{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_65445/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_65445","id":"gutenberg_65445","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/65445","summary":null,"tags":["American fiction -- 19th century","Category: American Literature","Category: Novels","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Predestination -- Fiction","United States -- History -- Civil War, 1861-1865 -- Fiction"],"text":"Note: Images of the original pages are available through\n      Internet Archive. See\n      https://archive.org/details/deepwatersorstra00croz\n\n\n\n\n\nDEEP WATERS,\n\n\nOr A Strange Story\n\nby\n\nREV. R. H. CROZIER,\n\nAuthor of \u201cFiery Trials,\u201d \u201cAraphel,\u201d \u201cCave of Hegobar,\u201d \u201cConfederate\nSpy,\u201d \u201cBloody Junto,\u201d &c., &c.\n\n\n\u201cWhen through the Deep Waters I call thee to go.\u201d\n\n\n\n\n\n\nSt. Louis:\nPublishing House Of Farris, Smith & Co.\n919 Olive Street.\n\nCopyright by R. H. Crozier.\nAll Rights Reserved.\n\n\n\n\nCONTENTS.\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n                              PAGE.\nThe Young Graduate                5\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nA Great Change                   30\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nThe Mysterious Voice             51\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nA Rival                          76\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nDeep Waters                      99\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nManassas                        126\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nAfter the Battle                136\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nHard Truths                     151\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\n\u201cOff to the Wars\u201d               168\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nA Dangerous Mission             182\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nA Brave Girl                    196\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nIn Prison                       209\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nA Desperate Man                 226\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nDark Hours                      245\n\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nA Remarkable Event              260\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI.\n\nA Confederate Marriage          277\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII.\n\nPeace                           283\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII.\n\nThe Drunkard                    295\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX.\n\nThe Crime                       308\n\n\nCHAPTER XX.\n\nThe Prison                      317\n\n\nCHAPTER XXI.\n\nThe Trial                       329\n\n\nCHAPTER XXII.\n\nThe Last Scene                  341\n\n\nThe Sermon                      350\n\n\n\n\nDEEP WATERS.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER I.\n\nTHE YOUNG GRADUATE.\n\n\nIn the latter part of June 18-- the little city of Oxford, Miss.,\nwas teeming with visitors, not only from various portions of the\nState, but from the adjoining States of Tennessee, Alabama, Arkansas\nand Louisiana. This concourse of people was no unusual spectacle to\nthe citizens of Oxford; for it was but the gathering that occurred\nregularly once a year. The center of attraction to this fashionable,\nwell-dressed assemblage was the University of Mississippi, which has\nsent forth hundreds of young men intellectually equipped for the stern\nstruggle for existence--a struggle, the contemplation and investigation\nof which gave birth to Mr. Darwin\u2019s doctrine of \u201cThe survival of the\nfittest.\u201d What was the meaning of this concourse? It was _Commencement\nday_. The University would again dismiss another class of her children\nto assume the grave responsibilities of citizenship, and to enter\ninto the new and strange relations for which they had been preparing\nby years of diligent study. At last, they were to lay aside the _toga\nvirilis trita_, and don the _toga pexa_ of manhood. It was the last\nday, and the exercises of the graduating class were to close the week\u2019s\nprogramme.\n\nAt an early hour the crowd of visitors and the citizens of Oxford\nbegan to fill up the chapel, and by the time the speaking was to\nbegin, the large and commodious structure was packed with a dense mass\nof eager, intelligent humanity; for it was generally the _elite_ of\nthe country that gathered here on these interesting occasions. The\nclass of this year was unusually large, and was distinguished for\nintellectual attainments. Sitting in the long row of chairs in front of\nthe _rostrum_, they constituted as fine a body of young men as could\nbe collected from the South. What a variety of destinies lay before\nthem! How many would ever rise to eminence in any department of human\nactivity! How many would go down to premature graves without any\nopportunity of justifying the fond anticipations of their friends! How\nmany would disappoint the expectations of their affectionate parents,\nmany of whom proudly gazed upon them as they performed their parts in\nthe programme! There was much speculation that day as to what these\nyoung men would achieve upon the arena of active life. It would be, no\ndoubt, very interesting if we could trace the subsequent history of\neach and all, but our present undertaking will compel us to confine\nour attention to only one of the class, whose career was sufficiently\nremarkable to be rescued from the darkness of that obscurity in which\nthe large majority of his mates have disappeared.\n\nAt length the speaking began. The first speaker was listened to\nwith attention which novelty secures. The next found a difficulty\nin making himself heard in the remoter parts of the building, the\nconsequence of which was considerable whispering in the seats that\nwere beyond the compass of his voice. The next four or five speakers\nlabored under the disadvantage of trying to overcome that buzz and\nhum of conversation, _sotto voce_, which is generally a disturbing\nelement when the orator cannot reach the whole of his audience.\nBut a wonderful change was soon to come over this congregation, now\nbecoming rapidly demoralized by forgetting or ignoring the demands of\netiquette. For when the next speaker was called, a young man responded\nwhose pale cast of countenance indicated the world\u2019s ideal student.\nHis splendid _physique_ at once arrested the attention of the entire\nassembly, and there was a strange, sudden lull, for which no one could\naccount. Those in the rear of the chapel straightened themselves, and\nleaned forward, as if fearful that they would lose the first words of\nthe orator. The ladies ceased fanning, and fastened their eyes upon\nthe elegant form now standing in graceful attitude on the crowded\nrostrum. It was evident that something unusual was expected. Would the\nassembly be disappointed and disgusted? Would the external marks of\ngenius prove fallacious? The young man bowed gracefully, straightened\nhimself, paused for an instant, and gazed modestly, but in perfect\nself-possession, at the sea of upturned, eager faces. Slowly came\nforth the first sentences flowing on a voice as clear as a silver\ntrumpet, and yet as soft as the breeze which was at that moment\nsoughing through the broad oaks of the surrounding forest. The tones,\nand, in fact, everything else about the young man appeared to be in\nconsonance with his subject, which the audience saw, on glancing at\nthe programme, was \u201cMan was made to mourn.\u201d It was a theme which, of\ncourse, admitted of no profound reasoning, and no startling argument.\nNone was attempted, and none was expected. The auditors tacitly offered\ntheir emotions to be swayed as the orator willed. The people made\nno resistance, but seemed to yield at once to the strange, subtile\ninfluence which was stealing over them, and insinuating itself into\ntheir hearts like an invisible current of electricity. The smiles\nvanished from every face as the youthful speaker, in a slightly\nquivering voice, portrayed scenes of human sorrow and suffering, in\norder to establish his proposition. In a little while tears were seen\nrolling down grave cheeks. Young ladies endeavored to laugh at the\n\u201cridiculous scene,\u201d as some called it, but the crystal drops glistened\nin their eyes. At last, when the young man sat down, nothing was heard\nbut suppressed sobs and efforts to clear the nasal duct of its liquid\nobstructions. At first there was no applause: people seemed unwilling\nthat the spell should be broken. But presently, seeming to realize that\nthe effort deserved more than the silent attestation of the lachrymal\ngland, they suddenly burst forth into thunders of applause, such as\nhad never before awoke echoes in the classic grove that sheltered the\nchapel. Those who had printed programmes again looked at the name of\nthis young man. It was Ernest Edgefield.\n\nWho was he? Whence did he come? Such were the questions which\nimmediately followed this effort, the most remarkable that had ever\nbeen witnessed in the University of Mississippi. It was ascertained\nthat day, that there was nothing very eventful or wonderful in his\nhistory. His parents had died when he was small, leaving, however,\nsufficient means to support him till he could obtain a collegiate\neducation. Such was his brief history. But what would be his future?\nEverybody felt that his career would be brilliant; that the young\nman must achieve a degree of success commensurate with his wonderful\noratory. We will at once follow up his footsteps.\n\nErnest determined to adopt the law as his profession. He now had\nbarely funds to defray his expenses through the Law School, but as he\ndid not wish to lose time, he resolved to exhaust his entire means\nin the completion of his legal education. At the expiration of two\nyears he was graduated with distinction; but he was penniless, and had\nto begin the battle with nothing but his education and energy. His\nguardian, with whom our reader will soon become better acquainted,\nagreed to board him without pay till the young man\u2019s efforts should\nbe crowned with that material success, which the Reverend gentleman\nthought must attend the exercise of such talents as his young ward\npossessed. When the parents of Ernest died, he was left to the care\nof a minister of the Baptist denomination, in whom they had unbounded\nconfidence. His name was Joseph Hillston. He at once took the boy to\nhis house, and made no difference between him and his own children. By\na judicious management of the small property left in his hands, Mr.\nHillston kept the youth in college till his education was completed,\nat which time Ernest had attained his majority. Mr. Hillston then\nturned over to him the remainder of his property, which, as stated,\nwas entirely absorbed by his two year\u2019s course at the Law School. And\nnow he had no money, but he was animated by a lofty purpose, and a\ndetermination to conquer, before which he felt that difficulties must\nvanish. No one seemed to doubt that the brilliant young lawyer, with\nhis splendid accomplishments, would subordinate destiny to his will,\nand would soon stand at the head of the legal fraternity. Indeed, some\npredicted that he would, at last, reach the highest office that the\npeople could bestow. And why should he not? Not a single element of\nsuccess was lacking, so far as his friends could see. His attainments\nappeared to be equal to the demands of the most vaulting ambition.\nWhat, then, should he care for difficulties, except as a stimulus to\narouse his energies?\n\nBut what little, insignificant trifles turn the barque of destiny into\nchannels of which the pilot never dreamed! It is not violent storms\nthat change the course of this allegorical barque; because the pilot is\nprepared for great disturbances and obstacles. It was a moment of sleep\nthat caused Palinurus to fall over-board into the sea: a hurricane\ncould not have produced the same disastrous result. It is the little\nthings that change the current of human life. A spider\u2019s web sometimes\nturns the vessel\u2019s helm: the echo of a word destroys the equilibrium of\ncircumstances. Late in life man finds himself driven into a port which\nhad never entered into the programme of possibilities. All this will be\nillustrated in the progress of the present story.\n\nA few days after Ernest returned from the Law School, there was seen on\nthe door of an unpretending office, in his native town, a square piece\nof metal, exhibiting in gilded letters, \u201c_Ernest Edgefield, Attorney at\nLaw_.\u201d\n\nOur young lawyer had not the most remote idea of settling permanently\nin this little town, where he would have to fritter away his energies\nand cramp his mind in such narrow litigation as must arise in rural\ncourts, but he fully intended, after a while, to seek a field of\nbroader dimensions, which would call forth all his legal lore, and\ncause him to put forth all the strength of which he was capable.\nHis present location was only the stepping-stone to his loftier\naspirations, and which, he thought, would detain him only till he could\nacquire sufficient means to justify his removal to some city where his\ntalents could find room for development.\n\nIt was not long before Ernest\u2019s fond hopes and the justifiable\nexpectations of his friends began to emerge from the shade of\npossibilities into the sunshine of realities. Legal business flowed in,\nand Ernest, at the very outset of his career, found himself entrusted\nwith the management of as important cases as ever require judicial\ninvestigation in a provincial court.\n\nBut Ernest could not thus go on forever, thinking of nothing but the\nimmediate object of his ambition, and dreaming only of deeds and legal\nparchments and bags of gold. At an early day in his career a path of\ndestiny began to open in the misty future, different from that which he\nhad at first marked out for himself. In the town there lived a young\nlady whom he had known from childhood. For several years, however, she\nhad occupied scarcely a single thought of his, attributable to the fact\nthat both had been absent at school. Both returned home the same month\nto enter upon their respective careers, which seemed to be as far apart\nas zenith and nadir, since the charming, gilded path of ease, leisure\nand idleness lay before the one, and the path of work, diligence, and\nactivity lay before the other.\n\nClara Vanclure was the only child of a wealthy merchant. Her prospects\nwere regarded as very brilliant, since the probability was, she would\ninherit all her father\u2019s property, consisting of lands and plantations\nas well as stores, and estimated at not less than two millions of\ndollars. As might be expected, she was a \u201cspoiled child,\u201d yet, she\nwas beautiful, and accomplished to the full extent of her capacities,\nwhich, strict truth compels us to say, were not, by any means, of\nthe highest order. But the dazzling mantle of vast wealth hides a\nmighty multitude of faults. There is a confusing glamour about \u201cgreat\npossessions,\u201d which so fascinates and bewitches, that the judgment of\nmen cannot be properly exercised. The sneering cynic, like growling\nDiogenes, may affect to despise wealth, but in his heart he respects\nthe owner, who controls such a source of commercial power and social\ninfluence. We may have a contempt for the rich man\u2019s character, but in\nspite of ourselves, we stand in awe of the Magician\u2019s mysterious ring\nwhich he wears on his finger. It was wealth that gave an additional\nluster to Miss Vanclure\u2019s accomplishments.\n\nWhen Ernest again met the young lady, after a separation of several\nyears, both were changed by the uncontrollable vicissitudes of\ntime. She especially had developed from an awkward Miss of fifteen,\ninto a symmetrically-proportioned woman. In the catalogue of her\nrecommendations, her physical attractions were certainly well\ncalculated to make an impression upon any susceptible heart. Ernest was\nnot insensible to the charms of beauty, and he at once acknowledged\nClara\u2019s claims to the highest order of corporeal graces. He immediately\nrenewed his acquaintance with his _quondam_ school-fellow, (for\nboth had attended the same school when they were children) to which\nshe was, by no means averse. Our reader will be afflicted with no\nlong story of love and courtship. It is always very entertaining to\na certain class of young people to read the entire history of two\nlovers--their honeyed utterances, poetical effusions, delightful\npromenades by moonlight--their petty jealousies, sad misunderstandings,\nlittle quarrels, succeeded by reconciliation that only places mutual\nrehabilitation upon a firmer basis--all this might be highly\ninteresting, but we must hasten on to the narration of more important\nevents. It is sufficient to say that as soon as Ernest\u2019s success became\nan assured fact, he proposed to the fair Clara, and was accepted.\nOld Mr. Vanclure was secretly delighted at the prospect of such an\nalliance, for he was not one of those simpletons who would have their\nchildren sacrifice their temporal happiness upon the altar of Mammon.\nClara would have a large estate, and only needed a husband who had\nthe ability to manage it. Mr. Vanclure, now advanced in years, had\nfelt considerable anxiety in regard to his daughter\u2019s future, but the\nperplexing problem seemed about to end in a felicitous solution, and\na great burden was lifted from his mind, when one day Ernest called\nfor the purpose of asking his consent to a closer relationship between\nMiss Vanclure and himself. He had been among the first to discover the\nexcellency and solidity of the young man\u2019s moral character, and he\nwas not so blinded by parental love that he could not easily perceive\nthe moral infirmities of his own child. He knew that she would need\na protector and a guardian as long as she should live. Therefore,\nhaving been fearful that Clara would become the prey of some worthless\nadventurer, he could scarcely conceal his joy when Ernest approached\nhim upon this delicate subject. However, the old gentleman seemed to\nthink it advisable to mask his happy feelings under the guise of a\nlittle opposition, and he said:\n\n\u201cAh? I was hardly expecting this--at least so soon--yes, so soon.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not, Mr. Vanclure?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not? Why because you ar\u2019nt settled in life--yes, settled in life.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have now a respectable income,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cif you are alluding to\nthat, and it is increasing gradually, but surely.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have no doubt, Ernest,\u201d replied Mr. Vanclure, with more tenderness\nthan he wished to manifest, \u201cthat you will succeed--yes, you will\nsucceed. But still, both of you are rather young to marry.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe think differently,\u201d answered Ernest, with a smile, \u201cI am nearly\ntwenty five.\u201d\n\n\u201cAh? are you that old? Well, bless me, I believe you are, since I come\nto think about it. Dear me! how time does fly--yes, how time does fly.\nYou have got to be a man before I thought about it. Young people do\ngrow up so fast--so fast--and Clara is a grown woman, too. Well; well.\u201d\n\n\u201cSince you have discovered that we are both grown,\u201d said Ernest with a\nsmile, \u201cmay I hope that you will not oppose our wishes?\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd if I did,\u201d answered Mr. Vanclure, not knowing what he ought to\nsay, \u201cWhat would you do--yes, what would you do?\u201d\n\n\u201cI should endeavor to overcome your opposition.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd I guess you think you\u2019d succeed with your eloquence. You lawyers\nare cunning dogs,\u201d said the old gentleman, breaking into a laugh,\nwhich, rather than otherwise, indicated approval of this feature of the\nlegal character, \u201cyes, cunning dogs. If I give you a chance to argue\nthe case, I\u2019m satisfied I\u2019ll lose; for you\u2019ll convince me that Clara\nwill land in eternal perdition unless she marries you--yes marries\nyou--and nobody else. I don\u2019t want to get into an argument with you\nlawyers. So if the arrangement suits Clara, I\u2019ll have nothing more to\nsay. It will take a lawyer anyhow to manage the estate to which she\nwill fall heir some of these days. The thing is now getting beyond my\ncomprehension, and I will soon have to get a lawyer to untangle some\nof my affairs--yes, some of my affairs.\u201d\n\nIn this way the old man gave his consent.\n\nHere we must say that the reader would do Ernest the grossest injustice\nto suppose that the metallic virtue of the young lady was the chief\nconsideration that influenced his affections. Clara appeared lovely in\nhis eyes, and he would have been willing to enter into the matrimonial\nrelation without any prospect of dower. Nearly every one in the\ncommunity believed that Ernest was governed in this _affaire du c\u0153ur_\nby mercenary considerations. There is nothing more certain than that an\nimpecunious man who pays his addresses to a wealthy woman, will incur\nthe imputation of improper motives. It is a sad fact, that the world is\nenvious. People, in their secret souls, dislike to see their neighbors\nlifted by sudden prosperity to an elevation above their own level.\nWhy should not such good fortune have happened to themselves? is the\ngalling, latent thought of their hearts, to which they would be ashamed\nto give audible expression. The thought lurks in the darkest recesses\nof the breast like a slimy viper, and well deserves a place in the\nhorrid abode of that fearful envy, so graphically described by Ovid:\n\n\n     _Pallor in ore sedet, macies in corpore toto,_\n     _Nusquam recta acies; livent rubigine dentes,_\n     _Pectora felle virent, lingua est suffusa veneno._[1]\n\n\nBut Ernest truly loved Clara, though he might not himself have been\nable to explain the source of attraction, as love is not a passion\nsubject to the human will. Mr. Hillston at an early period of the\ncourtship, perceived his infatuation, and as he took a deep interest\nin the welfare of his ward, he could not but feel some misgivings as\nto the propriety of the union. One day Ernest informed him of his\nengagement, and the old man shook his head unconsciously in an ominous\nmanner, which did not escape Ernest\u2019s observation.\n\n\u201cYou do not seem to approve of my selection?\u201d said Ernest inquiringly.\nMr. Hillston had made no remark after this communication, but sat still\nwith an ambiguous expression upon his face.\n\n\u201cIt is not for me to approve or disapprove in matters of this kind,\u201d\nwas Mr. Hillston\u2019s reply, which was not very satisfactory to his ward,\nwho was looking at the old minister in surprise.\n\n\u201cI thought surely you would congratulate me,\u201d said Ernest, with a\nfaint, forced smile.\n\n\u201cThe ides of March have come, but not gone,\u201d answered Mr. Hillston,\nshaking his head.\n\n\u201cI do not understand you, Mr. Hillston.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can I congratulate you, my dear boy, when I cannot foresee the\nend?\u201d\n\n\u201cCan you do that in any case, sir?\u201d\n\n\u201cTrue enough: but sometimes, and in some cases, we fear the\ntermination.\u201d\n\n\u201cPlease do not speak in riddles, Mr. Hillston. Is not the prospect\nflattering?\u201d\n\n\u201cIn one sense, yes. So far as material prosperity is concerned, I can\nsee no possible objection. But money, my dear Ernest, does not always\nbring happiness.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you suppose I am base enough to marry for money?\u201d interrupted\nErnest with an angry flush.\n\n\u201cNo, no,\u201d hastily answered Mr. Hillston. \u201cI have a better opinion\nof you than that. But the world judges of marriages by outward\ncircumstances. If both parties start out in life with great wealth,\npeople generally think they are happy matches. But there are other\nthings to be considered in a woman besides wealth, beauty and external\naccomplishments. A good, solid moral character is of far more value\nthan a great fortune. A woman\u2019s character is the first thing to be\nconsidered. Sometimes young people hurry into marriage without ever\npausing to ascertain whether there may not be incompatibilities and\nincongruities that will forever exclude happiness from their abode.\nNow, my dear boy, have you thought of all this?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly I have,\u201d replied Ernest, impatiently. \u201cDo you mean to\ninsinuate that Miss Vanclure is destitute of moral worth?\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not say that. I only asked if you had thought about, as I\nshould have said, the dissimilarity of your characters.\u201d But, noticing\nErnest\u2019s expression of dissatisfaction, \u201cI have not intimated that Miss\nClara is morally deficient. I would only advise you to be cautious. In\nsuch matters, young people should \u2018make haste slowly.\u2019 However, I do\nnot presume to give you advice on this subject. Every man must choose\nto suit himself.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe choice I have made,\u201d said Ernest quickly, \u201csuits me.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen there is nothing more to be said,\u201d replied Mr. Hillston coolly.\n\n\u201cBut you do not seem to like it.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat has nothing to do with it. It is your affair, and if you are\npleased, no one else has the right to say a word.\u201d\n\n\u201cMr. Hillston,\u201d said Ernest, suddenly lowering his voice from the high\nkey of self-sufficiency and independence to a subdued tone, \u201cyou have\nbeen a father to me, and you know I have been guided by you. I have\nconfidence in your judgment; and now if you see me about to commit an\nerror, one that may wreck my happiness, ought not common charity, to\nsay nothing of the relation you sustain to me, induce you to kindly\npoint out my mistake? I can see clearly that you are not pleased at my\nprospective marriage. Now tell me plainly what is the matter?\u201d\n\n\u201cMy dear Ernest,\u201d said the old man, with the tenderness of a parent,\n\u201cyou know that I have ever treated you as one of my own children, and\nhave ever consulted your interest. I would not hesitate to give you\nadvice in this important matter if I knew how. I will only say this,\nif you will take no offence--\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no,\u201d interrupted Ernest eagerly, \u201cI will not. Go on, say what you\nplease.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, then, I fear that the great dissimilarity between your\ncharacters may prove a source of annoyance, if not trouble. You are\ngrave and serious in your disposition, while Miss Clara is the very\nopposite.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat may be true,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cbut might not this very\ndissimilarity be an advantage to both of us?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt might, and then it might not. At any rate, therein lies the danger\nI apprehend. You ought to pray to God to direct you in so serious a\nbusiness as this.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I am not a churchman, Mr. Hillston.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou cannot regard God then as your friend?\u201d\n\n\u201cO yes, I suppose He is; but I do not know that God would concern\nHimself with so small an affair as my marriage.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat! if God takes note of the flight of the sparrow, and the flower\nof the field, think you He will totally overlook the welfare of His\nintelligent creatures? Do you not believe the Lord has something to do\nwith everything that happens?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know, sir. I am no Presbyterian. I understand they hold to\nsome such doctrine as that. But I have never had any special liking for\nthat denomination.\u201d\n\n\u201cNeither am I a Presbyterian. I am a Baptist, as you know. But do\nyou suppose that Presbyterians are the only people who advocate the\ndoctrine of special providence?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know that they are, but from all that I can learn, they push\nit to extremes.\u201d\n\n\u201cI believe it,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, emphatically, \u201cas firmly as any\nPresbyterian I ever saw, and I believe it to its fullest extent, and in\nall its bearings. I am not willing that the Presbyterians shall claim\nas a distinctive dogma of theirs a doctrine to which the Baptist Church\nholds with as much tenacity as they do.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you believe, then, that God would concern Himself with so small a\nmatter as the marriage of two human beings?\u201d\n\n\u201cI certainty do.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you believe, then, that God is a matchmaker?\u201d asked Ernest, with a\nlaugh.\n\n\u201cI believe God will direct His people in all their affairs, when they\nask Him in faith.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut suppose I am not one of His people?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you are not,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, with deep solemnity, \u201cI am very\nsorry for you. It is your own fault, if you are not.\u201d\n\n\u201cWould it be of any avail for me to ask God\u2019s direction, when I am not\none of His people, as you call them?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot if you are determined to go on in your sins. If you make a full\nsurrender of yourself to Him, I have no doubt He will assist and guide\nyou. However, in that case you would be one of His people. But how\ncould you expect God\u2019s favor and friendship, if you stand to Him in the\nrelation of an enemy?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know,\u201d answered Ernest thoughtfully, and then after a moment\nhe added, \u201cI suppose I will have to look out for myself.\u201d\n\n\u201cI dislike to hear you talk that way, my dear boy,\u201d said Mr. Hillston\nkindly, \u201cfor if you proclaim your independence of the Divine Being, you\nwill lead a most wretched life.\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not mean that in any spirit of irreverence,\u201d quickly answered\nErnest. \u201cAll I meant was that, if I was not one of God\u2019s people, I\nwould have to take care of myself. I have the utmost respect for the\nChristian religion. My conduct, as you know, has proved that I have.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I know you are a moralist, and you may be one of God\u2019s children,\nnotwithstanding the fact that you are living in sin.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not understand you,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cI know you do not, but the time may come when you will. I will pray\nGod to direct you, since you cannot do so for yourself. His will,\nno doubt, will be accomplished. You have not married Clara yet, and\nperhaps you may never do so.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I rather think I will,\u201d said Ernest with considerable energy.\n\n\u201cMy boy, do not speak so positively. If God does not intend that it\nshall be so, you will never marry her.\u201d\n\n\u201cI should like to know what is to prevent it?\u201d\n\n\u201cI know not. But remember, \u2018Man proposes, but God disposes.\u2019 You cannot\novercome your Maker.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not propose to enter into any contest with God; because I do\nnot think He cares whether I do this thing or that thing. Therefore I\nrepeat that I will marry Clara.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen it happens,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, smiling, \u201cwe will talk more about\nit. Do not be too confident, my boy.\u201d\n\nErnest went to his office, wondering what in the world the old preacher\ncould mean. Did he intend to predict that the \u201cconsummation to be\ndevoutly wished,\u201d at least by himself, would, at last, prove only an\nidle dream? What would be the use, he thought, of asking God to direct\nhim in so simple an affair as a marriage? Besides, it was too late\nnow. Like C\u00e6sar, he had crossed the Rubicon, and he must go on. He\nloved Clara with all his heart--why, then, should he not fulfill his\nengagement? He would do it.\n\nAlas! how short-sighted is man? How quickly are his deep-laid schemes,\nhis skillfully-concocted plans, suddenly overthrown by some unforseen\ncircumstance which had never entered as a factor into his calculations?\nMan is frequently standing on the very verge of a volcano, and knows it\nnot till the soil crumbles beneath his feet.\n\nFOOTNOTE:\n\n[1] A paleness rests on her face, leanness in the whole body, Never\nlooks direct; her teeth are black with rust: Her breast green with\ngall; her tongue is dripping with venom.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II.\n\nA GREAT CHANGE.\n\n\nIt is sometimes the case that we have premonitions that vaguely\nforewarn us of approaching ill fortune. Not a cloud appears above\nthe horizon of our life, and yet we instinctively shrink from an\nundefinable something that seems to reach far out in advance of the\nshadow of coming events. Probably there are powers in the human mind\nwhose development has been prevented by the dread of superstition.\nThe animal seeks shelter from the approaching storm before man has\ndiscovered the slightest indication of atmospheric disturbance, or\nwhatever it may be that warns the unreasoning brute of impending\ndanger. May there not be some similar delicate instinct in man that\nperceives the advancing peril while it is still below the horizon of\nreality? Who knows? Or discarding human philosophy as insufficient\nto furnish a solution, may we not regard this shadowy _mene tekel\nupharsin_ as an emanation from a supernatural source? Men are so\nskeptical and incredulous and so afraid of \u201csuperstition\u201d that they\nwill attribute incomprehensible events to any cause rather than divine\ninterposition. Some assume that miracles never have been performed; and\nothers, that the days of miracles have passed away, and in consequence\nof this assumption, they ascribe nothing to the hand of Omnipotence.\nEvolution, correlated forces, natural selection, origin of species,\nand such terms have left no place in the nomenclature of science for\nthe recognition of the hand of Deity. Unholy skepticism declares that\ndivine direction in the affairs of men is but the unfounded fancy\nof religious fanaticism. But we do know that in ancient times the\nLord sent warnings through the medium of dreams and visions. By what\nauthority do we assume that such means of communication have been\nabolished? At any rate, such a feeling, a feeling of vague uneasiness,\nmingled with the thoughts of Ernest Edgefield. He was engaged to be\nmarried, and had the utmost confidence in the fidelity and stability\nof his affianced; and yet he was disturbed by a dim, indistinct sense\nof unrest, which defied all efforts of analysis. It was like trying\nto follow an obscure mist by the uncertain light of the moon. He\nendeavored to reason himself out of his foolish apprehensions. What\nhad he to fear? The course of his own true love seemed to be running\nsmooth. In a few weeks the engagement would be consummated. Then,\nwhy this dread? Was it not, after all, produced by Mr. Hillston\u2019s\nambiguous innuendoes? But what made the old preacher disbelieve, or\nat least doubt, that his marriage with Miss Vanclure would ever take\nplace? There was no rival in the case to awaken his jealousy. Indeed,\nhe felt a little vexed at his kind guardian for throwing out such\ninsinuations. Then he would endeavor to banish the indefinable dread\nwhich had seized upon him. We who have passed through the scenes of\nyouth, know something of the petty follies, the disquiet, the foolish\n_ennui_ at times, which distinguish the young man whose heart has been\nlacerated by the golden arrow of the mischievous little son of Venus.\nErnest rarely failed to call once a day at the enchanting domicile of\nhis intended, and if he failed, he frequently made atonement for his\nnegligence by two visits on the next day. While he was in this state\nof cardiac effervescence, the wheels of time rolled on, unfolding\nevents which had slumbered so long in the bosom of the future. Who can\ntell what a day may bring forth? Amid the multitudinous events that are\ncontinually rushing into reality, like the soldiers of an army in the\ncharge, who can make provision against those unforeseen contingencies\nwhich are forever arising? Who can control the chariot of destiny?\n\nPerhaps no event was so little expected as that which seemed to\nchange the current of Ernest\u2019s destiny, a few weeks antecedent to his\ncontemplated marriage. Not to delay with moralizing, an Evangelist\nby the name of Coyt made his advent into the quiet town where Ernest\nlived, on the invitation of the Presbyterian church. Great expectations\nhad been formed by many of the more pious brethren, who had read\naccounts of Dr. Coyt\u2019s wonderful success at other places. His services\nwere eagerly desired and sought all over the country.\n\nAt last he entered the little town of ---- and began a series of\nearnest, soul-searching sermons, which he had repeated so often that\nhe could frequently predict what result would follow the delivery of\neach. Large, expectant congregations attended his meetings from the\nvery outset, since his evangelistic fame had preceded him. For several\ndays the preacher produced no great visible effects, and there were\nscarcely any signs of spiritual life, except such as were discernible\nin the numerous petitions sent in by anxious brethren, requesting\nprayer for sons, daughters, wives, or other relatives and friends. At\nlength this request was read out to the congregation:\n\n\u201cPlease pray for a young lawyer, who is moral and worthy in every\nrespect, but is lacking the one thing needful.\u201d\n\nErnest was present, and heard the reading of this petition. Who could\nit be but himself? At first, a flash of displeasure, to call it by the\nmildest name, passed over his handsome face. Who was the person that\nhad the impudence to direct attention to him? But all harsh thoughts\nsoon passed away, when he reflected that the petitioner, whoever it\nmight be, desired only his good. The process of rigid introspection\nsucceeded his first unpleasant thoughts, and he at once gave attention\nto the contest between conscience and passion that had mysteriously\nbegun. He seemed to be only a spectator of the conflict of antagonistic\nforces in his soul. There are times, says one of the most profound and\nphilosophical women of the nineteenth century, when our passions speak\nfor us, and we stand by and look on in astonishment. There is something\nsimilar to this in the process of spiritual regeneration. Questions\nand answers suddenly arise in the mind, as of concealed beings in\nwhispered consultation, and we appear to ourselves to be listening to\nthe mysterious dialogue. So it was with Ernest Edgefield, as he sat\nin the church engaged in self-examination. It appeared to him that\nhe had suddenly awakened out of an alarming dream. He had been in a\nmoral sleep all his life, and had never reflected seriously upon the\nunknown eternity which was distant but a single step. A \u201cstill small\nvoice\u201d seemed to come on the very breeze, and whispered: \u201cWhat folly\nthis young man has displayed in thinking of nothing but the things\nof time and sense.\u201d Ernest almost started. \u201cWhat am I living for?\u201d\nhe asked himself. \u201cIn a few weeks I shall be married, and will give\nrenewed attention to business. But time will flow on: and if I live,\nI will soon be an old man, and I must die, and then--and then--what?\u201d\nErnest was neither infidel nor skeptic: indeed, he only needed that his\nfears should be aroused as a precedent condition to becoming an active\nChristian. After prayer had been offered up for the \u201cyoung lawyer,\u201d\nand while thoughts, conclusions and convictions were all mingling\ntogether in the mind of Ernest, he looked at Clara, who was sitting\nwhere he could see her face. Their eyes met. She was gazing at him with\nan expression which he could easily interpret, and if she had spoken\nin an audible voice, he could not more clearly have understood her to\nsay: \u201cIsn\u2019t it ridiculous?\u201d The young man almost shuddered. Why did a\ngreat yawning abyss seem to open suddenly between them? The depression\nwhich had for some days weighed down his spirits, all at once appeared\nlike a heavy rock upon his breast, causing something like a sickening\nsensation to creep through his troubled heart. However, in his present\nstate of newly aroused emotions, to which he had been such an utter\nstranger all his life, he felt that a subject of more vital importance\nthan even his marriage deserved his immediate attention. Accordingly\nhe turned his gaze upon the preacher, who announced his text: \u201cThou\nart weighed in the balances, and art found wanting.\u201d Dr. Coyt, in the\nprogress of his discourse, drew a word-picture, upon which his audience\ngazed in profound, breathless silence. No one looked upon this picture\nmore intently than Ernest. He saw himself alone with his Creator and\nthe balances which were to determine his everlasting destiny. Never\nbefore had Ernest\u2019s relations to time and eternity appeared in so vivid\na light. The next morning after this, as the sun kissed the glowing\nhorizon, darkness and doubt were dispelled from the soul of Ernest by\nthe enlightening beams of the Sun of Righteousness. He had found that\n\u201cpeace which passeth all understanding,\u201d and he was strangely happy.\n\nThat day, without saying a word to any one upon the subject, he went\nforward to indicate his purpose of joining the church.\n\n\u201cWhich church do you desire to join?\u201d asked Dr. Coyt.\n\n\u201cI have not yet determined,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cI only wish now to let\nit be known that I have come out upon the Lord\u2019s side. I intend to\ninvestigate the doctrines of the different denominations, and I shall\njoin that one I like best.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is right,\u201d replied the Doctor. \u201cTake time for reflection, so that\nyou will have no trouble in the future. Select that church in which you\nthink you can be the happiest.\u201d\n\nThose who feel any interest in this story will, of course, desire\nto know what effect the meeting had upon Clara. Ernest had been so\nabsorbed in his own spiritual troubles that he had had no conversation\nwith her since the hour when he had become interested upon the subject\nof his personal salvation. But that evening, after he had signified his\nintention of attaching himself to the church, he paid her a visit. She\nwas not present at the morning service, and knew nothing of the step he\nhad taken. After the exchange of ordinary civilities, she said with a\nsignificant flippancy which was chilling to Ernest\u2019s heart:\n\n\u201cHow have you enjoyed the show?\u201d\n\n\u201cShow!\u201d exclaimed Ernest, bestowing upon her a solemn look of inquiry.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said Clara, not seeming to notice his serious air. \u201cIt is as\ngood as any show. Wasn\u2019t it funny to have them all praying for you?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not see where there was any fun,\u201d said Ernest with an expression\nof disappointment upon his face, \u201cand I am truly sorry to hear you talk\nso lightly about such solemn things. They are too sacred to admit of\nsport.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo, they have got you, too, have they?\u201d asked Clara, breaking into a\nmerry laugh. \u201cWell, I confess I am astonished.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy should you be? I cannot see that it is a matter of such profound\namazement for a man to join the church.\u201d\n\n\u201cHave you really joined the church?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have, or at least gave notice this morning that I would do so, and I\nearnestly wish, my dear Clara, that you would make up your mind to the\nsame thing. That is needed to complete our happiness.\u201d\n\nShe made no reply, but laughed in a tone which it would have required\nno expert physiognomist to pronounce one of derision.\n\n\u201cWhat is it that is so amusing?\u201d asked Ernest in vexation. \u201cI had\nhoped that you would talk seriously about this matter of such vital\nimportance.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe idea of my joining the church, and giving up my dancing and all\nother amusements, is simply preposterous. It is funny.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut suppose you were to die,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cwhat would become of you?\nAre you willing to sacrifice your soul for a few worldly pleasures\nwhich, after all, add nothing to your happiness?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, are you going to turn preacher, too?\u201d said Clara with an amused\nexpression. \u201cThat\u2019s just the way Dr. Coyt has been preaching for the\nlast five or six days.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am no preacher, and never expect to be,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cbut that\nis no reason why I should not want my friends saved, especially such a\nfriend as you will be.\u201d\n\nClara bit her cherry nether lip, and laying aside her mood of levity,\nsaid:\n\n\u201cI should like to know what we are to do in this world, if we are\nforbidden to enjoy life. That is what I dislike about religious people.\nThey are so gloomy, and can talk about nothing but death. I hate to be\nwith them.\u201d\n\nThis was spoken in such a way as to cause Ernest to see again the\nyawning chasm gaping between them.\n\n\u201cO, my dear Clara!\u201d he exclaimed with trembling tenderness, \u201chow you\nare mistaken!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, how do you know?\u201d she asked in surprise. \u201cYou have not been one\nof them long enough to find out, I should think. How did you become so\nwise, all of a sudden?\u201d\n\nErnest was not at all pleased with the manner in which she addressed\nhim, but he durst not manifest the least vexation in the critical\njuncture of his amatory affairs. He felt that a quarrel might terminate\nin a final overthrow of the fond hopes upon which his heart had fed\nfor months past. He, therefore, spoke as mildly and affectionately as\npossible:\n\n\u201cI have learned something about it even in the last few hours. I\nhave never experienced such a sense of love, joy and peace in all my\nprevious life. I am astonished at myself for never having turned my\nattention sooner to eternal things. All these years, since I reached\nthe line of moral responsibility, have been almost wasted, or, at\nleast, the spiritual enjoyments of all this time have been lost to me;\nand how I regret it!\u201d\n\n\u201cHow you do talk?\u201d exclaimed Clara. \u201cDo you expect to keep up such\nlecturing all our lives? If you do, we may as well--\u201d\n\n\u201cMay as well what?\u201d asked Ernest with a sinking heart.\n\n\u201cMay as well follow divergent paths,\u201d she said with a timidity which\nimplied that she, by no means, desired the proposition to be accepted.\n\n\u201cNo, my dear Clara, I shall not mention it again if it is unpleasant\nto you. I shall leave you in the hands of God and continue to pray\nfor you. I think you will take a different view of the matter after a\nwhile.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I would as soon you would talk to me as to look at me as if I were\na criminal.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not think,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthat religion will convert me into a\nlong-faced monk. On the contrary, I expect to be more cheerful and\nhappy than I could be otherwise. You are the one to look solemn and\ngloomy.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou expect,\u201d said Clara, not appearing to notice the last remark, \u201cyou\nexpect to give up dancing, as most church people do.\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly. I cannot do violence to my conscience by indulging in an\namusement which I regard as of doubtful propriety, to say the least of\nit.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere is the harm in dancing? Church people condemn it, but I never\ncould see any sin in it--not the least.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut there would be sin in it to me with my present views,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cYou used to like it as well as I did.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, that is true; but the time has come when I must and will renounce\nit.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou expect me to give it up, too?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is a matter to be determined by your own conscience. I shall not\ninterfere.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is the theatre--you will give that up too?\u201d\n\n\u201cI feel that I must do that, too.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen,\u201d said Clara with a slight frown, \u201cwhat congeniality of taste and\npursuits is there between us?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, my loved one,\u201d said Ernest with a smile, \u201cfortunately theatres\nand dances occupy but a small portion of our time.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho will escort me when I want to go?\u201d\n\nErnest loved his affianced with such an intensity that he dreaded to\nget into an unpleasant controversy that might culminate fatally to his\nhopes. If he were too puritanical and inflexible, he thought, she might\nsever all the ties between them--an event which made him shudder to\ncontemplate; so he replied:\n\n\u201cAll congeniality of taste between us need not be destroyed because\nyou may fancy some amusements which I do not. It could scarcely be\nexpected that two human beings should think exactly alike. With regard\nto your dancing, I leave it to your conscience and to time which\nusually destroys our relish for most of the sports and enjoyments of\nyouth. I have strong hopes that you will sooner or later perceive\nthe necessity of leaving the paths of moral ruin and renouncing the\npleasures of sin for the more solid and substantial pleasures of\nreligion.\u201d\n\nClara said nothing, but sat still gazing into the forest which spread\nout in the distance--gazing with that vacant air which indicates the\nabsence of attention to any object upon which her eyes might be fixed.\nErnest could form no idea as to the character of her thoughts from the\nexpression of her fair countenance, and he began to fear that he had\nsaid too much, and thought that perhaps he would better endeavor to\nremove every difficulty that might prove an obstacle to their union.\nHe did not want to leave any grounds for one of those unfortunate\nmisunderstandings between lovers which so frequently grow out of\nnothing. He therefore said with an air of cheerfulness and tenderness;\n\n\u201cYou need not suppose, my loved one, that I will be forever preaching\nto you. That is not my calling. Have I given you offence by anything I\nhave said? I mean by all I have said only that there is a time for all\nthings--a time to dance and a time to give religion a prominent place\nin our thoughts.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, no; I\u2019m not offended, but you make me feel gloomy. It is bad\nenough to hear these things about death at church, where we expect\nit. I didn\u2019t know that we had to make religion a topic of private\nconversation.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, we are not forced to do so; but I thought it a suitable time to\ntalk about it now when the subject is occupying the attention of the\nwhole community.\u201d\n\n\u201cI candidly confess I don\u2019t like to talk about such things,\u201d said Clara\nwith a serious air. \u201cI have always had a sort of horror of religion. In\nmy mind it is associated with death and other disagreeable things.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut these disagreeable things,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cas you call them, are\nstubborn realities which we cannot avoid. Sooner or later, we must\nface them, whether we like or not. Would we not, then, better regulate\nour lives so that these very gloomy things shall become sources of\npleasure?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, I suppose so,\u201d said Clara dryly, \u201cif death could ever be a pleasant\nsubject of conversation.\u201d\n\n\u201cNot long since,\u201d replied Ernest with the deepest solemnity, \u201cI\nentertained the very same views which you do. I would not think about\ndeath when I could possibly banish it from my mind, and I contemplated\nit for an instant as some horrible monster which I must face after a\nwhile. I regarded it with as much dread as ever the celebrated Dr.\nSamuel Johnson did. But now,\u201d and as he spoke an expression of deep joy\nflashed over his features, \u201cI do not dread the event as such an awful\ncalamity. I even love to think about it.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat! do you want to die?\u201d cried Clara.\n\n\u201cNo: I did not say that,\u201d calmly replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cNo man in the enjoyment of health really desires to die; for in some\nrespects, it is a terrible ordeal from which poor, weak human nature\nshrinks. I have no disposition to court death: I want to live for your\nsake, for you know with what depth and intensity I love you, and loving\nyou thus, I should like, above all things, to see you in a condition\nthat would enable you to exclaim with rapture, \u2018O death, where is thy\nsting? O grave, where is thy victory?\u2019 What a happy thought to me that\nwe should be one on earth, and then when we cross over the dark river,\nour purified souls should be knit together in the bonds of a higher,\nnobler affection than is possible here; and then that we should stroll\nhand-in-hand in the heavenly groves, along the banks of the crystal\nriver, under the fruit trees whose leaves are for the healing of the\nnations, never more to be disturbed by any misapprehensions, nor even\nby a discordant word or thought. We shall be one in heart, soul and\nmind. This is what I call true marriage. It is a contract not to end\nwith time, but it goes on through the numberless ages of eternity.\nO, what a glorious prospect!\u201d he exclaimed with features lit up with\npure, holy joy; and then he paused for an instant as if overwhelmed\nand lost in the contemplation of indescribable scenes which \u201ceye hath\nnot seen nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man.\u201d\nAfter a moment he continued: \u201cOn the other hand, what an awful thought!\nIt makes me shudder. O, if you remain as you now are, we shall be\nseparated forever, when we part at the grave. Then where will you go?