THE NEW UNIVERSITY PROFESSOR.
The forester's death prevented any concealment of the tragedy at the
border-house, and all Villica was in commotion. Nothing could have been
more unwelcome to the princess than this open and bloody conflict.
Doctor Fabian and the superintendent were horror-stricken, while the
tenants were divided into two parties, and discussed the affair with
angry vehemence. One person only was elated at this melancholy event,
and that person was Assessor Hubert. As he chanced to be stopping at
the superintendent's, he seized his opportunity, and went at once to
the castle in his official capacity, forcing Herr Nordeck into a
personal interview, a consummation he had long devoutly wished.
Waldemar told him, very briefly, that he had shot the forester in
self-defence, and declared himself ready to proceed at once to L----,
to undergo an examination by the civil authorities; meanwhile Hubert
could obtain all the information in his power.
The representative of the police department of L---- was right in his
element, and set about his duties with a very consequential air; but he
was doomed to disappointment; the witnesses he had hoped to seize and
bear in triumph to L---- had eluded his grasp; the men concerned in the
affray had seen fit to escape all judicial investigation by flight
beyond the border where they had long desired to be. They had escaped
by night, and had already joined the insurgent army. Hubert was
inconsolable.
"They have gone!" he said, despairingly, to the superintendent. "Not a
single one of them remains behind."
"I could have told you that before," rejoined Herr Frank; "it was the
wisest thing they could do. Over there they are secure from indictment
as accomplices."
"But I wanted to arrest them--I wanted to bring them all to justice."
"And I am glad they are out of the way; they are a wild, dangerous set,
and we are well rid of them. Herr Nordeck does not want a great ado
made about it."
"It is none of Herr Nordeck's business," said Hubert, in his most
pompous, official tone; "he must submit to the majesty of the law,
which demands the most thorough and searching investigation. Of course
he will not be compromised; he fired in self-defence, after the
forester had aimed at him. He will only have to submit to an
examination which will end in an honorable acquittal; but there is
something else involved: we are dealing with a conspiracy, with an
insurrection--"
"For heaven's sake, are you on that track again?"
"Yes, an insurrection!" repeated Hubert, with unshaken equanimity; "all
the facts go to prove it."
"Nonsense!" ejaculated the superintendent; "it was a revolt against the
landlord personally--nothing more. The forester and his men were
accustomed to acts of violence, and the princess allowed them great
liberty because they implicitly obeyed her commands. They would learn
obedience to no other, and when their master sought to teach it to
them, they rebelled. Any other man would have been killed, but his
energy and presence of mind saved him. He shot down the would-be
assassin without ceremony, and this paralyzed the others. The affair is
as clear and simple as possible, and I do not comprehend how you can
see a conspiracy in it."
"And how do you explain the presence of the Countess Morynski?" asked
Hubert, triumphantly, as if he had just proved an accused person guilty
of some heinous crime. "What business had she at the forester's place?
We all know the part she and the princess take in the Polish movement.
The women of that nation are very dangerous; they know everything, they
are capable of everything, most of the political intrigues are in their
hands, and the Countess Morynski is her father's own daughter, the apt
pupil of her aunt. Her presence at the forest-house proves the
existence of a conspiracy as clear as noonday. She hates her cousin
with all the fanaticism of her nation, and she must have planned that
murderous attack. That is why she suddenly appeared in the midst of the
tumult, why she endeavored to disarm Herr Nordeck when he levelled his
revolver at Osiecki, why she urged on the forester and his men to
assassination. Waldemar Nordeck is a remarkable man; he not only put
down the revolt, but he secured its instigator and carried her forcibly
to Villica; in spite of all resistance, he tore his treacherous cousin
from the midst of her followers, placed her in his sleigh, and dashed
away with her as if life or death were at stake. Just think of it!
during the whole journey he did not vouchsafe her one solitary word; he
held her firmly by the hand so as to frustrate any attempt at flight. I
have all this from a reliable source. I have questioned the coachman
very minutely--"
"You had him on the rack for three hours, until the poor man became
confused and said 'yes' to everything," interposed the superintendent,
dryly. "He really knows very little about the matter; he only told what
you put into his mouth. Herr Nordeck's story alone is reliable."
