Das landhaus am Rhein. English

by Berthold Auerbach

  CHAPTER III.

  EVERYTHING FLIES THAT HAS WINGS.

  Manna soon expressed a determined purpose to get a better insight intothe method and direction of her brother's education. She wanted to bepresent at Eric's lessons.

  Sonnenkamp endeavored to induce the Aunt to inform Eric of thisrequest, but she declined. Manna had better ask him herself.

  Sonnenkamp was deeply vexed at this refusal, but Manna's resolution wastaken at once. She expressed her wish at the table, assigning noreason, for she thought that the real one might wound, and any otherthan the real one she could not consent to offer as a pretext.

  After they had risen from the table, Eric gave her the arrangement ofthe hours of study, and declared himself ready to conform to herwishes, merely adding that he should continue his instruction withoutany reference to her presence.

  Manna now sat at the window with her embroidery, whilst Eric and Rolandpursued their occupations at the table. By noon Manna had laid asideher work, and was listening with closed eyes. The next day she broughtno work with her, and thus she sat there day after day with the two,listening with interest even to the mathematics. The musical voice ofEric seemed to have a magical charm for the proud and cold maiden, andat many an utterance she opened wide her eyes, as if she must satisfyherself who this really was that was speaking.

  One day, however, she came only to say that she should come no more.

  "I could still learn a great deal from you," she said, "but it isbetter that I should keep by myself. I thank you," she said again; butas if recollecting that she was continually doing this, she quicklyadded,--

  "I thank you differently from what I have before. I acknowledge thedelicacy with which you have spared me the perplexity of answering thequestion I see you wanted to put to me, whether I was satisfied withyour instruction. It is very kind not to have asked this question."

  "You are good at reading countenances," answered Eric. And so theyparted.

  From this time Manna's haughty and even her confident bearing towardEric was gone; there was a sort of shyness, and she seldom spoke tohim. But this want of notice was something very far removed from thathaughty indifference with which she had formerly disregarded him; therewas defiance, angry resistance in her demeanor, as if she would say, Ido not comprehend why you are of any interest to me whatever.

  Manna also occasionally visited the castle, going by herself with hertwo dogs. She had the Architect explain to her the plans of thisbuilding as it was being restored, and as it existed formerly.

  She took an interest in the work, and entered into consultation withher father in regard to the fitting up of the hall already finished,the so-called Knight's hall.

  Sonnenkamp was busily employed in buying the ancient weapons to be hungupon the walls, and the armor to be placed upon the pillars. He couldnot refrain from saying to Manna beforehand, that he intended todedicate the castle in the autumn, on her birthday; but she desiredthat this should be omitted. This continual festivity and banquetingdid not suit her; and she was particularly anxious that her birthdayshould be marked by no external celebration, even of the simplest kind.

  Since her return from the convent, if she would honestly confess it toherself,--and Manna ventured to confess all,--she had taken greaterpleasure in her dogs than in anything else. She had even written aletter to the Superior, asking whether they would allow her to bring adog with her into the convent, but had burned the letter afterwards.She represented to herself how laughable it would be for a nun to begoing through the garden with a dog at her heels, and how intolerableif every nun had a dog of her own. She smiled to herself for the firsttime, and then again asked herself the question, Why do we have noanimals in the convent? Eric found her as she was sitting down andtalking to her dogs.

  "Do you not think," she asked, "that a dog, this one, for instance, hasan unspeakably sad expression of face?"

  "Whoever looks for it can find it. The mystics say that it came fromthe fall of man; that since then, all creatures have a mournfulexpression."

  Manna thanked him, but this time with a look only, and not with words."Surprising how the man can enter into every thing! And why is he stilla heretic! Why?"

  A carriage was advancing toward them, and a white handkerchief wasalready waving in the distance. "Manna!" was called out; Eric withdrew.Manna rose and went to meet Lina, who got out and let the carriagedrive on.

  "Ah!" exclaimed Lina, "you are already on such good terms with oneanother! you need hide nothing from me. Ah, how fine! This is rightsplendid! I've something to tell you about my love; now kiss me. Ah, Isee you haven't kissed each other yet, you don't how to kiss. Justthink. Manna, how simple I've been; I made myself believe, at one time,that the Baron von Pranken was fond of me--no, that's not exactly whatI meant, but I made myself believe that I liked him, and now I willtell you at once, that I love and I am loved."

  "We all love God, and we are loved by him."

  "Ah, yes, by God too. But Albert--Do you know Albert? you must knowhim, for he's building a castle for you. At that time at the musicalfestival--I saw you at once, and beckoned to you, but you didn'tobserve me--that was the very first time we ever came to anexplanation. Ah, you can't begin to think how happy I am. At thebeginning I couldn't take part in the singing: I was afraid all thetime I should scream too loud; but after that I sang with the rest. Ah,it was so beautiful--so beautiful! we did nothing else but float awayin music; and he sings splendidly too, though not so grandly as HerrDournay. Now do tell me, Manna, how you felt when you heard him singso? Did you know that he was the man you asked me about when you hadthe angel-wings on your shoulders."

  Lina did not wait for an answer, but went on:--

  "You must have seen me on the shore, when I met you, and I was leaningon my Albert's arm for the first time. I didn't want to speak to youthere among the nuns and scholars; I shouldn't have been able to tellyou all there. You don't take it amiss that I didn't appear to see you?Ah, I saw everybody, the whole world at once! Ah, and all was sosplendid! And at the table there 'twas so merry! And once he asked mewhy I seemed all at once so sad. Then I confessed to him that I wasthinking of you, how you were going back again to the convent, where'twas so silent and so dull. I think the corridors have all got a cold.Ah, why can't you be as merry as we? Do be merry! There's nothingbetter in the world, and you've got all, and can have all in the world.Oh, do be merry! Ah, there flies a swallow, the first swallow. Oh,if I could only fly in that way up to him at the castle, and bid himgood-morning, and keep flying to him and flying away again. Ah, Manna!Manna!"

  It was very odd to her to see and hear this joyous, fluttering youthfulcompanion; she could say nothing in response, and Lina did not seem toexpect her to say anything, for she continued:

  "So I was thinking as I was coming here, that if I were you, I'd issuean order or something of that sort to the whole country round, that inthree days they should bring me all the birds they could catch, and I'dpay them an awful amount of money for doing it, and then I'd let allthe birds fly away again up into the air. Don't you feel as if you werea bird that had been caught, and had got free again? Ah, and it's smartin you to come in the spring; there's too much dancing to be done, ifyou come home in the winter. Fourteen balls I went to, the firstwinter, and ever so many small parties. And if one then has hersweetheart--Ah, Manna, you can't think how beautiful that is! orperhaps you do know now. I beg you do tell me every thing. I am not yetbetrothed to Albert, but we are as good as betrothed. You won't be anun, will you? Believe what I say, they don't want you for a nun atall, they are only after your money. Would you like to be a baroness? Ishouldn't. To be 'my lady'd' all the time when there's no need of it,and then to be laughed at behind one's back; no, I shouldn't like it atall. If a born lady does anything foolish, there's nothing to be said;but if one of us commits a folly, hi! the whole city and the whole landhas to bear the blame of it. Ah, such a rich girl has a good deal tosuffer for it! Here com
e the men and want to marry her money, and herecome the nuns and want her to become a nun for her money. You may besure, if you were one of those women yonder carrying coals out of theboat, the nuns wouldn't have you; you might be as clever, and aslovable, and as good as you are now. Yes, if you hadn't any money, andif you hadn't so much money, the nuns wouldn't want to have anything todo with you. Don't they try to make you believe that you've been calledto be a saint? Don't believe it. Ah, in the convent! When I hear peopletelling how beautiful it was there on the convent-island, I've alwaysthought: Yes indeed, right pretty, if one only goes there on a pleasureexcursion; but to be a nun there!--Ah, Manna, if I could only make youas happy as I am! Do be jolly too! Ah, good heavens, why can't one giveto another some of his enjoyment; I've so much--so much, and I shouldlike most dearly to give some of it to you. But what do we talk so muchfor? Come, catch me! Do you remember our old play: 'Everything fliesthat has wings'? Come, catch me!"

  Lina ran off with fluttering garments, and when she stopped saw thatManna had not followed her. She waited until she came up, and the twomaidens walked in silence to the villa.