who will not be set free from themselves by rising above themselves. We are
not to gratify our own benevolence at the expense of its object--not to
save our own souls as we fancy, by putting other souls into more danger
than God meant for them."

"It sounds hard doctrine from your lips, papa," said Wynnie.

"Many things will look hard in so many words, which yet will be found
kindness itself when they are interpreted by a higher theory. If the one
thing is to let people have everything they want, then of course everyone
ought to be rich. I have no doubt such a man as we were reading of in the
papers the other day, who saw his servant girl drown without making the
least effort to save her, and then bemoaned the loss of her labour for the
coming harvest, thinking himself ill-used in her death, would hug his own
selfishness on hearing my words, and say, 'All right, parson! Every man for
himself! I made my own money, and they may make theirs!' _You_ know that is
not exactly the way I should think or act with regard to my neighbour. But
if it were only that I have seen such noble characters cast in the mould of
poverty, I should be compelled to regard poverty as one of God's powers in
the world for raising the children of the kingdom, and to believe that it
was not because it could not be helped that our Lord said, 'The poor ye
have always with you.' But what I wanted to say was, that there can be no
reason why Connie should not enjoy what God has given her, although he has
not thought fit to give as much to everybody; and above all, that we shall
not help those right whom God gives us to help, if we do not believe that
God is caring for every one of them as much as he is caring for every one
of us. There was once a baby born in a stable, because his poor mother
could get no room in a decent house. Where she lay I can hardly think. They
must have made a bed of hay and straw for her in the stall, for we know the
baby's cradle was the manger. Had God forsaken them? or would they not have