An Obscure Apostle Part 25

"Did he come toward me in royal array, In purple and gold like the dawn of day. Ah, no I on his brow there was no golden crown; His naked knees trembled, hi gray head bowed down."

Here the choir of singing voices was mingled with a whisper coming from the birch grove:

"Hush! Some people are listening!"

In fact, on the road pa.s.sing through the grove, several human figures appeared in the distance. They were walking very slowly. But the singer heard neither Golda's warning nor the sound of the approaching steps. The second verse of the song resounded over the meadow:

"O, my people's spirit, say, where is thy throne? Are the roses of Zion all faded and gone? Are the cedars of Lebanon all broken down?

O, my people's spirit, say, where is thy crown?"

The last line of the song was still vibrating when, from the road pa.s.sing through the grove, three men entered the meadow. They were dressed in long, black holiday clothes, and were girded with red handkerchiefs, because it was not permitted to carry them on Sabbath, but being used to gird the clothes were considered as part of the attire, and thus it was not a sin to wear them in that way.

In the centre was the cantor's father, Jankiel Kamionker, and on either side were Abraham Ezofowich, Haim's father, and Morejne Calman, the father of Aryel. Notwithstanding the darkness, the fathers recognised their sons in the last rays of the daylight. The voices of the young men trembled, became quiet, and then were silent--only one voice sang further:

"Wilt thou never emerge from the darkness, despair? Will thy sweet songs of thanks ne'er resound in the air?"

It was Meir's voice.

The dignified men, pa.s.sing through the meadow, stopped and turned toward the group of young men, and at that moment the manly voice was joined by the pure, sonorous voice of Golda, who, seeing the angry faces of the men, began to sing with Meir as though she wished to join him in common courage, and perhaps in common peril.

And paying no attention to either his comrades' silence or the threatening figures standing in the meadow the joined voices sang:

"Let the wisdom of Heaven knock at thy door, And quiet the grief that has made thy heart sore; And bid the Angel of Knowledge come down, Restoring to thee thy lost glorious crown. We beseech thee to chase the dark shadows away, And the light of G.o.d's truth will turn night into day."

The song had only three verses, so with the last verse the two voices became silent. The dignitaries of the community turned toward the town, and talking loudly and angrily they went in the direction of the Ezofowich house.

Abraham, Saul's son, was quite different from his brother Raphael.

Tall, dark-haired, and good-looking still, notwithstanding his more than fifty years, Raphael was dignified and careful, speaking very little. Abraham was small and bent. He was gray-headed, and had a pa.s.sionate temper and sensitive disposition. He spoke very rapidly and with violent gestures. His eyes were very bright and generally looked gloomily on the ground.

Both brothers were learned, and for their learning the high t.i.tle of 'Morejne' had been bestowed upon them by the community. But Raphael studied especially the Talmud, and was considered one of its best scholars. Abraham, however, preferred the study of the precipice-like mysteries of the Zohar. He was a close friend of the two high dignitaries of the kahal, Morejne Calman and pious Jankiel Kamionker. They transacted business together outside the town, and while in town they read sacred books together, and together they walked every Sabbath beyond the boundaries of the place, as far as an Israelite is permitted to go from his house. Therefore no one saw them go over two thousand steps, and only very seldom, when they were attracted by the shadow of the grove, they bent, and on the spot where their feet reached the two thousandth step they buried in the ground a crumb of bread. That spot then represented their house, and they were allowed to go two thousand steps further. Usually they were silent while walking, for they counted their steps, but the simple spiritually and bodily poor people, seeing them walking slowly and with thoughtful faces, admired the wisdom and orthodoxy of these scholarly and rich men. On seeing them they rose respectfully and stood until they pa.s.sed, for it is written: "When you see a sage pa.s.s by, rise, and do not sit until he is out of your sight."

Moreover on their return they spoke, because it was not necessary to count their steps.

But the poor people had never seen the three dignified men walk as fast as that evening, when on the meadow they had heard the song of the young men. Even the magnificent Calman himself had not smiled as usual, and as for Jankiel Kamionker, his movements were so violent that his long black dress floated behind him like two black wings.

Abraham Ezofowich had ungirded his handkerchief and carried it in his hand. Calman noticed this sign of senseless excitement and warned his friend that he was sinning. Abraham was dreadfully frightened, and in great haste he again girded his loins. When this happened they were already on the piazza of the Ezofowich house. Then the three men entered the room in which old Saul was sitting on the yellow sofa, reading in a large book by the light of two candles, which burned in two antique silver candlesticks.

Saul, seeing the entering guests was a little astonished, because it was already quite late and the time was not suitable for a visit. He greeted them, however, with a friendly nod, and pointed to the chairs standing near the sofa. The men did not sit in the places indicated to them, but stood opposite Saul. Although their faces were animated by anger, their mein was solemn. Evidently they had come to an understanding as to how the conversation was to be commenced, for Kamionker spoke first:

"Reb Saul," said he, "we come here to complain against your grandson Meir."

A painful shiver pa.s.sed over Saul's face.

"What has he done?" he asked in a low voice.

Kamionker began to speak, at first solemnly, and then very violently:

"Your grandson Meir spoils our sons! He causes their souls to rebel against the Holy Law; he reads to them excommunicated books, and sings worldly songs on the Sabbath! Besides this he is bound by an impure friendship to the Karaimian girl, and we saw in the meadow our sons lying at his feet as though at the feet of their master, and over his head the Karaimian girl stood and sang abominable songs with him."

He stopped, out of breath from the angry speech, and Morejne Calman, looking at Saul with his honey like eyes, said slowly:

"My son Aryel was there, and I shall punish him for it."

Abraham, looking gloomily on the ground, then said:

"And my son, your grandson Haim, was also there, and I shall punish him for it."

Then all said:

"You must punish Meir!"

Saul bent his sorrowful face.

"Lord of the world," he whispered with trembling lips, "have I deserved that the light of my eyes should be changed into darkness?"

Then he raised his head and said with determination:

"I will punish him."

Abraham's eyes, fixed on his father's face, were shining.

"Father," said he, "you must think the most of that Karaimian girl.

That unclean friendship between them is a great shame to our whole family. You know, father, our custom--no Israelite shall know another woman save the one his parents have destined for his wife."

It seemed that Saul's wrinkled forehead was covered with a pinkish flush.

"I will soon marry him," he answered.

Abraham continued:

"As long as he sees the Karaimian girl he will not care to marry."

"And what can I do to prevent him from seeing her?"

The three men looked at each other.

"Something must be done with her!" said one.

After a long while of deep thought, the two guests bowed to Saul and left the house. Abraham remained in the room.

"Father," said he, "how do you propose to punish him?"

"I will command him to sit for a whole day in the Bet-ha-Midrash and read the Talmud."

"It would not do any good," said Abraham, with an impatient gesture; "you had better order him to be flogged."

Saul remained bent over.

"I shall not do it," he answered. Then he added softly: "Michael's soul pa.s.sed into the body of my father Hersh, and my father's soul is now dwelling in Meir's body."