Thank you for your kind, good, courageous letter – yes, “help uzelven en zoo helpt u God” help yourself, and Heaven will help you, as we say in English.

I must help myself, and I must have a stout heart, and pray to God to aid me, as who else will? I have – neither scrip, nor stock, nor stone, nor talents, nor friends, father, mother, brother, nor sister, nor home, nor beauty, nor riches, but I have much patience, and hope, and I’ll trust that a willing labourer who comes to the living place at the eleventh hour – will not be rejected, forsooth because he babbleth not as a “Rhetor” in Latin or Greekish tongue. For the harvest is great and the reapers are few, and the heat of the day is very great indeed. I either speak to the Rector (as I leave this place in two or three days) or else I’ll write to him such a letter in French. People seem to be always leaving your place, are the English such wanderers?p2I hope God will direct me into the way in which He wishes me to go, -He has indeed saved me from most terrible dangers of soul and body, my life is a rare and strange one, few pass through such trials of all sorts and degrees, and yet by God’s grace I have not fallen in the slippery path – so I think God has his designs on me.

I hope to see you, in a few days, and have a good serious “palaver” with you on many subjects, which I am anxious to hear your opinion about.

I must beg your pardon for forgetting about the books, I hope it did not inconvenience you too much – how stupid I am apt to forget little messages so soon. –

I often blame myself for forgetfulness in domestic matters.

I must try and amend – however I must say that the remark made, where you went, is not p3in the full spirit of true fraternal Christian charity, why blame an absent one? And for so slight a reason destroy his reputation -ah! the parable of the “mote and the beam in your neighbour’s eye.

“T’ yaer 30”[2] is making its way, just let it be in Flemish, what I consider “la Paix”[3] of Mr. Coomans to be in French, or better - give your readers good large general ideas, open up new catholic sources of union, of liberty, of fraternal handgrasping work, and be in the ranks of those who would shut up for ever in this land the “estaminet” “la loge” the house of ill fame and the government “bureau” and school, stir up the generous old Flemish blood, put some of the XIXth century steam into it – but don’t set it a-boiling over else you’ll scald your fingers.