healthy, but when she grew up into young maidenhood shewas stricken with the disease."
The slave bowed, smiled pleasantly, and said: "How can you expect thatFaustina will believe this? She has seen your wife in her beauty andhealth. And she must know that there is no remedy for this illness."
The man replied: "It were best for her that she believed me. But I amnot without witnesses. She can send inquiries over to Nazareth, inGalilee. There every one will confirm my statement."
"Is it perchance through a miracle of some god that your wife has beencured?" asked the slave.
"Yes, it is as you say," answered the laborer. "One day a rumor reachedthe sick who lived in the wilderness: 'Behold, a great Prophet hasarisen in Nazareth of Galilee. He is filled with the power of God'sspirit, and he can cure your illness just by laying his hand upon yourforehead!' But the sick, who lay in their misery, would not believe thatthis rumor was the truth. 'No one can heal us,' they said. 'Since thedays of the great prophets no one has been able to save one of us fromthis misfortune.'
"But there was one amongst them who believed, and that was a youngmaiden. She left the others to seek her way to the city of Nazareth,where the Prophet lived. One day, when she wandered over wide plains,she met a man tall of stature, with a pale face and hair which lay ineven, black curls. His dark eyes shone like stars and drew her towardhim. But before they met, she called out to him: 'Come not near me, forI am unclean, but tell me where I can find the Prophet from Nazareth!'But the man continued to walk towards her, and when he stood directly infront of her, he said: 'Why seekest thou the Prophet of Nazareth?'--'Iseek him that he may lay his hand on my forehead and heal me of myillness.' Then the man went up and laid his hand upon her brow. But shesaid to him: 'What doth it avail me that you lay your hand upon myforehead? You surely are no prophet?' Then he smiled on her and said:'Go now into the city which lies yonder at the foot of the mountain, andshow thyself before the priests!'
"The sick maiden thought to herself: 'He mocks me because I believe Ican be healed. From him I can not learn what I would know.' And she wentfarther. Soon thereafter she saw a man, who was going out to hunt,riding across the wide field. When he came so near that he could hearher, she called to him: 'Come not close to me, I am unclean! But tell mewhere I can find the Prophet of Nazareth!' 'What do you want of theProphet?' asked the man, riding slowly toward her. 'I wish only that hemight lay his hand on my forehead and heal me of my illness.' The manrode still nearer. 'Of what illness do you wish to be healed?' said he.'Surely you need no physician!' 'Can't you see that I am a leper?' saidshe. 'I was born of diseased parents in a mountain grotto.' But the mancontinued to approach, for she was beautiful and fair, like a new-blownrose. 'You are the most beautiful maiden in Judea!' he exclaimed. 'Ah,taunt me not--you, too!' said she. 'I know that my features aredestroyed, and that my voice is like a wild beast's growl.'
"He looked deep into her eyes and said to her: 'Your voice is asresonant as the spring brook's when it ripples over pebbles, and yourface is as smooth as a coverlet of soft satin.'
"That moment he rode so close to her that she could see her face in theshining mountings which decorated his saddle. 'You shall look atyourself here,' said he. She did so, and saw a face smooth and soft as anewly-formed butterfly wing. 'What is this that I see?' she said. 'Thisis not my face!' 'Yes, it is your face,' said the rider. 'But my voice,is it not rough? Does it not sound as when wagons are drawn over a stonyroad?' 'No! It sounds like a zither player's sweetest songs,' said therider.
"She turned and pointed toward the road. 'Do you know who that man isjust disappearing behind the two oaks?' she asked.
"'It is he whom you lately asked after; it is the Prophet fromNazareth,' said the man. Then she clasped her hands in astonishment, andtears filled her eyes. 'Oh, thou Holy One! Oh, thou Messenger of God'spower!' she cried. Thou hast healed me!'
