He had not been home more than an hour when the greatest dizziness came over him.  He sat up so much with his chum that he was entirely worn out.  He went upstairs to lie down on his couch in his small study.  He instantly fell asleep and dreamed that he was standing on the platform of Calvary Church, preaching.  It was the first Sunday of a month.  He thought he said something the people did not like.  Suddenly a man in the audience raised a revolver and fired at him.  At once, from over the house, people aimed revolvers at him and began to fire.  The noise was terrible, and in the midst of it he awoke to feel to his amazement that his wife was kneeling at the side of his couch, sobbing with a heartache that was terrible to him; he was instantly wide awake and her dear head clasped in his arms.  And when he prayed her to tell him the matter, she sobbed out the news to him which her faithful, loving heart had concealed from him while he was at the bedside of his friend.  And even when the news of what the church had done in his absence had come to him fully through her broken recital of it, he did not realize it until she placed in his hands the letter which the church had voted to be written, asking him to resign his pastorate of Calvary Church.  Even then he fingered the envelope in an absent way, and for an instant his eyes left the bowed form of his wife and looked out beyond the sheds over to the tenements.  Then he opened the letter and read it.

CHAPTER XXIII.

Philip read the letter through without lifting his eyes from the paper or making any comment.  It was as follows: 

Philip strong, Calvary Church, Milton: 

As clerk of the church I am instructed to inform you of the action of the church at a regularly called meeting last Monday night.  At that meeting it was voted by a majority present that you be asked to resign the pastorate of Calvary Church for the following reasons: 

1.  There is a very widespread discontent on the part of the church-membership on account of the use of the church for Sunday evening discussions of social, political, and economic questions, and the introduction into the pulpit of persons whose character and standing are known to be hostile to the church and its teachings.

2.  The business men of the church, almost without exception, are agreed, and so expressed themselves at the meeting, that the sermon of Sunday before last was exceedingly dangerous in its tone, and liable to lead to the gravest results in acts of lawlessness and anarchy on the part of people who are already inflamed to deeds of violence against property and wealth.  Such preaching, in the opinion of the majority of pew-owners and supporters of Calvary Church, cannot be allowed, or the church will inevitably lose its standing in society.

3.  It is the fixed determination of a majority of the oldest and most influential members of Calvary Church to withdraw from the organization all support under the present condition of affairs.  The trustees announced that the pledges for church support had already fallen off very largely, and last Sunday less than half the regular amount was received.  This was ascribed to the sermon of the first of the month.