wL, *,
 
 OMt. Of CALIF. LIBRARY. LOS ANGEU*
 
 SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 from i|je 
 
 CORNELIA 
 
 " Wisdom is ofttimes nearer when we stoop 
 Than when we soar." 
 
 WORDSWORTH. 
 
 CINCINNATI: 
 CURTS & JENNINGS. 
 
 NEW YORK: 
 
 EATON & MAINS.
 
 Copyright, 
 
 CRANSTON & STOWE, 
 1889.
 
 ,HE hand of Providence is evident in hu- 
 man affairs. Little as we may think of it> 
 <2/j sSJ and however much our purposes may be 
 Y crossed, all things work together for good 
 to those who love God and serve him. It is 
 well for the young to learn this lesson : that 
 not always is their own way the best, even 
 though it may seem to have the greatest promise 
 of success. The plans which they have for their 
 life may be ill devised. Their efforts to gain 
 place or fame or wealth may be the most harm- 
 ful; and yet neither place, nor fame, nor wealth 
 is in itself an evil. Man's chief end is to glorify 
 God and enjoy him forever. If any other thing 
 is made the end of living, a man's life will be a 
 failure. These truths are illustrated in the story 
 
 3 
 
 2131315
 
 4 PREFATORY NOTE. 
 
 told in the following pages. It also shows, 
 what was long ago spoken by the Hebrew 
 prophet, "He that getteth riches, and not by 
 right, shall leave them in the midst of his days, 
 and at his end shall be a fool." It is safe to 
 leave all things to God; to let him direct the 
 course of our lives ; to accept the changes of 
 fortune as ordered directly by him ; when pros- 
 perity is our lot, to use it for his glory ; and 
 when adversity befalls us, neither to repine nor 
 to relax our efforts, but to take up our burden 
 cheerfully, hopefully, and with good courage. 
 To young readers especially these pages are 
 commended. 
 
 EDITOR.
 
 I II I ll.l I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I II 1. 1,1,1 1 .1, 1 I I I I ] I 
 
 
 CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER. PAGE. 
 
 I. THE MANSARD HOME, 7 
 
 II. "As I WILL," 34 
 
 III. CASTOR AND POLLUX 64 
 
 IV. THE STAR OF LOVE, 100 
 
 V. "AUF WlEDERSEHEN," 133 
 
 VI. ARMOR TO ARMOR 173 
 
 VII. IT PLEASETH HIM, 211 
 
 VIII. IN THE VALLEY, 235 
 
 IX. ON THE HEIGHTS, 269 
 
 X. THE MISSING LINK 298 
 
 5
 
 M i y? i M i ij-rrn i roTTTJrtTT-i TI ' f ' i'rf* i" i" i" 
 
 
 i liiTi i 11 1 i i i 
 
 ^.X... 
 
 THE 
 
 S op 
 
 i. 
 
 "One adequate support 
 For the calamities of mortal life 
 Exists one only ; an assured belief 
 That the procession of our fate, howe'er 
 Sad or disturbed, is ordered by a Being 
 Of infinite benevolence and power, 
 Whose everlasting purposes embrace 
 All accidents, converting them to good." 
 
 WORDSWORTH. 
 
 i ROM the tower of the great church of St. 
 James, situated in the center of the world- 
 renowned commercial city of Stettin, the 
 clock pealed forth the morning hour of 
 four. It was in May, 1866. A delicious 
 breeze of morning freshness came from the 
 meadows along the broad bed of the swift, in- 
 walled Oder, and from the farther distant sea 
 still concealed by the mist. Over the Prussian 
 
 7
 
 8 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 fortress, at the rear of which expanded an out- 
 lying park, the first sunbeam rested, skirting 
 pinnacle and embrasure with a golden rim. It 
 had now become day in good earnest, and the 
 lofty stone colossus in St. James had received 
 also its crown of light. The old buildings which 
 surrounded it in a circle, and whos'e manifold 
 and wondrously formed gables lifted themselves in 
 fantastic confusion amid and above one another, 
 stood out prominently, like shadows of a long- 
 past time, in the midst of the newly awakening 
 spring joys; for now the sparrows, too, had 
 become lively, crying out in full voice, and flut- 
 tering like a swarm of May beetles around a 
 particular little third-story window belonging to 
 one of the above-mentioned houses. 
 
 The window opened. A small, womanly face 
 looked sharply out, sniffed the balmy May air, 
 and gazed with earnest attention, as if to descry 
 the physiognomy of the coming day. Mean- 
 while the odor of freshly browned coffee came 
 from the gigantic chimney ; the window was 
 closed again, and Linnie Bergmann, a slender 
 maiden, over whom forty years might have 
 been written, withdrew to the interior of her 
 little room. 
 
 We see her there in a neat, dark-blue, printed 
 wrapper, sitting upon the edge of a stool, 
 energetically turning the coffee-mill. Once she
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 9 
 
 ceased, and looking toward the window, upon 
 which the sparrows rapped with their beaks im- 
 patiently, she said, imperiously: "You must 
 wait ; who is it that does not learn, after all, to 
 wait?" Then she went into the little adjoining 
 kitchen, whence the light of a clear fire was 
 reflected into the mansard room where she and 
 her mother dwelt. 
 
 It was not very spacious, but it had a very 
 home-like, cozy appearance. A fine polish rested 
 on the old-fashioned furniture ; in the deeply 
 indented niches of the Gothic roof was cut a 
 window, giving room for an old-time sewing- 
 table, a canary-bird, and a row of beautiful 
 plants in the full bloom of May splendor. The 
 sewing-table stood like an altar, bedecked with 
 the dearest and best of its owner's possessions. 
 Above it, adorned with an ivy-wreath, hung the 
 portrait of a young man, whose dreamy eyes fell 
 upon the great marble-top, which was covered 
 with purple velvet. 
 
 Linnie Bergmann was a seamstress. She 
 loved to see the sun rise over the roofs, as it was 
 just now adorning them, in a flotilla of rosy-red 
 little clouds. The fire in the kitchen leaped 
 higher, and the water in the kettle boiled. She 
 tripped hastily thither, coffee-mill in hand, and 
 while the breakfast was preparing she returned 
 to the room, where there were all kinds of duties
 
 10 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 to be performed before the frugal meal could be 
 enjoyed. 
 
 In a second, adjacent bed lay the mother, 
 with open, longing eyes, evidently waiting im- 
 patiently for Linnie to prepare her morning 
 toilet, to give her a fresh cap, to sweep the room, 
 and admit the morning air. This she finally did 
 in an apparently calm, and therefore very delib- 
 erate, manner, gently flitting hither and thither, 
 overlooking no particle of dust, and pursuing an 
 obstinate little feather far under the bed. At 
 length everything was in order in the little man- 
 sard room, and the great splendor which lay over 
 the outside world was reflected here in obliquely 
 falling sunbeams. 
 
 The old woman sat up in bed ; Linnie poured 
 out the coffee, then went to the ' window and 
 scattered a handful of crumbs on the cornice for 
 the sparrows. 
 
 "I have rolls for you, mother," she said, 
 turning her head towards her. "They are on 
 the hearth to warm; I brought them from 
 Neuberfs." 
 
 "But come, drink your coffee, IJnnie," re- 
 plied the mother, "before it gets cold, or you 
 will feel weak going around so long without it" 
 
 Linnie obeyed, came and sat beside the table ; 
 then exclaimed: "Not yet, mother; I must 
 sing first"
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 1 1 
 
 And in clear, pure tones she lifted up a m:rn 
 ing hymn, confident as the lark, which a>.vay-= 
 soars over the top of the tower to warble its 
 praise aloft in the azure. The old woman had 
 stopped sipping, and folded her trembling hands 
 around the cup. Linnie's voice was fine, genuine 
 gold ; not a drop of vinegar held the remotest 
 dominion there. 
 
 "Linnie," began the mother, when the song 
 was ended, and the breakfast in possession of its 
 full rights, "last night I again saw the evening 
 star change. into the morning star, and the hours 
 were long to me, because my leg was too full of 
 pain to turn. But you always preach patience to 
 me, like a good pastor, and although I lay 
 awake all night, I did not murmur against our 
 Lord. One can not expect, at my age, to have 
 no sleepless nights." 
 
 "And He sends you such a May-day as we 
 nave not had this year," replied the daughter. 
 Then she gathered up the breakfast-dishes, car- 
 ried them to the kitchen, and began to wash the 
 cups. Through the open door she chatted with 
 the invalid. 
 
 "For dinner, to-day, I have a roast The 
 councilor sent it to you. Their always have 
 roasts at his house. The apple ftrmfSte his wife 
 gave me in a glass, and I have placed it on the 
 table so that no one else can set it. Frau Miller
 
 12 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 will bring you half a pound of veal for the 
 soup, when it is time." 
 
 "You do too much for me, Linnie. " 
 
 "Don't say that, mother; that is just like 
 dusting an auricula which is perfectly pure with 
 flower-pollen, or seizing it in the face to strip 
 off its enamel! What would be the use of this 
 old maid in the world if I hadn't a mother?" 
 
 "You old, Linnie?" the mother laughed. 
 "You are just like the bright spring, every- 
 thing beams around you. If you plant a little 
 cutting it begins to bloom in a month the 
 little children all run after you, and the birds fly 
 to your hand ; they never do this to old people." 
 
 "O, the joker!" was the merry retort; 
 "there is something right in that;" and stepping 
 again to the window, she proceeded to throw out 
 another handful of crumbs, remnants of the 
 breakfast. Standing there, she cast a long glance 
 over the valley, from which the mist was begin- 
 ning to rise. "That is the sign of a beautiful 
 May," she said, after a pause; "beautiful, but 
 warm. How the old Oder smokes ! One can 
 scarcely see the ships, and they are near enough ; 
 and although it is so early I can open the win- 
 dow. Will you sew a hem, mother?" Where- 
 with she gave the invalid her spectacles and 
 basket filled with neatly prepared materials ; then 
 began to make ready to go out.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 13 
 
 "Must you go so soon, Linnie ? For whom 
 do you sew to-day, so promptly?" 
 
 Linnie's face was toward the looking glass. 
 No one could have observed the passing cloud 
 which, for an instant, troubled her usually laugh- 
 ing face. She looked intently now into the 
 mirror. Did she discern to-day, for the first 
 time, the single, fine, white streak mingled with 
 the smooth, dark brown hair? She replied with 
 a quickly suppressed sigh : 
 
 "To GrUnhof, mother, at old Hechterling's. 
 You surely know Thursday is their day." 
 
 "O, there!" exclaimed the old woman, con- 
 temptuously. "You shouldn't go there any 
 more. We have, thank God, work enough ; and 
 they don't deserve you." 
 
 "Never mind," replied Linnie; "we can not 
 tell for whose good it may be for me to go to 
 old Hechterling's. See? But you mustn't men- 
 tion this, mother ; no one else will remain there, 
 and they must have some one to keep their 
 clothes in order." 
 
 "You never bring anything home with you 
 from old Hechterling's," continued the mother, 
 somewhat peevishly; "or, if you do, you must 
 always carry it yourself, so that everybody shall 
 see it." 
 
 Linnie began to laugh. "There never falls a 
 crumb to satisfy a mouse. They always act as
 
 14 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 though they were obliged to starve themselves ; 
 and yet the place is filled with boxes and bar- 
 rels, and the store-room hangs full of bacon and 
 sausage. But it is no blessing to them ; for with 
 it all they are not happy." 
 
 She had ended her preparations. A half-worn 
 circular covered her slender form ; out of a sim- 
 ple hat, with its fresh wreath, beamed a quiet, 
 earnest face upon the disturbed mother. But 
 what of this face and its expression, when one 
 closely observed it? No one could call it 
 "pretty," and yet it was far from homely. It 
 was a very simple face ; thoughtful, careful for 
 others, warm-hearted, with no trace of bitter- 
 ness, misanthropy, or hatred concealed therein 
 such qualities must vanish like ice beneath the 
 sun's kiss. An interesting face, truly. 
 
 " Yes ; there is no blessing with it," reiterated 
 the old woman; "why should there be? And 
 how you can go there, Linnie, and do for them, 
 just as though nothing had ever been between 
 you, I can 't understand. Every stitch you take 
 must pierce your heart, I should think ; and yet 
 one would believe that everything was perfectly 
 peaceful between you and old Hechterling." 
 
 "My heart is no longer pierced, mother. It 
 is not a heart of flesh and blood ; the grace of 
 God has made me spiritually minded. Why, 
 then, shouldn't I go to old Hechterling's?"
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 15 
 
 "So do, in God's name; but take no greet- 
 ing from me, Linnie ; do you hear ? They 
 brought unhappiness to my only child, and I 
 should rather my tongue cleave to the roof of 
 my mouth than greet such people. I 'd rather 
 greet my old coffee pot." 
 
 "But that is a fine, old, royal pot, mother." 
 
 "Yes, indeed it is, and no one has a better; 
 we drank to your betrothal out of it. Twenty 
 years ago since I sewed on the outfit." 
 
 "Adieu, mother," cried Linnie, seizing her 
 umbrella and satchel, without which she never 
 went out "'forgetting those thing; which are 
 behind, and reaching forth unto those things 
 which are before,' says the apostle Paul. You 
 know I am very happy, and the Lord is mer- 
 ciful to us alway. We want for nothing, and 
 the lively faith and the ardent hope of a new 
 heaven and a new earth, go with us when we lie 
 down and when we rise up." Whereupon she 
 went down stairs. 
 
 "But don't give them any greeting from 
 me," she heard the mother cry out after her. 
 
 She crossed St. James Place diagonally, through 
 the wide, and then up the narrow Dome Street. 
 Over all a ready, active life had enfolded. Heav- 
 ily laden wagons followed one another, between 
 which people on foot made their way with diffi- 
 culty on the narrow paths. It seemed to her as
 
 r6 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 if they jostled by to-day with more haste than 
 ever, and as if there could be read upon all faces 
 a strong, increasing excitement. 
 
 "Do you think there will be war, Linnie ?" 
 asked an acquaintance, in passing. 
 
 "With the French?" replied Linnie, no other 
 nation being able to menace the Prussian father- 
 land as a threatening enemy, in her opinion. 
 
 "No, not yet. But they say, with Austria. 
 I shall go quickly and tell it to Fran Mayern 
 she thinks so much of herself, with her three sons 
 in the king's regiment. Now this is what she 
 gets by it." 
 
 Linnie hastened along. She had grown 
 alanfted over this war news, which had fallen so 
 unexpectedly. Folding her hands closely be- 
 neath the circular, and sighing, she thought: 
 "Blood and tears again, so soon!" 
 
 ' The campaign, which had lasted two years, 
 had aroused her sympathy to its depths, and she 
 hoped another similar calamity might not re- 
 turn. "Ah! and we have so little fear of God 
 among us. The Stettiners are so wise, they fancy 
 they have no longer need of repentance and 
 prayer." 
 
 At length the end of her long walk was 
 reached a well cared-for dwelling, lying apart in 
 the midst of larger ones, and separated from the 
 street by a small front garden. Tall rose-bushes,
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. ' 17 
 
 showing their pleasure in growth by strong, 
 shooting sprouts and a wealth of buds, stood, as 
 though invested with a certain etiquette, in rank 
 and file. Underneath were strawberries in long 
 rows, while farther beyond space had been ap- 
 propriated for all kinds of vegetable culture. 
 Method and precision, devoid of all artistic taste, 
 reigned everywhere. Not a single blade dare 
 spring up without some strongly proved, pre- 
 meditated design. 
 
 Linnie walked in with a certain ere.ct mien, as 
 if in unison with the surroundings. Her lips 
 were compressed, and her usually placid forehead 
 became contracted in wrinkles. Entering the 
 house from the rear, as an old acquaintance, she 
 found herself in a rather dark apartment adjoin- 
 ing the kitchen, whose window overlooked the 
 vegetable garden. Frau Hechterling, the wife 
 of a rich, former butcher, who had retired from 
 business to live upon his acquired fortune, was 
 seated beside a large table covered with black 
 oil-cloth, drinking coffee. A huge, thick loaf 
 of bread, some butter, sausage, and bacon were 
 before her. She "was large and meager. A 
 prominent hook-nose curved itself over a small, 
 pinched mouth in a pronounced bow, giving her 
 the appearance of an owl, while her small eyes 
 winked and flickered from their red edges like 
 those of a criminal unable to remain quiet, but
 
 i8 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 restlessly roaming hither and thither, unmiti- 
 gated by the soft breath of heavenly peace. 
 
 When Linnie entered with a greeting, these 
 eyes leered obliquely toward an old clock, whose 
 measured "tick-tack" announced the passing of 
 the beautiful May-day. The large hand was 
 exactly at five minutes after eight o'clock. 
 
 "I beg pardon," said Linnie, having observed 
 the glance. "I was detained on the way by 
 people excited over the prospect of a war with 
 Austria. Isn't it terrible, Frau Hechterling?" 
 
 "It 's nothing to a seamstress," was .the reply, 
 given with grim significance; "the work can't 
 wait on that account. But you must drink your 
 coffee, so that it sha'n't be wasted." 
 
 She pointed to a small table placed squarely 
 against the window. Over the back of a chair 
 before it hung a wadded dressing-gown, of that 
 old, wonderfully figured, and indestructible ma- 
 terial which was everywhere used in the begin- 
 ning of the nineteenth century. Gay-colored 
 cotton fabrics were rather expensive at that time, 
 and prized by all housewives. 
 
 "The old man's gown wants mending again," 
 continued Frau Hechterling vigorously, stand- 
 ing up and balancing the aforementioned gar- 
 ment on her arm. "I have always told him, 
 'Fritz,' I say, 'if you don't take better care of 
 this dressing-gown you will ruin it.' But he
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 19 
 
 sweeps around in it as if it were an old mop, 
 and all right so far, on purpose to make me econo- 
 mize with the eating and wages." 
 
 She spoke in angry, snappish tones. Linnie 
 laughed, and critically examined the heavy ob- 
 ject under consideration. Then she inquired 
 whether there were any patches. 
 
 "How could there be?" replied the old 
 woman, peevishly. "Patches don't drop out 
 of the air. My man got the gown from his 
 lieutenant when he was his attendant, and served 
 his time. His aunt made the thing for him when 
 he had hurt his foot, but he did n't like it. He 
 was as hard as an old Polar bear, and used to 
 pour a pail of water over his body every morn- 
 ing. The gown must have cost money enough; 
 it is as good yet as when Fritz got it and brought 
 it home to me." 
 
 "There is a hole burned in it." said Linnie, 
 regretfully; "and as to the sleeves, we shall 
 have to make new ones." 
 
 "That's been done with his pipe! As if I 
 have n't often enough told him about that. 
 ' Fritz, ' I say, ' what 's the use of smoking ? Does 
 it bring you anything in, or does it bring me any- 
 thing in? Who gives us the money again when 
 it is puffed off in the air?' But he won't listen 
 to me, and only blows the smoke in my face 
 the old Turk!"
 
 20 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "How can you talk so about your husband?" 
 said Linnie, reprovingly. 
 
 " Ugh ! what do you know about men ? You 
 are an old maid, and think they are wonders ; 
 but they are nothing but plagues." 
 
 "As you understand them," interjected 
 Linnie. 
 
 Frau Hechterling now brought forward a bun- 
 dle of various remnants, from which Linnie 
 should select something for the sleeves most 
 suitable. She searched long and matched with 
 care, and finally discovered a piece of dark red, 
 with yellow stars, which had probably the same 
 Georgia ancestor as the gown. 
 
 It was not the same; but it might possibly 
 deceive an uninitiated, at a distance. Linnie set 
 herself to work immediately, and Frau Hechter- 
 ling went to the kitchen. The former, although 
 her back was turned, observed the steaming 
 kettle hovering over her little coffee-pot, evi- 
 dently with the intention of diluting the con- 
 tents. But Linnie was a character. She pro- 
 posed here, as in every other house, to use her 
 needle assiduously, and therefore exacted in 
 return what belonged to her nothing more, and 
 nothing less. 
 
 "O, don't do that, dear Frau Hechterling," 
 she cried out peremptorily into the kitchen, and 
 not without a certain roguishness of voice and
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 21 
 
 manner; "I have no headache today, and feel 
 as fresh as a lark. I only care for one cup, as I 
 have taken the first with my mother." 
 
 Frau Hechterling was startled, but soon en- 
 tered the room bringing the breakfast and a half- 
 burnt roll, at the same time muttering some 
 unintelligible words as she placed them on Lin- 
 nie's little table. 
 
 "Thank you," said Linnie ; "but you have n't 
 a good baker, Frau Hechterling. One is always 
 obliged to direct servants day after day. " She was 
 perfectly well aware that the strongly burnt stuff 
 had been accepted because it had been obtained 
 at half price. 
 
 Frau Hechterling made no reply, but re- 
 turned to the kitchen, where she began to 
 scold a simple-looking servant girl, driving her 
 from one corner to another, and making a great 
 noise among the pots and pans. 
 
 Soon after a second door was opened, and a 
 broad, pulpy man, with a red, bloated face, entered 
 heavily. The burden of years had bowed the 
 bones and sinews' of this gigantic creature, with- 
 out impairing his strength. His coarse, rough 
 features, bearing the impress of his bloody voca- 
 tion, had always been exceedingly repulsive to 
 Linnie. He was in his shirt-sleeves, and walked 
 about as if there was no one in the room, reply- 
 ing to Linnie's courteous greeting with an indif-
 
 22 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 ferent nod and a kind of grunt, which seemed 
 to stick in his throat. 
 
 His wife cried out from the kitchen: "Good 
 for you, now ! Your gown has to be mended, 
 and you must go in your shirt-sleeves. I always 
 told you what comes of smoking." 
 
 "Dumb-head!" was his uncivil response, as 
 he seated himself at the breakfast-table. Pull- 
 ing up his sleeves as though he were about to 
 slay an ox, he began to eat with a kind of fe- 
 rocity. By means of a carving-knife he cut off 
 great chunks of sausage and bacon, put them on 
 the bread, and shoved it all into his mouth, accom- 
 panied by enormous draughts of thin coffee, in 
 a way that made the gurgling and swallowing 
 heard throughout the entire room. 
 
 "One might as well be among cannibals," 
 thought the delicate, sensitive Linnie, with a per- 
 ceptible shudder. And sh felt inexpressibly 
 relieved when the old man put on his coat and 
 went out ; for she had, meanwhile, mentioned 
 the war news, and he was curious to hear more 
 about it. 
 
 At dinner she was obliged to sit with both 
 these digusting people. No spread covered the 
 table ; and Frau Hechterling placed the soup- 
 dish on the black oil cloth with a slap, being 
 infuriated beyond measure because the young 
 servant-girl had dropped, by mistake, a spoonful
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 23 
 
 of flour in the ashes her light sobs being heard 
 in the kitchen. 
 
 The husband returned from the city, threw 
 his coat on a chair, then sat down upon another 
 with so much force it creaked all over. 
 
 "What a discordant tone this godless man 
 produces!" thought Linnie ; then folding her 
 hands, she softly uttered a blessing. This was 
 her custom, and any food was unpalatable to her 
 which was not received from God's hand with 
 gratitude and expressed thanks ; even as a little, 
 tame bird receives food from the hand of a 
 beloved master. 
 
 "Never mind your pious ways," said old 
 Hechterling; "I don't like them." 
 
 Linnie looked into his red face with her clear 
 brown eyes : 
 
 "General Von Geldern stands still to hear 
 my table-prayer (for I could not eat without 
 it), whenever he passes through the room where 
 I am at work. Yes, he stands and waits until I 
 am ready. Please, also, have patience with me," 
 she answered. 
 
 "Bah! do you think what he does has the 
 slightest influence upon me? or that I l^ke a 
 single step out of my way when we meet on the 
 sidewalk ?" 
 
 "You blow away like a turkey-gobbler," 
 interjected his wife.
 
 24 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 General Von Geldern, commander at Stettin, 
 had been in his time a jolly lieutenant, and the 
 very one to whom his thoughtful aunt had sent 
 the gay-flowered gown, which had been given to 
 his attendant after a few weeks' possession, and 
 who was now the retired butcher, Hechterling. 
 The general must have practiced an energetic 
 regimen; for Hechterling, to this day, never heard 
 his name mentioned without an outburst of 
 wild fury. 
 
 "Bah!" he repeated, pouring out a glass of 
 beer so violently that the foam gushed over ; and 
 which Linnie, a paragon of neatness, drew back 
 to avoid. "You are very distinguished you, 
 with your piety and your general," he sneeringly 
 added. 
 
 Linnie only laughed. "I am a seamstress, 
 very happy and contented in my calling. I go 
 here and there in very different families, I assure 
 you, and it gives me pleasure to study the 
 people to see how one is so, and another not so. 
 I like the general. Tf he permits me to ask a 
 blessing, you should also." And Linnie looked 
 around fearlessly and with spirit. 
 
 "You are a goose," he retorted rudely. 
 
 "Well, that is a very useful animal. Once 
 everybody wrote with goose-quills ; wrote beau- 
 tiful songs, and wise, God-pleasing thoughts. 
 Even without her feathers the goose would not
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 25 
 
 be despised, to say nothing of the roast, the oil, 
 and the expensive pat/ de fois gras. " 
 
 "Let her alone," said the wife, decidedly; 
 "you know you don't agree. What's the use 
 of quarreling? All I care for is to get the gown 
 finished to-day." 
 
 Linnie arose, returned thanks, then resumed 
 her work. 
 
 The afternoon brought with it hours when 
 she began to feel fatigued, and kept her eyes open 
 with great effort. It had been otherwise in her 
 youth ; then all hours of the day were alike ; but 
 she had now worked uninterruptedly twenty- 
 two years. Still the money she held in her 
 hand at night must be conscientiously earned, in 
 spite of weariness through failing eyesight ; and 
 she struggled on assiduously, until refreshed by 
 some coffee at four o'clock. 
 
 It was between six and seven o'clock in the 
 evening when the door-bell gave a quick, shrill 
 clang, which startled her. Old Hechterling, 
 who was busy in the garden, stamped thither as 
 quickly as possible, and received a telegram from 
 a messenger. As he was not very skillful 
 in reading penmanship, he brought the blue 
 missive to Linnie, with an authoritative ges- 
 ture. She opened it with trembling- fingers 
 and read : 
 
 " My wife died this morning. JOHN." 
 
 3
 
 26 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "There is never anything right with the 
 women ; that one never had any flesh or bones ; 
 that 's what comes of it," grumbled the old man. 
 
 "Who is dead?" cried his wife, entering the 
 room, with a ponderous pair of horn spectacles 
 on her nose. 
 
 "Only the daughter-in-law," he answered, 
 roughly. "The messenger brought this thing," 
 pointing to the paper which lay carelessly in 
 Linnie's lap. 
 
 "Well, we haven't lost much," she said, 
 with a vilifying air. "She was to blame that 
 John's business did n't go on better. Of her 
 own money there is only five thousand dollars, 
 that" 
 
 "But Dorothy inherits that," interrupted old 
 Hechterling eagerly, rubbing his great, hairy 
 hands. 
 
 "Yes, Dorothy inherits that some day," re- 
 echoed the wife; "and the girl, too, amounts 
 to nothing. She takes after her mother ; she 
 sha' n't enter this house." 
 
 "Merciful God!" exclaimed Linnie, springing 
 up, and shaking from her dress the threads and 
 ravelings with which it was covered. "I can't 
 remain here an.y longer. I am afraid the roof 
 will fall upon our heads, or hell-fire rise from be- 
 neath our feet. You are speaking of your own 
 flesh and blood, Frau Hechterling, the only and
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 27 
 
 orphaned child that God has given you. Her 
 mother is dead, and you refuse the little one a 
 home. Such a monstrous act has never been 
 known in this world !" 
 
 "You are rattle-brained again, Fraulein Lin- 
 nie, " said the old man. "Just you sit down 
 and get my gown ready, or you get no pay." 
 
 A scarcely perceptible smile passed over the 
 young woman's thin lips. She sat down, after 
 calmly gathering up the pieces which lay scattered 
 on the floor. The old man continued : 
 
 "We have been very much opposed to each 
 other, and now she will have to hold her wicked 
 tongue ; for there comes an end, some time, to 
 everything in life." 
 
 "Yes, there is an end to everything," replied 
 Linnie, who had grown pale through inward ex- 
 citement. "You and I shall also have an end 
 some day that is certain." 
 
 The young servant-girl, whose eyes were 
 always red from weeping, not long afterward came 
 in with a letter. As Frau Hechterling tore open 
 the envelope, she said, "This is from John;" 
 and, although Linnie betrayed no curiosity, the old 
 woman began to read it in a loud voice, holding 
 the paper at a long distance from her eyes, mak- 
 ing frequent comments, as well as directing her 
 wicked, flashing glances over her glasses toward 
 the seamstress.
 
 28 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 BERLIN, May 15, 1866. 
 
 DEAR PARENTS, I have received no reply from 
 you ["It wasn't intended you should," interjected the 
 reader], although I wrote to you several weeks ago tnat 
 circumstances were ill with us. My wife grows worse 
 daily, and I airi not well myself. I make every effort pos- 
 sible in my business; but, in spite of everything, it does 
 not prosper. [" That kind of talk is no good. Six times 
 six makes thirty-six ; let the man be ever so industrious, 
 if the woman is lazy, business gets behind," snapped the 
 mother]. I do not know why it is, dear parents, that no 
 blessing attends us. 
 
 Linnie dropped her head. She had also turned 
 away her face, so that very little of its sincere 
 and sweet expression could be seen. 
 
 "Ugh! blesssing," continued the old woman. 
 "If a body saves, he will have. Who doesn't 
 keep a tight fist over the pennies, will find the 
 mice whistling in his corn-loft." She resumed: 
 
 The doctor and medicine have cost us a great deal ; 
 and when one is so feeble and obliged to lie in bed for 
 weeks at a time, as I have been, leaving everything to 
 clerks, who make unreasonable demands, and take unfair 
 advantages, business must suffer. Dear parents, you 
 could do one thing for me, pay my honest debts and as- 
 sist me with a loan of a few hundred dollars. Thank God, 
 you have it, and I beg you to accede to my request. 
 It is true there still remains five thousand dollars, which 
 my wife inherited from her mother ; but we dare not 
 touch it, as the grandmother has made it securely over to 
 Dorothy, and we have only the interest, which is small. 
 Dorothy was the idol of her grandmother, and she is, in- 
 deed, a lovely child. When she recites texts and beau- 
 tiful hymns (one of the latter containing sixteen verses)
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 29 
 
 without a single mistake, so sweetly, our eyes fill with tears. 
 She is our comfort in misfortune, and we could never give 
 her up for all the money in the world. [" As if any one 
 would be such a fool as to ask for her," supplemented the 
 reader]. My wife's dower has been entirely exhausted. 
 I can lay my hand upon my heart, and honestly account 
 for every dollar of it; but I am not like other people, and 
 everything goes wrong with me. [" Dumb-head !" snarled 
 the mother]. I have no longer any pleasure in business; 
 nor, in fact, in anything aside from little Dorothy. 
 
 Two shimmering pearls, moist and warm, fell 
 from Linnie's eyes upon her busy fingers and 
 the newly repaired sleeves of the gown ; but 
 Frau Hechterling did not observe them. She 
 continued : 
 
 My wife will never be well again. Once she nursed 
 me ; now it 's my office. Who would ever have dreamed it ? 
 And I am not strong. I make her bed and prepare her 
 tea ; for the Berlin girls are saucy, and will not work for 
 the sick. The good Lord will soon take her to himself; 
 then what shall little Dorothy and I do ? I can never 
 allow the child to be separated from me ; she is my life. 
 [" Lord ! no one wants her," exclaimed Frau Hechter- 
 ling, angrily. "What's the use of a thing like that in 
 the world, but to eat, drink, and give bother ? I am 
 mighty glad you say so."] But, dear parents, what is all 
 this to result in ? Do try to help me. It is true I have cost 
 you much, but I am not to blame. I sit by the window, 
 and look down on the street watching for the postman to 
 bring me a letter from you, but he always passes by. My 
 creditors press me hard. I pray you sincerely to believe 
 me your obedient son, as ever, when I married according 
 to your own wishes. 
 
 Your faithful, devoted son, ! 
 
 JOHN HECHTERLING.
 
 30 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "Well that 's a great deal about nothing," 
 concluded the mother, folding up the letter and 
 shoving it into her capacious pocket. "I can 
 stick that behind the looking-glass, for it's no use. 
 The wife is dead now, and you may settle your 
 affairs at Berlin, for all me." 
 
 A sigh of relief came from Linnie's heart when 
 she left the house upon the completion of her 
 work. The burden and heat of the day had 
 passed; the noisy roll of the wagons had ceased. 
 From their various places of work the laborers 
 were returning home, begrimed with lime and 
 mortar. Here and there, as in the morning, were 
 groups of men in earnest conversation. Linnie 
 only caught stray phrases, such as, "Marching 
 orders are here already." "They say the fort, 
 even, will be solitary ;" She stopped several 
 times and wiped her brow. Perhaps the exciting 
 news at Hechterling's had also affected her. 
 Finally, when she reached St. James Place, and 
 climbed the narrow stair-way leading to her home, 
 she heard from afar her mother's voice : 
 
 "Are you here at last, dear Linnie?" 
 
 "Yes, mother, thank God!" and entering the 
 room, she kissed the invalid tenderly. 
 
 "I have ordered the supper for you," said 
 the old woman, triumphantly. " Frau Miller 
 did n't want me to, but I beat her out of it. It 
 is on the hearth, and must be warm now
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 31 
 
 poached eggs and bacon in thin slices. It will 
 do you good, my child." 
 
 Linnie removed her wraps, brushed them care- 
 fully, and hung them in the spacious closet ; 
 then lighted the lamp, and sitting down, ate 
 with relish, smiling with appreciation upon the 
 pleased mother. 
 
 "How lovely it is here!" she said. "We 
 can look far away over the roofs, and there is 
 nothing over us but the sun, moon, and stars. 
 The noises from the street do not reach us, neither 
 does the dust fly so high. But the old Hechter- 
 lings are terrible people ; it is wretched to be all 
 day with them." Whereupon she related the 
 incidents of the afternoon. 
 
 "Then, after all, it is a good thing you did 
 not become their daughter in-law ; it is evident 
 John isn't a good business man," commented 
 the invalid. 
 
 "Why bring that up," said Linnie, "to re- 
 proach the unfortunate?" But her voice was so 
 low it was unintelligible. After a pause she con- 
 tinued, audibly: "Everything that befalls us, if 
 we love God, must be for the best. It must, 
 mother ; only we do n't always understand it, 
 and do n't exercise patience. Let me read to 
 you an evening hymn." 
 
 " Where do you sew to-morrow?" 
 
 "At General Von Geldern's. Fraulein Asta
 
 32 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 needs a new spring costume, and you know 
 waiting is not \\erforte." 
 
 "Yes, she must always be adorned. She is 
 young and rich, and annoys you with her airs 
 and pride." 
 
 "No, no, mother; I love little Asta as if she 
 were my own child. Did n't I make all her 
 pretty shirts and dresses before she came into 
 the world ? And I had many a controversy with 
 her ladyship, who insisted upon having every- 
 thing embroidered ; and, as to the materials 
 themselves, nothing was left undone, whether 
 the baby should be a boy or a girl. How long 
 it is since sh.e was laid away in the grave, and 
 since Aunt Mylitta has. taken charge of the little 
 girl ! What a south breeze she is with her wavy, 
 golden locks ! But give me the hymn-book, 
 mother ; I see you have it on the bed beside you." 
 
 "Full many a throb of grief and pain 
 
 Thy frail and erring child must know ; 
 But not one prayer is breathed in vain, 
 Nor does one tear unheeded flow. 
 
 Thy various messengers employ, 
 
 Thy purposes of love fulfill ; 
 And 'mid the wreck of human joy, 
 
 Let kneeling faith adore Thy will." 
 
 These were the concluding verses whose 
 comforting words resounded through the little 
 mansard room. A short time after, nothing
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 33 
 
 was heard there but the soft breathing of the 
 sleeping ones. The new moon stood over the 
 church and looked into the peaceful place, while 
 a nightingale warbled in the shrubbery of the 
 fortress.
 
 ' 
 
 ^s. ^. -^ -^ff ^f, -. 
 
 z. 
 
 ^ 
 
 II. 
 
 " 'Tis a thing impossible to frame 
 Conceptions equal to the soul's desires ; 
 And the most difficult of tasks to keep 
 Heights which the soul is competent to gain." 
 
 WORDSWORTH. 
 
 next morning dawned with an oppress- 
 ive heat. Nature seemed to have entered 
 into summer with one bound, without 
 j|v affording the earth time to unfold its 
 May splendor. Linnie walked to-day to- 
 ward one of the elegant residences situated on 
 the corner of Victoria Place, from which point 
 there was a charming view of the Oder and the 
 beautiful meadows that skirted the wide stream. 
 Her light footsteps were unheard upon the thick 
 rugs which lay on the staircase, as she wended 
 her way to the accustomed work-room, where a 
 fine view was also to be had of the square be- 
 yond. She always enjoyed sitting by this win- 
 dow, with its large panes of glass, to watch the 
 vessels' swelling sails upon the water, accompa- 
 nied by the clouds of heaven. .But she was not 
 34
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 35 
 
 long so engaged. She began to arrange some 
 paper patterns, taking a careful stitch here and 
 there, when Frederick, the old family butler, 
 entered with coffee. Its delicious aroma, and the 
 accompanying appetizing rolls and thick cream, 
 were enticing. 
 
 "Good morning, Frederick," she said. 
 "How do you do? I don't see any one 
 around." 
 
 "Her old ladyship has headache," he replied, 
 mournfully; "and her young ladyship is ter- 
 ribly out of sorts, and laments enough to move 
 the heart of a stone. She had set her mind 
 upon a trip on the water, and when she sets her 
 mind on anything it has to be. You know that 
 very well, Fraulein Linnie. " 
 
 ' ' You also have the same wish, I think, you 
 look so cross." 
 
 ra 
 
 ' ' Well, whatever goes wrong they both grum- 
 ble, and I have to suffer for it, There goes the 
 bell again ! A body needs more than one pair 
 of legs to keep in motion so constantly." 
 
 "Don't be so irritable, Frederick; it doesn't 
 become you," said Linnie, with an admonitory 
 gesture. 
 
 "If I had only the master to deal with he 
 simply orders a thing, and when it is done, there 's 
 an end. But the women there is always some- 
 thing wrong, and they send a body away, and he
 
 36 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 almost breaks his neck in the hurry to get back, 
 only to find they have forgotten the chief thing 
 they wanted. It is hard enough to serve, and it 
 always will be. I won't be argued out of that." 
 
 "The Son of God came not to be ministered 
 unto, but to minister." 
 
 "I don't know anything about that," replied 
 Frederick, curtly. 
 
 "Pity for you," added Linnie. "But there 
 is the bell again, and I must not keep you from 
 your duties. I will take the breakfast-tray down ; 
 you need not trouble about it." 
 
 Linnie had not entirely finished her coffee, 
 when the folding-doors of the adjoining room 
 opened a little way, and the fresh though some- 
 what delicate face of a young girl, with golden 
 blonde hair, peeped out. Beaming eyes, which 
 changed color constantly in their laughing liveli- 
 ness, shone beneath a beautiful Grecian forehead, 
 full of natural hauteur, and met those of the 
 seamstress. Like wavelets and ripples struggling 
 in their play upon the surface of an inwalled 
 brook, dancing dimples flitted over the fair, 
 round cheeks, which were lovely in the glamour 
 of youth's first bloom. Her whole personality 
 harmonized with her name Asta, a star at 
 least so far as we are permitted to be acquainted 
 with those distant luminaries ; a star of purity, 
 beauty, and hope, uplifted far above the dust and
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 37 
 
 worry of every-day life ; destined to lighten, to 
 cheer wherever her steps lay ; destined to glisten 
 as the proudest, most precious jewel in the heart 
 of a brave man. 
 
 "Good morning, Linnie !" cried the young 
 girl, who was now in the center of the room, 
 standing upon a pair of tiny slippers, and wear- 
 ing a richly embroidered wrapper, which in- 
 closed a figure of medium height. "Do you 
 know what dreadful thing has happened ? Now, 
 immediately after luncheon I must have a trip on 
 the water. I have been longing to go out on 
 the lake all week, terribly longing ; but it was 
 always 'not to-day,' ' not to-day, ' 'still too cold.' 
 But they can 't'say that now ; such a day as this 
 may not occur soon again. And only look, Lin- 
 nie, how the flies dance out in the sunshine ! 
 And yet this very day, this lovely, perfect day, 
 aunt has a headache ; and her headaches always 
 last twenty-four hours. What 's the reason I 
 never have headaches? How can people have 
 headache so often ? But on the lake I must go, 
 whether or no !" 
 
 "If there shall always be a 'must,' I pity the 
 papa," replied Linnie, smiling. 
 
 "Who thinks of him? Papa! His head is 
 too full of war duties. He says it would be 
 thoroughly unpatriotic to think of a water-party. 
 And. such expressions are heard everywhere.
 
 38 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 No one wishes to do the least favor for me. 
 But on the lake I must go. What shall prevent 
 me from having war thoughts on the water? I 
 must go. I shall hear nothing there, rowing up 
 and down, but the singing of the reeds and 
 rushes in the green depths, and learn more there 
 with my own eyes than I could in a whole 
 week studying Bcehm, water-crabs, beetles, rails, 
 etc., besides make a collection for my aquarium. 
 But O, Linnie, something has just occurred to 
 me," she said suddenly, in a very strong and 
 altered tone; "you must accompany me. Who 
 can take better care of me than you? or keep 
 me from tumbling into the water, like a child ? 
 And, best of all, you won't oppose me in any- 
 thing! With your kindly eyes you will look 
 pleasant when I fish, while Aunt Mylitta always 
 begins to scream when I catch a lizard in my 
 net. Yes, yes, that is it; we shall go together. 
 I will go in and tell papa, then send Frederick 
 to the city for some things I need for the 
 journey." 
 
 She glided out of the room on dancing feet 
 so quickly, one scarcely knew where she had 
 alighted ; but it was only a few minutes before 
 she had returned. 
 
 "We have had a consultation over it," she 
 said, with a triumphant smile that displayed both 
 rows of her beautiful, pearly teeth. "Aunt
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 39 
 
 Mylitta had to make objections, of course ; she 
 can be so intolerable at times " 
 
 "But, Fraulein Asta!" remonstrated Linnie. 
 
 "No! she doesn't hear me, and I always 
 forgive her; indeed I do, Linnie. I never hold 
 anger against any one in my heart. As to papa, 
 he has the greatest confidence in you. ' She is a 
 very reliable person,' he said, 'and has been in 
 and out of our house for twenty years ; let the 
 child have her way, Mylitta ; then we shall have 
 peace.' So it is all settled, and we go!" 
 
 The seamstress looked upon the beautiful 
 young girl as upon a humming-bird, which gaily 
 darts among the open calyxes, willing to sip 
 sweetness every hour of the day. O, how sin- 
 cerely she rejoiced in her wealth, her purity, her 
 beauty, and happiness ! With what self-sacri- 
 ficing submission did she permit a modest reflec- 
 tion of the last to fall upon her own restricted 
 way. She, too, enjoyed the water, and never 
 looked upon its broad, silver surface without a 
 little sigh. She seldom went to Gotzlow even, 
 and Gotzlow was not the lake; there was a 
 wide stretch of the Oder beyond, bounded by 
 canals. 
 
 Asta went to her room, where Linnie soon 
 followed to fit a lining. It was such a boudoir 
 as only a wealthy father's tenderest love could 
 furnish for an only and darling child.
 
 40 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "Isn't this lovely?" said Asta, looking upon 
 her surroundings with happy gaze. "Only that 
 empty aquarium provokes me ; but it won't be 
 long before we shall have it in order." 
 
 "Do you think it fits nicely?" asked Linnie, 
 who was busy, needle in hand, shaping the 
 beautiful, clinging drapery to the slender form. 
 
 "Very nicely. You do ever so much better 
 with your old paper patterns than that arrogant 
 modiste, whom auntie and I are obliged to super- 
 intend all day long, and whom we shall not have 
 again. Do you not like my flowers, Linnie?" 
 
 "Certainly ; and I am delighted to see how well 
 they thrive. I am almost sorry for ladies who 
 receive so many beautiful flowers. One should 
 only have a few plants, I think, and love them like 
 brothers and sisters. I know a poor tailor who 
 owns a huge India-rubber tree, and it belongs to 
 every member of his family so much so that 
 every new leaf is an event among them." 
 
 "How lovely that is!" replied Asta. "I am 
 like that tailor; everything pertaining to Flora 
 attracts me." 
 
 "Do you mean some one special by Flora, 
 Fraulein Asta?" 
 
 "No, everything that grows and blossoms; 
 I would press to my heart every tree and flower. 
 A wonderful peace and serenity encompasses 
 me when I indulge myself among them. I
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 41 
 
 breathe their fresh, rich odor with perfect de- 
 light. I should like to build an arbor and spend 
 my life among the bluebottles and gay butterflies ; 
 therefore must I go out to-day, to see how beau- 
 tiful the world is. Do you not feel so?" 
 
 "I rejoice with all my heart in the Lord's 
 works. He seems nearer, and I hear his foot- 
 steps more plainly in the green solitude. But 
 he also comes through walls and stone to the 
 little mansard room, and brings to me eternal 
 spring." 
 
 The young girl's large, brilliant eyes rested 
 upon the seamstress, who was now kneeling be- 
 fore her in order to mark the new garment's 
 length by careful basting. She raised her gentle 
 face and added : ' ' Do you know the promise, ' I 
 will come again and prepare a place for you ?' " 
 
 "No, Linnie, I am sorry to say, I do not. Is 
 it in the Bible?" 
 
 "Yes; you will find it in the Gospel of St. 
 John, fourteenth chapter and twenty-third verse. 
 I often repeat it aloud when I am at work ; then 
 my little room becomes glorified, and I am no 
 longer a poor, old seamstress, but, by His grace, 
 an heir of eternal blessedness. I feel so 'con- 
 tented with everything, and even more than I 
 rejoice in this beautiful spring do I exult over 
 the prospect of my death." 
 
 Asta was silent. She looked away from the 
 4
 
 42 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 speaker out of the window ; and now her eyes 
 seemed very dark. 
 
 Such conversations were quite usual between 
 the two. They had grown gradually from an inter- 
 course of many years, had taken root, entwined 
 around both hearts, imperceptibly drawn them 
 together, and made them singularly congenial to 
 each other. The difference in position, wealth, 
 and years, each of which so often separates widely 
 the children of Adam and Eve, was unmarked 
 between these two, although the distinction was 
 never forgotten by Linnie. Asta was always 
 the rich, aristocratic daughter of an officer of 
 high rank, while her companion remained the 
 seamstress; and so much a seamstress that she 
 was universally designated by a circle in the old 
 commercial city "the Seamstress of Stettin" 
 all of which title she had naturally and thoroughly 
 made for herself. ' 
 
 Soon after two o'clock a carriage drove up to 
 the door of the elegant mansion on Victoria 
 Place. Asta and Linnie took seats therein, 
 and Frederick, carrying two handsome baskets, 
 swung himself on the box, to accompany his 
 charming mistress and her companion to the 
 steamboat. The quay, which extends along the 
 Oder the entire length of the city, was crowded 
 with people, all engaged busily ; bustling and 
 pushing one another, often rudely, from side to
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 43 
 
 side. The edifices fronting the water were, for 
 the most part, very fine structures such as 
 hotels and private residences. But there were 
 also found there small, plain houses, gray with 
 age ; venerable relics of a long past time, with 
 high gables and tall, narrow windows ; besides 
 restaurants for the lowest class, and shops over- 
 flowing with all kinds of second hand goods, as 
 well as the coarse, showy merchandise attractive 
 to sailors going and coming to and from the 
 various European ports. Innumerable ships lay 
 indolently at anchor, or moved with majestic 
 gravity up and down the stream. Just now a 
 large steamboat drew its broadside to tire land- 
 ing ; and a few minutes later Asta and Linnie 
 were upon the deck, Frederick following with 
 the baskets and wraps. 
 
 "See to my books and jars," exclaimed Asta, 
 joyously, "and be sure there is everything we 
 shall need. Papa has sent me the loveliest net; 
 in the other basket are all kinds of tarts and good 
 things. Good bye, Frederick ! Do n't come too 
 soon for us. Now we begin our journey. In 
 half an hour we shall be at Gotzlow. " 
 
 Meanwhile they have arrived, and the steamer 
 has left them to select some one to manage 
 their skiff! He was an elderly, trustworthy, 
 and experienced man. Under the swift, strong 
 strokes of his brawny arms the little boat cut
 
 44 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 obliquely the stream's noble current, and entered 
 a comparatively small canal. At first the banks 
 were bare and dry, but soon walls of reeds and 
 rushes appeared, through which the sighing winds 
 sang an accompaniment to the boatman's regular 
 rowing, in soft, melancholy strains. Both sides 
 of the stream were adorned with water-plants, 
 whose leaves swung lightly from the stalks, or 
 were fashioned in fantastic notches, forming 
 around the boat's keel a living garland in the 
 brown, limpid depths ; in the midst of which 
 water-bugs and spiders darted like sparks of 
 silver lightning. Farther on great beetles were 
 at work, and snails of every kind clung to the 
 tender branches and twigs with their sucking 
 mouths. 
 
 Softly gliding along, the solitude became more 
 and more intense, and the verdure more abun- 
 dant. There was now not only the waving reeds, 
 but the osier, overladen with its yellow tassels, 
 hiding from the world the golden pollen through 
 which the bee rummaged, accompanied by 
 newly fledged butterflies hovering around the 
 honeyed cells. 
 
 "How beautiful it is here!" said Linnie.. 
 
 Asta now threw out her net, the boatman 
 kindly helping her to draw it in and secure, as 
 well as sift, its contents. They had captured all 
 sorts of pretty little fish, partly carp and pike;
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 45 
 
 the former glistening in their coats of dark violet 
 blue, the latter in splendid red and green. 
 
 "Sticklebacks in their spring gowns!" ex- 
 claimed Asta, enthusiastically; "one of the 
 most interesting fishes we have. He builds his 
 nest and guards his young." 
 
