Now and then over this gayety seemed to steal the faint shadow of some unknown dread11 from the forest. The retainers whispered among themselves that there had been strange portents12 and signs that the wood-folk were astir and full of excitement. Now and then one of Erna's damsels would hint that wild rumors13 were afloat. The churls that drove the swine and the geese afield had seen vague forms flitting among the shadows of the glades14; they had heard what they could not tell, yet what had filled them with terror; and while no one could say why the unhuman beings who peopled the dim recesses15 of the forest should be thus aroused, there was much dread of them in the timorous16 bosoms17 of the serfs and serving-wenches at Rittenberg.
But however greatly these things perturbed18 the simple-minded serving-folk, they did not trouble the happiness of Albrecht and Erna. Between the knight19 and his betrothed20 there were now many sweet confidences, in which, indeed, nothing especial was imparted by one to the other, but which nevertheless gave them great satisfaction. They had met little opposition21 to their wishes, and indeed, when one considered the rank of the countess, and how completely a stranger was the baron, it might be wondered much that there was not more difficulty in his obtaining his bride. But the times were uncertain, the castle had no male head, Charlemagne was far away, and who knew what might happen if they waited to ask the imperial consent to the alliance; while the baron had won everybody to his side by his winsomeness22. He pressed for a speedy marriage, and no one said him nay23. They had in the war-full years learned to do quickly whatever was to be done at all, and there seemed no need to hinder the joy of the young people, which might at any moment be broken, should a summons come from the Great Emperor calling all the knights24 to his standard.
Toward her lover Erna was by turns arch and tender, as if she had not yet mastered the art to conceal25 her feelings, even in sport. She said to him once, as they stood together by the window in the great hall of the castle, looking down into the valley where the solemn pine-forests stretched far and far to the very horizon:
"Hast thou learned yet why one does not kiss any maid save the one whom alone he loves?"
"I have at least learned that there is no kiss in the whole world so sweet as thine," he answered.
Father Christopher was of all the house most deeply moved by the betrothal of his mistress, and although he had become much attached to the baron, he was not without forebodings for the result of this marriage.
"It is in thy hands, my daughter," he said solemnly to Erna, "to shape the life of this man. He is noble and generous and true, and I believe that his heart is all that one might wish. But he knows little of spiritual things, and I consent to unite thee to him that thou, who hast been richly blessed by Heaven, mayst teach him the high things of life. His soul will be required at thine hands in the Day of Judgment27; for while the souls of all husbands are in the keeping of their wives, his will be doubly so in thine, for that thou hast been taught the heavenly way, and I gather that his childhood has been but an heathenish one, and his youth without godly instruction. On thy head be it, daughter, if he be not led to the light; and great will be thy blessing28 if thou doest but win him to paths of spiritual life."
If Erna received these words with less pious enthusiasm than would have been the case a few short weeks before, she was yet much moved by them, and most solemnly did she promise the old priest that she would spare no effort to draw her lover toward those higher things for which he did indeed as yet show small concern.
"Father," she answered humbly29, "I know not what I may do, but as much as is in me I will not spare to work and to pray for the salvation30 of him whom I love."
"With love and faith," the priest replied, "and the blessing of the holy ones, there is nothing that a woman may not do in the heart of her husband."
It was on the same morning that these words passed between Father Christopher and Erna, that the betrothed pair rode out of the castle into the forest, followed by a groom31 who carried on the pommel of his saddle a covered basket.
"I feel so safe in the forest when thou art with me," Erna said, as after descending32 the hill they turned from the broad way into a narrow track overgrown with ferns and wild shrubs33, and heavily shaded above by the interlaced branches of the murmuring pine-trees.
"There is naught34 to fear in the forest," he answered, smiling, "save only when—Nay, we will not talk of that. Whither do we go?"
Erna looked at him with a doubt, born of his broken speech, in her eyes; but the brightness of his smile reassured35 her.
"The little daughter of the charcoal-burner is ill," she answered, "and I am carrying her food and a healing draught36 from the leech37."
"But why shouldst thou trouble about the daughter of the charcoal-burner?"
"Why should I not? Is she not human, and has she not a soul like ours?"
"Like thine, perchance," the knight responded. "Thou hast a soul like a child's, all white and fair."
And for all the rest of their way through the forest he was so deeply sunk in thought that he said scarcely a single word, so that Erna could not but wonder what had come over the spirit of her merry betrothed. From time to time he looked at her and sighed, as if he were reasoning with himself whether he did well to be still with her; and at last, as they rode homeward, she questioned him of what was in his mind.
"It is the doubt," he told her, "whether I had the right to make thee love me. It did not come to me to consider that until now; and now—"
"And now," she said in a ringing voice, as he broke off and left his sentence unfinished, "now it is too late."
The knight shook himself, as if to shake off a gloomy doubt, and struck his spurs into his splendid chestnut38 stallion.
"Yes," he cried in a voice of exultation39; "now it is too late!"
And away they went, galloping40 madly down the shaded woodland way, bursting soon into laughter and singing as they dashed along.
These moods of Albrecht became more and more noticeable as by the intimacy41 of their betrothal the lovers were brought more closely together. Erna pondered sometimes when alone whether it were possible that her lover had upon his conscience some dark deed which made him in truth unworthy to claim her love; but no sooner did such a suggestion present itself to her mind than it was rejected with indignation. She was as sure of his innocence42 as of her own, and perhaps no proof could have persuaded her to the contrary. Yet she did secretly feel that there might be some mystery hidden behind the outward frankness of Albrecht; though even if there were she loved him with a passion that was now too strong to be restrained by any vague suspicions or dim forebodings.
