Saint Mary's beacon. [volume] (Leonard Town, Md.) 1867-1983, 1893-06-22
UP A cHIxk

Well, boys, what yoz s. Is true.
1t does seem a little sim II to mosi
people, presume, tha I've lived,
on an independent ine6 for six
ty years. without gett married.
But the fact is that once en-
gagged to be married Il Fery beau.
tiful girl, and on il eve of the
wedding / lost my or sunity up
a chimney. No, I'm III joking.
II you like, / viii tell JSk about il.
Gretelyon Wieland = 2hs dangh-
ter of old General g Wieland.
whose acquafnsance sd msas
while he was yice-consnl in Lon
don. ! afterward met him at In
terlaken, returning from q trip into
Italy for his daughters health and
amusement. The General owned
a fine estate at Wandersleben, ALT.
tie east Of Gotha, and weuld take
no refusal of his invitation to me
to 60 home with him, as had many
times spoken of doing. In fact 1
was very willing to 20, for thepros-
pect of spending a month in the
company of Gretel was one that
could not resist.
She was, think, the most beau
tiful creature / ever beheld. If /
could describe her to you, there
would be no need to relate how or
why l fell in love with her. The
moment that her deep, dark eyes
met mine that night on the piazza
of the hotel at Interlaken, / knew
that / had reached turning point
in my life; and although it was not
decreed in the book of fate that /
should ever possess her for my own,
| can refer to that one supreme mo-
ment the change in every feeling,
motive and ambition / ever had. l
have since met women whose amia.
bility pleased me, whose wit amused
me, whose beauty startled me, and
whose flattery deceived and cajoled
me, but l have never since met any
creature that aroused the strange
and indescribable fascination which
that first glance from Gretel Won
Wieland exerted over me. She was
one of those women that make men
mad.
l wont tire you with the history
of my infaturation and courtship.
| returned with Gretel and her IA
ther to their home, and my projec-
ted visit of one month was protrac-
ted into three. AT the end of that
time Gretel was my promised wife,
and had obtained the Generals s
consent that the wedding should
take place without delay, and that
| should take my bride with me on
my return to America.
My happiness, however, was not
entirely unalloyed. / presume you
are familiar with the region around
Gotha. If SO, you doubtless re-
member the three ruined castles of
the Gleichen.-"die drei Gleichen,
which stand upon the hills like
three grim sentinels guarding the
fertile fields and vineyards below
and around them. The Generals
estate was almost directly beneath
the Wandersleben Gleichen, and the
castle was a favorite objective point
for our sunset walks, and an object
of interest to the tourists and ar
lists who are constantly wandering
over Germany.
Among the latter. was q cousin of
Gretel, sort of aesthetic vagabond
from Frankfort, who appeared at
the Generals quite suddenly one
morning, smoking q huge meer-
schaum, and with his portfolio and
case of drawing materials under his
arm. The General introduced him
to me as Conrad Hartman, and
when the fellow had removed his
enormous slouch hat, saw that he
was rather handsome. Nevertheless
l thought that Gretel greeted him
quite too effusively, and | have since
suspected that she had written to
him to visit her, although he de-
declared himself to be merely upon a
sketching tour, and was going away
in day or two.
There was a good deal of this
gentleman. ! never saw a person
who seemed to be 30 ubiquitous.
From the moment of his entrance
into the family, it was impossible
for me to get rid of him. If
planned quiet excursion with Gre.
al h wos srra 80 h. l1f.