Karl Gjellerup

“ A sudden jerk of the train threw me down on the soft cushion, and immediately Minna was kneeling at my feet. I laughingly wanted to lift her up, but was stopped by a frightened and imploring expression in her face.
"Harald! I have something I must tell you. But promise me not to be angry.... No, no, you must not promise anything; perhaps you won't be able to help it."
"But, Minna, what does all this mean? Do get up, my dear!"
"No, no, you must first listen. I was so nasty yesterday.... I have deceived you all, and also told lies to you." ”

“ An engagement is an engagement, and what is best is best. In your case, neither would I go—'Why gaze into the distance, look here—the good lies near.' Thank goodness one knows one's classics. As long as one can quote Goethe, drink München beer, smoke Altstädter Ziegel-tobacco, climb up and down the mountains, and one more thing, which I dare not mention before Cousin Minna, so long Poland is not lost, even if one has to ram knowledge into the heads of stupid youngsters six hours a day ”

“ Above the tops of the dark fir-trees the arched sky was of a reddish blue. Into the deep brown shadows between the grey trunks, keen slanting rays of the sun penetrated like golden spears, while dim lights quivered, glittering like silver, on the huge ferns that resembled the outstretched wings of an enormous bird; and bright yellow flames of the sulphur-like saxifrage shone along the edge of a bit of rock, which lay between the trees, like a little house with a garden of ferns and young beeches on its flat and slightly sloping roof. ”

“ Minna admitted at last that it was now time for us to be moving.
There was no boat visible at the little bridge. The black water, which had a shimmer over it from the light of the lanterns that collected in the whirlpools, flowed freely past its empty planks, where there was not so much as a portmanteau or handbag to be seen.
"Surely we have come to the wrong bridge, it must be the steamer bridge," Mrs. Hertz said. ”

“ The fog, which near the Elbe had been so unusually thick that it resembled the famous Rhine mist, had also not spared the Moldau Valley; and in the narrow-built town of Prague it had lasted till far on in the day, penetrating everything with its wet cold. In addition to this Hertz had for hours been in a loft, where this dampness had been accompanied by a dreadful draught. ”

“ I attacked the third volume of the novel, which, like the others, contained five hundred pages. When that was finished and I noticed that the sun had already passed the one window frame, I hurried my preparations for shaving, taking into consideration that it is advisable to be well-shaved when a scene of a delicate description is imminent. The time for the second and last postal delivery approached rapidly; I did not care to contemplate what I should do in case of disappointment, and still I was almost sure that it awaited me. ”

“ There was the sunlit lime wall under the shining tiles, the vine creeper, the shadow projected by the tree, enveloping the summer-house, where the grey-green table-cloth had a crooked sun-streak of yellow—I looked for a long time at this streak so that the critical moment might be delayed; some leaves of the fruit tree hid the corner of the table-cloth, and over them came the steam of the coffee-machine. A white-bearded man I had already discovered, now also the old lady, but no one else was there. ”

“ I have been writing half the night and am dreadfully tired. My hope is that you will not judge me too harshly after this communication, but, anyhow, you must tell me quite candidly what impression this letter has made on you, and not out of kindness be too lenient. Unless this confidence is frankly answered, how shall I benefit by it? That I value your judgment you know beforehand, and you will also see it by my letter to Mr. Stephensen.—Your friend,
"Minna Jagemann." ”

“ This hour seemed to me in a mysterious way to have brought us closer to each other; and while my joy so far had been the consciousness of being allowed to love, I now was overcome by the blessed feeling of being loved, of being myself the object of another's longing and secret wishes. ”

“ Do you know, I am so pleased that you have no parents alive."
"Oh, why? They would have been so fond of you."
"No, no," she exclaimed, in an almost frightened tone. "How could they have been? They would have expected quite a different daughter-in-law, and they would have been right. But as it is, there is no one but you who has any claim on me, if only you will be satisfied with me as I am." ”

