had selected for
him. This lady disappeared almost as quickly as she had appeared on the
scene. She died, after bearing him a daughter. The cousin attended to
the marriage, the baptism, and the funeral; so that Dapsul, up in his
tower, paid very little attention to either. For there was a very
remarkable comet visible during most of the time, and Dapsul, ever
melancholy and anticipative of evil, considered that he was involved in
its influence.

The little daughter, under the careful up-bringing of an old
grand-aunt, developed a remarkable aptitude for rural affairs. She had
to begin at the very beginning, and, so to speak, rise from the ranks,
serving successively as goose-girl, maid-of-all-work, upper farm-maid,
housekeeper, and, finally, as mistress, so that Theory was all along
illustrated and impressed upon her mind by a salutary share of
Practice. She was exceedingly fond of ducks and geese, hens and
pigeons, and even the tender broods of well-shaped piglings she was by
no means indifferent to, though she did not put a ribbon and a bell
round a little white sucking-pig's neck and make it into a sort of
lap-dog, as a certain young lady, in another place, was once known to
do. But more than anything--more than even to the fruit trees--she was
devoted to the kitchen-garden. From her grand-aunt's attainments in
this line she had derived very remarkable theoretical knowledge of
vegetable culture (which the reader has seen for himself), as regarded
digging of the ground, sowing the seed, and setting the plants.
Fraeulein Aennchen not only superintended all these operations, but lent
most valuable manual aid. She wielded a most vigorous spade--her
bitterest enemy would have admitted this. So that while Herr Dapsul von
Zabelthau was immersed in astrological observations and other important
matters, Fraeulein Aennchen carried on the management of the place in
the ablest possible manner, Dapsul looking after the celestial part of
the business, and Aennchen managing the terrestrial side of things with
unceasing vigilance and care.

As above said, it was small wonder that Aennchen was almost beside
herself with delight at the magnificence of the yield which this season
had produced in the kitchen-garden. But the carrot-bed was what
surpassed everything else in the garden in its promise.

"Oh, my dear, beautiful carrots!" cried Anna over and over again, and
she clapped her hands, danced, and jumped about, and conducted hers