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WAKE NOT THE DEAD..................................................................................................................................1

"Wilt thou for ever sleep? Wilt thou never more awake, my beloved, but henceforth repose for ever from thy

short pilgrimage on earth? O yet once again return! and bring back with thee the vivifying dawn of hope to

one whose existence hath, since thy departure, been obscured by the dunnest shades. What! dumb? for ever

dumb? Thy friend lamenteth, and thou heedest him not? He sheds bitter, scalding tears, and thou reposest

unregarding his affliction? He is in despair, and thou no longer openest thy arms to him as an asylum from

his grief? Say then, doth the paly shroud become thee better than the bridal veil? Is the chamber of the grave

a warmer bed than the couch of love? Is the spectre death more welcome to thy arms than thy enamoured

consort? Oh! return, my beloved, return once again to this anxious disconsolate bosom."

Such were the lamentations which Walter poured forth for his Brunhilda, the partner of his youthful

passionate love; thus did he bewail over her grave at the midnight hour, what time the spirit that presides in

the troublous atmosphere, sends his legions of monsters through midair; so that their shadows, as they flit

beneath the moon and across the earth, dart as wild, agitating thoughts that chase each other o'er the sinner's

bosom: thus did he lament under the tall linden trees by her grave, while his head reclined on the cold

Walter was a powerful lord in Burgundy, who, in his earliest youth, had been smitten with the charms of the

fair Brunhilda, a beauty far surpassing in loveliness all her rivals; for her tresses, dark as the raven face of

night, streaming over her shoulders, set off to the utmost advantage the beaming lustre of her slender form,

and the rich dye of a cheek whose tint was deep and brilliant as that of the western heaven; her eyes did not

resemble those burning orbs whose pale glow gems the vault of night, and whose immeasurable distance fills

the soul with deep thoughts of eternity. but rather as the sober beams which cheer this nether world, and

which, while they enlighten, kindle the sons of earth to joy and love. Brunhilda became the wife of Walter,

and both being equally enamoured and devoted, they abandoned themselves to the enjoyment of a passion

that rendered them reckless of aught besides, while it lulled them in a fascinating dream. Their sole

apprehension was lest aught should awaken them from a delirium which they prayed might continue for ever.

Yet how vain is the wish that would arrest the decrees of destiny! as well might it seek to divert the circling

planets from their eternal course. Short was the duration of this phrenzied passion; not that it gradually

decayed and subsided into apathy, but death snatched away his blooming victim, and left Walter to a

widowed couch. Impetuous, however, as was his first burst of grief, he was not inconsolable, for ere long

Swanhilda also was beautiful; although nature had formed her charms on a very different model from those of

Brunhilda. Her golden locks waved bright as the beams of morn: only when excited by some emotion of her

soul did a rosy hue tinge the lily paleness of her cheek: her limbs were proportioned in the nicest symmetry,

yet did they not possess that luxuriant fullness of animal life: her eye beamed eloquently, but it was with the

milder radiance of a star, tranquillizing to tenderness rather than exciting to warmth. Thus formed, it was not

possible that she should steep him in his former delirium, although she rendered happy his waking hours

tranquil and serious, yet cheerful, studying in all things her husband's pleasure, she restored order and

comfort in his family, where her presence shed a general influence all around. Her mild benevolence tended

to restrain the fiery, impetuous disposition of Walter: while at the same time her prudence recalled him in

some degree from his vain, turbulent wishes, and his aspirings after unattainable enjoyments, to the duties

and pleasures of actual life. Swanhilda bore her husband two children, a son and a daughter; the latter was

mild and patient as her mother, well contented with her solitary sports, and even in these recreations

displayed the serious turn of her character. The boy possessed his father's fiery, restless disposition,

tempered, however, with the solidity of his mother. Attached by his offspring more tenderly towards their

mother, Walter now lived for several years very happily: his thoughts would frequently, indeed, recur to

Brunhilda, but without their former violence, merely as we dwell upon the memory of a friend of our earlier

days, borne from us on the rapid current of time to a region where we know that he is happy.

But clouds dissolve into air, flowers fade, the sands of the hourglass run impeceptibly away, and even so, do

human feelings dissolve, fade, and pass away, and with them too, human happiness. Walter's inconstant

breast again sighed for the ecstatic dreams of those days which he had spent with his equally romantic,

enamoured Brunhilda again did she present herself to his ardent fancy in all the glow of her bridal charms,

and he began to draw a parallel between the past and the present; nor did imagination, as it is wont, fail to

array the former in her brightest hues, while it proportionably obscured the latter; so that he pictured to

himself, the one much more rich in enjoyment, and the other, much less so than they really were. This change

in her husband did not escape Swanhilda; whereupon, redoubling her attentions towards him, and her cares

towards their children, she expected, by this means, to reunite the knot that was slackened; yet the more she

endeavoured to regain his affections, the colder did he grow, the more intolerable did her caresses seem,

and the more continually did the image of Brunhilda haunt his thoughts. The children, whose endearments

were now become indispensable to him, alone stood between the parents as genii eager to affect a

reconciliation; and, beloved by them both, formed a uniting link between them. Yet, as evil can be plucked

from the heart of man, only ere its root has yet struck deep, its fangs being afterwards too firm to be

eradicated; so was Walter's diseased fancy too far affected to have its disorder stopped, for, in a short time, it

completely tyrannized over him. Frequently of a night, instead of retiring to his consort's chamber, he

repaired to Brunhilda's grave, where he murmured forth his discontent, saying: "Wilt thou sleep for ever?"

