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diff --git a/39538-0.txt b/39538-0.txt index a8c3055..816206f 100644 --- a/39538-0.txt +++ b/39538-0.txt @@ -1,27 +1,4 @@ - A SOLDIER’S SON - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost -no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - -Title: A Soldier’s Son - -Author: Maude M. Butler - -Release Date: April 25, 2012 [EBook #39538] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: UTF-8 - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SOLDIER’S SON *** - - - +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 39538 *** Produced by Al Haines. @@ -4537,374 +4514,4 @@ buckler." 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You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - -Title: A Soldier's Son - -Author: Maude M. Butler - -Release Date: April 25, 2012 [EBook #39538] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: ISO-8859-1 - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SOLDIER'S SON *** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines. - - - - -[Illustration: Cover art] - - - - - A - - Soldier's Son - - - _By_ - - MAUDE M. BUTLER - - - - - DAVIS & BOND - - BOSTON : MASS. - - - - - Copyright 1912 - - by - - DAVIS & BOND - - - - LINCOLN & SMITH PRESS - - BOSTON - - - - DEDICATION. - - To the children in years, and the children in - Science, this little book is trustingly and lovingly - inscribed by the author. - - - - NOTE. - - The Author wishes to state that no case of - Christian Science healing has been cited - in this story but such as she has known - of a parallel case in real life. - - - -"We may not climb the heavenly steeps -To bring the Lord Christ down. -* * * * * -The healing of the seamless dress -Is by our beds of pain; -We touch Him in life's throng and press, -And we are whole again." - --_J. G. Whittier._ - - - - - ---- - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER I.--HOME FROM THE WAR. - CHAPTER II.--CAROL'S LETTER. - CHAPTER III.--A FORBIDDEN BOOK. - CHAPTER IV.--A WELCOME LETTER. - CHAPTER V.--QUIET DAYS. - CHAPTER VI.--FIRST WORK IN THE VINEYARD. - CHAPTER VII.--"I KNOW." - CHAPTER VIII.--A SECOND VISIT TO THE COTTAGE. - CHAPTER IX.--"IT IS THE TRUTH." - CHAPTER X.--AN UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTER. - CHAPTER XI.--PERCY'S REMORSE. - CHAPTER XII.--THE PHYSICIAN'S VERDICT. - CHAPTER XIII.--THE RECTOR'S REFUSAL. - CHAPTER XIV.--"HE GIVETH HIS BELOVED SLEEP." - CHAPTER XV.--LETTERS AND TELEGRAMS REACH COUSIN ALICIA. - CHAPTER XVI.--"IT IS A MIRACLE." - CHAPTER XVII.--MRS. BURTON VISITS CAROL. - CHAPTER XVIII.--HAPPY THOUGHTS. - CHAPTER XIX.--THE REASON OF THE DELAY. - CHAPTER XX.--"LIGHT AT EVENTIDE." - CHAPTER XXI.--JOYFUL NEWS FROM ELOISE. - CHAPTER XXII.--THE RETURN OF ELOISE. - CHAPTER XXIII.--A LONG-DELAYED LETTER. - CHAPTER XXIV.--A JOYFUL SURPRISE. - CHAPTER XXV.--A LITTLE SERVICE. - CHAPTER XXVI.--CONCLUSION. - - ---- - - - - -CHAPTER I.--HOME FROM THE WAR. - - -The war was over--the cruel, cruel war; and Father and Uncle Howard were -on their way home. Children's voices, in every key of joy and -thanksgiving, sang the happy news from morning to night. The white, -strained look faded from Mother's face, and she became her old, bright -self again. - -Now that they were over, the children tried to forget how long and sad -and weary the days had been during which the sight of the post-bag, and -the morning newspaper, almost took everyone's breath away, until the -columns of "War news" had been hastily scanned before taking letters and -papers to Mother's room. - -Then came the day when Uncle Howard's name was amongst the "seriously -wounded," and there was a brief account of how he had saved the guns, -and then returning into the firing line to pick up a wounded soldier, -had himself been dangerously wounded. - -The children thought of Uncle Howard's delicate young motherless boy, -and sobbed: "Poor, poor Carol." - -They did not know how to break the news to Mother, because Uncle Howard -was her twin brother, and they all knew how dearly she loved him. -Unperceived she had entered the room, and had learned the news for -herself. The days that followed were darker than before, for it was not -known for some weeks if Major Willmar would live or die. Gradually, -slightly better news came, and he was pronounced out of danger. Later -on it was announced he was ordered home, and Father, Colonel Mandeville, -was coming with him. - -As soon as the vessel left Cape Town the children began their happy, -joyous preparations for the welcome home. Then, in the midst of them, -when the triumphal arches were erected, awaiting only the final floral -decorations, came a telegram from Gibraltar. Major Willmar had suffered -a relapse at sea, and the doctors had not been able to save him. His -body had been committed to the waves. - -Again the children sobbed: "Poor, poor Carol." - -Mother was strangely calm and quiet. "Carol must come to us. We must -take the place to him of all he has lost," she said. - -She wrote to the lady who had charge of him, asking her to take the boy -to meet the vessel at Plymouth, in order that Colonel Mandeville might -bring Carol home with him. - -All the children, seven in number, were at the station when the express -drew up. Edith and Gwendolin, two tall fair girls of twelve and -thirteen years; Percy and Frank, eleven and ten; then three of the -dearest little maidens, Sylvia four, Estelle three, and the sweet -Rosebud, whom Father had never seen. She had come to cheer Mother's -breaking heart in the dark days of the war, and was now two years old. - -It was an unusual occurrence for an express train to stop at that quiet -country station. The porters were on the alert to drag out the luggage -as quickly as possible. A tall bronzed and bearded man sprang out of -the train on the instant of stopping, so changed that even the elder -children scarcely recognized him. - -He looked at them with hungry eyes, as if he would take them all in his -arms at once, had they been big enough to go round, then seized the -smallest of all, the little snow-white maiden. - -"Iz 'ou Daddy?" she asked. - -"I am Daddy, my little white Rosebud." One by one he took each in his -strong arms. All looking to him, no one noticed the boy who had followed -him out of the railway carriage, who was now looking on with wondering -eyes. Rosebud was the first to speak to him. "Iz 'ou Tarol?" she -asked. Stooping, he too folded his arms around her, not such strong arms -as her father's, but very loving. From that moment the little maiden -became one of the dearest things in life to the boy. - -"Where's Mother, children?" - -"Mother did not feel quite able to come to the station, Father. She -bore the news of dear Uncle's death so well at first; then she broke -down entirely, and she has not left her room since," Edith told him. -The Colonel then remembered the boy who had accompanied him. - -"Children, here is Carol." - -They quickly gave him the loving welcome which their sympathetic hearts -prompted. Father suggested sending on the carriage, saying to the -children: - -"We will walk through the park. Oh, the sweet breath of the dear home -land, after Africa's sultry heat!" - -Carol kept hold of Rosebud's hand. The little maiden was a revelation -to him, never having had little sisters or brothers of his own. His -mother for a long time before her death had been a hopeless invalid, and -whilst she was slowly dying of consumption the boy had developed -tubercular disease of the left hip, and the physicians, who pronounced -it a hopeless case, also said one lung was affected. Three years the -boy lay on his back on a couch, or in a spinal carriage, and it was -generally anticipated he would quickly follow his mother to an early -grave. But after Mrs. Willmar's death a cousin of hers came from America -to take charge of the motherless boy, and from the day that she came he -began to get better. Now, as he walked with his cousins across the -park, though somewhat tall for his twelve years and extremely slight of -stature, he bore no trace of his past sufferings. - -On arriving at the Manor, Colonel Mandeville went straight to his wife's -room, mounting the staircase two steps at a time. The children took -Carol to the school-room, saying, "Mother will send for you presently, -dear Carol." - -School-room tea was ready, and to their great delight the three little -girls, who belonged of course to the nursery, were invited to be -present. Before they sat down each child had a little offering to make -Carol, not a new gift they had bought for him, but one of their own -treasures, just to make him feel how glad they were to have him: that -henceforth he was to be their own dear brother. - -It was all so strange and new to him, he did not know how to thank them. -Rosebud's offering of her little white bunny was so perfectly sweet. It -became a treasure of treasures to him ever after. He was strangely -quiet, but there seemed no sadness in his eyes or voice. His cousins -could not understand it, and even wondered if he had loved his father as -they loved theirs. - -Tea was just finished when the message came for Carol to go to Mother's -room. All the children wanted to accompany him, but the maid who brought -the message said: "Only Master Carol was to go," and she led the boy to -Mrs. Mandeville's room. - -Carol had only once before seen his aunt. She had visited his home in -Devonshire when his mother was very ill, and he himself had been too ill -to care or notice who came and went. - -Mrs. Mandeville was lying on a couch in her boudoir. She was a tall, -fair woman, of a gentle yielding nature, and a beautiful countenance. -Never strong or robust, for some years she had been subject to attacks -of nervous prostration. The joyous excitement of her husband's safe -return, and the grief for her brother's death, had brought on one of -these attacks. She sobbed aloud as she drew Carol into her arms and -held him closely to her. - -"My darling boy!" - -"Auntie, dear, do not grieve like this." - -"Carol, I loved your father very, very, dearly." - -"But, Auntie, that should make you not grieve for him. Cousin Alicia -has taught me to feel so glad and happy about Father. I could not cry -or be sorry now. I love to think how he gave his life for that poor, -wounded soldier. Jesus said there was no greater love than to lay down -one's life for a friend, and it was not even a friend; it was a -stranger. Some day there will be no more war, because everyone will -know that God is our Father, and His name is Love. But we are only His -children as we reflect Him--reflect Love. When everyone understands -this, no one will want war." - -Mrs. Mandeville looked with surprise at the earnest young face, so -calmly confident of what he said. - -"It is nice to see you, Carol, looking so well and strong. You were -very ill when I saw you two years ago. We have never been able to -understand your recovery. What a mistake the doctors must have made -about your case." - -"Auntie, they did not make a mistake. It was Cousin Alicia who taught me -about Christian Science. Then I began to get well, and I soon lost the -dreadful pain in my hip." - -"Carol, dear, never mention a word about Christian Science before your -Uncle Raymond. He says it is dreadful heresy, and it makes him so angry -to hear it talked about. Did he meet you at the station?" - -"No, Auntie. I have not seen him yet." - -"He said he would meet the train but he generally manages to get too -late. He will be here this evening for dinner." - -Uncle Raymond was Mrs. Mandeville's brother, and the rector of the -parish. - -"But, Auntie, if he asks anything about my illness I must tell him what -has made me well." - -"I do not think he will, dear; so there will be no need to say anything. -It is very beautiful, Carol, for you to think Christian Science has -healed you, and there is no need for your faith to be shaken." - -"I do not _think_, Auntie, I _know_, so that no one could shake my -faith." - -"Well, dear, we won't talk about it. Tell me, did you have a pleasant -journey?" - -"Yes, Auntie, a very pleasant journey; Uncle was so kind to me." - -"I am sure he would be, Carol. You are glad to come to us, darling--to -be our own dear son? You will feel this is home, and your cousins not -cousins, but brothers and sisters?" - -"Yes, Auntie. I know my father wished me to come to you--but--I am -sorry to leave Cousin Alicia. I love her so much." - -"Of course, darling, that is only natural. She has been quite a mother -to you since your own dear mother died." - -Carol did not speak; a choking sensation of pain prevented him. He knew -that Cousin Alicia had been more than a mother to him. - -"May I write to her to-night, Auntie? She will like to hear from me." - -"Of course, dear. Write to her as often as you like." - -"I think that will be every day then," the boy said promptly, with a -smile. Mrs. Mandeville smiled too. - -"Dear boy, how you have comforted me. I feel so much better for this -little talk with you. Perhaps I shall be able to surprise everybody, -and go down to dinner this evening." - -"Oh, Auntie, please do. At tea Edith said, 'It would be just lovely if -only Mother could come down to dinner.' We can nearly always do what we -want to do, Auntie." - -"Can we, dear? Then go and write your letter now, and do not mention to -anyone that I am going to try to surprise them this evening." - - - - -CHAPTER II.--CAROL'S LETTER. - - -"MANOR HOUSE - MANDEVILLE. - -"_Dear Cousin Alicia,_ - -"It seemed such a long journey before we arrived here. Uncle was so -kind and told me about the different places as we passed through. But I -felt I was getting such a long way from you, as we passed town after -town. All my cousins were at the station to meet us; but Auntie was not -well enough to be there. I should like to describe them all to you, but -I am sure I could not. They are ever so much nicer than any of the -children I have read about in books. I will only tell you their names. -Perhaps you will see them all some day. Edith, Gwendolin, Percy, and -Frank, in the school-room; and in the nursery, Sylvia, Estelle, and -Rosebud. Uncle had never seen Rosebud. She is two years and three -months old, and is the sweetest little girl. She has such pretty ways. -I do love to hear her talk. - -"We walked from the station through the park. Uncle seemed so glad to -see his own home again. The Manor House is very old; such quaint little -oriel windows, and turrets, and gables. I have not learned my way about -yet, but the school-room and nurseries are quite close together. It was -returning from Auntie's boudoir to the schoolroom I got lost, and I -found myself in quite a different part of the house. I opened a door I -thought was the school-room, and it was the housekeeper's room. Then a -maid took me to the school-room. Percy and Frank thought it very -amusing, and said they could find their way anywhere blindfold, and -Rosebud said 'Me tome wiff 'ou, Tarol.' I didn't see Auntie until after -tea. We all had tea together in the school-room, the nursery children as -well. The governess invited them. Her name is Miss Markham, she is -very strict, but I think she is kind too. I am thinking all the time of -the history of England when she speaks, and wondering what part of it -she belongs to. The elder children are going down to dinner, as it is -Uncle's first evening at home. - -"Auntie was lying on a couch when I was taken to her room. She seemed -so full of grief and sadness. She wept when she held her arms around -me. But I just knew that Love is everywhere, and sorrow and sadness -cannot be where Love is. In a little while she was quite different, and -even smiled as she talked to me. She said I had comforted her so. I -would have liked to explain to her what had comforted her, but she does -not like me to say anything about Christian Science, and asked me not to -mention it before Uncle Raymond, because it makes him angry. Auntie -thinks I could not have been so ill as the doctors thought, or I should -not be quite well and strong now. Please tell me, dear Cousin, will it -be denying Christ, if I do not tell people what healed me? I did so -wish I could have told Auntie some of the beautiful things you have -taught me. Will you write to me very often, please? I am going to write -nearly every day to you. Auntie says I may--as often as I like. I have -such a dear little room all to myself, so I shall be able to do the -Lesson-Sermon every morning before breakfast. Thank you again for -giving me _Science and Health_ for my very own, and the Bible which was -my mother's. I want to study both books so well that when I am a man I -shall know them better than anything else in the world. I am to study -with Edith and Gwendolin for the present. Frank and Percy go to a large -public school at H--. I am to go with them when Uncle is quite sure I -am strong enough. He does not understand that I am perfectly well and -strong. I must leave off now. I have to put on my Eton suit for -dinner. I do not feel so far away from you as when I was in the train. -It is just as if you were in the room with me. I can feel your thoughts -like loving arms around me. - -"Dear Cousin Alicia - "Your loving Carol. - -"_P.S._ Bed-time. The post-bag had gone when I had finished my letter. -I just want to tell you, Auntie came down to dinner. Every one was so -surprised and delighted and we had such a happy evening. Uncle played -games with us after dinner, and Auntie looked on. The time went so -quickly, we were sorry when Uncle said: 'Bed-time, children. To your -tents: double quick march.' So we all had to scamper away. Uncle -Raymond came to dinner. He is so grave and stern, so different from -Father. He went into the study whilst Uncle was playing with us." - - - - -CHAPTER III.--A FORBIDDEN BOOK. - - -Carol had always been a lonely boy. The companionship of other children -was a pleasure he had never known. In the remote Devonshire village, -where all the years of his young life had been spent, there were no -children who could be invited to his home as friends and companions for -him. First his mother's delicate health, and then his own, had -prevented visits to or from his cousins. When he was seven years old a -fall from his pony caused an injury to his hip, which eventually -developed into what the doctors diagnosed as tubercular disease of the -hip bone. For three years his mother had been slowly dying of -consumption, and the boy had been the joy and brightness of her life. -She did not live long after she was told that what she was suffering -from he would suffer, too, in another form. She died about six months -before the war broke out in South Africa, and fulfilling a promise made -some time before, a favorite cousin, then resident in America, whose -girlhood had been spent with her as a sister, came to take charge of the -household and the young motherless invalid. Major Willmar was ordered -to the front shortly after operations commenced, but before he went he -had hopes that his boy would grow well and strong. There had been such -a marked change in him from the day Cousin Alicia arrived, bringing to -that saddened home love and--Truth. - -It can, therefore, be easily understood that the first few days at the -Manor were to Carol days almost of bewilderment. As soon as his cousins -found that their joy in having Father back again, safe and sound, did -not hurt Carol, nothing restrained their wild exuberance of spirits. -They could not understand the gentle, reserved boy, who spoke with so -much love and tenderness of his father, yet had no tears or sadness -because he would return no more. - -"Perhaps he doesn't quite understand," said Gwendolin. - -"I think he does," said Edith, "and I am sure he loved Uncle as much as -we love Father. There is such a far-away look in his eyes, when he -speaks of his father and mother, just as if he were looking at something -we cannot see. Although he is so gentle and kind, especially to the -little ones, I am sure no one could persuade him to do anything he -thought wrong. He is a dear boy. I am glad he is going to study with -us for the present, because the boys at school would not understand him. -Even Percy and Frank are inclined to mistake his gentleness for -weakness. Yet I could imagine him standing and facing any real danger, -when most boys would run away." - -From the first Edith had conceived a great affection for her Cousin -Carol, and, as a consequence, she understood him better. On many -occasions she was able to help him, when Percy and Frank were somewhat -brusque and impatient in their treatment of him. They could not -understand his reluctance to join in some of their games. He loved to -look on; but everything was new and strange to him. He had never been -used to playing the games which were so much to Frank and Percy. Edith -then quietly explained to her less thoughtful brothers that they should -not expect a boy who had spent three years on an invalid's couch to be -able to play the games in which they were so proficient. - -Carol was often in the nursery, Nurse was so big and motherly. She had -welcomed him, as if he had been one of her own children from the first. -It was a fixed idea amongst the children that as long as there had been -a Manor House, Nurse had presided over the nursery. She was always -ready to tell them stories of their father and uncles and aunts in the -old days. She even had tales of their grandfather, and many past -generations of Mandevilles, and in all the stories, of however long ago, -they imagined Nurse playing part. One thing they never could imagine: -that was the Manor House without her. - -When the little girls wanted him, and that was very frequently, Carol -was always ready to go to the nursery, and often accompanied them on -their walks. Percy and Frank considered it much beneath their dignity -to take a walk "with the babies." - -The improvement in Mrs. Mandeville's health, which had commenced on -Carol's first visit to her room, continued. In a few days she had taken -her usual place in the household, and the children rejoiced in the -nightly visits to their bedrooms. How glad they were when there were no -visitors downstairs, and they could keep her quite a long time. - -Upon the occasion of her first visit to Carol's room, she found him -sitting up in bed, reading. She had expected to find him asleep, as the -other children had detained her so long. - -"My little book-worm, what is the story you find so interesting?" she -asked playfully, intending to tell him lovingly the next morning that -she did not like the children to read in bed. - -"Auntie, it isn't a story book. It is _Science and Health_. I read it -every night and morning." - -"What a very strange book for a little boy to be interested in! The -title sounds quite alarmingly dry." - -"Oh, Auntie, have you never heard of it? It is such a wonderful book. I -am beginning to understand it now. At first I could not, but Cousin -Alicia used to explain it so beautifully to me, and now I love to read -it." - -"I cannot say I remember the title, dear, but I should like to look into -it. Will you spare it to me this evening? I think it is time now for -lights to be extinguished." - -Carol gave the book to her gladly, little thinking it would be many long -days before he would see it again. - -When Mrs. Mandeville returned to the drawing-room, the Rector was there. -"Do you know anything of this book, Raymond?" she asked, giving it into -his hand. "I found Carol reading it in bed--_Science and Health_." The -frown which was habitually on the Rector's face deepened. - -"Indeed I do," he said, "and I should like to do with every copy what I -am going to do with this." - -He walked over to the fireplace; his intentions were plain. Mrs. -Mandeville caught hold of his arm. - -"No, no, Raymond, you must not. The book was a present from Miss -Desmond to Carol, and you have no right to destroy it, however strongly -you may disapprove of his reading it." - -"I do more than disapprove. I absolutely forbid him to read any more of -it; the most unorthodox rubbish that has been published for centuries. -The worst of it is, it has taken hold of some people, especially women, -and they are carried away by it." - -The Rector slipped the little book into his pocket. As he had not -destroyed it, he meant to make sure there should be no chance of its -falling again into Carol's hands. He, as well as Mrs. Mandeville, was -the boy's legal guardian. - -Mrs. Mandeville was sorry. She felt sure from the way Carol had spoken -that the book was precious to him. Very gently, the next morning, she -told him of his uncle's decision. She noted the quivering lips; the -tears he was bravely trying not to shed. - -"Dear boy, did you value it so much?" she said. - -"Oh, Auntie!" The simple exclamation expressed more pain and regret -than many words could have done. - -"Darling, I am sorry; but we must believe that Uncle Raymond has good -reasons for taking the book away. He says it is fearful heresy. You -must not forget that your dear grandfather was a bishop, also your -great-grandfather. I could not tell you during how many generations -there has always been at least one member of our family a dignitary of -the Church." - -"What does unorthodox mean, Auntie?" - -"It means contrary to, or opposed to the teachings of our beloved -church. Your dear father and mother were both good church people." - -"Yes, Auntie; but that did not make Mummie better when she was so ill. -The vicar often used to sit with her, and pray for her in church, but -she was never better for it. When Cousin Alicia came and I was so ill, -I began at once to get better. That little book, _Science and Health_, -had taught her to understand the Bible, and God answered her prayers for -me!" - -"It was certainly a remarkable coincidence--your improving so quickly -after Miss Desmond came; but it may have been the result of some fresh -medicine the doctor was trying." - -"Auntie, I was not taking any medicine. The first night Cousin Alicia -came I slept till morning, and the next day I wanted something to eat. -The nurses thought it was wonderful, because they had had such -difficulty to get me to eat before. Then when they dressed the wounds -on my hip every morning I used to scream so, some of the servants went -where they could not hear me. In only one week I lost all the pain and -I did not cry at all, and very soon one by one the wounds healed." - -"It was very remarkable, dear. But do you associate your healing with -the book which Uncle Raymond has taken away?" - -"Why, Auntie, _Science and Health_ is the Key to the Bible, and the -Bible is the 'tree whose leaves are for the healing of the nations.' -But people have not understood until they had that Key how to go to the -Bible for healing. Cousin Alicia understood; that was why she was able -to heal me." - -"What you say seems very strange, Carol. If Uncle had not taken the book -away, I should have liked to look into it. I expect he would refuse if -I asked him to let me read it." - -It did not occur to Mrs. Mandeville that she could obtain another copy -of the book. The confiscated copy was not the only one to be had. Her -conversation with Carol was interrupted just then. The same night when -she went, as the evening before, to his bedroom, she found him sitting -up in bed. He greeted her eagerly with the words: - -"Auntie, I have been thinking." - -"Dear boy, what have you been thinking?" She kissed the earnest, -upturned face, and realized for the first time that he had a very -beautiful countenance, so like, she thought, one of Murillo's child -angels. - -"I have been thinking, Auntie, of what you said about unorthodox. A -good many years ago when Protestants were called heretics, they were -unorthodox to the Church of Rome, were they not?" - -"Certainly, dear." - -"But Protestants are not called heretics now, are they?" - -"I think we never hear them so spoken of now, dear, because there are -more Protestants in England than Roman Catholics." - -"Then, Auntie, when there are more Christian Scientists than other -church people, _they_ won't be called heretics." - -"Will that ever be?" Mrs. Mandeville asked with a smile. - -"Yes, Auntie; it must be, because Christian Scientists obey Jesus. All -that he said and commanded in the New Testament, they try to carry out. -He commanded his disciples to heal the sick." - -"His disciples of that day, dear." - -"But, Auntie, didn't he say: 'What I say unto you I say unto all.' If -we love him we shall keep all his commandments. That is why I am sorry -Uncle Raymond has taken away my _Science and Health_. I want to -understand it like Cousin Alicia does; then some day, if I know little -boys or girls ill like I was, I could heal them. It makes me so sorry -now that I cannot study. I have written to Cousin Alicia to help me. I -know she will. It has been so difficult all day to stand 'porter at the -door of thought.' Such a lot of unkind thoughts would keep trying to -get in. I know I must not let any of them in, and Cousin Alicia will -help me to keep them out." - -"I am afraid I do not quite understand, Carol." - -"Don't you, Auntie? I have a little book that will explain. It is -called 'At the Door.' Our mind is like a beautiful white mansion, and -thoughts are like people who go in and out. If we let unkind thoughts -pass in, all kind thoughts go away. Self-pity isn't at all a nice -person, I have had such difficulty to keep him out all day, especially -when I remembered that Father knew I was studying _Science and Health_, -and he did not take it away from me." - -"I will tell that to Uncle Raymond, dear, perhaps it will cause him to -alter his decision." - -"Thank you, Auntie; I know it will be all right. I have only to be -patient. They have all gone away now, self-pity and indignation, and -anger. If I keep my mansion so full of love, there will be no room for -them to squeeze in, will there?" - -"No, darling. Now go to sleep. I will take the little book down with -me and read it." - -Mrs. Mandeville remembered as she went downstairs her visit three years -ago to Carol's home. Then she would have described him as a very spoilt -child, making allowance for his illness, he was fretful, selfish, -exacting. What had wrought such a marvellous change? The physical -healing seemed slight in comparison. - - - - -CHAPTER IV.--A WELCOME LETTER. - - -Carol had been at the Manor a week before he received the eagerly -expected letter from Cousin Alicia. Mrs. Mandeville brought it herself -to the school-room for him. - -"What a lucky little boy to get such a fat letter! I wonder the -post-office didn't decline to bring it for a penny," she said smiling at -his radiantly happy face. Then turning to Miss Markham, as lessons were -about to commence, she asked: - -"May he be excused for a little time, Miss Markham? I know he will like -to take it to his room and read it quietly there." - -"Oh, thank you, Auntie; thank you, Miss Markham," as the asked-for -permission was quickly accorded, and he ran off with the treasured -letter. Half an hour later he sought Mrs. Mandeville in her -morning-room. - -"Auntie, would you like to read my letter?" - -"Indeed, dear, I should, if you would care for me to." - -"Yes, Auntie. I would like you to read it very much. I knew Cousin -Alicia would help me to understand. It has been just like having a talk -with her. She always makes me feel happy." - -He gave several sheets of closely written note paper into Mrs. -Mandeville's hand. - -"I must not be away any more lesson time, must I?" - -He left the letter with her, and returned to the school-room. Mrs. -Mandeville opened the pages, and read: - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My very dear Carol,_ - -"Until your first letter arrived it was difficult to realize that the -train had carried you so far away from us. It seemed as if a spirit of -sadness were creeping over the household, even the dogs and birds felt -the subtle influence, and I had to dispel it by realizing that there can -be no separation in Mind. Nothing can come between loving thoughts. I am -as near to you in thought, and you to me as if these human arms enfolded -you. It rejoiced me to read that you felt my thoughts like loving arms -around you. - -"Your first letter was awaited with eager expectation. I had to read -parts to everyone. When Bob brought up your pony for his morning lump -of sugar, I caught him brushing a tear away with his coat sleeve, as he -asked, 'Will it be long before Master Carol comes home again?' I told -him that was a question I could not answer, but possibly you might have -the pony sent to Mandeville, and in that case he would no doubt -accompany it. - -"The bright happy strain of your first letter made me glad. Before I -had time to answer it came the second in a minor key. After reading it, -a thought that something was wrong tried hard to creep in. But I knew -it could not be. 'Love governs and controls all events with unerring -wisdom.' So I just took my hat and went for our favorite walk by the -stream, to think things out. I seemed to feel your little hand in mine -as I walked. I sat down on the old tree-stump, where you used to rest -when you first began to walk; and do you remember the thrush which was -always singing on the other side of the stream, how we used to think he -sang a special song for you, and the words were, 'God is Love'? He was -there on the same branch of the tree. I feel so sure now that it is the -same bird. 'What message have you for Carol this morning?' I asked, and -it seemed that the notes changed and the message came so clearly: 'All -is right that seems most wrong.' - -"Yes! I knew it I Of course it is! The bird flew off, and I walked on, -thinking of a story I read many years ago. It was, I believe, an -Eastern allegory. That story has often helped me; perhaps it will help -you. I will tell it briefly. The King of a great country had many -singing birds. They were to him as children, he loved them so. They -were quite free to fly about the palace, or in the beautiful gardens of -the palace, and when the King walked amongst them, they rested on his -shoulder, or on his hand, when he held it out to them. There was one -especial favorite--a little brown bird. It had not gay plumage like -some of its companions, but its song delighted the King, and often he -said: 'Sing--sing always.' One day the servants discovered the little -brown bird was missing. Some one had stolen it from the palace. Word -was brought to the King, and he quickly sent messengers all over his -kingdom to discover where the bird was. It was not long before the -place of confinement was known, and, to the surprise of everyone, the -King left his little favorite in captivity. But he strictly commanded -his messengers to watch over it, that no harm could come to it. Not a -feather was to be ruffled. - -"In partial darkness, beating its wings helplessly against the bars of -the cage, the little brown bird yet remembered the King's command, -'Sing, sing always'; and every day it poured forth the song which the -King loved. Strangers came from far to listen to the wondrous song of -the little captive bird. Then, one day, the little bird looked up -joyfully, at the sound of a well-known voice. The King himself had come -to set the captive free. The cage door was quickly opened, and the bird -flew forth, and rested on the King's shoulder, pouring forth such a song -of joy as no one had ever heard before. - -"'My priceless treasure!' the King exclaimed--the one note that was -missing has come into your song.' And great was the King's joy as he -carried the little brown bird back to his palace. - -"I remember, when I read that story as a girl, being sorry that it ended -there. I wanted to know that the wicked men were punished for stealing -the bird, and that it was never separated again from the King who loved -it so. But now I understand the story better, and the lesson it -teaches. If the little bird had not been obedient to the King's command -to sing always,--even when it was in captivity, it would never have -learned that one missing note. And so, dear Carol, we have to learn -under all circumstances and at all times that we are bidden to rejoice. -The words are: 'Rejoice--again I say rejoice.' - -"Having the book taken from you, as you do not yet understand the -antagonism so many people manifest towards it, was doubtless a great -surprise, when you owe so much to its teachings. But, dearie, you must -not let any thoughts of injustice, or of something not quite right, -creep in. The book will be returned to you one day. Love can always -find a way. It will not be detained one moment after it is needful for -you to have it again. You must put in practice, live up to, what you -have already learned. You have only one step to take at present, and I -think that step is '_obedience_': cheerful, willing obedience, in every -detail of your life. You see, dear Carol, we are told only one thing of -the Master when he was a boy of your age: that is, 'He was subject -[obedient] unto them.' Had it been necessary, we should have been told -more. So from you, and all children, looking unto Jesus, to follow in -his steps, one thing only is required--perfect obedience to those in -authority over you, parents or guardians. - -"Try to picture that humble home at Nazareth, and the carpenter's shop. -We can never know the trials _he_ had to bear in those early years, -through those around him not comprehending his divine mission. From one -verse in St. Matthew's Gospel we learn that taunts and gibes were thrown -at him, because his spiritual birth was not understood. Yet those words -have come down through all the centuries to inspire and help the young -of all generations: _He was subject unto them_. - -"The world has given an undue prominence to the wooden crucifix. The -cross that Jesus carried for us he carried for 33 long years--working -out each problem of life, and finally overcoming death, in order to show -us the way to eternal life, then bidding us take up the cross--not the -wooden crucifix--the cross of daily overcoming error with truth; and -thus to follow him. - -"When you are asked anything about Christian Science, and your own -healing, if you are able, answer any questions quietly and courteously, -but never obtrude the subject on anyone; or bring it forward -voluntarily. Live Christian Science, dear Carol, not talk it. Be -careful in all things to study your aunt's wishes; and as she evidently -does not wish the subject mentioned to your cousins, do not mention it. -Following in the steps that Jesus marked--perfect obedience--can never -be denying Christ, and by perfect obedience, dear, you will understand, -loving, willing, cheerful obedience, never allowing any thought of wrong -or injustice to find a resting place in your consciousness. - -"Write to me as often as you can, dear. Now that you have commenced -regular lessons, you will not have so much spare time. Your letters -will always be to me a joy, both to receive and to answer. I rejoice in -my stewardship, taking care of this beautiful home for my dear boy. -Colonel Mandeville wrote me that your dear father expressed his desire -at the last that it should be so; and he himself also wrote a letter -which was posted at Gibraltar. It had not yet reached me. I cannot -understand it, as the letter from Colonel Mandeville which was evidently -posted at the same time, bearing the Gibraltar post-mark, arrived, as -you know, before you left. But we know it cannot be lost, although it -is long over-due. - -"Please convey my kind regards to Colonel and Mrs. Mandeville, and to -yourself, dear Carol, unnumbered loving thoughts, from - - COUSIN ALICIA. - -"_P.S._ How I should like to see the sweet Rosebud and your other -cousins!" - - ---- - -A very grave, thoughtful expression deepened on Mrs. Mandeville's face -as she gathered the loose sheets of note paper together, and replaced -them in the envelope. "Surely," she said, sotto voce, "if this is what -Christian Science teaches, Raymond does not understand the book which he -has taken away from Carol." - - - - -CHAPTER V.--QUIET DAYS. - - -The days which followed were quiet and uneventful, the peaceful, happy -days which imperceptibly glide into weeks and months. Carol worked -diligently at his lessons. He had so much lost time to make up. - -Miss Markham was surprised at the progress he made. Whatever tasks she -set him he mastered with ease, and never manifested fatigue or -weariness. He was still so slight, even fragile, in appearance, she -sometimes feared lest she was overtaxing his strength. Once, expressing -fear lest this should be so, Carol answered lightly, "It is quite right, -Miss Markham, the more work I do, the more I shall be able to do. -Cousin Alicia is helping me every day." - -"Miss Desmond is in Devonshire, Carol, how can she help you?" - -"I am sorry, Miss Markham, I forgot you do not understand," he said. - -He had been so perfectly obedient to Miss Desmond's wishes in never -talking about Christian Science, that, excepting Mrs. Mandeville, no one -remembered anything about it in connection with the boy. But, -gradually, all the household were realizing there was something -strangely different about the boy from other children. No one ever -heard him complain of an ache or pain. No one ever heard him speak an -unkind or angry word; and if, as sometimes, though seldom, amongst the -Mandeville children, little dissensions or bickerings arose, if Carol -was near, they passed as a ripple on water, and all was harmony and -peace again. - -Nurse loved to have him in the nursery. Miss Markham missed him when he -was absent from the school-room. On one occasion when he was in the -nursery a heavy box-lid was accidentally allowed to fall on Rosebud's -fingers. The child screamed terribly with the pain, but before Nurse -could do or say anything Carol seized her in his arms, and ran out of -the room with her. In less than ten minutes he brought her back again, -laughing merrily. - -"Naughty fingers don't hurt Rosebud now," she said. - -Nurse wondered, but, like Miss Markham, she did not understand. - -It happened only a few days afterward that Mrs. Mandeville did not come -as usual to the school-room immediately after breakfast, and everyone -was sorrowful when it was known that Mother had one of her old nervous -headaches. They knew it meant not seeing her for two or three days. -She suffered terribly at times with her head, and had to lie in a -darkened room, unable to bear the least noise. The children hushed -their laughter and trod softly, though the school-room and nurseries -were too far removed from Mrs. Mandeville's apartments for any sound to -reach her. - -After morning school, without saying a word to any one, Carol crept so -noiselessly into the darkened room that Mrs. Mandeville was unaware of -his presence, until he softly touched her with his hand, and said: - -"Auntie, I am so sorry you are suffering. I do want to help you. Could -I--would you let me?" - -"Dear boy, how sweet of you! I have frequently suffered with headaches -like this for many years. Nothing can be done, dear. I can only be -still and bear the pain until it passes." - -Mrs. Mandeville spoke as if every word she uttered tortured her. - -"Auntie, dear, won't you let me try to help you?" - -"Do you mean, dear, you want to say a Christian Science prayer for me?" - -"Yes, Auntie." - -"Why, of course, darling, if you wish it. It is so very sweet of you!" - -Carol softly kissed the hand she put out to him, and left the room, as -noiselessly as he had entered, closing the door after him. He knew what -pain was. He went straight to his own room and closed that door too. -He did not leave his room until the gong sounded for the school-room -dinner. His cousins exclaimed as he rejoined them, - -"Wherever have you been all this time, Carol?" - -But Carol did not say. - -In the afternoon while the children were still seated round the -tea-table, the school-room door opened, and Mrs. Mandeville entered the -room. There was one vociferous exclamation of surprise and delight. - -"Mother! Are you better?" - -"I am quite better," she said, "I fell asleep. I must have slept a long -time, and when I woke I felt quite well." - -No one noticed the flush of joy that came to Carol's face. His hands -were clasped, his eyes downcast as he silently breathed, "I thank Thee, -my Father." - -Before she left the room again, Mrs. Mandeville caressingly laid her -hands on the boy's shoulders, and bent over to kiss his brow, but she -did not allude to his visit to her room. Neither did he. Some sad days -were to pass over the Manor household before Mrs. Mandeville -acknowledged the help she had received. - -Carol had not been long at Mandeville before he became almost as well -acquainted with the villagers as his cousins. He frequently accompanied -the three little girls and the second nurse, when they were deputed to -carry a basket of good things to any house in the village where there -was need. In this way he became acquainted with the village shoemaker, -Mr. Higgs, who, in his younger days, had also acted as verger at the -church. He explained to Carol the "rheumatiz" was so bad in his legs he -hadn't been able to walk to church for months. He was often to be seen -sitting at the open cottage door in the summer evenings, with an open -Bible on his knees, his hands folded on it, for the print was too small -for his failing eyesight. - -Carol was thoughtful as he walked home. When Mrs. Mandeville paid her -usual visit to his bedroom in the evening, she found him sitting up in -bed, waiting for her. He was always awake when she came, but since she -had desired him not to read in bed he never had a book in his hand. So -often he greeted her with the words, "Auntie, I have been thinking." - -"Well, darling, what have you been thinking about to-night?" she asked -before he spoke, well knowing from his attitude that he had been -thinking either of some pleasing or some perplexing subject. - -"I have been thinking of something I can do, Auntie, if you will let me. -It is only a very little thing, but if we do not begin with little -things, we shall not be able some day to do big things, shall we? I so -often think about Jesus when he was twelve years old, he said, 'I must -be about my Father's business.' I am twelve years old, and God is my -Father, too. I want to be about His business. When I was talking to old -Mr. Higgs this morning, he told me he cannot walk to church now, and his -eyes are so bad he cannot see to read the Bible. I thought I would like -to go sometimes and read it to him, and help him to understand it. -Would you let me, Auntie dear? It is such a little thing." - -"Why, of course, dear; there can be no reason why you should not, if you -wish to. I don't think Uncle Raymond can have any possible objection. -Anyway, if I give you permission, that will be sufficient, will it not?" - -"Oh, yes, Auntie; thank you so very much. May I go every Sunday -evening?" - -"Yes, dear; and perhaps it may not be such a little thing as you think." - -Mrs. Mandeville thought of her own two boys. How different Carol was! - -Neither of them would have dreamed of doing such a thing. "But," she -mused, "his long illness has changed him." - -"Auntie, I often try to picture Jesus in his humble home at Nazareth. I -wish we knew more. When he returned with Joseph and Mary after the -visit to the Temple, and was always obedient to them, I sometimes wonder -if they kept him back from going about his Father's business, because -they did not understand; and if he played on the hillsides with the -other village boys, and no one knew until he was a man, that he was -Jesus the Christ." - -"There are many legends of his boyhood, dear, but they are only legends. -We cannot accept anything except what is narrated in the Gospels. You -must read Canon Farrar's 'Life of Christ.' That will help you to -understand that the Apostles were, without doubt, divinely instructed to -record so little of the boyhood of Jesus. There is a copy in the -library. I will look it out for you." - -"Thank you so much, Auntie. I shall be glad to read it." - -Then clinging both arms round her neck, as she stooped to kiss him, he -said: - -"I do love your coming to my room like this, Auntie. I always keep -awake till you come." - -"I, too, enjoy our little talks, dear. You often give me a beautiful -thought to take away with me: something I have not thought of before." - -The boy lay awake a long time after Mrs. Mandeville left him, thinking -joyfully of the work that had come to him, wondering how he should open -the pages of that wonderful book, as they had been opened to him. -"Teach me, Father-Mother God, the words of Truth that will help him," he -prayed. Finally, he fell asleep with the words on his lips of the boy -Samuel: "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth." - - - - -CHAPTER VI.--FIRST WORK IN THE VINEYARD. - - -"Would you like me to read to you for a little while this evening, Mr. -Higgs? My aunt has given me permission, if you would like me to," Carol -asked modestly as he entered the old man's cottage the following Sunday -evening. Mr. Higgs was seated as usual at the open door, watching the -villagers pass by on their way to church. - -"Thank you kindly, young gentleman. I'll be glad to hear some of the -words of the Book. I just keep it close by me. It don't seem Sunday -without. But my eyes fail me, and I just sit and ponder over some of -the Psalms I can well remember. After the service sometimes a -neighbor'll pop in and tell me the text Rector's been preaching about. -A mighty fine preacher is Rector, but often I used to say to my -Missus--she's dead and gone these five years--his thoughts are like -birds, they fly over our heads, and we don't seem able to lay hold of -them. If he'd just tell us something simple to help us day by day. I'd -be glad now if I could remember some of the sermons I've listened to, -year in, year out. But there, it's all gone, and I've got no more -understanding of the Bible than when I was a boy. It's ower late to -think about it now, and me turned seventy." - -"I have been taught to understand the Bible. I should like to teach you -what I have been taught. Then, when you understand, you would lose your -rheumatism." - -"_Lose my rheumatism!_" The old man repeated the words in the utmost -astonishment. - -"Why, yes, of course you would," Carol said with that wonderfully sweet -smile which won all hearts. "I had hip-disease; but I lost it." - -"Well, now, young gentleman, I can say with absolute truth that I have -never been told that before--no, _never!_ though I've been a regular -church attendant since I was a little choir boy, and never left off -going till the joints in my old legs grew so stiff I couldn't walk. -It'd want a lot of faith, sir, to believe that just reading the Bible -would make 'em lissom again." - -"Faith comes with understanding. There is another book; it is called -_Key to the Scriptures_. I haven't a copy of that book now, but I can -remember so much of it, I shall be able to help you to understand the -Bible perhaps a little better. We will commence with the first chapter -of Genesis." - -"Yes, now; I remember that chapter pretty well. I learnt it at Sunday -School sixty years ago, and I've never quite forgotten it. I could -repeat verses straight off now." - -"And has it never helped you all through your life?" - -"Well, no. I can't say that chapter has. I have found comfort sometimes -from the Psalms. 'The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want,' I have -often turned to when we'd a growing family and work was slack." - -"Let me read the chapter now and then we will talk about it." - -The boy opened the Bible, and slowly with an impressiveness which the -old man had never before heard, he read the first chapter of Genesis, -and three verses of the second chapter. He read as one reads words that -are very familiar and understandable. - -"_Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of -them, and God saw everything that He had made, and behold it was very -good._" He repeated the words from memory, looking with a kindly smile -at the old man, as he asked the question: "If God looked upon everything -which He had created, and declared it very good--where do the things -come from that are not good? Who created them?" - -"Well now, young sir, that is a question I'm not prepared to answer. I -can only say like that little black girl in the story, ''spose they -growed'." - -"But everything must grow from something, mustn't it? Every tree and -plant has its own seed. God created every living creature after its -kind, and bade it be fruitful and multiply. So you see everything good -was created by the Word of God. Is rheumatism good?" - -"'Deed no, young gentleman! It's cruel bad." - -"So is hip-disease. It's very, very 'cruel bad,' and because it is the -opposite of good it was not amongst the things which God 'beheld.' Our -dear Heavenly Father did not create poor suffering little children -maimed with hip-disease, and sometimes blind. He created them in His -own image and likeness, and God could not be suffering sometimes with -one disease, sometimes with another, so that His image and likeness -could have it too, could He? See, if I hold my hand up so it casts a -shadow on the wall, that is an exact image or likeness of my hand, is it -not? Now if I just hold something--only a slip of paper between my hand -and the reflection, the reflection is deformed, isn't it? But my hand -is not affected by it. So when we are bound by any cruel disease, there -is something between God and His image and likeness, something that was -never created by Him--was never created at all. It is only a shadowy -mist--a belief: and we have to get rid of it, by knowing its unreality. -We have to know that because we are God's children, His spiritual -creation, we must be perfect, even as He is perfect. Jesus came to -teach people this. He said, 'Be ye therefore perfect, even as your -Father in Heaven is perfect.' But, my cousin says, the world has been -slow to learn the lesson. Sin and disease will disappear from our midst -just as soon as we do learn it. When she came to me, and I was very -ill, she taught me that nothing was real except what God had created, -and pronounced good, and He never created hip-disease. Because she -understood this so clearly, and taught me to understand it, I soon began -to get better. I should like to help you to understand it, so that you -would lose your rheumatism. I think I have stayed as long as I had -permission to-night. Would you like me to come again next Sunday?" - -"'Deed, and I would, young gentleman." - -"My name is Carol," the boy said simply. - -"Thank 'ee, Master Carol, you've given me something to think about, I -shan't forget during the week." - -"I should like to teach you the Scientific Statement of Being. It is in -that book I told you of, which explains the Bible. If you would learn -it, and try to realize it, it would help you so much.' - -"My mem'ry 's none of the best now, but I'll try," the old man said -regretfully. - -"Perhaps it will be better for me to write it for you in large writing, -so that you can read it until you know it. I will bring it with me next -week. These are the words: 'There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor -substance in matter.' He repeated the words gravely and slowly to the -end, the old man gazing at him the while with wondering eyes. The sun -was setting; the crimson light streamed through the lattice window upon -the boy's upturned face, so sweet, so grave, so loving, and so earnest. - -"The words seem difficult to understand at first," he said, "but you -will soon grow to love them. It is the truth which Jesus promised -should make us free. It has made me free. It will make you free." - - - - -CHAPTER VII.--"I KNOW." - - -Carol bounded through the park with a light, joyous step. On reaching -the Manor House, he would have gone straight to his aunt, but there were -visitors with her. So he rejoined his cousins in the school-room. - -"Where ever have you been, Carol?" they questioned, as he entered. - -"Somewhere Auntie gave me permission to go," he replied quietly. - -Miss Markham looked at the boy's beaming face, and she too wondered. He -had been absent from the Scripture lesson, which she, and sometimes Mrs. -Mandeville, gave the children every Sunday evening. She felt a little -remorse that she had been conscious during the lesson of a feeling of -relief, on account of the boy's absence. Carol so often asked a -question in a quiet, thoughtful manner, which she was unable to answer: -and the question would often recur to her afterwards. She had an -intuition that the boy had a firmer grasp of spiritual truths than she -herself possessed. Many times she would have liked to discuss a subject -with him. But Mrs. Mandeville had warned her that the boy had been -taught much that was unorthodox, she therefore refrained from -discussion. - -Though it was much later than usual, Carol was wide awake when Mrs. -Mandeville came to his room that night. She had found all the other -children fast asleep. - -"Auntie, I did want to tell you, I had a very happy time with Mr. Higgs. -He's such a nice, interesting old man. I was able to tell him so much -that he had never thought about before. Thank you again for letting me -go. He will like me to go next Sunday--I may--mayn't I?" - -"Of course, dear; as it seems to make you so happy; and I am sure it -must be very nice for Mr. Higgs to have you read to him, as he is so -troubled with rheumatism. But you must really settle down to sleep now, -Carol. You have no idea how late it is." - -"Yes, Auntie, I shall soon be asleep, I wanted to tell you first. I -feel so happy now, I can say one verse of Mrs. Eddy's beautiful hymn -to-night which commences: - - 'My prayer some daily good to do, - 'To thine for Thee;' - -"Cousin Alicia used to sing it to me every night when I was ill. I -loved it so much, because its measures _did_ bind the power of pain. -Often I had fallen asleep before she came to the end." - -"You must repeat all the hymn to me some time, Carol, I shall like to -hear it." - -"Yes, Auntie, in the morning. I have been thinking whilst I was waiting -for you to come that when we want to do something for Truth very, very -much, Love finds the way. When I am a man, I shall want, more than -anything in all the world, just to do what Jesus said, those that loved -him were to do, 'Go ye into all the world, preach the Gospel, and heal -the sick.' I cannot help remembering there are so many little children -lying now, just as I used to lie, always in pain; and they could be -healed, just as I was healed, if there were more people who understood -what Jesus meant by 'The truth shall make you free." - -"And you are quite sure, Carol, it is that which has made you free?" - -"Oh, Auntie, dear, I can never let even the tiniest thought of doubt -creep up and make me question that. I _know_. When Uncle Raymond read -in church last Sunday 'I know that my Redeemer liveth,' I felt I wanted -to stand up and tell all the people _because_ He liveth, I am well. -That is 'knowing.' I do long for the time to come when I shall be able -to tell them so, and I can give all my time and my money to spread the -glad tidings, to fight for Truth." - -"Maybe there is a great work, a great future before you, dear boy, -surely the instrument has been prepared in a fierce fire, and has come -forth strong for the battle. Now, good-night, and God bless you, -darling." He clasped both his arms round her neck, holding her tightly, -as in earlier years he used to cling to his mother. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII.--A SECOND VISIT TO THE COTTAGE. - - -The next Sunday evening when Carol entered the shoemaker's cottage, he -was not alone as before. - -"This is my daughter, Mrs. Scott, Master Carol, and her little girl," he -said to Carol. "We thought, maybe, you wouldn't object if she listened -to the reading too. She cannot often go to church, because the little -girl has been subject to epilepsy since she was two years old. She's -just turned eight now. I told her mother what you told me last Sunday, -and she'll be right glad to hear more." - -"That I shall, Master Carol. I know something of hip-disease, and if -you could be cured of that, I'm sure my little girl could be cured of -the fits." - -"Why, of course she could. You will be able to help her ever so much -only by knowing that God never created fits; they belong to the mist -which we read about in the second chapter of Genesis. I am going to -read that chapter to Mr. Higgs to-night. Then you'll understand. I -will begin at the fourth verse, because the first three verses belong -really to the first chapter, which is an account of the first creation, -when God made everything that was made and it was spiritual and perfect. -No one could ever alter or undo God's perfect work; it remains, and -always will remain, perfect. When we understand this, and realize it, -the mist will disappear, and all the things which belong to the -mist--sin, disease, and death." - -Father and daughter looked at the boy with wonder and perplexity. -Opening the Bible he read: - -"These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were -created in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens." -He continued to the end of the chapter. "Now do you see how different -this account of creation is from the first?" he asked. "Who was the -Lord God who took the dust of the ground and formed man over again, -after God had already created him, and pronounced His work very good?" - -The old man shook his head. "I can only say, as I said last Sunday, -Master Carol, in all the sermons I've listened to that has never been -explained to me. I don't think I should have let it slip, if it had. -It's just the first time I've ever known there were two creations." - -"There were not really two creations, though it reads as if there were, -because there are not two creators. The sixth verse explains it, 'There -went up a mist from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.' -That mist covered everything which God-Spirit had created--all the host -of them; birds, beasts, and flowers, mountains, seas, lakes, rivers, -even man: God's own image and likeness. Because the mist is over -everything we do not see the world and man as they really exist. So -people have come to believe that God made man from the dust; for the -mist that is spoken of is not a mist like we see rising from the sea, or -in the fields of an evening. It means false belief, misunderstanding of -God and His spiritual creation. But, my cousin has told me, there is a -woman in America who once caught a glimpse of God's real creation as she -was passing through the death valley. And that one glimpse restored her -to health. Then she devoted her whole life to learn more of the truth -that she might teach others how to see through the mist, and to shake -off their old beliefs. She has written a book called _Science and -Health_ with _Key to the Scriptures_, which explains all that she has -discovered. Simply reading and studying that book has made hundreds of -people well." - -"Where could we get a copy of it, Master Carol? I'd like to know for my -little girl's sake," Mrs. Scott asked. - -"I do not quite know, but there are Christian Science churches in -London. If you were to write there perhaps someone would tell you. I -wish I had a copy to lend you. I have written the Scientific Statement -of Being from memory. I am sure it will help you. I am trying to -realize it for you, and for the little girl. Think always of that first -chapter of the Bible. In the beginning God created everything that was -created, and it was very good. None of the things we want to get rid of -could be included in God's _very good_, could they? Jesus came to teach -men to understand God better, and he said, 'that which is born of the -Spirit is spirit.' So all that came from God and all that still comes -is spiritual. If you could quite realize this, Mr. Higgs, you would -soon lose your rheumatism. I am only telling you what has been told me -so many times; and I know it is true, because I was very ill when my -cousin used to teach me, and I grew better as I began to understand. -She helped me, because she saw me always as God's perfect child, and -knew that He had never created hip-disease, therefore it never was -created; it belonged to the mist, and it would disappear under the light -of Truth as hoar frost disappears when the sun shines upon it." - -"It is wonderful and strange what you are telling us, Master Carol, I've -never heard the like before, but somehow I can't doubt it. I call to -mind what the Bible says, 'Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings God -ordains strength.' I'd dearly love the girl to be free from those -dreadful fits. My rheumatiz is very bad, but I'm an old man, and can't -expect to 'scape one o' the signs of old age." - -"But you must not expect. You must know that it is not a sign of old -age in God's man. You must always remember the man whom God created in -His own image and likeness." - -"I've heard those words many times before, Master Carol, but somehow -they never seemed to come home to me as you put it. Why, of course I -ought not to suffer with rheumatiz if I _am_ God's image and likeness. -But what about all the poor dwarfed and stunted creatures that are -crippled from infancy? There's a little hunchback in the village. He -was dropped when he was a baby, and his back grew crooked, so that it's -a hump now. How can he be God's image and likeness?" - -"The hunchback is not the likeness of God, but the real child--the -spiritual child is, and God sees His child as He created it." The boy -put his hand over his eyes a moment, realizing that of himself he was -not telling these simple-minded people anything. Then he said: - -"Suppose a great sculptor carved a beautiful statue out of a block of -marble. Before he began his work, he would have in his mind the form he -wished the marble to take. Gradually, as he worked at it, the marble -would become what his thought of it was. Then one day he would see it -finished and perfect--just what he intended it to be. Then he would work -no more at it. Afterwards, suppose some one came by, and took clay and -mixed it with water into a paste, and then daubed the beautiful statue -all over, till the limbs looked crooked, and the beauty of the face was -spoiled. But it wouldn't be really spoiled, would it? The statue would -still be the work of the great sculptor, finished and perfect; the clay -and the marble would be quite separate and distinct. Nothing could make -them one. So when we read the chapter I have just read to you--the Lord -God took the dust of the ground and made man--God's man was already -made, finished and perfect, and the dust, like the clay, could only seem -to hide the perfect creation. But we have to know this and to realize -it, if we are to get rid of the dust, and the clay, and the mist. When -my cousin was explaining all this to me one day, she said, 'It is not -known how or when the belief in a Lord God who made man of dust arose; -but from that false belief came sin, sorrow, disease, and death. Jesus -came to teach us the way back to God; to teach us to see ourselves as -the children of God, not of the dust; and he said all who believed in -him, in what he taught, would never see death.' The day will come, my -cousin said, when all men will so believe in Jesus the Christ, and will -so understand and realize that God is their Father, that death will be -overcome. Every case of sin and disease which is healed by this -knowledge--by the Truth--is bringing that day nearer." - -The look of bewilderment deepened on the old man's face. Surely, the -boy was throwing a different light upon words with which he had been -familiar all his life. "We'll think over what you've told us, Master -Carol--me and my daughter. It sort o' goes to me that it's true." - -Again the words came to him, "Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings." - -The church clock chimed the half-hour. Carol stood up to go. "The time -has gone so quickly. I must not stay longer now. I will come again -next Sunday, and all the week will you try to know that God's work was -finished and perfect in the beginning, and everything that seems to have -been added to it--rheumatism and fits--has no right to be?" - -"We will, Master Carol, we'll just think of the marble statue and the -clay. It will help us." - -"I will hold the right thought for you and the little girl, and I know -that soon you will find that both the afflictions, which seem so real, -belong to the mist." - - - - -CHAPTER IX.--"IT IS THE TRUTH." - - -Carol faithfully kept his appointment on the following Sunday. His -cousins ceased to inquire, though not to wonder, what became of him -every Sunday evening, and once appealed to Mrs. Mandeville for -information. She smilingly replied, "It is a little secret between Carol -and me. Perhaps you will be told some time, but not just yet." - -As Carol entered the cottage, Mr. Higgs rose from his seat, and stood -upright. - -"Master Carol," he exclaimed in a voice of suppressed excitement, "it is -the Truth, the blessed Truth you've told us. I can't say I've lost my -rheumatics entirely, for the joints are like rusty hinges that want a -lot o' oiling after being idle so long; but I've just been free from -pain all the week; and my little grand-daughter hasn't had one fit all -the week." - -"No, Master Carol, she has not," Mrs. Scott added. "I won't say she has -never gone a whole week without one before, but for the last twelve -months I don't think she has, until this week." - -"Try not to remember anything that has been. Think it was all a dream, -and she is awakening from it. I had a very cruel dream once, but I have -awakened from it. God's children must cling very closely to Him, then -nothing can hurt them. It is when shadowy fears come between God and -His image and likeness that dreadful things seem to happen to us." - -Mr. Higgs and Mrs. Scott did not understand yet how the boy had all the -week been working for them--fighting error with the sword of Truth. - -"I want to read a chapter from the New Testament this evening," Carol -said, opening the Bible. "It is always a favorite chapter, but one -verse, my cousin said, seemed never to have impressed people as -applicable to the present day. Yet the words are so simple. I will read -the chapter first, then we'll talk about that one verse." - -He read the 14th chapter of St. John from the 1st verse to the last, -then asked quietly, "Do you remember that Jesus once said, 'Heaven and -earth shall pass away, but my words shall never pass away'?" - -"Yes, Master Carol. I remember those words well." - -"Then is there not a verse in the chapter I have just read which seems -as if Jesus' words _had_ failed?" The old man looked puzzled. - -"I can't say that I know what you are alluding to, Master Carol." - -"I will read it again. It is the 12th verse. 'Verily, verily, I say -unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also, -and greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my Father.' -What were the works that Jesus did? Was it not healing the sick, -cleansing the lepers, raising the dead, feeding the hungry? Well, if no -one can do these works to-day, his word has failed or else no one has -sufficient faith (faith may sometimes mean understanding). Many -centuries rolled by, and the sick were not healed, nor the lepers -cleansed, in Jesus' name. But now we know his words never failed. It -was the faith or understanding of those who thought they believed in him -which failed; for the sick are being healed now, and the lepers -cleansed." - -"It is very wonderful as you put it, Master Carol. I can't say it has -ever been explained like that to me before." - -"Is it not very simple?" Carol asked. - -"Why, yes. It has always seemed to me the Master's words were very -simple, a child could understand them. But when you come to the -Epistles, and the creeds of the Church, there's many things that I have -never been able to understand; and often the sermons I've listened to -puzzled me more than the texts." - -"In the 15th verse Jesus says, 'If ye love me, keep my commandments.' -Jesus did not give many commandments to his followers. He told them -many things, but of strict commandments he gave only a few. One was, 'Go -into all the world, preach the Gospel and heal the sick.' If you had a -son, and you commanded him to do two things and he did only one, and -left the other alone, would you be pleased with him? Would he be -obedient to your commands?" - -"Certainly I shouldn't be pleased with him, and I'd soon let him know -that, if he didn't do all I commanded, he needn't do anything." - -"Yes, but Jesus just makes it a test of love. He says so gently, 'If ye -love me, keep my commandments.' To those who keep all his commandments -he will one day say, 'Well done, good and faithful servant,' I do hope -that some day he will say those words to me." - -"I'm right sure he will, Master Carol. It is just wonderful the way you -are helping an old man to understand. It amazes me that a boy of your -years should have such an understanding." - -"Oh, please don't think I am telling you anything of myself. It has all -been explained to me many times. I am only telling you what has been -told me. I wish my cousin could talk to you. She would help you much -better than I can. But we must not withhold what we have because some -one else has more, must we? We must hand on the good tidings as well as -we are able." - -"That's it, Master Carol. Maybe I'll do a little that way myself later -on." - -"Yes, I am sure you will, but don't talk about your rheumatism being -better just yet. Wait until the evil is quite cast out. When I come -next week I will explain to you how we learn in _Science and Health_ -that God gave man dominion, and what God has given can never be taken -away. God says His word shall never return unto Him void. When He -decreed anything, it was forever. You could not think of the sun, moon, -or stars moving out of their appointed courses, could you? It is only -man who seems to have wandered from his native sphere. We have to learn -that this is not so; we have not really lost the dominion which God gave -His children in the beginning. St. John says, 'Now are we the sons of -God; and it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when -He shall appear we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.' -That verse helped me so much when I was ill. I learned I had not to die -to become a son of God. God is my Father here and now, and God's child -ought not to believe a lie. It was a lie that evil could have power -over me, and bind me. It is a lie that evil can have power over you, -and bind you. If you acknowledge God as your Father, God's child should -not go along believing he has rheumatism, should he?" - -"Thank you, Master Carol. I'll take hold of that. I can understand it. -I wish Rector would talk to us sometimes like this. I know it is all in -the Bible, yet it never came home to me before." - -Mrs. Scott listened attentively to all the boy was telling her father, -but made no remark. Her little girl was sitting in the porch nursing -her doll, crooning a lullaby. Carol left them with the promise to come -again next Sunday. - - - - -CHAPTER X.--AN UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTER. - - -With thoughts so joyous and uplifted, Carol's feet scarcely seemed to -touch the springy turf of the park as he returned to the Manor. The -uplifting joy, unlike anything that earth can give, which comes from the -consciousness that work done for, and in the Master's name, is accepted -of him, was his; the promised signs following. - -He did not see Mrs. Mandeville until she paid her usual visit to his -bedroom. - -His young face was radiant with joy and happiness. "Auntie," he said, -"Mr. Higgs is beginning to understand; and he is losing his rheumatism." - -Mrs. Mandeville smiled. There was so much love and tenderness in her -smile the incredulity was not apparent. She put a loving arm around -him, drawing the boy closer to her. - -"Is that what you have been thinking to-night, dear?" - -"Not altogether, Auntie. I have been thinking of what it means by the -words, 'The mind that was in Christ.' That was what I was reading when -I came to bed. If we are to have that Mind, we should understand what it -is. But, Auntie, I can't get any farther than _love_: the mind that was -in Christ was love. God is Love, and Jesus said, 'I and my Father are -one.' So, Auntie, when our hearts are filled with love for the poor and -afflicted and sorrowing, it is the Christ mind that comes to us. -Because Jesus loved all who came to him, he was able to heal them. He -said, 'I can of myself do nothing, it is the Father that worketh in me. -He doeth the works.' Jesus was a perfect mirror, reflecting the love -which is God. That is why he said, 'They that have seen me have seen my -Father also.' Cousin Alicia explained this once to me, but I did not -quite understand it at the time. I see so clearly now. When we reflect -love as Jesus did, we shall be able to do the works that he did. I -often wonder, Auntie, why Uncle Raymond and all the clergy who preach -the Gospel don't help people when they are ill. It is not being -obedient, is it?" - -Mrs. Mandeville's face was grave. - -"Ought I not to question this, Auntie?" - -"Perhaps it would be better not, dear, until you are older. I do not -understand myself. It is a subject I never seriously considered until -you came to us. Now I think I must say good-night, my little -lie-awake." - -"I always fall asleep soon after I have said 'good-night' to you, -Auntie." - -"That is right, darling. I do enjoy our little talks; they are very -sweet and helpful to me, Carol." - -Then, after a long, loving embrace, she left him, a grave, thoughtful, -but happy expression on her face. - -The following Saturday morning after breakfast the three little girls -told Carol, with delight, that they were going to the home farm in the -afternoon, and begged him to go with them. Carol promised. He never -refused to go anywhere or to do anything when Rosebud asked him. It was -different with Percy and Frank. They were always too busy. - -Carol knew how great a delight a visit to the farm was to the little -girls, where each had a special pet of her own which the farmer's wife -kindly took care of for them. Carol had visited the farm once before, -and was almost as interested as the little girls in the animals and -poultry yard. The schoolroom children had grown out of the interest -they once had in visiting the farm. - -Saturday being a school holiday, the boys were at home all day. After -lunch Percy said: - -"I say, Carol, some fellows are coming this afternoon; we are going to -have a game at rounders. You can manage that. Will you come?" - -Carol was never asked to join in a game at cricket or football, as his -uncle and aunt feared it would not be good for him. "I am sorry, Percy; -I cannot. I promised Rosebud and Sylvia to go with them to the farm -this afternoon." - -Percy turned impatiently away. He was annoyed. Carol caught the -muttered words: "Milk-sop prefers a walk with the babies." - -He was not versed in school-boy slang, but naturally felt it was an -opprobrious epithet applied to himself. A crimson flush rose to his -face. On the way to the farm, he asked Jane, the second nurse, who -accompanied them: - -"Can you tell me what milk-sop means, Jane?" - -"Well, Master Carol, it's what school-boys call one another, sometimes. -But it's not a nice word. I suppose it means something of a coward." - -Carol fell behind. The crimson flush returned and dyed his cheeks -again. "Percy did not mean it. He spoke without thinking. He forgot I -am a soldier's son. _I am not angry_. I will not let you in!" - -"Were you speaking, Master Carol?" Jane asked. - -"I was only telling Mrs. Anger and Mr. Anger, and a lot of little -Angers, there is no room for them in my mansion. Love is there, and -cannot be driven away." - -"You do say such funny things, Master Carol," Jane remarked. - -"But there is nothing funny in that, Jane. You see our mind is our -mansion, and if we keep it filled with loving thoughts, angry thoughts -cannot creep in. Some angry thoughts were just trying to force their -way in, and I had to tell them there was no room." - -Still Jane smiled, but she, as everyone else at the Manor, loved the -gentle boy, who had what seemed to them such strange thoughts. - -A messenger always appeared to go in advance and tell the farmer's wife -when the little ladies might be expected. She never failed to have such -a lovely tea spread on a snowy white tablecloth, and her best china -gracing the table. Tea in the farm kitchen was quite different from the -usual nursery tea at home. Such delicious scones and tea-cakes! (It -really would not have pleased cook to hear the praise bestowed upon -them, as if she did not make quite as good.) - -After tea they went around the farmyard to inspect their pets. A little -gosling, quite tame and friendly, was chosen for Carol's especial pet. -The hour, which was all nurse had allowed them, passed very quickly, and -they started on the homeward walk. They had not gone far when a -drizzling rain began. Jane then suggested the advisability of crossing -a field which would shorten the distance considerably. When they came -to the field, she was surprised to find the gate fastened. - -"This gate is generally open. I wonder why it is padlocked to-day, but -it is not too high to get over. If you climb over first, Master Carol, -I can lift Rosebud over to you." - -Carol soon mounted the five-barred gate, and landed safely on the other -side, then received one by one Rosebud, Estelle, and Sylvia, from Jane's -arm, as she lifted them over. They had walked about two hundred yards -when Jane stood still in an agony of fright, as an animal, which had -been lying unperceived in a distant corner of the field, rose up and -came towards them with a loud bellow. - -"Oh, Master Carol! What shall we do? It's the bull! He's a terror! -I've heard of him. He's a tosser!" - -"Don't be frightened, Jane. Just walk quietly. The bull won't hurt us, -if we are not frightened." - -Jane caught Rosebud in her arms, and with Estelle and Sylvia clinging to -either side, walked as quickly as she dared towards the stile on the -other side of the field. Fortunately, it was a stile easier to mount -than the five-barred gate had been. It was but the work of a moment and -the three little girls were lifted safely to the other side. Then, Jane -turned to look for Carol. He had walked only a third of the distance, -keeping always between the bull and his cousins, and now he stood face -to face with the animal, a few yards only between them. Another low -bellow, and then the animal bent his head to the ground, prepared for a -spring. - -"Run, run, Master Carol," Jane screamed. It was a fatal appeal. The -mesmerism of fear seized Carol. He turned to look after his cousins. -The next instant he was on the horns of the animal, tossed high in the -air, as if he had been no heavier than an India-rubber ball. -Mercifully, he fell on the other side of the hedge, which divided that -field from the next. With a roar of baffled rage, the animal stampeded -the field, seeking to toss his victim a second time. - - - - -CHAPTER XI.