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Ch. 6 Additional Topics in Trigonometry
6.1 The Law of Sines
1 Use the Law of Sines to Solve Oblique Triangles
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
80°
5
45°
2)
7
35° 125°
Solve the triangle. Round lengths to the nearest tenth and angle measures to the nearest degree.
3) B = 54°
C = 107°
b = 22
A) A = 19°, a = 8.9, c = 26 B) A = 17°, a = 26, c = 8.9
C) A = 19°, a = 10.9, c = 28 D) A = 17°, a = 28, c = 10.9
4) A = 49°
B = 43°
a = 31.0
A) C = 88°, b = 28, c = 41.1 B) C = 89°, b = 28, c = 41.1
C) C = 88°, b = 41.1, c = 28 D) C = 89°, b = 41.1, c = 28
5) A = 26°, B = 51°, c = 28
A) C = 103°, a = 12.6, b = 22.3 B) C = 103°, a = 22.3, b = 12.6
C) C = 103°, a = 62.2, b = 35.1 D) C = 97°, a = 12.4, b = 21.9
Page 1
2 Use the Law of Sines to Solve, if Possible, the Triangle or Triangles in the Ambiguous Case
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
Two sides and an angle (SSA) of a triangle are given. Determine whether the given measurements produce one
triangle, two triangles, or no triangle at all. Solve each triangle that results. Round lengths to the nearest tenth and
angle measures to the nearest degree.
1) A = 30°, a = 14, b = 28
A) B = 90°, C = 60°, c = 24.2 B) B = 60°, C = 90°, c = 24.2
C) B = 60°, C = 60°, c = 24.2 D) no triangle
2) B = 82°, b = 3, a = 24
A) no triangle B) A = 42°, C = 57°, c = 31
C) A = 41°, C = 57°, c = 27 D) A = 40°, C = 57°, c = 29
3) B = 53°, b = 5, a = 25
A) no triangle B) A = 49°, C = 77°, c = 27
C) A = 51°, C = 75°, c = 30 D) A = 52°, C = 76°, c = 31.5
5) A = 80°, a = 2, b = 6
A) no triangle B) B = 41°, C = 59°, c = 12
C) A = 40°, C = 60°, c = 8 D) B = 39°, C = 61°, c = 10
7) B = 41°, a = 4, b = 3
A) A1 = 61°, C1 = 78°, c1 = 4.5; B) A1 = 61°, C1 = 78°, c1 = 0.1;
A2 = 119°, C2 = 20°, c2 = 1.6 A2 = 119°, C2 = 20°, c2 = 0.1
C) A = 29°, C = 110°, c = 5.7 D) no triangle
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
Find the area of the triangle having the given measurements. Round to the nearest square unit.
1) A = 32°, b = 15 inches, c = 9 inches
A) 36 square inches B) 57 square inches C) 34 square inches D) 59 square inches
Page 2
3) C = 100°, a = 3 yards, b = 8 yards
A) 12 square yards B) 24 square yards C) 47 square yards D) 2 square yards
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
2) Two tracking stations are on the equator 129 miles apart. A weather balloon is located on a bearing of
N39°E from the western station and on a bearing of N23°W from the eastern station. How far is the balloon
from the western station? Round to the nearest mile.
A) 134 miles B) 143 miles C) 114 miles D) 105 miles
3) To find the distance AB across a river, a distance BC of 1176 m is laid off on one side of the river. It is
found that B = 105.0° and C = 14.9°. Find AB. Round to the nearest meter.
A) 349 meters B) 352 meters C) 302 meters D) 299 meters
4) A guy wire to a tower makes a 65° angle with level ground. At a point 38 ft farther from the tower than the
wire but on the same side as the base of the wire, the angle of elevation to the top of the tower is 30°. Find
the length of the wire (to the nearest foot).
A) 33 feet B) 38 feet C) 66 feet D) 71 feet
5 Additional Concepts
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
45°
36°
61
A) 16.68 B) 7.28 C) 6.22 D) 9.66
Page 3
2)
59° 24°
1.1
A) 0.78 B) 0.52 C) 1.64 D) 2.32
Solve the triangle. Round lengths to the nearest tenth and angle measures to the nearest degree.
