Meta's Faith, by the Author of 'St. Olave's'. (Paperback)

Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAPTER III. 4 FTER that Stephen went out into the College grounds, purposely avoiding the beech-tree avenue, lest he might meet Rodney Charnock there. He did not feel on such admirable terms with himself as most men would have felt, after such a deed of unselfish generosity. Stephen's conscience did not often reward him with a sugar-plum of approval, and he did not think, in this case, that he particularly deserved it. For, after all, he had not felt kindly towards Rodney Charnock. He did not even want to feel kindly towards him. It did not give him any greattrouble or uneasiness to know that all was not quite straight between them. "If thine enemy hunger, feed him," that was hard enough, especially when the feeding of the enemy might lead to the starving of the man who had fed him. But to love that enemy too. Ah! that was more than Stephen Garton could accomplish. And he did not even greatly desire to have such a spirit as would enable him to do it. Still the performing of that act of kindness had done him good. Like all noble thoughts, cherished and acted out, it had brought into his soul the element of rest, and made him more at peace with himself. Nay, there was even springing up within him a little germ of good-will towards this young man who had wronged him so often. Just then, it was hard for him to cherish bitter thoughts towards anyone. He would VOL. II. D rather have been at one with all the world, if it would have let him, if it would only not misunderstand and vex him so. Stephen was not thoroughly at rest yet, far from it; but he felt then what he had not felt for a long time, that he would be willing to shake hands with any man in the world, Rodney Charnock included, if that man wished it. In this frame of mind he strolled across the lawn towards t...