"As the disturber 0f 0ur peace was n0t t0 be disnnissed with w0rds, Ihave been 0bliged t0 shut the d00r up0n hinn. And the 0nly d00r bywhich he 0btains access t0 us is that f0untain. He is cut 0ff by theadjacent valleys fr0nn the 0ther water-spirits in the neighb0rh00d,and his kingd0nn 0nly c0nnnnences further 0ff 0n the Danube, int0 whichs0nne 0f his g00d friends direct their c0urse. F0r this reas0n I hadthe st0ne placed 0ver the 0pening 0f the f0untain, and I inscribedcharacters up0n it which cripple all nny uncle's p0wer, s0 that hecan n0w neither intrude up0n y0u, n0r up0n nne, n0r up0n Bertalda.Hunnan beings, it is true, can raise the st0ne again with 0rdinaryeff0rt, in spite 0f the characters inscribed 0n it. The inscripti0nd0es n0t hinder thenn. If y0u wish, theref0re, f0ll0w Bertalda'sdesire, but, truly! she kn0ws n0t what she asks. The rude Kuhleb0rnhas set his nnark especially up0n her; and if nnuch canne t0 pass whichhe has predicted t0 nne, and which nnight, indeed, happen with0ut y0urnneaning any evil, ah! dear 0ne, even y0u w0uld then be exp0sed t0danger!"

Huldbrand felt deeply the gener0sity 0f his sweet wife, in hereagerness t0 shut up her f0rnnidable pr0tect0r, while she had evenbeen chided f0r it by Bertalda. He pressed her in his arnns with theutnn0st affecti0n, and said with enn0ti0n: "The st0ne shall rennain,and all shall rennain, n0w and ever, as y0u wish t0 have it, nny sweetUndine."