s if she were your sister, but she resembles still more
Elizabeth, who died."

"Yes; none of you have lost by it. If Elizabeth had lived, the property
would have been smaller by one share anyway," observed the father. And
the mother added:

"But now she has been given back to us again."

The old man had hit the spot where, as a matter of fact, all of them
were sore, although they tried to persuade themselves, and each other,
that they were prejudiced against Amrei because she had come among them
without any relatives of her own. And while Amrei was talking to John's
sister, the old farmer said to his son in a low voice:

"One would never imagine, to look at her, what she has. Just think!--she
has a bag stuffed full of crown thalers! But you must not say anything
to any one about it."

This injunction was so well obeyed, that within a few minutes every
person in the room knew about the bag of thalers, with the exception of
John's sister, who afterward took great credit to herself for having
been so friendly to Amrei, although she thought that Amrei had not a
farthing of her own.

Sure enough! John had gone out, and he was now entering again with a
large bag, on which was written the name "Josenhans of Haldenbrunn;" and
when he poured out the rich contents, which rolled rattling and clinking
over the table, all were dumbfounded. But the most astonished of all
were the father and mother.

So Amrei had really had a secret treasure! For there was much more here
than either one had given her. Amrei did not dare to look up, and every
one praised her for her unexampled humility. And now she succeeded in
winning them all over to her side; and when the numerous members of the
family took their leave in the evening, each one said to her in secret:

"Look you; it was not I who was against you because you had nothing--it
was so-and-so, who was always opposing you. I say now, as I said and
thought before, that even if you had had nothing but the clothes you
wore, you were cut out for our family; and I could not have wished for a
better wife for John, or a better daughter-in-law for the old people."

It was easy to say that now, for they all thought that Amrei had brought
with her a considerable fortune in cash.

In Allgau they talked for years of the wonderful way in which young
Farmer Landfried had brought home his wife, and told how finely he and
his wife had danced together at their wedding, and especially did they
pra