,this e,book was produced by ,david ,widger widgercecomet4net ,,note3 ,there is a short list of bookmarks1 or pointers1 at the end of the file for those who may wish to sample the author's ideas before making an entire meal of them4 ,d4,w4 ,,the ,,autobiography ,,of ,,georg ,,ebers ,,the ,,story ,,of ,,my ,,life ,,from ,,childhood ,,to ,,manhood ,volume #d4 ,,chapter ,,xiii4 ,,the ,,founders ,,of ,,the ,,keilhau ,,institute1 ,,and ,a ,,glimpse ,,at ,,the ,,history ,,of ,,the ,,school4 ,i was well acquainted with the three founders of our institute--,fredrich ,froebel1 ,middendorf1 and ,langethal--and the two latter were my teachers4 ,froebel was decidedly the master who planned it4 ,when we came to ,keilhau he was already sixty-six years old1 a man of lofty stature1 with a face which seemed to be carved with a dull knife out of brown wood4 ,his long nose1 strong chin1 and large ears1 behind which the long locks1 parted in the middle1 were smoothly brushed1 would have rendered him positively ugly1 had not his ,come1 let us live for our children1 beamed so invitingly in his clear eyes4 ,people did not think whether he was handsome or not2 his features bore the impress of his intellectual power so distinctly that the first glance revealed the presence of a remarkable man4 ,yet ,i must confess--and his portrait agrees with my memory--that his face by no means suggested the idealist and man of feeling2 it seemed rather expressive of shrewdness1 and to have been lined and worn by severe conflicts concerning the most diverse interests4 ,but his voice and his glance were unusually winning1 and his power over the heart of the child was limitless4 ,a few words were sufficient to win completely the shyest boy whom he desired to attract2 and thus it happened that1 even when he had been with us only a few weeks1 he was never seen crossing the court- yard without a group of the younger pupils hanging to his coattails and clasping his hands and arms4 ,usually they were persuading him to tell stories1 and when he condescended to do so1 older ones flocked around him too1 and they were never disappointed4 ,what fire1 what animation the old man had retained6 ,we never called him anything but ,oheim4 ,the word ,onkel he detested as foreign1 because it was derived from avunculus and oncle4 ,with the high appreciation he had of ,tante--whom he termed1 next to the mother1 the most important factor of education in the family--our ,oheim was probably specially agreeable to him4 ,he was thoroughly a self-made man4 ,the son of a pastor in ,oberweissbach1 in ,thuringia1 he had had a dreary childhood2 for his mother died young1 and he soon had a step-mother1 who treated him with the utmost tenderness until her own children were born4 ,then an indescribably sad time began for the neglected boy1 whose dreamy temperament vexed even his own father4 ,yet in this solitude his love for ,nature awoke4 ,he studied plants1 animals1 minerals2 and while his young heart vainly longed for love1 he would have gladly displayed affection himself1 if his timidity would have permitted him to do so4 ,his family1 seeing him prefer to dissect the bones of some animal rather than to talk with his parents1 probably considered him a very unlovable child when they sent him1 in his tenth year1 to school in the city of ,ilm4 ,he was received into the home of the pastor1 his uncle ,hoffman1 whose mother-in-law1 who kept the house1 treated him in the most cordial manner1 and helped him to conquer the diffidence acquired during the solitude of the first years of his childhood4 ,this excellent woman first made him familiar with the maternal feminine solicitude1 closer observation of which afterwards led him1 as well as ,pestalozzi1 to a reform of the system of educating youth4 ,in his sixteenth year he went to a forester for instruction1 but did not remain long4 ,meantime he had gained some mathematical knowledge1 and devoted himself to surveying4 ,by this and similar work he earned a living1 until1 at the end of seven years1 he went to ,frankfort-on-the- ,main to learn the rudiments of building4 ,there ,fate brought him into contact with the pedagogue ,gruner1 a follower of ,pestalozzi's method1 and this experienced man1 after their first conversation1 exclaimed3 ,you must become a schoolmaster6 ,i have often noticed in life that a word at the right time and place has sufficed to give the destiny of a human being a different turn1 and the remark of the ,frankfort educator fell into ,froebel's soul like a spark4 ,he now saw his real profession clearly and distinctly before him4 ,the restless years of wandering1 during which1 unloved and scarcely heeded1 he had been thrust from one place to another1 had awakened in his warm heart a longing to keep others from the same fate4 ,he1 who had been guided by no kind hand and felt miserable and at variance with himself1 had long been ceaselessly troubled by the problem of how the young human plant could be trained to harmony with itself and to sturdy industry4 ,gruner showed him that others were already devoting their best powers to solve it1 and offered him an opportunity to try his ability in his model school4 ,froebel joyfully accepted this offer1 cast aside every other thought1 and1 with the enthusiasm peculiar to him1 threw himself into the new calling in a manner which led ,gruner to praise the fire and life he understood how to awaken in his pupils4 ,he also left it to ,froebel to arrange the plan of instruction which the ,frankfort ,senate wanted for the model school1 and succeeded in keeping him two years in his institution4 ,when a certain ,frau von ,holzhausen was looking for a man who would have the ability to lead her spoiled sons into the right path1 and ,froebel had been recommended1 he separated from ,gruner and performed his task with rare fidelity and a skill bordering upon genius4 ,the children1 who were physically puny1 recovered under his care1 and the grateful mother made him their private tutor from #ahjg till #ahaj4 ,he chose ,verdun1 where ,pestalozzi was then living1 as his place of residence1 and made himself thoroughly familiar with his method of education4 ,as a whole1 he could agree with him2 but1 as has already been mentioned1 in some respects he went further than the ,swiss reformer4 ,he himself called these years his university course as a pedagogue1 but they also furnished him with the means to continue the studies in natural history which he had commenced in ,jena4 ,he had laid aside for this purpose part of his salary as tutor1 and was permitted1 from #ahaj to #ahab1 to complete in ,gottingen his astronomical and mineralogical studies4 ,yet the wish to try his powers as a pedagogue never deserted him2 and when1 in #ahab1 the position of teacher in the ,plamann ,institute in ,berlin was offered him1 he accepted it4 ,during his leisure hours he devoted himself to gymnastic exercises1 and even late in life his eyes sparkled when he spoke of his friend1 old ,jahn1 and the political elevation of ,prussia4 ,when the summons ,to my ,people called the ,german youth to war1 ,froebel had already entered his thirty-first year1 but this did not prevent his resigning his office and being one of the first to take up arms4 ,he went to the field with the ,lutzow ,jagers1 and soon after made the acquaintance among his comrades of the theological students ,langethal and ,middendorf4 ,when1 after the ,peace of ,paris1 the young friends parted1 they vowed eternal fidelity1 and each solemnly promised to obey the other's summons1 should it ever come4 ,as soon as ,froebel took off the dark uniform of the black ,jagers he received a position as curator of the museum of mineralogy in the ,berlin ,university1 which he filled so admirably that the position of ,professor of ,mineralogy was offered to him from ,sweden4 ,but he declined1 for another vocation summoned him which duty and inclination forbade him to refuse4 ,his brother1 a pastor in the ,thuringian village of ,griesheim on the ,ilm1 died1 leaving three sons who needed an instructor4 ,the widow wished her brother-in-law ,friedrich to fill this office1 and another brother1 a farmer in ,osterode1 wanted his two boys to join the trio4 ,when ,froebel1 in the spring of #ahag1 resigned his position1 his friend ,langethal begged him to take his brother ,eduard as another pupil1 and thus ,pestalozzi's enthusiastic disciple and comrade found his dearest wish fulfilled4 ,he was now the head of his own school for boys1 and these first six pupils-- as he hoped with the confidence in the star of success peculiar to so many men of genius--must soon increase to twenty4 ,some of these boys were specially gifted3 one became the scholar and politician ,julius ,froebel1 who belonged to the ,frankfort ,parliament of #ahdh1 and another the ,jena ,professor of ,botany1 ,eduard ,langethal4 ,the new principal of the school could not teach alone1 but he only needed to remind his old army comrade1 ,middendorf1 of his promise1 to induce him to interrupt his studies in ,berlin1 which were nearly completed1 and join him4 ,he also had his eye on ,langethal1 if his hope should be fulfilled4 ,he knew what a treasure he would possess for his object in this rare man4 ,there was great joy in the little ,griesheim circle1 and the ,thuringian 7,froebel7 did not regret for a moment that he had resigned his secure position2 but the ,westphalian 7,middendorf7 saw here the realization of the ideal which ,froebel's kindling words had impressed upon his soul beside many a watch-fire4 ,the character of the two men is admirably described in the following passage from a letter of the oldest pupil3 ,both had seen much of the serious side of life1 and returned from the war with the higher inspiration which is hallowed by deep religious feeling4 ,the idea of devoting their powers with self-denial and sacrifice to the service of their native land had become a fixed resolution2 the devious paths which so many men entered were far from their thoughts4 ,the youth1 the young generation of their native land1 were alone worthy of their efforts4 ,they meant to train them to a harmonious development of mind and body2 and upon these young people their pure spirit of patriotism exerted a vast influence4 ,when we recall the mighty power which ,froebel could exercise at pleasure over his fellowmen1 and especially over children1 we shall deem it natural that a child suddenly transported into this circle could forget its past4 ,when ,i entered it1 though at that time it was much modified and established on firm foundations1 ,i met with a similar experience4 ,it was not only the open air1 the forest1 the life in ,nature which so captivated new arrivals at ,keilhau1 but the moral earnestness and the ideal aspiration which consecrated and ennobled life4 ,then1 too1 there was that nerve-strengthening patriotism which pervaded everything1 filling the place of the superficial philanthropy of the ,basedow system of education4 ,but ,froebel's influence was soon to draw1 as if by magnetic power1 the man who had formed an alliance with him amid blood and steel1 and who was destined to lend the right solidity to the newly erected structure of the institute--,i mean ,heinrich ,langethal1 the most beloved and influential of my teachers1 who stood beside ,froebel's inspiring genius and ,middendorf's lovable warmth of feeling as the character1 and at the same time the fully developed and trained intellect1 whose