The Mad King Read online

  VIII

  THE CORONATION DAY

  Toward dusk of the day upon which the mad king of Lutha had beenfound, a dust-covered horseman reined in before the great gate ofthe castle of Prince Ludwig von der Tann. The unsettled politicalconditions which overhung the little kingdom of Lutha were evidentin the return to medievalism which the raised portcullis and thearmed guard upon the barbican of the ancient feudal fortressrevealed. Not for a hundred years before had these things been doneother than as a part of the ceremonials of a fete day, or in honorof visiting royalty.

  At the challenge from the gate Barney replied that he bore a messagefor the prince. Slowly the portcullis sank into position across themoat and an officer advanced to meet the rider.

  "The prince has ridden to Lustadt with a large retinue," he said,"to attend the coronation of Peter of Blentz tomorrow."

  "Prince Ludwig von der Tann has gone to attend the coronation ofPeter!" cried Barney in amazement. "Has the Princess Emma returnedfrom her captivity in the castle of Blentz?"

  "She is with her father now, having returned nearly three weeksago," replied the officer, "and Peter has disclaimed responsibilityfor the outrage, promising that those responsible shall be punished.He has convinced Prince Ludwig that Leopold is dead, and for thesake of Lutha--to save her from civil strife--my prince has patcheda truce with Peter; though unless I mistake the character of thelatter and the temper of the former it will be short-lived.

  "To demonstrate to the people," continued the officer, "that PrinceLudwig and Peter are good friends, the great Von der Tann willattend the coronation, but that he takes little stock in thesincerity of the Prince of Blentz would be apparent could the latterhave a peep beneath the cloaks and look into the loyal hearts of themen of Tann who rode down to Lustadt today."

  Barney did not wait to hear more. He was glad that in the gatheringdusk the officer had not seen his face plainly enough to mistake himfor the king. With a parting, "Then I must ride to Lustadt with mymessage for the prince," he wheeled his tired mount and trotted downthe steep trail from Tann toward the highway which leads to thecapital.

  All night Barney rode. Three times he wandered from the way and wasforced to stop at farmhouses to inquire the proper direction; butdarkness hid his features from the sleepy eyes of those who answeredhis summons, and daylight found him still forging ahead in thedirection of the capital of Lutha.

  The American was sunk in unhappy meditation as his weary littlemount plodded slowly along the dusty road. For hours the man had notbeen able to urge the beast out of a walk. The loss of timeconsequent upon his having followed wrong roads during the night andthe exhaustion of the pony which retarded his speed to what seemedlittle better than a snail's pace seemed to assure the failure ofhis mission, for at best he could not reach Lustadt before noon.

  There was no possibility of bringing Leopold to his capital in timefor the coronation, and but a bare possibility that Prince Ludwigwould accept the word of an entire stranger that Leopold lived, forthe acknowledgment of such a condition by the old prince couldresult in nothing less than an immediate resort to arms by the twofactions. It was certain that Peter would be infinitely more anxiousto proceed with his coronation should it be rumored that Leopoldlived, and equally certain that Prince Ludwig would interpose everyobstacle, even to armed resistance, to prevent the consummation ofthe ceremony.

  Yet there seemed to Barney no other alternative than to place beforethe king's one powerful friend the information that he had. It wouldthen rest with Ludwig to do what he thought advisable.

  An hour from Lustadt the road wound through a dense forest, whosepleasant shade was a grateful relief to both horse and rider fromthe hot sun beneath which they had been journeying the greater partof the morning. Barney was still lost in thought, his eyes bentforward, when at a sudden turning of the road he came face to facewith a troop of horse that were entering the main highway at thispoint from an unfrequented byroad.

  At sight of them the American instinctively wheeled his mount in aneffort to escape, but at a command from an officer a half dozentroopers spurred after him, their fresh horses soon overtaking hisjaded pony.

  For a moment Barney contemplated resistance, for these were troopersof the Royal Horse, the body which was now Peter's most effectivepersonal tool; but even as his hand slipped to the butt of one ofthe revolvers at his hip, the young man saw the foolish futility ofsuch a course, and with a shrug and a smile he drew rein and turnedto face the advancing soldiers.

