of the sea, and the great hills on left and right, in a
blue haze. Then he stepped back, and though he had a feeling that it
would be wiser not to go, he put it aside and went boldly into the
circle of stones. He stood there for a moment, and then feeling very
weary, sate down on the turf, leaning his back against a stone; then
came upon him a great drowsiness. He was haunted by a sense that it
was not well to sleep there, and that the dreaming mind was an ill
defence against the powers of the air--yet he put the thought aside
with a certain shame and fell asleep.

He woke with a sudden start some time after; there was a chill in
his limbs, not from the air which glowed bright in the steady sun, but
a chill of the spirit that made his hair prickle in an unusual way. He
raised himself up and looked round him, for he knew by a certain sense
that he was not alone; and then he saw leaning against one of the
stones and watching him intently, a very old and weary-looking man.
The man was pale and troubled; he had a rough cloak such as the
peasants wore, the hood of which was pulled over his head; his hair
was white and hung about his ears; he had a staff in his hand. But
there was a dark look about him, and Gilbert divined in some swift
passage of the spirit that he did not wish him well. Gilbert rose to
his feet, and at the same moment the old man drew near; and though he
looked so old and feeble, Gilbert had the feeling that he was strong
and even dangerous. But Gilbert showed no surprise; he doffed his hat
to the old man, and said courteously that he hoped he had not wandered
to some private place, where he ought not to be. "The heat was great,
and I slept unawares," he said. The old man at first made no answer,
and then said in a very low and yet clear voice, "Nay, sir, you are
welcome. The Hill is free to all; but it has an evil name, I know, and
I see but few upon it." Then Gilbert said courteously that he was but
a passer-by, and that he must set off home again, before the sun was
high. And at that the old man said, "Nay, sir, but as you have come,
you will surely wait awhile and speak with me. I see," he added, "so
few of humankind, that my mind and tongue are alike stiff with disuse;
but you can tell me something of your world--and I," he added, "can
tell you something of mine." Then there came suddenly on Gilbert a
great fear, and he looked round on the tall stones of the circle that
seemed to be like a prison. The