🧚 A Historical Tale., part 3 · page 2

Three years passed away after this interview, and Eva remained securely hidden; but Henry's absences from Court grew longer and more frequent, and at last one of the courtiers resolved to penetrate the mystery.116

He followed Henry to the Staufenburg, watched four whole days in the thick woods, and the evening of the fourth day, to his utter amazement, recognised Eva von Trotta in the stone balcony by Henry's side.117 The secret was out!118 He hastened to the Duchess and told her what he had seen.119 Maria sent authorised messengers to the convent of Gandersheim, the coffin bearing Eva's name was broken open, and lo! a wooden figure with wax mask and hands!120

The Duchess communicates this discovery to the King of Wurtemburg, her father, letters of reproof are sent to Henry from him and the Kaiser, and the Pope threatens him with excommunication.121

Henry hastens to Eva with the dreadful news; but Alice has been before her, and Eva is prepared with another plan.122

"Tell them to search the Staufenburg, and they will discover their mistake.123 Tell them I am dead--it is true.124 Magda shall conduct the children to Kirchberg, and with Alice's aid they and every trace of my having been here will vanish.125 I have a secure hiding-place."126

"Where, Eva?"127

"You shall know to-morrow on your return from Gandersheim, Henry."128

She took an affectionate and reluctant leave of him, calling him back two or three times before she could let him go.129

Then she sent for her children, wept over them, and gave her directions to Magda and Alice, and cut off Eitel's long curls that he might not be recognised, his resemblance to her with his long hair being so striking.130

After she had dismissed them, Eva returned to her boudoir and wrote a note to Henry.131 Then she took a small flask from her writing-table, poured its contents in a glass of water, and reclining in her fauteuil, drank it.132

Henry, on his return the following morning, hastened to Eva's boudoir.133

Seeing Eva seated, and not springing up as usual to welcome him, he supposed she had fallen asleep--and so she had; but a sight of her face revealed the dreadful truth.134 She had taken poison.135 The empty flask lay on the writing-table beside her; near it a note addressed to himself.136 He tore it open.137 It only contained a few words.138

"I told you, my beloved Henry, I had a secure hiding-place.139 I meant the grave.140 Tell them I am dead.141 They cannot follow where I am going.142 I would not bring ruin on you and your dominions.143 Oh, Henry! be good to my children, and never attempt to make Eitel your heir.144 My sin was loving you.145 Farewell.146

"Yours in death, EVA."147

Duke Henry had the broken-hearted girl--only twenty-three--buried in the garden of the Staufenburg, returned to Court and insisted on a search of the castle.148 They did search, of course discovering nothing, and the mystery was still impenetrable.149

The Duchess Maria died a few months after her rival, and nothing was ever known of the well-guarded secret, until Henry himself betrayed it in his partiality for his favourite son Eitel Henry--Eva's only son and eldest child.150 The Duke besought the Pope to recognise him as the heir to the ducal throne, offering a heavy bribe.151 His Holiness consented, the more readily since the Duke's lawful heir, Henry Julius, had become a Protestant.152

But Eitel proved himself, as his mother had said, noble in character as in name.153 He absolutely refused his consent to this injustice, and lived in retirement on the estate Kirchberg, which the Duke had given him, the name of which Eva's children bore.154 The Kirchbergs, however, soon became extinct.155

The learned Duke Henry Julius, founder of a university, never forgot the refusal of his noble illegitimate brother to deprive him of his birthright, and ever remained his warm friend.156

There were two castles in the Harz mountains, both of which bore the name of Staufenburg; that near Zorge, an hour and a half from the beautiful ruins of Convent Walkenried.157 It is said to have been occupied during the Thirty Years' War.158 When built or by whom destroyed are matters of conjecture.159 The Staufenburg of our tale is near Gittelde.160 Some derive the name from the idol _Stuvo_, or _Stuffo_, once set up on the mountain.161 The mountain was so steep that _Staufen_, or _Stufen_--steps--were used in climbing it, hence probably the name.162

The Weingarten Höhle and the Three Men.163

There is perhaps no cave in all Germany concerning which so many legends and traditions are in the mouth of the people as this Weingartenloch.164

A plank crosses over a black piece of water from the outer portion of the cave further into the darkness, far from human help and human voices.165

The tradition is, that whoever crosses that beam will be given over to the Evil One, who governs there, and sits, between heaps of gold and silver, by a table, with a great book before him, in which he writes the name of every person who approaches him.166

But when three enter together and draw lots with one another, two of them may depart laden with treasures, and only the third, upon whom the lot has fallen, must remain behind, and is torn in a thousand pieces by the demon.167

Two men from some distant country had often entered the cave, and had always succeeded in enticing a third to accompany them, who always fell into the hands of the _Gott-sei-bei-uns_, since they so arranged it that the lot fell to him.168

Finally, it struck the inhabitants as something very remarkable that those who had entered the cave with the two strangers never returned, and henceforth they failed to find a follower.169

Then they entered the hut of a poor man in Dorf Osterhagen, who had a wife and eight children, and challenged him, with brilliant promises, to follow them into the cave.170

The man, whose name was Schlosser, felt little inclination for the expedition, and absolutely refused, even if they offered him eighty Thaler.171

But the wife called her husband into another room, and said to him: "Thou knowest that I love thee dearly, and would sink from sorrow and anguish if thou shouldst be torn from me; but we have eight children, and no bread in the cupboard, and no money, and with the money the strangers offer thee we should have enough for our whole lives; so go with them, and be sure no evil will befall thee."172

And she opened a cupboard, took out a plant, sewed it in his shirt in three different places, made a sign of the cross above each place, and said, "That which I have sewed in thy shirt is _origanum_, a sure defence against all enchantment, and even the devil; so go in peace, in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost.173 Amen."174

And Schlosser embraced his wife and children, and went with the two men, who looked, scornfully laughing, at each other, after having laid eighty glittering new Thaler on the table.175