mere fear of the stigma of the challenge hold him so long beyond the limits of the country?--Add to this, that the sun of princely favor brooded more and more warmly over the ministerial frog-spawn. It is true,--and Victor did not deny it,--one might expect of the Princess that she would in time overturn with her foot the Matthieu's- or Jacob's-ladder on which she climbed the princely heart, (whereas she had previously reached only January's _hand_,) just as the marten lets the drowsy eagle snatch him up into the air, and only up aloft begins to hack at him, and keeps doing it till the bearer falls and dies; but by this time, I think, her steadfast gratitude toward Schleunes is abundantly excused with honest men by the fact, that still more remains to be gotten of the uncompleted _gift_. An old lawgiver ordained a punishment for every case of _ingratitude_; in my opinion, every one falls into the same fault as he, if one censures and punishes every instance of gratitude, since often the most selfish at court may have his good reasons for it.[172] Victor went sadly into his chamber, and looked on Flamin's picture, and said: "O, may it not be the will of Heaven, poor fellow, that it should be no longer possible to save thee." Victor could never, three days after an offence, any longer avenge himself. "I forgive every one," he used to say, "only not friends and maidens, because I am too fond of both." But what helping hand, what twig, could he reach down into prison to the sinking Flamin?--All he could do was to go to the Prince with a naked prayer for his pardon. Thousands of generous acts remain undone, because one is not entirely certain that they will produce their legitimate fruits. But Victor went nevertheless; he had made for himself the golden rule, _to act for another even when the result is not a matter of certain hope_. For if we chose first to wait for that certainty, sacrifices would be quite as rare as they were devoid of merit. He went to the Prince, for the first time after so long, an interval,--with the disadvantage against him of terminating a long absence with a petition,--spoke with the fire of a recluse in behalf of his Flamin,--besought the Prince for the postponement of his fate till his Lordship should return,--received the decision, "Your honored father and I must simply leave it in the hands of justice,"--and was coldly and proudly dismissed. Now precisely it was, on the 5th of September of this year, when a great eclipse of the sun made the soul as well as the earth sad and gloomy, that the water-wheel of time had filled the first lachrymatory vessel in his breast; it rolled over farther, and the second overflowed. Clotilda's letter arrived on the 22d of September, at the beginning of autumn. "DEAR FRIEND:--