sudden haste concerned her; and great wonder and speculation rose in
the palace, and presently, as the morning advanced, spread from the
palace to its environs, and from the environs to the rest of the city.
For it was reported that a sentinel that had stood guard that night
was missing, and that the gate-warden of the western gate was nowhere
to be found, and that a mysterious letter had come by an unknown hand
to the king, and lastly, that Princess Osra--their princess--was
gone; whether by her own will or by some bold plot of seizure and
kidnapping, none knew. Thus a great stir grew in all Strelsau, and men
stood about the street gossiping when they should have gone to work,
while women chattered in lieu of sweeping their houses and dressing
their children. So that when the king rode out of the courtyard of the
palace at a gallop, with twelve of the guard behind, he could hardly
make his way through the streets for the people who crowded round him,
imploring him to tell them where the princess was. When the king saw
that the matter had thus become public, his wrath was greater still,
and he swore again that the student of the University should pay the
price of life for his morning ride with the princess. And when he
darted through the gate, and set his horse straight along the western
road, many of the people, neglecting all their business, as folk will
for excitement's sake, followed him as they best could, agog to see
the thing to its end.

"The horses are weary," said the student to the princess, "we must let
them rest; we are now in the shelter of the wood."

"But my brother may pursue you," she urged; "and if he came up with
you--ah, heaven forbid!"

[Illustration: "'LISTEN!' SHE CRIED, SPRINGING TO HER FEET. 'THEY ARE
HORSES' HOOFS'.... AND SHE CAUGHT HIM BY THE HAND, AND PULLED HIM TO
HIS FEET."]

"He will not know you have gone for another three hours," smiled he.
"And here is a green bank where we can rest."

So he aided her to dismount; then, saying he would tether the horses,
he led them away some distance, so that she could not see where he had
posted them; and he returned to her, smiling still. Then he took
from his pocket some bread, and, breaking the loaf in two, gave her
one-half, saying:

"There is a spring just here; so we shall have a good breakfast."

"Is this your breakfast?" she asked, with a wondering laugh. Then
she began to eat, and cried directly, "How delicious this bread is!
I wo