,"
said
the
lady
,
turning
once
more
to
him
.
"
—
What
can
I
do
for
you
?
It
is
not
easy
to
tell
!
"
"
Tie
my
leg
on
,
of
course
,
you
fool
!
Ca
n't
you
see
it
is
all
but
off
?
Heigho
,
my
dancing
days
!
"
She
looked
about
with
her
eyeless
sockets
and
found
a
piece
of
fibrous
grass
,
with
which
she
proceeded
to
bind
together
the
adjoining
parts
that
had
formed
the
knee
.
When
she
had
done
,
he
gave
one
or
two
carefully
tentative
stamps
.
"
You
used
to
stamp
rather
differently
,
my
lord
!
"
she
said
,
as
she
rose
from
her
knees
.
"
Eh
?
what
!
—
Now
I
look
at
you
again
,
it
seems
to
me
I
used
to
hate
you
!
—
Eh
?
"
"
Naturally
,
my
lord
!
You
hated
a
good
many
people
!
—
your
wife
,
of
course
,
among
the
rest
!
"
"
Ah
,
I
begin
,
I
be-gin
—
—
But
—
I
must
have
been
a
long
time
somewhere
!
—
I
really
forget
!
—
There
!
your
damned
,
miserable
bit
of
grass
is
breaking
!
—
We
used
to
get
on
pretty
well
together
—
eh
?
"
"
Not
that
I
remember
,
my
lord
.
The
only
happy
moments
I
had
in
your
company
were
scattered
over
the
first
week
of
our
marriage
.
"
"
Was
that
the
way
of
it
?
Ha
!
ha
!
—
Well
,
it
's
over
now
,
thank
goodness
!
"
"
I
wish
I
could
believe
it
!
Why
were
we
sitting
there
in
that
carriage
together
?
It
wakes
apprehension
!
"
"
I
think
we
were
divorced
,
my
lady
!
"
"
Hardly
enough
:
we
are
still
together
!
"
"
A
sad
truth
,
but
capable
of
remedy
:
the
forest
seems
of
some
extent
!
"
"
I
doubt
!
I
doubt
!
"
"
I
am
sorry
I
cannot
think
of
a
compliment
to
pay
you
—
without
lying
,
that
is
.
To
judge
by
your
figure
and
complexion
you
have
lived
hard
since
I
saw
you
last
!
I
cannot
surely
be
quite
so
naked
as
your
ladyship
!
—
I
beg
your
pardon
,
madam
!
I
trust
you
will
take
it
I
am
but
jesting
in
a
dream
!
It
is
of
no
consequence
,
however
;
dreaming
or
waking
,
all
's
one
—
all
merest
appearance
!
You
ca
n't
be
certain
of
anything
,
and
that
's
as
good
as
knowing
there
is
nothing
!
Life
may
teach
any
fool
that
!
"
"
It
has
taught
me
the
fool
I
was
to
love
you
!
"
"
You
were
not
the
only
fool
to
do
that
!
Women
had
a
trick
of
falling
in
love
with
me
:
—
I
had
forgotten
that
you
were
one
of
them
!
"
"
I
did
love
you
,
my
lord
—
a
little
—
at
one
time
!
"
"
Ah
,
there
was
your
mistake
,
my
lady
!
You
should
have
loved
me
much
,
loved
me
devotedly
,
loved
me
savagely
—
loved
me
eternally
!
Then
I
should
have
tired
of
you
the
sooner
,
and
not
hated
you
so
much
afterward
!
—
But
let
bygones
be
bygones
!
—
Where
are
we
?
Locality
is
the
question
!
To
be
or
not
to
be
,
is
not
the
question
!
"
"
We
are
in
the
other
world
,
I
presume
!
"
"
Granted
!
—
but
in
which
or
what
sort
of
other
world
?
This
ca
n't
be
hell
!
"
"
It
must
:
there
's
marriage
in
it
!
You
and
I
are
damned
in
each
other
.
"
"
Then
I
'm
not
like
Othello
,
damned
in
a
fair
wife
!
—
Oh
,
I
remember
my
Shakspeare
,
madam
!
"
She
picked
up
a
broken
branch
that
had
fallen
into
a
bush
,
and
steadying
herself
with
it
,
walked
away
,
tossing
her
little
skull
.
"
Give
that
stick
to
me
,
"
cried
her
late
husband
;
"
I
want
it
more
than
you
.
"
She
returned
him
no
answer
.
"
You
mean
to
make
me
beg
for
it
?
"
"
Not
at
all
,
my
lord
.
I
mean
to
keep
it
,
"
she
replied
,
continuing
her
slow
departure
.
"
Give
it
me
at
once
;
I
mean
to
have
it
!
I
require
it
.
"
"
Unfortunately
,
I
think
I
require
it
myself
!
"
returned
the
lady
,
walking
a
little
quicker
,
with
a
sharper
cracking
of
her
joints
and
clinking
of
her
bones
.
He
started
to
follow
her
,
but
nearly
fell
:
his
knee-grass
had
burst
,
and
with
an
oath
he
stopped
,
grasping
his
leg
again
.
"
Come
and
tie
it
up
properly
!
"
he
would
have
thundered
,
but
he
only
piped
and
whistled
!
She
turned
and
looked
at
him
.
"
Come
and
tie
it
up
instantly
!
"
he
repeated
.
She
walked
a
step
or
two
farther
from
him
.
"
I
swear
I
will
not
touch
you
!
"
he
cried
.
"
Swear
on
,
my
lord
!
there
is
no
one
here
to
believe
you
.
But
,
pray
,
do
not
lose
your
temper
,
or
you
will
shake
yourself
to
pieces
,
and
where
to
find
string
enough
to
tie
up
all
your
crazy
joints
,
is
more
than
I
can
tell
.
"
She
came
back
,
and
knelt
once
more
at
his
side
—
first
,
however
,
laying
the
stick
in
dispute
beyond
his
reach
and
within
her
own
.
The
instant
she
had
finished
retying
the
joint
,
he
made
a
grab
at
her
,
thinking
,
apparently
,
to
seize
her
by
the
hair
;
but
his
hard
fingers
slipped
on
the
smooth
poll
.
"
Disgusting
!
"
he
muttered
,
and
laid
hold
of
her
upper
arm-bone
.
"
You
will
break
it
!
"
she
said
,
looking
up
from
her
knees
.
"
I
will
,
then
!
"
he
answered
,
and
began
to
strain
at
it
.
"
I
shall
not
tie
your
leg
again
the
next
time
it
comes
loose
!
"
she
threatened
.
He
gave
her
arm
a
vicious
twist
,
but
happily
her
bones
were
in
better
condition
than
his
.
She
stretched
her
other
hand
toward
the
broken
branch
.
"
That
's
right
:
reach
me
the
stick
!
"
he
grinned
.
She
brought
it
round
with
such
a
swing
that
one
of
the
bones
of
the
sounder
leg
snapped
.
He
fell
,
choking
with
curses
.
The
lady
laughed
.
"
Now
you
will
have
to
wear
splints
always
!
"
she
said
;
"
such
dry
bones
never
mend
!
"
"
You
devil
!
"
he
cried
.
"
At
your
service
,
my
lord
!
Shall
I
fetch
you
a
couple
of
wheel-spokes
?
Neat
—
but
heavy
,
I
fear
!
"
He
turned
his
bone-face
aside
,
and
did
not
answer
,
but
lay
and
groaned
.
I
marvelled
he
had
not
gone
to
pieces
when
he
fell
.
