lood, your nature, even were it along the
worst paths, to the greatest injury of yourself and others--is there
any witchcraft in it? Error, weakness, perversity--I repeat it--are
very human evils, and do not lead to God. But to be urged on to what is
most foreign, hostile to your nature, to be forced, in dread and
horror, to do what you abhor, to be faithless to what is dearest--you
see, Fraeulein, that this only occurs under the influence of a powerful
spell, the only one that still remains in this enlightened world, and
whose consequences God scuds his pardoning mercy to destroy or efface:
_the magic of sin_. I beg your pardon for having troubled you so long.
Perhaps I shall frequently have the pleasure of conversing with you
about these mysteries."

He bowed with the look and smile of a man, who has tamed a fierce
lioness and can now venture to enter her cage alone. She stood
speechless, and made no motion to accompany him to the door. Her arms
hung loosely by her side, her chin drooped on her breast, her eyes were
closed as if she had given herself up to gloomy thoughts.

Mohr and Franzelius were just going up the narrow stairs, as Lorinser
closed Christiane's door behind him.

Coming from different directions, they had met at the outer door, and
unwelcome as the encounter was to both--for Mohr, who had his play in
his pocket, would also have liked to see the brothers alone--each was
too awkward or too proud to avoid the other.

They had bowed in silence, and Mohr had allowed the printer to precede
him. When they now met Lorinser on the stairs, Franzelius stepped aside
like a person who unexpectedly treads upon a toad. The incident even
made him forget his unfriendly relations with the eternal joker, and
pausing on the landing he looked after the rapidly retreating figure,
saying in a tone of the most intense abhorrence:

"Did you see that man, Mohr?"

"He came out of the young lady's room. Who is he? Where did you make
his acquaintance, Gracchus?"

"He's the same malicious hypocrite who made that speech before our
society. It's a pity the thought occurred to me too late, I might have
thanked him for the information he gave the police."

"Or helped him down stairs a little faster; he seems to have scented
this _esprit de l'escalier_!" Mohr replied, essaying to jest, but
instantly added with a gloomy brow, "What did the pale rascal want
there? Couldn't she have shut the door on him, as well as better
people