164 TEE OPEN AIR. 



how to name ; they could tell you at the Magasin du 

 Louvre, where men understand the hues of garments 

 as well as women. I presume it was one of the many 

 tints that are called at large "creamy." It suited 

 her perfectly. Her complexion was in the faintest 

 degree swarthy, and yet not in the least like what a 

 lady would associate with that word. The difficulty 

 in describing a colour is that different people take 

 different views of the terms employed; ladies have 

 one scale founded a good deal on dress, men another, 

 and painters have a special (and accurate) gamut 

 which they use in the studio. This was a clear 

 swarthiness — a translucent swarthiness — clear as the 

 most delicate white. There was something in the 

 hue of her neck as freely shown by the loose bathing 

 dress, of her bare arms and feet, somewhat recalling 

 to mind the kind of beauty attributed to the Queen 

 of Egypt. But it was more delicate. Her form was 

 almost fully developed, more so than usual at her 

 age. Again and again the foam rushed up deep 

 enough to cover her limbs, but not sufficiently so to 

 hide her chest, as she was partly raised on one 

 arm. Washed thus with the purest whiteness of the 

 sparkling foam, her beauty gathered increase from 

 the touch of the sea. She swayed slightly as the 

 water reached her, she was luxuriously recked to and 

 fro. The waves toyed with her; they came and 

 retired, happy in her presence ; the breeze and the 

 sunshine were there. 



Standing somewhat back, .the machines hid the 

 waves from me till they reached the shore, so that 

 I did not observe the heavy roller till it came and 