The assessor was deeply offended, but ere he gave vent to his
indignation, he bethought himself that the person who indulged in such
censure was his prospective father-in-law and must be treated
accordingly, even though he were wanting in proper respect to his own
official wisdom and dignity. So he swallowed his indignation, and
replied in his usual self-possessed tone,--
"Herr Nordeck conducts himself like a sovereign as usual. He made his
report as laconic as possible, would enter into no details, and refused
to allow me to question the Countess Morynski on the plea that she was
ill. Then he went on giving orders and making arrangements as if I were
not present, and as if no other person had a right to say a word upon a
matter he would prefer to keep secret. 'Herr Nordeck,' said I to him,
'you greatly deceive yourself if you look upon this affair as a mere
outbreak of personal hatred. I perceive that it has a deeper
significance: it was a deliberately planned insurrection which broke
out prematurely; it was not designed merely as an attack upon you, it
was a plot against order, law, and government. We must sift the matter
to the bottom.' What do you suppose he said in reply? These were his
words:
"'Herr Assessor, you deceive _yourself_ in regarding the violence of a
brutal man against me personally as a conspiracy against the state. As
the main actors have escaped, in the absence of other conspirators you
will be obliged to fall back upon Doctor Fabian and me. For your own
sake, I advise you to restrain your ardor. I have given you the
necessary materials for your report to the police department of L----,
and you need not feel concerned about law and order here in Villica,
for I consider myself competent to maintain both.' He then made a cold,
polite, and incredibly haughty bow, and left me standing there alone."
The superintendent laughed. "He is just like his mother. I know this
manner in the Princess Zulieski, and I have often enough been enraged
by it. It is a sort of superiority which awes you in spite of yourself,
and which Prince Leo does not at all possess. Herr Nordeck was right,
however, in advising you to restrain your ardor; it has often enough
brought you into difficulty."
"That is my fate," said the assessor, in a resigned tone. "With the
noblest motives, with self-sacrificing devotion to the state and
untiring zeal for its welfare, I reap nothing but ingratitude,
misrepresentation and neglect. I had finally grasped the clew to a
conspiracy, but it slipped through my hands. Osiecki is killed, his men
have fled, no evidence can be obtained from the Countess Morynski; I
can make an ordinary report and nothing more. If I had only been at the
forest-house yesterday! When I arrived there this morning, it was
empty. Yes, it is my destiny always to arrive too late!"
The superintendent, thinking that this would be a favorable opportunity
to introduce the subject of the assessor's suit, and to inform him
distinctly that he must cherish no hopes of obtaining his daughter's
hand, cleared his throat portentously; but at this moment the
landlord's coachman appeared with a message from his master. This was
the man who had driven Waldemar to the forest-house on the preceding
day, and who had already been subjected to an exhaustive examination
from the assessor. Hubert now lost sight of everything else, he forgot
misrepresentation and neglect, and suddenly recollected that he had
some very important questions to ask. Heedless of Frank's
protestations, he took the coachman to his own room, with a view to
prosecuting the examination with renewed ardor.
The superintendent shook his head; he began to incline to the opinion
that there was something morbid in the assessor's nature, and to feel
that his daughter was not so greatly at fault for rejecting a suitor
whose frantic official zeal could no more be moderated than his fixed
belief in a general insurrection.
Gretchen meantime was following the assessor's example by putting very
pointed questions to Doctor Fabian, who sat near her in the parlor of
the superintendent's house. The doctor could tell her nothing of recent
events that she did not know already, and he was not at all informed
upon the point which most excited her curiosity,--the part the Countess
Wanda had played at the house of the border-forester. She placed small
reliance upon Hubert's assertion that the young countess hated her
cousin, and that she had planned the attack. With true womanly
intuition, she imagined that the relations between these two were of an
entirely different nature, and she was vexed and indignant because she
could learn nothing further.
"You do not know how to use your influence, Doctor Fabian," she said,
in a reproachful tone. "If I were the intimate friend of Waldemar
Nordeck, I should be better informed in regard to his affairs."
The doctor smiled. "I hardly think you would," he said; "Waldemar has a
reticent nature, he does not feel the need of confiding in any one."
"That is because he has no heart," said Gretchen, who was very hasty in
her judgments. "One can see at a glance that he is heartless; a
freezing atmosphere surrounds him, he chills me whenever he speaks to
me. He has taught all Villica to fear him, and he is loved by none. In
spite of his friendly regard for my father, he is as cold and distant
to us now as he was upon the day of his arrival here. I am convinced
that he has never loved a human being--and least of all a woman. He is
perfectly heartless."
