A burning blush had risen to Paul"s cheeks whilst listening to the wanton speech of his superior and his breath became audible. Was there any temptation in the proposition for the pale young man, that he answered so eagerly, and his words issued from his throat cutting and sharp as the stiletto of his countrymen. "Your Theology, most worthy father, becomes every day more wonderful. I thought that it was written: "Thou shalt not covet thy neighbour"s wife.""
The old Physician looked at him sarcastically. "San Giuseppe, what have I now said? On the whole you would commit no mortal sin, in as much as your intention would not be to destroy the sacrament of marriage but simply to amuse yourself and in this particular case for the advantage of the Church. Here can I refer you also to the moral guides of the Holy Ignatius: "Discrimination with less sanct.i.ty is better than greater sanct.i.ty with less discrimination." You may also shut your eyes to certain advances made to you by the beauteous woman, for as the General of our Society says: "An experienced proselyter may overlook much which he need not understand." _Prudens tempore illo tacebit._ Moreover if you do not wish for the post, I know a dozen of the affiliated who would only be too happy."
"I will accept any position," replied the young man quickly, "which will free me from the obligation of wearing the robes of a heretic priest, and of submitting to their laws. My own convictions are no longer a secret to any here. Help me therefore out of this ambiguous situation and I will render myself as useful as possible."
"Wait a moment," rejoined Pigavetta. "In the Rector"s reports is not your wondrous skill in imitating handwriting mentioned?"
"I know not," hesitatingly answered the young man, "why the Rector had the whim to teach an art to the best draughtsmen of the cla.s.s, which according to the code of the laws of the Emperor Charles is punished with the loss of the right hand. I will not practice it."
"You will obey the commands of your superiors." The young man sighed.
"I will give you nothing to do which could make you or me responsible before G.o.d or to man. Shall our messengers be prevented from entering the territory of the heretics, because the authorities will grant them no safe-conduct, and is it a sin to render the presumptuous request of these tyrants of no avail through your innocent art, when the eternal salvation of millions is in question? Are not your bands as a clergyman of the reformed church, and your now hidden tonsure, forgeries? What mean these caprices?"
"I do not refuse to write a pa.s.s," answered the Priest in a smothered tone.
"Let us see what you can do," said Pigavetta, handing a sheet of paper and a pen to the young man. Then carelessly sorting a bundle of papers he took out a legal doc.u.ment. "Can you imitate this official hand-writing?"
The Priest looked carefully at the strokes. Then said: "What shall I write?"
"Well, as an attempt, anything you like, for instance: "Dear Herr Adam!
I have received your letter and quite agree with you. Matters are going on well; to-morrow you will receive the required pa.s.s, and then follow my directions exactly in all things, greet the Inspector. Your Friend.""
The young Priest wrote, the Physician looking over his shoulder.
"_Optime_, _optime_!" he then cried. "You are a finished artist.
I will shortly bring you some forms, you will write out letters of safe-conduct for all our agents." He then with apparent indifference folded up the note and put it with his other papers. But the other said mistrustfully: "Give me back that sheet, I do not know what you may want to do with it."
"I think you are becoming childish," cried Pigavetta impatiently, "since when has it become the custom of the society for the novices to watch over the initiated." And he took the folded paper from his pocket and threw it out of the open window. "What sort of French scholar are you?" added he quickly. "The Countess Brederode, or Her Highness the Princess Amelia as she likes to be called, is very particular on that point."
"She will be contented with me," said Paul, "but now dismiss me, it is late. As you ordered me to conceal our interviews, I told the ladies of the Stift, that I was about to attend a meeting of the clergy, in the Hirsch, where I nearly die of ennui, therefore all the less do I dare stay out till midnight, lest my reputation should suffer in the eyes of these pious women."
Pigavetta gave him his hand. "I hope you will soon dwell in yonder castle, and the pretty Princess will have no objection to your then stopping somewhat later." The Priest blushed anew and hastily left.
Through the open window could be heard the hurried footsteps of the young man for whom the fresh evening breeze was not sufficient to cool his fevered brow. Pigavetta"s long foxy head was thrust out to watch him. ""One cannot angle without bait," said the Holy Ignatius, and he was the only man who ever impressed me. Of what use hearing the confessions of this good youth, if I could not work upon his weak point. He seems however as if he would shortly break away, so it will be right to lay a new chain on him." After a while he added: "Leaving all higher considerations aside, it would be no bad spectacle, if I were to let this black panther loose on the white kitten in yonder castle. This would bring about some excitement in this tedious home of heretics, where we have five months of winter and seven months of rain." Carefully taking from his pocket a creased piece of paper, he laid another sheet over it, and began cautiously to smooth it out. When he had finished this piece of work, he added: "Exposed a few times to the night-air and this masterpiece of our good Magister will be quite smooth, and then, friend Erastus, thou wilt thyself swear, that thou at some time must have written this letter." After weighting down the paper near the window with a stone he took his lamp and sought his bed, saying: "The instruction in writing as given in Venice is worthy of all commendation. Now we have in black upon white, that Erastus is an Arian and therefore do not first require to turn white into black, as piped this fledgeling."
