Page:The land of many names (1926).pdf/17

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Ah! so it is. That’s him. Elan Chol.



Elan Chol? Then I’d rather move on.



What for?



It upsets me to see him. I met him several times last night. And when he’s about, I’d always rather clear off. It upsets me. He’s like a ghost. He stands there like a bad omen.



That’s what they say about him. But he’s a man, and maybe better than others.



My good fellow, that’s just it. We don’t know yet whether he is a man at all. He’s more like a spirit. And he’s got a curse upon him. He brings bad luck.



That’s the tale the people tell



Well, why is it the people don’t like seeing such queer things? Why don’t they like to see, let’s say, a black stone sweating dew that isn’t from the clouds or from the earth? Or, when it gets dark all of a sudden and the birds move across the sky and you feel that there’s a meaning behind it