thus excited her astonishment and her
+delight, was tall, thin, and attired rather in the German than in the
+Italian fashion: but, as he drew nearer, Nisida experienced indefinable
+emotions of alarm, and vague fears rushed to her soul--for the
+expression of that being's countenance was such as to inspire no
+pleasurable emotions. It was not that he was ugly;--no--his features
+were well formed, and his eyes were of dazzling brilliancy. But their
+glances were penetrating and reptile-like,--glances beneath which those
+of ordinary mortals would have quailed; and his countenance was stamped
+with a mingled sardonism and melancholy which rendered it painful to
+contemplate.
+
+Nisida attributed her feeling of uneasiness and embarrassment to the
+shame which she experienced at finding herself half-naked in the
+presence of a stranger, for so oppressive bad become the heat of the
+summer, that her clothing was most scanty, and she had long ceased to
+decorate her person with garlands and wreaths of fantastically woven
+flowers.
+
+"Fear not, lady," said the demon, for he indeed it was; "I am come to
+counsel and solace, not to alarm thee."
+
+"How knowest thou that I require counsel? and who art thou that talkest
+to me of solace?" asked Nisida, her sentiment of shame yielding to one
+of boundless surprise at hearing herself thus addressed by a being who
+appeared to read the very inmost secrets of her soul.
+
+"I am one who can penetrate into all the mysteries of the human heart,"
+returned the fiend, in his sonorous, deep-toned voice; "and I can gather
+thy history from the expression of thy countenance, the attitude in
+which I first beheld thee, while thou wast still seated upon the strand,
+and the mingled emotions of surprise and joy with which thou didst mark
+my presence. Is it, then, difficult to imagine that thou requirest
+counsel to teach thee how to proceed so as to obtain thine emancipation
+from this isle? or would it be extraordinary if, moved by thy sorrow, I
+offered to befriend thee? And is it not ever the way with mortals--poor,
+weak, miserable beings that they are--to grow speedily dissatisfied with
+their lot? In the spirit of religion ye say that Heaven controls your
+destinies according to its own wise purposes; and when all goes well
+with ye, and you have your desires, ye pray and are thankful, because,
+forsooth," added the demon, with a smile of bitter scorn, "it is so easy
+to pray when ye are contented and happy, and so easy to be thankful when
+ye are pampered with all ye require. Here art thou, lady, on an island
+teeming with all the choicest fruits of the earth, and enjoying an
+eternal summer, where all is pleasant to the view, and to whose silent
+shores the cares of the great world cannot come; and yet thou wouldst
+quit this calm retreat, and rush back into the vortex of evil passions,
+warring interests, conflicting pursuits! But I will not weary thee with
+my reflections; although it is my nature first to upbraid and taunt
+those whom I intend to serve!"
+
+"And who art thou, strange being, that reasoneth morally with the smile
+of scorn upon thy lips?" demanded Nisida, the vague alarms which had
+previously influenced her reviving with additional power; "who art thou,
+I say, that comest to reproach, and yet profferest thine aid?"
+
+"No matter who I am," replied the fiend. "Some day thou may'st know me
+better, if thou----"
+
+"But how camest thou hither? Where is the ship that brought thee--the
+boat that landed thee?" demanded Nisida in a tone of feverish
+impatience.
+
+"No ship brought me hither--no boat set me on the shore," answered the
+demon, fixing his eyes--those piercing eyes upon Nisida's countenance,
+as if to read the impression which this strange revelation made upon her
+secret soul.
+
+"Then who art thou?" exclaimed the lady, a cold shudder passing over her
+entire frame, although she retreated not nor withdrew the glances which
+she, through her wondrous strength of mind, was enabled to retain fixed
+upon the demon's countenance.
+
+"Seek not to learn as yet who I am," said the fiend. "Let it suffice for
+thee to know that I am something more than a mere mortal--a being gifted
+with powers which, in the hands of such a one as thou, would throw the
+entire world into convulsions; for there is much in thee after my own
+heart, beauteous Nisida of Riverola."
+
+"Ah! thou art even acquainted with my name," cried Nisida, again
+shuddering violently in spite of her powerful efforts to appear calm and
+fearless.
+
+"I am acquainted with thy name, and with all that concerns thee and
+thine, Nisida," replied the fiend; "ay," he added, with a malignant
+chuckle, "even to the mystery of the closet in thy late father's
+chamber, and the contents of the terrible manuscript which taught thee
+such dreadful secrets! I know, too, all that thou hast done to serve
+thine aims--thy simulated deafness and dumbness--the assassination of
+Agnes--the imprisonment of Flora in the convent----"
+
+"Then art thou indeed some superhuman power," interrupted Nisida, in a
+tone of inexpressible alarm; "and I dare hold no further converse with
+thee."
+
+"One moment--and thou wilt think differently!" exclaimed the demon. "But
+I will give thee an evidence of my power. Here, take this
+instrument--'tis called a telescope--and use it for a single minute.
+Glance across the waters, and thou shalt behold a scene which will
+interest thee somewhat, I trow."
+
+The fiend handed her a telescope and directed her to apply it to her
+eyes. She obeyed him, though reluctantly; but intense curiosity overcame
+her scruples, and, moreover, her extraordinary strength of mind aided
+her in supporting the presence of one whom she knew to be invested with
+superhuman powers--but of what nature she feared to guess. Nisida turned
+toward the sea, and used the magic telescope as directed, while the
+demon stood behind her, his countenance expressing a diabolical triumph,
+mingled with blighting scorn.
+
+But ah! what does Nisida behold? The moment she applies the telescope to
+her eye, she is transported as it were to her own native city. She is in
+Florence--yes, in the fair capital of Tuscany. Every familiar scene is
+presented to her again; and she once more views the busy crowds and the
+bustling haunts of men. She sweeps them all with a hurried glance; and
+then her look settled upon a young couple walking together in a secluded
+place on the banks of the Arno. But oh! how terribly flashed her
+eyes--how changed with wrath and concentrated rage suddenly becomes her
+countenance! For in that fond pair, wandering so lovingly together on
+the Arno's margin she recognized her brother Francisco and the maiden
+Flora Francatelli!
+
+"Thou hast seen enough!" cried the demon, snatching the telescope from
+her hands. "And now, more than ever," he added with a malignant smile of
+triumph, "dost thou long to revisit thy native land. It was to confirm
+that longing that I showed thee the scene thou hast just witnessed."
+
+"And canst thou give me the means to return thither?" demanded Nisida,
+almost maddened by the spectacle that had met her eyes.
+
+"Listen!" exclaimed the fiend, "and hear me patiently. I charge thee not
+to breathe to thy Fernand one word descriptive of this interview which
+thou hast had with me. Thou couldst simulate dumbness for ten long years
+or more, with a success which rendered thee great and glorious in my
+eyes--for I love the hypocrite and the deceiver," he added with one of
+his diabolical smiles; "although I myself deceive them! Be dumb, then,
+in all that relates to my visit to thee here. But thou mayst so beset
+thy Fernand with earnest entreaties to give thee the means of departure
+from this island--for he can do so, if he have the will--that he shall
+be unable to resist thy prayer--thy fears--thy anguish, real or feigned,
+whichever that anguish may be. And should he not yield to thy
+intercessions, then assail him on another point. Tell him that thou wilt
+never rest until thou shalt have discovered the cause of those
+periodical visits which he makes to the other side of the
+mountains--threaten to accompany him the next time he goes thither. But
+I need not teach you how to be energetic nor eloquent. For thou art a
+woman of iron mind and of persuasive tongue; and thy perseverance, as is
+thy will, is indomitable. Follow my counsel, then--and, though the
+future to a great extent be concealed from my view, yet I dare prophesy
+success for thee! And now farewell, Nisida--farewell!"
+
+And the demon retreated rapidly toward the forests, as if to seek the
+abode of those terrible serpents whose cunning was akin to his own.
+
+Nisida was too much astonished by the nature of the counsel which his
+deep sonorous voice had wafted to her ear, to be able to utter a word
+until his receding form was no longer visible, and then she exclaimed
+wildly; "I have assuredly seen Satan face to face!"
+
+And her blood ran cold in her veins. But a few moments were sufficient
+to enable that woman of wondrous energy to recover her presence of mind
+and collect her scattered thoughts; and she sat down on the sand to
+ponder upon the strange incidents which had so terribly varied the
+monotony of her existence. She thought, too, of the scene which she had
+beholden on the banks of the Arno--her worst fears were confirmed; Flora
+had escaped from the ruin of the Carmelite convent--was alive, was at
+liberty--and was with Francisco! Oh! how she now longed for the return
+of Fernand Wagner; but many hours must elapse--a night must pass--and
+the orb of day which had by this time gone down, must gain the meridian
+once more ere he would come back. And in the meantime, although she
+suspected it not, he must fulfill the awful doom of a Wehr-Wolf, as the
+reader will find by the perusal of the next chapter.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LV.
+
+
+It was within a few minutes of sunset, as Fernand Wagner, having crossed
+the mountains, hastened down that bituminous declivity constituting the
+scene of desolation which separated the range of volcano hills from the
+delightful plains and verdant groves stretching to the sea-shore.
+
+A shudder passed over his frame as he beheld the solitary tree in which
+he had seen the monstrous snake playing and gamboling, on the morning
+when he was thrown upon this Mediterranean isle.
+
+"Oh!" he exclaimed aloud, as he sped onward, "what happiness and also
+what misery have I known in this clime. But, doomed and fated being that
+I am, such is my destiny; and so must I be, here or elsewhere, in
+whichever land I may visit, in whatever part of the earth I may abide.
+Oh! merciful Heaven, can no prayer, no self-mortification, remove the
+ban--the curse--from my devoted head?
+
+"Oh! just Heaven," he exclaimed, stretching forth his arms toward the
+sky, and with ineffable anguish depicted on his upturned countenance;
+"spare me! Have I not been punished enough! Oh! take away from me this
+appalling doom--let me become old, wrinkled, forlorn, and poor once
+more,--let me return to my humble cot in the Black Forest, or let me
+die. Almighty power! if thou wilt--but spare me--spare me now!
+Wretch--wretch that I was to be dazzled by the specious promises, O
+Faust! But I am justly punished--thy vengeance, O Heaven, is well
+deserved--sinner, sinner that I am!"
+
+Those were the last human sounds he uttered for several hours; for,
+scarcely had they escaped his lips, when the horrible change began, and
+in a few moments a wild yell rent the air, and a monstrous wolf sprung
+from the spot where Wagner had fallen down in such agonizing writhings.
+
+Away--away went the ferocious animal heading toward the sea--careering,
+thundering on, as if intent on plunging into the silent depths, and
+there ending its course in a watery grave.
+
+But no: death yawns not for the Wehr-Wolf! Scarcely have its feet
+touched the verge of the water, when the monster wheels round and
+continues its whirlwind way without for an instant relaxing one tittle
+of its speed. Away--away, through the fruit-bearing groves, clearing for
+itself a path of ruin and havoc,--scattering the gems of the trees, and
+breaking down the richly-laden vines; away--away flies the monster,
+hideous howls bursting from its foaming mouth. The birds scream and
+whistle wildly, as startled from their usual tranquil retreats, they
+spread their gay and gaudy plumage, and go with gushing sound through
+the evening air. He reaches the bank of a stream, and bounds along its
+pleasant margin, trampling to death noble swans which vainly seek to
+evade the fury of the rushing monster.
+
+Away--away toward the forest hurries the Wehr-Wolf--impelled, lashed on
+by an invincible scourge, and filling the woods with its appalling
+yells--while its mouth scatters foam like thick flakes of snow. Hark,
+there is an ominous rustling in one of the trees of the forest; and the
+monster seems to instinctively know the danger which menaces it. But
+still its course is not changed;--it seems not to exercise its own will
+in shaping its course. Down the tremendous snake flings itself from the
+tree--and in an instant its hideous coils are wound round the foaming,
+steaming, palpitating body of the wolf. The air is rent with the yell of
+agony that bursts from the throat of the horrified monster as it tumbles
+over and over, as if it had run to the length of a tether--for the snake
+clings with its tail to the bough from which it has darted down. But the
+yielding of the wolf is only momentary; up--up it springs again--and
+away,--away it careers, more madly, more desperately, more ferociously,
+if possible, than before.
+
+And the snake? Oh! poor, weak and powerless was even that dread reptile
+of forty feet in length, when combated with a monster lashed on and also
+protected by invisible fiends. For, as the wolf sped on again, the boa
+was dragged as if by a thousand horses from its coiling hold upon the
+bough--and shaken, lacerated, and affrighted, the hideous reptile
+unwound itself from the ferocious animal, and fell powerless on the
+grass, where the vermin of the forest attacked it with their greedy maws
+ere its pestilential breath had ceased.
+
+Away--away toward the mountains rushes the Wehr-Wolf,--those mountains
+which constitute the barrier of safety to protect Nisida from the fangs
+of the animal that would mangle her fair form were she to cross its
+path. But, ah! he rushes up the acclivity--he clears rugged rock and
+jutting crag with wondrous bounds;--just Heaven! will he pass those
+heights--will he cross the range of volcanic hills?
+
+Oh! Nisida, who art on the other side of that range, little dreamest
+thou of the peril that menaces thee. Joy! joy!--the danger has passed;
+the wolf turns aside from a loftier impediment of crag than had yet
+appeared in its course: and down--down again toward the groves and
+valleys--over the bituminous waste made by the volcano--on, on goes the
+monster. Away, away, through the verdant scenes once more, fresh
+havoc--fresh desolation--fresh ruin marking his maddening course,--away,
+away the Wehr-Wolf speeds.
+
+The moon rises to give a stronger and purer light to the dreadful
+spectacle, a light stronger and purer than that of night itself, which
+is never completely dark in the tropics. Away, away, and still on,
+on--outstripping time--running a race with the fleeting moments, till
+hours and hours of unrelaxing speed are numbered--thus goes the wolf.
+And now he snuffs the morning air: the fresh breeze from the east raises
+the foam of the Mediterranean waves, and allays the heat on the body of
+the careening, bounding, and almost flying monster.
+
+His howling grows less ferocious--his yells become less terrible; and
+now his pace is a trifle more measured,--that relaxation of a whirlwind
+speed gradually increasing.
+
+'Tis done; the course is o'er--the race is run;--and the Wehr-Wolf falls
+in writhing agonies upon the fresh grass, whence in a few moments rises
+Fernand Wagner--a man once more! But as he throws a glance of horror
+around on the scene of his night's dread employment, he starts back with
+mingled aversion and alarm; for there--with folded arms, eyes terrible
+to look upon, and a countenance expressing infernal triumph and bitter
+scorn, stood the demon.
+
+"Fiend, what would'st thou with me?" demanded Wagner. "Are not the
+sufferings which I have just endured, enough to satisfy thy hatred of
+all human beings? are not the horrors of the past night sufficient to
+glut even thine insatiate heart?"
+
+"Mortal," said the demon, speaking in his profound and awe-inspiring
+tones, "didst thou take all thy miseries which at this moment afflict
+thy race, combine all the bitter woes, and crushing sorrows that madden
+the brains of men, mix up all the tears and collect all the sobs and
+sighs that tell of human agony, then multiply the aggregate by ten
+million, million times its sum, and go on multiplying by millions and
+millions, till thou wast tired of counting, thou would'st not form even
+an idea of that huge amount of human misery which could alone appease
+me. For on man do I visit the hate wherewith my own fall has animated
+me; powerless on high, where once I was so powerful, I make my kingdom
+of earth and hell--and in both my influence is great and is terrible!"
+
+"Yes--yes; too great--too terrible!" exclaimed Wagner. "But why dost
+thou persecute me with thy presence? I did not call thee--I did not
+invoke thine aid."
+
+"No, but thou requirest it!" said the demon, with a satirical smile.
+"Thinkest thou to be enabled to dream away thine existence in this
+island, with the warm, impassioned Nisida? No, mortal--no! Already doth
+she pine for her own native Italian clime; and she will end by loathing
+thee and this land, if she continue to dwell here, and with only thee as
+her companion. But it is in thy power to make Nisida forget
+Italy--Francisco--Flora--and all the grave interests and dreadful
+mysteries which seem to demand her presence in the busy world;--it is in
+thy power to render her happy and contented in this island--to attach
+her to thee for the remainder of thine existence--to provide her with
+the means of preserving her youth and her beauty unimpaired, even as
+thine own--to crush forever all those pinings and longings which now
+carry her glances wistfully across the sea,--in a word, to bend her mind
+to all thy wishes--her soul to all thy purposes! Yes;--it is in thy
+power to do all this--and the same decision which shall place that
+amount of ineffable happiness within thy reach, will also redeem thee
+from the horrible destiny of a Wehr-Wolf--leaving thee thy youth and thy
+beauty, and investing thee with a power equal to that enjoyed by thy
+late master, Faust."
+
+"And doubtless on the same conditions?" said Wagner, half-ironically,
+and half in horror at the mere thought of surrendering his soul to
+Satan.
+
+"Art thou blind to the means of promoting thy earthly happiness?"
+demanded the demon, fixing on Fernand a glance intended to appal and
+intimidate, but at which he on whom it was bent quailed not. "Hast thou
+not received sufficient experience of the terrific sufferings which
+twelve times a year thou art doomed to endure? Knowest thou not on each
+occasion thou destroyest human life, where mortal beings are in thy
+path--or that thou ravagest the fair scenes which He whose name I dare
+not mention has created? and art thou ignorant of the tremendous horror
+and loathsome obloquy which attach themselves to the name of a
+Wehr-Wolf? See--thou art already wearied of traveling through the
+various climes of the earth; thou no longer delightest in cultivating
+thine intellect, so marvelously adapted to receive knowledge of all
+kinds; and thy power to create whole mines of wealth is exercised no
+more. But thou would'st fix thine abode in this island forever, were
+Nisida to remain thy companion! Well--and if thou losest her? for
+assuredly a vessel will some day touch on these shores--what would'st
+thou do then? All lonely, desolate, forlorn, thou would'st curse the day
+that gave thee regenerated life--thou would'st seek death--and to thee
+death may not come yet for many, many years! Fernand, thou art worse
+than mad not to embrace my offers. Consent to become mine--mine
+eternally, when thy mortal breath shall leave thy body, and in the
+meantime I promise thee power illimitable--happiness such as no human
+being ever yet enjoyed----"
+
+"No--no!" exclaimed Wagner. "Rather the destiny of a Wehr-Wolf--rather
+the solitude of this island for the remainder of my days--than resign
+all chance of salvation! And that mine immortal soul is yet safe, the
+very temptations thou offerest with such eloquent persuasion fully
+proves! Oh! Heaven, of its infinite mercy, will receive the dreadful
+sufferings 'tis mine to endure each month, as an atonement for that hour
+of weakness, madness, folly, when dazzled by the words of Faust, and
+overwhelmed by a weight of miseries, I accepted a regenerated existence.
+Yes, Heaven will forgive me yet: and therefore avaunt, fiend! avaunt!"
+And as he uttered these words he made the sign of the cross, and the
+demon fled away howling. Wagner turned aside in dismay, and sank upon
+the ground as if blasted by the lightning. A deep sleep fell on
+Fernand's eyes, and in his dreams he thought he heard a solemn but
+rejoicing strain of music filling the air. That divine melody seemed to
+speak a language eloquent and intelligible, and to give him hope and
+promise of a deliverance from the dreadful destiny which his weakness
+and folly had entailed upon him. The music grew fainter and fainter, and
+at the moment when it died away altogether a heavenly and radiant being
+rose in the midst of a cloud, an angel, clad in white and shining
+garments, and with snowy wings closed, and drooping from its shoulders.
+Looking benignly upon the sleeping Wagner the angel said in a soft and
+liquid tone, "Thrice hast thou resisted the temptations of the enemy of
+mankind: once in thy dungeon at Florence, a second time amidst the
+defiles of yon mountains, and now on this spot. He will appear to thee
+no more, unless thou thyself summon him. Much hast thou already done in
+atonement for the crime that endangered thy soul when, withdrawing thy
+faith from Heaven, thou didst accept new life on the conditions proposed
+to thee by the agent of Satan; but much more must thou yet do, ere that
+atonement will be complete!" The form ceased to speak, and gradually
+became fainter and fainter, until it disappeared with its glorious halo
+altogether.
+
+Then Fernand awoke, and his dream was vividly impressed upon his memory.
+
+Assuming a kneeling posture, he clasped his hands fervently together,
+and said aloud, "Merciful Heaven! be the vision one divinely sent, or be
+it but the sport of an imagination fevered by a long night of suffering,
+I receive it as an emblem and as a sign of hope and promise!"
+
+He arose. The sun was now high in the heaven, and he hastened to the
+shore to perform his ablutions. Refreshed in body with the bath which he
+took in the Mediterranean, and in mind with the influence of the vision,
+he retraced his way toward the mountains. The range was passed in
+safety, and he once more set foot on that section of the island where
+Nisida was so anxiously awaiting his presence.
+
+The hour at which Fernand Wagner was accustomed to return after his
+periodical excursions beyond the mountains, had long passed; for it will
+be remembered that he had fallen asleep and slumbered some time, after
+his restoration to human shape and his encounter with the demon. Nisida
+was already a prey to the wildest alarms, which were not altogether
+untainted with selfishness; for the enemy of mankind had led her to
+believe that Wagner had within his reach certain means of enabling her
+to quit the island, and she trembled lest death might have intervened to
+snatch him away, and thus annihilate the hopes which had been so
+insidiously infused into her soul. She was also distressed at his
+prolonged absence on grounds more creditable to her heart, for she
+shuddered at the idea that her handsome Fernand might at that very
+moment be writhing in the coils of a horrible snake. Then, arousing
+herself, Nisida resolved to attempt the passage of the mountains, and
+seek for her lover and rescue him if possible, and if not, to die with
+him. But as she drew near the craggy mountains she suddenly beheld the
+object of her anxiety approaching her, and in a few minutes they were
+locked in each other's arms.
+
+"My Fernand," said Nisida at length, "I feared that some danger had
+befallen you, and I was hastening to join you on the other side of these
+heights, either to aid you in escaping from the peril, or to share its
+consequences with you."
+
+"Beloved Nisida!" exclaimed Wagner, "how welcome to me is this proof of
+thy regard, this earnest of thy love."
+
+"I can never cease to love you, dear Fernand," answered Nisida, turning
+her fine large eyes upon his handsome face. "Oh, that I should seek to
+quit thee! The thought smites me to the inmost recesses of my heart. And
+yet it is to some extent thy fault, for wherefore wilt thou not
+accompany me?"
+
+"In the first place, beloved one," replied Wagner, "thou talkest as if a
+ship were already in sight, or a boat lay ready to launch from this
+shore; secondly, I have before assured thee that I dared not return to
+Florence, and that as I cannot therefore be thy companion thither, it
+would be better for me to remain on the island, to which, perhaps," he
+added in a mournful tone, "you might, after all, never come back!"
+
+"Oh! Fernand, think not so ill of your Nisida!" she cried, throwing one
+of her snowy full arms round his neck, and looking earnestly, but yet
+tenderly on his countenance. "Never, never shall I know happiness again
+until I have revisited Florence. Each day that passes without giving me
+a hope to see this aim fulfilled, increases my misery, adds to my
+uneasiness, augments my anxiety--so that in a short time my suspense
+will become intolerable. It is nearly so already, Fernand--but pity me;
+yes--and help me, if you can!"
+
+"Dearest Nisida, willingly would I sacrifice my own inclinations to
+forward thine," exclaimed Wagner in a tone of deep sincerity; "but how
+is it possible that I can aid thee? I have not wings to affix to thy
+fair shoulder, I have not a voice powerful enough to raise echoes on a
+shore whence assistance might be sent. Nay, look not so sternly on me,
+beloved Nisida, I did not intend to vex thee with idle jestings; but
+thou knowest that I cannot aid thee."
+
+"Fernand, you love me not!" exclaimed Nisida, suddenly withdrawing her
+arm from its fond position about his neck, and retreating a few paces.
+"No; you do not love me as you were wont, or as I love you! You
+doubtless have some means of gratifying my ardent longings. A secret
+voice whispers within me that if you chose to exert all your powers, you
+might render me happy--at least so happy as I could be when separated
+from you! I have assured you that naught save the most important
+interests would render me thus anxious to return to my native city; and
+if you find me thus importunate, you should pity me, not refuse to aid
+me."
+
+"Holy Virgin! this is maddening!" cried Wagner. "Nisida--be reasonable;
+how can I assist thee? how can I enable thee to cross that sea which
+appears to us boundless? And thou accusest me of not loving thee,
+Nisida! Oh! this is too cruel!"
+
+"No, it is thou who art cruel!" exclaimed Nisida, in an impassioned
+tone. "I know that you are not a being of an ordinary stamp, that your
+intellect is as wonderful as your person is godlike,--and that you
+possess a mine of knowledge in the extent of which no mortal can equal
+thee. Is it strange--is it marvelous, then, that I should implore thee
+to exert thy powers--the vast powers of thy glorious intelligence, to
+forward my design? Nay, seek not to interrupt me, Fernand, denial is
+vain! A secret voice continues to whisper within me that thou art able
+to do all I ask; I know not the means to be used--I seek not to know
+them; but that thou hast such means within thy reach, is a conviction
+firmly impressed upon my mind. Here, then, Fernand, at thy feet, on my
+knees, do I implore thee, beseech thee, not to refuse the boon which I,
+thy loving wife, crave at the hands of thee, my husband, as if I were a
+humble suppliant suing at the footstool of a throned king!"
+
+"Nisida, Nisida!" cried Fernand, painfully excited by this sudden
+movement on her part, and endeavoring to rise: "what means so strange a
+proceeding? Rise, dearest, rise; it is not to me that you must thus
+humble yourself!"
+
+"No; I will not quit this suppliant attitude until you shall have
+granted my request--my prayer," said Nisida. "Refuse me not, my Fernand.
+Oh! I implore you not to refuse me! Whatever means be within your reach,
+exert them on my behalf. A brother's interest, the remembrance of a
+solemn vow breathed only to my lamented and much-wronged mother--and the
+safeguard of a mystery, the discovery of which by curious and prying
+eyes would heap infamy and disgrace upon the family that bears the name
+of Riverola--all these reasons render me thus anxious to return to
+Italy. And if you keep me here, Fernand, I shall pine away--I shall
+perish before your eyes, and you will repent of your harshness when it
+is too late. Or else," she added, speaking with wild rapidity, "I shall
+be reduced to despair, and in a moment of excitement shall seek death in
+those silent waters, or climb yon craggy mountains to fling myself
+headlong from their summit."
+
+"Nisida, your menaces are maddening as your supplications to me are vain
+and useless!" said Wagner, himself now laboring under a fearful
+excitement. "Rise, I implore you, rise, and let us endeavor to converse
+more calmly--more rationally."
+
+"Yes--I will rise," said Nisida, now affecting a sullen haughtiness, and
+preparing to wield another of the weapons which the demon had placed in
+her hand: "I rise, Fernand, because I feel that I was wrong thus to
+abase myself--I, who bear the proud name of Riverola;"--and she tossed
+her head indignantly. "Well--it seems that you are resolved to keep me
+chained to your side on this island. Be it so: but henceforth let there
+be no mistrust--no mystery--no secrets between us. If Italy must be
+forgotten forever, then this isle shall become our world, and our
+thoughts shall travel not beyond its confines. All shall be mutual
+confidence--a reciprocal outpouring of our minutest thoughts. On that
+condition only will existence _here_ be tolerable to us both. And now as
+a proof that thou wilt assent to this proposal--than which nothing can
+be more rational--let our new life of mutual confidence date from this
+moment. Tell me then, my Fernand," she proceeded, assuming a winning
+manner, and throwing as much pathos as possible into her sweetly musical
+voice--that voice which gave new and indescribable, charms to the soft
+Italian language--"tell me then, my Fernand, wherefore thou quittest me
+at certain intervals--why thou invariably seekest on those occasions the
+opposite side of the island--and whether thou wilt in future suffer me
+to be the companion of those journeys?"
+
+"Thou be my companion--thou, Nisida!" exclaimed Wagner, his whole frame
+convulsed with mental agony. "Merciful Heaven! what fiend has prompted
+thee thus to speak! Nisida," he said, suddenly exercising a strong
+mastery over his emotions, as he seized her hand and pressed it with
+spasmodic violence--"Nisida, as thou valuest our happiness seek not to
+penetrate into my secret--proffer not that mad request again!"
+
+And dropping her hand he paced the shore with the agitation of reviving
+excitement.
+
+"Fernand," said Nisida, approaching him, and once more speaking in a
+resolute and even severe tone--"listen to me. When we met upon the
+island, an accident of a terrible nature led me to forget my vow of
+self-imposed dumbness; and when the excitement occasioned by that
+accident had somewhat passed you were in doubt whether you had really
+heard my voice or had been deluded by fevered imagination. It would have
+been easy for me to simulate dumbness again; and you would have believed
+that the bewilderment of the dread scene had misled you. But I chose not
+to maintain a secret from thee--and I confess that my long supposed loss
+of two glorious faculties was a mere deed of duplicity on my part. At
+that time you said that you also had explanations to give; and yet
+months and months have passed by, and confidence has not begotten
+confidence. Let this mistrust on your part cease. Reveal to me the cause
+of these frequent excursions across the mountains; or else the next time
+that you set out on one of these mysterious journeys, I shall assuredly
+become your companion."
+
+"Now, Nisida," exclaimed Wagner, his heart rent with indescribable
+tortures--"it is you who are cruel--you are unjust!"
+
+"No, Fernand--it is you!" cried Nisida, in a thrilling, penetrating
+tone, as if of anguish.
+
+"Merciful Heaven! what misery is in store for us both!" said Wagner,
+pressing his hand to his burning brow. "Oh! that some ship would appear
+to bear thee away--or that my destiny were other than it is!"
+
+And he flung himself upon the sand in a fit of blank despair. Nisida now
+trembled at the violence of those emotions which she had raised in the
+breast of him whom she loved; and for a minute she reproached herself
+for having so implicitly obeyed the counsel of the evil spirit.
+
+Her own feelings were worked up to that pitch of excitement with which
+women--even in the strongest-minded, must have its vent in tears; and
+she burst into an agony of weeping.
+
+The sound of those sobs was more than the generous-hearted and
+affectionate Fernand could bear; and starting from the sand whereon he
+had flung himself, he exclaimed, "Nisida, my beloved Nisida, dry those
+tears, subdue this frenzied grief! Let us say no more upon these
+exciting topics this evening; but I will meditate, I will reflect upon
+the morrow, and then I will communicate to thee the result of my
+deliberations."
+
+"Oh! there is then hope for me yet!" cried Nisida, joyfully; "and thou
+hast the means to grant my wishes, but thou fearest to use them. We will
+say no more this evening on subjects calculated to give so little
+pleasure; but to-morrow, my Fernand, to-morrow."
+
+And Nisida stopped her own utterance by pressing her lips to those of
+Wagner, winding her beauteous arms most lovingly round his neck at the
+same time, and pressing him to her bosom.
+
+But that night and the ensuing morn were destined to wring the
+heart-cords of the unhappy Fernand: for the influence of the demon,
+though unknown and unrecognized, was dominant with Nisida.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LVI.
+
+
+It was night--and Fernand was pacing the sand with even greater
+agitation than he had manifested during the cruel scene of the evening.
+He was alone on the seashore; and Nisida slept in the hut. Terrible
+thoughts warred in the breast of Wagner. Nisida's language had
+astonished and alarmed him: he was convinced that Satan himself had
+inspired her with those ideas, the utterance of which had nearly goaded
+him to madness. She had insisted on the belief that he was acquainted
+with the means of enabling her to return to Italy; and yet Nisida was
+not a mere girl--a silly, whimsical being, who would assert the wildest
+physical impossibilities just as caprice might prompt her. No--she
+really entertained that belief--but without having any ostensible
+grounds to establish it.
+
+"Such an impression could only have been made upon her mind by the fiend
+who seeks to entangle me in his meshes!" murmured Wagner to himself, as
+he paced the strand. "The demon has failed to tempt me as yet--thrice
+has he failed;--and now he musters all his force to assail me,--to
+assail me, too, in the most vulnerable points! But, O Heaven, give me
+strength to resist the dread influence thus brought to bear upon me!
+What course can I adopt? what plan pursue? If to-morrow must witness a
+renewal of that scene which occurred this evening, I shall succumb--I
+shall yield; in a moment of despair I shall exclaim, 'Yes, Nisida--I
+will sacrifice everything to acquire the power to transport thee back to
+Italy;'--and I shall hurry to yon mountains, and seeking their wildest
+defile, shall evoke the enemy of mankind, and say, 'Come, Satan, I give
+thee my soul in exchange for the illimitable power thou offerest.' And
+thus will be the terrible result--the fearful catastrophe."
+
+Big drops of agony stood upon Fernand's brow as he uttered these words.
+He saw that he was hovering on the verge of a fearful abyss--and he
+trembled lest he should fall, so intense was his love for Nisida. At one
+moment he thought of the soothing vision, full of hope and promise,
+which had occupied his slumber in the morning; at another he pondered on
+the tears, the prayers, and the threats of Nisida. The conflicting
+thoughts were, indeed, sufficient to urge him on to a state of utter
+despair:--his eternal salvation and the happiness of her whom he loved
+so tenderly were placed in such antagonistic position that they raised a
+fierce--a painful--an agonizing warfare in his breast. Now he would fall
+upon his knees and pray--and pray fervently for strength to continue in
+the right path: then he would again give way to all the maddening
+influences of his bitter reflections; and, while in this mood, had Satan
+suddenly stood before him, he would have succumbed--yes, he would have
+succumbed. But the fiend had no longer any power to offer direct
+temptation to the wretched Wagner. Oh! if he could die that moment, how
+gladly would he release himself from an existence fraught with so much
+misery; but death was not yet within the reach of him who bore the doom
+of a Wehr-Wolf! The morning dawned, and Fernand Wagner was still pacing
+the sand--dreading to meet Nisida again, and not daring to seek to avoid
+her. Were he to fly to the mountains or to the forests, she would search
+after him; and thus he would only be leading her into perils amidst
+yawning precipices, or where she might become the prey of the terrible
+anaconda. To remain were anguish--to fly were madness!
+
+"Oh, wretch, miserable wretch that I am!" exclaimed Wagner, as he beheld
+the twilight--so short in the tropics--growing more powerful, and knew
+that Nisida would soon come forth from the hut. In a few minutes the orb
+of day appeared above the Orient wave--and almost at the same time the
+lady made her appearance on the shore.
+
+"Fernand, thou hast not sought repose throughout the night just past!"
+she said, advancing toward him, and endeavoring to read upon his
+countenance the thoughts which filled his brain.
+
+"Nisida," he replied, in a rapid and excited tone, "I have gone through
+so much during the last few hours that 'tis a marvel reason has
+maintained its seat. If thou lovest me, let us forget all those topics
+which have so strongly excited us both: and let us unite our prayers
+that Heaven will send thee means to quit this isle and return to thy
+native land."
+
+"Fernand," said Nisida, in a tone of deep disappointment and reproach,
+"I was not prepared for this. Your words imply that you possess the
+power to aid my departure hence, but that you have resolved not to use
+it. Is that your decision?"
+
+"I scorn to deceive thee, Nisida, by a direct falsehood in so serious a
+matter as this," exclaimed Wagner. "Knowest thou, my beloved, at what
+price must be purchased the power which alone can enable _me_ to effect
+thy return to Italy? canst thou divine the immeasurable sacrifice which
+I must make to gratify thy wishes?"
+
+"Fernand," answered Nisida, in a reproachful and yet resolute tone,
+"there is no price that I would not pay to obtain the means of pleasing
+thee!--there is no sacrifice that I should shrink from were your
+happiness at stake!"
+
+"Nisida," ejaculated Wagner, in a tone of fearful excitement, "you drive
+me to despair! Have mercy upon me, Nisida, have mercy upon me! My God!
+if you taunt me--if you reproach me--thus I will do all that you
+command; but force me not to believe, Nisida--my well beloved
+Nisida--that, in espousing thee in the sight of Heaven, I took to my
+bosom a fiend instead of a woman, a relentless demon in the most
+charming female shape that evil spirit ever wore. Oh! if you knew all,
+you would pity me as it is. So wretched on earth you would not compel me
+to renounce every hope of salvation; for, know, Nisida," he added, his
+countenance wearing an expression of indescribable horror, "know that in
+demanding of me this last sacrifice, you ordain that I should sell my
+immortal soul to Satan!"
+
+For a moment Nisida appeared shocked and appalled at the words which met
+her ears; but she rather recoiled from the manner of fearful excitement
+in which they were uttered, than from the intelligence which they
+conveyed.
+
+"He who truly loves," she said coldly, as she recovered her equanimity,
+"would make _even that_ sacrifice! and now listen--Fernand," she
+continued, her eyes flashing fire, and her naked bosom heaving
+convulsively as she spoke, while her splendid form was drawn up to its
+full height, and her whole aspect sublimely terrible and wondrously
+beautiful, even in that fit of agitated passion--"listen, Fernand!" she
+cried, in her musical, flute-like voice, which, however, assumed the
+imperious accent and tone of command: "thou art a coward, and unworthy
+such an earnest--such a profound, such a devoted love as mine, if thou
+refusest to consummate a sacrifice which will make us both powerful and
+great as long as we live! Consider, my Fernand--the spirit with whom
+thou wouldst league thyself can endow us with an existence running over
+centuries to come, can invest us with eternal youth, can place countless
+treasures at our disposal, can elevate us to the proudest thrones of
+Christendom! Oh! wilt thou spurn advantages like those? wilt thou refuse
+to avail thyself of gifts that must render us so supremely happy? No,
+no: and we can return together to my native city, we can enter Florence
+in triumph, thou no longer fearing the terror of the law, I no longer
+compelled to simulate the doom of the deaf and dumb! Our enemies shall
+lick the dust at our feet, and we shall triumph wherever success may be
+desirable. Oh! I understand that beseeching, appealing look, Fernand:
+thou thinkest that I shall love thee less if this immense sacrifice be
+consummated, that I shall look upon thee with loathing. No, not so: and
+to convince thee that mine is a soul endowed with an iron will, that
+mine is an energy which can grapple even with remorse, I will reveal to
+thee a secret which thou hast perhaps never even suspected. Fernand!"
+she exclaimed, now becoming absolutely terrible with the excitement that
+animated her; "Fernand!" she repeated, "'twas I who murdered the girl
+Agnes, in the garden of thy mansion at Florence!"
+
+"Thou, thou, Nisida?" almost shrieked Wagner wildly; "oh, no, no! Recall
+that dreadful avowal! And yet--oh! yes--I see it all--my former
+suspicions are confirmed. Wretched woman. What harm did the unfortunate
+Agnes do to thee?"
+
+"I saw in her a rival, Fernand--or fancied that she was so," answered
+Nisida; "I overheard your conversation with her that morning in the
+garden--I saw her embrace thee tenderly--mine ears drank in her words;
+oh, I remember them even now! She said, 'Oh, what a night of uneasiness
+have I passed! But at length thou art restored to me; thou whom I have
+ever loved so fondly; although I abandoned thee for so long a time!'
+Were not those her very words? And thou didst speak to her in a tone
+equally tender. Ah! I have ever suspected that she was thy mistress;
+although thou didst swear upon the cross, in thy dungeon, that she was
+not. But so great was my love for thee, that I smothered the dread
+suspicion----"
+
+"Suspicion," repeated Wagner, in the penetrating tone of heart-rending
+anguish,--an anguish so intense that his brain whirled, and he knew not
+what he said or did. "Oh, wretched woman, and thou didst slay Agnes on a
+mere suspicion?"
+
+"I hated her--even before I entertained that suspicion," exclaimed
+Nisida, impatiently; "for she was the mistress of my father! Thinkest
+thou that my quick ears had not gleaned the mysterious whisperings which
+frequently passed between my sire and his valet Antonio, relative to the
+lady who dwelt in seclusion at the abode of that menial's mother? or
+thinkest thou that when I once obtained a clew to my father's degrading
+passion, I scrupled to watch him, to follow him, to learn all his
+proceedings? No; for it was the more easily to enact the spy upon my own
+father that originally simulated the doom of the deaf and dumb. A purse
+of gold induced Dame Margaretha, Antonio's mother, to give me admission
+into her house; though she also believed that I was really deprived of
+the faculties of hearing and of speech. But often and often was I
+concealed in the chamber adjacent to that where my father passed hours
+with his mistress; and it was not without advantage that I so acted. For
+I discovered that amongst the presents which he had given her, were the
+jewels which had belonged to my sainted mother--that mother whose wrongs
+were so manifold, and whose sufferings were so great. Yes: and I
+possessed myself of those jewels, leaving the girl the other gifts which
+she had received from my sire.
+
+"And now, since I am involved in relations of such import, I shall do
+well to inform thee, Fernand, that I had seen and loved thee before thou
+didst come as a visitor to our mansion in Florence. For it was my habit
+to proceed occasionally to the dwelling of the good Dr. Duras, the
+depositary of my grand secret of the feigned loss of faculties; and
+while wandering alone in his garden I once beheld thee! And the moment I
+beheld I loved thee. Often--often after that would I visit the kind
+physician's grounds, whereof I possessed a pass-key; and my admiration
+of thee led me to pass the slight boundary which separated his garden
+from thine. Then I would approach the windows of thy dwelling and
+contemplate thee as thou wast seated in thy favorite apartment. On the
+night of my father's funeral, although so very late when all the
+subsequent business connected with the reading of the will was
+concluded, my mind was so perturbed and restless that I could not sleep;
+and quitting the Riverola mansion by a private door, I sought the fresh
+air with the hope that it would calm me. Some vague and indescribable
+sentiment of curiosity, or else something that I heard on the return of
+the mourners, relative to the strange scene enacted in the church, I
+know not which, led me to the vicinity of your abode; and there, in your
+favorite room, I beheld you seated, listening attentively to some sweet
+words, doubtless, which Agnes was breathing into your ear. But she
+caught a glimpse of my countenance by the light of the lamps----"
+
+"Enough! enough!" exclaimed Wagner; "thou hast indeed cleared up
+innumerable mysteries! But, oh! Nisida--would that thou hadst remained
+silent--that thou hadst not drawn aside the veil which my elevated
+opinion of thee had thrown over the suspicions that, I admit, from time
+to time----"
+
+"And if I have told thee all this, Fernand," interrupted Nisida,
+impatiently, "it is that thou may'st be convinced not only of the
+natural energy of my mind, but also of the deep love which I bear thee.
+And now, now that thou seest me in my true character, a murderess if
+thou wilt," she added with an emphasis of bitter scorn, "now canst thou
+refuse that sacrifice----"
+
+"Nisida! Nisida! enough crime has been perpetrated by both us, Heaven
+knows!" ejaculated Wagner, still writhing with the anguish produced by
+the avowal which had so lately met his ears. "Oh! accursed be the day,
+blotted from the annals of Time be the hour, Nisida, when thy hand
+struck the fatal dagger into the heart of Agnes."
+
+"What! this to my face?" said Nisida, her countenance becoming crimson
+with indignation, and not her face only, but her swan-like neck, her
+shoulders, and her bosom. "Then she _was_ thy mistress, Fernand! And
+thou didst love her, while I fancied, false one that thou art, thine
+affections to be wholly and solely mine."
