The City of Delight

The apparition lifted a palsied hand on which the skin was yet fair

and young and pointed after the Maccabee, losing himself in the

groaning mass in the city.

"If I believe, I must tell him!" he said.

"Whatever thou hast done against that man must be amended," the

Christian declared.

The palsied figure shrank and wringing his hands about each other said

in a whisper that sounded like wind among dried leaves: "I, who saw the candor of perfect trust in his eyes, once, I can not

behold their reproach--I, who love him, and sold him--for a handful of

gold!"

The old Christian laid his hand on the other's arm.

"Another Judas?" he said. The apparition made no answer.

"Nay, then; tell it me," the Christian urged. But the other shrank

away from him, while distrust collected in his eyes.

"I fear thee; the evil man fears the good one, even more than the good

man fears the evil one. I will not tell thee."

"But thou hast thy bread from this Hesper; thou hast thy shelter from

him. He will not injure thee."

"Injure me! Not with his hands, perhaps. But he would look at me, he

would kill me with his eyes! Thou canst not dream what evil I have

done him!"

The old Christian looked at him for a time, but with the hopefulness

of the spiritually confident.

"Christ spare thee, till thou hast the strength to do right!" he

exclaimed. But the palsied man covered his face with his hands and

groaned. The old Christian took him by the arm and led him down from

the wall and back to the cavern under the ruins.

"In thy good time, O Lord," he said to himself, beginning with that

incident a ministry that should not end.

It was dark when the Maccabee came down into the ravine in which the

Greek's house was builded. In the shadow the house cast before it he

saw some one pass the sentry lines. The soldiers looked after that

figure. Presently, emerging into the lesser darkness of the open

streets, it proved to be a woman. The Maccabee stopped. By the

movements, now hurried, now slow, he believed that the night was full

of apprehension for this unknown faring into the disordered city. She

was coming in his direction. He stepped into shadow to see who would

come forth from shelter at such an hour.

The next instant she hurried by his hiding-place and the Maccabee saw

with amazement that it was the girl he loved. He sprang out to speak

to her, but the sound of his footsteps frightened her and she ran.

The whole hilly foreground of Jerusalem was lifted like a black and

impending cloud over her, a-throb with violence and strife. Here and

there were lights on the bosom of the looming blackness, but they only

emphasized the darkness pressing on the outskirts of the radiance.

Every area way and alley had its sound. The air was full of footsteps;

behind her a voice called to her. She dashed by yawning darkness that

was an open alley, hurried toward lights, halted precipitately at

signals of danger and veered aside at unexpected sounds. Once she

stumbled upon the body of a sleeper who had come down into the

darkness of the ravine to pass the night. At her suppressed cry the

Maccabee sprang forward, but she caught herself and ran faster.