A quiet nook in the Jura
Giovanni Ruffini
Paperback
(RareBooksClub.com, May 14, 2012)
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. 1867 Excerpt: ...rather than blindness. As we took our way homeward, Herr Konrad and I tried to account for this contradiction between the actual fact and the apparent prompting of nature, and even ventured upon some ingenious speculations, according to which blindness might, after all, be the lesser evil of the two; though we wound up with a declaration that practically, and as far as we were ourselves concerned, we should each of us prefer to be deaf rather than blind. From such an alternative God preserve us! We were a quarter of an hour late for dinner when we reached the Baths, and trout was being served when we took our seats. I remarked that the conversation was more general and brisk than usual, but I was too busy in making up for lost time to stop and investigate the cause. The deaf rector at the head of the table, and the deaf professor on his right, were exchanging some shots preliminary to one of their customary pitched battles. "Have I heard?" shouted the irritable rector; "heard what?" "I didn't say 'heard,' I said 'bird,' " retorted, at the top of his voice, the not less irritable professor. "I asked you if you had seen the bird." "The bird!" repeated the chafed chairman, "I should think I have, and plenty too. What do I care for birds?"----and here followed a muttered volley of apartes, which set the whole table into roars of laughter. "By the by," said Miss Jacottet, turning to me, "have you seen the chaffinch?" I had so entirely dismissed the subject from my thoughts ever since breakfast, that I was startled at its being suddenly mentioned. "Yes," I replied; "that is to say, I saw the little ones early this morning...