s of months which followed Angela's departure for
Racine, her return to New York at Myrtle's solicitation, the time she
spent in the maternity hospital, whither she was escorted on her arrival
by Eugene and after. These are the deeps of being which only the more
able intellectually essay, but Eugene wandered in them far and wide.
There were long talks with Myrtle and Bangs--arguments upon all phases
of mortal thought, real and unreal, with which Angela's situation had
nothing to do. Eugene frankly confessed that he did not love her--that
he did not want to live with her. He insisted that he could scarcely
live without Suzanne. There was the taking up and reading or re-reading
of odd philosophic and religious volumes, for he had nothing else to do.
He did not care at first to go and sit with Angela, sorry as he was for
her. He read or re-read Kent's "History of the Hebrews"; Weiniger's "Sex
and Character"; Carl Snyder's "The World Machine"; Muzzey's "Spiritual
Heroes"; Johnston's translation of "Bhagavad Ghita"; Emerson's essay on
the Oversoul, and Huxley's "Science and Hebrew Tradition" and "Science
and Christian Tradition." He learned from these things some curious
facts which relate to religion, which he had either not known before or
forgotten, i.e., that the Jews were almost the only race or nation which
developed a consecutive line of religious thinkers or prophets; that
their ideal was first and last a single God or Divinity, tribal at
first, but later on universal, whose scope and significance were widened
until He embraced the whole universe--was, in fact, the Universe--a
governing principle--one God, however, belief in whom, His power to
heal, to build up and overthrow had never been relinquished.

The Old Testament was full of that. Was that. The old prophets, he
learned to his astonishment, were little more than whirling dervishes
when they are first encountered historically, working themselves up into
wild transports and frenzies, lying on the ground and writhing, cutting
themselves as the Persian zealots do to this day in their feast of the
tenth month and resorting to the most curious devices for nurturing
their fanatic spirit, but always setting forth something that was
astonishingly spiritual and great. They usually frequented the holy
places and were to be distinguished by their wild looks and queer
clothing. Isaiah eschewed clothing for three years (Is. 22, 21);
Jeremiah appeared in the streets of the c