 "Would your ladyship also like a water- 
 spider? They always carry a pearl," said the 
 man, who evidently enjoyed her appreciation. 
 
 "Certainly, certainly! The pearl is an air- 
 bubble which she makes when she plunges into 
 the water, then weaves around it a diver's bell 
 with her thread, in which she lives. No nymph 
 can have a more crystalline palace. That is the 
 poetry of nature, Linnie; I got it out of books ;" 
 and continuing, gaily, "I must take home 
 several of these little tadpoles, in order to watch 
 their development into frogs." 
 
 "That can not be done," interposed the mat- 
 ter-of-fact boatman. "A gold-fish may be kept 
 lively in confinement, but tadpoles die in cap- 
 tivity. They are nothing but toads, but they 
 will have their rights." 
 
 "A parrot may be more easily trained than 
 a young sparrow," added Linnie. "There is 
 nothing common before God ; therefore the day- 
 laborer and the seamstress may trust him." 
 
 It was not long before Asta had filled her jars. 
 She washed her hands from the water that
 
 46 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 dripped from the boat's keel, and wiped them 
 with her point-lace handkerchief. Her hat was 
 decorated with a garland of daisies, primroses, 
 and grasses, which had been seized from the 
 banks in passing. 
 
 The canal was now wider, the bed of reeds 
 dividing on both sides. A broad expanse of 
 water became visible, upon which they wished 
 to row. There was a sudden rustling and snap- 
 ping amid the rushes, which attracted their atten- 
 tion. The rushes grew here to an enormous 
 height, and between their thick stems open 
 channels had been made like foot-paths in a 
 forest. The prow of a boat was observed work- 
 ing its way through, the oars handled by a young 
 man, who wore the uniform of the king's regi- 
 ment, at that time stationed at Stettin. In the 
 rear of the boat an officer sat, skillfully directing 
 the rudder. The two boats approached so closely 
 and unexpectedly there might have been dan- 
 ger of collision, had not the captain, by a quick 
 movement, turned out of the way. He raised 
 his head, which was covered by a small, light, 
 fatigue-cap, whose gay color set off to fine ad- 
 vantage the dark hair and bronzed face. It was 
 a handsome, open countenance ; but when the 
 glance rested upon Asta it wore a serious, ear- 
 nest expression. He saluted her with a hesi- 
 tating bow, that especially astonished the seam-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 47 
 
 stress ; but Asta had turned her head aside 
 so haughtily that her acknowledgment seemed 
 almost discourteous. 
 
 Linnie was puzzled ; but very soon a wide 
 distance lay between them and the captain and 
 his attendant ; for the former were now out upon 
 the open water, while the latter's course was 
 directed to the canal. 
 
 At this juncture the sturdy boatman straight- 
 ened himself proudly, and gazing beyond the 
 rudder, said: "Yonder is my home, your lady- 
 ship. Do you see just behind that black point ? 
 I was born on that island, and my brother still 
 resides there. He is a fisherman, and has a little 
 home of his own, while I work among the ships 
 on the water. He is the eldest of us, and to 
 be envied for having house and lands ; but he 
 has to pay us, which he does n't like to do." 
 
 The land was extensive here, and the water 
 swept around it as far as the eye could reach, dark 
 green in color, ruffled by a delightful, gentle 
 breeze a miniature lake, clear as crystal, spread 
 before them, as charming as it appeared marvelous. 
 
 "Are there any more such islands in the 
 lake?" inquired Asta. 
 
 "Yes, indeed, and I know them every one, " 
 replied the boatman. "I was only ten years 
 old when I searched over them for plovers' eggs. 
 One gets well paid for them."
 
 48 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "I wish you would take us to the most 
 unfrequented island, where we can get out of the 
 boat and spend an hour or two. It must be a 
 small one, though, and very beautiful, with rocks 
 where we can sit down." 
 
 The man smiled. 
 
 "Why must it be so particularly beautiful, 
 Fraulein Asta ?" said Linnie. 
 
 " Because I should like to experience the sen- 
 sation of a shipwreck a la Robinson Crusoe with 
 you. We will serve our tarts and jelly on the 
 warm sand, and while the breezes lull us to 
 slumber I will read to you from the ' Frithiof 
 Tales.' I have not had an afternoon like this for 
 a long while, and it will be all the more delight- 
 ful if everything shall happen just as I antici- 
 pated. And it must do so !" 
 
 " Ah, my dear, dear Fraulein Asta, you often 
 make me tremble with your 'musts,'" interposed 
 the seamstress. 
 
 "Why? Why shouldn't my life grow more 
 and more splendid ? I have found its beginning 
 so, and all the way along, thus far." 
 
 "Fraulein Asta, who was that gentleman 
 you greeted so ungraciously? I mean the mili- 
 tary captain we passed a short time ago." 
 
 "Who, Linnie?" and the laughing young face 
 became instantly clouded. "That is Councilor 
 Elmbach's son." Significantly nodding to the
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 49 
 
 seamstress, she whispered lightly in her ear: 
 "A very low family. Papa becomes furious at 
 the very mention of their name, and upon his 
 forehead a thick vein swells out. I call this 
 vein the blue snake ; but, thank goodness, it 
 does n'* appear very often, only when he is very 
 angry. Then he is like a black lion from Bar- 
 bary. You know, Linnie, the black lions are 
 much worse than the yellow ! As for myself 
 I have inherited a horror of the Elmbachs. 
 When I came in contact with this one a shudder 
 passed over me. That is because I sympathize 
 thoroughly with my splendid father in every- 
 thing. Whenever any one mentions the name 
 Elmbach his forehead begins to wrinkle, the 
 blue snake makes its appearance, and the lion 
 shakes his mane, ready to spring ! Then I shake 
 my mane, too, of course !" 
 
 Linnie was silent. "Is this the island?" she 
 asked the boatman, after a pause. 
 
 They were soon beside a small islet, scarcely 
 more than three hundred feet in circumference. 
 For the most part covered with dry, yellow 
 sand, it lay in sweet repose, surrounded by the 
 blue surface of the lake, bathed in warm sun- 
 beams. Whether it was of Vulcan or Neptune 
 origin, a less skillful oarsman might have expe- 
 rienced difficulty in effecting a landing, as steep, 
 mountainous cones arose from the alluvium depths 
 5
 
 50 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 of the water basin, nearly to the single place 
 where a great, flat, projecting stone formed an 
 entrance. Here the water was so deep and clear 
 one could see the fishes at play in it. A few 
 ancient and lofty willows stood in picturesque 
 irregularity upon the center of the islet, their 
 silver-gray tops heavily laden with vines, in 
 which innumerable birds found pleasant dwell- 
 ing-places ; whence they greeted the travelers 
 with loud twittering. Beneath these trees, and 
 near the bank, lay rocks of all sizes. 
 
 "Ah, this is just what I like!" exclaimed 
 Asta with delight, bounding over the plank as 
 soon as the bow of the boat was steady upon 
 the shore. The seamstress followed somewhat 
 thoughtfully, while the boatman carried the bas- 
 kets and wraps. 
 
 "There comes another boat," continued the 
 young girl ; ' ' only look how fast it plows through 
 the waves. It has a sail up, and is steering 
 directly toward us." 
 
 "Ahoy!" cried the boatman, making a speak- 
 ing-trumpet of his hands. "Ahoy, there! It 
 is my brother Hermann," he added. " If you 
 really wish to remain here an hour or so, your 
 ladyship, I will step in his boat and take a short 
 ride with him. One has so many things to talk 
 about ; but I have my watch, and if you will fix 
 a time I shall be here promptly."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 51 
 
 "You will not be needed before five o'clock," 
 replied Asta. "Then we shall reach Gotzlow at 
 half past seven. Let him go, Linnie, " she 
 said, entreatingly, as the latter was inclined to 
 make objections ; " it will be so much more pleas- 
 ant alone, and we wish to enjoy still life on 
 this islet." 
 
 The fisherman Hermann was now alongside, 
 our traveler's little craft was secured to the shore, 
 and they were soon alone. It was very ro- 
 mantic. Asta covered a large, flat rock, and 
 revealed unexpected treasures from the capa- 
 cious lunch-basket, which were heartily partaken 
 of and enjoyed. A tour of the islet was then 
 made, and two especially comfortable rocks on 
 the edge of the water encountered, upon which 
 to rest. The spot was directly opposite to the 
 place of landing, and hidden from view by the 
 long-reaching branches of the willows. They 
 spread out the blankets and wraps, then half 
 reclined, while Linnie busied herself with some 
 pretty knitting-work, and Asta read aloud from 
 the "Frithiof Tales." 
 
 The book was in harmony with the surround- 
 ings ; there was so much of clouds and winds 
 and waves, that one beheld the reality, all the 
 more lovely as the musical strophes flowed from 
 the beautiful reader's lips. 
 
 "How any one can make so much of love
 
 52 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 is incomprehensible to me," said Asta, when 
 she had ended " Ingeborg's Lament," laying the 
 book on her lap. "It must be very humiliating 
 to acknowledge a master's sovereignty over an 
 involuntary slave. I fear this would never be 
 possible to me." 
 
 "I fear very much the contrary for you," 
 replied Linnie, somewhat timidly; "especially 
 when you always say 'it must be.' You dear, 
 dear girl, the Lord does n't always do as we 
 think, but his thoughts are as much higher than 
 ours as the heavens are above the earth." 
 
 "Linnie, I don't care to hear any more 
 about Ingeborg. She only existed in a poet's 
 brain. I told you an hour ago that I prefer 
 living poetry ; the one is a real flower, the other 
 artificial. Both are beautiful, but the sweet odor 
 comes to me only from the living calyx. You, 
 dear, good Linnie, you are poetry! Yes; don't 
 shake your head. The time has come when you 
 must confide in me ; and we could not be more 
 alone, more undisturbed than here. Tell me 
 about your youth. You were an attractive girl, 
 you have been loved, and you promised I should 
 know all about it." 
 
 " If I do so," replied the seamstress, "it will 
 be that you may learn something of the ' it must 
 be," which always grieves me when I hear it. 
 But my story is not romantic ; on the contrary,
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 53 
 
 it is very prosaic. My father left a small for- 
 tune, which I inherited. I was considered quite 
 rich for my class, as we did not need so much in 
 those days as you do now, Fraulein Asta. I 
 lived with my mother at Grlinhof, and we had a 
 'garden in the rear of our dwelling, which was sep- 
 arated from a neighbor's by a hedge. This 
 neighbor was a butcher, whose only son John 
 cared for the vegetables which they cultivated. 
 They were hard, godless people, and extremely 
 miserly, but their son was so unlike them it was 
 difficult to believe he belonged to them. How- 
 ever, he remained at home, and was a quiet, 
 unassuming young man. But his very amiability 
 caused the parents' hands to rest heavily upon 
 him. They compelled him, against his very 
 being, to participate in the"ir business, as he did 
 not dare to oppose their wishes. We also culti- 
 vated vegetables ; but flowers grew among them ; 
 and when I rejoiced in their bloom, seated in 
 the arbor with my needle-work during the beau- 
 tiful summer afternoons, John would come out 
 into his own garden with a guitar, and sing be- 
 neath the apple-tree ; for he had a lovely voice. 
 Upon one occasion he sang softly : 
 
 ' " Good day ! Good day, sir gardener ; 
 
 Some lavender, have you ? 
 And have you rosemary and thyme ? 
 A little betony too ?"
 
 54 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "O yes, dear miss, I have all that 
 
 In this fine garden here ; 
 If you will kindly wait awhile, 
 I '11 have them never fear." 
 
 Then the young gardener went out, 
 
 And searching everywhere, 
 His eyes went gazing longingly 
 
 Upon the maiden fair. 
 
 He wove sweet flowers in a wreath, 
 
 Found violets, deep blue, 
 To say the love of his poor heart 
 * Was tender, fond, and true. 
 
 And lilies, purest in their bloom, 
 
 He scattered here and there ; 
 A cypress branch he intertwined 
 
 With true love's patient care." 
 
 "I can not recall any more of the song, but 
 it touched me deeply ; for the melody was quaint 
 and sweet, and brought tears to my eyes. The 
 following morning he called upon me, wearing a 
 white vest, and carrying a large wreath com- 
 posed of love flowers. He was very pale, and 
 his sincere eyes were downcast, as though he 
 had committed a wrong. When we were alone 
 he asked me to be his wife. I replied, 'If God 
 will;' for see, Fraulein Asta, although I did not 
 know much of a Savior's love at that time, I 
 reverenced God. Everything was happy about 
 me, and the cross was disregarded. I was a 
 Christian only s& far as I believed it to be an
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 55 
 
 easy, pleasant life. We were betrothed two 
 years. It was spring all the year round with us. 
 John became rosy and bright. I loved him de- 
 votedly, for he was pure gold ; and the longer I 
 knew him, the more this was apparent." 
 
 "Then, why are you not married?" inter- 
 rupted Asta, whose lovely eyes now rested upon 
 her companion's sunken cheeks with a troubled 
 expression. "Did he die, this beloved John?" 
 
 Linnie shook her head. After a pause she 
 continued : 
 
 " We began to, prepare the wedding trousseau, 
 when suddenly the news arrived that my fortune, 
 which my father had intrusted to a large mer- 
 chant, had been lost, and I was as poor as a 
 church-mouse. Of course John's parents at once 
 opposed the union, and the poor youth was 
 forced to obey, as he had nothing in the world. 
 They sent him off to travel, and when he returned 
 they married him to a Berlin maiden, and estab- 
 lished him there in business. His journey had 
 evidently been of little benefit ; for he returned 
 as pale as he had been in childhood. So it 
 happened, and you see it avails very little when 
 we say, 'I think so and so;' or, 'I will not have 
 it so ;' or, ' It must be.' All that doesn't help a 
 hair's-breadth. " 
 
 "What did you do then, you dear, good 
 Linnie?" exclaimed Asta, very rebelliously.
 
 56 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "I took up my cross and carried it," replied 
 the seamstress, cheerfully. She had folded her 
 hands in her lap. 
 
 Asta was silent. 
 
 "Do you know the words: 'Yea, Father 
 yea; lay it even on my heart's core, and I will 
 bear it?' One learns to say them under such 
 circumstances." 
 
 "They express a beautiful sentiment," replied 
 Asta. "But you must not be offended if I say 
 it would have pleased me far better if your dear 
 John had wholly ignored their wishes, burned 
 the old butcher in his skin, and rescued his Lin- 
 nie in the storm. Yes, that would have pleased 
 me infinitely better." 
 
 "I believe you," responded the seamstress, 
 with a melancholy smile; "and that is why I 
 have related my history. It might have been 
 successful with most people, but not with these. 
 They are harder than flint; and the fates often 
 appear so to human beings. But be assured, 
 it is no blind fatality, as men are wont to call 
 it, but diamonds thrown in our pathway, upon 
 which the sinful heart is broken, and should 
 break ; for the end thereof is always peace 
 and joy.'' 
 
 "How pale you look, my good Linnie ! I 
 will run and get you something." Thereupon 
 she sprang up and off.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 57 
 
 Linnie remained seated on the rock, in deep 
 reverie. 
 
 Asta found the opposite side of the islet 
 wondrously beautiful. The waves beat upon 
 the shore in mournful cadence, while over the 
 lake's snowy surface a heron dipped his beak, 
 sparkling like silver in the sunshine. Suddenly 
 Asta was seized with an overwhelming but un- 
 fortunate desire. She would unfasten the boat 
 from its moorings, row the little craft around the 
 islet, and carry to Linnie the promised refresh- 
 ment by water. It looked very easy. Surely a 
 few quick strokes of the oar would accomplish it. 
 As the boat proved to have been very insuf- 
 ficiently secured she soon succeeded in her pur- 
 pose. Standing- upright, she steadied herself in 
 the center of the boat, and pushed off shore 
 with an easy jerk, gliding into the water as lightly 
 and smoothly as a nutshell. But it was not so 
 easily managed as she had imagined. In every 
 lake there are currents which are not discerned. 
 An undertow is frequently strong enough to 
 carry with it small craft. Such a one caught 
 Asta's bark. She would now have preferred to 
 return, but did not know how, as the water 
 seemed to- be constantly opposing her efforts, 
 and drifting her farther and farther away. The 
 situation, at first alarming, became critical, and 
 the terror which took possession of her caused
 
 58 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 her to make violent movements that strongly vacil- 
 lated the narrow boat. 
 
 Linnie heard a feeble cry, as of some one 
 calling her name. It aroused her ; and at once 
 the thought, " Where is Asta so long?" obtained 
 supremacy. Like a frightened bird she flew 
 across the islet to the landing. The water soon 
 became an insurmountable hindrance to further 
 pursuit. Asta was not on the land ; but yon- 
 der O God ! there was an upturned boat 
 upon which two hands were clasped ; yonder a 
 blonde head surging to and fro in the billows, 
 and around it the deep, fathomless, awful abyss 
 of death, over which this young life hung like a 
 broken flower ! Every glance tore her soul with 
 anguish. Her first impulse was to spring in 
 after her; but she was unable to swim, how 
 could she render help ? Before her mind's eye 
 stood the image of a crippled old woman reach- 
 ing forth her poor, helpless arms to an only 
 daughter. She flew back to the highest point 
 of land, scanning the lake in every direction ; 
 then she uttered a piercing shriek. 
 
 "Was that a sea-gull?" said the captain to 
 his attendant, as they were floating around at 
 some distance away. "There it is again, that is 
 a cry of distress ! yonder, Fred ! row for your 
 life, man!" The boat flew over the water with 
 wings of wind.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 59 
 
 "Not to the islet, sir. See! yonder is a 
 boat on whose keel a girl is clinging; do you 
 not see it?" 
 
 Yes, he saw it, and the impatience to reach 
 it almost unnerved him. Every drop of blood 
 in his veins was like coals of fire. Ah ! not 
 even a hero aglow with honor for his country, 
 before the observant eyes of thousands, ever 
 made more desperate efforts than he. The spot 
 was almost reached ; but his endeavors had been 
 vain. The little white hands had lost their hold, 
 the fingers their grasp. Once more she looked 
 up to the vast blue overhead ; then the star 
 sank, and the waves closed over the beautiful 
 young head with its golden locks. 
 
 "Asta! Asta!" was the bitter wailing which 
 re-echoed over the islet 
 
 The seamstress was on her knees, beneath the 
 willows, crying for help to Him from whom, 
 alone, help was possible. 
 
 The captain threw off his coat in a trice. 
 Only an incredibly brief space of time intervened 
 until the tall military form had plunged boldly 
 into the water, as if he would cut his way to the 
 perishing one to its very depths. An expert diver, 
 his broad chest was seen from time to time ris- 
 ing to the surface for air. He waged a terrible 
 war. At first he was unable to find her ; and 
 when she was- discovered, she clung, half-uncon-
 
 60 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 scious, so strongly to her supporter it seemed as 
 though both should be drawn down to death. 
 At length, by dint of almost superhuman strength 
 and skill, he unclasped her arms, and brought her 
 aloft, after she had sunken three times. Blood 
 started from his nostrils and mouth when his 
 attendant brought aid. Bending far over the 
 boat, he seized his master, clutched at the same 
 time the girl's clothing, and thus achieved the 
 final rescue. Asta lay in the boat helpless, 
 while the captain raised her head. His bosom 
 heaved, water dripped from hair and beard, 
 while his bleeding lips, bitten in the fearful 
 struggle, grew as colorless as his face. 
 
 "Sir Captain, she is dead," moaned the 
 assistant, weeping with excitement; "there is no 
 breath in her body." 
 
 He was unable as yet to reply ; he merely 
 shook his head. He had been too familiar with 
 death not to know that she was simply uncon- 
 scious. They reached the islet, where Linnie 
 applied restoratives with speedy success. Asta 
 soon revived, and her brave rescuer modsstly 
 stepped aside, after protecting her from the first 
 violent chill with coverings. The boatman then 
 made his appearance with the fisherman, and 
 after a short consultation, all entered the large 
 boat and started directly for Gotzlow. 
 
 It was quite dark when they reached there.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 61 
 
 No one had spoken a word on the way. Asta, 
 completely exhausted, reclined in Linnie's arms. 
 The captain withdrew to the farthest corner. At 
 Gotzlow they found it necessary to obtain dry 
 garments, as well as warm food, at the hotel. 
 When Linnie looked for the captain he had dis 
 appeared, and she was informed that he had im- 
 mediately started for Stettin. The last steamer 
 left at ten o'clock, as Linnie and Asta were well 
 aware, and although the latter was able to smile 
 again, she began to feel some misgivings on 
 account of the "Black Lion of Barbary." 
 
 The seamstress undertook to explain every- 
 thing to the general, accepting a large part of the 
 blame herself, although she was as innocent as a 
 baby concerning the calamity. 
 
 "Make yourself perfectly comfortable," re- 
 plied General Von Geldern ; "you are a very 
 trustworthy person. I know perfectly well where 
 the blame lies. She shall never go out on the 
 water again to search for beetles and bugs. The 
 affair is frightfully odious to me every way. 
 Still, -thank God! the child lives. Elmbach " 
 here the high, stern forehead grew dark 
 "is a skillful swimmer, the very best in the 
 company." 
 
 "All this happens," said Aunt Mylitta, as 
 she la}' in bed, enduring a paroxysm of pain' 
 "all this happens from not observing the
 
 62 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 proprieties. O, our girls, our girls!" (renewed 
 sobs) "and all on account of those loathsome 
 reptiles!" 
 
 "Aunt," cried Asta from the adjoining room, 
 after declaring the prescribed soothing drops 
 prepared for her to be entirely unnecessary, 
 "there are some sticklebacks there in their spring 
 gowns, and broad, violet-blue little fish, and a 
 water-spider too a very ideal creature " 
 
 "The last which you have ever captured," 
 retorted the aunt, solemnly. "It is on that 
 account I have my headache to-day." 
 
 Asta lay very still. ' Her jesting words had 
 only come from the surface. Down in the 
 depths of her agitated heart there was the 
 greatest emotion ; at first from without. He 
 who had given her being, had now rescued her 
 from death. She recalled her feelings when no 
 longer able to cling to the boat, and when her 
 strength was spent, how He had been to her 
 more than God, more than a Creator, He had 
 revealed Himself as her trust and her Redeemer; 
 a strong Rock beneath her feet ; while the fear 
 and anxiety had not really been as great as she 
 would have felt under the simple recital of such 
 an experience by another. 
 
 Later she thought of her human rescuer. 
 She had, indeed, no adequate conception of the 
 intense struggle it had cost him to save her from
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN 63 
 
 a watery grave, but she thanked him for her 
 life ! How strangely the feelings of aversion and 
 prejudice which she had fostered against him 
 had been changed into those of deep interest 
 yes, even of heart-felt admiration !
 
 
 o ^i> &&& .^-..-is k& ^D 
 
 ^ 
 
 ---- 
 
 
 III. 
 
 "Possessions vanish and opinions change, 
 And passions hold a fluctuating seat; 
 But by the storms of circumstance unshaken, 
 And subject neither to eclipse nor wane, 
 Duty exists." WORDSWORTH. 
 
 >LEAR, warm sunshine played upon the fo- 
 liage of a cluster of trees and shrubbery 
 
 that grew luxuriantly beneath the windows 
 
 & 
 
 of the Villa El OQ bach at Grlinhof. Coun- 
 cilor of Commerce Elmbaclv was a promi- 
 nent, wealthy man. He could afford expensive 
 surroundings in the form of rare flowers and 
 plants. At present, however, he was not able 
 to enjoy this exceptionally beautiful Northern 
 spring, as he was at Carlsbad ; and his son Ru- 
 dolph, a captain in the Grenadier Regiment of 
 King William III, proudly denominated "The 
 King's Regiment," resided alone in the villa. 
 
 He must have been engaged in service un- 
 usually late ; for it was now noon, and he still 
 sat at breakfast. The experiences of the pre- 
 vious evening had greatly fatigued him ; and he 
 64
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 65 
 
 looked really pale, despite his sunburned face, 
 as he leaned back in an easy chair, and per- 
 mitted the morning paper, which he had been 
 reading, to fall upon his knee. 
 
 Did the finch startle him, as her trumpet like 
 blows sounded through the hall-open window? 
 or had the spring air, heavily laden with the 
 perfume of hyacinths, enervated him? Even 
 the highly interesting political news did not seem 
 able to arrest his attention. The young man's 
 large black eyes stared into vacancy, filled with 
 an expression of intense emotion, which was 
 reflected upon his noble, manly countenance. 
 He wore an elegant satin dressing gown, and was 
 booted and spurred, for he detested slippers. 
 
 His thoughts had. wandered far off to the 
 depths of the lake. Ever and anon he saw him- 
 self engaged in that imminent struggle of a 
 life for a life; now endeavoring to release him- 
 self from the clutches of the maiden, who wildly 
 clung to his breast ; then becoming confused 
 amid the richly embroidered draperies, torn in 
 tatters. What a slight circumstance might have 
 made this struggle a fatal one, causing both to 
 rest to-day, heart to heart, amid the gnarled sea- 
 weeds of the deep, or to drift side by side on 
 the crystal surface, with white, upturned faces, 
 which the beaming sun should vainly endeavor to 
 warm, and around which the rippling waves 
 6
 
 66 TttE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 should murmur a death-song! Had he not res- 
 cued her from the lower world ? Certainly ! 
 And now she was again Asta a star; and 
 "a man does not long for a star," Goethe 
 has said. 
 
 The newspaper lay undisturbed; the- finch, 
 with a struggling beetle in its beak, now perched 
 on the window-sill; is unmolested. His thoughts 
 drift farther : "This calamity might have brought 
 advancement to my regiment ; but where should 
 I be to-day ?" The well-cared-for hand of the cap- 
 tain passed over his forehead, and unconsciously 
 a light sigh escaped him. "The great Elm- 
 bach firm would not be able to draw a check 
 upon that unknown banking-house. I should be 
 poor and destitute on that strange, unknown 
 ground." Thoroughly imbued with the skepti- 
 cism of modern times, he could give no answer 
 to the question. 
 
 A servant's entrance broke the spell. The 
 man was so embarrassed that he carried into the 
 room his master's boots, which he was engaged 
 in cleaning, on one arm, and held a blacking- 
 brush in his hand. "Sir Captain " stam- 
 mered poor Gottfried; "the Sir Commander 
 is without." 
 
 Elmbach raised himself loftily ; Gottfried 
 dropped the brush, at the same time throw- 
 ing open the folding doors, and General Von
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 67 
 
 Geldern, in full uniform, with his numerous 
 orders, stepped across the sill. 
 
 The sun poured a flood of trembling light 
 into the apartment as the two officers faced each 
 other. The general's martial figure, whose strik- 
 ing face suggested the physiognomy of a lion, 
 was encircled with white locks. Elmbach, on the 
 other hand, was tall and erect, with a strong 
 military mien, which gave him the appearance of 
 a bronze statue. A wrinkle dark and deep con- 
 tracted his brows, while an expression of intense 
 excitement burned from his eyes. 
 
 "I came to present to you my sincerest, heart- 
 felt thanks. But for you I should this day be a 
 childless man," said the general. 
 
 "You do me too much honor, General. The 
 whole affair rests upon an accident." 
 
 A thermometer which hung by the window 
 must have dropped suddenly to zero. An icy 
 atmosphere seemed to pervade the room. 
 
 "I thank you," repeated the general. Elm- 
 bach bowed profoundly. "And if I ever shall 
 be able to render you a service although there 
 can be nothing commensurate with what you have 
 done for me it will be an honor and a pleasure 
 for me to perform it." 
 
 "General Von Geldern wholly overestimates 
 this affair," replied Elmbach, even more briefly 
 than before.
 
 63 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "My dear Elinbach," continued the general, 
 stepping aside a few paces in order to place his 
 helmet upon a table, "you repulse my thanks; 
 but I repeat them. I had hoped I should be 
 able to bring you no greater proof of my appre- 
 ciation than this personal visit. It is rather hu- 
 miliating to me that you persist in standing like 
 a recruit in my presence, while I offer rny debt 
 of thanks for my Asia's life. To say the least, 
 it is unfriendly." 
 
 A deep blush suffused the young man's coun- 
 tenance ; but it seemed as though no power 
 could melt the icy ban which imposed his strong 
 repellence. Not a hair's-breadth did he waver 
 from the sharp line which distinguishes the sub- 
 altern from one of higher rank. 
 
 "My child is all my happiness," began again 
 the general. "Do you think it is a matter of 
 indifference to me whether her dear life became 
 a prey to fishes or not? I have come to you 
 as one soldier to another, to say, I thank you, 
 comrade, I thank you." 
 
 The general reached out his hand. Elmbach 
 drew back. Heretofore blushing, he was now 
 deathly pale. General Von Geldern threw back 
 his massive head, and "the Lion of Barbary" 
 seemed as if it were about to emit a gloomy 
 growl. 
 
 Elmbach writhed for breath.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 69 
 
 "General Von Geldern forgets," he finally 
 said, with half choked utterance, "that as the 
 representative of my family, it is impossible for 
 me to extend a friendly welcome to him under 
 my father's roof. It is likewise impossible for 
 me to be in his presence any other than the cap- 
 tain of Company 5, in the Grenadier Regiment 
 of his majesty, Frederick William IV. There is 
 nothing further to add, sir." 
 
 "-But this is simply monstrous," interrupted 
 the general. "Am I not the injured one, 
 the man upon whom the infamy has been per- 
 petrated ?" 
 
 "Hold!" cried Elmbach, unconsciously draw- 
 ing 1 his hand toward his hip as if seeking a 
 weapon. 
 
 "No/ not hold, Sir Captain. Your father in 
 his day denied me the satisfaction for which my 
 heart burned. I dare say this is familiar to you." 
 
 " My father is no soldier. He has his own 
 opinions of the world. I admit they are often 
 opinions too ideal, but I know them. As for 
 me, sir, no one longs more ardently than I to take 
 up the neglected privilege of my father. I 
 therefore place myself at your disposal." 
 
 There was a pause. The 'storm had passed 
 over the corner of the tree. A white dove, with 
 outspread wings, left her peaceful trace over the 
 rich blooming garden.
 
 70 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 " But, Elmbach, Elmbach !" pursued the gen- 
 eral, controlling himself, and stepping back- 
 ward, "I came to thank you for the heroism 
 which saved Asta's life, and you unceremoniously 
 thrust upon me a challenge. Can anything be 
 more unreasonable? Can I accept it regardless 
 of my responsible position toward others?" 
 
 "Such reasons, sir, might possibly prevent the 
 acceptance of a challenge as inadmissible to any 
 one except a soldier. Was this the case with 
 my father?" 
 
 "Are you acquainted with the whole affair?" 
 asked the general, earnestly. 
 
 "I knew my father; at least I knew that my 
 father's honor has, in some unaccountable way, 
 been lessened since General Von Geldern has 
 recently become the commander of the garrison 
 at Stettin. Lieutenant Von Geldern was for- 
 merly his friend. To cherish such associations 
 in any other case, would be a sacred pleasure ; 
 but here it has simply tended to degrade my 
 worthy and beloved father in public estimation. 
 Who other than you, sir, could have uttered 
 must I say it, with regret the base calumnies?" 
 
 "That I have not done," remonstrated the 
 general, with commendable sincerity, "although 
 I have reason to condemn him. To calumniate 
 is not characteristic of a Pomeranian nobleman. 
 If the city is cognizant of the affair, it is because
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 71 
 
 such things can not be concealed ; and my return 
 to this post which I was unable to prevent 
 has revived old recollections. Calm yourself, 
 Captain, and I will place the circumstances cor- 
 rectly before you ; then deliver your verdict, in 
 God's name, for the first time." 
 
 The general paced up and down the room, 
 while Elmbach, who had relaxed his military 
 position, leaned against the edge of the window. 
 His eyelids had fallen so deeply that their long, 
 dark lashes rested upon his cheeks, and he toyed 
 restlessly with a pen-holder he had lifted unwit- 
 tingly from an adjacent writing-desk. 
 
 "You have doubtless heard of Castor and 
 Pollux," resumed the general "two fellows 
 from Grecian mythology." 
 
 A quick, shimmering semblance of a smile 
 for an instant lighted Elmbach's dark face. 
 
 "Very well. Your father and I long ago 
 personated Castor and Pollux ; at least our Stet- 
 tin acquaintances so designated us. Your grand- 
 parents, wealthy, respectable people, played 
 quite a role in the world. As for me, I was the 
 only son of an impoverished landed proprietor, 
 orphaned at the early age of ten years, and sent 
 to boarding-school in order to prepare for the 
 gymnasium. There we became acquainted. I 
 was attracted toward the tall, pale youth, with 
 his sentimental, languishing eyes, evidently
 
 72 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 because I was his counterpart. My strong arm 
 was able to vanquish any comrade that assaulted 
 him. He took me to his father's luxurious 
 house, and taught me to enjoy ' pati de fois gras. ' 
 Thus the friendship was cemented. Later we 
 had a boat in common on the Oder, or walked 
 the streets, wearing long hair, Byronic collars, 
 and growing enthusiastic over German loyalty 
 a subject, by the way, that warms me to this 
 day. It was during that beautiful period that 
 we received the titles of Castor and Pollux. 
 
 " ' Let us show the Greeks,' said your father, 
 when he heard it, ' what true friendship is. They 
 had no conception of it as we have.' 
 
 "I heartily coincided with him; for, you 
 see, Elmbach, in the fresh innocence of youth one 
 believes everything. We were then separated, 
 your father entering the university, while I 
 chose a military career. A few years later found 
 us at Stettin again. He had become a partner 
 in his father's business, and I an officer in the 
 Kolberger regiment, the different duties of our 
 vocations being no hindrance whatever to the 
 renewal of our friendship. 
 
 "Among others, we frequently visited the 
 family of Herr Von Werner, at their splendid 
 .country-seat, a short distance away. In the 
 winter they removed to the city. This family 
 is not unknown to you, sir. Your mother was
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 73 
 
 an only daughter of this house, and has trans- 
 mitted to you the same black eyes which enslaved 
 me. But, not to digress, I loved the beautiful 
 Louise with all the ardor of a sincere young 
 Pomeranian's heart. Pity that this love had not 
 taken possession of me earlier! It might have 
 spared me many youthful follies. I had impru- 
 dently involved myself in debt, and was re- 
 garded in Stettin as a fast, gay young man. 
 That rumor exaggerates constantly such matters 
 to the detriment of a person need not be dis- 
 cussed here. Louise's fortune would have been 
 to me, at that time, a blessing, and I exerted all 
 my powers to win her." 
 
 The general paused, and seated himself. 
 "You will permit me this indulgence, as my old 
 complaint is particularly troublesome in the 
 spring." 
 
 Elmbach bowed a silent assent, and continued 
 to trifle with the pen-holder, while the shadow 
 upon his forehead assumed a greater degree of 
 darkness. 
 
 "Your father was aware of my love," con- 
 tinued the general. "He protected and encour- 
 aged it. I emphasize the word 'protected,' be- 
 cause his influence was large in the Werner 
 family. It was reported that the Werners were 
 indebted in a business or pecuniary point of 
 view to the Elmbachs ; in fact, that the actual 
 7
 
 74 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 prosperity of the former had its origin in a great 
 favor shown to them by your grandfather in ear- 
 lier days. You know best the truth of this 
 rumor. As for me, I lived in hope, and if I did 
 not take active steps to accomplish my purpose, 
 it was because I desired to arrange with my 
 creditors before asking for Louise's hand. In 
 this undertaking your father was very helpful, 
 and evinced a sincere interest in my affairs. 
 They were very much complicated, but not so 
 hopeless that everything would be ingulfed, as I 
 had reason to expect a small inheritance from an 
 aged aunt, from whom I concealed my condition 
 in order that the old lady might not be troubled 
 by my creditors. 
 
 "One day I was seated in a cafe it was just 
 such a beautful spring as we have this year 
 when the sound of a great tumult reached me 
 from the street. Your father, who was not so 
 proficient in driving, swimming, etc., as you are, 
 sat in a half-open carriage, the horses of which 
 had become wholly ungovernable, and were 
 frantically galloping in a dangerous direction. I 
 did what any other friend under similar circum- 
 stances would have attempted. I threw myself 
 before the animals, between them and a wall. 
 It would have been all very well had I not 
 slipped upon some mortar and fallen. Mean- 
 while, as I lay under the horses' feet, some one
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 75 
 
 secured the rebellious creatures, while I writhed 
 in agony, as my left leg was crushed, and it was 
 months before I was able to stand. In later 
 years the injury was renewed, and necessitates 
 me to play the role of a commander behind the 
 walls of a fortress, while the war-thunder resounds 
 from without, thrilling a soldier's heart with 
 electric power." 
 
 Elmbach glanced at the narrator from beneath 
 his long lashes. 
 
 "I have never known that," he interrupted, 
 turning his eyes upon the injured leg with an 
 expression of deep interest and sympathy as the 
 general rubbed and stroked it appeasingly. 
 
 "When my aunt heard of the accident," he 
 resumed, "she sent me a monstrosity in the 
 form of a dressing-gown, which appeared to 
 have been ordered for a Chinese, and an eight- 
 paged letter abounding in regrets and admoni- 
 tions for my foolhardiness. I lay for weeks 
 longing for the day of my recovery. Your 
 father visited me very often at first. He was the 
 tenderest, most self-sacrificing friend, repeatedly 
 assuring me that I had saved his life. Then his 
 visits became less and less frequent ; he grew 
 distrait, and after, at one time, remaining away 
 from me a whole fortnight, I made inquiries, 
 and discovered that he was with the Werner 
 family. This was nothing strange or unusual,
 
 76 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 for I knew he was accustomed to pass several 
 weeks at a time there during the summer; but I 
 was seized with a peculiar sensation, and although 
 my condition forbade the exertion, I got up, 
 dressed myself in the Chinese gown, and wrote 
 him a long, urgent letter. I disclosed the anxie- 
 ties of my soul, and entreated him to look after 
 my interests in behalf of Louise, as well as to 
 intercede for me with her parents. I had scarcely 
 finished it when I began to grow faint, and had 
 barely strength remaining to close and seal the 
 envelope, when I fell upon the bed and relapsed 
 into a violent fever. 
 
 "During a long, tedious convalescence busy 
 tongues brought to me the tidings of his be- 
 trothal to Louise Von Werner. The day upon 
 which my servant had delivered the letter he 
 had been dismissed by your father with a note, 
 in which he greeted me warmly, and added, in 
 conclusion, that he could not very clearly un- 
 derstand the joke of receiving from me the bare 
 page that he found in the envelope. And tin's 
 was the result of the German fidelity for which 
 I had risked my life! I would not permit j'our 
 father to cross my threshold, and as soon as I could 
 crawl, I dispatched him a challenge, which he de- 
 clined on the plea of his 'eternal, unchanged 
 friendship,' as he deemed proper to express it. 
 
 "As I, in those bitter days, desired to eradi-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 77 
 
 cate from my heart every vestige of the enthu- 
 siasm I had entertained for Castor, I determined 
 to bring about my removal from Stettin, as I 
 hoped, forever. 
 
 "It was a wonderful dispensation that after- 
 ward I should not only marry, but command a 
 regiment here. I have always regretted my ina- 
 bility for active service on account of my dis- 
 abled leg. This, sir, is all that is necessary for 
 you to know with regard to the position in which 
 your father and I stand, in order that you may 
 judge fairly between us." 
 
 "No, sir, it is not all," responded Elmbach, 
 pushing back the hair from his temples ; "it still 
 remains a mystery why public opinion has turned 
 against my father since General Von Geldern 
 has returned to Stettin he who stood before all 
 eyes, known or unknown, as an example of 
 honesty and noble purpose. Some one has 
 known how to revive that old story, to fabricate, 
 to exaggerate, and to calumniate " the youug 
 captain's face became a flaming torch, while his 
 utterances came thick and fast. 
 
 "Is it necessary for me to repeat that I am 
 not accountable for the work of these scandals?" 
 retorted the general. "The rich are always 
 observed with critical eye. Their position is 
 envied, and people are glad to attach anything 
 discreditable to them upon slight provocation, as
 
 78 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 these have surely been. Your father has in 
 nowise been compromised by me. You are the 
 first person to whom I have related this story 
 not to reproach the father to the son, but in 
 order that the son may accept the thanks of a 
 father without answering him with a challenge." 
 
 "It is not possible," exclaimed Elmbach, "it 
 is not possible " 
 
 "My dear sir!" remonstrated the general. 
 
 "There must be an error," persisted the 
 young man, forcibly; "and so long as it remains 
 in doubt, I shall maintain my father's honor. 
 He is utterly incapable of such action. I repeat 
 it, sir; and I declare it to be impossible as you 
 have stated it." 
 
 "Are you -aware, Captain Elmbach, that you 
 only widen the cleft between our families to an 
 abyss by such expressions ? By your insistance of 
 an error somewhere, you imply nothing less than 
 doubt of my veracity. Such a scruple wounds 
 and wrongs me to the utmost. If the life of 
 my daughter did not stand between you and me, 
 I would so help me God ! spare no pains to 
 bring the affair to a decision according to the 
 code of a soldier." 
 
 "I am obliged to choose between you, sir, 
 and my father; but permit me to add that 
 I shall never forget he owes his life to you. 
 I beg your pardon, and trust, sir, you will
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 79 
 
 appreciate the extremely painful position in 
 which I am placed." 
 
 "No, sir, I perceive nothing but your doubt 
 of my veracity. Providence presented you with 
 the opportunity of saving my Asta's life, in 
 order to bridge over the sad chasm; but men 
 are always opposing God's purposes. You de- 
 stroy the bridge arid I as I have not failed to 
 present my thanks with the sincere word of a 
 gentleman I part from you more estranged 
 than ever, justified before the tribunal of my 
 conscience. I have the honor, Captain Elmbach, 
 to take my leave of you." 
 
 The general seized his helmet, and strode 
 haughtily and majestically from the room. Elm- 
 bach snapped the pen-holder asunder with such 
 force the splinters were scattered to the farthest 
 corners of the apartment ; then he called his serv- 
 ant in stentorian tones : 
 
 ' ' Gottfried a glass of water I have ver- 
 tigo!" and, stepping to the window, he tore off 
 his coat. 
 
 Without, the spring continued to weave a sun- 
 beam garment, and paint upon the world its seven 
 rainbow hues. The hyacinths looked up inquir- 
 ingly into the storm-covered face of their young 
 master; the finch sang upon the topmost branch 
 of a plum-tree ; and a gentle breeze fluttered 
 and played fawningly around the temples of the
 
 8o THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 agitated one. Life and joy were poured out lav- 
 ishly by the young year, upon the receptive, 
 pleasure-loving world, in all the fullness of beauty 
 and bloom. 
 
 "There must be an error somewhere," reiter- 
 ated Elmbach as he gazed distractedly out of the 
 window upon all this May splendor; "and if 
 not, then I should " 
 
 He did not complete the sentence, but emptied 
 the glass in one draught which Gottfried now 
 brought. Then he dressed hurriedly, in order to 
 report promptly for service. 
 
 The conclusion of his unuttered words, had 
 they been audible, would have been: "Rather 
 have been buried in the depths of the lake, or 
 burned to death in unquenchable fire." 
 
 Linnie Bergmann had gone to-day (Friday), 
 as usual, to her work. Punctually at eight 
 o'clock we see her ascend the narrow steps of a 
 four-story tenement on the wharf. This part of 
 Stettin embraces the right bank of the Oder, and 
 is bounded on the left by several large bridges. 
 It comprises, chiefly, extensive warehouses for 
 the storage of merchandise ; but there are a 
 number of streets monopolized by the humbler 
 classes for dwellings. Here and there may also 
 be found a few more pretentious houses. How 
 is it that a seamstress should be found in such a 
 locality ? Poor people do not require, or can not
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 81 
 
 afford such services. Linnie has now reached a 
 tall, dilapidated building, whose walls bulge out 
 perceptibly at each side. She passes by the 
 first story, the doorway of which is adorned with 
 a white porcelain sill and a bell. On the second 
 landing a white card announces the tenant's 
 name ; while upon the third a simple piece of 
 paper, secured by wafers, reads : "Alfred Winter, 
 Musician." 
 
 At this point Linnie's ear was arrested by the 
 shrill tones of a violin, which gave, with light, 
 regular springs, a Polka Mazurka. She stopped 
 a moment, not so much to listen as to take 
 breath. Although accustomed to climbing stairs, 
 these hollow and roughly worn steps had fa- 
 tigued her. Still farther up, when the fourth 
 flight had been attained, the loud crying of 
 children mingled with the lively dance-music. 
 
 A delicate girl, who might have been older 
 than she appeared, but who could have scarcely 
 reached her twelfth year, thrust her head out 
 of a dingy kitchen when she heard the seam- 
 stress's footsteps. She wore an apron evidently 
 belonging to a full-grown woman, which reached 
 almost to her feet, while she held in one hand 
 a large, steaming, wooden ladle. A very de- 
 cided and penetrating odor of burning food 
 filled the area, with its rough, cracked ceiling. 
 The little face, now upturned to Linnie's,
 
 82 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 exhibited a prematurely old, care-worn expres- 
 sion, which now became animated with a gleam 
 of hope. 
 
 "I have let the porridge burn, Fraulein Lin- 
 nie," she said, growing painfully red with mor- 
 tification. 
 
 "What a pity!" replied the seamstress, as 
 she opened her purse and placed several pieces 
 of money in the girl's hard, slender hand. 
 "Hurry back, Gussie ; bring coffee and milk and 
 a loaf of bread and a roll for the mother." 
 
 Augusta vanished like lightning. Linnie 
 knocked on the next door, and soon entered a 
 partially lighted room, whose roughly hewn 
 rafters gave it a depressing, gloomy appearance. 
 The atmosphere, in striking contrast with the 
 beautiful May-day without, was musty and close. 
 Did it proceed from the badly whitewashed 
 walls, or from the work which was carried on in 
 this small apartment? 
 
 On the work-bench was a large glass bowl, 
 together with awls, nails, hammers, and hanks 
 of coarse thread in short, everything pertaining 
 to the needs of a shoemaker. The latter must 
 have been already diligently at work, as a num- 
 ber of repaired boots of great size stood beside 
 him. He sat on a low, three-legged stool, hold- 
 ing a small, crying baby in his arms. Another 
 little one, two years old or less, squatted
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 83 
 
 between the boots on the floor, staring with won- 
 dering eyes on his father's masterpieces. Some 
 distance away, partly concealed behind a confu- 
 sion of objects, were several other children, all 
 as yet unwashed, and supplied only with the 
 most necessary garments. They were wailing 
 and weeping at intervals. From the bed in a 
 corner a worn and wrinkled face glanced eagerly 
 and anxiously toward the visitor. 
 
 "Here I am," said Linnie, laying aside hat 
 and mantle, and drawing forth a large, strong 
 linen apron from her satchel, which was imme- 
 diately worn. Then she turned up her sleeves, 
 and looked around, like a reconnoitering general 
 in the field, whose succeeding action is not yet 
 perfectly clear. 
 
 "Thank God this is Friday!" said the shoe- 
 maker's wife, in a hoarse whisper. 
 
 Linnie reached out her hand, which was 
 warmly pressed by the sick woman, and who 
 grasped her arm as a drowning man seizes that 
 of his rescuer. 
 
 "Tell me," she whispered anew, "shall I 
 ever be able to leave this bed? It chafes me 
 here, and it chafes me there, to see the children 
 neglected, and no one to help them." 
 
 The shoemaker looked up mournfully, and 
 met Linnie's brave brown eyes. 
 
 "He does what he can," continued the wife,
 
 84 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 apologetically; "but he can't do everything. 
 There is no one to cook his food. Augusta let 
 the porridge burn," pointing sadly to the hearth, 
 "O take me away," she cried in an outburst of 
 discouragement; " take me anywhere. I can not 
 bear this any -longer. " 
 
 "Still, still," soothed Linnie, and reaching for 
 the infant, that had cried itself to sleep, she laid 
 it beside the mother. This was wise; for what 
 woman, never so miserable, would not live so 
 long as her new-born baby breathes ? The shoe- 
 maker's wife certainly could not resist the sweet 
 suggestion. A faint smile flitted across her 
 complaining face. Linnie nodded her head with 
 the consoling words: "She must be reared yet. 
 What God has created, he will care for." Then 
 she set about to work. 
 
 If she was always capable as a seamstress, 
 she was equally so as a housekeeper. The shoe- 
 maker shifted around here and there from the 
 reach of her broom, and even stood upon his 
 bench at one time to avoid the aggressive mop. 
 The windows were thrown open, the dingy panes 
 cleaned, and the pure May air and light streamed 
 freely and gladly in. 
 
 Before the window stood an old shelf for 
 flowers. It had been left there by a former and 
 more fortunate tenant, who enjoyed the culti- 
 vation of growing plants.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 85 
 
 "O, what a fine chance!" exclaimed Linnie, 
 looking back into the room. "I have often 
 wished so much to bring you a pot of flowers ; 
 but your window-sill is so narrow, and I have 
 never before observed this shelf. We must 
 grow vines here morning-glories, to train on the 
 little railing, and give fresh flowers every day." 
 The children pressed forward eagerly. "But I 
 must sprinkle you first; I see you need it badly," 
 she added. 
 
 Against this no objections were permitted, 
 and soon this work was also finished ; for, although 
 it was not accomplished quite so unhindered and 
 peacefully as the other, a row of shining little 
 faces soon smiled upon the poor mother. 
 
 "Ah! if you did not give us your Fridays," 
 she said, "it would be better for us all to lie 
 beneath the Oder." She held now a bottle 
 of fresh milk in her hand, Augusta having 
 returned heavily laden, and the baby was soon 
 satisfied. 
 
 "Do not talk so before the children," en- 
 treated Linnie. " How shall they learn to trust 
 God if they hear their parents express such sen- 
 timents? With God's gracious help, you will 
 get well, and your husband's work will increase. 
 Do you not know the song: 'The Christian is a 
 brave soldier ?' We must lay hold of the sword 
 of the Spirit, and wield it when necessary ; and
 
 86 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 when the waters of affliction pass over the soul, 
 we must stretch forth our hands to the Savior as 
 Peter did when he was sinking beneath the 
 waves of Galilee and cry, 'Lord, help me!' " 
 
 The shoemaker wiped his eyes. "Such a 
 song is very beautiful," he said finally ; " but it is 
 easier to sing it than to stand in the flood up to 
 one's neck. If you had not discovered us, Frau- 
 lein Bergmann " He broke off abruptly, and 
 began to work. 
 