The
lady
rose
and
walked
away
—
not
all
ungracefully
,
I
thought
.
"
What
can
come
of
it
?
"
I
said
to
myself
.
"
These
are
too
wretched
for
any
world
,
and
this
cannot
be
hell
,
for
the
Little
Ones
are
in
it
,
and
the
sleepers
too
!
What
can
it
all
mean
?
Can
things
ever
come
right
for
skeletons
?
"
"
There
are
words
too
big
for
you
and
me
:
all
is
one
of
them
,
and
ever
is
another
,
"
said
a
voice
near
me
which
I
knew
.
I
looked
about
,
but
could
not
see
the
speaker
.
"
You
are
not
in
hell
,
"
it
resumed
.
"
Neither
am
I
in
hell
.
But
those
skeletons
are
in
hell
!
"
Ere
he
ended
I
caught
sight
of
the
raven
on
the
bough
of
a
beech
,
right
over
my
head
.
The
same
moment
he
left
it
,
and
alighting
on
the
ground
,
stood
there
,
the
thin
old
man
of
the
library
,
with
long
nose
and
long
coat
.
"
The
male
was
never
a
gentleman
,
"
he
went
on
,
"
and
in
the
bony
stage
of
retrogression
,
with
his
skeleton
through
his
skin
,
and
his
character
outside
his
manners
,
does
not
look
like
one
.
The
female
is
less
vulgar
,
and
has
a
little
heart
.
But
,
the
restraints
of
society
removed
,
you
see
them
now
just
as
they
are
and
always
were
!
"
"
Tell
me
,
Mr.
Raven
,
what
will
become
of
them
,
"
I
said
.
"
We
shall
see
,
"
he
replied
.
"
In
their
day
they
were
the
handsomest
couple
at
court
;
and
now
,
even
in
their
dry
bones
,
they
seem
to
regard
their
former
repute
as
an
inalienable
possession
;
to
see
their
faces
,
however
,
may
yet
do
something
for
them
!
They
felt
themselves
rich
too
while
they
had
pockets
,
but
they
have
already
begun
to
feel
rather
pinched
!
My
lord
used
to
regard
my
lady
as
a
worthless
encumbrance
,
for
he
was
tired
of
her
beauty
and
had
spent
her
money
;
now
he
needs
her
to
cobble
his
joints
for
him
!
These
changes
have
roots
of
hope
in
them
.
Besides
,
they
cannot
now
get
far
away
from
each
other
,
and
they
see
none
else
of
their
own
kind
:
they
must
at
last
grow
weary
of
their
mutual
repugnance
,
and
begin
to
love
one
another
!
for
love
,
not
hate
,
is
deepest
in
what
Love
`
loved
into
being
.
'
"
"
I
saw
many
more
of
their
kind
an
hour
ago
,
in
the
hall
close
by
!
"
I
said
.
"
Of
their
kind
,
but
not
of
their
sort
,
"
he
answered
.
"
For
many
years
these
will
see
none
such
as
you
saw
last
night
.
Those
are
centuries
in
advance
of
these
.
You
saw
that
those
could
even
dress
themselves
a
little
!
It
is
true
they
cannot
yet
retain
their
clothes
so
long
as
they
would
—
only
,
at
present
,
for
a
part
of
the
night
;
but
they
are
pretty
steadily
growing
more
capable
,
and
will
by
and
by
develop
faces
;
for
every
grain
of
truthfulness
adds
a
fibre
to
the
show
of
their
humanity
.
Nothing
but
truth
can
appear
;
and
whatever
is
must
seem
.
"
"
Are
they
upheld
by
this
hope
?
"
I
asked
.
"
They
are
upheld
by
hope
,
but
they
do
not
in
the
least
know
their
hope
;
to
understand
it
,
is
yet
immeasurably
beyond
them
,
"
answered
Mr.
Raven
.
His
unexpected
appearance
had
caused
me
no
astonishment
.
I
was
like
a
child
,
constantly
wondering
,
and
surprised
at
nothing
.
"
Did
you
come
to
find
me
,
sir
?
"
I
asked
.
"
Not
at
all
,
"
he
replied
.
"
I
have
no
anxiety
about
you
.
Such
as
you
always
come
back
to
us
.
"
"
Tell
me
,
please
,
who
am
I
such
as
?
"
I
said
.
"
I
cannot
make
my
friend
the
subject
of
conversation
,
"
he
answered
,
with
a
smile
.
"
But
when
that
friend
is
present
!
"
I
urged
.
"
I
decline
the
more
strongly
,
"
he
rejoined
.
"
But
when
that
friend
asks
you
!
"
I
persisted
.
"
Then
most
positively
I
refuse
,
"
he
returned
.
"
Why
?
"
"
Because
he
and
I
would
be
talking
of
two
persons
as
if
they
were
one
and
the
same
.
Your
consciousness
of
yourself
and
my
knowledge
of
you
are
far
apart
!
"
The
lapels
of
his
coat
flew
out
,
and
the
lappets
lifted
,
and
I
thought
the
metamorphosis
of
homo
to
corvus
was
about
to
take
place
before
my
eyes
.
But
the
coat
closed
again
in
front
of
him
,
and
he
added
,
with
seeming
inconsequence
,
"
In
this
world
never
trust
a
person
who
has
once
deceived
you
.
Above
all
,
never
do
anything
such
a
one
may
ask
you
to
do
.
"
"
I
will
try
to
remember
,
"
I
answered
;
"
—
but
I
may
forget
!
"
"
Then
some
evil
that
is
good
for
you
will
follow
.
"
"
And
if
I
remember
?
"
"
Some
evil
that
is
not
good
for
you
,
will
not
follow
.
"
The
old
man
seemed
to
sink
to
the
ground
,
and
immediately
I
saw
the
raven
several
yards
from
me
,
flying
low
and
fast
.
chapter
xviii
DEAD
OR
ALIVE
?
I
WENT
walking
on
,
still
facing
the
moon
,
who
,
not
yet
high
,
was
staring
straight
into
the
forest
.
I
did
not
know
what
ailed
her
,
but
she
was
dark
and
dented
,
like
a
battered
disc
of
old
copper
,
and
looked
dispirited
and
weary
.
Not
a
cloud
was
nigh
to
keep
her
company
,
and
the
stars
were
too
bright
for
her
.
"
Is
this
going
to
last
for
ever
?
"
she
seemed
to
say
.
She
was
going
one
way
and
I
was
going
the
other
,
yet
through
the
wood
we
went
a
long
way
together
.
We
did
not
commune
much
,
for
my
eyes
were
on
the
ground
;
but
her
disconsolate
look
was
fixed
on
me
:
I
felt
without
seeing
it
.
A
long
time
we
were
together
,
I
and
the
moon
,
walking
side
by
side
,
she
the
dull
shine
,
and
I
the
live
shadow
.
Something
on
the
ground
,
under
a
spreading
tree
,
caught
my
eye
with
its
whiteness
,
and
I
turned
toward
it
.
Vague
as
it
was
in
the
shadow
of
the
foliage
,
it
suggested
,
as
I
drew
nearer
,
a
human
body
.
"
Another
skeleton
!
"
I
said
to
myself
,
kneeling
and
laying
my
hand
upon
it
.
A
body
it
was
,
however
,
and
no
skeleton
,
though
as
nearly
one
as
body
could
well
be
.
It
lay
on
its
side
,
and
was
very
cold
—
not
cold
like
a
stone
,
but
cold
like
that
which
was
once
alive
,
and
is
alive
no
more
.
