Rico realized how busy a day Stineli would have, so he asked Sam to accompany him about Sils-Maria and the neighborhood. They stopped first of all to look at the house across the way, that had at one time sheltered Rico. He was informed that strangers lived there, that the aunt had been gone several years, and that no one knew where she was.
Wherever Rico and Sam went that day they failed to find a single person who recognized the "foreign-looking young man," as they called him. On their return Rico wished to visit the grandmother's grave, but they could not find it.
It was evening before they came back to the house, carrying with them Rico's luggage from the station. They found Stineli at the well, scrubbing the pails used about the barn. "I can't believe yet that I am going, Rico," she said as they passed her.
"I can," said Rico; "but you haven't thought about it so long as I have."
Stineli was delighted with the change in Rico. "How well and forcibly he speaks," she thought. "He was timid and shy before he went away. He seems to inspire confidence, and he looks wonderfully strong and capable."
A bed was prepared for Rico in the attic. He did not unpack his lunch until the following morning, when it provided a real feast for the children. The figs were a novelty to them, and the abundance of good things assured the parents that Rico was among friends in the valley. They had no further fears about letting Stineli go with him.