I found the lady easily enough, and got into the same carriage with
her. It was one of those on the Swiss plan, with many compartments
opening into one another _en suite_. Although the seat I chose was at
a discreet distance, I was able to keep her in view.
I was wondering whether it would be possible for me to break the ice
and make her acquaintance, when luck served me better than I dared to
hope. One of the Swiss guards of the train, a surly, overbearing
brute, like so many others of his class, accosted her rudely, and from
his gestures was evidently taking her to task as to the number and
size of her parcels in the net above. He began to shift them, and,
despite her indignant protests in imperfect German, threw some of them
on the floor.
This was my opportunity. I hurried to the rescue, and, being fluent in
German as in several other languages--it is part of my stock in
trade--I sharply reproved the guard and called him an unmannerly boor
for his cowardly treatment of an unprotected lady. My reward was a
sweet smile, and I felt encouraged to hazard a few words in reply to
her cordial thanks.
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