“Death!” said Father Francesco, after a solemn pause.

“I do not understand you,” said Father Johannes.

“My son,” said Father Francesco, rising up with an air of authority, “you do not understand,—­there is nothing in you by which you should understand.  This unhappy brother hath opened his case to me, and I have counselled him all I know of prayer and fastings and watchings and mortifications.  Let him persevere in the same; and if all these fail, the good Lord will send the other in His own time.  There is an end to all things in this life, and that end shall certainly come at last.  Bid him persevere and hope in this.—­And now, brother,” added the Superior, with dignity, “if you have no other query, time flies and eternity comes on,—­go, watch and pray, and leave me to my prayers also.”

He raised his hand with a gesture of benediction, and Father Johannes, awed in spite of himself, felt impelled to leave the apartment.

“Is it so, or is it not?” he said.  “I cannot tell.  He did seem to wince and turn away his head when I proposed the case; but then he made fight at last.  I cannot tell whether I have got any advantage or not; but patience! we shall see!”

* * * * *

HEALTH IN THE CAMP.

All the world has heard a great deal of the sufferings and mortality of the English and French armies in the late Russian war; and in most countries the story has been heard to some purpose.  Reforms and new methods have been instituted in almost every country in Europe,—­so strong has been the effect of the mere outline of the case, which is all that has been furnished to the public.  The broad facts of the singular mortality first, and the singular healthfulness of the British army afterwards, on the same spot and under the same military circumstances as before, have interested all rulers of armies, and brought about great benefits to the soldier, throughout the length and breadth of Europe.  Within these broad outlines there was a multitude of details which were never recorded in a systematic way, or which, for good and sufficient reasons, could not be made public at the time; and these details are the part of the story most interesting to soldiers actually in the field or likely to be called there soon.  They are also deeply interesting to every order of persons concerned in a civil war; for such a war summons forth a citizen soldiery to form a system for themselves in regard to the life of the march and the camp, and to do the best they can for that life and health which they have devoted to their country.  Under such circumstances it cannot but be interesting to the patriots in the camp and to their families at home to know some facts which they cannot have heard before of the mistakes made at the beginning of the last Russian war, and the repair of those mistakes before the end of it.  The prompt and anxious care exercised by the American Sanitary Commission, and the benevolent diligence bestowed on the organization of hospitals for the Federal forces, show that the lesson of the Crimean campaign has been studied in the United States; and this is an encouragement to afford further illustrations of the case, when new material is at command.