“ Why were you so positive? One ought never to rely upon one's memory in such a case, and the time-table may be altered from one year to another. I ought to have thought of that myself. It really is very annoying."
"Oh dear me!" said Mrs. Hertz soothingly, "after all, it is nothing so very dreadful. You will be obliged to remain here for the night, but anyhow there are plenty of hotels in Schandau; the town contains hardly anything else."
This practical remark quieted him down.
"Luckily there is an early train to-morrow. But perhaps you will be missed," Hertz said to Minna. ”

“ We soon lost ourselves in plans for the future and calculations as to how little, with the help of economy, would be enough; apparently a very prosaic subject, but one that for a young couple (just as poor as loving) in reality possesses a greater attraction than even the most elevated romance. Notwithstanding our enthusiasm, I doubt whether the gold that the moon shed over the darkness of the river appeared to us more poetical than that with which our household needs were to be paid in due time. ”

“ Oh, dear friend, it was hard to learn that in a moment, when I was so little conscious of doing anything wrong, I had lost a man's respect and love, and in his eyes lowered myself to the level of a worthless woman. ”

“ Yes, I would even have shaved had not the sun been so blinding. As my eye caught sight of the little birch avenue, I was possessed by a new idea the grotto "Sophien-Ruhe"! She had said that at this time the people of the house never came there; what if, trusting to my memory and shrewdness, she expected to see me there! Surely she would do so. ”

“ It was absurd of me to have been jealous of the good-looking workman in the smithy, but still more absurd to have indulged in the same feeling towards the visionary person called "The Danish Painter." No doubt the whole of this story was only family gossip gathered from an old aunt who, according to the schoolmaster, "was not quite what she ought to have been." In addition to which Minna herself had spoken often about these aunts and their foolish tittle-tattle. ”

“ Have you got a knife?"
"No, but we say in Danish: 'Five fingers are just as good as a boat hook.'"
She laughed and shook the loose hair from her face; then we began to dig and scratch away the earth. At last we got the plants out of the ground, and as I recrossed the ditch I succeeded in wetting one of my feet. Minna carefully bound her handkerchief round the ferns, so that she should not lose any of the mould that was hanging to the roots. ”

“ Clear moonlight lay on the heights over the sleeping hamlet, of which only the roofs of a few houses were high enough for the moonbeams to shed their rays over the small window-panes. Far above these stood the crown of steep rocks, appearing closer and more than usually blended together in vague, shadowy shapes. ”

“ I felt myself in the seventh heaven, and God only knows how foolishly I should have behaved, had not the children come running to tell us that beautiful ripe raspberries were to be found—in this seventh heaven! ”

“ Minna answered, and she seemed to be a little hurt at this want of confidence.
We dawdled up and down for a few minutes, without seeing anybody or anything. Hertz went into the open shed, which served as a waiting-room, and sat down. In one corner there was a working man sleeping, with the brim of his hat pulled down over his forehead, for the smoking oil-lamp gave just sufficient light to dazzle one's eyes. ”

“ He shows me so much attention that I cannot hide from myself that he appreciates me. Time will show, however, if this is anything more than a fleeting summer-holiday fancy. He is still very young, his age is only twenty-four, but really he seems much younger, as if he was still untouched by life. ”

“ Often, when I have pondered over it, it has appeared to me that when a man has formed so pure and beautiful an impression, which after all must be intuitive, he ought not, through an accidental circumstance, to change his opinion so that it becomes entirely different, but should wait until he is calm again and is able to judge dispassionately. ”

“ It must have been shortly after this that a young musician came to live with us. I had to wait on him as I did on the other lodgers. He was more intimate with us than any of the others had been, and, unfortunately, I grew very fond of him, but quite—I must now ask you, dear Mr. Fenger, to give me your absolute trust—in an innocent way. ”

“ Her strong maiden-arms in thus clinging to me seemed to seek to bind us so closely together that nothing could part us. When she noticed that I gasped for breath, she suddenly let me go.
"Have I hurt you? I am so violent." ”

“ For my part, I think it would be extremely foolish and stupid if two people dare not so much as look at each other because their acquaintance might culminate in love, which, after all, is not bound to be unhappy. ”

“ Axel Stephensen, indeed! Of course I knew him. Who does not know our young artists, even the least famous of the celebrities! It was some small consolation to me that, at any rate, I had not to cope with a genius. ”

