ed his gaze on the magnificence of the rider, as
if absorbing the diamond glitter into the lustrous pupils of his eyes,
as in the morning they had absorbed and reflected the clear blue of the
skies. He seemed not to hear the words of his friend. When they were
earnestly repeated to him, he covered his face with his hands, and
tenderly uttered the holy name of the murdered Mother, as if the love of
childhood were upon his heart. The Wanderer pressed him to his breast,
and said: 'Look not upon them! Look not upon them!'

'Never! never!' he replied, as he again threw himself down to rest upon
the Persian carpet.

As the Wanderer rose to depart, I heard the prayer again rising to God
from his divining soul:

'O Heavenly Father! even at the burning noon of this bitter trial, I
implore Thee for him whom I love! O God! I now entreat Thee to work a
miracle in his behalf--to sweeten the bitter cup of life for this young,
eager, thirsting soul! Deliver it from the temptations with which Thou
hast seen good to surround the strong on this earth, led like him into
these snares! Let him not fall, I beseech Thee, as did even the mighty
and beautiful angels round Thy Throne, when the thirst for power was
upon them. Save him, O God!'

The young man remained alone, utterly alone, in the midst of the great
city, and was soon forced to seek companionship with his fellow beings.
It was strange, meanwhile, how black the heavens grew, as if the whole
sky were sheeted with a curtain of lead. I saw him now constantly in the
streets, the rooms, and in the midst of the people: he fascinated my
gaze as if I saw only him. Under the calm of a tranquil face, he
concealed bitter torment, intense suffering. Evil thoughts are winding
through him, like swarms of black and poisonous worms, while the good
are also thronging near him, like clouds of bright blue fireflies. The
worms crawl over his heart, boring and bleeding it as they writhe; the
fireflies would burn out the black congested gore, and cure the
festering wounds, but new swarms of reptiles are forever sliming into
life, and ever deeper and more gangrened are the wounds they make.
Everywhere danger, everywhere torment; there is no human being whom he
may trust! He too must learn to deceive in turn, to betray even women
and children; must learn to lie as the masterpiece of art. He attains
skill in the profession, and can command looks, smiles, tears, emotions;
but alas! the light in his clear