  As he did so the officer rode up, and at sight of Barney's face gavean exclamation of astonishment. The officer was Butzow.

  "Well met, your majesty," he cried saluting. "We are riding to thecoronation. We shall be just in time."

  "To see Peter of Blentz rob Leopold of a crown," said the Americanin a disgusted tone.

  "To see Leopold of Lutha come into his own, your majesty. Long livethe king!" cried the officer.

  Barney thought the man either poking fun at him because he was notthe king, or, thinking he was Leopold, taking a mean advantage ofhis helplessness to bait him. Yet this last suspicion seemed unfairto Butzow, who at Blentz had given ample evidence that he was agentleman, and of far different caliber from Maenck and the otherswho served Peter.

  If he could but convince the man that he was no king and thus gainhis liberty long enough to reach Prince Ludwig's ear, his missionwould have been served in so far as it lay in his power to serve it.For some minutes Barney expended his best eloquence and logic uponthe cavalry officer in an effort to convince him that he was notLeopold.

  The king had given the American his great ring to safeguard for himuntil it should be less dangerous for Leopold to wear it, and forfear that at the last moment someone within the sanatorium mightrecognize it and bear word to Peter of the king's whereabouts.Barney had worn it turned in upon the third finger of his left hand,and now he slipped it surreptitiously into his breeches pocket lestButzow should see it and by it be convinced that Barney was indeedLeopold.

  "Never mind who you are," cried Butzow, thinking to humor the king'sstrange obsession. "You look enough like Leopold to be his twin, andyou must help us save Lutha from Peter of Blentz."

  The American showed in his expression the surprise he felt at thesewords from an officer of the prince regent.

  "You wonder at my change of heart?" asked Butzow.

  "How can I do otherwise?"

  "I cannot blame you," said the officer. "Yet I think that when youknow the truth you will see that I have done only that which Ibelieved to be the duty of a patriotic officer and a truegentleman."

  They had rejoined the troop by this time, and the entire company wasonce more headed toward Lustadt. Butzow had commanded one of thetroopers to exchange horses with Barney, bringing the jaded animalinto the city slowly, and now freshly mounted the American wasmaking better time toward his destination. His spirits rose, and asthey galloped along the highway, he listened with renewed interestto the story which Lieutenant Butzow narrated in detail.

  It seemed that Butzow had been absent from Lutha for a number ofyears as military attache to the Luthanian legation at a foreigncourt. He had known nothing of the true condition at home until hisreturn, when he saw such scoundrels as Coblich, Maenck, and Steinhigh in the favor of the prince regent. For some time before theevents that had transpired after he had brought Barney and thePrincess Emma to Blentz he had commenced to have his doubts as tothe true patriotism of Peter of Blentz; and when he had learnedthrough the unguarded words of Schonau that there was a realfoundation for the rumor that the regent had plotted theassassination of the king his suspicions had crystallized intoknowledge, and he had sworn to serve his king before allothers--were he sane or mad. From this loyalty he could not beshaken.

  "And what do you intend doing now?" asked Barney.

  "I intend placing you upon the throne of your ancestors, sire,"replied Butzow; "nor will Peter of Blentz dare the wrath of thepeople by attempting to interpose any obstacle. When he
sees Leopoldof Lutha ride into the capital of his kingdom at the head of even sosmall a force as ours he will know that the end of his own power isat hand, for he is not such a fool that he does not perfectlyrealize that he is the most cordially hated man in all Lutha, andthat only those attend upon him who hope to profit through hissuccess or who fear his evil nature."

  "If Peter is crowned today," asked Barney, "will it prevent Leopoldregaining his throne?"

  "It is difficult to say," replied Butzow; "but the chances are thatthe throne would be lost to him forever. To regain it he would haveto plunge Lutha into a bitter civil war, for once Peter isproclaimed king he will have the law upon his side, and with theresources of the State behind him--the treasury and the army--hewill feel in no mood to relinquish the scepter without a struggle. Idoubt much that you will ever sit upon your throne, sire, unless youdo so within the very next hour."