\nIf you miss the glory-land, there is only one more place--the lake\nthat burns with fire and brimstone--a place where their worm dieth\nnot and the fire is not quenched. If there is no fire there, as some\ncontend, then it is a place of black, thick darkness. The lost soul,\ncast out into the illimitable regions of uninhabited space, away beyond\nthe last star that glitters on the outskirts of visible creation,\nwill go wandering round and round, or if too weary to make an effort,\nit will begin falling, like a bird with folded wings, and keep on\nfalling, falling, down and down, forever down--no company but your own\nthoughts--no sound heard but your own breathing--no sweet music--no\nvoice of friend--no light--nothing but the horrors of eternal,\nimpenetrable darkness. You may suppose you will have companions--but\nwhat will be their character? Not kind friends, to speak words of\nconsolation, but malevolent fiends whose delight it will be to torment.\nAll the horrors so graphically described by Dante may be awful\nrealities. Can you blame me, then, for feeling the deepest anxiety on\nyour account? I should be the happiest man in town if you could make\nup your mind to join the church.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, I could not think of such a thing!\u201d exclaimed Clara. \u201cYou have\nalready given me the blues. I fear you will never be yourself again.\nYou are so changed. But reading that awful old Dante is enough to\nfrighten any one out of his senses. I tried to read it not long since,\nbut it was so foolish and absurd, I dropped it in disgust. But haven\u2019t\nyou preached long enough? I do believe you will be a preacher yet.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; I have no such idea as that. But I should be sorry to think that\npreachers are the only persons to whom it is allowable to talk about\nreligion. However, I am a changed man, and I am glad you can perceive\nit. I hope I may never again be the wicked man I have been. But I shall\nnot further press the subject upon your attention, and I promise not to\nmention it again till you are in the proper mood to talk about it.\u201d\n\nThe foregoing conversation is no integral part of the present story,\nand might have been omitted entirely, but we have recorded it at length\nto show what different views young people entertain in regard to the\nhighest destiny a human being can achieve. What makes such a vast\ndifference, when there are precisely the same incentives to action\nin both? Some quickly cut the Gordian knot by attributing it to the\ndifference in their wills, which, we may bring this chapter to an end\nby saying, is quite a convenient way of avoiding _Deep Waters_.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III.\n\nTHE MYSTERIOUS VOICE.\n\n\nThe protracted meeting, which had continued fourteen days, was ended.\nDr. Coyt, the Evangelist, took his leave in order to carry blessings\nto other places. No one could deny that a wonderful change had taken\nplace in the moral aspect of the town. Some, who had been regarded as\nthe worst characters in the community, astonished their neighbors by\nan immediate reformation. Saloon-keepers joined the church. Gamblers\nforsook their evil ways. Lukewarm church members were fired with\nrenewed zeal. The whole town seemed to be animated by one impulse and\none purpose. But such a great disturbance of public thought could not\nin the nature of things be maintained for any lengthy period. Public\nfeeling, like water, seeks its level. A state of effervescence is not\nits normal condition. Consequently the foam-crested waves must soon\nsubside into customary tranquillity. Men return to their vocations, and\ntheir thoughts revert to trade and traffic. The things of eternity\nwhich had so recently absorbed attention, must now be partly laid aside.\n\nErnest was not different from other men in the general aspect of human\nnature. He too had to resume his books and legal documents. Judging\nfrom his outward conduct, no one could have imagined the depth of the\nwork of grace in his heart. But internally, he was leading a quite\ndifferent life. His energies were put forth for the accomplishment of\none object--his personal salvation. In the short space of a week he had\nlost that ambition whose only object is self-gratification. It is not\nmeant that he had no desire to excel and to rise to a high position\nin his profession, for religion does not require the suppression of\nevery impulse of this character, but Ernest had no disposition to\ngain victories merely to elicit the admiration and applause of his\nfellow men. After the meeting, he endeavored to apply himself to\nbusiness with his former diligence. But there was one peculiarity\nin his efforts for which he could not account, and which he did not\nunderstand clearly till some years afterwards. He could not and did not\nfeel the same interest in his profession, for which so lately he had\na most enthusiastic love. Try never so hard to confine his attention\nto his law books, his mind would wander off to very unsecular affairs.\nEndeavoring to plunge into the profundities of Kent\u2019s Commentaries,\nhe would meet with a sentence or a word which would remind him of\nsome theological commentary. Ernest, in a short time after his\nconversion, had become so much interested in the study of the Holy\nScriptures that he had added to his library the commentaries of Henry,\nClarke and Scott. He found himself more frequently pondering over\nthe signification of passages of holy writ than paragraphs of law.\nHe spent much time in reading and searching the Scriptures--like the\nBereans--time, which the spirit of the world said should have been\ngiven to the duties of his calling. This internal conflict threw Ernest\ninto a state of perplexity. He was becoming an enigma to himself. He\ncould not imagine why his vocation should become distasteful. The\nfinger of destiny was pointing in a new direction, but it was concealed\nby the mists of the future. For some wise reason the path of duty is\nnot always clearly indicated. The divine economy is so inwrought with\nhuman affairs that no man can determine the extent of the supernatural\nguidance that may be furnished.\n\nWhile in this state of mind, Ernest went to church one Sabbath. The\nminister, who was a stranger, read the fourteenth chapter of John as\nhis lesson, and at the proper time announced as his text the first and\nsecond verses--\u201cLet not your heart be troubled. Ye believe in God,\nbelieve also in me,\u201d etc. Ernest assumed a comfortable physical posture\nin the expectation of hearing a soul-thrilling sermon--an expectation\njustified by the abundant consolation which can be legitimately drawn\nfrom the entire chapter. There was a large congregation and all seemed\nto be eager to catch every word that should be uttered. The preacher\nbegan in a rather low nasal \u201cwhine,\u201d as the people called it--a not\nvery classical term to be sure, but very expressive and generally\nunderstood, if nothing else could be said in its favor. His manner\nwas cold and not at all _en rapport_ with his environments, but\nErnest thought and hoped that he would \u201cwarm up\u201d with his subject as\nhe proceeded. He was doomed to disappointment: for the preacher kept\non with the same whine, with no more variation than there is in the\nringing of a bell. The vocal part was utterly incongruous with the\ntheme. The preacher stood stone still, nothing moving but his lips,\nand looking like a talking statue. His hands were gently folded on his\nbreast and his eyes were fixed with immovable rigidity upon something\non the floor immediately in front of the pulpit. His whole manner was\nthe best imaginable remedy for insomnia, which was soon proved by the\nstate of delightful unconsciousness into which many of the audience\nhad fallen at the expiration of the first half-hour. Ernest made brave\nand persistent efforts to confine his attention to the minister\u2019s\nmonotonous sentences and to resist the feeling of somnolence which\nwas quietly and gradually creeping over him. When the service finally\nended, Ernest left the church with a feeling of spiritual lassitude--a\nconsciousness that the hour had been unprofitable, not to say that he\nwas a little vexed, too.\n\n\u201cWhy does the Church send out such men to preach?\u201d he asked himself\nas he walked slowly homeward. \u201cThis man\u2019s intentions, no doubt, are\ngood, but his education is wofully deficient, and he does not seem to\nunderstand the first rudiment of oratory. The ecclesiastical body that\nput him in this responsible position are more censurable than he is.\nWhat a grand text he had! If a man could preach at all, it does seem\nthat he could get a splendid sermon out of that passage. I believe I\ncould do it myself. Let me see. There is that old college speech of\nmine--Man was made to mourn,--it would apply admirably to the first\nhead. Look abroad over the world. How many things there are which\nare calculated to trouble the heart. Of all this the preacher never\nsaid a word. I moved an audience to tears with the same subject when\nthere was nothing but human sympathy to which I could appeal. But with\nthe precious hopes and promises of the gospel in his hands, he put\na portion of his congregation to sleep. Then there are the blessed\nmansions which the Savior promised to His true followers. \u2018I go to\nprepare a place for you,\u2019 said our Lord. Why there is a grand sermon\nin that one brief sentence. \u2018I go,\u2019 said Christ. Where did He go? Why\ndid He go? Why did He not remain forever on earth? The answer is,\nthat He might send the Comforter. Then, for what purpose did He go?\nTo prepare mansions for all true believers. What a glorious thought!\nWhat does He prepare? A place. Then the conclusion is, that heaven is a\ntangible locality. For whom is He preparing a place? \u2018For you.\u2019 But the\ndisciples stood there as the representatives of all true believers for\nall time. So I should have said, had I been in that preacher\u2019s place\nto-day: \u2018Brethren, Jesus says I am preparing a place for you.\u2019 Then\nI would go on to describe this blessed place from intimations thrown\nout in the Bible itself. There are the shining city, the jasper walls,\nthe golden streets, the crystal river, the Trees of Life, the Great\nWhite Throne, and the mighty multitude which no man can number. With\nthese grand and sublime thoughts in easy reach, the preacher never said\none word to brighten our hopes and strengthen our faith. But instead\nof producing such an effect, he threw us into a state of stupid,\nhalf-unconsciousness. What a failure!\u201d\n\nPresently, while Ernest was musing in this loose, random way, a\nvoice--a \u201cstill, small voice,\u201d as it were, seemed to come out of the\natmosphere, and ask: \u201c_Why not then preach yourself?_\u201d It was the\nfiery finger of destiny flashing before him, and Ernest was startled.\nHe answered, almost speaking in audible tones: \u201cBecause I am not\nqualified. I have no call to such work. I am a lawyer. I do not know\nhow to preach.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you have just preached a sermon,\u201d quickly answered the voice. \u201cI\nonly _thought_ what the preacher might have said,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cThen why not speak your thoughts to a congregation?\u201d asked the\nmysterious voice.\n\nWe do not wish, by any means, to make the impression that this was an\nactual supernatural dialogue. It was probably subjective. We use the\nword \u201cprobably,\u201d because we have no right to affirm that God, even in\nthis age of skepticism, never addresses men in audible tones; or what\namounts to the same thing. He, no doubt, so operates upon the human\nconscience as to make subjective mental processes appear objective. At\nany rate, Ernest was a little startled by this colloquy, which had the\nappearance of reality. He was so absorbed that he did not notice where\nhe was. He was slowly walking with his head bowed down, and ran against\nsome one soon after the voice appeared to utter the last words. It was\nMr. Hillston, at whose house Ernest was still boarding. The collision\noccurred at the gate. Ernest sprang back, and looked in surprise.\n\n\u201cO, Mr. Hillston,\u201d he cried, \u201cI beg your pardon, sir. I was not looking\nup. I was thinking, yea, almost talking.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd to whom were you talking, my young friend?\u201d asked the old\ngentleman.\n\n\u201cI scarcely know, sir, that is, I can hardly determine whether it was\nto myself, or some invisible being in the air?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is a little strange; but what was the subject of your\nconversation?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will tell you how it was.\u201d\n\nErnest then related what had occurred. When he had finished, he could\nnot fail to notice the serious expression of Mr. Hillston\u2019s face.\n\n\u201cWhat do you think about it?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cDo you think the circumstance needs interpretation?\u201d asked Mr.\nHillston. \u201cDo you not perceive the meaning?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know that it has any particular meaning,\u201d answered Ernest.\n\n\u201cMy boy,\u201d spoke the old man with deep solemnity, \u201cdoes it not occur to\nyou that it is God\u2019s call to the ministry?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo sir,\u201d quickly replied Ernest. \u201cDo not tell me that. I cannot\nbelieve it. I will not think it upon such evidence?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, you will think it, and believe it, too. You may decline, if you\nwill; you may offer resistance, but that voice will follow you up, and\nhaunt you like a ghost. If you will not go into the work willingly, God\nwill drive you into it, as he did Paul.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat! smite me with blindness?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not say that,\u201d answered Mr. Hillston slowly, \u201cbut He will so\nshape and direct circumstances as to force you to do His bidding. You\nmay flee like Jonah, but events, possibly misfortunes, will be the\n\u2018great fish\u2019 to swallow you up, and cast you out where you will be glad\nto cry aloud to men to repent.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou almost frighten me,\u201d exclaimed Ernest. \u201cI cannot regard what I\nhave told you as constituting a call from God to preach. I am not\nsuperstitious. I do not believe as you do, anyhow.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you mean, my boy?\u201d asked the old man, looking at him in\nsurprise.\n\n\u201cDo you not remember what you said the other day about election and\nfree agency. I believe in free agency. I do not think that God forces\nmen to do things. But you,\u201d continued Ernest with a laugh, \u201care a\nregular old blue-stocking Presbyterian.\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot suffer you, my young friend, to give up to the Presbyterians\nexclusively the most precious doctrines of the Bible. You are very\nmuch mistaken if you think that Presbyterians are the only people who\nbelieve in election and the final perseverance of the saints.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you believe that other horrid doctrine of Predestination? No;\nsurely not.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have asked me a direct question,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, \u201cand have\npresumed to answer for me. But your answer is incorrect: for as much\nas you may be surprised, I tell you that I do believe the \u2018horrid\ndoctrine\u2019 of Predestination.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I am surprised to hear you say so. For I thought that even\nPresbyterians shrank from averring it openly.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou may be surprised now; but when you investigate more closely, you\nmay be a Predestinarian yourself, if you will lay aside prejudice.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not see how I ever can be, with all deference to you, sir; for\nthe doctrine is horrible to me.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is so horrible, my boy?\u201d asked the old man kindly. \u201cBut let us\ngo into the house. Now,\u201d continued Mr. Hillston, as they both seated\nthemselves, \u201ctell me what is so horrible?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, that God should condemn men to eternal torment even before they\nare born. What can be more cruel and unjust?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat would be \u2018horrible\u2019 if God were blind, as men are. But let us\nlook at this \u2018horrible doctrine\u2019 from other standpoints. You probably\nknow that some people, in order to avoid the difficulties of Divine\nsovereignty, strip God of one of His attributes by saying that the Lord\ndoes not choose to foreknow human destiny, that is, individual destiny.\nNow if that were true, man would be a perfect free moral agent, would\nhe?\u201d\n\n\u201cUndoubtedly, he would, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is what a great many people say,\u201d answered Mr. Hillston, \u201cin\nthe very face of Scriptures to the contrary. But never mind: for the\npresent, we will assume that God does not choose to exercise His\nforeknowledge. Well, men follow the bent of their owns wills, and\nshape their own destinies. At last the world comes to an end. God opens\nthe Books--that is, He looks back over the past, and discovers what\nmen have done, and settles their doom according to their deeds, do you\nthink that would be right?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, yes,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthat would certainly be just, according to my\nideas.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well. In looking back, the mere knowledge which God acquires does\nnot affect men\u2019s conduct, does it?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you mean by \u2018affect\u2019?\u201d\n\n\u201cI mean His knowledge would not change their deeds, one way or the\nother?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo: of course, His knowledge would have no effect upon their past\nconduct.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, if you please, tell me what is the difference between God\u2019s\nlooking back over the past and looking forward over the future. How\nwould His knowledge affect human destinies in the one case more than in\nthe other?\u201d\n\nErnest thought for a moment, and then said:\n\n\u201cWhy, there is this difference: whatever God foreknows must take\nplace.\u201d\n\n\u201cUndoubtedly,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, \u201cbut does God\u2019s after-knowledge\naffect the conduct of men?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen how does God\u2019s foreknowledge differ from his\nafter-knowledge--that is the question. Is there any difference?\u201d\n\n\u201cJust at this moment,\u201d replied Ernest in some confusion, \u201cI am not\nprepared to say; but it does seem to me unjust in God to sentence men\nto torment before they are born.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut if the condemnation is for the same sins, why not condemn before\nthey are born as well as after?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have taken a turn that I was not expecting,\u201d answered Ernest. \u201cI\nconfess I had never thought of it in that way.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, and that is what is the matter with the most of those who oppose\nthe doctrine of predestination. They even deny fore-knowledge to God,\nnot pausing to reflect that mere knowledge has no effect upon the\ndestinies of men. They represent God as in the attitude of a human\njudge. But we must never forget that His ways are not as our ways,\nand His thoughts, not as our thoughts. Predestination is a mysterious\ndoctrine, and there is something about it which no man can understand.\nAnd yet, when we investigate it in the light of the Holy Scriptures,\nand study the examples illustrating it, there is not as much difficulty\nas some people imagine. I do not think you have investigated in this\nway.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir; but I intend to do so.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is right. Study your Bible closely; honestly mark all the\npassages that teach this \u2018horrid doctrine,\u2019 and let us talk about it\nagain. I have no doubt that you will study the Bible more closely than\nyou have ever done, since you are going to be a minister of the gospel.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere, you are reckoning without your host,\u201d said Ernest. \u201cI have no\nidea of ever being a preacher. I am not qualified. Why, it would be\npresumption in me to think about it.\u201d\n\n\u201cMark my words, Ernest,\u201d said Mr. Hillston solemnly, \u201cyou will be a\npreacher or a ruined man. The Holy Spirit, if I am not very greatly\nmistaken, is opening the way, and showing you the path. I beg you, do\nnot neglect and disregard plain indications. I cannot help thinking\nthat you are a chosen vessel for some great purpose, and if so, you\nwill see no peace till you obey the voice of God. If you are in doubt,\npray to the Lord for light, and it will be given. The Master will\ncertainly make clear the path of duty.\u201d\n\nErnest was silent, and Mr. Hillston concluded it would be prudent to\nsay nothing more at that time. The young man went to his office soon\nafter, and fell into deep thought. Was it possible, he asked himself,\nthat he was destined to become a preacher? The thought became more\nintolerable as he reflected upon it. He wished that he had not tried\nhis power of sermonizing, for it was this that had given origin to what\nMr. Hillston had the boldness to pronounce a call to the ministry.\nWas it in this way that God chose his ministers? But suppose this was\na divine call, how could he refuse to obey? Would he rebel against\nGod\u2019s expressed will? But surely this was no call, at least it was not\nsufficient. There certainly was no voice. He would wait, and pray for\nmore light. Would he not lose Clara Vanclure? Would she ever consent to\nbe a preacher\u2019s wife?\n\nThis latter question, propounded to himself, had some influence,\nprobably in causing him to come to the conclusion not to rush hastily\ninto the ministry upon an invitation which existed, he thought, only in\nhis imagination. Accordingly, he endeavored to dismiss the perplexing\nsubject from his mind. To his great relief, he found no difficulty\nin losing himself in the pages of a volume which he took from one of\nthe shelves of his library. It was Dr. Dick\u2019s \u201cPhilosophy of a Future\nState.\u201d For pleasant and profitable Sunday reading, no better books can\nbe found than Dick\u2019s several volumes on moral and religious subjects.\nErnest was so absorbed in his book that he thought no more about the\n\u201ccall to preach\u201d for the remainder of the Sabbath evening.\n\nThe next morning when he returned to his office as usual and began\nreading Blackstone, the words of the preacher\u2019s text on the previous\nday suddenly flashed into his mind. He quickly dropped his book and\nbegan thinking. Presently he almost sprang from his seat, for on the\nopposite side of the table, on which his head had been resting, there\nsat a visitor, who was curiously gazing at him.\n\n\u201cAh! been asleep, have you?\u201d said Mr. Vanclure, for it was he.\n\n\u201cNo, sir,\u201d said Ernest confusedly, \u201cI was in a sort of reverie.\u201d\n\n\u201cThings of that sort don\u2019t pay much--no, sir, don\u2019t pay much. I have\nbeen too busy all my life for anything of that kind. People must keep\nwide awake in this world to succeed--yes, sir, to succeed.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy vocation is different from yours, Mr. Vanclure, you know. When we\nlawyers meet with a knotty problem sometimes, we stop to think, and\noccasionally we get to dreaming: it is not unnatural.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the old merchant abruptly, \u201cI have come to say something\nabout a delicate matter--a delicate matter. If it was ordinary\nbusiness, I\u2019d know how to begin--how to begin. But it\u2019s another sort of\naffair.\u201d\n\n\u201cJust suppose it to be business of an ordinary character, Mr. Vanclure,\nand begin at once,\u201d said Ernest with a feeling of dread.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the merchant in a fidgety manner, \u201cI thought you and Clara\nwere engaged to be married--engaged to be married pretty soon, and\nthings were floating along smoothly, you know. Yes, sir, and I had\ngiven my consent, you remember, at your solicitation, and I was making\nmy arrangements accordingly, for you see I had confidence in you,\nErnest, since I have known you from a child--yes from a child. I told\nyou, don\u2019t you remember, that I had some business affairs which I could\nnot manage--could not manage, because I\u2019m no lawyer.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d interrupted Ernest, \u201cyou can tell me what the business is, and\nI will do the best I can with it.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you don\u2019t understand, Ernest--you don\u2019t understand. It wouldn\u2019t\nbe proper just yet to tell you. I said it was a delicate matter--a\ndelicate matter, just as things now are. You see I thought everything\nwas working well. I thought this contract between you and Clara would\nsoon be executed--would soon be executed, and then I could with\npropriety put this business in your hands--in your hands, Ernest,\nbecause you would, you would sustain a closer relation to me than you\ndo now, and then I could let you know all my plans--know all my plans,\nwhich wouldn\u2019t be proper just yet--just yet, you know. You understand\nhow I am situated.\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot say that I do,\u201d replied Ernest with a smile, \u201cfor you have\ntold me nothing in regard to your situation.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have told you all I can, Ernest--all I can till that affair comes\noff--comes off.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat affair, Mr. Vanclure?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe engagement between you and Clara, of course, of course. I thought\nall would be over in a few weeks--yes, in a few weeks. But I fear there\nis a misunderstanding somewhere, and I thought there\u2019d be no harm in\nfinding out--in finding out, you see.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it you wish to find out, Mr. Vanclure?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, you see, I got a hint from Clara, a hint from Clara, and I\nthought I\u2019d better find out,--better find out.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am perfectly willing to give you any information in my possession,\u201d\nsaid Ernest.\n\n\u201cI thought so, I thought so, and I\u2019ll come to the point at once.\nYou see it was a lawyer I wanted. A preacher and a lawyer are very\ndifferent people. I could make no use of a preacher--no, sir, no use of\na preacher, you understand?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not understand, Mr. Vanclure.\u201d\n\n\u201cI got a hint from Clara--a hint from Clara, and I thought I\u2019d better\ncome, and find out about it, before it\u2019s too late.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it you wish to find out, Mr. Vanclure?\u201d interrupted Ernest.\n\n\u201cWhy, I thought you\u2019d see at once--yes, at once, after my explanation.\u201d\n\nErnest smiled internally.\n\n\u201cI confess, Mr. Vanclure, that I am so obtuse mentally, that I have\nfailed to understand your explanation.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat? can\u2019t you see--can\u2019t you see that a lawyer and a preacher are\ntwo different people--two different people?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir; I see that clearly.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I gave you to understand that a lawyer would suit me--would suit\nme, and I thought you were a lawyer.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo I am.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut are you going to give up law, and be a preacher--be a preacher?\u201d\n\n\u201cWho said I was, Mr. Vanclure?\u201d\n\n\u201cI told you I got a hint from Clara--a hint from Clara, you understand?\u201d\n\n\u201cI believe I do,\u201d said Ernest thoughtfully. \u201cIt seems that Miss Clara\nhas thrown out a hint that I would be a preacher?\u201d\n\n\u201cPrecisely, precisely.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd suppose I should be, Mr. Vanclure, how could it affect present\nrelations?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you see, a preacher is not the sort of man, the sort of man,\nthat would suit my purposes. A preacher is no business man, Ernest--no\nbusiness man. This thing of going over the country, with your ward-robe\nin a pair of saddle-bags--yes, in a pair of saddle-bags, and living\nfrom hand to mouth--well, I can\u2019t see the necessity of it in this case,\nin this case. Although Clara gave me a hint, I didn\u2019t much believe\nit--I didn\u2019t much believe it--because, Ernest, there is no necessity\nfor it, no earthly necessity for it. You will not be forced to go\ninto that poor business--that poor business; but don\u2019t misunderstand;\nI\u2019m not opposed to the Church--it\u2019s a very good thing in its place--a\nvery good thing, and I pay my part to keep it going. But, as I said,\na preacher is not the sort of man I bargained for--it was a lawyer I\nwanted, and I had my heart set on this matter, and I expected to put\nthe business in your hands--in your hands.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy are you opposed to preachers, Mr. Vanclure?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou misunderstand, Ernest, you misunderstand. I haven\u2019t said I was\nopposed to them. I have nothing against them, nothing against them.\nThey are useful men, in some respects, in some respects; but they are\nnot business men, not business men. How could a preacher attend to my\nbusiness? I don\u2019t see why you should want to quit your profession, quit\nyour profession, and be a preacher; you understand, don\u2019t you?\u201d\n\n\u201cI gather from your remarks, Mr. Vanclure, that if it is my intention\nto be a preacher, you would oppose the marriage of Miss Clara and\nmyself--is that your meaning?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I didn\u2019t say that I\u2019d oppose it: I only said that a preacher\nwouldn\u2019t suit me; no, wouldn\u2019t suit me. A preacher wouldn\u2019t have time\nto attend to business, even if he were a business man, and I never saw\none that was--one that was.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have no idea of ever being a preacher, Mr. Vanclure, and I cannot\nimagine why Miss Clara should have drawn such an inference from\nanything I said.\u201d\n\n\u201cI told Clara that she must be mistaken, must be mistaken. Then I\nunderstand that you never will be a preacher?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have no such intention, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, that\u2019s enough said; I\u2019ll go now, and I\u2019d advise you to see Clara\nabout this affair, and give her the assurance you have given me.\u201d Mr.\nVanclure left hurriedly.\n\nErnest had an interview with Clara that evening, which terminated in\nthe assurance, on her part, that if he ever became a preacher, she\nwould at once file an application for a divorce.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV.\n\nA RIVAL.\n\n\nAn event soon occurred in the town which aroused feelings and emotions\nin the breast of Ernest, the statical condition of which had never\nbefore been disturbed. A family moved into the town, among whose\nmembers was a young man about the age of Ernest. A few days after their\narrival, a sign was seen over a store-door in large black letters--A.\nJ. Comston & Son. The \u201cson\u201d belonging to this firm is the only one\nof the family whose life projects into the present history. Xerxes\nComston was the equal of Ernest in physical attractions, and his\nsuperior in almost everything pertaining to the elegant frivolities and\nconventional refinements of fashionable society. He was emphatically\na man of the world--a disciple of Chesterfield, who had made social\netiquette a special study. He had no depth of intellect and no solid\neducation, but was master of that small talk, silvery nonsense, so\ndelightful to vacuous minds. It is a well-known fact that truly\neducated men, who have \u201cdrunk deep of the Pierian spring,\u201d rarely ever\nshine in promiscuous society. They appear timid and destitute of ideas,\nwhile men who have collected only the scum of ephemeral literature, and\nstudied terpsichorean gymnastics, and committed to memory a stock of\nwitticisms pleasing to light-headed women, pass in society at a value\nfar more than their real worth. Xerxes was a man of this description.\nHe had studied dinner-table etiquette and ball-room dynamics more than\nany other branch of human literature. The comparison between Ernest and\nXerxes in regard to moral excellences would be like that of Brobdingnag\nand Lilliputian. Yet in fashionable assemblies, where Ernest would\nsit in embarrassed silence, Xerxes would rattle away with astonishing\nand entertaining volubility--a volubility without ideas, but still,\nnecessary to preserve the regular flow of the stream of conversation.\nMen like Ernest are frequently voted \u201cstupid\u201d by the gilded butterflies\nof society, when the truth is, they can scarcely ever find a\n\u201cpleasure-party\u201d that can appreciate the subjects with which they are\nfamiliar. They are not unsocial, as is generally supposed, but they\ndwell in a world of thought, a world which is so sparsely settled that\nthey necessarily spend much or most of their time in solitude. This\nclass is quite small. Hence, speaking metaphorically, they live in a\nwilderness in which there is here and there a house inhabited by a\nliterary recluse.\n\nErnest and Xerxes were, as to moral character, like Zenith and Nadir.\n\nNot many days elapsed before Xerxes sought and formed the acquaintance\nof Clara Vanclure. Her prospective fortune made a deep impression upon\nhis heart. He had heard of the relation between Ernest and the young\nlady, but he acted toward her as though he were perfectly ignorant\nof the ties which bound her to another. The civil law had given no\nvalidity to this gossamer tenure, and till that should be done, the\nconscience of Xerxes stood not in the way of his endeavoring to produce\nan alienation between the engaged lovers. However, he never intimated\nto any one that he entertained such a purpose.\n\nAt length there was to be a grand ball in the town, and the young\npeople generally were filled with delightful expectations. A few days\nbefore it occurred, Ernest called upon his intended. He had visited her\nregularly three or four times a week since his profession of religion,\nand had not once alluded to the subject which was so repulsive to her.\nWhen there was a pause in the conversation on the evening just referred\nto, she suddenly said:\n\n\u201cAre you going to the ball, next Tuesday evening?\u201d\n\nHe looked earnestly at her, while a shade of sorrow and disappointment\npassed over his face.\n\n\u201cMy dear Clara,\u201d he said in a subdued tone, \u201chow can you ask me such a\nquestion, after the conversation we once had on this subject?\u201d\n\n\u201cI didn\u2019t know but that you might have changed your notion,\u201d she\nreplied.\n\n\u201cI thought you would give me credit for more stability of purpose than\nthat.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I\u2019m sure I can see no harm in going to a ball,\u201d was her\nrejoinder.\n\n\u201cThat means you are going, does it?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cI rather think I shall,\u201d she replied with an air of firmness,\nindicating expectancy of opposition.\n\n\u201cWell, do as you please,\u201d he said.\n\n\u201cI am sorry you cannot go,\u201d she remarked, after a brief pause, \u201cbecause\nI shall be forced to accept another escort.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho?\u201d asked Ernest with an air of indifference that nettled Clara\u2019s\nfeelings.\n\n\u201cMr. Comston.\u201d\n\nErnest made a sudden movement which she noticed with pleasure. The\nfirst pang of jealousy had shot through his heart, stinging, tearing,\nsickening, shocking like a barbed arrow. It had not seriously occurred\nto him before, that there might be a rupture of the engagement into\nwhich she had so solemnly entered. He had regarded her as his wife, or\nat least, so near to that relation that the possibility of losing her,\nhad not disturbed his thoughts. Suddenly this peril flashed into his\nmind, accompanied by a feeling of strong dislike toward the young man,\nwhose name she had just pronounced with alarming tenderness. He tried\nto re-assure himself. Why should he for a moment doubt her constancy?\nHow could she possibly prefer this _dude_ to himself? No, no; how could\nshe? And yet--. He dreaded to give definite shape to the vague thought\nconfusedly working to the surface. Clara perceived her advantage.\n\n\u201cYou would not go,\u201d she said, \u201cwhat then, was I to do? I\u2019m bound to\nhave an escort.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have offered no objection,\u201d Ernest replied in a sorrowful tone, \u201cand\nyet,\u201d he continued timidly, \u201cmight you not have accepted an escort with\nmore congeniality than exists between you and that one?\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t see the necessity of so much congeniality in a dancing\ncompanion,\u201d she answered. \u201cBesides, Mr. Comston is a nice, elegant\ngentleman, and is, by no means, dull.\u201d\n\nThe last remark was like gall to Ernest, and he felt strongly tempted\nto express his opinion about the moral character of his rival: but\non second thought, he concluded that silence on that head would be\nprudent. He at once changed the subject of conversation, and nothing\nmore was said about the dance.\n\nAt the time appointed, Xerxes called to escort Clara to the ball.\nThat evening he paid her very marked attention, and endeavored in\nevery possible way, except the agency of the tongue, to convey\nto her the knowledge that she occupied a conspicuous place in his\naffections. Clara was at no loss to interpret his look and manners. She\nunderstood that earnest, inquiring gaze which seemed to be searching\ninto the depths of her soul. It was not the bold, impudent stare of\nthe accomplished libertine, but the skillful maneuvering of a man who\nknew how to express tender feelings silently, whether they had real\nexistence or not. He gazed, it is true, but in such a way as to make\nthe impression upon the young lady that it was the timid, stealthy\nact of a despairing lover. He acted as though he had unintentionally\nbetrayed the state of his affections, and yet he was well aware that\nthis betrayal had not escaped the observation of the young lady; for we\nsometimes seem to know that certain persons are looking at us, when we\ndo not see them. If Xerxes had gazed boldly at Clara, she would have\ntaken offence; but his appeared to be stolen glances, and she felt\nflattered.\n\nAs they returned late from the ball-room, he said to her as soon as\nthey were in the open air:\n\n\u201cWell, how have you enjoyed the evening?\u201d\n\n\u201cVery much, indeed,\u201d she said, \u201chow has it been with yourself?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know why it was,\u201d he answered, \u201cbut I never enjoyed an\nevening so much in my life. I wish we could have a dance every week, or\neven oftener.\u201d\n\n\u201cI say \u2018Amen\u2019 to that,\u201d exclaimed Clara, \u201cfor this is an awful dull\ntown.\u201d\n\n\u201cI find it so myself,\u201d replied Xerxes. \u201cThere are so few young ladies\nhere.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo few?\u201d answered Clara in surprise. \u201cI thought there were a great\nmany.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, but I mean congenial spirits. They make no impression upon me.\nThe fault, however, may be mine. I may not know how to entertain them.\nI have not been accustomed to a great deal of female society.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou dance beautifully, which made me conclude that you were a great\nlady\u2019s man.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am at a loss to imagine upon what you could base such a conclusion.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs not dancing associated with ladies? You said you had enjoyed the\nevening. I was simple enough to think that it was the presence of\nladies that caused the time to pass off so agreeably.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am indebted to you for that,\u201d he answered quickly. \u201cIf you will\nallow me to say it, you are so different from the rest.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you really believe that, I must thank you for the compliment you\nintend.\u201d\n\nThus they chatted till they reached Clara\u2019s home. As he was taking his\nleave, Xerxes said in an earnest, appealing tone:\n\n\u201cIf you will allow me to call occasionally, it would be a great favor,\nand enable me to kill at least some of the time that hangs so heavily\nupon my hands?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly: I would be pleased to have you call, for I\u2019m frequently\nafflicted with dreadful _ennui_ myself,\u201d was the imprudent permission\nof this betrothed young lady. When they separated, Clara said to\nherself:\n\n\u201cWhat a pleasant man he is. I do believe he is more entertaining than\nErnest, who, with his religion and his great education, is so solemn.\nHe doesn\u2019t act like a young man at all. But he is so smart, and I can\nalways be proud of him. Besides, papa has so much confidence in him.\nBut I do wish he were just a little more like Mr. Comston.\u201d\n\nAnd Xerxes thought as he went away:\n\n\u201cShe is very beautiful. This, with her thousands, makes her a prize\nworth winning. She has not yet mentioned the name of that religious\nlawyer. Look sharp, my zealous friend! if you don\u2019t mind, I\u2019ll play\nyou a trick yet. You may be engaged to her, but \u2018there\u2019s many a slip\nbetwixt the cup and the lip.\u2019\u201d\n\nAnd here we leave them in darkness.\n\nThe next evening Ernest called again, and found Clara in the parlor.\nShe had slept till noon.\n\n\u201cI hope you are feeling well after your last evening\u2019s dissipation,\u201d he\nsaid pleasantly, as he seated himself.\n\n\u201cI never felt better,\u201d she answered. \u201cI believe the exercise was an\nadvantage to me. I don\u2019t see why you should call it dissipation.\u201d\n\n\u201cDissipation it is when compared with some other things, especially\nthose more solid pursuits which improve the mind.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you think of nothing but improving the mind?\u201d asked Clara. \u201cDon\u2019t\nyou believe in any recreation at all?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly, but different people have different kinds of recreation.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is your kind? I should like to know.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will tell you,\u201d answered Ernest. \u201cI take a walk or ride every day\nfor the benefit of my physical organization. To rest my mind I read\nlight literature.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd is that the way you propose to spend your life?\u201d inquired Clara\nlooking at him anxiously.\n\n\u201cWhy should I not?\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course, you can do as you please,\u201d said Clara, showing some signs\nof vexation. \u201cBut isn\u2019t it rather selfish?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt may appear so at present, because I am alone a great deal. But ere\nlong I shall have a lovable companion who can share these pleasures\nwith me.\u201d\n\nClara could not fail to understand his meaning, and now, for the first\ntime, it occurred to her what a gloomy life she must lead with this\nsolemn man of books. She had no great taste for literature: Ernest, on\nthe other hand, was a thorough bibliophilist. He would, no doubt, want\nher to read to him what he called light literature, which would prove\nrather heavy to her; and he would expect her to be deeply interested in\nit. Xerxes, on the contrary, would be a gay companion, and would take\nher to balls, theaters, and other places of amusement. This comparison\npassed rapidly through her mind.\n\n\u201cDo you not think that will be a pleasant way to spend life?\u201d asked\nErnest, after the pause that followed his last remark.\n\n\u201cIt may be for those who like it,\u201d she answered very dryly.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t you think,\u201d asked Ernest, \u201cthat intellectual pleasures are the\nmost solid and substantial of all? I take the view that we are put here\nto cultivate our minds and hearts, and not to be creatures of mere\nsensuality. How much better are we than the brutes, if our whole aim\nis only to \u2018eat, drink, and be merry.\u2019 That is the way they spend the\ngolden hours of life.\u201d\n\n\u201cI suppose you mean, then, to call me a brute,\u201d said Clara, inclined to\npout.\n\n\u201cNo, no,\u201d cried Ernest quickly, \u201cI had no such meaning.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I cannot enjoy books like you. You know that,\u201d she said peevishly.\n\n\u201cYou will learn, though, I trust.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t think I ever will,\u201d she replied.\n\n\u201cWhat do you like, then?\u201d inquired Ernest, trying to smile.\n\n\u201cThings that you don\u2019t, it seems. I like theaters and dances.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut in the course of time you will desire pleasures more substantial\nthan these.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know that I will.\u201d\n\nClara seemed to be out of humor all that evening, and when Ernest left\nhis heart was filled with misgivings. He thought and feared that he had\ndiscovered a change in her manner toward him. She was evidently more\ndistant than she had been since their engagement. He was melancholy.\nBut what could he do to put an end to this dreadful suspense? He\ndetermined that he would persuade Clara to appoint an earlier day for\ntheir marriage.\n\nAvailing himself of the privilege allowed him, Xerxes called the next\nevening. This young man had traveled considerably, and had lived in the\ncity of New York for several years. He had not been seated long before\nhe gave Clara an animated description of the theaters of Paris. She\nlistened like one entranced. Perceiving her profound interest, he soon\ndiscovered how to entertain her.\n\n\u201cHow I should like to travel,\u201d said Clara, with a deep-drawn sigh.\n\n\u201cYes, it is very pleasant to make the tour of the world with a\ncongenial companion.\u201d\n\n\u201cI should think so,\u201d she said. \u201cWhich city do you like best?\u201d\n\n\u201cParis, undoubtedly. You can spend a life there, looking at the\ncuriosities. There is the Louvre, the Tuilleries, the bridges, the arcs\nand a thousand other things that I cannot think of now. I read Victor\nHugo\u2019s Les Miserables while I was there, and went to the streets and\nother places he mentions. It made the story much more interesting. Did\nyou ever read that work?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir, I never did.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have a copy, and will bring it to you if you would like to read it.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed, I should like to do so. We can get no books in this dull town.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell may you call it dull,\u201d said Xerxes. \u201cI told my father the other\nday that I felt that I would have to dissolve our partnership. I don\u2019t\nbelieve I can stand the country much longer. Father came here to have a\nquiet time, but it is almost too quiet for me.\u201d\n\nThese two talked about nothing but parties, dances, shows and the\nlike the remainder of the evening, and the young lady thought she had\nbeen highly entertained. Xerxes had touched responsive chords in her\nnature whose very existence Ernest had ignored. After his departure,\nshe, at first timidly asked herself the question if she really had any\ntrue affection for Ernest. Was he a suitable companion for her? After\ntheir marriage, was it not evident that he would expect her to take a\ndeep interest in the stupid books to which he was devoted. Xerxes was\nlike herself and she thought how happy she could be with an elegant\ngentleman who would take delight in the things of which she was so fond.\n\nWith such communings as these she fell asleep. She dreamed that she was\nwandering in a wide plain, and that she was weary and sad on account\nof a great sorrow which had come over her, which was the loss of her\nparents. She sat down on a stone, covered her face with her hands, and\nwept. Hearing a deep-drawn sigh at her side, she looked around, and\nbeheld Ernest. He mingled his tears with hers, and pointed upward.\nSuddenly he disappeared. Again she bowed her head, and wept afresh.\nThen she heard a joyous laugh, and rising up, she saw Xerxes standing\nbefore her. \u201cWhy weep?\u201d he said. \u201cEnjoy life. Come with me to yon\nthrong of dancers, and drown your sorrow.\u201d She cast her eyes in the\ndirection in which he was pointing, and beheld a company gayly dressed,\nwhirling amid gorgeous flowers under gigantic oaks. She gave her hand\nto the smiling Xerxes, and they were soon mingling with the giddy\npleasure-seekers.\n\nWhen Clara awoke, the superstition of her nature, more or less of which\nall of us have, inclined her to put an interpretation upon her dream\nwhich was decidedly unfavorable to Ernest. Did not the dream foreshadow\na fearful destiny, if she married him? All that day she was in a state\nof perplexing indecision. But circumstances soon enabled her to reach a\nconclusion; for Xerxes, to her surprise, called that very evening. He\nlooked sad, and seemed to be greatly embarrassed.\n\n\u201cI cannot stay long,\u201d he said as soon as they were seated. \u201cI have come\nto bid you adieu.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat!\u201d exclaimed Clara in unfeigned astonishment, but suddenly\nrestraining her emotion, she said:\n\n\u201cO, you are going off on business?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo: I don\u2019t expect to return.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy--is--it--is it not a sudden conclusion?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is,\u201d said Xerxes. \u201cI reached it on leaving you yesterday evening. I\nlearned something that at once decided me.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt seems that it was something disagreeable, judging by your looks?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, the most disagreeable news I ever heard in my life,\u201d exclaimed\nXerxes. \u201cI cannot remain here any longer. I wish I had known it sooner.\nI should have controlled my foolish heart, and saved myself a world of\nsorrow.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t understand you,\u201d said Clara.\n\n\u201cI know you don\u2019t, but to be plain, you are the cause of my trouble.\u201d\n\n\u201cI? How can I be?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will tell you,\u201d said Xerxes, speaking as if he were in the deepest\ndistress. \u201cI heard of your engagement yesterday evening. I had\npermitted myself to entertain hopes in regard to you, not dreaming that\nI had a rival. I do think you ought to have informed me of this fact,\nin common charity.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou never asked me, Mr. Comston.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo: but when you saw my infatuation, you might have thrown out a hint,\nthat your heart was pre-occupied. But you allowed me to go on in my\nblindness till I have become hopelessly entangled in the web of Cupid.\nI love you to madness. O, why did you not warn me?\u201d exclaimed Xerxes in\na voice of such exquisite anguish that Clara felt sorry, and yet glad.\n\n\u201cI think it would have been presumptuous in me to have done so. I did\nnot know that you cared anything for me.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, it is useless to talk about it, I suppose. I go with a great\nwound in my heart which nothing on earth can cure. You are lost to me\nforever. The thought drives me mad. I cannot remain here.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy should you go?\u201d asked Clara timidly.\n\n\u201cDo you suppose I could stay here, and see you the bride of another?\nNo, no, never.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnother? whom do you mean?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you know--Mr. Edgefield.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t think I will ever be his bride,\u201d replied Clara in a low,\nhesitating tone.\n\n\u201cAre you not engaged to him?\u201d asked Xerxes eagerly.\n\n\u201cYes: but since he has joined the Christians, I have been thinking of\nbreaking it off. He has become too solemn to suit me.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, if you will only give me the slightest grounds for hope, this town\nwould be the dearest spot on earth to me. Tell me that I may try to win\nyou, and I will be raised at once from the very depths of despair to\nthe pinnacle of felicity.\u201d\n\nXerxes had used this very expression at least a dozen times to\ndifferent damsels, but he now spoke it with all the freshness of a\nfirst utterance, and it had the same effect upon Clara as if it had\nbeen the spontaneous outgush of a sentiment struggling to find vent in\nsuitable language. Subsequent events will show what reply Clara made.\n\nErnest could not be blind to the frequency of Xerxes\u2019 visits, and he\ndetermined to put an end to them by a marriage at an early day as he\ncould prevail upon Clara to appoint. He had not doubted her constancy,\nbut since the ball he dreaded the consequences of the comparisons\nbetween himself and his rival, which it was but natural the young lady\nshould institute. Accordingly, the next time he called, he directed the\nconversation to their engagement, and said earnestly:\n\n\u201cI hope, my dear Clara, you will appoint the day for our union. This\nyou have not yet done. You have only said it would be in the next few\nweeks, which is indefinite. I can see no use in waiting longer. Please\nmake the day as near in the future as possible.\u201d\n\nClara\u2019s beautiful face at once assumed an expression of ominous\nseriousness but she spoke promptly and directly:\n\n\u201cI am thinking of asking you to release me from that hasty engagement.\u201d\n\nErnest turned pale. He made no attempt to conceal his amazement and\nanguish. For a moment he sat as if petrified, or as if he did not\nclearly understand her. Surely she could not mean what these words\nsignified: he could not believe it, for did she not love him? Why break\nthe engagement? O, she must be tantalizing him for sport--yes, that was\nall. He would humor this pleasantry. Then he tried to smile, but it was\nan expressionless distortion of his face. \u201cYou want a divorce, do you?