"Yes."
"And you agree with that course of procedure?"
"Entirely."
"Yet I should so like to have things taken out of my hands sometimes, it would be ripping to feel, now and again, no sense of being in charge, so to speak, of one's own life; it is rather overpowering to know that everything depends on whether one says yes or no."
"And yet, my boy, there are many in the world, with larger responsibilities than yours are at present; think, for instance, of a great employer of labour who has to decide great things, affecting, perhaps, the welfare of both his employés and his business. Think of anyone in power, saying whether it shall be peace or war."
"But they have assistance in making up their minds."
"Certainly; it is there that we want you to differ from them, we wish you in all things to be able to decide for yourself; to know how to grasp the pros and cons, to weigh them one against the other, and give a decision."
"But will that be of use to me, should I enter diplomacy?"
"You can only wait and see."
"Not much longer, thank Heaven!"