“Oh, indeed! explain that a little to me, my good Master Gryphus. I do not quite understand it.”
“Well, then, if you had remained on the block of Master Harbruck——”
“What?”
“You would not suffer any longer; whereas, I will not disguise it from you, I shall lead you a sad life of it.”
“Thank you for the promise, Master Gryphus.”
And whilst the prisoner smiled ironically at the old jailer, Rosa, from the outside, answered by a bright smile, which carried sweet consolation to the heart of Van Baerle.
Gryphus stepped towards the window.
It was still light enough to see, although indistinctly, through the gray haze of the evening, the vast expanse of the horizon.
“What view has one from here?” asked Gryphus.
“Why, a very fine and pleasant one,” said Cornelius, looking at Rosa.