One night as he was reclining on the turf, indulging in his wonted sorrow, a sorcerer from the neighbouring

mountains, entered into this field of death for the purpose of gathering, for his mystic spells, such herbs as

grow only from the earth wherein the dead repose, and which, as if the last production of mortality, are gifted

with a powerful and supernatural influence. The sorcerer perceived the mourner, and approached the spot

"Wherefore, fond wretch, dost thou grieve thus, for what is now a hideous mass of mortality mere bones,

and nerves, and veins? Nations have fallen unlamented; even worlds themselves, long ere this globe of ours

was created, have mouldered into nothing; nor hath any one wept over them; why then should'st thou indulge

this vain affliction for a child of the dust a being as frail as thyself, and like thee the creature but of a

Walter raised himself up: "Let yon worlds that shine in the firmament" replied he, "lament for each other

as they perish. It is true, that I who am myself clay, lament for my fellowclay: yet is this clay impregnated

with a fire, with an essence, that none of the elements of creation possess with love: and this divine

"Will thy complaints awaken her: or could they do so, would she not soon upbraid thee for having disturbed

"Avaunt, coldhearted being: thou knowest not what is love. Oh! that my tears could wash away the earthy

covering that conceals her from these eyes; that my groan of anguish could rouse her from her slumber of

"Insensate that thou art, and couldst thou endure to gaze without shuddering on one disgorged from the jaws

of the grave? Art thou too thyself the same from whom she parted; or hath time passed o'er thy brow and left

"Say rather that the stars would leave yon firmament, that the sun will henceforth refuse to shed his beams

through the heavens. Oh! that she stood once more before me; that once again she reposed on this bosom!

how quickly should we then forget that death or time had ever stepped between us."

"Delusion! mere delusion of the brain, from heated blood, like to that which arises from the fumes of wine. It

is not my wish to tempt thee; to restore to thee thy dead; else wouldst thou soon feel that I have spoken

"How! restore her to me," exclaimed Walter casting himself at the sorcerer's feet. "Oh! if thou art indeed able

to effect that, grant it to my earnest supplication; if one throb of human feeling vibrates in thy bosom, let my

tears prevail with thee; restore to me my beloved; so shalt thou hereafter bless the deed, and see that it was a

"A good work! a blessed deed!" returned the sorcerer with a smile of scorn; "for me there exists nor good

nor evil; since my will is always the same. Ye alone know evil, who will that which ye would not. It is indeed

in my power to restore her to thee: yet, bethink thee well, whether it will prove thy weal. Consider too, how

deep the abyss between life and death; across this, my power can build a bridge, but it can never fill up the

Walter would have spoken, and have sought to prevail on this powerful being by fresh entreaties, but the

latter prevented him, saying: "Peace! bethink thee well! and return hither to me tomorrow at midnight. Yet

Having uttered these words, the mysterious being disappeared. Intoxicated with fresh hope, Walter found no

sleep on his couch; for fancy, prodigal of her richest stores, expanded before him the glittering web of

futurity; and his eye, moistened with the dew of rapture, glanced from one vision of happiness to another.

During the next day he wandered through the woods, lest wonted objects by recalling the memory of later and

less happier times, might disturb the blissful idea. that he should again behold her again fold her in his

arms, gaze on her beaming brow by day, repose on her bosom at night: and, as this sole idea filled his

imagination, how was it possible that the least doubt should arise; or that the warning of the mysterious old

No sooner did the midnight hour approach, than he hastened before the gravefield where the sorcerer was

already standing by that of Brunhilda. "Hast thou maturely considered?" inquired he.

"Oh! restore to me the object of my ardent passion," exclaimed Walter with impetuous eagerness. "Delay not

thy generous action, lest I die even this night, consumed with disappointed desire; and behold her face no

"Well then," answered the old man, "return hither again tomorrow at the same hour. But once more do I give

All in the despair of impatience, Walter would have prostrated himself at his feet, and supplicated him to

fulfil at once a desire now increased to agony; but the sorcerer had already disappeared. Pouring forth his

lamentations more wildly and impetuously than ever, he lay upon the grave of his adored one, until the grey

dawn streaked the east. During the day, which seemed to him longer than any he had ever experienced, he

wandered to and fro, restless and impatient, seemingly without any object, and deeply buried in his own

reflections, inquest as the murderer who meditates his first deed of blood: and the stars of evening found him

"Oh what should I deliberate?" returned Walter impatiently. "I need not to deliberate; what I demand of thee,

is that which thou hast promised me that which will prove my bliss. Or dost thou but mock me? if so,

"Once more do I warn thee." answered the old man with undisturbed composure, " 'Wake not the dead' let

"Aye, but not in the cold grave: she shall rather rest on this bosom which burns with eagerness to clasp her."

"Reflect, thou mayst not quit her until death, even though aversion and horror should seize thy heart. There

"Dotard!" cried Walter, interrupting him, 'how may I hate that which I love with such intensity of passion?

The old man now drew a circle round the grave, all the while muttering words of enchantment. Immediately

the storm began to howl among the tops of the trees; owls flapped their wings, and uttered their low voice of

omen; the stars hid their mild, beaming aspect, that they might not behold so unholy and impious a spectacle;

the stone then rolled from the grave with a hollow sound, leaving a free passage for the inhabitant of that

dreadful tenement. The sorcerer scattered into the yawning earth, roots and herbs of most magic power, and

of most penetrating odour. so that the worms crawling forth from the earth congregated together, and raised

themselves in a fiery column over the grave: while rushing wind burst from the earth, scattering the mould

before it, until at length the coffin lay uncovered. The moonbeams fell on it, and the lid burst open with a

tremendous sound. Upon this the sorcerer poured upon it some blood from out of a human skull, exclaiming

at the same time, "Drink, sleeper, of this warm stream, that thy heart may again beat within thy bosom." And,

after a short pause, shedding on her some other mystic liquid, he cried aloud with the voice of one inspired:

"Yes, thy heart beats once more with the flood of life: thine eye is again opened to sight. Arise, therefore,

As an island suddenly springs forth from the dark waves of the ocean, raised upwards from the deep by the

force of subterraneous fires, so did Brunhilda start from her earthy couch, borne forward by some invisible

power. Taking her by the hand, the sorcerer led her towards Walter, who stood at some little distance, rooted

"Receive again," said he, "the object of thy passionate sighs: mayest thou never more require my aid; should

that, however, happen, so wilt thou find me, during the full of the moon, upon the mountains in that spot and

Instantly did Walter recognize in the form that stood before him, her whom he so ardently loved; and a

sudden glow shot through his frame at finding her thus restored to him: yet the nightfrost had chilled his

limbs and palsied his tongue. For a while he gazed upon her without either motion or speech, and during this

pause, all was again become hushed and serene; and the stars shone brightly in the clear heavens.

