mill. And there were hams and sides of bacon, and red peppers, and
bundles of dried herbs, and great mountain cheeses on shelves. There was
also a guest room, better than the rest, which Stefanone and his wife
occasionally let to respectable travellers or to the merchants who came
from Rome on business to stay a few days in Subiaco. At the present time
the room was rented by the Englishman concerning whom the discussion had
arisen between Annetta and her mother.

Angus Dalrymple, M.D., was not an Englishman, as he had tried to explain
to Sora Nanna, though without the least success. He was, as his name
proclaimed, a Scotchman of the Scotch, and a doctor of medicine. It was
true that he had red hair, and an abundance of it, and long white teeth,
but Sora Nanna's description was otherwise libellously incomplete and
wholly omitted all mention of the good points in his appearance. In the
first place, he possessed the characteristic national build in a
superior degree of development, with all the lean, bony energy which has
done so much hard work in the world. He was broad-shouldered,
long-armed, long-legged, deep-chested, and straight, with sinewy hands
and singularly well-shaped fingers. His healthy skin had that mottled
look produced by countless freckles upon an almost childlike complexion.
The large, grave mouth generally concealed the long teeth objected to by
Sora Nanna, and the lips, though even and narrow, were strong rather
than thin, and their rare smile was both genial and gentle. There were
lines--as yet very faint--about the corners of the mouth, which told of
a nervous and passionate disposition and of the strong Scotch temper, as
well as of a certain sensitiveness which belongs especially to northern
races. The pale but very bright blue eyes under shaggy auburn brows were
fiery with courage and keen with shrewd enterprise. Dalrymple was
assuredly not a man to be despised under any circumstances,
intellectually or physically.

His presence in such a place as Subiaco, at a time when hardly any
foreigners except painters visited the place, requires some explanation;
for he was not an artist, but a doctor, and had never been even tempted
to amuse himself with sketching. In the first place, he was a younger
son of a good family, and received a moderate allowance, quite
sufficient in those days to allow him considerable latitude of
expenditure in old-fashioned Italy. Secondly, he had entirely refused to
follow any