"All the same," said my father, as the Baron departed, "the child is half drowned. You have disgraced yourself. Off with you to Joubert, and place yourself under arrest." I saluted. "Bread and water," said my father; "and for three days." I saluted again, and marched off to the house dejectedly enough. As I went, little footsteps sounded behind me, and Eloise ran up. "You must not mind Carl, Toto," said she. "He cannot help crying. Listen, and I will tell you a secret. I heard mamma telling it to father; they thought I was asleep. Little Carl is a girl! Monsieur le Baron has brought her up as a boy to avoid something evil that has been prophesied--so mother said. What is 'prophesied,' Toto?" "I don't know," I replied, my head too full of the dismal prospect of arrest and bread and water to trouble much about anything else. Then religiously I went to Joubert who formally placed me under arrest. CHAPTER VII THE MAN IN ARMOUR Next day happened a thing which even still recurs to me in nightmare. When I came down to breakfast, released from arrest by special intervention of the Baron, Carl was not there. Gretel said he had caught a cold from his wetting, and was confined to his room. Late in the afternoon Eloise and I were in the great library. We had watched the King depart, the Graf von Bismarck, cigar in mouth, accompanying him. Carriage after carriage, containing guests, had driven away; and Eloise and I were pressing our noses against the panes of the window looking at the park, and speculating on Carl and the condition of his cold, when the door opened, and Gretel looked in. "Oh, there you are, children!" cried Gretel. "Well, and what are you doing with yourselves?" "Nothing," yawned Eloise, turning from the window. "We have played all our games, haven't we, Toto?" "Well you are sure to be getting into mischief if you are left to yourselves," said the woman. "Come with me, and I will show you a fine game. It is now a quarter to five. We will go up to the turret and see the Man in Armour strike the hour." "Hurrah!" cried I, and Eloise skipped. It was the desire of both our hearts to see the mysterious Man in Armour close, and watch him strike the bell. "Fetch your hats, then, for it is windy in the tower," said Gretel. And off we went to fetch them. She led us through a door off the corridor, and up circular stone stairs that seemed to have no end, till we reached the room where the machinery was placed that drove the clock and struck the bell. A ladder from here led us to the topmost chamber, where the iron man with the iron hammer stood before the iron bell. This chamber was open to the four winds, and gave a splendid view of the mountains and the forest, and the lands lying towards Friedrichsdorff and beyond.