Chapter 05 | The Rare Gem
May 27, 1779-“Boy, the women in Newport are really going to gawk at you!” exclaimed Conrad as he looked at Wolfgang in his new uniform. “You sure are a Blue and Scarlet dandy” “ Better me than you, Connie,” Wolfgang responded, “They’ll soon be able to separate the wheat from the chaff, and you’re looking at a kernel.” “You dolts look like the weak one’s the Crown Prince should have left behind,” joked Ewalt, appearing quite the soldier in his blue and scarlet. “ Let’s get a move on, laggards, or we’ll be totally left behind.”
It was a great evening in Newport. The grenadiers were allowed to be on their own, rather than in a group, and even allowed to visit some of the Newport pubs. They were given a thorough orientation by Colonel Voit, the regiment commander, and had been emphatically instructed that there would be severe punishment for anyone straying even a little from the strict rules of conduct while in the city. You might say that most, if not all, carried the fear of “Lord Voit” in their hearts, and that good behavior would probably be the order of the day.
Wolfgang and his friends had enjoyed walking around Newport, and stopping at the Copperhead Pub for a few beers. Having been starved for the sight of a pretty female for so long, they also enjoyed looking at some of the best women Newport had to offer. But it was getting almost time to start back to camp, if they were to make the curfew time set by Colonel Voit.
It happened so suddenly that Wolfgang did not have time to think- he just reacted. Almost out of nowhere, a carriage caromed down the street, on three wheels, but sliding on an axle where one wheel had just come off, and jerked along recklessly by a horse that had lost all sense of civilized equine control. The occupants of the carriage, a middle aged couple and two young women, were screaming, and trying to stop the horse.
Wolfgang, just as his father Marcus, knew horses and was good at handling them. He jumped from the wooden sidewalk, raced into the street, and, at full run, grabbed the reins. For several dramatic moments, Wolfgang was forcibly dragged along by the wild-eyed horse. But somehow, his soothing words and significant weight brought the horse to a stop, just in time to avoid disaster. It wasn’t the way Wolfgang wanted to treat his new uniform, but it may have saved some lives.
The gentleman and his wife were extremely grateful to Wolfgang, and thanked him profusely for his heroic and effective act. Almost feeling the need to give their young savior a reward, they offered him an invitation to visit them at their house and dine with them. In the confusion, however, there were no formal introductions of the couple’s daughter, and her cousin who was living with them. But they did give instructions on how to find their house.
As the situation was resolved and Wolfgang hurried back to camp, one focal point of the unexpected event kept crowding out other thoughts in his mind. The cousin, who Wolfgang had heard called Elizabeth- even in her frightened state- was the most beautiful young woman Wolfgang had ever seen. He couldn’t stop thinking about her.
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Wolfgang’s commanding officer had heard of Wolfgang’s heroics in Newport, and because of the goodwill it had engendered toward the Hessians, agreed to allow Wolfgang to accept the invitation to dine with the Gottlieb’s- the family from the infamous carriage incident.
Wolfgang would probably not taken them up on their offer if it had not been for his fascination with Elizabeth. Visions of her beauty, however momentarily observed, had kept intruding on his thoughts ever since he’d seen her, and he told himself that meeting her and facing reality would bring him back to his senses, and to the fact that she must be just barely 20, and he was a married man with a wife and children.
On his 32nd birthday, June 21, 1799, The Gottlieb’s- Leopold and Irmgard- met Wolfgang at their door, and welcomed him like a long-lost son. He was amazed at how friendly, and grateful they were. Immediately, they introduced him to their daughter Amelinda, and her cousin, Elizabeth, who greeted him with a warm smile, as if they were old friends.
As the evening progressed, Wolfgang felt the warmth of a home for the first time in two years, and greatly enjoyed his conversation with everyone.
Wolfgang found out that Leopold was also originally from Germany. But he had lived in America for several years- and was now a loyalist who supported the King of England. Leopold made a good living working in leather. His saddles and harness, as well as his jackets and knapsacks, were known far and wide. Leopold believed that the rebels, a “scumbag army” as he called them, would be defeated within the next few months- with order restored in the colonies.
Irmgard, he discovered, was a wonderful cook, making the German food that he loved so well. She also had a sparkle in her eye, and struck Wolfgang as a lady who understood people, and who knew far more about what was going on in the colonies and her neighborhood than anyone might suspect.
Amelina was a fun-loving young lady, barely turned 20, who loved life, and who would loved to have an interested beau. Right now, she had none. Yet, her reddish hair and freckles, along with a perky nose, a twinkle like he mother, and a bubbly personality, should have made her an attractive find for some young men in Newport.
Elizabeth, who they generally called Ellie, was also 20, as Wolfgang had guessed. She was born in Pennsylvania, where her mother had died when she was 11. Her father, who was having difficulty providing for his family in more ways than one, and who wanted Ellie to experience a good family life and schools, sent Ellie to Rhode Island to stay with the family of his sister, Irmgard.
