music with shimmering sunshine and solitude play on the finely-strung
chords of nature; but that fellow! Was not the ear in that great body too
gross for such delicate mutterings?

Presently he said:

"May I see what you work at?"

The fellow handed his wooden post. It was by no means lovely. The men and
birds were almost grotesque in their laboured resemblance to nature, and
bore signs of patient thought. The stranger turned the thing over on his
knee.

"Where did you learn this work?"

"I taught myself."

"And these zigzag lines represent--"

"A mountain."

The stranger looked.

"It has some meaning, has it not?"

The boy muttered confusedly.

"Only things."

The questioner looked down at him--the huge, unwieldy figure, in size a