this foolish place where the gospel is not christianity but drink he is the little god of the dull brain and hundreds of such little gods ride on the backs of the poor english people keeping them in slavery worse than that of the and chain and how strange are the which punish crime and yet do nothing to prevent it the noise of the opening door downstairs was repeated and this time it was followed by the movement of footsteps cautiously peered out through the of his own doorway and saw coming slowly up the stairs his was pale and he was talking to himself as he came i must go to my wife � he said i must look upon her once more as she lies asleep � and then � then i will sleep too beside her anxiously watched him himself unseen as he went by with tread straight to the room where s body lay � the room that had belonged to husband i holy orders and wife he saw him open the door and hesitate � then enter and himself in a rush of tears to the little priest a eyes everything from his view poor poor fellow he said softly � if he could only cry like a woman it would do him good his brain is on fire with sorrow or else it is frozen with despair � perhaps the � sight of her so calm so peaceful so may touch the of healing as for me will pray for him but god forgive m if i say for once it seems but little use and with that he smote his breast and muttered many times for this rash utterance which according to the teaching of his church amounted to that sin against the holy ghost known as presumption of god s and kneeling down he buried h s head in hu hands aad earnestly and the loving pity of for his and ring mean little sleeping as he was accustomed to do all alone in his nursery was disturbed and frightened by a strange dream he thought he saw his mother standing near him � there was a pale brightness all round her like moonlight and she had a white dress on and a wreath of white flowers in her hair she looked at him and said very gently father wants you darling and he was so sleepy that he could not quite understand her � so he rubbed his eyes with his two doubled up little fists and for a moment only stared at her without speaking then she came closer to his bedside and bent over him and kissed him her kiss was so quick and light and warm that it was like a flame and the touch of it woke him up yes he was sure he was wide awake and equally sure that his mother stood there smiling at him though her face was very sad � and she said again � y dear father wants you and he was sorry he had not jumped up before in obedience to her call but he answered now at once � all right are you better to this she did not reply and when he looked at her again she was gone he slipped hastily out of bed and the tragedy of a quiet life stood shivering in his little thinking and wondering what he ought to do nurse slept in the next room and there was an open door between � should he call her and tell her that his mother had come in to see him no � he decided it would be best to do exactly what had told him and go to first so he opened the nursery door very and out with his little bare feet on the staircase landing which was almost dark save for the glimmer of a gas turned low down he paused a trifle scared his mother s bedroom was immediately opposite and he was just making up his mind to go thither when some one came out of it a strange drooping figure of a man with a wild white haggard face and hair � a man piteous and terrible to look at whose eyes glared in front of him as though fixed on some monstrous vision of hell was it could it be his father his little heart beat with fear � he ran a step or two forward he cried � mother says you want me back from him struck by sudden awe mother says mother with hands uplifted as though to ward off a blow or a blessing he stared vaguely at the little white thing shining out of the night s blackness � the little white thing with its crown of golden curls that ran towards him trembling on its small bare feet what what was it a child � or an angel was dead in the room behind there � he had tried to rouse her with kisses and prayers � he had knelt beside her watching for some small sign of returning life that should respond to his love in vain and now had she sent a messenger from heaven to comfort him look at it it seemed of him its sweet small voice cried again mother says you want me a nervous shuddering seized him there was a in his throat and he felt as though he were choking involuntarily he stretched out his arms then he gave a great cry holy orders m had forgotten you i god me i had forgotten her child � mine � life of lives oh yes i want you my darling � god knows i want you � come come come to me � i want you my little little child falling on his knees he gathered up the frightened boy closely in his arms and vn d sobs broke from him hard and passionate while 