Bishop Hardbrooke.
Harry,
We've come to see if something can't be done
To end this controversy and bring peace,
An honorable peace to all concerned.
A permanent state of strife is far from pleasant.
There's nothing sadder in the life of man
Than to see towns disrupted, classes arrayed
Against each other, to say nothing, Harry,
Of this far dearer tie that's straining here,
That pains us all far more than we can tell.
We've often had these troubles in the Church,
Mostly in the past, of course, men differing
Upon some point of doctrine or government.
And my experience is that at the bottom
There's something that at first was overlooked,
Then, in the strife that followed, overwhelmed.
There's common ground, there must be in these things.
Look at the world; we pass along the street.
We don't confront each other and block the way.
Each yields a bit and so we all pass on.
And in relationships it must be the same.
We're one, my brother.
Ralph Ardsley.
Like our fingers here.
Bishop Hardbrooke.
And when we're not, when interests seem to clash,
It's just as sure as Death or anything
Some law of God is being tampered with.
And so we thought we'd come——
Ralph Ardsley.
Bishop Hardbrooke.
For, as you know, in town the feeling's growing
That there's a sword impending over us
Which the least breath will bring down on our heads.