Chapter II.
The many lovely gardens of the town, now in their second and third bloom, were fragrant after rain. The sun was setting behind the mountains of eternal snow; the whole sky above them was in a blaze of glory, and the snow peaks gave back a subdued reflection. The nearer mountains lay wrapped in shadows, but they were nevertheless radiant with their many-hued autumnal forests. The rocky islands which formed a long line in the midst of the fjord, as if they came rowing into the harbor, revealed still more gorgeous coloring in their dense woods than did the mountains, because they could more distinctly be seen. The sea was calm; a large ship was just being towed in. The inhabitants of the town sat out on the steps of their porches, that were well sheltered by the rose-bushes on either side; they were talking across from porch to porch, running over to visit one another, or exchanging greetings with the passers-by, who were on their way to the long avenues outside the town.