CHAPTER IV.
The following morning the sun shone brightly on the small bow-window of the room in the castle, in which Felice Laurenzano now dwelt. The Otto Heinrich building stood before him in the bluish mist of the early morning, and behind in vague outlines the Konigsstuhl. The balmy air of the park surrounding the castle poured in through the open window, and the full notes of numerous birds sent forth an invitation to come out and enjoy the freshness of the morning. In a cheery mood the young man dressed himself, keeping ever before him the facade which was about to become the future work of his life. But to-day his first duty must be to seek out his brother whom he had not seen for so long, and who now occupied an official dwelling in the Convent (Stift) at Neuburg.
The appointment of the young Jesuit to the Convent Neuburg, at that time protestant, had a history. The Convent situated within half an hour of Heidelberg was so rich and lay so immediately under the eyes of the Kurfurst, that it was impossible for it to escape "reform." Even Frederic II. had stretched out his hand in that direction, whilst Otto Heinrich had insisted on processions and clausure being done away with, and granted the nuns permission to secede from their vows. Over those that remained a counsellor of the Palatinate had been appointed as Inspector, who confiscated the church property for the benefit of the Palatinate treasury leaving to the ladies a meagre annuity. Thus far the "reforms" had not been very serious. When however the Inspector endeavored to alter the mode of life of these old ladies, he learnt to know a power of resistance in these obstinate and headstrong females against which he could not cope. As everywhere else, the nuns here clung with greater tenacity to the old ways than did the monks or priests. The female mind took no pleasure in the dogmatic discussions of the reformers, and the reformation deprived these pious ladies of everything for the which their hearts yearned, their particular dress, the regular life, to which they were so accustomed, their beloved pictures, and moreover the great consolation of their solitary lives--their songs. To sing and attend ma.s.s, had been up to that time their sole occupation, and thus in peaceful retirement had they been happy. Evenly proportioned between _Ave Maria_ and _Salve Regina_, their days had peacefully succeeded one another. But now a turbulent throng raged around their gates, and the haughty spiritual advisers of the Kurfurst forced themselves contrary to all regulations within their walls, to explain to them, that this existence was opposed to the Gospel and to destroy their peace by forcing them to hear theological arguments. Terrified out of their quiet life, the helpless dames burst into the bitterest complaints against the tyranny which forbade them the use of consecrated salt, wax-candles, and all things pertaining to the glorification of G.o.d, and also refused to suffer them to sing "_Regina c[oe]li_," or "_Maria mater gratiae_." Moreover these proud new fangled Theologians with their wide white neck-bands permitted the youngest novice to confute their Domina out of the Scriptures, the servants were urged to break the commands of the church, and when the child of the convent miller, whom the old ladies had loved and petted, died, no one dared to administer the last unction to him, he was allowed to die "like a beast" and was buried without incense or holy water. That Satan himself had incited the wicked Luther and the h.e.l.lish Calvin to such misdeeds was a moral certainty to the good nuns, who never wearied praying for help from any native or foreign protectors.
Should then another Church Counsellor appear from Heidelberg and order the Domina and her flock to set forth their complaints, the new negotiations produced about as much result as had the old. Either the gentleman was received in solemn unbroken silence or the old ladies all shrieked at him at one and the same time, so that he could only report in Heidelberg that they wished for a renewal of the former status and met with truly diabolical opposition the word of G.o.d. Otto Heinrich now appointed a special Preacher to convert them, but they protested against this breach of conventual propriety. The Preacher occupied the pulpit during the princ.i.p.al church service, but only preached to empty benches, and scarcely had he left the church than the nuns trooped in with holy water and incense, and consecrating the church anew, they held a service of their own. The Preacher closed the church, but they sang all the more l.u.s.tily in the refectory. The Inspector confiscated their song-books, they looked in all the corners for old ones and shrieked to Heaven till their wearied old throats gave out. These books were likewise taken away, but they sang from memory. Sometimes they read the _Horae_ in one room, sometimes in another by closed doors, and their "_Salve Regina_" never sounded louder or shriller than when the Inspector and Preacher raged outside and demanded admission in the name of the Count Palatine. When the two gentlemen had thus been beaten off, then the Domina and her ladies sent a complaint to the Kurfurst, that the men, whom he had introduced into their nunnery, had attempted to force their way into the nuns" cells to spite their virginal chast.i.ty, honor and other laudable qualifications. Out of revenge the Inspector took the clapper from the bell and cut the ropes so that they could no longer toll the "_tempora_." Then arose a loud wailing and sobbing all through the convent, and the Inspector grinned as contentedly as if he heard the most delectable music, but in the evening when he climbed into his bed, he found it as wet as if the rain had poured through the roof, and when he strode down the steps the next morning in a rage, to insist upon an inquiry in the matter of this outrage, he trod on some peas which caused him to fall so heavily as to produce a painful lump.
