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.Jonah s good wife, leaving him in a state ofbewildered festivity, meanwhile slipped into her cottage, rummagedabout in the pantry and soon returned with a round of dried yellowcheese made almost entirely from cream, and with a pound of yellowbutter patted in between two newly plucked green leaves.Both thebutter and the green leaves were moist with silvery drops of water sobright and pure, it verily made everybody s mouth water.Youngsters from afar, noticing that something was afoot in the ham-let, something which might very well concern themselves, promisedtheir Christian comrades a lump of sweet white Sabbath bread, andentrusting herds of cattle, sheep, and goats to their care, rushed hometo welcome whom, they did not know.Other women followed the example set by Jonah s wife.They broughtto light whatever treasures they had: a pot of cream, or homemade pre-serves, or a bottle of raspberry juice, things that were not to be touchedin the ordinary way but were kept in reserve for special occasions, suchas a wedding or (God forbid!) an illness.Raizela protested.She thankedthem, but what would she do with all these delicacies? She pleadedwith them, but they were deaf to her entreaties.They simply put thegifts into the cart, tucked them up in straw, and hoped that the rabbiand his family would enjoy these refreshments on their journey.The horses having drained the remaining water in the pails, againheld their heads out uncomfortably as Abbish led them by the halter.Again there was the stamp! stamp! of powerful hoofs, again a shower ofblessings and counsels, but now these homely folk were waving the lastfarewell.When the hamlet was left behind, Reb Avram Ber suggestedthat he and Raizela should move over onto the other cart. We won t get bumped about so much, he said.Raizela consented: she would be able to get on with her reading ingreater comfort.So Itchela adjusted some soft bundles for them to situpon.The children now had the cart all to themselves.That was mag-nificent.Magnificent was hardly the word for it!THE DANCE OF THE DEMONS 27 The air was laden with the scent of fresh grass.The trees were show-ing leaves already so bright and green and tender.On some treesthere were full-grown leaves hanging among hosts of heavy reddishbuds which seemed ready to burst into blossom and to cover the dark,lush boughs at any moment.The sky here was infinitely loftier than inJelhitz or even Senzimin, and was steeped from horizon to horizonwith a brilliant golden light.The sky rested motionless over the world.And if, at times, a tiny white cloud emerged, it was powerless to stir,for all was at peace.The sun poured its rays down upon the bare fields,pierced the scattered trees and splashed its brilliance over the peasanthuts and hovels, which, strewn over field and meadow, and half sunkeninto the ground, looked like strange plants growing out of the springearth already whitewashed by nature.They hugged their shadows tight.All was at rest.All was radiant, fresh and alive with the life of earlyspring. God bless your labors! Abbish called out to peasant men andwomen engaged in ploughing and sowing with an intent and eager air.Small, thin-legged horses were stubbornly dragging shiny plows, underwhich the soil sprang up black as soot.Every movement of the laborersrippled with health and vigor. May God give you health! the peasants responded, making thesign of the cross.Reb Avram Ber could not understand Polish, but he guessed thatgreetings were being exchanged.And he felt a keen desire to say some-thing himself.He might have managed a few words in Russian, for hadhe not once spent two whole weeks studying the language? There werestill a few phrases he remembered.Suddenly he was overcome by a pas-sionate feeling of love towards those strangers in the fields at theirhealth-giving and useful toil. Man was created for labor, he quoted.Everything around him was so full of love and beauty.His feelingsmastered him, and he began to sing joyfully: How glorious and pleas-ant, most holy, are thy. He forgot that it was the season of Sfira,when music is forbidden, but Raizela immediately pulled him up.RebAvram Ber broke off, the sudden interruption leaving a trace of sadnesson his face.But no man, least of all Reb Avram Ber, could remaindowncast for very long on such a glorious day.The carts rolled on.The peasants were lost to sight; the hammocksuspended between two trees, the sleeping child, the linen spread out28 ESTHER SINGER KREITMAN on the ground for bleaching, vanished.The fields were now vast andsolitary: not a soul was to be seen.The soil was black and furrowed,but already it was showing signs of birth tiny green corn blades.Reb Avram Ber felt restless
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