,
child, sickness, fear, want, charity, all knock at once at thy closet
door and say,--'Come out unto us.' But keep thy state; come not into
their confusion. The power men possess to annoy me I give them by a weak
curiosity. No man can come near me but through my act. "What we love
that we have, but by desire we bereave ourselves of the love."

If we cannot at once rise to the sanctities of obedience and faith, let
us at least resist our temptations; let us enter into the state of war
and wake Thor and Woden, courage and constancy, in our Saxon breasts.
This is to be done in our smooth times by speaking the truth. Check this
lying hospitality and lying affection. Live no longer to the expectation
of these deceived and deceiving people with whom we converse. Say to
them, 'O father, O mother, O wife, O brother, O friend, I have lived
with you after appearances hitherto. Henceforward I am the truth's. Be
it known unto you that henceforward I obey no law less than the eternal
law. I will have no covenants but proximities. I shall endeavour to
nourish my parents, to support my family, to be the chaste husband of
one wife,--but these relations I must fill after a new and unprecedented
way. I appeal from your customs. I must be myself. I cannot break myself
any longer for you, or you. If you can love me for what I am, we shall
be the happier. If you cannot, I will still seek to deserve that you
should. I will not hide my tastes or aversions. I will so trust that
what is deep is holy, that I will do strongly before the sun and moon
whatever inly rejoices me and the heart appoints. If you are noble,
I will love you: if you are not, I will not hurt you and myself by
hypocritical attentions. If you are true, but not in the same truth
with me, cleave to your companions; I will seek my own. I do this not
selfishly but humbly and truly. It is alike your interest, and mine, and
all men's, however long we have dwelt in lies, to live in truth. Does
this sound harsh to-day? You will soon love what is dictated by your
nature as well as mine, and if we follow the truth it will bring us
out safe at last.'--But so may you give these friends pain. Yes, but I
cannot sell my liberty and my power, to save their sensibility. Besides,
all persons have their moments of reason, when they look out into the
region of absolute truth; then will they justify me and do the same
thing.

The populace think that your rejection of popular standards is a
rej