Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1892-05-31
AlsTTCR Faou GERMANY,

~ Y
Thinking the readers Of the Democrat
might be Interested In another Walt
across the waters, and being urged by
my over-seaious friends to continue 10
tell them through your valuable paper
what sec asd Aear, venture Ia send .
few extracts from private letter dated
Berlin, Germany, from my cousin, Susie
Marion Gehring, . daughter OF Dr. N. Il.
True. have previously cent you let-
ter from her mother and one from her
husband, and now will send extracts
from the Daughter. wife aud magazine
correspondent. She says:
81 will tell you what one afternoon
nut Into my life. We went 10 an old,
old buiidlng called Mon BUou,' once
home Of royalty, now repository Tor
the hou-. Of llohcnfollcrn, tor relies ut
the dead kings and queens. There IL
something belonging To each one, from
the Great Eiector,' down to the gallant
Young KAISER Of to-day. This Mon
bijou IL q long. irregular, one-story
building, stretching out Into unexpected
wings aud angles, enclosing courtyards
Of ,elvety grass and old trccs' Tor u h
situated In the midst OF an enchanting
old time garden. and this priceless and
IL In the very heart Of thl. great crowded
city. You can fancy the contrast, In
slipping from the busy street, through
great gates, Into the sweet scclusicn aud
far-away.ne.s dream of the past.
away back Into the life Of the
sturdy, be-wiggcd, bcruiiied Great
Elector' We fret found ourselves carried.
Ills Majesty, dressed In the costume OF
his times, received us with sfis.i dignity,
setting Ia an immense glass case. The
room Was very heavily paneled, and
bcsme,i. and wainscotied, In exact re-
production of the very room In which
this august gentleman saw the light, and
probably greeted life With AZ much fam-
ily disturbance as less regal babies do.
Iiis immense bcots, swords and battle
equipments are preserved, aud q doughty
old warrior he looked to have been. ]
will not take YOU through course of
object lessons In German history, but
take up here and there the mos, striking
bit. of the past. ] have carefully read
both Carlyle. and Mscaulsy's estimates
Of the character Of rrcicric the Great,
With great interest, 90 when ] came Into
his suite IL room. and followed him
from Q little waxen child ciilgy, With a
plt.ous look on the baby face, submcrg-
ed under an Immense hat; through hi.
baby dress stage; by the fret boy suit
h. wore among early lesson books aud
letter. To al. manhood; when the hl.-
torical cane. were before me, aud the
beloved flutes, and the queer. coiiiny,
narrow grand plano, around whose
time-dlmmcd. polished sides the famous
musicale. were assembled, where even
the wax candle. u.ei AZ these psrtle.
wer, preserved land Immense ones they
were) felt the psge 81 Rad history, sud
denly becoming illustrated by history ~
seen through Wide open eyes. ILL
fayoriie horse. .Condl, stands In a great
glas. case. There must have been un'
seen cool qualities In that bcast-char'
actsr, for outward charm. we're denicl
him; and unle.. hls stump % q tall BE-.
came emaclaied from triumphant -four
Ishlngs over victorious battlefield
through which he bore hls lllustriou,
master. unlcs. as say there we're SONS
exceptional ssordi quslltle. Ia that AMI
nal, then Frederic "a, 10 Aor.,mda'
There we're beautiful swords hl
hand. had held; letter. In hl. handwrit
Ing. worn books which we're c,ldentl,
fa,oriie.; whole case ~ exquisite
.nuf.bole. for hi imperial 'cur,c'
no.e, aud evidences 81 hi. vanity. an,
sign. 10 q disposition In the 'curl -
per- carefully preserved. and n brokei
cup which the kingly hand dashed upoI
the door because IL. contents were to-
hot. There were mocklngly fatterlns
letter. from Noltzirc, the Ink a. black Al
though written yesterday, and just abo,'
, the.e framed French letter. Was
portrait. bust, Of the French Cynlc him
self, with q perfectly ardonic smil'
upon Ill. hateful face. II brought Ia IA!
mind q very clearly drawn picture 81
cat once given me In Boston, by q frien'
a. whom had remarked In conversation
that nothing .o elevated the srTo,s'ioH %
, face, az the Consciousness. % Tsrfscfi
iccosgiisA,d i,ol; so In Illustration, b.
sent me picture ~ cat sitting up
. right, with the most satisfied smile cur,
Ing u. mouth up to the eyes; and under
Meath VA. written th. cause ~ this ca
ecstasy In these words: 'Tye eaten th'
canary volislr, looked exactly liz,
, thl. cat picture; and indeed be did de
, YOUR Frederic. friendship, and then In
suited him In every .ly and false VA!
possible.
"By-and.by We found ourselves In
silent little room where the .pring suB
, shine came In golden feck. ~ ligiI
, through the tiny dlamond-psned win
dows, and fell upon the polished door
rested lightly upon the very chair u
. which the great hero died, aud theI
lighted up q rosewood aud glass case II
, which, enclrvled by wreath of laurel
lay the death mask, taken In wax
of fr-ieric the Great. We stood n
rc,crcntly AZ In On. rial presence a
death, and noticed how II had moulde,
from the dropping lips Of life all tn
cynical and bitter curses; aud In settini
the seal upon the brow. had first smooth
ed away every knitted line % care, an'
left upon the imperious face a noble en-
preston Of courageous peace. For tn
first time he WAS really the Great Ia the
As We stood silently before the face
suddenly the chime. % the old cour
, church, beneath which he I. buried. -
, gan playing, aud ne Ne left the roon
with heart. deeply touched with tn
, thought, that all the vanity and cynl
; cl.m. aud har.hne.s % hi. life l,y "a
. behind him, the Ginning bells SCENE,
. harbingers, a message % hope, for th.
Infinite possibllitie. of the human soul
launched upon the boundless sea %
Gods universe.
Passing an open door. We saw
nower-aesped coffin being borne frou
the doorway 81 the lovely Engll.l
church which also stands In the Mot
. Bijou garden, followed by q yelled lad,
aud two falr-halred little girls, "a sol'
. mourners. We learned Il was the fu
neral OF the English reporter for tn
London Times, who had dropped dead IL
. his home q fee days before. They had
only been here two months, aud 80 wer'
walking beside q strange new grief, In 4
strange land. Hut ] was glad Ia se'
friends gathering around them, aud tha
even the little lads ceased their game
aud stood with lifted caps aud bowo
heads as the little procession left tn
lovely old garden, for the dreariness oI
crowded Berlin cemetery.
doctor aud witnessed q burial
Easter afternoon, and although custom'
differ grief has the same plteous face thu
world over. This was beloved mother
who was lowered Into the grave, bidder
from sight by the flowers which love had
lAvished. The strange foreign cofiln
larger aud higher than ours, Was upheld
BY broad white linen hands, when IL va,
lowered, and the minister, In a quaint
cap and gown, stood nc the foot Of the
grave and received from the sexton 4