The
closer
I
looked
at
it
,
the
oftener
I
touched
it
,
the
less
it
seemed
possible
it
should
be
other
than
dead
.
For
one
bewildered
moment
,
I
fancied
it
one
of
the
wild
dancers
,
a
ghostly
Cinderella
,
perhaps
,
that
had
lost
her
way
home
,
and
perished
in
the
strange
night
of
an
out-of-door
world
!
It
was
quite
naked
,
and
so
worn
that
,
even
in
the
shadow
,
I
could
,
peering
close
,
have
counted
without
touching
them
,
every
rib
in
its
side
.
All
its
bones
,
indeed
,
were
as
visible
as
if
tight-covered
with
only
a
thin
elastic
leather
.
Its
beautiful
yet
terrible
teeth
,
unseemly
disclosed
by
the
retracted
lips
,
gleamed
ghastly
through
the
dark
.
Its
hair
was
longer
than
itself
,
thick
and
very
fine
to
the
touch
,
and
black
as
night
.
It
was
the
body
of
a
tall
,
probably
graceful
woman
.
—
How
had
she
come
there
?
Not
of
herself
,
and
already
in
such
wasted
condition
,
surely
!
Her
strength
must
have
failed
her
;
she
had
fallen
,
and
lain
there
until
she
died
of
hunger
!
But
how
,
even
so
,
could
she
be
thus
emaciated
?
And
how
came
she
to
be
naked
?
Where
were
the
savages
to
strip
and
leave
her
?
or
what
wild
beasts
would
have
taken
her
garments
?
That
her
body
should
have
been
left
was
not
wonderful
!
I
rose
to
my
feet
,
stood
,
and
considered
.
I
must
not
,
could
not
let
her
lie
exposed
and
forsaken
!
Natural
reverence
forbade
it
.
Even
the
garment
of
a
woman
claims
respect
;
her
body
it
were
impossible
to
leave
uncovered
!
Irreverent
eyes
might
look
on
it
!
Brutal
claws
might
toss
it
about
!
Years
would
pass
ere
the
friendly
rains
washed
it
into
the
soil
!
—
But
the
ground
was
hard
,
almost
solid
with
interlacing
roots
,
and
I
had
but
my
bare
hands
!
At
first
it
seemed
plain
that
she
had
not
long
been
dead
:
there
was
not
a
sign
of
decay
about
her
!
But
then
what
had
the
slow
wasting
of
life
left
of
her
to
decay
?
Could
she
be
still
alive
?
Might
she
not
?
What
if
she
were
!
Things
went
very
strangely
in
this
strange
world
!
Even
then
there
would
be
little
chance
of
bringing
her
back
,
but
I
must
know
she
was
dead
before
I
buried
her
!
As
I
left
the
forest-hall
,
I
had
spied
in
the
doorway
a
bunch
of
ripe
grapes
,
and
brought
it
with
me
,
eating
as
I
came
:
a
few
were
yet
left
on
the
stalk
,
and
their
juice
might
possibly
revive
her
!
Anyhow
it
was
all
I
had
with
which
to
attempt
her
rescue
!
The
mouth
was
happily
a
little
open
;
but
the
head
was
in
such
an
awkward
position
that
,
to
move
the
body
,
I
passed
my
arm
under
the
shoulder
on
which
it
lay
,
when
I
found
the
pine-needles
beneath
it
warm
:
she
could
not
have
been
any
time
dead
,
and
might
still
be
alive
,
though
I
could
discern
no
motion
of
the
heart
,
or
any
indication
that
she
breathed
!
One
of
her
hands
was
clenched
hard
,
apparently
inclosing
something
small
.
I
squeezed
a
grape
into
her
mouth
,
but
no
swallowing
followed
.
To
do
for
her
all
I
could
,
I
spread
a
thick
layer
of
pine-needles
and
dry
leaves
,
laid
one
of
my
garments
over
it
,
warm
from
my
body
,
lifted
her
upon
it
,
and
covered
her
with
my
clothes
and
a
great
heap
of
leaves
:
I
would
save
the
little
warmth
left
in
her
,
hoping
an
increase
to
it
when
the
sun
came
back
.
Then
I
tried
another
grape
,
but
could
perceive
no
slightest
movement
of
mouth
or
throat
.
"
Doubt
,
"
I
said
to
myself
,
"
may
be
a
poor
encouragement
to
do
anything
,
but
it
is
a
bad
reason
for
doing
nothing
.
"
So
tight
was
the
skin
upon
her
bones
that
I
dared
not
use
friction
.
I
crept
into
the
heap
of
leaves
,
got
as
close
to
her
as
I
could
,
and
took
her
in
my
arms
.
I
had
not
much
heat
left
in
me
,
but
what
I
had
I
would
share
with
her
!
Thus
I
spent
what
remained
of
the
night
,
sleepless
,
and
longing
for
the
sun
.
Her
cold
seemed
to
radiate
into
me
,
but
no
heat
to
pass
from
me
to
her
.
Had
I
fled
from
the
beautiful
sleepers
,
I
thought
,
each
on
her
"
dim
,
straight
"
silver
couch
,
to
lie
alone
with
such
a
bedfellow
!
I
had
refused
a
lovely
privilege
:
I
was
given
over
to
an
awful
duty
!
Beneath
the
sad
,
slow-setting
moon
,
I
lay
with
the
dead
,
and
watched
for
the
dawn
.
The
darkness
had
given
way
,
and
the
eastern
horizon
was
growing
dimly
clearer
,
when
I
caught
sight
of
a
motion
rather
than
of
anything
that
moved
—
not
far
from
me
,
and
close
to
the
ground
.
It
was
the
low
undulating
of
a
large
snake
,
which
passed
me
in
an
unswerving
line
.
Presently
appeared
,
making
as
it
seemed
for
the
same
point
,
what
I
took
for
a
roebuck-doe
and
her
calf
.
Again
a
while
,
and
two
creatures
like
bear-cubs
came
,
with
three
or
four
smaller
ones
behind
them
.
The
light
was
now
growing
so
rapidly
that
when
,
a
few
minutes
after
,
a
troop
of
horses
went
trotting
past
,
I
could
see
that
,
although
the
largest
of
them
were
no
bigger
than
the
smallest
Shetland
pony
,
they
must
yet
be
full-grown
,
so
perfect
were
they
in
form
,
and
so
much
had
they
all
the
ways
and
action
of
great
horses
.
They
were
of
many
breeds
.
Some
seemed
models
of
cart-horses
,
others
of
chargers
,
hunters
,
racers
.
Dwarf
cattle
and
small
elephants
followed
.
"
Why
are
the
children
not
here
!
"
I
said
to
myself
.
"
The
moment
I
am
free
of
this
poor
woman
,
I
must
go
back
and
fetch
them
!
"
Where
were
the
creatures
going
?
What
drew
them
?
Was
this
an
exodus
,
or
a
morning
habit
?
I
must
wait
for
the
sun
!
Till
he
came
I
must
not
leave
the
woman
!
I
laid
my
hand
on
the
body
,
and
could
not
help
thinking
it
felt
a
trifle
warmer
.
It
might
have
gained
a
little
of
the
heat
I
had
lost
!
it
could
hardly
have
generated
any
!
What
reason
for
hope
there
was
had
not
grown
less
!
The
forehead
of
the
day
began
to
glow
,
and
soon
the
sun
came
peering
up
,
as
if
to
see
for
the
first
time
what
all
this
stir
of
a
new
world
was
about
.
At
sight
of
his
great
innocent
splendour
,
I
rose
full
of
life
,
strong
against
death
.
