d then rose. Standing erect in the open garret-window, the miller
watched us pass.

We walked on; coming to a hedge of elm-trees which probably concealed a
village, we caught sight of a man standing in a tree, at the foot of
which was a woman with her blue apron spread out to catch the plums he
was throwing to her. I recollect a crop of dark hair falling in masses
over her shoulders, two uplifted arms, the movement of the supple neck
and the sonorous laughter that floated over the hedge to me.

The path we were following grew narrower. Presently the plain
disappeared and we found ourselves on the crest of a promontory
dominating the ocean. Looking towards Brest, it seemed to extend
indefinitely; but on the other side, it projected its sinuosities into
the land, between short hills covered with underwood. Each gulf is
ensconced between two mountains; each mountain is flanked by two gulfs,
and nothing can equal the beauty of those vast green slopes rising
almost in a straight line out of the sea. The hills have rounded tops
and flattened bases, and describe a wide, curved chain which joins the
plateaux with the graceful sweep of a Moorish arch; following so closely
upon one another, the colour of their foliage and their formation are
almost exactly alike. Propelled by the sea-breeze, the breakers dashed
up against the foot of these hills, and the sun, falling on them, made
them gleam; the whole surface of the ocean was blue and glittering with
silver, and we could not get enough of its beauty. Then we watched the
sunbeams glide over the hills. One of the latter had already been
deserted by them, and appeared more indistinct than the rest, while a
broad black shadow was rapidly gathering over another. As we approached
the level of the shore the mountains that faced us a moment ago seemed
to grow loftier; the gulfs deepened and the ocean expanded. We walked
on, oblivious to everything, and let our eyes roam at will, and the
pebbles that our feet dislodged rolled down the hill quickly and
disappeared in the bushes edging the road.

The roads followed hedges that were as compact and thick as walls; we
climbed up and we climbed down; meanwhile, it was growing dark, and the
country was settling into the deep silence characteristic of midsummer
evenings.

As we failed to meet anybody who could show us the way, the few peasants
we had questioned having responded by unintelligible cries, we produced
our map and our compass, an