as morning, and he had
already too long deferred his greeting. Yet the surprise I had plotted
was uppermost in my mind, and I craved of him right duteously that he
would grant me my will. Whereupon his eyebrows, which met above his
nose, were darkly knit, and he gave me to wit, shortly and well-nigh
harshly, that he would abide by his own.

At this the blood rose to my head, and a wrathful answer was indeed on
my tongue when I minded me of the evening when we had come together, and
I asked of him calmly whether he verily deemed that I was so foolish or
evil-minded as to hinder him in a pious and kindly office if I had not
some worthy reason. And herein I had hit on the right way; he recovered
himself, his brow cleared, and saying only "Women, women!" he shook his
head and clasped me to him; and as I fervently returned his kiss, and
opened my chamber door, he called after me: "We will see in the morning,
but as early as may be."

When I presently was in my bed I minded me of the carol the little ones
were to sing; and then I remembered my own school-days, and how the
Carthusian Sisters had explained to us those words of Scripture: "And
the times shall be fulfilled." They were written, to be sure, of a
special matter, of the birth of our Saviour and Redeemer; yet I applied
them to myself and Gotz, and wondered in my heart whether indeed
anything that had ever befallen me in life, whether for joy or for
sorrow, had been in vain, and how matters might have stood with me now
if, as a young unbroken thing, or ever I had gone through the school of
life, I had been plighted to this man, whom the Almighty had from the
first fated to be my husband. If the wilful blood of the Schoppers,
unquelled as it had then been, had come into strife with Gotz's iron
will, there would have been more than enough of hard hitting on both
sides, and how easily might all our happiness have been wrecked thereby.

It was past midnight when at last I slept; and in the dim morning
twilight the Christmas chorus rang through the house in the words the
Shepherds heard in Angels' voices: "Glory to God in the highest, and on
earth peace." It woke Gotz, and when we presently got into the sleigh,
he whispered to me: "How piously glad was your hymn, my sweetheart! And
you were right yestereve, and peace shall indeed reign on earth, and
above all betwixt you and me, everywhere and at all times till the E N
D."

..........................

A POS