guidance was so necessary to the institute4 ,the life of this rare teacher can be followed step by step from the first years of his childhood in his autobiography and many other documents1 but ,i can only attempt here to sketch in broad outlines the character of the man whose influence upon my whole inner life has been1 up to the present hour1 a decisive one4 ,the recollection of him makes me inclined to agree with the opinion to which a noble lady sought to convert me--namely1 that our lives are far more frequently directed into a certain channel by the influence of an unusual personality than by events1 experiences1 or individual reflections4 ,langethal was my teacher for several years4 ,when ,i knew him he was totally blind1 and his eyes1 which are said to have flashed so brightly and boldly on the foe in war1 and gazed so winningly into the faces of friends in time of peace1 had lost their lustre4 ,but his noble features seemed transfigured by the cheerful earnestness which is peculiar to the old man1 who1 even though only with the eye of the mind1 looks back upon a well-spent1 worthy life1 and who does not fear death1 because he knows that ,god who leads all to the goal allotted by ,nature destined him also for no other4 ,his tall figure could vie with ,barop's1 and his musical voice was unusually deep4 ,it possessed a resistless power when1 excited himself1 he desired to fill our young souls with his own enthusiasm4 ,the blind old man1 who had nothing more to command and direct1 moved through our merry1 noisy life like a silent admonition to good and noble things4 ,outside of the lessons he never raised his voice for orders or censure1 yet we obediently followed his signs4 ,to be allowed to lead him was an honor and pleasure4 ,he made us acquainted with ,homer1 and taught us ancient and modern history4 ,to this day ,i rejoice that not one of us ever thought of using 'pons asinorum1' or copied passage1 though he was perfectly sightless1 and we were obliged to translate to him and learn by heart whole sections of the ,iliad4 ,to have done so would have seemed as shameful as the pillage of an unguarded sanctuary or the abuse of a wounded hero4 ,and he certainly was one6 ,we knew this from his comrades in the war and his stories of #ahac1 which were at once so vivid and so modest4 ,when he explained ,homer or taught ancient history a special fervor animated him2 for he was one of the chosen few whose eyes were opened by destiny to the full beauty and sublimity of ancient ,greece4 ,i have listened at the university to many a famous interpreter of the ,hellenic and ,roman poets1 and many a great historian1 but not one of them ever gave me so distinct an impression of living with the ancients as ,heinrich ,langethal4 ,there was something akin to them in his pure1 lofty soul1 ever thirsting for truth and beauty1 and1 besides1 he had graduated from the school of a most renowned teacher4 ,the outward aspect of the tall old man was eminently aristocratic1 yet his birthplace was the house of a plain though prosperous mechanic4 ,he was born at ,erfurt1 in #agib4 ,when very young his father1 a man unusually sensible and well-informed for his station in life1 entrusted him with the education of a younger brother1 the one who1 as ,i have mentioned1 afterwards became a professor at ,jena1 and the boy's progress was so rapid that other parents had requested to have their sons share the hours of instruction4 ,after completing his studies at the grammar-school he wanted to go to ,berlin1 for1 though the once famous university still existed in ,erfurt1 it had greatly deteriorated4 ,his description of it is half lamentable1 half amusing1 for at that time it was attended by thirty students1 for whom seventy professors were employed4 ,nevertheless1 there were many obstacles to be surmounted ere he could obtain permission to attend the ,berlin ,university2 for the law required every native of ,erfurt1 who intended afterwards to aspire to any office1 to study at least two years in his native city--at that time ,french4 ,but1 in defiance of all hindrances1 he found his way to ,berlin1 and in #ahaa was entered in the university just established there as the first student from ,erfurt4 ,he wished to devote himself to theology1 and ,neander1 ,de ,wette1 ,marheineke1 ,schleiermacher1 etc41 must have exerted a great power of attraction over a young man who desired to pursue that study4 ,at the latter's lectures he became acquainted with ,middendorf4 ,at first he obtained little from either4 ,schleiermacher seemed to him too temporizing and obscure4 ,he makes veils4 ,he thought the young ,westphalian1 at their first meeting1 merely a nice fellow4 ,but in time he learned to understand the great theologian1 and the favourite teacher noticed him and took him into his house4 ,but first ,fichte1 and then ,friedrich ,august ,wolf1 attracted him far more powerfully than ,schleiermacher4 ,whenever he spoke of ,wolf his calm features glowed and his blind eyes seemed to sparkle4 ,he owed all that was best in him to the great investigator1 who sharpened his pupil's appreciation of the exhaustless store of lofty ideas and the magic of beauty contained in classic antiquity1 and had he been allowed to follow his own inclination1 he would have turned his back on theology1 to devote all his energies to the pursuit of philology and archaeology4 ,the ,homeric question which ,wolf had propounded in connection with ,goethe1 and which at that time stirred the whole learned world1 had also moved ,langethal so deeply that1 even when an old man1 he enjoyed nothing more than to speak of it to us and make us familiar with the pros and cons which rendered him an upholder of his revered teacher4 ,he had been allowed to attend the lectures on the first four books of the ,iliad1 and --,i have living witnesses of the fact--he knew them all verse by verse1 and corrected us when we read or recited them as if he had the copy in his hand4 ,true1 he refreshed his naturally excellent memory by having them all read aloud4 ,i shall never forget his joyous mirth as he listened to my delivery of ,wolf's translation of ,aristophanes's ,acharnians2 but ,i was pleased that he selected me to supply the dear blind eyes4 ,whenever he called me for this purpose he already had the book in the side pocket of his long coat1 and when1 beckoning significantly1 he cried1 ,come1 ,bear1 ,i knew what was before me1 and would have gladly resigned the most enjoyable game1 though he sometimes had books read which were by no means easy for me to understand4 ,i was then fourteen or fifteen years old4 ,need ,i say that it was my intercourse with this man which implanted in my heart the love of ancient days that has accompanied me throughout my life8 ,the elevation of the ,prussian nation led ,langethal also from the university to the war4 ,rumor first brought to ,berlin the tidings of the destruction of the great army on the icy plains of ,russia2 then its remnants1 starving1 worn1 ragged1 appeared in the capital2 and the street-boys1 who not long before had been forced by the ,french soldiers to clean their boots1 now with little generosity--they were only street- boys--shouted sneeringly1 ,say1 mounseer1 want your boots blacked8 ,then came the news of the convention of ,york1 and at last the irresolute king put an end to the doubts and delays which probably stirred the blood of every one who is familiar with ,droysen's classic ,life of ,field- ,marshal ,york4 ,from ,breslau came the summons ,to my ,people1 which1 like a warm spring wind1 melted the ice and woke in the hearts of the ,german youth a matchless budding and blossoming4 ,the snow-drops which bloomed during those ,march days of #ahac ushered in the long-desired day of freedom1 and the call ,to arms6 found the loudest echo in the hearts of the students4 ,it stirred the young1 yet even in those days circumspect ,langethal1 too1 and showed him his duty ,but difficulties confronted him2 for ,pastor ,ritschel1 a native of ,erfurt1 to whom he confided his intention1 warned him not to write to his father4 ,erfurt1 his own birthplace1 was still under ,french rule1 and were he to communicate his plan in writing and the letter should be opened in the black room1 with other suspicious mail matter1 it might cost the life of the man whose son was preparing to commit high-treason by fighting against the ruler of his country--,napoleon1 the ,emperor of ,france4 ,where will you get the uniform1 if your father won't help you1 and you want to join the black ,jagers8 asked the pastor1 and received the answer3 ,the cape of my cloak will supply the trousers4 ,i can have a red collar put on my cloak1 my coat can be dyed black and turned into a uniform1 and ,i have a hanger4 ,that's right6 cried the worthy minister1 and gave his young friend ten thalers4 ,middendorf1 too1 reported to the ,lutzow ,jagers at once1 and so did the son of ,professor ,bellermann1 and their mutual friend ,bauer1 spite of his delicate health which seemed to unfit him for any exertion4 ,they set off on the #aath of ,april1 and while the spring was budding alike in the outside world and in young breasts1 a new flower of friendship expanded in the hearts of these three champions of the same sacred cause2 for ,langethal and ,middendorf found their ,froebel4 ,this was in ,dresden1 and the league formed there was never to be dissolved4 ,they kept their eyes fixed steadfastly on the ideals of youth1 until in old age the sight of all three failed4 ,part of the blessings which were promised to the nation when they set forth to battle they were permitted to see seven lustra later1 in #ahdh1 but they did not live to experience the realization of their fairest youthful dream1 the union of ,germany4 ,i must deny myself the pleasure of describing the battles and the marches of the ,lutzow corps1 which extended to ,aachen and ,oudenarde2 but will mention here that ,langethal rose to the rank of sergeant1 and had to perform the duties of a first lieutenant2 and that1 towards the end of the campaign1 ,middendorf was sent with ,lieutenant ,reil to induce ,blucher to receive the corps in his vanguard4 ,the old commander gratified their wish2 they had proved their fitness for the post when they won the victory at the ,gohrde1 where two thousand ,frenchmen were killed and as many more taken prisoners4 ,the sight of the battlefield had seemed unendurable to the gentle nature of ,middendorf he had formed a poetical idea of the campaign as an expedition against the hereditary foe4 ,now that he had confronted the bloodstained face of war with all its horrors1 he fell into a state of melancholy from which he could scarcely rouse himself4 ,after this battle the three friends were quartered in ,castle ,gohrde1 and there enjoyed a delightful season of rest after months of severe hardships4 ,their corps had been used as the extreme vanguard against ,davoust's force1 which was thrice their superior in numbers1 and in consequence they were subjected to great fatigues4 ,they had almost forgotten how it seemed to sleep in a bed and eat at a table4 ,one night march had followed another4 ,they had often seized their food from the kettles and eaten it at the next stopping-place1 but all was cheerfully done2 the light-heartedness of youth did not vanish from their enthusiastic hearts4 ,there was even no lack of intellectual aliment1 for a little field-library had been established by the