C O NT ENTS .

BA RBA RO S S A
THE E M BRO I D ERE S S O F TREV I S O

THE LO S T SO N

T H E FA IR KA T E
GEO FFROY A ND GA R CI ND E
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B a réa rossa , e tc
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I HAD intended to spend one day up in the
o nly

mountains and this one day grew into two weeks which
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I found pass more rapidly in that high p erched ruinous -

nest on the confines of the A l bano and Sabine range

the name I will not give than was often the case in -

the whirl of great cities Wh at I actually did with y .

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self during the sweet long days I hardly kno w how to

tell But in R ome a mighty hunger aft er solitude had
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fallen on me I could satisfy it here to the full It was
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early spring time the leaves o f the chestnut trees shone

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in luxu riant freshness ; the ravines were filled by the

song of b irds and the murmur of brooks ; and as of
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late a large body o f banditti who had rendered this

wild district insecure had been in part captured and in
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pa rt driven into the Abruzzi it ensued that a lonely ,

wanderer might without any apprehension climb the re

o te st crags and there give himself up undisturbed to
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profoundest meditations .

From the first I declined all intercourse with the

German artists a good number of whom had t aken pos
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session of both miserable inns the village possessed and ,

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as to the desire of every now and then hearing one s
own voice which impels hermits to converse with their
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domestic animals I could gratify it quite sufficiently

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Within my own walls For as it happened I lodged with .

the apothecary and he had the utmost indulgence for

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y
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defective Italian True he indem ni fi e d himself

v e ry .

for his outlay in patience b y n o t unfrequently taking

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advantage of mine for as soon as the first shyness had ,

wo rn off he showe red a whole co rnuc 0 p 1a of his own

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verses on me confessing that d e spite his fifty and five
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years he was still unable entirely to shake off thi s

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“

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childish malady What would you have ? b e pleaded
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when at evening I step to y window and see the _

moon coming up behind the rocks and the fi ré flies on

the wing about my little garden —why I must be a bru te
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if it do es not set me off p o e t1 s1ng A n d indeed he was

anything but a brute this good S ignor A ngelo Wh o ,

owi ng to a natural tonsure —a ri o f black hair still

circling his smooth bald he ad—his friends were wont to
nickname Fra A ngelico He had never indeed left his .

native place more than twice in his life no r on either ,

O c casion gone f urther than R ome But then R ome is .

the world he w ould say He who has seen R ome has

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seen everything A nd forthwith he proceeded to speak .

Of eve rything partly accor ding to the very miscellaneous

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an d chaotic kno wle dge he owed to a few book s acci

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d entally picked up partly from the audacity of uh ,

bridle d poetical fan cy O f all the worthies who ao

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cording to old I talian custom were wont to gather at -

evening in his apothecary s shop : ’

surgeon tax gatherer and a fe w unofficial well to do ‘

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prop rietors whose faces b eamed ith the profits of their

rich olive and vine yards —o f all these notabilities not
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one ventured to c ontradict Fra Angelico not at least , ,

when pre v1o us to one of 11 18 lo nger l1 arangue s he p o , ‘

lishe d his large silver sp ectacles o n his c Oat sleeve and

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z the matter st a B ut
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b e gan E cco szg norz nds thus

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ze .
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all the sam e he was the b est and most harml ess creatu re
in the w orld and the most a mi a ble l andl ord o ne coul d
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 BA R BA RO S S A ‘

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desire provided one had no wish b eyond a hard bed

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and two ricketty arm chairs ! He was certainly fond of-

me although or p erhaps because he had not the faintest

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idea that I was a brother poet I was discreet enough .

to confine myself to playing the part of a grateful pub

lic and it was not until after the four and twentieth
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sonnet that I would gently lay my hand on his arm and

say Bravo Signor A ngelo ! But I fear this is to o uch
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of a good thing Your poetry i s you know potent and

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flies to the head To morrow you shall fill me up a

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new flask from your Hippocrene
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Whereupon with the .

most good humoured look imaginable he would close

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his volume and say What avail if I read you to sleep “

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night after night a whole year through ? I should still

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not have come to an end ! Here we have another Peru !
And tapping on his bald forehead he would sigh o ffer ,

a pinch of snuff and wish m e a good night

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The maj ority of these poems were of course devoted

to love and when the little
, an recited them with
sparkling eyes and all the pathos common to his nation ,

it was easy to forget his five and fifty years Neve rthe .

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less he li ved a bachelor s life with one old maid servant
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and a boy who help ed him with his salves and potions ,

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and it seemed strange that with all his love for the
beautiful and his comfortable means he should never ,

have arried nor even now in his sunny autumn seem

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inclined to make up for lost time O ne evening when .

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we sat smoking together over the good home grown -

wine and I j okingly asked him why he took his monkish

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nickname so much in earnest and whether none of the ,

pretty girls that daily passed his shop had contrived to

touch his heart he suddenly looked up at me with a
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strange expression and said Pretty girls ? Well I dare

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say the y are no t so far fro it either, and arriage

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to BA R O S S A

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BA R .

ay be b etter than 18 reported B ut I a too old for a .

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young man and too young for an old one or rather let
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e say to o much of a poet

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The older the bird the .
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harder to catch A nd then you se e y friend I was

once devoted to a girl who did n o t care for me —one I

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tell you the like of whom will never be s een again S o .

n o w I am too proud or whatever it may be called to

b e flattered even if some com o n place creature—o f
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who there are twelve to the dozen—

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we re t o fancy me .

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I prefer to dream myself happy in my verses and to ,

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shape myself a p erfect beauty out of a hundred inco
p le te ones like the Grecian painter was his name
A p e lle s l—
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w ho took for his Venus the e yes of one
neighbour the nose of another and thus got the b e st
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together bit by bit B ut as for her who really did unite

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all perfections and was so beautiful that you would not

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believe me if I tried to describe her she paid dear for ,

her beauty and any know the story as correctly as I

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do though if you were to ask any of the older p eople

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in the place about E r i nia they would all bear me out ,

that she was a wonder of the world a nd that during the ,

tw enty years that have passed by since then nothing has ,

ever happened that made s uch an impression as her “

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fate and all connected with it Com e now I will tell it .

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yo u as you already know the sonnets to h er I allude

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to the sixty seven that I keep in the blue portfolio of

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which you said that they really had much of Petrarch s
manner ; they all date from the time when the Wound
was still fresh ; and when once you have heard the story
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you can hear them over again It is only so that you .

will thoroughly understand th e m .

After which with a sigh that sounded to me rathe r

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com ic than tragic he snuffed the candle leant back in
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th e arm chair b ehind his counter

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half closed hls eyes , ,
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B A R B A RO S S A .
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and buried his hands in the side pockets of his worn -

out paletot It was ab out nine o clock in the evening

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The Piazza b efore the house was still as death one ,

heard only the prattling of the brook and the heavy ,

breathing o f the apprentice asleep in the next room .

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Then after a long pause he began with his usual ex
o rdiu .

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E the matter stands thus Somewhere
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about the year 3 o —

cco a zco z a, .

you are too young to remember so

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far back this said E rmini a lived here in the village

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with a mother and sister who are also dead and buri ed
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long ago If when y o u leave this door yo u turn to the

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right up the little street leading to the old ruin o u the -

summit O f our hill you will come to a s all house or , ,

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rather ho v el ro o fle ss now except for two worm eaten

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beams and even then it was not much better protected

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from sun and rain ; only that the great fig tree that is -

withered now used at that time to spread its broad

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thick leaved branches over it j ust at the season when

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shade was most needed In those bare stone walls that .

had formerly served as a shelter to wild creatures ,

E rminia lived Her father had been dead for years her
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mother had no idea of management so that the family

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had come down wofully and were glad enough to be ,

allowed to nestle down in those ruins There were in , ,

deed many who would have been glad to support the

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widow for her husband s sake But you know how the .

proverb runs :

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S acc r tto tie miglio o o no n n .

P over uomo a no n v a

It was all in vain The girls who were thoroughly well .

behaved might work their fingers to the bone spinning

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Sack that s tor will t hold g ain

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n no r .

T po r
o good advice i vai
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8 B A R B A RO S S A .

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and lace makin g , and the neighbours might do their
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p art as we ll as they could the o ld woman drank every

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thing up and if she was not raging like a fury she

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wo uld lie on the hearth and sleep , and leave her

dau ghters to find food and clothing for all I do b eli eve .

if their next neighbour the fi g tree had not done its -

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part so gallantly that E rminia and he r sister Maddalena

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would b oth have died of hunger for they were too .

proud to beg R aiment indeed the tree could not af

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ford them since we no longer live in Paradi se C onse

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quently everybody was astonished to see the p oor things

come to church so neatly dressed , the more that there
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was not a word to be said against them True the .

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younger of the two Ma ddalena was thoro ughly safe fr om

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temptation for she was as ugly as sin , a short unke pt ;

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club footed creature , with long ar s and short legs,

having a gait much like that of a toad and frightening ,

the children in the street if she came upon them un e x

p e cte dly .

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But she knew quite well how unsightly she was and ,

for the most part kept at home doing however no , , ,

harm to anyone which is not often the case with such

afflicted creatures w
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ho are generally envious and spite

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ful by way of re venging themselves for their misfortune .

She on the contrary seemed to look upon it as in the

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order of things that her mother after bringing into the ,

world one child so boundlessly beautiful as E rminia ,

should have had nothing but nature s refuse left for a ’

second I nstead of looking askance at her elder sister

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and wishing to poison her she made so perfect an idol ,

of her that none of the young men ab o ut we re more in

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love with Erminia than the poor fright Maddalena A n d .

indeed Erminia was one that to see was to love I for .

my part had seen all the statues in R ome Muses V e , ,

 BA R B A R O S S A .
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nuse s, Minervas no small master pi eces but such tri
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umphs of art as the world cannot equal And yet b e .

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tween ourselves utter failures compared to what nature

had done L ook you friend —and so saying the little
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man j umped up and raised his arm— she was so tall

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about a head taller than I am but so b eautifully formed ; ,

her little head so gracefully set on her magnificent bust ,

that no one found out how tall she was And then her .

face chiselled as it w ere with large eyes richly eye

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lashed and an expression proud and sweet both ; a

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mouth red as a strawberry or rather the inside of a ,

white fig and her brow crowned with thick blue black

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curly hair which she bound up b ehind into such a

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heavy nest of ringlets that it needed as stately a throat

as hers to bear their burden And then when she .

moved walked raised her arms to steady the basket she

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carried on her head with her taper fingers turned as it , ,

were out of ivory ; and her little feet in their coarse

wooden shoes —
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if I had not be en a poet,

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a z co za ,

that girl would have made me one As for the others .

who had not a drop of poet blood in their veins at ,

least she made them mad which is half way to the ,

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Temple of Apollo There was not a young fellow in the

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place who would not have had his left hand cut off if ,

only he might have worn her ring on the right But she .

would listen to none of them which was the more sur ,

prising when you considered the poverty she lived in ,

and that of the offers made to her the very worst would ,

at least have saved her her mother and her sister from , ,

any further distress O f myself I will not speak Madly in

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love as I was I had still sense enough left to see that I

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was not worthy of her and after I had in some degree ,

got over the pain of my rejection I told her that I ,

would at least be her friend at all times and she gave ,

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B A R B A RO S S A .

me her hand an d thanked me with such a smile Sir at

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that moment I was more crazy than ever ! But there was
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another that everybody thought would outbid us all and al ,

though we might have grudged her to him still we sh ould ,

not have had a Word to say against her choice This was

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the son of the landlord of the Croce d oro a handsome fel ’

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low rolling in money and about two and twenty a couple

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o f inches tallen than E rminia ; generally called B arba

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rossa or merely I ! R osso on account o f his having with

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light curly hair a fine red beard of his O wn ; but his ,

real name was Domenico S e ro ne : He paid his co urt to

Erminia in such a way that nothing else was talked of ,

went on like one distracted while she dismi ssed hi j ust ,

as she had done the rest o f us without positive disdain , .

She only gave him to understand that he might spare

himself any further trouble that she could not marry ,

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him for a good girl like he r would not awaken any
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false hop es Many thought that her own country p eople

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were not distinguished enough for her that it must be ,

some foreigner a milord or a R ussian and that he r , , ,

mind was set on d istant lands and fabulous adventures .

But no sir that too was a had shot I myself knew a

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rich E nglish count or marquis o r whatever he might , ,

be who told me that he had thrown a couple of thou

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sand pounds o r so into her apron and i plo re d he r on

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his knees to accompany him to E ngland But she just .

shook off the bank note s as though they had been dead -

leaves and threatened if he ever sp oke anoth e r word to

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her to strike him across the face even if it were on the pub
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lic market place And so we went on exhausting ourselves

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in conj ectures as to what her motive s could be ; whether
she had made a vow to die unmarried ; and I even once
summoned up courage to ask her—such was the friendly
foo ting we st ood o n —whether she had a hatred to en
 B A R B A RO SS A .
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in general Not so she quietly replied but as yet she
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had not found one whom she could love In t his way .

two years passed she still with the same calm face R ed
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b eard looking more and more gloomy and it was plain ,

to see how consume d he was by the fire within for the ,

handsome y outh went creeping ab out like a ghost .

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O ne day however a stranger came here a S wedish
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captain who had left the se rvice b ecause his promotion

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had been unfairly delayed and who since then having , , ,

means of his own had travelled by land and by sea half

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over the world shooting elephants and tigers crocodiles

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and sea serpents and carrying ab out with him half a dozen
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most beautiful guns and rifles and a great Newfoundland ,

dog who had more than once saved his life If I re

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member rightly this strange r s name was S zure or some ’ ‘

thing o f the sort but I myself called him Sor Gustavo

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and the village folk j us t the Captain
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He to ok up his “
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quarters here because he liked my little garden had the ,

very room you now occupy and he and I were soon as ,

thick as thieves He was not a man of many words nor

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indeed would he listen to my verses for he cared only ,

for one poet L ord Byron whose adventures he had set

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himself to emulate Well and he was quite up to the .

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task He was as brave as a lion with more money than

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he knew what to do with and as for the women they

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ran after him go where he would for he was wonder ,

fully stately in his b earing and figure and yet had so ,

good humoured an expression that they all thought it

would be easy to play the part of O mphale to this Her
cules I n R ome he seemed to have been pretty wild at
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least so this one and the other pretended to know ; he

himself never touched on his love affairs and here in ,

our vill ag e he never appeared to care whether there

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\was any other race in the world than that of men Wi th .

 BA R BA R O S S A .

these he we nt ab out continually ; would sit—if he were

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no t prowling alon g the ravine s with h is rifl whol e

afte rnoo ns at the c afe, playi ng bil liards to perfection ,

and when he had wo n everybody s money he Would ’

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o rder a b arrel of the best wi ne and insist upon everybody ,

partaking So all b eg an as with o ne mouth to si ng his

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p raises and to rej oice that such a travell e d gentleman

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sho uld have take n such a craze for our little spot above

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all others that he even talked of buying a vineyard

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and of yearly spending a couple of o nths among us .

D omenico S e ro n e was the only one who kept al o of

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from our captain would get up as soon as ever he Saw , '

him enter the café and pass him by in the stre et as a thief ,

does the gallows No one wondered though at this , for '

to see himself eclip sed by a foreigner—he who was ac

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customed to be c ock of the walk— u st naturally have

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o rtified him It ne ver e ven occurred to me that E r

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i nia i ght have something to do with it I had bee n ; .

present when Signor Gustavo met the fair creature for

the fi rst time
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Now look here , a z co z a I had s aid
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never —if only yo u will honestly admit it

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never have ,

you seen anything like her in either of the I ndies T ur ,

key or Golconda
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But he after a mere glance w ithout ’
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a look of surprise e rely said Hum ! biting his blonde , ,
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moustache so har d yo u heard the crunching of the hair ,

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Not amiss Sor Angelo not amiss indeed
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said I to myself this is the only man who can look ‘

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without blinking at the sun I t crossed me that I would .

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engage E rminia in conversation that he might see more , ,

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of her and be punished for his cold blooded not amiss
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by fall ing ov er head and ears into love B ut she .

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usually so cal and unembarrassed when she et any _

o ne turned strangely red and hurried away so that I

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thou ght at on ce H oll o ! at l ength he r hou r has str uck

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 BA R B A RO S S A

but I said not a word and the me eting went out o f y

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head .

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But about a week later I stood b efore my shop ,

door in the t wilight d eciphering a letter I had j ust re

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c e ive d in which a friend in R ome told me he had read

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aloud my sonnets at a meeting o f a poetical society

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the A rcadia and that amidst general approval I had
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been elected honorary memb er which so surprised and ,

pleased me that for the moment I was not aware o f

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what was going on about me till I heard [ I R o a s ,

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voice so loud and threatening that it woke me out of

all my cogitations L ooking up I saw him standing by
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the fo untain not ten yards from my door pale as a ,

corp se and quite unlike the smart fellow he used to b e

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and not far fro where he was —the pitcher that she had ,

i ntended to fill left standing on the edge of the foun

tai n and her left hand pressing her side —
, stood E rminia , ,

and as it happen ed no one else was in sight I wondered .

what both could b e about as they had avoided each ,

other for months past B ut I ! R osso did not keep me

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lo ng in suspense Hear me Erminia he said as though

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he were reading out a sentence of death to some con

v icte d criminal in the hearing of all the world : It is ‘

lu cky that we have met here True we have no longer .

any dealings with each other but as I once loved you , ,

even though you trampled my love under your fe e t I ,

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would still warn you Take heed to yourself Erminia

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and be careful what yo u do I know one who has sworn .

y our death if any stranger ever carries off what you have
refused to your own p eop le ; and if we are not goo d
enough to make you an honourable wife we are at least ,

men enough to help a lost girl out of the world and s o ,

tell your fine gentleman to lo ok out against accidents ,

for the bullets we cast here abouts can hit as well as those
 m m
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of S we dish lead and so God b e with yo u E rminia? I

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have nothing further to say ’

He pressed his hat o n his bro w

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s threw a glance :
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around and went off with a quick step The girl said
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not a word and as for me I was so bewildered by hi sn

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p ass nate outburst that not till she had lifted her ;
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pitcher to her head and was preparing to leave did I

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regain the p ower of speech E rminia I sai d going close .

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up to her who does he mean by the stranger ? He is

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a fo o l
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she replie d without looki ng at e , but blushing
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deeply I hO p e so indeed said I , for if there were
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any meaning in his words I should be sorry for you ,

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E rminia I want no one s pity was her curt reply; and
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then she went o ff without so much as good night and ,

from the defiance of her manner I first discovered that .

she was really implicated And being sincerely her well .

wisher I hurried after her so as to walk on by her side

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You know me to be your friend said I if you will , ,
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not believe D o e co believe me E rminia it will be , ,

your ruin if you have anything to do with the captain .

He is a fine fellow but he will not marry you E rminia, , ,

for all th at ; indeed he cannot for he is a L utheran

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but in addition he would not wish it Therefore even

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if I] R osso did not make good his threat nothing but
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mischief could come of the a ffair and so on according , ,

as my friendship for the girl inspired me She mean .

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while walked straight on in silence without o nce raising

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her eyes So at length I left her with a faint hope of

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having made some impression on he r mind The great .

dog came to meet me at the door of my house which

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tol d e that his master was re turne d fro shooting I

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went up to his room at once and found hi with his ,

E nglish rifle in his hand having taken it to pieces to ,

lean and a couple of dead birds before him ‘! o u

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 B A R B A RO S S A . . i5
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have lost something Sor Gustavo said I there on the
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market place your secrets have been discussed so loudly '

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that all the gossips in the v illage are acquainted with

them And I went on to tell him of R e db e ard s threats
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adding that he did not know our people if he supp osed '

they were not in earnes t and that if he really had ,

triumphed and won Erminia s coy heart he ought for ’

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both their s akes to b e on his guard and break it off ,

and get out of the scrape the best way he could A n d .

being once fairly started I could not refrain from taking

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Domenico s part and declaring that all friendship would
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b e at an end between us if he made E rminia unhappy .

There were plenty of others who would b e no great loss .

B ut to see the Pearl of the whole Sabina trampled in

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the mire was what I could not endure and so I told ,

him to his face that if I discovered him going after E r

minia I could no longer b e his host and that he might
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look out for some other qu arters To all this he an .

swe re d nothing further than what E rminia had once told

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me You are ne t over wise Fra Angelico and con
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‘
, ,

tinue d polishing up the locks and barrel of his rifle and ,

puffing the blue smoke of his cigar through his fair

moustachios At last I left him even o re disgusted
.

wi th his cunn ing cold bloodedness than with the affair

itself and I did not see him till the noon of the next
,

day when he entered my room with a letter in his hand

,

which he told me necessitated his immediate departure ,

and as it was too late for the mail he requested me to ,

lend him my little vehicle There was nothing I was .

more glad to do not indeed that I laid much stress

.
,

upon the letter but rather believed that it was my own

,

eloquence that had induced him to leave us and to ,

break o ff that luckl ess love affair in good time . And so

-

I let him have my apprentice , as I myself had no tim e

16 BA R B ARO S S A

m
.

m
to dr1v e him to R ome and we parte d the b est o f ,

friends .

“
It was his intention he tol d e to travel to Greec e , ,
’
i n order to visit L ord Byron s grave and he promised ,
'
to write to me as soon as he go t there The rogue !
’

He thought as little of Greece as I of a j ourney to the “

moon But what would you have ? A mighty spell was

.

on h i and held him down with a hundred meshe s in

,

the E vil O ne s net so that he could look me his best

’
, ,

friend in the face and tell me so confounded a he as

,

this !

m
“
That evening I went to bed with the consciousness
of having done my duty and saved two human lives
“

.
,

Nay 'I was even pl anning a lyric on the subj ect which ,

would have been by no means one of my worst though ‘

a convincing proof that poets are no prophets For .

would you b elieve it on the following afternoon my lad

,

m
returned home with the vehicle and the first thing he ,

did after taking the horse to the stable and feeding him
'
,

was to ask e if Signor G ustavo had told me they were

'

to take a stranger with them for that about two mile s ,

from the village where the evergreen o ak stan ds near

,

the old tomb this stranger had beckoned to them and

, ,

m
then j ump ed so quickly into the conv eyance that he , ,

Carlino never got a good look at his features But in

anly attire —
.
,

spite of that alacrity and of the which by

the way b elonged to Signor Gustavo s wardr obe —he was
, ,
.

’
,

re ad
y to take his oath that this stranger was no other
‘

than E rminia .

“ I will not detain you by describing the ef fect this

discovery had on me I bound the youth down most
‘
‘

.
.

'
’
‘

so le nly to hold his peace ab o ut it But what could .

’
"

that avail ! The very next day there was not an old \

'
'
woman who enter ed my shop for a pe nny worth of any
‘

- ~
 B A R B A RO S S A . 1 7

thing who did not inform me that E rminia had gone o ff

to R ome with the captain and had sent a message to ,

her mother to the effect that she should not indeed re

turn but would never forget that she was her daughter
, .

And moreover she had left b ehind for her sister Mad
, ,

dalena whom she must have taken into her confidence ,

all her clothes and other effects and a bag of money

probably from the Captain —so that their mother might
,

want for nothing .

“
That this news should work upon the young village
folk like valerian upon cats you my friend will easily , , ,

b elieve Had we been in the old times of Greeks and

.

Troj ans Domenico would easily have assembled an

,

army to pursue and recover his lost Helen But in spite .

of all that was said and shrieked sp ite of fury and ,

curses nothing came of it and soon it seemed as though

, ,

these braggadocios were ashamed of even uttering the

name of the girl who had refused them all to go off at
last with a heretic and barbarian There were only two .

who could not forget her I was one and it was in .

,

vain I sought consolation from the muses The other .

was Domenico I l R osso in whose eyes anybody with an ,

insight into human nature might easily have read that -

he was brooding over desperate deeds .

“
And too surely before a month had elapsed since
’
E rminia s flight all my fears were realised I remember .

the day as tho it were yesterday : it was on a Thursday

’

—and the heat was such that the flies on the wall were
giddy and at noon no Christian soul venture d out I

m
, .

had closed my shop door and all the shutters and lay
-

, ,

between sleeping and waking in this very chair where I

now sit There was nothing to be heard but the sleepy
.

drip drop of the fountain and the rustling of dry herbs

-

on the counter over which my tame canary bird was

,
-

B a ré a ros , e /c.
 BA R B A RO S S A .

hopping to and fro Suddenly I fancied I heard some

‘

- -

. .

one knock at the shop door and call my name and an

“ “

, ,
,
' '
noyed at b eing disturbed I rubb e d my eye s awake and
’

, ,

prepared to see whether any o n e had really b een taken

suddenly ill The knocking was repeated louder and
, ,

quicker as if in urgent hast e and I had my hand on

, ,

the door handle when I heard a dreadful scream Jesus ,

‘
,

Mar ia have mercy on me !

, I tore Open the door ’
,

m
and saw a woman sink on the threshold from whose ,

breast there gushed such a stream of b lo o d that while I

‘
‘

, _

sto op ed to rais e her I was reddened from top to toe ‘

Three steps off with a face like ashes stood Dom enico ,

m
with eyes wide opened as thou gh his cri me had killed
-
.

him too D omenico , I cried what hast thou done ?

.
‘ ’
,
‘

Curse d b e thy hand which has wrought this horrible

deed ’
A men ‘
he replied it was her fate Now let
’ ‘

—
-
. .
, ,

c ’
ome A d so saying he turned round for some
‘

lz z n .

horror stricken faces b egan to appear at the windows

and slowly traversed the sun lit piazza till he reached -

the gateway where he disappeared li ke a sp ectre

, .

“
Meanwhile I held the p oor gasping frame in y -

arms almost swooning myself from grief and terror I

,
.
‘

called to my maid servant the neighbours rushed out -

, ,

and so we carried her in and laid her on a bed But ,

.

I saw too plainly that there was nothing to be done, and .

so I sent the lad off as fast as he could go to fetch a

priest I scarcely hop ed though that she would live long
.

eno u gh to see him so bending down I asked her if she ,

had anything to communicate She husbanded her last .

“

breath to ask me how her mother was Just the same .

‘

as for a month p ast I replied Then he r dying breast ,

’
.

heaved a deep si gh and she gasp ed out : Then he de ,

‘

c e iv e d me ! Who ? said I She felt for her pocket and

’ ‘ ’
.
,

drew o ut a letter the t e nor o f which was that if she ,

 m
B A RB AR O S S A . , rg .

wished to find her mother still alive she must set o ut

without delay for that the illness was a mortal one
,
.

This letter bore the priest s signature but was not in his ’
,

handwriting I made out from the few words that she

.

with difficulty whispered that a youth from our village ,

had secretly delivered it to her the evening before How .

he had found out he r lodging i n R ome she had no idea ,

for she was living most privately and not in the sa e ,

house as her lover who had b een to see her as usual in,

the evening and on reading the lett er had forbidden her to

,

go home saying that it was only a plot to allure her to de

,

struction and she herself had taken that view of it and

, ,

promised him not to go But in the morning when she was .

alone a fear came over her that it might after all turn
,

out to b e true and if so her mother would die and

, ,

would curse her o wn child on her death b ed S o she -

.

took a carriage and promised the driver a double fare if

,

he would take her in half the usual time She got out .
,

however at the foot of the hill wishing to reach her

, ,
’
mother s house alone and unobserved But as soon as .

she neared the first houses she had a sense of some one
following her and for protection she ran rather than
,

walked towards my door when suddenly Domenico ap ,

p re d behind her
e a and called out without however , ,

looking at her : What Erminia do we see you here ‘

, ,

again ? That i s well it was time you should come ,

’
to your senses ! What have you to do with my ‘

she replied ; you have no hold upon me for good or

‘

’ ’
bad. Indeed ! said he drawing closer and closer all
‘
, ,
‘

the same one does not like the disgrace to attach to our
village of having no young man worthy o f such a j ewel .

Probably you have now found out that y our foreigner

was but a poor make b elieve lik e the l est and that you , ,

would do better to rem ain at home And she What . .

‘
 m BA R BA R

I think of him is y affair Why do you always co e

after me ? You knew long ago what I think o f you
,

Then seizing her arm he said in a hoarse voice For

the last time E rminia I give you warning R enounce
,

him or both you and he will have to rue it I c annot

,
,

prevent your loving him b ut that he should rob you o f

honour and happiness that as sure as G O D lives I will
,
,
.
OS S A .

.
'

,
.

‘
m
.
’

prevent and that shortly Do you understand .

Then s he stood still looked him full in the face and

, ,
’
said You and no one else wrote that letter
,
‘
A nd he .
,

without answering went on as befor e : Will you give

,
‘
_

him up and r emain Then when she continue d

silent and shook her head re solutely he three times
, ,

repeated the same question Will you E rminia give .

‘
, ,
"
him up and remain here ? And when she pretended
not even to b e aware that any one was sp eaking to her

m
,

b ut quickened her steps fearing that he might do her

some violence in the deserted piazza she suddenly felt ,

his hand grasp her arm as in a vice heard the words , ,

’
‘
To hell then with your L utheran and in the same
, , ,

moment fel l down mortally wounded close to my

doo n
“
And now she had no wish she said but that her .
, ,

lover should forgive her for leaving hi again st his will ; ‘

she expiated it dearly enough He had meant to make .

her his wife and take her to his own home Instead of
,
.

that she must go down into the grave and who could ,

say whether the Virgin Mary would intercede for her ;

and whether she should ever pass out of the pain s of
purgatory into the Heavenly Paradise !
That was the last sentence that crossed her lips ,
”
th en her head sank back and she was dead ! ,

When the little man had go t so far he stre tched ,

 m
B A R BA RO S S A

m
2 I

m
.

himself back in his arm chair and closed his eyes with -

a deep sigh A fte r some minutes so spent he sprang up

.
,

walked several times to and fro in his dark shop and ,

seemed to make a strong effort to recover his self con -

trol A t len gth he stood still b eside me laid his hand

.
,

on my shoulder and said What after all is human

, ,
“

life a zco za ’ A fleeting nothing ! grass that is green

’ ’

.
,

in the field to day and to morrow dry and withered -

,
-
.

Hay that the insatiable monster death crams his maw

,

with ! B d r ! There is no waking the dead ! S he was

a wonder of the world while she lived she was wo n ,

dro us still when her fair silent form was no longer

warmed by a drop of life blood and h e r soul no more -

susceptible of j oy or o f sorrow There she lay in the .

room yonder and until she was buried I never left her
,

night or day When sleep overcame me I still held a

.
,

corner of her dress in my hand and thought myself ,

highly favoured in that at least in death I was nearer to

her than any other But by the second night another .

came The door opened and the captain stole in on

.
,

tip toe as though he might still run a risk of disturbin g

-

her sleep We did not exchange a word only I began

.
,

to weep like a child when he so mutely and with such ,

a look of despair in his eyes approached the bier Then , .

he sat down beside her and gazed steadily upon her

face I went out I could not endure his presence any
.
,

more than if I myself had been her murderer .

The next day when the funeral took place and the
“

whole village was gathered in the church yard even b e -

fore the priest had blessed the coffin there rose a mur ,

mur and a stir among the dense crowd A nd the cap .

tain whom no one knew to be in the place was seen

, ,

striding through the people with a look on his face that

terrified them all He took his station close beside the.
22

m B A R B A RO S SA

grave and thre w two handsfull of earth o n the coffin

,

Then he knelt down and every o ne else was on his

n ewly -
,

homeward way while he remained prostrate on the

a de grave as though he would force himself
,

through the earth and make his b ed there

,

obliged to drag him away into my house where for

some days he remained as thou gh in a trance and I
could hardly get him to take a spoonful of soup or a
drop of wine Four days passed b efore he seemed to
.

come to himself at all but even then he continued

,

silent and it was only in bidding me fare ell before he

,
,

I was
.

w
,

,
.

,
”

went o ff again in my little conveyance that he begged ,

me to oblige him by buying for him the house with the

vineyard that he had once before looked at In eight .

days he said he should return and then make his home

w
,

ith us for l ife.

I did not dare to remonstrate although I could not

approve the plan—partly b ecause of D omenico of whom
,

it was known that he had fled to the mou ntains and ,

j oined a party of banditti and partly because I had al

,

ways b een fond o f the Swede ; and could have wished

that he should not by living near this grave keep the
wound in his heart for ever bleeding But however I .
, ,

m
knew well that he must have his own way let Heave n ,

or Hell oppose him and so I laid myself out to render

,

him any service that I could for her sake who had been ,

dear to me too and to whom even b eyond the grave I

,

coul d still prove my good will by befriending her be

“

loved .

’
“
And in a week s time he actually came and took
possession of the house which stood about a mile from
the village in a tolerably larg e vineyard not far from ,

the ravine where the chestnuts are ; a lovely solitary ,

S o t for a a l at le as t wh
i o had no fe ar oo d wea o ns
p .

g p ,
 B A R BA RO S S A . 2 3

at hand and a faithful dog for comp anion But the

,
.

latter was not the only living creature that joined him .

Erminia s sister Maddalena insisted on doing so that

’
,

she might wash and cook for him and keep his house ,

while he was on his rambles Nothing could have suited .

him better though people in g e ne ral shunned her But

,
.

he knew that her dead sister had bequeathed her o wn

love and fidelity towards him to this poor creature .

And so the singular pair lived on in their solitude and ,

never seemed to concern themselves about the rest of

the world .

I went to see him a few days after his a rrival The

“
.

house had once b elonged to a R oman noble and was ,

still in tolerable condition though the old furniture was

,

covered with dust and cobwebs which Maddalen a never

’
disturbe d She had been used to worse in her mother s
ruinous hovel under the roof of the fig tree But in the -
.

neglected garden she had somewhat bestirred herself ,

and planted a few beds with vegetables and the locks ,

of all the do ors had b een repaired and new b o lts added .

’
‘
She insisted upon it said the captain ; she is continu
,
‘

’
ally dreaming o f an attack up on us Dreams are not .
‘

always mere moonshine returned I but he p ai d no at

,
’
,

tention He went before me up the stone steps and

.
,

m
opened the door of the familiar salon the balcony o f ,

which looked on the garden This was the only room .

that he inhabited ; he had made a bed out of an old

divan and cleaned the rubbish out o f the corners single
,

handed but he could not stop up the countless holes in

,

the walls through which bats and squirrels went in and

out My first glance fell on a stand against the wall
.
,

from which his beautiful fire arms shone out and as I -

was always fond of them I fell to examining these

’
a ster pieces one by one Just turn round Angelo he
-
.
‘
,
2 4 BA R B A RO S S A .

sai d; there is something in the room that will i nterest

‘

’
you more It was a life size picture of E rminia and so
.
-

strikingly like that it gave me , as it were a blow on the

, ,

m
heart During their early days in R ome a first rate
.
,
-

painter and friend of his had b egun this wondrous pic

ture and finished it with the exception O f one hand and
,

part of the dress The head which lo oke d o v e r the

,
.
,
\

sho ulde r with an indescribable expres sion of proud bliss

—actually beaming with love and b eauty—was highly
finished and as I said one fancied one saw the exquisite
, ,

creature breathe I could not speak a word but I stood .

,
'
a full half hour motionless before it from time tO ti e
-

wiping away the tears which obscu red the picture I t ’

.

m
was then he told me for the first time ; that on the very
’

day when she left him he had received a letter from a n

m
old uncle his only remaining relative o n whose consent
, ,

to his marriage he had laid gre at stress Then he tried .

to tell me something about those happy weeks in R ome ,

m
”
but his voice suddenly gave way and he went into the ,

next room I could not venture tO follo whim and as

.
“

he did n o t return I concluded I was not wished for any

longer and quietly crept down the steps acco p anied
,

only b y the great dog who looked into my face as

'
,

m uch as to say that he knew a ll about his aster s ’

grief .

I now resolved tq wait until he should seek me out

“
,

b ut I 'ight have waited long ! Ho w ever I sometimes ,

saw Maddalena in the market or one of the shops and ,

twice I spoke to her asked for Signor Gustavo and , ,

heard that he was well and if not out shooting was al ,

ways r eading books and allowed no one to enter not , ,

even the priest who had felt it his duty to enquire for
’

the mourner I n our village where everyone had been

.
,

so enraged against him the tide turned gradually i n his ,

 BA RB A RO S S A . 2 5

favour People remembered the merry evenings over

.

the wine barrel and his courteous and sociable ways

-

, ,

and in time the women who had been the most violent
were quite conquered by his solitary sorrow Many a
'
.

one I suspect would not have required much pressing

, ,

to lend him her company in that lonely villa if he had ,

“

only held up a finger But month after month passed .

by and all went on in the old way

,
.

'
O n e night towards the end of August I had a
“

headache having drunk more wine than usual and the

, ,

mosquitoes were more unconscionable than ever : so that

m
I sat up in bed and began to think whether I had not
,

better strike a light and write some verses All o f a .

sudden through the stillnes s of night I heard two shots ,

then again others and from the direction in which they

,

came I j udged that they must be somewhere near the

captain s villa Corp o della Madonna ! thought I what
’ ‘ ‘
.
fi ,

can he be about ! I s he shooting bats or But

they did not sound like the E nglish rifle of S ignor Gus
tavo and they succeeded each other to o rapidly and ir
,

regularly to b e fired by any one an and all at once I ,

jumped horrified out of b ed for I no longer had any ,

doubt ab out it what I had long silently feared had

,
-

happened : I l R osso and his banditti had fallen upon the

lonely man and they were fighting there in the viney ard
,

for life and death I got on my clothes snatched a pair

.
,

of old pistols from the wall wakene d up my apprentice , ,

and told him to run through the streets and call out ,
’
‘
help ! murder ! as loud as ever he could I myself .

knocked up a couple of neighbours and encouraged all ,

who were already roused to follow me When we cam e .

down from the village we were a party of ten or twelve ,

each armed with rifle o r pistol A nd to be sure the .

firing did come from the vineyard and we to whom the ,

 m
m m .
BA R BA R O S S A

moon fortunately served instead of lanterns scrambled

over hedge and ditch towards the house where we saw
firing going on fro t he windows That comforted me
somewhat He had withdrawn then i nto his fortress, and
th ose rascal s had to content themselves with firing into
the roo at him at random I was just about to explain
my plan of operations to our party —how we were to
form four divisions surround the enemy and attack hi
,

in the rear ; but some out post must have observed us

-
.

"
-
.

,
,
,

,
,

for there was a shrill whistle and at the same moment ,

the attack came to an end and here and there where ,

the moon shone on the open space between the rocks

and the wo od we saw the band scatter some of them so
, ,

lame that we might have captured them if that had been

our aim—over and above defending the captain—to
take 11 R osso our own fellow citizen prisoner But we
,
-

, .

wished to spare his father the pain of that and thanked ,

God that we had come j ust in time for at our loud call ,

we saw Signor Gustavo step out on the balcony into the

bright moonlight and wave a white handkerchief to us
,
.

B ut when we saw the handkerchief nearer it proved by ,

no means pure white but had large spots of blo od from

, ,

a bullet having grazed his temple It was nothing of .

any consequence and did not prevent the captain sit

m
,

ting out of doors with me the next morning when all

the rest had gone to their homes O nly Maddalena in .

her passionate way besotted with the man in spite o f

,
’
’
her sister s story c ould not b e tranquillised and went
, ,

on searching for one healing herb after the other and ,

he had to apply them all to prevent her becoming quite

’
’

frantic The good creature whose sleep was like a cat s

.
, , _

was aware of footsteps creeping about the house even

before the dog heard them ; and she ran up to wake her
a st er O n the first bandit who placed a ladder against
.
ladder with hi m BA R BA R

the balcony she bestowed such a blow on the head with

,

the barrel of a gun that he fell backwards and the

,

A n d so there she was at hand to load

.

one rifle after the other and indeed every now and then
she herself took a shot through the window and swore
,

with might and main that she had sent a b all through
the coat of the murderous villain I l R osso himself and
OS SA .

,
,

,
2 7

that he gave a great start but went on firing A s fO r the .

m
room it had a ruinous aspect not a pane was whole the
, , ,

plaster had fallen in great sheets from the ceiling and

_
,

E rminia s picture had been struck in two places but

’
,

fortunately o nly the dress and the frame were inj ured .

m
When the day began to break the Captain and the dog ,

too did get a few hours sleep but Maddalena would not ,

hear of it although for the present the cut throats had

,
-

b een scared away .

“
I spent the next day at the villa and kept i ,

plo ring my friend to leave the district Indeed all the .

reasonable people from the village who came to see

the battle fi e ld gave the same advice He most o b sti
-
.

ately refused to do so I t was only on the follo win g .

day whe n the R oman Prefect of Police came over to

keep up app earances an d draw up a protocol by way
, ,

of doing something that he let himself b e turned from

,

his foolhardy resolve I most earnestly advise you

.
‘
,
’

said the official a monsignore N, as soon as pos ‘

sible to leave the mountains and indeed the country ,

itsel f A youth who witn essed the attack of the bandits

—if indeed he were not one of them —has told me that
.

more than one bullet has b een cast for you ; that I]
R os so has sworn upon the host that he will pay you o ff .

Were I to remain here I could only protect you so long

as you kept by my side But if yo u took again to your.

lonely wanderings thro ugh the ravines you might exp ect
 28 B A R BA R O
“
1 3 S SA .

ou
t of every bush a shot that wo u ld c on sign yo u to an
’
oth er world .

A nd so at last he made up his mind to leave and

“
,

m
th at at once in t he carriage o f the Prefect of P oli c e
’

, .

'
When I pressed his hand at parting No w then S ignor ,
‘

Gustavo said I this will certainly be i he last time we

,
’
,
‘

two ever meet on earth Who knows ? he replied .

’ ‘ ’
.

m
‘
A fter all I am half acountryman o f yours and have
‘

no other home T hén he gave me some d1re ctio ns with

’
“
‘

m m
.

regard to Maddalena She was not to leave the villa

" ‘

.
,
'
nor did the captain think of selling it I f he failed to .

return within a certain number of years she was t o c o n ,

side r the house and g arden her ' own prop erty and
:
‘

meanwhile t o appropriate their profit s To the priest he .

gave in token of gratitude for the assistance rendered

m
him by the villagers a considerable sum for the p oor , .

e he b e stO We d a small picture O f L ord B yron ,

whi ch he had always c arried about with hi T he p ortrait ( .

m
o f E r inia he had roll ed up in a tin cylinder
r and that ,

and his fire arms were all that he took away with hi
-
.
.

So we parted and as I b elieved never to meet again

,
‘

and M addalena W
,

ho ins is ted u pon go ing with him and

, ,

clung like a wild cat to the carriage had to be forcibly ,

dra gged off and locked into the ho us e till it had rolled
‘

'
'
However that very night s o soon as they left o ff
’

“
,

watching her she v anished and for days ran up and

, ,
-

d own the streets of R o e like a aniac looking in vain ,

for her m aster At last she r e turned and hobbled ab out

.
,

the vi ll aalone but she let everything g o to waste ; the

”
,

grapes might rot on the vines and the fruit on the trees

—
, ,

rather than she t ake the t rouble of gathering them and

carrying them to market She had always b ee n idle
“

.
,

i nd eed as a toad a creatu r e she re sembled in app ear

’

,
 B A R B A RO S S A . 2 9
ance too — and it was o nly when it concern ed the cap
tain that she could work and b estir herself like three
people in one .

O f him however we heard nothing more ; of his

“
, ,

mortal foe Barbarossa we heard far too much S ince

’

that night he and his band had lingered about our

neighbourhood and he seemed to have conceived a
,

hatr ed against his countrymen because they had

_ ,

gathered to the assistance of the foreigner But for the .

compan y of papal gendarmes who were sent us as a

m m
m
permanent support from R ome I do believe he would ,

have fallen upon his own native village and taken a .

bloody revenge .

Accordingly no one who had been present on the

“

occasion ever ventured himself a rifle shot from the

,
-

last houses without taking his fi re arms with him and -

such as had to go into the mountains always begged

for two gendarmes as escort Those were s ad times .
,
’

za and I even lost my pleasure in rh

y i ng for I
’

a zco , ,

knew that he had a special spite against me Twice .

there were great expeditions undertaken against the

bandits but not much came of them for they had their
, ,

scouts posted eve rywhere ; they knew every crag an d

cranny of the mountains as intimately as the devil does
his o wn den and they were merely driven for awhile a
,

little further back into the Sabina .

However when in the winter old S e ro ne Domeni

“
,

co s father died from grief on his son s account , we had

’
,
’

an interval of peace 11 R osso whom of course the

.
,

fact reached may perhap s have felt some remorse for

, ,

by nature as I have said he was not bad hearted only

, ,
-

his unfortunate love had hardened and frenzied him I t .

really seemed as though he meant to keep quiet during

his year of mourning and until midsummer we h eard
, ,
 B A RBA R O S S A .

m
no more of banditti Whethe r they w ere at work further
.

south o r hO w they kept themselves alive during thi s

,
.

holiday Go d knows But when we took it for granted

,
.

that our deliverance from them was final we reckoned

'

'
,

without our host O ur neighbourhood began all of a

. .

sudden to be haunted again My neighbour P iz z icarlo .

, ,

who had been one of us that night at the villa was , ‘

captured by thes e villains while riding his do nk eg to r

Ne i dragged off into their haunts and only released

, ,

on payment of a considerable ransom And so with .

others whom they sadly maltreated This could not go

,
.

on The gendarmes obtained reinforcements the razz i a

.
,

into the mountains b egan anew b ut not with much ,

b etter success A t that t i me Barbarossa seemed to b e

.

everywhere and nowhere terribl e as a basilisk and slip , ,

p ery as an eel and far and wide mothers quieted their

,

screaming children by saying : Zzlfo Barbar ossa is com

’

,
.

ing ! But oth er stories were told too more to his credit ; ,

how he behaved to the poor and defe nceless like a ,

‘

knight in a legend intent mainly on righting the ,

defective j ustice of the world though every now and

'

then robbing the egregiously wealthy j ust to supp ly his = ‘

.

ow n needs A s I hav e before said he was to be pitied

.
, ,

and if he had not run up so heavy a score that the law

could not possibly wink at it perhaps an amnesty would

m
,

yet have changed him back into a peaceable hones t

citiz en .

U nder these circumstances we lived wret c hedly

“

enough much like Shipwrecked sailors o n a plank with

, _
,

a shoal of sharks around Thirteen months had no w .

’
passed since the captain s departure and no one spoke ,

of him at least no one said any go o d o f him fear in g to

’
‘

, ,

b e overhe ard by somebody who might repeat it to Bar

'

b arossa Imagine therefore , y horror o ne a fte rnoon

.
,
-

,
 m
m
BA R B A R O S S A .
31

I had j ust opened a bottle of castor oil and was think ,

ing of nothing worse when S ignor Gustavo his o wn very

,

self entered my room as though n othing had happened

Corp o aella Madonna ”I cri ed
.

" ’
What wind has blown .
,
‘

y o u here ? Are you so weary of life that you determine

’
to mak e your villa your ausole u l Then he told me ‘

that he had not b een able to endure either the E ast or

West Nowhere had he found any flavour in the wine
.
,

everywhere the women were tedious and since he had ,

fired at men the chase of lion s and hyenas had b ecome

,

insipid A n d always too he had been p ursued by the

.

feeling that he had like a contemptible coward left the

, ,

field to his foe instead of waiting to measure his strength

,

against him A nd a short time b ack when staying at

.
,

some German Spa he read a newspaper account of the

,

Sabine mountains being again ravaged by banditti and ,

of Papal carabinieri having for months pursued the v a

gab o n ds who seemed as inexterminable as toadstools
,

after rain : why then he had found the monotonous

elegant world in whi ch he was living simply intolerable , ,

and taking an extra post he had travelled day and night ,

without haltin g crossed the A lp s and got here And

, ,
.

now here he was again settled in the vineyard Madda .

lena had been actually wild with j oy and he himself felt ,

more at home than he had done for a ye ar and a day

'
.

‘
And what then was he going to do here l asked I in ’

horror and amazement O h! said he I shall have no ‘ ’ ‘

.
,

lack of occupation ; I shall j oin the patrol of gendarmes

that are constantly on the mountains and so as a v o lun ,

teer and d ilettante face my man When I come to con

-

sider it it was I who hung this mill stone about your

'
-

necks and so it is only fair that I should try to help

,

you off with it Good day Angelo p ay m e a visit in

.
-

, ,

my mausoleum ’
.
 B A R BA R O S S A .

“
And away he went : he had grown so strangely rest
less—quite unlike hi s former self—that he could not
“

mm
-

stay long in any one place What I felt ab out the whole .

affair I leave y o u to imagine

, Meanwhile it had never .
;

been my wont to p lay the coward and indeed here it

mm
,

b ehoved me to take the initiative on account of my o ld

’

acquaintance with Signor Gustav o So I boldly visited .

him i n the villa and found everything j ust as though he

,

had never left it Maddalena hobbling about as before

.
,

and busy enough now gathering the grapes with her ,

long ar s ; the dog who had grown old and blind of

,

one eye ; and in the salon the arks p f the bullets still T ‘
,
'

’
visible but the holes in E rminia s p ortrait had been
,

carefully repaired When I went in the captain was

.
,

walking up and down smoking and reading but on

e he laid aside his book—
, ,

seeing as usual verses by

his E nglish p oet— an d he artily sho o k my hand He had . .

m
spent the whole night between the ro cks and woods ,

lying out to stalk his ga e and only slept a little 1n the ,

morning At midnight he was go ing out again with

.

three stout fellows who did honour to the Pope s uni ,

’

form I f I liked I might go with him

. .

“
I declined with thanks on this occasion and did \ ,

not remain long for his manner half fierce and half
reckless —as though he were playing a game of chance
, ,

—
gave me an uncom fortable feeling O n y way home
I l aid a kind of wager as it were with my self—that if
.
,

, .

seven days passed without his coming to a bad end I ,

would print my sonnets to E rminia at my own expense ;

if otherwise I would leave them ih man uscript And an _
.

e nd did i ndeed come but whether it could be c alled

'

good or bad G o d knows and so to the present day I

, ,

am in doubt whether I won the wager or not .

“
It was he himself who circumstanti a lly relate d to
 me the way things fell out so that y o u can receive my
narrative as though you had it fro his o wn lips He
began to wo nder much he said that B arbarossa did not
confront him for his return was nothing e lse than a
,

direct and open challenge Twice when on his rounds

with the gendarmes he had stumbled upon suspicious ,
BA

,
R B A RO S S A

.
,

,
.

m .
33

looking characters but they had not held their ground

—dived out of sight like frogs when the stork appears,

H e fancied they did this with the intent ion of drawing

him on further into the mountains in order to attack him
with l ess risk So he was glad when an exp edition o n a
.

large scale into the Sabina was planned al though not ,

for the next night but the next but one for the soldiers
, ,

were determined to get their fill of sleep first so as to ,

be all the fresher .

“
But the captain could not remain so long inactive
and as he had no companions —his usual escort prefer
,

ri ng a good night to an aimless ramble —

m
he loaded his
double barrelled gun called his dog who seemed dis
-

, ,

inclined to follow him and left his vineyard j ust as the ,

moon rose .

“
Fool hardy as he was b e y et guarded himself
-

against any unnecessary exposure H e wore a dark coat .

,

and dark trowsers which he pushed into his high bo ots ,

'
and also a grey hat one of those called y o u know , , ,

Co eczp are in which attire so long as he kept in the

’

, ,

shadow of the oaks and chestnuts it would have been ,

hard even in the day time to distinguish him from the -

trunk o f a tree .

“
Now it so happ ened that the night was still and
beautiful and he told me he had never so much e n
,
’
j oyed the gloomy forest and had never had E rmin ia s ,

form and face so vividly present and near to him as

they th en se emed The dog silently and wearily crept
.

B a rlva rassa, e tc.

3
34 BAR B A RO S S A .

on after him and he himself was lost in dreams having

, ,

never hoped that on this occasion he should meet with .

his enemy but being le d on and on merely for the sake

,

of exercise and by the exquisite coolness of the night

He had he thought wandered thus —creeping and
.
,
“

climbing alternately—for more than an hour when the ,

dog suddenly stood still and growled .

Instantly the .

captain s hand was on his gun but before he could 16 0k

’
,

round two shots were fired close to him and he felt

, ,

that he had received a wound in the leg At the same .

moment he saw a fellow stand out from b ehind a great

'

ilex and level a pistol but he was beforehand with

,
,

him and took such good aim that he shot o ff the

,

lock of the pistol and two fingers of the hand that held
it ; whereupon the villain took flight and ran along the
steep path with such speed that neither the dog—who
,

to b e sure was no longer so agile as he had b een —nor

the second b arrel of the E nglish gun reached him The .

captain had'
paid dear for his night walk The wound .

in his le g b le d so much that the bandage he improvised

i

with pocket and neck handkerchief was of little use So

-
.

having re loaded both barrels he set out homewards

-

, ,

but contrived to lose his way the moonlight confusing ,

him and it was only after much fruitless W

, andering _

about that he saw the roof of his villa shining above the
vineyards and he was then so exhausted with loss of
,

bloo d and fatigue that he sank down on a stone and

, ,

was obliged to rest awhile before he could rise and

drag himself over the last hundred yards .

.B ut one there was past rising and that was the

“
,

de g The second shot had wounded him more seriously

.

than the first his master and having limped after hini
,
.

thus far without a whine of complaint his strength was ,

spent and he moaned away his faithful life The c ap

, .
 s

RB A RO S S A
.

‘
BA .
35

tain told me he felt his blood run cold when he saw

his old ally feebly wag his tail and then stretch out his
four legs stiffly He himself was hardly able to stand
.
,

yet he could not find it in his h eart to leave his dea d

comrade there in the op en plain where vultures would
soon have found him out next morning He wished to .

give him the honourable burial he had so well earned ,

in the vineyard at home and so he took him up s ti p

porting the weight with the stock of the gun —that gun
, ,

itself being heavy enough for him in his present con

dition —and with tottering steps he reached the vine
yard and found the iron gate as usual locked from
, .

within He opened it by a trick known only to him and

.

Maddalena But he was surprised that the sound of his

.

steps should not have roused the wakeful creature :

thought she had perhaps been drinking some strong
wine which he had j ust had from the village and as he -

passed the door of her room did not care to disturb

m
her The dog he laid down in the kitchen and covered
.
,

m
with an old straw mat then he tottered up the step s ,

that led to the upper room feeling as if he should ,

hardly live to reach his couch and re bandage his burn ,

-

ing woun d .

But when he op ened the door o f the salon he

“
.
,

stood motionless on the threshold turned to stone by ,

what he saw T he moon was shining full upon the bal

.

cony and through the windows and lit up the stand of ,

fi re ar s in the corner
-
In the middle of the room his
.
,

back to the light erect an d stiff as a arble pillar arms

, ,

crossed and contemplating the picture of E rminia stood

, ,

Domenico S e ro ne I l R osso He no longer deserved

, .

this nick name however for he had cut off his beard
-

, , ,

and his long wild hair looked ashy grey against the old
yellow straw hat that so shadowed his face nothing was
3g)

to b e seen but the white of his ey es B ut Signor Gus

tavo knew him at a glance
BA R BA RO S S A .

m
m
m
m
.

“
They lo oke d full at e ach other for a o ent those
.

two deadly fo e s D ome nico however without changing , ,

h p i
is os tion while the a
c p ta
,in 'l an
e t up on his gun , and
called up his last remnant of strength to play th e an,
spite of his wound .

You are come at last then said 11 R osso and his

“ ‘ ’
, ,

v 0 1c e trembled I hav e waited for yo u her e sin ce I

.
‘
,

did not find you at home You kn ow that I h ave sworn .

to reckon with y ou and the time is fully come , To .

morrow night you are going, to make a great sally an d

surp rise y band Bravo ! S e t to ! O nly what y ou and
.

I have to settle could be b etter d one I thought by our , ,

selves Le t your gun alone for the captain was about

.
,
’ ‘

to stand on his guard If I had chosen you wo ul d .

‘
,

have drawn your last b reath l ong before this D o you .

suppo se I did not he ar you outside when you were

m m
open ing the iron gate and had I wished for y our blood ,

I had but to shed it then and there I own I was v ery .

'

near doing so But I was not able S fie would no t

. .

’
suffer it and he hurrie dly p ointed to the picture If ‘
.
,

you have still the heart to love your life you may thank
’
iz ar for it

m
.

said the c aptai n let ther e b e an end ,

‘

m
to this ! ou are in my house and I cannot tolerate
.
,

y our playing the master he re and acting as if I was at ,

‘

your e rcy I will have no gift from hi ; who plotted

,

to deprive me o f the dearest thing I had o n earth ! o u;

—
.

'
had no right to the g irl none that she hersel f ass ured , z

me A nd as neve rthel ess you murdered her and are

.
.
,

now se eking after my life why you are no thing b e tte r , , '

than a wild beast an d wh o eve r render s ,

d es
o a good work I t is p ure e rc.
y on y part not to
 avail myself of my advantage and shoot you down b e
fore you can l i ft you r gun from the floor But I feel
sorry for you I c an understand how one i ght lose

her death .
.
nAR B A R o ssA

'

one s reason for that girl s sake and not recover it after
’ ‘

Therefore I offer you ho nourable ter s ;

Take up your gun When I have counted three —o ne or
'

both of us will have ceased to live

D o menico never stirred
.

D o as y o u will he s aid
’

.
,

‘
' '
.

.
’
.

m
m ,
’
,

‘
I shall not fire I f I were to kill you what better should
.
,

I be ! I am a mis erable man I have murdered the

“
.

fairest woman in the world like a wild beast that I was ; ,

you do well to call me one I thought I should be hap .

"

pier if I got you too out of the world I was a fool I f . .

you were to meet her again up yonder rage and j e al ,

o usy at not b eing able to p art you any more would ,

devour my heart till I went down to hell damned b e

yond redemption No make an end of me as you S aid
.
, .

S e e I stand quite still

, This gun he pushed it away .
,
’

from him with his foot I will not touch Fire captain ,
‘
.
, ,

and with my last breath I will forgive you For by God s .

’

holy blood the life I have led was purgatory and now
‘

m
,

it would be hell itself since I have seen fi er again and ,

y ou whom she loved

. While so sp eaking his strength
.
’
,

seemed to fail him he fell on his knees before the pic

ture and hid his face in his hands his whole body as it
, , ,

were convulsed
, .

“
At last the conflict ended He sobbed al oud wailed .
,

and writhed like one mortally wounde d then trying to ,

rise he groaned out My God ! My God ! She is dead ! ‘

‘

L ord have pity upon her m urderer ! and down he fel l ’

again as in a swoon and p ressed his sobbing lips against

the cold flags and see e d to have utterly forgott en that
,

any one stood by and saw it all .

“
Arid meanwhil e there was the picture on the wall
 m
m
m
BA R BA R O S S A .

stan ding silent and stately and in its blo o o f bliss and ,
'

youth looking down upon the poor sinner .

said the c aptain g ently drawing near , ,

m
,

bending over hi and laying a hand on his shoulder

’

, ,
‘
neither of us can c all her back and what we hav e to ,

do is to g e t through o ur remnant of life If you will .

take my advice yo u will leave this country and cross

the seas There is war going on in Africa and the
Fren ch nee d brave men Your cri e —I forgive it and
.
,

m
.
,

there is O ne who weighs with other scales than we do ,

who sees your heart and knows how you repent and
su ffer I f I can help you 1n any way to get o fl and
' ’

.
,

fling your p ast behind you tell e You shall fi nd a , .

’
brother in me .

“
11 R osso had meanwhile risen and was now stand ,

ing with face av erted from the picture gazing hopeles sly ,

into the night A t these last words of his rival he ve

.

’
he e ntly shook his head I t is over he replied “ You.
‘
,
.

and I are quits The rest is my affair ! o u and I shall

. .
,

never meet again that I swear to you by her shadow

,
.

B ut leave this house in which I can no longer protect

m
you With the others it is an affair of your money and
.

your fire arms they hanker after them If they hear that
-

,
.

it was in my power to give you up to them and that I ,

h ave not done so they will never forgive me and there

, ,

are some of them who still carry ab out the tokens o f

that fi rst tu ssle we had T ake c are of yourself and good
.
,

w
’
night to you . You have seen the last of me .

“
He bent do wn picke d up his gun and ith o ne
, ,

last look at the picture that i n serene beauty shone out

in the o o nl ight glided from the ro om
, .

The captain heard him go slowly down the stairs -

step by step and when outside 0 pen the iron gate and
, ,

lock it again Then the night was once more still as

.
,
-
 m
BA R BA R O S S A

m
death He required some ti e to collect himself H e
.

felt he said as though he had been thrown down from

, ,
'
.