+
+"Nisida," exclaimed Fernand, cruelly bewildered, "you drive me to
+despair. I know not whether to loathe thee for this avowal which thou
+hast made, or to snatch thee to my arms, abandon all hope of salvation,
+and sacrifice myself entirely for one so transcendently beautiful as
+thou art. But thy suspicions relative to Agnes are ridiculous,
+monstrous, absurd. For, as surely as thou art there, Nisida--as the
+heaven is above us and the earth beneath us--as surely as that I love
+thee so well as to be unable to reproach thee more for the deed which
+thou hast confessed--so surely, Nisida, was Agnes my own granddaughter,
+and I--I, Fernand Wagner--young, strong, and healthy as thou beholdest
+me, am fourscore and fifteen years of age."
+
+Nisida started in affright, and then fixed a scrutinizing glance upon
+Fernand's countenance; for she feared that his reason was abandoning
+him--that he was raving.
+
+"Ah! Nisida, I see that you do not credit my words," he exclaimed; "and
+yet I have told thee the solemn, sacred truth. But mine is a sad history
+and a dreadful fate; and if I thought that thou would'st soothe my
+wounded spirit, console, and not revile me, pity, and not loathe me, I
+would tell thee all."
+
+"Speak, Fernand, speak!" she cried; "and do me not so much wrong as to
+suppose that I could forget my love for thee--that love which made me
+the murderer of Agnes. Besides," she added, enthusiastically, "I see
+that we are destined for each other; that the dark mysteries attached to
+both our lives engender the closest sympathies; that we shall flourish
+in power, and glory, and love, and happiness together."
+
+Wagner threw his arms around Nisida's neck, and clasped her to his
+breast. He saw not in her the woman who had dealt death to his
+granddaughter; he beheld in her only a being of ravishing beauty and
+wondrous mind, so intoxicated was he with his passion, and so great was
+the magic influence which she wielded o'er his yielding spirit. Then, as
+her head reclined upon his breast, he whispered to her, in a few
+hurried, but awfully significant words, the nature of his doom, the
+dread conditions on which he had obtained resuscitated youth, an almost
+superhuman beauty, a glorious intellect, and power of converting the
+very clods of the earth into gold and precious stones at will.
+
+"And now, dearest," he added, in a plaintive and appealing tone, "and
+now thou may'st divine wherefore on the last day of every month I have
+crossed these mountains; thou may'st divine, too, how my escape from the
+prison of Florence was accomplished; and, though no mortal power can
+abridge my days--though the sword of the executioner would fall harmless
+on my neck, and the deadly poison curdle not in my veins--still, man can
+bind me in chains, and my disgrace is known to all Florence."
+
+"But thou shalt return thither, Fernand," exclaimed Nisida, raising her
+countenance and gazing upon him, not with horror and amazement, but in
+pride and triumph; "thou shalt return thither, Fernand, armed with a
+power that may crush all thine enemies, and blast with destructive
+lightning the wretches who would look slightingly on thee. Already thou
+art dearer, far dearer to me than ever thou wast before; for I love the
+marvelous--I glory in the supernatural--and thou art a being whom such
+women as myself can worship and adore. And thou repinest at thy destiny?
+thou shudderest at the idea of that monthly transformation which makes
+thy fate so grand, because it is so terrible? Oh, thou art wrong, thou
+art wrong, my Fernand. Consider all thou hast gained, how many, many
+years of glorious youth and magnificent beauty await thee! Think of the
+power with which thy boundless command of wealth may invest thee. Oh,
+thou art happy, enviable, blest. But I--I," she added, the impassioned
+excitement of her tone suddenly sinking into subdued plaintiveness as
+her charming head once more fell upon his breast--"I am doomed to fade
+and wither like the other human flowers of the earth. Oh, that thought
+is now maddening. While thou remainest as thou art now, vested with that
+fine, manly beauty which won my heart when first I saw thee, and before
+I knew thee: I shall grow old, wrinkled, and thou wilt loathe me. I
+shall be like a corpse by the side of one endowed with vigorous life.
+Oh, Fernand; this may not be; and thou canst purchase the power to
+bestow unperishing youth, unchanging beauty upon me; the power,
+moreover, to transport us hence, and render us happy in inseparable
+companionship for long, long years to come."
+
+"Merciful heavens! Nisida," exclaimed Fernand, profoundly touched by the
+urgent, earnest appeal of the lovely siren whose persuasive eloquence
+besought him to seal his own eternal damnation--"would'st thou have me
+yield up my soul to the enemy of mankind?"
+
+"Do you hesitate? Can you even pause to reflect?" cried Nisida, with
+whose tongue the demon himself was as it were speaking. "Oh, Fernand,
+you love me not, you have never, never loved me." And she burst into a
+flood of tears. Wagner was painfully moved by this spectacle, which
+constituted so powerful an argument to support the persuasive eloquence
+of her late appeal. His resolution gave way rapidly--the more agonizing
+became her sobs the weaker grew his self-command; and his lips were
+about to murmur the fatal assent to her prayer--about to announce his
+readiness to summon the enemy of mankind and conclude the awful
+compact--when suddenly there passed before his eyes the image of the
+guardian angel whom he had seen in his vision, dim and transparent as
+the thinnest vapor, yet still perceptible and with an expression of
+countenance profoundly mournful. The apparition vanished in a moment;
+but its evanescent presence was fraught with salvation. Tearing himself
+wildly and abruptly from Nisida's embrace, Wagner exclaimed in a tone
+indicative of the horror produced by the revulsion of feeling in his
+mind, "No--never--never!" and, fleet as the startled deer he ran--he
+flew toward the mountains. Frightened and amazed by his sudden cry and
+simultaneous flight, Nisida cast her eyes rapidly around to ascertain
+the cause of his alarm, thinking that some dreadful spectacle had
+stricken terror to his soul. But ah--what sees she? Why do her glances
+settle fixedly in one direction? What beholds she in the horizon? For a
+few moments she is motionless, speechless, she cannot believe her eyes.
+Then her countenance, which has already experienced the transition from
+an expression of grief and alarm to one of suspense and mingled hope and
+fear, becomes animated with the wildest joy; and forgetting the late
+exciting scene as completely as if it had never taken place, but with
+all her thoughts and feelings absorbed in the new--the one idea which
+now engrosses her--she turns her eyes rapidly round toward the
+mountains, exclaiming, "Fernand, dearest Fernand! a sail--a sail."
+
+But Wagner hears her not: she stamps her foot with impatient rage upon
+the sand; and in another moment the groves conceal her lover from view.
+
+Yes; Wagner looked not round; heard not the voice of Nisida invoking him
+to return, but continued his rapid flight toward the mountains, as if
+hurrying in anguish and in horror from the meshes which had been spread
+to ensnare his mortal soul. And now Nisida became all selfishness; there
+was at length a hope, a sudden hope that she should be speedily enabled
+to quit the hated monotonous island, and her fine, large dark eyes were
+fixed intently upon the white sails which gradually grew more and more
+palpable in the azure horizon. She was not deceived; there was no doubt,
+no uncertainty, as to the nature of the object which now engrossed all
+her thoughts, and filled her heart with the wildest joy. It was indeed a
+ship, and its course was toward the island; for, as she gazed with fixed
+and longing eyes, it by degrees assumed a more defined shape; and that
+which had at first appeared to be but one small white piece of canvas,
+gradually developed the outlines of many sails, and showed the tapering
+spars, until at last the black hull appeared, completing the form of a
+large and noble vessel. Joy! joy--she should yet be saved from the
+island. And, ah--do the chances of that hoped-for safety multiply? Is it
+indeed another ship which has caught her eye in the far-off horizon?
+Yes; and not one only, but another, and another, and another, until she
+can count seven vessels, all emerging from the mighty distance, and
+spreading their snow-white canvas to the breeze which wafts them toward
+the isle.
+
+Crowds of conflicting thoughts now rush to the mind of Nisida; and she
+seats herself upon the strand to deliberate as calmly as she may upon
+the course which she should adopt. Alas, Fernand: thou wast not then
+uppermost in the imagination of thy Nisida, although she had not
+entirely forgotten thee. But the principal topic of her meditations, the
+grand question which demanded the most serious weighing and balancing in
+her mind, was whether she should again simulate the deafness and
+dumbness which she had now for many months been accustomed to affect.
+Grave and important interests and a deeply-rooted attachment to her
+brother on the one side urged the necessity of so doing; but on the
+other, a fearful disinclination to resume that awful duplicity--that
+dreadful self-sacrifice, an apprehension lest the enjoyment of the
+faculties of hearing and speech for so long a period should have
+unfitted her for the successful revival and efficient maintenance of the
+deceit; these were the arguments on the negative side. But Nisida's was
+not a mind to shrink from any peril or revolt from any sacrifice which
+her interests or her aims might urge her to encounter; and it was with
+fire-flashing eyes and a neck proudly arching, that she raised her head
+in a determined manner, exclaiming aloud, "Yes, it must be so. But the
+period of this renewed self-martyrdom will not last long. So soon as
+thine interests shall have been duly cared for, Francisco, I will quit
+Florence forever, I will return to this island, and here will I pass the
+remainder of my days with thee, my beloved Fernand! And that I _do_ love
+thee still, Fernand, although thou hast fled from my presence as if I
+were suddenly transformed into a loathsome monster, that I must ever
+continue to love thee, Fernand, and that I shall anxiously long to
+return to thine arms, are truths as firmly based as the foundations of
+the island. Thine, then, shall be the last name, thy name shall be the
+last word that I will suffer my lips to pronounce ere I once more place
+the seal upon them. Yes, I love thee, Fernand; oh! would to God that
+thou could'st hear me proclaim how much I love thee, my beauteous, my
+strangely-fated Fernand!"
+
+It was almost in a despairing tone that Nisida gave utterance to these
+last words; for as the chance of escape from the island grew every
+moment less equivocal, by the nearer approach of the fleet, which was,
+however, still far from the shore, the intensity of her sensual passion
+for Wagner, that passion which she believed to be the purest and most
+firmly rooted love, revived; and her heart smote her for her readiness
+to abandon him to the solitude of that island. But as she was now
+acquainted with all the mysteries of his fate, as she knew that he could
+not die for many, many years to come, nor lose that glorious beauty
+which had proved alike her pleasure and her pride, her remorse and her
+alarms were to a considerable degree mitigated: for she thought within
+herself, _although she now spoke aloud no more_; "Death will not snatch
+him from me, disease will not impair his godlike features and elegant
+form, and he loves me too well not to receive me with open arms when I
+shall be enabled to return to him." These were her thoughts: and
+starting upon her feet, she compressed her lips tightly, as if to remind
+herself that she had once more placed a seal there, a seal not to be
+broken for some time. An hour had now passed since Fernand Wagner and
+Nisida separated on the seashore; and he did not come back. Meantime the
+fleet of ships had drawn nearer, and though she more than once
+entertained the idea of hastening after Wagner to implore him to
+accompany her whithersoever those vessels were bound, or at least to
+part with the embrace of tenderness, yet her fear lest the ships might
+sail past without touching at the island, predominated over her softer
+feelings. And now, having settled in her mind the course she was to
+adopt, she hastened to the stores which she had saved from the wreck of
+the corsair vessel, and which had been piled up on the strand the day
+after she was first thrown on that Mediterranean isle.
+
+It will be remembered that amongst the articles thus saved were changes
+of apparel, which Stephano Verrina had procured for her use at Leghorn
+ere the corsair-bark set sail on that voyage from which it never
+returned, and during Nisida's long sojourn on the island, she had
+frequently examined those garments, and had been careful to secure them
+from the effects of rain or damp, in the hope that the day would sooner
+or later come when she might assume them for the purpose of bidding
+adieu to that lovely but monotonous island. And now that day has come;
+and the moment so anxiously longed for appeared to be rapidly
+approaching. Nisida accordingly commenced her toilet, as if she had only
+just risen from her couch and was preparing to dress to go abroad
+amongst the busy haunts of human beings.
+
+Her dark luxuriant hair, which so long had floated negligently upon her
+ivory shoulders, was now gathered up in broad massive bands at the
+sides, and artistically plaited and confined at the back of her
+well-shaped head. The tight bodice was next laced over the swelling
+bosom: hose and light boots imprisoned the limbs which had so often
+borne her glancing along in their nudity to the soft music of the stream
+in the vale or of the wavelets of the sea; broidery set off the fine
+form of Nisida in all the advantage of its glowing, full and voluptuous
+proportions. Then the large black veil was fastened to the plaits of her
+hair, whence its ample folds swept over that admirable symmetry of
+person, endowing her once more with the queen-like air which became so
+well her splendid, yet haughty style of beauty! Yes: no longer subdued
+by simplicity of attire--no longer tender and soft, was the loveliness
+of Nisida; but grand, imperious, and dazzling did she now seem again, as
+erst she seemed ere her foot trod that island-shore.
+
+Appareled in handsome garments, and with the rich carnation glow of
+health and animation on her cheeks, and with her eyes flashing the fires
+of hope, but with the vermilion lips compressed, Nisida now stood on the
+strand where so oft she had wandered like a naiad, feeling no shame at
+her semi-nudity.
+
+During the time occupied by her toilet, the fleet of seven ships had
+approached much nearer to the island, and now they were not more than
+three miles distant. The hulls, which at first had seemed quite black,
+shone, as they drew closer, with the gay colors in which they were
+painted, the gorgeous sunlight playing vividly on the gilding of the
+prows, the streaks of red and white along the sides, and the splendid
+decorations of the poop lanterns. Noble and mighty ships they
+were--ships of size such as Nisida had never seen before, and in
+comparison with which all the merchant-vessels she had beheld at Leghorn
+were but mere boats. There was no need to raise a signal to invite them
+to approach--for that fleet was evidently steering toward the island.
+Whence did this fleet come? whither was it bound? to what nation did it
+belong? and would those on board treat her with attention and respect?
+
+Such were the thoughts which flashed across her brain--and her heart
+beat with anxiety for the arrival of the moment which should solve those
+questions. Absorbed as she was in the contemplation of the noble
+ships--those mighty but graceful swans of the ocean--she did not forget
+to cast, from time to time, a rapid glance around, to see if Fernand
+were retracing his way toward her. Alas! no--he came not--and she must
+quit the isle without embracing him--without assuring him of her
+constant love--without renewing her oft-repeated promise to return. Ah!
+a thought struck her: she would leave a note for him in the hut! No
+sooner was the project determined on than she set about its execution;
+for there were writing materials amidst the stores saved from the
+corsair-wreck. A brief but tender letter was hastily penned, and then
+secured in a place where she knew he must find it should he revisit the
+rude tenement in which they had so often slept in each other's arms. And
+that he would revisit it she both fondly hoped and firmly
+believed--revisit it so soon as the excitement and the terror, under the
+influence of which he had parted from her, should have subsided. Her
+mind was now much easier, and her beauty was wonderfully enhanced by the
+glow of animation which suffused itself over her countenance, giving
+additional light to her ever brilliant eyes, and rendering her noble
+aquiline face resplendent to gaze upon.
+
+The ships came to anchor at a distance of about two miles from the
+shore: and though the banners of each were fluttering in the breeze, yet
+Nisida was not well skilled enough in discriminating the flags of
+different nations to be able immediately to satisfy herself to which
+country that fleet belonged. But as she stood with her eyes fixed on the
+foremost vessel, which was also the largest, she observed that there was
+a gilt crescent in the middle of the blood-red standard that floated
+over her central poop-lantern; and a chill struck to her heart--for the
+thought of African pirates flashed to her mind! This alarm was, however,
+as evanescent as it was poignant; for another moment's reflection
+convinced her that none of the princes of Africa could send so proud a
+fleet to sea. Following up the chain of reasoning thus suggested, and
+calling to her aid all the accounts she had read of naval fights between
+the Christians and the Moslems, she at length remembered that the
+blood-red banner, with the gilt crescent in the middle, denoted the
+presence of the Kapitan-Pasha, or Lord High Admiral of the Ottoman
+Empire. Confidently believing that peace existed between Italy and
+Turkey, she had now no longer any fears as to the treatment she was
+likely to experience at the hands of the Mohammedans; and it was with
+unfeigned joy that she beheld a boat, which had put off from the
+admiral's ship, at length approaching the shore.
+
+As the magnificently painted and gorgeously gilt barge, which
+twenty-four white-turbaned rowers urged along with almost horse-race
+speed, neared the strand, Nisida observed, beneath a velvet canopy in
+the stern, a personage, who by his splendid apparel, his commanding
+demeanor, and the respect paid to him by the slaves accompanying him,
+was evidently of exalted rank. She accordingly conceived that this must
+be the kapitan-pasha himself. But she was mistaken. Her delight at the
+approach of the barge, which she fondly hoped would prove the means of
+her deliverance from the island, was only equaled by the surprise of
+those on board at beholding a beautiful and elegantly dressed lady,
+unattended and alone, on the seashore, as if awaiting their arrival.
+And, during the few minutes which now elapsed ere the barge touched the
+strand, it was evident that the high functionary seated beneath the
+canopy surveyed Nisida with increasing wonder and admiration; while she,
+on her side, could not help noticing that he was remarkably handsome,
+very young, and possessing a countenance rather of an Italian than a
+Turkish cast of features.
+
+Meantime a profound silence, broken only by the slight and uniform
+sounds produced by the oars, prevailed: and when the boat touched the
+strand, a long and wide plank, covered with velvet, was so placed as to
+enable the high functionary before alluded to to land conveniently.
+Attended by two slaves, who followed at a respectful distance, the
+Mussulman chief advanced toward Nisida, whom he saluted in a manner
+which strengthened her suspicion that he was not of Turkish origin,
+although habited in the richest Oriental costume she had ever seen, and
+evidently holding some very superior office among the Ottomans. She
+returned his salutation with a graceful bow and a sweet smile: and he
+immediately addressed her in the Italian tongue--her own dear and
+delightful language, saying, "Lady, art thou the queen of this land? or
+art thou, as appearances would almost lead one to conjecture, a solitary
+inhabitant here?"
+
+For he saw that she was alone--beheld no traces of culture; and there
+was but one miserable dwelling, and that such as she might have built up
+with her own hands. Nisida shook her head mournfully, making signs that
+she was deaf and dumb. The Mussulman chief uttered an ejaculation of
+mingled surprise and grief, and surveyed the lady with additional
+interest and admiration. But in a few moments his countenance assumed a
+sudden expression of astonishment, as if a light had broken in upon him,
+suggesting something more than a mere suspicion--nay, indeed, a positive
+conviction; and having examined her features with the most earnest
+attention, he abruptly took his tablets from the folds of his garment,
+and wrote something on them. He then handed them to Nisida; and it was
+now her turn to experience the wildest surprise--for on the page opened
+to her view were these words, traced in a beautiful style of
+calligraphy, and in the Italian language: "Is it possible that your
+ladyship can be the Donna Nisida of Riverola?"
+
+Nisida's eyes wandered in astonishment from the tablets to the
+countenance of him who had penciled that question; but his features were
+certainly not familiar to her--and yet she thought that there was
+something in the general expression of that handsome face not altogether
+unknown to her. As soon as she had partially recovered from the surprise
+and bewilderment produced by finding that she at least was known to the
+Ottoman functionary, she wrote beneath his question the following reply:
+"I am indeed Nisida of Riverola, who for seven long months have been the
+only inhabitant of this island, whereon I was shipwrecked, and I am now
+anxious to return to Italy--or at all events to the first Christian port
+at which your fleet may touch. Have mercy upon me, then; and take me
+hence! But who are you, signor, that I should prove no stranger to you?"
+
+The Ottoman chief read these words, and hastened to reply in the
+following manner: "I have the honor to be the grand vizier of his
+imperial highness the glorious Sultan Solyman, and my name is Ibrahim. A
+few months ago I encountered your brother Francisco, Count of Riverola,
+who was then in command of a body of Tuscan auxiliaries, raised to
+assist in defending Rhodes against the invading arms of the mighty
+Solyman. Your brother became my prisoner, but I treated him worthily. He
+informed me with bitter tears of the strange and mysterious
+disappearance of his well-beloved sister, who had the misfortune to be
+deprived of the faculties of hearing and speech. Your brother was soon
+set free, after the fall of Rhodes, and he returned to his native city.
+But from all he told me of thee, lady, it was natural that I should ere
+now conjecture who thou must be."
+
+Ibrahim did not choose to add that he had remembered to have seen Nisida
+occasionally in their native city of Florence, and that he was indeed
+the brother of her late dependent, Flora Francatelli. But the
+explanation which he did give was quite sufficient to renew her deepest
+surprise, as she now learnt for the first time that during her absence
+her brother had been engaged in the perils of warfare. The grand vizier
+gently withdrew from Nisida's hand the tablets on which her eyes were
+positively riveted; but it was only to trace a few lines to afford her
+additional explanations. When he returned the tablets to her again she
+read as follows: "By a strange coincidence the glorious fleet which has
+wafted me hither to deliver you from this lonely isle, and which is
+under the command of the kapitan-pasha in person, is bound for the
+western coast of Italy. Its mission is at present known only to myself
+and a faithful Greek dependent; but your ladyship shall receive worthy
+attention and be duly conveyed to Leghorn. The squadron has been driven
+from its course by a tempest which assailed us off the island of Candia;
+our pilot lost his reckonings, and when land was descried this morning,
+it was believed to be the coast of Sicily. Hast thou, lady, any means of
+enlightening us as to the geographical position of this island?"
+
+Nisida answered in the ensuing manner: "I have not the least notion of
+the geographical position of the island. An eternal summer appears to
+prevail in this clime, which would be a terrestrial paradise were not
+the forests infested by hideous serpents of an enormous size."
+
+Ibrahim Pasha, having read this reply, summoned from the barge the
+officer in command: and to him he communicated the intelligence which he
+had just received from Nisida. That officer's countenance immediately
+underwent a dreadful change; and, falling on his knees at Ibrahim's
+feet, he made some strong appeal, the nature of which Nisida could only
+divine by its emphatic delivery and the terrified manner of the
+individual. Ibrahim smiled contemptuously, and motioned the officer with
+an imperious gesture to rise and return to the barge. Then, again,
+having recourse to the tablets, he conveyed the following information to
+Nisida: "Lady, it appears that this is the Isle of Snakes, situated in
+the Gulf of Sictra, on the African coast. Horrible superstitions are
+attached to this clime: and I dare not remain longer on its shore, lest
+I should seriously offend the prejudices of those ignorant sailors.
+Come, then, lady, you shall receive treatment due to your rank, your
+beauty, and your misfortunes."
+
+In the meantime the officer had returned to the barge, where whispers
+speedily circulated in respect to the land on which that boat had
+touched; and the reader may imagine the extent of the loathing which the
+mere name of the isle was calculated to inspire in the breasts of the
+superstitious Mussulmans, when we observe that the existence of that
+island was well known to the Turks and also to the Africans, but was
+left uninhabited, and was never visited knowingly by any of their ships.
+Nisida saw that the grand vizier was in haste to depart, not through any
+ridiculous fears on his part, because he was too enlightened to believe
+in the fearful tales of mermaids, genii, ghouls, vampires, and other
+evil spirits by which the island was said to be haunted, but because his
+renegadism had been of so recent a date that he dared not, powerful and
+altered as he was, afford the least ground for suspecting that the light
+of Christianity triumphed in his soul over the dark barbarism of his
+assumed creed. Seeing, then, that Ibrahim Pasha was anxious to yield to
+the superstitious feelings of the sailors, Nisida intimated, with a
+graceful bend of the head, her readiness to accompany him. But, as she
+advanced toward the boat, she cast a rapid and searching glance behind
+her. Alas! Wagner appeared not.
+
+A feeling of uneasiness, amounting almost to a pang of remorse, took
+possession of her, as she placed her foot upon the velvet-covered plank;
+and for an instant she hesitated to proceed.
+
+Could she abandon Fernand to the solitude of that isle? Could she
+renounce the joys which his love had taught her to experience? And might
+she not be enabled to persuade him to make that sacrifice which would
+invest him with a power that she herself would direct and wield
+according to her own pleasure and suitably to her own interests? But,
+oh! that hesitation lasted not more than a moment; for her feet were on
+the plank leading to the barge, and at a short distance floated the ship
+that would bear her away from the isle.
+
+One longing, lingering look upon the shore of that island where she had
+enjoyed so much happiness, even if she had experienced so much anxiety;
+one longing, lingering look, and she hesitated no more. Ibrahim escorted
+her to a seat beneath the velvet canopy; the officer in command gave the
+signal, the barge was shoved off, the rowers plied their oars, and the
+island was already far behind, ere Nisida had the courage to glance
+toward it again!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LVII.
+
+
+Let us now return to Fernand Wagner, whom we left flying from his
+Nisida, flying in horror and alarm from her whom he nevertheless loved
+so tenderly and devotedly. He fled as if from the brink of the yawning
+pit of hell, into which the malignant fiend who coveted his soul was
+about to plunge him. Nor once did he look back. Absorbed as his feelings
+were in the full conviction of the tremendous peril from which he had
+just escaped, he still found room for the reflection that were he to
+turn and catch but one glimpse of the beauteous, oh! too beauteous
+creature from whom he had torn himself away, he should be lost. His mind
+was bent upon the salvation of his immortal soul; and he knew that the
+enemy of mankind was assailing him with a power and with an energy which
+nothing save the assistance of Heaven could enable him to resist. He
+knew also that Heaven helps only those who are willing and anxious to
+help themselves; and of this doctrine he had received a striking and
+triumphant proof in the sudden and evanescent appearance of his guardian
+angel at the instant when, overpowered by the strong, the earnest, and
+the pathetic pleading of the siren Nisida, he was about to proclaim his
+readiness to effect the crowning sacrifice. And it was to avoid the
+chance of that direful yielding--to fly from a temptation which became
+irresistible when embellished with all the eloquence of a woman on whom
+he doted, that Wagner sped with lightning rapidity toward the mountains.
+
+But the beauteous form of Nisida met not now his eyes; and deeply,
+profoundly, ardently as he still loved her, and felt that he must ever
+love her, yet, to speak soothly, he deplored not that she was no longer
+there. The vision of the previous night had so firmly established hope
+in his soul, that he had prepared and tutored himself, during his
+journey across the mountains, to sacrifice all his happiness on earth to
+insure the eternal felicity of heaven.
+
+No. Nisida was not there. But as he drew closer to the shore, he beheld,
+to his ineffable joy, the dark spot gradually assume that defined shape
+which left no room to doubt the truth of his vision, even were he
+inclined to be skeptical. For there, indeed, touching the strand, but
+still so far in the water that a slight exertion would send it
+completely afloat, was a large boat, curiously shaped, and painted in a
+variety of fantastic colors. It had a mast standing, but the sail was
+lowered and, on a closer inspection, the boat proved to be altogether
+unimpaired.
+
+"Heaven delights to effect its wise intentions by natural means,"
+thought Wagner within himself. "But surely it could not have been
+through the agency of Nisida that this boat was left upon the shore?
+No," he added aloud, after a still closer inspection; "the rope fastened
+to the prow has been snapped asunder! Doubtless the boat became detached
+from one of the ships which appeared off the island yesterday, and
+which," he said in a low murmuring voice, and with an ill-subdued sigh,
+"have afforded Nisida the means of departure hence."
+
+He sat down, exhausted; and as he found leisure for recollection--as his
+thoughts composed themselves and settled down into something like
+collected calmness--he felt a sensation of indescribable joy at having
+triumphed over the appalling temptations which had beset him. And in his
+soul a voice seemed to be singing an anthem of delight and gratitude;
+and he soon experienced a serenity of mind such as he had not known for
+many hours past! When man, having yielded to temptation, succeeds in
+escaping the perils of the consequences, he beholds a strong motive for
+self-gratulation;--but how ineffably more sweet is it to be able to
+reflect that the temptation itself has been avoided in the first
+instance, and that the dangers of the results have never even been
+risked.
+
+Thus thought Wagner:--but not for a moment did he attribute to any
+strength of mind on his own part, the escape which had just been
+effected from the snares set by the evil one. No; he acknowledged within
+himself, and with all due humility, that the hand of the Almighty had
+sustained him in his most trying moments of peril; and ere he thought of
+resuming his journey to that side of the island on which Nisida was not,
+he knelt in fervent prayer. Rising from his knees, his eyes accidentally
+swept the sea:--and he was riveted to the spot from which he was about
+to turn away--for the white sails of the Ottoman fleet met his
+astonished view. He remained gazing on those objects for some time,
+until he was convinced they were nearing the island. For a few moments a
+deep regret took possession of him:--he should lose his Nisida
+irrevocably! But his next impulse was to wrestle with this feeling--to
+combat this weakness. How could he have hoped ever to rejoin her without
+rendering himself again liable to the witchery of her siren tongue--the
+eloquence of her silver-toned voice--the persuasiveness of her graceful
+manners? No; it were better that she should depart; it were preferable
+that he should lose her and preserve his immortal soul. Thus reasoned
+he;--and that reasoning was effectual. He waited only long enough to
+assure himself that the fleet was positively approaching the island:--he
+then knew that she would depart;--and, without permitting himself to
+yield again to the weakness which had for a few moments threatened to
+send him back within the sphere of Nisida's fatal influence, he tore
+himself away from that point amongst the heights which commanded the
+view of the side of the island where she was. Hastening around the base
+of the volcano, he reached the defiles leading to that part of the isle
+where he had periodically fulfilled his dreadful destiny as a Wehr-Wolf.
+Carefully avoiding the outskirts of the forest and the knots of large
+trees, he proceeded toward the shore; and his heart was rent with
+feelings of deep anguish as he everywhere beheld the traces of
+destruction left behind him by his recent run in the horrible form of a
+savage monster. Then, too, when melancholy thoughts had once again
+entered his soul, the image of Nisida appeared to flit before him in the
+most tempting manner; and the more he endeavored to banish from his
+memory the recollection of her charms, the more vividly delineated did
+they become.
+
+At length jealousy took possession of him;--and suddenly stopping short
+in his progress toward the shore, he exclaimed aloud, "What if she
+should be wooed and won by another? If she return to her native land, as
+assuredly she now will, she may meet some handsome and elegant cavalier
+who will succeed in winning her passions:--and I--I, who love her so
+well--shall be forgotten! Oh! this is madness! To think that another may
+possess her, clasp her in his arms, press his lips to hers, feel her
+fragrant breath fan his cheek, play with the rich tresses of her
+beauteous hair, oh! no, no, the bare thought is enough to goad me to
+despair! She must not depart thus, we have separated, if not in anger at
+least abruptly, too abruptly, considering how we have loved, and that we
+have wedded each other in the sight of Heaven! Heaven!" repeated Wagner,
+his tone changing from despair to a deep solemnity; "heaven! Oh! I
+rejoice that I gave utterance to the word;--for it reminds me that to
+regain my Nisida I must lose heaven!"
+
+And, as if to fly from his own reflections, he rushed on toward the sea;
+and there he stopped to gaze, as oft before he had gazed, on the mighty
+expanse, seeming, in the liquid sunlight, as it stretched away from the
+yellow sand, a resplendent lake of molten silver bounded by a golden
+shore.
+
+"How like to the human countenance art thou, oh mighty sea!" thought
+Wagner, as he stood with folded arms on the brink of the eternal waters.
+"Now thou hast smiles as soft and dimples as beautiful as ever appeared
+in the face of innocence and youth, while the joyous sunlight is on
+thee. But if the dark clouds gather in the heaven above thee, thou
+straightway assumed a mournful and a gloomy aspect, and thou growest
+threatening and somber. And in how many varied voices dost thou speak.
+Oh, treacherous and changeful sea! Now thou whisperest softly as if thy
+ripples conveyed faint murmurs of love;--but, if the gale arise, thou
+canst burst forth into notes of laughter as thy waters leap to the shore
+with bounding mirth;--and, if the wind grow higher, thou canst speak
+louder and more menacingly; till, when the storm comes on, thou lashest
+thyself into a fury,--thou boilest with rage, and thy wrathful voice
+vies with the rush of the tempest and the roar of the thunder! Deceitful
+sea--imaging the beauties, thoughts, and passions of the earth! Within
+thy mighty depths, too, thou hast gems to deck the crowns of kings and
+the brows of loveliness; and yet thou cravest for more--more--and
+engulfest rich argosies with all their treasures--thou insatiate sea!
+And in thy dark caverns are the skeletons of the myriads of human beings
+whom thou hast swallowed up in thy fury; and whose bones are trophies
+which thou retainest in thy fathomless depths, as the heart of man
+enshrineth the relics of those hopes which have wasted away and
+perished!"
+
+Thus thought Wagner, as he stood gazing upon the sea, then so calm and
+beautiful, but which he knew to be so treacherous. When wearied of the
+reflections which that scene inspired, and not daring to allow his mind
+to dwell upon the image of Nisida, he repaired to the nearest grove and
+refreshed himself with the cooling fruits which he plucked. Then he
+extended his rambles amongst the verdant plains, and strove strenuously
+to divert his thoughts as much as possible from the one grand and
+mournful idea--the departure of Nisida from the island! But vainly did
+he endeavor to fix his attention upon the enchanting characteristics of
+that clime;--the flowers appeared to him less brilliant in hue than they
+were wont to be--the fruits were less inviting--the verdure was of a
+less lively green--and the plumage of the birds seemed to have lost the
+bright gloss that rendered its colors so gorgeous in the sunlight. For,
+oh! the powers of his vision were almost completely absorbed in his
+mind; and that mind was a mirror wherein was now reflected with a
+painful vividness all the incidents of the last few hours.
+
+But still he was sustained in his determination not to retrace his way
+to the spot where he had left Nisida; and when several hours had passed,
+and the sun was drawing near the western horizon, he exclaimed, in a
+moment of holy triumph, "She has doubtless by this time quitted the
+island, and I have been enabled to resist those anxious longings which
+prompted me to return and clasp her in my arms! O God! I thank thee that
+thou hast given me this strength!"
+
+Wagner now felt so overcome with weariness after his wanderings and
+roamings of so many hours, especially as the two preceding nights had
+been sleepless for him--that he sat down upon a piece of low rock near
+the shore. A quiet, dreamy repose insensibly stole over him: in a few
+minutes his slumber was profound. And now he beheld a strange vision.
+Gradually the darkness which appeared to surround him grew less intense;
+and a gauzy vapor that rose in the midst, at first of the palest bluish
+tint possible, by degrees obtained more consistency, when its nature
+began to undergo a sudden change, assuming the semblance of a luminous
+mist. Wagner's heart seemed to flutter and leap in his breast, as if
+with a presentiment of coming joy; for the luminous mist became a
+glorious halo, surrounding the beauteous and holy form of a protecting
+angel, clad in white and shining garments, and with snowy wings drooping
+slowly from her shoulders! And ineffably--supernally benign and
+reassuring was the look which the angel bent upon the sleeping Wagner,
+as she said in the softest, most melodious tones, "The choir of the
+heavenly host has hymned thanks for thy salvation! After thou hadst
+resisted the temptations of the enemy of mankind when he spoke to thee
+with his own lips, an angel came to thee in a dream to give thee
+assurance that thou hadst already done much in atonement for the crime
+that endangered thy soul; but he warned thee then that much more
+remained to be done ere that atonement would be complete. And the rest
+is now accomplished; for thou hast resisted the temptations of the evil
+one when urged by the tongue and in the melodious voice of lovely woman!
+This was thy crowning triumph: and the day when thou shalt reap thy
+reward is near at hand; for the bonds which connect thee with the
+destiny of a Wehr-Wolf shall be broken, and thy name shall be inscribed
+in Heaven's own Book of Life! And I will give thee a sign, that what
+thou seest and hearest now in thy slumber is no idle and delusive vision
+conjured up by a fevered brain. The sign shall be this: On awaking from
+thy sleep, retrace thy way to the spot where this morning thou didst
+separate from her whom thou lovest; and there shalt thou find a boat
+upon the sand. The boat will waft thee to Sicily; and there, in the town
+of Syracuse, thou must inquire for a man whose years have numbered one
+hundred and sixty-two; for that man it is who will teach thee how the
+spell which has made thee a Wehr-Wolf may be broken."
+
+Scarcely had the angel finished speaking, when a dark form rose suddenly
+near that heavenly being; and Wagner had no difficulty in recognizing
+the demon. But the enemy of mankind appeared not armed with terrors of
+countenance, nor with the withering scorn of infernal triumph; for a
+moment his features denoted ineffable rage--and then that expression
+yielded to one of the profoundest melancholy, as if he were saying
+within himself, "There is salvation for repentant man, but none for me!"
+A cloud now seemed to sweep before Wagner's eyes; denser and more dense
+it grew--first absorbing in its increasing obscurity the form of the
+demon, and then enveloping the radiant being who still continued to
+smile sweetly and benignly upon the sleeping mortal until the glorious
+countenance and the shining garments were no longer visible, but all was
+black darkness around. And Fernand Wagner continued to sleep profoundly.
+
+Many hours elapsed ere he woke; and his slumber was serene and soothing.
+At length when he opened his eyes and slowly raised his head from the
+hard pillow which a mass of rock had formed, he beheld the rich red
+streaks in the eastern horizon, heralding the advent of the sun; and as
+the various features of the island gradually developed themselves to his
+view, as if breaking slowly from a mist, he collected and rearranged in
+his mind all the details of the strange vision which he had seen. For a
+few minutes he was oppressed with a fear that his vision would indeed
+prove the delusive sport of his fevered brain; for there seemed to be in
+its component parts a wild admixture of the sublime and the fantastic.
+The solemn language of the angel appeared strangely diversified by the
+intimation that he would find a boat upon the shore, that this boat
+would convey him to a place where he was to inquire for a man whose age
+was one hundred and sixty-two years, and that this man was the being
+destined to save him from the doom of a Wehr-Wolf.
+
+Then, again, he thought that heaven worked out its designs by means
+often inscrutable to human comprehension: and he blamed himself for
+having doubted the truth of the vision. Feelings of joy therefore
+accompanied the reassurance of his soul; and, having poured forth his
+thanksgivings for the merciful intervention of Providence in his behalf,
+he tarried not even to break his fast with the fruits clustering at a
+short distance from him, but hastened to retrace his way across the
+mountains, no longer doubting to find the sign fulfilled and the boat
+upon the shore. And now these thoughts rose within him. Should he again
+behold Nisida? Was the fleet, which he had seen on the previous day,
+still off the island? Or had it departed, bearing Nisida away to another
+clime?
+
+He expected not to behold either the fleet or his loved one; for he felt
+convinced that the angel would not send him back within the influence of
+her temptations. Nor was he mistaken, for having traversed the volcanic
+range of heights, he beheld naught to break the uniform and monotonous
+aspect of the sunlit sea. But, on drawing nearer to the shore, he saw a
+dark spot almost immediately in front of the little hut which Nisida and
+himself had constructed, and wherein they had passed so many, many happy
+hours.
+
+He now advanced with a beating heart to the hut. The door was closed.
+Was it possible that Nisida might be within? Oh, how weak in purpose is
+the strongest minded of mortals. For an instant a pleasing hope filled
+Wagner's breast; and then, again summoning all his resolutions to his
+aid, he opened the door, resolved, should she indeed be there, to remain
+proof against all the appeals she might make to induce him to sacrifice
+to their mundane prosperity his immortal soul. But the hut was empty. He
+lingered in it for a few moments; and the reminiscences of happy hours
+passed therein swept across his brain. Suddenly the note which Nisida
+had left for him met his eyes; and it would be representing him as
+something far more or else far less than human, were we to declare he
+did not experience a feeling of intense pleasure at beholding the
+memorial of her love. The tears flowed down his cheeks as he read the
+following lines:
+
+    "The hour approaches, dearest Fernand, when, in all probability,
+    I shall quit the island. But think not that this hope is
+    unaccompanied by severe pangs. Oh, thou knowest that I love
+    thee, and I will return to thee, my own adored Fernand, so soon
+    as my presence shall be no longer needed at Florence. Yes, I
+    will come back to thee, and we will not part until death shall
+    deprive thee of _me_--for I must perish first, and while thou
+    still remainest in all the glory of regenerated youth. Alas,
+    thou hast fled from me this morning in anger--perhaps in
+    disgust. But thou wilt forgive me, Fernand, if, yielding to some
+    strange influence which I could not control, I urged an appeal
+    so well calculated to strike terror into thy soul. Oh, that I
+    could embrace thee ere I leave this isle; but alas! thou comest
+    not back--thou hast fled to the mountains. It is, however, in
+    the ardent hope of thy return to this spot, that I leave these
+    few lines to assure thee of my undying affection, to pledge to
+    thee my intention to hasten back to thine arms as soon as
+    possible, and to implore thee not to nourish anger against thy
+    devoted                                                NISIDA."
+
+Wagner placed the letter to his lips, exclaiming, "Oh, wherefore did an
+evil influence ever prove its power on thee, thou loving, loved, and
+beauteous being. Why was thy hand raised against the hapless Agnes?
+wherefore did fate make thee a murderess--and why, oh, why didst thou
+assail me with prayers, tears, reproaches, menaces, to induce me to
+consign my soul to Satan? Nisida, may Heaven manifest its merciful
+goodness unto thee, even as that same benign care has been extended to
+me."
+
+Fernand then placed the letter in his bosom, next to his heart, and
+dashing away the tears from his long lashes, began to turn his attention
+toward the preparation for his own departure from the island. As he
+approached the pile of stores, he beheld the light drapery which Nisida
+had lately worn, but which she had laid aside previous to leaving the
+island; and he also observed that the rich dress, which he had often
+seen her examine with care, was no longer there.
+
+"How beautiful she must have appeared in the garb!" he murmured to
+himself. "But, alas! she returns to the great world to resume her former
+character of the deaf and dumb."
+
+Nisida and himself had often employed themselves in gathering quantities
+of those fruits which form an excellent aliment when dried in the sun;
+and there was a large supply of these comestibles now at his disposal.
+He accordingly transferred them to the boat; then he procured a quantity
+of fresh fruits; and lastly he filled with pure water a cask which had
+been saved by Nisida from the corsair-wreck. His preparations were
+speedily completed; and he was about to depart, when it struck him that
+he might never behold Nisida again, and that she might perform her
+promise of returning to the island sooner or later. He accordingly
+availed himself of the writing materials left amongst the stores, to pen
+a brief but affectionate note, couched in the following terms:
+
+    "DEAREST NISIDA,--I have found, read, and wept over thy letter.
+    Thou hast my sincerest forgiveness, because I love thee more
+    than man ever before loved woman. Heaven has sent me the means
+    of escape from this island--and the doom at which my regenerated
+    existence was purchased, will shortly lose its spell. But
+    perhaps my life may be surrendered up at the same time; at all
+    events, everything is dark and mysterious in respect to means by
+    which that spell is to be broken. Should we never meet again,
+    but shouldst thou return hither and find this note, receive it
+    as a proof of the unchanging affection of thy
+
+                                                      "FERNAND."
+
+The letter was placed in the hut, in precisely the same spot where the
+one written by Nisida had been left; and Wagner then hastened to the
+boat, which he had no difficulty in pushing away from the shore. Without
+being able to form any idea of the direction in which the island of
+Sicily lay, but trusting entirely to the aid of Heaven to guide him to
+the coast whither his destiny now required him to proceed, he hoisted
+the sail and abandoned the boat to the gentle breeze which swept the
+surface of the Mediterranean.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The state-cabins--they might more properly be called spacious
+apartments--occupied by the Grand Vizier Ibrahim Pasha, on board the
+ship of the lord high admiral, were fitted up in a most sumptuous and
+luxurious manner. They consisted of two large saloons in a suit, and
+from each of which opened, on either side, a number of small cabins,
+tenanted by the officers immediately attached to the grand vizier's
+person, and the page and slaves in attendance on him.
