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thanked her, but my duty was imperative, and that I must go. `
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`
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She then rose and dried her eyes, and taking a crucifix from her neck `
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offered it to me. `
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I did not know what to do, for, as an English Churchman, I have been `
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taught to regard such things as in some measure idolatrous, and yet it `
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seemed so ungracious to refuse an old lady meaning so well and in such `
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a state of mind. `
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She saw, I suppose, the doubt in my face, for she put the rosary round `
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my neck and said, "For your mother's sake," and went out of the room. `
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`
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I am writing up this part of the diary whilst I am waiting for the `
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coach, which is, of course, late; and the crucifix is still round my `
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neck. `
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Whether it is the old lady's fear, or the many ghostly traditions of `
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this place, or the crucifix itself, I do not know, but I am not `
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feeling nearly as easy in my mind as usual. `
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`
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If this book should ever reach Mina before I do, let it bring my `
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goodbye. Here comes the coach! `
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5 May. The Castle.--The gray of the morning has passed, and the sun `
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is high over the distant horizon, which seems jagged, whether with `
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trees or hills I know not, for it is so far off that big things and `
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little are mixed. `
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`
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I am not sleepy, and, as I am not to be called till I awake, naturally `
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I write till sleep comes. `
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`
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There are many odd things to put down, and, lest who reads them may `
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fancy that I dined too well before I left Bistritz, let me put down my `
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dinner exactly. `
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`
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I dined on what they called "robber steak"--bits of bacon, onion, and `
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beef, seasoned with red pepper, and strung on sticks, and roasted over `
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the fire, in simple style of the London cat's meat! `
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`
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The wine was Golden Mediasch, which produces a queer sting on the `
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tongue, which is, however, not disagreeable. `
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`
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I had only a couple of glasses of this, and nothing else. `
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When I got on the coach, the driver had not taken his seat, and I saw `
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him talking to the landlady. `
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`
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They were evidently talking of me, for every now and then they looked `
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at me, and some of the people who were sitting on the bench outside `
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the door--came and listened, and then looked at me, most of them `
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pityingly. I could hear a lot of words often repeated, queer words, `
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for there were many nationalities in the crowd, so I quietly got my `
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polyglot dictionary from my bag and looked them out. `
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`
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I must say they were not cheering to me, for amongst them were `
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"Ordog"--Satan, "Pokol"--hell, "stregoica"--witch, "vrolok" and `
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"vlkoslak"--both mean the same thing, one being Slovak and the other `
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Servian for something that is either werewolf or vampire. (Mem., I `
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must ask the Count about these superstitions.) `
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`
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When we started, the crowd round the inn door, which had by this time `
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swelled to a considerable size, all made the sign of the cross and `
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pointed two fingers towards me. `
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`
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With some difficulty, I got a fellow passenger to tell me what they `
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meant. He would not answer at first, but on learning that I was `
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English, he explained that it was a charm or guard against the evil `
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eye. `
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This was not very pleasant for me, just starting for an unknown place `
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to meet an unknown man. But everyone seemed so kind-hearted, and so `
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sorrowful, and so sympathetic that I could not but be touched. `
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`
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I shall never forget the last glimpse which I had of the inn yard and `
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its crowd of picturesque figures, all crossing themselves, as they `
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stood round the wide archway, with its background of rich foliage of `
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oleander and orange trees in green tubs clustered in the centre of the `
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yard. `
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`
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Then our driver, whose wide linen drawers covered the whole front of `
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the boxseat,--"gotza" they call them--cracked his big whip over his `
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four small horses, which ran abreast, and we set off on our journey. `
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`
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I soon lost sight and recollection of ghostly fears in the beauty of `
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the scene as we drove along, although had I known the language, or `
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rather languages, which my fellow-passengers were speaking, I might `
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not have been able to throw them off so easily. Before us lay a green `
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sloping land full of forests and woods, with here and there steep `
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hills, crowned with clumps of trees or with farmhouses, the blank `
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gable end to the road. There was everywhere a bewildering mass of `
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fruit blossom--apple, plum, pear, cherry. And as we drove by I could `
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see the green grass under the trees spangled with the fallen petals. `
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In and out amongst these green hills of what they call here the `
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"Mittel Land" ran the road, losing itself as it swept round the grassy `
`
curve, or was shut out by the straggling ends of pine woods, which `
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here and there ran down the hillsides like tongues of flame. The road `
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was rugged, but still we seemed to fly over it with a feverish haste. `
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I could not understand then what the haste meant, but the driver was `
