eet a sudden pallor overspread
his face, and for a moment he leaned back in the fauteuil, quite faint and
exhausted.

"Dearest sir!" cried the steward, hurrying toward him, "are not the papers
all in order?"

"It is just as I feared," said the count, sighing. "My whole
correspondence with my father, during my last sojourn at Regensburg,
besides copies of my letters to the Emperor and Marwitz, were in the
drawer of my father's writing table, and have been carried off with the
rest."

"And did these letters compromise you, count?" asked Herr von Waldow,
drawing nearer to him.

"With these letters in his hand, President von Goetze, the chairman of the
committee of investigation, can arraign me as guilty of high treason and
condemn me to death."

A long pause ensued. With gloomy countenances all three cast their eyes
upon the ground. Then the steward lifted up his head, with an expression
of firm resolve.

"You must flee, gracious sir," he cried earnestly.

"Flee?" repeated the count, shrugging his shoulders. "Ah, you have not
heard of what further happened after you withdrew to your place of
concealment!"

"The whole palace is surrounded by soldiers," completed Herr von Waldow.
"At each door stand two sentinels, and even at the park gate two guards
are stationed."

"You see plainly, Wallenrodt, that flight is impossible," said the count.

The steward smiled. "Through doors and windows you can not escape, in
truth. There is a third way, however."

"What sort of way, Wallenrodt?"

"The secret passage, count."

"I know of no secret passage."

"But I do, count. Your late revered father had this secret passage built
at the time the cities revolted and the Swedes were threatening Berlin. He
had fifty workmen brought from Vienna, who were kept concealed in the
palace, and worked every night upon this subterranean passage, and as soon
as it was completed he had the men sent back to Austria. It is not to be
supposed that you should know anything of this, count, for it happened at
least fifteen years ago, when you were but a lad. While the work lasted
the count resided at Spandow, taking all his household with him, that no
one might know anything about the secret passage. Only the old castellan
and I remained behind, to overlook the work. We were the only two besides
the Stadtholder who knew the secret. You must flee through the
subterranean passage, gracious sir."

"Whither does the secret passage lead?" asked