ver fair it had looked from
withinside, as soon as she got out on the front seat Wych
Hazel found that a flood of bright, slant sunbeams were
searching out all the beauty there was in the land, and
winning it into view. It was one of those illuminated hours,
that are to the common day as an old painted and jewelled
missal to an ordinary black letter.

'Is it better than your book?' said the charioteer, whose
reins were clearly only play to him, and who was much more
occupied with his companion. She glanced round at him, with
the very June evening in her eyes, dews and sunbeams and all.

'Better than most of the books that ever were written, I
suppose. But the book was not bad, Mr. Rollo.'

'What book was it? to be mentioned in the connection.'

' "I Promessi Sposi." '

'Unknown to me. Give me an idea of it--while we are getting up
this hill--there'll be something else to talk of afterwards.'

'Two people are betrothed, and proceed to get into all manner
of difficulties. That is the principal idea so far. I haven't
come to the turn of the story, which takes the thread out of
its tangle.'

'A very stupid idea! Yet you said the book was not a bad
book?' he said, looking gravely round upon her.

'No, indeed. And the idea is not stupid, in the book I mean,
because the people could not help themselves, and so you get
interested for them.'

'Do you get interested in people who cannot help themselves?'

'Yes, I think so--always,--people who _cannot_ in the impossible
sense. Not those who don't know or wont try. But my words did
not mean just that. I should have said, help _it_--help being in
difficulties.'

'I believe people can get out of difficulties,' said Rollo.
'What was the matter with these?'

'O the difficulties were piled on their heads by other people.
Lucia was a peasant, but she was "si bella" that one of the
grandees wanted to get her away from Renzo.'

'I don't see the difficulties yet. What next?'

'No, of course you don't!' said Wych, warming in defense of
her book. 'But if some Don Rodrigo forbade somebody to marry
_you_--and then sent a party to run away with your bride--so that
she had to go into a convent and you wander round the world in
ill humour--I daresay your clearness of vision would improve.'

'I dare say it would,' said Rollo, passing a hand over his
eyes,--'I think it would have to grow worse before all those
events could happen! But on the highest round of that ladder
of imp