"The grand end of all! To have Jerusalem instead of Rome for our capitol. This idea of fighting, and marching, and conquest, is merely one which affects the vulgar mind. What does the Divine Being want of all this? You make him one who would sacrifice all the nations of the earth for a spectacle. That might do for the ruler of Olympus, not for the god of philosophy."

"His conquest," said Isaac, without heeding the evident disappointment and slight asperity of Cineas, "His conquest will exalt his people. It will fill the earth with his glory. The end of all will be happiness for all. Earth shall receive a new Golden Age, and he shall reign all."

over

"And in the midst of his grandeur," said Cineas, “such a one would be far inferior to our Great Teacher, as he stood up on his death trial, and told his enemies how he forgave them all."

"Your Messiah on the throne of Jerusalem, the conqueror of a subject world, surrounded by his Jewish armies, would fall beneath the attitude of Socrates in his prison, when he took the cup with an enthusiastic smile, and drank off the poiI have no admiration for this conqueror of yours. Tell me that your prophecies of triumph are figurative. Tell me that his victory is over the soul, and then I will look for the Divine in your writings."

son.

“ "No," said Isaac sternly, and with eager positiveness. "Impossible. They are literal, or nothing is true. Take away that literal truth, and all the hope of ages dies. Then the Jews have been mocked. To suppose the Messiah a figurative conqueror over the mind of man, is to insult us in our degradation. No! No!" he repeated in a kind of frenzy, "I have been tempted to think it so, but it is past. I hold on to the word of God, to his promise. He who chose us out, and subjected us to such long suffering, never meant to mock us with such a shadow. He who bade us hope

never meant thus to deceive us and break our hearts never!- never!

"This," he continued, after a pause, and with a bitterness in his tones that Cineas had never known before, "this is why I hate the Christians. They are the ones who present this mockery, this phantom, before us, in all its hideous bareness. Listen.

"A man came who pretended to teach some new doctrines. He gained followers. Any man can get followers, no matter what he says. These disciples of his pretended that he was the Messiah. He pretended the same. He said he was descended from our Royal House, and was King of the Jews. He was tried for this, condemned and executed."

Isaac gnashed his teeth as he came to this. His rage made him almost inarticulate.

"What― what can you think was the result of this? Did his followers disperse? No. They dared to get up a new deception. They dared to say that he had arisen from the dead; and still continued with a thousand fold more zeal than ever to proclaim that this malefactor was the Messiah. "The agonizing part of all this to a Jew was the hideous appearance of reason which their arguments possessed. They referred all our prophecies to this man. They took all - all. They are the men who say that in these prophecies all is spiritual, and that the Messiah has come as a Teacher, to convince the minds of men.

-

all

"Worse than this. They take all our hopes, all our aspirations, all the promises of our God to us, his chosen ones, they give all these to other alien races. They proclaim the teachings of their crucified Master to all races, and teach that

the Jew has no greater privileges or hopes than any other The worst of all their teachers is this Paul, who is

man.

now in Rome, who glories in this doctrine, Jew,

an apostate; -a traitor to his country,

of his God.

"Alas for the agonies, the long, long agonies of our race,

if it is to end in this; if the hope of our final triumph is thus to be dashed to pieces by Him who inspired us with it! But no. Never, never will I let the tempter rob me of my faith in Him! Though He slay me and my race, yet will I trust in Him. He will fulfil his promise. He will bless his people. I will praise and bless his holy name as long as I live.

"No-no! He will do what he has said. For our prophets have clearly indicated the time, and that time is at hand. We expected him years ago, but now he must come All the events that now occur show this. The Jews are all in the attitude of hope and expectation. They watch for his coming. But oh! it breaks the heart to wait, and wait, and still say, 'Will He never come?""

soon.

Isaac paused, and then clasping his hands, he raised them over his head, and, with streaming eyes, he cried out:

That the mountains might flow down at Thy presence,

As, when the melting fire burneth, the fire causeth the waters to boil,

To make Thy name known to Thine adversaries,

That the nations may tremble at Thy presence!

When Thou didst terrible things that we looked not for,

Thou camest down; the mountains flowed down at Thy presence.

For, since the beginning of the world, men have not heard nor perceived

by the ear,

Neither hath the eye seen, O God, beside Thee,

What He hath prepared for him that waiteth for Him.'"

He paused for a moment, and then resumed,

"Thou hast hid Thy face from us,

And hast consumed us because of our iniquities;

But now, O Lord! Thou art our Father:

We

We are the clay, and Thou our potter,

And we are all the work of Thine hands.

Be not wroth very sore, O Lord! neither remember iniquity forever.
Behold-see-we beseech Thee we are all Thy people.

The holy cities are a wilderness; Zion a wilderness; Jerusalem a desolation!'"'

Isaac buried his face in his hands, and was silent for a long time. Cineas marvelled at the words which he had spoken. The depth of humiliation, the sad confession of sin, the mourning over a nation's woe, which they expressed, was blended with a lofty confidence in the Deity, which seemed to express, even in the depths of sorrow, an unfaltering trust. Still he felt that Isaac's words expressed a desire after a great conqueror, some king who should reduce the world to subjection under Jerusalem. He wondered why such an idea still kept its hold of a people who saw before their eyes the resistless power of Rome.

At last, after some time, Isaac looked up. He was calm. A melancholy smile was on his face.

"I know not how to apologize," said he, "most noble Cineas, for my extreme agitation. The subject which has been brought before me always excites me, in spite of myself. I lose my self-control. Pardon me, I was going to bring to you to-day the result of my examinations. Hegio has to account for ten million sesterces. From what I know

of his affairs, he is well able to make it good. See," said he, and he took some tablets which he placed before Cineas. "Here is the result."

Isaac then began to explain the accounts, and showed to Cineas the whole course of Hegio since the family had come from Britain. It showed a deficit such as he had stated.

Cineas took the tablets, and said,

"It will have to be refunded, in some way; Labeo shall see that it is all made good," and then took his leave.

XI.

THE STEWARD PUNISHED.

EGIO had long since found out the terrible mistake he had made in setting Cineas at defiance. After the memorable interview with him, he had made inquiries and found out that Cineas was, indeed, all that he had stated, and even more. His wealth, learning, nobility, and reputation made him one of the most distinguished visitors to Rome. Had he been anything except an illiterate freedman he would have been familiar with so splendid a name. Even his patron, Tigellinus, could only call him a fool, and assure him that he would rather have Cineas for a friend than an enemy.

For

The return of Labeo added to his consternation. Labeo came back in triumph and in honors, the herald of a great victory, the bearer of laurelled letters. His reception by Nero was said to have been most flattering. Promotion was before him, and favor and advancement at court. Before such men Hegio was nothing.

In his speculations he had lost money and made it. But the sum which he had abstracted from the funds of Labeo was large, and might be discovered on a strict examination of the accounts. If a crisis came and all was discovered, he I would have to refund. He could not run away. In the Roman empire there was no place for flight. The arms of the government extended everywhere; and a man like Cineas could seize Hegio in the uttermost parts of the Roman world. If he could not make good his default, the