. Chamois hunting in the mountains of Bavaria and in the Tyrol. having been seen, began whistling andmaking all sorts of jeering noises till we were out ofsight. They will be out betimes tomorrow, no doubt,said Meier; they will try for the stag, too, I dare say. We came to the farm. It was a large building on apleasant meadow, surrounded by the mountains. On en- APPROACHING THE MOUNTAINS, 21 tering, the cheerful blaze of a fire burst upon us, at whichthe supper for the maids and labourers was being pre-pared. Now a cowherd, now a dairymaid dropped in,and exchanged a word with my companion, or
. Chamois hunting in the mountains of Bavaria and in the Tyrol. having been seen, began whistling andmaking all sorts of jeering noises till we were out ofsight. They will be out betimes tomorrow, no doubt,said Meier; they will try for the stag, too, I dare say. We came to the farm. It was a large building on apleasant meadow, surrounded by the mountains. On en- APPROACHING THE MOUNTAINS, 21 tering, the cheerful blaze of a fire burst upon us, at whichthe supper for the maids and labourers was being pre-pared. Now a cowherd, now a dairymaid dropped in,and exchanged a word with my companion, or stoppedand chatted with us both and asked about our plans forthe morrow. A savoury omelet was soon frying on thekitchen-fire, and this, with a slice of bread and a glass ortwo of beer, formed an excellent supper. We chattedaround the fire for a time, and then went upstairs to rest,where to my surprise I found two excellent beds in readi-ness, instead of clean hay, as I had expected. One lookat the night, to see what promise for the morning, andthen to 22 CHAPTER III. AFTER THE GOOD STAG. The next morning we were up and ready by four moon and stars were still shining brightly ; the airwas fresh, but not cold. I went to the door of the houseand looked out into the night. Nothing stirred: therewas no sign of a single living creature being abroad: noteven the murmur of a rivulet was to be heard, descendingfrom the mountains to the plain,—a sound which amongthe hills seldom fails to greet the ear, either near or inthe distance. But there rose around me that low hum,that indescribable rustle, which is never heard but in thesjjence of the night, and which seems to make the still-nws palpable. From the depth of the forests before,behind me, and on every side, came that low, deep mur-mur tingling on the ear, as when the myriad buzzings ofthe invisible insect world in summer unite in one drowsy,hollow tone at noon. It was not loud, but it was dis-tinct and very audib
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