"My dear young lady, you do my friend great injustice. He has a heart,
a warmer one than you think,--warmer perhaps than that fiery Prince
Leo. He does not wear his heart upon his sleeve, however. I thought as
you do about Waldemar Nordeck, until an accident which happened to me
and nearly caused my death taught me to know him as he really is."
"Well, one thing is certain," said Gretchen, decidedly, "he possesses
very little amiability, and I do not understand your great affection
for him. Yesterday, you were almost beside yourself on his account, and
something must have occurred to-day, for you are again excited and
depressed. Does any danger still threaten Herr Nordeck?"
"No, no," replied the doctor; "my excitement concerns only myself. I
received letters from J---- this morning."
"Has that scientific and historic monster, that Professor Schwarz,
again caused you vexation?" inquired the young lady, with a belligerent
air, as if she were all ready to begin a contest with the aforesaid
gentleman.
Fabian shook his head. "I fear," said he, "that it is I who now cause
him the greatest vexation, although I do so sorely against my will. You
are aware that it was my 'History of Ancient Germany' that first gave
rise to that unfortunate strife between him and Professor Weber,--a
strife that has grown more and more bitter, until it has resulted in
estrangement. Professor Schwarz, who has a very impetuous nature, was
exasperated at the popularity of my book, and resorted to personalities
against his colleagues. Seeing that the whole university sided with his
rival, he threatened to resign, but the threat was merely for effect,
as he supposed that his services could not be dispensed with. His
irascible nature, however, had made him so many enemies among the
regents of the university, that no attempt was made to retain him, and
his resignation was accepted. He is soon to leave."
"That is a lucky thing for the university," coolly remarked Gretchen;
"but I really believe you censure yourself for it; it would be just
like you."
"And this is not all," said Doctor Fabian, hesitatingly and half
audibly; "there is a desire that I--that I should take his position.
Professor Weber writes that I am to be offered the professorship--I, a
mere private tutor, without academic experience, and whose sole merit
lies in his book, the first he has ever published. This is an
occurrence so unusual, so unprecedented, that at first I was taken
completely by surprise."
Gretchen looked neither surprised nor confounded; she seemed to think
this proceeding the most natural thing in the world. "They are very
wise in offering you a professorship," she said; "you are a greater man
than Professor Schwarz; your work stands far above his writings, and
when you once occupy his chair, your renown will overshadow his."
"But, Fraeulein Frank, you are acquainted neither with the professor nor
with his works," protested the doctor, timidly.
"That does not matter; I am acquainted with _you_," said the young
girl, in a manner that forbade all protest. "You will of course
accept?"
"I hardly think I shall. Honorable as the position is, I scarcely dare
accept it, for I fear I am not fitted for it. Years of seclusion and a
solitary life with my books, have almost disqualified me for public
life, and have totally unfitted me for the social requirements of such
a station. But my main objection is that I do not wish to leave
Waldemar now, when so many dangers and difficulties environ him. I am
the only one whose absence he would regret; it would be the height of
ingratitude if, for the sake of mere personal advantage, I should--"
"And it would be the height of selfishness in Herr Nordeck to accept
the sacrifice of your whole future," interrupted Gretchen.
"Fortunately, he will not do it; he will never oppose your entering
upon a path which would insure your happiness and prosperity."
"My happiness," repeated Doctor Fabian, in a tone of deep dejection;
"there you are in error. I have sought and I have found perfect
satisfaction in my studies, and I considered it an especial favor of
fortune when my pupil, who had once been so cold and distant toward me,
became my warm, true friend. I have never known what is called real
happiness,--a home, a family; I probably never shall. It would be
presumption in me to dream of that higher bliss now that so great and
unexpected a success has been granted me. I am content with my lot."
For all their resignation, these words had a very melancholy tone, and
yet they did not seem to awaken much sympathy in the youthful listener.
Her lips curled in scorn.
"You have a peculiar nature, Doctor Fabian," she said; "the prospect of
a life of renunciation would fill me with despair."
The doctor smiled sadly. "It is very different with you," he said. "One
who, like you, is young and charming and has grown up under easy and
fortunate circumstances, has a right to expect happiness from life.
That it may be yours in fullest measure is my most ardent wish. You
will be happy, for Assessor Hubert loves you, and--"
"What has Assessor Hubert to do with my happiness?" broke out Gretchen.
"You have hinted at such a thing once before; what do you mean?"
