Page:The Writings of Prosper Merimee-Volume 5.djvu/83

Rh is pleasing about her,. . . her complexion especially. She has no brains. I have never seen anything in her but just a pretty doll, agreeable to look at when one is tired and lacks a new book. . . . There is no doubt she is beautiful. . . . Her skin is marvellous! . . . The blood under that skin ought to be better than a horse's. .. . Do you not think so. Professor? "

And he laughed aloud, but his laugh was not pleasant to hear.

I said good-bye to him the next day, to continue my explorations in the north of the Palatinate.

They lasted nearly two months, and I can say that there is hardly a village in Samogitia where I did not stop and where I did not collect some docimients. I may here be allowed, perhaps, to take this opportunity of thanking the inhabitants of that province, and especially the Church dignitaries, for the truly warm cooperation they accorded me in my researches, and the excellent contributions with which they have enriched my dictionary.