William Tell Told Again | Page 7

"I know there
is something going on. I suspected it when papa brought Werner
Stauffacher and the other man here, and you wouldn't let me listen.
What is it? Some dangerous scheme, I suppose?"
"Now, how in the world do you get those sort of ideas into your head?"
Tell laughed. "Dangerous scheme! As if I should plot dangerous
schemes with your papa!"
"I know," said Hedwig. "You can't deceive _me!_ There is a plot afoot
against the Governor, and you are in it."
"A man must help his country."
"They're sure to place you where there is most danger. I know them.
Don't go. Send Walter down with a note to say that you regret that an
unfortunate previous engagement, which you have just recollected, will
make it impossible for you to accept their kind invitation to plot."

"No; I must go."
"And there is another thing," continued Hedwig: "Gessler the Governor
is in the town now."
"He goes away to-day."
"Well, wait till he has gone. You must not meet him. He bears you
malice."
"To me his malice cannot do much harm. I do what's right, and fear no
enemy."
"Those who do right," said Hedwig, "are those he hates the most. And
you know he has never forgiven you for speaking like that when you
met him in the ravine. Keep away from the town for to-day. Do
anything else. Go hunting, if you will."
"No," said Tell; "I promised. I must go. Come along, Walter."
"You _aren't_ going to take that poor dear child? Come here, Walter,
directly minute!'
"Want to go with father," said Walter, beginning to cry, for his father
had promised to take him with him the next time he went to the town,
and he had saved his pocket-money for the occasion.
"Oh, let the boy come," said Tell. "William will stay with you, won't
you, William?"
"All right, father," said William.
"Well, mark my words," said Hedwig, "if something bad does not
happen I shall be surprised."
"Oh no," said Tell. "What can happen?"
And without further delay he set off with Walter for the town.

CHAPTER VI
In the meantime all kinds of things of which Tell had no suspicion had
been happening in the town. The fact that there were no newspapers in
Switzerland at that time often made him a little behindhand as regarded
the latest events. He had to depend, as a rule, on visits from his friends,
who would sit in his kitchen and tell him all about everything that had
been going on for the last few days. And, of course, when there was
anything very exciting happening in the town, nobody had time to
trudge up the hill to Tell's châlet. They all wanted to be in the town
enjoying the fun.
What had happened now was this. It was the chief amusement of the
Governor, Gessler (who, you will remember, was not a nice man),
when he had a few moments to spare from the cares of governing, to sit
down and think out some new way of annoying the Swiss people. He
was one of those persons who
"only do it to annoy, Because they know it teases."
What he liked chiefly was to forbid something. He would find out what
the people most enjoyed doing, and then he would send a herald to say
that he was very sorry, but it must stop. He found that this annoyed the
Swiss more than anything. But now he was rather puzzled what to do,
for he had forbidden everything he could think of. He had forbidden
dancing and singing, and playing on any sort of musical instrument, on
the ground that these things made such a noise, and disturbed people
who wanted to work. He had forbidden the eating of everything except
bread and the simplest sorts of meat, because he said that anything else
upset people, and made them unfit to do anything except sit still and
say how ill they were. And he had forbidden all sorts of games, because
he said they were a waste of time.
So that now, though he wanted dreadfully to forbid something else, he

could not think of anything.
Then he had an idea, and this was it:
He told his servants to cut a long pole. And they cut a very long pole.
Then he said to them, "Go into the hall and bring me one of my hats.
Not my best hat, which I wear on Sundays and on State occasions; nor
yet my second-best, which I wear every day; nor yet, again, the one I
wear when I am out hunting, for all these I need. Fetch me, rather, the
oldest of my hats." And they fetched him the very oldest of his hats.