Faith's eye was upon the sprig of sea-weed while these verses were repeating,—then she looked up at the speaker with an intenseness in which oddly mingled some strong feeling of sorrow or regret.
"It's beautiful!"—she said,—"beautiful!—both the one and the other.
But there are a great many things there I don't understand,"—she added
once more with a smile. "If there was time—but there isn't.—Mr.
Linden, Reuben and I have been roasting clams."
"Yes, Miss Faith," he said answering the smile and stepping nearer the window. "So one of my senses informed me. Do you know what that is in your hand?"
"It's sea-weed, isn't it?"
"Yes. And moreover—Miss Faith, that is part of your marine Flora. Now what about the clams?"
"My what?" said Faith. "First tell me, please, what you said."
"Your marine Flora."
"What is that?"
"The particular department of life in the sea, of which this is a specimen."
Faith looked puzzled, and amused.