" And he had succeeded in gaining the esteem of almost
every class of his parishioners.
But during the long and lonely months of absence he had learned to love
his people after a different fashion. There were some pleasant vices in
his parish to which he had shut his eyes; some respectable delinquents
with whom he had been on friendly terms, without using his privilege as
a friend to point out their misdeeds. There was not a high tone of
morality in his parish. Possibly he had been too anxious to please his
people. He was going back to them with a deeper and stronger glow of
enthusiasm concerning his duties and work among them; but with a graver
sense of his own weakness, and a more humble knowledge of the Divine
Father for whom he was an ambassador.
His vessel reached Southampton the day before its arrival could have
been expected, and neither Sophy nor his friend Warden was there to
welcome him. But this was an additional pleasure; he would take them all
by surprise in the midst of their preparations for his return. Warden
had warned him that there would be quite a public reception of him, with
a great concourse of his parishioners, and every demonstration of
rejoicing.
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