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Wilhelm Meister's apprenticeship and travels
Wilhelm Meister's apprenticeship and travels Author:Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: loud laughter and a thousand tricks. Still, however, they insisted on proceeding ; and Friedrich hastened off, running towards Mariana and the father. These seem... more »ed to fly before him ; he pursued the faster ; till Wilhelm saw them hovering down the alley almost as on wings. Nature and inclination called on him to go, and help them ; but the hand of the Amazon detained him. How gladly did he let himself be held ! With this mingled feeling he awoke ; and found his chamber shining with the morning beams. Chapter II. Our friend was called to breakfast by the boy : he found the Abbe" waiting in the hall; Lothario, it appeared, had ridden out. The Abbe1 was not very talkative, but rather wore a thoughtful look ; he inquired about Aurelia's death, and listened to our friend's recital of it, with apparent sympathy. " Ah !" cried he, "the man that discerns, with lively clearness, what infinite operations art and nature must have joined in, before a cultivated human being can be formed ; the man that himself as much as possible takes interest in the culture of his fellow- men, is ready to despair when he sees how lightly mortals will destroy themselves, will blamelessly or blameably expose themselves to be destroyed. When I think of these things, life itself appears to me so uncertain a gift, that I could praise the man who does not value it beyond its worth." Scarcely had he spoken, when the door flew violently up ; a young lady came rushing in ; she pushed away the old servant who attempted to restrain her. She made right to the Abbe", and seized him by the arm ; her tears and sobs would hardly let her speak these words: " Where is he ? Where have you put him ? 'Tis a frightful treachery ! Confess it now ! I know what you are doing: I will after him ; will know where you have sent...« less