She
shuddered as she spoke. 'And oh! I do hope the dear sisters will
remember me in their prayers and communions.'

"'Dear Sister Madeline,' I said at last, 'purgatory is better than
hell and our Blessed Lady will intercede for you.'

"'Yes, dear Sister Magdalene Adelaide,' she said, 'you are right; but
oh!' she continued, 'I cannot help the shudder that passes through me
as I think of the suffering I shall be in for years, especially after
the mortifications I have practiced here, the discipline I have
applied to myself, the days I have abstained from food, the prayers I
have offered, the tears I have shed; and now, as death approaches,
there is no other prospect before me than a long term of purgatorial
punishment. Besides, the punishment will be all the greater since I
have given away to an unnatural thought.'

"'And what, may I ask, do you call an unnatural thought?'

"'Sister Magdalene Adelaide, come close to me.'

"I rose from my chair and knelt down beside her.

"'Dear sister, I have endeavored to bear my cross,' she commenced,
speaking with difficulty; 'But oh! sister, I dread the end; I have so
much to expiate; and oh!' she continued, her voice now choked with
sobs, 'if only I could have my mother near me; if only I could hear
her voice once more; it is so long since I have seen her. I have
asked for any letter that may have come, but they tell me none has
arrived, and oh! I don't think mother has quite forgotten me.'

"I durst not trust myself to speak; my heart was too full. At last I
said, 'Dear sister, do not grieve thus; our Blessed Lady will
intercede for you. Remember, in coming here your purpose, even as
mine, was to make reparation for sin. You and I have both suffered.
Be brave now, dear, and now that the end is near do not take away
from God's glory by fearing for the future.'

"'I know it is wrong to grieve so much, Sister Magdalene Adelaide,
but oh, I am so weak! Will you read a meditation for me?'

"I took up the book and did as she requested. Soon she fell into a
sleep which lasted about one hour, and again I commenced saying my
rosary beads. Presently I heard her murmur, and, listening, I heard
her whisper, 'My feet! oh, my feet!' I arose from my chair and
removed the sheet with the intention of rubbing her limbs; as I did
so her feet were disclosed. A thrill of horror passed through my
being as I looked at them, for they were all cut, festered and
bruised; a fearful suspicion took po