he was displeased--'Is it not you
who support your family? If you had not been blind, would any one have
given you the five hundred francs?'

"'That is true, Mr. Desgranges.'

"'If you were not blind, would any one provide for your children?'

"'That is true, Mr. Desgranges.'

"'If you were not blind, would every one love you, as we love you?'

"'It is true, Mr. Desgranges, it is true.'

"'You see, James, there are misfortunes in all families. Misfortune is
like rain; it must fall a little on everybody. If you were not blind,
your wife would, perhaps, be sick; one of your children might have
died. Instead of that, you have all the misfortune, my poor man; but
they--they have none.'

"'True, true.' And I began to feel less sad. I was even happy to suffer
for them. And then he added,

"'Dear James, misfortune is either the greatest enemy or the greatest
friend of men. There are people whom it makes wicked; there are others
made better by it. For you, it must make you beloved by everybody; you
must become so grateful, so affectionate, that when they wish to speak
of any one who is good, they will say, good as the blind man of the
Noiesemont. That will serve for a dowry to your daughter.' This is the
way he talked to me, sir: and it gave me heart to be unfortunate."

"Yes; but when he was not here?"

"Ah, when he was not here, I had, to be sure, some heavy moments. I
thought of my eyes--the light is so beautiful! Oh, God! cried I, in
anguish, if ever I should see clearly again, I would get up at three
o'clock in the morning, and I would, not go to bed till ten at night,
that I might gather up more light."

"James, James!" said his wife.

"You are right, Juliana; he has forbidden me to be sad. He would
perceive it, sir. Do you think that when my head had gone wrong in the
night, and he came in the morning, and merely looked at me, he would
say--'James, you have been thinking that;' and then he would scold me,
this dear friend. Yes," added he, with an expression of joy--"he would
scold me, and that would give me pleasure, because he tried to make his
words cross, but he could not do it."

"And what gave you the idea of becoming a water-carrier?"

"He gave me that, also. Do you suppose I have ideas? I began to lose my
grief, but my time hung heavy on my hands. At thirty-two years old, to
be sitting all day in a chair! He then began to instruct me, as he said,
and he told me beautiful stories. The Bible--the hi