 "Why do you always come to us on Friday, 
 Aunt Linnie?" asked one of the children. 
 
 "I will tell you, Bertha, and you must never 
 forget it. It was on Friday that my Lord and 
 Savior died on the cross for me, and by his blood 
 and sufferings redeemed me for all eternity; I 
 show my gratitude to him ; and because he 
 regards poor, sick people as his brethren, and 
 has said : ' Whatsoever ye have done unto one 
 of these ye have done it unto me.' That is 
 why I work on Friday for you." 
 
 "O yes," replied Bertha; "now I know, and 
 it is a very good reason." 
 
 "And that is why you will cook a warm 
 dinner for us to-day," echoed one of the 
 others. 
 
 Linnie now began to make the preparations 
 for this dinner. She sent off the elder children 
 to school, and made haste to engage the younger
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 87 
 
 ones in some ingenious play-work. Then she 
 adjusted the mother's bed, and gave her a clean 
 cap, after having refreshed her with some good 
 coffee. She was now lying there very com- 
 fortably, and soon both she and the baby were 
 asleep, the pale, waxen cheeks assuming a 
 rosy tint. 
 
 It has grown surprisingly still in that poor 
 room. The little ones sat in the kitchen with 
 Linnie, whose light footsteps were almost in- 
 audible as she flitted hither and thither. Sun- 
 beams sparkled in the glass bowl ; the sparrows 
 twittered busily without, diligently employed in 
 their artistic little dwellings in the cornice of 
 the roof. 
 
 Discouragement was vanquished. Linnie's 
 modest form had come between it and its re- 
 sults. For many years she had been accus- 
 tomed to spend every Friday among the poor and 
 suffering. 
 
 The children, longing for the warm dinner, 
 came in eagerly, and surrounded the table, where 
 "Aunt Linnie" dispensed the steaming meat 
 stew, which very soon produced good effects. 
 They all repeated in unison: "Thank the 
 Lord, for he is good, for his mercy endureth 
 forever." 
 
 O, it is easy to teach and easy to instruct 
 when word and deed are united, as with the
 
 88 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 seamstress of Stettin ! She had become thor- 
 oughly warm on account of her active la- 
 bors, and her cheeks glowed and bloomed like 
 summer roses. Her mother was right, in- 
 deed, that perennial youth accompanied her 
 everywhere. 
 
 In the afternoon she was again engaged in 
 her original calling, seated by the window, 
 diligently repairing a great bundle of shirts and 
 dresses of all sizes. Her energy was the same 
 whether she worked in one of the elegantly ap- 
 pointed villas at Griinhof, beneath the super- 
 vision of some economical housewife's watchful 
 eye, or here for sweet charity's sake. She had 
 several times been mindful of the noise of sham- 
 bling footsteps and low voices in an adjoining 
 room, and just now a strong odor of tobacco- 
 smoke came through the crevices and keyhole 
 of the door between. 
 
 "The landlord has given that for soldiers," 
 explained the shoemaker. "They are orderly 
 folks, and come in here sometimes to tell us 
 stories and pass a pleasant evening. If my wife 
 were well we might rent the room, furnish break- 
 fast, and wash for them ; then we should be in 
 need no longer; we could live on that alone. 
 But when the health is gone, nothing can be 
 made. Will you not sing something for us? 
 You sing so beautifully, one forgets his cares."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 89 
 
 Linnie hesitated a moment, then began in a 
 low, sweet voice: 
 
 " O, love divine, how sweet thou art ! 
 When shall I find my willing heart 
 
 All taken up by Thee ? 
 I thirst, I faint, I die to prove 
 The greatness of redeeming love, 
 The love of Christ to me." 
 
 "Is it permitted?" said some one in the ves- 
 tibule, opening the door. 
 
 "Certainly," replied the shoemaker, without 
 stopping his work. 
 
 The visitor must be the musician, Alfred 
 Winter, as he carries a violin under his arm. 
 Over a shabby velvet jacket his hair fell in a 
 long, disordered mass (after the fashion of so- 
 called artists), which he flung back from time to 
 time. His face was thin, and the eyes dark and 
 glistening. He belonged to that class of men, 
 who, following an inward impulse, attempt many 
 things, but do nothing regularly. He was found 
 here and there in the large orchestras as an oc- 
 casional substitute, or during the winter season 
 playing the violin for dancing, or endeavoring 
 to form a band of musicians to travel through 
 the country towns, and attend weddings and 
 fairs in summer. 
 
 "I am not particularly an admirer of religious 
 music," he said, bowing politely to the singer; 
 8
 
 90 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "but the voice attracted me, and the melody is 
 not badly written. If you do not object, I should 
 like to remain and hear you." 
 
 Linnie had looked up when he entered ; but 
 her eyes fell, and with the thought, "Well, then, 
 it will do this man the greatest good to hear 
 something sacred," she continued : 
 
 "God only knows the love of God; 
 O that it now were shed abroad 
 
 In this poor, stony heart ! 
 For love I sigh, for love I pine ; 
 This only portion, Lord, be mine, 
 Be mine this better part." 
 
 Afred Winter sat on the narrow window- 
 ledge, now resting his violin on his shoulder 
 and the bow ready. As Linnie began the third 
 verse he softly and carefully accompanied her 
 with pure strokes to the end. 
 
 "O, that I could forever sit 
 With Mary at my Savior's feet ! 
 
 Be this my happy choice, 
 My only care, delight, and bliss ; 
 My joy, my heaven on earth be this, 
 
 To hear the Bridegroom's voice." 
 
 Before they had concluded, a light knock was 
 heard, and after a pause one of the aforemen- 
 tioned soldiers appeared at the threshold. His 
 comrades, four or five in number, were evi- 
 dently closely following. They had been seated 
 by a long table, polishing buttons.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 91 
 
 "If it is agreeable to you, sir," said the fore- 
 most, "we will open the door and hear the 
 lovely music. We do n't enjoy such a privilege 
 every day." 
 
 Linnie's audience had in this way become 
 surprisingly increased ; but as she did not doubt 
 it would be especially profitable for these flaxen- 
 haired grenadiers to receive good impressions on 
 ear and heart, through the simple song, she gave 
 the musician a signal, and sang further : 
 
 "The fullness of thy life bestow 
 On us, thy members here below ; 
 
 Revive each fainting heart, 
 Each sick and wounded spirit heal ; 
 Thy beauty to our souls reveal, 
 Thy light and love impart. 
 
 Blest Comforter, celestial Dove, 
 Thou Lord of life, thou fount of love ! 
 
 Be thou our inward guest. 
 Illumed and sanctified by thee, 
 Thy living temples let us be, 
 
 Thine everlasting rest." 
 
 A profound silence ensued. Finally one of 
 the grenadiers said: "That is really beauti- 
 ful; one might carry it along to the battle- 
 field. If we must die some time, it is better to 
 die pious." 
 
 "Yes, yes; sing us something about death 
 and dying," exclaimed another. "Who knows 
 how soon a ball may strike us in the ear?"
 
 92 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "I should prefer not to sing of death and 
 dying," replied Linnie ; "but, if agreeable to 
 you, rather of what lies beyond it. Out of this 
 bitter root springs a sweet flower, called Eternal 
 Life. People situated as we are, obliged to work 
 hard all day long, and who never have their own 
 wishes in anything ; who often do not know 
 where the morning's bread shall come from, 
 .to such it is always pleasant to hear a song about 
 rest ; and I should like to sing one of that kind 
 for you." 
 
 "Rest," murmured the sick one from her 
 bed; "bad people must first be taken out of the 
 world, and crying children, gnats, and flies ban- 
 ished in summer." 
 
 "Yes, and everything arranged so that nothing 
 shall cost money," supplemented her husband, 
 emphatically. 
 
 "And make our captain a little easier," 
 interjected the youngest soldier, timidly; "and 
 the field sergeant not quite so particular." 
 
 "For my part, I do n't make much of ' rests, ' ' 
 exclaiired the musician, forcibly. "I like to 
 travel about in the cities and country, and play 
 the fiddle to make the girls cry ; but I have no 
 objection whatever to place my art at Fraulein 
 Bergmann's service, if she wishes to sing a song 
 about rest." 
 
 He bowed most profoundly before her, and
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 93 
 
 they all laughed. The shoemaker thought, 
 "There isn't much wanting in the fellow for*a 
 gentleman." 
 
 Linnie consulted him over the melody of a 
 familiar hymn a few moments. It was not 
 unknown to him, and they began : 
 
 "In the Christian's home in glory 
 There remains a land of rest ; 
 There my Savior's gone before me, 
 To fulfill my soul's request. 
 
 There is rest for the weary, 
 
 There is rest for you ; 
 On the other side of Jordan, 
 In the sweet fields of Eden, 
 Where the tree of life is blooming, 
 
 There is rest for you. 
 
 He is fitting up my mansion, 
 
 Which eternally shall stand ; 
 For my stay shall not be transient 
 
 In that holy, happy land. 
 There is rest for the weary, etc." 
 
 Was it a premonition of the sad occurrences 
 which that sultry, long season of 1866 should 
 bring to this little group ? an awe that was 
 pregnant with wounds and bloodshed and bat- 
 tles, pale lips, and distorted faces? They list- 
 ened with spell-bound attention to the hymn 
 so intently, indeed, that the loud, clinking tread 
 of spurs was unheard climbing the stairs, and a 
 visitor made his appearance suddenly. Instinct- 
 ively the soldiers perceived him first, and springing
 
 94 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 up saluted him; then formed in a line along 
 the wall. Captain Elmbach crossed the thresh- 
 old. He had come to inspect his men's quar- 
 ters. His keen eyes flashed over the surround- 
 ings, finally resting upon the seamstress with an 
 inquiring glance. Perhaps a recollection passed 
 through his mind of that first meeting amid 
 the reeds and rushes, as well as that brief 
 but thrilling drama enacted near the islet of the 
 great lake. He exchanged a few words in rela- 
 tion to the quarters with the eldest soldier, then 
 turned to Linnie. 
 
 "I am sorry to have interrupted you. The 
 song has appealed to me. Will you be so kind 
 as to proceed with it ?" 
 
 "Has he, too, a poor, hungry soul? And 
 am I not unspeakably indebted to him?" thought 
 Linnie, as she replied: "With pleasure, sir; 
 what would I not do for Captain Elmbach if he 
 requested it?" 
 
 "You appear to know me," he said, stroking 
 his black beard calmly. 
 
 "I accompanied Fraulein Von Geldern on 
 her journey to Gctzlow. Ah, sir, if you had 
 not been so heroic, her life would have been 
 spent, and then what would have become of me ? 
 Could I have returned to the general, her father, 
 without his Asta?" 
 
 "Enough, enough," interrupted Elmbach,
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 95 
 
 firmly, "there is more spoken concerning this 
 affair than I like. You are willing to sing, and 
 I would hear with what kind of music my men 
 are entertained." 
 
 Linnie turned to the musician; then began 
 again to sing with confidence : 
 
 " Pain and sickness ne'er shall enter, 
 Grief nor woe my lot shall share ; 
 But in that celestial center 
 I a crown of life shall wear. 
 There is rest for the weary, etc. 
 
 Death itself shall then be vanquished, 
 And his sting shall be withdrawn ; 
 
 Shout for gladness, O ye ransomed ! 
 Hail with joy the rising morn. 
 There is rest for the weary, etc. 
 
 Sing, O sing, ye heirs of glory ! 
 
 Shout your triumph as you go ! 
 Zion's gate will open for you, 
 You shall find an entrance through. 
 There is rest for the weary, 
 
 There is rest for you ; 
 
 On the other side of Jordan, 
 
 In the sweet fields of Eden, 
 
 Where the tree of life is blooming, 
 
 There is rest for you." 
 
 Elmbach listened with hands folded upon his 
 sword-hilt. Linnie herself was unaware that to 
 the lovely quality of her voice was added an ex- 
 pression of overwhelming pathos and power. Be- 
 cause she stood in uninterrupted communication
 
 96 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 with the invisible world, daily and hourly receiv- 
 ing heavenly manna from her Father's hand, she 
 was almost unwittingly in perfect sympathy with 
 all human hearts. If it had been otherwise, 
 why would the strong-willed young captain have 
 remained so long to listen to her song? He 
 was still unnerved by the recent exciting inter- 
 view with General Von Geldern ; doubts and 
 perplexities troubled him ; he had tasted the bit- 
 terness of an enemy's enforced pride, and had 
 been obliged to confess that his blunt refusal of 
 expressed thanks had made a reconciliation more 
 remote than ever. All this filled him with dis- 
 quietude. But there was something else : in the 
 innermost depths of his being there had been 
 a sweet longing, and from this he seemed to 
 have been alienated by his conduct. The first 
 beginnings of suffering stirred him like a reek- 
 ing lake, over which the storm clouds have 
 gathered and lie brooding in gloomy calm upon 
 its tremulous depths. He beheld himself as in 
 a mirror; the storm was approaching, and he 
 listened to the strange language of the song 
 of Rest. 
 
 He gazed at the seamstress, while the grena- 
 diers looked upon him in wonder. 
 
 "Thank you very much," he finally said; 
 then after some thought he asked: "Are you 
 related to this family?"
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 97 
 
 She had resumed her work, and the shoe- 
 maker replied for her: "No, sir; Fraulein Berg- 
 mann is not a relative of such poor people as 
 we are. She goes out to sew in many distin- 
 guished families, and is treated by them as an old 
 acquaintance. She comes to us only on Fridays. 
 My wife has been ill a long time " 
 
 "And Friday the Lord Jesus died on the 
 cross for Linnie ; that is why she comes to us 
 and cooks us warm dinners, and mends our 
 clothes all for nothing. Yes, she does all that." 
 
 Bertha, who had entered unobserved, and re- 
 mained staring at the captain with open mouth, 
 believed this to be a good opportunity to air 
 her lesson. 
 
 Elmbach's great black eyes widened with 
 astonishment. 
 
 "Why are you so surprised, sir?" asked 
 Linnie, modestly. "You know the words that 
 come to us on Good Friday : ' I have done this 
 for thee ; what hast thou done for me ?' ' 
 
 No ; these words were not, as yet, known to 
 him. The Holy Land was not farther from him 
 than such thoughts. 
 
 "How is Fraulein Von Geldern?" he asked 
 abruptly. 
 
 "She is as fresh as a lark, and as sound as 
 she ever was from her cradle." 
 
 "And have you known her so long?" 
 9
 
 98 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 Linnie bowed, and continued: "She only 
 regrets that she has been unable to thank 
 you, sir." 
 
 "I desire no thanks," he replied curtly. 
 "But I am glad we have renewed our ac- 
 quaintance." 
 
 Shaking her hand warmly, he left the shoe- 
 maker's dwelling, the children gazing after him 
 in breathless admiration. 
 
 "It is well he found everything in good 
 order," opined the old soldier. 
 
 "He is not very easy-natured," reflected one 
 of the younger grenadiers, confidently. "No, 
 he is not easy-natured, but a man who would 
 jump into a lake booted and spurred if the 
 exigency demanded it. We would go through 
 fire and water for him, and he knows it. In 
 the coming times, I should n't like to be an 
 Austrian. We thank you for the -beautiful 
 music, Fraulein Bergmann ; and when you come 
 again we hope the door will be opened to us, 
 and that we shall be permitted to hold such 
 pleasant comradeship with you." 
 
 " Auf wiedersehen, " laughed Linnie; "I be- 
 long to the military, after all." 
 
 The door was closed. Alfred Winter also 
 took his leave. Late in the evening Linnie 
 finished her work. When she left the house, 
 the children had been put to bed, the sick
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 99 
 
 mother confessed she felt ever so much better, 
 and the day had been one of real blessing. 
 
 " Life, I repeat, is energy of love, 
 Divine or human ; exercised in pain, 
 In strife and tribulation ; and ordained, 
 If so % approved and sanctified, to pass 
 Through shades and silent rest to endless joy." 
 
 WORDSWORTH.
 
 " -sL- *\jx* *sl^* *st" *sL" *L" "Six* "Si** *\L" *xlv* "xL" *\lx l **Jx* "-I" 
 
 riTiTt i 1 1 > i i I~TITTI i TI >~i i n f i~r i f 1 1 TT!~I i \\ rrr 
 
 IV. 
 
 "And now the warning trumpet peals! 
 
 The battle 's on the way ; 
 The bravest heart that moment feels 
 
 The thrilling of dismay. 
 Around- the loved, in shrinking fear, 
 
 Love's straining arms are cast; 
 The heart is in that single tear, 
 
 That parting is the last. 
 
 The courier, in his arrowy flight, 
 
 Gives out the battle-cry ; 
 And now, march on with stern delight 
 
 To fall is not to die ! 
 Already many a gallant name 
 
 Your country's story bears : 
 Go! rival all your fathers' fame, 
 
 Or earn a death like theirs." 
 
 W. B. O. PEABODY. 
 
 do you like this material, Linnie? 
 Isn't it lovely? Bright little rose-buds on 
 a white ground. Little Adolph will 
 look like an angel in it. It seems in- 
 credible, but the clothes you made for 
 him so recently are already too small. His 
 grandma says, 'That child grows astonishingly; I
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 101 
 
 never saw anything like it;' and really, Linnie, 
 two of his six little teeth came in his sleep; we 
 scarcely noticed them. And he stands alone 
 now ; his papa and I shall have to watch him, or 
 he will soon run away from us !" 
 
 The happy mother laughed merrily. Linnie 
 stood near, her face beaming with sympathetic, 
 smiling pleasure. This very joyful woman and 
 mother would be better known as the wife of 
 Captain Von Drambow a pretty little person, 
 in whose house the seamstress of Stettin was this 
 day engaged. Her delight in the child, as well 
 as in everything inclosed by these four walls, 
 from attic to cellar, from parlor to kitchen, 
 spontaneously manifested itself in every word and 
 look, as plainly as the exuberant May-growth 
 under the fostering care of the ever-increasing 
 warm weather. 
 
 Linnie appeared, truly, "to belong to the 
 military." She liked to be here. This pure, 
 fresh happiness reacted upon herself, and com- 
 pensated for what she was obliged to communi- 
 cate so largely to others. Sometimes she grew 
 very thoughtful over it, and compared the pretty 
 little dwelling at the entrance of Griinhofs 
 principal avenue, with an island that Time's 
 stream might gradually wash far, far away into 
 the ocean of earthly illusions, earthly tempta- 
 tions and conflicts. She always felt here as
 
 102 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 though seated beneath an immense lilac-bush, 
 oppressed with the heavy perfume of cluster 
 upon cluster of blooms, which formed a close 
 bower over her head as if to shut out the strug- 
 gling sunbeams, and in the midst of whose over- 
 hanging and intertwined branches there was a 
 nightingale singing. 
 
 The forenoon was rapidly passing. Linnie, 
 enjoying her work, occasionally looked up to 
 follow the bright, active movements of the 
 young woman, who glided here and there, now 
 armed with a busy duster, then with a small 
 watering-pot. 
 
 "What a squirrel ! A happy smile is always 
 on her face, except when the pocket book is forth- 
 coming ; then follows a very serious, thoughtful 
 expression," reflected the seamstress. 
 
 It was necessarily a small pocket-book, and 
 carried around everywhere in the pocket of a 
 fancy little apron, like a loadstone. Wide as 
 the chasm was that separated Frau Von Dram- 
 bow from Linnie's friend, the shoemaker on the 
 wharf, there was one point of agreement be- 
 tween them, a wish to possess everything 
 "without money and without price." 
 
 "What a pity," the little woman usually la- 
 mented, with a light sigh, "when people are so 
 happy, and have such a splendid boy, that we 
 can not save something!" And she really did
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTlN. 103 
 
 not save much ; but when the last day of the 
 month came, the little pocket-book was held up 
 before her husband with a certain triumphant 
 pride, and what remained in it was jingled in 
 his ears with " What do you say now, Adolph ? 
 I have saved that!" 
 
 "I have also saved," he would reply mer- 
 rily, shaking the contents of his purse on the 
 table. Then they would consult over what was 
 needed in the household; and although they had 
 but little, it was always enough, because they 
 loved each other, and from the full-blown flower 
 of actuality they extracted willingly and thank- 
 fully every drop of honey. 
 
 It was incontestably a slight weakness of this 
 pleasant little woman that she loved to pose her 
 husband, not only before the servants, but also 
 before Linnie, as a very stern, exacting man, to 
 whom one must be very circumspect, respectful, 
 and even stand in awe. She was secretly flat- 
 tered that this great, broad-shouldered captain, 
 to whom a sergeant every morning brought a 
 huge packet of sealed letters, on tiptoe, and 
 before whom a whole company presented "front 
 face," wore rosy fetters and chains of her own 
 weaving ; willing, for love's sake, even to lie 
 at her feet and feel her dainty slipper press his 
 strong neck. But she would never wish that 
 God forbid ! It was far lovelier to follow him,
 
 104 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 and sweeten his laborious and often arduous 
 life-work. 
 
 The sound of a horse's hoof was now heard 
 on the street. 
 
 "For goodness' sake, there comes the mas- 
 ter!" and Frau Von Drambow flew down the 
 stairs leading to the kitchen. "Is Christian 
 here to take the horse? Quick, quick the 
 breakfast ! Do n't let the eggs be hard ; he dis- 
 likes hard eggs. Come here, Henrietta, I will 
 teach you how to do them so. Put this on 
 the hearth ; place the eggs in boiling water; then 
 count one, two, three, until ten. Do you under- 
 stand, Henrietta?" 
 
 "Yes, indeed, ma'am." 
 
 "But here he is already." 
 
 She flew up the stairs, and was immediately 
 seized behind the door by two strong arms 
 very carefully for one accustomed to field serv- 
 ice, covered with dust, and a bronzed forehead 
 dripping with perspiration. 
 
 Christian, the faithful horse-servant, witnessed 
 this loving side scene, and smiled over it in his 
 quiet way as he led the prancing bay to the 
 stable. 
 
 Captain Von Drambow was a very large man, 
 with a full red beard, which fell down over his 
 breast, and eyes that shone clearly as two sap- 
 phires. His little wife always tripped along
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 105 
 
 beside him like a child. She had taken his hel- 
 met, carrying it in both arms, like a dwarf 
 shield-bearer manages the weapons of a giant. 
 
 "How is Adolph ?" was the first question. 
 
 "O, he has just taken two bottles of milk, 
 and has been asleep for an hour. No one ever 
 dares to disturb that child." 
 
 "Pomeranian youngster, he begins early!" 
 laughed the proud father. 
 
 They turned away from the bed where the 
 little one lay sleeping, and entered the living- 
 room. 
 
 "Come here," said the mamma; "I will 
 wipe your forehead ; but you will have to sit 
 down !" 
 
 Her finely perfumed handkerchief passed ca- 
 ressingly over his temples. It was very agree- 
 able to the sturdy captain, and the canary con- 
 tributed his quota of the welcome in the loudest 
 warbling. It made a pretty impression to see 
 the beloved reclining in that cozy room on a 
 sofa, while preparations for the breakfast pro- 
 ceeded actively. 
 
 "Isn't it true, Adolph, that the order for the 
 Fifth Army Corps to prepare to move has been 
 countermanded?" inquired the little wife, as she 
 was daintily cutting slices of bread on the table. 
 "So much I do know, that often such orders 
 are received, and there is no war after all."
 
 106 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 The captain looked upon her as she stood 
 there so rosy and happy, and then glanced over 
 her shoulder toward the tenderly guarded sanc- 
 tuary, with its pretty draperies, where little 
 Adolph lay sleeping in his beautiful willow cradle. 
 
 "But if it should come," he replied with an 
 effort of cheerfulness, ' ' in spite of former ex- 
 ceptions, you would be the first to consent for 
 me to engage in it, for God, the king, and 
 fatherland " 
 
 "Adolph, what do you mean?" she said, 
 turning instantly pale. 
 
 He made no reply, but stroked his beard. 
 
 "Adolph, will there be war?" 
 
 Captain Von Drambow sprang up: "Yes, 
 my dear, there will be war ; and I trust you 
 will deport yourself as a Drambow should." 
 He had expanded his nostrils and erected his 
 form as though the little room had suddenly 
 become straitened; but she had flown to the 
 bed chamber, where he heard her sobs. 
 
 "What a foolish little wife you are!" follow- 
 ing her. "What would the king do " But 
 the words choked him ; he saw her lying on 
 the floor in a swoon, her arms extended towards 
 the cradle as if seeking courage there. The 
 husband and father compressed his lips firmly. 
 Did he realize a measure of the truth, that it 
 were better for military officers not to marry?
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 107 
 
 But, surely, the greater the sacrifice, the greater 
 the deed. 
 
 "Come, come, Mathilda," he said, raising 
 her, "this is not the kind of wife for a Pome- 
 ranian soldier. Haven't you always reproved 
 me because I was not religious enough ? Now the 
 time has arrived when your Christian faith must 
 suffice for us both. God is with us ; he will 
 sustain us." 
 
 "Have the marching orders been received?" 
 she asked, almost inaudibly. 
 
 "They are hourly expected, my dear." 
 
 As he spoke he raised his head to listen ; 
 then drew her to a window, where they could 
 look down on the street. People were running 
 hither and thither, crying and gesticulating. 
 There was evidently an ever-increasing excite- 
 ment, which seemed to be attracted toward the 
 center of the city. The tumult was like the 
 rushing of mighty waters, and men scattered as 
 if an immense ant-hill had been ruthlessly torn 
 open by a careless traveler's staff. 
 
 "The orders are here," exclaimed the cap- 
 tain, leaving his wife, and calling Christian, who 
 made his appearance with the velocity of light- 
 ning. In his excitement he vainly endeavored 
 to maintain his position of servant, while he 
 looked with deepest sympathy upon his mistress, 
 who had retreated to the sofa, weeping bitterly.
 
 lo8 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "Bring my trunk from the attic; examine 
 the saddle-bags ; take this revolver to the gun- 
 smith's. Mathilda, my love, what is the condi- 
 tion of my underwear?" 
 
 Bells were ringing without. An orderly 
 brought the imperative command for the chief 
 men and staff officers to assemble at the colonel's. 
 
 Christian sprang after a clothes-brush, brought 
 helmet and sword, and a few minutes later the 
 captain hastened to the seamstress with : " Please 
 look after my wife. You know what to do for 
 her ; you have gone in and out of her mother's 
 family for many years." 
 
 Linnie immediately arose to carry out his 
 wishes. The sun shone clearly in the pretty, 
 cozy apartment; the breakfast was still upon the 
 table ; but the canary no longer sang ; he was 
 holding his little head on one side in mute sur- 
 prise, as if in the midst of weeping his province 
 was silence. 
 
 "My dear lady," entreated the seamstress, 
 tenderly, "this is a dispensation from the Lord*. 
 War and peace are in his hands." 
 
 "He he asks too much from me," was 
 the sobbing, stammering reply. 
 
 "And he lifts up the little flowers which 
 have been beaten down by the storm. Do not 
 weep so much; you will waken little Adolph." 
 
 Frau Von Drambow made an attempt to sit up.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 109 
 
 Her red, swollen eyes looked despairingly into 
 Linnie's good, earnest face, as she stroked the 
 little woman's cold hands. 
 
 "I was only fifteen when I first met him, and 
 we loved each other from that time seven long 
 years. Everybody said I was foolish to love a 
 lieutenant. I knew it, but I could not help it. 
 I asked God to stand by us, and he did in the 
 reorganization of the army. Dear Adolph soon 
 advanced to the captaincy, and then we were 
 married, and my friends sang : 
 
 1 She has spun the golden fleece 
 Seven years in the rocks.' 
 
 I did not really spin that is no longer fash- 
 ionable but I have woven into my love many, 
 many thanks for my dear, dear Adolph, and the 
 past two years have gone like a dream, until 
 awakened by the terrible thunder of the cannon !" 
 
 "Every ball doesn't kill," interposed Linnie, 
 while a shudder passed through her own heart. 
 
 " It must strike some one," argued Frau Von 
 Drambow, softly ; ' ' no, not one, but many ; and 
 when I think of it " she pressed her hands to 
 her eyes. 
 
 "My dear lady, your husband has inquired 
 about his underwear." 
 
 The little woman arose with some force, 
 "Ah, yes, Linnie, you are right in reminding
 
 no THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 me. He must not go away as if none cared 
 for him. But it came with such frightful sud- 
 denness." 
 
 "We must make your husband, the captain, 
 a silk shirt. He can not always have white ones 
 laundried on the march, and a silk one is equally 
 pleasant for heat and cold." 
 
 "Is it? Then he must have one. Put aside 
 little Adolph's dress, Linnie" renewed sobs. 
 "The darling will not be dressed much when 
 his papa is away from home." 
 
 She went to a closet and brought out several 
 garments. "See; this wine-colored one is still 
 beautiful. I wore it the day before we were 
 married. It was trimmed with roses." 
 
 "We will make it up with 'prayers and sup- 
 plication," said Linnie, consolingly; and she 
 was soon by the table engaged in the new work. 
 
 The child soon awakened with lusty cries, 
 and Frau Von Drambow's hands were so full of 
 work she did not dare yield to her trouble. 
 
 It was now late in the afternoon. Steel-blue 
 clouds were piled up over the parade ground ; 
 the atmosphere lay heavy as lead on the earth 
 that was perishing for rain. The apple-trees 
 had not a solitary bud to show, but were re- 
 splendent with full blossoms. But it surprised 
 no one that passers by did not stop to look 
 through the lattice to admire their beauty. Cana-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. HI 
 
 ries and apple-trees became very commonplace 
 affairs. Christian walked untiringly from house 
 to stable, across the yard to and from the stall, 
 carrying little Adolph on his left arm and va- 
 rious equipments on his right, in this way 
 making his war preparations. 
 
 Before the kitchen window the servant-girl's 
 head was seen enveloped in clouds of steam ; and 
 as Christian passed from time to time, he and 
 the little one gave her a friendly nod. The 
 young mistress might as easily have tamed lions 
 and hyenas in her house as these Stettin maids, 
 who yielded nothing to the Berliners in the 
 assertion of their assumed "rights." But this 
 Henrietta wore the same yoke as Christian, and 
 therefore washed with military zeal, rejoicing in 
 the smiles of little Adolph, because inspired by 
 his attendant. 
 
 The captain was still on duty. His little 
 home presented a scene of confusion and dis- 
 order. The former sunbeams, which had always 
 been permitted to play amid the love-tokens 
 scattered about, seemed wounded at the change. 
 Hammers and nails, bits of cord, pieces of 
 paper, empty boxes with missing covers to be 
 supplied, lay everywhere. Workmen came and 
 went ; orderlies carried huge packets in and out. 
 It was like the activity surrounding a hive of 
 bees. In the midst of the rush and hurry
 
 112 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 sounded the shrill clang of the door-bell at 
 brief intervals, bringing terror to the little wife's 
 sensitive nervous system. 
 
 This time Linnie hastened to admit Asta 
 Von Geldern, who came to visit her friend Ma- 
 thilda. She extended her hands breathlessly with, 
 "How is Mathilda? How does she bear it?" 
 
 The latter came out from the bed-chamber, 
 and began to weep anew at the sight of her friend. 
 
 "Wherever I go, I find tears," exclaimed 
 Asta. "It is something unheard-of to say so 
 of papa, but I wager he weeps also ; otherwise 
 why should he shut himself in his study? why 
 grumble constantly down in his beard, ' My 
 king has no use for me ?' Whoever comes in 
 his way gets a share of the war, I can tell you; 
 and he laments over his disabled leg, and 
 it is- simply terrible to be obliged to hear such 
 things. On this account I ran off for some 
 comfort from you, Mathilda ; but it seems I am 
 ' out of the frying-pan into the fire. ' One weeps 
 because he can 't go to the war, and the other 
 because he is obliged to go. That is more than 
 horrible." 
 
 "Asta, Asta! you have no heart." 
 
 '"A young girl's heart is free and light, 
 
 And sighs and tears together 
 
 Sit in her heart, as far from sight 
 
 As an eagle in foul weather.'
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 113 
 
 But I have come to help you, Mathilda, in 
 practice as well as theory. I hoped to find you 
 more like the Spartan wives and mothers. You 
 know they adorned their heroes with garlands 
 of flowers, and sang triumphal songs with them 
 before they went to the fray. Is the blood of a 
 German less noble than that of a Greek? I 
 flew across the King's Plaza on the wings of 
 enthusiasm, proud to see the Prussian flag un- 
 furled there, and the Prussian sword torn from 
 its scabbard proud to be the friend of an active 
 captain's wife ; but but the consort of Com- 
 pany 8 of the King's Grenadier Regiment clothes 
 herself in sackcloth and ashes. Mathilda, stop 
 crying; I am ashamed of you!" 
 
 "If you had such a husband and such a child, 
 you would cry, too," sobbed Frau Von Dram- 
 bow with increased violence. 
 
 "Well, I can not place myself in exactly 
 such a position," pursued Asta, throwing her 
 pretty nose in the air proudly; "but would you 
 have your incomparable Adolph remain behind, 
 to drill the Home Guards and muster recruits, 
 while his comrades storm Bohemia and gather 
 roses ''and laurels ? By roses, I mean wounds, 
 Mathilda, that result from light shooting, and 
 which make our dances so much more inter- 
 esting." 
 
 "No, Asta; I would not have that either. 
 
 10
 
 114 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 I don't know what I wish. The best thing for 
 me would be to crawl into a corner and die, I 
 am so unhappy." 
 
 "Mathilda, Mathilda! I can not endure it to 
 see you so carried away. I am in a state of 
 nervous prickle from unrest, and must have 
 something to do. Let me do something for you, 
 or I shall disguise myself and enlist as a volun- 
 teer;" and she began to sing the words of a 
 military song with a light and sprightly air, quite 
 the opposite of her friend's : 
 
 "The drums beat, 
 
 The fifes play ; 
 My dearest one 
 
 Goes to the fray. 
 The lances rise, 
 
 The people sway; 
 How my heart beats, 
 
 This bloody day ! 
 O for a doublet, 
 A hose, and hat ; 
 
 Then I '11 away !" 
 
 Frau Von Drambow could not resist the 
 song in the manner in which it was given. 
 Asia's sparkling eyes (laughing beneath her hus- 
 band's helmet, which she had seized from Chris- 
 tian's busy hands, and placed on her own fair 
 locks) twinkled in true serio-comic fashion. The 
 baby crowed, and reached out for its polished, top, 
 and Christian whose mien, had been most serious.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 115 
 
 now expanded into his usual long-drawn smile. 
 Asta continued : 
 
 "I followed him, 
 
 And everywhere 
 Went through the fight, 
 
 To do and dare ! 
 We shot them down ; 
 
 We gained the day! 
 I 'd be a man, 
 
 A man alway ! 
 Hurrah ! hurrah ! 
 I 'd be a man, 
 
 A man alway !" 
 
 See Mathilda, this is the way I should look at 
 the affair if I were in your place." 
 
 Mathilda could not refrain from smiling faintly, 
 but faintly as a little sunbeam sometimes peers 
 through a deep, lowering, dripping cloud, then 
 vanishes. 
 
 " It is well you came, ' ' she said softly. ' ' Will 
 you really help me to pack his trunk? It must 
 only be a very small one, and therefore I must 
 select carefully the most necessary things." 
 
 They went up and down stairs together, 
 emptying and refilling this and that drawer and 
 box, meanwhile consulting with the most ear- 
 nest gravity over all, two very pleasant per- 
 sonages, in their inner beings as well as in their 
 external appearances ; remarkably different from 
 each other ; and for that very reason inseparably
 
 Il6 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 united by the warmest affections. Asta was a 
 few years younger than Mathilda. Some time 
 later we find the former seated beneath the large 
 apple-tree, sewing upon the sleeve of a wine- 
 colored silk army-shirt, while the latter was 
 busily engaged in writing. The first excitement 
 over, the marching orders, which swept through 
 old Stettin like a whirlwind, had now somewhat 
 abated, and Captain Von Drambow's little home 
 presented once more a picture of blooming 
 peace ; but the extravagantly beaming expres- 
 sion of merriment with which Fraulein Von Gel- 
 dern had endeavored to dispel her friend's 
 distress had entirely disappeared from her face. 
 She sat there at work as if her compressed lips 
 betrayed only a battle with her own inner self, 
 her hands almost unconsciously uplifted from 
 time to time in a gesture of impatient unrest. 
 Was it on account of the myriads of steel-blue 
 guns with which the surrounding woods swarmed, 
 or the result of the sultry and oppressive atmos- 
 phere of this eventful day ? or was it, rather, the 
 spiritual vision of a noble, striking, manly presence 
 as it appeared lifting her from the frightful depths 
 of the vast green water? She threw the sewing 
 aside, and sprang lightly upon the bench where 
 she had been sitting. What did she expect to see 
 from there ? Perhaps a glimpse of the silver 
 flashes of the distant lake ? This was impossible ;
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 117 
 
 and with head on one side, as a doubtful canary 
 examining its surroundings, she looked up into the 
 tree as if she longed to climb amid its topmost 
 branches. But there were too many passers-by 
 for this experiment ; and she must be content to 
 dream of the sunny water-course, with its reeds 
 and rushes, its sleepy, murmuring waves inces- 
 santly chafing the grassy stems, and to realize 
 the impossibility of eternally enjoying that se- 
 cluded idyl under the willows, amid the sportive 
 butterflies. But she dreamed on ; and the scene 
 drifted out upon the water, with its frightfully 
 overwhelming reminiscences; the green crystal 
 abyss ; voices of enticing water-nymphs ; the 
 loss of consciousness ; the gliding down, down, 
 deeper down, as if by the power of invisible 
 arms ; the pitiless water, with its prey ! Then 
 the terrors of death, escaped by the succor of 
 strong arms lifting her to the realms of light. 
 Further she dared not dream ; but with it came 
 the sweet, unconscious awakening of her first 
 love ; and so deeply was she absorbed she failed 
 to hear an approaching footstep until Elmbach 
 stood before her. He had entered the garden, 
 and, observing the young girl by the apple-tree, 
 would have turned aside in passing. His heart 
 was deeply suffering, but suddenly what had con- 
 cerned the political situation of Europe now fell 
 from his eyes as scales, and the war's outlook
 
 1 1 8 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 had something in it appalling. He who not 
 only lived poetry, but whose every surging drop 
 of life's blood was poetry, which made him, 
 even to every-day, commonplace things, suscep- 
 tible and sensitive, that he should play his role 
 in a world's great drama, amid the roar of can- 
 non and strife of arms, seemed incredible. And 
 yet, over and above all these emotions, beamed 
 constantly a star, to which he lifted his yearning 
 soul in solitary hours, and for whose sake he had 
 presumed to improve upon the King of Poets 
 by obliterating the word "not" in the sentiment, 
 and repeating in the quiet of his solitude: 
 
 "A man does long for a star." 
 
 He had reached this degree ; and now Asta 
 was suddenly before him, in the midst of the 
 luxuriant, rosy maze which the beautiful tree's 
 bending branches wove into the loveliest spring 
 roof over their heads. 
 
 "I have not had an opportunity to thank 
 you," she stammered, beginning to tremble; 
 "if I still live, it is you what can I do to 
 assure you of my gratitude?" 
 
 The blood rushed to the young captain's face. 
 He felt at that moment that he loved her unut- 
 terably ; that he had a sacred riglvt to her, and 
 that an opportunity like this might never occur 
 again. If he should saturate a strange land
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTlN. 119 
 
 with his blood, far, far from her, still it would 
 be worth a life to have once spoken to her of his 
 love, forgetful of his foolish, strong resistance 
 to her noble father; forgetful of the enmity be- 
 tween the Elmbach firm and the escutcheon Von 
 Geldern ; forgetful of the chasm widened into an 
 abyss which separated Castor from Pollux. 
 
 War sweeps over the land like a wave of fire, 
 reducing to ashes many a cozy hearth. Into the 
 blazing flame the swallows fall because their 
 homes are destroyed. Leaves and grass shrivel 
 beneath its glowing breath ; but even as it tears 
 asunder lip from lip and heart from heart, so 
 also does it tear away the husks from many an 
 obstinately held prejudice, many a concealed 
 cowardice, many a buried egotism, throwing 
 them open to the light of day, ashamed longer 
 to hang their tinsel and tatters of a past time 
 around their pusillanimity. And to a secret love 
 it is also like the germinating flower-seed in the 
 protecting earth. It melts the wax, it breaks 
 the coat of mail; and what had never dared to 
 rule, now pushes itself forth and becomes an 
 active life, using its new powers with increased 
 eloquence. Ah ! if one must die, and perhaps 
 soon, he may be permitted to taste the full cup 
 of earthly existence at least once for himself. 
 
 Asta stood before him, the image of life and 
 love, and he spoke ! He would lay no bonds
 
 120 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 upon her, inclose her liberty in no narrow circle 
 by a ring, but wait until he had fulfilled his duty. 
 It was scarcely a wooing, but rather an impulsive 
 outburst of strong, passionate love: "When I 
 return, beloved, and you look favorably upon 
 me, then will I battle for you ; then shall we 
 build a bridge over the abyss, and in spite of all 
 Grecian or Stettin friendship, I will repeat again, 
 I love you." 
 
 It had all occurred quickly, as characteristic 
 of the Prussian soldier, and Prussian duty and 
 service now called him away from this sweet hour. 
 He would leave her, but she clung fondly to his 
 strong arm. Ah ! the sword that had pierced 
 Mathilda's soul was now felt in her own breast ! 
 
 "Drambow comes," he whispered, with a 
 gleam of gratitude in his dark eyes; "time 
 melts in our hands as wax. Let me be con- 
 stantly in your heart, dear one, as you are ever 
 in mine." 
 
 Tearing himself away, he passed on, turning 
 again to look upon her once cnore. She sat be- 
 neath the apple-tree, her face hidden in her hands ; 
 and when he left the house later with some 
 friends, she was still there, waiting until the last 
 sound of his footsteps died away. Then she 
 arose and gathered up the fallen blossoms, which 
 his spurred boots had pressed, for she had received 
 from him no other love-token.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 121 
 
 "Ah! love and pain 
 
 Make their own measure of all things that be, 
 No clock's slow ticking marks their deathless train ; 
 The life they own is not the life we see : 
 Love's single moment is eternity." 
 
 "How pale you look, dear Fraulein Asta ! 
 Has anything occurred while you were in the 
 garden?" inquired Linnie with solicitude, when 
 she entered the house. 
 
 The young girl smiled. "It is only the time 
 in which we live that oppresses all hearts. 
 Mathilda goes around like a shadow, and how can 
 I help feeling it?" 
 
 And yet, only a short time previously, she 
 had twittered like a canary : 
 
 " The drums beat, 
 The fifes play." 
 
 The seamstress shook her head thoughtfully : 
 "Who may know what passes in a young girl's 
 heart?" 
 
 The following day was Sunday, and the bells 
 rang out early all over the city. From St. 
 Luke's at Griinhof, from St. John's and the 
 castle church, from the garrison, and from St. 
 James, came the prolonged soft peals of their 
 festive clang. 
 
 Linnie stood, as in the beginning of our story, 
 a picture of peacefulness in the frame of her open 
 
 window. Her hands were folded. A Sabbatic 
 ii
 
 122 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 calm and sanctity pervaded her being. If the 
 little mansard home was beautiful during the 
 week in order and cleanliness, it seemed to-day 
 to be adorned with an especial grace. The 
 old mother sat up in bed reading a hymn-book, 
 not without a certain rigid propriety, as . if 
 she would have it understood that her occupa- 
 tion was meritorious. In a stone jar on the 
 table stood a bouquet of lilacs and narcissus. 
 Linnie, who now turned to engage in some neces- 
 sary household preparations for she wished to 
 attend the castle church at ten o'clock glided 
 around in a fine black dress, with the grace and 
 movements of a Sunday angel .who feared to 
 disturb the glorious calm. She had risen be- 
 times in order to leave nothing neglected or hur- 
 ried, and now everything had been accomplished 
 without overexertion, something in which not 
 every eager church attendant succeeds. 
 
 She entered the old sanctuary, in whose 
 gloomy aisles the sunbeams came dimly through 
 the stained Gothic windows, and took her some- 
 what solitary seat. With bowed head, she ut- 
 tered a prayer from the depths of her sincere 
 soul for the furtherance of her faith, for a Sun- 
 day blessing and forgiveness of sins, in which 
 was included thanksgiving for mercies received. 
 It was as yet rather empty in the vast edifice 
 when the organ prelude softly began. In spirit
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 123 
 
 appeared those whom the seamstress had served 
 during the week all seeming to entreat, "Pray 
 for us ! Pray for us !" as she presented their 
 names before the throne of Eternal Grace. 
 
 The opening hymns and an earnest discourse 
 followed. The clergyman, imbued with apostolic 
 fire, preached eloquently. He was a gifted man, 
 reminding one forcibly of Martin Luther in his 
 utterances as well as his external appearance. 
 The occurrences of the past week were seized as 
 an opportunity to direct the people to repent- 
 ance and confession of sin. In the fearful 
 gloom which lay upon all hearts the church was 
 now crowded, many being present not usually 
 to be found there his powerful words resounded 
 like rolling thunder. His language, incisive and 
 penetrating, flashed like lightning upon the con- 
 science, exhorting to repentance, as well as pre- 
 senting God's mercy. Linnie listened with the 
 deepest attention. There was very little Phari 
 saism in her nature, and when the call came for 
 repentance it appealed to her own heart first, 
 and only upon rare occasions did she apply it to 
 others. Fighting against the sins which per- 
 sisted in asserting themselves, was never re- 
 laxed. The older she became, the more she 
 realized and recognized the perversity of human 
 selfishness, and bewailed with bitterest lamenta- 
 tion the wicked inclinations discovered in her-
 
 124 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 self. Precisely because she abhorred them, they 
 seemed to obtrude themselves ; and when, by 
 the grace of God, she was enabled to obtain the 
 victory, the recollection of these offenses filled 
 her soul with terror ; but she did not allow her- 
 self to become discouraged. 
 
 "Yet," she persisted, "for the very reason 
 that I am so hateful, I shall stay close by Thee ; 
 for Thou leadest me by Thy counsel, and shalt 
 afterward receive me to glory. I would, in my 
 sinful flesh, be always clothed in purple and fine 
 linen, but Thou knowest best, and I cling to 
 Thee ;" and this she did. 
 
 When she had returned from public worship, 
 the place had indeed been, to her waiting soul, 
 the house of God ; she had been fed from the 
 Lord's table, and had obtained strength and 
 courage to renounce temporal joys. With an 
 earnest, quiet expression of peace and calm, she 
 appeared before her mother. Their Sunday after- 
 noons were usually spent together alone. There 
 was need of spiritual and physical rest after the 
 exacting, continued duties of the week. She 
 was glad to sit down in the old, high-backed 
 easy-chair to doze a little ; then read with genuine 
 pleasure in her "Sunday books," as she loved to 
 call them. 
 
 Shortly after five o'clock a neighbor called, to 
 visit the mother. The coffee-pot immediately
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 125 
 
 received an additional allowance, and soon the 
 tongues of the former old school-mates were in 
 lively motion. When Linnie who had taken 
 her nap, read her book, and welcomed the 
 guest perceived she was no longer needed, the 
 suggestion "to take a walk, you sit so much," 
 was pleasantly accepted. She started out across 
 the King's Plaza, this time turning her footsteps 
 not to Grlinhof, but directly toward the great 
 city cemetery. 
 
 This was her favorite walk. She suffered no 
 very recent sorrow on account of the silent ones 
 there, but entertained always a secret longing 
 for this sacred place of peace. If she had gone 
 to God's house in the morning, now in the even- 
 ing she would enter his garden. Many of the 
 departed ones had been well known to her; for 
 many of them she had made their swaddling- 
 clothes ; for many their wedding and burial gar- 
 ments. Thinking of them now in this silence, 
 she tried to recollect whether she had been to 
 them a blessing or a stumbling-stone ; and walk- 
 ing amid the little mounds, she read upon the 
 marbles the ever-hopeful inscriptions concerning a 
 resurrection. She was soon seated in the oldest 
 part of the church-yard upon a half-sunken stone, 
 which was covered with a profusion of wild 
 growth in full bloom. She began to sing softly, 
 very softly, so softly that it sounded like the echo
 
 126 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 of a real song, "Jesus, my trust," and "The 
 rest that remaineth." 
 
 No one observed her, and the few persons she 
 saw in the distance were all going toward the 
 gate ; for in those troublous times the people of 
 Stettin were at home, either preparing some loved 
 one for the war, or getting ready for the forward 
 march themselves. Suddenly a man dressed in 
 mourning, leading by the hand a little girl, 
 passed from a side path. She arose quietly and 
 followed them. He looked poor, was tall of 
 stature, his face worn, his hair long and smooth, 
 and he wore a shabby black coat. His whole 
 appearance indicated feebleness and illness. The 
 little one looked into his face frequently, and 
 prattled lively, showing to Linnie her profile. 
 She seemed to be four or five years old, judging 
 from her prematurely old expression, and talked 
 incessantly, receiving occasional replies from her 
 father, all of which Linnie overheard. 
 
 "Father, are they dead really all dead?" 
 "They are in their graves, Dorothy. How 
 could they be otherwise than dead?" 
 
 ' ' But, papa, why does the dear God bring 
 them into the world if he makes them die?" 
 "God makes no one die, my child." 
 "Then it is only playing die, and we come 
 out of the earth again like the May-bugs. We 
 have seen them do that, papa."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 127 
 
 "Do not talk so foolishly, Dorothy. We can 
 not compare people with May-bugs. Whither 
 we come, and whence we go, I know not." 
 
 "Ah! but I want to know," pursued the 
 child, with confidence. "I learned much in 
 school; we learn everything there. But where 
 people go when they die we never had that 
 lesson." 
 
 "What has become of the hymns and texts 
 you once knew so well ? They tell us that good 
 people go to heaven, and the bad " 
 
 "Oyes, papa, now I know. My grandmother 
 is there, and my mother too ; but Grandmother 
 Hechterling will not go to heaven." 
 
