CLOUDS 183 



in all its brilliancy. Down there at our feet, almost 

 in the plains, white clouds spread themselves out. 

 The wind sweeps them before it and drives them to- 

 ward the summit. There they are, rolling and 

 mounting up the side of the mountain. One would 

 think they were immense flocks of cotton pushed up 

 the slope by some invisible hand. Now and then 

 a ray of sunlight penetrates their depths and gives 

 them the brilliancy of gold and fire. The beautiful 

 clouds behind which the sun disappears at its setting 

 are not richer. What brilliant tints, what soft sup- 

 pleness! They mount higher and higher. Now 

 they roll up like a shining white band around the 

 top of the mountain, and hide the view of the plain 

 from us. Only the point where we are projects 

 above the cloud-curtain, like an islet above the sea. 

 At last this point is invaded, we are in the bosom of 

 the clouds. Warm tints, soft outlines, striking 

 views all have disappeared. It is now only a dark 

 fog that saturates with moisture and makes us feel 

 depressed. Ah, if some breath of wind would make 

 haste and sweep away these disagreeable clouds ! 



"That, my little friends, is what one does not fail 

 to wish when one is in the clouds, which, so beautiful 

 at a distance, are nothing but gloomy fog when close 

 at hand. The spectacle of the clouds should be seen 

 from a f;ir. When in our curiosity we wish to exam- 

 ine certain appearances too closely, we sometimes 

 find them deceptive; but we also find that, under a 

 secondary brillumcy, which serves to adorn tin* 

 <;nth, tln-y hide realities of the first importance. 

 The marvels of the clouds are only an appearance, 



