, and stood in his very
presence; and he was not afraid. They say a beautiful light shone from
his face.

The tent was dim, and the weary king did not stir.

The boy knelt down, and stripping off the lilies, he tuned his harp and
began to sing. The poet tells how he played for the mighty king; and
what do you think it was? Just the tune all his sheep knew; always it
brought them, one after one, to the pen door at evening. It was so
strange and sweet a tune that quail on the corn lands would each leave
its mate to fly after the player; and crickets--it made them so wild
with delight they would fight one another. Then he played what sets the
field mouse musing, and the cattle to deeper dreaming in the sunny
meadows.

He sang of green pastures and water brooks, and the morning joy of
shepherds bounding over wide pastures. The light shines in streams, the
hungry, happy sheep break out, and the long golden day is to be lived!

Then he sang of the peace that comes to shepherds at evening, when the
gentle sheep and sleepy, bleating lambs go home across the sweet wide
meadow, and the stars come out in the serene heavens. Then it is to the
shepherd as if nature and man and God are all one, and love is all there
is in the whole world.

At last the boy David sang of the perfect gift that will surely come;
and he sang until the evil sorrow itself grew into peace.

The king stirred and raised his head. It was to him as if it had rained,
and flowers had sprung up in the desert.

A GUIDE TO PRONUNCIATION

The diacritical markings in this list agree with the latest edition of
Webster's International Dictionary, and are as follows:

[=a]--_as in_ f[=a]te.
[)a]--_as in_ [)a]dd.
[+a]--_as in_ pref' [+a]ce.
[:a]--_as in_ f[:a]r.
[.a]--_as in_ gr[.a]ss.
[a:]--_as in_ [a:]ll.
[=e]--_as in_ [=e]ve.
[+e]--_as in_ [+e]-vent'.
[)e]--_as in_ [)e]nd.
[~e]--_as in_ h[~e]r.
[=i]--_as in_ [=i]ce.
[)i]--_as in_ p[)i]n.
[=o]--_as in_ r[=o]w.
[+o]--_as in_ [+o]-bey'.
o--_as in_ lord.
[)o]--_as in_ n[)o]t.
oe--_similar to_ u _in_ fur.
[=oo]--_as in_ s[=oo]n.
[)u]--_as in_ [)u]s.
[+u]--_as in_ [+u]-nite'.
[u.]--_as in_ f[u.]ll.
U--_similar to_ u _in_ fur.
[)y]--_as in_ pit' [)y].
e[u]--_as in_ [u]s.
(_prolonged_).
oi--_as in_ oil.
ou--_as in_ out.

K a guttural sound, similar to aspirated _h_.

N represents the nasal sound in French, as in _ensemble_
([: