Gryphus was followed by the mastiff.
The turnkey took the animal round the jail, so that, ifneeds be, he might recognize the prisoners.
Father," said Rosa, "here is the famous prison from whichMynheer Grotius escaped. You know Mynheer Grotius?""Oh, yes, that rogue Grotius, a friend of that villainBarneveldt, whom I saw executed when I was a child. Ah! soGrotius; and that's the chamber from which he escaped. Well,I'll answer for it that no one shall escape after him in mytime."And thus opening the door, he began in the dark to talk tothe prisoner.
The dog, on his part, went up to the prisoner, and,growling, smelled about his legs just as though to ask himwhat right he had still to be alive, after having left theprison in the company of the Recorder and the executioner.
But the fair Rosa called him to her side.
Well, my master," said Gryphus, holding up his lantern tothrow a little light around, "you see in me your new jailer.
I am head turnkey, and have all the cells under my care. Iam not vicious, but I'm not to be trifled with, as far asdiscipline goes.""My good Master Gryphus, I know you perfectly well," saidthe prisoner, approaching within the circle of light castaround by the lantern.
Halloa! that's you, Mynheer van Baerle," said Gryphus.
That's you; well, I declare, it's astonishing how people domeet.""Oh, yes; and it's really a great pleasure to me, goodMaster Gryphus, to see that your arm is doing well, as youare able to hold your lantern with it."Gryphus knitted his brow. "Now, that's just it," he said,"people always make blunders in politics. His Highness hasgranted you your life; I'm sure I should never have doneso.""Don't say so," replied Cornelius; "why not?""Because you are the very man to conspire again. You learnedpeople have dealings with the devil.""Nonsense, Master Gryphus. Are you dissatisfied with themanner in which I have set your arm, or with the price thatI asked you?" said Cornelius, laughing.
On the contrary," growled the jailer, "you have set it onlytoo well. There is some witchcraft in this. After six weeks,I was able to use it as if nothing had happened, so much so,that the doctor of the Buytenhof, who knows his trade well,wanted to break it again, to set it in the regular way, andpromised me that I should have my blessed three months formy money before I should be able to move it.""And you did not want that?""I said, 'Nay, as long as I can make the sign of the crosswith that arm' (Gryphus was a Roman Catholic), 'I laugh atthe devil.'""But if you laugh at the devil, Master Gryphus, you oughtwith so much more reason to laugh at learned people.""Ah, learned people, learned people! Why, I would ratherhave to guard ten soldiers than one scholar. The soldierssmoke, guzzle, and get drunk; they are gentle as lambs ifyou only give them brandy or Moselle, but scholars, anddrink, smoke, and fuddle -- ah, yes, that's altogetherdifferent. They keep sober, spend nothing, and have theirheads always clear to make conspiracies. But I tell you, atthe very outset, it won't be such an easy matter for you toconspire. First of all, you will have no books, no paper,and no conjuring book. It's books that helped MynheerGrotius to get off.""I assure you, Master Gryphus," replied Van Baerle, "that ifI have entertained the idea of escaping, I most decidedlyhave it no longer.""Well, well," said Gryphus, "just look sharp: that's what Ishall do also. But, for all that, I say his Highness hasmade a great mistake.""Not to have cut off my head? thank you, Master Gryphus.""Just so, look whether the Mynheer de Witt don't keep veryquiet now.""That's very shocking what you say now, Master Gryphus,"cried Van Baerle, turning away his head to conceal hisdisgust. "You forget that one of those unfortunate gentlemenwas my friend, and the other my second father.""Yes, but I also remember that the one, as well as theother, was a conspirator. And, moreover, I am speaking fromChristian charity.""Oh, indeed! explain that a little to me, my good MasterGryphus. I do not quite understand it.""Well, then, if you had remained on the block of MasterHarbruck ---- ""What?""You would not suffer any longer; whereas, I will notdisguise it from you, I shall lead you a sad life of it.""Thank you for the promise, Master Gryphus."And whilst the prisoner smiled ironically at the old jailer,Rosa, from the outside, answered by a bright smile, whichcarried sweet consolation to the heart of Van Baerle.
Gryphus stepped towards the window.
It was still light enough to see, although indistinctly,through the gray haze of the evening, the vast expanse ofthe horizon.
What view has one from here?" asked Gryphus.
Why, a very fine and pleasant one," said Cornelius, lookingat Rosa.
Yes, yes, too much of a view, too much."And at this moment the two pigeons, scared by the sight andespecially by the voice of the stranger, left their nest,and disappeared, quite frightened in the evening mist.
Halloa! what's this?" cried Gryphus.
My pigeons," answered Cornelius.
