Page:The silent prince - a story of the Netherlands (IA cu31924008716957).pdf/278

 —that He holds aloof from the petty affairs of earth. But I still believe that He ruleth in the heavens, and that He will give to every man and to every nation according to their works."

As if to ratify this sublime faith, that very night a violent equinoctial storm blew from the southwest. The waters of the North Sea piled up against the coast of Holland, and the sea rode triumphantly over the ruined dykes. On swept the fleet, borne aloft on the great waves.

The Spaniards, seeing that the ocean now favored these sturdy Dutchmen, fled precipitately from their forts in the night, and in the morning a death-like stillness prevailed where the Admiral had expected a salvo of artillery.

The silence was sickening. Both the Prince and Boisot suspected treachery, and the fleet was anchored at a respectful distance from the frowning fortress. The watchman at length espied a solitary boy, who had climbed to the summit of the fort, and leaning over the narrow parapet waved his cap and cheered.

In an instant the Prince grasped the situation.

"Admiral Boisot," he said impressively, "last night you doubted the goodness of God. The Spaniards far outnumbered us, and perhaps would have ruined this enterprise had they been permitted. But God, who holds the sea in his hand and who sends the tempest and the mighty wind,