In the Yule-Log Glow, Book II

on Schrochslofsleschshoffinger. You will not find it an easy name to pronounce; in fact, the baron never tried it himself but once, and then he

he was considered enormously rich; a hundred and fifty pounds a year would not be thought much in this country; but still it w

ery last penny he could possibly squeeze out of them. In all his exactions he was seconded and encouraged by his steward Klootz, an old rascal who took a malicious pleasure in his master's

s and ordering anything he took a fancy to, from a fat pig to a pretty daughter, to be sent up to the castle. The pretty daughter was made parlor-maid, but as

the baron and his steward, the poor tenants had very little left to squeeze out of them. The fat pigs

hter of

, Lady Bertha, who always had a kind word, and frequently someth

I did you would imagine that she was the fairy I'm going to tell you

, dimpled little face full of love and mischief. Now, then, fill up the outline with the details of the nicest and prettiest girl you know, and you will have

father's harshness. She generally managed that a good many pounds of the sausage should find their way back to the owners of the original pig; and when the baron tried to squeeze the hand of t

hough he used awful language to her sometimes (I dare say even Una's lion roared occasionally), he was more tractable with her than with any other living being. Her presence operated as a moral restraint upon him, which, possibly

nce he was fairly settled down to his second bottle, off went Bertha, with her maid beside her carrying a

rom charitable motives, and Bertha thought herself plentifu

t in her walks, and occasionally to come in with brighter eyes and a rosi

ably sketching points of interest in the road she had to take. There was one particular tree, exactly in the path which led from the castl

upon the feasibility of climbing up into it and taking it from that point of view, a trifling accident occurred which gave him the

through awkwardness, or possibly through looking more at the hands

, Carl, as a gentleman, could not do less than offer h

e fairly over head and ears in love, and had begun to have serious thoughts of a cottage in a wood, et c?t

her to a "beggarly artist," and accordingly he stamped, and swore, and threatened Carl with summary punishme

a stop to the young people's interviews, though it

hat no properly regulated young lady would ever have ha

y regulated young lady. I only know she was a dear little pet, wo

r looking so provokingly correct; it's my deliberate belief that if you had been in her shoes (they'd have b

-Stay! fairy tales never have a year to them, so, on secon

e particular 24th of December to which our s

exceedingly bad temper; and those about hi

ks from the baron's heavy boots that they hardly knew at which end their

nd to beg for a little delay. The poor fellows represented that their families were starving, and entreated fo

f their rent was not paid on the morrow, themselves and their families should be turned out of doors to sleep on the snow, which was then many inches deep on the ground. They still continued to beg fo

Christmas, chanced at this identical moment to be saying good-bye at the door, above which, in accordance with immemorial usage, a huge bush of m

; and if he had not providentially been seized with a fit of coughing, and sat down in the coal-scuttle,-mist

her black behind, but otherwise no

done him good; for, having sworn a little more, and