The Princess Passes Volume 56 by Alice Muriel Williamson, Charles Norris Williamson (great book club books .txt) 📕

Half-Way Down We Came Upon A Porter, Whose Look Of Surprise Would Have

Told Us (If We Had Not Learned Through Bitter Experience Already) That

Mont Revard's Season Was Over. He Guided Us To The Door Of A Large

Salon, Which He Threw Open With An Air Of Wishing To Justify The

Hotel; And Despite The Load Of Weariness Under Which The Boy Was

Almost Fainting, He Whipped The Dressing-Gown Off In A Flash, Shook

The Snow From His Panama, Squaring His Little Shoulders, And

Re-Entered Civilisation With A Jauntiness Which Denied Exhaustion And

Did Credit To His Pride. Nevertheless, He Availed Himself Of The First

Easy-Chair, And Dropped Into It As A Ripe Apple Drops From Its Leafy

Home Into The Long Grass.

The Porter Scampered Off To Send Us The Landlord, And To See To The

Comfort Of Joseph And Innocentina, Until They And Their Charges Could

Be Definitely Provided For. While We Waited--The Boy Leaning Back,

Pale And Silent, In An Exaggerated American Rocking-Chair, I Standing

On Guard Beside Him--There Was Time To Look About At Our Surroundings.

The Room Was Immense, And On A Warm, Bright Day Of Midsummer Might

Have Been Delightful, With Its Polished Mosaic Floor, Its Painted

Basket Chairs And Little Tables, And Its Standard Lamps With Coloured

Silk Shades. But To-Day A Stuffy, Red-Curtained Bar-Parlour Would Have

Been More Cheerful.

At First, I Thought We Were Alone In The Waste Of Painted Wicker-Work,

For There Had Been Dead Silence On Our Entrance; But Hardly Had We

Settled Ourselves To Await The Coming Of The Landlord, When A Movement

At The Far End Of The Big, Dim Room Told Me That It Had Other

Occupants. Two Men In Knickerbockers Were Sitting On Low Chairs Drawn

Close To A Fireplace, And Both Were Looking Round At Us With Evident

Curiosity.

As The Boy's Chair Had Its High Back Half-Turned In Their Direction,

All They Could See Of Him Was A Little Hand Dangling Over The Arm Of

The Chair, And A Small Foot In A Stout, Workmanlike Walking Boot,

Laced Far Up The Ankle. I Stood Facing Them; And Though The Sole

Illumination Came Flickering From A Newly Kindled Fire, Or Filtered

Through The Red Shades Of Three Large Lamps, Not Only Could They See

What Manner Of Man I Was, But I Could Study Their Personal

Characteristics.

In These I Was Conscious Of No Lively Interest; But As The Men

Continued To Gaze Over Their Shoulders At Me, And The Boy's Chair, I

Decided That They Were From The States. They Were Both Young,

Clean-Shaven, Good-Looking; With Clear Features, Keen Eyes, And

Prominent Chins, Reminiscent Of The Attractive "Gibson Type" Of

American Youth.

"Well," Said One To The Other, Turning Away From His Brief But Steady

Inspection Of The Newcomers, "I Thought We Were The Only Two Fools

Stranded Here For The Night In This Weather, But It Seems There Are A

Couple More."

Their Voices Had A Carrying Quality Which Brought The Words Distinctly

To Our Ears. Suddenly The "Rocker" Was Agitated, And The Boy's Feet

Came To The Ground. Nervously, He Jerked The Chair Round So That Its

Back Was Completely Turned To The Men At The Other End Of The Room.

His Eyes Looked So Big, And His Face Was So Deeply Stained With A

Quick Rush Of Colour, That I Feared He Was Ill.

"Anything Wrong?" I Asked, Bending Towards Him, With My Hand On His

Chair.

"Nothing. I Was Only--A Little Surprised To Hear People Talking,

That's All. I Thought We Had The Room To Ourselves."

His Voice Was A Whisper, And I Pitched Mine To His In Answering. "So

Did I At First, But It Seems Two Countrymen Of Yours Are Before Us. I

Wonder If They Have Had Adventures To Equal Ours? Probably We Shall

Find Out At Dinner, For This Looks The Sort Of Hotel To Herd Its

Guests Together At One Long Table."

The Boy's Hand Closed Sharply On The Arm Of His Chair. "I'm Too Tired

To Dine In Public," Said He, Still In The Same Muffled Voice. "I Shall

Have Something To Eat In My Room--If I Ever Get One."

"If That's Your Game," Said I, "I'll Play It With You. We'll Ask Them

To Give Us A Sitting-Room Of Sorts, And We'll Dine There Together Like

Kings."

"No, No. You Must Go Down. I Shall Have My Dinner In Bed. I'm Worn

Out. What Are--Those Men At The Other End Of The Room Like?"

"Like Sketches From New York _Life_," I Replied. "One Is Dark, The

Other Fair, With A Deep Cleft In His Chin, And A Nose So Straight It

Might Have Been Ruled. Better Take A Look At Them. Perhaps You May

Have Met At Home."

