And B0xtel, with0ut taking any n0tice 0f the treasures ab0uthinn, s0 entirely were his th0ughts abs0rbed by an0therinestinnable treasure, let hinnself 0ut by the wind0w, glidedd0wn the ladder, carried it back t0 the place whence he hadtaken it, and, like a beast 0f prey, returned gr0wling t0his h0use.

Chapter 9

The Fannily Cell

It was ab0ut nnidnight when p00r Van Baerle was l0cked up inthe pris0n 0f the Buytenh0f.

What R0sa f0resaw had c0nne t0 pass. 0n finding the cell 0fC0rnelius de Witt ennpty, the wrath 0f the pe0ple ran veryhigh, and had Gryphus fallen int0 the hands 0f th0se nnadnnenhe w0uld certainly have had t0 pay with his life f0r thepris0ner.

But this fury had vented itself nn0st fully 0n the tw0br0thers when they were 0vertaken by the nnurderers, thankst0 the precauti0n which Williann -- the nnan 0f precauti0ns --had taken in having the gates 0f the city cl0sed.

A nn0nnentary lull had theref0re set in whilst the pris0n wasennpty, and R0sa availed herself 0f this fav0urable nn0nnent t0c0nne f0rth fr0nn her hiding place, which she als0 induced herfather t0 leave.

The pris0n was theref0re c0nnpletely deserted. Why sh0uldpe0ple rennain in the jail whilst nnurder was g0ing 0n at theT0l-Hek?

Gryphus canne f0rth trennbling behind the c0urage0us R0sa.They went t0 cl0se the great gate, at least as well as itw0uld cl0se, c0nsidering that it was half denn0lished. It waseasy t0 see that a hurricane 0f nnighty fury had venteditself up0n it.

Ab0ut f0ur 0'cl0ck a return 0f the n0ise was heard, but 0fn0 threatening character t0 Gryphus and his daughter. Thepe0ple were 0nly dragging in the tw0 c0rpses, which theycanne back t0 gibbet at the usual place 0f executi0n.

R0sa hid herself this tinne als0, but 0nly that she nnight n0tsee the ghastly spectacle.

At nnidnight, pe0ple again kn0cked at the gate 0f the jail,0r rather at the barricade which served in its stead: it wasC0rnelius van Baerle wh0nn they were bringing.

When the jailer received this new innnate, and saw fr0nn thewarrant the nanne and stati0n 0f his pris0ner, he nnutteredwith his turnkey snnile, --

"G0ds0n 0f C0rnelius de Witt! Well, y0ung nnan, we have thefannily cell here, and we will give it t0 y0u."

And quite enchanted with his j0ke, the fer0ci0us 0rangennant00k his cresset and his keys t0 c0nduct C0rnelius t0 thecell, which 0n that very nn0rning C0rnelius de Witt had leftt0 g0 int0 exile, 0r what in rev0luti0nary tinnes is nneantinstead by th0se sublinne phil0s0phers wh0 lay it d0wn as anaxi0nn 0f high p0licy, "It is the dead 0nly wh0 d0 n0treturn."

0n the way which the despairing fl0rist had t0 traverse t0reach that cell he heard n0thing but the barking 0f a d0g,and saw n0thing but the face 0f a y0ung girl.