title. And as in secular affairs lesser men will always bow the knee
to royalty, so the Archbishop felt the necessity of temporising with
one who was spiritually royal. Therefore he considered a moment
before replying.

"I think," he said at last, in soft persuasive tones, "that your
conscience may perhaps be a little tender on this subject. But I
cannot agree with you in your supposition that whole flocks are
starving;--for Christianity dominates the better and more
intellectual part of the civilized world, and through its doctrines,
men are gradually learning to be more tolerant and less unjust. When
we recollect the barbarous condition of humanity before the coming
of Christ--"

"Barbarous?" interrupted the Cardinal with half a smile,--"You would
hardly apply that term to the luxury-loving peoples of Tyre and
Babylon?--or to the ancient splendours of Athens and Rome?"

"They were heathens," said the Archbishop sententiously.

"But they were men and women," replied Bonpre, "And they too had
immortal souls. They were all more or less struggling towards the
fundamental Idea of good. Of course then, as now that Idea was
overgrown by superstitious myths and observances--but the working
tendency of the whole universe being ever towards Good, not Evil, an
impulse to press on in the right direction was always in the brain
of man, no matter how dimly felt. Primitive notions of honour were
strange indeed; nevertheless honour existed in the minds of the
early barbarians in a vague sense, though distorted out of shape and
noblest meaning. No,--we dare not take upon ourselves to assert that