She looked at him with such wondering eyes that he answered her without a word.

“Yes,” he said, “I have been there.”

And then it seemed to her that there was something in his eyes which she had not remarked before.  Not only the great content that was everywhere, but a deeper light, and the air of a judge who knew both good and evil, and could see both sides, and understood all, both to love and to hate.

“Little sister,” he said, “you have never wandered far; it is not needful for such as you.  Love teaches you, and you need no more; but when we have to be trained for an office like this, to make the way of the Lord clear through all the generations, reason is that we should see everything, and learn all that man is and can be.  These things are too deep for us; we stumble on, and know not till after.  But now to me it is all clear.”

She looked at him again and again while he spoke, and it seemed to her that she saw in him such great knowledge and tenderness as made her glad; and how he could understand the follies that men had done, and fathom what real meaning was in them, and disentangle all the threads.  He smiled as she gazed at him, and answered as if she had spoken.

“What was evil perishes, and what was good remains; almost everywhere there is a little good.  We could not understand all if we had not seen all and shared all.”

“And the punishment too,” she said, wondering more and more.

He smiled so joyfully that it was like laughter.

“Pain is a great angel,” he said.  “The reason we hated him in the old days was because he tended to death and decay; but when it is towards life he leads, we fear him no more.  The welcome thing of all in the land of darkness is when you see him first and know who he is; for by this you are aware that you have found the way.”

The little Pilgrim did nothing but question with her anxious eyes, for this was such a wonder to her, and she could not understand.  But he only sat musing with a smile over the things he remembered.  And at last he said,—­

“If this is so interesting to you, you shall read it all in another place, in the room where we have laid up our own experiences, in order to serve for the history afterwards.  But we are still busy upon the work of the earth.  There is always something new to be discovered.  And it is essential for the whole world that the chronicle should be full.  I am in great joy because it was but just now that our Lord told me about that child.  Everything was imperfect without him, but now it is clear.”

“You mean your brother?  And you are happy though you are not sure if he is happy?” the little Pilgrim said.

“It is not to be happy that we live,” said he; and then, “We are all happy so soon as we have found the way.”