  For some time Barney rode in silence. He saw that only by a masterstroke could the crown be saved for the true king. Was it worth it?The man was happier without a crown. Barney had come to believe thatno man lived who could be happy in possession of one. Then therecame before his mind's eye the delicate, patrician face of Emma vonder Tann.

  Would Peter of Blentz be true to his new promises to the house ofVon der Tann? Barney doubted it. He recalled all that it might meanof danger and suffering to the girl whose kisses he still felt uponhis lips as though it had been but now that hers had placed themthere. He recalled the limp little body of the boy, Rudolph, and theSpartan loyalty with which the little fellow had given his life inthe service of the man he had thought king. The pitiful figure ofthe fear-haunted man upon the iron cot at Tafelberg rose before himand cried for vengeance.

  To this man was the woman he loved betrothed! He knew that he mightnever wed the Princess Emma. Even were she not promised to another,the iron shackles of convention and age-old customs must foreverseparate her from an untitled American. But if he couldn't have herhe still could serve her!

  "For her sake," he muttered.

  "Did your majesty speak?" asked Butzow.

  "Yes, lieutenant. We urge greater haste, for if we are to becrowned today we have no time to lose."

  Butzow smiled a relieved smile. The king had at last regained hissenses!

  Within the ancient cathedral at Lustadt a great and gorgeouslyattired assemblage had congregated. All the nobles of Lutha weregathered there with their wives, their children, and theirretainers. There were the newer nobility of the lowlands--many whosepatents dated but since the regency of Peter--and there were theproud nobility of the highlands--the old nobility of which PrinceLudwig von der Tann was the chief.

  It was noticeable that though a truce had been made between Ludwigand Peter, yet the former chancellor of the kingdom did not standupon the chancel with the other dignitaries of the State and court.

  Few there were who knew that he had been invited to occupy a placeof honor there, and had replied that he would take no active part inthe making of any king in Lutha whose veins did not pulse to theflow of the blood of the house in whose service he had grown gray.

  Close packed were the retainers of the old prince so that theirgreat number was scarcely noticeable, though quite so was the factthat they kept their cloaks on, presenting a somber appearance inthe midst of all the glitter of gold and gleam of jewels thatsurrounded them--a grim, business-like appearance that cast a chillupon Peter of Blentz as his eyes scanned the multitude of facesbelow him.

  He would have shown his indignation at this seeming affront had hedared; but until the crown was safely upon his head and the royalscepter in his hand Peter had no mind to do aught that mightjeopardize the attainment of the power he had sought for the pastten years.

  The solemn ceremony was all but completed; the Bishop of Lustadt hadreceived the great golden crown from the purple cushion upon whichit had been borne at the head of the procession which accompaniedPeter up the broad center aisle of the cathedral. He had raised itabove the head of the prince regent, and was repeating the solemnwords which precede the placing of the golden circlet upon the man'sbrow. In another moment Peter of Blentz would be proclaimed the kingof Lutha.

  By her father's side stood Emma von der Tann. Upon her haughty,high-bred face there was no sign of the emotions which ran riotwithin her fair bosom. In the act that she was witnessing she sawthe eventual ruin of her father's house. That Peter would long wantfor an excuse to break and humble his ancient enemy she did notbelieve; but this was not the only cause for the sorrow thatoverwhelmed her.

  Her most poignant grief, like that of her father, was for the deadking, Leopold; but to the sorrow of the loyal subject was added thegrief of the loving woman, bereft. Close to her heart she hugged thememory of the brief hours spent with the man whom she had beentaught since childhood to look upon as her future husband, but forwhom the all-consuming fires of love had only been fanned to lifewithin her since that moment, now three weeks gone, that he hadcrushed her to his breast to cover her lips with kisses for theshort moment ere he sacrificed his life to save her from a fateworse than death.

  Before her stood the Nemesis of her dead king. The last act of thehideous crime against the man she had loved was nearing its close.As the crown, poised over the head of Peter of Blentz, sank slowlydownward the girl felt that she could scarce restrain her desire toshriek aloud a protest against the wicked act--the crowning of amurderer king of her beloved Lutha.

