Page:The grandmother; a story of country life in Bohemia.pdf/122

116 you all about it," said John, trying to comfort them.

Finally they reached the park without any more interruption, and were joined by their father who was waiting for them.

The park belonged to the castle but was free to the public. It was near The Old Bleachery, but Grandmother seldom went there, especially when the nobility were at home. She admired the skill with which everything was arranged, the beautiful flowers, the rare trees, the fountains with their golden fishes; still she preferred to take the children to the meadow or to the woods. There, on the soft green carpet, they could roll about as the pleased, smell every flower, or pick enough of them to make bouquets or garlands. Oranges and lemons did not grow in the fields, but here and there stood a cherry tree or a wild pear tree loaded with fruit, and any one could shake down as much as he pleased. Again, in the woods there were plenty of strawberries, huckleberries, mushrooms, and hazel nuts. There were no fountains in the woods, but they used to stand at the dam and watch the water rush down, bound back, and breaking into millions of drops fall down again, turn over in the foaming kettle, and then flow down the stream. There were no golden fishes above the dam, but whenever Grandmother went by she took some crumbs from her pocket, put them into Adelka's apron, and when she threw them into the water, shoals of fishes appeared at the surface. The silvery white chubs ventured nearest the surface to chase after the crumbs; among them darted about the straight-backed perches, and a little way off glanced here and there