The boy's eyes sparkled with new ambition. It was a favorite idea with him afterward, that every man ought to feel an honorable ambition to succeed as well as possible in his chosen path.
"One thing more," added Bates. "I don't think you have any right to become a sailor."
"No right? Oh, you mean because mother objects."
"That, certainly, ought to weigh with you as a good son; but I referred to something else."
"What then?"
"Do you remember the parable of the talents?"
James had been brought up by his mother, who was a devoted religious woman, to read the Bible, and he answered in the affirmative.
"It seems to me that you are responsible for the talents which God has bestowed upon you. If you have the ability or the brain, as you call it, to insure success in a literary career, don't you think you would throw yourself away if you became a sailor?"
Mrs. Garfield, who had listened with deep interest to the remarks of the young man, regarded James anxiously, to see what effect these arguments were having upon him. She did not fear disobedience. She knew that if she should make it a personal request, James was dutiful enough to follow her wishes; but she respected the personal independence of her children, and wanted to convince, rather than to coerce, them.
"If I knew positively that you were right in your estimate of me, Mr. Bates, I would go in for a course of study."