of the rose. The lustre was like that of satin; on the lighter

hues there seemed to float an efflorescence; a solemn bloom

appeared on the more dark. The light itself was the ordinary light

of morning, colourless and clean; and on this ground of jewels,

pencilled out the least detail of drawing. Meanwhile, around the

hamlet, under the palms, where the blue shadow lingered, the red

coals of cocoa husk and the light trails of smoke betrayed the

awakening business of the day; along the beach men and women, lads

and lasses, were returning from the bath in bright raiment, red and

blue and green, such as we delighted to see in the coloured little

pictures of our childhood; and presently the sun had cleared the

eastern hill, and the glow of the day was over all.

The glow continued and increased, the business, from the main part,

ceased before it had begun. Twice in the day there was a certain

stir of shepherding along the seaward hills. At times a canoe went

out to fish. At times a woman or two languidly filled a basket in

the cotton patch. At times a pipe would sound out of the shadow of

a house, ringing the changes on its three notes, with an effect

like Que le jour me dure, repeated endlessly. Or at times, across

a corner of the bay, two natives might communicate in the Marquesan

manner with conventional whistlings. All else was sleep and

silence. The surf broke and shone around the shores; a species of

black crane fished in the broken water; the black pigs were

continually galloping by on some affair; but the people might never

have awaked, or they might all be dead.

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