apple-blossom; but Anthony was not long to behold this
flower. All things change! Molly's father left his old home, and Molly
went with him, far away. Yes, in our time steam has made the journey
they took a matter of a few hours, but then more than a day and a
night were necessary to go so far eastward from Eisenach to the
furthest border of Thuringia, to the city which is still called
Weimar.

And Molly wept, and Anthony wept; but all their tears melted into one,
and this tear had the rosy, charming hue of joy. For Molly told him
she loved him--loved him more than all the splendours of Weimar.

One, two, three years went by, and during this period two letters were
received. One came by a carrier, and a traveller brought the other.
The way was long and difficult, and passed through many windings by
towns and villages.

Often had Molly and Anthony heard of Tristram and Iseult, and often
had the boy applied the story to himself and Molly, though the name
Tristram was said to mean "born in tribulation," and that did not
apply to Anthony, nor would he ever be able to think, like Tristram,
"She has forgotten me." But, indeed, Iseult did not forget her
faithful knight; and when both were laid to rest in the earth, one on
each side of the church, the linden trees grew from their graves over
the church roof, and there encountered each other in bloom. Anthony
thought that was beautiful, but mournful; but it could not become
mournful between him and Molly: and he whistled a song of the old
minne-singer, Walter of the Vogelverde:

"Under the lindens
Upon the heath."

And especially that passage appeared charming to him:

"From the forest, down in the vale,
Sang her sweet song the nightingale."

This song was often in his mouth, and he sang and whistled it in the
moonlight nights, when he rode along the deep hollow way on horseback
to get to Weimar and visit Molly. He wished to come unexpectedly, and
he came unexpectedly.

He was made welcome with full goblets of wine, with jovial company,
fine company, and a pretty room and a good bed were provided for him;
and yet his reception was not what he had dreamt and fancied it would
be. He could not understand himself--he could not understand the
others: but _we_ can understand it. One may be admitted into a house
and associate with a family without becoming one of them. One may
converse together as one would converse in a post-carriage, and know
one another a