\u201d\nhe asked in a husky voice. \u201cWell, that will be hard to get.\u201d\n\n\u201cI said nothing about a divorce,\u201d she replied in a cold manner.\n\n\u201cYou did not use that word, I know, but an engagement, Clara, solemnly\nentered into is equivalent to marriage in the sight of God. You are\nmine; how can I release you?\u201d\n\n\u201cI see no difficulty in the way whatever. I\u2019m not yours: I only\npromised to be.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, are you going to deliberately violate your promise, your solemn\nvow, which God witnessed? How can you do such a thing? Did you mean\nwhat you said?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly, I did, but I have changed my mind: I don\u2019t want to marry\nyou.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Clara, Clara,\u201d he cried in agony, \u201cyou crush me into the dust! You\ndo not mean what you say--tell me, you do not mean it. You merely want\nto tantalize me. Well, dear, do you not see that I cannot endure it?\nI never could appreciate jokes. Come, you have had enough sport. Be\nserious, and appoint the day for our marriage.\u201d\n\n\u201cMr. Edgefield,\u201d she said firmly, \u201cI\u2019m not joking; I\u2019m in earnest, and\nI ask you to release me from the engagement.\u201d\n\n\u201cAsk God to release you,\u201d cried Ernest wildly, \u201cand see if He will do\nit. You are mine, Clara. How can I give you up? It would be a sin.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, pshaw!\u201d said Clara contemptuously, \u201cI see no sin in it. I\u2019ll never\nmarry you. Don\u2019t you understand that?\u201d\n\n\u201cI see how it is,\u201d suddenly cried Ernest, \u201cthat tippling fop has\ndeceived you. You surely would not think of rejecting me for a stranger\nwhose moral character is bad? You are too wise for that. Your father\nwill not permit you to be so foolish.\u201d\n\n\u201cI give you to understand, sir,\u201d said Clara reddening with anger, \u201cmy\nfather will not compel me to marry any one against my will. You have\ninsulted me. Leave me, and never speak to me again.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Clara, Clara,\u201d cried Ernest, wringing his hands in anguish, \u201cdo not\ndrive me from you in this cruel way. I beg your pardon. I scarcely knew\nwhat I was saying. Forgive me, if I said anything offensive.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll forgive you, if you will leave me, and promise never again to\ncall, except as a friend.\u201d\n\nErnest fixed his eyes upon her face, and gazed so strangely that she\nshrank, and hung her head. He was trembling like the wind-shaken aspen.\nHe was standing on the verge of an abyss of darkness, and felt the\nground giving way under his feet. He felt as if the foundations of his\nbeing were breaking up, and drifting off, leaving him to sink down\ninto the horrid blackness. How could he cry to God to sustain him in\nthis supreme hour of distress! The chilling waves were rolling over\nhim: a great suffocating lump seemed to be forming in his heart. His\nsoul reeled. He looked up to the ceiling of the room, and seemed to be\ntrying to see through it, and beyond it. His lips worked and twitched\nconvulsively. O, it is pitiable to see a strong man suddenly hurled\nfrom his normal tranquillity down to the dust of abject despair, at the\nfeet of an unworthy woman!\n\nClara gazed at him with feelings of mingled compassion and alarm. She\nwas still more astonished, when he suddenly rose to his feet, and,\nwithout appearing to see her, walked out of the parlor. She noticed\nthat his face was bloodless, and his lips were firmly compressed as\nthough he were holding back some terrible thought which was struggling\nto find egress. In a few moments his rapid footsteps had died away.\n\n\u201cWhat a strange man!\u201d she said. \u201cI wonder what he is going to do? I\ndidn\u2019t think he would take it so hard as that. But marriage would have\nmade us both miserable.\u201d\n\nThus there was a sudden divergence of the path of destiny. There is\nnothing more common in the affairs of this life than these unexpected\ntransitions from one condition to another. We may carefully spread the\nwarp on the loom, but the shuttle which holds the woof, is projected by\nan unseen hand. Our well-settled purposes, our deep-laid schemes, are\nthwarted, and scattered to the winds. We stand astounded and appalled\nin the wreck of our hopes and plans, not knowing what to do, when\npresently we turn, and behold a new path opened, and uncontrollable\ncircumstances force us to pursue it.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V.\n\nDEEP WATERS.\n\n\nIt was a bright moon-lit night, and the town of ---- showed dimly\nin the silvery sheen which vaguely illuminated the half of every\nobject. It was calm and quiet. The people were sitting in groups on\nthe galleries, porticoes and piazzas of their respective residences,\nenjoying the cooling breezes that stole out of the circumjacent forests\nand crept gently along the deserted streets.\n\n\n     \u201c\u2019Twas one of those delicious nights,\n       So common in the climes of Greece,\n     When day withdraws but half his lights,\n       And all is moonshine, balm and peace.\u201d\n\n\nErnest and Mr. Hillston were sitting in the gallery of the preacher\u2019s\nresidence. The young man was sad and silent.\n\n\u201cErnest,\u201d said Mr. Hillston kindly, \u201cwhat is the matter with you? You\nhave not been like yourself for two or three days. You seem to be in\ndeep trouble.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo I am, Mr. Hillston. I am wading through the \u2018deep waters\u2019 about\nwhich you sing.\u201d\n\n\u201cI knew there was something the matter. Is it anything you can tell?\nSometimes it is a great relief to unbosom ourselves to a kind friend,\nwho can sympathize with us, if nothing more.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not mind telling you, Mr. Hillston, though I cannot see that it\nwill do any good.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou do not know that. I have lived a long time in this world, and\nhave, at least, tried to comfort a great many people under clouds of\nsorrow. Probably I might be able to give you some advice which would be\nuseful.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, you know I was engaged to be married to Clara Vanclure?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; you told me that.\u201d\n\n\u201cShe has broken the engagement.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor what reason?\u201d\n\n\u201cI suspect that Comston has deceived her.\u201d\n\n\u201cDid you have no quarrel with her? Frequently young people fall out\nabout trifles, and soon become reconciled.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; we had no quarrel. She discarded me coolly and deliberately.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, my dear boy,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, with tenderness, \u201cit is no more\nthan I expected.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cDo you not remember some weeks ago, when you told me about the affair,\nthat you thought I did not approve your choice?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir, distinctly.\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not think you had made a wise selection, and as I did not\ncongratulate you then, I now congratulate you on the happy termination\nof the affair.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are cruel, Mr. Hillston,\u201d said Ernest, in a tone of bitterness.\n\n\u201cFar from it, my boy. I know you must suffer for a while. But mark what\nI say: you will, no doubt, see the day when you will regard it as the\nbest that could have happened to you. I was surprised at your choice,\nbut as the poet says:\n\n\n     \u2018Lovers are blind, and cannot see\n     The petty faults themselves commit.\u2019\n\n\nBut I could see that Miss Clara would not suit you at all. She\nhas as few qualifications for a minister\u2019s wife as any lady of my\nacquaintance.\u201d\n\n\u201cMinister\u2019s wife!\u201d exclaimed Ernest. \u201cShe would not have been a\nminister\u2019s wife.\u201d\n\n\u201cI see you are still disposed to disobey the Divine call; but you would\nbetter yield, or your present trouble will be only the beginning of\nsorrows. I have no doubt that it is foreordained that you shall be a\npreacher of the gospel.\u201d\n\n\u201cLook here, Mr. Hillston,\u201d cried Ernest suddenly, \u201cI have been reading\nmy Bible to discover if that doctrine of predestination is taught.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, do you find it in God\u2019s Word?\u201d quietly asked Mr. Hillston.\n\n\u201cI think not, sir. On the contrary, I find all through it that man is a\nfree agent.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy dear boy, who denies that man is a free agent? I am sure that\nI will endorse every passage which you can cite that teaches human\nresponsibility.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I do not see, Mr. Hillston, how you can possibly reconcile\npredestination with man\u2019s free moral agency.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not pretend to do so, Ernest. You are like a good many people\nI know, who think that predestination is not taught in God\u2019s Word,\nbecause they cannot make it harmonize with free agency. I have\nfrequently been amused at some ministers who undertook to show that\nthere is no such doctrine as fore-ordination in the Bible. They quoted\nthose passages which prove that man is a free agent, and then at once\njumped to the conclusion that God could not shape or control human\ndestiny. We must accept both doctrines, for both are clearly taught in\nthe Scriptures. You cannot understand the Trinity, but your failure to\ncomprehend it is no proof of its falsity, is it?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir, of course not. But I did not think you could hold to\npredestination and free agency at the same time. What do you do with\nthe passage of Scripture which says that \u2018Christ tasted death for every\nman?\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cDo with it? I accept it without hesitation as a precious truth.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, well, well,\u201d said Ernest, as though greatly perplexed, \u201cand yet\nyou say that some men were condemned from all eternity. How in the\nworld can that be? \u2018Whosoever will,\u2019 says the Scripture, \u2018let him take\nthe water of life freely.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d answered the preacher, gently. \u201cI quote that in every\nsermon I preach, and urge sinners to avail themselves of the\nworld-embracing invitation.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut if their destiny is already determined, what is the use of your\npreaching to them and urging them?\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, my boy, don\u2019t begin at the roof to build your house, but commence\nat the foundation, and work upward. Suppose I show that this \u2018horrid\ndoctrine,\u2019 as some people call it, is contained in God\u2019s Word?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I wish you would,\u201d said Ernest. \u201cI am open to conviction.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen let us go into my study, and appeal to the Blessed Book itself;\nfor it should be final in every theological controversy.\u201d\n\nThey were soon seated, and the old man arranged his spectacles, and\nopened the Bible.\n\n\u201cIt seems to me,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, \u201cthat the eighth and ninth\nchapters of the epistle to the Romans ought to remove every doubt on\nthis subject. You have surely noticed the celebrated passage, Romans\n8:29. Now here it is: \u2018Whom He did fore-know, He did _predestinate_.\u2019\nWhat does predestinate mean? It has only one meaning.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is true,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cbut might it not refer to the righteous\n_character_? He did fore-know and predestinate the righteous character.\nI can admit that.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow will you separate a man from his character?\u201d asked Mr. Hillston.\n\u201cYou might just as well talk of separating sugar from its sweetness.\nWhat is the character of sugar? It is sweet. Can you deprive it of\nthis attribute without utterly destroying it? Certain qualities and\nattributes constitute character, and make the man. If a man has no\ncharacter, he is a brute. Godliness, holiness, etc., are nothing\ntill they become concrete by entering into the moral constitution of\nan individual. It is in vain, then, to talk about God\u2019s saving the\n\u2018righteous character,\u2019 because that is nothing but an abstraction.\nBesides, Paul says, \u2018whom\u2019 He did fore-know, not \u2018what.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cI will take back the word \u2018character,\u2019 if you will allow me,\u201d said\nErnest, \u201cand say that God predestinates the righteous _man_.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d replied Mr. Hillston. \u201cWe agree, then, it is the\n_individual_ that is foreordained to salvation. All denominations are\nagreed that there is an election of some sort. Let me ask upon what\nprinciple you think God elects men to salvation?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, sir, God elects those to salvation who He fore-saw would repent\nof their sins.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat view,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, \u201cis a flat contradiction of what Paul\nsays. The apostle describes the several steps or processes in the\nbeliever\u2019s salvation. He does not say that God predestinated those\nwho would repent, but those \u2018whom He did predestinate He _called_,\nand them that He called He _justified_.\u2019 According to your view, the\npassage ought to say: \u2018Them whom He justified, on account of their\nrepentance, He predestinated.\u2019 The plain meaning of the passage is,\nthat God predestinated some men to salvation, and in consequence of\nthat election, He _called_ them and _justified_ them. The apostle\nreiterates this view in some of the other epistles. Here is Eph. 1:3,\n4, 5: \u2018Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ who hath\nblessed us with all spiritual blessings in heavenly places in Christ.\nAccording as He hath chosen us in Him before the foundation of the\nworld, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love.\nHaving predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ\nto Himself according to the good pleasure of His will.\u2019 Now,\u201d continued\nMr. Hillston, \u201cought not this passage to put an end to all controversy?\nThe apostle declares there was an election. When? He says \u2018before the\nfoundation of the world.\u2019 Why did He choose us? Was it because we were\nrighteous? No. Was it because God fore-saw that we would repent? No. He\nchose us that \u2018we _should become holy and with out blame_.\u2019 Now what do\nyou say?\u201d\n\n\u201cI confess,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthat such passages puzzle me no little. Why\ndoes God choose some men to salvation, and pass by others, when all are\nguilty alike?\u201d\n\n\u201cAh! there\u2019s the difficulty,\u201d said Mr. Hillston. \u201cThe good Lord has not\ninformed us on what principle He makes the choice. If we knew that,\nthere would be an end of all discussion. All we know about it is, that\nit is \u2018according to the good pleasure of His will.\u2019 Is not that a\nsufficient reason?\u201d\n\n\u201cSomehow, this doctrine of predestination appears to me to be unjust,\u201d\nsaid Ernest, looking confused. \u201cYou say that God passes by some men\nwithout giving them an opportunity to be saved.\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not say that, Ernest.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, it amounts to that.\u201d\n\n\u201cOn the contrary, they do have an opportunity to be saved. The\ninvitations of the gospel are extended to all alike, and all could be\nsaved, if they would. No man ever was lost simply on account of the\n\u2018eternal decrees.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, how can they be saved,\u201d asked Ernest, \u201cif it is predestinated\nthat they shall not accept the invitations offered to them?\u201d\n\n\u201cBut, my young friend, the Bible does not say that they _shall_ not\naccept, but that they _will_ not. \u2018Ye _will not_ come unto me that ye\nmight have life,\u2019 said our Lord. The greatest obstacle in the way of\nhuman salvation is found in the perversity of the _will_. If men only\n_willed_ to be saved, they could be. How, then, is there injustice in\npredestination?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cif some men are foreordained to eternal death, I\nshould like to know what is the use of your preaching to them?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen you get to be a minister, if you discard predestination and\nelection, I want to ask you a question or two,\u201d said Mr. Hillston.\n\u201cAssuming that you are a preacher, I will ask you these questions now.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well; proceed.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou believe in God\u2019s fore-knowledge?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you believe that all men will be saved?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir; some will be lost,\u201d answered Ernest.\n\n\u201cThat is certain, is it?\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course, it is.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, \u201cwhat is the use of your preaching to\ncertain men that God knows will be lost? Will not the same result\nfollow in both instances?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir; but I throw the responsibility of refusing upon themselves.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us settle one thing at a time, if you please,\u201d said Mr. Hillston.\n\u201cWe are not talking about where the responsibility belongs; but, at\npresent, we want to get at the facts. I ask you, if God fore-knows that\nsome men will be lost, is not their destiny as much fixed as if it had\nbeen decreed? Answer that.\u201d\n\n\u201cI suppose it would be,\u201d replied Ernest hesitatingly, as though he were\nfearful of admitting too much, \u201cbut God\u2019s fore-knowledge has no effect\nupon human destiny.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt does not matter about that just now. People,\u201d continued Mr.\nHillston, \u201cfrequently ask me the question which you have propounded.\nWhat is the use of preaching to men that are certain to be lost? You\nmust not try to make me remove an objection which applies with as much\nforce to your system as to mine. God commands us to preach the gospel\nto every creature, and that is reason enough. You remember that God\ncommanded Ezekiel to preach to the dry bones in the valley. The prophet\nmight have said, \u2018What is the use? These bones have no life and no\nsense. They cannot hear: it is foolish to talk to them.\u2019 But God said,\n\u2018Preach to them.\u2019 Sinners are in the condition of those dry bones; but\nGod tells me to preach to them. I obey; I know not who are to be lost:\nmy duty is to preach, and God quickens whom He will.\u201d\n\n\u201cI see the unfairness of my question,\u201d said Ernest honestly. \u201cBut there\nis an absurdity in the doctrine of predestination, if I only knew how\nto point it out.\u201d\n\n\u201cLook here, my boy,\u201d said Mr. Hillston kindly, \u201chow can you call that\nan \u2018absurdity\u2019 which the Bible so clearly teaches?\u201d\n\n\u201cI beg pardon, Mr. Hillston; I will recall the offensive word. I will\nsubstitute the word injustice for absurdity.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour apology does not mend the matter,\u201d answered Mr. Hillston, \u201cfor\nare you going to accuse God of injustice?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir; but the question is whether it is a doctrine of the Bible.\u201d\n\n\u201cExactly. We agreed to let the Bible settle it,\u201d said Mr. Hillston.\n\u201cI have already called your attention to several passages which\nundoubtedly teach it. I can refer to instances and passages almost\nwithout number in the Scriptures. The Bible certainly is not silent on\nthe subject, whether we can understand it or not.\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot understand,\u201d said Ernest, \u201chow a man can be a free agent, and\nyet his destiny is already fixed.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd yet, the Bible is full of instances which prove clearly that\npredestination and free agency operate in perfect harmony.\u201d\n\n\u201cName one,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cWell, take the case of Judas Iscariot: it was predicted by Isaiah that\nthe Lord Jesus should be betrayed for thirty pieces of silver. Will you\nnot admit that God had Judas in His mind, when this prophecy was made?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cfor a betrayal necessarily implies a\nbetrayer.\u201d\n\n\u201cUndoubtedly, because God could not foresee a betrayal disconnected\nentirely from any individual. You will also admit that after the\nprediction was made, it must be fulfilled, and Judas must betray\nChrist?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not see that I must admit that.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you must, though,\u201d said Mr. Hillston.\n\n\u201cWhy must I?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cWell, suppose Judas had not betrayed the Lord for thirty pieces of\nsilver, what would have become of Isaiah\u2019s prophecy? Would it not have\nbeen falsified?\u201d\n\n\u201cI suppose so,\u201d said Ernest a little doggedly.\n\n\u201cSuppose so!\u201d cried Mr. Hillston. \u201cHow can there possibly be any doubt\nabout it? After a prophesy is uttered, and even written down, it must\nbe fulfilled, or God\u2019s word is falsified.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; I admit that, for the sake of argument.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, when the proper time arrived, Judas betrayed the Lord. He\nevidently performed a part which was predestinated. Was he not a free\nagent?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot if he was compelled to do as he did,\u201d answered Ernest.\n\n\u201cNo, if he was compelled,\u201d replied Mr. Hillston, \u201cbut where was the\ncompulsion? He was carrying out his own will and if he was, that makes\nhim a free agent. His conduct afterwards proves that he never felt\nthat he was constrained by any extraneous influence. The crucifixion\nwas foretold with all its attendant prominent circumstances, and to\nprove that it was predestinated, let us turn to Acts 2:23. \u2018_Him being\ndelivered by the determinate counsel and fore-knowledge of God, ye have\ntaken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain._\u2019\n\n\u201cHere it is emphatically declared that Jesus was delivered by the\ndeterminate counsel of God. To show that the actors in the disgraceful\ntragedy were free agents, it is said that they crucified Him with\n_wicked_ hands. But to put it beyond all dispute, that it was all\npredestinated, let us turn to Acts 4:27-28: \u2018_For of a truth against\nthy holy child Jesus, whom Thou hast anointed, both Herod and Pontius\nPilate, with the Gentiles, and the people of Israel, were gathered\ntogether, for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel determined\nbefore to be done._\u2019\n\n\u201cHere, the actors are all clearly specified. They met at a certain\nplace. For what? To do whatsoever God had determined before should be\ndone. You can get no other meaning out of it. Dr. Adam Clarke saw a\ndifficulty here, and he took the liberty to transpose the passage so\nas to make it read thus: \u2018_For a truth against thy holy child Jesus,\nwhom Thou hast anointed, for to do whatsoever thy hand and thy counsel\ndetermined before to be done._\u2019\n\n\u201cDr. Clarke thus makes the predestination clause apply to Jesus,\ninstead of Herod, and the others. It seems the Doctor did not mind\nstripping Jesus of free agency, just so he could preserve it to men.\nBut Mr. Benson, who had no leaning towards predestination, says that\nsuch a transposition as Clarke makes is unauthorized and unnecessary.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you think,\u201d asked Ernest, \u201cthat Dr. Clarke was insincere? I mean,\ndo you believe he discovered the doctrine of predestination in that\npassage, and then deliberately tried to eliminate it?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, no,\u201d replied Mr. Hillston, \u201cI think he honestly believed that\nthe doctrine of predestination, as taught by most Baptist ministers\nand especially by the Presbyterian Church, has no foundation in\nthe Scriptures, and thus believing, he could not admit the plain\nmeaning of what seems to me a plain passage. He, no doubt, thought by\ntransposing a clause, he would make the Bible say what was intended.\nBut what does the Doctor gain by this transposition? If Jesus was not\na free agent, we are under no obligation to Him for fulfilling the law\nin our stead and suffering for us. He was merely undergoing a penalty\nwhich He could not avoid. Was it not necessary that Jesus should be a\nfree agent as well as that men should?\u201d\n\n\u201cBut according to your view,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cHe could be a free agent,\nand yet His career be fore-ordained.\u201d\n\n\u201cExactly, but according to Dr. Clarke\u2019s view, if His career was\nforeordained, He could not be a free agent; that is the difference.\nThese men, Herod, Pilate, and the others, carried out their own will\nand the Divine will at the same time, and I see no difficulty in it.\nThat is the great advantage the predestinarian has. When he meets\nwith a passage that teaches predestination, he admits it; and when he\nmeets with another that teaches free agency, he admits it. He makes\nno pause to try to reconcile them, because he sees no inconsistency.\nBut when Dr. Clarke, and those who believe like him, come to one of\nthese passages, \u2018hard to be understood,\u2019 as Peter says, they halt\nand endeavor to harmonize it with their belief. When the Bible, in\nspeaking of Pharaoh, says, \u201cFor this purpose have I raised thee up,\u201d we\npredestinarians at once acknowledge God\u2019s hand, and we read on without\nstopping to explain. But Dr. Clarke comes to it and finds an obstacle.\nHe must pause and try to determine what is meant by \u2018raising up,\u2019 and\nmust explain it so as not to interfere with man\u2019s free agency. We read\nthat God hardened Pharaoh\u2019s heart and in the next passage we read that\nPharaoh hardened his own heart. We predestinarians find no difficulty\nhere, for we see the two doctrines working together in perfect\nharmony, but Dr. Clarke becomes puzzled. \u2018How is this?\u2019 he says. \u2018If\nGod hardened Pharaoh\u2019s heart, how could Pharaoh have hardened his own\nheart?\u2019 So the good Doctor must enter into a long explanation of this\nhardening process.\u201d\n\n\u201cOne of the passages you have quoted,\u201d said Ernest, who appeared\nto be confused by perplexing thoughts, \u201csays, \u2018according to the\nfore-knowledge.\u2019 Could it not have been that God merely fore-saw what\nJudas and others would do and based the prophecy upon foreknowledge?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat only removes the difficulty one step,\u201d replied Mr. Hillston.\n\u201cFor whatever God fore-saw, must take place. But the passage says also\n\u2018determinate counsels.\u2019 What does that mean?\u201d\n\n\u201cI know you think it means predestination.\u201d\n\n\u201cI certainly do,\u201d replied Mr. Hillston. \u201cBut I think we have found\npredestination in at least two instances which prove that there\nis no conflict between the two principles we are discussing. If\nfore-ordination and free agency could work in harmony in the case of\nJudas, why not in the case of every human being. I want to ask you a\nquestion right here.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will answer it, if I can,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cYou have already acknowledged that God fore-knows all things, \u2018every\ndeed which men will perform and even every thought which will pass\nthrough their minds\u2019. Now suppose God should order some Jeremiah to\nwrite out the history of every human being: we would have a tremendous\nbook of prophecy which would include every individual of the human\nrace. You will admit that all these prophecies would have to be\naccomplished or God\u2019s word would be falsified. You will admit, also,\nthat if no one knew anything about this great and enormous book except\nthe writer, men would be free agents? How could merely recording their\nactions without their knowledge affect their conduct?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt could not,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cWell, then, are men\u2019s actions any the less uncertain because they are\nnot written out in a book? The history of every human being is written\nout in the Divine Mind. Is that history any the less uncertain because\nit is not published in a tangible volume? God\u2019s not fore-telling\nwhat He fore-knows, does not leave men at liberty to change their\nconduct. If it did, the Lord could fore-know nothing with certainty.\nIf then God could write out the history of every human being without\ndoing the least violence to his free agency, how can you object to\npredestination? My history is fixed, and so is yours and every other\nman\u2019s, and that is predestination.\u201d\n\nErnest said nothing, and Mr. Hillston continued:\n\n\u201cBut let us turn to the Scriptures again. Here is John 15:16: \u2018_Ye\nhave not chosen me, but I have chosen you_.\u2019 Again, 1 Cor. 1:26: \u2018_For\nye see your calling, brethren, how that not many wise men after the\nflesh, not many mighty, not many noble are called_,\u2019 etc. I could refer\nto a great many passages of similar import. Is not election clearly\ntaught in such Scriptures? Then it is said that God did not choose His\npeople on account of their righteous character, but that He might make\nthem righteous. When they were chosen, they were children of wrath even\nas others. This is proved in the 15th chapter of John, where Jesus,\nspeaking of His people under the similitude of sheep, says: \u201cOther\nsheep I have which are not of this fold\u201d--that is they were in the\nworld out of the fold; they were sinners and yet were God\u2019s people, to\nbe brought in, when it should please God.\n\n\u201cI do no see how anyone can read the eighth and ninth chapters of\nRomans without believing in the doctrine of predestination and\nelection. Paul there answers the very objections which are to this\nday urged against divine fore-ordination. Peter certainly understood\nPaul to advocate this \u2018horrid doctrine,\u2019 for he says it is \u2018hard to be\nunderstood.\u2019 If Paul was writing about free agency, there was no need\nto say it was hard to be understood.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have read these chapters,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cand I confess they are\nmysterious.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat makes them mysterious?\u201d asked Mr. Hillston. \u201cDon\u2019t you see if\nyou can eliminate predestination and election out of them, they would\nnot be mysterious? Why do so many people stumble over these chapters\nespecially? It is because their foot strikes against these two hard\ndoctrines.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have used the word \u2018election,\u2019\u201d said Ernest, \u201cbut do not some\npeople say that it applies only to the election of classes or nations\nto temporal privileges, and not to the election of individuals to\neternal salvation?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; but let us settle that point by the Scriptures. Turn to Acts\n13:48: \u2018_And when the Gentiles heard this they were glad, and glorified\nthe word of the Lord; and as many as were ordained to eternal life\nbelieved_.\u2019 Some people have wished that the last clause could be\ntransposed so as to read: \u2018_As many as believed were ordained to\neternal life_.\u2019 But it is too plain to be tampered with in this way.\nAgain, in second Thessalonians 2:13: \u2018_But we are bound to give thanks\nalways to God for you, brethren, beloved of the Lord, because God\nhath from the beginning chosen you to salvation through sanctification\nof the Spirit and belief of the truth_.\u2019 Again, Hebrews 12:23: \u2018_To\nthe general assembly and Church of the first-born which are written\nin heaven_.\u2019 Again, Philippians 4:3: \u2018_Whose names are in the book of\nlife_.\u2019 I could go on, and cite I know not how many more passages,\nall proving that there is an election of individuals unto eternal\nsalvation.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is evidently an election of individuals,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cbut why\ncould it not be based upon men\u2019s foreseen repentance and faith. I could\naccept that doctrine.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo doubt,\u201d answered the preacher, \u201cfor that is more agreeable to\nthe carnal heart. Men like so much to deserve salvation by their own\nworks--their own faith and repentance. According to the Scriptures,\nthis election is based upon God\u2019s will. But if you will modify your\nposition a little, I think we can agree. If you will say that this\nelection is based upon faith and repentance brought about by the Holy\nSpirit, we need not have any further discussion.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I do not mean that. I mean that men perceive the truth and act\nupon it.\u201d\n\n\u201cOf themselves, do you mean?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, with the assistance of the Holy Spirit.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut men,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, \u201care represented in the Scriptures as\ndead in trespasses and sins. Lazarus is a fit type of the sinner. Could\nLazarus have raised himself from the grave without the assistance\nof the Lord? Is it not evident that he could do nothing till he\nwas actually restored to life? So it was with the man who had the\ndiseased arm. He could not make an effort till the limb was healed.\n\u2018By grace are ye saved,\u2019 says the Scripture, \u2018through faith, and that\nnot of yourselves; it is the gift of God.\u2019 Are not all these passages\nsufficient to convince and satisfy you?\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course, I must believe what the Bible says,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cbut\nit does appear strange to me how a man can be a free agent, and yet his\ndestiny is fixed.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo one ever denied that it is strange. Indeed, it is incomprehensible;\nbut we are not to reject it on that account. All we have to do is to\nascertain whether it is contained in God\u2019s Word or not. But after all,\nwhat do we mean by predestination? Why just this, that God had a\npurpose in view in the creation of the world. He surely was not trying\nexperiments. He did not put men in the world, and turn them loose, to\nsee what they would do. You will not deny that He fore-knew who would\nbe saved and who would be lost?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I do not deny that.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, there is no power in mere fore knowledge. Would not God, then,\nhave to exercise power in order to accomplish what He fore-knew?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt seems that He would, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, that is predestination. It is the execution of the divine\npurpose. So you see that, without predestination, God could not have\nmade the world--could not have created man. Notwithstanding that He\nfore-saw some would be lost, He determined to create them, and that\ndetermination on the part of God, is predestination. Then, eliminate\npredestination, and you represent God in the attitude of a sort of\nempiricist. He creates men without any particular purpose in view.\nBesides, there is another difficulty. When there was nothing in\nexistence, how could God foresee anything except what He had determined\nupon? Would not God have to determine that things should be, before\nHe could fore-see them? I cannot imagine how the Lord could have made\nthe world without predestination. Man, with his limited wisdom, never\nundertakes enterprises without determining something in regard to them.\nDo you suppose that God put men here without any purpose?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir; of course, He had a purpose.\u201d\n\n\u201cReally, when you admit that, there is no use of discussion, for that\npurpose is predestination. We can ascertain what God\u2019s purposes are,\nonly by what takes place. We see that some men are lost and some are\nsaved, and all this must be in accordance with God\u2019s purpose, and that\nis what we mean by predestination.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou can beat me in argument,\u201d suddenly exclaimed Ernest. \u201cI have not\nstudied the question sufficiently.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe more you study it,\u201d said Mr. Hillston, \u201cthe more you will be\nconvinced that it is the doctrine of the Bible.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhenever I am convinced,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cyou may rest assured that\nI will accept it. But I am not satisfied. What you have said appears\nreasonable; but I know there is something to be said on the other\nside, if I knew how to get at it.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d answered Mr. Hillston; \u201cyou have mentioned the usual\nobjections that men urge against it. But when you find any good\nargument on your side, let me know what it is. Let me caution you\non one point, though. Do not seek out those passages of Scripture\nwhich teach free agency, and put them against the passages that favor\npredestination. For that is only fighting Scripture with Scripture.\nYou must not make the Bible contradict itself, but you must try to\nreconcile these seemingly antagonistic passages. In the meantime, try\nto apply this doctrine to your own case. Your steps are ordered by the\nLord. Recognize God\u2019s hand in your affairs, and thus predestination\nbecomes a practical, comforting doctrine, instead of that \u2018horrid\nthing\u2019 which some people call it.\u201d\n\nErnest took his leave. He was almost convinced by the arguments of Mr.\nHillston, but he was not yet prepared to acknowledge it.\n\nMen pride themselves upon consistency, and some will even cling to an\nerror rather than appear fickle-minded. Away, we say, with such absurd\nand false consistency! It is morally degrading.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI.\n\nMANASSAS.\n\n\nWhile the never-ceasing march of time was unfolding the events which\nhave been narrated, others of a more startling and melancholy character\nwere evolving from the womb of the future. We have now reached the\nhistorical year of 1861, which has already taken its place along with\nother famous periods that have marked the turning points in humanity\u2019s\nprogress. The reader, in order fully to understand the present story,\nmust again gaze in imagination at the gloomy clouds of war, and listen\nto the awful earthquake of battle, the sharp rattle of musketry, varied\nwith the deep bass of cannon, the thundering tramp of cavalry, the\ndeafening shouts of the victor, and the piteous groans of the wounded\nand dying.\n\nOn the morning of the 21st July 1861, at early dawn, the boom of a\nsingle cannon broke the solemn stillness and sacred silence of the\nLord\u2019s day. It was the signal gun of Manassas, fired by the Federal\ntroops opposite the stone bridge which spans the now celebrated rivulet\nknown as Bull Run. It was thirty minutes past six o\u2019clock when this gun\nawoke the first echoes of the initial battle of the so-called great\n\u201cRebellion.\u201d\n\nGeneral McDowell, as rapidly as possible, pushed forward his forces to\nthe main point of attack, which was the left wing of the Confederate\narmy, resting at the stone bridge. It appears that it was General\nBeauregard\u2019s intention to make an aggressive movement by attacking the\nenemy\u2019s left wing, but suddenly his plan was turned against himself,\nand he was forced to act upon the defensive. General Hunter threw his\ncommand forward, and crossed Bull Run some distance above the stone\nbridge. The extreme Confederate left was held by Evans who had only\nfifteen companies of infantry and Latham\u2019s battery of six-pounders.\nA demonstration was made in his front at stone bridge while Hunter\nwas crossing at Suddle ford. As soon as this movement of Hunter\u2019s was\nreported to Evans, he took eleven companies, leaving four to guard the\nbridge, and with this small force rapidly went forward to sustain the\nshock of 30,000 men. It seemed impossible that this little Spartan\nband could stand before the impetuous onset of an enthusiastic army,\noutnumbering them by twenty to one. But Beauregard and Johnson were\nseveral miles off, and Evans must assume the responsibility of giving\nshape to the battle. History hardly gives this man the praise which\nis due, who, without any authority to order up reinforcements, had\nto initiate a movement of his own in the very face of the defeated\nplans of the commanding General. Had it not been for Evan\u2019s prompt\naction and his quick comprehension of the critical situation, the\nwhole Confederate army might soon have been thrown into inextricable\nconfusion. But Evans, at once, perceived the necessity of checking\nMcDowell\u2019s army till Beauregard could form a new line of battle, and\nsend forward the necessary reinforcements. The struggle that took place\nwas bitter and determined, for both parties were in a state of military\neffervescence. The Northern army especially was drunk with enthusiasm,\nand anticipated an easy victory over the poorly-equipped \u201crebels.\u201d\nMany Congressmen and citizens, including elegant ladies, had come from\nWashington to participate in the celebration of the grand victory\nwhich they had no doubt would be achieved. They had sent to Centerville\nall kinds of delicacies, fine wines and the like, with which they\nexpected to have a splendid collation as soon as the battle should be\nended. We may here mention a fact, to which Northern historians have\nnever given much prominence, if they have not deliberately suppressed\nit: Several wagons were loaded with hand-cuffs, with which to manacle\nthe captured \u201crebels\u201d and lead them along the streets of Washington in\ntriumph. The Federals were, therefore, much enraged when they found\ntheir march checked by this handfull of \u201crebels\u201d--a single regiment\nfrom South Carolina and a company from Wheat\u2019s battallion. It could not\nbe expected that Evans could hold his position for any great length of\ntime against such terrible odds. He was gradually driven back. But the\ngallant Bee soon came up. His arrival was most timely, for the whole\nSouthern line was now giving way, reeling, staggering under the hot,\nconcentrated fire of McDowell\u2019s army. Bee rapidly advanced with four\nregiments, and the battle was, at once, renewed with additional fury.\nFor an hour, this brigade, with the few bleeding companies of Evans,\ndecimated by their heroic effort to check the advance of a whole army,\nstood their ground, and fought with a desperation born of pride and\npatriotism. It seems that Beauregard had made no preparations for an\nattack at this point.\n\nTwelve o\u2019clock arrived, and found the little army of Bee and Evans in a\nmost critical condition. It was slowly falling back. There would soon\nhave been a panic, had not Bee discovered the famous brigade of the\nimmortal \u201cStonewall\u201d Jackson, coming to his relief. \u201cGeneral,\u201d groaned\nBee, as he galloped back, begrimed with the smoke and dust of battle,\n\u201cthey are beating us back.\u201d \u201cSir, we will give them the bayonet,\u201d\ncalmly and curtly replied the Man of Iron. Bee immediately rushed back\nto his disordered and disheartened soldiers, and pointing with his\nsword, cried out: \u201cLook at Jackson, men, standing like a _stone wall_.\u201d\nAnd thus on that bloody field, amid the roar of battle and the groans\nof the dying, the hero was christened with a name which has superseded\nthat given by his parents.\n\nAgain the battle was renewed. Jackson held his position for an hour,\nwhich enabled Beauregard to hurry forward troops from the lower\nfords of Bull Run. When Beauregard and Johnson arrived on the field\nabout twelve o\u2019clock, the day was going against the Confederates. But\nfortunately, while the \u201crebels\u201d were wavering, and would in a short\ntime have been utterly defeated, there was an inexplicable lull in the\nfight. The Federals had halted. At that time they were novices in the\nart of war, and did not appreciate the importance of those critical\njunctures when the fortunes of both parties are trembling in the\nbalance, or when nothing is needed but a vigorous movement to secure a\ndecided victory. But in half an hour, Beauregard had reestablished his\nlines, and the contest was again renewed. Fresh troops were arriving on\nboth sides.\n\nFrom one till after three o\u2019clock, the historian is unable to follow\nthe cloud of this battle. This period was what an elegant writer calls\nthe _quid obscurum_ of battle. The war-cloud was broken up, and floated\nabout in uncertainty. Victory, trembling in doubt, hovered over one\nparty and then the other. Nobody can tell what was done. Tactics had\nbecome useless. Each individual soldier was his own commander. It was\na wild sozzle--an enormous street _melee_. Batteries were charged and\ncaptured, and in a moment afterwards, re-captured. There was no base\nanywhere; everything was shifting. Volumes of smoke rolled up; cannon\nroared; muskets rattled; shouts and groans--all mingled together in\none horrid bedlam of confusion. For two hours there was this irregular\ncontest, in which men fought more as individuals than as companies.\n\nThree o\u2019clock came. The fortunes of the Confederates were extremely\ndark. They had lost some of their best and bravest officers. Hampton\nwas shot while leading on his men in desperation. The noble Bee, who\nhad baptized Jackson with blood, fell mortally wounded at the head of\nthe Alabamians in the thickest of the fray, grasping his sword and\nurging on his men with his dying breath. The magnanimous Barton, while\nrallying the seventh Georgia, was shot through the head, and as he\nfell, exclaimed: \u201cThey have killed me, but never give up the field,\u201d\nand his pure, brave spirit winged its flight away from this awful scene\nof carnage, confusion and death. Fisher, of the \u201cold North State,\u201d was\nkilled; Colonels Gartrell and Falkner were _hors de combat_. Many\nofficers of lower grade, whose names will never be known, lay stretched\nupon the ground, never to rise again.\n\nBut the supreme moment had come. Both parties now prepared for the\nfinal blow. It was four o\u2019clock, and the evening was hot and sultry.\nThe Federal army was drawn up in the form of a crescent. They begin\nto advance. They expect, it seems, to flank the left wing of the\nConfederate army. What was their amazement to find themselves suddenly\nconfronted and flanked on their right wing by 1700 fresh troops. It\nwas the army of Kirby Smith, for which Johnson had been so anxiously\nlooking for several hours. Indeed, he had gone back to hasten forward\nthese troops, who came on the railroad; but as there was not a moment\nto lose, the cars were stopped, and the troops were hastily hurried\nfrom the train in the forest. This arrival added another feature to\nBull Run that made up its similarity to the battle of Waterloo in 1815.\nIf the reader will take the trouble to compare these two battles, he\nwill discover that there was a striking resemblance between them, in\nseveral respects. Hugo\u2019s letter A, with some slight modifications,\nwill apply to Bull Run. The whole fight of Waterloo was for the plateau\nof Mont St. Jean: the whole fight of Bull Run was for a plateau,\nwhere the battle began and ended. In the afternoon, there was the\nsame irregular contest. Toward nightfall Blucher burst upon the field\nlike a terrible avalanche, before which the dismayed French fled in\nterror. About four o\u2019clock in the evening of that Sabbath day, just\nas Beauregard gave the order to his entire line to advance, Kirby\nSmith, like Blucher, suddenly emerged from the woods, and burst like a\nthunder-clap upon the scene. This, at once, changed the whole aspect of\nthe fight. The disheartened Federals gave way on the right, and fled\nbefore the intrepid soldiers of Kirby Smith. At the same time, the\nentire \u201crebel\u201d army charged with reviving hopes and renewed energy. The\nFederals disappeared like phantoms from the gory scene, leaving clouds\nof smoke, abandoned wagons, wounded and dead men, to mark the spot\nwhere they had so lately fought with a courage and desperation worthy\nof their blood. Kirby Smith had saved the day.\n\nSoon the roar of battle ceased, and the \u201crebel yell\u201d announced to\nthose in the distance that the first important battle of the war had\nterminated in favor of the \u201cGreat Rebellion.\u201d The \u201cGrand Army,\u201d which\nhad, that Sabbath morning, marched out with so firm a step, rolled back\nupon Washington in broken fragments. It may appear a strange fact in\nhistory, but that one battle terminated the whole campaign of the year\n1861.\n\nThe enemy has gone, and the storm of battle has subsided. We can now\nquietly walk over the terrible field, and examine its gory wake. In\nthe final charge, the second Mississippi, with the exception of one\nregiment, was on the extreme left wing of the Confederate army. Just\nat the time that Kirby Smith\u2019s bayonet flashed like lightning into the\ncloud of battle, a young officer was seen to wave his sword, and fall\nto the earth with a groan. It was Ernest Edgefield.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VII.\n\nAFTER THE BATTLE.\n\n\nSometimes in battle a soldier suddenly finds himself prostrated to the\nearth. He knows not what has happened. A dizziness comes over him.\nThen he glances down at his limbs, and discovers that he is bleeding.\nHe knows he is wounded, but he cannot tell to what extent. It may be\na fearful shot which will end his mortal existence the next moment,\nor it may be only a severe shock that has touched no vital part. When\nErnest fell, it was a moment before he could clearly comprehend what\nhad occurred. One of his company ran to him, and asked:\n\n\u201cAre you much hurt?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; I fear I have received a long furlough.\u201d\n\nThe soldier tore off some of his clothing, and, after a brief\nexamination, said:\n\n\u201cIt is a severe wound, Captain, but I don\u2019t think it is fatal. Shall I\nstay with you?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no, go on with the boys. Never mind me. We have whipped them,\nthank God, and I can die, if it is His will, with a clear conscience.\nGo on with the boys.\u201d\n\nThe soldier gathered up his military implements, and pushed on with his\ncomrades in pursuit of the flying foe, and Ernest was left alone with\nthe wounded, dead and dying. Presently he fell into a train of thought\nas follows:\n\n\u201cPerhaps this is another warning. I have totally disregarded what Mr.\nHillston says is my call to the ministry. Shall I now promise God, as I\nlie here, that I will yield to the call, if He will spare my life? No;\nfor I cannot believe that I am called of God. Why does not God give me\nsome reliable evidence, if He really wants me to be a minister? I shall\nwait a while yet. But suppose I die?\u201d He could not make up his mind to\npreach.\n\nAt six o\u2019clock, an elderly gentleman, with an honest, open, benevolent\ncountenance came to the spot where Ernest was lying. He was the first\nwounded soldier the gentleman reached.\n\n\u201cWhat is your condition, my young friend?\u201d he asked in a kindly voice.\n\n\u201cI am wounded here in the side,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cCould you travel in a buggy a few miles?\u201d\n\n\u201cI think I could, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, if you can, I would be pleased to take you to my house, where\nyou can have proper attention and good nursing. Will you go? I will\nassist you into the buggy.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir; I will accept your kind offer. How far do you have to go?\u201d\n\n\u201cAbout six miles; but it is a good road, and we can make the drive in\nan hour. I could hear the fighting all day from my house. At noon,\nduring the lull, I supposed the battle might be over, and I started to\nthe scene of action. But when I had driven three miles, I discovered\nthat the fight was renewed with redoubled fury. When it ended, I\nlearned from a courier how the day had gone, and I came on to do what I\ncould for our wounded. It will afford me pleasure to take care of you\ntill you are again ready for duty?\u201d\n\n\u201cI shall be under lasting obligations, sir,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\nAt once, Ernest was assisted into the buggy, and driven along at a slow\npace till they reached the gentleman\u2019s residence at eight o\u2019clock\nin the evening. This gentleman was a Presbyterian minister, by name\nDr. Arrington. His family consisted of a wife and three daughters,\nthe elder of whom was about twenty years of age--an intelligent, well\neducated young lady. She had completed her education the previous year\nat one of the best female colleges of Virginia. We cannot say that she\nwas perfectly beautiful, for, though her features seemed faultless when\ncontemplated singly, yet the grouping was somehow a little defective.\nNo one could tell what was lacking, but there was something. But the\nperfection of her features enabled her to bear a most rigid inspection,\nand she improved greatly on acquaintance. She had a decidedly classical\ncast of countenance. In conversation her face beamed with intelligence\nand sympathy, which made her appear handsome and lovely. She belonged,\nin a word, to that class, who attract more by their moral excellencies\nthan their physical graces. Mildred Arrington, however, possessed\na symmetrical figure, and her every movement betrayed elegance of\nmanners and refinement of taste and intellectual culture. All who were\nintimately acquainted with her, thought her beautiful.