Produced by Eric Eldred, Joshua Hutchinson, Charles Franks

and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team.

A TRAVELLER IN LITTLE THINGS

BY

W. H. HUDSON

NOTE

Of the sketches contained in this volume, fourteen have appeared in thefollowing periodicals: The New Statesman, The Saturday Review, TheNation, and The Cornhill Magazine.

CONTENTS

I. HOW I FOUND MY TITLE II. THE OLD MAN'S DELUSION III. AS A TREE FALLS IV. BLOOD: A STORY OF TWO BROTHERS V. A STORY OF LONG DESCENT VI. A SECOND STORY OF TWO BROTHERS VII. A THIRD STORY OF TWO BROTHERS VIII. THE TWO WHITE HOUSES: A MEMORY IX. DANDY: A STORY OF A DOG X. THE SAMPHIRE GATHERER XI. A SURREY VILLAGE XII. A WILTSHIRE VILLAGE XIII. HER OWN VILLAGE XIV. APPLE BLOSSOMS AND A LOST VILLAGE XV. THE VANISHING CURTSEY XVI. LITTLE GIRLS I HAVE MET XVII. MILLICENT AND ANOTHER XVIII. FRECKLES XIX. ON CROMER BEACH XX. DIMPLES XXI. WILD FLOWERS AND LITTLE GIRLS XXII. A LITTLE GIRL LOST XXIII. A SPRAY OF SOUTHERNWOOD XXIV. IN PORCHESTER CHURCHYARD XXV. HOMELESS XXVI. THE STORY OF A SKULL XXVII. A STORY OF A WALNUT XXVIII. A STORY OF A JACKDAW XXIX. A WONDERFUL STORY OF A MACKEREL XXX. STRANGERS YET XXXI. THE RETURN OF THE CHIFF-CHAFF XXXII. A WASP AT TABLE XXXIII. WASPS AND MEN XXXIV. IN CHITTERNE CHURCHYARD XXXV. A HAUNTER OF CHURCHYARDS XXXVI. THE DEAD AND THE LIVING XXXVII. A STORY OF THREE POEMS

A TRAVELLER IN LITTLE THINGS

I

HOW I FOUND MY TITLE

It is surely a rare experience for an unclassified man, past middleage, to hear himself accurately and aptly described for the first timein his life by a perfect stranger! This thing happened to me atBristol, some time ago, in the way I am about to relate. I slept at aCommercial Hotel, and early next morning was joined in the big emptycoffee-room, smelling of stale tobacco, by an intenselyrespectable-looking old gentleman, whose hair was of silvery whiteness,and who wore gold-rimmed spectacles and a heavy gold watch-chain withmany seals attached thereto; whose linen was of the finest, and whoseouter garments, including the trousers, were of the newest and blackestbroadcloth. A glossier and at the same time a more venerable-looking"commercial" I had never seen in the west country, nor anywhere in thethree kingdoms. He could not have improved his appearance if he hadbeen on his way to attend the funeral of a millionaire. But with allhis superior look he was quite affable, and talked fluently andinstructively on a variety of themes, including trade, politics, andreligion. Perceiving that he had taken me for what I was not—one ofthe army in which he served, but of inferior rank—I listenedrespectfully as became me. Finally he led the talk to the subject ofagriculture, and the condition and prospects of farming in England.Here I perceived that he was on wholly unfamiliar ground, and in returnfor the valuable information he had given me on other and moreimportant subjects, I proceeded to enlighten him. When I had finishedstating my facts and views, he said: "I perceive that you know a greatdeal more about the matter than I do, and I will now tell you why youknow more. You are a traveller in little things—in something verysmall—which takes you into the villages and hamlets, where you meetand converse with small farmers, innkeepers, labourers and their wives,with other pers

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