the last day, although the clouds once more looked threateningly dark, the Count very suddenly declared his purpose of going home, and resisting the solicitation of his host to remain, ordered his sleigh to be made ready. The wind had been high in the morning, and it was represented that the road by which they had come was most likely filled with drifted snow, and thus rendered impassable; but with his usual obstinacy, he would not suffer himself to be persuaded, and in spite of all that could be urged, was resolved to travel by another route, which led along the base of some hills, and was thus, although on the steppe, more sheltered. It was late when they left the castle; and as the snow blocked up the road, making their path difficult, there was every reason to suppose that home would not be reached till long after midnight. Some young officers among the guests, who had ridden out on a short excursion toward the hills, were now returning, and meeting the party in the sleigh counseled an immediate return. The Countess advocated the measure, but the Count was resolutely obstinate, and declared he would go on. "What if it is late?" said he; "the moon will soon be up; and then the night is as pleasant a time to travel as any other;" and courteously thanking his young advisers, bade the coachman drive on. Ivan and Max sat together the former managing the horses, the latter having charge of the guns. Both were uneasy: they had heard from some peasants that many wolves had been seen during the last week, and more than one had described a spot on this very road-a deep glen through which it led-where, owing to its vicinity to the wooded hills, already mentioned, they were in severe winters always to be found, but fearing to provoke the ready ire of their master, neither of them ventured to tell him. In a very different mood from the former hilarious one in which they set out, did they now watch every step of the way. The horses labored as they trotted on through the soft yielding snow; their footsteps were inaudible, but the bells still tinkled merrily. The day at length closed, and night came on before they were half-way home; but the moon arose and cheered the wild plain with her silver light, although ever and anon some dark cloud flying past would curtain her benevolent rays, seeming like a messenger portending doom. To Max the road was not strange. In the careless liberty of his early life, he had often visited this part of the steppe, for here, so near the boundary, were many tumuli, which marked the restingplaces of his Sclavonic ancestors, those who had fallen here in the struggle for a liberty they would achieve. Ivan, intent on his driving carefully, guided his horses in the best paths, while Max, filled with sad and bitter thoughts, looked alternately toward the mounds-the prostrate oaks which, yielding to the storm, obstructed the way in many places or to the hills, now glittering in dazzling snow, behind which barrier lay freedom; and more than once a desire to leap from the sleigh and seek those fastnesses, where for ages the original owners of the soil had been invincible, crossed his mind; but something, he knew not what, held him back. The blow, remembrance of which his fine features still bore the traces, and the threatened flogging was still in his mind : we have said that his better nature at last prevailed over his revengeful mood, but its rule was by no means steady; and now, when he looked on those ancient monuments where quietly reposed those unyielding warriors, and recalled the traditions which told of their struggles and their bravery, the thoughts of his serfdom grew unbearable, and awoke a spirit of revenge as fierce as it was new. Not only did he recognize his own degradation, but that of his fellows, and their tame servility to a hard master; and at this moment the evil spirit, ever attendant on man, predominated, and he thought how easily, in this lone place, it would be to avenge his own and his people's wrongs. He turned his head involuntarily, and looked into the countenances of those who sat behind him, and wondered why they should have the control over him, for life or death. No freedom was or ever could be for him. The moonlight shone full in the faces of those whose lineaments he was thus scanning, and the stern, forbidding, and stony expression that characterized the Count's features increased the stormy emotions that were swelling almost beyond control. But one glance at the mild and beautiful being beside him, she who had interposed between him and an angry master-who, like an angel of mercy, had bade him seek comfort at the only true source-completely disarmed his rage, and banished the thought of revenge. By this time they had passed the first steppe, and nearly reached the wild dell which lay between two wooded hills; this was the spot represented as one of danger. The wind had arisen within the last hour, and howled and moaned ominously as it swept by; the old oaks creaked and groaned as the blast swayed their decaying branches, and the sounds fell upon his ear like the voice