--PERCY'S REMORSE. - - -The three little girls set up a piteous cry of "Carol," "Carol." Jane -was speechless, only wringing her hands in her extremity. What could she -do? It was half a mile to return to the farm for help, and a mile to -the nearest lodge belonging to the Manor; and there was no house -between. She could not see where Carol had fallen. But she knew it was -over the hedge into the next field. She feared the infuriated animal -would force its way through. Though she could not in any way protect -him, it seemed terrible to go from the place, even to get help, and -leave him there. Many moments were lost in her frenzied attempts to -force an entrance into the field from the lane. It was in vain. The -thick, high hedge was impregnable. She called again and again to Carol -to speak, to answer her, but there was no response. It seemed an -eternity before there was the welcome sound of a horse's hoofs in the -lane, which drew nearer until a stanhope came in sight, containing -Colonel Mandeville, a friend, and a groom. - -The three little girls cried: "Daddy, Daddy, the bull has tossed Carol!" - -Colonel Mandeville sprang from the vehicle on the instant, scarcely -understanding what the children said. Their distress was evident. That -was sufficient. Jane then tried to explain. - -"We were crossing the field, sir. I did not know the bull was there. -He has tossed Master Carol over the hedge into this field, and we cannot -get at him." - -Colonel Mandeville uttered one low, sad exclamation. - -"Where is the entrance into the field?" he asked. - -"There is a gate into it from the field where the bull is. Oh, please, -sir, it isn't safe; the bull is awfully enraged," she added, as Colonel -Mandeville walked towards the stile. - -He turned to say to the groom: "Follow me," and to his friend: "Manton, -drive to the village and bring Dr. Burton along. I fear we shall want -him." To Jane he said briefly: "Take the children home." - -Then he mounted the stile, and entered the field, a gun in his hand, -which the groom had handed him from the stanhope. The gentlemen had -been shooting. The bull was standing in the middle of the field. He -sprang towards the fresh intruder with a bellow. Colonel Mandeville -pointed his gun; there was a report, and the next instant the beast -rolled over on his side, dead. The groom then followed his master. -They had a little difficulty in opening the gate into the next field, -but succeeded at last, and were able to get in. - -Under the shadow of the hedge Carol was lying--still, motionless. - -Colonel Mandeville knelt beside him. - -"Carol, Carol," he said softly, but there was no response. "Go to the -farm as quickly as you can. Tell them to improvise an ambulance. Bring -it along. Lose not a moment," he said to the groom. - -Then he knelt on the ground, trying again to awake the boy to -consciousness: "My poor wife, how will she bear this?" he said to -himself, knowing well that Carol was as dear to her as her youngest -born, the Rosebud of the family. The signs of life were so faint, he -could not hope the boy would ever regain consciousness. - -Dr. Burton was fortunately at home. In an inconceivably short time he -arrived on the scene; and the groom returned with an ambulance, followed -by the farmer, his wife, and some of the men, all anxious to give any -assistance they could. - -Dr. Burton and Colonel Mandeville very tenderly lifted Carol on to the -ambulance, a faint moan was the only sign of life, but all were glad to -hear even that. Dr. Burton would not make any examination until they -could lay him on a bed, and cut off his clothes. - -There was no question of breaking the news gently to Mrs. Mandeville; -she was returning from a drive as the little girls reached the gates. -They ran to her sobbing broken-heartedly. - -She was very calm, but her face grew deadly white, and wore again the -strained expression which had been so frequent during the sad days of -the war. She could not remain inactive, and walked to meet the sad -procession. - -As soon as Colonel Mandeville saw her, he advanced quickly to her side, -and turned her steps homeward. He would not let her see the boy as he -lay on the ambulance, looking so like death. - -Only Colonel Mandeville was with Dr. Burton when he made the critical -examination. There were no broken bones, he said, but added that there -are things worse to deal with than broken bones, and hinted gravely at -concussion of the brain and spinal congestion. There were two terrible -bruises where he had been caught on the bull's horns. He could not hold -out any hope to them, but desired a second opinion, and a telegram was -at once despatched to a great London physician, who, it was calculated, -would be able to reach Mandeville that night if he caught the evening -express. Then Mrs. Mandeville took her place by the bedside. She could -do nothing, only watch in tearful silence the pallid face that had -become so dear to her, lying so still, so calm, it seemed at times the -lips were breathless. The reply telegram came quickly. Sir Wilfrid -would be able to catch the evening express which would stop at -Mandeville by request. He would reach the Manor about ten o'clock. - -Not until the physician's arrival, when he and Dr. Burton held a -consultation together, did Mrs. Mandeville leave the bedside. She then -retired to her own room for a little time. Miss Markham came to her -there, begging her to go and speak to Percy. "His grief," she said, "is -quite uncontrollable. I have done all I can to comfort him. But nothing -I can say seems to touch him." Mrs. Mandeville went at once to Percy's -room. He had thrown himself undressed on his bed, and was sobbing -hysterically, as she entered the room. - -"Percy, my dear boy, you must not grieve like this." - -As soon as he was aware it was his mother beside him, he flung his arms -round her neck. - -"Oh, Mother, I can never, never, be happy again if Carol dies. If he -had not been there with them, the bull would have tossed my little -sisters. Jane said he stood between them and the bull. He is the -bravest boy, and I--I--called him a--a--" He could not repeat the word -he had so lightly, thoughtlessly uttered a few hours previously. - -"If only I could tell him I did not mean it, and ask him to forgive me, -Mother. Oh! won't he ever be able to speak to me again?" - -"Dear Percy, I hope so. Sir Wilfrid Wynne is with him now, and -everything possible will be done for him. I am sure, darling, he would -not like you to grieve like this. He always has such loving thoughts of -others." The remembrance of all his gentleness and loving thought for -others was too much for Mrs. Mandeville. Clasping her boy closely to -her, she wept with him. Heaven was still to her a locality, and death -the gateway to it; and Carol had always seemed so very near to the -Kingdom of Heaven. - -All the household awaited with cruel suspense the great man's verdict, -trusting to him, forgetful that human skill had failed the boy once -before in his hour of need, forgetful of that friend in Devonshire who -loved him as her own son. No message had been sent to her. - - - - -CHAPTER XII.--THE PHYSICIAN'S VERDICT. - - -Sir Wilfrid Wynne gave his verdict, and it was almost a repetition of -what Dr. Burton had said. He could do nothing. There was little hope -he would regain consciousness. If he did, it would be but a passing -flash before the end. He might linger in his present condition -twenty-four hours or longer; and he might pass away any moment without a -struggle. It would be cruel to wish him to live; the shock to the spine -had been so great, if he lived, he would inevitably lose the use of his -lower limbs. Sir Wilfrid was grieved; he had known the boy's father. He -would gladly have remained, had there been any hope of doing anything -for him. He took his departure by motor-car to catch the mail train at a -junction ten miles distant. - -Mrs. Mandeville returned to her place by the bedside, calm and still, -after her paroxysm of weeping. Colonel Mandeville was with her, and -presently the Rector came into the room. - -"Raymond, pray for him," Mrs. Mandeville said. "He is in God's hands. -No human power can help him." - -They all knelt and the Rector prayed aloud. He did not petition for the -boy's life to be spared. He humbly asked that the hearts of those who -loved him might be submissive to God's all-wise decree. "Thy will be -done," was the dominant note of the prayer. When they rose from their -knees, there was an expression on Mrs. Mandeville's face which no one -had ever seen before. The prayer had not helped her: it was not -submission nor resignation in any degree which had come to her. She -turned to the Rector. - -"I do not believe it, Raymond. This is _not_ God's will. God could not -order anything so cruel to befall a child, so loving and dutiful--whose -faith in God's loving care of him has always been so beautiful to me to -witness. Could I, who know only human love, suffer anything like this -to befall my little Rosebud, or any of my children? Is human love more -pitiful and compassionate than divine love? This dear boy could easily -have saved himself; he stood between the cruel beast and my little -girls. All three of them might be lying as he is lying now but for his -self-sacrifice. Don't tell me it is God's will! If I could believe it, -I would wish I were a heathen, and worshipped a god of wood and stone!" - -The Rector could only gaze in pained astonishment. Such an outburst was -so unlike his usually calm and gentle sister. He judged she was beside -herself with grief. She stood with clasped hands, wide-open eyes, -unseeing, yet seeing, gazing beyond the confines of that room, catching -a momentary vision of that light which 'never was, on land or sea.' - -She became calm again--serenely calm. - -"I see it," she said. "I understand. This is _not_ God's will. It is -not _His_ work. His compassions fail not. His love is over all His -children. With Him is the Fountain of Life. Does He not say, 'I will -redeem them from death'? He will save this dear child from the grave. -Leave me, please. I want to be alone--alone with Carol and God. I want -to realize it. Yes; _God's will be done_. Life, not death, is God's -will. I see it, I see so clearly." - -To her husband she said softly, "I will ring if I want anything, dear. -Don't let anyone come into the room until I ring." - -When all had left the room, and the door was closed, she knelt beside -the bed, with outstretched arms. It was a mother's cry to God for the -life of a child that was as dear to her as her own. Hour after hour -passed, and still she knelt. Words failed her, petition ceased: the -realization came to her that God is Life: in Him we live, and move, and -have our being. In Infinite Life there is no death. Death never is, -and never can be God's will. The knowledge, the understanding of God as -All-in-all vanquishes death! "O, death, I will be thy plagues. O, -grave, I will be thy destruction!" (Hosea XIII., 14.) - -The morning dawned, the bright sunbeams stole into the room. The boy -opened his eyes. "Auntie,"--she was bending over him--"I have been -dreaming. I thought I was in a field, and a bull tossed me high up into -the air. But I knew in my dream, 'underneath are the everlasting arms.' -Then I dreamed again, and two men were turning me about, and moving my -arms and legs, and one said, 'There is not a broken bone, nor even a -dislocation. It's a miracle.' I tried to say 'underneath are the -everlasting arms,' but I could not speak." - -The words were very faint and low. She bent close to catch them, then -stopped them with a kiss, a pan of joy in her heart. He spoke again: -"Auntie, something is hurting me very much. I can't move." - -"Do not try, darling, lie quite still. I will sit beside you and hold -your hand." - -A spasm of pain passed over his face, and he fell again into -unconsciousness. But she had no fear, she knew that death had been -vanquished by the knowledge that had come to her of life. - -A low knock came to the door. She opened it, and found her maid there -with a cup of tea. She took it from her saying: "Tell them all he -lives, and he will live. But I wish to be alone with him for the -present. No one is to trouble about me, I am quite well." - -So she sat down again beside him, waiting and patiently watching, -knowing that he would awake again to consciousness. It was nearly noon -when he opened his eyes and spoke again. His voice was stronger: - -"Auntie, was it a waking dream? Was I really in a field, and a bull -tossed me? I am so aching all over me." - -"Yes, darling." - -"I think I remember now, Auntie. Rosebud and Estelle and Sylvia were -there, and Jane called to me, 'Run, run!' They were not hurt, were -they?" - -"No, darling, not one of them." - -"I am glad. Error is telling me I cannot move my legs and arms, Auntie. -But it is not true. God's child cannot be bound like that. Does Cousin -Alicia know?" - -"I am sorry, Carol. I fear no one has thought to send her word." - -"Will you send word now, Auntie--something quicker than a letter?" - -"A telegram, dear?" - -"Yes, Auntie, and put in, 'Please help Carol'." - -"I will ask Uncle to send the message at once, dear." - -When she opened the bedroom door, she found Colonel Mandeville pacing -the corridor without. As a sentinel he had kept watch there throughout -the night and a great part of the morning. He came into the room, and -stood with one arm around his wife, looking down at Carol. - -"Well, little man, so we are going to cheat the doctors?" - -Carol didn't at all know what 'cheat' meant. - -"Carol wishes you to let Miss Desmond know, dear. Will you wire at -once? And say in the message, 'Please help Carol.' She will know what -he means." - -"I will gladly do so. Dr. Burton is downstairs, Emmeline. He had -better come up now." - -An expression of distress came over Carol's face. - -"Auntie," he said, "don't let the doctor do anything to me, please." - -"No one shall touch you, dear. But I should like Dr. Burton just to see -you. He will tell me what I may give you to eat." - -"I don't want anything, Auntie, only something to drink." - -"Well, dear, he will tell me what will be best for you to have." - -"I would like only water, please." - -"You shall have some, dear, at once, and after that something else, I -hope." - -Dr. Burton came to the room, felt the patient's pulse, took his -temperature, and looked at his tongue, but mercifully refrained from -turning him about, to examine the bruises. - -"I will send some medicine at once," he said to Mrs. Mandeville. "Give -him a dose every hour. He has a very high temperature." - -Downstairs he told Colonel Mandeville: "He may pull through if -meningitis does not supervene." - -But he left the house holding a very strong belief that meningitis would -supervene. Not even the medicine, which was to be given every hour, -could prevent it. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII.--THE RECTOR'S REFUSAL. - - -Mrs. Mandeville remained with Carol throughout the day, suffering no one -to relieve her for one hour. As soon as he was told the telegram had -been sent to Miss Desmond, he rested quite satisfied. But as the day -wore on to evening, Mrs. Mandeville, standing over him, saw he was -suffering acutely. - -"You are in pain, darling," she said. - -"Auntie, please don't ask me. I am trying to deny it. Couldn't you -deny it for me, too?" - -His lips were quivering; tears he strove bravely to keep back were -stealing down his cheeks. How could she deny it? She would have given -anything to be able to do so. - -"Cousin Alicia must have had the telegram by this, Auntie, mustn't she?" - -"Yes, dear; I think so. Being Sunday, it has taken longer to get -through. Uncle has heard from the postmaster at W--, the nearest town, -as the village telegraph office would be closed. The message has been -sent on by messenger on horseback. So I think Miss Desmond must have -received it by this time." - -"She might have been out when it arrived, Auntie." - -"Do you expect to feel less pain, dear, when Miss Desmond receives the -telegram?" - -"Yes, Auntie, I know I shall." - -Seven o'clock--eight o'clock--nine o'clock passed. No reply telegram -came. Mrs. Mandeville wrote a letter to go by the evening post, giving -more details, and describing Carol's great desire to have a message from -her. Dr. Burton came again at night. His instructions had been carried -out. The medicine sent had been given every hour. Still the patient's -temperature was higher, the pain he was suffering more acute, and the -symptoms which pointed to meningitis more pronounced. "If he could -sleep--a long natural sleep might save him," Dr. Burton said. - -During the night Mrs. Mandeville was persuaded to take a little rest on -a couch in the room, whilst Nurse and Colonel Mandeville kept watch -beside the bed. Carol offered no opposition to anything that was done -for him, and drank the medicine without a murmur, when the spoon was put -to his lips. - -In the morning, when Mrs. Mandeville was again alone with him, he said, -"Auntie, I wonder why it hurts me to try to think. I tried so hard to go -to sleep in the night and I could not. Then I began to think about -Jesus when he was a little boy. We are not told that he was ever ill, -and had to lie in bed, are we? But I felt quite sure, if he ever did, -he would do just what his mother wanted him to do, wouldn't he? I know -medicine and the bandages are not doing me any good, but it makes you -happy for me to have them, doesn't it, Auntie?" - -"Yes, darling; it seems all that we can do for you." - -"If you understood Science, you could help me now, Auntie." - -"Indeed then, I wish that I did, Carol." - -"Sometimes the room seems to go dark, Auntie. In the night, two or -three times, it was just as if the lamp went out, then lighted up -again." Mrs. Mandeville understood enough to know this was very grave. - -"Darling, will you try to lie quite still, and close your eyes--try not -to think about anything?" - -"Yes, Auntie, but I do hope a message will come from Cousin Alicia -to-day. You will tell me when it comes, won't you?" - -"Instantly, dear." - -"I wish I could go to sleep, Auntie." - -"I wish so too, my poor, dear boy." - -"Could you move me a tiny bit, Auntie? I ache so lying in the same -position. It seems so strange not to be able to move myself at all. -Error seems very real." - -Gently and lovingly, she tried to ease his position, but the least touch -brought an expression of acute pain. She had to desist. - -The long weary hours of that day passed, but no message, either a -telegram or letter, came from Miss Desmond. Another wire was sent, -asking for a reply. Still none came. Then, later on in the evening, a -message was sent addressed to the housekeeper at Willmar Court, which -quickly brought a reply: "Miss Desmond away. Impossible to forward -messages." - -Mrs. Mandeville told Carol very gently. He did not speak for some time, -and, though he lay with closed eyes, she knew he was not sleeping. - -Then he looked up at her: - -"Auntie, when Jesus was in the boat, and the winds arose, and the waves -surged high around the little boat, Jesus didn't command them at once to -be still. The disciples had to awake him, and he rebuked them for their -little faith. Shouldn't they have waited patiently, knowing it was all -right? Sometimes it seems error has bound me with ropes, and I cannot -move; sometimes it seems like waves washing over me. But I know that -Love is saying to error's angry waves, 'Thus far, and no farther.' And -just at the right moment the command will come: '_Peace, be still_.'" - -Mrs. Mandeville hid her face in the pillow beside him, that he might not -see the tears streaming from her eyes. She had lost again the faith -which for a time had uplifted her to a realization of God's power to -save the boy from death. In imagination she saw a new little grave in -the churchyard with that word "Peace" graven in the marble headstone. -She had been anxious for news from Miss Desmond because Carol wished it -so much. She had little hope or faith that injuries, such as his, could -in any way be alleviated by Miss Desmond's knowledge of Christian -Science. The night passed again, and not for one hour did sleep close -the suffering boy's eyes. He had been unconscious for a time, murmuring -incoherently; but it was not sleep. - -Dr. Burton said very little when he came in the morning; he only looked -graver and sadder. By telegram he had been in constant communication -with Sir Wilfrid Wynne, and he knew that, humanly speaking, nothing more -could be done for the boy than was being done. Yet there was no -progress. - -"How I wish there was something I could do for you, Carol!" Mrs. -Mandeville said, as she sat beside him. - -"Auntie, there is something, if Uncle Raymond will let you have it. I -know I should fall asleep if you read _Science and Health_ to me. I -always used to when I was ill before, and Cousin Alicia read it to me, -even before I began to understand it." - -"I will go to the rectory at once, dear, and ask Uncle for the book. -Promise me to lie with closed eyes; and try not even to think about -anything whilst I am away." - -She would not write, nor send a message, fearing a refusal. As soon as -Nurse came to take her place she left the room, and the house. There was -a path through the park direct to the rectory. It was less than ten -minutes' walk. - -The Rector looked up in astonishment as his sister, hatless and coatless -(it was a chilly September day), entered the room. "What is it, -Emmeline? Is Carol worse?" he asked. Her flushed, distressed face -suggested the question. - -"I do not know if he is worse. He is just as ill as he can be, and is -suffering cruelly. I want you to let me have that book you took from -him, Raymond, _Science and Health_. He thinks if I read it to him he -will fall asleep. He has not slept yet, and this is the third day since -the accident." The Rector's face, which before had been grave and -kindly, now grew stern and resolute. "I am sorry, Emmeline, but I -cannot let you have it. That book will never pass from my hands to his -as long as I am his guardian. He knows too much already of its -pernicious doctrines. Better better--anything than that his faith in -its teachings should be strengthened." - -"Do you mean better that he should die, Raymond?" - -"Yes, Emmeline, better that--even that." - -"Oh, Raymond, how can you hold such a thought? I do not know what the -book is nor what it teaches. But I do know what is the fruit of it; and -who was it said, 'A tree is known by its fruit; a corrupt tree cannot -bring forth good fruit'?" - -"We need not discuss that, Emmeline. We both know whose words those are. -Still, I maintain that the teachings of that book, being pernicious, -cannot bring forth good fruit." - -"But, Raymond, is not gentleness, faith and love--such as Carol's--good -fruit? Jesus to him did not live two thousand years ago. He is living -to-day. He is looking to him, as the disciples looked, when the storm -arose at sea. His love and his faith are beautiful to witness. I have -always tried to teach my children the love of God, but Carol possesses -something I have not been able to give them, because I do not possess it -myself. I think it is understanding. He seems to understand the Bible -much better than I do." - -"I am sorry to hear you speak like this, Emmeline. In any difficulty -why do you not come to me? Surely there are books enough here to -explain, or to throw a light on anything that is not clear to you." - -The Rector looked round at his well-filled book-shelves: old books and -new books; works of the early Fathers and the latest theological -treatise. - -"I cannot explain what it is I want, Raymond. I only know I always seem -to be groping after something, and I cannot find it. But when I am -talking to Carol, I seem nearer to it. Raymond, won't you let me have -that book--just for to-day--I will return it to you to-morrow?" - -"No, Emmeline. Not for one hour." - -"You are cruel, Raymond, when the boy is suffering so, and it is all he -asks you. If there were a shop near where I could buy a copy, I would -straightway do so. I will know for myself what the book teaches. I -shall write to Miss Desmond, and ask her to get me a copy." - -"Of course, Emmeline, if you choose to do that, I have no control over -your actions. I have over Carol's, and I shall exercise it." - -Then Mrs. Mandeville broke down and burst into tears. "Perhaps you -won't have power long. Oh, Raymond! You do not realize how ill he is! -If meningitis sets in, Dr. Burton says it will be a matter of only a few -hours. If I were asking for a Buddhist or a Mohammedan book, it would -be right for you to let me have it." - -"No, my dear sister. I am not a believer in the doctrine that the end -justifies the means. I will pray for Carol, and for you too. I am sorry -to see you so overwrought." - -"Then you absolutely refuse, Raymond?" - -"I do, Emmeline--absolutely." - -Without a word Mrs. Mandeville turned and left the room. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV.--"HE GIVETH HIS BELOVED SLEEP." - - -Softly and lightly as Mrs. Mandeville re-entered Carol's room, he heard -her. He had been listening for her footsteps, whilst obedient to her -desire, lying with closed eyelids. - -She was spared the pain of telling him she had been unsuccessful. He -read it in her face. - -"Auntie, dear, please don't look so troubled. Uncle Raymond does not -understand. It is quite all right. Love can always find a way." Mrs. -Mandeville almost smiled through her unshed tears. How great was her -love for the boy, yet she could think of no way by which what he wanted -could be immediately procured. Even she did not fully realize how he -was waiting and yearning for that healing touch, which comes - - 'More softly than the dew is shed - Or cloud is floated overhead.' - -Nurse left the room, and Mrs. Mandeville again took her place by the -bedside. - -In less than an hour a maid came to the bedroom door, asking in a -whisper, "Can I speak to you a moment, ma'am?" - -"What is it, Withers?" Mrs. Mandeville asked. - -"A Mr. Higgs from the village is downstairs. He came to inquire after -Master Carol. He said he would like the young gentleman to know he has -walked from the village to the Manor." - -The words were spoken at the door very softly, but Carol heard. - -"Oh, Auntie, I am glad!" he said. "Could Mr. Higgs come here? I should -like to speak to him." - -"Darling, I am afraid it will excite you to see him. The doctor's -orders are that you are to be kept perfectly quiet." - -"It won't excite me, Auntie; and what makes me very happy cannot hurt -me." - -"You may bring Mr. Higgs to see Master Carol since he wishes it so much, -Withers." - -No one but those who were nursing him had been admitted to the room. -The maid was surprised as she took the message, and then brought the old -man to the room. - -"God bless 'ee, Master Carol, God bless 'ee. Aye, I don't know how to -say it often enough, when I think it's all along o' the blessed truth -you taught me I'm free of the rheumatiz. I met Farmer Stubbins on my -way, and he says, 'Why, Higgs, you're walking along quite spry. What's -become o' your rheumatiz?' 'Gone, thank the Lord,' says I, 'never to -return.' 'Oh! and what may you have done to get rid of it?' he asks, -being crippled himself with the same. 'I ain't done nothing,' I -replied. Then I says, 'Farmer Stubbins, you and me was boys together, -and we sang in the village choir. Do you mind there's a verse in the -Psalms--aye, we've sung it many a time; but we just didn't think o' the -words--it was the music we thought about. "He sent His word and healed -them." That's just what the Lord has done. He has sent His word and -healed me, and He sent it by the mouth of one of His dear children.'" - -Carol's face was radiant with joy. Anxiously watching him, Mrs. -Mandeville could not fear that the old man's talk could harm him. - -Then, after fumbling in his coat pocket, he drew forth a little book -carefully folded in soft paper. - -"I've got it, Master Carol. It came this morning--the little book -you've told me about. My daughter wrote for me. We didn't quite know -where to write, so we just addressed the letter: 'Christian Science -Church, London,' and a kind lady has sent me this book. It isn't quite -new, and she writes that I shall value it more if it costs me something. -I am just to pay what I can, and send the money as I am able." - -He was unfolding the paper covering as he spoke, and then held out a -small copy of _Science and Health_. - -"Oh, Auntie, isn't Love beautiful! You see Love _has_ found a way. Mr. -Higgs will lend it to you to read to me a little time--won't you, Mr. -Higgs?" - -"I'll be very happy to, Master Carol." - -Mrs. Mandeville took the book with almost a feeling of awe. It had come -so wonderfully, yet so simply. She thought of the words: "He sent His -angel." - -She pointed to a chair, saying, "Please be seated, Mr. Higgs, whilst I -read. Is there any particular part you would like me to read, Carol?" -she asked, turning over the pages. - -"No, Auntie--just open the book; let Love find the place." - -"Carol, you so frequently speak of Love as of a personality. What do -you mean, dear?" - -"Auntie, God is Love. But when we speak of God, it seems we must bow -our head, and think reverently of the great 'I Am.' But when we speak -of Love--we can just creep into Love's arms, and ask Love anything." - -"Even to find a place in a book," Mrs. Mandeville said with a smile. - -"Yes, Auntie--even that." - -Then she opened the book. It opened at page 494, and the first sentence -she read was: "Divine Love always has met and always will meet every -human need." - -A smile rested on the boy's face, his sufferings were forgotten, as the -dear familiar words fell on his ear. Love had not failed him. - -Mrs. Mandeville never knew afterwards how long she read. She became -entranced, absorbed. - -When she turned to look at him, he was asleep. She quietly rose, and -with one whispered word asked Mr. Higgs to follow her. - -Withers was still waiting without. - -"Take Mr. Higgs to the housekeeper's room, Withers, and ask her to give -him a substantial tea. Then send word to the stables--when he is -ready--I wish Parker to drive him to his home in my basket chaise. It is -only a step from the ground. You will easily get in and out. I am -deeply indebted to you for coming this afternoon, Mr. Higgs. My dear boy -needed sleep so much. It was vitally necessary for him. He was so sure -he would sleep, if I could read _Science and Health_ to him, and I did -not know how to procure a copy of the book." - -"May I leave this with you, ma'am?" - -"If you will be so kind for a day or two." - -"Isn't Love beautiful!" the old man said to himself, repeating Carol's -words, as he followed the maid to the housekeeper's room. - - - - -CHAPTER XV.--LETTERS AND TELEGRAMS REACH COUSIN ALICIA. - - -Carol's sleep lasted two hours. Then he awoke, with something of his -old bright smile. Mrs. Mandeville was still watching beside him. - -"Auntie, I have been asleep." - -"Yes, darling, I know. I have been watching you. It was a beautiful -sleep. I thought as I sat beside you of the words, 'He giveth His -beloved sleep.' I am sure you are better for it." - -"Yes, Auntie, it was lovely, and my back doesn't hurt me quite so much. -But I cannot move my legs yet." - -"Do not try, dear." - -"Did I dream it, Auntie, or were you reading _Science and Health_ to -me?" - -"It was not a dream, dear. Mr. Higgs came and brought the book, and he -has left it with me." - -"I remember now, Auntie. Was it not nice of him to come? Has any -message come yet from Cousin Alicia?" - -"No, love; I cannot understand why the letters and telegrams are not -forwarded to her." - -"There is some reason, I know, Auntie. We shall understand by and by." -She gave him some soda and milk, which was all the doctor would let him -have. - -"I should like to see Rosebud, Auntie. Couldn't she come for a little -while?" - -Mrs. Mandeville had already admitted one visitor against orders. Dare -she act on her own responsibility a second time? She began to realize -how much the doctor's fears of developments, which might or might not -follow, were influencing her, though, happily, she was not able to -influence Carol. He had no fear. - -"I think it must be almost Rosebud's bedtime, dear; but she shall come -for a few minutes." - -After sending a message to the nursery for Rosebud, her eye fell on the -medicine bottle. "Oh, Carol, I didn't give you your medicine this -afternoon. It was just time for it when Mr. Higgs came, and afterwards -you were asleep. It is time again for it now. I see it must be fresh -medicine; it is a different color." - -"Auntie, Mr. Higgs was my doctor, this afternoon. The medicine he -brought sent me to sleep, and I do not ache quite so much. Must I take -this drug medicine as well?" - -Mrs. Mandeville had poured out a dose, and now held the glass in her -hand. - -"You are right, Carol. I can see a decided improvement. I will not ask -you to drink this." - -She emptied the contents of the glass away. A few minutes afterwards -Rosebud's sweet voice was piping at the door: - -"Me's 'tome to see Tarol." - -Mrs. Mandeville lifted her up to kiss Carol, very carefully guarding her -from touching him anywhere. - -"You must only kiss Carol, darling." The little arms were about to twine -themselves around him. "Me does 'ove 'ou, Tarol, so welly much." - -The boy would have liked to hold her closely to him, but he could not -raise an arm. - -"It does make me so happy to see Rosebud again, Auntie. Perhaps -to-morrow I shall be able to see all my cousins." - -Mrs. Mandeville did not say, but she thought it would be many -"to-morrows" before he would be strong enough to receive them all in his -room. - -"Now run back to the nursery, darling," she said to the wee girlie. - -"Take a good-night kiss to Sylvia and Estelle, will you Rosebud?" Carol -said. Then she had to be lifted up again to receive a kiss for -"eberybody." - -Mrs. Mandeville sat silent by the bedside for some time after Rosebud -left the room. Then she said in a very low, soft voice, "Do you -remember, Carol, coming to my room one day when I lay prostrate with one -of my bad headaches?" - -"Yes, Auntie; I remember quite well." - -"I was very ungrateful, Carol, I would not let myself acknowledge it was -your little prayer that took it away. Yet I knew it was, for I had -never lost a headache like that before." - -"Yes, Auntie, I knew Christian Science had helped you. But I thought -you did not understand." - -She kissed him very tenderly. "I am not ungrateful any longer, dear. I -acknowledge the debt. Now I must not let you talk any more or Dr. -Burton will insist upon having a trained nurse. He has suggested it -several times." - -"He couldn't keep you away from me, could he, Auntie?" - -"I think he would find it a trifle difficult, dear." - -"But I want you to go downstairs to dinner to-night, Auntie. Uncle will -like to have you, and Nurse will stay with me." - -"Perhaps I will go then, for an hour, dear." - -So, later on, to everyone's surprise Mrs. Mandeville appeared at the -dinner table, and was so bright they all knew, without asking, that -Carol was improving, though he had not been pronounced out of danger. - -Nurse was quietly making all the needful little preparations for the -night when Carol asked her to place the clock where he could see it as -he lay in bed. - -"The nights seem so long when I cannot sleep, Nurse. I like to watch -the fingers of the clock, then I know how long it will be before the -light can peep through the curtains." - -Nurse found a position where he could see it quite well, even though he -could not raise his head from the pillows. Then, standing over him, she -said: "Dearie, you are in pain. Couldn't I ease your position just a -little?" - -"No, Nurse, please don't touch me, the bruises seem so real. I ought to -be able to deny them, and I cannot." - -"And would it make them better to deny them, Master Carol?" - -"Oh, yes, Nurse. You are thinking the bruises are very sore and -painful, are you not?" - -Yes, Nurse was decidedly dwelling in thought upon the pain the boy must -be suffering from such a bruised condition. - -"If you could think, Nurse, that there is no sensation in matter, that -the pain is all in mind: in my mind and your mind, and Auntie's and the -doctor's. You are all thinking how I must be suffering. If only -someone would help me to deny it!" - -"I wish I could, Master Carol." - -But it was double Dutch to Nurse to try to understand that the pain was -in mind, and not in the poor bruised body. - -It was half-past nine when she moved the time-piece so that Carol could -see it, and he at once began to count how many hours it would be till -morning. At ten o'clock Mrs. Mandeville returned to the room, followed -by Dr. Burton. Nurse held up a warning finger as they entered: the boy -was asleep. - -"This is splendid! How long has he slept?" the doctor asked. - -"It was just after half-past nine, sir. He seemed in great pain, I -thought there was no hope of sleep for him, and all at once he just -dropped off without a word." - -It was such a beautiful sleep, calm, peaceful, untroubled by fret or -moan. Mrs. Mandeville and the doctor watched beside him an hour; then -the doctor left, and Mrs. Mandeville was persuaded to go to her own room -for a night's rest, leaving Nurse in charge. They did not know, nor -could they have understood had they known, how, far away, a woman, 'clad -in the whole armour of God,' was fighting for him: fighting error with -'the sword of the Spirit.' - -Letters and telegrams had at last reached Cousin Alicia. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI.--"IT IS A MIRACLE." - - -The next morning about eight o'clock, Nurse came to Mrs. Mandeville's -room, an expression of amazement, almost of consternation, on her face. - -"What is it, Nurse? Is Master Carol worse?" Mrs. Mandeville asked in -alarm. - -"No, ma'am; I cannot say he is worse. He says he is well, and wants to -get up for breakfast. He slept all through the night, just as you left -him, and never wakened till half-past seven this morning. He is -certainly not feverish or delirious, but he talks so strangely. He says -error has all gone, and he is free. I had quite a difficulty to prevent -him from getting out of bed to come to you. I have sent a messenger for -Dr. Burton." - -"That is right, Nurse. Go back to him. I will come at once." Mrs. -Mandeville was not long slipping into a morning wrap, and following -Nurse to Carol's room. - -As soon as she reached the bedside, he sprang up, and held her in a -close embrace, both arms round her neck. "Auntie, Auntie, isn't it -beautiful? I am free! Error has quite gone. I know Cousin Alicia has -had the telegrams now. You can rub your hand down my back. It does not -hurt me now, nor the bruises." - -"Carol, dear, I cannot understand it. It seems so wonderful. I am -afraid you ought not to be sitting up like this." - -"Oh, Auntie, there is nothing to be afraid about. Error cast out cannot -come back again. I am so hungry. I do want to get up to breakfast." - -"Darling, you must lie still until Dr. Burton has seen you. I could not -consent for you to get up yet. It does indeed seem beautiful for you to -be so much better, I cannot realize it, and I cannot understand, Carol, -why Miss Desmond's prayers for you should be so quickly answered, when I -am sure I love you just as dearly. I prayed for you, and Uncle Raymond -prayed, yet--yet I cannot feel that our prayers helped you." - -She had tenderly laid him back upon the pillow. She could not get rid -of the fear that it was not good for him to be using his back. - -He was silent a few minutes, the old thoughtful expression on his face -which she knew so well. Then he said: - -"Auntie, the sun was shining this morning long before Nurse drew aside -the curtains, and let the light into my room. Suppose while the curtain -was drawn I had kept saying, 'Please, dear sun, do shine into my room, -and send the darkness away.' It would have had no effect. It would -have been foolish, wouldn't it? Well, Auntie, the light of Truth, like -the sunlight is everywhere, but we can shut it out of our consciousness -by a curtain of false beliefs. Cousin Alicia has not asked God to make -me better. She has just known that God's child is always perfect. As -Nurse drew aside the curtain to let in the sunlight, she has drawn aside -the curtain of false beliefs that were around me, and then Truth came -and healed me. Jesus said 'the Truth shall make you free.' It is just -as true, Auntie, as if he had said, 'When light appears, darkness -disappears.' Wherever Truth appears, error shall flee away, because it -is not from God. It is the opposite of God's law. I love that beautiful -verse of the hymn more than I have ever loved it, because I can say -again: - - 'The healing of the seamless dress - Is by our beds of pain.' - -Christ is Truth, and Truth is the Christ. I was asleep when he came to -me. But just as Jesus spoke to the angry waves the Christ has commanded -error, 'Peace, be still.' Oh, Auntie! cannot you believe I am quite -well? 'I am the Father's perfect child. I have the gift from God, -dominion over all.'" - -She was longing to realize that it was as the boy said, and she had -nothing to fear. Yet it was difficult. - -Dr. Burton was out when the messenger from the Manor went for him. He -had not returned from a night case to which he had been summoned. Mrs. -Burton promised that he would go immediately on his return. Shortly -after ten o'clock Dr. Burton arrived, expecting to find from the urgent -message that had reached him a change for the worse in his patient. He -was considerably taken aback as he entered the room to hear a ripple of -laughter, and the boy with a radiant face, sitting upright in bed, who, -the day before, had not been able to raise his head from the pillow. - -"What does this mean?" Dr. Burton asked in a tone of voice in which -surprise became almost consternation. - -"I cannot tell you anything, Doctor, except that Carol slept all night -and woke this morning feeling quite well and hungry. He has had a -fairly substantial breakfast," Mrs. Mandeville said. The doctor then -thoroughly examined him, felt his pulse, took his temperature, and when -he looked on the places where the terrible bruises had been, and saw -only a faint discoloration, he said: - -"It is a miracle!" - -"No, Doctor," said Carol, quietly, "it is Christian Science." - -"Then what is Christian Science?" the doctor asked. - -But the boy was silent. He could talk to his aunt on the subject, but -not to the doctor. - -At that moment a maid brought a telegram to Mrs. Mandeville. It was -from Miss Desmond. She read it, and passed it on to Dr. Burton. It was -brief: "Letters and telegrams reached me 9.30 last evening. Regret -unavoidable delay. Kindly wire if all is well. Letter to Carol -follows." The doctor and Mrs. Mandeville simply looked at each other in -speechless wonderment, one thought engrossing them. It was shortly -after 9.30 the night before that Carol fell into the sleep from which he -had awakened well. - -"It is at last a message from Cousin Alicia," Mrs. Mandeville then said -to Carol. "Our letters and telegrams did not reach her till 9.30 last -evening." - -"Yes, Auntie, I knew it, and I know she has worked for me all night." - -Both Mrs. Mandeville and the doctor would have liked to understand what -the boy meant by that one word "worked." But neither questioned him -then. - -"I can get up now, Doctor, cannot I?" Carol asked. - -"Yes, there is no reason that I can see for keeping you in bed. All the -same," turning to Mrs. Mandeville, "I should say he may as well be kept -fairly quiet for a day or two--not commence running races, or any other -juvenile sports." - -"You can trust me, Doctor," Mrs. Mandeville remarked, smiling. - -"It seems to me you should consult the lady who has worked for him all -night with such marvellous success. I can scarcely consider him my -patient now." - -"Doctor, I thank you very much for all you tried to do for me. You were -very kind and gentle to me." - -"Tut-tut, boy! Why, that's of course." - -All the same the doctor was pleased with the boy's simple recognition of -his services. He would indeed have done more, had he been able. He -walked home slowly and thoughtfully, pondering that question, which he -had asked the boy, thinking of a lecture which he had given a few weeks -before in a crowded parish room; how he himself had answered the -question--What is Christian Science?--to the convulsive amusement of his -audience. He had dipped into a book--the text-book of Christian -Science--made copious extracts and so satisfied himself that he -understood the subject sufficiently to be able to warn people against -the teachings of Christian Science. - -Mrs. Burton was watching for his return. She was anxious for news of the -boy, fearing the early message which had been sent for the doctor must -mean that he was worse. By her side, in the garden, seated in a little -wheel-chair, was her only child, a girl of ten, who after a fall -downstairs when she was five years old, causing an injury to her spine, -had lost the use of her legs. There seemed no hope of her ever being -able to walk again, since all the doctors who had seen her had not been -able to do anything for her. - -"How is the boy?" asked Mrs. Burton, as the doctor entered the garden in -front of the house. - -"He is well," was the brief reply. - -"You don't mean?--" Mrs. Burton began in an alarmed tone. - -"I mean exactly what I say--the boy is well." - -"But, dear, how can that be, when he was so ill yesterday?" - -"I cannot tell you. He says it is Christian Science. I say it is a -miracle." - -"Father, he won't lose the use of his legs, will he?" the little girl -asked. - -"No, Eloise, I think there will be no such effects from the fall, as -unhappily there were in your case." - -"I am glad, Father, he is such a nice, kind boy!" - -The child had grieved, fearing that he might be crippled like herself. - -"Christian Science must be different from what you described at the -lecture, dear. Do you think I might go and see Carol? I should like to -hear from him what it is that has made him well so quickly. I owe Mrs. -Mandeville a call." - -"Go and pay it, then. Perhaps the boy will talk to you. He did not -seem to care to answer my questions." - -The doctor passed into the house with the thought that he would borrow -that book again, and see if he could get a better understanding of the -subject himself. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII.--MRS. BURTON VISITS CAROL. - - -Shortly after the doctor left Carol's room, the maid entered to say the -Rector was downstairs. Could he come up? - -"I will speak with the Rector before he comes upstairs," Mrs. Mandeville -said, and left the room for that purpose. - -The news had reached the Rector that Dr. Burton had been sent for early -that morning, and he also surmised that the boy must be worse. But the -servants had assured him that such was not the case before Mrs. -Mandeville joined him in the library. - -"What is this I hear about Carol, Emmeline? He is not worse, yet you -sent for Dr. Burton before breakfast. I felt quite alarmed." - -"We could not understand it, Raymond. I must confess to feeling afraid -it was not true. Carol is quite well. Dr. Burton admits it. He says -it is a miracle. Carol says it is Christian Science. Dear Raymond, I -want to beg you before you see Carol not to say anything to shake his -faith. It is so beautiful." - -"His faith in what? In that heresy called Christian Science, which is -neither Science nor Christian?" - -"Oh, Raymond, I cannot help thinking you are mistaken in your judgment. -I do not, as I told you before, quite understand what Christian Science -is, but this I know, I have never met a character so Christ-like as -Carol's. All day yesterday he lay in such pain from those terrible -bruises, and the injury to his spine and head, that we could not move -him in the effort to ease his position without increasing the pain. -To-day it is all gone. What has taken it away? He says the -Christ--Truth has come to him and healed him. If we believe Jesus' -words: 'Lo, I am with you always even to the end of the world'--why -should it not be true? Cannot the spiritual Christ say as Jesus so often -said, 'According to your faith be it unto you'?" - -"Of course! But that is not Christian Science." - -"Yes, Raymond, that is what Carol seems to have learned from Christian -Science. Heaven to him is not a far-off locality, it is here--all around -him, and God is ever-present Love. His one thought--his one desire -seems to be to possess that Mind which was also in Christ Jesus. What -can you say against such teaching?" - -The Rector had evidently nothing to say. He remarked briefly, "If I may, -I will go up and see the boy now. I am pressed for time." - -"Yes, Raymond, he will be pleased to see you." - -She let him go alone, and did not afterwards inquire what had passed -between the boy and his uncle. - -Later in the day Mrs. Mandeville took Percy to Carol's room. The boy -had begged so frequently to be allowed to see his cousin. "Just to tell -him I am sorry," he said. - -Carol had forgotten all about it. - -"Sorry for what, dear Percy?" he inquired, when Percy, in faltering -accents, asked to be forgiven. - -"Oh, I think I remember now, Percy, you said something that was not -quite kind, but I knew at the time that you did not mean it. So why -should we remember any more about it?" - -"You are just the bravest fellow I know, Carol. I have told all the -boys at school how you stood and faced the bull. They think a -tremendous lot of you for it. So it won't matter when you come with us -if you can't play football or cricket. You will be the hero of the -school." - -Then Mrs. Mandeville left the boys together for a little while. Percy -was only too delighted to be able to tell Carol of all that was -happening at school, the matches that had been played, and those that -were to come off shortly. - -When Mrs. Burton called that same afternoon, she expressed her great -desire to see and talk with Carol. Mrs. Mandeville readily assented, -remarking that she felt sure Carol would be delighted to see her. As -there were other visitors present, she was not able to accompany her -herself. A maid therefore conducted her to Carol's room. Nurse was -sitting with him. As Mrs. Burton intimated that she had come to have a -little talk with Master Carol, she left the room. - -"Eloise sends her love to you, dear Carol. She is so happy to know you -are so wonderfully better. We feared so much that you, too, might be -crippled for life, as she has been, by a fall. The spinal concussion -caused her to lose the use of her legs. We have consulted the first -specialists, but they have never been able to do anything for her. When -the doctor told me this morning how miraculously you have been healed, I -felt I must come and ask you to tell me something about it. Tell me, -dear Carol, what is Christian Science?" - -The boy looked up, but not at Mrs. Burton. That far-away dreamy look -came to his eyes, which his cousins knew so well. It was such a big -question to try to answer. It seemed minutes before he spoke. Then he -said: "I think Christian Science means knowledge--a knowledge of God; -and as we gain this knowledge we draw nearer to Him. Cousin Alicia used -to tell me we are all God's children, but we have wandered so far away -from Him. We are prodigals, dwelling in that far country where we are -fed, like the swine, on husks. Christian Science just teaches us the -way back to our Father's house; and as we find the road and walk in it, -we lose the evils that tormented us. Jesus was our elder brother who -never left his Father's house. Although he lived on earth, it was still -his Father's house, because he lived always in the consciousness of -good. And that is what we have to try to do. It seemed easier when I -was with Cousin Alicia." - -There was just a note of sadness and regret in the boy's voice. - -"What a beautiful thought, Carol, 'living in the consciousness of good.' -But, dear, how can we do it, with sickness, sorrow, and sin, all around? -When I look at my wee girlie, I can never know joy or happiness; her -young life to be so cruelly blighted through the carelessness of a maid. -Every child I see running about free and happy is like a dagger in my -heart, as I know that she should be the same." - -"When Cousin Alicia came from America after my mother's death, I was -very ill, and the doctors said I could never be better. But she knew -that I could. She said, 'You are God's child, dear Carol, and all God's -children are spiritual, and therefore perfect. Awake from this dream of -suffering and pain.' Every day she used to talk to me, until she led me -to understand what it is to live in the consciousness of good, and then -I was well." - -"Oh, Carol, it seems too wonderful to be true! Do you think that -something might be done for my little girl?" - -"Why, of course. I am sure if you will take her to my home, Cousin -Alicia will teach her as she taught me. She is always so happy to teach -people about Christian Science. Shall I write and tell her you will take -Eloise to her?" - -"Thank you, dear Carol, but I think, perhaps, before you write, I must -ask Dr. Burton. If he is willing, I will gladly take my little girl to -Miss Desmond." - -Mrs. Burton did not stay much longer. On leaving, she tenderly kissed -Carol. "Dear boy, you have given me hope. You cannot think what it has -been to a mother's heart to be so long hopeless," she said. - -The little crippled Eloise was watching from her nursery window for her -mother's return. Mrs. Burton went straight to her. - -"Have you seen Carol, Mother?" she asked. - -"Yes, darling, and I have had such a sweet talk with him. He has made -me so happy. I seem to see you running about like other children." - -"Oh, Mother, wouldn't that be lovely! And is he really well?" - -"It seems so, dear. Mrs. Mandeville is keeping him quietly in his own -room to-day. But he seemed so well and happy. He wants me to take you -into Devonshire to stay with his cousin. He says she will teach us what -she has taught him--and then--Oh, Eloise, my darling, you, too, would be -well and strong, no longer a little crippled girl." - -"What is it, Mother, that he has been taught?" - -"It seems something so wonderful and beautiful, dear. He says that -dwelling in the consciousness of good is dwelling in our Father's house, -but, like the prodigal son in the parable, we have wandered away into -that far country where all sorts of evils can befall us. My girlie, we -will try to find our way together into this happy understanding of good -which causes the fetters to fall. I will speak to Father to-night and -ask him to let me take you." - -"Do--_do_, please, Mother." - -Mrs. Burton waited that evening until it was past the hour for patients -to call at the surgery. Then she went to her husband's consulting-room. - -The doctor was sitting at his desk, an open letter before him. His pen -was in his hand, but he was not writing. The answer to the letter -seemed to require much thought. It was only partly written. - -"Are you very busy, dear?" Mrs. Burton said, softly twining one arm -around his neck. She was almost nervous. It was a great request she was -about to proffer. She did not quite know how it would be received. - -"Not particularly, love, if you want anything. What is it?" - -"I want to tell you I had a beautiful talk with Carol this afternoon, -and he is so kind as to ask me to take Eloise to stay with his cousin at -his home in Devonshire, that she--that she might teach us what she has -taught him. You know, dear, we have done everything we can--there is no -other hope for her." - -"And you think there may be hope in this--Christian Science?" - -"I feel sure of it--since I have seen Carol." - -The doctor smiled. The humor of the situation struck him. He pointed -to the open letter on his desk. - -"That letter," he said, "is from the Vicar of B-- asking me to give in -his Parish Room the lecture which I gave at B--." - -"Oh!" There was an accent of pain in Mrs. Burton's voice. "You are not -going to?" - -"Why do you object? The lecture was well received, you remember." - -"Yes, but even at the time when the people laughed and applauded, it -seemed to hurt me. I couldn't help thinking if these people, who call -themselves Christian Scientists, believe so absolutely in the Christ -healing, it was what the early Christians believed, and practised, and -they were persecuted. When Christ spoke to Saul of Tarsus, he did not -say, 'Why persecutest thou my followers?' He said 'Why persecutest thou -_me_?' - -"So I felt that night that the laughter and ridicule of all in the room -were as stones thrown not at people, but at the Christ. Don't tell me, -dear, that you are going to give that lecture again." - -"I am not. That boy's radiant face would come between me and any -audience I might think to address. I have commenced a letter to the -Vicar, telling him I feel I cannot lecture on the subject again." - -"And I may take Eloise to Willmar Court?" - -"You may. Should she regain the use of her legs, as a result of the -visit, I will espouse the Cause I once derided. After witnessing -Carol's marvellous recovery, it does not seem impossible." - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII.--HAPPY THOUGHTS. - - -After Mrs. Burton left Carol, Edith came and had tea with him, and after -tea all his cousins were allowed to visit him for a little time. They -could not understand how the sadness and gloom in the house had been -dispelled. It was like the sun shining through clouds on a rainy day. -He was so bright and happy, just their own dear Carol again. There was -one subject of which he never spoke to his cousins; so they could not -know why, the day before, the house was hushed, and he could not be seen -because he was so ill, and to-day there seemed nothing at all the matter -with him. - -When Mrs. Mandeville went the round of the children's rooms after -dinner, she found Carol waiting for her in the old way, just as if there -had been no break, no agony of sorrow and suspense. - -"I hoped to find you asleep, darling," she said. "Has it been too much -excitement having so many in your room?" - -"Oh, no, Auntie. I loved to see them all again. I have had such happy -thoughts. Isn't it nice to be kept awake by happy thoughts? Happy -thoughts are good thoughts, and good thoughts come from God. Shall I -tell you, Auntie, dear, what I have been thinking about?" - -"Wouldn't it be better to tell me in the morning, dearie? It is rather -late for a little boy who was an invalid only yesterday to be kept awake -even by happy thoughts." - -"I would rather tell you to-night, Auntie. You do not quite understand, -do you, that when error is cast out, it is done with, and we do not need -to remember anything about it." - -"Then tell me, love, what you have been thinking about." - -"I began first of all, Auntie, thinking about Peter." - -Mrs. Mandeville's thoughts at once went to the stables, where one of the -horses was named Peter. - -"Peter, dear?" Just a note of surprise in her voice. - -"Yes, Auntie, when Jesus called Peter to come to him on the water, at -first he was not afraid, and he got out of the boat to go to him. Then -he began to be afraid, and as soon as fear crept in, he began to sink. -Auntie, I was just like that. At first I was not afraid of the bull. I -knew God had given me dominion, and I was trying to realize it. Then -the moment I began to be afraid, the bull tossed me. As I was thinking -of this perhaps I fell asleep, and it was a dream. But it was so real. -I seemed to see Peter standing by the bed, but he didn't look like the -picture in the stained-glass window, and he spoke so kindly and gently. -'Little brother,' he said, 'you have not learned to trust the Master -yet.' It was just as if he remembered there was a time when his faith -had failed. I wanted to ask him something, but he was not there, and I -was quite wide awake. May it perhaps be, Auntie, that as Christ 'walks -life's troubled angry sea,' they are with him, those disciples who were -always with Jesus, especially Peter, and James, and John; and they are -working now, doing his bidding, as they did it in Galilee, watching over -and helping those who are still fighting?" - -"It may be, Carol, we cannot tell. It seems that events which happened -two thousand years ago are to you but as yesterday." - -"Why, yes, Auntie; time in God's kingdom is not measured by years and -weeks and months. I shall just love now to think about Peter, and know -that my faith will grow stronger, as his did. There are many people who -would not have been afraid of the bull. Cousin Alicia told me of a lady -in India who, one day, came quite close to a cobra. But she was not -afraid, and as she stood quite still and looked at it, the cobra coiled -itself into a heap and went to sleep. Then she told me of a gentleman -who was shooting game in Africa, and once he was in a position when he -could not fire, and a leopard was only a few yards from him, but the -animal did not attack him, it ran away into the desert. The lady and -the gentleman knew and realized that they had dominion; I hope I shall -understand it better some day, and not be afraid of anything." - -"You have been taught some strange things, Carol, still they are -beautiful; it seems almost too beautiful to be true." - -"Oh, Auntie, nothing can be too beautiful to be true, because only good, -and good is always beautiful, is real; evil, and evil is always ugly, is -unreal." - -"Carol, darling, I wish I could believe that. You are leading me in -strange paths. I must not let you talk any more to-night. I am quite -sure that it is time a little boy, who has lost so much sleep lately, -tried to make up for it." - -But as she bent over him to kiss him, he clung both arms around her -neck, keeping her a willing captive for some minutes longer. - -"Auntie, I am so longing for Cousin Alicia's letter," were his last -words as she left the room. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX.--THE REASON OF THE DELAY. - - -The next morning Carol rose at his usual time, and breakfasted with his -cousins in the school-room. Miss Markham looked at him with puzzled -eyes, especially when he told her he was quite ready to begin lessons -again. She could not understand it. There seemed to be some mystery -connected with his marvellous recovery from what everybody believed to -be serious injuries. She took the opportunity, when his cousins were -out of the room, to ask him quietly, "What has made you well so quickly, -Carol?" - -"Ask Auntie, please, Miss Markham, I am not allowed to talk about it," -he replied. Miss Markham's wonderment was considerably increased, for -Mrs. Mandeville had only told her, when the boy first came to the Manor, -that he had been taught religious tenets which were altogether -unorthodox. She did not then connect that remark with the boy's quick -recovery. He often made remarks which surprised her. Sometimes she -pondered over a remark he had made, and found there was more in it than -at first had appeared. If she attempted to draw him out by questions, -he became strangely silent and reserved. Once, it was during a history -lesson, Carol exclaimed, "But evil could have no power, Miss Markham, if -everyone knew that God--good--governs. If we had no belief in evil, -evil could not hurt us." - -Thinking over the words afterwards, Miss Markham admitted to herself -that to acknowledge the omnipotence of God, must deprive evil of any -power. But she wondered how it was Carol had come to see it so clearly. -She could not, however, draw him to talk any more on the subject. After -breakfast Mrs. Mandeville came to the school-room with the longed-for -letter in her hand, and, as permission was readily given, Carol went to -his own room to read it. Eagerly he broke open the envelope, and read: - -"WILLMAR COURT, - SOUTH DEVON. - -"_My dear, dear Carol,_ - -"The telegram in answer to mine this morning has just arrived. I waited -for it before commencing my letter to you. I rejoice for you, Truth has -triumphed, error has fallen. When I returned to the Court last night, -after being absent since Saturday afternoon, I found telegrams and -letters awaiting me. On learning that the first telegram asking for -help for you was more than three days old, I had to fight error on my -own account, before I could fight it on yours. How quick error is to -find the weak parts of our armor. My human love for you, darling, -opened wide the portals, and a crowd of wrong thoughts rushed in. I -found myself wondering why it should have so happened that I should be -away, when I seemed most wanted, and under circumstances which made it -impossible for the telegrams to be sent on. - -"Then, in this sudden tempest of doubts and fears which had rushed upon -me, came the words, calm, sweet, tender: 'I, if I, be lifted up, will -draw all men unto me.' And I knew, I was absolutely sure, however great -were the sense sufferings, Carol had held steadfastly to Truth: the -Christ was lifted up; and, though he may not know it, some human heart -has been drawn nearer the eternal Truth, Christ. - -"Then I commenced to work for you, and when the roseate hues of early -morning began to steal into the room, the knowledge came to me that -there was nothing more to fight--error was overcome. All is well, even -the delay which at first seemed altogether wrong. Now I will tell you -the reason of it. On Saturday afternoon I was driving your pony in the -small basket carriage, which you so often used. (Since they cannot have -their little master, both Bob and the pony think the next best thing is -to take me about.) I am becoming well acquainted with all the beautiful -lanes in the neighborhood, for I frequently take these little -excursions. - -"We were three or four miles from home, when, in a very narrow lane, -where it was impossible to pass another vehicle, we met a farmer, -driving a dog-cart. The farmer showed his reluctance to be the one to -back out of the lane. He accosted me with these words: 'Ma'am, I am in -great haste; it is a matter of life and death.' - -"'Indeed,' I said, 'is it the doctor you are in haste to reach?' - -"'No,' he replied, briefly, 'the doctor has given her up. It is the -lady that lives at Willmar Court I want to see.' - -"'Then you have not far to go,' I said. 'She is here. What is your -trouble?' Then he told me that his only child, a girl of seven, was -believed to be dying. The doctor gave no hope of saving her. 'It seems -the news of your beautiful healing has spread through the neighboring -villages, and the grief-stricken parents of this little girl thought -there might be hope for her.' - -"I told the farmer I would go with him, and straightway sent Bob home -with the pony, bidding him to tell the servants I should return as soon -as possible, but not to trouble if I did not return that night. - -"As soon as we had backed out of the lane, the farmer drove furiously, -and it was not long before we reached his homestead. I found the belief -of death so strong surrounding the child, that it seemed necessary to -remain there. - -"In two days it was overcome, but I stayed another day to give the -wearied mother a good rest. The farmer drove me home last night, when I -found everyone sadly troubled. They had begun to fear I was never going -to return, and Bob could not give them any idea as to who had driven -away with me. The letters and telegrams from Mandeville naturally added -to their anxiety. - -"Now, all is well: Good was governing--Love leading all the time. I -cannot yet understand how it was the bull tossed you. Were you not able -to realize your dominion? or was it the mesmerism of fear that seized -you? Mrs. Mandeville mentions in her letter that you stood between your -little cousins and the bull. My dear boy, of course you would! I could -not imagine your doing otherwise. Doubtless the nurse's fear and the -cries of the little girls affected you--the contagion of thought. Had -you been quite alone, I feel so sure that you would have been able to -realize your God-given dominion. - -"Tell me more when you write (I am longing for a letter) of the old man -and his little grand-daughter. Work always comes to willing hands and -loving hearts, and what work is, or ever can be, so beautiful as work -for the Master in His Vineyard. Never think any service little. Merely -carrying even a cup of cold water will in no case lose its reward. But -the joy of working--_of being allowed to work_--is sufficient. We do -not look to the reward. - -"With loving thoughts, - Believe me always, dear Carol, - Your affectionate cousin, - ALICIA DESMOND." - -Before returning to the school-room, Carol sought his aunt in her -morning-room. After reading his letters, he always took them to her, -and asked her to read them too. They were not, perhaps, always as -intelligible to her as they were to the boy, but they never failed to -interest her. She was conscious of a growing desire to know the writer, -whom she had never met. Later in the day Carol received another letter, -delivered by hand. It was from Mrs. Burton, joyfully telling him the -doctor was willing for her to take Eloise into Devonshire to his cousin. - -He wrote immediately to Miss Desmond, asking her if she would invite -Mrs. Burton and her little daughter to the Court, explaining the reason. -He knew the invitation would not be long in coming. - - - - -CHAPTER XX.--"LIGHT AT EVENTIDE." - - -On the following Sunday evening Carol appeared at Mr. Higgs' cottage at -the usual time. - -It seemed almost impossible to believe there had been a break, and that -for three days he had lain, to mortal sense, between life and death. So -entirely had the cloud rolled away, it was difficult to realize it had -ever darkened the horizon. - -"I wasn't expecting you, Master Carol, but I'm right glad to see you. -It do seem so wonderful that just this time last Sunday all the village -was waiting for news from the Manor, and I was that sad thinking I'd -never have you come to see me again. The Rector prayed for you in -church. I was there for the first time for well-nigh two years. 'Well, -well,' I said to myself, 'if the Lord takes him, His will be done.' -But, oh, I prayed as I've never prayed since we lost our first child -that He wouldn't." - -"You do not understand then yet that death can never be God's will. -Didn't Jesus say, 'I am come that they might have life, and that they -might have it more abundantly'? If Jesus came to bring us life, does -not that show that God never sends death?" - -"Well, Master Carol, as you put it, maybe it is so, but I'm an old man, -and it's what I was taught as a boy, and the belief's grown up wi' me, -and somehow I wouldn't like to give up the thought. It's the only thing -that makes the parting bearable--to think God wills it. We put it on -the headstone where we laid our little girl. _Thy will be done_. Aye, -I've stood and looked at them words many a time, and they sort o' -comforted me. She was our first-born." - -"There is another verse which says 'to know God is everlasting life.' -In everlasting life there can be no death, can there? Just think of -this: If the sun were never hidden, and you could keep your eyes -steadfastly on the light, you would have no knowledge of darkness--you -would not understand it or believe in it. In the same way when we -understand that God is ALL, we must lose the thought of and belief in -death. There is no death to those that know we live and move and have -our being in God-Life. Death could not steal one of God's ideas--His -children--and destroy it. What seems to die is not God's child. What -you buried in the churchyard was not your little girl, and what they -cast into the sea, was not my father. They are still living. It is only -that we do not see them. You know Jesus says, 'In my Father's house are -many mansions.' They have passed on to another mansion--that is all. -My cousin has taught me that the mansions Jesus spoke of are not afar -off in a locality called Heaven. We are to-day--you and I--dwelling in -one of God's mansions, and it is a higher or a lower mansion according -as we dwell in the consciousness of good. We have to take all the steps -up to that special place which Jesus has gone to prepare for us. If we -are not ready for it, we shall not be able to enter it, even if we have -passed through the door called death. We have to fight and overcome all -that separates us from God. Jesus overcame everything. He put sin and -disease under his feet, and we have just to follow in his steps, knowing -that he prepared the way, and is helping us all the time. Perhaps you -did not think when you had rheumatism that it was a shadow between you -and God, did you? You thought it was God's will for you." - -"That's true, Master Carol. I just bowed down to it, thinking God chose -to afflict me for some special purpose." - -"I knew it was not so, when I tried to help you. I always saw you -perfect, as God made you, and you know the shadow disappeared. When I -lay in bed a few days ago, and couldn't move, the bruises seemed so -real, and the pain very great, I couldn't think of them as shadows, but -my cousin was able to do it for me, and all disappeared. Neither my -aunt nor the doctor seemed able to believe it at first, because they do -not understand. Won't it be a happy day when everyone understands that -Truth destroys disease; and when little children have hip-disease -doctors won't hurt them to try to make them better, as they did me?" - -"Did they really?" - -"Yes, and the operation did not make me better. But we will not talk -about it. I ought not to remember anything about it. It was all error. -Shall we have the chapter again from St. John which tells us 'In my -Father's house are many mansions'?" - -"Aye, I mind that chapter well. The words just sink down into my heart, -and stir up something there, and I've wanted to understand them better. -I've thought a lot about it since the last time you talked to me. I -know He is faithful who promised, the 'works that I do shall he do -also.' As I said before, I'm an old man, Master Carol, and I've been -looking for it all my life. Why, I've asked myself, don't His servants -and ministers give us the signs He promised?" - -"And now what you have been looking for all these years has come--the -light at eventide," Carol said softly, looking beyond the old man with -eyes that seemed unconscious of the crimson of the setting sun, as he -caught a glimpse of that marvellous light which 'never was, on land or -sea'--spiritual understanding. - -"You have been healed, and your little grand-daughter, and I, too, in -the way the Master commanded." - -"Aye, it's true, Master Carol. I feel like saying, 'Lord, now lettest -thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy -salvation.' It is His salvation. Maybe when you have read me that -chapter from the Bible, you'll read me some pages of the little book -which seems to make things clearer to me, and helps me to understand the -Bible better." - -"I am sorry, I may not," Carol said regretfully, looking at the little -book which lay beside the old man's Bible. "My uncle has taken my copy -of the book away because he did not wish me to read it. It would not be -honorable to read from another copy. It will be given back to me -sometime. I do not know how or when. Auntie asked me not to stay long -this evening, so I will read the chapter now." - -"My daughter'll be sorry she missed coming in. We didn't expect you -to-night, Master Carol. She's very grateful to you; her little girl -seems quite well now. There's been no return o' the fits. An' my -rheumatiz is quite the talk o' th' village. What's took it away? First -one and then another asks. When I tell 'em th' Lord's healed me--well, -well, they just look at me, as if they thunk th' rheumatiz has gone to -my head and turned my brain. Farmer Stubbins says he's coming in one -night to have a talk with me, for he's tried many remedies, but his -rheumatiz keeps getting worse." - -"Give him the little book to read, or tell him to get one for himself," -Carol said. Then he read again the chapter he had once before read. At -the end he closed the book without comment. - -Brightly wishing the old man good-night, he left the cottage. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI.--JOYFUL NEWS FROM ELOISE. - - -Miss Desmond gladly acceded to Carol's desire, and wrote to Mrs. Burton -at once to bring her little girl to stay with her. - -They left for Devonshire the following week. A month passed before -Carol received the promised letter from Eloise. During the time Miss -Desmond wrote to him as usual, but beyond mentioning the pleasure it was -to her to have his friends staying with her, and what a dear interesting -little girl she found Eloise, she did not give any details of their -visit. At the end of the month the postman brought one morning a -delightfully "fat envelope" addressed to Carol in a round, childish -hand. He knew at once it was the long promised letter from Eloise. -There was also a shorter one enclosed from Mrs. Burton. - -Carol read Eloise's letter first. - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My dear Carol,_ - -"I did not forget I had promised to write soon to you. Miss Desmond -seemed to wish me not to write just at first. She said you would -understand. I think she wanted everyone at Mandeville to forget for a -little while all about me. She called it taking their thought off me. - -"Now I have so much to tell you. I do not know how I shall get it all -in one letter. Dear Carol, I am just the very, very happiest little girl -in all the world. I _can walk_. More than that, I can _run_. Isn't it -lovely--wonderful! One night I dreamed that I was walking, and when I -awoke in the morning the dream seemed so real, I felt it must be true. -So I just got out of bed, and I _could walk_. I walked to Mother's -bedside. She was so glad and happy. When we saw dear Miss Desmond at -breakfast time, and I wanted to thank her, and tell her how much I loved -her, she took me to her room, and pointed to a portrait on the wall. -Such a sweet, loving face, with white, wavy hair. 'That, dear Eloise,' -she said, 'is the portrait of the one you must love. I could not have -taken you to the Fountain of Truth to be healed, had she not first shown -me the way.' And oh, Carol, I do love dear Mrs. Eddy. How I wish I -could tell her so! - -"Just for a few days, my legs were so shaky, and I had to keep sitting -down. I only walked about a room. Then I was able to go downstairs. -At the end of a week Miss Desmond and Mother took me the walk you first -took, and I sat down to rest just where you rested on the stump of the -old tree. We waited quite a long time, hoping Birdie would come. And -he did, but he stayed only a minute, chirping--'So glad--so glad.' (It -was just like that.) Then he flew away as if he were in a great hurry, -and that was all he had time to tell us. - -"Miss Desmond said: 'Birdie is always busy about his Father's business.' -Mother looked puzzled, and I too. We could not understand. Then Miss -Desmond said to me, 'God is Birdie's Father too, dear Eloise. Birdie is -a spiritual idea; he has no life apart from God. He has his appointed -work to do in God's Kingdom. All God's ideas reflect Him--reflect Life, -Truth, Love, Goodness. Perhaps Birdie's work is just to voice a note of -joy, of harmony.' - -"That made me think, Carol, if even a little bird has his appointed -task, I, too, must have mine--some work to do for God. I am waiting for -it to be made plain to me. Now I have the desire to do it, Miss Desmond -says, the work is sure to come. Even if it is only a very little thing -at first, I shall be glad to do it. - -"Dear Carol, we are so enjoying staying here, Mother and I. I am so -fond of all your pets, and feed them every day, and talk to them about -you. Before I could walk, Bob used to take me round the grounds in your -pony-carriage, and he always talked so much of you, and the time when he -used to take you about. He will be so glad when you come home again. -All the servants like to hear about you. They love you so much. I have -had to tell them ever so many times about the bull, and how you stood -and faced him, and did not run away. They are so proud of you. 