When the baron was asked if he wished to send for any of his people to be present at his nuptials43, he had answered:
"My mother died when I was an infant, and I have neither brothers nor sisters. My father lost his life in a snow-slide three years since, so that I am the last of my race. I will send my squire44 home for a certain fardel that shall be my Morgengabe; and if I may have leave, he shall bring back with him my old foster-father, who has taught me knightly45 customs and the fashion of Christian46 folk."
"He shall be right welcome for thy sake," the countess had answered. "How is he called, and who is he? Is he of thy kin26?"
"Nay; he is only a friend of my father," the baron replied with a strange smile, "but he hath dealt well by me. He is called Herr von Zimmern, and he hath an infirmity in his walk, concerning which I would that thy people vex47 him not."
"He shall be courteously48 dealt with by them all," was Erna's response, "even as if he were thyself."
So the squire and one of the men-at-arms rode off into the forest to take the road to Castle Waldstein in the Neiderwasser valley, to fetch the Morgengabe, the gift of gold or of gems49 which the bridegroom gives to the bride on the morning after their marriage; and the knight abode50 at Rittenberg, being always by the side of Erna, so that it was not strange that the two became more and more like to each other in their thoughts with every day that the sun brought on its rising to the Ober-Schwarzwald.
And so the time wore until the day before that set for the wedding morn, and on that day arrived the squire who had been sent to the castle of Waldstein.
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1
baron
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| n.男爵；(商业界等)巨头，大王 | |
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thither
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| adv.向那里；adj.在那边的，对岸的 | |
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betrothal
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| n. 婚约, 订婚 | |
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festive
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| adj.欢宴的，节日的 | |
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affected
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| adj.不自然的，假装的 | |
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joyous
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| adj.充满快乐的；令人高兴的 | |
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dependants
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| 受赡养者，受扶养的家属( dependant的名词复数 ) | |
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pensive
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| a.沉思的,哀思的,忧沉的 | |
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pious
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| adj.虔诚的；道貌岸然的 | |
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mien
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| n.风采；态度 | |
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dread
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| vt.担忧，忧虑；惧怕，不敢；n.担忧，畏惧 | |
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portents
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| n.预兆( portent的名词复数 )；征兆；怪事；奇物 | |
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rumors
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| n.传闻( rumor的名词复数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷v.传闻( rumor的第三人称单数 )；[古]名誉；咕哝；[古]喧嚷 | |
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glades
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| n.林中空地( glade的名词复数 ) | |
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recesses
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| n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 )；（工作或业务活动的）中止或暂停期间；学校的课间休息；某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭 | |
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timorous
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| adj.胆怯的，胆小的 | |
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bosoms
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| 胸部( bosom的名词复数 )； 胸怀； 女衣胸部（或胸襟）； 和爱护自己的人在一起的情形 | |
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perturbed
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| adj.烦燥不安的v.使（某人）烦恼，不安( perturb的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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knight
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| n.骑士，武士；爵士 | |
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betrothed
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| n. 已订婚者 动词betroth的过去式和过去分词 | |
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opposition
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| n.反对，敌对 | |
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winsomeness
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nay
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| adv.不；n.反对票，投反对票者 | |
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knights
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| 骑士； （中古时代的）武士( knight的名词复数 )； 骑士； 爵士； （国际象棋中）马 | |
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conceal
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| v.隐藏，隐瞒，隐蔽 | |
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kin
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| n.家族，亲属，血缘关系；adj.亲属关系的，同类的 | |
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judgment
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| n.审判；判断力，识别力，看法，意见 | |
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blessing
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| n.祈神赐福；祷告；祝福，祝愿 | |
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humbly
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| adv. 恭顺地，谦卑地 | |
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salvation
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| n.（尤指基督）救世，超度，拯救，解困 | |
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groom
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| vt.给（马、狗等）梳毛，照料，使...整洁 | |
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descending
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| n. 下行 adj. 下降的 | |
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shrubs
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| 灌木( shrub的名词复数 ) | |
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naught
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| n.无，零 [=nought] | |
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reassured
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| adj.使消除疑虑的；使放心的v.再保证，恢复信心( reassure的过去式和过去分词) | |
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draught
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| n.拉，牵引，拖；一网（饮，吸，阵)；顿服药量，通风；v.起草，设计 | |
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leech
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| n.水蛭，吸血鬼，榨取他人利益的人；vt.以水蛭吸血；vi.依附于别人 | |
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chestnut
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| n.栗树，栗子 | |
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exultation
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| n.狂喜，得意 | |
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galloping
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| adj. 飞驰的, 急性的 动词gallop的现在分词形式 | |
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intimacy
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| n.熟悉，亲密，密切关系，亲昵的言行 | |
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innocence
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| n.无罪；天真；无害 | |
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nuptials
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| n.婚礼；婚礼( nuptial的名词复数 ) | |
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squire
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| n.护卫, 侍从, 乡绅 | |
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knightly
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| adj. 骑士般的 adv. 骑士般地 | |
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Christian
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| adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒 | |
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vex
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| vt.使烦恼，使苦恼 | |
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courteously
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| adv.有礼貌地，亲切地 | |
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gems
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| growth； economy； management； and customer satisfaction 增长 | |
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abode
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| n.住处，住所 | |
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