th, "you greatly mistake my spirit if you
imagine that I would for one moment take advantage of the position in
which I am now placed. I thank God for having permitted me to be the
means of rendering aid to you and Ai--your daughter. Depend upon it I
will not give you reason to regret having trusted my honour. But," (he
hesitated here) "you have referred to my position. If, in time and
through God's goodness, I succeed in improving my position; in gaining
by industry a sufficiency of this world's pelf to maintain Aileen in a
condition of comfort approaching in some degree that in which she has
been brought up, may I hope--may I--"

Mr Hazlit took the young man's hand and said, "You may;" but he said it
sadly, and with a look that seemed to imply that he had no expectation
of Edgar ever attaining to the required position.

Satisfied with the shake of the hand, our hero turned abruptly away, and
went off to ruminate by the sea-shore. At first he was filled with
hope; then, as he thought of his being penniless and without influential
friends, and of the immense amount of money that would have to be made
in order to meet the wealthy merchant's idea of comfort, he began to
despair. Presently the words came to his mind--"Commit thy way unto the
Lord; trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass." This revived
him, and he began to run over in his mind all sorts of wild plans of
making a huge fortune quickly! Again a word came to him--"Make not
haste to be rich."

"But what _is_ making haste?" he thought, and his conscience at once
replied, "Taking illegitimate courses--venturesome speculation without
means--devotion of the soul and body to business in such a way as to
demoralise the one and deteriorate the other--engaging in the pursuit of
wealth hastily and with eager anxieties, which imply that you doubt
God's promise to direct and prosper all works committed to Him."

"My plan, then," thought Edgar, "is to maintain a calm and trusting
mind; to be diligent in fulfilling _present_ duty, whatever that may be;
to look about for the direction that is promised, and take prompt
advantage of any clear opportunity that offers. God helping me, I'll
try."

Strong in his resolves, but, happily, stronger in his trust, he returned
to the cavern in which his companions in misfortune had already laid
them down to rest, and throwing himself on a bed of grass near the
entrance, quickly fell into that profound slumber which