There was one vegetable stand to which we would draw the reader's
particular attention; not exactly as a type of the others, for there was
something so unlike all the rest, both in this stall and its occupant,
that it would have drawn the attention of any person possessed of the
slightest artistical taste. It was like the arrangement of a picture,
that long table heaped with fruit, the freshest vegetables, and the
brightest flowers, ready for the day's traffic. Rich scarlet radishes
glowing up through their foliage of tender green, were contrasted with
young onions swelling out from their long emerald stalks, snowy and
transparent as so many great pearls. Turnips, scarcely larger than a
hen's egg, and nearly as white, just taken fresh and fragrant from the
soil, lay against heads of lettuce, tinged with crisp and greenish gold,
piled against the deep blackish green of spinach and water-cresses, all
moist with dew, or wet with bright water-drops that had supplied its
place, and taking a deeper tint from the golden contrast. These with the
red glow of strawberries in their luscious prime, piled together in
masses, and shaded with fresh grape leaves; bouquets of roses,
hyacinths, violets, and other fragrant blossoms, lent their perfume and
the glow of their rich colors to the coarser children of the soil, and
would have been an object pleasant to look upon, independent of the fine
old woman who sat complacently on her little stool, at one end of the
table, in tranquil expectation of customers that were sure to drop in as
the morning deepened.
And now the traffic of the day commenced in earnest. Servants,
housekeepers and grocers swarmed into the market. The clink of
money--the sound of sharp, eager banter--the dull noise of the butcher's
cleaver, were heard on every hand. It was a pleasant scene, for every
face looked smiling and happy. The soft morning air seemed to have
brightened all things into cheerfulness.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account