Chapter 7
The moment of retiring, to which I had been looking forward with
considerable interest as one likely to bring fresh surprises, arrived at
last: it brought only extreme discomfort. I was conducted (without a
flat candlestick) along an obscure passage; then, at right angles with
the first, a second broader, lighter passage, leading past a great many
doors placed near together. These, I ascertained later, were the
dormitories, or sleeping-cells, and were placed side by side in a row
opening on the terrace at the back of the house. Having reached the door
of my box, my conductor pushed back the sliding-panel, and when I had
groped my way to the dark interior, closed it again behind me. There was
no light for me except the light of the stars; for directly opposite the
door by which I had entered stood another, open wide to the night, which
was apparently not intended ever to be closed. The prospect was the one
I had already seen--the wilderness sloping to the river, and the glassy
surface of the broad water, reflecting the stars, and the black masses
of large trees.
Pages:
80
81
82
83
84
85
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
94
95
96
97
98
99
100
101
102
103
104