p I
must endeavor to bear them.'

'She is entirely right,' decided the mother.

'My noble wife!' cried Fessel, embracing his courageous and confiding
spouse. At the same instant Hedwig, who was still at the window, cried:
'There comes a hateful red-bearded officer directly towards the house,
with a whole troop of soldiers behind him.'

'Then indeed there is no time to be lost,' said Dorn, hurrying the
mother and daughter from the room. 'Farewell!' cried the women to each
other. 'God's angels protect you!' said Fessel, proceeding to the door,
at which the Lichtensteins were loudly knocking.

CHAPTER VII.

At the head of the table, which had been beautifully adorned for the
betrothal-feast, the red-bearded captain had seated himself in terrible
majesty. Desiring, for the present, to appear unusually gracious, he
had invited the heads of the family and their children to take places
at the table. The hospitality so kindly extended to them in their own
house by a stranger, imparted no especial pleasure to those invited.
The children had formed the heroic resolution of not eating a morsel,
merely to show their dislike to the detestable red-beard. Fessel looked
with a gloomy brow directly before him; while the faithful Katharine
forced herself to introduce and sustain the conversation, that a want
of occupation might not give the fiend leisure for evil thoughts. Four
arquebusiers guarded the doors, and in every part of the house arose
the boisterous songs of the converters, who were revelling with
Fessel's choicest wines.

'We are satisfied,' said the captain; and, emptying his goblet, he took
off his military cap, murmured some words in a low voice, crossed
himself, again put on his cap, and then, with feigned affability asked:
'So, your mother-in-law left you last night, Herr Fessel?' and as the
latter answered affirmatively, he further asked: 'And her daughter,
little Faith,--did the good woman take her with her?'

'Certainly!' stammered Fessel, who was not altogether prepared for this
close examination.

'Strange!' said the captain, extending his goblet to the lady of the
house to be replenished. 'How a man's eyes may deceive him! As I was
standing with the other officers before the house three hours since, I
would have sworn that I saw the little Faith standing at that very
window.'

'It was probably me whom you saw, captain,' interposed Katharine. 'You
must have observed