oes on well
with me, shall I render thanks for that? be resigned and humble? Well,
to whom am I to rescribe the innumerable sorrows? all the sufferings of
this wretched life? the multiplied griefs? There is no one whom I dare
accuse of it. But even all this I am to receive with joy and humility!
If it go well with me: superabundant benevolence; if wrong: parental
correction. I cannot conceive such things as other brains have done.
The nameless Being, whom I know not how to represent to myself at all,
or only with giddiness and with terror, sustains worlds, permits
shipwrecks, wars and earthquakes, therefore he may now suffer me and my
thoughts. But he will, he cannot approach me closely, as they say, if I
do not draw near him with contrition, if I do not believe and speak
thus and thus of him; edifices, words, prostrations, belong thereto, in
order to lay him as by magic in fetters, that he may take an interest
in me, that he may love me, he must even first excite my commiseration.
Aye, truly all this roused my wrath. Instead of these loving, religious
men having patience, instructing and sympathising with me, they imagine
they can offer no satisfaction to their God of love, if they do not
hold me in execration."

"Fearful man!" exclaimed Edmonds "how could they do otherwise? if the
flame of the stake be kindly; it certainly is so for such as you."

"Naturally!" said Lacoste, with a loud laugh. "As the jews burn gold
out of old garments, so also out of the most hardened, callous and
heartless sinner, a little spark of religion may be extracted by
burning. The best and most supportable of all this, is that they
massacre and inflict martyrdom on one another for the sake of this
faith of love, and each treats the other as heretic, each curses the
other and gives him up to hell, but, however much all parties may rage
against one another, they still invariably agree in my damnation." "A
sign," said the youth, "that though all may err in themselves, with
regard to you, they still possess the truth."

"I envy them not their possession," replied the old man; "my life, all
my sorrows, even when I became wicked and with justice so, I have
only to thank this egoism, which calls itself humility, inspiration,
love, or religion; I was rejected, persecuted, nay to use the silly
expression, misunderstood, for what man knows another, or even himself?
Impoverished, brokenhearted, I went forth, and my friends gladly saw me
depart. In e