'The -young Master' they call you. I tell Mother, Willmar Court is like a -little kingdom, and you the exiled prince. - -"Father is coming next week to take us home. Until he sees me walking, -I think he cannot quite believe it. He says he wants to have a long -talk with Miss Desmond. - -"With many loving thoughts, dear Carol, I am, - -Your affectionate little friend - ELOISE BURTON. - -"P.S. Mother has helped me just a little with this letter, and now she -is writing to you herself." - - ---- - -Carol could not wait to read Mrs. Burton's letter before giving the -joyful news to Mrs. Mandeville. With both letters in his hand, he ran -to seek his aunt in her morning-room. - -"Auntie, Auntie!" he cried excitedly--"such news! Eloise can walk--more -than that, she can run. Isn't it beautiful?" - -"Really, Carol? Is it really true?" - -"Yes, Auntie, _really_. Will you read Eloise's letter? And oh, may I -tell my cousins?" - -"Tell them that Eloise can walk? Why, certainly, dear." - -"But more than that, Auntie; they will ask what has made her walk, when -every one believed she could never walk again. Mayn't I tell them, -Auntie, Christian Science has done what the doctors couldn't do?" - -"I will think, dear, what you may tell them. Let me see Eloise's letter. -Whilst Mrs. Mandeville read the little girl's letter, Carol opened and -read Mrs. Burton's. - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My dear Carol,_ - -"Eloise herself has written the glad news to you that the use of her -legs is perfectly restored. My joyful gratitude is more than can be -expressed in words. Yet it even seems that the blessing of this -wonderful physical healing is small in comparison with the knowledge we -have gained of the Truth, which Jesus said should make us free. Here, -amidst the lovely surroundings of your beautiful home, I have lost my -old concept of God, and gained instead an understanding of Him, as -ever-present Love: infinite Life, Truth, Love. - -"It seemed so soon after I was able to see and realize this that my -little girl was healed. And oh, Carol, the kindness and gentleness with -which dear Miss Desmond has led us up to this understanding, never -letting us for a moment cling to her, pointing always away from -personality to divine Principle. We must be and are very grateful for -her faithful instruction and example, for her life, so consecrated to -God that the promised signs are given: 'They shall lay hands on the -sick, and they shall recover.' I did not at the time understand your -own marvellous recovery from the effects of the encounter with the bull. -I do now, and I feel, dear boy, we owe you intense gratitude. It was -your steadfast faith in the Christ, Truth, which led me to seek -spiritual healing for my little Eloise. The words come to me: 'I, if I -be lifted up, will draw all men unto me.' For me the Christ was lifted -up, and I was drawn unto Him. May my life henceforth so testify that -others may in the same manner be drawn unto Him. - -"Please convey my very kind regards to Mrs. Mandeville. She will, I -know, rejoice with us. - -"Believe me always, dear Carol, - -Yours lovingly, - M. K. BURTON." - -"It is indeed wonderful and beautiful, Carol," Mrs. Mandeville said as -she returned the little girl's letter. I sincerely rejoice with Dr. and -Mrs. Burton. I know what a sad trial Eloise's paralysis has been to -them." - -Then Mrs. Mandeville became aware that Carol was looking up with -anxiously expectant eyes, awaiting an answer to a question. - -"Dear boy," she said, "if you told your cousins that Christian Science -has made Eloise to walk, they would not understand what you meant. -Indeed, I do not quite understand, myself--yet. I will come to the -school-room with you, and perhaps we can explain to them that Eloise has -been healed by faith in the power of God." - -With that Carol had to be satisfied, though he longed to explain that it -was not faith alone, but faith with understanding: the understanding of -God as All-in-all, Omnipotent, Omnipresent Love. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII.--THE RETURN OF ELOISE. - - -When, the following week, Dr. Burton brought his wife and daughter home, -both he and Mrs. Burton gratefully spoke of the Science which had healed -her. The little girl, in her wheel-chair, had been so familiar an -object of compassion to the villagers that, when they saw her walking, -they wanted to know what had brought it about. Then Mr. Higgs -triumphantly held up a little book. - -"It's all in here, bless the Lord," he said. "What's become o' my -rheumatiz, you ask. I don't know what's become o' it. I only know it's -gone. What becomes o' the darkness when you let the sunshine in? I'm -getting to understand it better every day. There's no need to trouble -what's become o' error when you let the Truth in." - -Then he told them of his little grand-daughter, and how she, too, had -lost something. There was no need to say what. All the village had -known of the little girl's sad affliction. Many listened to him, and -looked curiously at the little book, but only a few believed. It was -easier to attribute the healing to nature, or natural causes, than to -spiritual laws. The return of Eloise was a great joy to Carol. She was -able to tell him much that he wanted to know. He so seldom spoke of his -home, Mrs. Mandeville would have been surprised to know how often he had -to fight against a sick longing for the dear scenes of his childhood, -and the cousin-friend who was now the representative of both father and -mother. - -The Burtons arrived home too late for Carol to meet them at the station, -as he intended. - -The next morning he was an early visitor at their house. Eloise had -only just finished breakfast. - -"Oh, Carol!" - -"Oh, Eloise!" - -In a moment the two children were locked in each other's arms. Between -them was a bond of sympathy which neither could have defined, stronger, -more tender, than the tie of human relationship. Then, joyfully, Eloise -began to tell him all about her visit. She had so many messages to -deliver, and Carol had so many questions to ask, it was lunch time -before they were half through. Dr. Burton came in from his rounds. He -told them that he had called at the Manor, and had gained Mrs. -Mandeville's permission to keep Carol for the rest of the day. - -"Thank you so much, Dr. Burton, I am very pleased to stay," Carol said -in answer. - -Dr. Burton laid both hands on the boy's shoulders. - -"My boy," he said gravely, "the pleasure is ours. We owe you a debt of -gratitude we can never hope to repay." - -The words brought a flush of pleasure to Carol's face. He could not -think that he had done anything to deserve such gratitude. - -After lunch, when she found the trunks had been unpacked, Eloise showed -Carol a little book, Miss Desmond's parting gift to her. It was exactly -like the book that had been given to Carol. He took it from Eloise, as -she held it out to him, but immediately laid it down on the table. -"Shall we do part of the Lesson together, Carol? It will be so nice. I -have done part of it every morning with Miss Desmond." - -"Yes, I used to," Carol said, and Eloise detected a note of sadness in -his voice. - -"Do you study it alone now, Carol?" she said. - -"No, I never study it at all, Eloise. I have not a book. The book -Cousin Alicia gave me Uncle Raymond has." - -"Then we can do it together every week from my book, cannot we?" - -"No, Eloise, Uncle Raymond took my book away because he did not wish me -to study it. Until he gives me permission, I cannot read it with you." - -"I am so sorry, Carol. The Rector always speaks so kindly to me when he -sees me, I should not mind asking him to let you have it again--shall I? -Perhaps he does not know how much you want it." - -"Auntie asked him when I was ill, and he would not. I do not think it -would be any use for you to ask him, dear Eloise." - -"And wouldn't you like to have my book sometimes, Carol?" - -"Not without Uncle Raymond's permission. He is my guardian. I must be -obedient to his wishes. Don't look sorry, Eloise. It is all right. We -can only take one step at a time. It is sure to be given back to me -when I am ready to take another step." - -"Will my book be taken away from me? Father and Mother are both pleased -for me to have it." - -"Why, no, Eloise. The lesson I need to learn is perhaps not the lesson -you need. Everyone who comes into Science has something to -overcome--some particular lesson to master, Cousin Alicia said. Mine is -obedience, cheerful, willing obedience, and every victory of Truth over -error makes us stronger." - -Then with the _gaiet de coeur_ of childhood, the subject was dismissed. -Eloise quickly proposed going to the garden where they spent the -afternoon, Carol teaching her to play croquet. Peals of merry laughter -reached Mrs. Burton as she sat at an open French window, causing her -heart anew to overflow with loving gratitude to the One who had "sent -His word," and her child was made whole. - -When Mrs. Mandeville paid her usual visit to Carol's room that night, -she found him with wide-open eyes, a flush of excitement on his cheeks. -"I have had such a happy day, Auntie," he said. "I do love Eloise so -much, and she loves me, too" (Mrs. Mandeville smiled), "and we both love -Cousin Alicia. Since I came to bed I have been trying to think what love -is, and it seems it is like light, it can never be described in words. -The blind boy in the poem asked, - - 'What is that thing called light, - Which I can ne'er enjoy?' - -No one could tell him to make him understand, could they? So no one -could make anyone understand in words what love is. Just as light comes -from the sun, and we can only see it with our eyes, so love comes from -God, who is Love, and we can only be conscious of it in our hearts. -Isn't it St. John, Auntie, who says we have passed from death unto life -when we love the brethren? Then just as eyes which cannot see the light -are called blind, mustn't it be that hearts which do not love are dead?" - -"It seems to follow naturally your line of reasoning, Carol, though I -cannot say the thought ever occurred to me before. There is one marked -trait in all little children, they are so full of love." - -"Yes, Auntie, especially darling Rosebud. She loves everyone. Do you -remember when I was ill, and you lifted her on the bed, how she said: 'I -do 'ove 'ou so welly much, Tarol'?" - -"Yes, dear, I remember. Rosebud often makes me think of a line of one -of the poets: - - 'For a smile of God, thou art.'" - -"That is just beautiful, Auntie, and it explains why little children -know what love is, before they know anything else, before they even walk -or talk." - -"Yes, Carol, all great poets seem able to grasp some momentous truth, -and give it to the world in a beautiful line or verse." - -"Cousin Alicia has given Eloise a copy of _Science and Health_ just like -the one she gave me, Auntie. Eloise showed it to me, and offered to -lend it to me. But it would not be right for me to read it until Uncle -Raymond gives me permission, would it? Do you think he may when he -knows of Eloise's healing?" - -"He does know, dear. I was talking to him last night about it. He -attributes it to the change into Devonshire, or--or some other reason. -I think he suggested hypnotism." - -"But they took her to Germany some time ago, and that change made no -difference, nor the great German doctor she was under." - -"That is so, dear, still Uncle Raymond will not listen. I think it will -be unwise to talk any more on the subject to him." - -"Do you think then, Auntie, he will not be willing for me to have the -book again until--until I am a man?" - -"I fear that may be so, dear." - -"Oh, Auntie!" - -For a moment the grave eyes filled with tears. The next instant they -were dashed away. "What am I thinking of? Error, error, begone! Love -_can_ find a way, and Love _will_ find a way. It is quite all right, -Auntie," clasping both arms around her neck. - -"Just wait and see! If we are not standing 'porter at the door of -thought' every moment, what a lot of wrong thoughts come trooping in." - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII.--A LONG-DELAYED LETTER. - - -That was an eventful week to Carol. Three or four days after the return -of Mrs. Burton and Eloise it was his turn to open the post-bag. The -daily task of receiving the post-bag, unlocking it, sorting, and then -distributing the contents, was always such a pleasure to the elder -children that they had agreed to take it by turns. - -There seemed an unusually full bag that morning when he emptied the -contents on the hall table. He collected into a little pile all the -letters for the servants' hall, for the school-room, and for Mrs. -Mandeville. Colonel Mandeville was away with his regiment. Quite at the -last he discovered two envelopes bearing the small, neat handwriting -which always called forth an exclamation of pleasure. - -"Two letters this morning from Cousin Alicia, one for Auntie and one for -me!" - -But he faithfully finished his task, and delivered the letters to their -respective owners before opening his own letter. - -Mrs. Mandeville frequently breakfasted with the children when Colonel -Mandeville was away and there were no visitors staying in the house. -Carol found her in the schoolroom. - -Breakfast had commenced. "You have had a big delivery this morning, Mr. -Postman, have you not?" she said. - -"Yes, Auntie, nearly everyone has had more than one letter, and here are -four for you, three for Miss Markham, one for Percy, one for Edith, and -one for me from Cousin Alicia. One of your letters, too, Auntie, is -from Cousin Alicia, and it is quite a fat one. Mine is quite thin. May -I open it, Auntie?" - -"Certainly, dear, I am sure Miss Markham will allow you. We all know -how little people are impatient to read their letters." - -Mrs. Mandeville laid three of her letters beside her plate. The one -bearing the Devonshire post-mark she held in her hand, and presently -drew the contents from the envelope. - -Her face grew very white, her hand trembled as she saw Miss Desmond's -letter enclosed another. Her eyes, suffused with tears, fell on dear, -familiar writing. - -Was it a message from the grave--from that watery grave where the mortal -remains of the brother still so dear to her had been cast? - -Carol meanwhile was devouring his letter, oblivious of everything else. -He read: - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My dear Carol,_ - -"Something so wonderful and beautiful has happened. Yet I should not -perhaps use the word 'wonderful,' since nothing can be lost when Mind -governs and controls. The letter which your dear father wrote me just -before his death has at last reached me. - -"Evidently through a mistake at the sorting office it was slipped into -the American mail-bag at Gibraltar instead of the English. My name and -address are almost stamped out, it has been to so many places in the -United States of America and was afterwards sent on to Canada, where it -has also visited many post-offices, before some postmaster or -post-mistress remembered that S. Devon is part of an English county. - -"A letter so important for your future, dear, could not be lost. I am -sending it for Mrs. Mandeville to read, as it is necessary for her and -also your Uncle Raymond to know the contents. They will, I am sure, -observe their brother's last wishes; and one is, that no hindrance or -impediment shall be put in the way of your studying the Science which -has healed you. I am to buy a new copy of _Science and Health_, and -write in it: 'To Carol--from Father.' You see, dear, Love has found a -way, and just the most beautiful way of restoring to you the book you -seemed to have lost, for a time at least. - -"Dearly as you have valued the book before, it will have an added value -with the knowledge that it comes to you expressly by your dear father's -desire. Mrs. Mandeville will, no doubt, let you read (or read to you) -the letter before returning it to me. You will rejoice to learn how -much you were in your father's thoughts at the last. I have ordered a -copy of the book. You will receive it in a very short time. I know how -glad you will be to be able to study the Lesson-Sermons again. How nice -it will be for you and Eloise to do them sometimes together! Dear -little girl! Give her many loving thoughts from me. We miss her very -much. Bob's affections seem about equally divided between his young -master and 'the little lady' as he calls her. - -"Always in thought and deed, dear Carol, - -Your loving cousin, - ALICIA DESMOND." - -Very quietly Carol went to the back of his aunt's chair, and slipping an -arm around her neck whispered softly in her ear: - -"It's all right, Auntie. I knew that Love would find a way, but I -didn't think it would be quite so soon, and such a beautiful way. It is -all in Father's letter." - -Mrs. Mandeville had laid her letters down unread. She could not -disappoint the children, who loved her to breakfast with them, by taking -them to her own room, and she wanted to be alone when she read them. As -soon as breakfast was over, she left the school-room. An hour later -Carol received a message that she wanted him to go to her. - -"You have been crying, Auntie," he said, as he entered the room. - -"Yes, dear, this letter from your father, and my dear brother, has been -a joy and a sorrow to me, bringing back so vividly the remembrance of -him. You will like to read it." - -She gave the letter to Carol, and he at once sat down beside her, and -read it. - -"_My dear Alicia,_ - -"The fiat has gone forth! They give me neither weeks nor days: a few -hours only. The sea has been very rough the past three days. A partly -healed wound has reopened: the hemorrhage is internal. They cannot stop -it. I think of you and my boy, and that Science which stanched his -running wounds, and I wish I knew something of it. I put it off, like -one of old, to a more convenient season. The little book you gave me I -left with some poor fellows in the hospital, intending to get another -copy when I reached England. - -"Much of what you told me comes back, but it is not enough. I cannot -realize it sufficiently. I have absolute faith that if I could reach -England, or even cable to you, the verdict would be reversed. Ah, well! -a greater man than I is supposed to have said: - - 'A day less or more, at sea or ashore, - We die, does it matter when?' - -Somehow, it does seem to matter now. Life--even this life--has -possibilities which I have failed to grasp. With you to help me, it -seems I should have gained a clearer understanding of eternal verities. -A haze--a mist is creeping over my senses. What I have to write I must -write quickly. - -"I think you know by a deed of settlement, executed before I left for -South Africa, in the event of my death, my brother Raymond, and my dear -sister Emmeline, become Carol's guardians. There is no time now to -alter that arrangement in any way, even if I wished. It will be good for -the boy to be with his cousins. He has seen too little of other -children, and Emmeline, I know, will be a mother to him. Both she and -Raymond will respect my last wishes, I am sure. Therefore, I want them -to know it is my desire for Carol to spend three months of every year -with you at his own home, that you may instruct him in that knowledge of -God which has healed him. It is recorded that once ten were cleansed, -and nine went thankless away. He must not belong to the nine. - -"I have explained to Colonel Mandeville my earnest desire that you may -be able to live at the Court, keeping on all the old servants until -Carol is of age. The last time I saw my brother Raymond, the subject of -Christian Science was mentioned, and from the remarks he made, his -bitterly antagonistic views of it, I greatly fear that under his -guardianship Carol may not be allowed to continue the study. Will you -purchase for me a copy of the text-book, _Science and Health_, and write -in it: - -No one will take from the boy his dying father's last gift, and my -wishes regarding it will I know, be paramount with him. He will like to -know that my one regret now is that I did not myself study it when I had -the opportunity. - -"I have faced death before. I am facing it again, as a soldier, and, I -trust, as a Christian. Somewhere it is written 'Greater love hath no -man'-- You know the rest. Perhaps it will count, though it may not have -been love so much as duty prompted the action which is costing me my -life. - -"I would write to Carol, and to Emmeline. I cannot. The pen slips from -my hand." - - ---- - -The concluding sentence and the signature were almost illegible. Mrs. -Mandeville took Carol in her arms, and they wept together. - -"It is so cruel to think he might have been spared to us," she sobbed. - -"Yes, Auntie; he would have been," Carol replied with simple faith. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV.--A JOYFUL SURPRISE. - - -In less than a week a small parcel arrived by post addressed to Carol. -He knew before he opened it that it contained the little book which he -had so longed for, and which would be, if possible, even dearer to him, -henceforth, from the circumstances under which he regained it. He took -the little parcel to Mrs. Mandeville's room after breakfast, and opened -it there. As he drew the small volume from its cardboard case, he held -it up to show her. Then, opening it, he exclaimed in a tone of great -surprise, mingled with joy: - -"Auntie, it is in dear Father's own handwriting! - - 'To Carol: from Father.'" - -"How can it be?" - -Then, as they examined the writing, they saw that Miss Desmond had cut -the words from her letter. So neatly had the foreign paper been gummed -in, it was not at first noticeable. - -"Was it not lovely of Cousin Alicia to think of it, Auntie?" - -"It was, indeed, dear. You will always realize now that it is your -father's gift." - -"Yes, Auntie; my earthly father's and my heavenly Father's, too. I was -thinking this morning of that lovely verse in Isaiah: 'Before they call -I will answer: and while they are yet speaking I will hear.' And I knew -that Love had answered before I called. Before I knew my need, it was -met. I am glad the letter was delayed so long, because I have learned -so much. 'Every trial of our faith in God makes us stronger,' Mrs. Eddy -says. It did seem at first as if I should have to wait years for the -book, didn't it? I am glad I was so sure that Love could and would find -a way." - -As the boy spoke, the Rector walked into the room. In a momentary -impulse Carol seized the little book which lay on the table, and held it -tightly. A crimson flush suffused his face. The next instant he looked -up at his uncle with fearless eyes, and held out the book to him, -saying, "Uncle Raymond, Cousin Alicia has sent me the little book Father -asked her to get for me, and see--isn't it beautiful?--'To Carol: from -Father,' is in Father's own handwriting." - -The Rector took the book, examined the inscription, but made no remark. - -"Father did not want me to belong to the nine. You would not like me to -either, would you, Uncle Raymond?" - -"To the nine, boy?--What do you mean?" - -"You remember, Uncle Raymond, when Jesus once healed ten lepers, nine -went thankless away. I have been healed, and I must acknowledge it at -all times, else I should be as one of them." - -A frown gathered on the Rector's face. - -"Never speak to me, Carol, of your healing in the same breath with the -healings of Jesus." - -The boy looked sorely pained. For an instant he was silent. In that -instant he asked: - -"Father-Mother God, lead me." - -Then he said: - -"May I ask you a question, Uncle Raymond?" - -"Certainly, Carol; if it is something you want to know." - -"It is something I often think about, Uncle. Are there any 'shepherds -in Israel' now? Can you tell me?" - -"Why, of course, Carol; Israel typifies the Christian world, and God's -ministers are His shepherds." - -"Yes, Uncle, that was what I thought. Is God not angry now with the -shepherds? I often read the 34th chapter of Ezekiel. God was very -angry with the shepherds of that time. He said, 'Woe be to the -shepherds, because they had not healed that which was sick, nor -strengthened that which was diseased, nor bound up that which was -broken, neither had they sought out that which was lost.'" - -"There have been times in history, Carol, when God's ministers--His -shepherds--have been able to heal the sick, but for generations the -healing power has been withheld. - -"Yes, Uncle, I understand that. For many centuries before Jesus came -the healing power had been lost. He brought it back, and taught his -disciples how to heal the sick. Then at the end of only three centuries -it was lost; and again after many centuries God has sent a messenger to -bring it back, but not everyone will listen to the message." - -The boy spoke reflectively, as one thinking aloud, not addressing either -his uncle or his aunt. - -"Raymond," said Mrs. Mandeville quickly (she noted the growing anger on -the Rector's face), "Carol has a way of thinking about things he reads -in the Bible. His thoughts have often helped me. He does not mean -to--to reproach you. Will you tell me, dear Raymond, have you ever read -this book which you condemn so strongly?" - -"I have not read it, Emmeline. One does not need to read Mrs. Eddy's -books to condemn them. The press criticisms and extracts I have read -were quite enough for me. Since Carol's father wished him to have a -copy of the book, I cannot keep it from him. Otherwise I should, most -certainly. I can only pray that he may ultimately see the error of its -teaching." - -"The fruit is so good," Mrs. Mandeville said softly. "I can only judge -by that, until I have studied the book myself, which I intend to do. I -think, Carol, darling, you must run back to the school-room now, or you -will be late for lessons. Leave your little book with me. You know it -will be quite safe, and come to me after school." - -After the boy had left the room Mrs. Mandeville turned to the Rector. - -"Now I want to ask you a question, if I may, Raymond, may I?" - -"Why, of course, Emmeline, you know perfectly well I shall be happy to -answer any question you wish to put to me--if I can." - -"It is this, Raymond: the Apostle bids us, 'Let this mind be in you -which was also in Christ Jesus.' How would you define the 'Mind' -simply, that I may grasp it?" - -The Rector's memory went back to a Sunday morning some months before -when he had preached what he considered a very eloquent sermon from that -verse in Philippians. Had his sister forgotten it? - -"Do you forget, Emmeline, that I preached from that text not so very -long ago? I took as the keynote of my sermon, humility--the humility of -Jesus. From the context that was undoubtedly what Saint Paul meant." - -"Yes, Raymond, I remember the sermon perfectly; but I cannot feel that -to possess humility, even in a superlative degree, would be to possess, -as the Apostle commands, the 'Mind' of Christ. Carol was thinking out -this subject, in the way he has of thinking about verses in the Bible, -and the thought he gave me seems nearer to it. He could see only love. -The mind that was in Christ was love. Now, Raymond, if we, at this -moment, possessed hearts full of love we could not criticise or condemn -anyone or any sect. We could not hold up creeds or dogmas, and say, 'It -is necessary to believe this or that because it is a canon of the -Church.' We should just know that we and they had passed from death -unto life when we love the brethren, and all are brethren who look to -the Lord Jesus Christ as an elder brother." - -"It seems to me, Emmeline, that even before reading the book you have -imbibed some of its mischievous statements. Remember, it teaches a -religion of negation. According to Christian Science we have no Heavenly -Father, no personal God; nothing but a divine Principle, an eternal -existence, to worship." - -"Oh, Raymond, you do make a mistake. How can you infer that if you have -not studied the book?" - -"My authority, Emmeline, for the statement, is Dr. Hanson. He wrote a -pamphlet on Christian Science, issued by the Religious Tract Society." - -"It seems strange, Raymond, that a man of Dr. Hanson's eminence should -write, and the Religious Tract Society should publish, a statement so -misleading,--a statement which a boy of Carol's years could easily -confute. Carol prays to, and speaks of his Heavenly Father in a way -which, I grieve to say, my own children never do. Only a few minutes -before you entered the room, he said that this little book was a gift -not only from his earthly father but from his Heavenly Father, too. So -how can there be no Heavenly Father to a Christian Scientist? It is true -he speaks more frequently of Him as Divine Love; and it seems to me he -has a more comprehensive idea of God than I have myself, for the thought -has often presented itself to me, how can we, as the Scriptures say, -'live, move and have our being' in Him, if God is a person, according to -our idea of personality? The idea which Carol has given me of God as -infinite Love, filling the universe like light, makes that verse more -intelligible." - -"A discussion such as this, Emmeline, cannot be productive of any good. -I will send you that little pamphlet I mentioned." - -"Thank you, Raymond. I will read it after I have read _Science and -Health_." - -The Rector then changed the conversation, and spoke of the object of his -visit to the Manor that morning. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV.--A LITTLE SERVICE. - - -On the following Sunday evening Carol started at the usual time for Mr. -Higgs' cottage, carrying with him the little, much-valued book and with -it the current _Quarterly_ which Miss Desmond had also sent him. His -surprise was great, on arriving at the cottage, to find Mrs. Burton and -Eloise there. They knew the prohibition was removed, and Carol was free -to read and study _Science and Health_. - -"We thought you would come, Carol," Eloise exclaimed. "We wanted to -hear you read the Lesson-Sermon. It will be quite a little service, -won't it?" - -"Yes, dear Carol; we thought we should like to join you this evening," -Mrs. Burton said. "We are only the 'two or three gathered together,' -but we are all of one mind. So it will be a little service, as Eloise -says." - -Presently Mr. Higgs' daughter and his little grand-daughter came in. - -It was arranged for Mrs. Burton to read the Bible verses, and for Carol -to read the quotations from _Science and Health_. At the close of the -Lesson-Sermon Carol and Eloise sang together, from the Christian Science -Hymnal, the hymn which both knew and loved,-- - - "Shepherd, show me how to go." - -The beauty of the words, and the young voices blending in perfect -harmony, brought tears of emotion to the old man's eyes. - -"Aye, ma'am," he said to Mrs. Burton afterwards, "who but the Shepherd -himself, is leading us into those green pastures where the fetters that -bound us are loosed? There's a many things I can't pretend to -understand, and the old beliefs grip hard, but I just hold on, and know -it must be the Truth which the Master promised should make us free. -It's the tree that is known by its fruits. I'm sorry Rector's so set up -against it. But there, it was the priests and scribes who persecuted -the Master himself. Seems to me it would not be the Truth if the world -received it gladly." - -"I believe you are right in thinking that, Mr. Higgs. In whatever -period of the world's history Truth has been recognized, and -demonstrated, its adherents were always persecuted and stoned. Jesus -reminded his persecutors that they stoned the prophets which were before -him." - -"Yes, ma'am, I know it is the glorious Truth which has loosed my -rheumatiz, and made me free, and I am just ashamed to confess to you and -Master Carol that just lately thoughts I can't get rid of come -tormenting me. In this way: I go sometimes to church, but I feel no -pleasure in the service. It has lost its hold o' me. Then I think o' -Father and Mother, o' blessed memory. They lived and died with no -thought o' beyond what the Rector could give them. It sort o' troubles -me to think I am going away from what they trusted to. The Rector then -was an old man. Why, ma'am, if ever a saint o' God walked this earth, -he was one. If he passed down the village street, you'd see all the -children run to him, clustering round him. When he looked at you, it -didn't seem to need any words: it was just as if he said, 'God bless -you.' His smile was a blessing. So I just ask myself, Why wasn't the -sick healed when he prayed for them, if it was right and God's will for -them to be healed? Surely, he was a servant of God." - -"I propounded a similar question, Mr. Higgs, to the lady I have been -staying with in Devonshire, Carol's cousin, Miss Desmond. It has been my -great privilege to know many saintly characters, whose lives testified -to their faith. My own mother was such a one. Yet, for many years, she -was a great sufferer. I asked Miss Desmond why such loving faith in God -and Jesus the Christ, had not always brought physical healing. What we -call the orthodox church, also Non-conformity, has nurtured souls for -heaven. We cannot, therefore, condemn its teaching. Miss Desmond said it -is not for us to judge or to criticise either individuals or other -churches. We all, individually and collectively, can only grasp the -truth as far as we apprehend it, and we must not harbor a troubled -thought that in becoming Christian Scientists we are leaving any church -to which we once belonged. We are simply moving forward--stepping -upward to a higher platform. It is the law of progression. A child at -school does not regret being moved to a higher class. Neither have we -anything to regret, even if we entirely sever our connection with the -church of our childhood. Even now, for the most advanced Christian -Scientists there is yet a higher platform to be reached, since Mrs. Eddy -says, in _Science and Health_, 'All of Truth is not understood.' All we -have to do at the present is to live up to--to demonstrate, the highest -that we know. You in your walk of life, I in mine; and these dear -children, who, spiritually, have touched the hem of Christ's garment and -have been healed, in theirs." - -"Thank you, ma'am, I'll try to think of it, as you've kindly explained -it. There's another old belief I can't see clearly to get rid o' yet, -though Master Carol tried to make me see it's wrong, and that is 'Thy -will be done,' on the tombstones in the churchyard. I can see that sin -and disease can never be God's will; but death may sometimes be a sort -o' messenger from God to call us home." - -Mrs. Burton smiled. - -"Yes; many poets have eulogized death as a 'bright messenger.' But in -the light of Christian Science we know it cannot be: evil can never -under _any_ circumstance change into good--an enemy--the last -enemy--into a friend. Think for one moment how Jesus taught us to pray -'Thy will be done on earth _as it is in heaven_.' Then ask yourself: Is -death God's will in heaven? If not, then it cannot be on earth. I -quite see now why many petitions have failed to bring an answer. The -pleading lips have besought God to reverse 'His decree,' the decree that -never was His. We learned that, Eloise, darling, did we not, in -Devonshire?" - -"Yes, Mother; and when we quite understood why my lameness was never -God's will for me, I lost it." - -"So the world, Mr. Higgs, must change its old belief, and realize that -death is an enemy which inevitably will one day be destroyed. In God's -spiritual Kingdom, sin, disease, and death find no place. Now I think -we must all bid you good-night, or it will be dark before Carol reaches -the Manor. The evenings draw in so quickly, now. We will walk part of -the way with you, Carol," Mrs. Burton said as they left the cottage. -They had not gone very far when they met Mrs. Mandeville. - -"Auntie," Carol exclaimed joyfully, "were you coming to meet me?" - -"Yes, dear. I found you had not returned. As I did not quite like your -coming alone through the park, I came to meet you." - -After a little conversation with Mrs. Burton and Eloise, Mrs. Mandeville -and Carol walked home together, Carol clinging affectionately to his -aunt's arm. - -"It is nice to have you to walk home with me, Auntie; but I wish you -would never have a thought of fear for me." - -"I'll try not to another time, darling. As I walked along I remembered -something, Carol. Since that day when you came to my room I have never -had one of my old headaches. They used to be so painfully frequent. Did -you charm them away?" - -"No, Auntie; but I knew you had not learned how to 'stand porter at the -door of thought.' So I just stood there for you; and error cannot creep -back when the sword of Truth is raised against it." - -Mrs. Mandeville's only answer was to stoop and kiss the boy's upturned -face. The words, so simple, grave, and sweet, had gone straight to her -heart. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI.--CONCLUSION. - - -The calendar of months named December, and before it, excited, expectant -little people stood daily, counting first the weeks, then the days to -that one day of all the year which the children love best. - -Carol had to listen again and again to all the wonderful and mysterious -things which always happened at the Manor on Christmas Eve and Christmas -Day. Price lists and illustrated catalogues were the only books in -requisition after lessons were over. The elder children wondered how -they could have bought their Christmas presents if there were no parcel -post. Carol was especially the helper and confederate of the three -little girls in the nursery. He assisted them in choosing their -"surprises," wrote the letters, and enclosed the postal orders; and -certainly, from the marvellous list of things they were able to -purchase, their little accumulated heap of pennies must, in some magic -way, have changed into sovereigns in his hands. The joyful excitement -of the three little girls, when the parcels arrived, gave Carol the -greatest pleasure he had ever known. Only Nurse was allowed to be -present when the parcels were opened, and she promised to lock them -securely away where no one could catch a glimpse until they were brought -out on Christmas eve. - -It wanted only one week to Christmas day, when Rosebud came to the -school-room one morning, saying: "Mover wants 'ou, Tarol." - -Carol went at once to his aunt's room. She was sitting with an open -letter in her hand, a rather graver than usual expression on her face. -"Carol, dear," she said, "for some little time I have been thinking I -ought to let you go home for Christmas. It seems to me it is what your -dear father would wish; but I could not let you take the long journey -alone and there seemed no other way until this morning. I have just -received a letter from a dear old friend in which she mentions that she -will be travelling to Exeter in two days' time. So I could take you to -London to meet her there, and you could travel with her to Exeter, where -Miss Desmond might meet you. I do not like to part with you, even for a -month or six weeks, my 'little porter at the door of thought.'" - -"Auntie, it won't make any difference if I am here, or in Devonshire. I -can still bar the door to error." - -"Yes, dear; I believe you can. It is really not that only. I am -thinking we shall all miss you so. You seem to be everyone's -confederate for their Christmas surprises. Would you rather go, or stay, -dear?" - -"I should be happy to stay here, or happy to go home for Christmas, -Auntie." - -"Yes; I think you would, dear. So we must consider other people. Miss -Desmond, I know, would rejoice to have you, and it seems the right of -both tenants and servants to have the 'little master' amongst them at -Christmas. So I have decided it will be right to let you go." - -But when this decision was made known in the school-room and nursery -there were great lamentations. No one had given a thought to the -possibility of Carol not being with them for the Christmas festivities; -and Mrs. Mandeville was besought again and again not to let Carol go -home before Christmas. - -But, having well considered the matter, she was firm. A telegram was at -once despatched to Miss Desmond apprising her of the arrangement. The -answer that quickly came satisfied Mrs. Mandeville that she had been led -to make a right decision. Brief but expressive was Miss Desmond's wire: -"Great rejoicings on receipt of news. Will gladly meet Carol at -Exeter." - -There was yet another little person to whom the news was not joyful. -Eloise's lips quivered and her blue eyes filled with tears when she -heard. Carol was so much to her, and she to him. She thought of him as -a brother; and a sister of his own name could not have been more -tenderly loved by the boy. The bond between them was closer and dearer -than that of human relationship. - -"It will be only just at first, Eloise, that we shall seem to be far -apart. Then you will be able to realize there is no distance in Mind. -At first, when I came here, I seemed to be so far away from Cousin -Alicia; but I never feel that now. I just know her thought is with me, -and thought is the only real. It will be lovely to hear her voice -again, and to feel my hand clasped in hers, but still that won't make -her very own self nearer to me." - -"I do not quite understand--yet, Carol," Eloise answered a little sadly. -Then she had some news to give him. Early in the New Year the Burtons -were going to live in London. True to his promise, Dr. Burton was -giving up his medical practice, and was going to join that little band -of men and women whose lives are consecrated to the work of destroying -the many manifestations of sin and disease, in the way the Master -taught. - -"And, when you come back to the Manor, Carol, we shall not be here." - -Eloise in one sentence regretfully summed up the situation. - -"I shall miss you, dear Eloise. But you will write to me, and I shall -write very often to you, and when I go home in the summer, perhaps Mrs. -Burton will let you come, too. Then Cousin Alicia will be happy to have -both her children in Science with her." - -"That will be lovely, Carol! I am sure Mother will like me to visit -Miss Desmond again. It seems a long time to look forward to, but time -really passes very quickly. Sometimes the days are not long enough for -all I want to do. I am to go to school when we live in London. All the -beautiful things I have longed for are coming to me. Carol, I do wish -every little girl and every little boy knew how to ask Divine Love for -what they want. When I am older that is the work I want to do,--to -teach other children as Miss Desmond taught me." - -"And I, too, Eloise. Love is so near, but we didn't know it till we -learned it in Science, did we?" - -"No, Carol; I didn't know it, when I used to sit all day in my little -wheel-chair, longing to walk like other children. It was like living in -a dark room until some one came and opened the shutters to let the -sunlight in. The sunlight was there all the time, but I did not know it. -I was God's perfect child all the time, but I believed I was lame, until -Miss Desmond taught me the Truth." - -"When I go to bed, Eloise, thoughts come to me. I tell them to Auntie -sometimes, but not to any one else. Shall I tell you what I was -thinking last night?" - -"Please, Carol, I should like to know." - -"I began first by thinking if any one asked me, where is heaven, I -should answer: Heaven is where God is. Then I remembered, God is -_everywhere_. There is no place where God is not. Then I knew that -everywhere must be heaven, and we have only to open our eyes, and just -as much as we can see of good--God--just that far we shall have entered -heaven. So it won't matter, Eloise, if you are in London, and I am in -Devonshire, if we are both looking steadfastly all the time to see only -good around us, we shall both be entering the Kingdom of Heaven. There -is only one gate--a golden gate--into that Kingdom, and 'Christ in -divine Science shows us the way.'" - - ---- - -The little country station seemed to be quite full of people when the -train that was to carry Mrs. Mandeville and Carol to London drew up at -the platform. The hour they were to leave had become known in the -village, and, besides all his cousins, their nurses and Miss Markham, -Mr. Higgs, his daughter and grand-daughter, Dr. and Mrs. Burton, and -Eloise were there. At the last moment the Rector hurriedly stalked in. - -"Almost too late, dear Raymond," Mrs. Mandeville said as he greeted -them. - -"So, Carol, I learn you have succeeded in planting Christian Science in -this village." - -The boy looked up with his quiet, fearless eyes. - -"Not I, Uncle Raymond!" - -"Who then?" - -The boy's head was bowed as he reverently answered: "Christ. I am -happy, Uncle Raymond, if I have been a little channel for Truth. I could -do nothing myself." - -Carol met the grave look on the Rector's face with his bright smile. - -"You _are_ glad, are you not, Uncle Raymond, that Mr. Higgs and his -little grand-daughter, and dear Eloise--I, too--have found the Christ, -and have been healed?" - -The engine gave a shrill whistle. Mrs. Mandeville drew the boy farther -into the carriage; a porter closed the door as the train began to move; -the question was unanswered. Mr. Higgs waved his hat, saying fervently, -"God bless 'ee, Master Carol; and bring you back to us soon." - -Eloise ran along the platform, holding Rosebud by the hand, wafting -kisses to be carried to Miss Desmond. When the train was out of sight -and she returned to join the others, she saw the Rector was watching her -with the kindly smile his face used to wear in the days when she was not -able to run about. Clingingly clasping his arm, looking up to him in -her winning way, and remembering the question which to Carol had been -unanswered, she said: "You _are_ glad, are you not, Rector, that I can -run about, and that I have been taught the Truth that makes us free?" - -"Yes, little girl, I am very glad. Perhaps I have been mistaken in my -judgment. Tell me, Eloise, what is this Truth of which you speak?" - -Eloise hesitated a moment; then, looking up beyond the Rector into the -broad blue heavens, she said: "It is just _knowing_ that God is _All_, -and there is nothing beside. All the _real_ God made; whatever He did -not make is shadow. When I quite understood that God could not make an -imperfect thing--that He never, never made a lame little girl--the -shadow disappeared, and I could walk." - -The Rector turned to Mr. Higgs who was standing near. "Is that what my -nephew has been teaching you, Higgs?" - -"Yes, sir; but I've been slower to grasp it. Seems to me the Truth is -very simple, but we need the childlike mind to take it in." - -"Maybe you are right, Higgs--maybe you are right. 'Whosoever shall not -receive the kingdom of God as a little child ... shall not enter -therein.' The Master's words." - -Thoughtfully, with bent head and downcast eyes, meditating deeply, the -Rector walked back to the Rectory. Words very familiar came to him with -a different meaning: "Ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make -you free;" and with the words came a desire that was prayer: "Lord, -teach me this Truth. Grant me the childlike mind." - - ---- - -"Carol, I have been thinking of something," Mrs. Mandeville said, as the -train bore them along. - -"Should you like to know of what I have been thinking?" - -"Please, dear Auntie; I should very much like to know." - -"Well, dear, I have been thinking if it should occur to the young Master -of Willmar Court to send Rosebud and me an invitation whilst he is at -home, we should accept it." - -"Oh, Auntie, what a lovely thought! To have you and Rosebud, and Cousin -Alicia, all together!" - -"I want Miss Desmond, Carol, to teach me some of the things she has -taught you." - -There was a long silence. The boy's heart was too full for words. Then -he said: "Auntie, I know now how the little bird felt when the King -opened the cage door, and he sang and sang for joy. My heart is singing -to _my_ King. I wonder if--perhaps--He will say, some missing note has -come into Carol's song." - -"Indeed, my darling, I think so." - -He nestled closely beside her. Looking down she saw on his face the -reflection of a great joy--a great peace; and she knew that he had just -crept into Love's arms. - - -"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under -the shadow of the Almighty.... He shall cover thee with His feathers, -and under His wings shalt thou trust. His Truth shall be thy shield and -buckler." - -PSALM 91. - - - - -*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SOLDIER'S SON *** - - - - -A Word from Project Gutenberg - - -We will update this book if we find any errors. - -This book can be found under: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/39538 - -Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one -owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and -you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without permission -and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules, set forth in the -General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to copying and -distributing Project Gutenberg(tm) electronic works to protect the -Project Gutenberg(tm) concept and trademark. Project Gutenberg is a -registered trademark, and may not be used if you charge for the eBooks, -unless you receive specific permission. If you do not charge anything -for copies of this eBook, complying with the rules is very easy. 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The replaced older file is renamed. -_Versions_ based on separate sources are treated as new eBooks receiving -new filenames and etext numbers. - -Most people start at our Web site which has the main PG search facility: - - http://www.gutenberg.org - -This Web site includes information about Project Gutenberg(tm), -including how to make donations to the Project Gutenberg Literary -Archive Foundation, how to help produce our new eBooks, and how to -subscribe to our email newsletter to hear about new eBooks. diff --git a/39538-8.zip b/39538-8.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 9bd65e8..0000000 --- a/39538-8.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/39538-h.zip b/39538-h.zip Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index 8e24d15..0000000 --- a/39538-h.zip +++ /dev/null diff --git a/39538-h/39538-h.html b/39538-h/39538-h.htm index 4a40433..9bd5e48 100644 --- a/39538-h/39538-h.html +++ b/39538-h/39538-h.htm @@ -433,34 +433,9 @@ pre { font-family: monospace; font-size: 0.9em; white-space: pre-wrap </style> </head> <body> +<div>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 39538 ***</div> <div class="document" id="a-soldier-s-son"> <h1 class="document-title level-1 pfirst title">A SOLDIER'S SON</h1> - -<!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> -<!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> -<div class="align-None container language-en noindent pgheader" id="pg-header" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> -<p class="noindent pfirst">This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with -almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or -re-use it under the terms of the <a class="reference internal" href="#project-gutenberg-license">Project Gutenberg License</a> -included with this eBook or online at -<a class="reference external" href="http://www.gutenberg.org/license">http://www.gutenberg.org/license</a>.</p> -<p class="noindent pnext"></p> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<div class="align-None container noindent white-space-pre-line" id="pg-machine-header"> -<p class="noindent pfirst white-space-pre-line"><span class="white-space-pre-line">Title: A Soldier's Son<br /> -<br /> -Author: Maude M. Butler<br /> -<br /> -Release Date: April 25, 2012 [EBook #39538]<br /> -<br /> -Language: English<br /> -<br /> -Character set encoding: UTF-8</span></p> -</div> -<div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 2em"> -</div> -<p class="noindent pfirst" id="pg-start-line">*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK <span>A SOLDIER'S SON</span> ***</p> <div class="noindent vspace" style="height: 4em"> </div> <p class="noindent pfirst" id="pg-produced-by"><span>Produced by Al Haines.</span></p> @@ -5877,347 +5852,6 @@ His Truth shall be thy shield and buckler."</p> <!-- -*- encoding: utf-8 -*- --> <div class="backmatter"> </div> -<p class="pfirst" id="pg-end-line">*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK <span>A SOLDIER'S SON</span> ***</p> -<div class="cleardoublepage"> -</div> -</div> -<div class="language-en level-2 pgfooter section" id="a-word-from-project-gutenberg" xml:lang="en" lang="en"> -<span id="pg-footer"></span><h2 class="level-2 pfirst section-title title">A Word from Project Gutenberg</h2> -<p class="pfirst">We will update this book if we find any errors.</p> -<p class="pnext">This book can be found under: <a class="reference external" href="http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/39538"><span>http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/39538</span></a></p> -<p class="pnext">Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no one -owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation (and -you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without -permission and without paying copyright royalties. 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-
-.. meta::
- :PG.Id: 39538
- :PG.Title: A Soldier's Son
- :PG.Released: 2012-04-25
- :PG.Rights: Public Domain
- :PG.Producer: Al Haines
- :DC.Creator: Maude M. Butler
- :DC.Title: A Soldier's Son
- :DC.Language: en
- :DC.Created: 1912
- :coverpage: images/img-cover.jpg
-
-.. role:: small-caps
- :class: small-caps
-
-===============
-A SOLDIER'S SON
-===============
-
-.. pgheader::
-
-.. vspace:: 3
-
-.. figure:: images/img-cover.jpg
- :align: center
- :alt: Cover art
-
- Cover art
-
-.. vspace:: 4
-
-.. container:: titlepage center white-space-pre-line
-
- .. class:: x-large
-
- A
-
- .. class:: x-large
-
- Soldier's Son
-
- .. vspace:: 2
-
- .. class:: medium
-
- *By*
-
- MAUDE M. BUTLER
-
- .. vspace:: 4
-
- .. class:: center medium
-
- DAVIS & BOND
-
- BOSTON : MASS.
-
-.. vspace:: 4
-
-.. container:: verso center white-space-pre-line
-
- .. class:: center small
-
- Copyright 1912
-
- by
-
- DAVIS & BOND
-
- .. vspace:: 3
-
- LINCOLN & SMITH PRESS
-
- BOSTON
-
-.. vspace:: 3
-
-.. container:: dedication center white-space-pre-line
-
- DEDICATION.
-
- To the children in years, and the children in
- Science, this little book is trustingly and lovingly
- inscribed by the author.
-
-.. vspace:: 3
-
-.. container:: plainpage center white-space-pre-line
-
- NOTE.
-
- The Author wishes to state that no case of
- Christian Science healing has been cited
- in this story but such as she has known
- of a parallel case in real life.
-
- .. vspace:: 3
-
-.. class:: left white-space-pre-line
-
- | "We may not climb the heavenly steeps
- | To bring the Lord Christ down.
- | \* \* \* \* \*
- | The healing of the seamless dress
- | Is by our beds of pain;
- | We touch Him in life's throng and press,
- | And we are whole again."
- | --*J. G. Whittier.*
-
-.. vspace:: 4
-
-----
-
-.. contents:: CONTENTS
- :depth: 1
- :backlinks: entry
-
-----
-
-
-CHAPTER I.--HOME FROM THE WAR.
-==============================
-
-The war was over--the cruel, cruel war;
-and Father and Uncle Howard were on their
-way home. Children's voices, in every key
-of joy and thanksgiving, sang the happy
-news from morning to night. The white,
-strained look faded from Mother's face, and
-she became her old, bright self again.
-
-Now that they were over, the children tried
-to forget how long and sad and weary the days
-had been during which the sight of the
-post-bag, and the morning newspaper, almost took
-everyone's breath away, until the columns
-of "War news" had been hastily scanned
-before taking letters and papers to Mother's room.
-
-Then came the day when Uncle Howard's
-name was amongst the "seriously wounded,"
-and there was a brief account of how he had
-saved the guns, and then returning into the
-firing line to pick up a wounded soldier, had
-himself been dangerously wounded.
-
-The children thought of Uncle Howard's
-delicate young motherless boy, and sobbed:
-"Poor, poor Carol."
-
-They did not know how to break the news
-to Mother, because Uncle Howard was her
-twin brother, and they all knew how dearly
-she loved him. Unperceived she had entered
-the room, and had learned the news for
-herself. The days that followed were darker
-than before, for it was not known for some
-weeks if Major Willmar would live or die.
-Gradually, slightly better news came, and he
-was pronounced out of danger. Later on
-it was announced he was ordered home, and
-Father, Colonel Mandeville, was coming with him.
-
-As soon as the vessel left Cape Town the
-children began their happy, joyous
-preparations for the welcome home. Then, in the
-midst of them, when the triumphal arches
-were erected, awaiting only the final floral
-decorations, came a telegram from Gibraltar.
-Major Willmar had suffered a relapse at sea,
-and the doctors had not been able to save him.
-His body had been committed to the waves.
-
-Again the children sobbed: "Poor, poor Carol."
-
-Mother was strangely calm and quiet.
-"Carol must come to us. We must take the
-place to him of all he has lost," she said.
-
-She wrote to the lady who had charge of
-him, asking her to take the boy to meet the
-vessel at Plymouth, in order that Colonel
-Mandeville might bring Carol home with him.
-
-All the children, seven in number, were at
-the station when the express drew up. Edith
-and Gwendolin, two tall fair girls of twelve
-and thirteen years; Percy and Frank, eleven
-and ten; then three of the dearest little
-maidens, Sylvia four, Estelle three, and the
-sweet Rosebud, whom Father had never seen.
-She had come to cheer Mother's breaking
-heart in the dark days of the war, and was now
-two years old.
-
-It was an unusual occurrence for an
-express train to stop at that quiet country
-station. The porters were on the alert to drag
-out the luggage as quickly as possible. A
-tall bronzed and bearded man sprang out of
-the train on the instant of stopping, so changed
-that even the elder children scarcely recognized him.
-
-He looked at them with hungry eyes, as if
-he would take them all in his arms at once,
-had they been big enough to go round, then
-seized the smallest of all, the little snow-white
-maiden.
-
-"Iz 'ou Daddy?" she asked.
-
-"I am Daddy, my little white Rosebud." One
-by one he took each in his strong arms.
-All looking to him, no one noticed the boy
-who had followed him out of the railway
-carriage, who was now looking on with
-wondering eyes. Rosebud was the first to
-speak to him. "Iz 'ou Tarol?" she asked.
-Stooping, he too folded his arms around her,
-not such strong arms as her father's, but
-very loving. From that moment the little
-maiden became one of the dearest things in
-life to the boy.
-
-"Where's Mother, children?"
-
-"Mother did not feel quite able to come to
-the station, Father. She bore the news of
-dear Uncle's death so well at first; then she
-broke down entirely, and she has not left
-her room since," Edith told him. The
-Colonel then remembered the boy who had
-accompanied him.
-
-"Children, here is Carol."
-
-They quickly gave him the loving
-welcome which their sympathetic hearts
-prompted. Father suggested sending on the
-carriage, saying to the children:
-
-"We will walk through the park. Oh, the
-sweet breath of the dear home land, after
-Africa's sultry heat!"
-
-Carol kept hold of Rosebud's hand. The
-little maiden was a revelation to him, never
-having had little sisters or brothers of his
-own. His mother for a long time before her
-death had been a hopeless invalid, and
-whilst she was slowly dying of consumption
-the boy had developed tubercular disease of
-the left hip, and the physicians, who
-pronounced it a hopeless case, also said one
-lung was affected. Three years the boy lay
-on his back on a couch, or in a spinal carriage,
-and it was generally anticipated he would
-quickly follow his mother to an early grave.
-But after Mrs. Willmar's death a cousin of
-hers came from America to take charge of
-the motherless boy, and from the day that
-she came he began to get better. Now, as
-he walked with his cousins across the park,
-though somewhat tall for his twelve years
-and extremely slight of stature, he bore no
-trace of his past sufferings.
-
-On arriving at the Manor, Colonel Mandeville
-went straight to his wife's room, mounting
-the staircase two steps at a time. The
-children took Carol to the school-room, saying,
-"Mother will send for you presently, dear Carol."
-
-School-room tea was ready, and to their
-great delight the three little girls, who
-belonged of course to the nursery, were invited
-to be present. Before they sat down each
-child had a little offering to make Carol, not
-a new gift they had bought for him, but one
-of their own treasures, just to make him feel
-how glad they were to have him: that henceforth
-he was to be their own dear brother.
-
-It was all so strange and new to him, he
-did not know how to thank them. Rosebud's
-offering of her little white bunny was
-so perfectly sweet. It became a treasure
-of treasures to him ever after. He was
-strangely quiet, but there seemed no sadness
-in his eyes or voice. His cousins could not
-understand it, and even wondered if he had
-loved his father as they loved theirs.
-
-Tea was just finished when the message
-came for Carol to go to Mother's room.
-All the children wanted to accompany him,
-but the maid who brought the message said:
-"Only Master Carol was to go," and she led
-the boy to Mrs. Mandeville's room.
-
-Carol had only once before seen his aunt.
-She had visited his home in Devonshire
-when his mother was very ill, and he himself
-had been too ill to care or notice who came
-and went.
-
-Mrs. Mandeville was lying on a couch in
-her boudoir. She was a tall, fair woman, of
-a gentle yielding nature, and a beautiful
-countenance. Never strong or robust, for
-some years she had been subject to attacks
-of nervous prostration. The joyous excitement
-of her husband's safe return, and the
-grief for her brother's death, had brought on
-one of these attacks. She sobbed aloud as
-she drew Carol into her arms and held him
-closely to her.
-
-"My darling boy!"
-
-"Auntie, dear, do not grieve like this."
-
-"Carol, I loved your father very, very, dearly."
-
-"But, Auntie, that should make you not
-grieve for him. Cousin Alicia has taught me
-to feel so glad and happy about Father. I
-could not cry or be sorry now. I love to
-think how he gave his life for that poor,
-wounded soldier. Jesus said there was no
-greater love than to lay down one's life for a
-friend, and it was not even a friend; it was a
-stranger. Some day there will be no more
-war, because everyone will know that God is
-our Father, and His name is Love. But we
-are only His children as we reflect Him--reflect
-Love. When everyone understands this,
-no one will want war."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville looked with surprise at
-the earnest young face, so calmly confident
-of what he said.
-
-"It is nice to see you, Carol, looking so
-well and strong. You were very ill when I
-saw you two years ago. We have never been
-able to understand your recovery. What a
-mistake the doctors must have made about
-your case."
-
-"Auntie, they did not make a mistake.
-It was Cousin Alicia who taught me about
-Christian Science. Then I began to get
-well, and I soon lost the dreadful pain in my hip."
-
-"Carol, dear, never mention a word about
-Christian Science before your Uncle
-Raymond. He says it is dreadful heresy, and it
-makes him so angry to hear it talked about.
-Did he meet you at the station?"
-
-"No, Auntie. I have not seen him yet."
-
-"He said he would meet the train but he
-generally manages to get too late. He will
-be here this evening for dinner."
-
-Uncle Raymond was Mrs. Mandeville's
-brother, and the rector of the parish.
-
-"But, Auntie, if he asks anything about my
-illness I must tell him what has made me well."
-
-"I do not think he will, dear; so there will
-be no need to say anything. It is very beautiful,
-Carol, for you to think Christian Science
-has healed you, and there is no need for your
-faith to be shaken."
-
-"I do not *think*, Auntie, I *know*, so that no
-one could shake my faith."
-
-"Well, dear, we won't talk about it. Tell
-me, did you have a pleasant journey?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie, a very pleasant journey;
-Uncle was so kind to me."
-
-"I am sure he would be, Carol. You are
-glad to come to us, darling--to be our own
-dear son? You will feel this is home, and
-your cousins not cousins, but brothers and sisters?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie. I know my father wished
-me to come to you--but--I am sorry to leave
-Cousin Alicia. I love her so much."
-
-"Of course, darling, that is only natural.
-She has been quite a mother to you since
-your own dear mother died."
-
-Carol did not speak; a choking sensation
-of pain prevented him. He knew that Cousin
-Alicia had been more than a mother to him.
-
-"May I write to her to-night, Auntie?
-She will like to hear from me."
-
-"Of course, dear. Write to her as often as
-you like."
-
-"I think that will be every day then,"
-the boy said promptly, with a smile.
-Mrs. Mandeville smiled too.
-
-"Dear boy, how you have comforted me.
-I feel so much better for this little talk with
-you. Perhaps I shall be able to surprise
-everybody, and go down to dinner this evening."
-
-"Oh, Auntie, please do. At tea Edith
-said, 'It would be just lovely if only Mother
-could come down to dinner.' We can nearly
-always do what we want to do, Auntie."
-
-"Can we, dear? Then go and write your
-letter now, and do not mention to anyone
-that I am going to try to surprise them this evening."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER II.--CAROL'S LETTER.
-============================
-
-
-"MANOR HOUSE
- MANDEVILLE.
-
-"*Dear Cousin Alicia,*
-
-"It seemed such a long journey before we
-arrived here. Uncle was so kind and told me
-about the different places as we passed
-through. But I felt I was getting such a long
-way from you, as we passed town after town.
-All my cousins were at the station to meet
-us; but Auntie was not well enough to be
-there. I should like to describe them all to
-you, but I am sure I could not. They are
-ever so much nicer than any of the children
-I have read about in books. I will only tell
-you their names. Perhaps you will see them
-all some day. Edith, Gwendolin, Percy,
-and Frank, in the school-room; and in the
-nursery, Sylvia, Estelle, and Rosebud. Uncle
-had never seen Rosebud. She is two years
-and three months old, and is the sweetest
-little girl. She has such pretty ways. I do
-love to hear her talk.
-
-"We walked from the station through the
-park. Uncle seemed so glad to see his own
-home again. The Manor House is very
-old; such quaint little oriel windows, and
-turrets, and gables. I have not learned my
-way about yet, but the school-room and
-nurseries are quite close together. It was
-returning from Auntie's boudoir to the
-schoolroom I got lost, and I found myself in quite
-a different part of the house. I opened a
-door I thought was the school-room, and it
-was the housekeeper's room. Then a maid
-took me to the school-room. Percy and
-Frank thought it very amusing, and said
-they could find their way anywhere
-blindfold, and Rosebud said 'Me tome wiff 'ou,
-Tarol.' I didn't see Auntie until after tea.
-We all had tea together in the school-room,
-the nursery children as well. The governess
-invited them. Her name is Miss Markham,
-she is very strict, but I think she is kind too.
-I am thinking all the time of the history of
-England when she speaks, and wondering
-what part of it she belongs to. The elder
-children are going down to dinner, as it is
-Uncle's first evening at home.
-
-"Auntie was lying on a couch when I
-was taken to her room. She seemed so full
-of grief and sadness. She wept when she held
-her arms around me. But I just knew that
-Love is everywhere, and sorrow and sadness
-cannot be where Love is. In a little while
-she was quite different, and even smiled as
-she talked to me. She said I had comforted
-her so. I would have liked to explain to her
-what had comforted her, but she does not
-like me to say anything about Christian
-Science, and asked me not to mention it
-before Uncle Raymond, because it makes
-him angry. Auntie thinks I could not have
-been so ill as the doctors thought, or I should
-not be quite well and strong now. Please
-tell me, dear Cousin, will it be denying
-Christ, if I do not tell people what healed
-me? I did so wish I could have told Auntie
-some of the beautiful things you have taught
-me. Will you write to me very often, please?
-I am going to write nearly every day to you.
-Auntie says I may--as often as I like. I
-have such a dear little room all to myself, so
-I shall be able to do the Lesson-Sermon every
-morning before breakfast. Thank you again
-for giving me *Science and Health* for my
-very own, and the Bible which was my
-mother's. I want to study both books so
-well that when I am a man I shall know them
-better than anything else in the world. I
-am to study with Edith and Gwendolin for
-the present. Frank and Percy go to a large
-public school at H--. I am to go with them
-when Uncle is quite sure I am strong enough.
-He does not understand that I am perfectly
-well and strong. I must leave off now. I
-have to put on my Eton suit for dinner. I
-do not feel so far away from you as when I
-was in the train. It is just as if you were in
-the room with me. I can feel your thoughts
-like loving arms around me.
-
-"Dear Cousin Alicia
- "Your loving Carol.
-
-"*P.S.* Bed-time. The post-bag had gone
-when I had finished my letter. I just want
-to tell you, Auntie came down to dinner.
-Every one was so surprised and delighted and
-we had such a happy evening. Uncle played
-games with us after dinner, and Auntie
-looked on. The time went so quickly, we
-were sorry when Uncle said: 'Bed-time,
-children. To your tents: double quick
-march.' So we all had to scamper away.
-Uncle Raymond came to dinner. He is so
-grave and stern, so different from Father.
-He went into the study whilst Uncle was
-playing with us."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER III.--A FORBIDDEN BOOK.
-===============================
-
-Carol had always been a lonely boy. The
-companionship of other children was a
-pleasure he had never known. In the remote
-Devonshire village, where all the years of his
-young life had been spent, there were no
-children who could be invited to his home as
-friends and companions for him. First his
-mother's delicate health, and then his own,
-had prevented visits to or from his cousins.
-When he was seven years old a fall from his
-pony caused an injury to his hip, which
-eventually developed into what the doctors
-diagnosed as tubercular disease of the hip
-bone. For three years his mother had been
-slowly dying of consumption, and the boy
-had been the joy and brightness of her life.
-She did not live long after she was told that
-what she was suffering from he would suffer,
-too, in another form. She died about six
-months before the war broke out in South
-Africa, and fulfilling a promise made some
-time before, a favorite cousin, then resident
-in America, whose girlhood had been spent
-with her as a sister, came to take charge of
-the household and the young motherless
-invalid. Major Willmar was ordered to the
-front shortly after operations commenced,
-but before he went he had hopes that his
-boy would grow well and strong. There had
-been such a marked change in him from the
-day Cousin Alicia arrived, bringing to that
-saddened home love and--Truth.
-
-It can, therefore, be easily understood that
-the first few days at the Manor were to Carol
-days almost of bewilderment. As soon as
-his cousins found that their joy in having
-Father back again, safe and sound, did not
-hurt Carol, nothing restrained their wild
-exuberance of spirits. They could not
-understand the gentle, reserved boy, who spoke
-with so much love and tenderness of his
-father, yet had no tears or sadness because
-he would return no more.
-
-"Perhaps he doesn't quite understand,"
-said Gwendolin.
-
-"I think he does," said Edith, "and I am
-sure he loved Uncle as much as we love
-Father. There is such a far-away look in his
-eyes, when he speaks of his father and mother,
-just as if he were looking at something we
-cannot see. Although he is so gentle and
-kind, especially to the little ones, I am sure
-no one could persuade him to do anything
-he thought wrong. He is a dear boy. I am
-glad he is going to study with us for the
-present, because the boys at school would not
-understand him. Even Percy and Frank
-are inclined to mistake his gentleness for
-weakness. Yet I could imagine him standing
-and facing any real danger, when most boys
-would run away."
-
-From the first Edith had conceived a great
-affection for her Cousin Carol, and, as a
-consequence, she understood him better. On
-many occasions she was able to help him,
-when Percy and Frank were somewhat
-brusque and impatient in their treatment
-of him. They could not understand his
-reluctance to join in some of their games.
-He loved to look on; but everything was
-new and strange to him. He had never been
-used to playing the games which were so much
-to Frank and Percy. Edith then quietly
-explained to her less thoughtful brothers that
-they should not expect a boy who had spent
-three years on an invalid's couch to be able
-to play the games in which they were so proficient.
-
-Carol was often in the nursery, Nurse was
-so big and motherly. She had welcomed him,
-as if he had been one of her own children from
-the first. It was a fixed idea amongst the
-children that as long as there had been a
-Manor House, Nurse had presided over the
-nursery. She was always ready to tell them
-stories of their father and uncles and aunts
-in the old days. She even had tales of their
-grandfather, and many past generations of
-Mandevilles, and in all the stories, of
-however long ago, they imagined Nurse playing
-part. One thing they never could imagine:
-that was the Manor House without her.
-
-When the little girls wanted him, and that
-was very frequently, Carol was always ready
-to go to the nursery, and often accompanied
-them on their walks. Percy and Frank
-considered it much beneath their dignity to
-take a walk "with the babies."
-
-The improvement in Mrs. Mandeville's
-health, which had commenced on Carol's
-first visit to her room, continued. In a few
-days she had taken her usual place in the
-household, and the children rejoiced in the
-nightly visits to their bedrooms. How glad
-they were when there were no visitors downstairs,
-and they could keep her quite a long time.
-
-Upon the occasion of her first visit to
-Carol's room, she found him sitting up in
-bed, reading. She had expected to find him
-asleep, as the other children had detained
-her so long.
-
-"My little book-worm, what is the story
-you find so interesting?" she asked playfully,
-intending to tell him lovingly the next
-morning that she did not like the children
-to read in bed.
-
-"Auntie, it isn't a story book. It is
-*Science and Health*. I read it every night
-and morning."
-
-"What a very strange book for a little boy
-to be interested in! The title sounds quite
-alarmingly dry."
-
-"Oh, Auntie, have you never heard of it?
-It is such a wonderful book. I am beginning
-to understand it now. At first I could not,
-but Cousin Alicia used to explain it so
-beautifully to me, and now I love to read it."
-
-"I cannot say I remember the title, dear,
-but I should like to look into it. Will you
-spare it to me this evening? I think it is
-time now for lights to be extinguished."
-
-Carol gave the book to her gladly, little
-thinking it would be many long days before
-he would see it again.
-
-When Mrs. Mandeville returned to the
-drawing-room, the Rector was there. "Do
-you know anything of this book, Raymond?"
-she asked, giving it into his hand. "I found
-Carol reading it in bed--*Science and Health*." The
-frown which was habitually on the
-Rector's face deepened.
-
-"Indeed I do," he said, "and I should like
-to do with every copy what I am going to do
-with this."
-
-He walked over to the fireplace; his
-intentions were plain. Mrs. Mandeville caught
-hold of his arm.
-
-"No, no, Raymond, you must not. The
-book was a present from Miss Desmond to
-Carol, and you have no right to destroy it,
-however strongly you may disapprove of
-his reading it."
-
-"I do more than disapprove. I absolutely
-forbid him to read any more of it; the
-most unorthodox rubbish that has been
-published for centuries. The worst of it
-is, it has taken hold of some people,
-especially women, and they are carried away by it."
-
-The Rector slipped the little book into his
-pocket. As he had not destroyed it, he meant
-to make sure there should be no chance of its
-falling again into Carol's hands. He, as well
-as Mrs. Mandeville, was the boy's legal guardian.
-
-Mrs. Mandeville was sorry. She felt sure
-from the way Carol had spoken that the book
-was precious to him. Very gently, the next
-morning, she told him of his uncle's decision.
-She noted the quivering lips; the tears he
-was bravely trying not to shed.
-
-"Dear boy, did you value it so much?" she said.
-
-"Oh, Auntie!" The simple exclamation
-expressed more pain and regret than many
-words could have done.
-
-"Darling, I am sorry; but we must believe
-that Uncle Raymond has good reasons for
-taking the book away. He says it is fearful
-heresy. You must not forget that your dear
-grandfather was a bishop, also your
-great-grandfather. I could not tell you during
-how many generations there has always
-been at least one member of our family a
-dignitary of the Church."
-
-"What does unorthodox mean, Auntie?"
-
-"It means contrary to, or opposed to the
-teachings of our beloved church. Your dear
-father and mother were both good church people."
-
-"Yes, Auntie; but that did not make
-Mummie better when she was so ill. The
-vicar often used to sit with her, and pray
-for her in church, but she was never better
-for it. When Cousin Alicia came and I was
-so ill, I began at once to get better. That
-little book, *Science and Health*, had taught
-her to understand the Bible, and God
-answered her prayers for me!"
-
-"It was certainly a remarkable coincidence--your
-improving so quickly after Miss
-Desmond came; but it may have been the
-result of some fresh medicine the doctor
-was trying."
-
-"Auntie, I was not taking any medicine.
-The first night Cousin Alicia came I slept
-till morning, and the next day I wanted
-something to eat. The nurses thought it was
-wonderful, because they had had such
-difficulty to get me to eat before. Then when
-they dressed the wounds on my hip every
-morning I used to scream so, some of the
-servants went where they could not hear
-me. In only one week I lost all the pain and
-I did not cry at all, and very soon one by
-one the wounds healed."
-
-"It was very remarkable, dear. But do
-you associate your healing with the book
-which Uncle Raymond has taken away?"
-
-"Why, Auntie, *Science and Health* is the
-Key to the Bible, and the Bible is the 'tree
-whose leaves are for the healing of the
-nations.' But people have not understood
-until they had that Key how to go to the
-Bible for healing. Cousin Alicia understood;
-that was why she was able to heal me."
-
-"What you say seems very strange, Carol.
-If Uncle had not taken the book away, I
-should have liked to look into it. I expect
-he would refuse if I asked him to let me read it."
-
-It did not occur to Mrs. Mandeville that
-she could obtain another copy of the book.
-The confiscated copy was not the only one to
-be had. Her conversation with Carol was
-interrupted just then. The same night when
-she went, as the evening before, to his
-bedroom, she found him sitting up in bed. He
-greeted her eagerly with the words:
-
-"Auntie, I have been thinking."
-
-"Dear boy, what have you been thinking?" She
-kissed the earnest, upturned face, and
-realized for the first time that he had a very
-beautiful countenance, so like, she thought,
-one of Murillo's child angels.
-
-"I have been thinking, Auntie, of what
-you said about unorthodox. A good many
-years ago when Protestants were called
-heretics, they were unorthodox to the Church
-of Rome, were they not?"
-
-"Certainly, dear."
-
-"But Protestants are not called heretics
-now, are they?"
-
-"I think we never hear them so spoken
-of now, dear, because there are more
-Protestants in England than Roman Catholics."
-
-"Then, Auntie, when there are more Christian
-Scientists than other church people,
-*they* won't be called heretics."
-
-"Will that ever be?" Mrs. Mandeville
-asked with a smile.
-
-"Yes, Auntie; it must be, because Christian
-Scientists obey Jesus. All that he said
-and commanded in the New Testament,
-they try to carry out. He commanded his
-disciples to heal the sick."
-
-"His disciples of that day, dear."
-
-"But, Auntie, didn't he say: 'What I
-say unto you I say unto all.' If we love him
-we shall keep all his commandments. That
-is why I am sorry Uncle Raymond has taken
-away my *Science and Health*. I want to
-understand it like Cousin Alicia does; then
-some day, if I know little boys or girls ill
-like I was, I could heal them. It makes me
-so sorry now that I cannot study. I have
-written to Cousin Alicia to help me. I
-know she will. It has been so difficult all
-day to stand 'porter at the door of thought.' Such
-a lot of unkind thoughts would keep
-trying to get in. I know I must not let any
-of them in, and Cousin Alicia will help me to
-keep them out."
-
-"I am afraid I do not quite understand, Carol."
-
-"Don't you, Auntie? I have a little book
-that will explain. It is called 'At the Door.' Our
-mind is like a beautiful white mansion,
-and thoughts are like people who go in and
-out. If we let unkind thoughts pass in, all
-kind thoughts go away. Self-pity isn't at
-all a nice person, I have had such difficulty
-to keep him out all day, especially when I
-remembered that Father knew I was studying
-*Science and Health*, and he did not take it
-away from me."
-
-"I will tell that to Uncle Raymond, dear,
-perhaps it will cause him to alter his decision."
-
-"Thank you, Auntie; I know it will be all
-right. I have only to be patient. They
-have all gone away now, self-pity and
-indignation, and anger. If I keep my mansion
-so full of love, there will be no room for them
-to squeeze in, will there?"
-
-"No, darling. Now go to sleep. I will
-take the little book down with me and read it."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville remembered as she went
-downstairs her visit three years ago to
-Carol's home. Then she would have
-described him as a very spoilt child, making
-allowance for his illness, he was fretful, selfish,
-exacting. What had wrought such a marvellous
-change? The physical healing seemed
-slight in comparison.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER IV.--A WELCOME LETTER.
