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THE WRECK

turn and touched the dust of their feet, much to Nalin- aksha's confusion.

Annada Babu, however, reassured him. "Don't be embarrassed, Nalinaksha babu," he said, "she is only doing what is right"

Nalinaksha had never visited them so early in the morning and Hemnalini glanced up expectantly at his face. He explained that he had just heard from Ben- ares that his mother was ill; he would have to leave Calcutta by the night train, and as the whole day would be taken up with preparations for the journey he had come thus early to bid them farewell.

"I'm greatly distressed to hear of your mother's illness," said Annada Babu. "May Heaven soon re- store her to health. I shall never be able to repay you for all the help you have given us during the past weeks."

"It IS I who am in your debt, I assure you," Nalin- aksha replied. "You showed true neighbourly feeling in the trouble that you took to make me comfortable next door. Moreover your earnestness has given a new meaning to the profound problems on which I have been meditating for some time past. Your man- ner of life has been an inspiration to me in my specu- lations and my devotions and has made them appear doubly efficacious. The benefit to be derived from communion with fellow-creatures who share the same aspirations has been brought home to me."

"The strange thing," resumed Annada Babu, "is that before we knew you, we stood in sore need of some- thing that we could not define. At this juncture you suddenly appeared on the scene and I realised that your help was indispensable. We are stay-at-home folk who do not go much into society and we never shared the craze for attending meetings and listening to speeches ; even if I went myself it was very difficult to persuade Hem to stir. What happened then was

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