"Walter!" exclaimed the figure; and at once the wellknown sound, thrilling to his heart, broke the spell by

"No, it is no imposture; I am really living: conduct me quickly to thy castle in the mountains."

Walter looked around: the old man had disappeared, but he perceived close by his side, a coalblack steed of

fiery eye, ready equipped to conduct him thence; and on his back lay all proper attire for Brunhilda, who lost

no time in arraying herself. This being done, she cried; "Haste, let us away ere the dawn breaks, for my eye is

yet too weak to endure the light of day." Fully recovered from his stupor, Walter leaped into his saddle, and

catching up, with a mingled feeling of delight and awe, the beloved being thus mysteriously restored from the

power of the grave, he spurred on across the wild, towards the mountains, as furiously as if pursued by the

The castle to which Walter conducted his Brunhilda, was situated on a rock between other rocks rising up

above it. Here they arrived, unseen by any save one aged domestic, on whom Walter imposed secrecy by the

"Here will we tarry," said Brunhilda, "until I can endure the light, and until thou canst look upon me without

trembling as if struck with a cold chill." They accordingly continued to make that place their abode: yet no

one knew that Brunhilda existed, save only that aged attendant, who provided their meals. During seven

entire days they had no light except that of tapers: during the next seven, the light was admitted through the

lofty casements only while the rising or settingsun faintly illumined the mountaintops, the valley being still

Seldom did Walter quit Brunhilda's side: a nameless spell seemed to attach him to her; even the shudder

which he felt in her presence, and which would not permit him to touch her, was not unmixed with pleasure,

like that thrilling awful emotion felt when strains of sacred music float under the vault of some temple; he

rather sought, therefore, than avoided this feeling. Often too as he had indulged in calling to mind the

beauties of Brunhilda, she had never appeared so fair, so fascinating, so admirable when depicted by his

imagination, as when now beheld in reality. Never till now had her voice sounded with such tones of

sweetness; never before did her language possess such eloquence as it now did, when she conversed with him

on the subject of the past. And this was the magic fairyland towards which her words constantly conducted

him. Ever did she dwell upon the days of their first love, those hours of delight which they had participated

together when the one derived all enjoyment from the other: and so rapturous, so enchanting, so full of life

did she recall to his imagination that blissful season, that he even doubted whether he had ever experienced

with her so much felicity, or had been so truly happy. And, while she thus vividly portrayed their hours of

past delight, she delineated in still more glowing, more enchanting colours, those hours of approaching bliss

which now awaited them, richer in enjoyment than any preceding ones. In this manner did she charm her

attentive auditor with enrapturing hopes for the future, and lull him into dreams of more than mortal ecstasy;

so that while he listened to her siren strain, he entirely forgot how little blissful was the latter period of their

union, when he had often sighed at her imperiousness, and at her harshness both to himself and all his

household. Yet even had he recalled this to mind would it have disturbed him in his present delirious trance?

Had she not now left behind in the grave all the frailty of mortality? Was not her whole being refined and

purified by that long sleep in which neither passion nor sin had approached her even in dreams? How

different now was the subject of her discourse! Only when speaking of her affection for him, did she betray

anything of earthly feeling: at other times, she uniformly dwelt upon themes relating to the invisible and

future world; when in descanting and declaring the mysteries of eternity, a stream of prophetic eloquence

In this manner had twice seven days elapsed, and, for the first time, Walter beheld the being now dearer to

him than ever, in the full light of day. Every trace of the grave had disappeared from her countenance; a

roseate tinge like the ruddy streaks of dawn again beamed on her pallid cheek; the faint, mouldering taint of

the grave was changed into a delightful violet scent; the only sign of earth that never disappeared. He no

longer felt either apprehension or awe, as he gazed upon her in the sunny light of day: it was not until now,

that he seemed to have recovered her completely; and, glowing with all his former passion towards her, he

would have pressed her to his bosom, but she gently repulsed him, saying: "Not yet spare your

Spite of his impatience, Walter was obliged to await the lapse of another period of seven days: but, on the

night when the moon was arrived at the full, he hastened to Brunhilda, whom he found more lovely than she

had ever appeared before. Fearing no obstacles to his transports, he embraced with all the fervour of a deeply

enamoured and successful lover. Brunhilda, however, still refused to yield to his passion. "What!" exclaimed

she, "is it fitting that I who have been purified by death from the frailty of mortality, should become thy

concubine, while a mere daughter of the earth bears the title of thy wife: never shall it be. No, it must be

within the walls of thy palace, within that chamber where I once reigned as queen, that thou obtainest the end

of thy wishes, and of mine also," added she, imprinting a glowing kiss on the lips, and immediately

Heated with passion, and determined to sacrifice everything to the accomplishment of his desires, Walter

hastily quitted the apartment, and shortly after the castle itself. He travelled over mountain and across heath,

with the rapidity of a storm, so that the turf was flung up by his horse's hoofs; nor once stopped until he

Here, however, neither the affectionate caresses of Swanhilda, or those of his children could touch his heart,

or induce him to restrain his furious desires. Alas! is the impetuous torrent to be checked in its devastating

course by the beauteous flowers over which it rushes, when they exclaim: "Destroyer, commiserate our

helpless innocence and beauty, nor lay us waste?" the stream sweeps over them unregarding, and a single

Shortly afterwards did Walter begin to hint to Swanhilda that they were illsuited to each other; that he was

anxious to taste that wild, tumultuous life, so well according with the spirit of his sex, while she, on the

contrary, was satisfied with the monotonous circle of household enjoyments: that he was eager for

whatever promised novelty, while she felt most attached to what was familiarized to her by habit: and lastly,

that her cold disposition, bordering upon indifference, but ill assorted with his ardent temperament: it was

therefore more prudent that they should seek apart from each other that happiness which they could not find

together. A sigh, and a brief acquiescence in his wishes was all the reply that Swanhilda made: and, on the

following morning, upon his presenting her with a paper of separation, informing her that she was at liberty

to return home to her father, she received it most submissively: yet, ere she departed, she gave him the

following warning: "Too well do I conjecture to whom I am indebted for this our separation. Often have I

seen thee at Brunhilda's grave, and beheld thee there even on that night when the face of the heavens was

suddenly enveloped in a veil of clouds. Hast thou rashly dared to tear aside the awful veil that separates the

mortality that dreams, from that which dreameth not? Oh! then woe to thee, thou wretched man, for thou hast

