elled the clergy to marry, hath fallen into disuse, but
was never formally repealed."

Margaret was quite puzzled. "What are you driving at, sir? Who am I to
go to law with?"

"Who is the defendant? Why, the vicar of Gouda."

"Alas, poor soul! And for what shall I law him?"

"Why, to make him take you into his house, and share bed and board with
you, to be sure."

Margaret turned red as fire, "Gramercy for your rede," said she, "What,
is yon a woman's part? Constrain a man to be hers by force? That is
men's way of wooing, not ours. Say I were so ill a woman as ye think me,
I should set myself to beguile him, not to law him;" and she departed,
crimson with shame and indignation.

"There is an impracticable fool for you," said the man of art.

Margaret had her will drawn elsewhere, and made her boy safe from
poverty, marriage or no marriage.

These are the principal incidents that in ten whole years befell two
peaceful lives, which in a much shorter period had been so thronged with
adventures and emotions.

Their general tenor was now peace, piety, the mild content that lasts,
not the fierce bliss ever on tiptoe to depart, and above all, Christian
charity.

On this sacred ground these two true lovers met with an uniformity and
a kindness of sentiment which went far to soothe the wound in their own
hearts, To pity the same bereaved; to hunt in couples all the ills
in Gouda, and contrive and scheme together to remedy all that were
remediable; to use the rare insight into troubled hearts which their
own troubles had given them, and use it to make others happier than
themselves--this was their daily practice. And in this blessed cause
their passions for one another cooled a little, but their affection
increased.

From this time Margaret entered heart and soul into Gerard's pious
charities, that affection purged itself of all mortal dross. And as
it had now long out-lived scandal and misapprehension, one would have
thought that so bright an example of pure self-denying affection was to
remain long before the world, to show men how nearly religious faith,
even when not quite reasonable, and religious charity, which is always
reasonable, could raise two true lovers' hearts to the loving hearts
of the angels of heaven. But the great Disposer of events ordered
otherwise.

Little Gerard rejoiced both his parents' hearts by the extraordinary
progress he made at Alexander Haaghe's famous school at Deventer.

The las