Page:Halek's Stories and Evensongs.pdf/38

 behoof and his own, just as he had played it last in chapel. He thought that in that way he should soonest make friends with them by showing them what he knew.

He played: and when he came to the gloria, where he had the solo in chapel, he thought he ought to do his very best. He did his best, and played till his face shone. If those birds had understood anything about playing they must have been well contented with him. When he had finished playing you might have heard an answer, but it was not the birds who answered, it was the little Krista who, when Venik had finished playing, began to sing over her solo for last Sunday’s mass. Unseen she had crept behind the tree, and now betrayed herself by her singing.

Venik was the violinist of the gallery, and Krista was its chief songstress; she had a voice like a little angel, and when she sang people said it was like stringing pearls on a silken thread. Venik and Krista made music in the gallery side by side; and when one accompanied the other people said the chapel was like paradise; they were not brother and sister, but people called them “those children”, because they always learnt together, together walked home from school, and from home to school, and stood together in the gallery. The village folk talked about “those children” on their way to the chapel; “those children” were like a miracle to them when they heard them in chapel, and they talked about “those children” again all the way from chapel.

Krista was an orphan; she was now nine years old, and had no recollection of her parents. She was attached to the home of Venik’s father like the swallow’s nest which hung from the eaves, and which no one thought of pulling down. Venik’s father, perhaps, did not the least know why he had her at his house. It may have been because she was an orphan; or, perhaps, it may have been because of her sweet little voice. She was like that swallow’s nest under the cornice: no one pulled down that nest.

Venik’s father was sometimes known as the cottager, because there was another Riha in the village—a peasant proprietor—the brother of Riha the cottager. They also talked of Riha as Riha the widower, because Venik had already lost his mother.

When Krista began to sing behind the tree, Venik put down his violin, turned in the direction where sat the little songstress, beat time to her, nodded with his head, and was well satisfied. But when she had quite ended he roughly accosted her: “Krista, why are you not at school”, he said.

“Why are you not there, too”, said Krista.