Christoph von Schmid

“ If I had attempted with my own hands to unfold the leaves of these rosebuds, they would have perished; but God with a delicate finger had gradually unfolded their purple cups and shed over them the sweet perfume of His breath. He can disperse the evils which surround me, and make them turn to my good which seemed all evil. Let me then patiently wait His time. These flowers remind me of Him who created them. I will remember Him as He remembers me.
"These tender forget-me-nots, as blue as the heavens, may even be my silent consolation in all the sufferings of earth. ”

“ Mary, be frank, and do not add falsehood to the crime of theft."
"My father," cried Mary, "well do you know that never in my life have I stolen even the smallest coin, and how should I take anything so valuable as the Countess's ring? I pray you, believe me; I have never in my life told you a lie."
"Mary," again said her father, "see my grey hairs. Do not bring them down with sorrow to the grave. Spare me so great an affliction. Before that God who made you, into whose presence there can come no thief, tell me if you have the ring?" ”

“ Aim rather at beauty of soul and true piety, which will never wither."
One day towards evening time the old man climbed a ladder to pluck some apples, while Mary stood below with a basket to hold them.
"How cold," said James, "this autumn wind is as it whistles over the stubble fields and plays with the yellow leaves and my white hairs. I am in my autumn, my dear child, as you will also be some day. Try to grow like this excellent apple tree, which produces beautiful fruit and in great abundance. Try to please the Master of the great garden which is called the world." ”

“ Brought up under the care of a father so wise and loving, Mary grew up like the flowers of her garden, fresh as the rose, pure like the lily, modest as the violet, and full of promise for the future, as a beautiful shrub in the time of flourishing. ”

“ On the miserable bed lay stretched a figure which to Mary's eyes seemed more like a skeleton, but which she gradually made out was the form of a woman, in the last stages of illness.
In a voice which resembled the rattle of death, this miserable creature sought to speak with Mary, who trembled in every limb. It was with the utmost difficulty that she could make out what the poor woman said, but at last she learned, to her horror, that the frightful phantom was Juliette, who at the Castle of Eichbourg had been the beginning and cause of all her distress. ”

“ His mother and the farmer's wife, as well as James and his daughter, hearing his screams of pain, ran to him. The child, with his little hands all covered with blood, cried out against the naughty rose bush for having attracted him by its pretty flowers and then cruelly torn his hands.
The occasion was seized by James for drawing a lesson. "It is sometimes thus with us older children also," he said to Mary. "Like this rose tree, every pleasure in life has its thorns. We run towards them, and would fain seize them with both hands. ”

“ Mary thanked the good old minister and promised to follow his advice.
Mary's favourite place of meditation was her father's tomb, where she had planted a rose tree. "Alas," said she, "if I could remain here always, I would water you with my tears!" The rose tree was already green, and the buds began to open their purple cups. "My father was right," said Mary, "when he compared human life to the rose tree. It offers nothing but thorns; but wait a little and the season will come when it shall be decked anew in foliage and robed in the most beautiful flowers. ”

“ That look, where integrity and truth are painted, cannot be the look of guilt."
"But, my father," asked Mary, "what will be the end of it? What will they do to us? I do not fear what they may do to me, but the idea that you may have to suffer on my account is intolerable."
"Have faith in God," answered her father. "Take courage. Not one hair of our heads can fall to the ground without His permission. All that happens to us is the will of God, and what more can we wish? Do not be frightened into saying anything but what is strictly true. ”

“ The plant grows and winds itself around a support, that it may not grope in the dust. And while it balances itself above the earth it displays its flowers, which might be taken for butterflies' wings. In this way I will cling to God and by His help raise myself above the miseries of this earth. This mignonette is the chief source of the perfume which fills my cell. Sweet plant, you cheer by your perfume the one who plucked you from your home in the earth. I will try to imitate you and to do good even to those who without cause have torn me from my garden and thrown me into this prison. ”

“ He showed to her that she loved money more than anything else in the world, and that the love of money was idolatry. He showed her that the bursts of anger in which she had indulged were heinous sins before God, that she had totally failed in the most beautiful of all Christian virtues—filial affection; that by her greed of money she had made her husband unhappy, cruelly driven away the poor orphan Mary, and even turned away her husband's parents, those whom she ought to have cherished as if they were her own. ”

“ It was his custom to begin each day with God by spending the first hours of the morning in prayer; and, in order to accomplish this without neglecting his work, it was his habit to rise early. In the beautiful days of spring and summer, James would lead Mary to an arbour in the garden, and, while the birds sang their joyous songs, and the dew sparkled on the grass and flowers, he delighted to talk with his daughter of God, whose bounty sent the sun and the dew, and brought forth the beauty and life of the world. ”

“ Yes, my dear child, God in His goodness has given to modesty, innocence for a sister and companion, in order that she might be warned of the approach of danger. Be always modest, and you will be always virtuous. Oh, if the will of God be so, I pray that you may be enabled to preserve in your heart the purity of the lily!"
One ornament of their garden, which James and his daughter most dearly prized, was a dwarf apple-tree little higher than a rose-bush, which grew in a small round bed in the middle of the garden. ”

“ The Countess kissed Mary, pressed her to her heart, called her her daughter, and, taking from her finger the ring which had caused so many misfortunes, she said, "Here, my dear child, although your piety is a great deal more precious than the large diamond which sparkles in this ring, you must accept this present as a feeble compensation for the wrong you have suffered, and as a token of the sincere attachment and maternal tenderness I feel towards you." ”