.
39

m
a high tower and had reached the ground without
‘

broken limb s indeed but unable to move from sheer

,

giddiness F or awhile he lay half fainting on his couch

.
,

but the streak of bloo d on the moonlit floor r eminded

him of his wound ; He roused himself to call Maddalena
to bring him water and help hi with his bandage B ut .

no one answered call as he would So at last he tot

,
.

te re d do wn the stairs and entered her room There i n .

a co e r he saw the poor creature lying huddled up ,

'
bound hand and foot and with a gag in he r mouth
, .
‘

When he had unloosed her she fell half dead at his feet ,

and only recovered when he had sprinkled her well with

water and poured a little wine down her throat and
, ,

then crying and laughing she b e gan to kiss his hands

,

m
and his coat But there was no getting a single rational
.

word from her ; her fright whe n 11 R osso surp rise d he r

‘

and then her agony when she heard her master return
and go up the steps at the top of which his enemy was
awaiting him —these upset her p oor mind completely
-

and during the remainder of her life the years followed ,

each other without her being conscious of any alterna

tion exc ept of heat and cold hunger and repletio n
, .

I took the captain to my house and nursed hi for

“
,

a week until his wound had pretty well healed The .

sortie against the banditti had to take place of course

without him but nothing more decisive was effected
,

than the procuring us peace for about a couple of years .

The only prisoner taken was a small boy whose father

was one of the bandits and who himself had sometimes
,

j oined them Nothing could b e made of him so he was

.
,

let go again However one fact he did have to tell us :

.

on the morning after the night in which 11 R osso had

 BA R B A RO S S A "
.

that recko ning with his enemy a quarrel arose and

‘

, ,

some of the party accused Dome nico of b eing a traitor .

At last kn ive s were drawn and b efore the cooler headed

,
-

co uld interfere Domenico lay dead on the bare rock

, ,

the knife in his breast almost on the very spot where

,

he had met E rminia .

A s fo r Signor Gustavo he went to Naples

“
and ,

thence sailed to Greece Later I heard from an artist

.

that he had been drown ed there swimming in the op e n ,

m
m
sea. Possibly the wound in the leg was imperfectly
healed or it may have left some weakness b ehind it for
, ,

once he could as he told me

, have swum a match ,

against that great L ord himself But as to what became .

of the picture of E rminia which the artist well remem

,

bered to have seen I could le arn nothing I would

, .

gladly have given half my substance if o nly I could have

got possession of it .

'
And now a zco za you know the history of B ar
‘
“
, ,
”
barossa and E rminia .

E ND OF BA R B A R O S S A .
 T HE

E MB R O I D E RES S O F T REV I S O .
 T HE

mm
E MB R O I D E RE S S O F T R E VI S O
‘

m
I T was our third day of rain and the wood and ,

garden walks around the country house we were staying

at were turned into water courses O n the first and
,
-
.

second day the party of guests had made it a point of

,
-

honour to b e as ine xhaustible in good hum our as the

-
,
-

.
’

sky in clouds and within t he large five windowe d

m
-

,
'
saloon with the ; ol eande rs bloo i ng b efore it j ests
,
"
-

rained laughte r; ripp le d and witty repartees flashed u

, ,

interruptedly as the drops pattered on the terrace out

side O n this third day however even the most genial
”

.
, ,

in our arkj became dimly con scious that the deluge

~

might prov e more persistent than their good spirits

—
.
_

True no o ne :v e ntured to break the vow of e nduring this -

'

visitatio n zn ro on a de the day before yesterday

’

m
, ,

b y sli nking off to fhis room and sulking there on his i

own resources But general conversation .

,

taneo us p lay o f intelligence and wit had somewh at failed

-

, .

since the p rofessor who passed for a great meteorologist ,

had c o nfe sse dt hat instead of the change torfair which he

had p romise d his glass actually showed afresh fall of the
,
'
mercury H e had procured a second barometer and was ,
.

now seriously investigating the c ause s o f this discrepancy

‘
'

betw een two prophets His wife e anwhile was s ile ntly .
’
. .

painting in body colours on grey paper her sixth water .

-t
.
 T HE E M B RO I DE RE S S O F T R E VI S O .

lily ; at a second table Frau Helena was setting up her

,

men for a seventh trial of skill at chess while Frau ‘

,
’
Anna sat in a corner b eside her baby s cradle fanning ,

away the flies from it while trying to guess the co nun

,

drums and charades in the old almanac open on her

knee The young doctor with whom Frau Helena was
.

'

playing chess saw in this interval of silenc e an opening

,

for doing j ustice to a rustic anecdote but suddenly ,

m
broke off remembering that he had told it the day b e
,

fore The husband of Frau A nna mindful of the elder

.
,

Shan dy s sagacio us dictum th at all manner of mental

m
’ ‘

distre sses and p erplexities are b est endur ed when the

body is in a ho rizontal p ositi on , had stretched himself
out full length on an old leather sofa and blew the
‘

smoke of his damped cigar up in l w blue circles to

the ceiling .

In t he midst of these more O r l ess successful e fforts

“

to adap t oneself to one s fate the off hand che ery way in
’
,
-

which a middle aged man with ar s locked b e hind

-

continued slowly pacing up and do wn the r oom natu ,

rally arrested attention So e times he would st and for

.

an instant b eside the chess table or look over the

“

shoulder of the painter or gently Wave his hand in pas s

,
.

ing over the little brow of the sleeping child but all
"

this he seemed to do unconsci o usly as if absorbed in ,

som e train of thought quite unconnected with the rainy

Pr esent, and fixe d either o n a sunny Past O r sunn y ,

Fu ture .

“
What can yo u b e abo ut d ear e nq ui red ,

F rau E u genie who had j ust returned from a h ousewifely

,

ex cursion into the kitchen and store closet H ere we -

.
“

'
all are pulling face s in k e eping with this h orrible Wet ,

and 011 y ours the re is actual fine we a ther nay even a ,

kind of sunshi ne as though you had s ecretly got b e

,
 . T H E E MB RO I D E RE SS o r T RE VI S O .
45

trothed or had written the last page of a book or felt a

, ,

to othache of four and twenty hours subsiding Com e - -

.

now confess at once what this means or we shall sus

, ,

m
p e ct that it is nothing but most unholy exultation over
us who do not—like you —come to the country for the
exact purpose of shutting ourselves up in a room with
books
I can satisfy you on that point my good friend , ,

answered with a laugh the one thus addressed

, This , .
“

m
time there is no malice in the case al though I am e n ,

m
j oying myself; and your other hypotheses are thank .
,

God equally groundless nay one of them actually i

, , ,

possible ; since I could hardly show a cheerful face if ,

after so long a freedom I had pledged myself to submit ,

o nce more to petticoat government No that which .

, .

keeps up my equanimity spite of our conditi o n is , ,

neither more nor l e ss than a pretty story on whi ch I

accidentally lighted ye sterd ay as I was look ng over y
i

old papers and which now haunts me in the same way

,
~

a favourite melody will so e times dwell upon the e ar ,

”

m m
and constantly repeat itself .

”
A story and a pretty one too !
“
s aid the artist .

Then you must instantly let us have it as a matter o f

co urse Have we not agreed to a communi ty o f goods
.

of all kinds so long as the rain lasts and would you ,

keep a pretty story all to yourself? That would b e a

”
pretty story ind e ed !
P erhaps however it might not please you
“
, replie d
, ,

E r inus standing still beside her and twisting the long

,

stalk of a wate r lily int o a l o op I at le ast care So little

-
.
“

for many stories that have a great run now a d ays that - -

I came long ago to the conclusion that i ne was an

old fashioned taste and that I did not advance with the
-

age.
But in my character of histori an I c an con sole
_
, ,
m
46

y self fo r this We are not entirely dep endent up on

the latest novelty A nd p erhaps the sources I apply to
‘
.

now a days written and admired

- -
,
THE
.

fo r fizsiory have spoiled my relish for stories as they are

The difference b e
tween the woo d cut style of an old city chronicle and
the photographic stereoscopic stippled minuteness and
.

-
E MB RO I DE RE S S O F TR E VI S O

.
"

-
.

, ,

finish of a modern novel is altogether too wide In the , . .

one all is raw material blocks seldom sufficiently hewn

, , ,

j oints gaping subj ects so shaken together that only an ,

expert or genuine amateur can pick out what answers ‘

his purpose In our artificial modern days on the con .

trary all is so smooth and polished so consciou s and

, , .

premeditated so reduced to mere form and style that , ,

’

the subj ect often utterly vanishes the what is forgotten ,

in the bow and owing to the very p sychological finesse

,

o f the narrator we come to b e almost indifferent to the

-

human b eings on whom he practises I for my part still .

m
occupy so obsolete a stand point that in every story the -

chief iinte re st for me lies in the story itsel f O ne man .

may tell it b etter than another but for that I hardly care , .

If an incident that has really happened or been evoked

by imagination makes an impre ssion on me in the rough .

and incomplete version of an old chronicle I would

m
,

rather not have it tricked out with any gewgaws of style ,

but trust to my own fancy to supply omissions B ut .

”
yo u mo de s and here he threw a sarcastic glance at ,

the chess player and the smoker you are never satisfied
-

,
“

till you have bestowed all conceivable ornamentation

and decoration on any and every story whatsoever .

even though it should b e most fair when naked as God

”
made it .

E ach age has its own style of attire and nol s

“
,
”
volens we have to conform to fashion said the recum
, ,
‘

bent figure on the so fa without di sturbing itself further .

 '
T HE E M B RO I D E R E S S or T R E VI S O .
47

“
And each age acts and relates its own stories in ,

te rp o late d the chess player So long as the right of the

-
“
.

strongest prevailed stories were decidedly material in

,

their interest from A chilles down to the noble knight of

,

L a Mancha Since life has become more spiritual and

.
,

its incidents more internal they can no lo nger b e out ,

wardly expressed by a few coarse strokes as was the ,

m
case with a middle aged dagger and sword romance
- - - -
.

Mere outline with some light and shade no longer suf

fi ce s; we want the whole range of colour the most deli ,

c ate gradations of tint and all the charms of chiar

,
oscuro ,

and as we ourselves have become in a great measure .

men of sentiment the sentiment an author manifests

,

either for or against his ch aracters is no longer indif

m
”
fe re nt to us .

“
O h I know returned E r inus little flesh much
, ,
“
,

soul that is the motto of the present day B ut I happ en

,
.

to be just a man of the unsentimental middle ages ,

though not in the romantic sense and therefore I had ,

better keep my story to myself for its structure is by no

m
,

means adapted to the attire of the present day and ,

while the poets now present might turn up their nose at

its very decidedly old fashioned for I should fear to
-

shock the ladies by its incidents though I for my part ,

”
consider it p erfectly moral .

“
Since you yourself are quite sufficiently moral for
us said Frau E ugénie
, this assurance will induce us
,
“

to listen to your story without a scruple ”

.

“
E sp ecially since there is no un co nfi r e d young -

”
lady present added Frau Helena
, .

“
With the exception of the little innocent here in .

”
the cradle observed Frau Anna but she app arently
, ,
“

”
intends to shut her eyes to it .

“
As to that p oint then I may feel s afe in venturi ng ,
m
m
m
4 8

said E r inus

in p rivate
x
‘

‘
B ut n ow a sudden
‘
TH E
.

e that this favour ite of mine that pleased me so much

ay show itself awkward and unattractive if
,

over
“
E MB R OI D ER E S S
‘
o r T R E VI S O L

,
;

m
,

I introduce it into such a fastidious circle And my o ld

. .

chronicler from whom I copied these few unpretending

p ages merely for my o wn pl e asure was I own no p oet

m
, , ,

like B o c cacio and his companions though in this story ,

he came pretty near them ”

m
.

”
Do not let us waste more time on the preface said
“
,

the professor The worst that can happen to your

.
“

’ "
story is a poet s looking on it as merely raw material
, .
,

and if it rains for another fortnight , making a trage dy

, .

or a co e dy out of it which may remain as a blot on

”
the stage .

So be it then ! sighed E r inus thu

“ ”
,
s fairly driven ,

i nto a corner and off he we nt to fetch his tale

,
.

B efore long he returned a portfolio un der his arm , .

,

fro which he drew a manuscript volume

.

”
T he manuscript is twenty years old
“
he sai d t akin g
‘

, ,

his seat in the window and spreading it out on his ,

knee I chanced at that time to be gathering materials

.
“
.

for a history of the L ombard to wns and had come to ,

T r evi so where I hoped to find both in the C ivic R e

,

m
c ords and in the C loister library treasures which alas ! -

, ,

did not fall to my share I t w as only at the Dominicans .

at S an Niccolo that I s tum bled o n a remarkable chronicle ,

dating a b o ut the end of the 1 4 th century which I woul d

. ,

gladly have bo ught from the good fathers B ut all that . .

I coul d attai n to was leave to C opy o ut in the ir c ool ,

refectory under the e yes of a brother Antoni o what

, ,

ever I : thought useful for my purpo se

, T h ese sheets .

b ear trac eS o f the f ragrant ruby coloured Cl oister wine

e
, ,
-
, .

with which I now and th e n washed down the dust o f .

th e dch ro nicle ti ll; after any and ni any dry re cords I

, , . ,
 EM B RO I D E R E S S
'

rria
f
o r T R EVI S O .
4g

lit upon the history o f the fair Giovanna which like a ,

spring of water in an arid step pe suddenly refresh ed ,

me more than any wine could do .

”
A t this time (the chronicle refers to the first
“
,

ua ter of the fourt e enth century

) a bitter feud existed “
q r

m
be tween the town of Tre viso and the neighbouring one
of V icenz a originating apparently in tri vial public mat
,

fed by secret j ealousy even as the unseen wind ,

fans a feeble spark into flame The inhabitants of .

Vicenza called the V enetians to their aid and were thus ,

enabled by a rapid manoeuvre to t ake p ossession first of '

,

the castle of San Salvatore di Co llatto an d next to con ,

quer the very town of Treviso it self and it was only ,

after i nflictin g on it the utm ost humiliation and i ,

posing a considerable tribute that they consented to ,

withdraw encumbered with b o oty and ho stage s A s

s oon as these o ccurrences tr anspired —and the rumour
, .

spread as far as Milan no one was m o re enraged than —

a noble youth belonging to our heavily vi sit ed city one
’

A ttilio B uo nfigli by name (son of the most disting uished ,

of T re viso s citizens and nephew to the Go n faloniere

’
,

M ar c o B uo nfi gli ) who had from early childhood been

‘

brou ght up as a page in the house of the noble Matte o

m
V isco nti had at this time reac hed the age of twenty
‘

five and was thoroughly instructed and prac tise d in all

'

knightly arts A s soon as he learnt the m isfo rtun e that

“

had be fallen his beloved nat ive town he t oo k an oath ,

ne ve r to sleep except in his coat of mail until he had ,

,

reven ge d the insult ; and a c cordingly he o b tained le ave

'

of ab sence from his lord and ro de with so me fri e nds of ,

his all cl ad in arm o ur out of the gate s of Milan

‘

, A nd ,
.

s ince yo ung as he was he had al re ady mad e himse lf a

, ,

p ud nam e in the feuds of the V isc onti ; no sooner was

 m
T H E E MB R O I D E R E S S
’

50 O F T R E VI S o .

his purpos e known than a dventurous youths from all

sides flocked to swear fealty to him as to their Con x

_
~

do ttie re against whatever foe he might choose to lead

,
.

them .

As soon therefore as he had secured a sufficiently

“
, , .

large body of men to encounter the V enetians unaided ,

he sent secret message s to Treviso to inform his father ,

and uncle of his plans and of the day when he pur ,

' -

posed entering the gates of Vicenza to de mand co pe n

sation for the wrongs endured They were to hold them .

selves in readiness to support him and with the help of ,

God to place their feet on the necks of their enemies .

A nd thus indeed it came to pass an d was all so

“
,
-
-

j udiciously and zealously carried out that the men of

.
,

Treviso succeeded in surprising the retreating troops o n -

m
their homeward way to Venice and depriving them o f
their booty and hostages ; while young A ttilio on the ,

s ame day in a hot encounter on the sm all river B acchi

loni proved himself victorious over the men of V icenza
, . .

'
There was o ne thing only to trouble the j oy of our good
city The youthful victor had received a deep w ound
.

in the throat from the sword of a Vicentine and fo r ,

some days his life hung o n a slender thread His own -

.

m
.

'
father as well as his no ble o the r nurs ed him in the
, ,
’
conquered town s chief mansion which belonged to its ,

most leading citizen Signor T ullio Scarpa whose eldest

, ,

son named Lo re nz accio had always b een one of the

, ,
.

b ittere st foes of Treviso so much so indeed that while , , _

the wounded hero remained an inmate of the paternal

‘

abode he never c rossed its threshold This only led to

Attilio —although a foe to her city b eing regarded with
,

—
. .

, _

re ate r t en de e ss by the yo ung E milia the only sister

g
‘

of Lore nz ac cio so that his father ( and mother became

.

aware of her partiality and began to found ther e on a

,
 ‘
TH E E M B RO I D ER E S S

ho p e that through the union of the two le a

'

ding fa ilie s
of both towns the long existing bad blood and mutual
,

j ealousy might be transformed into friendship and good

will A nd while his wound was healing i n a c o nfi de n
.

tial hour A ttilio was induced by his dear mother to e n

-
or TRE V I S O

,
.

'

m 51
'

te rtain the idea seeing that he had nothing to urge

,

against it as his own heart was perfectly free and the

, ,

young V icentine a comely maide n I n secret however .

, ,

he felt a repugnance to take to wife a daughter of that

city : even after their b etrothal h e held himself aloof
from the girl ! and would gladly have b roken off alto
,

gether but that he feared to sow the germs of fresh

,

hate amidst the up springing crop of peace -

In this .

mm
manner six or seven weeks passed by and the leech de ,

c lare d that the wounded man would no longer be ru n

ning any risk by mounting his horse and bearing shield

and lance even though he had better for a further sea
,

son avoid the pressure of his steel haubergeon Accord .

ingly it was decided that he should set out for Treviso ,

whither in the cours e of a few weeks the bride with her

, ,

par ents was to follow the rescu e d city b eing resolved to

,

celebrate the arr iage o f their noble son and deliverer

x

with all p ossi ble splendour Meanwhile the goo d citi .

zens had not lost the time spent by hi on a sick bed ,

'
fo r the y had prepared for their loved yo un g hero whose ,

name was on every lip an entry more triumphal than ,

had ey er yet been accorded to any prince .

“
A midst other o fferings which the city meant to b e
stow upon him was abanner which his own uncle was ,

to make over to him in the name of the whole Council ;

a perfect m arvel both as to material and skilful work .

The pole of ten feet was of polished oak ornamented

‘

,
°

by bosses' of silver the handle was set with rubie s and

'
,
'
,

the point was gilty so that when the sun shone it was
 m
THE E MB RO I DE R E S S or: T R E vr
so;

m m
'
daz z ling to look upon; F r o m th is p o le ahung a heavy . .

pennon of silver b rocade , o n whi ch was rep re s e nte d a

—
‘
.
-

go lden griffin the cres t o f the B uo nfigh Crowne d with

the ural crown of Tre v1so strangling a red serp ent, —
r

whose coils were so natural and covered wi th such fine ,

’

'
gold scales that you seemed to se e a living snake
writhing b efore your eyes A bove this was a Latin in .
=

scription in fla ing letters which ran F ear net fo r I ‘ «

, , .

will de liv er thee ’

m
.
_

T his wondrous a chievement of a s kil ful needle had

“
,

during the six weeks that Attilio was laid low by

.

his wound pro ceeded from the h ands of o ne

, aid e n . s

bnly whose talent for executing such work in go ld ;

—
,

m
m
silver and silken thread was renowned far and near
, , .

This maiden was named Giann aw that is Gi o vann a e ,

the Blonde for her hair was exactly like bright s pu n

,

gold so that she had actually worked a chur ch b ann er

, ,
. ,
.

'
for the B lessed Virgin in the chapel of S an Seba stiano, , .

with nothing but her own tresses She had c ut the o ff .

in her excessive grief when her b etrothed who was “ “

called S ebastian a brave and handsome youth of the

,

district had died of s all p o x a few weeks b efore t heir

,
r

marriage At that time she was eighteen years old and

mm
.
,
‘

the obj ect of so many secret wishes an d so much op e n

wooing that she had often to hear p eople prophecy that
,

before her hair had grown again her brid egro om woul d
have a successor—agreeably to the prove rb L ong hair; ,

short care To speeches like th e s e 1 she wo uld answer

.

n e ither yea or nay but cal l y lo ok dovvn u pon h er

,
- -

wo rk like a being whose ear and mi nd we re clo s ed

.

against the idle s ayin gs o f And in p eint of

'

fact she falsi fie d all the se propheci es for she continued

”

,
'
to live a s if by he r o tive o fferi ng o f her hair to th
'

e -

Madonna she had vo wed herself to p erpe tual aide n :

 m
mm
mmm
T H E E MB R O I D ER E S S o F T R E vrso ; 53

m m
' '

hec d, and never eant that any afn sh oul d unc oil the
’

p laits which she a gain w o und r o u nd her h ead or t wine ,

m
thei r soft go id abo ut his fin ge rs Many thou ght that she
'
.

would go into a co nvent b ecau se she pre fe rred Working

,

chu rch ve st ents and altar cloths and kep t al oo f from ,

'
a ll public a u se e nts '
B ut she e ve n c o ntradic ted this
.

m
o pi nio n , an d se e e d to gro w ' o re chee rful as ti e ,

went on though still mo re re ady to listen than to speak ;

,
‘

m
and a fter the e arly death of her parents she re oved to a
s all house in a turret on the city walls which had a wide ,

View over the p eace ful m e ado ws that are watere d by the
str ea s P iav e sella and R ottiniga
’
There with an O ld .

d eaf woman her nurs e she liv e d above comm e nt or ce n

, ,

su re during a space o f ten y e ars and no o ne e ntere d

,
-

her he e except a neighbour no w and then or o ne of

.
,
~

the n oble l adi es of the city who came to orde r s ome

pi ece of wo rk O fte n to o one of the spiritual fa
.
, , thers

mm
of the town i ght b e see n to raise the knocker of her
”

do or O n the se o cca sions she would call her nurse int o

.

the Chamber whi le sh e receive d her visitors and thus ,

she contrive d to keep malice at bay Althou gh it was '

.

o nly 6 11 Sai nts Day s that she allowed her needle to

’

m
rest and altho ugh she Went but little out o f do ors , she

m
,

k ep t her b eauty so u nimp aired that if she ever took a ,

Sunday walk in the co ol o f the ev ening on the wal ls or ,

in the ne i ghbou ring w oo ds accompanied by he r old ,

se rvant everyone who saw her large black eye s look

,

o ut c almly fro between th eir fair lashes stood as it

were tr ansfix ed to gaze after her ; and even strangers
,

an d distinguished no blemen w ho did not know her na

ture and Would not credit the reports concerning her;
,

made he r many overtures ho ping to le ad her to t e ,

nounce her si ngle state But she gave the sa e an swe r

to e ach an d all of the ; na e ly that the life she led ,
 m
54
"
T HE E MB RO I D E R E S S or T RE V I S O .

was dear and familiar to her and that she had no inte n “
,

tion of changing it for any 1 other -

.

'
“
Thus she had already attained her thirty second -

y ear when the fe ud between the two neighb ouring towns

‘

broke out and as she was a l oyal daughter of Treviso

, ,

she so bitterly felt all the misery and humiliation that

had befallen it that its deliverance by the valiant arm

m
,

of a young fellow citizen on who her eyes ha d never - :

rested impressed her as a supernatural portent and the

w
, ,

d eliverer himself as an angel with a flaming s ord

‘

Never had she more gladly undertaken a task o r exe

"
. _
,

c ute d it with more skill and industry than she did this ,

banner whi c h the city meant to offer its triumphant son

on his entry ; and whenthe festal day came and every ,

body in Trev1 so who was not on a sick bed sought ,

-

the se lve s o ut a spot on market place o r stre e t at gate

‘

, _

or window , nay even on the very house tops , from “

‘

mm
whence to shower down flowers and co ngratulations on
A ttilio B uo nfigli even the fair Gianna could no longer ,

endure her narrow dwelling though ; indeed she might ,

from the turret window hav e seen the procession from

'

Vicenza well enough She procured herself a seat .

on a gaily decorated tribune near the tow n hall that

“

she might s e e the hero quite closely and she dressed her ,

self in her best attire a b odice of silver tissu e trimmed , ,

with blue velvet and a skirt of fine light blue w oollen ,

‘

material her hair being acc o rding 'to the fashion of the
, _

ti e richly intertwined with ri bands so that even an

, ,

hour before the entry there was a rush in the streets

'

, ,
'
and many exclamation s of amazement when she thus ,

arrayed was seen to take her place b y the side of a

,
'

female friend B ut befor e long the eyes of the crowd

. .

were diverted fro her and fixed impatiently on the ,

street up which the hero was to rid e P art of the town .

 TH E E M B RO I D ERE S S

council had ridden at least a mile beyond the gates to

‘

meet and ho no urably we lc o e him and his parents H is

uncle, the Gonfaloniere r emained standing with the rest
on the step s of the town hall which was covered with
,

costly red cloth from whence a broad strip e of the same

,

led across the market plac e to the door of the cathedral

-
m ,
-

O F T RE V I S O .

.
55

a manner of preparing the way hitherto reserved for

consecrated and anointed p ersonages only .

“
But who is able to describ e the truly marvellous ~

and unutterably solemn impression made on all when ,

at length Attilio in advance of his escort came riding

, ,

up the street on his crimson caparisoned bay charger ,

he himself in plain attire a steel coat of mail thrown ,

o ver a tabard ; for the rest unarmed with the exception ,

of the sword that hung from his girdle his head adorn ed ,

merely by its dark brown curls His chin and cheeks .

were shaded by a light b eard through which on t he left ,

side the broad red scar of his wound was visible And .

although his management of his fiery charger proved his

strength a slight pallor still lingered on his cheeks over
w
, ,

m
which every now and then a modest blush ditted hen
he looked around him and saw on all sides white heads
bend reverently before his triumphal youth or mothers ,

hold up their children the better to see the deliverer of

their native city But what crowned the whole was the
'
.

shower o f flowers falling so thickly from window and

roof upon the hero that his form was at times actually
,

lost to view beneath a many coloured veil ; and his goo d

”
-

horse accustomed in b attle to quite diffe re nt issiles

“
‘

, ,

pricked his ears shook his mane and mingled his shrill
, ,

neighing with the shouts of triumph and the clamour of

bells .

“
As soon as the whole procession had gathered in
front of the to wn hall Attilio leapt from the sad dle and
,
‘
m
mm
mm m
m
T HE E MBR O I D E R E S S 0 F T R E VI S O
"
‘
.

m
hastened up the step s to kne el ?be fore his nQble unc le ,
“ ‘

m
to re ce iv e fro hi the b anner” and to kis s the hand

mm
that best owed so high an honour; B ut as he r ese fr o .

m
his kn ees and pr e pared to descend the ste p s and tre ad
the way to the cathedr al he started as tho ugh fr o
.
,

so e S u dd en p ain of bo dy or i nd and required three ,

iniites at le ast to reg ai n co nsciou sne ss of wh er e he

m
.

was and of the many tho usand ey es rivet e d up on hi ;

,

T he fact was he had see n o n the tribune to his right a ,

face that; like a vi sion of par adi se see ed to ravish hi ,

away fro earth; and whe n the l arge black eye s lo oked

m
fixedly at hi fro under their blonde l ashes wi th an

m
i nde scribabl e exp ression hal f sweet half
, el a
nc ho ly , ,

the bloo d su ddenly r ushe d to his he ar t h e gre w p ale as

th ough an arro w

m
,
,

had smitte n him in the b re ast and had

“

he not b een hol ding the b anner against the p ol e of which

—
—
,

mm
he was ab le to lean, he m ust a second time but thi s ti e

m
involu ntarily have fallen upon his kn ees Thos e who .

st ood ne ar est to him and n oti ced his faintnes s , attribute d

it to his wound and to the fatigue of so long a ri de
,

upon a hot day , no one d ivining the real c ause ; and at

last A ttilio c olle cted hi s elf and forcing his eyes aWay
,

m
fr o the enchanting face b'e fore hi tro d the p ath to ,

the cathe dral wi tho ut once turning r ou nd his hea d to

.
.

where the women sat

All the p e ople now strea e d after him and the tri
“
,

bune s e p tied the s elve s r ap idly T he last who ro s e

and th en only at the sugge stion of he r neighbour
was Gianna the Blonde who as if l ap pe d l n dre am s or
, ,

like o ne who gazes after the tra ck o f a fall ing Star in

the sky followe d the young an wi thher eyes till the
, ,
!
.

deep shadow of the cathedral p ortal swallowed

 m
m
T HE E M B RO I D ER E S S O F T R E vrso .
57

p osition said she had S at too lo ng in the sun and with

, ,

bent head took her solitary way to her o wn home O ne

lowers with w
.

o f the f hich the streets were stre wn she

m
,

picked up t oCarry back as a e O rial; it was a red car

‘

nation trodden down by a horse s ho o f Thi s flower she ’

mm
.

placed in a glass of water and secretly settled with herself

'
,

wh at it should be held to b e token if it were to reviv e .

“
H er o ld nurse who had b een gazing at the proc e s
sion through one of the p ort hole s of the city gates ; -

o v e rfl

m
o we d with pr aises and admiration of Attilio of the
’

m
modest way in which he had looked about him he an , ,

immortal hero at such an early age ! dwelling on all the

mmm
ho no ur and fa e he was sur e to win in the future ,
'
ak ing the name o f his native town great airlo ngst all

m
the cities of I taly perh a ps indeed gre at er th an even ‘
; , ,

Florence or R ome ! Then she fe ll to spe akin g o f his

'

mm
—

m
b etrothed who ,
all ladies must needs envy and to ,

wondering whether she was worthy of him and no t by

m
,

chance like her brother Signor Lo re nz acc io who stoo d ,

in the worst repute with the inhabitants of Treviso the

'
,

wo e n o re e spe cially T 0 all these re arks t he fair

.

Gianna replied nothing or at least very littl e and u ch

, _
,

to the old woman s surprise sat herself down to he r e

’

' ,

broidery frame as th0ugh it were a commo n w orking

m
[

day , only rais ing her eye s fro ti e to time to lo ok at ,

the flo we r j in the glass When afternoon ca e and with

.
,
'

it the rest of the amuse e nts r a c ing dancing and , , ,

beau tiful fireworks she still re a in e d quietly se ated

, ,

while the servant went out to enj oy the g e neral hil ari ty .

I t was inde ed only late in the evening that she returned ,

tired to death and covere d with du st , but still with

.

plenty to tell and full of t en de r p ity fo r her mis tr ess; who

‘

, _

had lost so much b y her sad he ad ache : T he fai r Gianna

lis tenedQwith a c al c O untenanc e fao t j oy ous: i ndeed,
'
- ~
-
. ,
,
 m
T H E EM B RO I DE RE S S or .

rR E vrso
-
.

yet not sad as t hough she had no p art in what w as

‘

, _

going on Meanwhile she had added a l arge piece to

‘

the stdle she was working and appar ently had never
‘

moved from he r chair But the c arnation in the glass

'
.
i

was now in full b lo o .

“
B y this time night had come and a
-

fter the women ,

-

'
had got through their silent supper old Catalina wh ose
‘

, ,

sexagenarian limbs had toiled hard during the d ay b e ,

took herself to her bed in the k itchen Her mistress re .

mained up looking at the rising of the moon above the

,
'
broad p lain and the flo w of the R o ttiniga; and now in
, l
‘

'

stead o f the festal sounds from the city which had gra ,

dually died down a nightingale who had her nest Under,

the window began to sing so sweet and amorous a

,

strain that tears came to the eyes of the solitary maiden

‘

as she listened She felt her heart so heavy and o p

.
-

pressed that she rose p ut out her light and thre w a ,

u

' ,

dark clo ak over her shoulders Then she went down

"

the steep and n arrow stair opened the house do o r fand ,

-

stepped into the emp ty s treet j ust to take a few steps in

the cool night air and quiet her beating pulses B ut
‘

lost in her own tho ughts as she was she forgot to draw ’
,

her hoo d about her head so that although the moon

m
,

did not shine into the street she was easily to b e recog
' '
,

niz e d by any p asse r by And now through a chance -

.
,

which l ike all else that is earthly , obeyed a highe r "

will she en countered the very one her thoughts —

,

like
moths about a candle —had b een fluttering round the
, ,

whol e day through .

“
It was no other than Attilio who had
'
long ago been ,

weary of all the honour done hi and who more ex

"

hauste d by the revel and riot of the feast than by the ,

'
tumult of a battl e fi eld had made a pretext of his -

wound to slip away from the banquet and alone and - .

,
. .
 T HE E MB RO I D E R E S S or TR E VI S O .
59

unrecognize d v isit the o ld haunts whe re he had played

,
~

as a boy But s till stronger was his impulse and long

‘

, .

ing to try whether he might not chance again to meet

those e ye s the glance of w hich was still glowing in his
_ ,

heart He had by well put questions elicited from a -

'
,

burgher that the blonde beau ty was the clever artist who
.
l
,

had worked the banner presented to him and he had ,

determined on the following day under plea of thank ,

ing h er to p ay a visit to her house A n d no w j ust as

‘ '

.
, , _
,

he was sadly re flecting on all that had happened and ,

“

was yet to happ en the half veiled figure advanced as -

though she were awaiting him Both w

, _

er e rendered .

speechless by this sudden meeting But Attilio was the .

’
first to collect himsel f I know yo u well, Madonna .
‘
,

said b e with a chivalrous ob eisance as he stepped nearer

,
’
to her You are Gianna the Fair
.
‘
And I know you .
‘

too Attilio replied the b e aute o us one

, ,
’
Who is there .
‘

mmm
in Treviso that does not know you ? A nd t h ereupon ’

mm
both were silent and both availed themselves of the ,

shade of the gloomy street to gaze at each other

_ , , .

more closely tha n they had done yet and to the young ,

man it seemed that her b eauty shone in the twilight a .

thousand times more gloriously than in the full day and ,

'
she for her part tho ught his eyes had quite another
lustre While speaking to her now than in the morning , ,

when he o nly ute ly c o nte p late d her fro afar For .

‘

give
’
e Madonna resumed the youth for roaming
, , ,
‘

through this street by night like a house breaker My -

.

purpose was to visit y o u in the morning to thank you

for the great pains and the wondrous skill you hav e ex
p ended o u the emb roidery of y b anne r If not dis ,
.

agreeable to you su ffer me since you are alone to re , , ,

conduct you to your house Truly I would that it were .

, .

a gre ate r service that I had occasion to render that you

-

,
 m
mm
m
m
T H E E MB R O I D E R E S S wso ;

mm
60
”

or: e
‘

. .

m
might see ho wde vo te d I a ; tO yO uL Whereupon the ’ '
.
‘ ’

w n
"

b lond e b eauty ; t ho ugh g e ne r ally e ll Sk illed i t he .

"
-

cho ic e of wor d s, fo dn dn o thingfi be tter to say than My

‘

,
‘

hom e 1s on ly siX p ace s off, and too hu b le for e to

‘

“
S ay not so re plie d Attilio
’ ’
invite y ou to ente r it .
‘

Rather were y o u a pri nce ss and I authoriz e d to swe at

.
,
‘
,

a favour, I sho uld e ste e it the very highest, if you

m
wo uld allow e to enter y our dwelling and rest there a
qu arter of an hour for inde e d I a weary of Wandering ,

ab ou t and a dr aught of Water would re fresh e T o

" ’ ' “

.
,

m
whi ch the fair one r eplied, tho ugh no t witho ut h esitatio n

m
and blushe s , Who is there in this t own he rescued

m
‘

m
.

who could req e the hero o f B acchilo ni the drau ght of :

water he so courte o usly entreats My p oor ho use and

m
. .

m
all it cont ains are at your servi ce T he n ope ning the

m m
—
.

small door she b ad e hi enter in and afte r bol ting it ,

again fo r on fe stival s m any l o o se characters prowl ed

—
- a

mm
abo ut be nt on spoi l she courteo usly led her guest by

m m
s

the hand up the p erfe ctly dark w inding stai rs , S o t hat

“

he was qu ite daz zl e d when she threwop en the door of ‘

her cha b er into which the bri ght w hit e o onshi ne

stream ed; B e seated a mo ent said she, whil e I bring
f “ ’
,

you w ate r; or Wo ul d; you put up with a glasS of co i

m
‘

'
on w an e suc h as we drinki B ut he w ithq ii ick b eati ng

m
’ ‘ ‘

m
-

'

heart that choked his utte ranc e ere ly s o k his hea

“

d, ,

and st e pping to the wind owseat on w hittle her e :

'
-

broidery lay ; fell to g az ing on it as thoagn"he Want e d

’

e ory 3 05 she l eft hi and went

,

to draw it fro m
‘ “

.
.
.

down into the kitchen where her nurse Was fast asleep
’

o n a rug w hich she had spre ad o n the fl ags for the sake
"

of coo lne ss O h nurse ! she w .

hi spere d;
‘
if yo u only ’ ‘

kne w who has entered in ! T h en afte r filli ng a ga es ’

a gr eat sto ne p it h er th at sto o d on the hoards, she

c
’

fro
stood stil l a o ent, p ressed her tw o cold h ands be he?
m
TH E E

burning cheeks and said in a low tone Holy Mo ther

of our L o rd guard my heart from va i n wish e s
up o
,
,

T h
n she gre w stronger and afte r plac ing a sinall l o af
on a tin plate she carried both it and the glass of wate r
up to Signo r Attilio who had me anwhile seate d hi s elf
in the window and was gazing o ut into the op en co un
,
.

ere
MB R OI D E R E S S

,
,
011
“

rasvr
so ;

,
‘

-
‘

m
61

m
’
try I am ashamed said she to bring you such pri son
.
‘
, ,
‘

fare as b read and water But if you will only stretch

m
.

your ar out of the windo w an old fig tr ee stands be ,

- ‘

m
tween t he two walls and the moat which with its load , ,

of sweet fruit 1 8 easily re ached from here

’ ’
Gianna
~

‘
.
,

said the young man taking the glass from her h and , ,
‘
.were I to remain here your prisoner fo r ever I sho uld ,
’
never wish for any other d rink A nd she en deavouring .

to smile replied ! o u would grow weary o f su ch i pri

, ,
‘

so m ent whereas in the world without by the side of

, ,

m
y o ur y o ung spo use a thousand p leasures prosperitie s,
'

, ,

and honours of all kind await you do yo u re .

’

ind me of it ? trie d he his brow growing dark Know

’ ‘
.
,

that this be trothal which y o u hold out as a Heave n o n

earth is to m e a Hell itself When I was still weak
, .

fr om the fever of my wou nd and hardly i ndeed my o wn

' ,

m aster I allowed myself to b e decoyed into this de te sted

m
,
-

ne t in which I now writhe l ike a captured fish on a

, .

burn ing strand ! A las for my youth ! Why have y eyes

been open e d no w that it is to o late ? Why have I learnt

m
to know my own heart j ust after like a fool pl edg ing "
, ,

myself to an a ccursed duty ! A nd so saying he sprang

.
‘
,

from his seat and str o de with echoing foot s te p s

“

through the m oo nlit ro o m just like a young p a nthe r ,

trapp ed i n a pit and co nfined in an iron cage B ut l the

‘

.
,

fair one alar e d though she was at the vehem ence of

th is strah
,

g e ro nfé ssio n was far from imit ati n g his de

‘
’

,
-

eanoy r but gently s aid while str o king j he carnatio n

’

,
 m
m
m
T H E E MBR O I D E R E S S
‘

blo ssom with'her white finger You asto nish e ; S ignor

Attili o! Is not the bride you ng fair and ivirtuo usly nur
‘

.
,
‘

,
O F

‘
“

, TR E VI S O
‘

,
‘

mm
.

ture d that you should consider it a p unish e nt zto b e

“

,
'

come her husband ? Were she an angel fro b efore ’ ‘

. ,
~

th e T h cried he sud de nly standing still

’
ro ne o f God
‘

, ,
'

and facing her that flower that your hand has touched
,
‘ '
.

would be a more precious gift to me than her wh ile

“

perso n with all her gifts and virtues ! O h why have you ,

done this to me Gianna ! He who has never seen the

,

sun may live and even enj oy himself in t wilight But

“

'

since my eyes e t y o urs for the first ti e this morning

_ ,

I have known that there is only one woman on e arthfo r ‘

m
'
whose love and favour I would dare anything and cast ,

body and soul away and that woman art tho u Giann a, ,

the Fair ; and now I would rather that etern a l night

should swallow me up than that I should have to creep ,

back into the twilight yonder frozen and wretched to , ,

’
dream of my sun
'
.

'
‘"
Thus saying he se iz e d bo th her hands as thou gh

m
/

'

clinging to her to save him from falling into an aby ss ;

m
b ut seeing that her face remained un o v e d he le t he r /

m
go again and returned to the open window There he
,
.

'
stood awhile quite still and silent and only the nightin ,

gale in the bush b elow went on with her ceaseless trill

in
g and warbling Then as if seized by
. some sudde n

resolve the youth turned round and cried B ut eve n ,

‘

though it should undo all that is done I will not con

sent I will not endure these bonds and chains ! To
,
'

morrow with the dawn I send letters to Vicenza t o tak e

back my promise and then I sh all retire fro , both “

*
towns and challenge with sword and lance all who :dare
to deny that Gianna the Fair is the quee n of wo an .

hood . This shalt thou not do sA ttilio returned the

’ ‘
, ,
’

b eauti ful being looking beyond hi t o the midnight sky

 TH E E MB RO I D ERE SS O F T R E VI S O . 63

with a calm and earnest gaze That you should have .

‘

been so sudde nly attracted towards me and should e n ,

m
dow me so un qualifi e dly with your a ffection I acknow ,

ledge as an inexpressibly great gift for which although , ,

unworthy of you I shall thank you as long as I live

,
'
.

B ut I cannot accept this gift without invol ving both in

ruin R eflect my friend how the scarcely smothered
.
, ,

enmity between the two to wns would burst forth again

if you were thus to insult the house of Scarpa and with
‘

it all the city by despising your betrothed bride who has

,

never offended against you by word or deed e re ly b e , ,

cause another face has pleased you better And this .

ve ry face even granting that it does at this time deserve

,

such excessive praise and the passion it has excited in

, ,

you who can say that even in one year all its charm s
,

might not be faded so that yo u wo uld ask yourself

m
‘

,
‘

wondering how was it possible you could have been

,

thus p o sse sse d by it ? D o we not often see towards the

-

close of summer one single night o f e arly frost avail to

_

turn the —

m
trees that were green but yesterday suddenly ,

sere and yellow ? I have o ve rstep t my o n e and thirtieth - -

year ; you my friend are in the fulness of your yo uth v

,

you are still climbing the hill the summit of which I ,

have reached L et me therefore being the elder b e

.
, , , _

the wiser as well and show p rudence e n o ugh fo r both

, .

And to this end I declare to you my firm resolve even

_
,
’

were I to discover your love was more than a sudden

caprice and were all opposing c ircumstances
, iracu
lo usly to conform themselves to your wishes I wo uld ,

never consent to be your wife no not t hough your , ,

parents came to e in person to le nd their support to -

suit !
’
y o un
It was only when she had ended this sp e e ch that
“

she ventured to look towards him and then seeing how ,

 m
m mm
THE MBR TfiT or?T R E VI S O
’

E D .

al h "was and ho w his fi ne eyes wand er e d ro undfa

p
’

e e
‘

,
- 4 ~
s

contra di ct all th at she had forced hers e lf to utte r wi th

'
incre dible firnine ss .

ni ght Mado nna} Attilio sorr owfully said and

m
-

, ,

m
s ee ed about to leave but then stood still and looked

m
,

mm
on the gro und You are angry with me A ttilio said ‘ ’
“

And he — i—
.
, ,

sh No , by God Gianna I a not only‘

e .
, , ,

giv e me leave to depart for truly I hav e tarried b ut to o

‘

m
,

lo ng an d h av e spoken like a madman with out c o nsi

, .
,
- ~

m
dering that what I o ffe red you ight p rove so w orthle ss
“

in your sight that you co uld not e ven stre tch out your
“

hand to take it far less endure conflict and troubl e fo r

m
,

its sake A nd thu s I depart with W ell merited hu ilia '

.
- w

tic , and it is no one s fault but my o wn that this

’

y
day o f triumph Which b e gan so gladly should have so
, ,

l amentable an end Farewell Gianna The banne ryou

“

. .
,

worke d and which this o rn g see e d to me the most

,
’

Costl o f possessions I will now bestow upon a cha el

“ ‘

y p -

m
, ,

in order that the sight of it ay not re c all to me the

‘

hand which has so coldly rej ected and repuls ed me .

m
With that he bent low and was nearing the doo r;

mm
“

m
’
when o nc e m ore he h eard his name called Giannas
h eart which had long b een b eati ng Wildly no wb u rst its
.

‘ '
, ,

b ounds; and ade itself h eard 1 n sp eech Attilio s ai d -

.
‘
,
’

the b lushfng fair who had lost all self c o ntrol I can not ‘
“

- -

ontin ue to live Wh at I
, ,
“

of it , for it b ehove s your own good w

'
hieh is deare r to
“

e th an own B ut I h a ot t t o ld you all;

“

y ve n ye \

Kn o wthen th at si nc e y betroth ed die d—it i s no wtwellve

“ .

_
” “

years ago —I have neve 1 had the thought nor the wish
of b e long a nd if I ha k e pt the —
j ewel
“ “

t V
“

g o ny an a e f
,
 m
TH E E MB RO I DE R E S S O F T REVIS O . 65
o

neither effort nor regret so to do : F or I do t lightly -

‘

esteem myself not so much because of this poor and

,

transient beauty as because I know well that mine is a

,

free and strong spirit which I could never render sub ,

servient to the sway of one weaker or lower than y self ,

as in marriage a wife is often bound to do And many .

as my wooers have been I have never yet found one ,

whom to serve would not have appeared to me a bond 4

age and degradation It was only to day that I saw you .
-

ride into the town to which you have given back free
dom and honour When I saw how modestly you bent
-
.

your head beneath so great a triumph achieved in such

early youth—sho w
,

ing neither vanity nor scorn but re ,

c e ivin
g like a messenger from God the gratitude of
those whom you had delivered—
,

I could not but say to

myself Why art tho u no longer young to deserve the
,
‘

love of this y o uthl And when I saw the crimson scar

’’

on your throat I felt that I would go barefoot on a pil

,

grimage to the Holy Sepulchre if mine might b e the ,

bliss of only once daring to press my lips to that sacred

wound And then when I came home knowing well
.
,

—
What had befallen me I picked up a flower from the
street this one see —
,

just because it had been trodden

,
’
under your horse s hoof; and I meant to have it laid
under my pillow when I should b e borne out hence to
my last sleep And now that I have t old you this
.
,

A ttilio repeat if you have the heart that this hand has
, , ,
’
coldly drawn itself away from your grasp .

Then she held out her arms to her lover who stoo d ”
‘

before her in speechless ecstasy like one doomed to ,

death who had been reprieved at the very edge of the

scaffold She drew down his head on her breast and
.
,

kissed the wound for which her lips had yearned Then .

freeing herself once more from his embra ce she sai d, ,

B a rbarossa ,
m T HE E MB R O I DE RE SS or T RE VI S O .

m
‘What I do my frien d is done with p erfe ct delibe ration
, ,

and consciousne ss and I shall neve r repent it although

, ,

any mi ght censure and condemn my c onduct if they

knew of it I give you the only j ewel I p ossess and which
.
,

hith erto I have held dearer than my very life ; F or look

y o u
, o n the very spot on which y o u st and your future ,

brother in law S ignor Lo re nz accio , stood and vehemently

- -

besought me to b e his and he would l ead me to Vicenza ,

“

as his wife B ut what I denied to him the enemy and

“

o ppressor of my city—and I was fain to threaten him

.
,

with my dagger (the mark of which he bears on his

right hand ) before he desisted from his wild wooing— I
give to you as the saviour of y city give it in token.
‘

o f your triumph ; and require from you in return no re

m
ward whatever but that you forget me when you stand
,

at the altar to plight your faith to another And do not .

’

concern yourself as to what may betide me then My .

lot will be blessed through all renunciation and enviable ,

'
in all sorrow since I shall have endowe d the noblest
,

man on whom my eyes have ever rested with the free

gift of my ho nour ; and before the winter of years has

mm
cov ered this blond head with snows I shall have enjoyed ,

a late spring beauteous b eyond all I could have dreamed

, .

These eyes and lips are thine Attilio and this un "
, ,

touched form is thine and thine is this heart which , _

,

when thou shalt part from me will never o re desire ,

any of the sweetnesses of this world but like the heart ,

'
of a widow will still feed up o n its past j oys till it beat
,
’
no longer .

“
Thus s aying she led him to the se at in the window
‘ ‘

and knelt before him a nd he took her head in his two ,

hands , and was never satiated with gaz ing at her and
’
'
,

k issing her brow cheeks and o uth ; and lon g after the
, ,

moon had set they were still togeth e r and im e asurably

 T HE '
E MB RO I D ER E SS O F T RE VI S O . 67

b lest .when the first cock crow was heard over the
B ut -

plains Gianna herself constrained him to leave her arms

, ,
’
lest he should be missed in his parent s house They .

agreed however that he should return the next night and

, ,

all the following ones and fixed on the si gnal at which

' ,

she should open the door ; and so he took his leave as ,

one intoxicated reels from a b anquet : and in the arro

gance of his bli ss he scorned to descend the winding
stairs although the streets were empty but swung him
, ,
.

self out of the window and profiting by the foot hold ,

-

afforded by the fig tree scrambled down to the walls -

below often delaying to call out all manner of loving

,

names and to throw the flowers growing on the edge of

the moat up to the beloved one in the window till she , ,

fearing observation withdrew from it Then he tore ,

.

himself away and crept so carefully along the walls

, ,

that he reached the gate unnoticed by any The sleepy .

watchman did not recognize him and no one had missed ,

him at home so that he entered exultingly into his

,

own room and throwing himself on his couch snatched

, ,

a brief interval o f needed sleep .

With equal skill and secrecy the lovers contrived

“
,

their meetings for the nights following so that no one ,

in the whole town had the least idea of the rel ations
between them ; except the nurse Catalina who was as ,

silent about it as the fig tree under the window For -

.

the happiness and honour of her mistress were the first

thought of her heart ; and the sharpest tortures o f the
"
’
rack would never have extorted the youth s name from
lips of hers But one thing did grieve her much and
.
,

that was her dear lady s firm resolve that all must be ’

'
over for ever so soon as Attilio had e xchange d rings
,

with his brid e E milia Scarpa What can you be thinking .

‘

said the old woman D o you suppose you will be .

‘
 m
m
T HE E MB R O I D E RE SS OF T RE VI S O .

able quietly to endure that another sho ul d adorn he rse l f

.
.

with the flower that y o u have worn o n your breast ? As

sure as I love you lady more than the fruit of my own
body you will die of it your heart w
.
, ,

, ill break in twain ,

m m
’
like an apple when you run a knife into its i dst .
,

‘
Nurse said the Blon de you may be right B ut what of
,
’
,
‘
.

that ? Better that I should be destroyed th an the o ne I ,

m
,

l ove and this clear city which is the o ther of us both

,
’

‘
What folly you utter ! replied the old woman ’
I f he .
‘

love you as he says and I b elieve he will no t be able , , ,

to survive it ; and so your o bstinacy will bring abo ut the

death o f two A nd as fo r the city now that it is de =
.
,

fended by such a hero it ay safe ly challenge the e ,

‘

mity of three cities eachof them mightier than Vicenza

,
.
’

Such a rguments and others did A ttilio too u rge and ,

ever more and e re pressingly as the time drew near .

when he must bid an eternal farewell to the eyes he

adored .

m
“
He still hoped as he had hoped from the first day
, ,

to conquer her opposition and was resolved to sacrifice ,

everything for her Gianna o ri the other hand to whom

.
, ,
’
the bare idea o f her lover s heart ever growing cold and ,

m
regretting that he had linked his young life with her
faded one was far more bitter than *
_

artin or death
, p g ,

t ried whenever he assailed her with fresh entreaties to

, ,

t urn away his imp etuosity by some j est about he r age ,

'
and the inconstancy of men and to ake the Present so ,

sweet to him that in it he should forget the bitterness

,

of the F uture .

“
Meanwhile in both houses that of the B uo nfigli as ,
.

of the Scarpa preparations for the marriage were eagerly

,

carried on and in nine weeks from the triumphal entry

,

of the bridegroo a no less brilliant reception was ao

, .
.

corded by the inhabitants of T re v1so to the bride I f .

,
 '

T HE E MB RO ID E RE SS O F T R E VI S O .

however amongst the spectators there was even greater

,

general j oy than before b ecause of the now sealed and ,

ratified treaty be tween the two cities and also owing to ,

the presence of the young and richly adorned bride with

hér escort of sixteen bridesmaids all mounted on white
— w
,

m
j e nn é ts and ,
wearing costly apparel there were t o in ,

the festal procession who found it hard to conceal their

anger and annoyance one b eing the bridegroom himself ,
‘
,

who would rather have touched a snake than his bride ,

and the other S ignor Lo re nz acc io h is future brother in

, ,
-

law who secretly gnashed his teeth when he reflected

,

that he had to play a quite S econdary part to his young

rival s and wo ul d have gladly strangle d rather than
’
, ,

embraced hi and his kindred And yet a third heart

,
.

there was firmly closed against the rej oicings of the

,

day and that heart b eat in the b osom of the fair

,

Gianna for she knew that the night that followed would
,

be the last of her bliss Accordingly she had not as on .

the former occasion exerted herself to procure a seat in -

the tribune in front of the to wn b all but had kept at ,

’
home while Attilio rode by the stranger s side through
the streets and a very rain of flowers rustled down
,
.

m
ab o ut the pair Even in the afternoon while all the
.
,

peo ple were flockin g out to the meadow b efore the town ,

wher e within splendidly decorated lists a tournament

‘

was to be held she sat still at home lost in gloomy,

thoughts and her tears falling so fast she saw nothin g

,

0 my poor heart ! she

’
of the brightness of the day .
‘

sighed Now is the time to prove thyself strong enough

,
‘

to renounce thy own happiness ; and thou art so weak ,

thou e lte st away in tears Thou hast undertaken more .

than thou art able to perform True thou knewest not .

that love is a Wine of which every draught b ut increases

the thirst of those who dri nk Now the cup of thy bli ss .
 m
7 ,
0 T H E rE MB R oa nass or T R E vrso :
“ “

is t urned to poison that w

‘

ill slowly
no leech on earth nor help of all the Saints , heaven;
will avail to heal thee ! A t this m oment in c ame carat ’

lina and persuaded her to go out with her that at least

, ,

if she really were resolved to part from her beloved she .

might behold hi once more in the full splendo ur O f

his knightly prowess and beauty and a s conqueror of ,

all assembled

m
For the kind soul s ecre tly hoped that a
.

miracle would yet take place and her mistr e ss s mind ,

’

change . Accordin gly she dressed out the mourner (who

was passiv e as a child) with the utmost c are and led ,
.
_

her to the tilting fi e ld which was already swarming with

-

,
'

people and resonant with the neighi ng of horses an d

,
.
‘

’
blare of trumpets T here then G ianna standin g amongst
.
-

,
’

'
the crowd saw the bride sitting on a raised da1 s be
,
’’
- ~

tween the father and unc le of her bridegroo and ,

heard what people thought of her s ome admiring her to , _

the u tmost and others finding this or that to censure as

,

well as to praise ; The fair Gianna s p oke not a wo rd ,

and what she thought was never known O nly on two .

occasions she blushed deeply when of some young men ,

who p assed before her one exclaimed loud enough to ,

m
be heard I would give ten E milias for one Gianna the
,
‘

Fair ! an d the other Treviso carries away the palm in

’
,
‘

’
women as in arms ! and this led to many eyes bein g
b ent on the fair emb roideress , whose colou r suddenly ‘ “

changed into deadly pallor ; for at that moment S ignor

A ttilio rode into the lists armed cap ap l e except th at ~ -

his throat instead of b eing defended by a brass hau

“ “

-
.

b e rge o n which the Fr e nch call bardz er was only pro

’

, , .

te cte d by a slight leathern curta fastened to the .

helmet His visor was up so that all noticed ho w pale

.
,

he was a nd what sad and s earching glances he cast .

around and many marvelled at his asp e ct, seeing that

,
 T HE E MB R O I D E RE SS O F T RE VI S O .
71

he was such a triumphant young hero and a bridegroom

. .

to boot However he rode up to the da 1 s on which his

.
‘ ’

betrothed sat bent before her and allowed her to wind

, ,

about his helmet the scarf she had been wearing 1 ,

token that he was her knight Then the trumpeters blew

.
,

and from the other side came Si gnor Lo re nz accio riding

into the lists with visor closed i t is true but all knew
, , ,

him from his armour and device and hoped with all ,

their hearts to see him stretched on the sand by the

strong arm of his future brother in law It was however - -
.
, ,

otherwise decreed in the councils above For scarcely .

had the heralds given the signal with their staffs and
‘

the trumpets sounded than both knights charged with

,

lances in rest and their horses hoofs raised such a cloud

,

of dust that for a moment after the shock they were

, ,

lost to the view of the spectators who only heard the ,

sound of lances on shield and coat of mail followed by ,

sudden silence But when the cloud dispersed they b e

.

held with horror Attilio his feet still in the sti rrups,
,

thrown backwards on the saddle of his good steed (who

-

stood there motionless) a stream of blood flowing from

,

his throat the undefended whiteness of which a fforded a

,

welcome mark to the cruel weapon of his foe The .

conqueror faced him with his visor open as though de ,

siro ns to ascertain that his revenge was thoroughly ac

complished and after casting one last look of devilish
,

hatred at his Opponent closed his helmet and rode no

, ,

one applauding him slowly away out of the lists and

,

through the p etrified and horro r stricken crowds that -

could scarcely believe their eyes ;

' ’
Meanwhile A ttilio s squire and t he other attendants
hurried into the lists lifted the groaning man out of the
,

saddle and spreading a carpet on the sand laid him

,

thereon And then a loud wailing arose all order was

.
,
 m
m
'
T HE EMBR O I D E fiE S S o r T REVI S O .

'
over the p eople rushed wildly over the b arriers ; those
,
-

who occupied the tribunes hurried from their seats ; and

scarcely could the heralds succeed by remonstrance a nd
blows to clear so mil ch space about the dying man as ,

that his parents relations and bride might b e able to

, ,

reach him He however lay still with e yes closed and

.
, , ,

while so e la e nte d and others cursed the fiendish

'
,

malice of Lo re nz accio some calle d aloud for a leech , ,

and others for a priest to afford the last consolations to

the soul of the p arting hero n o s ound of pain cam e ,

fr o m his lips nor of regret at having so early to j oin the

,
’

heavenly hosts above R ather did this hard fate appear .

to him a rescue from hated bonds ; and when he heard

‘

'

his nam e called and recognized the vo ice of his bride '
,

he endeavoured to shake his head as though to tell her ,

that he would not breathe away his last breath in a

falsehood Then all at once the crowd that presse d
.

round this spectacle of woe parted asunder with a mur

mur of amazement for they saw the fair Giovanna pale, ,

as a s pectre yet crowned by the thorn crown of woe ,

,
‘
-

que en over all other women advance and enter the ,

circle : Go hence said she stre tching out he r hand to

‘
,
’
,
~

war ds the bride this dying man belongs to me and as

,
‘
,

during life I was his body and soul so in death too I

m
, , , ,

will b e with him and no s tranger shall rob me of o ne

,
’
sigh of his !
Then she knelt down by her beloved and gently ,

lifted his powerless head o n to her knee his bloo d ,

streaming over her festal attire Attilio said she do .

T
‘
,
’
,
‘

you know me ? Instantly he opened his eyes and sighed

’
,

‘
O my Gianna it is over ! Death has not willed that 1
,
-

should pledge to another the faith and truth that only

belonged to thee : I d ie ; my wife kiss me with the las t
.

'
,
’
kis s and re ce ive y so ul in thy arms !
i
 T HE E MB RO ID ERE SS or T RE V I S O .
73

Then she bent down to his lips and as her mouth ,

rested on his his eyes closed and his head sank back
,

on her lap A nd so m ighty was the compassion felt by

.

all for the noble pair that no one not even any of the , ,
.

Scarp as ventured to trouble the parting of the lovers

,
.

Nay when preparations began for carrying the lifeless

,

form of the young hero back into the city the people ,

divided into two processions one of which followed the ,

dead and the other the litter that bore his b eloved to
,

her house for she had swooned away by the side of her
,

lost friend That same night the young E milia returned

.

with her mother to Vice nza Her father however Signor .

, ,

T ullio Scarpa remained in the house of the B uo nfigli

, ,

in order to be present at A ttilio s funeral h imself ’

,

doubly a mourner for his daughter s sorrow and his

’
,
’
son s disgrace .

“
But when on the third day the beloved dead was
“

borne to his grave in the chapel of the Madonna degli

Angeli there was seen next to the bier and taking pre
,
‘

c e de nce of all blood relations the tall form of Giovanna , ,

,

dressed in deepes t black and wearing a widow s veil ,

’
.

