Daily globe., 1883-05-14

|
come and certain privileges on aecoMnt
of his lonely position.
For it was lonely, high up in the
moorlands where the air is always I'M
pregnated with snow, the vegetation
stunted and overgrowR with lichen and
hardy MOSES, which are swept nine
months in the year by wintry blasts
Far above the line Of fowery meads or
thriving corn fields this dreary home of
| cold weather harbored only stunted trees.
starved sedges, or hardy iehen. His
nearest neighbors would be five hours
| distant, M a small mining town. and the
weather is seldom propitious for much
intercourse.
"Wll Kathleen be happy there?"
was his only thought; as for himself
he thrilled with life and delight at the
prospect OF so lonely position with her
He stretched himself up to his fuH
sturdy height and kissed the letter which
brought him prospects Of so great hap
plness. With his broHzed cheeks. his
deep, piercing blue eyes, Swallowed by
overhanglng brows which gave to his
face a grave expression, Fntz Linden
was q tlne-looklHg man, and one not to
be easily swerved from his steady pur-
pose.
Full of eager Joy for himself and hesi-
tatlhg consideration for Kathleen, he
opened the other letter, and, as his eyes
flew over its pages, his mouth set and
has face grew hard and ashy pale. When
he had come to the end he crushed the
letter savagely in his hand, and, lifting
! his ugar-loaf-shaped green huntsman's
hat from off brow whose fairness con-
trasted strangely With the bronzed cheek
| beneath, he muttered to himself some
solemn VOW, and, throwing the letter far
from him, he groveled on the earth in
q passionate outburst of tears.
The letter that changed the whole
currant of Fritz's being, ran thus
My BELOVED soN: Eaers shall I find wsrds
to break SO grievoas news to yoa, for the grief
Is yours, poor boy, as well as mine Our
Kathleen is ours 10 longer. Yesterday she
disappeared with the young Herr Won bona.
All [ can learn is that he has been seen much
with her lately in the woods, and they were
recognized at the L station together. So
it all ends. To have deceived, not only her
dotiug eld father, but also her afii2nced hus-
baIss, shows lack of feeling and honor which
l c!s1 never forgive, no more thaa you can, my
poor Fritz so We must neither ATTEMPT to fol-
IL
10 us, and honeefofth 1 have only you, my
dearly loved son, to lean upon. Come to nae
when you can leave, for the blow is mortal, and
l feel have not long TO tOtter under it's crush
nag weight. We can bFs ezievs together, SO
oo;ae to your affectietlate uncle,
Hans BeHRENs.
So there Was quiet meeting Of the
two men struck by tie same blow the
enc being so nnch nearer his grave by
it, the other having formed through it a
grave for his pride and hopes and youth.
Fritz accepted the Government position:
for what place could be too isolated, too
lonely for him now? He craved some
savage spot wherein to hide his grief,
where he could pass the rest of his days
far from @ world he had always found so
treacherous.
"Fritz," old Rams had said in parting
with bis nephew, "h she ever GRO aos
your path in the future, when am daad
and gone, deal kindly with her for my
sake, if you cannot for your OWE. And
now farewell, and may we know resig-
nation, If happiness is denied us, my
son."
"Amen!" Fritz answered. solenpig.
as he gave his uncle The desiEed promise.
From that day forth Fritz Linden Lal
lived in the lonely torester's lodge, and
since that day there has passed n;ue
long, uneventEll years. Old Tau;
Behrens had died before the FIRST olus
was out, and Fritz was left without ii
friend in the world. He did his duty
scrupulously and conscientiously, and
was respected and feared by his depend
ents but no one came nearer the lonely
man during all those long years. rs
charities were inexhaustible, and he was
kind and even sympathetic if any one
was sick or IN trouble, but he was none
the less unapproachable and cold, never
relaxing in his stern demeanor, nor had
his grief grown less by brooding over it
as the weary years passed slowly away.
One day sped with him like another.
A frugal breakfast at daylight, and a4
equally frugal repast at night, after
which he read and studied until 10, then
went to bed. There were almost never
any visitors to the isolated Forsthaus,
and MS visits to the nearest town were
too rare and too brief to encourage So
ciability with his neighbors there.
The beginning of the winter IS saw
the snow set in earlier and more storm
ily than usual, and, after steady fal!
for ten days, it lay SO high upon the
ground that the oaly way out of the
house was by its roof. This was not un-
usual, and, after it had hardened over,
the tAmates tanned out to their several
VACATIONS as though they challenged so
slight a thing to iHcomnlode thell.
One night it began to snow again, and
the wind howled and beat against the
house as though it would wrench it
from the frm-set champs apd chains.
and level it at one gust. Fritz had been
belated at work with some of his men
that night, and as they we're fighting
their way slowly and painfully through
the storm and darkness he had suddenly
stumbled against crouching object half
RQried in the snow, which, when extri-
Gated, proved to be woman clutching
child in her arms, and to all appear
ances dead.
The men hastily Anprovised a litter
out of one OF their wraps, and shortly
afterward they we're standing in the dark
passage of the Forsthaus, and Fritz was
giving directions to his female servants,
commanding that warm room and bed
be made ready and all restoratives nv,