1)
7 6
9
A) A 51°, B 42°, C = 87°
= = B) A = 42°, B = 51°, C = 87°
C) A = 51°, B = 87°, C = 42° D) A = 42°, B = 87°, C = 51°
2)
9
6
4
=
A) A 127°, B = 32°, C = 21° B) A = 32°, B = 127°, C = 21°
C) A = 127°, B = 21°, C = 32° D) A = 32°, B = 21°, C = 127°
3) a = 6, b = 9, C = 106°
A) c = 12.1, A = 28°, B = 46° B) c = 15, A = 30°, B = 44°
C) c = 17.9, A = 26°, B = 48° D) no triangle
4) a = 5, c = 12, B = 120°
A) b = 15.1, A = 17°, C = 43° B) b = 18, A = 19°, C = 41°
C) b = 20.9, A = 15°, C = 45° D) no triangle
Page 4
5) b = 6, c = 9, A = 127°
A) a = 13.5, B = 21°, C = 32° B) a = 16.4, B = 23°, C = 30°
C) a = 19.3, B = 19°, C = 34° D) no triangle
6) b = 2, c = 4, A = 80°
A) a = 4.1, B = 29°, C = 71° B) a = 4.1, B = 71°, C = 29°
C) a = 5.1, B = 29°, C = 71° D) a = 3.1, B = 71°, C = 29°
7) a = 7, c = 6, B = 90°
A) b = 9.2, A = 50°, C = 40° B) b = 9.2, A = 40°, C = 50°
C) b = 10.2, A = 50°, C = 40° D) b = 8.2, A = 40°, C = 50°
8) a = 8, b = 13, c = 15
A) A = 32°, B = 59°, C = 89° B) A = 34°, B = 57°, C = 89°
C) A = 30°, B = 59°, C = 91° D) no triangle
9) a = 5, b = 5, c = 2
A) A = 78°, B = 78°, C = 24° B) A = 79°, B = 79°, C = 22°
C) A = 24°, B = 78°, C = 78° D) A = 78°, B = 24°, C = 78°
10) a = 9, b = 6, c = 5
A) A = 109°, B = 39°, C = 32° B) A = 39°, B = 109°, C = 32°
C) A = 109°, B = 32°, C = 39° D) A = 39°, B = 32°, C = 109°
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
2) Two airplanes leave an airport at the same time, one going northwest (bearing 135°) at 418 mph and the
other going east at 341 mph. How far apart are the planes after 4 hours (to the nearest mile)?
A) 2807 miles B) 702 miles C) 2204 miles D) 2337 miles
3) Two sailboats leave a harbor in the Bahamas at the same time. The first sails at 23 mph in a direction 350°.
The second sails at 33 mph in a direction 200°. Assuming that both boats maintain speed and heading,
after 3 hours, how far apart are the boats?
A) 162.5 miles B) 116 miles C) 129.2 miles D) 113.8 miles
4) Two points A and B are on opposite sides of a building. A surveyor selects a third point C to place a
transit. Point C is 54 feet from point A and 65 feet from point B. The angle ACB is 56°. How far apart are
points A and B?
A) 56.7 feet B) 105.2 feet C) 72 feet D) 95.4 feet
5) The distance from home plate to dead center field in Sun Devil Stadium is 402 feet. A baseball diamond is
a square with a distance from home plate to first base of 90 feet. How far is it from first base to dead center
field?
A) 344.3 feet B) 379.6 feet C) 470 feet D) 327.2 feet
Page 5
6) A painter needs to cover a triangular region 62 meters by 66 meters by 74 meters. A can of paint covers 70
square meters. How many cans will be needed?
A) 28 cans B) 317 cans C) 14 cans D) 3 cans
Use Heron's formula to find the area of the triangle. Round to the nearest square unit.
1) a = 17 yards, b = 20 yards, c = 13 yards
A) 110 square yards B) 113 square yards C) 116 square yards D) 119 square yards
D C
-5 5
B
-5
A) C B) D C) A D) B
Page 6
π
2) -2, -
2
5
D C
-5 5
-5
A) A B) D C) B D) C
Use a polar coordinate system to plot the point with the given polar coordinates.
3π
3) 4,
4
-5 5
-5
A) B)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
Page 7
C) D)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
-5π
4) -2,
4
-5 5
-5
A) B)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
Page 8
C) D)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
-5π
5) 2,
4
-5 5
-5
A) B)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
Page 9
C) D)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
5π
6) -4,
4
-5 5
-5
A) B)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
Page 10
C) D)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
7) (4, 315°)
5
-5 5
-5
A) B)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
Page 11
C) D)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
8) (-4, 405°)
5
-5 5
-5
A) B)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
Page 12
C) D)
5 5
-5 5 -5 5
-5 -5
SHORT ANSWER. Write the word or phrase that best completes each statement or answers the question.
