God, however, was aware that there was something in Peter Williams to entitle him to assume a higher calling; he therefore permits this sin, which, though a childish affair, was yet a sin, and committed deliberately, to prey upon his mind till he becomes at last an instrument in the hand of God, a humble Paul, the great preacher, Peter Williams, who, though he considers himself a reprobate and a castaway, instead of having recourse to drinking in mad desperation, as many do who consider themselves reprobates, goes about Wales and England preaching the word of God, dilating on his power and majesty, and visiting the sick and afflicted, until God sees fit to restore to him his peace of mind; which he does not do, however, until that mind is in a proper condition to receive peace, till it has been purified by the pain of the one idea which has so long been permitted to riot in his brain; which pain, however, an angel, in the shape of a gentle faithful wife, had occasionally alleviated; for God is merciful even in the blows which He bestoweth, and will not permit any one to be tempted beyond the measure which he can support.And here it will be as well for the reader to ponder upon the means by which the Welsh preacher is relieved from his mental misery: he is not relieved by a text from the Bible, by the words of consolation and wisdom addressed to him by his angel-minded wife, nor by the preaching of one yet more eloquent than himself; but by a quotation made by Lavengro from the life of Mary Flanders, cut-purse and prostitute, which life Lavengro had been in the habit of reading at the stall of his old friend the apple-woman, on London Bridge, who had herself been very much addicted to the perusal of it, though without any profit whatever.Should the reader be dissatisfied with the manner in which Peter Williams is made to find relief, the author would wish to answer, that the Almighty frequently accomplishes his purposes by means which appear very singular to the eyes of men, and at the same time to observe that the manner in which that relief is obtained, is calculated to read a lesson to the proud, fanciful, and squeamish, who are ever in a fidget lest they should be thought to mix with low society, or to bestow a moment's attention on publications which are not what is called of a perfectly unobjectionable character.Had not Lavengro formed the acquaintance of the apple-woman on London Bridge, he would not have had an opportunity of reading the life of Mary Flanders; and, consequently, of storing in a memory, which never forgets anything, a passage which contained a balm for the agonized mind of poor Peter Williams.The best medicines are not always found in the finest shops.Suppose, for example, if, instead of going to London Bridge to read, he had gone to Albemarle Street, and had received from the proprietors of the literary establishment in that very fashionable street, permission to read the publications on the tables of the saloons there, does the reader think he would have met any balm in those publications for the case of Peter Williams? does the reader suppose that he would have found Mary Flanders there? He would certainly have found that highly unobjectionable publication, "Rasselas," and the "Spectator," or "Lives of Royal and Illustrious Personages," but, of a surety, no Mary Flanders; so when Lavengro met with Peter Williams, he would have been unprovided with a balm to cure his ulcerated mind, and have parted from him in a way not quite so satisfactory as the manner in which he took his leave of him; for it is certain that he might have read "Rasselas," and all other unexceptionable works to be found in the library of Albemarle Street, over and over again, before he would have found any cure in them for the case of Peter Williams.Therefore the author requests the reader to drop any squeamish nonsense he may wish to utter about Mary Flanders, and the manner in which Peter Williams was cured.
同类推荐
热门推荐
王魔仙奇幻寻宝记
自古以来,仙魔两界,女娲造人,巫族的预言,皇宫里的尔虞我诈从未停过,是什么让他们让站在了同一个立场呢?预言显示,得禁书得天下,是造福百姓还是生灵涂炭民不聊生?杨翼拥有着一股生以来的力量,陈国世子,出生时天降神剑。力量到底是从何而来呢?唐雪,巫族女脉,住于传说的桃林,懂巫术。刘宁,刘国群主,祖传神鞭。阴差阳错,一同旅程遇怪事,交友同游,生死边缘的爱,无法相信的身世。这一切发生在他们的身上,后来又会怎样?他们收集神器,来开启禁结界得书。到底他们谁是救世主还是灭世王,爱是有多贵,选择谁以及站在哪一界?【想知道请读!作者我来自遥远的地方,如有错字,用的地方不对,请别介意!】好员工与企业共同成长
画家在此借圣母子的故事,描绘了一幅极富世俗特点的母子情深的图景,来表现人间生活的情趣与人性的美好。古典油画技巧把人物塑造得栩栩如生,圣母是美丽、善良、慈祥的永恒母爱象征,圣子则体现了幼小生命的纯真可爱。由圣母子关系构成的主题,隐喻着人性美、和平、宁静、安祥。画面采用了黑白对比、冷暖对比及透视画法,明快简洁。智慧城市技术推动和谐
本书是国内第一本系统阐述智慧城市理论的著作,不仅对智慧城市的理论进行了全面的阐述,同时也对智慧城市建设中遇到的实践问题进行了系统的分析和探讨,其中包含大量丰富的宁波信息化建设、智慧城市建设实践的案例,也是对宁波市智慧城市理论和实践方面的一次探索和总结。