Light－ning flashed in the sky

Light－ning flashed in the sky He returned to the barn to ask the other farm workers to help him cover the ricks. But the only noise he could hear coming from the barn was the men's loud and regular breathing，and when he entered，he found them all asleep，in-cluding Troy. The brandy，which they had been too polite to refuse，had made them drunk in a very short time，as they were not used to drinking anything stronger than beer. It was useless trying to wake them.

Gabriel left the barn，and returned to the ricks，two of which he managed to cover with the heavy material kept on the farm for this purpose. The only way to cover the other six ricks was by thatching them with straw，and this was a long and difficult job to do alone.

The moon disappeared，and there was a slow，light wind，like the breath of a dying man，as Gabriel climbed the ladder and started thatching high up on top of the third rick. Light－ning flashed in the sky，and there was a loud crash of thunder. In the sudden brightness Gabriel could see every tree around him，until the light acquisition disappeared just as suddenly，leaving him in the blackest darkness. He knew his position was dangerous，but considered his life was not valuable enough to worry about.