She ceased: nor did Walter attempt any reply, for the similar admonition uttered by the sorcerer flashed upon

his mind, all obscured as it was by passion, just as the lightning glares momentarily through the gloom of

Swanhilda then departed, in order to pronounce to her children, a bitter farewell, for they, according to

national custom, belonged to the father; and, having bathed them in her tears, and consecrated them with the

holy water of maternal love, she quitted her husband's residence, and departed to the home of her father's.

Thus was the kind and benevolent Swanhilda driven an exile from those halls where she had presided with

grace; from halls which were now newly decorated to receive another mistress. The day at length arrived

on which Walter, for the second time, conducted Brunhilda home as a newly made bride. And he caused it to

be reported among his domestics that his new consort had gained his affections by her extraordinary likeness

to Brunhilda, their former mistress. How ineffably happy did he deem himself as he conducted his beloved

once more into the chamber which had often witnessed their former joys, and which was now newly gilded

and adorned in a most costly style: among the other decorations were figures of angels scattering roses, which

served to support the purple draperies whose ample folds o'ershadowed the nuptial couch. With what

impatience did he await the hour that was to put him in possession of those beauties for which he had already

paid so high a price, but, whose enjoyment was to cost him most dearly yet! Unfortunate Walter! revelling in

bliss, thou beholdest not the abyss that yawns beneath thy feet, intoxicated with the luscious perfume of the

flower thou hast plucked, thou little deemest how deadly is the venom with which it is fraught, although, for a

Happy, however, as Walter was now, his household were far from being equally so. The strange resemblance

between their new lady and the deceased Brunhilda filled them with a secret dismay, an undefinable

horror; for there was not a single difference of feature, of tone of voice, or of gesture. To add too to these

mysterious circumstances, her female attendants discovered a particular mark on her back, exactly like one

which Brunhilda had. A report was now soon circulated, that their lady was no other than Brunhilda herself,

who had been recalled to life by the power of necromancy. How truly horrible was the idea of living under

the same roof with one who had been an inhabitant of the tomb, and of being obliged to attend upon her, and

acknowledge her as mistress! There was also in Brunhilda much to increase this aversion, and favour their

superstition: no ornaments of gold ever decked her person; all that others were wont to wear of this metal, she

had formed of silver: no richly coloured and sparkling jewels glittered upon her; pearls alone, lent their pale

lustre to adorn her bosom. Most carefully did she always avoid the cheerful light of the sun, and was wont to

spend the brightest days in the most retired and gloomy apartments: only during the twilight of the

commencing or declining day did she ever walk abroad, but her favourite hour was when the phantom light of

the moon bestowed on all objects a shadowy appearance and a sombre hue; always too at the crowing of the

cock an involuntary shudder was observed to seize her limbs. Imperious as before her death, she quickly

imposed her iron yoke on every one around her, while she seemed even far more terrible than ever, since a

dread of some supernatural power attached to her, appalled all who approached her. A malignant withering

glance seemed to shoot from her eye on the unhappy object of her wrath, as if it would annihilate its victim.

In short, those halls which, in the time of Swanhilda were the residence of cheerfulness and mirth, now

resembled an extensive desert tomb. With fear imprinted on their pale countenances, the domestics glided

through the apartments of the castle; and in this abode of terror, the crowing of the cock caused the living to

tremble, as if they were the spirits of the departed; for the sound always reminded them of their mysterious

mistress. There was no one but who shuddered at meeting her in a lonely place, in the dusk of evening, or by

the light of the moon, a circumstance that was deemed to be ominous of some evil: so great was the

apprehension of her female attendants, they pined in continual disquietude, and, by degrees, all quitted her. In

the course of time even others of the domestics fled, for an insupportal horror had seized them.

The art of the sorcerer had indeed bestowed upon Brunhilda an artificial life, and due nourishment had

continued to support the restored body: yet this body was not able of itself to keep up the genial glow of

vitality, and to nourish the flame whence springs all the affections and passions, whether of love or hate; for

death had for ever destroyed and withered it: all that Brunhilda now possessed was a chilled existence, colder

than that of the snake. It was nevertheless necessary that she should love, and return with equal ardour the

warm caresses of her spellenthralled husband, to whose passion alone she was indebted for her renewed

existence. It was necessary that a magic draught should animate the dull current in her veins and awaken her

to the glow of life and the flame of love a potion of abomination one not even to be named without a

curse human blood, imbibed whilst yet warm, from the veins of youth. This was the hellish drink for

which she thirsted: possessing no sympathy with the purer feelings of humanity; deriving no enjoyment from

aught that interests in life and occupies its varied hours; her existence was a mere blank, unless when in the

arms of her paramour husband, and therefore was it that she craved incessantly after the horrible draught. It

was even with the utmost effort that she could forbear sucking even the blood of Walter himself, reclined

beside her. Whenever she beheld some innocent child whose lovely face denoted the exuberance of infantine

health and vigour, she would entice it by soothing words and fond caresses into her most secret apartment,

where, lulling it to sleep in her arms, she would suck form its bosom the war, purple tide of life. Nor were

youths of either sex safe from her horrid attack: having first breathed upon her unhappy victim, who never

failed immediately to sink into a lengthened sleep, she would then in a similar manner drain his veins of the

vital juice. Thus children, youths, and maidens quickly faded away, as flowers gnawn by the cankering

worm: the fullness of their limbs disappeared; a sallow line succeeded to the rosy freshness of their cheeks,

the liquid lustre of the eye was deadened, even as the sparkling stream when arrested by the touch of frost;

and their locks became thin and grey, as if already ravaged by the storm of life. Parents beheld with horror

this desolating pestilence devouring their offspring; nor could simple or charm, potion or amulet avail aught

against it. The grave swallowed up one after the other; or did the miserable victim survive, he became

cadaverous and wrinkled even in the very morn of existence. Parents observed with horror this devastating

pestilence snatch away their offspring a pestilence which, nor herb however potent, nor charm, nor holy

taper, nor exorcism could avert. They either beheld their children sink one after the other into the grave, or

their youthful forms, withered by the unholy, vampire embrace of Brunhilda, assume the decrepitude of