-==============================
-
-Carol had been at the Manor a week before
-he received the eagerly expected letter from
-Cousin Alicia. Mrs. Mandeville brought it
-herself to the school-room for him.
-
-"What a lucky little boy to get such a fat
-letter! I wonder the post-office didn't
-decline to bring it for a penny," she said smiling
-at his radiantly happy face. Then turning
-to Miss Markham, as lessons were about to
-commence, she asked:
-
-"May he be excused for a little time, Miss
-Markham? I know he will like to take it to
-his room and read it quietly there."
-
-"Oh, thank you, Auntie; thank you, Miss
-Markham," as the asked-for permission was
-quickly accorded, and he ran off with the
-treasured letter. Half an hour later he sought
-Mrs. Mandeville in her morning-room.
-
-"Auntie, would you like to read my letter?"
-
-"Indeed, dear, I should, if you would care
-for me to."
-
-"Yes, Auntie. I would like you to read it
-very much. I knew Cousin Alicia would
-help me to understand. It has been just
-like having a talk with her. She always makes
-me feel happy."
-
-He gave several sheets of closely written
-note paper into Mrs. Mandeville's hand.
-
-"I must not be away any more lesson time, must I?"
-
-He left the letter with her, and returned to
-the school-room. Mrs. Mandeville opened
-the pages, and read:
-
-
-"WILLMAR COURT,
- S. DEVON.
-
-"*My very dear Carol,*
-
-"Until your first letter arrived it was
-difficult to realize that the train had carried you
-so far away from us. It seemed as if a spirit
-of sadness were creeping over the household,
-even the dogs and birds felt the subtle
-influence, and I had to dispel it by realizing
-that there can be no separation in Mind.
-Nothing can come between loving thoughts.
-I am as near to you in thought, and you to
-me as if these human arms enfolded you.
-It rejoiced me to read that you felt my
-thoughts like loving arms around you.
-
-"Your first letter was awaited with eager
-expectation. I had to read parts to
-everyone. When Bob brought up your pony for
-his morning lump of sugar, I caught him
-brushing a tear away with his coat sleeve, as
-he asked, 'Will it be long before Master
-Carol comes home again?' I told him that
-was a question I could not answer, but
-possibly you might have the pony sent to
-Mandeville, and in that case he would no doubt
-accompany it.
-
-"The bright happy strain of your first
-letter made me glad. Before I had time to
-answer it came the second in a minor key.
-After reading it, a thought that something
-was wrong tried hard to creep in. But I
-knew it could not be. 'Love governs and
-controls all events with unerring wisdom.' So
-I just took my hat and went for our
-favorite walk by the stream, to think things
-out. I seemed to feel your little hand in
-mine as I walked. I sat down on the old
-tree-stump, where you used to rest when you first
-began to walk; and do you remember the
-thrush which was always singing on the other
-side of the stream, how we used to think he
-sang a special song for you, and the words
-were, 'God is Love'? He was there on the
-same branch of the tree. I feel so sure now
-that it is the same bird. 'What message
-have you for Carol this morning?' I asked,
-and it seemed that the notes changed and the
-message came so clearly: 'All is right that
-seems most wrong.'
-
-"Yes! I knew it I Of course it is! The
-bird flew off, and I walked on, thinking of a
-story I read many years ago. It was, I
-believe, an Eastern allegory. That story has
-often helped me; perhaps it will help you. I
-will tell it briefly. The King of a great
-country had many singing birds. They were to
-him as children, he loved them so. They
-were quite free to fly about the palace, or in
-the beautiful gardens of the palace, and when
-the King walked amongst them, they rested
-on his shoulder, or on his hand, when he held
-it out to them. There was one especial
-favorite--a little brown bird. It had not
-gay plumage like some of its companions,
-but its song delighted the King, and often he
-said: 'Sing--sing always.' One day the
-servants discovered the little brown bird was
-missing. Some one had stolen it from the
-palace. Word was brought to the King, and
-he quickly sent messengers all over his
-kingdom to discover where the bird was. It
-was not long before the place of confinement
-was known, and, to the surprise of everyone,
-the King left his little favorite in captivity.
-But he strictly commanded his messengers
-to watch over it, that no harm could
-come to it. Not a feather was to be ruffled.
-
-"In partial darkness, beating its wings
-helplessly against the bars of the cage, the
-little brown bird yet remembered the King's
-command, 'Sing, sing always'; and every
-day it poured forth the song which the King
-loved. Strangers came from far to listen to
-the wondrous song of the little captive bird.
-Then, one day, the little bird looked up
-joyfully, at the sound of a well-known voice.
-The King himself had come to set the captive
-free. The cage door was quickly opened,
-and the bird flew forth, and rested on the
-King's shoulder, pouring forth such a song of
-joy as no one had ever heard before.
-
-"'My priceless treasure!' the King
-exclaimed--the one note that was missing
-has come into your song.' And great was the
-King's joy as he carried the little brown bird
-back to his palace.
-
-"I remember, when I read that story as a
-girl, being sorry that it ended there. I wanted
-to know that the wicked men were punished
-for stealing the bird, and that it was never
-separated again from the King who loved
-it so. But now I understand the story better,
-and the lesson it teaches. If the little bird
-had not been obedient to the King's
-command to sing always,--even when it was in
-captivity, it would never have learned that
-one missing note. And so, dear Carol, we
-have to learn under all circumstances and at
-all times that we are bidden to rejoice. The
-words are: 'Rejoice--again I say rejoice.'
-
-"Having the book taken from you, as you
-do not yet understand the antagonism so
-many people manifest towards it, was doubtless
-a great surprise, when you owe so much to
-its teachings. But, dearie, you must not let
-any thoughts of injustice, or of something
-not quite right, creep in. The book will be
-returned to you one day. Love can always
-find a way. It will not be detained one
-moment after it is needful for you to have it
-again. You must put in practice, live up to,
-what you have already learned. You have
-only one step to take at present, and I think
-that step is '*obedience*': cheerful, willing
-obedience, in every detail of your life. You see,
-dear Carol, we are told only one thing of the
-Master when he was a boy of your age: that
-is, 'He was subject [obedient] unto them.' Had
-it been necessary, we should have been
-told more. So from you, and all children,
-looking unto Jesus, to follow in his steps,
-one thing only is required--perfect
-obedience to those in authority over you, parents
-or guardians.
-
-"Try to picture that humble home at
-Nazareth, and the carpenter's shop. We
-can never know the trials *he* had to bear in
-those early years, through those around him
-not comprehending his divine mission. From
-one verse in St. Matthew's Gospel we learn
-that taunts and gibes were thrown at him,
-because his spiritual birth was not
-understood. Yet those words have come down
-through all the centuries to inspire and help
-the young of all generations: *He was subject
-unto them*.
-
-"The world has given an undue prominence
-to the wooden crucifix. The cross that Jesus
-carried for us he carried for 33 long years--working
-out each problem of life, and finally
-overcoming death, in order to show us the
-way to eternal life, then bidding us take
-up the cross--not the wooden crucifix--the
-cross of daily overcoming error with truth; and
-thus to follow him.
-
-"When you are asked anything about
-Christian Science, and your own healing, if
-you are able, answer any questions quietly
-and courteously, but never obtrude the
-subject on anyone; or bring it forward
-voluntarily. Live Christian Science, dear Carol,
-not talk it. Be careful in all things to study
-your aunt's wishes; and as she evidently
-does not wish the subject mentioned to your
-cousins, do not mention it. Following in the
-steps that Jesus marked--perfect obedience--can
-never be denying Christ, and by perfect
-obedience, dear, you will understand, loving,
-willing, cheerful obedience, never allowing
-any thought of wrong or injustice to find a
-resting place in your consciousness.
-
-"Write to me as often as you can, dear.
-Now that you have commenced regular
-lessons, you will not have so much spare
-time. Your letters will always be to me a
-joy, both to receive and to answer. I
-rejoice in my stewardship, taking care of this
-beautiful home for my dear boy. Colonel
-Mandeville wrote me that your dear father
-expressed his desire at the last that it should
-be so; and he himself also wrote a letter which
-was posted at Gibraltar. It had not yet
-reached me. I cannot understand it, as the
-letter from Colonel Mandeville which was
-evidently posted at the same time, bearing
-the Gibraltar post-mark, arrived, as you
-know, before you left. But we know it cannot
-be lost, although it is long over-due.
-
-"Please convey my kind regards to Colonel
-and Mrs. Mandeville, and to yourself,
-dear Carol, unnumbered loving thoughts,
-from
-
- COUSIN ALICIA.
-
-"*P.S.* How I should like to see the sweet
-Rosebud and your other cousins!"
-
-----
-
-A very grave, thoughtful expression deepened
-on Mrs. Mandeville's face as she gathered
-the loose sheets of note paper together, and
-replaced them in the envelope. "Surely,"
-she said, sotto voce, "if this is what Christian
-Science teaches, Raymond does not understand
-the book which he has taken away from Carol."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER V.--QUIET DAYS.
-=======================
-
-The days which followed were quiet and
-uneventful, the peaceful, happy days which
-imperceptibly glide into weeks and months.
-Carol worked diligently at his lessons. He
-had so much lost time to make up.
-
-Miss Markham was surprised at the
-progress he made. Whatever tasks she set him
-he mastered with ease, and never manifested
-fatigue or weariness. He was still so slight,
-even fragile, in appearance, she sometimes
-feared lest she was overtaxing his strength.
-Once, expressing fear lest this should be so,
-Carol answered lightly, "It is quite right,
-Miss Markham, the more work I do, the more
-I shall be able to do. Cousin Alicia is
-helping me every day."
-
-"Miss Desmond is in Devonshire, Carol,
-how can she help you?"
-
-"I am sorry, Miss Markham, I forgot you
-do not understand," he said.
-
-He had been so perfectly obedient to Miss
-Desmond's wishes in never talking about
-Christian Science, that, excepting Mrs. Mandeville,
-no one remembered anything about
-it in connection with the boy. But, gradually,
-all the household were realizing there was
-something strangely different about the boy
-from other children. No one ever heard him
-complain of an ache or pain. No one ever
-heard him speak an unkind or angry word;
-and if, as sometimes, though seldom, amongst
-the Mandeville children, little dissensions or
-bickerings arose, if Carol was near, they
-passed as a ripple on water, and all was
-harmony and peace again.
-
-Nurse loved to have him in the nursery.
-Miss Markham missed him when he was
-absent from the school-room. On one
-occasion when he was in the nursery a heavy
-box-lid was accidentally allowed to fall on
-Rosebud's fingers. The child screamed terribly
-with the pain, but before Nurse could do or say
-anything Carol seized her in his arms, and ran
-out of the room with her. In less than ten
-minutes he brought her back again, laughing merrily.
-
-"Naughty fingers don't hurt Rosebud
-now," she said.
-
-Nurse wondered, but, like Miss Markham,
-she did not understand.
-
-It happened only a few days afterward that
-Mrs. Mandeville did not come as usual to
-the school-room immediately after breakfast,
-and everyone was sorrowful when it was
-known that Mother had one of her old nervous
-headaches. They knew it meant not seeing
-her for two or three days. She suffered
-terribly at times with her head, and had to
-lie in a darkened room, unable to bear the least
-noise. The children hushed their laughter
-and trod softly, though the school-room and
-nurseries were too far removed from
-Mrs. Mandeville's apartments for any sound to
-reach her.
-
-After morning school, without saying a
-word to any one, Carol crept so noiselessly
-into the darkened room that Mrs. Mandeville
-was unaware of his presence, until he
-softly touched her with his hand, and said:
-
-"Auntie, I am so sorry you are suffering.
-I do want to help you. Could I--would
-you let me?"
-
-"Dear boy, how sweet of you! I have
-frequently suffered with headaches like this
-for many years. Nothing can be done, dear.
-I can only be still and bear the pain until
-it passes."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville spoke as if every word she
-uttered tortured her.
-
-"Auntie, dear, won't you let me try to help you?"
-
-"Do you mean, dear, you want to say a
-Christian Science prayer for me?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie."
-
-"Why, of course, darling, if you wish it.
-It is so very sweet of you!"
-
-Carol softly kissed the hand she put out to
-him, and left the room, as noiselessly as he
-had entered, closing the door after him. He
-knew what pain was. He went straight to
-his own room and closed that door too. He
-did not leave his room until the gong sounded
-for the school-room dinner. His cousins
-exclaimed as he rejoined them,
-
-"Wherever have you been all this time, Carol?"
-
-But Carol did not say.
-
-In the afternoon while the children were
-still seated round the tea-table, the
-school-room door opened, and Mrs. Mandeville
-entered the room. There was one vociferous
-exclamation of surprise and delight.
-
-"Mother! Are you better?"
-
-"I am quite better," she said, "I fell asleep.
-I must have slept a long time, and when I
-woke I felt quite well."
-
-No one noticed the flush of joy that came
-to Carol's face. His hands were clasped,
-his eyes downcast as he silently breathed,
-"I thank Thee, my Father."
-
-Before she left the room again, Mrs. Mandeville
-caressingly laid her hands on the boy's
-shoulders, and bent over to kiss his brow, but
-she did not allude to his visit to her room.
-Neither did he. Some sad days were to pass
-over the Manor household before
-Mrs. Mandeville acknowledged the help she had
-received.
-
-Carol had not been long at Mandeville
-before he became almost as well acquainted
-with the villagers as his cousins. He
-frequently accompanied the three little girls and
-the second nurse, when they were deputed to
-carry a basket of good things to any house
-in the village where there was need. In this
-way he became acquainted with the village
-shoemaker, Mr. Higgs, who, in his younger
-days, had also acted as verger at the church.
-He explained to Carol the "rheumatiz" was
-so bad in his legs he hadn't been able to walk
-to church for months. He was often to be
-seen sitting at the open cottage door in the
-summer evenings, with an open Bible on his
-knees, his hands folded on it, for the print
-was too small for his failing eyesight.
-
-Carol was thoughtful as he walked home.
-When Mrs. Mandeville paid her usual visit
-to his bedroom in the evening, she found him
-sitting up in bed, waiting for her. He was
-always awake when she came, but since she
-had desired him not to read in bed he never
-had a book in his hand. So often he greeted
-her with the words, "Auntie, I have been thinking."
-
-"Well, darling, what have you been
-thinking about to-night?" she asked before he
-spoke, well knowing from his attitude that he
-had been thinking either of some pleasing
-or some perplexing subject.
-
-"I have been thinking of something I can
-do, Auntie, if you will let me. It is only a
-very little thing, but if we do not begin with
-little things, we shall not be able some day
-to do big things, shall we? I so often think
-about Jesus when he was twelve years old,
-he said, 'I must be about my Father's
-business.' I am twelve years old, and God is my
-Father, too. I want to be about His business.
-When I was talking to old Mr. Higgs this
-morning, he told me he cannot walk to church
-now, and his eyes are so bad he cannot see
-to read the Bible. I thought I would like to
-go sometimes and read it to him, and help
-him to understand it. Would you let me,
-Auntie dear? It is such a little thing."
-
-"Why, of course, dear; there can be no
-reason why you should not, if you wish to.
-I don't think Uncle Raymond can have any
-possible objection. Anyway, if I give you
-permission, that will be sufficient, will it not?"
-
-"Oh, yes, Auntie; thank you so very much.
-May I go every Sunday evening?"
-
-"Yes, dear; and perhaps it may not be
-such a little thing as you think."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville thought of her own two
-boys. How different Carol was!
-
-Neither of them would have dreamed of
-doing such a thing. "But," she mused,
-"his long illness has changed him."
-
-"Auntie, I often try to picture Jesus in
-his humble home at Nazareth. I wish we
-knew more. When he returned with Joseph
-and Mary after the visit to the Temple, and
-was always obedient to them, I sometimes
-wonder if they kept him back from going
-about his Father's business, because they did
-not understand; and if he played on the
-hillsides with the other village boys, and no one
-knew until he was a man, that he was Jesus
-the Christ."
-
-"There are many legends of his boyhood,
-dear, but they are only legends. We cannot
-accept anything except what is narrated in
-the Gospels. You must read Canon Farrar's
-'Life of Christ.' That will help you to
-understand that the Apostles were,
-without doubt, divinely instructed to record so
-little of the boyhood of Jesus. There is a
-copy in the library. I will look it out for you."
-
-"Thank you so much, Auntie. I shall be
-glad to read it."
-
-Then clinging both arms round her neck,
-as she stooped to kiss him, he said:
-
-"I do love your coming to my room like
-this, Auntie. I always keep awake till you come."
-
-"I, too, enjoy our little talks, dear. You
-often give me a beautiful thought to take
-away with me: something I have not thought
-of before."
-
-The boy lay awake a long time after
-Mrs. Mandeville left him, thinking joyfully of the
-work that had come to him, wondering how he
-should open the pages of that wonderful book,
-as they had been opened to him. "Teach
-me, Father-Mother God, the words of Truth
-that will help him," he prayed. Finally, he
-fell asleep with the words on his lips of the
-boy Samuel: "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER VI.--FIRST WORK IN THE VINEYARD.
-========================================
-
-"Would you like me to read to you for a
-little while this evening, Mr. Higgs? My
-aunt has given me permission, if you would
-like me to," Carol asked modestly as he
-entered the old man's cottage the following
-Sunday evening. Mr. Higgs was seated as
-usual at the open door, watching the villagers
-pass by on their way to church.
-
-"Thank you kindly, young gentleman.
-I'll be glad to hear some of the words of the
-Book. I just keep it close by me. It don't
-seem Sunday without. But my eyes fail me,
-and I just sit and ponder over some of the
-Psalms I can well remember. After the
-service sometimes a neighbor'll pop in and
-tell me the text Rector's been preaching
-about. A mighty fine preacher is Rector,
-but often I used to say to my Missus--she's
-dead and gone these five years--his thoughts
-are like birds, they fly over our heads, and we
-don't seem able to lay hold of them. If he'd
-just tell us something simple to help us day
-by day. I'd be glad now if I could remember
-some of the sermons I've listened to, year in,
-year out. But there, it's all gone, and I've
-got no more understanding of the Bible than
-when I was a boy. It's ower late to think
-about it now, and me turned seventy."
-
-"I have been taught to understand the
-Bible. I should like to teach you what I
-have been taught. Then, when you
-understand, you would lose your rheumatism."
-
-"*Lose my rheumatism!*" The old man
-repeated the words in the utmost astonishment.
-
-"Why, yes, of course you would," Carol
-said with that wonderfully sweet smile which
-won all hearts. "I had hip-disease; but
-I lost it."
-
-"Well, now, young gentleman, I can say
-with absolute truth that I have never been
-told that before--no, *never!* though I've been
-a regular church attendant since I was a little
-choir boy, and never left off going till the
-joints in my old legs grew so stiff I couldn't
-walk. It'd want a lot of faith, sir, to believe
-that just reading the Bible would make 'em
-lissom again."
-
-"Faith comes with understanding. There
-is another book; it is called *Key to the
-Scriptures*. I haven't a copy of that book now, but
-I can remember so much of it, I shall be able
-to help you to understand the Bible perhaps
-a little better. We will commence with the
-first chapter of Genesis."
-
-"Yes, now; I remember that chapter
-pretty well. I learnt it at Sunday School
-sixty years ago, and I've never quite forgotten
-it. I could repeat verses straight off now."
-
-"And has it never helped you all through
-your life?"
-
-"Well, no. I can't say that chapter has.
-I have found comfort sometimes from the
-Psalms. 'The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall
-not want,' I have often turned to when we'd
-a growing family and work was slack."
-
-"Let me read the chapter now and then
-we will talk about it."
-
-The boy opened the Bible, and slowly with
-an impressiveness which the old man had
-never before heard, he read the first chapter
-of Genesis, and three verses of the second
-chapter. He read as one reads words that
-are very familiar and understandable.
-
-"*Thus the heavens and the earth were
-finished, and all the host of them, and God saw
-everything that He had made, and behold it was
-very good.*" He repeated the words from
-memory, looking with a kindly smile at the
-old man, as he asked the question: "If God
-looked upon everything which He had created,
-and declared it very good--where do the
-things come from that are not good? Who
-created them?"
-
-"Well now, young sir, that is a question
-I'm not prepared to answer. I can only say
-like that little black girl in the story, ''spose
-they growed'."
-
-"But everything must grow from
-something, mustn't it? Every tree and plant has
-its own seed. God created every living
-creature after its kind, and bade it be
-fruitful and multiply. So you see everything good
-was created by the Word of God. Is
-rheumatism good?"
-
-"'Deed no, young gentleman! It's cruel bad."
-
-"So is hip-disease. It's very, very 'cruel
-bad,' and because it is the opposite of good
-it was not amongst the things which God
-'beheld.' Our dear Heavenly Father did not
-create poor suffering little children maimed
-with hip-disease, and sometimes blind. He
-created them in His own image and likeness,
-and God could not be suffering sometimes with
-one disease, sometimes with another, so that
-His image and likeness could have it too,
-could He? See, if I hold my hand up so it
-casts a shadow on the wall, that is an exact
-image or likeness of my hand, is it not?
-Now if I just hold something--only a slip of
-paper between my hand and the reflection,
-the reflection is deformed, isn't it? But my
-hand is not affected by it. So when we are
-bound by any cruel disease, there is
-something between God and His image and
-likeness, something that was never created by
-Him--was never created at all. It is only a
-shadowy mist--a belief: and we have to get
-rid of it, by knowing its unreality. We have
-to know that because we are God's children,
-His spiritual creation, we must be perfect,
-even as He is perfect. Jesus came to teach
-people this. He said, 'Be ye therefore
-perfect, even as your Father in Heaven is
-perfect.' But, my cousin says, the world has
-been slow to learn the lesson. Sin and disease
-will disappear from our midst just as soon as
-we do learn it. When she came to me, and I
-was very ill, she taught me that nothing was
-real except what God had created, and
-pronounced good, and He never created
-hip-disease. Because she understood this so
-clearly, and taught me to understand it, I
-soon began to get better. I should like to
-help you to understand it, so that you would
-lose your rheumatism. I think I have stayed
-as long as I had permission to-night. Would
-you like me to come again next Sunday?"
-
-"'Deed, and I would, young gentleman."
-
-"My name is Carol," the boy said simply.
-
-"Thank 'ee, Master Carol, you've given me
-something to think about, I shan't forget
-during the week."
-
-"I should like to teach you the Scientific
-Statement of Being. It is in that book I
-told you of, which explains the Bible. If
-you would learn it, and try to realize it, it
-would help you so much.'
-
-"My mem'ry 's none of the best now, but
-I'll try," the old man said regretfully.
-
-"Perhaps it will be better for me to write
-it for you in large writing, so that you can read
-it until you know it. I will bring it with me
-next week. These are the words: 'There is
-no life, truth, intelligence, nor substance in
-matter.' He repeated the words gravely and
-slowly to the end, the old man gazing at him
-the while with wondering eyes. The sun was
-setting; the crimson light streamed through
-the lattice window upon the boy's upturned
-face, so sweet, so grave, so loving, and so earnest.
-
-"The words seem difficult to understand
-at first," he said, "but you will soon grow to
-love them. It is the truth which Jesus
-promised should make us free. It has made me
-free. It will make you free."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER VII.--"I KNOW."
-=======================
-
-Carol bounded through the park with a
-light, joyous step. On reaching the Manor
-House, he would have gone straight to his
-aunt, but there were visitors with her. So
-he rejoined his cousins in the school-room.
-
-"Where ever have you been, Carol?" they
-questioned, as he entered.
-
-"Somewhere Auntie gave me permission to
-go," he replied quietly.
-
-Miss Markham looked at the boy's beaming
-face, and she too wondered. He had been
-absent from the Scripture lesson, which she,
-and sometimes Mrs. Mandeville, gave the
-children every Sunday evening. She felt a
-little remorse that she had been conscious
-during the lesson of a feeling of relief, on
-account of the boy's absence. Carol so often
-asked a question in a quiet, thoughtful
-manner, which she was unable to answer:
-and the question would often recur to her
-afterwards. She had an intuition that the
-boy had a firmer grasp of spiritual truths
-than she herself possessed. Many times she
-would have liked to discuss a subject with
-him. But Mrs. Mandeville had warned her
-that the boy had been taught much that was
-unorthodox, she therefore refrained from discussion.
-
-Though it was much later than usual,
-Carol was wide awake when Mrs. Mandeville
-came to his room that night. She had
-found all the other children fast asleep.
-
-"Auntie, I did want to tell you, I had a
-very happy time with Mr. Higgs. He's
-such a nice, interesting old man. I was able
-to tell him so much that he had never thought
-about before. Thank you again for letting
-me go. He will like me to go next
-Sunday--I may--mayn't I?"
-
-"Of course, dear; as it seems to make you
-so happy; and I am sure it must be very
-nice for Mr. Higgs to have you read to him,
-as he is so troubled with rheumatism. But
-you must really settle down to sleep now,
-Carol. You have no idea how late it is."
-
-"Yes, Auntie, I shall soon be asleep, I
-wanted to tell you first. I feel so happy
-now, I can say one verse of Mrs. Eddy's
-beautiful hymn to-night which commences:
-
- | 'My prayer some daily good to do,
- | 'To thine for Thee;'
-
-"Cousin Alicia used to sing it to me every
-night when I was ill. I loved it so much,
-because its measures *did* bind the power of
-pain. Often I had fallen asleep before she
-came to the end."
-
-"You must repeat all the hymn to me some
-time, Carol, I shall like to hear it."
-
-"Yes, Auntie, in the morning. I have
-been thinking whilst I was waiting for you to
-come that when we want to do something
-for Truth very, very much, Love finds the
-way. When I am a man, I shall want, more
-than anything in all the world, just to do
-what Jesus said, those that loved him were to
-do, 'Go ye into all the world, preach the
-Gospel, and heal the sick.' I cannot help
-remembering there are so many little children
-lying now, just as I used to lie, always in
-pain; and they could be healed, just as I
-was healed, if there were more people who
-understood what Jesus meant by 'The truth
-shall make you free."
-
-"And you are quite sure, Carol, it is that
-which has made you free?"
-
-"Oh, Auntie, dear, I can never let even the
-tiniest thought of doubt creep up and make
-me question that. I *know*. When Uncle
-Raymond read in church last Sunday 'I
-know that my Redeemer liveth,' I felt I
-wanted to stand up and tell all the people
-*because* He liveth, I am well. That is
-'knowing.' I do long for the time to come when I
-shall be able to tell them so, and I can give
-all my time and my money to spread the
-glad tidings, to fight for Truth."
-
-"Maybe there is a great work, a great
-future before you, dear boy, surely the
-instrument has been prepared in a fierce fire,
-and has come forth strong for the battle.
-Now, good-night, and God bless you, darling." He
-clasped both his arms round her neck,
-holding her tightly, as in earlier years he used
-to cling to his mother.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER VIII.--A SECOND VISIT TO THE COTTAGE.
-=============================================
-
-The next Sunday evening when Carol
-entered the shoemaker's cottage, he was not
-alone as before.
-
-"This is my daughter, Mrs. Scott, Master
-Carol, and her little girl," he said to Carol.
-"We thought, maybe, you wouldn't object
-if she listened to the reading too. She
-cannot often go to church, because the little
-girl has been subject to epilepsy since she
-was two years old. She's just turned eight
-now. I told her mother what you told me
-last Sunday, and she'll be right glad to hear more."
-
-"That I shall, Master Carol. I know
-something of hip-disease, and if you could be
-cured of that, I'm sure my little girl could be
-cured of the fits."
-
-"Why, of course she could. You will be
-able to help her ever so much only by knowing
-that God never created fits; they belong
-to the mist which we read about in the
-second chapter of Genesis. I am going to read
-that chapter to Mr. Higgs to-night. Then
-you'll understand. I will begin at the fourth
-verse, because the first three verses belong
-really to the first chapter, which is an account
-of the first creation, when God made
-everything that was made and it was spiritual
-and perfect. No one could ever alter or
-undo God's perfect work; it remains, and
-always will remain, perfect. When we
-understand this, and realize it, the mist will
-disappear, and all the things which belong to
-the mist--sin, disease, and death."
-
-Father and daughter looked at the boy
-with wonder and perplexity. Opening the
-Bible he read:
-
-"These are the generations of the heavens
-and the earth when they were created in the
-day that the Lord God made the earth and
-the heavens." He continued to the end of
-the chapter. "Now do you see how different
-this account of creation is from the first?"
-he asked. "Who was the Lord God who
-took the dust of the ground and formed man
-over again, after God had already created
-him, and pronounced His work very good?"
-
-The old man shook his head. "I can only
-say, as I said last Sunday, Master Carol, in
-all the sermons I've listened to that has
-never been explained to me. I don't think
-I should have let it slip, if it had. It's just
-the first time I've ever known there were
-two creations."
-
-"There were not really two creations,
-though it reads as if there were, because
-there are not two creators. The sixth verse
-explains it, 'There went up a mist from the
-earth and watered the whole face of the
-ground.' That mist covered everything
-which God-Spirit had created--all the host
-of them; birds, beasts, and flowers,
-mountains, seas, lakes, rivers, even man: God's
-own image and likeness. Because the mist
-is over everything we do not see the world
-and man as they really exist. So people
-have come to believe that God made man
-from the dust; for the mist that is spoken
-of is not a mist like we see rising from the
-sea, or in the fields of an evening. It means
-false belief, misunderstanding of God and
-His spiritual creation. But, my cousin has
-told me, there is a woman in America who
-once caught a glimpse of God's real creation
-as she was passing through the death valley.
-And that one glimpse restored her to health.
-Then she devoted her whole life to learn
-more of the truth that she might teach
-others how to see through the mist, and to
-shake off their old beliefs. She has written
-a book called *Science and Health* with *Key
-to the Scriptures*, which explains all that she
-has discovered. Simply reading and studying
-that book has made hundreds of people well."
-
-"Where could we get a copy of it, Master
-Carol? I'd like to know for my little girl's
-sake," Mrs. Scott asked.
-
-"I do not quite know, but there are
-Christian Science churches in London. If you
-were to write there perhaps someone would
-tell you. I wish I had a copy to lend you.
-I have written the Scientific Statement of
-Being from memory. I am sure it will help
-you. I am trying to realize it for you, and
-for the little girl. Think always of that
-first chapter of the Bible. In the beginning
-God created everything that was created,
-and it was very good. None of the things
-we want to get rid of could be included in
-God's *very good*, could they? Jesus came to
-teach men to understand God better, and he
-said, 'that which is born of the Spirit is
-spirit.' So all that came from God and all
-that still comes is spiritual. If you could
-quite realize this, Mr. Higgs, you would soon
-lose your rheumatism. I am only telling
-you what has been told me so many times;
-and I know it is true, because I was very ill
-when my cousin used to teach me, and I
-grew better as I began to understand. She
-helped me, because she saw me always as
-God's perfect child, and knew that He had
-never created hip-disease, therefore it never
-was created; it belonged to the mist, and
-it would disappear under the light of Truth
-as hoar frost disappears when the sun shines upon it."
-
-"It is wonderful and strange what you are
-telling us, Master Carol, I've never heard
-the like before, but somehow I can't doubt
-it. I call to mind what the Bible says,
-'Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings
-God ordains strength.' I'd dearly love the
-girl to be free from those dreadful fits. My
-rheumatiz is very bad, but I'm an old man,
-and can't expect to 'scape one o' the signs
-of old age."
-
-"But you must not expect. You must
-know that it is not a sign of old age in God's
-man. You must always remember the man
-whom God created in His own image and likeness."
-
-"I've heard those words many times
-before, Master Carol, but somehow they never
-seemed to come home to me as you put it.
-Why, of course I ought not to suffer with
-rheumatiz if I *am* God's image and likeness.
-But what about all the poor dwarfed and
-stunted creatures that are crippled from
-infancy? There's a little hunchback in the
-village. He was dropped when he was a
-baby, and his back grew crooked, so that it's
-a hump now. How can he be God's image
-and likeness?"
-
-"The hunchback is not the likeness of
-God, but the real child--the spiritual child is,
-and God sees His child as He created it." The
-boy put his hand over his eyes a moment,
-realizing that of himself he was not telling
-these simple-minded people anything. Then
-he said:
-
-"Suppose a great sculptor carved a beautiful
-statue out of a block of marble. Before
-he began his work, he would have in his mind
-the form he wished the marble to take.
-Gradually, as he worked at it, the marble
-would become what his thought of it was.
-Then one day he would see it finished and
-perfect--just what he intended it to be.
-Then he would work no more at it. Afterwards,
-suppose some one came by, and took
-clay and mixed it with water into a paste,
-and then daubed the beautiful statue all over,
-till the limbs looked crooked, and the beauty
-of the face was spoiled. But it wouldn't be
-really spoiled, would it? The statue would
-still be the work of the great sculptor, finished
-and perfect; the clay and the marble would
-be quite separate and distinct. Nothing could
-make them one. So when we read the chapter
-I have just read to you--the Lord God took
-the dust of the ground and made man--God's
-man was already made, finished and perfect,
-and the dust, like the clay, could only seem
-to hide the perfect creation. But we have to
-know this and to realize it, if we are to
-get rid of the dust, and the clay, and the
-mist. When my cousin was explaining all
-this to me one day, she said, 'It is not
-known how or when the belief in a Lord
-God who made man of dust arose; but
-from that false belief came sin, sorrow,
-disease, and death. Jesus came to teach us
-the way back to God; to teach us to see
-ourselves as the children of God, not of the
-dust; and he said all who believed in him,
-in what he taught, would never see death.' The
-day will come, my cousin said, when all
-men will so believe in Jesus the Christ,
-and will so understand and realize that God
-is their Father, that death will be overcome.
-Every case of sin and disease which is healed
-by this knowledge--by the Truth--is bringing
-that day nearer."
-
-The look of bewilderment deepened on the
-old man's face. Surely, the boy was throwing
-a different light upon words with which he had
-been familiar all his life. "We'll think over
-what you've told us, Master Carol--me and
-my daughter. It sort o' goes to me that it's true."
-
-Again the words came to him, "Out of the
-mouth of babes and sucklings."
-
-The church clock chimed the half-hour.
-Carol stood up to go. "The time has gone
-so quickly. I must not stay longer now. I
-will come again next Sunday, and all the
-week will you try to know that God's work
-was finished and perfect in the beginning, and
-everything that seems to have been added to
-it--rheumatism and fits--has no right to be?"
-
-"We will, Master Carol, we'll just think
-of the marble statue and the clay. It will
-help us."
-
-"I will hold the right thought for you and
-the little girl, and I know that soon you will
-find that both the afflictions, which seem so
-real, belong to the mist."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER IX.--"IT IS THE TRUTH."
-===============================
-
-Carol faithfully kept his appointment on
-the following Sunday. His cousins ceased
-to inquire, though not to wonder, what
-became of him every Sunday evening, and once
-appealed to Mrs. Mandeville for information.
-She smilingly replied, "It is a little secret
-between Carol and me. Perhaps you will
-be told some time, but not just yet."
-
-As Carol entered the cottage, Mr. Higgs
-rose from his seat, and stood upright.
-
-"Master Carol," he exclaimed in a voice
-of suppressed excitement, "it is the Truth,
-the blessed Truth you've told us. I can't
-say I've lost my rheumatics entirely, for the
-joints are like rusty hinges that want a
-lot o' oiling after being idle so long; but I've
-just been free from pain all the week; and my
-little grand-daughter hasn't had one fit all
-the week."
-
-"No, Master Carol, she has not,"
-Mrs. Scott added. "I won't say she has never
-gone a whole week without one before, but for
-the last twelve months I don't think she has,
-until this week."
-
-"Try not to remember anything that has
-been. Think it was all a dream, and she is
-awakening from it. I had a very cruel dream
-once, but I have awakened from it. God's
-children must cling very closely to Him, then
-nothing can hurt them. It is when shadowy
-fears come between God and His image and
-likeness that dreadful things seem to happen to us."
-
-Mr. Higgs and Mrs. Scott did not understand
-yet how the boy had all the week been
-working for them--fighting error with the sword of Truth.
-
-"I want to read a chapter from the New
-Testament this evening," Carol said, opening
-the Bible. "It is always a favorite chapter,
-but one verse, my cousin said, seemed never
-to have impressed people as applicable to the
-present day. Yet the words are so simple.
-I will read the chapter first, then we'll talk
-about that one verse."
-
-He read the 14th chapter of St. John from
-the 1st verse to the last, then asked quietly,
-"Do you remember that Jesus once said,
-'Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my
-words shall never pass away'?"
-
-"Yes, Master Carol. I remember those words well."
-
-"Then is there not a verse in the chapter
-I have just read which seems as if Jesus'
-words *had* failed?" The old man looked puzzled.
-
-"I can't say that I know what you are
-alluding to, Master Carol."
-
-"I will read it again. It is the 12th verse.
-'Verily, verily, I say unto you, he that
-believeth on me, the works that I do shall he
-do also, and greater works than these shall
-he do, because I go unto my Father.' What
-were the works that Jesus did? Was it not
-healing the sick, cleansing the lepers, raising
-the dead, feeding the hungry? Well, if no
-one can do these works to-day, his word has
-failed or else no one has sufficient faith
-(faith may sometimes mean understanding).
-Many centuries rolled by, and the sick were
-not healed, nor the lepers cleansed, in Jesus'
-name. But now we know his words never
-failed. It was the faith or understanding
-of those who thought they believed in him
-which failed; for the sick are being healed
-now, and the lepers cleansed."
-
-"It is very wonderful as you put it, Master
-Carol. I can't say it has ever been explained
-like that to me before."
-
-"Is it not very simple?" Carol asked.
-
-"Why, yes. It has always seemed to me
-the Master's words were very simple, a child
-could understand them. But when you come
-to the Epistles, and the creeds of the Church,
-there's many things that I have never been
-able to understand; and often the sermons
-I've listened to puzzled me more than the texts."
-
-"In the 15th verse Jesus says, 'If ye love
-me, keep my commandments.' Jesus did
-not give many commandments to his
-followers. He told them many things, but of
-strict commandments he gave only a few.
-One was, 'Go into all the world, preach the
-Gospel and heal the sick.' If you had a son,
-and you commanded him to do two things
-and he did only one, and left the other alone,
-would you be pleased with him? Would he
-be obedient to your commands?"
-
-"Certainly I shouldn't be pleased with him,
-and I'd soon let him know that, if he didn't
-do all I commanded, he needn't do anything."
-
-"Yes, but Jesus just makes it a test of love.
-He says so gently, 'If ye love me, keep my
-commandments.' To those who keep all
-his commandments he will one day say,
-'Well done, good and faithful servant,' I
-do hope that some day he will say those
-words to me."
-
-"I'm right sure he will, Master Carol.
-It is just wonderful the way you are helping
-an old man to understand. It amazes me
-that a boy of your years should have such an
-understanding."
-
-"Oh, please don't think I am telling you
-anything of myself. It has all been explained
-to me many times. I am only telling you
-what has been told me. I wish my cousin
-could talk to you. She would help you much
-better than I can. But we must not
-withhold what we have because some one else
-has more, must we? We must hand on the
-good tidings as well as we are able."
-
-"That's it, Master Carol. Maybe I'll do
-a little that way myself later on."
-
-"Yes, I am sure you will, but don't talk
-about your rheumatism being better just yet.
-Wait until the evil is quite cast out. When
-I come next week I will explain to you how we
-learn in *Science and Health* that God gave
-man dominion, and what God has given can
-never be taken away. God says His word
-shall never return unto Him void. When
-He decreed anything, it was forever. You
-could not think of the sun, moon, or stars
-moving out of their appointed courses, could
-you? It is only man who seems to have
-wandered from his native sphere. We have
-to learn that this is not so; we have not
-really lost the dominion which God gave His
-children in the beginning. St. John says,
-'Now are we the sons of God; and it doth
-not yet appear what we shall be, but we know
-that when He shall appear we shall be like
-Him, for we shall see Him as He is.' That
-verse helped me so much when I was ill. I
-learned I had not to die to become a son of
-God. God is my Father here and now, and
-God's child ought not to believe a lie. It was
-a lie that evil could have power over me, and
-bind me. It is a lie that evil can have power
-over you, and bind you. If you acknowledge
-God as your Father, God's child should
-not go along believing he has rheumatism,
-should he?"
-
-"Thank you, Master Carol. I'll take hold
-of that. I can understand it. I wish Rector
-would talk to us sometimes like this. I
-know it is all in the Bible, yet it never came
-home to me before."
-
-Mrs. Scott listened attentively to all the
-boy was telling her father, but made no
-remark. Her little girl was sitting in the porch
-nursing her doll, crooning a lullaby. Carol
-left them with the promise to come again
-next Sunday.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER X.--AN UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTER.
-====================================
-
-With thoughts so joyous and uplifted,
-Carol's feet scarcely seemed to touch the
-springy turf of the park as he returned to
-the Manor. The uplifting joy, unlike
-anything that earth can give, which comes from
-the consciousness that work done for, and in
-the Master's name, is accepted of him, was
-his; the promised signs following.
-
-He did not see Mrs. Mandeville until she
-paid her usual visit to his bedroom.
-
-His young face was radiant with joy and
-happiness. "Auntie," he said, "Mr. Higgs
-is beginning to understand; and he is losing
-his rheumatism."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville smiled. There was so
-much love and tenderness in her smile the
-incredulity was not apparent. She put a
-loving arm around him, drawing the boy closer to her.
-
-"Is that what you have been thinking to-night, dear?"
-
-"Not altogether, Auntie. I have been
-thinking of what it means by the words,
-'The mind that was in Christ.' That was
-what I was reading when I came to bed.
-If we are to have that Mind, we should understand
-what it is. But, Auntie, I can't get any
-farther than *love*: the mind that was in Christ
-was love. God is Love, and Jesus said, 'I
-and my Father are one.' So, Auntie, when
-our hearts are filled with love for the poor
-and afflicted and sorrowing, it is the Christ
-mind that comes to us. Because Jesus loved
-all who came to him, he was able to heal them.
-He said, 'I can of myself do nothing, it is the
-Father that worketh in me. He doeth the
-works.' Jesus was a perfect mirror,
-reflecting the love which is God. That is why he
-said, 'They that have seen me have seen
-my Father also.' Cousin Alicia explained
-this once to me, but I did not quite
-understand it at the time. I see so clearly now.
-When we reflect love as Jesus did, we shall
-be able to do the works that he did. I often
-wonder, Auntie, why Uncle Raymond and all
-the clergy who preach the Gospel don't help
-people when they are ill. It is not being
-obedient, is it?"
-
-Mrs. Mandeville's face was grave.
-
-"Ought I not to question this, Auntie?"
-
-"Perhaps it would be better not, dear,
-until you are older. I do not understand
-myself. It is a subject I never seriously
-considered until you came to us. Now I think
-I must say good-night, my little lie-awake."
-
-"I always fall asleep soon after I have said
-'good-night' to you, Auntie."
-
-"That is right, darling. I do enjoy our
-little talks; they are very sweet and helpful
-to me, Carol."
-
-Then, after a long, loving embrace, she left
-him, a grave, thoughtful, but happy expression
-on her face.
-
-The following Saturday morning after
-breakfast the three little girls told Carol,
-with delight, that they were going to the home
-farm in the afternoon, and begged him to go
-with them. Carol promised. He never
-refused to go anywhere or to do anything when
-Rosebud asked him. It was different with
-Percy and Frank. They were always too busy.
-
-Carol knew how great a delight a visit to
-the farm was to the little girls, where each
-had a special pet of her own which the farmer's
-wife kindly took care of for them. Carol
-had visited the farm once before, and was
-almost as interested as the little girls in
-the animals and poultry yard. The schoolroom
-children had grown out of the interest
-they once had in visiting the farm.
-
-Saturday being a school holiday, the boys
-were at home all day. After lunch Percy said:
-
-"I say, Carol, some fellows are coming
-this afternoon; we are going to have a game
-at rounders. You can manage that. Will
-you come?"
-
-Carol was never asked to join in a game
-at cricket or football, as his uncle and aunt
-feared it would not be good for him. "I am
-sorry, Percy; I cannot. I promised Rosebud
-and Sylvia to go with them to the farm
-this afternoon."
-
-Percy turned impatiently away. He was
-annoyed. Carol caught the muttered words:
-"Milk-sop prefers a walk with the babies."
-
-He was not versed in school-boy slang, but
-naturally felt it was an opprobrious epithet
-applied to himself. A crimson flush rose to
-his face. On the way to the farm, he asked
-Jane, the second nurse, who accompanied them:
-
-"Can you tell me what milk-sop means, Jane?"
-
-"Well, Master Carol, it's what school-boys
-call one another, sometimes. But it's not a
-nice word. I suppose it means something of
-a coward."
-
-Carol fell behind. The crimson flush
-returned and dyed his cheeks again. "Percy
-did not mean it. He spoke without thinking.
-He forgot I am a soldier's son. *I am not
-angry*. I will not let you in!"
-
-"Were you speaking, Master Carol?" Jane asked.
-
-"I was only telling Mrs. Anger and Mr. Anger,
-and a lot of little Angers, there is no
-room for them in my mansion. Love is
-there, and cannot be driven away."
-
-"You do say such funny things, Master
-Carol," Jane remarked.
-
-"But there is nothing funny in that, Jane.
-You see our mind is our mansion, and if we
-keep it filled with loving thoughts, angry
-thoughts cannot creep in. Some angry
-thoughts were just trying to force their way
-in, and I had to tell them there was no room."
-
-Still Jane smiled, but she, as everyone else
-at the Manor, loved the gentle boy, who had
-what seemed to them such strange thoughts.
-
-A messenger always appeared to go in
-advance and tell the farmer's wife when the
-little ladies might be expected. She never
-failed to have such a lovely tea spread on a
-snowy white tablecloth, and her best china
-gracing the table. Tea in the farm kitchen
-was quite different from the usual nursery
-tea at home. Such delicious scones and
-tea-cakes! (It really would not have pleased
-cook to hear the praise bestowed upon them,
-as if she did not make quite as good.)
-
-After tea they went around the farmyard
-to inspect their pets. A little gosling,
-quite tame and friendly, was chosen for
-Carol's especial pet. The hour, which was
-all nurse had allowed them, passed very
-quickly, and they started on the homeward
-walk. They had not gone far when a
-drizzling rain began. Jane then suggested the
-advisability of crossing a field which would
-shorten the distance considerably. When
-they came to the field, she was surprised to
-find the gate fastened.
-
-"This gate is generally open. I wonder
-why it is padlocked to-day, but it is not too
-high to get over. If you climb over first,
-Master Carol, I can lift Rosebud over to you."
-
-Carol soon mounted the five-barred gate,
-and landed safely on the other side, then
-received one by one Rosebud, Estelle, and
-Sylvia, from Jane's arm, as she lifted them
-over. They had walked about two hundred
-yards when Jane stood still in an agony of
-fright, as an animal, which had been lying
-unperceived in a distant corner of the field,
-rose up and came towards them with a loud bellow.
-
-"Oh, Master Carol! What shall we do?
-It's the bull! He's a terror! I've heard of
-him. He's a tosser!"
-
-"Don't be frightened, Jane. Just walk
-quietly. The bull won't hurt us, if we are
-not frightened."
-
-Jane caught Rosebud in her arms, and with
-Estelle and Sylvia clinging to either side,
-walked as quickly as she dared towards the
-stile on the other side of the field.
-Fortunately, it was a stile easier to mount than
-the five-barred gate had been. It was but
-the work of a moment and the three little
-girls were lifted safely to the other side. Then,
-Jane turned to look for Carol. He had
-walked only a third of the distance, keeping
-always between the bull and his cousins, and
-now he stood face to face with the animal,
-a few yards only between them. Another
-low bellow, and then the animal bent his
-head to the ground, prepared for a spring.
-
-"Run, run, Master Carol," Jane screamed.
-It was a fatal appeal. The mesmerism of
-fear seized Carol. He turned to look after
-his cousins. The next instant he was on the
-horns of the animal, tossed high in the air,
-as if he had been no heavier than an India-rubber
-ball. Mercifully, he fell on the other
-side of the hedge, which divided that field
-from the next. With a roar of baffled rage,
-the animal stampeded the field, seeking to
-toss his victim a second time.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XI.--PERCY'S REMORSE.
-=============================
-
-The three little girls set up a piteous cry
-of "Carol," "Carol." Jane was speechless,
-only wringing her hands in her extremity.
-What could she do? It was half a mile to
-return to the farm for help, and a mile to the
-nearest lodge belonging to the Manor; and
-there was no house between. She could not
-see where Carol had fallen. But she knew
-it was over the hedge into the next field.
-She feared the infuriated animal would force
-its way through. Though she could not in
-any way protect him, it seemed terrible to
-go from the place, even to get help, and leave
-him there. Many moments were lost in her
-frenzied attempts to force an entrance into
-the field from the lane. It was in vain. The
-thick, high hedge was impregnable. She
-called again and again to Carol to speak,
-to answer her, but there was no response.
-It seemed an eternity before there was the
-welcome sound of a horse's hoofs in the lane,
-which drew nearer until a stanhope came in
-sight, containing Colonel Mandeville, a friend,
-and a groom.
-
-The three little girls cried: "Daddy, Daddy,
-the bull has tossed Carol!"
-
-Colonel Mandeville sprang from the
-vehicle on the instant, scarcely understanding
-what the children said. Their distress was
-evident. That was sufficient. Jane then
-tried to explain.
-
-"We were crossing the field, sir. I did not
-know the bull was there. He has tossed
-Master Carol over the hedge into this field,
-and we cannot get at him."
-
-Colonel Mandeville uttered one low, sad
-exclamation.
-
-"Where is the entrance into the field?" he asked.
-
-"There is a gate into it from the field where
-the bull is. Oh, please, sir, it isn't safe;
-the bull is awfully enraged," she added, as
-Colonel Mandeville walked towards the stile.
-
-He turned to say to the groom: "Follow
-me," and to his friend: "Manton, drive to
-the village and bring Dr. Burton along. I
-fear we shall want him." To Jane he said
-briefly: "Take the children home."
-
-Then he mounted the stile, and entered
-the field, a gun in his hand, which the groom
-had handed him from the stanhope. The
-gentlemen had been shooting. The bull was
-standing in the middle of the field. He sprang
-towards the fresh intruder with a bellow.
-Colonel Mandeville pointed his gun; there
-was a report, and the next instant the beast
-rolled over on his side, dead. The groom
-then followed his master. They had a little
-difficulty in opening the gate into the next
-field, but succeeded at last, and were able to get in.
-
-Under the shadow of the hedge Carol was
-lying--still, motionless.
-
-Colonel Mandeville knelt beside him.
-
-"Carol, Carol," he said softly, but there
-was no response. "Go to the farm as quickly
-as you can. Tell them to improvise an
-ambulance. Bring it along. Lose not a
-moment," he said to the groom.
-
-Then he knelt on the ground, trying again
-to awake the boy to consciousness: "My poor
-wife, how will she bear this?" he said to
-himself, knowing well that Carol was as dear to
-her as her youngest born, the Rosebud of the
-family. The signs of life were so faint, he
-could not hope the boy would ever regain
-consciousness.
-
-Dr. Burton was fortunately at home. In
-an inconceivably short time he arrived on the
-scene; and the groom returned with an
-ambulance, followed by the farmer, his wife, and
-some of the men, all anxious to give any
-assistance they could.
-
-Dr. Burton and Colonel Mandeville very
-tenderly lifted Carol on to the ambulance,
-a faint moan was the only sign of life, but
-all were glad to hear even that. Dr. Burton
-would not make any examination until they
-could lay him on a bed, and cut off his clothes.
-
-There was no question of breaking the news
-gently to Mrs. Mandeville; she was returning
-from a drive as the little girls reached the
-gates. They ran to her sobbing broken-heartedly.
-
-She was very calm, but her face grew
-deadly white, and wore again the strained
-expression which had been so frequent during
-the sad days of the war. She could not
-remain inactive, and walked to meet the sad
-procession.
-
-As soon as Colonel Mandeville saw her,
-he advanced quickly to her side, and turned
-her steps homeward. He would not let her
-see the boy as he lay on the ambulance,
-looking so like death.
-
-Only Colonel Mandeville was with Dr. Burton
-when he made the critical examination.
-There were no broken bones, he said,
-but added that there are things worse to deal
-with than broken bones, and hinted gravely
-at concussion of the brain and spinal
-congestion. There were two terrible bruises
-where he had been caught on the bull's horns.
-He could not hold out any hope to them, but
-desired a second opinion, and a telegram was
-at once despatched to a great London physician,
-who, it was calculated, would be able to
-reach Mandeville that night if he caught the
-evening express. Then Mrs. Mandeville took
-her place by the bedside. She could do
-nothing, only watch in tearful silence the pallid
-face that had become so dear to her, lying so
-still, so calm, it seemed at times the lips
-were breathless. The reply telegram came
-quickly. Sir Wilfrid would be able to catch
-the evening express which would stop at
-Mandeville by request. He would reach the
-Manor about ten o'clock.
-
-Not until the physician's arrival, when he
-and Dr. Burton held a consultation together,
-did Mrs. Mandeville leave the bedside. She
-then retired to her own room for a little
-time. Miss Markham came to her there,
-begging her to go and speak to Percy. "His
-grief," she said, "is quite uncontrollable.
-I have done all I can to comfort him. But
-nothing I can say seems to touch him." Mrs. Mandeville
-went at once to Percy's room.
-He had thrown himself undressed on his bed,
-and was sobbing hysterically, as she entered
-the room.
-
-"Percy, my dear boy, you must not grieve
-like this."
-
-As soon as he was aware it was his mother
-beside him, he flung his arms round her neck.
-
-"Oh, Mother, I can never, never, be happy
-again if Carol dies. If he had not been there
-with them, the bull would have tossed my
-little sisters. Jane said he stood between
-them and the bull. He is the bravest boy,
-and I--I--called him a--a--" He could not
-repeat the word he had so lightly,
-thoughtlessly uttered a few hours previously.
-
-"If only I could tell him I did not mean
-it, and ask him to forgive me, Mother.
-Oh! won't he ever be able to speak to me again?"
-
-"Dear Percy, I hope so. Sir Wilfrid
-Wynne is with him now, and everything
-possible will be done for him. I am sure,
-darling, he would not like you to grieve like
-this. He always has such loving thoughts
-of others." The remembrance of all his
-gentleness and loving thought for others
-was too much for Mrs. Mandeville. Clasping
-her boy closely to her, she wept with him.
-Heaven was still to her a locality, and death
-the gateway to it; and Carol had always
-seemed so very near to the Kingdom of Heaven.
-
-All the household awaited with cruel
-suspense the great man's verdict, trusting to
-him, forgetful that human skill had failed
-the boy once before in his hour of need,
-forgetful of that friend in Devonshire who
-loved him as her own son. No message had
-been sent to her.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XII.--THE PHYSICIAN'S VERDICT.
-======================================
-
-Sir Wilfrid Wynne gave his verdict, and it
-was almost a repetition of what Dr. Burton
-had said. He could do nothing. There was
-little hope he would regain consciousness.
-If he did, it would be but a passing flash
-before the end. He might linger in his
-present condition twenty-four hours or longer;
-and he might pass away any moment without
-a struggle. It would be cruel to wish him to
-live; the shock to the spine had been so
-great, if he lived, he would inevitably lose
-the use of his lower limbs. Sir Wilfrid was
-grieved; he had known the boy's father.
-He would gladly have remained, had there
-been any hope of doing anything for him.
-He took his departure by motor-car to catch
-the mail train at a junction ten miles distant.
-
-Mrs. Mandeville returned to her place by
-the bedside, calm and still, after her
-paroxysm of weeping. Colonel Mandeville was
-with her, and presently the Rector came
-into the room.
-
-"Raymond, pray for him," Mrs. Mandeville
-said. "He is in God's hands. No
-human power can help him."
-
-They all knelt and the Rector prayed
-aloud. He did not petition for the boy's
-life to be spared. He humbly asked that the
-hearts of those who loved him might be
-submissive to God's all-wise decree. "Thy
-will be done," was the dominant note of the
-prayer. When they rose from their knees,
-there was an expression on Mrs. Mandeville's
-face which no one had ever seen before.
-The prayer had not helped her: it
-was not submission nor resignation in any
-degree which had come to her. She turned to
-the Rector.
-
-"I do not believe it, Raymond. This is
-*not* God's will. God could not order
-anything so cruel to befall a child, so loving and
-dutiful--whose faith in God's loving care of
-him has always been so beautiful to me to
-witness. Could I, who know only human
-love, suffer anything like this to befall my
-little Rosebud, or any of my children? Is
-human love more pitiful and compassionate
-than divine love? This dear boy could
-easily have saved himself; he stood between the
-cruel beast and my little girls. All three
-of them might be lying as he is lying now
-but for his self-sacrifice. Don't tell me it is
-God's will! If I could believe it, I would
-wish I were a heathen, and worshipped a
-god of wood and stone!"
-
-The Rector could only gaze in pained
-astonishment. Such an outburst was so
-unlike his usually calm and gentle sister. He
-judged she was beside herself with grief.
-She stood with clasped hands, wide-open eyes,
-unseeing, yet seeing, gazing beyond the
-confines of that room, catching a momentary
-vision of that light which 'never was, on land
-or sea.'
-
-She became calm again--serenely calm.
-
-"I see it," she said. "I understand. This
-is *not* God's will. It is not *His* work. His
-compassions fail not. His love is over all
-His children. With Him is the Fountain of
-Life. Does He not say, 'I will redeem them
-from death'? He will save this dear child
-from the grave. Leave me, please. I want
-to be alone--alone with Carol and God. I
-want to realize it. Yes; *God's will be done*.
-Life, not death, is God's will. I see it, I see
-so clearly."
-
-To her husband she said softly, "I will ring
-if I want anything, dear. Don't let anyone
-come into the room until I ring."
-
-When all had left the room, and the door
-was closed, she knelt beside the bed, with
-outstretched arms. It was a mother's cry
-to God for the life of a child that was as dear
-to her as her own. Hour after hour passed,
-and still she knelt. Words failed her,
-petition ceased: the realization came to her that
-God is Life: in Him we live, and move, and
-have our being. In Infinite Life there is no
-death. Death never is, and never can be
-God's will. The knowledge, the understanding
-of God as All-in-all vanquishes
-death! "O, death, I will be thy plagues.
-O, grave, I will be thy destruction!" (Hosea
-XIII., 14.)
-
-The morning dawned, the bright sunbeams
-stole into the room. The boy opened his
-eyes. "Auntie,"--she was bending over him--"I
-have been dreaming. I thought I was in
-a field, and a bull tossed me high up into the
-air. But I knew in my dream, 'underneath
-are the everlasting arms.' Then I dreamed
-again, and two men were turning me about,
-and moving my arms and legs, and one said,
-'There is not a broken bone, nor even a
-dislocation. It's a miracle.' I tried to say
-'underneath are the everlasting arms,' but
-I could not speak."
-
-The words were very faint and low. She
-bent close to catch them, then stopped them
-with a kiss, a pæan of joy in her heart. He
-spoke again: "Auntie, something is hurting
-me very much. I can't move."
-
-"Do not try, darling, lie quite still. I will
-sit beside you and hold your hand."
-
-A spasm of pain passed over his face, and
-he fell again into unconsciousness. But she
-had no fear, she knew that death had been
-vanquished by the knowledge that had come
-to her of life.
-
-A low knock came to the door. She opened
-it, and found her maid there with a cup of
-tea. She took it from her saying: "Tell
-them all he lives, and he will live. But I
-wish to be alone with him for the present.
-No one is to trouble about me, I am quite well."
-
-So she sat down again beside him, waiting
-and patiently watching, knowing that he
-would awake again to consciousness. It was
-nearly noon when he opened his eyes and
-spoke again. His voice was stronger:
-
-"Auntie, was it a waking dream? Was I
-really in a field, and a bull tossed me? I am
-so aching all over me."
-
-"Yes, darling."
-
-"I think I remember now, Auntie. Rosebud
-and Estelle and Sylvia were there, and
-Jane called to me, 'Run, run!' They were
-not hurt, were they?"
-
-"No, darling, not one of them."
-
-"I am glad. Error is telling me I cannot
-move my legs and arms, Auntie. But it
-is not true. God's child cannot be bound like
-that. Does Cousin Alicia know?"
-
-"I am sorry, Carol. I fear no one has
-thought to send her word."
-
-"Will you send word now, Auntie--something
-quicker than a letter?"
-
-"A telegram, dear?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie, and put in, 'Please help Carol'."
-
-"I will ask Uncle to send the message at once, dear."
-
-When she opened the bedroom door, she
-found Colonel Mandeville pacing the corridor
-without. As a sentinel he had kept watch
-there throughout the night and a great part
-of the morning. He came into the room, and
-stood with one arm around his wife, looking
-down at Carol.
-
-"Well, little man, so we are going to cheat
-the doctors?"
-
-Carol didn't at all know what 'cheat' meant.
-
-"Carol wishes you to let Miss Desmond
-know, dear. Will you wire at once? And say
-in the message, 'Please help Carol.' She will
-know what he means."
-
-"I will gladly do so. Dr. Burton is downstairs,
-Emmeline. He had better come up now."
-
-An expression of distress came over Carol's face.
-
-"Auntie," he said, "don't let the doctor
-do anything to me, please."
-
-"No one shall touch you, dear. But I
-should like Dr. Burton just to see you. He
-will tell me what I may give you to eat."
-
-"I don't want anything, Auntie, only something to drink."
-
-"Well, dear, he will tell me what will be
-best for you to have."
-
-"I would like only water, please."
-
-"You shall have some, dear, at once, and
-after that something else, I hope."
-
-Dr. Burton came to the room, felt the
-patient's pulse, took his temperature, and
-looked at his tongue, but mercifully refrained
-from turning him about, to examine the bruises.
-
-"I will send some medicine at once," he
-said to Mrs. Mandeville. "Give him a dose
-every hour. He has a very high temperature."
-
-Downstairs he told Colonel Mandeville:
-"He may pull through if meningitis does not
-supervene."
-
-But he left the house holding a very strong
-belief that meningitis would supervene. Not
-even the medicine, which was to be given
-every hour, could prevent it.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XIII.--THE RECTOR'S REFUSAL.
-====================================
-
-Mrs. Mandeville remained with Carol
-throughout the day, suffering no one to
-relieve her for one hour. As soon as he was
-told the telegram had been sent to Miss
-Desmond, he rested quite satisfied. But as
-the day wore on to evening, Mrs. Mandeville,
-standing over him, saw he was suffering acutely.
-
-"You are in pain, darling," she said.
-
-"Auntie, please don't ask me. I am trying
-to deny it. Couldn't you deny it for me, too?"
-
-His lips were quivering; tears he strove
-bravely to keep back were stealing down his
-cheeks. How could she deny it? She would
-have given anything to be able to do so.
-
-"Cousin Alicia must have had the
-telegram by this, Auntie, mustn't she?"
-
-"Yes, dear; I think so. Being Sunday,
-it has taken longer to get through. Uncle
-has heard from the postmaster at W--, the
-nearest town, as the village telegraph office
-would be closed. The message has been sent
-on by messenger on horseback. So I think
-Miss Desmond must have received it by this time."
-
-"She might have been out when it arrived, Auntie."
-
-"Do you expect to feel less pain, dear,
-when Miss Desmond receives the telegram?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie, I know I shall."
-
-Seven o'clock--eight o'clock--nine o'clock
-passed. No reply telegram came. Mrs. Mandeville
-wrote a letter to go by the evening
-post, giving more details, and describing
-Carol's great desire to have a message from
-her. Dr. Burton came again at night. His
-instructions had been carried out. The
-medicine sent had been given every hour. Still
-the patient's temperature was higher, the
-pain he was suffering more acute, and the
-symptoms which pointed to meningitis more
-pronounced. "If he could sleep--a long
-natural sleep might save him," Dr. Burton said.
-
-During the night Mrs. Mandeville was
-persuaded to take a little rest on a couch in
-the room, whilst Nurse and Colonel
-Mandeville kept watch beside the bed. Carol
-offered no opposition to anything that was
-done for him, and drank the medicine without
-a murmur, when the spoon was put to his lips.
-
-In the morning, when Mrs. Mandeville
-was again alone with him, he said, "Auntie,
-I wonder why it hurts me to try to think.
-I tried so hard to go to sleep in the night and
-I could not. Then I began to think about
-Jesus when he was a little boy. We are not
-told that he was ever ill, and had to lie in
-bed, are we? But I felt quite sure, if he ever
-did, he would do just what his mother wanted
-him to do, wouldn't he? I know medicine
-and the bandages are not doing me any
-good, but it makes you happy for me to
-have them, doesn't it, Auntie?"
-
-"Yes, darling; it seems all that we can
-do for you."
-
-"If you understood Science, you could
-help me now, Auntie."
-
-"Indeed then, I wish that I did, Carol."
-
-"Sometimes the room seems to go dark,
-Auntie. In the night, two or three times,
-it was just as if the lamp went out, then
-lighted up again." Mrs. Mandeville
-understood enough to know this was very grave.
-
-"Darling, will you try to lie quite still,
-and close your eyes--try not to think about
-anything?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie, but I do hope a message will
-come from Cousin Alicia to-day. You will
-tell me when it comes, won't you?"
-
-"Instantly, dear."
-
-"I wish I could go to sleep, Auntie."
-
-"I wish so too, my poor, dear boy."
-
-"Could you move me a tiny bit, Auntie?
-I ache so lying in the same position. It seems
-so strange not to be able to move myself at
-all. Error seems very real."
-
-Gently and lovingly, she tried to ease his
-position, but the least touch brought an
-expression of acute pain. She had to desist.
-
-The long weary hours of that day passed,
-but no message, either a telegram or letter,
-came from Miss Desmond. Another wire was
-sent, asking for a reply. Still none came.
-Then, later on in the evening, a message was
-sent addressed to the housekeeper at Willmar
-Court, which quickly brought a reply: "Miss
-Desmond away. Impossible to forward messages."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville told Carol very gently.
-He did not speak for some time, and, though
-he lay with closed eyes, she knew he was
-not sleeping.
-
-Then he looked up at her:
-
-"Auntie, when Jesus was in the boat, and
-the winds arose, and the waves surged high
-around the little boat, Jesus didn't command
-them at once to be still. The disciples had to
-awake him, and he rebuked them for their
-little faith. Shouldn't they have waited
-patiently, knowing it was all right? Sometimes
-it seems error has bound me with ropes, and
-I cannot move; sometimes it seems like
-waves washing over me. But I know that
-Love is saying to error's angry waves, 'Thus
-far, and no farther.' And just at the right
-moment the command will come: '*Peace, be still*.'"
-
-Mrs. Mandeville hid her face in the pillow
-beside him, that he might not see the tears
-streaming from her eyes. She had lost again
-the faith which for a time had uplifted her to
-a realization of God's power to save the boy
-from death. In imagination she saw a new
-little grave in the churchyard with that
-word "Peace" graven in the marble
-headstone. She had been anxious for news from
-Miss Desmond because Carol wished it so
-much. She had little hope or faith that
-injuries, such as his, could in any way be
-alleviated by Miss Desmond's knowledge of
-Christian Science. The night passed again,
-and not for one hour did sleep close the
-suffering boy's eyes. He had been unconscious for
-a time, murmuring incoherently; but it was
-not sleep.
-
-Dr. Burton said very little when he came
-in the morning; he only looked graver and
-sadder. By telegram he had been in constant
-communication with Sir Wilfrid Wynne, and
-he knew that, humanly speaking, nothing
-more could be done for the boy than was
-being done. Yet there was no progress.
-
-"How I wish there was something I could do
-for you, Carol!" Mrs. Mandeville said, as she
-sat beside him.
-
-"Auntie, there is something, if Uncle
-Raymond will let you have it. I know I should
-fall asleep if you read *Science and Health*
-to me. I always used to when I was ill before,
-and Cousin Alicia read it to me, even before
-I began to understand it."
-
-"I will go to the rectory at once, dear, and
-ask Uncle for the book. Promise me to lie
-with closed eyes; and try not even to think
-about anything whilst I am away."
-
-She would not write, nor send a message,
-fearing a refusal. As soon as Nurse came to
-take her place she left the room, and the house.
-There was a path through the park direct to
-the rectory. It was less than ten minutes' walk.
-
-The Rector looked up in astonishment as
-his sister, hatless and coatless (it was a chilly
-September day), entered the room. "What is
-it, Emmeline? Is Carol worse?" he asked.
-Her flushed, distressed face suggested the
-question.
-
-"I do not know if he is worse. He is just
-as ill as he can be, and is suffering cruelly.
-I want you to let me have that book you took
-from him, Raymond, *Science and Health*.
-He thinks if I read it to him he will fall asleep.
-He has not slept yet, and this is the third day
-since the accident." The Rector's face, which
-before had been grave and kindly, now grew
-stern and resolute. "I am sorry, Emmeline,
-but I cannot let you have it. That book
-will never pass from my hands to his as long
-as I am his guardian. He knows too much
-already of its pernicious doctrines. Better
-better--anything than that his faith in its
-teachings should be strengthened."
-
-"Do you mean better that he should die, Raymond?"
-
-"Yes, Emmeline, better that--even that."
-
-"Oh, Raymond, how can you hold such a
-thought? I do not know what the book is
-nor what it teaches. But I do know what is
-the fruit of it; and who was it said, 'A tree
-is known by its fruit; a corrupt tree cannot
-bring forth good fruit'?"
-
-"We need not discuss that, Emmeline.
-We both know whose words those are. Still,
-I maintain that the teachings of that book,
-being pernicious, cannot bring forth good fruit."
-
-"But, Raymond, is not gentleness, faith
-and love--such as Carol's--good fruit?
-Jesus to him did not live two thousand years
-ago. He is living to-day. He is looking to
-him, as the disciples looked, when the storm
-arose at sea. His love and his faith are
-beautiful to witness. I have always tried to teach
-my children the love of God, but Carol
-possesses something I have not been able to
-give them, because I do not possess it
-myself. I think it is understanding. He seems
-to understand the Bible much better than I do."
