364 CHAMOIS HUNTING. 



and her hands, I observed, were always washed before 

 meals. Equipped as she was in full male attire, so that 

 at a short distance I could not distinguish her from her 

 younger brother, she needed this palliative of cleanliness 

 to lessen somewhat my unconquerable distaste to her mas- 

 culine attire. 



In such out-of-the-way places you may often perceive 

 a human form stalking along the hill-side, which you 

 very naturally take for the herdsman. On approaching 

 the Esquimaux-looking figure — Esquimaux-like both in 

 filth and dress — you perceive it is not a man, and yet 

 you can hardly bring yourself to believe that the rotund 

 bundle before you has any claim to the name of woman. 

 It seems to you such a sad desecration ; and indeed it is 

 so, for every appearance of womanhood is gone.* 



On leaving this dwelling I could not help exclaiming 

 to Hans, " What a nice hut ! Why it has a table ! did 

 you see it ? And there is even a sort of bench to sit on ; 

 — it looks quite comfortable." 



The thing was, our present abode was so rude that 

 even this trifling accommodation of a board on four legs 

 as a seat, seemed to me a luxury. The interior of the 

 hut was also neater than the one where we were staying, 

 owing probably to the presence of the Esquimaux-look- 

 ing sister. 



Thus, after all, comfort, like happiness, is quite a re- 

 lative idea. Had I seen this out first, with its poor 

 contrivances, it would not have seemed to promise great 

 things ; while now I was really anxious to remove to it, 

 in order to profit of its superior accommodation. And 



* It need hardly be said that this dress is assumed for convenience 

 sake ; as the woman's usual attire would be but little adapted for the 

 mire of the cowhouse, or the dews and plashy meadows and tangled 

 underwood of a mountain sojourn. 



