Chapter 25 Summary

The cable railway is ready for its first test run. Before the momentous occasion can begin, monks ride down from the charred monastery with news of a miracle. The Holy Virgin of Revenge has slain the arsonist Zaharia. The heretic monk was found dead, shaven bald and pierced with the Virgin's spear. Zorba pretends shock, but the narrator struggles to keep from laughing. On the abbot's signal, the first tree is loosed down the railway, rocking the structure violently and splintering to nothing on its way down. The second log does not even make it halfway before shattering. When the fourth timber cargo comes down, the entire cableway collapses into ruin. The villagers flee in terror, but Zorba and the narrator feast on the celebratory roast sheep in spite of the failure. Finally, Zorba teaches his boss the language of dance. Later, the...