Muston's house, in which everything seemed to sleep in eternal calm.
On the opposite side was the seminary, also red brick and white
paint, facing the north; but, to make amends, the garden had a
southern aspect, and the back of the house was covered with a huge
magnolia whose edges curled round to the western side, so that it
could be seen by wayfarers. It was a sight not to be forgotten--the
red brick, the white paint, the July sun the magnolia leaves, the
flanking elms on the east high above the chimneys, the glimpse of the
acre of lawn through the great gates when they happened to be open,
the peace, so profound, of summer noon! How lovely it looks as it
hovers unsteadily before the eye, seen through the transfiguring haze
of so many years! It was really, there is no doubt about it,
handsomer than the stuccoed villa which stares at us over the way;
but yet, if Cowfold Church Street, red brick, white paint, elms,
lawn, and midsummer repose could be restored at the present moment,
would it be exactly what the vision of it is? What is this magic
gift which even for the humblest of us paints and frames these
enchanting pictures? It is nothing less than the genius which is
common to humanity.
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