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 cou