at something was up. I found Florence some
days before, reading books like Ranke's History of the Popes, Symonds'
Renaissance, Motley's Rise of the Dutch Republic and Luther's Table
Talk.

I must say that, until the astonishment came, I got nothing but pleasure
out of the little expedition. I like catching the two-forty; I like the
slow, smooth roll of the great big trains--and they are the best trains
in the world! I like being drawn through the green country and looking
at it through the clear glass of the great windows. Though, of course,
the country isn't really green. The sun shines, the earth is blood red
and purple and red and green and red. And the oxen in the ploughlands
are bright varnished brown and black and blackish purple; and the
peasants are dressed in the black and white of magpies; and there are
great Rocks of magpies too. Or the peasants' dresses in another field
where there are little mounds of hay that will be grey-green on
the sunny side and purple in the shadows--the peasants' dresses are
vermilion with emerald green ribbons and purple skirts and white shirts
and black velvet stomachers. Still, the impression is that you are drawn
through brilliant green meadows that run away on each side to the dark
purple fir-woods; the basalt pinnacles; the immense forests. And there
is meadowsweet at the edge of the streams, and cattle. Why, I remember
on that afternoon I saw a brown cow hitch its horns under the stomach
of a black and white animal and the black and white one was thrown right
into the middle of a narrow stream. I burst out laughing. But Florence
was imparting information so hard and Leonora was listening so intently
that no one noticed me. As for me, I was pleased to be off duty; I was
pleased to think that Florence for the moment was indubitably out of
mischief--because she was talking about Ludwig the Courageous (I think
it was Ludwig the Courageous but I am not an historian) about Ludwig
the Courageous of Hessen who wanted to have three wives at once and
patronized Luther--something like that!--I was so relieved to be off
duty, because she couldn't possibly be doing anything to excite herself
or set her poor heart a-fluttering--that the incident of the cow was a
real joy to me. I chuckled over it from time to time for the whole rest
of the day. Because it does look very funny, you know, to see a black
and white cow land on its back in the middle of a stream. It is so just
exactly what one d