“Mary, you speak truth, and all that you say I can implicitly believe.  Tell me what grounds support the theory?”

“You remember the words of our Saviour.  ’All sin shall be forgiven, save blasphemy of the Holy Ghost; that shall not be forgiven, either in this world or the next.’  Now Papists argue in this way:  Then other sins can be forgiven in another world; there is no sin in heaven, in hell no forgiveness, consequently, there must exist a middle place, or, in other words, a purgatory.  Florry, you smile, yet I assure you I have seen this advanced as unanswerable.  In the book of Maccabees is a very remarkable passage authorizing prayers for the dead, and on this passage they build their theory and sanction their practise.  Yet you know full well it is one of the Apocryphal books rejected by the Jews, because not originally written in their language.  It was never quoted by our Saviour, nor even received as inspired by your own church till the Council of Trent, when it was admitted to substantiate the doctrine of purgatory, and sanction prayers for the dead.  I admit that on this point St. Augustine’s practise was in favor of it; though it was only near the close of his long life that he speaks of the soul of his mother.  Yet already history informs us that the practise of praying for the dead was gaining ground in the church, along with image worship.  St. Cyprian, who lived long before him, and during a purer state of the church, leaves no doubt on our minds as to his sentiments on this subject; his words are these:  ’When ye depart hence, there will be no room for repentance—­no method of being reconciled to God.  Here eternal life is either lost or won.  Here, by the worship of God, and the fruit of faith, provision is made for eternal salvation.  And let no man be retarded, either by his sins or years, from coming to obtain it.  No repentance is too late while a man remains in this world.’  Our Saviour nowhere gives any encouragement for such a doctrine.  On the contrary, he said to the dying thief:  ‘This day shalt thou be with me in Paradise.’  I know of no other argument which Papists advance in favor of their darling theory, save the practise of the latter Fathers of their church.”

“Mary, I cannot believe this doctrine, without further proof of Divine sanction.”

“Indeed, Florry, I know of no other reason in its favor, and have long supposed it a system of extortion in connection with indulgences, now used, only as a means of gain by the dissolute clergy of the Romish faith.  I need scarcely say, that the abuse of this latter doctrine drove Luther to reformation.  It is a well-known fact, that in the 16th century, Tetzel, a Dominican monk high in his order, drove through Germany in a wagon, containing two boxes—­one holding indulgences, the other the money received for them.  You will smile, Florry, when I repeat a translation of the German lines Written on the outside of the latter box: