O. T., A Danish Romance Part 27

Eva must represent Hero. With a torch in her hand she must kneel on a table, which was to be draped so as to represent a balcony. The poor girl felt quite unhappy at having to appear in this manner. Sophie laughed at her fear, and a.s.sured her that she would be admired, and that therefore she must and should.

"Give way to my sister," said Louise, in a beseeching voice; and Eva was ready, let down her long brown hair, and allowed Sophie to arrange the drapery.

Otto must put on an officer's uniform. He presented himself to the sisters.

"That gold is not sewn fast on the collar," said Sophie, and undertook to rectify it. He could easily keep the uniform on whilst she did this, said she. Her soft hand touched Otto's cheek, it was like an electric shock to him; his blood burned; how much he longed to press the hand to his lips!

They all burst out laughing when the Kammerjunker appeared in a white petticoat which only reached a little below the knee, and in a large white lady's dressing-jacket. Miss Sophie must arrange his hair. She did it charmingly; her hand stroked the hair away from his brow, and glided over his cheeks: he kissed it; she struck him in the face, and begged him not to forget himself! "We are ladies," said he, and rose in his full splendor. They all laughed except Otto; he could not--he felt a desire to beat him. The spectators arranged themselves in a dark room, the folding doors were opened.

Eva as Hero, in a white linen robe, her hair hanging down on her shoulders, and a torch in her hand, gazed out over the sea. No painter could have imagined anything more beautiful; the large dark-blue eyes expressed tenderness and melancholy; it was Eva's natural glance, but here you saw her quiet. The fine black eyebrows increased the expression, the whole figure was as if breathed into the picture.

Now followed a new picture--Faust and Margaret in the arbor; behind stood Mephistophiles, with his devilish smile. The Kammerjunker's Mamsell was Margaret. When the doors were opened she sent forth aloud cry, and ran away; she would not stay, she was so afraid. The group was disarranged, people laughed and found it amusing, but the Kammerjunker scolded aloud, and swore that she should come in again; at that the laughter of the spectators increased, and was not lessened when the Kammerjunker, forgetting his costume as the Somnambule, half stepped into the frame in which the pictures were represented, and seated the Mamsell on the bench. This group was only seen for one moment: the dorors were again closed; the spectators applauded, but a whistle was heard. Laughter, and the hum of conversation, resounded through the room; and it was impossible to obtain perfect quiet, although a new picture already shone in the frame. It was Sophie as Correggio's "Magdalene": her rich hair fell in waves over her shoulders and round arms; before her lay the skull and the holy book.

Otto's blood flowed faster; never had he seen Sophie more beautiful. The audience, however, could not entirely forget the comic scene which they had just witnessed; there was heard a faint suppressed laughter.

This at length was able to take its free course when the following picture presented itself, where the Kammerjunker, as the Somnambule, his hand half-concealing the extinguished light, showed himself at the open window.

A most stormy burst of applause was awarded to the actors.

"Miss Sophie has arranged the whole!" cried the Kammerjunker, and now her name sounded from the lips of all the audience.

Not before two days did Wilhelm return. He and Otto slept in the same apartment. Otto told of the tableaux, and said how lovely Eva had been as Hero.

"That I can well believe," replied Wilhelm, but did not enter further into the subject; he laughed about the Kammerjunker and the disarranged group.

Otto again named Eva, but Wilhelm lightly pa.s.sed over this subject in his replies. Otto could not fathom their connection.

"Shall we not go to sleep?" said Wilhelm; they wished each other good-night, and it was quiet.

The old man Sleep, as Tieck has described him, with the box out of which he brings his dream-puppets, now commenced his nightly dramatic adventures, which lasted until the sun shone in through the window.

CHAPTER x.x.xIII

"He draws nearer and nearer to her.

'O, give my hope an answer by this pink-flower.'

She sighs: 'O, I will--no--I will not.'"

The Dancer, by PALUDAN-MuLLER

"I shall get to know!" thought Otto. "This violent love cannot be evaporated." He paid attention to every little occurrence. Eva was the same quiet, modest creature as formerly--a house-fairy who exercised a friendly influence over all. Wilhelm spoke with her, but not with pa.s.sion, neither with affected indifference. However, we cannot entirely rely upon Otto's power of observation: his glance was directed too often toward a dearer object--his attention was really directed to Sophie.

