La tulipe noire. English Read online

  Chapter 3. The Pupil of John de Witt

  Whilst the clamour of the crowd in the square of Buytenhof, which grewmore and more menacing against the two brothers, determined John deWitt to hasten the departure of his brother Cornelius, a deputation ofburghers had gone to the Town-hall to demand the withdrawal of Tilly'shorse.

  It was not far from the Buytenhof to Hoogstraet (High Street); and astranger, who since the beginning of this scene had watched all itsincidents with intense interest, was seen to wend his way with, orrather in the wake of, the others towards the Town-hall, to hear as soonas possible the current news of the hour.

  This stranger was a very young man, of scarcely twenty-two or three,with nothing about him that bespoke any great energy. He evidently hadhis good reasons for not making himself known, as he hid his face in ahandkerchief of fine Frisian linen, with which he incessantly wiped hisbrow or his burning lips.

  With an eye keen as that of a bird of prey,--with a long aquiline nose,a finely cut mouth, which he generally kept open, or rather which wasgaping like the edges of a wound,--this man would have presented toLavater, if Lavater had lived at that time, a subject for physiognomicalobservations which at the first blush would not have been veryfavourable to the person in question.

  "What difference is there between the figure of the conqueror and thatof the pirate?" said the ancients. The difference only between the eagleand the vulture,--serenity or restlessness.

  And indeed the sallow physiognomy, the thin and sickly body, and theprowling ways of the stranger, were the very type of a suspectingmaster, or an unquiet thief; and a police officer would certainly havedecided in favour of the latter supposition, on account of the greatcare which the mysterious person evidently took to hide himself.

  He was plainly dressed, and apparently unarmed; his arm was lean butwiry, and his hands dry, but of an aristocratic whiteness and delicacy,and he leaned on the shoulder of an officer, who, with his hand on hissword, had watched the scenes in the Buytenhof with eager curiosity,very natural in a military man, until his companion drew him away withhim.

  On arriving at the square of the Hoogstraet, the man with the sallowface pushed the other behind an open shutter, from which corner hehimself began to survey the balcony of the Town-hall.

  At the savage yells of the mob, the window of the Town-hall opened, anda man came forth to address the people.

  "Who is that on the balcony?" asked the young man, glancing at theorator.

  "It is the Deputy Bowelt," replied the officer.

  "What sort of a man is he? Do you know anything of him?"

  "An honest man; at least I believe so, Monseigneur."

  Hearing this character given of Bowelt, the young man showed signsof such a strange disappointment and evident dissatisfaction that theofficer could not but remark it, and therefore added,--

  "At least people say so, Monseigneur. I cannot say anything about itmyself, as I have no personal acquaintance with Mynheer Bowelt."

  "An honest man," repeated he who was addressed as Monseigneur; "doyou mean to say that he is an honest man (brave homme), or a brave one(homme brave)?"

  "Ah, Monseigneur must excuse me; I would not presume to draw such a finedistinction in the case of a man whom, I assure your Highness once more,I know only by sight."

  "If this Bowelt is an honest man," his Highness continued, "he will giveto the demand of these furibund petitioners a very queer reception."

  The nervous quiver of his hand, which moved on the shoulder of hiscompanion as the fingers of a player on the keys of a harpsichord,betrayed his burning impatience, so ill concealed at certain times, andparticularly at that moment, under the icy and sombre expression of hisface.

  The chief of the deputation of the burghers was then heard addressingan interpellation to Mynheer Bowelt, whom he requested to let them knowwhere the other deputies, his colleagues, were.

  "Gentlemen," Bowelt repeated for the second time, "I assure you that inthis moment I am here alone with Mynheer d'Asperen, and I cannot takeany resolution on my own responsibility."

  "The order! we want the order!" cried several thousand voices.

  Mynheer Bowelt wished to speak, but his words were not heard, and he wasonly seen moving his arms in all sorts of gestures, which plainly showedthat he felt his position to be desperate. When, at last, he saw that hecould not make himself heard, he turned round towards the open window,and called Mynheer d'Asperen.

  The latter gentleman now made his appearance on the balcony, where hewas saluted with shouts even more energetic than those with which, tenminutes before, his colleague had been received.

  This did not prevent him from undertaking the difficult task ofharanguing the mob; but the mob preferred forcing the guard ofthe States--which, however, offered no resistance to the sovereignpeople--to listening to the speech of Mynheer d'Asperen.

  "Now, then," the young man coolly remarked, whilst the crowd was rushinginto the principal gate of the Town-hall, "it seems the question will bediscussed indoors, Captain. Come along, and let us hear the debate."

  "Oh, Monseigneur! Monseigneur! take care!"

  "Of what?"

  "Among these deputies there are many who have had dealings with you,and it would be sufficient, that one of them should recognize yourHighness."

