, who had known this experience, "Mine
own familiar friend in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath
lifted up his heel against me." And another Psalmist sobs out the same
lament, "It was not an enemy that reproached me, then I could have
borne it, but it was thou, a man mine equal, my guide and mine
acquaintance. We took sweet counsel together, and walked into the
house of God in company." The loss of a friend by any of the common
means is not so hard, as to find a friend faithless. The trustful soul
has often been disillusioned thus. The rod has broken in the hand that
leaned on it, and has left its red wound on the palm. There is a
deeper wound on the heart.

The result of such a breakdown of comradeship is often bitterness, and
cynical distrust of man. It is this experience which gives point to
the worldling's sneer, Defend me from my friends, I can defend myself
from my enemies. We cannot wonder sometimes at the cynicism. It is
like treason within the camp, against which no man can guard. It is a
stab in the back, a cowardly assassination of the heart. Treachery
like this usually means a sudden fall from the ideal for the deceived
one, and the ideal can only be recovered, if at all, by a slow and
toilsome ascent, foot by foot and step by step.

Failure of one often leads to distrust of all. This is the terrible
responsibility of friendship. We have more than the happiness of our
friend in our power; we, have his faith. Most men who are cynical
about women are so, because of the inconstancy of one. Most sneers at
friendship are, to begin with at least, the expression of individual
pain, because the man has known the shock of the lifted heel. Distrust
works havoc on the character; for it ends in unbelief of goodness
itself. And distrust always meets with its own likeness, and is paid
back in its own coin. Suspicion breeds suspicion, and the conduct of
life on such principles becomes a tug-of-war in which Greek is matched
with Greek.

The social virtues, which keep the whole community together, are thus
closely allied to the supreme virtue of friendship. Aristotle had
reason in making it the _nexus_ between his Ethics and his Politics.
Truth, good faith, honest dealing between man and man, are necessary
for any kind of intercourse, even that of business. Men can do nothing
with each other, if they have not a certain minimum of trust. There
have been times when there seems to be almost