Zabern

“ It was no wonder that Katina made haste to hide it from view again.
"Her bosom is the same," whispered Zabern, "or rather it is destroyed. The long lash of the knout coils completely round its victim, you know."
"The knout!" cried Paul, thrilling with horror at the thought that such a dreadful instrument should have been applied to the delicate skin of a youthful maiden.
If it had been Zabern's object to win Paul over to the Polish cause he had succeeded. The most eloquent oration against Russian despotism could not have wrought such effect upon him as the bared back of this silent maiden. ”

“ Nikita laughed aloud.
"Is there any one living who can defeat the marshal?" he cried.
"There is one here who will make the attempt," said a voice.
At this the trio stared curiously at one another, for the words came from the oratory, and had plainly been uttered by none other than the cardinal. Recovering from his momentary surprise, Zabern, with sudden misgiving at his heart, flung wide the door.
"Marshal Zabern," said the voice of Ravenna, "as you value the throne of the princess, come not one step farther. Mark well what is in my hand." ”

“ But you, marshal, will you be there? I thought you had a soul above music and dancing?"
"And such have I. But the masquerade held this evening by command of the princess is something more than a mere fête; it is a cloak to cover a certain political enterprise—what, you shall learn when the time comes. Captain Woodville," added Zabern, mysteriously, "at the bal masque of to-night history will be made. Till then, farewell."
With this Zabern turned away, and ascended to the lofty chamber in which he had left Katina. ”

“ On the Czernovese side of the frontier-stone stood Marshal Zabern with folded arms, outwardly as inscrutable as the sphinx, inwardly delighted at the course taken by events.
Some distance in his rear, drawn up across the woodland path, the narrowness of which did not admit of more than two abreast, was a posse of mounted lancers belonging to the Blue Legion. Fronting these troopers was the vehicle evidently used by the princess in her journey to this spot,—a light, elegant droshky, expressly adapted for swift travelling. ”

“ In riding along the line of the procession, Zabern stopped and addressed a few words to his affianced.
"Not pasteboard and tinsel, I trust?" he said, with a smile, and referring to the sword by her side.
"Real steel," replied Katina, exhibiting the blade.
"Good! 'Tis well to go armed on such a day as this. We shall be fighting for our liberties ere long."
"Death before submission," replied Katina, with a brave light in her eyes that made Zabern love her the more. ”

“ As he spoke the marshal drew his sabre.
"Do you bid me break the sword that has been so long used in the Polish cause? Must I retire hence to aid the Hungarians, to obtain that freedom which you would deny to us in Czernova?"
"No, marshal, no; we must not part. I will stand by those who have stood by me. Clinging to the hope that there is no dishonor on my name, I will hold to my crown."
"A wise decision, princess," replied Zabern, considerably relieved by her words. "And now as to the duke's execution." ”

“ I do not doubt your ability to overcome the duke, for Zabern has told me of your feat in the salle d'armes; but you forget that duelling is illegal in Czernova. Would you have me send you to the Citadel? Moreover, if you should slay the duke it would become the aim of every Muscovite fanatic to slay you. As it is, I fear you will carry your life in your hands, when men come to learn that you are the cause of the duke's rejection. Czernova is but semi-civilized, and assassination is the favorite political weapon here. I would, Paul, that you would do even as Zabern. ”

“ Zabern, desirous of a word with the Hungarian envoy, went forward to intercept his departure.
"So Zabern has told you of our enterprise? What think you, Paul?"
"May the crown of Poland indeed be yours, Barbara. And yet—and yet—the higher you climb the greater the gulf between us."
"You shall rise with me, Paul," she said, placing her hand tenderly within his. "You, who gained fame in India, shall gain a greater fame in the coming war, and then there will be no obstacle to our union. 'Let the princess marry merit and not title,' men will say." ”

“ But Barbara was distressed. Must she resort to crime, she who had declared to the cardinal that her reliance was upon heaven? For her conscience refused to palliate Zabern's intended deed; the slaying of Ravenna without trial would be murder, and murder wrought to secure a title the validity of which she herself was beginning to question.
Zabern noted her look of pain.
"Your Highness, bestow no pity upon the cardinal; he deserves death, if ever man deserved it. Consider the case of your sister Natalie. Do not believe that she committed suicide. ”

