it!"

By this time he had nearly reached the shrine at the bend of the road.
Looking up, he saw something whitish behind the shrine. The daylight was
fading, and the shoemaker peered at the thing without being able to make
out what it was. "There was no white stone here before. Can it be an ox?
It's not like an ox. It has a head like a man, but it's too white; and
what could a man be doing there?"

He came closer, so that it was clearly visible. To his surprise it
really was a man, alive or dead, sitting naked, leaning motionless
against the shrine. Terror seized the shoemaker, and he thought, "Some
one has killed him, stripped him, and left him there. If I meddle I
shall surely get into trouble."

So the shoemaker went on. He passed in front of the shrine so that he
could not see the man. When he had gone some way, he looked back, and
saw that the man was no longer leaning against the shrine, but was
moving as if looking towards him. The shoemaker felt more frightened
than before, and thought, "Shall I go back to him, or shall I go on? If
I go near him something dreadful may happen. Who knows who the fellow
is? He has not come here for any good. If I go near him he may jump
up and throttle me, and there will be no getting away. Or if not, he'd
still be a burden on one's hands. What could I do with a naked man? I
couldn't give him my last clothes. Heaven only help me to get away!"

So the shoemaker hurried on, leaving the shrine behind him-when suddenly
his conscience smote him, and he stopped in the road.

"What are you doing, Simon?" said he to himself. "The man may be dying
of want, and you slip past afraid. Have you grown so rich as to be
afraid of robbers? Ah, Simon, shame on you!"

So he turned back and went up to the man.

II

Simon approached the stranger, looked at him, and saw that he was a
young man, fit, with no bruises on his body, only evidently freezing and
frightened, and he sat there leaning back without looking up at Simon,
as if too faint to lift his eyes. Simon went close to him, and then the
man seemed to wake up. Turning his head, he opened his eyes and looked
into Simon's face. That one look was enough to make Simon fond of the
man. He threw the felt boots on the ground, undid his sash, laid it on
the boots, and took off his cloth coat.

"It's not a time for talking," said he. "Come, put this coat on at
once!" And Simon took the man by the elbows and helped him to rise. As
he stoo