 "How can you say so, Dorothy?" 
 
 "No," she persisted in the most earnest op- 
 position ; "for if she went there it would be no 
 longer beautiful. I do n't know about Grand- 
 father Hechterling, yet," she added, with a deep 
 sigh; "but I don't think he will go there 
 either." 
 
 ' ' Now, now, Dorothy ! No one treats us so 
 badly at the house. Why do you talk so?" 
 
 Smoothing her dress with both little hands, 
 she said in low tones: "He looks at me so, he 
 frightens me." 
 
 ' ' He is your grandfather, and looking won't 
 harm you." 
 
 "No, not my real grandfather," she exclaimed
 
 128 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 emphatically; "they are different. He looks 
 like a great bull, and I am always afraid he will 
 harm me." 
 
 "Dorothy! whoever heard of such ideas? 
 Where does the child get such thoughts?" 
 
 "Do you know how grandmother looks?" 
 she continued excitedly. " I will tell you, like 
 a real pike, with lead eyes and long sharp teeth. 
 That 's why her name is Hechterling. My real 
 grandma's name was Krause." 
 
 "John!" interrupted Linnie, softly. 
 
 He turned, half frightened: "Linnie, you 
 here?" 
 
 "Yes, indeed, John, I am here." 
 
 They stood opposite, looking at each other 
 in amazement. At the time of their enforced 
 separation her brown hair had encircled plump, 
 rosy cheeks, which had faded in the lapse of 
 years. The canker-worm of human love had 
 entered its chrysalis state, and no longer wore 
 its beautiful color and shining coat, making 
 evident time's insidious ravages. 
 
 The man bowed low, and lifted his child, 
 stammering: "See, this is Linnie; give her a 
 kiss. You can love her" 
 
 Dorothy critically scanned her from head 
 to foot, and finally pronouncing the verdict: 
 "She doesn't look like a bull or a pike." 
 
 "She is too smart for a child," interposed
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 129 
 
 the father, apologetically. "She knows how to 
 estimate people, and she won't have anything to 
 do with her grandparents ; which, of course, 
 must not be encouraged ; for they will always be 
 her grandparents." 
 
 ' ' Certainly, certainly, " indorsed Linnie ; ' ' you 
 must talk to her, and she will get accustomed 
 to them in time." 
 
 They walked up and down the paths together, 
 her kindly glance not failing to observe with 
 pain his attenuated form, which hung limp in 
 his loosely fitting garments. 
 
 "We have not been prosperous," he ven- 
 tured, drawing the large coat over his breast. 
 "Creditors have oppressed us, and children must 
 bear their parents' sins. I always felt this would 
 be fhe case with us. My father once dispos- 
 sessed a poor widow for house-rent ; he took 
 away from her everything, scarcely leaving a pil- 
 low under her head, 'Accursed be you!' she 
 cried in his face ; 'accursed be you unto the third 
 and the fourth generation!' I stood near and 
 she looked at me, drawing the folds of her dress 
 together as she passed, as if she feared contam- 
 ination. I have never forgotten it. I am the 
 first generation, Linnie, and it falls most heavily 
 upon me. My money is gone, my wife and 
 children, except this one little girl, are dead, and 
 I eat at a strange table, where my parents treat
 
 130 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 me as a drudge or an apprentice, grudging every 
 morsel of food we are obliged to receive. How 
 will it be when Dorothy shall need clothes and 
 shoes " 
 
 "Why, just let the old people wrangle over 
 it," urged LinnieJ; "it will do them good to pay 
 out something. One must not be anxious when 
 dealing with such hard people." 
 
 "Yes; but it wrings my heart," he lamented 
 with a suggestive gesture. "I can not bear it. 
 I was never intended for a butcher." 
 
 "Ah no! you poor soul," reflected Linnie, 
 "that you were not an easy, tender-hearted 
 soul, that has been bruised and knocked about, 
 and grown weary with the rough companionship 
 upon the desert of sin. Some time who knows 
 how soon ? the Lord will stretch forth his 
 almighty arms, and embrace you with a gracious 
 call of love : ' Come home, my wandering one, 
 come home ; return to the safe ark of everlasting 
 rest ; there will I care for you, comfort you, and 
 provide what you need.' ' 
 
 Meanwhile the complaining one had thrust 
 his cane in the yielding sand, and leaned wearily 
 upon it, as though he needed some support for 
 his weight of woe. Down his emaciated cheeks 
 flowed consuming tears. "One's own parents," 
 he sobbed, "one's own parents against one is 
 hard."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 131 
 
 Linnie looked in the direction of the child, 
 who was pursuing a butterfly in the distance. 
 "You should be so much better a father," she 
 replied, consolingly; "and we must not forget 
 that we have a New as well as an Old Testa- 
 ment. God's Word can not be trifled with. His 
 blessing never rests upon the miserly and god- 
 less ; but if the son of the godless turn to Him, 
 believing, Christ's blood will change curses into 
 blessings. You will yet experience this, John; 
 for you have never been in sympathy with their 
 characters." 
 
 "I wish I could walk up and down here for- 
 ever listening to you. It would inspire me with 
 courage. My blessed wife, I am sure, would 
 not object." 
 
 "Tell me about her now, and also what you 
 desire to do when you are stronger. You can 
 not always remain with your parents. We must 
 plan something different, even if I release my 
 old bridegroom myself." She said this with an 
 expression of radiant pleasure ; but no one could 
 have spoken more disinterestedly. Her glance 
 was upon him and his child ; her sympathy 
 there also. 
 
 "True love never dies, " he answered, warmly 
 
 4 
 
 pressing her hand. 
 
 Yes, the old mother was right. With Linnie, 
 Hope walked in every footstep ; a sweet trust,
 
 132 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 heaven's balm, flowed from her lips. The child 
 sprang towards her with hands full of wild 
 flowers. It was late when they separated, and 
 the day had indeed been one of profit and rare 
 interest to her receptive soul.
 
 
 
 V. 
 
 "The darts of anguish fix not where the seat 
 Of suffering hath been thoroughly fortified 
 By acquiescence in the Will supreme 
 For time and for eternity, by faith, 
 Faith absolute in God, including hope, 
 And the defense that lives in boundless love 
 Of his perfections." WORDSWORTH. 
 
 )T Captain Von Drambow's residence the 
 day began very early. The morning's first 
 gray dawn had roused the inmates from 
 their beds, after a restless, feverish sleep. 
 Marching orders for the troops, which had 
 arrived all too soon, should be enforced ; and 
 what had seemed to many as a frightful dream, 
 now became a serious reality. Leave-taking with 
 the beloved ones was at hand ; then the march ; 
 but the return was with God alone. 
 
 From the open stable-door might have been 
 seen the noble bay, shaking his heavy mane, 
 and throwing back his head, as if to demand an 
 explanation of the saddle-bags secured to his 
 back. Christian was attaching the bridle, while
 
 134 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 a second soldier busied himself over the pack- 
 horse. .Henrietta, too, was there, laden with 
 provisions for the haversack, not having forgotten 
 to replenish the field-flask. 
 
 The pain of parting was keen to Christian. 
 How gladly would he have packed her ladyship, 
 little Adolph, and the entire belongings, in the 
 officers' baggage-wagon which was in waiting 
 before the door ! But only a small trunk was 
 permitted, which must still be strapped. 
 
 Within the house, all was confusion at this 
 early hour. No one had time for thought or 
 composure. Frau Von Drambow glided about 
 like a little ghost ; the rough hand of war had 
 already stripped her delicate cheeks of their 
 color. Restless and nervous, trembling in every 
 fiber, she found a certain comfort in personally 
 attending to her beloved husband's necessary 
 wants in the field. She clung to every straw 
 of hope, as a drowning man in the swift stream's 
 current, endeavoring, above all things, to evince 
 an earnest self-control. She was a Drambow 
 now, and in her own family, as well, descended 
 from an old, chivalrous Pomeranian stock, hav- 
 ing been reared amid all the traditions of past 
 generations. Where had there been, even one, 
 found unwilling, if necessary, to give up every- 
 thing he possessed, or every drop of blood, for the 
 king and fatherland ? She would be worthy of
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 135 
 
 this race, certainly ! But the constrained ex- 
 pression of despair, the trembling lips, and pal- 
 lid cheeks, moved her husband more than out- 
 bursts of violent weeping. 
 
 Breakfast stood ready upon the table. He 
 pushed it aside, and drew her to his lap, and 
 while she threw her arms around his neck and 
 hid her face upon his shoulder, he seized a Bible, 
 which had heretofore lain undisturbed amid the 
 dishes and plates. 
 
 It was a peculiar spectacle to witness a man, 
 who, either from indifference or skepticism, had 
 waited until now to exercise the priestly func- 
 tion in his own house ; but in this hour, having 
 nothing else to give for her heart's need, he 
 seized the Sacred Book instinctively. 
 
 "Mathilda, listen; let me read this Psalm to 
 you. Read it always when you think of me. 
 It is the ninety-first, ' Confidence in the face of 
 death:' 
 
 " ' He that dwelleth in the secret place of the 
 Most High shall abide under the shadow of the 
 Almighty. 
 
 "'I will say of ths Lord, He is my ref- 
 uge and my fortress; my God; in him will I 
 trust. 
 
 " 'Surely he shall deliver thee from the snare 
 of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. 
 
 " 'He shall cover thee with his feathers, and
 
 136 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 under his wings shalt thou trust ; his truth shall 
 be thy shield and buckler. 
 
 " 'Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by 
 night ; nor for the arrow that flieth by day ; 
 
 "'Nor for the pestilence that walketh in 
 darkness ; nor for the destruction that wasteth at 
 noonday. 
 
 " ' A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten 
 thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not 
 come nigh thee. 
 
 " 'Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold 
 and see the reward of the wicked. 
 
 " 'Because thou hast made the Lord, which 
 is my refuge, even the Most High, thy habitation ; 
 
 "'There shall no evil befall thee, neither 
 shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. 
 
 "'For he shall give his angels charge over 
 thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. 
 
 "'They shall bear thee up in their hands, 
 lest thou dash thy feet against a stone. 
 
 " 'Thou shalt tread upon the lion and ad- 
 der; the young lion and the dragon shalt tliou 
 trample under feet. 
 
 " 'Because he hath set his love upon me, 
 therefore will I deliver him ; I will set him on 
 high, because he hath known my name. 
 
 " 'He shall call upon me, and I will answer 
 him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver 
 him, and honor him.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 137 
 
 " ' With long life will I satisfy him, and shew 
 him my salvation.' ' 
 
 He had scarcely finished the reading when 
 Christian entered with his helmet and sword. Ris- 
 ing to his feet, Captain Von Drambow hastily 
 drank part of a cup of coffee, then walked with 
 firm tread into the little sanctuary where his son 
 lay sleeping. His wife, who had followed him, 
 drew aside the portieres, and, looking in, beheld 
 him upon his knees before the cradle. 
 
 "I commend to thee, O God, my precious 
 child ! I commend to thee, O God, our King, 
 who has a heart for his soldiers' orphans I com- 
 mend to thee, O God, my darling wife, whose 
 beautiful young life will be a sad problem if I 
 am not spared!" 
 
 Did she really hear these words, or was she 
 only able to divine them by virtue of a perfect 
 sympathy? She answered in a half-dazed man- 
 ner: "O, my Adolph, I promise to be faithful 
 to you, even over your grave." 
 
 He had now sprung up, and kissed the child 
 so forcibly that he awakened with a cry, which 
 no one attended, and this had happened for the 
 first time in his little existence. 
 
 The father was now again in the living room, 
 
 and the impatient neighing of the horses before 
 
 the door remanded him to duty. Pressing his 
 
 wife to his heart and lips, he at length tore him- 
 
 12
 
 138 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 self away ; sprang hastily down the steps, and into 
 the saddle with so much force the bay trembled 
 beneath the shock. Frau Von Drambow stood 
 by the window, encircled by the wonderful bloom 
 of this never-to-be-forgotten spring. Adolph, 
 whose tears had been dried, was in her arms. 
 He was still in his night-dress, ' and his little legs 
 were bare. No matter ; a soldier's son must be 
 inured to hardships when his father rides far, far 
 away ! The latter waved his hand to them as 
 the horse galloped off; his face was deathly pale, 
 but lighted by an enthusiasm of courage and 
 will. Once more he turned, and pointed to the 
 pure blue sky with significance; then a cloud 
 of dust hid horse and rider from view. Chris- 
 tian followed with the pack-horse, turning also 
 to look once more upon little Adolph. 
 
 "Take the child," entreated the young mother 
 to Henrietta, turning away from the window ; 
 and the sobbing maid had scarcely received him 
 in her arms before Frau Von Drambow lay on 
 the carpet in a swoon. The little bruised flower 
 had been rudely broken ! Henrietta gave her 
 what attention she could, and more, perhaps, 
 than might have been expected under the cir- 
 cumstances ; but it was fortunate that Asta Von 
 Geldern had hastened to her friend during the 
 forenoon, and was followed by Linnie, who cared 
 for the distressed one, looked after Adolph, and
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 139 
 
 permitted the wound, which no earthly balm could 
 assuage, to bleed in silence. 
 
 Amid the beating of drums and the loud 
 crashing of music, the king's Grenadier Regi- 
 ment once more marched in full royal strength 
 through the streets of Stettin. Even the reserves 
 had been pressed into service. Windows were 
 everywhere open ; white handkerchiefs fluttered 
 from the casements, only to be pressed after- 
 ward to weeping eyes ; an immense number of 
 people crowded and surged in the thoroughfares, 
 swayed hither and thither in clouds of dust by 
 the advance guard of the troops detailed to es- 
 cort the regiment to the railroad station. 
 
 It was a gay, kaleidoscopic scene. Many 
 peasants from beyond the Oder, from the Py- 
 ritzer and Stargardter regions, had come to town 
 with wives and daughters, to bid farewell to sons 
 and brothers; the women carrying huge baskets 
 of home-made love-tokens to be still disposed of 
 in the haversacks and knapsacks of their beloved. 
 
 There was great discomfort in all this surg- 
 ing mass ; but no one complained, and the people 
 were quiet and subdued as if oppressed by the 
 extreme sultriness of the weather. In a corner, 
 on high steps leading to the waiting-room of 
 the railroad station, a group of poorly clad chil- 
 dren were huddled together. The eldest, a girl, 
 was decked out, evidently for the festive occa-
 
 140 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 sion, in an extraordinarily long but perfectly 
 clean apron, which reached to her feet. The 
 smallest of the number, as yet unable to stand 
 on his bowed legs, had been taken in her arms. 
 Every pair of the blue eyes and wide-open mouths 
 stared anxiously for the approaching troops. 
 
 Boom ! boom ! boom ! now sounded from the 
 Schnecken Gate, then from the quay of the Oder, 
 mingled with crashing fanfares, as the music rose 
 to the loudest outbursts, as if to tear the list- 
 ener's soul from his body and carry it above, 
 with itself, far above the pain of parting, hope- 
 less fears, and solicitous yearnings ; far above all 
 questionings of the gloomy, hidden future. Let 
 us, also, forget in the midst of this clangor; let 
 it become stronger and fiercer, until mingling 
 with the thunder of cannon, forward, we are 
 breast to breast with the enemy. 
 
 One of the French horns, who marched at 
 the head of the battalion, strutted forward as if 
 he ruled the earth ; playing with the most in- 
 tense, patriotic enthusiasm ; his blazing face and 
 temple veins swollen beneath the rim of his 
 helmet, which overshadowed eyes of pitchy 
 darkness. 
 
 "Now, Augusta, look there!" exclaimed one 
 of the boys in the aforementioned group (the 
 regiment was now standing in the square before 
 the station) ; "see if that is not Alfred Winter
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 141 
 
 but I do n't find father. Alfred Winter ! Alfred 
 Winter!" cried all in a chorus, waving their caps 
 violently, Augusta participating in the excitement 
 with the corner of her apron. 
 
 "Children, what are you doing here?" said 
 one of the officials, peremptorily. 
 
 "We want to see our father," came from all 
 mouths at once; "our father's name is Schultz. 
 He was a shoemaker, but now he is a reserve in 
 the king's splendid Grenadier Regiment, and 
 going off to war." 
 
 Against such a rejoinder on such a day there 
 could be no resistance, and they were permitted 
 to remain. Part of the regiment, having re- 
 ceived orders to wait until the first battalion 
 should be placed, accordingly stacked arms, 
 and military discipline became somewhat relaxed. 
 The country people and many servant-girls from 
 the city, who desired to give their friends 
 and betrothed little gifts, pressed between the 
 ranks. In the midst of the swarm and confusion, 
 with dust-begrimed eyes, which appeared to be 
 blended with sunlight, stood a tall, hollow- 
 cheeked grenadier, evidently a reserve, as the 
 uniform sat awkwardly upon his bony, fleshless 
 form. Verily the man must feel as though he 
 were in a dream ; only a short time before, at a 
 shoemaker's ordinary work, the knocking of his 
 hammer mingling with the sighs of a sick wife,
 
 142 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 and now, fascine knife on hip, helmet on closely 
 cropped head, officers' commands in ear, crowds 
 of people, drums, music, and the shrill whistle 
 of the locomotive ! to march far away to Bo- 
 hemia; far away from Stettin and the narrow 
 room filled with half-worn boots and shoes, to 
 Silesia, Saxony, Bohemia which seems to him 
 at the end of the world. 
 
 "Father! father!" was now heard from the 
 steps, then a mingled cry as from a sparrow's- 
 nest, and a confusion of little and big arms in 
 embrace; "we are here, father!" 
 
 "My God! the children!" 
 
 Pushing aside comrades, peasant women's bas- 
 kets, and gossiping servant-maids, in a moment 
 he is among them, and has taken little Fritz 
 from Augusta. 
 
 "But how did you get here?" He could 
 not reproach them ; too much woe filled his 
 heart at the sight. 
 
 "We must see you once more, and Fritz 
 would come along. We wanted to bring little 
 Ida; but mother wouldn't let us have her. 
 Mother weeps so much because she could not 
 leave her bed to say ' adieu ' to you ; but she 
 sends her love and this little book from Linnie." 
 
 He took the gift, with a helpless look towards 
 the little brood ; and that which had not occurred 
 to him so forcibly before, suddenly overwhelmed
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 143 
 
 him, how indispensable he was to these little 
 ones in a world where hunger and distress men- 
 aced on all sides. And now, if the wolf should 
 enter at the door of this helpless, restless troop, 
 when he should no longer be with them and the 
 sick mother ! Overcome by these reflections, he 
 failed to hear the command to fill up ranks, and 
 in the general confusion the children became 
 separated from him as the guardsman now cleared 
 away the crowd from the entrance. 
 
 Schultz was pushed into a transport-wagon, 
 where he was received with shouts of laughter. 
 
 "Schultz, have you brought a milk-bottle 
 along?" 
 
 "Hurry up there and fasten a fresh milch- 
 cow on behind !" 
 
 "Schultz, are there any more of the same 
 kind?" 
 
 "Hello, Schultz, did you get the colonel's 
 permission ?" 
 
 The stream of rough wit was inexhaustible, 
 and the poor man only stared in bewilderment, 
 carrying the child in his arms. In the haste he 
 had forgotten to return little Fritz to his sister's 
 care, and to all appearance he would be obliged 
 to accompany the troops to war. 
 
 Augusta, like one half distraught, looked 
 everywhere in the crush for her father. In the 
 carriages near at hand were only to be found the
 
 144 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 officers. One of these, Captain Elmbach, stood in 
 the open door of a coupt, gazing earnestly to right 
 and left over the surging masses. With throbbing 
 heart, the young officer observed the slender 
 form of a lovely girl, whose white dress gleamed 
 in the crowd like a pillar of cloud. She was mak- 
 ing her way along the line of wagons, from time to 
 time raising her drooping eyelids as if in search 
 of some one. What had brought Asta Von 
 Geldern hither ? The answer shall come alone to 
 him, as she stands there spell-bound, the blue 
 eyes meeting the black, in a melting, overpower- 
 ing expression of sorrow and love ! She carries 
 three beautiful roses in her belt, which are reached 
 to him with trembling hand. Her lips move as 
 if to speak a word of parting, but the voice is 
 absent. Elmbach's breast swells with emotion. 
 At this juncture a sergeant springs to his side 
 with: -"Captain, a man named Schultz, among 
 the reserves, has brought a child with him." 
 
 Elmbach looked astonished. 
 
 "Take it. from him, man." 
 
 "Sir, it can not walk, and none of the people 
 will have it. I must do something, for the 
 column moves." 
 
 Asta reached out her arms toward poor 
 Schultz, who was crying out for Augusta, and 
 weeping bitterly in the midst of his perplexity 
 and embarrasment.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 145 
 
 "Give him to me," she cried; "I will take 
 care of him. Do not fear to trust me." 
 
 "On the wharf, No. 25 Fisher Street," cried 
 Schultz, relinquishing the child, with an expres- 
 sion of intense relief; for, verily, this was help 
 in time of need. 
 
 Fritz, in his blue linen dress, was soon en- 
 throned upon the lovely lace-covered arm of his 
 protector. He did not trouble the least over his 
 worn shoes and red woolen stockings, but seemed 
 to appreciate the picturesque effect of his sur- 
 roundings. 
 
 Elmbach smiled. His whole heart was con- 
 centrated upon her beautiful appearance. O, she 
 was not a superficial doll, whose pride of birth 
 smothered her human nature ! She was a true 
 woman, pure, sweet, loving, attractive ; nay, 
 more good. How he longed to clasp her to 
 his heart ! But the procession was now in mo- 
 tion, at first so slowly as to be almost imper- 
 ceptible, but surely advancing. He could still 
 look upon the lovely image ; then it began to 
 disappear, and finally vanish from behind the 
 railroad station as they passed through a tunnel, 
 out amid the pretty dwellings of the suburbs ; 
 farther on, among the waving corn-fields, the 
 blooming meadows, over which the larks fly ; 
 through village and wood, until far out of sight. 
 The roses are hidden in his breast. "Remain
 
 146 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 there and wither," he whispers ; "and when I 
 die, lay them with me. " 
 
 Asta walked away with her charge to the quay 
 along the Oder. She was deeply agitated, but 
 full of courage. Hope, born of a painfully proud 
 enthusiasm, unfolded before her inward vision a 
 bright picture of the future. " He will come back 
 crowned with glory, more illustrious and splen- 
 did than ever. I shall press the laurel-wreath 
 upon thy beloved brow, and then then " 
 
 Fritz clung round her neck. She did not 
 care, and scarcely felt the burden of the child's 
 weight. At first he had felt shy, and had drawn 
 away his little hands from the confusion of her 
 golden locks ; but he became reassured as he 
 looked into her sweet, kindly face. It seemed 
 to her that she had not only received him from 
 his father, but from Elmbach as an especial 
 care ; the approving smile he had given her 
 at the moment was very precious to recall. And 
 so the two went on together, as the wonderful 
 events of the day had decreed ; and in the uni- 
 versal excitement, very few passers-by gave them 
 any attention. 
 
 Asta had crossed the bridge which connected 
 the old city with the wharf, but had not reached 
 her destination, when she observed a great crowd 
 of children swarming toward her. 
 
 "But, dear Fraulein, that is our Fritz. You
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 147 
 
 must not carry him away ; you must give him 
 up to us;" and little Fritz, recognizing his innu- 
 merable brothers and sisters, looked yearningly 
 at Augusta, his little upper lip drawn in, half- 
 laughing, half-crying, and showing at times two 
 rows of fresh, shining, new butter-teeth. 
 
 Asta let them take the child, related how she 
 had obtained him, and said she would go home 
 with them to see him safely with his mother. 
 This produced great joy in the whole troop, and 
 she was conducted in triumph to No. 25 Fisher 
 Street, up the four flights of stairs, to the bed- 
 side of the feeble mother. 
 
 They found her alone with little Ida, no one 
 having thought of her during these exciting 
 hours. A hymn-book lay open beside her. She 
 evidently tried to obtain comfort by reading, 
 "Commend thy ways and fears to God," but 
 had been interrupted through blinding tears. 
 She had found consolation, nevertheless ; for in 
 prayer alone was she able to drive away her 
 despondency. She had not known this source 
 of comfort very long. God's Word had been 
 heretofore less and less esteemed, until it had 
 been wholly neglected. But when "the seam- 
 stress of Stettin" had become acquainted with 
 the family through their repeated misfortunes, 
 this sacred Book had been restored to honor. 
 Trouble and distress had made it dearer to
 
 148 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 these susceptible, needy souls ; and the beautiful 
 simplicity and sincerity of life manifested by this 
 child of God through word and deed, had been 
 a potent factor not only in this humble abode, 
 but wherever her modest footsteps appeared. 
 Schultz and his wife were no longer scorners ; 
 and notwithstanding their ^ discouraging burdens 
 they now tasted God's love in the midst of all, 
 and found him "a very present help in time of 
 trouble." 
 
 Fraulein Von Geldern sat by this poor woman's 
 bedside. She saw the wasted, care-worn face 
 of a distressed mother, unable to supply her 
 children's wants, and read therein the same pain 
 which had so utterly cast down her friend Frau 
 Von Drambow. It was the pain of a wife sep- 
 arated from a beloved husband ; but in this 
 case it was manifested in a more patient and 
 resigned way. 
 
 The sick woman opened her heart freely to the 
 lovable, sympathetic visitor, and related the his- 
 tory of her life from what she designated "her 
 foolish marriage " to the birth of little Ida. Nat- 
 urally enough, the seamstress's name entered into 
 the recital. This was a subject for warm treat- 
 ment, and the general's daughter heard an enthusi- 
 astic eulogy upon her old friend, where she had 
 least expected. Nothing was omitted her kind- 
 ness and help ; her precious Fridays spent in
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. . 149 
 
 mission service among the poor; and now, in 
 this bitterest trial, her own only earthly hope. 
 All this from the pale lips, with eyes suffused, 
 and trembling utterance. 
 
 Asta, whose heart had so recently been 
 plowed up by the storm of an awakening love, 
 received the story with an answering sympathy, 
 that, like a little golden seed, struggled upward 
 and became a bud of promise. With her fresh, 
 energetic nature, it was impossible to be other- 
 wise ; and whatever she undertook was always con- 
 tinued to perfect completion. She was glad to 
 hear Linnie praised, and was thrilled all the more, 
 on account her own inertia, by the recital of her 
 old friend's zealous endeavors. Like a long line 
 of reproachful spirits appeared before her mental 
 horizon the expensive, and often useless, toilet 
 appendages in which she had always indulged. 
 Gloves, worn twice perhaps, then cast aside; 
 perfumery, scarfs, flowers, ribbons all these rose 
 up against her, as well as the childish importunity 
 with which she had so often, coaxed additional 
 allowances from her indulgent father for whims 
 and caprices, either by kisses or a kind of croco- 
 dile tears ! And yet while she had snatched in- 
 numerable good from the full horn of happiness, 
 only to squander it with thoughtless hand, little 
 Fritz had been sitting in this gloomy corner, 
 without sunshine, in the midst of old boots,
 
 150 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 crying for a crust. But it should all be dif- 
 ferent! Asta Von Geldern resolved in this hour 
 to make a wide breach between the past and 
 the present. 
 
 Leaving the contents of her pocket-book in 
 Frau Schultz's hands, and promising to see her 
 again, that nothing should be wanting, she left 
 the shoemaker's dwelling hurriedly, knowing that 
 her friend Mathilda needed her comfort and 
 presence this day more than ever. 
 
 Crossing St. James Place, she encountered 
 the seamstress who had not been engaged to 
 work anywhere. There was too much disquiet 
 and grief, to sit down calmly with needle and 
 shears. They walked on to Birch Avenue, and 
 found Frau Von Drambow, as already described. 
 
 The day that had witnessed the marching 
 forth of the troops to war was now passed. The 
 people had expended much of their bitterness, 
 and had returned to their usual every-day routine 
 of business. 
 
 The present month of June was exception- 
 ally hot and dry. A yellow glare overspread 
 the city, and everybody moved along the streets 
 feebly and languidly. In the nooks and corners 
 of the unkempt little yards lurked disagree- 
 able odors, perceptible to passers-by. It was 
 perhaps difficult to divine what was the matter;
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 151 
 
 but there was felt an overpowering longing 
 for fresh air from the meadows, or from a sea 
 whose trembling breakers should give to this 
 arid atmosphere vibrations of moisture, or for 
 cool springs and forest shade. But few were 
 rich or independent! enough to travel whither 
 these desires led. Most of the inhabitants of 
 Stettin were obliged to remain in the city, while 
 the open declaration of war, which had been 
 promulgated on the I4th of June, made a sojourn 
 at the various watering-places impossible. 
 
 Linnie Bergmann was once more in General 
 Von Geldern's dwelling, employed to sew to- 
 day for Fraulein Mylitta Von Kleewitz, his sis- 
 ter-in-law. She is standing in this lady's room 
 before an easy-chair, upon which reclined her 
 ladyship, in order to receive instructions. A 
 wasted face, to which mysterious toilet appli- 
 ances gave an unnatural varnish in order to simu- 
 late youth, was encircled by long thin locks. It 
 was like a painted, withered rose, but badly 
 painted, and vainly varnished, its furrows and 
 folds marked with obtrusive wrinkles ; for its 
 owner 'had grown old, although loudly protesting 
 against it. 
 
 The door leading to Asta's beautiful boudoir 
 stood open. She was sitting there, surrounded 
 with a gigantic heap of silk dresses, coats, finery, 
 etc. She nodded and laughed to attract Lin-
 
 152 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 nie's attention ; but Fraulein Mylitta had raised 
 her forefinger with a significance that demanded 
 the strictest consideration : 
 
 "I also wish " Then followed an impos- 
 sible direction concerning the alteration of a 
 gown. Linnie modestly suggested some changes, 
 whereupon Fraulein Mylitta tapped her foot 
 impatiently on the smoothly polished floor: 
 
 "You will make it as I direct, Fraulein 
 Bergmann." 
 
 "But, aunt, they don't make them so," 
 interposed Asta. 
 
 "I will take care of that, dear Asta," empha- 
 sized her ladyship, turning her chair so that her 
 back alone was visible to the audacious niece, 
 in the midst of her gay fripperies. 
 
 "See here, Fraulein Bergmann," she pur- 
 sued for it was only when Aunt Mylitta was ill 
 and especially lenient that Asta, or any one else, 
 ventured to say "Linnie" in the old lady's pres- 
 ence "see, this is a clearing out, as you call it, 
 and I am doing it thoroughly and really." 
 
 "She is possessed with some insanely extrava- 
 gant idea," explained her ladyship, positively. 
 "The aquarium role has been played, and now 
 the families of our reserves and militia are tak- 
 ing its place. She will only exist, now, for 
 these. I have advised her to contribute her 
 share, and allow the societies to do according to
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 153 
 
 their experienced and more sensible ways; but 
 when has she ever heeded my counsels? She 
 must always argue from her stand-point, and then 
 begin to rummage among her things." 
 
 Linnie approached the doorway, and looked 
 with astonishment upon her darling. 
 
 "Linnie, I have begun a new life," exclaimed 
 Asta. "I herewith empty myself of all super- 
 fluities; I shall never spend another penny for 
 myself. You may laugh, but you see I am in 
 earnest; yes, earnestness is at the back of it." 
 
 "Idiocy is at the back of it," retorted the 
 aunt, who was now really angry, while two red 
 spots burned upon her strong, high-cheeked 
 bones. "See there! out of her silk gowns she 
 will make dresses for the wives of the shoe- 
 makers and tailors, and wrap their children's 
 coarse bodies in her embroidered sashes. Did 
 any one ever hear of anything so preposterous ?" 
 
 "You are saying what is untrue, Aunt My- 
 litta," replied Asta, rebelliously ; and she would 
 have continued but for meeting Linnie's soft- 
 brown, reproving eyes. Standing up, she shook 
 her garments as a dove shakes off the drops of 
 a light shower, and added gently: "I only 
 thought, Linnie, that Frau Schultz might make 
 use of a black silk for church and communion 
 services, and surely a simple white dress for little 
 Fritz would not be too much."
 
 154 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "Princesses' wear," interjected her ladyship, 
 satirically; then turning to the seamstress, she 
 continued: "Perhaps I might have it re-bound. 
 That doesn't matter, eh? Shall the sleeve have 
 something pretty?" 
 
 "The white dress and the silk gown, Frau- 
 lein Asta," said Linnie, "you would better keep; 
 they are expensive, and perhaps might make 
 these poor people only doubly discontented in 
 the future." 
 
 "What shall I do with my frippery, then?" 
 exclaimed the young girl, impatiently. "I have 
 decreed to sacrifice them on the altar of my 
 fatherland." 
 
 "There will be plenty of use for them," ar- 
 gued Fraulein Mylitta, who loved economy, 
 although she was very rich. 
 
 "If you will permit me to advise you," an- 
 swered Linnie, "I know a person who belongs 
 to the theater, and who would pay a good price 
 for them. General Von Geldern's daughter could 
 not very well dispose of them, but I could sell 
 them in her stead." 
 
 "Splendid! That shall be done. Frederick 
 shall pack them in a laundry basket, and carry 
 them where you direct." 
 
 "Asta, I warn you," threatened Aunt My- 
 litta. "Your papa is not much in the humor of 
 giving at present, and his terrible decree will be
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 155 
 
 heard as long as the war lasts. You will be 
 made to feel it, and do n't reckon upon my 
 purse, dear child!" This was pronounced with 
 exceeding impressiveness. 
 
 But a very short time previously Asta had 
 thrown her pretty nose in the air over her lady- 
 ship's expression ; but now there was something 
 new germinating in her soul. She contented 
 herself by looking at her aunt seriously, and 
 only said : "I shall never wear ornaments again." 
 
 " Listen to her ! She is crack-brained. I fear 
 she will infect me with her fanaticism. I long 
 for my chocolate." 
 
 Linnie rang for the maid, while she sat by 
 the window niche with her work, in order that 
 Fraulein Mylitta might witness its progress with 
 her own eyes. 
 
 Not long after, the general entered, as stately 
 and imposing as usual. To Linnie alone did his 
 countenance appear a trifle depressed. She dis- 
 cerned a deeply pained expression upon the 
 bronzed face and white-bearded lips. It chafed his 
 very soul to know that the colors floated afar, and 
 the top of the standard sparkled in the distant 
 sunlight, wliile he, a Geldern, sat in safety be- 
 hind garrison walls, neither missed nor wanted 
 by his heroic king. A sword thrust into his 
 side would have been less painful. He had 
 begged even to be permitted to go in any
 
 156 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 position; but the king had replied: "Each one 
 serves in his place, and your place is at home." 
 He carried a number of Stettin newspapers, and 
 his military cloak was only partly thrown across 
 his shoulders. 
 
 Linnie admired the stalwart chest, covered with 
 its finely embroidered shirt. Splendid physiques 
 had these old Pomeranians. 
 
 "There is a fearful mortality among young 
 children this season," he remarked, throwing the 
 papers on a table. " Frau Von Drambow must 
 take care of Adolph. Do you hear? do you 
 understand, Asta?" 
 
 "O, Adolph is the healthiest child in all 
 Stettin, papa." 
 
 The general emitted a sort of growl. "Yes- 
 terday, as I was crossing the long bridge," he 
 continued, pacing, meanwhile, up and down the 
 apartment, "I saw a little vagabond double him- 
 self up and cling to the railing until he was per- 
 fectly blue in the face. They say a mild sum- 
 mer complaint prevails in the city; but I fear, 
 I declare " 
 
 Asta had now approached him and laid her 
 hand on his arm. She pointed significantly to 
 her aunt. The general cleared his throat, and 
 made an expressive grimace. "Still," he con- 
 tinued adroitly, "it must be as they say, for they 
 certainly know better than I do."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 157 
 
 "What in the world is it, then?" exclaimed 
 the sister-in-law, excitedly, and not so easily 
 baffled ; " I beg you, for Heaven's sake, brother, 
 what is it then ? Only the lowest classes are 
 troubled with such diseases, and they have them- 
 selves to blame for it; they are so untidy and 
 careless." 
 
 "Sister Mylitta, I think a soldier and his 
 family do well to look at such an affair cor- 
 rectly. I have come in expressly to talk it over 
 with you. Never mind your winking, Asta ; 
 and you, Mylitta, compose yourself. If it please 
 God to send us a plague, we must not be afraid 
 to discuss it. We have had the cholera in 
 Stettin once before, and I think it very probable 
 we shall have it again." 
 
 "It will only be cholera morbus," insisted the 
 old lady obstinately; "and we have that every 
 summer." 
 
 "Neither cholera morbus nor cholera infan- 
 tum, but the real Asiatic pest, and the people 
 will perish like flies. Nothing avails to conceal 
 it, or deceive one's self; but you need not worry. 
 I wrote to Cousin Hans a few days ago, and 
 announced your coming. In the country, and 
 fir-forests of Neumark you will not be in any 
 danger." 
 
 Fraulein Mylitta breathed more freely. Asta 
 threw her arms around her father's neck : " I will
 
 158 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 not leave my father never! Where you are I 
 shall also be." 
 
 He loosened the lovely, ensnaring fetters 
 somewhat forcibly, and looking away toward 
 his sister-in-law, said firmly: "The child also 
 goes. I can not have her in the way." 
 
 "But I shall not do it; I certainly will not 
 do it!" She stood up erect and very pale. "I, 
 an only daughter, leave my old father ! I, a 
 Geldern, take a journey for fear of cholera, 
 leaving my old father behind !" 
 
 "Old!" re-choed the general, fiercely. " Old, 
 do you call me ? If I did not have this accursed 
 leg, I should be on the march to day, and hold my 
 ears stiffer than many a lieutenant, I tell you." 
 
 She did not heed his interruption, but con- 
 tinued with a shudder: "What if you were 
 taken ill, papa, and I could not be here to 
 care for you?" 
 
 "You two dispute again about trifles," 
 snapped Fraulein Mylitta ; "there is n't a doubt 
 that you would take leave of him as soon as the 
 war is ended. Another commander would soon 
 be found." Turning to the general: "Take a 
 furlough, and go with us ; that will compromise 
 matters." 
 
 The old soldier replied, with a scornful smile : 
 "It is well that the emancipation of women has 
 not made sufficient progress to exert its authority
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 159 
 
 over the army; his majesty, the king, would be 
 rather badly served. I think he expects to find 
 me here in my place, certainly while the enemy 
 menaces. It does not yet appear to me that I 
 am of no use longer in the world. Do n't make 
 such a silly face, Asta; or perhaps you would 
 find pleasure in seeing your father a deserter?" 
 
 In spite of his resistance she embraced him 
 anew, holding him with a death-like grip, her 
 face close to his, while two round drops hung 
 upon her eyelids. 
 
 "Father," she argued, impetuously, "do you 
 recollect what you said to me on my confirma- 
 tion-day ? We came out of the church, and you 
 gave me your arm as to a great lady, and led me 
 up stairs to my own pretty room : ' That is your 
 mother's sewing-table, and this is her desk. I 
 have preserved them with sacred care for you ; 
 but your mother lies in her grave, and God has 
 called you to take her place. Do not forget it, 
 my child. I expect love and joy from you ; I 
 expect to find in you a good daughter. ' All this 
 you said to me, papa, and you see I have not for- 
 gotten it ; and now, with my mother in her grave, 
 I can not leave the place where God has called 
 me; or should you rather see me a deserter?" 
 
 She spoke hurriedly, warmly, almost breath- 
 lessly, as if exerting all her eloquence in the 
 defense.
 
 160 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 Over his stern features moved great billows 
 of emotion. He freed himself from her grasp 
 with a strange commingling of admiring pride 
 and troubled perplexity ; for she had vanquished 
 him with his own weapons, and he was com- 
 pelled unwillingly to surrender. 
 
 The rolling of carriage- wheels now inter- 
 rupted them. Soon after the door-bell was heard 
 to ring with a loud, urgent clang, and the door 
 to the Bel-ttage was thrown open by a maid, who 
 rushed in unceremoniously, crying: "Ah, your 
 ladyship, I am half dead from fright. Our 
 Frederika, the cook, has cholera. They have 
 just brought her here in a cab. She fell down 
 at market, and tumbled into a barrel of peas and 
 turnips belonging to a huckster, who says she 
 will claim damages what kind of a person can 
 she be ? and now she lies down there on the 
 floor, without even a pillow under her head, and 
 the cab-driver is up and off, and she has cramps 
 and O, sir, what shall we do?" 
 
 The general, in this terrible moment, looked 
 more than ever like a lion presenting his broad, 
 open breast in fearless opposition to the hunter. 
 With strong hand, he pushed his daughter in the 
 window-niche behind the portieres and flowers, 
 as if to hide her from the view of fierce marau- 
 ders invading his threshold. 
 
 "Stay there," he thundered, "and do not
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 161 
 
 stir from the spot ! You, there, Katherine and 
 Getta, instead of howling and alarming the neigh- 
 bors, go down and put the cook to bed." 
 
 Fraulein Mylitta arose, and seized his arm : 
 "But you surely do not wish to keep the crea- 
 ture in the house?" she cried. 
 
 "What else can be done? No hospital will 
 receive her, and the cholera hospitals, although 
 established, are not yet equipped." 
 
 "That will force us to ruin!" entreated the 
 thoroughly frightened woman. 
 
 "What can I do? Even if I desired to have 
 her privately cared for, it is probable people 
 would simply receive the money and leave the 
 poor woman to die in her helplessness. She has 
 served us faithfully, and often nursed me when 
 my leg was injured; I think now we should care 
 for her. Compose yourself, Mylitta ; God is over 
 us! Where is your maid?" 
 
 But Katherine had immediately thrown her- 
 self on the floor in a paroxysm of terror, scream- 
 ing : "I can not take care of a cholera patient, 
 if I were paid thousands of dollars for my serv- 
 ices ! O, it is terrible that we must all be here 
 together !" 
 
 "A man among women-folks is like one. 
 
 betrayed and sold into bondage," muttered the 
 
 general. "Is there no one here to depend 
 
 upon? Where is Frederika? If there is no 
 
 14
 
 162 THE SEAMSTRESS Of STETTIN. 
 
 one else, I, myself, will" and he sprang down 
 stairs as fast as his disabled leg permitted. 
 
 In the basement the servants were huddled 
 together in consternation, not one making an 
 effort to relieve the sufferer, who lay on the floor 
 in violent cramps. But she was not alone. Lin- 
 nie was there, kneeling beside her, having already 
 placed a pillow under her head, no one knew 
 how or when, she had gone so quickly. 
 
 The general, with the butler's assistance, soon 
 had the poor creature in bed, while Linnie re- 
 mained near to give what relief was possible. 
 A physician was immediately summoned, and the 
 general returned to his daughter and sister. 
 
 Asta remained obediently where he had placed 
 her. She had turned her back upon the old lady, 
 who stood by the door of her room like a 
 frightened bird, ready to fly, no matter where, 
 only far, far away from this death specter. She 
 had seized a cologne-bottle, and poured its con- 
 tents over herself. 
 
 "Poor, good Frederika!" said the general; 
 "it is genuine cholera. I will give you some 
 hasty directions. The principal thing is to remain 
 calm, keep the feet warm, and eat moderately. 
 Nothing more can be done." 
 
 "Linnie is with her," said Asta. 
 
 "Yes, that girl is worth her weight in gold. 
 She never thinks of herself, always of others."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 163 
 
 "And yet, papa, she is the sole support of 
 her helpless mother, and places herself in jeop- 
 ardy while the Gelderns and the Kleewitzes are 
 thrust behind flower-stands and portieres, inhal- 
 ing essence of cologne. I do not like that, dear 
 papa, nor should you !" 
 
 "I can not personally attend to my cook," 
 he replied unamiably ; "that is a woman's 
 business." 
 
 " Yes, indeed, a woman's; and the business of 
 a woman in the house permit me to do, papa. 
 If I had been a son, you would not have withheld 
 me from the war; it is a time for every one to 
 do his duty." 
 
 The general sighed deeply. It was difficult 
 for him to send his child there, but he was 
 obliged to confess she was right. "Well, go, 
 my daughter," he consented, his massive brow 
 beclouded with suffering. 
 
 ' ' I am not at all afraid, dear papa, " she remon- 
 strated bravely; "then, you know, there is no 
 danger, and really the physicians are not wholly 
 agreed whether it is contagious or not." Nod- 
 ding cheerfully, she left the room. 
 
 "That is hard," he murmured, pacing the 
 room restlessly; "but I could not oppose her in 
 this point. I wish I had sent her away. Now 
 it is too late." 
 
 "Whoever says A, must say B," retorted
 
 1 64 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 Fraulein Mylitta, spitefully. "You should have 
 followed my advice, and not allowed the sick 
 creature to remain here. I would willingly assist 
 Asta, but my nerves will not bear such a - 
 strain. She has always had wonderful powers of 
 endurance." 
 
 "My brave girl! and she also loves her 
 beautiful young life !" The father's voice trem- 
 bled with deepest emotion as he walked to the 
 window. " O God," he entreated, "protect her, 
 protect my only child ; take the old man, for 
 whom the king has no use, but spare my Asta !" 
 He continued to gaze out of the window as if to 
 find comfort there ; but the outlook presented 
 little encouragement. The Oder valley beyond 
 was incased in 'yellow gloom; a swallow flew 
 feebly by, fell to the ground, and remained lying 
 there. "Terrible !" he sighed ; "and yet it will 
 become more and more terrible. God above 
 alone can help us. He will deliver us. Pack 
 your satchel, Mylitta, as quickly as possible. I 
 will procure the services of a reliable housekeeper 
 and nurse; but you and the child must go." 
 
 It was now afternoon ; and the storm that had 
 shaken General Von Geldern's home during the 
 forenoon had passed over. There was deep si- 
 lence everywhere. In Frederika's room the win- 
 dow was open, and on the bed, converted into a 
 pall, lay the remains of a human form in stony
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 165 
 
 calm. All was over ; the agonizing shrieks, the 
 anxious hurrying to and fro, the fearful struggle, 
 begun by the creature, only to be defeated by 
 the stronger for his prey, ended ! She had filled 
 her appointed place as well as she could, which 
 can be said of but few ; now she had gone to 
 her reward, no longer to struggle amid toil and 
 suffering. 
 
 Asta had been very brave. Even Linnie had 
 not been able to withstand her determined will 
 during this sad experience, but looked with as- 
 tonishment upon the changed character of the 
 young girl, repeating to herself: "She has be- 
 come a woman so thoroughly, who knows what 
 may have happened to her?" 
 
 The lovely young woman, herself, thought of 
 her splendid hero. O, would he not smile as- 
 sentingly, as he had done when she received 
 little Fritz, and look upon her with proud, beam- 
 ing eyes, to behold her fulfillment of duty? 
 Would he not say, "She is worthy of my love ;" 
 for was he not a heroic soldier, animated by a 
 sense of duty, not only when he rescued her 
 from the depths, but when he tore himself away 
 that sweet farewell hour? 
 
 But it was not love alone that made her 
 steadfast. She desired to emulate Linnie's faith 
 and works, to learn by following her footsteps 
 the secret of her power and happiness ; and
 
 166 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 in order to do this she would not only climb the 
 heights, but descend to depths, casting aside 
 every frivolous, superficial aim that idleness en- 
 gendered and empty pleasure invited, in order 
 resolutely to begin the earnest of life. 
 
 At her father's request she had immediately 
 changed her clothing, and was now seated in her 
 boudoir among the flowers. Linnie entered with 
 coffee. 
 
 "I should like to read something about eter- 
 nal peace, Linnie. To day's occurrences have 
 made me weary. Find something in the hymn- 
 book." 
 
 Linnie opened its pages at 
 
 " There is rest for the weary, 
 There is rest for you ;'' 
 
 then turned away from her darling, and re- 
 sumed her sewing. A reliable woman had been 
 obtained as housekeeper, and the dead removed 
 during the early evening to the city vault. Lin- 
 nie was glad to busy herself again with needle 
 and thread ; she needed the soothing, quieting 
 influence. But this was only permitted a short 
 time. The door leading to the small adjoin- 
 ing room was violently opened, and the general 
 made his appearance. 
 
 "Please come here," he said; "I have lost a 
 button, and you understand best how to secure 
 another."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 167 
 
 Seizing her strongest thread, she entered the 
 apartment where the general was accustomed to 
 work. It was a lofty, severely appointed place, 
 hung with dark curtains, and furnished in heavy 
 oak. The walls were covered with various wea- 
 pons and large cards ; adjoining this office or 
 study was a small bed chamber. 
 
 "See; this is where the button is needed," 
 pointing to the left side of his coat. "For God's 
 sake, be quick; I can not stand very long." 
 
 Threading her needle, the seamstress looked 
 up in alarm. His lips were pale, and his beauti- 
 fully formed hands, which a sculptor might have 
 modeled, appeared insensible, with their finger- 
 nails already blue. 
 
 "You may stand; it is too much for me," 
 he added, sinking into an easy-chair. "I am 
 very uneasy. My hands and feet are cold ; but 
 they must not know it. I did not call you on 
 account of the button ; what shall we do, Linnie, 
 to spare my daughter and her aunt?" 
 
 Brave as Linnie was, she was seized with 
 painful anxiety. She revered the general as a 
 distinguished and honored friend, and the thought 
 of losing him almost overpowered her. She ran 
 hurriedly to the kitchen for hot tea and bottles, 
 and for a preventive left by the physician. 
 Upon her return the general's face had grown 
 yellow.
 
 1 68 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "It is liver trouble, Linnie ; and yet I feel 
 strangely anxious ; but, thank God, I have cour- 
 age. In my desk yonder lies my will ; my affairs 
 are all in order. As for Asta " 
 
 "No, no, my dear General, you must not talk 
 so," said Linnie, deeply moved. "We will 
 pray this calamity shall pass over." She con- 
 tinued to cover him warmly, then sent Frederick 
 for the physician. 
 
 Meanwhile Asta had read the hymn of Rest. 
 It had comforted and sustained her, as a new, 
 refreshing, spiritual impulse. Youth is restless ; 
 its sacrifices of worldly things may be compared 
 to the flitting butterfly, and it easily loses a 
 heart-felt contact with eternal peace. But the 
 peace remaineth ; and he who suffers it to abide 
 in the tempted, weary heart, shall realize its 
 completeness, and rejoice in its blessed pos- 
 session forever and ever. 
 
