Malden leaves Sympathy and his baby and lives with Mate Snow, occupying two rooms over the drug store.
The village wonders but Mate Snow seemingly takes the part of Malden. Nobody, of course, suspects his villainy.
The Minister tries to “convert” Yen Sin, the Chinaman, and motivation for this struggle goes back to the antecedent period (first paragraphs) when the minister had voyaged to heathen shores to work in “the field.” (Notice the reason given for his return, and observe that the earthly and divine loves were even then at odds in his make-up.)
Step in Chronological Order (but held back until the outcome): Yen Sin receives collars from Sam Kow on which Sam informs him of the exchange of letters and money. This correspondence keeps up for seven years.
Further Steps: Yen Sin keeps his own reserve and his own religion.
One evening Minister Malden fails to show up at prayer-meeting. Mate Snow presides. The boy creeps off to the pillar-house, where Sympathy lives. He sees
1. That Minister Malden enters. 2. That Yen Sin also sees. The boy makes a visit of a month. He returns to find Mate Snow the big man of the village. Yen Sin has grown older and feebler.
Dramatic Climax: Yen Sin is dying: he asks for the Minister. (It is from the Chinaman’s death that the change of Malden’s fortunes arises.)
Steps following immediately, and leading directly to climax of action.—The boy enters the church to see Snow in the pulpit; he stammers out the Chinaman’s need for the Minister. Snow answers the call. The boy hates Snow; he continues to look for Malden. He goes to the pillar-house. He looks beneath a drawn shade and sees Malden receiving five hundred dollars from Sympathy; he hears her say, “It brings us to the end, Will.” He hears the Minister thanking God it’s Mate Snow who holds the mortgage. But Sympathy declares that Mate has “sucked the life” out of Malden. The boy screams out that the Chinaman is dying. Then he rushes off to the scow of Yen Sin. Now follows the struggle of wills, and of races; Chinaman is pitted against American, in the
Impulse of Final Suspense: The boy hears Snow enjoining the Chinaman to confess. Yen Sin calls for his collars, and as they lie curling about him, he mildly asks for Snow’s confession. Snow finally confesses, “I have coveted my neighbor’s wife.” Here Malden enters. He reveals that Gibbs is alive, and to save his child, he has paid hush-money. (See above.) He has promised to stay away from wife and child, but has gone to them in secret. This is his confession. Then Yen Sin reveals what Sam Kow has written from Infield—on the collars—Malden has paid money.... Here Snow goes mad, fearing exposure, and blurts out enough to show it is he who has demanded the money. Yen Sin points out that at any time “Mista God” would have accepted confession, “makee allee light.” Minister Malden begins to comprehend.