this history. Then as the time of departure drew near another thing
happened. Her stepmother, Mrs. Humphreys, insisted upon going to a ball
in Lent, where she caught a chill that developed into inflammation of
the lungs and killed her.

The result of this visitation of Providence, as Thomas called it, was
that Dorcas suddenly found herself a rich woman with an income of quite
2000 pounds a year, for her father had been wealthier than she knew.
Now temptation took hold of her. Why, she asked herself, should Thomas
depart to Africa to teach black people, when with his gifts and her
means he could stop at home comfortably and before very long become a
bishop, or at the least a dean?

Greatly daring, she propounded this matter to her husband, only to find
that she might better have tried to knock down a stone wall with
her head than induce him to change his plans. He listened to her
patiently--unless over-irritated, a perfectly exasperating patience was
one of his gifts--then said in a cold voice that he was astonished at
her.

"When you were poor," he went on, "you vowed yourself to this service,
and now because we are rich you wish to turn traitor and become a seeker
after the fleshpots of Egypt. Never let me hear you mention the matter
again."

"But there is the baby," she exclaimed. "Africa is hot and might not
agree with her."

"Heaven will look after the baby," he answered.