"O very much! I can_not_ understand things."
"Well, wait a moment, and I will come to you."
Rotha straightened herself up, taking hope; set a chair for Mrs. Mowbray, and received her with a face already lightened of part of its shadow of care.
"It is this, Mrs. Mowbray. I was looking, as you told me, to see what I ought to do; and look here,—I came to this:—'That ye resist not evil.' Why? Is it not right to resist evil?"
"Read the passage; read the whole passage, to the end of the chapter."
Rotha read it; the verses she had been studying, and then, "Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour and hate thine enemy: but I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; that ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven:"—Rotha read on to the end of the chapter.
"My dear," said Mrs. Mowbray then, "do you think you could love your enemies and pray for them, if you were busy fighting and resisting them?"
"I do not know," said Rotha. "Perhaps not. I do not think it would be easy any way."
"It is not easy. Do you not see that it would be simply impossible to do the two things at once? You must take the one course or the other; either do your best to repel force with force, resist, struggle, go to law, give people what they deserve; or, you must go with your hands full of forgiveness and your heart full of kindness, passing by offence and even suffering wrong, if perhaps you may conquer evil with good, and win people with love, and so save them from great loss. It is worth bearing a little loss oneself to do that."
"But is it right to let people do wrong things and not stop them? Isn't it right to go to law?"