cradle, was to take him in his arms, look into his face a little
while, and then kiss him. And I'll never forget the words he said."

Her dark eyes were moist, but a smile lighted up her calm face.

"Mary," he said to me, "this boy should be the first priest of the next
generation. I'll bless him to that end, and do you offer him to God. And
I did. He was the roughest child of all mine, and showed very little of
the spirit of piety as he grew up. But he was always the best boy to his
own. He had the heart for us all, and never took his play till he was
sure the house was well served. Nothing was said to him about being a
priest. That was left to God. One winter he began to keep a little
diary, and I saw in it that he was going often to Mass on week days, and
often to confession. He was working then with his father in the office,
since he did not care much for school. Then the next thing I knew he
came to me one night and put his arms about me to say that he wished to
be a priest, to go to college, and that this very cousin who had blessed
him in the cradle had urged him to make known the wish that was in him,
for it seems he discovered what we only hoped for. And so he has been
coming and going ever since, a blessing to the house, and sure I don't
know how I shall get along without him when he goes to the seminary next
year."

"Nor I," said Arthur with a start. "How can you ever think of giving him
up?"

"That's the first thing we have to learn," she replied with a smile at
his passion. "The children all leave the house in time one way or
another. It's only a question of giving him to God's service or to the
service of another woman. I could never be jealous of God."

He laughed at this suggestion of jealousy in a mother. Of course she
must hate the woman who robs her of her son, and secures a greater love
than a mother ever knew. The ways of nature, or God, are indeed hard to
the flesh. He thought of this as he sat in the attic room with his
light-hearted chum. He envied him the love and reverence of these good
women, envied him that he had been offered to God in his infancy; and in
his envy felt a satisfaction that very soon these affectionate souls
would soon have to give Louis up to Another. To him this small room was
like a shrine, sacred, undefiled, the enclosure of a young creature
specially called to the service of man, perfumed by innocence, cared for
by angels, let down from heaven into a house on Cherry S