The chief man of the island, Publius, Houses and lands possessing in those parts, Gave Paul and his companions welcoming cheer In three days' courteous hospitality-- Not unrequited; for the father lay Wasting with fever and worse malady In the son's house; but Paul went in to him And prayed and laid his hands on him and he Was healed. Then others also of the sick Among the Melitans came and were healed. So Paul had honors from them thrust on him; These he divided with a liberal hand To all, and when at last they left the isle They went thence laden with a plenteous store Bestowed of what they needed on their way. But all the winter long they tarried there, Waiting for spring to open up the sea; And many an hour was theirs for various talk, They fenced in sunny places from the wind Or grouped about their outdoor fires for cheer. The Indian Krishna, uncomplaining, bland, With that quick quiet eye which naught escaped And that deep-studying mind which rested never, Had slowly by degrees, considering all That Paul wrought or was wrought through Paul, been won-- Against a passive incredulity Inert but stubborn and resistant still, The instinct and the habit of his mind-- To judge that Jewish prisoner otherwise Than when he hearing Paul give his advice Unasked about the conduct of the voyage Had fixed on him the blame of meddlesome. He owned an awe of Paul's authority Exerted for the rescue of the lives Of those that sailed with him; he shared the power Of hope and courage that went forth from Paul, His words, his deeds, and, more than either, himself. He did not quite escape some sense, inspired By Paul's thanksgiving when he broke the bread, Of other presence than Paul's own in Paul That lifted him to higher than himself. When he saw Paul from his uninjured hand Shake that fell viper off into the fire, He half-confusedly thought: 'That seems not strange; Our Indian serpent-charmers do as much.' But when those gifts of healing flowed from Paul, Not singly, but in troops of miracle Sufficing the whole island countryside, With only prayer and laying on of hands, Then at last Krishna said: 'I do not know, Is there some power in him greater than he? What power? Not Buddha, unconfessed, unknown, Yet willingly with that large tolerance his And bounty and sweet unconcern to claim Acknowledgement of his gifts, working in Paul Despite--nay, Buddha not, he long ago Passed, and while living never power was he, Though wisdom manifold. Yea, wisdom is, That know I, power; but not the converse holds, That power is wisdom; and pure power it is, Not wisdom, that in Paul these wonders works; No healing arts he uses, no medicine. Whence is the power? Or what? Is Christ the power?'