this to end? And now there
was no sound there within; only the low singing of the young wife was
heard from the kitchen, where she was rocking her youngest child to
sleep; and I stole softly away from the door and sat down on the wooden
bench before the house. Over the quiet, green graves in the church-yard
lay a Sunday calm, only a light breath of wind rustled in the tall
trees. Over in the little church the sermon was just finished, the
sermon for the fifth Sunday after Trinity. The sound of the organ and
singing of the congregation floated across to me, and my lips repeated
the words:

"'Ah! stay with thy clearness.
Precious light, with us stay;
Let thy truth shine upon us,
That we go not astray.'

"Ah, yes, clearness, clearness and truth and peace; help us in all time
of need! I knew Klaus, I knew Anna Maria. An almost exaggerated sense of
duty, an iron will when she thought she was doing the right thing,
inflexibility--that was the Hegewitz character; good, solid qualities
when they got on peaceably together, but thus? And there was Stuermer
coming out of the church door; he had not waited till the hymn was
finished, and was now hastening up to me.

"'Fraeulein Rosamond, you still here?' he asked. 'Who----'

"But I did not give him time to finish. 'Come, Edwin, give me your arm,
I have been waiting for some one to escort me back.' And actually
dragging away the astonished man, I succeeded in getting him into the
park without betraying the presence of Klaus and Anna Maria in the
little room.

"'And now, a thousand times welcome, dear Edwin,' said I, breathing
freely again, as we walked under the shady trees. 'How have you been?
How delightful it is to have you here again, and how well and strong you
are looking!'

"He bent to kiss my hand. 'Yes, thank God that I am among old friends
again!' he replied heartily. 'How have things gone here? But why do I
ask? Well, of course; at least, I saw you all unaltered in church. But I
would like to ask, at the risk of appearing curious, who was the young
lady who--oh!' He stopped, and pointed toward the thick, dark shrubbery
at one side, holding my arm so firmly in his that I was obliged to stand
still.

"There sat Susanna in the deepest shade of the thicket. She was leaning
her elbows on the table, and her oval face rested on her clasped hands;
motionless, like a lovely statue, she was looking down before her.

"A golden sunbeam flitted back an