All was
changed, as if by magic. The road, smooth, free from grass and weeds,
and freshly gravelled, had no more ruts; the hedges, neatly trimmed and
properly tended, no longer reached out long, straggling arms to catch
the rare passer-by; the tall trees on either side had been carefully
pruned, so that their branches met in an arch overhead, and framed in a
most astonishing picture. Instead of the dreary ruin, slowly crumbling
into dust, a fine new chateau rose before them--resembling the old one
as a son resembles his father. It was an exact reproduction--nothing
had been changed, only renewed--it was simply the ancient mansion
rejuvenated. The walls were smooth and unbroken, the lofty towers
intact, rising proudly at the four angles of the building, with their
freshly gilded weathercocks gleaming in the sunlight. A handsome new
roof, tastefully ornamented with a pretty design in different coloured
slates, had replaced the broken, weather-stained tiles, through which
the rain used to find its way down into the frescoed hall, and the long
suite of deserted rooms. Every window had bright large panes of clear
glass shining in its casement, and a magnificent great door, turning
smoothly and noiselessly upon its huge hinges, had superseded the old,
worm-eaten one, that used to groan and creak piteously when opened ever
so little.
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