Page:Lazarus, a tale of the world's great miracle.djvu/242

230 farther? Dost know how the leaf of the flower unfoldeth, or the child is gendered in the womb? These things first find out, and when thou hast informed thyself of all earthly things—what whiteneth the snow, and whence the rivers rush to reach the sea; when thou hast learned how forms the fish within the shell, and why the mountains—quake then thou canst ask of God, if thou art bold enough, wherefore He did create thee, and whence is Satan. Wouldst be a scholar, wouldst learn philosophy, ere thou canst read; wouldst fight a battle ere thou canst buckle on the sword? Be content, and ask not, but for the spirit of a little child, and to be born again in faith and love.'

"And, thus rebuked, my eyes fell in confusion, and once more they sought the earth, and I saw the virgin mother kneeling on her floor. Never shall I forget the purity of that enraptured gaze, that seemed mutely to appeal to Heaven to ask the meaning of this grief that had befallen her; why she, who had preserved ever her virginity, and married Joseph of Nazareth but for a companion and protection, should have had a child, and further should have suffered the scorn of the world and the suspicion of her husband for so many months. She was dressed in a simple woollen gown that fell from neck to feet, and her hair, yellow as wheat that doth await the reaper, did shimmer in the sun, contrasting strangely with her dark pencilled eyebrows, but harmonising with the liquid lustre of her deep blue eyes. And, looking at this small, frail woman, I marvelled how she could endure so much and live; and I inquired of the Spirit of Truth: 'Doth this woman pray always?'