It was on the afternoon of the fifth day, and Andreas Hofer sat in silence, as usual, in the gloomy room. Every thing was still without. All at once this profound silence was broken by a hum of many voices and loud noise.
Hofer looked up and listened. "That sounds as if we were still at war, and as if my sharpshooters were marching up," he said.
"Andreas Hofer, commander-in-chief of the Tyrol!" shouted loud voices under the windows.
Hofer jumped up. "Who calls me?" he shouted, in a powerful voice.
At this moment the door was thrown open violently, and four mountaineers, armed with their rifles, came in. Hofer saw through the open door that the yard in front of the house was thronged with peasants, and all looked with flashing eyes through the door at Hofer; and they shouted now, "Andreas Hofer, commander-in-chief of the Tyrol, come with us, come!"
Andreas Hofer seemed all at once animated by new life; his eyes shot fire, his form was drawn up to its full height, and his head rose again proudly between his powerful shoulders.
"What do you want of me, my dear countrymen?" he asked, going to meet them.
One of the four sharpshooters who had entered the room now came forward, and placed himself with a defiant face in front of Hofer.
"We want you," he said. "Three thousand French soldiers are marching across the Janfen. There is great excitement in the Puster valley, and some fighting has taken place. Anthony Wallner has driven the Bavarians long since across the frontier, and Speckbacher and the Capuchin have marched to the Muhlbach Pass in order to attack Rusca. And why are we to keep quiet, then? Why are we to allow the French to enter the Passeyr valley?"
"We will not allow them to do it!" shouted the peasants outside.
"No, we will not allow the French to enter the Passeyr valley."