who was at the foot of the steps and near the preacher cried out to him,

'Well, old fellow, begin! thy time is short.'

'Young man,' he replied, 'I was once old in sin, for which God forgive
me!--now I am old in the love of Christ, for which God be thanked!--but
in years I am but forty. As for time!--I think only of eternity.'

'Make haste, Macer!' cried another voice from the crowd. 'Varus will
soon be here.'

'I believe you,' replied the soldier; 'but I am ready for him. I love
life no longer than I can enjoy free speech. If I may not now and here
speak out every thought of my heart, and the whole truth in Christ, then
would I rather die; and whether I die in my own bed, or upon the iron
couch of Varus, matters little. Romans!' turning now and addressing the
crowd, 'the Emperor in his edict tells me not to preach to you. Not to
preach Christ in Rome, neither within a church nor in the streets. Such
is this edict. Shall I obey him? When Christ says, 'Go forth and preach
the gospel to every creature,' shall I give ear to a Roman Emperor, who
bids me hold my peace? Not so, not so, Romans. I love God too well, and
Christ too well, and you too well, to heed such bidding. I love Aurelian
too, I have served long under him, and he was ever good to me. He was a
good as well as great general, and I loved him. I love him now, but not
so well as these; not so well as you. And if I obeyed this edict, it
would show that I loved him better than you, and better than these,
which would be false. If I obeyed this edict I should never speak to you
again of this new religion, as you call it. I should leave you all to
perish in your sins, without any of that knowledge, or faith, or hope in
Christ, which would save you from them, and form you after the image of
God, and after death carry you up to dwell with him and with just men
forever and ever. I should then, indeed, show that I hated you, which I
can never do. I love you and Rome I cannot tell how much--as much as a
child ever loved a mother, or children one another. And therefore it is
that no power on earth--nor above it, nor under it--no power, save that
of God, shall hinder me from declaring to you the doctrine which I think
you need, nay, without which your souls will perish and dwell for ever
and ever, not with God, but in fires eternal of the lowest hell. For
what can your gods do for you? what are they doing? They lift you not up
to themselves--they push you down rather to t