As he was leaving, a plaintive voice of distress was heard from a young novice who had been peculiarly dear to him, who stretched his hands after him, crying,—­“Father! father! why do you leave us desolate?” Whereupon he turned back a moment, and said,—­“God will be your help.  If we do not see each other again in this world, we surely shall in heaven.”

When the party had gone forth, the monks and citizens stood looking into each other’s faces, listening with dismay to the howl of wild ferocity that was rising around the departing prisoner.

“What shall we do?” was the outcry from many voices.

“I know what I shall do,” said Agostino.  “If any man here will find me a fleet horse, I will start for Milan this very hour; for my uncle is now there on a visit, and he is a counsellor of weight with the King of France:  we must get the King to interfere.”

“Good! good! good!” rose from a hundred voices.

“I will go with you,” said Father Antonio.  “I shall have no rest till I do something.”

“And I,” quoth Jacopo Niccolini, “will saddle for you, without delay, two horses of part Arabian blood, swift of foot, and easy, and which will travel day and night without sinking.”

CHAPTER XXII.

The Cathedral.

The rays of the setting sun were imparting even more than their wonted cheerfulness to the airy and bustling streets of Milan.  There was the usual rush and roar of busy life which mark the great city, and the display of gay costumes and brilliant trappings proper to a ducal capital which at that time gave the law to Europe in all matters of taste and elegance, even as Paris does now.  It was, in fact, from the reputation of this city in matters of external show that our English term Milliner was probably derived; and one might well have believed this, who saw the sweep of the ducal cortege at this moment returning in pomp from the afternoon airing.  Such glittering of gold-embroidered mantles, such bewildering confusion of colors, such flashing of jewelry from cap and dagger-hilt and finger-ring, and even from bridle and stirrup, testified that the male sex at this period in Italy were no whit behind the daughters of Eve in that passion for personal adornment which our age is wont to consider exclusively feminine.  Indeed, all that was visible to the vulgar eye of this pageant was wholly masculine; though no one doubted that behind the gold-embroidered curtains of the litters which contained the female notabilities of the court still more dazzling wonders might be concealed.  Occasionally a white jewelled hand would draw aside one of these screens, and a pair of eyes brighter than any gems would peer forth; and then there would be tokens of a visible commotion among the plumed and gemmed cavaliers around, and one young head would nod to another with jests and quips, and there would be bowing and curveting and all the antics and caracolings supposable among gay young people on whom the sun shone brightly, and who felt the world going well around them, and deemed themselves the observed of all observers.