\n\nWith this kind family Ernest remained for many days, while his wound\nwas slowly healing. Dr. Arrington had an excellent library, in which\nhe and his family spent much of their time. They were an intellectual\nfamily. Ernest here spent some of the happiest hours of his life, in\nthe company of the three girls, especially Mildred. The Doctor was also\na congenial companion, and loved to talk. He was an earnest Christian,\nwho believed, though, in getting as much legitimate happiness out of\nthis mortal life as possible. There was none of the Pharisee in his\ncomposition. He received the gospel with the simple faith of a child,\nand so preached it. He believed in providing innocent amusements for\nhis family. The consequence was, there was no nicer place to visit and\nno happier home in all the country than Dr. Arrington\u2019s. His residence\nwas full of sunshine, and no discordant sound was ever heard beneath\nthat roof.\n\nIt will not appear wonderful, then, that the days passed rapidly away\nin the consciousness of Ernest, who felt loth to put an end to the\nperiod of his convalescence. But at last he began to painfully realize\nthat he could not remain much longer, with propriety, beneath this\nhospitable roof. When he thought of leaving Mildred he discovered that\nit filled him with the keenest pain. But why should it? If he really\nloved her, why not propose, at once, and bind her to him by a tie which\nnothing but death could sever? He must go back to the army in a few\ndays, and the probability was, he could never see her again.\n\nIt was hardly reasonable to suppose that he could go through many such\nscenes as those of Bull Run, and escape with his life. But he felt that\nhe could not bid farewell to this happy family without the prospect of\na closer relationship with them in the future. He believed that he had\nendeared himself to them; but one thing was certain, they had so wound\nthemselves around his heart that the thought of never seeing them again\nwas intolerable.\n\nOne day about a week before his departure, he was walking in the lawn\nin company with Mildred. Presently Ernest fell into a reverie that made\nhis face appear more solemn than usual. He was aroused by a soft voice\nat his side:\n\n\u201cYou appear to be in a profound study.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo I was,\u201d replied Ernest, heaving a deep sigh.\n\n\u201cIt was something unpleasant, was it not?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat makes you think so?\u201d\n\n\u201cI noticed your countenance,\u201d answered Mildred, \u201cjust now, which was\nexpressive of pain.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are a good physiognomist,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cI was just thinking\nthat in a few days more I must return to my command.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd is it so painful to fight for your country?\u201d quickly asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cYou misunderstand me,\u201d said Ernest. \u201cIt is no reluctance to serve my\ncountry: for God knows that I am willing to die for the independence of\nthe Confederate States, if necessary. But there are things to me more\nbitter than death itself.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou talk in riddles, Captain.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; because I was talking to myself partly. It is due to you that I\nshould explain myself.\u201d After a pause, he continued: \u201cI have had few\nassociates in my life. My father and mother left me a lonely orphan\nwhen I was a small boy. From various causes, which I need not weary\nyou by relating, my life has not been very happy. I have found very\nfew congenial companions among either sex. I have now prepared your\nmind for the reception of the fact, that the time spent beneath your\nfather\u2019s roof, is the happiest portion of my existence. I was thinking\njust now, that I must soon leave, and the probability is, I shall never\nagain see you and the family till we shall all meet in the eternal\nworld.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy should you take such a gloomy view, Captain?\u201d asked Mildred,\nslightly coloring. \u201cWe destroy our happiness by anticipating\nmisfortunes that may never befall us. You may go through the war, and\ncome out with honors budding thick upon your brow. Why not look forward\nto promotion? Who knows,\u201d she continued, trying to smile, \u201cbut that you\nmay be a General?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; I have no ambition in that way. I do not want any greater\nresponsibility than the command of a single company involves.\u201d\n\nThere was a pause, which was broken by Mildred suddenly saying:\n\n\u201cWhat foolish thoughts will sometimes flash into our minds.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat mean you?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cI was just thinking what an astounding victory you could gain, if you\nhad control of that one force, from which all the forces of nature, I\nthink, are derived.\u201d\n\nThis idea of Mildred\u2019s was fully elaborated by Lord Lytton, some few\nyears afterwards, and the force was called _vrill_. But as we are not\nwriting a treatise on science, we will proceed with our story.\n\n\u201cO,\u201d she continued gaily, \u201cdo you not wish you had something of that\nsort?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have had such foolish thoughts a thousand times,\u201d replied Ernest,\nbreaking into a laugh, \u201cbut I did not know that anybody else had such\nabsurd fancies. I found myself wishing for miraculous powers on the\nbattle field of Bull Run a short time since. When our soldiers were\nabout to retreat in a wild panic in the evening, I almost cried aloud\nfor a cyclone to hurl upon those dark columns. How quickly I thought I\nwould annihilate them. Was it not preposterous?\u201d\n\nAnd they both laughed.\n\n\u201cI should be ashamed,\u201d said Mildred, \u201cto let any one know what wild\nfancies pass through this dwarfish brain of mine. The truth is, I live\nin an ideal world. I often find myself wishing that I could visit some\n\u2018New Utopia.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat a coincidence,\u201d said Ernest, looking at the young lady in\nsurprise.\n\n\u201cWhat is?\u201d she asked.\n\n\u201cThat you and I should be dreaming about the same absurdities.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, I do not know,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cI have never cared to mention\nmy silly reveries to any one. Indeed, it is the first time in my life\nthat I have alluded to them.\u201d\n\n\u201cMay you not be wrong to call them \u2018silly\u2019? Some of the happiest\nmoments of my life have been spent in this way. I frequently discover\nmyself traveling about in some of Munchausen\u2019s wonderful vehicles, and\nI become so absorbed that my imaginings appear as realities.\u201d\n\n\u201cI, too, do the same thing,\u201d said Mildred, turning her blue eyes upon\nhim in surprise.\n\n\u201cMiss Mildred,\u201d spoke up Ernest after a brief pause, \u201cour minds seem to\nhave been constructed in the same molds. Henceforth I shall be forever\nmeeting you in my psychological peregrinations. I have no doubt that I\nshall often rove back to this beautiful yard and these grand oaks, when\nI am sitting around the bivouac fire or meditating in my tent.\u201d\n\nMildred began to look serious, and to turn her face in order to conceal\nthe treacherous blushes which, she felt, must be mantling her cheeks.\n\n\u201cI am glad to think,\u201d she answered in a low, hesitating tone, \u201cthat\nyour imprisonment here has been rendered tolerable.\u201d\n\n\u201cTolerable!\u201d cried Ernest. \u201cI wish such imprisonment could last\nforever!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat!\u201d exclaimed Mildred, feigning not to understand, \u201cwould you be\nwilling to be cooped up while your comrades are fighting the battles of\nliberty? Sometimes I wish I could go myself, and that I were an Amazon\nstout enough to shoulder a cannon. The poor South needs every soldier\nshe can get. You must, therefore, dismiss your Utopian dreams and enter\ninto gory and awful realities.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I know myself,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI do not shrink from those realities.\nBut I need something to inflame my zeal.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you need?\u201d she asked, wishing after the inquiry had been made,\nthat she had propounded some other question.\n\n\u201cI have told you,\u201d he replied, \u201cthat I have no intimate friends. My\naffections are roving around like the \u2018wandering Jew,\u2019 seeking some\nobject upon which to concentrate. The object that comes within their\nfocus will find no reason to complain of their lack of intensity. Do\nyou understand me?\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot say that I do,\u201d answered Mildred, \u201cbut I should think that\nthe goddess of Liberty would be sufficient to elicit all the better\nfeelings and aspirations of your soul.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe goddess of Liberty may call forth a certain class of affections,\nbut there is another group which requires a more substantial being.\u201d\nMildred said nothing, but looked thoughtful. She understood what\nErnest meant, yet he had spoken so vaguely that she was reminded of\nthe amiable Pickwick and the widow Bardell, which association of ideas\ncaused her to laugh out-right. Ernest gazed at her in amazement and\npain.\n\n\u201cWhat is it that amuses you so?\u201d he asked in a tone indicative of\ndispleasure.\n\n\u201cPlease excuse me, Captain,\u201d she said deprecatingly. \u201cI was not, I\nassure you, laughing at anything you said. It was only a foolish and\nridiculous thought that suddenly came into my mind. I beg your pardon,\u201d\nshe said earnestly.\n\n\u201cGranted,\u201d he replied, \u201cif you will only be serious for a moment.\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly, I will.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will speak plainly so that you cannot misunderstand me. The truth\nis, I love you.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Captain,\u201d she exclaimed with solemn earnestness, \u201cwhat a time for\nsuch a declaration!\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cWhy, we are on the threshold of a terrible war which will end, we know\nnot when.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is the very reason I want a love to sustain me under the trials\nwhich await me. My nature demands love. I am gloomy and wretched\nwithout it.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow have you managed this long, Captain?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will tell you all about it.\u201d And he gave her a full account of all\nthe circumstances of his past life, after which Mildred with a cunning\nsmile, said:\n\n\u201cIt seems, then, I am second choice.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are mistaken. I did not know my own heart then. I never had for\nher the deep, ineffable affection I have for you. After this honest\nexplanation must I leave you without hope? If I do, it matters little\nto me what shall become of me. I shall consider that ball from the\nenemy\u2019s gun a mercy that shall put an end to my misery. But with your\nlove, I shall be the happiest soldier in the army. I shall have an\nobject for which to live. Can you, will you give me any hope?\u201d\n\nErnest perceived that Mildred was violently agitated, and he felt\nencouraged.\n\n\u201cTell me,\u201d he urged, \u201cthat you will be mine, when this cruel war is\nover, if I come out the fiery crucible alive.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am glad you have given me time to reflect about the matter,\u201d she\nsaid at last. \u201cI will candidly say this: if you are alive and I am,\nwhen the war ends, and the feelings of neither undergo any change, it\nshall be as you wish. Is that sufficient?\u201d\n\nSo these two young people, with that pure affection, glowing in their\nhearts, which is sanctioned by the Allwise God, standing under the\nbroad-spreading oaks, agreed to enter into the sacred relation which\nconstitutes the very foundation of human society. Why should older\npersons, who have lost the ardor, aspirations and hopes of youth, sneer\nat what they are pleased to call \u201csickly love stories?\u201d God implanted\nthese sacred affections in the human heart to bind society together,\nand it is these which make man a gregarious animal. Is that pure love\nwhich leads to the marriage relation only evidence of a kind of folly\nthat deserves to be ridiculed? Why do prudish, righteous-over-much\npeople, calling themselves critics, cry out against stories which\nillustrate social realities, and which seek to inspire the youth of\nour country with proper respect and reverence for a heaven-sanctioned\ninstitution? Why is it that extremely pious people profess such an\naversion to \u201clove scenes\u201d--scenes that are every day realities in the\nranks of the purest and most refined society? Such scenes as we have\ndescribed, call them \u201clove-sick,\u201d who will, actually transpired during\nthe war, and many a soldier found a God-sent wife in the hospitals.\nThese love affairs mingle with the gravest concerns of human life.\nWhy, then, omit them from the pages of a story which is intended to\nbe a true picture? There is nothing startling or sensational in them.\nIndeed, they are so old, common and customary that they derive any\ninterest they may possess from new combinations of circumstances.\nEliminate these circumstances, and nothing is left but an occurrence\nthat transpires every hour of the day. We may here say that there is\nnothing in this volume that should prevent it from occupying a place on\nthe shelves of any Sabbath-school library.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VIII.\n\nHARD TRUTHS.\n\n\nDuring the time that Ernest was confined in the house of Dr. Arrington,\nhe had had several discussions with that gentleman, of doctrines which\nare regarded by the world as distinctive dogmas of the Presbyterian\nChurch. They were conducted on both sides with the utmost calmness,\npoliteness and good-will. It is a fact that generally men cannot engage\nin discussions of religious questions with moderation. They are often\nmore acrimonious than politicians. But the Doctor was naturally calm\nand tranquil, and Ernest found that his first belief was beginning to\ntotter on its foundation. Mildred, too, believed this \u201chorrid doctrine\nof predestination,\u201d which, in the mind of Ernest, had a tendency to\nstrip it of its forbidding aspects. But still he was not perfectly\nsatisfied. The discussions which he had with Dr. Arrington, were, on\nhis part, designed more to elicit information and proof than sustain\nhis own assumed position; in different language, Ernest took the \u201cwrong\nside\u201d in order that the Doctor might overturn it.\n\nTwo or three days before Ernest was to start to his command, he was\nsitting in the Doctor\u2019s study looking over the Westminster Confession\nof Faith. The Doctor, glancing up presently, and seeing how the young\nman was employed, said pleasantly:\n\n\u201cYou have tackled what the world calls a \u2018hard book,\u2019 Captain.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe world, in my opinion,\u201d answered Ernest, with a smile, \u201cis not much\nto blame for taking that view of it.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo doubt,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cthe doctrines which it proclaims are\n\u2018hard to be understood,\u2019 as Paul himself declared.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou will have it that Paul was speaking of predestination, will you,\nDoctor?\u201d\n\n\u201cHe certainly must have been. Of what else could he have been speaking?\nIf he was discussing free agency, I am sure there is no difficulty in\nthat. What is there in free agency to make Paul say, \u2018The Lord will\nhave mercy on whom He will have mercy\u2019? What is there in free agency to\nmake Peter open his eyes and wonder, and declare that it was \u2018hard to\nbe understood?\u2019 What is there in free agency that people could \u2018wrest\nto their own destruction?\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is there in predestination that people can wrest to their\ndestruction?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cWhy just this,\u201d replied the Doctor: \u201cMen said, and say it to this day,\n\u2018Well, if my destiny is fixed, I shall make no effort to be saved, for\nI cannot change my destiny; I intend to take my fill of sin.\u2019 That\nis the way they wrest it to their destruction. Any one who really\nbelieves the doctrine of predestination never talks in that way. On the\ncontrary, if he believes that he is one of the elect, he will be the\nmore earnest and diligent in making that election sure.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cwhat is the use of his diligence, if he is one of\nthe elect? He will be saved anyhow.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is the way people talked in Paul\u2019s day,\u201d replied the Doctor, \u201cbut\nI will answer you. Do you not remember that the Lord promised Gideon he\nshould gain the victory with his three hundred men? Why did not Gideon\nsay, \u2018if that is so, I shall do nothing; I shall employ no strategy,\nbut I shall wait for the Lord to conquer His enemies.\u2019 When God told\nPaul, as he was tossed in a frail vessel on the storm-lashed sea, that\nhe and all on board should certainly be saved, why did not the apostle\ntell the sailors to sit down quietly, and they should all reach the\nland in safety? Why, the knowledge that they should be saved inspired\nthe crew with hope, and courage to renewed efforts to work out their\nsalvation. This doctrine arouses the believer\u2019s energies, instead of\nbegetting a spirit of indolence and rebellion.\u201d\n\nWhile the Doctor was speaking, Ernest was slowly turning the pages of\nthe Confession of Faith, as if looking for some particular passage,\nand at the same time as if paying strict attention to what was said.\nJust as the preacher closed his last remark, Ernest came to the third\nchapter and said:\n\n\u201cWhat does this mean, Doctor?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d\n\n\u201c\u2018God from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His\nwill freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d continued Ernest quickly closing the book with his thumb\nbetween the leaves, \u201cthere it is--\u2018God ordains whatsoever comes to\npass.\u2019 It seems there is no exception, murder, sin, robberies and\nall. Whatever I do, then, good or bad, God ordained it. How am I\nresponsible? If that clause does not destroy man\u2019s free agency, I\ncannot understand the meaning of words. Surely, Doctor, you do not\nendorse this book? You do not believe that God is the author of sin?\u201d\n\nThe Doctor looked at Ernest in astonishment, smiled, and said:\n\n\u201cAre you certain it says just exactly that?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I can read, it says that.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are like a great many other people,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cwho find\nfault with the Confession, and jump to conclusions, without really\nknowing what it does say. Now, if you please, open the book, and read\non--read it all--that is the whole paragraph; for you paused in the\nmiddle of a sentence.\u201d\n\nErnest read:\n\n\u201cGod from all eternity did, by the most wise and holy counsel of His\nown will, freely and unchangeably ordain whatsoever comes to pass;\nyet so as thereby neither is God the author of sin; nor is violence\noffered to the will of the creatures, nor is the liberty or contingency\nof second causes taken away, but rather established.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, that makes a considerable difference, does it not?\u201d asked the\nDoctor.\n\n\u201cBut it does say, Doctor, that God ordains whatsoever comes to pass.\nThe exceptional clause does not deny this, but simply affirms that\nGod is not the author of sin. But does it not say that God ordains\nwhatsoever comes to pass?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly, it does.\u201d\n\n\u201cEvery event?\u201d\n\n\u201cUndoubtedly. There is no exception.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Ernest with a triumphant air, \u201clast week Mr. Jones killed\nTom Smith in cold blood. It was deliberate assassination--murder in the\nfirst degree. Now, did God ordain that or not?\u201d\n\n\u201cGod ordained it in this way: He did not decree that Jones should kill\nSmith without any connection with other events. But He fore-saw that\ncertain causes would operate so as to culminate in the murder; yet\nHe permitted those causes to operate, for the accomplishment of some\nwise purpose. The difficulty is, we cannot see things as God does. We\nconsider it as an awful calamity that Jones should kill Smith, when we\nhave no idea what the divine purpose is. The murder was not an isolated\ncircumstance, but it was the legitimate result of certain other causes\nwhich the two men themselves might have controlled, so far as their own\nfree agency was concerned. But Jones had murder in his heart, and the\nLord permitted him to follow his own inclinations. Now, God fore-saw,\nfrom all eternity, that this murder would grow out of other events, yet\nHe determined to permit those events to occur, and in that sense He\nordained it. But you, surely, cannot infer that God is the author of\nthe murder. God is not the author of men\u2019s actions. He did not force\nJones to kill Smith. But let me ask you a question. Suppose lightning\nhad killed Mr. Smith, instead of Jones\u2019 knife, would you say that God\nhad anything to do with it, or was it a pure accident?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt was not an accident,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cin the usual acceptation of the\nword.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are correct, because with God there is no accident. Well, if\nthe Lord chose to destroy Smith by a knife in the hands of a wicked\nman, instead of lightning, what right have we to cry out, \u2018horrible!\nhorrible!\u2019 God sends diseases upon men, and innocent babes and women,\nand good men are swept off by thousands; shall we accuse the Lord of\ncruelty and injustice?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; He has the right to do that.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd so He has the right to remove His creatures in whatever way He\nmay please,\u201d said the Doctor. \u201cI firmly believe that God ordained\nthe present war--not arbitrarily, though,--not as an isolated\ncircumstance; but it has legitimately grown out of causes that have\nbeen working together for years. Men, goaded on to desperation by\ntheir own evil passions, meet upon the field and destroy each other.\nThey are conscious that they are acting as free agents. We have no\nmore right then, to impeach divine goodness for permitting this\nwholesale butchery, than we have for allowing Jones to kill Smith, or\nsome disease to destroy the innocent babe. We make a great mistake\nby supposing that there ought not to be violent deaths; they are the\nnecessary concomitants of sin, and must ever result from the inexorable\nlaw of cause and effect.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cif it was ordained that Jones should kill Smith,\nJones ought not to be punished for the deed.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy dear Captain,\u201d said the Doctor good humoredly, \u201ca lawyer like you,\nought not to quibble in that way. The mere fact that God permits crime\ndoes not destroy human responsibility. You might just as well say\nthat Judas ought not to have been punished for betraying the Savior.\nUndoubtedly it was ordained that he should perform that deed of shame;\nbecause it was foretold centuries before our Lord\u2019s advent.\u201d\n\nErnest knew not what reply to make. The Doctor had answered his\nobjections. So he turned the leaves of the book, and said:\n\n\u201cHere is another passage which seems to me to need explanation.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it?\u201d\n\nErnest read as follows:\n\n\u201cBy the decree of God, for the manifestation of His glory, some\nmen and angels are predestinated unto everlasting life, and others\nfore-ordained to everlasting death.\n\n\u201cThese men and angels, thus predestinated and fore-ordained, are\nparticularly and unchangeably designed and their number is so certain\nthat it cannot be either increased or diminished.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat reads rather harsh, does it not?\u201d asked the Doctor.\n\n\u201cYes, sir; it does.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd yet it is what the Bible says.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere will I find that?\u201d\n\n\u201cTurn to Romans 9:22-25: \u2018What if God, willing to show His wrath, and\nto make His power known, endured with much long suffering, the vessels\nof wrath fitted to destruction; and that He might make known the riches\nof His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He had afore prepared unto\nglory?\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cThat does seem to teach that there are two classes,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cUndoubtedly, it does.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut it says,\u201d continued Ernest, \u201cthat this number is so fixed and\ncertain that it can neither be increased nor diminished.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is surely no difficulty in that,\u201d said the Doctor. \u201cIt is a\nmathematical fact, and would be true, if the Scriptures said nothing\nabout it. Leaving predestination entirely out of the question, that\nwould be true. For on the Day of Judgment, when the destiny of every\nhuman being is settled, there will be a certain number saved, and a\ncertain number lost. Now, can the number be increased or diminished?\nI never could see why anybody should object to that clause, when it is\ntrue according to the doctrine of every religious denomination in the\nworld.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Ernest laughing, \u201chere is more of this hard doctrine.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us hear it,\u201d said the Doctor.\n\nErnest read as follows:\n\n\u201cThose of mankind that are predestinated unto life, God, before\nthe foundation of the world was laid, according to His eternal and\nimmutable purpose, and the secret counsel and good pleasure of His\nwill, out of His mere free grace and love, without any foresight of\nfaith or good works--\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d exclaimed Ernest, breaking off suddenly, \u201cthere it is--without\nany foresight of faith or good works--saved arbitrarily.\u201d\n\nAgain the Doctor gazed at Ernest in surprise. \u201cMy young friend,\u201d said\nthe Doctor, with an amused expression, \u201cyou do not pause, for a moment,\nto reflect what the paragraph does really mean, but you at once jump to\nunauthorized conclusions.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have read it _verbatim_,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cBut you did not read it all. You have read just as our opposers do\nwho give garbled extracts from the Confession, and then draw the most\nabsurd inferences. You stopped in the middle of the sentence. Read it\nall.\u201d\n\nErnest read:\n\n\u201cWithout any foresight of faith or good works, or perseverance in\neither of them, or any other thing in the creature, as conditions, or\ncauses moving Him thereunto.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe meaning,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cis that God did not choose His people\non account of their faith and good works. Faith itself is the gift of\nGod. All men are in a state of guilt by nature. How, then, could the\nLord fore-see faith and good works in any of them, growing out of their\nevil natures? How could they possibly perform good works without a\nregenerated heart?\u201d\n\n\u201cFor what did He choose them, then?\u201d\n\n\u201cI can answer you only in the language of His own Word, which says,\nit was \u2018according to the good pleasure of His will.\u2019 Certainly, the\nLord has some good reason for saving a portion of the human race and\nrejecting, or rather passing by the rest, but He has nowhere acquainted\nus with that reason. If election is such a \u2018hard\u2019 doctrine, what would\nhave been the result, if God had not made any choice at all, but left\nmen to follow the bent of their own wills, how many do you suppose\nwould have been saved? The carnal heart is enmity against God. Could\nmen, then have chosen God? Verily not. Christ Himself declares, \u2018No\nman can come unto me, except the Father, which sent me, draw him.\u2019 Do\nyou not see clearly, then, that, without this much-abused doctrine of\nelection, no human being could possibly be saved? It is a doctrine\nwhich the Church cannot afford to give up, and it is a doctrine to\nwhich every denomination holds in some form. We differ only as to the\nprinciple upon which the election is based. We Presbyterians, adhere\nrigidly to the Bible, and say that God\u2019s choice grows out of His own\nwill and pleasure, while our opposers affirm that it is founded upon\nthe good works of the creature, and thus make salvation a matter of\ndebt, and not of pure, free grace. That is the difference between us,\nand I leave it to you, with the Bible as your guide, to determine which\nview is the more Scriptural.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is another thing I should like to ask you about,\u201d said Ernest,\nfeeling that he could produce no further objections.\n\n\u201cWhat is it? I will answer to the best of my knowledge and ability.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have heard it said that some Presbyterian preachers hold to the view\nthat there are infants in hell \u2018not a span long.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cDid you ever hear one say such a thing?\u201d asked the Doctor.\n\n\u201cNo sir; I never did.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd did you ever see anybody that heard a Presbyterian minister preach\nit?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; and you never will,\u201d said the Doctor with emphasis. \u201cThat is an\nold slander without the slightest foundation. We would instantly depose\nany Presbyterian minister who would dare to make such an assertion. The\ntruth is, we believe that all infants that die are saved.\u201d\n\n\u201cYour Confession says something about infants, does it not, Doctor?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, yes. Give me the book, and I will find it for you. Here it is.\nChapter X: \u2018Elect infants, dying in infancy, are regenerated and saved\nby Christ through the Spirit, who worketh when, and where, and how He\npleaseth.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cElect infants, Doctor? Does not that imply that there are non-elect\ninfants?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou can put that construction upon it, if you wish,\u201d said the Doctor;\n\u201cbut the term is explained in several ways. I really do not know which\nview the framers of the Confession intended we should take. So we are\nat liberty to construe it in that way which appears most consistent to\nus.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is your construction?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is this: all mankind are evidently divided into two classes--the\nelect and the non-elect--the saved and the lost. You believe that, do\nyou not?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, yes; that is true.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, of course, the non-elect are sinners in their infancy as well as\nin after life. In that sense there are non-elect infants; but we do not\nbelieve that any of them die in infancy.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut how do you know that they do not?\u201d\n\n\u201cBecause Christ says, that \u2018of such is the kingdom of heaven.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cAccording to your view, then,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthere are non-elect\ninfants, but they do not die in infancy?\u201d\n\n\u201cExactly,\u201d replied the Doctor. \u201cBut there is another explanation.\nSome say the framers of the Confession put in the word \u2018elect\u2019 not\nto divide infants into two classes, but to show upon what principle\nthey are saved; they are _elected_ to salvation. You know, John uses\nthe expression, \u2018the elect lady\u2019 and her sister. This certainly would\nnot mean that there was a non-elect lady. Again, in the form for the\nbaptism of infants in the Methodist Discipline, the minister prays\nthat \u2018_this child may be numbered among the elect children of God_.\u2019\nWe would not, of course, insist that the Methodists believe that there\nare _non-elect_ children. Some say that the Confession means by \u2018elect\ninfants,\u2019 just what the Methodists do in their form of baptism. But\nafter all, the Presbyterian Church is the only one probably whose\ndoctrine does consistently save infants. We declare they are saved\nby _election_. If not, tell me how they can be saved? They cannot\nrepent and believe as adults do. Then do you not see, if they are not\n_elected_ by a merciful Father, they must be lost forever?\u201d\n\n\u201cUpon my word,\u201d quickly and honestly exclaimed Ernest, \u201cI had never\nlooked at the subject in that light. You have taught me something I\nnever knew before.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am glad,\u201d replied the Doctor, \u201cif I have helped you out of any\ndifficulty.\u201d\n\n\u201cI candidly acknowledge, Doctor, that the more I study this deep\nsubject, the more reasonable and Scriptural it seems.\u201d\n\nAnd here the discussion ended for that day. Ernest, seeing Mildred\nwalking in the yard and clipping flowers, vacated his seat and joined\nher. The Doctor looked at him, as he left, and a perceptible smile\nstole over his benevolent face.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IX.\n\n\u201cOFF TO THE WARS.\u201d\n\n\nThe next day Ernest and the Doctor were alone in the study. The former\nseemed to be a little restless, like a man who wishes to say something,\nbut knows not how to begin; the latter was tranquil as usual, poring\nover his theological books. Ernest would try to read, and then glance\nup uneasily at the calm old man upon whose open face God had put the\nseal of honesty. Ernest became fidgety. But presently he spoke:\n\n\u201cWill you give me your attention just a moment, Doctor?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly; I am at your service,\u201d replied the Doctor, laying his open\nbook on the table.\n\n\u201cYou believe the Confession of Faith?\u201d asked Ernest with a merry\ntwinkle, which escaped the preacher\u2019s notice.\n\n\u201cUndoubtedly, I do.\u201d\n\n\u201cYesterday you said you believed that God ordained whatsoever comes to\npass.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I believe that, too.\u201d\n\n\u201cWithout exception?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d replied the Doctor, unsuspiciously.\n\n\u201cWell, then,\u201d said Ernest, casting his eyes to the floor, \u201cMiss Mildred\nhas agreed to become Mrs. Edgefield, when this \u2018cruel war is over.\u2019 If\nthe Lord has ordained that, you will, of course, offer no objection.\u201d\n\nThe old minister broke out into a hearty laugh in which he was joined\nby Ernest.\n\n\u201cThat is a clever turning of the table, my young friend,\u201d said the\nDoctor pleasantly. \u201cBut all that is really ordained is that she has\nagreed to the arrangement.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes sir, that is all.\u201d\n\n\u201cI mean so far as we actually know. We know not what God has in store\nfor any of us. I believe that the Lord directs every Christian in his\naffairs. If you have won Mildred\u2019s heart, I shall offer no objection to\nyour union whenever it may please her to consummate it. These are very\nuncertain times, and the good Lord only knows what may become of any of\nus.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe can but hope, sir,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cHope and pray,\u201d replied the Doctor.\n\nErnest was now happy and unhappy--a thrilling contradiction which all\nwill understand who have been in the same condition. He must leave in\na few hours. Would he ever return? There lay before him the prospect\nof a long and bloody war. How many battles like that of Bull Run could\nhe go through, and escape with his life? He had already been severely\nwounded in the first fight in which he had been engaged. The chances\nseemed to be against him. Yet did not God control the events of battle?\nCould He not save and protect whom He would? Something similar to this\nthe Doctor said to Ernest the morning he was to rejoin his command.\n\n\u201cThe doctrine which we have several times discussed,\u201d said the Doctor,\n\u201chas always proved to be a source of great comfort to me, and it will\nbe to you, if you can believe it. Just think that your destiny is in\nGod\u2019s hands, and what need you fear? It is this that makes Jackson the\n_Stonewall_ that the lamented Bee called him with his dying breath. I\nam told that Jackson is almost a fatalist. But, whatever may be his\ndoctrinal errors, he is a firm believer in God\u2019s sovereignty. The\nconsequence is, he is afraid of nothing.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut are there not men as brave as he is, who do not believe this\ndoctrine?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cYes, in one sense. I do not mean to say that men are lacking in\ncourage who reject the doctrine which we have discussed. But there is\nsomething in Jackson which is more than courage. It is his sublime,\ninflexible faith. There are numbers of men who will go unflinchingly\ninto any of the dangers of battle, but they are animated by a spirit of\ndesperation, by human feelings, such as pride, ambition, and the like.\nBut Jackson puts himself unreservedly in the hands of God, and accepts\nwhatever comes without a murmur. He knows that he can never be killed\ntill God speaks the word, and it is this firm belief that gives such\nadamantine solidity to his grand and exalted character.\u201d\n\nThat morning when all knelt around the family altar, it was a most\nsolemn and affecting scene. Ernest was now regarded as one of the\nfamily. The Doctor read a portion of Scripture suitable to the\noccasion, and they sang with quivering voices three or four stanzas\nof that familiar old hymn, which seems destined to go sounding down\nthrough all the ages till the last of the redeemed are gathered home:\n\n\n     \u201cHow firm a foundation, ye saints of the Lord,\n     Is laid for your faith in His excellent word.\u201d\n\n\nThen all knelt down to pray. Ernest had the feeling of Jacob when, alone\nat Bethel, his head pillowed upon rock the patriarch said, \u201csurely the\nLord is in this place.\u201d A holy influence gently stole over his soul,\nas the Doctor, in a husky voice, prayed for their guest. All arose in\ntears. Ernest shed tears too, but they were strange tears. His faith\nwas firmer, and he felt that he could trust himself in the hands of God.\n\nAlas! those were days that tried men\u2019s souls! When the \u201csoldier boy\u201d\nwent from his home, it was like shaking hands over the grave. The\nmother drew her darling son to her breast and imprinted burning kisses\nupon his brow. He broke loose from her frantic embrace, and in a few\ndays afterwards, the news was brought that he was sleeping in the\nsoldier\u2019s bloody grave. Young husbands and wives parted to meet no more\ntill the last trump shall call them up on the resurrection morn. No\npen can describe the awful scenes of those four years of fratricidal\nstrife. Sad! sad! sad!\n\nErnest was accompanied by Mildred to the depot. They rode in a buggy\nwhile Dr. Arrington came on horse-back in the rear. The young man\nendeavored to be lively and cheerful, and this humor was encouraged\nby Mildred. Yet both could see through this disguised mutual gaiety.\nIt was not natural. Frequently there were long pauses in their\nconversation. Such is generally the case with two friends, about to\npart in a very short time, who feel that they ought to talk, but can\nthink of no topic suitable to the occasion. I have seen two brothers,\none of whom was condemned to be shot for a military offence, hold their\nlast interview; it was a _silent_ meeting. So when Ernest and Mildred\n_tried_ to keep up a cheerful conversation, they would often relapse\ninto silence.\n\n\u201cO, my Mildred,\u201d cried Ernest with deep emotion, as they neared the\ndepot, \u201cI can keep up this false show no longer. I am not cheerful.\nThe thought of leaving you is as bitter as death, and I may as well\ngive vent to my real feelings. I could almost wish that I had never met\nyou. My thoughts will all run out to you. O, I fear we shall never meet\nagain.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy should we look on the dark side of the picture?\u201d asked Mildred,\nin low, sweet tones. \u201cThere is a kind Father above who rules in the\naffairs of men. Whatever may happen, be assured the Judge of all the\nearth will do right. \u2018Our times are in His hands.\u2019 He will do that\nwhich is best for us. He can throw His everlasting arms around you,\nand shield you in the terrors of the hottest battle. The Mighty God\ncontrols all things.\u201d\n\n\u201cI see,\u201d said Ernest, trying to smile, \u201cthat you too, endeavor to\ncomfort yourself with that \u2018horrid\u2019 Presbyterian doctrine. You rely on\nthat on all occasions.\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly I do,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cI get as much comfort from it as\nfrom any truth taught in God\u2019s Holy Word.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am almost convinced,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthat predestination is a\ndoctrine of the Bible, but I wish I could bring it into practical\naffairs, as you do.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is easy to do,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cJust put yourself unreservedly\ninto the hands of God, and go out boldly in the discharge of duty. Of\nwhat should you be afraid?\u201d\n\n\u201cSometimes,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI think perhaps it is predestinated that I\nshall be lost.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you have that fear, it is an evidence that you are not so\npredestinated. If you were a reprobate, you would have no such fear.\nYou would be indifferent.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I am one of the elect,\u201d asked Ernest, \u201chow may I know it with\ncertainty?\u201d\n\n\u201cGod does not leave us to grope in doubt and darkness,\u201d replied\nMildred. \u201cIf you love the people of God, love the Church and its\nservices, love religion, love to meditate upon heavenly things, and\nlove to read your Bible, you know that you love the Lord Jesus. That is\na certain indication that the heart has been renewed. God has said that\nHis people shall never perish. They were chosen before the foundation\nof the world. If then, I was chosen from all eternity, how happy I\nought to feel; and I will add, how happy I do feel. This doctrine of\nelection and predestination, which is so horrible to some people, is\nthe greatest source of comfort to me.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou ought to be the wife of a minister,\u201d said Ernest, thoughtfully.\n\n\u201cI would ask no higher destiny in this world,\u201d modestly replied Mildred.\n\n\u201cThere is a Baptist preacher in my town,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cwho has tried\nto make me believe that I am called to preach.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat made him think so?\u201d\n\nErnest then briefly related the circumstances in regard to the matter,\nwith which the reader is acquainted. Mildred listened with the most\nintense interest, and a flash of joy suddenly illuminated her face.\n\n\u201cI am glad you told me that,\u201d she said, \u201cfor now I cannot but believe\nthat God is preparing you for His work just as He did Moses in the land\nof Midian. Go on, then; do your duty, and have faith in God. I will try\nto believe that you will be brought through all dangers in safety. God\nhas something for you to do. Are you willing to walk in the path which\nprovidence points out?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen have no fears.\u201d\n\nAnd from that moment she appeared so cheerful and confident, and seemed\nto have such strong faith in the divine goodness, love and care, that\nErnest caught her spirit. By the time they arrived at the depot he was\nin much better spirits.\n\n\u201cI am now satisfied,\u201d he said, as they were about to part, \u201cthat there\nis something more practical in the doctrines of the Presbyterian Church\nthan I had ever dreamed of. Henceforth I shall try to bring them into\nmy life as you do. But I am very skeptical by nature, and when I leave\nyou I may again fall into doubt. God bless you, my dear Mildred, for\nhelping to lift the clouds from my soul. I feel hopeful. But pray for\nme, that my faith fail not.\u201d\n\nMildred tried hard to restrain her tears, but it was in vain. They\nwere tears of joy mingled with tears of sadness. The train was heard\nrumbling in the distance, and Mildred said: \u201cI hope you will not regard\nme as a Cassandra, if I prophesy that you will at last return to us in\nsafety?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou shall be as a Deborah to me,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cYou must write to\nme every day.\u201d\n\n\u201cEvery day?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat I mean is, keep a sort of daily journal, and send it to me once\na week, if possible. I will do the same, and it will be a source of\npleasure to us.\u201d\n\nThe foregoing is no fancy-sketch, but an actual occurrence, and shows\nhow the dearest friends separated during the terrible, uncertain days\nof the Great Rebellion.\n\nPresently the train came dashing in, and Ernest stepped on\nthe platform, waved his hand to Mildred, and entered the\ncoach. The conductor shouted \u201cAll aboard.\u201d The bell rang:\nsizz--sizz--click--click--and a moment after, a young lady with a\nsolemn face was seen in a buggy, driving slowly and thoughtfully from\nthe depot. Her thoughts followed the train whose roaring she could hear\nin the distance. When she reached home, how sad all nature appeared!\nShe went to her room, locked the door, fell upon her knees, and prayed\nGod, with all the earnestness of her soul, to shield and protect him\nupon whom her temporal happiness depended. Hers was a sacred love which\nGod sanctioned.\n\nErnest, as the train went dashing along through forest and fields, sank\ndown into a seat, and without effort directed his imagination to the\nresidence of the good Doctor Arrington. He thanked God in his heart\nfor sending him to that house. Suppose he had not been wounded, he\nthought, or suppose he had fallen upon some other part of the field,\nthe probability was, Dr. Arrington would not have found him. How could\nhe fail to recognize the hand of God in all these little circumstances?\nThen, he prayed the Lord still to be with him, and direct all his\nfootsteps.\n\nIn connection with such thoughts as these, his memory revived scenes\nwhich had transpired the previous year. He recalled the agony of his\nunrequited love for Clara Vanclure. He had thought that he never could\nrecover from the wound which she had so ruthlessly inflicted. Three\nmonths, or less, after his rejection, she had married his rival,\ncontrary to the wishes of her father. He became enraged when she\ninformed him that she had discarded Ernest Edgefield.\n\n\u201cYou have acted like a--a--simpleton,\u201d he exclaimed, suppressing with\ndifficulty a much harsher appellation. \u201cWhom do you expect to marry, I\nshould like to know?\u201d\n\n\u201cMr. Comston,\u201d she answered hesitatingly.\n\n\u201cWell, well, that surpasses my comprehension--surpasses my\ncomprehension,\u201d he cried. \u201cI should like to know what you fancy\nin him--yes, fancy in him. Ernest is worth a thousand such\ncinnamon-scented popinjays--yes, cinnamon-scented popinjays.\u201d\n\n\u201cMr. Comston does not use cinnamon,\u201d Clara ventured to say\napologetically.\n\n\u201cIf he don\u2019t,\u201d exclaimed the irritated parent, \u201che uses musk which is\nworse, and bear\u2019s oil, and such other tomfoolery--other tomfoolery.\u201d\n\nClara blushed, but said nothing more, wisely allowing her provoked\nprogenitor to give vent to his indignation till the storm of wrath\nshould subside. Resistance would only increase its fury.\n\nBut she married, and Ernest saw her become the bride of his rival; for\nshe had sent him a card to her wedding, and Ernest went, to show her\nhow little he cared.\n\nAll this now appeared like some dim dream that flitted through his mind\nyears ago. How thankful he now felt that Comston had removed to the\ntown of ---- in time to prevent a complicated involution of the threads\nof destiny. If that young man had made his advent a few weeks later,\nthe conjugal infelicity of Ernest would have been an assured fact--at\nleast he felt so now. What an insignificant being Clara now appeared\nwhen put in contrast with the intelligent, accomplished and pious\nMildred Arrington. He almost shuddered as he thought of the narrow\nescape he had made. And the question came up in his mind, did God have\nnothing to do with this? If the sparrow does not escape the beneficent\nobservation of the Supreme Being, surely His intelligent creatures will\nreceive a due share of the divine watchfulness and loving care.\n\nAgain, while the train was thundering along its iron track, sad and\ngloomy thoughts and doubts, calculated to banish all cheerfulness,\nwould suddenly spring up in his mind, and the trembling light of hope\nwould almost disappear in the darkness. He recalled the old adage, \u201cMan\nproposes, God disposes.\u201d Suppose his intended union, after all, with\nMildred should not be in accord with the Divine purpose? Could he give\nher up? Would he not rebel, and murmur against God\u2019s will? Alas! how\nhard it is for a human being to tread the appointed path of destiny\nwith his will in complete subjection to that of the Heavenly Father!\nAt times, man cannot but think that his own chosen way is best. The\nretrospective view convinces him of his folly and infirmity.\n\n\u201cWhile I mused, the fire burned,\u201d said the Psalmist. While the train\nrattled along, Ernest thought and mused. Presently a brakesman cried\nout, \u201c---- Station.\u201d Ernest gathered up his baggage, and in a short\ntime was shaking hands with his comrades-in-arms.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER X.\n\nA DANGEROUS MISSION.\n\n\nIn the progress of the present story we have now come to some of those\nstrange, startling, and almost incredible events which prove the truth\nof the old proverb, \u201cTruth is stranger than Fiction,\u201d and which could\noccur only in those times when the foundations of society are shaken by\nmartial upheavals and commotions.\n\nWe stop at a small farm-house a few miles from Manassas, and not far\nfrom the residence of Dr. Arrington. It is in the afternoon of a\nbeautiful day. We open the door of one room of the little farm-house,\nand find ourselves in the presence of two Confederate officers, of high\nrank, who are engaged in an earnest conversation. Both have long since\npassed into history, and are inseparably connected with the \u201cGreat\nRebellion.\u201d The whole history of any war is, in fact, comprised in the\nbiographies of a few individuals. The lives of Lee, Grant, Jackson,\nSherman, and a few others that could be readily named, cover the entire\nfield of the War of Secession.\n\nIt is not essential to our story that we should give the names of the\ntwo Generals to whom reference has just been made. For reasons which\nare clear to the author, it is deemed advisable to leave our reader\nthe pleasure of identifying them, if he can. Merely for the sake of\nconvenience we will designate one as General A. and the other as\nGeneral B. As we stand in one corner of the room, eaves-dropping, as is\nthe privilege of the Novelist, we hear the following colloquy:\n\n\u201cIt will require a peculiar person for the business,\u201d said Gen. A. in\na rather low tone. \u201cIt must be a woman--and a woman of intelligence,\ndiscretion and courage.\u201d\n\n\u201cI know just such a one,\u201d replied Gen. B., \u201cbut I should dislike to ask\nher to run the risk that must be incurred.\u201d\n\n\u201cThese are times,\u201d answered Gen. A., \u201cwhich demand sacrifices. Our\nSouthern men and women should be willing to incur danger for the sake\nof their country. Cannot the South furnish an Iphigenia if one is\nnecessary to the success of our arms?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo doubt, many can be found,\u201d replied Gen. B., \u201cbut I should dislike\nto sacrifice any of our noble women, if it could possibly be avoided.\u201d\n\n\u201cWould it not be better,\u201d coolly asked Gen. A., \u201cto sacrifice a woman\nin the prosecution of this business than a good soldier? But who is the\nlady you mentioned? We can discuss the ethics of the case at some other\ntime.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is the daughter of Dr. Arrington,\u201d answered Gen. B. \u201cI dined with\nhis family last Sabbath, and I was impressed with the idea that the\nyoung lady is just such a woman as you have described.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am willing,\u201d said Gen. A., \u201cto take your judgment in this case. When\ncan we have an interview with her, do you suppose?\u201d\n\n\u201cAny time we may call, I think.\u201d\n\n\u201cSuppose we go at once, then,\u201d said Gen. A. \u201cThe business is urgent.\u201d\n\nAccordingly the two officers mounted their horses. Half an hour later\nthey alighted at Dr. Arrington\u2019s residence. They were met by the\nDoctor, and shown into the parlor. After talking a short time upon\ngeneral topics, Gen. B. broached the particular subject that had caused\nthe visit.\n\n\u201cDr. Arrington,\u201d said he, \u201cGen. A. is in search of a person to perform\na delicate and hazardous duty. The service is of such a nature that no\none but a lady can perform it well, and it must be a lady of bravery,\ndiscretion and intelligence.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know where you can find one in this community who will\nfulfill such requirements,\u201d said the Doctor.\n\n\u201cI have taken the liberty,\u201d said Gen. B., without seeming to have\nnoticed the Doctor\u2019s remark, \u201cto suggest your daughter, Miss Mildred.\u201d\n\n\u201cI doubt,\u201d replied the Doctor, \u201cthat she possesses the qualifications\nyou have named--at least, I do not know that she is brave.\u201d\n\n\u201cProbably,\u201d suggested Gen. A., \u201cyou have never seen her courage put to\nthe test.