Page:Tales of the White Hills.djvu/61

Rh not begun to fail, and with that, her courage also. Her breath grew short. She refused to burden her husband with her weight, but often tottered against his side, and recovered herself each time by a feebler effort. At last, she sank down on one of the rocky steps of the acclivity.

&ldquo;We are lost, dear Matthew,&rdquo; said she, mournfully. &ldquo;We shall never find our way to the earth again. And oh how happy we might have been in our cottage!&rdquo;

&ldquo;Dear heart!&mdash;we will yet be happy there,&rdquo; answered Matthew. &ldquo;Look! In this direction, the sunshine penetrates the dismal mist. By its aid, I can direct our course to the passage of the Notch. Let us go back, love, and dream no more of the Great Carbuncle!&rdquo;

&ldquo;The sun cannot be yonder,&rdquo; said Hannah, with despondence. &ldquo;By this time it must be noon. If there could ever be any sunshine here, it would come from above our heads.&rdquo;

&ldquo;But look!&rdquo; repeated Matthew, in a somewhat altered tone. &ldquo;It is brightening every moment. If not sunshine, what can it be?&rdquo;

Nor could the young bride any longer deny that a radiance was breaking through the mist, and changing its dim hue to a dusky red, which continually grew more vivid, as if brilliant particles were interfused with the gloom. Now, also, the cloud began to roll away from the mountain, while, as it heavily withdrew, one object after another started out of its impenetrable obscurity into sight, with precisely the effect of a new creation, before the indistinctness of the old chaos had been completely swallowed up. As the process went on, they saw the gleaming of the water close