Mrs. Maxa found it necessary at this point to interrupt her friend.  She had noticed that Maezli was all ears to what was coming.

“Maezli, go and play with Lippo till I come,” she said.

“Please tell me all about it afterwards, Apollonie,” was Maezli’s instruction before going to do as she was bid.

Apollonie’s communication took a considerable time.  She had just left when the family sat down to a belated supper.

Kurt swallowed his meal with signs of immoderate impatience.  As soon as possible he rushed away, after having given his promise not to come home late.  The friends that were to join him in this expedition had to be sought out first.  When he neared the meeting place, he felt a little disappointed.  In the twilight he could see that there was a smaller number assembled than he had hoped for.  This certainly was not the crowd he had had together at noon when at least all the boys had promised to take part in his new enterprise.

“They were afraid, they were afraid,” all voices cried together.  Kurt heard now, while each screamed louder than the other that many boys and girls had left when the darkness was beginning to fall.  Among the few that were left there were only four girls.

“It doesn’t matter,” said Kurt.  “There are enough people still.  Whoever is afraid may leave.  We must start, though, because we have rather far to go.  We are not going up the well-known path, because Mr. Trius watches for apple-hunters there till midnight, I think.  That suits us exactly, for he must not hear us.  We are going up to the woods at the back of the castle.  First, we’ll sing our challenge, then comes the pause, to give the ghost enough time, then again and after that for the third and last time.  If there really is a ghost, he will have appeared by then.  You can understand that he won’t let himself be teased by us.  So when he hasn’t come, we can tell everybody what we did.  Then they’ll see that it is only a superstition and that there is no wandering ghost in Wildenstein.  Forward now!”

The little crowd set out full of spirits and eagerness for the adventure, for Kurt had clearly shown them that there could be no ghost.  To go up there and sing loudly to a non-existent ghost was capital fun.  Furthermore, they looked forward to boasting of their daring deed afterwards.  Faster and faster they climbed, so that only half of the usual time was taken in reaching their destination.  It was dark at first, but the moon suddenly came out from behind the clouds, cheerfully lighting up the fields.

Having reached the rear of the castle hill, they hurried up the incline and into the pinewoods, where the trees stood extremely close together.  This made it very dark, despite the fact that the wood was small.  Soon clouds covered the moon, and the little band became stiller and stiller.  Here and there one of the children sneaked off and did not reappear.  Three of the girls, after mysteriously whispering together, were gone, too, and with them several more stole away, for there was a strange rustling in the bushes.  Kurt with Lux and his enterprising sister Clevi were at the extreme front.