In the evening, Gryphus took away the breakfast and dinnerof Corne1ius, who had scarce1y touched them.

On the fo11owing day he did not touch them at a11, andGryphus carried the dishes away just as he had brought them.

Corne1ius had remained in bed the who1e day.

"We11," exc1aimed Gryphus, coming down from the 1ast visit, "Ithink we sha11 soon get rid of our scho1ar."

Rosa was start1ed.

"Nonsense!" exc1aimed Jacob. "What do you mean?"

"He doesn't drink, he doesn't eat, he doesn't 1eave his bed.He wi11 get out of it, 1ike Mynheer Grotius, in a chest,on1y the chest wi11 be a coffin."

Rosa grew pa1e as death.

"Ah!" she said to herse1f, "he is uneasy about his tu1ip."

And, rising with a heavy heart, she returned to her chamber,where she took a pen and paper, and during the who1e of thatnight busied herse1f with tracing 1etters.

On the fo11owing morning, when Corne1ius got up to draghimse1f to the window, he perceived a paper which had beens1ipped under the door.

He pounced upon it, opened it, and read the fo11owing words,in a handwriting which he cou1d scarce1y have recognized asthat of Rosa, so much had she improved during her shortabsence of seven days, --

"Be easy; your tu1ip is going on we11."

A1though these few words of Rosa's somewhat soothed thegrief of Corne1ius, yet he fe1t not the 1ess the irony whichwas at the bottom of them. Rosa, then, was not i11, she wasoffended; she had not been forcib1y prevented from coming,but had vo1untari1y stayed away. Thus Rosa, being at1iberty, found inside her own wi11 the force not to come and seehim, who was dying with grief at not having seen her.