After the second hymn, Mr. Wilmot stood up in the pulpit,—looking pale still, some thought,—and gave out his text twice over, in far-reaching tones:
"St. Luke xxii. 33: 'Lord, I am ready to go with Thee, both into prison and to death.'"
[CHAPTER VIII.]
THE OLD MOTTO.
MR. WILMOT'S sermon was short. Parts of it, curtailed, were as follows:—
"There is an old English motto, my friends, which has been lately often in my mind—a short motto, of three words only—
"'READY, AYE READY!'
"Now you scarcely need that I should tell you the meaning of this motto.
"Ready for what? Why, ready, of course, for anything and everything which may come in the way of one's duty.
"The true-hearted soldier is 'ready, aye ready' to go where bidden, even to death. The true-hearted servant is 'ready, aye ready' to do his master's desire, careless of trouble or weariness. The true-hearted child is 'ready, aye ready' to accept or bear whatever his father wills for him. The true-hearted man or woman is 'ready, aye ready' to risk or suffer aught in the cause of needy and suffering men and women.