any interest in linking oneself with the dangerous fellow who stood at the service of the devil.
He has carried this miserable occupation already for a year, when the situation began to become unbearable to him. The group, at the head of which he has himself placed, did not fulfil his gleaming expectations. A tempting, external dazzle has blinded him once under the rapture of wine; now, he would be aware with terror, how atrociously he has been deceived. Hunger and deprivation led him into a land of abundance which people used to lure him; very often he did have to risk his life for a loot which was hardly enough to protect him against famine.
The vision of fraternal harmony in the band disappeared; envy, mistrust and jealousy raged inside this rejected group. Justice has promised a reward to the person who would be capturing him alive, and if the betrayer was an accomplice, such betrayer would even be promised a solemn amnesty, a powerful temptation for the wretched of the world! Our unfortunate hero knew the danger surrounding him. The honesty of people whom human beings and God alike have abandoned, was a less than unreliable guarantee for his life.
From then on, his sleep became uncertain, eternal fear of death troubled his inner peace, the atrocious ghost of suspicion rattled behind him wherever he flew, it tormented him even when he was awake, it went to bed with him, it terrified him during dreadful dreams.
His silenced conscience expressed itself again in his speech; and the dormant viper of remorse watched, amidst the general storm, within his bosom. His whole hatred turned itself, now, away from Humanity; and his terrible resentment blamed again only himself. He forgave, now, the whole Nature and found no one else to run away from than himself.
Vice has completed its teachings with the unfortunate man; fortunately, his natural intelligence, finally, won over the sad deception. Now, he felt how deep he has fallen; calmer melancholy replaced the grinding despair. Now, he regretted with tears his past life; he knew now certainly that he would redo things really differently if given another chance. He started to hope that he still might be doing right things, because he felt in himself that he could behave well now. At the highest point of his deterioration, he was closer to goodness than he, maybe, has ever been before his first fall.
At precisely this time, the Seven-Year War broke out; and recruitment went on extensively. Our unfortunate character drew hope from this circumstance, and wrote a letter to the country's Prince, an excerpt of which I join here:
“If Your Princely Highness does not disdain to extend his consideration onto me, if criminals of my sort still deserve your mercy; hence, allow yourself to hear me, Your Highness.
I am a murderer and a burglar, law has condemned me to death, tribunals are looking for me, and I offer myself to become a voluntary recruit. However, I bring, at the same time, a strange request before your throne.
I hate my life and fear not death; however, it is terrible for me to die without having ever lived. I would like to live to use for something good all that I have learned during a part of my past; I would like to live to reconcile myself with the State which I have offended.
My execution will be an example for the world, however not a compensation for my acts.
I hate crime and long ardently for respectability and virtue. I have shown capacity to be useful to my country; I hope that some of this capacity is still left to be of use to Your Highness.
I know that I request something unheard of. My life is lost; nothing else is left to me to intermediate with Justice. However, I appear not in chains and bands before you. I am still free, and fear has the least part in my request.
It is grace which I long for. A pretence to Justice, if I still have some, I dare not any more make prevail. However, may I remind my Judge of something. The time of my crimes began with the sentence which took from me, for always, my honour. Were it less severely pronounced against me then; hence, maybe I would not need grace now.
Allow yourself to show grace for rightfulness, my Prince. If it is in your princely power to influence law in my favour; hence, you will offer me a life. It should be dedicated to your service from now on. If it pleases you, hence, allow me to request your most gracious clemency through public announcement, and I will appear, upon your princely instructions, in the capital. Should you decide otherwise with my case; hence, Justice will accomplish your will, and I must do mine.”
This request remained without any answer, the same way as a second and a third one in which the supplicant offered himself to become a horseman at the Prince's service. His hope for a pardon has completely vanished, he decided, then, to flee from the country and to die as a courageous soldier at the King of Prussia's service.
He separated happily from his band and went on for the journey. It led him through a small town where he would spend the night over.
Shortly before, more severe mandates to research travellers were issued, because the ruler, an imperial Prince, has opted for one party in the war. The town gatekeeper who sat on a bench before the gate, has also received such an order when the Boss came into town.
The demeanour of this man had something funny and, at the same time, horrifying and wild. The skinny horse which he rod and the burlesque choice of his clothing in which, apparently, less his taste than the chronology of his robbery was summoned into advice, contrasted strangely enough with a face on which so many outraged affects, the same expressions seen in mutilated people exposed on a public scene, appeared exaggerated. The gatekeeper was made curious at the sight of such a strange wanderer. He has grown old at the barrier, and a forty year service has educated in him an infallible physiognomy for all sorts of criminals. The hawk sight of this gatekeeper did not fail him also with this man.
He closed immediately the town gate and demanded to the rider a pass with which he would only secure his passage.
Wolf was ready for such a case, and always carried with him a pass which he has, not long ago, captured from a plundered merchant. However, this single proof was not enough to deter the gatekeeper's forty year observance and to dismiss in his mind the oracle he foresaw at the barrier. The gatekeeper believed his eyes more than the piece of paper, and Wolf was summoned to follow him at the office.
The town High Officer looked at the pass and held it for correct. He was an avowed amateur of news and loved particularly to comment the newspapers around a bottle. The pass told him that its possessor came directly from the hostile territories where war was raging. He hoped to obtain confidential news from this foreign land, and sent a secretary back with the pass, to invite the foreigner for a glass of beer.
In the meantime, the Boss has halted before the office; his ridiculous appearance has massively gathered around him all the curious people of the small town.
People whispered something to one another in the ears, pointing alternatively at the horse and the rider; the comments rose, finally, into a loud tumult. In an unfortunate manner, the horse at which, now, all the fingers were pointing, was a stolen one; he imagined that the horse was described in some public announcement and was being recognized.
The unexpected hospitality of the High Officer completed his suspicion. Now, he was convinced that the falsification of the pass was discovered, and that this invitation was only an attempt to catch him alive and without any resistance.
Bad conscience made him into a very unintelligent person, he hushed his horse and run from the place without giving any answer.
This sudden escape was taken as a sign of rebellion.
- “A swindler!” shouted people around, and everyone rushed behind him.
To the rider, this signal meant
