2 ELECTIVE AFFINITIES. /Norel. TRANSLATED FROM THE GERMAN OP GOETHE. PART L CHAPTER VI. (continued:) In many ways, therefore, the party had gained by Otlilie’s arrival. The Captain and Edward kept regularly to the hours, even to the minutes, for their genera meeting together. They never kept the others wailing for them either for din ner or tea, or for*their walks; and they were in less hasie. This did not escape Charlotte’s observation; she watched them both, to see whether one more than the other was the occasion of it. But she could not perceive any difference. They Lad both become more companionable. In their conversation they seemed to con sider what was beet adapted to interest Otlilie; what was moat on a level with her capacities and her general knowl edge. If she left the room when they were reading or telling stories, they would wait till she returned. They had grown softer and altogether more united. In return for this, Ottilie’s anxiety to be of use increased every day; the more she. came to understand the bouse, its inmates, and their circumstances, the more eagerly she entered into everything, caught eve ry look and every motion ; half a word, a sound, was enough for her. With her calm attentiveness, and her easy, unexcit- ed activity, she was always the same. Sit ting, rising up, going, coming, fetching, carrying, returning to her place again, it was always in tbb most perfect repose; a constant change, a constant agreeable movement; while, at the same time, she went about so lightly that her step was almost inaudible. This cheerful obligingness in Ottilie gave Charlotte the greatest pleasure. There was one thing, however, which she did not exactly like, of which she had to speak to her. “It is very polite you,” she said one day to her, ‘/when people let anything fall from their band, to be so quick in stoop ing and picking it up for them; at the same time, it is a sort of confession that they have a right to require such atten tion, and in the world we are expected to be careful to whom we pay it. Towards women, I will not prescribe any rule as to how you should conduct yourself. You are young. To those above, and old- Or than you, services of this sort are a duly; towards your equals they are po lite; to those younger.than yourself and your inferiors you may show yourself kind and good-natured by such things,— only it is not becoming in a young lady to do them for men.” « “1 will try to forget the habit,” replied Ottilie; “I think, however, you will in the meantime forgive me my want of manners, when I tell you how I came by it. We were taught history at school ; I have not gained as much out of it as I ought, for I never knew what use I was was to make of it; a few little things, however, made a deep impression upon me, among which was the following: When Charles the First of England was standing before his so called judges, the gold top came off the stick which he bad in his band, and fell down. Accustomed as be bad been on such occasions to have everything done for him, he seemed to look round and expect that .this time 100 some one would do this little service. No one stirred, and he stooped down lor it himself. It struck me as so piteous ; that from that moment I have never been able to see any one let a thing fall without myself picking it up. But, of course, as it is not always proper, and as I cannot,” she continued, smiling, “tell my story every thne I do it, in future I will try and contain myself.” In the meantime the fine arrangements which the two friends had been led to make for themselves, went uninterrupted ly forward. Every day they found some thing new to think about and undertake. One day as they were walking together through the village, they had. to remark with dissatisfaction how far behindhand it was in order and cleanliness, compared to villages where the inhabitants were compelled by the expense of building ground to be careful about such things. ‘‘You remember a wish we once ex pressed when we were traveling together in Switzerland,” said the Captain, “that we might have the laying out of some country park, and how beautiful.we would make it by introducing into some village situated like this, not the Swiss style of building, but the Swiss order and neatness which so much improve it.” “And how well it would answer here ! The hill on which the castle stands, slopes down to that projecting angle. The vil lage, you see, is built in a semicircle, reg ularly enough, just opposite to it. The. brook runs between. It is liable to floods; and do observe the way the people set about protecting themselves from them ; one with stones, another with stakes ; the next puts up a boarding, and a fourth lies beams and planks; no one. of course, doing any good to another with his ar rangements, but only hurting himself and the rest ton. And then there is the road going along just in the clumsiest way pos sible —up hill and down, through the wa ter, and over the stones. If the people would only lay their hands to the busi nos together, it would