CHAPTER XLII.
FOR EVER AND EVER.
When they had all re-entered the castle, Andrew made them sit down. Theold minister did not see any escape from the fatal obstacle of a lack oflicense, but Andrew was very mysterious.
"Virtue is its own reward," said the Philosopher, "but it often finds anincidental reward besides. Now, Julia, you are the noblest woman inthese degenerate times, according to my way of thinking."
"That's true as preachin', ef you'll except one," chirped Jonas, with asignificant look at his Cynthy Ann. Julia blushed, and the old ministerlooked inquiringly at Andrew and at Julia. This exaggerated praise froma man so misanthropic as Andrew excited his curiosity.
"Without exception," said Andrew emphatically, looking first at Jonas,then at Mr. Williams, "my niece is the noblest woman I ever knew."
"Please don't, Uncle Andrew!" begged Julia, almost speechless withshame. Praise was something she could not bear. She was inuredto censure.
"Do you remember that dark night--of course you do--when you bravedeverything and came here to see August, who would have died but for yourcoming?" Andrew was now looking at Julia, who answered him almostinaudibly.
"And do you remember when we got to your gate, on your return, what yousaid to me?"
"Yes, sir," said Julia.
"To be sure you do, and" (turning to August) "I shall never forget herwords; she said, If he should get worse, I should like him to die myhusband, if he wishes it. Send for me, day or night, and I will come inspite of everything."
"Did you say that?" asked August, looking at her eagerly.
And Julia nodded her head, and lifted her eyes, glistening with brimmingtears, to his.
"You do not know," said Andrew to the preacher, "how much her proposalmeant, for you do not know through what she would have had to pass. ButI say that God does sometimes reward virtue in this world--a world notquite worn out yet--and she is worthy of the reward in store for her."
Saying this, Andrew went into the closet leading to his secretstairway--secret no longer, since Julia had ascended by that way--andsoon came down from his library with a paper in his hand.
"When you, my noble-hearted niece, proposed to make any sacrifice tomarry this studious, honest, true-hearted German gentleman, who isworthy of you, if any man can be, I thought best to be ready for anyemergency, and so I went the next day and procured the license, theclerk promising to keep my secret. A marriage-license is good for thirtydays. You will see, Mr. Williams, that this has not quite expired."
The minister looked at it and then said, "I depend on your judgment,Mr. Anderson. There seems to be something peculiar about thecircumstances of this marriage."
"Very peculiar," said Andrew.
"You give me your word, then, that it is a marriage I ought tosolemnize?"
"The lady is my niece," said Andrew. "The marriage, taking place in thiscastle, will shed more glory upon it than its whole history beside; andyou, sir, have never performed a marriage ceremony in a case where themarriage was so excellent as this."
"Except the last one," put in Jonas.
I suppose Mr. Williams made the proper reductions for Andrew'senthusiasm. But he was satisfied, and perhaps he was rather inclined tobe satisfied, for gentle-hearted old men are quite susceptible to aromantic situation.
When he asked August if he would live with this woman in holy matrimony"so long as ye both shall live," August, thinking the two hours of timeleft to him too short for the earnestness of his vows, looked the oldminister in the eyes, and said solemnly: "For ever and ever!"
"No, my son," said the old man, smiling and almost weeping, "that is notthe right answer. I like your whole-hearted love. But it is far easierto say 'for ever and ever,' standing as you think you do now on thebrink of eternity, than to say 'till death do us part,' looking down along and weary road of toil and sickness and poverty and change andlittle vexations. You do not only take this woman, young and blooming,but old and sick and withered and wearied, perhaps. Do you take herfor any lot?"
"For any lot," said August solemnly and humbly.
And Julia, on her part, could only bow her head in reply to thequestions, for the tears chased one another down her cheeks. And thencame the benediction. The inspired old man, full of hearty sympathy,stretched his trembling hands with apostolic solemnity over the heads ofthe two, and said slowly, with solemn pauses, as the words welled up outof his soul: "The peace of God--that passeth all understanding" (herehis voice melted with emotion)--"keep your hearts--and minds--in theknowledge and love of God.--And now, may grace--mercy--and peace fromGod--_the Father_--and _our_ Lord Jesus Christ--be withyou--evermore--Amen!" And to the imagination of Julia the Spirit of Goddescended like a dove into her heart, and the great mystery of wifelylove and the other greater mystery of love to God seemed to flowtogether in her soul. And the quieter spirit of August was suffused witha great peace.
