recompense him, but he felt assured the blessing
had not been given in vain.

And what happened? When the straws were
compared, Janko' s was the longest; and, to the
astonishment of the villagers, the stranger
carried away the horse.

The impressive words of the preacher occurred
to him again and again. He thought
the promise of the prophecy had been fulfilled
in the village. He turned over in his mind a
thousand purposes for doing good. The result
was that he would devote the whole of his
winnings at the raffle to the first benevolent object
that might present itself.

He had not proceeded far when he was met
by a poor tired gipsy, dragging sadly a cart
heavily laden with rusty old iron. Janko sprung
from his horse, fastened it to the cart, and told
the gipsy that he must consider the beast as
his own property. The gipsy could hardly
breathe for the thanks and the praises which he
poured out on his benefactor, who treated them
with unconcern; but he made a walking-stick
of a branch which he gathered from a
neighbouring tree, and went on his way rejoicing,
while ten thousand expressions of gratitude
from the gipsy followed his footsteps with
prayers that he might be recompensed a
thousand-fold.

And thus Janko had not only sacrificed his
last penny, but the horse which he might have
sold at a profit. He was menaced with hunger,
thirst, and exhaustion; yet he did not allow
his spirits to be depressed, but supported
himself with the conviction that all would be well
in the end.

Yet weariness began to overpower him, when
he found himself approaching a noble castle,
which was surrounded by a beautiful garden
bedecked with trees and flowers. There were
the finest fruit-trees of every sort which he had
ever seen, all laden with the most delicious
produce, which caused his mouth to water when
he looked towards them. He threw himself
down on a plank which lay on the grass, and
languished for the arrival of the evening, in
whose darkness he might, perhaps, enter the
garden unobserved, and refresh nimself with
the inviting fruit.

The shadows of evening descended, and hills
and vales were covered with darkness. Janko
climbed over the fence, and mounted the
branches of a noble pear-tree, so encumbered
with fruit that from the moment he observed it
he could not turn away his eye. He comfortably
settled himself among the leaves, and ate
such a quantity of pears that he found it necessary
to unbutton his jacket. Having satisfied
his present necessities, he bethought himself of
providing for the wants of the coming day; and
he filled his pockets and travelling bag with
such a quantity of fruit that the bough on
which lie was sitting began to crack and to give
way under the weight of its burden. At this
very moment two charming maidens approached
him. They brought easy chairs, and seated
themselves immediately under the pear-tree.

They entered upon the most artless and
confidential conversation. One said to the other,
"No, no; if I had for a husband such a man
as our charming count, I should care little for
the pretensions of his cousin, the prelate."
"Yes, indeed," answered the other, " the good
count deserves a worthier woman. But so it
is. Many times I desired to open the eyes of
the dear man; but who knows how he would
have taken my interference? So it was better
I should be silent. I will not fan the fire that
burns within me. But tell me——No; we
must go. I hear the tramp of horses; the
loving couple will soon be here." They rose,
went away, and returned to the castle, but left
the garden seats behind them. Soon a handsome
cavalier appeared in the laurel alley. He approached
the abandoned seats, and tied his
horse to the bough of a tree. He then went off
towards the castle, clapped his hands three
times, and from the castle the clapping was
echoed back, and brought the answer.

Janko, who had little thought of overhearing
these colloquies, was all the more perplexed
when he saw a tastefully dressed lady draw
near, whom the equestrian embraced in the
tenderest manner, and they seated themselves
on the stools under the tree.

The stillness of the evening and the favouring
darkness, to which the overshadowing
branches of the pear-tree contributed,
exercised their influence upon the outpourings of
two loving souls. Sweeter and softer became
the words that passed between them; and so
their kisses were less and less audible; and
then they slept—slept as if the downy god had
waved his fan over them.

Janko, who had listened to all that passed
with the greatest attention, could not understand
these mysterious proceedings—that the
enamoured pair should thus expose themselves
to the chillness of the evening air, the dampness
of the midnight dew, and the torments of
the mosquitos, which in swarms infested the
garden; but so it was, and they fell asleep
under the pear-tree. He remained for some
time, nevertheless; but being determined to
disturb their quiet, and feeling the weight of
his havresack more and more oppressive, he
took courage, and poured out all its contents
on the slumberers, so that the soft pears were
showered down upon their heads like a thunderstorm.
They were frightened as if the heavens
had burst above them; they sprang up, and
fled heels over head. The prelate left behind
him his horse and his hat, and fled from the
garden with all possible speed. Janko did not
linger long on the pear-tree, but tumbled
speedily down, seized the prelate's hat, mounted
the horse, and galloped away at full speed.

The night was approaching, and as he did
not like to enter an hotel with an empty purse,
he continued his ride until he reached an open
meadow, where he fastened his steed to a tree,
and laid himself down to rest.

Though much disposed to sleep, he still
found leisure, even in his dreams, to reckon the