s
first glitter, and was accepted as a commonplace. Through some
misunderstanding or dispute, they broke off their friendly
relationship, feeling sure that they had come to an end of their
regard. They could never again be on the same close terms; hot words
had been spoken; taunts and reproaches had passed; eyes had flashed
fire, and they parted in anger--only to learn that their love for each
other was as real and as strong as ever. The very difference revealed
the true union of hearts that had existed. They had been blind to the
strength of their mutual regard, till it was so painfully brought to
their notice. The love is renewed with a more tender sense of its
sacredness, and a more profound feeling of its strength. The
dissensions only displayed the union; the discord drove them to a
fuller harmony. This is a natural and common experience.

But a mistake may easily be made by confusing cause and effect. "The
course of true love never did run smooth"--but the obstacles in the
channel do not _produce_ the swiftness and the volume of the stream;
they only _show_ them. There may be an unsuspected depth and force for
the first time brought to light when the stream strikes a barrier, but
the barrier is merely the occasion, not the cause, of the revelation.
To mistake the one for the other, may lead to a false and stupid
policy. Many, through this mistake, act as though dissension were of
the very nature of affection, and as if the one must necessarily react
on the other for good. Some foolish people will sometimes even produce
disagreement for the supposed pleasure of agreeing once more, and
quarrel for the sake of making it up again.

Rather, the end of love is near at hand, when wrangling can live in its
presence. It is not true that love is helped by quarrels, except in
the small sense already indicated. A man may quarrel once too often
with his friend, and a brother offended, says the proverb, is harder to
be won than a strong city, and such contentions are like the bars of a
castle. It is always a dangerous experiment to wilfully test
affection, besides being often a cruel one. Disputing is a shock to
confidence, and without confidence friendship cannot continue. A state
of feud, even though a temporary one, often embitters the life, and
leaves its mark on the heart. Desolated homes and lonely lives are
witnesses of the folly of any such policy. From the root of bitterness
there cannot possibly bl