xii UNITED STATES—ANJOU—ASSASSINS 223

The lad, armed with a pistol, and protected by an Agnus
Dei, a Jesuit catechism, a holy taper, and a charmed
toad-skin^ heard mass devoutly, and then forced himself
into the hall at Antwerp, where the Prince was dining
in public according to custom. He was thrust out, but
hung about the door, pretending to be a suppliant. As
William passed forth, Jaureguy presented a petition,
and placing his pistol close to the Prince's face, shot him
through the neck, the palate, and the cheek. The
assassin was instantly pierced with scores of swords and
halberds. The Prince fell, calling out, "Do not kill
him !—I forgive him my death."

The plot was thought to come from Anjou and the
French ; but young Maurice, then barely fifteen, closed
the house doors, searched the dead assassin, found the
conspiracy to be Spanish, and arrested Venero and
Tinimermann the priest. Anastro escaped and ran off
to claim the reward. Anjou burst into tears and sobbed
for half an hour, swearing that he had lost a father.
The Prince was carried to bed, the blood was stanched,
and he prepared for his end. To the burgomaster he
said, " If it please God, in whose hand I am, to take me,
I submit with patience to His will. I commend to your
care my wife and children." To his chaplain, de Villiers,
he said, " Will God pardon all the blood spilled in these
years 1 I put my trust in His mercy. In His mercy
alone can be my salvation !"

His fine constitution and serenity of nature saved
his life, which hung upon a thread for weeks. They
could not stop the bleeding, as pressure choked the
breathing; and when the wound was healing, a fresh
hemorrhage broke out, which was at length stopped by