Fabian was greatly embarrassed. "I beg your pardon if I have been
indiscreet," he stammered; "the words escaped me ere I was aware. I
know that there has been no public betrothal, but my heartfelt interest
in you must be my excuse, if I--"
"If you _what_?" cried the young lady, passionately, seeing that the
doctor hesitated. "I really believe that you seriously consider me the
betrothed of this silly, tiresome Hubert, who talks to me all day long
of nothing but conspiracies and his future title of government
counsellor."
"But, my dear young lady," said the doctor, in profound astonishment,
"the assessor himself informed me, last autumn, that he had positive
encouragement from you, and could with certainty reckon upon your
consent."
Gretchen sprang from her seat so violently that the chair fell over.
"Ah, he said that to you, did he! But you alone are to blame for it,
Doctor Fabian. Do not look so terror-stricken. It was you who induced
me to send him to Janowo, where he caught a severe cold. Fearing a
serious illness, I nursed the assessor, and ever since that time he has
had a fixed idea that I love him. He is one who never gets rid of his
fixed ideas--we know that from his everlasting talk about
conspiracies."
She almost cried from vexation, but the doctor's face lighted up at
sight of her unfeigned indignation.
"Do you not love the assessor?" he asked, breathlessly. "Do you not
intend to give him your hand?"
"I never dreamed of such a thing," replied Gretchen, very decidedly;
and she was about to add some remarks not at all complimentary to poor
Hubert, when her eyes met the doctor's ardent gaze. She blushed deeply,
and was silent.
A long pause followed. Fabian had a hard struggle with his timid
nature; several times he sought in vain to speak; but meanwhile his
eyes spoke, and so plainly that Gretchen could not remain in doubt as
to what was coming. She now felt no impulse to run away, or to break
piano-strings, as at that moment when Hubert had been on the point of
making a declaration. She resumed her seat, and awaited the inevitable.
After a while, the doctor approached her timidly and anxiously.
"My dear young lady," he began, "I really believed--that is--I
supposed--the ardent affection of the assessor for you--"
He stopped, and bethought himself that it was very unwise to be
speaking of the assessor's ardent affection when he ought to speak of
his own. Gretchen saw that he was becoming hopelessly involved in his
phrases, and that she must come to his rescue. It was only a glance she
gave her bashful wooer, but it spoke as plainly as his own had spoken a
few moments before. The doctor all at once took courage, and went on
with incredible boldness:--
"That error has made me very unhappy," he began. "Still I would not
have ventured to confess it to you, even so short a time ago as
yesterday. Dependent as I was upon Waldemar's magnanimity, how could I
give utterance to the dearest wish of my heart? A moment ago, Fraeulein
Margaret, you reproached me for possessing a too self-sacrificing
nature; if you knew the life of renunciation I have led, you would take
back the reproach. I have passed through life neglected and solitary
from my childhood; I have pursued my studies only through the greatest
self-denial, and they have yielded me nothing but dependence upon the
whims and generosity of strangers. It is galling to a man, spurred on
by high and noble purposes and possessed of a heart glowing with
enthusiasm for science, to descend, day after day, to the intellect of
a boy, and instruct him in the rudiments of learning. This was my lot
until Waldemar made it possible for me to devote myself to study, and
paved my way to the career which is now open before me. I had, in
truth, resolved to sacrifice this career for his sake, and also to keep
the fact of my call to it a secret. Then I looked upon you as the
affianced bride of another, but now,"--he took her hand, all his
embarrassment vanished, while words came thronging to his lips,--"but
now that my future is so full of promise, it depends upon you whether
it shall bring me happiness. Decide for me, Margaret; shall I accept or
decline the position?"
He had reached the very place where the assessor had made his great
dramatic pause preparatory to falling upon his knees, and where he had
been checked by the precipitate departure of his adored. The doctor,
however, made no attempt at kneeling; he spoke on without hesitation,
while Margaret sat near him with downcast eyes, and listened with
intense satisfaction. Formal proposal, acceptance, and betrothal kiss
followed in quick succession, and Doctor Fabian's future was decided.