At length strange surmises and reports began to prevail; it was whispered that Brunhilda herself was the cause

of all these horrors; although no one could pretend to tell in what manner she destroyed her victims, since no

marks of violence were discernible. Yet when young children confessed that she had frequently lulled them

asleep in her arms, and elder ones said that a sudden slumber had come upon them whenever she began to

converse with them, suspicion became converted into certainty, and those whose offspring had hitherto

escaped unharmed, quitted their hearths and home all their little possessions the dwellings of their

fathers and the inheritance of their children, in order to rescue from so horrible a fate those who were dearer

Thus daily did the castle assume a more desolate appearance; daily did its environs become more deserted;

none but a few aged decrepit old women and greyheaded menials were to be seen remaining of the once

numerous retinue. Such will in the latter days of the earth be the last generation of mortals, when childbearing

shall have ceased, when youth shall no more be seen, nor any arise to replace those who shall await their fate

Walter alone noticed not, or heeded not, the desolation around him; he apprehended not death, lapped as he

was in a glowing elysium of love. Far more happy than formerly did he now seem in the possession of

Brunhilda. All those caprices and frowns which had been wont to overcloud their former union had now

entirely disappeared. She even seemed to doat on him with a warmth of passion that she had never exhibited

even during the happy season of bridal love; for the flame of that youthful blood, of which she drained the

veins of others, rioted in her own. At night, as soon as he closed his eyes, she would breathe on him till he

sank into delicious dreams, from which he awoke only to experience more rapturous enjoyments. By day she

would continually discourse with him on the bliss experienced by happy spirits beyond the grave, assuring

him that, as his affection had recalled her from the tomb, they were now irrevocably united. Thus fascinated

by a continual spell, it was not possible that he should perceive what was taking place around him. Brunhilda,

however, foresaw with savage grief that the source of her youthful ardour was daily decreasing, for, in a short

time, there remained nothing gifted with youth, save Walter and his children, and these latter she resolved

On her first return to the castle, she had felt an aversion towards the offspring of another, and therefore

abandoned them entirely to the attendants appointed by Swanhilda. Now, however, she began to pay

considerable attention to them, and caused them to be frequently admitted into her presence. The aged nurses

were filled with dread at perceiving these marks of regard from her towards their young charges, yet dared

they not to oppose the will of their terrible and imperious mistress. Soon did Brunhilda gain the affection of

the children, who were too unsuspecting of guile to apprehend any danger from her; on the contrary, her

caresses won them completely to her. Instead of ever checking their mirthful gambols, she would rather

instruct them in new sports: often too did she recite to them tales of such strange and wild interest as to

exceed all the stories of their nurses. Were they wearied either with play or with listening to her narratives,

she would take them on her knees and lull them to slumber. Then did visions of the most surpassing

magnificence attend their dreams: they would fancy themselves in some garden where flowers of every hue

rose in rows one above the other, from the humble violet to the tall sunflower, forming a particoloured

broidery of every hue, sloping upwards towards the golden clouds where little angels whose wings sparkled

with azure and gold descended to bring them delicious cakes or splendid jewels; or sung to them soothing

melodious hymns. So delightful did these dream in short time become to the children that they longered for

nothing so eagerly as to slumber on Brunhilda's lap, for never did they else enjoy such visions of heavenly

forms. They were they most anxious for that which was to prove their destruction: yet do we not all aspire

after that which conducts us to the grave after the enjoyment of life? These innocents stretched out their

arms to approaching death because it assumed the mask of pleasure; for, which they were lapped in these

ecstatic slumbers, Brunhilda sucked the lifestream from their bosoms. On waking, indeed, they felt

themselves faint and exhausted, yet did no pain nor any mark betray the cause. Shortly, however, did their

strength entirely fail, even as the summer brook is gradually dried up: their sports became less and less noisy;

their loud, frolicsome laughter was converted into a faint smile; the full tones of their voices died away into a

mere whisper. Their attendants were filled with horror and despair; too well did they conjecture the horrible

truth, yet dared not to impart their suspicions to Walter, who was so devotedly attached to his horrible

partner. Death had already smote his prey: the children were but the mere shadows of their former selves, and

The anguished father deeply bemoaned their loss, for, notwithstanding his apparent neglect, he was strongly

attached to them, nor until he had experienced their loss was he aware that his love was so great. His

affliction could not fail to excite the displeasure of Brunhilda: "Why dost thou lament so fondly," said she,

"for these little ones? What satisfaction could such unformed beings yield to thee unless thou wert still

attached to their mother? Thy heart then is still hers? Or dost thou now regret her and them because thou art

satiated with my fondness and weary of my endearments? Had these young ones grown up, would they not

have attached thee, thy spirit and thy affections more closely to this earth of clay to this dust and have

alienated thee from that sphere to which I, who have already passed the grave, endeavour to raise thee? Say is

thy spirit so heavy, or thy love so weak, or thy faith so hollow, that the hope of being mine for ever is unable

to touch thee?" Thus did Brunhilda express her indignation at her consort's grief, and forbade him her

presence. The fear of offending her beyond forgiveness and his anxiety to appease her soon dried up his tears;

and he again abandoned himself to his fatal passion, until approaching destruction at length awakened him

Neither maiden, nor youth, was any longer to be seen, either within the dreary walls of the castle, or the

adjoining territory: all had disappeared; for those whom the grave had not swallowed up had fled from the

region of death. Who, therefore, now remained to quench the horrible thirst of the female vampire save

