"Well," and I spake out strongly, "let me not hear of this again, else will I tell thy parents, Mary; and as for thee, Sonnlein, if I hear aught of this man and wife wickedness again thou shalt have opportunity to celebrate thy first whipping." Thus did I threaten in my unwisdom these poor, innocent children.
"Ye do promise ye will never again speak to each other such nonsense?"
Whereat they both promised so willingly they would not that I greatly doubted the promise would stand any great strain.
As Sonnlein and I turned back again to the Kloster, leaving Mary to find her way home without the protection of her young knight, he looked up at me innocently and asked as sweetly as though he had never known such fierce feeling as fighting, "Wast never in love, Vaterchen?"
I was about to reply with unwonted crossness, "What is't to thee," but just then I caught a glimpse of the mound, not more than a stone's throw to our right, beneath which lay our Bernice, so I merely remained quiet and answered not at all, only I could not help thinking that even Ecclesiastes sayeth there is a time for love and a time for war, and though Sonnlein was rather young for me to predict what his manhood would be, it will be seen that my fond hopes were none of the brightest for making him a gentle, peaceful celibate.
CHAPTER XIX
WHEN HEARTS ARE YOUNG
Come, Corinna, let me kiss thee!
Come, my dearest, to me here!
I would know why joy should miss thee,
I would have thine answer clear.
Smiling sweetly said she, "No,"
Then demurely yielded so.
—Francis Daniel Pastorius (of Germantown).