e middle of the day."

"I say mine when I need to say them," answered Mary, a little cross
that Hesper should take any notice. She would rather the thing had not
occurred, and it was worse to have to talk about it.

"For my part, I don't see any good in being righteous overmuch," said
Hesper.

I wonder if there was another saying in the Bible she would have been
so ready to quote!

"I don't know what that means," returned Mary. "I believe it is
somewhere in the Bible, but I am sure Jesus never said it, for he tells
us to be righteous as our Father in heaven is righteous."

"But the thing is impossible," said Hesper. "How is one with such
claims on her as I have, to attend to these things? Society has claims:
no one denies that."

"And has God none?" asked Mary.

"Many people think now there is no God at all," returned Hesper, with
an almost petulant expression.

"If there is no God, that settles the question," answered Mary. "But,
if there should be one, how then?"

"Then I am sure he would never be hard on one like me. I do just like
other people. One must do as people do. If there is one thing that must
be avoided more than another, it is peculiarity. How ridiculous it
would be of any one to set herself against society!"

"Then you think the Judge will be satisfied if you say, 'Lord, I had so
many names in my visiting-book, and so many invitations I could not
refuse, that it was impossible for me to attend to those things'?"

"I don't see that I'm at all worse than other people," persisted
Hesper. "I can't go and pretend to be sorry for sins I should commit
again the next time there was a necessity. I don't see what I've got to
repent of."

Nothing had been said about repentance: here, I imagine, the sermon may
have come in.

"Then, of course, you can't repent," said Mary.

Hesper recovered herself a little.

"I am glad you see the thing as I do," she said.

"I don't see it at all as you do, ma'am," answered Mary, gently.

"Why!" exclaimed Hesper, taken by surprise, "what have I got to repent
of?"

"Do you really want me to say what I think?" asked Mary.

"Of course, I do," returned Hesper, getting angry, and at the same time
uneasy: she knew Mary's freedom of speech upon occasion, but felt that
to draw back would be to yield the point. "What have I done to be
ashamed of, pray?"

Some ladies are ready to plume themselves upon not having been guilty
of certain great crimes. Some thieves, I da