Year: 1875

SION OF religion" and was done with fea
and trembling yet bravely aud for the SAX
Of Jesus Christ.


CHAPTER XII.


BLEsr M THE TIE.


The kind words Of Mrs. Blake had made
deep Impression upon her Saturday afternoon
visitor possibility Of gaining place il
the regard of those whom she could not he'll
respecting the possibility Of being held as o
any account 10y her supcriors, the hope OF be
ing rightly understood by her equals, hao
Then dawncd upon her for the first time
she had been accustomed to be despised and
TO despise others she had hardened herself
to show Indifference and had met with equal
Indifference in return she had given no
love TO anybody, aud had come TO believe
that there was no real beneynlence in earth
or heaven. But on her return from Mrs
Blake's she had instituted a thorough heart.
searching. She had tried 10 deal honestly
with her past self, and had discovered Ear
more OF selhshness aud meanncss than She
had supposed 10 exist. She had tried 10 Law
the fault on God, who had deprived her Of a
mothers love and fathers counsel in early
me- aud who had, as she tried TO believe.
made her ouly brother simply an agqravatine
romnderoi what might have been. She fell
asleep Sunday morning after a night OF ner.
vous excitement aud bitter discomfort. and
slept so late that she missed both the morn
ing service and the Sunday-school But she
went IN the evening 10 the conference meet
ing Her troubled spirit found fault with
everything that was said by the minister
was Needless Of the prayer aud the singing
until at last old Deacon Hudson rose TO hi.
feet





q" Tho tiresome old druwl," mentally ex.
claimed the girl


My friends, Christ iores u.s." he said.
lie loves us just as we are. not for what we
are but for what We can and may be--all Of
us, any of us, the worst Of us. How, then.
can we help loving him ="


The rest Of the old mans remarks were
lost TO Sarah, but these revolved in her mind
again and again She had heard the same
thing before, perhaps a hundred times. but
now she could not help dwelling upon its per
sonal Significance. At frst, her heart rose
up 10 contradict the statement emphasized
by the speaker.


lie dout love me-" she bitterly said to
herself.


Then came the remembrance of her ioyful
surprise the day before, when Mrs. Blake
had shown an evidently sincere regard for
her. She reflected how little there was in
herself that was lovely as revealed in the vi
sions of the past night; how closely She had
kept her best impulses, putting the worst
ide out and yet she could not doubt Mrs.
BIS truthfuuess. Was it, then, as Deacon
Hudson said, "not for what she was, but for
what She could aud might be-" that that
lady had shown herself kind to her? The
reality of this bud Of human affection made
the Towering of divine compassion seem pos
sihle. Light was already breaking in. We
cannot follow her various multitudinous
thoughts, which rolled in upon her like a
Hood as she sat there, evidently hearing moth
ing that was said. But the spell that held
her, the power that guided all these crowding
forces, was the mystery of the love Of Christ.
That he should love her; should love so ten
derly without return, without abatement,
for the sake of what she might be-that was
incomprehensible. still, it came upon her
with Increasing conviction it must be so,
Christ loved first and unreservedly. She
telt humbled at the thought, and was feeling
around hlindly IN her mind for some relief,
when the leader struck up,


"Just as am. without one plea"
and dozen or twenty voices Joined in that
hymn, which was the one Of all others bes.
suited to her condition.


She covered her face and wept silently,
every tear a penitent endorsement of the
confessions contained in the hymn, until the
last stanza was reached, when, with the
words,


Thy 1--we unknown,


Has broken every barrier down"
peace aud complete resignation and triumph
were blended, and she sang with the rest the
closing line,


" o Lamb Of God. come. GOMEZ"


Was it strange that she readily interpreted
the courageous stand made by her brother.
that She could not speak her new joy in the
street, but that after silent walk, she ex
cused herself from the company Of the elders,
and went to her chamber aud poured out her
whole heart TO him who loved her most ? Is
it strange that when she heard Simons step
near her door, she bounded TO meet him as
never before, and that the two newborn
children talked themselves hoarse in confd.
ing to each other the hopes and the purposes
of their new lives