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I cannot say that I have.\u201d\n\n\u201cHowever,\u201d continued Gen. A., \u201cthe business I have in hand requires\nmore tact than courage.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it a perilous business, General?\u201d\n\n\u201cPerilous in case of detection; yes, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cI profess to love my country,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cand I am willing to\nmake sacrifices for it, but I cannot speak for my daughter. I will\ncall her, if you wish, and let her speak for herself.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you please,\u201d said Gen. A. \u201cWe mentioned the matter to you first in\norder to get your consent to an interview with her.\u201d\n\nThe Doctor went out of the room, and in a few moments returned with\nMildred, introducing her to Gen. A., who had never seen her before. An\nexplanation of how and why Gen. B. had formed the acquaintance of this\nfamily would, no doubt, lead at once to his personal identification.\n\n\u201cShall I remain in the room?\u201d asked the Doctor, after Mildred was\nseated.\n\n\u201cCertainly; we expected you to do so,\u201d replied Gen. A.\n\nThe true, actual history of the war of 1861 will never be written. It\ncannot be. It is only general events that the dignity of history will\ncondescend to record. Take the battle of Bull Run, which has been so\nbriefly described in previous pages of our story. Scarcely anything\nmore than the events which we have outlined will go down to future\ngenerations. The thousand little incidents which constituted the very\n_essence_ of the fight, and give to it a coloring which the historical\nbrush must ever miss, will never be known. The history of a battle is\nnothing more than a picture of it: three-fourths of the scenes are left\nout.\n\nFrom one till three o\u2019clock who can tell what occurred on the field\nof Bull Run? The war-cloud floated in fragments: it was like a fog.\nThe contest seemed to dwindle almost into individual combats. The grim\nwarriors were mixed up in a dense cloud of smoke, through which the\nhistorian cannot see clearly. It was not till after three o\u2019clock that\nthe battle presented an aspect that comes within the scope of history.\nTo get the correct history of those two or three hours, each individual\nlike Ernest would have to tell what occurred within his sight. Little\nincidents, though thrilling, such as we are about to relate, are\nrejected from the domain of sober history. Individual deeds of daring\nand heroism, necessity demands shall find their place in the province\nof biography. Accordingly that which Mildred performed will be found\nrecorded nowhere except in the pages of this story.\n\n\u201cWe have a mission,\u201d said Gen. A. presently, \u201cwhich only a lady can\naccomplish, and Gen. B. has suggested you as a person who would be\nlikely to undertake it; and this is the object of our present visit.\u201d\n\nMildred looked surprised.\n\n\u201cIf it is anything I can do, General,\u201d she said, \u201cI think I have\nsufficient patriotism to undertake it.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have no doubt of that. But, to make a long story short, we want a\nlady to go into the capital--Washington City, I mean.\u201d\n\nGen. A. watched her face closely and critically as he said this.\nMildred did not appear to be amazed at this information, but she\nquietly said:\n\n\u201cWill that be easy to do?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know; it depends upon the tact of the person that tries it,\u201d\nanswered Gen. A.\n\n\u201cI infer, then,\u201d she said, \u201cthat I would have to avoid the pickets and\nsentinels?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot so much that as other things which I will explain to you. But I\nshall not conceal the fact from you, that if you are detected, the\nconsequences will be enough to terrify not only a lady, but a desperate\nman.\u201d\n\n\u201cDeath, would it be?\u201d she asked in a firm, but gentle tone which\nconvinced Gen. A. that Gen. B. was not mistaken in his estimate of her\ncharacter.\n\n\u201cDeath, and \u2018death by hanging\u2019,\u201d answered Gen. A. with an emphasis\ndesigned to test her nerves.\n\n\u201cO, General!\u201d exclaimed the Doctor in some alarm, \u201cthat is asking too\nmuch of my child. She is too delicate and timid to take such a risk.\u201d\n\n\u201cI shall not insist upon anyone\u2019s undertaking it,\u201d replied Gen. A. with\na disappointed look. \u201cGen. B. here suggested that your daughter would\nbe the kind of person we need, but if you object we will say no more\nabout it.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy kind father has spoken hastily,\u201d said Mildred with dignity. \u201cI do\nnot know why the women of our country should not sometimes risk their\nlives as well as the soldiers. Suppose I should lose my life, it is\nno more than hundreds have already done. I am not afraid. I will go,\nGeneral, unless my father positively forbids it.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere will be no very great risk, though, after all,\u201d said Gen. A.,\n\u201cespecially after you are in the city. I have a paper to be delivered\nto a certain person in Washington. If you were caught with that paper,\nyou would no doubt be treated as a spy, but a lady of intelligence and\ntact can conceal it.\u201d\n\n\u201cCould I not commit the contents to memory and write them out after I\nget into the city?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cNo; the person who is to receive it must have the original paper.\u201d\n\nMildred reflected for a moment, and turning to the Doctor said:\n\n\u201cFather, I am willing to do this small service for the General.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is no small service, I should think,\u201d interrupted the Doctor.\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d replied the General, \u201cit is a very great service, one which will\nbring your country under obligations.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you say, father?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cMy child,\u201d said the doctor with some emotion, \u201cI cannot encourage\nyou to do it. I will leave it to your own judgment. I, however, would\nprefer to undertake the mission myself, if that would answer.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf the business,\u201d answered Gen. A., \u201ccould be accomplished by a man,\nwe have any number of soldiers in camp who would cheerfully volunteer,\nbut no person will answer but an intelligent lady. You will see that\nwhen I enter into fuller explanations.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf this be so, father, it seems to me that I ought to perform this\nservice for the country. The enemy can but destroy this body, if I\nshould be detected. Suppose, General,\u201d turning to him, \u201cyou can find no\nlady who will undertake the affair, what will be the consequence?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat will be difficult to foretell or foresee,\u201d replied Gen. A. \u201cIt\nmight cause the loss of a great battle. On the other hand, her going\nmight result in achieving the independence of the Confederate States.\nVery little affairs of this kind frequently result in great things.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, father,\u201d said Mildred with firmness, \u201cI can no longer hesitate.\nWe helpless women ought to serve our country in some way in the hour of\nneed. Will you give your consent, father.\u201d\n\n\u201cI can not tell you either to go or to stay,\u201d answered the Doctor. \u201cDo\nas you please.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, General, I will go and do the best I can for you. What is it you\nwish me to do?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen can you start?\u201d asked Gen. A.\n\n\u201cTo-morrow, if you desire it.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well: now give me your attention and I will tell you what is to\nbe done. The paper of which I spoke is this,\u201d taking a folded document\nfrom his pocket. \u201cYou see this is a map.\u201d\n\nIt is not necessary to enter into details in regard to this map.\nBesides it might not be advisable to unfold any portion of the secret\nhistory of the \u201cGreat Rebellion\u201d at this time when some of the actors\nin the scenes we are now describing are yet living.\n\n\u201cThis,\u201d continued the General, \u201cis to be delivered to a gentleman by\nthe name of Beall.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is his address?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cThat I am not able to give you at present,\u201d responded Gen. A. \u201cHe\nchanges his quarters frequently; but there are five hotels at which he\nstops, and you will find him registered in one of them.\u201d The General\nhere informed her how she could identify Beall, with whose melancholy\nhistory our reader is probably acquainted. \u201cThis paper must be put into\nthe hands of Captain Beall,\u201d continued Gen. A., \u201cand no one else.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I understand,\u201d said Mildred.\n\n\u201cThe principal danger,\u201d the General went on, \u201clies in this. If\nyou should be arrested with this paper on your person or in your\npossession, your fidelity to your country will cost you very dearly,\nyou understand.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir, my life will be the price.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen you meet Beall,\u201d coolly resumed Gen. A., \u201che will give you\nanother paper which you are to bring to me. Of course I will have to\nleave some of the details to your own good sense and tact. If you\nshould get into any difficulty, do not lose your presence of mind and\nself-possession. Keep cool under all circumstances, and I think you\nwill soon come back to us in safety.\u201d\n\nAfter some further directions and explanations, which can be omitted\nwithout detriment to our story, the General said:\n\n\u201cNow, you fully understand what is to be done; are you still willing to\ngo?\u201d\n\nMildred looked appealingly at her father, but he said not a word.\n\n\u201cWhat do you say, father?\u201d she again asked.\n\n\u201cI candidly confess,\u201d he replied at last \u201cthat I dislike to see my\ndaughter subjected to exposure of this sort. Probably the result may\nbe such as makes me shudder to think about it, and then my gray hairs\nwould be brought in sorrow to my grave. In that case, I never could\nforgive myself for not having forbidden her to go.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Gen. A., \u201cI shall not even now insist upon her going.\nShe can still decline if she wish. The danger is just what I have\nrepresented it. If,\u201d turning to Mildred, \u201cyou shrink from it, you would\nbetter decline at once.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is not the danger I dread,\u201d answered Mildred. \u201cI am willing to\nserve my country in any way I can, even to the extent of shedding\nmy blood, but I dislike to do anything that will cause my father to\nsuffer. But I have already told you I would go, and so I will unless my\nfather sees proper to exercise his parental authority and forbids it.\u201d\n\n\u201cI shall not forbid,\u201d said the Doctor. \u201cI want you to consult your own\nfeelings and judgment and act accordingly.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen General,\u201d said Mildred with firmness, \u201cI shall start in the\nmorning. There is no use of any further discussion.\u201d\n\n\u201cGod bless you!\u201d exclaimed General B., who had not taken any part in\nthe conversation. \u201cI thought I could not be mistaken in your character.\nI knew your religious training had developed those very traits which\npeculiarly qualify you for this perilous undertaking. May God protect\nand crown the undertaking with deserved success.\u201d\n\nAs the officers were riding away, Gen. B. said:\n\n\u201cWhat a pity it would be if that noble girl should be arrested and--\u201d\n\n\u201cHanged?\u201d spoke up Gen. A., finishing the uncompleted sentence.\n\n\u201cYes; it would be terrible,\u201d answered Gen. B.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Gen. A. deliberately, \u201cwar signifies bloodshed. If the\nyoung lady falls a victim, does not the occasion demand the sacrifice.\u201d\n\nAnd the two officers rode on.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XI.\n\nA BRAVE GIRL.\n\n\nIt might seem strange to the reader who is unacquainted with the nature\nof war, that a young, intelligent, and accomplished lady should have\nundertaken such an enterprise as that partly described in the previous\nchapter. But it must be remembered that war introduces customs and\nmodes of thought which would be subversive of our notions of propriety\nin times of peace. The women of the South were frequently thrown by\nthe force of circumstances into strange and unusual situations during\nthe dark and stormy days of the \u201cGreat Rebellion.\u201d They had to perform\nmany duties which would have been palpable violations of the laws of\netiquette under different circumstances. Besides, we are all creatures\nof habit, and our character depends upon our education. This fact is\nour authority for the assertion, that in our social relations there is\nscarcely anything, if there is really anything, proper or improper\n_per se_--anything inherently absolute. Many of our terms are merely\nrelative: they have no fixed definition. No absolute rules can be laid\ndown that shall determine whether a given line of conduct is modest\nor immodest. Circumstances only can determine. An angel, for instance\ncould use language in the pulpit which ordinary ministers of the\nGospel would not dare to employ. One nation regards a thing as proper,\nwhich another considers improper. Hence, there can be no fixed code of\npropriety.\n\nBearing these facts in mind, we can understand why it was that Mildred\ncould see no impropriety in undertaking to make her way alone into\nWashington--which she did in less than forty-eight hours after the\ninterview with the two Confederate Generals. The statement of this\nfact is sufficient, without entering into particulars in regard to the\ndifficulties which she encountered. She remained in the city three days\ntill she found the unfortunate Captain Beall, to whom she delivered\nthe papers, and from whom she received others for Gen. A. Her mission\nhaving been successfully accomplished, she returned, and reported to\nthe Confederate officer. His rather stern face assumed a smile, as he\ntook her by the hand and congratulated her upon her success.\n\n\u201cHere is a check for a thousand dollars,\u201d he said as she finished her\nreport.\n\n\u201cBut I did not expect to be paid, General,\u201d she said. \u201cI undertook the\nmission because I love my country, and desire to do something in the\nstruggle for independence.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are not a soldier,\u201d replied Gen. A. \u201cWe have no right to your\nservices without compensation. This is only a partial reward for what\nyou have done.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not ask any remuneration.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have been in danger,\u201d said Gen. A. \u201cBesides, I will want you to go\non a similar mission in a few days, and I have no right to your time. I\nam aware that the salary of ministers is small, and funds do not come\namiss. You have earned this money, and I insist upon your taking it. It\nis yours.\u201d\n\n\u201cI can do with it as I please?\u201d asked Mildred after a short pause.\n\n\u201cCertainly you can.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen,\u201d said Mildred, \u201cI will take it. I know how I can use it to good\npurpose.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the General, handing her the check, \u201ccan you go on a\nsimilar mission?\u201d\n\n\u201cTo the same place?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir; I will go.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen can you start?\u201d\n\n\u201cTo-morrow, if necessary.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am truly glad,\u201d said Gen. A. \u201cfor I have another paper which ought\nto be in Washington now. I was afraid to entrust it to you till you had\nproved that it was practicable to go in and out of the city. But since\nyou know now exactly what to do, I feel that there will be little risk.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt, too, is a dangerous paper, is it?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is, and if you are detected with it, the death of another party\nwill be the consequence. If you can manage to give it to Capt. Beall\nthere will be no danger to you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI can do that,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cI know how to find him.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou see,\u201d said Gen. A. \u201cI have written the message on this pocket\nhandkerchief so that you can conceal it in your clothing.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir,\u201d said Mildred, taking the handkerchief, \u201cI can conceal this\nso that it will escape the most rigid search.\u201d\n\n\u201cI can trust you for that,\u201d said the General.\n\n\u201cIf nothing providential interferes,\u201d said Mildred, \u201cI shall start in\nthe morning.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you,\u201d answered Gen. A. \u201cWhen you return, you shall receive your\nreward.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe will talk about that when I get back,\u201d she said, as she took her\nleave.\n\nAccordingly, the next morning she again started for the city of\nWashington, without the slightest misgiving or premonition of evil.\nIndeed what had she to fear? She knew exactly how to proceed. She,\ntherefore, boldly entered the city, after having complied with\nsuch military requisitions as were necessary in those days. It was\nfrequently the case that the most elegant ladies of the South, mounted\nupon bales of cotton in an ox-wagon, went shopping in cities that were\nunder Federal jurisdiction. Some had to take the oath of allegiance\nto the U. S. Government, and others, by their extreme cleverness,\nmanaged to \u201cget through the lines\u201d without compromising their fealty\nto the Confederacy. It is not necessary to describe Mildred\u2019s military\nmaneuvers in order to secure both ingress and egress. But more light\nwill be thrown on this subject as the story proceeds.\n\nAgain Mildred was in Washington. She registered at the very same hotel\nat which she had put up before. This was the first mistake that she\nhad made. For even her first visit had aroused the suspicions of\nthe head clerk. However, without manifesting the least surprise, he\nassigned her to a room, remarking that it would be half an hour before\nthe chamber would be ready for occupancy.\n\n\u201cYou can sit in the parlor for that length of time?\u201d he asked with a\nbland smile.\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d replied Mildred.\n\n\u201cThanks,\u201d he said, bowing politely. \u201cPlease step this way.\u201d\n\nMildred followed him to the elegant parlor, and seated herself on one\nof the luxurious sofas.\n\n\u201cI will return in a short time,\u201d said the urbane clerk, \u201cand have you\nshown to your room. Please make yourself comfortable.\u201d\n\nHe bowed himself out of the apartment, and was gone about twenty\nminutes. Seating himself, he manifested a disposition to engage in\nconversation--at which Mildred exhibited surprise as well as aversion.\n\n\u201cYou have no friends in the city, lady?\u201d he said half inquiringly and\nhalf declaratively. She could construe it either way.\n\n\u201cSir?\u201d said Mildred in a tone that plainly indicated disinclination to\ntalk.\n\n\u201cI made a remark about your friends,\u201d said the clerk, \u201cbut it does not\nmatter. You have been to the city before have you not?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have, sir,\u201d answered Mildred in a frigid tone. \u201cIs my room ready?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot quite, ma\u2019am. The chambermaid will be in presently. How long will\nyou want the room?\u201d asked the clerk.\n\n\u201cWhy do you wish to know?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, merely to know. Sometimes we like to know how long our guests will\nremain--it is a matter of--of--convenience.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will notify you when I am ready to vacate it,\u201d said Mildred coldly.\n\n\u201cO, yes, of course, you can retain it as long as you wish. I meant no\noffence. Have you heard the news?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat news?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cWhy, a terrible battle has been fought--it was on yesterday at ----:\nan awful fight.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir, I have not heard of it,\u201d answered Mildred changing to a more\ngentle tone, yet expressive of indifference.\n\n\u201cYou do not seem to take much interest in military affairs?\u201d remarked\nthe clerk. \u201cI thought everybody was eager to hear of the success of our\narms. The Rebels received a fearful chastisement yesterday.\u201d\n\n\u201cThey did?\u201d asked Mildred, trying to appear indifferent under the\nsearching gaze of this impudent clerk.\n\n\u201cIndeed, they did. You will hear the guns booming presently in honor\nof the great victory. There were ten thousand rebels killed, yes,\nleft dead on the field. Wasn\u2019t it glorious? Wasn\u2019t it glorious?\u201d he\nexclaimed rubbing his hands in glee.\n\n\u201cI see nothing glorious in shedding human blood,\u201d replied Mildred.\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t you rejoice at hearing of the defeat of the rebels, and that so\nmany thousands were killed?\u201d inquired the clerk.\n\n\u201cGod forbid,\u201d exclaimed Mildred with more warmth than she intended to\nmanifest, \u201cthat I should rejoice at the death of any human being.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut the rebels have got to be killed, you know, in order to bring the\nwar to an end and to restore the Union.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat may be so,\u201d answered Mildred, drawn into a conversation in spite\nof herself, \u201cbut I dislike to hear of wholesale murder. The great God\ndid not put His intelligent creatures here to butcher each other. I\ncannot, therefore, but think that war is a sin.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo doubt, the aggressive party is guilty,\u201d answered the clerk. \u201cThe\nrebels brought on the war. Don\u2019t you think, then, that the rebels are\nresponsible for all the blood that has been, and may be shed?\u201d\n\n\u201cI was speaking on general principles,\u201d answered Mildred. \u201cIt does not\nbecome me to measure the degree of guilt that may attach to either\nparty. It is a sin to commit murder; it is a violation of God\u2019s\ncommandment.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it, when done in self-defence?\u201d\n\n\u201cI suppose,\u201d replied Mildred, \u201cthat if homicide is absolutely necessary\nto the preservation of one\u2019s life, it would be justifiable. But in the\ncase of war, who is to determine which party is fighting purely in\nself-defence?\u201d\n\n\u201cIn the present war,\u201d said the clerk, \u201cI don\u2019t see how there can be any\ndoubt about it. The rebels fired the first gun, and dishonored the flag\nof our country.\u201d\n\n\u201cYet,\u201d said Mildred, \u201cthe rebels claim that they are fighting in\nself-defence.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you sympathize with the rebels?\u201d asked the clerk, looking narrowly\ninto her face, as though he would read her thoughts. \u201cProbably you may\nbe a Copper-head?\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not say I sympathized with either party,\u201d answered Mildred\nquietly.\n\n\u201cNo; but one would infer that you leaned toward the rebels.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know upon what you could base such an inference,\u201d rejoined\nMildred, \u201cfor I have not used an expression that could be construed\ninto sympathy for either side. I told you I was speaking only on\ngeneral principles.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you mind telling with which party you do sympathize?\u201d quoth the\nclerk.\n\n\u201cI am neither politician, nor soldier, nor am I regarded as a citizen\nby the law,\u201d answered Mildred. \u201cYou will, therefore, please excuse me\nfrom any expression of opinion on this subject. Why should you wish to\nknow?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy should you mind expressing an opinion?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is not necessary, is it?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cNo, ma\u2019am; it is not a matter of life or death,\u201d replied the smiling\nclerk, \u201cbut I can imagine no good reason why you should be so extremely\ncautious--that is, unless you have come upon some illegal business.\u201d\n\nFor an instant Mildred seemed startled at this insinuation.\n\n\u201cI\u2019m sure I asked a civil question,\u201d said the clerk.\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d answered Mildred with a little birdlike laugh, intended to\nward off suspicion, \u201cbut I should like to know by what authority you\npropound questions to me.\u201d\n\n\u201cO,\u201d said the clerk, breaking into a laugh, \u201cI am no court of\ninquisition. I questioned you only by the authority of social\netiquette. It is no breach of politeness, I hope, to ask ordinary\nquestions in a common conversation. We sometimes ask questions merely\nfor the sake of vivifying conversation.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe authority of social etiquette,\u201d replied Mildred, \u201cis sometimes\ninsolent, and even ordinary questions may in times of public\ndisturbance lead to grave consequences.\u201d\n\n\u201cI had no intention of making so serious a matter of it,\u201d said the\nclerk. \u201cI asked the question more for the sake of saying something than\nanything else. Certainly, if you wish to conceal your opinions and\nsentiments, I\u2019m no inquisitor to try to force you to reveal them. I,\nhowever, admire your prudence, since you are a stranger in the city.\u201d\n\nMildred suddenly laughed outright.\n\n\u201cWhat do you see in my remark,\u201d inquired the clerk very soberly, \u201cto\nexcite your risibility?\u201d\n\n\u201cI was laughing at your making so serious a matter out of nothing,\u201d\nanswered Mildred. \u201cYou speak of my prudence, as if I were some astute\ndiplomatist who had come to Washington to negotiate a treaty of peace,\nor some other important business. The whole of my prudence consists in\nnot directly answering questions that might lead to the discussion of\nunpleasant topics.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy is the war such an unpleasant subject?\u201d asked the clerk. \u201cIt ought\nto be agreeable to all loyal people to hear about the destruction of\nrebels. I wish I could kill some of them myself.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you have such a blood-thirsty disposition,\u201d said Mildred a little\ncontemptuously, \u201cI think you could easily find opportunities to gratify\nit.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou may be sure, if I could stand the exposure which camp life\ninvolves, I should have gone out at the first tap of the drum. Besides,\nI have a family.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere are soldiers on both sides who have families,\u201d said Mildred.\n\n\u201cI only wish I had physical strength,\u201d said the clerk. \u201cNothing would\ndelight me more than to kill rebels.\u201d\n\nMildred could not suppress a smile of derision, for the clerk was a\nlarge, well-developed man, presenting every aspect of perfect health.\nThis exhibition of contempt did not escape his notice, since he closely\nwatched her throughout the entire interview. He felt provoked at her\ninsinuations, but he was too polite to manifest his vexation.\n\n\u201cBut here comes the chamber-maid,\u201d he said, \u201cwho will show you to your\nroom. I hope you may have a pleasant time in the city, if the business\nupon which you have come will permit you to seek pleasure.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow do you know that I have come upon any business?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cStrangers generally have business, when they visit the city,\u201d said the\nclerk significantly, as Mildred thought. But she concluded that she\nwould say nothing more. Rising, she silently followed the chamber-maid.\nThe clerk walked back to his desk in a thoughtful mood; and this is\nwhat was passing through his mind:\n\n\u201cThat is one of those proud Southern women, and she is bent upon\nmischief. Well, if she is not very cautious, I shall trap her as I have\ndone others. She seems to be an intelligent, accomplished woman, but\nwhat is she doing here alone? If she is a spy, as I begin to suspect,\nand is detected, what a fate awaits her!\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XII.\n\nIN PRISON.\n\n\nAs soon as the chamber-maid\u2019s footsteps had died away, Mildred locked\nthe door, and sat down to think. Suffering herself to be drawn into an\ninterview with a stranger was her second blunder, as she now perceived.\nWhy had the clerk manifested such a sudden interest in her affairs?\nDid he not suspect her? What made her so foolish as to engage in a\nconversation with him? She could not but feel a little uneasy and\nanxious, and she determined to transact her business as quickly as\npossible, and leave the city. As soon as she would rid herself of Gen.\nA.\u2019s message she would be out of danger. She must find Beall at once.\n\nShe then rose from her seat, and looked around the room, and even\nunder the bed. She cast her eyes up to the ceiling, and as she did\nso imagined that she heard a sudden, but slight movement overhead.\nA small bit of plaster dropped to the floor. She at once made the\ndiscovery that about two feet square of the plaster had fallen off, or\nat least was gone. This fact, under ordinary circumstances, would have\nmade no impression upon her mind, but now it awakened her suspicions,\nand she narrowly examined the unsightly blemish. Why should it not\nhave been repaired? But it may have been recently done. To discover\nwhether this might be so, she examined the carpet immediately under\nit, but she saw only a few grains of sand, and the little lump that\nhad just fallen. Perhaps Sir Isaac, in the same length of time, did\nnot study more profoundly in regard to the descent of that famous\napple which revolutionized philosophy, than Mildred did about that\ninsignificant bit of rubbish. Was its fall, too, due simply to the\nlaw of gravitation, or was it caused by some eavesdropper? After\nreflecting for some moments, a new thought seemed suddenly to flash\ninto her mind, for she partially disrobed herself, as if to rest, and\nlay upon the bed, pretending to fall into a deep sleep. She was, in\nfact, wide awake, listening with all her ears. An hour passed away, and\nshe arose. Taking a pair of small scissors from her pocket, she cut\na small aperture in the lining of her dress so that she could secure\neasy access to the General\u2019s manuscript pocket-handkerchief. This done,\nshe drew her chair to the window where she could look down upon the\nbusy street. She gazed at the crowds rushing along in pursuit of the\nvaried objects that occupy the attention of the inhabitants of a gay\ncity, like the capital of the United States. She beheld officers of\nevery grade walking among the throng with proud, military step, who\nappeared to glory more in their magnificent _physique_ and splendid,\nspotless uniform, than in the deeds of valor they had performed on the\nfield of battle. In this gay, beautiful city, she felt a keen sense\nof loneliness. There was, so far as she knew, only one person in all\nthe place, whose sympathies were like her own, and she had no intimate\nacquaintance with him. This person was Capt. Beall. She now determined\nto find him at once, deliver the General\u2019s document, and immediately\nstart homeward. Accordingly, she rose from her chair, donned her\ncephalic attire, and opened the door. She started back in amazement\nand horror! There stood before her a policeman, a woman, and the\nhead-clerk with whom she had conversed not more than two hours since.\nWhat awful thoughts now came crowding into her mind! It is impossible\nto describe them. Persons who have been in similar situations remember\nhow active is the mind in the first moment of surprise. The sense of\ndanger, the line of defence, the means of escape, all are discussed\nin a few seconds. Thoughts such as these, and a hundred others of a\ndifferent character, flashed in the most rapid succession through\nMildred\u2019s mind. Among other things Gen. A.\u2019s cautions came vividly to\nher memory. He had told her how necessary is self-possession, and she\nwas now making the most desperate efforts to be calm. The trio stood\nwatching her face, as she gazed steadily at them. As they said nothing,\nshe presently, in a quiet tone broke the silence.\n\n\u201cI am patiently waiting to learn the object of this intrusion,\u201d she\nsaid with dignity.\n\n\u201cWe are not guilty of intrusion,\u201d replied the clerk, \u201cwe are merely\nstanding before the door.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf that is all,\u201d said Mildred calmly, \u201cplease let me pass, and you can\nenjoy your harmless pleasure to your heart\u2019s content.\u201d\n\n\u201cNot so fast, sarcastic lady,\u201d spoke the clerk. \u201cYou must give a\nbetter account of yourself than you did a while ago. I suspected your\ndisloyalty to the Federal Government sufficiently to induce me to make\nan effort to ascertain if my suspicions were correct.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat effort do you propose to make?\u201d\n\n\u201cWould you object to being searched?\u201d\n\n\u201cFor what?\u201d asked Mildred with inward trepidation, as she perceived\ntreachery gradually unfolding. For one moment the most bitter hatred\ntoward that deceptive clerk sprang up in her heart, and she felt that\nshe could have taken his life. But it was only for a moment.\n\n\u201cWe wish to see if you have anything contraband,\u201d replied the clerk.\n\n\u201cI suppose you intend to search me anyhow, whether I consent or not?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe don\u2019t like to resort to force,\u201d answered the clerk, \u201cand we hope\nyou\u2019ll readily give your consent. Indeed, a willingness on your part to\nsubmit will be taken as evidence of your loyalty to the government.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not see it in that light,\u201d said Mildred as quietly as possible.\n\u201cWhat have I done to arouse your suspicions?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat does not matter, lady,\u201d replied the clerk. \u201cI have no feeling of\nmalice toward you. I sincerely hope that I am mistaken, and that you\nmay prove as innocent of any sinister intentions towards the government\nas the angels of heaven. I was prepossessed in your favor by your\ngeneral appearance and your conversation. But if you have come to the\ncity with any dark purpose, it is but natural that you should oppose\nbeing searched.\u201d\n\n\u201cCan you not see,\u201d asked Mildred, speaking slowly, \u201cthat it is a\npersonal indignity to be subjected to a search?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot in such times as these,\u201d said the clerk. \u201cIt is generally the\ncase, that, when innocent people are suspected, they demand an\ninvestigation, instead of shrinking from it.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat depends upon circumstances,\u201d replied Mildred coolly. She was\nendeavoring to prolong the conversation as much as possible in order\nto think what was best to be done. If she could avoid this search,\nshe would be safe. A score of schemes rapidly presented themselves\nduring these few moments. She thought of bribery; but that would be\nan acknowledgment of guilt. If there had been a fire in the room, she\nwould have hastily thrown the dangerous kerchief into it; in that case\nall that the authorities could do would be to imprison her for a while\nas a suspicious character. But there was no fire, and she did not have\neven a match. If Mildred had only known it, all her scheming was to no\npurpose, for she had been watched. That wiry, pert little woman, one\nof the trio had been in the room over-head, which had been prepared\nfor suspicious characters. When Mildred had suddenly looked up to the\nceiling, in her examination of the room, the woman involuntarily drew\nback, and in so doing had caused the lump of loose plaster to fall. She\nsaw Mildred make the rent in the dress, and that was enough. Mildred\nat last came to the conclusion that it would be advisable to submit\nwith the best grace possible, and trust to Providence for protection.\nSending up a silent, but earnest prayer, she said:\n\n\u201cI suppose you have brought this lady to do the work? If so, it is\nuseless to discuss the matter. So proceed.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is right,\u201d said the clerk. \u201cYou can both go into the room, and\nclose the door. This officer and myself will await the result in the\nhall, here.\u201d\n\nAccordingly the little woman, with eyes, as Mildred thought, keen\nenough to see through a mill-stone, entered the apartment, and closed\nthe door.\n\n\u201cWell, what do you wish?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cLet me have your dress first, please.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou wish me to take it off?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, take it off.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you expect to find?\u201d asked Mildred. \u201cYou can feel the dress\nanywhere, and you will discover no papers.\u201d\n\n\u201cTake it off,\u201d said the woman sharply. \u201cI don\u2019t know what I will find.\nI\u2019ll show you when I am through searching.\u201d\n\nMildred deliberately removed the garment, and while so doing, made\ntwo or three unsuccessful attempts to withdraw the treacherous\nkerchief unobserved; but the diminutive woman was watching with an\nArgus-eyed vigilance that would have instantly detected any suspicious\nmanipulation. The little lady took it, turned it inside out, and\nstretched it upon the bed. In an instant her keen eyes fell upon the\nfatal rent. Mildred felt a choking sensation when she perceived the\nnimble fingers deftly close upon the General\u2019s handkerchief.\n\n\u201cO, heaven! what shall I do?\u201d was her inward exclamation as she saw the\nkerchief quickly jerked out. She felt a sickening sensation creeping\nover her. She tried hard to preserve her equanimity. Would falsehood\navail in this instance? or should she tell the truth, and meet death\nwith Christian resignation?\n\n\u201cAh! what is this?\u201d exclaimed the little woman, holding up the kerchief\nby two corners, and gazing at it with a most provoking air of triumph.\n\nMildred\u2019s first impulse was to snatch the terrible document from her\nhands, and thrust it in the fire, but alas! there was no fire in the\nroom.\n\n\u201cIt may be some old rag,\u201d said Mildred in a hoarse, trembling voice,\n\u201cput in to thicken the lining.\u201d It was the first time in her life that\nshe had practiced prevarication, and the words seemed to blister her\ntongue.\n\n\u201cHardly probable,\u201d said the Lilliputian lady with an ironical smile.\n\u201cHardly probable; it is almost new, don\u2019t you see? But I will give it\nto Mr. Twombly, and let him examine it while I continue the work.\u201d\n\nAccordingly, she opened the door, gave the kerchief to the clerk, and\nresumed the search. But a half hour\u2019s further investigation revealed\nnothing else of a suspicious character. The woman said:\n\n\u201cWell, unless that handkerchief contains evidences of disloyalty you\nwill go free. Put on your clothing. I will assist you.\u201d\n\nIn a little time Mildred was again presentable, and the door being\nre-opened, the two men entered without ceremony. The little woman was\nthe first to speak.\n\n\u201cThat\u2019s the only suspicious article I\u2019ve been able to discover.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd that is enough,\u201d said the clerk. \u201cAlas! young lady, we are forced\nto arrest you as a spy. I am sorry for you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not need your sympathy,\u201d said Mildred indignantly. \u201cI would\nrather be anything than a detestable informer, showing a \u2018Devil\u2019s\npurpose with an angel\u2019s face\u2019--sneaking among your unsuspecting\nguests, smiling and fawning upon them in order to convert their blood\ninto gold. \u2018I\u2019d rather be a dog and bay the moon than such a Roman.\u2019\nYes, I\u2019d rather die a thousand times than act the base part of a\ncontemptible hypocrite.\u201d\n\n\u201cHigh! wrathful lady,\u201d exclaimed the clerk without betraying any\nsymptoms of vexation and annoyance, \u201chow can you blame me for\ndischarging my duty to my country?\u201d\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t you remember that King Philip said he loved the treason, but\ndespised the traitor? That is the case with your masters; they love\nyour treachery, but they hate you. Every honest man heartily execrates\na cold-blooded, villainous informer,\u201d cried the enraged Mildred.\n\n\u201cNevertheless, young lady,\u201d coolly said the clerk, \u201cit is our duty to\narrest you as a spy.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am no spy,\u201d exclaimed Mildred. \u201cI have not come to Washington to\nfind out anything of a military character. I call God to witness that I\nhave not come here for any such purpose.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, don\u2019t you know the contents of this document?\u201d asked the clerk.\n\n\u201cGod in heaven, who sees me, knows that I never read a single word, or\nsyllable of it.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen,\u201d said the clerk in surprise, \u201cyou know not what a dangerous\nhandkerchief you have been carrying.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir; I knew it was attended with some sort of danger, but I do\nemphatically deny being a spy. All I had to do was to deliver the\nhandkerchief to a certain person, and go back home.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd that person is named here,\u201d replied the clerk. \u201cI wouldn\u2019t given a\nsnap of my finger for his life.\u201d\n\nMildred turned pale on hearing this, and on re-calling the fact that\nGeneral A. had told her that if she were detected, a third party would\nbe compromised.\n\n\u201cNotwithstanding your unnecessary abuse of myself,\u201d said the clerk, \u201cI\nhope your excuse will be considered sufficient to procure your release.\nYour friends have made a mere tool of you for the accomplishment of\ntheir own purpose. But I must take you to head-quarters. If you will\npromise to go along quietly, I will accompany you myself; if you are\nnot, I will turn you over to the police.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will go with you,\u201d said Mildred, who was now ready almost to faint.\n\nThe clerk and Mildred descended to the street, and entered a passing\nhack. In a few moments they alighted at the head-quarters of Gen. ----,\nto whom the clerk delivered the handkerchief. He read it over twice and\nsaid:\n\n\u201cA pretty kettle of fish is this! Are you the bearer of this, young\nlady?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am, sir.\u201d\n\n\u201cShe had it carefully concealed in her clothing, General,\u201d spoke up the\nclerk. \u201cI suspected her, and had her watched.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have done your country a great service,\u201d replied the General.\n\u201cHave you arrested the other party?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir, I thought it best to deliver that article to you first.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d answered the General. \u201cI thank you heartily for what\nyou have done. Now, young lady,\u201d continued the General, turning his\nattention to Mildred who was pale but calm, \u201chow came you with this\ndocument?\u201d\n\nMildred had concocted a falsehood which might have obscured her\nconnection with the affair with a shadow of dubitation. But in early\nlife the little story of George Washington and the cherry tree had made\na deep, ineffaceable impression upon her mind, and neither could she\n\u201ctell a lie.\u201d If she spoke at all, she determined to tell the truth,\nlet the consequences be what they might. So she answered:\n\n\u201cI brought it to a certain person in this city.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is his name?\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot tell,\u201d she replied. \u201cYou can do as you please with me, but I\nshall not compromise others.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt does not matter,\u201d replied the General. \u201cHis name is Beall. I shall\nhave him arrested in an hour or so. He is an important character, it\nseems. Do you not know, lady, that you are acting the spy?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir. I deny being a spy.\u201d\n\n\u201cI pity your ignorance,\u201d replied the officer. \u201cYou are exactly in the\nattitude of a spy. The penalty--do you know what it is?\u201d\n\n\u201cDeath, is it not?\u201d replied Mildred calmly.\n\n\u201cDeath, and death by hanging.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, General!\u201d exclaimed Mildred, whose feelings were alternating\nbetween trepidation and tranquility. \u201cCan you not pardon me when I was\nignorant that I was acting in such a capacity?\u201d\n\n\u201cI never knew a spy to be pardoned,\u201d said the General thoughtfully.\n\u201cThere was universal sympathy for the unfortunate Major Andre,\nand Washington would have saved him, if possible. But the law is\ninexorable. I have no power to do anything. You will have to be tried\nby a military court, and you can easily imagine what will be the\nresult. A spy always takes his life in his hands, well knowing the\nconsequences of detection. If you are ignorant of these consequences, I\nam truly sorry for you. You will,\u201d he continued, turning to the clerk,\n\u201cgive the lady a room in your hotel, and I will send a guard to stand\nat the door to prevent escape. I do not care to send so elegant a lady\nto a common prison. Give her a room from which there is no practicable\negress except through the door.\u201d\n\n\u201cI understand, General,\u201d replied the clerk. \u201cThe corner room of the\nfourth story is perfectly safe.\u201d\n\n\u201cGeneral,\u201d said Mildred who had been trying to be brave, \u201cmay I write\nto my parents?\u201d\n\nIf the officer had spoken harshly, she could have borne her misfortune\nmore courageously, but he spoke kindly, and the womanish heart would\nbetray itself. Under such circumstances, without tears, she would have\nbeen untrue to her sex. The General was touched, as nearly all men\nare, by the sight of a beautiful woman down whose cheeks are flowing\nthe evidences of her distress. When the grim old General looked at\nthe innocent truth-telling face of this magnanimous girl, upon whose\nfeatures God had stamped the seal of honesty, and especially when\nshe broke down at the thought of the distress of her parents, and\nErnest, all the better feelings of his heart were touched. His chivalry\nprompted him to release her, but the claims of duty were paramount.\nHe, at the time, thought that surely no court-martial would deal with\nher as with one of the \u201crougher sex.\u201d Her innocence, beauty, and\nintelligence would be her defense, and, under all circumstances, would\nbe a greater protection than a Roman shield. He, therefore, replied:\n\n\u201cCertainly, you may. This gentleman,\u201d turning to the clerk, \u201cwill see\nthat you have everything that you want. Remember, sir, she is a lady,\nand treat her accordingly.\u201d\n\n\u201cShe herself will testify, General, that I have extended to her the\ntreatment which every lady deserves, notwithstanding the fact, that she\nabused me roundly for simply discharging my duty.\u201d\n\nWhen they again entered the hack, such a sense of the awfulness of\nher situation came over Mildred that she covered her face, and sobbed\naudibly. Her woman nature strongly asserted itself, and she yielded.\nFor the first time a sense of shame reddened the cheeks of the clerk,\nsitting silent in front of her.\n\n\u201cConfound it,\u201d said he to himself, \u201cwhat great deed have I done? She is\nnothing but an innocent girl, ignorant of her own danger. If it were\nsome sharp man, I might feel self-complacent. The man to whom she was\nto deliver that handkerchief is really the guilty party. But it is too\nlate now. I must obey orders.\u201d\n\nThey soon reached the hotel, and in ten minutes Mildred found herself\nin the corner room of the fourth story. And she sat down, and wept\nbitterly.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIII.\n\nA DESPERATE MAN.\n\n\nThe army to which Ernest belonged was encamped on the banks of the\nhistorical river ----. The year was drawing to a close. To Ernest\nthe days dragged heavily by, as there are few amusements in military\ncamps that are sufficient to divert one\u2019s mind from introspectional\nprocesses. It was this prolonged subjectivity--this constant brooding\nover one\u2019s own thoughts, inseparable from camp life, that produced\n_ennui_, or more frequently, that exquisite _nostalgia_, which often\nterminated in death. Ernest had kept up a regular correspondence with\nMildred, which occupied much of his time, and made his own thoughts\npleasant companions. She had not written a word in regard to her visits\nto Washington, and he, of course, supposed that she was at home.\n\nOne morning a letter was delivered to him, post-marked from\nMildred\u2019s office, but directed in a chirography which was not hers.\nThis circumstance at once aroused, in his mind, the most fearful\napprehensions. He thought of a hundred calamities, in a few moments,\nthat might have overtaken her--probably she had suddenly died--she\nmight be sick--she had married someone--the enemy had made a raid and\ncarried off the whole family, and this thought made him clench his\nhand and grind his teeth. Why did he not open the epistle at once, and\nend his suspense? Because he was endeavoring to prepare his mind for\nthe reception of distressing news, like a man who sees the avalanche\ncoming, and braces himself against the nearest rock that promises\nto offer successful resistance against the coming shock. The first\nLieutenant of his company was in the tent, to whom Ernest, holding up\nthe letter, said:\n\n\u201cI fear this will put an end to all my fondly cherished hopes.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it from _her_?\u201d inquired the Lieutenant.\n\n\u201cNo, not from her,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cbut it bears the post-mark of her\noffice.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, why don\u2019t you open it?\u201d\n\n\u201cBecause it appears to me like a Pandora\u2019s box, and I dread the evils\nit contains.\u201d\n\n\u201cHope was left behind, you know.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; but I fear that hope, in this instance, will be the first to wing\nher flight away from me,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cNever climb the hill till you get to it,\u201d said the Lieutenant. \u201cWhy\nallow yourself to suffer the pangs of imaginary evils?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is foolish, Lieutenant.\u201d\n\nErnest slowly opened the envelope, took out the folded sheet, and\nglanced at the subscriber\u2019s signature. It was from Dr. Arrington. The\nLieutenant noticed that a deathly pallor spread over his face, and his\nhands trembled violently, but he said nothing till Ernest had finished\nthe letter. He was transformed into the very embodiment of despair.\n\n\u201cWhat is the matter?\u201d kindly and anxiously asked the Lieutenant, his\npersonal friend.\n\n\u201cI cannot tell,\u201d Ernest almost groaned out. \u201cThere, read for yourself.\u201d\n\nThe Lieutenant carefully read Dr. Arrington\u2019s account of the arrest and\nimprisonment of his daughter.\n\n\u201cIt is terrible news,\u201d said the Lieutenant, \u201cand there is no use\ndisguising it. Yet as long as there is life, there is hope.\u201d\n\n\u201cOh! Great Heavens!\u201d exclaimed Ernest, springing to his feet, \u201cthe\nvillains may have already executed her! You know how hurriedly they\ndo these things. If they have--,\u201d shaking his head and grinding his\nteeth--\u201cIf they have, I will be avenged. Yes, they shall pay for her\nblood. I shall have only one object to live for--to avenge her death.\nIn the next battle, Lieutenant, I desire you to command the company. I\nwant a gun--I must have a gun. I cannot stand still while there will be\nsuch opportunities for spilling their blood. Yes, sir, I will make them\npay dearly for such shameful, diabolical murder.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, come, my friend,\u201d said the Lieutenant, \u201cyou will try to ascend\nthe mountain before you reach it. Sufficient unto the day is the evil\nthereof. You have no proof whatever that the execution has taken place,\nand your surmises may be without the shadow of foundation. Besides,\nyou are a Christian--a follower of the meek and lowly Lamb, who when\nHe was reviled, reviled not again. Does it become you to be talking of\nrevenge? \u2018Vengeance is mine,\u2019 saith the Lord. You must not murmur at\nthe dispensations of divine providence.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat!\u201d interrupted Ernest, \u201cdo you call this a dispensation of\nprovidence? Do you believe that God would deliberately bring about such\na dreadful event as that?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not that as well as any other event? Don\u2019t you believe that God\nhas something to do with this war?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I suppose He has, in a sort of general way.\u201d\n\n\u201cGeneral way?\u201d exclaimed the Lieutenant. \u201cWhy, generalities are made up\nof particulars. How can there be a general providence, as some people\ncall it, without special acts? Well, this misfortune of yours, as you\nregard it, is one of the events of the war. It is not a mere accident.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you pretend to say,\u201d asked Ernest in an agitated manner, \u201cthat God\nselected my loved one especially for the purpose of being sacrificed?\nDo you say that?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not her as well as anybody else, granting your premises? But you\nare a little too fast, my friend. You have no reliable information that\nshe has been sacrificed. You\u2019re assuming too much.\u201d\n\n\u201cShe will be treated as a spy,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cand you know what that\nmeans. I can never forgive Gen. A. for inveigling her into such an\naffair. Why did he not get me, or some other man to go?