XII.

YEFÍM had been gone exactly a year. In the spring he returned home.

He reached home in the evening.

His son was not

at home he was at the tavern.1 His son came home tipsy. Yefim began to question him. In all respects he saw that the young man had got into bad ways during his absence. He had spent all the money badly, he had neglected things. The father began to reprimand him. The son began to be impudent.

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"You yourself might have stirred about a little," says he, but you went wandering. Yes, and you took all the money with you besides, and then you call me to account!

The father grew angry, beat his son.

In the morning Yefim Tarásuitch started for the stárosta's to talk with him about his son: he goes by Yeliséï's dvor. Yeliséï's old woman is standing on the doorsteps: she greets him.

"How's your health, neighbor?" says she: "did you have a good pilgrimage?"

Yefím Tarásuitch stopped.

"Glory to God," says he, "I have been! I lost

your old man, but I hear he got home!"

And the old woman began to talk.

fond of prattling.

She was very

"He got back," says she, "good neighbor: he got

1 Kabuk.

back long ago.

Very soon after the Assumption. And glad enough we were that God brought him. It was lonesome for us without him. He isn't good for much work his day is done; but he is the head, and we are happier. And how glad our lad was! Without father,' says he, it's like being without light in the eye.' It was lonesome for us without him, we love him and we missed him so!"

"Well,' is he at home now?"

"Yes, friend, he's with the bees: he's hiving the new swarms. Splendid swarms,' says he: such a power of bees God never gave, as far as my old man remembers. God doesn't grant according to our sins, he says. Come in, neighbor: how glad he'll be to see you!"

Yefim passed through the vestibule, through the dvor to the apiary where Yeliséi was. He went into the apiary, he looks - Yeliséi is standing under a little birch-tree, without a net, without gloves, in his gray kaftan, spreading out his arms, and looking up; and the bald spot over his whole head gleams, just as when he stood in Jerusalem at the Lord's sepulchre; and over him, just as in Jerusalem the candles burned, the sunlight plays through the birch-tree; and around his head the golden bees circle in a crown, fly in and out, and do not sting him.

Yefim stood still.

Yeliséi's old woman called to her husband:

"Our neighbor's come," says she.

Yeliséï looked around, was delighted, came to meet his companion,' calmly detaching the bees from his beard.

"How are you, comrade,2 how are you, my dear friend! did you have a good journey?"

แ

My feet went on the pilgrimage, and I have brought you some water from the river Jordan. Come

you shall have it but whether the Lord accepted my labors

"Well, glory to God, Christ save us !

Yefim was silent for a moment.

"My legs took me there, but whether it was my soul that was there, or another's"

"That is God's affair, comrade, God's affair."

"On my way back I stopped also at the hut where

What

Yeliséï became confused: he hastened to repeat, "It's God's affair, comrade, God's affair. say you?1 shall we go into the izbá?—I will bring you some honey."

And Yeliséi changed the conversation: he spoke about domestic affairs.

Yefím sighed, and did not again remind Yeliséï of the people in the hut, and the vision of him that he had seen in Jerusalem. And he learned that in this world God bids every one do his duty till death — in love and good deeds.

1 Chto-zh.

TEXTS FOR WOOD-CUTS.

1885.

THE DEVIL'S PERSISTENT, BUT GOD IS RESISTANT.1

THERE lived in old time a good master. He had plenty of every thing, and many slaves served him. And the slaves used to praise their master. They said,

"There is not a better master under heaven than ours. He not only feeds us and clothes us well, and gives us work according to our strength, but he never insults any of us, and never gets angry with us: he isn't like other masters, who treat their slaves worse than cattle, and kill them whether they are to blame or not, and never say a kind word to them. Our master, he wishes us well, and treats us kindly, and says pleasant things to us. We couldn't have a better life than

ours.

Thus the slaves praised their master.

And here the Devil began to get vexed because the slaves lived in comfort and love with their master.

And the Devil got hold of one of the slaves of this master, named Al'yeb. He got hold of him — commanded him to entice the other slaves.

And when all the slaves were taking their rest, and were praising their master, Al'yeb raised his voice, and said, "It's all nonsense your praising our master's goodness. Try to humor the Devil, and the Devil will be good. We serve our master well, we humor him in all things. As soon as he thinks of any thing, we do his thoughts. How make him be not Just stop humoring him, and do bad work for him, and he will be like all the others, and he will return evil for evil worse than the crossest of masters."

it: we divine

good to us?

And the other slaves began to argue with Alyeb. And they argued, and laid a wager. Alyeb undertook to make their kind master angry. He undertook it on the condition, that, if he does not make him angry, he shall give his Sunday clothes; but if he makes him angry, then they agree to give him, each one of them, their Sunday clothes; and, moreover, they agree to protect him from their master, if he should be put in irons, or, if thrown in prison, to free him. They laid the wager, and Al'yeb promised to make their master angry the next morning.

Alyeb served, his master in the sheep-cote: he had charge of the costly breeding-rams.

And here in the morning the good master came with some guests to the sheep-cote, and began to show them his beloved, costly rams. The Devil's accomplice winked to his comrades:

--

"Look! I'll soon get the master angry."

All the slaves had gathered. They peeked in at the door and through the fence; and the Devil climbed into a tree, and looks down into the dvor, to see how his accomplice will do his work.

The master came round the dvor, showed his guests