o visit a battle-field and count the slain. Only, not a soul of
those people seemed even to have been wounded. They sang, prayed,
preached, demeaned themselves generally as those who believed that THEY
were the express chosen of the Lord, and greatly enjoyed the notorious
fact.

The series of sermons went on: every night the lad was missing from his
place--gone to see for himself and to learn more about those worldly
churches which had departed from the faith once delivered to the
saints, and if saved at all, then by the mercy of God and much of it.

In the history of any human soul it is impossible to grasp the first
event that starts up a revolution. But perhaps the troubles of the lad
began here. His absences from Sunday night service of course attracted
notice under the chandelier. His bass was missed. Another student was
glad to take his place. His roommate and the several other dormitory
students who had become his acquaintances, discussed with him the
impropriety of these absences: they agreed that he would better stick
to his own church. He gave reasons why he should follow up the pastor's
demonstrations with actual visits to the others: he contended that the
pastor established the fact of the errors; but that the best way to
understand any error was to study the erring. This was all new to him,
however. He had not supposed that in educating himself to preach the
simple Gospel, to the end that the world might believe in Christ, he
must also preach against those who believed in Christ already. Besides,
no one seemed to be convinced by the pastor but those who agreed with
him in advance: the other churches flourished quite the same.

He cited a sermon he had heard in one, which, to the satisfaction of
all present, had riddled his own church, every word of the proof being
based on Scripture: so there you were!

A little cloud came that instant between David and the students to whom
he expressed these views. Some rejoined hotly at once; some maintained
the cold silence which intends to speak in its own time. The next thing
the lad knew was that a professor requested him to remain after class
one day; and speaking with grave kindness, advised him to go regularly
to his own church thereafter. The lad entered ardently into the reasons
why he had gone to the others. The professor heard him through and
without comment repeated his grave, kind advice.

Thereafter the lad was regularly in his own seat there--but with a