-5 5 r
-5
Find another representation, (r, θ), for the point under the given conditions.
π
1) 1, , r > 0 and 2π < θ < 4π
3
7 5 4 2
A) 1, π B) 1, - π C) 1, π D) 1, - π
3 3 3 3
π
2) 6, , r < 0 and 0 < θ < 2π
3
4 2 7 5
A) -6, π B) -6, - π C) -6, π D) -6, - π
3 3 3 3
Page 13
π
3) 5, , r > 0 and -2π < θ < 0
6
11 13 5 7
A) 5, - π B) 5, π C) 5, - π D) 5, π
6 6 6 6
π
4) 3, , r < 0 and 2π < θ < 4π
4
13 11 9 5
A) -3, π B) -3, - π C) -3, π D) -3, π
4 4 4 4
Select the representation that does not change the location of the given point.
5) (9, 50°)
A) (9, 410)° B) (9, 230)° C) (-9, 410)° D) (-9, 140)°
6) (-4, 8π)
A) (4, 7π) B) (-4, 9π) C) (-4, 7π) D) (4, 6π)
Polar coordinates of a point are given. Find the rectangular coordinates of the point.
1) (-2, 180 °)
A) (2, 0) B) (0, 2) C) (-2, 0) D) (0 , -2)
2) (-4, -90°)
A) (0, 4) B) (4 , 0 ) C) (0, -4) D) (-4, 0)
3) (-7, 120°)
7 -7 3 7 -7 3 7 7 3 7 7 3
A) , B) - , C) , D) - ,
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
4) (-3, -135°)
3 2 3 2 3 2 -3 2 -3 2 -3 2 -3 2 3 2
A) , B) , C) , D) ,
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
5) (5 , -27°)
A) (4.5 , -2.3) B) (-2.3, 4.5) C) (-4.5, 2.3) D) (2.3 , -4.5)
2π
6) 7,
3
7 7 3 7 7 3 7 -7 3 7 -7 3
A) - , B) , C) - , D) ,
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
3π
7) 5,
4
-5 2 5 2 5 2 -5 2 5 2 5 2 -5 2 -5 2
A) , B) , C) , D) ,
2 2 2 2 2 2 2 2
Page 14
4π
8) 4.1,
9
A) (0.7, 4) B) (4, 0.7) C) (-0.7, -4) D) (-4, -0.7)
The rectangular coordinates of a point are given. Find polar coordinates of the point. Express θ in radians.
1) (11 , -11)
7π 7π 7π π
A) 11 2, B) 11 2, - C) 11, - D) 11,
4 4 4 4
2) (2, -2 3)
5π 5π 11π 11π
A) 4, B) 2, C) 4, D) 2,
3 3 6 6
3) (5 3, 5)
π π π π
A) 10, B) 5, C) 10, D) 5,
6 6 3 3
4) (-1, 0)
π 3π
A) (1, π) B) 1, C) (1, 0) D) 1,
2 2
5) (0, - 3)
A) (- 3, 90°) B) (- 3, 270°) C) (- 3, 180°) D) ( 3, 90°)
6) (-5 2, -5 2)
A) (10, 225°) B) (5 2, 225°) C) (5 2, 135°) D) (10, 135°)
7) (5, -5)
A) (-5 2, 135°) B) (-5 2, 225°) C) (-5 2, 45°) D) (5 2, 135°)
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
2) y = 9
9 9
A) r = B) r = C) sin θ = 9 D) r = 9
sin θ cos θ
3) x2 + y 2 = 4
A) r = 2 B) r = 4
C) r(cos θ + sin θ) = 2 D) r(cos θ + sin θ) = 4
Page 15
4) 8x - 9y + 1 = 0
-1 -1
A) r = B) r =
(8 cos θ - 9 sin θ) (8 sin θ - 9 cos θ)
5) y 2 = 3x
A) r = 3 cot x cscx B) r = 9 cot x cscx
C) r2(cos θ + sin θ) = 3 D) r = 3 cot2 x
6) (x - 12)2 + y 2 = 144
A) r = 24 cos θ B) r = 24 sin θ C) r2 = 24 cos θ D) r = -24 sin θ + 144
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
2π
2) θ =
3
3
A) y = - 3x B) y = x C) y = - 3x2 D) x2 + y 2 = 1
3
3) r cos θ = 9
A) x = 9 B) x2 + y 2 = 9 C) y 2 = 9 D) y = 9
4) r = 8 csc θ
A) y = 8 B) x = 8 C) y 2 = 8 D) x2 + y 2 = 8
5) r = -2 cos θ
A) x + 1 2 + y 2 = 1 B) x = -2 C) x - 1 2 + y 2 = 4 D) x2 + y 2 = 2
6) r = 9 cos θ + 3 sin θ
A) x2 + y 2 = 9x + 3y B) x2 - y 2 = 9x + 3y C) x2 + y 2 = 3x + 9y D) 9x + 3y = 0
7) r2 sin 2θ = 8
A) xy = 4 B) xy = 8 C) y 2 = 8 D) x2 + y 2 = 8
Page 16
7 Solve Apps: Polar Coordinates
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
Polar coordinates of a point are given. Use a graphing utility to find the rectangular coordinates of the point to two
decimal places.
