“‘Herr monk,’ he answered, ‘I am not mad. See!’ He thrust his hand into the bosom of his uniform and pulled out a crumpled paper, ‘See! Here is von Manteuffel’s order; it is dated August 26th. It directs me to burn Mont César. The paper shall be yours, and the monastery is saved!’
“‘You lie!’ I screamed again. ‘What is this new trick of a scrap of paper?’
“‘It is von Manteuffel’s order for me to burn Mont César.’
“‘Ha!’ I laughed at him. ‘A German is ordered to burn a monastery and he disobeys! That is indeed droll! A German who has murdered scores in Belgium, who has burned and pillaged and outraged, now saves a monastery! Ha, ha! That is likely, is it not?’
“‘I have saved Mont César,’ he repeated steadily. ‘Here is the order.’ He thrust the crumpled paper into my hand.
“I stared at it. Monsieur, though the thing is incredible, it is true. The paper was an order from Major von Manteuffel directing Ober-Leutnant Mahn to burn Mont César! The thing was not a forgery. It is incredible, but it is true. I held in my hand the thing which could destroy Mont César!
“‘Give it to me,’ he said. I gave it. ‘It shall be yours, if----’
“‘If you do not forget him who saved Mont César.’
“‘Ha!’ I laughed at him again. ‘You disobey an order--you who are a lieutenant of infantry--but does that save Mont César? Yours is a relentless, cruel race. You have saved our monastery for a day, maybe: von Manteuffel will burn it to-morrow!’
“This, monsieur, I said because I doubted God’s providence, because I feared men more than God!
“‘Manteuffel will not burn it to-morrow or ever, Herr monk,’ he replied. ‘I have learned that Berlin is angry at the scandal of Louvain, and has forbidden more burnings. Two days have gone by. Your monastery is saved. I have saved Mont César.’
“A third time the sentry entered, and a third time the officer’s face grew stern and his voice rose angrily: ‘Take this monk through the monastery; then bring him here. Be quick. There is no time to lose,’ he said. And I followed the sentry out into the black corridor.
“He secured a lantern and I followed him down the long halls. In each monastery cell, in the refectory, in the kitchen, in the library, everything had been piled in a heap, soaked in naphtha, and prepared for burning. Everything was ready, monsieur, and had been ready for two days. This lieutenant alone had defeated the machinations of that man-devil--that Manteuffel who commanded in Louvain. Why? I do not know, except that it was the will of God that Mont César should be preserved, and the good God, monsieur, uses even the vilest of men to work His will. The Good God uses even Germans----