William Black

With the Eyes of Youth, and Other Sketches William Black

This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1903. Excerpt: ... II OUR QUARTERS IN HORZITZ An extraordinary piece of good luck befel our little party in Glitschin. We had wandered for nearly an hour through the mud and rain and darkness of that miserable little town, in search of such modest luxuries as a supper and a sack of hay. Every house was full, every small inn crammed, and we stumbled over the rough stones, over heaps of wet straw, and between ammunition waggons, in vain. About ten o'clock, however, we caught sight of a large room in which had congregated a crowd of Bohemian peasants, their ragged appearance being softened by a blue halo of thick tobacco smoke; and with joy we observed that one of the rude home-made tables was unoccupied. We entered; the landlady was gracious. A Prussian soldier, fast asleep on the form which was placed against the wall, was begged to sit upright, and thus we obtained seats. "Can we have something to eat?" said Waldek. "Yes, certainly," said the woman, running off, and presently returning with a big, round loaf of dark-brown bread. "You have nothing else?" "No," she replied, looking very much hurt. Were we princes or travelling Englishmen that we wanted more! "And I can give you beer, also," she said, in a quite sumptuous manner, as though this prospect would be to us (as indeed it was) a glimpse of fairyland. "That is good," said Waldek; "and can we sleep here to-night?" "Ja, freilich," she replied, momentarily growing more magnificent in that splendid self-consciousness of being a good genius. "I will let you have the chairs and forms when the men have left, and when the soldiers have gone to their rooms." So we temporarily secured this accommodation by leaving as deposits the persons of Vecko, Waldek, and Rosenfeld; while Heinz and I once more set out through the darkness t...