to-day!"

All looks were directed toward her, and all lips asked:

"Where?"

Under the influence of the attracted attention, Lija blushed, and
answered softly, with a certain amount of bashfulness:

"In the hut of Abel Karaim, standing on the hill of the Karaites."

"Meir, have you visited Karaites?"

The question was asked by several voices, dominated by the sharp,
whining voice of the melamed.

On the bashful young man's face there appeared an expression of angry
and sullen irritation.

"I did not visit them," he answered, more loudly than before, "but I
defended them from an attack."

"From an attack? What attack? Who attacked them?" asked the melamed
mockingly.

This time Meir raised his eyelids and his shining eyes looked sharply
into the eyes of his questioner.

"Reb Moshe," he exclaimed, "you know who attacked them. They were
your pupils--they do the same every Friday. And why should they not
do it, knowing--"

He stopped and again dropped his eyes. Fear and anger were fighting
within him.

"Nu, what do they know? Meir, why did you not finish? What do they
know?" laughed Reb Moshe.

"They know that you, Reb Moshe, will praise them for so doing."

The melamed rose from his chair, his shining eyes opened widely. He
stretched out his dark, thin hand, as though to-say something, but
the strong and already sonorous voice of the young man did not permit
to do it.

"Reb Moshe," said Meir, bending his head slightly before the
melamed--which he did, evidently not very willingly--"Reb Moshe, I
respect you--you taught me. I do not ask you why you do not forbid
your pupils to attack these poor people living in darkness--but I
cannot look at such injustice My heart aches when I see them, because
I believe that from such bad children will grow bad men, and if they
now shake the poor hut of an old man, and throw stones through the
windows, afterward they will set fire to the houses and kill the
people! To-day they would have destroyed that poor hut and killed the
people if I had not prevented them."

As he said the last words, he took his place at the table. On his
face there was no longer timidity and bashfulness. He was evidently
deeply convinced of the righteousness of his cause. He looked boldly
around, and only his lips quivered, as is always the case with young,
sensitive people. At that moment old Saul and his two sons raised
their arms and said:

"Sabbath."

Their voices were solemn, and the