The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-05-17

there. It reached out, and before my
 wife could hold it. our baby had fallen into the sea and disappeared. Long and desperately l sought to recover her, but all in vain.
 That evening we two desolate ones sat here in the hut when the door opened and a wonderfully beautiful little girl or years old, richly dressed, stood there smiling at us We were quite dumb with astonishment, and thought first that it was a vision; but then we saw the
 water dripping from her yellow hair and her splendid garments, and we hurried to put her to bed.
 'All that she could tell us was that she had been sailing with her parents and had fallen into the water, and recovered her senses to find herself on our shore. She prattled strange things about golden !, ralaces with crystal roofs and what not, and the only definite information she could give us was that her name was. Undine"
 A wild noise interrupted him. The two men sprang to the door and saw the stream racing beyond it's banks and l growing before their eyes. Great trees and even rocks were moving along in it's mighty whirpools and rapids. A gale had awakened with it. High overhead the tree crowns roared as if to echo the water that roared agains- the shore. "Un- 1 dine, dear Undine!" cried the knight, rushing forth blindly.
 He reached the edge of the spraying stream to find that it had cut itself so great a bed that the peninsula was an island. At the thought that Undine might be in the weird, terrible forest, cut off 1 from them, he seized 0 tree branch and waded into the torrent although he could barely maintain footing in it's turmoil.
 Trust not, trust not the stream!" sweet voice sounded in his ear He is | treacherous, the old broolSi
 "Where are you, Undine?" he called aloud. Dear, Dear Undine!"
 Look, look, foolish, darling youth, lookr' sounded Undines voice. and led his glance to a tiny islet. With mighty 1 effort the young knight parted the flood and reached her. She encircled his neck with her arms and drew him down to her. Do not go back" she whispered. Let us go into the forest!"
 No, we must go back" said the knight.
 Her blue eyes. full of wonder, looked into his. If you say so," she replied, ''it is well. Everything is right that you will" He lifted her in his arms and bore her | back to shore, where the old people em- i braced and fondled her, quite forgetting the fright she had caused them. l Dawn appeared before they returned to l the hut. The gale ceased suddenly as it ;, had begun. Birds were singing, the lake was calm and only the steady thunder Of the stream remained of the terror of the night Undine, sitting at the knights feet again, demanded once more that he tell her what had brought him into the forest.
 About a week ago." said the knight T entered a tournament in the city be- yond the wood. I was fortunate enough to conquer several opponents. As I stopped to rest, with my helmet off, I saw a most beautiful gir- looking at me. It was Bertalda, the foster-daughter of one of our great dukes. rode into my next tourney with double vigor and, to make a long story short, found favor in her eyes"
 A sharp pain made him stop. Undine. looking moody and angry, had set her | little teeth into his hand. She glanced | up at him. Tears started to her eyes, and she hid her face, whispering: 'It is your fault"
 Mustered and thoughtful Huldbrand continued "This Bertalda is a curious, l,a Op ba dax cIta l did not attract me nearly so much as on the first, and on the third day l liked her still less. Still. had been selected as 1 her knight, and when she demanded that bring her news of what really goes on | in this ill-famed forest could not choose l but ride into it.
 1 "Of the strange things that I saw I will not speak l will tell you only how I came here. Whenever l thought that I was on a path that would lead back to tie city white, vague face with ever changing features peered at me from the l thicket No matter how I turned aside, it appeared in front of me. Angrily l spurred my horse at it. At once white 1 foam and water spouted at us so that we had to turn back. Thus I was forced step by step from every path that l essayed l till l turned in this direction. Then the white face, that seemed sometimes to be l on great white body and sometimes 60
 be on jetting fountain, nodded to me 1 and hindered me no more"
 "Thank you, dear brook" whispered ! Undine. Then she began to laugh. You
 cannot return to your Bertalda,'' she cried, clapping her hands. "The stream
 is too wide to ford; and fathers boat is
 too small and old to take you home by | way of the lalSe!'
 The old fisherman nodded his head after
 an inspection of the stream and told the | knight that he would have to make up his
 mind to stay till the torrent receded. | Huldbrand did not feel the least impa- tienee with his lot Indeed as the days
 passed he felt a curious pleasure when he l visited the stream each morning only to find that it was wider and wilder than ever.
 His grazing war horse. the knightly de-
 vices that gleamed from his armor and
 trappings even his great sword, failed to awaken him to his old desire for adven-
 ture. Undine scolded him and petted him
 and he began to feel more and more as if the world beyond tho forest were d
 mere dream and this still, peaceful, sim pie existence were the only real life.