“And from the desire, on the part of a good many Englishmen at least, to sail in a boat of their own—­not to get mixed up with a lot of foreign publicans and sinners—­no?” she suggested.

“Oh, of course, we’re insular and we’re Pharisaical,” admitted Peter.

“And as for one’s indifference,” she smiled, “that is most probably due to one’s youth and inexperience.  One can’t come to close quarters with the realities of life—­with sorrow, with great joy, with temptation, with sin or with heroic virtue, with death, with the birth of a new soul, with any of the awful, wonderful realities of life—­and continue to be an indifferentist in matters of religion, do you think?”

“When one comes to close quarters with the awful, wonderful realities of life, one has religious moments,” he acknowledged.  “But they’re generally rather fugitive, are n’t they?”

“One can cultivate them—­one can encourage them,” she said.  “If you would care to know a good Catholic,” she added, “my niece, my little ward, Emilia is one.  She wants to become a Sister of Mercy, to spend her life nursing the poor.”

“Oh?  Would n’t that be rather a pity?” Peter said.  “She’s so extremely pretty.  I don’t know when I have seen prettier brown eyes than hers.”

“Well, in a few years, I expect we shall see those pretty brown eyes looking out from under a sister’s coif.  No, I don’t think it will be a pity.  Nuns and sisters, I think, are the happiest people in the world—­and priests.  Have you ever met any one who seemed happier than my uncle, for example?”

“I have certainly never met any one who seemed sweeter, kinder,” Peter confessed.  “He has a wonderful old face.”

“He’s a wonderful old man,” said she.  “I ’m going to try to keep him a prisoner here for the rest of the summer—­though he will have it that he’s just run down for a week.  He works a great deal too hard when he’s in Rome.  He’s the only Cardinal I’ve ever heard of, who takes practical charge of his titular church.  But here in the country he’s out-of-doors all the blessed day, hand in hand with Emilia.  He’s as young as she is, I believe.  They play together like children—­and make—­me feel as staid and solemn and grown-up as one of Mr. Kenneth Grahame’s Olympians.”

Peter laughed.  Then, in the moment of silence that followed, he happened to let his eyes stray up the valley.

“Hello!” he suddenly exclaimed.  “Someone has been painting our mountain green.”

The Duchessa turned, to look; and she too uttered an exclamation.

By some accident of reflection or refraction, the snows of Monte Sfiorito had become bright green, as if the light that fell on them had passed through emeralds.  They both paused, to gaze and marvel for a little.  Indeed, the prospect was a pleasing one, as well as a surprising—­the sunny lawns, the high trees, the blue lake, and then that bright green mountain.