"You hear it, commander-in-chief," said the first speaker. "We are all ready and determined. Now say what we are to do with the French. Will you do any thing or not?"
"Yes, will you do any thing or not?" repeated the peasants, penetrating with furious gestures into the room.
"If you do not want to do any thing," cried the peasant, raising his
rifle menacingly, "my rifle is loaded for you as well as for any
Frenchman. You commenced the insurrection, now put it through."
[Footnote: Loritza, "Bilder and Erinnerungen aus Tyrol's
Freiheitskampfen von 1809," p. 14.]
"But you know, countrymen, that I cannot!" cried Hofer. "The emperor has made peace with Bonaparte and abandoned us. What course have we left but that of submission? We must yield, or the Tyrol will be ruined entirely."
"But we do not want to submit," shouted the peasants, furiously. "And the whole country is of our opinion; no one is willing to submit. We will die rather than submit."
"Issue another proclamation calling out the able-bodied men!" said the first speaker.
"Yes, issue another proclamation, commander-in-chief," shouted the crowd. "We will fight, we must fight!"
"And you shall and must be our leader!" exclaimed the peasant, laying his heavy hand on Hofer's shoulder. "We will compel you to go with us or kill you as a traitor. Issue another proclamation. We men are still the same as before, and so is our cause; now you must likewise be the same Andreas Hofer, commander-in-chief of the Tyrol!"
"Yes," exclaimed Andreas, with a radiant face, drawing a deep breath, as if relieved from an oppressive burden, "yes, I will be the same as before. This state of affairs cannot continue. We must fight; we had better die than lead such a life. Go, Doeninger, go; write a proclamation!"
"Hurrah! Long live our commander-in-chief," shouted the peasants, triumphantly; "long live our dear faithful Andreas Hofer!"