Hippanthigh: Mr. Sladder, I cannot alter my beliefs.
Sladder: Nobody asks you to. I only ask you to leave the bishop alone. He says one thing and you preach another whenever you get half a chance; it's enough to break up any firm.
Hippanthigh: Believing as I do that eternal punishment is incompatible with——
Sladder: Now, Mr. Hippanthigh, that's got to stop. I don't mind saying, now that I've given you What For, that you don't seem a bad young fellow: but my daughter's not going to marry on the bottom rung, and there's an end of that.
Hippanthigh: But, Mr. Sladder, can you bring yourself to believe in anything so terrible as eternal punishment, so contrary to——
Sladder: Me? No.
Hippanthigh: Then, how can you ask me to?
Sladder: That particular belief never happened to stand between me and the top of the tree. Many things did, but they're all down below me now, Mr. Hippanthigh, way down there (pointing) where I can hardly see them. You get off that bottom rung as I did years ago.
Hippanthigh: I cannot go back on all I've said.
Sladder: I don't want to make it hard for you. Only just say you believe in eternal punishment, and then give up talking about it. You may say it to me if you like. We'll have one other person present so that there's no going back on it, my daughter if you like. I'll let the bishop know, and he won't stand in your way any longer, but at present you force his hand. It's you or the rules of the firm.