Assessor Hubert came down the stairs. He had subjected the coachman to
a detailed and lengthy examination, until both were weary; he now
proposed to rest from fatiguing official duties, and give free course
to the emotions of his heart. Poor Hubert! As he had said, it was
always his misfortune to arrive too late. He had as yet no suspicion of
the way in which the words would be verified to-day. He was to leave
this afternoon, and he had resolved to come to a positive understanding
with Margaret before his departure. He was resolved to leave Villica as
her accepted lover, and in the ardor of this resolution he opened the
hall-door so boisterously, that the newly-betrothed couple found time
to assume an unembarrassed attitude. As he entered the room, Margaret
sat at a window, and the doctor stood near her in front of the piano,
which to Hubert's relief was closed. Hubert greeted the doctor
graciously, but condescendingly; he had always treated him in a
patronizing manner, as a mere salaried tutor of no consequence whatever
excepting as the chosen friend of the master of Villica. Now, as he had
resolved to propose at once, he thought Fabian's presence a great
intrusion, and took no pains to conceal that fact.
"I regret disturbing you," he said; "you are doubtless giving your
pupil her French lesson."
He said this in a tone so supercilious, that even Doctor Fabian, so
accustomed to being addressed by him as a hired teacher, was offended.
Hitherto he had not resented Hubert's treatment, but to-day, his new
dignity as Margaret's accepted lover would brook no slight or insult.
Drawing himself up, he said with an emphasis that delighted Margaret,--
"You mistake; we are taking lessons in an entirely different science."
The assessor paid no heed to the words; he was wholly absorbed in
devising some way to get rid of this tiresome, intrusive man.
"Are you giving lessons in history?" he asked, maliciously. "I believe
that is your hobby; but unfortunately, it is not a science pleasing to
young ladies. I fear you will weary Fraeulein Frank with it, Doctor
Fabian."
A reply was on the doctor's lips, but Gretchen anticipated him.
Thinking it high time to silence the assessor, she undertook that duty
with no small delight.
"You will soon have to address Doctor Fabian by another title," she
said. "He is about to accept a professorship in the university of
J----, which has been offered him on account of his great literary and
scientific acquirements."
"Wh--a--t are you saying?" cried the assessor, with a start, and an
expression of utter incredulity. He could not reconcile himself to this
sudden transformation of the neglected Fabian into a university
professor.
The doctor's amiable disposition had again won the mastery. His
sympathetic nature was troubled at thought of the double wound he must
necessarily inflict upon the nephew of his rival and the unsuccessful
wooer of his betrothed.
"Herr Assessor," he began, believing that Hubert was acquainted with
recent events at the university, which was by no means the case,--"I
regret that your uncle has so misunderstood me. No one can be more
sincere than myself in recognition of his great ability. Let me assure
you that I have not taken the least part in the strife which my
'History of Ancient Germany' has provoked. Professor Schwarz seems to
believe that I instigated the dispute and carried it to its present
pitch from selfish motives."
A terrible light now began to dawn upon the assessor. He had not known
the name of the obscure man whom the opposition had chosen for its
champion, and whose first book had begun to be compared with, and even
placed above his uncle's works; but he was aware that a "History of
Ancient Germany" was the prime cause of the dispute, and Fabian's words
left him in no doubt that the author of this book, this intriguer, this
assailer of his family renown, stood before him. He was on the point of
giving vent to his astonishment and indignation, when Gretchen, who
felt called upon to assert her dignity as the future wife of the
professor, interposed,--
"Yes," she said, "the professor may well believe this, since Doctor
Fabian has an urgent call to replace him, and accept the chair of
History at L----. You already know, I suppose, that your uncle has
tendered his resignation?"
The assessor struggled so desperately for breath, that Fabian cast a
look of entreaty upon his betrothed: but she remained inexorable. She
could not forget that Hubert had boasted for months of her readiness to
accept his suit, and she wanted to teach him a lesson. She therefore
played her last card by formally grasping Doctor Fabian's hand and
leading him up to the assessor with these words:--
"And furthermore, Herr Assessor, I have the pleasure of introducing to
you in the person of Professor Fabian, the successor of your renowned
uncle,--my future husband!"
* * * * *
"I believe the assessor is deranged," remarked Superintendent Frank to
his overseer, as the two were standing in the yard. "He has just dashed
out of the house like a lunatic, and rushed to his carriage without
greeting me. He was in high spirits this morning. I fear this new chase
after a conspiracy has turned his brain. Go and look after him, and see
that no harm befalls him."
The overseer shrugged his shoulders, and pointed to Hubert's carriage,
which was already in rapid motion. "It is too late," he said; "there
the madman goes!"
Frank entered the house, and there learned the cause of the assessor's
headlong flight, while the coachman, who stood gazing after the
fugitive, said with a sigh of relief,--
"Thank Heaven, he has gone, and will quiz me no more!"