the fair Olympia. Ah! then he saw, with what a longing glance
she looked towards him, how every tone first resolved itself plainly in
the glance of love, which penetrated, in its glowing career, his inmost
soul. The artistical _roulades_ seemed to Nathaniel the exultation of
a mind illuminated with love, and when, at last, after the cadence, the
long trill sounded shrilly through the saloon, he felt as if grasped by
glowing arms; he could no longer restrain himself, but with mingled
pain and rapture shouted out, "Olympia!" All looked at him, and many
laughed. The organist of the cathedral made a more gloomy face than
usual, and simply said: "Well, well." The concert had finished, the
ball began. "To dance with her--with her!" That was the aim of all
Nathaniel's wishes, of all his efforts; but how to gain courage to ask
her, the queen of the festival? Nevertheless--he himself did not know
how it happened--no sooner had the dancing begun, than he was standing
close to Olympia, who had not yet been asked to dance, and, scarcely
able to stammer out a few words, had seized her hand. The hand of
Olympia was as cold as ice; he felt a horrible deadly frost thrilling
through him. He looked into her eye--that was beaming full of love and
desire, and at the same time it seemed as though the pulse began to
beat, and the stream of life to glow in the cold hand. And in the soul
of Nathaniel the joy of love rose still higher; he clasped the
beautiful Olympia, and with her flew through the dance. He thought
that his dancing was usually correct as to time, but the peculiar
rhythmical steadiness with which Olympia moved, and which often put him
completely out, soon showed him, that his time was very defective.
However, he would dance with no other lady, and would have liked to
murder any one who approached Olympia for the purpose of asking her.
But this only happened twice, and to his astonishment Olympia remained
seated after every dance, when he lost no time in making her rise
again. Had he been able to see any other object besides the fair
Olympia, all sorts of unfortunate quarrels would have been inevitable,
for the half-soft, scarcely-suppressed laughter, which arose among the
young people in every corner, was manifestly directed to Olympia, whom
they pursued with very curious glances--one could not tell why. Heated
by the dance, and by the wine, of which he had freely partaken,
Nathaniel had laid aside all his ordinary