t the left, is a glimpse of the level
stretch of the sea. This is a spot where earth and sky and water meet,
where the fishermen from the sea and the ploughmen from the fields
come to worship God.

XI

THE SOWER

It is nightfall, and the sky is cloudy save where the last rays of the
setting sun illumine a spot on the horizon. While the light lasts,
the Sower still holds to his task of sowing the seed. A large sack of
grain is fastened about his body and hangs at his left side, where one
end of it is grasped firmly in the left hand lest any of the precious
seed be spilled. Into this bag he plunges his right hand from time to
time, and draws out a handful of grain which he flings into the furrow
as he walks along.

The Sower's task ended, a series of strange transformations begins in
the life of the seed. The winter rain softens and swells it, and when
spring comes it pushes its way up in a tiny shoot. Soon the slender
blades appear in close lines; by and by the stalks grow tall and
strong, and the field is full of the beautiful green grain.

Then the hot summer sun shines with ripening power; the wheat turns a
golden yellow; the ears bend under the weight of the grain, and it is
time for the harvest. The reapers come with sickle and scythe, and
the grain is cut, and bound into great sheaves. The thrashing follows,
when the ear is shaken off the stalk, and the grain is winnowed. And
now the mills take up the work, the golden wheat grains are crushed,
and the fine white flour which they contain is sifted and put into
bags. The flour is mixed and kneaded and baked, and at length comes
forth from the oven a fragrant loaf of bread.

Now bread is a necessity of life to the people, and the supply of
bread turns on the history of the seed. If the harvest is plenty, the
people may eat and be happy. If it is poor, they suffer the miseries
of hunger. If it fails altogether, they die of starvation. It is then
a solemn moment when the seed is planted. Often the sower begins
his task by tossing a handful of grain into the air in the sign of a
cross, offering a prayer for a blessing on the seed. His is a grave
responsibility; every handful of seed means many loaves of bread for
hungry mouths. He must choose the right kind of seed for his soil, the
right kind of weather for the planting, and use the grain neither too
lavishly nor too sparingly.[1]

[Illustration: From a carbon print by Braun, Clement & Co. John Andrew