“ Every window, balcony, and roof was alive with spectators. All Czernova was there, every citizen apparently determined to find a place somewhere along the line of route. Resolved to obtain a view somehow of their youthful sovereign, men could be seen clinging in mid-air to steeples, pediments, cornices, wherever foothold could be found. From the ground below to the sky above nothing but human faces.
"Sword of Saint Michael!" muttered Zabern. "A pity all have not been trained to use the rifle. We might, then, make good defence, even against the Czar's one hundred thousand." ”

“ Mosco's lips curved into a smile, which, though lasting but a moment, did not escape the quick eye of Zabern, who immediately became full of suspicion.
"As I live," he muttered to himself, "our archpastor is a traitor! Have I got rid of Bora only to find that he has left a successor in the cabinet? That smile means mischief. But what mischief can come from the reading of the Gospel?" ”

“ ZABERN (French, Saverne) , a town of Germany, in the imperial province of Alsace-Lorraine, district of Lower Alsace, situated on the Rhine-Marne canal at the foot of a pass over the Vosges, and 27 m. N.W. of Strassburg by the railway to Deutsch Avricourt. Pop. (1900) 8499. Its principal building, the former episcopal residence, rebuilt by Cardinal de Rohan in 1779, is now used as barracks. There are also a 15th century church and an antiquarian museum. In the vicinity are the ruined castles of Hoch-barr, Grossgeroldseck, Ochsenstein and Greifenstein. ”

“ And it was evident that the marshal found his new experiences far more attractive than the business required of him as a minister; for when a minute afterwards a secretary tapped at the door with the announcement that he was bringing state despatches, Zabern, in a loud voice, bade him begone and carry the despatches to the—well, a certain dark gentleman popularly supposed by the Muscovites of Czernova to be a near relation of Zabern himself.
"And have you never before loved any woman?" asked Katina, as she sat on the marshal's knee, and seeming to be quite at home there, too! ”

“ Therefore Barbara, warned of this beforehand by Zabern, had determined that the envoy's speech, however 237 provocative, should not tempt her to play the enemy's game.
To Paul and Zabern he was an object of secret loathing, both as the knouter of Katina, and also as an accessory to, if not the actual author of, the plot which had resulted in the destruction of the Czernovese Charter. Hard necessity precluded them from denouncing the hypocrisy of the man who came to demand the production of what he had himself destroyed. ”

“ With a sudden start Ravenna opened his eyes to find the marshal standing with folded arms upon the other side of the table. Behind him was his orderly, Nikita. A third man, a trooper named Gabor, was in the act of locking the door of the apartment. Alive to his peril, the cardinal struck repeatedly at a bell upon the table.
"Of no use," remarked Zabern, with an ice-cold smile. "There is no one in the house but your steward, who is keeping watch at the foot of the staircase. He has lately become a spy in my service. ”

“ The bullet had penetrated the wrist of the cardinal, whose hand had involuntarily relaxed its hold, with the result that the startled dove was now flying forth through the open casement.
With the air of one mad, Zabern pulled Nikita towards the window, and, hurling Ravenna aside, he thrust his own pistol into the trooper's hand.
"Shoot, Nikita, shoot in God's name," he cried, pointing to the dove, whose white form was clearly defined against the dark blue sky. "The fate of all Czernova rests on your aim." ”

“ But he shall not succeed. Zabern is my hope. Zabern, crafty and subtle, will find a way of defeating the cardinal's machinations; and then," she murmured, "and then—he shall regret his threat to dethrone the Princess of Czernova."
Barbara, menaced on the one side by the cardinal and 196 on the other by the Czar, had not a very firm hold on her throne, at least in Paul's judgment; and now by her attachment to himself she was still further imperilling her position. But he ceased to argue the matter. Any man with those lovely arms around him might be pardoned for shutting his eyes to the future. ”