Walter himself? and his death she dared to contemplate unmoved; for that divine sentiment that unites two

beings in one joy and one sorrow was unknown to her bosom. Was he in his tomb, so was she free to search

out other victims and glut herself with destruction, until she herself should, at the last day, be consumed with

the earth itself, such is the fatal law to which the dead are subject when awoke by the arts of necromancy

She now began to fix her bloodthirsty lips on Walter's breast,when cast into a profound sleep by the odour

of her violet breath he reclined beside her quite unconscious of his impending fate: yet soon did his vital

powers begin to decay; and many a grey hair peeped through his raven locks. With his strength, his passion

also declined; and he now frequently left her in order to pass the whole day in the sports of the chase, hoping

thereby to regain his wonted vigour. As he was reposing one day in a wood beneath the shade of an oak, he

perceived, on the summit of a tree, a bird of strange appearance, and quite unknown to him; but, before he

could take aim at it with his bow, it flew away into the clouds; at the same time letting fall a rosecoloured

root which dropped at Walter's feet, who immediately took it up and, although he was well acquainted with

almost every plant, he could not remember to have seen any at all resembling this. Its delightfully odoriferous

scent induced him to try its flavour, but ten times more bitter than wormwood it was even as gall in his

mouth; upon which, impatient of the disappointment, he flung it away with violence. Had he, however, been

aware of its miraculous quality and that it acted as a counter charm against the opiate perfume of Brunhilda's

breath, he would have blessed it in spite of its bitterness: thus do mortals often blindly cast away in

When Walter returned home in the evening and laid him down to repose as usual by Brunhilda's side, the

magic power of her breath produced no effect upon him; and for the first time during many months did he

close his eyes in a natural slumber. Yet hardly had he fallen asleep, ere a pungent smarting pain disturbed him

from his dreams; and. opening his eyes, he discerned, by the gloomy rays of a lamp, that glimmered in the

apartment what for some moments transfixed him quite aghast, for it was Brunhilda, drawing with her lips,

the warm blood from his bosom. The wild cry of horror which at length escaped him, terrified Brunhilda,

whose mouth was besmeared with the warm blood. "Monster!" exclaimed he, springing from the couch, "is it

"Creature of blood!" continued Walter, "the delusion which has so long blinded me is at an end: thou are the

fiend who hast destroyed my children who hast murdered the offspring of my vassels." Raising herself

upwards and, at the same time, casting on him a glance that froze him to the spot with dread, she replied. "It

is not I who have murdered them; I was obliged to pamper myself with warm youthful blood, in order that

I might satisfy thy furious desires thou art the murderer!" These dreadful words summoned, before

Walter's terrified conscience, the threatening shades of all those who had thus perished; while despair choked

"Why," continued she, in a tone that increased his horror, "why dost thou make mouths at me like a puppet?

Thou who hadst the courage to love the dead to take into thy bed, one who had been sleeping in the grave,

the bedfellow of the worm who hast clasped in thy lustful arms, the the corruption of the tomb dost

thou, unhallowed as thou art, now raise this hideous cry for the sacrifice of a few lives? They are but

leaves swept from their branches by a storm. Come, chase these idiot fancies, and taste the bliss thou hast

so dearly purchased." So saying, she extended her arms towards him; but this motion served only to increase

All the horrors of a guilty, upbraiding conscience became his companions, now that he was awakened from

the delirium of his unholy pleasures. Frequently did he curse his own obstinate blindness, for having given no

heed to the hints and admonitions of his children's nurses, but treating them as vile calumnies. But his sorrow

was now too late, for, although repentance may gain pardon for the sinner, it cannot alter the immutable

decrees of fate it cannot recall the murdered from the tomb. No sooner did the first break of dawn appear,

than he set out for his lonely castle in the mountains, determined no longer to abide under the same roof with

so terrific a being; yet vain was his flight, for, on waking the following morning, he perceived himself in

Brunhilda's arms, and quite entangled in her long raven tresses, which seemed to involve him, and bind him

in the fetters of his fate; the powerful fascination of her breath held him still more captivated, so that,

forgetting all that had passed, he returned her caresses, until awakening as if from a dream he recoiled in

unmixed horror from her embrace. During the day he wandered through the solitary wilds of the mountains,

as a culprit seeking an asylum from his pursuers; and, at night, retired to the shelter of a cave; fearing less to

couch himself within such a dreary place, than to expose himself to the horror of again meeting Brunhilda;

but alas! it was in vain that he endeavoured to flee her. Again, when he awoke, he found her the partner of his

miserable bed. Nay, had he sought the centre of the earth as his hiding place; had he even imbedded himself

beneath rocks, or formed his chamber in the recesses of the ocean, still had he found her his constant

companion; for, by calling her again into existence, he had rendered himself inseparably hers; so fatal were

Struggling with the madness that was beginning to seize him, and brooding incessantly on the ghastly visions

that presented themselves to his horrorstricken mind, he lay motionless in the gloomiest recesses of the

woods, even from the rise of sun till the shades of eve. But, no sooner was the light of day extinguished in the

west, and the woods buried in impenetrable darkness, than the apprehension of resigning himself to sleep

drove him forth among the mountains. The storm played wildly with the fantastic clouds, and with the

rattling leaves, as they were caught up into the air, as if some dread spirit was sporting with these images of

transitoriness and decay: it roared among the summits of the oaks as if uttering a voice of fury, while its

hollow sound rebounding among the distant hills, seemed as the moans of a departing sinner, or as the faint

cry of some wretch expiring under the murderer's hand: the owl too, uttered its ghastly cry as if foreboding

the wreck of nature. Walter's hair flew disorderly in the wind, like black snakes wreathing around his temples

and shoulders; while each sense was awake to catch fresh horror. In the clouds he seemed to behold the forms

of the murdered; in the howling wind to hear their laments and groans; in the chilling blast itself he felt the

dire kiss of Brunhilda; in the cry of the screeching bird he heard her voice; in the mouldering leaves he

scented the charnelbed out of which he had awakened her. "Murderer of thy own offspring," exclaimed he

in a voice making night, and the conflict of the element still more hideous, "paramour of a bloodthirsty

vampire, reveller with the corruption of the tomb!" while in his despair he rent the wild locks from his head.

