annot reward!" At that the angry men rushed upon
him, but Devilshoof stood shoulder to shoulder with Thaddeus.

"Now, then, good folks, come on! I guess together we can give you a
pretty interesting fight, if it's fighting you are after!" A scrimmage
was just in Devilshoof's line, and once and forever he declared
himself the champion of his new comrade.

"Really, this is too bad," Florestein whimpered, standing at the table
with the bone of a pheasant in one hand and a glass of wine in the
other. "Just as a man is enjoying his dinner, a boor like this comes
along and interrupts him." But by that time the fight was on, and
Thaddeus and Devilshoof were against the lot. The old Count ordered
his retainers to separate the nobles and the gipsies, and then had
Devilshoof bound and carried into the castle. Thaddeus was escorted
off by another path.

The row was over and the nobles seated themselves again at the table.
The nurse, who had Arline at the window, now left her nursling and
came down to speak with the Count.

Immediately after she left the castle chamber, Devilshoof could be
seen scrambling over the castle roof, having escaped from the room in
which he was confined. Reaching the window where Arline was left, he
closed it. The nurse had been gone only a moment, when she reentered
the room. Whatever had taken place in her absence caused her to scream
frightfully. The whole company started up again, while the nurse threw
open the window and leaned out, crying:

"Arline is gone--stolen--help, help!" All dashed into the castle.
Presently some of the nobles came to the window and motioned to those
left outside. It was quite true. Arline was gone. Out they all rushed
again. Every one in the place had gone distracted. The poor old
Count's grief was pitiable. At that moment Devilshoof could be seen
triumphantly mounting the rocks, with Arline in his arms. He had
avenged his comrade Thaddeus.

All at once the crowd saw the great gipsy leaping from rock to rock
with the little child in his arms, and with a roar they started after
him. Then Devilshoof seemed fairly to fly over the rocks, but the
crowd gained upon him, till they reached a bridge which spanned a deep
chasm; there Devilshoof paused; he was over, and with one tremendous
effort he knocked from under the structure the trunk of a tree which
supported the far end of the bridge, and down it went! The fall of
timbers echoed back with Devilshoof's shout of laughter