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou do not know what Gen. A.\u2019s reasons were,\u201d said the Lieutenant.\n\u201cCaptain, you need to be taught a lesson of humility, if you will\npardon me for saying it. God says, \u2018love your enemies,\u2019 and here you\nare, wishing to murder yours, and are manifesting an unforgiving spirit\neven toward your friends. I believe you are a Christian, but I fear you\nwill have to be chastened by sorrow and suffering. You would better ask\nGod to give you meekness of spirit and resignation to His will, before\nyou are made to bow by calamities. Your rebellion will be punished. The\nScripture says, \u2018Whom the Lord loveth, He chasteneth.\u2019 Submit, before a\n\u2018worse thing happen unto thee.\u2019\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is difficult for me to believe just as you do,\u201d answered Ernest in\na gentler tone. \u201cYou belong to the Presbyterian Church that holds to\nthe doctrine that God ordains whatsoever comes to pass. I confess that\nI am disposed to believe the theory, but somehow I cannot bring it into\nthe practical affairs of life.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou remember what Nebuchadnezzar was punished for?\u201d asked the\nLieutenant. \u201cIt was for denying the Divine Sovereignty. God punishes\nmen for the same offence now. He tells us He is a jealous God; He\ndemands that we shall recognize His hand in all our affairs.\u201d\n\n\u201cI wish I could fully and firmly believe as you do,\u201d said Ernest\nthoughtfully. \u201cI can see that the doctrines of the Presbyterian Church\nare better adapted to the necessities of man\u2019s nature than those of any\nother Church. I notice too, that Presbyterians seem to bear up under\nmisfortunes better than other people. And this I must attribute to the\ncomfort they find in their doctrines.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is much truth in what you say,\u201d replied the Lieutenant. \u201cI was\nnot reared a Presbyterian, but after I was grown, I was particularly\nstruck with their quiet way of doing things--a way destitute of\nboisterous zeal and ostentatious fussiness. Then when I investigated\ntheir doctrines, I found them Scriptural. I confess I do not see how\nany man can fail to believe these doctrines, with the Bible in his\nhands. Do you not think that the doctrine of the Divine Sovereignty is\ntaught in the Bible?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt does seem to be,\u201d said Ernest; \u201cbut this doctrine of election does\nnot, at times, appear to be consistent with justice.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere is the inconsistency?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, that Jesus died for some men, and left the rest of mankind to\nperish in their sins, and then to hold these men responsible for what\nthey could not help.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho advocates such a view as that?\u201d asked the Lieutenant, who was a\npious and intelligent member of the Presbyterian Church.\n\n\u201cWhy, do not you Presbyterians believe that?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir; we believe that Christ tasted death for every man, as the\nScriptures declare. He made an atonement sufficient to save every son\nand daughter of Adam. No man is lost on account of any limitation or\ndefect in the atonement, nor on account of an eternal decree. All\ncould be saved, if they only had the will. It is nothing but the\nperverse will in men that prevents their salvation. But I should like\nto ask what you believe in regard to the atonement? You may as well be\nthinking about this as brooding over your troubles.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; let us have a discussion--anything to keep my mind off this\nmisfortune till I am prepared to think calmly about it. In reply,\nthen, to your inquiry, I say I scarcely know what to think. It would\nseem reasonable to me, though, that Christ died for all precisely\nalike--for one just as much as another. All were on the same level. By\nHis death He removed the obstacles placed in the way by original sin\nor Adam\u2019s transgression. He thus made salvation possible to all men.\nChrist provided the means, and left it to man\u2019s choice whether he would\nuse the means or not. That would seem just and right.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo it might at the first glance,\u201d answered the Lieutenant, \u201cand it is\nthe way men would like to have it. Nothing could be more agreeable to\nthe carnal heart. But let us calmly examine your position. You think\nthen that Jesus died for no individual in particular, but for the whole\nrace of men in general?\u201d\n\n\u201cThat seems to be reasonable,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cand no one could\ncomplain.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, reasonable according to man\u2019s notions,\u201d rejoined the Lieutenant,\n\u201cand according to the principles of mere human philosophy. But the\nmain objection to it, is that it is in diametrical opposition to the\nScriptures. For they emphatically declare that Christ gave Himself for\nthe Church. All through the New Testament we find such expressions as\n\u2018died for His people.\u2019 Jesus, Himself repeatedly spoke of \u2018His people\u2019\nfor whom He would give His life.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut does not the Bible say \u2018He was made a propitiation not only for\nour sins, but for the sins of the whole world?\u2019 What does that mean?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, suppose Christ had not died at all, how many would have been\nsaved?\u201d\n\n\u201cNone at all,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cThen the answer is that Jesus died _sufficiently_ for all the world,\nbut effectually for His own people. He made such an atonement that\nevery one could be saved who wanted to be. And this is the meaning of\nevery passage of Scripture which is similar to the one cited by you.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut,\u201d asked Ernest, \u201cwhat was the use of dying _sufficiently_ for all,\nwhen it was known that all would not be saved?\u201d\n\n\u201cChrist had to die for the elect,\u201d replied the Lieutenant, \u201cand in so\ndoing He died sufficiently to save the entire world. If the atonement\nis sufficient to save all, that throws the responsibility of the\ndamnation of those who are lost upon themselves. But how much broader\ndo you want the atonement, if it takes in all who want to be saved? Why\nshould you want Christ to make an effectual atonement for those who do\nnot want to be saved?\u201d\n\n\u201cI confess that is a puzzling question,\u201d answered Ernest.\n\n\u201cBesides,\u201d continued the Lieutenant, \u201cyour position is contrary to\nsound philosophy.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow is that?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou say it is left to men to choose their own destinies. Now suppose\nthat not one of the human race had accepted Christ, would not the\natonement have been a failure? Would not Jesus have died in vain?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt does seem so,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cDo you suppose,\u201d continued the Lieutenant, \u201cthat the Lord was trying\nexperiments?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat do you mean by that?\u201d\n\n\u201cI mean this,\u201d answered the Lieutenant. \u201cif God was experimenting, He\nvirtually said: \u2018Son, go into the world, and make an atonement for\nthe sins of all mankind; perhaps, some may avail themselves of the\nprovisions of this scheme which we have adopted, but we do not know\nthat a single individual will be saved.\u2019 Do you not suppose that God\nhad some definite purpose to accomplish in the atonement? If not, He\nwas less wise than men are. Even we, weak human beings, never go to\nwork without some plan and some object.\u201d\n\n\u201cOf course,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI admit that God had a definite purpose in\nview.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you not believe that God\u2019s purpose will be achieved?\u201d asked the\nLieutenant.\n\n\u201cCertainly, it will.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen,\u201d said the Lieutenant, \u201cif the Lord intended to save all men, why\nare they not saved?\u201d\n\n\u201cBecause they will not be.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are then driven to the conclusion,\u201d replied the Lieutenant, \u201cthat\nmen are more powerful than God. He wants to save them, and intends to\nsave them, but they will not allow Him. They defeat God\u2019s intentions.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; I do not mean that exactly,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cWell, what do you mean?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d answered Ernest, \u201cI mean that God made equal provisions for all,\nand determined to treat all alike.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen all the plan you admit was, that Christ made a sort of general\natonement, but determined nothing in regard to the salvation of any\nparticular individual? It was not certain that any would be saved?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, of course, He knew that some would be saved, and some lost.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d replied the Lieutenant, \u201cHe knew that some would be saved, and\nsome lost--just put it on that ground; now, Christ died _effectually_\nfor those who He knew would be saved, and yet sufficiently to save\nthose who He knew would be lost; and this is the election which my\nChurch advocates, that is, leaving out fore-knowledge as the ground\nupon which the scheme of redemption is based; for God\u2019s choice of the\nelect does not depend upon anything in the creature. But I am showing\nthat your own position leads to a kind of predestination. Do you not\nsee that your position also runs into the broadest universalism?\u201d\n\n\u201cHow does it?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cWhy, your idea is, that God, to be impartial, must treat all\nalike--give all the same opportunities, and bring the same influences\nto bear upon all. Now let us see how that will work. Mr. A. is\nconvinced by the Holy Spirit, and is converted, as we may say: he is\nsaved; Mr. B. his neighbor, must be treated in the same way, or God\nwould be partial.\u201d\n\n\u201cGod gives both the same opportunities,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cbut one resists\nand the other yields.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen,\u201d said the Lieutenant, \u201cyou have mankind divided into two\nclasses--one resists, and is certain to be lost, and the other yields,\nand is certain to be saved. What is that but predestination?\u201d\n\n\u201cI mean,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthat God gives each class sufficient grace to\nsave them, if they would use it.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d replied the Lieutenant, \u201cthat you brought in that \u2018if.\u2019\nCertainly, \u2018if\u2019 they would use it. The grace is sufficient, do you not\nsee, to save one class, but not the other? So here is predestination\nagain. The line is drawn between the two classes, and one class can\nnever be saved, because the grace given is not sufficient to induce\nthem to make an effort to secure salvation.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cdo you not make God unjust in not giving them\nsufficient grace?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf He did give every man sufficient grace to save him,\u201d said the\nLieutenant, \u201cthen every man would be saved. What is that but the\nbroadest universalism?\u201d\n\nErnest made no reply.\n\n\u201cBut you are not a universalist,\u201d continued the Lieutenant. \u201cIf\nnot, you must believe the doctrine of election; there is no other\nalternative. The difference between us is this: I affirm that God\nelects His people upon a principle with which He has not acquainted\nus; you say that the election depends upon men themselves; and\nyou divide men into two classes, and the individuals of one class\nare so constituted that it is certain they will resist all sacred\ninfluences, and consequently will inevitably be lost. This is as rigid\npredestination as ever John Calvin advocated.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have a way of making me say things I do not mean, Lieutenant.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d answered the Lieutenant, \u201cI merely followed out the proposition\nyou laid down to its legitimate consequences. I do not see how you can\nescape these consequences, and I would be glad if you would show me how\nto avoid them. For, I confess that there is something about it which\nsorely puzzles me, and troubles me.\u201d\n\n\u201cI thought you professed to fully understand it,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cOn the contrary, I do not understand it. I merely take the Bible at\nwhat it says. But I never pretended to reconcile election with human\nfree agency. We can go to a certain point, and there we must stop.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is it that perplexes you so?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d answered the Lieutenant, \u201csome people assert that God desires\nand wills every human being to be saved. Now, if He does, why does\nHe not save them? Why does He not accomplish His own will? He,\nundoubtedly, has the power.\u201d\n\n\u201cWe might answer,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cthat God will not destroy their\nfree agency.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs it so important and necessary to preserve free agency that men\nmust suffer eternal torment for it?\u201d asked the Lieutenant. \u201cWould it\nnot be better to destroy their free agency than to permit men to use\nit to their own destruction? We cannot deny that God could save every\nman if He really desired and willed to do so. He could speak to them\nwith an audible voice or show them a great light, as He did Paul, and\nin this way bring the entire human race into the fold of the Lord\nJesus Christ. But it is as clear as anything can be, that God never\nintended to save all men. If He did, what was there to defeat the\ndivine intention? If you say that men will not let Him save them, then\nmen have more power than God. In fact, any position you may take that\nis not in harmony with the Westminster Confession of Faith will end\nin confusion and darkness. Why not, then, take the plain Scriptures on\nthe subject? All through God\u2019s word the two classes, the lost and the\nsaved, are spoken of. You may account for the damnation of sinners on\nany principle you please; you may say that God has nothing to do with\nit, if you will; you may say that men are perfectly free agents; that\nthere is no such doctrine as election in the Scriptures; you may blot\nout predestination, but nevertheless the fact stares you in the face\nthat there are the Saved and the Lost. We must judge of God\u2019s purpose\nby what takes place. Men are saved every day. Men are lost every day.\nNow, all this is in accordance with the divine will or opposed to it;\none or the other. If it is in accordance with God\u2019s will, this is the\nelection for which we contend. But if it is opposed to the divine will,\nwe are forced to the conclusion that God has not sufficient power to\naccomplish what He wants.\u201d\n\n\u201cAs I told you, Lieutenant,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI am inclined to the\ndoctrine of the Presbyterian Church. I can see that there is more\ncomfort in it than the opposite, and it is certainly more Scriptural.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe opposite is too vague and loose,\u201d answered the Lieutenant. \u201cThe\nbeliever has too little security. According to the view of some people,\nthe Christian may be in a state of grace to-day, and to-morrow in a\nstate of condemnation. If I believed that, I should be miserable, for I\nshould never know whether I was safe or not. I prefer to believe God\u2019s\nown declaration, which is that He will complete the good work He has\nbegun, and that His people shall never perish.\u201d\n\n\u201cI believe that, myself,\u201d said Ernest. \u201cI have been talking on this\nsubject more to keep my mind off my misfortune than for anything else,\nbut it is in vain. How can I help thinking of it? My mind is now like\na volcano in a state of activity. I cannot stand this. I cannot lie\nhere in camp doing nothing, while she is languishing in prison. Good\nheavens! it is enough to drive me mad.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us pray to God for direction.\u201d\n\n\u201cWith all my heart,\u201d answered Ernest. \u201cPlease pray for me.\u201d\n\nThey both knelt down, and the Lieutenant in a low voice prayed\nearnestly for his friend, that God would sustain him and bring him in\ntriumph out of all his troubles. When they arose, the Lieutenant said:\n\n\u201cNow let us have faith in God, but that does not mean that we are not\nto be active ourselves. What course do you intend to pursue?\u201d\n\n\u201cI must go into Washington City,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cHow can you do that?\u201d inquired the Lieutenant.\n\n\u201cI do not know, but I must go. Perhaps Gen. A. can assist me. He ought\nto do so, since he is the cause of the calamity. I shall go to him at\nonce. The train will be here in two hours. I cannot stay here; I will\ndesert first.\u201d\n\nAnd Ernest dashed out of the tent and rushed off like a mad man.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIV.\n\nDARK HOURS.\n\n\nThe rapid pace of Ernest soon brought him to the quarters of his\nBrigadier General, a man whose name is inseparably connected with the\nbattle of Bull Run. After the Brigadier had heard the touching story of\nMildred\u2019s arrest and incarceration, he gave, without hesitation, the\ndistressed young man a permit to visit Gen. A.\n\nIn less than two hours after this, Ernest was thundering along toward\nGen. A.\u2019s headquarters, which he reached about four o\u2019clock in the\nevening. After the ceremony necessary to secure access to a General, he\nentered the little farm house to which allusion has already been made,\nand introduced himself. There is never much social intercourse between\nthe higher and subordinate officers of an army. There is a great gulf\nbetween them which is rarely crossed. In visiting a high officer, it\nis not expected that the subaltern shall make familiar remarks about\nthe weather or any other ordinary topic. He must come to business _in\nmedias res_.\n\n\u201cWell, sir, what can I do for you?\u201d asked Gen. A. in that impatient\nmilitary tone which indicates that the applicant must talk fast and to\nthe point.\n\n\u201cSome days ago, sir,\u201d said Ernest, stung by his frigid reception, \u201cyou\nsent a young lady of this neighborhood into Washington, where she was\narrested and will probably be doomed to death, if she has not already\nbeen.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell!\u201d exclaimed Ernest, vexed at the General\u2019s coolness and seeming\nindifference, \u201cshe is my affianced.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, go on.\u201d\n\n\u201cAre you not going to make some effort for her relief,\u201d cried Ernest,\nwarming into boldness, \u201cor do you propose to let her perish?\u201d\n\n\u201cI should like to know what I can do?\u201d quoth Gen. A.\n\n\u201cI do not know what you can do,\u201d cried Ernest in desperation, \u201cbut you\nought to do something, since you are the cause of her misfortune.\u201d\n\n\u201cAm I to be held responsible for all the calamities which the war may\nbring upon citizens and soldiers?\u201d broke out the General. \u201cIf so, I\nshall resign my position at once. The young lady herself will not hold\nme to such responsibility. She went with a full knowledge of what she\nwould have to encounter.\u201d\n\n\u201cSuppose she did, sir, does that make it any the less necessary that\nefforts should be made to save her?\u201d\n\n\u201cI would save her, if I could,\u201d said the officer.\n\n\u201cGeneral,\u201d cried Ernest, overcome by his conflicting emotions,\n\u201csomething must be done for her relief. It seems to me that you are too\nindifferent about it.\u201d\n\nThe General looked at him in surprise and with an expression of\nsternness, but Ernest was now deeply agitated, and he met the official\n_coup d\u2019oeil_ without the slightest indication of servility.\n\n\u201cI cannot stay here in camp,\u201d continued Ernest, \u201cwhen the being who is\ndearer to me than life is in such imminent danger. You cannot expect me\nto be a good soldier under such circumstances.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, what do you want?\u201d asked Gen. A.\n\n\u201cI must do something,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cCan you aid me in getting into\nWashington?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you were there, what could you do?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know what, General, but I am willing to risk my life in the\nattempt to save her.\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot see,\u201d said the General, whose feelings were beginning to\nsoften at the sight of the young man\u2019s distress, \u201cwhat you could do if\nyou were in the city.\u201d\n\n\u201cGeneral, I must go.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you do go, you are liable to be arrested as a spy yourself.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will have to take that risk. General. How did you enable her to go\ninto the city?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, that is managed easily enough.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, General, in heaven\u2019s name, let me go,\u201d exclaimed Ernest, \u201clet me\ngo. If I do not save her, I will return and devote my life to avenging\nher death. I will be the bravest soldier in your army.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well, sir, you can try it.\u201d\n\n\u201cThanks, General, ten thousand thanks. I shall never forget your\nkindness as long as I live. When can I start?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhenever you please,\u201d said Gen. A.\n\n\u201cThen I will go at once,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI do not want to lose a\nmoment.\u201d\n\nGen. A. immediately gave Ernest the necessary directions. It is no\npart of our story to explain how Gen. A. enabled people to go in and\nout of Washington. It is sufficient to say that he did it. As we have\nalready remarked, the real history of the war has never been written,\nand never will be. The most thrilling portions of it will remain in\neternal obscurity. Many stirring incidents will linger for a while in\nindividual memories, and will enliven the fire-sides of families for\na few years, and then perish forever. Not many ever knew how Ernest\nmade his way into Washington, but the next day he saw the capitol of\nthe United States. This, however, was the least of his difficulties.\nHow could he find Mildred? And what could he do after finding her? But\nhe determined to make every effort in his power, trusting to chance to\nfurnish opportunities. Fortune soon seemed to favor him. For the next\nday after his arrival, he was standing on a certain street, which it\nis not necessary to name, gazing about in a vacant way, while thoughts\nwere revolving in his mind, connected with the object of his visit.\nHe was opposite the hotel at which he was stopping. Accidentally,\nit seemed, casting his eye upward, he beheld a lady at the window\nof the corner room of the fourth story. She was looking down on the\ncrowds below as they went hurrying along the street. Ernest, after\na moment\u2019s examination, recognized her. He waved his hand till, at\nlast, he attracted her attention. Mildred gazed at him earnestly for\na moment, and waved responsively in token of recognition. Ernest\nplaced his fingers upon his mouth in a significant manner, which she\nunderstood. He stood for a brief space in profound study, but suddenly\ndisappearing, crossed the street, and entered the hotel. He ascended\nto the fourth story where his own room was located. Mildred was on the\nsame floor in the corner room. He had noticed the guard at the door,\nbut till now, knew not who the prisoner was. Approaching the sentinel,\nhe spoke in a tone sufficiently loud for Mildred to hear:\n\n\u201cWhom are you guarding?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt seems to be a leddy,\u201d replied an Irishman, \u201cbut how shud I know who\nshe be?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat are your instructions?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cWhy, to let no one in nor out, to be shure.\u201d\n\n\u201cIs the door locked?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cFaith is it, and the kay is gone.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho has it?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Capting, I guess.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is the lady confined for?\u201d\n\n\u201cNarry bit do I know.\u201d\n\n\u201cWill you not let me speak to this lady through the keyhole?\u201d asked\nErnest.\n\n\u201cOch! what would ye be afther doin\u2019? Do ye want me to be a traitor to\nmy counthry?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, no; I do not want you to be a traitor,\u201d said Ernest in a low tone.\n\u201cAre you a married man or not?\u201d\n\n\u201cFaith no, but I expect to be, as soon as this whar is over, which I\nhope wont be a ghreat toime; an\u2019 then I\u2019ll be marrhid to one of the\nmoust beautiful geerls in the whoul city.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen listen to me, my friend. You are engaged to be married, and so\nam I. Now suppose your girl were confined in that room, and I should\nbe standing guard in your place, and you should come up, and ask me to\nlet you speak one little word to her through the keyhole, and I should\nrefuse, what would you think of me?\u201d\n\n\u201cFaith, I\u2019d take you to be a mane rascal.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Ernest eagerly, \u201cthe girl you have in that room has\npromised to marry me. I have not spoken to her for several months. Now,\nwill you drive me away without letting me speak to her?\u201d\n\n\u201cOch; that\u2019s it, is it? By the houly St. Pathrick, I cud niver find it\nin me heart to deny a feller that small a favor. Biddy would call me\na mane dog, ef I was to do as dhirty a trick as that. It\u2019s spaking to\nher, is it? Well spake, but be as quick as you ken.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you, thank you, my good friend,\u201d said Ernest, as tremblingly he\napplied his mouth to the key-hole.\n\n\u201cMildred? Mildred!\u201d he called.\n\n\u201cO, Ernest, is it you?\u201d she asked, drawing her chair to the door.\n\n\u201cYes; are you well?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am, except heart-sickness.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not know how you have stood it.\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cBut what are\nyour prospects?\u201d\n\n\u201cO! they are dark, Ernest, so dark at times. But how came you here?\u201d\n\n\u201cI came to find out about you.\u201d\n\n\u201cAre you not in danger?\u201d she asked.\n\n\u201cI do not know. I never thought of any personal danger. O, Mildred, you\ncannot imagine what I have endured. But the worst has not come.\u201d\n\n\u201cTry to be brave,\u201d she said. \u201cThere is a God who rules in the affairs\nof men. I have not lost faith in Him. I am in His hands, and I know\nHe can raise up friends to aid me in the darkest hours of misfortune.\nI spend the most of my time in prayer, and were it not for my belief,\nI fear I should lose my mind. I try so hard to be reconciled to God\u2019s\nwill, but sometimes, when I think of my parents and sisters, it is hard\nto keep down the spirit of rebellion.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf anything worse than imprisonment happens to you,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI\nshall be tempted to doubt the goodness and justice of God.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not talk that way,\u201d she said, as if horrified. \u201cI would rather die\na thousand times than have one harsh thought of my God. Our times are\nin His hands, and He has determined when and how we shall die, and He\nwill do right. I am distressed not so much on account of myself as of\nmy family.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have no thought for me?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cYes, I include you with the family.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Mildred!\u201d he exclaimed in tones of anguish, \u201cI love you better\nthan my own life. God knows if I could take your place, and restore you\nto freedom, I would willingly and cheerfully do it.\u201d\n\n\u201cI believe you, Ernest, but I could not ask you to make such a\nsacrifice, even if it were possible. But the good Lord knows what is\nbest. I have no fears.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you have any hope of escape?\u201d\n\n\u201cI cannot say that I have any particular hope. I have no plans at all.\nI leave the matter in God\u2019s hands. He has appointed the time, place and\nmanner of my death, and I cannot die till God\u2019s time arrives. You know\nin what faith my father has trained me. I will trust my God though He\nslay me.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Mildred, I do wish I had such a firm faith as yours. It seems to\nsustain you under the most fearful circumstances.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo it does. Sometimes,\u201d she continued with tears of joy in her eyes,\n\u201cI feel happy at the thought of so soon going to the blessed mansions\nwhich Jesus is preparing for them that love Him.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd, sometimes, Mildred, I hate myself for my spiritual infirmities.\nWhile you can look upon death as a blessing, I cannot but see in it a\ncalamity--I cannot regard it as anything else--that you should be taken\nfrom me and your family in the prime of life, especially--. I cannot\nfinish the sentence.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou were going to say,\u201d replied Mildred with perfect calmness,\n\u201cespecially if I should die such a violent death as makes you shudder\nto contemplate.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, yes,\u201d said Ernest in an agitated manner, \u201cit maddens me to think\nabout it. I can never forgive Gen. A. for bringing you into this awful\nsituation.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you must do it, Ernest. God requires it at your hands.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Mildred, I cannot see the hand of a merciful providence in this\nmisfortune,\u201d suddenly cried Ernest. \u201cIt appears cruel.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are very rebellious,\u201d rejoined Mildred gently, \u201cand I am sorry to\nsee it. You will have to learn to guard your tongue and thoughts, or\nGod will mercifully subdue your proud spirit by a worse misfortune.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat can be worse than this?\u201d cried Ernest bitterly. \u201cI would be\nbetter reconciled if I were in your place.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, perhaps, God is now causing you to pass under the chastening rod\nby allowing the misfortune, as you call it, to befall me. The loss\nof my life, at this time, may be necessary to the accomplishment of\nsome good purpose. Suppose I should die, the separation from my loved\nones will not be long. Thank God! We will all soon meet under brighter\nskies, where no cannon roars, no tear is shed, no sickness comes, no\ndeath invades, but where there is universal peace, joy and love.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Mildred,\u201d exclaimed Ernest, \u201cyou are so much better than I am. You\nare as pure as the angels, and I am not worthy of you. I I wish I could\nbelieve this Presbyterian doctrine as you do. I can see that it is this\nwhich enables you to bear up under the darkest trials, and in the face\nof death.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am not so good and pure as you seem to believe,\u201d answered Mildred,\n\u201cbut I am glad to say I fully endorse the doctrines of the Presbyterian\nChurch. Yet there are moments when the spirit of rebellion rises up in\nme. Frequently I find myself shedding tears.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not see how you can help it,\u201d said Ernest in surprise. \u201cSurely\nthere is no rebellion in that.\u201d\n\n\u201cI fear there is,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cIt seems like anticipating God\u2019s\npurposes. What is the use of grieving over a misfortune that may never\ncome? God may send deliverance in some very unexpected way. Nothing is\ntoo hard for Him.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Mildred, I feel as helpless as a child. I have worked my way into\nthis city, and now, having found you, I can do nothing. You have had no\ntrial, I infer.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, not yet.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou may have to languish here for months before they reach your case.\nI know something about the military courts.\u201d\n\n\u201cProbably you will put your own life in jeopardy by remaining here,\u201d\nsaid Mildred. \u201cYou can be of no advantage to me and you would better\nreturn.\u201d\n\n\u201cI would not be worthy of you, if I could not cheerfully risk my life\nfor you. Have you heard nothing from Gen. A.?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot a word.\u201d\n\n\u201cI feel as if I never can forgive him.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are very wrong,\u201d answered Mildred mildly. \u201cGen. A. could never\nhave persuaded me to undertake such a business if I had not wanted\nto serve my country. My life is of no more value than the lives of\nthousands of soldiers who fall upon every field.\u201d\n\nAt this juncture the Irishman who had moved off several paces from the\ndoor approached and said:\n\n\u201cHaven\u2019t you talked long enough?\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you ever become tired of talking to your girl?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cNo, i\u2019 faith,\u201d replied the guard. \u201cBiddy is a rose, she is, an\u2019\nshe don\u2019t give me much chance to talk--she has such a lively tongue\nherself. But I\u2019m afeerd for ye to stay here iny longer.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will not impose upon you,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cnor take advantage of\nyour kindness. I am so much obliged to you.\u201d\n\n\u201cI hope ye\u2019v hed a pleasint chat with the leddy,\u201d said the Irishman.\n\n\u201cYes, but let me bid her adieu.\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly ye may, an\u2019 I\u2019ll move mesilf off so\u2019s I may\u2019nt hear your\nswate words. I know how \u2019tis with Biddy, mesilf.\u201d\n\n\u201cMildred,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthe sentinel will not permit us to converse\nlonger. I must leave you and I know not when I can see you again. The\nnext guard may not be as kind as this one.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d she asked.\n\n\u201cNot far. My room is on this floor. I shall watch for any chance for\nsaving you that may arise. God bless you. Good-by.\u201d\n\n\u201cGood-by. Pray for me.\u201d\n\n\u201cI need to ask your prayers,\u201d replied Ernest. The young man turned\nsorrowfully away, went to his room, fell upon his knees, and cried to\nGod in anguish of spirit. He prayed that he might have the sublime\nfaith of Mildred. He felt humbled under a sense of his helplessness.\n\nIt seems to be natural to us to cry to the Supreme Being in the hours\nof distress. The most immoral men will pray to God when misfortunes\ncome upon them. They have no faith in it, but the inner soul becomes\nfrightened; it almost proclaims its independence of its physical\nenvironments, and expresses its wants through the reluctant organs of\nthe body. Therefore, wicked men pray in times of danger.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XV.\n\nA REMARKABLE EVENT.\n\n\nIt was night. The stars looked down from their blue dome upon the\nlamp-lit streets of Washington. Busy feet went hurrying along this way\nand that. Small groups could be seen standing at different places,\ndiscussing some question of an exciting character. If we draw near to\nany of these groups, we will hear such expressions as \u201cgreat victory,\u201d\n\u201chard fight,\u201d \u201cfour hundred rebels killed.\u201d But we are not now\nspecially concerned with this \u201cglorious news,\u201d which had come on the\ntelegraph wires.\n\nLet us pause before that large hotel, standing on a certain street,\nwhich shall be nameless. Then let us enter, and ascend to the corner\nroom of the fourth story. The door is locked, and on the outside stands\na sentinel with musket in hand. Inside there is a lady on her knees.\nShe has been informed that her trial will take place on the ensuing\nday. Three days have passed since her interview with Ernest. Gen.\nA. had told her what would be the consequence of detection with that\nhandkerchief in her possession. The result of the trial may, therefore,\nbe easily anticipated. The fate of a spy is \u201cdeath by hanging.\u201d\n\nMildred well knew what she had to expect, but strange to say, the\ndark prospect excited no alarm. Probably she could not make a reality\nof the impending danger. This is what the world would say. We are\ncreatures of hope, and we do not yield to despair till the last chance\nis gone. But the Christian is sustained in the most awful calamities\nby something higher than any human hope of deliverance. In the darkest\nhours of trial, a mysterious influence pervades the Christian\u2019s breast,\nproduces a holy calm, a sacred joy, and elevates the soul in triumph\nabove earthly sufferings and sorrows. Unbelievers may pronounce it a\ndelusion, but, nevertheless, it is a delusion which brings happiness;\nand if this be so, the delusion is just as useful and comforting as\nthough death should put an end to the entire man--both body and soul.\n\nAfter arising from her knees, Mildred seated herself at the window,\nand gazed down upon the scenes below. At that moment she felt not a\nparticle of fear or mistrust. She was perfectly resigned to the will of\nthe Heavenly Father, let it be expressed in what aspect it might. She\ngave herself up to this ecstatic sense of security, feeling as if she\nwere nestling, like a timid bird in the Omnipotent Hand. Were \u201ccoming\nevents casting their shadows before?\u201d\n\nWhile in this strange state of feeling, she was startled by a gentle\nrap on her door. This was so unusual that she waited for a repetition\nof the signal. There was a louder tap.\n\n\u201cWhat is wanted?\u201d she asked.\n\nShe heard the click of a key, and the door stood open. Her lamp threw\nits rays upon the form of a young man dressed in the Federal uniform.\nHe took off his cap, bowed, and looked straight at Mildred. She glanced\nat his face, and with a little cry of joy sprang toward him.\n\n\u201cO, Will, can it be you?\u201d she exclaimed.\n\n\u201cIt is I, cousin Mildred.\u201d\n\nWithout another word, she threw her arms around his neck, and pent-up\ntears flowed without restraint. The officer brushed the drops from his\nown eyes, and said:\n\n\u201cCome, cousin, you\u2019ll make me ashamed of myself. It is weakness in a\nsoldier to cry. Sit down and let me look at you. I have not seen you\nfor five years. Upon my word, you\u2019ve got to be right good-looking.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy have you not called to see me before?\u201d\n\n\u201cNow don\u2019t begin to scold before I\u2019ve had time to say \u2018howdy\u2019;\u201d said\nthe officer gaily. \u201cI didn\u2019t know you were here. My company has been\nguarding you too, but I did not see you, nor hear your name called.\nTo-day I happened to be in the room where they are holding court, and I\nheard one of the officers say that the case of Mildred Arrington would\ncome first to-morrow morning. I ascertained the charges against you,\nand I\u2019ve come to see whether it was my cousin Mildred; and sure enough\nit is. But I never expected to find you in such a place--at least, in\nsuch a predicament. It seems you are a spy.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat I deny, cousin Will, if I know what it is to be a spy.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, it amounts to the same thing. Your accomplice was tried to-day.\u201d\n\n\u201cWho.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou know--one Capt. Beall.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd what?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cWhy, he will hang next Friday--that\u2019s all.\u201d\n\nWe may here remark that it is a matter of history that Capt. Beall was\nexecuted as a spy, and met his dismal fate with an undaunted courage\nthat excited the admiration, and pity of his enemies--I say pity,\nbecause we all dislike to see a brave, noble man put to an ignominious\ndeath.\n\n\u201cI am very sorry,\u201d said Mildred.\n\n\u201cNo doubt, you are; but what is to become of yourself, my pretty\ncousin?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, has not God sent you to release me?\u201d asked Mildred with the\nsimple faith of a child.\n\n\u201cO, you old blue-stocking Presbyterian!\u201d cried Capt. Benner, breaking\ninto a laugh. \u201cThat is so like you. You get into an ugly scrape, and\nask God to help you out of it, and a kind-hearted young fellow calls to\nsee you, and you forthwith jump to the conclusion that the Lord sent\nhim to save you. What a faith you do have. But don\u2019t be too fast,\u201d\ncontinued the officer, with a merry twinkle, \u201cyou are a rebel, and I\nam a union man. I don\u2019t know whether I ought to have called at all\nor not. But how do you expect me to save you? Do you want me to be a\ntraitor? Do you want me to release a dangerous spy? Say, now?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, cousin. If it endangers you, let me be. I am ready to be\nsacrificed on the altar of my country,\u201d said Mildred.\n\n\u201cO, ho! you want to be a martyr, do you?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; I have no ambition in that way,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cI would prefer\nto go home to my family; but I do not want you to take any risks to\nsave me.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you suppose I could release a prisoner without taking risks? To be\nsure, my fair cousin, I will have to take risks.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, leave me alone,\u201d said Mildred.\n\n\u201cLeave you to be hanged, you mean?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, if that is the penalty.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd after that deplorable event,\u201d said the officer, \u201ccould I ever look\nmy mother in the face? Could I see Uncle Arrington again, and good Aunt\nJennie? After the war, when I go down South again, and call at uncle\u2019s,\nand I should hold out my hand, he would start back and say, \u2018No, I\ncannot touch that hand; it is stained with poor Mildred\u2019s blood.\u2019 And\naunt would say, \u2018Leave me, Will, I cannot bear to look at you.\u2019 How do\nyou suppose I would feel, eh? I guess I should go off like Judas did,\nand hang myself--I think I would.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, let us be serious, Will. I am in no humor for sport now. Do not\nkeep me in suspense. What have you come for?\u201d\n\n\u201cDidn\u2019t you say, just now, that God sent me? I wish I could think it.\nIt would be a great relief to my conscience.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow is that?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, don\u2019t you see, I\u2019ve got to play false to my government and my\ncountry, if I give you freedom?\u201d\n\n\u201cIs that painful to your conscience?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I say yes, then you will become stubborn, and refuse to accept the\nboon of freedom. So, that you may have no scruples, I will tell you\nthat I have a convenient conscience--one that will stretch. I never was\nraised, like you, a regular, old blue-stocking Presbyterian. Sometimes,\nthough, I wish I had been. For there is no doubt in my mind that the\nPresbyterian is the most solid and substantial Church on earth.[2] My\nmother, you know, is a Presbyterian, and my father belongs to the ----\nChurch. I notice that she is the firmer character, and I can say with\ntruth, more consistent, religiously. I take after my father; and that,\nI guess, is a good thing for you.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy is it?\u201d asked Mildred.\n\n\u201cWhy, don\u2019t you see, if I were a rigid Presbyterian, I should hesitate\nabout giving you liberty? I should be afraid of doing violence to my\nconscience. Waiving that, however, I think I have been a faithful\nservant of my government, and they might allow me to release one\nwretched prisoner.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy could you not get a pardon for me, and thus save your conscience?\u201d\nasked Mildred.\n\n\u201cHow green you women are! Don\u2019t you know there is no pardon for a spy?\nDon\u2019t you remember Maj. Andre, of the Revolutionary war? Washington\nwould not even let the poor fellow select his own mode of quitting\n\u2018these low grounds of sorrow.\u2019 The punishment for this great sin of\nespionage is death, and death by hanging.\u201d\n\n\u201cCan you free me,\u201d asked Mildred, \u201cwithout compromising your own\nsafety?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will have to take some risks, of course, but you needn\u2019t give\nyourself any uneasiness on my account, my fair cousin. Can you make\nyour way home, if you were out of this building? Can you go alone?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly, but it will not be necessary.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat! you\u2019ve got another accomplice?\u201d\n\n\u201cI shall not conceal anything from you, Will, since you are so kind,\u201d\nreplied Mildred, while a deep blush spread over her features. \u201cI am\nengaged to be married to a young man who is here. His room is on this\nfloor.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed! what a pretty, romantic scrape you have got into! It would\ndo to go into a novel. But you have made such an honest confession,\nthough, that I can\u2019t have the pleasure of teasing you. Is he a Rebel\ntoo?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, he is.\u201d\n\n\u201cWouldn\u2019t it be patriotic, if I were to have him arrested, and tried as\na spy? Two romantic lovers hanged on a sour apple tree!\u201d\n\n\u201cYou might call it patriotic,\u201d said Mildred, \u201cbut what would I call it?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, treacherous, mean, diabolical, and the like. But we\u2019ve got to act\nnow,\u201d taking out his watch. \u201cWhat do you want me to do? Can you and the\nyoung man who is so interesting, manage the matter if you can get out\nof the city?\u201d\n\n\u201cCertainly.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen can you see him?\u201d\n\n\u201cI suppose he is in his room,\u201d replied Mildred.\n\n\u201cWhat number?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo. 18.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll go see him at once.\u201d\n\nAccordingly, the officer went to the designated number, and tapped\non the door. A footstep was heard inside, and the door was opened\nby Ernest. Seeing a Federal officer standing before him, he was\ndisagreeably surprised. The first thought that entered his mind was\nthat he had been watched, and this man had come to arrest him. The\nprospect was enough to make him turn pale. Benner observed his alarm,\nand said with a smile:\n\n\u201cIs your name Edgefield?\u201d\n\n\u201cWho told you that I bore such a name?\u201d asked Ernest, in ill-concealed\nsurprise.\n\n\u201cIt does not matter who told me, is the information correct?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not like to answer questions in regard to myself till I\nunderstand your object.\u201d\n\n\u201cMy object is, to establish your identity.\u201d\n\n\u201cFor what purpose?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cIf you know what is for your own good,\u201d replied Benner, \u201cyou will\nanswer candidly.\u201d\n\n\u201cSupposing that to be my name, what then?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf that\u2019s your name, come with me.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere,\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cTo that lady in the corner room.\u201d\n\nErnest looked more astonished than ever, on hearing this, but thought\nit best to obey in silence. Both entered the room, and Mildred said:\n\n\u201cAllow me to introduce, Capt. Edgefield, my cousin, Capt. Benner.\u201d\n\nErnest, at first, appeared puzzled and bewildered, but he soon took in\nthe situation, and his feelings vibrated to the opposite extreme. He\nwas elevated from the depths of darkness to the pinnacle of light. Of\ncourse, he thought the young man had come to bring deliverance to his\nkinswoman. At that moment, too, a sense of his ingratitude toward God\nflashed into his mind. In a subdued tone he inquired how Capt. Benner\nhad discovered his cousin. He was told in a very few words what the\nreader knows concerning the affair. Ernest relapsed into silence, and\nbitterly reproached himself for his lack of confidence in the kind\nHeavenly Father. Here God was bringing the blind by a way they knew\nnot, and was preparing deliverance, while he had been indulging in\nharsh reflections toward the Giver of all good. It was a lesson which\nhe never forgot. From that moment he became a firm believer in the\ndoctrines of grace as held by the Presbyterian Church.\n\nWe hope we are not taking undue advantage of any interest that may\nbe excited by the present story to give undeserved prominence to\nthe Presbyterian Church. The effect which her doctrines have upon\nindividual and national character is admitted by thoughtful historians.\nBuckle, in his History of Civilization, does justice to them. According\nto him, they are better adapted to democratic institutions than any\nother published creeds. It will be found that those who have believed\nin these doctrines, which some people call \u201chorrible,\u201d have ever been\nthe most stubborn, uncompromising advocates of human rights. They\nhave been foremost in all the great conflicts for freedom. These\nsame doctrines underlaid the Reformation of the 16th century, as is\nevident to the most cursory reader. We are, by no means, attempting to\ndisparage other Churches, but our present undertaking will not allow us\nto point out their excellences. We will now proceed with the story. We\nneed not detail the conversation which took place among the trio, nor\nattempt to describe the happiness of the two who were in the greatest\ndanger. Ernest was so overwhelmed by this evident demonstration of\ndivine providence that he did not have much to say. He was thinking.\nMildred acted as though she were not greatly surprised. She had sent up\nmany earnest prayers to the Throne of Grace and she was not astounded\nthat her petitions were answered.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Benner, presently, when it was time to bring the interview\nto an end, \u201cyou must leave about 12 o\u2019clock, when most honest people\nare asleep. I will see that the way is clear in the hotel. You must\nboth be dressed as union soldiers, at least till you get to the\nforests. I will have the clothing here in time.\u201d\n\nCapt. Benner then left, but returned at 30 minutes past 11 o\u2019clock.\nMildred and Ernest were soon transformed into Federal soldiers, at\nleast, in appearance. Each was armed with a musket, and no one, without\nan unusually close inspection, would have supposed they were other than\nthey appeared to be. And now all was ready.\n\nAs the clock struck 12, two Federal soldiers issued from ---- hotel,\nand walked leisurely along the streets. In a short time they left the\nlamps glimmering in the distance, and plunged into the darkness of the\nforest. Two miles from the city they mounted their horses which had\nbeen left in the care of a friend.\n\nEarly the next day, they suddenly ran upon a union soldier, who was\na vidette. This route had not been occupied by Federal soldiers\nbefore, as it was scarcely anything more than a path. The young people\nwere very much surprised, but Ernest in an instant recovered his\nself-possession, and decided upon his plan of action. He was still\ndressed in the Federal uniform, and had his musket, besides his own\npistol. They came upon the soldier in a sudden turn of the path, and\nwere within a few paces of him before they discovered him. The vidette,\ntaking Ernest to be what this garb indicated, without raising his gun,\ncalled out:\n\n\u201cHalt! who goes there?\u201d\n\nHe had barely uttered the words before Ernest leveled his gun, and\nexclaimed:\n\n\u201cSurrender!\u201d\n\n\u201cWho are you?\u201d cried the astounded soldier.\n\n\u201cDrop your gun,\u201d exclaimed Ernest sternly, \u201cor I shall kill you.\u201d\n\nThe amazed vidette, perceiving that resistance would be in vain, let\nhis gun drop to the earth.\n\n\u201cNow,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI have no disposition to harm you. All we want is\nto pass you. Are you willing to let us go?\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can I hinder you,\u201d asked the soldier \u201cwhen I am disarmed?\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you must promise not to pursue us.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d asked the soldier.\n\n\u201cThat is my business,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cCertainly. I promise then.\u201d\n\n\u201cPromise,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthat you will remain on your horse for fifteen\nminutes, and not touch that gun, and will give no alarm after we are\ngone.\u201d\n\n\u201cI promise,\u201d answered the soldier.\n\n\u201cTo make assurance doubly sure,\u201d continued Ernest, \u201cI will take your\ncartridges.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, don\u2019t do that,\u201d begged the vidette. \u201cI will promise just as you\nwant me to.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy are you so opposed to giving up your cartridges?\u201d\n\n\u201cBecause I am accountable for them. I don\u2019t intend to say anything\nabout this affair, because the boys would laugh at me, and I might be\npunished too. Just go, and get out of the way as quick as you can, and\nI give you my word of honor that you shall not hear another word from\nme. But how am I to account for the loss of my cartridges?