of some mocking spirit, reproaching him with his slavery and tamely-borne shame. A voice inaudible to the ear, but clear to his mental faculties, whispered incessantly, "Let the overbearing oppressors advance to their ruin; let the most cruel of deaths be theirs; woe to all such as force their brethren to bow their neck to slavery." Terrible was the conflict which raged in the bosom of the serf; but now the holy word, from which for a long time he had drawn consolation, seemed to come to his aid, and impressed upon his heart as if in letters of fire: "Avenge not yourselves, but rather give place to wrath. Bless them that curse, and pray for them that despitefully use and persecute you." O where is the talisman that can guard against the dominance of sinful passion like the precepts of the Gospel? Like oil cast upon the raging waters, it operated upon his stormy heart; the tumult was staid, and a calm succeeded; the frenzy of temptation had passed away. The road for the last mile or two had grown smoother, so that the horses could trot more briskly; nothing had been seen to cause any alarm; the moon still bestowed her soft and silvery light, making every thing around as clear as day. They had now descended the first hill, and were about to enter the dell which lay at its foot, when, from a ravine within it, bordered by high rocks, there came a voice of wailing, at first low and mournful, like that of a mother lamenting for her child; but soon came another cry, awful and prolonged till it increased to wild howlings, and the frightful chorus was repeated by the echoes on all sides. The horses seemed to understand the fearful concert; they snorted wildly, reared upon their hind feet, and after looking around affrighted, set off without any urging, at full speed. light of the moon, came leaping from the recesses of the dell, and where they reached the clear spaces, were magnified to giant sizes by the shadows cast upon the contrasting snow. The Count seized one of the guns, which were placed in the front part of the sleigh, ready loaded; the Countess covered her head with her fur mantle, as if to shut out the terrific sight of the destruction from which there could be no escape. Could death come in a more terrible shape? "We are lost, husband! is there no help? What can we do?" she exclaimed in a tone of agony. Yet in that moment of terror her heart, true to the maternal instinct, turned to the child she had left at home. "My boy-how thankful am I that he is safe-may Heaven's care rest upon the orphan !" The Count looked the danger calmly in the face, and still grasping the gun remained in perfect silence, either forgetting his right to command, or for once feeling no desire to use his privilege. The horses, wild with terror, were becoming unruly, for Ivan, trembling like an aspen, was no longer able to guide them. Max, indifferent to life as borne in slavery, was the only one of the party who retained full self-possession; a horrible death was to be met; but its pangs would be but short in comparison with the mental torment which he must suffer in the endurance of slavery for years. "Better one should be sacrificed than that all should perish." All this flashed through his mind with the swiftness of an electric flash; and quite as quickly was his resolution made. He took the reins from the hands of the trembling Ivan, and turning toward his half-paralyzed master, gave the orders and encourage "Alexis," cried the Countess, "is there dan- ment which ought to have come from him. ger? what does it mean?" "The wolves are abroad," replied the Count; "we should not have taken this mountain road." "My lord," said Max, forgetting his late anger, and venturing to brave that of his master by speaking unbidden, "this hill is the last between us and the plain, and once there the danger is past.” "A steppe, I suppose: you have been this way before?" was the laconic question. "Yes, sir, often; but it is not a wild steppe that we shall now reach, but the cultivated plains, where the peasants-" He was interrupted by Ivan, who at this moment uttered a fearful shout, accompanied by some Russian interjections which we shall not repeat. "O my lady, O my master, look, look! the wolves are on every side of us!" He screamed in an agony of terror. And so they were the dark forms, made visible by the "My lady, do not be so much alarmed," he said, Four horses are swift and tractable, and when once over the hill, we will be able to distance the wolves. My lord, do not fire, I beg you; strike them with the but of the gun, but do not shoot; the report would bring hundreds from the rocks. Ivan, take out your tinder-box, strike fire with every combustible article we can spare; throw it among them, so as to keep them back till we reach the plain." Encouraging the horses by his voice, while he admonished them, by a slight stroke of his whip, of the necessity there was for speed, they dashed forward toward the hill, which was the deciding point, like the swift wind. With that wonderful instinct, the gift of nature to the dumb creation, and often superior