 The book lay in her lap, and the tired eye- 
 lids closed over the tired eyes. A terror of 
 death, and a longing for rest, had unitedly exer- 
 cised a profound impression upon her young soul. 
 Suddenly she raised her head and listened. Was 
 there not unrest? Hurried going and coming, 
 voices calling to one another, and that in a house 
 where the recent presence of death had restrained 
 every unnecessary movement? Stepping to the 
 window, she observed Frederick running along
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 169 
 
 the street toward the old city without a hat. 
 She pricked her ears as if to scent danger, while 
 endeavoring to persuade herself there was none 
 there could be none. With beating heart she 
 hurried through the dining-room to the splendid 
 corridor, and there met Linnie carrying a pot 
 of tea, and wearing a very anxious, troubled 
 expression. 
 
 "Linnie, what is the matter?" 
 
 "Only a slight indisposition. The general 
 will soon be better. Do not get so pale. Re- 
 member, Fraulein Asta, you are a soldier's 
 daughter, and must be brave." 
 
 But Asta wrung her hands despairingly. 
 
 "He will die like Frederika. O, "Linnie, 
 Linnie!" 
 
 "He is laughing and jesting now, and never 
 mentions cramps. Come in, Fraulein Asta, to 
 see for yourself how he is." 
 
 Yes, in to him ! quick, quick as the trembling 
 feet could carry her, and it seemed as though 
 her arms must be steeled with love and power 
 to extort that dear life from the king of terrors. 
 He smiled, and declared there was no reason for 
 alarm ; but she knelt beside him, and while shud- 
 der after shudder agitated her fragile body, she 
 pressed his feet to her bosom, and sought to 
 restore their warmth by vigorous rubbing. 
 
 Suddenly her head sank upon his knee, and a 
 IS
 
 170 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 few minutes later she was writhing in cramps 
 before him. 
 
 "Linnie," cried the general, "Asta is sick; 
 do not leave us !" 
 
 She leave them? Never! And if thousands 
 had fallen at her right hand and ten thousand on 
 her left, such a thought would have never en- 
 tered her brain. She was necessary here, as 
 never before in her life ; and strength, courage, 
 and confidence were imparted to her from the 
 infinite Source of all help. 
 
 " Be still, my darling ; it will pass over. You 
 will get better. We will not despair. Jesus is 
 with us." Thus she soothed and calmed the 
 young girl ; and when she had been put to bed, 
 and the first agony of the dreadful spasms was 
 passed, Linnie turned to give Fraulein Mylitta 
 attention. 
 
 As we have described it in this instance, it 
 was likewise among many families in Stettin. 
 The time has now long passed, grass grows over 
 the graves, but the occurrences of these dreadful 
 days are remembered by all. They live in 
 memory amid thanksgiving and tears, as with 
 thorns and roses, and the words of Scripture are 
 verified: "Behold, therefore, the goodness and 
 the severity of God." 
 
 Fraulein Mylitta had shut herself up in her 
 own apartment, and was informed through the
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 171 
 
 key-hole by Linnie, of the general's and Asia's 
 illness, which she received with violent, hysterical 
 weeping. 
 
 "I lie here perfectly helpless; I am not in 
 condition to do anything. I feel that I shall 
 also be stricken as they are." 
 
 But Linnie did not fear this. She was only 
 assured that no assistance could be depended 
 upon from her ladyship ; she therefore called 
 together the servants, and directed them to the 
 best of her ability. 
 
 The general soon improved upon the admin- 
 istration of a powerful emetic, his lion-like nature 
 having destroyed the grim specter's murderous 
 intentions, and frightened him back to a more 
 respectful distance. He had not moved nor lain 
 down. Sitting upright in the easy-chair, smoth- 
 ered in blankets, he watched the condition of 
 his daughter in the adjoining room. Asta was 
 very ill. It seemed at one time as though the 
 star which had illumined this beautiful home for 
 seventeen years would be forever hidden from 
 earthly gaze. All night long they watched over 
 her with glimmering hope, as when the last light 
 flickers, and midnight sways the earth with her 
 scepter. 
 
 But she was spared ; and with sunrise there 
 was a slight improvement in her condition. 
 Then an uncertainty ; then a perfect, decided
 
 1 72 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 change for the better ; and the faithful physician, 
 who had not left her bedside for a moment, pre- 
 vailed upon the general to consider his own 
 state : ' ' Go to bed ; the worst is over ; we are 
 confident of her recovery ;" and the strong sol- 
 dier submitted, laying his trembling hands on 
 Linnie's head with: "Thanks, and blessing to 
 you, my friend. The events of this night have 
 made me a Christian a believer and I owe it 
 all to you." 
 
 Linnie was not exhausted. She was accus- 
 tomed to work, and the loss of a few hours' 
 sleep gave her no discomfort. Here her labors 
 of love had been crowned with mercy, and as 
 hope comes with the new morning's light, so her 
 heart sang its song of rejoicing over the dawn 
 of a renewed soul. Asta, too, should live, and 
 God's loving kindness endure forever !
 
 sL" SJx* *\L* *sL* st'* f st"* sL* "sU* *sl>* J> vL -si" *\L sL* 
 
 , i ^jjm 7 Mjffi^^^ 
 
 - 
 
 " L.*.^*.^*.^*.*,*.*.^^^ ^ 
 
 i ^i^';f"i"Q '\'J\j ''u*'' ii? * *J"'''K' *^^ 'J T ' :| i' ' u'^'i/^Xjj^ 
 
 VI. 
 
 "Now for the fight! Now for the cannon peal! 
 
 Forward through blood and toil, and cloud and fire ! 
 Glorious the shout, the shock, the crash of steel, 
 
 The volley's roll, the rocket's blazing spire ! 
 
 They shake ; like broken waves their squares retire ! 
 On them, hussars! 'Now give them rain and hail! 
 
 Think of the orphaned child, the murdered sire ; 
 Earth cries for blood! In thunder on them wheel! 
 This hour to Europe's fate shall set the seal !" 
 
 THEO. KORNER. 
 
 T was a hot, dusty day toward the end of 
 June. Like gigantic serpents, whose scaly 
 bodies glisten in every movement beneath 
 the sunlight, so the vast columns of the 
 quick marching troops turned through the 
 village streets of Bohemia. "Forward! For- 
 ward !" not as one goes calmly to death, but driven 
 thither by the relentless enemy swinging his 
 scourge over their backs. 
 
 One of these marching trails, under com- 
 mand of the Prussian crown prince, comes from 
 the east ; another, commanded by his cousin, the 
 heroic Prince Frederick-Karl, goes in a direct
 
 174 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 line to the south. The endeavor of both is to 
 join their forces on the right bank of the Elbe, 
 in order to crush the enemy in a united embrace. 
 
 The Austrians and Saxon's, led by the crown 
 prince and Count Elam-Gallas, after the battles of 
 Miinchengratz, Hiinerwasser, and Podol, had en- 
 tered the favorable region of Gitschen. A fresh 
 encounter was shortly expected, and the Prus- 
 sian generals had been compelled to divide their 
 forces into wings, in order to bring them into an 
 open country, and, by a forced march through 
 oftentimes very narrow mountain paths, escape 
 the borders. 
 
 The interest of all the seamstress of Stettin 
 was reading concentrated upon the third divis- 
 ion of the First Army Corps, especially upon 
 the troops belonging to the king's Grenadier 
 Regiment. Many good old acquaintances were 
 there. Captain Von Drambow, over whom count- 
 less love messages from his little wife fluttered 
 as a swarm of white doves ; his attendant, Chris- 
 tian, whose eyes dilated more and more in this 
 new, strange world, and whose "bay" remained 
 well groomed and glossy, because he knew how 
 to provide his fodder and straw in every con- 
 ceivable and inconceivable way ; Captain Elm- 
 bach, wearing in his bosom three withered 
 roses ; Schultz, the reserve, more than once lying 
 by the bivouac-fire in an anxious dream, when
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 175 
 
 little Fritz sat on his knapsack, crying boister- 
 ously for his milk-bottle ; and Alfred Winter, the 
 competent musician, already attached to the band, 
 and carrying with a certain romantic acquit the 
 horn intrusted to him. 
 
 In general or particular cases, the Pomera- 
 nians are no submissive compliants. "If we 
 could travel by rail to the battle-field, alight, and 
 then as easily return, we should not relish war at 
 all," is expressive of their character. They 
 have not been delicately enough reared to sweeten 
 the fatigues of a march with admiration for the 
 scenery of foreign lands, or the poetry of chi- 
 valrous deeds. It requires the entire, unfettered 
 dramatic power of a really great battle to arouse 
 their apathy, the snapping of rifles, the thunder 
 of cannon, the crashing of shells. Then the 
 Pomeranian feels there is something worthy his 
 exertion, and the unfurling of the warrior's stand- 
 ard. Some of the old German giant nature ap- 
 pears to view, and he performs wonderful acts 
 of heroism ; obtains immortal glory, and lies 
 down either to die on the despoiled, blood- 
 drunken earth, without complaint, or to sleep 
 soundly until the morrow, and then renew the 
 conflict. 
 
 Captain Elmbach was animated by such an- 
 cient characteristics and peculiarities, as well as 
 other men. This fiery young man, who could
 
 176 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 have easily flashed his own nature like an elec- 
 tric spark through his entire company, was 
 obliged more than once to contend with impa- 
 tience ; but he did not fail to observe the espe- 
 cially deserving ones among his men, whose stead- 
 fastness and integrity won the esteem of all, and 
 presented examples worthy of emulation. One 
 of these was reserve Schultz, and he had not at 
 first suspected this. Whenever he rode by the 
 company, his glance met this man's blue, sincere 
 eyes, in which he read: "All is well, captain; 
 we will march as long as we can, and when we 
 can march no longer, we will march right on!" 
 Captain Elmbach knew it was this manner 
 of mind that overcomes the enemy before meet- 
 ing him ; but he did not know it had been 
 acquired in the school of tribulation, in a struggle 
 for existence. 
 
 Looking upon the painful separation from his 
 family, the war was to reserve Schultz something 
 more than a mere pleasure excursion. He had 
 greatly changed in outward appearance. Who- 
 ever might have seen the pale, slender man at 
 the railroad station of Stettin, would scarcely 
 have recognized him now; but it must be re- 
 membered he had since that time been constantly 
 in the open air, marching amid corn and clover 
 fields, by the margins of meadows where hay- 
 stacks stood ; had slept beneath the vault of
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 177 
 
 heaven, with the stars twinkling overhead. His 
 form had become erect, his complexion brown, 
 and a full beard made its appearance. He 
 moved along with the army, proud to be an 
 active participant in the great cause. In all the 
 fatigues he manifested a gentle, earnest stead- 
 fastness in which his younger' comrades were 
 deficient; and although they called him "the 
 happy shoemaker," he was always treated with 
 marked respect. 
 
 The 28th of June had been the hottest day 
 of the season ; but the glittering army trail 
 pushed forward with unceasing haste from the 
 first gray of dawn, through the long forenoon, 
 and late in the evening. The narrow defiles be- 
 came wider, and a valley trough or expanded 
 plain was visible. It gleamed from afar in gayest 
 colors, being the Bohemian poppy-fields, which 
 ripened early this year, and which waved their 
 narcotic odors over the satin-like cushion where 
 the wearied troops expected to rest. 
 
 The trail disbanded upon reaching this highly 
 picturesque spot ; the men stacked arms, unfast- 
 ened knapsacks, and removed their helmets. 
 Every company assembled around its captain to 
 hear his orders. As we can not be with them all, 
 we shall follow the one most interesting to us, 
 Company 5, under Captain Elmbach. The young 
 officer had grown very much bronzed, and was
 
 178 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 covered with dust. He raised his helmet, and 
 gave to each of the corporals orders for the 
 respective resting-places. 
 
 The locality presented itself at the foot of a 
 mountain ; rocks and stones lay scattered about 
 in the midst of the poppies, often covered with 
 a growth of wild roses and ferns. Upon a" point 
 slightly elevated, where the men could be over- 
 looked, the captain and his staff rested. A 
 cheery little brook burst from the canton of a 
 rock, in which darted gaily flecked trout, fright- 
 ened by the intruders' din. The sergeant hav- 
 ing read the orders, part of the men. scattered to 
 obtain fire-wood, straw, and provisions, while 
 others threw up trenches to serve as single fire- 
 places for cooking. Every one carried his own 
 coffee-pot, as well as a cloak and knapsack. 
 They sat around the circle, stretching their weary 
 limbs, watching eagerly the quickly kindled fire 
 and the preparations for food. Soon, here and 
 there over the fields, were seen ruddy flames, 
 where the same occupation was going on, and 
 the brief rest being most welcome and enjoy- 
 able to all. 
 
 Somewhat apart from the others, in a sort of 
 philosophical corner formed of the white thorn 
 and other bushes, sat reserve Schultz, altogether 
 alone, on a flat stone. His knapsack was on his 
 knees, and beside him his canister. He was
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 179 
 
 busy writing, alternately dipping his pen into a 
 tiny inkstand, and a leaden spoon in the smoking 
 soup. This latter was exceedingly appetizing, be- 
 ing strong with meat, and wanting in nothing to 
 make it good ; he had also bread and bacon sand- 
 wiches. It was, indeed, a luxurious feast to one 
 in his position, who rarely enjoyed meat once a 
 year at his own home. Schultz appreciated it, 
 and a quiet satisfaction played upon his face ; at 
 times expanding into a broad grin as he gazed 
 upon his romantic and comfortable surroundings. 
 Then he resumed his writing, which had been 
 begun several days before. The moon, rising in 
 the east like a distant anemone, looked over his 
 shoulder, and revealed the contents of the letter: 
 
 " DEAR WIFE, I want to tell you how fortunate 
 everything has been for me, ever since the young lady, a 
 fine general's daughter, took Fritz from me and promised 
 he should want for nothing. I have seen a great deal. 
 Meat and bread, with everything I need, comes to me in 
 abundance. I am no longer stooped as I was in Stettin, but 
 I am straight and well. It is true one sees very few pota- 
 toes here. They raise poppies everywhere, so they ought to 
 be able to eat plenty of pills. I have never yet been able 
 to learn where the war will really begin. We are already 
 far into Bohemia. I never thought the world was so 
 large; and it goes on and on, and never comes to an end 
 to stop us, for we shan't be able to march much farther. 
 We have been passing through deep valleys, to the right 
 and left of which are high mountains, such as we have 
 nowhere at Gotzlow, and one sees the rocks as God made
 
 l8o THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 them in the beginning. Where the earth has fallen be- 
 tween, are dense forests, far above which the eagles fly. 
 We have often bivouacked, and in fine weather this is 
 great sport; when the weather is bad, there is also sport, 
 but not so much. We always build the best tent for our 
 captain. Ah ! dear wife, he is the very same captain who 
 was with us when Linnie sang, and the recruiting of- 
 ficer has truly said, 'he is no easy master,' but a very 
 strict one ; his eyes shine like glistening pitch, and when 
 he looks at you, one feels anxious. Still, proud ways do 
 not matter if the heart is good ; and his heart is good 
 that I must say of him. He has several times inquired 
 about our Fritz and the other children, and I told him how 
 Fraulein Von Geldern has visited you ; then he strokes his 
 black beard, and looks on the ground. I like him very 
 much, and am not one of those who think the high officers 
 want to eat a man bodily. It is not so bad if one does 
 his duty. If we come home again, by God's help, we 
 will tear the war- wreath in twain. It makes me wild to 
 see it. I think it is fearful ! I treasure all that Linnie has 
 told us of the beautiful eternity, in the sacred songs of Rest. 
 I often think if a man has trials in this world, he will 
 be taken care of in another. 
 
 "We have marched constantly on the edge of mount- 
 ains, and are trying to join the crown prince ; for, dear 
 wife, 'in union there is strength ;' but now we are to march 
 on the open plain. We march rapidly, but I still hold 
 out. A man can do much if he will; and when I can no 
 longer walk, I shall creep, as a soldier's honor is at stake. 
 
 "At first I was ridiculed a good deal, on account of 
 little Fritz and my loose uniform ; but when we march, I 
 am always the best ; for when a man has a wife, he learns 
 patience and endurance. So it grows better and better, 
 and I find much pleasure in the war. 
 
 " I must always laugh at Alfred Winter. He plays as 
 though he were the only one in the band ; but I say
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 181 
 
 that is because he is a musician. He is the joker of the 
 company ; but it must be an effort, even to him, at times, 
 for one can not always feel like laughing. I can truly 
 say everything tastes good to me ; and if Alfred Winter 
 has the best reason for so doing, he certainly eats more 
 than anybody else. Now, you know young folks gener- 
 ally think everything ought to be as they would have it : 
 they do not know any better. But the old shoemaker 
 keeps quietly on, for he knows the world often goes con- 
 trary. Put away my glass bowl so the children may not 
 get it, and kiss little Ida for her father. Now good-night, 
 dear wife. We must soon leave the mountains behind 
 Austria. Why they are not before Austria I do not under- 
 stand ; but if I were General Benedek, I would not let 
 us out so easily. But, after all, you do[n't know who Gen- 
 eral Benedek is : he is the Austrian leader. Everybody 
 says our next move will give us something to do, that I shall 
 be glad to share. Long live the king and fatherland ! 
 " Forever thine, AUGUST SCHULTZ, 
 
 "Shoemaker and reserve, 5th Co., ad Battalion, 2d King's 
 
 Grenadier Regiment, King Frederick William III, 5th 
 
 Brigade, 3d Division, 2d Army Corps. 
 
 "P. S. I had repaired only one of little Louise's shoes, 
 and left it on the shelf in the corner ; the other needs a 
 patch, but it is because I came away." 
 
 It had grown dark when Schultz finished the 
 letter. He got up and gave it to the sergeant, 
 who passed over the company's mail with the 
 utmost celerity to the battalion's postal bureau. 
 Meanwhile the officers had dined, and the prin- 
 cipal preparations had been made for the night. 
 
 At some distance from the elevation upon 
 which Elmbach's straw hut stood, six horses
 
 1 82 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 were resting. Three of them belonged to the 
 Fifth and three of them to the Eighth Com- 
 panies. One of the grenadiers Captain Von 
 Drambow's Christian lay in the shed with the 
 horses, sleeping together like good comrades ; 
 but it was not long before Christian's eyes opened 
 in a stare. A tall figure approached him, who 
 was recognized as his master. The captain 
 reassured his attendant with a quiet gesture ; 
 then asked a few questions concerning the care 
 of the animals, concluding with: "But why do 
 you lie here, my man, awake ?" 
 
 "If you wish to know, sir, I was thinking of 
 our little Adolph." 
 
 A light sigh escaped Drambow's breast. 
 "God bless you, Christian ! But sleep now while 
 you may; to-morrow we shall have a hot day;" 
 and he passed on. 
 
 A few steps farther on, Captain Elmbach was 
 seated on a rock, which had evidently rolled down 
 from the mountain. His aids were soundly 
 asleep on their odorous couch, with no covering 
 but their cloaks. Over his head a wild rose in 
 full blossom grew luxuriantly ; he had plucked 
 one, and his thoughts had turned to the lovely 
 young woman he loved. She appeared before his 
 mental vision as she stood at the railroad station, 
 proud and blushing, she herself a rose, giving to 
 the one beloved above all others, three beautiful
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 183 
 
 roses. Upon her golden locks he fancied there 
 shone a gleaming star, she herself a star his 
 Asta ! A hand slightly touched his shoulder, 
 and Captain Von Drambow stood behind him. 
 
 "Shall I disturb you, if I remain with you a 
 few minutes?" 
 
 Elmbach moved aside to give him a seat on 
 the rock where he was sitting. 
 
 "Thank you; but I do not wish to sit. I 
 have been all day in the saddle. It is pleasant 
 to come here, old friend. I have something on 
 my heart; will you hear me patiently?" 
 
 "Only tell me," replied Elmbach ; "the hour 
 is favorable. But I never thought a man like 
 you could have secrets, Drambow." 
 
 "It is no secret, only a commission. I desire 
 to dictate to you my will." 
 
 "But Drambow, comrade, you dream," re- 
 monstrated Elmbach, seizing his friend's hand 
 with friendly warmth. 
 
 "We shall in a few days perhaps to morrow, 
 or the following day be engaged in battle. 
 Between me and the future looms up a dark 
 cloud. I may mistake, but I think I shall never 
 see Stettin again." 
 
 "Such apprehensions prove nothing. They 
 are the machinations of a brain stirred by the 
 serious nature of our affairs. A sensible, rea- 
 sonable man does not heed them."
 
 184 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 Drambow made a significant gesture of disap- 
 proval, and continued : 
 
 "My poor little wife will be a sorrowing 
 widow. I am sure she will not long survive me ; 
 but there is our boy, Elmbach." 
 
 "Yes, and this superior boy will be on the 
 arm of his mother, carrying a laurel-wreath 
 to crown you when we are led through the 
 Schnecken Gate together. Banish such gloomy 
 thoughts." 
 
 But the captain was not to be silenced. 
 
 "You do not realize what it is to have a 
 child. -A man becomes a new being, and his 
 heart grows more susceptible when the tender 
 arms of his own little one cling to his neck. I 
 know there are few things in which I could be 
 similarly affected. Elmbach, have you ever se- 
 riously thought of death and eternity?" 
 
 "Yes, old fellow, and I have arrived at Dr. 
 Faust's conclusion, that 'we can really know 
 nothing about either.' ' 
 
 "It is not so much a matter of knowledge, 
 but something very different. The best assur- 
 ance I have ever had I must thank (you needn't 
 smile, Elmbach) my wife's seamstress for. All 
 that I have heard her say in the course of many 
 years among our families, reverts to me in these 
 eventful days ; and to a doomed man, as I feel 
 myself to be "
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 185 
 
 "But, Drambow, Drambow!" 
 
 "I feel the icy grasp of the great destroyer 
 on my neck. You may laugh " 
 
 "I am not at all inclined to laugh, either at 
 your mood, or still less your seamstress." 
 
 "Very well. A man destined to death, as I 
 am, can do nothing but repose on his Redeemer's 
 breast ; but how much better it would have been 
 if he had done so in life, from his cradle, his 
 baptism, forward ! I recognize this now, and 
 therefore beg you to have my son surrounded 
 with Christian influences before and during his 
 military career. How you shall be able to effect 
 this, I must leave to your discretion." 
 
 "I feel unworthy of undertaking such a 
 responsibility; but so far as shall lie in my 
 power " 
 
 ' ' Tell him what I have said as soon as he can 
 comprehend it. Tell him that he who would 
 have gladly accompanied him through life, and 
 given his last drop of blood for his child, died a 
 soldier, and that his last request and hope were 
 to have his son a Christian. I can not bequeath 
 to him earthly riches, only an untarnished name 
 and a sword tempered in the heat of battle. I 
 trust he will know how to prize both. Elmbach, 
 I write my last testament on your heart. He 
 shall be a Christian; tell him that, Elmbach." 
 
 After a pause he added more cheerfully: 
 16
 
 1 86 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "But one thing more: the men have told me 
 of an interesting scene that occurred at the rail- 
 road station at Stettin. It greatly surprised me 
 after what you have confided to me in relation to 
 your recent interview with General Von Gel- 
 dern ; but I would not pass away without wishing 
 you happiness from the depths of my heart." 
 
 If the night had not been so dark one might 
 have witnessed Captain Elmbach's deep blushes. 
 
 "This war campaign shall help me to suc- 
 ceed," he replied, laying his hand on the hilt of 
 his heavy saber. 
 
 "How did it occur so quickly, old friend? 
 I have always heard you speak with antipathy 
 of the family." 
 
 " O, this antipathy was soon dispelled on my 
 part when a charming little hand threw a barbed 
 hook in my breast upon the occasion of the res- 
 cue in the lake. I saved her from death ; she is 
 mine, and I should be foolish indeed if I did not 
 demand her life from her father's hand." 
 
 "Certainly; and love always does what is 
 least expected ; for when one is once in the 
 meshes, one must go on with it." 
 
 "Yes; I am daring enough to desire to bring 
 this 'star* from its heaven! Both you and your 
 wife shall be our bridal attendants." 
 
 "Never; our happiness and it has been 
 precious, dear Elmbach will be taken from us
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 187 
 
 and given to you. But I do not murmur over 
 God's dealings. Everything here is transient 
 and temporal ; only love, love is eternal. Linnie 
 says that sentiment is in one of the apostle Paul's 
 epistles. I am sorry I don't know which one; 
 but I believe it, and therefore I am not hopeless. 
 But good-night ; I shall not keep you from your 
 needed sleep. Good-night, and dream of the 
 pure, propitious 'star' that illumines Stettin." 
 
 He walked quietly away, but soon returned 
 with: "You could scarcely believe that, after 
 all, I rejoice over the prospect of the fight. I 
 scent the smoking powder gladly. As soon as 
 we shall be out of this defile the Austrians will 
 be before us. Once more, good-night." 
 
 Sixteen or eighteen hours have passed. It 
 must have been nearly five o'clock in the after- 
 noon when the Third Division was on the march 
 as usual, the day being even more fatiguing than 
 the previous one. The immediate surroundings 
 were now rolling hills, sloping from the long 
 mountain backs, covered with high forests. 
 
 Three men from the Red, or Bliicher, Hussars 
 rode closely beside one another on the high- 
 way, bending forward, armed with sabers and 
 carbines, their falcon gaze piercing to right and 
 left of the shrubbery. They are in the Bohemian 
 woods, under orders to detect the enemy's first
 
 1 88 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 movements, who had appeared everywhere at 
 the outlet of the mountains and crests of the 
 hills, having taken the most favorable positions, 
 and thus forming the extreme advance, followed 
 at a stated distance by the Third Division. 
 With sharp eyes, ears quickened, and teeth com- 
 pressed, these three press closely together. There 
 is nothing to be seen as yet of the advancing 
 foe ; but ten to one they themselves have been 
 discovered, and will be made the targets of 
 their rifles. 
 
 Apparently it was but a few minutes until the 
 Austrian leader called the Blucher Hussars to a 
 thundering "halt." There was a large number 
 of the hussars in a bend of the way, riding evi- 
 dently with noiseless precaution ; and now five 
 men belonging to the infantry, weapons in hand, 
 advance, three of them going before, and the 
 remaining two following. At times they listen, 
 and creep along the wayside, peering through 
 the close shrubbery, always ready to cover them- 
 selves behind the nearest tree if a ball should 
 come crashing through the branches. A small 
 body of infantry followed these five men as a 
 protecting guard ; at that time commanded by a 
 young lieutenant whom a German poetess has 
 appropriately designated "Everybody's Darling." 
 His helmet was pressed deeply over his brow, 
 while over the finely shaped lips germinated the
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 189 
 
 first down. His dark eyes flashed proudly and 
 confidently. Poor mother at home, well may'st 
 thou fold thy hands ! 
 
 At a distance of from one to two hundred 
 steps emerged the encircling advance guard, 
 several guns, one or two battalions. In the 
 old oaks the cuckoo called, and his mate re- 
 sponded from the forest depths. When the 
 cuckoo calls, the German looks up and counts 
 the seductive tones one by one, to know the du- 
 ration of his life. "Cuckoo, how long shall 
 I live?" cries one from the ranks, followed by 
 another and another in the overwhelming dust. 
 But the cuckoo, seized by a self-same terror, 
 has spread her wings and flown far, far away, 
 and out of the distant echo comes no response. 
 With him are silenced, also, all the other forest 
 birds'. A painful stillness broods over the mossy, 
 odorous region ; the sunbeams are still there, in 
 whose light are seen the nervous tremor of the 
 leaves. 
 
 How the minutes fly ! A secret clock ticks 
 in this solemn wood, the ever and evermore 
 swift strokes of whose pendulum follow in magic 
 succession. In long-drawn columns the Third 
 Division presses forward to reach the entrance. 
 
 Snap ! crack ! snap ! from the hills, one, two, 
 three hundred times, piercing first the hard wood, 
 then the foliage. The war-king drives amid the
 
 igo THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 shrubbery, whistling and singing in its branches, 
 frightening away the feathered songsters from 
 their nests, leaving their naked brood to a dire- 
 ful fate. Or is it the love-song of Mars, shiv- 
 ering into splinters the hearts of these ancient 
 trunks? 
 
 Heavily roll the grenades through the light 
 air ; before their touch the trees bow. Death 
 and destruction follow their path everywhere. 
 As soon as the first shots are fired, the three hus- 
 sars turn their horses and gallop to the officer 
 of the general's staff, whose duty it is to com- 
 municate to the division commander the enemy's 
 position. An electric spark of danger is also 
 kindled along the ranks of the slowly moving 
 troops. There are among them extremely young 
 soldiers, who have only been acquainted with 
 war in its picturesque maneuvers. As the hor- 
 rible swarm of blue bullets whistle around their 
 heads, they naturally bow to them in courtly 
 greeting; but when they become accustomed to 
 the sound they are already passed. Forward ! 
 forward ! They are seized with impatient, feverish 
 excitement, which is only restrained by the icy 
 hand of discipline from the superior officers. 
 
 But the orders are now for the advance guard 
 to evolve in a long tirailleur on both sides of the 
 thicket, and the battalions unfurl their standards. 
 A grand, never-to-be-forgotten spectacle ! Many
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 191 
 
 of these battalions have only a pole ; others a 
 light strip almost detached from the staff, which 
 will be carried off by the lightest breeze. When 
 these remnants unfurled their silken folds as yet 
 uninjured, the flashing, stormy eyes of Frederick 
 the Great looked upon his regiments; now, half 
 a century later, they bow before the Field-Marshal 
 Bliicher. 
 
 The divisions, one by one, leave the highway, 
 in order to take their places. Adjutants fly 
 hither and thither to forward the troops, and as 
 soon as a position is won the firing becomes 
 more and more violent. 
 
 In the center of the landscape, surrounded by 
 his suite, -is the division commander, with a field- 
 glass adjusted to his eyes. He sits there like a 
 bronze statue, communicating his orders with a 
 perfect calm and clearness. The surrounded 
 heights must be stormed, the Austrians driven 
 from hill to hill, and the entrance to the forest 
 quickly obtained by force. This is the day's 
 exercise: "Go, in the name of God, and do 
 your duty !" 
 
 At the foot of an old pasture, in the dust, 
 lies "Everybody's Darling," and "woe, woe, 
 woe!" rustles the gray foliage of the sorrowing 
 trees. His noble blood gushes from three gap- 
 ing, purple springs, and already the beautiful 
 lips are paled. The hand clutches the sword ;
 
 192 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 the wildly excited eyes are in a stare. The 
 Sclmzten lieutenant has surrendered his life to 
 the sharp-shooters ; the first sacrifice has been 
 offered on that bloody day ! Let not your suf- 
 fering be too bitter, thou lonely mother afar ! 
 
 But he is no longer alone in death. Already 
 they lie everywhere. Beneath thickets and on 
 open ground agonizing cries rise above the bat- 
 tle's din and roar. O, that terrible fight in the 
 field and wood! Nature, even, is in opposing 
 array, and there are dreadful wounds amid her 
 growth as well. 
 
 The great Austrian sharp-shooters, like ani- 
 mals of prey, stand behind trees, to destroy 
 their victims and protect themselves. As from 
 tree to tree the battle was begun, so from tree 
 to tree advance the Prussian grenadiers and fusi- 
 liers. One company after another loses its leader, 
 but they do their duty. 
 
 Soon after seven o'clock the king's Grenadier 
 Regiment entered the fight. The Second Bat- 
 talion, in which Captains Elmbach and Von 
 Drambow led the Fifth and Eighth Companies, 
 find themselves suddenly in the gloomy fir-forest, 
 amid the demoniacal tempest. While the first 
 companies divide right and left, the sixth and 
 seventh remain united, the same murderous fire 
 inclosing them as that of the advance guard. 
 The Austrian artillery is fearfully effective. To
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 193 
 
 equalize the power of the breech-loaders, stand 
 the dexterous and sure sharp-shooters of the 
 emperor's especial guard brave Tyrolese chil- 
 dren, furnished with no less than two repeating 
 rifles each, and dealing destruction with unerr- 
 ing aim. Elmbach, fighting in a part of the 
 forest alone, perceives his officers fall and his 
 company melt away almost in a body. An in- 
 describable excitement took possession of him 
 and his grenadiers. The blood rushed to their 
 hearts, sparks flew from their eyes. Beneath 
 their battered colors lay their comrades, covered 
 with torn branches of tree and shrub, which the 
 forest compassionately spread over their fatal 
 wounds. But it was not possible to hide the 
 bloody dew that trembled on the blooming 
 mosses, dropped from the leaves, and caused their 
 feet to slip. 
 
 But Elmbach is still there ! Like a lion in 
 the bushes, he is possessed of a species of ani- 
 mating intoxication, and in the intervals of the 
 crashing grenades which came plunging from 
 the hills, one might have heard his entreating 
 prayer: "Keep these from me!" But they are 
 regardless, and follow him as a magnet follows 
 iron ; he has enkindled them with the blazing 
 fervor of his own spirit, and contends against 
 them as a god of war before the cannon's mouth, 
 through water and fire, before the scythe of
 
 194 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 death, until the last breath be drawn. Elmbach 
 seems as one set apart, consecrated, in the midst 
 of this rain of bullets and crashing of grenades. 
 His helmet had been shot away, his uniform torn 
 in tatters upon the trees' broken teeth ; his 
 strong, muscular bosom rises and swells in the 
 stormy exertion ; his dripping forehead is dis- 
 regarded, because no blood is there, and thus he 
 presses forward unceasingly, unrestingly. Vic- 
 tory attaches to his heel. Step by step he draws 
 the enemy from the wood ; but now he is with 
 the remnant of his company, alone on the edge 
 of a hill before them, separated only by a 
 meadow, thence rising to an extended plateau, 
 where stands the village of Unterlochow. 
 
 Elmbach's superior officer and many of the 
 staff have fallen, and, despite the best intentions, 
 not all of his men have advanced. For a mo- 
 ment he is sorely perplexed ; but from the be- 
 ginning he has had the best assistance in the 
 form of a reserve at his side, braver than the 
 bravest, with the wings of Mercury on his feet, 
 battling with his captain in the fullness of that 
 whole-souled fidelity found among the old Ger- 
 man esquires. He can no longer shoot, as the 
 barrel of his gun has become red-hot, but in the 
 language of an old Pomeranian song: 
 
 " When it goes no longer for shooting 
 We '11 use it with might as a club."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 195 
 
 So had this faithful attendant more than once 
 been to Elmbach an invaluable helper. 
 
 Schultz is useful everywhere ; the necessity 
 of the moment advances him to adjutant. Al- 
 fred Winter is near with snapping eyes and 
 streaming hair, no longer able to blow his horn, 
 which is turned upside down on his parched lips. " 
 A sharp call from the captain enables him to col- 
 lect his scattered senses, and now Elmbach is in 
 position to calculate his losses. They are severe, 
 and a bitter pang pierces his soul. His brave 
 men have been bruised and broken as were the 
 poppies on the evening before by the now for- 
 saken bivouac, and lie here and there bedecked 
 in a field of blood. 
 
 "Death is better than fatal, lingering wounds," 
 he consoles himself; and choking down his 
 grief, he orders a rest, that they may be ready 
 for further action, making Schultz 4eader of a 
 patrol whose duty it shall be to look after the 
 three other companies. 
 
 In a cool spot, where firs have grown like 
 columns covered with graceful vines, and mount- 
 ain streams wreathed with forget-me-nots softly 
 murmur, Captain Von Drambow is engaged in 
 the fight with the intense earnestness of the 
 cautious, experienced warrior ; not less ener- 
 getic, not less fiery than Elmbach, although it 
 was only yesterday he had heard the death-
 
 1 96 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 angel's wings flitting over his head. With fath- 
 erly consideration he will not sacrifice heedlessly 
 the lives of his subalterns. Himself linked to 
 life with double bands, the humblest mother's 
 son is precious in his sight. Pressed well-nigh 
 to death by the superior numbers of the enemy, 
 he becomes suddenly engaged in a personal, hand- 
 to-hand encounter. From a clump of twisted 
 birch an Austrian unexpectedly points toward 
 him the barrel of his gun, while two others 
 bring the points of their bayonets to bear upon 
 him. A moment later and the beloved shall 
 lie on the cool earth, and the thirsty ground shud- 
 deringly drink his precious blood. 
 
 His little wife at this hour sits in the little 
 sanctuary beside Adolph's cradle. The book 
 she has been reading has fallen in her lap, cov- 
 ered with burning, anxious tears. It is always 
 to the sarril portion of the Holy Scriptures she 
 turns the ninety-first Psalm, which her husband 
 read at parting. She clings to its rich, consol- 
 ing assurances as an only hope. O, it is indeed 
 well that your gaze can not penetrate walls and 
 wood, and that it is not possible .for you to witness 
 that scene in the Bohemian forest ! If a miracle 
 had not intervened, your beloved must have 
 fallen ; but at the critical moment, quick as 
 lightning an invisible, restraining power turns 
 the hands of the clock backward upon its
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 197 
 
 unsightly dial, and one of the grenadiers strikes 
 the Austrian to the earth with the butt of his 
 gun, and the impending shot crashes through 
 the wood. Quick as a flash the grenadier is met 
 by the two protecting soldiers, but covering his 
 captain's body, as if by superhuman force, his 
 broad chest stands like a living wall between 
 them and certain death. 
 
 As a Pomeranian peasant, he had acquired 
 an almost brute force, and now seizing one 
 of his adversaries, as a wild bear with his paws, 
 he has vanquished him with a short, powerful 
 twist; while the other, fastened in his steely 
 arms, is thrown to the earth, and gleaming over 
 his breast is Christian's sharp bayonet spike. 
 
 "Halt !" cried Drambow, grasping the weapon 
 to bear it off; "take the fellow prisoner. I 
 thank you, my son; you have saved my life." 
 
 Christian was quite satisfied to obey. A 
 scuffle gives him unalloyed pleasure ; but he 
 would only kill if he must. 
 
 "How did you come here so quickly?" in- 
 quired Drambow, whom the occurrences of the 
 last minutes had advanced from the scene of the 
 battle's greatest violence. 
 
 "Sir Captain, I promised her ladyship to 
 look after the Sir Captain;" wherewith Christian 
 showed his great white teeth in a satisfied smile. 
 
 Immediately thereafter a patrol leader ap-
 
 198 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 peared, with the information that Company Fifth 
 had reached the edge of the wood and awaited 
 the coming of the other companies. Captain 
 Von Drambow at once decided to strike for the 
 same direction, which he could now accomplish 
 unhindered, as the enemy had retreated on 
 all sides. 
 
 When he reached the spot, he found the 
 Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh Companies in the 
 immediate neighborhood. The major then ar- 
 ranged the battalion, and issued orders to cross 
 the meadow and take Unterlochow, which was 
 already abandoned by the enemy. 
 
 At the upper side of the meadow was a 
 rich, extensive plateau, as if formed naturally 
 for the theater of a great war drama. The 
 troops rushed from the forest, took possession 
 of Unterlochow, stormed further forward, and 
 were soon upon the height, from which the foe was 
 to be seen on all sides. A frightful rain of bul- 
 lets and shells met them ; man after man among 
 the grenadiers fell ; the major sank from his 
 horse, fatally wounded ; and now Elmbach be- 
 comes the hero of the day. And hero he will 
 be, if God sustain him ; and, wonderfully enough, 
 God seems over and under him in this doubly 
 critical moment. What matters life to this proud 
 man ? Where so many are falling for father- 
 land, he also would perish, if need be. What
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 199 
 
 is of infinitely more value than earthly exist- 
 ence, his honor, his military fame, hang as by a 
 thread, inseparably connected with the conduct 
 of the battalion, the command of which now 
 devolves upon him. 
 
 The discipline of this battalion has become 
 wholly demoralized, and a perceptible wavering 
 has taken possession of the remaining few. Of- 
 ficers are wanting to unite the companies. The 
 rain of shot continues more and more violent. 
 Like the ingot on the balance, the courage of the 
 few scattered troops wavers ; but Elmbach is 
 there, to add his own intrepidity and will to the 
 trembling moment. Mounting the major's horse, 
 he rushes to and fro like a whirlwind, in the face 
 of the fire, and as his forces can not advance and 
 will not retreat, Unterlochow being destroyed, he 
 orders the men to lie prostrate upon the ground, 
 where, with restored equanimity, pressed to the 
 bosom of the earth, they give shot for shot. 
 
 The ground now trembles beneath them, and 
 a sound as of rushing water fills the ear. They 
 perceive no sea-waves, only vast clouds of dust 
 in the distance, which divide; then a flash of 
 lightning ; then a living wall of bending mounted 
 cavalry, swinging their keen blades, and the 
 Hungarian hussars storm the second battalion of 
 the king's regiment. 
 
 How they thirst to bathe their swords in
 
 200 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 Prussian blood, to engrave their regiment's name 
 indelibly upon the annals of 1866! 
 
 Calmly, without a single tremor, head erect, 
 with sublimest spiritual flaming expression, sits 
 the solitary horseman yonder, as if he would 
 meet alone that mighty approaching wave. Al- 
 ready his men receive their orders: "Cavalry 
 approaches; hear; up ready! No firing before 
 the word is given. Be calm, and do not aim 
 too high." 
 
 His flashing eyes sweep over the battalion, 
 now risen to their feet a wall of fearless men, 
 ready to do and die. Not a foot wavers a hair's- 
 breadth. 
 
 Elmbach's highest aim is now attained. O, 
 German fidelity, thou standest here once again 
 in full blossom, and the bloody hand of war 
 entwines for thee an immortal crown ! 
 
 On, on, the light-blue, brave hussars advance, 
 until within a hundred steps, when Elmbach 
 meets them with a salvo. The result is frightful. 
 As if struck by lightning, they leap from 1 their 
 saddles or hang limp on their horses' necks ; 
 but as the fallen disappear, those in the rear take 
 their places, only to meet the same dreadful 
 fate. Brave Hungarian hussars ! they would dare 
 all things, save to shrink from the impending 
 attack. 
 
 Again Elmbach's sharp command: "Fire!"
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 201 
 
 again a horrible destruction amid the advancing 
 foe ! At length one rider turns, one after another 
 follows, until the whole mass begins to retreat, 
 and there remains nothing more, save a rem- 
 nant of his splendid regiment, to the Austrian 
 emperor ! 
 
 Elmbach breathes loftily ; but already drums 
 and horns are heard in the distance. In meas- 
 ured tread, as on the parade-ground, advances a 
 battalion of the enemy's infantry, "the Hungarian 
 regiment." Again he proves his grenadiers with 
 lightning glance ; but there is nothing more to 
 fear. If they had been cold or listless compara- 
 tively before, now they are fired with a battle's 
 inspiration. With such a leader they would fight 
 on the Alps, press to the summit of Egyptian 
 pyramids, and put Napoleon the First's glory 
 to shame! 
 
 They lie prostrate again, until the foe with 
 beating drums, are near. "Quick, fire!" and 
 the breech-loaders perform their sad duty. 
 
 Like a swarm of partridges among which a 
 cloud of small shot is thrown, the enemy falls; 
 but they are brave soldiers, and press forward 
 unhaltingly, despite the merciless fire, until 
 so many of their officers are fallen and their 
 ranks are so thinned they can proceed no 
 farther, and turn to flight. An incessant hail of 
 bullets follows them, and Elmbach seizes the
 
 202 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 favorable moment to win a cover on the plateau's 
 edge, meanwhile following the Hungarian regi- 
 ment, which is subdued, being compelled to 
 restrain their firing lest they shoot down in their 
 retreat their own men. His brave grenadiers 
 must now perforce gain a much needed rest, and 
 while the Jager Pomeranian battalion pursue the 
 foe, the Second rests upon a cliff in the close- 
 burnt grass, overgrown with thyme. 
 
 Elmbach found himself in an extraordinary po- 
 sition. He wished to bear the struggles equally 
 with all, in that significant moment when he 
 had been called to take command of the bat- 
 talion, but his inward fear lest he should be 
 unable to unite and hold the scattered, demor- 
 alized force against an ignominious fate, led to a 
 veritable cry to Heaven for help. He realized 
 that Almighty Power alone was able to deliver and 
 sustain him. And now the deed had been ac- 
 complished. He was hailed as hero of the day, 
 and looked upon with reverential veneration : 
 while he, himself, felt he should take off his hel- 
 met (which he really no longer possessed), and 
 lift a prayer of thanksgiving to the God of bat- 
 tles. He scarcely knew how to express it, but 
 he would utter Peter's words : "Depart from me, 
 for I am a sinful man, O Lord." 
 
 Then has Elmbach, also, become a believer? 
 It was with astonishment he made this revela-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 203 
 
 tion of himself. Like the Christ-rose under the 
 snow, it had struggled and bloomed, in spite of 
 doubts ; and if in this hour some learned scien- 
 tist of the nineteenth century had met the deeply 
 moved young officer with "There is no God, 
 or at least none revealed ; we have found Him 
 neither in the retort nor under the Sezier-knife " 
 he would have turned indignantly away and 
 openly declared: "I have not been baptized in 
 vain. I have just received a direct answer to 
 prayer. The riddle of existence requires no 
 finely-spun theories in order to understand it. 
 Who would solve it, must live it, must live it 
 through and through." 
 
 Just then a hand met his own. "I congratu- 
 late you, dear Elmbach. You have performed a 
 master-stroke. I thought we were lost." 
 
 "My dear Drambow, how happy I am to see 
 you unharmed ! Do you realize now the signifi- 
 cance of your forebodings?" 
 
 "The prayers of my darling wife are with 
 me," murmured Drambow; and as Elmbach 
 made no response, he added with deep earnest- 
 ness : "There is something in them, in spite of 
 Balaam's ass and Jonah's .whale ; in spite of the 
 sun standing still at noonday in the valley of 
 Askalon, and the fiery chariot in which Elijah 
 was carried to heaven. Away with all skepti- 
 cism ! 'Necessity teaches us how to pray,' says
 
 204 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 an old German proverb. I like these proverbs 
 when they are "in harmony with my belief; they 
 are short as the handle of my sword, but deep 
 as the springs in the forest." 
 
 "They are giving themselves a vast deal of 
 trouble to recover again what can only be done 
 by miracle," said Elmbach, speaking very slowly, 
 wiping his forehead, and throwing his glance 
 toward the plateau, where, although mildly at 
 first, now came quite a storm of bullets "they 
 are giving themselves a vast deal of trouble to 
 show succeeding generations that these stony 
 trees they shall discover are only antediluvian 
 layers from the strata of these mountains, and 
 the world nothing but a heap of rubbish ! A 
 man would be no happier, but I love the truth. 
 I do n't make much of illusions ; I have a dispo- 
 sition that longs for peace." 
 
 "It is not necessary," replied Drambow, "as 
 my little wife says, to know such things ; one 
 only needs to see his child lying abandoned in his 
 cradle, and the mother beside it in despair, then 
 to march for three weeks through Bohemia with 
 the belief that one is to be buried in this strange 
 land. One knows then how much the old faith 
 is worth. God forgive me ! mine has not been 
 very lively. It was but a spark in the wick ; 
 the war blew upon it, and a flame blazed up. 
 What is learning ? what is the science of nature ?
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 205 
 
 Do they help us to live or to die ? There is 
 a knowledge the existence and fate of man ; 
 and whoever does not see therein God's hand, 
 never beholds it elsewhere." 
 
 "Still I should like to have the knowledge," 
 replied Elmbach. "We are no longer mediaeval 
 knights; we have other necessities." 
 
 "Now you knock half-supposed stones, and 
 begin to count the monkey's vertebrae ; what has 
 that to do with faith?" pursued Drambow. 
 
 Elmbach only smiled; but he added, after a 
 pause: "I shall never forget this day. I have 
 learned to view such things from a different 
 stand-point. But what is that yonder? Are the 
 men quarreling? It seems as though they are 
 unable to come out of a combat like this, sud- 
 denly." 
 
 "It is only that eccentric Winter, the Jack 
 of your Fifth Company." 
 
 The two officers proceeded to the spot where a 
 .crowd of soldiers had collected, and found there 
 Alfred Winter standing on a rock, fife in mouth, 
 playing one of the light dance melodies so popu- 
 lar in our day. He had wound a gay turban 
 around his head, and hung the cloak of a Hun- 
 garian hussar over his shoulders, while upon 
 his hip appeared to view a straw-covered field- 
 flask, the contents of which had been too freely 
 imbibed.
 
 206 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "What is this?" asked Elmbach, whose pres- 
 ence soon formed a circle and restored quiet. 
 
 "Sir Captain," replied Schultz, modestly, 
 '.'I told him it is not becoming to play a schot- 
 tisch before our dead are under the ground ; but 
 he calls me a donkey, and says he will have a 
 holiday, that they are nothing to him." 
 
 "Sir Captain," cried Winter from his ped- 
 estal, "I am no friend to ghosts. He wants 
 me, a Prussian grenadier of the king's regiment, 
 and artist musician, to play on the fife a song 
 that I learned from a sewing woman. But I will 
 not do it ; I did n't whip the Austrians with that !" 
 
 Loud laughter followed this speech. 
 
 "Why do you call reserve Schultz nick- 
 names?" 
 
 "Sir Captain, I didn't give him the name. 
 He is always so retiring and meek that his officer 
 once said to him: "Schultz, strike yourself on 
 the head and say : ' Dear Lord, I am a donkey ; 
 make me a sensible man.' Since then we give 
 him that name when we are angry, but when \vc 
 are on good terms, we call him the 'contented 
 cobbler. ' ' 
 
 "Schultz," said Elmbach, turning towards him, 
 "I wish to confer upon you the title of corporal, 
 on account of your brave conduct during the bat- 
 talion's model service. As for religious songs, 
 Gu stave Adolph, the illustrious Swedish king,
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 207 
 
 and a brave soldier, as well as the grenadiers of 
 old Fritz, have all sung them on the battle-field." 
 
 A rousing "hurrah!" and the oft-repeated 
 "Long live our captain, the ^hero of Unterlo- 
 chovv!" followed these words. Schultz stepped 
 quietly to his side, with beaming eyes that be- 
 trayed a heart-felt emotion. No one desired to 
 trifle with him any longer, for they now looked 
 upon him in the light of a superior. 
 
