"Meir," sounded in a soft voice, close to his shoulder, "of what are you thinking, and why have your eyes become so sad? Your name means 'light.' The sun of joy—does it not shine always for you?"
The young man, without changing the direction of his glance, shook his head.
"No," he answered, "there is a deep sorrow in my heart."
The girl bent toward him.
"Meir," she exclaimed, "and from where does this sorrow come to your heart?"
He was silent for a while, and then answered softly:
"From the fact that there are black people among us, and such darkness—such darkness!"
The girl dropped her head, and repeated like a sad echo:
"Ah! Such darkness!"
Meir continued to look into space, toward where a long strip of the forest separated the golden valley from the purple sky.