'Lord, I know You! God be thanked that He has suffered me to see this day!'
The Stranger replied, stretching out His arms in the direction in which the speaker was:
'It is well with you, friend, and shall be better. Go, spread the tidings! Tell those that know Me that I am come!'
There came the answer back:
'Even so, Lord, I will do Your bidding; and in the city there shall rise the sound of a great song. Hark! I hear the angels singing!'
There came over the crowd's mood one of those sudden changes to which such heterogeneous gatherings are essentially liable. As question and answer passed to and fro, and the man's voice rose to a triumphal strain, the people began to be affected by a curious sense of excitation, asking of each other:
'Who, then, is this man? Is he really someone in particular? Perhaps he may be able to do something for us, or to give us something, if we ask him. Who knows?'
They began to press upon Him, men and women, old and young, rich and poor, each with a particular request of his or her own.
'Give us a trifle!'
'The price of a night's lodging!'