I Expected No Porter At The
Gate To Give The Signal Of My Arrival, No Waiter, And No
Chambermaid; I Only Desired A Little Spot In The Neighbourhood Of
The Dear Departed Icelanders.
I was suddenly recalled from these
happy delusions by the voice of the guide, who cried out:
"Here we
are at our destination for to-night." I looked joyfully round;
alas! I could only see a few of those cottages which are never
observed until you almost hit your nose against one of them, as the
grass-covered walls can hardly be distinguished from the surrounding
meadow.
It was already midnight. We stopped, and turned our horses loose,
to seek supper and rest in the nearest meadow. Our lot was a less
fortunate one. The inhabitants were already buried in deep
slumbers, from which even the barking set up by the dogs at our
approach failed to arouse them. A cup of coffee would certainly
have been very acceptable to me; yet I was loath to rouse any one
merely for this. A piece of bread satisfied my hunger, and a
draught of water from the nearest spring tasted most deliciously
with it. After concluding my frugal meal, I sought out a corner
beside a cottage, where I was partially sheltered from the too-
familiar wind; and wrapping my cloak around me, lay down on the
ground, having wished myself, with all my heart, a good night's rest
and pleasant dreams, in the broad daylight, {37} under the canopy of
heaven.
Enter page number
PreviousNext
Page 125 of 329
Words from 33245 to 33498
of 87606
