Two or three hours passed away, and still Mario sat gazing upon the boat which was carelessly lying still in the middle of the lake.  Mario watched them with anxiety, and occasionally cast a troubled glance at the sky.  He would have made signals, but they were too far away to notice them.

The sky became darker, and there came a peculiar thickness and oppressiveness to the atmosphere.  Still the boat moved not.

“Can they be asleep?  Can the rowers be insane?” thought Mario.  “The sky is clouded, and they do not notice it.  O heaven, what can they do!  They cannot see the sky for the awning hides it.”

His attention was now attracted by a sudden voice from Borelloni’s villa.  The old count appeared upon the terrace, pale and terrified, and waved his arms in the air, and screamed to those in the boat.  The shout went across the water, followed immediately by the tolling of the great bell at the villa, which was now all in confusion.  Borelloni rushed about like one distracted, sending his servants after boats to go out and save his daughter.

“My daughter, my daughter,” he cried, “my beautiful Stella.  O my daughter!”

And with frantic gestures he rushed down to the water’s edge, and shouted to the boat-at times gazing at the angry sky above.

Those in the boat had heard his voice and seen the confusion at the villa.  Instantly the rowers put out their oars and turned the boat’s head toward the shore.  They rowed fast, for hope was trembling and preparing to take her flight from the souls of the endangered boatmen.

The deep tones of the bell, sounding loudly and fearfully, went over the country, arousing multitudes of men, who left their fields and came to see the cause of such unwonted noise.

Mario sat on the rock till the boat turned toward the shore.  Then viewing the dark sky and the occasional flash of lightning, he descended with fear to the shore of the lake.  A half hour passed, and but three miles had been passed over.  One yet separated the boat from the shore.  One mile-a short period of time would suffice for the passage, yet in that short time what might not happen!

But soon all suspense was over.  There gleamed a sudden flash of lightning over the whole sky, intensely, terrifically bright, followed by torrents of rain.  There was a short pause, and then with a crash-a roar that sounded like the wild rage of an earthquake, burst the awful peal of thunder-then peal on peal, roar on roar, rolled in long reverberations along the sky, round the rocky shores, and the heavens grew more intensely black!  The storm had burst upon them!  Down came the blast of the tempest’s breath, in an overwhelming torrent of wind, and the whole surface of the lake rose in wild surges, foaming and tossing.

When the first horrible confusion had passed away, all eyes were strained to where the boat had been.  It was nowhere to be seen.  Amid the gloom a few dark objects were all that could be descried in the foam of the upheaving billows.  There came a scream from that aged man who had watched the boat so intently-a despairing cry, and with his white hair streaming behind him, he dashed forward to throw himself into the water.  The servants seized him and prevented him.