the idea the mere idea of God fair | Love is a lifting no less than a swelling of play, lest there should be a good God after all, and he all his life doing him the injustice of refusing him his trust and obedience."

"My lady!" he repeated, just a little embarrassed, "I should like to tell you one thing that came to me only lately came to me when thinking over the hard words you spoke to me that day in the park. But it is something so awful that I dare not speak of it except you will make your heart solemn to hear it."

"You are ungenerous," said Clementina, flushing.

"My lady," persisted Malcolm, "you would not understand me. You denied me a heart because of what seemed in your eyes cruelty. I knew that I was saving her from death at the least, probably from a life of torture. God may be He stopped, with his eyes questioning good, though to you his government may hers. Clementina's first thought once seem to deny it. There is but one way more was madness, but as she steadily God cares to govern - the way of the returned his look, her face grew pale, and Father-King- and that way is at hand. she gently bowed her head in consent. But I have yet given you only the one "I will try, then," said Malcolm. "Ev-half of my theory: if God feels pain, then erybody knows what few think about, that he puts forth his will to bear and subonce there lived a man who, in the broad ject that pain: if the pain comes to him face of prejudiced respectability, truth-from his creature, living in him, will the hating hypocrisy, commonplace religion, endurance of God be confined to himself, and dull book-learning, affirmed that he and not, in its turn, pass beyond the knew the secret of life and understood the bounds of his individuality and react upon heart and history of men- who wept over the sufferer to his sustaining? I do not their sorrows, yet worshipped the God of mean that sustaining which a man feels the whole earth, saying that he had known from knowing his will one with God's and him from eternal days. The same said God with him, but such sustaining as that he came to do what the Father did, those his creatures also may have who do and that he did nothing but what he had not or cannot know whence the sustaining learned of the Father. They killed him, comes. I believe that the endurance of you know, my lady, in a terrible way that God goes forth to uphold, that his patience one is afraid even to think of. But he is strength to his creatures, and that while insisted that he laid down his life that the whole creation may well groan, its he allowed them to take it. Now, I ask suffering is more bearable therefore than whether that grandest thing crowning his it seems to the repugnance of our relife, the yielding of it to the hand of vio-gard." lence, he had not learned also from his Father. Was his death the only thing he had not so learned? If I am right — and I do not say if in doubt then the suffering of those three terrible hours was a type of the suffering of the Father himself in bringing sons and daughters through the cleansing and glorifying fires without which the created cannot be made the very children of God, partakers of the divine nature and peace. Then from the lowest, weakest tone of suffering up to the loftiest pitch, the divinest acme of pain, there is not one pang to which the sensorium of the universe does not respond; never an untuneful vibration of nerve or spirit but thrills beyond the brain or the heart of the sufferer to the brain, the heart, of the universe; and God, in the simplest, most literal, fullest sense, and not by sympathy alone, suffers with his creatures.'

"Well, but he is able to bear it: they I cannot bring myself to see the

are not.

right of it."

"Nor will you, my lady, so long as you cannot bring yourself to see the good they get by it. My lady, when I was trying my best with poor Kelpie, you would not listen to me."

"That is a dangerous doctrine," said Clementina.

"Will it then make the cruel man more cruel to be told that God is caring for the tortured creature from the citadel of whose life he would force an answer to save his own from the sphinx that must at last devour him, let him answer never so wisely? Or will it make the tender less pitiful to be consoled a little in the agony of beholding what they cannot alleviate? Many hearts are from sympathy as sorely in need of comfort as those with whom they suffer. And to such I have one word to your heart, my lady, if it will consent to be consoled: the animals, I believe, suffer less than we, because they scarcely think of the past, and not at all of the future. It is the same with children, Mr. Graham says: they suffer less than grown people, and for the same reason. To get back something of this privilege of theirs we have to be obedient and take no thought for the morrow."

more

Clementina took up her work. Malcolm walked away.

