did Amor light this flaming fire?
for you did not seem to take much interest in the girl before her
disappearance."

"And yet it is causing me at the present moment all the tortures of
hell. Believe me, my dear guardian, the loss of my inheritance seems to
me a trifle beside the loss of Veronica."

Sztolarik was impressed by the apparent sincerity of Gyuri's sorrow.

"That's quite another thing," he said. "If that is how you feel I will
stay here with you. Let us go and look for the girl ourselves, and find
out what she thinks on the subject."

When they went out, they found great confusion reigning in the
courtyard, but Mrs. Adamecz was loudest in her lamentations.

"I knew this would be the end of it. A legend should never be tampered
with by a mortal's hand, or it will fall to pieces. Oh, our dear young
lady! She was God's bride, and they wanted to make her the bride of a
mortal, so God has taken her to Himself."

Sztolarik sprang toward her, and caught hold of her hand.

"What is that you say? Have you heard anything?"

"Gundros, the cowherd, has just told us that he saw our young lady this
morning running straight toward the Bjela Voda, across the meadows, and
her eyes were red, as though she had been crying. There is only one
conclusion to be drawn from that."

A lot of women and children were gathered round the kitchen door, and
one of them had also seen Veronica earlier than Gundros had.

"Did she look sad?" asked Gyuri.

"She was crying."

"Oh dear!" exclaimed Gyuri despairingly.

"We will look for her," Sztolarik assured him.

"Where?"

"Out in the meadows or in the village, for it is certain she must be
somewhere about, and we shall soon know where."

"That will not be so easy," sighed Gyuri, "for we have no glass to show
us things, as they have in fairy-tales."

"I'll have the whole village round us in a few minutes."

Gyuri shook his head doubtfully. Had Sztolarik gone mad to think he
could call all the people together from the fields, from the woods, from
everywhere round about? But the old lawyer was as good as his word.
Veronica must be found at any cost.

"Where is his reverence?" he asked of the bystanders.

"He has gone to the pond where the hemp is soaked, to see if the young
lady has fallen in there."

"Where is the bell-ringer?"

"Here I am, sir."

"Go up at once into the tower, and ring the big bell."

"But there is no fire!"

"That does not matter. If I order it