For a quarter of an hour we went on, struggling against the wind; in the doleful silence of the night the noise of our footsteps echoed on the dry, hard earth. Although scarcely able to put one foot before the other, it was I who dragged Vitalis. How anxiously I looked to the left! In the dark shadows I suddenly saw a little red light. "See, there's a light," I said, pointing. "Where?" Vitalis looked; although the light was but a short distance off, he saw nothing. I knew then that his sight was going. "What is that light to us?" he asked; "it is a lamp burning on the table of some worker, or it's near the bed of a dying person. We cannot go and knock at those doors. Away in the country, during the night, you can ask hospitality, but so near Paris ... we must not expect hospitality here. Come." A few steps more and I thought I could make out the cross-roads and a black mass which must be the trees. I let go of my master's hand to go ahead quicker. There were deep ruts in the road. "See, here are the ruts?" I cried. "Give me your hand, we are saved," said Vitalis; "look, now you can see the group of trees." I told him that I thought I could see the trees. "In five minutes we shall be there," he murmured. We trudged along, but the five minutes seemed an eternity. "Where are the ruts?" "They are still on the right." "We must have passed the entrance to the race-course without seeing it. I think we'd better go back." Once more we turned back. "Do you see the trees?" "Yes, there on the left." "And the ruts?" "There are not any." "Am I blind?" asked Vitalis in a low voice, as he passed his hands across his eyes; "walk straight along by the trees, and give me your hand." "Here is a wall." "No, it's a heap of stones." "No, I am sure it's a wall." Vitalis took a step aside to see if it really was as I said. He stretched out his two hands and touched the wall. "Yes, it's a wall," he murmured. "Where is the entrance. Look for the track." I stooped down to the ground and felt all along to the end of the wall, but I found no entrance; then, turning back to where Vitalis stood, I continued to feel along the wall on the other side. The result was the same; there was no opening, no gate. "There is nothing," I said. The situation was terrible. Without doubt my master was delirious. Perhaps there was no race-course here at all! Vitalis stood for a moment as though in a dream. Capi began to bark impatiently. "Shall we look further?" I asked. "No, the race-course is walled up." "Walled up?" "Yes, they have closed the opening, and it is impossible for us to get inside." "Well, then?" "What to do, eh? I don't know. Die here." "Oh, Master! Master!" "Yes, you don't want to die, you are so young. Life seems good to you. Let us walk on. Can you still walk a bit further, my child." "Oh, but you?" "When I can go no farther, I shall fall down like an old horse." "Where shall we go?"