rs of vice and
dissipation, and knew him diseased in soul. She may have been fully
acquainted with all Gueldersdorp had learned of him, going here, there,
and everywhere, as was her wont, in obedience to her Spouse's call. But if
so, she never betrayed Saxham. There was no resentment, only delicate
irony in the curve of her finely-modelled lips as she queried:

"Am I so deficient in the quality of common-sense?"

"Madam," he said, "you have manifested it in each of the many instances
where I have been brought in contact with you. But in your solicitude for
this young girl you have shown, for the first time in my experience of
you, some lack of good judgment, and have inflicted, and do inflict,
severe suffering on her."

Her eyes flashed grey fire under her stern brows as she demanded:

"How, pray?"

"It is out of the question, I suppose," Saxham said coldly, "that you
should slacken in your ministrations among the sick and wounded, and keep
out of daily and hourly danger--for her sake?"

"Impossible," her voice answered, and her heart added unheard:
"Impossible, unless I should be false to my Heavenly Bridegroom out of
love for the child He gave."

"Then," said Saxham bluntly, "unless these recurrent nerve-storms are to
culminate in cerebral lesion and mental and physical collapse--a result
more easy to avert than to deal with--take the girl about with you."

"But----" the Mother uttered in irrepressible dismay. "I--we go
everywhere!"

It was most true. He had a vision, as she said it, of the black-robed,
white-coifed, cheerful Sisters passing in couples through the
shrapnel-littered streets, between houses of gaping walls, and shattered
roofs, and glassless windows, cheerful, serene, helpful, bringing comfort
to the dying, and assistance to the sick, oblivious of whistling bullets
and bursting shells. And the most arduous duties, the most repulsive
tasks, the most danger-fraught errands, were hers, always by right, and
claim, and choice. What a woman it was! A very Judith in Israel. He knew
that Judith did not like him, but unconcealed admiration was in his blue
eyes as he looked at her.

"I know it. Let _her_ go everywhere. It is the sole chance, and--you spoke
of faith just now.... If you have it for yourself and the religious women
of your Order, who go about doing good in confidence of the protection--I
do not speak in mockery--of an Almighty Hand, why can't you have it for
her?"

She had never seemed