"Then the rider lifted her into the saddle and bore her to the city atthe foot of the mountain and went with her to the priests and elders,and told them how he had found her. They questioned her carefully; butwhen they heard that the maiden was born in the wilderness of diseasedparents, they would not believe that she was healed. 'Go back thitherwhence you came!' said they. 'If you have been ill, you must remain soas long as you live. You must not come here to the city, to infect therest of us with your disease.'
"She said to them: 'I know that I am well, for the Prophet from Nazarethhath laid his hand upon my forehead.'
"When they heard this they exclaimed: 'Who is he, that he should be ableto make clean the unclean? All this is but a delusion of the evilspirits. Go back to your own, that you may not bring destruction uponall of us!'
"They would not declare her healed, and they forbade her to remain inthe city. They decreed that each and every one who gave her sheltershould also be adjudged unclean.
"When the priests had pronounced this judgment, the young maiden turnedto the man who had found her in the field: 'Whither shall I go now? MustI go back again to the lepers in the wilderness?'
"But the man lifted her once more upon his horse, and said to her: 'No,under no conditions shall you go out to the lepers in their mountaincaves, but we two shall travel across the sea to another land, wherethere are no laws for clean and unclean.' And they----"
But when the vineyard laborer had got thus far in his narrative, theslave arose and interrupted him. "You need not tell any more," said he."Stand up rather and follow me on the way, you who know the mountains,so that I can begin my home journey to-night, and not wait untilmorning. The Emperor and Faustina can not hear your tidings a moment toosoon."
When the vine-dresser had accompanied the slave, and come home again tothe hut, he found his wife still awake.
"I can not sleep," said she. "I am thinking that these two will meet: hewho loves all mankind, and he who hates them. Such a meeting would beenough to sweep the earth out of existence!"
VI
Old Faustina was in distant Palestine, on her way to Jerusalem. She hadnot desired that the mission to seek the Prophet and bring him to theEmperor should be intrusted to any one but herself. She said to herself:"That which we demand of this stranger, is something which we can notcoax from him either by force or bribes. But perhaps he will grant it usif some one falls at his feet and tells him in what dire need theEmperor is. Who can make an honest plea for Tiberius, but the one whosuffers from his misfortune as much as he does?"
The hope of possibly saving Tiberius had renewed the old woman's youth.She withstood without difficulty the long sea trip to Joppa, and on thejourney to Jerusalem she made no use of a litter, but rode a horse. Sheappeared to stand the difficult ride as easily as the Roman nobles, thesoldiers, and the slaves who made up her retinue.
The journey from Joppa to Jerusalem filled the old woman's heart withjoy and bright hopes. It was springtime, and Sharon's plain, over whichthey had ridden during the first day's travel, had been a brilliantcarpet of flowers. Even during the second day's journey, when they cameto the hills of Judea, they were not abandoned by the flowers. All themultiformed hills between which the road wound were planted with fruittrees, which stood in full bloom. And when the travelers wearied oflooking at the white and red blossoms of the apricots and persimmons,they could rest their eyes by observing the young vine-leaves, whichpushed their way through the dark brown branches, and their growth wasso rapid that one could almost follow it with the eye.
It was not only flowers and spring green that made the journey pleasant,but the pleasure was enhanced by watching the throngs of people who wereon their way to Jerusalem this morning. From all the roads and by-paths,from lonely heights, and from the most remote corners of the plain cametravelers. When they had reached the road to Jerusalem, those whotraveled alone formed themselves into companies and marched forward withglad shouts. Round an elderly man, who rode on a jogging camel, walkedhis sons and daughters, his sons-in-law and daughters-in-law, and allhis grandchildren. It was such a large family t
hat it made up an entirelittle village. An old grandmother who was too feeble to walk her sonshad taken in their arms, and with pride she let herself be borne amongthe crowds, who respectfully stepped aside.
In truth, it was a morning to inspire joy even in the most disconsolate.To be sure the sky was not clear, but was o'ercast with a thingrayish-white mist, but none of the wayfarers thought of grumblingbecause the sun's piercing brilliancy was dampened. Under this veiledsky the perfume of the budding leaves and blossoms did not penetrate