"Um!" uttered Mr. Arbuton, as if he were not quite sure that it was the
Saguenay's place to have a legend of this sort, and disposed to snub the
legend because the Saguenay had it. After a little silence, he began to
speak of famous rivers abroad.

"I suppose," Kitty said, "the Rhine has traditions enough, hasn't it?"

"Yes," he answered, "but I think the Rhine rather overdoes it. You can't
help feeling, you know, that it's somewhat melodramatic and--common.
Have you ever seen the Rhine?"

"O, no! This is almost the first I've seen of anything. Perhaps," she
added, demurely, yet with a tremor at finding herself about to make
light of Mr. Arbuton, "if I had had too much of tradition on the Rhine I
should want more of it on the Saguenay."

"Why, you must allow there's a golden mean in everything, Miss Ellison,"
said her companion with a lenient laugh, not feeling it disagreeable to
be made light of by her.

"Yes; and I'm afraid we're going to find Cape Trinity and Cape Eternity
altogether too big when we come to them. Don't you think eighteen
hundred feet excessively high for a feature of river scenery?"

Mr. Arbuton really did have an objection to the exaggerations of nature
on this continent, and secretly thought them in bad taste, but he had
never formulated his feeling. He was not sure but it was ridiculous, now
that it was suggested, and yet the possibility was too novel to be
entertained without suspicion.