It was
as though they had sprung out of the ground. I accosted them very
politely in my capacity of stranger, and requested to be told the
names of all manner of hills and woods and places that I did not wish
to know, and we stood together for a while and had an amusing little
talk. The wind, too, made himself of the party, brought the colour
into their faces, and gave them enough to do to repress their
drapery; and one of them, amid much giggling, had to pirouette round
and round upon her toes (as girls do) when some specially strong gust
had got the advantage over her. They were just high enough up in the
social order not to be afraid to speak to a gentleman; and just low
enough to feel a little tremor, a nervous consciousness of wrong-
doing - of stolen waters, that gave a considerable zest to our most
innocent interview. They were as much discomposed and fluttered,
indeed, as if I had been a wicked baron proposing to elope with the
whole trio; but they showed no inclination to go away, and I had
managed to get them off hills and waterfalls and on to more promising
subjects, when a young man was descried coming along the path from
the direction of Keswick.
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