The Shadow of the Czar Part 53

"I deny the inference that you draw from that article," cried Lipski.

"Two at least of your readers understand what you mean, and have acted upon your hints. Now, on seeing practical effect given to your teaching, you would cravenly s.h.i.+rk the responsibility for your part in this outrage. Be honest; do not run away from your own words. Perhaps the House will bear with me while I read a few sentences from this 'Killing No Murder' essay."

"You must read the whole of it, or none," said Brunowski, "inasmuch as one pa.s.sage may be modified by another."

Zabern adopted the President's first alternative, and read the entire article, which, although written in guarded language, with a view of preserving its author from the possibilities of legal indictment, was obviously a plea for the a.s.sa.s.sination of rulers who have become obnoxious to their subjects.

At the conclusion of the marshal's reading, there was a storm of hisses from the Right. The Left sat in sullen silence.

"It is known to all that on coming to the throne the princess, with one stroke of her pen, abolished the censors.h.i.+p of the press. And this," continued Zabern, pointing to the criminatory article in the "Kolokol,"--"this is how the privilege has been requited! Such, gentlemen of the Diet, such are the sentiments--such is the character of the deputy for Russograd! And yet this teacher of a.s.sa.s.sination has the effrontery to come forward and solicit the votes of the Poles--the Poles, who, whatever may be their faults, are at least men of honor, and loyal to their princess. Vote for this bill? Not if it were the finest piece of legislation ever devised by the wit of statesmen.

Those who can may separate the man from his bill; for my part, the two are identical. Every suffrage cast on the side of Lipski, every vote given in favor of this bill, is a vote in favor of a.s.sa.s.sination."

"No, no," cried the Left. "We are not a.s.sa.s.sins."

"That statement shall be proved by your votes. Let those who repudiate the work of the a.s.sa.s.sin, let those who rejoice at the escape of the princess from death, show their sympathy by rejecting a bill which is hurtful to the best feelings of the princess."

And now ensued a dramatic tableau pre-arranged by the wily Zabern. A small door opened upon the right of the presidential chair, and Barbara herself entered the hall of debate, to the utter confounding of the deputies, whose first thought was that she had come to dissolve the Diet.

Brunowski immediately vacated his chair in favor of the princess, who took her place on the dais, but remained standing. Her mien, graceful and bright, offered a pleasing contrast to that of the angry debaters.

Even the Muscovites were forced to admit that if beauty of person should ent.i.tle one to a crown, their princess would have carried off all the diadems of Europe.

The silence that came over the chamber caused the din of voices in the square to be much more plainly heard. The tumultuous sounds without lent additional excitement to the scene within.

The princess glanced slowly around the a.s.sembly, and then, as if moved by a sudden idea, she removed her hat,--the same hat that she had worn on her return from the review. In the act of taking it off the light from behind gleamed through a hole in the brim, a mute appeal to the sympathy of the House, the more striking because unintentional.

"Your Highness, do not uncover," cried Brunowski.

"I crave your pardon, Mr. President," replied Barbara, and her utterance sounded like a clear silvery bell after Brunowski's magnificent ba.s.s voice, "but I understand that the usages of this House require that only one person shall remain covered."

This was said in reference to Lipski, who, while all the rest of the deputies were standing uncovered, sat with his hat on his head.

Zabern, with his sabre clinking against his spurs, strode across the floor of the House.

"Fellow!" he muttered, grinding his teeth, "if you do not remove your hat, my troopers shall nail it to your pate."

And Lipski, seeing Zabern's savage demeanor, prudently doffed his head-covering.

"Mr. President," said Radzivil, "I move that the deputy for Russograd be suspended from this sitting for treating the person of the princess with contempt."

"Oh, no, Count," observed Barbara. "Let it not be said that we sought to deprive a deputy of his vote."

When the ringing of the President's bell had repressed the cheers evoked by this remark, Barbara proceeded to explain the reason of her appearance.

"Mr. President, Ministers and Deputies," she began, speaking with self-possession and dignity, "it may be said that the princess ought not to intervene in the affairs of the Diet, but should remain quiescent, and simply register the decrees of the majority. But, sir,"

she added, with a graceful inclination of her head towards Brunowski, "your princess is not an automaton, but a human being with feelings that can be moved. I feel strongly on this bill, and I do not hesitate to say so."

She paused for a moment, and then resumed.

"I shall always act with regard to the Const.i.tution. If this bill should pa.s.s I shall affix my signature."

Cheers arose from the Left.

"But I trust the House will not let it pa.s.s."

Counter-cheers arose from the Right.

"If my sentiments can in any way influence the decision of deputies, I would appeal to them, irrespective of party, to reject this measure."

With this she bowed to the Diet, and withdrew from the chamber, amid enthusiastic cries of "Long live the Princess of Czernova!"

The chivalry of the Poles, if not of the Muscovites, was evoked. The a.s.sa.s.sin's pistol-shot, the princess's personal appeal, had produced more effect than all the oratory of the five previous weeks.

As soon as Brunowski had resumed the presidential chair, Zabern again spoke.

"The princess has made it a personal question between herself and Lipski. Well, gentlemen, you have seen the princess, and--you see Lipski," he continued, pointing to that deputy, who looked far from amiable at that moment. "Can any man doubt," he added, with fine scorn, "can any man doubt for whom he shall vote? Let it not be said that--"

Zabern paused. A sound louder than any they had yet heard penetrated to the chamber. A mighty roar was rising from the Zapolyska Square.

Twenty thousand voices blending into one proclaimed that the time had come for deciding the great controversy. The iron tongue of the cathedral-clock was booming forth the hour of midnight.

"The vote will now be taken," cried Brunowski, amid a scene of indescribable excitement.

"I move that it be taken by secret ballot," exclaimed Zabern.

"I oppose it," said the Duke of Bora.

The President put the question to the a.s.sembly, and the proposal for secret ballot was carried by acclamation.

Zabern smiled grimly as he observed the secret glances of rage interchanged between Bora and Lipski. By this manoeuvre on his part they were prevented from learning whether those Poles who had secretly taken the gold of Orloff would vote according to promise.

In the Diet of Slavowitz, when voting by ballot, each deputy took from his desk one of a set of discs. These discs were of two colors, white for affirmation, black for negation.

Concealing the disc between the fingers and the palm--carrying it openly was forbidden on pain of forfeiture of the vote--each deputy walked past the presidential table, and placing his hand within the mouth of a large bronze urn, dropped the disc.

As a precaution against the artifice of giving more than one vote, the names of the deputies were marked on the roll as each person pa.s.sed by, and the number of counters checked by this arrangement.

In prescribed order the deputies quitted their seats, and filed past the table, and for a few moments nothing was heard but the clink of the metallic discs as they fell within the urn. Brunowski took no part in the division, but had the right of a casting-vote.

"One hundred and nineteen members have voted," said the chief clerk, looking up from the register, after the last suffrage had been given.

This was a record division, being the largest that had ever occurred in the history of the Czernovese Diet. Every deputy, with the exception of Cardinal Ravenna, was present and had voted.

The great question was how had they voted?

Amid a hush like that in the chamber of the dying when the fatal moment has come, the chief clerk, at a sign from the President, slowly inverted the urn, and poured out the discs upon the red table-cloth.

In their excitement the deputies rose and stood upon seats and desks, craning their necks forward, eager to catch the first glimpse of the black and white counters, eager to learn which of the two was the prevailing color.