exchange of books4 ,langethal told us of his night's rest in a ditch1 which was to entail disastrous consequences4 ,utterly exhausted1 sleep overpowered him in the midst of a pouring rain1 and when he awoke he discovered that he was up to his neck in water4 ,his damp bed--the ditch--had gradually filled1 but the sleep was so profound that even the rising moisture had not roused him4 ,the very next morning he was attacked with a disease of the eyes1 to which he attributed his subsequent blindness4 ,on the #bfth of ,august there was a prospect of improvement in the condition of the corps4 ,davoust had sent forty wagons of provisions to ,hamburg1 and the men were ordered to capture them4 ,the attack was successful1 but at what a price6 ,theodor ,korner1 the noble young poet whose songs will commemorate the deeds of the ,lutzow corps so long as ,german men and boys sing his ,thou ,sword at my ,side1 or raise their voices in the refrain of the ,lutzow ,jagers' song3 ,do you ask the name of yon reckless band8 ',tis ,lutzow's black troopers dashing swift through the land6 ,langethal first saw the body of the author of ,lyre and ,sword and ,zriny under an oak at ,wobbelin2 but he was to see it once more under quite different circumstances4 ,he has mentioned it in his autobiography1 and ,i have heard him describe several times his visit to the corpse of ,theodor ,korner4 ,he had been quartered in ,wobbelin1 and shared his room with an ,oberjager von ,behrenhorst1 son of the postmaster-general in ,dessau1 who had taken part in the battle of ,jena as a young lieutenant and returned home with a darkened spirit4 ,at the summons ,to my ,people1 he had enlisted at once as a private soldier in the ,lutzow corps1 where he rose rapidly to the rank of ,oberjager4 ,during the war he had often met ,langethal and ,middendorf2 but the quiet1 reserved man1 prematurely grave for his years1 attached himself so closely to ,korner that he needed no other friend4 ,after the death of the poet on the #bfth of ,august1 #ahac1 he moved silently about as though completely crushed4 ,on the night which followed the #bgth he invited his room-mate ,langethal to go with him to the body of his friend4 ,both went first to the village church1 where the dead ,jagers lay in two long black rows4 ,a solemn stillness pervaded the little house of ,god1 which had become during this night the abode of death1 and the nocturnal visitors gazed silently at the pallid1 rigid features of one lifeless young form after another1 but without finding him whom they sought4 ,during this mute review of corpses it seemed to ,langethal as if ,death were singing a deep1 heartrending choral1 and he longed to pray for these young1 crushed human blossoms2 but his companion led the way into the guard's little room4 ,there lay the poet1 the radiance of an angel on his face1 though his body bore many traces of the fury of the battle4 ,deeply moved1 ,langethal stood gazing down upon the form of the man who had died for his native land1 while ,behrenhorst knelt on the floor beside him1 silently giving himself up to the anguish of his soul4 ,he remained in this attitude a long time1 then suddenly started up1 threw his arms upward1 and exclaimed1 ,korner1 ,i'll follow you6 ,with these words ,behrenhorst darted out of the little room into the darkness2 and a few weeks after he1 too1 had fallen for the sacred cause of his native land4 ,they had seen another beloved comrade perish in the battle of ,gohrde1 a handsome young man of delicate figure and an unusually reserved manner4 ,middendorf1 with whom he--his name was ,prohaska--had been on more intimate terms than the others1 once asked him1 when he timidly avoided the girls and women who cast kindly glances at him1 if his heart never beat faster1 and received the answer1 ,i have but one love to give1 and that belongs to our native land4 ,while the battle was raging1 ,middendorf was fighting close beside his comrade4 ,when the enemy fired a volley the others stooped1 but ,prohaska stood erect1 exclaiming1 when he was warned1 ,no bowing6 ,i'll make no obeisance to the ,french6 ,a few minutes after1 the brave soldier1 stricken by a bullet1 fell on the greensward4 ,his friends bore him off the field1 and ,prohaska--,eleonore ,prohaska--proved to be a girl6 ,while in ,castle ,gohrde1 ,froebel talked with his friends about his favourite plan1 which he had already had a view in ,gottingen1 of establishing a school for boys1 and while developing his educational ideal to them and at the same time mentioning that he had passed his thirtieth birthday1 and alluding to the postponement of his plan by the war1 he exclaimed1 to explain why he had taken up arms3 ,how can ,i train boys whose devotion ,i claim1 unless ,i have proved by my own deeds how a man should show devotion to the general welfare8 ,these words made a deep impression upon the two friends1 and increased ,middendorf's enthusiastic reverence for the older comrade1 whose experiences and ideas had opened a new world to him4 ,the ,peace of ,paris1 and the enrolment of the ,lutzow corps in the line1 brought the trio back to ,berlin to civil life4 ,there also each frequently sought the others1 until1 in the spring of #ahag1 ,froebel resigned the permanent position in the ,bureau of ,mineralogy in order to establish his institute4 ,middendorf had been bribed by the saying of his admired friend that he had found the unity of life4 ,it gave the young philosopher food for thought1 and1 because he felt that he had vainly sought this unity and was dissatisfied1 he hoped to secure it through the society of the man who had become everything to him ,his wish was fulfilled1 for as an educator he grew as it were into his own motto1 ,lucid1 genuine1 and true to life4 ,middendorf gave up little when he followed ,froebel4 ,the case was different with ,langethal4 ,he had entered as a tutor the ,bendemann household at ,charlottenburg1 where he found a second home4 ,he taught with brilliant success children richly gifted in mind and heart1 whose love he won4 ,it was a glorious family which permitted him to share its rich social life1 and in whose highly gifted circle he could be sure of finding warm sympathy in his intellectual interests4 ,protected from all external anxieties1 he had under their roof ample leisure for industrious labour and also for intercourse with his own friends4 ,in ,july1 #ahag1 he passed the last examination with the greatest distinction1 receiving the very good1 rarely bestowed2 and a brilliant career lay before him4 ,directly after this success three pulpits were offered to him1 but he accepted neither1 because he longed for rest and quiet occupation4 ,the summons from ,froebel to devote himself to his infant institute1 where ,langethal had placed his younger brother1 also reached him4 ,the little school moved on ,st4 ,john's ,day1 #ahag1 from ,griesheim to ,keilhau1 where the widow of ,pastor ,froebel had been offered a larger farm4 ,the place which she and her children's teacher found was wonderfully adapted to ,froebel's purpose1 and seemed to promise great advantages both to the pupils and to the institute4 ,there was much building and arranging to be accomplished1 but means to do so were obtained1 and the first pupil described very amusingly the entrance into the new home1 the furnishing1 the discovery of all the beauties and advantages which we found as an old possession in ,keilhau1 and the endeavour1 so characteristic of ,middendorf1 to adapt even the less attractive points to his own poetic ideas4 ,only the hours of instruction fared badly1 and ,froebel felt that he needed a man of fully developed strength in order to give the proper foundation to the instruction of the boys who were entrusted to his care4 ,he knew a man of this stamp in the student ,f4 ,a4 ,wolfs1 whose talent for teaching had been admirably proved in the ,bendemann family4 ,langethal1 as the first pupil describes him1 was at that time a very handsome man of five-and-twenty years4 ,his brow was grave1 but his features expressed kindness of heart1 gentleness1 and benevolence4 ,the dignity of his whole bearing was enhanced by the sonorous tones of his voice--he retained them until old age--and his whole manner revealed manly firmness4 ,middendorf was more pleasing to women1 ,langethal to men4 ,middendorf attracted those who saw1 ,langethal those who heard him1 and the confidence he inspired was even more lasting than that aroused by ,middendorf4 ,what marvel that ,froebel made every effort to win this rare power for the young institute8 ,but ,langethal declined1 to the great vexation of ,middendorf4 ,diesterweg called the latter a ,st4 ,john1 but our dear1 blind teacher added1 ,and ,froebel was his ,christus4 ,the enthusiastic young ,westphalian1 who had once believed he saw in this man every masculine virtue1 and whose life appeared emblematical1 patiently accepted everything1 and considered every one a renegade who had ever followed ,froebel and did not bow implicitly to his will4 ,so he was angered by ,langethal's refusal4 ,the latter had been offered1 with brilliant prospects for the present and still fairer ones for the future1 a position as a tutor in ,silesia1 a place which secured him the rest he desired1 combined with occupation suited to his tastes4 ,he was to share the labour of teaching with another instructor1 who was to take charge of the exact sciences1 with which he was less familiar1 and he was also permitted to teach his brother with the young ,counts ,stolberg4 ,he accepted1 but before going to ,silesia he wished to visit his ,keilhau friends and take his brother away with him4 ,he did so1 and the diplomacy with which ,froebel succeeded in changing the decision of the resolute young man and gaining him over to his own interests1 is really remarkable4 ,it won for the infant institute in the person of ,langethal-- if the expression is allowable--the backbone4 ,froebel had sent ,middendorf to meet his friend1 and the latter1 on the way1 told him of the happiness which he had found in his new home and occupation4 ,then they entered ,keilhau1 and the splendid landscape which surrounds it needs no praise4 ,froebel received his former comrade with the utmost cordiality1 and the sight of the robust1 healthy1 merry boys who were lying on the floor that evening1 building forts and castles with the wooden blocks which ,froebel had had made for them according to his own plan1 excited the keenest interest4 ,he had come to take his brother away2 but when he saw him1 among other happy companions of his own age1 complete the finest structure of all--a ,gothic cathedral--it seemed almost wrong to tear the child from this circle4 ,he gazed sadly at his brother when he came to bid him good-night1 and then remained alone with ,froebel4 ,the latter was less talkative than usual1 waiting for his friend to tell him of the future which awaited him in ,silesia4 ,when he heard that a second tutor was to relieve ,langethal of half his work1 he exclaimed1 with the greatest anxiety3 ,you do not know him1 and yet intend to finish a work of education with him8 ,what great chances you are hazarding6 ,the next morning ,froebel asked his friend what goal in life he had set before him1 and ,langethal replied3 ,like the apostle1 ,i would fain proclaim the gospel to all men according to the best of my powers1 in order to bring them into close communion with the ,redeemer4 ,froebel answered1 thoughtfully3 ,if you desire that1 you must1 like the apostles1 know men4 ,you must be able to enter into the life of every one--here a peasant1 there a mechanic4 ,if you can not1 do not hope for success2 your influence will not extend far4 ,how wise and convincing the words sounded6 ,and ,froebel touched the sensitive spot in the young minister1 who was thoroughly imbued with the sacred beauty of his life-task1 yet certainly knew the ,gospels1 his classic authors1 and apostolic fathers much better than he did the world4 ,he thoughtfully followed ,froebel1 who1 with ,middendorf and the boys1 led him up the ,steiger1 the mountain whose summit afforded the magnificent view ,i have described4 ,it was the hour when the setting sun pours its most exquisite light over the mountains and valleys4 ,the heart of the young clergyman1 tortured by anxious doubts1 swelled at the sight of this magnificence1 and ,froebel1 seeing what was passing in his mind1 exclaimed3 ,come1 comrade1 let us have one of our old war-songs4 ,the musical black ,jager of yore willingly assented2 and how clearly and enthusiastically the chorus of boyish voices chimed in6 ,when it died away1 the older man passed his arm around his friend's shoulders1 and1 pointing to the beautiful region lying before them in the sunset glow1 exclaimed3 ,why seek so far away what is close at hand8 ,a work is established here which must be built by the hand of ,god6 ,implicit devotion and self- sacrifice are needed4 ,while speaking1 he gazed steadfastly into his friend's tearful eyes1 as if he had found his true object in life1 and when he held out his hand ,langethal clasped it--he could not help it4 ,that very day a letter to the ,counts ,stolberg informed them that they must seek another tutor for their sons1 and ,froebel and ,keilhau could congratulate themselves on having gained their ,langethal4 ,the management of the school was henceforward in the hands of a man of character1 while the extensive knowledge and the excellent method of a well-trained scholar had been obtained for the educational department4 ,the new institute now prospered rapidly4 ,the renown of the fresh1 healthful life and the able tuition of the pupils spread far beyond the limits of ,thuringia4 ,the material difficulties with which the head- master had had to struggle after the erection of the large new buildings were also removed when ,froebel's prosperous brother in ,osterode decided to take part in the work and move to ,keilhau4 ,he understood farming1 and1 by purchasing more land and woodlands1 transformed the peasant holding into a considerable estate4 ,when ,froebel's restless spirit drew him to ,switzerland to undertake new educational enterprises1 and some one was needed who could direct the business management1 ,barop1 the steadfast man of whom ,i have already spoken1 was secured4 ,deeply esteemed and sincerely beloved1 he managed the institute during the time that we three brothers were pupils there4 ,he had found many things within to arrange on a more practical foundation1 many without to correct3 for the long locks of most of the pupils2 the circumstance that three ,lutzen ,jagers1 one of whom had delivered the oration at a students' political meeting1 had established the school2 that ,barop had been persecuted as a demagogue on account of his connection with a students' political society2 and1 finally1 ,froebel's relations with ,switzerland and the liberal educational methods of the school1 had roused the suspicions of the ,berlin demagogue-hunters1 and therefore demagogic tendencies1 from which in reality it had always held aloof1 were attributed to the institute4 ,yes1 we were free1 in so far that everything which could restrict or retard our physical and mental development was kept away from us1 and our teachers might call themselves so because1 with virile energy1 they had understood how to protect the institute from every injurious and narrowing outside influence4 ,the smallest and the largest pupil was free1 for he was permitted to be wholly and entirely his natural self1 so long as he kept within the limits imposed by the existing laws4 ,but license was nowhere more sternly prohibited than at ,keilhau2 and the deep religious feeling of its head-masters--,barop1 ,langethal1 and ,middendorf-- ought to have taught the suspicious spies in ,berlin that the command1 ,render unto ,caesar the things that are ,caesar's1 would never be violated here4 ,the time ,i spent in ,keilhau was during the period of the worst reaction1 and ,i now know that our teachers would have sat on the ,left in the ,prussian ,landtag2 yet we never heard a disrespectful word spoken of ,frederick ,william ,,iv1 and we were instructed to show the utmost respect to the prince of the little country of ,rudolstadt to which ,keilhau belonged4 ,barop1 spite of his liberal tendencies1 was highly esteemed by this petty sovereign1 decorated with an order1 and raised to the rank of ,councillor of ,education4 ,from a hundred isolated recollections and words which have lingered in my memory ,i have gathered that our teachers were liberals in a very moderate way1 yet they were certainly guilty of demagogic aspirations in so far as that they desired for their native land only what we1 thank ,heaven1 now possess its unity1 and a popular representation1 by a free election of all its states1 in a ,german ,parliament4 ,what enthusiasm for the ,emperor ,william1 ,bismarck1 and ,von ,moltke1 ,langethal1 ,middendorf1 and ,barop would have inspired in our hearts had they been permitted to witness the great events of #ahgj and #ahga6 ,besides1 politics were kept from us1 and this had become known in wider circles when we entered the institute1 for most of the pupils belonged to loyal families4 ,many were sons of the higher officials1 officers1 and landed proprietors2 and as long locks had long since become the exception1 and the ,keilhau pupils were as well mannered as possible1 many noblemen1 among them chamberlains and other court officials1 decided to send their boys to the institute4 ,the great manufacturers and merchants who placed their sons in the institute were also not men favourable to revolution1 and many of our comrades became officers in the ,german army4 ,others are able scholars1 clergymen1 and members of ,parliament2 others again government officials1 who fill high positions2 and others still are at the head of large industrial or mercantile enterprises4 ,i have not heard of a single individual who has gone to ruin1 and of very many who have accomplished things really worthy of note4 ,but wherever ,i have met an old pupil of ,keilhau1 ,i have found in him the same love for the institute1 have seen his eyes sparkle more brightly when we talked of ,langethal1 ,middendorf1 and ,barop4 ,not one has turned out a sneak or a hypocrite4 ,the present institution is said to be an admirable one2 but the ,realschule of ,keilhau1 which has been forced to abandon its former humanistic foundation1 can scarcely train to so great a variety of callings the boys now entrusted to its care4 ,,chapter ,,xiv4 ,the little country of ,rudolstadt in which ,keilhau lies had had its revolution1 though it was but a small and bloodless one4 ,true1 the insurrection had nothing to do with human beings1 but involved the destruction of living creatures4 ,greater liberty in hunting was demanded4 ,this might seem a trivial matter1 yet it was of the utmost importance to both disputants4 ,the wide forests of the country had hitherto been the hunting-grounds of the prince1 and not a gun could be fired there without his permission4 ,to give up these happy hunting-grounds was a severe demand upon the eager sportsman who occupied the ,rudolstadt throne1 and the rustic population would gladly have spared him had it been possible4 ,but the game in ,rudolstadt had become a veritable torment1 which destroyed the husbandmen's hopes of harvests4 ,the peasant1 to save his fields from the stags and does which broke into them in herds at sunset1 tried to keep them out by means of clappers and bad odours4 ,i have seen and smelled the so-called ,frenchman's oil with which the posts were smeared1 that its really diabolical odour--,i don't know from what horrors it was compounded--might preserve the crops4 ,the ornament of the forests had become the object of the keenest hate1 and as soon as--shortly before we entered ,keilhau--hunting was freely permitted1 the peasants gave full vent to their rage1 set off for the woods with the old muskets they had kept hidden in the garrets1 or other still more primitive weapons1 and shot or struck down all the game they encountered4 ,roast venison was cheap for weeks on ,rudolstadt tables1 and the pupils had many an unexpected pleasure4 ,the hunting exploits of the older scholars were only learned by us younger ones as secrets1 and did not reach the teachers' ears until long after4 ,but the woods furnished other pleasures besides those enjoyed by the sportsman4 ,every ramble through the forest enriched our knowledge of plants and animals1 and ,i soon knew the different varieties of stones also2 yet we did not suspect that this knowledge was imparted according to a certain system4 ,we were taught as it were by stealth1 and how many pleasant1 delicious things attracted us to the class-rooms on the wooded heights6 ,vegetation was very abundant in the richly watered mountain valley4 ,our favourite spring was the ,schaalbach at the foot of the ,steiger1--,we pupils bought it of the peasant who owned it and gave it to ,barop4-- because there was a fowling-floor connected with it1 where ,i spent many a pleasant evening4 ,it could be used only after breeding-time1 and consisted of a hut built of boughs where the birdcatcher lodged4 ,flowing water rippled over the little wooden rods on which the feathered denizens of the woods alighted to quench their thirst before going to sleep4 ,when some of them--frequently six at a time--had settled on the perches in the trough1 it was drawn into the but by a rope1 a net was spread over the water and there was nothing more to do except take the captives out4 ,the name of the director of this amusement was ,merbod4 ,he could imitate the voices of all the birds1 and was a merry1 versatile fellow1 who knew how to do a thousand things1 and of whom we boys were very fond4 ,the peasant ,bredernitz often took us to his crow-hut1 which was a hole in the ground covered with boughs and pieces of turf1 where the hunters lay concealed4 ,the owl1 which lured the crows and other birds of prey1 was fastened on a perch1 and when they flew up1 often in large flocks1 to tease the old cross-patch which sat blinking angrily1 they were shot down from loop-holes which had been left in the hut4 ,the hawks which prey upon doves and hares1 the crows and magpies1 can thus easily be decimated4 ,we had learned to use our guns in the playground4 ,the utmost caution was enforced1 and although1 as ,i have already remarked1 we handled our own guns when we were only lads of twelve years old1 ,i can not recall a single accident which occurred4 ,once1 during the summer1 there was a ,schutzenfest1 in which a large wooden eagle was shot from the pole4 ,whoever brought down the last splinter became king4 ,this honour once fell to my share1 and ,i was permitted to choose a queen4 ,i crowned ,marie ,breimann1 a pretty1 slender young girl from ,brunswick1 whose ,greek profile and thick silken hair had captivated my fancy4 ,she and ,adelheid ,barop1 the head-master's daughter1 were taught in our classes1 but ,marie attracted me more strongly than the diligent ,keilhau lassies with their beautiful black eyes and the other two blooming and graceful ,westphalian girls who were also schoolmates4 ,but the girls occupied a very small place in our lives4 ,they could neither wrestle1 shoot1 nor climb1 so we gave them little thought1 and anything like actual flirtation was unknown--we had so many better things in our heads4 ,wrestling and other sports threw everything else into the shade4 ,pretty ,marie1 however1 probably suspected which of my school- mates ,i liked best1 and up to the time of my leaving the institute ,i allowed no other goddess to rival her4 ,but there were plenty of amusements at ,keilhau besides bird-shooting4 ,i will mention the principal ones which came during the year1 for to describe them in regular order would be impossible4 ,of the longer walks which we took in the spring and summer the most beautiful was the one leading through ,blankenburg to the entrance of the ,schwarzathal1 and thence through the lofty1 majestically formed group of cliffs at whose foot the clear1 swift ,schwarza flows1 dashing and foaming1 to ,schwarzburg4 ,how clearly our songs echoed from the granite walls of the river valley1 and how lively it always was at ,the ,stag1 whose landlord possessed a certain power of attraction to us boys in his own person2 for1 as the stoutest man in ,thuringia1 he was a feast for the eyes6 ,his jollity equalled his corpulence1 and how merrily he used to jest with us lads6 ,of the shorter expeditions ,i will mention only the two we took most frequently1 which led us in less than an hour to ,blankenburg or ,greifenstein1 a large ruin1 many parts of which were in tolerable preservation4 ,it had been the home of ,count ,gunther von ,schwarzburg1 who paid with his life for the honour of wearing the ,german imperial crown a few short months4 ,we also enjoyed being sent to the little town of ,blankenburg on errands1 for it was the home of our drawing-master1 the artist ,unger1 one of those original characters whom we rarely meet now4 ,when we knew him1 the handsome1 broad-shouldered man1 with his thick red beard1 looked as one might imagine ,odin4 ,summer and winter his dress was a grey woollen jacket1 into which a short pipe was thrust1 and around his hips a broad leather belt1 from which hung a bag containing his drawing materials4 ,he cared nothing for public opinion1 and1 as an independent bachelor1 desired nothing except to be let alone1 for he professed the utmost contempt for the corrupt brood yclept mankind4 ,he never came to our entertainments1 probably because he would be obliged to wear something in place of his woollen jacket1 and because he avoided women1 whom he called the roots of all evil4 ,i still remember how once1 after emptying the vials of his wrath upon mankind1 he said1 in reply to the question whether he included ,barop among the iniquitous brood1 ,why1 of course not2 he doesn't belong to it6 ,there was no lack of opportunity to visit him1 for a great many persons employed to work for the school lived in ,blankenburg1 and we were known to be carefully watched there4 ,i remember two memorable expeditions to the little town4 ,once my brother burned his arm terribly during a puppet-show by the explosion of some powder provided for the toy cannon4 ,the poor fellow suffered so severely that ,i could not restrain my tears1 and though it was dark1 and snow lay on the mountains1 off ,i went to ,blankenburg to get the old surgeon1 calling to some of my school-mates at the door to tell them of my destination4 ,it was no easy matter to wade through the snow2 but1 fortunately1 the stars gave me sufficient light to keep in the right path as ,i dashed down the mountain to ,blankenburg4 ,how often ,i plunged into ditches filled with snow and slid down short descents ,i don't know2 but as ,i write these lines ,i can vividly remember the relief with which ,i at last trod the pavement of the little town4 ,old ,wetzel was at home1 and a carriage soon conveyed us over the only road to the institute4 ,i was not punished4 ,barop only laid his hand on my head1 and said1 ,i am glad you are back again1 ,bear4 ,another trip to ,blankenburg entailed results far more serious--nay1 almost cost me my life4 ,i was then fifteen1 and one ,sunday afternoon ,i went with ,barop's permission to visit the ,hamburgers1 but on condition that ,i should return by nine o'clock at latest4 ,time1 however1 slipped by in pleasant conversation until a later hour1 and as thunder-clouds were rising my host tried to keep me overnight4 ,but ,i thought this would not be allowable1 and1 armed with an umbrella1 ,i set off along the road1 with which ,i was perfectly familiar4 ,but the storm soon burst1 and it grew so dark that1 except when the lightning flashed1 ,i could not see my hand before my face4 ,yet on ,i went1 though wondering that the path along which ,i groped my way led upward1 until the lightning showed me that1 by mistake1 ,i had taken the road to ,greifenstein4 ,i turned back1 and while feeling my way through the gloom the earth seemed to vanish under my feet1 and ,i plunged headlong into a viewless gulf--not through empty space1 however1 but a wet1 tangled mass which beat against my face1 until at last there was a jerk which shook me from head to foot4 ,i no longer fell1 but ,i heard above me the sound of something tearing1 and the thought darted through my mind that ,i was hanging by my trousers4 ,groping around1 ,i found vine-leaves1 branches1 and lattice-work1 to which ,i clung1 and tearing away with my foot the cloth which had caught on the end of a lath1 ,i again brought my head where it should be1 and discovered that ,i was hanging on a vine-clad wall4 ,a flash of lightning showed me the ground not very far below and1 by the help of the espalier and the vines ,i at last stood in a garden4 ,almost by a miracle ,i escaped with a few scratches2 but when ,i afterwards went to look at the scene of this disaster cold chills ran down my back1 for half the distance whence ,i plunged into the garden would have been enough to break my neck4 ,our games were similar to those which lads of the same age play now1 but there were some additional ones that could only take place in a wooded mountain valley like ,keilhau2 such1 for instance1 were our ,indian games1 which engrossed us at the time when we were pleased with ,cooper's ,leather-,stocking1 but ,i need not describe them4 ,when ,i was one of the older pupils a party of us surprised some ,panzen --as we called the younger ones--one hot afternoon engaged in a very singular game of their own invention4 ,they had undressed to the skin in the midst of the thickest woods and were performing ,paradise and the ,fall of ,man1 as they had probably just been taught in their religious lesson4 ,for the expulsion of ,adam and our universal mother ,eve1 the angel--in this case there were two of them--used1 instead of the flaming sword1 stout hazel rods1 with which they performed their part of warders so overzealously that a quarrel followed1 which we older ones stopped4 ,thus many bands of pupils invented games of their own1 but1 thank ,heaven1 rarely devised such absurdities4 ,our later ,homeric battles any teacher would have witnessed with pleasure4 ,froebel would have greeted them as signs of creative imagination and individual life in the boys4 ,,chapter ,,xv4 ,,summer ,,pleasures ,,and ,,rambles ,wholly unlike these1 genuinely and solely a product of ,keilhau1 was the great battle-game which we called ,bergwacht1 one of my brightest memories of those years4 ,long preparations were needed1 and these1 too1 were delightful4 ,on the wooded plain at the summit of the ,kolm1 a mountain which belonged mainly to the institute1 war was waged during the summer every ,saturday evening until far into the night1 whenever the weather was fine1 which does not happen too often in ,thuringia4 ,the whole body of pupils was divided into three1 afterwards into four sections1 each of which had its own citadel4 ,after two had declared war against two others1 the battle raged until one party captured the strongholds of the other4 ,this was done as soon as a combatant had set foot on the hearth of a hostile fortress4 ,the battle itself was fought with stakes blunted at the tops4 ,every one touched by the weapon of an enemy must declare himself a prisoner4 ,to admit this1 whenever it happened1 was a point of honour4 ,in order to keep all the combatants in action1 a fourth division was added soon after our arrival1 and of course it was necessary to build a strong hold like the others4 ,this consisted of a hut with a stone roof1 in which fifteen or twenty boys could easily find room and rest1 a strong wall which protected us up to our foreheads1 and surrounded the front of the citadel in a semicircle1 as well as a large altar-like hearth which rose in the midst of the semicircular space surrounded by the wall4 ,we built this fortress ourselves1 except that our teacher of handicrafts1 the sapper ,sabum1 sometimes gave us a hint4 ,the first thing was to mark out the plan1 then with the aid of levers pry the rocks out of the fields1 and by means of a two-wheeled cart convey them to the site chosen1 fit them neatly together1 stuff the interstices with moss1 and finally put on a roof made of pine logs which we felled ourselves1 earth1 moss1 and branches4 ,how quickly we learned to use the plummet1 take levels1 hew the stone1 wield the axes6 ,and what a delight it was when the work was finished and we saw our own building6 ,perhaps we might not have accomplished it without the sapper1 but every boy believed that if he were cast1 like ,robinson ,crusoe1 on a desert island1 he could build a hut of his own4 ,as soon as this citadel was completed1 preparations for the impending battle were made4 ,the walls and encircling walls of all were prepared1 and we were drilled in the use of the poles4 ,this1 too1 afforded us the utmost pleasure4 ,touching the head of an enemy was strictly prohibited2 yet many a slight wound was given while fighting in the gloom of the woods4 ,each of the four ,bergwachts had its leader4 ,the captain of the first was director of the whole game1 and instead of a lance wore a rapier4 ,i considered it a great honour when this dignity was conferred on me4 ,one of its consequences was that my portrait was sketched by ,old ,unger in the so-called ,bergwacht ,book1 which contained the likenesses of all my predecessors4 ,during the summer months all eyes1 even as early as ,thursday1 were watching the weather4 ,when ,saturday evening proved pleasant and ,barop had given his consent1 there was great rejoicing in the institute1 and the morning hours must have yielded the teachers little satisfaction4 ,directly after dinner everybody seized his pole and the other ,bergwacht equipments4 ,the alliances were formed under the captain's guidance4 ,we will say that the contest was to begin with the first and third ,bergwacht pitted against the second and fourth1 and be followed by another1 with the first and second against the third and fourth4 ,we assembled in the court-yard just before sunset4 ,barop made a little speech1 exhorting us to fight steadily1 and especially to observe all the rules and yield ourselves captives as soon as an enemy's pole touched us4 ,he never neglected on these