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou seem to be honest,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cand I believe I will try you.\u201d\n\nThe two immediately rode on, and the soldier kept his word, so far as\nErnest knew.\n\nThat morning, while Mildred and Ernest were making their escape, the\nfirst passers-by saw a long rope, reaching from the corner room of the\nfourth story of ---- hotel, down to the pavement below. They knew not\nwhat it meant. About 9 o\u2019clock though, when the Court-Martial sent for\nthe female prisoner, it was discovered that the \u201cbird had flown.\u201d The\nsentinel, who had been stationed at the door about twelve o\u2019clock,\ncould give no account of the escape. The door was locked, and he heard\nnothing. It was presently noised abroad that the lady spy had escaped,\nand soon hundreds of people gathered in the streets, looked up at the\ndangling rope, and wondered how a lady could have climbed down such a\nfearful distance. The general opinion was that she was a brave, daring\nwoman, who was confined to this one mode of escape. \u201cOf course,\u201d they\nsaid, \u201cshe had friends in the city, who assisted her in the perilous\nundertaking.\u201d At any rate, she was gone. The chief clerk at the hotel,\nwho had been instrumental in her arrest, was not of the rabid class\nwho regretted her timely flight. \u201cI don\u2019t care,\u201d he said with a smile.\n\u201cI don\u2019t believe she was a spy anyhow. Even if she was, and they had\nhanged her, I believe I should have felt guilty of murder.\u201d\n\nNothing more was ever found out about it, and Capt. Benner bore the\ncharacter of a true and loyal soldier till the horrid war came to an\nend. Some years afterwards he met Mildred, and laughingly explained his\nscheme, remarking that, \u201cpeople might have had sense enough to know\nthat she could not have escaped in that way.\u201d\n\n\u201cPossibly I might, though,\u201d she said. \u201cThere is no telling what one can\ndo, when life depends upon it.\u201d And she laughed as she thought of how\nshe would have appeared, dangling by her hands on a rope between heaven\nand earth.\n\nFOOTNOTE:\n\n[2] An intelligent member of the Methodist denomination once spoke\nthese very words to the author of this story.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVI.\n\nA CONFEDERATE MARRIAGE.\n\n\nWe now return to our two fugitives. They met with no other adventure,\nand arrived that evening at Dr. Arrington\u2019s residence. The old\ngentleman would have gone into Washington himself when Mildred was\narrested, but Ernest persuaded him to remain at home with his family,\npromising to promptly inform him if his presence should become\nnecessary.\n\nIt is impossible to portray the scene which occurred when the two rode\nup and alighted. Mrs. Arrington, who had been almost brokenhearted,\ncould not control her feelings in the transition from despair to joy.\nThis arrival was like the coming back of the dead. The good lady must\ncry aloud. The Doctor was more calm, but the tears gently coursed down\nhis cheek in gratitude to God for the restoration of his child. It was\nan hour or more before the family equilibrium approximated its normal\ncondition sufficiently to admit of tranquil conversation. After a\nwhile the Doctor said:\n\n\u201cWe must now have a special service--a service of gratitude, for I feel\nthat my many earnest prayers have been answered.\u201d\n\nThe family assembled in the parlor, and the Doctor selected some\nportions of Scripture suitable to the occasion, and all humbly and\nreverently bowed upon their knees. Such an out-pouring of thanksgiving\nnever before was witnessed around that altar. This was a family of\nfaith. They regarded God as the source of every blessing. The Doctor\nhad no more doubt that God had restored his child, in answer to prayer,\nthan he had of his own existence. Ernest, however, who loved to hear\nthe old man defend his position, suggested that the same thing might\nhave happened if there had been no prayers in the case.\n\n\u201cI am surprised at you,\u201d answered the Doctor. \u201cI do not know that I\never saw the hand of God more clearly revealed in my affairs.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut still,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cdoes it not all appear natural? Your nephew\nwas in the city, and hearing of his cousin\u2019s imprisonment, what is more\nnatural than that he should restore her to liberty?\u201d\n\n\u201cI remember,\u201d said Mrs. Arrington, \u201chow we were all distressed when we\nheard that Will had joined the Northern army. Little did we think that\nMildred\u2019s life depended upon it. How short sighted we are!\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd suppose,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cthat Will had not been in the\ncourt-room when the officer made the remark about her trial. You told\nus of this a while ago. This might have appeared accidental, but still\nit happened exactly at the right time. Suppose Will had not gone into\nthat room at the moment he did, the trial would have ended the next\nday, and Mildred in all probability, would have never been sent back\nto the hotel, but to a dismal felon\u2019s cell to await her execution, and\nthen Will would not have been able to release her.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou say, Doctor,\u201d answered Ernest, \u201cthat these things happened at\nthe right time. Suppose this deliverance had occurred earlier, what\ndifference would it have made?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe do not understand all God\u2019s ways and purposes,\u201d replied the Doctor;\n\u201cbut granting that this deliverance had occurred two or three days\nearlier, you would not have been present to give your assistance. Then\nsuppose Mildred had tried to make her way alone, she might have been\nre-captured by that vidette you told us about. I do not see how you can\nfail to recognize divine providence in all this.\u201d\n\n\u201cI do recognize it fully,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cYou must not think, Doctor,\nthat I am disposed to doubt a supernatural providence. One reason why I\nasked the question which I did was to get your views. I wanted to hear\nyou point out the particulars as you have done. I am glad to say that\nthis severe trial has proved beneficial to me. I do not think I will\never again be as skeptical as I have been. I have had a lesson.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet it be a lesson to us all,\u201d answered the Doctor, \u201cever to have\nimplicit faith in God.\u201d\n\nThe next day Ernest requested a private interview with the Doctor. They\nmet in the study, and Ernest said:\n\n\u201cI must return soon to the army, and, to make a long story short,\nI have come to ask you to perform the marriage ceremony for me and\nMildred to-day.\u201d\n\n\u201cTo-day!\u201d exclaimed the Doctor in surprise.\n\n\u201cYes, sir; why not?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not suppose she is ready,\u201d said the Doctor.\n\n\u201cIt will not take long to get ready,\u201d remarked Ernest. \u201cPeople do not\nexpect grand weddings such times as these.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo; but what put this sudden notion into your head?\u201d asked the Doctor\na little bluntly.\n\n\u201cWe have come to the conclusion that there is no use waiting any\nlonger.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, if it is Mildred\u2019s wish,\u201d replied the Doctor thoughtfully, \u201cI\nshall interpose no objection.\u201d\n\nAccordingly, that very evening a few friends assembled at the Doctor\u2019s\nresidence, and at 8 o\u2019clock Ernest and Mildred were pronounced \u201chusband\nand wife.\u201d\n\nDuring those times young people entered into the marriage relation\nwithout much ceremony, and upon short notice. In many parts of the\ncountry it was impossible to procure suitable \u201cwedding garments,\u201d and\nthe soldiers frequently married in their ordinary uniforms.\n\nErnest remained with his bride three or four days, and then started\n\u201coff to the wars\u201d again. It was a great and severe trial to the two\nyoung people to separate. They might never meet again in this world.\nMany a young man left his young wife, and in a few days afterwards he\nwas slumbering in the soldier\u2019s bloody grave.\n\n\u201cMildred,\u201d said Ernest in a husky tone, \u201cpray for me. I have faith in\nyour prayers.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not doubt my praying for you,\u201d she said, while tears glistened in\nher eyes. \u201cYou will never be out of my mind a moment.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt does look hard,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cthat we should be separated by the\nyawning gulf of war just as we are upon the threshold of life. I never\nknew the depth of my affection for you till now.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou will not suffer, after all, as I shall,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cYou\nwill have the exciting scenes of war to occupy your thoughts, and I\nshall have nothing to think about but you. O, the long weary days that\nmust pass away! I shall think of you as constantly exposed to dangers.\u201d\n\nAnd so they separated, both saying in their hearts, as they went their\nrespective ways:\n\n\u201cO, shall we ever meet again?\u201d\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVII.\n\nPEACE.\n\n\nThe frightful clouds of war have rolled away. The smoke of battle has\ndissolved into the darkness of the Past. The blood-spots have been\nwashed out by the rains and dews of heaven. Blessed Peace spreads\nout her snow-white pinions, dripping balm for wounded hearts, from\nthe granite hills of New England to the smiling prairies of the Lone\nStar State. The little hillocks of earth that rise up all over the\nSouth mark the gory fields where the enraged warriors met in the\ndeath-struggle. We can again re-visit the awful spots where once the\nearth groaned under the tread of men and horses rushing head-long\nto the fray, and we can call up the phantom forms, and make them\nre-enact the bloody tragedies of battle in solemn silence. The gloomy\ncedar-brakes of Murfreesboro, the plateau of Bull Run, the dark stream\nof Chickamauga, the rugged Mount that looks down upon Chattanooga, the\nblack hills of Vicksburg, pock-marked by the shells of a fifty-days\u2019\nsiege--are all there yet, dumb witnesses to the ferocity of human\npassions. To-day, at all these, and many other places, we can take the\ntorch of history, and relight the terrible scenes enacted in the now\nsilent past. We see long lines of soldiers start up in battle array,\ngrasping the deadly musket, and solemnly preparing to die, in that\nominous lull which always precedes the mighty shock of battle. There is\na strange silence. The very forests seem to be holding their breath in\nexpectation of a storm more awful than the cyclone of nature. What is\nit? The awful _pause of Death_.\n\nPresently a single gun breaks the oppressive silence. The work of\ndestruction begins. Heavy volumes of smoke rise up all over the\nforests. Men on horse-back are seen flying in every direction. One\nremarkable man, clad in a red flannel shirt, symbolical of the fierce\nspirit within, is seen galloping from one scene of carnage to another,\nunder the inspiration of a courage that never failed. At last, he reels\nand falls, and the fiery form of A. P. Hill disappears from the scenes\nof history forever.\n\nIt is remarkable that Lee and Jackson in their last moments on\nearth, when they were unconscious of all temporal things, and their\nimaginations were roving lawlessly over the gory fields where they had\nbeen such prominent actors, both called for A. P. Hill. It is a high\ncompliment to the hero\u2019s military genius. But Jackson himself went down\nin the thundering cyclone of war, and was seen no more. Alas! such men\nas these had to be swept from the path of destiny before the divine\npurpose could be accomplished. We mourn for our fallen braves, and yet\nwe thank God that such scenes as gave them undying fame have ceased,\nwe hope, forever, in these States now cemented with intermingling\nfraternal blood!\n\nOne bright morning in April, 1865, the members of Dr. Arrington\u2019s\nfamily were all seated around the breakfast table. Every face wore\na sad, anxious expression. The news of Lee\u2019s surrender, which some\ndoubted, had been received, but not the particulars of his last battle.\nWho had fallen? Mildred looked at the smoking dishes, but could not\neat. Where was Ernest? She had seen him but three or four times since\ntheir marriage, and he had been in all of Lee\u2019s battles. O, could it be\npossible that he had been killed in the last fight? The thought made\nher shudder.\n\n\u201cWhy do you not eat?\u201d asked the Doctor kindly.\n\n\u201cHow can I, father?\u201d Mildred answered sadly. \u201cI am heart-sick. This\nsuspense is awful.\u201d\n\n\u201cHave faith in God,\u201d said the Doctor. \u201cThe last time we heard from\nErnest he was well. What reason have you to suppose he is otherwise\nnow?\u201d\n\n\u201cThere has been a battle or two since then, and some are killed in\nevery fight.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo not anticipate, my child. Never make trouble for yourself. What is\nthe use of grieving over imaginary calamities?\u201d\n\n\u201cI know, father, that you are right; but it is so hard to be perfectly\nresigned to God\u2019s will.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have not ascertained what God\u2019s will is in this instance; but even\nshould it be that which you dread, I do not deny that it will be hard\nto bear. It is natural for us to think that God should let us have our\nway in some things at least. But we should never forget that God knows\nwhat is best for us, and He always does the best for us, if we put\nourselves unreservedly in His hands.\u201d\n\n\u201cI know that is true,\u201d replied Mildred. \u201cBut, sometimes I am\nrebellious. If Ernest does not come back,\u201d she continued in quivering\ntones, \u201cit seems to me I can never again be happy in this world.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen be happy!\u201d exclaimed a voice at the door. Mildred instantly\nlooked up, gave a little scream of joy, sprang from her seat, and\nwas locked in Ernest\u2019s arms. What a transition! We shall not attempt\nto describe it. There are some emotions of the human heart that are\nbeyond the reach of words. They are too sacred and deep to be expressed\nby human language. Every trace of sadness immediately vanished from\nMildred\u2019s face, which was lit up with a holy joy and peace that made\nher look radiant. Presently when there was comparative quiet, the\nDoctor said:\n\n\u201cWell, has Lee really surrendered?\u201d\n\n\u201cI am sorry to say he has,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cHere is my discharge from\nthe service.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd you have not been wounded,\u201d asked Mildred, \u201csince you were home\nlast?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have not received a graze,\u201d he replied.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d she said with tears springing into her eyes, \u201clet me go to\nmy room, and return thanks to God, and ask His forgiveness for my\nthoughts. I cannot eat till I do.\u201d\n\nAs she went out Mrs. Arrington said:\n\n\u201cYou have a treasure, Ernest, in that girl, if I do say it myself.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am well aware of that, Madam, and I am indebted to the war for it. I\nhave learned that God brings good out of evil. I never would have heard\nof Mildred, had it not been for the battle of Manassas. I am sorry,\nthough, our cause is lost.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut it is God\u2019s will,\u201d quickly spoke up the Doctor, \u201cand we should be\nthankful that it is no worse.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am sure it is bad enough,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cWe have lost our\nindependence.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt may appear to you to be a great calamity,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cbut I\nhave no doubt it is a blessing in disguise. Two different governments\ncould not exist in this glorious land of ours. I have never believed\nthat we would succeed. I was fearful that we were in the wrong. But\nit is in vain to discuss such questions now. All is over, and we must\nsubmit. \u2018Promotion cometh neither from the East nor the West, but God\nsetteth up one, and pulleth down another.\u2019\u201d\n\nMildred now returned to the dining-room, and all partook of the meal\nwith hearts glowing with gratitude. Do not the angels hover over, and\nsmile upon, such a social scene?\n\nThe next day the family assembled in the parlor to hold a consultation,\nat the request of Ernest.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said the Doctor, smiling upon the group, \u201c\u2018the cruel war is\nover,\u2019 and we must now all return to the blessed arts of peace. I\nsuppose you will resume the practice of law,\u201d he continued, turning to\nErnest.\n\n\u201cNo, I think not, Doctor,\u201d answered Ernest. \u201cI called this family\nmeeting in order to lay my plans before you. After my marriage, when\nI returned to my command again, I solemnly promised God that if He\nwould spare my life, I would devote my energies to His service in the\nministry. I am here alive, without having received another wound. Now\ndo you not think I ought to regard my vows?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, my dear Ernest,\u201d cried Mildred eagerly, \u201cI have prayed God to put\nit in your heart to become a minister, and now, it seems, my prayer is\nanswered.\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not know,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cbut that you might have an ambition for\nsomething higher.\u201d\n\n\u201cHigher!\u201d exclaimed Mildred in surprise. \u201cWhat can be higher?\u201d\n\n\u201cI did not mean \u2018higher\u2019 in the sense that you understand,\u201d replied\nErnest, \u201cbut the world, you know, regards some other professions as\nhigher.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut the ministry is not a profession,\u201d answered Mildred. \u201cI cannot\nimagine what greater honor a human being can enjoy than to be called to\ndo God\u2019s work.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have now no greater ambition myself than to be an humble minister of\nthe gospel,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cIt is well,\u201d said the Doctor, \u201cthat you employ the word humble. I am\nsorry to say that there are ambitious men in the Church who desire to\nacquire great reputation as preachers, and who seek after high places\nin the Church. I hope you have no such disposition as that?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, Doctor, if I know my own heart. I desire to be useful.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us be plain,\u201d continued the Doctor, \u201cthat you may not, in the\nfuture, regret the step you have taken. Be sure that you are influenced\nby the proper motives. I hope you have not entered into a sort of\ncontract with the Lord--that is, you do not propose to become a\nminister because God has brought you safe out of the war?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir; I firmly believe I was called years ago, but I resisted.\nI think I would have been a preacher if there had been no war. But\nprobably the war has caused me to enter it sooner than I might have\ndone otherwise.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou feel, then, that it is your duty to preach?\u201d asked the Doctor.\n\n\u201cYes, sir, I do.\u201d\n\n\u201cThen, there is no more to be said about it,\u201d answered the Doctor. \u201cThe\nsooner you begin the better. I believe I have not asked you under what\necclesiastical auspices you propose to preach?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Presbyterian, of course,\u201d said Ernest with a smile. \u201cI suppose my\ndear Mildred would hardly consent to anything else.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, I am not so prejudiced as all that,\u201d answered Mildred laughing. \u201cIf\nyou felt it your duty to attach yourself to any other orthodox Church,\nI should not oppose you. But to tell you the truth, I love my Church to\nsuch an extent that I could never be happy in any other, and I never\ncould feel the same zeal in another.\u201d\n\n\u201cMildred is a true blue,\u201d said the Doctor with a laugh, \u201cand I am glad\nto think you will find her a useful helpmeet in your work.\u201d\n\n\u201cI expect she will make a better pastor than I,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cfor I am\nnot as social as she is. I fear that this thing of visiting will be the\nmost troublesome duty I shall have to perform.\u201d\n\n\u201cPeople will require a great deal of you in that respect,\u201d said the\nDoctor. \u201cYou will find that most of them wish you to visit them not\non account of their spiritual interests: but it is the social feature\nthey regard. I have noticed that most Presbyterian ministers are more\nreserved in their manners than those of some other denominations. This\nis, no doubt, to be attributed to the long course of mental discipline\nto which they are subjected. They acquire the habit of solitary study\ntill the social feature of their nature is considerably impaired. On\nthis account I have known some ministers to be accused of stiffness,\npride and formality, who were humble, godly men. They really did not\nunderstand the demands of social etiquette. You will have to cultivate\nthis feature.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is the use of social visiting, Doctor?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhether there is use in it or not, people require it,\u201d replied the\nDoctor. \u201cYou will find some of them very unreasonable. They will\ncomplain if you do not call every week.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow then, shall I ever find time to study?\u201d asked Ernest.\n\n\u201cYou must take it. You can not please everybody, try never so hard.\u201d\n\nAnd for a long time the Doctor gave the young man excellent advice,\nwhich we need not detail, as it would be of no great interest to the\ngeneral reader. Besides, we are well aware, that people do not read a\nstory for the sake of the moral, but for their own entertainment. So\nwe shall proceed, at once, to relate the most interesting events of\nErnest\u2019s life.\n\nThe next month, the Presbytery of ---- met, and received Ernest under\nits care. Instead of going to a Seminary, it was allowed him to take\na course of Theological study under the tuition of Dr. Arrington. At\nthe expiration of a year he stood his examination, and having received\na call from the Presbyterian church in his own town, he was regularly\nordained a minister of the gospel. His trial sermon aroused universal\nwonder and admiration. The people had rarely ever witnessed such\noratorical power in the pulpit. Every one predicted for him a brilliant\ncareer of usefulness. No young minister ever entered upon his work with\nmore flattering prospects.\n\nErnest was praised and complimented sufficiently to have turned an\nolder head, but he now possessed too much of the grace of humility\nto be affected by human applause. The great object with him was the\napproval of the Master and his own conscience. With the settlement of\nErnest in his charge it might seem that our story had reached a point\nat which it could properly and happily be brought to an end, but we\nhave other interesting events yet to relate.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XVIII.\n\nTHE DRUNKARD.\n\n\nErnest entered upon his work in two or three weeks after his\nordination. This was the first time he had seen his native town since\nhe left it in 1861. Things had undergone a great change during the four\nyears of war. The prosperity of the place was a thing of the past.\nMany wealthy families had been reduced to abject beggary. Old Mr.\nVanclure had died in 1862, and his son-in-law had administered upon\nhis estate. If Comston had been a man of moral habits, he could have\nsaved a handsome property for his wife, but he was dissipated, and was\npassionately addicted to gambling. He had pursued a course during the\nwar which had brought him into disgrace, having avoided conscription\nby hiding in the cane-brakes. When the war came to an end, he found\nhimself in possession of only three thousand dollars. By judicious\nmanagement of even this amount, he might have gained an honorable\nlivelihood; but he soon lost it all at the gambling table. Finally, he\nbecame a sot.\n\nPoor Clara had to resort to her needle for bread, and she gained only\na precarious, scanty subsistence for herself and her unworthy husband,\nwho sometimes spent her hard earnings for drink.\n\nAffairs were in this condition when Ernest returned to his native\ntown to take charge of the church. As soon as he had heard of Clara\u2019s\nmisfortunes, he called to see her. He met with a cold reception, for\nshe had become hardened. But by kindness, he soon induced her to talk\nfreely. Presently she said:\n\n\u201cI know you think I made a great blunder.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow?\u201d asked Ernest timidly, suspecting what she was going to say.\n\n\u201cIn my marriage,\u201d she answered with decided emphasis. \u201cYou know that I\nrejected you. Are you not glad to see me humbled?\u201d\n\n\u201cGod forbid!\u201d exclaimed Ernest energetically. \u201cI sympathize with you.\nThe good Lord knows I am sorry for you.\u201d\n\n\u201cThey tell me you are a preacher now?\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is true, I am glad to say.\u201d\n\n\u201cO,\u201d she exclaimed suddenly, \u201cI wish Xerxes were a preacher--yes,\nanything than what he is. I reckon you\u2019ve heard all about him.\u201d\n\n\u201cI have heard some things,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cHe has got to be a regular drunkard,\u201d she said, \u201cand I am tired of\nhim. He treats me cruelly. I think he once loved me, and I could have\nlived happily with him, but he got to drinking, and that has proved his\nruin. He is not the same man.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am truly sorry for you,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cBut you are not without\nhope.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere is there any hope for me?\u201d she cried. \u201cI never expect to be\nhappy again.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou can be, if you will,\u201d said Ernest solemnly, as he looked pityingly\nat the sad woman.\n\n\u201cHow can I? I should like to know.\u201d\n\n\u201cThere is a happiness,\u201d answered Ernest, \u201cfar superior to any this\nworld affords.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhere is it?\u201d she cried.\n\n\u201cIn Christ Jesus.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I expected you to say that, or something like it. But how could I\nbe a Christian, miserable and wretched as I am?\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Lord never turns away any who come to Him,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cBut I\u2019m not ready for that yet,\u201d she said with candor. \u201cI want to\nenjoy the world for a while. I think I deserve it. If I had not\nmarried, I might have been happy, but it is impossible now, with such a\nhusband as mine.\u201d\n\nAt this moment, Comston came from town, and staggered into the room.\nClara blushed with shame and vexation, but recovering herself, looked\nat him without uttering a word.\n\n\u201cWhy, how d\u2019ye do, Edgefield,\u201d he exclaimed in a boisterous tone,\nand with the drunkard\u2019s slow stammering and stuttering. \u201cIt\u2019s the\nfirst--first time--I\u2019ve met ye--since you--you--er got back from\nthe--er wars. How you make it--er now, ole feller, eh?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, I am in good health,\u201d said Ernest, dryly.\n\n\u201cWell, I\u2019m--er truly glad to give you--er--er the right hand--er of--er\nwelcome. Would you--er \u2019a known this \u2019er--er little \u2019oman--er of mine,\nat--er first sight, eh? She used ter--er--er be right down--er good\nlookin\u2019--but--er the last year--er she\u2019s--er begun--ter break--er\nlittle--yes--er you see, eh? Arn\u2019t it so, Clarer, eh? You see--er the\ncruel war--er broke us up, like it did--er everybody else--er.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d said Ernest, more to relieve Clara of embarrassment than to\nkeep up a conversation with a foolish inebriate, \u201cthe war proved\ndisastrous to most of our people.\u201d\n\n\u201cIndeed--er did it. I lost heavily--er--by it--myself--ruined--dead\nbroke--er--brought down--er to--er abject pov--er--er--tee--er, as\nthe--saying is--er. Cruel--thing--it was. I--er didn\u2019t have--er--much\nto do--er--with it--you see--er,--eh? I was--er long-headed--I saw how\nthe--er--thing--was agoin\u2019, an\u2019--er--I tried ter--save my scalp--eh?\nI told Clarer--there was\u2019nt--any use--er--of my--goin\u2019. She was a\ngreat--er--patriarch--you know--er-wanted--er ter eat Yankees--up--er.\nBut--er I don\u2019t--love that--er sort of--er flesh. It is--not--er--half\nas good--er--as fish. I went--a--fishin\u2019--most of the time, and--er--we\nhad a--jolly time--er--we did. It was--better--than shootin\u2019\nyer--feller--man in--er cold--blood. The Yankees--had--never done\nme--any harm,--an\u2019 I could\u2019nt make--up my mind ter--murder \u2019em--\u2019thout\nprovocation--you see, eh? But I hear--you\u2019ve got to be--a preacher, eh?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir,\u201d answered Ernest in a manner which convinced Clara that the\npassing scene was painful to his feelings. She could easily perceive\nthat he was enduring her maudlin husband for her sake.\n\n\u201cWell--er,\u201d continued Comston, \u201cit\u2019s a--nice--er profession--,\nnot--much--er money in it--though--eh? Like the ole Injun said--poor\npreach--poor pay--er. I don\u2019t--er mean that for you--though--er.\nYou--used ter be--er--a good law--yer, and--if--er you preach--as well\nas you--talk--I don\u2019t see--why--er you shouldn\u2019t succeed--er. I\u2019m\na-comin\u2019 \u2019round to--er hear you preach--er--some Sunday--if you don\u2019t\nobject--eh?\u201d\n\n\u201cI should be glad to have you as one of my audience,\u201d replied Ernest.\n\n\u201cWe\u2019ll make two--er--of iz audience, won\u2019t we, Clarer, eh?\u201d\n\nShe made no reply, but endeavored to appear as though she had not heard\nhim.\n\n\u201cNow, come, Clarer--don\u2019t try to put on--airs--before the preacher--er.\nI ain\u2019t jealous--a--bit--er. No, for I know--you prefer me--ter all\nthe--er men on earth, don\u2019t you--er, dear, eh? What--won\u2019t you--speak\nto me? Never mind, Parson, when you go--er she\u2019ll be pleasant enough.\nSome--times she gets--into one of her--er--contantnums before--er\ncompany--and there\u2019s no doin\u2019 anything with her--have ter let \u2019er\nalone till she--sobers up--er.\u201d\n\n\u201cI must be going,\u201d suddenly said Ernest, rising. \u201cI have some other\ncalls to make.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you for your visit,\u201d said Clara. \u201cCall again if you can.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes--er--come again, Parson,--if I arn\u2019t at home--Clarer will--er\nentertain you.\u201d\n\nClara left the parlor, as Ernest did, and Comston fell asleep upon\na sofa. When he awoke, he had partly emerged from his state of\nintoxication. Arising, and going into Clara\u2019s room, he said:\n\n\u201cHad a nice time with the preacher, dear? I think, though, you might\nhave treated me with a little more respect. You wouldn\u2019t speak to me.\nWhat is the matter?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have made a fool of yourself,\u201d cried Clara, in anger and vexation.\n\u201cI have told you I wanted you to keep away from me when you are drunk.\nYou make a brute of yourself.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, I thought I was entertaining the minister very nicely. You\nwouldn\u2019t talk to him, and it wouldn\u2019t do for all of us to sit still\nlike Quakers, would it?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou made a complete fool of yourself,\u201d she said with face flashing\nwith anger. \u201cI am getting so I hate you--yes, I hate you.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow don\u2019t provoke me, dear. You know I can\u2019t control my savage temper\nwhen I\u2019m aroused. Don\u2019t you remember how you provoked me the other day\ntill I was about to strike you?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, sir, I remember your brutality, and I tell you now I am not going\nto stand it much longer, either.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat will you do?\u201d asked Comston.\n\n\u201cI am not going to live with a man who is such a coward as to strike\na defenceless woman. Here you are bragging about it, as if you had\nperformed some wonderful deed. If you ever attempt to strike me again,\nI will leave you--yes, I will apply for a divorce.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, no, you wouldn\u2019t do that, dear? Who would provide for you?\u201d\n\n\u201cWho provides for me now? I should like to know. If I did not support\nmyself, I should starve. You know that.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, no, you wouldn\u2019t starve, dear. You\u2019ve never starved yet, have you?\nDo you \u2019spose Xerxes Comston would let you starve? Nobody can say that\nof my wife. But, come, Clara, let\u2019s be friends. I haven\u2019t drunk much\nto-day, and I\u2019m going to quit the business entirely--you hear that?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes; I have heard it five hundred times. I have lost all confidence in\nyou. I expect nothing but to see you go down to a drunkard\u2019s grave.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou want me to die? O, ho! ho! that\u2019s it, is it? Well I am not\ngoing to fill any drunkard\u2019s grave. From now on, I\u2019m going to be a\nbetter man. We\u2019ll go to hear that preacher preach; it will do us both\ngood--make Christians out of us, I hope. Won\u2019t you go?\u201d\n\n\u201cI do not think,\u201d said Clara with a sneer, \u201cthat you will ever be sober\nenough to go.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I will, though. You see if I don\u2019t.\u201d\n\nWe have lengthened this domestic scene sufficiently to enable the\nreader to understand the relations between this unhappy husband and\nwife; and to prepare his mind for a better comprehension of events that\nare soon to be related.\n\nThe next evening Ernest met Comston on the street. Comston was sober,\nfrom the fact that he had no money to buy the fiery beverage for which\nhe was now thirsting.\n\n\u201cMr. Edgefield,\u201d said Comston, who had a dim consciousness that he had\nused improper language on the previous evening, \u201cI want to offer you\nan apology for my conduct yesterday. I hope you are not offended.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo apology is necessary,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cI am sorry that you have\nformed such awful, ruinous habits.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou are not as sorry as I am,\u201d said Comston, speaking with emphasis.\n\n\u201cWhy do you not leave off your terrible habits, then?\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve tried again and again,\u201d said Comston, bursting into tears, \u201cbut\nit seems,\u201d he continued, half sobbing, \u201cthat I cannot. O, you have no\nidea what a consuming thirst torments me. I must have brandy, or I will\ndie.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, you would not die,\u201d answered Ernest, \u201cif you had the will to\nresist. But that, I doubt not, is gone. And now you can never quit so\nlong as you rely on yourself.\u201d\n\n\u201cOn whom must I rely?\u201d asked Comston.\n\n\u201cChrist,\u201d said Ernest solemnly. \u201cNothing, I fear, will ever enable you\nto quit your evil ways, but the grace of God.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow am I to get the grace of God?\u201d\n\n\u201cOnly by faithful prayer.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you think I could quit in that way?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered Ernest.\n\n\u201cWell, I\u2019d give worlds to be as I once was. I am ashamed of myself. But\nif I am left to myself, I never can reform. Will you help me?\u201d\n\n\u201cWill you put yourself in my hands?\u201d asked Ernest. \u201cWill you do as I\ntell you? If you will, you can reform.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I know what you\u2019ll tell me,\u201d cried Comston. \u201cYou\u2019ll say, never\ntouch another drop. I can\u2019t quit suddenly. You make no allowance for my\nappetite.\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, I do,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cI will give you a substitute for strong\ndrink.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll right,\u201d said Comston. \u201cI will do it.\u201d\n\n\u201cVery well,\u201d said Ernest. \u201cNow you must promise me to keep away from\nthe saloons.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll do it.\u201d\n\n\u201cTo prove your sincerity, turn around like a man, and go home.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhen will you give me that substitute?\u201d asked Comston, hesitating.\n\n\u201cGo home,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cand remain till I come with it.\u201d\n\nComston, without another word, at once went home sober, to the surprise\nof his wife. He remained till his burning appetite destroyed his\nself-control. He could stand it no longer. Snatching up his hat he\nrushed off toward town. Drink he must have. As he was turning a corner,\nhe stood face to face with Ernest.\n\n\u201cDo not go there, Comston,\u201d he said. \u201cIs this the way you obey me? You\npromised to put yourself in my hands.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you said,\u201d exclaimed Comston, \u201cthat you would give me a\nsubstitute, and you didn\u2019t do it. I stayed as long as I could. Why\ndidn\u2019t you come, and help me, as you promised?\u201d\n\n\u201cI desired to measure your will-power,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cI wanted to\ntest your manhood. I told you I would come. Why could you not believe\nme?\u201d\n\n\u201cI was afraid you would put it off too long,\u201d replied Comston. \u201cI am\ndying.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet us go back,\u201d said Ernest.\n\n\u201cBut where is the substitute?\u201d\n\n\u201cI have it. Come on,\u201d commanded Ernest.\n\n\u201cLet us hurry,\u201d said Comston.\n\nIt was now dark, and they both hurried along to Comston\u2019s residence.\nAs soon as they had entered the drunkard\u2019s bed-room, Ernest drew from\nhis pocket a vial, and poured out some of the mixture into a glass of\nwater, which Comston eagerly drank. Ernest gave him two more glasses,\nand then the inebriate seemed satisfied. In an hour Ernest left him in\na profound sleep, which he knew would last till morning.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XIX.\n\nTHE CRIME.\n\n\nWhen a man acquires the habit of indulging in strong drink, it\nrequires a will of iron to break it. Few men have the physical and\nmoral fortitude to offer the necessary resistance. The intense,\nconsuming thirst paralyzes the mental energies. The wretched victim\nwill risk life itself to gratify his raging appetite. Poor Comston\nhad not descended to such a depth of moral degradation that he had no\ndisposition to free himself from the shackles of his terrible foe. In\nhis sober moments he most earnestly wished that he could free himself\nfrom the vicious demon which clung to him with the tenacity of Sinbad\u2019s\nOld Man of the Sea. But the saloon was like a load-stone--a cynosure\nwhich drew Comston with an attraction that he had not the moral nerve\nto resist. When the appetite was upon him, it seemed impossible to pass\nthe open door. The fragrance of the wines, issuing from the interior\nof the dram-shop, acted upon his senses with all the force of the law\nof gravitation, and he went in almost in the same way that a stone\nfalls to the earth when it is thrown up into the air.\n\nComston woke up early the next morning from the stupor into which\nErnest\u2019s substitute had thrown him. He felt that he was burning up.\nHis terrible appetite made him forget, or ignore his promises to the\npreacher. What cared he for reformation, when he believed himself\ndying--dying for the want of brandy. In spite of the entreaties of his\nwife, he put on his hat, to go to town.\n\n\u201cWhere are you going?\u201d she asked.\n\n\u201cO, just to town a little while--that\u2019s all.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you promised Mr. Edgefield that you would not go. Come back.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll be back in a few moments.\u201d\n\nAnd off he rushed, determined to have a dram if he should have to sell\nhis very clothing. While he is walking along rapidly, let us secretly\nand silently enter the saloon to which he is hastening. We see two men\nin the room, and they are engaged in a bitter quarrel. Presently the\nman, who is partially under the influence of ardent spirits, springs\ntoward the saloon-keeper, exclaiming:\n\n\u201cI\u2019m not going to stand this any longer. You\u2019ve got all my money, and I\nmust have another drink, and I\u2019ll have it, or I\u2019ll kill you.\u201d\n\nA brief scuffle ensues, which, however, lasts only half a minute. The\nman falls, crying:\n\n\u201cYou\u2019ve killed me. I wish to God there was a witness--but it\u2019s too\nlate. I\u2019m a dead man, curse you.\u201d\n\nThen he fell heavily to the floor.\n\n\u201cYou brought it on yourself,\u201d said the saloon-keeper. \u201cYou forced me to\nkill you.\u201d\n\nAt this moment Comston hastily entered the saloon, and without looking\naround, cried:\n\n\u201cFor God\u2019s sake give me a drink! I haven\u2019t a cent. Take my\nclothes--anything--I\u2019ll die if I can\u2019t get a dram.\u201d\n\nAn idea seemed to strike the saloon-keeper, whose agitation Comston had\nnot observed, for he said:\n\n\u201cWell, here, drink.\u201d\n\n\u201cThank you, thank you,\u201d exclaimed Comston, clutching the glass, and\ndraining it to the very dregs.\n\nIn a few moments the saloon-keeper said:\n\n\u201cComston, I\u2019ll give you another drink if you\u2019ll drag that drunken\nfeller out there under the trees. He fell down, and cut himself on the\ncorner of that bench, and is bleeding considerably.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll do it,\u201d exclaimed Comston, upon whom the brandy was beginning\nto have some effect. He stooped down to lift up the fallen man, but\nglancing at the ghastly face, he exclaimed:\n\n\u201cWhy, Good Gracious! he\u2019s dead, arn\u2019t he?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, no--dead drunk--that\u2019s all.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, may be he is,\u201d said Comston, who was more anxious about the\nanticipated dram than the fate of a fellow-being. \u201cI\u2019ll take him out\nanyhow.\u201d\n\nSeizing the dead man in his arms, he dragged him out of the door, and\nwhile so doing, his own clothing was plentifully besmeared with blood.\nAs he reached the trees, two men passed by, one of whom said:\n\n\u201cHello, Comston! what are you doin\u2019? Been fightin\u2019, have you?\u201d\n\n\u201cNot much,\u201d replied Comston, who wanted it thought that he was a man of\npugnacious tendencies. \u201cHe gave me some of his impudence, and I slapped\nhim over.\u201d\n\nThis brief specimen of Comston\u2019s braggadocio appeared to delight the\nsaloon keeper.\n\nComston left his human burden under a tree, and hurried back into the\nsaloon.\n\n\u201cGive me the drink you promised!\u201d he said.\n\n\u201cYes, here it is, and it is a good one,\u201d said the cunning\nsaloon-keeper. \u201cTake it, for you\u2019ve earned it,\u201d he continued, laughing.\n\u201cHe was heavy, warn\u2019t he?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes, he was.\u201d\n\nComston took the glass brimful of strong brandy, tossed it off as\nthough it had been cool water, went out, and seated himself under one\nof the shade trees only a few paces from the dead man.\n\nIt was no unusual thing to see men lying under the trees in front of\nthe saloon. Accordingly several hours passed away before the corpse\nattracted any special attention. Comston, in half an hour was so much\nintoxicated, that he fell from the bench, and lay upon the ground in a\nstate of utter unconsciousness. The crowd, accustomed to assemble there\nevery day, gathered in, and among them the two who had seen Comston\ndragging the body out of the house. One of these, who had spoken first,\nlooking at the corpse closely, exclaimed to the saloon-keeper:\n\n\u201cLook here, Blicker, I do believe Jones is dead! I\u2019ll feel his pulse.\u201d\n\n\u201cI reckon not,\u201d replied Blicker, with perfect _nonchalance_. \u201cHim and\nComston got into a scuffle about three hours ago, and Comston snatched\nup my knife which was on the counter, and made a slash at Jones, and I\ntook the knife away from him. Comston knocked him down, and I thought\nJones was too drunk to get up. I saw that Jones was bleeding, and I\nordered Comston to take him out, as I didn\u2019t want blood on my floor.\nComston, as you saw, dragged him out, but I didn\u2019t \u2019spose he was hurt\nmuch.\u201d\n\n\u201cAs shore as shootin\u2019\u201d, cried the man, \u201che\u2019s dead! He hasn\u2019t a bit of\npulse.\u201d\n\n\u201cGo for a Doctor,\u201d said Blicker.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ll step over to Dr. Warner\u2019s office,\u201d said the man. \u201cI see him\nriding up now.\u201d\n\nIt was not more than five minutes before Dr. Warner was on the spot. A\nvery brief examination proved that Jones was dead. He had been stabbed\nto the heart.\n\n\u201cWho did it?\u201d asked the Doctor.\n\n\u201cThat feller, I reckon,\u201d pointing to the prostrate form of Comston,\nspoke up the man who gave the version of the affair, which, in\nconnection with that of the saloon-keeper, made it evident that Comston\nwas the criminal.\n\nIt was several hours before Comston was sufficiently sober to\ncomprehend that he was accused of a most awful crime. When he awoke\nfrom his drunken sleep, the constable was near by, who had a warrant\nfor his arrest.\n\n\u201cCome,\u201d said he to Comston, \u201cyou\u2019re my prisoner. Come on to jail.\u201d\n\n\u201cTo jail!\u201d cried Comston. \u201cYou\u2019re joking! What have I done to go to\njail for?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, you pretend not to know, do you? Well, probably you was so drunk\nthat you didn\u2019t know what you was a doin\u2019. Don\u2019t you know that you\nkilled Jones this morning?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I don\u2019t,\u201d exclaimed Comston in the utmost alarm, now looking at\nhis bloody clothes, and recalling the events of the morning. Soon his\nmind was clear.\n\n\u201cI dragged Jones out under the tree for a drink of brandy,\u201d said\nComston. \u201cI can prove that by Blicker himself.\u201d\n\n\u201cDidn\u2019t you tell Bill Dodds, while you were dragging him, that you had\na fight with him, and slapped him over?\u201d asked one.\n\n\u201cO, I said that in fun,\u201d exclaimed Comston. \u201cI only thought Jones was\ndrunk.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou\u2019ll find it dear sort of fun,\u201d said one.\n\n\u201cSay, Blicker,\u201d cried Comston, now thoroughly aroused to the fearful\nrealities of his situation, \u201cdidn\u2019t you give me a drink to drag Jones\nout of your house this very morning--didn\u2019t you?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, no, Comston,\u201d answered Blicker coolly, \u201cI don\u2019t keep brandy to\ngive away. You\u2019ve forgot all about the fight you had with Jones this\nmorning.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt\u2019s a lie! It\u2019s a lie!\u201d frantically cried Comston. \u201cI never even had\nany quarrel with Jones. He was a good friend, and I never thought of\nfighting with him.\u201d\n\n\u201cPoor feller!\u201d said Blicker, with affected pity, \u201cyou was so drunk you\ncan\u2019t remember that you made a slash at Jones with my knife that was on\nthe counter.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, Blicker, Blicker!\u201d exclaimed Comston, \u201chow can you stand there and\ntell such an infamous lie? You know you gave me two drinks--one free,\nand the other to drag Jones out.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhether he did or not,\u201d interposed the constable, \u201cyou\u2019re in for it\nnow. I am compelled to take you to jail. When your trial comes off, you\ncan have a chance to prove your innocence.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019m not going to jail!\u201d cried Comston wildly. \u201cI\u2019ve done nothing to\ngo there for. What do you want to put an innocent man in prison for? I\nshould like to know.\u201d\n\n\u201cGet up, and come along,\u201d cried the constable sternly, \u201cor I\u2019ll\nhand-cuff you.\u201d\n\n\u201cO, my God!\u201d exclaimed Comston, now completely sobered. \u201cTurn me loose,\nDick Bonds. You know I didn\u2019t do it.\u201d\n\n\u201cCome along, I say!\u201d cried the constable.\n\n\u201cPlease let me speak to Blicker,\u201d entreated the terror-stricken man,\nturning to the saloon-keeper. \u201cO, Blicker, you\u2019re a gentleman. Wow\ndon\u2019t let me go to jail.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can I prevent it?\u201d asked Blicker.\n\n\u201cWhy, you know very well that I didn\u2019t so much as strike Jones, if\nyou\u2019d only say so. Now come, be honest, Blicker.\u201d\n\n\u201cWill you go,\u201d asked the constable, producing a pair of hand-cuffs,\n\u201cwithout these?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, yes, I\u2019ll go,\u201d said Comston in anguish. \u201cSurely Blicker will tell\nthe truth when he is put on his oath.\u201d\n\nAnd Comston was locked up in the jail.\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XX.\n\nTHE PRISON.\n\n\nImmediately after the arrest and imprisonment of Comston, Ernest\ncalled to see Clara in order to give such comfort as the circumstances\nwould allow. He did not find her in tears, as he had expected. On\nthe contrary, her face, though sad, wore a hard, stony expression.\nShe acted as those unfortunate wives, who have lost their affection\nfor their husbands, and who are looking forward to be released by\nthe divorce of nature. The drunkard\u2019s wife can be freed only by the\npremature death of her husband. She may not desire such a termination\nto her continual troubles, but she lives in constant expectation of\nsuch an end, and when it does come, she is not greatly surprised, for\nit is nothing more than she has anticipated. Clara was just in this\ncondition. She had once loved Xerxes Comston as much as it was in her\nnature to love any one. But this affection had been eradicated by his\nbrutal conduct and disgusting habits.\n\n\u201cI do assure you,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI sympathize with you in your trials.\nSuch misfortunes look dark to us, but God is good and kind, and we must\nbe resigned to His holy will. All is for the best.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou think, then,\u201d cried Clara, \u201cit is best that Mr. Comston should\nkill Mr. Jones, and be hanged for it, do you?\u201d\n\n\u201cWe must not jump to conclusions,\u201d mildly answered Ernest. \u201cNo trial\nhas taken place, and we surely ought not to judge of the divine\npurposes before they are developed. Even after they are accomplished,\nwe may not understand them. I have no doubt, that in every instance,\nGod brings good out of evil.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you believe,\u201d asked Clara, \u201cthat God has anything to do with this\nhorrible affair?\u201d And she looked at him almost savagely.\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d replied Ernest gently, \u201cI believe that God has something\nto do with every event.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you think,\u201d exclaimed Clara, \u201cthat God made my husband a drunkard?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, certainly not,\u201d answered Ernest. \u201cHe made himself a an--inebriate.\nHe is a free-agent, and the Lord permitted him to exercise his powers.\nGod is not the author of men\u2019s sins. He does not force them to sin. But\nif Mr. Comston killed Mr. Jones, which I do not think has been proved\nyet, you may rest assured that the Lord will bring good out of it in\nsome way, and make it redound to His glory.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t see how that can be,\u201d said Clara.\n\n\u201cYou may never see it in this world,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cand you may live\nto see the day, when you will feel thankful for this very misfortune,\nas you now regard it.\u201d\n\n\u201cLook here,\u201d suddenly exclaimed Clara, \u201cif that day ever comes when I\nshall feel that I ought to be thankful, I promise to join your church,\nand try to be a Christian.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy not try to be a Christian anyhow?\u201d asked Ernest. \u201cYou must not try\nto make a bargain and contract with God.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow is that?\u201d said Clara.\n\n\u201cWhy, you say in your heart, if God will give me certain things,\ngrant certain desires, I will be a Christian. The Lord will accept no\nsuch service as that. You must make a full surrender of yourself to\nChrist--unconditional and forever. Determine to serve Him whether your\nwishes are granted or not. Trust Him, though He slay you.\u201d\n\n\u201cO,\u201d said Clara, \u201cI cannot be a Christian. I have suffered too much.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo much the more reason why you should be a Christian,\u201d answered\nErnest. \u201cYou have seen the folly of this world\u2019s pursuits. Now seek\nthat happiness which the world can neither give nor take away.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know how to begin, even if I had the disposition,\u201d replied\nClara sulkily. \u201cI once was happy. I enjoyed myself, and never thought\nof religion. If God is so good and so kind, as you say, why does He not\ngive me that sort of happiness--the sort that I really crave?\u201d\n\n\u201cHow long would it last?\u201d asked Ernest. \u201cOnly a few years. The time\nwill come when you can no longer enjoy these pleasures of sense. You\nwill lose the ardor of youth. Age will steal upon you, and you will\nlose all relish for temporal things. You will then feel the need of\nsomething more substantial. Why not begin now to lay up treasures in\nheaven?\u201d\n\n\u201cShall I feel more happy, if I do?\u201d asked this spiritually ignorant,\nthoroughly worldly-minded woman. \u201cWill God care for me, and supply my\nwants?