-
-"I am sorry to hear you speak like this,
-Emmeline. In any difficulty why do you not
-come to me? Surely there are books enough
-here to explain, or to throw a light on
-anything that is not clear to you."
-
-The Rector looked round at his well-filled
-book-shelves: old books and new books;
-works of the early Fathers and the latest
-theological treatise.
-
-"I cannot explain what it is I want,
-Raymond. I only know I always seem to be
-groping after something, and I cannot find
-it. But when I am talking to Carol, I seem
-nearer to it. Raymond, won't you let me
-have that book--just for to-day--I will
-return it to you to-morrow?"
-
-"No, Emmeline. Not for one hour."
-
-"You are cruel, Raymond, when the boy
-is suffering so, and it is all he asks you. If
-there were a shop near where I could buy
-a copy, I would straightway do so. I will
-know for myself what the book teaches. I
-shall write to Miss Desmond, and ask her to
-get me a copy."
-
-"Of course, Emmeline, if you choose to do
-that, I have no control over your actions.
-I have over Carol's, and I shall exercise it."
-
-Then Mrs. Mandeville broke down and
-burst into tears. "Perhaps you won't have
-power long. Oh, Raymond! You do not
-realize how ill he is! If meningitis sets in,
-Dr. Burton says it will be a matter of only a
-few hours. If I were asking for a Buddhist
-or a Mohammedan book, it would be right
-for you to let me have it."
-
-"No, my dear sister. I am not a believer
-in the doctrine that the end justifies the means.
-I will pray for Carol, and for you too. I am
-sorry to see you so overwrought."
-
-"Then you absolutely refuse, Raymond?"
-
-"I do, Emmeline--absolutely."
-
-Without a word Mrs. Mandeville turned
-and left the room.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XIV.--"HE GIVETH HIS BELOVED SLEEP."
-============================================
-
-Softly and lightly as Mrs. Mandeville
-re-entered Carol's room, he heard her. He
-had been listening for her footsteps, whilst
-obedient to her desire, lying with closed eyelids.
-
-She was spared the pain of telling him she
-had been unsuccessful. He read it in her face.
-
-"Auntie, dear, please don't look so troubled.
-Uncle Raymond does not understand. It is
-quite all right. Love can always find a
-way." Mrs. Mandeville almost smiled through her
-unshed tears. How great was her love for the
-boy, yet she could think of no way by which
-what he wanted could be immediately
-procured. Even she did not fully realize how he
-was waiting and yearning for that healing
-touch, which comes
-
- | 'More softly than the dew is shed
- | Or cloud is floated overhead.'
-
-Nurse left the room, and Mrs. Mandeville
-again took her place by the bedside.
-
-In less than an hour a maid came to the
-bedroom door, asking in a whisper, "Can
-I speak to you a moment, ma'am?"
-
-"What is it, Withers?" Mrs. Mandeville asked.
-
-"A Mr. Higgs from the village is
-downstairs. He came to inquire after Master
-Carol. He said he would like the young
-gentleman to know he has walked from the
-village to the Manor."
-
-The words were spoken at the door very
-softly, but Carol heard.
-
-"Oh, Auntie, I am glad!" he said. "Could
-Mr. Higgs come here? I should like to speak
-to him."
-
-"Darling, I am afraid it will excite you to
-see him. The doctor's orders are that you
-are to be kept perfectly quiet."
-
-"It won't excite me, Auntie; and what
-makes me very happy cannot hurt me."
-
-"You may bring Mr. Higgs to see Master
-Carol since he wishes it so much, Withers."
-
-No one but those who were nursing him had
-been admitted to the room. The maid was
-surprised as she took the message, and then
-brought the old man to the room.
-
-"God bless 'ee, Master Carol, God bless
-'ee. Aye, I don't know how to say it often
-enough, when I think it's all along o' the
-blessed truth you taught me I'm free of the
-rheumatiz. I met Farmer Stubbins on my
-way, and he says, 'Why, Higgs, you're
-walking along quite spry. What's become o' your
-rheumatiz?' 'Gone, thank the Lord,' says
-I, 'never to return.' 'Oh! and what may you
-have done to get rid of it?' he asks, being
-crippled himself with the same. 'I ain't
-done nothing,' I replied. Then I says,
-'Farmer Stubbins, you and me was boys
-together, and we sang in the village choir. Do
-you mind there's a verse in the Psalms--aye,
-we've sung it many a time; but we just
-didn't think o' the words--it was the music
-we thought about. "He sent His word and
-healed them." That's just what the Lord
-has done. He has sent His word and healed
-me, and He sent it by the mouth of one of
-His dear children.'"
-
-Carol's face was radiant with joy. Anxiously
-watching him, Mrs. Mandeville could
-not fear that the old man's talk could harm him.
-
-Then, after fumbling in his coat pocket, he
-drew forth a little book carefully folded in
-soft paper.
-
-"I've got it, Master Carol. It came this
-morning--the little book you've told me
-about. My daughter wrote for me. We
-didn't quite know where to write, so we just
-addressed the letter: 'Christian Science
-Church, London,' and a kind lady has sent me
-this book. It isn't quite new, and she writes
-that I shall value it more if it costs me
-something. I am just to pay what I can, and
-send the money as I am able."
-
-He was unfolding the paper covering as he
-spoke, and then held out a small copy of
-*Science and Health*.
-
-"Oh, Auntie, isn't Love beautiful! You
-see Love *has* found a way. Mr. Higgs will
-lend it to you to read to me a little
-time--won't you, Mr. Higgs?"
-
-"I'll be very happy to, Master Carol."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville took the book with almost
-a feeling of awe. It had come so wonderfully,
-yet so simply. She thought of the words:
-"He sent His angel."
-
-She pointed to a chair, saying, "Please
-be seated, Mr. Higgs, whilst I read. Is
-there any particular part you would like me
-to read, Carol?" she asked, turning over the pages.
-
-"No, Auntie--just open the book; let Love
-find the place."
-
-"Carol, you so frequently speak of Love
-as of a personality. What do you mean, dear?"
-
-"Auntie, God is Love. But when we speak
-of God, it seems we must bow our head, and
-think reverently of the great 'I Am.' But
-when we speak of Love--we can just creep
-into Love's arms, and ask Love anything."
-
-"Even to find a place in a book,"
-Mrs. Mandeville said with a smile.
-
-"Yes, Auntie--even that."
-
-Then she opened the book. It opened at
-page 494, and the first sentence she read was:
-"Divine Love always has met and always
-will meet every human need."
-
-A smile rested on the boy's face, his sufferings
-were forgotten, as the dear familiar
-words fell on his ear. Love had not failed him.
-
-Mrs. Mandeville never knew afterwards
-how long she read. She became entranced,
-absorbed.
-
-When she turned to look at him, he was
-asleep. She quietly rose, and with one
-whispered word asked Mr. Higgs to follow her.
-
-Withers was still waiting without.
-
-"Take Mr. Higgs to the housekeeper's
-room, Withers, and ask her to give him a
-substantial tea. Then send word to the
-stables--when he is ready--I wish Parker to
-drive him to his home in my basket chaise.
-It is only a step from the ground. You will
-easily get in and out. I am deeply indebted
-to you for coming this afternoon, Mr. Higgs.
-My dear boy needed sleep so much. It was
-vitally necessary for him. He was so sure he
-would sleep, if I could read *Science and Health*
-to him, and I did not know how to procure a
-copy of the book."
-
-"May I leave this with you, ma'am?"
-
-"If you will be so kind for a day or two."
-
-"Isn't Love beautiful!" the old man said
-to himself, repeating Carol's words, as he
-followed the maid to the housekeeper's room.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XV.--LETTERS AND TELEGRAMS REACH COUSIN ALICIA.
-=======================================================
-
-Carol's sleep lasted two hours. Then he
-awoke, with something of his old bright smile.
-Mrs. Mandeville was still watching beside him.
-
-"Auntie, I have been asleep."
-
-"Yes, darling, I know. I have been watching
-you. It was a beautiful sleep. I thought
-as I sat beside you of the words, 'He giveth
-His beloved sleep.' I am sure you are better
-for it."
-
-"Yes, Auntie, it was lovely, and my back
-doesn't hurt me quite so much. But I cannot
-move my legs yet."
-
-"Do not try, dear."
-
-"Did I dream it, Auntie, or were you reading
-*Science and Health* to me?"
-
-"It was not a dream, dear. Mr. Higgs
-came and brought the book, and he has left
-it with me."
-
-"I remember now, Auntie. Was it not
-nice of him to come? Has any message come
-yet from Cousin Alicia?"
-
-"No, love; I cannot understand why the
-letters and telegrams are not forwarded to her."
-
-"There is some reason, I know, Auntie.
-We shall understand by and by." She gave
-him some soda and milk, which was all the
-doctor would let him have.
-
-"I should like to see Rosebud, Auntie.
-Couldn't she come for a little while?"
-
-Mrs. Mandeville had already admitted
-one visitor against orders. Dare she act on
-her own responsibility a second time? She
-began to realize how much the doctor's fears
-of developments, which might or might not
-follow, were influencing her, though, happily,
-she was not able to influence Carol. He had no fear.
-
-"I think it must be almost Rosebud's
-bedtime, dear; but she shall come for a few
-minutes."
-
-After sending a message to the nursery for
-Rosebud, her eye fell on the medicine bottle.
-"Oh, Carol, I didn't give you your medicine
-this afternoon. It was just time for it when
-Mr. Higgs came, and afterwards you were
-asleep. It is time again for it now. I see
-it must be fresh medicine; it is a different
-color."
-
-"Auntie, Mr. Higgs was my doctor, this
-afternoon. The medicine he brought sent
-me to sleep, and I do not ache quite so much.
-Must I take this drug medicine as well?"
-
-Mrs. Mandeville had poured out a dose,
-and now held the glass in her hand.
-
-"You are right, Carol. I can see a decided
-improvement. I will not ask you to drink this."
-
-She emptied the contents of the glass
-away. A few minutes afterwards Rosebud's
-sweet voice was piping at the door:
-
-"Me's 'tome to see Tarol."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville lifted her up to kiss
-Carol, very carefully guarding her from
-touching him anywhere.
-
-"You must only kiss Carol, darling." The
-little arms were about to twine themselves
-around him. "Me does 'ove 'ou, Tarol, so
-welly much."
-
-The boy would have liked to hold her
-closely to him, but he could not raise an arm.
-
-"It does make me so happy to see Rosebud
-again, Auntie. Perhaps to-morrow I
-shall be able to see all my cousins."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville did not say, but she
-thought it would be many "to-morrows"
-before he would be strong enough to receive
-them all in his room.
-
-"Now run back to the nursery, darling,"
-she said to the wee girlie.
-
-"Take a good-night kiss to Sylvia and
-Estelle, will you Rosebud?" Carol said. Then
-she had to be lifted up again to receive a
-kiss for "eberybody."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville sat silent by the bedside
-for some time after Rosebud left the room.
-Then she said in a very low, soft voice, "Do
-you remember, Carol, coming to my room
-one day when I lay prostrate with one of my
-bad headaches?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie; I remember quite well."
-
-"I was very ungrateful, Carol, I would not
-let myself acknowledge it was your little
-prayer that took it away. Yet I knew it
-was, for I had never lost a headache like that
-before."
-
-"Yes, Auntie, I knew Christian Science
-had helped you. But I thought you did not
-understand."
-
-She kissed him very tenderly. "I am not
-ungrateful any longer, dear. I acknowledge
-the debt. Now I must not let you talk any
-more or Dr. Burton will insist upon having a
-trained nurse. He has suggested it several times."
-
-"He couldn't keep you away from me,
-could he, Auntie?"
-
-"I think he would find it a trifle difficult, dear."
-
-"But I want you to go downstairs to dinner
-to-night, Auntie. Uncle will like to have
-you, and Nurse will stay with me."
-
-"Perhaps I will go then, for an hour, dear."
-
-So, later on, to everyone's surprise
-Mrs. Mandeville appeared at the dinner table, and
-was so bright they all knew, without asking,
-that Carol was improving, though he had
-not been pronounced out of danger.
-
-Nurse was quietly making all the needful
-little preparations for the night when Carol
-asked her to place the clock where he could
-see it as he lay in bed.
-
-"The nights seem so long when I cannot
-sleep, Nurse. I like to watch the fingers of
-the clock, then I know how long it will be
-before the light can peep through the curtains."
-
-Nurse found a position where he could see
-it quite well, even though he could not raise
-his head from the pillows. Then, standing
-over him, she said: "Dearie, you are in
-pain. Couldn't I ease your position just a little?"
-
-"No, Nurse, please don't touch me, the
-bruises seem so real. I ought to be able to
-deny them, and I cannot."
-
-"And would it make them better to deny
-them, Master Carol?"
-
-"Oh, yes, Nurse. You are thinking the
-bruises are very sore and painful, are you not?"
-
-Yes, Nurse was decidedly dwelling in
-thought upon the pain the boy must be
-suffering from such a bruised condition.
-
-"If you could think, Nurse, that there is
-no sensation in matter, that the pain is all
-in mind: in my mind and your mind, and
-Auntie's and the doctor's. You are all
-thinking how I must be suffering. If only
-someone would help me to deny it!"
-
-"I wish I could, Master Carol."
-
-But it was double Dutch to Nurse to try
-to understand that the pain was in mind, and
-not in the poor bruised body.
-
-It was half-past nine when she moved the
-time-piece so that Carol could see it, and he
-at once began to count how many hours it
-would be till morning. At ten o'clock
-Mrs. Mandeville returned to the room, followed by
-Dr. Burton. Nurse held up a warning finger
-as they entered: the boy was asleep.
-
-"This is splendid! How long has he slept?"
-the doctor asked.
-
-"It was just after half-past nine, sir. He
-seemed in great pain, I thought there was no
-hope of sleep for him, and all at once he just
-dropped off without a word."
-
-It was such a beautiful sleep, calm, peaceful,
-untroubled by fret or moan. Mrs. Mandeville
-and the doctor watched beside him
-an hour; then the doctor left, and
-Mrs. Mandeville was persuaded to go to her own
-room for a night's rest, leaving Nurse in
-charge. They did not know, nor could they
-have understood had they known, how, far
-away, a woman, 'clad in the whole armour of
-God,' was fighting for him: fighting error
-with 'the sword of the Spirit.'
-
-Letters and telegrams had at last reached
-Cousin Alicia.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XVI.--"IT IS A MIRACLE."
-================================
-
-The next morning about eight o'clock,
-Nurse came to Mrs. Mandeville's room, an
-expression of amazement, almost of
-consternation, on her face.
-
-"What is it, Nurse? Is Master Carol
-worse?" Mrs. Mandeville asked in alarm.
-
-"No, ma'am; I cannot say he is worse. He
-says he is well, and wants to get up for
-breakfast. He slept all through the night, just as
-you left him, and never wakened till half-past
-seven this morning. He is certainly not
-feverish or delirious, but he talks so strangely.
-He says error has all gone, and he is free. I
-had quite a difficulty to prevent him from
-getting out of bed to come to you. I have
-sent a messenger for Dr. Burton."
-
-"That is right, Nurse. Go back to him.
-I will come at once." Mrs. Mandeville was
-not long slipping into a morning wrap, and
-following Nurse to Carol's room.
-
-As soon as she reached the bedside, he
-sprang up, and held her in a close embrace,
-both arms round her neck. "Auntie, Auntie,
-isn't it beautiful? I am free! Error has quite
-gone. I know Cousin Alicia has had the
-telegrams now. You can rub your hand down
-my back. It does not hurt me now, nor
-the bruises."
-
-"Carol, dear, I cannot understand it. It
-seems so wonderful. I am afraid you ought
-not to be sitting up like this."
-
-"Oh, Auntie, there is nothing to be afraid
-about. Error cast out cannot come back
-again. I am so hungry. I do want to get
-up to breakfast."
-
-"Darling, you must lie still until Dr. Burton
-has seen you. I could not consent for
-you to get up yet. It does indeed seem
-beautiful for you to be so much better, I cannot
-realize it, and I cannot understand, Carol,
-why Miss Desmond's prayers for you should
-be so quickly answered, when I am sure I love
-you just as dearly. I prayed for you, and
-Uncle Raymond prayed, yet--yet I cannot
-feel that our prayers helped you."
-
-She had tenderly laid him back upon the
-pillow. She could not get rid of the fear that
-it was not good for him to be using his back.
-
-He was silent a few minutes, the old
-thoughtful expression on his face which she
-knew so well. Then he said:
-
-"Auntie, the sun was shining this morning
-long before Nurse drew aside the curtains,
-and let the light into my room. Suppose
-while the curtain was drawn I had kept
-saying, 'Please, dear sun, do shine into my room,
-and send the darkness away.' It would have
-had no effect. It would have been foolish,
-wouldn't it? Well, Auntie, the light of
-Truth, like the sunlight is everywhere, but
-we can shut it out of our consciousness by
-a curtain of false beliefs. Cousin Alicia has
-not asked God to make me better. She has
-just known that God's child is always perfect.
-As Nurse drew aside the curtain to let in the
-sunlight, she has drawn aside the curtain of
-false beliefs that were around me, and then
-Truth came and healed me. Jesus said 'the
-Truth shall make you free.' It is just as true,
-Auntie, as if he had said, 'When light appears,
-darkness disappears.' Wherever Truth
-appears, error shall flee away, because it is not
-from God. It is the opposite of God's law.
-I love that beautiful verse of the hymn more
-than I have ever loved it, because I can say
-again:
-
- | 'The healing of the seamless dress
- | Is by our beds of pain.'
-
-Christ is Truth, and Truth is the Christ.
-I was asleep when he came to me. But
-just as Jesus spoke to the angry waves the
-Christ has commanded error, 'Peace, be still.' Oh,
-Auntie! cannot you believe I am quite
-well? 'I am the Father's perfect child. I
-have the gift from God, dominion over all.'"
-
-She was longing to realize that it was as
-the boy said, and she had nothing to fear.
-Yet it was difficult.
-
-Dr. Burton was out when the
-messenger from the Manor went for him. He had
-not returned from a night case to which he
-had been summoned. Mrs. Burton promised
-that he would go immediately on his
-return. Shortly after ten o'clock Dr. Burton
-arrived, expecting to find from the
-urgent message that had reached him a change
-for the worse in his patient. He was
-considerably taken aback as he entered the
-room to hear a ripple of laughter, and the
-boy with a radiant face, sitting upright in
-bed, who, the day before, had not been able
-to raise his head from the pillow.
-
-"What does this mean?" Dr. Burton
-asked in a tone of voice in which surprise
-became almost consternation.
-
-"I cannot tell you anything, Doctor, except
-that Carol slept all night and woke this
-morning feeling quite well and hungry. He
-has had a fairly substantial breakfast,"
-Mrs. Mandeville said. The doctor then thoroughly
-examined him, felt his pulse, took his
-temperature, and when he looked on the
-places where the terrible bruises had been,
-and saw only a faint discoloration, he said:
-
-"It is a miracle!"
-
-"No, Doctor," said Carol, quietly, "it is
-Christian Science."
-
-"Then what is Christian Science?" the doctor asked.
-
-But the boy was silent. He could talk to
-his aunt on the subject, but not to the doctor.
-
-At that moment a maid brought a
-telegram to Mrs. Mandeville. It was from Miss
-Desmond. She read it, and passed it on
-to Dr. Burton. It was brief: "Letters and
-telegrams reached me 9.30 last evening.
-Regret unavoidable delay. Kindly wire if
-all is well. Letter to Carol follows." The
-doctor and Mrs. Mandeville simply looked
-at each other in speechless wonderment, one
-thought engrossing them. It was shortly
-after 9.30 the night before that Carol fell into
-the sleep from which he had awakened well.
-
-"It is at last a message from Cousin
-Alicia," Mrs. Mandeville then said to Carol.
-"Our letters and telegrams did not reach her
-till 9.30 last evening."
-
-"Yes, Auntie, I knew it, and I know she
-has worked for me all night."
-
-Both Mrs. Mandeville and the doctor would
-have liked to understand what the boy meant
-by that one word "worked." But neither
-questioned him then.
-
-"I can get up now, Doctor, cannot I?"
-Carol asked.
-
-"Yes, there is no reason that I can see for
-keeping you in bed. All the same," turning
-to Mrs. Mandeville, "I should say he may as
-well be kept fairly quiet for a day or
-two--not commence running races, or any other
-juvenile sports."
-
-"You can trust me, Doctor," Mrs. Mandeville
-remarked, smiling.
-
-"It seems to me you should consult the
-lady who has worked for him all night with
-such marvellous success. I can scarcely
-consider him my patient now."
-
-"Doctor, I thank you very much for all
-you tried to do for me. You were very kind
-and gentle to me."
-
-"Tut-tut, boy! Why, that's of course."
-
-All the same the doctor was pleased with
-the boy's simple recognition of his services.
-He would indeed have done more, had he
-been able. He walked home slowly and
-thoughtfully, pondering that question, which
-he had asked the boy, thinking of a lecture
-which he had given a few weeks before in a
-crowded parish room; how he himself had
-answered the question--What is Christian
-Science?--to the convulsive amusement of his
-audience. He had dipped into a book--the
-text-book of Christian Science--made copious
-extracts and so satisfied himself that he
-understood the subject sufficiently to be able
-to warn people against the teachings of
-Christian Science.
-
-Mrs. Burton was watching for his return.
-She was anxious for news of the boy, fearing
-the early message which had been sent for
-the doctor must mean that he was worse.
-By her side, in the garden, seated in a little
-wheel-chair, was her only child, a girl of ten,
-who after a fall downstairs when she was
-five years old, causing an injury to her spine,
-had lost the use of her legs. There seemed
-no hope of her ever being able to walk again,
-since all the doctors who had seen her had
-not been able to do anything for her.
-
-"How is the boy?" asked Mrs. Burton, as
-the doctor entered the garden in front of the
-house.
-
-"He is well," was the brief reply.
-
-"You don't mean?--" Mrs. Burton began
-in an alarmed tone.
-
-"I mean exactly what I say--the boy is well."
-
-"But, dear, how can that be, when he was
-so ill yesterday?"
-
-"I cannot tell you. He says it is Christian
-Science. I say it is a miracle."
-
-"Father, he won't lose the use of his legs,
-will he?" the little girl asked.
-
-"No, Eloise, I think there will be no such
-effects from the fall, as unhappily there were
-in your case."
-
-"I am glad, Father, he is such a nice, kind boy!"
-
-The child had grieved, fearing that he
-might be crippled like herself.
-
-"Christian Science must be different from
-what you described at the lecture, dear.
-Do you think I might go and see Carol? I
-should like to hear from him what it is that
-has made him well so quickly. I owe
-Mrs. Mandeville a call."
-
-"Go and pay it, then. Perhaps the boy
-will talk to you. He did not seem to care
-to answer my questions."
-
-The doctor passed into the house with the
-thought that he would borrow that book
-again, and see if he could get a better
-understanding of the subject himself.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XVII.--MRS. BURTON VISITS CAROL.
-========================================
-
-Shortly after the doctor left Carol's room,
-the maid entered to say the Rector was
-downstairs. Could he come up?
-
-"I will speak with the Rector before he
-comes upstairs," Mrs. Mandeville said, and
-left the room for that purpose.
-
-The news had reached the Rector that
-Dr. Burton had been sent for early that
-morning, and he also surmised that the boy
-must be worse. But the servants had
-assured him that such was not the case before
-Mrs. Mandeville joined him in the library.
-
-"What is this I hear about Carol, Emmeline?
-He is not worse, yet you sent for
-Dr. Burton before breakfast. I felt quite alarmed."
-
-"We could not understand it, Raymond.
-I must confess to feeling afraid it was not
-true. Carol is quite well. Dr. Burton
-admits it. He says it is a miracle. Carol says
-it is Christian Science. Dear Raymond, I
-want to beg you before you see Carol not to
-say anything to shake his faith. It is so
-beautiful."
-
-"His faith in what? In that heresy called
-Christian Science, which is neither Science
-nor Christian?"
-
-"Oh, Raymond, I cannot help thinking
-you are mistaken in your judgment. I do
-not, as I told you before, quite understand
-what Christian Science is, but this I know,
-I have never met a character so Christ-like
-as Carol's. All day yesterday he lay in such
-pain from those terrible bruises, and the
-injury to his spine and head, that we could
-not move him in the effort to ease his
-position without increasing the pain. To-day it
-is all gone. What has taken it away? He
-says the Christ--Truth has come to him and
-healed him. If we believe Jesus' words:
-'Lo, I am with you always even to the end of
-the world'--why should it not be true?
-Cannot the spiritual Christ say as Jesus so often
-said, 'According to your faith be it unto you'?"
-
-"Of course! But that is not Christian Science."
-
-"Yes, Raymond, that is what Carol seems
-to have learned from Christian Science.
-Heaven to him is not a far-off locality, it is
-here--all around him, and God is
-ever-present Love. His one thought--his one
-desire seems to be to possess that Mind which
-was also in Christ Jesus. What can you
-say against such teaching?"
-
-The Rector had evidently nothing to say.
-He remarked briefly, "If I may, I will go up
-and see the boy now. I am pressed for time."
-
-"Yes, Raymond, he will be pleased to see you."
-
-She let him go alone, and did not afterwards
-inquire what had passed between the boy and
-his uncle.
-
-Later in the day Mrs. Mandeville took
-Percy to Carol's room. The boy had begged
-so frequently to be allowed to see his cousin.
-"Just to tell him I am sorry," he said.
-
-Carol had forgotten all about it.
-
-"Sorry for what, dear Percy?" he
-inquired, when Percy, in faltering accents,
-asked to be forgiven.
-
-"Oh, I think I remember now, Percy, you
-said something that was not quite kind, but
-I knew at the time that you did not mean it.
-So why should we remember any more about it?"
-
-"You are just the bravest fellow I know,
-Carol. I have told all the boys at school
-how you stood and faced the bull. They
-think a tremendous lot of you for it. So it
-won't matter when you come with us if you
-can't play football or cricket. You will be
-the hero of the school."
-
-Then Mrs. Mandeville left the boys
-together for a little while. Percy was only too
-delighted to be able to tell Carol of all that
-was happening at school, the matches that
-had been played, and those that were to come
-off shortly.
-
-When Mrs. Burton called that same
-afternoon, she expressed her great desire to see
-and talk with Carol. Mrs. Mandeville readily
-assented, remarking that she felt sure Carol
-would be delighted to see her. As there
-were other visitors present, she was not able
-to accompany her herself. A maid therefore
-conducted her to Carol's room. Nurse was
-sitting with him. As Mrs. Burton intimated
-that she had come to have a little talk with
-Master Carol, she left the room.
-
-"Eloise sends her love to you, dear Carol.
-She is so happy to know you are so wonderfully
-better. We feared so much that you,
-too, might be crippled for life, as she has been,
-by a fall. The spinal concussion caused her
-to lose the use of her legs. We have consulted
-the first specialists, but they have never been
-able to do anything for her. When the
-doctor told me this morning how miraculously
-you have been healed, I felt I must come and
-ask you to tell me something about it. Tell
-me, dear Carol, what is Christian Science?"
-
-The boy looked up, but not at Mrs. Burton.
-That far-away dreamy look came to his eyes,
-which his cousins knew so well. It was such
-a big question to try to answer. It seemed
-minutes before he spoke. Then he said:
-"I think Christian Science means knowledge--a
-knowledge of God; and as we gain this
-knowledge we draw nearer to Him. Cousin
-Alicia used to tell me we are all God's
-children, but we have wandered so far away from
-Him. We are prodigals, dwelling in that
-far country where we are fed, like the swine,
-on husks. Christian Science just teaches
-us the way back to our Father's house;
-and as we find the road and walk in it, we
-lose the evils that tormented us. Jesus was
-our elder brother who never left his Father's
-house. Although he lived on earth, it was
-still his Father's house, because he lived
-always in the consciousness of good. And that
-is what we have to try to do. It seemed
-easier when I was with Cousin Alicia."
-
-There was just a note of sadness and regret
-in the boy's voice.
-
-"What a beautiful thought, Carol, 'living
-in the consciousness of good.' But, dear,
-how can we do it, with sickness, sorrow, and
-sin, all around? When I look at my wee
-girlie, I can never know joy or happiness;
-her young life to be so cruelly blighted through
-the carelessness of a maid. Every child I
-see running about free and happy is like a
-dagger in my heart, as I know that she should be the same."
-
-"When Cousin Alicia came from America
-after my mother's death, I was very ill, and
-the doctors said I could never be better. But
-she knew that I could. She said, 'You are
-God's child, dear Carol, and all God's
-children are spiritual, and therefore perfect.
-Awake from this dream of suffering and pain.'
-Every day she used to talk to me, until she
-led me to understand what it is to live in
-the consciousness of good, and then I was well."
-
-"Oh, Carol, it seems too wonderful to be
-true! Do you think that something might
-be done for my little girl?"
-
-"Why, of course. I am sure if you will
-take her to my home, Cousin Alicia will teach
-her as she taught me. She is always so happy
-to teach people about Christian Science.
-Shall I write and tell her you will take Eloise
-to her?"
-
-"Thank you, dear Carol, but I think,
-perhaps, before you write, I must ask
-Dr. Burton. If he is willing, I will gladly take
-my little girl to Miss Desmond."
-
-Mrs. Burton did not stay much longer.
-On leaving, she tenderly kissed Carol.
-"Dear boy, you have given me hope. You
-cannot think what it has been to a mother's
-heart to be so long hopeless," she said.
-
-The little crippled Eloise was watching
-from her nursery window for her mother's
-return. Mrs. Burton went straight to her.
-
-"Have you seen Carol, Mother?" she asked.
-
-"Yes, darling, and I have had such a sweet
-talk with him. He has made me so happy.
-I seem to see you running about like other
-children."
-
-"Oh, Mother, wouldn't that be lovely!
-And is he really well?"
-
-"It seems so, dear. Mrs. Mandeville is
-keeping him quietly in his own room to-day.
-But he seemed so well and happy. He wants
-me to take you into Devonshire to stay with
-his cousin. He says she will teach us what
-she has taught him--and then--Oh, Eloise,
-my darling, you, too, would be well and
-strong, no longer a little crippled girl."
-
-"What is it, Mother, that he has been taught?"
-
-"It seems something so wonderful and
-beautiful, dear. He says that dwelling in
-the consciousness of good is dwelling in our
-Father's house, but, like the prodigal son in
-the parable, we have wandered away into
-that far country where all sorts of evils can
-befall us. My girlie, we will try to find our
-way together into this happy understanding
-of good which causes the fetters to fall. I
-will speak to Father to-night and ask him
-to let me take you."
-
-"Do--*do*, please, Mother."
-
-Mrs. Burton waited that evening until it
-was past the hour for patients to call at the
-surgery. Then she went to her husband's
-consulting-room.
-
-The doctor was sitting at his desk, an open
-letter before him. His pen was in his hand,
-but he was not writing. The answer to the
-letter seemed to require much thought. It
-was only partly written.
-
-"Are you very busy, dear?" Mrs. Burton
-said, softly twining one arm around his neck.
-She was almost nervous. It was a great
-request she was about to proffer. She did not
-quite know how it would be received.
-
-"Not particularly, love, if you want
-anything. What is it?"
-
-"I want to tell you I had a beautiful talk
-with Carol this afternoon, and he is so kind
-as to ask me to take Eloise to stay with his
-cousin at his home in Devonshire, that she--that
-she might teach us what she has taught
-him. You know, dear, we have done everything
-we can--there is no other hope for her."
-
-"And you think there may be hope in
-this--Christian Science?"
-
-"I feel sure of it--since I have seen Carol."
-
-The doctor smiled. The humor of the
-situation struck him. He pointed to the
-open letter on his desk.
-
-"That letter," he said, "is from the Vicar
-of B-- asking me to give in his Parish Room
-the lecture which I gave at B--."
-
-"Oh!" There was an accent of pain in
-Mrs. Burton's voice. "You are not going to?"
-
-"Why do you object? The lecture was
-well received, you remember."
-
-"Yes, but even at the time when the people
-laughed and applauded, it seemed to hurt me.
-I couldn't help thinking if these people, who
-call themselves Christian Scientists, believe
-so absolutely in the Christ healing, it was
-what the early Christians believed, and
-practised, and they were persecuted. When
-Christ spoke to Saul of Tarsus, he did not
-say, 'Why persecutest thou my followers?' He
-said 'Why persecutest thou *me*?'
-
-"So I felt that night that the laughter and
-ridicule of all in the room were as stones
-thrown not at people, but at the Christ.
-Don't tell me, dear, that you are going to
-give that lecture again."
-
-"I am not. That boy's radiant face would
-come between me and any audience I might
-think to address. I have commenced a
-letter to the Vicar, telling him I feel I cannot
-lecture on the subject again."
-
-"And I may take Eloise to Willmar Court?"
-
-"You may. Should she regain the use of
-her legs, as a result of the visit, I will espouse
-the Cause I once derided. After witnessing
-Carol's marvellous recovery, it does not seem
-impossible."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XVIII.--HAPPY THOUGHTS.
-===============================
-
-After Mrs. Burton left Carol, Edith came
-and had tea with him, and after tea all his
-cousins were allowed to visit him for a little
-time. They could not understand how the
-sadness and gloom in the house had been
-dispelled. It was like the sun shining through
-clouds on a rainy day. He was so bright and
-happy, just their own dear Carol again.
-There was one subject of which he never
-spoke to his cousins; so they could not know
-why, the day before, the house was hushed,
-and he could not be seen because he was so
-ill, and to-day there seemed nothing at all the
-matter with him.
-
-When Mrs. Mandeville went the round of
-the children's rooms after dinner, she found
-Carol waiting for her in the old way, just as if
-there had been no break, no agony of sorrow
-and suspense.
-
-"I hoped to find you asleep, darling," she
-said. "Has it been too much excitement
-having so many in your room?"
-
-"Oh, no, Auntie. I loved to see them all
-again. I have had such happy thoughts.
-Isn't it nice to be kept awake by happy
-thoughts? Happy thoughts are good
-thoughts, and good thoughts come from God.
-Shall I tell you, Auntie, dear, what I have
-been thinking about?"
-
-"Wouldn't it be better to tell me in the
-morning, dearie? It is rather late for a little
-boy who was an invalid only yesterday to be
-kept awake even by happy thoughts."
-
-"I would rather tell you to-night, Auntie.
-You do not quite understand, do you, that
-when error is cast out, it is done with, and
-we do not need to remember anything
-about it."
-
-"Then tell me, love, what you have been
-thinking about."
-
-"I began first of all, Auntie, thinking about
-Peter."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville's thoughts at once went
-to the stables, where one of the horses was
-named Peter.
-
-"Peter, dear?" Just a note of surprise
-in her voice.
-
-"Yes, Auntie, when Jesus called Peter to
-come to him on the water, at first he was not
-afraid, and he got out of the boat to go to
-him. Then he began to be afraid, and as
-soon as fear crept in, he began to sink.
-Auntie, I was just like that. At first I was
-not afraid of the bull. I knew God had
-given me dominion, and I was trying to
-realize it. Then the moment I began to be afraid,
-the bull tossed me. As I was thinking of this
-perhaps I fell asleep, and it was a dream.
-But it was so real. I seemed to see Peter
-standing by the bed, but he didn't look like
-the picture in the stained-glass window,
-and he spoke so kindly and gently. 'Little
-brother,' he said, 'you have not learned to
-trust the Master yet.' It was just as if he
-remembered there was a time when his faith
-had failed. I wanted to ask him something,
-but he was not there, and I was quite wide
-awake. May it perhaps be, Auntie, that as
-Christ 'walks life's troubled angry sea,' they
-are with him, those disciples who were always
-with Jesus, especially Peter, and James,
-and John; and they are working now, doing
-his bidding, as they did it in Galilee,
-watching over and helping those who are still fighting?"
-
-"It may be, Carol, we cannot tell. It
-seems that events which happened two
-thousand years ago are to you but as yesterday."
-
-"Why, yes, Auntie; time in God's kingdom
-is not measured by years and weeks and
-months. I shall just love now to think about
-Peter, and know that my faith will grow
-stronger, as his did. There are many people
-who would not have been afraid of the bull.
-Cousin Alicia told me of a lady in India who,
-one day, came quite close to a cobra. But
-she was not afraid, and as she stood quite
-still and looked at it, the cobra coiled itself
-into a heap and went to sleep. Then she
-told me of a gentleman who was shooting
-game in Africa, and once he was in a position
-when he could not fire, and a leopard was only
-a few yards from him, but the animal did not
-attack him, it ran away into the desert. The
-lady and the gentleman knew and realized
-that they had dominion; I hope I shall
-understand it better some day, and not be afraid
-of anything."
-
-"You have been taught some strange
-things, Carol, still they are beautiful; it seems
-almost too beautiful to be true."
-
-"Oh, Auntie, nothing can be too beautiful
-to be true, because only good, and good is
-always beautiful, is real; evil, and evil is
-always ugly, is unreal."
-
-"Carol, darling, I wish I could believe that.
-You are leading me in strange paths. I
-must not let you talk any more to-night.
-I am quite sure that it is time a little boy,
-who has lost so much sleep lately, tried to
-make up for it."
-
-But as she bent over him to kiss him,
-he clung both arms around her neck, keeping
-her a willing captive for some minutes longer.
-
-"Auntie, I am so longing for Cousin Alicia's
-letter," were his last words as she left the room.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XIX.--THE REASON OF THE DELAY.
-======================================
-
-The next morning Carol rose at his usual
-time, and breakfasted with his cousins in the
-school-room. Miss Markham looked at him
-with puzzled eyes, especially when he told her
-he was quite ready to begin lessons again.
-She could not understand it. There seemed
-to be some mystery connected with his
-marvellous recovery from what everybody
-believed to be serious injuries. She took the
-opportunity, when his cousins were out of the
-room, to ask him quietly, "What has made
-you well so quickly, Carol?"
-
-"Ask Auntie, please, Miss Markham, I
-am not allowed to talk about it," he replied.
-Miss Markham's wonderment was considerably
-increased, for Mrs. Mandeville had only
-told her, when the boy first came to the
-Manor, that he had been taught religious
-tenets which were altogether unorthodox.
-She did not then connect that remark with the
-boy's quick recovery. He often made
-remarks which surprised her. Sometimes she
-pondered over a remark he had made, and
-found there was more in it than at first had
-appeared. If she attempted to draw him out
-by questions, he became strangely silent and
-reserved. Once, it was during a history
-lesson, Carol exclaimed, "But evil could have
-no power, Miss Markham, if everyone knew
-that God--good--governs. If we had no
-belief in evil, evil could not hurt us."
-
-Thinking over the words afterwards, Miss
-Markham admitted to herself that to
-acknowledge the omnipotence of God, must deprive
-evil of any power. But she wondered how it
-was Carol had come to see it so clearly. She
-could not, however, draw him to talk any
-more on the subject. After breakfast
-Mrs. Mandeville came to the school-room with the
-longed-for letter in her hand, and, as permission
-was readily given, Carol went to his own
-room to read it. Eagerly he broke open
-the envelope, and read:
-
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- "WILLMAR COURT,
- SOUTH DEVON.
-
-"*My dear, dear Carol,*
-
-"The telegram in answer to mine this morning
-has just arrived. I waited for it before
-commencing my letter to you. I rejoice
-for you, Truth has triumphed, error has
-fallen. When I returned to the Court last
-night, after being absent since Saturday
-afternoon, I found telegrams and letters
-awaiting me. On learning that the first
-telegram asking for help for you was more
-than three days old, I had to fight error on
-my own account, before I could fight it on
-yours. How quick error is to find the weak
-parts of our armor. My human love for
-you, darling, opened wide the portals, and a
-crowd of wrong thoughts rushed in. I found
-myself wondering why it should have so
-happened that I should be away, when I seemed
-most wanted, and under circumstances which
-made it impossible for the telegrams to be sent on.
-
-"Then, in this sudden tempest of doubts
-and fears which had rushed upon me, came
-the words, calm, sweet, tender: 'I, if I, be
-lifted up, will draw all men unto me.' And
-I knew, I was absolutely sure, however great
-were the sense sufferings, Carol had held
-steadfastly to Truth: the Christ was lifted
-up; and, though he may not know it, some
-human heart has been drawn nearer the
-eternal Truth, Christ.
-
-"Then I commenced to work for you, and
-when the roseate hues of early morning began
-to steal into the room, the knowledge came to
-me that there was nothing more to fight--error
-was overcome. All is well, even the
-delay which at first seemed altogether wrong.
-Now I will tell you the reason of it. On
-Saturday afternoon I was driving your pony
-in the small basket carriage, which you so
-often used. (Since they cannot have their
-little master, both Bob and the pony think
-the next best thing is to take me about.) I
-am becoming well acquainted with all the
-beautiful lanes in the neighborhood, for I
-frequently take these little excursions.
-
-"We were three or four miles from home,
-when, in a very narrow lane, where it was
-impossible to pass another vehicle, we met a
-farmer, driving a dog-cart. The farmer
-showed his reluctance to be the one to back
-out of the lane. He accosted me with these
-words: 'Ma'am, I am in great haste; it
-is a matter of life and death.'
-
-"'Indeed,' I said, 'is it the doctor you are in
-haste to reach?'
-
-"'No,' he replied, briefly, 'the doctor has
-given her up. It is the lady that lives at
-Willmar Court I want to see.'
-
-"'Then you have not far to go,' I said.
-'She is here. What is your trouble?' Then
-he told me that his only child, a girl of seven,
-was believed to be dying. The doctor gave
-no hope of saving her. 'It seems the news of
-your beautiful healing has spread through the
-neighboring villages, and the grief-stricken
-parents of this little girl thought there might
-be hope for her.'
-
-"I told the farmer I would go with him,
-and straightway sent Bob home with the
-pony, bidding him to tell the servants I
-should return as soon as possible, but not to
-trouble if I did not return that night.
-
-"As soon as we had backed out of the lane,
-the farmer drove furiously, and it was not
-long before we reached his homestead. I
-found the belief of death so strong surrounding
-the child, that it seemed necessary to
-remain there.
-
-"In two days it was overcome, but I stayed
-another day to give the wearied mother a
-good rest. The farmer drove me home last
-night, when I found everyone sadly troubled.
-They had begun to fear I was never going to
-return, and Bob could not give them any
-idea as to who had driven away with me.
-The letters and telegrams from Mandeville
-naturally added to their anxiety.
-
-"Now, all is well: Good was governing--Love
-leading all the time. I cannot yet
-understand how it was the bull tossed you.
-Were you not able to realize your dominion? or
-was it the mesmerism of fear that seized
-you? Mrs. Mandeville mentions in her
-letter that you stood between your little
-cousins and the bull. My dear boy, of course
-you would! I could not imagine your doing
-otherwise. Doubtless the nurse's fear and
-the cries of the little girls affected you--the
-contagion of thought. Had you been quite
-alone, I feel so sure that you would have been
-able to realize your God-given dominion.
-
-"Tell me more when you write (I am longing
-for a letter) of the old man and his little
-grand-daughter. Work always comes to
-willing hands and loving hearts, and what
-work is, or ever can be, so beautiful as work
-for the Master in His Vineyard. Never
-think any service little. Merely carrying
-even a cup of cold water will in no case lose
-its reward. But the joy of working--*of being
-allowed to work*--is sufficient. We do not
-look to the reward.
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- "With loving thoughts,
- Believe me always, dear Carol,
- Your affectionate cousin,
- ALICIA DESMOND."
-
-
-Before returning to the school-room, Carol
-sought his aunt in her morning-room. After
-reading his letters, he always took them to
-her, and asked her to read them too. They
-were not, perhaps, always as intelligible to
-her as they were to the boy, but they never
-failed to interest her. She was conscious of
-a growing desire to know the writer, whom
-she had never met. Later in the day Carol
-received another letter, delivered by hand.
-It was from Mrs. Burton, joyfully telling
-him the doctor was willing for her to take
-Eloise into Devonshire to his cousin.
-
-He wrote immediately to Miss Desmond,
-asking her if she would invite Mrs. Burton
-and her little daughter to the Court,
-explaining the reason. He knew the invitation
-would not be long in coming.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XX.--"LIGHT AT EVENTIDE."
-=================================
-
-On the following Sunday evening Carol
-appeared at Mr. Higgs' cottage at the usual time.
-
-It seemed almost impossible to believe
-there had been a break, and that for three
-days he had lain, to mortal sense, between
-life and death. So entirely had the cloud
-rolled away, it was difficult to realize it had
-ever darkened the horizon.
-
-"I wasn't expecting you, Master Carol,
-but I'm right glad to see you. It do seem
-so wonderful that just this time last Sunday
-all the village was waiting for news from the
-Manor, and I was that sad thinking I'd never
-have you come to see me again. The Rector
-prayed for you in church. I was there for
-the first time for well-nigh two years. 'Well,
-well,' I said to myself, 'if the Lord takes him,
-His will be done.' But, oh, I prayed as I've
-never prayed since we lost our first child that
-He wouldn't."
-
-"You do not understand then yet that death
-can never be God's will. Didn't Jesus say,
-'I am come that they might have life, and
-that they might have it more abundantly'? If
-Jesus came to bring us life, does not that
-show that God never sends death?"
-
-"Well, Master Carol, as you put it, maybe
-it is so, but I'm an old man, and it's what
-I was taught as a boy, and the belief's grown
-up wi' me, and somehow I wouldn't like to
-give up the thought. It's the only thing that
-makes the parting bearable--to think God
-wills it. We put it on the headstone where
-we laid our little girl. *Thy will be done*.
-Aye, I've stood and looked at them words
-many a time, and they sort o' comforted
-me. She was our first-born."
-
-"There is another verse which says 'to
-know God is everlasting life.' In everlasting
-life there can be no death, can there? Just
-think of this: If the sun were never hidden,
-and you could keep your eyes steadfastly
-on the light, you would have no knowledge
-of darkness--you would not understand it
-or believe in it. In the same way when we
-understand that God is ALL, we must lose
-the thought of and belief in death. There is
-no death to those that know we live and
-move and have our being in God-Life. Death
-could not steal one of God's ideas--His
-children--and destroy it. What seems to die
-is not God's child. What you buried in the
-churchyard was not your little girl, and what
-they cast into the sea, was not my father.
-They are still living. It is only that we do
-not see them. You know Jesus says, 'In
-my Father's house are many mansions.' They
-have passed on to another mansion--that
-is all. My cousin has taught me that
-the mansions Jesus spoke of are not afar off
-in a locality called Heaven. We are to-day--you
-and I--dwelling in one of God's mansions,
-and it is a higher or a lower mansion
-according as we dwell in the consciousness
-of good. We have to take all the steps up
-to that special place which Jesus has gone to
-prepare for us. If we are not ready for it,
-we shall not be able to enter it, even if we have
-passed through the door called death. We
-have to fight and overcome all that separates
-us from God. Jesus overcame everything.
-He put sin and disease under his feet, and we
-have just to follow in his steps, knowing that
-he prepared the way, and is helping us all the
-time. Perhaps you did not think when you
-had rheumatism that it was a shadow
-between you and God, did you? You thought
-it was God's will for you."
-
-"That's true, Master Carol. I just bowed
-down to it, thinking God chose to afflict
-me for some special purpose."
-
-"I knew it was not so, when I tried to help
-you. I always saw you perfect, as God made
-you, and you know the shadow disappeared.
-When I lay in bed a few days ago, and couldn't
-move, the bruises seemed so real, and the pain
-very great, I couldn't think of them as
-shadows, but my cousin was able to do it
-for me, and all disappeared. Neither my aunt
-nor the doctor seemed able to believe it at
-first, because they do not understand. Won't
-it be a happy day when everyone understands
-that Truth destroys disease; and when little
-children have hip-disease doctors won't hurt
-them to try to make them better, as they did me?"
-
-"Did they really?"
-
-"Yes, and the operation did not make me
-better. But we will not talk about it. I
-ought not to remember anything about it.
-It was all error. Shall we have the chapter
-again from St. John which tells us 'In my
-Father's house are many mansions'?"
-
-"Aye, I mind that chapter well. The
-words just sink down into my heart, and stir
-up something there, and I've wanted to
-understand them better. I've thought a lot about
-it since the last time you talked to me. I
-know He is faithful who promised, the 'works
-that I do shall he do also.' As I said before,
-I'm an old man, Master Carol, and I've been
-looking for it all my life. Why, I've asked
-myself, don't His servants and ministers
-give us the signs He promised?"
-
-"And now what you have been looking for
-all these years has come--the light at
-eventide," Carol said softly, looking beyond the
-old man with eyes that seemed unconscious
-of the crimson of the setting sun, as he caught
-a glimpse of that marvellous light which
-'never was, on land or sea'--spiritual understanding.
-
-"You have been healed, and your little
-grand-daughter, and I, too, in the way the Master commanded."
-
-"Aye, it's true, Master Carol. I feel like
-saying, 'Lord, now lettest thou thy servant
-depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy
-salvation.' It is His salvation. Maybe
-when you have read me that chapter from the
-Bible, you'll read me some pages of the little
-book which seems to make things clearer to
-me, and helps me to understand the Bible better."
-
-"I am sorry, I may not," Carol said
-regretfully, looking at the little book which lay
-beside the old man's Bible. "My uncle has
-taken my copy of the book away because he
-did not wish me to read it. It would not be
-honorable to read from another copy. It
-will be given back to me sometime. I do
-not know how or when. Auntie asked me
-not to stay long this evening, so I will read
-the chapter now."
-
-"My daughter'll be sorry she missed
-coming in. We didn't expect you to-night,
-Master Carol. She's very grateful to you;
-her little girl seems quite well now. There's
-been no return o' the fits. An' my rheumatiz
-is quite the talk o' th' village. What's
-took it away? First one and then another
-asks. When I tell 'em th' Lord's healed
-me--well, well, they just look at me, as if they
-thunk th' rheumatiz has gone to my head and
-turned my brain. Farmer Stubbins says he's
-coming in one night to have a talk with me,
-for he's tried many remedies, but his
-rheumatiz keeps getting worse."
-
-"Give him the little book to read, or tell
-him to get one for himself," Carol said. Then
-he read again the chapter he had once before
-read. At the end he closed the book without
-comment.
-
-Brightly wishing the old man good-night,
-he left the cottage.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XXI.--JOYFUL NEWS FROM ELOISE.
-======================================
-
-Miss Desmond gladly acceded to Carol's
-desire, and wrote to Mrs. Burton at once to
-bring her little girl to stay with her.
-
-They left for Devonshire the following
-week. A month passed before Carol received
-the promised letter from Eloise. During the
-time Miss Desmond wrote to him as usual,
-but beyond mentioning the pleasure it was to
-her to have his friends staying with her, and
-what a dear interesting little girl she found
-Eloise, she did not give any details of their
-visit. At the end of the month the postman
-brought one morning a delightfully "fat
-envelope" addressed to Carol in a round,
-childish hand. He knew at once it was the long
-promised letter from Eloise. There was
-also a shorter one enclosed from Mrs. Burton.
-
-Carol read Eloise's letter first.
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- "WILLMAR COURT,
- S. DEVON.
-
-"*My dear Carol,*
-
-"I did not forget I had promised to write
-soon to you. Miss Desmond seemed to wish
-me not to write just at first. She said you
-would understand. I think she wanted everyone
-at Mandeville to forget for a little while
-all about me. She called it taking their thought off me.
-
-"Now I have so much to tell you. I do
-not know how I shall get it all in one letter.
-Dear Carol, I am just the very, very happiest
-little girl in all the world. I *can walk*. More
-than that, I can *run*. Isn't it lovely--wonderful!
-One night I dreamed that I was
-walking, and when I awoke in the morning
-the dream seemed so real, I felt it must be
-true. So I just got out of bed, and I *could
-walk*. I walked to Mother's bedside. She
-was so glad and happy. When we saw dear
-Miss Desmond at breakfast time, and I wanted
-to thank her, and tell her how much I loved
-her, she took me to her room, and pointed to
-a portrait on the wall. Such a sweet, loving
-face, with white, wavy hair. 'That, dear
-Eloise,' she said, 'is the portrait of the one
-you must love. I could not have taken you
-to the Fountain of Truth to be healed, had
-she not first shown me the way.' And oh,
-Carol, I do love dear Mrs. Eddy. How I
-wish I could tell her so!
-
-"Just for a few days, my legs were so shaky,
-and I had to keep sitting down. I only
-walked about a room. Then I was able to
-go downstairs. At the end of a week Miss
-Desmond and Mother took me the walk you
-first took, and I sat down to rest just where
-you rested on the stump of the old tree. We
-waited quite a long time, hoping Birdie would
-come. And he did, but he stayed only a
-minute, chirping--'So glad--so glad.' (It
-was just like that.) Then he flew away as
-if he were in a great hurry, and that was all
-he had time to tell us.
-
-"Miss Desmond said: 'Birdie is always
-busy about his Father's business.' Mother
-looked puzzled, and I too. We could not
-understand. Then Miss Desmond said to me,
-'God is Birdie's Father too, dear Eloise.
-Birdie is a spiritual idea; he has no life apart
-from God. He has his appointed work to do
-in God's Kingdom. All God's ideas reflect
-Him--reflect Life, Truth, Love, Goodness.
-Perhaps Birdie's work is just to voice a note
-of joy, of harmony.'
-
-"That made me think, Carol, if even a little
-bird has his appointed task, I, too, must have
-mine--some work to do for God. I am
-waiting for it to be made plain to me. Now
-I have the desire to do it, Miss Desmond
-says, the work is sure to come. Even if it
-is only a very little thing at first, I shall be
-glad to do it.
-
-"Dear Carol, we are so enjoying staying
-here, Mother and I. I am so fond of all your
-pets, and feed them every day, and talk to
-them about you. Before I could walk, Bob
-used to take me round the grounds in your
-pony-carriage, and he always talked so much
-of you, and the time when he used to take
-you about. He will be so glad when you
-come home again. All the servants like to
-hear about you. They love you so much.
-I have had to tell them ever so many times
-about the bull, and how you stood and faced
-him, and did not run away. They are so
-proud of you. 'The young Master' they call
-you. I tell Mother, Willmar Court is like
-a little kingdom, and you the exiled prince.
-
-"Father is coming next week to take us
-home. Until he sees me walking, I think he
-cannot quite believe it. He says he wants
-to have a long talk with Miss Desmond.
-
-"With many loving thoughts, dear Carol,
-I am,
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- Your affectionate little friend
- ELOISE BURTON.
-
-"P.S. Mother has helped me just a little
-with this letter, and now she is writing to
-you herself."
-
-----
-
-Carol could not wait to read Mrs. Burton's
-letter before giving the joyful news to
-Mrs. Mandeville. With both letters in his hand,
-he ran to seek his aunt in her morning-room.
-
-"Auntie, Auntie!" he cried excitedly--"such
-news! Eloise can walk--more than
-that, she can run. Isn't it beautiful?"
-
-"Really, Carol? Is it really true?"
-
-"Yes, Auntie, *really*. Will you read
-Eloise's letter? And oh, may I tell my cousins?"
-
-"Tell them that Eloise can walk? Why,
-certainly, dear."
-
-"But more than that, Auntie; they will
-ask what has made her walk, when every one
-believed she could never walk again. Mayn't
-I tell them, Auntie, Christian Science has
-done what the doctors couldn't do?"
-
-"I will think, dear, what you may tell them.
-Let me see Eloise's letter. Whilst
-Mrs. Mandeville read the little girl's letter, Carol
-opened and read Mrs. Burton's.
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- "WILLMAR COURT,
- S. DEVON.
-
-"*My dear Carol,*
-
-"Eloise herself has written the glad news to
-you that the use of her legs is perfectly
-restored. My joyful gratitude is more than can
-be expressed in words. Yet it even seems
-that the blessing of this wonderful physical
-healing is small in comparison with the
-knowledge we have gained of the Truth, which Jesus
-said should make us free. Here, amidst
-the lovely surroundings of your beautiful
-home, I have lost my old concept of God, and
-gained instead an understanding of Him,
-as ever-present Love: infinite Life, Truth, Love.
-
-"It seemed so soon after I was able to
-see and realize this that my little girl was
-healed. And oh, Carol, the kindness and
-gentleness with which dear Miss Desmond has
-led us up to this understanding, never letting
-us for a moment cling to her, pointing always
-away from personality to divine Principle.
-We must be and are very grateful for her
-faithful instruction and example, for her life,
-so consecrated to God that the promised signs
-are given: 'They shall lay hands on the sick,
-and they shall recover.' I did not at the time
-understand your own marvellous recovery
-from the effects of the encounter with the
-bull. I do now, and I feel, dear boy, we owe
-you intense gratitude. It was your steadfast
-faith in the Christ, Truth, which led me
-to seek spiritual healing for my little Eloise.
-The words come to me: 'I, if I be lifted up,
-will draw all men unto me.' For me the
-Christ was lifted up, and I was drawn unto
-Him. May my life henceforth so testify
-that others may in the same manner be drawn
-unto Him.
-
-"Please convey my very kind regards to Mrs. Mandeville.
-She will, I know, rejoice with us.
-
-"Believe me always, dear Carol,
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- Yours lovingly,
- M. K. BURTON."
-
-
-"It is indeed wonderful and beautiful,
-Carol," Mrs. Mandeville said as she returned
-the little girl's letter. I sincerely rejoice with
-Dr. and Mrs. Burton. I know what a sad
-trial Eloise's paralysis has been to them."
-
-Then Mrs. Mandeville became aware that
-Carol was looking up with anxiously expectant
-eyes, awaiting an answer to a question.
-
-"Dear boy," she said, "if you told your
-cousins that Christian Science has made
-Eloise to walk, they would not understand
-what you meant. Indeed, I do not quite
-understand, myself--yet. I will come to the
-school-room with you, and perhaps we can
-explain to them that Eloise has been healed
-by faith in the power of God."
-
-With that Carol had to be satisfied, though
-he longed to explain that it was not faith
-alone, but faith with understanding: the
-understanding of God as All-in-all,
-Omnipotent, Omnipresent Love.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XXII.--THE RETURN OF ELOISE.
-====================================
-
-When, the following week, Dr. Burton
-brought his wife and daughter home, both he
-and Mrs. Burton gratefully spoke of the
-Science which had healed her. The little girl,
-in her wheel-chair, had been so familiar an
-object of compassion to the villagers that,
-when they saw her walking, they wanted to
-know what had brought it about. Then
-Mr. Higgs triumphantly held up a little book.
-
-"It's all in here, bless the Lord," he said.
-"What's become o' my rheumatiz, you ask.
-I don't know what's become o' it. I only
-know it's gone. What becomes o' the
-darkness when you let the sunshine in? I'm
-getting to understand it better every day.
-There's no need to trouble what's become
-o' error when you let the Truth in."
-
-Then he told them of his little
-grand-daughter, and how she, too, had lost
-something. There was no need to say what. All
-the village had known of the little girl's sad
-affliction. Many listened to him, and looked
-curiously at the little book, but only a few
-believed. It was easier to attribute the
-healing to nature, or natural causes, than to
-spiritual laws. The return of Eloise was a great
-joy to Carol. She was able to tell him much
-that he wanted to know. He so seldom spoke
-of his home, Mrs. Mandeville would have been
-surprised to know how often he had to fight
-against a sick longing for the dear scenes of
-his childhood, and the cousin-friend who was
-now the representative of both father and mother.
-
-The Burtons arrived home too late for
-Carol to meet them at the station, as he intended.
-
-The next morning he was an early visitor
-at their house. Eloise had only just finished
-breakfast.
-
-"Oh, Carol!"
-
-"Oh, Eloise!"
-
-In a moment the two children were locked
-in each other's arms. Between them was a
-bond of sympathy which neither could have
-defined, stronger, more tender, than the
-tie of human relationship. Then, joyfully,
-Eloise began to tell him all about her visit.
-She had so many messages to deliver, and
-Carol had so many questions to ask, it was
-lunch time before they were half through.
-Dr. Burton came in from his rounds. He
-told them that he had called at the Manor,
-and had gained Mrs. Mandeville's permission
-to keep Carol for the rest of the day.
-
-"Thank you so much, Dr. Burton, I am
-very pleased to stay," Carol said in answer.
-
-Dr. Burton laid both hands on the boy's shoulders.
-
-"My boy," he said gravely, "the pleasure
-is ours. We owe you a debt of gratitude we
-can never hope to repay."
-
-The words brought a flush of pleasure to
-Carol's face. He could not think that he had
-done anything to deserve such gratitude.
-
-After lunch, when she found the trunks
-had been unpacked, Eloise showed Carol a
-little book, Miss Desmond's parting gift to
-her. It was exactly like the book that had
-been given to Carol. He took it from Eloise,
-as she held it out to him, but immediately
-laid it down on the table. "Shall we do part
-of the Lesson together, Carol? It will be so
-nice. I have done part of it every morning
-with Miss Desmond."
-
-"Yes, I used to," Carol said, and Eloise
-detected a note of sadness in his voice.
-
-"Do you study it alone now, Carol?" she said.
-
-"No, I never study it at all, Eloise. I
-have not a book. The book Cousin Alicia
-gave me Uncle Raymond has."
-
-"Then we can do it together every week
-from my book, cannot we?"
-
-"No, Eloise, Uncle Raymond took my
-book away because he did not wish me to
-study it. Until he gives me permission, I
-cannot read it with you."
-
-"I am so sorry, Carol. The Rector always
-speaks so kindly to me when he sees me, I
-should not mind asking him to let you have it
-again--shall I? Perhaps he does not know
-how much you want it."
-
-"Auntie asked him when I was ill, and he
-would not. I do not think it would be any
-use for you to ask him, dear Eloise."
-
-"And wouldn't you like to have my book
-sometimes, Carol?"
-
-"Not without Uncle Raymond's permission.
-He is my guardian. I must be obedient to
-his wishes. Don't look sorry, Eloise. It is
-all right. We can only take one step at a
-time. It is sure to be given back to me when
-I am ready to take another step."
-
-"Will my book be taken away from me?
-Father and Mother are both pleased for me
-to have it."
-
-"Why, no, Eloise. The lesson I need to
-learn is perhaps not the lesson you need.
-Everyone who comes into Science has
-something to overcome--some particular lesson
-to master, Cousin Alicia said. Mine is
-obedience, cheerful, willing obedience, and every
-victory of Truth over error makes us stronger."
-
-Then with the *gaieté de coeur* of childhood,
-the subject was dismissed. Eloise quickly
-proposed going to the garden where they
-spent the afternoon, Carol teaching her to
-play croquet. Peals of merry laughter
-reached Mrs. Burton as she sat at an open
-French window, causing her heart anew to
-overflow with loving gratitude to the One
-who had "sent His word," and her child was
-made whole.
-
-When Mrs. Mandeville paid her usual visit
-to Carol's room that night, she found him
-with wide-open eyes, a flush of excitement on
-his cheeks. "I have had such a happy day,
-Auntie," he said. "I do love Eloise so much,
-and she loves me, too" (Mrs. Mandeville
-smiled), "and we both love Cousin Alicia.
-Since I came to bed I have been trying to
-think what love is, and it seems it is like light,
-it can never be described in words. The
-blind boy in the poem asked,
-
- | 'What is that thing called light,
- | Which I can ne'er enjoy?'
-
-No one could tell him to make him
-understand, could they? So no one could make
-anyone understand in words what love is.
-Just as light comes from the sun, and we can
-only see it with our eyes, so love comes from
-God, who is Love, and we can only be
-conscious of it in our hearts. Isn't it St. John,
-Auntie, who says we have passed from death
-unto life when we love the brethren? Then
-just as eyes which cannot see the light are
-called blind, mustn't it be that hearts which
-do not love are dead?"
-
-"It seems to follow naturally your line of
-reasoning, Carol, though I cannot say the
-thought ever occurred to me before. There
-is one marked trait in all little children, they
-are so full of love."
-
-"Yes, Auntie, especially darling Rosebud.
-She loves everyone. Do you remember when
-I was ill, and you lifted her on the bed, how
-she said: 'I do 'ove 'ou so welly much, Tarol'?"
-
-"Yes, dear, I remember. Rosebud often
-makes me think of a line of one of the poets:
-
- | 'For a smile of God, thou art.'"
-
-
-"That is just beautiful, Auntie, and it
-explains why little children know what love
-is, before they know anything else, before
-they even walk or talk."
-
-"Yes, Carol, all great poets seem able to
-grasp some momentous truth, and give it to
-the world in a beautiful line or verse."
-
-"Cousin Alicia has given Eloise a copy of
-*Science and Health* just like the one she gave
-me, Auntie. Eloise showed it to me, and
-offered to lend it to me. But it would not
-be right for me to read it until Uncle
-Raymond gives me permission, would it? Do you
-think he may when he knows of Eloise's
-healing?"
-
-"He does know, dear. I was talking to
-him last night about it. He attributes it to
-the change into Devonshire, or--or some other
-reason. I think he suggested hypnotism."
-
-"But they took her to Germany some time
-ago, and that change made no difference, nor
-the great German doctor she was under."
-
-"That is so, dear, still Uncle Raymond will
-not listen. I think it will be unwise to talk
-any more on the subject to him."
-
-"Do you think then, Auntie, he will not
-be willing for me to have the book again
-until--until I am a man?"
-
-"I fear that may be so, dear."
-
-"Oh, Auntie!"
-
-For a moment the grave eyes filled with
-tears. The next instant they were dashed
-away. "What am I thinking of? Error,
-error, begone! Love *can* find a way, and
-Love *will* find a way. It is quite all right,
-Auntie," clasping both arms around her neck.
-
-"Just wait and see! If we are not standing
-'porter at the door of thought' every
-moment, what a lot of wrong thoughts come
-trooping in."
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XXIII.--A LONG-DELAYED LETTER.
-======================================
-
-That was an eventful week to Carol. Three
-or four days after the return of Mrs. Burton
-and Eloise it was his turn to open the
-post-bag. The daily task of receiving the post-bag,
-unlocking it, sorting, and then distributing
-the contents, was always such a pleasure to
-the elder children that they had agreed to
-take it by turns.
-
-There seemed an unusually full bag that
-morning when he emptied the contents on
-the hall table. He collected into a little pile
-all the letters for the servants' hall, for
-the school-room, and for Mrs. Mandeville.
-Colonel Mandeville was away with his
-regiment. Quite at the last he discovered two
-envelopes bearing the small, neat handwriting
-which always called forth an exclamation
-of pleasure.
-
-"Two letters this morning from Cousin
-Alicia, one for Auntie and one for me!"
-
-But he faithfully finished his task, and
-delivered the letters to their respective owners
-before opening his own letter.
-
-Mrs. Mandeville frequently breakfasted
-with the children when Colonel Mandeville
-was away and there were no visitors staying
-in the house. Carol found her in the schoolroom.
-
-Breakfast had commenced. "You have
-had a big delivery this morning, Mr. Postman,
-have you not?" she said.
-
-"Yes, Auntie, nearly everyone has had
-more than one letter, and here are four for
-you, three for Miss Markham, one for Percy,
-one for Edith, and one for me from Cousin
-Alicia. One of your letters, too, Auntie, is
-from Cousin Alicia, and it is quite a fat one.
-Mine is quite thin. May I open it, Auntie?"
-
-"Certainly, dear, I am sure Miss Markham
-will allow you. We all know how little people
-are impatient to read their letters."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville laid three of her letters
-beside her plate. The one bearing the
-Devonshire post-mark she held in her hand, and
-presently drew the contents from the envelope.
-
-Her face grew very white, her hand
-trembled as she saw Miss Desmond's letter
-enclosed another. Her eyes, suffused with tears,
-fell on dear, familiar writing.
-
-Was it a message from the grave--from that
-watery grave where the mortal remains of the
-brother still so dear to her had been cast?
-
-Carol meanwhile was devouring his letter,
-oblivious of everything else. He read:
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- "WILLMAR COURT,
- S. DEVON.
-
-"*My dear Carol,*
-
-"Something so wonderful and beautiful has
-happened. Yet I should not perhaps use
-the word 'wonderful,' since nothing can be
-lost when Mind governs and controls. The
-letter which your dear father wrote me just
-before his death has at last reached me.
-
-"Evidently through a mistake at the
-sorting office it was slipped into the American
-mail-bag at Gibraltar instead of the English. My
-name and address are almost stamped out,
-it has been to so many places in the United
-States of America and was afterwards sent
-on to Canada, where it has also visited many
-post-offices, before some postmaster or
-post-mistress remembered that S. Devon is part
-of an English county.
-
-"A letter so important for your future,
-dear, could not be lost. I am sending it for
-Mrs. Mandeville to read, as it is necessary
-for her and also your Uncle Raymond to know
-the contents. They will, I am sure, observe
-their brother's last wishes; and one is, that
-no hindrance or impediment shall be put in
-the way of your studying the Science which
-has healed you. I am to buy a new copy of
-*Science and Health*, and write in it: 'To
-Carol--from Father.' You see, dear, Love
-has found a way, and just the most beautiful
-way of restoring to you the book you seemed
-to have lost, for a time at least.
-
-"Dearly as you have valued the book
-before, it will have an added value with the
-knowledge that it comes to you expressly by
-your dear father's desire. Mrs. Mandeville
-will, no doubt, let you read (or read to you)
-the letter before returning it to me. You
-will rejoice to learn how much you were in
-your father's thoughts at the last. I have
-ordered a copy of the book. You will
-receive it in a very short time. I know how
-glad you will be to be able to study the
-Lesson-Sermons again. How nice it will be
-for you and Eloise to do them sometimes
-together! Dear little girl! Give her many
-loving thoughts from me. We miss her
-very much. Bob's affections seem about
-equally divided between his young master
-and 'the little lady' as he calls her.
-
-"Always in thought and deed, dear Carol,
-
-.. container:: white-space-pre-line
-
- Your loving cousin,
- ALICIA DESMOND."
-
-
-Very quietly Carol went to the back of his
-aunt's chair, and slipping an arm around her
-neck whispered softly in her ear:
-
-"It's all right, Auntie. I knew that Love
-would find a way, but I didn't think it would
-be quite so soon, and such a beautiful way.
