goes to sleep wi' the
soothin' drawl. But Mr. Reay, he kep' us wide awake an' starin'! An'
there's one tex which sticks in my 'ed an' comforts me for myself an'
for everybody in trouble as I ever 'eerd on----"

"And what's that, Mrs. Twitt?" asked Helmsley, turning round in his
chair, that he might see her better.

"It's this, Mister David," and Mrs. Twitt drew a long breath in
preparation before beginning the quotation,--"an' it's beautiful! 'If
the world hate you, ye know that it hated Me before it hated you.' Now
if that aint enuff to send us on our way rejoicin', I don't know what
is! For Lord knows if the dear Christ was hated, we can put up wi' a bit
o' the hate for ourselves!"

There was a pause.

"So Mr. Reay reads very well, does he?" asked Mary.

"Fine!" said Mrs. Twitt,--"'E's a lovely man with a lovely voice! If
'e'd bin a parson 'e'd 'a drawed thousands to 'ear 'im! 'E wouldn't 'a
wanted crosses nor candles to show us as 'e was speakin' true. Twitt sez
to 'im t'other day--'Why aint you a parson, Mr. Reay?' an' 'e sez, 'Cos
I'm goin' to be a preacher!' An' we couldn't make this out nohow, till
'e showed us as 'ow 'e was a-goin' to tell people things as they ought
to know in the book 'e's writin'. An' 'e sez it's the only way, cos the
parsons is gettin' so uppish, an' the Pope 'as got 'old o' some o' the
newspapers, so that there aint no truth told nowheres, unless a few
writers o' books will take 'art o' grace an' speak out. An' 'e sez
there's a many as 'll do it, an' he tells Twitt--'Twitt,' sez he, 'Pin
your faith on brave books! Beware o' newspapers, an' fight off the
priest! Read brave books--books that were written centuries ago to teach
people courage--an' read brave books that are written now to keep
courage goin'!' An' we sez, so we will--for books is cheap enuff, God
knows!--an' only t'other day Twitt went over to Minehead an' bought a
new book by Sir Walter Scott called _Guy Mannering_ for ninepence. It's
a grand story! an' keeps us alive every evenin'! I'm just mad on that
old woman in it--Meg Merrilies--she knew a good deal as goes on in the
world, I'll warrant! All about signs an' omens too. It's just fine! I'd
like to see Sir Walter Scott!"

"He's dead," said Mary, "dead long ago. But he was a good as well as a
great man."

"'E must 'a bin," agreed Mrs. Twitt; "I'm right sorry 'e's dead. Some
folks die as is bound to be missed, an' some folks lives on as one 'ud
be glad to see in thei