Was I right?

by Mrs. O. F. Walton

To our surprise we found that we were not alone on the roof. An English gentleman was leaning over the parapet with a book in his hand, looking towards the sea. He turned round as we came up, and slipped his book into his pocket. I fancied that it was a Bible.

Sir William and the strange gentleman soon got into conversation about Brindisi and its surroundings, and he pointed out to us several objects of interest in the neighbourhood. He was not a very young man, though I fancied that he looked older than he really was. There was something in his face, when it was at rest, which made me think that he had been through a great deal of trouble, and yet, when he smiled, his whole face was lighted up in a moment, and he looked perfectly different. He was not exactly a handsome man, and yet his was a face which, having once seen, you could never forgot, and which you could not help liking. That was my first impression of Mr. Stanley, so far as I can now remember.

Sir William was very charmed with him, and said afterwards that he had seldom met such a well-read, sensible man. We sat together on the roof, and Evelyn and I acted the part of listeners, whilst the two gentlemen talked.

"You are going to Jerusalem, I think," said Mr. Stanley, as Sir William was unfolding his plans to him; "I have been there several times."

This led to many inquiries on Sir William's part about the accommodation to be found in Jerusalem, etc. etc. But Evelyn and I wondered very much how Mr. Stanley knew that we were going to Jerusalem. Could he have heard us reading that Psalm, and saying that it was soon to be true of us?

"I am afraid you will be disappointed in Jerusalem," said Mr. Stanley, turning to us; "you must remember that though it is still 'beautiful for situation,' yet Jerusalem is no longer 'the joy of the whole earth.' It is, indeed, beautiful at a distance, and every one is charmed who sees it for the first time; but when you go inside the walls, and know it well, you cannot help feeling depressed and saddened."

"But there are brighter days coming for Jerusalem," I ventured to say.

"Yes, indeed," said Mr. Stanley, "Jerusalem will be a hundredfold more than she ever was before—the City of the Great King."

But Sir William always regarded the study of prophecy as a mixture of presumption and romance, and he quickly led the conversation into a different channel; but I longed to hear what Mr. Stanley's views were about the return of the Jews and the restoration of Jerusalem.

That evening we went on board the steamer which was to take us to Alexandria. There were a great many first-class passengers, and we had some difficulty in obtaining a cabin to ourselves. At length Sir William managed to secure a small one for Evelyn and me, in which there were only two berths, and as soon as table d'hôte was over, we went to our cabin.