he wildest one,
which she promised to tame.

In the evening Roland urged them to take a sail with him on the Rhine.
The Aunt and Bella went together; Fraeulein Perini withdrew with Frau
Ceres; the Professorin remained with Clodwig, and Sonnenkamp excused
himself to forward some unfinished letters.

On the boat there were laughter and merriment, in which Bella joined,
dipping her hand into the water and playing with her wedding-ring,
which she moved up and down on the finger, repeatedly immersing her
hand in the Rhine.

"Do you understand what the Doctor was aiming at?" she asked Eric.

"If I had been willing to understand, I should have been obliged to
feel offended," he replied.

"Now we are speaking of the Doctor," resumed Bella, "there is one thing
I must tell you that I have forgotten to mention before. The Doctor is
doughty, unadulterated virtue; but this rough virtue once wanted to pay
court to me, and I showed him how ridiculous he made himself. It may
very well be, that the man doesn't speak well of me. You ought to know
the reason."

Eric was moved in his inmost soul. What does this mean? May this be a
wily move to neutralize the physician's opinion? He could not
determine.

After a while, Bella asked,--

"Can you tell me why I am now so often low-spirited?"

"The more highly-endowed natures, Aristotle says, are always
melancholy," replied Eric.

Bella caught her breath; that was altogether too pedantic an answer to
suit her.

They did not succeed in keeping up any continued conversation, but
Bella said at one time abruptly to Eric,--

"The visit here of your mother vexes me."

"What! vexes you?"

"Yes, it wounds me that this man with his gold should be able to change
the position of people, as he does."

Eric had abundant matter of thought in this casual remark.

"You have the happiness to be greatly beloved," said Bella suddenly.
Eric looked up alarmed, glancing towards Roland, and Bella continued
aloud,--

"Your mother loves you deeply." After a time, she said in a low tone to
herself, but Eric heard it,--

"Me no one loves; I know why,--no, I don't know why."

Eric looked her full in the face, then seized an oar and made the water
fly with his rowing.

Meanwhile, the mother and Clodwig sat together, and the former
expressed her joy that Eric had been thrown into the society of men of
such well-tried experience; in former times, a man could have completed
his culture by intercour