Just then the full moon darted from beneath the bursting clouds; and the sight recalled to his remembrance the

advice of the sorcerer, when he trembled at the first apparition of Brunhilda rising from her sleep of death;

name]y, to seek him at the season of the full moon in the mountains, where three roads met. Scarcely had this

gleam of hope broke in on his bewildered mind than he flew to the appointed spot.

On his arrival, Walter found the old man seated there upon a stone as calmly as though it had been a bright

sunny day and completely regardless of the uproar around. "Art thou come then?" exclaimed he to the

breathless wretch, who, flinging himself at his feet, cried in a tone of anguish: "Oh save me succour

"Wherefore a mysterious warning? why didst thou not rather disclose to me at once all the horrors that

"And wherefore a mysterious warning? why didst thou not perceivest how wholesome was the advice

"Wert thou able to listen to another voice than that of thy impetuous passions? Did not thy eager impatience

"True, true: thy reproof is just: but what does it avail now; I need the promptest aid."

"Well," replied the old man, "there remains even yet a means of rescuing thyself, but it is fraught with horror

"Utter it then, utter it; for what can be more appalling, more hideous than the misery I now endure?"

"Know then," continued the sorcerer, "that only on the night of the new moon does she sleep the sleep of

mortals; and then all the supernaturural power which she inherits from the grave totally fails her. 'Tis then

"Aye," returned the old man calmly, "pierce her bosom with a sharpened dagger, which I will furnish thee

with; at the same time renounce her memory for ever, swearing never to think of her intentionally, and that, if

"What, must I wait until then?" cried Walter, "alas ere then. either her savage thirst for blood will have forced

me into the night of the tomb, or horror will have driven me into the night of madness."

"Nay," replied the sorcerer, "that I can prevent;" and, so saying, he conducted him to a cavern further among

the mountains. "Abide here twice seven days," said he; "so long can I protect thee against her deadly caresses.

Here wilt thou find all due provision for thy wants; but take heed that nothing tempt thee to quit this place.

Farewell, when the moon renews itself, then do I repair hither again." So saying, the sorcerer drew a magic

Twice seven days did Walter continue in this solitude, where his companions were his own terrifying

thoughts, and his bitter repentance. The present was all desolation and dread; the future presented the image

of a horrible deed which he must perforce commit; while the past was empoisoned by the memory of his

guilt. Did he think on his former happy union with Brunhilda, her horrible image presented itself to his

imagination with her lips defiled with dropping blood: or, did he call to mind the peaceful days he had passed

with Swanhilda, he beheld her sorrowful spirit with the shadows of her murdered children. Such were the

horrors that attended him by day: those of night were still more dreadful, for then he beheld Brunhilda

herself, who, wandering round the magic circle which she could not pass, called upon his name till the cavern

reechoed the horrible sound. "WaIter, my beloved," cried she, "wherefore dost thou avoid me? art thou not

mine? for ever mine mine here, and mine hereafter? And dost thou seek to murder me? ah! commit not

a deed which hurls us both to perdition thyself as well as me." In this manner did the horrible visitant

The night of the new moon at length arrived, dark as the deed it was doomed to bring forth. The sorcerer

entered the cavern; "Come," said he to Walter, "let us depart hence, the hour is now arrived:" and he

forthwith conducted him in silence from the cave to a coalblack steed, the sight of which recalled to

Walter's remembrance the fatal night. He then related to the old man Brunhilda's nocturnal visits and

anxiously inquired whether her apprehensions of eternal perdition would be fulfilled or not. "Mortal eye,"

exclaimed the sorcerer, "may not pierce the dark secrets of another world, or penetrate the deep abyss that

separates earth from heaven." Walter hesitated to mount the steed. "Be resolute," exclaimed his companion,

"but this once is it granted to thee to make the trial, and, should thou fail now, nought can rescue thee from

"What can be more horrible than she herself? I am determined:" and he leaped on the horse, the sorcerer

Carried with a rapidity equal to that of the storm that sweeps across the plain they in brief space arrived at

Walter's castle. All the doors flew open at the bidding of his companion, and they speedily reached

Brunhilda's chamber, and stood beside her couch. Reclining in a tranquil slumber; she reposed in all her

native loveliness, every trace of horror had disappeared from her countenance; she looked so pure, meek and

innocent that all the sweet hours of their endearments rushed to Walter's memory, like interceding angels

pleading in her behalf. His unnerved hand could not take the dagger which the sorcerer presented to him.

"The blow must be struck even now:" said the latter, "shouldst thou delay but an hour, she will lie at daybreak

"Horrible! most horrible!" faltered the trembling Walter, and turning away his face, he thrust the dagger into

her bosom, exclaiming "I curse thee for ever! and the cold blood gushed upon his hand. Opening her

eyes once more, she cast a look of ghastly horror on her husband, and, in a hollow dying accent said

"Lay now thy hand upon her corpse," said the sorcerer, "and swear the oath." Walter did as commanded,

saying, "Never will I think of her with love, never recall her to mind intentionally, and, should her image

"Thou hast now done everything," returned the sorcerer; "restore her therefore to the earth, from which

thou didst so foolishly recall her; and be sure to recollect thy oath: for, shouldst thou forget it but once, she

would return, and thou wouldst be inevitably lost. Adieu we see each other no more." Having uttered

these words he quitted the apartment, and Walter also fled from this abode of horror, having first given

