76 CHAMOIS HUNTING. 



her whose voice and friendly manner had already pre- 

 possessed me, I was struck by the beauty that was close 

 beside me, and bursting at once upon me through the 

 dispersing gloom. It took me by surprise, and she must 

 have been other than a woman not to have rightly inter- 

 preted my long astonished gaze. There was not even a 

 shade of coquetry about her; if there had been, she 

 would have kept on her becoming green hat a minute or 

 two longer; but she smiled on seeing the mischief she 

 had done, and with friendly words inquired where we 

 had been. 



She was of commanding height, this fine-featured se- 

 cond sister, and the long dark-coloured cloth cloak made 

 her look still taller. It was simply drawn together at 

 the throat ; and, falling in natural folds closely over her 

 shoulders, gave dignity to the figure without preventing 

 you from discovering the outline of the womanly form. 

 On her head she wore the picturesque high-crowned green 

 hat peculiar to these valleys ; over the brim hung the 

 tassel of green and gold, and at the side were a bright 

 red rose and other artificial flowers. Her braided brown 

 hair showed itself beneath the broad brim of the hat ; 

 and as I afterwards looked at her finely-marked fea- 

 tures, and at the beautiful outline running from the tip 

 of the ear to the chin — which by the way is more sel- 

 dom seen in perfection than any other part of the face — 

 I could not help thinking that such a bonnie green hat 

 was, after all, the most becoming head-gear a girl could 

 wear. 



But beside the full-blown flower was another; a full 

 bud just about to unfold and burst into opening loveli- 

 ness. It was the youngest sister — Marie. She hardly 

 ventured to raise her large dark eyes to the stranger, 

 and quickly left the room to lay aside her hat and cloak. 