And whe n she threw back the veil to kiss the brow of
the departed all the people beheld with astonishment
,

the marvel that had t aken place for the gold of her hair ,

which used to shine out from afar had in a few nights ,

changed to dull silver and her fair face was pale and ,

faded like that of an aged woman .

“
And indeed many thought she could not longe r
, ,

endure life but would follow her beloved

, Nevertheless .

she lived on for three years during which she never laid ,

aside her widow s garb and was never seen in any pub
’
,

lic or festive place In her retirement however she was .

, ,

industrious at her work for she had vowed to the chapel ,

of the Madonna degli Angeli a large banner on which ,

74 T HE E MB RO I D E RE S S O F T R E VI S O g

was r
epre sented the clad in white
archangel .

armo u r , and slay1 ng the dragon And it was repor te d . .

that the ange l s coat of mail was worked with her o wn

’ ‘

silver hair A n d this banner was placed next to the fir st

. .

which hung in the chapel over A ttilio s grave Thi s ’

.

task completed she held out no longer ; t hey bore the

,

embroideress too to her rest ; and granted her her l ast p e

tition to be buried at the feet of him she loved A nd

m
.
. .
,

that grave was long the r e sort of inhabit ants and stran
gers who went to admire the exquis ite work of both
,

banners and to relate to each other the story of Gianna

,

the Fai r who in life and death gave to her beloved

all she possessed —even to her honour —though she
,
'

might easily have preserved it unblemished had s he held

”
her peace 1

When the reader had ended there was an interval

m
,

of silence in the salo on and the rain the pattering of

, ,

m
which had form e d a melancholy a c comp animent to the
whole of the narrative was now the only s ound heard
,
. .

At last the young doctor at the chess table observed -

“

This story has somewhat of the gold tone of the Vene

tian school And this the palettes of our mod erns can
.

mm
no longer produce Yet I own it see e d to me as if
.
.

the copyist had introduced here and there some bold

”
touches o f his own .

”
_

“
The copyist ! said he of the sofa thro w g away ,

his cigar This shews you know little of E r inus He

.
“
.

'
has only been taking us in in order to contrast a highly ,
"

coloured pi cture with our faded hues Who will bet .

that this chr onicle of San Niccolo is not a much later

”
production than the far famed O ssian o f Macpherso n?
E rrrlinus se e e d to tu rn a deaf ear to these rem arks
r

”
“
And how do you e stimate the o rality of the story ?
asked h e addressing himself to Fra u E ugenie
,
.
 T HE E M B RO I D ER E S S OF TREV I S O .
75

The lady in question reflect ed for a moment then ,

said I do no t know that one could discuss so singular

,
“

a case in the light of precedent or example Have not .

di fferent times indeed di fferent manners and different ,

mm
modes of feeling ? I confess that a p ass1o n ate self sur -

render which does not reckon u pon eternal constancy ,

must always clash with my own sense o f right ; and that

it is only the tragic end that reconciles me to the
startling commencement And yet had the Fair Gio
.
,

vanna been my sister I should not have scrupled to

‘

walk with her hand in hand in the funeral proc ession

”
that followed A ttilio s bier ’
.

“
A better testimony to the o rality of the tale I
”
could not desire replied the narrator
, Allow e to .
“

”
kiss your hand in return .

E ND O F THE E MB RO I D ER E S S O F T RE V I S O .
 m
LO T T K A .

mm
I WA S not quite seventeen years old an o ver grown ,
-

pale faced young fellow at that awkward and e b arass

-

ing age which conscious of having out grown boyish

,
-

ways is yet very unsteady and insecure when seeking

,

to tread in the footsteps of men With an audacious .

fancy and a timid heart ; oscillating b etween defiant self

c o nfi de n ce and girlish sensitiveness ; snatching inquisi
tiv e ly at e very veil that hides from o rtal eyes the ys
te rie s of human life ; to day knowing the last word of-

m
the last question to morrow confessing the alphabet has
,
-

still to b e learnt and getting comfort after so restless

,

m
mm
an d contradictory a fashion that one woul d have been
’
intolerable to one s very self if not surrounded by fel
lows in misfortu ne — that '
is in years — who were faring
no better and yet continued to endure their p ersonality
, .

I t was at this time that I became intimate with a

singular fello w who was some two years older than I
' '
,

b ut like myself do o e d to spend nearly another year as

upper class student He did no t a tte nd the same gym
-

'
.

n asiu nor were his relations who lived out of Berlin

, , ,

at all known to i ne I am really puzzled how to ex

.

plain the fact that in spite of these obstacles we two b e

came so friendly that scarcely a day passed without his
,

coming up the steep stair s that led to y rooms I n .

-
 m
80 LO T T K A .

deed e ven then a third party seeing us together might

have found it hard to say what made us so essential to
each other He was in the habit of entering with a mere
.

nod walking up and down the room no w and then

, ,

opening a book or looki ng at a picture on the walls

, ,
’
and finally throwing himself into my grandfather s arm
chair — y substitute for a sofa—where legs cr ossed he , ,

would sit for hours speaking not a word until I had

, ,

finished my L atin essay O ften when I looked up from .

the book b efore me I met his quiet dreamy brown eyes , ,

resting on me with a gentle brotherly expression which ,

made me no d to him in return and it was a pleasure to

me just to feel him there If he chanced to find me .

idle o r in a communicative mood he would let me run

“

, ,

o n by the hour without interrup tion and his silent atten ,

tio n seemed to encourage and comfort me It was only . .

when we got upo n the subj ect of music that he ever

mm
grew excit ed and then we both lost ourselves in pas
, .

sio n ate debate He had a splendid deep b ass voice that

.
,

harmonized well with his manly aspect dark eyes and , ,

brown satin smooth skin And as he was also z ealously

-
.

studying the theory of mus ic it was easy for him to get ,

the b etter o f my superficial lay talk by weighty argu -

ments ; yet whenever he thus d rove me into a corner he

always seemed pained at my defeat I rem emb er him .
,

on one occasion ringing e o ut of bed formally to

,
‘

ap ologise for having in the ardour of controversy ,

.
,
'
spoken o f R ossini s B arbzere which I had been S trenu
’ ~

o usly upholding as a wretched shaver whose melodies

, ,

compared with those o f Mozart were o f little o re ao

.

count than the soap bubble s in his barber s b asin ;

’ -

In addition to o to the extreme placidity that cha

racte riz e d him he was always ready to do me a number
, ,

o f small s ervices such as th e yo unger stud ent usually

' ’

, .
 m
m
L O T T KA . 81

re nders to his senior and there were two ot her things

._
,

that help ed to rivet our friendship : 11 e l1 ad initiate d 1 .

me in the art of smoking and set my fi rst songs to ,

music The re was o ne I re e b e r which app eared to

.
,
'
,

us at that time p eculiarly felicitous both as to words and

melody a n d we us ed to sing it as a duet in all our
,

walks together
I hi k i th olde d ays
t n n e n
That a maide wa loved by me n s ;
B t my hear t i s ick
u d troubled s an
I t i all a dream may b

m
s -
e .

I thi k i th ol d e days
n n e n
was baski g i s u y blis s
,

O ne n n nn ;
B t whe t her I or a o t her ?
u n
I ca ot be sure of th is !

m
m
nn

Tha t I s g—
I th i k i th olde days
n n e n
b ut k ow
an t wha t n no ;
F I have f g t
o r. ll th i gs
or o t e a n
S ce bee by h forgo t
’ ”
i n I ve n er .

D ear and ridiculous season of youth ! A poet of

-

”
sixteen sings of the old myth o f his lost love s orro w “
-

m
,

and a musician of eighteen with all p ossible gravity sets .

,

the sobbing strophe s to music with a piano forte ac -

m
,

co p an i e nt that seems to foreshado w the outburst of the

c

’
world s denunciation on the head of the in constant fair !
We were however as I have already said so esp e
-
.

,
-

, ,

c ially pleased with this melancholy progeny o f our 1

united talents t hat we wer e not long conte nt to keep it

,
‘

to ourselves ; we burned with desire to send'

it forth to the
' ”
p ublic A t that time the D 1 e sde n 1E ve nrng T i e s un de r
.
“
.

the editorship of as I b elieve the late R ob ert S chneid er

, ,

admitted p oems over which y critical self esteem could - - -

no t but shrug its shoulders T o him therefore we sent

our favourite —anonymously o f course—in the full p er
-

.
, ,

suasion that it would appear in the forthcoming numb er

-

, ,

text and m usic both with the request that the unkno wn , . .

6
 LO T T KA .

contributor would delight the E vening Times with other

“

admirable fruits of genius Full of a sweet shyness spite

.
,

o f our incognito we accordingly took to haunting the

,

eating houses where that j ournal was taken in and

-

blushingly looke d out for our fi rst born But week after -
.

week passed by without s atisfying our exp ectations I

“

myself after twice writing and dignifie dly desiring the

manuscript to be returned gave up all hop e and was so
, ,

wounded and humiliated by this failure as first to throw ,

down the gauntlet to an ungrateful contemporaneous

world and contribute to the pleasure of more enlight
,

m
m
ened posterity in the form of a longer poem ; and then
gradually to shun all mention of our unlucky venture ,

even requesting B aste l (my friend s name being Sebas ’

tian) to leave o ff humming the tune which to o vividly

recalled to me the mortifying history .

He humoured me on this point but he could no t ,

refrain from privately carrying on his investigations in

pastry cooks shops the more that he was devotedly ad
-
’
,

dicted to cakes and sweet things It was then idsu .

mer and the small round cherry tarts were wonderfully

,
’
refreshing to an upper class student s tongue parched ,

and dry with L atin and Greek B aste l m ost seriously .

asserted that sweets agreed with his voice ; he was o nly

able to temper the harshness of his bass notes by plenty
of sugar and fruit j uice I on the contrary despised
-
.
,

such insipid dainties and preferred to stick to wine

, ,

which at that time did very little indeed to clear up any

mind I had But in virtue of my calling I was bound
.

”
to worship wine women and song and in the volume
“
, , ,

o f po ems at which I was working hard there was o f , ,

course to be no lack of drinking songs

,
-
.

We had now reached July and the dog days were ,

-

b eginning when one afternoon B aste l made his appear

,
 LO T T KA . 83

ance at the usual hour but in very unusual mood He

,
.

lit his cigar indeed but instead of sitt ing down to smoke
,

it he stood motionless at the window for a full quarter

,
”
'
of an hour drumming Non p z zz andraz on the panes
‘

“
, ,

and from time to time sighing as though a hundred

weight lay on his heart .

”
R astel
“
said I what s wrong ?
, ,
“ ’

No answer .

Are you ill? I went o n ; or have you had another

“

row with the ordinary ? or did the college yesterday .

”
give you a bad reception ? (He belonged to a certain
secret society much frequented by students and wore in ,

his waistcoat pocket a tricoloured watch ribb on which -

only ventured forth at their solemn meetings ) .

Still the same silence on the part of the strange

dreamer and the d rumming grew so vehement that the
,

panes began to ring ominously .

It was only when I left off noticing him that he in ,

coherently began to talk to himself There are more ,

“

things in heaven and earth but further he did not

carry the quotation .

At last I jumped up went to him and caught hold , ,

”
of his hand B aste l!
. I cried what does this fooling
“
,
“

mean ? Something or other is vexing you Tell it out

m
.
,

and let us see what can be done but at least spare my ,

window panes and behave rationally Will you light an

-
.

”
other cigar ?
He shook his head I f you have time
. said he
“
, ,
’
“
let s go out I may be able to tell you in the Open air
, .

”
This room is so close .

We went down stairs and wandered arm in arm - -

through quiet B ehren Street where my parents live d , ,

into Frederick Street When he got into the full tide of

.

carriage s and foot passengers he see e d to b e in a

-

, .

6‘
mm
m
84

m
m
mm
easure r eli eved He pre sse d y ar .

o ' e nt and broke out : It is ndthhi g v e ry partieular

life ”
.
,
,

P aul but I believe that 1 a in love and this ti e for

LO T T KA

s tood ts i ll a
“

m ‘
.

,
’
,

m
I was far fro l aughing at the declaration At the .

age of sixteen one believes in the endl ess du ratio n of

every feeling But I had read y Heine and considered
.

it bad taste to become sentimental over a love a ffair .

”
Who is the fortunate fair ? I lightly e nquire d
“
.

”
You shall see he r he replied his eyes Wandering
“

w
, ,

ab sently over the crowd flo ing through the street I .

“

”
will take you there at once if y o u are inclin ed .

C an o
“
n e '
go thus unc ere O nio usly witho ut bei ng.
«

b etter dress ed ? I have actually forgotten

m
”
She is no countess said he a s light blush s h ewing
“
, ,

m
through his dark complexion
‘

Just thi nk ! y est erda ’

y .
“

mm
when I wanted to look once more thro ugh the E ve ning
’ ‘

Times —yes I knowwe are not to speak of it but it has

to do with the whole thing —chance or my go od star
, ,

m
‘
,

led me to a quite out o f the way little cake shop arid

- - - -

there
He stopped short .

There you found her e ati ng che rry tarts a

“
nd th at -

won y o ur afi e cho n f laughe d I B aMe l id e o n

’
'
. VVe H fi .
“
, ,

gratulate you Sweets to the sweet E ut have J you al

. .
-

ready made such way as to b e able to cal culat e up bh

’
‘ ’

”
finding her again at the very same place ?
He gave no further reply My tone see e d to be .
_

discordant with his ood So indeed it at o nce b e dti e .

with my own but my principles did nO t allo w me to

,

express my s elf more feelingly Minor chords r e ained .

the exclusive property b f verse ; co nversation was to be ‘

carrie d on in a har sh and flipp ant k ey, the o re cold

blooded and ironical the b etter
‘

.
 m
We had walke d in silence for the most p art all the
l ength of Frederick Street to the H alle G ate , I for all
,
LO T T K A .

,
85

m
.

my air of in di fference actually consumed with curiosity

, ,

an d sy p athy whe n rny friend suddenly turned ; up one

,
.
.

of the las t side stre e ts that debou ch into the main art ery of
f

the great city Here were fo u nd at the time I am sp eaking

,
.

of several small one storie d private houses of mean ex

,
. -

terio r a fe w shops little traffi c so that the rattling of

, , , ,

cab wheels sufficed to bring the inhabitants to their

windows ; and numbers of child ren who played about
‘

freely in the str e et no t having to take flight b efore the

-

, ,

approach of any heavily laden omnibus When al o st -

.

m
at the end of this particular side street we came to a -
.

halt b efore a small house p ainted green and having ,

above its glass door a large and dusty black b oard with
-

”
the word Confectionery in tarnished gilt letters T o
“
.

the right and left of this door were windows with old ,

brown blinds closely drawn although the house was not ,

on the sunny side of the street I can see the landscap e .

on those blinds to this hou r! A ruined temple n e ar a '

pond on which a an with e ffaced features sat in a

, ,

boat angling while a peacock sp read his tail on the stump

,

of a willow tree The glass door in the middle looked

m
.

as though it had not been cleaned for ten years and , ‘

its netted curtain white once no doubt was now by , ,

reason of age dust and flies pretty much the colour o f

, , ,

the blinds .

I was startled when Sebastian prepared to enter this

ti n invitin g domicile : however I took care not to ruffle
-

him again and followed his lead in no small excite

,

ment .

We were greeted by a hot cloying smell which ,

under ordinary circumstances would instantly have

drive n e out again a smell of old dough and f e r ,
-

,
m
86

e ntingstrawb erries mingled w

,
L O T T KA

late and Vanilla a smell that onl y an inveterate sweet

,

tooth or a youth in love co ul d by possibility have con

sented to inhale ! Added to this the ro om was not
much more than six feet high and apparently never
.

ith a flav o ur of choco

,
,
'
~

ventilated ; except by the chance opening o f the door .

m
How my friend could ever have exp ected to find the
'
Dresden Evening Times in such an out o f the way shop - - -

as this was a puzzle to me V ery soon however I dis

covered what it was that had lured him again—spite of
.
, ,

his disappointment —into this distressing atmosphere .

Behind the small counter on which was displaye d a

limited selection of uninviting tarts and cakes I could ,

m
see in the dusky window seat behind the brown blind a
-

yo ung girl dressed in the simplest printed cotton gown

possible her thick black hair j ust parte d and cut short
,

behind a piece o f knitting in her b an ds which she only

, ,

laid down when after some delay and uncertainty we

had determined upon the inevitable cherry tarts My -
.

friend who hardly dared to look at her still less to ,

sp eak went into the narrow dark and o st comfortless

, , ,
”
little inner room where the V o ssische Jo u al and the
“
“

, ,
“
O bserver on the Spree outspread on a round table
before the faded sofa kept up a faint semblance of a
reading room A small fly—
,

-
. blinded mirror hung on the -

wall b etween the two wooden framed lithographs of -

King Frederick William III and Q ueen L ouise over .

,

which was a bronzed b ust of old Blucher squeezed in

between the top o f the stove and the low ceiling and
looking gruffly down .

Sebastian had thrown himself in feverish haste into

one corner of the sofa I into the other when the young
, ,

girl came in with the small plate s for the tarts I was .

now able to look at her leisurely for she waited to light ,

 LO T T KA . 87

a gas burn er it b eing already too dark to read She

-

,
.

was rather short than tall b ut her figure was so sym ,

metrical so round yet slender that the eye followed

, , ,

m
her every movement with rapture spite of her unbe ,

coming and almost ugly dress Her feet which were

,
.
,

made visible to us by her standing on tip toe to reach -

the gas burner were daintily small as those of a child

,

of ten her little deft snow white fingers looked as if

,
-

they had always rested on a silken lap What white .

things she had on a small upright collar cu ffs and a

, , ,
’
waitress s apron were so immaculately clean as to form
,

a striking contrast with the stained carpet dusty fu i ,

ture and traces of the flies of a hun dred summers

,

visible on all around .

I ought I am aware to attempt some sketch of her

, ,

face but I despair b eforehand Not that her features

, .

were so incomparably b eautiful as to defy the skill of

any and every artist But what gave the peculiar charm .

to this face of hers was a certain S pirituality which I ,

found it no easy matter to define to myself a calm me ,

lancho ly a half shy half threatening expression a spring

,
-

,
-

tide bloom which having suddenly felt the touch o f

, ,

frost no longer promised a j oyou s fruitful summer ; in

,

short a face that would have puzzled and perplexed

,

more mature decipherers of character and which could ,

not fail to make an i rresistible impression upon a dreamer

of sixteen .

What is your name Fraulein if I may venture to , ,

”
ask ? said I by way of opening the conversation my
, ,

friend seeming as though he had no more imp ortant o b

j e ct than the mere consuming of tartlets .

”
“
Lo ttka replie d the girl without looking at me and
, ,

already preparing to leave the room .

88 . LO T T KA

m
m
“

m
cried I .
“
H OW do yo u do e
“

tor have t hi s
Polish name ?
My father was a Pole
“
.

A n d then she was back aga 1n the shop -

Would you have the ki ndness Mis s Lo ttka to b rin

“
g ,
.
,
”
me a glass of bis/z ap I called after her
, , .

”
Directly was her reply
“
, .

m
Sebastian was studying the : advertisemen ts i n t h .

” ~
“
V o ssische Journal as ' though he exp e cted to ee
"
.

with the real finder of his lost heart there ll I t urne -

”
over the O bserver Not one word did we exchange
.
“
. .

I n three minutes in she came again bringing a glias

‘

,
.

of dark red wine on a tray I could not tu rn my ey e .

away from her white hands and felt my he art be at whil ,

‘

gathering courage to addre ss her again

Will yo u not sit a little with us F raule ? said I
.

m m
“
,

D o take my place o n the so fa and I will get a ch ai r , .

”
l

Thank you sir she replied without any primne s s

“
, , ,,

b ut at th e same time with almost insulting indi fferenc e

“
my p lac e 1 5 in the shop I f there is anything I c an d . .

for you
”
D o remain wh ere you are I insisted venturing t
“
, ,
'
catch hold of one of her hand s whi ch felt cool a n
s oo th and instantly slippe d out o f my grasp fT he s
,
.
‘

ne w
‘

spapers are h o rribly dull Allow us to intr oduc .

ours elv es My friend her e Mr

.
,

A t that moment the sh o p door o pened alittl e gir

1
-

pushed shyly m with two copp er coins in her s all fi st

,

fo r which she W anted som e sweeties O ur beauty availe .

herself o f this opportunity of declining our acquaint

" -

ance and after having served the child ; sat down agai
,
‘

in her window corner and took up her kni tting

‘

O ur p o siti on g rew more and m o re unb earable

to the tarts they were e aten long ago an d I: had; bar ii
O ut of embarrassment ; an d partly to give y self t he air
of an experienced wi ne bibber tossed o ff my glass of
bishop at a draught and now sat with bur ning brow
and wandering mind looking at the flies crawling along
the glass s edge and intoxicating themselves with the
’

crimson drops Sebastian was as silent as an Indi an

.
,
,

,
LO T T K A

-
:

,
m ,
89

Fakir and seemed to be listening intently to what was

,

going on in the shop where indeed there was not a ,

sound to be heard except now and then the click of the ,

m
knitting needles against the counter
-
.

Come y o u trapp ist said I at length we will p ay

“ “

our bill and get some fresh air My lungs are as it

, _
, ,

were candied For any one but a fly this atmosphere i s

.

insupportable .

”
Good bye pretty child said I at the c ounter with
“ -

, ,

all the importance o f a rou é of sixteen who has a v o ,

lume of lyrical p oems at home written in the s tyl e o f

Heine and ready for the press
, I hop e that we ay .
“

improve our acquaintance at some future time when you

”
are less absorbed Au revoir ! .

I should no doubt have indulged in greater ab

surdities but that she looked at me with so strangely
,

absent an expression that I suddenly felt ashamed of

my irnp ertine nce made her a low bow and hurried , ,

out into the street S ebastian followed me instantly ; he .

had hardly dared to look at her .

”
Now then he said as we rushed along thr o u gh the
“
, ,
”
silent street what do you say ? ,
“

That the bishop is very fair but the tarts execrab le

“
, .

I canno t understand ho w you forced your p ortion down

as well as half of mine I suspect that c o nfectioner s ’
.

”
shop of only selling old cakes bought second han d -

—I did not ask a bo

.

”
What of that ? growled he ut .

”
such things I want to know what yo u think o f bar
.
!

.
 LO T T KA .

My good friend I returned in an authoritative and

,

fatherly to ne What can o ne: say about a girl who is

.
“

able to breathe in that atmosphere ! Woman is ever an

”
enigm a as you well know
. .

(He nodded assent and sighed I had contrived

God knows how—to pass with him as a great discerner
;

of feminine spirits and was fond of introducing into my

,

generalisations the word Woman which has always a “

,

mystical charm for youths of our age )

This monosyllabic creature—that she is enchanting
.

it is impossible to d eny ! B ut I warn you against her ,

”
B aste l Believe me she has no heart
.
, .

“
You think so ? he interp olated in a horri fi ed tone
without looking at me .

“
That is to say she has either never had one or ,

destiny has changed it into stone in her breast O ther .

wise would she so coldly have turned away when I ad

dressed her ? She has a past I tell you perhap s a pre ,

m
”
sent also but no future ,
.

This stupendous sentence of mine thrown o ff in

mere thoughtlessness produced an unexpected e ffect
upon my chum He S tarted as though a snake had bit
.

ten him snatched his arm out of mine and said

You think the n that she —that she no longer—in a

m
,
“

”
word you doubt her virtue ?
I saw now the mischief I had done B e e asy .
“
,
”
child ,
said I thro wing my ar over his shoulder
,
.

“
Come we must not have a scene here
,
We have .

agreed woman is an enigma B ut as to character I have .

'

no grounds for suspecting hers I o nly meant to say .

,

take care that you do not get involved in an unp ro

‘

ising a ffair F o r she looks like one from whom a vic

.

tim would no t easily escap e ! If you like I will keep an

 m
LO T T KA .
or

eye upon her and I promise to render you every a ssist

,
”
ance th at one friend can to another .

We had now reached a dark and deserted street

corner S uddenly he embraced me squeezed my hand
.
,

as though bent on fusing it with his o w n and instantly ,

vanished up the nearest side street -

.

I for my part walked home very slowly in order to

grow cool and collected but the singular form I had ,

seen never left me for a o ment I was so feverishly .

abstracted at the home tea table that my good mother -

grew alarme d and sent me early to bed When I went

,
.

m
to my class the following morning I found I had not ,

prepared my Plato and was obliged to put up with,

many mocking remarks from the lecturer on history in

consequence of my having pushed the date of the b attle

m
of Cann ae a good century too far back The day was .

wet and I lounged down the street full of depression

,

and ennui Sebastian kept himself out of sight I stood

. .

an hour at the window on which he had drummed

”
Non p zz} ana z the day b efore and looked medita
’
’ ’
“ «
,

tiv e ly at the rain pools in the street below out of which

-

the sparrows were p icking a few oat husks I heard the ' -
.

horses stamping in the stable and the stable boy whist ,

-

’ ”
ling Weber s Jungfe Kranz and found myself sud
“

den ly whistling it too and stamping the wh ile I felt so

, .

absurd and pitiable that tears nearly came At length I .

armed myself with an umbrella and ran out into the ,

we t and windy street .

I had been invited to a p arty at a friend s house for ’

that evening but I had an hour to spare A nd this

, .

hour I thought could not b e better spent than in saun

, ,

tering through the street where the confectioner s shop ’

stood and p atrolling a short time on the other side to

,

watch who went in As it was already growing dusk I

.
 m
m m
mm
m m
92 LO I T K A J
‘

m
fe lt pretty well concealed under y u b rella sb ut all:
'
’

. .
. .

the same I was conscious ce r tain agreeable ys

te rio us sens ation as tho ugh playing an imp o rtant part in .

m mm
so e: deed: of ho no ur I n point of fact ; how e ver there .
,
!

was n o thing s re arkable to b e se en se ethe d . .

-
..

'
to be pretty well frequen te d but only by a hu ble e lass , .
‘
‘

of s choolb oys i ntent u on d evouring

p . .

their pocket mo ney coughing o ld Wo e n go fl ng in , .

: i
-
i
.

a penny worth of
_
-
young e n did -
.

'
not seem aware that b ehind tho se b rown blinds:lurked a ‘ ’

dangerous young
Much relieved by the res ult of my observation I . .
,

finally crossed the stre et j ust to findr out whethe r there

,

were anyf possibility of peeping in T he gas was L it irr .

'
both roo s b ut t he shop window was so1 well p rote oted
'
- -

m
,
,

that one c ould see nothing whatever fro without B ut .

on the othe r h and the blind of the reading r oo had a -

,

m
crack j ust acros s the back of the angle r S o I stoo d
;

. .
.

and looked in a go od deal ashamed o f myself fo r sp y

‘

m
, ,

ing And there on the ve ry same corn e r of the sofa:

.
,

th at b e o ccupied yesterday s art my poor frien d Se ba s

m m
,

tian before an empty plate covered with flies his eyes ,

wan de ring b eyond the newspaper into empty spa c e A .

singular thrill ca e over me half j ealousy half satisfac , ,

tion at his having got on no further Just as I was

m
“
,

w atchi n g him he made a movement as if to take up his

,

cap and leave I drew back from the windo w and crept
.
,
.

along the houses like a thief who has had the narrowest ,

e seap e of ca ptur e When I g o t to the house where I

.
:
‘

.
,

was expec ted I had of course to collect y wits I :was

, s
. .

m ore lively t han usu al and paid y court to the dau gh4 ,

ters o f the ho use with all the a wkward n o ne halanc e of a

!

an of the world o f sixteen nay ; I eve n allo W e d mys elf

‘

.
,

tof be p ersuade d to re ad o ut lrrryfl

-
'
s ast o e ; an d drank
“ (
m sev eral glass es o f strong Hungarian
e n either wi ser nor more mo dest
s truck
wine w hich made

I suddenly took my depart ure under the pretext

,

o f an appointment with a f riend To keep late hours

seemed to me c o ngruous with the character o f a youth
“

ful poet Had people but k nown that the real e ngage
.

ment was the copying out fair a German essay , all the
halo Would have v anished !
-
'
-
-

When ten o clo ck

.
LO T T KA

'
.

.
.
.

‘
,

"
’ ‘

And as it was that luckless essay fared badly e noug h .

m
The night was wondrously beautiful A fter lon g Co n
- k .
-

'

tinn ed rain the air was as so ft and exquisitely still as a

,

human heart j ust reconciled to a long estrange d fri end -

(I in oluntarily fall b ck into the lyrical s tyle o f those

m
v a
early days and the sky sparkled and sho ne with thou
sands o f newly washed star s In spite 'o f the l late n e ss of '
'

-
.
.

the hou r gir ls and wome n went chattering throu gh the

,

stre ets without hat or shawl with merely a kerchie f

‘

thro wn over their heads as though the lovely night had ,

m
enticed them out j ust to inhale befo re go i ng to b e d

m
, ,

one draught of fresh air afte r the disco fort of the day .

m
E very win do w stood open the roses gave out their fra ,

grane e ; one he ard Me nd elssohn s Songs without words ”

' ’ “

played on the piano or some S weet fe ale voice quietly ,

sin g in
g to itsel f .

H o w it happened 1I d id not know but all o f a

“

- - ~
.

sudden there I was again at the l ittle shop and had ,

-

ake o u
' ' '

110111 o f the fdo o r handle befo re I co uld t e ven

‘ ‘

to myself what it was that led me there .

A s I e ntered , Lo ttk a raised her head fro the coun

'
te r where it had been restin on her ar Her eyes
g
-

shewed th at she had been asle ep The bo ok oy er

.

f
.
,

which s he had b e e n tiring herself fell from her lap as ,

she ro s e .

1 have disturbed you Miss

“
I “ F or
‘

-
.
,
.
9
4
1

m
m m
give e I will go away at on ce I happened t o b e

yesterday you
,
t o n ne

pas sing b y—and as the night was so beautiful—as since

"

Would you be so kind as to give e

a g l ass of bish op Miss Lottka? ”
,

Strange that y usually reckless e lo que nee should

so regularly fail me in the p resence o f thi s quiet cre ature !
.

.
,
.

e
'

”
“
What have you b een reading ? I began again after
a pause w alking the while up and down the shop
,
A . . .
“

book from the lending library ? Such a torn shabby

copy is not fit for your small white hands Allow me
— —
. .

I have a quantity of charming books at home ro f

man e es too-

“
Pardon me she quietly rej oine d I have no time
, .
“

”
to read romances This is a French Grammar
. .

”
“
Yo u are studying by yourself then ?
I already speak it a little I wish to unde r stand it ,
”
more thoroughly .

She relapsed mto silence and b egan to arrange the ,

plates and spoons .

“
Miss Lo ttka s aid I after an i n
, terval during which ,

I had regained courage from a contemplation of the

ru ff old B ltrche r in the smaller room Are you happy “
‘

g ”
.

in the position that you occupy at present ?

She looked at me out of her large weary eyes with

t he amazement of a child in a fairy tale when suddenly -

addressed by a bird .

” '
“
How come you to put such a question ? she e n
quired .

“
Pray do not attribute it to heartless c ur1o sity I ,

went on in my excitement upsetting a small pyramid of

,

biscuits
— B elieve that I feel a genuin ely warm i nterest
“

—
-
.

in you If y o u n e e d a friend if anything has hap

pened to you —you understand me
e . .

—
Life is so ; sad
—
.
,

Miss Lo ttka and j u st in our yo uth r n

 LO T T KA .
95
I was flounderi ng deeper and deeper and the drops ,

stood on my brow I would have given a goo d deal if

.

that old Bl ucher had not encouraged me to make this

speech .

However I was spared further humiliation The .

door leading from the interior o f the house opened and ,

the person to whom the shop b elonged made her ap .

p e aranc e She seemed a good natured squ are woman

.
-
,

with a thick cap border who explained to me as civilly

-
,

as she could that I had already remained a quarter of

,

an hour b eyond the usual time of shutting up for that ,

she was in the habit of putting out the gas at half past -

ten A ccordingly I paid in all haste for my half emptied

.
-

glass threw an expressive and half reproachful glance at

,
-

the silent girl and went my way, .

That night my couch was not one of roses I made

a serious attempt to finish my German e ssay z— C om
.

parison between the Antigone of Sophocles and the

I phigenia of Goethe but what were either o f these
,

H e cub as to me ? I began to scribble verses on the

margin of the book and their melody had so lulling an
,

effect that not long after midnight I fell asleep in my

chair and in spite of the uncomfortable p osition never
,

woke till morning though in my verses I had confessed

,

myself once more in love ; and what o f all the untoward

circumstances of the case was the darkest in love with ,
’
the heart s choice of my b est friend !
This too was my first waking thought on the follow
ing morning I remember distinctly however that the
.
, ,

misfortune which I clearly saw to be ours did not after ,

all make me actually miserable nay that it rather exalted ,

my self complacency and rendered me very interes ting

-

in my own eyes as I had now a chance of personally

,

e xp eriencing all tha t I had hitherto merely read of I .

96

m L O T T KA .

m
w as inev onj uring up the disastro usl an d he art
er t ire d ‘

of c
'

m
_

re n din
g s ce n e s t o whi ch this c o p lic atio n xnrust n e c e s
“

mm
sarily l ead an inde finablysrp leasurable kind o f p ity
‘ ‘
r
. .

for myself for Sebastian and for the innocent s o urce; of

, ,
"
o ur woes suffused all my th ough ts - .

I nste ad o f where I s ho uld

’

have had 350 a pp e ar fwitho ut t he sG e rrrian essay I pref ,

t

fe rre d to v is it the he dge school gas the French say “ -

‘

.
,

m
.

mm
that is to l ounge ab out the park and t here on a lonely .
,

bench in the o st o ut o f the way corner commit y = a e -

.

,
. .

'
y outhful sorrows to zp ap e r H ei n e and E iche ndo rflwere .

m
at that t i e contending fo r -

y immort al sou 1 O n th a t . .

part icular morning I rwas tnot y et :ripe for the irony of

m
”
the Buch der L ieder and the tree t op s rustled too ro
'
“ -
,

mantically above my head f o r the utt e rance of any tone s

b ut s ueh as suited a yo u thful scapegrac e A bout noon . ,

I rsaw with r e lan cho f

'

mmm
fy s at isfaction that the p oem e n .

'
ti tled L ove ? begun 1 that o rning would form a !
,

very considerable add itio n vo lu e if it went on

’ ‘

.
.
,

l ong at this rate .

fternoon zwh e n 1 :sat thi nk ing n 0 1evil in

’

_
t
In he a y _
, ,

ro om an d a tte p ting lto drawzt he ; p ro file o f my secretly

’

, .

b e lo v e d o ne from memory I she ard S e b astian s Step on the

’
r
-

f «

, .

s ta ir I hastily hid away the s he et o f p ap e r an d dipp ed

. - r s
,

y p e n in the ink stand to sse e as though I w ere inte r

’

f '

m
s .

rup te d at y work W hen he entere d I had not the .

‘

r - .

heart to look up at ihi

! He too gave me a very cursory greeting stretched ,

himself out as usual in my arm chair and be gan do

_

In about half an ho ur he as ked - -

,
”
Have you been there again ?
“

Yes“
replied and s eem ed to be v e ry busy lo ok ,

i ng o ut a word ; my lexicon
=
. .
 m
m
LO T T K A .
97
And what do you think of her now ?
“

What I think ? I have not yet found out the r iddle .

'
So much howeve r I kno w that she is not a flesh and
, , ,

blood girl but a water nixie a Melusina col d even to

,
-

, ,
‘

her heart and who knows whether her very fi gure does
,
’

' ' ”
not end like a mermaid s desz t in p zsce P ’ ’
’
‘

He sprang up I must b eg you not to speak in

.
“

”
such a tone !
Patience o ldboy said I

m
”
“
D o not go and sup
, ,
.
“

pose that I think lightly of her A past history she has .

that is quite clear B ut why need there b e any harm in

'
.

it l Suppose there were only some misfortune a great

.
,
”
grief or a great love ?
,
”
You think so ? and he looked at me anxiously and
“

sadly .

I should not b e ! at all surprised

“
I continued if , ,
“

she with those preco cious eyes and that wonderful co

,

p o sure had already traversed the agonies of hop eless

,

love D o not forget her Polish father Polish girls b e

. .

gin early both to excite and to feel passion How the ’

.

poor child ever go t into that fly trap God knows But
‘

, .

you and I together should find it difficult to deliver her

out of it .

After that followed a sile nt quarter of an hour ,

m
during which he turned over my MS p oe ms . .

I should like to C opy out this song ”

“
he suddenly ,

said reaching out a p age to me .

”
What for ? asked I B aste l I half susp ect you .
“
,
”

m
want to pass it o ff as your own .

”
Shame upon you ! returned he with a deep flush
“
,

I give myself out for a poet ! B ut I have a tun e run

ning in my head ; it is long since I have composed any
”
thing .

L ook out something better and

“
o re cheerful ,

B af fin ras ,
e tc.
7
9
8 LO T T KA .

What could you make of that feeble minded whimper ?

.
-

”
That song is half a year old (dated from that olden ‘

time that I could not myself distinctly remember !)

’

He had taken back the sheet and was now bending ,

over it being somewhat short sighted and singing in

,
-

a low voice the fo llowing verses to a simple p athetic

melody
H w c l d I e er d e s erve thee
’
o ou
B y s erv i g lo g years th ough
,

n n r
Though h u wer t fai t w me t o n o o n
M os t s tedfas t d mos t t ue
,

an r
O wha t though high e al te d
.

r x ,

Though glory were my meed

L ove i a f ee gift from ab ve
s r o
De s er t it will n t heed
,

o .

Thou tree with head low be di g n n ,

T hy blossoms may p rove vai n

Who k ows if G d will se d thee
n o n
T h bless i g of hi rai ?
e n s n
Thou hear t by j y d a guish o an n
P roved d re fi e d i deed
an n n :
L ove i a f ee gift f om”ab ve
s r r o
De s er t it will t hee d
,

no .

He sprang up j ust gave me an absent nod and

, ,

rushed out o f the room .

Not long after I went out mysel f I had no p artic u .

lar obj ect except to quiet the tumul t in my veins by

,

b odily fatigue .

'
A fter w alking with great rap idity abo ut the town for
an hour or so I found myself unintentionally in the
“

neighbourhoo d of the mysterious street It attracted and .

repelled me both I had a dim consciousnes s of not

.

having played a very creditable part the night b efore .

I was pretty sure that the young stranger who had so

zealously o ffered himself as her knight would be greeted ,

by a satirical smile by Lottka But that was reason the .

‘

more I argued fo r seeking to give her a b etter impres

, ,

sion of me A n d therefore I plucke d up courage and

.
,

r apidly turned the c orner

. .
 m
m
LO T T KA .
9
9
At the same moment I was aware of my friend and
rival his cap pressed down on his brow advancing with
, ,

m
great strides towards the small green house from a con ,

trary direction He too was aware of me and we each

.
,

of us came to a halt and then turned sharp round the

fo llo wing o e nt as though we had mistaken our way .

My heart beat wildly Shame upon our ridiculous

.
“

”
reserve and suspicion of each other ! I inwardly cried ‘
,

feeling that if thi s went o n I sho uld soon hate my best

m
friend with my whole heart .

I was in the angriest of moods while retracing y

steps and reflected whether the wisest and most manly
,

course woul d not be to turn r ound again and take my

chance even if a whole legion of old friends stood i n
my way Had I not as much right as another to make
.

a fool of myself about the girl ? Was I timidly to draw

back now after sp eaking out so b oldly yesterday and
o ffering myself as champion to the myste rious encha
’ ’
tress ! Never ! I d go to her at once though the world
fell to pieces !
I turned in h aste —there stoo d Sebastian In my .

excitement I had not even heard his quick step s follow

ing me .

”
“
You here ! I cried in counterfeit amazement .

Paul he replied and his melodious voice slightly

We will not act a part We—
, ,

trembled .
“
we have been .

fond of each other you and I But b elieve me if this

, .

were to go on I could not stand it I know where you .

are going : I was bound the same way mysel f You

love her—do not attempt to deny it I found it out at
.

once .

“
And what if I do love her ? cried I half de fiant ,
-

and half ashamed -

I confess that the impression she
.
“

has made on me
 L O T T KA .

“
C ome he re under the gateway said he We are , .
“

blocking up the way and you s pe ak so loud you will

,

attract attention You s e e I was right ; indeed I sho uld

.

have b een surprised if it had not turned out thus But .

you will agre e that it is imp ossible to go on O ne or .

”
other must retire .

”
“
Very well returne d 1 , endeavouring to assume an
,

ini mical and dogged expression O ne of us must retire

-

.
“
.

O nly I do not see why it should b e I Just because I .

am the younger by two stupid years , t hough as ad

”
v an c ed a student as y ourself .

I had hardly spoken the hasty heartle ss words b e fo re

I regre tted them A t that moment they sounded like a
.

humiliating b oast .

”
“
Besides I hastily added
,
it does not signify so ,
“

muc h which of us takes pr e ceden ce as who it is she ,

cares for At pre se nt you and I seem to have equally

.

p oor prospects .

“
T hat is true he said But n one the less I cannot
, .
“

find it in my heart to enter into a contest with you ; and

then you are the bolder the more fluent I should give
w
, ,

up the game beforehand if e were both to declare our

m
feelings for her : you know what I mean .

”
I f this be S o I rej oined lookin g with artificial in

m
“
, ,

di fference through the dark gate way into a garden where

a lo nely ro se tre e b lo ssomed ; if y o u have n o t mo re
-
“

confidenc e in yourse lf than this you cannot after all be ,

so much in lov e as you suppose and as I can fairly s ay ,

”
I am I have spent a sleepless night (I did not reckon
.

those seven hou rs snatche d in a chair) and a waste d .

“

day A nd so I thou ght

.

'
I c ould no t e nd my s e ntenc e T he pallo r o f his
“

good true hearted face she wed e how

"
'
,
-
u ch more .

deeply he was affected by this co nversation than I for ,

 LO T T KA . I O I

mm
whom indeed it had a certain romantic charm I felt .

fond of him again .

”
L isten said I we shall never get on this way I
“
.
, ,

see that neither of us will retire of his own free will .

”
Fate must decide .

“
Fate ?
O r chance if you prefer it I will throw down this .

piece o f money I f the royal arms are uppe rmost you

.
,

have wo n ; if the inscription

“
D o so he whis pered
,
Although it would be .
“

fairer
“
Will you cry done ?
”
Done !
The coin fell to the ground I stoop ed down in the .

dim light we were standing in to make sure of the fact .

”
Which is upper o st ? I could hear him murmur ,

while he leaned against the door post He himself did -

.

”
not venture to look B aste l said I .it cannot be
“
, ,
“

helped The inscription is uppermost You understand

. .

that having once appe aled to the decision of Provi

dence
He did not move and not a sound escap ed his lips
, .

When I drew myself up and looked at hi I saw that ,

his eyes were closed and that he stood as if in a ,

trance .

’
“
D on t take it so to he art said I Who knows ,
.
“

but that in two or three days I may come and tell you
that she does not suit me that the field is open for you , ,

and that
“
Goo d night he suddenly whispered and rushed
, ,

away at full speed .

I only remained b ehind for a moment At this .

abrupt departure the scales fell from my eyes I was .

con scious that my fe elings for the mysterious being

 LO T T K A .

m
were no t to b e compared with his and that I should b e ,
.

a villain if I were to take advantage of this foolish ap

l 3 -

p eal to chance .

In twenty yards I had caught him up and had to ,

‘

employ all my strength to keep hold of him for he was ,

bent on getting away .

“
Hear me I said I have changed my mind Nay
, .
“
.
,

you ust hear me or I shall believe you were never in

,

earnest in your friendship for me I solemnly swear .

“
, ,

B astel that I make way for you

, I resign utterly and .

for ever every wish and every hO pe I see it all clearly

, . .
‘

You could not recover it if she were to pre fe r me I ‘

why I sho uld make up my mind ! You kn ow one does not

‘

die of it even if all one s dream blossoms do not c ome ’

-

to fruit Give me your hand B aste l and not another

.
, ,
”
word about it .

He threw himself on my breast I meanwhile feeling .

very noble and magnanimous as though I had re ,

n o unce d a kingdom to which I was he ir in favour of .

,

som e cousin b elongi ng to a collateral line Any one .

who had seen us w alking on for an ho ur hand in hand ,

and b een aware that we were d isp osing of a fair crea

‘

ture who had prob ably never given either of us a

thought could hardly have refrained from laughing at
,
.

so shadowy an act of g enerosity I insisted upon .

-

accompanying him at once to the shop I was bent .

upon proving that my sacrifice did not exceed my

”
strength Success to you ! I cried as he turned the
.
“
,

handle of the door and I shewed him a cheerful face

,

A n d then I went away wr apped in my virtue whose "

,

heroic folds were full comp ensation for all that I had .

resigned .

I slept so soundly that night that I felt ashamed o f

‘

myself the next morning for not having dreamed of her .

 m
LO T T K A . 1 03

”
Could it be that the flame of this ne w love had gone “

out thus suddenly not leaving so much as a spark b ehind ?

,

I would not allow it to myself and thereby diminish the ,

importance of so tragic a collision A s it was Sunday

m
.

I had plenty of time to give myself up undisturbed to

my happy unhappy sensations
-
A few verses written .

down that morning still linger in y memory : .

S d ad co sume d by e viou s d e s re
an n n i ,

A C i derella s i s bes ide th fi

n t e re
T h hear th g ows cold th ashes fl
e ry abou t , e ,

T here i su shine i th i with u t

s no n n e a r o .

O h s tra ge that f i e d hip shoul d so cruel prove

n r n s
A t i fls ic t a pa g
o n year i g L n on n n ov e :
P le d half bli d h weeps t h lo g hours thro
’
a an -
n s e e n
! t e t hey ch ild e
ar e of o ther t ! r n o ne oo

Love decks herself d prou dly lifts her head an

M ore d more glows h c heek s sof rosy red
an er
’
t
T h pale e bears th weigh t of house hold care
o ne e
I gamesn d da ces ever claims a s hare
an n n .

! t whe
e her s is ter comes home la te t igh t
n a n ,

P oor C i derella laugh n d poi s wit h sp i e s an nt t

Blood s your shoe for all you re gaily dres t
’
on
’ ’

A d thus she robs th proud

,

n of h res t I e o ne er

m
And yet people p ersist in calling youth the time o f
unclouded bliss — youth which through mere mental con ,

fusions and self invented tortures lets itself be cheated

-

out of heaven s b est gifts ; counterfeits feelings in order

’

to achieve unhappiness and passionately presses the nu ,

attainable to its heart !

About a fortnight may have sp ed away without y

ever seeing my fortunate rival e xce pt b y accident al .

glimpses From some delicate scrup le fo r which I gave

.
, ,

him full credit he left o ff climbing the stair to my

,

study as heretofore and if we met in the streets we soon

,

parted with a commonplace word or two and a pretty ‘

cool shake of the hand .

 mm
1 04 ? LO T T K A .

However by the time we reached the third week

,
-

,
‘

this estrangement becam e intolerable to me I t was holi ‘

“ .

day time ; the days were too hot for wo rk or exerc ise .

and I ev en found the Castalian foun t run dry I b e ‘

.
‘

'
came aware that the silent presence of my friend had
grown to b e a positive want I longed even to hear .

'
his deep v o ice sing once more I think in the ol den ,
“

”
days and was as unco fortable in my isolation as
,

Peter S chlemihl when he had lost his Shadow .

At last I determined to seek him out He lived the .

other side of the Spre e in an upper roo of a house .

’
belonging to a tailor s wife by whom his cooking was ,

done and his fe w wants attended to ; I must just men

,

tion here that he received a very small allowance from

' '
his family and made up the de fi c it by giving music
,

lessons for which indeed he was but poorly pai d

,
'
.

When I entered his little room he was sitting at an

old hired piano and writing down some notes in a
, ,

music book on his kne e He j ump ed up with an e xcla

-
.

mation of pleasure let the book fall and caught hold

,
.
,

of my hand in both his He made me sit down o u the .

-
.

hard sofa and light a cigar and spite o f all I could say ,
'
,

would have me drink a glass of beer whi ch the tailo r s K

’

wife fetch e d from the nearest tavern At first we said .

but little as was our wont but often looked at each

, ,

other smiled and were heartily glad to be together

, ,

again .

”
“
B aste l sai d I at length shrouding mys elf as com
,
z
,
:

p le te ly as I possibly could in tobacco smoke I have a -

,
“

confessio n to make You need no longer keep up any

reserve with me about—
.

you know what The wound .

”
inflicted by a certain pair o f eye s (again the old lyrical
style this time with a touch of Spanish colour) e ither
,
‘

,
“

was not so deep as I at first b eliev ed it o r else ab ,

 LO T T K A . 1 05

sence has done wonders Suffice it that I am perfectly .

recovere d and if you have turned these last weeks to

,

good account and been made happy I shall rej oice with ,
”
you unqualifi e dly .

He looked at me with b eaming eyes I s it really .

“

”
so ? he said Well then I can tell you you remove a
.
“
, , ,

great weight from my heart I have reproached myself .

a hundred times for acce p ting your sacrifice and my ,

best hours with her have b een embittered by the thought

of having done you wrong I did not indeed feel sure .

that you would have b een satisfied with what made me so .

happy A nd besides I felt that it would have been wholly

.

impossible for me to have renounced her But now .

”
now all is right .

And again he pressed my hand his j oy so genuine

.

and touching that I felt myself and my artificially excited

feelings very small indeed in comparison
,
.

He then went o n to tell me how far matters had ad

v an c e d It certainly did require a modest nature and a
.
,

very sincere affection not to b e rather disheartened than ,

encouraged by the amount o f progress made in the

course of three entire weeks He had gone evening .

after evening to spend an hour in that small reading

,

room It was plain that his silent reverential homage

.

had touched her and the last few evenings she had ,

permitted herself to sit with him and keep up an in ,

nocent chat O nce even when he was two hours later

.
,

than usual she received him with evident agitation and

, ,

confessed that his delay had made her anxious She .

had become she said so accustomed to their daily talk

, , ,

and as there was no one else who took the least interest
in her ; and then she stopped — perhaps because he to o
vehemently expressed his delight at this her first kind
word He for his part had told her all ab out his rela
.
, ,
 m
rurrxaa
'
tions and everything conn ected with himself that could
,

in any way interest her But she had no t c o nfi de d to .

-
-

him the very slightest particulars about he r family or . ,

b e f past history had only said how she was pining l n

,

this dark sho p corner and longed to go far a way into

‘
“
- -

, ,

foreign lands She had be en putting by she nto ld hi

.
, ,

for a year p ast to meet tr avelling expenses ; and private ly

teaching herself b oth French and E nglish in ord er to
go into the wide world at the first opportunity -
I f you .
“

m
”
had only seen her P aul said he at the end of his nar
, ,

rativ e and only heard her voice how sadly and re

,
“
,

sign e dly she told me all this you would have p ledged ,

your life that no evil thought had ever stirred her heart ,

that she was as pure and innocent as saints and ange ls

are said to be and you would understand my resolve to
,
”
leave nothing undone in order to make her happy .

”
“
You really then mean to marry her ?
“
Can you doubt it ? That is if she will accept e .

She must have p lainly se en that my intentions were

honourable although as to any formal declaration y o u
, ,
.

know that my heart ove r flows least when it is fullest .

m
A n d besides th ere is no h urry S he cannot b e thinking
of leaving for some time to come and as for me —if I
.

make great efforts in four or five ye arsl

“
Four or five years ? Why you will scarcely h ave ,

passed your legal examination .

”
“
True he re j oined But I h ave given up the idea
-
.
“

o f it I shall not seat myself on the long bench of law

.

students which is but a ric kety o ne after all I think I

,
.

can in a sho rter time make something o f u sic and at

—
-
-

the worst if we are not able to get on here and i nd eed

my parents would hardly b e pleased at the marriage
we can seek our fortune in A meric a
I looked at him sideways with pride an
.

d amazement .
 m
m
He seemed to me to have suddenly gro wn ten years
older and I confessed to myself that all the lyrical e n
thusias

hi
“

.
,

of my views of life would not have rendered

me capable of so ho ld a plan
A nd she I asked ; will she consent to this ?
”
,
”

I do not know he replied looking straight before

As I told you before I have never asked her
“
,
LO T T K A

“
,

,
. .

,
10 7 .

point blank O ur talk onc e turned on marriage She

-
. .

said most p ositively she should never marry Not if .

‘

the right man appeared ? I ventured to put in Then ’

.
‘

m
’
least of all said she suppressing a sigh So one o f us
,
.

”
is wise it seems .

”
“
Nonsense said I All girls say the same to begin
, .
“

”
with Afterwards they think better of it .

It seems too that she is a year older than we

‘

thought—only a month younger than I am A propos I

, ,

.
,

have a request to make to you ; that is if you are ,

able
“
C o e no preamble , You know that I am never .

”
shy of askin g you to do me a favour .

“
To morrow is her birthday I had just contrived to
-
.

fi nd out the date when she said that she already felt ,

herself very old and was weary of life That if she , .

knew she were to die on the morrow it would give her no

regret I was busy j ust when you came in writing out
.
,

the air of one of your songs : you know the one begin
n ing ,
How could I e er deserve thee ? and I meant to
‘ ’ ’

give her a nosegay with it But it d o es grieve me to .

think that I have nothing b etter to offer her She has .

her dress fastened with an old black pin and its glass ,

head is cracked A little brooch would be sure to please

her—only uriluckily my piano and singing lessons are
.

over j ust now most of my pup ils are away and so I

, ,

cannot get at some fees that are o wing ; and to sell any
 LO T T KA
‘

of my effects is imp ossible since all the supe rfluitie s I ,

s

had
'
H e lo oked with sad irony ar ound his b are apart ?

m mm
ment .

”
We must contri ve somethi ng I said It stands ,
.
“

to reason that the birthday must b e duly honoure d .

”
Certainly I am no Croesus at this moment and there _

with I drew out a very small purse from my pocket in ,

'
which rattled only a few insignificant coins but at all '

events I have some superfluities I t now occ urs to .

me that I have not used the g reat P assow for some

months never indeed since I accidentall y discovered
w
, ,

little R ost at y father s in hich one can hunt o ut

’
,
'
words so much' more conveniently Co e l The old .

folios will he lp us out of a d ifficulty .

After a few weak endeavours to preve nt my l aying

this offering upon the altar of friendship he acco ,
~

p anie d me to my room and then we each loaded our ,

selves with a volume of the thick lexicon And an hour

‘
.

later richer by fiv e do llars we betook ourselves to the

, ,

sh 0 p of a small working goldsmith as we had not -

courage to make o ur intended purchase at one of the

m
g reat j ewellers of Uni/er den L inden .

It is probable that o ur man taxed us no less heavily

m m
. .

But however he treated us like two young princes who

, , .
,
.

in Haroun al R as chid mood had chosen to knock at a

- -

'
.
'

lowly door; For a gold snake which after a few coils

took its tail into its mouth and glared at us with two
‘

.
,

square ruby eyes he asked ten dollars but let himself

, ,

he b e at down to seven the p in being probably wo rth

.

about half that su I t was I who had to carry on the

.

w hole transactio n Sebastian w as so embarrassed and

. !
,
.

ab sorb e d hi self so persi ste ntly in t he e o nte platio n of .

 LO T T K A . 10 9
. the other ornaments on the counter that the shopkeeper
’

v ide n tl
y grew suspicious and kept a sharp look out ,

after him as though he might be having to do with

,

pickp ockets .

'
“
Here is the trinket said I when we got into the
street an d now go o d night and I say —
, ,

,
“
you may j ust ,

congratulate her from me too to morro w B ut indeed I -

.

ought to hope that she ha s forgotte n all about me I .

certainly did not display my best side to her L et me .

see you ag ain soon and come and tell me what effect ,
.

the snake has produced in thy Paradise happy A dam ,

”
that thou art .

A nd so I left him c onscious of a faint glimmer of ,

envy But I manfully trod out the first sp arks and as I

.
,

walked alo ng the park in the cool of the eveni n g sang ,

aloud the following song whic h apart from the an achro ,

n ism o f budding roses in the do g days gave a pretty -

faithful description of the mood I was then in :

T he roses are almos t full bl w -
o n,
Love hi gs t hi delicate
n ou s ne t
T hou bu tt e fl y fi ck l d frail
‘
r e an
A way thou s hal t ever more g t
’
n

m
e .

A h me ! were I p iso er here

‘
r n ,

W i h roses all budd i g arou d

t n n
Thou h satis fied Love wove th band s
,

e
M y uth would rep i e t b b u d
,

o n o e o n .

N mus i g d lo gi g for me
o n an n n
I s tray t hro t h woods as I will
’
e

M y hear it p i io s fj y
.

t on s n n o o

S oars beyo d d above them s till !

’
n an

The following eve ning I was sitting inno ce ntly and

unsuspicio usly with my p arents at the tea table when I -

,
.

was c alled o ut o f the ro o : a friend it se emed wished :

to sp eak t o me I t was about ten o cl ock and I wo n

.
.
’
,

de red who could b e paying me so late a visit .

When I entered my room I found S ebastian as usual

 IO LO T T K A .

m
in the grand paternal arm chair but I started whe n ‘

, ,

turning the light ou his face I noticed his pallor and ,

look of despair .

”
Is it you ? cried I And in such agitation ? H as .
“

”
the birthday celebration come to a tragic end ?
‘

”
Paul
“
said he still motionless as though some
, , ,

h eavy blow had stretched him out th e re All is over ! .

“

”
I am a lost man !
You will find yourself again my good fello w
“ ”I r
e , ,

plied Come let me he lp to look for you Tell e all

.
“
, .

about it to b egin with .

No j esting if you would not drive me out of the

“

room I tell you it is all too true I have only now

. .

fully discovered what an angel she is and I have seen ,

”
her for the last time
Is she gone away—gone to a distance ?
. .

“
.

He shook his head gloomily O nly by very slow de .

grees could I extort from him the cause of his despair . .

Briefly it was as follows : He had found himself in the

presence o f his beloved at the usual hour and after ,

eating an extra tart and drinking a glass of bishop in

honour of the day he had brought out the gifts with
,

which he meant to surprise her in a sequence which

.

seemed well advised First he had freed the bouquet.

from its paper coverings and she had thanked him with ,

a kindly glance and put it at once in a glass of water

, _
.

Then he gave her the song and sang it for her under ,

his voice she sitting opposite with downcast eyes and

, ,

giving not the slightest sign by which to judge whether

she saw its application or not
—
O nly when he had .
_

ended she held out her hand a favour of which she

was chary —and said in a cordial tone : It is very
.

“
.

kind of you to have thought o f my birthday and to ,

‘

have brought me such beautiful flo wers and such a

 LO T T KA . I I I

charming song There is nothing I love so much as

.

flowers and music and I very seldom come in for either

,
.

I shall soon know the tune ; indeed I half know it

”
now He could not part with the hand given him and
.
,

as her gr aciousness had inspired him with courage he ,

now brought out the serp ent pin and placed it in her -

,
-

”
hand . Here is something else he said ; it is but a
“
,
“

humble offering but I should be very happy if you

,
”
would not disdain to wear it .

She looked full at him opened the little case slowly ,

and with evident reluctance and as soon as she saw the ,

shi ning of the gold dropped it on the table as though the

,
”
metal had been red hot Why have you done this ? she
-
.
“

said hastily rising

, I have not deserved it from you
.
“

at least I do not think I have behaved in such a way as

to authorise you to make me a present like this I see .

I have been mistaken in you You too think meanly .

, ,

of me because I am poor and dependent I cannot .

”
conceal that this pains me from you of all people and , ,

her eyes grew moist Now I can only request that you
.
“

”
will instantly leave me and never return and with that , ,

she laid the flowers and song down before him on the
table and spite o f his distracted assurances and e n
,

treaties with burning face and tearful eyes she contrived

,

to elude him and not only left the little inner room but
, ,

the shop as well .

I t was in vain that he awaited her return ; in her

stead the square built woman entered but apparently
-

without the least idea of what it was that had scared the
young girl away A full half hour he continued in a
.
-
.

most mise rable state of mind to occupy his accustomed

‘

seat on the sofa But as she remained invisible he at

.
,

length took his departure and once in the street plucked , ,

the n osegay to piec e s, and tore up the song into shre ds ,

 m
LO T T KA .

and — There
“
he cried is that wretched pin that has
, ,
“

made all the mischief you may take it and give it to

, ,

whom you will ! I could hardly resist the temptation as

”
I came along to open a vein with it .

”
“
A nd is that all ? enquired I coolly when he had ,

co e to an end of his shrift .

He sprang up as if to rush away I see I might .

“

”
have spared myself this visit ! he cried You are in so .
“

philosophical a moo d that a friend expiring at your

”
s ide wo u ld seem nothing to wonder at Good night .
-
.

“
Stay I remonstrated
,
You ought to be very glad
.
“

that one o f us at least has the use of his five se nses .

