The Remembered Visit

The summer she was eleven, Drusilla went abroad with her parents
There she climbed endless flights of stairs
She tried to make out the subjects of vast dark paintings
Sometimes she was made ill by curious dishes
She was called upon to admire views
When the weather was bad, she leafed through incomprehensible magazines

One morning her parents, for some reason or other, went on an excursion without her
After luncheon an acquaintance of the family, Miss Skrim-Pshaw, took Drusilla to pay a call
They walked to an inn called Le Crapaud Bleu
They were shown into a garden where the topiary was being neglected
Drusilla was told she was going to meet a wonderful old man who had been or done something lofty and cultured in the dim past
Eventually Mr Crague appeared
He kissed Miss Skrim-Pshaw's hand, and she presented Drusilla to him
After they had sat down, Drusilla saw that Mr Crague wore no socks

He and Miss Skrim-Pshaw mentioned a great many people who had done things in their conversation
Tea was brought; it was nearly colourless, and there was a plate of crystallized ginger
Mr Crague asked Drusilla if she liked paper
He said he would have liked to show her his albums filled with beautiful pieces of it, but they were upstairs in his room
Drusilla promised when she got home to send him some insides of envelopes she had saved
Miss Skrim-Pshaw said it was time they made their adieux

On the way back a few drops of rain fell. Somehow Drusilla was hungrier than she had been before tea
Days went by
Weeks went by
Months went by
Years went by. Drusilla was still inclined to be forgetful
One day something reminded her of her promise to Mr Crague
She began to hunt for the envelope-linings in her room
On a sheet of newspaper at the bottom of a drawer she read that Mr Crague had died the autumn after she had been abroad
When she found the pretty pieces of paper, she felt very sad and deglectful
The wind came and took them through an open window; she watched them blow away