"If you are going to muddle your mind with the ravings of a lunatic,
you are not what I took you for. Why, it's regular spiritualism!
Kingdoms of the air indeed! And his cloud of witnesses! Rubbish!"

"He quotes the CLOUD OF WITNESSES from St. Paul," I remarked.

"More shame for him!" replied my friend, with the usual inconsistent
indignation that good Protestants invariably display when their pet
corn, the Bible, is accidentally trodden on. "It has been very well
said that the devil can quote Scripture, and this musician (a good
job he IS dead, I'm sure) is perfectly blasphemous to quote the
Testament in support of his ridiculous ideas! St. Paul did not mean
by 'a cloud of witnesses,' a lot of 'air multitudes' and 'burning,
immutable eyes,' and all that nonsense."

"Well, what DID he mean?" I gently persisted.

"Oh, he meant--why, you know very well what he meant," said Amy, in
a tone of reproachful solemnity. "And I wonder at your asking me
such a question! Surely you know your Bible, and you must be aware
that St. Paul could never have approved of spiritualism."

"'And there are bodies celestial and bodies terrestrial, but one is
the glory of the celestial?" I quoted with, a slight smile.

Mrs. Everard looked shocked and almost angry.

"My dear, I am ashamed of you! You are a believer in spirits, I do
declare! Why, I thought Maskelyne and Cook had cured everybody of