of the Benedictine, as he compnea: for until now, he had no reason' to believe that the recluse was usurping so intimate and so extensive an influence over the minds of the young, as the presence of the unknown female would give reason to believe.

"I knew that thou wert of holy life and constant prayer, venerable hermit," he said, in a tone that questioned in more than one meaning of the term, "but until this moment, I had not thought thee vested with the Church's power to hearken to the transgressions of the faithful and to forgive sins!"

"The latter is an office, brother, that of right belongs only to God. The head of the Church him. self is but an humble instrument of faith, in discharging this solemn trust."

The countenance of the monk did not become more amicable at this reply, nor did he fail to cast a scrutinizing glance at the muffled form of the stranger, in a fruitless endeavor to recognize her

person.

"Thou hast not even the tonsure," he continued, while his uneasy eye rolled from that of the recluse to the form of the stranger, who had shrunk, as far as the narrow place would permit, from observation.

"Thou seest, father, I have all the hair that time and infirmities have left me. But is it thought, in thy beneficed and warlike abbey, that the advice of one who has lived long enough to know and to lament his own errors, can injure the less experienced? If unhappily I may have deceived myself, thou art timely present, reverend monk, to repair the wrong."

"Let the maiden come to the confessional of the Abbey Church, if distrust or apprehension weigh upon her mind; doubt it not, she will find great comfort in the experiment."

"As I will testify, from many trials-" abruptly interposed the cow-herd, who advanced intrusively between the two devotees, in a manner to occupy

all their attention. "Go upon the hill, and case thy soul, Gottlob,' is my good and venerable mother in the practice of saying, whenever my opinion of myself is getting to be too humble, and discourse with some of the godiy fathers of the Abbey, whose wisdom and unction will not fail to lighten thy heart of even a heavier load. There is Father Ulrich, he is a paragon of virtue and self-denial; and Father Cuno is even more edifying and salutary than he; while Father Siegfried is more balmy to a soul, than the most reverend Abbot, the virtuous and pious Father Bonifacius himself! Whatever thou doest, child, go upon the hill, and enter boldly into the church, like a loaded and oppressed sinner as thou art, and especially seek counsel and prayer from the excellent and beloved father Siegfried.""

999

"And thou-who art thou?" demanded the halfdoubting monk," that thus speakest of me, in terms that I so little merit, to my face?"

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'I would I were Lord Emich of Hartenburg, or for that matter, the Elector Palatine himself, in order to do justice to those I honor; in which case certain Fathers of Limburg should have especial favor, and that quickly too, after my own flesh and blood! Who am I, father? I wonder that a face so often seen at the confessional should be forgotten. What there is of me to boast of, Father Siegfried, is of thine own forming-but it is no cause of surprise that thou dost not recall me to mind, since the meek and lowly of spirit are sure to forget their own good works!"

"Thou callest thyself Gottlob-but the name belongs to many Christians."

"More bear it, reverend monk, than know now to do it honor. There is Gottlob Frincke, as arrant a knave as any in Deurckheim; and Gottlob Popp night have more respect for his baptismal vow and as to Lord Gottlob of Manheim

"We will overlook the transgressions of the re mainder of thy namesakes, for the good that thou thyself hast done," interrupted the Benedictine, who, having insensibly yielded to the unction of flattery in the commencement of the interview, began now to be ashamed of the weakness, as the fluent cow-herd poured forth his words in a manner to excite some suspicion of the quality of praise that came from such a source. "Come to me when thou wilt, son, and such counsel as a weak head, but a sincere heart, can render, shall not be withheld."

"How this would lighten the heart of my old mother to hear! Gottlob,' would she say

"What has become of thy companion, and of the maiden?" hastily demanded the Benedictine.

As the part of the cow-herd was successfully performed, he stood aside, with an air of well-acted simplicity and amazement, leaving the discourse to be pursued between the recluse and the monk.

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Thy guests have suddenly left us," continued the latter, after satisfying himself, by actual observation, that no one remained in the hut but himself, its regular occupant, and the honey-tongued Gott"and, as it would seem, in company!"

lob;

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They are gone as they came, voluntarily and without question."

"Thou knowest them, by frequent visits, holy hermit ?"

"Father, I question none were the Elector Friedrich to come into my abode, he would be welcome, and this cow-herd is not less so. To both, at parting, I merely say,' God speed ye!' "

"Thou keepest the cattle of the burghers, Gottlob?" "I keep a herd, reverend priest, such as my masters please to trust to my care."

"We have grave cause of complaint against one of thy fellows who serves the Count of Hartenburg.

and who is in the daily habit of trespassing on the pastures of the church. Dost know the hind?"

"Potz Tausend! If all the knaves who do these wrongs, when out of sight of their masters, were set in a row before the eyes of the most reverend Abbot of Limburg, he would scarce know whether to begin with prayers or stripes, and they say he is a potent priest at need, with both! I sometimes tremble for my own conduct, though no one can have a better opinion of himself than I, poor and lowly as I stand in your reverend presence; for a hard fortune, and some oversight in the management of my father's affairs, have brought me to the need of living among such associates. Were I not of approved honesty, there might be more beasts on the Abbey lands; and they who now pass their time in fasting in sheer humility, might come to the practice of sheer necessity."

The Benedictine examined the meek countenance of Gottlob with a keen distrustful eye; he next invited the hermit to bestow his blessing, and then motioning for the hind to retire, he entered on the real object of his visit to the hermitage.

We shall merely say, at this point of the narrative, that the moment was extremely critical to all who dwelt in the Palatinate of the Rhine. The Elector had, perhaps imprudently for a prince of his limited resources, taken an active part in the vindictive warfare then raging, and serious reverses threatened to endanger not only his tranquillity but his throne. It was a consequence of the feudal tem, which then so generally prevailed in Europe, that internal disorders succeeded any manifest though it might be only a temporary derangement of the power of the potentate that held the right of sovereignty over the infinite number of petty rulers who, at that period, weighed particularly heavy on Germany. To them he was the law, for they were

sys

not apt to acknowledge any supremacy that did not come supported by the strong hand. The ascending scale of rulers, including baron, count, landgrave, margrave, duke, elector, and king, up to the nominal head of the state, the emperor himself, with the complicated and varied interests, embracing allegiance within allegiance, and duty upon duty, was likely in itself to lead to dissension, had the Imperial Crown been one of far more defined and positive influence than it was. But, uncertain and indirect in the application of its means, it was rare that any very serious obstacle to tranquillity was removed, without the employment of positive force. No sooner was the Emperor involved in a serious struggle, than the great princes endeavored to recover that balance which had been lost by the long ascendency of a particular family, while the minor princes seldom saw themselves surrounded with external embarrassment, that internal discord did not come to increase the evil. As a vassal was com. monly but a rude reflection of his lord's enmities and prejudices, the reader will have inferred from the language of the cow-herd, that affairs were not on the most amicable footing between those near neighbors, the Abbot of Limburg and the Count of Hartenburg. The circumstance of their existing so near each other was, of itself, almost a certain cause of rivalry; to which natural motive of contention may be added the unremitted strife between the influence of superstition and the dread of the sword.

The visit of the monk had reference to certain interests connected with the actual state of things, as they existed between the Abbey and the Castle. As it would be premature, however, to expose his object, we shall be content with saying, that the conference between the priest and the hermit lasted for half an hour, when the former took his leave,