They soon left the castle to return to the mount of ascension, but theywalked slowly, and at first silently, over the intervening hill, whichgave them a view of the Ohio River, sleeping in its indescribable beautyand stillness in the moonlight.
Presently they heard the melodious voice of the old presiding elder,riding up the road a little way off, singing the hopeful hymns in whichhe so much delighted. The rich and earnest voice made the woods ringwith one verse of
"Oh! how happy are they Who the Saviour obey, And have laid up their treasure above I Tongue can never express The sweet comfort and peace Of a soul in its earliest love."
And then he broke into Watts's
"When I can read my title clear To mansions in the skies, I'll bid farewell to every fear And wipe my weeping eyes!"
There seemed to be some accord between the singing of the brave old manand the peacefulness of the landscape. Soon he had reached the laststanza, and in tones of subdued but ecstatic triumph he sang:
"There I shall bathe my weary soul In seas of heavenly rest, And not a wave of trouble roll Across my peaceful breast."
And with these words he passed round the hill and out of the hearing ofthe young people.
"August," said Julia slowly, as if afraid to break a silence so blessed,"August, it seems to me that the sky and the river and the hazy hillsand my own soul are all alike, just as full of happiness and peace asthey can be."
"Yes," said August, smiling, "but the sky is clear, and your eyes areraining, Julia. But can it be possible that God, who made this world sobeautiful, will burn it up to-night? It used to seem a hard world to mewhen I was away from you, and I didn't care how quickly it burned up.But now--"
Somehow August forgot to finish that sentence. Words are of so littleuse under such circumstances. A little pressure on Julia's arm which wasin his, told all that he meant. When love makes earth a heaven, itis enough.
"But how beautiful the new earth will be," said Julia, still looking atthe sleeping river, "the river of life will be clear as crystal!"
"Yes," said August, "the Spanish version says, 'Most resplendent, likeunto crystal.'"
"I think," said Julia, "that it must be something like this river. Thetrees of life will stand on either side, like those great sycamores thatlean over the water so gracefully."
Any landscape would have seemed heavenly to Julia on this night. Avenerable friend of mine, a true Christian philanthropist, whose praiseis in all the churches, wants me to undertake to reform fictitiousliterature by leaving out the love. And so I may when God reforms Hisuniverse by leaving out the love. Love is the best thing in novels; notuntil love is turned out of heaven will I help turn it out ofliterature. It is only the misrepresentation of love in literature thatis bad, as the poisoning of love in life is bad. It was the love ofAugust that had opened Julia's heart to the influences of heaven, andJulia was to August a mediator of God's grace.
By eleven o'clock August Wehle and his wife--it gives me nearly as muchpleasure as it did August to use that locut
ion--were standing not faraway from the surging crowd of those who, in singing hymns and inexcited prayer, were waiting for the judgment. Jonas and Cynthy andAndrew were with them. August, though not a recognized Millerite, almostblamed himself that he should have been away these two hours from theservices. But why should he? The most sacramental of all the sacramentsis marriage. Is it not an arbitrary distinction of theologians, thatwhich makes two rites to be sacraments and others not? But if thedistinction is to be made at all, I should apply the solemn word to thesolemnest rite and the holiest ordinance of God's, even if I left outthe sacred washing in the name of the Trinity and the broken emblematicbread and the wine. These are sacramental in their solemn symbolism,that in the solemnest symbolism and the holiest reality.
August's whole attention was now turned toward the coming judgment; andas he stood thinking of the awfulness of this critical moment, theexercises of the Adventists grated on the deep peacefulness of hisspirit, for from singing their more beautiful hymns, they had passed toan excited shouting of the old camp-meeting ditty whose refrain is:
"I hope to shout glory when this world's all on fire! Hallelujah!"
He and Julia hung back a moment, but Mrs. Abigail, who had recoveredfrom her tenth trance, and had been for some time engaged in an activesearch for Julia, now pounced upon her, and bore her off, before she hadtime to think, to the place of the hottest excitement.