 Elmbach, being convinced that the battalion 
 was once more in condition to march, soon had 
 them on the way. He wished, above all, to 
 unite the regiments, as the Austrians had re- 
 treated from hill to hill, and it became necessary 
 for the Prussians to follow them. 
 
 The colonel of the king's Grenadier Regiment 
 sent out inquiries for the Second Battalion's fate. 
 Elmbach meets him on the edge of the forest, 
 and after the young hero of the day has passed 
 through the enthusiastic hurrahs of the remain- 
 ing officers, he takes his position next to the 
 colonel, who says: "Think of me, dear cap- 
 tain ; this honor is deservedly yours, pour le 
 m/rite." 
 
 It had become dark. The fir-branches quiv- 
 ered in the evening breeze. The Bohemian for- 
 est had donned its mourning garments over the fall 
 of her noble sons, over the shattered branches, 
 over the torn needles and twigs, over the blood-
 
 208 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 stained brooks in the cool earth, over the heart- 
 rending desecration of its especially cheerful, 
 sacred, and blissful peace-solitude. While these 
 lofty, noble firs nod sorrowfully to one another, 
 the firmament's sable vault becomes bespangled 
 with myriads of glistening, beaming stars. Elm- 
 bach thinks of his star, and concludes to sacri- 
 fice the former's majesty for the latter's loveliness, 
 and although lt pour le mtrite" the goal of his 
 most glowing ambition has been attained, he 
 replies to himself, choking down a sigh: "I 
 shall be promoted to distinction amid the no- 
 bility, through various orders ; not that I should 
 be discontented with my father's highly hon- 
 ored name; but," straightening himself proudly, 
 "when one leaves home and love and poetry for 
 his country's honor, and marries, and has sons " 
 
 Captain Von Drambow, who had remained in 
 the rear with his company, now came forward, and 
 said : ' ' When we speak of titles, may I be per- 
 mitted to mention the name of my attendant, 
 Christian ? He has truly been the means of 
 saving my life, and his entire conduct has been 
 most exemplary and resolute. " 
 
 "He shall not be forgotten," replied the 
 adjutant, "and if he deserves an order, it should 
 be that of a bear." 
 
 The cloud which had encircled Drambow ever 
 since he had left Stettin is again present with
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 209 
 
 more than usual gloom, standing between him 
 and his sweetest earthly hopes, coldly and relent- 
 lessly. He is troubled ; but his soul rises like a 
 young butterfly in the sun's beams, that enfolds 
 its wings with confidence, knowing they will 
 soon expand and bear him aloft, far above this 
 wearisome caterpillar existence. A mild serenity 
 sits enthroned upon Drambow's brow. "Yes, 
 there is something in it," reiterating Elmbach's 
 expression; "there is more, my friend, im- 
 measurably more ; there is eternal life itself; 
 there is everything ! It will bring me to my 
 little wife and Adolph, and unite us all in a 
 happy resurrection. Praise the Lord ! Praise 
 God, who permits me to know and embrace this, 
 at even the last hour!" 
 
 A silver-blue light now trembles amid the 
 fir-branches. A magic, milky softness has fallen 
 on the fragrant needles, as if to lull to oblivion 
 its woe and frightful visions. The moonbeams 
 glide among the branches ; and now the veil of 
 night is drawn aside, and one sees the dead 
 sleepers lying here and there on moss and fern. 
 The face of one is pressed upon the dark green 
 cushion, while another gazes with stark eyes 
 toward heaven, a smile upon his pallid counte- 
 nance. Others have writhed and struggled there, 
 with no friendly hand to moisten their parched 
 lips, and died there alone in their agony. 
 
 18
 
 210 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 In the distance are seen the ambulance lanterns, 
 flitting hither and thither like glow-worms. O, 
 search thoroughly, search everywhere, search once 
 more, that no beloved one may be overlooked! 
 Leave no hidden corners ! Do you know what 
 it is to lie there quivering in agony while the 
 drum-beat grows fainter and more faint in the dis- 
 tance, and the sound of the marching comrades 
 farther and farther away, until it becomes the 
 faintest echo? And then to be alone with the 
 dead and dying, a helpless prey to the thirsty 
 hyenas of the battle-field ; a weary, languishing 
 one ; an outcast, a forsaken ! 
 
 There was still much to be done on the fol- 
 lowing day. It was ten o'clock when the gath- 
 ered forces marched on the highway towards 
 Gitschen. An hour later the city was reached, 
 and a violent, awful encounter ensued, which 
 resulted in a complete seizure of the place, after 
 an obstinate, heroic opposition from the Aus- 
 trians and Saxons. This battle is so well known 
 on account of numerous thrilling descriptions, 
 that the reader needs no repetition here. The 
 twenty-ninth of June had come to an end with 
 the most wonderful results.
 
 VII. 
 
 ' We set up idols in these souls of ours, 
 Then bend the knee, and blindly them adore ; 
 And what to other eyes is .nothing more 
 Than dross and gilding, or a passing glare, 
 We find no spot or wrinkle anywhere. 
 We place these cherished idols on the heights, 
 And gaze with fond, unutterable love 
 On that which seems so far removed above 
 The touch and stain of earth. Alas I that we 
 Should come at length in bitterness to see 
 These precious graven im.nges of ours 
 Despite our love and vigilance and care, 
 Which should have kept them beautiful and fair 
 Brought low; and in a brief, sweet summer's day, 
 Behold them sadly, strangely turned to clay. 
 Iconoclasts, unwillingly we are ; 
 But lifting our lean, hungry souls on high 
 To Him in whom there is no change, we cry: 
 ' Take these dry husks, and grant us living bread ; 
 Take these earth-idols, shrine Thyself instead.' " 
 
 CORNELIA. MCFADDEN. 
 
 a large bunch of roses in her hand, 
 Linnie entered the mansard home early, 
 and stood before her mother. -The room 
 was overflowing with golden sunshine, but 
 invalid was evidently not in sympathy
 
 212 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 with her surroundings. She sat bolt upright in 
 bed, an evidently intentional expression of dis- 
 pleasure upon her face. Several days had passed 
 since the outbreak of cholera at General Von 
 Geldern's, and the old mother was sorely an- 
 noyed that her daughter not only incurred 
 the danger of infection, but remained away 
 from her so long at a time. Asta did not need 
 her personal attention now, but Linnie was un- 
 able to leave her; and, having been disobe- 
 dient, she endeavored to allay her mother's oppo- 
 sition with a gift of roses. She arranged the 
 lovely flowers in a pretty glass vase, placing it 
 on a table near. Then she brought in the coffee. 
 
 But Frau Bergmann impatiently pushed the 
 cup aside: "Nothing tastes good to me; some- 
 thing is wrong with my appetite, and you are to 
 blame for it." 
 
 "Dear mother, you must get better soon. 
 Shall I do nothing for the young soldiers who 
 have gone to war?" 
 
 "You go about everywhere," murmured the 
 invalid; "you seem to think they can neither 
 live nor die without you. Besides, you have 
 been with baker Hartmann's daughter-in-law. I 
 am in the world yet, I should think." 
 
 "Be a Christian, a brave hero, I have often 
 admonished shoemaker Schultz ; and now shall 
 I " and standing before the mirror, Linnie be-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 213 
 
 gan to laugh : ' ' My father was a submissive 
 soldier in his day under trying circumstances ; 
 but, mother, would you have me an Austrian in 
 our fatherland's time of need?" 
 
 "Have you come into the world for the 
 benefit of all Stettin? You run around by day, 
 and sit sewing for miserable people at night. 
 What good does that do for your poor sick 
 mother?" and suddenly from the bed came 
 violent though somewhat forced sobs. 
 
 Linnie, armed with the roses, embraced the 
 petulant one, holding the lovely flowers before 
 her weeping eyes ; but from behind them, in 
 half-broken sobs, was heard: "If you only 
 did not go among the rich ! They do n't need 
 you. I am like the poor man with his only 
 ewe lamb ; even that was taken from him. They 
 have money, and do n't need a seamstress's 
 services." 
 
 "Mother, dear, we can't help loving rich 
 people sometimes. They are just like ourselves, 
 and are obliged to keep body and soul together 
 as well ; and they are all so good to me so good 
 very precious jewels, dear mother. But I will 
 sit with you all afternoon, and repair your black 
 dress, and read to you. You must n't be naughty. 
 Drink your coffee while it is hot." 
 
 Who could resist Linnie ? The heavily clouded 
 forehead cleared, and the trembling hands reached
 
 214 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 eagerly for the cup. "Then we shall have a 
 pleasant day, and you must buy something spe- 
 cial for our dinner, these dreadful times." 
 
 Linnie assented to everything. She was glad 
 to see her mother bright again, and enjoy her 
 breakfast with relish. They remained together 
 all day; and when the sunbeams fell aslant in 
 the little mansard, the daughter was still there, 
 and the old black dress looked like a new 
 garment. 
 
 "Linnie," began the mother, after a long 
 silence, "I have been thinking so much about 
 your father to day. He was a superior man ; 
 and what beautiful penmanship was his ! Every 
 letter was as clear and perfect as copperplate, 
 at the same time ornamented with flourishes 
 like vining tendrils. If I could only see him 
 there in his armchair!" Frau Bergmann began 
 to weep softly, very differently from her previous 
 outburst. 
 
 Linnie made no reply. Her father she be- 
 lieved to be her second better nature ; from him 
 had been inherited her sincere, child-like faith 
 and certain ideal views of life. The world had 
 always been in bloom to him. 
 
 "I would never say anything to him about 
 his smoking, and never scold him for not using 
 the door-scraper. He did n't understand worldly 
 matters ; if he had, we should not be as we
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 215 
 
 are, with our fortune wasted. But he could n't 
 help it; it was his nature." 
 
 "Yes, it was his nature," replied Linnie, a 
 gentle melancholy resting upon her low brow. 
 
 "One should always watch the fingers of 
 people," resumed the old mother with more for- 
 titude, "and give no one too much license. 
 With your father, he trusted everybody. We 
 got along very well together; but one always had 
 to mind in passing him, or run the risk of being 
 run over. 'Fridolin,' I would say, 'have you 
 brought your handkerchief?' 'Yes, mother;' 
 but every time at the church-door it was: 
 'Mother, I haven't it with me.' Yes, that was 
 his nature." 
 
 Linnie wiped her eyes. 
 
 ."I always feel anxious about him when I 
 think of him in heaven, and worry how he gets 
 along without either of us to wait upon him. 
 I tell you, Linnie, he will be all upside-down, 
 and never know how to help himself." 
 
 "Ah, mother, be at rest; the angels wait 
 upon him," consoled Linnie, with a cheerful 
 smile. 
 
 "And if they will only give him some 
 writing to do, it would not be so strange there. 
 When he used to sit by the desk over legal 
 documents, he would look up and say: 'These 
 are very important, mother, very important;'
 
 216 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 then he was perfectly contented. Yes, something 
 important he must have to do." 
 
 Linnie's large, grateful eyes were raised to the 
 window which inclosed a small portion of the 
 great sapphire heavens: "I think, mother, we 
 shall have the work there that we like ; but it 
 will no longer weary us, and there will be no 
 mistakes in it." 
 
 " How do you know that?" 
 
 "Because God is not a God of the dead, but 
 of the living; and everything that lives must be 
 active, must do something. The state of the 
 blessed will be very enjoyable, dear mother. I 
 only wish we were there now!" 
 
 "Really one need n't fear the cholera so much, 
 after all." 
 
 ' ' I am not at all afraid on account of myself, 
 and therefore you must n't be cross if I give help 
 wherever I can." 
 
 The mother now asked for some reading, and 
 once more "There is rest for the weary" was 
 heard softly and sweetly in the little room. Then 
 the invalid, who seemed to be more feeble than 
 usual, was soon fast asleep. 
 
 Linnie sat by the half-open window, and con- 
 tinued to sew. As the moon rose and peered 
 over the table, she extinguished the lamp, in 
 order not to disturb the sleeper. Her accus- 
 tomed fingers worked on as in a dream. Was
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 217 
 
 there need of haste ? Ah yes ! haste enough. 
 Yonder in a basement two little ones lay in 
 death's embrace, to be prepared for burial. Her 
 head was bowed over the work in that bright, 
 misty splendor, and her lips trembled with sym- 
 pathy for the bereaved. 
 
 The next morning was close and sultry. The 
 oppressive night has passed away, as with heavy 
 pulse-throbs of a slow fever. People walked the 
 streets in listless apathy. "Shall we have a 
 storm today?" asked one of another; while a 
 third in fearful consternation whispered: "How 
 many on the death list yesterday ?" 
 
 "Four hundred and fifty ! How will it end ?" 
 
 Although it was not Friday, Linnie gave 
 half the day to the sick poor : ' ' We live in a won- 
 derful time, and we must manifest great love if 
 we would live through it," she thought. 
 
 When she had rendered assistance among dif- 
 ferent humble homes, her steps were directed to 
 Hechterling's, where she was engaged for the 
 remainder of the day. 
 
 On the street-corners bulletin's appeared of 
 the latest war-news. Some one said: "There 
 is not a single officer left in the king's Grenadier 
 Regiment." A knife seemed to pierce her very 
 soul, and she walked -on with hesitating tread. 
 Her knees trembled, and her brave heart grew 
 leaden with despondency, not so much for 
 19
 
 218 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 herself, but for those around her. Ah ! she well 
 knew how many had rejected God's message; 
 how many worshiped their business, skill and 
 riches more than their Creator and Redeemer ! 
 And now He was sending his Reaper, and over 
 the open graves crying, in tones of thunder : 
 ' ' All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof 
 is as the flower of the field ; it is true, but the 
 truth is bitter, and my soul is grieved for these 
 my children." 
 
 The seamstress had reached the foot of Birch 
 Avenue, where stood the pretty little dwelling 
 in the sunlight, only a light cloud curling forth 
 from its chimney. Then the fire still burns 
 on the bright hearth ; the canary still carols, 
 although the heat has subdued his voice ; and 
 beneath the apple-tree it is mild and sweet as 
 ever. "Like the cooing of the wood doves in 
 the midst of the trees," thought Linnie, as she 
 peered through the lattice. 
 
 Frau Von Drambow sat on the bench with 
 Adolph in her lap, the pretty white dress falling 
 from his fat, bare shoulders. He was stroking 
 his mamma's wan cheeks lovingly, while she 
 crooned, "There, there, there!" with a faint 
 smile. It was only the shadow of her old, merry 
 laugh that had played amid the many flitting 
 dimples ; but still it was a smile. 
 
 ' ' I can not tell her ; I can not mar this pleas-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 219 
 
 ant hour;" and the seamstress would pass by 
 unnoticed. 
 
 But Frau Von Drambow had glimpsed her. 
 "Come in Linnie, come in!" she cried. 
 
 "I can not. I have been among the sick, 
 and must not come near Adolph." 
 
 Frau Von Drambow stepped backward, and 
 pressed her child more closely to her bosom ; but 
 she added: "I have good news from my hus- 
 band, Linnie; the ninety-first Psalm is still true." 
 
 ' ' If God will ! Ah ! dear, dear, lovely woman, 
 if God will !" thought the seamstress, hurrying on. 
 
 "It is true," continued the young mother, 
 while a shudder passed through her being. 
 "Every hour may bring something different," 
 and the smile became like a flickering flame, 
 which one protects with the hand. 
 
 Linnie was now at Griinhof. Old Hechter- 
 ling stood in the midst of his rose-bushes, cut- 
 ting off one after another with a huge knife. His 
 coarse, burly form seemed out of place amid 
 these delicate blossoms, which he carefully laid 
 in straight rows in a flat basket. 
 
 When he observed her he nodded craftily : "It 
 is a real stroke of luck that I have so many white 
 roses out to-day," he gloated; "everybody 
 wants white roses, and the price has advanced 
 fourfold. We never had that before." 
 
 "Then you rejoice over the death of so many
 
 220 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 young people," exclaimed Linnie, indignantly; 
 for she was always on the war-path with him. 
 
 "It's all one to me," he retorted, with a 
 malicious smile. 
 
 Little Dorothy came running forward, and 
 sprang toward the seamstress, whose knees she 
 hugged with both arms: "Aunt Linnie, Aunt 
 Linnie!" 
 
 "Get out of the way," snarled the grandfather. 
 She looked up with a shy, timid glance ; then hid 
 her face in Linnie's dress. The latter took her 
 hand, and led her toward the house. 
 
 "How is your papa?" 
 
 "He has had the cholera too; but he is 
 better, although very weak. Do you think we 
 shall soon go back to Berlin, Aunt Linnie?" 
 
 "Had the cholera! and survived it!" she 
 said to herself. "Then I must hasten to see him ;' 
 poor, poor, dear John !" 
 
 "Shall we soon go back to Berlin?" 
 
 "Don't you like it here, even a little?" 
 Linnie drew the child somewhat impatiently to 
 her side. 
 
 Dorothy shook her head very positively, with : 
 "Here nobody can say anything but ugh!" ar- 
 gued the little one, in a loud tone; but she did 
 not proceed with her remonstrance, and led Lin- 
 nie to the gable-room, where her sick father 
 lay. It was a bare place, containing simply a
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 221 
 
 rickety bedstead, a table, and a chair. A few 
 garments hung on the door. John was gazing 
 out of the open window when they entered. 
 
 "O John, you are sick, and it looks so desti- 
 tute here!" lamented Linnie. 
 
 He reached out his cold, moist hand feebly : 
 "Linnie, Linnie, this is happiness indeed, to see 
 you once more. But go away ; it is you know 
 what I mean !" 
 
 "No; I shall not go away. I shall remain 
 with you as long as I have breath ;" and she 
 sank upon her knees beside the bed, embraced 
 the dying one, pressed his face between her 
 hands, and wept bitterly. 
 
 "I prayed to God that you might come; I 
 am very weak. If little Dorothy had not looked 
 after me but I can 't expect a bankrupt man to 
 be cared for," he added, apologetically. "If I 
 could be well and begin business again, I might 
 have better luck although I doubt it; for I 
 have never been fortunate. I should have left 
 nothing undone until I had made you my 
 wife ; for heavy sins lie on my heart in your be- 
 half, dear Linnie ; but my parents were also 
 to blame. Yet, when one is about to die, such 
 things are not cherished against me ; are they, 
 Linnie?" 
 
 The latter raised her head, upon which John's 
 hand rested caressingly: "Yes, yes; everything
 
 222 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 will be taken from you ; but when you enter in 
 there will be nothing but peace and glory." 
 
 "If you could persuade my old parents to 
 become Christians, that would be very precious 
 to me, dear Linnie." 
 
 "They have hardened their hearts, dear John. 
 But God's mercy is infinite," she replied softly; 
 "trouble about nothing now." 
 
 "It is dark before my eyes " 
 
 "Only be patient, it will lead to light; yea, 
 from glory to glory." 
 
 "Thank God, little Dorothy will be cared 
 for," he whispered. 
 
 "Why do you look out towards the garden, 
 John?" 
 
 "I should like to see it once more ; but I can 
 not distinguish anything. I hear the tree-tops 
 rustle in the breeze." 
 
 "The wind is up, and we shall have a storm." 
 
 "Do you recollect, Linnie, how beautiful it 
 was where the lilies bloomed, and where I cut the 
 rosemary? Then you were my betrothed, and 
 we were young. Now I am tired, and so cold. 
 Cover me closely, Linnie." 
 
 While she endeavored to make him more 
 comfortable, Frau Hechterling entered the room 
 hurriedly. She glanced at the sick one impa- 
 tiently; then turned to Linnie: "I have been 
 looking for you everywhere, like a pin. The
 
 THE SEAJtfSTRESS OF STETTIN. 223 
 
 work is pressing, and it is n't right to give me 
 only half a-day." 
 
 "I shall not sew to-day." 
 
 "Why not, I 'd like to know?" 
 
 "Do you not see John's condition?" she 
 whispered; then in louder tones : "I shall remain 
 beside him until " 
 
 " Until death part us," said John, faintly. 
 
 The old woman was enraged. "Gabbling 
 here, gabbling there !" she exclaimed in excite- 
 ment. "One desn't die with a little cholera- 
 morbus. I will bring you some soup, John." 
 
 He shook his head, and she stood still a mo- 
 ment looking at him. 
 
 "O mother, you have not done right " his 
 voice suddenly failed, and he was perfectly still. 
 She turned away, and shuffled out of the room, 
 slamming the door behind her. 
 
 Linnie remained, sitting silently near the bed. 
 The poor man's mind began to wander, and his 
 eyes were closed. 
 
 What of her earthly happiness? As a bud 
 nipped by the frost before it has drunk the 
 dews of night or fed upon the sunlight, it 
 had been ; and now, now the grave would open, 
 and her beloved would be laid away from her 
 sight ! 
 
 No one may say that Linnie Bergmann con- 
 tended with her Maker; but the pain was severe,
 
 224 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 and the bitterness without alleviation. Since 
 John's wife had passed away, he had been more 
 than ever in her thoughts. Her heart was still 
 so fresh, and her feelings had remained so youth- 
 ful, that she had hoped, even yet, to become his 
 bride. Who could blame her? But now there 
 was nothing more to entreat for him, except that 
 the last struggle might be a brief one. 
 
 O, Linnie, Linnie! It hath pleased God to 
 fill up for you no full cup of wifely privilege, and 
 it also pleaseth thee ! It hath pleased God to 
 permit your beloved to grow and wither, and per- 
 ish as a water-lily in the swamp, without even 
 making his decree clear on earth. It hath pleased 
 God ; it also pleaseth thee. It hath pleased God 
 to call you to his death-bed to comfort his de- 
 parting soul ; it hath pleased God, and, blessed 
 be his name, it pleaseth also thee. 
 
 Hours passed. The old mother passed in 
 and out unsympathetically, while the old father 
 remained in the garden. 
 
 The door opened softly, and Dorothy entered, 
 with her great, asking eyes looking up into 
 Linnie's face, as she sat beside her. 
 
 "What is the matter with my father?" 
 
 "He is going to God, Dorothy." 
 
 The little face looked up affrighted. "May 
 I go with him, Aunt Linnie?" 
 
 ' ' Not yet my child. Listen ; he is speaking. "
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 225 
 
 He was delirious, and repeated feebly : 
 
 "And lilies purest in their bloom, 
 He scattered here and there ; 
 A cypress wreath he intertwined " 
 
 then, as if in faintest echo, 
 
 "With true love's patient care!" 
 
 Still the merry old song but should he pass 
 away with that upon his lips ? Linnie knelt by 
 the bedside, and prayed, in softest entreaty : 
 
 "In the Christian's home in glory 
 There remains a land of rest ; 
 There my Savior's gone before me, 
 To fulfill my soul's request. 
 
 There is rest for the weary, 
 
 There is rest for you ; 
 On the other side of Jordan, 
 In the sweet fields of Eden, 
 Where the tree of life is blooming, 
 
 There is rest for you." 
 
 And with these sweet, lingering words, he was 
 carried across the gulf; a ray of intelligence 
 lighted the pale face, and the spirit was freed ! 
 
 "Wake up my father; he is asleep," whis- 
 pered Dorothy, breaking the silence ; but Linnie 
 closed the dear eyes, covered the beloved face ; 
 then sat by the window, taking the child upon 
 her lap. 
 
 The garden was in full splendor. Fire-lilies 
 waved everywhere in gorgeous array. She pressed
 
 226 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 the child to her heart in agony of love and woe. 
 "John has been taken, but he has left me the 
 child as an inheritance." How long she remained 
 there, she did not know. 
 
 Frau Hechterling entered with: "You have 
 been with him so long, you might stay and pre- 
 pare his shroud." 
 
 Yes, she would do this ; her needle would be 
 sanctified in such a work. Although she made 
 haste, it was quite late before John's angel gar- 
 ment was finished. Then she arranged the room, 
 went into the garden to gather rosemary and 
 lilies for her dead, and took a last fond leave of 
 the dear face. 
 
 "He sleeps, he sleeps, Linnie; do you not 
 hear a choir of angel voices, singing confidently 
 sweet and clear, 
 
 ' He is not dead he sleeps ?' " 
 
 As she was about to leave the house, Frau 
 Hechterling carelessly remarked : "In my trouble 
 I forgot to tell you that some one from St. James 
 Place came this morning to inquire for you ; but 
 you were not here then, and I said you were 
 sewing somewhere else." 
 
 Linnie looked perplexed, and passed on. She 
 soon reached again Captain Von Drambow's 
 pretty residence, which now lay in the moon- 
 light, with-smoke-clouds no longer over it. The
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 227 
 
 securely closed stable had a desolate appearance, 
 with no signs of life save the tendrils of a grape- 
 vine that trembled in the breath of night, and 
 stretched themselves in order to reach the roof 
 and cling there. 
 
 "I wonder whether she knows that nearly all 
 the officers of the king's Grenadier Regiment 
 have been either wounded or killed ? God help 
 you, poor dove; it is woeful, woeful!" she 
 murmured. 
 
 The city gate passed, ten o'clock sounded out 
 from the castle church, and, quickening her steps, 
 she did not stop to buy flowers this time for the 
 weary, waiting mother. Flitting across St. James 
 Place like an apparition, Linnie had soon climbed 
 the four flights and entered the quiet, dark man- 
 sard. Cautiously searching for a match, she 
 lighted the lamp. By its dim light she did not 
 observe that her mother's bed had been turned ; 
 and now as the light slowly increased, she looked 
 around the room, but immediately sank upon a 
 chair in utter amazement. Her mother's bed 
 was there, faultlessly made ; but it was empty 
 wholly empty ! The invalid who had been un- 
 able to leave it for ten years was no longer in her 
 accustomed place. Linnie arose, and mechan- 
 ically raised the pillow, when the door opened, 
 and the occupant of the basement, for whose 
 children she had sewed the night before, entered.
 
 228 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 Linnie made an effort to speak, but was unable 
 to utter a word. 
 
 "O, you poor, dear child!" said the woman; 
 "do not take it so hard. I have been watching 
 for you so long, but missed you at last. No 
 one is asked to-day whether he is old or young ; 
 it is all the same he is taken." 
 
 "Where is my mother?" asked Linnie, dryly. 
 
 "Put on mourning yourself, Linnie. My 
 children were buried to-day. It came on her as 
 we returned from the grave-yard. My husband 
 ran over half the city, and even went to Griinhof ; 
 but the Hechterlings knew nothing about you, 
 and soon after noon she passed away. She did 
 not suffer much, dear Linnie; her death was 
 easy and gentle." 
 
 "Where is my mother?" reiterated Linnie. 
 
 "You know the kind of man our landlord is. 
 He would have no cholera here, he said ; and as 
 soon as she was cold she was taken away to the 
 city vault. I tell you, Linnie, he is terribly 
 frightened; that is why he acted so." 
 
 Instead of replying, the poor girl went to 
 the kitchen, brought forth a lantern, seized some 
 matches, and started to go out. 
 
 "Linnie, for God's sake, where are you 
 going?" 
 
 "I must see my mother. I can not let her 
 lie there alone."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 229 
 
 "But, Linnie, be reasonable. She is really 
 dead. I closed her eyes myself, and put the 
 room in order." 
 
 With superhuman force Linnie pushed the 
 well-meaning woman aside, and hurried down 
 the stairs. Passing quickly through the lonely 
 city streets, she was in due time before the 
 watchman's little house at the entrance of the 
 city cemetery. "The seamstress of Stettin" was 
 well known to this man ; but as she stepped to 
 the door she found it closed. A light was burn- 
 ing dimly within, whose glimmer fell through 
 the simply guarded shutters, and played in 
 l n g> golden streaks on the dark, high shrub- 
 bery without. 
 
 She knocked on the door, and then on the 
 shutters. The window was quietly opened, and 
 a woman's head in a night cap made its appearance. 
 
 "Don't come after my husband!" she ex- 
 claimed, discouragingly, holding up a lamp ; "he 
 can not go out again to-night. He is in bed, and 
 I will not let him go anywhere. Working by 
 night and day no one can endure. We have 
 sent for help. Who are you, and what do 
 you want?" 
 
 "I am Linnie Bergmann." 
 
 "The Linnie? O, that is very different! 
 And you come to see your mother? for they told 
 us you were not at home when it happened."
 
 330 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 The window was hastily closed, and Linnie 
 heard the door-bolt drawn. Thus her simple 
 name was a talisman, even at the threshold of 
 the dead; for "the seamstress of Stettin" had 
 always been a welcome visitor among the poor 
 and suffering of the city. 
 
 "Linnie," began Frau Neumann, "your 
 mother is well cared for, and I do not reproach 
 you for wishing to see her; but it is late, and 
 there is danger of taking cold. " 
 
 The sexton's wife now led the way through a 
 dense group of firs, to the receiving vault, which 
 opened creakingly on its rusty hinges as the two 
 entered. It was a cold, gloomy place, lighted 
 only by the weird rays of the lantern which 
 Linnie carried. 
 
 Frau Neumann endeavored to console the 
 afflicted daughter: "Remember, Linnie, she was 
 an old woman, and always complaining. She 
 gave you much trouble, and did not linger or 
 suffer long at the last." 
 
 "Ah!" thought Linnie, "she was my mother, 
 and all I had left in the world !" 
 
 They reached the bier upon which the dead 
 lay. There was nothing repulsive or terrifying 
 in the sight. A peaceful calm rested upon the 
 still pale image, as if it had not tasted any bit- 
 terness in the struggle. 
 
 Linnie fell upon her knees, and gave way to
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 23! 
 
 her grief. Her eyes had been unable to shed 
 tears during the previous sad occurrences of the 
 day ; but now the fountain was opened, and she 
 wept freely. 
 
 "I am now alone in the world. The little 
 mansard has lost its dearest and best attraction. 
 God's lightning has crushed the poor seamstress 
 to the earth. Why does he visit such terrible 
 vengeance upon me ? Why was I not permitted 
 to close my dear mother's eyes, or breathe for 
 her a parting prayer?" 
 
 Frau Neumann finally entreated: "Linnie, 
 come now ; we must leave this place. It is 
 wrong for us to remain here. My husband is 
 sick, and we are not safe." 
 
 "The seamstress of Stettin," who had calmed 
 and comforted so many in their hours of be- 
 reavement, felt that now God alone was her 
 support. With supreme effort, relying upon her 
 Heavenly Father's aid, she looked upon the dear 
 sleeper for the last time ; then turned away with 
 her companion. 
 
 As they walked amid the dark fir shadows, a 
 breath of air stirred their branches from the 
 north, and refreshed the burning eyes and cheeks 
 of the mourner. She was indeed weary; and 
 begging the sexton's wife to go home, she sat 
 down to rest and meditate. The sky had dark- 
 ened, and clouds were hurrying over the moon's
 
 232 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 face. All around her lay the departed ones. 
 Rich and poor, distinguished and lowly, Linnie 
 had known many of them. Many life-histories 
 recalled themselves. How many secrets lay in her 
 honest, sympathetic bosom ! Ah ! we are soon 
 forgotten ! The world laughs and dances over 
 our graves ; it uses our hardly earned wealth, 
 clothes itself in our garments ; it afflicts itself 
 and whispers lamentations; but no one removes 
 the withered wreaths from the place where 
 we lie ! 
 
 It was now after midnight, and from the dis- 
 tant church-tower sounded half-past one. She 
 roused herself from this apathy of despair ; but 
 evil spirits tormented her soul, and seemed now 
 to fill this sacred spot with their suggestions : 
 
 "There is no God, no God of love and mercy. 
 These who lie here beneath the sod attest this, 
 as well as they who still breathe ;" and yet further 
 they whispered mockingly in her ears: "Have 
 you not tried to do your duty, and served Him 
 with holy fear and trembling? What gain has 
 it been to you ? Is the empty mansard the poor 
 seamstress's reward for her fidelity? Look at 
 your declining years, and know the sufferings 
 still in store for you ! Spared only to crumble 
 to dust as these before you. Have you ever seen 
 any of them arise ? Never, never ! With what 
 body do they come?"
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 233 
 
 Linnie scarcely knew whether these evil sug- 
 gestions sprang from without or from her own 
 inner self. She perceived only the wounds they 
 made ; and while she suffered beneath the gloomy 
 doubts, she lifted her soul in pra)'er against 
 them. Wholly absorbed in the contemplation, 
 she had not observed her surroundings ; but now, 
 growing calmer, her eyes rested upon a tablet 
 near. It represented a large open Bible. The 
 page was encircled with a carved ivy-leaf, within 
 which, in golden letters, she read: Isaiah Ixv, 17. 
 The clouds no longer obscured the moon. The 
 trees with their quivering foliage, and the silent 
 resting-places, stood out in all their splendor and 
 clearness. 
 
 Linnie knew the Scriptural reference perfectly, 
 and she repeated softly: "For, behold, I create 
 new heavens and a new earth : and the former shall 
 not be remembered, nor come into mind." She 
 needed nothing further. These words turn the 
 golden age of the world's history, not to its be- 
 ginning, but to its end, and they are the hope 
 and trust of all who sorrow in faith. 
 
 Let the specters of unbelief and skepticism 
 approach in troops ; like brainless larvae, they will 
 sink away into the earth before the splendor 
 that beams from this Golden Text. Blessed be 
 the one who engraved it here over the beloved 
 dead ! Who will say it is a small matter whether 
 
 20
 
 234 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 a cross or a word of faith shall stand upon 
 our tombs ? 
 
 The first shimmering of rosy dawn has now 
 peered through the twilight of the rising day. 
 The dew lay heavy and clear upon the grass and 
 flowers. Suddenly the light shone from the 
 east, and songs of birds broke the early morn- 
 ing's stillness. The seamstress arose with assur- 
 ance, and returned to the city. Her steps were 
 feeble, and her whole bearing had the appear- 
 ance of exhaustion. When she reached the little 
 mansard, a pure, fresh air from the open window 
 greeted her. Without closing it, she drew the 
 curtains, and lying down, was overcome by deep 
 slumber. 
 
 She was at first very pale ; but it was not 
 long before a hectic flush burned upon her cheeks. 
 The excitement and severe affliction of the day 
 and night previous had developed a fever. The 
 friendly swallows sat chattering and quarreling 
 for their missing breakfast, on the window-sill. 
 One of the bravest lifted a corner of the curtain, 
 head on one side, and peeped in the room's twi- 
 light. After listening a few moments, he raised 
 his wings and flew off. It was so still there, he 
 thought no one could be at home. But he was 
 mistaken; very solitary, and with lapsing con- 
 sciousness, lay on her bed "the seamstress of 
 Stettin" in her mansard.
 
 ^%%%n-M%:irii^^^ 
 
 J^. Sf, Sf, S^ ^. -f. S^. f. T. f. ~T" f. -T*. -1*. f. -T* 1* .7^ 
 
 VIII. 
 
 "Even as a nurse, whose child's imperfect pace 
 Can hardly lead his foot from place to place; 
 Leaves her fond kissing, sets him down to go, 
 Nor does uphold him for a step or two ; 
 Put when she finds that he begins to fall, 
 She holds him up and kisses him withal : 
 So God from man sometimes withdraws his hand 
 Awhile, to teach his infant faith to stand ; 
 But when he sees his feeble strength begin 
 To fail, he gently takes him up again." 
 
 H. VAUGHAN. 
 
 utterly at a loss what to do ; go to her ; 
 see if you understand it any better. Weak 
 
 tas she is from her recent illness, she re- 
 fuses to eat, and when I talk to her, she 
 only turns away her head. I know it, 
 brother, she is swallowing her tears, and of 
 course not of sheer willfulness. I speak to you 
 about it, that you shall not blame me if any- 
 thing happen to her." 
 
 Fraulein Mylitta Von'Kleewitz uttered this 
 long complaint, not without a certain percepti- 
 ble displeasure. "What a misery this rearing 
 
 235
 
 236 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 of children is!" she added to herself, as she sank 
 into an easy-chair, and folded her hands in her 
 lap; "but one like this is enough to hurry me 
 to my grave." 
 
 General Von Geldern sat before his desk in 
 the study. He looked up from the pile of pa- 
 pers awaiting his signature, and replied: "I will 
 see to Asta immediately. I have so much to 
 do I scarcely know where to begin ; but this 
 issue, this issue! God is with Prussia, and we 
 have made a good beginning. " He stroked his 
 white beard and sighed : ' ' This is something 
 unusual with Asta. I wish my wife were here." 
 
 There must have been a shadow of dread in 
 the approaching interview ; for he left the study 
 with lingering steps, leaving his sister-in-law 
 behind. 
 
 "As if I could not be there!" she grumbled, 
 drawing forth her handkerchief. "Ingratitude is 
 the world's reward." She arose and stood before 
 the mirror. ' ' A wonderfully well-preserved exte- 
 rior," she commented; "but when one never 
 goes out, it is difficult to obtain appreciation. 
 This war and the horrible contagion do not incite 
 many pleasant thoughts. How I suffer with 
 ennui! I must send Frederick for a few things 
 from the shops ; if one only looks over the sam- 
 ples, and buys a trifle here and there, it lends a 
 little excitement."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 237 
 
 Her poor head was like an empty nut, in 
 which a restless worm gnaws and writhes. Here 
 was an immortal soul in the midst of its un- 
 satiated longings. Seed-time was passed, but no 
 harvest had been garnered ; and now the winter 
 of old age was at hand with its thirst and famine. 
 
 The general had entered Asia's boudoir, 
 where she reclined upon a luxurious lounge in a 
 state of nervous restlessness. Her fine handker- 
 chief was wrinkled in her fingers, her cheeks 
 pale, her eyelids red, and the pretty lips com- 
 pressed with an expression of the bitterest woe. 
 
 "Now, Asta, what is the matter? Aunt 
 Mylitta complains about you, and I really be- 
 lieve" 
 
 She looked up from her large eyes with an 
 effort to maintain an appearance of child-like 
 trust; but her head dropped upon the arm of 
 the sofa, and she burst into violent sobbing. 
 With this movement a newspaper fell from her 
 side, which her father picked up. His glance 
 rested upon a paragraph wet with tears in fact, 
 thoroughly drenched by them and as ,he read 
 the following affecting lines, his forehead wrinkled 
 in serious condemnation: "Our wounded are in 
 a most appalling condition. Having been more 
 than twenty- four hours without attention, they 
 die from loss of blood, or are murdered and 
 robbed by the hyenas of the battle-field. Swarms
 
 238 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 of vultures are there, ready to begin their loath- 
 some work. In vain the parched lips cry for a 
 drop of water ; and when one reflects upon the 
 vast sums of money appropriated for the sanitary 
 department of the army, what sacrifices our citi- 
 zens are making in its contribution, one must ar- 
 rive at the conviction . . . We regret to 
 announce that among the list of the severely 
 wounded is the well-known name of Captain 
 Elmbach, of the king's Grenadier Regiment. We 
 have also learned that his father, the eminent 
 councilor, has set out for the seat of war." 
 
 "It is a lie, an infamous lie!" thundered the 
 general, throwing down the paper, impatiently. 
 "How can an intelligent person " 
 
 But his outburst was restrained by Asta, who 
 wrung her hands, violently screaming: "O, his 
 handsome eyes, his beautiful eyes, to be plucked 
 by the dreadful crows ! Have pity on me, 
 father!" 
 
 The general stepped back in astonishment. 
 "Whom do you mean, Asta?" 
 
 "Father, I shall die with him; his life and 
 mine are one. I love him, father. Ever since 
 he saved me from death I have been his ! O, 
 that the lake had kept us both ! Then we never 
 should have been separated!" 
 
 "Ah! so! is that it? Incredible! That 
 you should so far forget yourself you me !
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 239 
 
 Have you not called yourself my lion-daughter, 
 who shared all my antipathies?" 
 
 But she did not heed him. 
 
 "His unbound wounds," she continued, in 
 agonizing tones; "his parched lips; and I am 
 here, and would nurse and " She sprang up 
 with an unnatural gleam in her eyes: "I must 
 go to him, and if he be dead I will protect his 
 splendid form against those monsters!" 
 
 The general crossed over to the opposite side 
 of the room, and rang the bell sharply. Then 
 turned, and took the hysterical girl in his arms 
 Strong father-arms they were! Fortunate, in- 
 deed, she who finds them a safeguard and refuge 
 when life's storms rage over her head ! 
 
 "She is no longer, now, a child," he thought, 
 "trembling and swaying beneath the power of 
 love and pain, as a reed in the rushing flood." 
 He soothed her. "Only be calm and reason- 
 able, my child. This news is highly colored by 
 party hate regardless enough that it would be 
 read by relatives of the wounded, for the most 
 part in the city." * 
 
 Frederick answered the bell. 
 
 ' ' Linnie must come, " commanded the general. 
 "Search for her over the entire city, and bring 
 her s here. If Elmbach is really wounded," he 
 said firmly "and the latest news from the losses 
 at Gitschin have not yet been received he can
 
 240 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 be brought home; and as to the love" clearing 
 his throat "that is imaginary; the romance of 
 your adventure has bewitched you. He was not 
 so attractive to you before that event." 
 
 " My life for his !" she pursued hoarsely. 
 
 "It is not very pleasant to manage a grown- 
 up daughter," thought the father; but he replied 
 with kindly consideration: "I pity any woman 
 who does not know how to submit to the provi- 
 dences of Almighty God. On strong natures he 
 lays strong suffering. You are no feeble one, Asta. 
 Be discreet, and conquer this nervous hysteria." 
 
 He was interrupted by the chatter of one of 
 the shoemaker's children, whose wife was now 
 announced. 
 
 "We can see no one," he said peremptorily. 
 
 "She has just received a letter from her hus- 
 band," ventured the maid. "She says it is from 
 Gitschin." 
 
 "Then let her enter." He was only too glad 
 to give Asta's thoughts a new direction, and 
 therefore almost shoved Frau Schultz forcibly 
 into her presence. 
 
 She was tall, thin, and wasted from years of 
 privation, mother-care, and work. She wore an 
 old black camelot dress, and a blue figured calico 
 apron. Her face had grown wrinkled before its 
 time ; but now it sparkled with sunshine from 
 the joy that streamed therefrom.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 241 
 
 "I must carry it to her ladyship myself," she 
 exclaimed, producing it from a coarse yellow 
 paper cover. 
 
 Asta tried to read it, but the letters swam 
 before her eyes. The general took it from her. 
 "Sit down," he said to the woman, as Asta 
 again withdrew to the corner of the soa. 
 
 Frau Scliultz timidly accepted the invita- 
 tion by seating herself upon the chair's ex- 
 treme edge. 
 
 Holding the letter at arm's-length for he was 
 without his eye-glasses he read with sonorous 
 voice, and, toward the end of it, with ever in- 
 creasing emotion: 
 
 "GiTSCHiN, July 30, 1866. 
 
 " DEAREST WIFE, I must tell you that I am a cor- 
 poral. It was on account of a great day, as you shall 
 hear. Our captain ['Ho, ho! Asta, you see what kind of 
 news you had ; for mark well this was the day after Git- 
 schin '] was beside me " 
 
 Springing up, Asta's expression of deepest 
 solicitude changed to one of sweetest joy, and 
 she listened now with head forward, and pale 
 lips half-parted. 
 
 " was just beside me," repeated the reader, "and told 
 me that now I was an officer. Ah ! my dearest wife, what 
 is that to a man ? something dreadful ! I write on a box, 
 and I can not rest upon it lest the coffee-pot fall over ; and 
 that would be bad. Also, we have whipped the Austrians, 
 and on that account every bone in my body aches. 
 'Schultz,' said my captain, laying his hand on my shoul- 
 
 21
 
 24* THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 der, ' you have been very useful to me, and acted like a 
 hero. The colonel has made you a corporal, and you are 
 sure of a military title.' Tell Carl and Gustave and little 
 Fritz that I am an officer. Ah! dearest wife, what is that 
 to a man ? Our captain did it all alone, and the cloak I 
 took from him was in rags. Yes ; it cost much blood, and 
 many tears will be shed in Stettin ; for nearly all our 
 officers are dead or wounded, only our captain and Cap- 
 tain Von Drambow of the Eighth are perfectly sound. The 
 latter was very brave ; but as he was not the senior officer 
 he did not have command. Our captain was always to 
 the front, and you do not know what that is to a man ! 
 We marched through the fir-forest where it was beautiful 
 and still, at vesper time ; and I thought of you all. Then 
 suddenly our way was along mountains everywhere, so 
 steep it seemed the world must go under. ' Schultz,' I 
 said to myself, 'never mind that now; only do your duty 
 and God will provide.' I only knew then that we were in 
 a deep forest, and that our captain was frantically hurry- 
 ing us forward, lest we should n't get through first. He 
 kept shouting : ' Let no one be behind ;' and he was like 
 a storm here, there, and everywhere. Yes, he is very 
 frightful, that ' s the kind of a man he is ! His eyes 
 snapped like coals of fire, and blood ran down his 
 face from being scratched on the trees, and the branches 
 also tore great holes in our uniforms. 
 
 " Since that time we have fought our way out of the for- 
 est and passed through a village named Unterlochow ; then 
 on the heights, where our major was shot from his horse. 
 The shots flew thick and fast, and we were almost scattered 
 through fright, but Captain Elmbach brought us together, 
 while the balls snapped against him as though he were 
 bronze. Then we drove back a regiment of Hungarian 
 hussars ; then a battalion of infantry ; and when we could 
 fight no longer, the captain brought us to a place of cover, 
 in order to regain our senses. Every one says he will be
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 243 
 
 a major, and receive high orders. I and he were always 
 together ; we both did it, and before I would have left 
 him, they would have been obliged to tear me in pieces. 
 That is what a true soldier ought to be. Now when he 
 goes by, all the men shout, ' Hurrah !' " 
 
 The general ceased, and looked at Asta. She 
 had never seemed so beautiful to him. She ap- 
 peared as if baptized in love's electric splendor. 
 The deep-blue eyes glowed with beaming de- 
 light, softened by tears that were with effort 
 restrained, and the gentle undulations of her 
 delicate white dress betrayed a throbbing heart. 
 If this affection rested upon her imagination, 
 that mental trait of character must be excep- 
 tionally strong. 
 
 This reflection was not altogether agreeable 
 to the father; but the crude recital of the great 
 battle almost carried him away. Struggle as he 
 would against admiring Elmbach as a lover, he 
 could not fail to recognize his superiority as a 
 soldier. "A brave man, this Elmbach," he said, 
 dryly, as if speaking to himself; "but the letter 
 is not yet ended ; let us see what it says further. " 
 He resumed : 
 
 "The city of Gitschin was taken that night, and we 
 are now here resting. I shall tell you of the battle when 
 we meet. It was dreadful enough, and the city is riddled 
 with shot and shell, while the churches are rilled with the 
 wounded. I pity the poor fellows Austrians as well as 
 Prussians. Now, if they were French, we could have no
 
 244 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 sucli feelings ; for they are sworn enemies. I do not like 
 war, although generally the Pomeranians do. 
 
 "There is nothing wanting to our wounded ; but it is 
 sad to see so much suffering. I must tell you about Al- 
 fred Winter. He is the same old fellow for fun and pleas- 
 ure. We walked around the city this morning very early, 
 as he said he was not able to sleep, he felt so much like a 
 conqueror. After standing at a corner for some time, he 
 whispered, 'I hear a cackling.' 'You only imagine that,' 
 I replied; 'and even if you did, it is nothing to us.' 'I 
 should like to have a chicken,' he continued ; ' what am I 
 in the city of Gitschin for, if not to have a chicken ?' 
 Then he went behind a large house, opened the stable- 
 door, and not a living soul was to be seen ; but, sure 
 enough, there was the cackling again. Finally we found 
 the hen-coop, and the chickens began to fly over our 
 heads. 'Here you are, just ready for roasting,' he cries, 
 seizing as many as he could. As we came out of the 
 place, to our astonishment a young girl was sitting on tlie 
 stable door-sill, crying as if her heart would break. ' O, 
 Mister Great War Man, spare my life!' What do you 
 think the wicked Winter did ? He looks up to me, and 
 says : ' I should like to spare you, but this fellow with me is 
 a terrible cannibal, and spikes people on the point of his 
 bayonet.' Then he began to sharpen his bayonet, when I 
 spoke kindly to the girl, and quieted her. She had been 
 a bonne; but the family had fled the city, leaving her be- 
 hind. While I was telling her of you and the children, 
 Winter was preparing the chickens to carry them back 
 with us. We took the girl under our care, and found a 
 seat in a wagon which was going toward her home. Win- 
 ter made himself so agreeable, that if they had been 
 longer together I think they would have been betrothed. 
 She was a pretty little girl, with rosy cheeks and black 
 eyes. But, dearest wife, this war is a great affair. Who 
 ever would have thought I should be a corporal ? The
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 245 
 
 Lord God is with us, and we learn to pray to him far 
 
 better here in our distress than at home. 
 
 "But I must now close, with love to every one. 
 
 "A. SCHULTZ, 
 
 " 1st Army, 2d Army Corps, 3d Division, 5th Infantry Bri- 
 gade, 2d Battalion, Co. 5." 
 
 "Well, I call that a letter," said the general, 
 heartily; "but what we have learned must be at 
 once shared with our little Frau Von Drambow. 
 She is in a thousand anxieties again." 
 
 He was interrupted by the sound of the door- 
 bell, and soon the little woman referred to was 
 before them, rosy with excitement, holding out 
 an opened telegram. 
 
 "My husband lives!" she exclaimed, throw- 
 ing her arms around Asta's neck, and crying 
 for joy. Frau Schultz's flood-gates were also 
 opened through sympathy. "Ah!" she cried, 
 seizing the corner of her apron. 
 . Over Asta's deeply agitated face also flowed 
 waves. "Well," said the general, "this is no 
 place for me, with three weeping women ;" 
 turning to the visitor : "I beg your pardon, mad- 
 ame, but this is more than I can endure. Asta, 
 my child, do not forget that your excitement is 
 the result of illness. I trust it shall not occur 
 again;" and quickly as his disabled leg could 
 carry him he withdrew. 
 
 Not long after, Frau Schultz was on her way 
 home, holding firmly in a concealed pocket sub-
 
 246 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 stantial proofs of appreciation from the young 
 women for the welcome war news. 
 
