t for granted, with his usual
self-confidence, that from the moment she came within the reach of his
faith and took a place by his side she would find no difficulties that
he could not easily overcome. "Love is the great magnet of life, and
Religion," he said "is Love." Nothing could be simpler than his plan, as
he explained to her. She had but to trust herself to him and all was
sure to go well. So long as he was with her and could gently thrust
aside every idea but that of their own happiness, all went as well as he
promised; but unluckily for his plan, Esther had all her life been used
to act for herself and to order others rather than take orders of any
sort. The more confidently Hazard told her to leave every thing to him,
the less it occurred to her to do so. She could no more allow him to
come into her life and take charge of her thoughts than to go down into
her kitchen and take charge of her cook. He might reason with her by the
hour, and quite convince her that nothing was of the least consequence
provided it were left entirely in his hands, but the moment he was out
of sight she forgot that he was to be the keeper of her conscience, and,
without a thought of her dependence, she resumed the charge of her own
affairs.

Her first idea was to learn something of theology, in the hope of
settling her foolish and ignorant doubts as to her fitness for her new
position. No sooner did the thought occur to her than she set to work,
like a young divinity student, to fit herself for her new calling. Her
father's library contained a number of theological books, but these were
of a kind that suited Mr. Dudley's way of thinking rather than that of
the early fathers. As Esther knew nothing at all about the subject,
except what she had gathered from listening to conversation, one book
seemed to her as good as another, provided it dealt with the matter that
interested her; but when Hazard came in and found her seated on a sofa,
with a pile of these works about her, his hair rose on end, and he was
forced gently to take them away under the promise of bringing her others
of a more correct kind. These in their turn seemed to her not quite
clear, and she asked for others still. He found himself, without
warning, on the brink of a theological abyss. Unwilling to worry him;
eager to accept whatever he told her he believed, but in despair at each
failure to understand what it was, Esther became more and more
uncomfortable and terrifie