Removing
the
handkerchief
I
had
put
to
protect
the
mouth
and
eyes
from
the
pine-needles
,
I
looked
anxiously
to
see
whether
I
had
found
a
priceless
jewel
,
or
but
its
empty
case
.
The
body
lay
motionless
as
when
I
found
it
.
Then
first
,
in
the
morning
light
,
I
saw
how
drawn
and
hollow
was
the
face
,
how
sharp
were
the
bones
under
the
skin
,
how
every
tooth
shaped
itself
through
the
lips
.
The
human
garment
was
indeed
worn
to
its
threads
,
but
the
bird
of
heaven
might
yet
be
nestling
within
,
might
yet
awake
to
motion
and
song
!
But
the
sun
was
shining
on
her
face
!
I
re-arranged
the
handkerchief
,
laid
a
few
leaves
lightly
over
it
,
and
set
out
to
follow
the
creatures
.
Their
main
track
was
well
beaten
,
and
must
have
long
been
used
—
likewise
many
of
the
tracks
that
,
joining
it
from
both
sides
,
merged
in
,
and
broadened
it
.
The
trees
retreated
as
I
went
,
and
the
grass
grew
thicker
.
Presently
the
forest
was
gone
,
and
a
wide
expanse
of
loveliest
green
stretched
away
to
the
horizon
.
Through
it
,
along
the
edge
of
the
forest
,
flowed
a
small
river
,
and
to
this
the
track
led
.
At
sight
of
the
water
a
new
though
undefined
hope
sprang
up
in
me
.
The
stream
looked
everywhere
deep
,
and
was
full
to
the
brim
,
but
nowhere
more
than
a
few
yards
wide
.
A
bluish
mist
rose
from
it
,
vanishing
as
it
rose
.
On
the
opposite
side
,
in
the
plentiful
grass
,
many
small
animals
were
feeding
.
Apparently
they
slept
in
the
forest
,
and
in
the
morning
sought
the
plain
,
swimming
the
river
to
reach
it
.
I
knelt
and
would
have
drunk
,
but
the
water
was
hot
,
and
had
a
strange
metallic
taste
.
I
leapt
to
my
feet
:
here
was
the
warmth
I
sought
—
the
first
necessity
of
life
!
I
sped
back
to
my
helpless
charge
.
Without
well
considering
my
solitude
,
no
one
will
understand
what
seemed
to
lie
for
me
in
the
redemption
of
this
woman
from
death
.
"
Prove
what
she
may
,
"
I
thought
with
myself
,
"
I
shall
at
least
be
lonely
no
more
!
"
I
had
found
myself
such
poor
company
that
now
first
I
seemed
to
know
what
hope
was
.
This
blessed
water
would
expel
the
cold
death
,
and
drown
my
desolation
!
I
bore
her
to
the
stream
.
Tall
as
she
was
,
I
found
her
marvellously
light
,
her
bones
were
so
delicate
,
and
so
little
covered
them
.
I
grew
yet
more
hopeful
when
I
found
her
so
far
from
stiff
that
I
could
carry
her
on
one
arm
,
like
a
sleeping
child
,
leaning
against
my
shoulder
.
I
went
softly
,
dreading
even
the
wind
of
my
motion
,
and
glad
there
was
no
other
.
The
water
was
too
hot
to
lay
her
at
once
in
it
:
the
shock
might
scare
from
her
the
yet
fluttering
life
!
I
laid
her
on
the
bank
,
and
dipping
one
of
my
garments
,
began
to
bathe
the
pitiful
form
.
So
wasted
was
it
that
,
save
from
the
plentifulness
and
blackness
of
the
hair
,
it
was
impossible
even
to
conjecture
whether
she
was
young
or
old
.
Her
eyelids
were
just
not
shut
,
which
made
her
look
dead
the
more
:
there
was
a
crack
in
the
clouds
of
her
night
,
at
which
no
sun
shone
through
!
The
longer
I
went
on
bathing
the
poor
bones
,
the
less
grew
my
hope
that
they
would
ever
again
be
clothed
with
strength
,
that
ever
those
eyelids
would
lift
,
and
a
soul
look
out
;
still
I
kept
bathing
continuously
,
allowing
no
part
time
to
grow
cold
while
I
bathed
another
;
and
gradually
the
body
became
so
much
warmer
,
that
at
last
I
ventured
to
submerge
it
:
I
got
into
the
stream
and
drew
it
in
,
holding
the
face
above
the
water
,
and
letting
the
swift
,
steady
current
flow
all
about
the
rest
.
I
noted
,
but
was
able
to
conclude
nothing
from
the
fact
,
that
,
for
all
the
heat
,
the
shut
hand
never
relaxed
its
hold
.
After
about
ten
minutes
,
I
lifted
it
out
and
laid
it
again
on
the
bank
,
dried
it
,
and
covered
it
as
well
as
I
could
,
then
ran
to
the
forest
for
leaves
.
The
grass
and
soil
were
dry
and
warm
;
and
when
I
returned
I
thought
it
had
scarcely
lost
any
of
the
heat
the
water
had
given
it
.
I
spread
the
leaves
upon
it
,
and
ran
for
more
—
then
for
a
third
and
a
fourth
freight
.
I
could
now
leave
it
and
go
to
explore
,
in
the
hope
of
discovering
some
shelter
.
I
ran
up
the
stream
toward
some
rocky
hills
I
saw
in
that
direction
,
which
were
not
far
off
.
When
I
reached
them
,
I
found
the
river
issuing
full
grown
from
a
rock
at
the
bottom
of
one
of
them
.
To
my
fancy
it
seemed
to
have
run
down
a
stair
inside
,
an
eager
cataract
,
at
every
landing
wild
to
get
out
,
but
only
at
the
foot
finding
a
door
of
escape
.
It
did
not
fill
the
opening
whence
it
rushed
,
and
I
crept
through
into
a
little
cave
,
where
I
learned
that
,
instead
of
hurrying
tumultuously
down
a
stair
,
it
rose
quietly
from
the
ground
at
the
back
like
the
base
of
a
large
column
,
and
ran
along
one
side
,
nearly
filling
a
deep
,
rather
narrow
channel
.
I
considered
the
place
,
and
saw
that
,
if
I
could
find
a
few
fallen
boughs
long
enough
to
lie
across
the
channel
,
and
large
enough
to
bear
a
little
weight
without
bending
much
,
I
might
,
with
smaller
branches
and
plenty
of
leaves
,
make
upon
them
a
comfortable
couch
,
which
the
stream
under
would
keep
constantly
warm
.
Then
I
ran
back
to
see
how
my
charge
fared
.
She
was
lying
as
I
had
left
her
.
The
heat
had
not
brought
her
to
life
,
but
neither
had
it
developed
anything
to
check
farther
hope
.
I
got
a
few
boulders
out
of
the
channel
,
and
arranged
them
at
her
feet
and
on
both
sides
of
her
.
Running
again
to
the
wood
,
I
had
not
to
search
long
ere
I
found
some
small
boughs
fit
for
my
purpose
—
mostly
of
beech
,
their
dry
yellow
leaves
yet
clinging
to
them
.
With
these
I
had
soon
laid
the
floor
of
a
bridge-bed
over
the
torrent
.
I
crossed
the
boughs
with
smaller
branches
,
interlaced
these
with
twigs
,
and
buried
all
deep
in
leaves
and
dry
moss
.
