Then they set out down the hill. Merle sang and yodelled as they went;
then Peer sang, and then they all three sang together. And when they
came to a heather-tussock or a puddle, they did not trouble to go round,
but just jumped over it, and then gave another jump for the fun of the
thing.
They passed the saeter and went on down to the water's edge, and Peer
proposed to row them home. And so they rowed across. And the whole time
they sat talking and laughing together as if they had known each other
for years.
The boat touched land just below the cottage, and a broad-shouldered man
with a grey beard and a straw hat came down to meet them. "Oh, father,
are you back again?" cried Merle, and, springing ashore, she flung her
arms round his neck. The two exchanged some whispered words, and the
father glanced at Peer. Then, taking off his hat, he came towards him
and said politely, "It was very kind of you to help the girls down."
"This is Herr Holm, engineer and Egyptian," said Merle, "and this is
father."
"I hear we are neighbours," said Uthoug. "We're just going to have tea,
so if you have nothing better to do, perhaps you will join us."
Outside the cottage stood a grey-haired lady with a pale face, wearing
spectacles. She had a thick white woollen shawl over her shoulders, but
even so she seemed to feel cold. "Welcome," she said, and Peer thought
there was a tremor in her voice.
There were two small low rooms with an open fireplace in the one, and in
it there stood a table ready laid.
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