A Conspiracy of the Carbonari

t, with slow and weary steps. Panting and resting on every stair, he descended the staircase, coughing, and moved slowl

ked the hackman, lifting his whip to rou

through the busiest streets in Vienna, that I may see them. I am a stranger who has seen little of your capital, because his weary limbs will not carry him far. So drive ve

not want to drive by th

You'll have no occasion to trouble yourself now, but drive as slowly as possible and

e driver, laughing, "they have already been st

acks with the are whip,

ave no occupant in their vehicles and can receive a passenger. So no one noticed the slow progress of the carriage; no one in the c

m, and he could fearlessly devote himself to his occupations, which he did with perfect composure and unconcern. First, he drew from the back pocket of his coat a package wrapped in paper, which he unrolled, placing its contents on the back seat. These

nted mustache of reddish-fair hair and, after removing from his face the skillfully painted wrinkles and the powder, he hastened to add red cheeks to the fair curls on his head, and to tinge the tip of his nose with the rosy hue which suggests a convivial nature. After this was accomplished, and the baron had convinced himself by a careful examination in the mirror that he was transformed into a charming, gay, young fellow, he began a

ess and deliberation he now put the cast-off articles into the parcels, hid them in the pockets of his clothes, and, after unscrewing the gold crutch-handle from his cane and replacing it by a plain ivory head, he drew up the little curtain

s just in the act of turning a corner, he took advantage of the

nized with the old man's pallid countenance. But at any rate the present youthfulness was no disguise, and the swift, vigorous movements were no assumption; that was evident from the ease and speed with which the baron, after entering one of the handsomest houses in the Grabenstrasse, ran up the stairs, never pausing until he had mounted the third fli

e at home?" asked

't at home, and it wasn't necessary to ri

r again, but the baron thrust his foot between

ust see the count,"

ll you that th

ntence and cast a stolen glance at the flor

e," said the baron pleasantly.

" asked the lack

The man withdrew, and, a few minute

n to come in," he said, throwing the door w

teroom. A door on the opposite side opened, and the tall

cried. "So you have returned already.

he visitor, he drew him h

ng, "and yet I was within an ace of being turned from your doo

hed my door and pursued my every step," replied the count, smiling. "But now

nd talked with the

ch a gloomy, solemn expression. H

e rendered them wholly inactive had not the Empress Ludovica tried to support them with all her influence. All is not yet lost, but unless we soon succeed in making a decisive

d the count sadly. "It is not possible that the Em

said of the Bourbons in Spain: 'The Hapsburg dynasty has ceased to exist.' If something does not now happen, if we do not force a decision, everything is lost. Austria will conclude a humiliating peace and, instead of being d

nt wildly. "We must risk everything to prevent this. We mus

, you are one of us; you will wish to h

e greater and more perilous it

ancis will not protect us-he will abandon us to Napoleon's wrath, in order to prove that he had no part in our

d, and I am ready," rep

ms and ammunition and sent them to Heligoland Thence members of our league have brought them here and distributed them among the brothers. In the harbor of Genoa a Swedish and an English ship lie ready for our service; the English one to aid our escape and convey us to England, if our enterprise fails; the Swedish one to serve as a transport vessel, if we succeed. Everywhere our friends are working, everywhere they are preparing the insurrection; Tyrol is like a well-fil

count fiercely. "Why should not the blood of the man

Julius C?sar a hero, a martyr, and they would also transform Napoleon into a demi-god. No, we will not grant him such a triumph, such a glorious end-we will not allow him a speedy death. He shall ignominiously disappear; he s

the count, with sparkling eyes. "Now tell me,

from General Nugent to the captain of the Swe

" asked the count, tak

to me. It is your letter of recommendation, that is all! Written words might compromise, spoken ones die away upon the wind. If you deliver this, addressed in

all I te

parture. From the day that you reach him the Proserpina must be ready for sea, and a boat must lie i

ave to do? I shall not be denied a m

onaparte to Genoa as his jailer. You can rel

But where will

ame the place to which you conveyed him to no one except the heads of the society: that is, to General Nugent and myself. W

hich proves that the heads of the society trust me. What else have I to do?

be claimed by the French party. But you, count, must manage to summon such an assembly of our friends in some unsuspected place. I learn that Baroness de Simonie is to give an entertainment to which, without knowing

ow one," cried th

ed by needless communication, and we must compromise no one without cause. Here, count, are some necessary papers in which you will fi

aid the count. "Who will accomplish the actual deed? Wh

u lay stress upon it, I will tell you that of the person who has undertaken to li

t not Baron von Moudenfels who arranged the secret connection wit

rather than suffer him to escape, though Napoleon should offer a kingdom as a ransom. Now farewell, count, and may God grant that

in his own Kraus' extended hand. "Go to Totis:

the tumult of the street. After a short walk, he again entered a house and ascended the stairs to a door in the fourt

ssioner Kraus tapped the slum

pen the door,

ed at the person standing b

what do you want of me?

ed Kraus, smiling. "Must I te

ssible that it's you; that anybo

st always be prepared to see me in any disguise. True, I shoul

leep. I didn't sleep all night because I was ex

the baron as, followed by his ser

treet all day long. Three times, too, gentlemen called to ask for you. They said that they wer

tching himself comfortably upon the sofa. "True, it won't last long-we start in an hour

vel this time again as Baron von Moudenfels, and must I pack the

We shall go to Totis to the camp of his majesty the emperor. So take the court dress and everyt

sed his hand through the black

orses and pack our clothing