"He was thinking of the sermon he had to preach on the morrow, and of
much else besides, and it was a long time before it occurred to him to
notice how far along he was on his homeward way. When he did glance up,
he saw that the forest was as dense about him as at the beginning, and
he was somewhat surprised, for he had ridden so long that he should have
come to the inhabited portion of the township.
"Delsbo was about the same then as now. The church and parsonage and all
the large farms and villages were at the northern end of the township,
while at the southern part there were only forests and mountains. The
dean saw that he was still in the unpopulated district and knew that he
was in the southern part and must ride to the north to get home. There
were no stars, nor was there a moon to guide him; but he was a man who
had the four cardinal points in his head. He had the positive feeling
that he was travelling southward, or possibly eastward.
"He intended to turn the horse at once, but hesitated. The animal had
never strayed, and it did not seem likely that he would do so now. It
was more likely that the dean was mistaken. He had been far away in
thought and had not looked at the road. So he let the horse continue in
the same direction, and again lost himself in his reverie.
"Suddenly a big branch struck him and almost swept him off the horse.
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