her full and shapely figure, the girl
appeared to Jose like a vision from the realm of enchantment. And he
knew that she did dwell in the land of spiritual enchantment, where
happiness is not at the mercy of physical sense.

"He hath shewed thee, O man, what is good; and what doth the Lord
require of thee, but to do justly, and to love mercy, and to walk
humbly with thy God?"

"The Lord our God is a right-thinking God, and right-thinking is what
He desires in His people."

Jose thought of this as he looked at Carmen. This barefoot girl, who
walked humbly, trustingly, with her God, had she not supplied him with
a working formula for his every problem, even to the casting out of
the corroding fear planted in his heart by that awful experience in
Maganguey? Though he had suffered much, yet much had been done for
him. The brusque logic of the explorer had swept his mind clear of its
last vestige of theological superstition, and prepared it for the
truth which, under the benign stimulus of this clear-minded child,
would remake his life, if he could now yield himself utterly to it. He
must--he would--ceaselessly strive, even though he fell daily, to make
his life a pattern of hers, wherein there was no knowledge of evil!

The girl came to the priest and leaned fondly against him. Then a
little sigh escaped her lips, as she looked down into his face with
pitying affection.

"Padre dear," she said, in a tone that echoed a strain of sadness,
"I--I don't believe--you love God very much."

The man was startled, and resentment began to well in his heart. "What
a thing to say, Carmen!" he answered reprovingly.

The girl looked up at him with great, wondering eyes. "But, Padre,"
she protested, "were you not thinking of things that are not true when
I came in?"

"No--I was--I was thinking of the future--of--well, _chiquita_, I was
thinking of something that might happen some day, that is all." He
stumbled through it with difficulty, for he knew he must not lie to
the child. Would she ever trust him again if he did?

"And, Padre, were you afraid?"

"Afraid? Yes, _chiquita_, I was." He hung his head.

Carmen looked at him reproachfully. "Then, Padre, I was right--for, if
you loved God, you would trust Him--and then you couldn't be afraid of
anything--could you? People who love Him are not afraid."

He turned his head away. "Ah, child," he murmured, "you will find that
out in the world people don't love God in this day and