f the United States, that for twenty years
and more, with all this guilt, with all the crimes in the calendar on
his head, with the full knowledge of all his sins of impurity,
hypocrisy, intolerance, and cruelty to his wife, this _reverend
gentleman_ was the most popular, well-supported, and _respected_
minister in the whole state in which he resided. He was a good preacher,
an eloquent expounder of the word, a smart man; that was enough.
Protestantism could not afford to lose him now, when she was so spare of
the giants to which she owes her existence.

This was the Rev. Dr. Dilman who took Eugene under his care about whom
Reuben Prying remarked, after he had left the house, that the doctor was
a "real smart man." "Your church, Murty," said he, "can't scare up such
a grand preacher as that. Did you hear that lecture he delivered last
winter against Popery? He is an honor to our church, I can tell you."

"Why so?" said Murty; "what has he done that you esteem him so high?"

"Nothin', but bein' so eloquent and talented, and able to address such a
feeling prayer _to his hearers_."

"Bless you, I know one much more talented than ever he will be," said
Murty.

"I guess not, Murty," said he, shaking his head; "who is it?"

"Why, the devil," said Murty, "beats him all to pieces. Your parson only
opposes the pope, you say; whereas the devil opposes both the pope and
the Almighty. What is any of your ministers to great 'Ould Harry'? I bet
you are beat now. Ha! ha! ha!" said the Irishman, laughing.

"You are a curious feller, Murty," said Mr. Prying.

"Am I not right?" said Murty. "You praise your minister, _not_ because
he is good, charitable, humane, chaste, or pious, (all which he possibly
may be,) but solely because he is talented or endowed with genius. Well,
then, I tell you this gains him no merit, for he received this gift from
God. He may abuse it; and, at any rate, the devil, the very enemy of
God, is endowed with more genius than he and all the Protestant parsons
living put together. I think this is fair _arguing_, Mr. Prying, don't
you?"

"Let's drop it, Murty," said Mr. Prying, not liking to hear any more of
such "arguing," particularly as the children were present, and seemed
much to enjoy the home-spun comparison between the Dominie Dilman and
"Old Harry." This was the first time they were observed to laugh since
the departure of poor Eugene.

Meanwhile, poor Eugene arrived in the city of the parsonage