ishers of
women, incendiaries----"

That was all.

"Holy grace! Heavenly righteousness! Compassionate Christian souls! Ah,
divine and human virtue, is it possible! What must we endure!"

I cannot always be exact; but, in general, such was the flood of
exclamations that all but swept away that ten-year-old robber,
murderer, ravisher of women and incendiary.

"I am going to read you something from his hand," said the teacher,
"and then if anybody still doubts the boy's viciousness----"

All tacitly promised to have no doubts.

The work that the teacher read was indeed of such a nature as to leave
small room for doubts; and I, who have chosen Walter for my hero,
anticipate difficulty in convincing the reader that he was not so
bad as he seemed--after his

"Robber Song."

"On the steed,
Off I speed,
With helmet on head
And a sword in my hand and the enemy dead;
Quick, away!"

"Christian souls," cried the whole party, "is he mad?"

"Rather late,
Near the gate
A push and a blow,
Vanquished dragoon, Margrave laid low----"

"Heaven save us, what has he against the Margrave," wailed the mother.

"For the spoil!"

"Don't you see, it's for booty," said Juffrouw Laps. "I told you so:
He began with the Bible, he'll end with----"

"And the prize--
Pretty eyes----"

"Did you ever hear the like--he has scarcely shed his milk teeth!"

"And the prize--
Pretty eyes--
She was bought with steel----"

"With ste-e-l!"

"And the prize--
Pretty eyes--
She was bought with steel;
I bore her away to the cave just to feel
How it seemed."

"Heavenly grace, what is he going to do in the cave?"

"In my arm,
Free from harm
Lay the maid as we sped;
Her cries, sweet complaints, and the tears----"

"Oh, blessed peace, and the poor thing crying!"

"Her cries, sweet complaints, and the tears she shed--
O, delight!"

"And he calls that delight! I'm getting right cold."

"Then again,
O'er the plain----"

"Holy Father, there he goes again!"

"Then again,
O'er the plain.
Right and left, nothing spurned,
Here a villa destroyed or a cloister burned
For fun."

"The Devil is in that boy. For fun!"

"Farther yet,
I forget--
But the deeds they were dire,
And the road was marked with blood and fire
And revenge!"

"M