Andreas Hofer Part 68

"Father, dear father, pray open the door," shouted the voice again, and somebody shook the door.

Wallner laid down his rifle and hastened to the door. "May G.o.d protect me if they deceive me, but I believe it is Lizzie."

He threw open the door; the little Tyrolese lad rushed in, embraced him tenderly, kissed him with his cold lips, and whispered, "My father! thank G.o.d, I am with you!"

"It is Lizzie!" cried Wallner, in a ringing voice. "She has come tome through night and storm! It is my daughter, my dear, dear daughter! Oh, joy of my heart, how were you able to get up here in this terrible night? No man would have dared to attempt it."

"But I dared it, father, for I am your child, and love you."

"You love me, and I thank G.o.d!" he exclaimed, folding her tenderly and anxiously to his heart; "I thank G.o.d for saving you, and--"

He faltered and burst into tears, which he did not try to conceal.

He wept aloud and bitterly, and Eliza wept with him, and neither of them knew whether they wept for joy or grief.

Eliza was the first to overcome her emotion. "Father," she said, raising her head quickly, "the enemy is on your track, and early to- morrow morning the French are going to occupy the mountain in order to arrest you. That is the reason why I have come up to you, for you must flee this very hour."

"Flee?" he cried, mournfully. "How can I? The first Bavarian or French gendarme on the frontier, who meets me and asks me for my pa.s.sport, will arrest me. I have no pa.s.sport."

"Here is a pa.s.sport," said Eliza, joyfully, handing him the paper, "Siebermeier sends it to you."

"The faithful friend! Yes, that is help in need. Now I will try with G.o.d's aid to escape. You, Lizzie, will return to mother, and bring her a thousand greetings from me; and as soon as I am across the frontier, you shall hear from me."

"I must go with you, father," said Eliza, smiling. "The pa.s.sport is valid for Siebermeier, the carpet-dealer, and his son. Now you see, dear father, I am your son, and shall flee with you."

"No," cried her father, in dismay; "no, you shall never do so, Lizzie. I must journey through the wildest and most secluded Alps, and you would die in the attempt to follow me, Lizzie."

"And even though I knew that I should die, father, I should go with you," said Lizzie, joyfully. "You cannot flee without me, and I do not love my life very dearly if it cannot be useful to you, dear father. Therefore, say no more about it, and do not reject my offer any longer; for if you do, it will be in vain, because I shall follow you for all that, and no road is too precipitous for me when I see you before the. Therefore, come, dear father; do not hesitate any longer, but come with your little boy. You cannot flee without me; therefore, let us try it courageously together."

"Well, I will do so, my brave little boy; I believe I must comply with your wish," exclaimed Wallner, folding her tenderly to his heart. "You shall accompany me, you shall save your father's life.

Oh, it would be glorious if G.o.d should grant me the satisfaction of being indebted for my life to my dear daughter Lizzie!"

"Come, now, father, come; every minute's delay increases the danger."

"I am ready, Lizzie. Let me only see if my rifle is in good order and put on my powder-pouch."

"You cannot take your rifle with you, nor your powder-pouch either.

You are no longer the brave commander of the sharpshooters of Windisch-Matrey, but Siebermeier, the carpet-dealer, a very peaceable man, who does not take his rifle and powder-pouch with him on his travels."

"You are right, Lizzie. But it is hard indeed to flee without arms, and to be defenceless even in case of an attack by the enemy. And I do not want to let my rifle fall into the hands of the French when they come up here. I know a hole in the rock close by; I will take it there and conceal it till my return. Come, now, Lizzie, and let us attempt, with G.o.d's aid, to escape from the enemy."

He wrapped himself in his cloak, took the rifle, and both left the hut.

Day was now dawning: some rosy streaks appeared already in the eastern horizon, and the summits of the glaciers were faintly illuminated. Eliza saw it, but she did not rejoice this time at the majestic beauty of the sunrise; it made her only uneasy and sad, and while her father concealed his rifle carefully in the hole in the rock, Eliza glanced around anxiously, murmuring to herself: "They intend to start at daybreak. It is now after daybreak; the sun has risen, and they have doubtless set out already to arrest him."

"Now come," said her father, returning to her; "we have a long journey before us to-day, for we must pa.s.s the Alps by hunters'

paths up to the Isel-Tauerkamm. We shall pa.s.s the night at the inn there: in the morning we shall continue the journey, and, if it please G.o.d, we shall reach the Austrian frontier within three hours."

And they descended the mountain, hand in hand and with firm steps, and entered the forest.

Nothing was to be heard all around; not a sound broke the peaceful stillness of awaking nature; only the wind howled and whistled, and caused the branches of the trees to creak. The sun had risen higher and higher, and shed already its golden rays through the forest.

"I would we had pa.s.sed through the thicket and reached the heights again," said Anthony Wallner, in a low voice. "We were obliged to descend in order to pa.s.s round the precipice and the steep slope; we shall afterwards ascend the mountain again and remain on the heights. But if the soldiers from Windisch-Matrey meet us here, we are lost, for they know me and will not pay any attention to my pa.s.sport."

