At last Maggie‘s eyes glanced down on the books that lay on the windowshelf，and she half forsook her reverie to turn over listlessly the leaves of the “Portrait Gallery”；but she soon pushed this aside to examine the little row of books tied together with string.“Beauties of the Spectator”，“Rasselas”，“Economy of Human Life”，“Gregory’s Letters”，she knew the sort of matter that was inside all these；the “Christian Year”that seemed to be a hymnbook，and she laid it down again；but “Thomas àKempis”the name had come across her in her reading，and she felt the satisfaction，which every one knows，of getting some ideas to attach to a name that strays solitary in the memory.She took up the little，old，clumsy book with some curiosity；it had the corners turned down in many places，and some hand，now for ever quiet，had made at certain passages strong penandink marks，long since browned by time.Maggie turned from leaf to leaf，and read where the quiet hand pointed ...“Know that the love of thyself doth hurt thee more than anything in the world...If thou seekest this or that，and would‘st be here or there to enjoy thy own will and pleasure，thou shalt never be quiet nor free from care；for in everything somewhat will be wanting，and in every place there will be some that will cross thee...Both above and below，which way soever thou dost turn thee，everywhere thou shalt find the Cross；and everywhere of necessity thoumust have patience，if thou wilt have inward peace，and enjoy an everlasting crown...It is but little thou sufferest in comparison of them that have suffered so much，were so strongly tempted，so grievously afflicted，so many ways tried and exercised.Thou oughtest therefore to call to mind the more heavy sufferings of others，that thou mayest the easier bear thy little adversities.And if they seem not little unto thee，beware lest thy impatience be the cause thereof...Blessed are those ears that receive the whispers of the divine voice，and listen not to the whisperings of the world.Blessed are those ears which hearken not unto the voice which soundeth outwardly，but unto the Truth which teacheth inwardly...”