“ The spirit of chivalry restrained Paul from giving the fatal stroke.
"I cannot slay an unarmed man," he said.
"What folly is this?" cried Zabern, starting up in wrath. "Did he spare Trevisa? Would he spare you if you were now in his place? This is no time for generosity or mercy. The princess's throne is at stake. Strike and spare not."
Bora neither moved nor spoke, awaiting his end in trembling terror. Paul's refusal to strike evoked the long-suppressed feelings of the Poles.
"Kill! kill!" ”

“ By a solemn oath repeated after the herald, each champion bound himself to observe these regulations. Hence it was certain that one, possibly both, would not leave the cathedral alive, a fact which imparted a terrible interest to the coming combat.
"No quarter! that's a good rule," remarked Zabern to Katina, who sat beside him. "The craven duke would be begging for his life, and we want no more Boras in Czernova."
"The champions will now take their position for the combat," cried the herald.
The duellist when hard pressed is apt to give way before his opponent. ”

“ He passed from the porch to the interior of the edifice.
The scene within fairly dazzled the eye. The rich 373 dresses of the ladies, the splendid military costumes of the men, formed a picture glowing with color; on all sides were to be seen the sparkle of jewels and the gleam of scarlet and gold.
As Zabern slowly made his way towards his allotted seat in the choir, he did not fail to notice certain mocking glances cast at him by the occupants of the northern transept. Mischief was evidently the object of their assembling ”

“ You must nerve yourself to bear the truth. In my opinion the Czar is assembling his forces for the purpose of preventing your Highness's coronation."
"By what right?" exclaimed Barbara, with flashing eyes, and Zabern was glad to see that she who had most reason for fear showed far more spirit than Radzivil; "by what right?"
"By that right ever recognized by the world—the 325 right of the strong," returned Zabern. "By open diplomacy and by secret intrigue, Russia has failed to sap the independence of Czernova; therefore she now resorts to the sword." ”

“ By heaven, Captain Woodville, you have done wrong in forgetting him. If he should have escaped with the tidings of what has been done!"
Zabern darted from the chamber, and, rushing past the three sentinels standing at the end of the corridor, he ran up a winding staircase that led to the roof. He was closely followed by Paul. The traitor-sentry was still lying in the place where Paul had left him. Zabern's examination did not last a moment.
"He will never play the traitor again," remarked the 227 marshal. "You have shattered his skull for him. And without a court-martial, too!" ”

“ Zabern's eyes twinkled with secret satisfaction.
"Marshal," whispered Juliska. "You have some plan in your head. You have been trying an experiment, I 212 know you have. Come, tell me. Of what are you thinking?"
"That the princess's coronation-day will be a very exciting time," replied Zabern, oracularly.
And this was the only answer she could draw from the smiling marshal.
"Beaten! The whole six!" cried Katina in a voice of grief. "Shame upon Czernova! Captain Woodville will have but a poor opinion of us. Let us show, however, that we can shoot if we cannot fence." ”

“ She might have Right on her side, but he had Might, and 391 bitterly did she realize the saying of the old Norse god: "Force rules the world; has ruled it; shall rule it."
Zabern, however, fertile in expedients, was not yet reduced to a state of despair. He had formed the plan of seizing the Czar as a prisoner of war, and of making his release conditional upon the cession of autonomy to Czernova. If Barbara should refuse to sanction this desperate scheme, well then he, Zabern, would act without her, finding a higher authority in the interests of the Czernovese. ”

“ Are you not escorting the princess to Slavowitz?"
"I have a little matter to despatch at the hostelry called 'Sobieski's Rest.' Her Highness has therefore condescended to relieve me from escort-duty."
"Your way is our way, for at that inn we left our troika. Marshal Zabern," continued Trevisa, presenting Paul, "my friend—need I mention his name?—Captain Paul Woodville."
"No man whose friendship I desire more," said Zabern, raising his plumed helmet. ”

“ Was it wise to trust such a weighty matter to one who owed no allegiance to the Czernovese government?
Paul understood the scruples of the other.
"You may trust me; or if not, I will take whatever oath you wish. My sole desire is to serve your beautiful princess."
Zabern's opposition vanished.
"You shall have the letter," he replied. "You defeated Russia's aim in the East; now defeat her aim in the West. But, if you are like me, you must feel the need of a little sleep. There is a bed in the next apartment. Sleep for an hour or two, and rise fresh for the work." ”