for two days, had his room darkened to a Cimmerian pitch, worked very
diligently, and presented the fruits of his labors to his host with the
modest depreciation but secret delight of the artist, smiling indulgently
at Mr. Ramsay, with his "I say, old chappy, what an out-and-out swell you
are at it, to be sure! You must do the horses." Thus encouraged, Mr.
Heathcote did the horses, the house, the family grouped inside and outside,
Master Jared Ponsonby, Hannibal Hamlin, Master Bobo and Miss Blanche, the
poultry, and (aided by mirrors) himself in almost every dress and attitude
which it is possible for a man to assume. He must have spent a small
fortune in chemicals alone, and all his talk was of light and shadow,
background, draperies, foreground, plates, and proofs; every table was
strewn with photographs, finished and not finished, mounted or curled up
like paper crumpets.

Mr. Ramsay, too, had his little diversions, not precisely scientific, but
amusing. He was in and out of the stables all day long, and was loved by
every animal on the place. Such long-suffering and good nature Master
Ketchum had never seen, except in Fräulein Schmidt; and then the strength,
the resources, the conversation of his new friend enchanted the child, who
followed him about, perched on his shoulder, played games with him, and
had to be carried away from him struggling by his nurse. Mr. Ramsay had
other occupations: he rode, he fished, he cleaned his guns, he got over
leagues and leagues of ground, he killed several snakes and captured
scores of insects. He caught dozens of tree-frogs, for one thing, and shut
them all up together in the drawing-room coal-scuttle, where he peeped at
them from time to time, well satisfied. He played little tunes on his chin,
asked conundrums, showed Job a great many tricks at cards, and two French
puzzles (saying, "Those French beggars are awfully sharp at that kind of
thing, you know"); he played "God Save the Queen" with one finger on the
piano, held skeins of wool for the ladies, shut doors, got shawls, and