father dear! What is time to you and me that we
should be stingy of the only thing we ever really possessed."

"And now I lose even that," with a long sigh.

Thus gently and naturally Arthur gained his point.

Monsignor came often, and then oftener when Owen's strength began to
fail rapidly. The two friends in Irish politics had little agreement,
but in the gloom of approaching death they remembered only their
friendship. The priest worked vainly to put Owen into a proper frame of
mind before his departure for judgment. He had made his peace with the
Church, and received the last rites like a believer, but with the
coldness of him who receives necessities from one who has wronged him.
He was dying, not like a Christian, but like the pagan patriot who has
failed: only the shades awaited him when he fled from the darkness of
earthly shame. They sat together one March afternoon facing the window
and the declining sun. To the right another window gave them a good view
of the beautiful cathedral, whose twin spires, many turrets, and noble
walls shone blue and golden in the brilliant light.

"I love to look at it from this elevation," said Monsignor, who had just
been discoursing on the work of his life. "In two years, just think, the
most beautiful temple in the western continent will be dedicated."

"The money that has gone into it would have struck a great blow for
Erin," said Ledwith with a bitter sigh.

"So much of it as escaped the yawning pockets of the numberless
patriots," retorted Monsignor dispassionately. "The money would not have
been lost in so good a cause, but its present use has done more for your
people than a score of the blows which you aim at England."

"Claim everything in sight while you are at it," said Owen. "In God's
name what connection has your gorgeous cathedral with any one's
freedom?"

"Father dear, you are exciting yourself," Honora broke in, but neither
heeded her.

"Christ brought us true freedom," said Monsignor, "and the Church alone
teaches, practises, and maintains it."

"A fine example is provided by Ireland, where to a dead certainty
freedom was lost because the Church had too unnatural a hold upon the
people."

"What was lost on account of the faith will be given back again with
compound interest. Political and military movements have done much for
Ireland in fifty years; but the only real triumphs, universal,
brilliant, enduring, significant, leading surely up to greater