Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1912-02-01

came up to recommence the process of
decay.
ut was not long before | learned of
the love affair between the guardsman
and the fraulcin and that clandestine
meetings were taking place at ;1ng in.
tervaIs to be sure between them
Since the fraulein remained youthful
and the guardsman was growing older
his love for her grew in proportion as
the difference in their ages heightened
What effect this increasing difference
had on the fraulein | did not learn
for she kept her feelings to herself.
offered to decline to continue my treat
ment If she wished it, but she told me
that, having acceded to her fathers
order, she would carry it out to the end
Seventeen years passed. The baby
boy WObel was nineteen, the fraulein
thirty seven and the guardsman forty
The latter had never married, and his
love for the fraulein had grown to be
a dominant passion with him. He was
getting gray and bald and showed 9th
err signs of coming old age On the
contrary the girl he wOrshiped had all
Che freshness Of youth. Her beauty
had not been in the least impaired. Ii
was quite natural that a man who was
now too old for other girls of the frau
LENS age should cling to her, especial
Iy as she had kept pace with him III
that experience which natures the In
telIectual powers.
Baron WObcl would not consent to
the marriage between his son and
Fraulein Schoffenholer till the former
came of age. The young man was
within n few weeks of twenty-one, anG
preparations were being made for the
wedding when ! received a hurry cali
to the SchoffenhOler residence. found
the fraulein very i'll. This was unfOr-
tunate, for within few days 1t would
be necessary for me to give her an in
lection of the serum, and in her weak
ened condition | did not know what
the effect would be Indeed. ! dare
not administer it.
"For time the fraulein's life hung
in the balance. Then she began to
mend left her under the care of
her for Il month. When | saw her
again | was shocked. From girl of
twenty she had become a woman of
over forty. and her illness had made
her look ten or fifteen years Older than
that Her hair was almost white, her
skin yellow and wrinkled, her teeth
badly decayed and her figure bony and
tab
would have decayed gradually without
my treatn.cnt had broken down with
In Il brief period.
"Here was an embarrassing situation.
Young Wobel had showA every willing
ness to marry the girl his father had
provided for him. not only on account
of her fortune. but because of her
beauty, which was that of n girl, and
her intellect, which was that of a ma
ture woman But now what would he
say when he should see her? Her ia
Their begged me to restore her youth
and when told him that | had no
power to do so stormed at me for a
fool and an idiot.
young Wobcl was not permitted to
see his fancce till few days before
the proposed wedding. When he met
woman who looked to be over fifty,
and much broken at that he collapsed
There was no use in trying to induce
him to marry her. Indeed, at her age
n marriage would be fruitless and It's
object defeated.
81 was placed in very unfortunate
position. Every one seemed to consid
er me to blame for the affair, though
! had done only what | had been re
queSted to do, ! felt very sorry for
Fraulcin Schoffenholer, for | was
obliged to admit To myself that had
permitted her to grow old ms nature
intended she would not now have been
suddenly plunged into her present dis
tresS In order to make amends |
wrote note to her guardsman lover
informing him that the lady he had So
long loved was now free to marry him.
However | thought ii best to permit
him to observe her changed condition
for himself He replied thanking me
for the information, which he declared
had thrilled him with an ecstatic hap
pineSS
'Ile called upon her. When the poor
woman saw his shocked expression at
her altered appearance she held out her
arms to him, putting on just such an
appealing smile as would he seductive
In a girl of twenty. hut was horrible in
broken down old woman He tried
to respond, but failed, After a brief
interview he excused himself and has
never seen her from that day to this.
Recently | received his wedding cards
and have learned that he is to marry
girl of sixteen
"As for the fraulein, who had it not
been for my Interference with natures
laws would now have been the wife of
the guardsman and the mother doubt
less of grown sons and daughters, she
is wthered spinster can never for
give myself for being the cause OF her
miSfortunp