 But Asta found it very sweet and comforting 
 to share her heart's secret with her dearest friend. 
 As a song in light minor tones, their voices 
 were heard in the room. ' Both felt that the 
 battle of Gitschin would not be the final one, 
 and that results might be very different in the 
 future. As yet the structure of their happiness 
 was perfect. Flowers still entwined its light col- 
 umns ; love-thoughts fluttered around them, and 
 from every blossom they sipped honey. But Asta 
 could not, in her serious moments, defend her- 
 self from the thought that in its foundation her 
 happiness was only an air- castle, or a house of 
 cards which a breath or a touch would shatter 
 to pieces ; and yet she had grounded upon it her 
 future weal or woe. 
 
 "If we could only see them once more!" said 
 the little wife, finally, with a sigh. 
 
 At this juncture Frederick entered with the 
 message that the seamstress could not come, as she 
 had been ill with fever for several days. Asta's 
 thoughts leaped at a bound from the Bohemian 
 forests back to Stettin. There was something 
 of her former vigor in every movement, as she 
 hurried with her friend to seek father and aunt. 
 They were both in the dining-room, where coffee 
 was being served.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 247 
 
 "Linnie is sick, and I must go to her at once; 
 I fear no one has looked after my poor, good 
 Linnie," she lamented. 
 
 "And shall that be your first outing?" said 
 Fraulein Mylitta, derisively. "You will meet 
 with serious harm if you are so foolish, Asta." 
 
 "Did she consider her own well-being when 
 she gave up everything to care for us?" retorted 
 Asta, impatiently. 
 
 "I have never wished you to preside over 
 even a duchess," remonstrated the aunt, warmly; 
 "and when it pertains to a seamstress, one sends 
 a maid. Why will you not be satisfied to send 
 a nurse?" 
 
 "Because I love her. I have wished to go 
 out for several days, but I had no incentive ; now 
 it will be a pleasure, and I must go, dear aunt." 
 
 "Well, your father shall decide." 
 
 The general looked up earnestly: "Do what 
 you can. Whoever makes his own health a su- 
 preme object, will never do much good to others, 
 to say nothing of anything great." 
 
 "An instrument out of tune will not produce 
 harmony," protested Fraulein Mylitta; "the 
 physical organization of a lady of position needs 
 especial care at all times; and after an illness, 
 certainly the most tender consideration." 
 
 "I have never regarded my old, crippled 
 body as either a harp or a piano," maintained
 
 248 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 the general. "I look upon it as an artful, re- 
 bellious slave ; either I must give it the whiplash, 
 or it lashes me. As to 'ladies of position,' they 
 are creatures of flesh and blood, and it would ap- 
 pear to me more sensible for them not to make 
 bondwomen of their bodies. Thank God, Asta 
 is perfectly hale. It will do her no harm to 
 climb a few flights to repay a debt of gratitude." 
 
 She approached him, and gently stroking his 
 white hair, kissed his forehead. " My dear papa, 
 that pleases me so much." 
 
 "And you please me much better than when 
 
 you loll in fantastic mummery ; it does n't become 
 
 you. Do your duty, my child ; take the good 
 
 .woman my regards, and if you wish to plunder 
 
 my wine-cellar in her behalf, I have no objection." 
 
 "You two are a splendid pair," pursued Frau- 
 lein Mylitta, ironically. 
 
 Frau Von Drambow thought so sincerely. 
 She joined the young girl, and they soon after 
 knocked at Linnie Bergmann's humble door. 
 
 "The seamstress of Stettin" had remained 
 alone, as we left her, for a long time. It is true the 
 woman from the basement visited her occasion- 
 ally, to shake up her pillow and replenish the 
 water-pitcher ; but Linnie was unable to collect 
 her thoughts sufficiently to send for other friends. 
 The time had come when she should experience 
 what it was to be alone and dependent. No bird
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 249 
 
 in its forsaken cage, looking with timid gaze on its 
 empty seed and water cups, could be more help- 
 less than she. How often she counted the clock's 
 strokes, and how long the hours seemed ! To- 
 day the shadows lengthened in the mansard. 
 Before the sick one stood the high bed of her 
 departed mother, and the easy-chair, with its long 
 arms. On the window-sill the flowers drooped. 
 She reached with pale, feeble hands for the 
 water-pitcher ; but vainly her parched lips longed 
 for a cooling draught it was empty. Attempt- 
 ing to replace it on the shelf, it fell from her 
 trembling fingers to the floor and was broken 
 in pieces. Just then came knocking at the door. 
 
 Without waiting for an answer, Frau Von 
 Drambow and Asta entered. Their presence 
 was like the sun, overwhelming the room with 
 its golden flood of light. With characteristic 
 impetuosity Asta flew to her bedside: " Linnie, 
 dear, best Linnie, how alone you are ! Why did 
 you not send for us? And here is the pitcher 
 on the floor; she wanted water, and there was 
 no one to give it to her!" she began to lament 
 in her intense way. Meanwhile her companion 
 went quietly and quickly to the lower story 
 for water. 
 
 "Now I must not leave you!" cried Asta, 
 with painful indignation ; "it shall be as though 
 you had an adopted daughter. See, Mathilda:
 
 250 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 she smiles a little already. What kind of mon- 
 sters are these Stettiners, to let their seamstress 
 want so miserably!" 
 
 Linnie's condition was improved from this 
 time forward. Asta returned home on wings of 
 love, and soon came back with her maid, who 
 carried lemons, ice, a small refrigerator, and 
 many other useful and useless things. Frau Von 
 Drambow was obliged to leave ; but it must 
 be confessed the young girl served the invalid 
 well almost too well, indeed ; but her over- 
 zealous attention, if it somewhat disturbed Lin- 
 nie's nerves, refreshed her heart as a spring- 
 rain falling upon the thirsty ground. The fever 
 suddenly abated, and her mind became quite 
 clear. 
 
 "My dear Fraulein Asta, please do me one 
 more favor," she murmured feebly; "the spar- 
 rows haven't had a crumb all this time. What 
 will they think of me ? And then the flowers ; 
 and the ivy around " Before she uttered the 
 name, came the recollection of the past week's 
 bereavements. 
 
 Asta had learned of the mother's death, 
 while Frau Von Drambow had been informed of 
 John's by the tenants of the building. And 
 now she longed to comfort her sick friend ; to 
 speak to her of the resurrection, and a blessed 
 reunion ; but she could not trust herself. She
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 251 
 
 bent over her in a posture of unutterably sweet 
 compassion. "Linnie," she ventured, "I will 
 be your foster-daughter. Do not weep over the 
 others; only get well now." 
 
 Linnie was silent. Her heart was accustomed 
 to grief, her will accustomed to restraint, and 
 she had learned self-control upon a sick-bed. 
 Her eyelids closed deeply over her tender brown 
 eyes, as she whispered: "It hath pleased God, 
 it also pleaseth me." 
 
 Asta had never heard these simple words ut- 
 tered with such eloquence. She felt instinct- 
 ively there was in them the purest, most precious 
 gold for the Christian's every-day life. It was 
 easy to repeat lightly, "As God will," but not 
 so easy to give it sincere utterance in the 
 hours of distress and sorrow. Ah ! the star of 
 heathendom, the germ of the unbeliever is, "As 
 /will." 
 
 The two remained quietly together. The dif- 
 ference in social position was wide ; but love had 
 built a bridge over the gulf, and Asta would have 
 neglected everything in order that the sick one 
 might be more comfortable, and feel assured no 
 one in Stettin was less forsaken. But Linnie's 
 consideration reminded her that she would not 
 accept her services during the night. Asta was 
 most reluctant to yield ; but after the physician's 
 visit, and assurance that it would be unneces-
 
 252 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 sary, she left her, promising to call the fol- 
 lowing day. 
 
 When Linnie was again alone, and so much 
 improved, there was a feeling of confidence and 
 thanksgiving in her wounded heart. The stars 
 looked into the little room, and kept her awake 
 a long time. Their gentle light awakened in her 
 tried soul longing desires that, if possible, she 
 might not remain so utterly alone. Asta's lov- 
 ing words recurred to her mind ; but Asta could 
 be no real foster-daughter to the humble seam- 
 stress. She was too lovely, too beautiful ! She 
 might, like yonder heavenly star, visit the man- 
 sard from time to time, as an inhabitant of a 
 better world, and bring fruit and flowers to her, 
 but not dwell there no, such a thought was 
 chimerical. 
 
 But there arose another little form before her 
 mental horizon one with prematurely care-worn 
 eyes, very thin and dark ; a poor little one, 
 whose arms had entwined themselves around her 
 heart, whose timid smile was a reflection of 
 him who had once been her betrothed, Doro- 
 thy ! How could she make her all her own ? 
 Even if the grandparents were willing, Linnie 
 must live by her needle, and such a frail flower 
 would droop and wither, alone in her enforced 
 absences. Yet she continued to long for her, and 
 to picture a quiet life with the daughter of her
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 253 
 
 dearest love. At midnight the lovely images of 
 hope and desire had attained a splendor irresisti- 
 ble, and Linnie, ensnared by their enchantment, 
 for the first time in her life entreated God to 
 bestow this happiness upon her. She had not 
 believed it to be right to beg importunately for 
 earthly good. To be bound up with God, to 
 be united through Christ her Redeemer, to feel 
 upborne and sustained by Him, had always been 
 her chief joy. But now there was a secret, 
 vague something in her heart which gave her the 
 presumption to ask for Dorothy in spite of 
 everything. 
 
 In the early morning, when her friends re- 
 turned, she expressed a wish to see Dorothy. 
 Asta at once dispatched the maid to Grlinhof, 
 who returned with the information that the child 
 could not come, as she had died during the week 
 of cholera. 
 
 This time it was Asta who wept: "Linnie, 
 dear Linnie, remember, 'it hath pleased God, it 
 also pleaseth you. ' ' But it was for Linnie to 
 feel as Rachel mourning for her children, and 
 would not be comforted ; yet she did not shed a 
 tear, and for the time seemed perfectly reconciled. 
 
 "John needs her," she thought; "he could 
 not live without his child." 
 
 But there was a relapse after this, and when 
 she was able to leave her sick-bed the battle of
 
 254 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 Kbniggratz had taken place. On account of 
 this fearful action, which shook all Europe, many 
 houses at Stettin were plunged into grief and 
 mourning, and many of the inhabitants were 
 clothed in sackcloth and ashes, while over them 
 floated the flag of victory. 
 
 It seemed very gay when Linnie went out for 
 the first time with saddened eyelids, to read upon 
 all faces an expression of proud joy. She had 
 not intended to sew today, having promised 
 Asta to reserve her strength for a time. It was 
 pleasant to be out in the warm sunshine among 
 her brothers and sisters, as she called the Stettin 
 people, and to feel that she was not forgotten. 
 As she sat beneath an old linden on the King's 
 Square, she thought, "We are like the leaves 
 of a tree ; some of them cluster together, and 
 some hang apart, but the tree nourishes them 
 all as sisters of a large family. On it they move 
 up and down in the sweet, lively air; but only 
 so long as their stems are securely united to the 
 origin of their exi-stence and preservation do 
 they really live. The torn off, fallen leaf, which 
 has been stripped by the wind, only struggles a 
 little while; for being no longer a part of the 
 whole, it perishes : so it is when we poor maid- 
 ens lose the companionship and intercourse of 
 human beings we shrivel and wither and per- 
 ish, like the dry leaves."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 255 
 
 If Linnie did not have this poetic idea quite 
 as clearly formed in her mind as here expressed, 
 she was deeply imbued with it. Her mother's 
 death, instead of selfishly affecting her with the 
 feeling of solitude, caused her heart to go out 
 even more warmly toward others ; and although 
 forty years of life were passed, the spring of 
 love was fresh and perennial. Terrors of death 
 had encompassed her; dark, bitterly wicked 
 doubts had assailed her ; but her sorrow had not 
 been without hope. Thoroughly assured by a 
 resignation to the Divine will, she went on her 
 way, and her wan face beamed with the beauty 
 of thanksgiving and gratitude. 
 
 She had now approached Birch Avenue. 
 Hark ! there is the bird's carol in the pretty 
 Drambow dwelling. Why does it sing so cheerily 
 when the spring-time has long passed? Every- 
 thing must be happy in the little home ; for in 
 the gloom of earlier days the song had been 
 hushed. But suddenly, now, it ceases, as though 
 a cloth had been hastily thrown over the cage. 
 The house itself presents the same lovely picture 
 of peace, in the midst of its green setting. Lin- 
 nie's eyes rest upon the slender thread of smoke 
 which curls from the chimney ; how cold and 
 deserted it ascends into the upper air ! 
 
 It is still forenoon, and no sensible house- 
 keeper permits the fire to die out when dinner is
 
 256 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 on the hearth. Henrietta is standing before the 
 window. The front door stands carelessly ajar, 
 and from the outer steps Linnie hears little 
 Adolph's fretful cry. She passes directly to his 
 room, and finds him still in his night-dress, with 
 his uncared-for locks in disorder over his brow. 
 Linnie has a fearful misgiving. From the floor 
 comes a pitiful moan ; and there, lying as she did 
 when the marching orders made Stettin tremble, 
 was the helpless mother. 
 
 "My dear, dear lady! Linnie is here to look 
 after you." 
 
 Frau Von Drambow turned her head without 
 a token of recognition. 
 
 "Has anything occurred, my dear Frau Von 
 Drambow ? Ah ! only hear how poor little 
 Adolph cries !" 
 
 "He is dead, Linnie!" the pale lips mur- 
 mured. 
 
 And to describe the magnitude and bitterness 
 of such a loss, words are powerless. The in- 
 tense love that had clustered in a full wreath of 
 myrtle and roses, lay withered in a skeleton 
 of piercing thorns. There had been seven years 
 of wooing. She had spun the years with the 
 golden thread of patience, and netted it with ties 
 of rarest affection. Away, now, thou sweet hap- 
 piness too bright, too beautiful, too perfect for 
 earth ! Ah ! the fatherland won many splendid
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 257 
 
 victories in a few brief years, but the cost was 
 heavy ; for every drop of blood, a tear, and eyes 
 that, even to day, weep bitterly in silence ! 
 
 It was some time before Linnie was able to 
 learn the particulars of the affair. The greatest 
 precautions had been taken to prevent Frau 
 Von Drambow from hearing of her husband's 
 death. General Von Geldern had been com- 
 missioned to carry the sad tidings. But the 
 universal gossip had been swifter than he ; and 
 at the same moment when Henrietta had ter- 
 rified her mistress by a few dark hints, the wife 
 of a sergeant in Company 8 had rushed into the 
 house, screaming over her own husband's death 
 and that of Captain Von Drambow. 
 
 During and since the battle of Koniggratz the 
 young woman had lived in an agony of suspense ; 
 for she had failed to receive any tidings from the 
 captain. Now there was the horrible certainty. 
 The clock of her happiness had run down ; the 
 strong, faithful husband's heart was still ; the 
 blow had almost destroyed her mind, and she 
 repeated mechanically in pitiful tones, "He is 
 dead, he is dead." 
 
 With the maid's assistance, she was put to 
 bed; and it was a great relief to Linnie when 
 General Von Geldern's carriage drove up to the 
 door, and he and Asta alighted. How the latter 
 trembled as she entered that unhappy home, 
 
 22
 
 258 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 no longer bright with its joyful young mother 
 and rosy, crowing baby before the window ! 
 Nothing hereafter but a shadow of its former 
 beauty ! 
 
 "She has already learned it," whispered the 
 seamstress; "it is a pity " modestly with- 
 drawing from the sacred inner circle of these in- 
 timate friends. She realized that her much-loved 
 lady was in the best hands, and she could be 
 of no assistance. Indeed, true help should only 
 come from Him who has absolute power over 
 death. She left the house, and wended her way 
 to Grunhof. In its full noontide splendor, the 
 earth blinded her eyes with its brilliant glory. 
 On the neighboring hills the corn waved, ripe for 
 the reaper's strong handiwork. 
 
 "Over our seeds lie tears, and our harvest is 
 pain," she thought, as brave Captain Von Dram- 
 bow appeared to her mind. Ah! if she could have 
 known how much he felt indebted to her quiet 
 Christian influence in those last days of appre- 
 hension, and how ardently he had clung to the 
 promises he had heard her repeat in the twi- 
 light hours, at her work in his pretty home ! 
 But this had not been revealed to her sympa- 
 thetic, earnest soul. 
 
 She had now reached the Hechterling man- 
 sion, whither she had come to hear more of 
 little Dorothy's fate. The old people sat on a
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 259 
 
 bench before the door. On the hot gravel walk 
 at their feet lay a fat old cat, lazily blinking at 
 the lively curl in the end of her tail. All there 
 had been fed from the same table, and were now 
 enjoying the sunshine with equal comfort. The 
 old man had his pipe, and the old woman's knit- 
 ting-needles clattered busily. 
 
 Linnie greeted them, and as neither offered 
 her a seat, she remained standing. "How was 
 it that little Dorothy passed away so quickly?" 
 she asked, earnestly. 
 
 "What is that to you? You are not the 
 child's mother, " replied the old man in his usual 
 gruff style. 
 
 The old woman snapped her eyes ; and then, 
 as if recollecting Linnie's untiring services in her 
 son's behalf, added somewhat more friendly: 
 "It was like all the others perfectly well, and 
 dead in a couple of hours ; something no doctor 
 can help." 
 
 "And did the dear child suffer much? or call 
 for her mother or father?" ventured the visitor, 
 with trembling lips. 
 
 "Even if we hadn't done so much for her, 
 and both been with her all the day long, she 
 would have wailed and shrieked as people do," 
 asserted Frau Hechterling with an expression of 
 vainglory; "but we did all we could, and had 
 plague enough in it, so that at last she fell gently
 
 260 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 asleep, and it is well neither of us got it," she 
 added, after a pause. 
 
 "What doctor did you have?" pursued Lin- 
 nie, for the purpose of her own satisfaction, and 
 to know the child had not been neglected. 
 
 "No one came near us. A person may die 
 and be buried out here without any one troubling 
 over it." 
 
 "Pity," responded Linnie ; "that is because 
 so many physicians have gone with the army. 
 Have you another servant, Frau Hechterling?" 
 
 This latter question was prompted by the 
 presence of a girl, who stood before them twist- 
 ing a blue linen apron around her left arm in 
 evident embarrassment 
 
 "The lady must go to the coffee, for the water 
 is getting wild over the fire." 
 
 "Let the coffee boil as long as I order, if it 
 boils to the grounds," snarled the mistress; 
 "when I say so long, so long it is;" whereupon 
 the terrified creature returned to her hiding- 
 place. Turning to the visitor, the old woman 
 continued: "Yes, I have another oi them; 
 nothing but plagues, all of them. I let the other 
 girl go after John's death, and she did n't as 
 much as say 'thank you' to us. I had to wait 
 on Dorothy with my own hands." 
 
 "What I still wish to know is, whether I am 
 to sew for you next Thursday?"
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 261 
 
 "No, Linnie, not that time. You see we are 
 going to build a new house, and begin the work 
 on that day, and sewing here makes too much 
 trouble." She gave her husband a glance of 
 self-satisfied pride, pointing at the same time to 
 a vacant lot adjoining their garden, which was 
 piled up with stones and sand. 
 
 "Why do you build this much-talked-of house 
 now?" exclaimed Linnie, rashly. "You always 
 contended it would cost too much money." 
 
 "Well, you can 't do anything without money 
 in this world," interjected the old man. "As 
 you say, it will cost a lot of money ; but then 
 there will be money made out of it. The rent 
 will bring us in something. Money is the chief 
 thing. Mark this, Linnie, if you had had money, 
 you would have quarreled, too, with John. It is 
 always so." 
 
 "No, no," maintained Linnie, her cheeks 
 suffused with blushes, like two damask roses, 
 "that I shall never concede. Money is not the 
 chief thing. Our Christian life on earth, our 
 blessedness in heaven that is the chief thing." 
 
 "I look out for good eating and drinking, and 
 for a capital that brings in a certain interest," 
 persisted the old butcher. "How long do you 
 want to stand there and gabble?'' 
 
 But the seamstress was not so easily baffled. 
 "You caused John many heavy hours by your
 
 262 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 want of sympathy and your refusal to help 
 him" 
 
 The old man took the pipe from his mouth, 
 and stared at Linnie full in the face. The old 
 woman looked askance, and pushed the fat old 
 cat from her lap. It is noteworthy that hard- 
 hearted people are often to a degree kind to ani- 
 mals. While this wretched woman's servants 
 were subjected to the harshest treatment, the cat 
 had a comfortable home. 
 
 ''That house over yonder," said old Hech- 
 terling, without winking an eyelash, ' ' will be built 
 with Dorothy's inheritance the very inherit- 
 ance which her Grandmother Kraus tried to 
 make so fast. She left no relatives but her be- 
 loved grandparents, and it has fallen to us. How 
 do you like that, now? or have you something 
 to say against it?" 
 
 The seamstress gave him a look of supreme 
 contempt. "Well, I shall go," she replied, and 
 inclining her head in the faintest semblance of a 
 bow, she turned away. Frau Hechterling, how- 
 ever, called after her: "In a couple of weeks 
 you may sew here again." 
 
 Linnie had the words upon her lips, "I shall 
 never enter your house again ;" but she recalled 
 John's wish. If she were to make an effort for 
 the salvation of their souls she must be patient: 
 "Very well; I will come."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 263 
 
 Once more in the little mansard she was soon 
 at work upon small garments intended for the 
 Schultz children, the material of which Asta 
 had provided, as she had conscientiously looked 
 after the interests of that family, even more than 
 ever since the Gitschin letter. 
 
 It was almost dark when Frederick knocked 
 at the door, with the message that General Von 
 Geldern was below, waiting to speak to her. 
 Would she be so kind as to prepare for an out- 
 ing? Hastily donning hat and mantle, she was 
 soon at the foot of the stairs. The general 
 looked troubled. 
 
 "I have just brought my daughter home, 
 almost forcibly," he said. "She must not wit- 
 ness the trouble at Drambow's. Only think, 
 Linnie, the poor little woman has neither eaten 
 nor spoken a word other than ' He is dead ' all 
 day long ; and, what is more distressing, she 
 does not shed a tear. If this condition con- 
 tinues, the gravest result must ensue. You must 
 go to her ; no one understands such cases so well. 
 You must present God's Word to her. Make 
 your decision quickly. Will you do me this 
 favor? I loved Drambow, and am truly anxious 
 about his wife." He sighed deeply. 
 
 Linnie was not one to hesitate in a matter of 
 duty, and, modestly assenting, she expressed 
 herself ready to do what she could.
 
 264 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "You are a good, brave woman. God bless 
 you ! How relieved Asta will be when she knows 
 you are with her friend !" 
 
 Linnie went to Griinhof for the second time. 
 Where was the morning's freshness? The air 
 hung about her like lead. What should she say ? 
 What should she do ? Where find a balm to pour 
 into the gaping, wounded heart of this woman? 
 
 Henrietta met her at the door with weeping 
 eyes. Little Adolph'had been put to bed ; but 
 she had not ventured to approach the distressed 
 mother. 
 
 Linnie entered the room quietly. The win- 
 dow-curtains were closely drawn, and in the dark- 
 ness little could be discerned ; but she heard 
 the monotonous moaning which betrayed deep 
 mental agony. Without disturbance she sat down 
 by the window. 
 
 "I am here, my dear Frau Von Drambow, " 
 she began, calmly. "You could not remain all 
 night alone." 
 
 There was no reply. After a long pause 
 came, "He is dead, he is dead!" which was 
 repeated monotonously, evincing mental aberra- 
 tion, in an ecstasy of woe. 
 
 Linnie began to sing softly : 
 
 " There is rest for the weary." 
 
 Between every verse she paused. Her sweet, 
 pure, sympathetic voice penetrated the apart-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 265 
 
 ment, and gradually loosened the bonds with 
 which suffering had imprisoned the captive. The 
 song was suddenly interrupted by a cry, as from 
 the depths of a sick soul. She hastened to Frau 
 Von Drambow's side, and embracing her, list- 
 ened to loud, bitter wailing: "It has deceived 
 me ; the ninety-first Psalm has deceived me !" 
 
 "God is in his Word, my dear lady. We 
 dare not select solitary passages and make out of 
 them prophecies to suit ourselves. May I talk 
 to you of the beautiful hereafter, of the glorious 
 resurrection, of eternal life, upon which all our 
 hopes are founded?" Going to the window she 
 drew back the curtains with a quick movement ; 
 then returned to her charge. The little wife 
 covered her face. The sun had set, and the 
 western horizon was splendid with gold and 
 purple rays, which were reflected in the apart- 
 ment, strewing on ceiling and furniture its gor- 
 geous, heavenly roses. 
 
 "I know how to sympathize with you, dear 
 Frau Von Drambow," said Linnie. "I have 
 lost all I had in the world, and I know where 
 the flowers of hope and trust grow in God's 
 garden for us both. May he help me to choose 
 and gather them aright! Do not turn away, 
 but listen while I read from this blessed Word : 
 
 " 'I am the resurrection and the life; he that 
 believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall 
 23
 
 266 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 he live : and whosoever liveth and believeth in 
 me shall never die. 
 
 ' ' ' He that heareth my word and believeth on 
 him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall 
 not come into condemnation ; but is passed from 
 death unto life. 
 
 " 'If in this life only we have hope in Christ, 
 we are of all men most miserable. But now is 
 Christ risen from the dead, and become the first 
 fruits of them that slept. 
 
 ' ' ' Blessed be the God and Father of our 
 Lord Jesus Christ which according to his abun- 
 dant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively 
 hope by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from 
 the dead. 
 
 " 'Neither can they die any more: for they 
 are equal to the angels, and are the children of 
 God, being the children of the resurrection. 
 
 ' ' ' Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord 
 from henceforth : Yea, saith the Spirit, that they 
 may rest from their labors ; and their works do 
 follow them.' 
 
 "Now let me read also this to you, dear 
 friend : 
 
 "'There are also celestial bodies, and bodies 
 terrestrial: but the glory of the celestial is one, 
 and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There 
 is one glory of the sun and another glory of the 
 moon, and another glory of the stars ; for one
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 267 
 
 star differeth from another star in glory. So 
 also is the resurrection of the dead. It is sown 
 in corruption, it is raised in incorruption : it is 
 sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory : it is 
 sown in weakness, it is raised in power : . . . 
 
 " 'In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, 
 at the last trump : for the trumpet shall sound, 
 and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and 
 we shall be changed. 
 
 "'O death, where is thy sting? O grave, 
 where is thy victory? The sting of death is 
 sin ; and the strength of sin is the law. But 
 thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory 
 through our Lord Jesus Christ.' ' 
 
 What living heart could resist these sacred 
 words, which came from the heights like a paean 
 of triumph upon the ear? 
 
 Frau Von Drambow opened her eyes, and 
 extended both arms to meet those of her com- 
 forter. She could now endure the sunset's glow. 
 "Sing that song to the end." 
 
 Linnie began again : 
 
 "In the Christian's home in glory 
 There remains a land of rest." 
 
 Before she had finished it, her listener was 
 weeping bitterly, and was saved ! 
 
 The seamstress remained all night; and when 
 she heard the troubled little wife and mother sob
 
 268 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 and moan from time to time, she was ever ready 
 to utter sweet, consoling words of sacred promise. 
 The following morning, when the general and 
 Asta called, Frau Von Drambow, although much 
 exhausted, was able to see them and converse 
 rationally. She had determined to bear the 
 cross God had laid upon her, and his strength 
 was made perfect in weakness ; his grace was 
 sufficient. 
 
 " Thus when some long-loved comfort ends, 
 
 And nature would despair, 
 Faith to the heaven of heavens ascends, 
 
 And meets ten thousand there ; 
 First faint and small, then clear and bright, 
 
 They gladden all the gloom, 
 And stars that seem but points of light 
 
 The rank of suns assume."
 
 IX. 
 
 "Rejoice, O grieving heart! 
 
 The hours fly fast! 
 With each some sorrow dies, 
 With each some shadow flies, 
 
 Until, at last, 
 The red dawn in the east 
 Bids weary night depart, 
 
 And pain is past ! 
 Rejoice, then, grieving heart ! 
 
 The hours fly fast." ANON. 
 
 order to appreciate fully the occurrences 
 of the past few days, it will be necessary 
 to recapitulate somewhat. The momentous 
 third day of July had ended, and midnight 
 had fallen upon the battle-field of Koniggratz. 
 It was an occasion memorable in the annals of 
 German history. The remaining Prussian troops, 
 after the day's fatiguing conflict, had encamped ; 
 for rest is as necessary to the exhausted soldier 
 as food and drink. 
 
 The king's Grenadier Regiment, together with 
 the troops of the Third Division, had been sub- 
 jected many hours to an incessant grenade fire 
 
 269
 
 2fo THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 near Dohalitzka. The brave Pomeranian infantry 
 had not been obliged to meet the enemy breast 
 to breast as at Gitschin. As far as possible they 
 had fought, silently, motivelessly, in sheltered 
 positions ; but it was a difficult exercise to with- 
 stand the violent grenade firing of the Austrian 
 artillery. They had stood like a wall, although 
 their ranks were fearfully thinned, and precious 
 blood ran as water in the sand. When the 
 Prussian losses were estimated later, it was found 
 that those regiments which stood still and re- 
 sisted the enemy, suffered far greater in the num- 
 ber of dead and wounded than those that had 
 been pressed forward constantly to the front. 
 
 When the Austrians for the first time began 
 to weaken and retreat on all sides (in the after- 
 noon), the Third Division shared the pursuit. 
 In the forest of Problus they were again strongly 
 attacked by the enemy's batteries from a height. 
 Elmbach was in command at the head of his 
 company in the full flush of victory, when tid- 
 ings reached him that Drambow had fallen; but 
 in the storm of existing circumstances there was 
 not a moment's time for its consideration. 
 
 Captain Von Drambow had been in an intricate 
 thicket, where enormous eagle-ferns grew under 
 the old trees. They snapped and cracked around 
 him as he pressed amid their hardy stalks. Sud- 
 denly he was struck by a stray shot or shell, a
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 271 
 
 warm stream of blood gushed violently from his 
 right side, .and he fainted away. The few preced- 
 ing moments of consciousness had been devoted to 
 his God and Savior. "Come what may," he had 
 murmured, "it will be best. I shall see Him; 
 my soul is safe; I leave myself in His hands." 
 Blessed death of a Christian warrior ! " O death, 
 where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy 
 victory?" 
 
 He had known, thereafter, no more of the 
 battle of Koniggratz no more of Stettin and the 
 pretty little home at the termination of Birch 
 Avenue. 
 
 Long, long afterward, he was penetrated by a 
 strange chill. He seemed to be in a dark valley, 
 led by an unseen hand, where the gloom was 
 starless. Returning consciousness brought a con- 
 fusion of the senses, and he was afraid to open 
 his eyes. At length he feebly made the attempt, 
 and found himself on the ground, surrounded 
 overhead by thick oak-branches, that rustled in 
 the night-wind, and through which the stars glim- 
 mered faintly. He now heard distinctly the gen- 
 tle whispering and sighing of the myriad leaves, 
 the bristling of the blades of grass, through which 
 insects flew to and fro. What a peculiar sensation 
 this awful stillness and desolation ! He seemed 
 forsaken carried far, far away into a strange 
 country. Raising his head slightly, it sank
 
 272 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 back instantly, and he realized that the painful 
 wound in his side made any movement impos- 
 sible. A grenade splinter had pierced directly 
 under the right arm, then gone on its way to 
 become imbedded in the trunk of a tough ever- 
 green. But he still breathed ; his lungs were 
 uninjured, and his heart beat regularly. He 
 prayed long and fervently ; and though the 
 prayer was mingled with inexpressible groans, it 
 brought relief to his soul. Then he lapsed into 
 greater weakness, from which, with a sudden 
 start, came the perfectly clear, coherent thought 
 that he must have human aid. The leaves sobbed 
 on, and the stars gleamed and twinkled over the 
 forest of Problus. But his tongue was parched, 
 and he longed for water. Falling into a reverie, 
 the green foliage wove themselves into folds of 
 satin, which the reflecting stars heightened into 
 splendor, and upon which the early rising sun 
 imprinted a golden circle. A little white cloud, 
 quietly hovering over all, became transformed 
 into one of his little wife's white dresses. There 
 she seemed to stand before him, lifting to his 
 thirsty lips a crystal cup, filled to the brim with 
 the purest spring-water. Her sweet eyes were 
 full of love and pity, and her lovely mien re- 
 plete with solicitude, as dew in the flower's 
 calyx. "Water! water!" 
 
 Minutes of suffering are long ; hours are end
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 273 
 
 less. The golden chariot of day now slowly de- 
 parted, and the solitary one yielded his last hope, 
 and stretched his stiffened limbs for the final 
 conflict. 
 
 But from the north-western side came an 
 opening through the tall ferns ; then a faint red 
 streak of light, as from a lantern. The head of 
 a Prussian soldier became visible ; he was hat- 
 less, and his countenance wore an expression of 
 deep concern. Suddenly he approached, and 
 gazing as if his eyes would start from their 
 sockets, he gave a spring ; and now Christian 
 strong, hardy Christian kneels at Drambow's 
 side. For the first time in his life he weeps 
 aloud, and although a disinterested listener might 
 have pronounced this weeping a howl, it was 
 sweetest music to his captain's ears. 
 
 "Christian," whispered the wounded man, "I 
 am still alive. But get me water; then I shall 
 be better." 
 
 The old servant had come hither alone upon 
 his own suggestion, from the camp in the dis- 
 tance, having concluded neither to sleep nor eat 
 until his master were found, although others had 
 searched during the day and given up the officer 
 as lost. 
 
 On the way he had fortunately met a member 
 of the sanitary corps, from whom he had ob- 
 tained a flask of wine. Fondly as a mother with
 
 274 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 her first-born, Christian raised the sufferer's head, 
 and placed the Burgundy to his lips. It came 
 just at the right moment to restore the waning 
 strength. The brave fellow then bent over the 
 wounded, and gave a still more terrible howl 
 as the gaping wound presented itself to view. 
 
 "Is it, then, so bad?" whispered Drambow. 
 
 "Sir Captain, no one can live through it." 
 
 "I do not think so, Christian; try to be 
 calm." 
 
 "O, sir, what shall we do? Shall I cover you 
 with my cloak, and go down for the hospital 
 ambulance ? I am not quite sure of the way, 
 and there are thieves creeping everywhere to 
 plunder the wounded, to say nothing of doing 
 something worse." 
 
 "No, no, my old fellow ; do not leave me. I 
 thank you a thousand times for your search, and 
 your mistress will also be very grateful, especially 
 if it please the dear Lord to call me to himself." 
 
 Christian, by dint of great effort, restrained 
 another outburst of the howling. 
 
 "Even if you did not say this, sir, a Pomera- 
 nian is faithful; that no one can deny;" where- 
 with he covered his master warmly, after rais- 
 ing his head to a more comfortable position. 
 Then he seated himself at his feet, with his 
 left hand on the spring of his rifle, like a lion 
 watching over its young ; and woe to the battle-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 275 
 
 field hyenas that had dared to cut even a hair 
 from that precious head. From time time he 
 refreshed his charge with drops of wine, as the 
 lantern burned dimly in the moss. 
 
 Captain Von Drambow felt so resigned, so 
 calm, so blessed ! He had always endeavored to 
 act justly toward those in his employ, but he had 
 scarcely expected such self-sacrificing devotion 
 in return. He was not a man to demand reward 
 for the performance of duty. He gave his 
 whole heart to the king's service, and relegated 
 self and ambition to a secondary place. Now 
 this sincere, unaffected devotion, surrounding 
 him like the breath of angels' wings, assuaged 
 even his physical pain, and caused him to sleep. 
 
 The faithful watcher waited for the heavy 
 breathing, then removed his coat as well, and 
 covered the sleeper's feet. He wore, with many 
 in his position, a woolen shirt ; but the night was 
 cold, and he suffered perceptibly in the morning 
 freshness. But one thought was present, to 
 obtain help as soon as the sun should rise. Be- 
 tween whiles he nodded, then slept soundly ; for 
 rest was very necessary. 
 
 The day had already dawned when Drambow 
 awakened. Uncomfortable as he felt, he was 
 surprised not to be more miserable. The fresh 
 air invigorated him, and he observed with emo- 
 tion that his feet had been kept warm by his pro-
 
 276 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 lector's coat. He regretted to rouse him, but 
 the occasion demanded it. 
 
 "Wake up, Christian!" 
 
 "At your service, sir," said the sturdy Pome- 
 ranian, springing up, and rubbing his eyes. 
 
 "You must be half frozen, my dear fellow. 
 You should n't have taken off your coat." 
 
 "Ah, sir, when you called, I thought I was 
 at home in the stable ; and this was all a 
 dream." 
 
 Drambovv smiled. "No, it is not a dream," 
 and he looked involuntarily toward his right side. 
 
 "Let me look at it once, sir. It has all 
 clogged up, and the blood does not flow. You 
 must have some wine now." 
 
 "Yes," and when he had complied, he in- 
 sisted: "Now you also must drink. You have 
 exposed yourself greatly during the past twenty- 
 four hours." 
 
 "Sir, I do not need it at all." 
 
 "But I shall not take another drop until you 
 drink." 
 
 Christian knew the folly of gainsaying his 
 master's word, and obeyed. 
 
 The day was beautiful. From far and near 
 came the voices and tones of the forest, with 
 their throbbing pulses of renewing life. The love 
 of existence awakened strongly in the wounded 
 officer. It was now decided that Christian should
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 277 
 
 reconnoiter in the immediate vicinity. Upon 
 returning he reported having met with nothing 
 save reminiscences of the previous day's battle. 
 "Over[there, sir, wrapped in a flag, is a dead man 
 with just such a long red beard as yours, sir ; 
 but his face is so mutilated no one could recog- 
 nize him." 
 
 "It was well he was taken quickly," replied 
 Drambow, significantly. 
 
 Christian again started out in an opposite 
 
 direction, where the outlook was clearer, through 
 
 a lighter growth of oaks and beech. He re- 
 
 . mained away so long that Drambow became 
 
 uneasy. Finally he returned in breathless haste. 
 
 "Sir Captain, I have discovered a small water- 
 mill. It lies over there almost concealed from 
 view. The shells have struck it and burned what 
 appears to have been a stable, but the house is 
 standing. Not a soul is there ; but it is all fur- 
 nished, and there is plenty of wood for a fire. Sir 
 Captain, we must go there, if I have to carry you." 
 
 "Lift me up, and I will make the effort." 
 
 He succeeded better than they thought. With 
 his left arm over the broad shoulders of his 
 assistant, he made progress, half led, half car. 
 ried, and as the way was fortunately level, and 
 they rested occasionally, the spot was reached. 
 
 The little mill stood over a gaily rushing 
 brook, concealed in the midst of the forest. A
 
 278 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 lofty old willow overshadowed it, and a narrow 
 strip of meadow-land followed the water-course 
 zigzag. It was inclosed by the mountains on all 
 sides, so that the traveler would probably come 
 upon it unexpectedly, if not wholly overlook it. 
 The inmates of the dwelling had been obliged to 
 flee for their lives, and the evident destruction 
 caused by the grenades proved they had acted 
 wisely. No one had attempted to extinguish 
 the flames, which had been spent without mo- 
 lesting the miller's humble home. The mill- 
 wheel was utterly destroyed, and no longer clat- 
 tered, having experienced the enemy's presence 
 in the country. 
 
 Captain Von Drambow crossed the threshold, 
 and found himself under a strange roof, troubled 
 with no other desires than to lie upon a com- 
 fortable bed. Everything around betokened an 
 active life. Cleanliness and order reigned in 
 these modest rooms, still impregnated with the 
 odor of a freshly prepared meal. How grateful 
 was the restricted but cozy little living-room, 
 with its old-fashioned furniture and appointments ! 
 Christian found the most needful things in every 
 nook and corner. How he kindled a fire and 
 had warm water in a few minutes; how he 
 placed the wounded man in a great easy-chair, 
 removed his clothing tenderly to avoid giving 
 pain, carefully washed the wound, and succeeded
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 279 
 
 in finding old linen in a chest painted over with 
 red and white tulips ; how he finally got him 
 comfortably arranged in bed, with cold com- 
 presses against the injured breast, we leave to 
 the reader's imagination. But one must have 
 witnessed it in order to appreciate wholly the 
 loving devotion and pleasant change. 
 
 "My good Christian, Shakespeare's Ariel, 
 who served his master Prospero on the wings of 
 the wind, was nothing to you," said Drambow, 
 laying his delicately cared for hand with grateful 
 pressure upon the large, coarse one of the brave 
 Pomeranian. 
 
 "Sir Captain, he was not with us in our bat- 
 talion," replied the latter. 
 
 "No, Christian; he belongs to a story." 
 
 "This is like a fairytale, sir " but quickly 
 stepping back, the door opened, and he seized 
 his rifle. It was only a black cat, that walked in 
 and seated herself at the foot of the bed. 
 
 "You may stay," said the captain, closing 
 his eyes in extreme weakness; "this is the prin- 
 cess we have rescued." 
 
 The brook murmured sweetly, two wild 
 pigeons cooed on the window-sill, and the fragrant 
 forest air was wafted into the room, all whisper- 
 ing recovery, return to the fatherland, to the dear 
 wife and child. "Little Adolph little Adolph," 
 came from the lips of the sleeping father.
 
 280 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 While the invalid was enjoying this bene- 
 ficial rest, Christian made a thorough inspection 
 of the premises. Stepping around tiptoe, he 
 never returned from his inroads without an ex- 
 pression of triumph. Now it was a loaf of 
 bread, then a bowl of meal; this time a fine 
 ham, then a piece of bacon ; and it was not long 
 before he might have been seen sitting beside the 
 hearth, in perfect contentment, bravely attacking 
 a smoking dish, held between his knees. 
 
 His joy knew no bounds when he heard the 
 bleating of a goat in the garden. He at once 
 relieved the poor creature of milk, when a troop 
 of chickens surrounded him, to which he strewed 
 corn, and reckoned the eggs they should produce 
 for the captain's benefit. Meanwhile he did not 
 forget to renew the cold compresses ; but his 
 charge, notwithstanding, fell into a violent fever. 
 This was a serious time to poor Christian. He 
 felt the loneliness of a strange land more than 
 ever, amid the delirious outcries of the sick one. 
 How far away the king's Grenadier Regiment 
 now was from them ! Almost to Vienna. And 
 the inhabitants of this country, those black-haired, 
 black-eyed Bohemians, whom he never trusted, 
 would soon return ; then woe to the Prussians 
 they found scattered here and there ! But he 
 must remain with his captain; and, encouraged 
 by this purpose, he examined the rifle and
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 281 
 
 counted over with satisfaction the large number of 
 cartridges in their possession. If necessary, he 
 could keep a whole village of raw peasants at bay. 
 
 After midnight Drambow became calmer, and 
 Christian was able to sleep. He had fastened 
 the door with great precaution ; but no one ap- 
 proached the little forest mill in its beautiful 
 green solitude. 
 
 When the invalid had entirely recovered con- 
 sciousness, his wide-open eyes rested upon the 
 sunlight that softly entered through the narrow 
 panes of the little window. He felt so much im- 
 proved that soon he was able to sit upright 
 without discomfort ; and when his anxious nurse 
 came in with a basket made of rushes, filled 
 with luscious wild raspberries, a thrill of hope 
 penetrated him of complete recovery. 
 
 The two held long consultations as to the 
 best means and ways of finding a hospital for the 
 care of Prussian soldiers ; but they always decided 
 that Christian dare not leave his patient alone. 
 
 Thoughts of his little wife troubled him. 
 "She will think I am dead," he sighed, "and 
 she will be overcome with the grief." 
 
 Christian also sighed. 
 
 "What are you thinking about, my fellow?" 
 
 "Sir, I was thinking of our 'bay.' Gottfried 
 does n't understand how to manage him. I wish 
 we were all together once more." 
 24
 
 282 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "So do I, Christian; as to the bay, whoever 
 leads our company will ride him. We must 
 have patience ; in a few days I shall be strong 
 enough to reconnoiter with you. How are my 
 clothes?" 
 
 "All in good order, sir; clean, with buttons 
 polished ; but the patch I set over the hole made 
 by the grenade splinter is not the best, sir. I 
 got it from the miller's chest, and we could not 
 expect it to pass inspection." 
 
 "My dear fellow, I shan't think of that." 
 
 ' ' Yes, I know it is always good for you, sir ; 
 but when the inspector has a common man be- 
 fore him but the patch will have to pass;" and 
 Christian looked with disconcerted mien, from 
 the recollection of a lively episode during his 
 recruiting period. 
 
 "True, the field marshal is very strict with re- 
 gard to appearance," smiled Drambow ; "but the 
 chief thing is the heart that beats beneath the 
 jacket. I wish they were all like yours so 
 brave, so faithful, so true!" 
 
 Such an expression from his master caused 
 Christian to be willing to stay forever, if need be, 
 as his nurse and protector ; but it should happen 
 otherwise. 
 
 Although Drambow was able to leave his bed 
 for hours, he had not gained sufficient strength 
 for a reconnoiter. He was therefore obliged to
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 283 
 
 be content with sitting by an open window in 
 the easy-chair, to inhale the meadow odors, and 
 listen to the murmuring brook. The weather 
 was extremely beautiful. Little white clouds 
 shifted across the deep-blue sky ; the willow 
 branches scarcely stirred ; and in the universal 
 silence, only the hum of bees was to be heard. 
 
 The convalescent was moved by peculiar emo- 
 tions, in which his wife's seamstress played an 
 important role. She had once left at his home 
 a book entitled "Elijah," by Krummacher, the 
 pages of which he had turned over in an idle 
 hour. He recollected where the prophet, hid- 
 ing at the brook Cherith, was fed by ravens, 
 and how in solitude he grew in faith and self- 
 knowledge. The thought recurred to him : 
 "Why should I not do likewise here?" 
 
 A brook murmured before his door, while a 
 faithful raven, in Christian's homely guise, flitted 
 to and fro, that he should want for nothing. 
 Nothing ? When he had stood on the threshold 
 of eternity had there been other consolation to 
 his soul than Christ the Redeemer of men ? 
 And would he not desire to possess in life what 
 he had recognized in the shadow of death? O, 
 yes ; henceforth his heart and his home should 
 stand open to receive the sacred guest ; he would 
 not only be a father and husband, but a high- 
 priest in his family. With this resolution came
 
 284 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 a holy peace and calm, and upon his noble face 
 lay an expression of joyous sunshine. 
 
 Christian had gone out again for raspber- 
 ries. One of the wild doves had suddenly flown 
 away as if frightened. A wagon turned the 
 corner of the little dwelling, and before Dram- 
 bow could utter a cry, it was before the door. 
 Two men and two women alighted. The small 
 conveyance was overladen with boxes and chests. 
 One of the women a pretty, young girl, with 
 dark, bright eyes carried a commodious hat- 
 box. The miller for it was really he had 
 driven the horse from a seat composed of bun- 
 dles of straw, and cast an angry glance towards 
 the stable as he sprang from the wagon, and 
 threw the reins to his servant. With a hasty 
 oath, whip in hand, he stormed towards the door, 
 pushed it open ; then stepped back in amaze- 
 ment, to see a large, pale, strange man standing 
 beside the open window. He wore the miller's 
 own flour-jacket, and was weaponless, as Chris- 
 tian had left the gun in the kitchen to be cleaned. 
 
 Behind the miller was his sturdy servant and 
 the women, the younger one holding fast to her 
 hat-box, and peering over the men's shoulders 
 with great eagerness. All perceived the situa- 
 tion of affairs at once. 
 
 "So, here is one of those cursed Prussians in 
 the nest," began the miller, pressing forward, in
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 285 
 
 his blustering way. "Do you think this is 
 soldiers' quarters?" he added, imperiously. 
 
 " Captain Von Drambow, of the king's Grena- 
 dier Regiment," was the calm reply; "as soon 
 as my wound permits, I shall leave the house." 
 
 "As if it were not enough to have my prop- 
 erty burned down, and .we must flee and leave 
 our possessions behind !" continued the miller. 
 
 "There can't be but one of them," whis- 
 pered t-he servant ; "there is only one hat on the 
 nail, and far and wide no one is to be seen. 
 Shall I shoot him?" -:^.. 
 
 He drew a pistol, and directed it at Dram- 
 bow's wounded side. The elder woman screamed, 
 while the young girl put her hat-box carefully on 
 the table, extended the folds of her dress with her 
 finger-tips, and placed herself tragically before the 
 captain, like a protecting hen. "Do him no 
 harm," she cried, with flashing eyes; "rather 
 shoot me than him ! I knew the soldiers of the 
 king's Grenadier Regiment from Stettin. They 
 are brave men, and helped me in time of need ;" 
 whereupon she related her experiences at Gits- 
 rhin, in breathless excitement. 
 
 This was none other than the little bonne 
 whom Winter and Schultz had discovered near 
 the hen-coop, and who had joined her relatives, 
 the miller and his wife, at a village whither they 
 had fled for safety. Perhaps a northern "win-
 
 286 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 ter" had been transformed into a Bohemian love 
 "spring" in her heart and mind. Be that as fr 
 may, she was determined to protect the captain 
 with her own hands, if necessary ; but at this 
 moment Christian came running forward, gun in 
 hand, having heard the unusual din of voices. 
 Covering his master with his body, as a turkey- 
 gobbler with outspread wings, he was ready also 
 to fire at the intruders in a moment's notice. 
 But the girl stretched out her hands implor- 
 ingly with : 
 
 "You must leave here without fighting," and, 
 thanks to her influence, peace preliminaries were 
 begun, and more friendly relations established. 
 Christian should have a room near his master, 
 while the kitchen and hearth should be neutral 
 ground, the miller furnishing necessary supplies, 
 for which Drambow would allow him a cor- 
 responding recompense upon departure. 
 
 The miller and his wife soon discovered how 
 fortunate they had been in having their home fall 
 into such hands. Everything was in the best 
 order possible. 
 
 Christian began at once to get the great 
 wheel restored for action, and it was not long 
 before the familiar clatter was again heard in the 
 forest. The brook, laying her unwilling yoke 
 over it, threw sparkling crests of foam, then 
 dashed away with redoubled energy to the level.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 287 
 
 He also assisted assiduously in restoring the sta- 
 ble, the walls of which remained ; and, as clay 
 and wood were abundant, the horse soon had 
 a comfortable shelter. 
 
