The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1897-06-02

.
| said:
Don't you tink you proceed?"
"Pm astonished at myself" sai'
Alexander.
Herr Schwalb nodded blandly iron
his chair in the corner.
"Ah, / told you my womanlines
was notting," said Hedwig with tri
umphant air.
Alexander looked at the sweet, mod
est figure in the shabby brown dress
at the round face, flushed with TIN
July heat and with her pedagogic ex
ertions on his behalf.
Her womanliness nothing! Well
poor little girl!
He asked if she had ever been Il
Hampton court. No? Would sh'
like to go? Hedwig's eyes spoke
Would Herr Schwalb trust Alexande
to take her down on the MONDAY
coach and bring her back by six in th'
evening? Allerdings. Which mean
she might go.
But how long would the franleir
take TO get dressed?
Hedwig laughed, ran across the pas
sage, and i'm five minutes reappeared
having pinned a lace collar on th'
brown dress, loosened the tight ball o
shining hair and mounted a fresh littl,
hat, like her hat, like her face, on,
nest of roses.
Oh, fairy day, happy, happy hours!
The very sight of the great gates ant
great trees set Hedwig's heart dancing
and then the flaming flower beds and
cool alleys and emerald grass and dia
mond fountains made her cry, Zach
heavensly, heavenslyp' again and
again. And Alexander conducted hel
through the rooms and courts of the
famous old palace, and Hedwig chat
tered of Cardinal Wolsey as if he had
been her uncle and of Henry VIII. a:
if he had been her grandfather, and
the next thing was TO order tea in q
queer little shop parlor looking on the
park, and while they were at tea q
beautiful tame deer with sad eyes came
to the window and asked to be fed.
.'Take care" said Alexander, as
Hedwig leaned forward to touch the
creatures head. He caught her by the
hand and pulled her back.
"Hirsch-we call the animal so,h
said Hedwig, standing meekly by his
side. "How do you call him at all?"
"Deer, fraulein," said Alexander.
He had forgotten to let go of her
hand, and he spoke very gently, and
any ignorant intruder, hearing what
he said, seeing how close the simple,
pretty little Rhine maiden and the
woman hater stood together in the al
cove of the parlor window, might have
fancied- But it was time to go home.
OF course Alexander saw Hedwig
safe to the door of May street.
81 can tank you never" she said
earnestly. ''Gute nacht."
''Gute nacht, fraulein; CUTE nacht. F"
Turning away, he ran against an ac-
quaintance-Jones.
Jones surveyed him with a twink
ling eye.
Changed your views?'
"Don't understand"
81 thought, according to you, the
best woman that ever breathed was
only to be tolerated. You seemed a
trifie Oyerfiowing with liberation just
now. Neat little article. Made in
Germany. Hello, no offense, old chap.
Alexander, no offense, say"
But Alexander, resisting the tempta-
ton to knock Jones, who was small
man, into the gutter, stalked away.
And after dinner in his luxurious
study he sat solitary and thought-and
thought.
He thought of the girl to whom he
had given his heart in early days and
who had deceived him.
He thought of the undisturbed, reg
ular, independent life to which he
was accustomed.
He thought of his 40 years.
And the end of these meditatiOns
was that he went to his writing table
and penned letter to Hedwig.
He thanked Fraulein Schwalb for
tie pains she had taken with him and
begged TO inclose the sum due to her
for the remaining lessons of the course.
He much regretted being unable to re-
ceive them. He sent his best compli-
ments to Herr Schwalb and remained
hers very sincerely, Anthony Alexan-
der.
He went to Switzerland, intending
to do a mountain or two. But in ridic-
ulous defiance of the most elementary
rules of physical geography mountains
proved flat. So did other things when he
tried them. A blooming face under a
hat with roses, and old brown dress, a
happy girls voice followed him every
where.
At last, leaning dismally over a ho-
tel balcony one fine evening in Cha
mounix, he heard German lady be-
low say to a friend, "Gute nachtr'
He couldn't stand it any longer.
"Gute nacht." The words called him
back to g May street, and he packed
his traps that night, and to 3 May
street he rushed as fast as train, boat,
cab would take him.
The same maid, with apparently the
same dirt on her face, answered the
bell.
"Air Squalp. 'E's deadw
"Dead?''
ayes; 'e died. 'E got worse then 'e
died.
"And-and-tLe young LADY,"
"Left.n
"Where's she gomez"
"Don't know"
A sovereign shone i'm her hand.
"I'm very sorry, sir" she said, star
ing, excited, "but the fraulein never
said word to nobody. She just paid
and left"
"When?u
"rhree weeks last Toosday."