"Then I took the bat. 'Truth often changes, but error is eternal,' I said. 'You know when you want to prove anything, these days, you quote from the memoirs of a great man. Well, I was reading the memoirs of the late Doctor Godfrey Vogeldam Guph not long ago. He told of a man who was very singular, but not so singular as the doctor seemed to think. This man knew more than any human being has a right to know. He knew the plans of God, and had formed an unalterable opinion about all his neighbors. Then he locked up his mind and guarded it night and day, for fear that somebody would break in and carry off its contents. And it did seem as if people wanted to get hold of his treasure, for they often came and asked about it, and some even questioned its value. He said, "Away with you--truth is eternal, and my soul is full and I will part with none of it." "'Meanwhile the truth about things around him began to change. Neighbor Smith became a good man. Neighbor Brown became a bad man. Priscilla Jones, who had been a vain and foolish woman, was one of the saints of God. The foundations of the world had changed. In a generation it had grown millions of years older and different--wonderfully different! Even God himself had changed, it would seem. His methods were not as people had thought them. His character was milder. Everything had changed but this one man. Now when he died and came to St. Peter, the latter said to him: "'"Who were your friends?" "'The new-comer thought a minute, and mentioned the names of some people who had been long dead. "They know the truth about me," he said. "'"Ah, but the truth changes, and they haven't seen you in many years," said St. Peter. "'"But I have not changed," said the man. "I am just as when they saw me." "'"Then you are a fool or the chief of sinners," said St. Peter. "Behold a man as changeless as the flint-stone, who has made no friends in over forty years! That is all I need to know about you. Take either gate you please." "'"One leads to Heaven--doesn't it?" said the new-comer, in great alarm. "'"Yes, but you wouldn't recognize the place. There isn't a soul in paradise that cares which way you go--not a soul in all its multitude that will be glad to see you. They have better company. Stranger! go which way you please, Heaven will be as uncomfortable as hell." "Deacon Joe gave me close attention, and I saw that my sword had nicked him a little. Anything that affected his hope of Paradise was sure to engage his thought. He shook his head, and said that he didn't believe it. But he couldn't fool me. I knew that the seed of change had struck into him. "I gave him another thrust. 'Deacon, you knew Harry Delance when he was a fool. But the truth about _him_ has changed. He is now a hard-working, level-headed young fellow, and you ought to be his friend.'