In contrast to Amelina, Ellie was a more mature girl, with a way about her that turned one’s eye. When she looked at you, her dark brown eyes seem to say “I like you, and want to be your friend.” Her long brown hair fell to her waist, and she was taller and had a better shape than most girls Wolfgang had seen.
Even with the difference in their ages, Wolfgang found her easier to talk to than any woman he had ever met, and realized as the evening progressed, that he had to be careful not to give all of his attention to Ellie.
Maybe it was his imagination, but Wolfgang thought that he noticed Ellie looking at him at moments when it would have been more natural for her to be looking at Leopold, who was doing the talking. When he noticed, she would turn her head, trying to appear to be looking somewhere else. Maybe it wasn’t so, but somehow, Wolfgang felt it was real.
When it came time for Wolfgang to leave- way too soon in his mind- everyone thanked him again for saving them from injury, and Wolfgang thanked Irmgard for the scrumptious dinner. To his surprise, Ellie, the last one to say goodbye, approached him, gave him a hug-that Wolfgang later remembered as “inviting”- and took hold of his hand, saying “Wolfgang, I so enjoyed my visit with you this evening. I hope we can have a chance to be together again sometime.” Her expressive eyes seemed to say, “and I really mean it.” Wolfgang awkwardly stuttered a reply, and escaped out the door.
On his way back to camp, Wolfgang was confused about what he was feeling. One part of his mind was thinking “She’s a very nice young woman, but you are a married man, and she is only 7 years older than your daughter. So don’t be foolish in your feelings toward her.” But another part of him, that he had trouble quieting, was saying “What a beautiful young woman, and I think she really likes me. I feel an almost magnetic bond between us. I want to see her again.”
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During the months of July and August, Wolfgang often slept fitfully, thinking of Ellie, and his feelings toward her. He tried to chastise himself, and think about his wife Maria, but he found himself using conjectures about Maria’s teenage problem, and his imagined affair between Maria and Ernst the grocer as a means of rationalizing that his obsession with Ellie was OK–even construing it as something Maria deserved. But in his more honest moments, he felt strong pangs of guilt for his inability to put Ellie out of his mind.
On a hot summer day in late August, Wolfgang was sent by Sergeant Kuester to pick up mail that he believed might have arrived on a British ship that had just harbored at Newport. Wolfgang welcomed the chance to get out of camp, and was pleased that Sergeant Kuester chose him to run the errand. He really wished that he had a horse to ride, but instead it was his lot to walk the three-mile trek to the dock and back in the hot Rhode Island sun.
It had been over two months since he had visited the Gottliebs, and had met Ellie. There hadn’t been a day that she was not on his mind, but he had also entertained the idea that he might never see her again. So it wasn’t by accident that the path he chose on his walk to Newport deviated a bit to pass by the Gottlieb house. If only per chance he would see her. He imagined what he would say, as he trudged toward the town.
Wolfgang may have called upon his guardian angel, not knowing if the angel was in the illegitimate matchmaking business or not, but this will remain forever a mystery. At any rate, what Wolfgang would later consider a minor miracle, Ellie was sitting in the yard as he approached the house.
“Wolfgang!” she shouted in amazement, “What brings you here?” Wolfgang greeted her enthusiastically and explained his mission- glossing over the fact that he hadn’t taken the shortest route. As they talked animatedly for several minutes, Wolfgang couldn’t believe he was saying “ Ellie, I enjoyed your company so much, and I have been thinking a lot about you since we met. I was afraid we would never see each other again.” Almost before it was out of his mouth, Wolfgang realized how inappropriate it might seem to Ellie. It came as a result of his thinking and imagining so much about her during the past several weeks, but what if Ellie hadn’t thought again of him at all? Ellie looked at Wolfgang, her dark eyes speaking with sincerity equal that of her voice, and said “Wolfgang, I’ve been thinking a lot about you too. I feel this strange magnetic connection with you. I can’t explain it, but it is almost as if we are drawn together when we meet. I’d so much hoped I would see you again.”
Wolfgang found himself, inexorably, drawing Ellie close to him, and when their lips met, he could feel the sensation all the way to his toes. She eagerly returned his kiss, and the whole situation seemed more natural to both of them that it probably should have. They talked on and on until Wolfgang came to his senses and realized that he could be in deep trouble if he was absent from camp too long. But as he took his leave, he heard his words tumble out, almost in a predestined invitation, “Ellie, I will be stationed as a guard at the Irish redoubt- you know where it is, not far from the edge of town- next week at this time, in the afternoon. I’ll be there by myself. Would you meet me there?” Ellie had been hoping against hope that they could meet some more, and without a moment of hesitation, smiled and said, “I’ll be there, too.”
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Wolfgang knew he shouldn’t have arranged the meeting, for several reasons. But he rationalized, “I couldn’t seem to help myself.” And so, blinded by his “love at first sight” relationship with Ellie, he counted the days until they were to meet again.