The story of the pin is a m ere trifle Who knows .

whether she did not rej ect it after all from the sup e rsti

m
tious fancy that pins pie rce frie ndship O r even if there .

were more in it if she actually fe lt a suspicion that you

,

meant it as a bribe that is still no cause fo r despera

,

tion ; on the contrary she has proved that she is a good

girl and resp ects herself; and if you go to her in the
,

morning as tho ug h nothing had happ e ned and in your ,

o wn true hearted way explain

m
-

“
You forget she has forbidden me to return .

“
Nonsense ! I would bet anything that she is already
v e ry sorry she did so Such a faithful Fridolin is not to
.

b e met with eve ry day and whatever she may think she
feels for you —whether much or little —she would be
,

conscious of missing s omething if y ou left off eating

y our two cherry tarts daily and she no longer had to
,
.

s trew the sugar over them with h e r lit tle white hand .

Teach e t o underst and wo men inde ed ! ”

He gazed for a long time at t he l a p ! o u wo uld “

do me a kindness by g oing there with me and explain

“
ing matters for m e She would at least allow you to
.
«

speak ; and if you were to be ar witness for me

 LO T T K A . 1 1 3

”
“
Willingly
. I sha ll say things to her that would
melt a heart of stone Tru st me this serpent will not
.
,

long exclude thee from thy Paradise or Miss Lo ttk a is ,

not that daughter of Eve which hitherto much to her

,

honour I have held her to be .

He pressed my hand as if somewhat relieve d but ,

was still gloomy and I soon lighted him down the

,

stairs .

I had a very beautiful and touchin g address all

ready composed when we set out the next evening on
our common mission and my poor friend gave m e
,

plenty of time to rehearse it for he never said a word

,
.

When we approached the sh 0 p he drew his arm out o f

mine I was not to find out that he was b eginning to
,

tremble !
I myself was not thoroughly at ease To see her .

again after so long an interval and now to address her

on behalf of another —I was fully conscious of the diffi
,

culty of the p osition but my honour was pledged to

,

play my part well and to guard against any selfish re

,

lapse into my old folly .

When we entered she was not alone For the first .

time we found a fashionable looking man in the shop-

sitting on a stool close to the counter and while drink ,

ing a glass of lemonade trying apparently to m ake

,

himself agreeable to the young attendant S ebastia n s .

’

melancholy visage darkened still more at this spectacle ,

although the calm manner and monosyllabic replies of

the girl might have convinced him that the conversation
of this coxcomb was as displeasing to her as to us .

”
“
We shall soon drive him aw ay, whispe red I and ,

8
ordering wine and cakes with the air o f an habitual
customer I together with my mute companion took p o s
,

session as usual o f the familiar inner roo

I had however reckoned without y host The
,

stranger who now carried on his conversation in a lower

,

tone appeare d to have n o idea of vacating his place in

,

our favour I was able to conte p late hi at leisure in

.

the small mirror that hung between the royal pair His
,
LO T T KA .

m
m
m -
.

h air cut short round a head already bald at the top his ,

light whiskers and the gold spectacles on his pinched nose

, ,

were all highly obj ectionable to me ; and I wondered too

at the insolent familiarity of his manner and the care ,
:

less way in which he crumbled a heart shaped cake in -

his white effeminate hands as if to typify his facility in ,

breaking hearts 1 took him for a young nobleman or

.

landed proprietor and little as I feared his m aking an ,

impression upon the girl yet it was annoying to me to ,

see her expo sed in her position to the attentions of such

'
a man I was even concocting some bold plan of get
.

ting rid o f this incumbrance when I felt Sebastian con ,

v ulsive ly clutch my arm

. .

”
“
What is the matter ? I said A re you g oing .
“

”
mad ? Instead of answering he p ointed to the mirror , ,

in which he too could see a p ortion of the shop re '

”
fle cte d .Impudent fellow ! he muttered between his
“

”
teeth he shall not do that a second time
,
“
.

I had j ust time to see that the stranger was b ending

over the counter and trying to take the girl—who had ,

retreated as far as ever she could — under the chin ,

when my friend having noisily pushed away the table ,

before us confronted him with flushed cheeks and flash

,

ing eyes .

”
What do yo u mean sir! he began and his deep
"

“
, ,

voice put o ut all its strength Who are y o u that you “

.
 LO T T KA ; 1 1 5

dare to take a liberty with a blameless girl —a girl

who

m
His rage actually choked him He stood with hand .

raised as if determined to punish any fresh act of

,

audacity on the spot while the stranger who had drawn

, ,

back a step measured this unexpected champion from

,

top to toe with a look half amazement and h alf com, ,

passion;
“
The bishop is too strong for your head you ng ,
”
friend said he in a sharp tone while he twirled his
, ,
'
s art c an e between finger and thumb Go home b e .
“

fore you talk further nonsense and be more careful an ,

other time for you may not always meet with p ersons
,

who can take your greenness into proper account What .

‘
I was saying to y o u Lo ttka ,

And therewith he turned as if his Opponent had al

ready vanished out of sight and mind and addressed ,

the girl who pale as death and with eyes closed was
, , ,

leaning back in the furthest corner betwe en the window

and the wall .

I had followed Sebastian and whispered to him to ,

take care what he was about but he never heard m e ,

.

”
“
I only wanted to ask you Fraulein he said in a , ,

hollow voice whether it is with your consent that this

,
“ -

gentleman allows himself to take such liberties with you

as are not generally permitted by respectable young
ladies ; whether you know him sufficiently well to j ustify
him in using your Christian nam e and whether it is ,

agreeable to you that he should remain talking to you

”
so long ?
She did not answer She only raised her large eyes
.

entreatingly to the angry lover who did not understand

their glance .

“
Who is this amiable youth who plays the part of ,

8G
your knight Lo ttka? now asked the stranger in his
turn .
,

I begin to suspect that I have interfered with

“

some tender relations b etween you I am sincerely s orry

for it but still my child without venturing to i p ugn
,

your taste I would advise yo u in future t o p ay more at

,

tention to solid advantages in the choice of your adorers

The declamations of schoolboys are no doubt pre tty to
listen to but they may lead as you see to awkward con
,

sequences What do I owe ? .

”
”
LO T T K A

,
.

.
.

m ‘

'

He threw a dollar on the table .

You can give me the change another time I will

“
.

”
not disturb you further j ust now .

He took his hat and was about to leave when Sebas

tian barred the way .

Yo u shall not go said he in a constrained voice

“
, ,
“
b efore you have in my presence apologised to this
young lady and given your word of honour never again
,

to forget the resp ect due to her I hop e you understand .

”
me .

Perfectly my young friend replied the other his

“
, , ,

voice now trembling with excitement I understand .

“

that you are a crazy enthusiast and take the world for ,

a raree show I do not grudge you your childish amuse

-
.

ment and esteem you accordingly ; but I have no wish

,

further to prosecute your acquaintance lest a j oke

should turn to earnest and I should be forced —sp ite o f
,
“
'

the lady s presence —to treat you like a young whipper

,
’

snapper who
Here he made a pretty unequivocal movement with
his cane I had j ust time and sense enough to inter
.

fere
Sir said I I have to request your card ; we can
, ,
“

”
b est settle this matter in another place .

He laughed loud , drew out his pocke t book with a n -

 L O T T KA . 1 I 7

ironical bow and reached me a visiting c ard Then he

,
-
.

nodded familiarly to the girl shrugged his shoulders , ,

and pressing his hat low down on his brow left the ,

mm
shop .

We three remained for several moments in the same

position as if we had been touched by a magic wand .

I as the least deeply implicated was the first to re

cover myself .

’
“
For Go d s sake Fraulein said I to the pale statue
, ,

in the window tell us who this man is How comes

,
“
.

he to behave so to you ? Since when have you known

”
hi ? Then in a lower tone I pray you by all that .
“

is good speak if but one word You see the state my

, ,
.

friend is in ; this concerns him more deeply than you

are aware You do not perhaps know that there is no
.

thing more sacred to hi than yourself; you owe it to

him
He seemed to have heard what I said With a sud .

den gesture as though shaking off some heavy weight ,

he tottered to the counter behind which she stood e n ,

trenched and unapproachable .

”
“
O nly one word Lo ttka he murmured D o you
, , .
“

know that insolent man ? Have you ever given him

m
cause so to think of and speak to you ? Yes or No ,
”
Lo ttka?
S he was silent and her hands hung down helplessly
,

by her side I could plainly see two great tears forcing

.

their way bet ween her lashes

_
.

”
“
Yes or No Lo ttka he repeated more urgently and
, , ,

his breast heaved fast I wish to know nothing further .

“
.

D o not imagine that the first rude fellow I come across ,

has any power to shake ' y holiest convictions But how .

was it you had not a word to crush him with ? Why are
you silent now ? ”
 LO T T K A .

A c onvulsive shiver passed over the y oung girl s ’

frame With eyes still closed she felt for her c hair in
.

the window but did not seat herself sank down on her
,

knees b eside it and hid her face against it I beseech

— .
“
,
”
you she murmured in an almost inaudible voice do “

not ask anything about me —go away—never come here

, ,

again If it can in any way comfort you I am innocent

.
,

so surely as God lives ; but so unfortunate that it is al

most worse than if I were a sinner too Go away I . .

thank you for all you have done but go and forget , ,
”
that I am in the world I would I were in another !
.

”
Lo ttk a ! cried S eb astian wildly about to rush in ,

m
and raise her up b ut that she put out her hands to
,

ward him o ff with such a lamentable gesture that I held

him back ; and after a struggle during which I re p re ,

sented to him that they were both too excited at present

to understand each other I persuaded him to leave the ,

poor child to herself and we went off promising to re

, ,

turn o n the morrow .

We walked in silence through the streets It was .

impossible to tell hi that the scene we had witnessed

had considerably shaken my faith in his beloved For .

the rest I was p erfectly satisfied with the part he had

played and owned to myself that I should have done
,

j ust the same in his place .

It was o nly when we reached the door o f my house

that he broke silence You must do me the favour
.
“ ”
,
”
he said to go to that man very early in the morning
,
“

( we had read his name and address on his card ; he was

an assessor at the Town Court) I leave all details to .
“

3)
you
”
O f course I returned it stands to reason that I “

should do all I can for you ; but in this matter —I have

, ,

never delivered a challenge and have only twice seen a ,

both like schoolboys ”
LO T T K A .

duel of any kind ; and in this case as I b elieve we

must employ pistols I f you knew any one o re con
versant with such matters ?—
.

one would like to do things

in the regular way with a fellow like this who treats us
.

You are probably right said he But there is no

,
,

.
“
,
m ,
1 1 9

help for it I can have no third party admitted into

.

this affair It is p ossible that he may make some dis

closures to y o u—
.

invent more calumnies how should I -

know ? So everything must b e kept to ourselves I .

shall be at home all the morning and as soon as you ,

have done with him you will come straight to me will ,

”
you not .

That I promised and we parted What my parents

,
.

must h ave thought of me that evening when I gave ,

crooked answers to every question put Heaven only ,

knows .

That night in good truth I really slept very little I .

kept thinking of all that might ensue hearing pistol ,

shots fired and seeing my poor friend fall But I was

, .

’
also much engaged in puzzling over Lo ttka s conduct and ,

came more and more strongly to the belief that she was
not worth an honest true hearted youth throwing down
-

the gauntlet in her cause and answering for her virtue

,

with his life .

The day had scarcely dawned before I was up but ,

on this occasion I had no idea of verse making I -

.

dressed myself at first entirely in black like an under

’
taker s assistant ; then it occurred to me it might b e
'
better to be less carefully got up and rather to treat,

the matter with indifference as though such things daily

,

occurred to me So I merely put on a comfortable

.
 LO T T KA .

summer attire j ust sub stitutin g a black hat for the c a

, p I
usually wore and drawing on a pair of p erfectly new
,

gloves When I looked in the glass I viewed myself

.
,

as decidedly grown up and also decidedly easy going

=
,
-

and dignified But for all that I could make nothing of

.

my breakfast I had a bitter taste on my tongue

. .

’
A bout nine o clock I set out The house in which .

our enemy lived stood in the best part of the town and ,

the porter told me he did not thi nk it would be easy to

get an interview with the assessor Nevertheless a f oot .

man although certainly treating me rather ae fi auz en

,
’ ‘

bar ushered me into a small room and signified that

, ,

m
his master would soon appear .

I had plenty of time to look about me and firmly ,

resolved as I was not to be cowed by outward circum

stances I could not help feeling while silently com
, ,

paring this elegant bachelor s snuggery with the four ’

b are walls of my friend s room that the game was very

’
,

unequal Two raw half fle dge d novices pitted against a

.
-

thorough man of the world and not even p erfectly cer

,

tain that we had the right on our side I owned to y .

self that we were in a fair way to act a ridiculous p art ,

and all my lyrical idealism was p owerless against the

awkwardness of prosaic facts .

The longer I waited the more I made up my mind

,

m
to see our enemy enter with a mocking smile and asked ,
.

myself how to meet it with becoming digni ty But to .

my surprise there was nothing of the kind .

In about ten minut e s the door opened and the as ,

se sso r j ust put in his head saying in the most urban e

,

tone possible that he was very sorry to b e obliged to

,

keep me waiting not b eing quite dressed b ut that he

, ,

b egged me in the meantime to use hi s cigars and m ake

y self at home .
 LO T T K A . I 2 I

Another five minutes and in he came shook my , ,

hand like an old acquaintance and begged me to b e ,

seated on his silk covered divan I had to light a

-
.

cigarette but declined to share his breakfast which the

,

footman brought in on a silver tray and I was looking ,

out for the pleasantest introduction possible to our af

fair when he anticipated me and while p ouring out his
, ,

tea began in quite a friendly tone

am very glad you have come I can easily ima
“
I .

gine what brings you and I may frankly tell you that
,

yesterday s scene to which I owe your acquaintance

’
,

made upon me a most painful impression You will .

easily understand that it is by no means pleasant to have

a youth an utter stranger —fall up on one out of a clear
- 4

sky with a p erfect torrent of invective But on the other .

hand I am sufficiently versed in human n ature to b e able

,

to exp lain the very p eculiar conduct of your Hotspur of

a friend He is in love with the little girl and in that
.
,

shows very fair taste He has diligently read romances

.

and old legends and thinks he has gained from them a

,

knowledge of the world This sweet illusion will vanish .

all too soon but while it lasts it makes so happy that

, ,

it is positive cruelty to blow away its soap bubbles pre -

maturely I at least would never d eprive any one o f

m
.

his innocent enj oyment And so I am sincerely sorry to

.

have disturbed any tender tie I h 0 p e your friend will .

b e content with this explanation and for my p art I ,

wish him pleasant dreams and when the time comes as ,

gentle a waking as possible The cigar does not seem .

to draw well ? Try another What are you studying if .

”
I may ask ? You are still a student are you not ? ,

I felt myself blush cri s on For a moment I doubted .

whether I would not deny my position However I stuck .

to the truth
E aster I said
,

p erio rity

the
“
We shall pass our final examination at

So young
.
.

.
“

He was magnanimous enough not to lsuse his su

he said with a good natured shake of

,

already such D on Juans ! You seem e n

titled to fair hopes my young friend and if you would,
LO T T KA .

,
-
~
m '

only accustom yourself to more self restraint

‘ -

“ ”
Forgive me said I but I must return to the
, ,
“

matter in hand My friend as you rightly p erceive has

.
, ,

a serious affection for this girl and feels himself deeply ,

aggrieved by the disresp ectful manner in which you b e '

haved to her I believe he might b e satisfied by a few

.

lines in your handwriting expressing your regret for ,

your conduct to Fr aulein Lo ttk a If not .

He looked askance at me with such amazement that ,

I felt suddenly paralysed .

Are you really in earnest ? he said You look too .

“

intelligent for me to believe that you can approve of

this commission you have undertaken for your friend .

My conduct to Fraulein Lo ttka ! That is going a little

too far ! No my good friend let us make ourselves as
, ,

little absurd as we can Have you considered what you .

are proposing to me ? With all the resp ect to the hon

o urable feelings and true heartedness of a student of -

the upp er class can he seriously imagine that I owe him

,

reparation because in a public shop I chanced to stroke

,
”
a girl under the chin He burst out laughing and threw .
,

the end of his cigarette out of the window .

”
I rose I doubt I said that this wiL
.
“
l satisfy my , ,
“

friend I f you would at least declare that you know no

. .

thing o f Fr aulein Lo ttka which casts a shadow on her ,

reputation t i

” 0

“
Just S lt down and hear me out he broke i n
, ,
.
 LO T T K A . 12 3

“
Now that I see you are really in earnest it is my duty ,

to tell you the truth in the interests of your friend who

takes up the case so tragically that he is sure to commit ,

himself to some folly A bout ten years ago I was ac .

‘

m
'

quainte d with a lady o f a certain character here in Ber

lin She was a German but b ore a Polish name that of
.
, ,

her first lover a Polish nobleman who had left her

, , ,
'
p lanlee la with one child As she was beautiful and not
‘
.
,

inconsolable she found p lenty of adorers and lived in

, ,

wealth keeping a small gambling house too ; and I can

,
-

well remember the strange impression it made on me

when first I entered it to see a child of eight years old ,

sitting at the faro table looking at the gold heaps with ,

her great sleepy eyes and then at her mother and her ,

friends till the Cha p agne of which she seemed to like

, ,

a sip took e ffect and she fell asleep on a sofa amidst

, ,

laughter the rattling of money and very free talk in

, ,

deed I was sorry for the pretty child and it crossed

.
,

my mind that she could have little respect for her

mother who exercised no sort of self control even in her
,
-

presence A fter a few years I broke o ff the connection

.
,

which proved a very expensive one but I heard in a

roundabout way that the Polish Countess —as we used
,

to call her—went on still in her old course except that

-

she relied less on her own attractions and called in ,

younger faces to her aid I enquired casually after her

‘

daughter but the conversation had turned and I re

, ,

c e iv e d no answer

Well—yesterday as I chanced to be p assing by

.

that miserable cake shop thinking of anything else than -

o f this old story I saw an old lady getting into a cab

,

at the door while the shop girl put in the various

,
-

parcels of purchases When she turned round to re .

en ter the shop I reco gnized the child with the weary
,
eye s no w grown up into a beauty who i ght if she
,

chose enter into formidab le competition with he r o the r

,

As I had n o thing p artifcular to do I followed her into

' '
'
L O T T KA J

, m
m ,
'

~
.

m
,
.

the shop reminded her of our old acquaintance and

, ,

was not a little surprised to find her j ust as rigid and

m m
unapproachable as her lady mamma was the reverse -
.

With all my I O ng practice in cross examina tion I was

.
,

only able to get out from her that she had parte d from ‘

her mother three years ago but as to what she had been ,

doing since or through how many h ands she had passed

, ,

or whethe rher icy manners were artificial or natural that ,

I had not b een able to unravel when our O rlando ,

m
F urio so your excellent friend suddenly burst in up on
, ,

us A nd now after I have given you this explanation

.
,
.

you ay yourself j udge whether the idea of my

m
, ,

m
co i ng forward to vouch for the poor child s character ’

m
or having to fight with an enthusi asti c b oy about her .

virtue is not quite too absurd !

m
'
No no he continued if you hav e any influence
“
, , ,
“

over your frien d my d e ar fellow do warn: hi no t to, ,

‘

go too far F or even if the daughter were as yet perfectly

.

pure what goo d could co e of it with such antecedents

, ,

and such a mother ? Your friend is the son of respect

able people tell him that he must not compro i se his
parents and himself—a e re passing liason a la 6
,

lzeurrf but to stake his very he art s bl o od and to inter

’

fere with fire and s word allow J ane l—

,

I do ho pe you ,

may b e able to bring him to re ason ; and now you must ‘

e xcuse e I have a case coming o n ” .

,

He had risen while I still sat pe trified by such a,

revelation ; then he called his servant and after recip rocal ,

-
“

assurances of high esteem had me shewn out I tottered ,

down the step s like a drunkard

 LO T T K A . . 12 5

It was not for an hour afterwards — I needed a long

circumbendibus before I could take heart to bring this
melancholy business to an end —that I found myself
’
knocking at Sebastian s door A faint voice bade me .

come in and then I found the unhappy fellow lying

,

dressed upon his bed and one glance at his disordered

,

hair and attire shewed that he had sp ent the night in

that fashion Before I could say a word he held out a
.
,

letter that was open b eside him on the pillow A boy .

had brought it very early in the morning but had not ,

waited for an answer .

m
O f course I do not pretend to give the exact words
in which it was couched but their purp ort was as fol ,

lows
You had scarcely left me when the idea struck me
“

that the dispute o f whi ch I was the miserable cause ,

might have fe arful consequences I write to you to e n .

m
treat and b eseech you if there were any earnestness in
,

the feelings you professed for me to let the matter ,

”
drop and to believe that in reality I a not wori/zy
,

(these words were doubly scored) that you should sa

“

c rifi ce yourself for me Promise me that you will try

.

to forget me utterly I am a p oor lost creature and

.
,

only death can deliver me But I shall not die yet so .

,

have no anxiety on that head I will try whether it be .

possible for me to live without my i sfortune dogging

every step I take I thank you for all your love and
.

kindness and I never shall forget you But do not at

, .

tempt to find me out I am firmly resolved never to see

.

you again and you will only increase my misery if you

,

do not obey my wishes but attempt to force a meet ,

”
i ng .

The letter had neither address nor signature it was ,

fi rmly wri tten and there was not a mistake throughout

, .
 L O T T KA .

I silently returned him the letter not liking at that ,

moment to tell him that under the circumstances no

thing could b e more propitious than such a decided
step on her part But I gradually discovered that no
.

thing in the letter impressed him so much as the pretty

clear confession of her own liking for him This it was .

he dwelt on ; their separation seemed to him compara

tiv e ly unimportant probably not seriously resolved upon
, ,

and practically impossible .

I therefore felt myself bound no longer to ke ep back

my information and gave him an exact account of my
,

interview with his enemy To my surprise it did not .

seem to produce on him the overwhelming e ffect I had

dreaded He told me he had himself conj ectured some
.

thing o f the kind and much as he regretted it it could

, ,

in no way change his feelings rather it could only in

‘

crease his love to positive worship to find that she had

worked herself free from such degrading relations and ,

was high hearted enough to wish to b e ar alone a sorrow

-

she had never deserved He knew indeed that he should .

,

have some obstacles to confront as regarded his parents , ,

m
friends home & c But since she had plainly told him
, , .

that he was clear to her no cowardly scruples would ,

prevent his making up to her for the sufferings brought

on her by a cruel fate If the world bespattered her .

’
pure life he would wash it all away in his heart s
,

blood .

He ran on in this half feverish way and his high -

wrought enthusiasm his innocent brave spirit so c arried

,

me along that not only did I keep all obj ections to y

,

self but actually became of opini on that this was all

,

exactly as it should b e and the one important matter ,

n o w was to find out the young girl and induce her to ,

change her mind I threw myself into a cab and drove

.
,
 LO T T KA . 12 7

to the shop hoping to get upon her track there S ebas

,
.

tian remained at home ; he did not venture contrary to

her expressed command to take any part in the search
, .

We had settled to meet again at noon Alas ! I came .

b ack as ignorant as I went The mistress o f the con

.

fe c tio n e ry business had o nl b een apprised of the de

y
parture of her young shopwoman early that morning by

m
an open note found on her table None of the neigh
bours had seen her go aw
.

ay Most of her effects were

.

left behi nd she had only taken with her some l inen and
,

a travelling bag which the good woman knew her to

-

possess and could not now find

,
She had instantly .

given information to the police But all in vain as yet

—
.

the poor child had utterly disappeared .

I t was now that grief and the after e ffects of the ex

c ite e n t of weeks began to tell severely up on my poor
,

friend. He was in such utter despair that I at first

feared for his reason ; not b ecause of his frantic out
b ursts or delirious grief b ut from a certain suppressed
, ,

wildness that tried to smile while the teeth chattered a ,

quite aimless way now o f walking now standing still ; ,

speaking to himself and laughing loud while the tears , ,

of which he seemed unconscious rolled down his cheeks , .

It was the firs t time that I had ever seen the elemental
throes of a tr ue and deep passion and I was so shocke d ,

that I forgot all besides and at all events never pre

,

sumed to attempt consoling the poor fellow by common

places.

I remained with him the whole day and a good part

of the night I t was only abo ut midnight when I saw
.
,

that he was quite exhausted (he had not closed his eyes
the previous night) that I yielded to his entreaties and
, ,

consented to leave him alone after exacting a solemn ,

promise from his landlady to listen ho w he went on for ,

az 8 Lo rnK A .

that he was very ill I knew he had n o weapons of .

any kind and I hop ed that sleep would do him some

,

m
goo d .

The next morning however I could not rest re , , ,

r ache d myself for having left him and anxiously hur “

p o ,

ried to his lodgings But there he was no longer to b e

'
.

found His landlady gave me a note of two lines in

.
,

which he bade me farewell for the present He could .

not rest till he had found her b ut he would do nothing ,

rash for he was not unmindful o f his other duties and

, ,

so I might confidently expect his return .

He had packed his knap sack and taken his walking ,

stick with him And the landlady told me he see e d

.

to have had two or three hours sleep for that his eyes ,

lo oked clearer .

This was b ut meagre information but I had to con ,

tent myself with it And moreover I was about to ac

.

mm
company my parents on a tour which kept me absent
for several weeks To the letters I wrote —for I was al
ways thinking o f him —no answers ever came so on my
.

return when my first walk led me to his lodgings I was ,

fully prepared to find an empty nest I was the more .

rej oiced therefore when he himself op ened the door

, , ,

and I met a sad face it is true but free from the mor, ,

b idly strained expression which had so much p ained

rn e

That he had failed to meet with any traces of the

lost one I guessed rather than actually heard from him .

A e lancholy indifference se e e d to pervade him ; he p

set about whatever was prop osed as one who took no

part in it whether for or against —
,

,
and what to me was ,

most striking of all his passion for musi c seemed com

,

p le te ly ove n H e never sang

-

a single note never alluded ,

to any composition and would willingly h ave given up

,
 mm
L O T T KA . 12 9
his music lessons had he b een able to li ve without
-

, .

them The mainspring of his nature seeme d hop elessly

m
.

broken someth ing had got wrong which there was no

, .

repairing .

I n the following spring when we both went to the ,

U niversi ty I used to see hi

, almost daily He regularly .

attended law lectures and had become member of a ,

society in which his ad irable fencing and his now pro

v e rb ial taciturnity rendered him prominent and I was ,

hoping that the incident which had so deeply a ffected

hi would after all leave no bad results in hi s healthy
nature when something occurred that tore op en every
,

wo und anew .

I will for the sake of bre vity relate the sad tale con
se cutiv e ly and not as I learned it from him , bit by bit
, ,

and at long intervals .

It was the Christmas of 1 8 4 7 He had resolved

upon spending the holidays —not as usual in payi ng a
.

visit to his parents but in the s trenuous study of his

,

law books a long indisposition having thrown him back

-
,

cons iderably I had in vain attempted to coax him to

.

come to us for this Christmas E ve Indeed as a rule he .

avoided part ies and if he ever did app ear at a social

,

gathering he usually made an unfavourable impression

, ,

especially on ladies because of his silence and his o h

,

stinate refusal to sing .

O n this p articular 2 4 th of December he spent ,

the whole day hard at work in his own room got ,

his landlady to give him something to eat an d only ,

’
went out at five o clock when it had grown too dark to
write leaving instructions to keep up his fire as he
, ,

should only spend an hour or so looking at the Chris t

0
1
,
30 fo r m er .

m
mas m arket and then return and go on writi ng late
, ,

i nto the n ight When he got into the street he felt the
.
,

winter breeze refresh him The inte nse cold of t he last

‘
.

few days had somewhat abated snow was falling lightly ,

in large flakes which he did not shake off but liked to

‘

'
‘

, , _

feel melting on his flush ed face His b eard whi ch had .

,

gro wn int o a very handsome one during the last year

‘

and much improved his looks was white with them , .

'

Slowly he went through K onigsstrasse to the E lec

’
t or s Bridge There were crowds of well wrapp ed figures
.
-

flitting about who having made their purch ases at the

,

l ast moment were now hurrying home fast for already

, ,

the windows were beginning to shine with Christ a s

candles The solitary student worked his way throu gh
.

'
the throng without that melancholy yearning fo r home
,

which would on this particular evening have Op pre ssed

, ,

most youths if compelled to sp end it away from their

,

o wn p e O p le H e had sent off presents to his parents and

m
.
_
'

sisters two days ago and this very evening expected a ,

Christmas b ox from them which however he felt no , , ,

impati ence about No one could care less for any ad .

dition to his possessions than he did ; indeed sinc e he ,

had lost the one thing to which he had passionatel y

clung he had grown indifferent to alt besides
,
-

m
He stood for a while before the equestrian statue of
the great elector who in his snow mantle looked e ven ,

o re maj estic and sp ectral than usual against the pale

winter sky Below the stream hemmed in by ice on
.
, ,

either side flowed darkly and silently on and in one

, ,

of the barges the bargeman had already lighted up a ,

small Christmas tree which sent out a radiance through ,

the op en door A couple of red che cked children were

‘
.
-

'

stan din
g'by the lowly table o n e blowing a p e nny tru
‘ - '
,
*
pe t the othe r eati ng an apple and the solitary observ er
, ,
 1 31

on the b ridge might have stood there long in contem

p latio n of this humble idyll but that the human stream
swept him along with it , and landed him in the very
centre of the busy noisy C hristmas market going on in
the Schlossplatz .

He walked awhile up and do wn the chief passages

b etween the b ooths looking at the cheerful traffic of
,

buyers and sellers listening to the chattering of the

,

monkeys and the shrill screams of b oys advertising

,

their various wares ; and silently he sighed reflectin g that ,

he had positively no connection with the world in which

the festival was so j oyously kept that it would b e all ,

one to him if he were sudde nly transported to Sirius ,

amongst whose inhabitants he could not feel more alone

than here Then he suddenly resolved to cheer up and
.
,

actually hummed the tune I think in the olden days “

.

A garrulous saleswoman in a booth o f fancy goods now -

interrupted him entreating him to look out some pretty

,
”
tri fle for his lady wife A t that he hurriedly turned
“ -
.

o ff
, and made for one of the less frequented alleys
where small dealers were offering their penny wo rths as -

bargains .

He had not proceeded far when a singul ar spectacle

caught his eye Before a b ooth of cheap toys stood a
.
’

lady in an elegant fur trimmed p olonaise such as were -

then worn a square Polish hat on her head and a thick

, ,

veil drawn over her face to protect her from the snow ,

so that there was no seeing her features She had put .

down her large muff on the counter before her and with ,

tiny hands in daintiest gloves was busy picking out

various toys and di viding them amongst a numb er o f
,

street children who crowded closely about her and

-

struggled for these unexpected gifts in a very tumult of

delight A few expressive words on the part of the seller
.

9
 LO T T KA :

in the booth re duced th em to s omething like O rder and ,

mm
at lengt h they all dispersed, their tre asure s ti ghtly x

clutched in their littl e fists but it was only a mi no rity ,

”
that said thank you to the gi ver
“
.

A n d now what have I to p ay you for them all ?

said the lady .

Her voice ran like an electric shock through the

,

youth who had approached unobserved

, .

Lo ttka he said in a whisper

‘

“
.
,

The lady turned round quickly and her first impulse ,

m
was to draw her veil clo ser about her face Then how .
,

ever by the light of the b ooth la p s and the gl are fro

, , ,

the snow she was able to r e cognize the figure that O nly
,

m
.

stoo d two p aces off She hurriedly paid the sum re .

quired turned to Sebastian and hel d out her hand

, , .

”
I t is you she said without showing any special
“
, ,

excitement I had not expected ever to see you agai n

.
“
.

But I am only the more glad of it Hav e you any e n

m
.

? A re you expected anywhe re this eveni n g ?

No ? Then give me your arm I too am free —quite

t
‘

a
g g e e n

m
-

m
.

”
free she added with a singul ar expressi on
,
I t is so .
“

pleasant to walk about in the snow and see so any , _

‘

happy faces It seems to me sometimes as though it

.

could not be necessary to take any great pai ns to b e

,
“

happy since so many are so an d so cheaply to o; D o ,

m
”
y 0 u not agre e with me ?
He did not reply The utterly unexpecte d meeting .

had p ositively stup e fi e d him and the quick way in which ,

she spoke and o ved was p erplexing S he had nt o ng e .

hung upon his ar wh ereas for e rly she carefully

avoided every t o uch and no w she walked on b e side
him daintily putting down he r littl e fe et in the snow
, ,

her head bent with a bright thoughtful exp res sion as

, ,

though planning some y sterious surprise He only .

 Lo rry ; 1 33

dared to s teal glances at her now and then She had .

evidently grown her features were rather more marked ,

,

but that added to her beauty and her fur cap was won ,

derfully becoming .

Fraulein Lo ttka said he at length that I should “

find you here ! You do not know —

“
, ,

you would not

b elieve how I have sought for you—how ever since
”
Why should I not b elieve it ? she hastily replied
“
.

“
Do you sup pose I have no t known that you were the
only human being in the world who ever really loved
me ? That was the ve ry reason why I was obliged to
part from you Your love and goodness deserved some
.

thing better than to be made unhappy for my sake It .

is enough that o ne wretched life should be destroye d

_
,

and even that is no t very intelligible when one thinks

that there is a Pro vidence —but why should we talk of
such melancholy subj ects ? Tell me what you have been
doing all this while D o you know that you are much
.

b etter looking than you were ? Your b eard b ecomes

you so well and with it you have the same innocent
,
’
eyes that would better suit a girl s face and yet they ,

can look brave and resolute enough too when they flash
out at a villain .

”
Forgive me she went on
“
for b eing so talkative
, ,
“
,

b ut you cannot guess how long I have been silent

almost alway s since we parted I had too much to
, .

think about But no w I have arranged it all and since

.
,

then I am quite happy It is not ve ry long ago that I .

.

have done so L ast night even I had quite too horrible

.

thoughts ; they actually pierced my brain like needles o f

’
ice So I said to myself there must b e an end to this
.
,
‘
.

Neither man nor Go d can require any one to live on

with thou ghts like these And after b ecoming quite clear .

abou t that , my spirits re turned and even my to ngue ,

 .
Le

is loosed again But you are all the more silent What
m
m
is the matter with you ? Are not you a little tiny b it
glad that we can wander about together so confidentially,
and feel the snow on our faces an d s e e so many poor
men enj oying their Christmas E ve ? I too wanted to
.

make a festival for mys elf and so I spent my last two

,
“
, i
.

dollars in an improvised C hristmas gift B ut it did not .

answer so very well either : unless one loves the p erson

one gives to there is not much pleasure in giving Now
, .

I am sorry that I have no more money You and I .

’
might so well have made presents to each other
”
0 Lo ttka said he now that I have found y o u
“

again —that you are so kind to me —that you kn ow how

, ,

I love you
”
“
Hush ! interposed she this may b e felt b ut n o t,
“
,

s poken o f. For to day everything i s as sad as it ever

”
was and as utterly hopeless
,
.

He stopped suddenly and looked full at her Hop e .

“

less he groaned
,
But are you aware that I know
.
“

everything and no more heed it than if it were some

,

story go ing on in the moon That I have no one in the .

world to consult but myself and if my own father and ,

w
my own mother
”
“
For God s sake do not go on she cried
’
ith a , ,

look of distress and placing her hand on his lips ! o u

.

,
.
“

do not know what you are say ing how horrible it is , ,

and how you would one day repent it You have a .

mother whom y o u can love and revere and who loves ,

nothing on earth better than you and who is p roud o f ,

-

you and you wo uld bring sorrow and shame o n her ? If

'

you had rightly cons idered what that means —but we

,

will say no more about it C ome — I will confess to you

.

that I am hungry ; since yesterday evening I have eaten

nothing out o f sheer disgust I thought inde ed I sh ould .
, ,
never have a pu re 'taste in
'
y o uth any m
m
m m
LO T T K A

o re

since I have chatted so pleasantly with you I feel much

better Take me where the re is something to eat A nd
.

then we can still go on chatting away for a couple of

,
,

hours and you really ust tre at me for as I said I

have spent the last money I had in those toys
b

‘
ut
.

,
,

.
.
,
a
1 35

A t once he turned off into a side street and rapidly

led her to a small eating—
,

house that he knew which was ,

generally empty at this h our They were both lost in .

thought and he was wondering half in terror half in

, , ,

rapture at the way things had come about and asking

, ,

himself what turn they would take now For although .

her dark allusions made him ve ry anxious yet on the ,

other hand he found comfort in her free and frank man

ner towards him and her clear recognition of his feel
,

ings for her .

”
“
Here said he throwing op en a small door ove r
, ,

which a blue lamp was burning .

They entered a bright comfortable dining room in -

which was only an elderly waiter with a green apron of ,

the good old fashion sitting half asleep in a c o rn e r He

,
-

l
.

looked at the pair with some surprise and then hastened ,

'
off to bring what Sebastian had ordered
“
He takes us for brother and sister whispered the ,

young girl .

O r for a newly married pair on their travels Ah

“ '
-
.
,
”
Lo ttk a ! and he seized one o f her little hands which
she had j ust ungloved .

She heartily but without any embarrassment ret urn e d

”
his passionate pressure It i s charming here said she
.
“
, ,

beginning to free herself from her warm wrap s I do .

“

so rej oice to be for once with you thus before I She

stopp ed short .
 .

mm
What are you thinking
agitation
”
not ask me said she
yo u need have no anxiety for e
“
LO T T K A

This is n o t really to be the last time

“

I am provided fo r

that little note I really did not know what W

,

When I wrote yo u

come of e It was only at first th at I was safe Whil e

.

the only friend I had an asthmatic sempstres s

'
who used often to buy cough lozenges fro me and got
ould b e

you and p erhap s oth ers were looking e verywhere for me

I sat up in the attic of an old friend not far from that
shop —

fond of me bec ause I would put in a stit ch for her now

and then The poor thing when at her wors t was unable
.

for weeks together to earn anything It was at her door

-
”
of ? he
en quired in great

,
.

_
.
.

.
-
m ,
.

,
,

that I knock ed in the night and actually I remained a ,

couple of months hidden there for no one concerned ,

-

himself about her and I used to help her with her se wJ

,

m
ing and to cook our frugal meals ; but a t last I could
,
‘

no longer endure life in such a c age I had saved a .

.

little money and meant to cross over into France where

, ,

no one would have known me But I was ste pp e d on .

the way there was something wrong in my passport

, ,

and so I was of course transp orted back like a vagrant ;

and here in Berlin — but we will say nothing about it I . .
.

m
already feel that nausea coming b ack a nd here is our ,
”
su pp er and I ust no t let that b e spoiled
‘

.
,

He poured out for her a glass of the wine the Waiter

”
had brought and pledged her ,
“
Thou and I he whis .
,

pered gently .

” '
No thou alone she replied and si pped at the
“
, , ,

g lass .

”
Is the Rhine wine too strong for the e ? asked he
“
.

”
Shall I order Champagne ?
. She shook her he ad vehemently I could not touch “
.
“

a drop of it I drank it too early and in to o b ad co

.
,
 ‘

LO T T K A ; 137

pany B ut you must eat with me if I am to enjo y my

.

suppe n
He put something on his plate though he could not ,
'
get a morsel down and kept w atching her while she did
,

full j ustice to their simple meal Her hair was cut as .

sho rt as ever her dress was quite as plain

'

,
her form so ,

full and so supple that each movement s he made was

enchanting to c ontemplate E very now and then she .

apologized for her appetite .

I t is only ”
“
she said because I am for once happy
, ,
“
,

and eve rything is so good and we are so delightfully

—
alone you and I There ”—
and she put a bit of game
,

from her plate o n to his— you must positively eat that

.

“
,

or I shall believe you have a horror of eating from the

same dish even as I I f things had been different and
.
,

we could really have travelled o ff together through the

world — that would have been beautiful ! But it cannot
b e and some day you will be happy with some one
,

else and she with you ; lots are very unequally divided
, ,
’
and one must put up with one s own till it gets too
bad But do pour me out some wine —I drank that last
Thanks —and now—to thy
.

glass o ff unconsciously .

”
mother s health ! And that shall be the l ast
’
.

She emptied the glass and as she put it down again

, ,

he noticed that she shuddered as if some ice cold hand -

had suddenly grasped hold of her .

”
L et us go she said
“
, .

He paid the bill and again o ffered her his arm When .

they got out they found that the large soft flakes had .

changed into a driving snow storm that met them full -

in the face .

Where shall we go now ? asked he '

.

It is a ll the same to me I have no lo nge r any

“

home I thought indeed —

.

. but it is quite too boisterous

 m
138 Lo rrxa.

m
and wretched to tak e leav e of each o ther ih the open
”
a ir
. Are we far from your lodgings ?
I am in the old quarters still O ver the bridge and
“
.
,

then only a hundred yards Come . .

m
,

“
That is said she holding him back as if con

m
,

side n ng What will the p eopl e yo u lodge with th k if

.
“

”
yo u suddenly bring a girl back with you ?
”
Have you not your veil on ?
I ? I do not care a b o ut myself To morrow I shal l
b e—
-
.

who knows how far away where I can defy all , .

comments B ut it might get told to your o ther and

.
,

give yo u trouble hereafter .

”
Have no fear
“
he said p re ss g the hand that
, ,

rested on his ar My room has a private entrance

.
“
,

and the people of the house burn no light on the stairs ,

”
We shall not meet any o ne .

With rapidly b eating heart he led her along the ,

‘

now deserted streets and o ften they were obliged to

, ,

stand still and lean against each other while the icy ,
.

blast swept by O nce when he turned his b ack to the

.

storm and drew her closer to his breast he bent down ,

and hurriedly kissed her through her veil She made no

resistance —only said I think the worst is now over we
.

“
, ,
”
may go on After that they did not speak another word
.

till they reached the house .

— The steep staircase was as he had said it would -

.

b e quite dark and as they went up it on tip to e he

, ,
-

first holding her hand so that she might not mi ss a step

,
!

,
’
no one came across them O nly they heard children s .

voices through the door and saw a light shine thr ough ,

the key hole of the room in the upper story telling of

-

a C hristmas tree there .

 LO I lT K A . 1 39
’
«

5 _
He carefully closed his do o r and let her precede
“

,
~

,
-

him into the small dark room which was only lit by the
‘

glow in the stove and the re flection of the snow H e , ,

.
-~

”
then bolted both doors The kitchen is next to us .
“
,

he said but there is no one there now We need not

,
“
.

talk in a whisper But the landlady may j ust come back

.

”
once to enquire whether I want anything .

She answered nothing ; she had placed herself on a

chair in the window and was looking out at the whirls ,

of snow .

When he had lit his small stu dent s lamp with its ’

”
green shade he noticed a box on the tabl e: L ook “
,

m
said he that is my Christmas box from home we can
,
“
,

put that in a corner for the present Will you not take .

of f some of your wraps and seat yourself here on the ,

”
sofa ? You must b e too warm in your furs .

”
I shall s o on b e go ing S aid she
“
But thou art , .
“

m
”
right the stove does burn well
, A n d she b egan to draw .

O ff her polonaise and put away her fur cap and gl oves
,

he helping her
-
.

”
But now shall we not b egin to unpack ? said she
“
,

shaking back her hair I should u ch like to know .

“

m
what is in the box .

”
I am in no hurry
“
he laughingly replied I have , .
“

j ust been unpacking something far more precious to

'

me .

You ought to b e ashamed of yourself returned

“
,

she suddenly assu in g a colder tone (she had been

,

saying tlzou) You do not deserve that p eople should

.
“

b e planning how to give y o u pleasure I if a mother

had sent e such a Christmas box from a distance—give
-
.

it me —I will undo the string .

She hastily began cuttin g open the cover with a .

li ttle knife of hers and he gazed in carefully sup , ,

,
-
z
1 40 L O T T KA Z

pressed emotion at every movement of her ex quisite ‘

hands .

”
“
Lo ttka said he ; if you and I were both together
,
“

in America and this box had come over the sea

,

She shook her head No box would have come .

“

”
then .
.

And why not Lo ttka? If my mother knew thee as

“

m
‘

I know thee dost thou supp ose she would hold thee
,

guilty for circumstan ces over which thou art powerless

Naturally she has her prej udices —
.

like all good mothers .

Bu t I know that she loves me more than any of her

‘

”
prej udices .

m
The girl left o ff her unpacking and with her little .

knife Cut all sorts of patterns on the lid of the box .

m
“
Do you call that a prejudice ? said she without .
,

looking at him Could y o u eat an apple that you had

.
“

fo und lying in the dirt of the streets ? You i ght wash

it ten times over the repugnance would be all the same ,
.

And who knows what foot might have tro dden o n it ,

who knows that some slime might not have penetrated

the rind even though it should still b e sound at the

m
,

core ? No no no ! I t is so once for all bad enough

that so it should b e —but it must no t b e m a
, , ,

de even

m
w o rs e .

m
He wound his a about her but rather like a ,

m
”
brother than one passionately in love Lo ttka he .
“
,
'
said it is i p o ssible =that this can go o n You c annot
‘
“ ‘

.
,
”
waste your life in unavailing regrets He stopped short
‘

—he could not find words that express ed his meaning

.

without fearing to pain her .

”
“
In re grets she repeated looking at hi firmly and
, ,

sorrowfully O h no ! Who is thinking of it ? I hav e

.
“
'

alrea dy told y o u lthat y o u ay b e quite easy about y

'
futur e I a provide d for I am not so fo rsaken as I
“
‘

, .
app ear , provided my courage does not desert me — y
courage and my disgust A n d why must every one b e
married ? I f I chose I might be so and very well too
A ll possible pains have been taken to make m e fall in
love and I have had a choice o f very desirable wooers
,
LO T T K A .

,
m
1 41

rich young and handsome and some were really will

, , ,

ing regularly to marry me in a regular church with a ,

regular clergyman in gown and bands There was only .

”
one hitch .

What was that ? he eagerly asked

”

—
“
.

It is unnecessary to mention it B ut no I will tel l .

it to you straight out that y o u may never j udge me

,

wrongly D o you know what has g iven me a horror of

.

all men except p erhaps yourself? I will whisp er it in

’

your car I t is because I did not know whether the

.

proposed bridegroom might not have stood too high in

’
the mother s favour before he concerned himself about
the daughter .

She turned away and went hastily to the window .

mm
A fter a time she again fel t his arm aroun d her .

”
What you must have had to endure de ar heart ! he ,

faintly whispered .

S he nodded slowly and significantly More than .

“

you would suppose so young a creature coul d have sur

v iv e d A bout seven years ago when I first understood
.
,

it all I still thought I could change my lot I would

, .

not remain another day in the house I went o ut to “

service I cut o ff all y beautiful long hair to prevent

.

any one admiring me and the ugliest clothe s were go od

,

enough for me so only they would restore y r espe cta

b ility How little it has avai le d me th
. o u knowest L ater .
,

when I was taken up as a vagrant I was brought b ack ,

to the house to Izar who naturally had a legal right over

,

m e I had to b ear it I was powerless against the law

. .
.
 m
1 42

B ut I at once declared that I would destroy myself if I

were not left in peace so I have sat nearly a year
in y o wn room and as soon as any one came near it
,

I bolted the door But still as I was obliged sometimes

to breathe the air p eople sawme , and she herself
though I never would speak a ord to her —
.

that she loved me very much and only yesterday—it

‘
,
.

pretended
LO T T K A

A nd
s

w _

was to b e a C hristmas treat—she sent me in a l etter ;

,

”
guess from whom ?
“
How can I guess ? ”
“
You are right No mortal ever could suppose it
.
-
.

B ut you remember the creature with whom you quar '

re lle d on my b ehalf?
”
“
Lo ttka! he cried beside himself Is it p os .
“

sible
S he nodded It was a very affectionate letter the
“

most b eautiful things were promised me in it —

.
,

the paper
smelt of Patchouli : since then I have had that nausea,

—
that loathing which only passed o ff when yo u and I met
again But I have but to think of it and —fi e l there it
.
,
”
com es again !
She wip ed her lips and the same strange shudder
p assed over her He seized her hands —they were stiff
, .

:
.

and damp .

Suddenly she shook her head as if to get rid o f

-

some importun ate thought B ut we were go ing to uh ,

“

”
pack said she P retty subj ects these for Christmas
“

C ome to our box—ours I say You have b e

~
.
,

E ve ! ,
.

”
witched me with your dream about America .

“
We will make it come true he impetuously cried
”
, .

I shall remind you o n som e future day of our first

Christmas E ve and then yo u will be obliged to confess
,

that I have more coura

“
ge and am a b etter prophet th an ,

yo u .
 L orrxA .

She made no reply but cut the last string and ,

opened the box A ll sorts of sm all presents came to

.

view ; a pair of wo ollen gloves that his eldest sister had

.

knitted for him a watch chain woven of the fair hair of

,
-

the younger with a pretty little gold key hanging to it

, ,

home made gingerbread and finally a large sealed

-

bottle .

”
“
Hav e you vineyards ? asked she playfully ,

'
He laughed in spite of all his sadness I t is elder .
“

wine and the grapes grow in our little garden A s a

,
.

child I thought it the best of all things and ever since ,

my good mother believes she cannot please me better

than by sending me on every Christmas Eve and every ,
” ’
birthday a sample at least of her last year s making
,
.

“
I hO p e it tastes b etter to you than the most costly
”
Rhin e wine said she earnestly or you would not de “

L ook—there are letters

, ,

s erve it . .

“
Will you look them over ? I am too much dis
tracted I should not know what they were ab out if I
.

read them .

She had seated herself on the sofa and taken the ,

letters on her knee ; one after the other she read them
with most devout attention as though their contents ,

w ere wonderful an d sublime yet they were o nly made ,

up of sisters chat ; little j ests apolo gies for the insignifi

’
,

cance of their o fferings ; and in the lines written by the

mother there was traceable together with her pride in
, ,

having so good a son her sorrow at being unable to ,

'
embrace him at such a time and her anxio us fear that ,

it was not so much work that kept him away but rather '
,

the melancholy unsocial mood wh i ch even made his

‘

'
le tte is short .

“
A re yo u still reading them ? he at length asked ~
.

and W
_

h en they write , the best

 1 44
.
I

that is in them do es no t always g et put o n p ap er Goo d

God ! thou art weeping Lo ttka! ”
,
mm
m
S he laid the le tters o n the b ox rose hurried ly and
.

pressed back the t ears that still welled fro between her
a a

,
.
.

”
long eye lashes I will go now she faintly said
-
.
“
I , .
“

shall b e b etter out of doors .

Go ?now ?and where ? The storm would blow you

“

down R emain here for to night and — if you like

k itchen is close by — two chairs will do for me —and

m
-
.
, ,

”
b esides I have not a thought of sleeping

m
.

She shook her head and looked down Then she ,

.

m
suddenly raised her eyes and looked full at his with an ,

expression that made his heart b eat w ildly .

' ”
Not so she said
“
But it is true that the storm
, .
“

witho ut would blow me down and where too c ould I ,

go ? Is this not Christmas Eve and the last that we ,

shall ever spend togeth er And I must give thee so e .

thi ng my presents to the children gave me no real

,

pl e asure and why sho uld I not on this day at lea st

w
,
”
think of y self as ell ? Am I not ri ght S ebastian ?

m
,

She had never before called him by his name .

Thou wilt give e

—
and un certain .

The only thing I still possess mys elf she gasp e d

“
, ,

and wound her arms about his neck .

When he woke in the dark on the morrow andhalf ,

rais ed himself from bed still un certain whether it had

J ,

been real or only the most wondrous o f drea s the ,

chamber was empty not a trace remained of the last ,

night s visitor He felt all round his 'little sitting room

’
. .
-

lle d he r gently by name th in ing she had p erhap s

ea
J '
k ,
 m
stolen into the kitchen j ust for a freak and would soon
return But all was silent The intense cold overcame
hi ,
.

and with teeth chattering he slipped back into bed

and there propped by p illows tried to collect his
thoughts .
,

Before long a horrible fear sprung up within him

With burning brow despite the icy air he hastily drew ,
L O T T KA

.
.

,
,

,
1 45

on his clothes and kindled a light T he Christmas gifts

, .

of his family were still on the table and he suddenly ,

discovered a sheet written over in p encil pushed b e

tween the lett ers from his mother an d sisters The cha .

racte rs were uncertain and tremulous as tho ugh written

in the dark The words ran as follows — F arewe ll my
,
“
.
,

b eloved friend my only friend ! It grieves me much that

,

I must grieve yo u so must leave you so ! But there is,

no other way You would never let m e go there where

.

I needs must go unless b oth are to be made unhappy,

.

I thank thee for thy true love But all the sweetness in .

thy soul can never wash away the b itterness from mine
Sleep well—farewell ! I kiss thee once more in sleep
.

I know not whether thou wilt be able to read this D o .

not grieve ; believe that all is well with me now Thy ..

”
o wn loving one even in death .

The maid who was in the habit of coming about

this time to light the kitchen fi re heard a hollow c ry in -

the next room and opened the door in her terror S he

,
.

there saw the young student lying on the sofa as though

prostrated by some heavy blow When she called him .

by name he only shook his head as if to say she need

,

not concern herself about him and then stooped to pick

'
,

up the paper that had fallen out o f his hand .

”
What o clock ? he enquired
“ ’
.

”
I t has just str uck six .

'
B az i-
n f ossa , e tc.
 LO T T K A .

Give me my cloak and stick I will .

He tottered to the door .

You are going out bare headed in all th 1s cold ?

“ -

A ll the shop s are closed there is not a creature in the

,
”
streets : you know this is a holiday ?
A holiday he said repeati ng the syllables one by
“ ”
, ,

one as though trying to make out their meaning Give .

“

”
me_

Your cap ? Here it is Will you not first of all

“
.

have a cup of coffee ? The water will soon b oil .

He made no further reply but went out with heavy ,

steps and stumbled down the dark staircase The sno w

,
.

crunched under his feet and thick icicles hung in his

,

beard F ar and near there was not a living creature to

.

b e seen in the dim streets ; the sentinels in the sentry

boxes looke d like stiff snow men As he passe d the .

bridge he saw that the river had frozen over during the
,

night He followed its course a long way his eyes

.
,

riveted on the ice as though looking for something

there Then he plunged into the neighbouring streets
.
,

quite aimlessly like one walking in his sleep For he

,
.

could not exp ect to find what he was searching for by

any p ondering or thinking of his o wn But the fever o f .

an immeasurable agony drove him restlessly on until he ,

was utterly exhausted .

He might have been wandering a couple of hours or

more for the stre ets were b eginning to look alive when
, ,

he reached the Potsdam Gate He there saw a cab .

stopping in front of the small toll house coming as it -

seemed from the park The toll keeper came o ut in his

.
-

furs and as he reached out his snuff box to a policem an

,
-

who sat by the driver asked laughingly

,
”
Anything that pays duty ? pointing to the closed
“

cab window s .
 LO T T KA . 1 47

“
Not any thing that pays d uty here was the reply , .

“
I must give up my contraband to the proper authorities
She has smuggled herself—not into but out of the world
.

, ,

but she is a rare piece of goods all the same I was

m
.

making my first round this morning yonder there by

L ouise island when I saw a well dressed lady sitting on
-

,
-

a b ench her head drooping as though she were asleep

,
.

’
‘
My pretty child said I look out some warmer place , ,
‘

’
than this to sleep in in such bitter cold as this But , .

there was no waking her Her hand still held a small

bottle —it smelt like laurel leaves She must have drunk
.

it off and then foul douce ent have fallen to sleep !

,
”
Go od morning I must make haste to deliver her up !
.

The driver cracked his whip At that very moment .

’
they again heard the toll keeper s voice -
.

”
“
Stop ! (he called out) You can take another .
“

passenger A gentleman looked into the cab window

and bang ! —
.

there he lies in the snow D o get down .

,

comrade he is quite a young man ; he must have weak

,

nerves indeed to b e knocked down in a second at the

sight o f a dead woman ! How if you put him in b eside
”
her ? They seem much of a muchness .

m
”
“
No returned the policeman that is contrary to
, ,
“

regulations D ead and living are not to b e shut in to

.

gether Wait we will carry him into the toll house If

.
,
-
.

you rub his head with snow and give him something ,
’
strong to smell at he ll come round in five minutes I , .

”
am up to these cases .

They bore the unconscious figure into the house

then the cab set out on its way again But the police .

’ ’
a n s prognostics were not fulfilled S ebastian s con .

sc io usn e ss did not return for five weeks instead of five

minutes I t was only when the last sno w had melted

.

away that the miserable man began to creep about a

10
”
 L O T T KA .

little with the aid of his stick Then he went off to his
.

parents who never knew what a strange fate had deso

,

lated his youth and cast a shadow over his manhood

, ,

that was never entirely dispelled When he died at the

.

age of fi ve and thirty he left behind him neither

- -

nor child .

E ND O F L O T T KA .
 T H E LO S T SO N
.

A B O UT th e middle o f the seventeenth century there

lived in the town of B e rne a worthy matron named
.

Helena Amthor the widow of a very rich and resp ected

,

b urgher and town councillor who after twelve years of

,

happy married life left her with two children while she
,

was still in the prime o f her age and b eauty Never .

the le ss she declined all the advantageous and honour

able o ffers of second marriage made to her declaring on ,

every such occasion that she had now only one thing to
do on earth and that was to bring up her children to
,

b e good and wo rthy members of society But as it often .

happens that too great anxiety defeats itself and achieves

the very reverse of what it aimed at so it proved here, .

The eldest child a boy who was eleven when his

father died —an intelligent b ut very self willed fellow
, ,

’
rather required the discipline of a man s strong hand
than the tender but too indulgent care of a mother who
positively idolised him as the image of the husband she
had prematurely lost and who never knew how to oppose
,

any of his impetuous wishes The consequence was that

.

the older the young Andreas grew the worse he b e ,

haved and rewarded his mother s unwise love by almost

,
’

breaking her heart When she first c ame to some recog

.
a

1 52 TH E LO S T SO N
.

n itio n of his faults it was already too late The remon .

stran ce s and admonitions of his uncles were all in vain ,

and even the grave censure and heavy fines he incurred

from the town authorities owing to his irregular conduct , ,
’
tamed his rude nature as little as did his m other s tears .

A t length Frau Helena made up her mind to the greatest

pang she had known s ince her husband s death—to a
- ’

parting with her son whom a cousin in L ausanne a

, ,

wealthy merchant now offered to take into his house in

, ,

the hope that change of scene and regular work might

exercise a healthy influence on the reckless youth A n .

dre as who was twenty years old at the time consented

, ,

willingly enough to leave the old fashioned bear gar -

“ -

”
den as he called his native town for a strange place
, , ,
’
where he promised himself spite o f his cousin s surveil ,

lance a far freer and more amusing life Neither did he

, .

sho w the least tender feeling on parting from his mother

and his little sister o f twelve Lisab e thli but kept his , ,

large stock of travelling money far more carefully in his

-

’
b elt than his mother s counsels in his heart No wonder .
,
’

therefore before six months were over news came from

L ausanne that A ndreas had se cretly quitted the tow
, ,

n ,

leaving b ehind him disgraceful debts at gambling houses -

and taverns and making o ff with money entrusted to

,

him for the business in lieu of which a heavy b ill

,

drawn on his mother was found in a corner of his

desk .

That bill and all other debts Helena Amthor paid

without delay ; she said not a word ab out them to anybody ,

and always gave one answer to whatever enquiries mi ght

b e made about her son that he was well and upon his ,

travels and that he wrote to her from time to time Nor

,
.

was this statement untrue for as soon as his money ran

short — which o ften happened —
,

he turne d to his mother ,

 THE LO S T SO N . 1 53

who at that time never refused him But as to what there .

was in his or her letters no mortal creature ever knew .

S he left o ff speaking of him never introduced his name , ,

so that at lengt h p eople grew shy of touching on the

sorrow of her life and Andreas was virtually dead as
,

far as the whole town of Berne was concerned He ,

himself seemed quite content to be so nor ever ex ,

pressed any wish to se e his home again When he

’

came of age and had to settle matters with his guardian ,

he curtly sent the latter word what day and hour he was
.

”
to meet him at the V ine tree in Strasburg there to
“ -

, ,

m ake over the fortune inherited from his father But .

his guardian a man already in years neither could nor

, ,
’
would travel so far on his ward s account Therefore .

Frau Helena resolved up on undertaking the sorrowful

j ourney herself probably with a last unspoken hO p e that
,

this meeting might have some softening effect upon his

estranged affections When however she returned after
.
, ,

a ten days absence the traces of confirmed sadne ss o n

’
,

her fine face were more marked than before and from ,

that time for th no one could say that they ever saw her
laugh.

