'Trouble not his royal highness with your intercessions, Conradi,' said Arwed bitterly. 'Upon his high command was the baron arrested; consequently he has already decided upon his guilt, and mercy here is not to be thought of.'
'You deceive yourself, captain,' said the prince, mildly correcting the excited youth. 'I hate not the unfortunate man. Powerless he must become, and powerless he must remain, but his death would be contrary to my wish and my advice. If his sentence depended upon me, I would banish him from the country, and so settle all.'
'Ah, if your royal highness will exert your influence in favor of a mild sentence,' cried Conradi in raptures, 'God will be your rich rewarder.'
'My dear pastor,' answered the prince graciously, 'this case will probably be decided by the diet. The power of my wife is circumscribed, and I am only her first subject.'
'Yet,' interposed Arwed, 'the delightful privilege remains to your royal highness of alleviating the last hours of the unhappy man whom you cannot save. His daughter wishes to be permitted to speak to him. I wish to conduct her there, but the president of the special commission is inexorable.'
'That is hard!' said the prince. 'A criminal is still a man. Go directly to Ribbing, my dear Rank, and say to him that it is my wish.'
'God bless your royal highness for the deed!' cried the preacher.
'But that no trouble may arise from this exercise of my kind feelings,' proceeded the prince, 'I require your word of honor, and your knightly hand, Gyllenstierna, that this permission shall in no way be abused.'
Arwed started. The thought, how advantage might be taken of such a permission, now for the first time arose in his honest soul.
His hand shrunk as if he would have drawn it back; but the prince extended his, and Arwed finally took it.