+
+The first of the two large saloons was lighted by a handsome conical
+skylight on the deck: the innermost had the advantage of the stern
+windows. The drapery--the curtains, the carpets, the sofas, and the
+hangings were all of the richest materials; the sides and ceilings of
+the cabin were beautifully painted and elaborately gilded, and the
+wood-work of the windows was incrusted with thin slabs of
+variously-colored marbles, on which were engraved the ciphers of the
+different lord high admirals who had hoisted their flags at any time on
+board that ship. For the state-apartments which we are describing
+properly belonged to the kapitan-pasha himself; but they had been
+surrendered to the grand vizier, as a mark of respect to the superior
+rank of this minister, during his stay on board.
+
+The little cabins communicating with the large saloons were in reality
+intended to accomodate the ladies of the kapitan-pasha's harem; but
+Ibrahim did not turn them to a similar use, because it was contrary to
+Ottoman usage for the Princess Aischa, being the sultan's sister, to
+accompany her husband on any expedition; and he had received so menacing
+a warning in the fate of Calanthe not to provoke the jealousy of Aischa
+or the vengeance of her mother, the Sultana Valida, that he had brought
+none of the ladies of his own harem with him. Indeed, since the violent
+death of Calanthe the harem had been maintained at Constantinople rather
+as an appendage of high rank than as a source of sensual enjoyment.
+
+Nisida of Riverola was treated with the utmost deference and attention
+by the Grand Vizier, Ibrahim Pasha; and on reaching the lord high
+admiral's ship, she was instantly conducted to the innermost saloon,
+which she was given to understand by signs would be exclusively
+appropriated to her own use. The slaves occupying the small cabins
+opening therefrom were removed to another part of the ship; and the key
+of the door connecting the two saloons was handed by the polite Ibrahim
+to the lady as a guaranty, or at least an apparent one, of the respect
+with which she should be treated and the security she might hope to
+enjoy.
+
+The fleet weighed anchor and set sail again almost immediately after the
+return of the grand vizier to the admiral's ship; and as she was wafted
+away from the Island of Snakes, Nisida sat at the window of her splendid
+saloon gazing at the receding shores, and so strangely balancing between
+her anxiety to revisit Florence and her regrets at abandoning Fernand
+Wagner, that while smiles were on her lips, tears were in her eyes, and
+if her bosom palpitated with joy at one moment it would heave with
+profound sighs at the next.
+
+In the afternoon four male slaves entered Nisida's cabin, and spread
+upon the table a magnificent repast, accompanied with the most delicious
+wines of Cyprus and Greece--and while the lady partook slightly of the
+banquet, two other slaves appeared and danced in a pleasing style for
+several minutes. They retired, but shortly returned, carrying in their
+hands massive silver censers, in which burnt aloes, cinnamon and other
+odoriferous woods diffused a delicious perfume around. The four slaves
+who attended at table removed the dishes on splendid silver salvers, and
+then served sherbet and a variety of delicious fruits; and when the
+repast was terminated, they all withdrew, leaving Nisida once more
+alone. The Island of Snakes had been lost sight of for some hours, and
+the fresh breeze of evening was playing upon the cheeks of the Lady
+Nisida as she sat at the open casement of her splendid saloon, watching
+the ships that followed in the wake of that in which she was, when the
+sounds of voices in the adjacent cabin attracted her attention; and as
+the partition was but slight, and the persons discoursing spoke Italian,
+she could not help overhearing the conversation which there look place,
+even if she had possessed any punctilious feelings to have prevented her
+from becoming a willing listener.
+
+"The Lady Nisida is a magnificent woman, Demetrius," observed a voice
+which our heroine immediately recognized to be that of the grand vizier.
+"Such a splendid aquiline countenance I never before beheld! Such eyes,
+too, such a delicious mouth, and such brilliant teeth! What a pity 'tis
+that she has not the use of her tongue! The voice of such a glorious
+creature, speaking mine own dear Italian language, would be music
+itself. And how admirably is she formed--upon somewhat too large a
+scale, perhaps, to precisely suit my taste, and yet the contours of her
+shape are so well rounded--so perfectly proportioned in the most
+harmonious symmetry, that were she less of the Hebe she would be less
+charming."
+
+"Is your highness already enamored of Donna Nisida?" asked the person to
+whom the grand vizier had addressed the preceding observations.
+
+"I must confess that I am, Demetrius," replied Ibrahim; "I would give a
+year of my life to become her favored lover for one day. But considering
+that I hope to see my sister Flora become the wife of Donna Nisida's
+brother Francisco, I must restrain this passion of mine within due
+bounds. But wherefore do you sigh thus heavily, Demetrius?"
+
+"Alas! my lord, the mention you make of your sister reminded me that I
+once possessed a sister also," returned the Greek in a plaintive tone.
+"But when I returned to Constantinople, I sought vainly for her, and
+Heaven knows what has become of her, and whether I shall ever see her
+more. Poor Calanthe! some treachery has doubtless been practiced toward
+thee!"
+
+"Don't give way to despair, Demetrius," said the grand vizier. "Who
+knows but Calanthe may have espoused some youth on whom her affections
+were set----"
+
+"Ah! my lord!" interrupted the Greek, "it is considerate--it is kind on
+the part of your highness to suggest such a consolatory belief; but
+Calanthe would not keep an honorable bridal secret. Yet better were it
+that she should be dead--that she should have been basely murdered by
+some ruthless robber, than that she should live dishonored. However, I
+will not intrude my griefs upon your highness, although the friendship
+and the condescension which your highness manifests toward me, emboldens
+me to mention these sorrows in your presence."
+
+"Would that I could really console thee, Demetrius," answered Ibrahim,
+with well-affected sincerity; "for thou hast shown thyself a sincere
+friend to my poor sister Flora. And now that we are alone together,
+Demetrius, for almost the first time since this hastily undertaken
+voyage began, let us recapitulate in detail all the occurrences which
+have led me to enter upon the present expedition the real nature of
+which you alone know, save my imperial master. And, moreover, let us
+continue to discourse in Italian; for thou canst speak that language
+more fluently than I can express myself in thy native Greek; besides, it
+rejoices my heart," he added with a sigh, "to converse in a tongue so
+dear as that of the land which gave me birth. And, if Donna Nisida only
+knew that in the representative of the mighty Solyman she had beholden
+the brother of her late menial, Flora, how surprised would she be!"
+
+"And it were not prudent that she should learn that fact, my lord!"
+observed Demetrius, "for more reasons than one; since from sundry hints
+which the Signora Francatelli, your lordship's worthy aunt, dropped to
+me, it is easy to believe that the Donna Nisida was averse to the
+attachment which her brother Francisco had formed, and that her ladyship
+indeed was the means of consigning your highness' sister to the convent
+of the Carmelites."
+
+"Albeit I shall not treat Count Francisco's sister the less worthily,
+now that she is in my power," said Ibrahim Pasha; "indeed, her matchless
+beauty would command my forbearance, were I inclined to be vindictive.
+Moreover, deaf and dumb as she is, she could not obtain the least
+insight into my plans; and therefore she is unable to thwart them."
+
+The reader may suppose that not one single word of all this conversation
+was lost upon Nisida, who had indeed learnt, with the most unbounded
+wonderment, that the high and mighty grand vizier of the Ottoman
+Empire--a man enjoying an almost sovereign rank, and who bore a title
+which placed him on a level with the greatest princes of Christendom,
+was the brother of the detested Flora Francatelli! During a short pause
+which ensued in the dialogue between Ibrahim Pasha and his Greek
+confidant, Nisida stole gently up to the door in the partitions between
+the two saloons, so fearful was she of losing a single word of a
+discourse that so deeply interested and nearly concerned her.
+
+"But, as I was saying ere now, Demetrius," resumed the grand vizier,
+who, young as he was, had acquired all the methodical habits of a wise
+statesman, "let us examine in detail the whole posture of affairs in
+Florence, so that I may maturely consider the precise bearings of the
+case, and finally determine how to act. For, although I have at my
+disposal a fleet which might cope with even that of enterprising England
+or imperious France, though twenty thousand well-disciplined soldiers on
+board these ships are ready to draw the sword at my nod, and though, as
+the seraskier and sipehsalar of the armies of the sultan, I am
+responsible for my actions to his majesty alone, yet it is not a small
+thing, Demetrius, to march an invading force into the heart of Italy,
+and thereby risk a war with all Christendom. Therefore, let us pause to
+reflect upon every detail of all those incidents which occurred two
+months ago at Florence."
+
+"Good, my lord," said Demetrius. "I will therefore begin with my arrival
+in that fair city, to which I repaired with all possible dispatch, as
+soon as I had received the instructions of your highness. It would
+appear that the Lord Count of Riverola reached Florence the same day as
+myself, he having been detained at the outset of his voyage home from
+Rhodes by contrary winds and a severe storm. It was somewhat late in the
+evening when I called at the cottage of the Signora Francatelli, your
+highness' worthy aunt; for I previously passed a few hours in
+instituting by indirect means as many inquiries concerning her
+circumstances and welfare as could be prudently made. To my grief,
+however, I could not ascertain any tidings concerning your highness'
+sister; and I therefore came to the mournful conclusion that her
+disappearance still remained unaccounted for. Pondering upon the sad
+tidings which, in this respect, I should have to forward to your
+highness, and having already devised a fitting tale whereby to introduce
+myself to your lordship's aunt, I went to the cottage, which, as I heard
+in the course of a subsequent conversation, Don Francisco of Riverola
+had just quitted. Your highness' aunt received me with as much
+cordiality as she could well show toward a stranger. Then, in accordance
+with my pre-arranged method of procedure, I stated I was sent by a son
+of a debtor to the estate of the late Signor Francatelli, to repay to
+any of his surviving relations a large sum of money which had been so
+long--so very long owing, and the loss of which at the time had mainly
+contributed to plunge Signor Francatelli into embarrassment. I added
+that the son of the debtor having grown rich, had deemed it an act of
+duty and honor to liquidate this liability on the part of his deceased
+father. My tale was believed; the case of jewels, which I had previously
+caused to be estimated by a goldsmith in Florence, was received as the
+means of settling the fictitious debt; and I was forthwith a welcome
+friend at the worthy lady's table."
+
+"The stratagem was a good one, Demetrius," observed the grand vizier.
+"But proceed, and fear not that thou wilt weary me with lengthened
+details."
+
+"I stayed to partake of the evening repast," continued the Greek; "and
+the Signora Francatelli grew confiding and communicative, as was nothing
+more than natural, inasmuch as I necessarily appeared in the light of
+the agent of a worthy and honorable man who had not forgotten the
+obligation to a family that had suffered by his father's conduct. I
+assured the signora that the person by whom I was employed to liquidate
+that debt, would be rejoiced to hear of the success of the Francatellis,
+and I ventured to make inquiries concerning the orphan children of the
+late merchant."
+
+"Proceed, Demetrius," said the grand vizier, "spare not a single
+detail."
+
+"Your highness shall be obeyed," returned the Greek, though now speaking
+with considerable diffidence. "The worthy lady shook her head
+mournfully, observing that Alessandro, the son of the late merchant, was
+in Turkey, she believed; and then she rose hastily, and opening a door
+leading to a staircase, called her niece to descend, as 'there was only
+a friend present.' I was overjoyed to learn thus unexpectedly, that the
+Signora Flora had reappeared; and when she entered the room, could
+scarcely conceal my delight beneath that aspect of mere cold courtesy
+which it became a stranger to wear. The young lady appeared perfectly
+happy, and no wonder! For when she had retired, after staying a few
+minutes in the room, her good aunt, in the fullness of her confidence in
+me, not only related all the particulars of the Signora Flora's
+immurement in the Carmelite Convent, but also explained to me her
+motives for so long concealing the young lady's return home, as I have
+heretofore narrated to your highness. The worthy aunt then informed me
+that the Count of Riverola had only returned that day from the
+wars--that he had made honorable proposals to her on behalf of the
+Signora Flora--and that it was intended to sustain the mystery which
+veiled the young lady's existence and safety in the cottage, until the
+marriage should have been privately effected, when it would be too late
+for the count's friends to interfere or renew their persecutions against
+your lordship's sister. Your highness' aunt dropped hints intimating her
+suspicion that the Lady Nisida was the principal, if not indeed the sole
+means of those persecutions which had consigned the innocent young
+maiden to the Carmelite Convent. And the more I reflect on this point,
+in view of all I know of the affairs, and of Donna Nisida's strange and
+resolute character, the more I am convinced that she really perpetrated
+that diabolical outrage."
+
+"Were it not for young Francisco's sake, and that I should bring
+dishonor into a family with which my sister will, I hope, be soon
+connected with marriage ties," exclaimed Ibrahim, "I would avenge myself
+and my sister's wrongs by forcing the cruel Nisida to yield herself to
+my arms. But no, it must not be."
+
+And Nisida, who overheard every syllable, curled her lips, while her
+eyes flashed fire at the dark menace which the renegade had dared to
+utter, qualified though it were by the avowal of the motive which would
+prevent him from putting it into execution.
+
+"No, it must not be," repeated Ibrahim. "And yet, she is so wondrously
+beautiful that I would risk a great deal to win her love. But proceed,
+Demetrius--we now come to that portion of the narrative which so nearly
+concerns my present proceedings."
+
+"Yes, my lord, and God give your highness success!" exclaimed the young
+Greek. "Having taken leave of your excellent aunt, who invited me to
+visit her again, as I had casually observed that business would detain
+me in Florence for some time, and having promised the strictest secrecy
+relative to all she had told me, I repaired to the inn at which I had
+put up, intending to devote the next day to writing the details of all
+those particulars which I have just related, and which I purposed to
+send by some special messenger to your highness. But it then struck me
+that I should only attract undue attention to myself by conducting at a
+public tavern a correspondence having so important an aspect, and I
+accordingly rose very early in the morning to sally forth to seek after
+a secluded but respectable lodging, I eventually obtained suitable
+apartments in the house of a widow named Dame Margaretha, and there I
+immediately took up my abode. Having written my letters to your
+highness, I was anxious to get them expedited to Constantinople, for I
+was well aware that your highness would be rejoiced to hear that your
+beloved sister was indeed in the land of the living, that she was in
+good health, and that a brilliant marriage was in store for her. I
+accordingly spoke to Dame Margaretha relative to the means of obtaining
+a trusty messenger who would undertake a journey to Constantinople. The
+old woman assured me that her son Antonio, who was a valet in the
+service of the Count of Arestino, would be able to procure me such a
+messenger as I desired, and in the course of the day that individual was
+fetched by his mother to speak to me on the subject. Having repeated my
+wishes to him, he asked me several questions which seemed to indicate a
+prying disposition, and a curiosity as impertinent as it was
+inconvenient. In fact, I did not like his manner at all; but conceiving
+that his conduct might arise from sheer ignorance, and from no sinister
+motive, I still felt inclined to avail myself of his assistance to
+procure a messenger. Finding that he could not sift me, he at length
+said that he had no doubt a friend of his, whom he named Venturo, would
+undertake my commission, and he promised to return with that individual
+in the evening. He then left me, and true to his promise, he came back
+shortly after dusk, accompanied by this same Venturo. The bargain was
+soon struck between us, and he promised to set off that very night for
+Rimini, whence vessels were constantly sailing for Constantinople. I
+gave him a handsome sum in advance, and also a sealed packet, addressed
+to your highness' private secretary, but containing an inclosure, also
+well sealed, directed to your highness, for I did not choose to excite
+the curiosity of these Italians by allowing them to discover that I was
+corresponding with the grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire, Venturo
+accordingly left me, promising to acquit himself faithfully of his
+mission."
+
+"Your plans were all wisely taken," said the grand vizier, "and no human
+foresight could have anticipated other than successful results. Proceed,
+for although you have hastily sketched all these particulars to me
+before, yet I am anxious to consider them in more attentive detail."
+
+"Having thus disposed of that important business," resumed the young
+Greek, "I went out to saunter through the streets of Florence, and while
+away an hour or two in viewing the splendid appearance of that charming
+city, when lighted up with the innumerable lamps of its palaces and
+casinos. At length I entered a dark and obscure street, which I knew
+must lead toward the river. I had not proceeded far down the street when
+I heard the sound of many steps rapidly approaching, as if of a patrol.
+I stepped aside under a deep archway, but as chance would have it, they
+stopped short within a few paces of the spot where I was shrouded in the
+utter obscurity of the arch. I should have immediately passed on my way,
+but was induced to stop by hearing a voice which I recognized to be that
+of Venturo, whom I believed to be already some miles away from Florence.
+I was perfectly astounded at this discovery, and if I had entertained
+any doubts as to the identity of that voice, they were speedily cleared
+up by the conversation between the men. 'We had better separate here,'
+said Venturo, 'and break into at least two parties, as at the bottom of
+this street we shall come within the blaze of the lights of the casinos
+on the Arno's bank.' 'Well spoken,' returned a voice which, to my
+increasing wonder, I recognized to be that of Antonio, my landlady's
+son; 'you and I, Venturo, will keep together, and our friends can go on
+first. We will follow them in a few minutes, and then unite again at the
+angle of the grove nearest to Dame Francatelli's cottage. What say you,
+Lomellino?' 'Just as you think fit, Antonio,' returned a third person,
+whom I naturally concluded to be the individual addressed as Lomellino.
+'You, or rather your master, the Count of Arestino, pays for this
+business, and so I am bound to obey you.' 'Listen, then,' resumed
+Antonio, 'the young Count of Riverola, whom I have traced to the cottage
+this evening, will no doubt be coming away about the time we shall all
+meet down there; and therefore we shall have nothing to do but to carry
+him off to the cave.' 'Why is the Count of Arestino so hostile to young
+Riverola?' demanded the man who had answered to the name of Lomellino.
+'He cares nothing about young Riverola, either one way or the other,'
+replied Antonio, 'but I have persuaded his lordship that if Francisco be
+left at large, he will only use his influence to mitigate the vengeance
+of the law against the Countess Giulia, who is the friend of Flora
+Francatelli: and so the Count of Arestino has consented to follow my
+advice and have Francisco locked up until the inquisition has dealt with
+the countess, her lover, the Marquis of Orsini, and the Francatellis,
+aunt and niece.' 'Then you have a spite against this man,' said
+Lomellino. 'Truly have I,' responded Antonio. 'You remember that night
+when you, with Stephano Verrina and Piero, got into the Riverola Palace
+some months ago? Well, I don't know who discovered the plot, but I was
+locked in my room, and next morning young Francisco dismissed me in a
+way that made me his mortal enemy: and I must have vengeance. For this
+purpose I have urged on the count to cause Flora Francatelli, whom
+Francisco loves and wishes to marry, to be included in the proceedings
+taken by the inquisition at his lordship's instigation against the
+Countess Giulia and the Marquis d'Orsini; and the old aunt must
+necessarily be thrown in, into the bargain, for harboring sacrilegious
+persons.' 'And so young Francisco is to lose his mistress, Flora, and be
+kept a prisoner in the cavern till he has been condemned along with the
+others?' said Lomellino. 'Neither more nor less than what you imagine,
+and I only wish I had the Lady Nisida also in my power, for I have no
+doubt she instigated her brother to turn me off suddenly like a common
+thief, because from all you have since told me, Lomellino, I dare swear
+it was she who got an inkling of our intentions to plunder the Riverola
+Palace; though how she could have done so, being deaf and dumb, passes
+my understanding.' 'Well, well,' growled Lomellino, 'it is no use to
+waste time talking of the past: let us only think of the present. Come,
+my men, we will go on first, as already agreed.' Three or four armed
+ruffians then put themselves in motion, passing close by the place where
+I was concealed, but fortunately without discovering my presence."
+
+"Oh! those miscreants would have assuredly murdered you, my faithful
+Demetrius," said the grand vizier.
+
+"Of that, my lord, there is little doubt," returned the young Greek;
+"and I must confess that I shuddered more than once while listening to
+the discourse of the cold-blooded monsters. But Venturo and Antonio
+still remained behind for a few minutes, and the discourse which took
+place between them, gave me a still further insight into the characters
+of the gang. 'Well, Venturo,' said Antonio, after a short pause, 'have
+you examined the packet which was intrusted to you?' 'I have, and the
+contents are written in Greek or Arabic, or some such outlandish tongue,
+for I could not read a word of them,' answered Venturo; 'and so I
+thought the best plan was to destroy them.' 'You acted wisely,' observed
+Antonio; 'by the saints! it was a good thought of mine to introduce you
+to my mother's lodger as a trustworthy messenger! If he only knew that
+we had shared his gold, and were laughing at him for his credulity, he
+would not be over well pleased. His purse appears to be pretty well
+lined, and when we have got all our present business off our hands we
+will devote our attention to the lodger. The Arno is deep and a
+foreigner the less in the city will not be noticed.' 'Not at all,'
+answered Venturo; 'but let us now hasten to join our companions. At what
+time are the officers of the inquisition to visit the cottage?' 'They
+are no doubt already in the neighborhood,' replied Antonio, 'and will
+pounce upon their victims as soon as young Francisco leaves the place.
+Another set of officers are after the Marquis of Orsini.' The two
+miscreants then departed, continuing their conversation in a low tone as
+they went along the street, but I overheard no more."
+
+"The wretches!" exclaimed the grand vizier, in an excited voice. "But
+vengeance will light upon them yet!"
+
+"Heaven grant that they may not go unpunished!" said Demetrius. "Your
+highness may imagine the consternation with which I had listened to the
+development of the damnable plots then in progress; but I nevertheless
+experienced a material solace in the fact that accident had thus
+revealed to me the whole extent of the danger which menaced those whom
+your highness held dear. Without pausing to deliberate, I resolved, at
+all risks, to proceed at once to the cottage, and, if not too late, warn
+your aunt and lovely sister of the terrible danger which menaced them.
+Nay, more--I determined to remove them immediately from Florence--that
+very night--without an unnecessary moment's delay. Darting along the
+streets, as if my speed involved matters of life and death, I succeeded
+in passing the two villains, Venturo and Antonio, before they had
+entered the sphere of the brilliant illuminations of the casinos in the
+vale of Arno; and I beard one say to the other, 'There's some cowardly
+knave who has just done a deed of which he is no doubt afraid.'
+Convinced by this remark that they suspected not who the person that
+passed them so rapidly was, I hurried on with increasing speed, and
+likewise with augmented hope to be enabled to save not only your
+lordship's aunt and sister from the officers of the inquisition, but
+also the young Count of Riverola from the power of his miscreant
+enemies. Alas! my anticipations were not to be fulfilled! I lost my way
+amongst a maze of gardens connected with the villas bordering on the
+Arno; and much valuable time at such a crisis was wasted in the circuits
+which I had to make to extricate myself from the labyrinth and reach the
+bank of the river. At length I drew within sight of the cottage; but my
+heart beat with terrible alarms as I beheld lights moving rapidly about
+the house. 'It is too late,' I thought: and yet I rushed on toward the
+place. But suddenly the door opened, and by a glare of light within, I
+saw three females closely muffled in veils, led forth by several armed
+men. It instantly struck me that the third must be the Countess Giulia
+of Arestino to whom I heard the miscreants allude. I stopped short--for
+I knew that any violent demonstration or interference on my part would
+be useless, and that measures of another kind must be adopted on behalf
+of the victims. As the procession now advanced from a cottage, I
+concealed myself in the adjacent grove, wondering whether Count
+Francisco had been already arrested or whether he had managed to elude
+his enemies. The procession, consisting of the officers of the
+inquisition with their three female prisoners, who were dragged rather
+than led along, passed by the spot where I lay concealed; and the deep
+sobs which came from the unfortunate ladies, gagged though they
+evidently were, filled my heart with horror and anguish. As soon as they
+had disappeared I struck further into the grove, knowing by its
+situation that the outlet on the other side would conduct me to the
+nearest road to that quarter of the city in which I lodged. But scarcely
+had I reached the outskirts of the little wood in the direction which I
+have named, when I saw a party of men moving on in front of me, through
+the obscurity of the night. It struck me that this party might consist
+of Antonio, Venturo, and other worthies, and I determined to ascertain
+whether Count Francisco had fallen into their hands. I accordingly
+followed them as cautiously as possible, taking care to skirt the grove
+in such a manner that I was concealed by its deep shade, whereas those
+whom I was watching proceeded further away from the trees. Thus the
+party in advance and myself continued our respective paths for nearly a
+quarter of an hour, during which I ascertained beyond all doubt that the
+men whom I was following were really the villains of the Antonio gang,
+and that they had a prisoner with them who could be no other than the
+Count of Riverola.
+
+"At length the grove terminated, and I was about to abandon further
+pursuit as dangerous, when it struck me that I should be acting in a
+cowardly and unworthy manner not to endeavor to ascertain the locality
+of the cave of which I had heard the miscreants speak, and to which they
+were most probably conveying him who was so dear to the beautiful
+Signora Flora. Accordingly I managed to track the party across several
+fields to a grove of evergreens. But as they advanced without caring how
+they broke through the crackling thickets, the noise of their movements
+absorbed the far fainter sounds which accompanied my progress. So
+successful was my undertaking that I was soon within twenty paces of
+them. But it was profoundly dark, and I was unable to observe their
+movements. I computed the distance they were from me, and calculated so
+as to form an idea of the exact spot where they were standing; for, by
+an observation which one of the villains let drop, I learnt that they
+had reached the entrance of their cavern. It also struck me that I heard
+a bell ring as if in the depths of the earth, and I concluded that this
+was a signal to obtain admittance. While I was weighing these matters in
+my mind, Lomellino suddenly exclaimed, 'Let the prisoner be taken down
+first; and have a care, Venturo, that the bandage is well fastened.'
+'All right, captain,' was the reply; and thus I ascertained that
+Lomellino was the chief of some band most probably, I thought, of
+robbers; for I remembered the allusions which had been made that evening
+by Antonio to a certain predatory visit some months previously to the
+Riverola mansion. 'God help Francisco,' I said within myself, as I
+reflected upon the desperate character of the men who had him in their
+power; and then I was consoled by the remembrance that he was merely to
+be detained as a prisoner for a period, and not harmed."
+
+"Unfortunately such demons as those Florentine banditti are capable of
+every atrocity," observed the grand vizier.
+
+"True, my lord," observed Demetrius; "but let us hope that all those in
+whom your highness is interested, will yet be saved. I shall, however,
+continue my narrative. Three or four minutes had elapsed since the
+robbers had come to a full stop, when I knew by the observations made
+amongst them, that they were descending into some subterranean place. I
+accordingly waited with the utmost anxiety until I was convinced that
+they had all disappeared with their prisoner; and then I crept
+cautiously along to the place at which I had already reckoned them to
+have paused. I stooped down, and carefully felt upon the ground, until I
+was enabled to ascertain the precise point at which the marks of their
+footsteps had ceased. At this moment the moon shone forth with such
+extreme brilliancy, that its beams penetrated the thick foliage; and I
+now observed with horror that I had advanced to the very verge of a
+steep precipice, on the brink of which the grove suddenly ceased. Had
+not the moon thus providentially appeared at that instant, I should have
+continued to grope about in the utter darkness, and have assuredly
+fallen into the abyss. I breathed a fervent prayer for this signal
+deliverance. But not a trace of any secret entrance to a cavern could I
+find--no steps, no trap-door! Well aware that it would be dangerous for
+me to be caught in that spot, should any of the banditti emerge suddenly
+from their cave, I was reluctantly compelled to depart. But before I
+quitted the place, I studied it so well that I should have no difficulty
+in recognizing it again. In fact, just at the precise spot where the
+footsteps of the banditti ceased, an enormous chestnut tree, which for
+more than a century must have continued to draw from the earth its
+nourishment, slopes completely over the precipice, while on the right of
+this tree, as you face the abyss, is a knot of olives, and on the left
+an umbrageous lime. These features of the spot I committed to memory,
+with the idea that such a clew to the robbers' retreat might not
+eventually prove useless.
+
+"I will extirpate that nest of vipers--that horde of remorseless
+banditti!" exclaimed Ibrahim Pasha, in a tone indicative of strong
+excitement.
+
+"Your highness has the power," responded Demetrius; "but the Florentine
+authorities must be completely impotent in respect to such a formidable
+horde of lawless men. The remainder of my narrative is soon told, my
+lord," returned the young Greek. "I returned to my lodgings in safety,
+but determined not to remain there a single hour longer than necessary.
+For apart from the resolve which I had formed already, in consequence of
+the various and unforeseen incidents which had occurred, to return to
+Constantinople, the murderous designs of Antonio and Venturo in respect
+to myself, would have hastened my removal at all events to another
+lodging. That night sleep never visited my eyes--so amazed and grieved
+was I at the calamities which had befallen those who were so dear to
+your highness. Very early in the morning I arose from a feverish bed and
+sallied forth to learn tidings of the Marquis of Orsini. 'For,' thought
+I, 'if this nobleman has escaped arrest by the officers of the
+inquisition, he might be enabled to effect somewhat in aiding the female
+victims.' But I heard at his dwelling that he had been arrested the
+previous evening on a charge of sacrilege, perpetrated with others, in
+respect to the Carmelite Convent. Frustrated in this quarter, I repaired
+to the principal clerk of the criminal tribunal, and inquired the name
+and address of a lawyer of eminence and repute. The clerk complied with
+my demand, and recommended me to Angelo Duras, the brother of a
+celebrated Florentine physician."
+
+"Both of whom are known to me by name," observed the grand vizier; "and
+Angelo Duras is a man of unblemished integrity. It delights me much to
+know you employed him."
+
+"I found him, too," continued Demetrius, "a kind-hearted and benevolent
+man. He received me with affability; and I narrated to him as much as
+necessary of the particulars which I have detailed to your highness.
+Without stating by whom I was employed, I merely represented to him that
+I was deeply interested in the Francatelli family, and that it was of
+the utmost importance to obtain a delay for two or three months in the
+criminal proceedings instituted against those innocent females, as, in
+the meantime, I should undertake a journey to a place at some
+considerable distance, but the result of which would prove materially
+beneficial to the cause of the accused. He observed that the interest of
+the Count of Arestino, who would doubtless endeavor to hasten the
+proceedings in order to wreak speedy vengeance upon his wife and the
+Marquis of Orsini, was very powerful to contend against; but that gold
+could accomplish much. I assured him that there would be no lack of
+funds to sustain even the most expensive process; and I threw down a
+heavy purse as an earnest of my ability to bear the cost of the suit. He
+committed to paper all the particulars that I had thought it prudent to
+reveal to him, and after some consideration, said, 'I now see my way
+clearly. I will undertake that the final hearing of this case, at least
+so far as it regards the Francatellis, shall be postponed for three
+months. You may rely upon the fulfillment of this promise, let the Count
+of Arestino do his worst.' Thus assured, I quitted the worthy pleader,
+and proceeded to visit Father Marco, who, as I had happened to learn
+when in conversation with your highness' aunt, was the family confessor.
+I found that excellent man overwhelmed with grief at the calamities
+which had occurred; and to him I confided, under a solemn promise of
+inviolable secrecy, who the present grand vizier of the Ottoman Empire
+really was, and how I had been employed by you to visit Florence for the
+purpose of watching over the safety of your relatives. I however
+explained to Father Marco that his vow of secrecy was to cease to be
+binding at any moment when the lives of the Francatellis should be
+menaced by circumstances that might possibly arise in spite of all the
+precautions that I had adopted to postpone the final hearing of their
+case; and that should imminent peril menace those lives, he was
+immediately to reveal to the Duke of Florence the fact of the
+relationship of the Francatellis with one who has power to punish any
+injury that might be done to them. Though well knowing, my lord, the
+obstinancy of the Christian states in venturing to beard Ottoman might,
+I considered this precaution to be at all events a prudent one; and
+Father Marco promised to obey my injunctions in all respects."
+
+"I was not mistaken in thee, Demetrius," said the grand vizier, "when I
+chose thee for that mission on account of thy discreetness and
+foresight."
+
+"Your highness' praises are my best reward," answered the Greek. "I have
+now done all that I could possibly effect or devise under the
+circumstances which prompted me to think or act; and it grieved me that
+I was unable to afford the slightest assistance to the young Count of
+Riverola. But I dare not wait longer in Italy; and I was convinced that
+the authorities in Florence were too inefficient to root out the horde
+of banditti, even had I explained to them the clew which I myself
+obtained to the stronghold of those miscreants. I accordingly quitted
+Florence in the afternoon of the day following the numerous arrests
+which I have mentioned; and had I not been detained so long at Rimini,
+by adverse winds, your highness would not have been kept for so many
+weeks without the mournful tidings which it was at length my painful
+duty to communicate in person to your lordship."
+
+"That delay, my faithful Demetrius," said the grand vizier, "was no
+fault of thine. Fortunately the squadron was already equipped for sea;
+and, instead of repairing to the African frontier to chastise the daring
+pirates, it is on its way to the Tuscan coast, where, if need be, it
+will land twenty thousand soldiers to liberate my relations and the
+young Count of Riverola. A pretext for making war upon the Italian
+states has been afforded by their recent conduct in sending auxiliaries
+to the succor of Rhodes; and of that excuse I shall not hesitate to
+avail myself to commence hostilities against the proud Florentines
+should a secret and peaceful negotiation fail. But now that thou hast
+recapitulated to me all those particulars which thou didst merely sketch
+forth at first, it seems to me fitting that I anchor the fleet at the
+mouth of the Arno, and that I send thee, Demetrius, as an envoy in a
+public capacity, but in reality to stipulate privately for the release
+of those in whom I am interested."
+
+Thus terminated the conference between Ibrahim Pasha and his Greek
+dependent--a conference which had revealed manifold and astounding
+occurrences to the ears of the Lady Nisida of Riverola. Astounding
+indeed! Francisco in the hands of the formidable banditti--Flora in the
+prison of the inquisition--and the Ottoman grand vizier bent upon
+effecting the marriage which Nisida abhorred--these tidings were
+sufficient to arouse all the wondrous energies of that mind which was so
+prompt in combining intrigues and plots, so resolute in carrying them
+out, and so indomitable when it had formed a will of its own.
+
+Ominous were the fires which flashed in her large dark eyes, and
+powerful were the workings of those emotions which caused her heaving
+bosom to swell as if about to burst the bodice which confined it, when,
+retreating from the partition floor between the two saloons, and
+resuming her seat at the cabin-windows to permit the evening breeze to
+fan her fevered cheek, Nisida thought within herself, "It was indeed
+time that I should quit that accursed island, and return to Italy!"
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LVIII.
+
+
+The roseate streaks which the departing glories of a Mediterranean
+sunset left lingering for a few minutes in the western horizon, were
+yielding to the deeper gloom of evening, a few days after the scene
+related in the preceding chapter, as Nisida rose from her seat at the
+open windows of her splendid saloon on board the Ottoman Admiral's ship,
+and began to lay aside her apparel, preparatory to retiring to rest. She
+was already wearied of the monotonous life of ship-board; and the
+strange revelations which the discourse between Ibrahim Pasha and
+Demetrius had developed to her ears, rendered her doubly anxious to set
+foot upon her native soil.
+
+The grand vizier had paid his respects to her every day since she first
+embarked on board the Turkish ship; and they exchanged a few
+observations, rather of courtesy than in any deeper interest, by means
+of the tablets. Ibrahim's manner toward her was respectful; but when he
+imagined himself to be unperceived by her, his eyes were suddenly
+lighted up with the fires of ardent passion; and he devoured her with
+his burning glances. She failed not to notice the effect which her
+glorious beauty produced upon him, and she studiously avoided the
+imprudence of giving him the least encouragement; not from any innate
+feeling of virtue, but because she detested him as a man who was bent on
+accomplishing a marriage between her brother and Flora Francatelli. This
+hatred she concealed, and even the eagle-sighted Ibrahim perceived not
+that he was in any way displeasing to the lovely Nisida. With the
+exception of the grand vizier, and the slaves who waited upon her, the
+lady saw no one on board the ship; for she never quitted the saloon
+allotted to her, but passed her time chiefly in surveying the broad sea
+and the other vessels of the fleet from the windows, or in meditating
+upon the course which she should pursue on her arrival in Florence.
+
+But let us return to the thread of our narrative. The last tints of the
+sunset were, we said, fading away, when the Lady Nisida commenced her
+preparations for retiring to rest. She closed the casements, satisfied
+herself that the partition door between the two saloons was well
+secured, and then threw herself upon the voluptuous couch spread in one
+of the smaller cabins opening from her own magnificent apartment. She
+thought of Fernand, her handsome Fernand, whom she had abandoned on the
+Isle of Snakes, and profound sighs escaped her. Then she thought of
+Francisco; and the idea of serving that much-beloved brother's interests
+afforded her a consolation for having thus quitted the clime where she
+had passed so many happy days with Wagner.
+
+At length sleep fell upon her, and closed over the large, dark,
+brilliant eyes the white lids, beneath the transparent skin of which the
+blue veins were so delicately traced; and the long, jetty lashes reposed
+on the cheeks which the heat of the atmosphere tinged with a rich
+carnation glow. And when the moon arose that night, its silver rays
+streamed through the window set in the porthole of that small cabin,
+upon the beauteous face of the sleeper.
+
+But hark! there is the light sound of a footfall in the saloon from
+which that cabin opens.
+
+The treacherous Ibrahim possesses a key to the partition door; and
+having successfully wrestled with his raging desires until this moment,
+he is at length no longer able to resist the temptation of invading the
+sanctity of Nisida's sleeping-place. Already has he set his foot upon
+the very threshold of the little side-cabin, having traversed the
+spacious saloon, when a hand is laid upon his shoulder, and a voice
+behind him says in a low tone, "Your highness has forgotten the fate of
+the murdered Calanthe."
+
+Ibrahim started, shook the hand from off him, and exclaimed, "Dog of a
+negro! what and who has made thee a spy upon my actions?"
+
+At the same instant that Ibrahim felt the hand on his shoulder, and
+heard the well-known voice uttering the dreadful warning in his ears,
+Nisida awoke. Her first impulse was to start up; but, checking herself
+with wondrous presence of mind, as the part of the deaf and dumb person
+which she had imposed upon herself to play flashed with lightning
+velocity across her brain--comprehending, too, in an instant, that the
+grand vizier had violated her privacy, but that some unknown succor was
+at hand, she remained perfectly motionless, as if still wrapped up in an
+undisturbed slumber. The grand vizier, and the individual whom he had in
+his rage addressed as a "dog of a negro," retreated into the saloon,
+Nisida holding her very breath so as not to lose a word that might pass
+between them should their dialogue be resumed.
+
+"Your highness asks me what and who has made me a spy upon your
+actions," said the negro in a low, monotonous voice, and speaking with
+mingled firmness and respect. "Those questions are easily answered. The
+same authority which ordered me to wrest from thine arms some months
+past the lady who might be unfortunate enough to please your highness'
+fancy, exercises an unceasing supervision over you, even on this ship,
+and in the middle of the mighty sea. To that authority all your deeds
+and acts are matters of indifference save those which would render your
+highness faithless to an adoring wife. Remember, my lord, the fate of
+Calanthe, the sister of your dependent Demetrius, she who was torn from
+your arms, and whose beauteous form became food for the fishes of the
+Bosporus."
+
+"How knew you who she was?" demanded the grand vizier, in a low, hoarse
+voice, the power of his utterance having been temporarily suspended by
+the rage that filled his soul at finding his iniquitous design in
+respect to Nisida thus suddenly baffled by the chief of the three black
+slaves, whose attendance in this expedition had been forced upon him by
+the Sultana Valida; "how knew you who she was?" he again asked.
+
+"Rather demand, my lord, what can escape the prying eyes of those by
+whom your highness has been surrounded ever since the seals of office
+were in your grasp," returned the slave.
+
+"But you would not betray that secret to Demetrius, who is now devoted
+to me, who is necessary to me, and who would loathe me were he to learn
+the dreadful fate of his sister!" said the grand vizier, with rapid and
+excited utterance.
+
+"I have no eyes and no ears, great pasha," said the negro, "save in
+respect to those matters which would render you faithless to the sister
+of the sultan."
+
+"Would to Heaven that you had neither eyes nor ears at all--that you did
+not exist, indeed!" exclaimed Ibrahim, unable to repress his wrath;
+then, in a different and milder tone, he immediately added, "Slave, I
+can make thee free--I can give thee wealth--and thou mayest dwell in
+happy Italy, whither we are going, for the remainder of thy days.
+Reflect, consider! I love that deaf and dumb Christian woman who
+sleepeth there--I already love her to distraction! Thwart me not, good
+slave, and thou mayest command my eternal gratitude."
+
+"My lord, two other slaves overhear every word that now passes between
+us," responded the Ethiopian, his voice remaining calm and monotonous;
+"and even were we alone in all respects, I would not betray the trust
+reposed in me. But not on your highness would the effects of your
+infidelity to the Princess Aischa fall. No, my lord--I have no authority
+to harm you. Had your highness succeeded in your purpose ere now, the
+bow-string would have forever stifled the breath in the body of that
+deaf and dumb Christian lady; and her corpse would have been thrown
+forth from these windows into the sea. Such are my instructions, my
+lord; and thus every object of your sated passion must become your
+victim also."
+
+"Better--better were it," exclaimed Ibrahim, in a tone denoting the
+profoundest mental anguish, "to be the veriest mendicant who implores
+alms at the gate of the mosque of St. Sophia, than the grand vizier of
+the Ottoman Empire."
+
+With these words he rushed into the adjoining saloon, the negro
+following and fastening the door behind him. Nisida now began to breathe
+freely once more. From what perils had she escaped! The violation of her
+couch by the unprincipled Ibrahim would have been followed by her
+immediate assassination at the hands of the Ethiopian whom the
+sultana-mother had placed as a spy on the actions of her son-in-law. On
+the other hand, she felt rejoiced that the incident of this night had
+occurred; for it had been the means of revealing to her a secret of
+immense importance in connection with the grand vizier. She remembered
+the terms of grief and affection in which Demetrius had spoken of the
+disappearance of Calanthe; and she had heard enough on that occasion to
+convince her that the Greek would become the implacable enemy of any man
+who had wronged that much-loved sister. How bitter, then, would be the
+hatred of Demetrius--how dreadful would be the vengeance which he must
+crave against him whose lustful passion had led to the murder of
+Calanthe. Yes, Ibrahim, thy secret is now in possession of Nisida of
+Riverola; in the possession of that woman of iron mind and potent
+energy, and whom thou fondly believest to be deaf and dumb!
+
+Nisida slept no more that night, the occurrences of which furnished her
+with so much food for profound meditation: and with the earliest gleam
+of dawn that tinged the eastern heaven, she rose from her couch.
+Entering the saloon, she opened the windows to admit the gentle breeze
+of morning; and ere she commenced her toilet, she lingered to gaze upon
+the stately ships that were plowing the blue sea in the wake of the
+admiral's vessel wherein she was. Suddenly her eyes fell upon what
+appeared to be a small speck at a little distance; but as this object
+was moving rapidly along on the surface of the Mediterranean, it soon
+approached sufficiently near to enable her to discern that it was a boat
+impelled by a single sail. Urged by an undefinable and yet a strong
+sentiment of curiosity, Nisida remained at the saloon window, watching
+the progress of the little bark, which bounded over the waves with
+extraordinary speed, bending gracefully to the breeze that thus wafted
+it onward. Nearer and nearer toward the vessel it came, though not
+pursuing the same direction; and in five minutes it passed within a few
+yards of the stern of the kapitan-pasha's ship.
