Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1876-07-26

less scamp" said /, for want of any
thing else or better tosay.
"They did; believe it was only too
true, replied Bounded, rather gloomily.
"She didn't care about him; sup
pose ?" asked.
"NO. How could she: He was a
brute, and the marriage was mere
political arrangement.
81 suppose these royal or semi-royal
marriages always are.'
He didn't answer directly. But he
sent up another pillar Of smoke, and
murmured, "Dead !-so young, and 90
beautifulv'
"You grow quite sentimental about
the grand duchess. Did you know her ?''
81 never saw her, as you have said,
for 20 years.
"Then why are you so greatly con-
cerned about her death?"
"well, you see, her memory belongs
to the old time, when we were young; ;
and can see her face now before me,
sad and beautiful. / know she was
very unhappy. remember hearing a
story-I don't know whether it's worth
telling, though
"By all means. Go ahead. shall
be delighted to hear it,"
said this because Roundell spoke in
that half-eager, half-apologetic tone
which shows that a man wants to tell
you something, but is afraid you will
not care to listen to it.
at isn't much. There was a fellow
l knew at the time we were in Liebe-
sheim-an English fellow. 1 don't
think you knew him. He was study
ing something or other there, and he
liked to read in the mornings. He used
to get up with the lark and stroll out
into the park. You remember the park
pretty, wasn't it? And he found out
a quiet place where hardly any people
ever went even in the day, and he used
to read there. 1 remember the spot,
every stone and leaf of 1.-THE showed it
to me-and used to lounge there some
times after he had gone. 1t was little
bit Of clearing in rather a thick part
of the wood, and there was little
stream there. used to spout Goethe's
poem to the Bachlein there"
"Tou used to spout, or the fellow..you
are telling me of?''
"Oh, used to-when he had gone,
you know. Perhaps he used to spout
it too; it doesn't matter. There were a
couple of statues there, a nymph and a
faun-that sort of thing-all grown
over with moss. Well, sir, one lovely
summer morning, when this fellow was
reading there, declaiming out loud
he had a great fashion of doing that"
$50 had you, remember"
"Had /, really? Oh no, think not;
anyhow, he had. Well, he was de-
claiming something from Schiller, when
suddenly he heard an unmistakable
laugh-a very pleasant. musical laugh
and looking up, he saw"
ga girl, of course"
wrong, for once. He saw two
girls"
"All the same. l knew We should
get to some girl or girls before long"
"Nice girls, too, and very beautiful;
quietly dressed; citizens daughters
that sort Of thing. Got into talk with
this fellow. Were as friendly and
sweet and modest as dear little German
girls only can be, or used to be in those
days. The fellow talked good deal,
too. They were interested in England
and his studies, and so on. One of
them had lovely eyes. Went away, of
course. Fellow went there next MORN
ing"
"They came again"
"Wrong sir; they didn't. He was
sorry. But they came the morning
after"
"Oh, confound it, that all comes to
the same thing. They, came, anyhow"
"They did. Acquaintance grew and
grew. They would sit on the grass and
talk for an hour at time-they three"
"Always three?"
"Always-at first"
Thought so."
"Like good fellow, let me get on
my own way. Or you tell me the story
If you know all about it."
swell. almost think l could. The
regular sort Of thing, / suppose-the
fellow you know fell in love with the
girl who had the eyes. and for some
reason or other she couldn't marry him
and they were miserable, or she did
marry him, and they were happy.
Can't be anything else. Did marry or
didn't marry, there's the only differ
ence."
Roundell laughed rather gloomy
sort of laugh. ''In this case it was
dikn t marry" he said; "but we may
as well go regularly through with the
story, as we have begun it. Its not
quite so commonplace as you suppose.
Well, these girls came very regularly
in the mornings, and sometimes they |
even arranged to meet the fellow of
evenings-on rare occasions, though. |
Once there was sort of saturnalian |
masquerade in the open air in the gar
dens of the old Sehloss, and the girls
gave the fellow hint that they were
to be there. and how they were to be
dressed, and he found them out. She
was dressed like Swiss peasant girl
bodice and sleeves, short skirts, you
KNOW"
"Yes-silver spoon i'm the hair, lib
eral display of ankles. Go on"
MY friend looked grim at my levity,
and felt bound to excuse myself by
saving that as didn't personally know |
the fellow who was the hero of this
romance, might be forgiven If spoke |
too lightly of his idols ankles.
Roundell went on: sit was the
queerest sort of thing, the meeting Of
these three-the three always, until
lust the end. There really wasn't any
-. ..,olyfpr ~ =, M rfieular alfh0uOh the |