een spared? Might he not have been plunged in misery
and ruin? Might he not have become a murderer or a suicide? Might he not
ultimately have come to die on the selfsame scaffold, aye, and deserved
it too? Only He is able to answer all these questions before Whom the
future lies clear and open. We can only see through a glass darkly; we
do not even know when we ought to laugh or when we ought to weep."

The youth removed his hand from the old man's forehead, and, lo! that
ugly wrinkle had been smoothed away, and the headsman could raise aloft
eyes full of comfort, and folding his hands across his huge heaving
breast, he began to stammer softly:

"Our Father...!"

When he had pronounced the "Amen!" the unknown youth raised him
tenderly from his knees, and the pale little girl embraced the old man's
arm and leaned her head against it.

"Hast thou not always had about thee here Heaven's messenger of mercy?"
said the youth, pointing to the fair child. "Has not Heaven sent her to
thee without any effort or foreknowledge on thy part, so that even to
this day thou canst not tell from whence she came?"

The man tapped his bosom:

"Sir," said he, "read into my heart. You know everything."

The stranger thereupon turned to the little girl and addressed her in a
gentle tone which instantly inspired confidence.

"My good little child, go downstairs and tell them to put my horse,
which I have left standing outside the gate, under cover, lest it be
drenched by the storm."

"I myself will lead it to the stable and give it food and water."

"Thank you, my little girl."

Little Elise sought for something in the wardrobe, and, concealing it in
her apron, went out.

The stranger looked after her till she had closed the door behind her. A
solemn silence then prevailed in the room, the youth looked at the old
man in silence as if he expected him to speak.

In a short time Peter Zudar approached the door and opened it--in the
kitchen all was now dark.

"They are asleep now," he muttered, partly speaking to himself, partly
addressing his words to the stranger. "The woman has gone to rest, the
lad is with the horses, the child will remain in the kitchen, she has
something to do there I know. This, my good sir, is the time for us to
talk. Outside there is nought but storm and darkness, I cannot let you
go further on your way while it is like this."

It was only after much persuasion that the old man consented to sit down
besi