occasions to admonish us that1 should our native land ever need the armed aid of her sons1 we should march to battle as joyously as we now did to the ,bergwacht1 which was to train us to skill in her defence4 ,then the procession set off in good order1 four or six pupils harnessing themselves voluntarily to the cart in which the kegs of beer were dragged up the ,kolm4 ,off we went1 singing merrily1 and at the top the women were waiting for us with a lunch4 ,then the warriors scattered1 the fire was lighted on every hearth1 the plan of battle was discussed1 some were sent out to reconnoitre1 others kept to defend the citadel4 ,at last the conflict began4 ,could ,i ever forget the scenes in the forest6 ,no ,indian tribe on the war-path ever strained every sense more keenly to watch1 surround1 and surprise the foe4 ,and the hand-to-hand fray6 ,what delight it was to burst from the shelter of the thicket and touch with our poles two1 three1 or four of the surprised enemies ere they thought of defence6 ,and what self-denial it required when--spite of the most skilful parry--we felt the touch of the pole1 to confess it1 and be led off as a prisoner6 ,voices and shouts echoed through the woods1 and the glare of five fires pierced the darkness--five--for flames were also blazing where the women were cooking the supper4 ,but the light was brightest1 the shouts of the combatants were loudest1 in the vicinity of the forts4 ,the effort of the besiegers was to spy out unguarded places1 and occupy the attention of the garrison so that a comrade might leap over the wall and set his foot on the hearth4 ,the object of the garrison was to prevent this4 ,what was that8 ,an exulting cry rang through the night air4 ,a warrior had succeeded in penetrating the hostile citadel untouched and setting his foot on the hearth6 ,two or three times we enjoyed the delight of battle2 and when towards midnight it closed1 we threw ourselves-glowing from the strife and blackened by the smoke of the hearth-fires-down on the greensward around the women's fire1 where boiled eggs and other good things were served1 and meanwhile the mugs of foaming beer were passed around the circle4 ,one patriotic song after another was sung1 and at last each ,bergwacht withdrew to its citadel and lay down on the moss to sleep under the sheltering roof4 ,two sentinels marched up and down1 relieved every half hour until the early dawn of the summer ,sunday brightened the eastern sky4 ,then ,huup6--the ,keilhau shout which summoned us back to the institute- rang out1 and a hymn1 the march back1 a bath in the pond1 and finally the most delicious rest1 if good luck permitted1 on the heaps of hay which had not been gathered in4 ,on the ,sunday following the ,bergwacht we were not required to attend church1 where we should merely have gone to sleep4 ,barop1 though usually very strict in the observance of religious duties1 never demanded anything for the sake of mere appearances4 ,and the bed of my own planning6 ,it consisted of wood and stones1 and was covered with a thick layer of moss1 raised at the head in a slanting direction4 ,it looked like other beds1 but the place where it stood requires some description1 for it was a ,keilhau specialty1 a favour bestowed by our teachers on the pupils4 ,midway up the slope of the ,kolm where our citadels stood1 on the side facing the institute1 each boy had a piece of ground where he might build1 dig1 or plant1 as he chose4 ,they descended from one to another3 ,ludo's and mine had come down from ,martin and another pupil who left the school at the same time4 ,but ,i was not satisfied with what my predecessors had created4 ,i spared the beautiful vine which twined around a fir-tree1 but in the place of a flower-bed and a bench which ,i found there ,ludo and ,i built a hearth1 and for myself the bed already mentioned1 which my brother of course was permitted to occupy with me4 ,how many hours ,i have spent on its soft cushions1 reading or dreaming or imagining things6 ,if ,i could only remember them as they hovered before me1 what epics and tales ,i could write6 ,no doubt we ought to be grateful to ,god for this as well as for so many other blessings2 but why are we permitted to be young only once in our lives1 only once to be borne aloft on the wings of a tireless power of imagination1 so easily satisfied with ourselves1 so full of love1 faith1 and hope1 so open to every joy and so blind to every care and doubt1 and everything which threatens to cloud and extinguish the sunlight in the soul8 ,dear bed in my plot of ground at ,keilhau1 you ought1 in accordance with a remark of ,barop1 to cause me serious self-examination1 for he said1 probably with no thought of my mossy couch1 ,from the way in which the pupils use their plots of ground and the things they place in them1 ,i can form a very correct opinion of their dispositions and tastes4 ,but you1 beloved couch1 should have the best place in my garden if you could restore me but for one half hour the dreams which visited me on your grey-green pillows1 when ,i was a lad of fourteen or fifteen4 ,i have passed over the ,rudolstadt ,schutzenfest1 its music1 its merry-go- round1 and the capital sausages cooked in the open air1 and have intentionally omitted many other delightful things4 ,i cannot help wondering now where we found time for all these summer pleasures4 ,true1 with the exception of a few days at ,whitsuntide1 we had no vacation from ,easter until the first of ,september4 ,but even in ,august one thought1 one joyous anticipation1 filled every heart4 ,the annual autumn excursion was coming6 ,after we were divided into travelling parties and had ascertained which teacher was to accompany us--a matter that seemed very important--we diligently practised the most beautiful songs2 and on many an evening ,barop or ,middendorf told us of the places through which we were to pass1 their history1 and the legends which were associated with them4 ,they were aided in this by one of the sub-teachers1 ,bagge1 a poetically gifted young clergyman1 who possessed great personal beauty and a heart capable of entering into the intellectual life of the boys who were entrusted to his care4 ,he instructed us in the ,german language and literature4 ,possibly because he thought that he discovered in me a talent for poetic expression1 he showed me unusual favor1 even read his own verses aloud to me1 and set me special tasks in verse-writing1 which he criticised with me when ,i had finished4 ,the first long poem ,i wrote of my own impulse was a description of the wonderful forms assumed by the stalactite formations in the ,sophie ,cave in ,switzerland1 which we had visited4 ,unfortunately1 the book containing it is lost1 but ,i remember the following lines1 referring to the industrious sprites which ,i imagined as the sculptors of the wondrous shapes3 ,priestly robes and a high altar the sprites created here1 ,and in the rock-hewn cauldron poured the holy water clear1 ,within whose depths reflected1 by the torches' flickering rays1 ,beneath the surface glimmering my own face met my gaze2 ,and when ,i thus beheld it1 so small it seemed to me1 ,that yonder stone-carved giant looked on with mocking glee4 ,ay1 laugh1 if that's your pleasure1 ,goliath huge and old1 ,i soon shall fare forth singing1 you still your place must hold4 ,another sub-teacher was also a favourite travelling-companion4 ,his name was ,schaffner1 and he1 too1 with his thick1 black beard1 was a handsome man4 ,to those pupils who1 like my brother ,ludo1 were pursuing the study of the sciences1 he1 the mathematician of the institute1 must have been an unusually clear and competent teacher4 ,i was under his charge only a short time1 and his branch of knowledge was unfortunately my weak point4 ,shortly before my departure he married a younger sister of ,barop's wife1 and established an educational institution very similar to ,keilhau at ,gumperda1 at ,schwarza in ,thuringia4 ,herr ,vodoz1 our ,french teacher1 a cheery1 vigorous ,swiss1 with a perfect forest of curls on his head1 was also one of the most popular guides2 and so was ,dr4 ,budstedt1 who gave instruction in the classics4 ,he was not a handsome man1 but he deserved the name of anima candida4 ,he used to storm at the slightest occasion1 but he was quickly appeased again4 ,as a teacher ,i think he did his full duty1 but ,i no longer remember anything about his methods4 ,the travelling party which ,barop accompanied were very proud of the honour4 ,middendorf's age permitted him to go only with the youngest pupils1 who made the shortest trips4 ,these excursions led the little boys into the ,thuringian ,forest1 the ,hartz ,mountains1 ,saxony and ,bohemia1 ,nuremberg and ,wurzburg1 and the older ones by way of ,baireuth and ,regensburg to ,ulm4 ,the large boys in the first travelling party1 which was usually headed by ,barop himself1 extended their journey as far as ,switzerland4 ,i visited in after-years nearly all the places to which we went at that time1 and some1 with which important events in my life were associated1 ,i shall mention later4 ,it would not be easy to reproduce from memory the first impressions received without mingling with them more recent ones4 ,thus1 ,i well remember how ,nuremberg affected me and how much it pleased me4 ,i express this in my description of the journey2 but in the author of ,gred1 who often sought this delightful city1 and made himself familiar with life there in the days of its mediaval prosperity1 these childish impressions became something wholly new4 ,and yet they are inseparable from the conception and contents of the ,nuremberg novel4 ,my mother kept the old books containing the accounts of these excursions1 which occupied from two to three weeks1 and they possessed a certain interest for me1 principally because they proved how skilfully our teachers understood how to carry out ,froebel's principles on these occasions4 ,our records of travel also explain in detail what this educator meant by the words unity with life2 for our attention was directed not only to beautiful views or magnificent works of art and architecture1 but to noteworthy public institutions or great manufactories4 ,our teachers took the utmost care that we should understand what we saw4 ,the cultivation of the fields1 the building of the peasants' huts1 the national costumes1 were all brought under our notice1 thus making us familiar with life outside of the school1 and opening our eyes to things concerning which the pupil of an ordinary model grammar-school rarely inquires1 yet which are of great importance to the world to which we belong4 ,our material life was sensibly arranged4 ,during the rest at noon a cold lunch was served1 and an abundant hot meal was not enjoyed until evening4 ,in the large cities we dined at good hotels at the table d'hote1 and--as in ,dresden1 ,prague1 and ,coburg--were taken to the theatre4 ,but we often spent the night in the villages1 and then chairs were turned upside down1 loose straw was spread on the backs and over the floor1 and1 wrapped in the shawl which almost every boy carried buckled to his knapsack1 we slept1 only half undressed1 as comfortably as in the softest bed4 ,while walking we usually sung songs1 among them very nonsensical ones1 if only we could keep step well to their time4 ,often one of the teachers told us a story4 ,schaffner and ,bagge could do this best1 but we often met other pedestrians with