The Doctor requested Bella, Eric, Pranken, the Banker, and the Sister
of Mercy to go with him into the chamber of death. He had all the
servants called, and rebuked the coroner sharply, pointing out to him
that only the outer skin had been reddened by a caustic medicine.

Eric cast one more look at the dead body of his friend. Even the statue
of the Victoria, that stood opposite, seemed to look in sorrow upon it.

The gentlemen led Bella back into her chamber. Aunt Claudine entered.
Bella extended her left hand to her, while with the right she held a
handkerchief pressed to her face. The gentlemen went down to receive
the King's private physician, whose carriage was just driving into the
court. Doctor Richard stated in few words the cause of Clodwig's death,
which was the result of a cold, together with great mental excitement.
They then all repaired to the room looking on the garden, whither
Doctor Richard ordered wine to be brought, and insisted on Eric's
drinking with them, as he would need to use every means to keep up his
strength.

"Drink," he said, "you cannot do without it. Great demands are making
upon you now, and the machine must be fed with wine."

Eric drank, but he drank a tear with the wine; for tears fell from his
eyes into the glass. He left the room for a moment, and returned with a
little box in which, he said, were Clodwig's orders, which his friend
had commissioned him to return to the Prince. As his presence was
necessary now at the Villa, he requested the court-physician to
undertake the commission for him; to which he readily assented, adding,
that in Clodwig a nobleman had been taken away, whose memory was a
source of strength to them all: the moderation and perfect balance of
his nature, his repose and gentleness, were characteristics which
belonged to a generation that was passing away.

Doctor Richard, who was sitting in an arm-chair, with his legs crossed
one over the other, exclaimed,--

"All that is true: the expression, 'He was too noble for this world,'
might be used with truth of him. He had the advantage, or the
disadvantage, of viewing every individual thing in its connection with
humanity; and, as to the thing itself, it was a matter of perfect
indifference to him, whether it was done to-day or to-morrow, by you or
anybody else. He might have accomplished great things, have exerted a
wide-spread influence; but the task seemed to him too hard, and he
excused himself from it. Eve