+
+But, oh! wondrous and unaccountable fact. There, stretched upon his back
+in that bounding boat, and evidently buried in deep slumber, with the
+rays of the rising sun gleaming upon his fine and now slightly flushed
+countenance, lay he whose image was so indelibly impressed upon the
+heart of Nisida--her handsome and strangely-fated Fernand Wagner! The
+moment the conviction that the sleeper was indeed he struck to the mind
+of Nisida, she would have called him by name--she would have endeavored
+to awake him, if only to exchange a single word of fondness, for her
+assumed dumbness was for the moment forgotten; but she was rendered
+motionless and remained speechless--stupefied, paralyzed, as it were,
+with mingled wonder and joy; wonder that he should have found the means
+of escape from the island, and joy that she was thus permitted to behold
+him at least once again. But the pleasure which this incident excited in
+her mind was transitory indeed; for the boat swept by, as if urged on by
+a stronger impulse than that of the gentle breeze of morning--and in
+another minute Nisida beheld it no more.
+
+The sun was setting behind the western hills of Sicily as Fernand Wagner
+entered the squalid suburb which at that period stretched from the town
+of Syracuse to the sea. His step was elastic, and he held his head
+high--for his heart was full of joyous and burning hope. Hitherto the
+promises of the angel who had last appeared to him were completely
+fulfilled. The boat was wafted by a favorable breeze direct from the
+Island of Snakes to the shores of Sicily; and he had landed in the
+immediate vicinity of Syracuse--the town in which a further revelation
+was to be made in respect to the breaking of the spell which had fixed
+upon him the frightful doom of the Wehr-Wolf! But little suspected
+Fernand Wagner that one morning, while he slept, his boat had borne him
+through the proud fleet of the Ottomans--little wist he that his beloved
+Nisida had caught sight of him as he was wafted rapidly past the stern
+of the kapitan-pasha's ship! For on that occasion he had slept during
+hours; and when he had awakened, not a bark nor sail save his own was
+visible on the mighty expanse of water.
+
+And now it was with elastic step and joyous heart that the hero of our
+tale entered the town of Syracuse. But suddenly he remembered the
+singular nature of the inquiry that he was there to make--an inquiry
+concerning a man whose years had numbered one hundred and sixty-two!
+
+"Nevertheless," thought Wagner, "that good angel who gave me a sign
+whereby I should become convinced of the reality of her appearance, and
+whose promises have all been fulfilled up to this point, could not
+possibly mislead me. No; I will obey the command which I received, even
+though I should visit every human dwelling in the town of Syracuse! For
+Heaven works out its wise purposes in wondrous manners; and it is not
+for me to shrink from yielding obedience to its orders, nor to pause to
+question their propriety. And oh! if I can but shake off that demon
+influence which weighs upon my soul--if I can but escape from the
+shackles which still enchain me to a horrible doom, how sincere will be
+my thanks to Heaven, how unbounded my rejoicings!"
+
+As Wagner had reached this point in his meditations, he stopped at the
+door of a barber shop of mean appearance--the pole, with the basin
+hanging to it, denoting that the occupant of the place combined, as was
+usual in those times, the functions of shaver and blood-letter or
+surgeon. Hastily surveying the exterior of the shop, and fancying that
+it was precisely the one at which his inquiries should commence--barbers
+in that age being as famous for their gossiping propensities as in
+this--Fernand entered, and was immediately accosted by a short,
+sharp-visaged, dark-complexioned old man, who pointed to a seat, saying
+in a courteous, or rather obsequious tone, "What is your will, signor?"
+
+Fernand desired the barber-surgeon to shave his superfluous beard and
+trim his hair; and while that individual was preparing his lather and
+sharpening his razor in the most approved style of the craft, Wagner
+asked in a seemingly careless tone, "What news have you, good master, in
+Syracuse?"
+
+"Naught of importance, signor," was the reply; "mere everyday matters.
+Syracuse is indeed wretchedly dull. There were only two murders and
+three attempts at assassination reported to the lieutenant of police
+this morning, and that is nothing for a town usually so active and
+bustling as ours. For my part, I don't know what has come over the
+people? I stepped as far as the dead-house just now to view the body of
+a young lady, unclaimed as yet, who had her head nearly severed from her
+trunk last night; and then I proceeded to the great square to see
+whether any executions are to take place to-morrow; but really there is
+nothing of any consequence to induce one to stir abroad in Syracuse just
+at this moment."
+
+"Murders and attempts at assassination are matters of very common
+occurrence amongst you, then?" said Wagner, inquiringly.
+
+"We get a perfect surfeit of them, signor," returned the barber, now
+applying the soap to his customer's face. "They fail to create any
+sensation now, I can assure you. Beside, one gets tired of executions."
+
+"Naturally enough," said Fernand. "But I have heard that there are some
+very extraordinary personages in Syracuse; indeed, there is one who has
+lived to a remarkable age----"
+
+"The oldest person I know of, is the Abbot of St. Mary's," interrupted
+the barber, "and he----"
+
+"And he----" repeated Wagner, with feverish impatience.
+
+"Is ninety-seven and three months, signor; a great age, truly,"
+responded the barber-surgeon.
+
+Fernand's hopes were immediately cooled down; but thinking that he ought
+to put his inquiry in a direct manner, he said: "Then it is not true
+that you have in Syracuse an individual who has reached the wondrous age
+of a century three-score and two?"
+
+"Holy Virgin have mercy upon you, signor!" ejaculated the barber, "if
+you really put faith in the absurd stories that people tell about the
+Rosicrucians!"
+
+"Ah! then the people of Syracuse do talk on such matters?" said Wagner,
+conceiving that he had obtained a clew to the aim and object of his
+inquiry.
+
+"Have you never heard, signor, of the Order of the Rosy Cross?" demanded
+the barber, who was naturally of a garrulous disposition, and who now
+appeared to have entered on a favorite subject.
+
+"I have heard, in my travels, vague mention made of such an order,"
+answered Fernand; "but I never experienced any curiosity to seek to
+learn more--and, indeed, I may say, that I know nothing of the
+Rosicrucians save their mere name."
+
+"Well, signor," continued the barber, "for common pass-talk, it is as
+good a subject as any other; but no one shall ever persuade me either
+that there is really such an order as the Brothers of the Rosy Cross, or
+that it is possible for human beings to attain the powers attributed to
+that fraternity."
+
+"You interest me much by your remarks, good leech," exclaimed Fernand;
+"I pray you to give me further explanation."
+
+"With infinite pleasure, signor, since you appear to desire it,"
+returned the barber, still pursuing his tonsorial duties. "You must know
+that there are many wild legends and stories abroad concerning these
+invisible beings denominated Rosicrucians. But the one which gains most
+general credence is that the brotherhood was founded by a certain
+Christianus Rosencrux, a German philosopher, who fancied that the arts
+and sciences might be developed in such a manner as to confer the
+greatest possible blessings on the human race."
+
+"Then the aims of Rosencrux are entirely good and philanthropic?" said
+Wagner, interrogatively.
+
+"As a matter of course, signor," said the barber; "and therefore, if
+such a man ever did live, he must have been an insane visionary--for who
+would believe that knowledge could possibly make us richer, happier, or
+better? All the philosophy in the universe could never convert this shop
+into a palace."
+
+"But you are wandering from your subject, my good friend," gently
+remonstrated Fernand.
+
+"I crave your pardon, signor. Let me see. Oh, I recollect; we were
+talking of Christianus Rosencrux. Well, signor, the fabled philosopher
+was a monk, and a very wise as well as a very good man. I am only
+telling you the most generally received legend, mind, and would not have
+you think that I believe it myself. So this Rosencrux, finding that his
+cloistral existence was inconvenient for the prosecution of his studies,
+traveled into the East, and spent many years in acquiring the knowledge
+handed down to the wise men of those climes by the ancient Magi and
+Chaldeans. He visited Egypt, and learnt many wonderful secrets by
+studying the hieroglyphics on the Egyptian pyramids. I forget how long
+he remained in the East; but it is said that he visited every place of
+interest in the Holy Land, and received heavenly inspirations on the
+spot where our Saviour was crucified. On his return to Europe, he saw
+full well that if he revealed all his knowledge at once, he would be put
+to death by the inquisition as a wizard, and the world would lose the
+benefit of all the learning he had acquired. So says the legend; and it
+goes on to recite that Christianus Rosencrux then founded the order of
+the Rosy Cross, which was nothing more or less than a brotherhood of
+wise men whom he initiated in all his secrets, with the intention that
+they should reveal from time to time small portions thereof, and thus
+give to the world by very slow degrees that immense amount of knowledge
+which he supposed would have stupefied and astounded everybody if made
+public all at once."
+
+"Strange--most strange," thought Wagner within himself, "that I should
+never have gleaned all these details before, eager as my inquiries and
+researches in the pursuit of knowledge have been. But Heaven has willed
+everything for the best; and it is doubtless intended that my salvation
+shall proceed from the very quarter which was least known to me, and
+concerning which I have manifested the most contemptuous indifference,
+in the sphere of knowledge!"
+
+"You appear to be much interested, signor," said the barber, "in this
+same tale of Christianus Rosencrux. But there is too much intelligence
+depicted on your countenance to allow me to suppose that you will place
+any reliance on the absurd story. How is it possible, signor, that an
+order could have existed for so many years without any one member ever
+having betrayed the secrets which bind them all together? Moreover,
+their place of abode and study is totally unknown to the world; and if
+they inhabited the deepest caverns under the earth accident must, sooner
+or later, have led to its discovery. Believe me, signor, 'tis naught
+save a ridiculous legend; though a poor, ignorant man myself, I hope I
+have too much good sense and too much respect for my father-confessor,
+to suppose for a minute that there is on earth any set of men more
+learned than the holy ministers of the church."
+
+"How long ago is Christianus Rosencrux reported to have lived?" demanded
+Wagner, suddenly interrupting the garrulous and narrow-minded Sicilian.
+
+"There we are again!" he ejaculated. "The credulous declare that
+Rosencrux discovered in the East the means of prolonging existence, and
+though he was born as far back as the year 1359, he is still alive."
+
+Had not the barber turned aside at that precise instant to fill an ewer
+and place a towel for his customer's use, he would have been surprised
+by the sudden start and the expression of ineffable joy which denoted
+Fernand's emotions, as by a rapid calculation mentally made, our hero
+perceived that if Rosencrux were born in 1359, and alive at that
+moment--namely, in 1521--his age would be exactly one hundred and
+sixty-two!
+
+"It is Christianus Rosencrux, then," he said to himself, "whom I have
+inquired for--whom I am to see--and who will dissolve the spell that has
+been placed upon me. But where shall I seek him? whither shall I go to
+find his secret abode?"
+
+The duties of the barber were completed; and Wagner threw down a piece
+of gold, saying, "Keep that coin, friend, for your discourse has greatly
+interested me, and has indeed well deserved it."
+
+The poor old man had never possessed in all his life so much money at
+one time; and so vast was his joy that he could only mutter a few broken
+sentences to express his gratitude.
+
+"I require not thanks, my good friend," said Wagner. "But one word ere I
+depart. Knowest thou the spot which rumor indicates as the abode of that
+sect of whom we have been speaking?"
+
+"Nay, excellent signor," replied the barber; "there your question
+masters me; for in this case rumor goes not to such a length as to
+afford hints for an investigation which would prove its utter fallacy.
+All that I have heard, signor, concerning the Rosicrucians, you have
+learnt from my lips; and I know no more."
+
+Wagner, finding that further inquiry in that quarter was useless, took
+leave of the old man, and traversing the suburb, entered the town of
+Syracuse.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LIX.
+
+
+Fernand was now at a loss how to act. He felt convinced that it was
+useless to institute any further inquiries relative to the whereabouts
+of the secret Order of the Rosy Cross; because, had popular rumor ever
+hinted at any clew in that respect, the garrulous and inquisitive barber
+would have been sure to hear of it. He was not, however, disheartened.
+No--very far from that; for he was confident that the same supernal
+power that had hitherto directed him, and which was rapidly clearing
+away all obstacles in his path toward perfect emancipation from the
+influence of the evil one, would carry him to a successful and
+triumphant issue. Throwing himself, therefore, entirely on the wisdom
+and mercy of Heaven, he roamed about the town of Syracuse, without any
+settled object in view, until he was much wearied and it was very late.
+He then entered a miserable hostel, or inn--the best, however, that he
+could discover; and there, having partaken of some refreshment, he
+retired to the chamber allotted to him. Sleep soon visited his eyes; but
+he had not long enjoyed the sweets of slumber, when that balmy repose
+was interrupted either by a touch or sound, he knew not which. Starting
+up in his couch, he perceived a tall figure, muffled in a huge dark
+mantle, and wearing a slouched broad-brimmed hat, standing by the side
+of the bed.
+
+"Rise, Fernand Wagner," said a mild but masculine voice, "and follow me.
+He whom thou seekest has sent me to lead thee to him."
+
+Wagner did not hesitate to obey this mandate, which he felt certain was
+connected with the important business that had borne him to Syracuse.
+His apparel was speedily assumed; and he said, "I am ready to follow
+thee, stranger, whoever thou art, and whithersoever thou mayst lead; for
+my faith is in Heaven."
+
+"Those who have faith shall prosper," observed the stranger, in a solemn
+tone.
+
+He then led the way noiselessly down the steep staircase of the inn, and
+issued forth by the front gate, closely followed by Wagner. In deep
+silence did they proceed through the dark, narrow, and tortuous streets,
+leaving at length the town behind them, and then entering upon a barren
+and uneven waste. By degrees an object, at first dimly seen in the
+distance, and by the uncertain moonlight, which was constantly
+struggling with the dark clouds of a somewhat tempestuous night, assumed
+a more defined appearance, until a mass of gigantic ruins at length
+stood out from the somber obscurity. In a few moments the moon shone
+forth purely and brightly; and its beams, falling on decayed buttresses,
+broken Gothic arches, deep entrance-ways, remnants of pinnacles and
+spires, massive walls of ruined towers, gave a wildly romantic and yet
+not unpicturesque aspect to the remains of what was evidently once a
+vast monastic institution. The muffled stranger led the way amongst the
+ruins, and at last stopped at a gate opening into a small square
+inclosure formed by strong iron railings, seven feet high and shaped at
+the points like javelins. Passing through the gateway, the guide
+conducted Wagner into a cemetery, which was filled with the marble tombs
+of the mitered abbots who had once held sway over the monastery and the
+broad lands attached to it.
+
+"You behold around you," said the muffled stranger, waving his arm
+toward the ruins, "all that remains of a sanctuary once the most
+celebrated in Sicily for the piety and wisdom of its inmates. But a
+horrible crime, a murder perpetrated under circumstances unusually
+diabolical, the criminal being no less a person than the last lord abbot
+himself, and the victim a beauteous girl whom he had seduced, rendered
+this institution accursed in the eyes of God and man. The monks
+abandoned it: and the waste over which you have passed is now the
+unclaimed but once fertile estate belonging to the abbey. The
+superstition of the Sicilians has not failed to invent terrific tales in
+connection with these ruins: and the belief that each night at twelve
+o'clock the soul of the guilty abbot is driven by the scourge of the
+demon through the scene alike of his episcopal power and his black
+turpitude, effectually prevents impertinent or inconvenient intrusion."
+
+The observation with which the muffled stranger concluded his brief
+narrative, convinced Wagner that it was amongst those ruins the brethren
+of the Rosy Cross had fixed their secret abode. But he had no time for
+reflection, inasmuch as his guide hurried him on amidst the tombs, on
+which the light of the silver moon now streamed with a power and an
+effect that no dark cloud for the time impaired. Stopping at the base of
+one of the most splendid monuments in the cemetery, the muffled stranger
+touched some secret spring, and a large marble block immediately opened
+like a door, the aperture revealing a narrow flight of stone steps.
+Wagner was directed to descend first, a command which he obeyed without
+hesitation, his guide closing the marble entrance ere he followed. For
+several minutes the two descended in total darkness. At length, a faint,
+glimmering light met Wagner's view; and as he proceeded it grew stronger
+and stronger, until it became of such dazzling brilliancy that his eyes
+ached with the supernatural splendor. That glorious luster was diffused
+from a silver lamp, hanging to the arched roof of a long passage, or
+corridor of masonry, to which the stone steps led.
+
+"Fernand Wagner," said the guide, in his mild and somewhat monotonous
+voice, "thou now beholdest the eternal lamp of the Rosicrucians. For a
+hundred and twenty years has that lamp burnt with as powerful a luster
+as that which it now sheds forth; and never once--no, not once during
+that period, has it been replenished. No human hand has touched it since
+the day when it was first suspended there by the great founder of our
+sect."
+
+All doubt was now dispelled from the mind of Wagner--if a doubt he had
+even for a moment entertained since the muffled stranger had summoned
+him from the inn:--he was indeed in the secret abode of the holy sect of
+the Rosy Cross! His guide, too, was a member of that brotherhood--and
+there, almost too dazzling to gaze upon, burnt the eternal lamp which
+was the symbol of the knowledge cherished by the order! Wagner turned to
+gaze in wonder and admiration upon his guide: and beneath the broad brim
+of the slouched hat, he beheld a countenance venerable with years,
+imposing with intelligence, and benevolent with every human charity.
+"Wise and philanthropic Rosicrucian!" exclaimed Wagner, "I offer thee my
+deepest gratitude for having permitted me to enter this sanctuary. But
+how camest thou to learn that I sought admittance hither? and unveil to
+me the great mysteries of this place."
+
+"We are the servants of holy angels, who reveal to us in visions the
+will of the Most High," answered the Rosicrucian; "and they who
+commanded me to bring thee hither, will induce thine heart to retain our
+secret inviolable."
+
+"Not for worlds," cried Wagner, with an enthusiasm which denoted
+sincerity, "would I betray ye!"
+
+"'Tis well," said the Rosicrucian, with philosophic calmness--as if he
+put more faith in the protecting influence of Heaven than in the
+promises of man. "I shall not accompany thee further. Follow that
+passage: at the extremity there are two corridors branching off in
+different directions; but thou wilt pursue the one leading to the right.
+Proceed fearlessly, and stop not till thou shalt stand in the presence
+of the founder of the sect."
+
+Fernand hastened to obey these directions, and having threaded the two
+passages, he entered a large and rudely-hollowed cavern, where the
+feelings of mingled awe and suspense with which he had approached it
+were immediately changed into deep veneration and wonder as he found
+himself in the presence of one who, by his appearance, he knew could he
+none other than Christianus Rosencrux! Never had Fernand beheld a being
+of such venerable aspect; and, though old--evidently very old, as indeed
+Wagner knew him to be--yet the founder of the celebrated Rosicrucians
+manifested every appearance of possessing a vigorous constitution, as he
+was assuredly endowed with a magnificent intellect. His beard was long
+and white as snow; a century and three score years had not dimmed the
+luster of his eyes; and his form, though somewhat bent, was masculine
+and well-knit. He was seated at a table covered with an infinite variety
+of scientific apparatus; and articles of the same nature were strewed
+upon the ground. To the roof hung an iron lamp, which indeed burnt
+faintly after the brilliant luster of the eternal flame that Wagner had
+seen in the passage; but its flickering gleam shone lurid and ominous on
+a blood-red cross suspended to the wall. Fernand drew near the table,
+and bowed reverentially to the Rosicrucian chief, who acknowledged his
+salutation with a benignant smile.
+
+"Wagner," he said, in a firm but mild tone, "I have been forewarned of
+thy coming, and am prepared to receive thee. Thy constant and unvarying
+faith in Heaven has opened to thee the gates of salvation; and it is
+mine to direct thee how to act, that the dreadful doom which thou hast
+drawn upon thyself may be annihilated soon and forever."
+
+The venerable man paused, and Fernand again bowed lowly and with
+profound respect.
+
+"So soon as the morning's sun shall have revisited this hemisphere,"
+continued Rosencrux, "thou must depart for Italy. Start not,
+Fernand--but prepare to obey that power which will sustain thee. On
+arriving in Italy, proceed direct to Florence; and fear not to enter
+that city even in the broad daylight. Thou wilt not be harmed! There
+await the current of those circumstances that must lead to the grand
+event which is ordained to break the spell that has cast upon thee the
+doom of a Wehr-Wolf. For as thou didst voluntarily unite thyself in the
+face of heaven with Donna Nisida of Riverola, so it is decreed, for the
+wisest purposes, that a circumstance intimately connected with her
+destiny must become a charm and a talisman to change thine own. On thine
+arrival in Florence, therefore, seek not to avoid Lady Nisida; but
+rather hasten at once to her presence--and again I say, a supernal power
+will protect thee from any baneful influence which she might still
+exercise over thee. For, the spell that the evil one hath cast upon
+thee, Fernand Wagner, shall be broken only on that day and in that hour
+when thine eyes shall behold the skeletons of two innocent victims
+suspended to the same beam!"
+
+Having uttered these words in a louder and hurried, but not the less
+impressive tone, than he had at first used, Christianus Rosencrux
+motioned impatiently for Wagner to depart. And Fernand, amazed and
+horrified at the dreadful words which had met his ears, retreated from
+the cavern and sped rapidly back to the spot where he had quitted his
+guide, whom he found waiting his return beneath the undying lamp. The
+Rosicrucian conducted Wagner in silence from that deep and subterranean
+abode beneath the tomb; thence through the cemetery amidst the ruins of
+the monastery--and across the wild waste, back to Syracuse; nor did the
+muffled brother of the Rosy Cross take leave of Fernand until they had
+reached the door of the hostel. There they parted, the Rosicrucian
+invoking a blessing upon the head of Wagner, who regained his chamber
+without disturbing the other inmates of the house: but with the
+conflicting emotions of ardent hopes and appalling fears, and holy
+aspirations, filling his breast. By degrees, however, as he was enabled
+to reason to himself with increasing calmness, the fears and the doubts
+became fainter and fainter, while the hopes and the aspirations grew
+stronger and stronger: and at length, throwing himself upon his knees,
+he exclaimed fervently, "O Lord, deal with me as thou wilt--thy will be
+done!"
+
+It was late in the afternoon of a sultry day, toward the close of
+September, or, to be more particular, on the 25th of that month, that a
+numerous and brilliant cavalcade, on emerging from a grove which bounded
+one of the sinuosities of the Arno, came within sight of the towers and
+pinnacles of Florence.
+
+On the white felt turbans of a hundred and fifty Ottoman soldiers
+glistened the crescent, the symbol of Islamism; and their steel-sheathed
+scimiters and the trappings of their horses sent forth a martial din as
+they were agitated by the rapidity of the march.
+
+Forty-eight slaves, also mounted on steeds procured at Leghorn, followed
+the soldiers with a short interval between the two corps, and in the
+space thus left, rode the Greek Demetrius and Lady Nisida of Riverola.
+The latter wore the garb of her sex, and sat upon her horse with the
+grace of an amazonian queen.
+
+The moment the cavalcade came in sight of the fair City of Flowers, a
+flush of joy and triumph suddenly diffused itself over Nisida's
+countenance; and her lips were simultaneously compressed to prevent the
+utterance of that exclamation of gladness which her heart sent up to her
+tongue.
+
+Demetrius now commanded a temporary halt; addressing himself to a
+Turkish youth, who had been attached to his person in the capacity of
+secretary, he said, "Yakoub, hie thou in advance, with an escort of two
+soldiers and two slaves, and push on to Florence. There seek an
+immediate interview with the president of the council of state, and
+acquaint that high functionary with the tidings of my approach. Thou
+wilt inform him that I am about to enter Florence in the peaceful
+capacity of envoy from the puissant and most glorious Ibrahim Pasha, the
+vizier of the sultan, to treat on divers matters interesting to the
+honor of the Ottoman Porte and the welfare of all Italy. In the
+meantime, I shall so check our speed that we may not reach the city
+until after sunset, which arrangement will afford you two full hours to
+accomplish the mission which I now trust to thee."
+
+Yakoub bowed, and hastened to obey the commands which he had
+received--speeding toward Florence, attended by two soldiers and two
+slaves. Demetrius then ordered his party to dismount and rest for a
+short space upon the banks of the Arno. Some of his slaves immediately
+pitched a tent, into which he conducted Nisida; and refreshments were
+served to them.
+
+When the repast was concluded, and they were left alone together for a
+few minutes, Nisida's manner suddenly changed from calm patrician
+reserve to a strange agitation--her lips quivered, her eyes flashed
+fire;--and then, as if desperately resolved to put into execution the
+idea which she had formed, she seized Demetrius by the hand, bent her
+head toward him, and murmured in the faintest whisper possible, "Start
+not to hear the sound of my voice! I am neither deaf nor dumb. But this
+is not the place for explanations. I have much to tell, you much to
+hear--for I can speak to thee of Calanthe, and prove that he whom thou
+servest so zealously is a wretch meriting only thy vengeance."
+
+"My God! my God!--what marvels are now taking place!" murmured the
+Greek, surveying Nisida in profound astonishment not unmingled with
+alarm.
+
+"Silence--silence, I implore you!" continued she, in the rapid, low, and
+yet distinctly audible whisper, "for _your_ sake--for _mine_, betray me
+not! Deaf and dumb must I appear--deaf and dumb must I yet be deemed for
+a short space. But to-night, at twelve o'clock, you will meet me,
+Demetrius, in the garden of the Riverola mansion;--and then I will
+conduct you to an apartment where we may confer without fear of being
+overheard--without danger of interruption."
+
+"I will not fail thee, lady," said the Greek, scarcely able to recover
+from the amazement into which Nisida's sudden revelation of her power of
+speech and hearing had thrown him: then, as an oppressive feeling seized
+upon his soul, he demanded, "But Calanthe, lady, in the name of heaven!
+one word more and let that word give me hope that I may see my sister
+again!"
+
+"Demetrius," answered Nisida, her countenance becoming ominous and
+somber, "you will never behold her more. The lust of Ibrahim Pasha--nay,
+start not so violently--brought destruction and death upon Calanthe!"
+
+The features of the young Greek were at first distorted with anguish,
+and tears started from his eyes: but in the next moment their expression
+changed to one denoting the fiercest rage.
+
+Nisida understood all that was passing in his soul; and she bent upon
+him a significant glance, which said more eloquently than language could
+have done--"Yes, vengeance thou shalt have!"
+
+She then rose from the velvet cushions which had been spread upon the
+ground within the tent, and waving her hand in token of temporary
+farewell to Demetrius, hastened forth, mounted her horse, and departed,
+alone and unattended, toward Florence.
+
+Great was the surprise that evening of the numerous servants and
+dependents at the Riverola mansion, when Donna Nisida suddenly
+reappeared after an absence of very nearly seven months--and that
+absence so unaccountable to them! Although her haughty and imperious
+manner had never been particularly calculated to render her beloved by
+the menials of the household, yet her supposed affliction of deafness
+and dumbness had naturally made her an object of interest; and,
+moreover, as close upon three months had elapsed since Count Francisco
+himself had disappeared in a strange and alarming way two days only
+after his return from the wars, the domestics were pleased to behold at
+least one member of the lost family come back amongst them. Thus it was
+with sincere demonstrations of delight that the dependents and menials
+welcomed Donna Nisida at Riverola; and she was not ungracious enough to
+receive their civilities with coldness. But she speedily escaped from
+the ceremonies of this reception: and, intimating by signs to the female
+minions who were about to escort her to her apartments that she was
+anxious to be alone, she hurried thither, her heart leaping with joy at
+the thought of being once more beneath the roof of the palace of her
+forefathers. And, Fernand--wast thou forgotten? Oh! no--no; in spite of
+all her revived schemings and new plots, Nisida, thy well-beloved
+Nisida, had room in her heart for thine image! On reaching her own suit
+of apartments, the key of which had been handed to her by one of the
+female dependents, Nisida found everything in the same state as when she
+last was there; and it appeared to her a dream, yes, a very wondrous
+dream, that she had been absent for nearly seven months, and during that
+period had seen and experienced such strange vicissitudes. The reader
+need scarcely be informed that Nisida's first impulse, on entering her
+own suit of apartments in the Riverola mansion, was to hasten and gaze
+once more upon the portrait of her mother, and intent, earnest,
+enthusiastic was the upraised look now fixed upon that portrait, even as
+when we first saw Nisida contemplating the sweet and benignant
+countenance in the second chapter of our narrative. Yes:--and again was
+her gaze indicative of a devotion, an adoration, a worship.
+
+"Oh! my sainted mother," thought Nisida within her breast, "I have not
+proved ultimately faithless to the solemn vows I pledged to thee upon
+thy death-bed! No; if for a time I yielded to the voluptuous idleness of
+love and passion in that now far off Mediterranean isle, yet, at last
+did I arouse myself to energy for young Francisco's sake, and I came
+back as soon as Heaven sent me the means of return to the place where my
+presence may best serve _his_ interests, and carry out _thy_ wishes!
+For, oh! when thou wast alive, my worshiped, my adored mother, how good,
+how kind, how affectionate wast thou toward me. And that tenderness of a
+mother for her offspring, ah! how well can I comprehend it now; for I
+also shall soon become a mother. Yes, Fernand! within the last week I
+have received the conviction that a being bearing thine image will see
+the light in due time; and the honor of the proud name of Riverola
+requires that our child must not be born of an unwedded mother! But wilt
+thou seek me out, Fernand? Oh! where art thou now? whither was the bark,
+in which I beheld thee last, wafting thee away?"
+
+And, all the while that these thoughts were agitating within her mind,
+Donna Nisida kept her eyes intently fixed on the portrait; but on
+reflecting a second time that should she fail to meet with Wagner soon
+again, or should he prove faithless to her, or if, indeed, he should
+nurse resentment and loathing for her on account of her unworthy conduct
+toward him on the island, and that her child should be born of an
+unwedded mother,--when, we say, she thought of this dread probability a
+second time, she burst into tears, and turned away from the
+contemplation of her mother's countenance. And Nisida so seldom wept,
+that when tears did escape the usually sealed up springs of her
+emotions, they came in torrents, and were most bitter and painful to
+shed. But she at length triumphed over her feelings, or rather, their
+outpourings relieved her; and now the remembrance of another duty which
+she had resolved upon performing the moment she should reach home again
+was uppermost in her mind. She contemplated a visit to the mysterious
+closet--the dark cabinet of horrible secrets, in order to ascertain
+whether curiosity had triumphed over Francisco's prudence, or if any one
+indeed had violated the loneliness of that chamber in which the late
+Count of Riverola, had breathed his last. She accordingly took a lamp in
+her hand, for it was now far advanced in the evening, and proceeded to
+the apartment where a father's dying injunctions had been given to her
+brother, and which that father and that brother had so little suspected
+to have been heard and greedily drunk in by her ears. The door of the
+room was locked; Nisida accordingly proceeded forthwith to her brother's
+chamber; and there, in a secret place where she knew he had been
+accustomed to keep papers or valuables, she found the key of the chamber
+containing the mysterious closet, but not the key of the closet itself.
+Of this latter circumstance she was glad; inasmuch as she conceived that
+he had adopted her counsel to carry it invariably secured about his
+person, so that no prying domestics might use it in his absence.
+Returning, therefore, with the one key which she had found, she entered
+the apartment where her father had breathed his last.
+
+Unchanged was its appearance, in mournfulness and gloom unchanged, in
+arrangements and features precisely the same as when she last was there,
+on the night when she intercepted the banditti in their predatory visit.
+She drew aside the hangings of the bed, a cloud of dust flew out--and
+for a few moments she stood gazing on the couch where the dark spirit of
+her sire had fled from its mortal tenement! And as she still lingered
+near the bed, the remembrance of the death-scene came so vividly back to
+her mind, that for an instant she fancied she beheld the cold, stern,
+relentless countenance of the late Count of Riverola upon the pillow;
+and she turned away more in loathing and abhorrence than alarm, for
+through her brain flashed in dread association with his memory, the
+awful words--"And as the merciless scalpel hacked and hewed away at the
+still almost palpitating flesh of the murdered man, in whose breast the
+dagger remained deeply buried--a ferocious joy--a savage, hyena-like
+triumph filled my soul; and I experienced no remorse for the deed I had
+done!"
+
+Yes, she turned aside, and was advancing rapidly toward the mysterious
+closet, when--holy God!--was it reality or imagination? Was it a human
+being or a specter from another world? For a tall, dark form, muffled
+apparently in a long cowl--or it might be a cloak, but Nisida was too
+bewildered to discriminate aright--glided from the middle of the room
+where her eyes first beheld it, and was lost to view almost as soon as
+seen. Strong minded as Nisida was, indomitable as was her courage, and
+far away as she was from being superstitious, yet now she staggered,
+reeled, and would have fallen had she not come in contact with the
+mysterious closet, against which she leaned for support. She gasped for
+breath, and her eyes were fixed wildly upon the door by which the
+figures had disappeared. Nevertheless, she had so far retained her
+presence of mind as to grasp the lamp firmly in her hand, for at that
+moment, after such a fright, in the room where her father had died, and
+in the close vicinity of the fearful cabinet, even Nisida would have
+fainted with terror to be left in darkness.
+
+"'Twas imagination--naught save imagination," she thought within
+herself, as she exerted all her power to surmount the alarms that had
+seized upon her. "But no! I remember to have closed the door carefully
+behind me, and now it is open!"
+
+As that reminiscence and conviction flashed to her mind, she nerved
+herself to advance into the passage; but all was silent, and not a soul
+was there save herself. Scarcely knowing what to think, yet ashamed to
+give way to superstitious fears, Nisida retraced her steps, and
+proceeded to examine the door of the closet. She was satisfied that it
+had never been opened since the night of her father's death; for the
+seals which she had induced Francisco to place upon the lock next day
+were still there. But all the while she was thus scrutinizing the door,
+the lock, and the seals, she could not help occasionally casting a
+furtive glance around, to convince herself that the tall, dark, muffled
+form was not standing behind her: and, as she retraced her way to her
+own apartments, she stopped now and then through dread that _other_
+footsteps beside her own echoed in the long and lonely corridors of the
+old mansion. She, however, regained her chamber in safety, and fell into
+a deep reverie respecting the tall figure she had seen. Were it not for
+the fact, of which she was confident, of her having closed the door on
+entering the room where her father had died, she would have concluded
+that her imagination had deluded her; but she now feared lest she might
+be watched by spies for some unknown and hostile purpose. It was
+perplexing, to say the least of it; and Nisida determined to adopt all
+possible precautions against her secret enemies, whoever they might be.
+
+She accordingly arose from her seat--put off her upper garment--donned
+her thin but strong corselet--and then assumed the black velvet robe
+which reached up to her throat, concealing the armor beneath. Her
+flexible dagger--that fatal weapon which had dealt death to the
+unfortunate Agnes--was next thrust into the sheath formed by the wide
+border of her stomacher; and Nisida smiled with haughty triumph as if in
+defiance to her foes. She then repaired to one of the splendid saloons
+of the mansion; and ere she sat down to the repast that was served up,
+she dispatched a note acquainting Dr. Duras with her return, and
+requesting his immediate presence. In about half an hour the physician
+arrived, and his joy at beholding Nisida again was only equaled by his
+impatience to learn the cause of her long absence and all that had
+befallen her during the interval.
+
+She made a sign for the old man to follow her to the retirement of her
+own apartments; and then, having closed the door, she said to him in a
+low tone, "Doctor, we will converse by means of signs no more; for,
+though still forced to simulate the deaf and dumb in the presence of the
+world, yet now--with you, who have all along known my terrible
+secret--our discourse must be too important to be carried on by mere
+signs."
+
+"Nisida," returned Duras, also in a low and cautious tone, "thou knowest
+that I love thee as if thou wast my own daughter; and thy voice sounds
+like music upon my ears. But when will the dreadful necessity which
+renders thee dumb before the world--when will it cease, Nisida?"
+
+"Soon--soon, doctor--if thou wilt aid me," answered the lady.
+
+A long and earnest conversation then ensued; but it is not necessary to
+give the details to the reader, inasmuch as their nature will soon
+transpire. Suffice it to say that Nisida urged a particular request,
+which she backed by such explanation and we must also say
+misrepresentations as she thought suitable to her purpose; and that Dr.
+Duras eventually, though not without compunction and hesitation, at
+length acceded to her prayer. She then gave him a brief account of her
+abduction from Florence by the villain Stephano--her long residence on
+the island of snakes--and her deliverance from thence by the Ottoman
+fleet, which was now off the port of Leghorn. But she said nothing of
+Fernand Wagner: nor did she inform the physician that she was acquainted
+with the cause of Francisco's disappearance and the place where he was
+detained. At length Dr. Duras took his leave; but ere he left the room
+Nisida caught him by the hand, saying, in a low, yet impressive
+tone--"Remember your solemn promise, my dear friend, and induce your
+brother to leave Flora Francatelli to her fate."
+
+"I will--I will," answered the physician. "And after all you have told
+me, and if she be really the bad, profligate, and evil-disposed girl you
+represent her, it will be well that the inquisition should hold her
+tight in its grasp."
+
+With these words Dr. Duras departed, leaving Nisida to gloat over the
+success which her plans had thus far experienced.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LX.
+
+
+It was verging toward midnight, and the moon was concealed behind dark
+clouds, when a tall figure, muffled in a cloak, climbed over the railing
+which inclosed one portion of the spacious garden attached to the
+Riverola Palace. That person was Fernand Wagner. He had arrived in
+Florence two days before that on which Nisida returned to the ancestral
+dwelling:--he had entered the city boldly and openly in the joyous
+sun-light--and yet no one molested him. He even encountered some of the
+very sbirri who had arrested him in the preceding month of February;
+they saluted him respectfully--thus showed that they recognized him--but
+offered not to harm him. His trial, his condemnation, and his escape
+appeared all to have been forgotten. He repaired to his mansion; his
+servants, who had remained in possession of the dwelling, received him
+with demonstrations of joy and welcome as if he had just returned under
+ordinary circumstances from a long journey. Truly, then, he was blessed
+by the protection of Heaven. And--more wondrous still--on entering his
+favorite room he beheld all his pictures in their proper places, as if
+none of them had ever been removed--as if the confiscation of several by
+the criminal tribunal had never taken place. Over the one which had
+proclaimed the secret of his doom to the judges and the audience on the
+occasion of his trial, still hung the black cloth; and an undefinable
+curiosity--no, not a sentiment of curiosity, but one of hope--impelled
+him to remove the covering. And how exquisite was his joy, how great his
+amazement, how sincere his thanksgivings, when he beheld but a blank
+piece of canvas. The horrible picture of the Wehr-Wolf, a picture which
+he had painted when in a strangely morbid state of mind--had
+disappeared. Here was another sign of Heaven's goodness--a further proof
+of celestial mercy.
+
+On instituting inquiries, Fernand had learnt that Donna Nisida had not
+yet come back to Florence: but he employed trusty persons to watch and
+give him notice of her arrival the instant it should occur. Thus Nisida
+had not been half an hour at the Riverola mansion when Fernand was made
+acquainted with her return. From the conversation which had taken place
+between them at various times on the island, and as the reader is well
+aware, Wagner felt convinced that Nisida would again simulate deafness
+and dumbness; and he was therefore desirous to avoid giving her any
+surprise by appearing abruptly before her--a proceeding which might
+evoke a sudden ejaculation, and thus betray her secret. Moreover, he
+knew not whether circumstances would render his visits, made in a public
+manner, agreeable to her: and, perhaps--pardon him, gentle
+reader--perhaps he was also curious to learn whether she still thought
+of him, or whether the excitement of her return had absorbed all tender
+feelings of that nature.
+
+Influenced by these various motives, Wagner muffled himself in a long
+Tuscan cloak and repaired to the vicinity of the Riverola mansion. He
+passed through the gardens without encountering any one, and, perceiving
+a side door open, he entered the building. Ascending the stairs, he
+thought that he should be acting in accordance with the advice given him
+by Rosencrux, and also consistent with prudence, were he at once to seek
+an interview with Nisida privately. He therefore repaired in the
+direction of the principal saloons of the palace; but losing his way
+amidst the maze of corridors, he was about to retire, when he beheld the
+object of his search, the beautiful Nisida, enter a room with a lamp in
+hand. He now felt convinced that he should meet her alone, and he
+hurried after her. In pursuance of his cautious plan, he opened the door
+gently, and was already in the middle of the apartment, when he
+perceived Nisida standing by the side of a bed, and with her head fixed
+in that immovable manner which indicates intent gazing upon some object.
+Instantly supposing that some invalid reposed in that couch, and now
+seized with a dreadful alarm lest Nisida, on beholding him, should utter
+a sudden ejaculation which would betray the secret of her feigned
+dumbness, Fernand considerately retreated with all possible speed: nor
+was he aware that Nisida had observed him, much less that his appearance
+there had excited such fears in her breast, those fears being greatly
+enhanced by his negligence in leaving the door open behind him.
+
+Oh! had Nisida known it was thou, Fernand Wagner, how joyous, how happy
+she would have been; for the conviction that she bore the pledge of your
+mutual passion had made her heart yearn that eve to meet with thee
+again. And was it a like attraction on thy part, or the mysterious
+influence that now guided all thy movements, which induced thee at
+midnight to enter the Riverola gardens again, that thou mightest be, as
+it were, upon the same spot where she dwelt, and scent the fragrance of
+the same flowers that perfumed the atmosphere which she breathed? Oh!
+doubtless it was that mysterious influence; for thou hast now that power
+within thee which made thee strong to resist all the blandishments of
+the siren, and to prefer the welfare of thine own soul to aught in this
+world beside!
+
+We said, then, at the commencement of this chapter that Fernand entered
+the Riverola gardens shortly after midnight. But scarcely had he crossed
+the iron railings, turned into the nearest path formed by shrubs and
+evergreens, when he was startled by hearing another person enter the
+grounds in the same unceremonious manner. Fernand accordingly stood aside
+in the deep shade of the trees; and in a few moments a figure, muffled
+like himself in a cloak, passed him rapidly by. Wagner was debating in
+himself what course he should pursue--for he feared that some treachery
+was intended toward Nisida--when to his boundless surprise, he heard the
+mysterious visitant say in a low tone. "Is it you, lady?"--to which
+question the unmistakable and never-to-be-forgotten voice of his Nisida
+answered, "'Tis I, Demetrius. Follow me noiselessly, and breathe not
+another word for the present!"
+
+Fernand was shocked and grieved at what he had just heard, and which
+savored so strongly of an intrigue. Had not his ears deceived him? was
+this the Nisida from whom he had parted but little more than three weeks
+back, and who had left him that tender note which he had found in the
+hut on the island? But he had no time for reflection; the pair were
+moving rapidly toward the mansion--and Wagner unhesitatingly followed,
+his footsteps being soundless on the damp soil of the borders of
+flowers, and his form being concealed by the shade of the tall
+evergreens which he skirted.
+
+He watched Nisida and her companion until they disappeared by a small
+private door at the back of the mansion; and this door was by them
+incautiously left unlocked, though shut close. It opened rapidly to
+Wagner's hand, and he found himself at the foot of a dark staircase, the
+sound of ascending steps on which met his ears. Up that narrow flight he
+sped, noiselessly but hastily; and in a few moments he was stopped by
+another door which had just closed behind those whom he was following.
+Here he was compelled to pause, in the hope that the partition might not
+be so thick as completely to intercept the sounds of the voices in the
+chamber; but after listening with breathless attention for a few
+minutes, he could not catch even the murmuring of a whisper. It now
+struck him that Nisida and her companion might have passed on into a
+room more remote than the one to which that door had admitted them; and
+he resolved to follow on. Accordingly, he opened the door with such
+successful precaution that not a sound--not even the creaking of the
+hinge was the result; and he immediately perceived that there was a
+thick curtain within; for it will be recollected that this door was
+behind the drapery of Nisida's bed. At the same time, a light, somewhat
+subdued by the thick curtain, appeared; and the sound of voices met
+Fernand's ears.
