“Sir, the legal title to it is in myself, for my father was Brant’s lawful heir and executor, and I inherit his rights.  Moreover, although a provision for her is charged upon it, it is Elsa’s desire—­I have it written here under her hand and witnessed—­that the money should be used, every ducat of it, for the service of the country in such way as I might find good.  Lastly, her father, Hendrik Brant, always believed that this wealth of his would in due season be of such service.  Here is a copy of his will, in which he directs that we are to apply the money ’for the defence of our country, the freedom of religious Faith, and the destruction of the Spaniards in such fashion and at such time or times as God shall reveal to us.’  When he gave us charge of it also, his words to me were:  ’I am certain that thousands and tens of thousands of our folk will live to bless the gold of Hendrik Brant.’  On that belief too, thinking that God put it into his mind, and would reveal His purpose in His own hour, we have acted all of us, and therefore for the sake of this stuff we have gone to death and torture.  Now it has come about as Brant foretold; now we understand why all these things have happened, and why we live, this man and I, to stand before you, sir, to-day, with the hoard unminished by a single florin, no, not even by Martin’s legacy.”

“Man, you jest, you jest!” said Orange.

Foy made a sign, and Martin going to the cart, pulled off the sail-cloth, revealing the five mud-stained barrels painted, each of them, with the mark B. There, too, ready for the purpose, were a hammer, mallet, and chisel.  Resting the shafts of the cart upon a table, Martin climbed into it, and with a few great blows of the mallet, drove in the head of a cask selected at hazard.  Beneath appeared wool, which he removed, not without fear lest there might be some mistake; then, as he could wait no longer, he tilted the barrel up and shot its contents out upon the floor.

As it chanced this was the keg that contained the jewels into which, foreseeing troublous days, from time to time Brant had converted the most of his vast wealth.  Now in one glittering stream of red and white and blue and green, breaking from their cases and wrappings that the damp had rotted, save for those pearls, the most valuable of them all, which were in the watertight copper box—­they fell jingling to the open floor, where they rolled hither and thither like beans shot from a sack in the steading.

“I think there is only this one tub of jewels,” said Foy quietly; “the rest, which are much heavier, are full of gold coin.  Here, sir, is the inventory so that you may check the list and see that we have kept back nothing.”

But William of Orange heeded him not, only he looked at the priceless gems and muttered, “Fleets of ships, armies of men, convoys of food, means to bribe the great and buy goodwill—­aye, and the Netherlands themselves wrung from the grip of Spain, the Netherlands free and rich and happy!  O God!  I thank Thee Who thus hast moved the hearts of men to the salvation of this Thy people from sore danger.”