When
thus
at
length
,
after
not
a
few
journeys
to
the
forest
,
I
had
completed
a
warm
,
dry
,
soft
couch
,
I
took
the
body
once
more
,
and
set
out
with
it
for
the
cave
.
It
was
so
light
that
now
and
then
as
I
went
I
almost
feared
lest
,
when
I
laid
it
down
,
I
should
find
it
a
skeleton
after
all
;
and
when
at
last
I
did
lay
it
gently
on
the
pathless
bridge
,
it
was
a
greater
relief
to
part
with
that
fancy
than
with
the
weight
.
Once
more
I
covered
the
body
with
a
thick
layer
of
leaves
;
and
trying
again
to
feed
her
with
a
grape
,
found
to
my
joy
that
I
could
open
the
mouth
a
little
farther
.
The
grape
,
indeed
,
lay
in
it
unheeded
,
but
I
hoped
some
of
the
juice
might
find
its
way
down
.
After
an
hour
or
two
on
the
couch
,
she
was
no
longer
cold
.
The
warmth
of
the
brook
had
interpenetrated
her
frame
—
truly
it
was
but
a
frame
!
—
and
she
was
warm
to
the
touch
;
—
not
,
probably
,
with
the
warmth
of
life
,
but
with
a
warmth
which
rendered
it
more
possible
,
if
she
were
alive
,
that
she
might
live
.
I
had
read
of
one
in
a
trance
lying
motionless
for
weeks
!
In
that
cave
,
day
after
day
,
night
after
night
,
seven
long
days
and
nights
,
I
sat
or
lay
,
now
waking
now
sleeping
,
but
always
watching
.
Every
morning
I
went
out
and
bathed
in
the
hot
stream
,
and
every
morning
felt
thereupon
as
if
I
had
eaten
and
drunk
—
which
experience
gave
me
courage
to
lay
her
in
it
also
every
day
.
Once
as
I
did
so
,
a
shadow
of
discoloration
on
her
left
side
gave
me
a
terrible
shock
,
but
the
next
morning
it
had
vanished
,
and
I
continued
the
treatment
—
every
morning
,
after
her
bath
,
putting
a
fresh
grape
in
her
mouth
.
I
too
ate
of
the
grapes
and
other
berries
I
found
in
the
forest
;
but
I
believed
that
,
with
my
daily
bath
in
that
river
,
I
could
have
done
very
well
without
eating
at
all
.
Every
time
I
slept
,
I
dreamed
of
finding
a
wounded
angel
,
who
,
unable
to
fly
,
remained
with
me
until
at
last
she
loved
me
and
would
not
leave
me
;
and
every
time
I
woke
,
it
was
to
see
,
instead
of
an
angel-visage
with
lustrous
eyes
,
the
white
,
motionless
,
wasted
face
upon
the
couch
.
But
Adam
himself
,
when
first
he
saw
her
asleep
,
could
not
have
looked
more
anxiously
for
Eve
's
awaking
than
I
watched
for
this
woman
's
.
Adam
knew
nothing
of
himself
,
perhaps
nothing
of
his
need
of
another
self
;
I
,
an
alien
from
my
fellows
,
had
learned
to
love
what
I
had
lost
!
Were
this
one
wasted
shred
of
womanhood
to
disappear
,
I
should
have
nothing
in
me
but
a
consuming
hunger
after
life
!
I
forgot
even
the
Little
Ones
:
things
were
not
amiss
with
them
!
here
lay
what
might
wake
and
be
a
woman
!
might
actually
open
eyes
,
and
look
out
of
them
upon
me
!
Now
first
I
knew
what
solitude
meant
—
now
that
I
gazed
on
one
who
neither
saw
nor
heard
,
neither
moved
nor
spoke
.
I
saw
now
that
a
man
alone
is
but
a
being
that
may
become
a
man
—
that
he
is
but
a
need
,
and
therefore
a
possibility
.
To
be
enough
for
himself
,
a
being
must
be
an
eternal
,
self-existent
worm
!
So
superbly
constituted
,
so
simply
complicate
is
man
;
he
rises
from
and
stands
upon
such
a
pedestal
of
lower
physical
organisms
and
spiritual
structures
,
that
no
atmosphere
will
comfort
or
nourish
his
life
,
less
divine
than
that
offered
by
other
souls
;
nowhere
but
in
other
lives
can
he
breathe
.
Only
by
the
reflex
of
other
lives
can
he
ripen
his
specialty
,
develop
the
idea
of
himself
,
the
individuality
that
distinguishes
him
from
every
other
.
Were
all
men
alike
,
each
would
still
have
an
individuality
,
secured
by
his
personal
consciousness
,
but
there
would
be
small
reason
why
there
should
be
more
than
two
or
three
such
;
while
,
for
the
development
of
the
differences
which
make
a
large
and
lofty
unity
possible
,
and
which
alone
can
make
millions
into
a
church
,
an
endless
and
measureless
influence
and
reaction
are
indispensable
.
A
man
to
be
perfect
—
complete
,
that
is
,
in
having
reached
the
spiritual
condition
of
persistent
and
universal
growth
,
which
is
the
mode
wherein
he
inherits
the
infinitude
of
his
Father
—
must
have
the
education
of
a
world
of
fellow-men
.
Save
for
the
hope
of
the
dawn
of
life
in
the
form
beside
me
,
I
should
have
fled
for
fellowship
to
the
beasts
that
grazed
and
did
not
speak
.
Better
to
go
about
with
them
—
infinitely
better
—
than
to
live
alone
!
But
with
the
faintest
prospect
of
a
woman
to
my
friend
,
I
,
poorest
of
creatures
,
was
yet
a
possible
man
!
chapter
xix
THE
WHITE
LEECH
I
WOKE
one
morning
from
a
profound
sleep
,
with
one
of
my
hands
very
painful
.
The
back
of
it
was
much
swollen
,
and
in
the
centre
of
the
swelling
was
a
triangular
wound
,
like
the
bite
of
a
leech
.
As
the
day
went
on
,
the
swelling
subsided
,
and
by
the
evening
the
hurt
was
all
but
healed
.
I
searched
the
cave
,
turning
over
every
stone
of
any
size
,
but
discovered
nothing
I
could
imagine
capable
of
injuring
me
.
Slowly
the
days
passed
,
and
still
the
body
never
moved
,
never
opened
its
eyes
.
It
could
not
be
dead
,
for
assuredly
it
manifested
no
sign
of
decay
,
and
the
air
about
it
was
quite
pure
.
Moreover
,
I
could
imagine
that
the
sharpest
angles
of
the
bones
had
begun
to
disappear
,
that
the
form
was
everywhere
a
little
rounder
,
and
that
the
skin
had
less
of
the
parchment-look
:
if
such
change
was
indeed
there
,
life
must
be
there
!
the
tide
which
had
ebbed
so
far
toward
the
infinite
,
must
have
begun
again
to
flow
!
Oh
joy
to
me
,
if
the
rising
ripples
of
life
's
ocean
were
indeed
burying
under
lovely
shape
the
bones
it
had
all
but
forsaken
!
Twenty
times
a
day
I
looked
for
evidence
of
progress
,
and
twenty
times
a
day
I
doubted
—
sometimes
even
despaired
;
but
the
moment
I
recalled
the
mental
picture
of
her
as
I
found
her
,
hope
revived
.
Several
weeks
had
passed
thus
,
when
one
night
,
after
lying
a
long
time
awake
,
I
rose
,
thinking
to
go
out
and
breathe
the
cooler
air
;
for
,
although
from
the
running
of
the
stream
it
was
always
fresh
in
the
cave
,
the
heat
was
not
seldom
a
little
oppressive
.
