r,
and whose color now suddenly changed. 'He is on his way to Paris, your
excellency,' she replied.

"'The butterfly!' joked the amiable old lady. 'I did hope that he would
settle down here with us, but he seems to prefer the unfettered life of
a bachelor. To Paris, then?'

"'Well, Paris is not a bad place for a man of Stuermer's stamp,' said
Captain von T----, smiling, who was known as a pleasure-loving man. 'Any
one who can avoid it would be a fool to bury himself in this old
sand-box and the _ennui_ of the Mark.'

"Anna Maria looked into space again. Susanna's eyes sparkled at these
words; she seemed to be considering something, and then she laughed. Was
this the same Susanna whom I had seen afflicted to death this morning,
who was now sitting, in all the bliss of a happy bride, among these
people, and turning red with pleasure at each admiring look? Oh, never
in my life was there so long a half-hour as this!

"And now, at last, the guests rose and took their departure. Susanna was
commissioned on all sides with greetings and congratulations for Klaus,
and she thanked them with her most charming smile and a beaming look
from her great eyes.

"'By Heaven, Fraeulein,' said the captain to me, twirling his mustache,
'your future niece is the prettiest girl I ever saw, a pearl in any
society. I hope the young ladies will not disdain our winter balls?' He
turned to Susanna with this request: 'The place is not very comfortable,
but the society--' He kissed the tips of his fingers, murmuring
something about the crown of all ladies, and Susanna laughed and
promised to come, 'because she was so fond of dancing.'

"And by the time the last of the guests were in their carriage Susanna
had made at least a dozen promises which all had reference to a
pleasant, lively intercourse. We accompanied the guests to the steps; in
the confusion of parting words Susanna must have taken herself off, for
when the last carriage rolled away I was standing alone beside Anna
Maria in the dimly lighted hall.

"'Come, my child,' said I, taking her cold hands and drawing her into
the room. And then she sat in Klaus's chair for perhaps a quarter of an
hour, without speaking a word, her hands folded on the table, her eyes
cast down. The clock ticked lightly, the wind rustled through the tall
trees out-of-doors, and now and then a candle sputtered; it began to
seem almost uncanny to me, sitting there opposite the silent girl.

"'Anna Maria!' I