第3部分(第2/5 頁)

ry；　and　Merrick　could　stay　in　it　for　the　summer；　she　said。

I　took　Merrick　to　the　country　in　a　train　with　dark　windows；　so　nobody　could　see　him。　Then　we　went　in　a　cab　to　the　country　house。

There　were　a　lot　of　trees　near　the　house；　but　no　people　lived　near　it。　A　countryman　brought　food　to　the　house　everyday；　but　no　people　came　near　it。

I　stayed　with　him　that　night。　At　night；　it　orning；　hundreds　of　birds　sang　in　the　trees；　and　everything　outside　the　house　was　green。　Merrick　walked　under　the　big　trees；　looking　at　things　happily；　and　singing　his　strange　song。

I　went　back　to　London；　but　Merrick　stayed　there　for　six　weeks。　He　was　wonderfully　happy。　Every　week；　he　wrote　me　a　letter。

Apple　Tree　House；

West　Wickham；

Berkshire。

21st　July　1889

Dear　Dr　Treves；

I　had　a　wonderful　day　again　today；　It　was　very　warm；　so　I　walked　under　the　trees　and　sat　by　a　stream。　The　water　in　the　stream　made　a　beautiful　noise；　like　singing。　Did　you　know　that？I　listened　to　it　for　two　hours。

Lots　of　little　birds　came　near　me　。　One　had　a　red　body　in　front；　and　a　brown　back。　I　gave　it　some　bread；　and　it　sat　on　my　hand。　A　lot　of　birds　are　my　friends；　now。

I　watched　the　fish　in　the　stream；　too。　They　were　very　exciting；　because　they　move　very　fast。　One　minute　they　were　there；　and　the　next　minute　I　couldn't　see　them。　But　I　waited　quietly；　and　they　always　came　back。　I　put　my　hand　in　the　water；　but　I　couldn't　touch　them。

I　met　a