ng to do with her real
nature. Besides, nothing seemed to stand between them, no older rights
and claims of any third person, no contrast of rank or wealth. She was
as poor as he, as dependent, of equally humble origin, and when this
artificially woven fairy dream had passed away, which must soon happen,
she would be helpless in a strange world, where a friend and protector
must be more to her than anything else. True--for the moment he had no
thought of asking any woman to share his life. But hitherto he had
neither desired nor expected such an acquisition to his existence. If
the matter now became serious, why should he not be man enough to work
himself out of the "tun" and provide more spacious quarters for three
persons? If the matter should become serious! But that was what he
could not believe after her confession, as readily as before. He had
never seen more clearly that all his fire was blazing against a rock,
that not even a suspicion of his state of mind had yet dawned upon her.
To have heard the saddest story of sin, despair, and a lost youth,
would have disheartened him less than this cool, unapproachable
innocence.

Sadly he returned home, drenched to the skin, having purposely exposed
himself to the rain to cool the fever raging within. While undressing
he told Balder everything, even his utter hopelessness. "And yet, after
all, it is best as it is," he concluded, "when I've once got over it.
Could we receive a duchess here?"

Balder did not understand all this. To him the very thought that any
one could refuse a kingdom for the sake of loving and being loved by
Edwin would have been incomprehensible to him. He eagerly began to
contradict him and to build castles in the air. "Let her once be poor
again," said he. "Then she'll feel what treasures still remain.
Besides, she's no commonplace person, and still so young; how much she
can learn. And you're a good teacher. What have I not learned from
you!"

"Yes, _you_, child," sighed Edwin smiling and stroking his hair. He was
going to add something, but Mohr came in and told his adventure of the
preceding day with that fine fellow, the mysterious Lorinser, and how
the hope of establishing a musical intercourse with Christiane had
given him so much energy, that he had written out the first bars of his
famous symphony that very morning. He was in excellent spirits and
according to his usual custom let off a shower of fireworks in the
shape of sarcasms and qu