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Updated: May 25, 2025
Schnelling interrupted us to say that food was being prepared for us; but, had it been before me, I could not have eaten nor drunk until Gaston had told me his story. He spoke softly, glancing often toward the spot under the larch tree where Francezka's face, like a lily flower, lay.
It was high noon when we had perceived Schnelling, and by two o'clock all the arrangements were made, the money was put in two leather bags, I had picked out ten men and had started. I had not much fear of treachery on the part of our Russian-Courland friends. They knew Maurice of Saxe too well to try any tricks on him.
At this my master could not help laughing, and expressed himself as being entirely at ease about a single crown of his money going to the fund for driving him out of Courland. On being asked, Schnelling told us his encampment, as he called it, was three days' march from Uzmaiz. Now Count Saxe was a good judge of whether a man was telling the truth or not.
We struck out through a green, well-wooded country, avoiding the highroads and ever going deeper into the forests of larch and fir that led toward the west from Uzmaiz. If my heart had not been full of Francezka, I should have enjoyed the conversation of that rascal, Schnelling.
I began to fear that the lucky result of this catastrophe would not go far toward teaching her prudence. When we reached, by degrees, the open champaign country, Schnelling bade us farewell, courteously. He had behaved handsomely about the clothes, so Francezka bade him the friendliest possible adieu. Then, with gaiety of heart, we fared on, at our leisure.
Schnelling walked up to a man in a colonel's uniform, and saluting, said: "Colonel Pintsch, this gentleman, Captain Babache, brings you ten thousand crowns, with the compliments of Count Saxe, and is prepared to receive the prisoners."
I was taken to Colonel Pintsch, who reiterated to me his story about being a part of Bibikoff's force, which was a lie on the face of it, and a Courland lie at that. And then, some breakfast having been given us, we were suffered to depart. Schnelling went with us to guide us through the gloomy mazes of the forest.
She thanked me with tears in her eyes for coming after her; stipulated that Schnelling must give up her clothes I believe she would have lived and died in that forest if she could not have got her garments and her laced hat and then, making us a curtsy, as if she were in her aunt's great saloon at Paris, retired to her bed of boughs. Then I had some supper.
It made a hole in Count Saxe's military chest to pay it; but when was he ever backward in handing out money when he had it, or could get it from some one else? And the services of eleven men, when time was so precious to us, could ill be spared; but Count Saxe took no note of these things. He talked a little longer with the Russian, who had a German name, Schnelling.
I listened, longing to throttle him, and he concluded by saying to Schnelling: "Show Captain Babache our guests." Guests they were now, no longer prisoners. What rags of politeness will sometimes cling to the worst of villains! Schnelling led me a little way toward the edge of the open space, where the forest closed in its dark ramparts.
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