"All The More Reason For Not Looking," Said The Boy. "Thank Goodness,

Here Comes The Landlord."

We Could Have Had Twenty Rooms If We Wished, For, Said Our Host,

Throwing A Glance Across The Salon, He Had Only Two Other Guests

Besides Ourselves. They Had Come Up By The Funicular, Meaning To Walk

Next Morning Down To Chambéry, But Whether They Could Do So Or Not

Depended On The Weather. In Any Case, The Hotel Would Close For The

Season In A Few Days Now, And The Funicular Cease To Run. Fires Should

Be Laid In Our Rooms Immediately, And We Should Be Made Comfortable,

But As For Our Animals, Unfortunately There Were No Stables Attached

To The Hotel, No Accommodation Whatever For Four-Footed Creatures.

They Would Have To Go Back To The Châlet, Where They And Their Drivers

Could Be Put Up For The Night.

"That Will Not Do For Innocentina," Exclaimed The Boy Quickly. In His

Eagerness He Raised His Voice Slightly, And The Two Young Men At The

Other End Of The Salon Seemed Waked Suddenly To Renewed Interest In Us

And Our Affairs. But The Boy's Tone Fell Again Instantly. "Innocentina

Must Have A Room At This Hotel," He Went On. "The Châlet Will Be Bad

Enough For Joseph. For Her It Would Be Impossible. Joseph Won't Mind

Taking The Donkeys Down And Caring For Them This One Night, For

Innocentina's Sake."

"If Know Joseph, It Will Afford Him Infinite Satisfaction; And The

More Intense His Physical Suffering, The Happier He'll Be In The

Thought That He Is Bearing It For Her," I Replied. "I'll Go Out And

Break The News To The Poor Chap."

The Boy Sprang Up. "No, No; Don't Leave Me Alone!" He Cried. Then, As

I Looked Surprised, He Added, More Quietly: "I Mean I'll Go With You,

And Talk To Innocentina. Meanwhile, Our Things Can Be Sent Up To Our

Rooms."

Though He Had Asked "What The Men At The Other End Of The Room Were

Like," He Showed No Desire To Verify For Himself The Description I Had

Given. He Kept His Back Religiously Turned Towards His Countrymen, And

Did Not Throw A Single Glance Their Way As We Left The Salon With The

Landlord, Though I Saw That The Two Young Americans Were Interested In

Him.

We Returned To The Door At The End Of The Long Corridor, Where We Had

Entered The Hotel Ten Or Fifteen Minutes Earlier, And Found Joseph,

Innocentina, And The Animals Still Sheltering Against The House Wall.

The Porter Had Already Retailed The Bad News, And The Faithful

Muleteer Had Of His Own Accord Volunteered To Play The Part Which The

Boy And I Had Assigned Him. Though He Was Tired, Cold, And Hungry, And

Had The Prospect Of A Gloomy Walk, With A Night Of Discomfort To

Follow, He Was Far From Being Depressed; And I Thought I Knew What

Supported Him In His Hour Of Trial.

We Saw Him Off, Followed By A Piteous Trail Of Asshood, And Then,

Shivering Once More, We Re-Entered The Dim Corridor. Innocentina, Much

Subdued, Was With Us Now, Carrying The Famous Bag In Its Snow-Powdered

_Rücksack_, While A Porter Went Before With The Rest Of The Luggage,

Taken From The Tired Backs Of Our Beasts. We Had Reached The Foot Of

The Stairs, When We Came So Suddenly Face To Face With The Two

Americans That It Almost Seemed We Had Stumbled Upon An Ambush.

They Stared Very Hard At The Boy, Who Did Not Give Them A Glance,

Though I Was Conscious Of A Stiffening Of His Muscles. He Turned His

Head A Little On One Side, So That The Shadow Of The Panama Eclipsed

His Face From Their Point Of View; But I Could See That He Had First

Grown Scarlet, Then White.

"By Jove, But It Can't Be Possible!" I Heard One Of The Men Say As We

Passed And Began To Ascend The Stairs. The Answer I Did Not Hear; But

Innocentina, Who Was Close Behind Me, Glared With Unchristian

Malevolence At The Young Men, As If Instinct Whispered That They Were

Concerning Themselves Unnecessarily About Her Master's Business.

The Boy Ran Upstairs As Lightly As If He Had Never Known Fatigue. The

Porter Showed Him His Room; His Luggage Was Taken In, And Then He Came

Out To Me In The Passage.

"You Told Joseph That He Needn't Come Up Very Early To-Morrow, Didn't

You?" He Enquired.

"Yes, As We're Pretty Well Fagged, And Chambéry Isn't An All-Day's

Journey, I Thought We Might Take Our Time In The Morning. That Suits

You, Doesn't It?" (It Was Really Of Him That I Had Been Thinking, But

I Did Not Say So.)

"Oh, Yes," He Answered Absentmindedly, As If Already His Brain Were

Busy With Something Else. "What Time Did You Fix For Starting? I Didn't

Hear?"

"I Said To Joseph That It Would Do