a
subject upon which I am better qualified to judge than you. The
meetings will be held, and Mr. Kimper will be asked to assist. In fact,
I already have asked him. I trust that his presence will not cause us
to lose such valuable assistance as you yourself may be able to give."

"Well, I never!" exclaimed the deacon; "I never did! It beats all! Why,
if there was another church of our denomination in this town, I believe
I'd take my letters and go to it. I really would!"

Nevertheless, the special meetings were immediately announced, and they
began directly afterwards, and, according to the pastor's announcement,
the ex-convict was asked to assist. His assistance did not seem to
amount to much to those who came through curiosity to listen. But after
he had made a speech, which, at the suggestion of Dr. Guide, had been
carefully prepared, but which was merely a rehearsal of what he already
had said to numerous individual questioners, there was impressive
silence in the lecture-room, in which the meetings were to be
conducted.

"My friends," said the pastor, rising soon afterwards, "when our Lord
was on earth, He once raised His eyes to heaven and said, 'I thank
thee, Father, that thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent
and revealed them unto babes.' I confess to you that I never was able
to understand the full meaning of this expression; but, as I have
become more and more acquainted with our friend who has just spoken to
you, and have learned how fully his faith is grounded, and how entirely
his life has been changed by what seems to us the mere beginnings of a
religious belief, I am constrained to feel that I have yet a great deal
to learn about my own profession and my own duty as a minister. What
has just been said to you contains the essence of everything which I
have tried to preach from my pulpit in twenty years. I wish it were in
my power to re-state it all as clearly as you have heard it this
evening, but I confess it is not. I fear to add anything to what you
have already heard, for I do not see how in any way I could make this
important subject any more clear to your comprehension. I will
therefore say no more, but ask, as is the custom, that anyone here
present who desires to change his life and wishes the assistance of the
prayers of God's people will please rise."

As is usual in all such meetings, there was a general turning of heads
from one side to the other. In an instant a single figure