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evidently bent on losing no time in reaching Borgo Prund. I was told `
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that this road is in summertime excellent, but that it had not yet `
`
been put in order after the winter snows. In this respect it is `
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different from the general run of roads in the Carpathians, for it is `
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an old tradition that they are not to be kept in too good order. Of `
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old the Hospadars would not repair them, lest the Turk should think `
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that they were preparing to bring in foreign troops, and so hasten the `
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war which was always really at loading point. `
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`
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Beyond the green swelling hills of the Mittel Land rose mighty slopes `
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of forest up to the lofty steeps of the Carpathians themselves. Right `
`
and left of us they towered, with the afternoon sun falling full upon `
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them and bringing out all the glorious colours of this beautiful `
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range, deep blue and purple in the shadows of the peaks, green and `
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brown where grass and rock mingled, and an endless perspective of `
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jagged rock and pointed crags, till these were themselves lost in the `
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distance, where the snowy peaks rose grandly. Here and there seemed `
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mighty rifts in the mountains, through which, as the sun began to `
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sink, we saw now and again the white gleam of falling water. One of `
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my companions touched my arm as we swept round the base of a hill and `
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opened up the lofty, snow-covered peak of a mountain, which seemed, as `
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we wound on our serpentine way, to be right before us. `
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`
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"Look! Isten szek!"--"God's seat!"--and he crossed himself reverently. `
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`
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As we wound on our endless way, and the sun sank lower and lower `
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behind us, the shadows of the evening began to creep round us. This `
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was emphasized by the fact that the snowy mountain-top still held the `
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sunset, and seemed to glow out with a delicate cool pink. Here and `
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there we passed Cszeks and slovaks, all in picturesque attire, but I `
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noticed that goitre was painfully prevalent. By the roadside were `
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many crosses, and as we swept by, my companions all crossed `
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themselves. Here and there was a peasant man or woman kneeling before `
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a shrine, who did not even turn round as we approached, but seemed in `
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the self-surrender of devotion to have neither eyes nor ears for the `
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outer world. There were many things new to me. For instance, `
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hay-ricks in the trees, and here and there very beautiful masses of `
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weeping birch, their white stems shining like silver through the `
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delicate green of the leaves. `
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`
`
Now and again we passed a leiter-wagon--the ordinary peasants's `
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cart--with its long, snakelike vertebra, calculated to suit the `
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inequalities of the road. On this were sure to be seated quite a `
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group of homecoming peasants, the Cszeks with their white, and the `
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Slovaks with their coloured sheepskins, the latter carrying `
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lance-fashion their long staves, with axe at end. As the evening fell `
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it began to get very cold, and the growing twilight seemed to merge `
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into one dark mistiness the gloom of the trees, oak, beech, and pine, `
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though in the valleys which ran deep between the spurs of the hills, `
`
as we ascended through the Pass, the dark firs stood out here and `
`
there against the background of late-lying snow. Sometimes, as the `
`
road was cut through the pine woods that seemed in the darkness to be `
`
closing down upon us, great masses of greyness which here and there `
`
bestrewed the trees, produced a peculiarly weird and solemn effect, `
`
which carried on the thoughts and grim fancies engendered earlier in `
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the evening, when the falling sunset threw into strange relief the `
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ghost-like clouds which amongst the Carpathians seem to wind `
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ceaselessly through the valleys. Sometimes the hills were so steep `
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that, despite our driver's haste, the horses could only go slowly. I `
`
wished to get down and walk up them, as we do at home, but the driver `
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would not hear of it. "No, no," he said. "You must not walk here. `
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The dogs are too fierce." And then he added, with what he evidently `
`
meant for grim pleasantry--for he looked round to catch the approving `
`
smile of the rest--"And you may have enough of such matters before you `
`
go to sleep." The only stop he would make was a moment's pause to `
`
light his lamps. `
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`
`
When it grew dark there seemed to be some excitement amongst the `
`
passengers, and they kept speaking to him, one after the other, as `
`
though urging him to further speed. He lashed the horses unmercifully `
`
with his long whip, and with wild cries of encouragement urged them on `
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to further exertions. Then through the darkness I could see a sort of `
`
patch of grey light ahead of us, as though there were a cleft in the `
`
hills. The excitement of the passengers grew greater. The crazy `
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coach rocked on its great leather springs, and swayed like a boat `
`
tossed on a stormy sea. I had to hold on. The road grew more level, `
`
and we appeared to fly along. Then the mountains seemed to come `
`
nearer to us on each side and to frown down upon us. We were entering `
`
on the Borgo Pass. One by one several of the passengers offered me `
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gifts, which they pressed upon me with an earnestness which would take `
`
no denial. These were certainly of an odd and varied kind, but each `
`
was given in simple good faith, with a kindly word, and a blessing, `
`
and that same strange mixture of fear-meaning movements which I had `
`
seen outside the hotel at Bistritz--the sign of the cross and the `
`
guard against the evil eye. Then, as we flew along, the driver leaned `
`
forward, and on each side the passengers, craning over the edge of the `
`
coach, peered eagerly into the darkness. It was evident that `
`
something very exciting was either happening or expected, but though I `
`
asked each passenger, no one would give me the slightest explanation. `
`
This state of excitement kept on for some little time. And at last we `
`
saw before us the Pass opening out on the eastern side. There were `
`
dark, rolling clouds overhead, and in the air the heavy, oppressive `
`
sense of thunder. It seemed as though the mountain range had `
`
separated two atmospheres, and that now we had got into the thunderous `
`
one. I was now myself looking out for the conveyance which was to `
`
take me to the Count. Each moment I expected to see the glare of `
`
lamps through the blackness, but all was dark. The only light was the `
`
flickering rays of our own lamps, in which the steam from our `
`
hard-driven horses rose in a white cloud. We could see now the sandy `
`
road lying white before us, but there was on it no sign of a vehicle. `
`
The passengers drew back with a sigh of gladness, which seemed to mock `
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