prepared, and packed to be sent back to England. The others, if not quite
so busy, were anything but idle. Miss Noel walked her five miles a day.
She was out sketching for hours under her umbrella, no matter what the
weather was, and only said, "Thank you for your kind concern, but I am
quite equal to it," when Mrs. Ketchum, astonished to see a woman of her
own age enduring such fatigue and running such risks, undertook to
remonstrate with her. "One must get one's constitutional, you know, and
one must not mind a drop or two. There has been no really bad weather yet,
--nothing to keep one in-doors, at least." If she stayed in-doors, she and
Mrs. Sykes (when the latter was not scouring the country on foot or
horse-back) interested themselves in their plants, minerals, seeds,
drawings, the herbarium, the Wardian case, the diaries and letters and
fancy-work, the beautiful collection of sea-weed sent by Miss Marlow from
New England, and a dozen things besides. Mr. Heathcote, meanwhile, was
walking, and riding, and visiting, and, above all, photographing. He got a
small covered cart, into which he would put his photographic apparatus and
go the rounds of the country-side alone, getting his luncheon as he could,
and coming back late in the evening, flushed with heat and victory,
bringing amusing accounts of his experiences, a bouquet as of an
apothecary-shop, and "proofs" of "a lane,--quite an English-looking lane,"
"a dog on the chain," "rear view of an American public" (house), "Saint
Lieuk's Church" (five different aspects), "what the natives call an
'ash-hopper,'--came out beautifully," "children among the hay-cocks,--very
indistinct," "squatter's hut on the edge of a common," "Western American
farm-house," "negro dust-man," "village beauty," and many others. He was
much complimented upon them all by Mr. Ketchum, who enjoyed the whole
collection and made comments and suggestions of the most delightful kind.
Mr. Heathcote looked infinitely pleased and flattered when told by him
that they had "a cold, professional air," and asked for copies of some of
them, after which he was eclipsed behind his black cloth and instrument