They walked in the garden.

"Once as you certainly know," said Otto, "your brother had a fancy for the pretty Eva. Is it not, therefore, somewhat dangerous her living here? Has your mother been prudent?"

"For Wilhelm I am quite unconcerned!" answered Sophie. "Only take care of yourself! Eva is very amiable, and has very much changed for the better since she came here. My sister Louise quite raves about her, and my mother regards her almost as an adopted daughter. You have certainly remarked that she is not kept in the background. Yet she is weak; she resembles the tender mountain-flowers which grow in ice and snow, but which bow their heads in the soft mountain air, when it is warmed by the sun. It really seems to me that she is become weaker since she has enjoyed our care and happy days. When I saw her at Roeskelde she was far more blooming."

"Perhaps she thinks of your brother--thinks of him with quiet sorrow?"

"That I do not think is the case," replied Sophie; "otherwise Louise would have heard something of it. She possesses Eva's entire confidence.

You may make yourself easy, if you are jealous!"

"What make you conjecture this? My thoughts are directed above, and not beneath me!" said he, with a kind of pride, "I feel that I could never fall in love with Eva. Feel love toward her? no! Even when I think of it, I feel almost as though I had some prejudice against her. But you joke; you will rally me, as you have so often done. We shall soon part!

Only two months longer shall I remain in Denmark! Two long years abroad!

How much may occur in that time! Will you think of me--really think of me, Miss Sophie?" He bent, and kissed her hand.

Sophie became crimson. Both were silent.

"Are you here!" said the mother, who came out of a side walk.

Otto stooped lower, and broke one of the beautiful stocks which hung over the border.

"Are you taking Louise's favorite flowers?" said she, smiling. "This bed is declared to be inviolable."

"I was so unfortunate as to break it!" said Otto, confused.

"He wished to gather the dark-red pink for my table-garland!" said Sophie. "If he took it, my conscience would be clear!"

And they all three walked along speaking of cherries, gooseberries, of the linen on the bleaching-ground, and of the warm summer's day.

In the evening Eva and the two sisters sat at their work, Otto and Wilhelm had taken their seats beside them. They spoke of Copenhagen.

Sophie knew how to introduce a number of little anecdotes, which she had gathered among the young ladies there. Otto entered into her ideas, and knew cleverly how to support what she said. What in reality interested young ladies was discussed.

"When a girl is confirmed, all manner of fancies awake!" said Otto. "She experiences a kind of inclination for the heart of man; but this may not be acknowledged, except for two friends to the clergyman and the physician. For these she has quite a pa.s.sion, especially for the former; she stands in a kind of spiritual rapport with him. His physical amiability melts into the spiritual. Thus her first love one may designate clergyman-love."

"That is well said!" exclaimed Sophie.

"He preaches himself so deeply into her heart!" pursued Otto. "She melts into tears, kisses his hand, and goes to church; but not for the sake of G.o.d, but on account of the sweet clergyman!"

"O, I know that so well!" said Sophie, and laughed.

"Fie! you do not mean so!" said Louise; "and I do not know how you can say such a thing Mr. Thostrup! That is frightful! You do not in the least know a young girl's soul! do not know the pure feeling with which she inclines herself to the man who has laid open before her the holy things of religion! Do not make sport of the innocent, the pure, which is so far removed from every earthly impression!"

"I a.s.sure you," said Otto, smiling, "were I a poet, I would make the clergyman-love ridiculous in a hundred witty epigrams; and were I a teacher, I would protest against it from the chair."

"That would be scattering poison into a well!" said Louise. "You, as a man, do not know the pure, the holy sentiment which exists in a young girl's bosom. Eva, thou art certainly of my opinion?"

"Neither is this Mr. Thostrup's opinion?" answered she, and looked at him with a mild gravity.

Wilhelm laughed aloud.

CHAPTER x.x.xIV

"Alas, I am no st.u.r.dy oak!

Alas, I'm but the flower That wakes the kiss of May!