ft the room he said: now why did she bring the logs into
the room while we were talking of Jesus, and why did she mention that he
carried them up this afternoon, having felled a dead tree this morning?

Esora tried to persuade him that his fears were imaginary, but she too
feared that Matred might begin to suspect that Jesus was no ordinary
gardener; she had said, ye speak strangely in Galilee, and to kindle the
story again it would only be necessary for somebody to come up to the
gates and ask her if one, Jesus, a Galilean, was known to her, one that
Pilate condemned to the cross. Her answer would be: there is one here
called Jesus, he is a Galilean, and may have been on the cross for aught
I know. And such answer would be carried back to the priests, who would
order their hirelings to make a search for Jesus, and the master and
servant often sat of an evening listening to the wind in the chimney,
thinking it was warning them of the raid of the Jews. If a tree fell it
was an omen, and they related their dreams to each other in the alleys
of the gardens, till it occurred to them that to be seen in long
converse together would awaken Matred's suspicion. The shutters were put
up and they sat in the dark afraid to speak lest the walls had ears.

Esora, who was the braver of the two, often said, Master, strive to
quell thy fears, for the new procurator has given pause to the story of
the resurrection. We have heard little of it lately, and Jesus is
beginning to be forgotten. Not so, Esora, for to-day I heard--and Joseph
began a long relation which ended always with the phrase: we are beset
with danger. We have been saying that now for a long while, Esora
answered, yet nothing has befallen us yet, and what cannot be cured must
be endured. We must bear with him. If, Esora, I could bring myself to
break all promises to my father and go away with him to Egypt this
misery would be ended. Master, thou canst not do this thing; thou hast
been thinking of it all the winter, and were it possible it would be
accomplished already. If it hadn't been for that dream--and Joseph began
to relate again the dream related many times before. Forget thy dream,
Master, Esora said to him, for it will not help us; as I have said, what
cannot be cured must be endured. We must put our trust in time, which
brings many changes; and in the spring something will befall; he'll be
taken from us. The spring, Esora? And in safety? Tell me, and in safety?
Nay