it,
but kept her eyes fixed upon him.

"This distrust annoyed me; it should not have done so, for he was merely
acting in the cautious manner natural to a merchant. With a boyishness I
now regret, I put my sword to his throat, demanding the money, which I
received. I took only half of it, for my mother had given me five
hundred thalers. Oh, no; I did not rob my friend Goebel, but merely
tried to teach him that lack of faith is a dangerous thing."

If the old man who listened could have exchanged confidences with the
young woman who listened, he would have learned they shared the same
thought, which was that the young Prince spoke so straight-forwardly
neither doubted him for a moment. The old man, it is true, felt that his
talk was rather reckless of consequences, but, on the other hand, this
in itself was complimentary, for, as he remembered, the Prince had been
cautious enough when catechized by the three Archbishops together.

"I have often read," said Cologne, with a smile, "pathetic accounts of
prisoners, who in extreme loneliness carved their names over and over
again on stone as hard as the jailer's heart, but your Highness seems
rather to have enjoyed yourself while so cruelly interned. May I further
beg of you to enlighten us concerning a somewhat bibulous youth who at
the present moment is enjoying, in every sense of the word, the
hospitality of Ehrenfels Castle?"

It was now the Archbishop's turn to astonish the Prince.

"You knew of my device, then?"

"'Knew' is a little too strong. 'Suspect' more nearly fits the case. You
won over your jailer, and some one else took your place as prisoner."

"Yes; a young man to whom I owe small thanks, and with whom I have an
account to settle. He is son of the custodian, and thinks he has us both
under his thumb, Heinrich drinks as if he were a fish or a Baron, but I
shall cure him of that habit before it becomes firmly established."

"Am I correct in assuming that you found your liberty only after your
interview with the three Electors?"

"Oh, bless you, no! I was free months before that time. Indeed, it is
only since then that my substitute is practically useless. Heinrich
might have passed for me at a pinch, but only because neither you nor
your colleagues had seen me. I have kept him under lock and key ever
since, because I dare not allow him abroad until the Election has taken
place."

"I see. A very wise precaution. Well, your Highness, I shall say nothi