He began, as his custom was in mental prayer, by a deliberate act of self-exclusion from the world of sense.  Under the image of sinking beneath a surface he forced himself downwards and inwards, till the peal of the organ, the shuffle of footsteps, the rigidity of the chair-back beneath his wrists—­all seemed apart and external, and he was left a single person with a beating heart, an intellect that suggested image after image, and emotions that were too languid to stir themselves.  Then he made his second descent, renounced all that he possessed and was, and became conscious that even the body was left behind, and that his mind and heart, awed by the Presence in which they found themselves, clung close and obedient to the will which was their lord and protector.  He drew another long breath, or two, as he felt that Presence surge about him; he repeated a few mechanical words, and sank to that peace which follows the relinquishment of thought.

There he rested for a while.  Far above him sounded the ecstatic music, the cry of trumpets and the shrilling of the flutes; but they were as insignificant street-noises to one who was falling asleep.  He was within the veil of things now, beyond the barriers of sense and reflection, in that secret place to which he had learned the road by endless effort, in that strange region where realities are evident, where perceptions go to and fro with the swiftness of light, where the swaying will catches now this, now that act, moulds it and speeds it; where all things meet, where truth is known and handled and tasted, where God Immanent is one with God Transcendent, where the meaning of the external world is evident through its inner side, and the Church and its mysteries are seen from within a haze of glory.

So he lay a few moments, absorbing and resting.

Then he aroused himself to consciousness and began to speak.

“Lord, I am here, and Thou art here.  I know Thee.  There is nothing else but Thou and I....  I lay this all in Thy hands—­Thy apostate priest, Thy people, the world, and myself.  I spread it before Thee—­I spread it before Thee.”

He paused, poised in the act, till all of which he thought lay like a plain before a peak.

...  “Myself, Lord—­there but for Thy grace should I be going, in darkness and misery.  It is Thou Who dost preserve me.  Maintain and finish Thy work within my soul.  Let me not falter for one instant.  If Thou withdraw Thy hand I fall into utter nothingness.”

So his soul stood a moment, with outstretched appealing hands, helpless and confident.  Then the will flickered in self-consciousness, and he repeated acts of faith, hope and love to steady it.  Then he drew another long breath, feeling the Presence tingle and shake about him, and began again.

“Lord; look on Thy people.  Many are falling from Thee. Ne in aeternum irascaris nobis.  Ne in aeternum irascaris nobis....  I unite myself with all saints and angels and Mary Queen of Heaven; look on them and me, and hear us. Emitte lucem tuam et veritatem tuam. Thy light and Thy truth!  Lay not on us heavier burdens than we can bear.  Lord, why dost Thou not speak!”