“Wolfie, I don’t have any assignment this afternoon, so why don’t I just go over to the Irish redoubt with you, Conrad offered generously, “We could talk about home, and some things we’ll do when we get back there.” Wolfgang racked his brain for the right excuse, and Conrad must have wondered why he was so slow in responding. “That’s really kind of you, Connie, but it’s going to be hot as blazes out there. I hate to cause you that pain, and I hear Ewalt and Fritz have found a place over by Whitehall where they can swim, and they also have in some time off. I’m sure you’ll have more fun swimming, and be a hell of a lot cooler there.” With a little more persuading, Conrad didn’t pursue his offer any more, and Wolfgang was off the hook.
The Irish redoubt had a small, enclosed turret with tiny windows that sat inside a stone wall. A couple of cannons were also inside the wall.
A single soldier could post himself inside the turret, and see the approaching enemy through a tiny window. Additional soldiers, if present, could man the cannons.
It had been very quiet on the island during the past several months, and the Hessians weren’t worried about the rebels attacking. So generally, one soldier was designated to use the redoubt as a guard post.
Wolfgang knew that even though the reboubt was not too far away from their new campsite near Tominy Hill, he would be the only soldier there on a hot afternoon, and he could meet Ellie without being detected. Also the redoubt wasn’t more than a mile and a half from the edge of town, so Ellie could sneak off there without anyone really noticing.
Wolfgang, arriving early, had been in the turret for about half an hour when he saw Ellie cautiously approaching from the most protected side. She was wearing a flowered dress, with colors that seemed to accentuate her eyes and hair, and one which showed her shape more that the usual dress one would see at a church social in Newport. As he greeted her, his heart pumping with excitement, he was both shocked and thrilled when she met him with a full, meaningful kiss, and gave him a warm, welcoming smile. “Oh, Wolfgang, I am so happy to see you. I know we shouldn’t be meeting like this, but I wanted to be with you.” Wolfgang held her hand longer than just for greeting, and expressed his pleasure, too, that she was there.
As it had been before, they found it so easy to talk to each other. At the end of an hour, he felt he had known her forever, and she, too, seemed to have found a long lost friend, and was enthralled by his courage in becoming a Hessian soldier.
Wolfgang told her a lot of things, but he did not tell her of his wife and children. And she did not tell him about the problems she had experienced with her father after her mother’s death.
Wolfgang and Ellie both knew it was time to go, but they could not bear to leave each other. They expressed, unabashedly, their new love for each other, and vowed that they would find a way to see each other again. As they held each other tight, kissing as if they wanted to stay together forever, they both knew that they were on the verge of entering a realm of intimacy that they might later regret. But the forces of nature might have been too strong to overcome if they hadn’t been interrupted in the nick of time by a shout from outside, “Are you in there, Wolfgang?” Wolfgang moved, quick as a cat, to the front of the turret, while Ellie, just as quickly, exited out the back and into the underbrush. “Right here, Sergeant,” Wolfgang responded in a clear voice, “ There have been no rebels in sight!”
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Wolfgang replayed his meeting with Ellie over and over in his mind, and found himself even deeper into a state of confusion than he had been after their earlier meeting. He tried to use logic to talk himself out of it, but he simply couldn’t seem to help wishing, almost praying, that he could see Ellie again soon. He couldn’t seem to get his mind off of her beauty, and the ease and pleasure with which they communicated. And she kissed me willingly, he thought, and said she loves me.
But before Wolfgang could plan a way to meet with Ellie again, a major event intervened to make a decision for him that he was unable to make for himself. It would take him away from Rhode Island, with the likelihood that he would never see Ellie again.
Just two days after Wolfgang had met Ellie at the Irish redoubt, General Prescott sent orders that all troops were to immediately vacate Rhode Island. Wolfgang, Conrad, and Ewalt were some of the last to march through Newport to embark on the ship Silver Eel. As they passed through the streets of Newport, all the houses were locked and all persons, particularly females, were admonished that they were not to be seen at any window. General Prescott had issued these orders so that no one could be signaled to escape into a house and desert. So, after a year in Rhode Island, near Newport, with lots of guard duty, but no combat, Wolfgang and his regiment sailed out of Newport harbor.
Wolfgang was devastated. He knew that he was leaving Ellie- beautiful, kind, loving Ellie- with no guarantee that he would ever see her again. It was as if his heart had been eaten out by a ferocious animal. It made no difference that he was not supposed to cry, the tears rolled uncontrolled down his cheeks anyway. His only hope was that he would someday, some way, find her again, but it was a hope that hung by a tiny, vulnerable thread. He did not know how to post a letter to her except possibly addressing it to her father at his business. But at what address? And if he got it, he would probably open it and read it- something Wolfgang wasn’t ready to accept. It would take all the strength he could muster for Wolfgang to overcome what he perceived as one of his most major disappointments in life. A part of him wanted to say that it was for the best, but that part was drowned out by his intense attraction to Ellie. He could not stop the tears.
Ellie had heard the news. As she lay on her bed, tears streamed down her cheeks, too, and she was heartbroken. To her, Wolfgang was a very special person, unlike any man she had ever met. She had so hoped that they could see each other often, and grow in their love, if that was possible. But now, as she watched the Silver Eel sail away, she had the premonition that she would never see him again, and that a dark veil had been cast over a once vibrant part of her very being. She wondered if she would ever recover.