some water from the
river with my hand and drank. Suddenly I thought I heard a low cough a
short distance away. Never have I experienced so pleasant a surprise
as at that moment; I went nearer and saw, on the edge of the forest,
an old woman, apparently resting. She was dressed almost entirely in
black; a black hood covered her head and a large part of her face. In
her hand she held a walking-stick.

"I approached her and asked for help; she had me sit down beside her
and gave me bread and some wine. While I was eating she sang a hymn in
a shrill voice, and when she had finished she said that I might follow
her.

"I was delighted with this proposal, strange as the voice and the
personality of the old woman seemed to me. She walked rather fast with
her cane, and at every step she distorted her face, which at first
made me laugh. The wild rocks steadily receded behind us--we crossed a
pleasant meadow, and then passed through a fairly long forest. When we
emerged from this, the sun was just setting, and I shall never forget
the view and the feelings of that evening. Everything was fused in the
most delicate red and gold; the tree-tops stood forth in the red glow
of evening, the charming light was spread out over the fields, the
forest and the leaves of the trees were motionless, the clear sky
looked like an open paradise, and the evening bells of the villages
rang out with a strange mournfulness across the lea. My young soul now
got its first presentment of the world and its events. I forgot myself
and my guide; my spirit and my eyes were wandering among golden
clouds.

"We now climbed a hill, which was planted with birchtrees, and from
its summit looked down into a little valley, likewise full of birches.
In the midst of the trees stood a little hut. A lively barking came to
our ears, and presently a spry little dog was dancing around the old
woman and wagging his tail. Presently he came to me, examined me from
all sides, and then returned with friendly actions to the old woman.

"When we were descending the hill I heard some wonderful singing,
which seemed to come from the hut. It sounded like a bird, and ran

O solitude
Of lonely wood,
Where none intrude,
Thou bringest good
For every mood,
O solitude!

"These few words were repeated over and over; if I were to attempt to
describe the effect, it was somewhat like the blended notes of a bugle
and a shawm.

"My curiosity was strained to the utmost.