2π
1) 2.1, -
9
A) (1.61 , -1.35) B) (-1.35, 1.61 ) C) (1.61 , 1.35) D) (1.35, 1.61)
4π
2) -3.7,
9
A) (-0.64, -3.64) B) (-3.64, -0.64) C) (0.64, 3.64) D) (3.64, 0.64)
Rectangular coordinates of a point are given. Use a graphing utility in radian mode to find polar coordinates of the
point.
3) (3, 4) Express θ to three decimal places.
A) (5, 0.927) B) (5, 0.644) C) (7, 0.644) D) (5, 0.848)
9 Additional Concepts
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
Convert the polar equation to a rectangular equation. Then determine the graph's slope and y-intercept.
π
1) r sin θ - =5
4
A) y = x + 5 2; slope: 1; y-intercept: 5 2 B) y = x - 5 2; slope: 1; y-intercept: - 5 2
C) y = -x - 5 2; slope: -1; y-intercept: - 5 2 D) y = -x + 5 2; slope: -1; y-intercept: 5 2
π
2) r cos θ + =1
6
Page 17
6.4 Graphs of Polar Equations
1 Use Point Plotting to Graph Polar Equations
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
The graph of a polar equation is given. Select the polar equation for the graph.
1)
5
4
3
2
1
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5 r
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
2)
5
4
3
2
1
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5 r
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
3)
5
4
3
2
1
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5 r
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
Page 18
4)
5
4
3
2
1
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5 r
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
5)
5
4
3
2
1
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5 r
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
6)
5
4
3
2
1
-5 -4 -3 -2 -1 1 2 3 4 5 r
-1
-2
-3
-4
-5
Page 19
2 Use Symmetry to Graph Polar Equations
MULTIPLE CHOICE. Choose the one alternative that best completes the statement or answers the question.
Test the equation for symmetry with respect to the given axis, line, or pole.
1) r = -2 cos θ; the polar axis
A) has symmetry with respect to polar axis
B) may or may not have symmetry with respect to polar axis
π
2) r = -4 cos θ; the line θ =
2
π
A) may or may not have symmetry with respect to the line θ =
2
π
B) has symmetry with respect to the line θ =
2
π
5) r = 4 + 4 cos θ; the line θ =
2
π
A) may or may not have symmetry with respect to the line θ =
2
π
B) has symmetry with respect to the line θ =
2
π
6) r = 6 + 2 sin θ; the line θ =
2
π
A) has symmetry with respect to the line θ =
2
π
B) may or may not have symmetry with respect to the line θ =
2
Page 20
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“Ah, Baron!” she said, with some show of composure, “how you
startled me.”
“Do not let me interrupt you, Princess,” he protested grimly.
“Oh, I have finished playing,” and she left the keyboard. “I did not
know you cared for music, Baron.”
“I was a player in my youth,” he replied readily, “before the business
of state-craft left me no time for the pleasures of mere sound. Ah,”
he went on blandly, “this old organ has a history; it would be a pity to
have it removed. I came in to examine it.”
“The organ, Baron?” the Princess exclaimed incredulously and, it
seemed to him, with trepidation, making allowance for her power of
self-control.
“This organ,” he repeated. “There is a question of replacing it.”
“You are going to try it, Baron,” the Princess laughed, making way for
him to reach the player’s seat.
