Far from the Madding Crowd Chapter XLIV

In which Bathsheba, overwhelmed by the night's troubles, retreats into a secluded fern brake beneath oaks and beech trees, where the dawning day reveals the contrasting gentleness of nature and the dismal swamp nearby, and she is soon found by her faithful maid Liddy. Together, they take refuge in a disused attic at the farm, where Bathsheba seeks solace in old familiar books and the companionship of youth, as the village life quietly continues beyond her window.