  "Yes, that I might be charged with having been the instigator of allthis work, indeed, you are right," said the young man, blushing fora moment from regret of having betrayed so much eagerness. "Fromthis place we shall see them return with or without the order for thewithdrawal of the dragoons, then we may judge which is greater, MynheerBowelt's honesty or his courage."

  "But," replied the officer, looking with astonishment at the personagewhom he addressed as Monseigneur, "but your Highness surely does notsuppose for one instant that the deputies will order Tilly's horse toquit their post?"

  "Why not?" the young man quietly retorted.

  "Because doing so would simply be signing the death warrant of Corneliusand John de Witt."

  "We shall see," his Highness replied, with the most perfect coolness;"God alone knows what is going on within the hearts of men."

  The officer looked askance at the impassible figure of his companion,and grew pale: he was an honest man as well as a brave one.

  From the spot where they stood, his Highness and his attendant heardthe tumult and the heavy tramp of the crowd on the staircase of theTown-hall. The noise thereupon sounded through the windows of the hall,on the balcony of which Mynheers Bowelt and D'Asperen had presentedthemselves. These two gentlemen had retired into the building, verylikely from fear of being forced over the balustrade by the pressure ofthe crowd.

  After this, fluctuating shadows in tumultuous confusion were seenflitting to and fro across the windows: the council hall was filling.

  Suddenly the noise subsided, and as suddenly again it rose withredoubled intensity, and at last reached such a pitch that the oldbuilding shook to the very roof.

  At length, the living stream poured back through the galleries andstairs to the arched gateway, from which it was seen issuing like watersfrom a spout.

  At the head of the first group, man was flying rather than running, hisface hideously distorted with satanic glee: this man was the surgeonTyckelaer.

  "We have it! we have it!" he cried, brandishing a paper in the air.

  "They have got the order!" muttered the officer in amazement.

  "Well, then," his Highness quietly remarked, "now I know what to believewith regard to Mynheer Bowelt's honesty and courage: he has neither theone nor the other."

  Then, looking with a steady glance after the crowd which was rushingalong before him, he continued,--

  "Let us now go to the Buytenhof, Captain; I expect we shall see a verystrange sight there."

  The officer bowed, and, without making any reply, followed in the stepsof his master.

  There was an immense crowd in the square and about the neighbourhood ofthe prison. But the dragoons of Tilly still k
ept it in check with thesame success and with the same firmness.

  It was not long before the Count heard the increasing din of theapproaching multitude, the first ranks of which rushed on with therapidity of a cataract.

  At the same time he observed the paper, which was waving above thesurface of clenched fists and glittering arms.

  "Halloa!" he said, rising in his stirrups, and touching his lieutenantwith the knob of his sword; "I really believe those rascals have got theorder."

  "Dastardly ruffians they are," cried the lieutenant.

  It was indeed the order, which the burgher guard received with a roarof triumph. They immediately sallied forth, with lowered arms and fierceshouts, to meet Count Tilly's dragoons.

  But the Count was not the man to allow them to approach within aninconvenient distance.

  "Stop!" he cried, "stop, and keep off from my horse, or I shall give theword of command to advance."

  "Here is the order!" a hundred insolent voices answered at once.

  He took it in amazement, cast a rapid glance on it, and said quitealoud,--

  "Those who have signed this order are the real murderers of Corneliusde Witt. I would rather have my two hands cut off than have written onesingle letter of this infamous order."

  And, pushing back with the hilt of his sword the man who wanted to takeit from him, he added,--

  "Wait a minute, papers like this are of importance, and are to be kept."

  Saying this, he folded up the document, and carefully put it in thepocket of his coat.

  Then, turning round towards his troop, he gave the word of command,--

  "Tilly's dragoons, wheel to the right!"

  After this, he added, in an undertone, yet loud enough for his words tobe not altogether lost to those about him,--

  "And now, ye butchers, do your work!"

  A savage yell, in which all the keen hatred and ferocious triumphrife in the precincts of the prison simultaneously burst forth, andaccompanied the departure of the dragoons, as they were quietly filingoff.

  The Count tarried behind, facing to the last the infuriated populace,which advanced at the same rate as the Count retired.

  John de Witt, therefore, had by no means exaggerated the danger,when, assisting his brother in getting up, he hurried his departure.Cornelius, leaning on the arm of the Ex-Grand Pensionary, descended thestairs which led to the courtyard. At the bottom of the staircase hefound little Rosa, trembling all over.

  "Oh, Mynheer John," she said, "what a misfortune!"

  "What is it, my child?" asked De Witt.

  "They say that they are gone to the Town-hall to fetch the order forTilly's horse to withdraw."

  "You do not say so!" replied John. "Indeed, my dear child, if thedragoons are off, we shall be in a very sad plight."

  "I have some advice to give you," Rosa said, trembling even moreviolently than before.

  "Well, let us hear what you have to say, my child. Why should not Godspeak by your mouth?"

  "Now, then, Mynheer John, if I were in your place, I should not go outthrough the main street."

