"Edith," he said, seating himself, "I wish to have a little quiet talk about the future." And she put her hand in his with the artless simplicity of the country maiden that she was, and looked into his thoughtful brown eyes with confidence and love she long had felt for him. "You know I asked your father last time I was here, whether he would consent to our marriage at the end of the coming term, and that he said he would first like to see me throrughly established as a merchant. That was reasonable enough; but for some time past my mind has been uneasy, for mercantile affairs have have become entirely distasteful to me of late."
"A merchant's life is an honourable one, is it not?" she asked.
"Honourable enough, but an aimless one." He paused, and then, his cheek flushing and his eye gleaming, he continued, " I wish I could follow in the footsteps of Dr. Wycliffe, and reveal to poor deluded souls the long-hidden treasures of the Bible."
"Ah!..."
He traced his fingers through her wavy tresses, and the flush on his cheek died away; the momentary expression of ardour had changed into a look of sadness.
