The Argosy — page 285: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

2,06 The Village Blacksmith. As she rode off, Reuben returned to his anvil, deep in thought, and . the impromptu sermons he delivered that day to his customers were unusually gloomy in character. In the evening he went to chapel, and afterwards took a Bible-class, which he held once a week. ‘This made him rather late, and it was just nine when he began to climb the hill to- his cottage. It was a bright, starlight night, and presently he descried a figure which he recognised as Mark Brown’s mounting the hill in front of him. Now, Reuben Foreman, like many other people endeavouring ~ to live a holy life, was occasionally liable to very violent temptations; — and as he followed Mark, gaining every step on him, he thought of — the persecution Janet was enduring at his hands; he thought of his own loneliness, caused by this man’s conduct ; he thought that, for all - he knew to the contrary, Mark might that day have been guilty of some terrible annoyance to his only child; and there rose up in his” heart a sudden storm of passicnate anger. Why should he not, once for all, be revenged on this man ? What should hinder him from seizing bite and ducking him in the canal | below? What should stop him from leaving him there altogether ? “He richly deserves such a fate,” whispered the devil, who was | tempting Reuben. ‘‘No one will miss him, Janet will be safe, and - you can have your daughter at home again.” | This last was, of course, untrue, though Reuben did not know it. He did know that to seize Mark and carry him down to the canal | would be mere child’s play to him. He could do that to a man twice - as strong as Mark without much difficulty. What an excellent oppor- tunity, too, to be revenged on Janet’s enemy ! ai ‘ Surely Providence had delivered Mark into his hands,” whispered ‘ the tempter again. | Reuben, mad for the moment with anger, quickened his pace. | Another half minute and his hand would rest on Mark’s shoulder, when - averse he had been speaking about to his class half-an-hour pre-, viously flashed into his mind. Or did his guardian angel whisper it | into his ear? ‘IT say unto you, Love your enemies.” It mattered not to Reuben how it was brought to his recollection :, all that mattered was, it was the command of his Master, and he dared » not sin so flagrantly against it. He stopped short, shook himself, as | though to shake off the demon which was possessing him, and, covering his face with his hands, prayed earnestly for some minutes. When he, uncovered his eyes Mark was out of sight, having reached the Rectory all unconscious of the danger he had _ been in, though aware someone — was following him. And Reuben, meek as a lamb, now went quietly, up the hill to his lonely home. The temptation though brief had been very strong, but it was over now for the time; something had hindered the blacksmith from > 7 [ | Comicbooks.com