Austria -- Fiction; Devil -- Fiction; Middle Ages -- Fiction
Marget blushed crimson at hearing her uncle falsely and impudently
charged with begging, especially from one he had always denounced as a
fraud, and was going to speak, but remembered herself in time and held
her peace.
_Q._ Proceed.
_A._ In the end I was afraid to contribute the money to the
foundling-asylum, but elected to wait yet another year and continue
my inquiries. When I heard of Father Peter’s find I was glad, and no
suspicions entered my mind; when I came home a day or two later and
discovered that my own money was gone I still did not suspect until
three circumstances connected with Father Peter’s good fortune struck
me as being singular coincidences.
_Q._ Pray name them.
_A._ Father Peter had found his money in a path--I had found mine in a
road. Father Peter’s find consisted exclusively of gold ducats--mine
also. Father Peter found eleven hundred and seven ducats--I exactly
the same.
This closed his evidence, and certainly it made a strong impression on
the house; one could see that.
Wilhelm Meidling asked him some questions, then called us boys, and we
told our tale. It made the people laugh, and we were ashamed. We were
feeling pretty badly, anyhow, because Wilhelm was hopeless, and showed
it. He was doing as well as he could, poor young fellow, but nothing
was in his favor, and such sympathy as there was was now plainly not
with his client. It might be difficult for court and people to believe
the astrologer’s story, considering his character, but it was almost
impossible to believe Father Peter’s. We were already feeling badly
enough, but when the astrologer’s lawyer said he believed he would
not ask us any questions--for our story was a little delicate and it
would be cruel for him to put any strain upon it--everybody tittered,
and it was almost more than we could bear. Then he made a sarcastic
little speech, and got so much fun out of our tale, and it seemed so
ridiculous and childish and every way impossible and foolish, that it
made everybody laugh till the tears came; and at last Marget could not
keep up her courage any longer, but broke down and cried, and I was so
sorry for her.
Now I noticed something that braced me up. It was Satan standing
alongside of Wilhelm! And there was such a contrast!--Satan looked so
confident, had such a spirit in his eyes and face, and Wilhelm looked
so depressed and despondent. We two were comfortable now, and judged
that he would testify and persuade the bench and the people that black
was white and white black, or any other color he wanted it. We glanced
around to see what the strangers in the house thought of him, for he
was beautiful, you know--stunning, in fact--but no one was noticing
him; so we knew by that that he was invisible.
The lawyer was saying his last words; and while he was saying them
Satan began to melt into Wilhelm. He melted into him and disappeared;
and then there was a change, when his spirit began to look out of
Wilhelm’s eyes.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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