y of the
lesser evil.

"It will be a great trial to her, such absolute imprisonment; she
is never happy unless she is hard at work. But she is brave and
strong-willed. Will you look in and see her when you can?"

"Certainly," said Charles Osmond. "We must do our best to keep up her
spirits."

"Yes, luckily she is a great reader, otherwise such a long rest would be
intolerable, I should fancy."

"You do not object to my coming to see her?" said Charles Osmond,
looking full into his companion's eyes. "You know that we discuss
religious questions pretty freely."

"Religious questions always are freely discussed in my house," said
Raeburn. "It will be the greatest advantage to her to have to turn
things well over in her mind. Besides, we always make a point of
studying our adversaries' case even more closely than our own, and, if
she has a chance of doing it personally as well as through books, all
the better."

"But supposing that such an unlikely thing were to happen as that she
should see reason to change her present views? Supposing, if you can
suppose anything so unlikely, she should ever in future years come to
believe in Christianity?"

Raeburn smiled, not quite pleasantly.

"It is as you say such a very remote contingency!" He paused, grew
grave, then continued with all his native nobility: "Yet I like you the
better for having brought forward such an idea, improbable as I hope it
may be considered. I feel very sure of Erica. She has thought a great
deal, she has had every possible advantage. We never teach on authority;
she has been left perfectly free and has learned to weigh evidences and
probabilities, not to be led astray by any emotional fancies, but to be
guided by reason. She has always heard both sides of the case; she has
lived as it were in an atmosphere of debate, and has been, and of course
always will be, quite free to form her own opinion on every subject. It
is not for nothing that we call ourselves Freethinkers. Absolute freedom
of thought and speech is part of our creed. So far from objecting to
your holding free discussions with my daughter, I shall be positively
grateful to you, and particularly just now. I fancy Erica has inherited
enough of my nature to enjoy nothing better than a little opposition."

"I know you are a born fighter," said Charles Osmond. "We sympathize
with each other in that. And next to the bliss of a hard-won victory, I
place the satisfaction of being well conque