“The days of evil have no to-morrows,—no, not once in a hundred years. Only good deeds have to-morrows. I will be true: so shall to-morrows open and close like golden doors until time is lost in the eternal.” And his heart remained true.
CHAPTER XIV.
THE SONGS OF THE RHINE.
The Watchman’s Song.—The Wild Hunt of Lützow.—The Author of the Erl King.—Beethoven’s Boyhood.—The Organ-Tempest of Lucerne.
RHINELAND is the land of song. It is the wings of song that have given it its fame. Every town on the Rhine has its own songs; every mountain, hill, and river.
America has few local songs,—few songs of the people. The singers who give voices to rivers, lakes, mountains, and valleys have not yet appeared. The local poets and singers of America are yet to come.
In England, Germany, and some of the provinces of France, every temple, stream, and grove has had its sweet singer.
Go to Basle, and you may hear the clubs singing the heroic songs of Alsace and Lorraine.