"Clouds and sunsets?" asked Rachel, beginning to be interested.

"Yes, differing every day. Then I have the tamarisk and its inhabitants.

There has been a tom-tit's nest every year since we came, and that

provides us with infinite amusement. Besides the sea-gulls are often so

good as to float high enough for me to see them. There is a wonderful

charm in a circumcribed view, because one is obliged to look well into

it all."

"Yes; eyes and no eyes apply there," said Rachel.

"We found a great prize, too, the other day. Rosie!"

At the call a brown-haired, brown-eyed child of seven, looking like a

little fawn, sprang to the window from the outside.

"My dear, will you show the sphynx to Miss Curtis?"

The little girl daintily brought a box covered with net, in which a huge

apple-green caterpillar, with dashes of bright colour on his sides,

and a horny spike on his tail, was feasting upon tamarisk leaves. Grace

asked if she was going to keep it. "Yes, till it buries itself," said

the child. "Aunt Ermine thinks it is the elephant sphynx."

"I cannot be sure," said the aunt, "my sister tried to find a figure of

it at Villars', but he had no book that gave the caterpillars. Do you

care for those creatures?"

"I like to watch them," said Grace, "but I know nothing about them

scientifically; Rachel does that."

"Then can you help us to the history of our sphynx?" asked Miss

Williams, with her pleasant look.

"I will see if I have his portrait," said Rachel, "but I doubt it. I

prefer general principles to details."

"Don't you find working out details the best way of entering into

general principles?"

It was new to Rachel to find the mention of a general principle received

neither with a stare nor a laugh; and she gathered herself up to answer,

"Naming and collecting is not science."

"And masonry is not architecture, but you can't have architecture

without it."

"One can have broad ideas without all the petty work of flower botanists

and butterfly naturalists."

"Don't you think the broad ideas would be rather of the hearsay order,

at least to most people, unless their application were worked out in the

trifle that came first to hand?"

"Experimental philosophy," said Rachel, in rather a considering tone,

as if the notion, when presented to her in plain English, required

translation into the language of her thoughts.

"If you like to call it so," said Miss Williams, with a look of arch

fun. "For instance, the great art of mud pie taught us the porous nature

of clay, the expansive power of steam, etc. etc."

"You had some one to improve it to you?"

"Oh dear no. Only afterwards, when we read of such things we remembered

how our clay manufactures always burst in the baking unless they were

well dried first."




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