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The house itself was a long, low, irregular structure, chiefly of
roof and veranda, picturesquely upheld by rustic pillars of pine,
with the bark still adhering, and covered with vines and trailing
roses. Yet it was evident that the coolness produced by this vast
extent of cover was more than the architect, who had planned it
under the influence of a staring and bewildering sky, had
trustfully conceived, for it had to be mitigated by blazing fires
in open hearths when the thermometer marked a hundred degrees in
the field beyond. The dry, restless wind that continually rocked
the tall masts of the pines with a sound like the distant sea,
while it stimulated out-door physical exertion and defied fatigue,
left the sedentary dwellers in these altitudes chilled in the shade
they courted, or scorched them with heat when they ventured to bask
supinely in the sun. White muslin curtains at the French windows,
and rugs, skins, and heavy furs dispersed in the interior, with
certain other charming but incongruous details of furniture, marked
the inconsistencies of the climate.
There was a coquettish indication of this in the costume of Miss
Kate Scott as she stepped out on the veranda that morning. A man's
broad-brimmed Panama hat, partly unsexed by a twisted gayly-colored
scarf, but retaining enough character to give piquancy to the
pretty curves of the face beneath, protected her from the sun; a
red flannel shirt--another spoil from the enemy--and a thick jacket
shielded her from the austerities of the morning breeze. But the
next inconsistency was peculiarly her own. Miss Kate always wore
the freshest and lightest of white cambric skirts, without the
least reference to the temperature. To the practical sanatory
remonstrances of her brother-in-law, and to the conventional
criticism of her sister, she opposed the same defence: "How else is
one to tell when it is summer in this ridiculous climate? And
then, woollen is stuffy, color draws the sun, and one at least
knows when one is clean or dirty." Artistically the result was far
from unsatisfactory. It was a pretty figure under the sombre
pines, against the gray granite and the steely sky, and seemed to
lend the yellowing fields from which the flowers had already fled a
floral relief of color. I do not think the few masculine wayfarers
of that locality objected to it; indeed, some had betrayed an
indiscreet admiration, and had curiously followed the invitation of
Miss Kate's warmly-colored figure until they had encountered the
invincible indifference of Miss Kate's cold gray eyes. With these
manifestations her brother-in-law did not concern himself; he had
perfect confidence in her unqualified disinterest in the
neighboring humanity, and permitted her to wander in her solitary
picturesqueness, or accompanied her when she rode in her dark green
habit, with equal freedom from anxiety.
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