s! She stands on the rock of the
garden every day, and all day long, to see whether old Hans is coming."

"She shall soon have that pleasure," answered Albert; "I will be off
to-morrow, if possible; and will write to her in the mean time."

"But be cautious what you do," said Hans; "the strip of parchment must
not be longer than the one I brought you, for I must conceal it also
under my knee-band. We cannot be too careful in these times; and no one
will look for it there."

"Let it be so, then," answered Albert, as he rose from his seat. "And
now adieu for the present; come to me at noon at Dieterick von Kraft's
house, it is not far from the cathedral, and any one will shew it you.
If they ask you where you come from, say you are a countryman of mine
from Franconia, because the Ulmers are not well affected towards the
Wuertembergers."

"Don't be afraid, sir; you will not have any fault to find with me,"
replied Hans, as he parted from Albert. He looked back at the slim
young man, and thought his sister's foster child, had made no bad
choice in the object of her love.

CHAPTER IX.

"The world and all I'd sacrifice for thee;
And do it cheerfully--but only flee."
SCHILLER.

Albert felt some uneasiness, at first, as to how his new acquaintance
might behave in Kraft's house. It was not without reason, that he
feared he might betray himself by his dialect or inconsiderate
explanations, which would put him in an awkward position; for, though
it was his firm resolution to quit the service of the League in a few
days, still he did not wish it to be suspected that he was in
correspondence with Wuertemberg. Neither could he nor would he betray
the secret of Bertha having sent a messenger to him, should he be
unfortunately discovered. He thought of turning back, looking for the
man, and begging him to leave the town as soon as possible; but when he
recollected that, he must have long since left the place where they had
held their conversation, and that he might in the mean time have
arrived at the house, it appeared to him more advisable to hasten home
to put Hans on his guard, and warn him against committing an
indiscretion.

There was, however, something so peculiar in the sharp eye and the bold
cunning countenance of the man, which gave him reason to hope, that
Bertha, in the hasty choice she had made of the means