to man's boasted wisdom, they seemed to recognize that they were under the rule of a superior spirit, and guided by a firmer hand. No longer giving way to the terror which at first had made them so unruly, they went forward swiftly but steadily, not even venturing to snort, as if the presence of mind exhibited by the noble serf had communicated a new impulse into themselves. There is a greatness of spirit in man, a relic of his heavenly origin, that, without a movement or the utterance of a word, makes itself acknowledged; and whether its possessor be serf or noble, it claims respect from lordly man, and obedience from the brute creation. Panting, but not relaxing in speed, the now tractable animals gained the summit of the hill, and the howlings, long since grown faint, having ceased altogether, Max hoped the danger was past. He arose and looked back; not a pursuing wolf was to be seen on the long reach of road they had left, nothing intercepted the whiteness of the chill expanse, except the slender shadows cast by some tall oaks, whose naked branches intercepted the moonlight. But there was little time for self-congratulation. As they came quite close to a huge tree, whose thick trunk proclaimed it a patriarch of the forest, he saw two fiery balls glaring from behind it; a low, growling noise next became audible, and then another, like the gnashing of teeth, such as is made by savage animals. Before there was time to think of any expedient to escape this renewed danger, a troop of wolves darted forth from some hidden lair, and uttering cries of savage exultation, surrounded the sleigh. The alarm of the Count and Ivan was very evident, their caps rose above their bristling hair; the Countess closed her eyes to exclude the dreadful sight, and sank back insensible; Max alone remained composed, and once more spoke calmly. "Ivan, strike fire and throw it among them, as before; my lord, do not fire, but beat them off. There is not so many as at first, and I think we shall be able to battle with them." The horses trembled, but did not flag. Ivan kindled fire from every thing combustible he could find, and threw it among them; but they leaped over it and followed the sleigh. Their wild springs, throwing the snow about, at once extinguished the flame, and, as if maddened by the opposition they met, still continued the pursuit, even more fiercely than at first. The party, flying for their lives, dashed on with unabated swiftness, and again the savage foes were nearly distanced. They were descending the last hillthe plains, with their evidences of cultivation and man's neighborhood, were in sight, and hope once more began to whisper of safety, when an old wolf, far ahead of the rest, leaped forth from a little coppice, and with bristling ears and snarling teeth, was close to the sleigh, and within an arm's length of the Countess. The Count raised his gun. "Do not fire, my lord, I pray you," cried Max, "the whole pack will be upon us. That is our death-warrant," he added, as the Count, unheeding the warning, fired. The wolf howled her death-cry, and the rest of the troop, uttering yells of revenge, now dashed forward to begin the combat in earnest. One was climbing up beside the Countess; his grasping paw was already on her shoulder; she stretched forth her hands in deadly terror, and uttered, in a tone of agonized entreaty, "Save me, Max! save me for the sake of my child!" The faithful serf saw that no time was to be lost; with the same self-possession he had manifested throughout this trying hour, he put the reins into Ivan's hands, drew his hunting-knife from his belt, leaped from the sleigh, calling out as he did so, "Drive for you life, Ivan; I can take care of myself." The horses dashed on. The Countess arose from her seat, and scarcely conscious of what was passing, screamed for help, and was about to throw herself from out of the sleigh. The Count, however, drew her back, and without a thought or care for the noble serf, who thus sacrificed his own life for theirs, he shouted to Ivan, "Go ongo on." Away flew the sleigh, far from the spot where Max had leaped from it. No one looked back; but if they had, nothing would have been visible but a cloud of snow, behind which neither the faithful vassal nor the wolves were to be seen. The horses are at full speed, making flying leaps across the plain; they instinctively took the road home. Ivan, no longer able to hold the reins, left them to their own guidance; the Count, nearly beside himself, continued to shout, "Go on, go on," while the Countess lay in the bottom of the sleigh in a fainting fit, from which she did not recover till she was at home, and in her own chamber. The lateness of the hour, as well as the snowstorm in the early part of the day, had shut out all expectation of their return to Zavadoff. Most of the servants had retired; the steward and one or two of the grooms alone remained up, and as they sat beside the warm stove in the servants' hall, amused themselves with telling stories. As the flying steeds, with their noisy bells and trampling hoofs, accompanied