The Warner sun. (Warner, Brown Co., Dakota [S.D.]) 1885-1???, 1886-03-26

promise now?
AS looked at her she took off her
spectacles and closed her pr~ayer-book,
and slipping down from my throne in
the window, | sat myself on a stool
at her feet.
Granny" l said coaxingly, could
not you tell me your friends story
now? You know you promised, and
it is Just the right day for it. They
won't be back for a couple OF hours
vet, what with the service first, and
then the wedding, and a long sermon,
and all the congratulations so we
have plenty Of time"
Just then we caught the sound OF
distant chuIch-bel by which we
knew that the bridal procession must
be getting near the chapel.
"Ah, child" said my grandmother,
lit was q beautiful time when we two
were young, Lorchen and !; you neve
saw such a little wild thing as she a
They called her the bird, because she
was so quick and graceful, and had
such bright eyes in her pretty little
head. There was not q prettler girl
far or near, and there was something
about her so different from other girls,
that one could hardly take ones eyes
off her; she was so dainty and so dis
tingue.
"And Lorchen herself was so we'll
aware CT the fact, that she was a per-
feet little despot. All the men old
and young, did her homage, and many
o one did his best to catch and keep
the little bird. But this was not so
easy, for Lorchen was obstinate, and
her greatest delight was to tease and
torment her admirers whenever she
had the opportunity. l often used
to scold her for it; for, being her most
intimate friend, | acted as Confessor,
and she always honestly told me her
misdeeds. Sometimes, we got really
angry with one another aftera ball DR.
picnic, when her list ofconfessions was
unusually long. But where was the
use? She knew that | could not help
'forgiving' her, as she said, directly she
asked me, little fondling puss that she
was; and she knew, too, that all young
men she had fooled and tormented
would be at her feet again directly.
You know that song:
II know a maiden fair to see.
Take carei
She IAN both false and friendly be!
"And it goes on:
She has two eyes so soft and brown.
Take care!
She gives q side glance and looks down..
Take care!
Trust her not, she's fooling thee!
"Well, child, that was Lore all over;
just as if it had been written for her.
But you mustn't think badly of her,
for all that. She was a dear, sweet
little thing; and in spite of all her fol-
lies, she had a good, honest'heart. AS
/ said, she was universally admired;
and so it seemed strange that young
Dernau, the merchant, who was a
next-door neighbor of hers, should be
so stiff and cold, and take no notice
at all of her. Sometimes Invited
her with the fact that he had never
n danced with her, and was quite
insensible to her charms. That al
ways made her angry, and she would
pout her rosy lips and say:
"'I'm sure / don't want him, Chris
tel; he's a bear?'
"Well, you know, bad times came
for poor Germany. The French ON
quered us, and the King and our beau
tiful Queen Louisa had to fly with
their children; and it seemed as il we
should all become French subjects.
1t vas a bad time for us In our little
town, for the authorities favored the
enemy, and we were disturbed by
sounds of fighting all round us. All, it
u a torpIhlxy co ~ for a III rnCnnuTt ~ rvo q
at an end, and we spent our days in
misery and anxiety. Poor Lorchen
had, too, a special trouble of her own,
for accounts of the wild doings Of the
French reached us from all sides, and
it was said that they had q very
rough-and-ready way OF counting, for
if a German girl took their fancy they
just sent their soldiers to carry her of,
andthen took her away with them to
the war. We were constantly hearing of
deeds of violence and robbery, and the
laws, being administered either by the
French or their adherents afforded as
no eedress or protection whatever.
What could we do2 People hid their
valuables as far as they could in hol.
low trees, behind walls, or in the
ground, and whenever any Frenchmen
We're known to be in the neighborhood
they hid their wives and daughters as
well. Poor Lorchen had the hardest
time Of all, for her mother was so
nervous that she was always seeing
danger, and she insisted on the poor
girls spending the greater part OF the
day down in the cellar, and many an
afternoon ! spent there, too, keeping
her company.
"Look, said /, on one Of these oc-
casions, you can see straight into
Neighbor Dernau's garden, through
this little window.
"But Lorchen blushed and turned