" I shall be here for Christmas," said Greif. " And in the
new year we will be married, and then — we must think of
what we will do."

" We will live at Sigmundskron, as you said, shall we not?"

" Yes. But before that we will go away for a while."

"Away? Why?"

" People always do when they are married. We will go to
Italy, if you like, or anywhere else." '

" But why must we go away ? " asked Hilda anxiously. " Do
you think we shall not be as happy here as anywhere else ? Oh,
I could not live out of the dear forest ! "



38 6REIPENSTEIN.
" But, sweetheart, you have never seen a town, nor anything
of the world. Would you not care to know what it is all like
beyond the trees ? "

"By and by — yes, I would like to see it all. But I would
like poor old Sigmundskron to see how happy we shall be. I
think the grey towers will almost seem to laugh on that day,
and the big firs — they saw my great-grandfather's wedding,
Greif ! I would rather stay in the old place, for a little while.
And, after all, you have travelled so nmch, that you can tell me
about Italy by the fire in the long evenings, and I shall enjoy
it quite as much because you will be always with me."

" Thank you, darling," said Greif tenderly, as he drew her
cheek to his, and he said no more about the wedding trip on
that afternoon.
