Part 2 Chapter 17 Summary

The Padre is busy digging more graves, and the Collector arrives to help him. There are three men to be buried: Lieutenant Peterson, Jackson the Crimean war vet and Donnelly, a Roman Catholic. Father O'Hara arrives, and there is a dispute over which of the canvas-covered bodies is Donnelly, since he will have to be buried in a different area. The Collector ends the dispute by pointing to one of the bodies. The Padre is ecstatic when Fleury arrives, since he has just been thinking about the young man. The Padre is convinced that Fleury must adhere to German rationalist beliefs, which question major tenets of Christian theology. While the Padre tries his best to corner Fleury in argument, Fleury answers evasively, his mind on the party and how he acted in front of Louise.

The Collector continues on his rounds...