+
+"Signor," said the melodious voice of Nisida, in its sweetest, softest
+tones, "it is due to myself to tender fitting excuse for introducing you
+thus into my private chamber; but the necessity of discoursing together
+without fear of interruption, and in some place that is secure from the
+impertinence of eavesdroppers, must serve as an apology."
+
+"Lady," replied Demetrius, "it needed no explanation of your motive in
+bringing me hither to command on my part that respect which is due to
+you."
+
+A weight was removed from Wagner's mind: it was assuredly no tender
+sentiment that had brought Nisida and the Greek together this night; and
+the curiosity of Fernand was therefore excited all the more strongly.
+
+"We will not waste time in unnecessary parlance," resumed Nisida, after
+a short pause; "nor must you seek to learn the causes--the powerful
+causes, which have urged me to impose upon myself the awful sacrifice
+involved in the simulation of loss of speech and hearing. Suffice it for
+you to know that, when on board the kapitan-pasha's ship, I overheard
+every syllable of the conversation which one day took place between the
+apostate Ibrahim and yourself,--a conversation wherein you gave a
+detailed account of all your proceedings at Florence, and in the course
+of which you spoke feelingly of your sister Calanthe."
+
+"Alas! poor Calanthe!" exclaimed Demetrius, in a mournful tone; "and is
+she really no more?"
+
+"Listen to me while I relate the manner in which I became aware of her
+fate," said Nisida.
+
+She then explained the treacherous visit of the grand vizier to the
+cabin wherein she had slept on board the Ottoman admiral's ship--the way
+in which the Ethiopian slave had interfered to save her--and the
+conversation that had taken place between Ibrahim and the negro,
+revealing the dread fate of Calanthe.
+
+"Is it possible that I have served so faithfully a man possessed of such
+a demon-heart?" cried Demetrius. "But I will have vengeance, lady; yes,
+the murdered Calanthe shall be avenged!"
+
+"And I too must have vengeance upon the proud and insolent vizier who
+sought to violate all the laws of hospitality in respect to me,"
+observed Nisida, "and who seeks to marry his sister, the low-born Flora,
+the sister of the base renegade, to the illustrious scion of the noble
+house of Riverola! Vengeance, too, must I have upon the wretch Antonio,
+the panderer to my father's illicit and degrading _amours_--the
+miscreant who sought to plunder this mansion, and who even dared to
+utter threats against me in that conversation with his accomplice
+Venturo, which you, signor, overheard in the streets of Florence. This
+game wretch it is, too, who consigned my brother to the custody of
+banditti; and though, for certain reasons, I deplore not that captivity
+which Francisco has endured, inasmuch as it has effectually prevented
+him from interesting himself on behalf of Flora Francatelli, yet as
+Antonio was animated by vengeance only in so using my brother, he shall
+pay the penalty due on account of all his crimes!"
+
+"And in the task of punishing Antonio, lady," said Demetrius, "shall I
+be right glad to aid--for did not the villain deceive me infamously in
+respect to the dispatches which I sought to forward to Constantinople
+when last I was at Florence? and, not contented with that vile
+treachery, even plotted with his accomplice Venturo against my life."
+
+"Vengeance, then, upon our enemies, Demetrius!" exclaimed Nisida. "And
+this is how our aims shall be accomplished," she continued, in a lower
+and less excited tone: "The ambitious views of Ibrahim Pasha must
+experience a signal defeat; and as he is too powerful to be personally
+injured by us, we must torture his soul by crushing his relations--we
+must punish him through the medium of his sister and his aunt. This
+evening I had a long discourse with Dr. Duras, who is devoted to my
+interests, and over whom I wield a wondrous power of persuasion. He has
+undertaken to induce his brother, Angelo Duras, to abandon the cause of
+the Francatellis; and the inquisition will, therefore, deal with them as
+it lists. Father Marco I can also manage as I will; he understands the
+language in which the deaf and dumb converse, for he has so long been
+confessor to our family. To-morrow I will undertake to send him to Rome
+on some charitable mission connected with the church. Thus the only
+persons whom you secured when last you were in Florence, in the
+interests of the Francatellis, will cease to watch over them; and, as
+they are accused of being accomplices in the sacrilege perpetrated in
+the Carmelite Convent, naught will save them from the flames of the
+_auto-da-fe_."
+
+"Oh! spirit of the murdered Calanthe," exclaimed Demetrius, with savage
+joy, "thou wilt be avenged yet! And thou, false vizier, shalt writhe in
+the flames at the stake!"
+
+"Now, as for Antonio, and the rest of the banditti who stormed the
+convent and gave freedom to the hated Flora--who have likewise captured
+my brother--and who have so long been a terror to Florence," continued
+Nisida; "we must annihilate them all at one blow; not a soul of the gang
+must be spared!"
+
+Nisida knew full well that at least some of the banditti were acquainted
+with the fact that she was the murderess of Agnes, and that they could
+also tell an awkward tale of how she sought to bribe them to rescue
+Fernand Wagner in case of an adverse judgment on the part of the
+criminal tribunal. The total annihilation of the horde was consequently
+the large aim at which she aspired, and her energetic mind shrunk not
+from any difficulties that might appear in the way toward the execution
+of that object.
+
+"The design is grand, but not without its obstacles," observed
+Demetrius. "Your ladyship will moreover adopt measures to rescue the
+Lord Count of Riverola first."
+
+"By means of gold everything can be accomplished amongst villains,"
+returned Nisida, "and the necessary preliminaries to the carrying out of
+our object rest with you, signor. To-morrow morning must you seek
+Antonio. He knows not that you suspect his villainy and, as you will say
+nothing relative to the failure in the arrival of your dispatches at
+Constantinople, he will rest secure in the belief that you have not yet
+discovered that deed of treachery. You must represent yourself as the
+mortal enemy of the Count of Riverola, and so speak as to lead Antonio
+to confess to you where he is and offer to become the instrument of your
+vengeance. Then bribe Antonio heavily to deliver up Francisco into your
+power to-morrow night at a particular hour, and at a place not far from
+the spot where you know the secret entrance of the banditti's stronghold
+to be."
+
+"All this, lady," said Demetrius, "can be easily arranged. Antonio would
+barter his soul for gold; much more readily, then, will he sell the
+Count of Riverola to one who bids high for the possession of the noble
+prisoner."
+
+"But this is not all," resumed Nisida, "'tis merely the preface to my
+plan. So soon as the shades of to-morrow's evening shall have involved
+the earth in obscurity, a strong party of your soldiers, properly
+disguised, but well armed, must repair in small sections, or even
+singly, to that grove where you have already obtained a clew to the
+entrance of the robbers' stronghold. Let them conceal themselves amongst
+the trees in the immediate vicinity of the enormous chestnut that
+overhangs the precipice. When the robbers emerge from their
+lurking-place with Francisco, your soldiers will immediately seize upon
+them. Should you then discover the secret of the entrance to the
+stronghold, the object will be gained,--your men will penetrate into the
+subterranean den,--and the massacre of the horde will prove an easy
+matter. But should it occur that those banditti who may be employed in
+leading forth my brother, do shut up the entrance of their den so
+speedily that your dependents discover not its secrets, then must we
+trust to bribery or threats to wrest that secret from the miscreants. At
+all events Antonio will be present to accompany Francisco to the place
+which you will appoint to meet them; and as the villain will fall into
+your power, it will perhaps prove less difficult to induce him to betray
+his comrades, than it might be to persuade any of the banditti
+themselves."
+
+"Lady, your plan has every element of success," observed Demetrius; "and
+all shall be done as you suggest. Indeed, I will myself conduct the
+expedition. But should you thus at once effect the release of Don
+Francisco, will he not oppose your designs relative to the condemnation
+of Flora Francatelli by the inquisition?"
+
+"Dr. Duras is well acquainted with the precise process," answered
+Nisida; "and from him I learnt that the third examination of the
+prisoners will take place to-morrow, when judgment will be pronounced
+should no advocate appear to urge a feasible cause of delay."
+
+"The arrests took place on the 3d of July," said Demetrius; "and Angelo
+Duras undertook to obtain a postponement for three months. To-morrow,
+lady, is but the 26th of September."
+
+"True," responded Nisida; "but were a delay granted, it would be for
+eight days--and thus you perceive how nicely Angelo Duras had weighed
+all the intricacies of the case, and how accurately he had calculated
+the length of the term to be gained by the exercise of the subtleties of
+the inquisitorial law. Therefore, as no advocate will appear to demand
+delay, Flora is certain to be condemned to-morrow night, and the release
+of Francisco may take place simultaneously--for when once the grand
+inquisitor shall have pronounced the extreme sentence, no human power
+can reverse it. And now," added Nisida, "but one word more. The grand
+vizier commanded you to dispatch a courier daily to Leghorn with full
+particulars of all your proceedings; see that those accounts be of a
+nature to lull the treacherous Ibrahim into security--for, were he to
+learn that his aunt and sister are in dread peril, he would be capable
+of marching at the head of all his troops to sack the city of Florence."
+
+"Fear not on that subject, lady," answered Demetrius. "I will so amuse
+the demon-hearted grand vizier by my dispatches, that he shall become
+excited with joyous hopes--so that the blow--the dread blow which we are
+preparing for him--may be the more terribly severe."
+
+The Greek then rose to take his leave of Donna Nisida; and Wagner,
+having closed the secret door as noiselessly as he had opened it,
+hurried away from the Riverola mansion bewildered and grieved at all he
+had heard--for he could no longer conceal from himself that a very fiend
+was incarnate in the shape of her whom he had loved so madly.
+
+Having tossed on a feverish couch for upward of an hour,--unable to
+banish from his mind the cold blooded plot which Nisida and Demetrius
+had resolved upon in order to consign Flora Francatelli and her equally
+innocent aunt to the stake,--Wagner at last slept through sheer
+exhaustion. Then Christianus Rosencrux appeared to him in a dream and
+said:--"Heaven hath chosen thee as the instrument to defeat the
+iniquitous purposes of Riverola in respect of two guiltless and
+deserving women. Angelo Duras is an upright man; but he is deluded and
+misled by the representations made to him by Nisida, through his
+brother, the physician, relative to the true character of Flora. In the
+evening at nine o'clock, hie to Angelo Duras--command him in the name of
+justice and humanity, to do his duty toward his clients--and he will
+obey thee. Then, having performed this much, speed thou without delay to
+Leghorn, and seek the grand vizier, Ibrahim Pasha. To him shalt thou
+merely state that Demetrius is a traitor, and that tremendous perils
+hang over the heads of the vizier's much-loved relatives. Manifest no
+hatred to the vizier on account of his late treacherous intention with
+regard to the honor of Nisida: for vengeance belongeth not to mortals.
+And in these measures only, of all the deeply ramified plots and designs
+which thou didst hear discussed between Nisida and Demetrius, shall thou
+interfere. Leave the rest to Heaven."
+
+The founder of the Rosicrucians disappeared: and when Fernand awoke late
+in the day--for his slumber had been long and deep--he remembered the
+vision which he had seen, and resolved to obey the order he had
+received.
+
+Beneath the massive and heavy tower of the Palazzo del Podesta, or Ducal
+Palace of Florence, was the tribunal of the holy inquisition. Small,
+low, and terribly somber in appearance was this court--with walls of the
+most solid masonry, an arched roof, and a pavement formed of vast blocks
+of dark-veined marble. Thither the light of heaven never penetrated; for
+it was situate far below the level of the earth, and at the very
+foundation of that tower which rose, frowning and sullen, high above.
+Iron lamps diffused a lurid luster around, rendering ghastly the
+countenance alike of the oppressors and the oppressed; and when it was
+deemed necessary to invest the proceedings with a more awe-inspiring
+solemnity than usual, torches, borne by the familiars or officers of the
+inquisition, were substituted for these iron lamps. Over the
+judgment-seat was suspended a large crucifix. On one side of the court
+were three doors,--one communicating with the corridor and flight of
+stone steps leading to and from the tribunal; the second affording
+admission into the torture-chamber and the third opening to the prisons
+of the inquisition.
+
+It was about seven o'clock in the evening, on the 26th of September,
+that Flora Francatelli and her aunt were placed before the grand
+inquisitor, to be examined for the second time. When the familiars,
+habited in their long, black, ecclesiastical dresses with the strange
+cowls or hoods shading their stern and remorseless countenances, led in
+the two females from the separate cells in which they had been confined,
+the first and natural impulse of the unhappy creatures was to rush into
+each other's arms;--but they were immediately torn rudely asunder, and
+so stationed in the presence of the grand inquisitor as to have a
+considerable interval between them.
+
+But the glances which the aunt and niece exchanged, gave encouragement
+and hope to each other, and the sentiments which prompted those glances
+were really cherished by the persecuted females; inasmuch as Father
+Marco, who had been permitted to visit them occasionally, dropped sundry
+hints of coming aid, and powerful, though invisible, protection--thereby
+cheering their hearts to some little extent, and mitigating the
+intensity of their apprehensions. Flora was very pale--but never,
+perhaps, had she appeared more beautiful--for her large blue eyes
+expressed the most melting softness, and her dark brown hair hung
+disheveled over her shoulders, while her bosom heaved with the agitation
+of suspense.
+
+"Woman," said the grand inquisitor, glancing first to the aunt and then
+to the niece, his eyes, however, lingering upon the latter, "know ye of
+what ye are accused? Let the younger speak first."
+
+"My lord," answered Flora, in a firmer tone than might have been
+expected from the feelings indicated by her outward appearance, "when on
+a former occasion I stood in the presence of your eminence, I expressed
+my belief that secret enemies were conspiring, for their own bad
+purposes, to ruin my beloved relative and myself; and yet I call Heaven
+to witness my solemn declaration that knowingly and willfully we have
+wronged no one by word or deed."
+
+"Young woman," exclaimed the grand inquisitor, "thou hast answered my
+questions evasively. Wast thou not an inmate of that most holy
+sanctuary, the convent of Carmelite nuns? wast thou not there the
+companion of Giulia of Arestino? did not a sacrilegious horde of
+miscreants break into the convent, headed or at least accompanied by a
+certain Manuel d'Orsini who was the lover of the countess? was not this
+invasion of the sacred place undertaken to rescue that guilty woman? and
+did she not find an asylum at the abode of your aunt, doubtless with
+your connivance, until the day of her arrest?"
+
+"None of those circumstances, my lord," replied Flora, "do I attempt to
+deny: but it is so easy to give them a variety of colorings, some of
+which, alas! may seem most unfavorable to my venerable relative and to
+myself. Oh, my lord, do with me what thou wilt," exclaimed Flora,
+clasping her hands together in a single paroxysm of anguish; "but
+release that aged woman, suffer not my beloved aunt--my more than mother
+to be thus persecuted! have mercy, my lord, upon _her_--oh! have mercy,
+great judge, upon her."
+
+"Flora--dearest Flora," cried Dame Francatelli, the tears trickling fast
+down her countenance, "I do not wish to leave you--I do not seek to be
+set free--I will stay in this dreadful place so long as you remain a
+prisoner also; for though we are separated----"
+
+"Woman," exclaimed the grand inquisitor, not altogether unmoved by this
+touching scene, "the tribunal cannot take heed of supplications and
+prayers of an impassioned nature. It has to do with facts, not
+feelings."
+
+At this moment there was a slight sensation amongst the familiars
+stationed near the door of the judgment-hall; and an individual who had
+just entered the court, and who wore the black robe and the cap or toque
+of a counselor, advanced toward the grand inquisitor.
+
+"My lord," said the advocate, with a reverential bow, "the day after the
+arrest of these females, I submitted to the council of state a memorial,
+setting forth certain facts which induced the president of the council
+to issue his warrant to order the postponement of the second examination
+of the two prisoners now before your eminence, until this day."
+
+"And the case has been postponed accordingly," answered the grand
+inquisitor. "It will now proceed, unless reasonable cause be shown for
+further delay. The prisoners are obstinate. Instead of confessing their
+heinous crimes, and throwing themselves on the mercy of Heaven--for past
+the hope of human mercy they are--they assuredly break forth into
+impassioned language, savoring of complaint. Indeed, the younger
+attributes to the machinations of unknown enemies the position in which
+she is placed. Yet have we positive proof that she was leagued with
+those who perpetrated the sacrilege which ended in the destruction of
+the Carmelite Convent; and the elder prisoner gave refuge not only to
+the young girl, her niece, but also to a woman more guilty still--thus
+rendering herself infamous as one who encouraged and concealed the
+enemies of the church, instead of giving them up to the most holy
+inquisition. Wherefore," continued the grand inquisitor, "it remaineth
+only for me to order the prisoners to be put to the torture, that they
+may confess their crimes and receive the condemnation which they merit."
+
+At the terrible word "_torture_," Dame Francatelli uttered a cry of
+agony--but it was even more on account of her beloved niece than
+herself; while Flora, endowed with greater firmness than her aunt, would
+have flown to console and embrace her, had not the familiars cruelly
+compelled the young maiden to retain her place.
+
+"My lord," said Angelo Duras--for he was the advocate who appeared on
+behalf of the prisoners--"I formally and earnestly demand a delay of
+eight days ere this final examination be proceeded with."
+
+"It is impossible," returned the grand inquisitor, while his words went
+like ice-shafts to the hearts of the unhappy women. "In addition to the
+charges against them which I have already glanced at, it appeareth that
+one Alessandro Francatelli, who is nearly related to them both, hath
+abjured the Christian faith and become a Mussulman. This fact was
+reported many months ago to the council of state: and in the cottage
+lately habited by the prisoners was found a costly set of jewels,
+ornamented with sundry Moslem devices and symbols, all of which are
+hateful to the true Catholic. It is therefore natural to suppose that
+they themselves have secretly abjured their country's religion, and have
+already received the reward of their apostasy."
+
+"No--never, never!" exclaimed the aunt, clasping her hands together, and
+showing more anguish by this cruel suspicion than by any other portion
+of the treatment which she had received at the hands of the inquisition.
+
+On her side, Flora appeared to be astounded at the accusation made
+against her aunt and herself by the grand inquisitor.
+
+"My lord," said Angelo Duras, "the very statement which has just been
+put forth by your eminence furnishes a new ground whereon I base my
+requisition for a delay of eight days, in order to prepare a fitting
+defense on behalf of the prisoners. The council of state is now sitting
+in deliberation on certain demands made by the newly arrived Ottoman
+envoy, and should your eminence refuse my requisition for a delay, it
+will be my duty forthwith to apply to that august body."
+
+The grand inquisitor endeavored to reason with the advocate on the
+inconvenience of obstructing the business of the tribunal--but Angelo
+Duras, knowing that he had the law on his side, was firm; and the judge
+was finally compelled to accord the delay. Flora and her aunt were
+accordingly conveyed back each to her separate cell; while Angelo Duras
+retired, murmuring to himself, "I shall doubtless offend my brother by
+my conduct in this respect, after my solemn promise to him to abandon
+the cause of the Francatellis; but I prefer having obeyed that young man
+of godlike aspect and persuasive manner who visited me ere now to abjure
+me not to neglect my duty."
+
+The next case that occupied the attention of the grand inquisitor on the
+present occasion was that of the Jew Isaachar ben Solomon. The old man
+was indeed a miserable spectacle. His garments hung loosely about his
+wasted and attenuated form--his countenance was wan and ghastly--but the
+fire of his eyes was not altogether quenched. He was heavily
+chained--and, as he walked between the two familiars who led him into
+the tribunal, he could scarcely drag himself along. For the persecuted
+old man had been confined for nearly seven months in the prison of the
+inquisition; and during that period he had suffered acutely with the
+damps of his dungeon--the wretched food doled out to him--and the
+anguish occasioned by conscious innocence unjustly accused of a dreadful
+crime.
+
+"Jew," said the grand inquisitor, "when last thou wast examined by me,
+thou didst obstinately refuse to confess thy grievous sins. This is the
+day for the final investigation of thy case: and thou may'st produce
+witnesses in thy favor, if thou canst."
+
+"My lord," replied Isaachar ben Solomon, in a weak and tremulous voice,
+"unless Heaven should work a miracle in my favor, I have no hope in this
+life. I do not fear death, my lord; for, persecuted, reviled, despised,
+accused as I am, I can yet lay my hand on my heart and say I have never
+injured a fellow-creature. But, my lord," he continued, his voice
+growing stronger with excitement, "it is sufficient that I am a Jew to
+insure my condemnation; and yet strange indeed is that Christian faith,
+or rather should I say, most inconsistent is the conduct of those who
+profess it, in so far as this ruthless persecution of my race is
+concerned. For where, my lord, is your charity, where is your tolerance,
+where is your mercy? If I be indeed involved in mental darkness, 'tis
+for you to enlighten me with argument, not coerce me with chains. Never
+have I insulted a Christian on account of his creed: wherefore should I
+be insulted in mine? Granting that the Jew is in error, he surely
+deserves pity, not persecution. For how came I by the creed which I
+profess? Even as your lordship obtained yours, which is that of
+Christian. Our parents reared us each in the belief which they
+respectively professed; and there is no more merit due to your eminence
+for being a Christian, than there is blame to be attached to me for
+being a Jew. Had all the religions of the earth been submitted to our
+consideration when we were children, and had it been said to each of us,
+'Select a faith for yourself,' then there might be some merit in
+choosing the one most popular and the most assuredly conducive to
+personal safety. But such was not the case, my lord; and I am a Jew for
+the same reason that you are a Christian--and I cling to the creed of my
+forefathers even as you adhere tenaciously to that faith which your
+ancestors have handed down to you. Reproach me not, then, because I am a
+Jew. And now I will pass to another subject, my lord," continued
+Isaachar, becoming more and more animated as he proceeded.
+
+"I am accused of a fearful crime, of murder. The evidence rests upon the
+fact that stains of blood were observed upon the floor of a room in my
+house. The answer is simple. Two men--one of noble birth, the other a
+robber, fought in the room; and the blood of one of them flowed from a
+slight wound. This is the truth--and yet I know that I am not believed.
+Merciful heavens! of what would you accuse me? Of murder!--and it was
+hinted, when last I stood before your eminence, that the Jews have been
+known to slay Christian children as an offering to Heaven. My lord, the
+Jews worship the same God as the Christians--for the Christians adopt
+that book in which the Jews put faith. Then I appeal to your eminence
+whether the God whom the Christians worship would delight in such
+sacrifices?--and as you must answer 'Nay,' the reply acquits the Jews
+also of the hideous calumny sought to be affixed upon us. The Jews, my
+lord, are a merciful and humane race. The records of your tribunals will
+prove that the Jews are not addicted to the shedding of blood. They are
+too patient--enduring--and resigned, to be given to vengeance. Behold
+how they cling to each other--how they assist each other in
+distress;--and charity is not narrowed to small circles, my lord, it is
+a sentiment which must become expansive, because it nourisheth itself
+and is cherished by those good feelings which are its only reward. Think
+you, my lord, that if I saw a fellow-creature starving in the street, I
+should wait to ask him whether he were a Christian, a Jew, or a
+Mussulman? Oh! no--no; the world's bread was given for men of all
+nations and all creeds!"
+
+Isaachar would have continued his address to the grand inquisitor; but
+sheer exhaustion compelled him to desist--and he would have sunk upon
+the cold marble, had not the familiars supported him.
+
+"By his own words is he convicted of disbelief in the most holy Catholic
+faith," said the grand inquisitor. "But I find, by a memorial which was
+addressed to me many mouths ago--indeed, very shortly after the arrest
+of this miserable unbeliever--and signed by Manuel Marquis of Orsini,
+that the said marquis hath important evidence to give on behalf of the
+Jew. Now, though Manuel d'Orsini be himself a prisoner of the holy
+office, yet as he hath not yet been judged, he is a competent witness."
+
+Orders were then given to introduce the marquis; and Isaachar ben
+Solomon murmured to himself, "Is it possible that the young man can have
+felt sympathy for me? Ah, then I was not mistaken in him; in spite of
+his dissipation and his wildness he possesses a generous heart."
+
+In a few minutes the Marquis of Orsini was led into the judgment-hall.
+He was chained;--but he carried his head erect--and, though his
+countenance was pale and careworn, his spirit was not crushed. He bowed
+respectfully, but not cringingly, to the grand inquisitor, and bestowed
+a friendly nod of recognition upon the Jew.
+
+"This memorial, dated in the month of March last, was signed by you?"
+said the grand inquisitor interrogatively, as he displayed a paper to
+the marquis.
+
+"That memorial was signed by me," answered Orsini, in a firm tone, "and
+I rejoice that your eminence has at length granted me an opportunity of
+explaining the matter hinted at therein. Your eminence sits there, it is
+presumed, to administer justice; then let justice be done toward this
+innocent man--albeit that he is a Jew--for solemnly do I declare that
+the blood which stained the floor in Isaachar's house flowed from my
+right arm. And it may not be amiss to observe," continued the marquis,
+"that the worthy Jew there did not only bind the wound for me with as
+much care as if I myself had been an Israelite, or he a Christian--but
+he moreover offered me the aid of his purse; and therefore am I under
+obligations to him which I can never wholly discharge. In good sooth, my
+lord," added Manuel, in whom neither a lengthened imprisonment nor the
+awful solemnity of the present scene could entirely subdue the flippancy
+which was habitual to his speech,--"in good sooth, my lord, he is a
+splendid specimen of a Jew--and I pray your eminence to discharge him
+forthwith."
+
+"This levity ill becometh you, Manuel d'Orsini," said the grand
+inquisitor; "for you yourself are in terrible danger."
+
+Then, upon a signal given, the familiars conveyed the marquis back to
+his dungeon: but ere he left the judgment-hall, he had the satisfaction
+of beholding the Jew's eyes fixed upon him with an expression of
+boundless gratitude and deep sympathy. Tears, too, were trickling down
+the cheeks of the Israelite: for the old man thought within himself,
+"What matters it if the rack dislocate my limbs? But it is shocking--oh!
+it is shocking to reflect that thy fellow-creatures, noble youth, shall
+dare to deface and injure that godlike form of thine!"
+
+"Jew," suddenly exclaimed the grand inquisitor, "I put no faith in the
+testimony of the witness who has just appeared in thy favor. Confess thy
+sins--avow openly that thou hast murdered Christian children to obtain
+their blood for use in thy sacrifices--and seek forgiveness from Heaven
+by embracing the faith of Jesus!"
+
+The unhappy Israelite was so appalled by the open, positive, and
+undisguised manner in which an atrocious charge was revived against him,
+that he lost all power of utterance, and stood stupefied and aghast.
+
+"Away with him to the torture-chamber!" cried the grand inquisitor, in a
+stern and remorseless tone.
+
+"Monster!" exclaimed the Jew, suddenly recovering his speech, as that
+dreadful mandate warned him that he would now require all his
+energy--all his presence of mind:--"monster!" he repeated, in a voice
+indicative of loathing and contempt;--"and thou art a Christian!"
+
+The familiars hurried Isaachar away to the torture-chamber, which, as we
+before stated, opened upon the tribunal. And terrible, indeed, was the
+appearance of that earthly hell--that terrestrial hades, invented by
+fiends in human shape--that den of horrors constituting, indeed, a
+fitting foretaste of trans-stygian torment! The grand inquisitor
+followed the victim and the familiars into this awful place: and, on a
+signal being given by that high functionary, Isaachar was stripped of
+all his upper clothing, and stretched on the accursed rack. Then
+commenced the torture--the agonizing torture by means of that infernal
+instrument, a torture which dislocated the limbs, appeared to tear the
+members asunder, and produced sensations as if all the nerves of the
+body were suddenly being drawn out through the brain.
+
+"Dost thou confess? and wilt thou embrace the Christian faith?" demanded
+the grand inquisitor from time to time.
+
+"I have nothing to confess--I will not renounce the creed of my
+forefathers!" answered Isaachar in a tone of bitter agony, as he writhed
+upon the rack, while every fresh shock and jerk of the infernal engine
+seemed as if it would tear the very life out of him. But the old man
+remained firm in the declaration of his innocence of the dreadful crime
+imputed to him: stanch also to his creed did he remain; and having
+endured the full extent of that special mode of torture, he was borne
+back to his dungeon, cruelly injured, with dislocated limbs, blood
+streaming from his mouth and nostrils, and these terrible words of the
+grand inquisitor ringing in his ears--"Obstinate and impenitent one,
+Satan claims thee as his own; therefore art thou condemned to death by
+fire at the approaching _auto de-fe_!"
+
+Half an hour afterward another human being lay stretched upon that
+accursed rack, and agonizing--oh! most agonizing were the female shrieks
+and rending screams which emanated from the lips of the tortured victim,
+but which reached not beyond the solid masonry of those walls and the
+massive iron-plated door. The white and polished arms were stretched out
+in a position fearfully painful beyond the victim's head, and the wrists
+were fastened to a steel bar by means of a thin cord, which cut through
+flesh, muscle and nerve to the very bone! The ankles were attached in a
+similar manner to a bar at the lower end of the rack, and thus from the
+female's hands and feet thick clots of gore fell on the stone pavement.
+But even the blood flowed not so fast from her lacerated limbs as
+streamed the big drops of agony from her distorted countenance--that
+countenance erst so beautiful, and so well beloved by thee, Manuel
+d'Orsini! For, oh! upon that rack lay stretched the fair and half-naked
+form of Giulia of Arestino, its symmetry convulsing in matchless
+tortures, the bosom palpitating awfully with the pangs of that earthly
+hell, and the exquisitely-modeled limbs enduring all the hideous pains
+of dislocation, as if the fibers that held them in their sockets were
+drawn out to a tension at which they must inevitably snap in halves!
+
+But who gazes on that awful spectacle? whose ears drink in those
+agonizing screams, as if they made a delicious melody? With folded arms,
+compressed lips, and remorseless, though ashy pale countenance, the old
+Lord of Arestino stands near the rack; and if his eyes can for a moment
+quit that feast which they devour so greedily, it is but to glance with
+demoniac triumph toward Manuel d'Orsini, whom an atrocious refinement of
+cruelty, suggested by the vengeful count himself, has made a spectator
+of that appalling scene! And terrible are the emotions which rend the
+heart of the young marquis! But he is powerless--he cannot stretch forth
+a hand to save his mistress from the hellish torments which she is
+enduring, nor can he even whisper a syllable to inspire her with courage
+to support them. For he is bound tightly--the familiars, too, have him
+in their iron grasp, and he is gagged! Nevertheless he can see, and he
+can hear; he can behold the rending tortures of the rack--and he is
+compelled to listen to the piercing screams which the victim sends
+forth. If he close his eyes upon the horrible spectacle, imagination
+instantly makes it more horrible even still; and, moreover, in the true
+spirit of a chivalrous heart, he seeks by the tenderness of his glances
+to impart at least a gleam of solace to the soul of her who has
+undergone so much, and is suffering now so much more, through her fatal
+love of him! The grand inquisitor, who is an intimate friend of the
+Count of Arestino, ministers well and faithfully to the infernal
+vengeance of that old Italian noble: for the remorseless judge urges on
+the torturers to apply the powers of the rack to the fullest extent; and
+while the creaking sound of wheels mingles with the cracking noise of
+dislocating limbs, the Count of Arestino exclaims, "I was once humane
+and benevolent, Giulia, but thy conduct has made me a fiend!"
+
+"A fiend!" shrieked the tormented woman: "Oh! yes--yes--thou art a
+fiend--a very fiend--I have wronged thee--but this vengeance is
+horrible--mercy--mercy!--oh! for one drop of water--mercy--mercy!"
+
+The rack gave the last shock of which its utmost power was capable--a
+scream more dreadful, more agonizing, more piercing than any of its
+predecessors, rent this time the very walls of the torture-chamber: and
+with this last outburst of mortal agony, the spirit of the guilty Giulia
+fled forever! Yet was not the vengeance of the Count of Arestino
+satisfied; and the grand inquisitor was prepared to gratify the hellish
+sentiment to the fullest extent. The still warm and palpitating corpse
+of the countess was hastily removed from the rack: and the familiars
+stripped--nay, tore off the clothing of Manuel d'Orsini. The countenance
+of the young nobleman was now terribly somber, as if the darkest
+thoughts were occupying his inmost soul, and his eyes were bent fixedly
+on the dreadful engine, to the tortures of which it appeared to be his
+turn to submit.
+
+The familiars, in order to divest him of his garments, and also to
+stretch him in such a way on the rack that his arms might be fastened
+over his head to the upper end of that instrument, had removed the
+chains and cords which had hitherto bound him. And now the fatal moment
+seemed to be at hand, and the familiars already grasped him rudely to
+hurl him on the rack, when, as if suddenly inspired by a superhuman
+strength, the young nobleman dashed the men from him; then, with
+lightning speed, he seized a massive iron bar that was used to move the
+windlass of the rack, and in another instant, before a saving arm could
+intervene, the deadly instrument struck down the Count of Arestino at
+the feet of the grand inquisitor, who started back with a cry of horror!
+The next moment the marquis was again powerless and secure in the grasp
+of the familiars--but he had accomplished his purpose, he had avenged
+his mistress and himself--and the old Lord of Arestino lay, with
+shattered skull, a corpse upon the cold pavement of the torture-chamber!
+
+"Back--back with the murderer to his dungeon!" exclaimed the grand
+inquisitor, in a tone of fearful excitement and rage. "We must not
+afford him a chance of dying upon that engine of torture. No--no: the
+lingering flames of the _auto-da-fe_ are reserved for the Marquis
+d'Orsini!"
+
+And in pursuance of the sentence thus pronounced, Manuel was hurried
+away to his dark and solitary cell, there to remain a prey to all the
+dreadful thoughts which the occurrences of that fatal evening were so
+well calculated to marshal in horrible array to his imagination.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LXI.
+
+
+While these awful scenes were being enacted in the subterranes of the
+holy inquisition, Demetrius was actively engaged in directing those
+plans and effecting those arrangements which the scheming disposition of
+Nisida of Riverola had suggested. We should observe that in the morning
+he had sought and found Antonio, with whom he had so expertly managed
+that the villain had fallen completely into the snare spread to entrap
+him, and had not only confessed that he held at his disposal the liberty
+of the Count of Riverola, but had also agreed to deliver him up to the
+Greek. In a word, every thing in this respect took place precisely as
+Nisida had foreseen. Accordingly, so soon as it was dark in the evening,
+sixty of the Ottoman soldiers quitted by two and threes the mansion
+which the Florentine Government had appropriated as a dwelling for the
+envoy and his suit. The men whom Demetrius thus intrusted with the
+execution of his scheme, and whose energy and fidelity he had previously
+secured by means of liberal reward and promise of more, were disguised
+in different ways, but were all well armed. To be brief, so well were
+the various dispositions taken, and so effectually were they executed,
+that those sixty soldiers had concealed themselves in the grove
+indicated by their master, without having excited in the minds of the
+Florentine people the least suspicion that anything unusual was about to
+take place. It was close upon eleven o'clock at night, when Demetrius,
+after having obtained a hasty interview with Nisida, whom he acquainted
+with the progress of the plot, repaired to the grove wherein his men
+were already distributed, and took his station in the midst of the knot
+of olives on the right of the huge chestnut tree which overhung the
+chasm.
+
+Nearly a quarter of an hour elapsed, and naught was heard save the
+waving of the branches and the rustling of the foliage, as the breeze of
+night agitated the grove; but at the expiration of that brief period,
+the sound of voices was suddenly heard close by the chestnut tree--not
+preceded by any footsteps nor other indication of the presence of
+men--and thus appearing as if they had all at once and in an instant
+emerged from the earth.
+
+Not a moment had elapsed--no, not a moment--ere those individuals whose
+voices were thus abruptly heard, were captured and secured by a dozen
+Ottoman soldiers, who sprung upon them from the dense thickets around or
+dropped amongst them from the branches overhead--and so admirably was
+the swoop made, that five persons were seized, bound and held powerless
+and incapable of resistance ere the echo of the cry of alarm which they
+raised had died away in the maze of the grove. And simultaneously with
+the performance of this skillful maneuver, a shrill whistle was wafted
+from the lips of Demetrius through the wood, and as if by magic, a dozen
+torches were seen to light up and numbers of men, with naked scimiters
+gleaming in the rays of those firebrands, rushed toward the spot where
+the capture had been made. The effect of that sudden illumination--those
+flashing weapons--and that convergence of many warriors all toward the
+same point, was striking in the extreme, and as the glare of the torches
+shone on the countenances of the four men in the midst of whom was
+Francisco (the whole five, however, being held bound and powerless by
+the Ottoman soldiers), it was evident that the entire proceeding had
+inspired the guilty wretches with the most painful alarm. Demetrius
+instantly knew that the handsome and noble-looking young man in the
+midst of the group of captives and captors, must be Don Francisco of
+Riverola, and he also saw at a glance that one of the ruffians with him
+was Antonio. But he merely had leisure at the moment to address a word
+of reassurance and friendship to Nisida's brother--for, lo! the secret
+of the entrance to the robbers' stronghold was revealed--discovered!
+Yes--there, at the foot of the tree, and now rendered completely visible
+by the glare of the torch-light, was a small square aperture, from which
+the trap door had been raised to afford egress to the captured party.
+
+"Secure that entrance!" cried Demetrius, hastily; "and hasten down those
+steps, some dozen of you, so as to guard it well!"--then, the instant
+this command was obeyed he turned toward Francisco, saying, "Lord of
+Riverola--am I right in thus addressing you?"
+
+"Such is my name," answered Francisco; "and if you, brave chief, will
+but release me and lend me a sword, I will prove to thee that I have no
+particular affection for these miscreants."
+
+Demetrius gave the necessary order--and in another moment the young
+Count of Riverola was not only free, but with a weapon in his hand. The
+Greek then made a rapid, but significant--fatally significant sign to
+his men; and--quick as thought,--the three robbers and their confederate
+Antonio were strangled by the bowstrings which the Ottomans whipped
+around their necks. A few stifled cries--and all was over! Thus perished
+the wretch Antonio--one of those treacherous, malignant, and avaricious
+Italians who bring dishonor on their noble nation,--a man who had sought
+to turn the vindictive feelings of the Count of Arestino to his own
+purposes, alike to fill his purse and to wreak his hateful spite on the
+Riverola family! Scarcely was the tragedy enacted, when Demetrius
+ordered the four bodies to be conveyed down the steps disclosed by the
+trap-door; "for," said he, "we will endeavor so to direct our
+proceedings that not a trace of them shall be left upon ground; as the
+Florentines would not be well-pleased if they learnt that foreign
+soldiers have undertaken the duties which they themselves should
+perform." Several of the Ottomans accordingly bore the dead bodies down
+the steps; and Demetrius, accompanied by Francisco, followed at the head
+of the greater portion of the troops, a sufficient number, however,
+remaining behind to constitute a guard at the entrance of the
+stronghold.
+
+While they were yet descending the stone stairs, Demetrius seized the
+opportunity of that temporary lull in the excitement of the night's
+adventures, to give Francisco hasty but welcome tidings of his sister;
+and the reader may suppose that the generous-hearted young count was
+overjoyed to learn that Nisida was not only alive, but also once more an
+inmate of the ancestral home. Demetrius said nothing relative to Flora;
+and Francisco, not dreaming for a moment that his deliverer even knew
+there was such a being in existence, asked no questions on that subject.
+His anxiety was not, however, any less to fly to the cottage; for it
+must be remembered that he was arrested first, on the 3d of July, and
+had yet to learn all the afflictions which had fallen upon Flora and her
+aunt--afflictions of the existence whereof he had been kept in utter
+ignorance by the banditti during his long captivity of nearly three
+months in their stronghold. But while we are thus somewhat digressing,
+the invaders are penetrating further into the stronghold. Headed by
+Demetrius and Francisco, and all carrying their drawn scimiters in their
+hands, the corps proceeded along a vast vaulted subterrane, paved with
+flag-stones, until a huge iron door, studded with nails, barred the way.
+
+"Stay!" whispered Francisco, suddenly recollecting himself, "I think I
+can devise a means to induce the rogues to open this portal, or I am
+much mistaken."
+
+He accordingly seized a torch and hurried back to the foot of
+the stone-steps; in the immediate vicinity of which he searched narrowly
+for some object. At last he discovered the object of his
+investigation--namely a large bell hanging in a niche, and from which a
+strong wire ran up through the ground to the surface. This bell
+Francisco set ringing, and then hurried back to rejoin his deliverers.
+Scarcely was he again by the side of Demetrius, when he saw that his
+stratagem had fully succeeded; for the iron door swung heavily round on
+its hinges--and in another moment the cries of terror which the two
+robber-sentinels raised on the inner side, were hushed forever by the
+Turkish scimiters. Down another flight of steps the invaders then
+precipitated themselves, another door, at the bottom, having been opened
+in compliance with the same signal which had led to the unfolding of the
+first--and now the alarm was given by the sentinels guarding the second
+post--those sentinels flying madly on, having beholden the immolation of
+their comrades. But Demetrius and Francisco speedily overtook them just
+as they emerged from another long vaulted and paved cavern-passage, and
+were about to cross a plank which connected the two sides of a deep
+chasm in whose depths a rapid stream rushed gurgling on.
+
+Into the turbid waters the two fugitive sentinels were cast: over the
+bridge poured the invaders, and into another caverned corridor, hollowed
+out of the solid rock, did they enter, the torch-bearers following
+immediately behind the Greek and the young count. It was evident that
+neither the cries of the surprised sentinels nor the tread of the
+invaders had alarmed the main corps of the banditti; for, on reaching a
+barrier formed by massive folding doors, and knocking thereat, the
+portals instantly began to move on their hinges--and in rushed the
+Ottoman soldiers, headed by their two gallant Christian leaders. The
+robbers were in the midst of a deep carouse in their magnificent
+cavern-hall, when their festivity was thus rudely interrupted.
+
+"We are betrayed!" thundered Lomellino, the captain of the horde; "to
+arms! to arms!"
+
+But the invaders allowed them no time to concentrate themselves in a
+serried phalanx, and tremendous carnage ensued. Surprised and taken
+unaware as they were, the banditti fought as if a spell were upon them,
+paralyzing their energies and warning them that their last hour was
+come. The terrible scimiters of the Turks hewed them down in all
+directions; some, who sought to fly, were literally cut to pieces.
+Lomellino fell beneath the sword of the gallant Count of Riverola; and
+within twenty minutes after the invaders first set foot in the
+banqueting hall, not a soul of the formidable horde was left alive!
+
+Demetrius abandoned the plunder of the den to his troops; and when the
+portable part of the rich booty had been divided amongst them, they
+returned to their own grove, into which the entrance of the stronghold
+opened. When the subterrane was thus cleared of the living, and the dead
+alone remained in that place which had so long been their home, and was
+now their tomb, Demetrius ordered his forces to disperse and return to
+their quarters in Florence in the same prudent manner which had
+characterized their egress thence a few hours before. Francisco and
+Demetrius, being left alone together in the grove, proceeded by
+torchlight to close the trap-door, which they found to consist of a
+thick plate of iron covered with earth, so prepared, by glutinous
+substances no doubt, that it was hard as rock; and thus, when the trap
+was shut down, not even a close inspection would lead to a suspicion of
+its existence, so admirably did it fit into its setting and correspond
+with the soil all around.