whom we entered into conversation4 ,how delightful is the memory of these tramps6 ,progress on foot is slow1 but not only do we see ten times better than from a carriage or the window of a car1 but we hear and learn something while talking with the mechanics1 citizens1 and peasants who are going the same way1 or the landlords1 bar-maids1 and table companions we meet in the taverns1 whose guests live according to the custom of the country instead of the international pattern of our great hotels4 ,as a young married man1 ,i always anticipated as the greatest future happiness taking pedestrian tours with my sons like the ,keilhau ones2 but ,fate ordained otherwise4 ,on our return to the institute we were received with great rejoicing2 and how much the different parties1 now united1 had to tell one another6 ,study recommenced on the first of ,october1 and during the leisure days before that time the village church festival was celebrated under the village linden1 with plenty of cakes1 and a dance of the peasants1 in which we older ones took part4 ,but we were obliged to devote several hours of every day to describing our journey for our relatives at home4 ,each one filled a large book1 which was to be neatly written4 ,the exercise afforded better practice in describing personal experiences than a dozen essays which had been previously read with the teacher4 ,,chapter ,,xvi4 ,,autumn1 ,,winter1 ,,easter ,,and ,,departure ,autumn had come1 and this season of the year1 which afterwards was to be the most fraught with suffering1 at that time seemed perhaps the pleasantest2 for none afforded a better opportunity for wrestling and playing4 ,it brought delicious fruit1 and never was the fire lighted more frequently on the hearth in the plots of ground assigned to the pupils-- baking and boiling were pleasant during the cool afternoons4 ,no month seemed to us so cheery as ,october4 ,during its course the apples and pears were gathered1 and an old privilege allowed the pupils to glean--that is1 to claim the fruit left on the trees4 ,this tested the keenness of our young eyes1 but it sometimes happened that we confounded trees still untouched with those which had been harvested4 ,nitimur in vetitum semper cupimusque negata1--,the forbidden charms1 and the unexpected lures us4--is an excellent saying of ,ovid1 whose truth1 when he tested it in person1 was the cause of his exile4 ,it sometimes brought us into conflict with the owners of the trees1 and it was only natural that ,froebel's youngsters often excited the peasants' ire4 ,gellert1 it is true1 has sung3 ,enjoy what the ,lord has granted1 ,grieve not for aught withheld4 but the popular saying is1 ,forbidden fruit tastes sweetest1 and the proverb was right in regard to us ,keilhau boys4 ,whatever fruit is meant in the story related in ,genesis of the fall of man1 none could make it clearer to ,german children than the apple4 ,the ,keilhau ones were kept in a cellar1 and through the opening we thrust a pole to which the blade of a rapier was fastened4 ,this sometimes brought us up four or five apples at once1 which hung on the blade like the flock of ducks that ,baron ,munchausen's musket pierced with the ramrod4 ,we were all honest boys1 yet not one1 not even the sons of the heads of the institute1 ever thought of blaming or checking the zest for this appropriation of other people's property4 ,the apple and morality must stand in a very peculiar relation to each other4 ,scarcely was the last fruit gathered1 when other pleasures greeted us4 ,the #ahth of ,october1 the anniversary of the battle of ,leipsic1 was celebrated in ,thuringia by kindling bonfires on the highest mountains1 but ours was always the largest and brightest far and wide4 ,while the flames soared heavenward1 we enthusiastically sang patriotic songs4 ,the old ,lutzow ,jagers1 who had fought for the freedom of ,germany1 led the chorus and gazed with tearful eyes at the boys whom they were rearing for the future supporters and champions of their native land4 ,then winter came4 ,snow and ice usually appeared in our mountain valley in the latter half of ,november4 ,we welcomed them1 for winter brought coasting parties down the mountains1 skating1 snow-balling1 the clumsy snow-man1 and that most active of mortals1 the dancing-master1 who not only instructed us in the art of ,terpsichore1 but also gave us rules of decorum which were an abomination to ,uncle ,froebel4 ,an opportunity to put them into practice was close at hand1 for the #bith of ,november was ,barop's birthday1 which was celebrated by a little dance after the play4 ,those who took part in the performance were excused from study for several days before1 for with the sapper's help we built the stage1 and even painted the scenes4 ,the piece was rehearsed till it was absolutely faultless4 ,i took an active part in all these matters during my entire residence at the institute1 and we three ,ebers brothers had the reputation of being among the best actors1 though ,martin far surpassed us4 ,we had invented another variety of theatrical performances which we often enjoyed on winter evenings after supper1 unless one of the teachers read aloud to us1 or we boys performed the classic dramas4 ,while ,i was one of the younger pupils1 we used the large and complete puppet-show which belonged to the institute2 but afterwards we preferred to act ourselves1 and arranged the performance according to a plan of our own4 ,one of us who had seen a play during the vacation at home told the others the plot4 ,the whole was divided into scenes1 and each character was assigned to some representative who was left to personate it according to his own conception1 choosing the words and gestures which he deemed most appropriate4 ,i enjoyed nothing more than these performances2 and my mother1 who witnessed several of them during one of her visits1 afterwards said that it was surprising how well we had managed the affair and acted our parts4 ,for a long time ,i was the moving spirit in this play1 and we had no lack of talented mimes1 personators of sentimental heroes1 and droll comedians4 ,the women's parts1 of course1 were also taken by boys4 ,ludo made a wonderfully pretty girl4 ,i was sometimes one thing1 sometimes another1 but almost always stage manager4 ,these merry improvisations were certainly well fitted to strengthen the creative power and activity of our intellects4 ,there was no lack of admirable stage properties1 for the large wardrobe of the institute was at our disposal whenever we wanted to act1 which was at least once a week during the whole winter1 except in the ,advent season1 when everything was obliged to yield to the demand of the approaching ,christmas festival4 ,then we were all busy in making presents for our relatives4 ,the younger ones manufactured various cardboard trifles2 the older pupils1 as embryo cabinet-makers1 all sorts of pretty and useful things1 especially boxes4 ,unluckily1 ,i did not excel as a cabinet-maker1 though ,i managed to finish tolerable boxes2 but my mother had two made by the more skilful hands of ,ludo1 which were provided with locks and hinges1 so neatly finished1 veneered1 and polished that many a trained cabinet-maker's apprentice could have done no better4 ,it was one of ,froebel's principles--as ,i have already mentioned--to follow the ,german taste for manual labor1 and have us work with spades and pickaxes 7in our plots of ground71 and with squares1 chisels1 and saws 7in the pasteboard and carving lessons74 ,a clever elderly man1 the sapper1 or ,sabuim1 already mentioned--,i think ,i never heard his real name--instructed us in the trades of the book binder and cabinet-maker4 ,he was said to have served under ,napoleon as a sapper1 and afterwards settled in our neighbourhood1 and found occupation in ,keilhau4 ,he was skilful in all kinds of manual labour1 and an excellent teacher4 ,the nearer ,christmas came the busier were the workshops2 and while usually there was no noise1 they now resounded with ,christmas songs1 among which3 ,up1 up1 my lads6 why do ye sleep so long8 ,the night has passed1 and day begins to dawn2 or our ,berlin one3 ,something will happen to-morrow1 my children1 were most frequently heard4 ,christmas thoughts filled our hearts and minds4 ,christmas at home had been so delightful that the first year ,i felt troubled by the idea that the festival must be celebrated away from my mother and without her4 ,but after we had shared the ,keilhau holiday1 and what preceded and followed it1 we could not decide which was the most enjoyable4 ,once our mother was present1 though the cause of her coming was not exactly a joyous one4 ,about a week before the ,christmas of my third year at ,keilhau ,i went to the hayloft at dusk1 and while scuffling with a companion the hay slipped with us and we both fell to the barn-floor4 ,my school-mate sustained an internal injury1 while ,i escaped with the fracture of two bones1 fortunately only of the left arm4 ,the severe suffering which has darkened so large a portion of my life has been attributed to this fracture1 but the idea is probably incorrect2 otherwise the consequences would have appeared earlier4 ,at first the arm was very painful2 yet the thought of having lost the ,christmas pleasures was almost worse4 ,but the experience that the days from which we expect least often afford us most happiness was again verified4 ,barop had thought it his duty to inform my mother of this serious accident1 and two or three days later she arrived4 ,though ,i could not play out of doors with the others1 there was enough to enjoy in the house with her and some of my comrades4 ,every incident of that ,christmas has remained in my memory1 and1 though ,fate should grant me many more years of life1 ,i would never forget them4 ,first came the suspense and excitement when the wagon from ,rudolstadt filled with boxes drove into the court-yard1 and then the watching for those which might be meant for us4 ,on ,christmas eve1 when at home the bell summoned us to the ,christmas-tree the delight of anticipation reached its climax1 and expressed itself in song1 in gayer talk1 and now and then some harmless scuffle4 ,then we went to bed1 with the firm resolve of waking early2 but the sleep of youth is sounder than any resolution1 and suddenly unwonted sounds roused us1 perhaps from the dreams of the manger at ,bethlehem and the radiant ,christmas-tree4 ,was it the voice of the angels which appeared to the shepherds8 ,the melody was a ,christmas choral played by the ,rudolstadt band1 which had been summoned to waken us thus pleasantly4 ,never did we leave our beds more quickly than in the darkness of that early morning1 illuminated as usual only by a tallow dip4 ,rarely was the process of washing more speedily accomplished--in winter we were often obliged to break a crust of ice which had formed over the water2 but this time haste was useless1 for no one was admitted into the great hall before the signal was given4 ,at last it sounded1 and when we had pressed through the wide-open doors1 what splendours greeted our enraptured eyes and ears6 ,the whole room was most elaborately decorated with garlands of pine4 ,wherever the light entered the windows we saw transparencies representing biblical ,christmas scenes4 ,christmas-trees--splendid firs of stately height and size1 which two days before were the ornaments of the forest- glittered in the light of the candles1 which was