Scarcely had they passed the light-house of
Cordouan, glittering in the twilight of a lovely evening, when they
were already friends. Already this fresh and delicate plant,
interesting as an exile, as a flower transplanted from its own soil,
as a child torn from its mother, became a mutual object of
attraction. It was thus that Louisa pointed it out to her parents as
it lay on the deck in its glass case, exposed to the mid-day sun. She
charmed the tedium of the voyage in hourly watching the progress
which she believed visible in the feeble offset. She had felt
interested in it from the moment Desclieux had shown her all the
glory he was to gain by it for France, and then she had become
attached to it; for it is a beautiful proof of the magnanimity of
women--their love for all that is glorious. Even during the five days
they had been at sea, the little coffee-plant had evidently
increased--two small leaves of a most delicate green had appeared;
and every morning Louisa's first thought after prayer was the
cherished plant; but she could not see it till Desclieux had left his
room, for he always kept the sacred deposit with him.
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