"You told the Minister that my information came through the channel of a
simple confidence?"
"He insinuated that the Holy Father was perhaps breaking the seal of the
confessional...."
"That my informant was a non-Catholic and a woman?"
"He implied that your Holiness had only to command her to reveal the
conspiracy to the civil authorities, and therefore...."
"And you said she was here on Saturday morning?"
"He hinted that the Holy Father was an accomplice of criminals if he had
known this without revealing it before, and that was why...."
"And she came in at that moment, you say?"
"At that very moment, your Holiness, and said she had met me on Saturday
morning."
"Man, man, what have you done?" cried the Pope, rising from his seat and
pacing the room.
The chamberlain continued to kneel in utter humility, until the Pope,
recovering his composure, put both hands on his shoulders and raised him
to his feet.
"Forgive me, my son. I was more to blame than you were. It was wrong to
trust any one with a verbal message in the cabinet of a fox. The Holy
Father should have no intercourse with such persons. But this is God's
hand. Let us leave everything to the Holy Spirit."
At that moment the Papal Majordomo returned with a letter. It was the
Baron's letter to the Pope. After the Pope had read it he stepped into a
little adjoining room which contained nothing but a lounge and an
easy-chair. There he lay on the lounge and turned his face to the wall.
XI At four o'clock in the afternoon the Pope and Father Pifferi were again
walking in the garden. The groves of Judas trees were shedding their
crimson blossoms and the path had a covering of bloom; the atmosphere
was full of the odour of honey-suckle and violet, and through the sunlit
air the swallows were darting with shrill cries and the glitter of
wings.
"And what does your Holiness intend to do?" asked the Capuchin.
"Providence will direct us," said the Pope with a sigh.
"But your Holiness will refuse the request of the Government?"
"How can I do so without exposing myself to misunderstanding? Suppose
the King is assassinated, what then? The Government will tell the world
that the Pope knew all and did nothing."
"Let them. It will not be an incident without parallel in the history of
the Church. And the world will only honour your Holiness the more for
standing firm on your sanctity of the human soul."