The
moon
outside
was
full
,
the
air
within
shadowy
clear
,
and
naturally
I
cast
a
lingering
look
on
my
treasure
ere
I
went
.
"
Bliss
eternal
!
"
I
cried
aloud
,
"
do
I
see
her
eyes
?
"
Great
orbs
,
dark
as
if
cut
from
the
sphere
of
a
starless
night
,
and
luminous
by
excess
of
darkness
,
seemed
to
shine
amid
the
glimmering
whiteness
of
her
face
.
I
stole
nearer
,
my
heart
beating
so
that
I
feared
the
noise
of
it
startling
her
.
I
bent
over
her
.
Alas
,
her
eyelids
were
close
shut
!
Hope
and
Imagination
had
wrought
mutual
illusion
!
my
heart
's
desire
would
never
be
!
I
turned
away
,
threw
myself
on
the
floor
of
the
cave
,
and
wept
.
Then
I
bethought
me
that
her
eyes
had
been
a
little
open
,
and
that
now
the
awful
chink
out
of
which
nothingness
had
peered
,
was
gone
:
it
might
be
that
she
had
opened
them
for
a
moment
,
and
was
again
asleep
!
—
it
might
be
she
was
awake
and
holding
them
close
!
In
either
case
,
life
,
less
or
more
,
must
have
shut
them
!
I
was
comforted
,
and
fell
fast
asleep
.
That
night
I
was
again
bitten
,
and
awoke
with
a
burning
thirst
.
In
the
morning
I
searched
yet
more
thoroughly
,
but
again
in
vain
.
The
wound
was
of
the
same
character
,
and
,
as
before
,
was
nearly
well
by
the
evening
.
I
concluded
that
some
large
creature
of
the
leech
kind
came
occasionally
from
the
hot
stream
.
"
But
,
if
blood
be
its
object
,
"
I
said
to
myself
,
"
so
long
as
I
am
there
,
I
need
hardly
fear
for
my
treasure
!
"
That
same
morning
,
when
,
having
peeled
a
grape
as
usual
and
taken
away
the
seeds
,
I
put
it
in
her
mouth
,
her
lips
made
a
slight
movement
of
reception
,
and
I
knew
she
lived
!
My
hope
was
now
so
much
stronger
that
I
began
to
think
of
some
attire
for
her
:
she
must
be
able
to
rise
the
moment
she
wished
!
I
betook
myself
therefore
to
the
forest
,
to
investigate
what
material
it
might
afford
,
and
had
hardly
begun
to
look
when
fibrous
skeletons
,
like
those
of
the
leaves
of
the
prickly
pear
,
suggested
themselves
as
fit
for
the
purpose
.
I
gathered
a
stock
of
them
,
laid
them
to
dry
in
the
sun
,
pulled
apart
the
reticulated
layers
,
and
of
these
had
soon
begun
to
fashion
two
loose
garments
,
one
to
hang
from
her
waist
,
the
other
from
her
shoulders
.
With
the
stiletto-point
of
an
aloe-leaf
and
various
filaments
,
I
sewed
together
three
thicknesses
of
the
tissue
.
During
the
week
that
followed
,
there
was
no
farther
sign
except
that
she
more
evidently
took
the
grapes
.
But
indeed
all
the
signs
became
surer
:
plainly
she
was
growing
plumper
,
and
her
skin
fairer
.
Still
she
did
not
open
her
eyes
;
and
the
horrid
fear
would
at
times
invade
me
,
that
her
growth
was
of
some
hideous
fungoid
nature
,
the
few
grapes
being
nowise
sufficient
to
account
for
it
.
Again
I
was
bitten
;
and
now
the
thing
,
whatever
it
was
,
began
to
pay
me
regular
visits
at
intervals
of
three
days
.
It
now
generally
bit
me
in
the
neck
or
the
arm
,
invariably
with
but
one
bite
,
always
while
I
slept
,
and
never
,
even
when
I
slept
,
in
the
daytime
.
Hour
after
hour
would
I
lie
awake
on
the
watch
,
but
never
heard
it
coming
,
or
saw
sign
of
its
approach
.
Neither
,
I
believe
,
did
I
ever
feel
it
bite
me
.
At
length
I
became
so
hopeless
of
catching
it
,
that
I
no
longer
troubled
myself
either
to
look
for
it
by
day
,
or
lie
in
wait
for
it
at
night
.
I
knew
from
my
growing
weakness
that
I
was
losing
blood
at
a
dangerous
rate
,
but
I
cared
little
for
that
:
in
sight
of
my
eyes
death
was
yielding
to
life
;
a
soul
was
gathering
strength
to
save
me
from
loneliness
;
we
would
go
away
together
,
and
I
should
speedily
recover
!
The
garments
were
at
length
finished
,
and
,
contemplating
my
handiwork
with
no
small
satisfaction
,
I
proceeded
to
mat
layers
of
the
fibre
into
sandals
.
One
night
I
woke
suddenly
,
breathless
and
faint
,
and
longing
after
air
,
and
had
risen
to
crawl
from
the
cave
,
when
a
slight
rustle
in
the
leaves
of
the
couch
set
me
listening
motionless
.
"
I
caught
the
vile
thing
,
"
said
a
feeble
voice
,
in
my
mother-tongue
;
"
I
caught
it
in
the
very
act
!
"
She
was
alive
!
she
spoke
!
I
dared
not
yield
to
my
transport
lest
I
should
terrify
her
.
"
What
creature
?
"
I
breathed
,
rather
than
said
.
"
The
creature
,
"
she
answered
,
"
that
was
biting
you
.
"
"
What
was
it
?
"
"
A
great
white
leech
.
"
"
How
big
?
"
I
pursued
,
forcing
myself
to
be
calm
.
"
Not
far
from
six
feet
long
,
I
should
think
,
"
she
answered
.
"
You
have
saved
my
life
,
perhaps
!
—
But
how
could
you
touch
the
horrid
thing
!
How
brave
of
you
!
"
I
cried
.
"
I
did
!
"
was
all
her
answer
,
and
I
thought
she
shuddered
.
"
Where
is
it
?
What
could
you
do
with
such
a
monster
?
"
"
I
threw
it
in
the
river
.
"
"
Then
it
will
come
again
,
I
fear
!
"
"
I
do
not
think
I
could
have
killed
it
,
even
had
I
known
how
!
—
I
heard
you
moaning
,
and
got
up
to
see
what
disturbed
you
;
saw
the
frightful
thing
at
your
neck
,
and
pulled
it
away
.
But
I
could
not
hold
it
,
and
was
hardly
able
to
throw
it
from
me
.
I
only
heard
it
splash
in
the
water
!
"
"
We
'll
kill
it
next
time
!
"
I
said
;
but
with
that
I
turned
faint
,
sought
the
open
air
,
but
fell
.
When
I
came
to
myself
the
sun
was
up
.
The
lady
stood
a
little
way
off
,
looking
,
even
in
the
clumsy
attire
I
had
fashioned
for
her
,
at
once
grand
and
graceful
.
I
had
seen
those
glorious
eyes
!
Through
the
night
they
had
shone
!
Dark
as
the
darkness
primeval
,
they
now
outshone
the
day
!
She
stood
erect
as
a
column
,
regarding
me
.
Her
pale
cheek
indicated
no
emotion
,
only
question
.
I
rose
.
"
We
must
be
going
!
"
I
said
.
"
The
white
leech
—
—
"
I
stopped
:
a
strange
smile
had
flickered
over
her
beautiful
face
.