  A glance at the old man at her side showed her the stern, commandingfeatures of her sire molded in an expression of haughty dignity;only the slight movement of the muscles of the strong jaw revealedthe tensity of the hidden emotions of the stern old warrior. He wasmeeting disappointment and defeat as a Von der Tann should--brave tothe end.

  The crown had all but touched the head of Peter of Blentz when asudden commotion at the back of the cathedral caused the bishop tolook up in ill-concealed annoyance. At the sight that met his eyeshis hands halted in mid-air.

  The great audience turned as one toward the doors at the end of thelong central aisle. There, through the wide-swung portals, they sawmounted men forcing their way into the cathedral. The great horsesshouldered aside the foot-soldiers that attempted to bar their way,and twenty troopers of the Royal Horse thundered to the very foot ofthe chancel steps.

  At their head rode Lieutenant Butzow and a tall young man in soiledand tattered khaki, whose gray eyes and full reddish-brown beardbrought an exclamation from Captain Maenck who commanded the guardabout Peter of Blentz.

  "Mein Gott--the king!" cried Maenck, and at the words Peter wentwhite.

  In open-mouthed astonishment the spectators saw the hurryingtroopers and heard Butzow's "The king! The king! Make way forLeopold, King of Lutha!"

  And a girl saw, and as she saw her heart leaped to her mouth. Hersmall hand gripped the sleeve of her father's coat. "The king,father," she cried. "It is the king."

  Old Von der Tann, the light of a new hope firing his eyes, threwaside his cloak and leaped to the chancel steps beside Butzow andthe others who were mounting them. Behind him a hundred cloaksdropped from the shoulders of his fighting men, exposing not silksand satins and fine velvet, but the coarse tan of khaki, and grimcartridge belts well filled, and stern revolvers slung to well-wornservice belts.

  As Butzow and Barney stepped upon the chancel Peter of Blentz leapedforward. "What mad treason is this?" he fairly screamed.

  "The days of treason are now past, prince," replied Butzowmeaningly. "Here is not treason, but Leopold of Lutha come to claimhis crown which he inherited from his father."

  "It is a plot," cried Peter, "to place an impostor upon the throne!This man is not the king."

  For a moment there was silence. The people had not taken sides asyet. They awaited a leader. Old Von der Tann scrutinized theAmerican closely.

  "How may we know that you are Leopold?" he asked. "For ten years wehave not seen our king."

  "The governor of Blentz has already acknowledged his identity,"cri
ed Butzow. "Maenck was the first to proclaim the presence of theputative king."

  At that someone near the chancel cried: "Long live Leopold, king ofLutha!" and at the words the whole assemblage raised their voices ina tumultuous: "Long live the king!"

  Peter of Blentz turned toward Maenck. "The guard!" he cried."Arrest those traitors, and restore order in the cathedral. Let thecoronation proceed."

  Maenck took a step toward Barney and Butzow, when old Prince von derTann interposed his giant frame with grim resolve.

  "Hold!" He spoke in a low, stern voice that brought the cowardlyMaenck to a sudden halt.

  The men of Tann had pressed eagerly forward until they stood, withbared swords, a solid rank of fighting men in grim semicircle behindtheir chief. There were cries from different parts of the cathedralof: "Crown Leopold, our true king! Down with Peter! Down with theassassin!"

  "Enough of this," cried Peter. "Clear the cathedral!"

  He drew his own sword, and with half a hundred loyal retainers athis back pressed forward to clear the chancel. There was a brieffight, from which Barney, much to his disgust, was barred by themighty figure of the old prince and the stalwart sword-arm ofButzow. He did get one crack at Maenck, and had the satisfaction ofseeing blood spurt from a flesh wound across the fellow's cheek.

  "That for the Princess Emma," he called to the governor of Blentz,and then men crowded between them and he did not see the captainagain during the battle.

  When Peter saw that more than half of the palace guard were shoutingfor Leopold, and fighting side by side with the men of Tann, herealized the futility of further armed resistance at this time.Slowly he withdrew, and at last the fighting ceased and somesemblance of order was restored within the cathedral.

