e rather more passionate than is consistent with the
interest of your grandchild. Now what if anything should happen to you,
and the good girl should a second time be left an orphan in the world?
In case the worst should happen, she ought at least to know just where
she stands; to say nothing of the fact that it can never do any harm to
a child to know to whom it is indebted for the doubtful privilege of
belonging to this world."

The old man reflected for a moment. His manner grew more gentle.

"You are right," said he at last. "Scold away at me; it is the old
artist blood in me that will never listen to reason--not even when
all art is passed, and only a little drudgery is left. But that
scoundrel--if you knew how cordially we received him into our home!
Though there again our pride came into play, for he was a baron, and up
to that time we had had no intimates of higher rank than artists,
except a few officers; and besides this he was a stranger, a North
German, and he pleased us immensely; for he was such a lively,
wide-awake, chivalrous young gentleman, a great hunter, and he used to
be always saying he would never rest until he had hunted lions in
Africa--"

"Good God! Hunted lions? And his name--don't tell me, my good friend,
that his name was--"

"Baron F----. I had actually forgotten the name, until I found it in my
poor Lena's testament. Heaven knows what ever became of him, and
whether he was punished for his mad whim, and for all the wrong he
inflicted upon my poor child, by dying a miserable death under the
African sun, torn to pieces by wild beasts. The name seems to strike
you. Can it be that you have ever met the wretch?--or perhaps you even
know where he is?"

Schnetz had recovered himself in a moment. He reflected that at best it
would be quite superfluous, while it might perhaps be extremely
disastrous, if he told the old gentleman in what intimate relations he
stood to the individual in question. Neither did he see that it would
be of any advantage to the girl, if, before she had begun to feel any
love for her grandfather, she should find a father who would be even
more of a stranger to her, and who would be able to count still less
upon her filial affection. And besides, in the interest of his
unsuspecting old tent-comrade, he shrank from making any premature
disclosures.

He answered, accordingly, that it was true the name was not altogether
unknown to him; indeed, so far as he knew, the fa