For some time, Father Salví was wandering among the thick underbrush, here trying to evade the thorns which entangled his habit of guingon as if to detain him; there trying to step over the roots of the trees which stuck up through the ground and made the inexperienced traveler stumble again and again. Suddenly he stopped. Mirthful laughter and the sound of young voices reached his ears. The voices and the laughter seemed to come from the direction of the brook and each time seemed to be coming nearer.
“I am going to see if I can find a heron’s nest,” said a voice, beautiful and sweet, and at once recognized by the curate. “You know they say that if a person possesses one of those nests he can make himself invisible to everybody. How I would like to see him and not have him see me! I could follow him everywhere.”
Father Salví hid behind the thick trunk of an old tree and listened.
“That is to say, you want to do with him what the curate does with you: watch him everywhere?” replied the merry voice. “Be careful, for jealousy makes one grow thin and the eyes sink in.”
“No, no. It is not jealousy, it is pure curiosity,” replied the silvery voice, while the other repeated, “yes, yes, jealousy; that’s what it is.” And then she broke out in a merry chuckle.
“If I were jealous of him I would not use the heron’s nest to make myself invisible to him, but would make him invisible to everybody else.”
“But then you yourself would not be able to see him and you would not want that to happen. The best thing to do, if we find a heron’s nest is to give it to the priest. Then he could watch us as much as he pleased, and we would not be troubled with the sight of him. What do you think of the idea?”
“But I don’t believe in the story about the heron’s nests, anyway,” replied one. “But if I were really jealous I would know how to keep watch of a person and make myself invisible....”
“And how? How would you do it? Perhaps you would do as Sister Listener does in the convent?”
This reference to days passed in the convent provoked a jolly laugh all around.