"Malcolm," cried his mistress, "are you not going on with the book?"

"I hope your ladyship will excuse me,"

said Malcolm. "I would rather not read | upon to show them beliefs; it is more just at present."

one thing to declare all men equal, and It may seem incredible that one so another to tell the girl who looks up to young as Malcolm should have been able you for advice that she ought to feel herto talk thus; and indeed my report may self at perfect liberty to marry. say, a have given words more formal and syste- groom; and when Florimel proposed the matic than his really were. For the mat-general question, Clementina might well ter of them, it must be remembered that he was not young in the effort to do and understand, and that the advantage to such a pupil of such a teacher as Mr. Graham is illimitable.

CHAPTER XLIII.

A PERPLEXITY.

AFTER Malcolm's departure Clementina attempted to find what Florimel thought of the things her strange groom had been saying she found only that she neither thought at all about them, nor had a single true notion concerning the matter of their conversation. Seeking to interest her in it, and failing, she found, however, that she had greatly deepened its impression upon herself.

have hesitated. And indeed she did hesi-
tate, but in vain she tried to persuade her-
self that it was solely for the sake of her
young and inexperienced friend that she
did so.
As little could she honestly say
that it was from doubt of the principles
she had so long advocated. Had Florimel
been open with her, and told her what
sort of inferior was in her thoughts, in-
stead of representing the gulf between
them as big enough to swallow the city of
Rome - had she told her that he was a
gentleman, a man of genius and gifts,
noble and large-hearted, and indeed better
bred than any other man she knew — the
fact of his profession would only have
clenched Lady Clementina's decision in
his favor; and if Florimel had been hon-
est enough to confess the encouragement
she had given him-nay, the absolute
love-passages there had been Clemen-
tina would at once have insisted that her
friend should write an apology for her
behavior to him, should dare the dastard
world and offer to marry him when he
would. But, Florimel putting the ques-
tion as she did, how should Clementina
imagine anything other than that it re-
ferred to Malcolm? and a strange confu-
sion of feeling was the consequence.
Her thoughts heaved in her like the half-
shaped monsters of a spiritual chaos, and
amongst them was one she could not at
all identify. A direct answer she found
impossible. She found also that in pres-

Florimel had not yet quite made up her mind whether or not she should open her heart to Clementina, but she approached the door of it in requesting her opinion upon the matter of marriage between persons of social conditions widely parted "frightfully sundered," she said. Now, Clementina was a radical of her day, a reformer, a leveller-one who complained bitterly that some should be so rich and some so poor. In this she was perfectly honest. Her own wealth, from a vague sense of unrighteousness in the possession of it, was such a burden to her that she threw it away where often it made other people stumble if not fall. She professed to regard all men as equal, and be-ence of Florimel, so much younger than lieved that she did so. She was powerful in her contempt of the distinctions made between certain of the classes, but had signally failed in some bold endeavors to act as if they had no existence except in the whims of society. As yet, no man had sought her nearer regard for whom she would deign to cherish even friendship. As to marriage, she professed, right honestly, an entire disinclination, even aversion, to it, saying to herself that if ever she should marry it must be, for the sake of protest and example, one notably beneath her in social condition. He must be a gentleman, but his claims to that rare distinction should lie only in himself, not his position in what he was, not what he had. But it is one thing to have opinions, and another to be called

herself, and looking up to her for advice, she dared not even let the questions now pressing for entrance appear before her consciousness. She therefore declined giving an answer of any sort- was not prepared with one, she said: much was to be considered; no two cases were just alike.

