"Be patient, I pray, sir! I have thought of everything. This package, as you may see, is well tied up and sealed, and bears the inscription: 'Herewith the kindly lent books, with many thanks. Baumann will hand you the others as soon as I have read them,' and the signature: 'Your most obedient, B.'--that means, of course, Bemperlein as well as Baumann, eh?"
Old Baumann had, while he was speaking, untied the string, and taken from one of the three books which it contained a letter, which Oswald hastily opened and held towards the light to read. But the darkness was too great already under the trees; he could only decipher the signature: dearest darling.
"I cannot see," he said, sadly.
"If you had remained in the village, as you intended doing the other day, or if you had yesterday sent word to old Baumann, you would have been in possession of my mistress' letter before daylight was gone."
Oswald felt the reproach hid in these calmly spoken words, and he found no difficulty to confess his wrong to Melitta's faithful servant and friend.
"I beg your pardon," he said, "that I have given you all this trouble. I have blamed myself all day long for my thoughtlessness, and now I am severely punished for it, for I hold the dear letter in my hand, and yet I cannot see how Frau von Berkow is, whether she is well, if she has reached the town, and a thousand other things which I should like to know, and which, no doubt, are all mentioned here"--and he tried once more to read the letter.
"Well, well," said old Baumann, "don't trouble yourself about me; ten miles more or less don't matter much to me or to Brownlock; and as for the news you want to hear, I can tell you something about that, considering that Mr. Bemperlein has sent me a letter, in which he tells me at full length all about the journey and what has happened when they arrived there." The old man had hung the reins over his arm and walked by Oswald's side; the latter hastened his steps to get out of the forest, and to reach Grenwitz and his room as soon as possible.
"My mistress--God bless her," said the old man, "accompanied by Mr. Bemperlein, reached her destination on the third day, and without accident Mr. Bemperlein at once communicated with Dr. Birkenhain, and learnt that Baron Berkow was still alive, but not restored to consciousness, and so weak that his dissolution was expected every hour. That continued so till the day when the letter was posted, on which day my mistress, in company with Mr. Bemperlein and----"
The old man paused and coughed.
"Well, and----?" asked Oswald, whose suspicions about Baron Oldenburg were once more aroused.