The Beginning of an Endless Friendship.
About a quarter of four one afternoon, three young men were standingtogether on a road leading down to a swift-running river. It was an oldroad, beaten down hard by thousands of feet through hundreds of years. Itled down to the river, and then along its bank through a villagescatteringly nestled by the fords of the river. The young men wereintently absorbed in conversation.
One of them was a man to attract attention anywhere. He was clearly theleader of the three. His clothing was very plain, even to severeness. Hisface was spare, suggesting a diet as severely plain as his garments. Theabundance of dark hair on head and face brought out sharply the spare,thoughtful, earnest look of his face. His eyes glowed like coals of livingfire beneath the thick, bushy eyebrows. He talked quietly but intensely.There was a subdued vigor and force about his very person.
One of the others was a very different type of man. He was intense too,like the leader, but there was a fineness and a far-looking depth abouthis eye such as suggests a gray eye rather than a black. His hair wassofter and finer, and his skin too. In him intensity seemed to blend witha fine grain in his whole make-up. The third man was a quiet,matter-of-fact looking fellow. He did not talk much, except to ask anoccasional question. The three men were engaged in earnest conversation,when a fourth man, a stranger, came down the road and, passing the threeby, went on ahead.
The leader of the three called the attention of his companions to thestranger. At once they leave his side and go after the stranger. As theynearly catch up to him, he unexpectedly turns and in a kindly voice asks,"Whom are you looking for?" Taken aback by the unexpected question, theydo not answer, but ask where he is going. Quickly noticing the point oftheir question, he cordially says, "Come over and take tea with me."
They gladly accepted the invitation, and spent the evening with him. And
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