"Driven out? Who said I was driven out?"
"But Adam was driven out of the garden."
"Oh, yes, of course. I merely spoke of the Garden of Eden for the reason that Adam's claim on it was only sentimental, if I may call it such. I mean that I owned the good opinion of every man in the state. I could have had anything within the gift of the commonwealth."
"Then, why didn't you go to the Senate, or elect yourself governor? Why were you so thoughtless a prodigal of your influence?"
"That's a nice question to ask a man. Why didn't you buy an acre in this town that would have made you worth millions? Why didn't I go to the Senate? I had something else on my mind. Every man is not ambitious to hold office. There's something higher than politics. I was educated for a different sphere of action. I was, as you know, educated for a preacher, but my faith slipped from under me. But it is of no use to talk to you."
"Not much, William, I admit."
"But can't you tell me why this peculiar change has come over you? It worries me, and you know why."
The Judge made a gesture. "Don't—it's not that. My mind is perfectly sound."
"Then, what's the trouble?"
"I can't tell you."