t of statesmen have had their foibles, as everybody knows."

"Very true," said Gerlach dryly. "Viewed from the standpoint of very
humane tolerance, Shund's disgusting habits may be considered
justifiable."

Seraphin left the parlor, and retired to his room. Here he wrestled
with violent feelings. His father's conduct was a mystery to him.
Opinions which conflicted with his own most sacred convictions, and
principles which brought an indignant flush to his cheek, were listened
to and apparently acquiesced in by his father. Shund's abominable
diatribe had not roused the old gentleman's anger; Louise's avowed
concurrence with the irreligious principles of the chieftain had not
even provoked his disapprobation.

"My God, my God! can it be possible?" cried he in an agony of despair.
"Has the love of gain so utterly blinded my father? Can he have sunk so
low as to be willing to immolate me, his only child, to a base
speculation? Can he be willing for the sake of a million florins to
bind me for life to this erring creature, this infidel Louise? Can a
paltry million tempt him to be so reckless and cruel? No! no! a
thousand times no!" exclaimed he. "I never will be the husband of this
woman, never--I swear it by the great God of heaven! Get angry with me,
father, banish me from your sight--it would be more tolerable than the
consciousness of being the husband of a woman who believes not in the
Redeemer of the world. I have sworn--the matter is for ever settled."
He threw himself into an arm-chair, and moodily stared at the opposite
wall. By degrees, his excitement subsided, and he became quiet.

In fancy, he beheld beside Louise's form another lovely one rise
up--that of the girl with the golden hair, the bright eyes, and the
winning smile. She had stood before him on this very floor, in her neat
and simple country garb, radiant with innocence and purity, adorned
with innate grace and uncommon beauty. And the lapse of days, far from
weakening, had deepened the impression of her first apparition. The
storm that had been raging in his interior was allayed by the
recollection of Mechtild, as the fury of the great deep subsides upon
the reappearance of the sun. Scarcely an hour had passed during which
he had not thought of the girl, rehearsed every word she had uttered,
and viewed the basket of grapes she had brought him. Again he pulled
out the drawer, and looked upon the gift with a friendly smile; then,
locking up the precio