'And what next?'
'He healed many galls for a mule . . . that was
on the road to Jerusalem . . . the mule was cruelly
overloaded.'
'And then?5
cHe knelt by a dying dog in a street in Nain.5
'How do you know that it was Nain?'
Christophe thought for a moment: 'I cannot tell
you.5
'And then?5
'He laid His hands on its head and prayed — He
was sending the dog to God. It was suffering, its
body was covered with sores . . . very terrible
sores . . . 5 His voice sank to a whisper, CI cannot
be wrong for the dog was . . . Mireio.5
They stared at each other as once in.the past they
had stared in dumb fear when the blow dealt by Jan
to the couleuvre had scarred Christophe's shrinking
shoulders.
Then Christophe said slowly: 'These things are
all lost — they must have forgotten to write them
down, that is why there is something I miss in the
gospels.5
'You are mad!5 exclaimed Jan, still feeling afraid,
'Only saints and holy martyrs see visions.5 Then he
flushed, 'But what is that you have said? Who are
you to pretend to miss things in the gospels? Are you
the four Evangelists perhaps? One would think you
were all four of them rolled together! Sarnipabieune,
but what conceit! No doubt you know better than
Monsieur le Cure, no doubt you know better than our
bishop, mais oui; no douljt you know better than the
Holy Father!5 And now he was working himself
into a rage. 'Moreover you blaspheme — you blas-
pheme about Mireio. Mireio was a beast and beasts
have no souls, yet you tell me that Jesus sent her
to God —it must be that you are both stupid and
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