"Eliza," he said, solemnly, "I have fulfilled all your wishes. I have brought back with me my uncle and your friend Elza; the King of Bavaria accepted the exchange which I offered; he released the baron and his daughter, and Andreas Hofer sets me free in his turn. I am, therefore, no longer a prisoner, and as a free man I ask you now, do you remember the oath you swore to me on the day of my departure?"
"I do," she whispered in a low voice.
"Repeat the oath to me," he said, imperatively.
"My oath was as follows: 'I swear by the Holy Virgin that, if you bring my Elza to me here, you shall receive your bride, who loves you with infinite tenderness, at the hands of the priest.'"
"You have not forgotten the words, Eliza. But will you fulfil them now?"
"You insist on it?" she asked, looking up to him timidly and mournfully.
"Yes, I do," he said, with a blissful smile.
"Well, then," she whispered, almost inaudibly, "I shall keep my oath."
He uttered a joyous cry, pressed her hand to his lips, and gazed with an expression of infinite tenderness into her blushing, quivering face.
"Oh, do not tremble, love," he said; "do not look anxiously into the future. I shall know how to protect my wife from grief and humiliation. To make you happy shall be my sweetest joy; to see you honored and recognized by society will be my incessant effort, as it will be my bounden duty. You will fulfil your oath, and you must do it this very day. Let me go, then, and get a priest; and you, my sweet girl, place a myrtle-wreath on your head, for I shall call for you soon and conduct you triumphantly to the great church of Innspruck; for our marriage shall take place publicly and in the face of the whole population."