Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1908-06-18
gke 9astor's Daughter
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father had returned. He was scarcely
surprised at my changed appearance,
nv quiet manner, but he was glad to
have me at lone with him, and in the
long twilights he told me much about
his travels.
Frau Renner often came over with
her knitting; and Katharine, too, in
her armchair, listened attentively
when he spoke about Rome, of its
huge church of st. Peters, Of the
Vatican, with It's Deauurui pictures, or
when he grew enthusiastic over Ma
pies, that little bit Of Paradise
that is so lovely, with its blue sea and
it's flaming mountain. the wonderful
clear blue sky, such as we do not even
know here. Sometimes, too, the young
pastor came into the room-though he
always sent Marie to ask if he could
be received. Then the two would ex-
change their views about this and that
in a very interesting manner.
my father had no idea of all had
endured and suffered in his absence.
Katharine and I tacitly agreed to be
silent on that subject, for why should
the old man know Of a trouble which
he could in no way mitigate?
81 had been several times to the
castle after the first dreadful time was
over. | soon became convinced that
Baron and Frau Won Bendeleben had
no idea of this sad episode. Hannah
and Bergen had respected my secret,
and tried to compensate me by re-
doubled affection. Hannah would come
and spend whole afternoons with me
in the village when she was visiting
at the castle. Then her husband would
come for her, and on one such occa-
sion they had persuaded me to go up
to the castle for the first time.
Il had heard nothing more from
Eberhardt. l learned by chance that
he was CHARTERED at Potsdam. Ruth
was bored more than ever She
writes letters the whole day long
Liesel had told Katharine once.
Her manner to me was very
strange-half-defiant and half-ashamed
sometimes, when I looked her straight
and full in the face, she would drop
her eyes, and a slight color would
come into her lovely face.
"And so the summer came on, the
warm, beautiful summer.
For me there were no more flowers,
but l was glad for Katharine's sake.
We could carry her chair out under
the lindens, where she summed herself
and breathed in the refreshing air
She had noble character, this simple
old woman; no one in the world could
have mad more tact or displayed finer
feelings. She had never touched my
painful wound by so much as an al
fusion. She had only tried to comfort
me, and showed me a thousand little
tendernesses.
Il had dreaded her reprOaches.
had expected to hear her say, oh,
knew how it would be, but you knew
so much better than I. | told you so
at the time
But there was nothing of the, kind.
"She had warned me, and now that
| was unhappy, she took me lovingly
to her heart and hid the pain that she
felt for me, deep in her own breast.
The summer was over, the autumn
winds blew over the bare fields, and
every day brought back to me new
thoughts of the happy time last year.
The second September came, with the
same beautiful moonlight. l leaned
out under the lindens and looked
across at the castle and the park;
this time the light was not so clear
and golden as it was then; a light
mist hung over the landscape like a
fine, transparent veil, or was it be.
cause of the tears that stood in my
eyes? The old song came back to me
that had sung so joyfully only year
ago, as l rode with him along the
woodland paths with my hand in his
oh, not the last verse; he had en-
treated:
Now the moonlight has faded,
The stars are all gone.
My lover has left me,
And | am alone
Where was he? All, not a day pass
ed, not an hour, in which | did not
think Of him; how could l ever forget
him? If | could only see him once, to
know whether he was happy, then l
would willingly carry my burden
through life. All, might all the hap
piness in the world be his!
Again the weeks passed so slowly,
so monOtonOuSIy. Advent came, and
the snow lay again on the trees and
the roofs, l could see the old gray
walls of the castle CLEAN quite dis
tinctly through the bare boughs, when
stood at the window of my fathers
study upstairs. Skating-time had come
again. and the children had built up
great snowman under our lindens.
christmas was almost here. How
dreaded it! How could I ever live
through that day? In a ioyless mood
prepared the little presents for my
father and Katharine. and many tears
fell on the little dresses Frau Won Ben
deleben had sent to me to make up
for the village children, and then the
baron came and begged me to come
and help his wife distribute the pres
antS at the castle.
" OF course you understand, Gret- |
chen he said, only on condition that |
you like TO do it. You come so seldom |
now that we are really afraid to ask |
! on, you look so pale and sad when |
you are with US. l thought it would be |
quite different; that you would come |
iancing UP here every day at least. To |
De sure, now that old Katharine is -
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