hka.

"Yes, but it was a narrow escape," said another man.

"Where is the Archduke now?" asked Goritz.

"At the Rathaus--where he is to receive a testimonial from the
Burgomaster, in behalf of the city. From there they go to the Governor's
palace, I think."

"Thanks," said Goritz with a gasp of relief, and gave the word to Karl
to drive on toward the center of the town.

"'Forewarned is forearmed,'" he muttered to Marishka. "They may not dare
to attempt it again. I think you need have no further anxiety,
Countess."

"But I must reach Her Highness. I must let her know everything."

"We shall try." And then to Karl, "Go as far as you can into the town,
to Franz Josef Street."

But at the tobacco factory the crowd was so great that they could not go
on, and Goritz after some directions to Karl, helped Marishka down, and
they went forward through the crowd afoot, listening to its excited
comments.

"Cabrinobitch----"

"A Serbian, they say. The police seized him."

"I was as near to him as you are. Stovan Kovacevik was hit by a piece of
the bomb. They have taken him to the hospital."

"Colonel Merizzi--they say he is dead. And Count von Waldeck badly
wounded."

Marishka shuddered. She had known them both at Konopisht. She caught
Captain Goritz by the arm and forced her way to the Stadt Park,
following the crowd of people and at last reaching Franz Josef Street,
which was filled almost solidly with an excited, gesticulating mass of
humanity.

"A Serbian plot!" they heard a man in a turban say in polyglot German.
"Not Serbian nor Bosnian. We have no murderers here."

"So say I," cried another. "They will blame it upon us. Where are the
police, that the streets are not even cleared."

"Why does he come here to make trouble? We do not love him, but we are
an orderly people. Let him be gone."

"He was at least brave. They say after the bomb was thrown into his
machine he threw it into the street."

"Brave! Yes. But he is a soldier. Why shouldn't he be brave?"

"Courage may not save him. There is something back of this. A man told
me there was a bomb thrower on every street corner."

Marishka pushed forward shuddering, with Captain Goritz close behind
her.

"I cannot believe it," she whispered.

"The ravings of a crowd," he muttered. "It matters nothing."

But as they neared the corner of Rudolfstrasse, there was a stir and a
murmur as all heads turned to look up the street in the direction of the
C