“ The story of the lost ring had spread through the whole village of Eichbourg, and when Mary and her father were taken through the streets, the crowd pressed round them filled with curiosity. It was curious to notice how diverse were the opinions which were pronounced on the old man and his daughter. They had been kind to all, but there were some who repaid their kindness by rejoicing in their present affliction. Although they had accepted the old man's gifts, their jealousy and envy had been excited by the thought of his superior position. ”

“ As the thirsty ground calls not for rain in vain, but God sends the refreshing showers, so if you seek your consolation from God, He will refresh your heart as the sweet rain refreshes the thirsty parched earth. Let your confidence in your heavenly Father be unshaken. Firmly believe that there is nothing He will not do for those He loves. Sometimes He may lead us by paths of grief, but be sure that these paths lead to unmingled happiness. Do you recollect, my good Mary, all the grief you felt when, after our painful walk, I fell down with fatigue in the middle of the road? ”

“ You have never wanted anything; you have always had more than sufficient. Believe me, too much money produces pride. Rain is a useful and necessary thing, but when too much falls there is danger of it destroying the most healthy plants of the garden.'
"These were exactly the old friend's words we have lost," said the farmer, "and I think I still hear him. And you, my son, once said to him of your wife, 'She has a charming person, and is beautiful and fresh as a rose.' 'Flowers,' answered James, 'have not beauty only; they are good and pretty at the same time. ”

“ An old huntsman—Anthony by name—with whom James had been in service when he accompanied the Count on his travels, had set out before daybreak to hunt a stag, and now came upon James and his daughter seated under the oak.
"God bless you, James," said Anthony. "It does me good to hear your voice. Is it then true that they have banished you? Truly it is hard to see a man obliged, in his old age, to quit his country."
"As far as the reach of heaven extends," answered James, "the earth is the Lord's, and His kindness is extended to all. Our country—our real country—is in heaven." ”

“ Still Mary hesitated about accepting the valuable gift, and turned with streaming eyes towards the minister, as if to ask his advice.
"Yes, Mary," said the venerable man, "you must keep the ring. You see, my good child, how God is blessing your filial piety; for whosoever sincerely honours his parents shall be better for it. Take the valuable present with gratitude, and as adversity found you resigned to the Divine will, so in prosperity show yourself grateful to your heavenly Father—grateful to His dear name, benevolent and kind." ”

“ Truly, those who have the love of God have nothing to fear from any enemies. God knows how to turn to our advantage all the ill that wicked people do to us; and our most cruel enemies, although for a while they may bring us to unhappiness, can do nothing but contribute to our real and lasting happiness. We may say in this case that our safety comes from our enemies.
"But now, dear Mary," said the Countess, "tell me what brought you so late to your father's grave, and why, when I found you, you were weeping so bitterly." ”

“ The slightest spot can spoil the flower of the lily, and so one word can rob the mind of its purity. Let the rose," said he, pointing to that flower, "be the image of modesty. The blush of a modest girl is more beautiful than that of the rose."
Mary's father then made a bouquet of lilies and roses, and, giving it to Mary, he said, "These are brothers and sisters, whose beauty no other flowers can equal. Innocence and modesty are twin sisters, which cannot be separated. ”

“ Mary conversed long and earnestly with her, endeavouring to point her to the Saviour of the world, who would receive her if she truly repented. At last she was obliged to leave her without being satisfied as to her state of mind, but the idea of the unhappy Juliette dying without hope continually pressed on her mind and weighed down her spirits. She recollected her little apple tree in blossom, withered by the frost, and what her father had said on that occasion. ”

“ The children of the neighbourhood, as they passed on their way to school, never failed to peep through the hedge, and were generally rewarded by Mary with some little present of flowers as a token of her goodwill.
James, as a wise father, knew how to direct the taste of his daughter towards the most noble ends. Often he used to say, "Let others spend their money for jewels and silks and other adornments; I will spend mine for flower-seeds. Silks and satins and jewels cannot procure for our children so pure a pleasure as these beautiful exhibitions of the wisdom and benevolence of God." ”

“ Her father, who had been at work in his garden, now came in to learn the young Countess's errand, and to him Amelia told the story. Shocked beyond measure at the charge, the old man was so overcome that he was obliged to sink into a chair.
"My dear child," he said to Mary solemnly, "to steal a ring of this price is a crime which in this country is punished with death. But this is not all. Your action is not only one for which you must account to men, but to that God who reads the heart and with whom all false denials amount to nothing. ”

“ Amelia, who sat by her with the basket of flowers in her hand, was delighted with the generous proceedings of her parents. Her eyes shone with affection for Mary; and the minister, who had often observed how envious children generally are when their parents exercise their benevolence towards other people, was deeply touched by this disinterested love of Amelia. "May God," said he, "reward the generosity of the Count and Countess. May all that they have done for the poor orphan be rendered to them a hundredfold in the person of their own dear daughter!" ”

“ Fathers and mothers were heard to say, "Who would have believed this thing of these good people? Truly it proves that the best of us are liable to fall." But there were others who were persuaded of Mary's innocence, and said, "Perhaps it is not so bad as it appears. May their innocence be brought out when the trial comes, and may God help them to escape the terrible fate which now hangs over them."
Groups of children, to whom Mary had given fruit and flowers, stood weeping as they saw their kind friend being carried off to prison. ”