cost them nothing but a little labor to run a semicircular wall along here, take the road in behind it, raising it to the level of the housts, and so give themselves a fair open space in front, making the whole place clean, and getting I’id, once for all, in one good general work, of all their little trifling in effectual mahjesbifts.” “Let us try it,” said the Captain, as he ran his eyes jover the lay of the ground,, and saw quickly what was to be done. , ‘ “l ean undertake nothing in company with peasants and shopkeepers,” replied Edward, “unless I may have unrestricted authority over them.” “You are dot so wrong in that,” return ed the Captain; “I have experienced too much trouble myself in life in matters of that kind, ikow difficult it is to prevail on a man to jventure boldly on making a sacrifice for an after advantage I How bard to get hjim to deaire an end, and not hesitate at the means 1 So many people confuse meads with ends; they keep bang ing over the first, without having the oth er before tbepr eyes. Every evil is to be cured at the place where it comes to the surface, and they jvill not trouble them selves to look for the cause which produ ces it or the remote effect which results from it. This is why it is so difficult to get advice listened to, especially among the many; jhey can see clearly enough from day to day, but their scope seldom reaches beypnd the morrow; and if It comes to a point where with some gener-, a] arrangement one person will gain while another will lose, there is ud prevailing on them to strike a balance. Works of public advaptage can only be carried through by an uncontrolled absolute au thority.” “While they were standing and talk ing, a man came up and begged of them. He looked more impudent than really in want, and Edward, who was annoyed at being interrupted, after two or three fruitless attempts to get rid of him by a gentler refusal, spoke sharply to him. The fellow began to grumble and matter abusively; he went off with short steps, talking about tb right of beggars. It was all very well to refuse them an aims, but that was no reason why they shculd be insulted. A beggar, and everybody else, too,was as ranch under God’s protection as a lord It pat Edward ont of all patience. The Captain, to pacify him, said: “Let us make use of this as an occasion for extending our rural police arrange ments to such cases. We are bound to give away money, but we do belter in not giving in person, especially at home. We should be moderate and uniform in everything, in charities as in all else; too great liberality attracts beggars instead of helping them on their way. At the same time there is no harm when one is on a journey, or passing through a strange place, in appearing to a poor man in the street in the form of a chance deity of fortune, and make him some present which shall surprise him. The position of the village and of the castle makes it easy for us tb put our charities here on a proper footing. I have thought about it before. The public-house is at one end of the village, a respectable old couple live at the other. At each of these places deposit a small sum of money, and let every beggar, not as be comes in, but as he goes out, receive something. Both bouses lie on the road which leads to the castle, so that any one who goes there can btTreferred to one or the other” “Come,” said Edward, “we will settle that on the spot. The exact sum can be made up another time.” They went to the innkeeper, and to the old couple, and the thing was done. “I know very well,” Edward said, as they walking up the hill to the castle to gether, “that everything in this world depends on distinctness of idea and firm ness of purpose. Your judgment of what my wife has been doing in the park was entirely right; and you have already giv en me a hint-how it might be improved. I will not deny that I told her of it.” “So I have been led to suspect,” replied the Captain : and I could not approve of your having done so. You have perplex ed her. She has left off doing anything ; and on this one subject she is vexed with us. She avoids speaking o 1 it. She has never since invited us to go with her to the summer-house, although at odd hours she goes up there with Ottilie.” “We must not allow ourselves to be de terred by that,” answered Edward. “If I am once convinced about anything good, which could and should be done, I can never rest till I see it done. We are clever enough at other limes in introduc ing what we want, into the general con versation ; suppose we have out some de scriptions of English parks, with copper plates, for our evening’s amusement. Then we can follow with your plan. We will treat It first problematically, and as if we were only in jest. There will be no difficulty in passing into earnest.” The scheme was concerted, and the books were opened. In each group of designs they first saw a ground-plan of the spot* with the general character i.f the landscape, drawn in its rude, nalura state. Then followed others, showing the changes which had