+
+It required, moreover, but a slight exercise of their imaginative powers
+to enable Demetrius and Francisco to conjecture that every time any of
+the banditti had come forth from their stronghold they were accustomed
+to strew a little fresh earth over the entire spot, and thus afford an
+additional precaution against the chance of detection on the part of any
+one who might chance to stray in that direction. We may also add that
+the trap-door was provided with a massive bolt which fastened it inside
+when closed, and that the handle of the bell-wire, which gave the signal
+to open the trap, was concealed in a small hollow in the old
+chestnut-tree. Having thus satisfied his curiosity by means of these
+discoveries, Demetrius accompanied Francisco to the city; and during
+their walk thither, he informed the young count that he was an envoy
+from the Ottoman Grand Vizier to the Florentine Government--that he had
+become acquainted with Nisida on board the ship which delivered her from
+her lonely residence on an island in the Mediterranean--and that as she
+had by some means or other learnt where Francisco was imprisoned, he had
+undertaken to deliver him. The young count renewed his warmest thanks to
+the chivalrous Greek for the kind interest he had manifested in his
+behalf; and they separated at the gate of the Riverola mansion, into
+which Francisco hurried to embrace his sister; while Demetrius repaired
+to his own abode.
+
+The meeting between Nisida and her brother Francisco was affecting in
+the extreme; and for a brief space the softer feelings in the lady's
+nature triumphed over those strong, turbulent, and concentrated passions
+which usually held such indomitable sway over her. For her attachment to
+him was profound and sincere; and the immense sacrifice she had made in
+what she conceived to be his welfare and interests had tended to
+strengthen this almost boundless love.
+
+On his side, the young count was rejoiced to behold his sister, whose
+strange disappearance and long absence had filled his mind with the
+worst apprehensions. Yes, he was rejoiced to see her once more beneath
+the ancestral roof; and, with a fond brother's pride, he surveyed her
+splendid countenance, which triumph and happiness now invested with an
+animation that rendered her surpassingly beautiful!
+
+A few brief and rapidly-given explanations were exchanged between them,
+by means of the language of the fingers,--Francisco satisfying Nisida's
+anxiety in respect to the success of her project, by which the total
+extermination of the banditti had been effected,--and she conveying to
+him as much of the outline of her adventures during the last seven
+months as she thought it prudent to impart. They then separated, it
+being now very late; and, moreover, Nisida had still some work in hand
+for that night. The moment Francisco was alone, he exclaimed aloud, "Oh!
+is it possible that this dear sister who loves me so much, is really the
+bitter enemy of Flora? But to-morrow--to-morrow I must have a long
+explanation with Nisida; and Heaven grant that she may not stand in the
+way of my happiness! Oh, Flora--dearest Flora, if you knew how deeply I
+have suffered on your account during my captivity in that accursed
+cavern! And what must you have thought of my disappearance--my absence!
+Alas! did the same vengeance which pursued me wreak its spite also on
+thee, fair girl?--did the miscreant, Antonio, who boastingly proclaimed
+himself to my face the author of my captivity, and who sullenly refused
+to give me any tidings of those whom I cared for, and of what was
+passing in the world without,--did he dare to molest thee? But suspense
+is intolerable, I cannot endure it even for a few short hours! No--I
+will speed me at once to the dwelling of my Flora, and thus assuage her
+grief and put an end to my own fears at the same time!"
+
+Having thus resolved, Francisco repaired to his own apartment, enveloped
+himself in a cloak, secured weapons of defense about his person, and
+then quitted the mansion, unperceived by a living soul. Almost at the
+same time, but by another mode of egress--namely, the private staircase
+leading from her own apartments into the garden, and which has been so
+often mentioned in the course of this narrative--Donna Nisida stole
+likewise from the Riverola palace. She was habited in male attire; and
+beneath her doublet she wore the light but strong cuirass which she
+usually donned ere setting out on any nocturnal enterprise, and which
+she was now particularly cautious not to omit from the details of her
+toilet, inasmuch as the mysterious appearance of the muffled figure,
+which had alarmed her on the previous evening, induced her to adopt
+every precaution against secret and unknown enemies. Whither was the
+Lady Nisida now hurrying, through the dark streets of Florence?--what
+new object had she in contemplation?
+
+Her way was bent toward an obscure neighborhood in the immediate
+vicinity of the cathedral; and in a short time she reached the house in
+which Dame Margaretha, Antonio's mother, dwelt. She knocked gently at
+the door, which was shortly opened by the old woman, who imagined it was
+her son that sought admittance; for, though in the service of the Count
+of Arestino, Antonio was often kept abroad late by the various
+machinations in which he had been engaged, and it was by no means
+unusual for him to seek his mother's dwelling at all hours.
+
+Margaretha, who appeared in a loose wrapper hastily thrown on, held a
+lamp in her hand; and when its rays streamed not on the countenance of
+her son, but showed the form of a cavalier handsomely appareled, she
+started back in mingled astonishment and fear. A second glance, however,
+enabled her to recognize the Lady Nisida; and an exclamation of wonder
+escaped her lips. Nisida entered the house, closed the door behind her,
+and motioned Dame Margaretha to lead the way into the nearest apartment.
+The old woman obeyed tremblingly; for she feared that the lady's visit
+boded no good; and this apprehension on her part was not only enhanced
+by her own knowledge of all Antonio's treachery toward Count Francisco,
+but also by the imperious manner, determined looks, and strange disguise
+of her visitress. But Margaretha's terror speedily gave way to
+indescribable astonishment when Nisida suddenly addressed her in a
+language which not for many, many years, had the old woman heard flow
+from that delicious mouth!
+
+"Margaretha," said Nisida, "you must prepare to accompany me forthwith!
+Be not surprised to hear me thus capable of rendering myself
+intelligible by means of an organ on which a seal was so long placed. A
+marvelous cure has been accomplished in respect to me, during my absence
+from Florence. But you must prepare to accompany me, I say; your son
+Antonio----"
+
+"My son!" ejaculated the woman, now again trembling from head to foot,
+and surveying Nisida's countenance in a manner denoting the acutest
+suspense.
+
+"Your son is wounded--mortally wounded in a street skirmish----"
+
+"Wounded!" shrieked Margaretha. "Oh, dear lady--tell me all--tell me the
+worst! What has happened to my unfortunate son? He is dead--he is dead!
+Your manner convinces me that hope is past!"
+
+And she wrung her hands bitterly, while tears streamed down her wrinkled
+cheeks.
+
+"No, he is not dead, Margaretha!" exclaimed Nisida; "but he is
+dying--and he implored me, by everything I deemed sacred, to hasten
+thither and fetch you to him, that he may receive your blessing and
+close his eyes in peace."
+
+"In peace!" repeated the old woman bitterly: then, to herself she said,
+"Donna Nisida suspects not his perfidy--knows not all his wickedness."
+
+"Delay not," urged the lady, perceiving what was passing in her mind.
+"You are well aware that my brother, who, alas! has disappeared most
+mysteriously, dismissed Antonio abruptly from his service many months
+ago; but, whatever were the cause, it is forgotten, at least by me. So
+tarry not, but prepare to accompany me."
+
+Margaretha hastened to her bedroom, and reappeared in a few minutes,
+completely dressed and ready to issue forth.
+
+"Keep close by me," said Nisida, as she opened the house-door; "and
+breathe not a word as we pass through the streets. I have reasons of my
+own for assuming a disguise, and I wish not to be recognized."
+
+Margaretha was too much absorbed in the contemplation of the afflicting
+intelligence which she had received, to observe anything at all
+suspicious in these injunctions; and thus it was that the two females
+proceeded in silence through the streets leading toward the Riverola
+mansion.
+
+By means of a pass-key Nisida opened the wicket-gate of the spacious
+gardens, and she traversed the grounds, Margaretha walking by her side.
+In a few minutes they reached a low door, affording admission into the
+basement-story of the palace, and of which Nisida always possessed the
+key.
+
+"Go first," said the lady, in a scarcely audible whisper; "I must close
+the door behind us."
+
+"But wherefore this way?" demanded Margaretha, a sudden apprehension
+starting up in her mind. "This door leads down to the cellars."
+
+"The officers of justice are in search of Antonio--and I am concealing
+him for your sake," was the whispered and rapid assurance given by
+Nisida. "Would you have him die in peace in your arms, or perish on the
+scaffold?"
+
+Margaretha shuddered convulsively, and hurried down the dark flight of
+stone steps upon which the door opened. Terrible emotions raged in her
+bosom--indescribable alarms, grief, suspicion, and also a longing
+eagerness to put faith in the apparent friendship of Nisida.
+
+"Give me your hand," said the lady; and the hand that was thrust into
+hers was cold and trembling.
+
+Then Nisida hurried Margaretha along a narrow subterranean passage, in
+which the blackest night reigned; and, though the old woman was a prey
+to apprehensions that increased each moment to a fearful degree, she
+dared not utter a word either to question--to implore--or to
+remonstrate. At length they stopped; and Nisida, dropping Margaretha's
+hand, drew back heavy bolts which raised ominous echoes in the vaulted
+passage. In another moment a door began to move stubbornly on its
+hinges; and almost at the same time a faint light gleamed
+forth--increasing in power as the door opened wider, but still attaining
+no greater strength than that which a common iron lamp could afford.
+Margaretha's anxious glances were plunged into the cellar or vault to
+which the door opened, and whence the light came: but she saw no one
+within. It, however, appeared as if some horrible reminiscence,
+connected with the place, came back to her startled mind; for, falling
+on her knees, and clinging wildly to her companion, she cried in a
+piercing tone, "Oh! lady, wherefore have you brought me hither?--where
+is my son?--what does all this horrible mystery mean? But, chiefly now
+of all--why, why are we here--at this hour?"
+
+"In a few moments you shall know more!" exclaimed Nisida; and as she
+spoke, with an almost superhuman strength she dragged, or rather, flung
+the prostrate woman into the vault, rushing in herself immediately
+afterward, and closing the door behind her.
+
+"Holy God!" shrieked Margaretha, gazing wildly round the damp and naked
+walls of solid masonry, and then up at the lamp suspended to the arched
+ceiling, "is this the place? But no! you are ignorant of all that; it
+was not for that you brought me hither! Speak, lady, speak! Where is
+Antonio? What have I done to merit your displeasure? Oh, mercy! mercy!
+Bend not those terrible glances upon me! Your eyes flash fire! You are
+not Nisida--you are an evil spirit! Oh, mercy! mercy!"
+
+And thus did the miserable woman rave, as, kneeling on the cold, damp
+ground she extended her tightly-clasped hands in an imploring manner
+toward Nisida, who, drawn up to her full height, was contemplating the
+groveling wretch with eyes that seemed to shoot forth shafts of
+devouring flame! Terrible, indeed, was the appearance of Nisida! Like to
+an avenging deity was she--no longer woman in the glory of her charms
+and the elegance of her disguise, but a fury--a very fiend, an
+implacable demoness, armed with the blasting lightnings of infernal
+malignity and hellish rancor!
+
+"Holy Virgin, protect me!" shrieked Margaretha, every nerve thrilling
+with the agony of ineffable alarm.
+
+"Yes, call upon Heaven to aid you, vile woman!" said Nisida, in a thick,
+hoarse, and strangely altered voice, "for you are beyond the reach of
+human aid! Know ye whose remains--or rather the mangled portions of
+whose remains--lie in this unconsecrated ground? Ah! well may you start
+in horror and surprise, for I know all--all!"
+
+A terrific scream burst from the lips of Margaretha; and she threw her
+wild looks around as if she were going mad.
+
+"Detestable woman!" exclaimed Nisida, fixing her burning eyes more
+intently still on Margaretha's countenance: "you are now about to pay
+the penalty of your complicity in the most odious crimes that ever made
+nights terrible in Florence! The period of vengeance has at length
+arrived! But I must torture ere I slay ye! Yes, I must give thee a
+foretaste of that hell to which your soul is so soon to plunge down!
+Know, then, that Antonio--your son Antonio--is no more. Not three hours
+have elapsed since he was slain--assassinated--murdered, if you will so
+call it--and by my commands."
+
+"Oh! lady, have pity upon me--pity upon me, a bereaved mother!" implored
+the old woman, in a voice of anguish so penetrating, that vile as she
+was, it would have moved any human being save Nisida. "Do not kill
+me--and I will end my miserable days in a convent! Give me time to
+repent of all my sins--for they are numerous and great! Oh! spare me,
+dear lady--have mercy upon me--have mercy upon me!"
+
+"What mercy had you on them whose mangled remains are buried in the
+ground beneath your feet?" demanded Nisida, in a voice almost suffocated
+with rage. "Prepare for death--your last moment is at hand!" and a
+bright dagger flashed in the lamp-light.
+
+"Mercy--mercy!" exclaimed Margaretha, springing forward, and grasping
+Nisida's knees.
+
+"I know not what mercy is!" cried the terrible Italian woman, raising
+the long, bright, glittering dagger over her head.
+
+"Holy God! protect me! Lady--dear lady, have pity upon me!" shrieked the
+agonized wretch, her countenance hideously distorted, and appallingly
+ghastly, as it was raised in such bitterly earnest appeal toward that of
+the avengeress. "Again I say mercy--mercy!"
+
+"Die, fiend!" exclaimed Nisida; and the dagger, descending with
+lightning speed, sunk deep into the bosom of the prostrate victim. A
+dreadful cry burst from the lips of the wretched woman; and she fell
+back--a corpse!
+
+"Oh! my dear--my well-beloved and never-to-be-forgotten mother!" said
+Nisida, falling upon her knees by the side of the body, and gazing
+intently upward--as if her eyes could pierce the entire building
+overhead, and catch a glimpse of the spirit of the parent whom she thus
+apostrophized--"pardon me--pardon me for this deed! Thou didst enjoin me
+to abstain from vengeance--but when I thought of all thy wrongs, the
+contemplation drove me mad--and an irresistible power--a force which I
+could not resist--has hurried me on to achieve the punishment of this
+wretch who was so malignant an enemy of thine; dearest mother, pardon
+me--look not down angrily on thy daughter!"
+
+Then Nisida gave way to all the softer emotion which attended the
+reaction that her mind was now rapidly undergoing, after being so highly
+strung, as for the last few hours it was--and her tears fell in
+torrents. For some minutes she remained in her kneeling position, and
+weeping, till she grew afraid--yes, afraid of being in that lonely
+place, with the corpse stretched on the ground--a place, too, which for
+other reasons awoke such terrible recollections in her mind.
+
+Starting to her feet--and neither waiting to extinguish the lamp, which
+she herself had lighted at an early period of the night, nor to withdraw
+her dagger from the bosom of the murdered Margaretha--Nisida fled from
+the vault, and regained her own apartment in safety, and unperceived.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+When morning dawned, Nisida rose from a couch in which she had obtained
+two hours of troubled slumber, and, having hastily dressed herself,
+proceeded to the chamber of her brother Francisco.
+
+But he was not there--nor had his bed been slept in during the past
+night.
+
+"He is searching after his Flora," thought Nisida. "Alas, poor
+youth--how it grieves me thus to be compelled to thwart thee in thy
+love! But my oath--and thine interests, Francisco, demand this conduct
+on my part. And better--better it is that thou shouldst hear from
+strangers the terrible tidings that thy Flora is a prisoner in the
+dungeon of the inquisition, where she can issue forth only to proceed to
+the stake! Yes--and better, too, is it that she should die, than that
+this marriage shall be accomplished!"
+
+Nisida quitted the room, and repaired to the apartment where the morning
+repast was served up.
+
+A note, addressed to herself, lay upon the table. She instantly
+recognized the handwriting of Dr. Duras, tore open the billet, and read
+the contents as follows:
+
+    "My brother Angelo came to me very late last night and informed
+    me that a sense of imperious duty compelled him to change his
+    mind relative to the two women Francatelli. He accordingly
+    appeared on their behalf, and obtained a delay of eight days.
+    But nothing can save them from condemnation at the end of this
+    period, unless indeed immense interests be made on their account
+    with the duke. My brother alone deserves your blame, dear
+    friend; let not your anger fall on your affectionate and devoted
+    servant.
+
+                                               "JERONYMO DURAS."
+
+Nisida bit her lips with vexation. She now regretted she had effected
+the liberation of Francisco before she was convinced that Flora was past
+the reach of human mercy;--but, in the next moment she resumed her
+haughty composure, as she said within herself, "My brother may essay all
+_his_ influence: but mine shall prevail!"
+
+Scarcely had she established this determination in her mind, when the
+door was burst open, and Francisco--pale, ghastly, and with eyes
+wandering wildly--staggered into the apartment.
+
+Nisida, who really felt deeply on his account, sprung forward--received
+him in her arms--and supported him to a seat.
+
+"Oh! Nisida, Nisida!" he exclaimed aloud, in a tone expressive of deep
+anguish; "what will become of your unfortunate brother? But it is not
+you who have done this! No--for you were not in Florence at the time
+which beheld the cruel separation of Flora and myself!"
+
+And, throwing himself on his sister's neck, he burst into tears. He had
+apostrophized her in the manner just related, not because he fancied
+that she could hear or understand him; but because he forgot, in the
+maddening paroxysms of his grief, that Nisida was (as he believed) deaf
+and dumb! She wound her arms round him--she pressed him to her
+bosom--she covered his pale forehead with kisses; while her heart bled
+at the sight of his alarming sorrow.
+
+Suddenly he started up--flung his arms wildly about--and exclaimed, in a
+frantic voice, "Bring me my steel panoply! give me my burgonet--my
+cuirass--and my trusty sword;--and let me arouse all Florence to a sense
+of its infamy in permitting that terrible inquisition to exist! Bring me
+my armor, I say--the same sword I wielded on the walls of Rhodes--and I
+will soon gather a trusty band to aid me!"
+
+But, overcome with excitement, he fell forward--dashing his head
+violently upon the floor, before Nisida could save him. She pealed the
+silver bell that was placed upon the breakfast-table, and assistance
+soon came. Francisco was immediately conveyed to his chamber--Dr. Duras
+was sent for--and on his arrival, he pronounced the young nobleman to be
+laboring under a violent fever. The proper medical precautions were
+adopted; and the physician was in a few hours able to declare that
+Francisco was in no imminent danger, but that several days would elapse
+ere he could possibly become convalescent. Nisida remained by his
+bedside, and was most assiduous--most tender--most anxious in her
+attentions toward him; and when he raved, in his delirium, of Flora and
+the inquisition, it went to her very heart to think that she was
+compelled by a stern necessity to abstain from exerting her influence to
+procure the release of one whose presence would prove of far greater
+benefit to the sufferer than all the anodynes and drugs which the skill
+of Dr. Duras might administer!
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LXII.
+
+THE SICK-ROOM--FLORENCE IN DISMAY.
+
+
+It was about an hour past daybreak on the 1st of October,--five days
+after the incidents related in the three preceding chapters. Nisida,
+worn out with long watchings and vigils in her brother's chamber, had
+retired to her own apartment; but not before she had seen Francisco fall
+into a sleep which, under the influence of a narcotic ordered by the
+physician, promised to be long and soothing. The lady had not quitted
+the chamber of the invalid ten minutes, when the door was slightly
+opened; and some one's looks were plunged rapidly and searchingly into
+the room:--then the visitor, doubtless satisfied by the result of his
+survey, stole cautiously in.
+
+He advanced straight up to the table which stood near the bed, drew a
+small vial from the bosom of his doublet--and poured its crystal
+contents into the beverage prepared to quench the thirst of the invalid.
+Then, as he again secured the vial about his person, he murmured, "The
+medicament of Christian Rosencrux will doubtless work greater wonders
+than those of Dr. Duras, skilled though the latter be!"
+
+Having thus mused to himself, the visitor shook Francisco gently; and
+the young count awoke, exclaiming petulantly that he was athirst. A
+goblet of the beverage containing the Rosicrucian fluid, was immediately
+conveyed to his lips, and he drank the refreshing draught with
+eagerness.
+
+The effect was marvelous, indeed;--a sudden tinge of healthy red
+appeared upon the cheeks a moment before so ashy pale--and fire once
+more animated the blue eyes--and Francisco recovered complete
+consciousness and self-possession for the first time since the dread
+morning when he was attacked with a dangerous illness.
+
+He closed his eyes for a few minutes; and when he opened them again, he
+was surprised to perceive by his bedside a young, well-attired, and very
+handsome man, whose countenance appeared to be familiar to him.
+
+"Count of Riverola," said the visitor, bending over him, and speaking in
+a low but kind tone, "despair not! Succor is at hand--and ere
+forty-eight hours shall have passed away, your well-beloved Flora will
+be free!"
+
+Joy lighted up the countenance of the young nobleman, as these
+delightful words met his ears; and, seizing his consoler's hand, he
+exclaimed:
+
+"A thousand thanks for this assurance! But, have we not met before?--or
+was it in those wild dreams which have haunted my imagination that I
+have seen thee?"
+
+"Yes--we have met before, count," was the reply. "Dost thou not remember
+Fernand Wagner?"
+
+Francisco passed his hand across his brow, as if to settle his scattered
+thoughts: then, at the expiration of a few moments, he said: "Oh! yes--I
+recollect you--I know that I had conceived a great friendship for you,
+when some strange incident--I cannot remember what, and it is of no
+matter--parted us!"
+
+"Do not excite yourself too much by racking your memory to decipher the
+details of the past," returned Wagner. "I dare not stay another minute
+with you now: therefore listen attentively to what more I have to say.
+Yield yourself not up to despondency--on the contrary, cherish every
+hope that is dear to you. Within a few days Flora shall be yours!
+Yes--solemnly do I assure you that all shall take place as I affirm. But
+YOUR agency is not needed to insure her liberation: Heaven will make use
+of OTHER means. Compose your mind, then,--and suffer not yourself to be
+tortured by vain fears as to the future. Above all, keep my visit to
+thee a profound secret--intimate not to thy sister Nisida that thou hast
+seen me. Follow my counsel in all these respects--and happiness is in
+store for thee!"
+
+Fernand pressed the young count's hand warmly as he terminated these
+rapidly delivered injunctions, and then retreated from the chamber ere
+the invalid had time to utter a syllable indicative of his gratitude.
+
+But how different was Francisco now--how different did Nisida find him,
+on her return to his room, from what he was when she had left him two
+hours before! Nor less was Dr. Duras astonished, at his next visit, to
+perceive that his patient had made in those two hours as rapid strides
+toward convalescence as he could barely have hoped to see accomplished
+in a week.
+
+In obedience to a hint rapidly conveyed by a signal from Nisida to the
+physician, the latter touched gently upon the subject of Flora
+Francatelli; but Francisco, resolute in his endeavors to follow the
+advice of Fernand Wagner, and to avoid all topics calculated to excite,
+responded briefly, and immediately spoke on another matter.
+
+But he did not think the less deeply on that interesting subject. No; he
+cherished the image of his Flora, and the hope of being yet united to
+her, with an enthusiasm which a love so ardent as his passion alone
+could feel.
+
+And Nisida congratulated herself on the conviction which she now very
+naturally entertained, that he had resigned himself to the loss of the
+young maiden, and was exerting his utmost to banish her altogether from
+his memory!
+
+Throughout the day Francisco continued to improve rapidly, and on the
+following morning he was enabled to leave his couch. Indeed, his
+recovery was so marvelously quick that Dr. Duras considered it to be a
+perfect phenomenon in the history of medicine; and Nisida looked upon
+the physician, whom she conceived to be the author of this remarkable
+change, with unfeigned admiration.
+
+It was verging toward the hour of sunset, the 2d of October, when a
+rumor of a most alarming nature circulated with the celerity of
+wild-fire through the city of Florence. At first the report was received
+with contemptuous incredulity; but by degrees--as circumstances tended
+to confirm it--as affrighted peasants came flying into the town from
+their country homes, bearing the dread tidings, the degenerate and
+voluptuous Florentines gave way to all the terrors which, in such cases,
+were too well adapted to fill the hearts of an emasculated people with
+dismay.
+
+For, while the dwellers of the City of Flowers were thinking only of the
+gay festival which invariably commenced their winter season, while the
+nobles and wealthy burghers were whiling their time pleasantly in the
+regilding and decoration of their palaces or mansions, while the duke
+was projecting splendid banquets, and the members of the council of
+state were dreaming of recreation and enjoyment, rather than of the
+duties of office, while, too, preparations were being made for the
+approaching _auto-da-fe_--that terrible spectacle which the inquisition
+annually offered to the morbid tastes of a priest-ridden people--while,
+in a word, Florence seemed wrapped up in security and peace--at such a
+moment the astounding intelligence arrived, that a mighty army was
+within a few hours' march of the sovereign city of Tuscany!
+
+Yes; this was the news that suddenly spread confusion and dismay
+throughout Florence, the news which told how the Ottoman fleet, for some
+days past moored off the port of Leghorn, had vomited forth legions, and
+how the formidable force was approaching at a rapid rate, under the
+command of the grand vizier in person, the seraskier and sipehsalar of
+the armies of the sultan!
+
+The moment these things were bruited abroad in the city, Demetrius, the
+Greek, fled secretly; for he too well understood that his treacherous
+intentions had, in some unaccountable manner, transpired, and reached
+the ears of Ibrahim Pasha. Nisida was perfectly astounded; and, for the
+first time in her life, she felt her energies paralyzed--all her powers
+of combination suddenly laid prostrate. As for Francisco, he could not
+help thinking that the invasion of Italy by the Turks was connected with
+the succor so mysteriously, but confidently promised by Wagner; although
+he was not only ignorant of the relationship subsisting between the
+grand vizier and his beloved Flora, but was even unaware of the fact
+that this high functionary was the same Ibrahim whose prisoner he had
+been for a few hours on a former occasion in the Island of Rhodes.
+
+The council of state assembled to deliberate upon the proper course
+which should be adopted at so critical a moment; but when the resources
+of Florence and the means of resisting the invaders were scrutinized,
+when it was discovered that there were not three thousand soldiers to
+defend the place, nor arms sufficient to equip more than fifteen hundred
+volunteers in addition to the regular force, all idea of attempting to
+make a stand against an army which was in reality twenty thousand
+strong, but which the exaggerations of fear had trebled in amount, was
+ultimately abandoned.
+
+The sun went down, and was succeeded by no illuminations that night.
+Florence was in mourning. A spell had fallen upon the City of Flowers;
+her streets were deserted; and within the houses, those who possessed
+wealth were busily engaged in concealing their gold and jewels in
+cellars, holes dug in the ground, or at the bottom of wells. The general
+consternation was terrific indeed; and the solemn stillness which
+prevailed throughout the town so lately full of animation and happiness
+was even more dreadful than that which had accompanied the plague two
+centuries before.
+
+It was near midnight when messengers from the grand vizier, who was now
+within three miles' march of the city, arrived at the western gate, and
+demanded admission, that they might obtain an immediate audience of the
+duke. The request was directly complied with, and the envoys were
+conducted to the palazzo, where the prince immediately assembled the
+council of state to receive them, himself presiding.
+
+The audience was in other respects strictly private; but the nature of
+the interview was soon proved to have been most unexpectedly pacific;
+for two hours after the reception of the envoys, criers proceeded
+throughout the city, proclaiming the joyful news that the grand vizier
+had of his own accord proposed such terms as the council of state had
+not hesitated to accept.
+
+Thus, at two o'clock in the morning, were the Florentines at first
+alarmed by hearing the monotonous voices of the criers breaking upon the
+solemn stillness; but their fear changed into gladness ineffable, ere
+those functionaries had uttered a dozen words of the proclamation which
+they were intrusted to make.
+
+What the terms were did not immediately transpire; but two circumstances
+which occurred ere it was daybreak, and which, though conducted with
+considerable secrecy, nevertheless soon became generally known--these
+circumstances, we say, afforded ample scope for comment and gossip.
+
+The first was the occupation of the Riverola Palace by the Ottoman
+soldiers who had accompanied Demetrius as an escort, and whom he had
+left in Florence; and the second was the fact that two females, closely
+muffled up, were removed from the prison of the inquisition, and
+delivered over to the charge of the grand vizier's messengers, who
+conveyed them out of the city.
+
+But the curiosity excited by these incidents was absorbed in the general
+anxiety that was evinced by the Florentine people to feast their eyes
+with the grand, interesting, and imposing spectacle which the dawn of
+day revealed to their view.
+
+For, far as the eye could reach, on the western side of Florence, and
+commencing at the distance of about a quarter of a mile from the city, a
+mass of innumerable tents and pavilions showed where the Ottoman army
+was encamped! Myriads of banners, of all colors, floated from the tall
+javelins to which they were affixed before the entrance of the chief
+officers' tents, and in front of the entire encampment waved, at the
+summit of a spear planted in the ground, the three crescents, which
+invariably accompany the march of a Turkish army. The sunbeams glittered
+on thousands of bright crescents; and the brazen pommels of the mounted
+sentinels' saddles shone like burnished gold. It was, indeed, a grand
+and imposing spectacle:--and the din of innumerable voices mingling with
+the sounds of martial music, reached the ears of those Florentines who,
+more daring than the rest, advanced nearly up to the outposts of the
+encampment.
+
+But in the meantime, a scene of profound and touching interest had taken
+place in the gorgeous pavilion of the grand vizier.
+
+While it was yet dark--and ere that martial panorama of tents and
+pavilions developed itself to the admiring and astonished eyes of the
+Florentines--two females, closely muffled in handsome cashmere shawls,
+which had been presented to them for the purpose, were treading the
+Ottoman encampment, under the guidance of the messengers to whom they
+had been consigned.
+
+It is hardly necessary to inform the reader that these females were the
+elder Signora Francatelli and her beautiful niece Flora.
+
+Their sudden and most unexpected deliverance from the terrible dungeons
+of the inquisition, and the profound respect with which they were
+treated by those into whose charge the familiars of the holy office had
+surrendered them, inspired them with the most lively joy; and their
+congratulations were expressed by frequent pressures of each other's
+hands as they proceeded in company with their guides. But they knew not
+by whom, or how, nor wherefore they had been released--and yet a vague
+suspicion, founded solely on the fact that their conductors wore the
+Ottoman garb, that Alessandro must be in some way connected with the
+matter, had entered their minds. It was, at all events, clear that no
+harm was intended them, for they were not treated as prisoners, and thus
+they hastened on in confidence and hope.
+
+It was not until they had left the city some distance behind, that the
+bright moon showed them a confused mass of white objects in front; and
+they were both marveling what the strange and unknown spectacle could
+be, when their party was suddenly challenged by the sentries of an
+outpost. The leader of the little escort gave the watchword; and now, as
+the two females drew nearer to the encampment, the mass of white objects
+became more shapely, until, in a few minutes, the pointed tops of the
+tents and pavilions stood out in strong relief against the now purple
+sky.
+
+What could this unusual spectacle mean? They were still in the dungeons
+of the inquisition when the alarm, caused by an approaching army, had
+circulated through Florence; and the rumor had not reached their ears.
+For the first time since the moment of their release they now hung back,
+and manifested signs of fear.
+
+"Be not terrified, ladies," said the chief of the escort, speaking in
+excellent Italian; "ye have no cause for apprehension! Before you spread
+the innumerable tents of the Ottoman army; and it is to the presence of
+this mighty host that ye are indebted for your freedom."
+
+"But whither are you taking us?" inquired Flora, scarcely reassured.
+
+"To the pavilion of his Highness, Ibrahim-Pasha, the grand vizier of the
+glorious Sultan Solyman," answered the Turk; "and at the hands of that
+powerful minister ye will receive naught but honorable and kind
+treatment."
+
+"Know you, signor," inquired Flora, "if there be in the Ottoman camp a
+young man who, when a Christian," she added, with a profound sigh, "bore
+the name of Alessandro Francatelli?"
+
+"There is such a young man," responded the Turkish messenger; "and you
+will see him presently."
+
+"Oh! is it then to him that we owe our deliverance?" demanded the
+beauteous maiden, her heart fluttering with varied emotions at the idea
+of meeting her brother. "Is he attached to the person of that mighty man
+whom you denominate the grand vizier? and shall we see him in the
+pavilion of his highness?"
+
+"You will see him in the pavilion of his highness," answered the Turk.
+
+"And the grand vizier himself--is he a good, kind man?" asked Flora. "Is
+my brother--I mean Alessandro--a favorite with him?"
+
+"I believe that the mighty Ibrahim loves no man more than Alessandro
+Francatelli, lady," said the Turk, highly amused by these questions
+which were put to him, although his manner was respectful and calm.
+
+"Then there is a chance that Alessandro will rise in the service of the
+sultan?" continued Flora, naturally anxious to glean all the information
+she could respecting her brother.
+
+"There is not a more enviable personage in the imperial service than he
+whom you style Alessandro Francatelli."
+
+"Heaven be thanked that he is so prosperous, poor boy!" exclaimed the
+aunt, who had been an attentive listener to the preceding discourse.
+"But your grand vizier, signor, must be very powerful to have a great
+army at his disposal."
+
+"The grand vizier, lady," returned the Ottoman envoy, "is second only to
+the sultan, and in him we see a reflection of the imperial majesty. At a
+sign from the great and potent Ibrahim every scimiter throughout this
+host of twenty thousand men would leap from its sheath in readiness to
+strike where and at whom he might choose to order. Nay, more, lady--he
+has the power to gather together mighty armies, so numerous that they
+would inundate Christendom as with a desolating sea. Allah be thanked!
+there is no limit to the power of the mighty Ibrahim so long as he
+holdeth the seals of his great office."
+
+The two females made no further observation aloud; but they thought
+profoundly on all that they had just heard. For in a short time they
+were to stand in the presence of this puissant chief whom the Ottomans
+seemed to worship as a god, and who wielded a power which placed him on
+a level with the proudest potentates in the Christian world.
+
+In the meantime the little party had entered the precincts of the
+Ottoman encampment, a complete city of tents and pavilions, ranged in
+the most admirable order, and with all the regularity of streets.
+
+A solemn silence prevailed throughout the camp, interrupted only by the
+measured pace and the occasional challenge of sentinels.
+
+At length Flora and her aunt perceived, in the clear moonlight, a
+pavilion loftier, larger, and more magnificent than any they had yet
+seen. The pinnacle glittered as if it were tipped with a bright star;
+the roof was of dazzling whiteness; and the sides were of dark velvet,
+richly embroidered with gold. It stood in the midst of a wide space, the
+circumjacent tents forming a complete circle about it. Within this
+inclosure of tents the sentries were posted at very short intervals; and
+instead of walking up and down, they stood motionless as statues, their
+mighty scimiters gleaming in the moonlight.
+
+In profound silence did the little party proceed toward the entrance of
+the vast pavilion, which the females had no difficulty in discerning to
+be the habitation of the potent and dreaded chief into whose presence
+they were now repairing.
+
+In front of this splendid tent floated two large banners, each from the
+summit of a tall javelin, the head of which was of burnished gold. One
+of these enormous flags was green; the other was blood-red. The first
+was the sacred standard of the Prophet Mohammed, and accompanied the
+grand vizier in his capacity of representative and vice-regent of the
+sultan; and the latter was the banner which was always planted in front
+of the pavilion inhabited by the seraskier, or commander-in-chief of the
+Ottoman army.
+
+At the entrance of the vast tent stood four mounted sentinels, horses
+and men alike so motionless that they seemed to be as many equestrian
+statues.
+
+"In a few moments," whispered the leader of the little escort to the two
+females, "you will be in the presence of the grand vizier, who will
+receive you alone."
+
+"And Alessandro Francatelli?" inquired Flora, in a tone of
+disappointment, "will he not be there also?"
+
+"Fear not, you shall behold him shortly," answered the Turk; and passing
+behind the mounted sentinels, he drew aside the velvet curtain, at the
+same time bidding Flora and her aunt enter the pavilion.
+
+A blaze of light bursting forth from the interior of the magnificent
+tent dazzled and bewildered them, as the Ottoman gently gushed them
+onward--for they hung back in vague and groundless alarm.
+
+The curtain was instantly closed behind them; and they now found
+themselves inside the gorgeous abode of the grand vizier. The pavilion
+was decorated in the most sumptuous manner. Crystal chandeliers were
+suspended to the spars which supported the canvas ceiling; and the
+pillars which supported those spars were gilt and inlaid with
+mother-of-pearl. Rich sofas placed around the sides--vases, some
+containing flowers and others delicious perfumes--tables laden with
+refreshments of the most exquisite kind,--in a word, all the evidences
+of enormous wealth and all the accessories of luxurious splendor were
+displayed in this sumptuous abode.
+
+At the further end of the pavilion was seated an individual, whom, by
+the intimation they had already received, and by the magnificence of his
+attire, Flora and her aunt immediately knew to be the grand vizier. He
+soon granted them the opportunity they so anxiously awaited, and it was
+not a great while ere they found themselves completely reassured, and
+conversing with a freedom which they had hardly hoped would characterize
+their interview.
+
+But who can describe the wonder and amazement which overwhelmed Flora
+and her aunt, when, in the person of the grand vizier, was revealed to
+them the long absent brother and nephew, Alessandro Francatelli!
+
+It is needless to give in detail the events which were narrated in their
+conversation. After a long and interesting recapitulation of the
+thrilling events which had attended them thus far, they turned to that
+more immediate matter which lay nearest their hearts.
+
+When the Count of Riverola at length joined the party, the young
+nobleman, taking Flora's hand, exclaimed:
+
+"I am anxious to secure this jewel as soon as possible. Our union may be
+celebrated privately and without useless pomp and ceremony; a few hours
+hence may see us allied to part no more. I have a friend in
+Florence--Fernand Wagner----"
+
+"And if he be your friend, count, you cannot possess one more likely to
+be sincere!" exclaimed the vizier.
+
+"He has, indeed, proved a warm friend to me," continued Francisco. "Two
+days ago I was stretched upon a bed of sickness--delirious, my mind
+wandering, and my reason gone----"
+
+"Merciful heavens!" cried Flora, shuddering from head to foot, and
+contemplating her intended husband with the deepest solicitude.
+
+"Yes, I was in a desperate state," said the count. "But Wagner came--he
+breathed words of hope in my ears, and I recovered rapidly; so rapidly
+and so completely that I feel not as if I had ever known indisposition
+save by name. I was, however, about to observe that there is an oratory
+in Signor Wagner's mansion; and there may the ceremony be performed.
+Fernand is, moreover, well acquainted with the language by which the
+deaf and dumb communicate their ideas; and through friendship for me he
+will break the tidings of my marriage to my sister."
+
+"Be it as you propose," said the grand vizier; then, after a moment's
+pause, he added, speaking in a low and mysterious whisper: "and if you
+will not shrink from the contact of the renegade at the altar of God--a
+renegade in name only, and not in heart--a renegade to suit his worldly
+purposes, and not from conviction--then shall I be present at the
+ceremony. Yes," he continued, perceiving that his aunt, his sister, and
+the young count surveyed him with mingled pleasure and amazement--"yes,
+in a deep disguise I will quit the encampment and enter Florence, for it
+would grieve me deeply to be excluded from the solemn scene."
+
+"Dearest Alessandro--for thus you will permit me still to call you,"
+exclaimed his aunt, "your words have made my happiness complete. Oh! you
+are still a Christian in heart, thank God!"
+
+"Not for worlds would I that you should be absent from the ceremony
+which makes your sister the Countess of Riverola!" exclaimed Francisco.
+
+The arrangements so happily come to and so amicably digested, were now
+to be carried into effect. The expectant bridegroom accordingly took a
+temporary leave of the vizier, Flora and the aunt, and returned to the
+city to seek his friend Fernand Wagner, it being understood that those
+whom he had just left should meet him at that signor's mansion by
+mid-day.
+
+The morning was now breaking: and every roof top in Florence was crowded
+with persons anxious to obtain a view of the encampment, as we have
+stated at the close of the preceding chapter.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LXIII.
+
+THE MANUSCRIPT.
+
+
+In accordance with the plans detailed in the preceding chapter,
+Francisco and Flora, accompanied by the good dame Francatelli, and
+preceded by a suitable guard, now departed from the gorgeous pavilion of
+the grand vizier, on their way to the mansion of Wagner.
+
+On arriving at the walls of the city, the Ottoman guard left them, and
+retraced their steps to the Turkish encampment, while our little party
+proceeded on its way through the now crowded streets, and soon arrived
+at the residence of Wagner.
+
+With many congratulations did Fernand receive them; and being informed
+of the purport of their visit, hastened to acquaint his chaplain of the
+duties that were required of him; and before the sun was an hour higher
+in the heavens, Francisco, Count of Riverola, and Flora Francatelli were
+joined together in the indissoluble bonds of wedlock.
+
+It was now, for the first time since his recovery, that the recollection
+of the solemn oath Francisco had made to his dying father came across
+his mind--that on that day and that hour in which he was married, he and
+his bride should visit the secret chamber: and he hurriedly told Wagner
+that it was of the utmost importance that he should be at the Riverola
+palace within the hour; and at the same time he requested his kind
+friend to accompany him.
+
+On arriving at the Riverola palace, the party were instantly admitted,
+notwithstanding that the Turkish soldiers placed there by the grand
+vizier still guarded the gates: and Francisco proceeded alone to his
+sister's apartment, where he found her sitting, busied in conjecturing
+the cause of her recent detention--for Ibrahim, on the completion of the
+marriage ceremony, of which he had been an unseen observer, had given
+orders to free her from all restraint on her person.
+
+On perceiving Francisco, Nisida tenderly embraced him; and by signs he
+informed her that a person wished to be admitted to her presence. Having
+signified her acquiescence, Francisco retired, and in a few moments
+returned, leading by the hand his blushing bride, while Wagner followed,
+a few paces in the rear.
+
+No sooner had Nisida's eyes fallen on the form of Flora, than she
+started from her seat, her eyes flashing with concentrated hate, and her
+haughty lip curled in withering contempt, for well she guessed the
+purport of her visit: but the next moment her eyes fell on the advancing
+form of her adored Wagner--and those eyes, lit up as with the fires of
+hell, lost their demoniac glare in the beams of love which gleamed in
+their dark depths; and her lip of scorn was changed into an enchanting
+smile of the sweetest welcome--a transition from hate to love, a change
+of feelings as well as features of which woman, loving woman, alone is
+capable--and the next moment, regardless of the presence of Francisco
+and Flora, she rushed into the arms of her long-lost, her adored Wagner.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Nisida was now acquainted with the marriage of her brother, the secret
+chamber had been visited, the manuscript brought forth to be read; but
+one of the party that but a few moments before occupied that room was no
+more--_Fernand Wagner was dead_! True to the letter were the words of
+the founder of the order of the Rosy Cross, that "the spell which the
+Evil One hath cast upon thee, Fernand Wagner, shall be broken only on
+that day and that hour when thine eyes shall behold the bleached
+skeletons of two innocent victims suspended to the same beam."
+
+Flora and Francisco had visited the secret chamber alone, but the scream
+of horror which came from the bride on seeing the spectacle which there
+presented itself to her, brought Wagner and Nisida to their side.
+Instantly on seeing the skeletons, the prophecy of Rosencrux rushed on
+the mind of Wagner; a complete revolution came over his whole frame,
+beautiful visions floated before his eyes, as of angels waiting to
+receive him and herald him to eternal glory; then stretching forth his
+arms, as if to embrace something immaterial, he fell heavily to the
+earth, and in a few moments he had breathed his last in the arms of
+Nisida.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+We will now proceed to the reading of the manuscript, and pass over a
+detail of the indescribable agony that rent the heart of Nisida on
+seeing her beloved Wagner a corpse, and the revulsion of her feelings on
+beholding the loathsome change that came over the face and form of the
+once god-like Fernand, a repetition of which would grate too harshly on
+the feelings of the reader.
+
+
+THE MANUSCRIPT.