A n d yet fate that had laid this heavy burden on her ,

had also granted her consolation in another direction ,

that might well hav e gladdened a less deeply wounded -

heart Her o ther child Lisab e thli who was about eight
.
,

years younger than the lost son was as admirably e n ,

~
.

dowed as obedient and loving and as completely the

, .
,

delight of every one who saw her as her brother was ,

the reverse A n d these sweet and lovely characteristics

.
,

though originally a matter of temperament no doubt ;

nall measure owing to her o wn self training

’
‘
were in no sr -

and self culture for her mother—more particularly during

,

the years when Andreas was at home —had erred quite

-
 m
T HE LO S T SO N .

as much on the side of severity towards her youngest

child as on that of indulgence towards her favourite ;
E ven when Lisab e thli was quite a small thing in the
'
school room she had shed m any hidden tears over the
-

,
1

reproofs and constant putting down she received ; and

“

-
.

pitied herself for her inability by all her love and duty
to w frorn her mother one of the fond words or

mm
caresses wh ich the else stern lady lavished upon her un
ruly boy All her anxiety on his account seemed but
“

to estrange her from her sweet girl about whom by the , ,

way her bro ther no more concerned himself than though

,

she had not be en in existence A n d yet the child con .

tinue d to b e gentleness and brightness itself and was ,

soon wise enough to estimate the misery that disturbed

the balance of her mother s mind and to resolve to treat
’
,

all inj ustice towards herself :a s she would the moo d or

-

caprice of a suffering invalid

L ater—after the flight o f An dreas from L ausanne
.

—
,

and while the rumour of it was spreading m ore and

more amongst the inhabitants of B erne the relations b e
tween mother and daughter i p roved Indeed the former .

’
had never b een blind to the p ure beauty of her child s
nature though ; like one under an evil spell she wrought
, ,

out her own wretchedness by her partiality Her mor .

tally wo unde d mat ernal pride still forbade her to betray

_

to her daughter even by a sigh the pangs her son ih

, ,

flicte d on her But in all other resp ects she now see e d
.

to give the young girl the next place in her affections ,

and was even anxious to make up for all that in her

earlier days she had inflicted or withheld Still she was .

sparing of her caresses If she but passed her delicate

.
.

white hand over the girl s brown head when wishing he r

’

good night still more if she ki ssed he r eyes and said

, ,
”
“
my good child Lisab ethli would blush c rimson for
,
.
 m
THE LOS T SO N
. 1 55

j oy and the happy beating o f her heart would keep her

,

awake a whole hour .

At the same time Frau Amthor endeavoured so far

,

as was compatible with her stern character to procure ,

for her daughter all the pleasures and amusements of

her age and was in the hab it of inviting her friends on
,

Sundays to the quiet home behind which lay a beautiful ,

te rr aced garden and duri ng the summer time the young

,

p eople used to enj oy little excursions and out door par ,

-

ties ; but she forbade the most strictly to go to any

dances however respectably carried on or in accordance , ,

m
with long establish ed custom they might b e It seemed ,
. .

that some innermost feel ing of her nature shrank from

the idea of the sister dancing while the brother home

m
,

less and friendless might at that very moment be driven

,

by despair to end his life For that it would come to .

this at last was the one spectral thought that cast its
,
’
shadow over the mother s soul both in her wakin g and
sleeping hours .

The house that had b elonged to the A tho rs for

many generations was a narrow three storied antique
,
-

building with wainscoted walls and ceilings and hand

, ,

so e ly furnished with old silk tap estry and heavy hang

ings O n the ground flo o r were the offices and the room

.
-

in which dwelt the old man servant and the faithful -

maid by whom the work of the house was done Above .

were the rooms inhabited by the mother and daughter ,

which opened at the back upon the garden ; and in the

w
third story were hat had b een the late councillor s ’

library and study an d of later years rooms entirely de

,

voted to Andreas The chamber where hi s b ed stoo d

.

had not since his departure b een entered by any one

but the old mai d servant His mother never set her foot
-
.

in it and if his sister crept by it to take a b ook from

“

,
1 56 T HE LO S T so n .

the library she held her breath as she passe d the door
,

as though it were haunted

O ur story b egins on a Septemb er evening —

mm
.

o n the

very day that Lisab e thli had completed her nineteenth

year In honour o f the anniversary her mother had in
.
,

v ite d some h alf dozen of the girl s favourite c ompanions

-
’

and what with singing and other amusements which the ,

grave matron left the you ng p eopl e to carry o n alone ,

the hour of ten had struck unbb serve d Indeed the girls .
,

who after a ve ry sultry day were still pacing the garden

walks arm in arm deep i n important confidential talk
, ,

might easily have forgot ti e till midnight if a stor ,

that had gathered on the other side o f the river had not “

scared them in And o nce in they found that their re

.
,

sp e ctiv e attendants had come for them with lanterns and ,

so kisses and good byes w ere heartily exchanged a nd in

-

, .

m
the great room looking out on the terrace the usual still
ness prevailed when the first r oll of thunder resound ed
,

through the darkness .

Frau Helena had j oined her daughter who stood in ,

the op en doorway looking down beyo nd the dark step s ,

leading into the garden to the river Aar lost 1n vague , , ,

dream like thoughts such as are wont to succeed a fes

-

tive day when the soul is once more free to retire into

m
itself She gently laid her hand on her daughte r s hair
’
.
,

and the sweet child silently leaned her head down on

the mother s shoulder as though to seek shelter fro
’
,

the vivid flash of lightning that suddenly rent the black

”
cloud ab ove them Come in child s aid the mother
.
“
, , ,
”
“
we shall soon have rain .

The daughter shook her hea d without saying a Word . .

She was now gazing steadily o n the clear space o f sky

at the horizon where the snow peaks of the O berland
,

far away fro the r ang e of the thunder c lou d rose gli t -

,
 m
TH E LO S T SO N . 157

tering in the moonlight a wondrous spectacle indeed

,
.

”
“
D ear little mother at length she said how vast the
, ,
“

earth is ! Yonder they neither see nor hear anything

of the stor that rages here And yet still further o ff .
,

in that star j ust ab ove the R o thho rn they would know ,

nothing of it if our e arth were to b e shivered to

”
atoms !
Her mother made no reply Her thoughts were —she .

herself did not know where b ut well she knew with

whom —with the one they had always flown to at the
,
'

approach of bad weather for many years past ; because ,

while the sky was growing dark she could not tell ,

whether her boy had a roof over hi s head or not .

”
“
How the river feels and answers to the storm ! re
sumed the girl O ne might really fancy one saw the
.
“

surface shudder with t error as the lightnings flash down .

And yet they can go on dancin g and fiddling in the ,

tavern on the little island yonder They must be a god .

”
less set.

“ ”
They will soon leave o ff said the mother it will “
, ,

b e too bad even for them No human b eing is so

.

hardened b ut what the hour comes when he hearkens if

Go d warns him But let us come in The drop s that
. .

”
fall are large as hazel nuts -
.

”
“
L ook mother said the daughter holding her back
, , ,

there is something not right going on there The door

o f the tavern is suddenly thrown open —p eople are rush
.

ing out—there is a girl in their midst —something flashes

like a sword blade —listen ! they are quarrelling—oh what
-

,
”
wild unruly creatures !
The thunder now paused and a sound of angry ,

voices as well as of breaki ng glass was plainly audible ,

while a single clarionet, undisturb ed by all the noise

 m m
T HE LO S T SON .

and confusi on went shrilly on playing gay d ancing

,

tunes .

I would give a hundred crowns said Frau Hele na

“
,

with brows knit if that sink of iniquity yonder were

,
“

r e oved from the town I really might b e driven to

. -

think of changing my house in my old days merely to ,

”
escap e hearing and seeing such things as these

m
.

”
And j ust at this sweetest of all hours int erposed the
“
,

g irl when everything else is so p eaceful and one i ght

,
“
, ,

for once dream an d thi nk at will Jus t look they are

all crossing the bridge now For God s sake —why they
.
,
’

are actually fi ghting—o ne is being pushe d against the

.

railings —the woman throws herself b etween them — his =

arms are free again—if they should push him into the
river
”
“
Come that is enough said the mo ther autho rita
, ,

tive ly now let us go in I t is no sight for Christians to

“
.
,

gaze at when men attack each other o re cruelly than

wild beasts would do Just read m e the evening lesson
.

”
and then we will go to b ed .

A brilliant flash now suddenly lit up the houses by

the side of the Aar the tavern o n the island and the
, , .

high sweltering current of the river .

For a moment the dark group massed on the narrow

bridge was distinctly seen : a tall youth with a red
'
feather in his cap in their midst struggling against ,
'
them with o nly a woman with white head ge ar on his '
,
-

side The clash of swords was heard and a shrill female

.
,

cry for help and then with a terrific thunder clap like
,
-

the fall of some mighty tower the clouds sent down ,

sheets of rain darkness swallowed up the wild doings

,

on the bridge and nothing remained v isible flt the red

,

light in the window of the island tavern .

The two women had retreated i nto the h ouse hor t i

 T HE LOS T SO N
. 1 59

fi e d, and while the mother slowly walked up and down

the carpeted floor Lisab e thli sat at the table her hands
, ,

folded on the open b ook before her and her eyes fixed ,
‘

upon a large nosegay which stood in a beautiful Vene

tian glass a present from her godfather on this her
,

birthday As to reading that was not to be thought of

.
, ,

the thunder would have drowned her voice ; still less

was sleep possible for the scene of violence was to o
,

vividly present to her mind She kept listening intently .

”
for what might be going on without O h God ! she .
“

almost unconsciously prayed have pity upon them all ,

“
,
”
and let no harm b e done ! Just then another flash

m
shone through the window and the door which had b een
left ajar that the fresh night air might enter the room -

and she fancied that she saw a shadow on the upp er

terrace show through the pane for one moment and ,

then vanish Mother she faintly called out

.
“
, let u s ,
“

lock the door someone has climbed over the wall

, ,

and
She could not end her sentence for the door was ,

m
pushed Open and a an rushed into the room For .
“

” ’
the sake of Go d s mercy cried he sinking half from , ,

m
exhaustion half in the attitude of entreaty at the knees
,

of Frau Helena Whoever you b e noble lady save an

“

innocent man ! They are on my track Where —where

.
, ,

and he looked around and with blood stained hands ,

-

pushed his dripping hair from his eyes Where can I .

“

"
hide myselfl What can I say to move your heart to
.

pity ! If you knew how it had all come about how e ,

ti t ely without fault of mine I have fallen into this hor

rible strait—a hunted down as a murderer—oh noble
maiden and he turned to the pale girl who gazed
’
with a shudder at the red feather in the s tranger s cap ;
“
if you have a brother who is clear to you who may -
160 T HE L OS T SO N .

p erhaps at this moment b e asking hospitality in som e

strange land—implore your lady mother not to thrust -

me out into the night where Heaven knows what dis

grace may overtake me; By the head of your own son ,

noble lady
”
Silence ! interrupted Frau Amthor in a hollow
“

trembling tone more awful in the ears of the suppliant

,

than the roar o f the thunder Meanwhile she looked at .

him with such an absent far away expression that her -

daughter flew to support her in case she should swoon .

But it passed over .

Close the terrace door S he hastily said leaning

“ -

, ,
'
b ack in her chair then call Valentin But make haste !
,
“
.

”
I seem to hear v oices in the garden below .

The young girl bolted the heavy door in the twink

ling o f an eye and hurried off The stranger remained
,
.

a moment or two alone with the mother .

”
You are saving my honour and liberty ! he stam
“

mered out perhaps my life B ut believe nobl e lady

,
“
.
, ,

that what you do is not done for one unworthy o r re

probate and my own mother who would ransom the
, ,

life of her son with all she has were he to fall among ,

ban dits will in return for your noble hearted

,
'
deed -

”
Not another word broke in the matron what I
“
, ,
,
“

do is not done for your sake But you are bleeding

she suddenly said and paused —her glance falling upon
.

a S pot on his shoulder where great drops were oozing

through his black silk doublet .

”
It is nothing returned he hastily pressing his glove
“
, ,

on the place I hardly feel it

. Would to God that the
“
.

blow I dealt in return may not be more dangerous ! But

Lisab e thli now returned with the old serv ant Va .

“

”
lentin ,
said the lady
-
take this stranger gentleman to
,
“
 m
T HE LO S T SON . 16 1

the upper story and then see him to bed —in the room
—you know which No one is to know that he is in
,

the house I will give my own instructions to Donat e

. .

’
Yo u understand how to foment L ook to the gentleman s .

wounds ; there is linen in the c upboard ; there are shirts

in the press — he is to be treated as tlzoug b lze were y
own son Go —I hear footsteps
.
” '

They all listened with b eating hearts In spite o f .

the noise of the rain voices were audible in the garden ,

.

The next moment the old se rvant had pushed the

strang er out of the room and mother and daughter were ,

alone .

”
“
My child said the mother go for a time down
, ,
“

stairs to Donate I shall have to lie and I would not

.
,

that your ears should hear me ”

.

”
“
Mother returned the girl I pray you to let me
, ,
“

remain with you I should die of terror down there

'
. .

Never believe th at anything you do can seem wrong in

my eyes ; and you are doing it to save a human life .

Meanwhile there were three knocks at the bolted

I n the name of the law open ”
door “
a deep voice
’

.
, ,

called out .

“
Who knocks at this late hour ? returned Frau
Amthor and her voice sounded as unconstrained as
,

though nothing had happened .

“
The sergeant with the train band was the reply , ,
.

O pen or we burst the door ” '

, .

”
“
Go Lisab e thli said the lady in so loud a tone
, ,

that every word was audible without I must say that .

“

customs are changing in o u r o ld town of Berne : the

idea of the watch breaking into a peaceable private
dwelling in the dark night time ! I hope you have some -

satisfacto ry explanation to give O f this visit of yours ,

”
sergeant this in a maj estic to ne to the intruder you
, ,
“

B a rba rossa , e tc. I I

 m
1 62 T HE LOS T SO N .

know who I am ; and that my hous e is no t like ly to

‘ ‘
“ ~ ~

contain any disreputable character whom the bailiffs are

”
after .

The sergeant who had cast a hasty glance all round

the ro o . now stoo d confounded opposite the lofty
,

fi gure of the matron and his eyes fell b efore the steady,
”
gaze of hers Forgive me Frau A mthor he mumbled
.
“
, , ,

while he b eckoned to his followers to stay where they

were and kept awkwardly turning the handle of his
, .

dagger round and round We are on the track of a .

“

dangerous fellow who has taken part in riotous mur ,

de ro us doings on the island yonder When I and my

men were approaching the tavern the p eople in it s aw
.

him flying in this direction leaping over hedges and ,

walls and we traced his foot marks to your garden and

,
-

,
-

even found one of his gloves below the window There .

fore I held it to b e my duty

To break into my house as though it were a likely
“

”
refuge for murderers interp osed the matron looking at , ,

him with so undaunted a gaze that the bearded man

m
stared down at the carpet much embarrassed by the wet
”
Go your way
“

foot prints he had left on its pattern

-
.
“
,

she continued and be more careful another time at what

,
“

door you knock To morrow I shall go to the Town .

-

Council and lay a complaint before them about their

endurance of the disorder and riot that goes on on the
island exposing even the quietest householder in the
,

neighb ourhood to an i nvas i on of the watch by night on

”
a charge of unlawful concealment !
The sergeant would fain have broken out into fur _

ther apologies but an i p erative gesture of the l ady

, ,

in the direction of the door prevented his uttering a ,

word He retired with head sunk low and had scarcely

.
,

crossed the threshold whe n Lisabe thli shot the bolt s ,

 T HE LO S T .
SO N . 1 63

after him and then sunk down on a seat with a deep

, ,

drawn sigh so much had the short scene affected her

,
.

”
“
R emain here said the mother after a pause
,
.

”
“
L ight a taper for me I will go up stairs . .

”
D earest mother pleaded the girl timidly would “

Indeed you are too pale —it will dis

“
, ,

you not rather

”
tress you too much .

Frau Helena made no reply but t aking the light out ,

of her hand left the room with face rigidly set as

, ,

though no worse thing could happ en to her She was a .

sternly virtuous woman a proud woman who had always , ,

felt too much self respect to condescend to a lie Now she

-
.

had de graded herself in her own estimation and in the

presence of her child and this for the sake of a stranger
,

who had no other claim to such a sacrifice than that of

having adjured her by her deepest grief .

The door through which she had passed remained

half open and Lisab e thli could b e ar with what slow
,

and heavy step s she went up the stairs and how often ,

she rested on the way as though needing to gather ,

breath and courage for the painful entrance into her

’
lost son s room which she had not visited for years
,
.

”
“
He is in a swoon said old Valentin meeting her , ,

on the threshold I have bound up his wounds but

.
“
,

as I was putting a clean shirt on him he fell lifeless

from under my hands I will fetch some cold water :
there is no danger —it is only faintness from loss of
.

”
blood .

He hurried down stairs and the lady entered the ,

room .

There lay the stranger on the b ed his eyes close d , ,

his mouth half open from pain and showing his white ,

teeth His light hair still dripping with blood and rain
.
,

was pushed back from his p al e br ow His cap and .

“
11
 T HE LOS T
' SO N
'
a

silke n doublet lay on the groun d as well as the bloo d ,

'

soaked shirt which the old servant had replaced by a

clean one Frau Helena trembled all over when she saw
.

this stranger Clothed in the fine linen she herself had ‘

spun for he r son and marked with his initials T hat she
'
.
,

m ight avoid seeing anything else in the room she fixed '
,

her eyes on the young face that in spite of its deadly .

p allor had a boyish harmless good natured expression

‘

-
.
, ,

She saw at once from his clothing that he was the son ]

of respectable parents and the tone in which he had ,

implored her to save him still rung pathetically in her: ,

ears A motherly feeling overcam e her and great tears

.
,

rolled down her faded face

’

Then the old servant returned with a pitcher of cold

water and prepared to wash the temples of the unco n
,

m
” '

scious youth L eave that to me .

“
said his mistress; ,

taki ng the sponge O ut of his hand Bring the best .

“

"

vinegar out of the s ide board an d a flask of our old -

wine When he come s to himself he will need a cordial

. .

Then she washed the bloo d out of his hair an d held ,

m
the ice cold sponge to his lips This brought him round :
-
.

he opened his eyes and o n seeing the noble lady who,

.

m
had saved him b ending over his couch he tried to sit ,

up and speak to her But she gently constrained hi .

to lie down again and to let her go o n with her minis

m
,

tratio ns .
“ ”
I am b etter alre ady he gasp e d o ut while , ,

he took hold of her hand to carry it to his lips ; O ,

:
“

how much you are doing for me ! And you do not '
know me and ust think ill O f me L et in e just tell
, . .

you how it all came about .

Not another word to n ight interposed the lady

“ -

, ,

gently laying her hand on his lips You have lost too .
“

uc h blood to exert yourse lf safely I leave yo u in the .

.

care of y O ld s ervant who will sit up with you I hop e .

 TH E LO S T SO N . 1 65

that y o u wi ll get some sleep and to morrow b e on the

'
,
- .

”
way to recovery Good night . .

She left the room without casting a look around at

any of the things that evoked such bitter memori es But .

as soon as she found herself in the dark lobby she le ant ,

her head against the wall and sobbed in secret This ,

.

burst o f grief lasted but a few minutes then she raise d ,

her head again and with her usual lofty bearing went
,

down to her daughter Valentin thinks that there is no .

“

” ”
danger she said
,
L et us go to our rest .
“
.

”
Mother asked the girl ,
do you b elieve that he is ,
“

a murderer ! There is something about him that seems as

“

if he would not hurt the meanest thing that lives let ,

alone a fello w creature .

“
Yet on the other hand how did he get to that
”
tavern on the island ! said the mother as if spe aking to ,

herself .

“
Because he was a stranger hastily broke in the ,

daughter He does not speak the Germ an of Switzer

.
“

”
land D id you not notice that mother dear ?
.
,
”
“
It is useless to theorise about it abruptly replied ,

Frau A mthor Come to bed child the storm has passed

.
“
, ,

over .

A n d so after the daughter had read the evening

prayers they went to their rest But it was long after
,
.

midnight before either of them closed an eye Lisab e thli .

kept constantly seeing before her the true hearted terror -

stricken gaze of the stranger when he appealed to her ,

’
to help to soften her mother s heart the blood on his ,

forehead the red feather in his cap while the scream of

, ,

the woman who threw herself between the combatants

o n the bridge still sounded in her ears Frau Helena
,
.

for her part was listening anxiously to what went on

ov erhe ad F or the room where the wounded man lay
.
 m
T HE LO S T SO N .

was immediately above her ch amber and she thought of ,

all the nights she had lain awake till m orning expecting
the return o f Andre as from his orgies and how when at ,

m
length she heard his unsteady step she used to turn on ,
'
her pillow not to sleep but to shed bitte r te ars Now
,
(

,
.

everything was silent enough only from time to time ,

V alentin gav e a short cough The p oor lady sat up .

in b ed and tried to pray ; O h L ord God so ran her

,
“
,

prayer ; let him in foreign lands meet a

“
o ther to
stand by him in all time of need ; an d if no one will
have pity on him let him find his way back to his own
,

o ther that I may not die b efore I have once more

,
”
held his hand in mine .

The morning was just b reaking pale and clo udy

through the small round panes when Frau Helena left ,
“

her room and hastily dressed herself

,
Sleep a nother .
“

”
hour said she to Lisab e thli who at once bestirred her
, ,

self too I will j ust go upstairs and see how our guest
.
“
,

is faring .

The girl however had no wish for further rest Very

, ,
.

quietly she too rose and dressed and cre p t on tip toe , i
-

after her mother O n the stair she met D onate carrying

.

a small tray He has not made much of his breakfast

.
“
,

said the faithful old servant F e arfully weak he still is .

“
,

and his hand shakes so if he tries to hold the spoon .

But for the rest a very fine handsome creature and I ,

”
would rather bite my tongue out than b etray him '
.

The young girl made no reply but went on to the ,

top of the staircase O nce there as the door had been

‘

.
,

left aj ar she could see the stranger lying in b ed but

, ,

raising his head a little to greet Frau Helena who was ,

bending over him and enquiring how he had slept .

 TH E LO S T S ON
. 1 67

I really hardly know noble lady answered the , ,

youth My faithful watcher there will b e b etter able to

.
“

tell you whether I was quiet or talked nonsense and

threw my hands and feet about But I dreamed a great
deal and such lovely dreams —nothing in them of blood
.

or wounds A nd this morn ing when I came to myself it

gave me a sudden stab in the heart to think ho wI must
.

have alarmed you last night and that you do not even ,

know to whom you have been so unspeakably kind .

”
Nay continued he seizing hold of her hand on seeing
, ,

that she was again going to impose silence I will not ,

“

let you go even though it should b e better for me to

,

remain four and twenty hours without speaking I t makes

- -
.

me wild to lie here and let that good Samaritan and ,

yourself above all feel that you are wasting your time
,

m
and trouble upon a fellow who b etter deserves to lie on
the straw of a hospital amongst brawlers and swash
bucklers whom the b eadle picks up half dead on the -

streets I owe my present plight to my greenness and

.

presumption having always held that with a good con

,

science and good courage nobody need fear to face the ,

devil My father has often enoug h shaken his head at

.

me warningly and said Touch not pitch if thou wilt ,

‘

’
keep clean hands ; and don t ix with wolves if thou

m m
dost not mean to howl with them A n d when I left .
’

A ugsburg how my mother charged me only to enter

respectable house s and keep good company ! The egg ,

however thought itself wiser than the hen For you see
,
.
,

noble lady I am naturally a restless sort of a fellow

, ,

and b eautiful as my native town is and cheerful too at ,

times I found it too confined a n d wanted to see the

‘

, ,

world Switzerland more especially because I had heard

so iich of it from my father He served his apprentice
, ,

ship here in Berne in the house of the rich aste p clo thie r,
a great
m
A ufde buhe l whom yo u doubtless know Afterwards he

fabric
l
of his o wn ;
,

and yet he
,

has
TH E L O S T

s ettled in A ugsburg and marrie d my mother and set up

always
fondly o f Berne so that when I told him my wish to
,
though

v isit it he made n O o bj e ction I almost think he had

_
'
t

.
SO N,

.
.

some idea of a daughter in law from that house w

m
hich
- -

suited my notions too fo r I have grown to the age of , .

fi ve and twenty in Augsburg an

- -

d all the blue and brown ,

eyes there have left me scathless And so for ab out a .

fortnig ht I rode southward in highest spirits and cross ed ,

th e beautiful L ake of Constance in a boat an d l as t , ,

eve ning when it was getting rather late I came through

the gates by the b ear pits thinking no evil ; but I did no t
-

like to come down at once upon Herr A ufde buhe l bag ,

and baggage as they say so put up my horse at the ,

”
“
Stork and then set out strolling about the town to
,

take a g eneral survey of it as I always do on first get ,

!

ting to any ne w place Yesterday however it was nu .

, ,

for tunate that I did not first of all have a meal at the
inn Fo r owing to the long ride and great sultriness
.

while the storm was gathering I suddenly bec ame in ,

tolerably thirsty and felt that I shoul d turn to tinde r

,

un les s I could get a draught o f wine I was looking .

a bout me therefore for a tavern j ust as I passe d the

, , ,

one on the island where I heard music and dancing

going on and I asked a well dressed burgher whether
,

o ne could get tolerable wine there The w ine was goo d ‘

.

enough he said much better than the company If he

,
’
,
‘
.

were to j udge me by my dress he should say I sh oul d

no t find people of my own class there I would go ‘
.

’
int p a st able full of cows and goats I laughingly re ,

plie d if I c ould find red wine in one of the milk pails

,
‘ -

A n d the re I left my worthy standing looking rather , ,

a nxiously after me , and crossed the b rid ge to the tave rn

‘

.
 Whe n I Op ened the door howeve r I
m m
TH E LO S T

that y
friend had not cautioned e fo r nothing and that in a
'
‘

,
SO N .

,
“

,
saw
16
.
9

m
stable with brute b easts I should have found better
manners and customs than there Whether it be a .

haunt of thieves I cannot say but most of the people ,

looked to me as if they had narrowly escaped the gal

lows or were on the high way thither men and women
, ,

both and when I entered they nudge d each other with

‘

surprise But I who did not like to S how the white

.

feather and held that a stranger might safely do what

,

an inhabitant of the plac e could not boldly seated y ,

self in a corner and ordered a measure of wine And

,
.

as I kept quiet they seemed to b e getting used to me

, ,

at least most of them had either drunk themselves stupid ,

or else were taken up with their female companions .

A mongst the last class was one b etter dressed and

, ,

with hair neater than the others but a bold hussy like ,

the rest She neither danced nor sang nor seemed to

.
,

care for drink She sat on the knee of a tall strong

.

man whose clothes looked as if they had originally been

,

good but were now stained with rain and wine His
, .

face too might once have been handsome b efore he got ,

the red scar across his forehead or his red eyelids and ,

straggling beard I could not help watching the pair

.

he throwing down the dice disdainfully as though goo d ,

or bad luck were all the same to him and when he ,

wo n giving a push to the girl to collect the money ,

whereupon she would take a long dagger that lay on

the table and with the bare blade j ust sweep the coins
,

to one side as if they were so much dirt Neither o f

them spoke a word while their partners—rough young
.

churls with red faces and glassy eyes —cursed freely in

,

S panish and French and struck the table with their

,

clenched fi sts T he girl seemed at length to tire of the

.
1 70 T HE

game and looking round he r with a yawn chanced to

,

spy me out for the first time for hen I ente red she
was dozing on the man s shoulder I s uppose y dre ss
took her fancy or the ririg on my finger ; suffice it to
sa y that she b egan to
,

c ast e aning glances at me

to make signs with her hand behind her lover s back ,

which I neither understood nor attended to but gulped
and
’

mm
LO S T

,
SO N

.
.

‘
,

,
’
,
‘

down my wine the more quickly that I might slip away ,

when all of a sudden she sprang from the knee of the

‘

gloomy gambler and seated herself on the bench beside

‘

me as if intending to sleep but in reality she kept ,

ogling me all the time The man with the scar seemed .

aware of something wrong for he loudly called to her ,

in French to come back at once but she pretended to ,

be asleep and not to hear him At that he started up

in a rage and bad e me go my ways at once —said he
.
,

had seen me making signals to the girl and luring her ,

from his lap I who was inwardly furious at his bruta

.

lity put on a careless semblance and said that no one

, ,

had a right to bid me leave that I was interfering with ,

nobo dy and paying for my wine like the rest At that

,
.

he grew frantic ; dragged the girl from the bench and ,

called out to the host to know why he did not keep his .

house clear of suspicio us characters who only c ame to

m
S py ,
called m e all sorts o f opprobrious names , and
when the girl took my part seized hold of my doublet; ,

and tore my collar I saw now pretty plainly what I had

brought upon myself for all the rest of the gamblers
,

j oined in the outcry and the landlord who got his live
,
'
,

liho o d through men of that class and did not want ,

decent c ustomers rudely told ine that I was out of place

,

in a house like his where p eople knew their mann e rs :

’
I ’
‘
V ery go od I said I will no longer disturb you
, ,
‘
. .

thr ew my money on the tabl e and o ved away B ut as

,
.

}
n e wax pas de vous
AZZez vous en
T HE

I was opening the door the girl suddenly clung to e

and b egged me to take her with me for a walk as she
was sick of the company cried I ;
’
and what else of bad French I
,
LO S T

j e
.
‘
SO N

-
.

-
,
’
,
171

‘
m
m
,

could muster Just then the storm began and the up

.
,

roar within got worse and worse for the lover wanted ,

to tear her away and the others screamed and stormed

, ,

and she clung to m e like a wild cat to a tree and I ,

could not help thinking in my anger and vexation ,

‘
What if thy good mother saw Then came s o
dazzling a flash that even those rude b eings were
,

q uieted for a moment the music stopped and,

the land ,

lady put up a sort of prayer I took advantage of this .

\

interval to shake off my troublesome fair one and slip ,

out of the house But while I was on the b ridge thank

.
,

ing God for having got o ff with only a black eye the
“

whole of them rushed out up on e with drawn blades ,

'
and had they not been half drunk my last hour would -

inevitably have struck ! The French girl too came to

my aid and when she saw her lover—the man with the
scar—drive his dagger into my shoulder she yelled like ;
,

a maniac pushed me against the railing and covered

, ,
d

me with her o wn body Meanwhile see ing my life was .

,

at stake I drew out my short sword and laid about me

, ,

so lustily that all fell back with the exception of my

,

chief fo e who was maddened with j ealousy and wine .

He actually ran in upon my sword gave a roar like a ,

bull and then fell sp eechless on his face I nstantly all

, .

was so still one only heard the thunder and the rush o f
the river But then came two flashes and showed us
.

the train band marching towards the island

-
Get him .
‘

’
into the boat said one o f the fellows to another
, He .
‘

is already in was the reply ; the best way were to

,
’ ‘

throw him into the river Meanwhile they had caught .

’
ho ld a
o f th e whi

by the shoulders
perin
‘

Vozld [ es g e ndar es !
’
g
'
girl , ; m
m
m
m
an
THE

d Were p ushing her e ff

A llo , dep éMez vous , she cried
.
’

01a nous allrapera tous

’
And
LO S T S O N.

‘
-

.
‘

m
then there was such a rush along the narrow bridge th at

m
no one to ok any notice of me and under c over of the ,

darkness and pelting rain I a de my es cape The r e st .

‘

you know noble la dy And now j ust picture to your

, .

m
,

self my fate if Heaven had not touche d your heart if ,

you had refused me your p ro te c t1o n I n de lible disgrace

m
.

mu st have attached to me as a brawler if not as a mur -

_
,
“

- a

derer ; fo und in a disreputable house ; no worthy man to

b e ar witne ss to my innocen ce and Herr A ufde b uhe l
‘

, ,

m
i nstead of writing word to y father that he rej oiced to , .

rene w their old friendship by welcoming his son w ould ,

but have come to see me in prison and have shaken ,

.

his head incredulously over y self j ustifi catio n whereas -

1 read in your eyes that you do not hold me an empty .

liar but feel compas sion for my reckle ss youth and will
, ,
”
not withdraw yourh and fro me .

After this imp etuous narrative which e vidently ex ,

-

ci ted hi much the youth sank back O n his pillows

,

with a deep sigh and closed his eyelids , Be of good .

“

”
cheer said Frau Helena her b lack eyes moist with

m
, ,

tears You shall want for nothing under my roof and

.
“
,

since I have had you laid in this bed I should look ,

rip e n you as my son ev en if everything about you did,

not assure me that I might give credence to y our words

.
_
.

V alentin thinks that i n ab out a week y o u may b e able

to rise Till then I shall only ask one thing from you
.
,

to b e a tract able patient and not thro ugh impatience or ,

anxiety to retard your If yo u wish as yo u r -

cannot mo ve your arm I will write word to y our , ,

.

o ther how y ou are and that she ne ed fe ar no danger

,
 T HE L OS T SO N . 1 73

O h,
my gracious ho stes s cried the y o uth catching , ,

hold of the sleeve of her dress and pressing it to his

lips ; you are indeed like a mother to me for you o ffer
“
,

O f your own accord what I scarcel y dared ask And yet .

I know what a favour you will be conferri ng upon my

dear moth er; For indeed both parent s are now sitting
‘

anx iously together like two birds in a nest whose youn g

one has just taken his first flight and I had promised ,

to send them tidings as soon as I reached my j ourney s ’

en d. But now if you are good enough to write to Frau

,

Martina Brucker Augsburg will you make light of my

, ,

hurt and keep back from her the way I got it until I ,
'
ca n send her a circumstantial account For she is v ery .

'
easily frightene d and as I am her only child she has
, ,

always taken as much care o f me as though I were a

girl and hitherto I have tried to give her as little un
,

easiness as possib le If she were to know what a scrape

.

her Kurt got into on the very first night of his arrival
.
"

at Berne she would not have an hour s peace until

,
’

she could get him out of this dangerous atmosphere .

But you will see at once what to do You will know .

p erfectly what to say to a mother so as to comfort even

more than alarm her— .

He grew so pale while utte ring these last words that ,

;
V alentin hurried to the bed side with a cordial and -

gave his mistress plainly to understand that her inter

view had been too lo ng So after a few further dire c .

tions she crept softly out on tip toe and in the lobby
,
-
,

came upon Lisab ethli .

”
“
You have been listening ? said she sternly .

”
“
D earest mother forgive me returned her child I
, ,
.
“

could not help it I needs must know how it all hap

pened God be praised and thanked —I was right he
.

-
.

”
is innocent .
 T HE LO S T SO N.
‘

“
C ome down child you have nothing to do up
"
‘

, ,

here Should any one call I am engaged I must sit

. .

”
do wn at once and write to his mother
,
.

But nevertheless a visitor came whom neither D on ate

could send away nor Lisabe thli rece ive alone , I t was
,

no other than the chief sergeant the greatest man in the ,

town next to the mayor and distantly related to Frau

, _

Helena He came on the part of the Town Council to

.

apologise for the intrusion of the previous night and ,

also to say that the disorders on the island should now

be effectually put a stop to by the closing of the tavern ,

which had long been a thorn in the side of the civi c

authorities A s to the savage doings o f yesterday even
.

ing a mystery lay over them which up to the present

’

hour no one had been able to penetrate Both com .

~

b atants had disappeared as completely as though the

earth had swallowed them up their bloody traces had ,
:

been washed away by the heavy rain and nothing was ,

known of their names or their antecedents O nly a boati .

usually fastened to the bridge had been found two o r

three miles from the town keel upp ermost and the land ,

lord of the Stork stated that a horse had been left in “

his stable last evening whose rider had never made hi s

,

app earance since .

During this communication Frau Helena had often

changed colour but did not utter a syllable which could
,

have betrayed her secret knowledge nay she was even , ,

careful not to speak a word of any kind as it must needs ,

have b een at least indirectly untrue A s soo n as she .

was alone again she wrote to Frau Martina Brucker in

,
~

Augsburg j udiciously keeping back all that might have

,
’
made her uneasy as to her son s conduct , and con
 m
LO S T SO N i 75
"

THE
‘

eluding by a co rdially expressed promise to nurse him

“

as a real mother might , since she —this she added with

silent tears —was not so favoured by Heaven as to have
her o wn son under her roof .

This letter she herself took in the afternoon to the

post accompanied by her daughter without whom in
, , ,

deed she seldo left the house Neither of them said

,
.

a word about their hidden guest and yet neither thought ,

of anything else So it was in the evening too when

.

they silently sat at their spinning wheels It was only .

when D onate came in at a late hour to announce that

the fever was higher the patient unable to S leep and
, ,

delirious calling constantly for his mother and wantin g

, ,

to get up and ride o ff homewards that they held a coun ,

cil as to whether it was any longer possible or justifiable

not to call in a chirurgeon but trust to the skill and
,

experience of old Valentin who had served half his ,

time as apprentice to a leech b efore Herr Amthor took

him into his service At last Frau Helena went up her
.

self to inspect the wound There was nothing in its

.

aspect to alarm and the o ld man assured her that the

,

rambling D onate had been frightened by merely re

, ,

sulte d from the full bloodedness of youth

-
and that in ,

m
four and twenty hours all danger would b e p erfectly
- -
.

over Frau Helena knew that her faithful servant was

.
'

accustomed to weigh his words b efore he spoke posi

tive ly .She stood for a while by the side of the feverish
sufferer who did not know her but when he felt the
, ,
”
touch of her hand called her mother and then with a “
,

sudden brightness in his face b egan to talk to her in a

tone of affectionate confidence telling her she was not ,

to suppose he had set his heart on Herr A ufde b uhel s ’

daughter—that she knew he would never marry unless

he found som e one like her Then he would break out
.
 m
T HE LO S T SON .

into French as if violently remonstrating with the bold

,

girl of the tavern telling her not to h ang about his

-

neck since though S he might stain his doublet with

,

wine she could not ogle the rin g off his fi nge r a n d all
,
-

'
sorts of delirious fancies To all which the j udicious .

matron listened attent ively for she well kn ew men and , ,

Was silently touched by the evidence thus affor ded o f a

m m
good and innocent nature She felt her o therly par .
=

tiality for the young stranger grow hour by hour till ,

.

she was almost angry that this youth should assert a

m
claim to a place in her heart long entirely filled by ,

sorrow for her lost one .

The night was again restless and so was the day ,

“

B ut j ust as Valentin had foretold , on the third night ,

came a refreshing S leep and when Frau Helena paid

'
,
'

he ri
o rn ing visit to her guest he lo o ke d at her with
_

clear intelligent eyes and even tried t o move his ,

wounded arm which was still helpless but going on as

, ,

well as possible The lady S hook her head lovingly at

.

him and bade him not play any pranks or fancy hi

, ,

self well before the time and the youth a lthough in the , ,

highest spirits gravely assured her that he would be

, .

passive as an unweaned child But that very eve ning .

,

as mother and daughter were sitting in their saloon by

m
.

candlelight and Lisab e thli practisi ng so e foreign tune

,

u pon the spinett there came a knock at the door and

in answer to a somewhat nervous Come in —
, ,

for the “

ladies! were not accustomed to such late visitors —the ir

,

young guest appeared leaning on the arm of V alentin ,

who by silent shrugs gave them to understand that this

,

was no doing of his and that he wash e d his h ands of

,

the consequences of such imprudence Kurt however .

, ,

over whose pale cheeks a flush of pleasure passed at « .

this escape from the S ick roo gaily and gra ceful ly ,
 T HE LO S T SO N . 1 77

bent his knee before the grave matron and prayed her ,

forgiveness for having ventured once more to stand on

his own feet contrary to her command He only wanted .

to wish his benefactress good night and to thank the -

young lady too whom he had not seen since that ter
,

rible evening for the trouble she had taken in making

,

lint and sewing bandages together I t was impossible to .

resist his lively cordial manner : and even Lisab e thli ,

who had been more startled by his unexpected appear

ance on this occasion than on the first soon regained ,

he r natural ease and replied playfully and intelligently

to his friendly talk At a signal from her mother she
.

brought in a tray of fruit and pastry and their guest ,

who had fasted for some days (first however asking , ,

and obtaining leave from Valentin) was soon biting with ,

his white teeth into the j uicy early pears .

”
“
Noble lady he said I cannot describe to you
, ,
“

how pleasant it is to me to find myself at this table .

When I first saw your lights shine from the terrace b e

low and directed my fugiti ve steps hither how little I
, ,

m
dreame d that I should ever sit here safely and happily ,

and that you would b e so very kind to me ! You must

know that I am a thorou ghly spoilt child and on my ,

j ourney here much as I enj oyed the freedom and no

,

v e lty of it yet in the wretched hostelries spite o f good

, ,

food and fiery wine I used to long for the clean table
,

cloth laid by our maid at home for our simple fare I .

never ventured to sleep in any of their b eds without

spreading y cloak over the sheets Now here I find
eve rything j ust as it is at my own mother s —only better
.

‘ ’

appointed —and that there I have to b e son and daughter

in one while here I sit merely on sufferance because as
, , ,

my old friend tells me your son is on his travels while

, ,

B a réarossa , e tc .
1 78 TH E L O S T SO N .

a daughter is left to you such as my mother has long

vainly wished for .

A t these words the old servant slipped away for thi s ,

reference to the absent son distressed him but L isa ,

”
b e thli came to her mother s rescue O ften she play ’ “
,

fully observed did p eople wish themselves a cross and

,
“
,

if her mother would b e candid she would admit that ,

she not seldom found herself desiring better companion

ship than that o f a silly little daughter her head full of ,

freaks and fancies who strummed on the spinet half

,

the day through roasted the meat to o brown and made

, ,

the soup too light and cost more than she was worth in
,
”
ribands and tuckers At this the mother with a faint
.

smile observed that the picture was certainly like

, ,

though som ewhat darkly shaded ; but that even were it a

correct one each must accept the punishment Heaven
,

adj udged him And so saying her face grew very sad for
.
,

she thought that in he 1 case this was but too true The .

young people however paid no attention b u

,
t went on
, ,

chatting in the liveliest manner and b ecoming so ,

thoroughly at home with each other that they felt like

old acquaintances and when Lisab e thli had risen from
,

her instrument a fter playi ng three o r four national airs to

their guest the minster tower struck twelve before any
,

o f them knew that they had been more than an hour to

gether .

T here is little to record about the following days

and evenings except that both the young people and
, ,

even the mother daily thought the time longer until

— the house — door being barred and b olted —they were
,

able to receive their guest in safety and chat half the ,

night away in the cheerful well lit sitti ng room They ,

- -
.

seemed to fall into this state of things as if it always

had bee n and must always continue and the very fact ,
 THE LO S T SO N
. 1 7g

o f having a secret to keep and a peril to avert gave to ,

these innocent meetings an excitement and a charm

against which even Frau Helena herself was not quite
proo f She was wise enough however to foresee that there
.
, ,

was another danger besides that of the discovery o f her

hidden guest and o f her own untruth Lisab e thli who
'

.
,

until the present time had very seldom and only for ,

short periods been in the company of young men had

, ,

already spent eleven days under the same roo f with this
stranger ; and if since she had fathomed his candid and
,

upright nature the mother had learnt to love him was it

, ,

not expecting too much to suppose the daughter blind

to all his gifts and virtues ! He indeed confidential
“
, ,

and friendly as he was , appeared to have taken good

care of his o wn heart and in all the unchecked playful
,

ness of their talk throughout the long evenings not a ,

word escaped his lips that sounded other than brotherly

in its tone But if it were really so if this bird of pas
.
,

sage had no thought o f nest building it would b e all

-

the worse for the child and a mother s duty was to put
,
’

an end to it at once She blamed her o wn weakness

.

an d inability to remind her g uest

(who was really now
quite able to travel) of the j ourney he no longer seemed
anxious to take She felt how much she should miss
.

him when she had him no lo n ger to expend her motherly

,

care upon and no more heard his frank loving voice

,
”
call her lady mother
“ -
Or even vie with her little
, .

daughter in de v ising pet names for her Then too she .

, ,

had a sense of the ungraciousness and unfitne ss of has

’
tening a guest s departure A nd so she was glad and
.

sorry both when a letter arrived from Augsburg written

, ,

by his parents who at its close enjoined their son not

,

to trespa ss too long upon the hospitality of the noble

lady to whom he owed his life but to set o ut as soon ,

12
*
as ever his wound was heal ed and j ourney ho e wardis ;
as so only could his anxio us mother be fu lly co nvin ce d
.

that he was really out of danger and that the pu nish g

ment of his recklessness had been on this o cc asion a
lenient one
,
m -

When young Kurt had read out this letter to his

two friends not a word was S poken by any of the three
,

for a long tim e and afterwards the talk turned only on

,

grave o r indifferent subj ects

'
F o r the sense of this .

b eing their last evening was heavy upon the hearts o f all
though none chose to confess it After midnight—
,

m
when
he had left them —mother and daughter went on sitting
.

up pretending to have something to do for neither felt

, ,

able to sleep Then Lisab e thli left the room to give

.

'
some last directions to D onate O n he r return she hel d .

a sheet of pap er in her hand and her face was as white ,

as the p ap er .

”
D ear mother she stammered out , D onate has ,
“

” ’

j ust given me this It is from izz Will you read it

. .

R ead it yourself said her mother there can be

“
, ,
“

”
no harm in it .

O h mother whispered the g1rl I can not see to “

read it There is a cloud before my eyes—I know that

, ,

— ”
it is a farewell !
Give it me said Frau Helena He asks yo u she
“
,
.
“
,

said after a p ause whether you have any obj ection to

, ,
“

his applying to me for my consent t o give you to him .

'

He does this in writing because if you do not love him ,

which he fears is but to o likely as you have always

seemed so cheerful and unconcerned—hé would prefer
,

not to see you agam but to set out without any leave ,
:

taking and take his unhappy he art as far as p ossible

,
‘
a

from hence .

The girl did not answer and her mother to o was ,

 m
TH E LO S T SO N . 1 81

’
silent
. Suddenly Frau Helena felt her child s arms
around her neck her te ars on her cheek while her soft
, ,

little mouth whispered in her ear I should have died .

“
,

dearest o ther if he had not loved me

,
Then her .

mother took her upon her knee as S he had n Ot done

since she was a child pressed her closely to her heart
, ,

and said with trembli ng voice God bless you my good ,

“
,
”
children : you have to make up to me for much .

That night no one closed an eye till morning when ,

they snatched an hour or two and the daughter who , ,

woke first glad as she was that her mother should have
,

more rest could yet hardly wait patiently until she rose
,
’
and went to return an answer to the young lover s
letter
.

When Frau Helena went upstairs she found her

guest—who had like herself only closed his eyes a short
,

time b efore —fast asl eep and so she sat by his bedside
"
,

contemplating the go od innocent countenance that

beamed with hop e and happiness even in its sleep But .

as still he did not wake she called him by his name ,

.

A t that he started and in his confusion could find no

,

words especially as he did not know what she would

,

say to his letter But though her face remained grave

.
,

her words at once gave him comfort and confidence .

”
D ear son said she you must not remain here any
, ,
“

longer A fter what yo u have writt en to my child it

.
“ ,

would not b e fitting that I should persuade you to go

on accepting o ur well meant though poor hospitality A s
-
.

soon as you are ready to set out we must part and ,

Valentin will let you out at the garden door from ,

”
whence you must make your way to the Stork and “
,

there get your horse explaining your long absence in

,

the most credibl e way you can A nd further I must insist .

that you do not before your departure say a word to my

1 82 TH E L O S T SO N .

daughter that might not b e spoken to a stranger She love s .

'
you dearly and I may truly say that I could wish nothing
,
”
more than to have so worthy a son since my own son , ,

and here she sighed from the depths of her heart

.
is ,
“

alas ! lost to me as I shall tell you later But I do not

, .

choose your p arents to think that after nurs i ng you here

we have taken advantage of your gratitude to procure a
husband for my daughter ; and you yourself when you ,

go o ff and mix with the world again may wonder at the ,

esp ecial charm you found in my simple child when she ,

was your only companion Therefore you must part .

without one binding word on either S ide and thus my ,

child too will have time to examine he r young heart

, , ,

and to fi nd out whether compassion and the interest of

m
an adventure may not have p roduced an illusory belief
that you are her Heaven appointed bridegro om I f when
-
.

you have spoken to your parents and obtained their

consent you are still of the same mind as now you can ,

let us know by letter or in p erson and God will then ,

give his blessing if this marriag e be really made in

Heaven A nd now clear son I leave you and shall
.
, , ,

expect you at breakfast for you shall not leave my ,

house fasting and unrefreshed although I must still i ,

pose abstinence upon your yearning heart .

’
She rose and pressed a mother s kiss on the brow
of the youth who had listened in speechless rapture
, .

But if he dre w from this token of affection any hO p e

that she would not b e s o stern as to prevent him press
“

1 ng his loved maiden to his heart once at least before

they p arted he did not know the strong character of

,

this mother in whose nature severity and tenderness

,

were strangely blended The farewell had to take place

.

exactly in the manner prescrib ed and if Lisab e thli had

‘

not in reachin g out her h and given him a look that was
 THE L O S T SO N . 1 83

one long confession of the deepest love and fidelity he ,

might have gone away not in j oyous hope but in un

, ,

certainty as to whether or not he had found a heart that

was his for life and death He left a ring on the table
.

o f his room wrapped in paper with j ust one line to the

, ,

mother Will you keep this token for me till you allow
.
“

m
me to offer it to your child A s to V alentin and .

D onate he rewarded their care so liberally that in their

,

amazement they came to tell F rau Helena that Herr

Kurt must surely have made some mistake But when .

they saw the traces of tears in Lisab e thli s eyes they ’

,

silently went their way and b egan to put many things

, ‘

together .

This was about noo n when most persons were at

‘

home and Kurt could go through Frau A tho r s garden

,
’

gate with least risk of b eing obse rved S ome hours .

passed by without the mother and daughter Opening

their lips even to speak on indifferent subj ects They .

m
were more o ccupied with each other than ever and

m
,

showed it in a hundred little loving ways only they ,

hardly dared to allow their eyes to meet for each ,

had a secret to keep When the day got cooler the

.
,

mother was j ust going to invite her child who was walk ,

ing alone in the garden to put on her hat and take a

,

turn with her through the town when V alentin suddenly ,

appeared with an anxious visage and hastily announced ,

that the chief sergeant who had paid his

,
l stre ss a

visit twelve days before now requested to know whe

,

ther she was at ho e He had something he said of

.
, ,

importance and urgency to communicate Frau Helena .

whose first idea was some fresh imprudence on the part

of Kurt—had j ust time to make a S ign to Valentin enjoin
-

ing silence towards Lisab e thli when in came the stately

,

dignitary lookin g far more solemn and mysterious than

,
1 84 T HE LO S T SO N .

he had done on the former occasio n and requesting a ,

private inte rview A fter she had led him into a small
.

study where he took his seat facing her coughed

, ,

several times and r e arranging the tags on his dress he

, ,

began in evident embarrassment to address her as fol

lows
I need not to premise worthy Frau Amthor how
“
, ,

not only your family and house but also your own cha ,

rac te r are held in honour by every p erson public or ,

private in our goo d town and your virtues as well as

, , ,

the name and memory of your departed husband looked ,

up to as a Christian example It is therefore the uni .

, ,

versal wish to keep sorrow far from you and to o ffer ,

you whatever consolation lies within human power for

such trial as Heav e n has appointed It will not have .

escap ed you that all as by common consent have long

’
avoided touching the wound that your son s conduct has
inflicted and I indeed as your friend and relative
"

, ,

should have been especially bound never to name your

m
lost Andreas in your presence if my official duty had ,

not required me so to do Will you therefore not .

, ,

render my painful duty still harder to me by suppre s

sion or evasion but openly tell me what accounts of
,

your son you have lately had and where you have rea ,
”
son to believe him no w to b e !
”
I f you ask me thus earnestly
“
replied the mother , ,

without betraying either in look or tone how fast her

heart was beating ; I must alas ! return you for answer
“
, ,

that it will be four years next A ll Saints since I saw my ’

unhappy son for the last time and that since then I ,

have had no manner of communication from him But .

now let e enquire what leads you and the rest of the
Town C ouncil to make such enqu iries about the absent
o ne who —whatever h is offences may b e —
-

has at least
 T HE LOS T SO N . 1 85

not given his native town any cause for complaint for a
”
space of nine years !
The sergeant coughed again and resumed after a ,

pause during which he was evidently in search of the

,

most appropriate words possible Hear me out pa .

“
‘

tie ntly my worthy friend and rel ative and do not b e -

, ,

startled if my communication should sound strange and

—
alarming Up to the present time it is only a surmise
which may God grant it l—prove to b e entirely un
.

fdun de d You remember the night on which the train

.

band intruded upon you and the disorderly conduct on ,

the island respecting which I waited upon you the fol

,

lowing day bearing the apologies o f the Council The

,
.

tavern which caused you so much annoyance was closed ,

at once and the scene o f much nightly misdemean

,

our removed Neither since that night had any trace

.

of the chief offenders been found s o that I began to ,

suspect the watchmen must have been bewildered with

new wine and seen phantoms But last evening j ust as
,
.
,

we were breaking up a you ng female was brought b e

,

fore us who had gone to the sexton of St Ursula to

, .

request him to give private burial to a corpse then in

her room S ince S he feared—the fatal wound having
b een received in a brawl —that she might else as a
,

s tranger in the place b e held in some way amenable to

the law The little money the girl possessed —she seemed
.

to be no better than a French courtesan and could

scarcely put ten German words together—she had o f
,

fe re d the sexton as a brib e for secrecy but when he as , ,

his duty was gave information of the death and took

, ,

her with him to the Court she seemed inspired with ,

sudden courage and being thoroughly cross examined

,
-

by us was yet able to establish her innocence in this

,

tragic matter The dead man who had been her lover
.
,
 T HE LO S T SO N
.

and brou ght her with him from L yons had on the night ,

o f the storm picked a quarrel on the island with an un

known youth and had b een stabbed by the latter during
,

a struggle on the bridge When the train band was .

-

seen approaching she had j ust had time with the help ,

of two of their travelling companions to get the unco n ,

scious man into a boat and to bring him to the o b ,

scure inn where they had arrived on the previous day .

The two other men seeing that there was nothing more
to be made got themselves out of the scrap e but she
, ,

m
had faithfully tended the wounded man by night and
“

day and p ersuaded the host that he was getting better

, ,

and would if secrecy were maintained reward him

liberally by and by I t was o nly when he had drawn
- -
.

his last breath that she thought o f herself with any

anxiety for during his illness she had been obliged to
,

spend all the money he had won at play and the few ,

ornaments she had she had sold to a Jew in hopes o f ,

getting hi quietly b uried A s to her future mainte .

nance however S he continued with brazen assurance she

should have no fear as she was young and —
, , ,

thank Go d !
—not ugly if only she were acquitted by us and could
,
,

get to a country where p eople understood her The .

dead man had indeed treated her liberally as regarded

, ,

dress food and presents but she had not had much
, , ,

pleasure with him for he was of a sul ky temper and , ,

not a thorough Frenchman spite of his name She ,

.

rather thought he must have b een an A lsatian He .

called himself L aporte had travelled through many ,

lands had served in the D utch army and was not fond
, ,

o f speaking about his past The idea of travelling in .

Switzerland occurred to him when he had exhausted all

his means She had never found out whether he had a
.

treasure buried in this country , or friends who were in

 TH E LO S T SO N . 1 87

any way b ound to him and at whose door he had only

,

to knock in order to b e set on his legs again This was .

the simple truth and more she did not herself know
, ,

and therefore could not tell us even if she were put to ,

the torture .

A fter this declaration of Fleurette —which was the

‘

female s name— the mayor ordered that the body should

,
’

be moved from the inn (where as yet the death had not
transpired) to the hospital and last night it was borne ,

upon a bier into the dead house and a protocol was

made previous to the interment of the stranger—as such
,

—close to the churchyard wall The foreign hussy was .

meanwhile confined for a season in the tower of the

hospital s When we betook ourselves this morning to the
dead house and the inspector had given us his report
, ,

namely that the wound had been dealt by a German

,

sword b etween the fourth and fifth ribs and that it was ,

a marvel such a wound had been s o long survived

there came a j udicial investigation of the clothes and
few effects found the result of which in no way contra
,

dicted but rather confirmed the young woman s state ’

‘

, ,

ment We found that in his commission as officer in

.

the Dutch army he was entered as a Monsieur L aporte

,

or D e la Porte ; there were no other papers The clerk .

m
had indeed already finished the protocol when the sur ,

geon called our attention to a seal ring on the dead -

’
man s clenched left hand I t was a thick gold ring o f
.

curious make with a blood red co rnelian and it was

impossible to get it off But as I chanced —being fond
-

, ,

of antiques —
.

to bend down closer with a candle in

order to examine the style of it I saw to my surprise
and horror that it was exactly—but you must not b e
,

alarmed it may as I said b e merely accidental —ex acfl

,

, y
I repeat like the family arms o f the A tho rs two beams
, ,
 m
1 88 T HE LO S T SO N .

supporting a cornice with an open door in the m i ddle

and a star ab ove The candle sho ok in my hand all
'

.
,

the more that at the same moment I saw in the pale .

bearded face which had at first seemed to me that of a

perfect stran ger an expression —I pray you
,
.

y good
cousin to forgive me if I pain you —an expression S uch
, ,

as I had seen on the dead face of my excellent and hon

'
o ure d friend your late husband when on the day of his
‘

, ,
”
burial I stood for the last time beside his open coffin .

The worthy man having got so far in his narrative , ,

made a pause during which he did not venture to look

,

at the matron opp osite him though indeed he could but ,

poorly estimate the amount of the wo e that hun g over

her He had no idea that the fate of both children
.

might depend on whether the stranger proved to b e her

m
own son or not .

”
Be comforted my beloved friend he at le ngth re
“
, ,

sumed wiping away the cold drops from his brow

,
I .
“

have taken up on myself not to say a word of this dis

whom you kno w to
’

c o v e ry to any o n e b ut the mayor ,

b e an honourable man he artily devoted to your family .

I asked him whether this melancholy sup p o sit1o n had

not b etter b e buried in our hearts It is not probable .
,

b ut yet it is possible that a branch of the A tho rs may ,

have migrated to foreign lands there changed their “

n ame to L aporte or De la Porte for the sake of c o uve

nie nc e retaining however the family arms
, , As to that ,
.

look in the dead face which is a good deal disfigured ,

by a deep scar I said nothing about it to him as he

,
-

had declared he saw no likeness wh atever to Andrea s ;

whom he remembered to have often met nine or ten "

years ago Nevertheless he was of opinion that so sin

.

g ular a coinci dence ought not to remain a se c1 e t to you .

If indeed co ntrary to all probability it should prove to

, ,
 T HE LO S T SO N . 18 9
be your poor son who has met with so tragical an end ,

no one would deny a mother the bitter consolation of

blessing to its eternal rest the head S he had carried b e
,

neath her heart A gain as regards official formalities it

.
, ,

is unfi tting that we S hould satisfy ourselves with the de

c laratio n of a vagabond female when we have the most ,

convincing witness at hand ; for it may prove desirable

hereafter with regard to future demises inheritances
, , ,

and the like to have some certain knowledge to go

,

upon Therefore I determined to come to you to lay

.
,

the whole case b efore you and persuade you if I can

to pay a visit to the hospital —as secretly as you will
, , ,

m
in order to prevent all useless susp ense or suspicion .

S o saying he rose and went to the window to give

Frau Helena time to collect herself and come to a de
c isio n A quarter of an hour passed away during which
.
,

nothing was audible in the small room but the ticking

of the great clock —a wedding present from Lisab e thli s ’

grandfather to his daughter in law bearing on its metal - -

face the family arms of the A tho rs O ut of doors

too all was still —
.
,

, nothing to be heard but the cawing

of a flight of rooks wending their way over the terrace ,

or the muffled thud of an over rip e apple on the grass -

A t length the lady rose and approached her old and

tried friend who met her rigid gaze with an expression
,

of sorrowful sympathy I thank you. she said

“
for , ,
“

having come to me and p erformed this painful duty

,

with so much consideration Say to the highly resp ected .

mayor that I S hall find myself at abo ut nine o clock at ’

the side door of the hospital and sho uld wish to be

-

met there by some trustworthy person and this painful ,

step concealed from all who might be likely to talk of

it The re st I leave in Go d s hand —H e will order it ’
‘

aright .
 THE LO S T SO N .

I shall b e there myself to meet you replied the ,

sergeant .May our L ord God strengthen your heart

“
,

and your frame and grant us the fulfilment of our hope

,
”
that this may prove merely an accide ntal coincidence !
”
“
A men ! said Frau Helena in a hollow voice in ,

which was no hop e whatever .

Thereupon her visitor left her A s soon as she was .

alone she sank down on her knees in the place where

she had been standing and waves of anguish closed ,
’
over her mother s heart .

It was already getting dusk when her daughter s ,

’

voice speaki ng in the garden to old Donate roused the ,

mourner from her trance Soon after Lisab e thli entered .

‘

and found her mother sitting at her desk as though ,

m
evening had overtaken her at her accounts and letters .

”
“
Dearest mother said the girl he has sent me “

another letter —a boy bro ught it to D onate ; he wrote it

, ,

as soon as he had got beyond the gates because you ,

said he might write when far away Will you read it ! .