“ Hertz said.
"We nearly sent for you, but Minna insisted that you were sure to come."
"Just imagine, we are off to Prague this evening! Yes, in a minute."
"But we are not going to drive you away for that reason. On the contrary, we hope you will accompany us for a little way. The express does not stop here, so we are obliged to go on to Schandau, and we will do that by boat. The weather is beautiful now, so you might as well take that trip with us. There is a train back at nine o'clock. Minna has already promised to come." ”

“ So you really go away the day after to-morrow?"
"Yes, my sweet Minna; it is after all for the best. The holidays are over, and my landlady has let my room."
"Well, in a week I am also as free as a bird.... Let me see, I will take the children out for a walk. If your many engagements do not prevent, you can expect me on the forest path, the one turning off to the left, you know, just beyond the school-house. I will walk on until I meet you."
The train whistled and stopped. We had already reached Rathen. ”

“ He inherits a chest with letters and papers in which, if he had not been an ignoramus, he might have guessed there were things from Goethe; but contempt for everything literary prevents him from even opening the chest. He is in want of money, a spendthrift of course, and must throw himself into the arms of the moneylender, though all the time he has a treasure in his loft, with which he could buy a castle. ”

“ There's plenty of time, for we stay here nearly half an hour."
"Yes, but the train for Dresden?"
"We have just taken the people across for that."
"But there's still time enough. Can't we get a boat to take us across?"
"I don't think you will get any boat at this time of night. I say, Heinrich, is there any boat to be got?"
"No, of course there's no boat to be got," answered the porter, and spat in the water. "People ought to be here in time for the launch."
A load fell from my heart, and it seemed to me that Minna also breathed more freely. But Hertz looked quite terrified ”

“ Stephensen a new letter. Now I propose that you should copy the old one up to the remark where you fear my chest is weak, which I can assure you is quite without foundation.
"After this you should then—according to my idea—continue—
"'He has already shown me so much attention that I could not very well doubt his feelings for me. It therefore did not come as a surprise, when he to-day asked for my hand. He has no private means of his own, but will certainly in a year or so have a respectable income, very likely in England, where he has a well-to-do uncle who will help him. ”

“ Then again, mere friendship can exist between man and woman, and the greatest possible advantages may result from such companionship. No, if I started such calculating considerations I should always feel both conceited and foolish. In short, I very much like this Mr. Fenger, and to talk with him is both pleasant and in many ways instructive. But perhaps you now think that I am, if not actually taking a false step, nevertheless upon a dangerous path?"
After this followed the finishing remarks, and the signature, "Your friend." ”

“ I took a piece of notepaper and wrote to Minna that, this letter, which evidently she had lost, had been found and brought to me, but that I did not like to post it without her consent, as the address seemed to have suffered a good deal from the damp, and was so illegible that I thought she might prefer to have the letter returned to her. ”

“ Of course, when one can be accused of having 'encouraged' a young man—I think that is the expression—or even of having 'flirted' with him, which often only means having been gay, natural, and having given way to moods, and then when it comes to the point drawing back, which means not being willing to follow him to the ends of the earth ”

“ I think that a real lover ought not to have thrust me away, but have made allowances for a childish indiscretion, considering that, after all, my faults were those of my bringing up and surroundings, and that he would be able to shield me from harm and raise me to the ideal he had formed. ”

“ However, the correspondence soon came to an end.
"The young musician asked my mother for my hand, but she told him I was far too young to think of a serious engagement. Soon afterwards I heard that he was on the point of being engaged to some one else—which report, however, turned out eventually to be untrue—and my despair was beyond everything. Anyhow he left us, and, a fortnight later, Mr. Stephensen took the room. The day the musician departed, I knelt on the floor and tore off some dead twigs of a garland which he had won at a shooting competition, and kept it as a souvenir. ”

“ A dreadful disappointment overcame me and, exasperated beyond endurance, I threw myself upon the bed. Clattering steps of bare feet were then heard on the landing, and there was a knock at my door, that was locked on account of the négligé attire which I had assumed during the reading of the novel. ”