+
+"In order that you, Francisco--and she who as your bride, shall
+accompany you on your visit to the secret cabinet wherein you are
+destined to find this manuscript--in order, I say, that you may both
+fully comprehend the meaning of the strange and frightful spectacle
+there prepared to meet your eyes, it is necessary that I should enter
+into a full and perfect detail of certain circumstances, the study of
+which will, I hope, prove beneficial to the lady whom you may honor with
+the proud name of Riverola.
+
+"In the year 1494 I visited Naples on certain pecuniary business, an
+intimation of which I found amongst the private papers of my father, who
+had died about ten months previously. I was then just one-and-twenty,
+and had not as yet experienced the influence of the tender passion. I
+had found the ladies of Florence so inveterately given to intrigue, and
+had seen so many instances in which the best and most affectionate of
+husbands were grossly deceived by their wives, that I had not only
+conceived an abhorrence at the idea of linking my fortunes with one of
+my own countrywomen, but even made a solemn vow that if ever I married,
+my choice should not fall upon a Tuscan. It was with such impressions as
+these that I quitted Florence on the business to which I have alluded:
+and I cared not if I never returned thither--so shallow, heartless, and
+superficial did its gay society appear to me.
+
+"On my arrival at Naples I assumed the name of Cornari, and,
+representing myself as a young man of humble birth and moderate fortune,
+mixed in the best society that would receive a stranger of such poor
+pretensions. I had already learned at Florence that the fair sex are
+invariably dazzled by titles and riches; and I had a curiosity to try
+whether I should be at all sought after when apparently unpossessed of
+such qualifications. Not that I had any serious thoughts of matrimony;
+for I was far from being so romantic as to suppose that any beautiful
+lady of high birth would fall in love with me so long as I passed for
+plain Signor Cornari. No; it was merely a whim of mine--would that I had
+never undertaken to gratify it.
+
+"I was altogether unattended by any retinue, having quitted Florence
+with only a single valet, who died of sudden illness on the road. Thus
+did I enter Naples alone, with my package of necessaries fastened to the
+saddle of the steed that bore me. I put up at a small, but respectable
+hostel; and the first few days of my residence at the Neapolitan capital
+were passed in making inquiries concerning the individual whose large
+debt to my deceased father had been the principal cause of my journey
+thither.
+
+"I found him, at length, but perceiving that he was totally unable to
+liquidate the claim upon him, I did not discover my real name, and took
+my leave, resolving to think no more of the matter.
+
+"Returning to the inn, I happened to pass through one of the most
+squalid and miserable parts of the city, when my attention was suddenly
+fixed upon the most charming female figure I had ever seen in my life.
+The object of my interest was respectably but plainly clad; indeed, she
+appeared to belong to the class of petty tradespeople. Her form was most
+perfect in its symmetry; her gait was peculiarly graceful, and her
+manners were evidently modest and reserved: for she looked neither to
+the right nor to the left, but pursued her way with all the
+unobtrusiveness of strict propriety. I longed to behold her face; and,
+quickening my steps, presently passed her. I then had an opportunity of
+beholding the most beautiful countenance that ever adorned a woman.
+Heaven seemed to smile through the mirror of her mild black eyes; and
+there was such an indescribable sweetness in the general expression of
+her face, that it might have served a limner to copy for the countenance
+of an angel! She saw that I gazed intently upon her, and instantly
+turned aside into another street; for I should observe that females of
+the lower orders in Naples are not permitted to wear veils.
+
+"I stood looking after her until she was lost to my view; and then I
+went slowly back to the inn, my mind full of the image of the beautiful
+unknown.
+
+"Day after day did I rove through that same quarter of the city in the
+hope of meeting her again; and every evening did I return to my lonely
+chamber, chagrined and disappointed. My spirits sank, my appetite fled,
+and I grew restless and melancholy. At length I one morning beheld her
+in the flower-market, and I stood gazing on her with such enthusiastic,
+and yet such respectful admiration, that though she turned away, still
+methought it was not with a feeling of resentment.
+
+"I was transfixed to the spot for some minutes, and it was not until she
+had disappeared amidst the crowd gathered in that quarter, that I could
+so collect my scattered thoughts as to curse my folly for having omitted
+such an opportunity of accosting her. I however inquired of an old woman
+of whom she had purchased some flowers, who she was; but all the
+information I could glean was, that she had recently been in the habit
+of buying a few flowers every Wednesday of that same old woman. I went
+away more contented than I had felt for many days, because I now felt
+certain that I knew where to meet the lovely creature again.
+Nevertheless, during the six succeeding days I rambled about the flower
+market and the squalid quarter of the city where I had first seen her,
+but my search was unsuccessful; and the greater the disappointment I
+experienced, the more powerful grew my love. Yes, it was indeed love
+which I now felt, for the first time, and for a being to whom I had
+never spoken--whom I had only seen twice, and on these occasions only
+for a few minutes, and whom I knew, by her garb, to belong to the poorer
+class. But on the following Wednesday I saw her for the third time; and
+when she beheld me standing near the old woman's flower stall, she
+appeared vexed and surprised, and was about to turn away. I however
+approached her, besought her to accept of the choicest nosegay which I
+had been able to find, and continued to speak to her in so ardent, yet
+respectful a manner, that she no longer viewed me with resentment, but
+with something approaching to interest. And if I had been charmed by her
+beauty when as yet I had seen her at a comparative distance, how
+enraptured was I now by a nearer contemplation of that heavenly
+countenance.
+
+"I assured her that her image had never been absent from my heart since
+first I saw her, that I should never know peace or happiness again until
+she would give me some hope, and that I would sooner die than have her
+construe my words into an insult. She was touched by the earnestness and
+evident sincerity of my manner; and, encouraged by her silence, I
+proceeded hastily to inform her that my name was Cornari, that I was a
+young man of humble birth, but that I possessed a modest competency, and
+was my own master. I then pressed her to accept my nosegay; but,
+suddenly bursting into tears, she exclaimed--
+
+"'O, signor, you know not whom you have thus honored with your notice,'
+and hurried away, leaving me absolutely stupefied with astonishment and
+grief. It immediately struck me that she was a lost and degraded
+creature, who dared not respond to a virtuous love. But a few moments'
+reflection told me that such innocence, such artlessness, such candor
+never could be assumed--never feigned; no, they were most natural! And
+this conviction, added to the intense curiosity which now inspired me to
+fathom the mystery of her singular remark, rendered me more anxious than
+ever to meet with her again. Several weeks passed without seeing the
+gratification of my wish; and I was becoming seriously ill with
+disappointment and defeated hope, when accident led me to encounter her
+once more. She would have avoided me, but I absolutely compelled her to
+stop. Seizing her hand, I said,--
+
+"'Look at me--behold to what I am reduced--mark these pale and sunken
+cheeks, and have pity on me!'
+
+"'And I, too,' she murmured, 'have been very miserable since we last
+met.'
+
+"'Then you have thought of me?' I exclaimed, retaining her hand still in
+mine, and reading love in the depths of her large dark eyes.
+
+"'I have,' she answered bitterly, withdrawing her hand at the same time;
+then in a tone of deep anguish she added, 'I implore you to let me
+proceed on my way; and if you value your own happiness you will never
+seek to see me more.'
+
+"'But my happiness depends on seeing you often,' I exclaimed; 'and if
+the offer of an honest heart be acceptable, I have that to give.'
+
+"She shuddered dreadfully from head to foot.
+
+"'Surely you are not married already?' I said, rendered desperate by her
+strange and incomprehensible manner.
+
+"'I married!' she absolutely shrieked forth. Then perceiving that I was
+perfectly amazed and horrified by the wild vehemence of her
+ejaculations, she said in a subdued, melancholy tone, 'I adjure you to
+think of me no more.'
+
+"'Listen, beauteous stranger,' I exclaimed; 'I love and adore you. My
+happiness is at stake. Repeat that cruel adjuration, and you inflict a
+death-blow. If I be loathsome to your sight, tell me so; but leave me
+not a prey to the most horrible suspense. If you have a father, I will
+accompany you to him and make honorable proposals.'
+
+"'My father!' she murmured, while her countenance was suddenly swept by
+a passing expression of anguish so intense that I began to tremble for
+her reason.
+
+"I implored her to speak candidly and openly, and not in brief sentences
+of such ominous mystery. She scarcely appeared to listen to my words,
+but seemed totally absorbed in the mental contemplation of a deeply
+seated woe. At length she suddenly turned her large dark eyes upon me,
+and said in a low, plaintive, profoundly touching tone:
+
+"'Signor Cornari, again I adjure you to think of me no more. But for my
+own sake I would not have you believe that unmaidenly conduct on my part
+is the cause of the solemn prayer I thus make to you. No, no; I have
+naught wherewith I can reproach myself; but there are reasons of
+terrible import that compel me to address you in this manner.
+Nevertheless,' she added, more slowly and hesitatingly, 'if you really
+should continue to entertain so deep an interest in me as to render you
+desirous to hear the last explanation from my lips, then may you rely
+upon meeting me on this spot, and at the same hour, fifteen days hence.'
+
+"She then hurried away. How that fortnight passed I can scarcely tell.
+To me it appeared an age. I was deeply, madly enamored of that strange,
+beautiful, and apparently conscientious being; and the mystery which
+involved her threw around her a halo of interest that fanned the flame
+of my passion. I was prepared to make any sacrifice rather than abandon
+all hope of calling her my own. The proud title of Riverola was as
+nothing in my estimation when weighed in the balance against her
+charms--her bewitching manner--her soft, retiring modesty. I moreover
+flattered myself that I was not indifferent to her; and I loved her all
+the more sincerely because I reflected that if she gave her heart to me,
+it would be to the poor and humble Cornari, and not to the rich and
+mighty Lord of Riverola.
+
+"At length the day--the memorable day--came; and she failed not to keep
+her appointment. She was pale--very pale--but exquisitely beautiful; and
+she smiled in spite of herself when she beheld me. She endeavored to
+conceal her emotions, but she could not altogether subdue the evidence
+of that gratification which my presence caused her.
+
+"'You have disregarded my most earnest prayer,' she said, in a low and
+agitated tone.
+
+"'My happiness depends upon you,' I answered; 'in the name of Heaven
+keep me not in suspense; but tell me, can you and will you be mine?'
+
+"'I could be thine, but I dare not,' she replied, in a voice scarcely
+audible.
+
+"'Reveal to me the meaning of this strange contradiction, I implore
+you!' said I, again a prey to the most torturing suspense. 'Do you love
+another?'
+
+"'Did I love another,' she exclaimed, withdrawing the hand which I had
+taken, 'I should not be here this day.'
+
+"'Pardon me,' I cried; 'I would not offend you for worlds! If you do not
+love another, can you love me?'
+
+"Again she allowed me to take her hand; and this concession, together
+with the rapid but eloquent glance she threw upon me, was the answer to
+my question.
+
+"'Then, if you can love me,' I urged, 'why cannot you be mine?'
+
+"'Because,' she replied, in that tone of bitterness which did me harm to
+hear it, 'you are born of parents whose name and whose calling you dare
+mention; whereas you would loathe me as much as you now declare that you
+love me, were you to learn who my father is! For mother, alas! I have
+none; she has been dead many years!' And tears streamed down her cheeks.
+I also wept, so deeply did I sympathize with her.
+
+"'Beloved girl,' I exclaimed, 'you wrong me! What is it to me if your
+father be the veriest wretch, the greatest criminal that crawls upon the
+face of the earth, so long as you are pure and innocent?'"
+
+"'No, no,' she cried hastily, 'you misunderstand me. There breathes not
+a more upright man than my father.'
+
+"'Then wherefore should I be ashamed to own my marriage with his
+daughter?' I asked in an impassioned manner.
+
+"'Because,' she said, in a tone of such intense anguish that it rent my
+heart as she began to speak; 'because,' she repeated slowly and
+emphatically, 'he is viewed with abhorrence by that world which is so
+unjust; for that which constitutes the stigma is hereditary office in
+his family--an office that he dares not vacate under pain of death; and
+now you can too well comprehend that my sire is the PUBLIC EXECUTIONER
+OF NAPLES!'
+
+"This announcement came upon me like a thunderbolt. I turned sick at
+heart--my eyes grew dim--my brain whirled--I staggered and should have
+fallen had I not come in contact with a wall. It appeared to me
+afterward that sobs of ineffable agony fell upon my ears, while I was
+yet in a state of semi-stupefaction--and methought likewise that a
+delicate, soft hand pressed mine convulsively for a moment. Certain it
+was, that when I recovered my presence of mind, when I was enabled to
+collect my scattered thoughts, the executioner's daughter was no longer
+near me. I was in despair at the revelation which had been
+made--overwhelmed with grief, too, at having suffered her thus to
+depart--for I feared that I should never see her more. Before me was my
+hopeless love, behind me, like an evil dream, was the astounding
+announcement which still rang in my ears, though breathed in such soft
+and plaintive tones! Three or four minutes were wasted in the struggles
+of conflicting thoughts, ere I was sufficiently master of myself to
+remember that I might still overtake the maiden who had fled from me. It
+struck me that her father's dwelling must be near the criminal prison;
+and this was in the squalid quarter of the town where I had first
+encountered her. Thither I sped--into the dark streets, so perilous
+after dusk, I plunged; and at length I overtook the object of my
+affection, just as she was skirting the very wall of the prison. I
+seized her by the hand and implored her to forgive me for the manner in
+which I had received the last explanation to which I had urged her.
+
+"'It was natural that you should shrink in loathing from the bare idea,'
+she said, in a tone which rent my heart. 'And now leave me, signor; for
+further conversation between us is useless.'
+
+"'No,' I exclaimed; 'I will not leave you until I shall have exacted
+from you a promise that you will be mine, and only mine! For I could not
+live without you; and most unjust should I be, most unworthy of the name
+of a man, if I were to allow a contemptible prejudice to stand in the
+way of my happiness.'
+
+"She returned no answer, but the rapidity of her breathing and the ill
+subdued sobs which interrupted her respiration at short intervals,
+convinced me that a fierce struggle was taking place within her bosom.
+For it was now quite dark and I could not see her face; the hand,
+however, which I held clasped in my own, trembled violently.
+
+"'Beautiful maiden,' I said after a long pause, 'wherefore do you not
+reply to me? Were I the proudest peer in Christendom, I would sacrifice
+every consideration of rank and family for your sake. What more can man
+say? What more can he do?'
+
+"'Signor Cornari,' she answered at length, 'prudence tells me to fly
+from you; but my heart prompts me to remain. Alas! I feel that the
+latter feeling is dominant within me!'
+
+"'And you will be mine?' I demanded eagerly.
+
+"'Thine forever!' she murmured, her head sinking upon my breast.
+
+"But I shall not dwell unnecessarily on this portion of my narrative.
+Suffice it to say we parted, having arranged another meeting for the
+next evening. It was on this occasion that I said to her:
+
+"'Vitangela, I have thought profoundly on all that passed between us
+yesterday; and I am more than ever determined to make you my wife. Let
+us away to your father, and demand his consent to our union.'
+
+"'Stay,' she said, in an emphatic tone, 'and hear me patiently ere you
+either renew the promise to wed me, or reiterate your desire to seek my
+father. You must know,' she continued, while I listened with painful
+suspense, 'that my father will not oppose a step in which his daughter's
+happiness is involved. But the very moment that sees our hands joined,
+will behold the registry of the marriage in the book kept by the
+lieutenant of police; and thereby will be constituted a record of the
+name of one who, if need be, must assume the functions of that office
+which my sire now fills.'
+
+"'What mean you, Vitangela?' I demanded, horrified by the dim yet
+ominous significance of these horrible words.
+
+"'I mean,' she continued, 'that the terrible post of public executioner
+must remain in our family while it exists; and those who form marriages
+with us, are considered to enter into our family. When my father dies,
+my brother will succeed him, but should my brother die without leaving
+issue, or having a son to take his place, you, signor, if you become my
+husband, will be forced to assume the terrible office.'
+
+"'But I am not a Neapolitan,' I exclaimed; 'and I should hope that when
+we are united, you will not insist upon dwelling in Naples.'
+
+"'I would give worlds to leave this odious city,' she said,
+emphatically.
+
+"'Nothing detains me here another day, nor another hour,' I cried; 'let
+the priest unite our hands, and we forthwith set off for Florence. But
+why should not our marriage take place privately, unknown even to your
+father? and in that case no entry could be made in the books of the
+lieutenant of police.'
+
+"'You have expressed that desire which I myself feared to utter, lest
+you should think it unmaidenly,' she murmured. 'For your sake I will
+quit home and kindred without further hesitation.'
+
+"I was rejoiced at this proof of affection and confidence on her part;
+and it was arranged between us that we should be married on the ensuing
+evening, and in the most private way possible.
+
+"Before we parted, however, I drew from her a solemn pledge that, when
+once she had become my wife, she would never even allude to her
+family--that she would not communicate to them the name of her husband
+nor the place of our abode, under any circumstance--in a word, that she
+would consider her father and brother as dead to her,--and she to them.
+
+"With streaming eyes and sobbing heart she gave the sacred promise I
+required, ratifying it with an oath which I made her repeat to my
+dictation.
+
+"On the ensuing evening Vitangela met me according to appointment, and
+it was then I revealed to her my real name and rank.
+
+"'Dearest girl,' I said, 'you gave me your heart, believing me to be a
+poor and humble individual; and you have consented to become my wife and
+abandon home and kindred for my sake. Profoundly then do I rejoice that
+it is in my power to elevate you to a position of which your beauty,
+your amiability and your virtue render you so eminently worthy; and in
+my own native Florence, no lady will be more courted, nor treated with
+greater distinction than the Countess of Riverola.'
+
+"She uttered an exclamation of sorrow and would have fallen to the
+ground if I had not supported her.
+
+"'Oh!' she murmured, 'I would have been happier were you indeed the
+humble Signor Cornari!'
+
+"'No; think not thus,' I urged, 'wealth and rank are two powerful aids
+to happiness in this life. But at all events; my beloved Vitangela, you
+now recognize more than ever the paramount necessity which induces you
+to maintain inviolate your solemn vow of yesterday.'
+
+"'I require no such inducement to compel me to keep that pledge,' she
+answered. 'Think you that I would bring disgrace on the name, whether
+humble or lofty, with which you have proposed to honor me? Oh!
+no--never, never!"
+
+"I embraced her fondly; and we proceeded to the dwelling of a priest, by
+whom our hands were united in the oratory attached to his abode. At
+daybreak we quitted Naples, and in due time we reached Florence, where
+my bride was received with enthusiastic welcome by all the friends of
+the Riverola family. My happiness appeared to have been established on a
+solid foundation by this alliance; and the birth of Nisida in 1495--just
+one year after the marriage--was a bond which seemed to unite our hearts
+the more closely if possible. Indeed, I can safely assert that not a
+harsh word ever passed between us, nor did aught occur to mar our
+complete felicity for years after our union. In 1500, however, a
+circumstance took place which proved to be the first link in the chain
+of incidents destined to wield a dire influence over my happiness. It
+was in the month of April of that year--oh! how indelibly is the
+detested date fixed on my memory--the Duke Piero de Medici gave a grand
+entertainment to all the aristocracy of Florence. The banquet was of the
+most excellent description; and the gardens of the palace were
+brilliantly illuminated. The days of Lorenzo the Magnificent seemed to
+have been revived for a short period by his degenerate descendant. All
+the beauty and rank of the republic were assembled at this festival; but
+no lady was more admired for the chaste elegance of her attire, the
+modest dignity of her deportment, and the loveliness of her person, than
+Vitangela, Countess of Riverola. After the banquet the company proceeded
+to the gardens, where bands of music were stationed, and while some
+indulged in the exhilarating dance, others sauntered through the
+brilliantly lighted avenues. I need not inform you that no husband,
+unless he were anxious to draw down upon himself the ridicule which
+attaches itself to extreme uxoriousness, would remain linked to his
+wife's side all the evening at such an entertainment as the one of which
+I am speaking. I was therefore separated from the countess, whom I left
+in an arbor with some other ladies, and I joined the group which had
+assembled around the prince. I know not exactly how it was I happened to
+quit my companions, after a lively conversation which had probably
+lasted about an hour; certain, however, it is that before midnight I was
+proceeding alone down a long avenue in which utter darkness reigned, but
+outside of which the illuminations shone brilliantly.
+
+"Suddenly I heard voices near me; and one of them appeared to be that of
+the Countess of Riverola--but they were speaking in so subdued a tone
+that I was by no means confident in my suspicion. The voices approached;
+and a sentiment of curiosity, unaccountable at the time, as I believed
+Vitangela to be purity itself, impelled me to listen more attentively.
+To conceal myself was not necessary; I had to remain perfectly still for
+my presence to be unknown, utter darkness prevailing in the avenue. The
+persons who were conversing advanced.
+
+"'You know,' said the soft and whispering voice which I believed to be
+that of my wife, 'you know how sincerely, how tenderly I love you, and
+what a frightful risk I run in according you thus a few moments' private
+discourse!'
+
+"The voice of a man made some reply, the words of which did not reach my
+ears; then the pair stopped and I heard the billing sound of kisses. O! how
+my blood boiled in my veins! I grasped the handle of my sword--but I was
+nailed to the spot--my state of mind was such that though I longed--I
+thirsted for vengeance--yet was I powerless--motionless--paralyzed. To
+the sound of kisses succeeded those of sobbing and of grief on the part
+of the lady whose voice had produced such a terrible effect upon me.
+
+"'Holy Virgin!' I thought, 'she deplores the fate that chains her to her
+husband! she weeps because she has not courage to fly with her lover!'
+and now I experienced just the same sensations as those which stunned
+and stupefied me on that evening at Naples when I first heard that
+Vitangela was the child of the public executioner. Several minutes must
+have passed while I was in this condition of comparative insensibility;
+or rather while I was a prey to the stunning conviction that I was
+deceived by her whom I had loved so well and deemed so pure. When I
+awoke from that dread stupor all was still in the dark avenue; not a
+footstep, not a whispering voice was heard. I hurried along amidst the
+trees, my soul racked with the cruelest suspicions. And yet I was not
+confident that it was positively my wife's voice that I had heard; and
+the more I pondered on the circumstance, the more anxious was I to
+arrive at the conviction that I had indeed been deceived by some voice
+closely resembling hers. I accordingly hurried back to the arbor where I
+had last seen her in the company of several Florentine ladies. Joy
+animated my soul when I beheld Vitangela seated in that arbor, and in
+the very spot, too, where I had beheld her upward of an hour previously.
+But she was now alone.
+
+"'Where are your friends?' I asked, in a kind tone, as I approached and
+gently took her hand.
+
+"'Indeed I know not,' she replied, casting a hurried glance around, and
+now appearing surprised to find that there was not another lady near
+her. She seemed confused; and I also observed that she had been weeping
+very recently. The joy which had for a moment animated me, was now
+succeeded by a sudden chill that went to my heart death-like--icy. But,
+subduing my emotion, I said:
+
+"'Your ladyship has not surely remained here ever since I last saw you,
+more than an hour ago?'
+
+"'Yes,' she responded, without daring to raise her eyes to meet mine. I
+knew that she lied, most foully lied: her confusion, her whole manner
+betrayed her. But I exercised a powerful mastery over my mind; the
+suspicion which I had all along entertained was strengthened greatly,
+but not altogether confirmed; and I resolved to wait for confirmation
+ere I allowed my vengeance to burst forth. Moreover, it was necessary to
+discover who the gallant might be--the favored one who had superseded me
+in the affections of Vitangela! I, however, promised myself that when
+once my information was complete, my revenge should be terrible; and
+this resolution served as a solace for the moment, and as an inducement
+for me to conceal alike the suspicions I had imbibed and the dreadful
+pain they had caused me.
+
+"Presenting my hand, therefore, to Vitangela, I escorted her to that
+part of the ground where the company were now assembled, and where I
+hoped that some accident might make known to me the person of the
+gallant with whom, as I supposed, she had walked in the avenue.
+Anxiously, but unsuspected, did I watch the manner of the countess every
+time she returned the salutation of the various nobles and cavaliers
+whom we encountered in our walk; but not a blush, not a sign of
+confusion on her part, not one rapidly dealt, but significant glance,
+afforded me the clew I so ardently sought. And yet it struck me that she
+often cast furtive and uneasy, or rather searching looks hither and
+thither, as if to seek and single out some one individual in the
+multitudes moving about the illuminated gardens. She was certainly
+pre-occupied, and even mournful, but I affected not to observe that a
+cloud hung over her spirits, and in order to throw her completely off
+her guard, I talked and laughed quite as gayly as was my wont. To be
+brief, the festivities terminated a little before sunrise, and I
+conducted the countess back to our mansion. From that night forth I
+maintained the strictest watch upon her conduct and proceedings. I
+appointed Margaretha, the mother of my page Antonio, to act the spy upon
+her; but weeks and months passed, and nothing occurred to confirm the
+terrible suspicion that haunted me night and day. I strove to banish
+that suspicion from my mind--Heaven knows how hard I tried to crush it.
+But it was immortal--and it beset me as if it were the ghost of some
+victim I had ruthlessly murdered. Vitangela saw that my manner had
+somewhat changed toward her, and she frequently questioned me on the
+subject. I, however, gave her evasive answers, for I should have been
+ashamed to acknowledge my suspicion if it were false, and it was only by
+keeping her off her guard I should receive confirmation if it were true.
+Thus nearly nine months passed away from the date of the ducal banquet,
+and then you, Francisco, were born. The presence of an heir to my name
+and wealth was a subject of much congratulation on the part of my
+friends; but to me it was a source of torturing doubts and racking
+fears. You never bore the least--no, not the least resemblance, either
+physical or mental, to me; whereas the very reverse was the case with
+Nisida, even in her infancy. From the moment of your birth--from the
+first instant that I beheld you in the nurse's arms--the most agonizing
+feelings took possession of my soul. Were you indeed my son?--or were
+you the pledge of adulterous love? Merciful heavens! in remembering all
+I suffered when the terrible thoughts oppressed me, I wonder that you,
+Francisco, should now be alive--that I did not strangle you as you lay
+in your cradle. And, oh God! how dearly I could have loved you,
+Francisco, had I felt the same confidence in your paternity as in that
+of your sister Nisida! But no--all was at least doubt and uncertainty in
+that respect--and, as your cast of features and physical characteristics
+developed themselves, that hideous doubt and that racking uncertainty
+increased until there were times when I was nearly goaded to do some
+desperate deed. Those mild blue eyes--that rich brown hair--that
+feminine softness of expression which marked your face belonged not to
+the family of Riverola!
+
+"Time wore on, and my unhappiness increased. I suspected my wife, yet
+dared not proclaim the suspicion. I sought to give her back my love, but
+was utterly unable to subdue the dark thoughts and crush the maddening
+uncertainties that agitated my soul. At last I was sinking into a state
+of morbid melancholy, when an incident occurred which revived all the
+energies of my mind. It was in 1505--Nisida being then ten years old,
+and you, Francisco, four--when Margaretha informed me one evening that
+the countess had received a letter which had thrown her into a state of
+considerable agitation, and which she had immediately burned. By
+questioning the porter at the gate of the mansion, I learnt that the
+person who delivered the letter was a tall, handsome man of about
+thirty-two, with brown hair, blue eyes, and a somewhat feminine
+expression of countenance. Holy Virgin! this must be the gallant--the
+paramour of my wife--the father of the boy on whom the law compelled me
+to bestow my own name. Such were the ideas that immediately struck me;
+and I now prepared for vengeance. Margaretha watched my wife narrowly,
+and on the evening following the one on which the letter had been
+delivered, Vitangela was seen to secure a heavy bag of gold about her
+person, and quit the mansion by the secret staircase of her
+apartment--that apartment which is now the sleeping-place of your sister
+Nisida.
+
+"Margaretha followed the countess to an obscure street, at the corner of
+which the guilty woman encountered a tall person, enveloped in a cloak,
+and who was evidently waiting for her. To him she gave the bag of gold,
+and they embraced each other tenderly. Then they separated--the countess
+returning home, unconscious that a spy watched her movements. Margaretha
+reported all that had occurred to me; and I bade her redouble her
+attention in watching her mistress. Now that the lover is once more in
+this city, I thought, and well provided with my gold to pursue his
+extravagance, there will soon be another meeting--and then for vengeance
+such as an Italian must have. But weeks and months again passed without
+affording the opportunity which I craved; yet I knew that the day must
+come--and I could tutor myself to await its arrival, if not with
+patience, at least with so much outward composure as to lull the
+countess into belief of perfect security.
+
+"Yes, weeks and months passed away, ay, and years, too, and still I
+nursed my hopes and projects of vengeance, the craving for which
+increased with the lapse of time.
+
+"And now I come to the grand, the terrible, the main incident in this
+narrative. It was late one night, in the month of January, 1510, Nisida
+being then fifteen and thou, Francisco, nine, that Margaretha came to me
+in my own apartment and informed me that she had seen the tall gallant
+traverse the garden hastily and obtain admission into the countess'
+chamber by means of the secret staircase. The hour for vengeance had at
+length come. Margaretha was instantly dispatched to advise two bravoes
+whose services I had long secured for the occasion, that the moment had
+arrived when they were to do the work for which they had been so well
+paid in advance, and by the faithful performance of which they would
+still further enrich themselves. Within half an hour all the
+arrangements were completed. Margaretha had retired to her own chamber
+and the bravoes were concealed with me in the garden. Nor had we long to
+wait. The private door opened shortly, and two persons appeared on the
+threshold. The night was clear and beautiful, and from my hiding-place I
+could discern the fondness of the embrace that marked their parting. And
+they parted, too, never to meet again in this life!
+
+"Vitangela closed the door--and her lover was passing rapidly along
+amidst the trees in the garden, when a dagger suddenly drank his heart's
+blood. That dagger was mine, and wielded by my hand! He fell without a
+groan--dead, stone-dead at my feet. Half of my vengeance was now
+accomplished; the other half was yet to be consummated. Without a
+moment's unnecessary delay the corpse was conveyed to a cellar beneath
+the northern wing of the mansion: and the two bravoes then hastened, to
+Vitangela's chamber, into which they obtained admission by forcing the
+door of the private staircase. In pursuance of the orders which they had
+received from me, they bound and gagged her, and conveyed her through
+the garden to the very cellar where, by the light of a gloomy lamp, she
+beheld her husband standing close by a corpse!
+
+"'Bring her near!' I exclaimed, unmoved by the looks of indescribable
+horror which she threw around.
+
+"When her eyes caught sight of the countenance of that lifeless being,
+they remained fixed with frenzied wildness in their sockets, and even if
+there had been no gag between her teeth, I do not believe that she could
+have uttered a syllable. And now commenced the second act in this
+appalling tragedy! While one of the bravoes held the countess in his
+iron grasp, in such a manner that she could not avert her head, the
+other, who had once been a surgeon, tore away the garments from the
+corpse, and commenced the task which I had before assigned to him. And
+as the merciless scalpel hacked and hewed away at the still almost
+palpitating flesh of the murdered man, in whose breast the dagger
+remained deeply buried,--a ferocious joy--a savage, hyena-like triumph
+filled my soul; and I experienced no remorse for the deed I had done!
+Far--very far from that--for as the work progressed, I exclaimed--
+
+"'Behold, Vitangela, how the scalpel hews that form so loved by thee!
+Now hack away at the countenance--deface that beauty--pick out those
+mild blue eyes!'--and I laughed madly!
+
+"The countess fainted, and I ordered her to be carried back to her
+apartment, where Margaretha awaited her. Indeed I had naturally foreseen
+that insensibility would result from the appalling spectacle which I
+compelled my wife to witness: and Margaretha was prepared to breathe
+dreadful menaces in her ears the moment she should recover--menaces of
+death to herself and both her children if she should reveal, even to her
+father confessor, one tittle of the scene which that night had been
+enacted! The surgeon-bravo did his work bravely; and the man who had
+dishonored me was reduced to naught save a skeleton! The flesh and the
+garments were buried deep in the cellar; the skeleton was conveyed to my
+own chamber, and suspended to a beam in the closet where you, Francisco,
+and your bride, are destined to behold it--ALONG WITH ANOTHER!
+
+"My vengeance was thus far gratified--the bravos were dismissed, and I
+locked myself up in my chamber for several days, to brood upon all I had
+done, and occasionally to feast my eyes with the grim remains of him who
+had dared to love my wife. During those days of seclusion I would see no
+one save the servant who brought me my meals. From him I learnt that the
+countess was dangerously ill--that she was indeed dying, and that she
+besought me to visit her if only for a moment. But I refused--implacably
+refused. I was convinced that she craved my forgiveness; and that I
+could not give.
+
+"Dr. Duras, who attended upon her, came to the door of my chamber and
+implored me to grant him an interview:--then Nisida sought a similar
+boon; but I was deaf to each and all.
+
+"Yes--for there was still a being on whom I yet longed to wreak my
+vengeance;--and that being was yourself, Francisco? I looked upon you as
+the living evidence of my dishonor--the memorial of your mother's
+boundless guilt. But I recoiled in horror from the idea of staining my
+hands with the blood of a little child--yet I feared if I came near
+you--if I saw your clinging affectionately to Vitangela--if I heard you
+innocently and unconsciously mock me by calling me 'father!'--I felt I
+should be unable to restrain the fury of my wrath!
+
+"I know not how long I should have remained in the seclusion of my own
+chamber--perhaps weeks and months, but one morning shortly after
+daybreak, I was informed by the only servant whom I would admit near me,
+that the countess had breathed her last during the night, and that
+Nisida was so deeply affected by her mother's death, that she, poor
+girl, was dangerously ill. Then I became frantic on account of my
+daughter; and I quitted my apartment, not only to see that proper aid
+was administered to her, but to complete the scheme of vengeance which I
+had originally formed. Thus, in the first place, Dr. Duras was enjoined
+to take up his abode altogether in the Riverola Palace, so long as
+Nisida should require his services; and, on the other hand, a splendid
+funeral was ordered for the Countess Riverola. But Vitangela's remains
+went not in the velvet-covered coffin to the family vault;--no--her
+flesh was buried in the same soil where rotted the flesh of her
+paramour--and her skeleton was suspended from the same beam to which his
+bones had been already hung. For I thought within myself: 'This is the
+first time that the wife of a Count of Riverola has ever brought
+dishonor and disgrace upon her husband; and I will take care that it
+shall be the last. To Nisida will I leave all my estates--all my wealth,
+save a miserable pittance as an inheritance for the bastard Francisco.
+She shall inherit the title, and the man on whom she may confer her hand
+shall be the next Count of Riverola. The wedding-day will be marked by a
+revelation of the mystery of this cabinet; and the awful spectacle will
+teach him, whoever he may be, to watch his wife narrowly--and will teach
+_her_ what it is to prove unfaithful to a fond husband! To both, the
+lesson will be as useful as the manner of conveying it will be
+frightful, and they will hand down the tradition to future scions of the
+Riverola family. Francisco, too, shall learn the secrets of the cabinet;
+he shall be taught why he is disinherited--why I have hated him: and
+thus even from the other world shall the spirits of the vile paramour
+and the adulterous wife behold the consequences of their crime
+perpetuated in this.'
+
+"Such were my thoughts--such were my intentions. But an appalling
+calamity forced me to change my views. Nisida, after a long and painful
+illness, became deaf and dumb; and Dr. Duras gave me no hope of the
+restoration of her lost faculties.
+
+"Terrible visitation! Then was it that I reasoned with myself--that I
+deliberated long and earnestly upon the course which I should pursue. It
+was improbable that, afflicted as Nisida was, she would ever marry; and
+I felt grieved, deeply grieved, to think that you, Francisco, being
+disinherited, and Nisida remaining single, the proud title of Riverola
+would become extinct; I therefore resolved on the less painful
+alternative of disinheriting you altogether; and I accordingly made a
+will by which I left you the estates, with the contingent title Count of
+Riverola, under certain conditions which might yet alienate both
+property and rank from you, and endow therewith your sister Nisida. For
+should she recover the faculties of speech and hearing by the time she
+shall have attained the age of thirty-six, she will yet be marriageable
+and may have issue; but should that era in her life pass, and she still
+be deaf and dumb, all hope of her recovery will be dead!
+
+"Thus if she still be so deeply afflicted at that age, you, Francisco,
+will inherit the vast estates and the lordly title which, through the
+circumstances of your birth, it grieves me to believe will ever devolve
+upon you.
+
+"Such were my motives for making that will which you are destined to
+hear read, doubtless before the time comes for you to peruse this
+manuscript. And having made that will, and experiencing the sad
+certainty that my unfortunate daughter will never become qualified to
+inherit my title and fortune, but that the name of Riverola must be
+perpetuated through your marriage, I have determined that to you and to
+your bride alone shall the dread secrets of the cabinet be revealed."
+
+Thus terminated the manuscript.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Powerful in meaning and strong in expression as the English language may
+be rendered by one who has the least experience in the proper
+combination of words, yet it becomes totally inadequate to the task of
+conveying an idea of those feelings--those harrowing emotions--those
+horrifying sentiments, which were excited in the breasts of Francisco di
+Riverola and the beautiful Flora by the revolution of the manuscript. At
+first the document begat a deep and mournful interest, as it related the
+interviews of the late count with Vitangela in the streets of Naples;
+then amazement was engendered by the announcement of that lovely and
+unhappy being's ignominious parentage--but a calmness was diffused
+through the minds of Flora and Francisco, as if they had found a resting
+place amidst the exciting incidents of the narrative when they reached
+that part which mentioned the marriage.
+
+Their feelings were, however, destined to be speedily and most painfully
+wrung once more; and Francisco could scarcely restrain his
+indignation--yes, his indignation even against the memory of his
+deceased father--when he perused those injurious suspicions which were
+recorded in reference to the honor of his mother. Though unable to
+explain the mystery in which all that part of the narrative was
+involved, yet he felt firmly convinced that his mother was innocent; and
+he frequently interrupted himself in the perusal of the manuscript to
+give utterance to passionate ejaculations expressive of that opinion.
+But it was when the hideous tragedy rapidly developed itself, and the
+history of the presence of two skeletons in the closet was detailed, it
+was then that language became powerless to describe the mingled wrath
+and disgust which Francisco felt, or to delineate the emotions of
+boundless horror and wild amazement that were excited in the bosom of
+Flora. In spasmodic shuddering did the young countess cling to her
+husband when she had learned how fearfully accurate was the manner in
+which the few lines of the manuscript which she had read many months
+previously in Nisida's boudoir, fitted in the text, and how appalling
+was the tale which the entire made. She was cruelly shocked, and her
+heart bled for that fine young man whom she was so proud to call her
+husband, but whom his late father had loathed to recognize as a son. And
+Nisida--what were her feelings as she lay stretched upon a couch,
+listening to the contents of the manuscript which she had read before?
+At first one hope--one idea was dominant in her soul, the hope that
+Flora would be crushed even to death by revelations which were indeed
+almost sufficient to overwhelm a gentle disposition and freeze the vital
+current in the tender and compassionate heart.
+
+But as Francisco read on, and when he came to those passages which
+described the sufferings and the cruel fate of her mother, then Nisida
+became a prey to the most torturing feelings--dreadful emotions were
+expressed by her convulsed countenance and wildly-glaring eyes--and she
+muttered deep and bitter anathemas against the memory of her own father.
+For well does the reader know that she had loved her mother to
+distraction; and thus the horrifying detail of the injuries heaped upon
+the head and on the name of that revered parent aroused all her fiercest
+passions of rage and hate as completely as if that history had been new
+to her, and as if she were now becoming acquainted with it for the first
+time. Indeed, so powerful, so terrible, was the effect produced by the
+revival of all those dread reminiscences and heart-rending emotions on
+the part of Nisida that, forgetting her malignant spite and her infernal
+hope with regard to Flora, she threw her whole soul into the subject of
+the manuscript: and the torrent of feelings to which she thus gave way
+was crushing and overwhelming to a woman of such fierce passions, and
+who had received so awful a shock as that which had stretched her on the
+couch where she now lay. For the fate of him whom she had loved with
+such ardor, and the revulsion that her affection experienced on account
+of the ghastly spectacle which Wagner presented to her view in his dying
+moments--the disgust and loathing which had been inspired in her mind by
+the thought that she had ever fondled that being in her arms and
+absolutely doted on the superhuman beauty that had changed to such
+revolting ugliness, it was all this that had struck her down--paralyzed
+her--inflicted a mortal, though not an instantaneous blow upon that
+woman so lately full of energy, so strong in moral courage, and so full
+of vigorous health. Thus impressed with the conviction that her end was
+approaching, the moment the perusal of the manuscript was concluded the
+Lady Nisida said, in a faint and dying tone of voice:
+
+"Francisco, draw near--as near as possible--and listen to what I have
+now to communicate, for it is in my power to clear up all doubt, all
+mystery relative to the honor of our sainted mother, and convince thee
+that no stigma, no disgrace attaches itself to thy birth!"
+
+"Alas! my beloved sister," exclaimed the young count, "you speak in a
+faint voice, you are very ill! In the name of the Holy Virgin! I conjure
+you to allow me to send for Dr. Duras!"
+
+"No, Francisco," said Nisida, her voice recovering somewhat of its power
+as she continued to address him: "I implore you to let me have my own
+way, to follow my own inclinations! Do not thwart me, Francisco; already
+I feel as if molten lead were pouring through my brain, and a tremendous
+weight lies upon my heart! Forbear, then, from irritating me, my
+well-beloved Francisco----"
+
+"Oh! Nisida," cried the young count, throwing his arms around his
+sister's neck and embracing her fondly; "if you love me now, if you ever
+loved me, grant me one boon! By the memory of our sainted mother I
+implore you, by your affection for her I adjure you, Nisida----"
+
+"Speak, speak, Francisco," interrupted his sister, hastily: "I can
+almost divine the nature of the boon you crave--and--my God!" she added,
+tears starting from her eyes, as a painful thought flashed across her
+brain,--"perhaps I have been too harsh--too severe! At all events, it is
+not now--on my death-bed--that I can nurse resentment----"
+
+"Your death-bed!" echoed Francisco, in a tone or acute anguish, while
+the sobs which convulsed the bosom of the young countess were heard
+alike by him and his sister.
+
+"Yes, dearest brother, I am dying," said Nisida, in a voice of profound
+and mournful conviction; "and therefore let me not delay those duties
+and those explanations which can alone unburden my heart of the weight
+that lies upon it! And first, Francisco, be thy boon granted--for I know
+that thou wouldst speak to me of her who is now thy bride. Come to my
+arms, then. Flora, embrace me as a sister, and forgive me if thou canst,
+for I have been a fierce and unrelenting enemy to thee!"
+
+"Oh, let the past be forgotten, my friend, my sister!" exclaimed the
+weeping Flora, as she threw herself into Nisida's outstretched arms.
+
+And the young wife and the young woman embraced each other tenderly--for
+deep regrets and pungent remorse at last attuned the mind of Nisida to
+sweet and holy sympathy.
+
+"And now," said Nisida, "sit down by my side, and listen to the
+explanations which I have promised. Give me your hand. Flora, dear
+Flora, let me retain it in mine; for at the last hour, and when I am
+about to leave this fair and beauteous earth, I feel an ardent longing
+to love those who walk upon its face, and to be loved by them in return.
