r heart, shall
as unerringly find its way to the deepest sources of life, as the
majestic passion that ruled the life of a king and shed its triumphant
lustre from the dazzling height of a throne. "There are certain little
agitations," says Balzac in the Cure de Tours, the most admirable of
all his studies of humble life--"there are certain little agitations
that are capable of generating as much passion within the soul as would
suffice to direct the most important social interests. Is it not a
mistake to imagine that time only flies swiftly with those whose hearts
are devoured by mighty schemes, which fret and fever their life? Not an
hour sped past the Abbe Troubert but was as animated, as laden with its
burden of anxious thought, as lined with pleading hope and deep
despair, as could be the most desperate hour of gambler, plotter, or
lover. God alone can tell how much energy is consumed in the triumphs
we achieve over men, and things, and ourselves. We may not be always
aware whither our steps are leading, but are only too fully conscious
of the wearisomeness of the Journey. And yet--if the historian may be
permitted to lay aside, for one moment, the story he is telling, and to
assume the role of the critic--as you cast your eyes on the lives of
these old maids and these two priests, seeking to learn the cause of
the sorrow which twisted their heartstrings, it will be revealed to
you, perhaps, that certain passions must be experienced by man for
there to develop within him the qualities that make a life noble, that
widen its area, and stifle the egoism natural to all."

He speaks truly. Not for its own sake, always, should we love the
light, but for the sake of what it illumines. The fire on the mountain
shines brightly, but there are few men on the mountain; and more
service may often be rendered by the torchlight, there where the crowd
is. It is in the humble lives that is found the substance of great
lives; and by watching the narrowest feelings does enlargement come to
our own. Nor is this from any repugnance these feelings inspire, but
because they no longer accord with the majestic truth that controls us.
It is well to have visions of a better life than that of every day, but
it is the life of every day from which elements of a better life must
come. We are told we should fix our eyes on high, far above life; but
perhaps it is better still that our soul should look straight before
it, and that the heights where