The Untouchable by william March
A traveler, after losing his way in the mountain, took refuge for the night in a cave. He saw at once that another had preceded him and was now warming himself before a fire of sticks and leaves. When the traveler entered, the other man said, "I'm an untouchable. Be careful not to stumble and fall against me."
The traveler sat on the other side of the fire watching his companion. He wondered what differences made one of them an honorable man and the other an outcast. Not seeing any physical difference between them, he thought perhaps the solution lay in another field. He said, "Tell me, do you feel hate and joy and love, as I do? Are you capable of feeling hope and jealousy and regret?"
"Yes," said the untouchable. "I feel all those things. I also feel shame, envy, sorrow and pity."
And so the two men talked. They tried to discover some differences between them but did not succeed. Then the traveler said, "As far as I can see, we are very much alike," and added, "Do you know why you're an untouchable and I am not?"
"No," said the other, "I only know I was an untouchable of parents who were like myself."
There was a long silence while the two men examined each other across the fire. Finally the traveler said, "I wonder what would happen if I touched you?"
The eyes of the traveler widened at his own audacity, and he said, "You know-I'm going to touch you and find out." The outcast drew back against the wall and covered his eyes.
The traveler stretched out his arms and touched the untouchable. After a time the outcast asked in a frightened voice, "Did the mountain totter? Did the river dry up? Did the moon fall out of the sky?"
The traveler said in astonishment, "Nothing at all happened. Everything's precisely as it was before.