When Ludwig returned, he expressed great pleasure with the fountain that mother had ordered to be repaired at the time the new forest path was laid out. He promised to send to the iron foundry at once, and order a pretty column with a pipe through it.
"Mother inspired me with an affection for this spring," said he. "While building the aqueduct, I thought of her almost every day; and along the space where the pipes were running under ground, I planted pines, in order that pretty woods might grow there, and the temperature of the water always remain the same. Of all the great and impressive things I beheld in America, one little monument impressed me most of all; it was that to Fredrick Graff, who built the waterworks of Philadelphia."
Night approached. We were seated in the arbor, and Wolfgang exclaimed, "The stars shine more brightly here than elsewhere."
"The dark woods make it appear so," said Ludwig. And just over the family woods, seeming to touch the tops of the trees as if fixed there, a star glistened and shone with a brightness that was marvellous even to me.
Ludwig conducted himself with great self-control and moderation. He spoke slowly and in a low voice, in order to keep down all agitation.
Long after the new-comers had retired to rest, Rothfuss and I were still sitting in front of the house.
Rothfuss could not come to an understanding with himself. He said, "Our Ludwig is still the same, and is changed for all; he has not grown, and yet he is larger."
He told me that Ludwig had come out into the stable to him, and when he had told Ludwig that the sorrel horse was the son of our gray stud, he had taken the horse firmly by the mane and said, "Rothfuss, you have been faithful to my father; I cannot fully recompense you for it, but express a wish and I will do what I can for you."
Rothfuss had heard no more of what was said.
He could not help crying like a child; and now he would like to know what he ought to wish for. He said that he wanted no one to advise him; he must find it out himself. For a long while, neither of us spoke a word. There was not a sound to be heard, save the bubbling of the fountain in front of the house.