Page:The silent prince - a story of the Netherlands (IA cu31924008716957).pdf/118

 rose of human love, we are wounded by the thorns which surround it!”

“Tell me, dear Madam, if it is my duty to wed the Chancellor.”

“I see no course open to you except to obey your father's command, Hilvardine. Had he required you to renounce your religion, then it would have been your duty to disobey him. But in this matter it is customary for children to accept such marriages as their parents make for them. We all have to drink the cup as God mingles it, my child, the bitter with the sweet.”

“Perhaps God will provide a way of escape for me if I seek to do His will,” said Hilvardine.

“With God all things are possible,” said Madam. “The future is in His hands. He can make even the wrath of man to praise Him. If it is His will that your life and Conrad's flow in separate channels, remember that God knows best. Let the knowledge that God knows, and God cares, sustain you in this trying hour. God's love is far beyond all earthly love. It is like the ocean, beside which poor human affection is but as a trembling dewdrop. God does not chide you for your love, for He is love. Let God do with you as He will. Only keep hold of His hand, and you shall surely be guided into the ways of peace.”

The conflict was sharp and sore, but at last Hilvardine grew calm. Her anchor was cast, and the