Felix burst out laughing, and Mr. Brand stood staring, while the others, who had passed into the house, appeared behind him in the open door-way.

CHAPTER III

That evening at dinner Felix Young gave his sister, the Baroness Munster, an account of his impressions.  She saw that he had come back in the highest possible spirits; but this fact, to her own mind, was not a reason for rejoicing.  She had but a limited confidence in her brother’s judgment; his capacity for taking rose-colored views was such as to vulgarize one of the prettiest of tints.  Still, she supposed he could be trusted to give her the mere facts; and she invited him with some eagerness to communicate them.  “I suppose, at least, they did n’t turn you out from the door;” she said.  “You have been away some ten hours.”

“Turn me from the door!” Felix exclaimed.  “They took me to their hearts; they killed the fatted calf.”

“I know what you want to say:  they are a collection of angels.”

“Exactly,” said Felix.  “They are a collection of angels—­simply.”

“C’est bien vague,” remarked the Baroness.  “What are they like?”

“Like nothing you ever saw.”

“I am sure I am much obliged; but that is hardly more definite.  Seriously, they were glad to see you?”

“Enchanted.  It has been the proudest day of my life.  Never, never have I been so lionized!  I assure you, I was cock of the walk.  My dear sister,” said the young man, “nous n’avons qu’a nous tenir; we shall be great swells!”

Madame Munster looked at him, and her eye exhibited a slight responsive spark.  She touched her lips to a glass of wine, and then she said, “Describe them.  Give me a picture.”

Felix drained his own glass.  “Well, it ’s in the country, among the meadows and woods; a wild sort of place, and yet not far from here.  Only, such a road, my dear!  Imagine one of the Alpine glaciers reproduced in mud.  But you will not spend much time on it, for they want you to come and stay, once for all.”

“Ah,” said the Baroness, “they want me to come and stay, once for all?  Bon.”

“It ’s intensely rural, tremendously natural; and all overhung with this strange white light, this far-away blue sky.  There ’s a big wooden house—­a kind of three-story bungalow; it looks like a magnified Nuremberg toy.  There was a gentleman there that made a speech to me about it and called it a ‘venerable mansion;’ but it looks as if it had been built last night.”

“Is it handsome—­is it elegant?” asked the Baroness.

Felix looked at her a moment, smiling.  “It ’s very clean!  No splendors, no gilding, no troops of servants; rather straight-backed chairs.  But you might eat off the floors, and you can sit down on the stairs.”

“That must be a privilege.  And the inhabitants are straight-backed too, of course.”

“My dear sister,” said Felix, “the inhabitants are charming.”