This mode of life seemed to him so miserable and unprofitable that he resigned the place and returned to Heidelberg. As the Preacher was now left alone he comforted himself in his solitary chamber at the furthermost end of the convent, with a beaker of wine; but the Domina took note of every little dissipation which he thus enjoyed, and drawing up an affidavit which was signed by many unimpeachable witnesses of both s.e.xes, sent it off to the Chancellory at Heidelberg, who reproved the poor man so severely, that his life likewise became a burden to him. Otto Heinrich had considered the struggle carried on under his eyes in the light of an excellent joke, and whenever he was informed of any new tribulation undergone by his Inspector, the stout lord, who measured three feet and a half across the back from shoulder to shoulder, laughed so loud, that the large dining room of the new Court shook again. But he was succeeded by Frederic III., who looked more seriously at the "d.a.m.nable bigotry of the Ma.s.s." He caused certain of the most obstinate among these female insurgents to be seized and sent to the hospital at Dilsberg in order to nurse the sick soldiers of the fortress. Old Domina Brigitta was also deprived of her pastoral staff, and the prioress Sabina of Pfalz-Zweibrucken was only permitted to retain her position on promising to keep the peace, and because she happened to be a favorite cousin of the Kurfurst. The reform of the Church and Convent was however now carried on in the most ruthless manner. The ladies had to give way to violence as they could not do otherwise. Outwardly the Stift preserved an evangelical appearance, ma.s.s was no longer celebrated, the songs in honor of the Mother of G.o.d and of the Saints were heard no more, the preaching was protestant, and the elements were distributed in both forms. The number of schoolchildren was increased, and the nuns were compelled to teach them reading, writing, and the female accomplishments. This the new Abbess had to permit, but at heart the older generation of nuns remained Romanists and privately hoped for better days.
The new Domina herself was a kind-hearted, rather old-fashioned lady.
She was in reality as catholic as the others, but she loved peace and wisely avoided a conflict with those in power. When the Pfalz inclined from Lutheranism to Calvinism, public attention became less and less directed to the Stift. The ladies now hoped to be able to return to their former practices if they could only get rid of the Preacher.
Domina Sabina managed at last, owing to her influence with the Church Council of the Kurfurst, to have the old drunkard as she called him dismissed from his office. To avoid fresh conflicts, the Kurfurst ordered that the ladies should choose from among the clergy of the town the preacher most acceptable to them. Long had they consulted and hesitated, at length they elected Master Laurenzano of the College of the Sapientia, who was capable of imparting instruction in the foreign languages to the young ladies committed to their charge. "My pious cousin has chosen the youngest and handsomest of the lot," sneered the Kurfurst, as he nevertheless granted their wish. "They will however thus become quicker reconciled to the new doctrines," he thought. This time he had not seen the matter in the right light, and however sharp the old gentleman appeared, in this case he had been taken in. In the meanwhile he gave orders that Master Laurenzano should at times preach in the castle, "so that one might taste the food on which the Dames were fed, for this was not the affair of a cap full of flesh, but of the eternal welfare of the soul."
Paul"s conversion to Calvinism was something new to Master Felix, and the _role_ of preacher appeared to him all the more grievous, as he had gathered from Pigavettas" remarks, that the new faith had only been a.s.sumed, to spy on the heretics. The education in the Jesuits" college had ever been in Felix"s eyes a fate attended with all good to himself, but with much tribulation to Paul. Thus together with his love for his younger brother, there existed a feeling of pity and commiseration, which rendered him kind and yielding towards the excitable young Priest, who often aroused his mental indignation, but also called for much sympathy. Whether Paul had taken oaths binding to the order, Felix knew as little, as what to make out of his part of calvinistic preacher. "Poveretto," he sighed, "I have never understood this reserved brother of mine, nevertheless Erastus" way of speaking, showed me plainly, that something still exists to be comforted, perhaps cured.
Poor Paolo, yonder planetary Deities must have formed a complex conjunction at thy birth."
