at
kind of good to men; it was to save them. And it was necessary that He
should prove to them that He was the Son of God, by doing what none but
God could do. So He opened blind eyes, and healed their diseases, and
raised the dead. And besides, they were to know another way: `Surely He
hath borne our griefs and carried our sorrows!' They might have known
He was the Messiah by that too." She stopped suddenly, and then added:
"It is different now."

"And so, having done enough to prove all that, He forgets the troubles
people in the world have now. Does He?"

"It is not that He forgets, or breaks His promise," said Christie,
hesitatingly, yet earnestly. "He has not promised that His people
should never have trouble in the world; quite the contrary. But He
promises always to be with them, to support and comfort them through
all. And that is as good as though they were to have none--and, indeed,
far better."

She spoke very earnestly. Her face was flushed, and the tears filled
her eyes, but she spoke very modestly and humbly too.

"Well, it does not seem that _you_ are troubled with doubts, anyway,"
said Mr Sherwood, rising, and placing Claude on the seat she had
prepared for him.

"No; I do not doubt. It must be a great unhappiness to think at all
about these things and not be sure and quite at rest about them."

"And what would you say to any one who suffered this great unhappiness?"

The question was gravely, even sadly, asked. There was not the echo of
mockery in his tone that had made Christie shrink during the first
moments of his being there. She looked up wistfully into the face that
was still bending over the child.

"I don't know," she said. "I cannot tell--except to bid him ask, as the
blind man asked, `Lord, that mine eyes might be opened!'"

He went slowly down the cedar walk, and Christie watched him with
wistful eyes. Whether he asked the gift of sight or not, there was one
who, after that day, did ask it for him.

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN.

THE SECRET OF PEACE.

Gertrude could not find her book. All that Christie could tell her
about it was that she had seen it in Mr Sherwood's hand in the cedar
walk, and that he did not leave it when he went away. She looked for it
in the library and in the drawing-room, but it was nowhere to be seen.
She had a great objection to asking him for it. Mr Sherwood sometimes
condescended to jest with the young lady on some subjects about which
the