"
Did
you
find
me
there
?
"
she
asked
,
pointing
to
the
cave
.
"
No
;
I
brought
you
there
,
"
I
replied
.
"
You
brought
me
?
"
"
Yes
.
"
"
From
where
?
"
"
From
the
forest
.
"
"
What
have
you
done
with
my
clothes
—
and
my
jewels
?
"
"
You
had
none
when
I
found
you
.
"
"
Then
why
did
you
not
leave
me
?
"
"
Because
I
hoped
you
were
not
dead
.
"
"
Why
should
you
have
cared
?
"
"
Because
I
was
very
lonely
,
and
wanted
you
to
live
.
"
"
You
would
have
kept
me
enchanted
for
my
beauty
!
"
she
said
,
with
proud
scorn
.
Her
words
and
her
look
roused
my
indignation
.
"
There
was
no
beauty
left
in
you
,
"
I
said
.
"
Why
,
then
,
again
,
did
you
not
let
me
alone
?
"
"
Because
you
were
of
my
own
kind
.
"
"
Of
your
kind
?
"
she
cried
,
in
a
tone
of
utter
contempt
.
"
I
thought
so
,
but
find
I
was
mistaken
!
"
"
Doubtless
you
pitied
me
!
"
"
Never
had
woman
more
claim
on
pity
,
or
less
on
any
other
feeling
!
"
With
an
expression
of
pain
,
mortification
,
and
anger
unutterable
,
she
turned
from
me
and
stood
silent
.
Starless
night
lay
profound
in
the
gulfs
of
her
eyes
:
hate
of
him
who
brought
it
back
had
slain
their
splendour
.
The
light
of
life
was
gone
from
them
.
"
Had
you
failed
to
rouse
me
,
what
would
you
have
done
?
"
she
asked
suddenly
without
moving
.
"
I
would
have
buried
it
.
"
"
It
!
What
?
—
You
would
have
buried
this
?
"
she
exclaimed
,
flashing
round
upon
me
in
a
white
fury
,
her
arms
thrown
out
,
and
her
eyes
darting
forks
of
cold
lightning
.
"
Nay
;
that
I
saw
not
!
That
,
weary
weeks
of
watching
and
tending
have
brought
back
to
you
,
"
I
answered
—
for
with
such
a
woman
I
must
be
plain
!
"
Had
I
seen
the
smallest
sign
of
decay
,
I
would
at
once
have
buried
you
.
"
"
Dog
of
a
fool
!
"
she
cried
,
"
I
was
but
in
a
trance
—
Samoil
!
what
a
fate
!
—
Go
and
fetch
the
she-savage
from
whom
you
borrowed
this
hideous
disguise
.
"
"
I
made
it
for
you
.
It
is
hideous
,
but
I
did
my
best
.
"
She
drew
herself
up
to
her
tall
height
.
"
How
long
have
I
been
insensible
?
"
she
demanded
.
"
A
woman
could
not
have
made
that
dress
in
a
day
!
"
"
Not
in
twenty
days
,
"
I
rejoined
,
"
hardly
in
thirty
!
"
"
Ha
!
How
long
do
you
pretend
I
have
lain
unconscious
?
—
Answer
me
at
once
.
"
"
I
cannot
tell
how
long
you
had
lain
when
I
found
you
,
but
there
was
nothing
left
of
you
save
skin
and
bone
:
that
is
more
than
three
months
ago
.
—
Your
hair
was
beautiful
,
nothing
else
!
I
have
done
for
it
what
I
could
.
"
"
My
poor
hair
!
"
she
said
,
and
brought
a
great
armful
of
it
round
from
behind
her
;
"
—
it
will
be
more
than
a
three-months
'
care
to
bring
you
to
life
again
!
—
I
suppose
I
must
thank
you
,
although
I
cannot
say
I
am
grateful
!
"
"
There
is
no
need
,
madam
:
I
would
have
done
the
same
for
any
woman
—
yes
,
or
for
any
man
either
!
"
"
How
is
it
my
hair
is
not
tangled
?
"
she
said
,
fondling
it
.
"
It
always
drifted
in
the
current
.
"
"
How
?
—
What
do
you
mean
?
"
"
I
could
not
have
brought
you
to
life
but
by
bathing
you
in
the
hot
river
every
morning
.
"
She
gave
a
shudder
of
disgust
,
and
stood
for
a
while
with
her
gaze
fixed
on
the
hurrying
water
.
Then
she
turned
to
me
:
"
We
must
understand
each
other
!
"
she
said
.
"
—
You
have
done
me
the
two
worst
of
wrongs
—
compelled
me
to
live
,
and
put
me
to
shame
:
neither
of
them
can
I
pardon
!
"
She
raised
her
left
hand
,
and
flung
it
out
as
if
repelling
me
.
Something
ice-cold
struck
me
on
the
forehead
.
When
I
came
to
myself
,
I
was
on
the
ground
,
wet
and
shivering
.
chapter
xx
GONE
!
—
BUT
HOW
?
I
ROSE
,
and
looked
around
me
,
dazed
at
heart
.
For
a
moment
I
could
not
see
her
:
she
was
gone
,
and
loneliness
had
returned
like
the
cloud
after
the
rain
!
She
whom
I
brought
back
from
the
brink
of
the
grave
,
had
fled
from
me
,
and
left
me
with
desolation
!
I
dared
not
one
moment
remain
thus
hideously
alone
.
Had
I
indeed
done
her
a
wrong
?
I
must
devote
my
life
to
sharing
the
burden
I
had
compelled
her
to
resume
!
I
descried
her
walking
swiftly
over
the
grass
,
away
from
the
river
,
took
one
plunge
for
a
farewell
restorative
,
and
set
out
to
follow
her
.
The
last
visit
of
the
white
leech
,
and
the
blow
of
the
woman
,
had
enfeebled
me
,
but
already
my
strength
was
reviving
,
and
I
kept
her
in
sight
without
difficulty
.
"
Is
this
,
then
,
the
end
?
"
I
said
as
I
went
,
and
my
heart
brooded
a
sad
song
.
Her
angry
,
hating
eyes
haunted
me
.
I
could
understand
her
resentment
at
my
having
forced
life
upon
her
,
but
how
had
I
farther
injured
her
?
Why
should
she
loathe
me
?
Could
modesty
itself
be
indignant
with
true
service
?
How
should
the
proudest
woman
,
conscious
of
my
every
action
,
cherish
against
me
the
least
sense
of
disgracing
wrong
?
How
reverently
had
I
not
touched
her
!
As
a
father
his
motherless
child
,
I
had
borne
and
tended
her
!
Had
all
my
labour
,
all
my
despairing
hope
gone
to
redeem
only
ingratitude
?
"
No
,
"
I
answered
myself
;
"
beauty
must
have
a
heart
!
However
profoundly
hidden
,
it
must
be
there
!
The
deeper
buried
,
the
stronger
and
truer
will
it
wake
at
last
in
its
beautiful
grave
!
To
rouse
that
heart
were
a
better
gift
to
her
than
the
happiest
life
!
It
would
be
to
give
her
a
nobler
,
a
higher
life
!
"
She
was
ascending
a
gentle
slope
before
me
,
walking
straight
and
steady
as
one
that
knew
whither
,
when
I
became
aware
that
she
was
increasing
the
distance
between
us
.
I
summoned
my
strength
,
and
it
came
in
full
tide
.
My
veins
filled
with
fresh
life
!
My
body
seemed
to
become
ethereal
,
and
,
following
like
an
easy
wind
,
I
rapidly
overtook
her
.
