But now he wondered if he had been willing to put forth his utmost strength, after all.

Had there not always been an element of dread in the thought of beholding the mystery face to face?
Had he not even allowed the Vision to dissolve, the Answer to recede into the obscurity whence it came?
But never a night had been so beautiful as this.

It was the full period of the spring.

The air was a veritable caress.

The infinite repose of the little garden, sleeping under the night, was delicious beyond expression.