I concluded that Young gave way to his
daughter's fancies in order to induce her to believe she was of some
service in the family, and that her forethought protected the bees from
several accidents. That seemed the simplest explanation I could imagine,
and I thought no more about it.
"About seven we supped on milk and cheese, and when it was time to retire
Young led me into a goodsized room on the first floor, with a bed and a
few chairs in it, panelled in fir, as is generally the case in the
greater number of Swiss chalets. You are only separated from your
neighbours by a deal partition, and you can hear every footstep and
nearly every word.
"That night I was lulled to sleep by the whistling of the wind and the
sound of the rain beating against the window-panes. The next day the wind
had gone down and we were enveloped in mist. When I awoke I found my
windows quite white, quite padded with mist. When I opened my window the
valley looked like an immense stove; the tops of a few fir-trees alone
showed their outlines against the sky; below, the clouds were in regular
layers down to the surface of the lake; everything was calm, motionless,
and silent.
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