‘

He says that I am to b e as sure of his truth as of your

love and that nothing can ever part us but death
,
.

She held the letter out to her mother but the latter ,

did not take it L eave e alone awhile child she

“ ”
.
, , ,
”
replied . I have got something to think over
“
.

The girl went away happy to keep her treasure all

,

to hersel f The mother remained an hour longer in

.

the darkening room absorbed in darkest thoughts ,

,

through which pierced not one heavenly ray She never .

for a moment doubted that the ring on the finger of the

dead man was the same that she had placed on the
,

finger of her Andreas the first time that he went to

Holy Communion As to any accident which had trans
.
 THE LO S T SO N . 1 91
ferred this ring to the hand of some one else S he never ,

entertained the idea He who lay in the dead house of

.

the hospital with that sword thrust in his breast was -

none other than her much loved much wept son A nd -

,
-
.

he who had killed this son —in self defence it is true -

was one to whom S he had promised her daughter who ,

would probably retu rn in a few weeks as a happy bride

groom to the desolate house and with laughing face ,

carry off her daughter so that through him she should

,

be bereaved of both her children She hated him at .

that moment she cursed the ho ur in which he entered

,

her house cursed her own ton g ue that had promised

,

him protection and ratified that promise with a falsehood ,

when saving him from his pursuers A n d yet the next .

’
moment her heart recalled that curse for in her mind s ,

eye she saw again the candid face of the innocent fugi
tive heard his clear ton es rememb ered her own words
,
’

when she vowed to be a mother to him and her daugh ,

’
ter s voice when she came to her on the previous even
ing with her letter and said I should have died
’
“
, , ,
”
dearest mother had he not loved me
, She knew her .

child and that these words were not lightly spoken S he

, .

felt moreover what she owed to this child who had

, , ,

been for years defrauded of her due share of maternal

love Would she not have cause o f bitt er complaint
.

against a brother who after years of long wild wander

,

ing had only retu rned to his country to bring fresh

,
’
misery on his mother s head and to destroy the whole ,
” ’
happiness of his sister s life ! No said the strong “
,

hea rted woman it must not be No one is guilty here

,
“
.

but I I am the real cause of his miserable end I with

.
,
'
my foolish indulgence and subse rvienc e from excess of
love ! No one shall su ffer — ought to suffer but I I , .

S hall not have any j oy in the son whom God seemed to

1 9 2 THE LO S T SON .

have given me to replace my lost one ; my other child

—
will go away and I shall b e left solitary with only my
,

own misery mi sery purch ased by a double falsehood ! ”

,

She sank again into gloomy brooding till the minster ,

clock struck nine T hen she started and gathering to

.
,

gether all the strength of a desolate soul she called to ,

‘

Lisab e thli to bring her her coif as she had a necessary ,

errand that took her out The girl wondered at her.

going so late but did not like to ask any questions

, ,

having indeed in her early days too many experiences

of unusual proceedings on her mother s part to dwell ’

much upon this wonder especially now she had such

,

happy thoughts of her own But old V alentin could not.

refrain from enquiring whether he might not light the

lantern and accompany his mistress She shook her head .

in silence doubled her veil over her face and left the house
, , .

It was no great distance to the hospital but she ,

often felt as though S he S hould never b e able to reach

”
it 0 L ord Go d ! S he inwardly prayed take me
“ “

away from earth ! It is too much—Thou visitest Thy

.
,

”
servant too severely ! A nd yet something too seemed
to draw her onwards to the place where she should b e
hold for the last time the long yearned after face of her
lost son !

m
When she reache d the site of the old pest house -

with its handsome chapel a man dressed in black drew

,

near and whisp ered her name It was she knew her .
, ,

friend the chief sergeant but the y did not exchange

,

words and he led her through the side door which he

,
-

unlocked into the interior of the building They e n

,
.

te re d a dimly lighted hall where the hospital attendant

-

on duty had fallen asleep on a b ench Their footstep s .

wakened him but at a signal from the sergeant he re

,

a ined where he was while the former lighted another

,
taper and preceded the lady
,

door which stood half Open

”

the passage
,
”
.
THE L O S T

They went up so e
step s and through a long passage to a kind of cellar
,

I f you prefer to go in
alone s aid he tak e the taper I will wait for you in
,
“
.
SO

.
N .

m
1 93

She bowed assent in silence took the tin sconce ,

into her hand and entered the chamber of the dead

,
.

It was a low stone roofed room with b are walls

-

blackened by smoke and time and entirely devoid of ,

furniture I n its midst stood the coffin roughly made

.
, ,

and stuffed with nothing but half mouldy straw In it .

rested the corpse beneath a grey pall scarcely long

, ,

enou gh to cover the tall frame of the dead who had ,

b een laid down in the clothes he wore in life A t the .

lady s entrance two rats who had been gnawing at his

’

boots j umped out of the straw into their holes She did
, .

not notice them Her eye s were fixed up on the head o f

.

the coffin where the pall just showed a high white fore
,

head with a deep scar down to the very eyebrows She .

placed the taper in a niche o f the wall and wi th her ,

remnant of strength approached to raise the pall O ne .

glance at the rigid face fu rrowed by the conflic t of life

and of death —and she sank down beside the c o ffin .
.

Yet it was no swo on that mercifully shrouded her

senses It was only that her legs would no longer sup
.

p ort her ; her mind was fully awake and her heart felt ,

all its old wounds Open and begin to bleed and burn ,

afresh She had fallen on her knees her hands folded

.
, ,

her eyes fixed on the pale face of her dead son averted ,

as it seemed from her in i ndifference in almost anger , ,

and upturned to the black arch of the roof O h! she .

would have given her life the last p oor remnant of her ,

days on earth if those eyes could b ut have op ened once

,

I S
1 9
4 T HE LO S T SO N .

more for one farewell lo ok if those discoloured lips

could o nc e—only once —have called her
,

The sergeant who was waiting in the passage was ,

under the impression that he heard a groan proceed

from the chamber of the dead What it meant he did . . -

not know If indeed it were her son he would not dis

.

turb the mortal anguish of the mother Sudde nly he .

heard her steps approach the do o r and saw her comi ng ,

'

out the light in her hand her head erect as if n o shock

, , .

had bowed her down her eyes strained and strange b ut , ,

meeting his
I have kept you waiting she said which w
.

“ “
as , ,

unnecessary O ne glance is sufficient to reve al the truth

.

'
to a mother : but it has shaken me I had to rest a .

”
little .

”
So it is not he ! cried her faithful friend God be
“
.
“

”
prais ed !
”
T o all E ternity !
“
said she L et us go T he p lace .
“
.
‘

”
is ghastly .

She went on hastily with the taper and steadily de ,

scended the step s I n the hall where the watcher sat

.
,

she put down the taper on the table and her hand no ,

longer trembled .

You will see said the sergeant to the sleepy official

“
, ,

“
that to morrow not later than five the sexton comes
-

, ,
”
and bears the body to its rest .

The grave is already dug sir was the reply near

“
, , ,
“

the place where a year ago Hans F risdo lin the parri ,
”
cide was laid .

Not so returned the sergeant he shall have no

“
, ,
“

dishonourable burial only as a stranger he must lie next

,

to the wall His French girl has Offered to pay the sex
.

”
ton You can remind her Killian , .

”
What I wanted to ask the man broke in , ,
 T H E LO S T
,
SO N . 1 9
5

whether the foreign lady may have wine and also a

‘
,

roast pigeon for which she longs She will pay for it .
,

she says and indeed she is a very good little thing and
, ,

a pair O f foreigners have been to pay her a visit in the

tower and spent three hours there The warder turne d .

them away at night but the lady was sadly put out and
, ,

she sent the warder to ask whether I would not pay her
a visit for she found the time hang heavy
,
.

“
She must conform to the regulations growled the ,

sergeant To morrow she will b e free and then she

.
“ -

can recommence her godless trade as S he too surely will ,

so soon as she is beyond our j urisdiction Good night .

-

,
”
Killian .

He turned to Frau Helena who had gone to the ,

door of the hall and there in deep S hadow leant against

,

the wall While he led her out and on the way to her
.
,

house whither he accompanied her he kept railing

, ,

against the dissolute creature who might well have the ,

unfortunate dead on her co nscie nce in ste ad o f throwing

‘

out baits for fresh victims before the earth had closed
over the last He protested it removed a stone from his
.

heart to know that this L aporte was no Amthor and he ,

hoped that the real Andreas might yet live to make up

to his mother for all that she had so christianly e n
dured The Council however was truly indebted to the
.
, ,

worthy matron for having given herself the trouble of

this late walk .

And so saying he took leave of the silent lady and ,

wished her a night o f refreshing sleep .

That wish was most certainly not realised A storm .

arose that filled the night with such wild uproar that it ,

seemed as if the very earth trembled I n the room .

which had once been that of A ndreas a window shutter ,

-

had b een blown Open and now kept b eating and flap ,
“
13
1 9
6 T HE LO S T SON .

ping against the wall Lisab e thli who had fallen asleep
.
, ,

woke up in terror at the sound She saw her mother .

leave the room without a light and heard her go up ,

stairs and there was an end to that source of disturbance

,

as she fastened the shutter again The young girl waited .

awhile for her return but fell asleep b efo re it and in , ,

deed she would have waited in vain For Frau Helena .

remained in the dark room above as though it were more ,

tolerable to her to listen to the storm than to the breath

-

ing O f her child who in her happy dreams spoke O f hse1r ~ ~

m
, ,

Kurt and c alled him loving names

, .

About dawn the wind went do wn and in its place ,

came a cold rain which got heav ier and heavier and at ,

length veiled town and river in a grey mist The sexton .

who , with two companions to help him had by five ,

.

O clock dug a grave by the churchyard wall and l o wered

’ ‘

a rudely made coffin into it was quicker than ever o ver

-

his work and the coffin rested slantin gly in the shallow
,

pit Then s ince the clergy an who was to have blessed

.
,

m
it omitted his duty in c onsequence of the terrible we a
,

ther the man o f the spade himself s aid a Paternoster for

,

the p oor soul and hastily shovelled in the coarse clods

, ,

leaving the rest to be finished by his companions He .

was about to hasten home and catch a short morning

nap in his warm room when he n oticed a female figure , .

kneeling by a head stone not far from the new grave ,

her head co vered by a black veil resting against the :

, ,

stone T hat stone had long been deserted the fa ily of

.
,

the one who slept there having removed to lano ther

country What could the lady be do ing there ? As
.
,

however she remained quite still and spite of the rai n

,

seemed absorbed in her devotions he did not ve nture , .

to disturb her For an instant it flashed across him that

.

'
it might be the fo reign hussy who had paid for the
.

;
 THE LO S T SON . 1 97
grave of the murdered man but he heard afterwards
,

that she had slept till a late hour and had indeed only
, , ,

awaked when the beadle came to march her out o f the

town .

A fe w days later there reached him from an un

known source a considerab le sum of money which pur
, ,

p orted to be payment for a forgotten burial He for his .

part gave himself no tho ught about the matter and ,

pocketed the unexpected windfall as though it had

m
dropped from the sky .

What follows is soon told In the next spring the

.

marriage of Kurt Brucker and E lizabeth Amthor was ,

according to custom celebrated at the home o f the

,

bride and the Augsburg relations came in great state to

'
,

do all honour to the bride s mother and the family of ,

the A tho rs Nothi ng which could b e looked for on

.

such an occasion was left undone and Lisab e thli had

,

no cause to complain of her dower her outfit or the

O ne thing o nly was lacking —the
, ,

wedding banquet .

’
smile of j oy on the face of the bride s mother She was .

kind and courteous to all to strangers and relatives

,

alike and b owed assent when the guests remarked to

,

her how completely made for each other the young

couple were and that b oth houses might well b e con
.
,

gratulated on so fitting and honourable an alliance But .

amidst all the loud cheer o f the bridal banquet she sat ,

p ale an d silent as a gho st and though the rest of the

,

family of the bridegroom who had not known her b e

fore gradually grew reconciled to this an d whisp er ed
, ,

to each other that it was the sorrow for her absent son
which pressed so hardly upon her on this j oyous day
ye t Kur t had not been wont to see his mother in law
- -
 1 98 T HE LOS T SO N .

thus and it struck him as strange that she never onc e

,

—
gav e him her hand or pressed him in her arms as s he
,

had done the stranger guest when but half recovered he ,

-

had v entured to woo her child It was only when the

mm
.

youthful pair set out to the ir ne w home that the mother ,

kissed her daughter with such a violent burst of tears it ,

seemed as though her heart would break and melt away ,

and then laid her damp hand on her son in law s brow - -
’
,

murmuring words that no one could understand T hen .

she turned hurriedly away and even b efore they left,

the house locked herself up in the solitude o f her own

,

r o om .

There she spent the few years that she had to live ,

avoiding all society reading religious books and only

, ,

Op ening her doo r to the p oor and the so r1 o wful When .

,
’
in a year s ti e letters came from Augsburg pressingly
, ,

inviting her to the christening of a grandson she excused ,

herself on account O f her age and infir itie s which un

fi tte d her to travel Yet she was often seen to walk
.

with vigorous step in solitary roads outside the town

O ld Valentin a few paces behind her But she never ad .

'
dressed him and seemed indeed almost to have lo st the
, ,

habit of speech It was only on her death be d when

.

'
-

she felt her end drawi ng near that she sent for the ,

p arish priest , who sp ent some hours with her What .

she then imparted was told by him to one of her 'daugh

ter s children who travelled to Berne to see his grand
’

’
mother s grave That she had ordered to be dug by the
.

churchyard wall close to the long ago levelled mound

,
- -

under which her lost son had found his last resting
place .

E ND O F T HE LO S T SO N
.
T HE FA I R AT E .
 T HE FA I R K A T E .

I T is incontes tably true

said the old l andscap e ,

painter B slowly stroking down his grey or rather

mouse coloured beard women will b e women that is
-

,
“
, ,

sex dominates in the b est as in the worst ; and though

‘

they are often ob stinate enough in taking things into

m
their head yet after all it is but seldom a head with
,

any special or original character is only a feminine ,

head A genuine individuality that can b e measured by

.

itself alone is far more rare among them than among us

men and positively I do not know if the fact gives us
,

anythi ng to boast O f Very Often our peculiarity is only

peculiar folly—a departure from nature whether through
.

culture or mutilation ; while women for whose training or ,

spoiling less is done from without seldom b ecome u ,

natural either in good or evil seldom exce e d the average , .

But when they do so I have always found something to

marvel at .

“
For instance one case remains indelibly fixed on my
mem ory when I actually witnessed a thing unheard of
,

and unparalleled a lovely girl who had an actual hatred

,

of her own beauty not merely a conceited coquettish

, , ,

pretended indi fference t o it or even an over strained ,

-

saintly nun like renunciation of it but what one might

,
-

call an honourable enmity against it which had indeed , , ,

its good grounds .

2 02 T HE FA I R K A TE .

I b ecame ac quainted with the s tory in question in

the following way
At that time —it s now more than twenty years ago
.

“ ’

—I was very intimate with a long forgotten D utch

painter Jan van Kuylen or K uy de n —
-

, you will not find

the name in any catalogue of known artist s .

In the course of the usual j ourney to R ome he had

“
,

rem ained hanging ab out Munich the real reason being ,

that R aphael and Michael Angelo were secretly O p pre s

sive to him crushed his own small p ersonality and dis
, ,

gusted him with the neat Dutch style by which he made

a good deal o f money He was a curious fellow the .
,

oddest mixture of humour and phlegm ideality and ,

cynicism sentimental tendencies and caustic irony A nd

,
.

so too in his studio you found the oddest medley ;

, ,

there were exquisite sp ecimens of Venetian glass for

which he had a great love costly instruments inlaid with
.
,

silver and mother of pearl for he played the guitar and ,

lute well ; then again on some heavily embroidered cloth

you would see a tin plate with bits o f cheese rind , or a
~ -

quart of beer in an ugly mug and the ro om would be ,

filled with thick strong smel ling cheap tobacco which he

,
-

had sent to him from Holland and smoked in a small ,

black clay pip e the whole day through .

In his pictures however everything was so neat

“
, , ,

clean and accurate that at the first glance there was not
,

much to distinguish them from th o se of the old masters

—Ne tsche r Mie ris and Gerard D ow B ut when you
, , .

looked close r you saw they b etrayed a most eccentric

vein various displays of a humour which however
, , , ,

chiefly delighted to disport itself in caricature or parody .

This was not the fashion then as now and therefore in ,

Munich where the pathetic or the simply na 1 ve was still

’‘

in the ascendant Jan van K uyle n s too often profan e

’
,
 TH E FA I R KA T E . 2 03

performances did not go down well The first picture .

that he exhibited there was one of Paradise where ,

Adam a gaunt lean yellow visaged fellow was digging

, , ,
-

the ground in the sweat of his brow while E ve darned ,

an old jacket and glanced up in evident ill humour at

,
-

the forbidden fruit while the first p erson of the Trinity

,

looked smilingly over the hedge The picture was at .

once removed for naturally the clergy took umbrage at

,

it A n d indeed Jan did not fare much better with the

‘

second which also showed the cloven foot He called

,
.

it the Temptation of St A nthony I t is true that this . .

new version widely departed from the simple honest ab

sence of all propriety with which the worthy Teniers has
illustrated the legend A young p easant woman —evi .

de ntly returning from a wedding or christening feast as ,

she was carrying a basket filled with meat cakes and a

bottle of wine —had let herself be induced by the cool
, ,

o f the evening hour and probably her own heavy head

, ,

to take a nap in the shade of the wood St Anthony a . .

,

very sturdy youth with his cowl thrown b ack had evi
, ,

de ntly been coming unsuspectingly along and at the ,

sudden sight stood rooted to the S p ot looking now at ,

the young woman now at the basket of good things

, ,

and manifestly waging a vi olent warfare with his con

science during which he scratched his head in absurd
,

perplexity The expression of his face was so irresistibly

.

droll that on this occasion even the clergy could not

,

avoid wink ing at it with a smile .

“
But I have not yet mentioned the strangest part of
it all : this Saint in two minds and the Adam in the ,

picture of Paradise were both exact portraits of the

,

painter himself A n d this added immensely to the

.

drollery o f the thing For in point of fact my friend s .

’

appearance was a perfec t study for a humorist He might .

 T HE FA I R KA TE .

have been p ain ted entirely in di fferent shades of yellow ,

his complexion o f the tender tone o f a fresh E dam

che es e his hair and b eard like overgrown dusty stubble
, ,

his grey eyes almost hidden by thick pale eyelashes .

A n d to m ake the matt er more complete he always

dres sed himself from top to toe in sand coloured cloth -

for winter in nankeen for summer and was fond of

, ,

bringing f o rward and ridiculing his own p ersonal p e cu

liaritie s by the most far fetched comparisons S O too -
.
, ,

i n his pict ures where he regularly and as prominently

,

as possible introduced himself moderately caricatured ,

b ut always in positions that were half comic and half -

sad half expressive o f self contempt

,
-
and half O f re sig -

nation It seemed as if he wished to show that he did

.

not take in ill part but rather was the first to laugh
-

Over th e practical j oke played him by the step dame

m
-

Nature .

Well it was Whit Monday my wife had a party of her

“
, ,

friends to co ffee and the buzz and hum of female voices

—which I could hear through double d oo rs —drove m e
,

out A s it was a beautiful afternoon with eve rything in

.
,

its early freshness and plenty for me to study on the ,

b anks of the Isar I determined to invite Van Kuylen to ,

take a walk He was living at that ti e in Theresa

'

meadows in a small house with a room to the no rth

, ,

that he had fitted up for a stu dio You entered it by a .

little garden in which of cours e the inevi table tulips

,

were not now wanting b ut which equally ab ounded with ,

lilacs and j essamine Next you turn ed into a small .

court where a fountain was playing which the eccentric ,

artist had ado rned with a misshapen Triton the work o f

.
,

his own hands for he dabbled in modellin g , Then you .

cam e to the studio door which was seldom Open for , ,

J an painted away with unwear ied dili gence from morn

 ing to night and ne ither sought amusement nor
society
“
.
,
TH E

I was there fore surprised on the present occ asion

, ,

to find the doo r open and for a moment thought he ,

m KA TE . 2 05

must have g o ne out and that his maid might b e busy

,

arranging the room when I heard his voice saying to

,

some one If you are weary we will leave o ff for to day

,
‘
,
-

and b esides it is a high festival L et us hope yo ur .

father confessor will not be angry at our being engaged

’
with such worldly subj ects instead O f keeping it holy ! ,
“
No answer was returned or at al l events none that ,

I heard I was amazed

. To have a model sitting with .

an Open door was no more usual or b efitting at that

time than it is now A n d that the strong sme ll O f the
.

D utch tobacco sho ul d not come through that door bor ,

dered on the miraculous .

“
When however I drew a step nearer I soon saw
, , ,

why my good Jan had given up smoking and though ,

I was only a landscape p ainter I did not at al l wonder ,

at him For such a model was worth while losin g one s

.
’

’
head for to say nothing of one s pipe
,
.

The colo urs on the face of the young girl who sat
there in the best light as mo tionless as a picture wi th a
, ,

red damask c urtain b ehind her were really so bril liant , ,

that they exceeded all probabili ty and made m e p er ,

fe c tly stupid with amazement Such a white satin s kin .

-

j ust tinged with faintest rose colour and here and there -

with blue such vivid ly red lip s such velvety bro wn eyes
, ,

and silky hair of the same colo ur gro wing rather low on
a superbly arched brow I have never b efore nor since ,

seen except indeed in pictures where they m ak e little

, , ,

impression because they are exaggerated Nature can .

cer tainly venture upon much that A rt can never safely

aspire to When I had somewhat got over the first
.
 f
hav e be en p ainte d
his complexion
cheese his hair ,

his grey
And to
dressed
for winter ,

bringing fO ‘

liaritie s by th
in his p icture
as possible i
but always ir
sad half ext
,
-

nation It .

not take i
over the ,

Nature .

Wel l
“

friends tc
— which
out A s
.

its e arly
b anks of
take a w .

meadows ,

that he ha
little gar d
were not 1
lilacs and
court whe 1
artist . had
his own h
cam e to t
Jan paiut e
sought amusement nor

an the present occasion ,

a moment thought he
is maid might b e busy
d his voice saying to
11 leave o ff for to day
-

L et us hope yo ur
at our being engaged
J f keeping it holy !
’

all events none that

model sitt ing with
t r befitting at that

f the
 THE FA IR KA T E .

have been p ainted entirely in d ifferent shades of yellow ,

his complexion of the tender tone o f a fresh E dam

che ese his hair and b eard like overgrown dusty stubble
, ,

his grey eyes almost hidden by thick pale eyelashes .

And to make the matter more complete he always

dressed himself from top to toe in sand coloured cloth -

for winter in nankeen for summer and was fond of

brin ging f orw
, ,

ard and ridiculing his own personal p e cu

liaritie s by the most far fetched comparisons So too -
.
, ,

in his pictures where he regularly and as prominently,

as possible introduced himself moderately caricatured ,

but always in positions that were half comic and half -

sad half expressive of self contempt and half O f re sig

,
- -

nation I t seemed as if he wished to S how that he did

.

not take in ill part but rather was the first to laugh-

over the practical j oke played him by the step dame

,
-

Nature .

Well it was Whit Monday my wife had a party of her

“
, ,

friends to co ffee and the buzz and hum of female voices

which I could hear through double doors —drove m e
,

out A s it was a beautiful afternoon with everything in

.
,

its e arly freshness and plenty for me to study on the ,

banks of the Isar I determined to invite Van Kuylen to ,

take a walk He was living at that t ime in Theresa

.

meadows in a small house with a room to the north

, ,

that he had fitted up for a studio You entered it by a .

little garden in which of cours e the inevitable tulips

,

were not now wanting b ut which equally ab ounded with ,

lilacs and j essamine Next you turned into a small .

court where a fountain was playing which the eccentric ,

artist had adorned with a misshapen Triton the work of

.
,

his own hands for he dabbled in modelling Then you

,
.

cam e to the studio door which was seldom open for , ,

Jan painted away wi th unwearied diligenc e from morn

 T H E F AI R KA TE . 2 05

ing to night and neither sought amusement nor

,

society .

“
I was therefore surprised on the present occasion
, , ,

to find the door open and for a moment thought he ,

must have gone out and that his maid might b e busy,

arrangin g the room when I heard his voice saying to

,

some one I f you are weary we will leave off for to d ay

,
‘
, ,

and b esides it is a high festival L et us hope yo ur .

father confessor will not be angry at our being engaged

’
with su ch worldly subj ects instead of keeping it holy ! ,

NO answer was returned or at all events none that ,

I heard I was amazed To have a model S itting with

. .

an Open door was no m ore usual or b efitting at that

time than it is now A n d that the strong smell O f the
.

D utch tobacco should not come through that door bor ,

dered on the miraculous .

“
When however I drew a step nearer I soon saw
, , ,

why my good ]an had given up smoking and though ,

I was only a landscape painter I did not at all wonder ,

at him For such a model was worth while losing one s

.
’

head for to say nothing of one s pipe

,
’
.

The colours on the face O f the young girl who sat

there in the best light as motionless as a picture with a
, ,

red damask curtain b ehind her were really so brilliant , ,

that they exceeded all probability and made me per ,

fe c tly stupid with amazement S uch a white satin skin .

-

j ust tinged with faintest rose colour and here and there -

with blue such vividly red lips such velvety bro wn eyes
, ,

and silky hair of the same colour growing rather low on

a superbly arched brow I have never before nor since ,

seen except indeed in pictures where they make little

, , ,

impression b ecause they are exaggerated Nat ure can .

cer tainly venture upon much that A rt can never safely

aspire to When I had somewhat got over the first
.
2 06 T HE F A I R KA T E .

Shock of this sensational style of nature painting I saw -

that in the drawing too the very b est p ossible had been , ,

done ; done with a grandeur and solidity which were al

m ost prodigal for it is not wise to exp end every re
,

source colour and form b oth in p erfection on any one

, , ,

figure E ven a sculptor must have confessed that only

.

in the best anti ques had he seen anything of the kind .

A bove all I w as amazed at the contour of the cheeks ,

the noble massively rounded chin the half Op ened lip s

,
-

,
-

that seemed to breathe out a very overflow of life and ,

the p erfect shape of the straight scornful little nose , ,

which was j ust a trifle to o broad perhaps for modern , ,

taste It was only the eyes that afforded any room for
.

fault finding if after seeing those calm and melancholy

-

stars beaming on one one had the heart for it A t ,

.

least I found out later that the line of the eyelids might
have been more curved and they themselves a degree ,

broader .

“
For the first ten minutes I stood there actually
spell bound did not even say Good day and was—as ‘ ’

people Often stupidly call it—all eyes And indeed no

- -

, ,

one spoke V an Kuylen his extinct pipe in his mouth

.
, ,

had merely given me a side nod and continued paint ,

ing hard The motionless b eauty queened it before her

.

’
red curtain on an old satin ottoman with gilt lions
heads her eyes fixed upon the great half darkened win
,
-

dow her hands — which were very slender and white

but not small —carelessly folded on her lap She wore
, ,
“

a common dark coloured cotton gown with an O ld tulle -

frill crammed in at her throat but had neither ear rings ,

-

rings nor ornaments O f any kind

, .

“
B eside her on a l ow stool sat a little girl of about ,

seven slowly and reluctantly knitting away at a coarse

,

blue stocking .
 “
At length I
TH E FA I R KA TE

found it necessary to

am disturbing y o u Mynheer said I though for a

I
quarter O f an hour p ast I had seen that he did not per
mit himself to be disturbed by me We painters used to
,

.
.

,
’
m
ake some

,
20 7

re

call him Mynheer in j est .

’
“ ‘
S end me away at once I went on if I am in , ,
‘

any way inconvenient either to you or the young lady .

Though indeed when o ne has hit upon such a discovery

‘

,
’
it is but a man s Christian duty to share it with his
’
neighbours .

“
V an Kuylen muttered a D utch word or two between
his teeth ; the girl looked gloomy as though I had said
something to offend her ; the child with the stocking
yawned heartily and dropped a dozen stitches
,
.

“
My good friend I at len gt h resumed in Dutch in
‘
,
’
,

which he had taught me to j abber a little tell me ,

‘

honestly whether you wish me at the D evil or whether ,

I may remain a little longer to stare at this re ally quite

unreasonably exquisite face that your lucky star has led
you to —Heaven knows how— and which to sp eak ,

plainly is infinitely too goo d for you S uch a subj ect

begging your pardon —is not appropriate for your foot
, .

m
square canvas and your fi nickin genre brush L ife size
,
-
.
-

indeed and faithfully and humbly copied —as it pleased

,

God to make her— in the manner of the old V enetians ,

that would be a different thing But I know yo u too .

well with your worthy visage ; you would want to be

,

p eeping down up on her from some window corner or -

other or giving scope to some of your antic humour

, ,

and that would be an insult to such a paragon of Gre

cia perfection with whose face that wretched cotton
,

gown is no more I n keeping than a modern crinoline

with the Juno Ludovisi .
’
208 T H E FAI R KA TE .

I had no scruple in thus crudely speaking my mind

m
to him ; he was rather fond of p ungent personal remarks ,

and did no t remain long in my debt .

“
He rose to get something that he wanted for his
work and answered without removing his empty pipe
,

from his lips : I can well imagine your mouth watering

‘

after such an exceptional morsel ! o u would like p er .

,

haps ; to paint her as another pigeon breasted Diana -

e merging from a pool under a G erman oak tree and -

setting horns on the brow O f an A c teo n who has stolen

’
his legs from the A p ollo Belvedere ! The girl see s to .

you good enough for that does she no t ? But that s not
’
,

to b e done You will never get her to consent to any

.

mytholog ical ambigui ties D O you suppose I have ever

.

seen an inch more o f her than what she is gracious

.

eno ugh to shew us b oth at this pre se nt moment ? A n d

even for this I have had to run after her lo ng and al ,

most despaire d o f her eve r sitting to me at all B ut

m
- .

hunger is the b est of g o betweens A nd so I have had

-
.
.

to give in to all her severe condi ti ons The do or is al .

m
ways to stand open the little sch o ol girl is always to S it
,
-

there and if I ever venture to visit her at her o wn

,

abode the re is to b e an end of us both ! O f course I

,
~

agreed to everything she chose ; I was so besotted by

her face I could have committed one of the seve n
,

deadly sins j ust to see her once in this light sitting o n

.
,
’
that seat and so to be able to study her to y he art s
,

content As to what I am to m ake o f it afterwards t hat

.

is immaterial But if I secre tly hoped gradually to elt

.

the ice b etween us at all events to a kind of brotherly

-

friendship and regard — wl1 y I was much mistaken It ,

.

is no great wo nder after all I am not to he r taste and .

,

I think none the worse of her for that But there have
been others who accidentally turned in—this is the third
.
sitting—who were thoroughly disco fite d very showy
audacious gentry —handsome Fritz and Schluchten
:

m uller and our Don R amiro with his languishing tenor

,

voice They were all tinder at once but after a little

.

burning and glowing had to retire extinguished as if by

T H E FA I R

,
KA T E

,
.

m
,

,
,
20 9

’
a gush of cold water Is it not so Miss said he sud .
, ,

de nly in German to the silent beauty it is perfectly ‘

useless to pay you compliments ? This gentleman—who

,

is only a landscape painter it i s true but still a c o nno i s

se ar i n women —would willingly express his wonder and
-

admiration But I have told him that you would rather

.

’
not hear anything of the sort .

’
“ ‘
You are right she replied with the utmost indif ,

ference I t is the fact I know and I cannot alter it

.
‘
, , .

But God knows if I had had anything to do with it I

m
,

should never have chosen the face He has given me .

’

“
Her manner of saying this p erfectly amazed me I t .

m
had not a touch of that mock mo desty which says the ,

very reverse of what it thinks in hop es of being contra ,

dicted NO it expressed a weary but unalterable con

.
, ,

tempt for the gift of beauty ; it was the tone of one who
has to drag a sack of gold through a desert and sighs ,

from the very core of his heart I would give it all for ,
‘

’
one morsel of bread .

Then too her way of expressing herself showed

"
“
, , ,

o re culture than you usually find amongst girls who

hire themselves out to b e painted It was easy to see .
-
‘

that the fair creature had some strange story connecte d

with her

m
.

“ ‘
Nay nay said I if you had chosen your o wn
, ,
’
,
‘

face you would not have shown bad taste in the matter .

And though indeed b eauty 1 5 transient while ugliness

, , ,

endures and there ay b e i nconveniences 0 1 even dan

, ,

gers in the impressions it makes on those who se e you ,

B a réa ros , e tc. 14
 m
2 10 T HE F A I R KA T E .

still you would hardly convince me young lady that , ,

you are seriously annoyed at having such a face You .

would be quite unique if it were S O .

’

’
“
You may think what you like she replied negli
(
,

gently and her lovely full upp er lip assumed a scornful

,

expression I know perfectly well what

.
‘
e n are If a .

p oor thing is vain of her little bit of pink and white ,

Mai does not suit them and if she is not vain at all but , ,

rather curses the beauty which has cost her so dear why

m
,

that will not please them either ! But after all I have
nothing to do with setting other people right it is ,

enough that I know what I know .

’

A fter this unflattering declaration cam e a long pause

“
.

Mynheer van Kuylen sat at his easel and attempted by ,

the tenderest glazing to convey the smoothness of that

skin and the lustre of those moist eyes ; the child had
,

laid down her sto cking and was turning the pages of a ,

p icture book and by way of putting a good face on y

-

embarrassment I lit a cigar .

“
You have no Obj ection
‘
I enquired in my ,

most ingratiating tones .

She slightly nodded and in so doing gave a sigh

“
, ,

and her delicate nostrils quivered .

May one venture to ask your name Fraulein ? I

“ ‘
,
’

resumed after a while .

My name is Katharine she replied in the same

“ ‘
,
’

curt out sp oken way

,
-
But all who know me call me .
‘

’
Kate As to my parent s name that would not interest
.

’
you
’
Miss Kate I said I notice from your manner of
, ,
‘

”
speech that you do not belong to Munich .

’
“ ‘
Your accent has something R hine lan dish about it .

“ ‘
Very possibly .
’
 T H E FA I R KA TE . 2 I I

“ ‘
Have you any reasons for obj ecting to speak of
your home ? ’

“ ‘
Why do you
I should l ike one of these days to go and see
’
whether there are many faces there like yours .

’
O nly one she replied in the most matter o f fact
,
- -

tone . But that is painted o n glass in St Catharine s

‘
.
’

’
Church .

“ ‘
Then you sat for
returned she ; it was j ust the other way ‘
.
’

I looked at V an Kuylen to see whether he could

make anything of this strange speech but h e seemed so ,

taken up with his work as not even to hear our conver

sation .

’
“ ‘
You must not b e o ffended with me Miss Kate , ,

said I after an interval if I put a few more questions ,

‘

to you Your answers are so many riddles I am not

. .

prompted believe me by mere curiosity but by sincere ,

interest in kn owing what circumstances can have led you

to leave your home and after so good an education and
, , ,

with so beautiful a face to adopt here ,

“ ‘
You mean that I seem to have been brought up for
something better than to make money of my looks That .

may b e But this is what things have come to and since

.
,

it is my face that has brought me into trouble it must

help m e out O f it—
,

at least so far as it can do credit

ably ’

A cloud passed over her eyes ; she looked b efore her

even more steadfastly than her wont with an expression ,

be tween anger and so rrow that rendered her more e u

chanting than ever We were silent Suddenly she re
. .

sumed
“
I really do not know why I should make any mys
‘

te ry about my story There is no disgrace in it and

.
,
"
14
 m
21 2 T HE F A I R K A TE
.
.

yo u two gentlemen would only imagine some th ing far

“

worse Besides you both look thoro ughly go o d and

.

trustworthy (V an Kuylen gav e a short cough) and if

,
’
.
‘

yo u were ever to hear any slander about: e I c oul d

’
app eal to you Babette dear turning to the little : girl
.
, ,
.

go into the garden and make yourself a very smart

Wre ath of lil ac and jasmine —do not gather any tulip s
.

m
“

’
It is only she went on in a low voice as soon as the
,

child had left b ecause there is no need the people I

,
‘

lodge with should know everything an d that little crea

ture — young as she is—has already very long ears and
,
,

,
,

repeats whatever she picks up Not indeed that I need .

, ,

to be ashamed of my p ast but that they would look ,

upon m e as crazy if they knew all its ins and o uts

m
,

whe reas as things stand now they are sorry for me be , ,

“

lieving that I have only had some common unfortunate

love affair and therefore consider myself unworthy th at
-

the sun should shine upon me

’
.

“
She was once more silent and see e d to have for , .

gotten all about her intended narration There was a .

Sabbath stillne ss all around ; we only caught through the

’
open door the sound of little Babette s he avy shoes on

m
the gravel walks and the twittering of birds in the e a

m
,

dows Van Kuylen had risen and gone to a carved

. ,

cupboard in which he had a habit of keeping all sorts

, .

of odds and e n ds ; he now bro ught out of it a w1cke r

covered flask o f curious shape filled three small glasses ,

from it and presented them on an old china tray first

,
-

to the young girl then to me A fter we had both de , .

~

c lin e d he tossed them all three O f

,
f in succession and ,

then sat d own before his easel not pa ting but resting ,
, ,

his head on his hand .

"
What surprises me , said I breaking silence at
“ ‘
,

length is that I have ; never e t yo u before Miss Kate

' ‘
.
, ,
 THE F A I R KA TE . 2 13

Yet I am a pretty c onstant lounger in our streets and ,

not un observant ; indeed my dear wife reproves me for

'

lo okin g over boldly under the bonnets o f pret ty girls

-
.

You must live like a mole in some underground dwell

’
ing or you ne v er could have escaped me
,
.

said she wi th a slight smile the first which ,

had lit up her melancholy ; I walk out every day I ‘

.

cannot sit still I find time hang so heavy as I am not

.
,

skilled in work B ut then I wear a very thick veil the

.
,

everlasting staring is so hateful to me particularly in a ,

strange place There was only one evening when stand

.
,

ing before a bright shop window that I did venture to

throw back my veil —at that very moment Herr van Ku ylen
-

chanced to pass and since then he has Often and often

,

recognized me though I am wrapped up like a nun B e

,
.

sides I always have Babette with me I should b e afrai d .

of going out alone for though it is now more than a ,

year since I left home I still feel so desolate and for ,

lorn and my heart aches so that I am often tempted to

, ,

jump into the first deep water I come across and get ,

ri d o f myself an d my whole useless existence

, .
’

m
mm
Her smile had vanished and instead tears stood in
“
, ,

her eyes .

“
Were you not then beloved in your
‘
I en
quired S O beautiful and sweet a child must
.
‘

L oved ! Yes indeed if only there had b een sense

“ ‘
, ,

in their a ffection I was loved sometimes too much .

,

sometimes too little If I had had another face it would .

all have been right enough But they expected all sorts .

of wonders and out of sheer vanity must ake e u

,

happy There were six brothers and sisters older than

myself— I am the youngest and last —
.

and all the rest ,

who had quite common place human countenan ces are -

now contented and well provided for married unno ticed ,

2 I 4 TH E F A I R KA TE .

folk O f whom no bad or good is said and about whom ,

no one troubles himself to enquire But as for me no .

,

m
sooner was I out of my swaddlin g clothes tha n I was -

pronounced a little wonder of the world and all the ,

aunts and cousins lifted their hands in amazement at

the sight Of me and told my mother no princess need ,

b e ashamed of having brought such a child into the

m
world And there was something wonderful in it too
.
, .

My father was a poor schoolmaster my mother a sex ,

ton s daughter neither o f them particularly handsome ;

’
,

Only through my aternal grandmother pretty hands ,

and feet and beautiful long hair had com e into the
, ,

family But as it happened while I was coming into

.
,

the world Count F the patron of our church put

, ,

up a magnificent new window in St Catharine s rep re .

’
,

senting the Saint kneeling by the wheel a pal branch ,

-

between her folded hands and painted in such b eautiful ,

vivid colours p eople were never tired of looking at it O ur

,
.

whole village Catholics and Protestants crowd ed to see

, ,

it and for weeks nothing else was spoken of at least in

, ,

our house My eldest brother who already drew very

.
,

well copied it at once but my good mother especially

saw the picture —as she afterwards told us—constantly
, ,

before her day and night whether her eyes were open ,

or shut ; and when I was born she insisted up on it that ,

I must be baptised by the name of Katharine It was .

not long b efore they all took to calling me the fair “

”
Kate and all agreed that I had stolen my face from the
,

picture on the window .

You may suppose that when I first came to under

“ ‘

stand this trotting ab out as a little child I had no cause

, ,

to regret it Everybody coaxed and praised me and

.
,

if the kissing and stroking was at times rather too much

O f a good thing ye t on the whole it had its advantages
, .
 TH E FA I R KA T E . 2 I 5

As the last of the batch too I was better treated in , ,

every way than my brothers and sisters nor had I any ,

thing to endure from their j ealousy for they really as , ,

well as my parents did consider me a thing apart a

, ,

special gift and grace of Go d to the fam ily reflecting ,

some glory O n its other members I t was a thing of

course that I —so far as our p overty permitted it
.
,

S hould be we ll dressed have the best food kept for me

, ,

and receive more instruction than the r est My father .

used to devote his two hours of leisure to me ; I must

needs learn French and pianoforte playi n g and it was ,

evi dent to all that not only must I t ake no share in the
ho use work but that my delicate fin gers must not be
-

spoilt by sewing or knitting I o nly wonder that I did .

not become more idle and vain than I actually was But .

indeed to me too it seemed so much a thing of course

, ,

that I did not give it any particular thought A pricots .

have di fferent flavours to wild p ears and cost di fferent ,

sums That is all very natural O n e man has a hun

. .

dred thousand dollars another a voice in his throat that

,

b e witches people a third is so learned that all take o ff

,
”
their hats to him and I was the fair Kate with whom
,
“
,

everybody fell in love What the exact value of Mai was

— I mean the fal ling in love —I did not know ; I had
.

not found out that I too had a heart I was not even ,

very fond of my own family because I found it tiresome ,

to b e always S O much made of and as to falling in love ,

with myself t hat couldn t well happ en as I had been

,
’
,

used to my bit of red and white and all the rest that ,

p eople made such a fuss about from a child , .

“ ‘
I had only one playfellow that I cared at all for ,

and for the very reason that he was rather cros s than
kind to me ; a youth di fferent to the rest but neither ,

particularly handsome or lively and one of the poorest , .

2 1 9
His father shipped char coal up and down the Rhine
and worked very hard ; his
T HE

o ther was a quiet sickly m

FA IR K A TE

-
:

m
woman always at home or in the church with a sorrow
, ,

ful face that made me feel ashamed of my sm art clo thes

Her son too —he was about five years older than I and
.

had often to help his father —would look more crossly

, ,

than ever out of his eyes if he met me on a Sunday ,

when my mother had decked me with all sorts o f

colours He made no remarks but he always avoide d
.
,

me O u those occasions and childish as I was and vain

-

, , ,

too of being t he fair Kate this never failed to give e

, ,

a pang I would contrive to get into my every day

.
-

clothes to creep down about twilight to the banks o f the .

R hine where his cottage stood an d I was quite happy if ,

Hans L utz would only be good natured to me and say -

,
“
NO W you look like a human being again and not l ike
He had a way—silent as he was —o f amusing
,
”
a doll .

m
me better than anybody else would cut me out little ,

boats of b ark that rode at anchor in a little harbour

—
that he built ; he could play me my favourite airs on a
reed pipe and it was often night and I had to be
, ,

scolded away b efore I woul d consent to part from him .

You see already what that was leading to I could

“ ‘
.

no longer do without him although others held him ,

cheap as being inferior to them all because he had had ,

the s all p ox and went about in the coarsest and most

-

thread bare jacket I almost think there was some vanity

-
.

in it I seemed to myself to be a princess condescend

.

ing to the charcoal burner ; then again in my b etter -

hours I noticed that I had an especial resp ect for him ,

more indeed than for any other human creature and ,

that I never respected myself so much as when he had

given me a kind word .

O ur years of childish play were nearly over ; he was

“ ‘
 TH E F A IR KA TE . 2 I 7

fifteen I ten when a legacy came to his parents not

, , , ,

indeed enough to set them up with carriage and horses

, ,

b ut to make them much more comfortable than before .

The father gave up the charcoal loading business and

became —I really do not quite know what —a sort of
-

factor or agent The eldest son my Hans L utz was

.
, ,

sent off to a school for artisans ; he was to b e an e n

in e e r and was indeed made for it His younger brother
g ,
.
,

who was about my own age remained at home and ,

took to violin playing in hopes of gaining admission ,

into the D ucal Chapel ; they had a distant cousin there

who played the bassoon .

“
Time went on : at first I missed my companion
‘

dreadfully I did not know what to do with myself on

,

Sundays and found out fully how much he had b een to

,

m
me However I gradually got accustomed to his ab
.
,

sence to going about again dressed like a doll to being

, ,

serenaded by the students who passed through the town ,

or to reading poems and love letters which were thrown -

in to me through the windo w but which I never an ,

swe re d For my mother was pretty strict with me and

.
,

after my first Communion I was never allowed to leave ,

the house alone I believe she was afraid that one of

.

the mad E nglish e n who stared at me worst of all , ,

would carry me O ff or that the R hi ne water sprites ,

-

would draw me down out of envy and spite Now and .

then real wooers would make their appearance very re ,

sp e c table people quite able to support a wife But th e y

, .

had a pretty reception ! My father was not going to

part with me on such easy terms ; he would hear of no
thing under a Count as I overheard him telling my ,

mother or else a man so rich as to b e able to lay down

,

my weight in money I t was all one to me the privi .

,

lege that I enjoyed of being the beautiful Kate and ,

 8 THE FA I R KA TE

mm
2 I .

treated as the most remarkable and important person in -

our district quite satisfied me and since the departure ,

o f H ans L utz I did not S O much as know that I had a

heart .

H e never wrote to me never sent me a message

“ ‘ '
.
,

It was only seldom that I heard from his mother how

well he was d oing how industrious he was and how
, ,

much he was raised by his instructors I used to

p
.

wonder that he never ca e over for a visit The distance .

from C arlsruhe was not so gre at after all and however ,

sparing o f his time or his money he might I thought; , ,

have made the e ffort if he cared about seeing e again .

But the most wonderful thing of all and to me

“ ‘
,

wholly incomprehensible was that he did once come ,

over spent a whole long day with his parents and

, ,

seemed to think that there was nothing else to b e seen

in the neighbourhood I never so much as got a distant
.

glimpse of him nor did he leave a single message for

,

me Naturally I was ve ry much o ffended and deter

.
,

mined if I ever saw him again to make him rue it A .

year or so later there came an Opportunity of doing this .

I was j ust seventeen years O ld he therefore was two , , ,

and twenty when it was rumoured that he had passed

-

through all the schools with great ho nour and was now ,

looking o ut fo r some post or other which he was sure

to get That he should in the first instance pay a visit
.

to his parents stoo d to reason but he had not fixed the

, ,

day and hour I was therefore not a little startled one

.
, ,

afternoon when sitting with my sister in the woo d b e

hind the O ld castle and sketching the view —
,

for I too , , ,

—
to ok drawing lessons though I had no particular talent
-

just when I was about to pronounce his name and to

ask L ina if she knew the day of his return I saw a tall , ,

slender dark young man emerge from the bushes take

, ,
 TH E FA I R KA TE . 2 1 9
f
of his hat and prepare to go down the hill without a
,

word I knew him instantly ; he had still his O ld face

.
,

only with the addition of a dark b eard and he was ,

much b etter looking The marks of the small pox had

-
.
-

”
almost disappeared Good Heavens ! cried I springing
.
“

from my seat it is you Hans L utz ! H o w can you

,
“
,
” ”
startle one so ! I beg your pardon he said in a formal
“
, ,

polite way I had no idea that I should be disturbing

,
“

young ladies here ; I will no longer intrude upon them ,

and therewith he again took O ff his hat the abominable ,

man and went straight away as if he had only met an

,

O ld woman picking sticks and not the playfellow of his ,

childhood the paragon of beauty whom other people

,

took long j ourneys to admire and who had such a fine ,

lecture to read him too ,

.

I do b elieve I should have burst into tears if I had

“ ‘

b een alone but b efore L ina I restrained myself only

, ,
”
saying He has indeed grown haughty and rude and
,
“
,

tried to go on with my drawing To no p urpose I . .

could not put in another stroke my eyes swam so in ,

tears .

And in the midst of all my disappointment and

“ ‘

vexation the worst part of it was that I could not b e

,

angry with him that I would have done anything to get

,

a friendly look from him ; and my shame at this weak

ness made me so thoroughly unhappy that at that mo ,

ment spite of my much extolled beauty I seemed to

,
-

myself the most wretched human creature in the whole

world
I could not go on keeping up appearances much
’
longer but threw my arms round my good sister s neck
, ,

and with many tears confessed to her ho w deeply hurt I

was and that I must find out the reason of his estrange
,

ment or my heart would break T he kind soul com

, .
220 T HE

forted me as well as she could and when evening came

helped me to invent a p retext to induce o ur o ther to
let us b oth go down together to the river to the very
place wh e re in former days o ur little harb our used to
be There L ina left me alone fo und out t hat she had
.

some thing to do at Hans L utz s ho e and whispered

into his ear that I was waiting outside under the willow
and had som ething to ask him At first as she told
F A I R KA T E .

.
“

m
m ,

,
,
,

me afterwards he had looked very gloomy and left

, ,

her in doubt as to what he would do Then he seemed .

to relent an d a little later I saw him coming down the

,

road straight towards me and I do not yet know how I ,

had courage to stand still and wait for him .

But at least I was rewarded for my courage For

“ ‘
.

he was by no means as chilling as b efore he even gave ,

m
me his hand and said It is very kind of you Katha
,
“
,
'

rine still to remember an old playfellow and what is it

, ,
” ”
you have to say to me ? Nothing I said only th at I “
, ,
“

wanted to know what I had done to offend him o r ,

-

whether anybody had b ee n gossiping about me that he

should treat me as if I was not worth a word or a look .

That was all I asked to know and then I would go away ,

”
again immediately Up on which he told me in his quiet
. .

way as if it did not signify to hi in the least that he ,

m
had heard I had grown into a vain conceited little
princess held my head very high did nothing but look
, ,

in the glass or let myself be stared at by foreign fools

, ,

and as he was not the man to come in to that and had; ,

indeed other things to do than to be always swinging

,

incense b efore such a Madonna he thought I should ,

have no loss O f him and that it would be better for us

,

both if he kept out of my way .

All that he said to me and still o re the way in

“ ‘
,

which he s aid it hurt me so cruelly that I had not a

,
.
m T HE

a to answer , but burst into a flood of tears thaf I

could not check, that got worse and wor se till I was
shaken by such a conv ul sion of sob s that I thought I
must have died on the spot When he saw this he was
FA I R K A T E

.
.

,
.
22 I

m
suddenly transformed ; he embraced me and in the ten ,
.
~

de re st voice said a thousand things that at first owing .

,
'
to the confusion in my head I only half unde rstoo d ‘

,
.

He told me he had behaved so rudely merely to guard

against his own heart th at through all these years he ,

had had no other thought but me and had only kept ,

away in order not quite to lose his senses and that if it

were true that I cared at all for him —well you can
,

I agI n e the rest ! That evening we pledged ourselves to

live only for each other and when at last L ina came ,

and drew me away that our parents need not scold I

,
‘

had quite forgotten that I was the f air Kate and o nly ,
'
thought that a lzapp zer Kate was not to be found in all
. .

’
Rhineland or anywhere under the sun
, .

“
When she had got so far she rose and went to the ,

m
door as if to look after the child who was quietly sit
ting on a garden —
.

seat and weaving her garland When

,

.
,

Kate turned round to us again I noticed the traces of .

,
.

tears V an Kuylen however did not seem to ob serve

.
, ,

them ; he had got hol d o f an old cork and was carving

away at it his cold pipe still in the corner of his

m
m
,

mouth .

A nd ho w was it said I after a while that fortune

“ ‘ ’ ‘
, ,

deserted you and that what began 5 0 well had so e

,
.

lancho ly an issue ? I find it hard to belie v e tha t he was .

’
not true to you !
“
H e ”return e d she with an indescribable tone an d
.

expression I f it had! only all depended upon him !

.
‘

'

But you see the misfortune was j ust this that I was such ,

a wo nde r o f the Worl d the y needs

. ust ake the m ost
 m
2 22 THE FA I R K A T E .

of me , however unhappy I myself might be My elde r

'

sisters— J—
.

if Hans L utz had tak en a fancy to one of them ,

why he would have had her with all the pleasure in the
world and indeed the husbands that they did get were
,

not fit to hold a candle to my lover But I that he .

,

should aspire to e he who was neither a Count nor

,

made o f money that was such audacity that he could

,

hardly b e Supposed to b e right in his mind T rue he

“

did not himself think of marrying at the present time ,

all that he wanted was our b etrothal and then a couple

o f years to try his fortune in and I —to wait ten years
,

for him would have been as nothing to me But yo ri .

should have heard my father ! The E mperor of China ,

if some crazy sailor were to apply for his daughter s ’

hand could not put on a more maj estic aspect or pro

, ,
”
nounce a more compassionate No He was not even “
.

angry he treated the whole thing as a mere stupid j est

It was only when my mother—who well knew how my
.
,

heart stood —ventured to address him on the subj ect ,

and to represent Hans L utz as not after all a qa zia

despicable suitor that he was roused to indignation and
,

silenced her at once As for me when I declared that

.
,

I never would have any one else for my husband I was ,

locked up and sat for eight days like an imprisoned

,

princess in the b est room only visited by my mother

,

and sister To be sure I still had my pretty face but

.
,

what was that to me I was made to feel that I myself

,

had no right to it .

I sent through L ina a letter to Hans L utz declaring

“ ‘
, ,
’
that I would remain true to him and b egging for God s ,

sake that he would not punish me for my father s ven

,
’

ge ance and anger To which he wrote me back word

.

that he had no hope that he was going far away per

, ,

hap s to America and d id not kno wthat he should ever

,

,
 T HE FA I R KA TE . 2 2 3

return I was to give up all thought of him an d he

. ,

fo rmally returned both my word and my ring For well .

he knew what would be the end of it all ; my parents

would look me out some husband a fter their own heart ,

and at last I too should get tired of waiting and so he ,

would not bind me and add to all other sorrow the

, ,

weight O f a broken promise on my heart You may .

well imagine with how many tears I read that letter ,

when L ina told me that the writer was already no one

knew how far away and had not wished her to give it
,

me til l after his departure .

“ ‘
After thi s all went on apparently in the O ld way ,

with this exception that though I was still the fair

,
“

Kate and estimated as such there stole over me a

, ,

silent and unconquerable detestation of my own face ,

since it had cost me my dearest happiness But for my .

father who was bent upon cutting a figure with m e I

,
'

should never have come down from my upp er room ,

and as it was I only did so when I could not possibly

help it I never sat in the open window except with
.

my back turned no p ower on earth could get me on a

,

steamer where the E nglish stared so and when artists ,

came to draw or paint me I never would sit still let my

, ,

father be as angry as he liked .

“
But all my indoor life and fretting and grieving
‘
,

did nothing for me ; I grew handsomer day by day and ,

since I had b ecome indi fferent to what I wore I seemed ,

to be more admired than ever most p eople having pro ,

bably thought before with Hans L utz that I was an

over dressed doll
-
But no letter came from the one I
.

loved best and no news o f any kind ; and so from three

,

to four years passed by and I found that life is a most

,
’ ’
wretched pastime when one has not got one s heart s
desire .
2 2 4: T HE

w
ere const a
at he e ,
fO r ev e ry fresh offer of marriage was a new bone O f
‘
nt dispute s m
mm
contention There were many O f these suitors though
inde e d none of th em were Counts —to whom my father
-
.
,
"

would most willingly have given me ; there was a rich

Russian who sw o re he would j ump into the Rhine if he
‘

did not get me but afterwar ds pr eferred to dro wn him

,

self in Champagne and went about Wiesb aden with

,
'
ladie s of all kinds Then there was a young b arO n who
.
,

was master of the horse to some prince and was wild ,

'
.

about horses as well as about e and there we re nuIrI ,

- F

b ers of worthy well to do p eople who w ere all in to ler

m
able to me b ecause I secretly compared them with my
Hans L utz My sister L ina was lo ng ago marrie d and
.

hap py and I still sat useless at home and as y fathe r

,
.

was not the b e st of managers and my mothe r was sickly; ,

'
we we re Often straitened enoug h and whil e one ri e b ,

suitor after another went away rej ected want b egan to

“
‘

mm
stare us in the face Now nothing sours the temper so
.

much as not having enough to eat and what with un ,

kind w o rds and spiteful remarks , yo u

'
ay believe I
‘

”
S pent wretche d days and cried my eyes re d at ni ght
,
! .

“ ‘
A t last my father lost all patience and when an ,

m
'
other suitor appeared who seemed to him worthy to :

carry away the j ewel of b e auty since he was able to bid ,

high for it he declared to me either I must con sent or

, ,

he woul d make e feel the whole wei ght of his anger .

What he exactly meant by that I really did not kno w ,

but I Was glad of a change myself, for I could no .

’
longer endure my father s anger and y mother s grie f
’
.

So I said that I would give my hand to Mr So and so .

-

pr o vided no message came fro Han s L utz in the course

of the next three months This contented my parents
}
.
,

and made the bridegroom more than blessed ; he was

 TH E FA I R KA T E . 2 2 3

actually idiotic wi th rapture said the craziest things to ,

me and in spite of my misery it made me again feel

, ,

proud and childish to find that I had such power over

any human being He was a young an d very rich
. .

tanner from the neighbouring town of M not so

bad as to face or figure ; indeed he passed for a hand
some man ; but it made me positively ill if I had to sit
by him lo nger than a quarter of an hour first because ,

his love rendered him S O silly and mawkish and then ,

b ecause he had a habit of deluging himself with scents ,

probably to get rid of the smell of the tan yard I will ~

.

not weary you with the history O f this horrible engage :

ment I get goose skin all over at the very recollection
.
-

of it ; the visits here there and everywhere ; the c o ngra , ,

tulatio ns at which I had to smile when I would much

rather have cried ; the day when he took me Over his
house and facto ry and I thought the smell of the dyes
,

and skins would have su ffocated me Well it went on .

,

as long as it could go on that is till it came to the ,

point O n the day before the wedding day my bride

.
,

groom gave a party to my favourite friends and my

parents at his own house ; the actual marriage was to b e
solemnized at my parent s house He was so in o rdi ’
.

n ate ly happy fo olish and scented that I suddenly said

, , ,

m
to myself Better suffer anything than please such a
,
“

”
simpleton as this and that very night when they were
,

all asleep I actually left the house only taking with m e

, ,

a few necessaries in a bundle and leaving behind a ,

letter to my parents saying they must forgive the so rro w

m
I had cause d them b ut that marry I could not and ,

would not and so in order to be no longer a burden to

,

them I had gone O ff to my aunt at Speyer and woul d

, ,

see whether I could not do something to support y

sel f
.

B a rlvz ror ,
e
f ‘

t .
m
22 6

y
I was helped in my flight by the brother of y
H ans L utz who happened to be on a visit to his parents

aunt
.

Millie s her real name

,

at the time and would have gone through fire and water

w as
,

for me He took me safely to where I wanted to go to

A melia but so
we children always called her She was an old widow
woman lived up on her small means and had al ways
,

been very fond of me though she used to shake her

head at the way in which my family idolised me When
’
,
TH E F A I R KA TE

,
.
.

,
,

. _
m
,

'

I to ld he r all that had happened she neither praised nor

blamed me but wrote to my parents and tried to bring
,

them round That alas was in vain My father an.

, , .
:

swe re d very curtly that if I did not marry the young

tanner I was no child of his ; my mother tried p e rsuai

’

sion I now found out that it was only my unfortunate

.

b eauty that they had really loved that a red and white ,
- -

’
mask stoo d between my own parents hearts and that of
their child O ut of sheer admiration and worship they
.
,

had less fondness for me than for any of their other

children .

But for this would they not have found time in the
“ ‘

course of the whole year since I have left them to com ,

prehend that what I had run away from could not have
made me happy and that I was not necessarily a bad ,

daughter because unable to gratify them in that respect ?

,

B ut no they have remained as hard as stone hard as

, ,

no one could b e to any living creature who had a soul ,

b ut only towards a soulless picture such as they had long

considered me and as such set me up for show It is , .

true that while I remained at Speyer they might have

hoped that I should change my mind But my stay .

there was but short My old aunt was accustomed to a .

very quiet life Now when a beauty suddenly made her

.

appearance in the house whom all young men follow e d, ,

 T HE F A I R KA TE .
22 7

and that visits and enquiries b ecame incessant and this , _

p erson and that were always bringing me an offer from

som e one or other it was too much for the goo d woman
,

to bear S he told me one day that I could not remain

.

any longer with her but that she had found me a very
‘

good situation with a baroness who lived on her estates

near Munich and wanted a governess for her two little
,

daughters ; and as I had b een well educated could speak ,

French and play the pianoforte my aunt had arranged ,

it all and I was to set O ff the next day but one .

