ny: one day that they were all at home,
Catherine and all, Cornelis said: "Our Gerard wed Margaret Brandt? Why,
it is hunger marrying thirst."

"And what will it be when you marry?" cried Catherine. "Gerard can
paint, Gerard can write, but what can you do to keep a woman, ye lazy
loon? Nought but wait for your father's shoon. Oh we can see why you and
Sybrandt would not have the poor boy to marry. You are afraid he will
come to us for a share of our substance. And say that he does, and say
that we give it him, it isn't yourn we part from, and mayhap never will
be."

On these occasions Gerard smiled slily, and picked up heart, and
temporary confusion fell on Catherine's unfortunate allies. But at last,
after more than six months of irritation, came the climax. The father
told the son before the whole family he had ordered the burgomaster
to imprison him in the Stadthouse rather than let him marry Margaret.
Gerard turned pale with anger at this, but by a great effort held his
peace. His father went on to say, "And a priest you shall be before the
year is out, nilly-willy."

"Is it so?" cried Gerard. "Then, hear me, all. By God and St. Bavon I
swear I will never be a priest while Margaret lives. Since force is to
decide it, and not love and duty, try force, father; but force shall not
serve you, for the day I see the burgomaster come for me, I leave Tergou
for ever, and Holland too, and my father's house, where it seems I have
been valued all these years, not for myself, but for what is to be got
out of me."

And he flung out of the room white with anger and desperation.

"There!" cried Catherine, "that comes of driving young folks too hard.
But men are crueller than tigers, even to their own flesh and blood.
Now, Heaven forbid he should ever leave us, married or single."

As Gerard came out of the house, his cheeks pale and his heart panting,
he met Reicht Heynes: she had a message for him: Margaret Van Eyck
desired to see him. He found the old lady seated grim as a judge. She
wasted no time in preliminaries, but inquired coldly why he had not
visited her of late: before he could answer, she said in a sarcastic
tone, "I thought we had been friends, young sir."

At this Gerard looked the picture of doubt and consternation.

"It is because you never told her you were in love," said Reicht Heynes,
pitying his confusion.

"Silence, wench! Why should he tell us his affairs? We are not his
friends: we have not deserv