he said quite calmly.

"Nothing can excuse the suffering of the good."

"God's designs are inscrutable."

The dying man flung out his emaciated arms. His eyes became hollow.

"You are a liar!"

"Enough," said the priest. "I have listened patiently to your
ramblings and feel sorry for you. But there's no good arguing. You
must prepare to appear before God, from whom you seem to have lived
apart. If you have suffered, you will be consoled in His bosom. Let
that suffice for you."

The invalid fell back and lay still for a while. He remained
motionless under the white spread, like a reclining sepulchral statue
of marble with a face of bronze.

He regained his voice.

"God cannot console me."

"My son, my son, what are you saying?"

"God cannot console me, because He cannot give me what I want."

"Ah, my poor child, how far gone you are in your blindness! Why did
you have me summoned?"

"I had hopes, I had hopes."

"Hopes? Hopes of what?"

"I do not know. The things we hope for are always the things we do not
know."

His hands wavered in the air, then fell down again.

"Time is passing," said the priest and began all over again.

"Tell me the circumstances of your sin. Tell me. When you were alone
with this person, when you two were close together, did you talk to
each other, or did you keep quiet?"

"I do not believe in you," said the man.

The priest frowned.

"Repent, and tell me that you believe in the Catholic religion, which
will save you."

But the other man shook his head in utter anguish and denied all his
happiness.

"Religion--" he began.

The priest interrupted brutally.

"You are not going to start over again! Keep quiet. All your
arguments are worthless. Begin by /believing/ in religion and then you
will see what it means. I have come to force you to believe."

It was a duel to the end. The two men at the edge of the grave glared
at each other like enemies.

"You must believe."

"I do not believe."

"You must."

"You would make truth different from what it is by threats."

"Yes." He stressed the clear, elementary command. "Whether you are
convinced or not, believe. Evidence does not count. The one important
thing is faith. God does not deign to convince the incredulous. These
are no longer the days of miracles. The only miracle is in our hearts,
and it is faith. Believe!" He hurled the same word ceaselessly, like
stones.

"My son," he conti