+But, alas, alas!" she added, somewhat bitterly, "reflections and
+yearnings of this nature come too late! O Flora! the picture of life is
+spread before you--while from me it is rapidly receding, and dissolving
+into the past. Like our own fair city of palaces and flowers, when seen
+from a distance beneath the glorious lights of the morning, may that
+glorious picture continue to appear to thee; and may'st thou never draw
+near enough to recognize the false splendors in which gorgeous hues may
+deck the things of this world; may'st thou never be brought so close to
+the sad realities of existence as to be forced to contemplate the
+breaking hearts that dwell in palaces, or to view in disgust the slime
+upon flowers."
+
+"Nisida," said Francisco, bending over his sister, and speaking in a
+voice indicative of deep emotion, "the kind words you utter to my
+beloved Flora shall ever--ever remain engraven upon my heart."
+
+"And on mine also," murmured the young countess, pressing Nisida's hand
+with grateful ardor, while her eyes, radiant with very softness, threw a
+glance of passionate tenderness upon her generous-hearted and handsome
+husband.
+
+"Listen to me," resumed Nisida, after a short pause, during which she
+gave way to all the luxury of those sweet and holy reflections which the
+present scene engendered: and these were the happiest moments of the
+lady's stormy life. "Listen to me," she repeated; "and let me enter upon
+and make an end of my explanations as speedily as possible. And first,
+Francisco, relative to our sainted--our innocent--our deeply-wronged and
+much-injured mother. You have already learned that she was the daughter
+of the public executioner of Naples; and you have heard that ere she
+became our father's wife she swore a solemn oath--she pledged herself in
+the most solemn manner that she would never even allude to her
+family--that she would not communicate to them the name of her husband
+nor the place of his abode, under any circumstances--in a word, that she
+would consider her father and brother as dead to her! And yet she had a
+tender heart; and after she became the Countess of Riverola she very
+often thought of the parent who had reared her tenderly and loved her
+affectionately; she thought also of her brother Eugenio, who had ever
+been so devoted to his sister. But she kept her promise faithfully for
+five years; until that fatal day of April, 1500, which our father has so
+emphatically mentioned in his narrative. It was in the garden belonging
+to the ducal palace that she suddenly encountered her brother
+Eugenio----"
+
+"Her brother!" ejaculated Francisco, joyfully. "Oh! I knew, I felt
+certain that she was innocent."
+
+"Yes, she was indeed innocent," repeated Nisida, "But let me pursue my
+explanations as succinctly as possible. It appeared that the old
+man--the executioner of Naples--was no more; and Eugenio, possessing
+himself of the hoardings of his deceased father, had fled from his
+native city to avoid the dread necessity of assuming the abhorrent
+office. Accident led the young adventurer to Florence in search of a
+more agreeable employment as a means whereby to earn his livelihood, and
+having formed the acquaintance of one of the duke's valets, he obtained
+admittance to the gardens on that memorable evening when the grand
+entertainment was given. In spite of the strict injunctions he had
+received not to approach the places occupied by the distinguished
+guests, he drew near the arbor in which our mother had been conversing
+with other ladies, but where she was at that moment alone. The
+recognition was immediate, and they flew into each other's arms. It
+would have been useless, as well as unnatural, for our mother to have
+refused to reveal her rank and name; her brilliant attire was sufficient
+to convince her brother that the former was high, and inquiry would
+speedily have made him acquainted with the latter. She accordingly drew
+him apart into a secluded walk and told him all; but she implored him to
+quit Florence without delay, and she gave him her purse and one of her
+rich bracelets, thereby placing ample resources at his disposal. Five
+years passed away, and during that period she heard no more of her
+brother Eugenio. But at the expiration of that interval she received a
+note stating that he was again in Florence--that necessity had alone
+brought him hither, and that he would be at a particular place at a
+certain hour to meet either herself or some confidential person whom she
+might instruct to see him. Our mother filled a bag with gold, and put
+into it some of her choicest jewels, and thus provided, she repaired in
+person to the place of appointment. It grieved her generous heart thus
+to be compelled to meet her brother secretly, as if he were a common
+robber or a midnight bravo; but for her husband's peace, and in
+obedience to the spirit of the oath which imperious circumstances had
+alone led her in some degree to violate, she was forced to adopt that
+sad and humiliating alternative."
+
+"Alas! poor mother!" sobbed Francisco, deeply affected by this
+narrative.
+
+"Again did five years elapse without bringing tidings to our mother of
+Eugenio," continued Nisida, "and then he once more set foot in Florence.
+The world bad not used him well--Fortune had frowned upon him--and,
+though a young man of fine spirit and noble disposition, he failed in
+all his endeavors to carve out a successful career for himself. Our
+mother determined to accord him an interview in her own apartment. She
+longed to converse with him at her ease--to hear his tale from his own
+lips--to sympathize with and console him. Oh! who could blame her if in
+so doing she departed from the strict and literal meaning of that vow
+which had bound her to consider her relations as dead to her? But the
+fault--if fault it were--was so venial, that to justify it is to invest
+it with an importance which it would not have possessed save for the
+frightful results to which it led. You have already heard how foully he
+was waylaid, how ruthlessly he was murdered! Holy Virgin! my brain
+whirls when I reflect upon that hideous cruelty which made our mother
+the spectator of his dissection; for, even had he been a lover--even
+were she guilty--even if the suspicions of our father had all been
+well-founded----"
+
+"Dwell not upon this frightful topic, my beloved Nisida!" exclaimed
+Francisco, perceiving that she was again becoming greatly excited, for
+her eyes dilated and glared wildly, her bosom heaved in awful
+convulsions, and she tossed her arms frantically about.
+
+"No, I will not--I dare not pause to ponder thereon," she said, falling
+back upon the pillow, and pressing her hands to that proud and haughty
+brow behind which the active, racking brain appeared to be on fire.
+
+"Tranquilize yourself, dearest sister," murmured Flora, bending over the
+couch and pressing her lips on Nisida's burning cheek.
+
+"I will, I will, Flora, whom I now love as much as I once hated!"
+exclaimed the dying lady. "But let me make an end of my explanations.
+You already know that our dear mother was gagged when she was compelled
+to witness the horrible deeds enacted in the subterranean charnel-house
+by the dim light of a sickly lamp; but even if she had not been, no word
+would have issued from her lips, as the manuscript justly observes.
+During her illness, however, she sought an interview with her husband
+for the purpose of proving to him her complete innocence, by revealing
+the fact that his victim was her own brother! But he refused all the
+entreaties proffered with that object, and our unfortunate mother was
+forced to contemplate the approach of death with the sad conviction that
+she should pass away without the satisfaction of establishing her
+guiltlessness in the eyes of our father. Then was it that she revealed
+everything to me--to me alone--to me, a young girl of only fifteen when
+those astounding facts were breathed into my ears. I listened with
+horror, and I began to hate my father, for I adored my mother. She
+implored me not to give way to any intemperate language or burst of
+passion which might induce the inmates of the mansion to suspect that I
+was the depositary of some terrible secret.
+
+"'For,' said our mother, when on her death-bed, 'if I have ventured to
+shock your young mind by so appalling a revelation, it is only that you
+may understand wherefore I am about to bind you by a solemn vow to love,
+protect, and watch over Francisco, as if he were your own child, rather
+than your brother. His father, alas! hates him. This I have observed
+ever since the birth of that dear boy, but it is only by means of the
+dread occurrence of the other night that I have been able to divine the
+origin of that dislike and unnatural loathing. Your father, Nisida,'
+continued my mother, 'believes that I have been unfaithful, and suspects
+that Francisco is the offspring of a guilty _amour_. With this terrible
+impression upon his mind, he may persecute my poor boy; he may
+disinherit him; he may even seek to rid him of life. Kneel, then, by my
+bedside, Nisida, and swear by all you deem sacred--by the love you bear
+for me--and by your hopes of salvation, that you will watch unweariedly
+and unceasingly over the welfare and the interests of Francisco--that
+you will make any sacrifice, incur any danger, or undergo any privation,
+to save him from the effects of his father's hate--that you will exert
+all possible means to cause the title and fortune of his father to
+descend to him, and that you will in no case consent to supplant him in
+those respects--and lastly, that you will keep secret the dread history
+of my brother's fate and your knowledge of your father's crime.' To all
+these conditions of the vow I solemnly and sacredly pledged myself,
+calling Heaven to witness the oath. But I said to our mother, 'My father
+will not forever remain locked up in his own apartment; he will come
+forth sooner or later, and I must have an opportunity of speaking to
+him. May I not justify you, my dear mother, in his eyes? May I not
+assure him that Eugenio was your brother? He will then cease to hate
+Francisco, and may even love him as he loves me; and you may then have
+no fears on his account."
+
+"'Alas! the plan which you suggest may not be put into execution,'
+replied our dying mother; 'for were your father to be aware that I had
+revealed the occurrences of that dread night to you, Nisida, he would
+feel that he must be ever looked upon as a murderer by his own child!
+Moreover, such appears to be the sad and benighted state of his mind,
+that he might peradventure deem the tale relative to Eugenio a mere
+excuse and vile subterfuge. No; I must perish disgraced in his eyes,
+unless he should accord ere I die, the interview which yourself and the
+good Dr. Duras have so vainly implored him to grant me.'
+
+"Our dear mother then proceeded to give me other instructions,
+Francisco, relative to yourself; but these," added Nisida, glancing
+toward Flora, "would _now_ be painful to unfold. And yet," she
+continued, hastily, as a second thought struck her, "it is impossible,
+my sweet Flora, that you can be weak-minded--for you have this day seen
+and heard enough to test your mental powers to the extreme possibility
+of their endurance. Moreover, I feel that my conduct toward you requires
+a complete justification; and that justification will be found in the
+last instructions which I received from the lips of my mother."
+
+"Dearest Nisida," said the young countess, "no justification is
+needed--no apology is required in reference to that subject; for your
+kind words, your altered manner toward me now, your recognition of me as
+a sister, made so by union with your brother--oh! this would efface from
+my mind wrongs ten thousand times more terrible than any injury which I
+have sustained at your hands. But," continued Flora, in a slow and
+gentle tone, "if you wish to explain the nature of these instructions
+which you received from the lips of your dying parent, let not my
+presence embarrass you."
+
+"Yes, I do wish to render my explanation as complete as possible,
+dearest Flora," replied Nisida; "for if I have acted severely toward
+you, it was not to gratify any natural love of cruelty, nor any mean
+jealousy or spite; on the contrary, the motives were engendered by that
+imperious necessity which has swayed my conduct, modeled my disposition,
+and regulated my mind ever since that fatal day when I knelt beside my
+mother's death-bed, and swore to obey her last words. For thus did she
+speak, Flora--'Nisida, there is one more subject relative to which I
+must advise you, and in respect to which you must swear to obey me. My
+own life furnished a sad and terrible lesson of the impropriety of
+contracting an unequal marriage. All my woes--all my sorrows--all the
+dreadful events which have occurred--may be traced to the one great fact
+that the Count of Riverola espoused a person of whose family he was
+ashamed. Nisida,' she continued, her voice becoming fainter and fainter,
+'watch you narrowly and closely over the welfare of Francisco in this
+respect. Let him not marry beneath him; let him not unite himself to one
+whose family contains a single member deserving obloquy or reproach.
+Above all, see that he marries not till he shall have reached an age
+when he will be capable of examining his own heart through the medium of
+experience and matured judgment. If you see him form a boyish attachment
+of which you have good and sufficient reason to disapprove, exert
+yourself to wean him from it: hesitate not to thwart him; be not moved
+by the sorrows he may manifest at the moment; you will be acting for his
+welfare; and the time will speedily come when he will rejoice that you
+have rescued him from the danger of contracting a hasty, rash, and
+ill-assorted marriage.' These were the last instructions of our mother,
+Francisco; and I swore to obey them. Hence my sorrow, my fears, my anger
+when I became aware of the attachment subsisting between yourself, dear
+brother, and you, my sweet Flora: and that sorrow was enhanced--those
+fears were augmented--that danger was increased, Flora, when I learnt
+that your brother Alessandro had renounced the creed of the true God,
+and that your family thereby contained a member deserving of obloquy and
+reproach. But that sorrow, those fears, and that anger have now departed
+from my soul. I recognize the finger of Heaven--the will of the Almighty
+in the accomplishment of your union, despite of all my projects, all my
+intrigues to prevent it. I am satisfied, moreover, that there is in this
+alliance a fitness and a propriety which will insure your happiness: and
+may the spirit of my sainted mother look down from the empyrean palace
+where she dwells, and bless you both, even as I now implore the divine
+mercy to shed its beauties and diffuse its protecting influence around
+you."
+
+Nisida had raised herself up to a sitting posture as she uttered this
+invocation so sublimely interesting and solemnly sincere; and the
+youthful pair, simultaneously yielding to the same impulse, sank upon
+their knees to receive the blessing of one who had never bestowed a
+blessing on mortal being until then! She extended her hands above those
+two beautiful, bending heads: and her voice, as she adjured Heaven to
+protect them, was plaintively earnest and tremulously clear, and its
+musical sound seemed to touch the finest chord of sympathy, devotion,
+and love that vibrated in the hearts of that youthful noble and his
+virgin bride. When this solemn ceremony was accomplished, an immense
+weight appeared to have been removed from the soul of the Lady Nisida of
+Riverola; and her countenance wore a calm and sweet expression, which
+formed a happy contrast with the sovereign hauteur and grand contempt
+that were wont to mark it.
+
+"I have now but little more to say in explanation of my past conduct,"
+she resumed, after a long pause. "You can readily divine wherefore I
+affected the loss of those most glorious faculties which God has given
+me. I became enthusiastic in my resolves to carry out the injunctions of
+my dear and much-loved mother; and while I lay upon a bed of sickness--a
+severe illness produced by anguish and horror at all I had heard from
+her lips, and by her death, so premature and sad--I pondered a thousand
+schemes, the object of which was to accomplish the great aims I had in
+view. I foresaw that I--a weak woman--then, indeed, a mere girl of
+fifteen--should have to constitute myself the protectress of a brother
+who was hated by his own father; and I feared lest that hatred should
+drive him to the adoption of some dreadful plot to rid himself of your
+presence, Francisco--perhaps even to deprive you of your life. I knew
+that I must watch all his movements and listen to all his conversations
+with those unprincipled wretches who are ever ready to do the bidding of
+the powerful and the wealthy. But how was all this to be
+accomplished?--how was I to become a watcher and a listener--a spy ever
+active, and an eavesdropper ever awake--without exciting suspicions
+which would lead to the frustration of my designs, and perhaps involve
+both myself and my brother in ruin? Then was it that an idea struck me
+like a flash of lightning; and like a flash of lightning was it terrible
+and appalling, when breaking on the dark chaos of my thoughts. At first
+I shrank from it--recoiled from it in horror and dismay;--but the more I
+considered it--the longer I looked that idea in the face--the more I
+contemplated it, the less formidable did it seem. I have already said
+that I was enthusiastic and devoted in my resolves to carry out the
+dying injunctions of my mother:--and thus by degrees I learnt to reflect
+upon the awful sacrifice which had suggested itself to my imagination as
+a species of holy and necessary self-martyrdom. I foresaw that if I
+affected the loss of hearing and speech, I should obtain all the
+advantages I sought and all the means I required to enable me to act as
+the protectress of my brother against the hatred of my father. I
+believed also that I should not only be considered as unfit to be made
+the heiress of the title and fortune of the Riverola family, but that
+our father, Francisco, would see the absolute necessity of treating you
+in all respects as his lawful and legitimate son, in spite of any
+suspicions which he might entertain relative to your birth. There were
+many other motives which influenced me, and which arose out of the
+injunctions of our mother,--motives which you can well understand, and
+which I need not detail. Thus it was that, subduing the grief which the
+idea of making so tremendous a sacrifice excited, on the one hand--and
+arming myself with the exultation of a martyr, on the other,--thus it
+was that I resolved to simulate the character of the deaf and dumb. It
+was, however, necessary to obtain the collusion of Dr. Duras; and this
+aim I carried after many hours of argument and persuasion. He was then
+ignorant--and still is ignorant--of the real motives which had prompted
+me to this self-martyrdom;--but I led him to believe that the gravest
+and most important family interests required that moral immolation of my
+own happiness;--and I vowed that unless he would consent to aid me, it
+was my firm resolve to shut myself up in a convent and take the veil.
+This threat, which I had not the least design of carrying into effect,
+induced him to yield a reluctant acquiescence with my project: for he
+loved me as if I had been his child. He was moreover consoled somewhat
+by the assurance which I gave him, and in which I myself felt implicit
+confidence at the time, that the necessity for the simulation of
+deafness and dumbness on my part would cease the moment my father should
+be no more. In a word, the kind Dr. Duras promised to act entirely in
+accordance with my wishes; and I accordingly became Nisida the deaf and
+dumb!"
+
+"Merciful heavens! that immeasurable sacrifice was made for me!" cried
+Francisco, throwing himself into the arms of his sister and imprinting a
+thousand kisses on her cheeks.
+
+"Yes--for your sake and in order to carry out the dying commands of our
+mother, the sainted Vitangela?" responded Nisida. "I shall not weary you
+with a description of the feelings and emotions with which I commenced
+that long career of duplicity; by the very success that attended the
+part which I had undertaken to perform you may estimate the magnitude
+and the extent of the exertions which it cost me thus to maintain myself
+a living--a constant--and yet undetected lie! Ten years passed away--ten
+years, marked by many incidents which made me rejoice, for your sake,
+Francisco, that I had accepted the self-martyrdom which circumstances
+had suggested to me. At length our father lay upon his death bed: and
+then--oh! then I rejoiced--yes, rejoiced, though he was dying; for I
+thought that the end of my career of duplicity was at hand. Judge, then,
+of my astonishment--my grief--my despair, when I heard the last
+injunctions which our father addressed to you, Francisco, on that bed of
+death. What could the mystery of the closet mean? Of that I _then_ knew
+nothing. Wherefore was I to remain in complete ignorance of the
+instructions thus given to you? And what was signified by the words
+relative to the disposal of our father's property? For you may remember
+that he spoke thus, addressing himself of course to you:--'You will find
+that I have left the whole of my property to you. At the same time my
+will specifies certain conditions relative to your sister Nisida, for
+whom I have made due provision only in the case--which is, alas! almost
+in defiance of every hope!--of her recovery from that dreadful
+affliction which renders her so completely dependent upon your
+kindness.' These ominous and mysterious words seemed to proclaim defeat
+and overthrow to all the hopes that I had formed relative to the
+certainty of your being left the sole and unconditional heir alike to
+title and estate. I therefore resolved to maintain the character of the
+deaf and dumb until I should have fathomed the secrets of the closet,
+and have become acquainted with the conditions of the will. Oh! well do
+I remember the glance which the generous-hearted Duras cast toward me,
+when, returning to the chamber, he inquired by means of that significant
+look whether the last words of our dying father were prognostic of hope
+for me--whether, indeed, the necessity of sustaining the dreadful
+duplicity would cease when he should be no more. And I remember, also,
+that the look and the sign, by which I conveyed a negative answer were
+expressive of the deep melancholy that filled his soul."
+
+"Alas! my dear self-sacrificed sister," murmured Francisco, tears
+trickling down his cheeks.
+
+"Yes--my disappointment was cruel indeed," continued Nisida. "But the
+excitement of the scenes and incidents which followed rapidly the death
+of our father, restored my mind to its wonted tone of fortitude, vigor,
+and proud determination. That very night, Francisco, I took the key of
+the cabinet from your garments, while you slept--I sped to the chamber
+of death--I visited the depository of horrible mysteries--and for the
+first time I became aware that two skeletons were contained in that
+closet! And whose fleshless relics those skeletons were, the dreadful
+manuscript speedily revealed to me. Then was it also for the first time
+that I learnt how Margaretha was the detestable spy whose agency had led
+to such a frightful catastrophe in respect to Eugenio and Vitangela;
+then I became aware that our mother's corpse slept not in the vault to
+which a coffin had been consigned:--in a word, the full measure of our
+sire's atrocity--O God! that I should be compelled thus to speak--was
+revealed to me! But on Margaretha have I been avenged," added Nisida, in
+a low tone, and with a convulsive shudder produced by the recollection
+of that terrible night when she immolated the miserable woman above the
+grave where lay a portion of the remains of her mother and of Eugenio.
+
+"You have been avenged on Margaretha, sister," ejaculated Francisco,
+surveying Nisida with apprehension.
+
+"Yes," she replied, her large black eyes flashing with a scintillation
+of the former fires: "that woman--I have slain her! But start not,
+Flora--look not reproachfully upon me, Francisco: 'twas a deed fully
+justified, a vengeance righteously exercised, a penalty well deserved!
+And now let me hasten to bring my long and tedious explanations to a
+conclusion--for they have occupied a longer space than I had at first
+anticipated, and I am weak and faint. Little, however, remains to be
+told. The nature of our father's will compelled me to persist in my
+self-martyrdom: for I had sworn to my dying mother not to accept any
+conditions or advantages which should have the effect of disinheriting
+you, Francisco."
+
+"Oh! what a debt of gratitude do I owe thee, my beloved sister!"
+exclaimed the young count, deeply affected by the generous sacrifices
+made by Nisida on his behalf.
+
+"And think you I have experienced no reward?" asked the lady in a sweet
+tone, and with a placid smile: "do you imagine that the consciousness of
+having devoted myself to the fulfillment of my adored mother's wishes
+has been no recompense? Yes--I have had my consolations and my hours of
+happiness, as well as my sufferings and periods of profound affliction.
+But I feel a soft and heavenly repose stealing over me--'tis a sweet
+sleep, and yet it is not the slumber of death! No, no; 'tis a delicious
+trance into which I am falling--'tis as if a celestial vision----"
+
+She said no more. Her eyes closed, she fell back and slept soundly.
+
+"Merciful Heavens! my sister is no more!" exclaimed Francisco, in terror
+and despair.
+
+"Fear not, my beloved husband," said Flora; "Nisida sleeps, and 'tis a
+healthy slumber. The pulsations of her heart are regular; her breath
+comes freely. Joy, joy, Francisco, she will recover!"
+
+"The Holy Virgin grant that your hope may be fulfilled!" returned the
+young count. "But let us not disturb her. We will sit down by the
+bedside, Flora, and watch till she shall awake."
+
+But scarcely had he uttered these words when the door of the chamber
+opened, and an old man of venerable appearance, and with a long beard as
+white as snow, advanced toward the newly married pair.
+
+Francisco and Flora beheld him with feelings of reverence and awe, for
+something appeared to tell them that he was a mortal of no common order.
+
+"My dear children," he said, addressing them in a paternal manner, and
+his voice firm, but mild, "ye need not watch here for the present.
+Retire, and seek not this chamber again until the morning of to-morrow.
+Fear nothing, excellent young man, for thou hast borne arms in the cause
+of the cross. Fear nothing, amiable young lady, for thou art attended by
+guardian angels."
+
+And as the venerable man thus addressed them severally, he extended his
+hands to bless them; and they received that blessing with holy meekness,
+and yet with a joyous feeling which appeared to be of glorious augury
+for their future happiness. Then, obedient to the command of the
+stranger, they slowly quitted the apartment--urged to yield to his will
+by a secret influence which they could not resist, but which
+nevertheless animated them with a pious confidence in the integrity of
+his purpose. The door closed behind them, and Christian Rosencrux
+remained in the room with the dead Wagner and the dying Nisida.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER LXIV.
+
+
+While the incidents related in the last few chapters were taking place
+at the Riverola Palace, the council of state had assembled to receive
+the grand vizier, the mighty Ibrahim, who had signified his intention of
+meeting that august body at three o'clock in the afternoon. Accordingly,
+as soon as he had witnessed the marriage ceremony which united his
+sister to the Count of Riverola, he returned from Wagner's mansion to
+his own pavilion in the midst of the Ottoman encampment. There he
+arrayed him in a manner becoming his exalted rank, and mounting his
+splendid caparisoned steed, he repaired with a brilliant escort to the
+ducal palace. The streets of the city of Florence were thronged with
+multitudes eager to gain a sight of the representative of the sultan--a
+view of the man whose will and pleasure swayed the greatest empire in
+existence at that period of the world's age!
+
+And as Ibrahim passed through those avenues so well known to
+him--threaded those thoroughfares, each feature of which was so
+indelibly impressed upon his memory--and beheld many, many familiar
+spots, all of which awakened in his mind reminiscences of a happy
+childhood, and of years gone by; when, too, he reflected that he had
+quitted Florence poor, obscure, and unmarked amidst the millions of his
+fellow-men; and that now, as he entered the beauteous city, multitudes
+came forth to gaze upon him, as on one invested with a high rank and
+enjoying a power mighty to do much; when he thought of all this, his
+bosom swelled with mingled emotions of pride and tenderness, regret and
+joy; and while tears trembled upon his long black lashes, a smile of
+haughty triumph played on his lips. On, on the procession goes, through
+the crowded streets and across the spacious squares, watched by the eyes
+of transcendent beauty and proud aristocracy from the balconies of
+palaces and the casements of lordly mansions; on, on, amidst a wondering
+and admiring populace, and grateful, too, that so great a chief as
+Ibrahim should have spared their city from sack and ruin.
+
+At length the grand vizier, attended by the great beglerbegs and pashas
+of his army, entered the square of the ducal palace; and as his prancing
+steed bore him proudly beneath the massive arch, the roar of artillery
+announced to the City of Flowers that the Ottoman Minister was now
+within the precincts of the dwelling of the Florentine sovereign. The
+duke and the members of the council of state were all assembled in the
+court of the Palazzo to receive the illustrious visitor, who, having
+dismounted from his horse, accompanied the prince and those high
+dignitaries to the council-chamber. When the personages thus assembled
+had taken their seats around the spacious table, covered with a rich red
+velvet cloth, the grand vizier proceeded to address the duke and the
+councilors.
+
+"High and mighty prince, and noble and puissant lords," he said, in the
+tone of one conscious of his power, "I am well satisfied with the manner
+in which my demands have been fulfilled up to this moment. Two ladies,
+in whom I feel a deep and sincere interest, and who were most unjustly
+imprisoned to suit the vindictive purposes of the Count of Arestino,
+have been delivered up to me: and ye have likewise agreed to make full
+and adequate atonement for the part which Florence enacted in the late
+contest between the Christians and Mussulmans in the Island of Rhodes. I
+have therefore determined to reduce my demands upon the republic, for
+indemnity and compensation, to as low a figure as my own dignity and a
+sense of that duty which I owe to my sovereign (whom God preserve many
+days!) will permit. The sum that I now require from your treasury,
+mighty prince and puissant lords, is a hundred thousand pistoles; and in
+addition thereto, I claim peculiar privileges for Ottoman vessels
+trading to Leghorn, guaranty of peace on the part of the republic for
+three years, and the release of such prisoners now in the dungeons of
+the inquisition, whom it may seem good to me thus to mark out as
+deserving of your mercy."
+
+"A hundred thousand pistoles, my lord, would completely exhaust the
+treasury of the republic," said the duke, with dismay pictured upon his
+countenance.
+
+"Think you," cried the grand vizier, angrily, "that I shall dare to face
+my imperial master, on my return to Constantinople, unless I be able to
+lay at his feet a sum adequate to meet the expenses incurred by this
+expedition of a great fleet and a powerful army?"
+
+"Your highness will at least accord us a few days wherein to obtain the
+amount required," said the duke, "for it will be necessary to levy a tax
+upon the republic!"
+
+"I grant you until sunset, my lord--until sunset this evening." added
+the grand vizier, speaking with stern emphasis. "And if you will permit
+me to tender my advice, you will at once command the grand inquisitor
+and the Count of Arestino to furnish the sum required: for the former, I
+am inclined to suspect, is a most unjust judge, and the latter, I am
+well convinced, is a most cruel and revengeful noble."
+
+"The Count of Arestino is no more, your highness," answered the duke.
+"The Marquis of Orsini murdered him before the very eyes of the grand
+inquisitor, and will therefore head the procession of victims at the
+approaching _auto-da-fe_."
+
+"By the footstool of Allah! that shall not be!" exclaimed Ibrahim. "The
+machinations of the Count of Arestino threw into the inquisition
+dungeons those two ladies whom ye delivered up to me last night; and it
+was my intention, when I spoke of releasing certain prisoners ere now,
+to stipulate for the freedom of all those whom the vengeance of that
+count has immured in your accursed prison-house. See then, my lords,
+that all those of whom I speak be forthwith brought hither into our
+presence!"
+
+It may be proper to inform the reader that Flora had solicited her
+brother to save the Marquis of Orsini and the Countess Giulia, to whom
+the young wife of Francisco had been indebted for her escape from the
+Carmelite Convent; for, as the secrets of the torture chamber were never
+suffered to transpire, she was of course ignorant of the death of the
+guilty Giulia, and of the assassination of the Count of Arestino by the
+Marquis of Orsini.
+
+At the command of Ibrahim Pasha, who spoke in a firm and resolute
+manner, the duke summoned a sentinel from the corridor adjoining the
+council chamber, and issued the necessary orders to fulfill the desire
+of the grand vizier. Nearly a quarter of an hour elapsed during which
+one of the councilors drew up the guaranty of peace and of the
+commercial privileges demanded by Ibrahim. At length the door opened,
+and several familiars made their appearance, leading in Manuel d'Orsini
+and Isaachar ben Solomon, both heavily chained. The former walked with
+head erect, and proud bearing; the latter could scarcely drag his
+wasted, racked, and tottering limbs along, and was compelled to hang
+upon the arms of the familiars for support. Nevertheless, there was
+something so meek--so patient and so resigned in the expression of the
+old and persecuted Israelite's countenance, that Ibrahim Pasha's soul
+was touched with a sentiment of pity in his behalf.
+
+"But these are not all the prisoners," exclaimed the grand vizier,
+turning angrily toward the duke; "where is the Countess Giulia of
+Arestino?"
+
+"My lord, she is no more," answered the prince.
+
+"And Heaven be thanked that she is indeed no more!" cried Manuel
+d'Orsini, in a tone of mingled rage and bitterness. "Fortunate is it for
+her that death has snatched her away from the grasp of miscreants in
+human shape and who call themselves Christians. My lord," he continued,
+turning toward Ibrahim, "I know not who you are; but I perceive by your
+garb that you are a Moslem, and I presume that your rank is high by the
+title addressed to you by the duke----"
+
+"Presume not thus to intrude your observations on his highness the grand
+vizier!" exclaimed one of the councilors in a severe tone.
+
+"On the contrary," said Ibrahim Pasha, "let him speak, and without
+reserve. My Lord of Orsini, fear not--I will protect you."
+
+"The remark I was about to make, illustrious vizier," cried Manuel, "is
+brief, though it may prove not palatable to the patrons of the
+inquisition and the supporters of that awful engine of despotism and
+cruelty," he added, glancing fiercely at the duke and the assembled
+councilors. "I was anxious to observe that the Christian Church has
+founded and maintained that abhorrent institution; and that there is
+more true mercy--more genuine sympathy--and more of the holy spirit of
+forgiveness in the breast of this reviled, despised and persecuted Jew,
+than in the bosoms of all the miserable hypocrites who have dared to
+sanction the infernal tortures which have been inflicted upon him. For
+myself, I would not accept mercy at their hands; and I would rather go
+in the companionship of this Jew to the funeral pile, than remain alive
+to dwell amongst a race of incarnate fiends, calling themselves
+Christians!"
+
+"This insolence is not to be borne," exclaimed the duke, starting from
+his seat, his countenance glowing with indignation.
+
+"Your highness and all the councilors now assembled well merit the
+reproaches of the Marquis of Orsini," said the grand vizier, sternly.
+"But it is for _me_ to command here, and for _you_ to obey, proud
+prince! Let the chains be removed from those prisoners forthwith."
+
+The duke sank back in his chair, and, subduing his rage as well as he
+was able, he made a sign to the familiars to set the Jew and the marquis
+at liberty.
+
+"Grand vizier," exclaimed Manuel, "the life and the liberty which, at
+your all-powerful nod are restored to me will prove irksome and
+valueless if I be compelled to remain in a Christian land. Confer not
+favors by halves, my lord--render me completely grateful to you! Take me
+into your service--even as a slave, if your highness will; but let me
+accompany to a Mussulman country a Mussulman who can teach the
+Christians such a fine lesson of mercy and forgiveness."
+
+"You shall go with me to Constantinople, Manuel--but not as a slave,"
+returned Ibrahim, profoundly touched by the sincere tone and earnest
+manner of the young noble; "no--you shall accompany me as a friend."
+
+"A thousand thanks, grand vizier, for this kindness--this generosity!"
+said the marquis, deeply affected; then as a sudden idea struck him, he
+turned toward the Jew exclaiming, "But we must not leave this old man
+behind us. 'Twere the same as if we were to abandon a helpless child in
+the midst of a forest inhabited by ferocious wolves."
+
+"Yes--yes--let me accompany you, excellent young man!" murmured
+Isaachar, clinging to the arm of the marquis, for their chains were now
+knocked off. "You were the first Christian who ever spoke kindly to me;
+and I have no kith--no kindred on the face of the earth. I am a
+lone--desolate old man; but I have wealth--much wealth, Manuel
+d'Orsini--and all that I have shall be thine."
+
+"The Jew shall accompany us, my lord," said Ibrahim, addressing himself
+to the marquis; then, turning toward the duke, he exclaimed in a severe
+tone, "But a few hours remain till sunset, and the ransom of a hundred
+thousand pistoles must be paid to me; or I will deliver up this proud
+palace and the homes of the councilors now assembled to the pillage of
+my troops."
+
+"Nay--nay, my lord!" cried the Jew, horror-struck at the threat; "bring
+not the terrors of sack, and storm, and carnage into this fair city! A
+hundred thousand pistoles, your highness says,--a hundred thousand
+pistoles," he added, in a slower and more musing tone; "'tis a large
+sum--a very large sum! And yet--to save so many men and their innocent
+families from ruin--from desolation---- Yes, my lord," he exclaimed,
+hastily interrupting himself--"I--I will pay you the ransom-money."
+
+"No--by Allah!" ejaculated Ibrahim; "not a single pistole shall be thus
+extorted from thee! Sooner shall the Florentine Treasury grant thee an
+indemnification for the horrible tortures which thou hast endured, than
+thy wealth be poured forth to furnish this ransom-money. Come, my Lord
+of Orsini--come, worthy Jew," continued the grand vizier, rising from
+his seat, "we will depart to the Ottoman encampment."
+
+"Patience, your highness, for a few hours," urged the duke, "and the
+hundred thousand pistoles shall be counted out before thee."
+
+"This poor man," answered the grand vizier, indicating the Jew with a
+rapid glance, "has been so racked and tortured in your accursed
+prison-house, that he cannot be too speedily placed under the care of my
+own chirurgeon. For this reason I depart at once; see that the ransom be
+dispatched to my pavilion ere the sun shall have set behind the western
+hills."
+
+With these words the grand vizier bowed haughtily to the duke, and
+quitted the council chamber. Manuel d'Orsini followed, supporting
+Isaachar ben Solomon; and, on reaching the court, one of Ibrahim's
+slaves took the Jew up behind him on his steed. The marquis was provided
+with a horse; and the cavalcade moved rapidly away from the precincts of
+the ducal palace. Profiting by the hint which Ibrahim Pasha had offered
+them, the duke and the councilors instantly levied a heavy fine upon the
+grand inquisitor; and the remainder of the money required to make up the
+amount demanded, was furnished from the public treasury. Thus by the
+hour of sunset the ransom was paid.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+At an early hour on the ensuing morning, Francisco di Riverola and his
+beautiful, blushing bride quitted the chamber where they had passed the
+night in each other's arms, and repaired to the apartment where so many
+terrible mysteries had been revealed to them, and so many dreadful
+incidents had occurred on the preceding day. Hand in hand they had
+traversed the passages and the corridors leading to that room in which
+they had left Christian Rosencrux with the dead Wagner and the dying
+Nisida; hand in hand and silently they went--that fine young noble and
+charming bride!
+
+On reaching the door of the chamber, Francisco knocked gently; and the
+glance of intelligence which passed between himself and Flora showed
+that each was a prey to the same breathless suspense; the same mingled
+feelings of bright hopes and vague fears. In a few moments the door was
+slowly opened; and the venerable old man appeared, his countenance
+wearing a solemn and mournful aspect. Then Francisco and the young
+countess knew that all was over; and tears started into their eyes.
+
+Christian Rosencrux beckoned them to advance toward the bed, around
+which the curtains were drawn closer; and as they entered the room, the
+rapid and simultaneous glances which they cast toward the spot where
+Fernand Wagner fell down and surrendered up his breath, showed them that
+the corpse had been removed. Approaching the bed with slow and measured
+steps, Rosencrux drew aside the drapery; and for a moment Francisco and
+Flora shrank back from the spectacle which met their view; but at the
+next instant they advanced to the couch, and contemplated with mournful
+attention the scene presented to them. For there--upon that couch--side
+by side, lay Fernand Wagner and Nisida of Riverola--stiff, motionless,
+cold.
+
+"Grieve not for her loss, children," said Christian Rosencrux; "she has
+gone to a happier realm--for the sincere repentance which she manifested
+in her last hours has atoned for all the evil she wrought in her
+lifetime. From the moment, young lady, when she banished from her soul
+the rancor long harbored there against thee--from the instant that she
+received thee in her arms, and called thee sister--the blessing of
+Heaven was vouchsafed unto her. She was penitent, very penitent, while I
+administered to her the consolations of religion, and a complete change
+came over her mind. Grieve not, then, for her; happy on earth she never
+could have been again--but happy in heaven she doubtless now is!"
+
+Francisco and the young countess knelt by the side of the couch, and
+prayed for a long time in silence, with their faces buried in their
+hands. When they again raised their heads, and glanced around, the
+venerable old man no longer met their eyes. Christian Rosencrux had
+departed, leaving Francisco and Flora in complete ignorance of his name;
+but they experienced a secret conviction that he was something more than
+an ordinary mortal; and the remembrance of the blessing which he had
+bestowed upon them the preceding day, shed a soothing and holy influence
+over their minds.
+
+Little now remains to be said; a few brief observations and a rapid
+glance at the eventual fortunes and fates of the leading characters in
+the tale, will acquit us of our task. Nisida and Wagner were entombed in
+the same vault; and their names were inscribed upon the same mural
+tablet. The funeral was conducted with the utmost privacy--and the
+mourners were few, but their grief was sincere. And among them was Dr.
+Duras, who had loved Nisida as if she had been his own child. On the
+night following the one on which these obsequies took place, another
+funeral procession departed from the Riverola Palace to the adjacent
+church; and two coffins were on this occasion, as on the former,
+consigned to the family tomb. But the ceremony was conducted with even
+more privacy than the first; and one mourner alone was present. This was
+Francisco himself; and thus did he perform the sad duty of interring in
+sacred ground the remains of his ill-fated mother Vitangela and her
+brother Eugenio. The manuscript of the late Count of Riverola was burnt;
+the closet which so long contained such fearful mysteries was walled up;
+the chamber where so many dreadful incidents had occurred was never used
+during the lifetime of Francisco and Flora. The grand vizier remained
+with his army a few days beneath the walls of Florence: and during that
+time Isaachar ben Solomon so far recovered his health and strength,
+under the skillful care of an Egyptian physician, as to be able to visit
+his dwelling in the suburb of Alla Croce, and secure the immense wealth
+which he had amassed during a long life of activity and financial
+prosperity.
+
+When the day of the grand vizier's departure arrived, he took a tender
+farewell of his sister Flora and his aunt, both of whom he loaded with
+the most costly presents; and in return, he received from Francisco a
+gift of several horses of rare breed and immense value. Nor did this
+species of interchange of proofs of attachment end here, for every year,
+until Ibrahim's death, did that great minister and the Count of Riverola
+forward to each other letters and rich presents--thus maintaining to the
+end that friendship which had commenced in the Island of Rhodes, and
+which was cemented by the marriage of Francisco and Flora. Isaachar ben
+Solomon and Manuel d'Orsini accompanied the grand vizier to
+Constantinople, and were treated by him with every mark of distinction.
+But the Jew never completely recovered from the tortures which he had
+endured in the prison of the inquisition; and in less than two years
+from the date of his release, he died in the arms of the marquis, to
+whom he left the whole of his immense fortune. Manuel d'Orsini abjured
+Christianity, and entered the Ottoman service, in which his success was
+brilliant and his rise rapid, thanks to the favor of the grand vizier.
+The reader of Ottoman history will find the name of Mustapha Pasha
+frequently mentioned with honor in the reign of Solyman the
+Magnificent--and Mustapha Pasha, beglerbeg of the mighty province of
+Anatolia, was once Manuel d'Orsini.
+
+For nearly sixteen years did Ibrahim Pasha govern the Ottoman realms in
+the name of the sultan: for nearly sixteen years did he hold the
+imperial seals which had been intrusted to him at a period when the
+colossal power of the empire seemed tottering to its fall. During that
+interval he raised the Ottoman name to the highest pinnacle of
+glory--extended the dominions of his master--and shook the proudest
+thrones in Christendom to their foundation. Ferdinand, King of Hungary,
+called him "brother," and the Emperor Charles the Fifth of Germany
+styled him "cousin" in the epistolary communications which passed
+between them. But a Greek who had long, long cherished a deadly hatred
+against the puissant grand vizier, at last contrived to enter the
+service of the sultan in the guise of a slave; and this man, succeeding
+in gaining that monarch's ear, whispered mysterious warnings against the
+ambition of Ibrahim. Solyman became alarmed; and, opening his eyes to
+the real position of affairs, perceived that the vizier was indeed far
+more powerful than himself. This was enough to insure the immediate
+destruction of a Turkish minister.
+
+Accordingly, one evening, Ibrahim was invited to dine with the sultan,
+and to sleep at the imperial palace. Never had Solyman appeared more
+attached to his favorite than on this occasion and Ibrahim retired to a
+chamber prepared for him, with a heart elated by the caresses bestowed
+upon him by his imperial master. But in the dead of night he was
+awakened by the entrance of several persons into the room; and starting
+up with terror, the grand vizier beheld _four black slaves_, headed by a
+Greek, creep snake-like toward his couch. And that Greek's countenance,
+sinister and menacing, was immediately recognized by the affrighted
+Ibrahim--though more than fifteen years had elapsed since he had set
+eyes upon those features. Short and ineffectual was the struggle against
+the messengers of death; the accursed bowstring encircled the neck of
+the unhappy Ibrahim, and at the moment when the vindictive Greek drew
+tight the fatal noose, the last words which hissed in the ears of the
+grand vizier, were--"The wrongs of Calanthe are avenged!"
+
+Thus perished the most powerful minister that ever held the imperial
+seals of Ottoman domination;--and the long-pent-up but never subdued
+vindictive feelings of Demetrius were assuaged at length! Dame
+Francatelli had long been numbered with those who were gone to their
+eternal homes when the news of the death of Ibrahim Pasha reached
+Florence. But the Count and Countess of Riverola shed many, many tears
+at the sad and untimely fate of the grand vizier.
+
+Time, however, smooths down all grief; and happiness again returned to
+the Riverola Palace. For when Francisco and Flora looked around them and
+beheld the smiling progeny which had blessed their union,--when they
+experienced the sweet solace of each other's sympathy, the outpourings
+of two hearts which beat as one, ever in unison, and filled with a
+mutual love which time impaired not,--then they remembered that it was
+useless and wrong to repine against the decrees of Providence; and, in
+this trusting faith in Heaven and in the enjoyment of each other's
+unwearying affection, they lived to a good old age--dying at length in
+the arms of their children.
+
+
+
+
+[THE END.]
+
+
+
+
+
+End of Project Gutenberg's Wagner, the Wehr-Wolf, by George W. M. Reynolds
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