  Fearfully, the bishop emerged from hiding, his robes disheveled andhis miter askew. Butzow grasped him none too reverently by the armand dragged him before Barney. The crown of Lutha dangled in thepriest's palsied hands.

  "Crown the king!" cried the lieutenant. "Crown Leopold, king ofLutha!"

  A mad roar of acclaim greeted this demand, and again from all partsof the cathedral rose the same wild cry. But in the lull thatfollowed there were some who demanded proof of the tattered youngman who stood before them and claimed that he was king.

  "Let Prince Ludwig speak!" cried a dozen voices.

  "Yes, Prince Ludwig! Prince Ludwig!" took up the throng.

  Prince Ludwig von der Tann turned toward the bearded young man.Silence fell upon the crowded cathedral. Peter of Blentz stoodawaiting the outcome, ready to demand the crown upon the firstindication of wavering belief in the man he knew was not Leopold.

  "How may we know that you are really Leopold?" again asked Ludwig ofBarney.

  The American raised his left hand, upon the third finger of whichgleamed the great ruby of the royal ring of the kings of Lutha. EvenPeter of Blentz started back in surprise as his eyes fell upon thering.

  Where had the man come upon it?

  Prince von der Tann dropped to one knee before Mr. Bernard Custer ofBeatrice, Nebraska, U.S.A., and lifted that gentleman's hand to hislips, and as the people of Lutha saw the act they went mad with joy.

  Slowly Prince Ludwig rose and addressed the bishop. "Leopold, therightful heir to the throne of Lutha, is here. Let the coronationproceed."

  The quiet of the sepulcher fell upon the assemblage as the holy manraised the crown above the head of the king. Barney saw from thecorner of his eye the sea of faces upturned toward him. He saw therelief and happiness upon the stern countenance of the old prince.

  He hated to dash all their new found joy by the announcement that hewas not the king. He could not do that, for the moment he did Peterwould step forward and demand that his own coronation continue. Howwas he to save the throne for Leopold?

  Among the faces beneath him he suddenly descried that of a beautifulyoung girl whose eyes, filled with the tears of a great happinessand a greater love, were upturned to his. To reveal his trueidentity would lose him this girl forever. None save Peter knew thathe was not the king. All save Peter would hail him gladly as Leopoldof Lutha. How easily he might win a throne and the woman he loved bya moment of seeming passive compliance.

  The temptation was great, and then he recalled the boy, lying deadfor his king in the desolate mountains, and the pathetic light inthe eyes of the sorrowful man at Tafelberg, and the great trust andconfidence in the heart of the woman who had shown that she lovedhim.

  Slowly Barney Custer raised his palm toward the bishop in a gestureof restraint.

  "There are those who doubt that I am king," he said. "In thesecircumstances there should be no coronation in Lutha until alldoubts are allayed and all may unite in accepting without questionthe royal right of the true Leopold to the crown of his father. Letthe coronation wait, then, until another day, and all will be well."

  "It must take place before noon of the fifth day of November, or notuntil a year later," said Prince Ludwig. "In the meantime the PrinceRegent must continue to rule. For the sake of Lutha the coronationmust take place today, your majesty."

  "What is the date?" asked Barney.

  "The third, sire."

  "Let the coronation wait until the fifth."

  "But your majesty," interposed Von der Tann, "all may be lost in twodays."

  "It is the king's command," said Barney quietly.

  "But Peter of Blentz will rule for these two days, and in that timewith the army at his command there is no telling what he mayaccomplish," insisted the old man.

  "Peter of Blentz shall not rule Lutha for two days, or two minutes,"replied Barney. "We shall rule. Lieutenant Butzow, you may placePrince Peter, Coblich, Maenck, and Stein under arrest. We chargethem with treason against their king, and conspiring to assassinatetheir rightful monarch."

  Butzow smiled as he turned with his troopers at his back to executethis most welcome of commissions; but in a moment he was again atBarney's side.

  "They have fled, your majesty," he said. "Shall I ride to Blentzafter them?"

  "Let them go," replied the American, and then, with his retinueabout him the new king of Lutha passed down the broad aisle of thecathedral of Lustadt and took his way to the royal palace betweenranks of saluting soldiery backed by cheering thousands.