worn that Luke fairly
out, and made him as sick of you as a dog, you will turn as fond on him
as a cow on a calf, and 'Too late' will be the cry."

THE CLOISTER

The two friars reached Holland from the south just twelve hours after
Luke started up the Rhine.

Thus, wild-goose chase or not, the parties were nearing each other, and
rapidly too. For Jerome, unable to preach in low Dutch, now began
to push on towards the coast, anxious to get to England as soon as
possible.

And having the stream with them, the friars would in point of fact have
missed Luke by passing him in full stream below his station, but for the
incident which I am about to relate.

About twenty miles above the station Luke was making for, Clement landed
to preach in a large village; and towards the end of his sermon he
noticed a grey nun weeping.

He spoke to her kindly, and asked her what was her grief.

"Nay," said she, "'tis not for myself flow these tears; 'tis for my lost
friend. Thy words reminded me of what she was, and what she is, poor
wretch, But you are a Dominican, and I am a Franciscan nun."

"It matters little, my sister, if we are both Christians, and if I can
aid thee in aught."

The nun looked in his face, and said, "These are strange words, but
methinks they are good; and thy lips are oh, most eloquent, I will tell
thee our grief."

She then let him know that a young nun, the darling of the convent, and
her bosom friend, had been lured away from her vows, and after various
gradations of sin, was actually living in a small inn as chambermaid,
in reality as a decoy, and was known to be selling her favours to the
wealthier customers, She added, "Anywhere else we might, by kindly
violence, force her away from perdition, But this innkeeper was the
servant of the fierce baron on the height there, and hath his ear still,
and he would burn our convent to the ground, were we to take her by
force."

"Moreover, souls will not be saved by brute force," said Clement.

While they were talking Jerome came up, and Clement persuaded him to lie
at the convent that night, But when in the morning Clement told him he
had had a long talk with the abbess, and that she was very sad, and he
had promised her to try and win back her nun, Jerome objected, and said,
"It was not their business, and was a waste of time," Clement, however,
was no longer a mere pupil. He stood firm, and at last they agreed that
Jerome should go forward, and secure