Part 17 (2/2)
”She might consent to enter the True Church.” The Countess was an incurable optimist.
”And a foreigner.”
She laughed. ”Why, Father, Minnie would love the sort of life we live in times of peace ... she would not always be wanting to gad about to Paris and Monte Carlo, like so many young women.”
”Do you mean to say that you will encourage her?” he asked in horror.
”How about the little Princess whose father would be only too----”
”I don't mean to say anything, or encourage anybody,” she replied. ”But I can't turn Minnie out of doors now that the Grand Duke says Ruvno is safe.”
”The ruined tower looked such a good pretext,” he said ruefully.
”And it failed.”
”I would not consent to Ian's marrying a heretic,” she went on.
”Besides, he would not want to.”
”He would not. I know him better than that...” The Poles have suffered so much for their faith that they put it side by side with their country. With them to say a man is Catholic means that he is neither Russian nor Jew, but a Pole.
”I don't see that Ian is very keen about her anyway,” she said after a pause.
”In the cellar----”
”We have done with the cellar for the moment. It is no good meeting trouble half way. Cellar or no cellar, I should only be drawing his attention to her if I warned him. Men are blind till you open their eyes. And then they are mules.”
Father Constantine knew her tone; it was final. So he took his leave, and ordered all the Jews in the village to keep their ears open for news of the American Relief man and report when he came to the neighborhood.
IX
It was early in December. For several days Ruvno had seen neither soldiers nor officers and received news of no kind. This had happened before. Szmul and other Jews in the village circulated the little gossip there was. After the Russians retook Kosczielna Szmul went back to his hovel, whence he had fled when the sh.e.l.ls were whistling around, to find food and shelter for himself and his brood under Ian's roof. Then, being frightened to death, he was loud in expression of grat.i.tude, vowing by all the vows Jews make, swearing by his progeny to the fifth and sixth generation that he would never forget how the Count had given hospitality to a poor Jewish factor. If you know much about Hebraic flowers of speech you can imagine what he said; if not, you miss nothing. Having settled himself in the village again, he picked up the gossip of both armies encamped in the neighborhood, for a Jew will get anywhere and talk to everybody, whether Teuton or Slav, man or maid. He knew that the Prussians were within a few versts of Ruvno before Ian or the Countess suspected they had crossed the river in one place, thereby cutting Ruvno off from the Russian lines and putting it at the mercy of the barbarians.
On this particular afternoon, after the _Ave Maria_, Father Constantine was locking up the chapel when Szmul hurried up. The priest knew he had tidings by the way he flapped his skinny arms. As usual he smelt horribly of herrings and garlic, and poked his dark thin face against the old man's.
”What is it?” asked Father Constantine, backing away.
”The Prussians,” he answered, grinning from ear to ear, showing four yellow teeth which were all that the village barber had saved, for he suffered much from toothache.
”Coming here?”
”Yes--on this side of the river. They have crossed and fought their way through. Oh, such fine horses and such wonderful s.h.i.+ning helmets! Each of their chargers cost a thousand roubles at least, some even...”
”Nonsense. The army pays----”
”The Russian army pays miserably,” retorted Szmul with scorn. ”The Kaiser's with their wonderful----”
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