I was very much pleased at this ; I longed to begin

life on my own account and earn my own bread But
,
.

this too was to be a failure and again there was no ,

one to blame but this hateful face that I cannot get rid
of Well to make a long story short the baroness and
.
, ,

the children took to me and I to them and during the ,

first days when we were alone everything went well , .

Then came the baron from the city to pay us a visit ,

and instantly the sky changed ; he behaved indeed very , ,

politely only that he made the usual face of amazem ent

,

which I am S O sick of and that all people make who

,

see me for the first time I indeed am accustomed to

.
, ,

it take no notice and go my way quietly but the gra

, , ,

c io us lady who had not seen that expression on her

,
’
husband s face b efore could not take it so easily and
, ,

the end of the matter was that on the following day , ,

after a very lively discussion b etween the master and

'
mistress o f the house I was sent for to her boudoir and
, ,

told that she much regretted being unable to keep me ,

but needed the room that I occupied for a young

relative who had suddenly announced herself for the
whole winter However she was conscientious enough
.
,

to give me without my demanding it my salary for that

, ,

whole winter .
m
2 2 8; THE F A I R KA TE :

m
There I was again o n the wide world I had a
‘

great mind to buy myself a black mask like the lady ,

’
with the death s head and hide my face once fo r a ll , ,

that it might not get me into any further trouble .

And indeed if I could only have foreseen what I

“ ‘

had yet to endure I should have done so , or something

adder still I should have b ecom e a Catholic j ust to
.

go into a nunnery .

Three times in this town I have had to change y

“ ‘

'

rooms b ecause p eople would not le av e me alone I can .

assure you if I had stolen or forged or done any other

, ,

disgraceful thing that I feared might come out I could ,

not live in greater anxiety and uncertainty than now ,

when I have no one to stand by me in the right way

and guard me from wicked men and my unfortunate
fate : but I will spare you all detail s; you can imagine
them And then to have nothing to do and not rightly
.
,

to understand anything to read half the day the other , ,

half to wo nder what is to become of me when my

money and my patience come to an end as they must
The p eople with whom I lodge at present—Babette s
.
,
’

parents —have all been sorry for me since they saw that

m m
I was no worthless runaway creature but had only b een ,

afflicted with that churchiwindo w face But what can .

May do ? I help a little in the house I have learnt som e ,

sewing as the man is a regimental tailor ; I teach B a

‘

b ette to read and write but the good souls are too p o O r, .

to keep a governess So this last March when I had

had to give up a situation in a j eweller s shop —o f
.

course on account of my face — I was obliged to writ e

ag ain to y parents and ask them to take me back
"

.
,

No doubt they thought they need only re ain hard for

a little time in order p erfectly to soften me They wro te .

me word therefore that the tanner was still waiting for

, ,
 THE
. F A IR KA TE .
r
2 2 9
me and t hat all woul d be forgive n if I came to my
,
'

senses at last but if I did not do so I might j ust re

, ,

main where I was My aunt Mi llie sent me a little.

money but not much ; she has herself been swindle d lat
,

te rly out of great part of her means A nd so there I .

had to sit again my hands in my lap ; and if I acci

,

dentally saw myself in the glass I was so an gry and ,

wild with the unlucky face that looked back at me that -

I should have scratched my eyes out if only my nails

and my courage had had strength for it .

Meanwhile the tailor s wife had often advised me

“ ’

to mak e a maintenance by sitting as a m odel A rela .

tion of hers lived that way who was no real b eauty but , ,

only well gro wn L ooks were a gift of Go d like every

-
.

thing else and if a singer hired out her b eautiful voice

,

for gold why should not I let the same face that had
,

brought me into trouble help me out of it again ! But “

to all such propositions I always returned the same an

swer ; I knew that nothing could b e so bitter to my
lover as to hear that I had let myself b e looked at for
money like a show at a fair and had gone to serve as ,

lay figure first to one and then to another That I kn ew .

”
he would never forgive H e forgive indeed said the.
“
, ,

woman he ought to think himself very happy if you

,
“

forgive him for having taken himself o ff and never ,

”
making a sign since However I remained quite reso
.
,

lute till at length I was at the last gasp and did not
, ,
’
know how I was to pay my next month s lodgings If
He rr van Kuylen had not come forward—
.

whom I could
trust to have no bad intentions God knows I have -

m any a time walked through the E nglish garden and ,

thought if I took a cold bath there it would b e the best ,

and quickest way o f escape ! '

And now forgive me for telling you such a long

“ ‘
2 30 T HE F A I R K A TE .

story from b eginning to end But you have done me a . _

-

real kindness by listening without laughing or shaking

yo ur heads For most people will not believe that one
.

can be unhappy except through his own fault and least ,

of all unhappy through what is Z c o nside re d the greatest

good fortune Babette said she to the child who j ust

.
,
’
,

then brought in her wreath take up your knitting and ,

‘

put the book back in its place We must go it has .

,
’
struck five and your mother will be waiting
,
.

Van Kuylen j ump ed up as if some one had shaken

“

him o ut of sleep
"

Will you come to morrow at the same time Miss

“ ‘ -

Kate ? Said he without looking at her

’ ‘

, .

’
To morrow my landlady goes to a wedding she
“ -

replied tying on a little black bonnet that framed her

,

face most exquisitely I must stay at home with the .

‘

children but the day after to morrow if it suits you

,
-

He silently bowed and prepared to help her on ,

with her dark woollen shawl which however , she de , ,

clin e d
_
She muffled herself up so completely in it that
.

her S lender form was hardly apparent even to an artist s ,

’

eye ; then she tied on an almost imp ervious black veil

‘

and curtsied to me with a bewitching blush I smiled .

and heartily shook hands with her I am much in .

” ‘ ~

’
debted to you my dear young lady said I ,
for havin g , ,
‘

acquainted me with your singular story I am a married .

man and thank God ! still in love with my wife so that

, , ,

there can b e no fear of jealousy in our case ; therefore

if ever you ne ed counsel or help my house is —so and
,

so —and I should b e delighted if y o u had confi dence in

-

us and allowed us to render you some slight service .

F or the rest I cannot look upon the matter so despair:

ingly Who knows whe the r y o u will not have to apolo
.
'

ise to your face fo r all the hard words you have b e

"

g
f
m TH E FA I R KA T E

stowed upon it ?He who wins the first prize in a lottery

ay have in deed some perplexities in consequence
for all that the first prize is no bad thing an d makes
up to us for many a drawback E verywhere there is
light and shade —and so forth for I do not suppos e
’

that the cheap wisdom with which I sought to console

b ut

,
.
.

, '
,
2 31

the poor child would b e tolerable repeated .

“
Indeed I was aware even at the time that it did not
pro duce much effect O n the contrary the beautiful face
.

grew sad and weary as i f she was at confes sion and

, ,

she went away without saying another word ; only I heard

a sigh under the thick veil which fell and produced a , ,

total eclipse .

I was alone with V an Kuylen and fo r a short time ,

.

we each went on silently puffing out thick clouds for ,

the little Dutchman lit his clay pipe the moment the -

beautiful girl disappeared .

’
“ ‘
Well Mynheer said I at last I must con gratulate
, , ,
‘

’
you ; you are a lucky dog .

“ ‘
I ! he returned with a short ironical laugh
,
Through .

what sort of glasses do you look upon the world that you
can utter such a p ro phe cy l' ’

’
“
Through my own unaided eyes returned I
‘
Are , .
‘

you not indeed enviable enough in this that you have ,

caught in your net the shy bird after which so many

have followed in vain If you only set about it rightly
.
,

the bird will grow so tame that you will b e able to cage
’
it at last .

“
He turned away : he did not wish me to see the vivid
red that su ffused his yellow face .

’
“ ‘
You don t know her he muttered she is quite
’
, ,
‘

di fferent to all others and if I were the fool you take

,

me to b e
’
“ ‘
You would be no fool at all I continued excitin g , ,
232 TH E F A I R K A TE .

myself as I went on You need n o t of course repeat

.
‘

it to my wife but by St K a ,tharine I swear to you .

,

Master Jan that were I in yo ur place I should not long

,
’
play St Anthony s part I would do everything on earth
. .

to del iver that po or child from her purgatory ‘

And to lead her into a P aradise where such an Adam

“ ‘

’
get off with you said he with a very unpolite gest ure
, , .

But I knew how to take him ; I drew nearer and

'

placed my hand on his shoulder .

“
I f it is disagreeable to you I will not say another
‘
,

word but can you suppose that a certain Hans L utz

,

He sprang from his low seat and ran distractedly up

“

and down the studio .

m
’ ’
D on t make me mad he cried
“ ‘
I f you have ,
.
‘

noticed that I am over head and ears in love with the

girl —as far as t/z at goes there is no dis grace in it ; but
I am not such an insane idiotic ape as to imagine for a
moment that my respectable visage will drive the sweet
child s first love out of her heart and that a mere se ttle
’
,
w

ment in life will not decoy her you have yourself heard .

Why then come and blow upon the coals with the b el
lows of your common place philosophy ? A I not already -

wretched enough in that I plainly see how hop eless the

,

whole matter is and yet cannot leave o ff gazing at her

,

by the hour j ust to burn in that cruel face of hers upon

'
,

my memory ? A n d n ow forsooth you must come and , ,

prate of solid possibilities and congratulate m e and , ,

the devil take it ! It is j ust as if you were to hold the

pin on which a living cockchafer I s impaled I n a candle ,
’
and make it red hot
He threw himself down on a lo wottoman in the
-
.

'
“

corner with such vehemence that he broke o ff the neck ,

of a costly Florentine lute lying there without even no ,

ticing it .
 ‘

TH E F A I R KA TE . 2 33

I would now gladly have recalled my thoughtless

words
’
If the case is really so Mynheer said I I own, , ,
‘

there is nothing to congratulate you upon But I do .

not underst and why a man like you should so utterly

despair You have no tannery but you are a famous
.
,

artist ; you do not smell O f scents but as a man should , ,

of s trong Porto R ico ; and all the rest is mere matter of

taste Women are women and it is imp ossible to reckon
.
,

upon their fancies That she is not exactly set upon an

.

Adonis is evident
I might have gone on for some time putting forth
these platitudes with the b est intentions if he had not
, ,

suddenly turned upon me with a quite phlegm atic air

and asked me —not without a quiver in his voice —what
,

o clock it was and whether the Muette de Portici was

’
,
‘ ’

not goi ng to b e performed that night I then saw plainly

m
.

how things stood swallowed down my annoyance at

,

having so stupidly interfered in so tender a matter and ,

took leave under the pretext that my wife was waiting

for me to pay a visit .

A visit on Whit Monday afternoon when no one i s at

home ! b ut so one stumbles on from one discrepancy to
another .

A ccordingly the series of my o rtifi c atio ns was not

“

yet over for that particular day ; for when I had got
home to my good wife and given her a true and faithful
,

account of where I had b een and what I had seen and ,

heard and finally (though indeed her silence in listen

,

ing foreboded no good) a dded : I t would be a real

,
‘

comfort to me if I could do something for the pretty

child and might it not b e as well to offer her our spare
ro om as it chance d to be empty —a small matrimonial
,
’
,
g 34 T H E FA I R KA TE .

tempest b urst at once which I had passive ly to en dure

,
. .

My wife had indeed long b een upon the point of telling

, ,

me that this Van Kuylen exercised the worst influ ence .

over me and was the most unfit companion ; a frivolous

,

bachelor who had no respect for holy things and had ,

already infected me with his mocking and blasphemous

spirit She had supposed when she married a landscap e
.
,

painter th a
, t her house would at least be free from such
a disreputable set as models generally are lost to all ,

sense of decency and shame and of whom the most ,

horrible stories were heard And now I had returned .

from that trumpery Dutchman not only with my clo theS ,

re eking of the very worst tobacco smoke but in such a -

wholly perverted state of mind and with such entire fo r ,

g e tfulne ss O f what was due to a virtuous young wife that I ,

c ould actually propose to her to receive into our family

'
this suspicious person who had turned my head with
,

her bit o f prettiness and her dubious adventures R ather .

than consent to such a step she wo uld take her inno ,

cent children in her arms and at once leave the field ,

m
clear ; for it was too plain to see from the fervour with
which I had proposed this fine plan what must even ,

tually come o f it .And so saying she caught up our

.
,

little C hristo pher who had tripped in with :such a pas ,

-
.

sio n ate b urst of t ears and press ed his small fair hea d so
,

closely to her breast it seemed as if she would fain

,

save the p oor harmless child from the evil eye of a sinful
father who had irrevocably made over his soul to him
who shall be nameless .

“
I had no small difficulty in allaying the excitement o f
y dear b etter half; she was general ly patience and self
-

abnegation itself but there is one point on which wo

,

men are not to be trifi e d with which makes hyenas of , ,

the m as Schiller says , and I inwardly call e d myself a

,
 “
m T HE
.

confounded ass for having displayed my aestheti c e

thusias for the beautiful girl in so wrong a quarter
O f course I took good care not to revert to the
dangerous subj ect but remained at home the who le o f
,

the next day and devoted myself to painting an old

,
FA I R K A T E

'
.

'
2

.
m
35

oak forest as if the riven and rugged bark of the sec ular
-

trees was far more bewitching than the smoothest satin

skin of a maiden of twenty and a gnarled oak branch ,
-

more ensnaring than the exquisite little Venus like nose -

of our poor persecuted b eauty

mm
.

“
The next day I ev en accomplished a greater triumph
over myself in that I withstood the temptation of look
ing in —quite accidentally of course —at V an K uy le n s
,
’
,

studio there to play the part of comforter to a distressed

,

child o f humanity I was certainly a little ab sent minded

.
-

all the afternoon and as we walked to Nymphenburg

, ,

our children pushed along in the perambulator by the

maid failed to get up any very animated conversation
, .

I apologised somewhat la ely for it on the plea that I ,

was studying atmospheric effects though indeed there ,

was nothing very noticeable in the sky But my wife .

found it much pleas anter than if I had indulged y b ad

habit of too earnestly studying the faces of the girls and
women we passed There is indisputably about the S e x
.

this one weakness that they have themselves no co nce p

m
,

tion O f a purely artistic standpoint and therefore never ,

allow for it in others .

“
A t last after four o rfi ve days I found it intolerable ,

to my manly self resp ect thus suddenly to withdraw

-

from my worthy Dutchman merely because he was in ,

’
my wife s bad books Consequently after washing my .
,

brushes I set out just about t wilight when I knew that

, ,

though he could pai nt no lo nge r he was sure to b e at ,

‘

'
home ; and in this was most perfectly justifi ed in y own
2 36 T HE F A I R K A T E;

eyes since I could not po ssibly be expecting to fi nd the

,

m
m
fair Kate there but onl y my small and unju stly calu
,

niate d friend .

And to be sure I saw from a distanc e the shining of

“
,

his lamp through the window : nevertheless I had to be

told by the old servant that her master was gone out .

Neither did I fare any b etter on the following day when

I knocked at his studio during his hours of work I .

called out my name as loud as I could but he wouldn t ,

’

open When I e nquire d fro the old servant whether

.

he was occupied with a model she shook her head and , ,

shrugged her shoulders ; then tapping her forehead with

a very significant gesture she sighed and said Thi ngs
, ,
‘

had n o t been right with the good gentleman for some

days past ; he ate and drank nothing to sp eak of walked ,
,

up and down his b ed room half the night and spoke to

-

,
’
no one I asked whether the young lady who was with
.

him on Whit Monday had been there S ince The answer .

was that she had not but that he still went on painting
,

her out of his head and the good woman herself had
, ,

already thought that love might have something to do

’
with her master s silence and absence O f mind .

The truth flashed in upon me too plainly and I ,

tacitly reproached myself with having poured oil on the

flame by sp eaking of his attachment to the lovely being
as something quite reasonable and by no means hope
less Truly if we always reflected the serious mischief
.
,

our j esting words might make we sho u ld b e at least ,

as cautious in uttering them as we are in ascertaining,

upon what we are about to throw the burning end of

our cigar .

Meanwhile there was nothing to be done I knew

“
.

my eccentric Mynhe er Jan too well If he had taken it .

into his head to eat a whole E dam cheese for his bre ak
 TH E F A I R KA T E . 2

fast no o ne could have dissuaded him I made two

,
.

other attempts to get at him but in vain ; and one even ,

ing when I accidentally met him by the A ukirche we ‘ ’

had almost run up against each other—

-

he was o ff like
a shot and all my calling and scolding and running
, , ,

after him did no good ; he would not have anything to

do with me .

“
B y and bye I came to take the matter more quietly
- -

and to say to myself If he can do without thee thou ,

‘
,
’
canst get o n without him This mo od o f mine won me .

approving looks from my dear W ife I willingly allowed

her the triumph —o f which by the way S he did not
.

boast ungenerously—O f believing that her remonstrances

- -

, ,

had weaned me from that soul destroyer j an and -

, ,

brought me back to the paths of virtue and landscape

painting When my oak forest was done we broke up
.
,

our tent in the town to pitch it as we annually did in , , ,

the mountains I wrote a kindly note to wish my friend

.

good bye but got no answer i n return And S O most of

,
.

the summer passed away without my knowing whether

he were dead o r aliv e The fair Kate seemed to have
p
.

been swallowed up by an earthquake O f all my friends .

and colleagues who were generally not long in tracking

,

out anything rare none had discovered the slightest trace

,

of our poor wonder of the world .

“
When however the middle of September came and
, , ,

I had got a little tired of p ainting S tudies and perhaps , ,

also of the monotonous fare of our country abode and

, ,

b egan to long for a return to the amenities o f town life ,

I became conscious of a lively desire to kno w what had

become of my Dutchman and his b eauty My first walk .

in Munich was to his studio where I found the nest ,

empty indeed but left upon his little slate my name

,

and a hearty gr e eting After that I went with my wife

“

.
_
2 38

m
to the exhibition for where one has been so long face
to face with nature it is a pleasure to see ho w art has
been getting on in the meantime But what was my
a a zement when the first picture my eyes fell upon

tainly so questionably
,

was nothing else than an unmistakable genuine V an

K uyle n 'in which his unfortunate studie s of Kate were
,

turned to account in his well known manner and cer

,

that I at first pretended not to

notice it in order to get my wife safely past But she
,
'
,

.
THE FA I R KA TE

,
-
.
.

.
,

with her lynx eyes instantly made out the whole st ory
-
.

’
But do look she said in a tolerably calm voice
“ ‘
, , ,

in which however I could detect a satirical tone ; here

, ,
‘

is a picture by your Dutch painter of holy subjects and ,

on a larger scale than any we have seen b efore I must .

say if the subj ect were not so obj ectionable it would go

, ,

far to reconcile me to him I t seems to me that he has .

-

made great progress : one might almost call this pictur e

beautiful ; not only the colouring but the whole compo ,

sitio n has something grandiose historical as you call it , ,

a style (You may see that the little woman had not
consorted with artists for the last six years for nothing ,

and could deliver her art criticisms as confidently as any -

newspaper writer only rather more intelligently ) But ,

.
‘

I b elieve she continued that the Bathsheba who is

,
’
,
‘

there undressing to take a bath in a very shallow re se r s

voir is your marvellous creature from the Rhine A t all

,
.

events she does not look like any o f the other studies
,

in the room and the little King D avid who peeps from
,

an upper window and naturally shows us the beautiful ,

cheese coloured face of the p ainter looks at the lady

-

with a genuine artist s eye such as I have seen in other ’

,

people s h eads when staring under the b onnets o f pretty

’

girls (with that a side glance at her faithful husband )

,
’
,
.

‘
Well ! I must say she is no t bad looking if he has not -

,
 THE FA I R K A TE 39
‘

. 2

idealised his model too much ; but was I not right to

refuse to take that persecuted innocence into our house ?
A pretty snake indeed I S hould have warmed in my
, ,

breast ! S /ze helpless ! I think one who lets herself b e

m
painted thus knows ve ry well how to help herself A n d
,
.

really I do not know which I ought to wonder at most ,

at my good unsuspicious husband who was so easily ,

taken in by an exp erienced adventuress or if indeed he , ,

were not so entirely harml ess in the matter at his san ,

guine hop e of humbugging me A t all events I am very .

’
glad that things have taken this turn .

'
After this attack an d these imputations clothed in
the o st discreet and proper language to which I had ,

not so much as a w ord to answer my domestic guardian ,

angel drew m e hastily away as if fearing that dangerous ,

p erson might even in her picture exercise some witch

craft over me A n d really there was nothing out of the
.

way in the idea for all that my eccentric friend pos

,

sessed of taste and love of beauty had been exp ended ,

on the figure o f the young woman who already un , ,

draped to the hips sat on a low stool in the act of

,

taking off her little shoe While so doing she turned to .

the left the well remembered profile which was drawn

-

with the tenderest co ntour not a si ngle feature altered , ,

and a striking likeness ; her hair which seemed to have ,

b een j ust loosened fell in bewitching confusion over her

,

l ustrous neck Her b ack and arms were so beautifully

.

drawn that I knew not ho w to give the good genre

,
‘ ’

painter credit for them But what specially attracted me

.

was the sad impassive expression with which the fa ir

b e ing bent her head and cast her long lashed eyes on
,
-

the ground King David up there in his balcony did not

.

app ear to me at that moment to b e such a great sinner

after all ; or at least the extenuating circumstances u nder
 m
2 49 TH E FAI R KA TE .

which that abomi nable letter anent Uriah was Written,

came before me more impressively than they had ev e r
‘

done in the presence of any painting of the subj ect b e

fore

m
I confess that I spent the rest of the day in a some

m
'

what p e rturb e d o o d; my old creed namely that wo , ,

men were women was once more confirmed and the

, ,

apparent exception turned out to b e an illusion Whe .

ther it were through vanity or distress or mere apathy , _ , ,

the beautiful girl had not maintained her inviolability ’

But although it is very pleasant to b e proved right and ,

though I ought besides to have rej oiced that the po or

, ,

oraio should in this not unusual way b e healed of

’

z za

his madness and probably at this moment happily b e

,

trothed if not already a husband there nevertheless

, ,

lurked a certain uncomfortable feeling in my mind and ,

I caught myself involuntarily shaking my head as though

there were something not qu i te right about it My quick
“

witted wife seemed to discern what was going on within

me b ut as though the subj ect of my musings were too
,

low and common to b ear discussion she never referred ,

to the picture and treated me with a gentleness and

,

consideration befitting a penitent ; in the spirit in short , ,

of the b eautiful axiom I f a man have fallen let love

,
‘
,
’
bring him back to duty .

O n the following morning I was anxious to go to

“

work with fresh energies at a new picture which I had

, ,

already mentally composed ; but I discovered that there

was something wro ng with me — there was still that story
to unravel What I should have liked best would have
.

been to have go ne at once to Mynheer Jan and heard ,

’
the truth but he never got up before ten o clock in the
,

morning ; so I lounged O ff again to the exhibition that I ,

might stud y the picture I had too hurriedly looked at

 T HE FA I R KA TE . 2 41

the previous day and was not a little annoyed at being

,

reminded by the closed door that it was Saturday the ,

day when the pictures are hung and the public excluded .

’
The Official told me that Herr van K uyle n s picture had
b een taken back t o his studio in the course of the
previous evening .

“
To while away the hours till ten I turned O ff through ,

the arcades and betook myself to the E nglish garden

, ,

where I never found time long It is so celebrated that .

I need not praise it ; but I venture to say there are not

m
many even among our good old Munich inhabitants
, _ ,

who know it at the time of its very greatest beauty ,

and that is early on an autumn or late summer morn ,

-

ing when it is as solemn and deserted as a primeval

,

forest and you can wander along the lofty avenues of

,

shade without meeting a human creature The gold .

daisied meadows are luxuriant in the sun the trees have ,

lost none o f their gorgeous foliage the sun light falls I ,

-

might say in p asta on the , irrOr like ponds and the -

,

magical dreamy silence thrills with the quiet rushing

of the Isar and the light and noiseless hopping of birds
,

and squirrels from branch to branch There was no .

one to be seen on the lonely b enches unless p erhaps a , , ,

student preparing for his examination or some p oor ,

p oet meditating his love songs As to my colleagues -

.

the landscap e painters I have never met one of them ,

here .

Accordingly as I said I was lounging on this parti

“
,

cular morning in the well known p aths but not in a -

particularly goo d mood for making studies for V an ,

’
K uyle n s picture and what could have happened to
,

enable him to paint it was constantly running in my ,

head When I had dreamingly sauntered on to the vi

.

B a réa rossa, e tc . I 6
2 42

cinity m
m
of the fa o us waterfall which the grate ful inha
b itan ts prepared at so much exp ense as a surprise fo r
King L udwig I saw a lady on the b ench up o n the little
,

hill overlooking it sitting motionless and having no

thing about her to excite my interest till all at once
it struck e that she had a bla ck veil d own I thought
'

however she has some reason for not wishing to be

,
‘
,
THE FA I R

'
KA

,
TE .

,
x
'

.
,

reco gnized except by the one for whom she is waiting,

and I will pass quickly by when a strange impulse led ’
,

me to turn round and give her another look The .

veiled figure made a little start as though it recognized ,

me but the next moment sat as motionless as before

, .

But there was a something in the turn of the head

which seemed to me so familiar that I involuntarily ,

turned back a step or two and Good Heavens ! I t is ,

you Miss Kate I cried and what brings you here ?

, ,
’
,
‘ ’

and I held out my hand in cordial greeting But she .

‘

did not take it and seemed o n the point of running off

,
.

Stop said I I have not barg ained for this and in a

m
‘ ’ ‘ ’
, , ,

friendly way I detained her O ne is not to fly from an .

‘

old friend in this manner but to tell him where one has ,

been for so many months past Meanwhile some un .

’

comfortable terror was creeping over me partly by rea ,

«

son of her strange silence and her looking about her

as if for a way of escap e and partly b ecause I had seen
.
, ,

her hide a bottle under her shawl It was therefore so .

, ,

plainly y duty not to leave her that even my wife , .

must have allowed it .

'
’
I shall not go away Miss Kate I began
“ ‘
till you , , ,
‘

restore me a little of that confidence you showed at our

first interview You know I have only friendly inte n
.
“

tions You have something on your mind ; it is vain to

.

deny it ; and I believe there is no one who can be so

unselfish a con fi dant and advise ri as I C ome my de ar
‘

.
,
 T H E FA I R KA T E .

young lady let us seat ourselves on this bench A n d

,
.

now tell me why you seemed so shocked at seeing me

again and what sort o f a cordial you are carrying
,

there and hiding from me F ie fie Miss Kate are yo u

,
.
, , ,

going to take to drinking secretly in your early youth ? ’

“
She made no reply but allowed herself to be led ,

b ack to the bench where I seated myself b eside her,

.

In order to give her time to compose herself I b e

‘

gan to talk of quite indi fferent subj ects : of the weather ,

and how b eautiful it was here by the waterfall and of ,

how I had spent my s ummer purp osely dwelling a goo d ,

deal up on my wife and children as it always makes a ,

good impression when doctors and spiritu al p astors are

affectionate husbands and parents .

“
She seemed to b e deaf to everything There was .

no help for it then I must take the bull by the horns

, , .

’
“ ‘
Miss Kate I said is it long since you have seen
, ,
‘

Herr van Kuylen ? My first expedition yesterday was

to his house but as I fo und no one at home
,
“
She started at the sound of his name A ha! I .

thought there is something wrong here

, .

“ ‘
H e must have been very industrious these last
’
months I continued as unconcernedly as I could ; I
, ,
‘

myself have only seen one picture of his in the e xhib i

tion but
,

m
“
No sooner were the words sp oken than from b e
neath the veil of the silent g irl b eside me there burst ,

such heart rending sobs that I j umped up in horror

-
.

’ ’
“
F or God s sake ! I cried
‘
what is the matter with ,
‘

you ? Here is a secret that will break your heart if you

don t give it words Tell me —explain to me
’
.

’
L et me go she cried out p assionately and again
, ,

tried to make her escape I am so unhappy that no .

‘

bo dy can help me and even if you do really wish e ,

16
*
2 44 TH E FA I R KA TE .

—
well still it is to o late No thing remains for me now .

but to
“
Die —she would have said but her sobs choked her , .

Meanwhile I had availed myself of the opp ortunity to

m
get hold of the b ottle which she had put down on the
“

bench b eside her With one quick gesture I at once

.

hurled it into the little cascade below us .

S o then said I that was it ! You are a little fury

“ ‘ ’ ‘
, , ,

Kate and in your present heroic frame of mind you

, ,

were on the point o f drinking o ff that little b ottle and ,

making me your executor ! ’

’
She shook her head
“
You are mistaken she said .
‘
, ,

it was not poison it was only co m on aguaf orlzlr not

‘
, ,

intended for internal use If you must know everything .

,
’
I was only going to wash my face with it .

A re you mad ?
’
I cried in horror
‘
.

Not at all she gravely replied

“ ‘ ’
, The expedient .
‘

would be rather rough but efficient I should then get

, .

rid of this accursed face which has been the cause of

all my misery and now too at length
, o f my shame
,
’
,
— .

These last words were scarcely audible , her face

“

b eing hi ddenin her hands I misunderstoo d their p ur .

port and consequently did not at once know what to

,

reply .

I t was she who solved my perplexity .

She suddenly left o ff sobbing and looked me full ,

in the face with a singularly resolute expression .

I could therefore contemplate her at my leisure ,

and found that if p ossible she was more beautiful than

ever her features still more delicate an d refined the
tears on her fair cheeks —altogether she was the most
, ,

enchanting and touching spectacle that a man could be

b o ld .

’
“ ‘
You thi nk a good deal of what you have done ,
 TH E F A I R KA TE . 2 45

she said in her quietest tones However if it is not in ‘

m
.

this hour it will be in some other ; carried out my pur

pose will surely be for I am sick of life If you knew
,
.

all you would certainly not blame me but in the main ,

you do know ; yo u have been yourself at the exhibition ,

you have there seen how a wicked and cruel hearted -

m
man has dared to behave to a p oor virtuous unhappy , ,

girl who would have nothing to say to him .

’

I cried and the solution of the mystery

flashed across e ; he has then —you have not sat to
,
‘

him once for it ? ’

she cried with all the o ffended dignity of a

,

little queen. I do not so much as know what it looks

‘

like I have only been told of it by my landlady who

.
,

has not herself seen it but an officer to who she car

, ,

ried back a uniform yesterday evening said to her ,

“
Your lodger the pretty girl who is so vastly coy when
, ,

ever one comes to propose anything to her and always ,

locks herself up does not seem to be so inaccessible to

,

civilians ; there she is at the exhibition painted j ust as ,

God made her ; to b e sure Dutch ducats are more valu

” ’
able than our uniform buttons At this the tailor s wife .

asked further questions and told me again all that she

,

learnt She herself is quite furious and never would

.
,

have b elieved it o f Herr van Kuylen And all b ecause .

I had refused to go again to his studio after he had

come the third day of Whitsuntide to pay me a visit ,

when he kne w I should be alone with the children and ,

made me an offer o f marriage in French that Babette

might not understand him ; for which very reason I an
swe re d in German that I did not mean to marry and ,

that he knew very well why and that now after his de,

c laratio n I could no longer sit to him as he must p er

fe c tly understand B ut he seemed to understand nothing

.
,
2

he
46

m T HE

was like a a niac and I had great difficulty to get

,

him out o f the room at all fo r he always broke out

FA I R KA TE

,
_
.

m
anew , now with j ests now with the most fearful adj u,

rations Since then I have never spoken a word to him

.
,

nor let him in when he knocked at my door and in the ,

street I always got out of the way so speedily that he ,

could have no hope at all And then what does he go .

and do ? o u t of revenge and wickedness he p uts me as

it were in the pillory so that every one may p oint their
,

finger at me and I no longer dare look up in the pre

,

sence of resp ectable women O h what e n are ! A nd

m m
.
,

I had thought that he at least was an exception b e , , ,

cause he did not prate and had a kind of appearan ce ,

which was not likely to lead any one into folly and
shame fo r his sake Now I have had to pay for my
.

’
stupid confidence by the misery of my whole life .

Then again she burst into tears

“
.

I now attempted to comfort her and also to de fend

“
,

my friend Jan by representing to her that painters think

,

very differently on these matters to what ladies do ; that

he had o st certainly not done it out of revenge ; and
that she could lose nothing in the eyes of any rational
beings if this picture — like all the rest of V an K uylen s ’

were destined for the gallery of some Amsterdam e r

-

chant who knew as little o f the existence of the fair

,
‘

’
Kate as she did of his
, .

But it was all in vain With the active imagination

“
.

of all self torturers she pict ured to herself that the pic
-

ture might be engraved or lithographed an d then hung ,

up in the windows of all the print shops and in all the -

public rooms of the hotels along the Rhine and that

-

then everybody would say O nly see what our coy little ,
‘

’
schoolmaster s daughter has come to ! A pretty face may
lead a p erson great length s indeed ! and what woul d
’
 FA I R KA TE '
T HE . 2 47

her parents and sisters think o f her and suppose that -

such a print ever got as far as A merica and came one ,

day to the eyes of Hans L utz No no she would much

rather—having rendered herself unrecognizable so far as
.
, ,

she could —leap into the I sar than day and night ima ,

m
gine such fearful things .

“ ‘
D o you know what ? said I at le ngth ’
All these .
‘

desperate lamentations and resolutions have no practical

sense in them and do n ot lead us any nearer the go al
that you wish to reach—the nullifying as much as p os
,

sible the mischief done Be reasonable Miss Kate and

.
, ,

accompany me at once to our common friend who has ,

certainly no idea how evil disposed you are towards -

hi . There you can at all events obtain a written as

surance from him that he painted the picture in ques
tion entirely out of his o wn head that you never sat to ,

him except for a most unexceptionably decorous portrait ,

and even then were not alone with him I will also try .

to induce him either to remove the likeness of the lady

B athsheba to you or to put an honest drapery over her
,

b ack Come now will not this b e much more to the

.
,

purp ose than your spoiling your comp lexion either with
the water of the Isar or agaaf orfzs ? O nly think what
’

p eople would say ab out it ; that you had done yourself

a mischief out of an unfortunate attachment to our little
’
Dutchman to whom you had sat !
“
This last quite too appalling idea seemed to re
move all her obj ections ; she saw that a rational measure
taken now need not prevent her doing the most de
,

sp airin g things b y and bye and as an empty cab hap

- -

p ened to be coming up the great avenue we both got ,

into it with the intention of at once bringing V an Kuy

,

len to book .

“
During the whole of the way she was silent , only
2 48 TH E FA IR KA TE .

a nswering Yes and No to my questions Indeed I did .

'
.

not say much either and pushed myself back as far as I

,

Could into the corner o f the half o pen vehicle ; for we had -

m
to pass through the street in which I lived If my goo d .

wife should chance to b e l o oking out of the window or ,

were o ut walking and met her husband driving with a

,

veiled lady ! A s I have said she is one of the best of

women but all have a spot where they a re vulnerable
, ,

and appearances would have b een decidedly against me ;

for what could induce a landscap e painter to engage a -

female model in the E nglish garden and to get into a ‘

cab with he rZ—his own family may well suffice fi z as lay

,
’

figures !
’
Meanwhile we had safely arrived at Van K uyle n s
“

house in the meadows .

An empty cab waiting in the street showed we had

“

b een preceded by some other visitor As we passed .

through the little garden and approached the studio we ,

plainly heard the sound of voices within .

Sit down for a few moments on this bench Miss

“ ‘
,
’
Kate said I I will j ust listen whether I know the other
, ,
‘

voice and whether there seems any prospect of the p er

,
’
son soon going away .

So saying I went up to the door which certainly

“

was closed but as it was only a very thin one —in win
, ,

ter another do or was added —one could distinctly hear

,

every word unless indeed the sp eakers lowered their

, , ,

voices intentionally .

The girl was far too excited and impatient to think

“

of sitting down ; she came and stood immediately behind

me
I have already explained to you we now heard ,
’

Van Kuylen say that I am not going to sell the picture

,
‘
,

and as for the copy you wish for I never cop y any o f ,
 TH E FA I R KA TE . 2 49

my pictures I am only too glad when I have once got

.

myself expressed however poorly it may b e and I

, ,

lack the mercantile genius necessary for picture multi -

plying .
’

’
I f you yourself do not intend to rep eat it
“ ‘
said a ,

rather rough manly voice which was entirely strange to

me perhaps you will allow another to copy it for me
,
‘
,
’
or at least let me have a photograph of it .

’
I am sorry repeated Van Kuylen
“ ‘
that I cannot ‘

m
, ,

consent to have that picture reproduced in any way .

The circumstances are quite p eculiar and then he mur r

,
’

mured something that we did not catch .

’
H e is making short work of him
“ ‘
said I turning , ,

round to the girl It is our time to appear on the

.
‘

scene I was going to add but the words stuck in my

’
, ,

throat Pale as death with wide staring eyes as though

.
,
-

she saw a sp ectre I do believe the p oor child would

,
‘

have fallen if I had not thrown my ar around her and

supported her in the very n ick of time .

What is it ? What is
“
I cried L et me take .
‘

you in to Van K uyle n s sofa Are you ill ? ’

.
’

She however shook her head in silence and made

“
, , ,
’
a sign signifying Hush ! I must listen and now we
,
‘
,

heard the stranger sp eak again I must request you at .

‘

least to answer me one more question Had yo u a .

model for the female

replied Van Kuylen I never paint a ,
‘

’
stroke but from nature .

Then you must know this girl intimately ; you

“ ‘

kno w where she lives and can tell me ,

’
Give yourself no further trouble sir interrupted
“ ‘
, ,

Van Kuylen I can well understand that this picture

.
‘

may excite other than artistic admiration but as for tell

ing who sat to me for it—n o sir My studio is no
,
‘

.
,
 m
(
2 50 THE F A I R KA T E _
.

b ureau o f e nquiry and besid es t n came some mor e

, ,
— he 4

mutt ered words .

Forgive me said the stranger 11 1 5 voi ce all the

-
’
, ,

more raised ; I can comprehend that under the p eculiar

‘

relatio n in which you seem to stand to your model

At this moment the girl tore away from
“
e like

lightning rushed to the door and b efore I could try to

nd now stood —
, ,

hold her b ack had burst in a , the most ,

ex quisite little fury that ever defended her goo d name

between the two men .

I followed her instantly and was j ust opening my

“
,

mouth to interpose when I heard the stranger gi ve a ,

hollow groan and saw him reel back a step or two I

.
, .

looked at him more closely He was really a fine look .

.
-
.

ing man remarkably well dressed in black with a reso

,
-

lute somewhat sunb urnt face in which I at once de ,

te cte d a few slight marks of small p ox -

.

—
’
E xcuse me I stammered out in much embarrass
“ ‘
,

ment ; I have the honour Mr Hans L utz J

‘
,
.

But Kate did not let me finish my speech ; o ne

“

quick glance at the picture which stood on an easel I n ,

the middle of the studio had sent all the blood back to ,

her face That is scandalous said she going straight

‘ ’
.
, ,

up to Van Kuylen who with his straw coloured face and -

m
,

m
nanke en attire cut a most unfortunate figure on thi s o c =
~

casion T fiai then is your gratitude to me for making

.
‘
, ,

an exception in y o ur c ase and consenti ng to sit for my

.
, ,

portrait to you ; and because I would consent to nothing

else you would de grade me in this way b efore the whole
,

world and repre sent me as a bad b old girl who lets

,
'

herself be seen for money and has no objection to her , _

shame being openly exhibited ! D eclare now once for all

b efore these two witnesses wh ether you have ever seen ,

e as I a
p ai nted ther e, wheth e r I was ev er alo ne with
 '
THE F A I R KA T E . 2 51

'

you whether I did not show you the door when y o u

,

came to me at my lodgings and begged and entreated

’
me to b e your wife .

“
Her eyes flashed and now that she was silent her , ,

nostrils quivered and I noticed that she pressed her

,

clenched fist closely to her side as though she feared ,

she might b e tempted to commit an assault upon the

little yello w man .

“
I for my part marvelled that he took it all so
,

calmly .

’
“ ‘
I find out now he said at length with the utmost
phlegm an d laying dow
,

,
n his pipe who it is I have be ,
‘

fore me You are no doubt the engineering gentleman

’

of whom the young lady has already told us I c o ngra .

tulate you on your return which will probably set all ,

things to rights If they went wrong it was your own

.

fault A p erson who allows so long a time to pass

.

without b eing heard o f cannot b e surprised at others ,

coming fo rward in his absence For the rest I am pre .

,

pared to give the lady whatever spoken or written assu

rance she may require The best explanation perhaps ; .
,
"
will b e found in li nk .

“
So saying he went to a corner o f the room where
-

all sorts of sketches and unfinished pictures were heaped

up together and after a short S earch produ ced a study
, ,

painted on paper a female figure in the precise p ositio n

,

of Bathsheba and although the face was merely an out

, .

line one saw at a glance that a quite di fferent model

must have sat for it—a coarse common place p erson
,

with black hair whose back and shoulders were widely

celebrated amongst artists .

’
“ ‘
I thank you said the stranger who seemed some
, , '

what to have recovered the unexpected meeting I be .

‘

lieve ev ery word you have said but I hope you will no t ,
 m m
2 52 T HE FA I R K A T E ;

c onsider me too importunate if I rep eat the request that

'
.

the picture may b e min e ! ou understand .

I understand it all
“ ‘
drily re turned V an Kuyl e n
,
’
,

while lighting his clay pipe with a large match ; and as

-
‘

I have something to apologise for and very much wish

‘

, _

that the la dy should not eternally res ent y inc o n

‘

siderate freak I give you the picture for you r n e w ‘

establishment A nd now—you will excuse me I haVe

,
‘

. .

so e business which cannot be p ostpon e d A good .

’
j ourney to you .

Befo re one o f us could find a word to reply , he

“

made us an abrupt bow and passed through a dofir ,

leading into the interior of the house .

We three who remained behind stoo d there I n utter

“

helplessness I felt that I was one t oo many and was

.
,

planning how best to leave the pair alone , when sud - u

de nly the lovely girl came up to me held out her hand , ,

and with apparent composure said :

Farewell dear sir ; I thank you fo r a ll the kindnes s
“ ‘
,
.

you have shown me I will now go home and trouble

.

’
you no further .

With that she turned round without casting o ne

“

glance at her sun burnt lover and moved t o wards the

-

doo n
cried the young man rushing towards ,

’
L eave me ! said the incensed b eauty We have no .
‘

longer anything to do with each other O ne who could

—
.

b elieve tfiaf of me who could supp ose that I should

ever degrade myself so far
L isten to me dear Kate I interp osed for I saw
“ ‘
, ,
’
,

that both the proud high tempered creatures Were just

“
'
-

in the moo d to part as suddenly as t hey had met ; if, ‘

“

you really believe that I am a friend to you do t ry to ,

 TH E FA I R KA T E . 2 53

follow me and consider the question more c almly Just put .

yourself in the place of your Hans L utz (you will forgive ,

'
me my dear sir for usin g your Chris tian name th o ugh
, ,

we have not even been introduced ) and ask yourself_

,

whether a lover is very likely to retain his five senses ,

when he chances to enter a picture gallery and sees the -

girl of his heart turn her b ack upon him in that fashion .

And yet supposing you had really been Frau v an Kuy

len and your husband fiad painted you b ehind your
,

back as our greatest artists have been wont to do with

“

their wives and mistresses that would have b een nothing

,

so very o ut of the way either Instead therefore of .

, ,

treating the matter so tragically you ought rather to ,

thank God for having brought things so happily round ;

to b e reconciled to your lover ; to my poor friend who ,

after all is the one to be pitied for he goes emp ty away ; ,

and to your own face with which you were so very an

gry It has indeed been an infliction to you but at
.
, , ,

last it is to it that you are indebted for the happiness

of ha ving Mr Hans L utz again For if Mrs B athsheba
. . .

had not stolen your bewitching profile who kn ows whe ,

ther your lover would ever have come on your track

here in Munich and finally carried off picture and ori
,

ginal both !
’

Such was the gi st of my address and my eloquence

“
,

had the happiest results There ensued a most affecting

.

reconciliation an embracing kissing and han dshakin g

whereof—as regards the last at all events —I had my
, , , ,

due share and in another five minutes I saw the happy

,

pair drive o ff in the cab radiant with delirious b liss

, ,

and had scarcely time to invite them to pay a visit to

my house and to call after the driver to go through the
,

E nglish garden that b eing the best scene for such an idyll
, .

Van Kuylen did not show himself again B ut as I

“
.
 m
m
FA I R

m
2 54 THE
. .
. KA T E .

lowly followe d the cab , and turned round o nce more

” “

s ,

I tho'ught I saw from the upper window o f the small

house a resigned cloud of smoke eddy up from a white
,

clay pipe He had not spared himself the p ain of look

-
.

ing after the lovers from his lonely watch tower -

.

I need not say that I instantly went ho e and a c

“

c urate ly rep eated the w

,

hole remarkable story to y dear

wife Alas ! I failed to produce the desired effect thereby
. .
‘

T here lurked in the so ul of that excellent woman a pre

m
j udice against a girl who presumed to b e so beautiful
that all m en ran after her , and even the steadiest land
scape painters took in her an intere st—fatherly indeed , ,

b ut dangerously warm The suspicion that all i ght

m
.

not have b een so very right after all seemed to gai n

confirmation when day after day passed w
,

ithout bring
’

ing the happy pair to pay their promised visit My wife .

went about again with a well known air of magnan i -

o usly suppresse d triumph and treated me with such ,

compassionate indulgence that it almost drove me wild ,

.

B ut what was to b e done ? I must needs put up with it ,

and had only the choice of passing as a bad j udge of

character or a secret sinner
,
.

’
However in a fortnight s time the tide turned I
“
,
’
.

was sitting quietly over my work about no dn when in ,

ran my little Christopher and call ed out to me that I

m
,

was to come instantly to mamma that the re was a o st

‘

b eautiful lady there with a gentleman and that they had ,

aske d fo r me There they were then husband and wife;

‘

.
‘ ,

on their marriage trip through Italy to New York O n .

the day I had last seen them they had se t out home
war ds to present themselves to their parents and as
— ,
.

Hans L utz his real name was Johann L udwig W e in

— '
mann was making a quantity of money over there in '
A merica it was probably much the sa e to the father
,
 THE FA I R KA T E . 2 55

of the fair Kate whether the result was attained by rail

,

way making and bridge building or the tanning of lea

ther My goo d wife had at fi rst—she afterwards con
- -

fessed t o me —sat rather monosyllabically there but

.

when I came in and neither the young woman nor I,

blushed nor exchanged any sign whatever o f a private

,

understanding she finally resumed her equipoise and

was obliged to believe in me : more —in the course of
, ,

the next half hour she fel l so completely in love with

-

’
the beautiful world s wonder she did not know how to -
,

let her go and fi nally parted from her with the tenderest
,

embraces L ater she said to m e I t really is a very good

.
,
‘

’
thing she is gone to America .

The same evening brought another leave taking but ,

only in the form of a letter My good m yn heer sent .

me a note in which he after his o wn fashion and with

, ,

divers humorous marginal illustrations announced his ,

j ourney to Italy H e enclosed a small p en and ink

.
- -

drawing as a keep sake ; which was very highly finished

and in all respects a genuine Van Kuylen B efore a hut .

in a primeval forest sat a young pair under the shade of

palms bananas and bread fruit trees a couple of fine
, ,
-

children playing about their feet the wife occupied with ,

needle work the husband reading to her A bove them

-

, .

on the branch of a maj estic tree squatted a small thin

ap e who was j ust about to throw a date into the beauti
’
ful young woman s lap Whom the faces of the wedded .

pair resembled and who had sat to the artist for the
,

odd p inche d re signe d countenance of the ap e it were

, ,
‘

”
needless to particularise .

E ND O F T HE FA I R K A T E .
 GE O F F RO ! A ND G A R C I ND E .

B a?éa rossa , e tc
.
 G E O F F RO ! A ND G A R C I ND E .

m m
A B O U T the time of the second crusade there lived ,

near Carcassonne in Prove n ce a nobleman Count Hugo , ,

of Malaspina who after the death of his fair and vir

,

tuo us wife sent his only daughter G arc inde

,
then ten ,

years old accompanied by her foster sister A igle ta to b e

,
-

educated at the convent of Mont S alv air and re c o ,

e n ce d himself spite of grizzling hair a wandering

, ,

bachelor life He was a stately knight and p op ular

.
,

both with men and women so he had no lack of invita ,

tions to merry making tournaments and banquets at the

-

castles of the wealthy nobles far and near But how ,

.
,

ever his delight in military exercises and minstrelsy

,

grew cool with years so that he left the palm in both

,

to b e carried o ff by younger aspirants developing at , ,

the same time an increasing love for wine and dice

, ,

and falling from his former character of a wise manager

of himself and of his substance to that o f a degraded ,

night reveller who even occupied the castle of his fathers

-

as tenant to his creditors and had nothing left to call,

his o wn but his unstained knightly courage and the ,

heart of his child I n order not to grieve that child

.
,

Count Hugo took the greatest care to prevent the ru

mour of the low state of his finances reach ing the con
vent He was in the habit of twice a year visiting his
.

daughter and the young girl who up to this time had

'
, ,
17
2 60 GE O FF R O ! A ND GA R CI ND E .

devoted all the power of loving she as yet had to her father ,

and admired him as the ideal of every human and knightly

virtue and p erfection —did not fail to notice that the
“

eyes of the fast aging man had for some time back l ost,

their op en and j oyous expression that his cheeks were ,

su nk and his lip s habitually compressed B ut as she knew

, .

the way to cheer him and for the time to make him
,

forget the world outside the cloister walls she naturally — ,

attributed his depression to his solitude and lovingly ,

urged him to take her back and keep her near him A t ,
.

which the Count would sigh gloomily shake his head ,

and declare that it would not b e consistent with her fair .

fame to live in a castle inhabited by men only without ,

b etter protection than he could o ffer He could not .

,

therefore remove her from the cloister until she should

,

exchange the companionship of the pious sisters for that

of some worthy husband This was not pleasant hearing
.

to the intelligent girl for al though her life had not been
,

otherwise than happy with the nuns who were cheerful ,

and busy and though she had had moreover the com
—
, , ,

p an io n ship of the bright eyed A igle ta a lively girl and

full of whatever fun was p ossible in a convent —yet
-
f

G arc inde yearned to know and enjoy something of the

world without and above all to devote her loving heart
,

entirely to her father But he persisted that the honour

.

of his house allowed of no other arrangement than the

present and after every conversation on the subj ect—as
though stung by some secret vexation—he would abruptly
,

take leave of his lovely child who on such occasions sat ,

in the turret of the convent garden wall lost in thought -

, ,

and gazing on the road her father had taken .

’
Thus year after year passed by : the Count s daughter
had lo ng out grown childhood and the good nuns re
-

, ,

luctant as they migh t hav e been to part with thei r

 G EO FFRO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 61

m
charge yet began to wonder that nothing was said about
,

marrying her For they had no idea that Count Hugo

.
,

shrinking from confessing to a son in law that he was a - -

beggar spoke as little about his daughter as though she

,

had b een changed in her cradle and a fairy bantling ,

placed there in her stead .

’

No w it happened that early one morning when no ,

one was expecting hi at his own castle the Count re ,

turned quite alone o n his roan mare and gave a faint ,

knock as a man mortally sick might give at a hospital gate -

.

The porter growling over the untimely guest who roused

,

him from his morning sleep looked through the grating ,

in the iron court do or and was so startled by what he

-

saw that his trembling hands could scarcely draw the

,
'
heavy b olt in order to admit of his master s entrance .

For the face of the Count was pale as that of the dead ,

m
and his eyes hollow fixed and expressionless as if , , , ,

instead of having returned from a merry making at -

the castle of his rich neighbour the Count Pierre of ,

Gaillac he might have been emerging from the cave

,

of S t Patrick or from a still more terrible place where

.
,

he had spent the night with sp ectres He threw the .

bridle of his horse (the animal was covered with foam ,

and greedily drank the rain water on the ground ) to the -

alar e d domestic and uttered one word only Geo f

, ,
“

”
froy. Then he ascended the winding stair to his lonely -

room shaking his head when the se rvant enquired whe

,

ther the Count would have any refreshments and whether ,

he should wake up the other retainers .

The porter who had never seen his master in such

,

a plight would have b een slow to recover from the

,

shock he had received had not the horse with a shrill , ,

neigh o f distress sunk on the ground With some dif

,
.

ficulty he go t it to its fee t again and led the u tterly ex ,

2 62 G E O FF RO Y A ND GA R CI ND E .

hanste d animal to the stable where he rendered it every ,

care ; then still talking to himself and calling upon all ,

saints and angels he ran to the Geoffroy whom the

,

Count had demanded .

The youth who b ore this name dwelt in a lonely

m
ivy grown turret close to the moat and as the dawn had
-

,
‘

hardly broken he still lay in the sound sleep beseeming

,

his health and early years He was only twenty a ne .

,
’
phew of the Count s the offspring of the unfortunate
,

love b etween the high born Countess Beatrix and a -

wandering minstrel who knowing the proud spirit and

,

the customs of the house of Malaspina had no way o f ,

winning except persuading her to elop e with him Count

,
.

R a b aut her father when he discovered the disgrace

,

that had b efallen his family took no one into his coun ,

sels but his son Hugo ; and father and brother rode
forth by night to follow the track of the offenders In .

seven days time they return ed walking their horses a , ,

closed litter between them in which the young Countess ,

lay with snow white face more like a waxen form than
-

a living woman Her brother had killed her lover her

.
,

father had cursed the dying man From that time she .

never spoke another word to either of them but lived

.

a widow in a detached turret where she brought her ,

boy into the world She made no compl aint but re

.
,

sisted all attempts at reconciliation though on their ,

’ '
father s death her brother who had always b een deeply
, ,

attached to her endeavoured by all the means in his

,

p ower to conciliate her He himself b ore her son to

,
.

the font and when he married he imp osed upo n his

, ,

wife the duty of daily visiting the lonely one who never ,

o f her own accord left her self elected prison Both -

.

—
ladies had now departed this life ; the young man Ge of
‘

froy he was named after his father was brought up -

 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 63

m
’
almost as the Count s own son and truly the proudest ,

might have gloried in such a son He was a b eautiful .

youth broad shouldered dark complexioned with gre at

,
-

,
-

earnest eyes and a sweet sad mouth almost feminine in

,

form which seldom smiled For although he had in

,
.

ab undance all that a young heart could desire gay gar ,

ments fine ly temp ered weapons horse falcon and lei

,
-

, , ,

sure enough for every knightly practice and though too , , ,

from his earliest infancy no o ne had ever spoken an u

kind word to him or reproached him with his birth yet
, ,

for all that a shadow hung over him U nless he were .

wandering in the forest which b ordered on the moat -

and was reached by a narrow bridge in ten paces or so

— he would keep himself apart from all joyous company ,

in the same room where his mother had brought him

into the world as though there were no other place on
,
’
earth where he had a right to b e In his mother s life .

time he had planted the little tower about with roses ,

and he still kept her chamber bed and wardrobe j ust , , ,

as she had liked them to be He for his part had but .

few wants and always held himself prepared to leave

,

even this corner where he was tolerated at the first in ,

sulting word However no one thought of such an

.
,

event less than did Count Hugo whose heart the boy ,

had entirely won for he had transferred his love for his
,

sister to her fatherless child But as spite of all the

, .

kindness and care shown him the son could never force ,

himself to return the friendly grasp of the hand that had

slain hi s father all that the Count could do was to leave
,

his nephew in perfect freedom He never required any ser .

vice from him thanked him as for a favour conferred if

,

Geoffroy tamed a falcon or broke a horse for him and , ,

when his means began to fail he would rather himself ,

dispense with a necessary than that Geo ffroy should b e

 m
2 64 G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R CI ND E .

disappoin te d of a wish However he never took him .

,

with him on a visit no t that he wished to deny this

illegitimate sprout of the family tree —esp ecially since
~
,
.

his unfortunate mother was no longer there to blush for

hi —but rather that he did not wish the youth to wit
‘

ness his own reckless mode of life or to b e corrupted ,

.

by the loose manners and dissolute society of the neigh

b o uring nobles .

Therefore it was that the nephew who had never ,

received an order from his uncle was surp rise d to b e ,

‘

thus suddenly disturbed at so unusual an hour by the

m
porter who breathle ssly told him what had happened
, ,

and summoned him to the castle He did not however .

, ,

delay to dress and obey the call When he entered the .

chamber dimly lighted by the dawning day he saw the

, ,

Count sitting at a table with a taper b efore him by the ,

aid of which he had evidently b een writing a letter He .

now sat motionless his head resting on his hands which

, ,

were buried deep in his grey hair Geoffroy had to call .

him three times before he could rouse hi from his

trance then when he saw the haggard face and lifeless
,

eyes he too was shocked although he did not love his

, , ,

uncle But he made an effort enquired whether he was

.
,

m
ill and whether he should ride to Carcassonne to fetch
,

a leech .

Saddle a horse Geo ffroy returned Count Hugo

“
, , ,

slowly rising folding the letter he had written and seal

, ,

ing it with his S ignet ring You must take this letter -
.
“

to day to the L ady Abbess o f the Convent of Mont Sal

-

vair and to morrow she must send me off my daughter

,
-

G arc in de for I have something to say—t o her And as I

myself cannot reach her— y ride this night has done
.
,

—
me harm and my gout admonishes me to get into bed
,

rather than int o the s addle I could wish that you

 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 65

m
should escort your cousin and see to her safe j ourney ,

hither Tak e a servant with you who will bring back on

.
,

a baggage horse whatever may b e personally needed

-

, ,

till the abbess can send the rest The convent will .

lend G arcinde a horse I have requested this to be

.

done in my letter You will rest for a night half way

.
-

at the farm of L a V aquie ra my daughter bein g unaccus ,

to e d to riding and the summer heat great

,
O n the .

evening of the third day I shall expect to see yo u

”
here.

The youth received the letter lingered for a moment ,

on the threshold as though some question were burning

m
on his lip s then merely said I t shall be done my
, ,
“
,
”
lord and with a slight inclination took his departure
, ,
.

When he got outside the door he fancied that he heard ,

himself recalled and stood still a moment to see whe

,

ther it really were so but hearing nothing further he

,

ran down the winding stair got his horse out of the
-

stable gave the requisite orders to one of the few ser

,

vants that remained about the fallen house and as the ,

man was sleepy and slow in his movements ordered ,

him to follow after while he hi s elf sprang through the

,

gate p ast the wondering p orter to whose questions as ,

to what the Count wanted and whether it really were all ,

over with him he merely replied by a shrug of the

,

shoulders .

The reason of his haste in fulfilling his mission was ,

a fear that the Count might change his mind and call
him back for durin g the eight years that his cousin had
,

been away from her father s house whenever a message ’

,

had to be sent to her he was never the one appointed

,

to carry it and there seemed to b e a deliberate purpose

,

to prevent their meeting I t is true that when they were

.

b oth children there had been no one of whom the little

,
2 66 GE O FF RO Y A ND GA R CI ND E .

C ountess was so fond as of her silent proud spirited ,

-

’
playfellow the wandering minstrel s son who at that
, ,

time already led a strange and solitary life in the small

tower where his mother had died The ser vants had “ “

concluded that it was on account of young Geoffroy that

Sir Hugo had sent his daughter to a convent instead of ,

taking a duenna into his house as many a widower had

done , so as not to b e sep arated from his child ; and now
here was the cousin sent to bring back the young lady ,

who had meanwhile according to common report grown

, ,

up into unparalleled beauty Had some suitor m ade .

his appearance on the previous evening so that it was ,

no longer necessary to guard the girl against an unsuit

able attachment ? O r had Death on his spectral horse
’
accompanied the Count on his last night s ride so that -

all e arthly considerations having now fallen off from him ,

he merely thought of making his peace with God and ,

leaving his child free to be happy or unhappy in her

o wn way ? There was no solving the mystery .

As s oon however as the turrets of the C astle o f

, ,

Malaspina were out of sight Geo ffroy threw away all ,

care and sadness and only suffered pleasant thoughts

rare guests in his mind —to go forth to meet the play
,

fellow o f his childhood whose delicate face with its

m
,

laughing white teeth and large dark e yes shone out as ,

plainly before him as though he had seen them but

yesterday The day was cloudless the woods re sounde d
.
,

with the song of birds the beautiful fields of Provence

‘

spread before him golden with the ripening corn and ,

for the first time life appeared to him to be indeed a

heavenly boon He took to singing the song with which
.

his father had won his mother s heart ; he had found it ’

in a music book with the words written in the argin by

-

her own hand .

 m
m
GE O FF RO Y A ND GA R C I ND E . 2 67

Le d u chans
o z
'
d un auz e lh
plays
,

T ue c hantav a e n nu
Me '’
de svie t l autr ie r
,

D e on ca in

He knew not why this particular song should come

to his mind : he had never till now thought of it but with
sorrow but to day he sang it with clear voice and j oyous
,
-

heart .