-It is all in Father's letter."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville had laid her letters down
-unread. She could not disappoint the
-children, who loved her to breakfast with them,
-by taking them to her own room, and she
-wanted to be alone when she read them. As
-soon as breakfast was over, she left the
-school-room. An hour later Carol received a message
-that she wanted him to go to her.
-
-"You have been crying, Auntie," he said,
-as he entered the room.
-
-"Yes, dear, this letter from your father, and
-my dear brother, has been a joy and a sorrow
-to me, bringing back so vividly the remembrance
-of him. You will like to read it."
-
-She gave the letter to Carol, and he at once
-sat down beside her, and read it.
-
-
-"*My dear Alicia,*
-
-"The fiat has gone forth! They give me
-neither weeks nor days: a few hours only.
-The sea has been very rough the past three
-days. A partly healed wound has reopened:
-the hemorrhage is internal. They cannot
-stop it. I think of you and my boy, and that
-Science which stanched his running wounds,
-and I wish I knew something of it. I put it
-off, like one of old, to a more convenient
-season. The little book you gave me I left
-with some poor fellows in the hospital,
-intending to get another copy when I reached
-England.
-
-"Much of what you told me comes back,
-but it is not enough. I cannot realize it
-sufficiently. I have absolute faith that if
-I could reach England, or even cable to you,
-the verdict would be reversed. Ah, well! a
-greater man than I is supposed to have said:
-
- | 'A day less or more, at sea or ashore,
- | We die, does it matter when?'
-
-Somehow, it does seem to matter now. Life--even
-this life--has possibilities which I
-have failed to grasp. With you to help me,
-it seems I should have gained a clearer
-understanding of eternal verities. A haze--a mist
-is creeping over my senses. What I have to
-write I must write quickly.
-
-"I think you know by a deed of settlement,
-executed before I left for South Africa, in the
-event of my death, my brother Raymond, and
-my dear sister Emmeline, become Carol's
-guardians. There is no time now to alter
-that arrangement in any way, even if I wished.
-It will be good for the boy to be with his
-cousins. He has seen too little of other
-children, and Emmeline, I know, will be a mother
-to him. Both she and Raymond will respect
-my last wishes, I am sure. Therefore, I want
-them to know it is my desire for Carol to
-spend three months of every year with you at
-his own home, that you may instruct him in
-that knowledge of God which has healed him.
-It is recorded that once ten were cleansed,
-and nine went thankless away. He must
-not belong to the nine.
-
-"I have explained to Colonel Mandeville
-my earnest desire that you may be able to
-live at the Court, keeping on all the old
-servants until Carol is of age. The last time
-I saw my brother Raymond, the subject of
-Christian Science was mentioned, and from
-the remarks he made, his bitterly antagonistic
-views of it, I greatly fear that under his
-guardianship Carol may not be allowed to continue
-the study. Will you purchase for me a copy
-of the text-book, *Science and Health*, and
-write in it:
-
-.. class: center
-
- 'To Carol: from Father.'
-
-No one will take from the boy his dying
-father's last gift, and my wishes regarding
-it will I know, be paramount with him.
-He will like to know that my one regret now
-is that I did not myself study it when I had
-the opportunity.
-
-"I have faced death before. I am facing
-it again, as a soldier, and, I trust, as a
-Christian. Somewhere it is written 'Greater love
-hath no man'-- You know the rest.
-Perhaps it will count, though it may not have
-been love so much as duty prompted the
-action which is costing me my life.
-
-"I would write to Carol, and to Emmeline.
-I cannot. The pen slips from my hand."
-
-----
-
-The concluding sentence and the signature
-were almost illegible. Mrs. Mandeville took
-Carol in her arms, and they wept together.
-
-"It is so cruel to think he might have been
-spared to us," she sobbed.
-
-"Yes, Auntie; he would have been," Carol
-replied with simple faith.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XXIV.--A JOYFUL SURPRISE.
-=================================
-
-In less than a week a small parcel arrived
-by post addressed to Carol. He knew before
-he opened it that it contained the little book
-which he had so longed for, and which would
-be, if possible, even dearer to him, henceforth,
-from the circumstances under which he
-regained it. He took the little parcel to
-Mrs. Mandeville's room after breakfast, and opened
-it there. As he drew the small volume from
-its cardboard case, he held it up to show her.
-Then, opening it, he exclaimed in a tone of
-great surprise, mingled with joy:
-
-"Auntie, it is in dear Father's own handwriting!
-
-.. class:: center
-
- 'To Carol: from Father.'"
-
-
-"How can it be?"
-
-Then, as they examined the writing, they
-saw that Miss Desmond had cut the words
-from her letter. So neatly had the foreign
-paper been gummed in, it was not at first
-noticeable.
-
-"Was it not lovely of Cousin Alicia to think
-of it, Auntie?"
-
-"It was, indeed, dear. You will always
-realize now that it is your father's gift."
-
-"Yes, Auntie; my earthly father's and my
-heavenly Father's, too. I was thinking this
-morning of that lovely verse in Isaiah: 'Before
-they call I will answer: and while they are
-yet speaking I will hear.' And I knew that
-Love had answered before I called. Before
-I knew my need, it was met. I am glad the
-letter was delayed so long, because I have
-learned so much. 'Every trial of our faith
-in God makes us stronger,' Mrs. Eddy says.
-It did seem at first as if I should have to wait
-years for the book, didn't it? I am glad I
-was so sure that Love could and would find a way."
-
-As the boy spoke, the Rector walked into
-the room. In a momentary impulse Carol
-seized the little book which lay on the table,
-and held it tightly. A crimson flush suffused
-his face. The next instant he looked up at
-his uncle with fearless eyes, and held out the
-book to him, saying, "Uncle Raymond,
-Cousin Alicia has sent me the little book
-Father asked her to get for me, and see--isn't
-it beautiful?--'To Carol: from Father,' is
-in Father's own handwriting."
-
-The Rector took the book, examined the
-inscription, but made no remark.
-
-"Father did not want me to belong to the
-nine. You would not like me to either,
-would you, Uncle Raymond?"
-
-"To the nine, boy?--What do you mean?"
-
-"You remember, Uncle Raymond, when
-Jesus once healed ten lepers, nine went
-thankless away. I have been healed, and I must
-acknowledge it at all times, else I should be
-as one of them."
-
-A frown gathered on the Rector's face.
-
-"Never speak to me, Carol, of your healing
-in the same breath with the healings of Jesus."
-
-The boy looked sorely pained. For an
-instant he was silent. In that instant he asked:
-
-"Father-Mother God, lead me."
-
-Then he said:
-
-"May I ask you a question, Uncle Raymond?"
-
-"Certainly, Carol; if it is something you
-want to know."
-
-"It is something I often think about,
-Uncle. Are there any 'shepherds in Israel'
-now? Can you tell me?"
-
-"Why, of course, Carol; Israel typifies the
-Christian world, and God's ministers are His
-shepherds."
-
-"Yes, Uncle, that was what I thought. Is
-God not angry now with the shepherds? I
-often read the 34th chapter of Ezekiel. God
-was very angry with the shepherds of that
-time. He said, 'Woe be to the shepherds,
-because they had not healed that which was
-sick, nor strengthened that which was
-diseased, nor bound up that which was broken,
-neither had they sought out that which was lost.'"
-
-"There have been times in history, Carol,
-when God's ministers--His shepherds--have
-been able to heal the sick, but for generations
-the healing power has been withheld.
-
-"Yes, Uncle, I understand that. For many
-centuries before Jesus came the healing power
-had been lost. He brought it back, and
-taught his disciples how to heal the sick.
-Then at the end of only three centuries it
-was lost; and again after many centuries God
-has sent a messenger to bring it back, but
-not everyone will listen to the message."
-
-The boy spoke reflectively, as one thinking
-aloud, not addressing either his uncle or his aunt.
-
-"Raymond," said Mrs. Mandeville quickly
-(she noted the growing anger on the Rector's
-face), "Carol has a way of thinking about
-things he reads in the Bible. His thoughts
-have often helped me. He does not mean
-to--to reproach you. Will you tell me, dear
-Raymond, have you ever read this book
-which you condemn so strongly?"
-
-"I have not read it, Emmeline. One does
-not need to read Mrs. Eddy's books to
-condemn them. The press criticisms and extracts
-I have read were quite enough for me. Since
-Carol's father wished him to have a copy of
-the book, I cannot keep it from him. Otherwise
-I should, most certainly. I can only
-pray that he may ultimately see the error
-of its teaching."
-
-"The fruit is so good," Mrs. Mandeville
-said softly. "I can only judge by that, until
-I have studied the book myself, which I
-intend to do. I think, Carol, darling, you must
-run back to the school-room now, or you will
-be late for lessons. Leave your little book
-with me. You know it will be quite safe,
-and come to me after school."
-
-After the boy had left the room Mrs. Mandeville
-turned to the Rector.
-
-"Now I want to ask you a question, if I
-may, Raymond, may I?"
-
-"Why, of course, Emmeline, you know
-perfectly well I shall be happy to answer any
-question you wish to put to me--if I can."
-
-"It is this, Raymond: the Apostle bids us,
-'Let this mind be in you which was also in
-Christ Jesus.' How would you define the
-'Mind' simply, that I may grasp it?"
-
-The Rector's memory went back to a
-Sunday morning some months before when he
-had preached what he considered a very
-eloquent sermon from that verse in
-Philippians. Had his sister forgotten it?
-
-"Do you forget, Emmeline, that I preached
-from that text not so very long ago? I took
-as the keynote of my sermon, humility--the
-humility of Jesus. From the context
-that was undoubtedly what Saint Paul meant."
-
-"Yes, Raymond, I remember the sermon
-perfectly; but I cannot feel that to possess
-humility, even in a superlative degree, would
-be to possess, as the Apostle commands, the
-'Mind' of Christ. Carol was thinking out
-this subject, in the way he has of thinking
-about verses in the Bible, and the thought he
-gave me seems nearer to it. He could see
-only love. The mind that was in Christ was
-love. Now, Raymond, if we, at this moment,
-possessed hearts full of love we could not
-criticise or condemn anyone or any sect.
-We could not hold up creeds or dogmas, and
-say, 'It is necessary to believe this or that
-because it is a canon of the Church.' We
-should just know that we and they had
-passed from death unto life when we love
-the brethren, and all are brethren who look
-to the Lord Jesus Christ as an elder brother."
-
-"It seems to me, Emmeline, that even
-before reading the book you have imbibed
-some of its mischievous statements.
-Remember, it teaches a religion of negation.
-According to Christian Science we have no Heavenly
-Father, no personal God; nothing but a
-divine Principle, an eternal existence, to
-worship."
-
-"Oh, Raymond, you do make a mistake.
-How can you infer that if you have not
-studied the book?"
-
-"My authority, Emmeline, for the statement,
-is Dr. Hanson. He wrote a pamphlet
-on Christian Science, issued by the Religious
-Tract Society."
-
-"It seems strange, Raymond, that a man of
-Dr. Hanson's eminence should write, and
-the Religious Tract Society should publish,
-a statement so misleading,--a statement which
-a boy of Carol's years could easily
-confute. Carol prays to, and speaks of his
-Heavenly Father in a way which, I grieve to
-say, my own children never do. Only a few
-minutes before you entered the room, he said
-that this little book was a gift not only from
-his earthly father but from his Heavenly
-Father, too. So how can there be no
-Heavenly Father to a Christian Scientist?
-It is true he speaks more frequently of Him
-as Divine Love; and it seems to me he has a
-more comprehensive idea of God than I have
-myself, for the thought has often presented
-itself to me, how can we, as the Scriptures
-say, 'live, move and have our being' in Him,
-if God is a person, according to our idea of
-personality? The idea which Carol has given
-me of God as infinite Love, filling the universe
-like light, makes that verse more intelligible."
-
-"A discussion such as this, Emmeline,
-cannot be productive of any good. I will send
-you that little pamphlet I mentioned."
-
-"Thank you, Raymond. I will read it
-after I have read *Science and Health*."
-
-The Rector then changed the conversation,
-and spoke of the object of his visit to the
-Manor that morning.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XXV.--A LITTLE SERVICE.
-===============================
-
-On the following Sunday evening Carol
-started at the usual time for Mr. Higgs'
-cottage, carrying with him the little,
-much-valued book and with it the current *Quarterly*
-which Miss Desmond had also sent him.
-His surprise was great, on arriving at the
-cottage, to find Mrs. Burton and Eloise there.
-They knew the prohibition was removed, and
-Carol was free to read and study *Science and Health*.
-
-"We thought you would come, Carol,"
-Eloise exclaimed. "We wanted to hear you
-read the Lesson-Sermon. It will be quite a
-little service, won't it?"
-
-"Yes, dear Carol; we thought we should
-like to join you this evening," Mrs. Burton
-said. "We are only the 'two or three
-gathered together,' but we are all of one mind.
-So it will be a little service, as Eloise says."
-
-Presently Mr. Higgs' daughter and his
-little grand-daughter came in.
-
-It was arranged for Mrs. Burton to read the
-Bible verses, and for Carol to read the
-quotations from *Science and Health*. At the close
-of the Lesson-Sermon Carol and Eloise sang
-together, from the Christian Science Hymnal,
-the hymn which both knew and loved,--
-
-.. class:: center
-
- "Shepherd, show me how to go."
-
-
-The beauty of the words, and the young
-voices blending in perfect harmony, brought
-tears of emotion to the old man's eyes.
-
-"Aye, ma'am," he said to Mrs. Burton
-afterwards, "who but the Shepherd himself,
-is leading us into those green pastures where
-the fetters that bound us are loosed? There's
-a many things I can't pretend to understand,
-and the old beliefs grip hard, but I just hold
-on, and know it must be the Truth which the
-Master promised should make us free. It's
-the tree that is known by its fruits. I'm
-sorry Rector's so set up against it. But
-there, it was the priests and scribes who
-persecuted the Master himself. Seems to
-me it would not be the Truth if the world
-received it gladly."
-
-"I believe you are right in thinking that,
-Mr. Higgs. In whatever period of the world's
-history Truth has been recognized, and
-demonstrated, its adherents were always
-persecuted and stoned. Jesus reminded his
-persecutors that they stoned the prophets which
-were before him."
-
-"Yes, ma'am, I know it is the glorious Truth
-which has loosed my rheumatiz, and made me
-free, and I am just ashamed to confess to you
-and Master Carol that just lately thoughts I
-can't get rid of come tormenting me. In this
-way: I go sometimes to church, but I feel no
-pleasure in the service. It has lost its hold
-o' me. Then I think o' Father and Mother,
-o' blessed memory. They lived and died with
-no thought o' beyond what the Rector
-could give them. It sort o' troubles me to
-think I am going away from what they trusted
-to. The Rector then was an old man. Why,
-ma'am, if ever a saint o' God walked this
-earth, he was one. If he passed down the
-village street, you'd see all the children run
-to him, clustering round him. When he
-looked at you, it didn't seem to need any
-words: it was just as if he said, 'God bless
-you.' His smile was a blessing. So I just
-ask myself, Why wasn't the sick healed when
-he prayed for them, if it was right and God's
-will for them to be healed? Surely, he was
-a servant of God."
-
-"I propounded a similar question, Mr. Higgs,
-to the lady I have been staying with
-in Devonshire, Carol's cousin, Miss Desmond.
-It has been my great privilege to know many
-saintly characters, whose lives testified to
-their faith. My own mother was such a
-one. Yet, for many years, she was a great
-sufferer. I asked Miss Desmond why such
-loving faith in God and Jesus the Christ,
-had not always brought physical healing.
-What we call the orthodox church, also
-Non-conformity, has nurtured souls for heaven.
-We cannot, therefore, condemn its teaching.
-Miss Desmond said it is not for us to judge
-or to criticise either individuals or other
-churches. We all, individually and collectively,
-can only grasp the truth as far as we
-apprehend it, and we must not harbor a
-troubled thought that in becoming Christian
-Scientists we are leaving any church to which
-we once belonged. We are simply moving
-forward--stepping upward to a higher
-platform. It is the law of progression. A child
-at school does not regret being moved to a
-higher class. Neither have we anything to
-regret, even if we entirely sever our
-connection with the church of our childhood. Even
-now, for the most advanced Christian
-Scientists there is yet a higher platform to be
-reached, since Mrs. Eddy says, in *Science and
-Health*, 'All of Truth is not understood.' All
-we have to do at the present is to live up
-to--to demonstrate, the highest that we
-know. You in your walk of life, I in mine;
-and these dear children, who, spiritually,
-have touched the hem of Christ's garment and
-have been healed, in theirs."
-
-"Thank you, ma'am, I'll try to think of it,
-as you've kindly explained it. There's
-another old belief I can't see clearly to get rid
-o' yet, though Master Carol tried to make me
-see it's wrong, and that is 'Thy will be done,'
-on the tombstones in the churchyard. I can
-see that sin and disease can never be God's
-will; but death may sometimes be a sort o'
-messenger from God to call us home."
-
-Mrs. Burton smiled.
-
-"Yes; many poets have eulogized death
-as a 'bright messenger.' But in the light
-of Christian Science we know it cannot be:
-evil can never under *any* circumstance change
-into good--an enemy--the last enemy--into
-a friend. Think for one moment how Jesus
-taught us to pray 'Thy will be done on earth
-*as it is in heaven*.' Then ask yourself: Is
-death God's will in heaven? If not, then it
-cannot be on earth. I quite see now why
-many petitions have failed to bring an
-answer. The pleading lips have besought God
-to reverse 'His decree,' the decree that never
-was His. We learned that, Eloise, darling, did
-we not, in Devonshire?"
-
-"Yes, Mother; and when we quite
-understood why my lameness was never God's
-will for me, I lost it."
-
-"So the world, Mr. Higgs, must change its
-old belief, and realize that death is an enemy
-which inevitably will one day be destroyed.
-In God's spiritual Kingdom, sin, disease, and
-death find no place. Now I think we must
-all bid you good-night, or it will be dark
-before Carol reaches the Manor. The evenings
-draw in so quickly, now. We will walk part
-of the way with you, Carol," Mrs. Burton
-said as they left the cottage. They had not
-gone very far when they met Mrs. Mandeville.
-
-"Auntie," Carol exclaimed joyfully, "were
-you coming to meet me?"
-
-"Yes, dear. I found you had not returned.
-As I did not quite like your coming alone
-through the park, I came to meet you."
-
-After a little conversation with Mrs. Burton
-and Eloise, Mrs. Mandeville and Carol
-walked home together, Carol clinging
-affectionately to his aunt's arm.
-
-"It is nice to have you to walk home with
-me, Auntie; but I wish you would never
-have a thought of fear for me."
-
-"I'll try not to another time, darling. As
-I walked along I remembered something,
-Carol. Since that day when you came to my
-room I have never had one of my old headaches.
-They used to be so painfully frequent.
-Did you charm them away?"
-
-"No, Auntie; but I knew you had not
-learned how to 'stand porter at the door of
-thought.' So I just stood there for you;
-and error cannot creep back when the sword
-of Truth is raised against it."
-
-Mrs. Mandeville's only answer was to stoop
-and kiss the boy's upturned face. The words,
-so simple, grave, and sweet, had gone straight
-to her heart.
-
-
-
-
-CHAPTER XXVI.--CONCLUSION.
-==========================
-
-The calendar of months named December,
-and before it, excited, expectant little people
-stood daily, counting first the weeks, then
-the days to that one day of all the year which
-the children love best.
-
-Carol had to listen again and again to all
-the wonderful and mysterious things which
-always happened at the Manor on Christmas
-Eve and Christmas Day. Price lists and
-illustrated catalogues were the only books in
-requisition after lessons were over. The elder
-children wondered how they could have
-bought their Christmas presents if there were
-no parcel post. Carol was especially the
-helper and confederate of the three little girls
-in the nursery. He assisted them in choosing
-their "surprises," wrote the letters, and
-enclosed the postal orders; and certainly, from
-the marvellous list of things they were able
-to purchase, their little accumulated heap
-of pennies must, in some magic way, have
-changed into sovereigns in his hands. The
-joyful excitement of the three little girls,
-when the parcels arrived, gave Carol the
-greatest pleasure he had ever known. Only
-Nurse was allowed to be present when the
-parcels were opened, and she promised to
-lock them securely away where no one could
-catch a glimpse until they were brought out
-on Christmas eve.
-
-It wanted only one week to Christmas day,
-when Rosebud came to the school-room one
-morning, saying: "Mover wants 'ou, Tarol."
-
-Carol went at once to his aunt's room. She
-was sitting with an open letter in her hand, a
-rather graver than usual expression on her
-face. "Carol, dear," she said, "for some little
-time I have been thinking I ought to let you
-go home for Christmas. It seems to me it
-is what your dear father would wish; but I
-could not let you take the long journey alone
-and there seemed no other way until this
-morning. I have just received a letter from
-a dear old friend in which she mentions that
-she will be travelling to Exeter in two days'
-time. So I could take you to London to
-meet her there, and you could travel with her
-to Exeter, where Miss Desmond might meet
-you. I do not like to part with you, even for
-a month or six weeks, my 'little porter at the
-door of thought.'"
-
-"Auntie, it won't make any difference if
-I am here, or in Devonshire. I can still bar
-the door to error."
-
-"Yes, dear; I believe you can. It is really
-not that only. I am thinking we shall all
-miss you so. You seem to be everyone's
-confederate for their Christmas surprises.
-Would you rather go, or stay, dear?"
-
-"I should be happy to stay here, or happy
-to go home for Christmas, Auntie."
-
-"Yes; I think you would, dear. So we
-must consider other people. Miss Desmond,
-I know, would rejoice to have you, and it
-seems the right of both tenants and servants
-to have the 'little master' amongst them at
-Christmas. So I have decided it will be right
-to let you go."
-
-But when this decision was made known in
-the school-room and nursery there were great
-lamentations. No one had given a thought
-to the possibility of Carol not being with
-them for the Christmas festivities; and
-Mrs. Mandeville was besought again and again
-not to let Carol go home before Christmas.
-
-But, having well considered the matter, she
-was firm. A telegram was at once despatched
-to Miss Desmond apprising her of the
-arrangement. The answer that quickly came
-satisfied Mrs. Mandeville that she had been
-led to make a right decision. Brief but
-expressive was Miss Desmond's wire: "Great
-rejoicings on receipt of news. Will gladly
-meet Carol at Exeter."
-
-There was yet another little person to
-whom the news was not joyful. Eloise's lips
-quivered and her blue eyes filled with tears
-when she heard. Carol was so much to her,
-and she to him. She thought of him as a
-brother; and a sister of his own name could
-not have been more tenderly loved by the
-boy. The bond between them was closer
-and dearer than that of human relationship.
-
-"It will be only just at first, Eloise, that we
-shall seem to be far apart. Then you will be
-able to realize there is no distance in Mind.
-At first, when I came here, I seemed to be so
-far away from Cousin Alicia; but I never feel
-that now. I just know her thought is with
-me, and thought is the only real. It will be
-lovely to hear her voice again, and to feel my
-hand clasped in hers, but still that won't
-make her very own self nearer to me."
-
-"I do not quite understand--yet, Carol,"
-Eloise answered a little sadly. Then she
-had some news to give him. Early in the
-New Year the Burtons were going to live in
-London. True to his promise, Dr. Burton
-was giving up his medical practice, and was
-going to join that little band of men and
-women whose lives are consecrated to the
-work of destroying the many manifestations
-of sin and disease, in the way the Master taught.
-
-"And, when you come back to the Manor,
-Carol, we shall not be here."
-
-Eloise in one sentence regretfully summed
-up the situation.
-
-"I shall miss you, dear Eloise. But you
-will write to me, and I shall write very often
-to you, and when I go home in the summer,
-perhaps Mrs. Burton will let you come, too.
-Then Cousin Alicia will be happy to have
-both her children in Science with her."
-
-"That will be lovely, Carol! I am sure
-Mother will like me to visit Miss Desmond
-again. It seems a long time to look forward
-to, but time really passes very quickly.
-Sometimes the days are not long enough for
-all I want to do. I am to go to school when
-we live in London. All the beautiful things
-I have longed for are coming to me. Carol,
-I do wish every little girl and every little
-boy knew how to ask Divine Love for what
-they want. When I am older that is the
-work I want to do,--to teach other children
-as Miss Desmond taught me."
-
-"And I, too, Eloise. Love is so near, but
-we didn't know it till we learned it in Science,
-did we?"
-
-"No, Carol; I didn't know it, when I used
-to sit all day in my little wheel-chair, longing
-to walk like other children. It was like living
-in a dark room until some one came and
-opened the shutters to let the sunlight in.
-The sunlight was there all the time, but I
-did not know it. I was God's perfect child
-all the time, but I believed I was lame, until
-Miss Desmond taught me the Truth."
-
-"When I go to bed, Eloise, thoughts come
-to me. I tell them to Auntie sometimes, but
-not to any one else. Shall I tell you what I
-was thinking last night?"
-
-"Please, Carol, I should like to know."
-
-"I began first by thinking if any one asked
-me, where is heaven, I should answer: Heaven
-is where God is. Then I remembered, God is
-*everywhere*. There is no place where God is
-not. Then I knew that everywhere must be
-heaven, and we have only to open our eyes,
-and just as much as we can see of good--God--just
-that far we shall have entered
-heaven. So it won't matter, Eloise, if you
-are in London, and I am in Devonshire, if
-we are both looking steadfastly all the time
-to see only good around us, we shall both be
-entering the Kingdom of Heaven. There is
-only one gate--a golden gate--into that
-Kingdom, and 'Christ in divine Science shows
-us the way.'"
-
-----
-
-The little country station seemed to be
-quite full of people when the train that was
-to carry Mrs. Mandeville and Carol to
-London drew up at the platform. The hour they
-were to leave had become known in the village,
-and, besides all his cousins, their nurses
-and Miss Markham, Mr. Higgs, his daughter
-and grand-daughter, Dr. and Mrs. Burton,
-and Eloise were there. At the last moment
-the Rector hurriedly stalked in.
-
-"Almost too late, dear Raymond,"
-Mrs. Mandeville said as he greeted them.
-
-"So, Carol, I learn you have succeeded in
-planting Christian Science in this village."
-
-The boy looked up with his quiet, fearless eyes.
-
-"Not I, Uncle Raymond!"
-
-"Who then?"
-
-The boy's head was bowed as he reverently
-answered: "Christ. I am happy, Uncle Raymond,
-if I have been a little channel for Truth.
-I could do nothing myself."
-
-Carol met the grave look on the Rector's
-face with his bright smile.
-
-"You *are* glad, are you not, Uncle
-Raymond, that Mr. Higgs and his little
-grand-daughter, and dear Eloise--I, too--have found
-the Christ, and have been healed?"
-
-The engine gave a shrill whistle. Mrs. Mandeville
-drew the boy farther into the
-carriage; a porter closed the door as the
-train began to move; the question was
-unanswered. Mr. Higgs waved his hat, saying
-fervently, "God bless 'ee, Master Carol;
-and bring you back to us soon."
-
-Eloise ran along the platform, holding
-Rosebud by the hand, wafting kisses to be
-carried to Miss Desmond. When the train
-was out of sight and she returned to join the
-others, she saw the Rector was watching her
-with the kindly smile his face used to wear
-in the days when she was not able to run
-about. Clingingly clasping his arm, looking
-up to him in her winning way, and remembering
-the question which to Carol had been
-unanswered, she said: "You *are* glad, are you
-not, Rector, that I can run about, and that
-I have been taught the Truth that makes us free?"
-
-"Yes, little girl, I am very glad. Perhaps
-I have been mistaken in my judgment. Tell
-me, Eloise, what is this Truth of which you speak?"
-
-Eloise hesitated a moment; then, looking
-up beyond the Rector into the broad blue
-heavens, she said: "It is just *knowing* that
-God is *All*, and there is nothing beside. All
-the *real* God made; whatever He did not
-make is shadow. When I quite understood
-that God could not make an imperfect thing--that
-He never, never made a lame little girl--the
-shadow disappeared, and I could walk."
-
-The Rector turned to Mr. Higgs who was
-standing near. "Is that what my nephew has
-been teaching you, Higgs?"
-
-"Yes, sir; but I've been slower to grasp it.
-Seems to me the Truth is very simple, but we
-need the childlike mind to take it in."
-
-"Maybe you are right, Higgs--maybe you
-are right. 'Whosoever shall not receive the
-kingdom of God as a little child ... shall not
-enter therein.' The Master's words."
-
-Thoughtfully, with bent head and
-downcast eyes, meditating deeply, the Rector
-walked back to the Rectory. Words very
-familiar came to him with a different
-meaning: "Ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth
-shall make you free;" and with the words
-came a desire that was prayer: "Lord, teach
-me this Truth. Grant me the childlike mind."
-
-----
-
-"Carol, I have been thinking of something,"
-Mrs. Mandeville said, as the train bore them along.
-
-"Should you like to know of what I have
-been thinking?"
-
-"Please, dear Auntie; I should very much
-like to know."
-
-"Well, dear, I have been thinking if it
-should occur to the young Master of Willmar
-Court to send Rosebud and me an invitation
-whilst he is at home, we should accept it."
-
-"Oh, Auntie, what a lovely thought! To
-have you and Rosebud, and Cousin Alicia,
-all together!"
-
-"I want Miss Desmond, Carol, to teach
-me some of the things she has taught you."
-
-There was a long silence. The boy's heart
-was too full for words. Then he said:
-"Auntie, I know now how the little bird felt
-when the King opened the cage door, and he
-sang and sang for joy. My heart is singing
-to *my* King. I wonder if--perhaps--He will
-say, some missing note has come into Carol's song."
-
-"Indeed, my darling, I think so."
-
-He nestled closely beside her. Looking
-down she saw on his face the reflection of a
-great joy--a great peace; and she knew that
-he had just crept into Love's arms.
-
-.. vspace:: 2
-
-"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the
-Most High shall abide under the shadow of the
-Almighty.... He shall cover thee with His
-feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust.
-His Truth shall be thy shield and buckler."
-
-PSALM 91.
-
-.. vspace:: 4
-
-.. pgfooter::
diff --git a/39538-rst/images/img-cover.jpg b/39538-rst/images/img-cover.jpg Binary files differdeleted file mode 100644 index fe8746a..0000000 --- a/39538-rst/images/img-cover.jpg +++ /dev/null diff --git a/39538.txt b/39538.txt deleted file mode 100644 index e4f79fd..0000000 --- a/39538.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,4916 +0,0 @@ - A SOLDIER'S SON - - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost -no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it -under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this -eBook or online at http://www.gutenberg.org/license. - - -Title: A Soldier's Son - -Author: Maude M. Butler - -Release Date: April 25, 2012 [EBook #39538] - -Language: English - -Character set encoding: US-ASCII - - -*** START OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A SOLDIER'S SON *** - - - - -Produced by Al Haines. - - - - -[Illustration: Cover art] - - - - - A - - Soldier's Son - - - _By_ - - MAUDE M. BUTLER - - - - - DAVIS & BOND - - BOSTON : MASS. - - - - - Copyright 1912 - - by - - DAVIS & BOND - - - - LINCOLN & SMITH PRESS - - BOSTON - - - - DEDICATION. - - To the children in years, and the children in - Science, this little book is trustingly and lovingly - inscribed by the author. - - - - NOTE. - - The Author wishes to state that no case of - Christian Science healing has been cited - in this story but such as she has known - of a parallel case in real life. - - - -"We may not climb the heavenly steeps -To bring the Lord Christ down. -* * * * * -The healing of the seamless dress -Is by our beds of pain; -We touch Him in life's throng and press, -And we are whole again." - --_J. G. Whittier._ - - - - - ---- - - - - -CONTENTS - - - CHAPTER I.--HOME FROM THE WAR. - CHAPTER II.--CAROL'S LETTER. - CHAPTER III.--A FORBIDDEN BOOK. - CHAPTER IV.--A WELCOME LETTER. - CHAPTER V.--QUIET DAYS. - CHAPTER VI.--FIRST WORK IN THE VINEYARD. - CHAPTER VII.--"I KNOW." - CHAPTER VIII.--A SECOND VISIT TO THE COTTAGE. - CHAPTER IX.--"IT IS THE TRUTH." - CHAPTER X.--AN UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTER. - CHAPTER XI.--PERCY'S REMORSE. - CHAPTER XII.--THE PHYSICIAN'S VERDICT. - CHAPTER XIII.--THE RECTOR'S REFUSAL. - CHAPTER XIV.--"HE GIVETH HIS BELOVED SLEEP." - CHAPTER XV.--LETTERS AND TELEGRAMS REACH COUSIN ALICIA. - CHAPTER XVI.--"IT IS A MIRACLE." - CHAPTER XVII.--MRS. BURTON VISITS CAROL. - CHAPTER XVIII.--HAPPY THOUGHTS. - CHAPTER XIX.--THE REASON OF THE DELAY. - CHAPTER XX.--"LIGHT AT EVENTIDE." - CHAPTER XXI.--JOYFUL NEWS FROM ELOISE. - CHAPTER XXII.--THE RETURN OF ELOISE. - CHAPTER XXIII.--A LONG-DELAYED LETTER. - CHAPTER XXIV.--A JOYFUL SURPRISE. - CHAPTER XXV.--A LITTLE SERVICE. - CHAPTER XXVI.--CONCLUSION. - - ---- - - - - -CHAPTER I.--HOME FROM THE WAR. - - -The war was over--the cruel, cruel war; and Father and Uncle Howard were -on their way home. Children's voices, in every key of joy and -thanksgiving, sang the happy news from morning to night. The white, -strained look faded from Mother's face, and she became her old, bright -self again. - -Now that they were over, the children tried to forget how long and sad -and weary the days had been during which the sight of the post-bag, and -the morning newspaper, almost took everyone's breath away, until the -columns of "War news" had been hastily scanned before taking letters and -papers to Mother's room. - -Then came the day when Uncle Howard's name was amongst the "seriously -wounded," and there was a brief account of how he had saved the guns, -and then returning into the firing line to pick up a wounded soldier, -had himself been dangerously wounded. - -The children thought of Uncle Howard's delicate young motherless boy, -and sobbed: "Poor, poor Carol." - -They did not know how to break the news to Mother, because Uncle Howard -was her twin brother, and they all knew how dearly she loved him. -Unperceived she had entered the room, and had learned the news for -herself. The days that followed were darker than before, for it was not -known for some weeks if Major Willmar would live or die. Gradually, -slightly better news came, and he was pronounced out of danger. Later -on it was announced he was ordered home, and Father, Colonel Mandeville, -was coming with him. - -As soon as the vessel left Cape Town the children began their happy, -joyous preparations for the welcome home. Then, in the midst of them, -when the triumphal arches were erected, awaiting only the final floral -decorations, came a telegram from Gibraltar. Major Willmar had suffered -a relapse at sea, and the doctors had not been able to save him. His -body had been committed to the waves. - -Again the children sobbed: "Poor, poor Carol." - -Mother was strangely calm and quiet. "Carol must come to us. We must -take the place to him of all he has lost," she said. - -She wrote to the lady who had charge of him, asking her to take the boy -to meet the vessel at Plymouth, in order that Colonel Mandeville might -bring Carol home with him. - -All the children, seven in number, were at the station when the express -drew up. Edith and Gwendolin, two tall fair girls of twelve and -thirteen years; Percy and Frank, eleven and ten; then three of the -dearest little maidens, Sylvia four, Estelle three, and the sweet -Rosebud, whom Father had never seen. She had come to cheer Mother's -breaking heart in the dark days of the war, and was now two years old. - -It was an unusual occurrence for an express train to stop at that quiet -country station. The porters were on the alert to drag out the luggage -as quickly as possible. A tall bronzed and bearded man sprang out of -the train on the instant of stopping, so changed that even the elder -children scarcely recognized him. - -He looked at them with hungry eyes, as if he would take them all in his -arms at once, had they been big enough to go round, then seized the -smallest of all, the little snow-white maiden. - -"Iz 'ou Daddy?" she asked. - -"I am Daddy, my little white Rosebud." One by one he took each in his -strong arms. All looking to him, no one noticed the boy who had followed -him out of the railway carriage, who was now looking on with wondering -eyes. Rosebud was the first to speak to him. "Iz 'ou Tarol?" she -asked. Stooping, he too folded his arms around her, not such strong arms -as her father's, but very loving. From that moment the little maiden -became one of the dearest things in life to the boy. - -"Where's Mother, children?" - -"Mother did not feel quite able to come to the station, Father. She -bore the news of dear Uncle's death so well at first; then she broke -down entirely, and she has not left her room since," Edith told him. -The Colonel then remembered the boy who had accompanied him. - -"Children, here is Carol." - -They quickly gave him the loving welcome which their sympathetic hearts -prompted. Father suggested sending on the carriage, saying to the -children: - -"We will walk through the park. Oh, the sweet breath of the dear home -land, after Africa's sultry heat!" - -Carol kept hold of Rosebud's hand. The little maiden was a revelation -to him, never having had little sisters or brothers of his own. His -mother for a long time before her death had been a hopeless invalid, and -whilst she was slowly dying of consumption the boy had developed -tubercular disease of the left hip, and the physicians, who pronounced -it a hopeless case, also said one lung was affected. Three years the -boy lay on his back on a couch, or in a spinal carriage, and it was -generally anticipated he would quickly follow his mother to an early -grave. But after Mrs. Willmar's death a cousin of hers came from America -to take charge of the motherless boy, and from the day that she came he -began to get better. Now, as he walked with his cousins across the -park, though somewhat tall for his twelve years and extremely slight of -stature, he bore no trace of his past sufferings. - -On arriving at the Manor, Colonel Mandeville went straight to his wife's -room, mounting the staircase two steps at a time. The children took -Carol to the school-room, saying, "Mother will send for you presently, -dear Carol." - -School-room tea was ready, and to their great delight the three little -girls, who belonged of course to the nursery, were invited to be -present. Before they sat down each child had a little offering to make -Carol, not a new gift they had bought for him, but one of their own -treasures, just to make him feel how glad they were to have him: that -henceforth he was to be their own dear brother. - -It was all so strange and new to him, he did not know how to thank them. -Rosebud's offering of her little white bunny was so perfectly sweet. It -became a treasure of treasures to him ever after. He was strangely -quiet, but there seemed no sadness in his eyes or voice. His cousins -could not understand it, and even wondered if he had loved his father as -they loved theirs. - -Tea was just finished when the message came for Carol to go to Mother's -room. All the children wanted to accompany him, but the maid who brought -the message said: "Only Master Carol was to go," and she led the boy to -Mrs. Mandeville's room. - -Carol had only once before seen his aunt. She had visited his home in -Devonshire when his mother was very ill, and he himself had been too ill -to care or notice who came and went. - -Mrs. Mandeville was lying on a couch in her boudoir. She was a tall, -fair woman, of a gentle yielding nature, and a beautiful countenance. -Never strong or robust, for some years she had been subject to attacks -of nervous prostration. The joyous excitement of her husband's safe -return, and the grief for her brother's death, had brought on one of -these attacks. She sobbed aloud as she drew Carol into her arms and -held him closely to her. - -"My darling boy!" - -"Auntie, dear, do not grieve like this." - -"Carol, I loved your father very, very, dearly." - -"But, Auntie, that should make you not grieve for him. Cousin Alicia -has taught me to feel so glad and happy about Father. I could not cry -or be sorry now. I love to think how he gave his life for that poor, -wounded soldier. Jesus said there was no greater love than to lay down -one's life for a friend, and it was not even a friend; it was a -stranger. Some day there will be no more war, because everyone will -know that God is our Father, and His name is Love. But we are only His -children as we reflect Him--reflect Love. When everyone understands -this, no one will want war." - -Mrs. Mandeville looked with surprise at the earnest young face, so -calmly confident of what he said. - -"It is nice to see you, Carol, looking so well and strong. You were -very ill when I saw you two years ago. We have never been able to -understand your recovery. What a mistake the doctors must have made -about your case." - -"Auntie, they did not make a mistake. It was Cousin Alicia who taught me -about Christian Science. Then I began to get well, and I soon lost the -dreadful pain in my hip." - -"Carol, dear, never mention a word about Christian Science before your -Uncle Raymond. He says it is dreadful heresy, and it makes him so angry -to hear it talked about. Did he meet you at the station?" - -"No, Auntie. I have not seen him yet." - -"He said he would meet the train but he generally manages to get too -late. He will be here this evening for dinner." - -Uncle Raymond was Mrs. Mandeville's brother, and the rector of the -parish. - -"But, Auntie, if he asks anything about my illness I must tell him what -has made me well." - -"I do not think he will, dear; so there will be no need to say anything. -It is very beautiful, Carol, for you to think Christian Science has -healed you, and there is no need for your faith to be shaken." - -"I do not _think_, Auntie, I _know_, so that no one could shake my -faith." - -"Well, dear, we won't talk about it. Tell me, did you have a pleasant -journey?" - -"Yes, Auntie, a very pleasant journey; Uncle was so kind to me." - -"I am sure he would be, Carol. You are glad to come to us, darling--to -be our own dear son? You will feel this is home, and your cousins not -cousins, but brothers and sisters?" - -"Yes, Auntie. I know my father wished me to come to you--but--I am -sorry to leave Cousin Alicia. I love her so much." - -"Of course, darling, that is only natural. She has been quite a mother -to you since your own dear mother died." - -Carol did not speak; a choking sensation of pain prevented him. He knew -that Cousin Alicia had been more than a mother to him. - -"May I write to her to-night, Auntie? She will like to hear from me." - -"Of course, dear. Write to her as often as you like." - -"I think that will be every day then," the boy said promptly, with a -smile. Mrs. Mandeville smiled too. - -"Dear boy, how you have comforted me. I feel so much better for this -little talk with you. Perhaps I shall be able to surprise everybody, -and go down to dinner this evening." - -"Oh, Auntie, please do. At tea Edith said, 'It would be just lovely if -only Mother could come down to dinner.' We can nearly always do what we -want to do, Auntie." - -"Can we, dear? Then go and write your letter now, and do not mention to -anyone that I am going to try to surprise them this evening." - - - - -CHAPTER II.--CAROL'S LETTER. - - -"MANOR HOUSE - MANDEVILLE. - -"_Dear Cousin Alicia,_ - -"It seemed such a long journey before we arrived here. Uncle was so -kind and told me about the different places as we passed through. But I -felt I was getting such a long way from you, as we passed town after -town. All my cousins were at the station to meet us; but Auntie was not -well enough to be there. I should like to describe them all to you, but -I am sure I could not. They are ever so much nicer than any of the -children I have read about in books. I will only tell you their names. -Perhaps you will see them all some day. Edith, Gwendolin, Percy, and -Frank, in the school-room; and in the nursery, Sylvia, Estelle, and -Rosebud. Uncle had never seen Rosebud. She is two years and three -months old, and is the sweetest little girl. She has such pretty ways. -I do love to hear her talk. - -"We walked from the station through the park. Uncle seemed so glad to -see his own home again. The Manor House is very old; such quaint little -oriel windows, and turrets, and gables. I have not learned my way about -yet, but the school-room and nurseries are quite close together. It was -returning from Auntie's boudoir to the schoolroom I got lost, and I -found myself in quite a different part of the house. I opened a door I -thought was the school-room, and it was the housekeeper's room. Then a -maid took me to the school-room. Percy and Frank thought it very -amusing, and said they could find their way anywhere blindfold, and -Rosebud said 'Me tome wiff 'ou, Tarol.' I didn't see Auntie until after -tea. We all had tea together in the school-room, the nursery children as -well. The governess invited them. Her name is Miss Markham, she is -very strict, but I think she is kind too. I am thinking all the time of -the history of England when she speaks, and wondering what part of it -she belongs to. The elder children are going down to dinner, as it is -Uncle's first evening at home. - -"Auntie was lying on a couch when I was taken to her room. She seemed -so full of grief and sadness. She wept when she held her arms around -me. But I just knew that Love is everywhere, and sorrow and sadness -cannot be where Love is. In a little while she was quite different, and -even smiled as she talked to me. She said I had comforted her so. I -would have liked to explain to her what had comforted her, but she does -not like me to say anything about Christian Science, and asked me not to -mention it before Uncle Raymond, because it makes him angry. Auntie -thinks I could not have been so ill as the doctors thought, or I should -not be quite well and strong now. Please tell me, dear Cousin, will it -be denying Christ, if I do not tell people what healed me? I did so -wish I could have told Auntie some of the beautiful things you have -taught me. Will you write to me very often, please? I am going to write -nearly every day to you. Auntie says I may--as often as I like. I have -such a dear little room all to myself, so I shall be able to do the -Lesson-Sermon every morning before breakfast. Thank you again for -giving me _Science and Health_ for my very own, and the Bible which was -my mother's. I want to study both books so well that when I am a man I -shall know them better than anything else in the world. I am to study -with Edith and Gwendolin for the present. Frank and Percy go to a large -public school at H--. I am to go with them when Uncle is quite sure I -am strong enough. He does not understand that I am perfectly well and -strong. I must leave off now. I have to put on my Eton suit for -dinner. I do not feel so far away from you as when I was in the train. -It is just as if you were in the room with me. I can feel your thoughts -like loving arms around me. - -"Dear Cousin Alicia - "Your loving Carol. - -"_P.S._ Bed-time. The post-bag had gone when I had finished my letter. -I just want to tell you, Auntie came down to dinner. Every one was so -surprised and delighted and we had such a happy evening. Uncle played -games with us after dinner, and Auntie looked on. The time went so -quickly, we were sorry when Uncle said: 'Bed-time, children. To your -tents: double quick march.' So we all had to scamper away. Uncle -Raymond came to dinner. He is so grave and stern, so different from -Father. He went into the study whilst Uncle was playing with us." - - - - -CHAPTER III.--A FORBIDDEN BOOK. - - -Carol had always been a lonely boy. The companionship of other children -was a pleasure he had never known. In the remote Devonshire village, -where all the years of his young life had been spent, there were no -children who could be invited to his home as friends and companions for -him. First his mother's delicate health, and then his own, had -prevented visits to or from his cousins. When he was seven years old a -fall from his pony caused an injury to his hip, which eventually -developed into what the doctors diagnosed as tubercular disease of the -hip bone. For three years his mother had been slowly dying of -consumption, and the boy had been the joy and brightness of her life. -She did not live long after she was told that what she was suffering -from he would suffer, too, in another form. She died about six months -before the war broke out in South Africa, and fulfilling a promise made -some time before, a favorite cousin, then resident in America, whose -girlhood had been spent with her as a sister, came to take charge of the -household and the young motherless invalid. Major Willmar was ordered -to the front shortly after operations commenced, but before he went he -had hopes that his boy would grow well and strong. There had been such -a marked change in him from the day Cousin Alicia arrived, bringing to -that saddened home love and--Truth. - -It can, therefore, be easily understood that the first few days at the -Manor were to Carol days almost of bewilderment. As soon as his cousins -found that their joy in having Father back again, safe and sound, did -not hurt Carol, nothing restrained their wild exuberance of spirits. -They could not understand the gentle, reserved boy, who spoke with so -much love and tenderness of his father, yet had no tears or sadness -because he would return no more. - -"Perhaps he doesn't quite understand," said Gwendolin. - -"I think he does," said Edith, "and I am sure he loved Uncle as much as -we love Father. There is such a far-away look in his eyes, when he -speaks of his father and mother, just as if he were looking at something -we cannot see. Although he is so gentle and kind, especially to the -little ones, I am sure no one could persuade him to do anything he -thought wrong. He is a dear boy. I am glad he is going to study with -us for the present, because the boys at school would not understand him. -Even Percy and Frank are inclined to mistake his gentleness for -weakness. Yet I could imagine him standing and facing any real danger, -when most boys would run away." - -From the first Edith had conceived a great affection for her Cousin -Carol, and, as a consequence, she understood him better. On many -occasions she was able to help him, when Percy and Frank were somewhat -brusque and impatient in their treatment of him. They could not -understand his reluctance to join in some of their games. He loved to -look on; but everything was new and strange to him. He had never been -used to playing the games which were so much to Frank and Percy. Edith -then quietly explained to her less thoughtful brothers that they should -not expect a boy who had spent three years on an invalid's couch to be -able to play the games in which they were so proficient. - -Carol was often in the nursery, Nurse was so big and motherly. She had -welcomed him, as if he had been one of her own children from the first. -It was a fixed idea amongst the children that as long as there had been -a Manor House, Nurse had presided over the nursery. She was always -ready to tell them stories of their father and uncles and aunts in the -old days. She even had tales of their grandfather, and many past -generations of Mandevilles, and in all the stories, of however long ago, -they imagined Nurse playing part. One thing they never could imagine: -that was the Manor House without her. - -When the little girls wanted him, and that was very frequently, Carol -was always ready to go to the nursery, and often accompanied them on -their walks. Percy and Frank considered it much beneath their dignity -to take a walk "with the babies." - -The improvement in Mrs. Mandeville's health, which had commenced on -Carol's first visit to her room, continued. In a few days she had taken -her usual place in the household, and the children rejoiced in the -nightly visits to their bedrooms. How glad they were when there were no -visitors downstairs, and they could keep her quite a long time. - -Upon the occasion of her first visit to Carol's room, she found him -sitting up in bed, reading. She had expected to find him asleep, as the -other children had detained her so long. - -"My little book-worm, what is the story you find so interesting?" she -asked playfully, intending to tell him lovingly the next morning that -she did not like the children to read in bed. - -"Auntie, it isn't a story book. It is _Science and Health_. I read it -every night and morning." - -"What a very strange book for a little boy to be interested in! The -title sounds quite alarmingly dry." - -"Oh, Auntie, have you never heard of it? It is such a wonderful book. I -am beginning to understand it now. At first I could not, but Cousin -Alicia used to explain it so beautifully to me, and now I love to read -it." - -"I cannot say I remember the title, dear, but I should like to look into -it. Will you spare it to me this evening? I think it is time now for -lights to be extinguished." - -Carol gave the book to her gladly, little thinking it would be many long -days before he would see it again. - -When Mrs. Mandeville returned to the drawing-room, the Rector was there. -"Do you know anything of this book, Raymond?" she asked, giving it into -his hand. "I found Carol reading it in bed--_Science and Health_." The -frown which was habitually on the Rector's face deepened. - -"Indeed I do," he said, "and I should like to do with every copy what I -am going to do with this." - -He walked over to the fireplace; his intentions were plain. Mrs. -Mandeville caught hold of his arm. - -"No, no, Raymond, you must not. The book was a present from Miss -Desmond to Carol, and you have no right to destroy it, however strongly -you may disapprove of his reading it." - -"I do more than disapprove. I absolutely forbid him to read any more of -it; the most unorthodox rubbish that has been published for centuries. -The worst of it is, it has taken hold of some people, especially women, -and they are carried away by it." - -The Rector slipped the little book into his pocket. As he had not -destroyed it, he meant to make sure there should be no chance of its -falling again into Carol's hands. He, as well as Mrs. Mandeville, was -the boy's legal guardian. - -Mrs. Mandeville was sorry. She felt sure from the way Carol had spoken -that the book was precious to him. Very gently, the next morning, she -told him of his uncle's decision. She noted the quivering lips; the -tears he was bravely trying not to shed. - -"Dear boy, did you value it so much?" she said. - -"Oh, Auntie!" The simple exclamation expressed more pain and regret -than many words could have done. - -"Darling, I am sorry; but we must believe that Uncle Raymond has good -reasons for taking the book away. He says it is fearful heresy. You -must not forget that your dear grandfather was a bishop, also your -great-grandfather. I could not tell you during how many generations -there has always been at least one member of our family a dignitary of -the Church." - -"What does unorthodox mean, Auntie?" - -"It means contrary to, or opposed to the teachings of our beloved -church. Your dear father and mother were both good church people." - -"Yes, Auntie; but that did not make Mummie better when she was so ill. -The vicar often used to sit with her, and pray for her in church, but -she was never better for it. When Cousin Alicia came and I was so ill, -I began at once to get better. That little book, _Science and Health_, -had taught her to understand the Bible, and God answered her prayers for -me!" - -"It was certainly a remarkable coincidence--your improving so quickly -after Miss Desmond came; but it may have been the result of some fresh -medicine the doctor was trying." - -"Auntie, I was not taking any medicine. The first night Cousin Alicia -came I slept till morning, and the next day I wanted something to eat. -The nurses thought it was wonderful, because they had had such -difficulty to get me to eat before. Then when they dressed the wounds -on my hip every morning I used to scream so, some of the servants went -where they could not hear me. In only one week I lost all the pain and -I did not cry at all, and very soon one by one the wounds healed." - -"It was very remarkable, dear. But do you associate your healing with -the book which Uncle Raymond has taken away?" - -"Why, Auntie, _Science and Health_ is the Key to the Bible, and the -Bible is the 'tree whose leaves are for the healing of the nations.' -But people have not understood until they had that Key how to go to the -Bible for healing. Cousin Alicia understood; that was why she was able -to heal me." - -"What you say seems very strange, Carol. If Uncle had not taken the book -away, I should have liked to look into it. I expect he would refuse if -I asked him to let me read it." - -It did not occur to Mrs. Mandeville that she could obtain another copy -of the book. The confiscated copy was not the only one to be had. Her -conversation with Carol was interrupted just then. The same night when -she went, as the evening before, to his bedroom, she found him sitting -up in bed. He greeted her eagerly with the words: - -"Auntie, I have been thinking." - -"Dear boy, what have you been thinking?" She kissed the earnest, -upturned face, and realized for the first time that he had a very -beautiful countenance, so like, she thought, one of Murillo's child -angels. - -"I have been thinking, Auntie, of what you said about unorthodox. A -good many years ago when Protestants were called heretics, they were -unorthodox to the Church of Rome, were they not?" - -"Certainly, dear." - -"But Protestants are not called heretics now, are they?" - -"I think we never hear them so spoken of now, dear, because there are -more Protestants in England than Roman Catholics." - -"Then, Auntie, when there are more Christian Scientists than other -church people, _they_ won't be called heretics." - -"Will that ever be?" Mrs. Mandeville asked with a smile. - -"Yes, Auntie; it must be, because Christian Scientists obey Jesus. All -that he said and commanded in the New Testament, they try to carry out. -He commanded his disciples to heal the sick." - -"His disciples of that day, dear." - -"But, Auntie, didn't he say: 'What I say unto you I say unto all.' If -we love him we shall keep all his commandments. That is why I am sorry -Uncle Raymond has taken away my _Science and Health_. I want to -understand it like Cousin Alicia does; then some day, if I know little -boys or girls ill like I was, I could heal them. It makes me so sorry -now that I cannot study. I have written to Cousin Alicia to help me. I -know she will. It has been so difficult all day to stand 'porter at the -door of thought.' Such a lot of unkind thoughts would keep trying to -get in. I know I must not let any of them in, and Cousin Alicia will -help me to keep them out." - -"I am afraid I do not quite understand, Carol." - -"Don't you, Auntie? I have a little book that will explain. It is -called 'At the Door.' Our mind is like a beautiful white mansion, and -thoughts are like people who go in and out. If we let unkind thoughts -pass in, all kind thoughts go away. Self-pity isn't at all a nice -person, I have had such difficulty to keep him out all day, especially -when I remembered that Father knew I was studying _Science and Health_, -and he did not take it away from me." - -"I will tell that to Uncle Raymond, dear, perhaps it will cause him to -alter his decision." - -"Thank you, Auntie; I know it will be all right. I have only to be -patient. They have all gone away now, self-pity and indignation, and -anger. If I keep my mansion so full of love, there will be no room for -them to squeeze in, will there?" - -"No, darling. Now go to sleep. I will take the little book down with -me and read it." - -Mrs. Mandeville remembered as she went downstairs her visit three years -ago to Carol's home. Then she would have described him as a very spoilt -child, making allowance for his illness, he was fretful, selfish, -exacting. What had wrought such a marvellous change? The physical -healing seemed slight in comparison. - - - - -CHAPTER IV.--A WELCOME LETTER. - - -Carol had been at the Manor a week before he received the eagerly -expected letter from Cousin Alicia. Mrs. Mandeville brought it herself -to the school-room for him. - -"What a lucky little boy to get such a fat letter! I wonder the -post-office didn't decline to bring it for a penny," she said smiling at -his radiantly happy face. Then turning to Miss Markham, as lessons were -about to commence, she asked: - -"May he be excused for a little time, Miss Markham? I know he will like -to take it to his room and read it quietly there." - -"Oh, thank you, Auntie; thank you, Miss Markham," as the asked-for -permission was quickly accorded, and he ran off with the treasured -letter. Half an hour later he sought Mrs. Mandeville in her -morning-room. - -"Auntie, would you like to read my letter?" - -"Indeed, dear, I should, if you would care for me to." - -"Yes, Auntie. I would like you to read it very much. I knew Cousin -Alicia would help me to understand. It has been just like having a talk -with her. She always makes me feel happy." - -He gave several sheets of closely written note paper into Mrs. -Mandeville's hand. - -"I must not be away any more lesson time, must I?" - -He left the letter with her, and returned to the school-room. Mrs. -Mandeville opened the pages, and read: - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My very dear Carol,_ - -"Until your first letter arrived it was difficult to realize that the -train had carried you so far away from us. It seemed as if a spirit of -sadness were creeping over the household, even the dogs and birds felt -the subtle influence, and I had to dispel it by realizing that there can -be no separation in Mind. Nothing can come between loving thoughts. I am -as near to you in thought, and you to me as if these human arms enfolded -you. It rejoiced me to read that you felt my thoughts like loving arms -around you. - -"Your first letter was awaited with eager expectation. I had to read -parts to everyone. When Bob brought up your pony for his morning lump -of sugar, I caught him brushing a tear away with his coat sleeve, as he -asked, 'Will it be long before Master Carol comes home again?' I told -him that was a question I could not answer, but possibly you might have -the pony sent to Mandeville, and in that case he would no doubt -accompany it. - -"The bright happy strain of your first letter made me glad. Before I -had time to answer it came the second in a minor key. After reading it, -a thought that something was wrong tried hard to creep in. But I knew -it could not be. 'Love governs and controls all events with unerring -wisdom.' So I just took my hat and went for our favorite walk by the -stream, to think things out. I seemed to feel your little hand in mine -as I walked. I sat down on the old tree-stump, where you used to rest -when you first began to walk; and do you remember the thrush which was -always singing on the other side of the stream, how we used to think he -sang a special song for you, and the words were, 'God is Love'? He was -there on the same branch of the tree. I feel so sure now that it is the -same bird. 'What message have you for Carol this morning?' I asked, and -it seemed that the notes changed and the message came so clearly: 'All -is right that seems most wrong.' - -"Yes! I knew it I Of course it is! The bird flew off, and I walked on, -thinking of a story I read many years ago. It was, I believe, an -Eastern allegory. That story has often helped me; perhaps it will help -you. I will tell it briefly. The King of a great country had many -singing birds. They were to him as children, he loved them so. They -were quite free to fly about the palace, or in the beautiful gardens of -the palace, and when the King walked amongst them, they rested on his -shoulder, or on his hand, when he held it out to them. There was one -especial favorite--a little brown bird. It had not gay plumage like -some of its companions, but its song delighted the King, and often he -said: 'Sing--sing always.' One day the servants discovered the little -brown bird was missing. Some one had stolen it from the palace. Word -was brought to the King, and he quickly sent messengers all over his -kingdom to discover where the bird was. It was not long before the -place of confinement was known, and, to the surprise of everyone, the -King left his little favorite in captivity. But he strictly commanded -his messengers to watch over it, that no harm could come to it. Not a -feather was to be ruffled. - -"In partial darkness, beating its wings helplessly against the bars of -the cage, the little brown bird yet remembered the King's command, -'Sing, sing always'; and every day it poured forth the song which the -King loved. Strangers came from far to listen to the wondrous song of -the little captive bird. Then, one day, the little bird looked up -joyfully, at the sound of a well-known voice. The King himself had come -to set the captive free. The cage door was quickly opened, and the bird -flew forth, and rested on the King's shoulder, pouring forth such a song -of joy as no one had ever heard before. - -"'My priceless treasure!' the King exclaimed--the one note that was -missing has come into your song.' And great was the King's joy as he -carried the little brown bird back to his palace. - -"I remember, when I read that story as a girl, being sorry that it ended -there. I wanted to know that the wicked men were punished for stealing -the bird, and that it was never separated again from the King who loved -it so. But now I understand the story better, and the lesson it -teaches. If the little bird had not been obedient to the King's command -to sing always,--even when it was in captivity, it would never have -learned that one missing note. And so, dear Carol, we have to learn -under all circumstances and at all times that we are bidden to rejoice. -The words are: 'Rejoice--again I say rejoice.' - -"Having the book taken from you, as you do not yet understand the -antagonism so many people manifest towards it, was doubtless a great -surprise, when you owe so much to its teachings. But, dearie, you must -not let any thoughts of injustice, or of something not quite right, -creep in. The book will be returned to you one day. Love can always -find a way. It will not be detained one moment after it is needful for -you to have it again. You must put in practice, live up to, what you -have already learned. You have only one step to take at present, and I -think that step is '_obedience_': cheerful, willing obedience, in every -detail of your life. You see, dear Carol, we are told only one thing of -the Master when he was a boy of your age: that is, 'He was subject -[obedient] unto them.' Had it been necessary, we should have been told -more. So from you, and all children, looking unto Jesus, to follow in -his steps, one thing only is required--perfect obedience to those in -authority over you, parents or guardians. - -"Try to picture that humble home at Nazareth, and the carpenter's shop. -We can never know the trials _he_ had to bear in those early years, -through those around him not comprehending his divine mission. From one -verse in St. Matthew's Gospel we learn that taunts and gibes were thrown -at him, because his spiritual birth was not understood. Yet those words -have come down through all the centuries to inspire and help the young -of all generations: _He was subject unto them_. - -"The world has given an undue prominence to the wooden crucifix. The -cross that Jesus carried for us he carried for 33 long years--working -out each problem of life, and finally overcoming death, in order to show -us the way to eternal life, then bidding us take up the cross--not the -wooden crucifix--the cross of daily overcoming error with truth; and -thus to follow him. - -"When you are asked anything about Christian Science, and your own -healing, if you are able, answer any questions quietly and courteously, -but never obtrude the subject on anyone; or bring it forward -voluntarily. Live Christian Science, dear Carol, not talk it. Be -careful in all things to study your aunt's wishes; and as she evidently -does not wish the subject mentioned to your cousins, do not mention it. -Following in the steps that Jesus marked--perfect obedience--can never -be denying Christ, and by perfect obedience, dear, you will understand, -loving, willing, cheerful obedience, never allowing any thought of wrong -or injustice to find a resting place in your consciousness. - -"Write to me as often as you can, dear. Now that you have commenced -regular lessons, you will not have so much spare time. Your letters -will always be to me a joy, both to receive and to answer. I rejoice in -my stewardship, taking care of this beautiful home for my dear boy. -Colonel Mandeville wrote me that your dear father expressed his desire -at the last that it should be so; and he himself also wrote a letter -which was posted at Gibraltar. It had not yet reached me. I cannot -understand it, as the letter from Colonel Mandeville which was evidently -posted at the same time, bearing the Gibraltar post-mark, arrived, as -you know, before you left. But we know it cannot be lost, although it -is long over-due. - -"Please convey my kind regards to Colonel and Mrs. Mandeville, and to -yourself, dear Carol, unnumbered loving thoughts, from - - COUSIN ALICIA. - -"_P.S._ How I should like to see the sweet Rosebud and your other -cousins!" - - ---- - -A very grave, thoughtful expression deepened on Mrs. Mandeville's face -as she gathered the loose sheets of note paper together, and replaced -them in the envelope. "Surely," she said, sotto voce, "if this is what -Christian Science teaches, Raymond does not understand the book which he -has taken away from Carol." - - - - -CHAPTER V.--QUIET DAYS. - - -The days which followed were quiet and uneventful, the peaceful, happy -days which imperceptibly glide into weeks and months. Carol worked -diligently at his lessons. He had so much lost time to make up. - -Miss Markham was surprised at the progress he made. Whatever tasks she -set him he mastered with ease, and never manifested fatigue or -weariness. He was still so slight, even fragile, in appearance, she -sometimes feared lest she was overtaxing his strength. Once, expressing -fear lest this should be so, Carol answered lightly, "It is quite right, -Miss Markham, the more work I do, the more I shall be able to do. -Cousin Alicia is helping me every day." - -"Miss Desmond is in Devonshire, Carol, how can she help you?" - -"I am sorry, Miss Markham, I forgot you do not understand," he said. - -He had been so perfectly obedient to Miss Desmond's wishes in never -talking about Christian Science, that, excepting Mrs. Mandeville, no one -remembered anything about it in connection with the boy. But, -gradually, all the household were realizing there was something -strangely different about the boy from other children. No one ever -heard him complain of an ache or pain. No one ever heard him speak an -unkind or angry word; and if, as sometimes, though seldom, amongst the -Mandeville children, little dissensions or bickerings arose, if Carol -was near, they passed as a ripple on water, and all was harmony and -peace again. - -Nurse loved to have him in the nursery. Miss Markham missed him when he -was absent from the school-room. On one occasion when he was in the -nursery a heavy box-lid was accidentally allowed to fall on Rosebud's -fingers. The child screamed terribly with the pain, but before Nurse -could do or say anything Carol seized her in his arms, and ran out of -the room with her. In less than ten minutes he brought her back again, -laughing merrily. - -"Naughty fingers don't hurt Rosebud now," she said. - -Nurse wondered, but, like Miss Markham, she did not understand. - -It happened only a few days afterward that Mrs. Mandeville did not come -as usual to the school-room immediately after breakfast, and everyone -was sorrowful when it was known that Mother had one of her old nervous -headaches. They knew it meant not seeing her for two or three days. -She suffered terribly at times with her head, and had to lie in a -darkened room, unable to bear the least noise. The children hushed -their laughter and trod softly, though the school-room and nurseries -were too far removed from Mrs. Mandeville's apartments for any sound to -reach her. - -After morning school, without saying a word to any one, Carol crept so -noiselessly into the darkened room that Mrs. Mandeville was unaware of -his presence, until he softly touched her with his hand, and said: - -"Auntie, I am so sorry you are suffering. I do want to help you. Could -I--would you let me?" - -"Dear boy, how sweet of you! I have frequently suffered with headaches -like this for many years. Nothing can be done, dear. I can only be -still and bear the pain until it passes." - -Mrs. Mandeville spoke as if every word she uttered tortured her. - -"Auntie, dear, won't you let me try to help you?" - -"Do you mean, dear, you want to say a Christian Science prayer for me?" - -"Yes, Auntie." - -"Why, of course, darling, if you wish it. It is so very sweet of you!" - -Carol softly kissed the hand she put out to him, and left the room, as -noiselessly as he had entered, closing the door after him. He knew what -pain was. He went straight to his own room and closed that door too. -He did not leave his room until the gong sounded for the school-room -dinner. His cousins exclaimed as he rejoined them, - -"Wherever have you been all this time, Carol?" - -But Carol did not say. - -In the afternoon while the children were still seated round the -tea-table, the school-room door opened, and Mrs. Mandeville entered the -room. There was one vociferous exclamation of surprise and delight. - -"Mother! Are you better?" - -"I am quite better," she said, "I fell asleep. I must have slept a long -time, and when I woke I felt quite well." - -No one noticed the flush of joy that came to Carol's face. His hands -were clasped, his eyes downcast as he silently breathed, "I thank Thee, -my Father." - -Before she left the room again, Mrs. Mandeville caressingly laid her -hands on the boy's shoulders, and bent over to kiss his brow, but she -did not allude to his visit to her room. Neither did he. Some sad days -were to pass over the Manor household before Mrs. Mandeville -acknowledged the help she had received. - -Carol had not been long at Mandeville before he became almost as well -acquainted with the villagers as his cousins. He frequently accompanied -the three little girls and the second nurse, when they were deputed to -carry a basket of good things to any house in the village where there -was need. In this way he became acquainted with the village shoemaker, -Mr. Higgs, who, in his younger days, had also acted as verger at the -church. He explained to Carol the "rheumatiz" was so bad in his legs he -hadn't been able to walk to church for months. He was often to be seen -sitting at the open cottage door in the summer evenings, with an open -Bible on his knees, his hands folded on it, for the print was too small -for his failing eyesight. - -Carol was thoughtful as he walked home. When Mrs. Mandeville paid her -usual visit to his bedroom in the evening, she found him sitting up in -bed, waiting for her. He was always awake when she came, but since she -had desired him not to read in bed he never had a book in his hand. So -often he greeted her with the words, "Auntie, I have been thinking." - -"Well, darling, what have you been thinking about to-night?" she asked -before he spoke, well knowing from his attitude that he had been -thinking either of some pleasing or some perplexing subject. - -"I have been thinking of something I can do, Auntie, if you will let me. -It is only a very little thing, but if we do not begin with little -things, we shall not be able some day to do big things, shall we? I so -often think about Jesus when he was twelve years old, he said, 'I must -be about my Father's business.' I am twelve years old, and God is my -Father, too. I want to be about His business. When I was talking to old -Mr. Higgs this morning, he told me he cannot walk to church now, and his -eyes are so bad he cannot see to read the Bible. I thought I would like -to go sometimes and read it to him, and help him to understand it. -Would you let me, Auntie dear? It is such a little thing." - -"Why, of course, dear; there can be no reason why you should not, if you -wish to. I don't think Uncle Raymond can have any possible objection. -Anyway, if I give you permission, that will be sufficient, will it not?" - -"Oh, yes, Auntie; thank you so very much. May I go every Sunday -evening?" - -"Yes, dear; and perhaps it may not be such a little thing as you think." - -Mrs. Mandeville thought of her own two boys. How different Carol was! - -Neither of them would have dreamed of doing such a thing. "But," she -mused, "his long illness has changed him." - -"Auntie, I often try to picture Jesus in his humble home at Nazareth. I -wish we knew more. When he returned with Joseph and Mary after the -visit to the Temple, and was always obedient to them, I sometimes wonder -if they kept him back from going about his Father's business, because -they did not understand; and if he played on the hillsides with the -other village boys, and no one knew until he was a man, that he was -Jesus the Christ." - -"There are many legends of his boyhood, dear, but they are only legends. -We cannot accept anything except what is narrated in the Gospels. You -must read Canon Farrar's 'Life of Christ.' That will help you to -understand that the Apostles were, without doubt, divinely instructed to -record so little of the boyhood of Jesus. There is a copy in the -library. I will look it out for you." - -"Thank you so much, Auntie. I shall be glad to read it." - -Then clinging both arms round her neck, as she stooped to kiss him, he -said: - -"I do love your coming to my room like this, Auntie. I always keep -awake till you come." - -"I, too, enjoy our little talks, dear. You often give me a beautiful -thought to take away with me: something I have not thought of before." - -The boy lay awake a long time after Mrs. Mandeville left him, thinking -joyfully of the work that had come to him, wondering how he should open -the pages of that wonderful book, as they had been opened to him. -"Teach me, Father-Mother God, the words of Truth that will help him," he -prayed. Finally, he fell asleep with the words on his lips of the boy -Samuel: "Speak, Lord, for Thy servant heareth." - - - - -CHAPTER VI.