"G.o.d will not permit them to meet us," sighed Lizzie, accelerating her steps. They kept silent a long while, and not a sound was to be heard around them. All at once both gave a start, for they had heard the noise of heavy footsteps and the clang of arms. They had just pa.s.sed through the clearing in the forest and were now again close to the thicket, by the side of which there was a small chapel with a large crucifix. They turned and looked back.

"The enemy! the enemy!" cried Anthony Wallner, pointing to the soldiers who were just stepping from the other side of the forest.

"Lizzie, we are lost! Ah, and I have not even got my rifle! I must allow myself to be seized without resistance!"

"No, we are not yet lost, father; look at the chapel. Maybe they leave not yet seen us. Let us enter the chapel quickly. There is room enough for us two under the altar."

Without giving her father time to reply, Eliza hastened into the chapel and disappeared behind the altar. In a second Wallner was with her, and, clinging close to each other and with stifled breath, they awaited the arrival of the enemy.

Now they heard footsteps approaching rapidly and voices shouting out aloud. They came nearer and nearer, and were now close to the chapel. It was a Bavarian patrol, and the two, therefore, could understand every word they spoke, and every word froze their hearts.

The Bavarians had seen them they were convinced that they must be close by; they exhorted each other to look diligently for the fugitives, and alluded to the reward which awaited them in case they should arrest Anthony Wallner.

Both lay under the altar with hearts throbbing impetuously, and almost senseless from fear and anguish; Eliza murmuring a prayer with quivering lips; Anthony Wallner clinching his fists, and firmly resolved to sell his life dearly and defend himself and his child to the last drop of blood.

The enemies were now close to them; they entered the chapel and advanced to the altar. Eliza, pale and almost fainting from terror, leaned her head on her father's shoulder.

The Bavarians struck now with the b.u.t.t-ends of their muskets against the closed front-side of the altar; it gave a dull, hard sound, for the fugitives filled the cavity.

"There is no one in there, for the altar is not hollow," said one of the soldiers. The footsteps thereupon moved away from the altar, and soon all was silent in the chapel. Wallner and Lizzie heard only footsteps and voices outside, they moved away farther and farther, and after a few seconds not a sound broke the silence.

The fugitives lay still behind the altar, motionless, listening, with hearts throbbing impetuously. Could they dare to leave their place of concealment? Was it not, perhaps, a mere stratagem of the enemy to keep silent? Had the soldiers surrounded the chapel, and were they waiting merely for them to come out? They waited and listened for hours, but their cowering position benumbed their blood; it stiffened their limbs and made their heads ache. "Father, I can no longer stand it," murmured Eliza; "I will die rather than stay here any longer."

"Come, Lizzie," said Wallner, raising himself up and jumping over the altar, "come! I, too, think it is better for us to die than hide thus like thieves."

They joined hands and left the chapel, looking anxiously in all directions. But every thing remained silent, and not a Bavarian soldier made his appearance.

"They are gone, indeed they are gone," said Wallner, triumphantly.

"Now we must make haste, my girl; we shall ascend the height; the footpath leads up here in the rear of the chapel; within two hours we shall reach the summit, and, if our feet do not slip, if we do not fall into the depth, if no avalanche overwhelms us, and if the storm does not freeze us, I think we shall reach the Isel-Tauerkamm to-night, and sleep at the inn there. May the Holy Virgin protect us!"

And the Holy Virgin did seem to guard the intrepid wanderers--to enable them to cross abysses on frail bridges; to prevent them from sinking into invisible clefts and pits covered with snow; to make them safely escape the avalanches falling down here and there, and protect them from freezing to death.

Toward dusk they reached at length the inn on the Isel-Tauerkamm, utterly exhausted by fatigue, hunger, and frost, and entered the bar-room on the ground-floor. n.o.body was there but the landlord, a gloomy, morose-looking man, who eyed the new-comers with evident distrust.

When the two wanderers, scarcely able to utter a word, seated themselves on the bench at the narrow table, the land-lord stepped up to them.

"I am not allowed to harbor any one without seeing his pa.s.sport," he said. "There are all sorts of fugitive vagabonds prowling around here to hide from the Bavarians, who are searching the whole district to-day. Give me your pa.s.sport, therefore."

Wallner handed him the paper in silence. The landlord read it attentively, and seemed to compare the two with the description in the pa.s.sport. "H'm!" he said, "the carpet-dealer and his son--that corresponds to what the pa.s.sport says; but where is the bundle of carpets?"

Anthony Wallner gave a slight start; he recovered his presence of mind immediately, however, and said calmly,

"The carpets are all sold already; we are on our return to Windisch- Matrey."

"See, see how lucky you have been," said the landlord, laughing; "the pa.s.sport says you started only yesterday morning, and to-day you have already sold all your carpets. Well, in that case, you are certainly justified in returning to your home. Your pa.s.sport is in good order, and the Bavarians, therefore, will not molest you."