\u201d\n\n\u201cUndoubtedly, if you devote yourself to His service from the proper\nmotives?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat is the proper motive?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d answered Ernest, \u201cyou must serve the Master, not with the object\nof receiving earthly good, but with the view of making your calling and\nelection sure.\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know what to do,\u201d replied Clara, thoughtfully and seriously.\n\n\u201cGive yourself, at once, to Christ, pray for the enlightening\ninfluences of the Holy Spirit, and God will bless you.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow can I do all this?\u201d suddenly and impatiently cried Clara, \u201cwhen\nI am suffering for the----.\u201d She paused, and appeared to be greatly\nembarrassed.\n\n\u201cNothing, though,\u201d she added.\n\n\u201cMrs. Comston,\u201d said Ernest compassionately, \u201cGod knows I would be a\nfriend and brother to you. I want your soul saved. Confide in me. Are\nyou afraid to trust me, and acquaint me with your troubles, whatever\nthey maybe?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, I\u2019m not afraid to trust you,\u201d she answered, with tears springing\ninto her eyes, \u201cbut I\u2019m proud. I\u2019m ashamed to tell anyone.\u201d She could\nsay no more for several moments, and Ernest waited till she became\nmore tranquil.\n\n\u201cYou seem to be the only friend I have in the world,\u201d she continued\npresently. \u201cI once had plenty of friends, but when misfortunes overtook\nme, they deserted me, and I have met with nothing but rebukes and\ninsults. I have got so I hate people. I didn\u2019t know the world was so\nfull of mean wretches. People used to envy me, because I had money, but\nthey seemed to me to rejoice when I was brought down to poverty and\nsocial degradation. If I wished to be good, I don\u2019t see how I could.\u201d\n\n\u201cTell me your troubles,\u201d urged Ernest kindly, \u201cand, perhaps, I can be\nof service.\u201d\n\n\u201cIt is humiliating to confess,\u201d she said, turning her blushing face,\n\u201cbut the truth is, I can get no work to do. I have had nothing to eat\nsince yesterday. It seems that I must starve, and that, too, when I am\nwilling to labor. But don\u2019t misconstrue my motives. I\u2019m no beggar. I\u2019m\nnot appealing to you for relief, and I don\u2019t want you to mention what I\nhave told you. I tell it to you to show you how difficult it would be\nfor me to be good, when I hate people for my misfortunes.\u201d\n\nErnest expressed no surprise at this distressing information, but he\nsaid no more on the subject of religion, well knowing that hunger is\nnot very compatible with spirituality.\n\n\u201cThe world is not so bad as you think it,\u201d he replied. \u201cYou do your\nneighbors injustice by concealing your condition.\u201d\n\n\u201cDon\u2019t,\u201d cried Clara, starting up, \u201cdon\u2019t tell them for the world. I\ndespise to be regarded as an object of pity.\u201d\n\n\u201cTrust me,\u201d rising to leave. \u201cI shall not betray your confidence.\u201d\n\nIn a little while after his departure, a cart drove up to Clara\u2019s door,\nand the driver unloaded sufficient provisions to last for several\nweeks. Poor Clara was overwhelmed by this expression of kindness, and\nshe went to her room, and \u201cwept bitterly.\u201d Several lady members of\nErnest\u2019s church called the next evening with offers of employment. They\nacted and talked in such a manner that she was satisfied they were not\nacquainted with her true condition. In her heart she thanked Ernest for\nthe delicacy with which he had come to her relief. The ladies spoke\nwords of sympathy. All this had a tendency to open the woman\u2019s darkened\nheart to spiritual influences.\n\nErnest waited two days before he called at the prison to see Comston.\nNot being able to procure strong drink, the prisoner was perfectly\nsober. The poor fellow was humbled and subdued by the misfortunes which\ndarkened his pathway.\n\n\u201cHow are you to-day?\u201d asked Ernest kindly.\n\n\u201cI\u2019ve been in torment,\u201d he replied. \u201cI want brandy, and it seems I\u2019ll\ndie, if I can\u2019t get it. Give me some.\u201d\n\n\u201cComston,\u201d said Ernest gently, but firmly, \u201cnow is your time to break\noff your evil habit. If you do not, you are ruined.\u201d\n\n\u201cI\u2019m already ruined,\u201d groaned the wretched victim. \u201cBut I never thought\nthat I would be accused of murder. God in heaven knows that I never\nkilled poor Jones. I\u2019m as innocent of that as you are. Blicker told\nan infamous lie. I believe he did it himself, and is using me as a\nscape-goat.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut circumstances,\u201d remarked Ernest, \u201cseem to be against you at\npresent. However, I have not come to talk about that. I want to save\nyour soul.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy,\u201d cried Comston, in visible alarm, \u201cyou can\u2019t believe I\u2019ll be put\nto death, do you? It would be an everlasting disgrace to--to--hang an\ninnocent man.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut you will have to die sometime, Comston--sooner or later, and I do\nnot want your soul lost. I have come to pray with you, and for you.\nWill you join me?\u201d\n\n\u201cO, yes, if you think it will do any good.\u201d\n\nErnest read suitable portions of Scripture, and prayed for the unhappy\nman, whose feelings were at last deeply moved.\n\nComston, the next day, stood his trial in the Magistrate\u2019s court,\nand without entering into the details, which would be of no special\ninterest to the reader, it is sufficient to state that he was bound\nover to the Circuit Court, which would convene at the expiration of\nfive months. As this was no bailable case, Comston had to be confined\nin jail.\n\nFrequently our greatest misfortunes are blessings in disguise, as the\nSacred Scriptures abundantly demonstrate. Comston\u2019s incarceration,\nwas at least a spiritual blessing to him. He could not procure ardent\nspirits, and the consequence was, that, in a few weeks, his physical\nconstitution began to recuperate, and he at last mastered his terrible\nappetite. But this was not all. Ernest visited him nearly every day,\nprayed with him, instructed him, till finally the poor fellow had\nreason to rejoice in a brighter hope than had ever thrilled his heart\nbefore. There could be no doubt about his complete reformation. This,\nin connection with Comston\u2019s emphatic assertion of his innocence, had a\ntendency to arouse public sympathy in his favor. No one believed that\nhe was a murderer _at heart_, even if he had taken Jones\u2019 life. The\ntheory was, that it was done in a drunken quarrel, without there being\nany intention to kill.\n\nBut all this was not the full extent of the blessing. The husband and\nwife were also reconciled. Clara, who, too, had found that \u201cpeace\nwhich passeth all understanding,\u201d visited him in the jail--indeed,\nspent the most of her time there. Xerxes \u201cwas himself again,\u201d and her\nburied affection for him revived. So notwithstanding the unfavorable\ncircumstances which surrounded them, they were comparatively happy.\nThey were not without hope.\n\nErnest, in these hours of trial, proved a brother. He attended to\nComston\u2019s outside affairs, and, among other things, secured the\nservices of a good lawyer.\n\nThe five months had nearly passed away, and only a few days remained\nbefore the trial would occur. Now, let us visit the jail for the last\ntime. Only Clara, Comston and Ernest were present.\n\n\u201cO,\u201d said Comston earnestly, \u201cif I could only get out of this\ndifficulty, what a different man I\u2019d be! what a different life I\u2019d\nlead! I\u2019ve lost the taste for brandy, and now take a solemn oath that\nnot another drop of the vile stuff shall ever go down my throat. O, Mr.\nEdgefield, pray God to get me out of this trouble, and I promise to be\na true Christian as long as I live.\u201d\n\n\u201cNow, Mrs. Comston,\u201d said Ernest pleasantly, \u201cyou have heard his vow,\ndo you think he would keep it?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf he wouldn\u2019t,\u201d she said emphatically, \u201che would be the meanest\ningrate that ever lived on earth.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI believe he will perform his vows. I shall not\nsee you any more before the trial. Let us pray together once more for\nGod\u2019s assistance.\u201d\n\nWhen they arose from their knees, Clara seemed more cheerful and said:\n\n\u201cSomehow I feel hopeful.\u201d\n\n\u201cSo do I,\u201d said Ernest, so emphatically that both looked at him in\nsurprise.\n\n\u201cBut upon what can you base a hope?\u201d asked Clara, gazing searchingly\ninto his face.\n\n\u201cHave faith in God,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cHe can raise up friends for us.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut we want _witnesses_,\u201d said Clara.\n\n\u201cGod can raise up _unexpected_ witnesses,\u201d replied Ernest mysteriously.\n\u201cBut good-by.\u201d\n\nAnd he left in haste.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXI.\n\nTHE TRIAL.\n\n\nAt last, the Circuit Court met. Three or four days were consumed with\nother business, and the case of the State against Xerxes Comston was\ncalled.\n\n\u201cAre you ready for trial?\u201d asked the Judge.\n\n\u201cReady,\u201d replied the Prosecutor.\n\n\u201cReady,\u201d promptly answered the Counsel for the defence, to the surprise\nof every one. For obvious reasons, it is generally the practice to\npostpone murder cases as long as possible.\n\n\u201cProceed then,\u201d said His Honor.\n\nThe impanelling of the Jury was the first step to be taken. This was\nquickly done, too, for, to general surprise, Mr. Greenlee, who had\nundertaken to defend Comston, offered no objection to any juror, if\nhe only had a fair measure of common sense. He did not, evidently,\ncare for the character of the jury, and did not appear to manifest\nthe least uneasiness or anxiety. He was calm and collected, as\nthough he had no fears as to the final result. People looked at him\nin astonishment, but the lawyer paid no attention to their amazement.\nBlicker cast suspicious glances at him. Clara was sitting in the bar\nnear her husband, seemingly in deep distress. But when she occasionally\nlooked at Greenlee\u2019s calm face, her hope revived. Ernest was also\npresent, and did not seem to be anxious. Greenlee, instead of trying\nto retard the progress of the case, manifested a willingness to hasten\nit forward. His whole manner was surprising to the District Attorney,\nwho was under the impression that a verdict of condemnation must be the\ninevitable result.\n\nAt length, the indictment was read, and then followed the examination\nof witnesses. The first was Blicker, who stated the circumstances that\nwere favorable to his own case, with which the reader is acquainted.\nThe two men were then introduced who had seen Comston dragging the dead\nman under the trees. They also stated the language which the criminal\nhad employed. This united testimony appeared to be conclusive. The\nspectators, who were generally in sympathy with the accused, looked\nsolemn. All had hoped that the trial itself would develop something\nthat would be favorable to Comston. No one wanted him punished. But how\ncould he escape in the face of such overwhelming evidence?\n\nA long-drawn sigh was heard at Comston\u2019s side. It came from Clara, who\nseemed suddenly to give way to despair. Again, she turned her head, and\nlooked at Ernest. Could she be mistaken? Was there not a perceptible\nsmile upon his face? She then glanced at Greenlee. His countenance wore\nthe same serene, imperturbable expression. There was a short pause in\nthe proceedings when the Prosecutor said:\n\n\u201cWe have no more witnesses. I do not know,\u201d he continued with an air of\ntriumph, \u201cwhy Mr. Greenlee foregoes his privilege of cross-examining\nthe witnesses for the State. He can do so yet, if he wishes. I would\nprefer that he should do it.\u201d\n\n\u201cTheir testimony,\u201d replied Greenlee, \u201ccan go to the jury for what it is\nworth.\u201d\n\n\u201cDo you mean to insinuate that it is worth nothing?\u201d asked the District\nAttorney.\n\n\u201cHas the counsel for the defense,\u201d interrupted His Honor, \u201cno\nwitnesses?\u201d\n\nEvery one expected to hear a sorrowful \u201cno.\u201d But what was the universal\nastonishment and joy, when Greenlee quietly replied:\n\n\u201cWe have one.\u201d\n\nThen mouths and eyes were opened with curiosity. The spectators seemed\nto hold their breath lest they should lose the name of the unexpected\nwitness, or as if the only chance for Comston had wings, and might be\nfrightened away by heavy respiration. Comston and Clara looked up,\nleaned forward, and subjected Greenlee\u2019s tranquil face to a quick,\nclose search.\n\n\u201cCall your witness,\u201d said the Court.\n\n\u201cLet Rev. Mr. Edgefield be sworn,\u201d said Greenlee mildly and quietly.\n\nErnest rose from his chair, and deliberately stepped to the Clerk\u2019s\ndesk, where he was sworn, and then placed himself in the witness\u2019 seat.\nIt was one of those strange, unexpected scenes, which sometimes occur\nin gloomy court-rooms, and which change the entire aspect of the case.\nClara now understood that smile on the preacher\u2019s face. Ernest knew\nall about it, she thought. And who, but God, had sent him? She was\nawe-struck by the thought, and felt as one who had just witnessed, or\nrather was about to witness, a miracle. Comston had similar feelings.\nBoth could have cast themselves upon the floor, and kissed the witness\u2019\nfeet. What a friend he was! How good, and kind, and merciful was God,\nin raising up such a noble witness at the moment when it seemed that\nhope was about to wing a returnless flight! How both their hearts\nwere melted to tenderness toward their Creator! for it was the firm\nconviction of both that God had sent His own messenger to see justice\ndone. Ernest had not spoken a word, but they felt that his testimony,\nwhatever it was, would be conclusive.\n\n\u201cTell what you know about this case,\u201d said Mr. Greenlee.\n\nErnest spoke in a firm, emphatic tone, that carried conviction to every\nheart:\n\n\u201cOn the morning of the ---- day, of ----, I rose earlier than usual.\nThe day before I had remained with Comston, and kept him away from the\nsaloon. He had promised to reform. But, I confess, I had little hope of\nany reformation, if he was left alone, and I determined to watch him\nanother day; and this accounts for my early rising on that particular\nmorning. I started toward the saloon, and when I had nearly reached\nthere, I saw Comston coming out of his gate. I then concealed myself\nin the rear of the saloon, waiting for Comston to come, intending to\npersuade him to return home. When I had hidden myself, I heard two\nmen quarreling inside, both of whose voices I instantly recognized.\nPresently, I heard Jones exclaim:\n\n\u201c\u2018I won\u2019t stand it any longer.\u2019\n\n\u201cThen I heard a rush over the floor. There was a scuffle for only a few\nseconds, and I heard Jones cry out:\n\n\u201c\u2018You have stabbed me--, you have killed me!\u2019\n\n\u201cHe employed some other words which I did not hear distinctly. Then I\nheard a body fall heavily to the floor, and all was still. A moment\nafterwards, I heard Comston enter the room, and beg for a drink,\nstating that he had no money. I heard the rattling of glasses; then\nthere was silence. In a short time I heard Blicker say:\n\n\u201c\u2018I will give you another drink, if you will drag that drunken man\nunder the tree.\u2019\n\n\u201c\u2018I will do it\u2019, said Comston. He seemed to be lifting the man, and I\nheard him exclaim:\n\n\u201c\u2018Jones is dead, ain\u2019t he?\u2019\n\n\u201c\u2018No,\u2019 replied Blicker, \u2018He is dead drunk; he fell on the bench, and\ncut himself, and he is bleeding.\u2019\n\n\u201cI then heard a sound as of one man dragging another over the floor. At\nthis moment I heard footsteps approaching and I left.\u201d\n\n\u201cThat is the God\u2019s truth!\u201d cried Comston in a voice trembling with\nemotion.\n\n\u201cSilence!\u201d cried the Sheriff.\n\nClara could scarcely restrain her deeply agitated feelings. How\nshe wanted to fall on her knees, and thank Ernest for this strange\ninterference. The District Attorney was astounded. Blicker, as pale as\ndeath, had started out of the room at a rapid pace.\n\n\u201cSheriff!\u201d exclaimed the Judge, \u201carrest Mr. Blicker, if you please.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am not running,\u201d said Blicker, who suddenly seemed to recollect that\nflight was an evidence of guilt. \u201cI was only changing my seat. That\npreacher has made up that lie.\u201d\n\n\u201cHow came you never to have said anything about this before?\u201d said the\nDistrict Attorney angrily, turning to Ernest, \u201cWhy did you not give\nin this testimony in the committing court, and save the expense and\ntrouble of this trial?\u201d\n\n\u201cI had a very good reason for it,\u201d said Ernest, \u201cI was anxious for\nthe reformation of Mr. Comston, and I believed that nothing but\nimprisonment for several months would ever cure him of his evil habits.\nSurely, the salvation of a human soul is worth the few dollars that it\nmay cost the county.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou have pursued a very strange course, it seems to me,\u201d said the\nDistrict Attorney. \u201cSuppose you had taken sick and died before the\ntrial came off, you would have left your friend in a sad predicament.\u201d\n\n\u201cNot at all, sir,\u201d replied Ernest. \u201cI made provision for contingencies\nof that sort. You may ask Mr. Greenlee.\u201d\n\n\u201cI will state,\u201d said Mr. Greenlee, \u201cthat a few days after this killing,\nMr. Edgefield made his deposition to the facts he has just stated, and\nsigned it in the presence of two witnesses. However, that is perfectly\nirrelevant. We have no use whatever for the deposition.\u201d\n\n\u201cWill your Honor permit such a proceeding as this?\u201d asked the District\nAttorney.\n\n\u201cCertainly,\u201d answered the Court, \u201cMr. Edgefield was never summoned as a\nwitness in the committing court.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut still,\u201d said the District Attorney, \u201cought he not to have appeared\nanyhow?\u201d\n\n\u201cMr. Edgefield,\u201d said the Court, \u201chas given his reason for not doing\nso. The jury can take his testimony for what it is worth.\u201d\n\nThe jury, at once, retired, but they returned in about ten minutes, and\nmoved slowly up to the Judge\u2019s stand.\n\n\u201cAre you agreed, gentlemen?\u201d said the Court.\n\n\u201cWe are,\u201d replied the foreman. The Clerk then took a paper from the\nhands of the foreman, and read the following in substance:\n\n\u201cWe, the jury in the case of the State against Xerxes Comston, find\nthat the defendant is not guilty.\u201d\n\nImmediately there was a great shout which shook the building.\n\n\u201cSilence! silence!\u201d cried the Sheriff; but he might as well have spoken\nto a cyclone. Nothing could be heard but shouts of gladness, thus\nshowing what a deep interest the public had felt in this trial. Comston\nrose from his seat and tottered toward Ernest, around whose neck he\nthrew his arms, and wept like a child.\n\nClara exclaimed aloud:\n\n\u201cPraised be God! I shall serve Him the remainder of my days.\u201d\n\nThere were few dry eyes in the room. It resembled some of the scenes\nof an old-fashioned camp-meeting. The crowd looked at Ernest with a\nspecies of awe. They could not have felt more reverence if Abraham\nhimself had come back from the dead and testified in the case.\n\nComston and his wife immediately left the court-room amid the plaudits\nof the crowd that the terror of the law could not control.\n\nWithin two days, Comston had obtained a position as clerk in a store,\nand soon began to prosper.\n\nThe next time that Ernest called, both gave him such a joyful and\ngrateful greeting that he felt compensated for all the trouble and\ninconvenience to which he had been subjected. After conversing a while,\nErnest said:\n\n\u201cSurely, you now see the hand of God in your affairs?\u201d\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d replied Comston, \u201cand I am a different man, and, by God\u2019s grace,\nintend to lead a different life.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd what has Mrs. Comston to say?\u201d asked Ernest with a smile.\n\n\u201cI am perfectly overwhelmed,\u201d she answered. \u201cI feel as one in a dream,\nand you appear to me as our guardian angel. God must have sent you\nhere.\u201d\n\n\u201cI hope so, my friends,\u201d replied Ernest, \u201cbut give all the glory to\nGod. I am only an humble instrument in His hands. But,\u201d he added after\na short pause, \u201cyou will now both join the church, will you not, and\nlead Christian lives?\u201d\n\n\u201cI will,\u201d answered Comston emphatically. \u201cI\u2019ve not forgotten my vow.\u201d\n\n\u201cAnd so will I,\u201d replied Clara.\n\n\u201cWhat church will you join? I do not believe I have ever asked you.\u201d\n\n\u201cThe Presbyterian--your church,\u201d answered Comston. \u201cI like its\ncomforting doctrines. They are certainly the right thing when one is\nin trouble. I\u2019ve heard some people talk very hard about the eternal\ndecrees, but, as you told me, the doctrine of election is taught in the\nBible, and I find it there.\u201d\n\n\u201cA few months ago,\u201d said Clara, \u201cI had an abhorrence of predestination,\nbut now I have no doubt that it is a doctrine of God\u2019s Book. If it is\nnot taught in the 8th and 9th chapters of Romans, I cannot understand\nlanguage. So I can be nothing but a Presbyterian.\u201d\n\nAccordingly, the next Sabbath both were received into the church of\ntheir choice. Ernest never had more faithful, zealous members, and\nmore staunch friends. If Comston heard any one complaining in regard\nto Ernest, or any thing he did, it made him impatient, and he defended\nhis beloved pastor and friend, with unlimited warmth of feeling. God\nprospered him in business, and in a few years Comston had a store of\nhis own. He became a liberal and cheerful supporter of the Church and\nall its institutions. Clara contracted habits of economy and diligence,\nand was foremost in all church work, such as ladies could perform. We\nclose the chapter with the remark that Blicker was tried for murder,\nand condemned to the penitentiary for the period of his natural life.\n\n[Illustration: Decoration]\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER XXII.\n\nTHE LAST SCENE.\n\n\nThe lives of a great many people are distinguished by a few romantic\nevents, but no man\u2019s life is one continuous series of startling\nincidents. Life flows in a regular channel, and its romantic portions\nare mere episodes. The great bulk of mankind are doomed to toil for the\nnecessaries of existence. Hence, every day is alike. They go through\nthe same dull routine--the same tread-mill process of eat, drink,\nsleep, work.\n\nIt could not, therefore, be reasonably expected that the career of a\nminister, like Ernest, living in a quiet provincial town, should be\ndistinguished for thrilling experiences. The clerical life is generally\ntranquil and unromantic. The preacher visits the sick, comforts the\ndistressed, resolves the doubts of the skeptical, preaches the gospel,\nSabbath after Sabbath, and in this way the days glide by till death\ntransfers him to a higher state of existence. After the remarkable\nepisode, involving Comston\u2019s startling history, nothing occurred, for\nyears, in the life of Ernest which would be of interest to the mere\nstory reader. At present he is performing his ministerial duties,\nassisted by Mildred, with unostentatious piety.\n\nOne Sabbath there was an unusually large congregation assembled in\nErnest\u2019s church. It had been published that he would, by special\nrequest, preach a doctrinal sermon.\n\nOn Monday morning there was considerable excitement throughout the\ncommunity. Many of those who had believed the opposite doctrine, were\ncaused to reflect, and made to examine the ground-work of their creed.\nLittle groups gathered on the streets and in the stores to discuss the\nsermon of the day before.\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d said good old father Grimshaw, \u201cif I believed as Brother\nEdgefield does, I would never go to church any more. In fact, I\u2019d never\ndo anything, but I\u2019d take my fill of sin--yes I would.\u201d\n\n\u201cI am utterly astounded,\u201d answered a Presbyterian elder, \u201cto hear you\ntalk that way, father Grimshaw. If you were to take your fill of sin,\nhow could you be a Christian? Can a Christian love sin?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, what difference would it make whether I am a Christian or not?\u201d\ncried the old man. \u201cIf I\u2019m to be saved, I\u2019ll be saved anyhow, and if\nI\u2019m to be lost, I\u2019ll be lost anyhow, no matter what I may do.\u201d\n\n\u201cLook here, father Grimshaw,\u201d said the elder, \u201cdid Brother Edgefield\nsay anything like that?\u201d\n\n\u201cIf he didn\u2019t say it, that\u2019s what his doctrine leads to.\u201d\n\n\u201cI confess,\u201d said the elder mildly, \u201cthat I cannot see that it leads\nto any such conclusion. But that is the way with some of you people.\nYou draw your inferences, and take them as the doctrines of the\nPresbyterian Church. You know that Brother Edgefield said that all\ncould be saved who wanted to be. I should like to know how much broader\nyou desire the plan of salvation. Do you want God to save people,\n_nolens volens_?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, sir,\u201d replied father Grimshaw. \u201cBut if certain people are\nfore-ordained to eternal death, how can any of them be saved?\u201d\n\n\u201cBrother Edgefield made that as plain as anything could be,\u201d replied\nthe Elder. \u201cBut I will answer your question. Of course, if they are\nfore-ordained to eternal death, they cannot be saved, but whose fault\nis it? God does not prevent their salvation. It is nothing but their\nown wicked hearts--their own perverse will. No man ever was lost simply\non account of predestination.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut why don\u2019t they have the will?\u201d asked father Grimshaw.\n\n\u201cI do not know, but that is the truth,\u201d replied the elder. \u201cTheir lack\nof the will is not to be attributed to any eternal decree, and if\nthat be so, I am sure the sinner can charge the loss of his soul to\nnobody but himself. We naturally hold every man responsible for his own\ncharacter. If a man is a thief, it is not natural for us to think that\nGod made him so. Neither do we hold the Lord responsible for any man\u2019s\nwill. If, then, the sinner lacks the disposition to be saved, surely\nhe cannot charge God with injustice. Every man has the consciousness\nthat he could be a Christian, if he only desired to be. Then, I ask\nyou, in the name of common sense, how does predestination prevent his\nsalvation?\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know how to argue the question,\u201d cried father Grimshaw\ntestily, \u201cbut it does appear horrible to me that God should choose one\nman to eternal life and condemn another to eternal death, when both\nare alike by nature--both sinners.\u201d\n\n\u201cLet me ask you,\u201d said the elder, \u201cif God was under any obligations to\nsave any one?\u201d\n\n\u201cNo, certainly not.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf He were to send all to eternal torment, would it be just?\u201d asked\nthe Elder.\n\n\u201cYes,\u201d answered father Grimshaw.\n\n\u201cWell, then, if God, in mercy, choose to save a large portion of the\nhuman race, and leave the rest to perish in their sins, _and on account\nof their sins_, how is any injustice done them?\u201d\n\n\u201cBecause they have as much right to be chosen as the others,\u201d said\nfather Grimshaw.\n\n\u201cRight!\u201d said the elder, \u201cWhat right do they have? I suppose if the\nGovernor were to pardon two or three convicts, he is bound to pardon\nall, is he? Why, my dear, sir, your position runs squarely into\nUniversalism!\u201d\n\n\u201cHow does it?\u201d\n\n\u201cWhy, you say that one man has as much right to be saved as another. If\nthen, God saves one, He must save all. What is that but Universalism?\u201d\nasked the Elder.\n\n\u201cHe\u2019s got you there, father Grimshaw,\u201d cried one of the by-standers\nwith a laugh.\n\n\u201cI repeat, father Grimshaw,\u201d continued the elder, \u201cno man is punished\non account of predestination, but on account of his sins. Show me a man\nwho feels that he must be lost by reason of the eternal decrees, and I\npromise to give up the doctrine.\u201d\n\n\u201cI can\u2019t for my life,\u201d said father Grimshaw, \u201cunderstand why some are\nchosen, and others are passed by.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d replied the elder, \u201cif we understood that, Peter never would have\nsaid that Paul \u2018wrote things hard to be understood.\u2019 If we only knew\nwhat God\u2019s reasons are, there would be no difficulty and no mystery in\nthe doctrine of predestination. But we are told that the secret things\nbelong unto the Lord, and those which are revealed are for us and our\nchildren.\u201d\n\n\u201cWell, you Presbyterians,\u201d said father Grimshaw, \u201chave a way of getting\naround things so that it is hard to keep up with you. I cannot argue\nthe point, but the doctrine looks strange to me--don\u2019t look right\nsomehow.\u201d\n\n\u201cNo,\u201d replied the elder, \u201cthat is what people said in Paul\u2019s day. It\ndid not look right to some of the disciples of Christ, and they went\nback, and \u2018walked with Him no more.\u2019 People always have found fault\nwith this doctrine, and I suppose will do so till the end of the\nworld.\u201d\n\n\u201cI must say,\u201d spoke up a man by the name of Wallerton, \u201cthat Mr.\nEdgefield made it plain to my mind. I never knew before what\nPresbyterians do believe.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat!\u201d exclaimed father Grimshaw, \u201care you going to turn Presbyterian?\u201d\n\n\u201cWell,\u201d answered Wallerton, \u201cI fully endorse what Mr. Edgefield said\nyesterday. If that makes me a Presbyterian, I am one.\u201d\n\n\u201cAll may believe that please,\u201d cried father Grimshaw, \u201cbut I never\nwill. You may out-argue me, but you are not going to make me believe\nthat predestination is right, no sir--never.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut what will you do with the Scripture?\u201d asked Wallerton. \u201cIt says,\n\u2018Whom He did foreknow, He did predestinate.\u2019 Now what does predestinate\nmean?\u201d\n\n\u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d cried father Grimshaw, giving way to a feeling closely\nrelated to anger, \u201cbut there ain\u2019t no predestination in it--not a bit\nof it.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf there is not,\u201d replied Wallerton, \u201cI should like to know where to\nfind it.\u201d\n\n\u201cYou\u2019ll find it no where, but in the Presbyterian Confession of Faith,\u201d\ncried the old man.\n\n\u201cWell, I am convinced,\u201d said Wallerton, \u201cthat it is the true doctrine.\nI love to believe it too, because I can see that there is more comfort\nin it than in the other.\u201d\n\n\u201cWhat comfort is there in it?\u201d cried the old man, raising his hand in\nholy horror.\n\n\u201cWhy just this,\u201d replied Wallerton, \u201cI am trying to serve God. It does\nme good, then, to think that I have been elected from all eternity to\nsalvation, and, therefore I can never perish.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf you believe that,\u201d exclaimed the old man, \u201cthen go on, and sin as\nmuch as you please. You\u2019ll be saved anyhow.\u201d\n\n\u201cBut I do not want to sin,\u201d replied Wallerton, looking at him in\nsurprise. \u201cThat is the very thing I pray God to deliver me from.\nInstead of desiring to sin, I pray to become more holy. I do not ask\nGod to save me in my sins, but from them. I should think I would make a\npoor return of gratitude to God, if He should give me the evidence of\nmy election, and I should say to Him, I will, then, serve the devil.\nWhat sort of religion is that?\u201d\n\n\u201cYou will make a Presbyterian out of me, Wallerton, if you talk much\nlonger,\u201d said another by-stander.\n\n\u201cFather Grimshaw,\u201d continued Wallerton, laughing, \u201cyou\u2019ve got this\ndoctrine wrong; you are mixed up on it.\u201d\n\n\u201cIf I am, I guess I\u2019ll stay mixed up,\u201d replied the old man, shaking his\nhead. Rising, he limped off on his stick, leaving the group wondering\nat his prejudice.\n\nFather Grimshaw was a type of that class that will not be convinced by\nanything. Many people reject the doctrines of the Presbyterian Church,\nespecially predestination, because such doctrines are repugnant to\ntheir feelings, and are not in harmony with their preconceived opinions.\n\nWe may here state that all the parties who have been conspicuous in\nthese pages, are alive at the present writing, and our story must come\nto an end.\n\nThere was so much discussion in regard to the doctrinal sermon which\nErnest had preached, that the elders of his church requested it for\npublication. He thought it advisable to comply with their request, in\norder that there might be no misconstruction of his views. We present\nthe outlines of the sermon to our readers, leaving it to them to draw\ntheir own conclusions.\n\n\n\n\nTHE SERMON.\n\n     \u201cFor whom He did foreknow He also did predestinate to be conformed\n     to the image of His Son.\u201d--_Romans viii: 29._\n\n\nI have quoted only one clause of the verse, because I have not time\nto elaborate the several doctrines to which the apostle calls our\nattention. On this occasion, I desire to make some few remarks on the\ndivine purpose. In one sermon I can do little more than present only a\nfew of the reasons which Presbyterians have for believing the doctrine\nof predestination. Without taking up the time in further preliminaries,\nI proceed, at once, to discuss the doctrine that is announced in our\ntext. We can hardly misapprehend the text. But to remove all possible\nground of misconstruction and misunderstanding, let us notice in\nwhat sense \u201cforeknowledge\u201d is employed. There can be no doubt as to\nthe meaning of predestination. No one will dispute that it means to\n\u201cappoint,\u201d or \u201cdestine beforehand.\u201d \u201cTo foreknow,\u201d says Adam Clarke,\n\u201chere signifies to design beforehand, or at the first forming of the\nscheme.\u201d Without, therefore, doing the least violence to the text, I\nam justifiable in translating, \u201cwhom He elected or designed before He\ndid predestinate.\u201d The term predestinate embraces both the decrees of\nelection and reprobation. Some persons are disposed to limit the word\nto election. But no good reason can be assigned for such restriction,\nas God determined the final condition of both classes. Permit me to\nsay here, that we ought to enter into the discussion of this subject\nwith feelings of the deepest solemnity and reverence. I know it is\nrevolting to the carnal heart to think that the eternal destiny of men\nis settled before they are born. It is repugnant to human pride; but\nabove all things let us avoid warping and perverting the truth of the\nScripture so as to bring it in harmony with our feelings and desires.\nIf we allow ourselves to do violence to God\u2019s Word, in order to\nsupport a theory, we shall run into serious error. Men, impelled more\nby feeling than reason, have embraced the doctrine of universalism.\nI am sure I could have no objection to the doctrine of universalism,\nif it could be established from God\u2019s written Word. I want no one to\ngo to hell, and I would be glad to think that all of Adam\u2019s race will\nbe saved at last. I, for one, hold to the doctrine of predestination,\nnot only because it is agreeable to my feelings, but because I believe\nit to be taught in God\u2019s Word. If it were not taught there, I would\nnot have the least objection to renouncing it. Now let us, as briefly\nas possible, see whether or not it is promulgated in the Bible. I\nbegin with _Election_. Is it to be found in the Scriptures? If so, it\nis our duty to accept it, no matter if we cannot make it square with\nour notions of the fitness of things. The definition of election is,\nthat it is the choice which God, in the exercise of sovereign grace,\nmade of certain individuals of mankind to enjoy salvation by Jesus\nChrist. I do not think the position can be successfully combatted,\nthat God has elected some to salvation in preference to others. There\nare many passages of Scripture that establish the position. But I have\ntime to call attention to only a few of them. Romans 16: 13: \u201cSalute\nRufus chosen in the Lord.\u201d \u201cI have manifested thy name unto the men\nwhich Thou gavest me out of the world.\u201d \u201cWhen the Gentiles heard this,\nthey were glad, and glorified the word of the Lord, and as many as\nwere ordained to eternal life, believed.\u201d \u201cI have much people in this\ncity\u201d * * * * \u201cto them who are the called of the Lord according to his\npurpose,\u201d \u201cYe have not chosen me, but I have chosen you, that ye should\ngo and bring forth fruit, and that your fruit should remain.\u201d \u201cHe said\nto Moses, I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have\ncompassion on whom I will have compassion.\u201d \u201cSo then, it is not to him\nthat willeth nor him that runneth, but of God that showeth mercy.\u201d \u201cWho\nhath saved us and _called_ us with a holy calling, not according to our\nwork, but according to His own purpose and grace which was given us in\nChrist Jesus, before the world began.\u201d \u201cAccording as He hath chosen\nus, in Him, before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy\nand without blame before Him in love.\u201d These are but a few passages\nthat establish the doctrine of predestination and election. It would\nrequire a volume to contain the passages of Scripture that teach the\ndoctrine both by precept and example. Some persons admit the doctrine\nof election with certain modifications. They say it is an election of\n_character_; they affirm that God elected the righteous character. I\ncannot see what is gained by this attempt to separate an individual\nfrom his character. It is character that makes the man. It would be\njust as reasonable to talk of extracting the sweetness from sugar as\nto make a distinction between an individual and his character. But\nleaving out the passages which I have just quoted, our text settles\nthe point. It says plainly, _whom_, not _what_, he did foreknow.\nAll through the Scripture, election is spoken of as applicable to\nindividuals, and not characters. Some say, God elected to salvation\nthose who He foresaw would believe and repent. If Paul meant no more\nthan this in the epistle to the Romans, he used language for which\nthere was no necessity. Why should he exclaim with such solemnity, \u201cWho\nart thou, oh, man, that repliest against God\u201d? If Paul did not hold to\nthe doctrine of predestination, it is strange that Peter should have\nsaid that Paul \u201cwrote things hard to be understood.\u201d There is not the\nleast difficulty in understanding the proposition that God elected\nthose He foresaw would believe and repent. No Presbyterian would deny\nthat proposition in its literal sense, for it is certain that those\nwho are elected, do believe and repent. God never elected any one that\ndoes not believe and repent. But those who oppose the doctrines of\nthe Presbyterian Church, assert that God elected some to salvation on\naccount of their foreseen faith, and their voluntary compliance with\nGod\u2019s requirements. Well, if this position be correct, there was no\nnecessity of Peter\u2019s saying that Paul wrote things hard to understand,\nbecause no one could fail to understand such a proposition, and no one\ncould reply against God, not even the worst sinner on the face of the\nearth, if Paul meant no more than that every man\u2019s salvation is placed\nin his own hands; because this is the very thing for which the natural\nman has ever clamored. No one would object to the doctrine of salvation\non account of foreseen faith and righteousness, or righteous works,\nif it were taught in the Scriptures; because it is in accordance with\nhuman notions of things. It is a philosophical idea. I will cheerfully\nconcede the point that the main system that stands opposed to the\ndoctrines of the Presbyterian Church has the merit of philosophy. But\nthis is one great objection to it. The Bible is no book of philosophy.\nIt announces truths in disconnected order, some of which, owing to the\nweakness of our finite minds, appear to be contradictory. But the chief\nobjection to this doctrine of foreseen faith and works as a ground of\nsalvation, is that it does not appear to be consonant to the divine\nwill. Paul tells us why we are chosen. He says \u201caccording as He hath\nchosen us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be\nholy and without blame before Him in love.\u201d We were not chosen because\nwe were already holy, but that we should become so. Then he goes on\nto say: \u201cHe having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by\nJesus Christ to Himself according to the _good pleasure of His will_.\u201d\nThat is the reason why we were chosen; it was the good pleasure of His\nwill. He does not say that we were chosen on account of our foreseen\nfaith and works. I hope no one will understand me as affirming that we\nare saved without faith. We must have faith; but it is not the ground\nof our salvation. Besides, faith itself is the gift of God. It is a\nwell-settled principle in all orthodox theology, that man is dead in\ntrespasses and sin. How God could foresee that a man in this condition\ncould, of himself, exercise faith, it is difficult to conceive. It\nrequires the Holy Spirit to awaken men to life. Without such an\noperation, no man is capable of spiritual activity. If this be granted,\nthen, we can easily see in what sense faith is the gift of God. Now to\nbring the discussion down to the narrowest possible limits, I will lay\ndown a proposition which cannot be disputed.\n\nFirst, God made choice of some to be saved. On what principle was the\nchoice based? Why, to use plain language, God chose some on account of\nsome good in them; or some evil in them; or the choice was simply His\ngood will and pleasure. Well, there was no good in them, consequently\nGod could not have chosen them on that account. There was not a\nnaturally righteous character on the face of the earth. If men had been\nleft to themselves to believe, not a single individual of the human\nrace would have been saved. Again, God is too holy to have chosen men\non account of the evil in them. I presume no one will contend for any\nsuch doctrine as this. Then, the conclusion of the whole matter is,\nthat God chose some men to salvation because it was His good will and\npleasure.\n\nSome cry out that this would be unjust. They say that God should not\nmake distinctions, and that He should be impartial. I do not see where\nthe injustice is. To illustrate: Here are five criminals condemned\nto death. If the Governor should pardon two of them, is there any\ninjustice to the remaining three? The objector says there would be,\nunless the Governor has some good reason for showing clemency in the\ncase of the two. For the sake of argument, we will admit it. God also\nhas His reasons for His choice; but these reasons, so far as His secret\npurposes are concerned, have never been revealed to us. All we now know\nis that He will have mercy on whom He will have mercy. Men somehow,\nseem to think that God has no right to make distinctions among the sons\nof Adam; and that He is bound to put all on the same level, and if He\nsaves one, He is bound to give all the same opportunity to be saved.\nBut God is under no sort of obligation to save any one. If the Lord has\nno right to make distinctions, then we are driven to the conclusion\nthat the universalist has the true doctrine. Because it would follow\nthat if God saves one, then He must employ such means in the case of\nevery individual as would result in His salvation. If it required a\nmiracle to convince Paul, and it would require a miracle to convince\nme, God would be bound to perform it. So all must be saved. The only\nsafe position is to take God\u2019s Word at what it says. It speaks of\nthe elect as individuals, and not mere characters, and it speaks of\nthem as chosen before the foundation of the world, because of God\u2019s\ngood will and pleasure. Now let us notice the other class whom God\nhas not chosen--the class of reprobates. The idea of reprobation is\nnecessarily implied in the idea of election. So if we prove one, the\nother is virtually established. They are correlative terms, and men\ndo violence to Scripture and logic when they admit election and deny\nreprobation. When out of some objects a choice is made, those not\nchosen are certainly rejected. When objects are presented to a person\nfor the selection of some, even if he speak not a word, he says by his\nactions: \u201cThis I will take, and this I will not take.\u201d It is in vain\nto say that nothing has been done to them; but that they were left in\nthe precise condition in which they were found. There certainly has\nbeen some sort of act of mind in refusing them, or passing them by.\nBut leaving out the question of logical consistency, we would have\nno zeal in the advocacy of such a doctrine were it not taught in the\nScriptures. We could well afford to admit a logical inconsistency, if\nby the admission we could get rid of this doctrine which has aroused\na spirit of rebellious wrath in the heart of the natural man. We may\nlift up our hands in holy horror at the idea of reprobation, but the\nScriptures affirm it in language plain enough. There are so many\npassages bearing on the subject, that I have not time to call attention\nto them all. I refer to only a few as specimens. The Scriptures say\nconcerning Pharaoh, \u2018For this same purpose have I raised thee up,\u2019 etc.\n\u201cTherefore hath He mercy on whom He will have mercy, and whom He will\nHe hardeneth.\u201d \u201cWhat if God, willing to show His wrath, and to make\nHis power known, endured with much long-suffering the vessels of wrath\nfitted to destruction.\u201d \u201cMen of corrupt mind, _reprobate_ concerning\nthe faith.\u201d \u201cThere are certain men crept in unawares who were before\nof old _ordained_ to this condemnation,\u201d etc. Again, we read of those\nwhose names are not written in the Book of Life. I could quote other\npassages just as strong and conclusive as those referred to. Throughout\nthe whole Scriptures, from Genesis to Revelation, we are taught both\nby precept and example, that there is a line running between the\npeople of God and those doomed to eternal destruction. Therefore, we\nconclude that the framers of the Westminster Confession of Faith were\njustifiable in inserting that much-abused article: \u201cBy the decree\nof God, for the manifestation of His glory, some men and angels are\npredestinated unto everlasting life, and others are fore-ordained to\neverlasting death.\u201d The idea is expressed in no ambiguous terms. These\nmen perceived the doctrine in God\u2019s Word, and they did not shrink from\navowing it, without the least sugar-coating.\n\nAnd now, if reasoning from logical premises would be of any avail;\nif it be thought necessary to support scriptural truth by logical\nprocesses, I would say that only three propositions can be made in\nregard to the salvation of men:\n\nFirst, All men will be saved.\n\nSecond, All men will be lost.\n\nThird, A part of the human race will be saved, and a part lost.\n\nWe can easily prove by the holy Scriptures that the first two\npropositions are not true. Then, we are bound to admit that the\n_third_ is true. This is a fixed fact. The question is, when was it\nfixed in the mind of God? The Scripture says the elect were chosen\nbefore the foundation of the world. The point for which we contend is\nthat the fact was fixed by the Lord. It was not simply foreseen as\na fact that would arise independently of divine interposition, but\nit was predetermined. It was God who determined it. This is the kind\nof predestination to which the Presbyterian Church holds. Whatever\nobjections may be urged against it, we believe it to be taught in God\u2019s\nWord. There are questions in regard to it which no human being can\nanswer. We are confronted with the question, how fore-ordination and\nman\u2019s free agency can be reconciled. It is certainly no good reason\nfor the rejection of a doctrine that we cannot fully understand it.\nWho can understand the Trinity? Who can comprehend the dual existence\nof our Lord Jesus? Such truths we receive on faith, and not because\nthey are in harmony with reason. But it is not right to require that\nPredestinarians shall remove objections which apply with equal force\nto the theological system of those who so bitterly oppose us. For\ninstance, how can fore-knowledge be reconciled with man\u2019s free agency?\nWhatever God fore-knows must come to pass.\n\nWe, too, believe with others, that so far as free agency is concerned,\nevery man on the face of the earth could be saved, if he only had the\n_will_ to come to Christ. But some will not accept; and that fact\nwas fixed in the Eternal Mind, away back before the foundation of\nthe world, as well as the other fact, that some would accept. It is\nin vain to say that this result was merely fore-seen. When there was\nnothing in existence, how could God fore-see anything except what He\nhad determined should be? Permit me to use a plain illustration: Here\nstands a sculptor before a block of marble. There are millions of\npossible images and forms in that marble. With his chisel the artist\ncan develop _one_ image. That must first exist as a conception in\nhis mind. After a while the beautiful statue is brought out as the\nresult of a predetermination. Or the sculptor might produce _two_\nimages--three--four--a hundred. There are millions of possible forms\nin the marble, but the workman determines what forms he will develop.\nApplying the illustration, there were millions of possible events or\ncircumstances before the divine Mind. The Lord could have made this\nworld larger or smaller; He could have made Adam a very different being\nfrom what he was. But God chose, predetermined, to make this world just\nthe size it is. God selected the events that take place out of millions\nthat might have taken place, as the sculptor chose the images which he\nwould develop. If the Lord did not select, or predetermine, the precise\nevents that occur in time, who did make the selection? Was the All Wise\nGod merely trying experiments? What would we think of a sculptor who\nshould go to work on his block of marble without any conception or plan\nin his mind? How, then, can we believe that God would place men in the\nworld, and devise the scheme of redemption without selecting the exact\nresults in His own Omniscient Mind? The Lord has His own purposes,\nand these purposes will be accomplished; and this is predestination.\nTherefore, I do not hesitate to endorse another article of our\nConfession of Faith, which has been often assailed with un-christian\nvirulence: \u201cGod hath fore-ordained whatsoever comes to pass.\u201d\n\nHere I would observe that the objection is without foundation that, if\npredestination be true, it is in vain for men to make any effort to be\nsaved. This is a gross perversion of the doctrine. God does not decree\nthat any one shall be doomed to eternal torment who desires to enjoy\nheaven, and who is willing to accept the terms of salvation. Show me\nthe sinner who is thirsting for the waters of Life, and I will show you\none whose name is written in the Book of Heaven as an heir of God. Now,\nhow much broader do we want the plan of salvation, if it embraces all\nthat desire salvation on Scriptural terms? If the sinner is disposed to\nrepent, he has no reason to suppose that he belongs to the reprobate\nclass. But some men want an excuse for continuing in sin, and these are\nthe persons who, Peter said, would \u201cwrest the Scriptures to their own\ndestruction.\u201d\n\nAnother argument in support of this doctrine is the fact that Paul\nmentions, and comments upon the very objections that are to this day\nurged against the doctrines of the Presbyterian Church. It is evident\nthat the apostle taught precisely what the Confession of Faith does.\nWe have to meet the very same objections which he met, and refuted. We\nknow that this doctrine has ever been revolting to men of the world.\nYou remember, when Christ said, \u201cNo man can come unto me except the\nFather which hath sent me, draw him,\u201d some of His disciples \u201cwent back,\nand walked with Him no more.\u201d\n\nI have no doubt the doctrine of predestination will be opposed to\nthe end of time. But it can never be destroyed. You may revise the\nConfession of Faith till every vestige of it disappears, but that\ndoes not blot it out from the pages of God\u2019s Word. To get rid of that\ndoctrine, the whole Bible must be revised from Genesis to Revelation.\nStrike out from the Scriptures every thing that is said in regard to\npredestination; expunge every passage from which the doctrine may be\ndeduced by plain inference, and there is nothing left but Universalism.\n\nPredestination and man\u2019s free agency are both taught in the Holy\nScriptures. Recognize this fact, and you will find little difficulty\nin harmonizing passages that may appear to some persons to be\nantagonistic. Reject either doctrine, and you will run into serious\nerror. There is Fatalism, on the one side; and on the other, there is\na broad Liberality of sentiment among men which receives no support\nfrom God\u2019s Word. Hence we honestly believe that the position of the\nPresbyterian Church is the only true way to steer in safety between\nScylla and Charybdis.\n\n[Illustration: finis.]\n\n\n\n\nStories by Rev. R. H. Crozier.\n\n\nFIERY TRIALS\n\n--OR--\n\nA STORY OF AN INFIDEL\u2019S FAMILY.\n\nElegantly bound in cloth. Price $1.50. 490 pages.\n\n\nARAPHEL\n\n--OR--\n\nA STORY OF EVOLUTION.\n\nElegantly bound in cloth. 527 pages. Price $1.50.\n\n\nTHE CAVE OF HEGOBAR\n\n--OR--\n\nTHE FIEND OF 1878.\n\nElegantly bound in cloth. 675 pages. Price $1.75.\n\n\nAny of the above books sent by mail, _post-paid_, on receipt of price.\n      Each volume treats of some important religious doctrine.\n           They are recommended by such men as Drs. B. M.\n                  Palmer, Bishop Wm. Green, Bishop\n                      C. C. Galloway, and many\n                               others.\n\n\nPlease address,\n\nREV. R. H. CROZIER, Sardis, Miss.\n\n\n\n\n+-------------------------------------------------+\n|Transcriber\u2019s note:                              |\n|                                                 |\n|Obvious typographic errors have been corrected.  |\n|                                                 |\n+-------------------------------------------------+","title":"Deep Waters; Or, A Strange Story","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":68896}