Not
once
had
she
looked
behind
.
Swiftly
she
moved
,
like
a
Greek
goddess
to
rescue
,
but
without
haste
.
I
was
within
three
yards
of
her
,
when
she
turned
sharply
,
yet
with
grace
unbroken
,
and
stood
.
Fatigue
or
heat
she
showed
none
.
Her
paleness
was
not
pallor
,
but
a
pure
whiteness
;
her
breathing
was
slow
and
deep
.
Her
eyes
seemed
to
fill
the
heavens
,
and
give
light
to
the
world
.
It
was
nearly
noon
,
but
the
sense
was
upon
me
as
of
a
great
night
in
which
an
invisible
dew
makes
the
stars
look
large
.
"
Why
do
you
follow
me
?
"
she
asked
,
quietly
but
rather
sternly
,
as
if
she
had
never
before
seen
me
.
"
I
have
lived
so
long
,
"
I
answered
,
"
on
the
mere
hope
of
your
eyes
,
that
I
must
want
to
see
them
again
!
"
"
You
will
not
be
spared
!
"
she
said
coldly
.
"
I
command
you
to
stop
where
you
stand
.
"
"
Not
until
I
see
you
in
a
place
of
safety
will
I
leave
you
,
"
I
replied
.
"
Then
take
the
consequences
,
"
she
said
,
and
resumed
her
swift-gliding
walk
.
But
as
she
turned
she
cast
on
me
a
glance
,
and
I
stood
as
if
run
through
with
a
spear
.
Her
scorn
had
failed
:
she
would
kill
me
with
her
beauty
!
Despair
restored
my
volition
;
the
spell
broke
;
I
ran
,
and
overtook
her
.
"
Have
pity
upon
me
!
"
I
cried
.
She
gave
no
heed
.
I
followed
her
like
a
child
whose
mother
pretends
to
abandon
him
.
"
I
will
be
your
slave
!
"
I
said
,
and
laid
my
hand
on
her
arm
.
She
turned
as
if
a
serpent
had
bit
her
.
I
cowered
before
the
blaze
of
her
eyes
,
but
could
not
avert
my
own
.
"
Pity
me
,
"
I
cried
again
.
She
resumed
her
walking
.
The
whole
day
I
followed
her
.
The
sun
climbed
the
sky
,
seemed
to
pause
on
its
summit
,
went
down
the
other
side
.
Not
a
moment
did
she
pause
,
not
a
moment
did
I
cease
to
follow
.
She
never
turned
her
head
,
never
relaxed
her
pace
.
The
sun
went
below
,
and
the
night
came
up
.
I
kept
close
to
her
:
if
I
lost
sight
of
her
for
a
moment
,
it
would
be
for
ever
!
All
day
long
we
had
been
walking
over
thick
soft
grass
:
abruptly
she
stopped
,
and
threw
herself
upon
it
.
There
was
yet
light
enough
to
show
that
she
was
utterly
weary
.
I
stood
behind
her
,
and
gazed
down
on
her
for
a
moment
.
Did
I
love
her
?
I
knew
she
was
not
good
!
Did
I
hate
her
?
I
could
not
leave
her
!
I
knelt
beside
her
.
"
Begone
!
Do
not
dare
touch
me
,
"
she
cried
.
Her
arms
lay
on
the
grass
by
her
sides
as
if
paralyzed
.
Suddenly
they
closed
about
my
neck
,
rigid
as
those
of
the
torture-maiden
.
She
drew
down
my
face
to
hers
,
and
her
lips
clung
to
my
cheek
.
A
sting
of
pain
shot
somewhere
through
me
,
and
pulsed
.
I
could
not
stir
a
hair
's
breadth
.
Gradually
the
pain
ceased
.
A
slumberous
weariness
,
a
dreamy
pleasure
stole
over
me
,
and
then
I
knew
nothing
.
All
at
once
I
came
to
myself
.
The
moon
was
a
little
way
above
the
horizon
,
but
spread
no
radiance
;
she
was
but
a
bright
thing
set
in
blackness
.
My
cheek
smarted
;
I
put
my
hand
to
it
,
and
found
a
wet
spot
.
My
neck
ached
:
there
again
was
a
wet
spot
!
I
sighed
heavily
,
and
felt
very
tired
.
I
turned
my
eyes
listlessly
around
me
—
and
saw
what
had
become
of
the
light
of
the
moon
:
it
was
gathered
about
the
lady
!
she
stood
in
a
shimmering
nimbus
!
I
rose
and
staggered
toward
her
.
"
Down
!
"
she
cried
imperiously
,
as
to
a
rebellious
dog
.
"
Follow
me
a
step
if
you
dare
!
"
"
I
will
!
"
I
murmured
,
with
an
agonised
effort
.
"
Set
foot
within
the
gates
of
my
city
,
and
my
people
will
stone
you
:
they
do
not
love
beggars
!
"
I
was
deaf
to
her
words
.
Weak
as
water
,
and
half
awake
,
I
did
not
know
that
I
moved
,
but
the
distance
grew
less
between
us
.
She
took
one
step
back
,
raised
her
left
arm
,
and
with
the
clenched
hand
seemed
to
strike
me
on
the
forehead
.
I
received
as
it
were
a
blow
from
an
iron
hammer
,
and
fell
.
I
sprang
to
my
feet
,
cold
and
wet
,
but
clear-headed
and
strong
.
Had
the
blow
revived
me
?
it
had
left
neither
wound
nor
pain
!
—
But
how
came
I
wet
?
—
I
could
not
have
lain
long
,
for
the
moon
was
no
higher
!
The
lady
stood
some
yards
away
,
her
back
toward
me
.
She
was
doing
something
,
I
could
not
distinguish
what
.
Then
by
her
sudden
gleam
I
knew
she
had
thrown
off
her
garments
,
and
stood
white
in
the
dazed
moon
.
One
moment
she
stood
—
and
fell
forward
.
A
streak
of
white
shot
away
in
a
swift-drawn
line
.
The
same
instant
the
moon
recovered
herself
,
shining
out
with
a
full
flash
,
and
I
saw
that
the
streak
was
a
long-bodied
thing
,
rushing
in
great
,
low-curved
bounds
over
the
grass
.
Dark
spots
seemed
to
run
like
a
stream
adown
its
back
,
as
if
it
had
been
fleeting
along
under
the
edge
of
a
wood
,
and
catching
the
shadows
of
the
leaves
.
"
God
of
mercy
!
"
I
cried
,
"
is
the
terrible
creature
speeding
to
the
night-infolded
city
?
"
—
and
I
seemed
to
hear
from
afar
the
sudden
burst
and
spread
of
outcrying
terror
,
as
the
pale
savage
bounded
from
house
to
house
,
rending
and
slaying
.
While
I
gazed
after
it
fear-stricken
,
past
me
from
behind
,
like
a
swift
,
all
but
noiseless
arrow
,
shot
a
second
large
creature
,
pure
white
.
Its
path
was
straight
for
the
spot
where
the
lady
had
fallen
,
and
,
as
I
thought
,
lay
.
My
tongue
clave
to
the
roof
of
my
mouth
.
I
sprang
forward
pursuing
the
beast
.
But
in
a
moment
the
spot
I
made
for
was
far
behind
it
.
"
It
was
well
,
"
I
thought
,
"
that
I
could
not
cry
out
:
if
she
had
risen
,
the
monster
would
have
been
upon
her
!
"
But
when
I
reached
the
place
,
no
lady
was
there
