the stuffy close-ceilinged room. The hymn, like
all the other Chapel hymns that Maggie had heard, had to do with "the
Blood of the Lamb," "the sacrifice of Blood," "the Blood that heals."
There was also a refrain:

And, when Thou comest, Lord, we pray That Thou wilt spare Thy
sword, Or on that grim and ghastly day Who will escape the Lord? WHO
will escape the Lord?

There were many verses to this hymn, and it had a long and lugubrious
tune, so that Maggie thought that it would never end, but as it
proceeded the words worked their effect on the congregation, and at the
last there was much emotion and several women were crying.

Then they all sat down again and the meeting developed a very
business-like side. There was a great deal of discussion as to dates,
places, appointments, and Maggie was amused to discover that in this
part of the proceedings Mrs. Smith had a great deal to say, and took a
very leading place.

The gathering became like any other assemblage of ladies for some
charitable or social purpose, and there were the usual disputes and
signs of temper and wounded pride; in all those matters Miss Avies was
a most admirable and unflinching chairman.

Then at last the real moment came. Miss Avies got up to speak. She
stood there, scornful, superior, and yet with some almost cynical
appeal in her eyes as though she said to them: "You poor fools! No one
knows better than I the folly of your being here, no one knows better
than I how far you will, all of you, be from realising any of your
dreams. Tricked, the lot of you!--and yet--and yet--go on believing,
expecting, hoping. Pray, pray that I may be wrong and you may be right."

What she actually said was as follows: "This will be our last meeting
before the end of the year. What will come to all of us before we all
meet again no one can say, but this we all know, that we have, most of
us, been living now for many years in expectation. We have been taught,
by the goodness of God, to believe that we must be ready at any moment
to obey His call, and that call may come, in the middle of our work, of
our prayers, of our love for others, of our pursuit of our own
ambitions, and that whenever it does come we must be ready to obey it.
We have been told by our great and good Master, who has been set over
us for our guidance by God Himself, that that call may now be very
near. Whatever form it may take we must accept it, give up all we have
and follow Him. That is un