Volume II Part 19 (1/2)
”Ah! your dreaht of that But shall _I_ hear it, Maria?”
”You will play for me, Carl,--and Florimond Oh! I must not remember that And the Chevalier, Carl,--he even entreated, the proud soul, the divinely missioned, entreated me to perpetuate the work I can write noithout fear; he has made me free I feared myself before; now I only fear him”
”Maria, what of Anastase? Does he know, and what does he think?”
”Do not ask me, Carl, for I cannot tell you what he did He was foolish, and so was I; but it was for joy on both our parts”
”You cried then! There is nothing to be ashaht to have restrained ourselves when the Chevalier was by He must love Florimond now, for he fetched him himself, and told him what I had done, and was still to do”
It is well for us that tiht that all we most dread is carried beyond our reach by its force, and that all we love and long to cherish is but taken that it may remain, beyond us, to ripen in eternity until we too ripen to enjoy it Still, there is a pain, wholly untinctured with pleasure, in recalling certain of its shocks, re-living thelorious of our days, however, strike us with as troubled a reht not to complain, nor to desire other than that the past should rest, as it does, and as alone the dead beside repose,--in hope I have brought es inmore precious than the sy so difficult to describe, yet that we so long to win
It is seldoed, could we have passed sentence of our will upon it; but still more unwonted is it to feel, after a lapse of eventful times, that what _has_ happened was not only the best, but the only thing to happen, all things considered that have intervened This I feel now about the saddest lesson I learned in otten, and can never desire to discharge fro prospered with us after the arrangement our friend and lord had made for Maria I can only say of my impressions that they were of the utmost perfectibility of hu left to wish for
I would fain delineate the singular and touching gratitude she evinced towards Seraphael, but it did not distribute itself in words; I believe she was altogether so oodness that she dared not dwell upon it I saw her constantly between his return and the approaching examinations; but our intercourse was still and silent I watched her glide fro the score at home so calmly--she herself calmer than the calmest,--calm as Anastase himself Indeed, to him she appeared to have transferred the whole ied also, his kindness to myself warmer than it ever had been; but froitation, I deemed him verily most anxious for the result Maria had not more than a month to work upon the rest of the symphony and to complete it, as Seraphael had resolutely resolved that it should be rehearsed before our summer separation
Maria I believe would not have listened to such an arrangement from any other lips; and Florimond's dissatisfaction at a premature publicity was such that the Chevalier--autocratic even in granting a favor, which heorder to be observed in anticipation
After our ownperformance by the pupils only and their respective masters, the hall would be cleared, the audience and members should disperse, and only the strictly required players for the orchestra re chosen these Maria was herself to conduct the rehearsal, and those alone whose assistance she would demand had received an intimation of the secret of her authorshi+p I tre announce that she could not be kept too quiet; also, Anastase, to my manifest appreciation, shared my fear But Seraphael was irresistible, especially as Maria had assented, had absorbed herself in the conteerness, that they should be achieved
Our orchestra was, though s as I seldoland Our own rehearsals were concluded by the week before our concert, and there remained rather less for me to do Those few days I was inexpressibly wretched,--a foreboding drowned my ecstatic hopes in dread; they beca still s, and on the Sunday that week Iin the sunlight, upon one of the graves Josephine was not near her, nor her brother, only Florimond, as behind me, ran and joined her before I beheld that she beckoned to ether, but he also entle smile The broad li over them in ripest bud; it was one of those oppressively sweet seasons that re
”Sit down by loves, and was already playing with Florih the churchyard was yet half filled with people
”Maria,” I said, sitting down at the foot of a cross that was hung with faded garlands, ”why don't you sit in the shade? It is a very warm day”
”So it is very warh here, and Florimond, too, loves the sun I could not sit under a tree this day, everything is so bright; but nothing can be as bright as I wish it Carl, I was going to tell Florilad to bear what is before me I did not think so until it came so very near I am afraid when I stand up htened, Maria?” I asked in htened But I feel as if it were scarcely the thing for me to do, to stand up and control those of whom I am not master Is it not so, Florie; and I aet the better of you I have a great deal more to suffer on your account than you can possibly feel”
”I do not see that”
”It is so, and should be seen by you If your work should in any respect fail, iine what that failure would cost nation, but was disarue sadness possessed it, a certain air of tender resignation; his hauteur had h his manner retained its distance
”As if it could be a failure!” I exclaimed; ”e already kno much it is!”
”I do not, Auchester, and I anorance