Page:The grandmother; a story of country life in Bohemia.pdf/291

Rh deliberate puffs he continued: "be it man, beast, or aught else. Thus, I have become accustomed to this pipe while going on a journey; my mother used to smoke from one just like it. It seems to me I can see her sitting on the doorstep."

"What, did your mother smoke?" cried Barunka, greatly surprised.

"In the mountains many women smoke, especially old grandmothers; but instead of tobacco they use potato tops, and, when they can be obtained, cherry leaves."

"I shouldn't think that would be good," said the other gamekeeper, filling his pipe, a beautifully painted porcelain one.

"Thus I have certain favorite places in the woods," again began Mr. Beyer, "where I stop unconsciously. These have become dear to me, because they remind me either of certain persons or of pleasant or unpleasant events in my life. If from those places a single tree or shrub were taken away, I should miss it. In one place, upon a precipitous height, stands an isolated fir. It is an old tree; its branches on one side hang over a deep precipice, in whose fissures, here and there, are tufts of ferns or juniper shrubs; and down below, a stream hurries along over rocks, forming cataracts and waterfalls. I don't know myself how it happened, but whenever some grief oppressed my mind, or some misfortune befell me, I always found my way to that spot. Thus it was when I used to go to see my wife, and imagined I should not get her; her parents were unwilling, and it was not till later that they gave their consent.

"It was the same when my oldest son died and