The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1872-04-11
GRETCHEN'S LOVER.
sly MATTE FREEMAN.

From thu western Rura \
The blue eyes OF Gretchen were REQ
with weeping. The brown hair lay il
disOrdered curls above the white face
around the mouth grieved look nestled
and the tidy childish hands clssped eaci
other.
Over in the quaint old Prussian town
flags were fl ging, drums beating,and voice
shouting AId all OF this sound Gretchen
heard, standing by the open widow, viii
q little German canary warblng above
her head
A heavy tramping came over the paveC
streets, like the sound of the hoofs or /
thousand h rises striking down together
The gap cavalcade came on, and Gretcher
looked, shudderingly. How contd she
cheer and laugh, when she knew thai
conscript soldier?
Upon all the balconies, and upon thu
tops Of houses. and in All of the windows
and standing thick upon the pavements
were fair German women and from Their
patriotic lips cheers were heard for KING
| William and Bismarck, and groans tol
Napoleon. Upon each loyal breast wa
| fastened knot Of black and yellow rio
| bon.
The soldiers marching by, with their
| heavy tramp, were Blsmarck's soldiers
and they marched to brave nation al air
| Ten regiments of stalwart men-ten
thousand fathers, husbands, or lovers
And when the brave Twenty first went
| by, Gretchen shook the tears from her
eyes, and saw dimly the standard bearer,
| b, h.o Il
cap and his firm step and bearing proud
Louis-Louls /" she cried, ana held
out her white hands; but all the peopie
shouted, for Bismarck Came gaiopiDg
along the line. riding over i Carpet Of
! flowers that had been streWn thick ~ over
the streets.
And 80 the German regiments went
marching away, to hat spirited German
air and we have heard how they met III
deadly conflict other regiments, thai were
marching to other tunes, whose favCrits
was La MarseiIaise."
| The soldiers were gone, and the glory
Of the town was departed. The soldiers
were gone, and with them had gone Gret
chen's lover. Gretchen bowed her head
in mute despair, feeling quite sure that
/
Grctchen's father, laid his hand on the
girls hair, and stroking 1t softly, said:
cart wild, Gretchen girl, TO mourn thee
SO for a common soldier? Come, come
girl have news for thee. From over tbe
! water words of cheer have come. | am
TO take you out to Rommel."
mo, no, father. No! must wait until
| Louis comes home from the war"
He'll never come, girl. Those French
| fight like devils l tell you 50, vino should
know; Tor have stood faclag their bay
unets, and carry The marks OF thelE steel.
| To be sure, the first Napoleon was bet
ter general; but fancy France has ust
AS good soldiers now as then, anyhow.
have respect for their bravery. So you
need not look fo1 Louis back. | couidu't
give you to him, girl, and Rommel wait
| Ing all the years for yOu-even from the
time yon were babe in your cradle"
II don't love him, father. don't love
him. love only Louis, on, SO well! |
love my own brave Louis
Nonsense, girl, nonsense. Your head
ia turned with the trash you've been read
ing. Pity that you must take to such Idle
ways Your mother was quite contented
% sit at her work, never dreaming Of
such fellow az Goethe, with his Faust
and the devil, and his seductive sorrows
Of young Wether."
"Poor young Werther, and the beauti-
full Charlotte"
Poor hddlestick and an idle, worth
less fellow, who imagined him. Come,
Gretchen give over your dreaming In a
week, | tell you, we aall Tor America.
Rnmmel has waited long,&nd waited we'll.
! He has been an honest steward too. The
hundreds trusted him with, have multi
piled themselves into thousands - into
millions. Oh, it's beautiful rule.-com
pound interest And do you know, girl,
that away in the Western world, in a
great Western city, Rommel has houses
and lands, and gold The houses are not
huts, with th2tc he'd roofs of straw, that q
spark might change to smoke; bat stately
palaces, built Of iron, and stone. Palaces
bnilt to endure for centuries, like the
grand old Colissum,o st. Petcr's ct Rome
And he has one built to eclipse all of the
rest. It rises in stately grandeur, facing
beautiful lake. IL is palace fit for a
queen. Time cannot change it, and CEN
turtles hence it will bear its present name
carved in solid stone - Gretchen'S
home Oh Gretchen, have loved you
too well to permit you to mate with one
beneath you. There you are queen--here
q simple peasant. In that far Western
world, in that Western city, your old
father will see you among the best. And
1 know and he lifted the sweet face
up" that none in that new world are
| fairer."
You remember, child, when you sang
il the choir, that the Queen kissed you in
admiration of your beauty. So, Gretchen,
forget this boy soldier, and think only OF