The Corvallis gazette. [volume] (Corvallis, Or.) 1862-1899, 1880-10-22
cHARLEMAeNEs DAUGHTER.

| Have you ever been in Germany? II
not would recommend you to lose no
| time in visiting very peculiar and to
me, q very interesting country. Accom-
pany me up the Main to the village OF
! Selingenstadt (the Abode of Bliss)
about Dozen miles from Frankfort.
The village is delightfully."- situated,
close by the bank of the river. It has a
| large forest in its rear, AID large out
skirt of the Spessart-a fine champaign
before it on the opposite bank. High
| above the pretty houses which compose
this little place stands the "Red Tower,
an edifce well-known to the lovers of ro-
nance.
The best house in the village is the
Auberge, over which, some years ago, a
host presided, whose capacious size and
rotund figure involuntarily reminded one
of the Great Tun of Heidlesburg. The
Herr Won Cothen was genuine German
his meerschaum seldom left his lips,
| except when the wine-cup, an hereditary
goblet of massy silver, won at a drink
ing bout by one of his ancestors, was
raised to them. The man seemed to live
known to be what is called disguised in
thy of clay as himself required moisture,
and he took good care to moisten it.
It was my fortune to know him for the
space of three months, and can safely
say that, with one exception, I never
knew him Venture on any deviation from
his trinity of practices, the aforenamed
drinking, smoking and sleeping.
We had spent pleasant day in what
was the Spessart forest, and were re-
turning home when the Red Tower met
our view. We were weary and threw
ourselves on the mossy bank beneath the
shade of mighty tree, where, in few
moments, both of us fell asleep. was
awakened by the voice of my companion
I kept silence while the redoubted Herr
Won Cothen dilated loudly and. long on
the delights of the feudal days, when the
lord had power of life and death within
his territorial limits over his vassals. He
spoke well for German host, and the
novelty of his speaking was yet more.
True, there was not very lucid order
in his conversation, but this could easily
be pardoned in one to whom language
had almost fallen into disuse. Won
Cothen lay on the ground at listless
length, while telling tale somewhat to
the following effect:
peror Nero (no relative of him of Rome)
who came, after the manner of the times,
to celebrate his Christmas holidays at
Frankfort. He was devotedly fond of
the chase, and held nearly an equal
affection for his daughter, maiden over
whom some seventeen summers had
lightly flown. She was, indeed, if there
be truth in Legendary report, a very de-
igbtful, beautiful and inno:ent creature.
But her physical charms were even
less than the rare purity of her mind,
the soft and gentle character of her feel
ings. Born in o cottage, she would have
chsered the peasants lot; brought up
amid the magnihcence of an imperial
court, she won tho envy of one sex and
the earnest admiration of the other.
Such beauty of person and goodness of
heart could not remain unknown; and,
being an only child, many of the princes
Of the empire put in their claim for her
hand. But the lady's heart was pre-
engaged, and she paid little attention to
the compliments of her many royal
wooers.
Clorinda, thus she was called, had set
her affections on one far. beneath her
in rank Like
The kings daughter of Hongarie,
Who loved a squire of low degree.
The daughter of the Emperor Nero
had given her hearts first love to q
young man, one of her fathers hunts
men.
It is impossible to say how the secret
was discovered, but certain it was that
the princess was placed in close confne-
ment, and her lover would have been
summarily and severely dealt with, but
he had taken fight, and pursuit was use
less, no one knowing In what direction
he had fed. To do the young man JUS
tice, he had anticipated the discovery of
a secret dear to him as his life, and takan
steps accordingly. Deep in the hidden
haunts of the Spessart he had found a
ave--probably the former residence Of
some religious ascetic-and he had made
| the best provision in his power for that
| decisive step which, love whispered, the
! princess would not refuse to take, for his
sake and her own. While she, in tears,
sat in the solitude Of her chamber, her
Ludof was busy in making preparations
| for her rescue.
Whenever princessss fall in love with
their fathers huntsmen it is customary
for royalty to be utterly appalled,. Ac-
cordingly, the Emperor was in most
! magnificent passion, and gave strict or
ucIS Lldb tuO pEluC0b6 buOulu U6 COuuu6u
| to her own chamber. The next morn
ing. however, he made the discovery
| just a few hours too late-that the bird
had fown-like Love,
He ened the window and new away.
Tho poor old Emperor pined after
her SO bitterly that not an unmarried
lady of the court but would have been
| willing to console him, had he offered
her his hand. But, much to the disap-
pointment of their philanthropic inten-
tions, Els Majesty did not see how he
could atone for the loss of daughter by
taking wife.
The princess and her Ludolf (who
had assisted her out of her confinement
lived as happily s'benath the greenwood
tree, as if there had never been such
things as courts and kings, emperors
and principalities. They loved one
another earnestly and we'll, and (but
this was long ago) had no wish to return
to the crowds Of society. Even if they
had, there would have been no safety in
attempting it, for how could either hope
for forgiveness? Meanwhile, the loss of
his daughter had fallen heavily; on the
Emperor. She was the sole living thing
to which his hopes had long been linked,
and all the father and the man were
shaken by the uncertainty of her fate
and her absence from those places over