or the last twenty minutes. When that ceased she would
know that he was come.

How strange and wonderful it was to be here--on this night of all, when
the President was to speak! A month ago he had assented to a similar
Bill in Germany, and had delivered a speech on the same subject at
Turin. To-morrow he was to be in Spain. No one knew where he had been
during the past week. A rumour had spread that his volor had been seen
passing over Lake Como, and had been instantly contradicted. No one knew
either what he would say to-night. It might be three words or twenty
thousand. There were a few clauses in the Bill--notably those bearing on
the point as to when the new worship was to be made compulsory on all
subjects over the age of seven--it might be he would object and veto
these. In that case all must be done again, and the Bill re-passed,
unless the House accepted his amendment instantly by acclamation.

Mabel herself was inclined to these clauses. They provided that,
although worship was to be offered in every parish church of England on
the ensuing first day of October, this was not to be compulsory on all
subjects till the New Year; whereas, Germany, who had passed the Bill
only a month before, had caused it to come into full force immediately,
thus compelling all her Catholic subjects either to leave the country
without delay or suffer the penalties. These penalties were not
vindictive: on a first offence a week's detention only was to be given;
on the second, one month's imprisonment; on the third, one year's; and
on the fourth, perpetual imprisonment until the criminal yielded. These
were merciful terms, it seemed; for even imprisonment itself meant no
more than reasonable confinement and employment on Government works.
There were no mediaeval horrors here; and the act of worship demanded
was so little, too; it consisted of no more than bodily presence in the
church or cathedral on the four new festivals of Maternity, Life,
Sustenance and Paternity, celebrated on the first day of each quarter.
Sunday worship was to be purely voluntary.

She could not understand how any man could refuse this homage. These
four things were facts--they were the manifestations of what she called
the Spirit of the World--and if others called that Power God, yet surely
these ought to be considered as His functions. Where then was the
difficulty? It was not as if Christian worship were not permitted, under
the usual regulations. Catholi