Soul," he takes one of his principal characters upon one of seven
Roman hills, and having displayed before him in the most eloquent way
the might of the old Rome, the might as it never existed before and
perhaps never will exist again, he says: "And from all that nothing
is left only crosses! crosses! crosses!" It seems to us that in "Quo
Vadis" Sienkiewicz strained all his forces to reproduce from one side
all the power, all riches, all refinement, all corruption of the
Roman civilization in order to get a better contrast with the great
advantages of the cry of the living faith: _Pro Christo!_ In that
cry the asphyxiated not only in old times but in our days also find
refreshment; the tormented by doubt, peace. From that cry flows hope,
and naturally people prefer those from whom the blessing comes to
those who curse and doom them.

Sienkiewicz considers the Christian faith as the principal and even
the only help which humanity needs to bear cheerfully the burden and
struggle of every-day life. Equally his personal experience as well as
his studies made him worship Christ. He is not one of those who say
that religion is good for the people at large. He does not admit such
a shade of contempt in a question touching so near the human heart.
He knows that every one is a man in the presence of sorrow and the
conundrum of fate, contradiction of justice, tearing of death, and
uneasiness of hope. He believes that the only way to cross the
precipice is the flight with the wings of faith, the precipice made
between the submission to general and absolute laws and the confidence
in the infinite goodness of the Father.

The time passes and carries with it people and doctrines and systems.
Many authors left as the heritage to civilization rows of books, and
in those books scepticism, indifference, doubt, lack of precision and