would be pure!  May I venture to suggest to you that men make the Church, not the Church the men?  We try to supply the spiritual needs of the human being, such as his spiritual needs at present are,—­when he demands more we will give him more.  At present his needs are purely personal, and therefore low and tainted with sensuality,—­yet we drag him along through these emotions as near to the blameless Christ as we can.  When he is impersonal enough, unselfish enough, loyal-hearted enough, to stand face to face with the glorious manifestation of the Deity unaided, we can cast away his props, such as superstitious observances, Saints and the like, and leave him,—­but then the Millennium will have come, and there will be new heavens and a new earth!”

He spoke well, with force and fervour, and Aubrey Leigh was for a moment impressed.  After a slight pause however, he said,

“You admit the ignorance of human beings, and yet—­you would keep them ignorant?”

“Keep them ignorant!” Gherardi laughed lightly.  “That is more than any of us can do nowadays!  Every liberty is afforded them to learn,- -and if they still remain barbarous it is because they elect to be so.  But our duty is to look after the ignorant more than the cultured!  Quite true it is that the Pope lost a magnificent opportunity in the Dreyfus affair,—­if he had spoken in favour of mercy and justice he would have won thousands of followers; being silent he has lost thousands.  But this should be a great satisfaction to you, Mr. Leigh!  For if the Holy Father had given an example to the Catholic clergy to act in the true Christian spirit towards Dreyfus, the Conversion of England might have been so grafted on enthusiastic impulse as to be a much nearer possibility than it is now!”

Aubrey was silent.

“Now, Mr. Leigh, I think you have gained sufficient insight into my views to judge me with perhaps greater favour than you were inclined to do at the beginning of our interview,” continued Gherardi, “I assure you that I shall watch your career with the greatest interest!  You have embarked in a most hopeless cause,—­you will try to help the helpless, and as soon as they are rescued out of trouble, they will turn and rend you,—­you will try to teach them the inner mysteries of God’s working, and they will say you are possessed of a devil!  You will endeavour to upset shams and hypocrisies, and the men of your press will write you down and say you are seeking advertisement and notoriety for yourself.  Was there ever a great thinker left unmartyred?  Or a great writer that has not been misunderstood and condemned?  You wish to help and serve humanity!  Enthusiast!  You would do far better to help and serve the Church!  For the Church rewards; humanity has cursed and killed every great benefactor it ever had including Christ!”

The terrible words beat on Aubrey’s ears like the brazen clang of a tocsin, for he knew they were true.  But he held his ground.