The Marietta journal. [volume] (Marietta, Ga.) 1866-1909, 1872-11-29
CHE Marietta guurnal.
Marietta, Georgia, November 30, 1872
ELISE'S VANITY.
The Story of the Miller's Daughter.

said, is of the same age as the sex
itself. A clever writer, in defend
ing this trait of the feminine char
acter, has said that it constitutes its
greatest charm; that, without it,
the sex would lose half its attrac~
ton and in support of this theory
there is the old quaint story of the
German maiden-a history which is
so tender and pretty, that it is worth
rescuing from the forgotten legends
of e Fatherland.
A maiden lived on the banks of
the Rhine with her father, the mill
or. Now, the maiden, whose name
was Elise, was not pretty, and she
was cross and fretful for she grieved
for her own lack of beauty, and
thought thai ne one would ever care
for her on account of the few graces
Nature had given to her SO she did
not even try to please, and yet her
heart was very large and kindly
She spent half of her time in front
of her looking glass, lameuting her
plainness, and thinking how impos-
sible it was that Carl would ever
learn to love her, while Gretchen,
who was SO fair and pretty that she
was called "The Daughter of
Spring." dwelt near her. Elise was
not loved, for she never tried to gain
love. She always fancied that it
would be in vain to endeavor to
please, in vain to be kind and
thoughtful and loving. When Ma
ture had so sighted her, who could
care for her, or think of her, or be
interested in herr "Ah!" she sigh
ed one day, 'ifI could have but
Gretchen's beauty, | should be the
happiest girl in the Fatherland, for
then | should not fear any rival and
Carl, sunny-haired Carl, might love
me-"
But Carl never came near her
now, and only thought of her as cross
and fretful Elise, and wished
Gretchen had had, tess vanity with
her pretty face, and rather ~fsrgers
heart in her slim body.
One day-it was in the time of
the vintage--Elise went down to the
Rhine to bring in waterA and, as she
dipped her pail in the clear rippies,
she saw her own face SELECTED, and
turned away, wretched and discon-
tented. She Shutdown on a rocky
stone, and watched the sunlight
playing on the castle-crowged hills,
and listened to the far off song of the
workers in the vineyards; and she
thought of Carl, who was there, and
of Gretchen, who was there Also
"Ah me-" she sighed, WHAT a gift
is beauty !"
elise" said a voice; and, look
ing up, she saw an old woman, a very.
old, detormed woman, standing near
to her. -GElise," she said, 81 will
tell you the secret of beauty, and
you shall obtain all that you long for
SO much. Go home, and never lock
in a glass, never see the reflection of
your own face in the water, never
once again gaze on your own fea
lures, and you will grow pretty-so
pretty that all will wonder at the
change; and Carl-Carl will learn
to love YOU"
"Ah, will never see my face
again as long as | live-never, new
er!" said Elise. "But are you sure,
quite sure 2"
"Quite sure" replied the dame
"but remember, if you once see your
own face, your ugliness will return.
Now go home, and be light of heart ;
and every day more love will hover
round you"
'But how shall | know it is true,
if l may not see my face ?" asked
Elise.
"Can you not tell by the altered
manner of those around you?" ask
ed the dame.
"Oh, yes" said Elise chow |
will watch them y
Elise went home with new and
strange happiness at her heart,
happiness that changed her nature,
and influenced every day OF her
life, and made her amiable, and soft,
and loving, and kind, and consider
ate, and anxious to please, and
ready to serve and help others.
Presently people began to remark
the alteration inthe mIller's daugh-
ter, and tell her how different she was
from formerly, and the maidens
sought her out and talked TO her
about their lovers, and the youths
declared that Elise, the miller's
daughter, was the incest girl that
side of the Rhine, and Carl learned
to think how different she was from
Gretchen, and he learnt to love her,
and through the Fatherland there
was not SO happy girl as Elise
And all this time she never once saw
her own face, but turned away her
head when she dipped her pals IN
the stream, and through all the mill
er's house there was not to be found
looking glass. She lopged lab,
how much y to zee herself in
her new garb of beauty; but she
remembered the old woman's warn