Zazo shook his head angrily and set his buffalo helmet on the table so heavily that it rattled. "Brother, brother! This gloomy, brooding delusion may destroy you and your whole people. I am not learned enough to argue with you. But I, too, am a Christian, a devout one,--no pagan like beautiful Hilda yonder, and I tell you--No, let me finish. How that terrible verse concerning God's vengeance is to be interpreted I do not know. It troubles me very little. But this I do know: if our kingdom fall, it will fall not on account of the sins of our ancestors, but of our own. The iniquity of the fathers--of course it, too, will be avenged. Vices and disease are also hereditary. Enfeebled themselves, they have begotten a feeble generation. They have bequeathed to their children their love of pleasure and fostered it in them. And the iniquity of the fathers is also avenged upon us in other ways, but without any miracle of the saints. That the Catholics, tortured for years, turned to the Emperor against us; that the Ostrogoths aid our foes, are certainly punishments for the iniquity of our fathers. But God needs to work no miracle for that; indeed, he would be compelled to work a miracle to prevent it. And Ammata--is he innocent? Against your command he dashed recklessly into the battle. And Thrasaric? Instead of leaving the disobedient boy to his fate, according to his duty as General, and not attacking until Gibamund was at hand, he followed only the ardent desire of his heart to save your darling. And--" He hesitated. "And the King?" Gelimer went on. "Instead of doing his duty, he succumbs at the sight of the dead. But that is the curse, the vengeance of the Lord." "No," replied Zazo. "This, too, is no miracle. This is because you, also, O brother, are no longer a true Vandal; I have said so before. You are absorbed,--not like the people, in luxury and pleasure,--but in brooding. And again it is a consequence of the misdeed of the father; if you had not when a boy witnessed that horrible scene of torture--But it is useless to ask how the past is to blame for the present; the aim should be to do our duty to-day, to-morrow, every day, firmly, faithfully, and without brooding. Then we shall conquer, and that will be well; or we shall fall like men, and that, too, is no evil thing. We can do no more than our duty. And the dear Lord in Heaven will deal with our souls according to His mercy. I am not anxious about mine, if I fall in battle for my people." "Oh," cried Hilda, joyously, "that does one good. It is like the fresh north wind scattering the sultry mists."