--FIRST WORK IN THE VINEYARD. - - -"Would you like me to read to you for a little while this evening, Mr. -Higgs? My aunt has given me permission, if you would like me to," Carol -asked modestly as he entered the old man's cottage the following Sunday -evening. Mr. Higgs was seated as usual at the open door, watching the -villagers pass by on their way to church. - -"Thank you kindly, young gentleman. I'll be glad to hear some of the -words of the Book. I just keep it close by me. It don't seem Sunday -without. But my eyes fail me, and I just sit and ponder over some of -the Psalms I can well remember. After the service sometimes a -neighbor'll pop in and tell me the text Rector's been preaching about. -A mighty fine preacher is Rector, but often I used to say to my -Missus--she's dead and gone these five years--his thoughts are like -birds, they fly over our heads, and we don't seem able to lay hold of -them. If he'd just tell us something simple to help us day by day. I'd -be glad now if I could remember some of the sermons I've listened to, -year in, year out. But there, it's all gone, and I've got no more -understanding of the Bible than when I was a boy. It's ower late to -think about it now, and me turned seventy." - -"I have been taught to understand the Bible. I should like to teach you -what I have been taught. Then, when you understand, you would lose your -rheumatism." - -"_Lose my rheumatism!_" The old man repeated the words in the utmost -astonishment. - -"Why, yes, of course you would," Carol said with that wonderfully sweet -smile which won all hearts. "I had hip-disease; but I lost it." - -"Well, now, young gentleman, I can say with absolute truth that I have -never been told that before--no, _never!_ though I've been a regular -church attendant since I was a little choir boy, and never left off -going till the joints in my old legs grew so stiff I couldn't walk. -It'd want a lot of faith, sir, to believe that just reading the Bible -would make 'em lissom again." - -"Faith comes with understanding. There is another book; it is called -_Key to the Scriptures_. I haven't a copy of that book now, but I can -remember so much of it, I shall be able to help you to understand the -Bible perhaps a little better. We will commence with the first chapter -of Genesis." - -"Yes, now; I remember that chapter pretty well. I learnt it at Sunday -School sixty years ago, and I've never quite forgotten it. I could -repeat verses straight off now." - -"And has it never helped you all through your life?" - -"Well, no. I can't say that chapter has. I have found comfort sometimes -from the Psalms. 'The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want,' I have -often turned to when we'd a growing family and work was slack." - -"Let me read the chapter now and then we will talk about it." - -The boy opened the Bible, and slowly with an impressiveness which the -old man had never before heard, he read the first chapter of Genesis, -and three verses of the second chapter. He read as one reads words that -are very familiar and understandable. - -"_Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of -them, and God saw everything that He had made, and behold it was very -good._" He repeated the words from memory, looking with a kindly smile -at the old man, as he asked the question: "If God looked upon everything -which He had created, and declared it very good--where do the things -come from that are not good? Who created them?" - -"Well now, young sir, that is a question I'm not prepared to answer. I -can only say like that little black girl in the story, ''spose they -growed'." - -"But everything must grow from something, mustn't it? Every tree and -plant has its own seed. God created every living creature after its -kind, and bade it be fruitful and multiply. So you see everything good -was created by the Word of God. Is rheumatism good?" - -"'Deed no, young gentleman! It's cruel bad." - -"So is hip-disease. It's very, very 'cruel bad,' and because it is the -opposite of good it was not amongst the things which God 'beheld.' Our -dear Heavenly Father did not create poor suffering little children -maimed with hip-disease, and sometimes blind. He created them in His -own image and likeness, and God could not be suffering sometimes with -one disease, sometimes with another, so that His image and likeness -could have it too, could He? See, if I hold my hand up so it casts a -shadow on the wall, that is an exact image or likeness of my hand, is it -not? Now if I just hold something--only a slip of paper between my hand -and the reflection, the reflection is deformed, isn't it? But my hand -is not affected by it. So when we are bound by any cruel disease, there -is something between God and His image and likeness, something that was -never created by Him--was never created at all. It is only a shadowy -mist--a belief: and we have to get rid of it, by knowing its unreality. -We have to know that because we are God's children, His spiritual -creation, we must be perfect, even as He is perfect. Jesus came to -teach people this. He said, 'Be ye therefore perfect, even as your -Father in Heaven is perfect.' But, my cousin says, the world has been -slow to learn the lesson. Sin and disease will disappear from our midst -just as soon as we do learn it. When she came to me, and I was very -ill, she taught me that nothing was real except what God had created, -and pronounced good, and He never created hip-disease. Because she -understood this so clearly, and taught me to understand it, I soon began -to get better. I should like to help you to understand it, so that you -would lose your rheumatism. I think I have stayed as long as I had -permission to-night. Would you like me to come again next Sunday?" - -"'Deed, and I would, young gentleman." - -"My name is Carol," the boy said simply. - -"Thank 'ee, Master Carol, you've given me something to think about, I -shan't forget during the week." - -"I should like to teach you the Scientific Statement of Being. It is in -that book I told you of, which explains the Bible. If you would learn -it, and try to realize it, it would help you so much.' - -"My mem'ry 's none of the best now, but I'll try," the old man said -regretfully. - -"Perhaps it will be better for me to write it for you in large writing, -so that you can read it until you know it. I will bring it with me next -week. These are the words: 'There is no life, truth, intelligence, nor -substance in matter.' He repeated the words gravely and slowly to the -end, the old man gazing at him the while with wondering eyes. The sun -was setting; the crimson light streamed through the lattice window upon -the boy's upturned face, so sweet, so grave, so loving, and so earnest. - -"The words seem difficult to understand at first," he said, "but you -will soon grow to love them. It is the truth which Jesus promised -should make us free. It has made me free. It will make you free." - - - - -CHAPTER VII.--"I KNOW." - - -Carol bounded through the park with a light, joyous step. On reaching -the Manor House, he would have gone straight to his aunt, but there were -visitors with her. So he rejoined his cousins in the school-room. - -"Where ever have you been, Carol?" they questioned, as he entered. - -"Somewhere Auntie gave me permission to go," he replied quietly. - -Miss Markham looked at the boy's beaming face, and she too wondered. He -had been absent from the Scripture lesson, which she, and sometimes Mrs. -Mandeville, gave the children every Sunday evening. She felt a little -remorse that she had been conscious during the lesson of a feeling of -relief, on account of the boy's absence. Carol so often asked a -question in a quiet, thoughtful manner, which she was unable to answer: -and the question would often recur to her afterwards. She had an -intuition that the boy had a firmer grasp of spiritual truths than she -herself possessed. Many times she would have liked to discuss a subject -with him. But Mrs. Mandeville had warned her that the boy had been -taught much that was unorthodox, she therefore refrained from -discussion. - -Though it was much later than usual, Carol was wide awake when Mrs. -Mandeville came to his room that night. She had found all the other -children fast asleep. - -"Auntie, I did want to tell you, I had a very happy time with Mr. Higgs. -He's such a nice, interesting old man. I was able to tell him so much -that he had never thought about before. Thank you again for letting me -go. He will like me to go next Sunday--I may--mayn't I?" - -"Of course, dear; as it seems to make you so happy; and I am sure it -must be very nice for Mr. Higgs to have you read to him, as he is so -troubled with rheumatism. But you must really settle down to sleep now, -Carol. You have no idea how late it is." - -"Yes, Auntie, I shall soon be asleep, I wanted to tell you first. I -feel so happy now, I can say one verse of Mrs. Eddy's beautiful hymn -to-night which commences: - - 'My prayer some daily good to do, - 'To thine for Thee;' - -"Cousin Alicia used to sing it to me every night when I was ill. I -loved it so much, because its measures _did_ bind the power of pain. -Often I had fallen asleep before she came to the end." - -"You must repeat all the hymn to me some time, Carol, I shall like to -hear it." - -"Yes, Auntie, in the morning. I have been thinking whilst I was waiting -for you to come that when we want to do something for Truth very, very -much, Love finds the way. When I am a man, I shall want, more than -anything in all the world, just to do what Jesus said, those that loved -him were to do, 'Go ye into all the world, preach the Gospel, and heal -the sick.' I cannot help remembering there are so many little children -lying now, just as I used to lie, always in pain; and they could be -healed, just as I was healed, if there were more people who understood -what Jesus meant by 'The truth shall make you free." - -"And you are quite sure, Carol, it is that which has made you free?" - -"Oh, Auntie, dear, I can never let even the tiniest thought of doubt -creep up and make me question that. I _know_. When Uncle Raymond read -in church last Sunday 'I know that my Redeemer liveth,' I felt I wanted -to stand up and tell all the people _because_ He liveth, I am well. -That is 'knowing.' I do long for the time to come when I shall be able -to tell them so, and I can give all my time and my money to spread the -glad tidings, to fight for Truth." - -"Maybe there is a great work, a great future before you, dear boy, -surely the instrument has been prepared in a fierce fire, and has come -forth strong for the battle. Now, good-night, and God bless you, -darling." He clasped both his arms round her neck, holding her tightly, -as in earlier years he used to cling to his mother. - - - - -CHAPTER VIII.--A SECOND VISIT TO THE COTTAGE. - - -The next Sunday evening when Carol entered the shoemaker's cottage, he -was not alone as before. - -"This is my daughter, Mrs. Scott, Master Carol, and her little girl," he -said to Carol. "We thought, maybe, you wouldn't object if she listened -to the reading too. She cannot often go to church, because the little -girl has been subject to epilepsy since she was two years old. She's -just turned eight now. I told her mother what you told me last Sunday, -and she'll be right glad to hear more." - -"That I shall, Master Carol. I know something of hip-disease, and if -you could be cured of that, I'm sure my little girl could be cured of -the fits." - -"Why, of course she could. You will be able to help her ever so much -only by knowing that God never created fits; they belong to the mist -which we read about in the second chapter of Genesis. I am going to -read that chapter to Mr. Higgs to-night. Then you'll understand. I -will begin at the fourth verse, because the first three verses belong -really to the first chapter, which is an account of the first creation, -when God made everything that was made and it was spiritual and perfect. -No one could ever alter or undo God's perfect work; it remains, and -always will remain, perfect. When we understand this, and realize it, -the mist will disappear, and all the things which belong to the -mist--sin, disease, and death." - -Father and daughter looked at the boy with wonder and perplexity. -Opening the Bible he read: - -"These are the generations of the heavens and the earth when they were -created in the day that the Lord God made the earth and the heavens." -He continued to the end of the chapter. "Now do you see how different -this account of creation is from the first?" he asked. "Who was the -Lord God who took the dust of the ground and formed man over again, -after God had already created him, and pronounced His work very good?" - -The old man shook his head. "I can only say, as I said last Sunday, -Master Carol, in all the sermons I've listened to that has never been -explained to me. I don't think I should have let it slip, if it had. -It's just the first time I've ever known there were two creations." - -"There were not really two creations, though it reads as if there were, -because there are not two creators. The sixth verse explains it, 'There -went up a mist from the earth and watered the whole face of the ground.' -That mist covered everything which God-Spirit had created--all the host -of them; birds, beasts, and flowers, mountains, seas, lakes, rivers, -even man: God's own image and likeness. Because the mist is over -everything we do not see the world and man as they really exist. So -people have come to believe that God made man from the dust; for the -mist that is spoken of is not a mist like we see rising from the sea, or -in the fields of an evening. It means false belief, misunderstanding of -God and His spiritual creation. But, my cousin has told me, there is a -woman in America who once caught a glimpse of God's real creation as she -was passing through the death valley. And that one glimpse restored her -to health. Then she devoted her whole life to learn more of the truth -that she might teach others how to see through the mist, and to shake -off their old beliefs. She has written a book called _Science and -Health_ with _Key to the Scriptures_, which explains all that she has -discovered. Simply reading and studying that book has made hundreds of -people well." - -"Where could we get a copy of it, Master Carol? I'd like to know for my -little girl's sake," Mrs. Scott asked. - -"I do not quite know, but there are Christian Science churches in -London. If you were to write there perhaps someone would tell you. I -wish I had a copy to lend you. I have written the Scientific Statement -of Being from memory. I am sure it will help you. I am trying to -realize it for you, and for the little girl. Think always of that first -chapter of the Bible. In the beginning God created everything that was -created, and it was very good. None of the things we want to get rid of -could be included in God's _very good_, could they? Jesus came to teach -men to understand God better, and he said, 'that which is born of the -Spirit is spirit.' So all that came from God and all that still comes -is spiritual. If you could quite realize this, Mr. Higgs, you would -soon lose your rheumatism. I am only telling you what has been told me -so many times; and I know it is true, because I was very ill when my -cousin used to teach me, and I grew better as I began to understand. -She helped me, because she saw me always as God's perfect child, and -knew that He had never created hip-disease, therefore it never was -created; it belonged to the mist, and it would disappear under the light -of Truth as hoar frost disappears when the sun shines upon it." - -"It is wonderful and strange what you are telling us, Master Carol, I've -never heard the like before, but somehow I can't doubt it. I call to -mind what the Bible says, 'Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings God -ordains strength.' I'd dearly love the girl to be free from those -dreadful fits. My rheumatiz is very bad, but I'm an old man, and can't -expect to 'scape one o' the signs of old age." - -"But you must not expect. You must know that it is not a sign of old -age in God's man. You must always remember the man whom God created in -His own image and likeness." - -"I've heard those words many times before, Master Carol, but somehow -they never seemed to come home to me as you put it. Why, of course I -ought not to suffer with rheumatiz if I _am_ God's image and likeness. -But what about all the poor dwarfed and stunted creatures that are -crippled from infancy? There's a little hunchback in the village. He -was dropped when he was a baby, and his back grew crooked, so that it's -a hump now. How can he be God's image and likeness?" - -"The hunchback is not the likeness of God, but the real child--the -spiritual child is, and God sees His child as He created it." The boy -put his hand over his eyes a moment, realizing that of himself he was -not telling these simple-minded people anything. Then he said: - -"Suppose a great sculptor carved a beautiful statue out of a block of -marble. Before he began his work, he would have in his mind the form he -wished the marble to take. Gradually, as he worked at it, the marble -would become what his thought of it was. Then one day he would see it -finished and perfect--just what he intended it to be. Then he would work -no more at it. Afterwards, suppose some one came by, and took clay and -mixed it with water into a paste, and then daubed the beautiful statue -all over, till the limbs looked crooked, and the beauty of the face was -spoiled. But it wouldn't be really spoiled, would it? The statue would -still be the work of the great sculptor, finished and perfect; the clay -and the marble would be quite separate and distinct. Nothing could make -them one. So when we read the chapter I have just read to you--the Lord -God took the dust of the ground and made man--God's man was already -made, finished and perfect, and the dust, like the clay, could only seem -to hide the perfect creation. But we have to know this and to realize -it, if we are to get rid of the dust, and the clay, and the mist. When -my cousin was explaining all this to me one day, she said, 'It is not -known how or when the belief in a Lord God who made man of dust arose; -but from that false belief came sin, sorrow, disease, and death. Jesus -came to teach us the way back to God; to teach us to see ourselves as -the children of God, not of the dust; and he said all who believed in -him, in what he taught, would never see death.' The day will come, my -cousin said, when all men will so believe in Jesus the Christ, and will -so understand and realize that God is their Father, that death will be -overcome. Every case of sin and disease which is healed by this -knowledge--by the Truth--is bringing that day nearer." - -The look of bewilderment deepened on the old man's face. Surely, the -boy was throwing a different light upon words with which he had been -familiar all his life. "We'll think over what you've told us, Master -Carol--me and my daughter. It sort o' goes to me that it's true." - -Again the words came to him, "Out of the mouth of babes and sucklings." - -The church clock chimed the half-hour. Carol stood up to go. "The time -has gone so quickly. I must not stay longer now. I will come again -next Sunday, and all the week will you try to know that God's work was -finished and perfect in the beginning, and everything that seems to have -been added to it--rheumatism and fits--has no right to be?" - -"We will, Master Carol, we'll just think of the marble statue and the -clay. It will help us." - -"I will hold the right thought for you and the little girl, and I know -that soon you will find that both the afflictions, which seem so real, -belong to the mist." - - - - -CHAPTER IX.--"IT IS THE TRUTH." - - -Carol faithfully kept his appointment on the following Sunday. His -cousins ceased to inquire, though not to wonder, what became of him -every Sunday evening, and once appealed to Mrs. Mandeville for -information. She smilingly replied, "It is a little secret between Carol -and me. Perhaps you will be told some time, but not just yet." - -As Carol entered the cottage, Mr. Higgs rose from his seat, and stood -upright. - -"Master Carol," he exclaimed in a voice of suppressed excitement, "it is -the Truth, the blessed Truth you've told us. I can't say I've lost my -rheumatics entirely, for the joints are like rusty hinges that want a -lot o' oiling after being idle so long; but I've just been free from -pain all the week; and my little grand-daughter hasn't had one fit all -the week." - -"No, Master Carol, she has not," Mrs. Scott added. "I won't say she has -never gone a whole week without one before, but for the last twelve -months I don't think she has, until this week." - -"Try not to remember anything that has been. Think it was all a dream, -and she is awakening from it. I had a very cruel dream once, but I have -awakened from it. God's children must cling very closely to Him, then -nothing can hurt them. It is when shadowy fears come between God and -His image and likeness that dreadful things seem to happen to us." - -Mr. Higgs and Mrs. Scott did not understand yet how the boy had all the -week been working for them--fighting error with the sword of Truth. - -"I want to read a chapter from the New Testament this evening," Carol -said, opening the Bible. "It is always a favorite chapter, but one -verse, my cousin said, seemed never to have impressed people as -applicable to the present day. Yet the words are so simple. I will read -the chapter first, then we'll talk about that one verse." - -He read the 14th chapter of St. John from the 1st verse to the last, -then asked quietly, "Do you remember that Jesus once said, 'Heaven and -earth shall pass away, but my words shall never pass away'?" - -"Yes, Master Carol. I remember those words well." - -"Then is there not a verse in the chapter I have just read which seems -as if Jesus' words _had_ failed?" The old man looked puzzled. - -"I can't say that I know what you are alluding to, Master Carol." - -"I will read it again. It is the 12th verse. 'Verily, verily, I say -unto you, he that believeth on me, the works that I do shall he do also, -and greater works than these shall he do, because I go unto my Father.' -What were the works that Jesus did? Was it not healing the sick, -cleansing the lepers, raising the dead, feeding the hungry? Well, if no -one can do these works to-day, his word has failed or else no one has -sufficient faith (faith may sometimes mean understanding). Many -centuries rolled by, and the sick were not healed, nor the lepers -cleansed, in Jesus' name. But now we know his words never failed. It -was the faith or understanding of those who thought they believed in him -which failed; for the sick are being healed now, and the lepers -cleansed." - -"It is very wonderful as you put it, Master Carol. I can't say it has -ever been explained like that to me before." - -"Is it not very simple?" Carol asked. - -"Why, yes. It has always seemed to me the Master's words were very -simple, a child could understand them. But when you come to the -Epistles, and the creeds of the Church, there's many things that I have -never been able to understand; and often the sermons I've listened to -puzzled me more than the texts." - -"In the 15th verse Jesus says, 'If ye love me, keep my commandments.' -Jesus did not give many commandments to his followers. He told them -many things, but of strict commandments he gave only a few. One was, 'Go -into all the world, preach the Gospel and heal the sick.' If you had a -son, and you commanded him to do two things and he did only one, and -left the other alone, would you be pleased with him? Would he be -obedient to your commands?" - -"Certainly I shouldn't be pleased with him, and I'd soon let him know -that, if he didn't do all I commanded, he needn't do anything." - -"Yes, but Jesus just makes it a test of love. He says so gently, 'If ye -love me, keep my commandments.' To those who keep all his commandments -he will one day say, 'Well done, good and faithful servant,' I do hope -that some day he will say those words to me." - -"I'm right sure he will, Master Carol. It is just wonderful the way you -are helping an old man to understand. It amazes me that a boy of your -years should have such an understanding." - -"Oh, please don't think I am telling you anything of myself. It has all -been explained to me many times. I am only telling you what has been -told me. I wish my cousin could talk to you. She would help you much -better than I can. But we must not withhold what we have because some -one else has more, must we? We must hand on the good tidings as well as -we are able." - -"That's it, Master Carol. Maybe I'll do a little that way myself later -on." - -"Yes, I am sure you will, but don't talk about your rheumatism being -better just yet. Wait until the evil is quite cast out. When I come -next week I will explain to you how we learn in _Science and Health_ -that God gave man dominion, and what God has given can never be taken -away. God says His word shall never return unto Him void. When He -decreed anything, it was forever. You could not think of the sun, moon, -or stars moving out of their appointed courses, could you? It is only -man who seems to have wandered from his native sphere. We have to learn -that this is not so; we have not really lost the dominion which God gave -His children in the beginning. St. John says, 'Now are we the sons of -God; and it doth not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when -He shall appear we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.' -That verse helped me so much when I was ill. I learned I had not to die -to become a son of God. God is my Father here and now, and God's child -ought not to believe a lie. It was a lie that evil could have power -over me, and bind me. It is a lie that evil can have power over you, -and bind you. If you acknowledge God as your Father, God's child should -not go along believing he has rheumatism, should he?" - -"Thank you, Master Carol. I'll take hold of that. I can understand it. -I wish Rector would talk to us sometimes like this. I know it is all in -the Bible, yet it never came home to me before." - -Mrs. Scott listened attentively to all the boy was telling her father, -but made no remark. Her little girl was sitting in the porch nursing -her doll, crooning a lullaby. Carol left them with the promise to come -again next Sunday. - - - - -CHAPTER X.--AN UNEXPECTED ENCOUNTER. - - -With thoughts so joyous and uplifted, Carol's feet scarcely seemed to -touch the springy turf of the park as he returned to the Manor. The -uplifting joy, unlike anything that earth can give, which comes from the -consciousness that work done for, and in the Master's name, is accepted -of him, was his; the promised signs following. - -He did not see Mrs. Mandeville until she paid her usual visit to his -bedroom. - -His young face was radiant with joy and happiness. "Auntie," he said, -"Mr. Higgs is beginning to understand; and he is losing his rheumatism." - -Mrs. Mandeville smiled. There was so much love and tenderness in her -smile the incredulity was not apparent. She put a loving arm around -him, drawing the boy closer to her. - -"Is that what you have been thinking to-night, dear?" - -"Not altogether, Auntie. I have been thinking of what it means by the -words, 'The mind that was in Christ.' That was what I was reading when -I came to bed. If we are to have that Mind, we should understand what it -is. But, Auntie, I can't get any farther than _love_: the mind that was -in Christ was love. God is Love, and Jesus said, 'I and my Father are -one.' So, Auntie, when our hearts are filled with love for the poor and -afflicted and sorrowing, it is the Christ mind that comes to us. -Because Jesus loved all who came to him, he was able to heal them. He -said, 'I can of myself do nothing, it is the Father that worketh in me. -He doeth the works.' Jesus was a perfect mirror, reflecting the love -which is God. That is why he said, 'They that have seen me have seen my -Father also.' Cousin Alicia explained this once to me, but I did not -quite understand it at the time. I see so clearly now. When we reflect -love as Jesus did, we shall be able to do the works that he did. I -often wonder, Auntie, why Uncle Raymond and all the clergy who preach -the Gospel don't help people when they are ill. It is not being -obedient, is it?" - -Mrs. Mandeville's face was grave. - -"Ought I not to question this, Auntie?" - -"Perhaps it would be better not, dear, until you are older. I do not -understand myself. It is a subject I never seriously considered until -you came to us. Now I think I must say good-night, my little -lie-awake." - -"I always fall asleep soon after I have said 'good-night' to you, -Auntie." - -"That is right, darling. I do enjoy our little talks; they are very -sweet and helpful to me, Carol." - -Then, after a long, loving embrace, she left him, a grave, thoughtful, -but happy expression on her face. - -The following Saturday morning after breakfast the three little girls -told Carol, with delight, that they were going to the home farm in the -afternoon, and begged him to go with them. Carol promised. He never -refused to go anywhere or to do anything when Rosebud asked him. It was -different with Percy and Frank. They were always too busy. - -Carol knew how great a delight a visit to the farm was to the little -girls, where each had a special pet of her own which the farmer's wife -kindly took care of for them. Carol had visited the farm once before, -and was almost as interested as the little girls in the animals and -poultry yard. The schoolroom children had grown out of the interest -they once had in visiting the farm. - -Saturday being a school holiday, the boys were at home all day. After -lunch Percy said: - -"I say, Carol, some fellows are coming this afternoon; we are going to -have a game at rounders. You can manage that. Will you come?" - -Carol was never asked to join in a game at cricket or football, as his -uncle and aunt feared it would not be good for him. "I am sorry, Percy; -I cannot. I promised Rosebud and Sylvia to go with them to the farm -this afternoon." - -Percy turned impatiently away. He was annoyed. Carol caught the -muttered words: "Milk-sop prefers a walk with the babies." - -He was not versed in school-boy slang, but naturally felt it was an -opprobrious epithet applied to himself. A crimson flush rose to his -face. On the way to the farm, he asked Jane, the second nurse, who -accompanied them: - -"Can you tell me what milk-sop means, Jane?" - -"Well, Master Carol, it's what school-boys call one another, sometimes. -But it's not a nice word. I suppose it means something of a coward." - -Carol fell behind. The crimson flush returned and dyed his cheeks -again. "Percy did not mean it. He spoke without thinking. He forgot I -am a soldier's son. _I am not angry_. I will not let you in!" - -"Were you speaking, Master Carol?" Jane asked. - -"I was only telling Mrs. Anger and Mr. Anger, and a lot of little -Angers, there is no room for them in my mansion. Love is there, and -cannot be driven away." - -"You do say such funny things, Master Carol," Jane remarked. - -"But there is nothing funny in that, Jane. You see our mind is our -mansion, and if we keep it filled with loving thoughts, angry thoughts -cannot creep in. Some angry thoughts were just trying to force their -way in, and I had to tell them there was no room." - -Still Jane smiled, but she, as everyone else at the Manor, loved the -gentle boy, who had what seemed to them such strange thoughts. - -A messenger always appeared to go in advance and tell the farmer's wife -when the little ladies might be expected. She never failed to have such -a lovely tea spread on a snowy white tablecloth, and her best china -gracing the table. Tea in the farm kitchen was quite different from the -usual nursery tea at home. Such delicious scones and tea-cakes! (It -really would not have pleased cook to hear the praise bestowed upon -them, as if she did not make quite as good.) - -After tea they went around the farmyard to inspect their pets. A little -gosling, quite tame and friendly, was chosen for Carol's especial pet. -The hour, which was all nurse had allowed them, passed very quickly, and -they started on the homeward walk. They had not gone far when a -drizzling rain began. Jane then suggested the advisability of crossing -a field which would shorten the distance considerably. When they came -to the field, she was surprised to find the gate fastened. - -"This gate is generally open. I wonder why it is padlocked to-day, but -it is not too high to get over. If you climb over first, Master Carol, -I can lift Rosebud over to you." - -Carol soon mounted the five-barred gate, and landed safely on the other -side, then received one by one Rosebud, Estelle, and Sylvia, from Jane's -arm, as she lifted them over. They had walked about two hundred yards -when Jane stood still in an agony of fright, as an animal, which had -been lying unperceived in a distant corner of the field, rose up and -came towards them with a loud bellow. - -"Oh, Master Carol! What shall we do? It's the bull! He's a terror! -I've heard of him. He's a tosser!" - -"Don't be frightened, Jane. Just walk quietly. The bull won't hurt us, -if we are not frightened." - -Jane caught Rosebud in her arms, and with Estelle and Sylvia clinging to -either side, walked as quickly as she dared towards the stile on the -other side of the field. Fortunately, it was a stile easier to mount -than the five-barred gate had been. It was but the work of a moment and -the three little girls were lifted safely to the other side. Then, Jane -turned to look for Carol. He had walked only a third of the distance, -keeping always between the bull and his cousins, and now he stood face -to face with the animal, a few yards only between them. Another low -bellow, and then the animal bent his head to the ground, prepared for a -spring. - -"Run, run, Master Carol," Jane screamed. It was a fatal appeal. The -mesmerism of fear seized Carol. He turned to look after his cousins. -The next instant he was on the horns of the animal, tossed high in the -air, as if he had been no heavier than an India-rubber ball. -Mercifully, he fell on the other side of the hedge, which divided that -field from the next. With a roar of baffled rage, the animal stampeded -the field, seeking to toss his victim a second time. - - - - -CHAPTER XI.--PERCY'S REMORSE. - - -The three little girls set up a piteous cry of "Carol," "Carol." Jane -was speechless, only wringing her hands in her extremity. What could she -do? It was half a mile to return to the farm for help, and a mile to -the nearest lodge belonging to the Manor; and there was no house -between. She could not see where Carol had fallen. But she knew it was -over the hedge into the next field. She feared the infuriated animal -would force its way through. Though she could not in any way protect -him, it seemed terrible to go from the place, even to get help, and -leave him there. Many moments were lost in her frenzied attempts to -force an entrance into the field from the lane. It was in vain. The -thick, high hedge was impregnable. She called again and again to Carol -to speak, to answer her, but there was no response. It seemed an -eternity before there was the welcome sound of a horse's hoofs in the -lane, which drew nearer until a stanhope came in sight, containing -Colonel Mandeville, a friend, and a groom. - -The three little girls cried: "Daddy, Daddy, the bull has tossed Carol!" - -Colonel Mandeville sprang from the vehicle on the instant, scarcely -understanding what the children said. Their distress was evident. That -was sufficient. Jane then tried to explain. - -"We were crossing the field, sir. I did not know the bull was there. -He has tossed Master Carol over the hedge into this field, and we cannot -get at him." - -Colonel Mandeville uttered one low, sad exclamation. - -"Where is the entrance into the field?" he asked. - -"There is a gate into it from the field where the bull is. Oh, please, -sir, it isn't safe; the bull is awfully enraged," she added, as Colonel -Mandeville walked towards the stile. - -He turned to say to the groom: "Follow me," and to his friend: "Manton, -drive to the village and bring Dr. Burton along. I fear we shall want -him." To Jane he said briefly: "Take the children home." - -Then he mounted the stile, and entered the field, a gun in his hand, -which the groom had handed him from the stanhope. The gentlemen had -been shooting. The bull was standing in the middle of the field. He -sprang towards the fresh intruder with a bellow. Colonel Mandeville -pointed his gun; there was a report, and the next instant the beast -rolled over on his side, dead. The groom then followed his master. -They had a little difficulty in opening the gate into the next field, -but succeeded at last, and were able to get in. - -Under the shadow of the hedge Carol was lying--still, motionless. - -Colonel Mandeville knelt beside him. - -"Carol, Carol," he said softly, but there was no response. "Go to the -farm as quickly as you can. Tell them to improvise an ambulance. Bring -it along. Lose not a moment," he said to the groom. - -Then he knelt on the ground, trying again to awake the boy to -consciousness: "My poor wife, how will she bear this?" he said to -himself, knowing well that Carol was as dear to her as her youngest -born, the Rosebud of the family. The signs of life were so faint, he -could not hope the boy would ever regain consciousness. - -Dr. Burton was fortunately at home. In an inconceivably short time he -arrived on the scene; and the groom returned with an ambulance, followed -by the farmer, his wife, and some of the men, all anxious to give any -assistance they could. - -Dr. Burton and Colonel Mandeville very tenderly lifted Carol on to the -ambulance, a faint moan was the only sign of life, but all were glad to -hear even that. Dr. Burton would not make any examination until they -could lay him on a bed, and cut off his clothes. - -There was no question of breaking the news gently to Mrs. Mandeville; -she was returning from a drive as the little girls reached the gates. -They ran to her sobbing broken-heartedly. - -She was very calm, but her face grew deadly white, and wore again the -strained expression which had been so frequent during the sad days of -the war. She could not remain inactive, and walked to meet the sad -procession. - -As soon as Colonel Mandeville saw her, he advanced quickly to her side, -and turned her steps homeward. He would not let her see the boy as he -lay on the ambulance, looking so like death. - -Only Colonel Mandeville was with Dr. Burton when he made the critical -examination. There were no broken bones, he said, but added that there -are things worse to deal with than broken bones, and hinted gravely at -concussion of the brain and spinal congestion. There were two terrible -bruises where he had been caught on the bull's horns. He could not hold -out any hope to them, but desired a second opinion, and a telegram was -at once despatched to a great London physician, who, it was calculated, -would be able to reach Mandeville that night if he caught the evening -express. Then Mrs. Mandeville took her place by the bedside. She could -do nothing, only watch in tearful silence the pallid face that had -become so dear to her, lying so still, so calm, it seemed at times the -lips were breathless. The reply telegram came quickly. Sir Wilfrid -would be able to catch the evening express which would stop at -Mandeville by request. He would reach the Manor about ten o'clock. - -Not until the physician's arrival, when he and Dr. Burton held a -consultation together, did Mrs. Mandeville leave the bedside. She then -retired to her own room for a little time. Miss Markham came to her -there, begging her to go and speak to Percy. "His grief," she said, "is -quite uncontrollable. I have done all I can to comfort him. But nothing -I can say seems to touch him." Mrs. Mandeville went at once to Percy's -room. He had thrown himself undressed on his bed, and was sobbing -hysterically, as she entered the room. - -"Percy, my dear boy, you must not grieve like this." - -As soon as he was aware it was his mother beside him, he flung his arms -round her neck. - -"Oh, Mother, I can never, never, be happy again if Carol dies. If he -had not been there with them, the bull would have tossed my little -sisters. Jane said he stood between them and the bull. He is the -bravest boy, and I--I--called him a--a--" He could not repeat the word -he had so lightly, thoughtlessly uttered a few hours previously. - -"If only I could tell him I did not mean it, and ask him to forgive me, -Mother. Oh! won't he ever be able to speak to me again?" - -"Dear Percy, I hope so. Sir Wilfrid Wynne is with him now, and -everything possible will be done for him. I am sure, darling, he would -not like you to grieve like this. He always has such loving thoughts of -others." The remembrance of all his gentleness and loving thought for -others was too much for Mrs. Mandeville. Clasping her boy closely to -her, she wept with him. Heaven was still to her a locality, and death -the gateway to it; and Carol had always seemed so very near to the -Kingdom of Heaven. - -All the household awaited with cruel suspense the great man's verdict, -trusting to him, forgetful that human skill had failed the boy once -before in his hour of need, forgetful of that friend in Devonshire who -loved him as her own son. No message had been sent to her. - - - - -CHAPTER XII.--THE PHYSICIAN'S VERDICT. - - -Sir Wilfrid Wynne gave his verdict, and it was almost a repetition of -what Dr. Burton had said. He could do nothing. There was little hope -he would regain consciousness. If he did, it would be but a passing -flash before the end. He might linger in his present condition -twenty-four hours or longer; and he might pass away any moment without a -struggle. It would be cruel to wish him to live; the shock to the spine -had been so great, if he lived, he would inevitably lose the use of his -lower limbs. Sir Wilfrid was grieved; he had known the boy's father. He -would gladly have remained, had there been any hope of doing anything -for him. He took his departure by motor-car to catch the mail train at a -junction ten miles distant. - -Mrs. Mandeville returned to her place by the bedside, calm and still, -after her paroxysm of weeping. Colonel Mandeville was with her, and -presently the Rector came into the room. - -"Raymond, pray for him," Mrs. Mandeville said. "He is in God's hands. -No human power can help him." - -They all knelt and the Rector prayed aloud. He did not petition for the -boy's life to be spared. He humbly asked that the hearts of those who -loved him might be submissive to God's all-wise decree. "Thy will be -done," was the dominant note of the prayer. When they rose from their -knees, there was an expression on Mrs. Mandeville's face which no one -had ever seen before. The prayer had not helped her: it was not -submission nor resignation in any degree which had come to her. She -turned to the Rector. - -"I do not believe it, Raymond. This is _not_ God's will. God could not -order anything so cruel to befall a child, so loving and dutiful--whose -faith in God's loving care of him has always been so beautiful to me to -witness. Could I, who know only human love, suffer anything like this -to befall my little Rosebud, or any of my children? Is human love more -pitiful and compassionate than divine love? This dear boy could easily -have saved himself; he stood between the cruel beast and my little -girls. All three of them might be lying as he is lying now but for his -self-sacrifice. Don't tell me it is God's will! If I could believe it, -I would wish I were a heathen, and worshipped a god of wood and stone!" - -The Rector could only gaze in pained astonishment. Such an outburst was -so unlike his usually calm and gentle sister. He judged she was beside -herself with grief. She stood with clasped hands, wide-open eyes, -unseeing, yet seeing, gazing beyond the confines of that room, catching -a momentary vision of that light which 'never was, on land or sea.' - -She became calm again--serenely calm. - -"I see it," she said. "I understand. This is _not_ God's will. It is -not _His_ work. His compassions fail not. His love is over all His -children. With Him is the Fountain of Life. Does He not say, 'I will -redeem them from death'? He will save this dear child from the grave. -Leave me, please. I want to be alone--alone with Carol and God. I want -to realize it. Yes; _God's will be done_. Life, not death, is God's -will. I see it, I see so clearly." - -To her husband she said softly, "I will ring if I want anything, dear. -Don't let anyone come into the room until I ring." - -When all had left the room, and the door was closed, she knelt beside -the bed, with outstretched arms. It was a mother's cry to God for the -life of a child that was as dear to her as her own. Hour after hour -passed, and still she knelt. Words failed her, petition ceased: the -realization came to her that God is Life: in Him we live, and move, and -have our being. In Infinite Life there is no death. Death never is, -and never can be God's will. The knowledge, the understanding of God as -All-in-all vanquishes death! "O, death, I will be thy plagues. O, -grave, I will be thy destruction!" (Hosea XIII., 14.) - -The morning dawned, the bright sunbeams stole into the room. The boy -opened his eyes. "Auntie,"--she was bending over him--"I have been -dreaming. I thought I was in a field, and a bull tossed me high up into -the air. But I knew in my dream, 'underneath are the everlasting arms.' -Then I dreamed again, and two men were turning me about, and moving my -arms and legs, and one said, 'There is not a broken bone, nor even a -dislocation. It's a miracle.' I tried to say 'underneath are the -everlasting arms,' but I could not speak." - -The words were very faint and low. She bent close to catch them, then -stopped them with a kiss, a paean of joy in her heart. He spoke again: -"Auntie, something is hurting me very much. I can't move." - -"Do not try, darling, lie quite still. I will sit beside you and hold -your hand." - -A spasm of pain passed over his face, and he fell again into -unconsciousness. But she had no fear, she knew that death had been -vanquished by the knowledge that had come to her of life. - -A low knock came to the door. She opened it, and found her maid there -with a cup of tea. She took it from her saying: "Tell them all he -lives, and he will live. But I wish to be alone with him for the -present. No one is to trouble about me, I am quite well." - -So she sat down again beside him, waiting and patiently watching, -knowing that he would awake again to consciousness. It was nearly noon -when he opened his eyes and spoke again. His voice was stronger: - -"Auntie, was it a waking dream? Was I really in a field, and a bull -tossed me? I am so aching all over me." - -"Yes, darling." - -"I think I remember now, Auntie. Rosebud and Estelle and Sylvia were -there, and Jane called to me, 'Run, run!' They were not hurt, were -they?" - -"No, darling, not one of them." - -"I am glad. Error is telling me I cannot move my legs and arms, Auntie. -But it is not true. God's child cannot be bound like that. Does Cousin -Alicia know?" - -"I am sorry, Carol. I fear no one has thought to send her word." - -"Will you send word now, Auntie--something quicker than a letter?" - -"A telegram, dear?" - -"Yes, Auntie, and put in, 'Please help Carol'." - -"I will ask Uncle to send the message at once, dear." - -When she opened the bedroom door, she found Colonel Mandeville pacing -the corridor without. As a sentinel he had kept watch there throughout -the night and a great part of the morning. He came into the room, and -stood with one arm around his wife, looking down at Carol. - -"Well, little man, so we are going to cheat the doctors?" - -Carol didn't at all know what 'cheat' meant. - -"Carol wishes you to let Miss Desmond know, dear. Will you wire at -once? And say in the message, 'Please help Carol.' She will know what -he means." - -"I will gladly do so. Dr. Burton is downstairs, Emmeline. He had -better come up now." - -An expression of distress came over Carol's face. - -"Auntie," he said, "don't let the doctor do anything to me, please." - -"No one shall touch you, dear. But I should like Dr. Burton just to see -you. He will tell me what I may give you to eat." - -"I don't want anything, Auntie, only something to drink." - -"Well, dear, he will tell me what will be best for you to have." - -"I would like only water, please." - -"You shall have some, dear, at once, and after that something else, I -hope." - -Dr. Burton came to the room, felt the patient's pulse, took his -temperature, and looked at his tongue, but mercifully refrained from -turning him about, to examine the bruises. - -"I will send some medicine at once," he said to Mrs. Mandeville. "Give -him a dose every hour. He has a very high temperature." - -Downstairs he told Colonel Mandeville: "He may pull through if -meningitis does not supervene." - -But he left the house holding a very strong belief that meningitis would -supervene. Not even the medicine, which was to be given every hour, -could prevent it. - - - - -CHAPTER XIII.--THE RECTOR'S REFUSAL. - - -Mrs. Mandeville remained with Carol throughout the day, suffering no one -to relieve her for one hour. As soon as he was told the telegram had -been sent to Miss Desmond, he rested quite satisfied. But as the day -wore on to evening, Mrs. Mandeville, standing over him, saw he was -suffering acutely. - -"You are in pain, darling," she said. - -"Auntie, please don't ask me. I am trying to deny it. Couldn't you -deny it for me, too?" - -His lips were quivering; tears he strove bravely to keep back were -stealing down his cheeks. How could she deny it? She would have given -anything to be able to do so. - -"Cousin Alicia must have had the telegram by this, Auntie, mustn't she?" - -"Yes, dear; I think so. Being Sunday, it has taken longer to get -through. Uncle has heard from the postmaster at W--, the nearest town, -as the village telegraph office would be closed. The message has been -sent on by messenger on horseback. So I think Miss Desmond must have -received it by this time." - -"She might have been out when it arrived, Auntie." - -"Do you expect to feel less pain, dear, when Miss Desmond receives the -telegram?" - -"Yes, Auntie, I know I shall." - -Seven o'clock--eight o'clock--nine o'clock passed. No reply telegram -came. Mrs. Mandeville wrote a letter to go by the evening post, giving -more details, and describing Carol's great desire to have a message from -her. Dr. Burton came again at night. His instructions had been carried -out. The medicine sent had been given every hour. Still the patient's -temperature was higher, the pain he was suffering more acute, and the -symptoms which pointed to meningitis more pronounced. "If he could -sleep--a long natural sleep might save him," Dr. Burton said. - -During the night Mrs. Mandeville was persuaded to take a little rest on -a couch in the room, whilst Nurse and Colonel Mandeville kept watch -beside the bed. Carol offered no opposition to anything that was done -for him, and drank the medicine without a murmur, when the spoon was put -to his lips. - -In the morning, when Mrs. Mandeville was again alone with him, he said, -"Auntie, I wonder why it hurts me to try to think. I tried so hard to go -to sleep in the night and I could not. Then I began to think about -Jesus when he was a little boy. We are not told that he was ever ill, -and had to lie in bed, are we? But I felt quite sure, if he ever did, -he would do just what his mother wanted him to do, wouldn't he? I know -medicine and the bandages are not doing me any good, but it makes you -happy for me to have them, doesn't it, Auntie?" - -"Yes, darling; it seems all that we can do for you." - -"If you understood Science, you could help me now, Auntie." - -"Indeed then, I wish that I did, Carol." - -"Sometimes the room seems to go dark, Auntie. In the night, two or -three times, it was just as if the lamp went out, then lighted up -again." Mrs. Mandeville understood enough to know this was very grave. - -"Darling, will you try to lie quite still, and close your eyes--try not -to think about anything?" - -"Yes, Auntie, but I do hope a message will come from Cousin Alicia -to-day. You will tell me when it comes, won't you?" - -"Instantly, dear." - -"I wish I could go to sleep, Auntie." - -"I wish so too, my poor, dear boy." - -"Could you move me a tiny bit, Auntie? I ache so lying in the same -position. It seems so strange not to be able to move myself at all. -Error seems very real." - -Gently and lovingly, she tried to ease his position, but the least touch -brought an expression of acute pain. She had to desist. - -The long weary hours of that day passed, but no message, either a -telegram or letter, came from Miss Desmond. Another wire was sent, -asking for a reply. Still none came. Then, later on in the evening, a -message was sent addressed to the housekeeper at Willmar Court, which -quickly brought a reply: "Miss Desmond away. Impossible to forward -messages." - -Mrs. Mandeville told Carol very gently. He did not speak for some time, -and, though he lay with closed eyes, she knew he was not sleeping. - -Then he looked up at her: - -"Auntie, when Jesus was in the boat, and the winds arose, and the waves -surged high around the little boat, Jesus didn't command them at once to -be still. The disciples had to awake him, and he rebuked them for their -little faith. Shouldn't they have waited patiently, knowing it was all -right? Sometimes it seems error has bound me with ropes, and I cannot -move; sometimes it seems like waves washing over me. But I know that -Love is saying to error's angry waves, 'Thus far, and no farther.' And -just at the right moment the command will come: '_Peace, be still_.'" - -Mrs. Mandeville hid her face in the pillow beside him, that he might not -see the tears streaming from her eyes. She had lost again the faith -which for a time had uplifted her to a realization of God's power to -save the boy from death. In imagination she saw a new little grave in -the churchyard with that word "Peace" graven in the marble headstone. -She had been anxious for news from Miss Desmond because Carol wished it -so much. She had little hope or faith that injuries, such as his, could -in any way be alleviated by Miss Desmond's knowledge of Christian -Science. The night passed again, and not for one hour did sleep close -the suffering boy's eyes. He had been unconscious for a time, murmuring -incoherently; but it was not sleep. - -Dr. Burton said very little when he came in the morning; he only looked -graver and sadder. By telegram he had been in constant communication -with Sir Wilfrid Wynne, and he knew that, humanly speaking, nothing more -could be done for the boy than was being done. Yet there was no -progress. - -"How I wish there was something I could do for you, Carol!" Mrs. -Mandeville said, as she sat beside him. - -"Auntie, there is something, if Uncle Raymond will let you have it. I -know I should fall asleep if you read _Science and Health_ to me. I -always used to when I was ill before, and Cousin Alicia read it to me, -even before I began to understand it." - -"I will go to the rectory at once, dear, and ask Uncle for the book. -Promise me to lie with closed eyes; and try not even to think about -anything whilst I am away." - -She would not write, nor send a message, fearing a refusal. As soon as -Nurse came to take her place she left the room, and the house. There was -a path through the park direct to the rectory. It was less than ten -minutes' walk. - -The Rector looked up in astonishment as his sister, hatless and coatless -(it was a chilly September day), entered the room. "What is it, -Emmeline? Is Carol worse?" he asked. Her flushed, distressed face -suggested the question. - -"I do not know if he is worse. He is just as ill as he can be, and is -suffering cruelly. I want you to let me have that book you took from -him, Raymond, _Science and Health_. He thinks if I read it to him he -will fall asleep. He has not slept yet, and this is the third day since -the accident." The Rector's face, which before had been grave and -kindly, now grew stern and resolute. "I am sorry, Emmeline, but I -cannot let you have it. That book will never pass from my hands to his -as long as I am his guardian. He knows too much already of its -pernicious doctrines. Better better--anything than that his faith in -its teachings should be strengthened." - -"Do you mean better that he should die, Raymond?" - -"Yes, Emmeline, better that--even that." - -"Oh, Raymond, how can you hold such a thought? I do not know what the -book is nor what it teaches. But I do know what is the fruit of it; and -who was it said, 'A tree is known by its fruit; a corrupt tree cannot -bring forth good fruit'?" - -"We need not discuss that, Emmeline. We both know whose words those are. -Still, I maintain that the teachings of that book, being pernicious, -cannot bring forth good fruit." - -"But, Raymond, is not gentleness, faith and love--such as Carol's--good -fruit? Jesus to him did not live two thousand years ago. He is living -to-day. He is looking to him, as the disciples looked, when the storm -arose at sea. His love and his faith are beautiful to witness. I have -always tried to teach my children the love of God, but Carol possesses -something I have not been able to give them, because I do not possess it -myself. I think it is understanding. He seems to understand the Bible -much better than I do." - -"I am sorry to hear you speak like this, Emmeline. In any difficulty -why do you not come to me? Surely there are books enough here to -explain, or to throw a light on anything that is not clear to you." - -The Rector looked round at his well-filled book-shelves: old books and -new books; works of the early Fathers and the latest theological -treatise. - -"I cannot explain what it is I want, Raymond. I only know I always seem -to be groping after something, and I cannot find it. But when I am -talking to Carol, I seem nearer to it. Raymond, won't you let me have -that book--just for to-day--I will return it to you to-morrow?" - -"No, Emmeline. Not for one hour." - -"You are cruel, Raymond, when the boy is suffering so, and it is all he -asks you. If there were a shop near where I could buy a copy, I would -straightway do so. I will know for myself what the book teaches. I -shall write to Miss Desmond, and ask her to get me a copy." - -"Of course, Emmeline, if you choose to do that, I have no control over -your actions. I have over Carol's, and I shall exercise it." - -Then Mrs. Mandeville broke down and burst into tears. "Perhaps you -won't have power long. Oh, Raymond! You do not realize how ill he is! -If meningitis sets in, Dr. Burton says it will be a matter of only a few -hours. If I were asking for a Buddhist or a Mohammedan book, it would -be right for you to let me have it." - -"No, my dear sister. I am not a believer in the doctrine that the end -justifies the means. I will pray for Carol, and for you too. I am sorry -to see you so overwrought." - -"Then you absolutely refuse, Raymond?" - -"I do, Emmeline--absolutely." - -Without a word Mrs. Mandeville turned and left the room. - - - - -CHAPTER XIV.--"HE GIVETH HIS BELOVED SLEEP." - - -Softly and lightly as Mrs. Mandeville re-entered Carol's room, he heard -her. He had been listening for her footsteps, whilst obedient to her -desire, lying with closed eyelids. - -She was spared the pain of telling him she had been unsuccessful. He -read it in her face. - -"Auntie, dear, please don't look so troubled. Uncle Raymond does not -understand. It is quite all right. Love can always find a way." Mrs. -Mandeville almost smiled through her unshed tears. How great was her -love for the boy, yet she could think of no way by which what he wanted -could be immediately procured. Even she did not fully realize how he -was waiting and yearning for that healing touch, which comes - - 'More softly than the dew is shed - Or cloud is floated overhead.' - -Nurse left the room, and Mrs. Mandeville again took her place by the -bedside. - -In less than an hour a maid came to the bedroom door, asking in a -whisper, "Can I speak to you a moment, ma'am?" - -"What is it, Withers?" Mrs. Mandeville asked. - -"A Mr. Higgs from the village is downstairs. He came to inquire after -Master Carol. He said he would like the young gentleman to know he has -walked from the village to the Manor." - -The words were spoken at the door very softly, but Carol heard. - -"Oh, Auntie, I am glad!" he said. "Could Mr. Higgs come here? I should -like to speak to him." - -"Darling, I am afraid it will excite you to see him. The doctor's -orders are that you are to be kept perfectly quiet." - -"It won't excite me, Auntie; and what makes me very happy cannot hurt -me." - -"You may bring Mr. Higgs to see Master Carol since he wishes it so much, -Withers." - -No one but those who were nursing him had been admitted to the room. -The maid was surprised as she took the message, and then brought the old -man to the room. - -"God bless 'ee, Master Carol, God bless 'ee. Aye, I don't know how to -say it often enough, when I think it's all along o' the blessed truth -you taught me I'm free of the rheumatiz. I met Farmer Stubbins on my -way, and he says, 'Why, Higgs, you're walking along quite spry. What's -become o' your rheumatiz?' 'Gone, thank the Lord,' says I, 'never to -return.' 'Oh! and what may you have done to get rid of it?' he asks, -being crippled himself with the same. 'I ain't done nothing,' I -replied. Then I says, 'Farmer Stubbins, you and me was boys together, -and we sang in the village choir. Do you mind there's a verse in the -Psalms--aye, we've sung it many a time; but we just didn't think o' the -words--it was the music we thought about. "He sent His word and healed -them." That's just what the Lord has done. He has sent His word and -healed me, and He sent it by the mouth of one of His dear children.'" - -Carol's face was radiant with joy. Anxiously watching him, Mrs. -Mandeville could not fear that the old man's talk could harm him. - -Then, after fumbling in his coat pocket, he drew forth a little book -carefully folded in soft paper. - -"I've got it, Master Carol. It came this morning--the little book -you've told me about. My daughter wrote for me. We didn't quite know -where to write, so we just addressed the letter: 'Christian Science -Church, London,' and a kind lady has sent me this book. It isn't quite -new, and she writes that I shall value it more if it costs me something. -I am just to pay what I can, and send the money as I am able." - -He was unfolding the paper covering as he spoke, and then held out a -small copy of _Science and Health_. - -"Oh, Auntie, isn't Love beautiful! You see Love _has_ found a way. Mr. -Higgs will lend it to you to read to me a little time--won't you, Mr. -Higgs?" - -"I'll be very happy to, Master Carol." - -Mrs. Mandeville took the book with almost a feeling of awe. It had come -so wonderfully, yet so simply. She thought of the words: "He sent His -angel." - -She pointed to a chair, saying, "Please be seated, Mr. Higgs, whilst I -read. Is there any particular part you would like me to read, Carol?" -she asked, turning over the pages. - -"No, Auntie--just open the book; let Love find the place." - -"Carol, you so frequently speak of Love as of a personality. What do -you mean, dear?" - -"Auntie, God is Love. But when we speak of God, it seems we must bow -our head, and think reverently of the great 'I Am.' But when we speak -of Love--we can just creep into Love's arms, and ask Love anything." - -"Even to find a place in a book," Mrs. Mandeville said with a smile. - -"Yes, Auntie--even that." - -Then she opened the book. It opened at page 494, and the first sentence -she read was: "Divine Love always has met and always will meet every -human need." - -A smile rested on the boy's face, his sufferings were forgotten, as the -dear familiar words fell on his ear. Love had not failed him. - -Mrs. Mandeville never knew afterwards how long she read. She became -entranced, absorbed. - -When she turned to look at him, he was asleep. She quietly rose, and -with one whispered word asked Mr. Higgs to follow her. - -Withers was still waiting without. - -"Take Mr. Higgs to the housekeeper's room, Withers, and ask her to give -him a substantial tea. Then send word to the stables--when he is -ready--I wish Parker to drive him to his home in my basket chaise. It is -only a step from the ground. You will easily get in and out. I am -deeply indebted to you for coming this afternoon, Mr. Higgs. My dear boy -needed sleep so much. It was vitally necessary for him. He was so sure -he would sleep, if I could read _Science and Health_ to him, and I did -not know how to procure a copy of the book." - -"May I leave this with you, ma'am?" - -"If you will be so kind for a day or two." - -"Isn't Love beautiful!" the old man said to himself, repeating Carol's -words, as he followed the maid to the housekeeper's room. - - - - -CHAPTER XV.--LETTERS AND TELEGRAMS REACH COUSIN ALICIA. - - -Carol's sleep lasted two hours. Then he awoke, with something of his -old bright smile. Mrs. Mandeville was still watching beside him. - -"Auntie, I have been asleep." - -"Yes, darling, I know. I have been watching you. It was a beautiful -sleep. I thought as I sat beside you of the words, 'He giveth His -beloved sleep.' I am sure you are better for it." - -"Yes, Auntie, it was lovely, and my back doesn't hurt me quite so much. -But I cannot move my legs yet." - -"Do not try, dear." - -"Did I dream it, Auntie, or were you reading _Science and Health_ to -me?" - -"It was not a dream, dear. Mr. Higgs came and brought the book, and he -has left it with me." - -"I remember now, Auntie. Was it not nice of him to come? Has any -message come yet from Cousin Alicia?" - -"No, love; I cannot understand why the letters and telegrams are not -forwarded to her." - -"There is some reason, I know, Auntie. We shall understand by and by." -She gave him some soda and milk, which was all the doctor would let him -have. - -"I should like to see Rosebud, Auntie. Couldn't she come for a little -while?" - -Mrs. Mandeville had already admitted one visitor against orders. Dare -she act on her own responsibility a second time? She began to realize -how much the doctor's fears of developments, which might or might not -follow, were influencing her, though, happily, she was not able to -influence Carol. He had no fear. - -"I think it must be almost Rosebud's bedtime, dear; but she shall come -for a few minutes." - -After sending a message to the nursery for Rosebud, her eye fell on the -medicine bottle. "Oh, Carol, I didn't give you your medicine this -afternoon. It was just time for it when Mr. Higgs came, and afterwards -you were asleep. It is time again for it now. I see it must be fresh -medicine; it is a different color." - -"Auntie, Mr. Higgs was my doctor, this afternoon. The medicine he -brought sent me to sleep, and I do not ache quite so much. Must I take -this drug medicine as well?" - -Mrs. Mandeville had poured out a dose, and now held the glass in her -hand. - -"You are right, Carol. I can see a decided improvement. I will not ask -you to drink this." - -She emptied the contents of the glass away. A few minutes afterwards -Rosebud's sweet voice was piping at the door: - -"Me's 'tome to see Tarol." - -Mrs. Mandeville lifted her up to kiss Carol, very carefully guarding her -from touching him anywhere. - -"You must only kiss Carol, darling." The little arms were about to twine -themselves around him. "Me does 'ove 'ou, Tarol, so welly much." - -The boy would have liked to hold her closely to him, but he could not -raise an arm. - -"It does make me so happy to see Rosebud again, Auntie. Perhaps -to-morrow I shall be able to see all my cousins." - -Mrs. Mandeville did not say, but she thought it would be many -"to-morrows" before he would be strong enough to receive them all in his -room. - -"Now run back to the nursery, darling," she said to the wee girlie. - -"Take a good-night kiss to Sylvia and Estelle, will you Rosebud?" Carol -said. Then she had to be lifted up again to receive a kiss for -"eberybody." - -Mrs. Mandeville sat silent by the bedside for some time after Rosebud -left the room. Then she said in a very low, soft voice, "Do you -remember, Carol, coming to my room one day when I lay prostrate with one -of my bad headaches?" - -"Yes, Auntie; I remember quite well." - -"I was very ungrateful, Carol, I would not let myself acknowledge it was -your little prayer that took it away. Yet I knew it was, for I had -never lost a headache like that before." - -"Yes, Auntie, I knew Christian Science had helped you. But I thought -you did not understand." - -She kissed him very tenderly. "I am not ungrateful any longer, dear. I -acknowledge the debt. Now I must not let you talk any more or Dr. -Burton will insist upon having a trained nurse. He has suggested it -several times." - -"He couldn't keep you away from me, could he, Auntie?" - -"I think he would find it a trifle difficult, dear." - -"But I want you to go downstairs to dinner to-night, Auntie. Uncle will -like to have you, and Nurse will stay with me." - -"Perhaps I will go then, for an hour, dear." - -So, later on, to everyone's surprise Mrs. Mandeville appeared at the -dinner table, and was so bright they all knew, without asking, that -Carol was improving, though he had not been pronounced out of danger. - -Nurse was quietly making all the needful little preparations for the -night when Carol asked her to place the clock where he could see it as -he lay in bed. - -"The nights seem so long when I cannot sleep, Nurse. I like to watch -the fingers of the clock, then I know how long it will be before the -light can peep through the curtains." - -Nurse found a position where he could see it quite well, even though he -could not raise his head from the pillows. Then, standing over him, she -said: "Dearie, you are in pain. Couldn't I ease your position just a -little?" - -"No, Nurse, please don't touch me, the bruises seem so real. I ought to -be able to deny them, and I cannot." - -"And would it make them better to deny them, Master Carol?" - -"Oh, yes, Nurse. You are thinking the bruises are very sore and -painful, are you not?" - -Yes, Nurse was decidedly dwelling in thought upon the pain the boy must -be suffering from such a bruised condition. - -"If you could think, Nurse, that there is no sensation in matter, that -the pain is all in mind: in my mind and your mind, and Auntie's and the -doctor's. You are all thinking how I must be suffering. If only -someone would help me to deny it!" - -"I wish I could, Master Carol." - -But it was double Dutch to Nurse to try to understand that the pain was -in mind, and not in the poor bruised body. - -It was half-past nine when she moved the time-piece so that Carol could -see it, and he at once began to count how many hours it would be till -morning. At ten o'clock Mrs. Mandeville returned to the room, followed -by Dr. Burton. Nurse held up a warning finger as they entered: the boy -was asleep. - -"This is splendid! How long has he slept?" the doctor asked. - -"It was just after half-past nine, sir. He seemed in great pain, I -thought there was no hope of sleep for him, and all at once he just -dropped off without a word." - -It was such a beautiful sleep, calm, peaceful, untroubled by fret or -moan. Mrs. Mandeville and the doctor watched beside him an hour; then -the doctor left, and Mrs. Mandeville was persuaded to go to her own room -for a night's rest, leaving Nurse in charge. They did not know, nor -could they have understood had they known, how, far away, a woman, 'clad -in the whole armour of God,' was fighting for him: fighting error with -'the sword of the Spirit.' - -Letters and telegrams had at last reached Cousin Alicia. - - - - -CHAPTER XVI.--"IT IS A MIRACLE." - - -The next morning about eight o'clock, Nurse came to Mrs. Mandeville's -room, an expression of amazement, almost of consternation, on her face. - -"What is it, Nurse? Is Master Carol worse?" Mrs. Mandeville asked in -alarm. - -"No, ma'am; I cannot say he is worse. He says he is well, and wants to -get up for breakfast. He slept all through the night, just as you left -him, and never wakened till half-past seven this morning. He is -certainly not feverish or delirious, but he talks so strangely. He says -error has all gone, and he is free. I had quite a difficulty to prevent -him from getting out of bed to come to you. I have sent a messenger for -Dr. Burton." - -"That is right, Nurse. Go back to him. I will come at once." Mrs. -Mandeville was not long slipping into a morning wrap, and following -Nurse to Carol's room. - -As soon as she reached the bedside, he sprang up, and held her in a -close embrace, both arms round her neck. "Auntie, Auntie, isn't it -beautiful? I am free! Error has quite gone. I know Cousin Alicia has -had the telegrams now. You can rub your hand down my back. It does not -hurt me now, nor the bruises." - -"Carol, dear, I cannot understand it. It seems so wonderful. I am -afraid you ought not to be sitting up like this." - -"Oh, Auntie, there is nothing to be afraid about. Error cast out cannot -come back again. I am so hungry. I do want to get up to breakfast." - -"Darling, you must lie still until Dr. Burton has seen you. I could not -consent for you to get up yet. It does indeed seem beautiful for you to -be so much better, I cannot realize it, and I cannot understand, Carol, -why Miss Desmond's prayers for you should be so quickly answered, when I -am sure I love you just as dearly. I prayed for you, and Uncle Raymond -prayed, yet--yet I cannot feel that our prayers helped you." - -She had tenderly laid him back upon the pillow. She could not get rid -of the fear that it was not good for him to be using his back. - -He was silent a few minutes, the old thoughtful expression on his face -which she knew so well. Then he said: - -"Auntie, the sun was shining this morning long before Nurse drew aside -the curtains, and let the light into my room. Suppose while the curtain -was drawn I had kept saying, 'Please, dear sun, do shine into my room, -and send the darkness away.' It would have had no effect. It would -have been foolish, wouldn't it? Well, Auntie, the light of Truth, like -the sunlight is everywhere, but we can shut it out of our consciousness -by a curtain of false beliefs. Cousin Alicia has not asked God to make -me better. She has just known that God's child is always perfect. As -Nurse drew aside the curtain to let in the sunlight, she has drawn aside -the curtain of false beliefs that were around me, and then Truth came -and healed me. Jesus said 'the Truth shall make you free.' It is just -as true, Auntie, as if he had said, 'When light appears, darkness -disappears.' Wherever Truth appears, error shall flee away, because it -is not from God. It is the opposite of God's law. I love that beautiful -verse of the hymn more than I have ever loved it, because I can say -again: - - 'The healing of the seamless dress - Is by our beds of pain.' - -Christ is Truth, and Truth is the Christ. I was asleep when he came to -me. But just as Jesus spoke to the angry waves the Christ has commanded -error, 'Peace, be still.' Oh, Auntie! cannot you believe I am quite -well? 'I am the Father's perfect child. I have the gift from God, -dominion over all.'" - -She was longing to realize that it was as the boy said, and she had -nothing to fear. Yet it was difficult. - -Dr. Burton was out when the messenger from the Manor went for him. He -had not returned from a night case to which he had been summoned. Mrs. -Burton promised that he would go immediately on his return. Shortly -after ten o'clock Dr. Burton arrived, expecting to find from the urgent -message that had reached him a change for the worse in his patient. He -was considerably taken aback as he entered the room to hear a ripple of -laughter, and the boy with a radiant face, sitting upright in bed, who, -the day before, had not been able to raise his head from the pillow. - -"What does this mean?" Dr. Burton asked in a tone of voice in which -surprise became almost consternation. - -"I cannot tell you anything, Doctor, except that Carol slept all night -and woke this morning feeling quite well and hungry. He has had a -fairly substantial breakfast," Mrs. Mandeville said. The doctor then -thoroughly examined him, felt his pulse, took his temperature, and when -he looked on the places where the terrible bruises had been, and saw -only a faint discoloration, he said: - -"It is a miracle!" - -"No, Doctor," said Carol, quietly, "it is Christian Science." - -"Then what is Christian Science?" the doctor asked. - -But the boy was silent. He could talk to his aunt on the subject, but -not to the doctor. - -At that moment a maid brought a telegram to Mrs. Mandeville. It was -from Miss Desmond. She read it, and passed it on to Dr. Burton. It was -brief: "Letters and telegrams reached me 9.30 last evening. Regret -unavoidable delay. Kindly wire if all is well. Letter to Carol -follows." The doctor and Mrs. Mandeville simply looked at each other in -speechless wonderment, one thought engrossing them. It was shortly -after 9.30 the night before that Carol fell into the sleep from which he -had awakened well. - -"It is at last a message from Cousin Alicia," Mrs. Mandeville then said -to Carol. "Our letters and telegrams did not reach her till 9.30 last -evening." - -"Yes, Auntie, I knew it, and I know she has worked for me all night." - -Both Mrs. Mandeville and the doctor would have liked to understand what -the boy meant by that one word "worked." But neither questioned him -then. - -"I can get up now, Doctor, cannot I?" Carol asked. - -"Yes, there is no reason that I can see for keeping you in bed. All the -same," turning to Mrs. Mandeville, "I should say he may as well be kept -fairly quiet for a day or two--not commence running races, or any other -juvenile sports." - -"You can trust me, Doctor," Mrs. Mandeville remarked, smiling. - -"It seems to me you should consult the lady who has worked for him all -night with such marvellous success. I can scarcely consider him my -patient now." - -"Doctor, I thank you very much for all you tried to do for me. You were -very kind and gentle to me." - -"Tut-tut, boy! Why, that's of course." - -All the same the doctor was pleased with the boy's simple recognition of -his services. He would indeed have done more, had he been able. He -walked home slowly and thoughtfully, pondering that question, which he -had asked the boy, thinking of a lecture which he had given a few weeks -before in a crowded parish room; how he himself had answered the -question--What is Christian Science?--to the convulsive amusement of his -audience. He had dipped into a book--the text-book of Christian -Science--made copious extracts and so satisfied himself that he -understood the subject sufficiently to be able to warn people against -the teachings of Christian Science. - -Mrs. Burton was watching for his return. She was anxious for news of the -boy, fearing the early message which had been sent for the doctor must -mean that he was worse. By her side, in the garden, seated in a little -wheel-chair, was her only child, a girl of ten, who after a fall -downstairs when she was five years old, causing an injury to her spine, -had lost the use of her legs. There seemed no hope of her ever being -able to walk again, since all the doctors who had seen her had not been -able to do anything for her. - -"How is the boy?" asked Mrs. Burton, as the doctor entered the garden in -front of the house. - -"He is well," was the brief reply. - -"You don't mean?--" Mrs. Burton began in an alarmed tone. - -"I mean exactly what I say--the boy is well." - -"But, dear, how can that be, when he was so ill yesterday?" - -"I cannot tell you. He says it is Christian Science. I say it is a -miracle." - -"Father, he won't lose the use of his legs, will he?" the little girl -asked. - -"No, Eloise, I think there will be no such effects from the fall, as -unhappily there were in your case." - -"I am glad, Father, he is such a nice, kind boy!" - -The child had grieved, fearing that he might be crippled like herself. - -"Christian Science must be different from what you described at the -lecture, dear. Do you think I might go and see Carol? I should like to -hear from him what it is that has made him well so quickly. I owe Mrs. -Mandeville a call." - -"Go and pay it, then. Perhaps the boy will talk to you. He did not -seem to care to answer my questions." - -The doctor passed into the house with the thought that he would borrow -that book again, and see if he could get a better understanding of the -subject himself. - - - - -CHAPTER XVII.