“My fingers have long ago lost their cunning,” he returned with a
gesture of protest, and a half-veiled look which suggested that their
cunning had migrated to another part of his anatomy. “But at least I
know something of instruments and will look at this.”
He affected to make a cursory examination of the manuals, the stops
and pedals, counted the pipes, and so worked round to the door
giving access to the interior. A look of intelligence had passed
between him and Minna, and he felt confident that he had trapped
his prey. “Now let me take a look inside,” he said casually.
“You, Excellency? It is impossible,” Minna affected to protest. “It is
frightfully dusty, no one but a mechanic can go inside.”
But he waved her aside with a smile at her objection.
Then the Princess gave a forced laugh.
“Really, Baron, apart from the dust it is hardly dignified for our
Chancellor to creep into the inside of the organ. You really will
consult your dignity by delegating that inspection to the mechanic.”
He turned and eyed her uncompromisingly. “If I have served your
father well, Princess, it is because I have made a rule to look with my
own eyes into everything that concerned his welfare and that of the
State.”
“But, surely the organ, Baron——?”
“May include a question of greater importance and delicacy than one
would suppose,” he rejoined significantly. “Therefore, in pursuance of
my rule I am going to look inside.”
There was clearly no more protest to be made in view of that stern
resolve. Minna stood aside with anxiety on her face. The Baron
turned the latch and pulled open the narrow door. The sharp eyes
instantly detected a pair of legs in military boots, the upper part of
the owner’s body being hidden behind the heavy framework.
The Chancellor turned round to the Princess with a triumphant glitter
in his eyes. “What did I tell you, Princess? You see the wisdom of my
rule. And how unwise it would have been to have delegated this
examination. The organ does contain superfluous matter which I am
better fitted than a mechanic to remove. No wonder, Princess, the
instrument is liable to be out of order. I think we must have one built
for you in your private apartments where your playing will be less
open to be interfered with. Now, sir,” he changed to a loud
peremptory tone—“have the goodness to come out at once!”
He stepped back from the door. The man inside, thus summoned,
was heard moving. The Baron put a silver whistle to his lips, and, as
it sounded, Captain von Ompertz, alert and business-like, entered
the chapel by the outer door. As he did so the hider in the organ
appeared and sprang down to the floor. At sight of him the
expression on the Baron’s face changed from malicious anticipation
to chagrined astonishment, as on those of the Princess and Minna
pretended anxiety gave way to amused triumph. For the man who
stood before him, whom he was there to arrest and send off to secret
execution, was his own son, Udo Rollmar.
CHAPTER IX
A FALSE POSITION
THE encounter between Countess Minna and von Ompertz had the
effect of making both watcher and watched more circumspect.
The Captain ceased to perambulate the royal precincts so openly,
while Minna’s daylight walks were of the most patently innocent kind.
So far she played her game shrewdly enough; but it was certainly a
dangerous, if not a false move, when she determined on an
expedition after dusk to the old sun-dial. The spirit of rebellion had
entered strongly into the Princess, and was fanned by her
companion from motives of pure roguery as well as for revenge for
the fright which the Chancellor had given her. It was to the Princess
Ruperta intolerable that her whole life and happiness should be
dominated by this cunning old minister, and to be subjected to a
system of close espionage was more than her spirit would endure. If
the Duke, her father, was weak enough to submit, she would not be
so tame: she would let Rollmar see that she was no pawn to be
pushed about according to the exigencies of his political game. She
wished as dearly as he that the laggard Prince would make his
appearance; she would give him an uncomfortable time of it, and
delight in upsetting the Chancellor’s plans.
“He is wise to keep away in hiding,” she said resentfully to Minna,
“but, for all that, I should love to hear that he had arrived. The Baron
should have many a mauvais quart d’heure, I promise you.”
“It would be rare fun,” Minna assented. “How I should enjoy watching
the old fox’s face while you were mortifying the vanity of this
precious Prince Ludwig. You will surely have a fair field there, dear
Highness, for were he not eaten up by self-conceit he would have
been here long ago.”
“He has never shown the least sign of interest.” The Princess made
a quick gesture of anger. “And I am to marry the pig. I hate him; I
hate him, as you shall see, my dear Baron.”
