and the Hall was quite a cheerful centre in the village.
Visitors came and went, and Agatha and her sisters were asked up there
more frequently than they cared to go.

Agatha still possessed Alick's confidence. He would come to her for
advice, as most people did, but yet would never touch upon his serious
difficulty; and she sometimes wondered if the cupboard's secret was no
longer a trouble to him.

'Do you think I am leading a lazy life?' he asked her one day, when he
met her walking out and insisted upon accompanying her home.

'I think you are. It is always a pity when young men have enough
income to live independently without any responsibility attaching to
their wealth.'

'I am not wealthy,' he responded quickly. 'I have just enough to live
upon. What do you think of Roger? He is as idle as I at present.'

'I think not. He helps his father with the property, which is a large
one, and if anything happened to Major Lester he would have his hands
full.'

Alick laughed a little hardly.

'Lucky fellow! So if I were in his shoes you would not find fault with
me!'

'I think,' said Agatha gently, 'that each one of us ought to realize
that we are not placed in this world to live for ourselves. There is
so much to do for others who need our help. You are young now, and
have life stretching out in front of you. Do not waste it, do not have
to acknowledge when your life is over that no one will have been the
better for your existence.'

'Would you have one sink one's own individuality in the lives of
others, like some of our great philanthropists?'

'No, our first duty is to ourselves. I think too many in the present
day rush into work of all sorts, trying to please and satisfy others at
the expense of their own peace and satisfaction, and that is wrong.'

'I don't understand you.'

'I mean this. We have two lives: the outer one which every one sees,
and the inner one which only God and ourselves know about. Our inner
life is the more important one of the two, is it not? For it is the
spiritual part of us that is immortal. First let us satisfy and ensure
the safety of our own souls, before we seek to satisfy the hungry and
thirsty ones around us. And then if our inner life is adjusted
rightly--is in touch (shall I say?) with its Maker--the helping others
becomes a pleasure as well as a necessity.'

Alick did not reply, and Agatha delicately turned the subject; but her
words made him ponder muc