Again did the terrific Brunhilda repose within her grave; but her image continually haunted Walter's

imagination, so that his existence was one continued martyrdom, in which he continually struggled, to

dismiss from his recollection the hideous phantoms of the past; yet, the stronger his effort to banish them, so

much the more frequently and the more vividly did they return; as the nightwanderer, who is enticed by a

firewisp into quagmire or bog, sinks the deeper into his damp grave the more he struggles to escape. His

imagination seemed incapable of admitting any other image than that of Brunhilda: now he fancied he beheld

her expiring, the blood streaming from her beautiful bosom: at others he saw the lovely bride of his youth,

who reproached him with having disturbed the slumbers of the tomb; and to both he was compelled to utter

the dreadful words, "I curse thee for ever." The terrible imprecation was constantly passing his lips; yet was

he in incessant terror lest he should forget it, or dream of her without being able to repeat it, and then, on

awaking, find himself in her arms. Else would he recall her expiring words, and, appalled at their terrific

import, imagine that the doom of his perdition was irrecoverably passed. Whence should he fly from himself?

or how erase from his brain these images and forms of horror? In the din of combat, in the tumult of war and

its incessant pour of victory to defeat; from the cry of anguish to the exultation of victory in these he

hoped to find at least the relief of distraction: but here too he was disappointed. The giant fang of

apprehension now seized him who had never before known fear; each drop of blood that sprayed upon him

seemed the cold blood that had gushed from Brunhilda's wound; each dying wretch that fell beside him

looked like her, when expiring, she exclaimed, "Thou too art doomed to perdition"; so that the aspect of

death seemed more full of dread to him than aught beside, and this unconquerable terror compelled him to

abandon the battlefield. At length, after many a weary and fruitless wandering, he returned to his castle.

Here all was deserted and silent, as if the sword, or a still more deadly pestilence had laid everything waste:

for the few inhabitants that still remained, and even those servants who had once shewn themselves the most

attached, now fled from him, as though he had been branded with the mark of Cain. With horror he perceived

that, by uniting himself as he had done with the dead, he had cut himself off from the living, who refused to

hold any intercourse with him. Often, when he stood on the battlements of his castle, and looked down upon

desolate fields, he compared their present solitude with the lively activity they were wont to exhibit, under the

strict but benevolent discipline of Swanhilda. He now felt that she alone could reconcile him to life, but durst

he hope that one, whom he so deeply aggrieved, could pardon him, and receive him again? Impatience at

length got the better of fear; he sought Swanhilda, and, with the deepest contrition, acknowledged his

complicated guilt; embracing her knees as he beseeched her to pardon him, and to return to his desolate

castle, in order that it might again become the abode of contentment and peace. The pale form which she

beheld at her feet, the shadow of the lately blooming youth, touched Swanhilda. "The folly," said she gently,

"though it has caused me much sorrow, has never excited my resentment or my anger. But say, where are my

children?" To this dreadful interrogation the agonized father could for a while frame no reply: at length he

was obliged to confess the dreadful truth. "Then we are sundered for ever," returned Swanhilda; nor could all

his tears or supplications prevail upon her to revoke the sentence she had given.

Stripped of his last earthly hope, bereft of his last consolation, and thereby rendered as poor as mortal can

possibly be on this side of the grave. Walter returned homewards; when, as he was riding through the forest

in the neighbourhood of his castle, absorbed in his gloomy meditations, the sudden sound of a horn roused

him from his reverie. Shortly after he saw appear a female figure clad in black, and mounted on a steed of the

same colour: her attire was like that of a huntress, but, instead of a falcon, she bore a raven in her hand; and

she was attended by a gay troop of cavaliers and dames. The first salutations bring passed, he found that she

was proceeding the same road as himself; and, when she found that Walter's castle was close at hand, she

requested that he would lodge her for that night, the evening being far advanced. Most willingly did he

comply with this request, since the appearance of the beautiful stranger had struck him greatly; so

wonderfully did she resemble Swanhilda, except that her locks were brown, and her eye dark and full of fire.

With a sumptous banquet did he entertain his guests, whose mirth and songs enlivened the lately silent halls.

Three days did this revelry continue, and so exhilarating did it prove to Walter that he seemed to have

forgotten his sorrows and his fears; nor could he prevail upon himself to dismiss his visitors, dreading lest, on

their departure, the castle would seem a hundred times more desolate than before hand his grief be

proportionally increased. At his earnest request, the stranger consented to stay seven, and again another seven

days. Without being requested, she took upon herself the superintendence of the household, which she

regulated as discreetly and cheerfully as Swanhilda had been wont to do, so that the castle, which had so

lately been the abode of melancholy and horror, became the residence of pleasure and festivity, and Walter's

grief disappeared altogether in the midst of so much gaiety. Daily did his attachment to the fair unknown

increase; he even made her his confidant; and, one evening as they were walking together apart from any of

her train, he related to her his melancholy and frightful history. "My dear friend," returned she, as soon as he

he had finished his tale, "it ill beseems a man of thy discretion to afflict thyself on account of all this. Thou

hast awakened the dead from the sleep of the grave and afterwards found, what might have been

anticipated, that the dead possess no sympathy with life. What then? thou wilt not commit this error a second

Thou hast however murdered the being whom thou hadst thus recalled again to existence but it was only

in appearance, for thou couldst not deprive that of life which properly had none. Thou hast, too, lost a wife

and two children: but at thy years such a loss is most easily repaired. There are beauties who will gladly share

thy couch, and make thee again a father. But thou dreadst the reckoning of hereafter: go, open the graves

and ask the sleepers there whether that hereafter disturbs them." In such manner would she frequently exhort

and cheer him, so that, in a short time. his melancholy entirely disappeared. He now ventured to declare to the

unknown the passion with which she had inspired him, nor did she refuse him her hand. Within seven days

afterwards the nuptials were celebrated, and the very foundations of the castle seemed to rock from the wild

tumultuous uproar of unrestrained riot. The wine streamed in abundance; the goblets circled incessantly;

intemperance reached its utmost bounds, while shouts of laughter almost resembling madness burst from the

numerous train belonging to the unknown. At length Walter, heated with wine and love, conducted his bride

into the nuptial chamber: but, oh! horror! scarcely had he clasped her in his arms ere she transformed herself

into a monstrous serpent, which entwining him in its horrid folds, crushed him to death. Flames crackled on

every side of the apartment; in a few minutes after, the whole castle was enveloped in a blaze that consumed

it entirely: while, as the walls fell in with a tremendous crash, a voice exclaimed aloud "Wake not the