John Ward, Preacher

rrival of the Forsythes mad

uld not be expected to be just like Ashurst people; but it was something to have a

rson of her own age to talk to, and sometimes to walk with, though the rector never felt quite sure what his sister would say to that. However, Mrs. Dale had nothing to say; she shut her eyes to any impropriety, and even remarke

iety was groundless,-Ashurst imagination never rose to any such height; and certainly, if the letters the young man wrote to her could have been seen, such a thought would not have been suggested. They were pleasant and friendly; very short, and not very frequent; mostly of Helen and what she did; there was almost

absurd suggestion of Miss Deborah's about Helen would creep into her mind; she might banish it, because it was silly and impossible, yet she did not utterly forget it. However, she really thought very little about it; the prese

ythes had hired was filled with dainty things, and light, graceful furniture, and many harmlessly silly novels; there was a general air about it of belonging to a life she had never seen which made

en stroke her soft white hair when she had a headache. "Dick may be at home, my dear," Mrs. Forsythe

their young laughter. Lois began to feel with Dick the freedom and friendliness which had once been only for Gifford. "Why couldn't Giff have been like this?" she thought; yet she did not say that she and Mr. Fo

frequently a matt

calls;" and it generally happened that he did call. "Mother sends her love, and will Miss Lois come and read to her a little while this af

ything came of it (for the rector was not entirely unworldly), why, it would be all for the best. So he was quite patient if Lois was not on hand to hunt up a book for him or to fetch his slippers, and he fell into the habit of spending much time in Mr. Denner's office, looking over the "Field" and talking of their next hunting trip. He was not even irritated when, one morning, wishing

t the sky; sweet-peas and scarlet runners scrambled over the box hedges and about the rose-bushes; mallows and sweet-williams, asters and zinias and phlox, crowded close together with a riotous richness of

d; the front of her light blue dress-she wore light blue in a manner which might have been called daring had it implied the slightest thought-was caught up to hold her lapful of flowers; a sheaf of rose

fragrant load. He had, as usual, a message to deliver. "Mother sends her love, Miss Lois, and says she i

, in her impetuous voice. "Bu

ders. "Oh, I guess she's all right," he said. "It amuses h

hered in water, and then get some fresh ones for his mother. "You see I'm very particular that she should ha

in a row on the top step. Then Dick brought a big pitcher of fresh, cold water from the spring, and Lois went for the garden scissors to clip off the long s

e that Ashurst young women were under the constant over-sight of their parents; but he yawned once or twice, and thought how comfort

ut in a shallow dish, so he did not rise, but said "Hello!" in answer to the rector's "Good-morning," and smiled brightly up at h

len; do you want to send any message when I answe

l almost as though I knew Mrs. Ward, M

rs. Ward!'" Lois said, taking th

g the hands. And it is awfully unpleasant to see that sort of thing. I've heard fellows say they enjoyed a good dinner more if they saw

en, thought that Mr. Forsythe had a very tender heart. Helen was questioning the meaning of the s

bled for his glasses, and, with his lower lip thrust out, and his gray eyebrows gathered into a frown, glanced up and down the pages. "Ah, yes, here: 'Do you not think,' she says, 'that the presence in the world of suffering which cannot produce character, irresponsible suffering, so to speak, makes i

e stem of a rose before she plunged it down into the water in the

that way," the rector cried impati

"what's the good of bothering ab

nsense, and I shall tell Helen so; there is too much tendency among young people to talk about things they don't understand, and it results in a superficial, skin-deep sort of skepti

be content just to step into the print her husband's foot has made. She'll c

happy by getting unsettled in her belief, and that is what this sort of questioning results in. But I didn't come out to scold Helen; it just occurred to me

do!" Loi

ollars, too!" Dick cried,

"if Mrs. Ward will spend some money for me, it will make my conscience easy for a month; for, to tell you the truth,

well, you're young, and I'm sure your twenty-five dollars for Helen's poor people will

admiration and an undefined dissatisfaction with hersel

much," the recto

me, I'm sure," an

orners, and overflowing with odds and ends of memoranda and newspaper clippings; a row of fish-hooks was fa

ed many things; he even knew the heartache which the very fear of losing faith gives. But the way was too hard, and the toil and anguish of the soul too great; he turned back into the familiar paths of the religion he knew and loved; and doubt grew vague, not in assured belief, but in the plain duties of life. After a little while, he almost forgot that he ever had doubted. Only now and then, when some questioning soul came to him, would he realize that he could not help it by his own experience, only

before his mind; he was glad when he had sanded his paper and thru

en, searching for the most perfect roses, before he acknowledged that he was content. When they parted at the iron gate, he was more in love tha

Mr. Dale coming from Mr. Denner's little law office, he made haste to join him. Conversation of an

ctory," he said, as he re

ho realized the nature of the young man himself. Dick's superficiality was a constant irritation to Mr. Dale, who missed in him that deference for the opinions of older pe

ut wished he had a more congenial companion. Mr. Dale walked with hands behind him and shoulders bent forward; hi

ale's attention was caught: Dick began to speak of John Ward. "I thought I'd seen him," he was saying. "The name was familiar, and then when Mi

e way or the other; but people interested Mr. Dale, and he had meant some time to study this man with

rk, and abstracted-looking, named Ward, and studying at the Western Theological Seminary

s mild blue eyes upon the young man, and rega

truth of it; and she had a miserable yelling brat in her arms. It seemed as though she'd fall half a dozen times. Well, while we were standing there, I saw that man coming down the street. I didn't know him then,-somebody told me his name, afterwards. I give you my word, sir, when he saw that woman, he stood still

of it. "Ah!" he said, wi

he'd fall, and hurt herself and the child. Naturally everybody looked at him, but I don't believe he even saw them. We stood there and watched them out of sight-an

hat: "He's a good man," he said, and then trudged on aga

t doesn't strike you as it did Dr. Howe. I told him, and he said,

oman who was a sinner upheld by his strong and tender arm, was not forgotten; and when Dick had left him, and