Ricardo's face expressed amazement.
"And the worst is, that I have put another in its place."
The expression of amazement changed into one of such pain, that Maria, on looking in his contracted and grief-stricken face, could not refrain from breaking out into a fresh, ringing peal of merry laughter, such as in former times used to ripple from her lips all the time, and which little by little had decreased, as though the fire of light and joy from which they came had died down.
"Good Heavens! what a long face!—Wait! Now I'll show your substitute, so as to make you suffer more."
And taking the locket from her neck she showed it to him. It held the effigy of Jesus crowned with thorns. Ricardo, half satisfied and half vexed, answered with a smile.
"Now kiss it!"
The young man obeyed instantly, placing his lips on the picture of the Lord, and at the same time touching the rosy fingers which held it out to him. Maria withdrew them and ran away.
Equally as she schooled herself in humility, so she gave much heed to that other virtue, which is, so to speak, the foundation of our religion and the chief crown of glory that the creature can offer to God,—the virtue of charity. Our maiden's excellent heart and the example of her parents were sufficient reason for her to alleviate as far as possible the miseries of her neighbors, but beside this there was now the continual inducement in the incredible powers of abnegation and charity shown by the saints, whom she worshipped with the greatest fervor, particularly the holy Duchess of Thuringen, who bore the name of Mother of the Poor. And so she visited her compassion on all the wretched, and lost no opportunity to supply their needs with lavish hand. All the money which her father gave her she employed in almsgiving. In company with Genoveva she visited the houses of many poor people, whom she assisted not only with money but also with words of council, on the ground that man lives not by bread alone. In order to school herself in humility in the same way that was practised by Margaret, the sainted queen of Scotland, she had some beggars come secretly to her room, and washed their feet with the greatest scrupulousness. Each one of these pious deeds filled her with a holy inward joy such as she had never before experienced. She took up the habit of never allowing any poor person who asked alms to go without receiving them, since in addition to the dictates of her heart she remembered the multitude of cases in which our Lord or the Virgin had appeared to many saints in the disguise of beggars. Her desire, mixed with fear, that something of this sort might happen in her case, impelled her to scrutinize with considerable care the faces of the poor. But as her own resources did not suffice for her attention to such numerous charities, she had to scheme in order to obtain money from her father, using a thousand innocent devices: one day asking it for a parasol, another for a clock, another for a case of scissors, etc., etc. She went to such extremes, however, that Don Mariano began to suspect the truth, and put a limit to his munificence. His daughter had impoverished him with the greatest innocence.
Carried away by her ardent charity, she likewise wanted to put herself to the test by caring for the sick; above all, for those who were suffering from disgusting diseases. She heard that a woman near her house was suffering from a sore breast, and she made the resolution to go every morning and dress it, and this she instantly put into practice; but at the very first visit, wishing to add what she had read in the history of Saint Catalina, that is, wishing to kiss the sick woman's sore, the loathing and horror which overcame her were so great that she grew faint, became very ill, and Genoveva had to take her in her arms and carry her home.
The poor girl attributed her misfortune not to the feebleness of her stomach, but to her lack of virtue, and she applied herself with increased anxiety to better her life.