trunks, the white, clammy, ghostly, flower or fungus of the Indian
Pipe at his feet, the masses of ferns, the elastic ground he trod
upon, and the singular circumstance that he was alone in this
exquisite spot with a woman he had never seen until five minutes
previously, all combined to make an ineffaceable impression upon his
mind. The lady showed herself proficient in the art of building a
fire and attended by Amherst soon had a fine flame rising up from
between the fortifications evidently piled by stronger hands than
her own.
"What do we do now?" asked Amherst "I should suggest--a kettle."
"Of course, that is the next step. If I give it to you, you might
run and fill it, eh?'
"Delighted!" and away went Amherst. When he returned the lady was
not to be seen. The place was shorn of its beauty, but he waited
discreetly and patiently, putting the kettle on to boil in the
meanwhile.
"It's very singular," said he, "how I come to be here. I wonder who
are with her in her party; no one else appears to be up or about.
That striped red and white thing is the tent, I see, over there. Ah!
That's where she has gone, and now she beckons me! Oh! I'll go, but
I don't want to meet the rest of them!"
But when he reached the tent, it was quite empty, save for rugs and
wraps, boxes, etc., and the lady was laughingly holding out a loaf
of bread in one hand and a paper package in the other.
"You will stay and breakfast with me?"
"What will you give me?" said Amherst, smiling.
"I can only give you eggs, boiled in the kettle, coffee and bread
and butter. The fish haven't come in yet."
"What can be nicer than eggs--especially when boiled in the kettle,
that is, if you make the coffee first"
"Certainly I do."
"And it is really French coffee?"
"Really. Cafe des Gourmets, you know; we--I always use it--do not
like any other."
Amherst was fast falling in love. He told me that at this point his
mind was quite made up that if it were possible he would remain in
the neighborhood a few days at least, in order to see more of this
|