The Kalispell bee., 1902-08-22


up to the hilt, where it re-
mained as if it had pierced some rea-
Bonably solid body. Ippolita turned and
looked at me with a wondering and
somewhat frightened expression.
Then l came to her aid and, seiZing
my sword, drew it out, though not
without some trouble, and the blade
came forth with a sort of whistling,
signing sound, and it was of a crimson
hue, and at that moment l heard
thud, as if some soft and heavy body
had fallen. Then Ippolita, handing me
the sharp dagger which she carried in
her bosom, cut the canvas of the por-
trait completely out of its frame.
And we saw, to our immense sur
prise, that the old portrait had covered
up a doorway leading to a dark and
narrow passage. The door of this pas
sage was now open, and across the sill
lay the yet warm body of a fat rascal,
into whose paunch Ippolita had stuck
my sword as she might have stuck a
pin into pincushion. The fellow wore
a white cap and white, greasy apron,
and l came at once to the conclusion
that he was my fathers cook, that he
had been in league with the band of
robbers and that my dear fiancee had
spitted him in the moment when he
was spying at us through the narrow
Sits which, 1 now found, had been
made in the eyes of Michelozzo.
Taking a lighted taper and kicking
the corpse to one side, now, followed
by Ippolita, commenced to explore this
secret and mysterious passageway.
AFTER we had walked perhaps seventy
feet we came to a chamber about
twelve feet square, and here it seemed
to end. On our way along the corridor
my charming companion had found
and picked up handkerchief, and aft
er examining it minutely she now cried
out:
''By all the martyrs and Messer San
Nicolo into the bargain, this is naught
other than the handkerchief of Pico
Albizzi, my beloved cousin and the
brother of FEDERICO. 1t is now the half
of year past that he did come to this,
the Pazzi castle, to summon thy sire
Arnolfo to the presence of the duke,
ed not, and it was a week afterward
that peasant passing by the Arno, by
which name, as thou knowest, is some
times called the turbulent stream
which foweth through the town, found
upon the banks of it some way below
the city his lifeless corpse. Santissima
engine, he hath, like Ser Ridolfo, been
thrown into the Pazzi well, and this
passage, this very room, did conduct
him to it,
"But, fair lady," I said, eff that is
so, how came he to be found upon the
Arno's banksY
"And was not Ser Ridolfo's body also
found thereY she answered, with some
disdain. MAY there not well be from
this black bottomless well of thy castle
a sluiceway leading to that neighbor-
ing stream?'
1 now examined the chamber into
which we had come and found in the
middle of the floor great crack which
reached from wall to wall, and | made
up my mind that we were standing di-
rectly over the watery tomb which
of Messers Ridolfo and Pico. 1t seem.
ed to me altogether likely that the floor
of the room, having the great crack il
the middle of it. was made in two
halves and that these two halves could
be let down like lids whenever any one
should touch the lever or spring which
opened them. Coming to this conclu
son, at once led Ippolita out Of tha
insidious deathtrap, and we con
menced to search along the walls of tn
pasageway for the mechanism b
which it could be made to operate.
soon found an iron lever or handle i
the corner Immediately outside til
room, and l took hold of it and pulled
and at once the two halves of the floC
went down as though they were hinge
to the walls, and in the place of til
floor we saw nothing but black, frigh
full, impenetrable water.
l now dragged the dead body of tn
cook to the well and threw it in. II
came to the surface and floated ther
upon his back, and as his great fishlik
eyes were wide open he presented
spectacle which was anything bu
agreeable. This water now all at one
seemed to sink and recede. Then theI
came up great sucking, gurglin
noise, and we looked down and sa'
that it had all gone out of the bottom
taking the cook with it. In momeI
the water commenced to come u
again. We could not see it at frs
away down between the black shinin
rocks, mounting little by little; then
seemed to rise faster, and in five mil
utes it was up to the level where W
had first seen it. I now worked IL
lever the other way, and the two halvt
of the floor came up and met, and I'll
chamber was exactly as it was whe
we had first entered it.
At this moment we heard lou
knocking at the great street door
the palace. 1t instantly occurred to m
that it was made by Ippolita's peopl