Your pigeons," cried the jailer, "your pigeons! has aprisoner anything of his own?""Why, then," said Cornelius, "the pigeons which a mercifulFather in Heaven has lent to me.""So, here we have a breach of the rules already," repliedGryphus. "Pigeons! ah, young man, young man! I'll tell youone thing, that before to-morrow is over, your pigeons willboil in my pot.""First of all you should catch them, Master Gryphus. Youwon't allow these pigeons to be mine! Well, I vow they areeven less yours than mine.""Omittance is no acquittance," growled the jailer, "and Ishall certainly wring their necks before twenty-four hoursare over: you may be sure of that."Whilst giving utterance to this ill-natured promise, Gryphusput his head out of the window to examine the nest. Thisgave Van Baerle time to run to the door, and squeeze thehand of Rosa, who whispered to him, --"At nine o'clock this evening."Gryphus, quite taken up with the desire of catching thepigeons next day, as he had promised he would do, saw andheard nothing of this short interlude; and, after havingclosed the window, he took the arm of his daughter, left thecell, turned the key twice, drew the bolts, and went off tomake the same kind promise to the other prisoners.
He had scarcely withdrawn, when Cornelius went to the doorto listen to the sound of his footsteps, and, as soon asthey had died away, he ran to the window, and completelydemolished the nest of the pigeons.
Rather than expose them to the tender mercies of hisbullying jailer, he drove away for ever those gentlemessengers to whom he owed the happiness of having seen Rosaagain.
This visit of the jailer, his brutal threats, and the gloomyprospect of the harshness with which, as he had beforeexperienced, Gryphus watched his prisoners, -- all this wasunable to extinguish in Cornelius the sweet thoughts, andespecially the sweet hope, which the presence of Rosa hadreawakened in his heart.
He waited eagerly to hear the clock of the tower ofLoewestein strike nine.
The last chime was still vibrating through the air, whenCornelius heard on the staircase the light step and therustle of the flowing dress of the fair Frisian maid, andsoon after a light appeared at the little grated window inthe door, on which the prisoner fixed his earnest gaze.
The shutter opened on the outside.
Here I am," said Rosa, out of breath from running up thestairs, "here I am.""Oh, my good Rosa.""You are then glad to see me?""Can you ask? But how did you contrive to get here? tellme.""Now listen to me. My father falls asleep every eveningalmost immediately after his supper; I then make him liedown, a little stupefied with his gin. Don't say anythingabout it, because, thanks to this nap, I shall be able tocome every evening and chat for an hour with you.""Oh, I thank you, Rosa, dear Rosa."Saying these words, Cornelius put his face so near thelittle window that Rosa withdrew hers.
I have brought back to you your bulbs."Cornelius's heart leaped with joy. He had not yet dared toask Rosa what she had done with the precious treasure whichhe had intrusted to her.
Oh, you have preserved them, then?""Did you not give them to me as a thing which was dear toyou?""Yes, but as I have given them to you, it seems to me thatthey belong to you.""They would have belonged to me after your death, but,fortunately, you are alive now. Oh how I blessed hisHighness in my heart! If God grants to him all the happinessthat I have wished him, certainly Prince William will be thehappiest man on earth. When I looked at the Bible of yourgodfather Cornelius, I was resolved to bring back to youyour bulbs, only I did not know how to accomplish it. I had,however, already formed the plan of going to theStadtholder, to ask from him for my father the appointmentof jailer of Loewestein, when your housekeeper brought meyour letter. Oh, how we wept together! But your letter onlyconfirmed me the more in my resolution. I then left forLeyden, and the rest you know.""What, my dear Rosa, you thought, even before receiving myletter, of coming to meet me again?""If I thought of it," said Rosa, allowing her love to getthe better of her bashfulness, "I thought of nothing else."And, saying these words, Rosa looked so exceedingly pretty,that for the second time Cornelius placed his forehead andlips against the wire grating; of course, we must presumewith the laudable desire to thank the young lady.
Rosa, however, drew back as before.
In truth," she said, with that coquetry which somehow orother is in the heart of every young girl, "I have oftenbeen sorry that I am not able to read, but never so much soas when your housekeeper brought me your letter. I kept thepaper in my hands, which spoke to other people, and whichwas dumb to poor stupid me.""So you have often regretted not being able to read," saidCornelius. "I should just like to know on what occasions.""Troth," she said, laughing, "to read all the letters whichwere written to me.""Oh, you received letters, Rosa?""By hundreds.""But who wrote to you?""Who! why, in the first place, all the students who passedover the Buytenhof, all the officers who went to parade, allthe clerks, and even the merchants who saw me at my littlewindow.""And what did you do with all these notes, my dear Rosa?""Formerly," she answered, "I got some friend to read them tome, which was capital fun, but since a certain time -- well,what use is it to attend to all this nonsense? -- since acertain time I have burnt them.""Since a certain time!" exclaimed Cornelius, with a lookbeaming with love and joy.
Rosa cast down her eyes, blushing. In her sweet confusion,she did not observe the lips of Cornelius, which, alas! onlymet the cold wire-grating. Yet, in spite of this obstacle,they communicated to the lips of the young girl the glowingbreath of the most tender kiss.
At this sudden outburst of tenderness, Rosa grew very pale,-- perhaps paler than she had been on the day of theexecution. She uttered a plaintive sob, closed her fineeyes, and fled, trying in vain to still the beating of herheart.
And thus Cornelius was again alone.
Rosa had fled so precipitately, that she completely forgotto return to Cornelius the three bulbs of the Black Tulip.