  "And why so, as the dragoons of Tilly are still at their post?"

  "Yes, but their order, as long as it is not revoked, enjoins them tostop before the prison."

  "Undoubtedly."

  "Have you got an order for them to accompany you out of the town?"

  "We have not?"

  "Well, then, in the very moment when you have passed the ranks of thedragoons you will fall into the hands of the people."

  "But the burgher guard?"

  "Alas! the burgher guard are the most enraged of all."

  "What are we to do, then?"

  "If I were in your place, Mynheer John," the young girl timidlycontinued, "I should leave by the postern, which leads into a desertedby-lane, whilst all the people are waiting in the High Street to see youcome out by the principal entrance. From there I should try to reach thegate by which you intend to leave the town."

  "But my brother is not able to walk," said John.

  "I shall try," Cornelius said, with an expression of most sublimefortitude.

  "But have you not got your carriage?" asked the girl.

  "The carriage is down near the great entrance."

  "Not so," she replied. "I considered your coachman to be a faithful man,and I told him to wait for you at the postern."

  The two brothers looked first at each other, and then at Rosa, with aglance full of the most tender gratitude.

  "The question is now," said the Grand Pensionary, "whether Gryphus willopen this door for us."

  "Indeed, he will do no such thing," said Rosa.

  "Well, and how then?"

  "I have foreseen his refusal, and just now whilst he was talking fromthe window of the porter's lodge with a dragoon, I took away the keyfrom his bunch."

  "And you have got it?"

  "Here it is, Mynheer John."

  "My child," said Cornelius, "I have nothing to give you in exchange forthe service you are rendering us but the Bible which you will find inmy room; it is the last gift of an honest man; I hope it will bring yougood luck."

  "I thank you, Master Cornelius, it shall never leave me," replied Rosa.

  And then, with a sigh, she said to herself, "What a pity that I do notknow how to read!"

  "The shouts and cries are growing louder and louder," said John; "thereis not a moment to be lost."

  "Come along, gentlemen," said the girl, who now led the two brothersthrough an inner lobby to the back of the prison. Guided by her,they descended a staircase of about a dozen steps; traversed a smallcourtyard, which was surrounded by castellated walls; and, the archeddoor having been opened for them by Rosa, they emerged into a lonelystreet where their carriage was ready to receive them.

  "Quick, quick, my masters! do you hear them?" cried the coachman, in adeadly fright.

  Yet, after having made Cornelius get into the carriage first, the GrandPensionary turned round towards the girl, to whom he said,--

  "Good-bye, my child! words could never express our gratitude. God willreward you for having saved the lives of two men."

  Rosa took the hand which John de Witt proffered to her, and kissed itwith every show of respect.

  "Go! for Heaven's sake, go!" she said; "it seems they are going to forcethe gate."

  John de Witt hastily got in, sat himself down by the side of hisbrother, and, fastening the apron of the carriage, called out to thecoachman,--

  "To the Tol-Hek!"

  The Tol-Hek was the iron gate leading to the harbor of Schevening, inwhich a small vessel was waiting for the two brothers.

  The carriage drove off with the fugitives at the full speed of a pairof spirited Flemish horses. Rosa followed them with her eyes until theyturned the corner of the street, upon which, closing the door after her,she went back and threw the key into a cell.

  The noise which had made Rosa suppose that the people were forcing theprison door was indeed owing to the mob battering against it after thesquare had been left by the military.

  Solid as the gate was, and although Gryphus, to do him justice, stoutlyenough refused to open it, yet evidently it could not resist muchlonger, and the jailer, growing very pale, put to himself the questionwhether it would not be better to open the door than to allow it to beforced, when he felt some one gently pulling his coat.

  He turned round and saw Rosa.

  "Do you hear these madmen?" he said.

  "I hear them so well, my father, that in your place----"

  "You would open the door?"

  "No, I should allow it to be forced."

  "But they will kill me!"

  "Yes, if they see you."

  "How shall they not see me?"

  "Hide yourself."

  "Where?"

  "In the secret dungeon."

  "But you, my child?"

  "I shall get into it with you. We shall lock the door and when they haveleft the prison, we shall again come forth from our hiding place."


  "Zounds, you are right, there!" cried Gryphus; "it's surprising how muchsense there is in such a little head!"

  Then, as the gate began to give way amidst the triumphant shouts of themob, she opened a little trap-door, and said,--

  "Come along, come along, father."

  "But our prisoners?"

  "God will watch over them, and I shall watch over you."

  Gryphus followed his daughter, and the trap-door closed over his head,just as the broken gate gave admittance to the populace.

  The dungeon where Rosa had induced her father to hide himself, and wherefor the present we must leave the two, offered to them a perfectly saferetreat, being known only to those in power, who used to place thereimportant prisoners of state, to guard against a rescue or a revolt.

  The people rushed into the prison, with the cry--

  "Death to the traitors! To the gallows with Cornelius de Witt! Death!death!"