The age-herald., 1897-08-15

the man she had chosen, and thanked the king for the message with great dig nity. Then the king came to her, and, sitting down by her, strol1ed her hair, saying softly:
 "You have had many lovers. Sister Osra, and now comes husband. !"
 aYes, now a husband, she murmur- ed, catching swiftly at his hand, and her voice was half caught in a sudden sob.
 "So goes the world-our world" said the king, knitting his brows and seeming to fall for a moment into a sad reyerie.
 'tI am frightened" she whispered. "Should l be frightened if loved him?"
 .'I have been told so, said the king, smiling again. "But the fear has way of being mastered then" And he drew her to him and gave her hearty broth CTS kiss, telling her to take heart. You'll thaw the fellow out, /" said the king, though I grant you he is icy enough" for the king himself had been by no means what he called an icy man
 But Osra was not satisfied and sought to assuage the pain of her heart by adorning herself most carefully for the princess coming, hoping to fire him to love, for she thought that if he loved sho might, although since he did not she could not. And surely he did not, or all the tales of love were false Thus she came to receive him very magnif- gently arrayed. There was a flush on her cheek and an uncertain, expectant, fearful look ill her eyes, and thus she stood before him as he fell on his knee and kissed her hand. Then he rose and declared his thanks and promised his devotion, but as he spoke the flush faded, and the light died from her eyes, and when at last he drew near to her and offered to kiss her cheek her eyes were dead and her face pale and cold as she suffered him to touch it. He was con- tent to touch it but once and seemed not to know how cold it was, and so, after more talk of his fathers pleasure and his pride, he took his leave, prom tsing to come again the next day. She ran to the window when the door was closed on bim, and thence watched him mount his horse and ride away slowly, with his head bent and his eyes down. cast, yet he was a noble gentleman, stately and handsome, kind and true. The tears came suddenly into her eyes and blurred her sight as she leaned watching from behind the hanging cur tains of the window Though she dash ed thom angrily away, they came again and ran down her pale, cold cheeks, mourning the golden vision that seem- ed gene without fulfllment.
 That evening there came gentleman from the Prince of Glottenberg, carry ing most humble excuses from his mas- ter, who, so he said, was prevented from waiting on the princess the next day by a very urgent affair that took him from 8trolsau and would keep him absent from the city all day long, and the gentleman delivered to Osra a letter from the prince. full of graceful and profound apologies, and pleading an en- gagemelt that his honor would not let him break, for nothing short of that, said he, should have kept him from her side. There followed some lover's phrases, scantily worded and frigid in an assumed passion But Osra smiled graciously and sent back message, readily accepting all that the prince urged in excuse, and she told what had passed to the king with her head high in the air and a careless haughtiness, so that even the king did not rally her nor yet venture to comfort her, but urged her to spend the day in riding with the queen and him, for they were setting out for Zenda, where the king was to hunt in the forest, and she could ride some part of the way with them and return in tho evening. And she, wishing that she had sent first to the prince to bid him not come, agreed to go with her brother. It was better far to go than to wait at home for lover who would not come.
 Thus the next morning they rode out, the king and queen with their retinue the princess attended by one of her guard, named Christian Hantz, who was greatly attached to her and most sJClipub HI PldibO uud htilliAi VI HUI This fellow had taken on himself to bo very angry with Prince Ludwig's cold ness, but dared say nothing of it, yet, impelled by his anger, he had set him self to watch the prince very closely, and thus he had, as he conceived, dis covered something that brought twin kle into his eye and triumphant smile to his lips as he rode behind the prin- cess. Some 15 miles she accompanied him and her brother, and then, turning with Christian, took another road back to the city Alone she rode, her mind full of sad thoughts, while Christian behind still wore his malicious smile But presently, although she had not commanded him, he quickened his pace and came up to her side, relying on the favor which she always showed him for excuse
 "Well. Christian" said she, "have you something to say to me?''
 For answer he pointed to a small house that stood among the trees some way from tho read, and he said:
 "If were Ludwig and not Chris tiaE, yet l N ouid be here where Chris