The Gnomes of the Saline Mountains: A Fantastic Narrative

ded by green-decked Saline Mountains, was already thronged to overflowing with eager-looking sightseers, watc

tadt, and other mountain resorts of prominence, and the

eryone looked on expectantly, reviewing the grands

sy badges in honor of the occasion, were seen here and there, while their eyes sparkled and

e, speaking different languages and wearing outlandish clothes, made up a bewildering pictu

leted, began to fill rapidly with the elite of Viennese society. These floral festivals, which had been so popular in previous years, were

of the musical world, living there in their beautiful cottages, were seen quietly taking their seats. The great bare mountain "Traunstein" seemed to smile d

of snow, they went home full of elasticity and creative power, often bringing along conceptions of masterpieces which were later to fill the entire

rgeously arrayed to represent a bower of field roses. He opened the festival by throwing red carnations into the water as far as his hand could reach. Next came the customary exchange of greetings among the Austrian nobil

of the lake, with its little, gently splashing wavelets, was covered

lilies of the valley; here a pagoda of large sunflowers

rying to catch some inexperienced young fish in her golden meshes. Nearby sailed a sleeping beauty (though rather wide awake) embowered

ver which a canopy of glittering, diaphanous material was hanging, presumably as a suitable background for a lady now the cynosure of all eyes. She was of such entrancing beauty that all who beheld her sat spellb

red with little amorettes of silver pearls, which hung loosely in artistic folds about the luxurious outlines of her bewitching form. Long flaxen hair, artistically arranged, set off with diamond sparks, fell about her, and shone like molten gold in the setting sun. It was supposed to be a real reprodu

stranger in this atmosphere of wealth and distinction. Her features were rigid and white, and she seemed fascinated, dumb with admiration at the

t distance away, murmuring grimly unintelligible words to himself. She caught sight of him and sent him a friendly glance and a smi

ingly when any boat of the Viennese "Jeunesse doree" came with admiring curiosity t

yielded to her cajoling entreaty to be

lated the admiring men with a scornful sneer. "I loathe the

ed estates were often in the hands of unscrupulous usurers, or mortgaged to the last cent, while the sneering one had money in such abundance that he could have purchased patents of nobility for an entire regiment, and sti