Another piece of news which makes Solonika very happy is that plans are under way to procure the release of the Duke of Dhalmatia. We hope to have the old man with us in the near future.
"I am sorry to say," adds the General in concluding, "that Nicholas is not as good a member of the Secret Order of the Cross as he used to be, and the Turks are still in possession of Constantinople."
Heigh-ho! how quickly time flies when one is supremely happy! Since we were married the autumn leaves have turned to yellow and gold and the summer birds are making their southern flight. But the roses are coming back to Solonika's cheeks.
As I write in my quiet library it is her sweet voice I hear singing in the room below my favourite song, "The King and the Pope." How well the words fit the adventure I have been through. It would almost seem that the poet who wrote them must have had a similar experience. I little thought, when my friend Megarge gave me his adaption of the original from the German, that one day it would have such meaning for me.
Listen and you may hear her singing. How clearly she pronounces each word,—
"The King and the Pope together,
Have sent a message to me;
It is signed with the Royal Signet;
It is sealed with the Papal Key.
The King wants me out of his eyesight
And the Pope wants me out of his See.
"The King and the Pope together,
Own thousands of acres of land;
While I do not own the foot of ground,
On which my two feet stand.
But the prettiest girl in the Kingdom
Walks with me—hand in hand.
"The King must marry a lady,
Of exceeding high degree;
The Pope can never a true love have,
So a cardinal pours his tea.
Very few stand 'round me at table.
But my sweetheart sits by me.
"The King hath scores of soldiers,
Who will fight for him any day,
The Pope hath Priests and Bishops,
Who for his soul will pray.
I have one little sweetheart,
But she'll kiss me when I say.
"And the King with his Golden Sceptre,
And the Pope with Saint Peter's Key,
Can never unlock the one little heart,
That is open alone to me.
For I am the King of a Realm!
And I am the Pope of a See!
In fact I'm supreme in the Kingdom
That frequently sits on my knee."
THE END.
*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE RED FOX'S SON ***