been listening to you, had stopped their ears to my plea... Else why did they fling away your tender youth like this, and not hear the fervent prayers rising from the temples, amid the incense and the censers — prayers which the supplications of the faithful wife and the innocent little ones could not aid, nor those of thousands of loyal, loving friends?

•

... Is it true, Fouad, that our eyes will never again fall upon the radiance of your face? Is it true that we have been deprived of your voice, spreading gladness through the house, jest after jest, pleasantry after pleasantry?!

... And who is left to thought after you, O Tammuz? Literature and poetry have been bereaved, and in them you were nothing less than a peak among peaks, looking out from your heights in loftiness and pride!

And how great you were, Fouad, in your mind and your understanding, and in your heart. ... You never once strove except for the common good, and never once did your own interest come before the interest of others. Blessed be your soul — how generous it was, in giving and in bounty... in bounty and in giving.

•

And I shall not forget — never shall I forget — your last charge to me... The echo of your steady voice is still in my ears, saying: — "Edvick, your nerves

are strong. Stay by Josephine and help her to bear the blow!"

Yes! You knew that you were setting out on a journey; and your anguish over your health, and over your life as it faded and went out, was not fiercer than your solicitude for Josephine, the beloved wife to whom you were faithful and who was faithful to you...

And I promise you, my friend, that I will be to Josephine the loving sister, lightening for her the bitterness of the cup, and lifting her up so long as my wings can help me rise... and we shall not stumble, God willing...

As for your little ones and mine — they are all broth-ers and sisters. Love will not run scant; it pours upon them from the hearts of brethren and comrades... And how many they are, Fouad — a flood of love and fidelity... And these seeds of yours, good in their very element, are your trust in their keeping; they pledge before God to tend them with good and faithful care...

•

I doubted You, O Lord. I doubted Your compassion and Your justice. This is the third time in my life that I stand before Your holy face, my strength failing, my faith shaken. Grant me then, O God, from Yourself an ample understanding, for I cannot comprehend Your wisdom in some of Your works!.. And forgive me, O my God!