m come down to his house.
There had been an accident, or a fight, or something. Some one was dying
and wanted Mr. Strong at once. So Philip hastily excused himself and
went out, leaving the trustees together.

The door was hardly shut again when the speaker who had been interrupted
jumped to his feet and exclaimed:

"As I was saying, for my part, if Brother Strong wishes to indulge in
this eccentric action he will not have the sanction of my vote in the
matter! It certainly is an entirely unheard-of and uncalled-for
proposition."

"Mr. Strong has, no doubt, a generous motive in this proposed action,"
said a third member of the Board; "but the church certainly will not
approve any such step as the giving up of the parsonage. He exaggerates
the need of such a sacrifice. I think we ought to reason him out of the
idea."

"We called Mr. Strong to the pastorate of Calvary Church," said another;
"and it seems to me he came under the conditions granted in our call.
For the church to allow such an absurd thing as the giving up of the
parsonage to this proposed outside work would be a very unwise move."

"Yes, and more than that," said the first speaker, "I want to say very
frankly that I am growing tired of the way things have gone since Mr.
Strong came to us. What business has Calvary Church with all these
outside matters, these labor troubles and unemployed men and all the
other matters that have been made the subject of preaching lately? I
want a minister who looks after his own parish. Mr. Strong does not call
on his own people; he has not been inside my house but once since he
came to Milton. Brethren, there is a growing feeling of discontent over
this matter."

There was a short pause and then one of the members said:

"Surely, if Mr. Strong feels dissatisfied with his surroundings in the
parsonage or feels as if his work lay in another direction, he is at
liberty to choose another parish. But he is the finest pulpit-minister
we ever had, and no one doubts his entire sincerity. He is a remarkable
man in many respects."

"Yes, but sincerity may be a very awkward thing if carried too far. And
in this matter of the parsonage I don't see how the trustees can allow
it. Why, what would the other churches think of it? Calvary Church
cannot allow anything of the kind, for the sake of its reputation. But I
would like to hear Mr. Winter's opinion; he has not spoken yet."

The rest turned to the mill-owner, who as chairman