been produced by art, to employ and set off the natural advan tages of the locality. From these to their own property and their own grounds, the transition was easy. Everybody was pleased. The chart which the Captain had sketched was brought and spread out. The only diffi culty was, that they could not entirely free themselves of the plan in which i Charlotte had begun. Howeaer, an eas iierway up the hill was a lodge j was suggested to he built on the height at , the edge of the cliff, which was tn have an tsspecial reference to li e castle. I was 'o THE RADICAL; FRIDAY, MAY 30, 1873. form a consplcuousobject fthnktbe castle windows, and from it the spectator was. to be able to overlook, both the castleand the garden. ■' , - The Captain bad thought it all catti ly over, and taken his meMttrhmentPj and now he brought up again his tillage road and the wall by the brook, and the g round which was to be raised behind ft “Here you see,” said he, “while I make this charming walk up the height, I gain exactly the quanity of stone which I »• quire for that wall. Let one piece of work help the other, and both will be carried out most satisfactorily and most rapidly.” “But now,” said Charlotte, ‘‘comes my side of the business. A. certain definite outlay of money will have to be made. We ought to know bow ; will be wanted for such a purpose, and then we can apportion it out—so much work, and so much money, if hot by weeks, at least bv months. The cash-box is under my charge. I pay the bills, I keep the ac counts.” “You do not appear to have overmuch confidence in us,” said Edward.. ••I have not much in arbitrary matters,” Charlotte answered. “Where it is a case of inclination, we women know better how to control ourselves than you.” It was settled; the dispositions were made, and the work was begun at once. The Captain being always on the spot, Charlotte was almost a daily witness to the strength and clearness of his under standing.' He, too, learnt to know her better; and it became easy for them both to work together, and thus bring some thing to completeness. It is work as w ith dancing; persons who keep the same step must grow indispensable to one another. Out of this mutual kindly feeling will ne cessarily arise; and Charlotte had a real kind feeling towards the Captain, after she came to know him better, was suffl ciently proved by her allowing him to de stroy her pretty seat, which in her first plans she had taken such pains in orna menting, because It was it wan in the way of his own, without experiencing the slightest feeling about matter- chapter vn. Now that Charlotte was.occupied with the Captain, it was a natural consequence that Edward should attach himself more to Ottilie. Independently of this, in deed, for some lime past he had begun to feel a silent kind of attraction towards her. Obliging and attentive she was to everyone, but his self-love whispered that towards him she was particularly so. She had observed his little fancies about his f md. She knew exactly what things he liked, aud*the way in which he liked them to be prepared ; the quantity of su gar which liked in his tea; and so on. Moreover, she was particularly careful to prevent draughts, about which he was ex cessively sensitive, and, indeed, Abp.ut which, with his wife, who cou-td nearer have air enough, he was often at variance. So, too, she had come to know abbut fruit gardens, and flower-gardens; whatever he liked, it was her constant effort to pro cure for him, and to keep away whatever annoyed him ; so that very soon indispensable to him —she became like his guardian angel, and be felt it keenly whenever she was absent. Besides all this, too, she appeared to grow more open and conversable as soon as they were alone together. Edward, as he had advanced in life, had retained something childish about him- self, which corresponded singularly well with the youthfulness of Ottilie. They liked talking of early times, when they had first seen each other ; and theSe rem iniscences led them up to the first epoch of Edward’s affect ion for Charlotte. Ot tilie declared that she remembered them both as the handsomest pair about the court; and when Edward would question the possibility of this, when she must have been so exceedingly young, she in sisted that she recollected one particular incident as clearly as possible. He had cotfie into the room where her aunt was, and she had hid her face in Charlotte’s lap—not from fear, but from a childish surprise. She might have added, because he had made so strong and impression upon her —because she had liked him so much. While they were occupied in this way, much of the business which the two ] friends had .undertaken together' 1 had come to a stand still; so that they found it necessary to inspect how things were going on— O C H E S T E II FIRE INSURANCE COMPANY Incorporated by the Legislature of Pei:u- V ■’ nia. February, 1872. Office one door pa-t el Ro oster Savings Bank, Rochester. Beaver conn s Peun’a. 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