reflected from the ruddy cheeks of the apples and the gilded and silvered nuts4 ,meanwhile the air1 ,o night so calm1 so holy6 floated from the instruments of the musicians4 ,scarcely had we taken our places when a chorus of many voices singing the angel's greeting1 ,glory to ,god in the highest1 peace on earth1 recalled to our happy hearts the sacredness of the morning4 ,violins and horns blended with the voices2 then1 before even the most excited could feel the least emotion of impatience1 the music ceased4 ,barop stepped forward1 and in the deep1 earnest tones peculiar to him exclaimed1 ,now see what pleasures the love of your friends has prepared for you6 ,the devout1 ennobling feelings which had inspired every heart were scattered to the four winds2 we dispersed like a flock of doves threatened by a hawk1 and the search for the places marked by a label began4 ,one had already seen his name2 a near-sighted fellow went searching from table to table2 and here and there one boy called to another to point out what his sharp eyes had detected4 ,on every table stood a ,stolle1 the ,saxon ,christmas bread called in ,keilhau ,schuttchen1 and a large plate of nuts and cakes1 the gift of the institute4 ,beside these1 either on the tables or the floor1 were the boxes from home4 ,they were already opened1 but the unpacking was left to us--a wise thing2 for what pleasure it afforded us to take out the various gifts1 unwrap them1 admire1 examine1 and show them to others6 ,those were happy days1 for we saw only joyous faces1 and our own hearts had room for no other feelings than the heaven-born sisters ,love1 ,joy1 and ,gratitude4 ,we entered with fresh zeal upon the season of work which followed4 ,it was the hardest of the twelve months1 for it carried us to ,easter1 the close of the school year1 and was interrupted only by the carnival with its merry masquerade4 ,all sorts of examinations closed the term of instruction4 ,on ,palm ,sunday the confirmation services took place1 which were attended by the parents of many of the pupils1 and in which the whole institute shared4 ,then came the vacation4 ,it lasted three weeks1 and was the only time we were allowed to return home4 ,and what varied pleasures awaited us there6 ,martha1 whom we left a young lady of seventeen1 remained unaltered in her charming1 gentle grace1 but ,paula changed every year4 ,one ,easter we found the plump school-girl transformed into a slender young lady4 ,the next vacation she had been confirmed1 wore long dresses1 had lost every trace of boyishness1 even rarely showed any touch of her former drollery4 ,she did not care to go to the theatre1 of which ,martha was very fond1 unless serious dramas were performed4 ,we1 on the contrary1 liked farces4 ,i still remember a political quip which was frequently repeated at the ,konigstadt ,theatre1 and whose point was a jeer at the aspirations of the revolution3 ,property is theft1 or a ,dream of a ,red ,republican4 ,we were in the midst of the reaction and those who had fought at the barricades on the #ahth of ,march applauded when the couplet was sung1 of which ,i remember these lines3 ,ah6 what bliss is the aspiration ,to dangle from a lamp-post ,as a martyr for the nation6 ,during these vacations politics was naturally a matter of utter indifference to us1 and toward their close we usually paid a visit to my grandmother and aunt in ,dresden4 ,so the years passed till ,easter 7#aheb7 came1 and with it our confirmation and my separation from ,ludo1 who was to follow a different career4 ,we had double instruction in confirmation1 first with the village boys from the pastor of ,eichfeld1 and afterwards from ,middendorf at the institute4 ,unfortunately1 ,i have entirely forgotten what the ,eichfeld clergyman taught us1 but ,middendorf's lessons made all the deeper impression4 ,he led us through life to ,god and the ,saviour1 and thence back again to life4 ,how often1 after one of these lessons1 silence reigned1 and teachers and pupils rose from their seats with tearful eyes6 ,afterwards ,i learned from a book which had been kept that what he gave us had been drawn chiefly from the rich experiences of his own life and the ,gospels1 supplemented by the writings of his favourite teacher1 ,schleiermacher4 ,by contemplation1 the consideration of the universe with the soul rather than with the mind1 we should enter into close relations with ,god and become conscious of our dependence upon him1 and this consciousness ,middendorf with his teacher ,schleiermacher called religion4 ,but the old ,lutzow ,jager1 who in the year #ahac had taken up arms at the ,berlin ,university1 had also sat at the feet of ,fichte1 and therefore crowned his system by declaring1 like the latter1 that religion was not feeling but perception4 ,whoever attained this1 arrived at a clear understanding of his own ego 7,middendorf's mental understanding of life71 perfect harmony with himself and the true sanctification of his soul4 ,this man who1 according to our ,middendorf1 is the really religious human being1 will be in harmony with ,god and ,nature1 and find an answer to the highest of all questions4 ,froebel's declaration that he had found the unity of life1 which had brought ,middendorf to ,keilhau1 probably referred to ,fichte4 ,the phrase had doubtless frequently been used by them in conversations about this philosopher1 and neither needed an explanation1 since ,fichte's opinions were familiar to both4 ,we candidates for confirmation at that time knew the ,berlin philosopher only by name1 and sentences like unity with one's self1 to grasp and fulfil1 inward purity of life1 etc41 which every one who was taught by ,middendorf must remember1 at first seemed perplexing2 but our teacher1 who considered it of the utmost importance to be understood1 and whose purpose was not to give us mere words1 but to enrich our souls with possessions that would last all our lives1 did not cease his explanations until even the least gifted understood their real meaning4 ,this natural1 childlike old man never lectured2 he was only a pedagogue in the sense of the ancients--that is1 a guide of boys4 ,though precepts tinctured by philosophy mingled with his teachings1 they only served as points of departure for statements which came to him from the soul and found their way to it4 ,he possessed a comprehensive knowledge of the religions of all nations1 and described each with equal love and an endeavour to show us all their merits4 ,i remember how warmly he praised ,confucius's command not to love our fellow-men but to respect them1 and how sensible and beautiful it seemed to me1 too1 in those days4 ,he lingered longest on ,buddhism2 and it surprises me now to discover how well1 with the aids then at his command1 he understood the touching charity of ,buddha and the deep wisdom and grandeur of his doctrine4 ,but he showed us the other religions mainly to place ,christianity and its renewing and redeeming power in a brighter light4 ,the former served1 as it were1 for a foil to the picture of our ,saviour's religion and character1 which he desired to imprint upon the soul4 ,whether he succeeded in bringing us into complete unity with the personality of ,christ1 to which he stood in such close relations1 is doubtful1 but he certainly taught us to understand and love him2 and this love1 though ,i have also listened to the views of those who attribute the creation and life of the world to mechanical causes1 and believe the ,deity to be a product of the human intellect1 has never grown cold up to the present day4 ,the code of ethics which ,middendorf taught was very simple4 ,his motto1 as ,i have said1 was1 ,true1 pure1 and upright in life4 ,he might have added1 and with a heart full of love2 for this was what distinguished him from so many1 what made him a ,christian in the most beautiful sense of the word1 and he neglected nothing to render our young hearts an abiding-place for this love4 ,of course1 our mother came to attend our confirmation1 which first took place with the peasant boys--who all wore sprigs of lavender in their button-holes--in the village church at ,eichfeld1 and then1 with ,middendorf officiating1 in the hall of the institute at ,keilhau4 ,few boys ever approached the communion-table for the first time in a more devout mood1 or with hearts more open to all good things1 than did we two brothers that day on our mother's right and left hand4 ,no matter how much ,i may have erred1 ,middendorf's teachings and counsels have not been wholly lost in any stage of my career4 ,after the confirmation ,i went away with my mother and ,ludo for the vacation1 and three weeks later ,i returned to the institute without my brother4 ,i missed him everywhere4 ,his greater discretion had kept me from many a folly1 and my need of loving some one found satisfaction in him4 ,besides1 his mere presence was a perpetual reminder of my mother4 ,keilhau was no longer what it had been4 ,new scenes always seem desirable to young people1 and for the first time ,i longed to go away1 though ,i knew nothing of my destination except that it would be a gymnasium4 ,yet ,i loved the institute and its teachers1 though ,i did not realize until later how great was my debt of gratitude4 ,here1 and by them1 the foundation of my whole future life was laid1 and if ,i sometimes felt it reel under my feet1 the ,froebel method was not in fault4 ,the institute could not dismiss us as finished men2 the desired unity with life can be attained only upon its stage--the world--in the motley throng of fellow-men1 but minds and bodies were carefully trained according to their individual peculiarities1 and ,i might consider myself capable of receiving higher lessons4 ,true1 my character was not yet steeled sufficiently to resist every temptation1 but ,i no longer need fear the danger of crossing the barrier which ,froebel set for men worthy in his sense4 ,my acquirements were deficient in many respects what the ,french term justesse d'esprit had to a certain degree become mine1 as in the case of every ,keilhau boy1 through our system of education4 ,though ,i could not boast of being one with ,nature1 we had formed a friendly alliance1 and ,i learned by my own experience the truth of ,goethe's words1 that it was the only book which offers valuable contents on every page4 ,i was not yet familiar with life1 but ,i had learned to look about with open eyes4 ,i had not become a master in any handicraft1 but ,i had learned with paste-pot and knife1 saw1 plane1 and chisel--nay1 even axe and handspike- -what manual labour meant and how to use my hands4 ,i had by no means attained to union with ,god1 but ,i had acquired the ability and desire to recognize his government in ,nature as well as in life2 for ,middendorf had understood how to lead us into a genuine filial relation with him and awaken in our young hearts love for him who kindles in the hearts of men the pure flame of love for their neighbours4 ,the ,greek words which ,langethal wrote in my album1 and which mean ,be truthful in love1 were beginning to be as natural to me as abhorrence of cowardice and falsehood had long been4 ,love for our native land was imprinted indelibly on my soul1 and lives there joyously1 ready to sacrifice for the freedom and greatness of ,germany even what ,i hold dearest4 ,,etext ,,editor',s ,,bookmarks3 ,a word at the right time and place ,confucius's command not to love our fellow-men but to respect