fell direct this colour was bright and
luminous, as we see in our fingers when held before a strong firelight.
But that part of her skin that remained in shadow appeared of a dimmer
white, and the underlying colour varied from dim, rosy purple to dim
blue. With the skin the colour of the eyes harmonized perfectly. At
first, when lit with anger, they had appeared flame-like; now the iris
was of a peculiar soft or dim and tender red, a shade sometimes seen
in flowers. But only when looked closely at could this delicate hue be
discerned, the pupils being large, as in some grey eyes, and the long,
dark, shading lashes at a short distance made the whole eye appear dark.
Think not, then, of the red flower, exposed to the light and sun in
conjunction with the vivid green of the foliage; think only of such
a hue in the half-hidden iris, brilliant and moist with the eye's
moisture, deep with the eye's depth, glorified by the outward look of
a bright, beautiful soul. Most variable of all in colour was the hair,
this being due to its extreme fineness and glossiness, and to its
elasticity, which made it lie fleecy and loose on head, shoulders, and
back; a cloud with a brightness on its surface made by the freer outer
hairs, a fit setting and crown for a countenance of such rare changeful
loveliness. In the shade, viewed closely, the general colour appeared a
slate, deepening in places to purple; but even in the shade the nimbus
of free flossy hairs half veiled the darker tints with a downy pallor;
and at a distance of a few yards it gave the whole hair a vague, misty
appearance. In the sunlight the colour varied more, looking now dark,
sometimes intensely black, now of a light uncertain hue, with a play of
iridescent colour on the loose surface, as we see on the glossed plumage
of some birds; and at a short distance, with the sun shining full on her
head, it sometimes looked white as a noonday cloud. So changeful was it
and ethereal in appearance with its cloud colours that all other human
hair, even of the most beautiful golden shades, pale or red, seemed
heavy and dull and dead-looking by comparison.

But more than form and colour and that enchanting variability was the
look of intelligence, which at the same time seemed complementary to and
one with the all-seeing, all-hearing alertness appearing in her face;
the alertness one remarks in a wild creature, even when in repose and
fearing nothing; but seldom in man, never perhaps i