have spared no drop of his blood to save that devoted city. "But as,
notwithstanding our efforts," he continued, "it has pleased God Almighty
to dispose of Harlem according to His divine will, shall we, therefore,
deny and deride His holy word? Has the strong arm of the Lord thereby
grown weaker? Has his Church therefore come to caught? You ask if I
have entered into a firm treaty with any great king or potentate, to
which I answer, that before I ever took up the cause of the oppressed
Christians in these provinces, I had entered into a close alliance with
the King of kings; and I am firmly convinced that all who put their trust
in Him shall be saved by His almighty hand. The God of armies will raise
up armies for us to do battle with our enemies sad His own." In
conclusion, he stated his preparations for attacking the enemy by sea as
well as by land, and encouraged his lieutenant and the citizens of the
northern quarter to maintain a bold front before the advancing foe.

And now, with the dismantled and desolate Harlem before their eyes, a
prophetic phantom, perhaps, of their own imminent fate, did the handful
of people shut up within Alkmaar prepare for the worst. Their main hope
lay in the friendly sea. The vast sluices called the Zyp, through which
an inundation of the whole northern province could be very soon effected,
were but a few miles distant. By opening these gates, and by piercing a
few dykes, the ocean might be made to fight for them. To obtain this
result, however, the consent of the inhabitants was requisite, as the
destruction of all the standing crops would be inevitable. The city was
so closely invested, that it was a matter of life and death to venture
forth, and it was difficult, therefore, to find an envoy for this
hazardous mission. At last, a carpenter in the city, Peter Van der Mey
by name, undertook the adventure, and was entrusted with letters to
Sonoy, to the Prince of Orange, and to the leading personages, in several
cities of the province: These papers were enclosed in a hollow walking-