--MRS. BURTON VISITS CAROL. - - -Shortly after the doctor left Carol's room, the maid entered to say the -Rector was downstairs. Could he come up? - -"I will speak with the Rector before he comes upstairs," Mrs. Mandeville -said, and left the room for that purpose. - -The news had reached the Rector that Dr. Burton had been sent for early -that morning, and he also surmised that the boy must be worse. But the -servants had assured him that such was not the case before Mrs. -Mandeville joined him in the library. - -"What is this I hear about Carol, Emmeline? He is not worse, yet you -sent for Dr. Burton before breakfast. I felt quite alarmed." - -"We could not understand it, Raymond. I must confess to feeling afraid -it was not true. Carol is quite well. Dr. Burton admits it. He says -it is a miracle. Carol says it is Christian Science. Dear Raymond, I -want to beg you before you see Carol not to say anything to shake his -faith. It is so beautiful." - -"His faith in what? In that heresy called Christian Science, which is -neither Science nor Christian?" - -"Oh, Raymond, I cannot help thinking you are mistaken in your judgment. -I do not, as I told you before, quite understand what Christian Science -is, but this I know, I have never met a character so Christ-like as -Carol's. All day yesterday he lay in such pain from those terrible -bruises, and the injury to his spine and head, that we could not move -him in the effort to ease his position without increasing the pain. -To-day it is all gone. What has taken it away? He says the -Christ--Truth has come to him and healed him. If we believe Jesus' -words: 'Lo, I am with you always even to the end of the world'--why -should it not be true? Cannot the spiritual Christ say as Jesus so often -said, 'According to your faith be it unto you'?" - -"Of course! But that is not Christian Science." - -"Yes, Raymond, that is what Carol seems to have learned from Christian -Science. Heaven to him is not a far-off locality, it is here--all around -him, and God is ever-present Love. His one thought--his one desire -seems to be to possess that Mind which was also in Christ Jesus. What -can you say against such teaching?" - -The Rector had evidently nothing to say. He remarked briefly, "If I may, -I will go up and see the boy now. I am pressed for time." - -"Yes, Raymond, he will be pleased to see you." - -She let him go alone, and did not afterwards inquire what had passed -between the boy and his uncle. - -Later in the day Mrs. Mandeville took Percy to Carol's room. The boy -had begged so frequently to be allowed to see his cousin. "Just to tell -him I am sorry," he said. - -Carol had forgotten all about it. - -"Sorry for what, dear Percy?" he inquired, when Percy, in faltering -accents, asked to be forgiven. - -"Oh, I think I remember now, Percy, you said something that was not -quite kind, but I knew at the time that you did not mean it. So why -should we remember any more about it?" - -"You are just the bravest fellow I know, Carol. I have told all the -boys at school how you stood and faced the bull. They think a -tremendous lot of you for it. So it won't matter when you come with us -if you can't play football or cricket. You will be the hero of the -school." - -Then Mrs. Mandeville left the boys together for a little while. Percy -was only too delighted to be able to tell Carol of all that was -happening at school, the matches that had been played, and those that -were to come off shortly. - -When Mrs. Burton called that same afternoon, she expressed her great -desire to see and talk with Carol. Mrs. Mandeville readily assented, -remarking that she felt sure Carol would be delighted to see her. As -there were other visitors present, she was not able to accompany her -herself. A maid therefore conducted her to Carol's room. Nurse was -sitting with him. As Mrs. Burton intimated that she had come to have a -little talk with Master Carol, she left the room. - -"Eloise sends her love to you, dear Carol. She is so happy to know you -are so wonderfully better. We feared so much that you, too, might be -crippled for life, as she has been, by a fall. The spinal concussion -caused her to lose the use of her legs. We have consulted the first -specialists, but they have never been able to do anything for her. When -the doctor told me this morning how miraculously you have been healed, I -felt I must come and ask you to tell me something about it. Tell me, -dear Carol, what is Christian Science?" - -The boy looked up, but not at Mrs. Burton. That far-away dreamy look -came to his eyes, which his cousins knew so well. It was such a big -question to try to answer. It seemed minutes before he spoke. Then he -said: "I think Christian Science means knowledge--a knowledge of God; -and as we gain this knowledge we draw nearer to Him. Cousin Alicia used -to tell me we are all God's children, but we have wandered so far away -from Him. We are prodigals, dwelling in that far country where we are -fed, like the swine, on husks. Christian Science just teaches us the -way back to our Father's house; and as we find the road and walk in it, -we lose the evils that tormented us. Jesus was our elder brother who -never left his Father's house. Although he lived on earth, it was still -his Father's house, because he lived always in the consciousness of -good. And that is what we have to try to do. It seemed easier when I -was with Cousin Alicia." - -There was just a note of sadness and regret in the boy's voice. - -"What a beautiful thought, Carol, 'living in the consciousness of good.' -But, dear, how can we do it, with sickness, sorrow, and sin, all around? -When I look at my wee girlie, I can never know joy or happiness; her -young life to be so cruelly blighted through the carelessness of a maid. -Every child I see running about free and happy is like a dagger in my -heart, as I know that she should be the same." - -"When Cousin Alicia came from America after my mother's death, I was -very ill, and the doctors said I could never be better. But she knew -that I could. She said, 'You are God's child, dear Carol, and all God's -children are spiritual, and therefore perfect. Awake from this dream of -suffering and pain.' Every day she used to talk to me, until she led me -to understand what it is to live in the consciousness of good, and then -I was well." - -"Oh, Carol, it seems too wonderful to be true! Do you think that -something might be done for my little girl?" - -"Why, of course. I am sure if you will take her to my home, Cousin -Alicia will teach her as she taught me. She is always so happy to teach -people about Christian Science. Shall I write and tell her you will take -Eloise to her?" - -"Thank you, dear Carol, but I think, perhaps, before you write, I must -ask Dr. Burton. If he is willing, I will gladly take my little girl to -Miss Desmond." - -Mrs. Burton did not stay much longer. On leaving, she tenderly kissed -Carol. "Dear boy, you have given me hope. You cannot think what it has -been to a mother's heart to be so long hopeless," she said. - -The little crippled Eloise was watching from her nursery window for her -mother's return. Mrs. Burton went straight to her. - -"Have you seen Carol, Mother?" she asked. - -"Yes, darling, and I have had such a sweet talk with him. He has made -me so happy. I seem to see you running about like other children." - -"Oh, Mother, wouldn't that be lovely! And is he really well?" - -"It seems so, dear. Mrs. Mandeville is keeping him quietly in his own -room to-day. But he seemed so well and happy. He wants me to take you -into Devonshire to stay with his cousin. He says she will teach us what -she has taught him--and then--Oh, Eloise, my darling, you, too, would be -well and strong, no longer a little crippled girl." - -"What is it, Mother, that he has been taught?" - -"It seems something so wonderful and beautiful, dear. He says that -dwelling in the consciousness of good is dwelling in our Father's house, -but, like the prodigal son in the parable, we have wandered away into -that far country where all sorts of evils can befall us. My girlie, we -will try to find our way together into this happy understanding of good -which causes the fetters to fall. I will speak to Father to-night and -ask him to let me take you." - -"Do--_do_, please, Mother." - -Mrs. Burton waited that evening until it was past the hour for patients -to call at the surgery. Then she went to her husband's consulting-room. - -The doctor was sitting at his desk, an open letter before him. His pen -was in his hand, but he was not writing. The answer to the letter -seemed to require much thought. It was only partly written. - -"Are you very busy, dear?" Mrs. Burton said, softly twining one arm -around his neck. She was almost nervous. It was a great request she was -about to proffer. She did not quite know how it would be received. - -"Not particularly, love, if you want anything. What is it?" - -"I want to tell you I had a beautiful talk with Carol this afternoon, -and he is so kind as to ask me to take Eloise to stay with his cousin at -his home in Devonshire, that she--that she might teach us what she has -taught him. You know, dear, we have done everything we can--there is no -other hope for her." - -"And you think there may be hope in this--Christian Science?" - -"I feel sure of it--since I have seen Carol." - -The doctor smiled. The humor of the situation struck him. He pointed -to the open letter on his desk. - -"That letter," he said, "is from the Vicar of B-- asking me to give in -his Parish Room the lecture which I gave at B--." - -"Oh!" There was an accent of pain in Mrs. Burton's voice. "You are not -going to?" - -"Why do you object? The lecture was well received, you remember." - -"Yes, but even at the time when the people laughed and applauded, it -seemed to hurt me. I couldn't help thinking if these people, who call -themselves Christian Scientists, believe so absolutely in the Christ -healing, it was what the early Christians believed, and practised, and -they were persecuted. When Christ spoke to Saul of Tarsus, he did not -say, 'Why persecutest thou my followers?' He said 'Why persecutest thou -_me_?' - -"So I felt that night that the laughter and ridicule of all in the room -were as stones thrown not at people, but at the Christ. Don't tell me, -dear, that you are going to give that lecture again." - -"I am not. That boy's radiant face would come between me and any -audience I might think to address. I have commenced a letter to the -Vicar, telling him I feel I cannot lecture on the subject again." - -"And I may take Eloise to Willmar Court?" - -"You may. Should she regain the use of her legs, as a result of the -visit, I will espouse the Cause I once derided. After witnessing -Carol's marvellous recovery, it does not seem impossible." - - - - -CHAPTER XVIII.--HAPPY THOUGHTS. - - -After Mrs. Burton left Carol, Edith came and had tea with him, and after -tea all his cousins were allowed to visit him for a little time. They -could not understand how the sadness and gloom in the house had been -dispelled. It was like the sun shining through clouds on a rainy day. -He was so bright and happy, just their own dear Carol again. There was -one subject of which he never spoke to his cousins; so they could not -know why, the day before, the house was hushed, and he could not be seen -because he was so ill, and to-day there seemed nothing at all the matter -with him. - -When Mrs. Mandeville went the round of the children's rooms after -dinner, she found Carol waiting for her in the old way, just as if there -had been no break, no agony of sorrow and suspense. - -"I hoped to find you asleep, darling," she said. "Has it been too much -excitement having so many in your room?" - -"Oh, no, Auntie. I loved to see them all again. I have had such happy -thoughts. Isn't it nice to be kept awake by happy thoughts? Happy -thoughts are good thoughts, and good thoughts come from God. Shall I -tell you, Auntie, dear, what I have been thinking about?" - -"Wouldn't it be better to tell me in the morning, dearie? It is rather -late for a little boy who was an invalid only yesterday to be kept awake -even by happy thoughts." - -"I would rather tell you to-night, Auntie. You do not quite understand, -do you, that when error is cast out, it is done with, and we do not need -to remember anything about it." - -"Then tell me, love, what you have been thinking about." - -"I began first of all, Auntie, thinking about Peter." - -Mrs. Mandeville's thoughts at once went to the stables, where one of the -horses was named Peter. - -"Peter, dear?" Just a note of surprise in her voice. - -"Yes, Auntie, when Jesus called Peter to come to him on the water, at -first he was not afraid, and he got out of the boat to go to him. Then -he began to be afraid, and as soon as fear crept in, he began to sink. -Auntie, I was just like that. At first I was not afraid of the bull. I -knew God had given me dominion, and I was trying to realize it. Then -the moment I began to be afraid, the bull tossed me. As I was thinking -of this perhaps I fell asleep, and it was a dream. But it was so real. -I seemed to see Peter standing by the bed, but he didn't look like the -picture in the stained-glass window, and he spoke so kindly and gently. -'Little brother,' he said, 'you have not learned to trust the Master -yet.' It was just as if he remembered there was a time when his faith -had failed. I wanted to ask him something, but he was not there, and I -was quite wide awake. May it perhaps be, Auntie, that as Christ 'walks -life's troubled angry sea,' they are with him, those disciples who were -always with Jesus, especially Peter, and James, and John; and they are -working now, doing his bidding, as they did it in Galilee, watching over -and helping those who are still fighting?" - -"It may be, Carol, we cannot tell. It seems that events which happened -two thousand years ago are to you but as yesterday." - -"Why, yes, Auntie; time in God's kingdom is not measured by years and -weeks and months. I shall just love now to think about Peter, and know -that my faith will grow stronger, as his did. There are many people who -would not have been afraid of the bull. Cousin Alicia told me of a lady -in India who, one day, came quite close to a cobra. But she was not -afraid, and as she stood quite still and looked at it, the cobra coiled -itself into a heap and went to sleep. Then she told me of a gentleman -who was shooting game in Africa, and once he was in a position when he -could not fire, and a leopard was only a few yards from him, but the -animal did not attack him, it ran away into the desert. The lady and -the gentleman knew and realized that they had dominion; I hope I shall -understand it better some day, and not be afraid of anything." - -"You have been taught some strange things, Carol, still they are -beautiful; it seems almost too beautiful to be true." - -"Oh, Auntie, nothing can be too beautiful to be true, because only good, -and good is always beautiful, is real; evil, and evil is always ugly, is -unreal." - -"Carol, darling, I wish I could believe that. You are leading me in -strange paths. I must not let you talk any more to-night. I am quite -sure that it is time a little boy, who has lost so much sleep lately, -tried to make up for it." - -But as she bent over him to kiss him, he clung both arms around her -neck, keeping her a willing captive for some minutes longer. - -"Auntie, I am so longing for Cousin Alicia's letter," were his last -words as she left the room. - - - - -CHAPTER XIX.--THE REASON OF THE DELAY. - - -The next morning Carol rose at his usual time, and breakfasted with his -cousins in the school-room. Miss Markham looked at him with puzzled -eyes, especially when he told her he was quite ready to begin lessons -again. She could not understand it. There seemed to be some mystery -connected with his marvellous recovery from what everybody believed to -be serious injuries. She took the opportunity, when his cousins were -out of the room, to ask him quietly, "What has made you well so quickly, -Carol?" - -"Ask Auntie, please, Miss Markham, I am not allowed to talk about it," -he replied. Miss Markham's wonderment was considerably increased, for -Mrs. Mandeville had only told her, when the boy first came to the Manor, -that he had been taught religious tenets which were altogether -unorthodox. She did not then connect that remark with the boy's quick -recovery. He often made remarks which surprised her. Sometimes she -pondered over a remark he had made, and found there was more in it than -at first had appeared. If she attempted to draw him out by questions, -he became strangely silent and reserved. Once, it was during a history -lesson, Carol exclaimed, "But evil could have no power, Miss Markham, if -everyone knew that God--good--governs. If we had no belief in evil, -evil could not hurt us." - -Thinking over the words afterwards, Miss Markham admitted to herself -that to acknowledge the omnipotence of God, must deprive evil of any -power. But she wondered how it was Carol had come to see it so clearly. -She could not, however, draw him to talk any more on the subject. After -breakfast Mrs. Mandeville came to the school-room with the longed-for -letter in her hand, and, as permission was readily given, Carol went to -his own room to read it. Eagerly he broke open the envelope, and read: - -"WILLMAR COURT, - SOUTH DEVON. - -"_My dear, dear Carol,_ - -"The telegram in answer to mine this morning has just arrived. I waited -for it before commencing my letter to you. I rejoice for you, Truth has -triumphed, error has fallen. When I returned to the Court last night, -after being absent since Saturday afternoon, I found telegrams and -letters awaiting me. On learning that the first telegram asking for -help for you was more than three days old, I had to fight error on my -own account, before I could fight it on yours. How quick error is to -find the weak parts of our armor. My human love for you, darling, -opened wide the portals, and a crowd of wrong thoughts rushed in. I -found myself wondering why it should have so happened that I should be -away, when I seemed most wanted, and under circumstances which made it -impossible for the telegrams to be sent on. - -"Then, in this sudden tempest of doubts and fears which had rushed upon -me, came the words, calm, sweet, tender: 'I, if I, be lifted up, will -draw all men unto me.' And I knew, I was absolutely sure, however great -were the sense sufferings, Carol had held steadfastly to Truth: the -Christ was lifted up; and, though he may not know it, some human heart -has been drawn nearer the eternal Truth, Christ. - -"Then I commenced to work for you, and when the roseate hues of early -morning began to steal into the room, the knowledge came to me that -there was nothing more to fight--error was overcome. All is well, even -the delay which at first seemed altogether wrong. Now I will tell you -the reason of it. On Saturday afternoon I was driving your pony in the -small basket carriage, which you so often used. (Since they cannot have -their little master, both Bob and the pony think the next best thing is -to take me about.) I am becoming well acquainted with all the beautiful -lanes in the neighborhood, for I frequently take these little -excursions. - -"We were three or four miles from home, when, in a very narrow lane, -where it was impossible to pass another vehicle, we met a farmer, -driving a dog-cart. The farmer showed his reluctance to be the one to -back out of the lane. He accosted me with these words: 'Ma'am, I am in -great haste; it is a matter of life and death.' - -"'Indeed,' I said, 'is it the doctor you are in haste to reach?' - -"'No,' he replied, briefly, 'the doctor has given her up. It is the -lady that lives at Willmar Court I want to see.' - -"'Then you have not far to go,' I said. 'She is here. What is your -trouble?' Then he told me that his only child, a girl of seven, was -believed to be dying. The doctor gave no hope of saving her. 'It seems -the news of your beautiful healing has spread through the neighboring -villages, and the grief-stricken parents of this little girl thought -there might be hope for her.' - -"I told the farmer I would go with him, and straightway sent Bob home -with the pony, bidding him to tell the servants I should return as soon -as possible, but not to trouble if I did not return that night. - -"As soon as we had backed out of the lane, the farmer drove furiously, -and it was not long before we reached his homestead. I found the belief -of death so strong surrounding the child, that it seemed necessary to -remain there. - -"In two days it was overcome, but I stayed another day to give the -wearied mother a good rest. The farmer drove me home last night, when I -found everyone sadly troubled. They had begun to fear I was never going -to return, and Bob could not give them any idea as to who had driven -away with me. The letters and telegrams from Mandeville naturally added -to their anxiety. - -"Now, all is well: Good was governing--Love leading all the time. I -cannot yet understand how it was the bull tossed you. Were you not able -to realize your dominion? or was it the mesmerism of fear that seized -you? Mrs. Mandeville mentions in her letter that you stood between your -little cousins and the bull. My dear boy, of course you would! I could -not imagine your doing otherwise. Doubtless the nurse's fear and the -cries of the little girls affected you--the contagion of thought. Had -you been quite alone, I feel so sure that you would have been able to -realize your God-given dominion. - -"Tell me more when you write (I am longing for a letter) of the old man -and his little grand-daughter. Work always comes to willing hands and -loving hearts, and what work is, or ever can be, so beautiful as work -for the Master in His Vineyard. Never think any service little. Merely -carrying even a cup of cold water will in no case lose its reward. But -the joy of working--_of being allowed to work_--is sufficient. We do -not look to the reward. - -"With loving thoughts, - Believe me always, dear Carol, - Your affectionate cousin, - ALICIA DESMOND." - -Before returning to the school-room, Carol sought his aunt in her -morning-room. After reading his letters, he always took them to her, -and asked her to read them too. They were not, perhaps, always as -intelligible to her as they were to the boy, but they never failed to -interest her. She was conscious of a growing desire to know the writer, -whom she had never met. Later in the day Carol received another letter, -delivered by hand. It was from Mrs. Burton, joyfully telling him the -doctor was willing for her to take Eloise into Devonshire to his cousin. - -He wrote immediately to Miss Desmond, asking her if she would invite -Mrs. Burton and her little daughter to the Court, explaining the reason. -He knew the invitation would not be long in coming. - - - - -CHAPTER XX.--"LIGHT AT EVENTIDE." - - -On the following Sunday evening Carol appeared at Mr. Higgs' cottage at -the usual time. - -It seemed almost impossible to believe there had been a break, and that -for three days he had lain, to mortal sense, between life and death. So -entirely had the cloud rolled away, it was difficult to realize it had -ever darkened the horizon. - -"I wasn't expecting you, Master Carol, but I'm right glad to see you. -It do seem so wonderful that just this time last Sunday all the village -was waiting for news from the Manor, and I was that sad thinking I'd -never have you come to see me again. The Rector prayed for you in -church. I was there for the first time for well-nigh two years. 'Well, -well,' I said to myself, 'if the Lord takes him, His will be done.' -But, oh, I prayed as I've never prayed since we lost our first child -that He wouldn't." - -"You do not understand then yet that death can never be God's will. -Didn't Jesus say, 'I am come that they might have life, and that they -might have it more abundantly'? If Jesus came to bring us life, does -not that show that God never sends death?" - -"Well, Master Carol, as you put it, maybe it is so, but I'm an old man, -and it's what I was taught as a boy, and the belief's grown up wi' me, -and somehow I wouldn't like to give up the thought. It's the only thing -that makes the parting bearable--to think God wills it. We put it on -the headstone where we laid our little girl. _Thy will be done_. Aye, -I've stood and looked at them words many a time, and they sort o' -comforted me. She was our first-born." - -"There is another verse which says 'to know God is everlasting life.' -In everlasting life there can be no death, can there? Just think of -this: If the sun were never hidden, and you could keep your eyes -steadfastly on the light, you would have no knowledge of darkness--you -would not understand it or believe in it. In the same way when we -understand that God is ALL, we must lose the thought of and belief in -death. There is no death to those that know we live and move and have -our being in God-Life. Death could not steal one of God's ideas--His -children--and destroy it. What seems to die is not God's child. What -you buried in the churchyard was not your little girl, and what they -cast into the sea, was not my father. They are still living. It is only -that we do not see them. You know Jesus says, 'In my Father's house are -many mansions.' They have passed on to another mansion--that is all. -My cousin has taught me that the mansions Jesus spoke of are not afar -off in a locality called Heaven. We are to-day--you and I--dwelling in -one of God's mansions, and it is a higher or a lower mansion according -as we dwell in the consciousness of good. We have to take all the steps -up to that special place which Jesus has gone to prepare for us. If we -are not ready for it, we shall not be able to enter it, even if we have -passed through the door called death. We have to fight and overcome all -that separates us from God. Jesus overcame everything. He put sin and -disease under his feet, and we have just to follow in his steps, knowing -that he prepared the way, and is helping us all the time. Perhaps you -did not think when you had rheumatism that it was a shadow between you -and God, did you? You thought it was God's will for you." - -"That's true, Master Carol. I just bowed down to it, thinking God chose -to afflict me for some special purpose." - -"I knew it was not so, when I tried to help you. I always saw you -perfect, as God made you, and you know the shadow disappeared. When I -lay in bed a few days ago, and couldn't move, the bruises seemed so -real, and the pain very great, I couldn't think of them as shadows, but -my cousin was able to do it for me, and all disappeared. Neither my -aunt nor the doctor seemed able to believe it at first, because they do -not understand. Won't it be a happy day when everyone understands that -Truth destroys disease; and when little children have hip-disease -doctors won't hurt them to try to make them better, as they did me?" - -"Did they really?" - -"Yes, and the operation did not make me better. But we will not talk -about it. I ought not to remember anything about it. It was all error. -Shall we have the chapter again from St. John which tells us 'In my -Father's house are many mansions'?" - -"Aye, I mind that chapter well. The words just sink down into my heart, -and stir up something there, and I've wanted to understand them better. -I've thought a lot about it since the last time you talked to me. I -know He is faithful who promised, the 'works that I do shall he do -also.' As I said before, I'm an old man, Master Carol, and I've been -looking for it all my life. Why, I've asked myself, don't His servants -and ministers give us the signs He promised?" - -"And now what you have been looking for all these years has come--the -light at eventide," Carol said softly, looking beyond the old man with -eyes that seemed unconscious of the crimson of the setting sun, as he -caught a glimpse of that marvellous light which 'never was, on land or -sea'--spiritual understanding. - -"You have been healed, and your little grand-daughter, and I, too, in -the way the Master commanded." - -"Aye, it's true, Master Carol. I feel like saying, 'Lord, now lettest -thou thy servant depart in peace, for mine eyes have seen thy -salvation.' It is His salvation. Maybe when you have read me that -chapter from the Bible, you'll read me some pages of the little book -which seems to make things clearer to me, and helps me to understand the -Bible better." - -"I am sorry, I may not," Carol said regretfully, looking at the little -book which lay beside the old man's Bible. "My uncle has taken my copy -of the book away because he did not wish me to read it. It would not be -honorable to read from another copy. It will be given back to me -sometime. I do not know how or when. Auntie asked me not to stay long -this evening, so I will read the chapter now." - -"My daughter'll be sorry she missed coming in. We didn't expect you -to-night, Master Carol. She's very grateful to you; her little girl -seems quite well now. There's been no return o' the fits. An' my -rheumatiz is quite the talk o' th' village. What's took it away? First -one and then another asks. When I tell 'em th' Lord's healed me--well, -well, they just look at me, as if they thunk th' rheumatiz has gone to -my head and turned my brain. Farmer Stubbins says he's coming in one -night to have a talk with me, for he's tried many remedies, but his -rheumatiz keeps getting worse." - -"Give him the little book to read, or tell him to get one for himself," -Carol said. Then he read again the chapter he had once before read. At -the end he closed the book without comment. - -Brightly wishing the old man good-night, he left the cottage. - - - - -CHAPTER XXI.--JOYFUL NEWS FROM ELOISE. - - -Miss Desmond gladly acceded to Carol's desire, and wrote to Mrs. Burton -at once to bring her little girl to stay with her. - -They left for Devonshire the following week. A month passed before -Carol received the promised letter from Eloise. During the time Miss -Desmond wrote to him as usual, but beyond mentioning the pleasure it was -to her to have his friends staying with her, and what a dear interesting -little girl she found Eloise, she did not give any details of their -visit. At the end of the month the postman brought one morning a -delightfully "fat envelope" addressed to Carol in a round, childish -hand. He knew at once it was the long promised letter from Eloise. -There was also a shorter one enclosed from Mrs. Burton. - -Carol read Eloise's letter first. - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My dear Carol,_ - -"I did not forget I had promised to write soon to you. Miss Desmond -seemed to wish me not to write just at first. She said you would -understand. I think she wanted everyone at Mandeville to forget for a -little while all about me. She called it taking their thought off me. - -"Now I have so much to tell you. I do not know how I shall get it all -in one letter. Dear Carol, I am just the very, very happiest little girl -in all the world. I _can walk_. More than that, I can _run_. Isn't it -lovely--wonderful! One night I dreamed that I was walking, and when I -awoke in the morning the dream seemed so real, I felt it must be true. -So I just got out of bed, and I _could walk_. I walked to Mother's -bedside. She was so glad and happy. When we saw dear Miss Desmond at -breakfast time, and I wanted to thank her, and tell her how much I loved -her, she took me to her room, and pointed to a portrait on the wall. -Such a sweet, loving face, with white, wavy hair. 'That, dear Eloise,' -she said, 'is the portrait of the one you must love. I could not have -taken you to the Fountain of Truth to be healed, had she not first shown -me the way.' And oh, Carol, I do love dear Mrs. Eddy. How I wish I -could tell her so! - -"Just for a few days, my legs were so shaky, and I had to keep sitting -down. I only walked about a room. Then I was able to go downstairs. -At the end of a week Miss Desmond and Mother took me the walk you first -took, and I sat down to rest just where you rested on the stump of the -old tree. We waited quite a long time, hoping Birdie would come. And -he did, but he stayed only a minute, chirping--'So glad--so glad.' (It -was just like that.) Then he flew away as if he were in a great hurry, -and that was all he had time to tell us. - -"Miss Desmond said: 'Birdie is always busy about his Father's business.' -Mother looked puzzled, and I too. We could not understand. Then Miss -Desmond said to me, 'God is Birdie's Father too, dear Eloise. Birdie is -a spiritual idea; he has no life apart from God. He has his appointed -work to do in God's Kingdom. All God's ideas reflect Him--reflect Life, -Truth, Love, Goodness. Perhaps Birdie's work is just to voice a note of -joy, of harmony.' - -"That made me think, Carol, if even a little bird has his appointed -task, I, too, must have mine--some work to do for God. I am waiting for -it to be made plain to me. Now I have the desire to do it, Miss Desmond -says, the work is sure to come. Even if it is only a very little thing -at first, I shall be glad to do it. - -"Dear Carol, we are so enjoying staying here, Mother and I. I am so -fond of all your pets, and feed them every day, and talk to them about -you. Before I could walk, Bob used to take me round the grounds in your -pony-carriage, and he always talked so much of you, and the time when he -used to take you about. He will be so glad when you come home again. -All the servants like to hear about you. They love you so much. I have -had to tell them ever so many times about the bull, and how you stood -and faced him, and did not run away. They are so proud of you. 'The -young Master' they call you. I tell Mother, Willmar Court is like a -little kingdom, and you the exiled prince. - -"Father is coming next week to take us home. Until he sees me walking, -I think he cannot quite believe it. He says he wants to have a long -talk with Miss Desmond. - -"With many loving thoughts, dear Carol, I am, - -Your affectionate little friend - ELOISE BURTON. - -"P.S. Mother has helped me just a little with this letter, and now she -is writing to you herself." - - ---- - -Carol could not wait to read Mrs. Burton's letter before giving the -joyful news to Mrs. Mandeville. With both letters in his hand, he ran -to seek his aunt in her morning-room. - -"Auntie, Auntie!" he cried excitedly--"such news! Eloise can walk--more -than that, she can run. Isn't it beautiful?" - -"Really, Carol? Is it really true?" - -"Yes, Auntie, _really_. Will you read Eloise's letter? And oh, may I -tell my cousins?" - -"Tell them that Eloise can walk? Why, certainly, dear." - -"But more than that, Auntie; they will ask what has made her walk, when -every one believed she could never walk again. Mayn't I tell them, -Auntie, Christian Science has done what the doctors couldn't do?" - -"I will think, dear, what you may tell them. Let me see Eloise's letter. -Whilst Mrs. Mandeville read the little girl's letter, Carol opened and -read Mrs. Burton's. - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My dear Carol,_ - -"Eloise herself has written the glad news to you that the use of her -legs is perfectly restored. My joyful gratitude is more than can be -expressed in words. Yet it even seems that the blessing of this -wonderful physical healing is small in comparison with the knowledge we -have gained of the Truth, which Jesus said should make us free. Here, -amidst the lovely surroundings of your beautiful home, I have lost my -old concept of God, and gained instead an understanding of Him, as -ever-present Love: infinite Life, Truth, Love. - -"It seemed so soon after I was able to see and realize this that my -little girl was healed. And oh, Carol, the kindness and gentleness with -which dear Miss Desmond has led us up to this understanding, never -letting us for a moment cling to her, pointing always away from -personality to divine Principle. We must be and are very grateful for -her faithful instruction and example, for her life, so consecrated to -God that the promised signs are given: 'They shall lay hands on the -sick, and they shall recover.' I did not at the time understand your -own marvellous recovery from the effects of the encounter with the bull. -I do now, and I feel, dear boy, we owe you intense gratitude. It was -your steadfast faith in the Christ, Truth, which led me to seek -spiritual healing for my little Eloise. The words come to me: 'I, if I -be lifted up, will draw all men unto me.' For me the Christ was lifted -up, and I was drawn unto Him. May my life henceforth so testify that -others may in the same manner be drawn unto Him. - -"Please convey my very kind regards to Mrs. Mandeville. She will, I -know, rejoice with us. - -"Believe me always, dear Carol, - -Yours lovingly, - M. K. BURTON." - -"It is indeed wonderful and beautiful, Carol," Mrs. Mandeville said as -she returned the little girl's letter. I sincerely rejoice with Dr. and -Mrs. Burton. I know what a sad trial Eloise's paralysis has been to -them." - -Then Mrs. Mandeville became aware that Carol was looking up with -anxiously expectant eyes, awaiting an answer to a question. - -"Dear boy," she said, "if you told your cousins that Christian Science -has made Eloise to walk, they would not understand what you meant. -Indeed, I do not quite understand, myself--yet. I will come to the -school-room with you, and perhaps we can explain to them that Eloise has -been healed by faith in the power of God." - -With that Carol had to be satisfied, though he longed to explain that it -was not faith alone, but faith with understanding: the understanding of -God as All-in-all, Omnipotent, Omnipresent Love. - - - - -CHAPTER XXII.--THE RETURN OF ELOISE. - - -When, the following week, Dr. Burton brought his wife and daughter home, -both he and Mrs. Burton gratefully spoke of the Science which had healed -her. The little girl, in her wheel-chair, had been so familiar an -object of compassion to the villagers that, when they saw her walking, -they wanted to know what had brought it about. Then Mr. Higgs -triumphantly held up a little book. - -"It's all in here, bless the Lord," he said. "What's become o' my -rheumatiz, you ask. I don't know what's become o' it. I only know it's -gone. What becomes o' the darkness when you let the sunshine in? I'm -getting to understand it better every day. There's no need to trouble -what's become o' error when you let the Truth in." - -Then he told them of his little grand-daughter, and how she, too, had -lost something. There was no need to say what. All the village had -known of the little girl's sad affliction. Many listened to him, and -looked curiously at the little book, but only a few believed. It was -easier to attribute the healing to nature, or natural causes, than to -spiritual laws. The return of Eloise was a great joy to Carol. She was -able to tell him much that he wanted to know. He so seldom spoke of his -home, Mrs. Mandeville would have been surprised to know how often he had -to fight against a sick longing for the dear scenes of his childhood, -and the cousin-friend who was now the representative of both father and -mother. - -The Burtons arrived home too late for Carol to meet them at the station, -as he intended. - -The next morning he was an early visitor at their house. Eloise had -only just finished breakfast. - -"Oh, Carol!" - -"Oh, Eloise!" - -In a moment the two children were locked in each other's arms. Between -them was a bond of sympathy which neither could have defined, stronger, -more tender, than the tie of human relationship. Then, joyfully, Eloise -began to tell him all about her visit. She had so many messages to -deliver, and Carol had so many questions to ask, it was lunch time -before they were half through. Dr. Burton came in from his rounds. He -told them that he had called at the Manor, and had gained Mrs. -Mandeville's permission to keep Carol for the rest of the day. - -"Thank you so much, Dr. Burton, I am very pleased to stay," Carol said -in answer. - -Dr. Burton laid both hands on the boy's shoulders. - -"My boy," he said gravely, "the pleasure is ours. We owe you a debt of -gratitude we can never hope to repay." - -The words brought a flush of pleasure to Carol's face. He could not -think that he had done anything to deserve such gratitude. - -After lunch, when she found the trunks had been unpacked, Eloise showed -Carol a little book, Miss Desmond's parting gift to her. It was exactly -like the book that had been given to Carol. He took it from Eloise, as -she held it out to him, but immediately laid it down on the table. -"Shall we do part of the Lesson together, Carol? It will be so nice. I -have done part of it every morning with Miss Desmond." - -"Yes, I used to," Carol said, and Eloise detected a note of sadness in -his voice. - -"Do you study it alone now, Carol?" she said. - -"No, I never study it at all, Eloise. I have not a book. The book -Cousin Alicia gave me Uncle Raymond has." - -"Then we can do it together every week from my book, cannot we?" - -"No, Eloise, Uncle Raymond took my book away because he did not wish me -to study it. Until he gives me permission, I cannot read it with you." - -"I am so sorry, Carol. The Rector always speaks so kindly to me when he -sees me, I should not mind asking him to let you have it again--shall I? -Perhaps he does not know how much you want it." - -"Auntie asked him when I was ill, and he would not. I do not think it -would be any use for you to ask him, dear Eloise." - -"And wouldn't you like to have my book sometimes, Carol?" - -"Not without Uncle Raymond's permission. He is my guardian. I must be -obedient to his wishes. Don't look sorry, Eloise. It is all right. We -can only take one step at a time. It is sure to be given back to me -when I am ready to take another step." - -"Will my book be taken away from me? Father and Mother are both pleased -for me to have it." - -"Why, no, Eloise. The lesson I need to learn is perhaps not the lesson -you need. Everyone who comes into Science has something to -overcome--some particular lesson to master, Cousin Alicia said. Mine is -obedience, cheerful, willing obedience, and every victory of Truth over -error makes us stronger." - -Then with the _gaiete de coeur_ of childhood, the subject was dismissed. -Eloise quickly proposed going to the garden where they spent the -afternoon, Carol teaching her to play croquet. Peals of merry laughter -reached Mrs. Burton as she sat at an open French window, causing her -heart anew to overflow with loving gratitude to the One who had "sent -His word," and her child was made whole. - -When Mrs. Mandeville paid her usual visit to Carol's room that night, -she found him with wide-open eyes, a flush of excitement on his cheeks. -"I have had such a happy day, Auntie," he said. "I do love Eloise so -much, and she loves me, too" (Mrs. Mandeville smiled), "and we both love -Cousin Alicia. Since I came to bed I have been trying to think what love -is, and it seems it is like light, it can never be described in words. -The blind boy in the poem asked, - - 'What is that thing called light, - Which I can ne'er enjoy?' - -No one could tell him to make him understand, could they? So no one -could make anyone understand in words what love is. Just as light comes -from the sun, and we can only see it with our eyes, so love comes from -God, who is Love, and we can only be conscious of it in our hearts. -Isn't it St. John, Auntie, who says we have passed from death unto life -when we love the brethren? Then just as eyes which cannot see the light -are called blind, mustn't it be that hearts which do not love are dead?" - -"It seems to follow naturally your line of reasoning, Carol, though I -cannot say the thought ever occurred to me before. There is one marked -trait in all little children, they are so full of love." - -"Yes, Auntie, especially darling Rosebud. She loves everyone. Do you -remember when I was ill, and you lifted her on the bed, how she said: 'I -do 'ove 'ou so welly much, Tarol'?" - -"Yes, dear, I remember. Rosebud often makes me think of a line of one -of the poets: - - 'For a smile of God, thou art.'" - -"That is just beautiful, Auntie, and it explains why little children -know what love is, before they know anything else, before they even walk -or talk." - -"Yes, Carol, all great poets seem able to grasp some momentous truth, -and give it to the world in a beautiful line or verse." - -"Cousin Alicia has given Eloise a copy of _Science and Health_ just like -the one she gave me, Auntie. Eloise showed it to me, and offered to -lend it to me. But it would not be right for me to read it until Uncle -Raymond gives me permission, would it? Do you think he may when he -knows of Eloise's healing?" - -"He does know, dear. I was talking to him last night about it. He -attributes it to the change into Devonshire, or--or some other reason. -I think he suggested hypnotism." - -"But they took her to Germany some time ago, and that change made no -difference, nor the great German doctor she was under." - -"That is so, dear, still Uncle Raymond will not listen. I think it will -be unwise to talk any more on the subject to him." - -"Do you think then, Auntie, he will not be willing for me to have the -book again until--until I am a man?" - -"I fear that may be so, dear." - -"Oh, Auntie!" - -For a moment the grave eyes filled with tears. The next instant they -were dashed away. "What am I thinking of? Error, error, begone! Love -_can_ find a way, and Love _will_ find a way. It is quite all right, -Auntie," clasping both arms around her neck. - -"Just wait and see! If we are not standing 'porter at the door of -thought' every moment, what a lot of wrong thoughts come trooping in." - - - - -CHAPTER XXIII.--A LONG-DELAYED LETTER. - - -That was an eventful week to Carol. Three or four days after the return -of Mrs. Burton and Eloise it was his turn to open the post-bag. The -daily task of receiving the post-bag, unlocking it, sorting, and then -distributing the contents, was always such a pleasure to the elder -children that they had agreed to take it by turns. - -There seemed an unusually full bag that morning when he emptied the -contents on the hall table. He collected into a little pile all the -letters for the servants' hall, for the school-room, and for Mrs. -Mandeville. Colonel Mandeville was away with his regiment. Quite at the -last he discovered two envelopes bearing the small, neat handwriting -which always called forth an exclamation of pleasure. - -"Two letters this morning from Cousin Alicia, one for Auntie and one for -me!" - -But he faithfully finished his task, and delivered the letters to their -respective owners before opening his own letter. - -Mrs. Mandeville frequently breakfasted with the children when Colonel -Mandeville was away and there were no visitors staying in the house. -Carol found her in the schoolroom. - -Breakfast had commenced. "You have had a big delivery this morning, Mr. -Postman, have you not?" she said. - -"Yes, Auntie, nearly everyone has had more than one letter, and here are -four for you, three for Miss Markham, one for Percy, one for Edith, and -one for me from Cousin Alicia. One of your letters, too, Auntie, is -from Cousin Alicia, and it is quite a fat one. Mine is quite thin. May -I open it, Auntie?" - -"Certainly, dear, I am sure Miss Markham will allow you. We all know -how little people are impatient to read their letters." - -Mrs. Mandeville laid three of her letters beside her plate. The one -bearing the Devonshire post-mark she held in her hand, and presently -drew the contents from the envelope. - -Her face grew very white, her hand trembled as she saw Miss Desmond's -letter enclosed another. Her eyes, suffused with tears, fell on dear, -familiar writing. - -Was it a message from the grave--from that watery grave where the mortal -remains of the brother still so dear to her had been cast? - -Carol meanwhile was devouring his letter, oblivious of everything else. -He read: - -"WILLMAR COURT, - S. DEVON. - -"_My dear Carol,_ - -"Something so wonderful and beautiful has happened. Yet I should not -perhaps use the word 'wonderful,' since nothing can be lost when Mind -governs and controls. The letter which your dear father wrote me just -before his death has at last reached me. - -"Evidently through a mistake at the sorting office it was slipped into -the American mail-bag at Gibraltar instead of the English. My name and -address are almost stamped out, it has been to so many places in the -United States of America and was afterwards sent on to Canada, where it -has also visited many post-offices, before some postmaster or -post-mistress remembered that S. Devon is part of an English county. - -"A letter so important for your future, dear, could not be lost. I am -sending it for Mrs. Mandeville to read, as it is necessary for her and -also your Uncle Raymond to know the contents. They will, I am sure, -observe their brother's last wishes; and one is, that no hindrance or -impediment shall be put in the way of your studying the Science which -has healed you. I am to buy a new copy of _Science and Health_, and -write in it: 'To Carol--from Father.' You see, dear, Love has found a -way, and just the most beautiful way of restoring to you the book you -seemed to have lost, for a time at least. - -"Dearly as you have valued the book before, it will have an added value -with the knowledge that it comes to you expressly by your dear father's -desire. Mrs. Mandeville will, no doubt, let you read (or read to you) -the letter before returning it to me. You will rejoice to learn how -much you were in your father's thoughts at the last. I have ordered a -copy of the book. You will receive it in a very short time. I know how -glad you will be to be able to study the Lesson-Sermons again. How nice -it will be for you and Eloise to do them sometimes together! Dear -little girl! Give her many loving thoughts from me. We miss her very -much. Bob's affections seem about equally divided between his young -master and 'the little lady' as he calls her. - -"Always in thought and deed, dear Carol, - -Your loving cousin, - ALICIA DESMOND." - -Very quietly Carol went to the back of his aunt's chair, and slipping an -arm around her neck whispered softly in her ear: - -"It's all right, Auntie. I knew that Love would find a way, but I -didn't think it would be quite so soon, and such a beautiful way. It is -all in Father's letter." - -Mrs. Mandeville had laid her letters down unread. She could not -disappoint the children, who loved her to breakfast with them, by taking -them to her own room, and she wanted to be alone when she read them. As -soon as breakfast was over, she left the school-room. An hour later -Carol received a message that she wanted him to go to her. - -"You have been crying, Auntie," he said, as he entered the room. - -"Yes, dear, this letter from your father, and my dear brother, has been -a joy and a sorrow to me, bringing back so vividly the remembrance of -him. You will like to read it." - -She gave the letter to Carol, and he at once sat down beside her, and -read it. - -"_My dear Alicia,_ - -"The fiat has gone forth! They give me neither weeks nor days: a few -hours only. The sea has been very rough the past three days. A partly -healed wound has reopened: the hemorrhage is internal. They cannot stop -it. I think of you and my boy, and that Science which stanched his -running wounds, and I wish I knew something of it. I put it off, like -one of old, to a more convenient season. The little book you gave me I -left with some poor fellows in the hospital, intending to get another -copy when I reached England. - -"Much of what you told me comes back, but it is not enough. I cannot -realize it sufficiently. I have absolute faith that if I could reach -England, or even cable to you, the verdict would be reversed. Ah, well! -a greater man than I is supposed to have said: - - 'A day less or more, at sea or ashore, - We die, does it matter when?' - -Somehow, it does seem to matter now. Life--even this life--has -possibilities which I have failed to grasp. With you to help me, it -seems I should have gained a clearer understanding of eternal verities. -A haze--a mist is creeping over my senses. What I have to write I must -write quickly. - -"I think you know by a deed of settlement, executed before I left for -South Africa, in the event of my death, my brother Raymond, and my dear -sister Emmeline, become Carol's guardians. There is no time now to -alter that arrangement in any way, even if I wished. It will be good for -the boy to be with his cousins. He has seen too little of other -children, and Emmeline, I know, will be a mother to him. Both she and -Raymond will respect my last wishes, I am sure. Therefore, I want them -to know it is my desire for Carol to spend three months of every year -with you at his own home, that you may instruct him in that knowledge of -God which has healed him. It is recorded that once ten were cleansed, -and nine went thankless away. He must not belong to the nine. - -"I have explained to Colonel Mandeville my earnest desire that you may -be able to live at the Court, keeping on all the old servants until -Carol is of age. The last time I saw my brother Raymond, the subject of -Christian Science was mentioned, and from the remarks he made, his -bitterly antagonistic views of it, I greatly fear that under his -guardianship Carol may not be allowed to continue the study. Will you -purchase for me a copy of the text-book, _Science and Health_, and write -in it: - -No one will take from the boy his dying father's last gift, and my -wishes regarding it will I know, be paramount with him. He will like to -know that my one regret now is that I did not myself study it when I had -the opportunity. - -"I have faced death before. I am facing it again, as a soldier, and, I -trust, as a Christian. Somewhere it is written 'Greater love hath no -man'-- You know the rest. Perhaps it will count, though it may not have -been love so much as duty prompted the action which is costing me my -life. - -"I would write to Carol, and to Emmeline. I cannot. The pen slips from -my hand." - - ---- - -The concluding sentence and the signature were almost illegible. Mrs. -Mandeville took Carol in her arms, and they wept together. - -"It is so cruel to think he might have been spared to us," she sobbed. - -"Yes, Auntie; he would have been," Carol replied with simple faith. - - - - -CHAPTER XXIV.--A JOYFUL SURPRISE. - - -In less than a week a small parcel arrived by post addressed to Carol. -He knew before he opened it that it contained the little book which he -had so longed for, and which would be, if possible, even dearer to him, -henceforth, from the circumstances under which he regained it. He took -the little parcel to Mrs. Mandeville's room after breakfast, and opened -it there. As he drew the small volume from its cardboard case, he held -it up to show her. Then, opening it, he exclaimed in a tone of great -surprise, mingled with joy: - -"Auntie, it is in dear Father's own handwriting! - - 'To Carol: from Father.'" - -"How can it be?" - -Then, as they examined the writing, they saw that Miss Desmond had cut -the words from her letter. So neatly had the foreign paper been gummed -in, it was not at first noticeable. - -"Was it not lovely of Cousin Alicia to think of it, Auntie?" - -"It was, indeed, dear. You will always realize now that it is your -father's gift." - -"Yes, Auntie; my earthly father's and my heavenly Father's, too. I was -thinking this morning of that lovely verse in Isaiah: 'Before they call -I will answer: and while they are yet speaking I will hear.' And I knew -that Love had answered before I called. Before I knew my need, it was -met. I am glad the letter was delayed so long, because I have learned -so much. 'Every trial of our faith in God makes us stronger,' Mrs. Eddy -says. It did seem at first as if I should have to wait years for the -book, didn't it? I am glad I was so sure that Love could and would find -a way." - -As the boy spoke, the Rector walked into the room. In a momentary -impulse Carol seized the little book which lay on the table, and held it -tightly. A crimson flush suffused his face. The next instant he looked -up at his uncle with fearless eyes, and held out the book to him, -saying, "Uncle Raymond, Cousin Alicia has sent me the little book Father -asked her to get for me, and see--isn't it beautiful?--'To Carol: from -Father,' is in Father's own handwriting." - -The Rector took the book, examined the inscription, but made no remark. - -"Father did not want me to belong to the nine. You would not like me to -either, would you, Uncle Raymond?" - -"To the nine, boy?--What do you mean?" - -"You remember, Uncle Raymond, when Jesus once healed ten lepers, nine -went thankless away. I have been healed, and I must acknowledge it at -all times, else I should be as one of them." - -A frown gathered on the Rector's face. - -"Never speak to me, Carol, of your healing in the same breath with the -healings of Jesus." - -The boy looked sorely pained. For an instant he was silent. In that -instant he asked: - -"Father-Mother God, lead me." - -Then he said: - -"May I ask you a question, Uncle Raymond?" - -"Certainly, Carol; if it is something you want to know." - -"It is something I often think about, Uncle. Are there any 'shepherds -in Israel' now? Can you tell me?" - -"Why, of course, Carol; Israel typifies the Christian world, and God's -ministers are His shepherds." - -"Yes, Uncle, that was what I thought. Is God not angry now with the -shepherds? I often read the 34th chapter of Ezekiel. God was very -angry with the shepherds of that time. He said, 'Woe be to the -shepherds, because they had not healed that which was sick, nor -strengthened that which was diseased, nor bound up that which was -broken, neither had they sought out that which was lost.'" - -"There have been times in history, Carol, when God's ministers--His -shepherds--have been able to heal the sick, but for generations the -healing power has been withheld. - -"Yes, Uncle, I understand that. For many centuries before Jesus came -the healing power had been lost. He brought it back, and taught his -disciples how to heal the sick. Then at the end of only three centuries -it was lost; and again after many centuries God has sent a messenger to -bring it back, but not everyone will listen to the message." - -The boy spoke reflectively, as one thinking aloud, not addressing either -his uncle or his aunt. - -"Raymond," said Mrs. Mandeville quickly (she noted the growing anger on -the Rector's face), "Carol has a way of thinking about things he reads -in the Bible. His thoughts have often helped me. He does not mean -to--to reproach you. Will you tell me, dear Raymond, have you ever read -this book which you condemn so strongly?" - -"I have not read it, Emmeline. One does not need to read Mrs. Eddy's -books to condemn them. The press criticisms and extracts I have read -were quite enough for me. Since Carol's father wished him to have a -copy of the book, I cannot keep it from him. Otherwise I should, most -certainly. I can only pray that he may ultimately see the error of its -teaching." - -"The fruit is so good," Mrs. Mandeville said softly. "I can only judge -by that, until I have studied the book myself, which I intend to do. I -think, Carol, darling, you must run back to the school-room now, or you -will be late for lessons. Leave your little book with me. You know it -will be quite safe, and come to me after school." - -After the boy had left the room Mrs. Mandeville turned to the Rector. - -"Now I want to ask you a question, if I may, Raymond, may I?" - -"Why, of course, Emmeline, you know perfectly well I shall be happy to -answer any question you wish to put to me--if I can." - -"It is this, Raymond: the Apostle bids us, 'Let this mind be in you -which was also in Christ Jesus.' How would you define the 'Mind' -simply, that I may grasp it?" - -The Rector's memory went back to a Sunday morning some months before -when he had preached what he considered a very eloquent sermon from that -verse in Philippians. Had his sister forgotten it? - -"Do you forget, Emmeline, that I preached from that text not so very -long ago? I took as the keynote of my sermon, humility--the humility of -Jesus. From the context that was undoubtedly what Saint Paul meant." - -"Yes, Raymond, I remember the sermon perfectly; but I cannot feel that -to possess humility, even in a superlative degree, would be to possess, -as the Apostle commands, the 'Mind' of Christ. Carol was thinking out -this subject, in the way he has of thinking about verses in the Bible, -and the thought he gave me seems nearer to it. He could see only love. -The mind that was in Christ was love. Now, Raymond, if we, at this -moment, possessed hearts full of love we could not criticise or condemn -anyone or any sect. We could not hold up creeds or dogmas, and say, 'It -is necessary to believe this or that because it is a canon of the -Church.' We should just know that we and they had passed from death -unto life when we love the brethren, and all are brethren who look to -the Lord Jesus Christ as an elder brother." - -"It seems to me, Emmeline, that even before reading the book you have -imbibed some of its mischievous statements. Remember, it teaches a -religion of negation. According to Christian Science we have no Heavenly -Father, no personal God; nothing but a divine Principle, an eternal -existence, to worship." - -"Oh, Raymond, you do make a mistake. How can you infer that if you have -not studied the book?" - -"My authority, Emmeline, for the statement, is Dr. Hanson. He wrote a -pamphlet on Christian Science, issued by the Religious Tract Society." - -"It seems strange, Raymond, that a man of Dr. Hanson's eminence should -write, and the Religious Tract Society should publish, a statement so -misleading,--a statement which a boy of Carol's years could easily -confute. Carol prays to, and speaks of his Heavenly Father in a way -which, I grieve to say, my own children never do. Only a few minutes -before you entered the room, he said that this little book was a gift -not only from his earthly father but from his Heavenly Father, too. So -how can there be no Heavenly Father to a Christian Scientist? It is true -he speaks more frequently of Him as Divine Love; and it seems to me he -has a more comprehensive idea of God than I have myself, for the thought -has often presented itself to me, how can we, as the Scriptures say, -'live, move and have our being' in Him, if God is a person, according to -our idea of personality? The idea which Carol has given me of God as -infinite Love, filling the universe like light, makes that verse more -intelligible." - -"A discussion such as this, Emmeline, cannot be productive of any good. -I will send you that little pamphlet I mentioned." - -"Thank you, Raymond. I will read it after I have read _Science and -Health_." - -The Rector then changed the conversation, and spoke of the object of his -visit to the Manor that morning. - - - - -CHAPTER XXV.--A LITTLE SERVICE. - - -On the following Sunday evening Carol started at the usual time for Mr. -Higgs' cottage, carrying with him the little, much-valued book and with -it the current _Quarterly_ which Miss Desmond had also sent him. His -surprise was great, on arriving at the cottage, to find Mrs. Burton and -Eloise there. They knew the prohibition was removed, and Carol was free -to read and study _Science and Health_. - -"We thought you would come, Carol," Eloise exclaimed. "We wanted to -hear you read the Lesson-Sermon. It will be quite a little service, -won't it?" - -"Yes, dear Carol; we thought we should like to join you this evening," -Mrs. Burton said. "We are only the 'two or three gathered together,' -but we are all of one mind. So it will be a little service, as Eloise -says." - -Presently Mr. Higgs' daughter and his little grand-daughter came in. - -It was arranged for Mrs. Burton to read the Bible verses, and for Carol -to read the quotations from _Science and Health_. At the close of the -Lesson-Sermon Carol and Eloise sang together, from the Christian Science -Hymnal, the hymn which both knew and loved,-- - - "Shepherd, show me how to go." - -The beauty of the words, and the young voices blending in perfect -harmony, brought tears of emotion to the old man's eyes. - -"Aye, ma'am," he said to Mrs. Burton afterwards, "who but the Shepherd -himself, is leading us into those green pastures where the fetters that -bound us are loosed? There's a many things I can't pretend to -understand, and the old beliefs grip hard, but I just hold on, and know -it must be the Truth which the Master promised should make us free. -It's the tree that is known by its fruits. I'm sorry Rector's so set up -against it. But there, it was the priests and scribes who persecuted -the Master himself. Seems to me it would not be the Truth if the world -received it gladly." - -"I believe you are right in thinking that, Mr. Higgs. In whatever -period of the world's history Truth has been recognized, and -demonstrated, its adherents were always persecuted and stoned. Jesus -reminded his persecutors that they stoned the prophets which were before -him." - -"Yes, ma'am, I know it is the glorious Truth which has loosed my -rheumatiz, and made me free, and I am just ashamed to confess to you and -Master Carol that just lately thoughts I can't get rid of come -tormenting me. In this way: I go sometimes to church, but I feel no -pleasure in the service. It has lost its hold o' me. Then I think o' -Father and Mother, o' blessed memory. They lived and died with no -thought o' beyond what the Rector could give them. It sort o' troubles -me to think I am going away from what they trusted to. The Rector then -was an old man. Why, ma'am, if ever a saint o' God walked this earth, -he was one. If he passed down the village street, you'd see all the -children run to him, clustering round him. When he looked at you, it -didn't seem to need any words: it was just as if he said, 'God bless -you.' His smile was a blessing. So I just ask myself, Why wasn't the -sick healed when he prayed for them, if it was right and God's will for -them to be healed? Surely, he was a servant of God." - -"I propounded a similar question, Mr. Higgs, to the lady I have been -staying with in Devonshire, Carol's cousin, Miss Desmond. It has been my -great privilege to know many saintly characters, whose lives testified -to their faith. My own mother was such a one. Yet, for many years, she -was a great sufferer. I asked Miss Desmond why such loving faith in God -and Jesus the Christ, had not always brought physical healing. What we -call the orthodox church, also Non-conformity, has nurtured souls for -heaven. We cannot, therefore, condemn its teaching. Miss Desmond said it -is not for us to judge or to criticise either individuals or other -churches. We all, individually and collectively, can only grasp the -truth as far as we apprehend it, and we must not harbor a troubled -thought that in becoming Christian Scientists we are leaving any church -to which we once belonged. We are simply moving forward--stepping -upward to a higher platform. It is the law of progression. A child at -school does not regret being moved to a higher class. Neither have we -anything to regret, even if we entirely sever our connection with the -church of our childhood. Even now, for the most advanced Christian -Scientists there is yet a higher platform to be reached, since Mrs. Eddy -says, in _Science and Health_, 'All of Truth is not understood.' All we -have to do at the present is to live up to--to demonstrate, the highest -that we know. You in your walk of life, I in mine; and these dear -children, who, spiritually, have touched the hem of Christ's garment and -have been healed, in theirs." - -"Thank you, ma'am, I'll try to think of it, as you've kindly explained -it. There's another old belief I can't see clearly to get rid o' yet, -though Master Carol tried to make me see it's wrong, and that is 'Thy -will be done,' on the tombstones in the churchyard. I can see that sin -and disease can never be God's will; but death may sometimes be a sort -o' messenger from God to call us home." - -Mrs. Burton smiled. - -"Yes; many poets have eulogized death as a 'bright messenger.' But in -the light of Christian Science we know it cannot be: evil can never -under _any_ circumstance change into good--an enemy--the last -enemy--into a friend. Think for one moment how Jesus taught us to pray -'Thy will be done on earth _as it is in heaven_.' Then ask yourself: Is -death God's will in heaven? If not, then it cannot be on earth. I -quite see now why many petitions have failed to bring an answer. The -pleading lips have besought God to reverse 'His decree,' the decree that -never was His. We learned that, Eloise, darling, did we not, in -Devonshire?" - -"Yes, Mother; and when we quite understood why my lameness was never -God's will for me, I lost it." - -"So the world, Mr. Higgs, must change its old belief, and realize that -death is an enemy which inevitably will one day be destroyed. In God's -spiritual Kingdom, sin, disease, and death find no place. Now I think -we must all bid you good-night, or it will be dark before Carol reaches -the Manor. The evenings draw in so quickly, now. We will walk part of -the way with you, Carol," Mrs. Burton said as they left the cottage. -They had not gone very far when they met Mrs. Mandeville. - -"Auntie," Carol exclaimed joyfully, "were you coming to meet me?" - -"Yes, dear. I found you had not returned. As I did not quite like your -coming alone through the park, I came to meet you." - -After a little conversation with Mrs. Burton and Eloise, Mrs. Mandeville -and Carol walked home together, Carol clinging affectionately to his -aunt's arm. - -"It is nice to have you to walk home with me, Auntie; but I wish you -would never have a thought of fear for me." - -"I'll try not to another time, darling. As I walked along I remembered -something, Carol. Since that day when you came to my room I have never -had one of my old headaches. They used to be so painfully frequent. Did -you charm them away?" - -"No, Auntie; but I knew you had not learned how to 'stand porter at the -door of thought.' So I just stood there for you; and error cannot creep -back when the sword of Truth is raised against it." - -Mrs. Mandeville's only answer was to stoop and kiss the boy's upturned -face. The words, so simple, grave, and sweet, had gone straight to her -heart. - - - - -CHAPTER XXVI.--CONCLUSION. - - -The calendar of months named December, and before it, excited, expectant -little people stood daily, counting first the weeks, then the days to -that one day of all the year which the children love best. - -Carol had to listen again and again to all the wonderful and mysterious -things which always happened at the Manor on Christmas Eve and Christmas -Day. Price lists and illustrated catalogues were the only books in -requisition after lessons were over. The elder children wondered how -they could have bought their Christmas presents if there were no parcel -post. Carol was especially the helper and confederate of the three -little girls in the nursery. He assisted them in choosing their -"surprises," wrote the letters, and enclosed the postal orders; and -certainly, from the marvellous list of things they were able to -purchase, their little accumulated heap of pennies must, in some magic -way, have changed into sovereigns in his hands. The joyful excitement -of the three little girls, when the parcels arrived, gave Carol the -greatest pleasure he had ever known. Only Nurse was allowed to be -present when the parcels were opened, and she promised to lock them -securely away where no one could catch a glimpse until they were brought -out on Christmas eve. - -It wanted only one week to Christmas day, when Rosebud came to the -school-room one morning, saying: "Mover wants 'ou, Tarol." - -Carol went at once to his aunt's room. She was sitting with an open -letter in her hand, a rather graver than usual expression on her face. -"Carol, dear," she said, "for some little time I have been thinking I -ought to let you go home for Christmas. It seems to me it is what your -dear father would wish; but I could not let you take the long journey -alone and there seemed no other way until this morning. I have just -received a letter from a dear old friend in which she mentions that she -will be travelling to Exeter in two days' time. So I could take you to -London to meet her there, and you could travel with her to Exeter, where -Miss Desmond might meet you. I do not like to part with you, even for a -month or six weeks, my 'little porter at the door of thought.'" - -"Auntie, it won't make any difference if I am here, or in Devonshire. I -can still bar the door to error." - -"Yes, dear; I believe you can. It is really not that only. I am -thinking we shall all miss you so. You seem to be everyone's -confederate for their Christmas surprises. Would you rather go, or stay, -dear?" - -"I should be happy to stay here, or happy to go home for Christmas, -Auntie." - -"Yes; I think you would, dear. So we must consider other people. Miss -Desmond, I know, would rejoice to have you, and it seems the right of -both tenants and servants to have the 'little master' amongst them at -Christmas. So I have decided it will be right to let you go." - -But when this decision was made known in the school-room and nursery -there were great lamentations. No one had given a thought to the -possibility of Carol not being with them for the Christmas festivities; -and Mrs. Mandeville was besought again and again not to let Carol go -home before Christmas. - -But, having well considered the matter, she was firm. A telegram was at -once despatched to Miss Desmond apprising her of the arrangement. The -answer that quickly came satisfied Mrs. Mandeville that she had been led -to make a right decision. Brief but expressive was Miss Desmond's wire: -"Great rejoicings on receipt of news. Will gladly meet Carol at -Exeter." - -There was yet another little person to whom the news was not joyful. -Eloise's lips quivered and her blue eyes filled with tears when she -heard. Carol was so much to her, and she to him. She thought of him as -a brother; and a sister of his own name could not have been more -tenderly loved by the boy. The bond between them was closer and dearer -than that of human relationship. - -"It will be only just at first, Eloise, that we shall seem to be far -apart. Then you will be able to realize there is no distance in Mind. -At first, when I came here, I seemed to be so far away from Cousin -Alicia; but I never feel that now. I just know her thought is with me, -and thought is the only real. It will be lovely to hear her voice -again, and to feel my hand clasped in hers, but still that won't make -her very own self nearer to me." - -"I do not quite understand--yet, Carol," Eloise answered a little sadly. -Then she had some news to give him. Early in the New Year the Burtons -were going to live in London. True to his promise, Dr. Burton was -giving up his medical practice, and was going to join that little band -of men and women whose lives are consecrated to the work of destroying -the many manifestations of sin and disease, in the way the Master -taught. - -"And, when you come back to the Manor, Carol, we shall not be here." - -Eloise in one sentence regretfully summed up the situation. - -"I shall miss you, dear Eloise. But you will write to me, and I shall -write very often to you, and when I go home in the summer, perhaps Mrs. -Burton will let you come, too. Then Cousin Alicia will be happy to have -both her children in Science with her." - -"That will be lovely, Carol! I am sure Mother will like me to visit -Miss Desmond again. It seems a long time to look forward to, but time -really passes very quickly. Sometimes the days are not long enough for -all I want to do. I am to go to school when we live in London. All the -beautiful things I have longed for are coming to me. Carol, I do wish -every little girl and every little boy knew how to ask Divine Love for -what they want. When I am older that is the work I want to do,--to -teach other children as Miss Desmond taught me." - -"And I, too, Eloise. Love is so near, but we didn't know it till we -learned it in Science, did we?" - -"No, Carol; I didn't know it, when I used to sit all day in my little -wheel-chair, longing to walk like other children. It was like living in -a dark room until some one came and opened the shutters to let the -sunlight in. The sunlight was there all the time, but I did not know it. -I was God's perfect child all the time, but I believed I was lame, until -Miss Desmond taught me the Truth." - -"When I go to bed, Eloise, thoughts come to me. I tell them to Auntie -sometimes, but not to any one else. Shall I tell you what I was -thinking last night?" - -"Please, Carol, I should like to know." - -"I began first by thinking if any one asked me, where is heaven, I -should answer: Heaven is where God is. Then I remembered, God is -_everywhere_. There is no place where God is not. Then I knew that -everywhere must be heaven, and we have only to open our eyes, and just -as much as we can see of good--God--just that far we shall have entered -heaven. So it won't matter, Eloise, if you are in London, and I am in -Devonshire, if we are both looking steadfastly all the time to see only -good around us, we shall both be entering the Kingdom of Heaven. There -is only one gate--a golden gate--into that Kingdom, and 'Christ in -divine Science shows us the way.'" - - ---- - -The little country station seemed to be quite full of people when the -train that was to carry Mrs. Mandeville and Carol to London drew up at -the platform. The hour they were to leave had become known in the -village, and, besides all his cousins, their nurses and Miss Markham, -Mr. Higgs, his daughter and grand-daughter, Dr. and Mrs. Burton, and -Eloise were there. At the last moment the Rector hurriedly stalked in. - -"Almost too late, dear Raymond," Mrs. Mandeville said as he greeted -them. - -"So, Carol, I learn you have succeeded in planting Christian Science in -this village." - -The boy looked up with his quiet, fearless eyes. - -"Not I, Uncle Raymond!" - -"Who then?" - -The boy's head was bowed as he reverently answered: "Christ. I am -happy, Uncle Raymond, if I have been a little channel for Truth. I could -do nothing myself." - -Carol met the grave look on the Rector's face with his bright smile. - -"You _are_ glad, are you not, Uncle Raymond, that Mr. Higgs and his -little grand-daughter, and dear Eloise--I, too--have found the Christ, -and have been healed?" - -The engine gave a shrill whistle. Mrs. Mandeville drew the boy farther -into the carriage; a porter closed the door as the train began to move; -the question was unanswered. Mr. Higgs waved his hat, saying fervently, -"God bless 'ee, Master Carol; and bring you back to us soon." - -Eloise ran along the platform, holding Rosebud by the hand, wafting -kisses to be carried to Miss Desmond. When the train was out of sight -and she returned to join the others, she saw the Rector was watching her -with the kindly smile his face used to wear in the days when she was not -able to run about. Clingingly clasping his arm, looking up to him in -her winning way, and remembering the question which to Carol had been -unanswered, she said: "You _are_ glad, are you not, Rector, that I can -run about, and that I have been taught the Truth that makes us free?" - -"Yes, little girl, I am very glad. Perhaps I have been mistaken in my -judgment. Tell me, Eloise, what is this Truth of which you speak?" - -Eloise hesitated a moment; then, looking up beyond the Rector into the -broad blue heavens, she said: "It is just _knowing_ that God is _All_, -and there is nothing beside. All the _real_ God made; whatever He did -not make is shadow. When I quite understood that God could not make an -imperfect thing--that He never, never made a lame little girl--the -shadow disappeared, and I could walk." - -The Rector turned to Mr. Higgs who was standing near. "Is that what my -nephew has been teaching you, Higgs?" - -"Yes, sir; but I've been slower to grasp it. Seems to me the Truth is -very simple, but we need the childlike mind to take it in." - -"Maybe you are right, Higgs--maybe you are right. 'Whosoever shall not -receive the kingdom of God as a little child ... shall not enter -therein.' The Master's words." - -Thoughtfully, with bent head and downcast eyes, meditating deeply, the -Rector walked back to the Rectory. Words very familiar came to him with -a different meaning: "Ye shall know the Truth, and the Truth shall make -you free;" and with the words came a desire that was prayer: "Lord, -teach me this Truth. Grant me the childlike mind." - - ---- - -"Carol, I have been thinking of something," Mrs. Mandeville said, as the -train bore them along. - -"Should you like to know of what I have been thinking?" - -"Please, dear Auntie; I should very much like to know." - -"Well, dear, I have been thinking if it should occur to the young Master -of Willmar Court to send Rosebud and me an invitation whilst he is at -home, we should accept it." - -"Oh, Auntie, what a lovely thought! To have you and Rosebud, and Cousin -Alicia, all together!" - -"I want Miss Desmond, Carol, to teach me some of the things she has -taught you." - -There was a long silence. The boy's heart was too full for words. Then -he said: "Auntie, I know now how the little bird felt when the King -opened the cage door, and he sang and sang for joy. My heart is singing -to _my_ King. I wonder if--perhaps--He will say, some missing note has -come into Carol's song." - -"Indeed, my darling, I think so." - -He nestled closely beside her. Looking down she saw on his face the -reflection of a great joy--a great peace; and she knew that he had just -crept into Love's arms. - - -"He that dwelleth in the secret place of the Most High shall abide under -the shadow of the Almighty.... He shall cover thee with His feathers, -and under His wings shalt thou trust. 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