Herr
von Pechlar obtained a long leave, which he spent at Heringsdorf. In
September the Kreuzzeitung announced his betrothal to Fraulein
Ellrich, which was followed in the winter by their brilliant
wedding.
The breaking of Wilhelm's relations with Loulou left a great blank
in his life. Up till now he had had in pleasant, hopeful hours, an
object to which all the paths in his life led him, to which his
thoughts were drawn as a ship steers for a distant yet secure
harbor; now the object was gone, and when he looked forward to his
future it seemed like the gray surface of the sea at dusk, formless,
limitless, without meaning or interest. Even the painful doubt he
had been in, his hesitation between the resolve to persevere in the
engagement, or to renounce it, the fight between his intelligence
and his inclinations, had become familiar to him, and had filled his
thoughts by day and his dreams by night. These must now all be
renounced. If for the last half-year his love had been only a quiet
happiness, or a hardly-defined desire, it was at any rate an
occupation for his mind, and he missed the employment very greatly.
He became quieter than ever; his face lost its youthful, healthy
color, and he appeared like the typical lover famed in classic
story.
Pages:
152
153
154
155
156
157
158
159
160
161
162
163
164
165
166
167
168
169
170
171
172
173
174
175
176