 Fraulein Michalina, the little bonne, proffered 
 all the assistance possible, never failing to bring 
 the conversation upon the Pomeranian reserves. 
 Upon one occasion, as Christian was engaged 
 among the willows cutting beams for the stable 
 roof, she appeared at the house door with her 
 crocheting. Seeing him, she came dancing over 
 the grass, and finally, standing near, she sum- 
 moned courage to ask plainly: "Do you know 
 an Alfred Winter in your regiment?" 
 
 "Who does n't know him ?" replied the sturdy 
 Pomeranian, swinging the heavy beams as if they 
 had been hazel-switches. 
 
 "Is he such a fine man, then?" she pursued, 
 looking shyly upon her finger, where shone a 
 gold ring mounted with a huge, blue forget- 
 me-not. 
 
 "Yes; he stole chickens at Gitschin," said 
 her companion, laconically. 
 
 "Not in earnest; I was there, and saw just 
 how it happened." Then she laughed, showing 
 her pretty ^white teeth: " Cesf la guerre but 
 perhaps you do n't understand French ? I learned 
 it from our little one's governess.", 
 
 "No, I do n't understand French. No French-
 
 288 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 man trusts himself with us since we got this kind 
 of rifles. But Alfred Winter ate the chickens, 
 if you call that fine." 
 
 "Pshaw! what matters an old black hen? 
 He rescued me, stood by me when I was alone 
 in Gitschin, and I like Mr. Alfred Winter very 
 much indeed." 
 
 "The Fifth Company also likes him ; he 
 makes much sport for them," rejoined Christian. 
 
 "What does he do at Stettin? Has he 
 always been a soldier?" 
 
 "He doesnt do anything regularly; he only 
 plays the fiddle. Wherever there is a wedding 
 or fair, people expect to find him. He eats as. 
 much as he can, and plays for them to dance. 
 He understands music, no one can deny that ; 
 for one could dance all night when he is the 
 fiddler." 
 
 "O, I like that!" exclaimed Michalina, clap- 
 ping her hands. "I I don't do very much 
 either. But to dance to dance ; that is my 
 life!" Whereupon she stretched herself like a 
 bird about to fly, and pirouetted before him on 
 tiptoe in an ecstasy of happiness. 
 
 But the performance no more disturbed Chris- 
 tian's matter-of-fact nature than the jumping of 
 a grasshopper. 
 
 "I didn't see him at Kb'niggratz," he con- 
 tinued, when she had stopped dancing. "When
 
 . SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 289 
 
 we were at Bistritz, about eleven o'clock in the 
 forenoon I saw him, but not afterward. Toward 
 evening, when I was getting a lantern ready to 
 look for my captain, some one said, 'Alfred 
 Winter is missing;' but another soon added, 
 'He is all right; bad weeds don't die;'" where- 
 with Christian made the splinters fly. 
 
 This last remark caused a shadow to fall upon 
 the pretty young Bohemian girl's face, and she 
 returned slowly to the house. 
 
 Drambow was enabled now to learn his where- 
 abouts. He discovered that he was not more 
 than two miles distant from a hospital at Hor- 
 zitz, and he impatiently anticipated the day when 
 his condition should be favorable for transporta- 
 tion there. He had already exerted himself by 
 writing a long letter to his little wife, giving a 
 detailed account of his disaster. 
 
 Perhaps sooner than prudent, he decided to 
 leave the" mill. As the miller had been richly 
 compensated for his trouble, he desired to re- 
 tain his guest longer. The Prussian silver dol- 
 lar still shone in very attractive splendor ! But 
 Fraulejn Michalina resolutely returned every gift, 
 begging only, with downcast eyes and blushing 
 cheeks, the favor of a word concerning "a Mr. 
 Alfred Winter." 
 
 Wrapped in Christian's cloak the owner of 
 which sat beside the miller, who insisted on taking 
 25
 
 290 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 his patient to Horzitz the captain sat on a 
 bundle of straw, with another at his back for 
 support, and drove away from his asylum. He 
 was still weak, but his recovery was assured. 
 In his heart sang a choir of thanksgiving. God 
 had not called him from existence. As a reward 
 for his pain, a compensation had been presented 
 to him, none other than an interest in Eternal 
 Life, which should be his for ever and ever. As 
 a flower lives upon the beams of the sun, so 
 would he also bask in the rays of the Sun of 
 righteousness. Happy be thy pilgrimage, faith- 
 ful soldier ! There are earthly and there are 
 heavenly laurels ; both are green for you ! 
 
 In the journey they passed over part of the 
 battle-field. Wagons, remnants of uniforms, and 
 cannon lay scattered everywhere. Here and 
 there a rough cross, or a bayonet bearing a 
 pierced helmet upon its handle, marked the spot 
 of some fallen hero. 
 
 The roofs of the little city of Horzitz finally 
 loomed up through the foliage. As in all Bo- 
 hemian towns, the streets are narrow and crooked, 
 while here and there may be seen, on high 
 columns, old brown crucifixes, as well as pic- 
 turesque fountains. The market-place was sur- 
 rounded by inartistic shops, built of stone, and 
 the town hall in this same locality was now used 
 by Prussian authority as a hospital. Here the
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 291 
 
 miller's wagon halted, and Drambow, assisted up 
 the steps, was placed in a room set apart for 
 officers, after a few inquiries. The chief sur- 
 geon, upon examining the wound, pronounced it 
 in excellent condition, and expressed the hope 
 that he might soon return home, where better 
 care would be received than the hospital afforded. 
 
 Drambow related the circumstances attending 
 his injury and subsequent sojourn at the mill, 
 to which the surgeon listened with deepest atten- 
 tion. While this was taking place several gen- 
 tlemen passed the room-door, for the most part 
 civilians. One of them an elderly, fine-looking 
 man, with a mild, interesting face hearing Dram- 
 bow's voice, without waiting to consider, ap- 
 proached him with extended hands. Tears rolled 
 down his face unchecked: "Has the dead 
 risen?" exclaimed Councilor Elmbach ; "and 
 your poor little wife, believing herself to be a 
 widow, is like an extinguished light." 
 
 "'O, she must have received better news," 
 rejoined the captain with a happy smile; "here 
 is the brave fellow to whom I owe my life." 
 
 Christian blushed like a young girl. 
 
 "I saw my son on the morning after the 
 battle ; but he could not talk of you. He said 
 the laurels won at Kbniggratz withered beneath 
 his sorrow over your grave ; for you have been 
 really and truly buried, my dear sir. They
 
 292 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 found you with mutilated head in a wood near 
 Problus, as they believed. When your servant 
 failed to return, my son sent a patrol of hospital 
 aids to search for you, and your subordinate 
 officer, who accompanied them, recognized you 
 by your long, beautiful beard. As if other men 
 did not wear such beards ! God be praised that 
 you live!" 
 
 "But you must sleep now," interrupted the 
 surgeon. "Although statistics prove the Pome- 
 ranian's nervous system to be stronger than other 
 men's, we can *t always be certain. Rest is the 
 first duty here;" and the jovial man, who en- 
 joined rest upon everybody but himself, hurried 
 out to give ,his attention to other professional 
 duties. 
 
 "Only one question," entreated Drambow, 
 seizing Councilor Elmbach's sleeve; "to what 
 fortunate circumstance do I owe your presence 
 here?" 
 
 "I left Stettin immediately after the struggle 
 at Gitschin, news having been received there 
 which gave rise to gravest apprehensions. I 
 traveled day and night, only to find my son 
 sound and well " 
 
 "And hero of the day, " interjected Drambow. 
 
 "When I was once here, and my child re- 
 quired no care, I concluded to remain "and care 
 for the children of others. I connected myself
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 293 
 
 with the Knights of St. John, pledged my 
 services and means, and I can assure you we 
 have worked hard. As we are at present pro- 
 curing transportation for the wounded, with 
 your permission I will take you under my spe- 
 cial care, and convey you myself to your wife 
 and home." 
 
 "Only too gladly," responded Drambow ; 
 "but I fear Adolph will not recognize me." 
 
 The councilor wiped his eyes in a suspicious 
 manner ; then withdrew, in order not to conflict 
 with the surgeon's orders. 
 
 While the captain slept, Christian, with 
 thoughtful consideration, visited the hospital to 
 hear from the wounded of his own regiment. 
 Passing from ward to ward, he was surprised to 
 hear the soft tones of a violin. He looked cau- 
 tiously within, through a door-chink, and there 
 sat Alfred Winter on a small cot, playing his 
 riddle. A group of wounded soldiers clustered 
 around him ; they were pale and wan, but listen- 
 ing in rapt attention to the familiar strains of 
 "There is rest for the weary." 
 
 "Yes; we heard Linnie Bergmann sing that 
 when we were quartered near shoemaker Schultz's. 
 We have learned it, and when we were in biv- 
 ouac, and the stars shone above us, and every- 
 thing was still, we sang it." 
 
 Christian now entered with his accustomed
 
 294 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 broad grin, and, stepping up to Winter, reached 
 out his hand: "Well, joker, how do you do?" 
 The answer came merrily : 
 
 " I 'm full of pains, 
 One leg remains 
 But it never rains !" 
 
 "Your leg off?" asked Christian, sympa- 
 thetically. 
 
 "Yes; far off on the battle-field of Kbnig- 
 gratz. What would n't a man give for his father- 
 land?" he replied, looking proudly over his 
 audience. 
 
 "It will never grow again," observed Chris- 
 tian, plaintively; for the lusty fellow was truly 
 sorry. 
 
 "It surprises me," continued Winter, "that 
 while everyone knows Adam was not Adam, but 
 a frog at least they say so, and I always be- 
 lieved it, and made jokes over it yet there is 
 nothing yet growing out of my stump no de- 
 velopment ; so there must be a great mistake 
 somewhere." 
 
 "Men should n't talk so much," argued Chris- 
 tian. "One ought to have the thing right in 
 his own mind before he opens his mouth. That 
 about the frog is foolish. How ever could you 
 believe it, Winter?" 
 
 "Young man," cried the latter, "it makes a 
 big difference whether one has been in battle
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 295 
 
 or not. A man is nothing until he hears the 
 boom, boom, boom ! and feels the rascally bul- 
 lets hum about his ears like a swarm of flies, and 
 sees the old shells crash around like beetles ; 
 then it goes whiz ! bang ! crack ! and the leg 
 flies away from a man's body. There is no joke 
 in that, I can tell you." 
 
 "Why do you lie here among the lightly 
 wounded?" 
 
 "I must play the fiddle, you know, and over 
 there it disturbs the dying ; so I begged the sur- 
 geon to have me brought here. I like sacred 
 music best now," Winter added, solemnly. 
 
 "How is Schultz?" inquired Christian. 
 
 "O he is a great man now, on account of Gits- 
 chin. A bullet struck him in the breast, and was 
 buried in a little Testament that the seamstress 
 gave him. He is a corporal, and the colonel 
 thinks highly of him." 
 
 "The colonel is a brave man," added Christian. 
 
 "But nothing to our Captain Elmbach. He 
 is the great locomotive, and we are only the 
 wagons. We had to follow him, and we flew 
 behind him like wolves ! But I am sorry I shall 
 never be able to join him again ;" and the "joker " 
 sighed deeply. 
 
 The visitor related his experiences in his slow, 
 clumsy fashion, and it was long before he reached 
 the surprising arrival of the miller's family.
 
 296 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 When Winter heard of Fraulein Michalina he was 
 warmly interested ; but later a crestfallen ex- 
 pression overshadowed his face, and he said 
 rather suddenly: "I don't think I shall ever 
 win the treasure now. Who would marry a man 
 with only one leg?" and two shimmering drops 
 rolled down his cheeks as he laid his head 
 despairingly on the pillow. 
 
 When Christian returned to his master, and 
 had related the incident, Captain Von Drambow 
 immediately dispatched a messenger with a letter 
 addressed to Fraulein Michalina. 
 
 Alfred Winter lay alone in his cot, very 
 lonely and uncomfortable a new experience for 
 him ; for he had always enjoyed life, like a happy 
 insect playing in the sunshine. Now the earnest 
 had come, and gloomy waters of trouble rolled 
 over his soul. The forlorn musician scarcely 
 knew that he prayed or to whom ; but it eased 
 his heavy heart, and he had unconsciously folded 
 his hands. The door opened lightly ; something 
 in the guise of a lovely rose covered with dew 
 appeared, and, almost before he could recognize 
 her, Michalina fell on her knees before him, sob- 
 bing as if her heart would break. But soon she 
 raised her head, and, 'smiling through tears, as- 
 sured him she had come to take care of him, 
 and would never, never leave him, laughing and 
 crying alternately, like an April day.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 297 
 
 It seemed to Alfred Winter as though she 
 had dropped from heaven to earth for his com- 
 fort and joy. Yes ; by her side life would never 
 be gloomy. How lovely she looked ! And she 
 would help him ! Ah ! he must have her ! 
 
 They made plans, and consulted very .wisely; 
 but of these the reader shall know hereafter. 
 
 Councilor Elmbach made preparations for 
 Drambow's return to Stettin with fatherly care, 
 and they began the journey in a few days. 
 
 It had seemed very strange to the captain 
 that no news had been received from his wife, at 
 Horzitz. The cause of this had been the wreck- 
 ing of a postal car by a railroad accident.
 
 X. 
 
 " Sow truth if thou wouldst reap ; 
 
 Who sows the false shall reap the vain ; 
 Erect and sound thy conscience keep; 
 From hollow words and deeds refrain. 
 
 Sow love, and taste its fruitage pure; 
 
 Sow peace, and reap its harvests bright; 
 Sow sunbeams on the rock and moor, 
 
 And find a harvest-home of light." 
 
 H. BONAR. 
 
 more the sun was able to penetrate 
 the dull, leaden clouds which had over- 
 shadowed Stettin so long; and her people 
 were encouraged to hope that the time of 
 pestilence had passed. It is true there remained 
 sorrow enough on account of the frightful war, 
 which, daily and hourly, recorded deaths of 
 many beloved ones. 
 
 In Captain Von Drambow's home a slender 
 form might be seen gliding around silently, clad 
 in deepest mourning, caring nothing for the outer 
 world, and shrinking even from her little one's 
 childish laugh and prattle. The inconsolable 
 298
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 299 
 
 woman could be comforted only by "the seam- 
 stress of Stettin." She alone knew the source 
 of all true consolation, and was able to direct 
 the sick heart heavenward. 
 
 Upon one occasion, when she was sewing 
 here, General Von Geldern and his daughter 
 called, as they frequently did. The former was 
 pleased to find Linnie with his little friend, being 
 confident of her ability to assuage the awful 
 grief that possessed the young widow's heart. 
 Toward five o'clock of the same day, a postman 
 handed to Henrietta a letter with the remark : 
 "This has been delayed two weeks." 
 
 The maid observed, from the penmanship, 
 that it was from her deeply mourned master, 
 and intuitively carried it to Linnie, exclaim- 
 ing: "See! here is a letter from Captain Von 
 Drambow." 
 
 Linnie made a gesture of silence : ' ' How can 
 you say so, Henrietta? Be careful!" 
 
 Yet it was evidently his handwriting ; but the 
 seamstress concluded it would not be wise to 
 place it, at present, in Frau Von Drambow's 
 hands. She consulted Asta, therefore, and they 
 decided to withhold it, for a time at least, until 
 the general should be made acquainted with 
 the fact. 
 
 He returned late in the afternoon, and they 
 all gathered, after dinner, under the apple-tree
 
 300 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 in the garden. While they were seated there, a 
 carriage rolled up to the hedge ; but none of the 
 party appeared to observe it. Councilor Elm- 
 bach alighted, looked around somewhat surprised ; 
 then whispering a few words to some one within 
 tke coaGlfr*. .the door of which he close'd he 
 noiselessly opened the garden gate, and walked 
 rapidly toward the apple-tree. A few moments 
 later he was observed by all with great surprise, 
 especially by the general, who arose, and flush- 
 ing deeply, stared at his former friend, with 
 whom he had not exchanged a word since the 
 eventful dissension of many years ago. He was 
 well nigh disconcerted ; but the councilor paid 
 no attention to any of the group save the young 
 widow, upon whom he gazed with interested so- 
 licitude. He carried his hat in hand ; but in the 
 momentary confusion no one invited him to be 
 seated. 
 
 "I beg your pardon," he explained," stand- 
 ing before Frau Von Drambow ; "has no letter 
 reached you announcing my arrival?" 
 
 Asta was too embarrassed to aid her friend, 
 who now approached him with a faint cry, and 
 offered her hand. 
 
 "You came from his grave," she said. "O, 
 have you really seen it?" 
 
 "No, my dear madame, I have not seen it. 
 My son and I searched vainly to find it."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 301 
 
 "Not found!" she mourned in bitter disap- 
 pointment, reseating herself. The others now 
 followed her example, the visitor placing his 
 chair beside her. 
 
 "I desire first to present you my son's re- 
 gard," placing his hat upon the table, but never 
 removing his eyes from his listener. "He is 
 quite well, and you know peace negotiations 
 were concluded on the 26th of July." 
 
 How could he speak, of that ? Even the gen- 
 eral was unable to suppress an "ahem !" 
 
 "One has wonderful experiences in the rear 
 of an army," continued the councilor. "I have 
 just witnessed a remarkable incident at Berlin, 
 which I shall never forget. I saw a woman 
 there whose husband was reported to have 
 fallen, and who belonged to the king's Grena- 
 dier Regiment " he paused an instant, and 
 looked from one to the other "that is to say, 
 there was a mistake ; for the person is really not 
 dead," he stammered awkwardly. 
 
 "My child," interposed the general to Asta, 
 "are you ill?" 
 
 She had grown pale, and her very soul seemed 
 to hang upon the speaker's lips. But the nar- 
 rator did not heed the interruption. "The 
 letters from the wounded man, who, with his 
 devoted servant, had been isolated from all com- 
 munication with the outer world by an extraor-
 
 302 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 dinary circumstance, must have been lost. So 
 it happened the man returned unexpectedly, 
 with a friend, to his home" the councilor's 
 voice trembled perceptibly "where the family 
 was found assembled beneath an apple-tree, just 
 as you are here, my dear " 
 
 Frau Von Drambow looked up, startled. 
 
 "Do you think joy has ever killed any one?" 
 he pursued. She sprang up as if she would 
 escape. 
 
 "Mathilda!" uttered a soft voice behind her. 
 She turned to the entrance of the arbor, and fell 
 in her husband's arms. 
 
 Unable to restrain his restless longing, the 
 captain, supported by Christian, had left the car- 
 riage, and before the councilor had completed 
 his well-meant preparations, the husband was 
 before her. 
 
 Sympathizing hands administered to both ; 
 but magic caresses from the beloved, better than 
 all other restorative arts, soon restored the 
 swooning wife. This blessed return was a glimpse 
 of heavenly joy transferred to earth. 
 
 Councilor Elmbach, the general, Asta, and 
 Linnie were also filled with pleasure immeas- 
 urable during this never-to-be-forgotten hour. 
 Adolph finally made his appearance, kicking his 
 little legs vigorously, and crying, "Papa!" The 
 general was obliged to take him from the nurse's
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 303 
 
 arms, and transfer the beautiful boy to his father, 
 who showered upon him kisses and tears. The 
 councilor's warning must now be heeded, and 
 Drambow was almost forcibly led in triumph to 
 the house. 
 
 His wife suddenly became transfused with 
 her old-time energy. The thought of having 
 her husband to care for imbued her with life and 
 action, and it was not long before he lay in his 
 own comfortable bed, with the golden light of 
 the setting sun playing upon the walls and ceil- 
 ing of the dear sanctuary. 
 
 Linnie and Asta, in a favorable moment, re- 
 moved from the room and house all traces of 
 mourning, throwing over the little wife a white 
 crocheted shawl. When they were once more 
 alone she sank by his side on her knees, and 
 prayed long and fervently. It was a mutual 
 outpouring of gratitude and thanksgiving to the 
 faithful Promiser, and now they could both truly 
 say the ninety-first Psalm, after all, had not 
 deceived them. 
 
 Soon after, Christian was called. With Adolph 
 in his arms, thrusting his chubby fists energet- 
 ically into the brave fellow's face, he responded, 
 "At your service, sir;" then added: "Now only 
 the bay is wanting." 
 
 "Look at him," said Drambow to his wife; 
 " my guardian angel concealed in his form ;" and
 
 304 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 an affectionate glance rested upon the devoted 
 man as he related the circumstances attendant 
 upon his injury and Christian's services. "You 
 shall have good days as long as you live, my 
 dear fellow. We both shall never forget you," 
 he concluded, with emotion. 
 
 The happy, grateful wife seized the sturdy 
 Pomeranian's hand, assuring him, with tears and 
 blessing, that she should never cease to pray for 
 him. This was too much for Christian, and he 
 began to howl with his former extraordinary vehe- 
 mence. The general relieved him by taking little 
 Adolph in his own arms, and they all withdrew, 
 leaving husband and wife alone. Following the 
 faithful man, the general pressed into his unwilling 
 hands a handsome amount of gold ; then returned 
 to the drawing-room, which had been adorned 
 with flowers, and where the canary was again per- 
 mitted to warble his welcome in unison with the 
 general song of rejoicing. 
 
 Councilor Elmbach was there, holding an ani- 
 mated conversation with Asta, who stood before 
 him in beautiful reserve. It was evident he was 
 speaking of his son. If the proud father in- 
 tentionally avoided every appearance of sound- 
 ing a trumpet of praise with relation to the 
 heroic deeds and splendid results of his son's 
 career, she was able to recognize, in their re- 
 cital, the song of triumph in which her dearest
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 305 
 
 hero played the role. The general now stepped 
 between them, and robbed her of this sweet 
 interview. It was an embarrassing moment for 
 the three. As their interest had been, until 
 now, concentrated upon the Drambows, their 
 personal intercourse was necessarily constrained. 
 
 "General Von Geldern," began the coun- 
 cilor, approaching his former friend with an 
 earnest expression of deep emotion upon his 
 interesting face, "is this not an auspicious mo- 
 ment to allow our past misapprehensions an 
 opportunity for explanation? As for myself " 
 
 A lightning glance from her father warned 
 Asta to withdraw. When she had left the room, 
 the general replied, looking persistently on the 
 floor: "The chief matter rests upon what be- 
 came of the letter which I sent to you at the 
 time by my servant. You will perhaps recollect 
 that I entreated you to sue, in my behalf, 
 for Fraulein Louise Von Werner's hand. You 
 answered " 
 
 The councilor grew very pale, and inter- 
 rupted : "I returned the envelope, in which there 
 was nothing but an empty sheet." 
 
 ' ' Very well ; the result of it was your own 
 betrothal to the lady on account of which my 
 long illness of months interfered with further 
 communication. " 
 
 "I have never been able to understand why 
 26
 
 306 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 you sent me at that time an empty sheet of 
 paper." 
 
 "Since you speak with such assurance, I 
 see nothing but a continuance of our unhappy 
 relations." 
 
 "I am of the same opinion;" wherewith the 
 councilor seized his hat, and left the house un- 
 ceremoniously. The action had in it rather the 
 appearance of anger than pain ; but when he 
 reached his villa, his face had assumed its usual 
 expression of thoughtful calm. He loved to 
 maintain his self-possession in all the affairs of 
 life, or rather to win a victory over self, as he 
 believed he had done this day. 
 
 "What a handsome man my old Pollux is!" 
 he thought. "All the old lion in him yet; 
 and despite his obstinacy and wounding, if not 
 discourteous manners, I love him deeply. But 
 what is to be done ? If only Rudolph, my son, 
 had not run his head into the wall!" 
 
 That was the point upon which he reflected. 
 During a very short conversation with his son in 
 Bohemia, he had read the passionate desires of 
 his young heart, and as plainly had he observed 
 their answer in Asta's lovely face. From her 
 silent lips he had heard an exquisite "song with- 
 out words, " which, though short, should linger in 
 pawer throughout eternity. With his pre-emi- 
 nently practical nature, he resolved to let mat-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 307 
 
 ters take 'their course, with discreet, watchful 
 patience on his part. When he recalled Asta's 
 beautiful image, as she had stood before him with 
 throbbing heart and downcast eyes, a smile illu- 
 mined his face. He could not blame his son. 
 
 General Von Geldern, warmly agitated, walked 
 to and fro in the garden of Drambow's house. 
 The little arbor beneath the apple-tree was not 
 wholly deserted. Linnie was there, assiduously 
 working to finish little Adolph's new dress. 
 Her heart was stirred with conflicting feelings 
 of joy and sadness, as she sighed: "I am the 
 only one left alone!" A half-rebellious lament 
 crossed her soul against the omnipotent God, 
 the friend of her soul, which, while it pained 
 her, she was unable wholly to repress. ' ' Nothing 
 wonderful happens to me ; my graves have never 
 opened from my earliest days until now. Deso- 
 late and alone, ' the seamstress of Stettin ' treads 
 upon the threshold of old age." But of such 
 thoughts Linnie was always heartily ashamed in 
 her better nature, and she never failed to seek 
 her Heavenly Father's forgiveness in deep repent- 
 ance. That a rich blessing awaited her in the 
 Saxon valley she did not know. 
 
 When the general perceived her, he walked 
 toward her, and suddenly said: "Linnie do you 
 ever sew on the old dressing-gown at Hechter- 
 ling's now?"
 
 308 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "I expect to do so to-morrow." 
 
 "Good!" then adding finally: "You area 
 sensible woman, and I can trust you that what I 
 say shall go no farther." 
 
 "Certainly, sir," she replied, looking up 
 calmly and ingenuously. 
 
 In a few quick sentences, and yet sufficiently 
 ample, he acquainted her with the affair of his 
 relations toward Councilor Elmbach. " And now 
 do me the favor, without directly asking old 
 Hechterling about it, to discover whether he has 
 the letter in his hands or has ever disposed of it. 
 The older I grow, the more I am convinced 
 that no one is perfect. I am sincerely anxious 
 to clear this matter." 
 
 "Why will you not forgive, sir?" ventured 
 Linnie, timidly. 
 
 "Forgive? I have forgiven long ago, more 
 than once, at the Lord's table. But this forgive- 
 ness does not restore to me my faith in the hon- 
 esty of a lost friend. All the waters in the world 
 would not cleanse him in my eyes from the 
 imputation but the letter ; on the letter every- 
 thing depends." 
 
 At this moment he observed Asta at a dis- 
 tance, among the shrubbery. Calling her, he 
 reproached her with : "I believed you too proud 
 for such conduct." There was no reply, but 
 Linnie read an expression of the deepest pain
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 309 
 
 upon her young face. Her father also observed 
 it ; but in his present excitement he would give 
 it no heed, and left the arbor in rapid strides. 
 
 Asta sat down, and hid her face in her old 
 friend's lap. 
 
 "Linnie, I have no mother in whom I may 
 confide. I love him, Linnie." 
 
 "Whom?" replied the seamstress, in aston- 
 ishment. 
 
 "Elmbach!" whispered the young girl. 
 "Papa will never permit it. But do you think 
 I would weep before him ?" She tossed her 
 pretty head contemptuously. 
 
 "The daughter of the lion," thought Linnie. 
 
 The general now returned to take her away ; 
 but she did not accept his silently proffered arm, 
 but walked at his side on the way home in per- 
 fect silence. This behavior burned her deepest 
 soul ; for she knew she had done wrong. 
 
 "If you expect to manage your future hus- 
 band, whoever he may be, in this way, I shall be 
 very sorry for the peace of your house. In our 
 perverted times, women have too much their 
 own way. In all affairs, she either leads the 
 regiment, or wishes to, which is one and the 
 same thing. In my own family it is not far 
 from this ! Learn as a daughter the knowledge 
 you will need as a wife, if it please God to make 
 you one or perhaps you intend to marry without
 
 310 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 my blessing?" With these words the general 
 broke the silence. 
 
 They had arrived at Victoria Place. Asta 
 left her father without a word, hurried to her 
 room, shut the door, and threw herself upon the 
 sofa. Then she began to weep ; but her father's 
 words had sorely smitten her conscience : " With- 
 out his blessing? Never!" Yet it was with in- 
 finite satisfaction she contemplated the time when 
 he should choose a suitor for her, and she should 
 reply with supreme iciness : "I never intend to 
 marry." 
 
 The next morning it rained, and a fine gray 
 mist enveloped the world. Linnie carried a 
 new umbrella, which had its first opportunity of 
 being unfolded; for she was to sew at Hechter- 
 ling's. She went there somewhat reluctantly, 
 but endeavored to overcome her unwillingness. 
 Fortunately the old man was not at home ; his 
 wife said he had gone to Berlin to settle John's 
 affairs, and to look after Dorothy's legacy. 
 
 The forenoon passed slowly. Finally it was 
 twelve o'clock, and dinner was over. The seam- 
 stress breathed more freely when Frau Hech- 
 terling took her kerchief from the chest and 
 expressed the intention to make some purchases 
 on the wharf, a long distance from Griinhof. 
 It still drizzled ; but the servant girl should ac- 
 company her, and Linnie hoped to be left entirely
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 311 
 
 alone. She preferred solitude in this disagree- 
 able dwelling. Closing the window to keep out 
 the rain, she began to repair once more the old 
 dressing-gown. Ripping a seam she thrust her 
 slender finger down into the thick wadding, and 
 heard a peculiar rustle ; then, as she pressed the 
 parts together, and drew it forth, a folded yellow 
 paper, consisting of several sheets, came to view. 
 The scissors fell from her hands in the excitement 
 of the moment. Opening the package she read : 
 "Dear Rudolph," and continuing the perusal, 
 a gleam of joyful surprise beamed upon her face 
 as she saw the signature: "Curt Von Geldern." 
 
 That was the general's name, her general, and 
 this was the missing letter ! Whether old Hech- 
 terling, at that time Lieutenant Von Geldern's 
 servant, had intercepted it, or the writer, in his 
 illness, had placed an empty sheet in the en- 
 velope, and unconsciously slipped this into a rip, 
 instead of a pocket of the gown, she did not 
 know ; but the latter was most probable. Enough 
 for her that here it was ! Her first impulse was 
 .to hasten off with it at once ; but she was too 
 conscientious to leave the house unprotected, 
 and therefore decided to wait until one of the 
 family should return. 
 
 Calming herself, she sewed on, while thoughts 
 of her dear Asta as a happy bride caused a con- 
 tented smile to play upon her lips.
 
 312 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 In the pure, peaceful harmony that completely 
 filled her soul, there came a soft, light disso- 
 nance. She listened. Did she really hear a 
 sound from afar, or was it only in imagination ? 
 It was repeated, and now grew more and more 
 distinct. Then there was an interruption ; then, 
 as if from beneath her feet, moans or cries of 
 dull pain. They pierced her very soul, and, 
 unable to endure the agony of her doubts, she 
 went to the door and looked out into the garden. 
 A neighbor, who had been recently married, 
 was vainly attempting to adjust a rain barrel to 
 the spout. Her young husband came from the 
 little cottage, and with a few strong turns placed 
 the barrel firm and straight. Linnie hesitated a 
 moment, returned to listen once more ; then re- 
 appeared and called the man. Hearing her 
 troubled cry, he stepped at once to the hedge. 
 She whispered a word, to which he seemed in- 
 credulous ; but entering with her, and placing 
 his ear near the floor, he was soon convinced, 
 and declared: "It comes from below;" adding 
 suggestively: "Is little Dorothy dead?" 
 
 "Yes, she died of cholera;" and Linnie 
 trembled. 
 
 "If you will not repeat it," continued the 
 neighbor, "I have often had my suspicions, 
 since the old people obtained the inheritance ; 
 but one may err. You remain here ; I will
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 313 
 
 make it known, and bring an officer to search the 
 premises." 
 
 She sat there, when he had gone, with beat- 
 ing, trembling heart. At length the door opened, 
 and Frau Hechterling had returned. It was 
 with difficulty Linnie controlled herself. Fortu- 
 nately the contents of the basket had to be 
 examined and discussed, and the pitiful tones 
 were overpowered. Suddenly the old woman 
 remarked: "You look bad, Linnie. Is anything 
 wrong?" 
 
 Linnie looked up. How pure and clear, and 
 yet troubled, her eyes were ! Not troubled on 
 her own account, but under apprehension of an 
 undiscovered crime, which made her shudder. 
 She beheld a precious soul lost to all eternity, 
 and she turned away in horror and dismay. 
 
 Frau Hechterling seemed restless and sus- 
 picious, and, as if from a quick decision, started 
 for the door. It was opened quietly, and several 
 policemen, with the neighbor, entered. 
 
 "What does this mean?" exclaimed the old 
 woman in excitement. 
 
 "We are sorry to disturb you, madame; but 
 we wish to know how many persons occupy this 
 house?" 
 
 "You can soon know that. Who else should 
 occupy it but myself, and my man, and our 
 servant ?" 
 
 27
 
 314 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "And yet there is some one moaning below," 
 replied the officer, with emphasis, giving the 
 signal to search the premises. 
 
 The old woman was on her guard, but she 
 was not left a moment alone, and the officer's 
 keen eyes detected her swift glance toward a 
 large chest in the corner of the long, dark room. 
 The men returned with the report that no 
 one had been discovered throughout the house. 
 With a gesture from their chief, the chest was 
 removed, which disclosed a trap door. 
 
 "Light a lantern," he said, as he lifted 
 the door. 
 
 The meanings were now heard with more per- 
 fect distinctness, and soon one of the men came 
 up the ladder leading from the cellar, with what 
 at first seemed the skeleton of a child. But the 
 breath of life was still there, and Linnie recog- 
 nized little Dorothy ! The little one was soon 
 cared for tenderly ; and as Frau Hechterling re- 
 mained stubbornly silent during the proceedings, 
 an ambulance was summoned, and the child taken 
 to a hospital, accompanied by Linnie. When 
 she had recovered sufficiently to talk, she re- 
 lated her imprisonment in the gloomy cellar by 
 her inhuman grandparents. Why they had not 
 murdered her outright instead of submitting her 
 to the slow process of death by starvation and 
 confinement, remains a psychological enigma.
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 315 
 
 Old Hechterling had neglected to fasten an 
 inner door, and the child had crept along in her 
 weakness, below the room where her feeble cries 
 had been heard. 
 
 Linnie remained at the hospital until Dorothy 
 was restored ; then left to carry the result of her 
 discovery to the general. 
 
 He was in his study, where he greeted her 
 with extreme cordiality. "But you look mis- 
 erable; what has happened?" he said. 
 
 "Very much, sir; and I have come here to 
 tell you. May I ask, also, to see the ladies?" 
 
 "I will call them;" and he soon returned 
 with Aunt Mylitta and Asta, the former entering 
 wih an air of nonchalance, the latter with a 
 determined and obdurate mien. 
 
 By dint of great effort the seamstress con- 
 trolled her emotions, and related what seemed 
 almost incredible. Even Fraulein Mylitta pressed 
 her perfumed handkerchief to her eyes, and 
 murmured something like: "Wonderful ro- 
 mance!" "surprising deliverance!" "tragic con- 
 flict!" Asta, wholly relaxed from her inflexible 
 attitude, wept like a child, and would have has- 
 tened instantly to the hospital with wine and cake 
 if the general had not restrained her. 
 
 There was a pause. Linnie felt relieved. 
 She could now close the gate of terror, and enter 
 the beautiful garden of happiness. It is not all
 
 316 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 darkness ; there are places in Stettin where spring 
 reigns, where roses bloom. " I have not finished 
 my story," she continued. "Something very 
 pleasant remains to be told." 
 
 "Still more?" exclaimed Asta. "Then it is 
 indeed a time of wonders ! You smile especially 
 at me, Linnie. What is it?" and a lively flush 
 suffused her face. 
 
 "When I was repairing old Hechterling's 
 dressing-gown, I found this letter between the 
 wadding. It must be yours, sir, as your name 
 is attached to it." 
 
 The general took it in his hands, and, glanc- 
 ing over it, remarked with emotion: "It is my 
 letter to Elmbach. Then Rudolph did not re- 
 ceive it, and I have so long " he did not com- 
 plete the sentence, but tore open the door, and 
 cried in tones of thunder: "The carriage, Fred- 
 erick!" Asta threw herself in his arms. He 
 kissed her tenderly : "Yes, indeed, my child, it is 
 a time of wonders!" Then turning to Linnie: 
 "I know why the Almighty needs you on the 
 earth ; you are one of his messengers, ordered to 
 carry out his designs." He would almost have 
 embraced her, but she stretched out her arms 
 warningly, not only against this manifestation of 
 regard, but against the high meed of praise. 
 
 A short time thereafter, the general and Asta 
 were on the way to Grlinhof. He proposed to
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 317 
 
 have the seamstress accompany them ; but she 
 had promised Dorothy to see her again before 
 morning, and hither she went with all the strength 
 of a mother's yearning love. 
 
 The handsome carriage rattled over the pave- 
 ments so rapidly that pedestrians were obliged to 
 hurry out of its way ; and yet the general sat 
 therein as upon coals of fire. That he, through 
 his obstinacy, had steadfastly believed his friend's 
 guilt, all these years, burned his soul; and now 
 could he ever make reparation ? 
 
 Councilor Elmbach sat in his library, dwelling 
 upon the past. The approach of a carriage dis- 
 turbed his reverie. The door was opened, and to 
 his surprise General Von Geldern and his daughter 
 came rapidly forward, the latter crying and laugh- 
 ing almost in a breath. What could it mean? 
 
 The general extended both arms: "Rudolph, 
 can you forgive me?" 
 
 "It has always been my sincerest desire that 
 we might have an understanding," was the reply ; 
 "that you might have faith, not only in me, but 
 in German fidelity," he added. 
 
 "I have just found my letter to you, Ru- 
 dolph. It was lost, and has been restored to me 
 by Linnie Bergmann." 
 
 "Is it possible ?" But he could say no more, 
 for the general's strong arms held him so firmly 
 there was no resistance.
 
 3l8 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "Louise's love was a gift from Heaven to 
 me. I did nothing to win her. Do you believe 
 this?" said the councilor, as soon as the lion 
 grasp had been released. 
 
 ' ' A thousand times ! Forgive me, Rudolph !" 
 
 "Only under one condition such a complica- 
 tion can be made plain and clear only by a 
 sacrifice ! And here a father speaks in behalf of 
 an absent son." 
 
 The general seized Asta's hand, and led her 
 to the councilor: "Take her; and may she 
 prove a good daughter to you ! May she replace, 
 in some measure, our lovely Louise, and be a 
 blessing to your house !" 
 
 "When the troops return," replied the coun- 
 cilor, gallantly raising to his lips the pretty little 
 hand, ' ' this shall be given over to Captain Von 
 Elmbach the blooming myrtle entwined with 
 the laurel in a conqueror's wreath. In this way 
 we shall welcome him." 
 
 "Yes, we shall welcome him so," reiterated 
 Asta out of the depths of her happy heart. 
 
 The councilor could not suppress a smile 
 when the excitement had abated, and the inter- 
 esting details had been related as his guests sat 
 at luncheon by his finely appointed table. 
 
 Linnie Bergmann had played the rdle of 
 Alexander the Great, inasmuch as she had cut 
 the Gordian knot ; but instead of hewing it, she,
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 319 
 
 as "the seamstress of Stettin," had accomplished 
 it with a simple pair of scissors. This circum- 
 stance led to inquiries into her worldly affairs, 
 the loss of her inheritance, etc., of which the 
 councilor had some recollection. 
 
 "I wonder whether she has retained the pa- 
 pers?" he asked. 
 
 But Asta could not give any information on 
 this point. 
 
 It was now the last of September. Stettin was 
 arrayed in festal splendor. To-day the victorious 
 troops should return home. Everybody was 
 abroad to greet and welcome them. 
 
 Hark ! they come ! That is the regiment's 
 music, the thrilling drum-beat ; and from thou- 
 sands of throats is heard, "Huzza!" Now they 
 are in sight ; now passing through the Schnecken 
 Gate. What a welcome Stettin gives her sons ! 
 How the air vibrates with the thundering, heart- 
 felt greetings ! Now they advance up the hilly 
 streets the king's Grenadier Regiment, led by 
 its commander ! 
 
 In the midst of the excited throng presses a 
 slender woman, carrying a young baby. Six 
 other children, holding one another's hands, form 
 a living chain behind her. Little Fritz brings up 
 the rear as the smallest link, following, as best he 
 may, upon his short legs.
 
 320 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "Mother! mother! that is ours that is the 
 Fifth Company! Mother! mother! do you see 
 Captain Elmbach ? Over there, with the great 
 black eyes " 
 
 But Frau Schultz has little interest in the 
 handsome man, who greets his native city with 
 proud, uplifted head, surrounded with a halo of 
 victory. His charger, covered with wreaths, 
 bears his burden with stately step ; and now the 
 warrior looks up toward a decorated balcony, 
 where the flowers of Stettin bloom, arrayed in 
 white garments. Bowing profoundly, his "Star" 
 appears before all others, and, bending over, 
 throws a wreath, which he skillfully catches on his 
 sword, then hangs on his left arm nearest the 
 heart, the laurel and myrtle. 
 
 Frau Schultz was not particularly absorbed 
 in this pretty episode, however thrilling and 
 poetic it was to the participants. With a cry, 
 she throws her arms around a full-bearded cor- 
 poral, with a deeply bronzed, manly face. 
 
 "Father, father!" comes from the chain of 
 children; "father! we are all here all here 
 together!" 
 
 They clamber around his knees, pressing be- 
 tween the ranks ; and the comrades who witness 
 it ply their jokes. But he doesn't mind them, 
 and takes little Ida from his wife, while she, 
 hanging upon his arm, takes up the rapid march-
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 321 
 
 step, and little Fritz's legs appear to float in the 
 air behind him, really only touching the ground 
 here and there. Then only his bright-red stock- 
 ings are seen, which finally also disappear. 
 
 The grenadiers, who had shown such for- 
 titude and endurance on the battle-field, were at 
 length unable to keep step in the midst of 
 their rejoicing. In rapid double-quick they hasten 
 up the avenue to the parade ground and King's 
 Place, where they shall be dismissed. 
 
 They who witnessed the spectacle of shoe- 
 maker Schultz and his family returning to their 
 domicile, will never forget it. Asta had pret- 
 tily furnished the rooms at No. 25 Fisher Street, 
 and ordered a dinner in honor of the occasion. 
 Schultz placed his gun in a corner, and hung a 
 wreath upon it. Then they all surrounded the 
 bountiful table, after giving thanks to God for 
 his mercy and goodness. 
 
 While they were thus pleasantly engaged, and 
 had made vast inroads upon the pound-cake, a 
 peculiar stamping was heard on the stairway. 
 
 "That is Alfred Winter," said Frau Schultz. 
 "He has returned from seeing the troops, with 
 his wife." 
 
 "Now, that is very curious," replied the cor- 
 poral. "Is he really married?" 
 
 "O yes, before he left Berlin." 
 
 "Father," interrupted one of the boys, "he
 
 322 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 has his leg again. The doctor put it on, and 
 he wears a boot, and can walk like other 
 people." 
 
 "Did they bring any outfit with them?" said 
 Schultz. 
 
 ' ' Nothing in the world but a hat-box ; and 
 there is absolutely nothing in that but a new 
 Paris bonnet, which she treasures with great 
 concern." 
 
 "But what do they expect to do?" 
 
 "She makes beautiful dresses, and he has 
 some business in prospect, he says, the manu- 
 facture of boot-polish, for which he bought a 
 receipt. I suppose when he is n't fiddling he will 
 make the polish, and they will do very well." 
 
 "He will receive a handsome pension," con- 
 tinued Schultz, thoughtfully. " If he would only 
 be more economical, and take life more seriously, 
 I should like him better." 
 
 "He has changed," assured Frau Schultz. 
 " He plays hymns now. Run down, Augusta, 
 and invite him and his young wife up for the 
 coffee; there is enough for all." 
 
 Augusta followed instructions, and the Win- 
 ters soon entered, arm in arm, both looking as 
 bright and happy as two butterflies. 
 
 " We are both very well," said the rosy bride, 
 "and we shall soon get along. A man with a 
 fiddle is better than any one."
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 323 
 
 Schultz laughed heartily. "It has ended 
 beautifully. We shall be good neighbors. And 
 now, Winter, I have one request : when your 
 work is done, come up on Saturdays and play 
 for us 'There is rest for the weary,' and we will 
 all sing it." 
 
 "I am willing; but you must introduce and 
 use my 'boot-polish.' It will bring us fine 
 business." 
 
 The hours of that memorable day passed all 
 too quickly. In the evening the entire city was 
 brilliantly illuminated, and the Villa Elmbach 
 beamed in double splendor. Father and son 
 expected guests. The latter stood, watch in 
 hand, in the elegantly decorated salon. The 
 hour approached when he should resign his bach- 
 elorhood. His heart beat impatiently, and he 
 stepped without, in the starry night. There was 
 only one "Star" for him. When he returned, 
 a number of friends had arrived ; and soon after, 
 a carriage brought General Von Geldern, his 
 sister-in-law, and Asta. The young girl was in 
 bridal array, which floated around her as a silver 
 cloud. Councilor Elmbach met them, and the 
 young couple were introduced to the assembled 
 guests as betrothed. There was soft music, 
 while, in subdued conversation, the events of the 
 day were discussed. 
 
 Somewhat later the Drambows arrived, the
 
 324 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 little Avife in breathless haste, apologizing with, 
 "I was obliged to remain and see little Adolph 
 safely to bed." 
 
 When the early evening was over, the circle 
 diminished in numbers, and the intimate friends 
 of the family alone remained. A lovely place 
 had been reserved beneath the palms, where the 
 bridal pair stood, attended by Captain Von 
 Drambow and his wife. 
 
 Beam strong, ye tapers ! perfume afar, ye 
 flowers ! and meet unhindered the eyes and 
 hearts of these beloved ! 
 
 " Only one thing troubles me," whispered the 
 beautiful bride, when the wedding ceremony had 
 been impressively performed ; ' ' they tell me 
 you are not a believer, dearest Rudolph. I can 
 not think so." 
 
 "I trust, my love, I have returned from the 
 war a changed man. I may say I have put 
 away childish things," replied the handsome 
 bridegroom, earnestly. 
 
 Drambow, who had partly overheard the fore- 
 going, added: "We all seem to have brought 
 home a rich booty, which we are not ashamed to 
 exhibit. Even Alfred Winter, the light-hearted 
 jester, has become another person ; and shoe- 
 maker Schultz will always remain the typical 
 Prussian reserve, who went forth with God, for 
 the king and fatherland. We have all received
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 325 
 
 a blessing from our God, in his infinite grace 
 and mercy." 
 
 "But I should be glad if we never forgot all 
 the terrible occurrences of this fearful summer," 
 interposed his little wife. "Asta calls it 'a time 
 of tears and wonder,' and she is right." 
 
 "They will be forgotten though, like every- 
 thing else," was heard earnestly from Councilor 
 Elmbach. 
 
 "O no, never, never forgotten !" insisted Frau 
 Von Drambow. ' ' As soon as my Adolph can 
 understand them, I shall talk to him hour after 
 hour, so that it shall live long after this century." 
 
 "Please omit from the recital the misun- 
 derstanding between Castor and Pollux," inter- 
 jected the general; "we desire all that to be 
 buried in oblivion, together with the old dress- 
 ing-gown ; not so, my dear fellow?" 
 
 "Sunken in Lethe's stream," assented the 
 host, warmly. 
 
 And now it would seem as though this inter- 
 esting day should be ended. But there was a 
 voiceless something in the outlook wanting a 
 more perfect conclusion expected. At times all 
 looked toward the door ; and the general finally 
 drew forth his watch, for the time had come, and 
 a modest footstep was heard at the entrance. 
 Linnie appeared there, leading little Dorothy by 
 the hand.
 
 326 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 
 
 "Here she is at last," exclaimed the general; 
 "I knew she had the military blood of punc- 
 tuality in her veins!" 
 
 "I beg pardon," beamed the seamstress; "I 
 have been detained at Schultz's and at tailor 
 Newberger's ' ' 
 
 "I can readily see," interrupted Frau Von 
 Drambrow, "how everybody wants you; but 
 now you have wept so long with us, you must 
 share in our rejoicing." 
 
 "But do you not wish to see the bride?" 
 playfully reproached Asta. 
 
 "God bless you, Linnie, a thousand times," 
 emphasized the general, heartily. 
 
 " If I may be permitted to say a word," in- 
 terrupted Captain Von Drambow, "let me ex- 
 press our gratitude to you, Linnie. You have 
 been like a burning light, from which our dim, 
 flickering wicks were enkindled. There is some- 
 thing inexpressibly great in a sincere Christian's 
 quiet life. We beg for your intercession !" 
 
 "And allow me to add," said the councilor, 
 "that the Hechterlings have been sentenced to a 
 life-long imprisonment, and that the guardian- 
 ship of little Dorothy has been intrusted to you, 
 Fraulein Bergmann. The child's trustees have 
 made over a handsome sum for her education 
 and maintenance ; and I am also pleased to state 
 that an old creditor of your father restores to
 
 THE SEAMSTRESS OF STETTIN. 327 
 
 you a part of your lost inheritance. You can 
 therewith enjoy with your adopted child a per- 
 manent home here, and continue to prove a 
 blessing to the people of Stettin." ;, 
 
 Linnie stood with streaming eyes before them ; 
 and, with John's child pressed to her heart, she 
 felt God's goodness was eternal. But the end 
 had not yet come. In behalf of those present, 
 a pretty little cottage near the Drambows was 
 presented to the faithful seamstress, and a liberal 
 amount of money appropriated for her works of 
 faith and labors of love among the poor and 
 afflicted of the city. 
 
 Thus they remained together, with uplifted 
 hearts, and hands folded in united prayer for the 
 Divine blessing. Linnie anticipated a future of 
 peace and joy a life whose golden autumn 
 should more than recompense for the trials of its 
 spring and summer. 
 
 The beautiful flowers exhaled their sweet ex- 
 istence, and the wax tapers burned low, when 
 the company separated for their homes. Linnie 
 departed, holding the child by her hand. 
 
 Farewell, farewell, "Seamstress of Stettin!"
 
 A 000142735 o