“Goliath! unchain the dogs!—­and, landlord! bring us lanterns, torches—­arm your people—­open the doors!—­We must pursue the fugitives; they cannot escape us; we must have them—­alive or dead!”

CHAPTER XV.

The despatches.

When we read, in the rules of the order of the Jesuits, under the title De formula scribendi (Institut. 2, 11, p. 125, 129), the development of the 8th part of the constitutions, we are appalled by the number of letters, narratives, registers, and writings of all kinds, preserved in the archives of the society.

It is a police infinitely more exact and better informed than has ever been that of any state.  Even the government of Venice found itself surpassed by the Jesuits:  when it drove them out in 1606, it seized all their papers, and reproached them for their great and laborious curiosity.  This police, this secret inquisition, carried to such a degree of perfection, may give some idea of the strength of a government, so well-informed so persevering in its projects, so powerful by its unity, and, as the constitutions have it, by the union of its members.  It is not hard to understand, what immense force must belong to the heads of this society, and how the general of the Jesuits could say to the Duke de Brissac:  “From this room, your grace, I govern not only Paris, but China—­not only China, but the whole world—­and all without any one knowing how it is done:”  (Constitution of the Jesuits, edited by Paulin, Paris, 1843.)

Morok, the lion-tamer, seeing Dagobert deprived of his horse, and stripped of his money and papers, and thinking it was thus out of his power to continue his journey, had, previous to the arrival of the burgomaster, despatched Karl to Leipsic, as the bearer of a letter which he was to put immediately into the post.  The address of this letter was as follows:  “A Monsieur Rodin, Rue du Milieu des Ursins, Paris.”

About the middle of this obscure and solitary street, situate below the level of the Quai Napoleon, which it joins not far from the Rue Saint Landry, there stood a house of unpretentious appearance, at the bottom of a dark and narrow court-yard, separated from the street by a low building in front, with arched doorway, and two windows protected by thick iron bars.  Nothing could be more simple than the interior of this quiet dwelling, as was sufficiently shown by the furniture of a pretty large room on the ground floor.  The walls of this apartment were lined with old gray wainscot; the tiled floor was painted red, and carefully polished; curtains of white calico shaded the windows.

A sphere of about four feet in diameter, raised on a pedestal of massive oak, stood at one end of the room, opposite to the fireplace.  Upon this globe, which was painted on a large scale, a host of little red crosses appeared scattered over all parts of the world—­from the North to the South, from the rising to the setting sun, from the most barbarous countries, from the most distant isles, to the centres of civilization, to France itself.  There was not a single country which did not present some spots marked with these red crosses, evidently indicative of stations, or serving as points of reference.