by all the barking dogs in the neighborhood, dashed into the court-yard, the sleepers were soon awake. The steward and the story-tellers were out at once; and finding the haughty Count, as well as their lady and the coachman, more dead than alive, they called up the rest of the household, and in the first bustle and alarm, the absence of Max was not noticed. It was not till the Countess awoke to consciousness that any one thought of him; but then to her came the full recollection of all the fearful occurrences of the night, and with it the remembrance of the noble serf, and his generous devotion. "Alexis," she entreated, "do not let that faithful servant perish without attempting his rescue; send the men forth armed, and on horseback, at least to see what has become of him; let it not be a reproach on the house of Zavadoff, that they are insensible alike to the feelings of gratitude and humanity." "Sophia," replied the Count, coldly, "it is of no use to send after him now; he has met his death long ere this. We are safe, and of what consequence is the life of a vassal? He only did his duty, and his loss does not matter; he never was contented at any rate." Half-broken-hearted, but too prudent to combat the reasoning of her haughty husband by words, with tears flowing like rain, she took up her child-an only son-from his little bed, and placed him before his stern father. yielded to the voice of reason or compassion, was subdued by the petition of a child. "Sophia, you have conquered," he said as he clasped both the mother and her boy to his heart; and as there was no time to lose, at once dispatched a well-armed company to the rescue of Max. This tardy movement, however, would have availed little, had other hearts been as steelclad as his own. All the other guests had determined on remaining at Navaroff till the next day; and when the young officers whom the Count's party had met returning from their ride, teached the castle, and repeated what they had heard about the wolves, great apprehensions were expressed for the safety of the travelers. One of them declared he had seen many tracks of wolves on the road, and Count D. judged it best to send out a party of armed men for their protection. The young hussars who did not fear to face the cold, and who liked the excitement and frolic of a wolf-hunt by moonlight better than an inglorious nap in their beds, instead of seeking their chambers went to the stables, saw that their horses were suitably equipped, called up the wolf-dogs, and arranged their spiky collars, and then, accompanied by four stout and well-armed Cossacks, mounted and set out for the plain. They set off across the steppe at a rate at which only Russians ride, and keeping the path between the mounds and the oaks, they followed the traces of the sleigh as far as they had not been effaced by the still drifting snow. But when the flats were reached all spur of the travelers vanished; the wind sweeping fiercely over the chill waste, drove the snow in clouds before it, and the bold riders, blinded by the brilliant whiteness of the wide waste on which the moonbeams fell in dazzling brightness, became completely bewildered. They turned their horses' heads, first this way, then that, seeking a path became impatient, and refused to follow any guidance but their own. The child obeyed, although he did not comprehend any of his mother's words except "pray." Taught by his pious mother to offer daily his childish petition at a throne of grace, he followed her movement, kneeled beside her, and clasping his little hands, looked up entreatingly into his father's coldly rigid face, as he repeated a few words of his simple nightly prayer. There was nothing in the uttered petition which bore partic-over that trackless wild, till the sagacious animals ularly on the painful circumstances of poor Max; but in that beautiful and comprehensive form of prayer, taught first to the disciples, and since then to almost every child, there is a wide meaning which may be made applicable to every condition. The innocent boy, in his white nightdress, with clasped hands, and wealth of golden hair clustering around his beautiful features, as he raised his tender blue eyes, and so earnestly uttered that portion of the prayer which asks for mercy only as mercy is shown, looked like some celestial messenger commissioned to repeat the charge already given by the great Founder of the Christian faith. The stony heart was at length touched; the stern man, whose pride had never Masters," said one of the Cossacks, respectfully touching his cap, "let the horses choose their own way. They will find it better than we can do for them." This was good counsel, and it was not rejected. The Cossack now took the lead; the horses regained the right path; but still their progress through the clogging snow was slow and difficult. At length the hills came in sight, and with renewed hopes they kept on, when all at once a shot was heard in the far distance. They stopped and listened to find out from what direction the report had come; but except the howling