Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1908-03-12

but she held her peace and said no.
thing.
:" I always knew it would be So
/ was all she ever said.
| so / lowered between heaven and
earth, with only Hannah, who had the
kindest heart that ever beat, to COM
pensate me for all that was disagree
able IN my lot. In the meantime, Ruth
was confirmed, and went to boarding
school in B. for a year. That was a
happy time for Hannah and for me;
we spent our girlhood in unclouded
happiness, and were confirmed by my
father. We secretly dreaded the mo-
ment when Ruth should return. |
could not stay at the castle forever,
and l thought with a shudder and with
bitter tears of my return to the par
j sonage and of my life there. However
our anxiety was thrown away. A sister
Of Frau Won Bendeleben who lived in
, Vienna offered to bring out her young
and beautiful niece in the great world
Her parents were glad of the pro-
| position, for a remote country-hOuse is
not the place to bring out such a
! beauty; and besides, the baron was too
fond Of his ease not to rejoice heart
lily at the idea Of putting off disagree
able duty on another. In consequence
of this Frau Won Bendeleben settled
with my father that I should stay a
while longer at the castle, to prevent
Hannah from being lonely.
mo one could be more glad than L.
I felt so happy and was treated so af-
fectiOnately that an outsider
would have seen no difference be-
tween me and a daughter of the house
sometimes I was absolutely spoiled,
especially by the baron l had very
! good voice, and as Herr Won Bende-
( leben, who liked singing above every
thing, had given me the best Of mas
{ tiers, I made great progress, and could
not please him better than by sing
ing his favorite songs to him IN the
twilight. He would do anything for me,
! and often gave me things which per
( haps were not suitable for my posi-
| ton. With childish delight accept
ed the pretty and often costly gifts,
and thought it was all as it should be
or, rather, I did not think any thing
about it. Once, when I had sung his
| favOrite song, the wonderful air of the
page in the Marriage of Figaro IN
usually well, he gave me a beautiful
! horse and a Tidinghabit. Shortly be-
! fore, as was looking at a beautiful pic
! ture, portraying a slender woman on
| a fiery horse, had said: oh, how de
lightful it must be, to fly through the
woods and fields on such splendid
creature! All, if I could only ride!'
| Then I got my horse and habit. Han
nah already had one.
Herr Won BendeIeben himself gave
me instructions, and my delight as
mounted the beautiful black horse was
really touching, I believe. 1t was my
| greatest pleasure to wander ON horse
| back through the lovely country with
| Hannah. I could have cried aloud with
delight as l few through the shady
woodland ways; sometimes the baron
! accompanied us, and when we were in
| the woods the horses were treading
notseIessIy over the soft moss, and
the sun was sending occasional rays
through the branches of the old oaks,
he would say: Come, Gretel, now sing
me a song And then I would sing with
all my heart: o valleys wide, o hills,
! o beautiful green woods!
"Then the horses would prick up
| their ears, and Hannah would sing
alto, while the baron sat in the saddle
listening. Oh, they were happy
/ hours that I passed so, and my love
and my gratitude for the family who
had procured for me all these delights
! increased daily.
"Sometimes, when we sat upstairs
in our girls room, which was in one
| of the great round towers, and which
! had d lovely view from the little bal
| cony which chung to it like a swal-
lows nest, I would throw my arms
| around Hannah and say, Hannah, it
is too beautiful I'M the world, and only
think what may come by and by!'
To be continued.