ing order--I do not think you will see the necessity for
many--ahem--changes. But we sadly needed an executive head. And, if I
may say so, Mr. Hodder, you strike me as a man of that type, who might
have made a success in a business career."

The rector smiled again.

"I am sure you could pay me no higher compliment," he answered.

For an instant Eldon Parr, as he stared at the clergyman, tightened his
lips,--lips that seemed peculiarly formed for compression. Then they
relaxed into what resembled a smile. If it were one, the other returned
it.

"Seriously," Mr. Parr declared, "it does me good in these days to hear,
from a young man, such sound doctrine as you preach. I am not one of
those who believe in making concessions to agnostics and atheists. You
were entirely right, in my opinion, when you said that we who belong
to the Church--and of course you meant all orthodox Christians--should
stand by our faith as delivered by the saints. Of course," he added,
smiling, "I should not insist upon the sublapsarian view of election
which I was taught in the Presbyterian Church as a boy."

Hodder laughed, but did not interrupt.

"On the other hand," Mr. Parr continued, "I have little patience with
clergymen who would make religion attractive. What does it amount
to--luring people into the churches on one pretext or another,
sugar-coating the pill? Salvation is a more serious matter. Let the
churches stick to their own. We have at St. John's a God-fearing,
conservative congregation, which does not believe in taking liberties
with sound and established doctrine. And I may confess to you, Mr.
Hodder, that we were naturally not a little anxious about Dr. Gilman's
successor, that we should not get, in spite of every precaution, a man
tinged with the new and dangerous ideas so prevalent, I regret to say,
among the clergy. I need scarcely add that our anxieties have been set
at rest."

"That," said Hodder, "must be taken as a compliment to the dean of the
theological seminary from which I graduated."

The financier stared again. But he decided that Mr. Hodder had not meant
to imply that he, Mr. Parr, was attempting to supersede the dean. The
answer had been modest.

"I take it for granted that you and I and all sensible men are happily.
agreed that the Church should remain where she is. Let the people come
to her. She should be, if I may so express it, the sheet anchor of
society, our bulwark against socialism, in spite of