Litchfield enquirer., 1873-05-08

Grand Duke knew we'll enough, and if she l once broke loose from the social bonds | that had hitherto restrained him, there was no saying how far Bohemia might en- croaeh upon other territory. :. 2 --a . Again, there was g mystery about the man, which trouDled his royal master;- he had sprung from the earth like the an cient Greeks, for all any one knew to the contrary; he owned that his name had 1 been assumed because of certain music al sound he found in it, but what he was really called, Whence he came, and tc what nationality he belonged. he had nev. CT said. In spite, therefore, of his per sonal fascinations and his extraordinary | gifts, the Grand Duke felt a. little afraid of him.
 Having in vain tried various expedients to tame this perplexing creature, he al last hit upon one which he ffattered him self was sure to succeed, So enc day, when the two young Princesses, Irma the l Melancholy and Feodora the Mischievous, as they were familiarly called by the loyal l Poppenheimers, had finished their music lessons-Irma in tears at her masters ren. 1 dering of a certain piece of Schubert, Fe- odora falling behind their attendant gov erness to make her scream by putting 2 pet kitten on her neck-Ogliostro was summoned to his sovereign's presence.
 My good Her Direktor" (this was the way in which the Court always addressed him), ''I have something very important to say, and trust that 1t will not prove | of a painful nature" As if anything { friendly Grand Duke might say could possibly prove of disagreeable nature The Maestro merely bowed and smiled. The Prince went on:
 "When a man gets to be your age, my good Herr Direktor, and especially whel he attaches himself to Court like my own, which, without tself-exaltation, may style the throne of purity and the domes tic affections it is his wisest course-in deed, it is his clear duty-to marry" The musician had long expected some thing of the sort, and met the Dukes scrutinizing look with the same assentine bow and smile as before
 Marriage, "pursued the Prince, eff il can be said to do nothing else, makes 6 man respectable member of society. Ii may make him the happiest of men-ol the reverse-but at least 1t achieves the end of making him respectable. I believe the Herr Direktor cannot deny the trutl of this assertion ?'
 Again bow and a smile were Oglios. tro's only answer.
 "And in choosing a wife," the Duke went on, "a mans first duty is not to se' lect the youngest or the fairest, or the most charming woman of his acquaint- ance, but the one who, by virtue of soclal position, age, and character, most effect ually makes him respectable, settles him in life, in fact, and-forgive me for the personal allusion-when he IS genius, corrects those cratic tendencies which are among it's most marked, it most pleas ing, but, alas it's most dangerous char. acteristics ]"
 The musician knew what was coming next, but did not hetray his feelings, and the Duke went on briskly:
 s'Among the ladies who have the honor of the Grand Duchess's acquaintance there is none more distinguished for solidity o1 mind ,and those charms of character which are not less valuable because they do not lie on the surface, than the Fraulein Kambell- Descended on her mothers side from good Scotch fam fly, possessed of an ample fortune, accus toned to the best society from her infan cy, it is an alliance, my good Herr Direk- tor, which would do any man credit The lady is certainly some years your senior but what an advantage to child of fancy experience and practical turn of mind whereas, young and visionary wife ! would undoubtedly be your ruin. This was sly allusion to lady whose name will transpire later. The Prince added with benignant smile, ''In toke1 of my apgroval of this match, I shal have great satisfaction in bestowing upor you the title of Ton, also of adding to to your salary hundred Prusian thaiers l year, and of presenting to you for you lifetime the little villa which you now dt me the honor to inhabit.
 The Grand Duke was always as generou! to artists as his moderate income would allow, but in this case he felt that he haG even stretched a point, and looked fol suitable acknowledgment. The musi cians thanks were, however, lukewarm and given ill thin voice.
 ''There is no necessity to make 8 promp decision" he added, kindly batting tht crestfallen Ogliostro on the shoulder "We will talk over the matter agair when next you give the young Princesse: I Cnelf muSlc-teSSOn.
 Thus the interview ended and the Macs I tro at least fiattered himself that he haG preserved strict neutrality. But he felt wretched. His sovereign was not indeed Louis Quartorze who could send him tc Bastile for disobeying his wishes, anC i if he positively refused to marry this odi ous woman,-for in such Ogliostro re garded the lady,-there would be an enc of the matter But to contradict a per- son of exalted rank is always unpleasant especially when he has been almost father ly in his benevolence and protection, & was the case with Oghostro's s Grand Duke And to be subjected to the same sort O interference again, was equally disagreea ble to contemplate. @
 Two alternatives seemed open to him either to please the Grand Duke ant make himself miserable ever after by mar rying the Frau1ein, or to choose wife ac cording to his own fancy, and bear th' conseduences. But the only wife h. wished for was some thousands of mile away just then, and, truth to say, thougl very much in love, he would have prefer red to wait little longer before becom ing, as the Duke expressed it, a respecta ble member of society.
 Two or three days passed in state 0 miserable indecision, and when at last tn, time came round for his appearance at tn Palace, he felt further from making a re solve than before. In despair he shu himself up in his room, and sent mes senger to the Princesses' governess to sa. that he was i'll and could not give thei Royal Highnesses their music-lessons a usual. All kinds of cordial inquiries cam from the Palace. with presents of flowers fruit, and dainties from the Ducal tabl to tempt the invalid's appetite. Sucl self-imposed seclusion was by 10 mean unpleasant, for the Maestro's days wer always too short for his friends and hi fancies; and it was as new as 1t was de licious to him to him to have the entir twenty-four hours to himself. He com posed from morning till night, ate, dranl his Rhine-wine and smoked his cigars and when every one else had gone to bed stole out for long moonlight walk in tn park When his so-called indispositio had lasted several days, there appeare' in the little morning paper which chroni cled all the events of Poppenheim the fol