They were summoned to tea, after which she retired to her room, shut the door and began to think- an operation which, seldom easy if worth anything, was in the present case peculiarly difficult, both because Clementina was not used to it, and the subject-object of it was herself. I suspect that self-examination is seldom the most profitable, certainly it is sometimes the most unpleasant, and always the most difficult, of moral actions - that

is, to perform after a genuine fashion. I know that very little of what passes for it has the remotest claim to reality, and I will not say it has never to be done; but I am certain that a good deal of the energy spent by some devout and upright people on trying to understand themselves and their own motives would be expended to better purpose, and with far fuller attainment even in regard to that object itself, in the endeavor to understand God, and what he would have us do.

known women for whom it might be the best thing. I am a fool! a soft-hearted idiot! He told me I would give a baby a lighted candle if it cried for it. — Or didn't he? I believe he never uttered a word of the sort: he only thought it." As she said this there came a strange light in her eyes, and the light seemed to shine from all around them as well as from the orbs themselves.

Suddenly she stood still as a statue in the middle of the room, and her face grew white as the marble of one. For a min

Lady Clementina's attempt was as honest as she dared make it. It went some-ute she stood thus, without a definite thing after this fashion: "How is it possi- thought in her brain. The first that came ble I should counsel a young creature like was something like this: "Then Florimel that, with all her gifts and privileges, to does love him! and wants help to decide marry a groom to bring the stable into whether she shall marry him or not! Poor her chamber? If I did, if she did, has she weak little wretch! Then if I were in the strength to hold her face to it? Yes, love with him I would marry him. Would I know how different he is from any other I? It is well, perhaps, that I'm not! But groom that ever rode behind a lady. But she! he is ten times to good for her! He does she understand him? Is she capa- would be utterly thrown away on her! ble of such a regard for him as could out- But I am her counsel, not his; and what last a week of closer intimacy? At her better could come to her than have such a age it is impossible she should know man for a husband, and instead of that what she was doing in daring such a thing. contemptible Liftore, with his grand earlIt would be absolute ruin to her. And dom ways and proud nose? He has little how could I advise her to do what I could to be proud of that must take to his rank not do myself? But then if she is in love for it! Fancy a right man condescending with him?" to be proud of his own rank! Pooh! But this groom is a man! all a man! grand from the centre out, as the great God made him!—Yes, it must be a great God that made such a man as that! that is, if he is the same he looks the same all through!- Perhaps there are more Gods than one, and one of them is the devil, and made Liftore! But am I bound to give her advice? Surely not, I may refuse. And rightly too! A woman that marries from advice, instead of from a mighty love, is wrong. I need not speak. I shall just tell her to consult her own heart and conscience, and follow them. But gracious me! am I then going to fall in love with the fellow? - this stableman who pretends to know his Maker!-Certainly not. There is nothing of the kind in my thoughts. Besides, how should I know what falling in love means? I never was in love in my life, and don't mean to be. If I were so foolish as imagine myself in any danger, would I be such a fool as be caught in it? I should think not, indeed! What if I do think of this man in a way I never thought of any one before, is there anything odd in that?. How should I help it when he is unlike any one I ever saw before? One must think of people as one finds them. Does it follow that I have power over myself no longer, and must go

She rose and paced the room; not hurriedly she never did anything hurriedly -but yet with unleisurely steps, until, catching sight of herself in the glass, she turned away as from an intruding and unwelcome presence, and threw herself on her couch, burying her face in the pillow. Presently, however, she rose again, her face glowing, and again walked up and down the room-almost swiftly now. I can but indicate the course of her thoughts: "If what he says be true! It opens another and higher life. — What a man he is! and so young!-Has he not convicted me of feebleness and folly, and made me ashamed of myself? What better thing could man or woman do for another than lower her in her own haughty eyes, and give her a chance of becoming such as she had but dreamed of the shadow of? He is a gentleman every inch Hear him talk! - Scotch, no doubt -- and well a little long-winded a bad fault at his age! But see him ride! see him swim and to save a bird! But then he is hard-severe at best! All religious people are so severe! They think they are safe themselves, and so can afford to be hard on others! He would serve his wife the same as his mare, if he thought she required it! And I have

where any chance feeling may choose to | heeded in the commotion upon whose surlead me?"