Meanwhile her precious freedom should not be circumscribed. Her
feelings should not be coerced. If this hateful marriage, after a
stormy wooing, had to take place it was at least hardly to be
expected that she should calmly wait, keeping her fancy free, for this
very cavalier wooer. The Princess was, as has been seen, a woman
of great determination, who could be as cold as ice, nay, colder, for
she had the power of remaining at freezing point under the fiercest
sun. Still, after all—and no one knew this more shrewdly than did the
Baron—she was a woman; her force of passion was none the less
strong because it was deeply set. To such a nature her very bringing
up had made for waywardness, power in a woman implies caprice,
and caprice is none the less absolute because the power is
bounded. The road to such a woman’s heart is not direct. They who
take the straight path shall find it but leads them to a blank wall, or at
least to a fast-barred door. The heart is set, as it were, in the centre
of a maze, you may chance upon it by taking a path which seems to
lead away from your objective. There is a cunning side inlet; a short,
unexpected turn, and lo! the goal is before you.
It was thus with Ludovic von Bertheim. He had caught the Princess’s
interest by surprise at the fortune-teller’s; the glamour of a strange
adventure was over his personality, the glimpses she had caught of
his character, so different from that shown by the young bloods she
was used to see about the Court, had captured her fancy, then her
heart, which, despite her reputation for coldness, was hungering for
love. And love had seemed so far off, so little to be hoped for now
that she was to be hand-fasted to a man whom she had never seen,
and who seemed bent on showing that he must not be expected to
play the lover. Small wonder then if, under the stress of a joyless
future and wounded sensibility, she forgot her pride of station and
allowed herself to think tenderly of a man who had so suddenly and
curiously come into her life. Now, more than ever, did she resent with
all the spirit that was in her the manifest way in which she was being
used by Rollmar to further his schemes of aggrandisement. That he
should wish her to form an alliance of high political importance she
could understand; it was, from a statesman’s point of view,
reasonable enough; but that he should take upon himself to play the
spy on her, to interfere with her personal liberty, was more than she
would brook. It was monstrous, and, with a girl of her high spirit, was
simply pressing the key which would give forth the note of rebellion.
“It is dangerous, though, Minna,” she said.
“Surely, Highness, you are not beginning to fear that old fox.”
“Not I,” she replied scornfully, “I meant for him, for the Lieutenant.”
Minna gave a shrug. “Possibly. We may tell him the risk he runs. I
wager if we appoint a meeting he will not stay away for fear of our
dear Baron; and if he should, why, let him stay away for ever.”
“He will not stay away,” the Princess asserted. “But if we should lead
him into a trap, Minna, it would be terrible. The Chancellor is
relentless.”
“At least we are not fools,” Minna declared. “I have outwitted the old
tiger-cat once; trust me, dear Highness, not only to do it again, but to
deal with that stupid swaggering fellow of his, a great fool who calls
himself noble and proves it—by playing the spy.”
So presently Minna was allowed to write a short message, and after
dark she slipped out to take it across the park to the appointed post-
office. But all her wariness did not hide her from the sharp eyes that
were on the watch. The stupid swaggering fellow she chose to
despise was an old campaigner; one whose life had too often
depended on alertness of eye and ear to be caught napping. Neither
was he the fool she was pleased to call him. He had sense enough
to guess shrewdly that her daylight walks were a blind, and to expect
her appearance on a more purposeful errand in the evening.
If it went against the grain to spy upon a woman, Ompertz gathered
some satisfaction from the thought that the disdainful little maid of
honour evidently despised him, which sentiment she was by no
means given to conceal wherever they chanced to meet. Now,
perhaps it was to be his turn, he thought, as he followed the dark,
retreating figure that hurried along the great avenue of elms. Von
Ompertz was an expert stalker, his trained eye could see in the dark
almost as clearly as a cat’s, he had little difficulty in keeping her
within observation and himself out of it. She gave him a long chase,
but he stuck to it successfully, and was, after much wonderment,
rewarded by seeing the note posted beneath the loose slab of the
sun-dial.
In half an hour the missive was in the hands of the Chancellor; its
purport was noted, and it was restored to its place.
Rollmar was highly pleased at the near prospect of putting an end to
what might prove a tiresome impediment to his scheme. He
commended Ompertz, and with him concerted a plan of action for
the next night for which the assignation was given. The soldier was
quite willing to undertake the business single-handed, but at that
suggestion the Chancellor shook his head. It was too risky, the thing
was to be carried out swiftly, surely, noiselessly. Ompertz would be
provided with two assistants; he was to be in command, and the
Chancellor’s future favour depended upon the way in which the
business would be performed.