I have never spoken like this before, but I am glad to have spoken, for now thou understandest how much thou hast done for me.  Thou and thy balsam and thy ministration.  My balsam, she answered, has done better than I expected it would do.  Thou sawest his back this morning.  One can call it cured.  His hands and feet have mended and his strength is returning.  In a few days he will be fit to travel.  This is the third time, Esora, that thou hast said he’ll be able to travel soon—­yet thou sayest he is so patient and gentle that it is a pleasure to attend on him; and an honour.  But, Master, the danger is great, and every day augments the danger.  Secrets, as I’ve said, take a long time to leak out, but they leak out in time.  Her words are wise, he thought to himself, and he overlooked her, guessing her to have shrunken to less than her original size; she seemed but a handful of bones and yellow skin, but when she looked up in his face her eyes were alive, and from under a small bony forehead they pleaded, and with quavering voice she said:  let him go, dear Master, for if the Pharisees seek him here and find him, he will hang again on the cross.  Thou wouldst have me tell him, Esora, that rumours are about that he did not die on the cross and that a search may be made for him.  I wouldn’t have thee speak to him of Pilate or his crucifixion, Master, for we don’t know that he’d care to look back upon his troubles; he might prefer to forget them as far as he is able to forget them.  But thou canst speak to him of his health, Master, which increases every day, and of the benefit a change would be to him.  Speak to him if thou wouldst of a sea voyage, but speak not of anything directly for fear of perplexing him.  Lead rather than direct, for his mind must be a sort of maze at present.  A great deal has befallen, and nothing exactly as he expected.  Nor would I have thee speak to him of anything but actual things; speak of what is before his eyes as much as possible; not a word about yesterday or of to-morrow, only so far as his departure is concerned.  Keep his thoughts on actual things, Master:  on his health, for he feels that, and on the dogs about his feet, for he sees them; he takes an interest in them; let him speak to thee of them, which will be better still, and in your talk about dogs many things will happen.  The hills about Caesarea may be mentioned; see that they are mentioned; ask him if they are like the hills above Jericho.  I cannot tell thee more, Master, but will pray that thou mayest speak the right words.

A shrewd old thing, Joseph thought, as he went towards Jesus, looking back once to see Esora disappearing into the wood.  She’d have me keep his thoughts on actual things, he continued, and seeing that Jesus had called the puppies to him and was making himself their playmate, he asked him if he were fond of dogs; whereupon Jesus began to praise the bitch, saying she was of better breeding than her puppies, and that