ble there'd be a dozen as
would just carry home the objections, and forget the little as was said
on the other side. Indeed, it reminded me of Bobby Hunt's flower-
garden. But I ax your pardon, sir; I mustn't be taking up more of your
time."

"Oh, go on by all means," said Dr Prosser, laughing; "I want to hear
your illustration from Bobby Hunt's flower-garden."

"Well, sir, Bobby Hunt, as he were usually called, though he preferred
to be spoken to as _Mr_. Hunt, had a cottage on the hills. He were a
man as always talked very big. He'd once been a gentleman's butler, and
had seen how the gentlefolks went on. So he liked to make things about
him seem bigger than they really was. One day, in the back end of the
year, he met me in the town, and asked me why I'd never been over to see
his conservatory and flower-garden. I said I'd come over some day, and
so I did.--`I'm come to see your flower-garden,' says I.--`Come along,'
says he; `only, you mustn't expect too much.'--`'Tain't likely,' says I;
but I weren't exactly prepared for what I did see, or rather didn't see.
At the back of his cottage was a little bit of ground, with a few
potatoes and stumps of cabbages in it, all very untidy; and he takes me
to the end of this, and says, `There's my flower-garden.'--`Where?' says
I.--`There,' says he.--`I can see lots of weeds,' says I, `but scarce
anything else.'--`Oh,' he says, `it only wants the weeds clearing off,
and you'll find more flowers than you think for.'--It were pretty much
the same with the gent's lecture. He showed us plenty of infidel weeds;
but as for the Scripture flowers, they was so smothered by the sceptical
objections, it'd take a sharp eye to notice 'em at all."

"You don't think, then, my friend," asked the doctor, "that this
apologetic style--this parade of candour in stating the views and
objections of the sceptical--is of much use among the people of
Crossbourne?"

"No use at all, sir, here or anywhere else, you may depend upon it. We
don't want such candour as that. The sceptics and, their creeds and
their objections can take care of themselves. We want just to have the
simple truth set before us."

"I quite agree with you," said the doctor: "timid defence is more
damaging to the cause of truth than open attack."

"I believe you, sir. Suppose I were to ask you to employ one of my
mates, and you was to ask me if I could give him a good character; what
would you think of him if I wer