A s he approached the convent at evening his mood ,

became quieter and his brow clouded With fast beat

,
.

ing heart he knocked at the gate and delivering the ,

letter through a grating to a lay sister awaited a mes -

sage from the abbess Before long the answer came

.
,

saying the command of the Count would b e obeyed that ,

with the dawn of morning both the young girls would

’
be given over to the messenger s charge and that mean ,

while he might spend the night at the house of the con

"
vent b ailifi who was accustomed to receive strangers
, ,

and dwelt in the vineyards o f Mont S alvair .

The night however seemed long to the youth for

, , ,

his trusty friend sleep came not as usual to sp eed it

away ; he envied the servant (who had only arrived
about midnight with the baggage horse ) the influence of -

the strong convent wine and the deep unconsciousness ,

that followed In Geo ffroy there was something awake

.

which was stronger than wine or fatigue .

O nce more it was day : they saddled their horses ,

took leave of the baili ff and rode to the gate of Mont ,

S alv air there to await the youthful Countess They were

, .

not there long before the door Opened the abbess came ,

out her train of nuns behind her and in their midst the
, ,

young G arcinde and her foster sister who were about to -

enter upon life and liberty while the siste rs returned to ,

their piou s bondage There were so many tears and

.

sighs embraces and benedictions that Geo ffroy had still

, ,
 '
68 G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R CI ND E
"

2 .

to wait some time b efore he could see the face of his

cousin now lost to him under one veil after another
, .

But one glance of her black eyes and the sheen o f her ,

fair hair had wrought s uch an effe ct upon him that he

, ,

stood by his horse in utter confusio n o f mind and -

hardly heard the abbess who enquired in evident wo nJ

,

der whether he were really the messenger who yesterday

brought Count Malasp in a s letter and to whom his ’
, “

daughte r: was to be confided The servant who was .

,

standing by with folded hands and open mouth staring ,

m
at the holy women had to nudge the youth with his
,

elbow b efore he came to himself and reverentially ,

bowed assent to what he had only imperfectly heard .

”
Sir Hugo himself he said his eyes still fixed on his
, ,
’
cousin s fair hair had been prevented coming He had
,
“ !
.

charged him to ride slowly , and to spend the night at

'
L a V aquie ra By menti oning thi s prudent plan he
“
“

.
,
'

hoped to remove any scrup le the abbess might have

c o nfi din
g the a iden to so young an escort He seemed
‘

ho wever to have produced a quite contrary e ffect fo r

, ,

after one perturbed heavenward l ook the n oble lady ,

‘

turned away to some of the older nuns and began in a ,

low voice to take counse l with them Then when the .

“

ba ili ff had led out the horses for the young women and ,

while some of the lay sisters help ed the servant to load

the baggage horse with clothes and provisions a lively
"

face emerged from the living hedge o f black and white

’
veils It b elonged to A igleta the child of Garcinde s
.
,

nurse who had grow n up to b e a blooming maiden

, ,

and who now approached the mute messenger holdin g ,

out a small but vigorous hand an d excl aiming In , ,

“

”
God s name be welcome Sir Geoffroy ! Is it you ? After
’
,

which she went up to the abbess and whispered a word

j '

o r two in her car which se e med to disp el all anxi ety

"
.
 GE O FFRO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 269

m
The pious lady depended to o fully on the lesson s o f , .

wisdom and virtue which her charge had im bibed with

,

conventual milk to hold it possi ble that she should give

,

her heart to a nameless illegitimate cousin especially ,

at a time when in all probability a distinguished alliance

awaited her Accordingly she clasped G arcinde —who
, ,

burst into tears —ih her motherly embrace herself helped

.

her to o unt the old convent grey while A igle ta was ,

lifted by Geo ffroy on to a spirited pony and with much ,

sobbing and waving of hands and handkerchiefs the ,

small cavalcade was at last sent off from the old arche d
gate of Mont S alvair through which the band of the
,

Brides of Heaven slowly and mournfully returned .

But the young travelling companions too proceeded -

, ,

on their way more silently and thoughtfully than might

be expected when a knightly youth on the fairest of
, ,

summer days guides two fair maidens mounted on

,

fresh horses upon their first expedition into a smiling

world After a hasty question as to how her father was
.
,

G arc in de had not again addressed Geoffroy influenced , ,

p erhap s by the curt although reverential manner in

,
.

which he had seemed to avoid entering into further de

tails But A igle ta who for her part had not allowed the
.
,

departure from Mont S alvair to weigh the least upon her

spirits took up a livelier tone and after a sigh of grati
, ,

tude for being at last delivered from the pious mono

tony o f cloistered life began to give Geo ffroy an amus
,

ing account of its course from day to day She was an .

excelle nt mimic and counterfeited the voices of the dif

,

fe re nt sisters their mild whispers and downcast eyes

, , ,

their unrestrained laughing and screaming as soon as

they were unob served their petty spiteful quarrels their
, ,

cloying affectionateness to each other ready at a mo,

,
’
ment s notice to turn into dea dly enmity In the midst .
2 70 GEO FF RO Y A ND GA R C I ND E .

of all this she introduced the solemn bass voice o f the

a bbess exhorting to p eace and painting the dangers of
, ,

the world ; and finally she concluded with a wild medl e y

of pious and godless sp eeches in which the nuns were ,

supposed to express their feelings on the departure of

the young Countess their envy their fear that Satan with
, ,
'

all his crew might be waiting for them outside the gates ;
lastly the prayer of the abb ess for their deliverance from
all dangers esp ecially from the temptations of b old
,

knights and suspicious young cousins

, .

G arcin de who had been riding a yard or two in ad

vance now cut short this burst of spirits and with her
gentle voice —without however turning towards A igle ta
, ,

—rebuked her frivolous tone It was sinful she said ,

.
,

, ,

after all the love and kindness they had enj oyed to ex ,

pose to view the weaknesses of the poor and sadly

limited life and she at least should never forget that
,

when orphaned she had found there a second home

, .

m
’
Whereupon the p ert girl who in G e o ffro y s presence ,

did not at all approve o f having this well merited ser -

mon addressed to her only replied with a couple of ,

”
proverbs E ach bird sings according as it is fed
,
“
,

and
T tell th s imple t u th I wee
o e r n,
M ay be u wis e b ut ti t n ,
’
s no s .

But she was all the more vexed and put out because
the handsome youth by her side treated her as so p er
fe ct a stranger while she for her p art remembered him
,

so well and how glad she used to b e when their childish

”—
,

games were so arranged that Jaufre t so they called

“

him then —should be on her side to deliver her from a

dragon or to wake her by a kiss out of magic sleep
,
.

A n d while she now engaged the servant in common

la talk she c O uld no t h l t ling fre q u n t l ances
‘

p ce , e p s e a e g
 G EO F F R O ! A ND GA R C I ND E . 2 7I

m m
at her other companion noticing how handsome and
,

manly he had become ; how with a slight turn of the

wrist he could rein in a fiery horse and yet had such a ,

sad and earnest b eauty in his eyes as would have b e

come the very saints in the church o f Mont S alvair .

What could make him so silent she kept wondering ; ,

and if she we re below the attention of so noble a gen

tle an how was it that he ab stained fro
,
all attempt
to find favour in the eyes of his lady cousin ? A ll this -

p erplexed her so much that she gradually left o ff talking ,

and entirely forgot the slight anger she had felt at the
admonition received Meanwhile the youth on his side
.
,

who had so impatiently watched for t hi s day, wished as ,

the sun rose higher that it had never dawned upon him
,

at all instead of looking down on his j oy and sorrow

,

m
with so heartless a splendour I t is true that from his .

boyish years he had preserved the image o f his cousin

as his ideal o f all b eauty and loveliness but the spark ,

had smouldered on as a quiet memory in a well guarded -

portion of his heart ; but now at the first greeting from

her lips at the perfume that floated over to him from
,

her hair this spark burst o ut into a mighty flame and

, ,

he suffered tortures such as he had never known before .

A n d then her apparent es trangement from hi increased

his anguish for although he did not know whether it
,

were disinclination to him personally or the calm con ,

tempt o f the Count s daughter for her father s poor re

’ ’

taine r which closed her lips and kept her eyes averted ,

he had leisure enough in these silent hours to estimate :

With miserable accuracy the social gulf b etween them ,

and the duty of crushing every foolish hope Then again .

, ,

his thoughts turned to conjectures as to what posses

sor he would have to make over the j ewel entrusted to
him whether her hand would be given away withou t her
,
2 72 GEO FF R O ! A ND GA R CIND E .

heart o r whether her father in the gloom o f sicknes s

,

had so yearned for his o nly child as s uddenly to recall ,

her to his deserted home Even were it so w ould his .

'
,

case b e le ss hop e le ss if he had longer time to learn the

full preciousness of the treasure which must at length be
surrendered to another ? I

Thus he sank more and more into a p rofound melan

c ho ly so that even G arc in de who was not herself joyous

m
, , ,

remarked it and asked him whether he were suffering

, ,

whether he would rest and refresh himself with a draught .

of wine ? Geo ffroy crimsoning to the roots of his hair

m
, ,

excused himself for his absent mood accounted for it ,

by a sleepless night and did all he could to app ear , .

more cheerful And at noon when they halted in a

.

wood b eside a spring to recruit themselves with the pro

visions with which the pious sisterhoo d had laden the
baggage horse his sp irits in a measure revived while
-

, i ,

A igle ta who had long got over her fit of sullenness re

, ,

covered the audacity of her o od and flavoured the .

id day meal with the drollest freaks of fancy

-
. Gar .
- s

cinde sat in the shadow of a tall black thorn and pa -

m
tie ntly endured that the little witch who could not
rest a moment should adorn t the whole party with , .

garlands even to the servant and the grazing horses

, ,

singing merry songs the while not always of spiritual ,

imp ort at which even the servant laughed , so that the

,

young C ountess rose with a grave air removed the wre ath ,

from her bro w and proposed that they should ride on

,

again T he last to rise from the green grass was Geof

.

f roy ; to him the sp o t see e d a Paradise where he would

willingly have dreamed his days away yet when he lifted ,

his cousin into her saddle he did :not dare to b estow ,

.

on the little foot that she placed in his hand anything

. .

more than the ve ry sli ghtest pre ssure S he turned her fac e .
 G EO F F RO Y A ND GA R C I ND E .
~
2 73

’
away from him and he was for an instant s space veiled
,

in the flow of soft tresses that fell down to her girdle .

Then she put her horse into a gentle canter Thus they .

all rode on for a while men and beasts refreshed by ,

their hour s repose and even Geoffroy carried his head

’
,

higher as though the red wine that A igle ta had given

,

him in a cup garlanded with flowers had put new life ,

into his veins and inspired him with energy to enj oy the
,

bliss of the present hour .

L a V aquie ra which they reached early in the after

,

noon was a dairy farm beautifully situated between

,
-

richest pastures and wooded grounds ; until late years in

the p ossession of the house o f Malaspina but stake d ,

and lost at play by the Count to a neighbouring noble ,

Pierre de Gaillac who had however some thing else to

, , ,

do than to look after herds of cattle and flocks of

sheep in this quiet corn er The farmer himself and his .

wife who lived here with a troop of shepherds and milk

,

maids and whom Sir Hugo greeted as usual whenever

,

he rode past had not a notion that they no longer held

under him and they received his daughter —whom they
,

well remembered in her childhood —with all the re

,

v e re n c e and attention due to their young mistress They .

had only a small house as the servants slept in the ,

stables but they at once gave up their one sleepin g

,

chamber to the two girls and themselves found a rest ,

ing place in the kitchen Geo ffroy had to p ut up with

-

a loft reached by a ladder fortunately an airy one ,

having plenty of fresh hay I t was late however when .

, ,

he betook himself to it for the best part of the starry , .

night had been spent in such earnest and serious con

verse that his impetuous feelings were somewhat sub
,

dued and spite of the vicinity of Garc inde he made up

, ,

for the lost sleep o f the night b efore The two girls on .
,
B arba rossa, e tc. I 8
 '
2 74 G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R CI ND E .

the contrary although they too —what with the long ride
and the strong wine —owned to being very t ired y e t e n
,
'

livene d themselves during their unrobi ng by much of

'

that seeming confidential talk commo n to maidens who

sh are the same couch and yet would fain conceal their ,
’ '
heart s s e crets from each other For girls believe there .

is no better way of holding their tongue on one subj ect

than letting i t run on unguardedly on every other Why .
“

have you been so little glad all day long and are you ,

sure you are not still angry with me for all the n o nsense
I have talked out o f sheer delight at getting back into
,
”
the world ? said A igle ta to her friend while helping her ,

to braid and bind her hair Not so dear heart re .

“
, , ,

plied her thoughtful companion letting her delicate arms ,

drop into her lap I envy you your light heartedness

.
“ -

I do not censure it B ut my heart is heavy O h A igle ta

. .
, ,

I used to have such happy dreams of returning to my

father of breathing free air and seeing the world as it
, ,

lay beyond the hill of Mont S alv air A nd now .

D oes not the world seem to you fair enough the

“
,

sky blue enough the meadows green enough the stream

, ,
”
clear enough to reflect b ack your beauty ? laughed
A igle ta .

”
How can you mock at my anxiety and gloom ? re
“

turned the Count s daughter Just think—o n the very

’
.

da y when I re enter the world my dear father is absent

-

from me I cannot grasp his hand or hear his voice

. .

O h believe me there is something mysterious dark per

, , ,

haps appalling that is kept back from me the foreboding

of which has —spite of all the sunshine darkened for
, ,

m e this much longed for day .

”
Nonsense ! said A igle ta
“
Shall I tell you where .
“

the cloud lay that threw its dull shadow over you ? O n
the brow and in the eyes of that simple S ir Jaufre t .
 G E o FF R o v A ND GA R CIND E ; 2 75

Deny it as you will I know what I know and have ,

not got eyes in my head for nothing And have you .

not indeed every right to be o ffended with his nu

, ,

courteous indi fferent manner ? Fie ! To make such a

,

melancholy face when one has the good fortune to serve

as knight to two sweet young ladies one of whom more , ,

over is a high b orn countess and his own first cousin !

,
-

And this evening too when we walked round the p as

, ,

tures could he not have found something more lively to

,

talk of than the stars above us and whether we went to ,

them after death and horrid subj ects of that kind ? I

,

think he might have found some stars nearer at hand ,

and only to talk about dying we need not have left

Mont S alv air! He is certainly —as one can see —likely
to die of love but that is no excuse Such gloom may
, .

do very well for p oems when he writes you them but

while you were together and alone—for as for me I
,

closed my eyes and pretended to be asleep

“
What art thou prating about foolish one ? said ,

G arc inde trying to look angry although a sweet emotion

, ,

sent the blood tingling to her cheeks D ost thou not .

“

know why he is so grave and sad and never indeed , , ,

will b e quite happy all his life long ? Not though that

mm
he need take his birth thus to heart I f he woul d only .

go to the court of some foreign prince and there gain

m
,

renown no one would reproach him with what he could

,

not help ; and he might win wealth and land and fame , , ,
’
and be a fit wooer for any count s daughter But even .

though he be a dreamer and does not understand his ,

o wn advantage he is not so foolish as to turn his

,

thoughts towards me for well he knows my father would

,

never gi ve me to hi Nay I rather think that he hates m e

as being my father s daughter—above hi in position
.

thou gh I for my part would always behave to hi as in

18
'
 m m
276 GE O F F R o v A ND GA R CI ND E .

our childish days and do everything in my powe r to

,

r enew the old i ntimacy .

m
”

m
Hm said A igle ta as she unlaced her bodice it
“
, , ,
“

may b e that you are right and yet I wish he hated e ,

i n the way he hates ifi ee I should desire nothing b etter

.
,

but I a a servant s daughter Who would give h imself

’
.

the trouble to look and see whether I deserve love o r

ha te ? And yet I think and so saying she shook her ,

thick hair over her white shoulders it might be well ,

“

worth their while too and Whether high born or not you
,
-

shall see D o na Co iessa in the net of these black hairs

, ,
.

I shall catch gay plumaged birds as well as you with

-

your gold threads and even if that black crow Jaufre t

,

keep s out of them

”
Any one who heard you speak interposed Gar
“
,

cinde would think that you came from some quite other
,
“

place than a convent But now we will go to sleep I

. ,
. .

wish morning were come and that I had embraced my

”
father .

They lay quiet for an hour yet neither of them , .

closed an eye ; the bed at the farm was certai nly harder .

than their Mont S alv air couch but that alone would not ,

have troubled the repose of girls o f eighteen They both .

held their breath and kept motionless till A igle ta sud

, ,

de nly sat up and said I never believed the nuns when

,
“

"

they said the outer world would steal aw ay our rest ; and
now see we have hardly put our foot outside their gates
, ,

and already sleep flies from us A nd yet we are not . .

even in love I at least am not O h Blessed L ady of

, .
,

Mont S alvair what wzll happen when it comes to that !

,

You of course will h ave some distinguished husband

and then lovers as many as you wi ll but I —supp o se f
,

one took my fancy whom I could not have —I believe I

,

should set a woo d on fire and j ump into the midst o f it !

”
 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 77

What are you dreaming about ? answered Gar

“

cinde without raising her head from the pillow

,
Do .
“

you suppose that I would take a husband whom I did

not love or that my father would give me to any one
,

m
against whom my heart rebelled ? Do you not know
’
that he loves nothing on earth so well as me and could ,

have no greater sorrow than to see me suffer ? Go to

sleep — the wine has got into your head I think you .

have been let out of the convent too soo n .

”
Amen said the merry girl in the deep voice of
“
,

the abbess ; then she laughed out loud but left o ff talk ,

ing and was asleep before her young mistress

,
.

The next o rn ing the horses had stood saddled and

’

p awing the ground in the courtyard for a good hour ,

before the girls appeared on the threshold They nodded .

familiarly to Geoffroy and chatted a little with the goo d

,

people of L a V aquie ra Then they spurred their horses .

’
in order to get over the four hour s ride to Malaspina ,

before the mid day heat -

.

A gain but little was said on the way ; the youth ,

spite of his sound sleep was still paler and sadder than ,

on the previous day ; even A igle ta seemed lost in

thought bit her full lip and now and then sighed
, ,
.

Moreover they had difficulty to keep up with the young

Countess who urged her horse as though the wild hunts
,

men were on her track O nce she turned to Geoffroy .

,

who kept near her for fear the over urged p alfrey should -

make a false step D o you think my father will ride to

.
“

”
meet us ? she enquired and anxiously waited for his ,
”
answer I should think so replied the youth without
.
«
“
,

daring to look at her for his mind too was full of , , ,

gloomy forebodings .

When they first came in sight of the Castle of M ala

spina G arcinde suddenly drew bridle , and shading her
,
2 78 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E .

eyes with her hand gazed for several moments at the

well remembered ancient pile T he road wound like a
‘

-
.

bright narrow ribbon through the short cut grass and -

they co uld see every p ebble on it But of any horse .

man crossing the drawbridge and hastening to meet '

them nothing was to be seen ; even when the y came so

,

near that the warder blew his horn everything remained ,

unchanged and there was no sign of the festal reception

,

o f which the girl had dreamed The porter appeared in .

the op en gateway and b ehind him a few shabby looking

,
-

retainers who stoo d round as if confused and for the

, ,

first time aware how high the grass and nettles grew b e
tween the flags in the courtyard Geo ffroy had made some .

pretext for remaining b ehind for his heart bled at the ,

i dea of witnessing such a return home For although .

the innocent inexperienced girl could not take in the

whole extent of the change —as she had only a childish
,

recollection of the place and it was not written over the

,

gateway that scarcely the bare walls remained in her

father s possession —yet the paucity of domestics and
—
’
,

their thread bare attire might well startle her ; and

,

above all that her own parent had not the heart to
,

welcome his b eloved child in front of the ancestral

dwelling !
Is my father ill ? she cried as without awaiting
“
,

help she leapt from her saddle .

It is only a sharp attack of gout lady replied the , ,

p orter glancing up at an arched window that looked

,

into the court as if expecting that at least his master

,

would b eckon from thence to his daughter even though ,

his ailments might prevent his desc ending the stairs

‘

But the window was empty and a blush su ffused Gar ,

’
cinde s face as her glance which had taken the same ,

direction came back unsatisfi ed and distressed

, I will .
“
 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R CI ND E . 2 79

go upstairs to him A igle ta she whispered wait here

, , ,
“

”
till I call you .

S he went the others descended from their horses

,

and made them over to the servants Geoffroy after ex .

changing a few rapid words with the porter : Anythi ng “

” ”
new ? All as it was took his o wn horse to the stable
“
, ,

unbridled him , and then crossed the courtyard on his

way to his little turret without taking any notice of
A igle ta who lost and forsaken sat on a stone bench
, , ,

amongst the menials and could have wept heartily over

,

so disappointing a return to the much desired home ,

had there not been too many lookers on She saw the .

young man take his way to the well known rose em - -

bowered tower but his head hung down so dej ectedly

,

that she did not venture to address him or ask him to ,

let her go with him to their old play ground As for -

.

him he seemed to have forgotten that he was in the

,

world or that he walked among men Although he had

,
.

only had a little bread and wine in the early morning ,

and it was now past noon he had no thought of eating ,

or drinking but sat in his turret chamber on his mother s

,
-
’

b ed motionless like one struck by lightning his widely

, ,
’
opened eyes fixed on his father s song book which on -

his entrance he had taken down from the shelf and

opened out on his knee Yet he did not seem to b e .

reading but rather listening to some words that his o wn

,

heart was setting to the music whether glad or sorrow ,

ful none could have guessed from his stony aspect All .

at once however he started back into life and his dark

, , ,

face flushed deeply ; he sprang so hastily from the bed

that the song book slipped from his knee and fell open
-

upon the flags then he held his breath and listened to

, ,

some sound in the garden of roses below Yes it was .

,
’
her step no other human being s was like it and now
, ,
 m m
2 80 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E .

her hand was upon the turre t do o r now she crossed the a
,

dark and narrow hall now she opened the inner door ,

and stepped over its threshold into his small chamb er .

A s she entered his eyes involuntarily fell

,
and he ,

sought to disguise his emotion by lifting from the floor

the parch e nt book that lay between her and him and
-

now that he raised his eyes to her he started horror ,

stricken For her face but lately blooming with youth and
.

health had so changed in one short hour that she seem ed

,

to have traverse d years of hopeless grie f .

”
I disturb you cousin she said in a vo ice fro
“ ’

, ,

which the music had fled but I come to you because “

I think you are my friend—p erhap s the only one I have

,

L et me sit down I am mortally weary No not on the

, .
,

b ed ; my dear aunt died there O h Jaufre t if I only

knew that it would b e my death bed too —and that my
.
, ,

heart would grow still the moment I lay down there

God is my witness I would throw myself upon it at
”
once !
She sank down on the seat that he offered her hid -

m
ing her face in her hands and tears streaming b etween ,
” ’
her white fingers For God s sake cousin he cried
.
“
, , ,
“
you break my heart What has happ ened ? What has. .

”
your father said ?
Then she removed her hands from he r face pressed ,
'
back her tears and looked steadfastly at him
,
I will .
-
“

not weep she said it is childish I f all is true that I

, ,
“
.

have heard tears are too weak for such sorrow But I
, .

want to hear it fro you cousin Is it indeed the case , .

that the Count of Malaspina is a beggar and that his ,

daughter has nothing to call her own except the clothes

she wears ? You are silent Jaufre t B e it so then ; what , .

should I care for that ? I have long had a foreboding

that there was troub le b efore me and as to poverty I , .
,
 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R CI ND E . 2 81

have seen that in the convent and kno w it and it does , ,

not affright me But shame Jaufret shame

.
, ,
”
“
By the blood of our L ord he exclaimed Who , .
“

dares to say that shame threatens you so long as I can

”
b ear a sword and lay a lance in rest ?
,

She did not appear to hear him Then after a pause .

in which she as if unconsciously drew her rosary

, ,

through her hands she shudderingly enquired Do you

, ,
“

”
know the Count de Gai llac ? The youth started as
though he had tro dden upon a snake he muttered a ,

curse between his teeth and convulsively clutched the

,

silken coverlet .

”
“
You seem to know him the maiden continued , ,
“
and I know him too About two years ago a hunting
.

party came to Mont S alv air a great gathering of knights ,

and fair dames They all sat themselves down to feast

.

in the wood that bordered the convent garden and we ,

from our shrubb ery could see what was going on ; the
drinking the banqueting ; and could hear the songs that
the Count s mistress —a tall proud looking woman—sang
,
’
-

to her lute O h cousin what dreadful human b eings

.
,

there are ! E ven then I felt a terror come over me and ,

was glad when the abbess came to drive us out of the

garden and set us down in the refectory to our spin
,

ning wheels There nothi ng was heard but the whisper

-
.

ing of the nuns every one of whom knew something of

,

the wildness and godlessness of the Count de Gaillac .

For they know everything in the convent know all about ,

the o uter world and its ways otherwise they would die ,

of tedium Then the abbess came in told me that the

.
,

Count was standing at the grating and desired to see ,

me as he was the bearer o f a message from my father

, .

I do not know ho w I had strength enough to rise and ,

walk across the long hall to her ; then however she took , ,
2 82 G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R C I ND E .

'
my hand in her mother like clasp and whisp ered R e -

, ,
‘

member tha t thou art here in a consecrated place ; here

the evil one himself could have no p ower over thee .
’

So saying she led me to where the godless man with his

’ ’
hawk s eyes in his wolf s face was waiting behind the ,

grating the handsome bold looking woman by his side

, ,
-
.

They were laughing loud when we appeared but sud ,

de nly grew silent I heard the Count say something in

.

Italian to the lady that I perfectly understood but could ,

not contradict What his message to me was I never

.

knew but it cut me to the heart to hear him name my

,

father and call him his best friend A cloud darkened

my eyes —when I came to myself again they were
, .

, ,

gone The abb ess never alluded to this visit and fo r

.
,

bade the nuns ever to name Pierre de Gaillac before me .

Thus I never heard of him again till to day when my ,

-

own father has told me that on one wretched night ,

after gambling away the remnant of his p ossessions to

this man he had staked the hand o f his daughter upon
,
”

mm
the last throw of the dice and lost that too , .

A sound forced its way from the young man s breast ’

,

a hollow cry of horror and of rage but his limbs seemed ,

p aralysed and his tongue b ound for he did not speak

, ,

a word and there was such stillness in the small cham

,

b er that the grinding of the sand be neath his feet was

,

plainly heard .

You hate my father the girl at length continued

“
,

with downcast eyes but cal voice O h Jaufre t I have .

“
, ,

known this for many years and it has grieved me ,

enough B ut what I have now told you ought not to

.

increase your hatred for if there b e one i serable b eing

,

on earth who in the b urning to rt ure of his soul already

,

endures h ell fire and expiates his sins believe me

-
, , ,

cousin it is the C ount of Malaspina who would gladly

, ,
 GEO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 83

change places with the drop sical cripple at his castle

gate if only he could undo what he has done He
,
.

writhed as though impaled at the stake and buried his ,

face in the pillows that I might not see him while he

told me how it all came about ; how they clouded his
mind with hippocras ; how at every throw they pressed ,

the goblet into his hand till at length the mocking ,

laughter of the Count seemed to awake him from a

dream and he gazed with she e r horror at the abyss i nto
'

which he had hurled his last p ossession the happiness ,

of his child He did everything he could to propitiate

.

his malicious enemy and conqueror nay he offered to b e ,

his serf his bondservant if only he might pay the fearful

, ,

debt thus But the Count had merely laughed and said
.
,
‘
A Jew s bargain indeed you would make with me my
’
,

friend to offer me a plucked old cock for a plump

,

m
young hen I have more servants to feed than I care
.

for b ut a young wife I do want for you know that I

, ,

am getting old and I am not so fond of my mistres s as

,

to wish to leave her my lands and castles after my

death Moreover I fear she might make me a very bad
.
,

return and b efore my eyes were closed drink with some

, ,

younger fellow to my approaching end But your daugh .

ter has been chastely and piously brought up and will

convert me—grey in sin as I a —to an orderly life
,

Therefore I would not take all the treasures on earth in

exchange for her small hand which can alone open the ,

door of Heaven to me ; and so I charge you by your

honour that within three weeks you bring her to cele
brate the marriage here in Gaillac I on my part as my .
,

gift on the morning after the nuptials will make over ,

to you all the woods and lands that I have won from
you of late years in order that your child need not pro
,

vide for you like a be ggar b ut that you may live out ,
2 84

your old age in 1state and comfort

‘
'

se e chingly on his clenched fist

.
GE O F FRO!

And so saying he
called for his servants to light him to bed , and left y
father alone ”

At this moment Geoffroy made a gesture as though

ab o ut to speak ; but she rose quickly advanced to
wards him and laid he r s all cold tremb ling hand he
”
Cousin said she do
not speak yet I know what you would say : that it
‘

would b e better to go forth as a b eggar from home and

~

m m
A ND

.
GA R C I

“
.
’

,
NIDE
"
'
.

, ,
“
'

hearth and to wander through the wide world than to

, ,

endure disgrace and give up body and soul to a de,

“

mon But consider that my father has nothing on earth

.
‘

besides his honour his sacred inviolable knightly word , , , ,

and that it would ill b ecome me his daughter'

to coun , ,

sel him to break it A t the same time I feel that if .

, .
'

there were no other means of fulfilling the pledge giv en ,

and pay ing this debt than by giving my hand to this

m
abhorred suitor I should prefer what is honourable in
,

the sight o f God to wh at men call honour But let us , .

hope my friend that this last alternative may b e sp ared

, ,

me I propose to write a letter to the man who has us

in his power and you —if you are really my friend
.

you must take it this very day to Gaillac for until I ,

know the answer I canno t lay me down to sleep But "

do you rest he re awhile and take some food I will go

.
‘

and write the letter ; they always commended y skill in .

writing at the convent ; Go d grant that it may stand me

'

in good stead now ! See I leave you much calmer than ,

I was when I came although you have not spoken o ne

'

word of comfort to me ; but here in this place where we “

were so happy as children here whe re it seems as if no

bad spirits had p ower over me here —
‘

I cannot persua de ,
’
myself that the hideous dream is true and the father s ,
”
honour pledg e d to the child s disgrace
’
.
 G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R C I ND E . 2 85

She paused for a moment b ut when the youth be nt ,

before her with a deep sigh and pressed her hand to ,

his lips in token that she might depend up on him she ,

laid her other hand affectionately on his shoulder and ,

took leave of him saying A igle ta will bring you the

, ,
“

”
letter Farewell de ar friend and God go with you and
.
, , ,

then on the threshold of the door folding her hands ,

after kissing the image of the Virgin on the wall she ,

rep eated in a low voice the following prayer :

M ai es de Cris t
r , to n filh c ar
P rega per
n o s , q ue n s ampar
E que ns gardo de caz e r

m
A la fi n e n de s e sp e r .

Then she left him alone .

A day and night passed away and yet another day ,

and night Geoffroy did not r eturn

. .

Sir Hugo never missed him ; he was indeed accus , ,

to e d to the youth going his own way and weeks often

m
,

passed without his seeing him and at the present time he ,

hated the sight of any human being He would sit for .

hours in one place in his room The foo d carried in to .

him remained untouched but he drank wine greedily

, ,

as though seeking forgetfulness from it ; forgetfulness of

himself of the past and the future
, , .

O n the evening of the first day when G arcinde had ,

gone to see hi he could not even face his o wn child

, ,

but when she approached him and gently threw her ,

arm over his shoulder his whole frame was conv ulsed
, ,

and slipping from his chair on to the stone floor sob .

bing he clasped her knees and pressed his bro w against

her feet so that she had difficulty in raising him and
,

leading him back to his couch Since then she avoided .

2 86 GE O FFR O Y A ND GA R C I ND E .

mm
his chamber for if she had tried to comfort him by tell
,

ing him the reason of G e o ffro y s ab sence her own de ’

,

sp o n ding heart would have contradicted her words .

The third morning she woke early out of a painful

dream and called to A igle ta who shared her couch
,
“
Do you hear nothing dear ? I thought I caught the
sound of horses hoofs beyond the drawbridge —no I
, ,
’
,

was only dreaming O h A igle ta ! if I have also made

unhappy —sent hi to his ruin
.
,

But hark ! the

’

lzz
sound comes nearer —I hear the gate creak on its hinges
.

— it is he Mother of God ! What does he bring —

. L ife
”
or Death !
She had sprung up and thrown a cloak around her .

A igle ta too hastily rose and bound up her hair ; the

, ,

rosy morning light shone into the room and coloured ,

’
the p ale worn face of the Count s daughter She would
,
.

have gone to meet Geoffroy had her knees supported her ;

as it was she was standing in the middle of the room w hen
he entered He too was pale and as he bent before
.
, , ,

her it struck A igle ta that he did not raise the leathern

,

cap which covered one half of his brow But Garcin de -

.

saw nothing but his eyes which sought to avoid hers .

” ”
You bring no comfort ? she said
“
I knew it .
“
.

Then seating herself on a bench in the window she ,

listened impassively to what he narrated with a faltering

v o 1c e .

He reached Gaillac that same evening for he had ,

not spared his horse When he was ushered into the .

hall where the Count was he found him at supper a , ,

couple of his riotous companions with him and the one ,

of his mistresses who j ust then was highest in his favour .

O n a low stool at his feet crouched a mis shapen dwarf -

who played the part of fool and fed his dogs The .

b eautiful bold woman sat by his side , and p oured him

 G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R CI ND E . 2 87

out red wine into a silver goblet putting her lips to it ,

b efore b e drained it at a draught They all looked at .

“

”
me said Geoffroy as though I a rrived very opportunely
, ,
“

to divert their dulness by some novelty or other for ,

none of them appeared in spirits except the fool who ,

with shallow j ests that waked no laughter went on ,

throwing fragments of food to the dogs I delivered .

your letter without sp eaking a word and while the Count ,

unfolded and read it I could not but thi nk how she who
,

wrote it would have b een received at such a table The .

thought made the blood rush to my head and such a gid ,

din e ss came over me that I was obliged to lean up on my

sword O ne of the guests who noticed this ordered that
.

wine should be brought me for I must b e weary and ,

thirsty after my rapid ride but I shook my head and ,

said I would only await the answer and then return at ,

once Meanwhile the Count had read the letter and

.
,

made it over in silence to his neighbour ; she had

scarcely run her eyes over the first few lines b efore she
’
burst out into loud laughter A sermon ! she cried .
‘

’
‘
Go d s death ! You are going to get a saint for a wife ,

and then she began to read the letter aloud line for ,

line ; and the words that would have made stones weep
and moved the gates of hell waked only mocking ,

echoes here Blasphemies and impious j ests broke out

.
,

interrupting the reading Then the woman rose and .

,

casting a proud look upon the Count said with curled ,

lip The saint may come and welcome I was averse

,
‘
.

to her thinking she might turn your heart from us all

,

and rule here alone but now that I have read her letter
,

I am not afraid of her You Pierre de Gai llac are not

.
,

the man to wear a hair shirt and a prickly girdle You

-
.

are accustomed to the fires of hell and the air of hea ,

ven would but chill you I n hell ho wever, there is more

.
,
2 88 G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R C I ND E .

j oy over one who sickens of p enance and returns to his .

e vil ways than over ninety and nine lost souls Where - -
.

upon I empty this goblet to the last drop and call upon ,

you to pledge me She drank the Count drew her

.
’
,

closer to his side and whispered something into her ear

,

that made her laugh loud They all s e emed to have .

fo rgo tte n the messenger who had brought the letter ; the
‘

letter itself was handed to the others and when it came

-

,
,

b ack to the Count the dwarf snatched at it and cried

, ,
‘
You have not read it rightly godmother Now listen ,
.

how it ought to b e sung to move you all to laughter ,

’

and he b egan to read it once more aloud in the manner

in which they chant litani es in church wagging head ,

and hands like a preach er giving out the blessing and

m
,

if they had all laughed the first time they knew not now .

what to do they held their sides and groaned out re

,

sp o nse s At last rage got the better of me I sprang

. .

upon the shameless fellow tore the letter from him and , ,

struck him such a blow that he rolled over b ackwards ,

and upset the silver vessel that held the food for the
’
dogs If I am to obtain no answer I cried worthy o f
.
‘
, ,
‘

the lady who has sent me here I will at least silence the , .

daring o nth that has mocked at a noble virgin and ,

dragged the words of a pure and lofty soul through the

’
mire !
For a moment there was silence I even thought I
“
.

might pass through the hall unhindered but I had ,

reckoned without my host Servants rushed in the .

, .

guests raged and railed at me the dogs howled but , ,

the C ount still sat in his place pale as death and mo

—
, ,

tio nle ss with fury and the woman by his side shot fiery
When —a quarter of an hour later I
,

looks at me .

'

found myself on damp straw behind a bolted door a ,

wound in my head and darkness b efore my eyes I , ,

 m
G EO FF RO Y A ND GA R CI ND E . 2 89

thanke d my Saviour that I was delivered from the neigh ~

b o urho o d of those brutal men and c o uld no longer hear

‘

them blaspheme the name dearest to me I do not .

know ho w I passed the night and the following day I .

think I must have slept through them but about the ,

middle of the second night I was gently waked by a ,

"

soft hand passing over my face and the light of a s a ll ,

lamp shone into my eyes I t was the Count s mistress

.
’

who stood before me there and signed to me to b e ,

'

silent ; gently she led me up the broken stairs through ,

empty passages and halls to a narrow door of which she

had the key I cannot let you starve to death in un
.
‘

’
broken darkness down there said she O utside you will ,
.
‘

find your horse and something to eat at the saddle bow -

.

Fly ! if ever thou needest a friend come to C arcassonne ,

m
and ask for A gnes the Sardi nian You will easily find ‘

me out! S he waited an answer perhap s she had even ,

dreamed of a tenderer farewell but as I was silent she '

,

Opened the door and again passed her hand over my

“

,
' ’
blood stained hair
-
Poor youth said she thou d e
.
‘
, ,
‘ -
‘

’
servedst a better fate Then I leapt into the saddle
.
'
,
'
and spurred my horse hard and thus I rode on without ,

stopping for in the night air my senses gradually awoke

,
’

and the fever of my wound left me A n d here I a .

“
;

and this is all the a nswer that I bring b ack .

So saying he bared his head and showed his bro w '

—a thick curl of his hair lay upon the wound and ,

’

seemed to have stanched its bleeding .

Then G arcinde rose from he r se at and advanced to '

:

wards him as though she had something t o say; b ut she ? ‘

stopped short and remained speechless with downcast '

eyes before him A igle ta was the one to speak
. I will .
“

go and bring linen and salves to dre ss the wound pro

.

”
perly said she ; then she looked at her friend as though
,
’

B b
a r arossa,t e c. I 9
 m
2 9
0 :

GE O FF R O Y A ND GA R CI ND E .

'
she had some quite other thought secre tly sighe d and , ,
'
x

left the two alone A n d scarcely had she turned away

.

When Geoffroy fell on his knees before the fair and

silent mourner and cri ed as he seized her hands and
,

—
p ressed them passionately to his heart : Command e “

what shall I do ? For my life is worthle ss to me nu

less I can offer it up to thee Never should I have b e
.

tray e d the sweet pangs I endured if sorrow had not ,

overshadowed thee But now thou art no longer the

.

Countess the proud !daughter of Malaspina at whom I

, ,

gazed as at a star far above me Thine is a poor un .

for tunate tortured heart which will not despise another .

heart which devotes itself to thee for life and death .

O h cousin ! loveliest love say but one word and I

, , ,

mount again the horse that still stands saddled in the

courtyard to ride back to Gaillac and plunge this
, ,

dagger into the breast of the enemy of thy honour and

p eace in the midst of all his boon companions even
, ,

though his dogs should tear me to pieces the next mo

”
ment !
Then she bent down towards him and for the first
.

,
”
time a smile played over her pale face Jaufre t said .
“
,

she pressing her lips to his blo o d stained brow ; the

,
-
“

fever of thy wound shows in t hy speech Go and lie

m
down and let A igle ta—who understands such tasks
. .

wash away the blood and dress thy wound and then re ,

fresh thyself with sleep and food For by our dear lady .

of Mont S alv air I accept the life you offer me I am no .

rich countess to disdain such a gift and yet I am rich ,

enough to repay it While you were relating your ad

venture —
.

hideous and cruel enough to d estroy all hope

I lwas considering what I would and could do But this .

is not the time for talking See here comes your doc
.
,
:

tress I make you over to her and you

, u st do all she
,
 -
GEO FF RO Y A ND GA R C I ND E . 2 91
tells you and if you are tractable and ob edient be sure
, , ,

cousin you shall not rue it ! See that he sleeps and gets
,
”
strong A igle ta she said to her friend who nodded and
, , , ,

looked as though she understood more than was uttered .

Meanwhile the youth who still gazed at G arc in de in ut

,

most perplexity had risen from his knees and loosed her
, ,

hands He could not understand how she could b e so

.

composed since he had brought her no hop e But half .

from the exhaustion of his wound and half from his ,

blind confidence in her strong and lofty nature he ,

parted from her with a lightened heart and followed ,

A igle ta who had now lost all her gaiety What can .
“

'
she b e planning ? said he to the girl as they both went
Who can tell —obey and
,

down the stair together .

“

sleep said A igle ta with a quick hoarse voice and then

, ,

turning her head away she added The L ord gives to

, ,
“

”
those He loves in sleep .

S he led him into his turret hermitage ; she saw to his

wound which was indeed but slight and already dispose d
, ,

to heal ; she furnished him with all that he could need

for refreshment and then seeing that his eyes were
,

growing heavy she left him .

She herself however did not instantly return to Gar

, ,

cinde ; she still lingered among the roses made a nose ,

gay pulled it to pieces again and when at last she re

m
, ,

turned to the castle her eyes were red and she washed
, ,

them long with cold water that no one should observe it .

'
Ge o flro y only slept a fe w hours : then he awoke a

new man with brow cool thanks to A igle ta s salve and

, ,
’
,

heart on fire thanks to the mysterious hope encouraging

,
-

words of his cousin L ike a wanderer on whom the .

fairy of the woods has bestowed the wishing rod by -

which at the hour of midnight he may find and pos

sess himself o f a treasure and who drea s away ,

1 9 “
 m m
2 9
2 G EO FFR O ! A ND G A R C I ND E .

the intervenin g time so the youth sat h o ur after hour, ,

g azing o nly
. at the sunbeam whi ch slo wly moved along
the stone floor and listening only to the song of the
,
-

birds aro und his turret NO one came to disturb hi :

, .

the servants lay yawning in shady corners of the court ,

the horses were stamping in the st able to shake off the

flies ; both girls had locked the se lv e s u p in the ir castle

m
chamber and did not appear all day O nce only through
, .

his narrow window did he catch sight o f Sir Hugo who , .

stepped o ut on the b alcony before his chamber and ,

lo oked down into the castle moat as thou gh considering

whether it would not b e better for him to dash himself
to pieces there His hair and b e ard had b ecome white
.
‘

as snow his face was worn to a shadow ; soon he v a

,

nishe d again like a restless ghost And now the sun .

went down and the o o n rose above the wood and

,
'
,
’
silvered the rose garden around G e o ffro y s tower The
-
.

birds were silent but the bull frogs in the moat seemed
,
-

’
to cro ak the louder and in the distance a nightingale s
,

song was heard It was so light in the tower that the

.

youth could read every letter in his parchment book but ,

he knew not what he was reading .

Another hour passed away and yet another and then , ,

light and rapid steps along the narrow path woke the lis
t ener out of his trance He rushed to the door and threw .

it open wide and saw with amazement not only the one
,

that his heart foretold but her friend also b eside her on ,

the threshold They greeted him with a silent n o d and it

.
,

was only when they had passed into hisn arrow chamber
that G arcinde shyly spoke You see that I keep my ,
“

word cousin but have you not in the course of the

, ,

day changed your mind ? D o you not regret what you

”
said to me this morning ? and as he looked at her with
mute enquiry she blushingly continued : That you loved “
. .
 GEO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 93
me Jaufre t loved me more than your life and would
, , ,

devote that life to me in sorrow until death ! o umay .

speak out your heart Openly this faithful friend knows ,

all S he knew even earlier than I did myself that my

.

heart belonged to thee as thine to me O h Jaufre t even

,
.
, ,

at L a V aquie ra when we spoke by night about the stars

, ,

what made me so still and so sad was that I kept say

ing to myself Is there no place among st those countless
, ‘

orbs where he and I may belong to each other ? Must

I lose him whom I have only j ust regained ? For I fore
saw too clearly that my heart an d my hand would not

long remain my own And Go d is my witness I was

.

resolved to obey my father had he betrothed me to any ,

worthy husband however distasteful he might have

,

proved But to fall a victim in an unholy hour to the

.

’
mere chance of the dice that cannot b e God s will , ,

though he has commanded us to honour father and

mother ; for I have in dreams seen my mother weeping
over me and I kno w that were she still living she
, ,

would go with me into poverty rather than give me to

such a husband And therefore am I come to thee my
.
,

b eloved and if thou art in earnest as I believe an d

,

know thou art I will in this very hour before God and
,

this witness take thee for my husband and fly forth

, ,

with thee into the wide world A n d sure am I th at .

when our flight 1 5 discovered my father will not mount ,

his horse and follow us to punish the son as he did the

father ; he knows that he dare not j udge that a j udge
should have a guiltless heart But we —where shall we
,

fly ? A re not all places home to us so I am with thee , ,

”
Jaufre t and thou with thy G arcin de ?
,

With these words she gave him her little hand but ,

while he in a transport of silent rapture took it and

, ,

held it fast A igle ta stepped forward and saidé in her

,
‘

2 9
4

lively way and with a smiling face

cO y gentlem an, Garcin de
,

m
GEO FF RO Y AND GA R C I ND E

J ust look a

man whos e l ips o ve rflo we d with sweetest sayings and

t thi s
C an this be the son of th

not a singl e p o or word falls from his mouth ; even when

o ne brings hi the fairest of count s daughters who
whistle s all the castles and lands of Gaillac down the
Wind in order to beg her way through the world with
,

this helpless lover But come come we cannot wai t till

“

a miracle is wrought and the dumb regains his speech

You must exchange rings and pronounce the m arri age
Vo w and then go forth and far away
.

and I —poor for

e

,
.

,
,
‘

,
’
“
.

saken one —have only to make the sign of the cross b e

, ,

m
hind you ; for to me you are dead and buried th at I ,

m
know all too well I shall .

Her voice broke down spite of all her self control ,

-

and her effort to smile and she had to stoop and pretend ,

to adj ust her shoe that her tears might drop un noticed,
.

Geoffroy meantime had collected himself and n e w drew

m
, ,

a ring from his finger

m
.

”
Do you know it ? he said to Garc inde
“
With this .
“

little ring my father betrothed himself to my mother and

as in his case it betokened the fi r e st constancy —
,

a con
‘

stan cy th at was sealed by death —I now give it to thee ,

y passionately love d bride and swear in presence of ,

the H oly Trinity and before our true friend I will n ev er

, ,

b e the h usband of any other woman than G arcinde of

”
M alaspina .

A nd I will hever be the wife of any other man th an

“

”
y Geoffroy said the bride , .

”
A e n So b e it said A igle ta I n corroboration O f
“

their vow laying—after the exchange o fi rings —their hand s

.
, ,

together Then the pair knelt down before the picture of

.

the Mother of God and remained for a short season in , ,

But when they rose again and sank into

'
S il ent pray er
’

.
 95
' '
GE O FF RO Y A ND C A R CI ND E . 2

each other s arms and with heart on heart and mouth

’
, ,

on mouth ratified their holy vow the witness slipped

, ,

softly away B y and bye they found her outside amongst

.
- -

the roses of which she had woven two garlands

,
No .
“

”
wedding without a garland said she and smiled though , , ,

her eyes were wet while she crowned them both The n
,
.

the youth hurried to the stable and noiselessly saddled

his horse and led him to the garden where G arc inde ,

lay on the breast o f her friend and whispered amidst ,

her tears : I know why thou weep est God make thee
“
.

”
as h appy as thou hast been brave and true to me , .

They set off quietly Geoffroy leading the horse who , ,

with dilated nostrils snorted at the moonlight the girls ,

following him over the bridge ; then he lifted his young

wife into the saddle sprang up himself b ehind her and
, ,

waving his hand to A igle ta sp urred his faithful charger ,

on I t did not feel the weight it bore too heavy for

.
,

with the exception of his sword and dagger Geoffroy ,

had taken nothing with him but his father s song book ’
-

and G arcinde only a few ornaments which she had in

he rite d from her mother and which her father had never ,

touched Thus then they rode through the moonlit

.
, ,

forest They did not say much : every now and then
.

when the horse was slowly crossing boggy ground she ,

would turn half round to him and then he kissed her ,

cheek and her black eyes smiled while she whispered

, ,
“
My de arest husband .

She rested in his arms so sweetly and the good ,

horse trod so securely that they hardly realised their

circums tances —a hasty flight by night —a dark future
,

b efore them —but enj oyed their bliss as though no sha

dow of care and danger hung over their love .

But when they got out of the wood and reached the
hill from whence G arc inde a few days ago had fir st b e
.
2
L 9
6 GE O FF RO Y A ND ND E
g A R cr .

held aga in her father s castle she suddenly p ulle d the ’

,

rein and t urn e d the horse round

m
.

What ails thee swee t wife ? And why dost tho u

“
,
”
halt here ? asked Geoffroy .

She did no t reply but gazed over the wide plain , ,

towards the dark pile with its leade n roo fed turrets that -

shone in the moonlight .

”
What is it that you see de arest ? asked the youth
“
, ,

mm
who felt her tremble on his breast as though a frosty ,
'

chill had overtaken her on the warm su e r ni h

g t .

“
L et us look forwards not back O ur happiness lies ,
. . ,

”
before us But she only shook her head sorrowfully
.
,

turned away when he wished to kiss her and said not

m
,

a word A ll of a sudden she had seemed to see in the

,

deserted castle her father with a taper in his hand wan

dering from room to room and crying Where is my , ,
“

daughter G arcinde ? I have pledged y ho no ur she

'
,

m
,

must redeem my pledg e Where is my child and where

. .
,

is my honour ? I was a b eggar I had n othing but y .

unstained name and now that is lost The last of the

.

,
.

Malaspina has destroyed the good fame of the house ,

for she knows that I can no longer pursue her as in

former years I should have done I am old and sick ,
.
,

and a sinful man Now therefore I u st go down d is

.
, ,

graced to the grave for mine enemy will say I have

, .

connived at this and that to avoid paying y deb t

, , ,

I have preferred even to give my last j ewel to a beg

”
gar than to the creditor I hated !
, Then again this .

image vanished and she now saw herself and her lover
,

pursue d on strange roads by an angry band Pierre de ,

Gaillac at their head resolved to cl aim his bride from ,

her ravish er She saw her Jaufret fight with the e nergy
.

of a despairing man and yet at length conquered by ,

’
n umbers shed his life s blood o n the green grass and
, .
,
 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 97

m
m
she heard the mocking conqueror laugh So thou e n ,
“

'
v ie st me my gains at play thou p lay e r s son ; the creditor
f ,

r eclaims the debt the debtor would have withheld from

”
him ! Then a deadly shudder passed over her ; she
thought for a moment that he r he art had ceased to b eat . .

A ll the j oys of her young love seemed crushe d by an

'

icy hand S he knew now that what had appeared to

.

her in her trouble a way of escape and an i e asur

able bliss was a false dream ; that she should but bring
death and ruin to both the beings whom she supremely
loved !
”
“
For the love of the S aints ! c rie d G e o ffroy who
’ ‘

felt her cherished form grow heavy as a lifeless b ody in

his embrace come to thyself again
,
“
What fearful .

thoughts hast thou in thy mind that thus thy lips move
silently as though speaking with the departed ? Give me
the bridle and let us turn to life to liberty The spirits , .

that hover over those towers will have no power over

thee when once tho u art the other side of this hill Wilt
thou make us b oth wretched ? Wilt thou even
He stopped when he saw the stony e yes of his young
wife from which every beam of hO p e and joy had ut
te rly vanished But this did not last long the c o nv ul
.
,

sion was now over She gave a deep sigh turned on

.
,

him eyes of yearning love and said while endeavouring , ,

to smile
“
I have scared thee ; forgive me my beloved What , .

have we two to fear from any spirits that may hover

’

over that house and envy us our bliss Thou my hus .

,

band and I thy wife eternally one body and soul ! But
, , , ,

I have b e e n think ing about our flight that it is not the

~

will of Heaven ; and if we persisted Jaufre t against my , ,

conscience we should b e punished and should end as

, ,

miserably as did thy father and my dear aunt Trust .

 mm
2 98 G EO FFRO Y A ND GA R CI ND E .

to me I have another idea which thou shalt know to

,
.

morro w early Thou wilt praise thy wife when thou

.

seest how she has contrived both to pay the debt to the
creditor and yet to be the wife of no man e X ce pt her
,

dearest cousin to whom she has given herself in the

,
:

presence of God L ift e down from the saddle I do

!
.
,

not wish to ride any longer If it pleases you my hus .

,
'
band le t us walk back through the wo od there are still
, ,

many hours before day and a faire rwedding night no ,

-

count s daughter could ever wish for A nd now k iss e

’
.
,

so that I may again see a smile on thy lips ; for truly this
poor life is too short for us to spoil even one moment
”
of it by care and gloom He reluctantly did what she .

required of him ; but when he took her into his arms

and their lips met he could not refrain from asking , ,

m
“
O h G arcinde ! What art thou thinking of? Hast thou
not too much confidence in thyself and wilt thou not if ,
”
thy plan fails make us both eternally wretched ? But
she smiled at him with bright eyes laid her finger o n ,

his mouth and said You are the happiest married man
, ,
“

on earth Sir Geoffroy ; you have a wife who knows how

,

to keep a secret But now do not press me any further

. .

What have we to do with the morrow ? T 0 day are we -

already such old married people that we can fi nd o re _

important subj ects to speak of than o ur love ? Say Jau ,

fret do I really please thee b etter than A gnes o f Sardinia

, ,

and was her hand when she stroked thy hair not softer
than mine ? Nay but thou must not embrace me so ar ,

de ntly here the moon lo ok s to o boldly down and after

~

, ,

all she does not know that thou art my dear husband .

Come into the wood I am weary with our ride and ,

-

would fain rest awhile I know a bank where a brook .

'

runs through the moss num bers of flowers bloom there , ,

and I will weave them into fresh garlands for those

“
~

,
 GE O F FR o v A ND G A R C I ND E . 2 9
9
A igle ta made are q uite crushed Poor A igleta! Dost .

thou know that she loved thee too well ? But that can
not b e helped now : no one can be the husband of two
women ; that is against God s law A nd I though I b e ’
.
,

not indeed better than she I am the more unhappy of ,

the two or at least I should have been if thy heart my

, ,

beautiful love had not been mine

, .

With such words as these which intoxicated the ,

youth like strong wine the y went down the hill and e n
,

te re d the wood Their gentle horse followed them of

.

his own accord and peacefully grazed near them in the

,

flowery glade where they laid them down Through the .

whole of the night the br ook rippled and the nightin

m
gales sang and the moon shone so brightly that no o ne
,

could have thought of sleep not at least two who had ,

so much to confide to each other and knew not whether ,

there would be time for it on the following day When .

the morning drew near and the dew began to fall and , ,

a cooler air swept through the wood G arcinde arose ,

and said while a shudder p assed over her It is grow

, ,
“

”
ing cold my husband I think we ought to go home
, . .

”
“
Where ? asked he lo oking at her in amaze ent but
, ,

she smiled .

“
O nly come said she I will show you Can I
, ,
“
.

”
have any other home than thine ? With that she took
his arm and led him out of the wood and over the ,

bridge back into his tower .

”
“
Here let me rest said she as she seated herself
, ,
’
on his mother s bed Here I would fain sleep for an
.
“

hour until the sun rises But leave me alone my b e .

,

loved otherwise we shall go o n talking and I shall not

, ,

b e able to close an eye A n d give me your song book .

-

too I should l ike to read a verse or two before I fall

,
30 0

asleep
,
.

O h Jaufre t I love thee more than

,
GE

y life !
O F FR O !

And now one goo d night kiss and then go !

not two happy beings to have enj oyed such bliss that
,

Are we
‘

A ND

-
GA R CI ND E ;

m ,

m
m
nothing can trouble us And if we lived a hundred .

years could time make us richer in j oys when we have

,
” '

dru nk from the cup of eternal blessed ness ? O nc e :

more he emb raced the lovely one and kissed her long ,

m
.

and fervently on her mouth Then b e left her alone . . .

A n hour later the cock crew But it did not wake .

the yo uth who lay in t he ro se garde n his c loak thrown e

,

over him smiling in his dream as tho ugh he were in

,
'
:

wardly happy and ur uring the name of his young

’

, .

wife . Neither did it wake the sleeper in the turret ,

room whose lip s were half op en as though they too

,
-
, ,

would; pronounce a name b ut all was still as death in ,

the di chamber .

It was only when the sun had already risen over the .

tops of the trees that A igle ta came b y with we ary e y e s

,
~

and pale face , listless and absorbed in her own thoughts .

When she saw Geo ffroy lying in the garden , she was ‘

horror stricken as though *

-
she had seen a gho st , and it
was only when she ascertained that he was breathing :

”
that she bent down to wake him You still here ? she “

—
.

”
whispered And where is your wife ?
.
“

He sprang up in haste and without an swe ring a '

,
r

word , rushed to his turret When he open ed t do o r he '

.
:
r
,

m
he gave a cry like a man mortally wo unded and fe ll , .
'

upon the b ed There lay his young bride o ne l han d

.
.
,

pressed to her heart from whi ch a little stream o f bloo d ,

- “

'
still flowed her other hand rested on the song books
s
,
-

which'was open at its last page and the white finger s

“

'
-
e
,

p ointed to a ne wly writte n line that ran thus ih the l an

-
-

guage of Provence :
 G EO FF RO Y A ND G A R C I ND E .
30 1 \

LO de ute ire p aqua tot lo deute al cre z e do r .

The debtor pays t o , the creditor all the debt .

m
It was no o n before the se rv ants ventur e d carefully
-

to apprise Count Hugo of the heart rending truth He

.
-
.

listened to the tidin gs as though he did not rightly un

de rstand t he ir purport ; even when they led him down to

where his child like a proud and beautiful statue of

,

whitest marble lay outstretche d on the bed he knew so

,

well he gave no token o f what he felt spoke not a

, ,
.

word shed not a tear All night he shut himself up

, .

with the dead The n e xt o rning he ordered a bier to

.

be prepared He would redeem his word he said and

.
, ,

carry the bride to her bride groom The serv ants sile ntly
Geo ffroy —who might else have put in his
.

obeyed .

claim —lay in a raging fever tended by A igle ta; his ,

.

wound o n the forehead had burst open afresh and no ,

salve availed to close it .

When the procession came to Gaillac Count Hugo ,

at its head the dead bride on a high bier b o rne by his

, , .

servants a great crowd of p easants and retainers behind

, ,
’
the bride s father sent a herald in advance to blow his
trumpet three times and cry with a lou d voice ,
The ,
“

”
debtor pays to the creditor all that he owes him ! At
this cry Count Pierre de Gaillac appeared on the bal
,

cony of his castle ; but when he saw the lamentable

spectacle he turned away ho rrified and violently signed ,

to them to go back that he would have no such we d ,

ding Then he flung himself on his horse and rode far

.

away and only returned after many days a broken do wn

,
-

man who had forgotten how to laugh .

 GE F FR O O! A ND GA R CI ND E .

I
C ount H ugo h0we ver, without giv ing one S ign of !
.
, .

grief next ordered the bearers to carry the bier to a

,

chapel that stood in the open country and was dedi ,

c ate d to the blessed L ady of Mont S alv air There on the .

land and property belonging to the Count de Gaillac to _

,
'
whom he had to p ay his debt he buried the beautiful ,
-

body o f his child And no one dared to touch a spade

.
,

for he determined with his own hands to prepare her

last resting place When this ceremony had been per
-
.

formed amidst the tears of the crowd all went away and ,

left him He remained alone in the chapel ; no one knew

.

whether he was praying or speaking with the dead But .

when they went to look after him the next day and to
-
:

offer him fo o d and drink he was no longer living and

, ,

they buried him beside his child .

O f Geoffroy the chronicle tells nothing further ex ,

'
cept that in the autumn of the same year he j oined the
crusaders and travelled towards Jerusalem from whence
, ,

he never came back But any one turning over the

.

old records o f the Convent o f Mont S alv air would there

find that towards the end of the century there was an
abbess of the name of A igleta von Malaspina —in religion
,

named Sor S o fre nz a (in modern French S oeur Souf

—
france ) who only at an advanced age entered into
,

eternal rest .

TH E END
‘

P R I NT I NG . O F F I CE OF T HE P UB LI S H E R .