of the wind, as it swept careeringly by, or the groaning of the oaks it threatened to uproot, nothing was heard. The Cossack in advance urged his horse to the top of the hill, and having gained it, called out, "We are on the right track now; I see dark forms moving on the hill beyond there ;" and as he spoke he spurred his horse into a flying gallop. The rest did the same, the difficulties of the way being forgotten in the excitement of the moment; and now the dogs opened their throats in a simultaneous howl, and dashed forward to the onset. Again the Cossack who was in the van cried out, "Wolves! wolves! ride on to the rescue!" Like hounds in pursuit of a hare, the hunters came up with the chase, and there also like so many dogs, some of the wolves were mangling and dragging some dark object toward the ravine, already mentioned, while others, uttering yells of savage fury, were leaping upon the trunk of a large oak. With a swift and practiced movement, peculiar to cavalry soldiers, they drew up in a line across the path, uttered the Cossack war shout, and discharged a volley of balls among the howling troop. The shot told well; and many of the savage foe lay stretched upon the snow; the rest, tumbling over each other in their haste to escape, retreated from the unequal contest, and with fiery glancing eyes, and snarling jaws, took refuge among the rocks of the ravine. Assured that the way was now clear, the party dismounted, some remaining at guard, while others examined the prey from which the wolves had been driven. They found only part of a torn mantle and the tassel of a cap. While they were searching round for the remains of the unfortunate person to whom this clothing had belonged, to their astonishment, a man jumped down from the tree under which they stood. It was Max. He was shivering with cold, for he was bareheaded and half-deprived of clothing; but his self-possession was as great as ever. "You came in good time, for I am almost frozen," he said, rubbing his hands; "it is cold, such a night as this, lodging in a tree." sided, the effect of cold, and the terrible exertion he had made, became apparent; by the time they reached it, Max was altogether insensible. For many days his life was despaired of; but as he grew better, and his heroic deed being made known, not only by Ivan, but the Count and his wife, his young deliverers, as well as the dwellers there, regarded him with well-merited favor. Finding that the sole wish of his heart was to be free, Count D. and his friends resolved to intercede with his master, and purchase his liberty should the Count refuse to bestow it. But the Countess had been able to perfect her own good work, for on one day the Count having sent Ivan to Navaroff to inquire for him, sent also an assurance that he was no longer a slave. The flinty heart had been touched by the wand of gentleness waved by the hand of a feeble woman— and it is that feebleness which so often makes her a mighty magician-and a pure stream at last gushed forth. Pride had heretofore obstructed the current which never would have been fully awakened by other means-alas, that all women do not know where their true power lies!-and great was its refreshing flow; for the fountain was fully unsealed. Being now able to recognize that the serf was not only a man, but might be a noble one-that great qualities are not the peculiar properties of those born in high stations, and that godlike emotions exist beneath the frieze vest no less than under the velvet or ermine mantle, he became humane and benevolent in proportion as he had been haughty and repulsive. The more he pondered on the late horrible adventure, the more pressing and the greater he felt was the debt he owed to his brave vassal; and in his changed spirit, wondered that he could ever have been so blind to his merits. The contemplation was profitable, and awoke him to a deeper train of thought; and now that he was able to appreciate the gifts with which Heaven had endowed his bondsman, he was determined to conquer the prejudices of caste, and do honor to them himself. He not only gave Max his freedom, but provided the means for his education; and the issue proved that his favor had found a worthy subject; for, devoted to his books and studies, the serf became qualified to instruct his fellows. The same devotion which had characterized his service to an unkind master, was even more zealously displayed, now that his ardent wishes were realized; his labors, zealously pursued among his de "Give him a buffalo-skin," said one of the officers, "and do not make him talk till he is thawed. He can tell us all about it to-morrow. But say, Max, just answer one question, and then get up behind one of the Cossacks: Are the others safe?" "They are," was the reply, "and at home ere graded brethren, were blessed with the success this." They rode rapidly back to Navaroff; but, now that the danger was over, as the excitement sub they deserved, and to the end of his life it was his study to do good to all men, and obey the precepts of the Gospel by the sacrifice of self. |