Thus saying Felix threw his cloak over his shoulders and pulled the brim of his Raphael cap well down so as to protect his eyes from the sun. He moreover began to hum his favorite song, but the Nina, Ninetta, Nina, involuntarily stuck in his throat as he entered the gloomy gateway of the watch-tower. "One goes in and out of here like the prophet Jonas," muttered he with a feeling of discomfort. "Do not the pointed spikes of the drawn up portcullis project over the round, dark moat as do the teeth of an open-mouthed shark? Sincerely do I hope that these jaws will never snap behind me." Only after leaving the fortress behind him did his heart feel lighter. The towers of the town arose out of the morning-mist, as Felix gazed over at the beauteous plain beyond.
In the marketplace, opposite the chief church, he exchanged a few friendly words with the host of the Hirsch, paid his bill, and after finishing his breakfast, walked down the street towards the Neckar to the covered wooden bridge which led to the other side of the river. At the other end Felix had to give his name and the object of his stay in Heidelberg to the watchman of the guard tower, before being allowed to issue through the gateway. The mountains of the Neckar valley tinged with a deep blue lay before the youthful wanderer and with charmed gaze did his eye roam from the nut-trees which lined the road to the green fore-land of the river, whose emerald waters glistened in thousand circles, or dashed white crested against the large granite blocks, which according to the legend a young giant had pitched down from the Heiligenberg for a wager with his father, who himself had however hurled them straight across to the so-called Felsenmeer. To the left of the road beauteous lilacs hung over the garden-wall, or, sweet-smelling elders in which the finches built their nests were to be seen.
"Since I turned my back on the snows of the Alps," thought the young artist, "I have never seen any landscape which reminds me more of Italy than does this valley with its chestnuts and vines. Who would have expected so much beauty, that gorgeous building opposite, this Neckar valley at my feet. I am a child of Fortune, therefore am I named Felice." And he drank in deep draughts of the air laden with the perfume of the newly-broken up sod and the fragrant rape-fields, borne to him on the wind. Whilst thus dreaming of the delightful sensation of being one of the lucky mortals, a division of the road caused him to remember that he hardly knew whether he would reach his destination by following this path, and he therefore stopt to await a peasant, who had stood by his side whilst he gave his name at the Bridge.
"You cannot have heard much about Heidelberg," said the old man, "if you do not know where the Neuburg lies? Come along with me, you wish to visit your brother, the Italian parson?"
"How do you know that Magister Laurenzano is my brother?"
"Why he is as like you as two peas, only he is thinner and pale, but a fine speaker, you must hear him in the pulpit, he is like a dancer on a tight-rope."
"You have heard him?" asked Felix rather shocked at the comparison.
"That I have," rejoined the old man. "As I went for the first time to the Court chapel, I saw in the pulpit a tall young man of about six feet, who raged, wept, wrung his hands, and threw himself from one side of the pulpit to the other, in a way that quite frightened me. What can have taken place, I thought to myself "Oh! what a total depravity of the human heart!" I heard him call out as I sat down. Have they whacked him, thought I, or broken his windows, or stolen his cabbages? For it did not seem like preaching, but quite natural. Then he said again: "Dearly beloved, such was the hardness of heart of the people of Israel against Moses." Ah, thought I, if that is all the matter, that happened a long time ago. I had thought from the way the mannikin carried on that the parsonage was on fire."
Felix looked attentively at the old man. "You are no peasant?"
"I am a miller."
"Is yonder house the convent?"
"No, that is where the novices had their hair cut before entering into the cloister. Now kindling material (Lohkase) is made there. It has been turned into a tan-yard."
"You do not appear to be a friend to the Catholics?"
"I was a Catholic at the time when everybody else was catholic."
"And then you became a Lutheran?"
"And am now a Calvinist, as we are not allowed to remain Zwingliites."
"Did you change willingly?"
"One was obliged to do it."
"And when the Pfalzgraf Ludwig becomes Kurfurst, what will you be then?"
"One must take things as they come," said the old man with a sly smile.
"After Ludwig comes another Frederic. You know what our Sovereign said, "If Jack does not do it, Freddy will." One must know how to wait."
Felix did not quite believe in the pa.s.sive resignation of the weather beaten old man, for there was a cunning look in his eyes, and his whole appearance was not one of stupid dependence.
"In my country," said the young man carrying on the conversation, "we say that at the present time in Germany a c.o.c.k-chafer can fly over three different national churches, but it appears to me that if he only lives long enough, he need not even fly. Religions here seem to change like the weather."
"That is good as producing change and movement," said the old man laughing. "When I lived in the town, every Parson had his special idea concerning the holy sacrament, and each of my eight children had his separate Parson. Harry learnt that the Body of the Lord was in the bread; that is not enough, argued little Christina, he is with, in, and under the bread. Parson Neuser told Christopher that it was there in the Presence and that we received it through eating. Parson Greiner however taught Jack: circa circ.u.m, round and about, not in the bread but close at hand. Do you understand?"
"Were the customs then," answered Felix evasively, "as varied as the opinions."