of
everything you do. And, above all, do not act until you hear from me."

Thus encouraged, Max spent the next few days in preparing for the
desperate attempt upon which he and Bertram had so set their hearts.
There was so much to be done, so many matters to be arranged; there were
competent and trustworthy men to be chosen and instructed in the parts
they were to play, and, above all, there was the necessity of preventing
the enemy from having any suspicion of what they were about to do.

December 12th, as, alas! many unfortunate families have good reason to
remember, opened with sunshine, and was more like a spring than a
winter's day. Towards noon, however, clouds appeared in the sky, and as
day closed in, snow commenced to fall, and showed every sign of
continuing. Nothing could have been better suited to the expedition Max
had in view. To his commanding officer he applied for permission to act
that night, which permission, all the necessary preparations being made,
was readily accorded him. It was still snowing heavily, and, in
consequence, the night was so dark and thick that it was scarcely
possible to see half a dozen steps ahead. Sad though the recollections
of that dreadful time must naturally be to me, for the honour of my
House, I like to try and picture Max as he was at that moment. It was
his fertile brain which had originated the scheme; it was he who was
leading the assault. His valour was well known to the men who were
accompanying him, and they would follow wherever he might lead;
nevertheless, I fancy they would have gone with him with even greater
eagerness had they been aware that their leader was also their king. In
order that their presence should run no risk of attracting attention,
the order was given to advance towards the river in skirmishing order.
Once there they laid themselves down in a sheltered spot upon the bank
and waited while Max, who this time would not permit Bertram to
accompany him, made his preparations for crossing the river. A small
raft, capable of carrying the implements and the stores it was necessary
he should take with him, had already been built, and this, with its
precious cargo, was now placed in the stream. The men had been
instructed before setting out that not a word was to be spoken or a
movement made until Max rejoined them. Then, creeping down the bank he
lowered himself into the black, icy water below, and struck out for
mid-stream, pushing his raft before him